On this Giving Tuesday, Sara Goddard offer 9 gifts for good that support environmental causes.
Walker Hasn’t Taken a Question in Nearly Two Months
Georgia U.S. Senate candidate Herschel Walker (R) “had nothing to say about the dinner date between his political patron, former president Donald Trump, and an avowed white supremacist and anti-Semite,” the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports
“Walker hasn’t taken a question since early October from the reporters covering his campaign in Georgia and Monday was no exception.”
Marco Rubio Insists Trump Isn’t an Antisemite
Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) told CNN that white supremacist Nick Fuentes “is a purveyor and a spreader of an evil, poison.”
Asked if Donald Trump should condemn Fuentes after dining with him, Rubio said: “I hope he will. Because I know he’s not an antisemite. I can tell you that for a fact that Trump is not but this guy is evil. And that guy’s just a nasty, disgusting person. He’s an ass clown.”
The GOP’s Path to Dumping Trump Will Be Torturous
Henry Olson: “The new Republican Party breaks down into four rough factions in response to this query, and none has a clear plurality. Instead, the party has three factions of nearly equal size and a fourth tiny one whose votes might be decisive.”
“The three lions are Mega MAGA, the Old Guard and the MAGA Adjacent. I estimate each are about 30 percent of the party’s voters and are numerous in virtually every state. The minnow is the Never Trump group, which constitutes about 10 percent of GOP voters. They are strongest in wealthy suburbs and major metropolitan areas such as New York and D.C.”
Rick Scott Slams McConnell and GOP Leadership
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) “promised his leadership challenge to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is just the beginning of what’s to come after the two sparred over election strategy,” the Washington Examiner reports.
How Biden Will Run
“As Biden weighs a final decision on whether to run for a second term, White House officials are showing how the powers of the presidency can be harnessed for a re-election campaign,” Axios reports.
“The emerging strategy is on full display this week. Biden is traveling to Michigan to talk domestic manufacturing and semiconductors, addressing tribal nations at the Interior Department, and hosting a glitzy state dinner for French President Emmanuel Macron.”
“It’s a formula we can expect to see more of over the next two years as legislating comes to a standstill: diplomatic engagements to emphasize Biden’s statesman role, day trips to swing states and special attention for key Democratic constituencies.”
“Biden advisers don’t expect the president to dominate the news cycle; they want him to fly above it.”
January 6 Committee to Interview Tony Ornato
“Anthony Ornato, the former Secret Service agent and White House aide at the heart of a dispute over conflicting accounts of President Donald Trump’s actions during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, is scheduled to be interviewed on Tuesday before the House committee investigating the attack,” the New York Times reports.
“The committee has sought for weeks to re-interview Mr. Ornato as it digs deeper into the activities of the Secret Service around the time of Jan. 6, 2021, an area of inquiry that members believe is one of the most important final pieces of unfinished business before the panel completes its much-anticipated report into the attack.”
“Mr. Ornato, who as deputy White House chief of staff oversaw the logistics of the president’s movements outside, is key to a dispute over the events in a presidential SUV that day.”
Chinese Unrest Threatens to Upend Global Economy
“The swelling protests against severe pandemic restrictions in China — the world’s second-largest economy — are injecting a new element of uncertainty and instability into the global economy when nations are already struggling to manage the fallout from a war in Ukraine, an energy crisis and painful inflation,” the New York Times reports.
“For years, China has served as the world’s factory and a vital engine of global growth, and turmoil there cannot help but ripple elsewhere. Analysts warn that more unrest could further slow the production and distribution of integrated circuits, machine parts, household appliances and more. It may also encourage companies in the United States and Europe to disengage from China and more quickly diversify their supply chains.”
Trump Admits Taking Documents
Donald Trump for the first time explicitly acknowledged taking White House documents when he left office and said that he did so “openly and transparently.”
Why ‘Union Joe’ Put the Screws to Rail Workers
Playbook: “People familiar with the process told us last night that Biden and his advisers determined that the risk to the economy was just too great. A strike would disrupt supply chains — including such critical goods as motor fuels and water treatment chemicals — and could ultimately cost the U.S. economy $1 billion within a week.”
One member of a union that voted down the labor agreement told the New York Times that Biden’s move “seems to cater to the oligarchs.”
Arizona Sues GOP-Controlled County Over Election Results
“Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs sued a Republican-controlled county Monday after it refused to certify its election results by the state’s statutory deadline,” NBC News reports.
“The lawsuit, filed in Arizona Superior Court, aims to compel the Cochise County Board of Supervisors to certify the county’s results from the Nov. 8 election. The deadline for county certification is Monday.”
Christians Now a Minority in the U.K.
“Christians now account for less than half of the UK population for the first time in census history,” The Telegraph reports.
Students Sent Home as China Tries to End Protests
“Chinese universities sent students home and police fanned out in Beijing and Shanghai to prevent more protests Tuesday after crowds angered by severe anti-virus restrictions called for leader Xi Jinping to resign in the biggest show of public dissent in decades,” the AP reported reports.
Axios: China maintains zero-Covid despite unprecedented protests.
Florida as Red State Is Good for U.S. Foreign Policy
Max Boot: “The Democrats’ midterm wipeout in Florida — not a single Democrat will hold statewide office next year in what was once a swing state — is bad news for the party but good news for the future of U.S. foreign policy.”
“President Biden, with no hope of winning the state in 2024, is now free to pursue more pragmatic policies towards Cuba and Venezuela, rather than catering to politically potent constituencies of conservative Cuban Americans and Venezuelan Americans in south Florida, as administrations of both parties have been doing for decades.”
Congressman Donald McEachin Is Dead
Rep. Donald McEachin (D-VA) died Monday of complications from cancer, just weeks after winning reelection to Congress, the Washington Post reports.
Trump’s Jewish Allies Have Finally Had Enough
“For much of Donald Trump’s presidency, Jewish Republicans rationalized away the bigoted fringe of Mr. Trump’s coalition, arguing that the unsavory supporters in his midst and the antisemitic tropes he deployed paled in comparison with the staunchly pro-Israel policies of his administration,” the New York Times reports.
“But last week, Mr. Trump dined at his Palm Beach palace, Mar-a-Lago, with the performer Kanye West, who had already been denounced for making antisemitic statements, and with Nick Fuentes, an outspoken antisemite and Holocaust denier, granting the antisemitic fringe a place of honor at his table. Now, even some of Mr. Trump’s staunchest supporters say they can no longer ignore the abetting of bigotry by the nominal leader of the Republican Party.”
“Not all Republican leaders have spoken out, but Jewish Republicans are slowly peeling away from a former president who, for years, insisted he had no ties to the bigoted far right, but refused to repudiate it.”
Herschel Walker Rented Out Home He Claimed as His
Records show U.S. Senate hopeful Herschel Walker (R) — who’s facing fresh questions about his Georgia residency — rented out his Atlanta home just before launching his campaign, the Daily Beast reports.