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5:45 PM ET, January 13, 2025

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Meredith Lee Hill / Politico:
Johnson confirms ‘discussions’ on tying wildfire aid to debt limit  —  House Speaker Mike Johnson confirmed to reporters Monday there's “been some discussion” of tying California wildfire aid to a debt limit increase, after GOP members raised the issue with Donald Trump in several meetings …
RELATED:
Lauren Peller / ABC News:
Speaker Mike Johnson suggests ‘conditions’ needed on disaster aid for LA wildfires
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Republicans want concessions before California gets its tax dollars back
Discussion: Semafor, NOTUS and PoliticusUSA
Meredith Lee Hill / Politico:
House Republicans and Trump discuss tying California wildfire aid to debt ceiling
Ella Lee / The Hill:
Arizona attorney general asks for Jack Smith's full case file  —  Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes (D) has requested access to special counsel Jack Smith's case file for his 2020 election subversion prosecution of President-elect Trump, citing her case against several of his allies.
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Judge clears the way for release of special counsel Smith's report on Trump's 2020 election case
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Jen Rubin exits Washington Post, joins Norm Eisen to launch new outlet countering ‘authoritarian threat’  —  New York CNN —  Veteran opinion columnist Jennifer Rubin is becoming the latest in a long list of Washington Post figures to leave the troubled institution.
RELATED:
Jennifer Rubin / The Contrarian:
I Have Resigned from The Washington Post, effective today  —  Corporate and billionaire owners of major media outlets have betrayed their audiences' loyalty and sabotaged journalism's sacred mission — defending, protecting and advancing democracy.  The Washington Post's billionaire owner …
Jonathan V. Last / The Bulwark:
Begun, the MAGA Wars Have  —  1. #TeamBannon  —  Over the weekend Steve Bannon unleashed on Elon Musk: … That was Bannon's marker.  His actual critique of Musk?  Buckle up, Francis. … Bannon went on to describe Musk's preferred objective as “techno-feudalism.”  —  Some observations:
RELATED:
New Republic:
Bannon's Rage at Musk Suddenly Goes Nuclear as MAGA Meltdown Worsens
Discussion: Axios, Vanity Fair, UnHerd and Raw Story
Aaron Blake / Washington Post:
As Trump prepares to take power, MAGA can't stop the ugly infighting
Discussion: Raw Story
The White House:
Statement from President Biden Announcing the Names of CVN 82 and CVN 83  —  I am proud to announce that the next two Gerald R. Ford-class nuclear-powered aircraft carriers will be named for two former presidents: Bill Clinton and George W. Bush.  —  When I personally delivered the news to Bill and George, they were deeply humbled.
Discussion: The Hill
Associated Press:
Trump team is questioning civil servants at National Security Council about commitment to his agenda  —  Incoming senior Trump administration officials have begun questioning career civil servants who work on the White House National Security Council about who they voted for in the 2024 election …
Mastodon Blog:
The people should own the town square  —  For any enquiry regarding this announcement, please contact press@joinmastodon.org  —  Mastodon was founded on the principles that people should be able to control their social circle online, curate their own timeline, and convene freely with any community of their choosing.
Jonathan Chait / The Atlantic:
Maybe It Was Never About the Factory Jobs  —  The theory that populist economic policies can win back the working class for Democrats has been tried, and it has failed.  —  if there was any place in America where President Joe Biden's economic agenda ought to have won him votes, it would have been Lordstown, Ohio.
Discussion: Digby's Hullabaloo
Brian Steinberg / Variety:
MSNBC Ups Rachel Maddow to Five Nights, Sends Alex Wagner Into Field for Trump's First 100 Days … Maddow, who scaled back anchoring duties after the spring of 2022, holding forth only on Mondays, will return to five nights a week at that hour as part of a broader move by MSNBC to draw viewership …
RELATED:
Hafiz Rashid / New Republic:
Team Trump Suddenly Backtracks on Key Campaign Promise
Discussion: HuffPost
New York Times:
Trump Supporters Go All In for Pete Hegseth With Money and Coordination  —  Conservative organizations are targeting Republican senators, saying that they will pay a price if they do not back the president-elect's choice for defense secretary.  —  As Pete Hegseth prepares for confirmation hearings …
RELATED:
New York Post:
Suspect arrested with ‘flamethrower’ near LA Fire is an illegal immigrant: sources  —  The homeless man tackled and zip-tied by onlookers who say he was trying to start fires with a blowtorch near a Los Angeles wildfire is an illegal immigrant who will likely be protected by California's sanctuary city status, according to sources.
New York Times:
The Pitched Battles for Partisan Control in State Legislatures  —  As state legislatures convene, they face the same political polarization seen in Congress.  Some are in near-deadlock.  —  In Minnesota, Democratic legislators are threatening to stay away from the state capitol this week …
RELATED:
Minneapolis Star Tribune:
Minnesota House Democrats sworn into office early as they prepare to boycott start of session
Discussion: Power Line and Alpha News
Francesca Paris / New York Times:
Childhood Vaccination Rates Were Falling Even Before the Rise of R.F.K. Jr.  —  The declines began with the pandemic, well before routine vaccines became part of the national political conversation.  —  After years of holding steady, American vaccination rates against once-common childhood diseases have been dropping.
Discussion: Kevin Drum
RELATED:
Nathaniel Weixel / The Hill:
Public health experts, scientists warn senators on confirming RFK Jr  —  A new coalition of more than 700 public health professionals, scientists and activists signed an open letter to oppose Senate confirmation of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary, saying his “fringe” …
Discussion: New York Times
Politico:
Gavin Newsom and California Democrats reach $50M deal to Trump-proof the state  —  The first-of-its-kind agreement would fund litigation against the incoming White House and protect against a potential mass deportation of immigrants.  —  SACRAMENTO, California — California Democrats …
Paul Krugman / Krugman wonks out:
In Praise of California  —  It has its flaws — what place doesn't? — but it plays a big role in America's greatness  —  One of the unwritten rules of American politics is that it's OK to sneer at and smear our big cities and the people who live in them, while it's an outrageous act …
Discussion: Raw Story
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Biden Aides Warned Putin as Russia's Shadow War Threatened Air Disaster  —  The White House scrambled to get a message to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia last year after U.S. intelligence agencies said a Russian military unit was preparing to send explosive packages on cargo planes.
Jason Koebler / 404 Media:
Meta Is Blocking Links to Decentralized Instagram Competitor Pixelfed  —  Meta is deleting links to Pixelfed, a decentralized Instagram competitor.  On Facebook, the company is labeling links to Pixelfed.social as “spam” and deleting them immediately.  —  Pixelfed is an open-source …
Rebecca Carballo / Politico:
Biden's parting gift: Student loan debt relief  —  More than 5 million borrowers have had loans forgiven since the president took office.  —  In the waning days of Joe Biden's presidency, his administration announced on Monday that it will provide student debt relief to 150,000 borrowers.
Rachel Selzer / Democracy Docket:
North Carolina Judge Denies Republicans' Request To Toss 60,000 Ballots  —  Today, a North Carolina judge rejected a request from the Republican National Committee (RNC), North Carolina GOP, Wake County GOP and two voters to toss out nearly 60,000 ballots cast in all November 2024 statewide races.
Discussion: Diane Ravitch's blog
 
