Transition Live Updates: Trump Hints at U.S. Territorial Expansion and Airs Grievances  —  Here's what to know  — In an hourlong news conference at Mar-a-Lago, President-elect Donald J. Trump refused to rule out using military force to retake the Panama Canal, which was returned by treaty …

Judge Cannon Blocks Release of Special Counsel's Final Report on Trump Documents Investigation  —  Judge Aileen M. Cannon, a Trump appointee who dismissed the documents case in its entirety this summer, on Tuesday temporarily barred the special counsel, Jack Smith, from releasing the results of his investigation to the public.

Meta is ending its fact-checking program in favor of a ‘community notes’ system similar to X  —  Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a series of major changes to the company's moderation policies and practices, saying that the election felt like a “cultural tipping point.”

Zuckerberg wears $900,000 watch to announce end of Meta fact checks  —  Mark Zuckerberg wore a rare Swiss watch worth about $900,000 in a video explaining his company's decision to end third-party fact checking on its social media platforms in the U.S.  —  Play Video

Scoop: Heritage Foundation plans to ‘identify and target’ Wikipedia editors  —  The Heritage Foundation plans to “identify and target” volunteer editors on Wikipedia who it says are “abusing their position” by publishing content the group believes to be antisemitic, according to documents obtained by the Forward.

GOP-controlled North Carolina Supreme Court blocks certification of Democrat as winner of close high court race  —  The order allows the state Supreme Court to hear a challenge by the Republican candidate in the race — who trails by just 734 votes — to have 60,000 ballots thrown out.

What banning medical debt from your credit score actually means  —  In the final days of its tenure, the Biden administration has banned credit reporting agencies from including medical debts in their reports, aiming to make it easier for people to access credit, including loans and mortgages.

SALT emerges as redline for blue state Republicans in reconciliation negotiations  —  As House Republicans grapple with intraparty disagreements over what to include in President-elect Donald Trump's reconciliation bill, some GOP lawmakers are making specific tax provision demands they say will be necessary for their support.

Trump Blurs Lines in $20 Billion Data Center Announcement and Other Deals  —  Even before the start of the new administration, there has been repeated blurring of lines between the federal government efforts and Trump family businesses.  —  President-elect Donald J. Trump …

New York appeals court denies halting Trump's sentencing  —  A New York appellate judge on Tuesday declined to suspend President-elect Trump's Friday sentencing on his hush money criminal conviction.  —  Judge Ellen Gesmer of the state's midlevel appeals court rejected Trump's emergency petition …

Facebook Deletes Internal Employee Criticism of New Board Member Dana White  —  Meta's HR team is deleting internal employee criticism of new board member, UFC president and CEO Dana White, at the same time that CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced to the world that Meta will “get back to our roots …

Man who exploded Tesla Cybertruck outside Trump hotel in Las Vegas used generative AI, police say  —  The highly decorated soldier who exploded a Tesla Cybertruck outside the Trump hotel in Las Vegas used generative AI including ChatGPT to help plan the attack, Las Vegas police said Tuesday.

The Great Crypto Crash  —  Trump will usher in a speculative frenzy.  —  “The countdown clock on the next catastrophic crash has already started,” Dennis Kelleher, the president of the nonprofit Better Markets, told me.  —  In the past few weeks, I have heard that sentiment or similar from economists …

California governor says Pacific Palisades wildfire has destroyed many structures as winds kick up  —  A wildfire whipped up by extreme winds swept through a Los Angeles hillside dotted with celebrity residences Tuesday, burning homes in Pacific Palisades and prompting evacuation orders for tens of thousands.

Scoop: Senate Dems delay Tulsi Gabbard nomination … - Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, is balking at GOP requests to hold a hearing for Gabbard early next week, according to multiple sources familiar with the conversations.

Immigration bill first up for House Republicans  —  We're watching Democrats closely today as House Republicans put their first substantive piece of legislation on the floor for the 119th Congress.  It's the Laken Riley Act, named after a Georgia nursing student murdered last February …

We're getting the social media crisis wrong  —  The bigger problem isn't disinformation.  It's degraded democratic publics  —  This post lays out some ideas that I've been thinking about for a long while.  You should treat my claims with appropriate skepticism - I'm saying that a lot …

FIRE to defend veteran pollster J. Ann Selzer in Trump lawsuit over outlier election poll  —  “Punishing someone for their political prediction is about as unconstitutional as it gets,” said FIRE Chief Counsel Bob Corn-Revere.  “This is America.  No one should be afraid to predict the outcome of an election.