POLITICO Playbook: ‘The View’ struggles to find a Republican  —  DRIVING THE DAY  —  Before taking off for the holidays, the four long-standing hosts of “The View” had a message for executive producer BRIAN TETA: We're tired of the rotating cast of Republican guest hosts.

Capitol panel to investigate Trump call to Willard hotel in hours before attack  —  Committee to request contents of the call seeking to stop Biden's certification and may subpoena Rudy Giuliani  —  Congressman Bennie Thompson, the chairman of the House select committee investigating the Capitol attack …

Biden signs $768B defense policy bill that supersized his original Pentagon request  —  President Joe Biden signed a $768 billion defense policy bill on Monday, after Democrats and Republicans rejected his initial Pentagon plans and endorsed a major boost to military spending.

Alleged ‘dead’ Georgia voters found alive and well after 2020 election  —  Trump's allegations of vast voter fraud debunked  —  False claims that there were thousands of ballots cast in the names of dead Georgia voters can now rest in peace.  —  Election investigators found …

The One Thing Biden Is Doing Exceptionally Well  —  As 2021 draws to a close, President Joe Biden has good reason to be frustrated.  His legislative agenda is stymied in the Senate.  His executive authority is under assault from Donald Trump's judges.  His administration was blindsided …

Dan Bongino and the Big Business of Returning Trump to Power  —  The Secret Service agent turned radio host is furious at liberals—so he's trying to build a right-wing media infrastructure in time for 2024. … Dan Bongino, one of America's most popular conservative commentators …

Justice Roberts Tops Federal Leaders in Americans' Approval  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. — Chief Justice John Roberts earns the highest job approval rating of 11 U.S. leaders rated in a Dec. 1-16 Gallup poll with 60% approving of how he is handling his role.  —  Only two other leaders on the list …

5 GOP-led states extend unemployment aid to workers who lose jobs over vaccine mandates  —  Critics says the rule changes in Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Kansas and Tennessee are incentivizing people to skip shots, and undermining the White House's pandemic response.

Massive New Bird Flu Outbreak Could Be 2022's Deadly Pandemic  —  In the Galilee, migrating cranes infected with H5N1 are dying by the thousand, raising fears of a global pandemic.  —  Israel's National Security Council has assumed control of a massive bird flu outbreak in the Galilee …

So much happened this year, it can be hard to keep track.  Take our quiz to see if you remember when something actually occurred.  —  The United States reached 500,000 deaths from the coronavirus in the early months of 2021.  Alex Trebek, the beloved ‘Jeopardy!’ host, died of cancer at age 80 in November 2020.

Flight disruptions continue with thousands more cancellations as Omicron thins airline crews.  —  Flight disruptions in the United States showed few signs of abating on Monday as many people embarked on their first trips in almost two years, and Dr. Anthony S. Fauci, the nation's top infectious …

NASCAR driver Brandon Brown who inadvertently sparked 'Let's Go Brandon!' anti-Biden chant says he has been CANCELLED: Phrase has made it ‘extremely difficult’ for him to get sponsorship  — NASCAR driver Brandon Brown, who unintentionally sparked 'Let's Go Brandon!', spoke out about the difficulties of getting corporate sponsorship

The Case Against the Trauma Plot  —  Fiction writers love it.  Filmmakers can't resist it.  But does this trope deepen characters, or flatten them into a set of symptoms?  —  It was on a train journey, from Richmond to Waterloo, that Virginia Woolf encountered the weeping woman.

Men across America are getting vasectomies ‘as an act of love’  —  With the right to abortion under threat, men say they want to play a role in reproductive planning to support their partners  —  After Andy and Erin Gress had their fourth child, Andy decided it was time for him to “step up” and help with the family planning.

Just 3 voter fraud cases closed?  It's time to end Paxton's wasteful crusade.  —  You have done enough.  Have you no sense of decency?  —  The date was June 9, 1954.  The speaker was Joseph Welch, special counsel for the U.S. Army, responding to scurrilous remarks U.S. Sen. Joseph McCarthy …

Outlets hurt by dwindling public interest in news in 2021  —  NEW YORK (AP) — The presidential election, pandemic and racial reckoning were stories that drove intense interest and engagement to news outlets in 2020.  To a large degree, 2021 represented the inevitable hangover.

Gov. Wolf Names Leigh M. Chapman New Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth  —  Governor Tom Wolf today announced his intention to name Leigh M. Chapman to serve as Acting Secretary of the Commonwealth.  Chapman will replace Acting Secretary Veronica Degraffenreid, who will be elevated to serve …

Why Biden Wants You to Think He's Running in 2024  —  As his first, up-and-down year as president nears its end, Joe Biden really wants you to know he plans to run for a second term in 2024.  He reiterated his intentions in an ABC News interview last week, while making the requisite hedge …

Russian court extends jail term for Gulag historian to 15 years  —  A Russian court on Monday added two more years to a 13-year jail sentence for historian Yuri Dmitriev, in a sex abuse case that his supporters say was trumped up to punish him for uncovering mass graves of Stalin's Gulags.