If the Supreme Court strikes down abortion rights, 12 states, including Mississippi and Texas, are set to outlaw abortion through “trigger” laws that would automatically take effect, Insider reports.
Omicron Variant Was Already In Europe
“Dutch health authorities announced on Tuesday that they found the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus in cases dating back as long as 11 days, indicating that it was already spreading in western Europe before the first cases were identified in southern Africa,” CBS News reports.
Fox Host Compares Fauci to Nazi Doctor Josef Mengele
Fox Nation anchor Lara Logan compared Dr. Anthony Fauci to infamous Nazi doctor Josef Mengele while complaining about Covid measures impacting rights and economy, The Independent reports.
Manchin Won’t Commit to Passing Spending Bill This Year
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said he won’t commit yet to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s timetable for moving ahead on President Joe Biden’s nearly $2 trillion tax and spending bill before the end of the year, Bloomberg reports.
Vaccines Will Likely Be Less Effective for Omicron
Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel told the Financial Times that existing vaccines will be much less effective at tackling Omicron than earlier strains of coronavirus.
Said Bancel: “There is no world, I think, where the effectiveness is the same level… I think it’s going to be a material drop.”
He added: “I just don’t know how much because we need to wait for the data. But all the scientists I’ve talked to . . . are like, ‘This is not going to be good.’”
China Says Omicron Won’t Stop Winter Olympics
China expects to hold the 2022 Winter Olympics “smoothly” and on schedule, despite challenges posed by the emergence of the new Omicron coronavirus variant, Reuters reports.
Trump Made Desperate Calls to Stop Biden Win
“Hours before the deadly attack on the US Capitol this year, Donald Trump made several calls from the White House to top lieutenants at the Willard hotel in Washington and talked about ways to stop the certification of Joe Biden’s election win from taking place on January 6,” The Guardian reports.
“The former president first told the lieutenants his vice-president, Mike Pence, was reluctant to go along with the plan to commandeer his largely ceremonial role at the joint session of Congress in a way that would allow Trump to retain the presidency for a second term.”
“But as Trump relayed to them the situation with Pence, he pressed his lieutenants about how to stop Biden’s certification from taking place on 6 January, and delay the certification process to get alternate slates of electors for Trump sent to Congress.”
Antibody Cocktails Lose Potency Against Omicron
“Preliminary tests indicate the Covid-19 antibody drug cocktail from Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. loses effectiveness against Omicron, a sign that some products in an important class of therapies might need modifying if the new strain becomes widespread,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Trump Had No Intelligence Briefings After January 6
Daily Beast: “After a holiday break where he didn’t receive a classified intelligence briefing, President Donald Trump was supposed to get one on Jan. 6, 2021—the day he incited a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol. It didn’t happen. And then he didn’t get one for the rest of his presidency.”
“The situation in the waning days of Trump’s presidency was so uncommon that it actually caused concern among some administration officials that Trump was losing touch with reality, as he was getting unhinged advice on domestic issues from Justice Department attorneys and outside counsel that openly advocated rejecting election results.”
Trump Heads to Court to Block January 6 Documents
“Former President Donald Trump faces a major test in Washington on Tuesday, as he attempts to convince a federal appeals court he should be able to keep records from his presidency from the House select committee that’s investigating the January 6 US Capitol riot,” CNN reports.
“The arguments are likely to be an uphill battle for the former President. The Biden administration and the House are aligned against him in wanting transparency about communications in the West Wing as Trump sought to overturn the 2020 election result and his supporters raided the Capitol. Trump lost his first round in court in the case, more quickly and resoundingly than his losses when he tried to claim broad protections from investigations while he was President.”
Quote of the Day
“I think if you want to see a revolution, go ahead, outlaw Roe v. Wade and see what the response is…”
— Sen Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), quoted by WMUR.
Select Panel Moves Again on Contempt Charges
CBS News: “The select committee investigating the deadly attack on the Capitol plans to meet Wednesday to vote on whether to recommend if the full House should hold Trump ally Jeffrey Clark, in contempt of Congress. He would be the second Trump ally to be found in contempt of congress for failing to comply with a subpoena from the panel.”
Harris and Buttigieg Make Joint Trip on Infrastructure
Vice President Kamala Harris and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg plan to travel to Charlotte on Thursday to promote the infrastructure law signed by President Joe Biden, the Charlotte Observer reports.
Covid Still Looms Over Biden’s Presidency
Politico: “President Joe Biden was elected a year ago to manage an out-of-control pandemic, and he secured some undeniable early triumphs by steering a massive Covid relief bill through Congress while ramping up a vaccine distribution program to get shots into the arms of tens of millions of Americans.”
“But right as the president was celebrating progress in the pandemic fight over the summer, the Delta variant sent cases surging, rattling the nation’s economy, and sending the president’s poll numbers tumbling. Now the sudden emergence of the Omicron variant has sparked fears of another devastating wave of the virus, one that could endanger the White House’s plans to focus on Biden’s legislative agenda and efforts to battle inflation and a bottlenecked supply chain.”
Powell Warns Omicron Could Slow Job Growth
“Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will tell lawmakers Tuesday that the Omicron variant of the coronavirus could slow the recovery in the U.S. job market and prolong supply chain disruptions that have fueled price spikes,” Politico reports.
December Dread Builds After Defense Stumble
“Senate Democrats’ daunting year-end agenda started off with a face plant on a routine, popular defense bill. That was supposed to be the easy part,” Politico reports.
“Senate Republicans’ Monday blockade of the annual defense legislation over lack of amendment votes presaged a bitingly difficult December for Democrats’ slim Senate majority. Top of mind is clinching President Joe Biden’s $1.7 trillion spending package, which can pass with only Democratic votes and is expected to move after the routine defense bill. Simultaneously, the House and Senate need to fund the government past Friday and raise the debt ceiling in the coming weeks.”
Playbook: “The consensus is in: Most people on Capitol Hill are kissing Christmas — or at least most of December — goodbye this year.”
Democratic Midterm Fears Mount
Washington Post: “Beyond a struggle to sell the nuts-and-bolts of legislation, there are deeper fears among Democrats that the party lacks a cohesive and convincing argument to win over voters in next year’s elections. Democrats are eager to tout the bills they have passed in President Biden’s first year, but a strategy tying together the disparate pieces of legislation — from lowering the cost of child care and eldercare to combating climate change to building roads and bridges — is still lacking.”
“And two of the biggest worries for voters — the economy and the pandemic — continue to drag down Biden and the Democrats. With inflation already a top concern, markets plummeted on Friday as a new coronavirus variant prompted the United States and other countries to impose travel restrictions amid fears of another resurgence.”
Russian Threat to Ukraine Tests Biden
“The White House is reviewing options to deter a feared Russian invasion of Ukraine, including providing more military aid to Kyiv and threatening sanctions, to dissuade Russian President Vladimir Putin from escalating the simmering conflict into a full-blown transatlantic crisis,” the Washington Post reports.
“The deliberations come as President Biden and his aides prepare for a virtual call with Putin next month, a moment that analysts see as an opportunity to signal the costs of an invasion to the Kremlin but also present a path for reducing tension.”
