Top Items:
Ben Sasse / The Atlantic:
QAnon Is Destroying the GOP From Within — Eugene Goodman is an American hero. At a pivotal moment on January 6, the veteran United States Capitol Police officer single-handedly prevented untold bloodshed. Staring down an angry, advancing mob, he retreated up a marble staircase …
Discussion:
Washington Post, CNN, The Hill, Business Insider, Slate, Axios and Raw Story
Ellen Nakashima / Washington Post:
Acting defense secretary orders NSA director to immediately install former GOP operative as the agency's top lawyer — Acting defense secretary Christopher C. Miller ordered the director of the National Security Agency to install on Saturday a former GOP political operative as the NSA's top lawyer …
Discussion:
Business Insider, CNN and Political Wire
New Yorker:
A Reporter's Footage from Inside the Capitol Siege — When Luke Mogelson attended President Donald Trump's speech on the National Mall, in Washington, D.C., on January 6th, he was prepared for the possibility that violence might erupt that day. Mogelson, a veteran war correspondent …
Discussion:
Mediaite
ABC News:
Giuliani says he's working on Trump's impeachment defense, would argue voter fraud claims — “If you can prove that it's true... they are no longer fighting words,” he said. — US Capitol riots: Tracking the insurrection — On Jan. 6, rioters coming from a pro-Trump rally broke into the U.S. Capitol …
Discussion:
Mediaite, Business Insider, Raw Story and New York Post
Tim Miller / The Bulwark:
After White House Meeting with Trump, Mike Lindell Calls for Military Coup on Facebook — NOTHING TO SEE HERE. JUST A PILLOW SALESMAN BEING INVITED TO THE WHITE HOUSE TO ARGUE FOR THE IMPOSITION OF MARTIAL LAW AND THE OVERTURNING OF A PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. WE COOL. (DREW ANGERER/GETTY IMAGES)
Discussion:
Political Wire, RSBN Exclusive Interview … and Raw Story
New York Times:
Prospect of Pardons in Final Days Fuels Market to Buy Access to Trump — The president's allies have collected tens of thousands of dollars — and potentially much more — from people seeking pardons. — WASHINGTON — As President Trump prepares to leave office in days …
Discussion:
The Guardian and Raw Story
Samantha Mitchell / WJLA-TV:
Va. man stopped with unregistered gun, 500+ rounds of ammunition in D.C., police say — A Virginia man was arrested after being stopped at a D. C. checkpoint and being found with an unregistered gun along with more than 500 rounds of ammunition, according to U. S. Capitol Police.
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New York Times:
A man with a gun arrested by Capitol Police at a security checkpoint calls it an ‘honest mistake.’
A man with a gun arrested by Capitol Police at a security checkpoint calls it an ‘honest mistake.’
Discussion:
NBC4 Washington, Bloomberg, The Hill, Vox, HuffPost and Talking Points Memo
Washington Post:
Biden wins wide approval for handling of transition, but persistent GOP skepticism on issues will cloud the opening of his presidency, Post-ABC poll finds — Two-thirds of Americans approve of President-elect Joe Biden's handling of the transition ahead of his inauguration Wednesday …
RELATED:
CNN:
CNN Poll: Trump's approval rating reaches new low as term ends — (CNN)President Donald Trump will leave office with the lowest approval rating of his presidency, according to a new CNN Poll conducted by SSRS, with more Americans than ever in support of removing him from office.
Discussion:
The Hill, New York Daily News, The 19th, National Review and Political Wire
New York Times:
Biden Seeks Quick Start With Executive Actions and Aggressive Legislation — In an effort to mark a clean break from the Trump era, the president-elect plans to roll out dozens of executive orders in his first 10 days on top of a big stimulus plan and an expansive immigration bill.
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Kevin Roose / New York Times:
A QAnon ‘Digital Soldier’ Marches On, Undeterred by Theory's Unraveling — Valerie Gilbert posts dozens of times a day in support of an unhinged conspiracy theory. The story of this “meme queen” hints at how hard it will be to bring people like her back to reality.
Discussion:
Lawyers, Guns & Money and National Review
Washington Post:
41 minutes of fear: A video timeline from inside the Capitol siege — At 2:12 p.m. on Jan. 6, supporters of President Trump began climbing through a window they had smashed on the northwest side of the U.S. Capitol. “Go! Go! Go!” someone shouted as the rioters, some in military gear, streamed in.
Astead W. Herndon / New York Times:
How Republicans Are Warping Reality Around the Capitol Attack — Loyalists to President Trump are increasingly relying on conspiracy theories and misinformation, drawing false equivalence with last summer's racial protests and blaming outside agitators. — Immediately after the attack …
Discussion:
Washington Post, Bulwark+, Real Clear Politics, Los Angeles Times and The Guardian
RELATED:
Joe Concha / The Hill:
AOC's Ministry of Truth — One of the more unsettling comments from influential lawmakers came on Wednesday with little fanfare despite being downright Orwellian in its perspective around “media literacy” and a congressional “truth and reconciliation” committee.
