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12:55 AM ET, January 14, 2025

memeorandum

 Top Items: 
Bloomberg:
China Discusses Sale of TikTok US to Musk as One Possible Option  — ByteDance's preferred strategy is to fight ban, sources say  — Trump has said he would like to delay ban to seek resolution  —  Chinese officials are evaluating a potential option that involves Elon Musk acquiring …
RELATED:
New York Times:
Elon Musk Is Expected to Use Office Space in the White House Complex  —  The location suggests that Mr. Musk, who owns companies with billions of dollars in contracts with the federal government, will continue to have remarkable access to President-elect Donald J. Trump.
Discussion: Axios and Business Insider
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:
Malcolm Ferguson / New Republic:
Mike Johnson Vows to Hold Aid to California Hostage After Deadly Fires  —  Republican leadership continues to use one of the worst natural disasters in U.S. history as political leverage.  —  On Monday, House Speaker Mike Johnson told CNN's Manu Raju that there should be “conditions” …
Politico:
‘Non-starter’: California Democrats blast GOP's fire trade
Discussion: NOTUS, Vanity Fair and The Hill
USA Today:   ‘Conditions’ should be placed on California wildfire aid: House Speaker Mike Johnson
Philip Bump / Washington Post:
Republicans want concessions before California gets its tax dollars back
Discussion: NOTUS, Semafor and PoliticusUSA
NBC News:
Pete Hegseth's FBI background check does not include interviews with key women from his past  —  The report doesn't have material from his ex-wives or a woman who accused Hegseth of sexual assault in 2017.  Hegseth has said that encounter was consensual, and prosecutors never filed charges.
RELATED:
Axios:
Scoop: Trump team sets red line on Hegseth's FBI background check … - That means no FBI background check access for rank-and-file senators, according to two people familiar with the matter.  — Senate Armed Services chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and ranking member Jack Reed (D-R.I.) have been briefed on the report.
Jane Mayer / New Yorker:
The Pressure Campaign to Get Pete Hegseth Confirmed as Defense Secretary
Josh Fiallo / The Daily Beast:
Star Washington Post Columnist Torches Paper on Her Way Out the Door  —  The star Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin resigned from the paper Monday and took a parting shot at Jeff Bezos, its billionaire owner.Driving her departure was recent executive decisions at the Post, she told CNN.
RELATED:
Jennifer Rubin / The Contrarian:
I Have Resigned from The Washington Post, effective today
Discussion: HotAir, New Jersey Online and Townhall
Brian Stelter / CNN:
Jen Rubin exits Washington Post, joins Norm Eisen to launch new outlet countering ‘authoritarian threat’
New York Times:
Greenland to Trump: We're Not for Sale but Let's Talk Business  —  The country's prime minister said that while Greenlanders do not want to become Americans, “the reality is we are going to work with the U.S. — yesterday, today and tomorrow.”  —  The country's prime minister …
RELATED:
Thomas L. Friedman / New York Times:
Trump's Reckless Greenland Comments Are Not a Joke
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.
RELATED:
Paul McLeary / Politico:
Biden announces next aircraft carriers will be named Clinton and Bush
Discussion: The War Zone
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 …
RELATED:
Kate Payne / Associated Press:
DeSantis calls special session to implement Trump's immigration policies
Washington Post:
Justice Dept. says it plans to release Trump special counsel report after hold expires at midnight  —  President-elect Donald Trump has tried to prevent the release of special counsel Jack Smith's report before he takes office next week.  —  The Justice Department plans to release …
Discussion: NBC News and The Hill
RELATED:
Associated Press:
Judge clears the way for release of special counsel Smith's report on Trump's 2020 election case
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.
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
Wall Street Journal:
Zuckerberg Debuts ‘Real Mark’ in Push to Woo Trump  —  Meta pursues a MAGA makeover, in the latest political pivot for a company that once banned the now-president-elect from its platforms  —  Mark Zuckerberg wants Donald Trump to get to know the “real Mark.”
RELATED:
Edith Olmsted / New Republic:
Trump Gets Insane Show of Support From Washington Post Editorial Board  —  The Washington Post's editorial board made the mind-boggling decision Monday to say they support all but four of Donald Trump's Cabinet nominees, and their rationales were as unconvincing as they were brief.
Bloomberg:
Trump Team Studies Gradual Tariff Hikes Under Emergency Powers  — Plan would boost import duties 2%-5% a month on trade partners  — Supporters include Trump advisers Bessent, Hassett and Miran  —  Members of President-elect Donald Trump's incoming economic team are discussing slowly ramping …
RELATED:
Bloomberg:   Dollar Falls on Report Trump Team Is Mulling Gradual Tariffs
Washington Post:
Here's who is performing at Trump's inauguration  —  Trump's inauguration performers include Carrie Underwood, Village People and Christopher Macchio.  —  The festivities planned for President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration next week symbolize a vibrant return to the White House …
RELATED:
Darlene Superville / Associated Press:
Trump flies US flag at full height before end of 30-day mourning period following Carter's death  —  U.S. flags at President-elect Donald Trump 's private Mar-a-Lago club are back to flying at full height.  Flags are supposed to fly at half-staff through the end of January out of respect …
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 …
Hafiz Rashid / New Republic:
Elon Musk Exposed Over Right-Wing Lie on L.A. Fires  —  Elon Musk was fact-checked on his own livestream after making false statements about the California wildfires, and Gavin Newsom was quick to call out the tech mogul on social media.  —  In a post on X Sunday night …
Devlin Barrett / New York Times:
Special Counsel Report on Hunter Biden Denounces President's Criticism of Case  —  The report by the special counsel, David C. Weiss, criticized President Biden for making “baseless accusations” that threatened “the integrity of the justice system as a whole.”
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.
David G. Savage / Los Angeles Times:
Supreme Court denies oil industry plea to block climate lawsuits filed by California, other blue states  —  WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court dealt a major setback to the oil industry on Monday, refusing to block lawsuits from California and other blue states that seek billions of dollars in damages for the impact of climate change.
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.
Lila Shapiro / Vulture:
There Is No Safe Word … Editor's note: This story contains content that readers may find disturbing, including graphic allegations of sexual assault.  —  Scarlett Pavlovich was a 22-year-old drama student when she met the performer Amanda Palmer by chance on the streets of Auckland.
Jennifer Jacobs / CBS News:
Harris declines to invite Vance for courtesy visit to vice president's residence before inauguration  —  When JD Vance, his wife Usha and their three young children move into the Naval Observatory residence on Jan. 20, it will be their first time inside the white Queen Anne-style mansion …
Discussion: Washington Examiner and Twitchy
 
