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12:55 AM ET, December 8, 2020

memeorandum

 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:
RELATED:
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 …
Brooke Singman / Fox News:
Trump to sign coronavirus vaccine executive order prioritizing Americans over foreign nations
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.
RELATED:
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.
Hans Nichols / Axios:
Biden faces battle to land Austin at Pentagon
Discussion: Political Wire
Bryan Bender / Politico:   Biden's reliance on retired military brass sets off alarm bells
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.
RELATED:
CNN:
Florida police raid home of former state Covid-19 data scientist  —  (CNN)Florida police raided the home of a former state coronavirus data scientist on Monday, escalating a feud between the state government and a data expert who has accused officials of trying to cover up the extent of the pandemic.
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.
Discussion: Raw Story and Politico
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.
RELATED:
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 …
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?
RELATED:
Aaron Feis / New York Post:   Aliens in hiding until mankind is ready, says ex-Israeli space head
Phillip Nieto / The Daily Caller:   Aliens Convinced Trump To Keep Them Secret, Claims Ex-Israeli Space Head
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 …
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.
Discussion: Raw Story, TMZ.com and Lucianne
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 …
RELATED:
Ahiza García-Hodges / NBC News:
Rashida Jones named next president of MSNBC
Discussion: Breitbart
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 …
RELATED:
Aris Folley / The Hill:
Jim Jordan: ‘No way’ Trump should concede
CNN:
Aides speculate if Trump will travel to Mar-a-Lago for holidays and never return
Discussion: Talking Points Memo
Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian / Axios:
Exclusive: Suspected Chinese spy targeted California politicians  —  A suspected Chinese intelligence operative developed extensive ties with local and national politicians, including a U.S. congressman, in what U.S. officials believe was a political intelligence operation run …
Discussion: Raw Story
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 …
Discussion: The Hill and al.com
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 …
RELATED:
New York Times:
Republicans Make Clear Their Georgia Senate Strategy: Attack Warnock
Discussion: Esquire and Roll Call
Burgess Everett / Politico:
Hawley urges Trump to veto Covid bill absent stimulus checks  —  Sen. Josh Hawley is not happy that the leading coronavirus proposals lack another round of direct payments to Americans — and he's taking his case straight to President Donald Trump.  —  The Missouri Republican lobbied Trump …
RELATED:
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: New York Magazine and Raw Story
Jennifer Bendery / HuffPost:
Tribes Want Deb Haaland For Interior Secretary.  Some Biden Advisers Are Trying To Thwart Her.  —  Anonymous Biden allies are telling news outlets the Indigenous congresswoman is not qualified.  “Of course it's offensive,” said Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.).
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 …
Discussion: The Hill, Jezebel and Raw Story
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 …
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.
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 …
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) …
Helen Sullivan / The Guardian:
Christchurch inquiry report released - as it happened  —  Below are is our summary of today's key findings.  With that, we will now be closing this blog.  Thank you for following along.  —  Here is our full story on the report's findings:  —  More from AAP:
Discussion: The Verge
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.
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.
Marcus Weisgerber / Defense One:
Trump Admin to Rename Two Bases for Space Force Over Military Objections  —  The Air Force had quietly agreed with Congress not to change anything until the NDAA settles a way forward on Confederate base names.  —  The U.S. Air Force plans to change the names of two Florida military bases heavily involved …
Discussion: Space Coast Daily
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.”
Washington Post:
NFL investigation of Washington Football Team uncovers confidential settlement  —  The NFL's investigation into allegations of workplace sexual harassment at the Washington Football Team has uncovered a confidential settlement from a decade ago, court records show, and an emergency motion filed Monday …
Discussion: ProFootballTalk and Fox News
 
 
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 More Items: 
HuffPost:
This Is How Trump's Executions Are Spreading The Coronavirus
New York Times:
‘It Makes Me Angry’: These Are the Jobless in a City Filled With Wealth
Politico:
Steakhouses, Hill bars and ski trips: GOP carries on amid the pandemic
Discussion: Raw Story and The Hill
Nathaniel Meyersohn / CNN:
Online grocery shopping is growing, but millions of Americans on food stamps are being left behind
HuffPost:
The Marines And The Racist Porn Actor Who Tried To Start A ‘Modern Day SS’
Tim Prudente / Baltimore Sun:
Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby hires public defender to free elderly prisoners
Brian Schwartz / CNBC:
Trump loyalist Michael Pack plots final purge at federal media agency before Biden takes office
 Earlier Items: 
Georgia Wells / Wall Street Journal:
TikTok Download Ban Is Blocked by Second Judge
Discussion: The Verge
Department of Homeland Security:
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
Discussion: CBS News, The Hill, CNN and UPI
Greg Mitchell / New York Times:
‘Mank’ and Politics: What Really Happened in 1934 California
Tyler Pager / Politico:
Maya Harris aided effort to boost husband's attorney general bid
Discussion: Fox News and Raw Story
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Peter White / Deadline:
Fox and Hulu extend their content partnership, including in-season streaming rights for Fox's programming; sources: the deal is worth $1.5B over four years

Peter Kafka / Business Insider:
A Q&A with Chris Balfe, CEO of Red Seat Ventures, which has helped Tucker Carlson and Megyn Kelly set up their podcast and streaming businesses and sell ads

Jonathan Stempel / Reuters:
A New York judge finds Sirius XM liable for a difficult subscription cancellation process; Sirius says it will appeal but abide by a new “click-to-cancel” rule

 
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