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Top figures from Iran’s political, judicial and military institutions marked the third anniversary of Soleimani’s slaying by emphasizing their desire to hold accountable those behind the deadly U.S. strike at Iraq’s Baghdad International Airport. Among these Iranian voices was Kazem Gharibabadi, who serves as the vice president of the country’s Judiciary for International Affairs and secretary general of Iran’s High Council for Human Rights, who revealed Tuesday that some 94 U....

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Sunday night that Biden has agreed to meet Putin to try and resolve the Russia-Ukraine border crisis. “As the President has repeatedly made clear, we are committed to pursuing diplomacy until the moment an invasion begins,” Psaki said in a statement. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is scheduled to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Thursday for a diplomatic solution, and Biden has already “accepted in principle a meeting with President Putin following that engagement, again, if an invasion hasn’t happened....

Biden also announced the U.S. will join the European Union and Group of Seven (G7) countries in downgrading Russia’s “most favored nation” trade status, which could result in higher tariffs on imported goods from the country. The actions are the latest economic measures designed to damage Russia’s economy. Thus far, previous sanctions and a U.S. ban on Russian oil have dealt severe financial blows to Russian President Vladimir Putin, with Fitch Ratings moving Russia’s credit rating to “junk status” and the ruble dropping precipitously in value....

“In a moment of crisis like this, Americans need strong, steadfast leadership, and a President who [levels] with the American people about the challenges we face and the path forward,” Kate Bedingfield, the deputy campaign manager and communications director of the “Biden for President” campaign team said. “But instead of taking charge and taking responsibility,” Bedingfield said, “Trump has passed the buck and failed to lead, making us more vulnerable at a precarious moment when we most need a President who will be honest with the American people and focus on actual results....

The call took place on the same day that Biden announced a Pentagon review of national security strategies relating to China. The leaders discussed a wide range of issues including climate change and nuclear weapons proliferation, and Biden also confronted Xi on several contentious topics, according to a White House readout of the call. “President Biden underscored his fundamental concerns about Beijing’s coercive and unfair economic practices, crackdown in Hong Kong, human rights abuses in Xinjiang, and increasingly assertive actions in the region, including toward Taiwan,” the White House said....

“We have to be really hard,” Michael Osterholm, the director of the Center of Infectious Disease Research and Policy and a member of Biden’s COVID-19 advisory board, said Thursday during an appearance on CNN’s New Day. “I don’t care if I’m accused of being the Grinch that stole Christmas,” Osterholm added. “But you know what, I want you to be around for next Christmas and the Christmas after that. We should be having a very, very hard discussion right now about why we can’t have Christmas 2020 like we had in ‘19 or we hope to have in 2021....

According to the Associated Press, Biden is scheduled to announce the delayed withdrawal date in the upcoming days, and will set the date as the 20th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. His decision could escalate the conflict between the U.S. and the Taliban as the September 11 date is a delay from the date that was set forth by former President Donald Trump’s administration. In February 2020, the Taliban agreed with Trump’s administration to stop attacks against Afghanistan and to conduct peaceful discussions with the Afghan government as long as the U....

“One more year, or five more years, of U.S. military presence would not have made a difference if the Afghan military cannot or will not hold its own country,” Biden said in a White House statement. “An endless American presence in the middle of another country’s civil conflict was not acceptable to me.” He also attacked former President Donald Trump for cutting a deal with the Taliban that he said left them “in the strongest position militarily since 2001,” pulling 2,500 troops before he left office and imposing a May 1, 2021 deadline for withdrawing U....

The initial data for 2021 shared with Newsweek has not been finalized due to lags in reporting. The data set does not include a death estimate for December and includes just a partial estimate of 138 deaths for the first 20 days of November, a number significantly lower than the 6,576 opioid overdose deaths provisionally reported for January. Though the data is expected to change, the 53,702 deaths reported thus far still demonstrate an uptick in opioid-related deaths during President Joe Biden’s first year in office, a rise his two most recent predecessors also experienced....

Leaders from more than 570 tribes in the United States are expected to participate in the two-day event, with nearly three dozen addressing the gathering. The summit is being held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected Native Americans and Alaska Natives at disproportionate rates. Biden announced steps to protect Chaco Canyon, a national park and UNESCO World Heritage site a few hours northwest of Albuquerque, New Mexico...

