U.S. Military Moves Into Place for Possible Strikes in Iran  —  President Trump has given no indication that he has made a decision about how to proceed, as diplomatic talks continue.  —  The rapid buildup of U.S. forces in the Middle East has progressed to the point that President Trump …

Colbert defies CBS over interview with Texas Senate candidate  —  Late-night host Stephen Colbert said Monday evening that CBS barred him from airing an interview with James Talarico, a Texas Democrat running for Senate, citing a recent federal directive.

Exclusive: US plans online portal to bypass content bans in Europe and elsewhere  —  The U.S. State Department is developing an online portal that will enable people in Europe and elsewhere to see content banned by their governments including alleged hate speech and terrorist propaganda …

Billionaires' Low Taxes Are Becoming a Problem for the Economy  —  Tax avoidance by the superwealthy is an economic issue as well as a political one  —  California's plan to hit its richest residents with a one-off wealth tax is a long shot, and its design has problems.

As ICE Buys Up Warehouses, Even Some Trump Voters Say No  —  The agency is ramping up arrests, but local pushback is complicating efforts to expand detention capacity and prevent overcrowding.  —  Stacy Bradley voted for President Trump because of his border policies, and she likes that he has restored “law and order.”

Billionaire Les Wexner tells lawmakers that he was ‘conned’ by Jeffrey Epstein and did ‘nothing wrong’  —  The 88-year-old former Victoria's Secret CEO denied he was Epstein's “co-conspirator,” and said he “was duped by a world-class con man.”  —  Listen to this article with a free account

Angry Trump Humiliated as Effort to Prosecute Dems Backfires Again  —  Let's start with some good news: Donald Trump's efforts to jail his Democratic enemies have thus far mostly been marked by ham-fisted, buffoonish failure.  The targeting of people like Senator Adam Schiff …

Trump's economic adviser says authors of tariff study should be “disciplined”  —  White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the authors of a New York Fed study that found that Americans pay for tariffs should be disciplined, in an interview with CNBC Wednesday morning.

Tucker Carlson ‘DETAINED’ in Israel: Journalist ‘dragged into interrogation room’ as explosive interview sparks diplomatic firestorm  —  Conservative podcasting titan Tucker Carlson says he and his staff were detained in Israel on Wednesday following an interview with Mike Huckabee, Donald Trump's current ambassador to the country.

The political effects of X's feed algorithm  — Germain Gauthier orcid.org/0009-0000-4262-7483 1 na1, - Roland Hodler orcid.org/0000-0001-8402-8243 2 na1, - Philine Widmer 3 na1 & - - Ekaterina Zhuravskaya orcid.org/0000-0002-3496-2086 3,4 na1 Show authors  —  Abstract

Theres's Credible Evidence of Trump's Sex Crimes  —  The evidence, once brought together, tells a compelling, disturbing story.  —  In her sworn testimony before Congress, Attorney General Pam Bondi made a sweeping claim.  Asked by Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) whether Donald Trump had ever attended …

Trump has prepared speech on extraterrestrial life, Lara Trump says  —  President Trump is holding onto a speech detailing extraterrestrial life and spaceships, according to his daughter-in-law Lara Trump, who said the president is waiting for the right time to deliver it.

Pope Rejects Trump's “Board of Peace” Invite  —  The Vatican will not be joining Donald Trump's “Board of Peace,” announcing Tuesday that it was turning down a January invitation from the White House.  —  “For us, there are ... some critical issues that should be resolved,” …

High IQ men tend to be less conservative than their average peers, study finds  —  The stereotype of the eccentric genius with radical political views is a common trope in fiction.  A new study challenges this assumption by suggesting that highly intelligent adults may hold political views …

Colorado Democrats Push to Rip Up 2028 House Map for an Extra Edge  —  A proposed ballot measure to give Democrats more seats for the 2028 and 2030 elections signals that the nation's gerrymandering fight is likely to persist for years.  —  A group allied with Colorado Democrats is beginning …

White House directing DHS to hunt for voter fraud by naturalized citizens: Sources  —  The Department of Homeland Security's chief investigations arm this week launched a broader nationwide campaign to investigate and prosecute naturalized citizens who may have improperly voted in past elections …

Journalists Arrested in Cameroon While Reporting on Trump's Secretive Deportation Program  —  An Associated Press reporter was beaten and held with three other journalists and a lawyer, two detainees said, while at a center for migrants secretively deported from the United States.

Hegseth invited Christian nationalist Doug Wilson to preach at Pentagon  —  The self-described “paleo-Confederate” has argued that wives should submit to their husbands, women should be denied the vote and Christian slaveowners were on “firm scriptural ground.”

GOP Lawmaker Reportedly Had Affair With Aide Who Died By Self-Immolation  —  Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) accused his primary opponent of using the story to smear his aide's memory.  —  WASHINGTON — A Republican lawmaker's apparent affair with an aide who later died by suicide has roiled a close primary election in Texas.

The Epstein Regime  —  Meeting the Moment with Anat Shenker-Osorio  —  Despite more technical difficulties than usual this week (skip the first 5 minutes of the recording here), Anat and I covered some good ground, including:  — It's great to see the growing use of “the Epstein class” as a term (thanks Anand Giridharadas).

The ‘Most Massive Attack On Free Speech’ Is Happening Right Now, And The Twitter Files Crew Is Mighty Quiet  —  For the last five years, we had to endure an endless, breathless parade of hyperbole regarding the so-called “censorship industrial complex.”  We were told, repeatedly and at high volume …

John Cornyn warns of a GOP ‘massacre’ in Texas if Ken Paxton beats him in their Senate primary  —  Cornyn is locked in a hotly contested primary race against state Attorney General Ken Paxton and GOP Rep. Wesley Hunt.  — ADD NBC NEWS TO GOOGLE  —  Listen to this article with a free account

FBI Contacts Mexican Authorities in Nancy Guthrie Kidnapping, New Ransom Demand  —  The FBI has reached out to authorities in Mexico, in the hunt for Nancy Guthrie and her kidnapper, TMZ has learned ... and TMZ has received a new ransom note.  —  Law enforcement sources involved …

Serial Immigration Fraudster Working as a Minnesota Corrections Officer Arrested  —  MINNEAPOLIS — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' (USCIS) Operation Twin Shield is yielding yet more results with the arrest of a Minnesota correctional officer and AWOL National Guard member masquerading …

Democrats Just Humiliated Jasmine Crockett (And She Is PISSED)  —  There is major drama brewing in the Lone Star State, and the Democrats just got caught playing dirty.  In this episode, we spill the tea on why Stephen Colbert and CBS refused to air an interview with Democrat James Talarico.