"We view this race as absolutely wide open, and Iowa is really going to solidify itself as the pivotal player," the person familiar with Pence's plans said. "It's a place that values Mike Pence's principles — traditional conservative principles — deep-rooted faith and uncommon character."

The former vice president will campaign in all 99 Iowa counties before the caucuses, the person said, adding that the campaign "will do the things that put Mike Pence in an advantageous position."

🚨Breaking: John Kirby says US is announcing an additional aid package for Ukraine.

@dailyrealtimenews

Outstanding thread by @ meangeneone1

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1663900321389719552.html

🚨 Comer and Grassley spoke to Wray this afternoon

NEW - OPEC has barred Reuters, Bloomberg, the Wall Street Journal, and Dow Jones from Vienna meeting this weekend

Opec has barred several media groups from attending its crucial production meeting in Vienna this weekend, in a move officials said was driven by Saudi Arabia as it struggles to support oil prices.

Reporters from Reuters, Bloomberg News and Dow Jones, the publisher of The Wall Street Journal, have been denied invites to Opec’s Vienna headquarters, according to people familiar with the matter. Opec is set to meet Russia on Sunday to agree on oil production policy for the second half of the year.

The media ban is unusual for Opec, with headlines from its meetings having the potential to move oil prices and financial markets around the world, particularly at a time when the global economy is wrestling with inflation.
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Special counsel subpoenas Trump White House staffers over Krebs firing: report

The special counsel investigating former President Trump’s efforts to stay in the White House after the 2020 election has issued subpoenas to staff who may have knowledge of the firing of Trump’s former cybersecurity chief, according to a new report.

Trump fired Christopher Krebs from his cybersecurity role on November 17, 2020, just days after Krebs refuted Trump’s false claims of election fraud in a statement that described the 2020 election as the most secure in American history.”
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EXCLUSIVE: Convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein continued to 'entertain' up to SEVEN young girls a day - and was so obsessed with their teeth he had a dentist's chair at his mansion and forced them to go to an orthodontist, his private diaries reveal

Jeffrey Epstein continued meeting dozens of young women after his sex crimes conviction with up to seven girls visiting him in a single day, his private calendars reveal.

And the teeth-obsessed pedophile – who had a dentist's chair in his Florida home and another on his Caribbean island – often sent the women to a Manhattan orthodontist, the documents show.
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Devin Nunes

ANCHORAGE, Alaska – Chinese citizens posing as tourists but suspected of being spies have made several attempts in recent years to gain access to military facilities in this vast state studded with sensitive bases, according to U.S. officials.

In one incident, a vehicle with Chinese citizens blew past a security checkpoint at Fort Wainwright in Fairbanks, several soldiers told USA TODAY. The vehicle was eventually stopped, and a search found a drone inside the vehicle. The occupants claimed they were tourists who had gotten lost.
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Wuhan virus lab got more U.S. money than previously reported

U.S. funded at least $1.3 billion in research in Russia and China

The Wuhan lab at the center of speculation about the origins of the coronavirus received four different grants of money from the U.S. government over the past decade, according to new research released Wednesday.

At least two of the grants were never reported in USASpending, the government’s online database that’s supposed to give the public a chance to track where its money goes, according to Sen. Joni Ernst and the folks at Open the Books, a watchdog group.

They said the Wuhan money is part of at least $1.3 billion in funding Uncle Sam provided over five years to research labs and outfits in China and Russia, two adversary nations. That $1.3 billion is the low-end, given how difficult it is to track where federal research money ultimately ends up.
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Rep James Comer - 🚨On my call with FBI Director Wray, the FBI finally confirmed the existence of the FD-1023 form alleging then-VP Joe Biden engaged in a criminal bribery scheme.

Anything short of producing these documents to @GOPoversight is not in compliance with my subpoena.