Today's Top Political and Coronavirus News Compilation - Thursday, March 4, 2021

Below are some of the top political news stories of the day:

Biden says he will sign election reform bill
President Joe Biden will sign a sweeping election reform bill after it is refined and passed by Congress, he said on Thursday, a day after it passed the U.S. House of Representatives. ...

Updated 11:46 AM CST

Law enforcement on alert after plot warning at US Capitol

Democrats eye three progressive prosecutors for U.S. attorney posts

GOP pulling out all the stops to delay COVID-19 package

Trump election fraud investigation in Georgia enters new phase with grand jury set to be seated

Smith asks Pelosi to investigate food allegedly harming National Guard members

Extremists discussed plans to 'remove Democratic lawmakers,' FBI-DHS bulletin warns

Gov. Abbott hits back at Biden: Releasing COVID-infected migrants into Texas is 'Neanderthal thinking'

"QAnon Shaman" claims he wasn't attacking the country in first interview since Capitol riot arrest

U.S. Senate expected to begin debating coronavirus package on Thursday

Republicans and Democrats tear new divides as Senate debates Covid-19 deal and states are reopening

GOP AGs say House voting rights bill unconstitutional

Cotton to block Garland’s quick confirmation to lead Biden DOJ

GOP pressures Dems to hold oversight hearings on Biden response to border crisis

Cuomo not resigning despite nearly 30 Dem, GOP NY lawmakers supporting removal

House won’t vote on Biden’s comprehensive immigration plan this month, will focus on smaller bills

Once omnipresent Jared Kushner now MIA from Trump's political pack

Senate panel advances Haaland's nomination for interior secretary, teeing up confirmation

Senate awaits COVID bill price tag - live updates

Energy Dept to restart Obama-era loans to renewable energy companies

Biden celebrates House passing HR 1, Dems' campaign bill, vows work to 'refine and advance' legislation

Klobuchar lines up first antitrust hearing

Why are QAnon believers obsessed with 4 March?

Undocumented immigrant has burden of proof to challenge deportation order, Supreme Court rules

GOP state lawmakers seek to nullify federal gun limits

Justice Amy Coney Barrett pens first majority Supreme Court opinion in FOIA dispute

Newly sworn-in Commerce Secretary Raimondo pledges to get Americans back to work

'QAnon shaman' is 'wounded' Trump hasn't helped him

Justice Dept. Backs Away From Trump Era but Is Still Expected to Test Garland - NY Times

Republicans criticize Texas release of COVID-positive illegal immigrants: 'Stop these individuals'

Press Club seeks release of AP journalist jailed in Myanmar

Senate braces for brutal debate on Biden’s Covid aid bill

These companies refuse to bow to cancel culture

Shalanda Young testifies before Senate as top Democrats pressure Biden to pick her for OMB director

Exclusive: New Biden economic hires point toward infrastructure, manufacturing emphasis

March 4 arrives with urgent new questions about Jan. 6: The Note

A ‘gobsmacking' number of first-gen students aren’t applying to college

The Memo: Biden's COVID-19 bet comes with deep risks

Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson explains why he was only Dem to vote against massive HR 1 election bill

Weekly jobless claims total 745,000 vs. 750,000 expected

Capitol Police requests extended National Guard presence on the Hill

US Capitol Police chief wouldn't need approval to request quick reaction force under new guidelines

White House live feed cuts seconds after Biden says he'd 'be happy to take questions'

Senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Marco Rubio introduce bill to prevent truck underride deaths

Myanmar crackdown on protests, widely filmed, sparks outrage

Democrats push FDA to regulate toxic metals in baby food

Exclusive: Amid shortage U.S. suppliers to Chinese chip giant SMIC struggle to get export licenses

Oregon moves to ban display of nooses, a racist symbol

Inflation debate heats up over Biden relief bill

Pentagon policy pick gets hearing today

Hawley slams 'Mr. Unity' Joe Biden for criticism of red states' 'Neanderthal thinking'