The Guardian:
Historians having to tape together records that Trump tore up — Implications for public record and legal proceedings after administration seized or destroyed papers, notes and other information — The public will not see Donald Trump's White House records for years …
Washington Post:
Trump to flee Washington and seek rehabilitation in a MAGA oasis: Florida — President Trump will leave Washington this week politically wounded, silenced on social media and essentially unwelcome in his lifelong hometown of New York. — By migrating instead to Palm Beach, Fla. …
Discussion:
The Daily Beast, The Guardian and The Hill
Corky Siemaszko / NBC News:
Thousands of Covid-19 vaccines wind up in the garbage because of fed, state guidelines … A hospital Covid-19 vaccination team shows up at the emergency room to inoculate employees who haven't received their shots. — Finding just a few, the team is about to leave when an ER doctor suggests …
Discussion:
Balloon Juice and CBS News
Jess Bravin / Wall Street Journal:
Senate GOP Set to Argue Out-of-Office Trump Can't be Convicted in Impeachment — New report suggests most scholars are on the other side; trial could start this week — WASHINGTON—The political fate of President Trump, and any ambitions he might have for reclaiming the White House in 2024 …
Discussion:
FULL-COURT-PRESS, ABC News, JONATHAN TURLEY, The Atlantic and American Thinker
Benjamin Wermund / ExpressNews.com:
A new crop of Texas-led lawsuits awaits Joe Biden's White House — WASHINGTON — President-elect Joe Biden has big plans for his first 100 days in office, when he's vowed to roll back the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, push policies addressing climate change …
Discussion:
Politico
Axios:
Off the rails: Conspiracy theorists commandeer Trump's legal operation — Beginning on election night 2020 and continuing through his final days in office, Donald Trump unraveled and dragged America with him, to the point that his followers sacked the U.S. Capitol with two weeks left in his term.
Katie Bo Williams / Defense One:
Troops at Inauguration Pre-Screened for Extremism, Says DC Guard Commander — “We will use the minimum force required to protect ourselves,” said Maj. Gen. William Walker, in an exclusive interview. — The roughly 25,000 National Guardsmen deployed to the U.S. capital to ensure President-elect Joe Biden …
Lachlan Markay / Axios:
Scoop: Comms director for gun-toting congresswoman quits — The communications director for Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, a firebrand Republican freshman who boasts about carrying a gun to work, has quit after less than two weeks on the job. — Why it matters: Ben Goldey's resignation cited …
Discussion:
Colorado Newsline, The Colorado Sun, New York Post, CNN, Washington Examiner, The Hill, Talking Points Memo, Forbes, The Intellectualist and Raw Story
Tommy Beer / Forbes:
Fox News Viewership Plummets: First Time Behind CNN And MSNBC In Two Decades — Fox News Channel, owned by Rupert Murdoch's Fox Corp, has dominated the rating books since the start of the 21st-century, but over the first two weeks of 2021, it has averaged fewer viewers throughout …
Discussion:
CNN and Mediaite, more at Mediagazer »
Margaret Sullivan / Washington Post:
Three ways the media can vanquish the Big Lie that will linger even after Trump is gone — His administration is down to its last hours, but you can bet that the false belief held by millions of Americans that the election was rigged is not going away when President Trump does.
Christopher Cadelago / Politico:
Harris to resign Senate seat ahead of swearing in as VP — Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will resign her Senate seat effective Monday, capping a brief legislative career marked by her tough cross-examinations of Trump administration nominees and the push last summer for police reforms after the killing of George Floyd.
Discussion:
Washington Post, ABC News, NPR and Roll Call
Axios:
Fringe right plots new attacks out of sight — Domestic extremists are using obscure and private corners of the internet to plot new attacks ahead of Inauguration Day. Their plans are also hidden in plain sight, buried in podcasts and online video platforms.
Washington Post:
Misinformation dropped dramatically the week after Twitter banned Trump — Zignal Labs charts 73 percent decline on Twitter and beyond following historic action against the president — Online misinformation about election fraud plunged 73 percent after several social media sites suspended President …
Discussion:
Variety, HuffPost, Mediaite, Vox, Raw Story and Common Dreams, more at Mediagazer »
Jack Dutton / Newsweek:
Larry Rendall Brock Jr., Capitol Rioter Seen With Zip Ties, Freed by Judge — A retired Air Force veteran who was photographed carrying zip-tie handcuffs while storming the U.S. Capitol building earlier this month has been freed from jail. — The rioter—retired Lt. Col. Larry Rendall Brock Jr. …
San Francisco Chronicle:
California has nearly 2 million unused doses of vaccine even as demand soars. Here's why — Across California, a vast number of coronavirus vaccine doses are locked up in cold storage. But last week, when Santa Clara County asked for 100,000 doses to ramp up vaccine distribution …
Discussion:
Kaiser Health News, Breitbart and Los Angeles Times