Michael Tesler: “While rank-and-file Republicans have remained loyal to Trump to this day, both Pence and McConnell have paid a steep political price for their actions on Jan. 6.”

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said that he will decide “very, very soon” on whether to run for New York governor, Bloomberg reports.

“New York Attorney General Letitia James is seeking a deposition from former president Donald Trump early next year as part of her investigation into potential fraud inside the Trump Organization,” the Washington Post reports.

“James has requested to take his testimony on Jan. 7 at her New York office as part of a civil investigation into whether Trump’s company committed financial fraud in the valuations of properties to different entities.”

“One of the people familiar with the investigation said James is examining whether widespread fraud ‘permeated the Trump Organization.'”

New York Times: “Civil inquiries cannot lead to criminal charges. If Ms. James finds evidence of wrongdoing, she could file a lawsuit against Mr. Trump.”

“The United States ranks as the world’s leading contributor of plastic waste and needs a national strategy to combat the issue,” the Washington Post reports.

“Overall, the United States produced 42 million metric tons of plastic waste in 2016 — almost twice as much as China, and more than the entire European Union combined.”

Sara Goddard says the worst is yet to come and no, recycling is not the best solution.

“Washington and Wall Street were optimistic Monday that Congress can pass a bill to fund the government and avert a partial shutdown before a Friday deadline,” CNBC reports.

A new report released today finds that the “proportion of electricity the United States gets from solar and wind nearly quadrupled between 2011 and 2020,” the Washington Post reports.

“The analysis also found that if the current growth rate continues, wind, solar and geothermal would meet current electricity demand levels by 2035 — which is when President Biden aims to have an entirely fossil-fuel-free grid.”

Sara Goddard: A fossil fuel industry under fire. Will it last?

“President Joe Biden and top officials in his Cabinet are hitting the road to promote the $1 trillion infrastructure bill passed in Congress last week, to explain when and where Americans can expect to see some of the funds in their own communities,” Reuters reports.

“White House aides are planning a bipartisan signing ceremony for the infrastructure bill as soon as this week.”

More interesting will be watching the GOP lawmakers who opposed the bill take credit for it.

The House of Representatives passed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, 228 to 206.

The bill, which passed the Senate in August, will now go to President Biden for his signature.

It is a major legislative accomplishment for Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Biden administration.

“The White House on Wednesday announced its plan to roll out coronavirus vaccines for children ages 5 to 11, pending the vaccine’s approval by the Food and Drug Administration, which the Biden administration anticipates will happen within weeks,” the Washington Post reports.

“White House officials said they have secured enough doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for the country’s 28 million children in that age group.”

Zachary Wolf: “California’s recall process ranks right up there with the Electoral College when it comes to quirks in US democracy that gives — or takes way — Americans’ leaders.”

“But while the the Electoral College is a buffer between the people and their leader — it routinely allows the person with fewer overall votes to gain control of the White House — the recall process is a cattle prod to the system, allowing a fraction of voters, through signature petitions, to force a special election in an off year, when voters might be less likely to show up.”

Free for members to download: Recall Elections: From Alexander Hamilton to Gavin Newsom by Joshua Spivak.

“Igor Fruman, a Rudy Giuliani associate charged in a campaign finance case, is scheduled to plead guilty during an appearance in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday,” CNN reports.

Minneapolis Star Tribune: “Minnesota Republican leaders forced Jennifer Carnahan out as head of the state party on Thursday, turning a page on a scandal that threatened to consume GOP politics ahead of a pivotal election year.”

“Carnahan leaves as chair of the party amid allegations that she created a toxic workplace environment, one that blurred personal and professional lines, ignored concerns about sexual harassment and retaliated against employees who didn’t fall in line.”

“The party’s 15-member executive board voted 8-7 to give Carnahan a severance of three months salary, roughly $38,000, to leave her role. Carnahan, who attended the meeting virtually, was the deciding vote to give herself severance on the way out.”

“Although most large events shut down last summer because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally forged ahead, panicking health experts as nearly a half-million motorcycle enthusiasts descended on the Black Hills of South Dakota,” the New York Times reports.

“This year’s rally, which began on Friday, is expected to draw an even larger crowd, just as the infectious Delta variant is producing more new virus cases nationwide than this time last year.”

Tanner Green: “American conservatives never waged a culture war. Conservatives certainly fought, there is no denying that. They fought with every bit of obstruction and scandal their operatives could muster.”

“But this was not a culture war. Rather, America’s conservatives fought a political war over culture.

“Republicans used cultural issues to gain—or to try to gain—political power. Their brightest minds and greatest efforts went into securing control of judiciary, developing a judicial philosophy for their appointees, securing control of the Capitol, and developing laws that could be implemented in multiple state houses across the nation. No actual attempt to change the culture was attempted.”

David Atkins: “The Trumpian ethos, and those who adhere to it, are not about winning the culture war. They have only the intention of ruling, and inflicting as much pain to their enemies as possible from a minority position.”

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) said that “he’s supportive of going forward with a larger, Democratic-only infrastructure bill, but that it shouldn’t be linked to a separate bipartisan framework,” The Hill reports.

Said Manchin: “We’re going to have to work it through reconciliation, which I’ve agreed that that can be done. I just haven’t agreed on the amount, because I haven’t seen everything that everyone is wanting to put in the bill.”

Cook Political Report: “Virginia’s post-presidential election gubernatorial contest is poised, once again, to be the most competitive of this off-year’s races and once again test its unique status as a traditional bellwether for a new president. With the matchup set between former Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Republican nominee Glenn Youngkin, both parties will face critical messaging tests in the wake of the 2020 election.”

“But with early polling showing a close race that’s sure to be the most expensive statewide contest ever in the Old Dominion, it’s clear this race no longer simply has the potential to become engaged but is now already there. As such, we are moving our rating from Likely to Lean Democrat.”