US traffic deaths spike despite pandemic keeping people home

Lawmakers opposed to trans girls in sports unable to cite local examples

Double standard? Gillibrand in spotlight after Cuomo scandal

Here's what we know about the Senate stimulus plan

Hong Kong's vanishing freedom on the agenda as China's annual congress begins

Exclusive: Nineteen Myanmar police seek refuge in India, more expected

Biden HHS pick refused request to bring humanitarian aid to Cuba on infamous 1996 trip: report

Amazon opens cashier-less grocery store in London

Is America a Christian nation? Pastors at odds about fusion of faith and politics

AZ House passes bill to loosen big tech's grip on developers

Australia extends international travel ban through at least mid-June

17% of food production globally wasted, UN report estimates

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Posted 1:03 AM CST

U.S. House passes sweeping election bill, Senate prospects unclear

Police uncover ‘possible plot’ by militia to breach Capitol

U.S. House passes 'George Floyd' police reform bill, Senate prospects unclear

The House passed a sweeping voting rights act. What's in it?

House Democrats pass election reforms as GOP moves to change voting laws

U.S. House cancels Thursday session after police warn of possible plot on Capitol

House Republican: 'Trump has a responsibility' to tell his supporters 'to stand down' after new threat

Gingrich claims Democrats have 'given up keeping House' in 2022, are 'ramming through everything they can'

Eager to act, Biden and Democrats leave Republicans behind

House Democrats introduce bill providing citizenship to Dreamers

House passes sweeping voting rights bill. A Senate filibuster may stand in the way.

Mitch McConnell on Donald Trump: We're looking to the 'future,' not 'the past'

White House weighs minimum wage negotiations with Republicans

Fact check: Pence echoes Trump's Big Lie in dishonest op-ed on election rules

Pompeo won't rule out a 2024 presidential run on 'Hannity': 'Always up for a fight'

Manhattan DA trying to turn Trump's CFO against him: Report

U.S. DOJ declined to investigate Trump transport chief after inspector general review

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse says it's "not tolerable" for the FBI to avoid questions from lawmakers

U.S. issues warning after Microsoft says China hacked its mail server program

Alarming threat prompts early exit, underscoring security fears

Joe Biden's Cabinet picks and where they stand in Senate confirmation proceedings

Recording Trump was discussed, Rosenstein concedes

Senate Democrats delay introduction of Biden's $1.9 trillion COVID-19 aid bill

Senate GOP blasts 'blue state bailout' in Biden's $1.9T coronavirus bill

Garland's AG nomination delayed by GOP roadblocks

Florida Gov. DeSantis slams Biden over pace of school reopenings: 'Pathetic failure of leadership'

House Energy and Commerce leaders unveil sweeping climate change legislation

Exclusive: Unaccompanied kids being held by Border Patrol for 77 hours on average, internal documents show

With Biden’s backing, Dems revive bill to overhaul policing

Democrats confront a harsh political choice: Save the filibuster or pass Biden's agenda

Some Republican governors stand by mask mandates as Texas and Mississippi accelerate reopening

Democrats cut deals to bolster support for relief bill

House Democrats pass extensive voting and campaign finance reform bill, H.R. 1

GOP targets centrist Dems on Becerra vote

Biden’s Unnecessary Border Crisis

Capitol Hill security increased and House session canceled amid warnings about March 4 conspiracies

Takeaways: What hearings have revealed about Jan. 6 failures

Democrats in Congress propose monument to honor Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Biden signals another reversal from Trump with national security guidance

Cuomo issues public apology in wake of scandal, says he won't resign

Biden faces backlash over small business rescue overhaul

Proposal to increase officers' liability for suspects' deaths passes House

Biden response to Khashoggi investigation 'shocking,' U.N. official says

'The knives come out': Cuomo fights for political survival as pressure mounts

Iran looms over Senate hearing for Biden nominee for senior U.S. State post

Biden reignites war powers fight with Syria strike

Examples in state-mandated sex harass training strikingly similar to Cuomo allegations

US-China tensions threaten global climate change efforts

Alleged Proud Boys leader wins pretrial release

Virginia U.S. senators send White House list of candidates for U.S. Attorney posts

Ronny Jackson report vindicates past concerns over Cabinet nomination: Tester

Changes to Obamacare are hiding in plain sight in the $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill

