- Dramatic news comes after Democrats take 51-49 Senate margin
- Sign up to receive First Thing – our daily briefing by email
Good morning and happy Friday! Democrats woke to a bombshell development from Arizona, where Senator Kyrsten Sinema has announced she is leaving the party and has registered as an independent.
The dramatic news comes just three days after Raphael Warnock’s re-election in Georgia gave the Democratic party what they thought was a 51-49 majority in the chamber (which includes the two other Senate independents Angus King of Maine, and Vermont’s Bernie Sanders).
Freed basketball star Brittney Griner has landed back in the US from Russia. There’s political reaction to the prisoner-swap deal for a notorious Russian arms dealer.
We’re waiting to hear more from the House January 6 committee after reports emerged it was set to issue criminal referrals for Donald Trump insiders, including the former president himself.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will brief reporters at 1pm. Joe Biden has no public events scheduled.