Axios

The Jan. 6 select committee is expanding its investigation into "alternate" Trump electors with a fresh round of subpoenas for the former president's allies, the panel announced on Tuesday.

Why it matters: The development signals that the panel sees these illegitimate electors, which have come under renewed focus amid reports of coordination by Trump allies, as a potentially fruitful line of inquiry.

Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernández turned himself in to the authorities Tuesday following an extradition request by the U.S., the New York Times reported.

The latest: “It’s not an easy moment, I don’t wish it on anybody,” Hernández said in an audio message on Twitter Tuesday.

President Biden acknowledged reports on Tuesday that Russia has ordered the partial withdrawal of its troops near Ukraine's borders, but stressed that the U.S. has "not yet verified" the Kremlin's claims and that an invasion remains "distinctly possible."

Why it matters: Biden's update from the White House came at a critical moment in the crisis over Russia's massive military buildup, with U.S. officials warning that an invasion of Ukraine could take place as soon "at any moment."

The planned use of robot dogs along the U.S.-Mexico border is already facing skepticism from members of both political parties.

Driving the news: U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), who represents a border district where robot dogs could be dispatched, told Axios the technology is "ghoulish" and a waste.

32 Republican senators introduced a new bill on Tuesday that would impose immediate sanctions on no fewer than 15 Russian oligarchs and members of Vladimir Putin's inner circle, regardless of whether Russia invades Ukraine.

Why it matters: Anti-kleptocracy activists have long called on the U.S. to do more to target Russian oligarchs who exploit Western financial systems to hide their stolen wealth.

The Biden administration has requested $30 billion more to fuel the COVID response, according to sources familiar, but most Republicans — and some Democrats — are less than thrilled about the prospect of spending more money on the pandemic.

Why it matters: The request sets up a clash between lawmakers concerned about pandemic preparedness and those who are reluctant to spend more money against a backdrop of inflation and record-high federal debt.

The New York Times was handed a small victory on Monday, after a New York district judge said he would dismiss a landmark defamation case brought against it by former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

The latest: The jury unanimously found The Times not liable in the case on Tuesday, a day after Judge Jed S. Rakoff said Palin failed to prove the New York Times acted with "actual malice," per NPR's David Folkenflik.

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday voted 50-46 to confirm Robert Califf as head of the Food and Drug Administration.

Driving the news: Califf was nominated by President Biden to lead the FDA, a crucial health agency that has been without a permanent leader for more than a year.

Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-N.Y.) told Axios at an event Tuesday that he "will continue to knock on the door" of the Congressional Black Caucus, which has previously denied his membership into the organization.

Why it matters: The caucus has historically been limited to Black membership. Espaillat, who in 2016 became the first Dominican American and first formerly undocumented immigrant elected to Congress, identifies as Black and Latino, and has previously described himself as a "Latino of African descent."

Remington Arms on Tuesday agreed to a $73 million settlement of liability claims from nine families of Sandy Hook shooting victims, according to court documents and lawyers for the families.

Why it matters: It's the first time in the U.S. a gun manufacturer has been held responsible for a mass shooting, ABC News reports.

Republican members of the Senate Banking Committee will boycott a planned Tuesday afternoon vote to advance five Biden nominees to lead the Federal Reserve, denying the panel a quorum.

Driving the news: They are demanding that Democrats wait to hold a vote on Sarah Bloom Raskin, tapped to be the Fed's top bank regulator, until she answers more questions about her board service for a financial technology company.

Prince Andrew settled a lawsuit with Virginia Giuffre that alleged disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein arranged for Prince Andrew to sexually abuse and rape Giuffre when she was 17 years old, according to court papers filed Tuesday.

Why it matters: The financial details of the settlement were not disclosed, though it came after Andrew lost a bid to have the lawsuit dismissed, setting him up to face a civil trial in the United States. Andrew has denied any wrongdoing.

Environmentalists are pressing financial regulators to look skeptically at companies' use of carbon offsets to help meet their climate pledges.

Driving the news: In a public comment docket posted by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency about draft guidelines for how large banks should handle climate risk, the Center for American Progress said OCC should deter banks from using offsets to meet their public emissions pledges.

