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3:50 PM ET, December 23, 2020

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RELATED:
New York Times:
A President Unhappy, Unleashed and Unpredictable  —  President Trump remains the most powerful man in the world, but powerless to achieve what he most wants: to avoid leaving office as a loser.  —  With four weeks left in President Trump's term, he is at perhaps his most unleashed — and …
Politico:
Trump White House staffers receive conflicting messages about their departure  —  Conflicting internal memos created confusion inside the White House on Wednesday about when staffers in the Executive Office of the President should begin preparing to leave work ahead of the transition next month.
Veronica Stracqualursi / CNN:
Voting machine company executive sues Trump allies for defamation  —  Dominion CEO debunks ‘bizarre allegations’ pushed by Trump team  —  Washington (CNN)An executive for a voting machine company that has been the target of conspiracy theories in the aftermath of Donald Trump's 2020 election loss …
The Daily Beast:
‘This Is Just What Jared Does’: Kushner Bails on Trump's Mission to Destroy the 2020 Election  —  The president's son-in-law has developed a reputation in Trumpland for being conspicuously absent when things turn rocky.  —  As President Donald Trump tries to nullify the 2020 election …
Stephen Battaglio / Los Angeles Times:
What happened to Maria Bartiromo?  The Trump election fraud story has the TV news biz asking  —  When a public company makes news, a chief executive can expect a text or call from Maria Bartiromo.  —  The veteran business journalist, now an anchor at Fox News, made her bones by getting sit-downs …
RELATED:
Aidan McLaughlin / Mediaite:
Maria Bartiromo Duped Into On-Air Interview With Animal Rights Activist Posing as CEO of Pork Giant
Discussion: The Week and The Wrap
Erik Wemple / Washington Post:
Fox News management failures invited legal threat from Smartmatic
Greg Sargent / Washington Post:
Trump detonates a truth bomb in the Georgia Senate races  —  President Trump might not realize it, but he just handed Democrats a big weapon to wield against the two Republican senators running in the Georgia runoffs.  —  By abruptly calling for $2,000 stimulus checks on Tuesday night …
RELATED:
Axios:
Trump unleashes signature chaos with stimulus threat and wave of controversial pardons
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
Susan Ferrechio / Washington Examiner:
Democrats dare GOP to block $2,000 stimulus checks in Christmas Eve vote
Discussion: Politico and BuzzFeed News
Roman Chiarello / Fox News:
Rep. Jody Hice slams ‘inexcusable’ coronavirus relief bill, calls for reopening of economy
Politico:
POLITICO Playbook PM: No one knows how this ends  —  SO HOW DOES THIS END?  That's a damn good question.  —  NO ONE KNOWS.  Some say President DONALD TRUMP is in burn-it-down mode and is more than willing to veto the Covid relief/funding package, ending his presidency in a lengthy shutdown, with bluster and crisis.
RELATED:
Kadia Goba / Axios:
Scoop: Pistol-packing freshmen prompt Congress gun review  —  Several incoming House freshmen have inquired about carrying guns into the Capitol, leading a board overseeing congressional security to rethink a regulation banning members from packing heat under the dome, a House aide with direct knowledge of the board review told Axios.
Business Insider:
EXCLUSIVE: A deputy to Eric Trump helped build a campaign shell company to protect the president from grift.  But the secretive operation morphed into a mystery — even for top Trump campaign staffers. … - One of Eric Trump's top deputies played an important role overseeing …
RELATED:
Business Insider:
Democratic lawmaker says Trump campaign shell company was a campaign committee, likely broke law by not reporting or filing with the FEC … - Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan is asking the Justice Department and Federal Election Commission to investigate the Trump campaign's shell company.
Tom Knowles / The Times:
Octopuses are ocean thugs that punch fish  —  Despite its extraordinary intelligence, the life of an octopus is a solitary one.  So perhaps it is no wonder that the mighty brained cephalopod engages in a little thuggery to relieve the boredom.  —  Scientists have discovered that, on occasions …
Karoun Demirjian / Washington Post:
Trump vetoes defense bill, teeing up holiday override votes in Congress  —  President Trump made good Wednesday on his repeated threats to veto a $741 billion defense spending bill, setting up what is expected to be the first successful veto override of his presidency during his last weeks in office.
Washington Post:
In Iraq, Trump's Blackwater pardons meet with cynicism, fatigue  —  BAGHDAD — The 2007 unprovoked killing of Iraqi civilians by Blackwater security contractors is remembered here as one of the most emblematic chapters of America's ruinous invasion.  —  Yet the news Wednesday that President Trump …
Discussion: Roll Call
RELATED:
New York Times:
Trump Pardons Two Russia Inquiry Figures and Blackwater Guards
David Tarrant / Dallas Morning News:
Fort Worth pastor who urged ‘faith over fear’ in the pandemic mourns parents who died of COVID complications  —  The pastor of 2nd Mile Church in north Fort Worth, where his parents were members, said he was surprised by the sudden surge in COVID cases in recent weeks in Tarrant County.
Marc Ambinder / The Daily Beast:
Sources: Secret Service Has No Plan if Trump Refuses to Go  —  But they do have procedures for handling trespassers.  —  If there are any checklists or plans, procedures or guidelines for the Secret Service to follow in the event of an autogolpe—a Latin American-style crisis …
Zach Abolverdi / USA Today:
Florida's Keyontae Johnson diagnosed with heart inflammation that has been associated with COVID-19  —  GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida forward Keyontae Johnson, who collapsed on the court during a game Dec. 12 at Florida State, has been diagnosed with a heart inflammation that may be related to an earlier infection for COVID-19.
Discussion: The Daily Caller
Patrick Lohmann / Syracuse Post-Standard:
Brindisi-Tenney race narrows even more: 3 to 5 votes separate candidates  —  OSWEGO, N.Y. — The incredibly close race for the 22nd Congressional District got even closer Tuesday, as about 90 new votes from a bundle of about 2,500 affidavit ballots from Oneida County were counted.
Anand Giridharadas / The.Ink:
$600 checks are a “crime,” says the pope's favorite economist  —  A conversation with economist Mariana Mazzucato on the case against Scroogenomics … I watched “The Muppet Christmas Carol” with my family last night, and whenever Michael Caine's Ebenezer Scrooge character came onscreen …
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission:
Public Statement  —  Statement of SEC Chairman Jay Clayton  —  I recently submitted a letter to President Donald J. Trump informing him that today, December 23, 2020, will be my last day as Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.  The text of the letter is included below.
Discussion: Bloomberg
Tessa Duvall / Courier-Journal:
Challenge coin for Louisville officers, meant to depict protests, shows city on fire  —  LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Pictures of a controversial new ‘challenge coin’ for Louisville police officers surfaced on social media Wednesday morning, immediately sparking backlash over its depiction …
Josh Barro / Business Insider:
Stop lying about the relief bill … - There is a lot of nonsense being spouted about the latest COVID relief package.  — People are trying to argue that the only thing average Americans get is the $600 check, but that is not true.  The package includes an array of programs that will help people most in need.
Discussion: TIME
Will Sommer / The Daily Beast:
A Massive Purge Is Underway at Alex Jones' Infowars  —  Layoffs!  Dissent!  A Michael Flynn snub!  Things are not well in the house that brain pills built.  —  At a pro-Trump rally in Washington D.C. earlier this month, conspiracy theory magnate Alex Jones came face-to-face with a star …
Cornel West / Jewish Currents:
The Radical Heschel  —  ABRAHAM JOSHUA HESCHEL, who died on this day 48 years ago, was the greatest exemplar of the prophetic legacy of Jerusalem in the most anti-Jewish century of recorded time.  He drew inspiration from the biblical prophets, whom he wrote about in great depth …
Josh Kraushaar / National Journal:
The case for a Chris Christie comeback  —  The former New Jersey governor has the perfect political résumé to bridge the party's divides in a post-Trump world.  —  Talk to enough mainstream Republican operatives , who are already brainstorming for the type of presidential nominee …
Barak Ravid / Axios:
Scoop: Israel tries to use Milley as conduit to Biden on Iran  —  Israel used the recent visit by Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, to pass on several messages to the incoming Biden administration regarding Iran and other regional developments, senior Israeli officials tell me.
Gustavo Arellano / Los Angeles Times:
Column: The bittersweet victory of Alex Padilla, California's first Latino U.S. senator  —  Well, Gavin Newsom took two-thirds of my advice.  —  In November, I wrote that he should pick a Latino from the San Fernando Valley to replace Kamala Harris as a California U.S. senator.
 
