memeorandum: Trump not just admired, but appreciated (Tammy Bruce/Washington Times)

11:20 PM ET, December 30, 2020

Top Items:

CNN:

Trump to return to Washington early ahead of Republican plan to disrupt certification of Biden's win — (CNN)President Donald Trump is expected to return to Washington earlier than anticipated ahead of a planned disruption by Republicans when Congress meets next week to certify President-elect Joe Biden's win.

Discussion: Washington Times, Raw Story, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Grabien News, Mediaite and Political Wire

Washington Post:

Hawley's plan to contest electoral college vote certification ensures drawn-out process — Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) announced Wednesday that he will object next week when Congress convenes to certify the electoral college vote before President-elect Joe Biden's victory is cemented …

Matthew Choi / Politico:

Walmart apologizes to Hawley after calling him a sore loser — An exchange of sharp words followed the Missouri senator's vow to challenge President-elect Joe Biden's electoral victory. — Sen. Josh Hawley speaks on Dec. 16, 2020. Greg Nash/Pool via AP

Discussion: Raw Story, TheGrio, Breitbart, HuffPost, Sara A. Carter, The Guardian, Business Insider, Associated Press and New York Post

CNN:
GOP senator to delay affirming Biden victory by forcing votes on Electoral College results

Jim Hoft / The Gateway Pundit:
BREAKING: “I Cannot Vote to Certify the Electoral College Results on January 6th” - MO Senator Josh Hawley Announces He Will Object to Electoral College Certification Process

Discussion: Missouri Independent, One America News Network and Twitchy

Politico:
Hawley vows to challenge Biden electors, forcing vote McConnell hoped to avoid

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, The Hill, New York Times, Breitbart, CNBC, The New Arab, Business Insider, ABC News, Colorado Newsline, Talking Points Memo, Mediaite and Washington Examiner

Kyle Cheney / Politico:
How Congress and coronavirus could quash Trump's Electoral College gambit

Discussion: Washington Post, Associated Press, Florida Politics, HuffPost, The Guardian, The American Independent, Forbes, National Memo, VICE, National Review, Crooks and Liars, Washington Examiner, Fox News and Raw Story

Eric Levitz / New York Magazine:

The GOP Just Let Democrats Have Their Stimulus and Campaign On It Too — Next week, voters in Georgia will determine which party controls the U.S. Senate in 2021 — and thus, quite plausibly, the future of macroeconomic, climate, and health-care policy in the United States.

Discussion: New York Times, TheBlaze and COURIER

Burgess Everett / Politico:

McConnell and GOP reject House's $2,000 stimulus checks — Mitch McConnell and Senate Republicans finished off any imminent chance of approving $2,000 stimulus checks on Wednesday, ending a push from President Donald Trump and Democratic leaders to approve bigger direct payments as the congressional term comes to an end.

Brent Budowsky / The Hill:
Trump Georgia rally could backfire, electing Ossoff and Warnock

Discussion: FiveThirtyEight, National Memo and New York Magazine

Jonathan V. Last / The Triad:
You Should Be Angry. — Before we get started: Shortly after I finished writing today's newsletter …

Discussion: CNN, The Hill, The Gateway Pundit, Big League Politics, The Americano, UPI, IJR, Fox News and BGR

Washington Post:
McConnell says push for $2,000 stimulus checks has “no realistic path to quickly pass the Senate”

Discussion: USA Today, IJR, The Week, New York Magazine, The Hill, Washington Times, Newsy, Common Dreams, CBS San Francisco and The Daily Caller

Jason Sattler / USA Today:
I underestimated Biden in 2020 and have hope for 2021. Post-Trump detox is just the start.

Discussion: National Review, Chicago Sun-Times, Newsbusters and Wall Street Journal

Rachel Siegel / Washington Post:
Here's how $2,000 stimulus checks would work, and who would qualify

Discussion: Boston Herald, New York Times, Orange County Register, New York Post, The Hill, Raw Story, Washington Times and IJR

Ursula Perano / Axios:
McConnell: “No realistic path to quickly pass” stimulus check increase

Discussion: Fox News, Business Insider, The Daily Caller, CNBC, Mock Paper Scissors, The Western Journal and Newsy

Axios:

Scoop: Trump administration declassifies unconfirmed intel on Chinese bounties — The Trump administration is declassifying as-yet uncorroborated intelligence, recently briefed to President Trump, that indicates China offered to pay non-state actors in Afghanistan to attack American soldiers …

Discussion: The Hill, New York Times, National Review, The Election Wizard, Raw Story and The Gateway Pundit

CNN: Trump was briefed that China sought to pay non-state actors to attack US forces in Afghanistan

Lara Seligman / Politico: Intel on China bounties called ‘less’ credible than Russia payments

Taryn Ryder / Yahoo Entertainment:

Dr. Drew reveals COVID-19 diagnosis months after apologizing for downplaying coronavirus — Celebrity doctor Drew Pinsky has tested positive for COVID-19. Pinsky, known as “Dr. Drew,” is “under surveillance” according to a message shared on his Instagram account.

Discussion: POLITICUSUSA

Isaac Stanley-Becker / Washington Post:

Shots are slow to reach arms as Trump administration leaves final steps of mass vaccination to beleaguered states — Federal and state officials say the pace will soon accelerate, but the logistical challenges are also expected to intensify in the new year — In suburban Milwaukee …

Apoorva Mandavilli / New York Times: Discovery of Virus Variant in Colorado and California Alarms Scientists

Jennifer Bendery / HuffPost:

Biden's Team Tells Senate Democrats To Send Him Judicial Nominees ASAP — The president-elect wants recommendations for all existing district court vacancies by Jan. 19, says his incoming White House counsel. — President-elect Joe Biden is signaling that he's ready to move quickly with nominating judges once he's sworn into office.

