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5:05 AM ET, December 23, 2020

memeorandum

 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:
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 …
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.”
RELATED:
Tyler Van Dyke / Washington Examiner:
Trump rips coronavirus stimulus bill and demands bigger checks
Discussion: Reuters
Tal Axelrod / The Hill:
Trump slams relief bill, calls on Congress to increase stimulus money
Discussion: POLITICUSUSA, CANNONFIRE 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.
RELATED:
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.
Zoë Richards / Talking Points Memo:
‘I Will Retire’: Dr. Birx Will Not Seek Role In Biden Administration
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 …
RELATED:
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.
David Edwards / Raw Story:   Karl Rove goes off on Sidney Powell: ‘Any idiot with access to Google’ can debunk her lawsuits
Justin Baragona / The Daily Beast:
Karl Rove Tears Into Sidney Powell: Trump Is ‘So Ill-Served’ by Her ‘Antics’
Discussion: The Hill and Mediaite
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: CyberScoop and Political Wire
RELATED:
Dustin Volz / Wall Street Journal:
Iran Pushed Online Effort to Incite Violence Against Officials Defending U.S. Election Result
Discussion: Axios
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
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 …
RELATED:
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 …
RELATED:
Kara Scannell / CNN:
Trump's private bankers resign from Deutsche Bank
Discussion: The Hill, UPI and The Intellectualist
Los Angeles Times:
Newsom names Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to succeed Padilla as California secretary of state  —  Gov. Gavin Newsom took swift action Tuesday to fill the newly vacant post of California secretary of state by selecting Democratic Assemblywoman Shirley Weber to serve as the state's chief elections officer …
RELATED:
Los Angeles Times:
Alex Padilla becomes California's first Latino U.S. senator, replacing Kamala Harris
Shawn Hubler / New York Times:
Alex Padilla Will Replace Kamala Harris in the Senate
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 …
RELATED:
Alex Isenstadt / Politico:
Senior Trump advisers prepare to launch policy group
Discussion: The Hill and Political Wire
Associated Press:
Dominion worker sues Trump campaign and conservative media  —  NEW YORK — An election systems worker driven into hiding by death threats has filed a defamation lawsuit against President Donald Trump's campaign, two of its lawyers and some conservative media figures and outlets.
Discussion: NPR, CBS Denver, The Colorado Sun and Axios
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
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: ABC13, Talking Points Memo and CREW
RELATED:
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
The dishonest heart of the challenge to the 2020 election results
Discussion: Detroit News and Raw Story
Tara D. Sonenshine / The Hill:
Dr. Fauci made the right house calls  —  Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, turns 80 this week.  At a time when Americans desperately need heroes, there is no better choice as a national hero than the top doc who has led us through this nightmarish COVID-19 pandemic.
Discussion: HotAir
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
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.
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
 
 
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 More Items: 
The Guardian:
Putin signs bill granting lifetime immunity to former Russian presidents
Chrissy Clark / Washington Free Beacon:
Future Biden Education Secretary Oversaw Creation of Critical Theory Class for High Schoolers
The Cook Political Report:
36 Facts About the 2020 Elections  —  In keeping with our end-of-cycle tradition …
Discussion: Washington Post
Daisy Nguyen / Associated Press:
US hospitals facing worrisome shortage of nurses, doctors
Discussion: Washington Examiner
Substack Blog:
Substack's view of content moderation
Steve Hendrix / Washington Post:
Israeli government collapses, sending country back to elections for fourth time in two years
 Earlier Items: 
Andrew Blankstein / NBC News:
Former Rep. Katie Hill sues ex-husband, Daily Mail, Redstate.com over ‘nonconsensual porn’
Discussion: Axios and The Wrap
Bloomberg:
Biden's High-Stakes Attorney General Pick Slides to Back of Line
Discussion: CNN, CNBC, New York Times and Fox News
Evie Fordham / Fox News:
Gov. Kristi Noem whips out flamethrower in Instagram photo
Discussion: Twitchy
Adam Klasfeld / Law & Crime:
Judge Says Lin Wood's Post-Election Lawsuits May Have Violated Several Professional Rules, Orders Him to Respond
Discussion: Raw Story
Kevin R. Brock / The Hill:
The tangled webs of Christopher Krebs and Russia's cyberattack
Molly Fischer / The Cut:
Who Did J.K. Rowling Become? Deciphering the most beloved, most reviled children's-book author in history.
 

 
From Mediagazer:

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

Ashley Carman / Bloomberg:
A growing number of podcasters, including Tim Ferriss, are moving away from interviews to monologues or co-hosts, as some well-known guests can be overexposed

Brian Steinberg / Variety:
Sources: NBCUniversal Vice Chairman Bonnie Hammer plans to leave the company at the end of the year; she has been with the company since 2004

 
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