 
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 More Items: 
Casey Newton / Platformer:
Meta goes mask-off
Bob Bauer / Default:
Donald Trump and the Department of Justice
Default:
Lawfare Live: Pete Hegseth's Confirmation Hearing
Discussion: UPI, CBS News and Roll Call
Angela Fu / Poynter:
A rare newspaper war was brewing in Baltimore. Then a billionaire owner began meddling.
Gary Levin / USA Today:
Rachel Maddow returns to nightly MSNBC show for first 100 days of Trump presidency
New York Times:
News Outlets Take Unusual Steps to Prepare for Onslaught From Trump
 Earlier Items: 
Daniel Lippman / Politico:
Past work for Liz Cheney cost a ‘sherpa’ his Trump transition role
Discussion: Raw Story
Tim Dickinson / Rolling Stone:
Hate Group Hit with $2.75 Million Judgment for Battering Black Musician
Discussion: Raw Story
Nathaniel Weixel / The Hill:
Public health experts, scientists warn senators on confirming RFK Jr
Discussion: Politico and New York Times
David E. Sanger / New York Times:
Biden Aides Warned Putin as Russia's Shadow War Threatened Air Disaster
James Downie / MSNBC:
Suddenly Donald Trump doesn't want to talk so much about the economy
Discussion: Bloomberg, Reuters and Raw Story
Jonathan V. Last / The Bulwark:
Begun, the MAGA Wars Have
 

 
From Mediagazer:

Greg Stohr / Bloomberg:
SCOTUS upholds the TikTok divest-or-ban law, says free speech rights must yield to concerns that Chinese control of the app creates a national-security risk

Winston Cho / The Hollywood Reporter:
A Florida jury finds that CNN defamed a US Navy veteran in a 2021 report portraying him as illegally exploiting Afghans, awards the veteran $5M

Matthew Belloni / Puck:
Netflix agrees to release Greta Gerwig's Narnia film in about 1,000 Imax theaters on Thanksgiving Day 2026 and to not stream it on Netflix until Christmas

 
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