Top Items:
Will Wright / New York Times:
Covid-19 Live Updates: U.S. Breaks Record for Most Deaths in a Week — Trump officials passed when Pfizer offered to sell more vaccine doses months ago. Britain is readying a mass vaccination drive. — RIGHT NOW The U.S. has recorded its most Covid-19 deaths in a week. — Here's what you need to know:
Discussion:
New York Magazine, CBS News, USA Today, CNN, Forbes, Political Wire, Talking Points Memo, HotAir, Raw Story, COURIER, Boing Boing, The Week, Business Insider, Mediaite and SiouxlandProud
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Lev Facher / STAT:
Leading Covid-19 vaccine makers Pfizer and Moderna decline invitations to White House ‘Vaccine Summit’ — Both Pfizer and Moderna, the two major drug manufacturers likely to receive emergency authorizations for a Covid-19 vaccine in the coming weeks, have rejected invitations from President Trump …
New York Times:
Trump administration officials passed when Pfizer offered in late summer to sell the U.S. more vaccine doses. — Trump administration officials passed when Pfizer offered in late summer to sell the U.S. government additional doses of its Covid-19 vaccine, according to people familiar with the matter.
Discussion:
Media Matters for America, The Hill, New York Post, CNBC, POLITICUSUSA, KVIA-TV and The Intellectualist
Washington Post:
Pfizer tells U.S. officials it cannot supply substantial additional vaccine until late June or July
Pfizer tells U.S. officials it cannot supply substantial additional vaccine until late June or July
Discussion:
The Guardian, ABC7, Associated Press and HotAir
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Trump to sign coronavirus vaccine executive order prioritizing Americans over foreign nations
Trump to sign coronavirus vaccine executive order prioritizing Americans over foreign nations
Discussion:
ABC News, New York Times, Washington Examiner, CNBC, Bloomberg, The Daily Caller, The Hill, Breitbart, New York Post, American Military News, Townhall and Washington Times
David Wallace-Wells / New York Magazine:
We Had the Vaccine the Whole Time — You may be surprised to learn that of the trio …
We Had the Vaccine the Whole Time — You may be surprised to learn that of the trio …
Discussion:
Daily Kos
Politico:
Biden picks retired general Lloyd Austin to run Pentagon — President-elect Joe Biden has selected Retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to serve as secretary of defense, according to three people with knowledge of the decision. If confirmed, Austin would be the first Black person to lead the Pentagon.
Discussion:
Washington Post, The Daily Beast, Washington Examiner, Axios, NPR, USA Today, Vox, ABC News, Defense One, New York Post, Foreign Policy, CNN, Responsible Statecraft, National Review, American Military News, The Daily Caller, ABC11, Townhall, Raw Story, Fox News, The Week, Mediaite, Task & Purpose, Mother Jones, Associated Press and The Guardian
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Jim Golby / New York Times:
Sorry, Gen. Lloyd Austin. A Recently Retired General Should Not Be Secretary of Defense. — After a tumultuous four years, we need civilian leadership and a return to normalcy. — Mr. Golby has been a special adviser to Vice Presidents Joe Biden and Mike Pence.
CNN:
Biden picks retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to be his secretary of defense, sources say
Biden picks retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to be his secretary of defense, sources say
Discussion:
Wall Street Journal, The Daily Beast, TheGrio, Balloon Juice, KVIA-TV, The Week, New York Post and Political Wire
New York Times:
Biden Plans to Tap Lloyd Austin, Former Iraq Commander, as Defense Secretary
Biden Plans to Tap Lloyd Austin, Former Iraq Commander, as Defense Secretary
Discussion:
Associated Press, CBS News, Washington Examiner, Bloomberg, Axios, Business Insider, Hamodia and Task & Purpose
Bryan Bender / Politico:
Biden's reliance on retired military brass sets off alarm bells
Biden's reliance on retired military brass sets off alarm bells
Discussion:
The Week
Jeffrey Schweers / Tallahassee Democrat:
Agents raid home of fired Florida data scientist who built COVID-19 dashboard — State police brandishing firearms raided the home of Rebekah Jones, the former Department of Health employee who built the state's much-praised COVID-19 dashboard before being fired over what she said was refusing to manipulate data.
