Inside Ted Cruz's last-ditch battle to keep Trump in power … Sen. Ted Cruz was dining near the Capitol on the evening of Dec. 8, 2020, when he received an urgent call from President Donald Trump.  A lawsuit had just been filed at the Supreme Court designed to overturn the election Trump had lost …

Roman Abramovich and Ukrainian Peace Negotiators Suffer Symptoms of Suspected Poisoning  —  The Russian oligarch and others developed symptoms they blamed on hard-liners in Moscow who they say want to sabotage talks to end the war  —  Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich and Ukrainian peace …

Is Ginni Thomas's Story Believable?  —  Virginia Thomas wants people to believe that her husband, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, had no idea about her activities challenging the results of the 2020 election.  —  “Clarence doesn't discuss his work with me, and I don't involve him in my work …

Poll: Americans want tougher sanctions on Russia over Ukraine invasion  —  A majority of Americans believe President Biden has not been “tough enough” on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine but are concerned about the U.S. being drawn into an all-out war with Russia, according to a poll published …

Biden requests $813B for national defense  —  The White House asked Congress for $813 billion for national defense on Monday — including $773 billion for the Pentagon, or $30 billion more than approved by Congress for this year.  —  The full details of the plan will be released Monday afternoon …

Why Trump Says He ‘Just Might Have to’ Run Again  —  He doesn't want to be remembered as a loser, sure—but he also fears prosecution.  —  At a rally on Saturday in Commerce, Georgia, Donald Trump all but announced his 2024 run for president as he lobbed more verbal missiles …

The Revenge of the Normal Republicans  —  HELOTES, Texas—Last spring, having just retired from Congress, Will Hurd was feeling adrift.  He had agreed to write a book, telling his remarkable life story and diagnosing a malfunctioning political system, all while teasing out a run for the presidency in 2024 …

First look: Biden to ask Congress to fund the police  —  President Biden will propose more than $32 billion in new spending to fight crime, two White House officials familiar with his 2023 budget plans tells Axios, putting a price tag on his State of the Union call to fund — not defund — the police.

Prosecutors Advance Tax Probe of Hunter Biden  —  Grand jury heard witness in February about past drug use, spending habits of president's son  —  A federal tax investigation into Hunter Biden is gaining momentum as prosecutors gather information from several of his associates about the sources …

Hochul Has Commanding Lead Over Williams & Suozzi with Dems; With Cuomo in Race, Hochul Leads 38-30%, Other Two Way Behind  — 56% of Voters Say Bail Reform Law Has Been Bad for NY; 64% Say it Has Resulted in Crime Increase; 82% Say Give Judges More Discretion; 56% Concerned Discretion Will Result in Poor Being Unjustly Incarcerated

For red and blue America, a glaring divide in COVID-19 death rates persists 2 years later  —  Post-vaccine, death rates in red states were 38% higher than in blue states.  —  Political polarization in the U.S. was evident and intensifying long before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, two years ago.

Putin shouldn't remain in power.  Biden's advisers blew it.  —  No civilized person thinks it's a good thing that Russian President Vladimir Putin — widely and correctly regarded as a war criminal and the architect of a unjustifiable war of aggression — leads a nuclear-armed country.

Can James bring Trump down?  —  With Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg and the ex-lead prosecutor investigating Donald Trump's business dealings reportedly at odds over whether the former president could be found guilty of felony charges, the state's attorney general now has the best chance …

War with Russia?  Finland has a plan for that  —  For decades, the country has harnessed every level of society to prepare for the possibility of conflict with its neighbour  —  If the worst fears of Europe are realised and the conflict in Ukraine spreads across the continent to other neighbours of Russia, then Finland will be ready.

Boris Nemtsov Tailed by FSB Squad Prior to 2015 Murder  — Previously, Bellingcat and partners discovered that a secret FSB squad had followed Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny during his presidential campaign in 2017, and in the days and months before he was poisoned in 2020.

Applebee's Tone-Deaf Franchise Executive Giddily Says He Can Pay Lower Wages Because Of Inflation And Higher Gas Prices  —  The working and middle classes are having a hard time.  Runaway inflation, hitting record highs, serves as a vicious cruel tax.  Everything from food to gas prices has surged.

When Nokia Pulled Out of Russia, a Vast Surveillance System Remained  —  The Finnish company played a key role in enabling Russia's cyberspying, documents show, raising questions of corporate responsibility.  —  Nokia said this month that it would stop its sales in Russia and denounced the invasion of Ukraine.

SEE IT: Culture war themes take center stage at 2022 Oscars  —  Oscar hosts Amy Schumer, Regina Hall, and Wanda Sykes joined forces to open the 2022 Academy Awards Sunday as culture war themes often took center stage.  —  The ladies' opening monologue took aim at Sen. Mitch McConnell …