DeSantis, Backing Away From Ukraine, Angers G.O.P. Hawks  —  The Florida governor, who joined Donald Trump in declaring that defending Ukraine from Russia was not a vital interest, drew swift condemnations from establishment Republicans.  —  Declaring this week that defending Ukraine …

The 72-hour scramble to save the United States from a banking crisis  —  It seemed like a simple question: Did the treasury secretary have any concerns about the economic risks posed by Silicon Valley Bank?  —  It was Friday morning, and a wave of public panic had started to spread …

Maxine Waters to return political donation from Silicon Valley Bank  —  The top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee committee, Rep. Maxine Waters of California, said she plans to return the campaign contribution she received from Silicon Valley Bank.

Russia's allies are a motley—and shrinking—crew  —  “The West's plans to isolate Russia by surrounding us with a sanitary cordon have been a fiasco,” Sergei Lavrov, Russia's foreign minister, gloated recently.  “We are strengthening good neighbourly relations...with the international majority.”

Biden takes executive action on background checks for guns  —  President Biden is signing a gun control executive order on Tuesday that the administration says will get the country “as close to universal background checks as possible without additional legislation.”

North Carolina's high court seems inclined to toss past redistricting rulings  —  Republican justices look ready to use their new majority on the North Carolina's state Supreme Court to tear up the state's congressional maps, and the new ones would likely favor the GOP up and down the ballot.

He Helps Trump Navigate Legal Peril While Under Scrutiny Himself  —  Boris Epshteyn is the latest aide to take on the role of slashing defender of the former president, even as the Justice Department seeks information about him in the Jan. 6 and documents inquiries.

Israel's Tech Resistance Took Their Money, and Put It Where?  —  One highly effective doomsday weapon deployed by the opposition to the Israeli government's proposed judicial reforms is the threat of removing large sums of money from Israel.  This self-inflicted form of BDS has been orchestrated …

Ron DeSantis Wants to Make It a Felony to Have an Undocumented Person in Your Home or Car  —  Around 772,000 Florida workers, students, and community members are undocumented.  And Governor Ron DeSantis wants to make it a felony for anyone to have them in their home or even give them a ride.

Russian jets force down U.S. drone over Black Sea, military says  —  The incident prompted Air Force drone pilots to bring down the MQ-9 Reaper in international waters in what U.S. officials said has become a “pattern of dangerous actions by Russian pilots” while interacting with American and allied aircraft in international airspace.

GOP fears Mastriano redux as party zeroes in on McCormick in Pennsylvania  —  The prospect of a Pennsylvania Senate bid by state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R) has Republicans feeling a sense of déjà vu and reigniting fears that he could cost them up and down the ballot.

Hating Everyone Everywhere All At Once At Stanford  —  Don't Expect Free Speech Disputes To Have Heroes  —  When it comes to rights, deserve's got nothing to do with it.  —  When accused murderers and rapists get jury trials, we don't — at least, outside of Facebook …

L.A. riders bail on Metro trains amid ‘horror’ of deadly drug overdoses, crime  —  Matthew Morales boarded the Metro Red Line at MacArthur Park as classical music blared over the station loudspeakers.  —  It was rush hour on a Tuesday afternoon, and Morales made his way to a back corner seat …

Meta to Lay Off Another 10,000 Workers  —  It would be the tech company's second round of cuts since November.  Mark Zuckerberg, its chief executive, has declared 2023 the “year of efficiency.”  —  Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, said on Tuesday that it planned to lay off about 10,000 employees …

DeSantis administration revokes Hyatt Regency Miami alcohol license after it hosted ‘A Drag Queen Christmas’  — Florida regulators revoked a hotel liquor license for hosting a drag show performance where minors were present.  — The DeSantis administration had previously said it was looking into “A Drag Queen Christmas.”

FBI says it has no records related to Trump's claim he ‘sent’ agents to stop voter fraud in Florida during 2018 election  —  The FBI's search for records in response to NBC News' Freedom of Information request came up empty, the agency said.  Local officials had indicated Trump's assertions were false.

Judge denies Jan. 6 defendant's motion for release, says no rights violated at DC Jail  —  A federal judge denied Christopher Quaglin's motion for release from custody, saying many of the issues his attorney raised were of Quaglin's making.  —  WASHINGTON — A federal judge denied …

Nebraska lawmaker 3 weeks into filibuster over trans bill  —  It was a mundane, unanimously supported bill on liquor taxation that saw state Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh take to the mic on the Nebraska Legislature floor last week.  She offered her support, then spent the next three days discussing everything …

The Persecution of Douglass Mackey  —  “Doug's case, which goes to the heart of the First Amendment, is going to trial.”  —  Under the Twitter pseudonym “Ricky Vaughn,” Douglass Mackey had more influence on the 2016 election than NBC News, Stephen Colbert, and Newt Gingrich.

Feds launch manhunt for former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan's ex-chief of staff  —  Federal authorities initiated a manhunt Tuesday for former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan's onetime chief of staff after he failed to appear in court in connection with a series of fraud and other charges.

Gov. Ron DeSantis' takeover of New College of Florida puts $29 million in donations at risk  —  A former trustee at New College of Florida says 13 major donors told her they are canceling more than $29 million in planned contributions since Gov. Ron DeSantis began transforming the school, a huge financial blow to the small college.

San Francisco board open to reparations with $5M payouts  —  Payments of $5 million to every eligible Black adult, the elimination of personal debt and tax burdens, guaranteed annual incomes of at least $97,000 for 250 years and homes in San Francisco for just $1 a family.

John Fetterman could remain hospitalized for 2 more weeks as docs try to get meds ‘exactly right’: report  —  Sen. John Fetterman's health is reportedly improving but he could remain hospitalized for up to two more weeks as doctors work to get his medication “exactly right.”

Florida anti-trans legislation is ‘close to sinful,’ Biden tells Kal Penn  —  President Biden has criticized anti-trans legislation as “just cruel,” singling out recent developments in Florida in particular as “close to sinful” and suggesting that the federal government needs to legislate to protect transgender rights nationally.

Michigan Senate approves repeal of right-to-work law  —  Lansing — The Michigan Senate was approving landmark victories for organized labor Tuesday evening by repealing the 2012 right-to-work law that made union membership optional at unionized workplaces and re-establishing a prevailing wage standard for state projects.

Three European Nations Push for Lower Price on Russian Oil Cap  —  A group of three European Union countries are calling to lower the price cap on Russian oil this month in a bid to further undermine the financing of President Vladimir Putin's war machine.  —  Estonia, Lithuania and Poland proposed …