While Texas and Mississippi are lifting their mask mandates, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey (R) announced on Thursday she is extending her state's mask order for another month.

On Wednesday, President Biden slammed Ivey's fellow Republican governors, Texas' Greg Abbott and Mississippi's Tate Reeves, for ending mask requirements and fully reopening businesses, saying they were showing "Neanderthal thinking." He called on leaders to listen to public health experts, and Ivey said that's what she's doing, extending the mask order that was set to expire on Friday.

"We need to get past Easter and hopefully allow more Alabamians to get their first shot before we take a step some other states have taken to remove the mask order altogether and lift other restrictions," Ivey said. "Folks, we are not there yet, but goodness knows we're getting closer."

The mask order will now expire on April 9, and Ivey said after that, people will have to be responsible for wearing them without a mandate. Face coverings, Ivey said, are "one of our greatest tools" in preventing the spread of coronavirus, and when the order is lifted she will "continue to wear my mask when I'm around others and strongly urge my fellow citizens to use common sense and do the same."

Public health experts have warned of the dangers associated with reopening states too soon, before more people are vaccinated and as highly-transmissible variants spread, saying it could erase gains made against the virus. Alabama is home to 4.9 million people, with just 13 percent of the population having received one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. Dr. Don Williamson, head of the Alabama Hospital Association, told The Associated Press that if 1.75 million doses are delivered by early April, that would be "a terrific place to be." Catherine Garcia

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed President Biden's pick to lead the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gary Gensler, 53 to 45. Gensler, a former Goldman Sachs partner who cracked down on Wall Street as head of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission after the 2008 financial crisis, has laid out an ambitious ramping up of regulatory enforcement after four years of deregulation.

Along with policing Wall Street banks, Gensler will also have to contend with the rise of "stonks," or meme stocks like GameStop, and special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs). The Chamber of Commerce endorsed Gensler's nomination, suggesting he will be "a balanced leader of the SEC and strong supporter of competitive capital markets." But only three Republicans — Susan Collins (Maine), Chuck Grassley (Iowa), and Cynthia Lummis (Wyo.) — voted to confirm him. Peter Weber

In 2015 and 2016, former President Donald Trump's Republican primary rivals and other GOP officials tried to dodge his withering personal insults "while hoping that external events and news media coverage would ultimately lead to his downfall," Maggie Haberman recalls at The New York Times. That strategy obviously failed. But many Republican leaders are once more hoping, mostly in private, that time or some heaven-sent deus ex machina makes Trump fade into retirement, despite his clear intention to retain control over the GOP.

Some Republicans "are privately hopeful that the criminal investigation into Mr. Trump's business by the New York district attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr., will result in charges that hobble him from running again or even being a major figure within the party," Haberman reports, adding that Trump is said to be "agitated about the investigation." Others say they believe he is losing relevance his own, now that he is out of office and kicked off Twitter.

David Kochel, a Republican strategist and Jeb Bush supporter in 2016 campaign, is not among them. "We've seen this movie before — a bunch of GOP leaders all looking at each other, waiting to see who's going to try and down Trump," he said, adding that Trump and Fox News are making sure the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection is "being stuffed down the memory hole" for conservatives.

"It is Groundhog Day," another GOP Trump critic, Tim Miller, told Haberman. It seemed "like a rational choice in 2015," but "after we all saw how the strategy fails of just hoping and wishing for him to go away, nobody learned from it."

In the meantime, most GOP leaders and 2024 hopefuls are going out of their way to stay on Trump's good side. One reason is Trump's ability to steer huge sums of money to friendly Republicans, Politico notes. But Trump also holds sway over a sizable faction of the GOP electorate — though just how sizable is a matter of dispute — and he seems to relish savaging Republican critics.

Trump "intimidates people because he will attack viciously and relentlessly, much more than any other politician, yet somehow people crave his approval," Mike DuHaime, a Chris Christie adviser in 2016, told the Times. "Trump did self-destruct eventually, after four years in office," he said. "But he can still make or break others, and that makes him powerful and relevant." Peter Weber

The Senate on Wednesday voted 92-6 to open debate on the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which addresses the rising number of hate crimes being perpetrated against Asian Americans.

The bill, introduced by Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), would instruct the Justice Department to expedite its review of hate crimes and coordinate with local law enforcement agencies to raise awareness of how to report a hate crime.

GOP Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas), Tom Cotton (Ark.), Josh Hawley (Mo.), Rand Paul (Ky.), Tommy Tuberville (Ala.), and Roger Marshall (Kansas) voted against opening debate. Cotton and Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) released a statement before the vote saying they "believe the Senate should have the benefit of hearing from the Department of Justice before blindly acting on this issue."

Democrats have indicated they are open to Republican amendments, and Hirono on Tuesday addressed the concern that by having "COVID" in the name, the bill is too narrow in focus. "The whole point is that there is a connection between COVID and the rise of these hate crimes," she said. "We wanted to make sure that everyone understood there's a cause and effect here, but I'm open to eliminating that so that we can get to the real issue, which is the rise in hate crimes against [Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders] and what we can do about it." Catherine Garcia

The United States is prepared to sanction dozens of Russian individuals and entities and expel as many as 10 Russian officials and diplomats in response to election interference and hacks, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News.

The sanctions, which could be announced as soon as Thursday, would target about 12 individuals, including government and intelligence officials, and 20 entities, with several linked to the Internet Research Agency, a troll farm that meddled in the 2016 election, or the SolarWinds hack, Bloomberg News reports.

Shortly after President Biden was inaugurated, he ordered a review of reports that Russia placed bounties on U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan; Russian interference in U.S. elections; the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny; and the SolarWinds hack, which is believed to have been orchestrated by Russia.

On Tuesday, Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone, and the White House said Biden "made clear that the United States will act firmly in defense of its national interests in response to Russia's actions, such as cyber intrusions and election interference." Russia has denied meddling in U.S. elections and the bounty report. Read more at Bloomberg News. Catherine Garcia

On Thursday, four Democratic lawmakers will stand on the steps of the Supreme Court to introduce legislation expanding the country's highest court from nine to 13 justices.

The bill is being proposed by Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.), Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), and Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.), The Washington Post reports. The Constitution does not state how many judges should sit on the Supreme Court, and it could be expanded by an act of Congress. There have been nine justices since 1869; now, there are six nominated by a Republican president and three by Democrats.

Those in favor of expanding the Supreme Court say having more justices would help prevent major decisions coming down to one "swing" justice, while also serving as a stronger check on the presidency. Last week, President Biden signed an executive order creating an independent commission to examine the structure of the Supreme Court. Catherine Garcia

Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) on Wednesday said if "something really formal" happens with the Justice Department's investigation of Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), Republican leadership will "of course react and take action."

The Justice Department is investigating whether Gaetz, 38, had sex with a 17-year-old girl and paid for her to travel out of state with him, allegations that Gaetz denies. Scalise, the No. 2 House Republican leader, told reporters that he hasn't talked to Gaetz about the investigation, but will likely meet with him later this week.

"It's serious things alleged," Scalise told reporters. "Obviously we want to get the facts." Gaetz is a member of the House Armed Services and Judiciary committees, and Scalise said GOP lawmakers who find themselves facing serious charges are removed from their committees.

Last week, Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) became the first Republican member of Congress to call on Gaetz to resign, and on Sunday, Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), the No. 3 House GOP leader, said the allegations against Gaetz are "sickening." Catherine Garcia