The FBI Desperately Wants to Let Trump Off the Hook  —  He just won't allow it.  —  The way conservatives tell it, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is a hive of anti-Trump villainy, filled with agents looking for any excuse to hound the former president with investigative witch hunts.

“Non-Person” Donald Trump faces “soft ban” at Fox  —  Donald Trump, who once dominated the Fox News broadcasts, is now running into a brick wall with what four members of his circle say is a “soft ban” from the top of the conservative news channel, as it rolls out the red carpet to even the low-profile rival candidates.

Explosive found in checked luggage at Pennsylvania airport, man in custody  —  The passenger is now in FBI custody.  —  An explosive device was found in a checked piece of luggage at Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley International Airport on Monday, according to a criminal complaint.

Biden administration lawyer may have saved student loan forgiveness plan at Supreme Court, experts say  — Experts have predicted the Supreme Court would rule against President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan, but some changed their minds after oral arguments, praising the lawyer who presented the administration's case.

Starbucks committed ‘egregious’ violations in battling union, judge rules  —  The administrative law judge's order requires the company to stop a long list of behaviors and reinstate workers who began a nationwide union drive  —  By Jacob Bogage and Lauren Kaori Gurley

U.S. Condemns Smotrich's ‘Repugnant, Disgusting’ Call for Israel to Wipe Out Palestinian Village  —  ‘Just as we condemn Palestinian incitement to violence, we condemn these provocative remarks that also amount to incitement to violence,’ State Department spokesperson Ned Price says

Parents push back on allegations against St. Louis transgender center.  'I'm baffled.'  —  ST. LOUIS — Explosive allegations made public last month about a St. Louis clinic that treats transgender children have flung parents into a vortex of emotions: shock, confusion, anger, fear.

Video appears to show Texas drag bill author dressed in drag  —  A Texas lawmaker who authored a bill that would restrict drag performances appears to have dressed in drag himself while a student.  —  A video that surfaced on Twitter and TikTok this week appears to show Texas state Rep. Nate Schatzline …

‘Havana syndrome’ not caused by energy weapon or foreign adversary, intelligence review finds  —  After a years-long assessment, five U.S. intelligence agencies conclude it is ‘very unlikely’ an enemy wielding a secret weapon was behind the mysterious ailment

Exclusive: US Air Force fires leaders for failing nuclear safety inspection  —  Two US Air Force commanders and four of their subordinates at a key nuclear base in North Dakota were relieved of duty this week after their units failed an inspection designed to ensure that the nuclear weapons stockpile …

Biden strikes campaign tones in speech to House Democrats  —  BALTIMORE — President Joe Biden hasn't announced whether he's running for a second term yet, but his address to a gathering of House Democrats here on Wednesday sounded a lot like a 2024 stump speech.

White House slams ‘despicable’ suggestion Beau Biden should have been indicted  —  Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) criticized a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney for not prosecuting President Biden's late son when he was still alive  —  Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) criticized a Trump-appointed U.S. attorney …

Pence won't commit to supporting Trump if he's the nominee  —  Former Vice President Mike Pence still won't say whether he's running for president next year, and he won't speak ill of his ex-boss, former President Donald Trump.  But in an interview with CBS News in Michigan on Wednesday …

Board Denies Parole for Sirhan Sirhan, the Assassin of Robert F. Kennedy  —  The California parole board reversed course from its 2021 recommendation that Mr. Sirhan be released from prison.  That decision was rejected by Gov. Gavin Newsom.  —  SACRAMENTO — A California panel …

Capitol Hill swarmed by performers in straightjackets  —  Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) turned heads on Capitol Hill this week by sending performance artists dressed in straitjackets and blue-and-red tinted glasses to the House offices.  —  Why it matters: It's part of a campaign Kinzinger …

Murdoch Testimony ‘Guts’ Fox News's Best Defense in Defamation Suit, CNN's Elie Honig Says  —  CNN chief legal analyst Elie Honig said Fox News Chairman Rupert Murdoch's testimony in a defamation case against his network may have knee-capped its best defense.

