• Senate to hear witness testimony from law enforcement officers
• AOC criticizes Manchin over targeting of Biden’s nominees of color
• Ruling on Trump tax records could be costly defeat
• US coronavirus death toll passes 500,000
• Sign up to receive First Thing – our daily briefing by email

2.59pm GMT

Former Republican Senator David Perdue has announced that he will not run for the Senate in Georgia next year.

“After much prayer and reflection, Bonnie and I have decided that we will not enter the race for the United States Senate in Georgia in 2022. This is a personal decision, not a political one,” Perdue said in a statement to supporters.

2.43pm GMT

In his opening statement, Steven Sund, the former chief of the US Capitol Police, will say the security failures on January 6 were a failure of resources rather than planning.

“The breach of the United States Capitol was not the result of poor planning or failure to contain a demonstration gone wrong,” Sund will say, according to his prepared statement shared by the Senate rules committee.

Continue reading…
Source: The Guardian