Russia-Ukraine War  —  Russian Mercenary Leader Accuses Kremlin of Attacking His Forces  —  Yevgeny V. Prigozhin, who leads the private Wagner force, claimed the Russian defense minister had orchestrated a deadly attack on his troops.  Earlier in the day, he called the war a “racket” to enrich Russia's elite.

Former Trump Campaign Official in Talks to Cooperate in Jan. 6 Inquiry  —  The office of the special counsel is negotiating with Michael Roman, who was closely involved in the efforts to create slates of pro-Trump electors in states won in 2020 by Joseph R. Biden Jr.

No Labels Exposed: Here's a List of Donors Funding Its Effort To Disrupt the 2024 Race  —  The roster includes corporate execs who have financed Republican and Democratic candidates.  —  No Labels, the political outfit preparing to run a “unity” ticket in 2024 that Democratic strategists …

New U.S. intelligence report sheds little light on covid origins  —  The disclosure is unlikely to settle a heated debate about the pandemic's origins, which has exacerbated tensions between Washington and Beijing  —  Freshly declassified U.S. government intelligence about the origins …

Garland Pushes Back at G.O.P. Claims of Bias in Hunter Biden Investigation  —  The attorney general denied assertions that he had interfered with the case and blocked a prosecutor from lodging more charges.  —  Reporting from Washington  —  Attorney General Merrick B. Garland defended …

Arizona Gov. Hobbs strips counties of abortion prosecution authority  —  On the eve of the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, Gov. Katie Hobbs is barring Arizona's 15 county attorneys from prosecuting abortion-related crimes and centralizing …

Giuliani sanctioned for failing to produce records in defamation case  —  Rudy Giuliani was sanctioned by a U.S. judge on Friday for failing to search for and turn over records in a defamation lawsuit brought by former Georgia election workers against him for accusing them of ballot fraud.

Hollywood Directors Ratify Their Contract as Writers Continue to Strike  —  The vote prevented the doomsday scenario of three major Hollywood unions striking simultaneously.  The actors' union is still negotiating.  —  Unionized movie and television directors approved a new three-year contract …

Billionaire-funded group driving effort to erode democracy in key US states  —  Foundation for Government Accountability, backed by Richard Uihlein, exerting influence in Ohio, Missouri, South Dakota and Arkansas  —  The fight for democracy is supported by

Florida's anti-drag law is likely unconstitutional, federal judge rules.  A growing pattern.  —  Florida is barred from enforcing its new anti-drag law (SB 1438), a federal judge ruled Friday, issuing a preliminary injunction in a case brought by Hamburger Mary's, the restaurant chain …

Pro-RFK Jr. Super PAC Has Deep Ties to Marjorie Taylor Greene, George Santos  —  The super PAC is just one example of the nominally Democratic candidate running a campaign that's awash in support from backers of Donald Trump … On its website, the group — whose name is borrowed …

Samuel Alito scandal shows why conservative justices on the Supreme Court are so whiny  —  The Federalist Society keeps SCOTUS judges in a perpetually whiny state  —  Earlier this week, ProPublica, which had previously exposed the bottomless corruption of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas …

Titan sub CEO dismissed safety warnings as ‘baseless cries’, emails show  —  Warnings over the safety of OceanGate's Titan submersible were repeatedly dismissed by the CEO of the company, email exchanges with a leading deep sea exploration specialist show.  —  In messages seen by the BBC …

Former Nashua State Rep. Arrested On Child Sexual Abuse Image Charges  —  Stacie Laughton, a transgendered former Democrat state Rep., now living in Derry, was arrested on 4 felony distribution counts Thursday.  —  Replies (5)  —  NASHUA, NH — A transgender former state representative from Nashua …

Elise Stefanik Is a Nuisance On Her Way to Becoming a General Blight  —  She and Marjorie Taylor Greene want to “expunge” the former president's impeachments in advance of his 2024 presidential campaign.  —  Jesus H. Christ on the Thruway, people.  Please just take a freaking nap.  From Axios:

‘Watch and See If They Destroy Themselves’: US Cautiously Monitors Russia Infighting  —  The Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin's private military company, is threatening Putin, but nobody knows what's next  —  A Facebook icon representing an external link to share the article on Facebook …

Trump posts $5.6 million security payment as he appeals E. Jean Carroll sexual abuse verdict  — Donald Trump posted $5.6 million to act as security while he appeals a civil verdict that he sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll in a New York department store in the 1990s and later defamed her.

Trump gets first GOP endorsements since his indictment in classified documents case  — Former President Donald Trump netted endorsements from House Republicans from Pennsylvania and the North Carolina lieutenant governor.  — The endorsements come after Trump's recent arraignment on federal criminal charges.

Moms for Liberty's anti-LGBTQ stance doesn't belong in a museum  —  I have spent over 20 years as a historian, bringing the stories of ordinary people living during the Revolutionary era to light.  That's why I was appalled to learn that the Museum of the American Revolution is hosting the far-right …

Infowars Host Owen Shroyer Pleads Guilty To Jan. 6 Capitol Riot Charge  —  The longtime sidekick of conspiracy theorist Alex Jones pleaded guilty to entering and remaining on restricted grounds.  —  A host of the conspiracy network Infowars pleaded guilty Friday to one misdemeanor charge related …

Documents reveal Eric Adams sent migrants to Florida, Texas and China  —  Between April 2022 and April 2023, the city spent around $50,000 on travel costs to resettle 114 migrant households around the country and globe.  —  NEW YORK — After lashing out at leading Republicans for busing asylum-seekers …