Today's Liberal News

Forceful testimony from commander of D.C. National Guard highlights unexplained delays on Jan. 6

At a joint Senate committee hearing on Wednesday, an array of intelligence and defense officials—including the commander of the Washington, D.C. National Guard—gave testimony concerning events leading up to and during the Jan. 6 insurgency. Much of the focus of the questions and answers remained around the timing of events, including when the National Guard was authorized, and on the clear failures of intelligence to anticipate the violent events of that day.

Under Biden, early polling shows Americans’ confidence in U.S. pandemic response is increasing

For the first time in nearly nine months, a national Harris tracking poll found that Americans’ fears of contracting the coronavirus and dying have dipped below a majority share of the public.

When given a binary choice between “I fear I could die as a result of contracting coronavirus” and “I do not fear I could die as a result of contracting coronavirus,” 48% said they harbor that fear while 52% said they did not fear such a death.

The Supreme Court is ready to gut what’s left of voting rights. How will Manchin and Sinema respond?

“What’s the interest of the Arizona RNC in keeping, say, the out-of-precinct ballot disqualification rules on the books?” Justice Amy Coney Barrett asked Michael Carvin, the lawyer arguing before the Supreme Court Tuesday on behalf of Arizona Republicans that two of the state’s voter suppression laws should be upheld. He answered truthfully: “Because it puts us at a competitive disadvantage relative to Democrats. Politics is a zero-sum game.

The Weekly Planet: Why a Political Philosopher Is Thinking About Carbon Removal

Jared Rodriguez
Every Tuesday, our lead climate reporter brings you the big ideas, expert analysis, and vital guidance that will help you flourish on a changing planet. Sign up to get The Weekly Planet, our guide to living through climate change, in your inbox.Until a few years ago, the idea that humanity could suck carbon pollution out of the atmosphere at an industrial scale was deemed implausible, if not impossible.

The Atlantic Daily: How Our Pandemic Public-Health Messaging Backfired

Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox.America’s recent streak of good vaccine news continues: According to the Biden administration, the country will have enough doses by the end of May to vaccinate all adults.This is a welcome development for those wearied by this strange vaccine purgatory.

An Ice-Covered Russian Ghost Town

Earlier this week, the photographer Maria Passer visited some of the ice-covered abandoned buildings of Vorkuta, a dwindling coal-mining city north of the Arctic Circle, in Russia’s Komi Republic. Temperatures in Vorkuta can drop as low as -58 degrees Fahrenheit in the coldest winter months.

Antarctica Is Running Out of Wilderness

In almost every sense of the word, the Palmer Archipelago in Antarctica is wild. Humpback whales, elephant seals, and the wandering albatross, a seabird with a wingspan as long as a male great white shark, all call this area home. Towering glaciers and blue-tinged icebergs dot the landscape, and sunsets last for hours.This empty, untamed place also has a gift shop.

Biden Needs Unions to Force His Hand

Joe Biden did an extraordinary thing for an American president earlier this week: Without qualification, he supported the right of workers to form a union. Biden didn’t just weigh in on behalf of those seeking to unionize an Amazon distribution facility in Bessemer, Alabama. He also affirmed the importance of unions for all workers and for the good of the country. Conservatives and centrist media outlets often assume that the Democratic Party is “beholden” to “Big Labor.

Cuomo Must Go: Calls Grow to Remove NY Governor over COVID Nursing Home Cover-up & Sexual Harassment

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is facing mounting calls from fellow Democrats and progressive organizations to resign or be impeached over sexual harassment allegations and his cover-up of thousands of COVID-19 deaths in New York nursing homes. New York Attorney General Letitia James has launched an investigation after three women — two former aides and a woman who met Cuomo at a friend’s wedding reception — accused Cuomo of sexual harassment.

Asian American Communities Organize Against Rise in Hate Crimes, Say More Policing Is Not the Answer

Anti-Asian hate crimes have spiked across the U.S. over the past year, fueled in part by Donald Trump’s racist rhetoric about the coronavirus. One recent study found a 150% increase in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans in 2020, even though overall hate crimes fell last year. Ron Kim, member of the New York State Assembly representing the 40th District in Queens, New York, says anti-Asian sentiment tends to flare up during times of crisis.