U.S. suspends federal agent who joined crowd outside Capitol during rampage, lawyer says

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez blasts Democrats' last-minute compromise on stimulus checks as an 'own-goal' - BI

Sole GOP vote on House police reform bill says he 'accidentally pressed the wrong voting button'

Pentagon confirms 10 rockets struck Iraqi base housing U.S. troops

AP Interview: DOE reviving loan program, Granholm says

Judge sets first trial date for Capitol riot

Transportation Department watchdog asked DOJ to consider criminal probe of then-Secretary Elaine Chao over ethics concerns

Tammy Duckworth on anti-Asian American hate crimes: We "are still viewed as an other"

Migrants on border seen wearing shirts begging Biden to let them in

State passes bill limiting transgender athletes

Myanmar protesters back out on streets after bloodiest day since coup

Watchdog faulted Elaine Chao for misuse of office as transportation secretary

Major stores will still enforce masks in TX, MS despite lifted regulations

UN: 38 died on deadliest day yet for Myanmar coup opposition

Georgia Gov. Kemp says he'd 'absolutely' back Trump as 2024 nominee

Flood risk is growing for US homeowners due to climate change

South Carolina bill would add firing squad and electric chair as execution options
South Korea's first known transgender soldier found dead

SpaceX Starship rocket prototype nails landing... then blows up

Facebook lifts political ad ban

Lightfoot sympathizes with Cuomo accusers

Newsom recall effort surpasses 1.9M signatures in California

Meghan accuses royals of 'perpetuating falsehoods'

Migrant workers face dire conditions at South Korean farms

Yemen's Houthis say they fired missile at Saudi Aramco site in Jeddah

Rising bond yields spook world shares as investors look to Powell

Epstein's Manhattan mansion could sell for nearly $50M

New photos: North Korea may be trying to extract plutonium

German warship to cross South China Sea for first time since 2002

Coronavirus News and Updates:
Updated 11:46 AM CST

‘Falling through cracks’: Vaccine bypasses some older adults

New Google COVID-19 database could hold key to disease's mysteries
Abbott: Texas mask mandate rollback ‘isn’t going to make that big of a change’

Pushed out by pandemic, women struggle to regain footing in U.S. job market
Experts warn US risks delaying 'normal' summer

Five states are rolling back mask mandates. More could be on the way. Here's what it could mean for all of us.

GOP governors trigger mask showdown with White House

San Antonio Spurs coach Gregg Popovich slams Texas governor for lifting Covid mandates

Mom shares COVID grief journey after healthy 34-year-old's death: 'Why my daughter?'

California to give 40% of vaccine doses to vulnerable areas

Vaccine supplier to the poor lands new clients: The rich

Data Show India's Homegrown COVID-19 Vaccine Works — 2 Months After It Was Approved

Europe starts formal review of Russia's Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine
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Posted 1:03 AM CST

'Now Is Not The Time To Stop Wearing A Mask,' CDC Director Says

Millions of U.S. households would not get COVID-19 payments under new Biden plan

Florida Keys enclave, home to political donors, received COVID-19 vaccine as rest of state struggled

States rapidly expanding vaccine access as supplies surge

CDC delays guidelines for vaccinated people

Biden says it's a 'big mistake' for states to lift mask mandates

Covid: Biden says ‘Neanderthal thinking’ behind lifting of mask rules

Abbott's medical advisers were not all consulted before he lifted Texas mask mandate

Swift backlash after Texas governor drops COVID restrictions

Texas doctors respond to mask repeal: We have 'capacity' but not 'morale' for another surge

Texas schools, stores divided on masks as mandate ends

New mask wars threaten Biden's pandemic response at critical moment

How a changing virus is reshaping scientists’ views

Pandemic school closures could create a drag on the economy for years

Teachers, child care staff nationwide can now sign up for vaccine shots

‘Situation is alarming’: Brazil sees new daily COVID death record

Efficacy data for India's own COVID-19 vaccine could boost public acceptance

Dems tighten relief benefits, firm up support for virus bill

Church Leaders Say Johnson & Johnson Shot Should Be Avoided If Alternatives Available

Raging pandemic shuts down Sao Paulo as Brazil nears Pfizer deal