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Analysis

Tuesday

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a patriotic concert in Moscow just ahead of the one-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 22, 2023. Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP via Getty Images

How Russia is losing — and winning — the information war in Ukraine

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Babacar Niang, known as Matador, raps at a recording studio at Africulturban's center in Pikine, Senegal. Ricci Shryock for NPR hide caption

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Ricci Shryock for NPR

Senegal's artists are fighting the system with a mic and spray paint

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Thursday

A U.S. Air Force pilot looked down at the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon as it hovered over the Central Continental United States on Feb. 3. The pair was flying over Bellflower, Mo. Department of Defense hide caption

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Department of Defense

The dome of the U.S. Capitol building is visible in a reflection on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., Jan. 23, 2023. Andrew Harnik/AP hide caption

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Andrew Harnik/AP

Americans want Congress to deal with the debt ceiling. How to do it is complicated

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Friday

Bats congregate in the Bat Cave in Queen Elizabeth National Park on August 24, 2018. Scientists placed GPS devices on some of the bats to determine flight patterns and how they transmit Marburg virus to humans. Approximately 50,000 bats dwell in the cave. Bonnie Jo Mount/The Washington Post via Getty Images hide caption

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Bonnie Jo Mount/The Washington Post via Getty Images

The Pentagon's multi-billion-dollar program to develop advanced missile warning balloons is just one of many projects over the decades that has been sabotaged by a gusty breeze. Patrick Semansky/AP hide caption

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Patrick Semansky/AP

Militaries have sought to use spy balloons for centuries. The real enemy is the wind

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Wednesday

Nikki Haley opposed Donald Trump's candidacy for president in 2016, criticizing his unwillingness at one point to denounce the KKK. However, she went on to serve as UN ambassador in his administration. Mark Wilson/Getty Images hide caption

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Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Monday

Friday

President Biden stands with Chinese President Xi Jinping before a meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 summit meeting, Nov. 14, 2022, in Bali, Indonesia. Alex Brandon/AP hide caption

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Alex Brandon/AP

Chinese balloon punctures Blinken's plans, leaving U.S.-China ties adrift

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Wednesday

MONTEREY PARK, CA - JANUARY 23: A mourner attends a candlelight vigil for victims of a mass shooting on January 23, 2023 in Monterey Park, California. At least 10 people were killed and another 10 people were injured during a mass shooting that took place at a dance studio in Monterey Park. (Photo by Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images) VCG/VCG via Getty Images hide caption

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VCG/VCG via Getty Images

Monday

U.S. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy talks to then-Rep.-elect Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., in the House Chamber during the fourth day of voting for speaker of the House in January. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images hide caption

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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Recent infighting raises the question: How conservative is the GOP?

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Friday

Demonstrators burn flares and smoke bombs outside the Ukrainian parliament in Kyiv on June 5, 2020, during a demonstration calling for the interior minister's resignation over corruption suspicion. Sergei Supinksy/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

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Sergei Supinksy/AFP via Getty Images

Thursday

People shop at Walmart on Black Friday 2022 in Dunwoody, Ga. Jessica McGowan/Getty Images hide caption

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Jessica McGowan/Getty Images

What tracking one Walmart store's prices for years taught us about the economy

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Saturday

For those on Capitol Hill who would threaten a default as a means to compel concessions on policy, the destructive power of default is what makes it makes attractive as a tactic. J. Scott Applewhite/AP hide caption

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J. Scott Applewhite/AP