Live Updates: Putin Prepares Decision on Breakaway Ukraine Regions  —  President Vladimir V. Putin said he would decide by day's end whether to recognize the independence of Luhansk and Donetsk.  U.S. officials worry that Russia could use such a recognition to move more forces in.

How Donald Trump Played Himself  —  Donald Trump has survived multiple investigations by following the same playbook: blasting them as “witch hunts” and refusing to testify under oath.  His strategy backfired last week, as a New York state judge ordered him and two of his children to sit for depositions in 21 days.

Biden needs a Trump substitute  —  Searching for a strategy to avoid a 2022 midterm disaster, advisers to President Biden have discussed elevating a unifying Republican foil not named Donald Trump. … - Biden isn't on the ballot in November. … - Biden advisers and Hill allies told Axios voters …

‘Something Went Wrong’: Trump's Twitter Ripoff Suffers Bumpy Launch  —  Would-be users of Trump's new app merely struggled to create an account after Sunday night's launch.  —  Team Trump has been cooking up its own social network ever since the then-president was thrown off all major platforms for his posts inciting the Capitol riot.

Who is dying of COVID?  It's still mainly the unvaccinated  —  Recent CDC data shows unvaccinated people are 20 times more likely to die.  —  When the recent COVID-19 wave fueled by the omicron variant hit the U.S., no one expected it would lead to the number of deaths it did.

Voters would cut grocery tax; require vaccines for first responders, teachers, medical pros but not for students; keep teaching impact of racism on society, not ban CRT  —  Summary of Key Findings  — A majority of Virginia voters prefer spending the state budget surplus …

Democrats are engaged in a ‘new politics of evasion’ that could cost them in 2024, new study says … Three decades ago, Democratic policy analysts William A. Galston and Elaine Kamarck published a bracing critique of their party, warning against a “politics of evasion” that they said ignored electoral reality …

Flush with cash, states eye tax cutting spree  —  Less than a year after Democrats approved a half-trillion dollars in aid to state and local governments, many are now considering cutting taxes.  —  In red states as well as purple and blue ones, governors and state legislators are contemplating …

Nearly half of Washingtonians don't like Commanders name, Post poll finds  —  Washington hasn't warmed up to the Commanders just yet.  —  According to a citywide Washington Post poll, close to half of D.C. residents have a negative view of the team's new name, with 32 percent disliking it and 17 percent saying they “hate” it.

GOP attorney general hopefuls seek to overturn landmark contraception law, want election ‘audit’  —  It may have been the last question of last week's debate for the three men seeking the GOP nomination for Michigan attorney general, but the inquiry seeking their stances on a 1965 Supreme Court ruling has garnered the most attention.

Havana Syndrome: High-level national security officials stricken with unexplained illness on White House grounds  —  Since 2016, U.S. government officials overseas and their families have reported sudden, unexplained, brain injuries with symptoms of vertigo, confusion and memory loss.

This Is How Big Pharma Wins  —  Two years into the pandemic, the industry has evaded reforms a supermajority of voters want.  —  On September 19, 2019, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi introduced the Elijah Cummings Lower Drug Costs Now Act.  The bill, known as H.R. 3, was a shot across the bow …

Bice: U.S. Senate candidate Mandela Barnes favors eliminating cash bail nationally, aide says  —  Amid the recent furor over major crimes apparently committed by defendants out on low bail, Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes is standing his ground.  —  Barnes, the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination …

The Next Affordable City Is Already Too Expensive  —  In Spokane, Wash., home prices jumped 60 percent in the past two years.  The increase is fueled by buyers fleeing the boom in cities like Austin.  Who will have to flee next?  —  Maybe it was the date night when he and his wife spent …