Top Items:
New York Times:
Trump Pardons Two Russia Inquiry Figures and Blackwater Guards — The pre-Christmas wave of 20 pardons and commutations are not likely to be the last before Mr. Trump leaves office on Jan. 20. — In an audacious pre-Christmas round of pardons, President Trump granted clemency on Tuesday …
RELATED:
CNN:
Trump announces wave of pardons, including Papadopoulos and former lawmakers Hunter and Collins — (CNN)President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced a wave of lame duck pardons, including two for men who pleaded guilty in Robert Mueller's investigation, as well as ones for Republican allies …
Discussion:
Breitbart, THE CITY, HotAir, CNBC, Townhall, The Intellectualist and Mock Paper Scissors
Washington Post:
Trump grants clemency to 20 people, including three former GOP members of Congress and two men convicted in the Russia probe — President Trump granted clemency on Tuesday to 20 people, including three former Republican members of Congress and two people who were convicted of crimes as part …
Discussion:
National Review, Associated Press, Reuters, Fox News, RedState, Talking Points Memo and The Intellectualist
Shannon Najmabadi / The Texas Tribune:
Trump commutes remaining prison term of former Texas GOP congressman Steve Stockman, who was convicted of misusing charitable funds
Washington Post:
Trump calls on Congress to approve $2,000 stimulus checks, hinting that he might not sign economic relief bill into law without changes — The president has still not signed the measure even though it passed Monday night. He called the measure “a disgrace.”
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, Business Insider, USA Today, NPR, Bloomberg, Breitbart, Reason, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, Mediaite, Associated Press, WISC-TV, The Week, Hackwhackers, Bangor Daily News, WKRN-TV, Fortune, New Republic and Newsy
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Axios:
Trump asks Congress to increase stimulus payments — President Trump indicated in a video Tuesday evening that he won't sign the $900 billion coronavirus relief bill and a $1.4 trillion government funding measure passed by Congress as it stands. — Why it matters: The surprise announcement …
Discussion:
New York Times, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Business Insider, Al Jazeera, Fox News, NPR, Townhall, TheBlaze and The Daily Caller
Tyler Van Dyke / Washington Examiner:
Trump rips coronavirus stimulus bill and demands bigger checks
Trump rips coronavirus stimulus bill and demands bigger checks
Kelly Hooper / Politico:
Trump takes aim at Covid stimulus bill, raising specter of veto
Trump takes aim at Covid stimulus bill, raising specter of veto
Discussion:
Mediaite, ABC News, Fox News, Axios, CBS News, Roll Call, POLITICUSUSA, Alternet.org and NECN
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Don't let Mitch McConnell get away with his vile rewriting of history
Don't let Mitch McConnell get away with his vile rewriting of history
Discussion:
Slate, New York Times, Raw Story, Jacobin, Politico, Breitbart and New Republic, more at Mediagazer »
Tal Axelrod / The Hill:
Trump slams relief bill, calls on Congress to increase stimulus money
Trump slams relief bill, calls on Congress to increase stimulus money
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA and Deadline
Robin Bravender / Business Insider:
Bidenworld is worried Trump will trash tradition and force the president-elect to fire thousands of GOP holdovers on his first day in the White House … - President Donald Trump could complicate President-elect Joe Biden's job by leaving thousands of political holdovers in office when Inauguration Day comes.
Discussion:
CNN, Politico, Variety and Salon, more at Techmeme »
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Associated Press:
WH virus coordinator Deborah Birx says she will retire — WASHINGTON (AP) — Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus response, said Tuesday she plans to retire, but is willing to first help President-elect Joe Biden's team with its coronavirus response as needed.
Discussion:
Newsy, Axios, Crooks and Liars, USA Today, Mock Paper Scissors, Alternet.org, New York Times, CBS News, Townhall, Conservative News Today and Raw Story
Zoë Richards / Talking Points Memo:
‘I Will Retire’: Dr. Birx Will Not Seek Role In Biden Administration
‘I Will Retire’: Dr. Birx Will Not Seek Role In Biden Administration
Discussion:
National Review, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, NPR, RedState, Breitbart, The Daily Caller, The Hill, IJR, The Gateway Pundit, New York Post, Washington Examiner and Mediaite
The Daily Beast:
Trump Tells Sidney Powell He Won't Name Her ‘Special Counsel’ — The president has met with the conspiracy theorist lawyer recently. But he is not yet buckling to one of her wishes. … Donald Trump informed the conspiracy-theory-driven MAGA attorney Sidney Powell on Monday that he does …
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Politico:
Trump orchestrates final loyalty test in dying bid to subvert election — President Donald Trump is plotting a final stand in Congress on Jan. 6, casting it as the ultimate loyalty test in his quest to remain in power and shutting out anyone who won't get in line.
