Accounting Firm Cuts Ties With Trump and Retracts Financial Statements  —  The firm, Mazars USA, said in a letter that it could no longer stand behind the annual statements, which are central to an investigation by the New York attorney general.  —  Donald J. Trump's longtime accounting firm cut ties …

Judge throws out Palin libel case against New York Times  —  A judge has ruled that a libel lawsuit former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin filed against the New York Times over a 2017 editorial should be thrown out because her lawyers failed to produce adequate evidence that the newspaper knew …

Manchin clarifies: He'd oppose second high court nominee right before presidential election  —  Centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on Monday said he would not support confirming another nominee selected by President Biden for the Supreme Court immediately before the 2024 presidential election …

Federal government invokes Emergencies Act for first time ever in response to protests  —  Act grants cabinet ability to take ‘special temporary measures that may not be appropriate in normal times’  —  CBC News Special: PM Invokes Emergencies Act  —  Join CBC News live for special coverage starting …

EXCLUSIVE Russian mercenaries with spy links increasing presence in Ukraine … Russian mercenaries with ties to Moscow's spies have increased their presence in Ukraine in recent weeks, stoking fears among some NATO members that Russia could try to engineer a pretext for an invasion, three senior Western security sources said.

Snoop Dogg smokes weed right before star-studded Super Bowl 2022 halftime show  —  Before taking the stage for Sunday's epic Super Bowl 2022 halftime show, Snoop Dogg had something of a pregame warmup.  —  In a video currently making the rounds on social media, Snoop is seen smoking …

Pastor Resigns After Incorrectly Performing Thousands of Baptisms  —  The pastor of a Catholic church in Phoenix changed one word in administering the sacrament, rendering baptisms performed there invalid, the church said.  —  The Rev. Andres Arango was leading a baptism at St. Gregory Catholic Church …

Russian units near Ukraine moved into “attack positions,” official says  —  Russia has moved some long-range artillery and rocket launchers into firing position, threatening Ukraine, according to a U.S. official.  —  Some Russian units have left their assembly areas …

West megadrought worsens to driest in at least 1,200 years  —  Western Megadrought Record  —  The American West's megadrought deepened so much last year that it is now the driest in at least 1,200 years and is a worst-case climate change scenario playing out live, a new study finds.

Of course they spied on Trump  —  OF COURSE THEY SPIED ON TRUMP.  One of the most contentious claims Donald Trump ever made was his insistence that he had been the target of spying.  He made the charge in several different ways.  For example, in March 2017, Trump, just two months in office, tweeted, “Terrible!

Maryland Nuclear Engineer Pleads Guilty to Espionage-Related Offense  —  A Maryland man pleaded guilty today to conspiracy to communicate restricted data related to the design of nuclear-powered warships to a person he believed was a representative of a foreign nation.

Hackers Just Leaked the Names of 92,000 ‘Freedom Convoy’ Donors  —  GiveSendGo, the Christian crowdfunding site that helped raise $8.7 million for the anti-vax “freedom convoy” in Canada, was hacked on Sunday night.  —  DG  —  The Christian crowdfunding site that helped raise $8.7 million for the anti-vax …

Is Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez an Insider Now?  —  After three years in the halls of power, she's seen the “shit show” up close—and hasn't given up on her vision for how to change it. … Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democrat representing parts of Queens and the Bronx (including Rikers Island) …

Ukraine president says he's been told Russia will attack Wednesday  —  Ukraine president warns Russian attack will come Wednesday  —  Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that his government has been told that Wednesday, Feb. 16, will be “the day of attack” when Russia invades Ukraine.

Sources: Savino will decline to seek re-election for North Shore Senate seat  —  STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Sources said Monday that State Sen. Diane Savino will not seek re-election, and for the first time in over a decade, Staten Island's North Shore will have a new person in that seat.

Police: Mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg shot at inside Butchertown office  —  1 of 11  —  LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Craig Greenberg, a Democratic candidate for Louisville mayor, was unhurt after someone shot at him in his office at the Butchertown Market Monday morning, police said.

Democrats, Speak to Working-Class Discontent  —  It's the one way to mobilize Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians, not just white workers.  —  America is at a perilous moment when a Trump-led Republican Party is steaming ahead to knock down every guardrail protecting free elections.

Art Spiegelman Loses His Glasses  —  As the latest fight over Maus erupts, its artist-creator searches for his spectacles.  —  Okay, so here's the thing," Art Spiegelman says into the phone as he paces his cavernous Soho studio, humming with anxiety. “  I don't know what happened.

San Francisco police linked a woman to a crime using DNA from her rape exam, D.A. Boudin says  —  The San Francisco police crime lab has been entering sexual assault victims' DNA profiles in a database used to identify suspects in crimes, District Attorney Chesa Boudin said Monday …

Black Lives Matter's missing billions  —  More and more questions are being raised about BLM's finances.  —  The Black Lives Matter movement has raised billions of dollars over the past several years.  But no one seems to know how most of that money has been spent.

GOP congresswoman attacks transgender student-athlete in Senate campaign ad  —  Missouri Rep. Vicky Hartzler is a longtime opponent of LGBTQ rights.  —  Long before her 2010 election to Congress, Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-MO) earned a reputation as one of her state's most outspoken opponents of LGBTQ equality.

Mr. President, It's Time for a Little Humility  —  Mr. Axelrod was the senior strategist on Barack Obama's 2008 campaign.  Later, as senior adviser to the president, he helped shape several presidential addresses to Congress.  —  Right now, the White House is gearing up for the president's first State of the Union address.

SF school board recall vote is tomorrow and turnout looks low  —  As Jazz pointed out last week, the San Francisco school board recall vote takes place tomorrow.  The recall is taking place at the same time as a State Assembly race.  Supporters of the three school board members who are facing …