HAPPENING SOON — Ukrainian President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY is set to arrive at the White House at 2 p.m. More on the visit from Lara Seligman

Speaker NANCY PELOSI sent a Dear Colleague letter to House lawmakers announcing the joint session with Zelenskyy scheduled for 7:30 p.m. “I hope that you will be there to be a part of a very special evening, which will be etched into history as well as part of your legacy,” she writes. Read the letter

BEHIND THE SCENES — WaPo is up with a massive peek under the hood of the investigation into DONALD TRUMP’s storage of documents at his Mar-a-Lago compound. The six-bylined bombshell uncovers “key and previously unreported moments when authorities decided they had no choice but to take action, and describes the attempts they made to minimize legal risk and avoid mistakes.”

“FBI officials were skeptical when Archives officials called them on Feb. 7, 2022 — reluctant to get pulled into a dispute about historical records or become an enforcement arm for the Presidential Records Act, people familiar with the discussions said.

“Agents questioned why it mattered who had which pieces of paper, since presumably any White House documents existed in multiple copies, and probably on computers. Archives officials stressed that while backup copies were helpful, the original documents, including handwritten notes, were essential to following the law on preserving presidential records. It took several days of phone calls, but gradually the FBI officials came to see one particular set of documents, the Kim letters, as persuasive evidence of a problem.” Read the story by Devlin Barrett, Jacqueline Alemany, Perry Stein, Josh Dawsey, Ann Marimow and Carol Leonnig

SBF FALLOUT CONTINUES — “Sam Bankman-Fried’s Extradition Approved by Judge,” by WSJ’s James Fanelli and Corinne Ramey: “FTX founder SAM BANKMAN-FRIED will soon be in U.S. custody to face criminal charges connected to the collapse of the crypto exchange, after a judge here approved his transfer from a local jail where he has been held. Mr. Bankman-Fried agreed not to contest his extradition, and in court Wednesday his lawyer read an affidavit in which the former executive waived his right to extradition proceedings and said he had ‘a desire to make the relevant customers whole.’”

WaPo’s Jeremy Barr has an interesting piece about what everyone seems to want to know these days: What’s become of SBF’s various and numerous donations? This time, he’s focusing on those to media organizations.

“Some media companies that received money from Sam Bankman-Fried or his foundation have announced plans to return or freeze the cash after Justice Department charges were filed against the cryptocurrency tycoon last week,” Barr writes.

The breakdown:

• “The nonprofit news organization ProPublica said Tuesday it would return $1.6 million it received from Bankman-Fried’s family foundation, Building a Stronger Future.”
• “Vox Media spokeswoman PRIYANKA MANTHA said the digital media company intends to return nearly all of a $200,000 grant from the foundation that was earmarked for a Vox.com vertical called Future Perfect — ‘if and when a restitution fund is created.’ She said Vox has already spent $14,000 of the money, which it received in August to support a reporting project on climate change, global poverty and other societal challenges.”
• “A spokesman for the Intercept said the news organization is still evaluating what to do with $500,000 it received in September, which was part of a $4 million grant from Bankman-Fried’s foundation.”
• “In a Dec. 2 memo to employees, Semafor co-founder JUSTIN SMITH did not disclose how much the media start-up had received from Bankman-Fried personally during a funding round that ended in May, but said … ‘We will await their [investigative authorities’] guidance on appropriate next steps and don’t anticipate any impact on our business.’ A Semafor spokesman said Tuesday that the company has no additional comment.”

UNDER SCRUTINY — “Crypto Giant Binance Offers Little Transparency After FTX Collapse,” by WSJ’s Patricia Kowsmann and Caitlin Ostroff: “Like FTX, Binance discloses limited financial information. It doesn’t say where the company is based. And its founder, CHANGPENG ZHAO, is affiliated with market makers providing liquidity on its own platform, an arrangement some market observers say leads to a potential conflict of interest.”

Good Wednesday afternoon. Get in touch: [email protected].