Discussion:
Business Insider, The Hill, Axios, NBC News, The Sun, Washington Times and OpenSecrets.org
David Edwards / Raw Story:
Karl Rove goes off on Sidney Powell: ‘Any idiot with access to Google’ can debunk her lawsuits
Ben Collins / NBC News:
As Trump meets with QAnon influencers, the conspiracy theory's adherents beg for dictatorship — On Friday, President Donald Trump met with current and former advisers in the Oval Office, including retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, and one person familiar with the meeting said Flynn advocated …
Discussion:
ABC News
Jonathan Swan / Axios:
Trump turns on Pence, McConnell and White House counsel Cipollone in desperate final days — President Trump, in his final days, is turning bitterly on virtually every person around him, griping about anyone who refuses to indulge conspiracy theories or hopeless bids to overturn the election, several top officials tell Axios.
Discussion:
What The Fuck …, CNN, Washington Post, Salon, Vanity Fair, Washington Monthly, Forbes, Mediaite, Fox News, POLITICUSUSA, The Daily Beast, Raw Story, Politico, Mock Paper Scissors, The Daily Caller, Election Law Blog, Law & Crime, Outside the Beltway, Digby's Hullabaloo, The Nation, Business Insider, HotAir, Alternet.org, New York Magazine, Lawyers, Guns & Money, No More Mister Nice Blog, The Intellectualist, Media Matters for America, Crooks and Liars, Talking Points Memo, Reason, The Guardian, littlegreenfootballs.com, The Week, Associated Press, Bloomberg, The Root, Hackwhackers and Washington Times
RELATED:
Washington Post:
Republicans plunge into open battle over attempts to overturn Trump's loss to Biden — The GOP is plunging into open warfare over President-elect Joe Biden's election victory — with President Trump taunting Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in a passive-aggressive email blast …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Associated Press, Forbes, Los Angeles Times, Breitbart, Mediaite, Raw Story, Townhall, Washington Times and Alternet.org
David Enrich / New York Times:
Trump's Longtime Banker at Deutsche Bank Resigns — Rosemary Vrablic, who oversaw hundreds of millions of dollars in loans to President Trump's company, will leave the bank next week. — President Trump's longtime banker at Deutsche Bank, who arranged for the German lender to make hundreds …
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Kara Scannell / CNN:
Trump's private bankers resign from Deutsche Bank
Trump's private bankers resign from Deutsche Bank
Discussion:
The Hill, UPI and The Intellectualist
Los Angeles Times:
Alex Padilla becomes California's first Latino U.S. senator, replacing Kamala Harris — Alex Padilla, a Los Angeles Democrat who once developed software for satellites but later rose through local and state political office to become California secretary of state, was chosen Tuesday …
Discussion:
Washington Post, California Governor, KUSI-TV, FiveThirtyEight, The Root, One America News Network, CNBC, UPI, Twitchy, Fox News and Reuters
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Los Angeles Times:
Newsom names Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to succeed Padilla as California secretary of state
Newsom names Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to succeed Padilla as California secretary of state
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Examiner, Fox News, NBC News, KUSI-TV, CBS Sacramento, Associated Press, LGBTQ Nation, KNSD-TV, Vox, Patterico's Pontifications and NPR
Shawn Hubler / New York Times:
Alex Padilla Will Replace Kamala Harris in the Senate
Alex Padilla Will Replace Kamala Harris in the Senate
Discussion:
Politico, Fortune, Los Angeles Times, Deadline, Press Enterprise, HotAir, The 19th, Al Jazeera, Raw Story, The Federalist, ABC7, NPR, New York Post and Washington Examiner
Benjamin Wermund / Houston Chronicle:
Texas AG Ken Paxton urged White House to revoke Harris County COVID relief — FILE- In this Sept. 10, 2020, file photo, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks at the Austin Police Association in Austin, Texas. Paxton on Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2020, announced a multi-state lawsuit against Google …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo
RELATED:
CREW:
Ken Paxton urged Mnuchin to revoke CARES Act aid given to Texas, new records show
Ken Paxton urged Mnuchin to revoke CARES Act aid given to Texas, new records show
Discussion:
The Texas Tribune, ABC13 and Raw Story
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
The dishonest heart of the challenge to the 2020 election results
