The Wall Street Journal reported that the justice, homeland security and health and human services departments were among the agencies negotiating settlements of $450,000 per person affected by the policy that led to families being separated at the U.S. southern border. From spring 2018, Border Patrol agents apprehended and jailed parents on charges of illegally entering the U.S. Images of children being wrenched from their families to be placed in shelters sparked widespread condemnation....

In the months following the election, former President Donald Trump and his allies alleged that he only lost to Joe Biden due to widespread voter fraud, though no evidence has been presented to back up the claims. They specifically claimed fraud occurred in key swing states including Wisconsin. Trump ultimately narrowly lost the battleground state by less than one point in 2020, even after winning the state in 2016. Joe Biden won 20,682 more votes than Trump....

“The reality is right now there’s, you know, less than 50,000 votes to count, and the president would have to get about 65 percent of them to win Arizona,” Brnovich said during a Wednesday interview with Fox Business anchor Neil Cavuto. “So it does appear that Joe Biden will win Arizona.” After Election Day, Republican Arizona voters claimed poll workers had instructed them to use Sharpies, black felt-tipped permanent markers, to fill in their ballots, and alleged that the markers had bled through the ballot paper making their ballots unreadable by voting machines....

Hogan, a Republican, faced a protest within his own state, as demonstrators drove cars, waved flags and honked their horns through Maryland’s capital Annapolis on Saturday. The protesters were calling for Hogan to reopen businesses and the economy, despite guidelines put forward by the Trump administration and a growing number of cases of the coronavirus nationwide. “I don’t think it’s helpful to encourage demonstrations and encourage people to go against the president’s own policy,” the GOP governor said during an interview with CNN’s State of the Union Sunday....

Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton confirmed to WTVF that he had been subpoenaed to appear before a federal grand jury as part of a corruption probe into the Legislature. The subpoena indicates the federal investigation is expanding after a former state representative pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud charges involving a company that provided mailing services to Republican lawmakers, according to local media sources. Sexton told Newsweek that he has been cooperating with the FBI investigation since becoming speaker in 2019 and wasn’t surprised by the subpoena....

The California GOP congressman said on Twitter the act is an incentive for local leaders to take action against the “leftwing mobs” that are “trying to erase history by destroying statues of George Washington, General Grant, and Christopher Columbus.” “Enough is enough,” McCarthy tweeted. The Republican-backed legislation, which McCarthy introduced alongside Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio and Representative Sam Graves of Missouri, came after weeks of demonstrations that started in response to the police-involved death of George Floyd on May 25....

U.S. District Judge Amy Totenberg ruled that the case can move forward. The group’s lawsuit alleges that Greene was involved in the U.S. Capitol riot on January 6, 2021, and should therefore be disqualified from office for violating a Civil War-era provision of the 14th Amendment known as the insurrection clause. Greene, who was seeking an injunction to stop the lawsuit, has denied the allegation that she “aided and engaged in insurrection to obstruct the peaceful transfer of presidential power....

Rice was one of 10 Republicans who on Wednesday joined Democrats to vote in favor of Trump’s impeachment for allegedly inciting the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol last week. Only two days earlier, Rice had indicated that he did not support the impeachment. In an interview with the Associated Press published Thursday, Rice noted that his decision to impeach came after years of supporting the outgoing president. “I have been with this president through thick and thin....

In an interview on CNN’s Newsroom, Barasso, of Wyoming, said that he was co-sponsoring legislation along with other members of Congress to hold Saudi Arabia accountable for its malign actions. “We need to reevaluate our long-term relationship with Saudi Arabia,” said the senator. Barasso admitted that Washington still has a “strategic interest” in working closely with Riyadh on Middle Eastern issues, which Trump has long used as a defense of his administration’s strong support for the relationship....

Facebook took down posts for protest events in California, New York and Nebraska. The company said that the posts were removed because the demonstrations in those states would violate orders intended to limit the spread of the virus. Several other events have not been taken down. “Because free speech is now illegal America?” Hawley tweeted in response to a tweet that claimed the posts had been taken down “on the instruction” of state governments....