CONGRESS

UPON FURTHER REVIEW — “Pelosi’s California home didn’t receive security review in four years before October’s violent attack, Capitol Police chief says,” by CNN’s Pamela Brown, Holmes Lybrand and Allison Gordon: “In a November letter exclusively obtained by CNN, Democratic Rep. ZOE LOFGREN of California, the chair of the House Administration Committee, asked the USCP for detailed answers about the lack of security at the Pelosis’ home, including why the residence had not received an assessment in the previous four years.

“It’s unclear what recommendations Capitol Police made in 2018 and which ones were approved by Congress to be implemented. But the USCP has assessed the Pelosis’ home since the attack and will perform the security assessments more frequently, [Capitol Police Chief THOMAS] MANGER told CNN.”

EXIT INTERVIEW — “Vermont Sen. Leahy ponders his legacy,” by AP’s Wilson Ring: “As [Sen. PATRICK] LEAHY closes out a Senate career that has spanned 48 years, the Vermont senator is saying goodbye to Washington with a mix of resignation and resolve, lamenting the hyperpartisanship that now grips Congress while expressing hope that the institution as he once knew it can someday return.”

“If we don’t get back to it, this country is going to be severely damaged,” Leahy told the AP. “We’re the wealthiest, most powerful nation on Earth. And we have over 300 million Americans. We have responsibility to the Americans. We have a responsibility to the rest of the world.”

Leahy on the difference between when he joined the Senate in 1975 and now: “I think then, most of (the senators) knew there were basic things the Senate should do, basic things the country needed, and we should find a way to come together. Now, there are too many people who think, ‘What can I say that will get me on the evening news or give me a sound bite or get me on this Twitter account,’ or something else. They don’t care about the country. They care about their political ambitions.”

JAN. 6 AND ITS AFTERMATH

THE WARNING SIGNS — “Informant warned FBI weeks before Jan. 6 that the far-right saw Trump tweet as ‘a call to arms,’” by NBC’s Ryan Reilly: “That tip to the FBI, from a source who is still used by the bureau and spoke on the condition of anonymity, warned there was a ‘big’ threat of violence on Jan. 6. It was among hundreds of pages of reports viewed by NBC News that this source sent to the FBI in the weeks before the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol. The email, which has not been previously reported, warned that the Trump tweet was ‘gaining hold’ on social media.”

ALL POLITICS

HAPPENING TODAY — “Arizona judge to consider Kari Lake’s stolen election claims,” by AP’s Jonathan Cooper and Jacques Billeaud: “The former television anchor gets her long-sought opportunity to make her case to a judge this week during a two-day trial scheduled to begin on Wednesday. She’ll have a chance to inspect ballots, call witnesses and introduce evidence in a bid to prove she was the rightful winner of the race, which Democrat KATIE HOBBS won by just over 17,000 votes.”

To be clear: “She faces extremely long odds.”

THE PANDEMIC

PANDEMIC FATIGUE — “As Covid Deaths Climb, Even Seniors Skip the Latest Booster,” by NYT’s Emily Baumgaertner in Pleasant Hill, Calif.: “Across the United States, where about 94 percent of people 65 and older had their initial Covid vaccines, only 36 percent have received the updated shot, known as the bivalent booster, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Seniors have offered an array of explanations: They were unaware of it, unable to find it or unconvinced of its value.”

THE SPIN-OFF SICKNESS — “First came a viral storm. Now, we have puzzling superinfections,” by WaPo’s Ariana Eunjung Cha: “The rise of invasive strep A is one of a number of unusual ways pathogens have been interacting with us — and each other — amid the end of coronavirus-era social distancing and masking this year.”

BEYOND THE BELTWAY

IMMIGRATION FILES — “Thousands at U.S.-Mexico border wait to see if limits end,” by AP’s Morgan Lee, Giovanna Dell’Orto and Rebecca Santana in El Paso, Texas: “It’s not clear when the court’s decision will come, and in the meantime, thousands of people have gathered all along the Mexican side of the southern border, camping outside or packing into shelters, hoping for the opportunity to seek refuge in the U.S. The Texas National Guard took up positions in El Paso.”