 
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 More Items: 
Brooke Migdon / The Hill:
More than 400 civil rights groups call on Congress to reject transgender athlete ban
Brakkton Booker / Politico:
Abrams endorses Wikler in DNC race
Discussion: CBS News and The Hill
The White House:
President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Amends California Disaster Declaration
Bloomberg:
Trump Team Studies Gradual Tariff Hikes Under Emergency Powers
Lexi Lonas Cochran / The Hill:
McDonald's sued for Latino scholarships after ditching some DEI practices
Discussion: Reuters
 Earlier Items: 
James Downie / MSNBC:
Suddenly Donald Trump doesn't want to talk so much about the economy
Discussion: Reuters and Raw Story
Office of the Texas Governor:
Governor Abbott Orders Flags To Full-Staff In Honor Of Inauguration Day
Martin Pengelly / The Guardian:
Trump's deportation vows only for ‘rabid’ Republicans and will fail, says Newt Gingrich
Discussion: Raw Story
Andrew Kaczynski / CNN:
Defense pick Pete Hegseth repeatedly criticized removing names of Confederate generals from US bases
Discussion: Raw Story and New Republic
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Max Goldbart / Deadline:
Settlement: Murdoch's NGN apologizes to Prince Harry over “unlawful” phone hacking by The Sun and “extensive coverage and serious intrusion on his private life”

Todd Spangler / Variety:
Adobe makes an additional $5M commitment to support underrepresented film and TV creators and filmmakers, on top of its $6M pledge in 2024

Advanced Television:
MediaRadar: advertisers spent $4.8B on TikTok in 2024, up 27% YoY, and top 10 advertisers spent $690M; Omdia earlier said TikTok made ~$8B in 2024 US ad revenue

 
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