Top Items:
The White House:
Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Executive Grants of Clemency — President Donald J. Trump granted pardons to 73 individuals and commuted the sentences of an additional 70 individuals. — Todd Boulanger - President Trump granted a full pardon to Todd Boulanger.
Discussion:
Axios, The Progressive Pulse, NBC News, Vox, CNN, The Verge, Reuters, HuffPost, New York Post, Los Angeles Times, The Federalist, The Daily Beast, Rolling Stone, Wall Street Journal, Breitbart, The Colorado Sun, USA Today, Daily Kos, Washington Times, CNBC, The Independent, Business Insider, Gothamist, CBS Baltimore, The Gateway Pundit, Florida Politics, Metro.co.uk, Law & Crime, Washingtonian, Althouse, Mediaite, The Daily Caller, iPolitics, ProFootballTalk, UPI, Variety, Gizmodo, Mashable, The Week, Al Jazeera, TechCrunch, KRON4, CBS Detroit, The Wrap, CBS Dallas / Fort Worth, Reason, HBCU Gameday and Bloomberg, more at Techmeme »
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Maggie Haberman / New York Times:
With hours left in office, Trump pardons Bannon. — President Trump has granted clemency to Stephen K. Bannon, the former White House chief strategist who was charged with defrauding people who supported building a border wall that Mr. Trump supported, White House officials said.
Discussion:
Mediaite, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, The Independent, Breitbart, The Week, CNN, Axios and Washington Times
Washington Post:
Trump grants clemency to 143 people in late-night pardon blast — President Trump on Tuesday granted clemency to 143 people, using a final act of presidential power to extend mercy to former White House strategist Stephen K. Bannon, well-connected celebrities and nonviolent drug offenders …
Discussion:
Politico, Vanity Fair, Talking Points Memo, Outside the Beltway, Slate, STEPHANIE MILLER SHOW, Common Dreams and ABC News
Grant Stern / Byline Times:
Still Faces ‘We Build the Wall’ State Investigation — Joe Biden's presidency has just begun and the Donald Trump era has just come to an end - with its chief enabler the recipient of a last-minute pardon for federal felony charges. But new reporting shows that Steve Bannon is still staring …
Discussion:
Law & Crime and Crooks and Liars
New York Times:
With Hours Left in Office, Trump Grants Clemency to Bannon and Other Allies — The president continued using his power to help his supporters, including his former chief strategist and one of his top 2016 fund-raisers. — WASHINGTON — President Trump used his final hours in office …
Discussion:
Washington Post, New York Post, Reuters, Jewish Telegraphic Agency, TheBlaze, CBS Baltimore, Raw Story, Japan Times, Defense One, HuffPost, The Daily Caller, Deseret News and Mediaite
NBC News:
Full list of Trump's last-minute pardons and commuted sentences
Full list of Trump's last-minute pardons and commuted sentences
Discussion:
Crooks and Liars, Conservative News Today, Townhall and Deadline
Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
Trump's swampiest pardons, ranked
Trump's swampiest pardons, ranked
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo and Politico
Washington Post:
Trump pardons Steve Bannon after ugly falling out early in his presidency
Trump pardons Steve Bannon after ugly falling out early in his presidency
Discussion:
Fox News, Bloomberg, emptywheel and ImmigrationProf Blog
Andrew Restuccia / Wall Street Journal:
Trump Has Discussed Starting a New Party — President Trump has talked in recent days with associates about forming a new political party, according to people familiar with the matter, an effort to exert continued influence after he leaves the White House. — Mr. Trump discussed the matter …
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Asawin Suebsaeng / The Daily Beast:
Trump's Parting Words to U.S.: ‘Have a Nice Life. See You Soon’ — “We were not a regular administration,” Trump said. — Donald Trump is finally gone. For the time being, at least. — After a half-decade of dominating the news cycles and American and global politics …
Discussion:
The Hill, Washington Post, CBS News, ABC News, Reuters, Associated Press, The Independent, Variety, Al Jazeera, Common Dreams and Real America's Voice
Alayna Treene / Axios:
Trump departs on final Air Force One flight — President Trump and his family took off on Air Force One at 9 a.m. on Wednesday morning for the final time en route to Florida. — The big picture: Trump's final hours as president were punctuated by his decisions to snub his successor's inauguration …
Discussion:
HuffPost, Washington Examiner, NPR, Metro.co.uk, Forbes, Washington Times, NBC News, The Week, Breitbart and UPI
Washington Post:
Biden inauguration live updates: Biden speech emphasizes unity, vows to be ‘a president for all Americans’ — President Biden pleaded for unity in his inaugural address to a divided nation. “This is our historic moment of crisis and challenge,” he said on the Capitol steps, shortly after being sworn in as the nation's 46th president.