LEFT BEHIND — “A dangerous side of America’s digital divide: Who receives emergency alerts,” by WaPo’s Brianna Sacks: “While America’s digital divide has been improving, large chunks of the country, especially rural and tribal lands, are still lagging behind in connection, according to research and experts, and that significantly hampers their access to vital, potentially lifesaving information. Without cell towers, urgent emergency alerts can’t get to phones and it is more difficult for residents to warn one another of danger or contact authorities.”

POLICY CORNER

MINDING THE DATA — “Data brokers raise privacy concerns — but get millions from the federal government,” by Alfred Ng: “How an old privacy law and new security demands force Washington to rely on an industry in the crosshairs.”

GOING GREENER (EVENTUALLY) — “Electric Cars Are Taking Off, but When Will Battery Recycling Follow?” by NYT’s Niraj Chokshi and Kellen Browning: “These cars could help address climate change, but batteries pose their own problems. Raw materials can be hard to mine, are often found in countries with poor human rights records and require processing that leaves behind noxious waste.”

WAR IN UKRAINE

— “Biden task force investigating how U.S. tech ends up in Iranian attack drones used against Ukraine,” by CNN’s Natasha Bertrand

— “Macron Renews Call for Russia to Receive Security Guarantees to End War in Ukraine,” by WSJ’s Stacy Meichtry

— “The Hunted: These are the Ukrainians Russia wanted to find,” by AP’s Erika Kinetz and Solomiia Hera

AMERICA AND THE WORLD

IN AFGHANISTAN — “Afghan women weep as Taliban fighters enforce university ban,” AP/Kabul: “Journalists saw Taliban forces outside four Kabul universities Wednesday. The forces stopped some women from entering, while allowing others to go in and finish their work. They also tried to prevent any photography, filming and protests from taking place.”

THE LATEST IN CHINA — “Undercounted Deaths Cloud China’s Zero-Covid Exit,” by WSJ’s Liyan Qi and Cao Li: “Despite widespread reports of soaring infections, crowded hospitals and overwhelmed crematoria, Chinese health authorities had by Tuesday reported only seven Covid-related deaths since the country abruptly eased many of its pandemic-control measures more than two weeks ago. … But on Wednesday, China’s National Health Commission said there had been no new deaths — and that it was retracting one of the Beijing fatalities from the official tally of Covid’s toll.”

FOR YOUR RADAR — “German Finance Chief Wants ‘Friendshoring’ to Avert U.S. Trade War,” by Bloomberg’s Kamil Kowalcze and Maria Tadeo

MUSK READS

GRIN AND BEAR IT — “Tesla Bears Are Sitting on $15 Billion in Gains This Year,” by WSJ’s Jack Pitcher: “Tesla shares have fallen 61% in 2022, including Tuesday’s 8.1% drop, dinged by the higher interest-rate environment that has sent speculative stocks tumbling back to earth. Investors have also grown increasingly concerned that Mr. Musk’s attention is divided following his takeover of Twitter Inc.”

MEDIAWATCH

WILD STORY — “She was an ABC News producer. She also was a corporate operative,” by NPR’s David Folkenflik and Floodlight’s Miranda Green and Mario Ariza: “Interviews for this story and Matrix ledgers show [KRISTEN] HENTSCHEL traded on her work for ABC News at least three times to trip up Florida politicians whose stances on environmental regulations cut against the interests of major Matrix clients. Internal Matrix financial records originally sent anonymously to the Orlando Sentinel and shared with Floodlight show that since 2016, the firm has paid Hentschel at least $14,350. According to two people at ABC News with knowledge, Hentschel was not, in fact, reporting for ABC on any of those subjects.”

PLAYBOOKERS

MEDIA MOVE — Anna Wiederkehr is joining POLITICO’s interactive news team. She previously was at Observable and is a FiveThirtyEight alum.