NBC News reports: Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Friday that he plans to double the number of staff within the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division dedicated to protecting voting rights. “There are plenty of things up for debate in America, but the right of all eligible Americans to vote is not one of them,” Garland said. The staffing surge would …

Washington DC’s ABC News affiliate reports: A Kansas Proud Boy charged in the Capitol riot has asked a judge to release him from jail due to chronic back pain – a condition, prosecutors say, which didn’t prevent him from allegedly wielding an axe handle against police outside the Capitol. William Chrestman, 47, was arrested in February along with four others …

The Chicago Tribune reports: A Chicago police officer was arrested Friday on federal charges of breaching the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 and entering a Democratic senator’s office with the violent mob, later texting to a friend that he’d “knocked out a commie.” Officer Karol Chwiesiuk, 29, was charged in a criminal complaint in U.S. District Court in Washington with …

Law & Crime reports: The Department of Justice announced that two more names have been added to the hundreds of active criminal cases related to the siege of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. This time, it’s a father-son duo facing charges. According to the DOJ, Daniel Johnson was arrested in Minnesota and his father Daryl Johnson was arrested in …

The Insider reports: Senator Ron Johnson has been suspended from YouTube for a week after his account uploaded a video of him spreading medical misinformation, in violation of Google’s detailed policy on the matter. The conflict is the latest episode of a running feud the Republican from Wisconsin is waging against the video-sharing website, accusing the company of censorship when …

Politico reports: Former Attorney General William Barr on Friday distanced himself from reports that the Trump Justice Department seized communications records belonging to two prominent Democratic lawmakers who were spearheading investigations into then-President Donald Trump. In a phone interview, Barr said he didn’t recall getting briefed on the moves. Barr said that while he was attorney general, he was “not …

Boing Boing reports: While two Tennessee teens were painting a mural to celebrate Pride Month, a homophobic – and racist (of course) – Marjorie Taylor Greene clone marched over with paint cans in her arms. “I’m comin’ over here to paint over your shit,” she said. “I’m sick of hearing all of you. I’m sick of hearing all of you.” …

ABC News reports: The Pulitzer Prizes recognize some of the year’s most important journalism. This year, someone who isn’t a professional journalist, but whose actions had as much impact as any, is among those being honored. Darnella Frazier, who filmed the death of George Floyd, received a special citation, Aminda Marqués González, co-chair of the Pulitzer Prize Board, announced Friday. …

The New York Times reports: During a recent visit to Argentina by the prime minister of Spain, President Alberto Fernández tried to connect with his guest by paying homage to Argentina’s European immigrant heritage. Instead, with a statement that was widely seen as xenophobic and offensive, Mr. Fernández managed to cause offense at home and across Latin America — including …

“Critical Race Theory is a very dangerous socialist, communist idea that has now made it mainstream in our schools by school boards who are supporting this leftist socialist ideology. Parents must rise up against the school boards and let their voices be heard. I would encourage Christians in these communities to be involved and run for school boards. How important …

CBS News reports: President Biden is joining other world democratic leaders on the first day of the Group of 7 summit in Britain, hoping to restore U.S. relations with the world’s democracies and urging them to unite to confront COVID-19 and other global challenges. Leaders of the G7 and guest countries will provide more than 1 billion additional COVID-19 vaccine …

The Kansas City Star reports: Missouri police will be barred from enforcing federal gun laws that regulate weapons registration, tracking and possession of firearms by some domestic violence offenders under a bill Gov. Mike Parson, a former sheriff, announced Thursday he will sign into law. Passage of the “Second Amendment Preservation Act” represents a victory for conservatives who have pushed …

The Wall Street Journal reports: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D., Ill.) called for former attorneys general Jeff Sessions and William Barr to testify before Congress under oath after revelations that the Trump Justice Department secretly sought records from Apple Inc. related to communications by Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee …

So this actually happened yesterday: Andrew Giuliani is running for governor of New York and took his campaign to New York City’s Times Square, where he was confronted by a TikTok personality who goes by the moniker “Crackhead Barney,” because that’s is the way we live now, dear readers. Giuliani and Crackhead Barney proceeded to get into a rather ugly …

The Hill reports: Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) is introducing a bill on Friday aimed at blocking members of the Chinese Communist Party from buying land in the United States. Although the Committee on Foreign Investments does review some attempts by foreign entities to buy U.S. land, the bill would completely stop CCP from buying either public or private land in …

“I want everyone to know about cancel culture. The law firm that we hired here in Minneapolis. They were hired — you have to get a local firm — that was hired, so we hired them. Well they were attacked by bots and trolls and emails and everything, after this was filed last Thursday. “On Friday morning they fired the …

Alaska Public Radio reports: Former Anchorage GOP Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux faces four new felony counts of voter misconduct, state prosecutors announced Thursday. LeDoux’s former legislative aide, Lisa Simpson, also faces two new felony charges, which could increase the pressure on her to cooperate with authorities in their efforts to convict her former boss. The charges against LeDoux came after state …

The Associated Press reports: Family members of Walmart founder Sam Walton on Thursday launched a $1 million fund for groups assisting LGBT people in the retail giant’s home state of Arkansas, which has enacted measures restricting transgender people’s rights. The new fund is being established with support from the Alice L. Walton Foundation and from Olivia and Tom Walton through …

The military blog Task & Purpose reports: A White senator from the South told America’s first Black defense secretary on Thursday that President Joe Biden’s nascent administration has witnessed the birth of racism and sexism within the military. The cause of this completely new phenomenon is allegedly the anti-extremism and diversity training that troops have taken so far this year, …

The Guardian reports: A digital marketing firm closely linked to the pro-Trump youth group Turning Point USA was responsible for a series of deceptive Facebook ads promoting Green party candidates during the 2018 US midterm elections, the Guardian can reveal. In an apparent attempt to split the Democratic vote in a number of close races, the ads purported to come …