Senate votes to overturn Biden administration retirement investment rule Republicans decry as ‘woke’  —  The Senate passed a politically charged resolution on Wednesday to overturn a Biden administration retirement investment rule that allows managers of retirement funds to consider the impact …

Washington lawyer Tom Goldstein leaves Supreme Court practice, law firm  —  Longtime Supreme Court advocate Tom Goldstein, who has argued more than 40 cases before the high court, said Wednesday that he is ending his practice and retiring from the Washington, D.C., law firm he co-founded in 2011.

Biden admin sues petrochemical giants over deadly chemical pollution in cancer alley  —  The Biden administration on Tuesday sued two corporations behind a petrochemical plant in Louisiana, arguing that the facility poses “unacceptably high cancer risks” to the low-income and predominantly Black residents …

Florida GOP lawmaker pitches bill to eliminate the Florida Democratic Party  —  A Republican in Florida's state Legislature has filed a bill that, if enacted, would eliminate the Florida Democratic Party.  —  “The Ultimate Cancel Act,” filed on Tuesday by state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia …

EXCLUSIVE: House Weaponization Committee To Focus On The ‘Twitter Files’ In Second Hearing  —  The House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government plans to shine a spotlight on the FBI misconduct revealed in the “Twitter Files” at the panel's second hearing, scheduled for next week.

Lawmaker Proposes ‘Hanging on a Tree’ as Execution Method  —  Republican Paul Sherrell's attempt to add a grotesque amendment to Tennessee's death penalty options ignores his state's shameful history of lynching. … The House Criminal Justice Committee of the Tennessee legislature …

3 abortion bans in Texas leave doctors ‘talking in code’ to pregnant patients  —  This past fall, when Lauren Miller of Dallas was 13-weeks pregnant with twins, she got horrible news.  One of the twins had trisomy 18, a genetic abnormality that causes about 90% of fetuses to die before birth.

Ron DeSantis' Anti-Free Speech Crusade Would Cancel Fox News  —  The culture warrior governor wants to overturn the Supreme Court decision that protects journalists from bogus defamation suits.  Fox News just used the same case as a defense. … When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed …

Republicans are ‘emboldened’ because there has been no accountability for J6: ex-White House lawyer  —  Lawmakers who participated in the Jan. 6 attacks and the planning of the attack on the Capitol have never been held accountable for their involvement.  It's something that former acting …

The Vanishing  —  Asians and Jews in America  —  Discriminated against while being held up as models of success, these two groups have long followed a common road.  Now their prosperity leads to cries of ‘unearned privilege.’ What does this mean for America and its minorities?

Pennsylvania residents near Ohio chemical spill say they're left out of recovery efforts  —  Western Pennsylvania residents living near the Ohio border say they have been left out of recovery efforts following the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern train derailment in neighboring East Palestine, Ohio.

The GOP Is Weaponizing LibsOfTikTok's Anti-'Woke' Hate  —  Chaya Raichik amassed millions of followers by going after queer people and the doctors and teachers who support them.  And now, she's speaking at CPAC.  —  In the year since Chaya Raichik was unmasked as the operator of the hate-filled Libs …

Chinese brokerages pressured to end overseas investing services  —  Regulator seeks to close loopholes that allowed foreign trades by mainland China investors  —  Chinese brokerages offering overseas investing services to mainland clients have come under pressure from a regulatory push …

Menendez, Booker, nine House members slap Star-Ledger for closing Washington bureau  —  Two U.S. Senators and nine members of the U.S. House of Representatives have sent a letter to Star-Ledger and NJ Advance Media executives protesting their decision to close their Washington …

In Chicago's Police Oversight Elections, Progressives Targeted by FOP Prevail  —  Many community organizers won seats in new police councils, while the mayoral race produced a high-contrast runoff between the police union-endorsed Paul Vallas and the left-leaning Brandon Johnson.

CDC says 20,000 people may have been exposed to measles at Asbury University religious revival  —  An estimated 20,000 people attended a large religious gathering in Kentucky on the same days as a resident who was infected with measles last month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Wednesday …