Biden aides see major risks in circumventing Congress on debt ceiling  —  White House officials have discussed invoking the 14th Amendment to dodge the limit, but they see it as highly risky  —  Senior White House officials see enormous risks in trying to resolve the debt ceiling impasse without Congress …

After Mass Killings in Texas, Frustration but No Action on Guns  —  The drumbeat of mass murder has fueled a new openness to gun regulation among some Texans, but it has done little to reshape the political realities in the State Capitol.  —  HOUSTON — After months of pleading …

Marge Greene, Worst of the Worst, Mass Shooting Edition  —  THE BACKCHANNEL  —  A small detail in the context of the latest mass shooting, this time in Allen, Texas.  Eight people dead, including children.  (The gunman was also shot to death a police office who happened to be at the mall for reasons unrelated to the shooting.)

Disney expands lawsuit against DeSantis after governor signs bill to void land deals  — Walt Disney Co. expanded its federal lawsuit accusing Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis of orchestrating a political retribution campaign against the company.  — DeSantis signed legislation voiding Disney's development deals in Orlando.

Exclusive: McConnell details GOP efforts to not ‘screw this up’ in 2024 Senate battle  —  Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell should be brimming with confidence.  —  Republicans are in the driver's seat to take the Senate majority: with 23 seats held by Democrats, compared to just 11 for Republicans.

Robert Kennedy Jr. sees ‘overwhelming evidence’ CIA involved in JFK assassination  —  Robert Kennedy, Jr., the long-shot Democratic candidate for president, has backed a conspiracy theory that the CIA was involved in the killing of his uncle President John F. Kennedy, arguing evidence for such a claim is “overwhelming.”

‘Really weak option’: Wall Street sours on DeSantis as Trump challenger  —  Ron DeSantis' gubernatorial reelection campaign is still loaded with cash, giving him big advantages over possible competitors.  But many now say he no longer seems so formidable — at least on Wall Street.

REVEALED: These ten books are considered pornography in Ron DeSantis' Florida  —  On March 8, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) conducted a press conference in which he purported to debunk the “book ban hoax.”  During the event, DeSantis claimed that Florida schools, under his leadership, were not banning educational materials.

The Week Ahead  —  For the second time in as many weeks, I'm skipping over what I'd planned to write about today to take on something that feels too urgent and pressing to avoid.  I'll flag some developments I had earmarked for our usual week-ahead piece over the next couple of days.

Republicans want Manchin to bow out, fearful that he may have one more trick up his sleeve  —  Democrats are on the verge of extinction in West Virginia, but the West Virginia senator hasn't lost a race since the 1990s.  —  WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Republicans' best option for unseating …

The GOP-Hungary connection shaping the '24 campaign  —  The far-right populism of Hungary's prime minister is helping to inspire U.S. Republicans' agenda for 2024, a game plan that targets immigration, LGBTQ rights and — at least for some — the war in Ukraine.

Exclusive: Nearly 610,000 public sector workers got student loan forgiveness after Biden loosened the rules  —  Nearly 610,000 student loan borrowers have received debt relief from the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program since October 2021, when the Biden administration temporarily expanded eligibility.

8 killed, 9 injured in crash outside migrant shelter in Texas  —  At least eight people were killed and at least nine were injured Sunday in Brownsville, Tex., when an SUV struck a crowd waiting for a bus outside a migrant shelter, authorities said.  —  Brownsville police investigator Martin Sandoval …