Discussion: The Hill, CNN, Reason and Political Wire

Carol D. Leonnig / Washington Post:

Secret Service to make changes to presidential detail to bring on agents who worked with Biden — The Secret Service is making some staff changes in the presidential detail that will guard President-elect Joe Biden, amid concerns from Biden allies that some current members were politically aligned …

Discussion: The Hill, UnHerd and Political Wire

Mike Schneider / Associated Press:

Census Bureau to miss deadline, jeopardizing Trump plan — The Census Bureau plans to announce it will miss a year-end deadline for handing in numbers used for divvying up congressional seats, a census official said. That delay could undermine President Donald Trump's efforts to exclude people …

Discussion: Fox News, The Hill, Axios, The United States …, WTOP, Politico and New York Post

Hansi Lo Wang / NPR:
Census To Miss Year-End Deadline For Delivering Numbers For House Seats

Discussion: CNN

NBC News:

Feds probing if Nashville bomber believed in lizard people conspiracy — Investigators are exploring several conspiracy theories as potential motives behind the Christmas Day bombing outside an AT&T building in Nashville, including evidence that the bomber believed in lizard people …

Discussion: Snopes.com, Law & Crime, The Other McCain, Task & Purpose, UPI, The Week and USA Today

Tom Nichols / The Atlantic:

Trump Could Still Start a Last-Ditch War With Iran — Donald Trump is intent on creating as much chaos as possible on his way out of the White House. Could that include saddling Joe Biden with another war in the Middle East? — We already know that Trump is thinking about attacking Iran.

Discussion: Raw Story and Fox News

Dan Lamothe / Washington Post:
Bracing for a possible Iranian-linked attack, U.S. officials warn ‘the threat streams are very real’

Discussion: New York Times, The Western Journal, TheBlaze, The National Interest, Washington Examiner, Task & Purpose, The New Arab and Radio Free Europe/Radio …

Robert Burns / Associated Press:
US bomber mission over Persian Gulf aimed at cautioning Iran

Discussion: U.S. Central Command, The Daily Caller, New York Post and Political Wire

Summer Concepcion / Talking Points Memo:

GOP Gov Cancels Inaugural Ceremony Over Armed Protesters Outside His Home — New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) on Wednesday announced that he is canceling his outdoor inauguration ceremony next month, citing “ongoing public safety concerns” over armed protesters who have gathered outside …

Discussion: UPI

Kathy Mccormack / Associated Press:
Governor cancels inaugural, citing mask protests at his home

Discussion: WMUR

David Wallace-Wells / New York Magazine:

America's Vaccine Rollout Is Already a Disaster — It's happening all over again. For months, Americans who despaired about the country's coronavirus-suppression efforts looked desperately to the arrival of a vaccine for a kind of pandemic deliverance. Now that it has arrived …

Discussion: Washington Post

Brian Klaas / Washington Post:

Trump's parting gift to dictators solidifies his authoritarian legacy — Throughout his turbulent presidency, President Trump has been erratic and unpredictable. But in one realm, he has been consistent: supporting bloodthirsty despots who abuse, torture and kill their own people.

Discussion: Raw Story, The New Arab and The Guardian

Katherine Rosman / New York Times:

Hilaria Baldwin Talks About Her Heritage, Spain, Boston, Alec and Instagram — Accused of a “decade long grift where she impersonates a Spanish person,” the entrepreneur and spouse of Alec Baldwin talks about Spain, Boston, her children, Instagram and more.

David Brand / Queens News:

Man hospitalized for COVID-19 after Queens Republican club Christmas party — At least one person has been hospitalized for COVID-19 after attending an indoor Christmas dance party hosted by the Whitestone Republican Club earlier this month, the Eagle has learned.

Discussion: NPR, The Hill, Raw Story, Gothamist, Mock Paper Scissors and Political Wire

Mark Levin / TheBlaze:

On January 6, we learn whether our Constitution will hold — And whether congressional Republicans care — January 6 is the day we learn whether our Constitution will hold and whether congressional Republicans care. — The 2020 presidential election was, in several targeted battleground states …

Discussion: RedState

Missy Ryan / Washington Post:

Biden to tap longtime officials for top Pentagon roles — President-elect Joe Biden plans to nominate two former senior officials to fill the Pentagon's No. 2 and No. 3 jobs, transition officials said, further signaling the new administration's intent to forge a more predictable foreign policy …

Discussion: Defense One, New York Daily News, Politico, President-Elect Joe Biden, Fox News, The Daily Caller, Accuracy in Media, IJR and The Week

President-Elect Joe Biden:
NATIONAL SECURITY NOMINEES AND APPOINTEES

Discussion: The Daily Caller and UPI

Alexis Ty / International Business Times:

National Bacon Day 2020: 12 Facts You Never Knew About The Delicious Pork Slab — KEY POINTS — National Bacon Day is celebrated on Dec. 30 each year — Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto was dubbed the father of the American pork industry — The phrase “bring home the bacon” …

Discussion: Power Line

Lachlan Markay / The Daily Beast:

Ted Cruz's Georgia Runoff Fundraising Is Actually Going to His Campaign. He's Not Alone — The runoff is a gold mine for politicians. And now that they can run Facebook ads in Georgia, they're rushing for it. — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) needs your help to keep the U.S. Senate in Republican hands.

Discussion: Fox News, Raw Story, The Intellectualist and Mock Paper Scissors

Clay Risen / New York Times:

Ted DeLaney, Conscience of a Roiled University, Dies at 77 — He worked his way up from custodian to department head at Washington and Lee, then led a reckoning with the Confederate general its very name honored, Robert E. Lee. — Ted DeLaney, who began his nearly 60-year career at Washington …