Two arrested in assault on police officer Brian D. Sicknick, who died after Jan. 6 Capitol riot  —  U.S. authorities have arrested and charged two men with assaulting U.S. Capitol Police officer Brian D. Sicknick with bear spray during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot but have not determined whether the exposure caused his death.

Super PAC supporting potential Senate candidate J.D. Vance gets $10M donation from PayPal cofounder  —  COLUMBUS - PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel donated $10 million to a super PAC supporting Hillbilly Elegy author J.D. Vance, a show of support for the possible Ohio Senate contender.

Biden Eyes First Major Tax Hike Since 1993 in Next Economic Plan  — Tax increases would help fund long-term U.S. recovery program  — Corporate, capital-gains levies targeted for hikes, aides say  —  President Joe Biden is planning the first major federal tax hike since 1993 …

Trump's jealous rants can't hide his failures  —  How green with envy is Donald Trump?  —  President Biden has him begging for attention.  —  Since Biden's inauguration, the COVID-19 infection rate has been cut by well over half.  —  And last week congressional Democrats passed Biden's popular COVID-19 relief bill.

US to house up to 3,000 immigrant teens at Dallas site  —  HOUSTON (AP) — The U.S. government plans to use the downtown Dallas convention center to hold up to 3,000 immigrant teenagers as sharply higher numbers of border crossings have severely strained the current capacity to hold youths, The Associated Press has learned.

Biden Chooses Prosperity Over Vengeance  —  Donald Trump was a punishment.  —  Conservatives saw him that way, and Trump saw himself that way, too.  After his upset victory over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election, some conservatives started to respond to any perceived liberal excess with a simple phrase: “This is why Trump won.”

Vatican says it will not bless same-sex unions, calling them a ‘sin’  —  Rome (CNN)The Vatican said Monday that the Catholic Church would not bless same-sex unions, in a combative statement approved by Pope Francis that threatens to widen the chasm between the church and much of the LGBTQ community.

Florida's pandemic response gets a second look from the national media  —  After a solid year of living with a pandemic, the national press is beginning to ask the question that even Democrats have been quietly pondering in the Sunshine State: Was Gov. Ron DeSantis' pandemic response right for Florida?

Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson's Racist Comments Are Worse Than You Think  —  While it wasn't the first time Ron Johnson downplayed the U.S. Capitol attack, the Republican senator from Wisconsin drew criticism for saying during an interview that he would have been more afraid of Antifa …

Nashville bomber acted alone, was driven by ‘paranoia,’ FBI says  —  Adam Tamburin Natalie Neysa AlundNashville Tennessean  —  The FBI said Monday the Christmas Day bombing in downtown Nashville was motivated by the bomber's intention to kill himself and was not an act of terrorism.

‘We want to be educated, not indoctrinated,’ say Trump voters wary of covid shots  —  The responses of focus group participants suggest they can be persuaded — but perhaps not by politicians, including the former president.  —  Be honest that scientists don't have all the answers.

Exclusive: U.S. Congress launches probe into multibillion-dollar ‘clean coal’ tax credit  —  BOSTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Congress is investigating a multibillion-dollar subsidy for chemically treated coal that is meant to reduce smokestack pollution, after evidence emerged that power plants using the fuel produced more smog not less.

A Hacker Got All My Texts for $16  —  A gaping flaw in SMS lets hackers take over phone numbers in minutes by simply paying a company to reroute text messages.  —  Joseph Cox  —  I didn't expect it to be that quick.  While I was on a Google Hangouts call with a colleague …

Justice Breyer Should Retire Right Now  —  If he doesn't, Democrats run the very real risk that they would be unable to replace him.  —  Mr. Campos is a law professor who writes extensively about politics and the Constitution.  —  Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was widely, and deservedly …

With few other options, Texas Democrats need Beto O'Rourke to challenge GOP Gov. Greg Abbott in 2022  —  The rising stars of the Democratic Party aren't ready to mount major statewide campaigns.  —  With few other viable options, Texas Democrats are hoping that next year former …

‘Clear and present danger’: Republicans fret about Greitens' comeback  —  Disgraced former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens is moving closer to a 2022 Senate bid, alarming top Republicans who worry he will jeopardize the party's grip on the seat and imperil their prospects of seizing the majority.

Republicans shamelessly take credit for Covid relief they voted against  —  And it's not going over well.  —  Two recent tweets from members of Congress illustrate how, in the wake of President Joe Biden signing the Covid-19 relief bill, Republicans are trying to “have their cake and vote against it, too,” as Barack Obama once put it.

CDC identifies public-health guidance from the Trump administration that downplayed pandemic severity  —  The analysis was done to promote public trust and ensure that the agency's coronavirus guidance ‘is evidence-based and free of politics,’ a memo says.  —  Federal health officials …

New EPA administrator: ‘Science is back’  —  In his first interview as the nation's top environmental official, Michael Regan says he is focused on restoring morale at the agency, combatting climate change and lifting up communities burdened by pollution  —  Michael Regan has bold aspirations …

Cuomo's “Women's Equality Party” Might Just Be the Most Cynical Political Move of His Career … In 2018, Liuba Grechen Shirley was one of thousands of women across the country galvanized by the election of Donald Trump to jump into the political ring — but first, she had to grapple with child care.

Senior Democrat ‘hot mic’ says GOP foot-dragging will force fast-track process for infrastructure  —  Sen. Ben Cardin, a senior Democrat on the committee responsible for crafting a surface transportation bill, in a “hot mic” moment told Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg Monday that Democrats …

In Minneapolis, business owners in George Floyd Square plead for safety  —  Video (01:48) : Video by Mark Vancleave.  Members of George Floyd's family pledged to donate $500,000 of their $27 million dollar settlement with the City of Minneapolis to black-owned businesses at 38th and Chicago.

Why You Should Still Pay Attention To Joe Biden's Approval Rating  —  When it comes to presidential approval ratings, the days of big swings in opinion and sky-high ratings are gone.  —  Consider that former President Donald Trump's approval rating mostly hovered between 40 and 45 percent …

Pandemic burnout is rampant in academia … Virginia Gewin is a freelance writer in Portland, Oregon.  —  A year into the coronavirus pandemic, many in the academic scientific workforce are experiencing a state of chronic exhaustion known as burnout.  Although it is not a medical condition …

CNN Anchor Brianna Keilar Slams Fox News' Vaccine Skepticism Bullshit  —  “Americans, whether they are Fox viewers or not, will pay for it with their health... or their lives because no price is too high for Fox to right its rating ship.”  —  CNN anchor Brianna Keilar took aim at Fox News …

A one-woman watchdog torments the far right in deep-red Northern California  —  Only halfway into the endless plague year, the most outspoken journalist in one of California's most conservative counties had already tangled with the sheriff, the local megachurch, a rodeo operator and other characters …