The dishonest heart of the challenge to the 2020 election results
Discussion:
Detroit News and Raw Story
Nick Niedzwiadek / Politico:
Trump nominates Hope Hicks, Ric Grenell to government posts — President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced plans to appoint another slate of top allies to various government boards, yet another sign that his time in office is winding to a close. — The president named Hope Hicks to be a member …
Discussion:
Vanity Fair, Talking Points Memo and Political Wire
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Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Senior Trump advisers prepare to launch policy group
Senior Trump advisers prepare to launch policy group
Discussion:
The Hill and Political Wire
Washington Post:
FBI links Iran to online hit list targeting top officials who've refuted Trump's election fraud claims — The FBI has concluded that Iran was behind online efforts earlier this month to incite violence against the bureau's director, a former top U.S. cyber expert and multiple state elections …
Discussion:
Political Wire
Bradford Betz / Fox News:
Warnock's wife told officer that her husband is ‘a great actor’ after domestic dispute — Medical officials did not find visible signs of injury on his wife's foot and Warnock was never charged with a crime. — Ossoff, Warnock would embrace ‘far-left liberal policies’ in Senate: Alyssa Farah
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and Georgia Memo
The Guardian:
Trump pardons Blackwater contractors jailed for massacre of Iraq civilians — Four guards fired on unarmed crowd in Baghdad in 2007, killing 14 and sparking outrage over use of private security in war zones — President Donald Trump has pardoned four Blackwater security guards …
Discussion:
Associated Press
Substack Blog:
Substack's view of content moderation — Building a system that puts readers and writers in charge — As Substack grows, there is increasing interest in the stance we take on content moderation. It's a complicated issue, so we wanted to take a moment to lay out our position clearly and explain how we got there.
Discussion:
TechCrunch and The Verge, more at Mediagazer »
New York Times:
How Cities Lost Control of Police Discipline — In the chaos of 1960s Detroit, a fledgling police union laid the groundwork for a system that, to this day, constrains discipline for officers accused of misconduct. — It took Portland, Ore., almost $1 million in legal fees …
Discussion:
City Journal
Andrew Blankstein / NBC News:
Former Rep. Katie Hill sues ex-husband, Daily Mail, Redstate.com over ‘nonconsensual porn’ — LOS ANGELES — Former congresswoman Katie Hill filed suit in Los Angeles Tuesday against her ex-husband and the owners of Redstate.com and the Daily Mail, saying they had distributed what amounted to …
Wall Street Journal:
Hunter Biden's Family Name Aided Deals with Foreign Tycoons — Business dealings of Joe Biden's son are at the center of a federal tax investigation and loom over the start of his presidency — Hunter Biden ramped up business activities with European and Chinese tycoons as his father exited the vice presidency four years ago.
Adam Klasfeld / Law & Crime:
Judge Says Lin Wood's Post-Election Lawsuits May Have Violated Several Professional Rules, Orders Him to Respond — Attorney Lin Wood's lawsuits aimed to topple the 2020 election may have violated Delaware's rules of professional conduct, preventing him from representing President Donald …
Discussion:
Raw Story
Mike Stobbe / Associated Press:
US deaths in 2020 top 3 million, by far most ever counted — NEW YORK (AP) — This is the deadliest year in U.S. history, with deaths expected to top 3 million for the first time — due mainly to the coronavirus pandemic. — Final mortality data for this year will not be available for months.
Discussion:
Centers for Disease Control, The Hill, The Daily Caller and The Intellectualist
The Cook Political Report:
36 Facts About the 2020 Elections — In keeping with our end-of-cycle tradition, we found 36 interesting things to tide you over during the holidays as we take a break. — PRESIDENTIAL: — 1. A president's job approval rating is one of the most consistent (and accurate) predictors of electoral performance.
Discussion:
CNN, Washington Post and Raw Story
Becket Adams / Washington Examiner:
AOC is right — When Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is right, she's right. — She's also an embarrassing hypocrite, but that doesn't mean she's wrong. — The New York representative went on a righteous tear Monday after it became clear that Congress was going to pass a massive …
Discussion:
The Pipeline, HotAir and Roll Call