Ukrainian rebels to evacuate civilians to Russia amid crisis  —  KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Separatists in eastern Ukraine announced Friday they are evacuating civilians to Russia, as spiking tensions in the region aggravated Western fears of a Russian invasion of Ukraine and a new war in Europe.

Durham Distances Himself From Furor in Right-Wing Media Over Filing  —  The special counsel implicitly acknowledged that White House internet data he discussed, which conservative outlets have portrayed as proof of spying on the Trump White House, came from the Obama era.

The latest conservative to join the resistance?  Ted Cruz's mentor  —  It's been a measure of former federal Judge J. Michael Luttig's stature in the conservative legal movement that Supreme Court justices hired so many of his law clerks — 40 over 15 years.

EXCLUSIVE: GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy Endorses Top Cheney Opponent Harriet Hageman In Wyoming  —  Opposition to hand-picked Pelosi lieutenant Liz Cheney is uniting the GOP's establishment and voter base.  —  House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy made history on Thursday by endorsing …

Dean Baquet Never Wanted to Be an Editor  —  Ahead of his expected retirement, the Times' executive editor reflects on his newsroom's unprecedented growth, Twitter's influence on journalism, and the time he punched a hole in a wall.  —  When Dean Baquet took over as the executive editor of the Times …

The Ottawa Trucker Protest Is Both Giddy and Terrifying  —  OTTAWA — When I asked Matthew Wall, a 36-year-old electrician from Manitoba, what brought him to this city, which has been overwhelmed by a giant protest encampment, he answered with one word: “Mushrooms.”

Squad politics backfire  —  The hard-left politics of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and the so-called “Squad,” once a dominant theme for vast numbers of elected Democrats, is backfiring big-time on the party in power, top Democrats tell us. … - “It's a huge problem.”

Phil Mickelson will deal with Saudis to pressure PGA Tour  —  LOS ANGELES — Even though the Saudi Arabian government has been accused of myriad human rights violations by watchdog groups around the world, Phil Mickelson says he is willing to get involved with a Saudi-financed breakaway golf league to have leverage with the PGA Tour.

Celebs Backed BLM Fund That Bailed Out a BLM Assassin  —  The creator of “Hamilton,” rappers, actors, and TV stars all donated.  —  [Order David Horowitz's latest book, 'I Can't Breathe: How a Racial Hoax is Killing America': CLICK HERE.]  —  Daniel Greenfield, a Shillman Journalism Fellow …

Democrats' internal polling shows swing voters believe party went ‘too far’ on COVID  —  The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is concerned that Republican attacks on the Democrats' handling of the COVID-19 pandemic have “alarming credibility,” according to a slide deck obtained by SFGATE.

Minnesota Rep. Hagedorn dies of cancer  —  Rep. Jim Hagedorn (R-Minn.) has died after a two-year-long battle with kidney cancer, his wife announced Friday morning.  —  Hagedorn, 59, had served in Congress since 2019, after winning a district along his state's southern border with Iowa.

N.Y. Attorney General Can Question Trump and 2 Children, Judge Rules  —  Former President Donald J. Trump and two of his children had sought to block Letitia James, the attorney general, from interviewing them under oath.  —  The New York attorney general can question Donald J. Trump …

Child poverty spiked by 41 percent in January after Biden benefit program expired, study finds … The number of American children in poverty spiked dramatically in January after the expiration of President Biden's expanded child benefit at the end of last year, according to new research released on Thursday.

Red Covid, an Update  —  The partisan gap in Covid deaths is still growing, but more slowly.  —  Ocean County, in central New Jersey, is a mixture of beach towns like Barnegat Light and exurban towns like Toms River and Lakewood.  Household income in the county exceeds the U.S. average.

For the first time, fewer than half of Americans have an unwavering faith in God  —  Data from the General Social Survey plots the rise of a more secular nation  —  Back in 1993, two-thirds of American adults told pollsters from the General Social Survey they “know God really exists” and had “no doubts about it.”

Cuomo sued for sexual harassment after string of legal victories  —  Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo is being sued for sexual harassment by a state trooper following a recent string of legal victories that saw all charges against him dismissed.  —  Cuomo asked the unidentified trooper personal questions …

Not Even $200 a Barrel: Shale Giants Swear They Won't Drill More  —  The Texas wildcatters that ushered in America's shale revolution are resisting the temptation to pump more oil as the market rallies, signaling higher gasoline prices for consumers already battered by the worst inflation in a generation.

Trump Directed $375,000 In Donations To His Own Building To Rent An Unused Office  —  “It's a huge scam,” said a former aide, and the total exceeds what Trump donated to Republican candidates - the supposed purpose behind his committees.  —  By S.V. Date  —  NEW YORK ― …

Facebook whistleblower alleges executives misled investors about climate, covid hoaxes in new SEC complaints … A pair of whistleblower complaints filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission this month allege Facebook misled investors about its efforts to combat climate change …

Philadelphia mothers who lost children to gun violence don't want us to look away  —  From the mouths of mothers  —  In their own words, seven moms whose children were killed by gun violence share what they've lost.  — By Helen Ubiñas Published