Nicole Lafond
Where Things Stand: ‘Speaker In Waiting’ 
That’s how House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) colleagues are describing him these days, as he fields the whims of a mercurial former president who he’s determined he needs in order to keep his political ambitions alive.
Where Things Stand: Yet Another Data Point Suggesting Trump Screwed GOP In Georgia
As Republicans — led by former President Trump — peddled lies about a stolen election and rampant voter fraud post-November, Georgia still had two runoff elections to conduct. And there was much speculation at the time about whether the Big Lie might actually harm Republican chances in the state.
Where Things Stand: Bipartisan Agreement On Badness
The most obviously bad parts of the Georgia voting law are seen, by voters of both parties, as obviously bad, according to a new poll.
Where Things Stand: White Gun Couple Clings To Relevance
Derek Chauvin was found guilty on all counts in the murder of George Floyd last night, the first verdict of its kind in a landmark case that inspired a wave of protests across the nation last summer against police brutality and systemic racism.
A few hours later, the St. Louis lawyer Mark McCloskey — who become known for standing barefoot outside his home alongside his wife last summer as the two pointed weapons at peaceful Black Lives Matter protesters — told Politico that he was considering a Senate bid in Missouri.
“I can confirm that it’s a consideration, yes,” McCloskey reportedly said Tuesday evening.
Where Things Stand: Bush Describes Modern-Day GOP As ‘Nativist’
“It’s not exactly my vision,” former President George W. Bush said of his Party during a live interview with NBC’s “Today” show this morning.
Where Things Stand: A Return To The Other Very American Problem
The pandemic has brought to a head the complexities of one very uniquely American problem: the emphasis we as a country put on individual freedoms, which, this past year, has repeatedly run headlong into the need to care for our fellow man during a global health crisis.
It’s also revealed in new ways a more depressing American problem: mass shootings.
Where Things Stand: Anti-Trans Bills Are The GOP’s New Culture War. But Most Americans Aren’t On Board
Without any real policy agenda, Republicans in Congress have largely seized on various fronts in the culture war to distract from Biden’s successes. And GOPers at the state level are doing the same, with a new heightened focus on an element of their socially conservative base’s traditional values: Going after the LGBT community.
Lately, that’s meant a fresh wave of anti-trans rights bills.
Where Things Stand: Fortunately, It’s Not Just The Insurrectionists
While the Republican ringleaders of the Big Lie have seemingly fundraised in a big way following their efforts to overturn the results of the election, at least one Democrat is raking in substantial cash for doing, sort of, the opposite.
Where Things Stand: GOP Acknowledges Asian Hate Crime Bill Might Not Be Right Time To Force First Filibuster
Many Senate Republicans nonetheless argued the bill wasn’t necessary in the first place.