Today’s edition with quick hits.
* On the Hill: “Republicans in the House of Representatives appeared to have struck a second spending deal Thursday to avert a looming government shutdown, just hours after the original bipartisan deal was torpedoed by President-elect Donald Trump. ”
* This ruling will be appealed, and it is important to emphasize in the meantime that the appeals court left the underlying charge intact: “A Georgia appeals court on Thursday disqualified Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and her dismissals from prosecuting Donald Trump and co-defendants in a case in which she highlighted his efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
* H5N1 News: “In a clear acknowledgment of the increasing severity of the spread of bird flu, California Governor Gavin Newsom declared Wednesday that the outbreak of infections among the state’s dairy cattle constituted an emergency. The announcement followed news earlier in the day that a person in Louisiana had been hospitalized with bird flu, the first infected American to become seriously ill.”
* The Biden administration continues to quietly take important steps on behalf of the public: “Consumers are one step closer to saying goodbye to more hidden junk fees for good. The Federal Trade Commission announced Tuesday that it has finalized a rule requiring companies to disclose the total price, including fees, for tickets to live events or short-term lodging they offer to consumers. The ruling is intended to prevent “bait-and-switch” pricing that omits mandatory fees and additional costs from advertised prices, which the agency called “misleading.”
* This report is very easy to believe: “Disney’s decision to settle President-elect Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit against ABC News was supposed to save the company from a major headache. Instead, it has created an internal reaction.”
* David Rivera, of course, is Sen. Marco Rubio’s longtime friend: “Former Rep. David Rivera, R-Fla., was indicted Tuesday on charges that he violated the Foreign Agents Registration Act and laundered money to ‘conceal his criminal activities and to promote’. conduct,” the Justice Department said Wednesday.
* Mike Pompeo, Trump’s former secretary of state and director of the CIA, was apparently well destined to become the next nominee for secretary of defense. Then, according to this report in The Wall Street Journal, far-right media personality Tucker Carlson intervened.
*Concluding a story I recently mentioned: “President-elect Donald Trump has told his closest aides that he is Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s daughter-in-law. will no longer consider serving as deputy director of the CIA, following a campaign by Republican lawmakers who feared she would try to impose major changes on America’s top spy agency, according to people familiar with the matter.
* Wexton has shown such extraordinary courage under heartbreaking circumstances: “Rep. Jennifer Wexton made some more history in her final speech in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. The Virginia Democrat, who is retiring from Congress after announcing last year that she had been diagnosed with a serious neurological condition, delivered her farewell speech using an augmentative and alternative communications device that featured an artificial intelligence-enabled version of her own voice. ”
* Richly deserved: “Bipartisan legislation honoring the late Shirley Chisholm, the nation’s first Black congresswoman, became law last week as the 118th Congress ended with a final round of bills. President Joe Biden signed the Shirley Chisholm Congressional Gold Medal Act on Thursday, posthumously honoring Chisholm, who died in 2005, with Congress’ highest award for her outstanding service and achievements.”
See you tomorrow.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