Axios:
Off the rails: Inside Trump's campaign to coerce Pence into overturning the election
Off the rails: Inside Trump's campaign to coerce Pence into overturning the election
Discussion:
The Independent, Raw Story, The Daily Beast, Fox News, Reuters, Boston Herald and Foreign Policy
Wall Street Journal:
Trump Faces Uncertain Future as He Leaves White House
Trump Faces Uncertain Future as He Leaves White House
Discussion:
Washington Post, Washington Examiner, Breitbart and HotAir
Blake Montgomery / The Daily Beast:
Trump Discussed Forming ‘Patriot Party’ and Ditching GOP in Final Days: WSJ
Trump Discussed Forming ‘Patriot Party’ and Ditching GOP in Final Days: WSJ
Discussion:
Florida Politics, Sputnik News and The Daily Beast
Evan Semones / Politico:
Pelosi says Trump could be accessory to murder after Capitol riot
Pelosi says Trump could be accessory to murder after Capitol riot
Discussion:
Conservative News Today, Trending Politics, Axios, Forbes, The Hill, TheBlaze, NBC News, Politico and New York Times
Washington Post:
Joe Biden is sworn in as the 46th president, pleads for unity in inaugural address to a divided nation — Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. was sworn in Wednesday as the 46th president of the United States, pledging to unite the country and confront an array of convulsing challenges dividing a fractured nation.
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Peter Baker / New York Times:
Inauguration Live Updates: Trump Leaves White House as Biden Prepares to Assume the Presidency
Inauguration Live Updates: Trump Leaves White House as Biden Prepares to Assume the Presidency
Discussion:
Vox, STEPHANIE MILLER SHOW, Wall Street Journal, BuzzFeed News, The Hill, ABC News, The Stranger, HotAir, Breitbart, GovExec.com, NBC News, Talking Points Memo and Denver Post
Naomi Lim / Washington Examiner:
‘Democracy has prevailed’: Biden sworn in as 46th president
‘Democracy has prevailed’: Biden sworn in as 46th president
Discussion:
American Prospect, Associated Press, Cyprus Mail, Tadias Magazine, ABC News, Boston Herald and NBC Los Angeles
Allyson Waller / New York Times:
Joe Biden's Family Bible Has a Long History
Joe Biden's Family Bible Has a Long History
Discussion:
NPR, The Daily Caller, Mercury News, Business Insider and ABC7
Andrew Stiles / Washington Free Beacon:
HISTORIC: Joe Biden to Be Sworn In on Jeffrey Epstein's Birthday — Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th president of the United States on Wednesday, bringing to a close one of the most successful administrations in American history. — In what may or may not be a coincidence …
Discussion:
Talking Points Memo, ABC News and No More Mister Nice Blog
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Meridith McGraw / Politico:
Trump revokes rule preventing White House staff from lobbying — After campaigning on a promise to “drain the swamp,” Donald Trump ended his presidency by revoking his own rule meant to prevent White House staff from lobbying. — Shortly after he entered office, Trump signed an executive order …
Discussion:
Business Insider, Washington Examiner, Washington Post, Townhall, TheBlaze, Raw Story, UPI, Common Dreams and WTOP
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Transition / President-Elect Joe Biden:
FACT SHEET: President-elect Biden's Day One Executive Actions Deliver Relief for Families Across America Amid Converging Crises — Actions Address the COVID-19 Pandemic, Provide Economic Relief, Tackle Climate Change, and Advance Racial Equity — Today, hours after taking the oath of office …
Discussion:
The Texas Tribune, GovExec.com, The Gateway Pundit, Daily Kos, Washington Examiner, Sputnik News, Al Jazeera, Cyprus Mail, Complex and Axios
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Dan Diamond / Washington Post:
Biden to ask Surgeon General Adams to resign — Ouster is regarded as a break with the Trump administration's covid-19 response, which the president-elect has called a failure — The Washington Post is providing this important information about the coronavirus for free.