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Sun-Sentinel:
Florida police raid COVID data whistleblower's house with guns drawn — State police raided the home of a former Department of Health data scientist who is accusing Florida officials of wrongfully firing her for refusing to manipulate COVID-19 statistics. — Rebekah Jones …
Discussion:
CNN, Tampa Bay Times, Axios, The Guardian, Washington Times, UPI, The Daily Beast, Fox News, New York Post, The Intellectualist and Lawyers, Guns & Money
Josh Feldman / Mediaite:
Lou Dobbs Snaps at Stephen Miller Over White House Not Doing More on Trump Legal Fight: 'Why Don't You Answer Me?!' — Fox Business' Lou Dobbs snapped at White House advisor Stephen Miller as he raged over why Republicans and the White House aren't doing more on the president's legal fight in multiple states.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, POLITICUSUSA, Bulwark+ and National File
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Kimberly Wehle / The Bulwark:
Ted Cruz Wants to Toss Out 7 Million People's Votes. Appalling. — The ‘constitutionalist’ senator volunteers to help make the case at the Supreme Court. — Ladies and gentleman, Fox News just learned—this is “breaking,” mind you—that the junior senator from Texas, Ted Cruz …
Washington Post:
Trump asks Pennsylvania House speaker for help overturning election results, personally intervening in a third state — President Trump called the speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives twice during the past week to make the extraordinary request for help reversing his loss in the state …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Hill, Washington Times, RedState, The Week, POLITICUSUSA, New York Times, Raw Story, Associated Press, Vox, BillMoyers.com, ABC News and CBS News
Aaron Reich / Jerusalem Post:
Former Israeli space security chief says aliens exist, humanity not ready — This “Galactic Federation” has supposedly been in contact with Israel and the US for years, but are keeping themselves a secret to prevent hysteria until humanity is ready. — Has the State of Israel made contact with aliens?
Discussion:
Balloon Juice, TMZ.com, The Mary Sue and The New Arab
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Page Six:
Ivanka & Jared buy $30M lot on high-security Miami island — Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner have splashed out on a $30 million-plus dollar lot of land on Miami's uber-swanky and high-security Indian Creek Island — known as the “Billionaire's Bunker” — Page Six can exclusively reveal.
Wall Street Journal:
MSNBC to Name Rashida Jones President, Succeeding Phil Griffin — Mr. Griffin, who has been with the cable news network for 25 years, will leave after the end of January — MSNBC is expected to name Rashida Jones as the network's president, people familiar with the matter said …
Discussion:
The Wrap, UPI, Forbes, Fox News, KVIA-TV, Washington Post, The Daily Caller, Mediaite, TheGrio, TVNewser, New York Times, Variety, REVOLT, The Hill and New York Post, more at Mediagazer »
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Ahiza García-Hodges / NBC News:
Rashida Jones named next president of MSNBC — Rashida Jones will become president of MSNBC, and the current president, Phil Griffin, will step down after 25 years at the cable news channel, NBCUniversal News Group Chairman Cesar Conde announced Monday. — Jones, who will take over at MSNBC …
Discussion:
Breitbart
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Scoop: Trump plots mass pardons, even to people not asking — President Trump isn't just accepting pardon requests but blindly discussing them “like Christmas gifts” to people who haven't even asked, sources with direct knowledge of the conversations told Axios.
Wilson Wong / NBC News:
Former Alabama senator dies of Covid at age 78, and in his last words warns, ‘We messed up’ … A former Alabama state senator died of Covid-19 last week at age 78, officials said. — Former Sen. Larry Dixon, a Republican who also served as the executive director of the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners …
CNN:
House conservatives urge Trump not to concede and press for floor fight over election loss — What Republicans are saying privately about the election — (CNN)President Donald Trump's staunchest defenders on Capitol Hill are urging him not to concede even after President-elect Joe Biden wins …
Discussion:
The Hill, POLITICUSUSA, Political IQ, Vox, New York Magazine, Patterico's Pontifications and Election Law Blog
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Jordan Libowitz / CREW:
CREW obtains receipts for Pompeo's notorious “Madison Dinners” … Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spent more than $40,000 in taxpayer money on a series of “Madison Dinners” attended by major donors and figures in the Republican party, according to documents obtained by CREW.
