Top Items:
Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:
Trump Fears That His Influence Is Waning — The president is plotting retribution. Not just because he's mad about his election loss. But because he wants to keep folks in line. — As his days in office come to a close, President Donald Trump has hinted to those close to him that he's worried …
Discussion:
Raw Story and Political Wire
RELATED:
Peter Wehner / The Atlantic:
The Unbearable Weakness of Trump's Minions — Those hoping for a quick snapback to sanity for the Republican Party once Donald Trump is no longer president should temper those hopes. — The latest piece of evidence to suggest the enduring power of Trumpian unreality is yesterday's announcement …
Discussion:
Bloomberg, New Republic, BuzzFeed News and The Daily Caller
Quint Forgey / Politico:
Graham pushes McConnell for separate vote on $2,000 checks — Sen. Lindsey Graham on Thursday urged Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to allow a stand-alone vote on $2,000 stimulus checks after the new Congress is sworn in next week. — The remarks from the South Carolina Republican break …
Discussion:
Fox News, The Hill, The Sun, The Daily Caller, Crooks and Liars and Business Insider
Ruth Marcus / Washington Post:
Let Josh Hawley put Republicans to the uncomfortable test — Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) — Yale Law School, Supreme Court clerk, Missouri attorney general and, according to the first line of his Twitter bio, “constitutional lawyer” — surely knows better. — His plan to challenge the certification …
Discussion:
Raw Story, Los Angeles Times, Washington Examiner, Israpundit, One America News Network, New York Magazine and CNN
Jennifer Rubin / Washington Post:
Josh Hawley reminds us that the GOP is the sedition party — The Republican Party yet again provides us with reason for its own demise. The Post reports: “Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) announced Wednesday that he would object next week when Congress convenes to certify the electoral college vote …
Discussion:
Mediaite, MSNBC, Rolling Stone, Associated Press, Fortune, Esquire and The Hill
Washington Post:
Sen. Sasse calls effort to overturn electoral college vote a ‘dangerous ploy’ — Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) on Thursday called the effort in Congress to reverse President-elect Joe Biden's electoral college victory a “dangerous ploy,” underscoring the challenge President Trump faces in persuading even members of his own party to join it.
Discussion:
Politico, The Hill, CNN, NBC News, Reuters, Orlando Sentinel, Talking Points Memo, IJR, The Daily Caller, Big League Politics, Mediaite, Raw Story and Election Law Blog
Fadel Allassan / Axios:
Sasse: “Ambitious” Republicans objecting to Electoral College “are playing with fire”
Sasse: “Ambitious” Republicans objecting to Electoral College “are playing with fire”
Discussion:
Washington Times, The Week and The Intellectualist
JM Rieger / Washington Post:
Trump has yet to accept the election results months after Republicans said he would
Trump has yet to accept the election results months after Republicans said he would
Discussion:
CBS News, Boston.com, The American Independent and The National Interest
Amanda Carpenter / The Bulwark:
Josh Hawley Is Madison Cawthorn Is Marjorie Taylor Greene
Josh Hawley Is Madison Cawthorn Is Marjorie Taylor Greene
Discussion:
Business Insider
W. James Antle III / Washington Examiner:
In lame-duck fights, Trump may already have eye on 2024 election
In lame-duck fights, Trump may already have eye on 2024 election
Discussion:
The Federalist, The Guardian, abc7NY, USA Today, Real America's Voice and Al Jazeera
Raphael Warnock / Wall Street Journal:
Trump's Embarrassing Electoral College Hustle — It is doomed to fail but would still set a destructive precedent. — By The Editorial Board — President Trump's last and worst shot at overturning the 2020 election will come on Jan. 6, as the new Congress meets in joint session to tally the votes from the Electoral College.
Discussion:
The Hill, Raw Story, Los Angeles Times, Townhall, The New Arab, New York Times, CNBC, ABC News, Breitbart, Mock Paper Scissors, Florida Politics, Politico and American Interregnum
RELATED:
CNN:
Trump returns to Washington early ahead of Republican plan to disrupt certification of Biden's win — (CNN)President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump headed back to Washington Thursday morning in a departure that was earlier than anticipated as some Republicans plan to delay certification …
Discussion:
CNBC, Business Insider, Politico, The Daily Caller, The Hill, The Week, Washington Post, Florida Politics, Denver Post, Towleroad Gay News, WTOP, The US Sun, Raw Story, susiemadrak.com and Mediaite
Darlene Superville / Associated Press:
Trump to return to White House early from Florida vacation
Trump to return to White House early from Florida vacation
Discussion:
TMZ.com, Israpundit, Raw Story and National Memo
Los Angeles Times:
Some healthcare workers refuse to take COVID-19 vaccine, even with priority access — They are front-line workers with top priority access to the COVID-19 vaccine, but they are refusing to take it. — At St. Elizabeth Community Hospital in Tehama County, fewer than half …
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars
RELATED:
Soumya Karlamangla / Los Angeles Times:
Bodies pile up, patient care falters as COVID-19 devastates L.A. County hospitals — Los Angeles County's healthcare system was buckling Wednesday under the unprecedented surge of COVID-19 patients, with bodies piling up at morgues and medical professionals resorting to increasingly desperate measures …
Discussion:
Associated Press
Kevin Stankiewicz / CNBC:
Axios' Mike Allen: Some Republicans think Trump is trying to sabotage GOP in Georgia Senate races — “There's a big strain of thought among Republicans that President Trump is sabotaging” the Georgia Senate runoffs, Axios co-founder Mike Allen told CNBC. — Allen said Trump has …
Discussion:
POLITICUSUSA and Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Brent Budowsky / The Hill:
Trump Georgia rally could backfire, electing Ossoff and Warnock
Trump Georgia rally could backfire, electing Ossoff and Warnock
Discussion:
FiveThirtyEight, Bloomberg and The Stream
Greg Bluestein / Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
As runoff nears, Trump complicates GOP case by demanding that Kemp resign
As runoff nears, Trump complicates GOP case by demanding that Kemp resign
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
Dominique Vidalon / Reuters:
British PM Johnson's father applying for French citizenship — PARIS (Reuters) - The father of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday he was in the process of applying for a French passport to maintain his ties with the European Union after Brexit.