Discussion:
Washington Examiner, The Hill, ABC7, POLITICUSUSA, The Week, KIFI-TV and CNN
Susan B. Glasser / New Yorker:
Obituary for a Failed Presidency — One last Letter from Trump's Washington. — Susan B. Glasser's column will continue as Letter from Biden's Washington. Sign up for her newsletter to get her stories delivered to your in-box every week. — Precisely at noon on Wednesday …
Discussion:
The Nation, Bloomberg, Common Dreams, IJR, Raw Story and Power Line
Jim Small / Arizona Mirror:
Biggs and Gosar sought pardons for Capitol riot, but won't get them: report — Arizona Republican Congressmen Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar have asked President Donald Trump to preemptively pardon them for their roles in the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, but the president has no plans to do so, CNN reported Tuesday.
Discussion:
Business Insider, Raw Story, NBC News, Conservative News Today and The Stranger
Natasha Korecki / Politico:
Writing a speech for Biden can be hell. And that was before the inaugural. — Joe Biden paces as he dictates long portions of his speeches to aides, spinning out thoughts that quickly pile into six, seven or eight paragraphs of copy, only to later be scrapped.
Discussion:
National Review, RedState and Power Line
Andrew Weissmann / Just Security:
Gaps in Trump's Pardons: How the Biden Administration Can Still Pursue Justice — Former President Donald Trump issued numerous pardons and commutations to friends, family and associates, as well as felons who engaged in heinous crimes involving war crimes, murder, political corruption, and civil rights violations.
Caroline Kelly / CNN:
Biden to rescind 1776 commission via executive order — (CNN)President-elect Joe Biden will issue an executive order to dissolve the 1776 commission, a panel stood up by President Donald Trump as a rebuttal to schools applying a more accurate history curriculum around slavery in the US, Biden's transition team announced Wednesday.
Discussion:
The Atlantic, NBC News, Center for Public Integrity, The Root and BuzzFeed News
Politico:
‘Like a Ghost’ in the White House: The Last Days of the Trump Presidency — During his last days in the White House, Donald Trump spent a lot of time thinking about the one and only election he ever lost, plotting every way he could to try to change the results. — He thought about when to leave Washington.
Adam Serwer / The Atlantic:
An Incompetent Authoritarian Is Still a Catastrophe — So what if he was bad at it? — The five years of the Trump era—which began with his descent down the gilded escalator in Trump Tower in 2015 and are ending with a massive military presence in the nation's capital to protect the transfer …
Emily Cochrane / New York Times:
Eugene Goodman, a Capitol Police officer who diverted the mob during the riot, is escorting Harris. — Eugene Goodman, a Capitol Police officer who was captured on video facing down members of the mob that breached the Capitol on Jan. 6 and diverting them from entering the Senate chamber …
Discussion:
Vox, The Hill, POLITICUSUSA, ABC7 and Daily Kos
National Review:
The Madness of the Arizona GOP — W — hat is the point of a political party bent on renouncing its own members? — A party exists for two purposes: to win elections, and to govern as its members want. The two goals are sometimes in tension: Parties should aspire to a big tent at election time …
Bernie Sanders / The Guardian:
Joe Biden must put an end to business as usual. Here's where to start — In this time of unprecedented crises, Congress and the Biden administration must respond through unprecedented action — record-breaking 4,000 Americans are now dying each day from Covid-19, while the federal …