Discussion:
The Hill, New York Times, POLITICUSUSA and Wall Street Journal
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Matthew Lee / Associated Press:
Pompeo to speak in Georgia as Senate run-offs loom
Pompeo to speak in Georgia as Senate run-offs loom
Discussion:
Politico, ABC News, Vanity Fair, Talking Points Memo, CNN, Fox News and Axios
Jordain Carney / The Hill:
McConnell says Senate will pass defense bill despite veto threat — Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said on Monday that the Senate will take up and pass a mammoth defense bill despite a looming veto showdown with President Trump. — McConnell mentioned the National Defense …
Discussion:
Politico, CNN, New York Post, National Review, Hamodia, Business Insider, New York Magazine, Raw Story and IJR
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FiveThirtyEight:
What The Polls Say About Georgia's Senate Runoffs — Headed into the 2020 election, we knew that Election Day might turn into Election Week or even Election Month because of the huge increase in mail voting due to the coronavirus pandemic. While it thankfully didn't take a month to find …
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, Breitbart, KVIA-TV, The American Independent, Vox, Reason and Washington Post
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Department of Homeland Security:
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals — On November 14, 2020, Judge Nicholas George Garaufis of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York issued an opinion regarding the July 28, 2020 memorandum signed by Acting Secretary Chad F. Wolf. On December 4, 2020 …
Discussion:
CBS News
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Priscilla Alvarez / CNN:
DHS updates website to indicate DACA program has been restored
DHS updates website to indicate DACA program has been restored
Discussion:
The Hill, Associated Press and Mic
Shibley Telhami / Brookings:
Why the discourse about Palestinian payments to prisoners' families is distorted and misleading — The war of narratives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has intensified as the Trump administration is poised to leave the scene. As the New York Times recently reported, the Palestinian Authority …
Zolan Kanno-Youngs / New York Times:
Armed Mexicans Were Smuggled In to Guard Border Wall, Whistle-Blowers Say — In a complaint unsealed on Friday, whistle-blowers working on President Trump's wall said that contractors were illegally bringing in Mexican guards to protect construction sites. — WASHINGTON — Two whistle-blowers …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Nancy Cordes / CBS News:
ER doctor who criticized Trump's actions to be removed from Walter Reed schedule — Dr. James Phillips, the emergency room physician who publicly criticized President Trump's decision to drive with Secret Service agents to greet supporters while he was hospitalized with COVID-19 in October …
New York Times:
Elevating Fringe Theories, Ron Johnson Questions Virus Science — The Wisconsin Republican has transformed his Senate panel into a forum for amplifying dubious theories and questionable treatments pushed by President Trump. — WASHINGTON — In choosing a slate of doctors to testify …
Discussion:
Pandemics Explained, CNN, Press Watch and The Hill
Daniel Barbarisi / Outside Online:
The Man Who Found Forrest Fenn's Treasure — The decade-long hunt captured the world's attention, but when it finally ended in June, everyone still wanted to know: Who had solved the mystery? This week, as legal proceedings threaten his anonymity, a 32-year-old medical student is ready to go on the record.
Discussion:
New York Times, Washingtonian, Associated Press, UPI, CBS News and INSIDER
David Roberts / Volts:
Welcome to Volts — Clean energy and politics, electrified — Hey there! My name is David Roberts and this is Volts, a newsletter about clean energy and politics. (I'm on Twitter as @drvolts and you can email me at [email protected]) — Volts comes out twice a week, give or take.
Daniel Lippman / Politico:
What Joe Biden reads and watches — With help from Renuka Rayasam and Myah Ward — HOW THE PRESIDENT-ELECT GETS HIS NEWS — In the Biden administration, the foreign policy establishment is expected to return to its usual position of influence for the occupant of the Oval Office.
Discussion:
The Hill, The White House and Washington Times
Tyler Pager / Politico:
Maya Harris aided effort to boost husband's attorney general bid — The vice president-elect's sister, a major player in Kamala Harris' presidential run, has no formal role in the Biden transition. — Maya Harris, the sister of Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, and her husband, Tony West, are pictured.
HuffPost:
The Marines And The Racist Porn Actor Who Tried To Start A ‘Modern Day SS’ — Four neo-Nazis arrested on gun charges wanted to spark a race war, prosecutors said, and their potential targets included Black Lives Matter protesters. — In 2016, Liam Collins, then just a teenager living in New Jersey …
Benjamin Zeisloft / Campus Reform the #1 Source …:
Cornell offers ‘person of color’ exemption for flu vaccine requirement — Students at Cornell University can use their status as a “person of color” to be exempt from the university's flu vaccine requirement. — “Students who identify as Black, Indigenous, or as a Person of Color (BIPOC) …
Discussion:
Washington Free Beacon
J. Michael Luttig / Washington Post:
No, President Trump can't pardon himself — In June 2018, in the throes of the special counsel's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election and possible obstruction of justice by President Trump, the president claimed “the absolute right to PARDON myself,” citing “numerous legal scholars.”
HuffPost:
This Is How Trump's Executions Are Spreading The Coronavirus — The government admitted in a buried footnote of a court filing that “some” key staffers contracted COVID-19 after the last execution. — In late November, as health officials urged the public to avoid travel amid a new wave …
Heather Long / Washington Post:
Millions of Americans are heading into the holidays unemployed and over $5,000 behind on rent — Economists warn many unemployed families won't be able to pay rent and utilities without more stimulus aid from Congress — Millions of Americans who lost their jobs during the pandemic …
Discussion:
Common Dreams, The Week, Mother Jones, The Mahablog, Twitchy and The Intellectualist, more at Mediagazer »