DeSantis Calls Putin a ‘War Criminal,’ Clarifying Earlier Comment on Ukraine  —  The Florida governor and presumed G.O.P. presidential candidate previously described the Russia-Ukraine conflict as a “territorial dispute” and did not mention the Russian president.

Court rejects Trump's urgent bid to keep lawyer's records from special counsel  —  The ruling effectively permits the Justice Department to circumvent Trump's attorney-client privilege after a lower-court judge found that the documents likely contain evidence of a crime.

Mental health curriculum is the latest target in Miami-Dade schools  —  Invoking Florida's new parents' rights law, the Miami-Dade School Board is embarking on a review of how students learn about managing their emotions, collaborating with others and developing their identities …

White House disbanding its covid-19 team in May  —  Ashish Jha is likely to depart as pandemic that engulfed Biden's early presidency takes a lower profile  —  The White House will shut down its covid response team after the public health emergency ends in May, with some staffers already departing …

How to Pay Off a Porn Star (If You Really Must)  —  There are so many ways Trump could have paid off Stormy Daniels without running afoul of the law—including through his campaign!  —  We've all been there.  —  You're running for federal office, the race is hot, the polls are tight, but you're doing OK.

Biden approval dips near lowest point: AP-NORC poll  —  Approval of President Joe Biden has dipped slightly since a month ago, nearing the lowest point of his presidency as his administration tries to project a sense of stability while confronting a pair of bank failures and inflation that remains stubbornly high.

Sinema Trashes Dems: ‘Old Dudes Eating Jell-O’  —  The Arizona senator courts GOP donors by ridiculing her former Democratic colleagues. … Ever since Senator Kyrsten Sinema became an independent in December, her Democratic colleagues have been restrained about the shift …

Where is DeSantis traveling on state business?  Legislature wants to make it a secret  —  Citing an increase in public records requests for the governor's travel schedule, Florida legislators are advancing a bill that would shield from the public any information about how and where Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state officials go.

Most trans adults say transitioning made them more satisfied with their lives  —  The Washington Post and KFF surveyed one of the largest randomized samples of U.S. transgender adults to date about their childhoods, feelings and lives  —  Transgender Americans experience stigma …

Searchers find a body a short distance from vehicle of student suspected of shooting 2 staff members at Denver high school  —  After a shooting of two faculty members at a Denver high school Wednesday, authorities have found a male body about two-tenths of a mile from a vehicle connected to the suspect …

Nigerian Senator Found Guilty of Organ Harvesting Plot in UK  —  A Nigerian politician and his wife were found guilty by a London jury of plotting to bring a Lagos street trader to the UK in order to harvest one of his organs for their sick daughter.  —  Ike Ekweremadu, a senior Nigerian senator …

DeSantis to expand 'Don't Say Gay' law to high schools  —  The administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is moving to forbid classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in all grades, expanding the controversial law critics call “Don't Say Gay” as the Republican governor continues …

China Says It Opposes a Forced Sale of TikTok  —  Biden administration has demanded that video app divest itself from its Beijing-based parent or face nationwide ban  —  SINGAPORE—China said it would strongly oppose any forced sale of TikTok, responding for the first time to a Biden administration demand …

What it looks like when a country doesn't trust its banks  —  I went to Argentina and the US did a bank run.  —  I've been in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the last month, including through the recent turmoil in the banking industry in the United States and Europe.

Israel passes law shielding Netanyahu from being removed amid protests over judicial changes  —  The Israeli parliament on Thursday passed a law that would limit the ways a sitting prime minister can be declared unfit for office as part of a package of bills the government is pushing through in its controversial judicial overhaul.

Arizona Supreme Court rejects most of Kari Lake's election challenge  —  Arizona's top court has declined to hear Republican gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake's challenge to her election loss, but kept the case alive by sending one of Lake's claims back to a county judge to review.

Matt Taibbi Can't Comprehend That There Are Reasons To Study Propaganda Information Flows, So He Insists It Must Be Nefarious  —  from the not-how-any-of-this-works dept  —  Over the last few months, Elon Musk's handpicked journalists have continued revealing less and less with each new edition of the …

Ukraine and International Criminal Court sign an agreement on the establishment of a country office  —  On 23 March 2023, the Prosecutor General of Ukraine, Kostin Andriy, and the Registrar of the International Criminal Court ("ICC" or “the Court"), Peter Lewis, signed a cooperation agreement …

The Latest: War in Ukraine  —  E.U. Leaders Meet to Discuss Aid to Ukraine … E.U. leaders gather to discuss aid to Ukraine as Kyiv's military demands grow.  —  BRUSSELS — European Union leaders begin a two-day summit in Brussels on Thursday to discuss aid to Ukraine and Europe's competitiveness in the global economy.

Heavy D Don't Tweet, He Acts  —  This is why DeSantis Scares Them.  —  Isn't it great to have the media complaining about what a Republican is doing, instead of what he's tweeting?  —  The New York Times recently did a major investigation into Gov. Ron DeSantis' suspension last August …

Video Shows ‘Heroic’ Security Guard Wrestle Gun From Masked Man Entering Strip Club  —  Michael Rudman was wearing a devil mask and had “kill” and “darkk one” written on his arms as he attempted to enter the Florida venue, police in Tampa said.  —  Security guards at a Florida strip club …

The Ciskei experiment: a libertarian fantasy in apartheid South Africa  —  In the 1980s, South African libertarians set up a deregulated zone that they sold to the world as 'Africa's Switzerland'.  It was a sham, but with its clusters of sweatshops, it was very modern - and in some ways it anticipated the world we live in today

DNA From Beethoven's Hair Unlocks Medical and Family Secrets  —  By analyzing seven samples of hair said to have come from Ludwig van Beethoven, researchers debunked myths about the revered composer while raising new questions about his life and death.  —  It was March 1827 and Ludwig van Beethoven was dying.

AP source: Blackhawks will not wear Pride-themed jerseys  —  The Chicago Blackhawks will not wear Pride-themed warmup jerseys before Sunday's Pride Night game against Vancouver because of security concerns involving a Russian law that expands restrictions on activities seen as promoting LGBTQ rights in the country.

Once cherished in Miami, Elián González is set to become a legislator in Cuba  —  Elián González, the Cuban boy found clinging to an inner tube near Florida shores who became the center of an international child custody dispute as well as a political battle between …

Abortion legal again in Wyoming after judge blocks ban  —  Abortion is legal again in Wyoming after a Teton County judge Wednesday temporarily blocked a new ban on the procedure while a new legal challenge winds through the courts.  —  “Wyomingites voted into law that they have a fundamental right …

Armed Russian jets have flown over a U.S. base in Syria nearly every day in March, U.S. commander says  —  Armed Russian jets have flown over a U.S. military garrison in Syria nearly every day in March, violating a four-year-old agreement between the U.S. and Russia and risking escalation …

How the Last-Ditch Effort to Save Silicon Valley Bank Failed  —  SVB couldn't get loans, and withdrawals accelerated before seizure  —  Depositors were draining their accounts via smartphone apps and telling their startup networks to do the same.  But inside Silicon Valley Bank …