Cornyn made the remarks to reporters Wednesday after being asked about recent criticism levied at Republicans including President Donald Trump for calling COVID-19 “the Chinese virus” and emphasizing the pathogen’s foreign origins. “Well, I think China is to blame because the culture where people eat bats and snakes and dogs and things like that, these viruses are transmitted from the animal to the people,” Cornyn said. “And that’s why China has been the source of a lot of these viruses like SARS, like MERS, the Swine Flu, and now the coronavirus....

Ernst spoke up to defend Cheney in a letter penned to GOP members on Monday, saying, “We are a big tent party. We represent Americans of all backgrounds. … And unlike the left, we embrace free thought and debate.” She argued that trying to silence Cheney is counter to the Republican party’s free speech values. “Cancel culture is cancel culture no matter how you look at it, and unfortunately I think there are those that are trying to silence others in the party,” Ernst later told reporters....

The Trump administration signed the conditional peace agreement with the Taliban in Qatar on Saturday, in a bid to bring America’s longest war to an end. Hailing the historic deal, Trump said that it was “time to bring our people back home.” But Graham, normally a staunch Trump defender, has argued that withdrawing all U.S. troops will make Afghanistan “fall apart.” “Mr. President, let’s get the Taliban to the table but let’s don’t trust the Taliban to defend America,” Graham said during an interview with Fox News morning show Fox & Friends on Monday morning, directing his remarks directly at Trump....

Bev Veals, a three-time cancer survivor from Carolina Beach, recorded her call with a member of North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis’ Washington, D.C., staff after she grew upset with his apparent lack of empathy. “You’re saying that, if you can’t afford [health insurance], you don’t get to have it, and that includes health care?” Veals asked the staffer. “Yeah, just like if I want to go to the store and buy a new dress shirt....

However, as college football commentator Lee Corso would say, “Not so fast, my friend.” The wave never came. The GOP will probably win the House by the barest of margins and a one vote Senate majority may be riding on Herschel Walker’s runoff in Georgia. Good luck to Kevin McCarthy in fashioning a governing majority. But the real news of the night is how poorly the GOP performed in key Senate and Governors’ races in the key presidential battleground states....

After days of deliberation, a federal court jury on Friday found Stone, 68, guilty of “obstruction of a congressional investigation,” as well as “five counts of making false statements to Congress, and tampering with a witness,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia. Stone faces up to 20 years in prison over the witness tampering conviction, however, he may serve a lesser sentence as he is a non-violent first time offender....

Many Republicans and conservative media have blamed Trump for their party’s relatively poor showing in the November 8 election. A number of the most prominent gubernatorial and Senate candidates endorsed by the former president failed to win their elections. As a result, the GOP’s chances of taking control of the Senate remains in doubt in a year where analysts, public polling, and historical precedent all suggested Republicans should see a “red wave” propelling them into control of Congress....

DeSantis, a Republican, previously promised to offer bonuses to police who moved to the state in his opposition of vaccine mandates and attitudes toward police in cities and states ran by Democrats. That same signing bonus is also offered to state residents who decide to join law enforcement agencies. The budget proposal also calls for increased salaries for both entry level and experienced law enforcement officers. The budget proposal totals $99....

Some argue for digital currencies controlled and administered by central banks—Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs). But even they concede that the introduction of CBDCs will tip the balance of power even further toward institutions and away from individuals. We’d do well to consider alternatives before resigning ourselves to that outcome. Bitcoin—the oldest, most well-understood and most used cryptocurrency—is the obvious alternative. Headlines focus on flashy topics like price speculation, use by criminals, or environmental impact; but behind the hype lies an inclusive global monetary system with millions of users—and more every day....

Five women have now accused Cuomo of sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior. Their allegations compounded the controversy already surrounding New York’s governor after reports indicated that he intentionally undercounted COVID-19 deaths among residents of long-term care facilities during the earlier part of the pandemic. More than two dozen federal and state lawmakers have publicly called for Cuomo’s resignation on Sunday, while New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office pursues an independent investigation into the misconduct claims....