Former prosecutors say blockbuster January 6 testimony increases Trump's criminal exposure  —  (CNN)Cassidy Hutchinson's testimony before the House select committee this week increased the criminal exposure former President Donald Trump faces in the Justice Department's ongoing January 6, 2021, investigation.

Senate Democrats see ‘major progress’ on Biden agenda bill, hope for July vote  —  Schumer and Manchin are close to a deal on prescription drug savings, new details obtained by NBC News show.  They're also negotiating energy and tax provisions in the bill.  —  WASHINGTON — Senate Democrats …

Biden Reportedly Plans to Appoint Anti-Abortion Kentucky Judge to Lifetime Seat  —  Biden reportedly made a deal with Mitch McConnell to screw over pregnant people less than a week after Roe v. Wade was overturned.  —  Alerts  —  Less than a week after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade …

Putin: Western leaders would look ‘disgusting’ topless  —  MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin shot back at Western leaders who mocked his athletic exploits, saying they would look “disgusting” if they tried to emulate his bare-torso appearances.

There's no foreign oil bailout for Joe Biden  —  Reporters were sitting a bit too close by when French President Emmanuel Macron broke the bad news to President Joe Biden.  —  “I had a call with [Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan],” Macron said to Biden, referring to the leader of the United Arab Emirates.

‘Italygate’ Conspiracy Pusher Was Fired by CIA  —  SpyTalk's new ‘Live Drop’ feature highlights on Bradley Johnson and other intelligence items of interest  —  The Live Drop  —  Bradley Johnson, Agent 006  —  The former CIA man at the heart of “Italygate,” the pro-Trump …

The Pandemic Is Waning.  Anthony Fauci Has a Few More Lessons to Share.  —  America's most famous doctor on mitigating covid, giving your adversaries the benefit of the doubt and working way too much  —  You gotta f—ing suck it up," Anthony Fauci tells me from the deck of his home in Washington …

Russia and China slam NATO after alliance raises alarm  —  MADRID (AP) — NATO faced rebukes from Moscow and Beijing on Thursday after it declared Russia a “direct threat” and said China posed “serious challenges ” to global stability.  —  The Western military alliance was wrapping up a summit in Madrid …

The Daily Wire, Which Now Boasts 890,000 Paid Subscribers, Signs Jordan Peterson To Its New DailyWire+  —  Over the past three months, The Daily Wire has added tens of thousands of new paying subscribers — pushing the overall subscriber number for the conservative news and media empire founded …

Two workers fired for not attending company's prayers, lawsuit says  —  Two North Carolina workers allege they were fired for not participating in daily company prayer sessions, according to a lawsuit filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on Monday.

Multimillionaire American Podiatrist Co-Owns Pro-Kremlin Propaganda Website  —  The podiatrist, Dr. Vladimir Zeetser, owns a minority share of DRN Media, the company behind the Duran, a website promoting false conspiracy theories echoing Russian state messaging.

The rot runs deeper  —  What the actions of an obscure Wisconsin political appointee tell us about GOP democratic backsliding  —  The January 6th hearings have illustrated the deep threats to American democracy such that only the most die-hard Trumpists can deny them.

Behind the Scenes, McKinsey Guided Companies at the Center of the Opioid Crisis  —  The consulting firm offered clients “in-depth experience in narcotics,” from poppy fields to pills more powerful than Purdue's OxyContin.  —  In patches of rural Appalachia and the Rust Belt …

Antiabortion lawmakers want to block patients from crossing state lines  —  Some advocacy groups and their allies are crafting legislative language that could be adopted in Republican-led state capitals.  —  Several national antiabortion groups and their allies in Republican-led state legislatures …

1955 warrant in Emmett Till case found, family seeks arrest  —  JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A team searching a Mississippi courthouse basement for evidence about the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till has found the unserved warrant charging a white woman in his 1955 kidnapping …

Karine's tough debut  —  Welcome to POLITICO's West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration.  —  It's been a rocky first month for White House press secretary KARINE JEAN-PIERRE.  —  Her answers have baffled reporters, and even made some of her White House colleagues wince.