The Biden administration unveiled new plans Tuesday morning aimed at cutting emissions from heavy industries with new funding in the bipartisan infrastructure law and executive powers.

Why it matters: Climate solutions for electricity and transportation probably get more attention. But the path to deeply decarbonizing the U.S. economy also goes through industries like chemicals, metals and cement that often lack tools available at commercial scale.

By dismissing former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's lawsuit against The New York Times, a district judge kept one of the media's landmark legal protections in place — at least for now.

What they're saying: "I think a lot of media companies and lawyers representing media companies are probably breathing a big sigh of relief right now," said Christy Hull Eikhoff, a media and defamation lawyer at Alston & Bird.

Nina Totenberg, NPR's legendary Supreme Court whisperer, will be out Sept. 13 with "Dinners with Ruth," a memoir of her nearly 50-year friendship with the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Why it matters: The book is described as "an intimate memoir of the power of friendships as women began to pry open career doors and transform the workplace."

In the final hours before President Nixon resigned, his Defense secretary moved to restrict the commander-in-chief's access to nuclear assets, Garrett Graff writes in "Watergate: A New History," out today.

Why it matters: With the 50th anniversary of the Watergate break-in coming in June, Graff told me his 216,000-word, 793-page book is the first "start-to-finish narrative history of Watergate written since the 1990s — and the story as we understand it has changed significantly."

Some Russian troops near Ukraine's border are returning to their bases after completing missions, but other large-scale drills remain ongoing, Russia's defense ministry said on Tuesday.

Why it matters: It's a sign that Russian President Vladimir Putin may be willing to de-escalate the crisis, but the threat of war isn't over yet, per the New York Times.

The U.S. is offering Ukraine up to $1 billion in sovereign loan guarantees to help the country's economy as it faces the threat of a Russian military buildup at its border.

Driving the news: Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in an emailed statement late Monday the offer, combined with "the strong partnership" among Ukraine, the International Monetary Fund and others, would "bolster Ukraine’s ability to ensure economic stability, growth and prosperity for its people in the face of Russia’s destabilizing behavior. "

Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) rejected suggestions during a Fox News appearance Monday that Republicans aren't expressing as much alarm over concerns about Donald Trump's handling of presidential records as they were over Hillary Clinton's private emails.

Why it matters: The former president made Clinton's private email server use when she was secretary of state a focus of his 2016 presidential campaign when he ran against her and continued to highlight it during his presidency.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued social media giant Meta on Monday for allegedly capturing and using biometric data without properly obtaining informed consent. Meta has vowed to fight the lawsuit.

Our thought bubble, via Axios' Ashley Gold: Similar suits are likely to come from other states as lawmakers grapple with how to treat the use of biometric data, and this one just adds to Facebook’s many regulatory woes.

Migrant-tracking technology the U.S. government is using in part to fulfill President Biden's pledge to close for-profit detention centers is sold by the subsidiary of a major for-profit detention provider, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: Human rights advocates and labor unions have long objected to for-profit prisons, saying the financial incentive for mass detention creates a morally slippery slope ripe for abuse. A sole provider also benefits from the alternatives to them.

More than half of Senate Republicans plan to introduce a resolution this week calling to fully reopen the Capitol to the public after it was closed because of the coronavirus, Axios has learned.

Why it matters: The resolution is the latest salvo in an ongoing dispute between the two parties over how secured the Capitol should be amid the lingering pandemic — and the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack.

Candidates running for the top state election position in battleground states have had a fundraising windfall as former President Trump and associates continue to push baseless claims of fraud in the 2020 election.

Driving the news: As of the end of December, state secretary of state candidates running in six states this fall had brought in three times as much money as 2018 candidates at the same point in the election cycle, according to new research by the Brennan Center for Justice.

A judge in Florida dismissed a defamation and conspiracy lawsuit George Zimmerman filed against the parents of Trayvon Martin, the Black 17-year-old he fatally shot in the state nearly 10 years ago, per AP.

Driving the news: The former neighborhood watch volunteer alleged in the lawsuit seeking $100 million in damages that Martin's parents, Sybrina Fulton and Tracy Martin, and their book publishers HarperCollins, smeared him as a racist.