Reacting to a Florida federal judge’s ruling on Monday, airlines said they would leave it up to passengers whether to mask up. However, they cautioned that some international flights and U.S. airports may keep the requirement that has become a feature of U.S. air travel for the last two years. While the administration of President Joe Biden could still appeal the ruling by Judge Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, appointed by former President Donald Trump, airlines have indicated that the mandate is not being enforced by the Transportation Security Administration....

According to the latest The Economist / YouGov poll on Wednesday, Biden’s net approval fell 14 points to 39 percent. Earlier, Biden had an unusually high approval rating from “less committed Democrats” YouGov says. The president ended the week with a 45 percent approval rating. Independents, however, seem to be giving Biden the cold shoulder as his approval fell a whopping 18 percent in the past week. While the direct answer as to why the sudden drop isn’t certain, the poll points to Biden’s failing favorability in the economy as one potential reason....

Biden is approaching the midpoint of his presidential term, and many are looking at his actions thus far with increasing scrutiny. Biden made steep climate promises during his campaign, such as reaching 100 percent clean electricity by 2035. Some of his actions have progressed those goals, such as passing the Inflation Reduction Act into law to funnel $370 billion into climate and environmental investments. However, some organizations are critiquing the EPA’s execution on federal goals to address climate change....

While the war has brought catastrophe—including more than 110,000 deaths from violence and famine—the manner and timing of Biden’s decision represents a betrayal, scapegoating a Saudi Arabia that, despite its lingering war, has recently championed reform and aided U.S. Middle East policy amid intensifying security threats. Biden’s declaration could not have been more insensitive, especially given his aspirations to rejoin a nuclear deal with Iran, Saudi Arabia’s existential enemy....

Starting next week, foreign nationals who were temporarily barred from traveling to the U.S. within 14 days of visiting those nations will again be allowed to enter the country. The decision comes as Omicron has been driving a surge of new COVID-19 cases in the U.S., with infections from the variant reported in every state. “On Dec. 31, @POTUS will lift the temporary travel restrictions on Southern Africa countries. This decision was recommended by @CDCgov....

Biden made the remarks Thursday while visiting Syracuse, New York, to highlight recent legislation intended to bolster the U.S. manufacturing of computer chips. Earlier that day, the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) published figures showing the economy had bounced back from two contractions and grew 2.6 percent in the third quarter. As the president defended his record, Republicans continued to hammer him amid polls showing voters remain worried about the economy....

The season hasn’t gone much better so far. Texas, Baylor and West Virginia are the only undefeated teams left in the conference. That’s the lowest number among the Power 5 conferences. The conference doesn’t have a conference championship game, so you know what sentence is coming next. The Big 12’s playoff hopes are in big trouble after just two weeks. They’re not dead — we won’t pronounce any conference DOA after two weeks....

“One true champion,” if you will. MORE: What is the committee to do? | CFB Playoff matchups we want to see The problem with that is the scenario in which there is a tie, such as what may take place if both No. 5 TCU and No. 7 Baylor win this weekend. You see, if both teams finish with a 11-1 record, the conference will recognize them as “co-champions” despite the conference’s tiebreaker policy stating that the winner of the head-to-head matchup, which Baylor won 61-58, wins the conference....

Here's what some members of Big Blue Nation already have executed -- camp out for Big Blue Madness tickets that come available on Saturday. People began lining up at 5 a.m. Wednesday morning, with 650 tents set up outside the ticket office. That's 55 more than the record number of tents seen last year. This isn't just the game of the year they're waiting to grab tickets for. It's just the opening event of the state's religion, and it's free....

Whatever else their strike accomplishes, the Teamsters have tapped into mounting worries about the quality of job creation - part or full time, with benefits or without, on staff or off - in the re-engineered 1990s. UPS managers had to face the prospect that the public will side with the strikers in a dispute that, like the tightest ship in the shipping business, touches every block in every city. In Georgia - no pro-union hotbed - it wasn’t just passing truckers who tooted their horns in support of the picketers....