Discussion:
CBS News, Al Jazeera, Raw Story, Business Insider and The US Sun
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Ian Dunt / Persuasion:
Fool Britannia — Brexit is here, so it's time to review its grand promises. Spoiler: They got away with lies. — 2 hr ago — So here we are. Four and a half years, three prime ministers and two elections later, Britain finally has a Brexit deal. To do so, the country became divided …
Discussion:
Politico, Reuters, National Review, The Dispatch and The Guardian
Tal Axelrod / The Hill:
Iran accuses Trump of ‘plot to fabricate pretext for war’ — Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Thursday accused President Trump of trying to create a “pretext for war” after the U.S. flew two B-52 bombers in the Middle East amid warnings of a possible attack in the region from Tehran.
Discussion:
Bloomberg, The Daily Caller, The Sun and U.S. Central Command
RELATED:
Jon Gambrell / Associated Press:
Security firms say suspicious object on oil tanker off Iraq
Security firms say suspicious object on oil tanker off Iraq
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and The Iran Project
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 …
RELATED:
Kate Sullivan / CNN:
Biden White House to issue memo to halt or delay midnight regulations on January 20
Biden White House to issue memo to halt or delay midnight regulations on January 20
Discussion:
The Week, Bloomberg, The Hill and Political Wire
Rachel Janfaza / CNN:
Young people are getting out the vote in Georgia — from thousands of miles away — Why all eyes are on the Georgia Senate runoff elections — Washington, DC (CNN)From messaging potential voters on dating apps to helping pay for Uber rides to the polls, young people across the country …
RELATED:
The Daily Poster:
Senate Democrats' Motion To Concede On $2,000 Checks — How Democrats and Beltway pundits just helped Mitch McConnell undermine Bernie Sanders' push for direct aid to millions of Americans facing eviction, starvation and bankruptcy. — David Sirota and Andrew Perez — 8 hr ago
Discussion:
The Daily Dot, republicanleader.senate.gov, Jacobin, Conservative News Today, Raw Story and The Guardian
Ellen Carmichael / National Review:
Journalists' Behavior over Luke Letlow's Passing Is Abhorrent — and Telling — In no other health circumstance would such brutality toward the afflicted be tolerated. — On Tuesday evening, Congressman-elect Luke Letlow's (R., La.) family announced that he passed away at the age of 41 due to complications from COVID-19.
Discussion:
Outside the Beltway, Twitchy and Townhall
RELATED:
Tyler Bridges / The Advocate:
Reporter's notebook: Luke Letlow, killed by the coronavirus, though he was a cautious campaigner
Reporter's notebook: Luke Letlow, killed by the coronavirus, though he was a cautious campaigner
Discussion:
The Daily Caller
Oliver Traldi / Arc Digital:
Nobody Reads — People who pretend to read as a status symbol are certainly obnoxious — but are they on to something? — When you first hear about a store called “Books by the Foot,” you might think: The name tells me they've got a whole lot of books to sell me.
John F. Harris / Politico:
2020 Shatters the Myth of American Exceptionalism — 2020 will go down for me as the year I did not travel to Minnesota. — Strictly speaking, it is more accurate to say this was the year when I did not travel to my version of Minnesota. — My Minnesota is a crisp morning stroll in Northfield …
Alex Yablon / New Republic:
This Year's Underground Sensation: Modern Monetary Theory — At the close of 2020, it's hard to think of another year in living memory that has forced such a radical rethinking of our politics and social life. The Covid-19 pandemic will be remembered as a dire time in American life …
Jill Lawrence / USA Today:
A Republican in Joe Biden's Cabinet? The president-elect should just say no. — Naming a Republican is bad messaging and not necessary. And it wouldn't signal strength or produce an envoy with persuasive powers over the opposition. — The doors may be closing on the chances of a Republican …
Discussion:
CNN and Associated Press
Elaine Shannon / SpyTalk:
Nashville's Big Bomb Was a Very Rare Device, Experts Think — Fire, flash and power signal a volatile fuel-air mix that even terrorists avoid — Find his test sites, top bomb experts say. — Anthony Quinn Warner's device, although probably made of common over-the-counter components …
Discussion:
National Memo, The Root and Law & Crime
Burgess Everett / Politico:
Elizabeth Warren's next chapter — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wants Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer replaced, lamenting that there's no one ready to step in. Elizabeth Warren has a different approach. — The Massachusetts Democrat is a member of Schumer's leadership team and is working closely …
Jay Heflin / Washington Examiner:
Trump's legacy: $8 trillion-plus in added debt in one term — President Trump promised in the 2016 campaign to eliminate the federal debt over a two-term presidency. That pledge won't come to fruition, and, in fact, he will leave office having added massively to the debt.
Discussion:
The Daily Caller and Washington Post
Lauren Egan / NBC News:
Congresswoman-elect Salazar to miss swearing-in ceremony due to Covid diagnosis — Congresswoman-elect María Elvira Salazar of Florida announced Thursday that she will miss the swearing-in ceremony for new members of Congress on Sunday in Washington after testing positive for the coronavirus.
Discussion:
The Hill, The Daily Caller and CNN
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:
Sara A. Carter, The Daily Caller, New York Times, Politico, CNN, National Review, The Gateway Pundit, The Hill, The Election Wizard and Raw Story