Santos, a Suburban House and $11,000 in Campaign Payments for ‘Rent’  —  Representative-elect George Santos, under scrutiny after fabricating much of his résumé, also spent campaign funds on $40,000 worth of air travel.  —  The company was called Cleaner 123 …

Misogynist Influencer Andrew Tate's Rough Week Capped by Romanian Rape Arrest  —  Romanian officials said four suspects were arrested Thursday on allegations of organized crime, human trafficking and rape.  —  Just a day after being roasted by teen activist Greta Thunberg …

Key findings from the latest Jan. 6 panel transcripts, including from Donald Trump Jr. and others  —  The House January 6 committee on Thursday released a new batch transcripts, including interviews with Donald Trump Jr., former Trump White House aides and others.

What's Gone at Twitter?  A Data Center, Janitors, Some Toilet Paper.  —  Elon Musk has reduced the company to a bare-bones operation, and employees are under a “zero-based budgeting” mandate to justify any spending.  —  Kate Conger, Ryan Mac and Mike Isaac have reported on Elon Musk and Twitter since early this year.

Hard-Line Positions by Russia and Ukraine Dim Hope for Peace Talks  —  Both Moscow and Kyiv say they are ready to talk, but their terms for sitting down at a negotiating table suggest otherwise.  —  As the battle for Ukraine turns into a bloody, mile-by-mile fight in numbing cold …

How Southwest Airlines Melted Down  —  Airline executives and labor leaders point to inadequate technology systems as one reason why a brutal winter storm turned into a debacle  —  When Southwest Airlines Co. LUV 3.70%increase; green up pointing triangle reassigns crews after flight disruptions …

Pelé, the Global Face of Soccer, Dies at 82  —  Pelé, who was declared a national treasure in his native Brazil, achieved worldwide celebrity and helped popularize the sport in the United States.  —  Pelé, one of soccer's greatest players and a transformative figure …

Chinese Jet Buzzed Air Force Plane From Just 20 Feet Away, US Says  —  A Chinese fighter plane flew within 20 feet (6 meters) of a US Air Force reconnaissance aircraft over the South China Sea in what the US Indo-Pacific Command called “an unsafe maneuver.”  —  The unusually close encounter happened …

Virgin Islands suit accuses JPMorgan of turning ‘blind eye’ to Epstein trafficking  —  The U.S. Virgin Islands filed a suit this week against JPMorgan Chase, accusing the financial institution of turning a “blind eye” and aiding in the “concealment” of the late Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking crimes.

Kris Mayes wins attorney general race over Abe Hamadeh after recount, but margin narrows  —  Attorney General-elect Kris Mayes retained her lead over Abe Hamadeh in a recount in one of the tightest races ever in Arizona history, but her winning margin narrowed significantly in results announced Thursday morning.

Lawyers exit Hong Kong as they face campaign of intimidation  —  Hong Kong's human rights lawyers are fleeing abroad amid an effort to cleanse the city of dissent.  The pressure is part of a wider crackdown by the ruling Communist Party on lawyers across China, say activists, legal scholars and diplomats.

Florida official tapped to lead Arkansas education agency  —  Incoming Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Thursday named a top Florida schools official as her pick to lead the state's education agency, the latest signal of the direction of the Republican's nascent administration.

White House to Jim Jordan, James Comer: Sorry, but you have to restart your oversight requests  —  The Biden White House launched its first major broadside in response to incoming House Republicans likely to spearhead aggressive oversight of the administration.