 
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 More Items: 
Justin Jouvenal / Washington Post:
Va. judge rules Black defendant can't get a fair trial in courtroom largely featuring portraits of White judges
Discussion: Reason
Politico:
Pressure for diversity weighs on Biden's Labor secretary decision
Discussion: CBS Boston
Michelle Nichols / Reuters:
‘Good riddance,’ China says as Germany leaves U.N. Security Council
Taylor Lorenz / New York Times:
Clubhouse Makes Way for Influencers
more at Techmeme »
Danielle E. Gaines / Maryland Matters:
Miller, President Emeritus, Resigns After 45 Years in Md. Senate
Discussion: The Hill and Baltimore Sun
Sam Brodey / The Daily Beast:
Kelly Loeffler's Letter Helped Set Stage for Husband's $10 Billion Deal
Discussion: Raw Story
Maura Forrest / Politico:
How 2020 changed Justin Trudeau, and didn't
Discussion: Twitchy
 Earlier Items: 
The Daily Beast:
White Supremacists Discussed Shooting Up Power Grids, Forming ‘Fascist Society’: FBI
Discussion: The Sun and New York Post
Detroit News:
Sanctions sought against lawyers who pushed to overturn Michigan's election
Eddie Scarry / Washington Examiner:
Biden's coronavirus health adviser is a prop
Phil Helsel / NBC News:
U.S. reports more Covid deaths than ever before
Discussion: Balloon Juice, NPR and Axios
Washington Post:
Republicans plunge into open battle over attempts to overturn Trump's loss to Biden
 

 
From Techmeme:

Jody Godoy / Reuters:
Filing: Apple asks to participate in the remedial phase of Google's US antitrust case, saying it can't rely on Google to defend their revenue-sharing agreements

Bloomberg:
Iran's Supreme Council of Cyberspace approves lifting its ban on “certain widely used foreign platforms”, naming WhatsApp and Google Play as the first two apps

Tharin Pillay / Time:
A look at the more challenging AI evaluations emerging in response to the rapid progress of models, including FrontierMath, Humanity's Last Exam, and RE-Bench
 
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