Axios

The enactment of "stand your ground" laws was associated with an "abrupt and sustained" national increase in firearm homicide rates in America, according to a new study published Monday in the peer-reviewed journal JAMA Network Open.

Why it matters: "Stand your ground" laws, which allow for the use of deadly force in self-defense with no obligation to retreat, have come under fire in recent years after high-profile deaths like Trayvon Martin's. Critics say the laws enable unnecessary violence, while proponents claim they offer self-protection.

Russia is testing its agility at weaponizing state media to win backing at home, in occupied territories in eastern Ukraine and with sympathizers abroad for a war of aggression.

The big picture: State media has pivoted from accusing the West of hysterical warnings about a non-existent invasion to pumping out minute-by-minute coverage of the tensions.

A massive leak of 70 years of data from Credit Suisse, one of the world's biggest private banks, exposes hidden wealth in 18,000+ accounts that collectively hold more than $100 billion, a reporting consortium reveals in newspapers around the world.

Driving the news: Some of the clients and former clients are accused of "torture, drug trafficking, money laundering, corruption and other serious crimes," The Guardian reports.

Donald Trump’s social media app Truth Social launched in Apple’s App Store Monday at midnight, but still wasn’t fully available for use to all accounts.

State of play: Once a user was asked to create an account with the app and enter a username and personal information, such as date of birth, the app led users to another waitlist, where they still couldn’t join the actual network.

Provocateurs from outside traditional party politics are driving a polarizing new strain of American political conversation.

Why it matters: Joe Rogan, Elon Musk, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy and others have become some of the biggest cultural flashpoints of the Biden era.

A new HBO documentary examines the life of American writer and abolitionist Frederick Douglass through his fiery speeches that faulted the nation's role in perpetuating slavery and challenged the U.S. to redeem itself.

The big picture: "Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches" comes as some states pass restrictions on how schools and colleges can teach history, especially around race and slavery.

President Biden agreed "in principle" to hold a summit with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, the White House confirmed on Sunday evening.

Driving the news: Biden said the meeting can only take place if Russia does not invade Ukraine, according to statements from the White House and French President Emmanuel Macron's office, which first announced the news.

The U.S. says it has "credible information" indicating "Russian forces are creating lists" of Ukrainians "to be killed or sent to camps following a military occupation," the Washington Post first reported Sunday.

Driving the news: Bathsheba Crocker, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, warns in a letter to the UN, confirmed by a State Department official, that the information "indicates that human rights violations and abuses in the aftermath of a further invasion are being planned."

A deadly weekend shooting in a Portland park where a march was planned to protest police violence is again increasing tensions among the Oregon city's social justice activists, per the New York Times.

Driving the news: The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) said one woman was dead and five others injured in Saturday night's shooting, which the PPB said in a statement appeared to have started as "a confrontation between an armed homeowner and armed protesters."

Searching for a strategy to avoid a 2022 midterm disaster, advisers to President Biden have discussed elevating a unifying Republican foil not named Donald Trump.

Why it matters: Biden confidants worry that House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is too unknown, that Biden won't demonize Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell because of their longstanding and collegial relationship and that elevating Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis could backfire.

Some of the nation's most prominent nonprofit and advocacy groups tell the Justice Department they could be branded "foreign agents" unless DOJ changes its approach to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).

The big picture: When the Koch network's Americans for Prosperity goes in on a joint statement with the Natural Resources Defense Council and the American Civil Liberties Union it's probably a five-alarm fire.

Donald Trump has now endorsed more than 100 GOP candidates on 2022 ballots as he seeks to build an unprecedented legacy for an ex-U.S. president by shaping the future of his party.

Why it matters: The midterms present a big test for Trump's post-presidential potency in GOP politics — and set the table for his role in 2024.

The U.S. embassy in Moscow on Sunday issued a security warning regarding possible threats to Americans in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Driving the news: "According to media sources, there have been threats of attacks against shopping centers, railway and metro stations, and other public gathering places in major urban areas, including Moscow and St. Petersburg as well as in areas of heightened tension along the Russian border with Ukraine," according to the alert.

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) on Sunday described the growing number of laws targeting LGBTQ people in Republican states as "un-American."

The backdrop: State lawmakers introduced more than 150 anti-LGBTQ bills across the country during the first six weeks of 2022, per USA Today. Polis, who in 2018 became the first openly-gay man elected to a governorship, described the efforts as "Republican overreach."

The United States and United Kingdom could respond to a Russian invasion of Ukraine by cutting off Russian companies' access to U.S. dollars and British pounds, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in an interview on Sunday with the BBC.

Why it matters: The prime minister's comments come as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to criticize the West for claiming that Russian President Vladimir Putin has made the decision to invade, but not imposing sanctions until the attack has begun.

A Russian invasion of Ukraine "could create a tragedy...in terms of refugee flow and displaced people," Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on ABC's "This Week" Sunday.

What he's saying: Austin added that if Russia invades Ukraine, it is "highly likely" that the world could see Russian tanks rolling into Kyiv.

Former President Trump's new social media network, Truth Social, appears set to debut in the Apple App Store on Monday, per Reuters.

Why it matters: The network's launch would mark Trump's return to social media since he was permanently banned from Twitter, Facebook and Youtube following the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.