Kanye West publicist pressed Georgia election worker to confess to bogus fraud charges  —  Weeks after the 2020 election, a Chicago publicist for hip-hop artist Kanye West traveled to the suburban home of Ruby Freeman, a frightened Georgia election worker who was facing death threats …

Trump blasts Netanyahu for disloyalty: “F**k him”  —  Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu were the closest of political allies during the four years they overlapped in office, at least in public.  Not anymore.  “I haven't spoken to him since,” Trump said of the former Israeli prime minister.

Trump campaign lawyer authored two memos claiming Pence could halt Biden's victory  —  A Donald Trump campaign lawyer wrote two legal memos in the week before the Jan. 6 Capitol attack that claimed then-Vice President Mike Pence had the authority to refuse to count presidential electors …

Supreme Court Allows Challenge to Texas Abortion Law but Leaves It in Effect  —  The law, which bans most abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, was drafted to evade review in federal court and has been in effect since September.  —  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday allowed …

Public view on Biden's handling of Covid and the economy takes another hit, CNBC survey shows  — President Joe Biden's overall approval rating stabilized at a low level of 41%, according to the CNBC All-America Survey.  — Biden's approval rating on handling the economy and dealing with the coronavirus both declined.

Covid Malaise  —  Why do Americans say the economy is in rough shape?  Because it is.  —  Offices remain eerily empty.  Airlines have canceled thousands of flights.  Subways and buses are running less often.  Schools sometimes call off entire days of class.  Consumers waste time waiting in store lines.

From Tucker with Love  —  The best thing that could be said about Tucker Carlson's love letter to Vladimir Putin on his show Tuesday is that it didn't sound any better in the original Russian.  It sounded much more like a work of translation than anything original, because we've been hearing it all from Russian state TV for years.

Budgetary Effects of Making Specified Policies in the Build Back Better Act Permanent  —  This letter responds to a request from Senator Graham and Congressman Jason Smith for a projection of the budgetary effects, including the effects on interest costs, of a modified version of H.R. 5376, the Build Back Better Act.

The Secret History of the U.S. Diplomatic Failure in Afghanistan  —  A trove of unreleased documents reveals a dispiriting record of misjudgment, hubris, and delusion that led to the fall of the Western-backed government. … On April 14th, President Joe Biden ended the longest war in United States history …

Democrats Could Have Gerrymandered Away a GOP Seat.  Why Didn't They?  —  In Maryland, Democrats had the chance to go for the jugular.  Here's what happened instead.  —  In the late night hours following the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, Maryland Rep. Andy Harris found himself in the middle of a fight.

Someone Is Lying About Why It Took So Long for the National Guard to Deploy on January 6  —  Who isn't telling the truth, why not, and how will we find out?  —  What actually happened amongst the Army's leadership on January 6 during the crucial three hours between when then the U.S. Capitol …

Interview: Gov. Polis says it's not health officials' jobs to tell Coloradans to wear masks … ‘The emergency is over,’ according to Governor Jared Polis, who explained on Colorado Matters on Friday that vaccines have changed the COVID-19 landscape, rendering masks useful but not required in the state's fight against the pandemic.

Oklahoma Guard Leader Tells Vaccine Refusers to Prepare for ‘Career Ending Federal Action’  —  The leadership of the Oklahoma National Guard has acknowledged that its fight with the federal government over the COVID-19 vaccine mandate ultimately may lead to “career ending federal action” for troops.

‘Normal’ Republican Ron DeSantis Wants to Lock Up Anthony Fauci … There is a large wing of the conservative elite that thinks of the Republican Party as the parents of a wayward teen might think about their child — a good kid who was doing okay until he was led astray by falling in with the wrong crowd.

11 Million New Oysters in New York Harbor (but None for You to Eat)  —  The oysters, which act as nonstop water filters, were added to the Hudson River as part of an ongoing project to rehabilitate the polluted waterways around the city.  —  The restoration of New York Harbor has reached …

The Common Good Needed Someone to Protect It  —  The loudest, most prominent voices in public life are not always the most influential.  Some of the people who leave the most profound impact—the ones who actually shape the thinking of a generation—do so quietly.

British High Court rules in favor of U.S. extradition of Julian Assange  —  LONDON — A British High Court ruled Friday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can be extradited to the United States to face charges of violating the Espionage Act.  —  The 50-year-old Australian will remain …

‘We will not be defeated’: 36 hours of Fox News covering its own Christmas tree fire  —  A man was arrested for allegedly setting fire to the giant tree in Manhattan.  It became a major story.  —  For more than 36 hours after a 50-foot-tall Christmas tree outside Fox News's Manhattan headquarters …

Dems want Schumer to play hardball against GOP blockade on ambassadors  —  Senate Democrats are pressuring Chuck Schumer to make Republicans pay for their blockade of President Joe Biden's diplomatic nominees, adding to the majority leader's long list of December headaches.

The damage done by Joe Manchin is likely to get much worse  —  Something important just happened in Washington, but it created little more than a passing media ripple.  The House passed a far-reaching political reform package late Thursday, but because it's simply assumed that Republicans will filibuster it …

Southern California's Container-Ship Backlog Moves Farther Out to Sea  —  Authorities say strong winds and rough seas have forced them to keep ships farther apart and away from the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach  —  The backup of container ships waiting to enter the nation's busiest port complex isn't letting up.

SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.529 (Omicron) Variant — United States, December 1-8, 2021  —  CDC COVID-19 Response Team (View author affiliations)  —  What is already known about this topic?  —  SARS-CoV-2 variant B.1.1.529 (Omicron), first reported to WHO on November 24, 2021, has been designated a variant of concern.