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“The demotion of news media’s role in American life has brought on a profound shift in how facts make their way to voters,” Axios reports.
“The scattering and flattening of media has created a labyrinth where information trickles from primary sources to news media to non-journalist media including Youtubers, podcasters, TikTokers and X accounts — and eventually to conversations between family and friends.”
“This chain leaves facts susceptible to being massaged, spun and outright fudged.”
President-elect Donald Trump plans to nominate former lawmaker and Fox News contributor Sean Duffy, who also had a turn on MTV’s “Real World,” to be the next secretary of Transportation, Politico reports.
“President-elect Trump is personally calling senators to press them to confirm former Rep. Matt Gaetz to be his attorney general,” Axios reports.
“Trump is digging in on his embattled and controversial nominee and is sending an unmistakable message to Senate Republicans that he expects him to be confirmed.”
Said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND): “He clearly wants Matt Gaetz. He believes Matt Gaetz is the one person who will have the fearlessness and ferociousness, really, to do what needs doing at the Department of Justice.”
He added: “One thing about Donald Trump, people should never confuse his support for one of his nominees as a tactical or strategic tool for somebody else. And at least to this point, he’s putting his own political capital behind it.”
New York Times: “Ms. Gabbard’s comments have earned her sharp rebukes from officials across the political spectrum in Washington, who have accused her of parroting the anti-American propaganda of the country’s adversaries. Her remarks have also made her a darling of the Kremlin’s vast state media apparatus — and, more recently, of President-elect Donald Trump, who this week picked her to oversee the nation’s 18 intelligence agencies and departments.”
“Her selection to be the director of national intelligence has raised alarms among national security officials, not only because of her lack of experience in intelligence but also because she has embraced a worldview that mirrors disinformation straight out of the Kremlin’s playbook.”
“President-elect Donald Trump on Sunday called for the investigation of an Iowa pollster over a bombshell pre-election survey that showed Vice President Kamala Harris leading in the deep red state,” USA Today reports.
Said Trump, of pollster Ann Selzer: “She knew exactly what she was doing.”
“Linda McMahon, once seen as a shoo-in to lead Donald Trump’s Commerce Department, is privately frustrated that she has yet to get offered the position,” Semafor reports.
“McMahon’s status leaves both of the president-elect’s transition co-chairs conspicuously without clear places to land in his administration. Her fellow co-chair, Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick, has made a play to lead Trump’s Treasury Department — as competition for that post descends into the sort of mudslinging that’s more common on the campaign trail.”
“The delay in an offer for McMahon is seen by some of Trump’s allies as a sign that he’s saving the commerce secretary job as a potential landing spot for someone else who misses out on a more prominent position.”
NBC News: “According to the final NBC News poll of the 2024 race, 76% of registered voters said they follow public affairs and politics closely. The poll showed Harris winning among that group by 5 points over Donald Trump, 52% to 47%.”
“But among the remaining quarter of voters who said they don’t follow politics closely, Trump was ahead by a much greater margin — 14 points, 54% to 40%.”
“House Ethics Chair Michael Guest said Monday that his panel will make its own decision about releasing the report into Matt Gaetz, regardless of Speaker Mike Johnson’s opinion that it should be kept under wraps,” Politico reports.
“President-elect Donald Trump has tapped Will Scharf as the next White House staff secretary,” Haaretz reports.
“Scharf, one of Trump’s most prominent television surrogates and a member of his legal team in several of his court cases, will control the paper flow to the White House by deciding which reports and briefings find their way to Trump’s desk.”
Trump Media, the company whose largest shareholder is President-elect Donald Trump, is in “advanced talks” to buy a crypto trading platform, CNBC reports.
Financial Times: “A successful deal would deepen Trump’s move into the cryptocurrency market after he began promoting a new crypto venture set up by longtime business partners, World Liberty Financial, from which he stands to earn significant fees. Crypto markets have also soared following his election victory, with bitcoin up more than 30 per cent on speculation that his administration would enact favourable legislation for the industry.”
Hedge-fund titan Ken Griffin said he’s anxious about Donald Trump’s potential tariff policies, but that the U.S. economy is going back to “the business of business” now that he’s returning to the White House, Bloomberg reports.
Earlier this year, Griffin called Trump’s tariff policies “regretful,” but said he thought a Trump administration would be good for markets.
“Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) signaled at a private event Sunday night that he opposes President-elect Donald Trump’s demand for recess appointments,” Punchbowl News reports.
“Of course, McConnell won’t be in charge of the Senate next year, so his pronouncement here doesn’t have as much weight as, say, if incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune were to say something similar. Thune and other top Senate Republicans have taken a cautious line on this so far, saying that they will work to quickly consider Trump’s nominees with hearings and confirmation votes.”
An attorney representing two women who testified before the House Ethics Committee told ABC News that former Rep. Matt Gaetz paid both his adult clients for sex.
“Martin O’Malley, the former Maryland governor and Baltimore mayor who for the last year has served as commissioner of the Social Security Administration, on Monday became the first announced candidate for chair of the Democratic National Committee,” the New York Times reports.
“The entrance of Mr. O’Malley, 61, kicks off a race that is expected to have several candidates running to lead a party in turmoil after this year’s elections.”
“The White House is expected to request over $98 billion in disaster relief funds from Congress on Monday,” Axios reports.
“The emergency request from the White House comes as Congress must address a government funding lapse at the end of the year.”
“Just a week after winning several of the nation’s largest Arab-majority cities, President-elect Donald Trump has filled top administration posts with staunch Israel supporters, including an ambassador to Israel who has claimed ‘there is no such thing as Palestinians,'” the AP reports.
“Meanwhile, the two Trump advisers who led his outreach to Arab Americans have not secured positions in the administration yet.”
“The selections have prompted mixed reactions among Arab Americans and Muslims in Michigan, which went for Trump along with all six other battleground states.”
Former Alaksa Gov. Sarah Palin (R) “took to social media to share her frustration at not being selected for any role in the Trump administration,” the Daily Beast reports.
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.
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