memeorandum: A Stinging Setback in California Is a Warning for Democrats in 2022 (Adam Nagourney/New York Times)

2:20 PM ET, December 26, 2020

Top Items:

Ashley Fetters / Politico:

Washington's Secret to the Perfect Zoom Bookshelf? Buy It Wholesale. — In a place like Washington—small, interconnected, erudite, gossipy—being well-read can create certain advantages. So, too, can seeming well-read. The “Washington bookshelf” is almost a phenomenon in itself …

Discussion: Althouse

Mike Brest / Washington Examiner:

Trump rebukes FBI, DOJ, Congress, and Supreme Court in morning Twitter tantrum — President Trump spent part of his Saturday morning rebuking federal officials who have not helped him win a second term since losing the election and Congress for stimulus negotiations.

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Times, Conservative News Today, Bangor Daily News and Florida Politics

Evan Semones / Politico:

Trump rails at Justice Dept., Supreme Court as stimulus bill deadline nears — The president took aim at the FBI and DOJ for not pursuing baseless claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election. — President Donald Trump. On the day millions of Americans left unemployed by the coronavirus pandemic prepare …

Discussion: Business Insider, Alternet.org and POLITICUSUSA

Jennifer Bendery / HuffPost:

Trump's Presidency Is Over. His Judges Will Be Here For Decades. — Thanks to Mitch McConnell, Trump has put more than 230 people into lifetime federal court seats. Most are white, male, right-wing ideologues. — Donald Trump's presidency is ending in a few weeks.

Discussion: Associated Press and Real America's Voice

Kevin Liptak / CNN:

Trump's mind is elsewhere as unemployment benefits run out for millions of Americans — Washington (CNN)A day before unemployment benefits for millions of Americans were set to expire, President Donald Trump had a different insult in mind: his former-model wife has yet to appear on the cover of a fashion magazine as first lady.

Discussion: Bloomberg, Business Insider, The Daily Caller, The Root, ABC30 and Gothamist

Alan Rappeport / New York Times:

Unemployment Aid Set to Lapse Saturday as Trump's Plans for Relief Bill Remain Unclear — At least a temporary lapse in expanded unemployment benefits for millions of Americans is now inevitable because of President Trump's delay in signing a $900 billion pandemic relief bill.

Discussion: Fortune, Reuters, Blue Virginia, The Guardian, Axios, NBC10 Philadelphia, Mock Paper Scissors, The Week and New York Post

Adam Edelman / NBC News:
Trump again calls for $2,000 checks as Covid aid bill remains in flux

Discussion: Washington Examiner, KUSI-TV, The Hill, Reuters, One America News Network, The Sun and New York Post

CBS News:
COVID relief bill flown to Florida, where Trump went golfing

Discussion: Al Jazeera, CBS Chicago and Wall Street Journal

Transition / President-Elect Joe Biden:

Statement by President-elect Joe Biden on the Need to Sign the COVID-19 Economic Relief Bill — It is the day after Christmas, and millions of families don't know if they'll be able to make ends meet because of President Donald Trump's refusal to sign an economic relief bill approved by Congress …

Discussion: Business Insider and New York Post

Tal Axelrod / The Hill:

Biden pushes Trump to sign COVID-19 bill: ‘It needs to be signed into law now’ — President-elect Joe Biden on Saturday pressed President Trump to immediately sign a COVID-19 relief bill that is stuck in limbo, blasting what he deemed Trump's “abdication of responsibility.”

Discussion: Politico, NBC News, Business Insider, Washington Times and The Week

Adam Nagourney / New York Times:

A Stinging Setback in California Is a Warning for Democrats in 2022 — Democrats lost four swing House districts in the state, suggesting that their hold on a number of formerly Republican seats is tenuous at best. — LOS ANGELES — Two years ago, Democrats celebrated a sweep …

Discussion: HotAir

Patricia Cohen / New York Times:

A ‘Great Cultural Depression’ Looms for Legions of Unemployed Performers — With theaters and concert halls shuttered, unemployment in the arts has cut deeper than in restaurants and other hard-hit industries. — In the top echelons of classical music, the violinist Jennifer Koh is by any measure a star.

Chris Megerian / Los Angeles Times:

Families are turning obituaries into final pleas to avoid COVID-19 — When Pamela Caddell died of COVID-19 last month, there was no funeral — her family knew that, as a former nurse, she wouldn't want anyone else to be exposed to the disease. — But there was still something her husband …

Associated Press:

Despite smooth election, GOP leaders seek vote restrictions — ATLANTA (AP) — Changes to the way millions of Americans voted this year contributed to record turnout, but that's no guarantee the measures making it easier to cast ballots will stick around for future elections.

Discussion: Axios and Associated Press

Igor Derysh / Salon:

Did we defund the police? No, but “big changes are happening” even after protests die down — Despite intense criticism coming from across the political spectrum, new city budgets show the protests worked — After weeks of nationwide protests over the police killings of unarmed Black people this summer …

Steven Overly / Politico:

Anti-Facebook agitators see their moment under Biden — Facebook endured a deluge of political scrutiny in Donald Trump's Washington. It's poised to face even worse in the Joe Biden era. — From lawmakers on Capitol Hill to antitrust enforcers at the Federal Trade Commission …

Discussion: Mother Jones

Zachary Petrizzo / Mediaite:

Roger Stone Says He's Going To Sue Bill Barr and Justice Department For $25M After Trump Pardon — Roger Stone said he plans to file a lawsuit against the Department of Justice and former Attorney General William Barr, following his presidential pardon from President Donald Trump.

Discussion: Conservative News Today and Towleroad Gay News

Ed Pilkington / The Guardian:
How real is the threat of prosecution for Donald Trump post-presidency?

Discussion: Alternet.org

Associated Press:

AP sources: Human remains found near Nashville explosion — NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Two law enforcement officials tell The Associated Press that authorities have found human remains in the vicinity of the explosion that rocked downtown Nashville early Christmas morning.