“The call by President Trump on Saturday to Georgia’s secretary of state raised the prospect that Mr. Trump may have violated laws that prohibit interference in federal or state elections, but lawyers said on Sunday that it would be difficult to pursue such a charge,” the New York Times reports.
Nunes to Get Presidential Medal of Freedom
President Trump on Monday is expected to give Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Washington Post reports.
Trump — who is using his final days in the White House in part to reward friends and allies with pardons and other decorations — is also expected to give Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), another confidant, the same award next week.
McCarthy Greenlights Challenge to Electoral Vote
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy “has quietly blessed an effort by conservative lawmakers to overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s victory when a joint session of Congress meets later this week, even as other top congressional Republicans are raising alarms that the push could cause lasting damage to a pillar of democracy,” CNN reports.
Trump’s Full Phone Call Pressuring Georgia Officials
The Washington Post has now published President Trump’s full hour-long call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger — along with a transcript — in which the president repeatedly urged Raffensperger to alter the outcome of the presidential vote in the state.
Axios: “The fact that someone taped a conversation between a secretary of state and the president of the United States, both from the same political party, speaks to the mistrust and legal fears that have followed Trump’s frantic efforts to overturn the results.”
Pelosi Re-Elected Speaker
“House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), the only woman to serve as speaker, was reelected by a narrow margin in a closely divided House. The final vote came hours after it began as lawmakers were forced to vote in groups of about 72, a precaution dictated by the coronavirus pandemic,” the Washington Post reports.
Just five Democrats defected: Jared Golden (voted for Tammy Duckworth), Conor Lamb (voted for Hakeem Jeffries), Mikie Sherrill, Elissa Slotkin, and Abigail Spanberger voted present.
Lawmakers Unveil Rules for Electoral College Count
“The rules of Congress’ Jan. 6 session governing the counting of Electoral College votes will remain identical to those used for decades, under a proposal set to be introduced Sunday by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,” Politico reports.
Trump Recorded Berating Georgia Elections Official
“President Trump urged fellow Republican Brad Raffensperger, the Georgia secretary of state, to ‘find’ enough votes to overturn his defeat in an extraordinary one-hour phone call Saturday that election experts said raised legal questions,” the Washington Post reports.
“The Washington Post obtained a recording of the conversation in which Trump alternately berated Raffensperger, tried to flatter him, begged him to act and threatened him with vague criminal consequences if the secretary of state refused to pursue his false claims, at one point warning that Raffensperger was taking ‘a big risk.'”
“Throughout the call, Raffensperger and his office’s general counsel rejected his assertions, explaining that Trump is relying on debunked conspiracy theories and that President-elect Joe Biden’s 12,779-vote victory in Georgia was fair and accurate.”
Moore to Appear In House Despite Positive Test
Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) who announced she tested positive for COVID-19 on Dec. 28, is slated to be present at the Capitol on Sunday for the Speaker’s vote, The Hill reports.
House GOP Strategizes Over Electoral Vote Challenge
Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) told Fox News that House Republicans held a rare Saturday night conference call to address their goal of overturning certain state’s Electoral College results on Jan. 6.
Brooks said 50 lawmakers including Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), President Trump and White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows were on the call.
McConnell Loses Control
Playbook: “The speaker’s vote intrigue is being overshadowed by an all-out GOP civil war in the Senate. Three days after Mitch McConnell told his colleagues that the vote to certify the presidential election results on Jan. 6 would be ‘the most consequential I have ever cast,’ a dozen Republican senators have now publicly endorsed objecting to the Electoral College tallies that will make Joe Biden’s victory official.”
“In short, there’s a growing rebellion inside the GOP conference instigated by President Donald Trump, who promises more GOP senators will join the effort and also called for mass protests in D.C. on Wednesday. (Yes, the Proud Boys and right-wing militias will be there, and, yes, there is cause for concern about the prospect of violence.)”
“We can’t say this emphatically enough: This does not happen to Mitch McConnell. For four years, the Senate leader has managed to maintain order in his ranks as Trump unleashes daily mayhem on the GOP from the White House. That’s all gone to hell.”
Pelosi Faces Narrow Margin in House Speaker Vote
“Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is poised to win her fourth term as House speaker on Sunday, but a narrower Democratic majority and uncertainties caused by the coronavirus pandemic will make for little wiggle room,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
“Democrats expect to have 222 seats to Republicans’ 211. One race in New York is still in dispute, and a seat in Louisiana will be vacant because Republican Rep.-elect Luke Letlow died on Tuesday from complications of Covid-19. Two other Republican lawmakers are expected to be absent because they have tested positive for Covid-19. It isn’t known if any Democrats will miss the vote.”
The Hill: Covid-19 is wildcard as Pelosi faces tricky Speaker vote.
Confusion and Shortages Impede U.S. Vaccinations
New York Times: “The initial vaccine deliveries were mostly for frontline medical workers and nursing home staff members and residents. But there was less of a clear consensus on how to distribute the second round of doses, and public health and elected officials had warned the process would become messier.”
“Those warnings appear to have been borne out, leaving the U.S. inoculation campaign behind schedule and raising fears about how quickly the country will be able to tame the epidemic.”
Ashish Jha: Vaccinations are going slowly because no one is in charge.
U.S. Hits 350,000 Covid-19 Deaths
More than 350,000 people have died of the coronavirus in the U.S., with another surge of cases and deaths expected in the coming weeks as a result of holiday gatherings.
The Hill: Model predicts 150,000 more deaths from coronavirus within the next month.
New Puerto Rico Governor Declares Fiscal Emergency
New Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi declared a “fiscal emergency” and ordered the island’s Department of Justice to step up anti-corruption efforts Saturday — hours after being sworn in, Bloomberg reports.
Biden’s Strategy for Dealing with Trump: Ignore Him
“Joe Biden faces historic challenges when he enters the White House on Jan. 20: a raging pandemic, persistently high unemployment, simmering tensions with China and Russia — and a predecessor who won’t go away,” Bloomberg reports.
“Aware of the chaos and distraction Donald Trump has proved he can muster, the president-elect and his advisers have developed a strategy they believe is the only way to neutralize the threat: ignore him.”
“One lesson of Biden’s winning presidential campaign, they say, is that there’s little incentive to engage with Trump, and that his penchant for spectacle is wearing thin with the American people.”
Trump Adviser Claims Inauguration Can Be Delayed
Trump adviser Peter Navarro falsely told Fox News that President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on January 20 can be postponed.
Said host Jeanine Pirro: “January 20th cannot be changed, that’s constitutional.”
Replied Navarro: “Well it can be changed, actually. We can go past that date… we can go past that date if we need to.”
Trump Loyalists Put Pence In a Bad Spot
Washington Post: “Though Pence’s role is strictly ceremonial, the lawyer Sidney Powell and other conspiracy-minded Trump allies are trying to convince the president that Pence has the power to overturn the election by rejecting some of Biden’s electors.”
“After Pence labored for four years to stay in the mercurial president’s good graces, his performance on Wednesday could risk a rupture on their 14th-to-last day in office.
Appeals Court Dismisses Gohmert’s Election Lawsuit
A federal appeals court on Saturday dismissed a lawsuit by Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) and other Republicans that sought to expand Vice President Pence’s legal authority to effectively overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s electoral win, The Hill reports.
