While most of the country is done with an election season that saw Democrats outperform expectations, a pivotal race is still outstanding: the Senate runoff between incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) and Republican Herschel Walker.
Driving the news: Nearly 2 million Georgians had cast their ballot early or absentee ahead of the Dec. 6 election. The state set a new record for single-day early turnout on Friday, breaking prior records set Monday and Tuesday.
A federal judge dropped bribery and corruption charges against former New York Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin Monday, ruling the "indictment fails to allege an explicit quid pro quo," per the filing.
Driving the news: U.S. District Judge J. Paul Oetken of the Southern District of New York wrote in a decision that "the Court concludes that the indictment fails to allege an explicit quid pro quo, which is an essential element of the bribery and honest services wire fraud charges brought against Benjamin."
A host of lawmakers from both parties have sharply rebuked former President Trump over the past few days, after he called for the suspension of the Constitution in order to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
Driving the news: Repeating his oft-cited false claims of fraud in the 2020 election in a Truth Social post on Saturday, Trump wrote that such fraud "allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution."
Incarcerated lawyer Michael Avenatti was sentenced Monday to 14 years in federal prison "for stealing millions of dollars from his clients" and committing tax fraud, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California said.
Driving the news: U.S. District Judge James V. Selna ordered Avenatti's prison term "run consecutive to sentences totaling five years previously imposed in two federal cases in the Southern District of New York," the attorney's office wrote.
Congress may consider legislation later this week that would scrap the Pentagon's COVID-19 vaccine mandate for military service members, Politico reports.
Why it matters: A rollback of the policy may be included in the National Defense Authorization Act, which is set to be unveiled Monday, as a compromise between Republicans and Democrats.
A new lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of the legislation wielded by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to transport undocumented migrants from Texas to Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts.
Why it matters: Florida set aside $12 million within the state's Department of Transportation to transport undocumented migrants, but the language used in the budget specifies that the money will help transport them out of Florida — not necessarily Texas.
Polls and conversationswith top strategists in both parties suggest Tuesday's Georgia Senate runoff will be close — but that Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) holds a small but resilient advantage over Herschel Walker.
Why it matters: Runoffs are typically about turning out your base a second time. But in Georgia, both are targeting a critical mass of swing voters — independent-minded suburbanites just outside Atlanta.
The Department of Homeland Security announced Monday it will delay enforcement of the REAL ID travel requirement for boarding flights in the U.S. by two years until May 2025, citing "the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic."
Why it matters: The policy, which passed Congress in 2005, was set to take effect in May 2023. The delay gives people additional time to update their driver's licenses and ID cards.
Stronger limits on the export of U.S.-made technology are essential to containing threats from Russia and China, according to a new report shared first with Axios.
Between the lines: Export limits can play a powerful role in ensuring national security, but the agency responsible for managing those rules needs a bigger budget and staffing to carry out that mission, according to the Center for Strategic & International Studies.
The case of an evangelical Christian designer from Colorado who refuses to build websites for same-sex couples lands in the U.S. Supreme Court Monday for oral arguments.
Why it matters: For the second time in five years, a First Amendment case from Colorado pits religious freedom against the right of LGBTQ people to access services without discrimination, and puts the court in the middle of the nation's culture wars.
New Twitter owner and CEO Elon Musk doesn't appear to be a fan of former President Trump's response to the "Twitter files" release late last week.
Driving the news: "The Constitution is greater than any President," Musk tweeted in response to a Fox News article on Trump calling to toss out parts of the Constitution. "End of story," Musk added.
