Biden's presidency is halfway over — if voters have common sense  —  As of Friday, President Joe Biden will have been in office for two years.  That puts him at the halfway point of his first term, and if the people exercise common sense next year and vote Biden out, Friday will also be the halfway point of Biden's presidency.

Judge Orders Trump and Lawyer to Pay Nearly $1 Million for Bogus Suit  —  In a scathing ruling, the judge said the suit against Hillary Clinton and dozens of the former president's perceived political enemies was “brought in bad faith for an improper purpose.”

Principals  —  with Steve Clemons  —  What's everyone joking about at Davos?  George Santos, of course.  At a marquee event hosted by Lally Weymouth and the Washington Post, Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein quipped that the congressman couldn't join the World Economic Forum …

Trump to GOP: Don't touch Medicare or Social Security in debt ceiling fight  —  Former President Donald Trump issued a warning to Republican lawmakers on Friday: Don't lay a finger on entitlement programs as part of the debt ceiling showdown with the White House.

No more sliced cheese, white rice under proposed Iowa SNAP bill  —  Iowa House Republicans are proposing restrictions on the state's SNAP benefits that could dramatically limit what foods recipients can get at the store. … Nearly 40 House Republicans have co-sponsored the bill.

3 Active-Duty Marines Who Work in Intelligence Arrested for Alleged Participation in Jan. 6 Riot  —  Three Marines were arrested Wednesday for their participation in the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, according to court documents unsealed Thursday.

Ruben Gallego Set to Launch Senate Campaign Against Kyrsten Sinema  —  Arizona Representative Ruben Gallego, a former Marine combat veteran who was critical of Senator Kyrsten Sinema's leadership and fidelity to the Democratic Party long before she announced she was leaving it to become an independent …

CIA director holds secret meeting with Zelensky on Russia's next steps  —  High-level visit by Burns comes at critical juncture in war and as government in Kyiv airs concern about durability of U.S. support  —  CIA Director William J. Burns traveled in secret to Ukraine's capital at the end …

Andrew Tate: Romania court extends police detention for influencer and brother  —  Influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan are to stay in custody until 27 February after a Romanian court extended their detention by police.  —  The pair are being investigated over allegations …

Va. Sen. Tim Kaine says he will seek another term  —  Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) announced Friday he plans to seek a third term, sending a wave of relief through the Democratic Party amid worries that he would retire and create a potential opening for Republicans.

D.C. Mayor to Biden: Your Teleworking Employees Are Killing My City  —  At the swearing-in this month for her third term as the District of Columbia's mayor, Muriel Bowser delivered a surprising inaugural-address ultimatum of sorts to the federal government: Get your employees back to in-person work …

FAA NOTAM Statement  —  FAA STATEMENT 7:15 p.m. EST  —  A preliminary FAA review of last week's outage of the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system determined that contract personnel unintentionally deleted files while working to correct synchronization between the live primary database and a backup database.

The Lawsuit That Could Freeze Speech Against Billionaires  —  Since Elon Musk took over Twitter, the national debate over free speech has narrowly focused on tech companies' social media censorship.  But offline in a Texas court, a lawsuit could send an intimidating message to political candidates across …

The Super Shady Coverup of the Paul Pelosi Story Is Worse Than You Thought  —  Remember when the Paul Pelosi story was big news for a while, then weird things started coming out, and then suddenly everyone stopped talking about it?  —  Yeah, I do.  —  Back in October, the story came …

Dark money group linked to Leonard Leo is dissolved  —  A dark money group tied to conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo was dissolved three days after POLITICO inquired about whether it helped to facilitate the multi-million-dollar sale of former White House senior adviser Kellyanne …

Video shows drag-denier George Santos dressed in drag, boasting about drag shows  —  Video has emerged showing lying Long Island Rep. George Santos boasting about performing as a drag queen in Rio de Janeiro — despite his claims Thursday morning that he had never done any such thing.

First look: New Ben Terris book on Washington's weirdos … - Terris follows gamblers both figurative and literal: The characters include a pollster with a gambling habit, and the reporting destinations include poker nights.  — More on the book...Preorder.

Republicans said they chose Trump's DC hotel out of convenience.  They've spent almost nothing there since he sold it.  — GOP officials, politicians and PACS spent millions at Trump International Hotel in DC.  — But after Trump sold the lease, Republican spending there has dwindled to almost nothing.

History on the Hill: Powerful spending committees now led by women for the first time  —  WASHINGTON — More than 50 years ago, two female lawmakers led a congressional committee for the first time: the House Select Committee on the Beauty Shop, overseeing a business popular with women who worked in the Capitol.

David Crosby, Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash Co-Founder, Dies at 81 … Singer-songwriter-guitarist David Crosby, a founding member of two popular and enormously influential '60s rock units, the Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash (later Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young), has died.  He was 81 years old.

Tony Dungy Is a Right-Wing Zealot and the NFL and NBC Don't Care  —  The Hall of Fame coach is held up as the epitome of character—but Tony Dungy has used his devoutness as cover for anti-gay bigotry.  —  I've covered the March for Life in Washington, D.C., for years.

The lights have been on at a Massachusetts school for over a year because no one can turn them off  —  WILBRAHAM, Mass. — For nearly a year and a half, a Massachusetts high school has been lit up around the clock because the district can't turn off the roughly 7,000 lights in the sprawling building.