Vice News reports: A draft executive order that would have allowed former President Donald Trump to seize voting machines in the wake of the 2020 election was published in full for the first time on Friday, showing the lengths the Trump administration considered going to in their campaign to overturn the vote. The document is not signed, but new research …

The New York Post reports: Maybe he should’ve stuck with cash. Mayor Eric Adams may have lost more than $1,000 of his first City Hall paycheck in just four days after converting it into cryptocurrency during a plunge in the market, a Post analysis shows. Adams, who pulls an annual salary of $258,750, said Friday he converted his first biweekly …

The CBC reports: Hundreds of truckers set off from British Columbia to Ottawa on Sunday to protest a federal vaccine mandate despite the urging of the country’s largest trucking federation to comply. The protest has been dubbed the “Freedom Rally” against the federal mandate for cross-border truckers, which went into effect on Jan. 15. Canadian truck drivers now need to …

The Associated Press reports: Former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, one of the most powerful figures in state government for two decades before his conviction on corruption charges, has died in federal custody. He was 77. Silver died Monday, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press. The person could not discuss the matter publicly and spoke …

The Jerusalem Post reports: Former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday rejected a plea deal that would ban him from politics for the next seven years, following a message from Attorney-General Avichai Mandelblit that he was no longer prepared to conclude a deal and that Netanyahu could try with his successor. The moral turpitude clause that the prosecution insisted on …

Reuters reports: Even as COVID-19 cases drop and hospitalizations show signs of plateauing in hard-hit pockets of the United States, the still-rising death toll from the Omicron variant highlights the trail of loss that follows every virus surge. Coronavirus deaths hit an 11-month high on Sunday, climbing 11% in the past week when compared to the prior week, according to …

CNN reports: An Atlanta-area district attorney investigating former President Donald Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia will be allowed to seat a special grand jury this spring. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis requested last week to seat a special grand jury starting May 2. Fulton County Superior Court judges approved the request on Monday. The …

Billboard Magazine reports: After months of railing against COVID-19 lockdowns and vaccines, and refusing to play shows that require vaccination proof, Eric Clapton has seemingly embraced a controversial theory claiming that secret messages are allegedly being hidden inside YouTube videos with the goal of driving mass compliance with COVID precautions. The 76-year-old rock icon pointed to the theory as an …

The Wall Street Journal reports: The Pentagon hasn’t said under which circumstances the U.S. would deploy the troops, but officials said it could send a signal to Russia that the U.S. would quickly bolster the defenses of NATO allies in the event of a Russian incursion into Ukraine. The troops could also be on standby should the U.S. decide they …

Politico reports: Donald Trump’s pick to become Arizona’s top elections official raised more campaign cash in 2021 than his two potential Democratic opponents combined — a sign of MAGA-world’s deep engagement in taking over under-the-radar positions in charge of running battleground state elections. State Rep. Mark Finchem, whom Trump endorsed for Arizona secretary of state in September of last year, …

Miami’s ABC News affiliate reports: Dozens of Florida sheriffs declared their support for Governor Ron DeSantis during a Monday morning press conference. According to Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey, 59 of Florida’s 67 sheriffs recognized that “Governor DeSantis’ support of law enforcement is why Florida’s crime rate is going down.” The eight sheriffs who did not announce their support for …

The Florida Phoenix reports: The legislative session is only two weeks old and the reliably witless Sen. Joe Gruters (R-Somewhere Up Trump’s Rump) is moving a bill to fine professional sports teams if they don’t play the national anthem. Wait, you say, aren’t the Heat and the Magic, the Bucs and the Jaguars, the Rays and the Marlins and the …

Kyle Mantyla reports at Right Wing Watch: Scott McKay, a prominent QAnon conspiracy theorist known online as Patriot Streetfighter, spoke at a ReAwaken America tour stop in Phoenix, Arizona, where he declared war on health care providers whom he blamed for the recent death of fellow QAnon and anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Cirsten Weldon. Stalking the stage while brandishing a tomahawk …

Here’s what prosecutors asked for last week: Federal prosecutors on Thursday recommended an Omaha man be sentenced to four months of home detention and three years probation for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. Additionally, it was also recommended that Brandon Straka serve at least 60 hours of community service and pay $500 restitution. …

The Associated Press reports: Tensions soared Monday between Russia and the West over concerns that Moscow is planning to invade Ukraine, with NATO outlining potential troop and ship deployments, Britain saying it would withdraw some diplomats from Kyiv, and Ireland denouncing upcoming Russian war games off its coast as unwelcome. The Western alliance’s statement summed up moves already announced by …

ABC News reports: The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday said it would take up a pair of cases that could decide the future of affirmative action in college admissions. The justices will hear appeals from a conservative student group that has been challenging the use of race as a factor in undergraduate admissions at Harvard University, the nation’s oldest private …

Deadline Hollywood reports: James Snyder, who has played the title character of Broadway’s recently retooled Harry Potter and the Cursed Child since the show returned from the pandemic shutdown, has been fired by producers following a complaint by co-star Diane Davis about Snyder’s conduct. The exact nature of the conduct has not been specified. But producers Sonia Friedman Productions, Colin …

Axios reports: The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s lawsuit challenging voting by proxy in the House. Why it matters: The decision leaves in place a way to vote on legislation that many lawmakers see as critical to minimizing the spread of coronavirus in Congress – and one that even critics have taken advantage …

Reuters reports: Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican U.S. vice presidential candidate and former Alaska governor, has tested positive for the coronavirus, as she had been set to begin a defamation trial against The New York Times on Monday. Palin’s positive test was announced by U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan, who is presiding over the case. “She is of …

The Miami Herald reports: South Florida authorities are investigating the origin of anti-Semitic flyers that were distributed overnight in Miami Beach and Surfside neighborhoods, police said Sunday. Miami Beach police increased patrols in neighborhoods and religious institutions following the first report received shortly after 7 a.m., Ernesto Rodriguez, the department’s spokesperson, told Miami Herald via email. The anti-Semitic flyers appear …