talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-23--GSA Admin Will Send Deputy To Brief Congress A Week Later Than Reps Asked For

House Democrats told a Trump administration official on Thursday that she had until Monday to explain why she hadn ’ t designated Joe Biden the apparent winner of the 2020 election .
On Monday , the official said she would send a deputy in her place … in a week .
The official , Emily Murphy , is the administrator of the General Services Administration .
And in order for Joe Biden ’ s transition team to meet with Trump administration officials and begin the official process of preparing to govern , Murphy needs to officially “ ascertain ” that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2020 contest .
So far , she hasn ’ t , and on Thursday the Democratic chairs of the House Oversight and Appropriations committees , as well as two subcommittees , demanded that Murphy brief them by Monday on the reasons for the hold-up .
On Monday , all they got was another delay .
“ GSA ’ s Deputy Administrator Allison Brigati will host a 30 minute briefing on Monday , November 30 , with the four requesting House Committee Chairs and their Ranking Members , ” a GSA spokesperson said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ an in-person-only briefing the same day for three Senate committees : appropriations , homeland security and governmental affairs , and environment and public works .
The House Democrats who requested a briefing by Monday weren ’ t happy with that response .
“ We can not wait yet another week to obtain basic information about your refusal to make the ascertainment determination , ” wrote Oversight and Reform Chair Carolyn Maloney ( D-NY ) , Appropriations Chair Nita Lowey , Subcommittee on Government Operations Gerry Connolly ( D-CA ) , and Subcommittee on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Quigley ( D-IL ) .
“ Every additional day that is wasted is a day that the safety , health , and well-being of the American people is imperiled as the incoming Biden-Harris Administration is blocked from fully preparing for the coronavirus pandemic , our nation ’ s dire economic crisis , and our national security.
” The Democrats said they were reserving several briefing times for Tuesday and asked for a response by 5 p.m .
In an interview Monday afternoon on MSNBC , Quigley noted that Congress has the power to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ We ’ re keeping all the options open , ” he said .

House Democrats told a Trump administration official on Thursday that she had until Monday to explain why she hadn’t designated Joe Biden the apparent winner of the 2020 election.
On Monday, the official said she would send a deputy in her place … in a week.
The official, Emily Murphy, is the administrator of the General Services Administration. And in order for Joe Biden’s transition team to meet with Trump administration officials and begin the official process of preparing to govern, Murphy needs to officially “ascertain” that Biden is the apparent winner of the 2020 contest.
So far, she hasn’t, and on Thursday the Democratic chairs of the House Oversight and Appropriations committees, as well as two subcommittees, demanded that Murphy brief them by Monday on the reasons for the hold-up. On Monday, all they got was another delay.
“GSA’s Deputy Administrator Allison Brigati will host a 30 minute briefing on Monday, November 30, with the four requesting House Committee Chairs and their Ranking Members,” a GSA spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also said GSA will hold an in-person-only briefing the same day for three Senate committees: appropriations, homeland security and governmental affairs, and environment and public works.
The House Democrats who requested a briefing by Monday weren’t happy with that response.
“We cannot wait yet another week to obtain basic information about your refusal to make the ascertainment determination,” wrote Oversight and Reform Chair Carolyn Maloney (D-NY), Appropriations Chair Nita Lowey, Subcommittee on Government Operations Gerry Connolly (D-CA), and Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government Chair Mike Quigley (D-IL).
“Every additional day that is wasted is a day that the safety, health, and well-being of the American people is imperiled as the incoming Biden-Harris Administration is blocked from fully preparing for the coronavirus pandemic, our nation’s dire economic crisis, and our national security.”
The Democrats said they were reserving several briefing times for Tuesday and asked for a response by 5 p.m.
In an interview Monday afternoon on MSNBC, Quigley noted that Congress has the power to compel Murphy’s testimony.
“We’re keeping all the options open,” he said.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-23--Texas Gov Stands His Ground On ‘No More Lockdowns’ Despite Surging COVID Cases

Don ’ t mess with Texas — even in the midst of surging COVID cases .
Texas Gov .
Greg Abbott ( R ) on Monday said he won ’ t budge on his vehement opposition to implementing stricter COVID-19 restrictions , even though the Lone Star state hit a record high in daily infection rates over the weekend .
On Saturday , Texas set a single-day case record of more than 12,500 COVID-19 infections , according to the Texas Department of State Health Services .
Abbott , however , appeared unfazed by the alarming surge of COVID-19 rates in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Monday .
When asked whether he plans to implement a lockdown or tighten coronavirus restrictions given the state ’ s COVID-19 surge , Abbott bluntly replied : “ no more lockdowns in Texas.
” The Texas governor brought up automatic restrictions that were implemented in the event of a region ’ s hospitalization numbers crossing a certain threshold .
Abbott then argued that the measures , which include closing bars in those areas , will do enough to stop the spread .
“ It has led , for example , to that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I think , the decrease in spread in Lubbock , causing those locations to get better already , ” Abbott said .
According to the Washington Post , the seven-day average of new infections in El Paso County has decreased significantly in recent weeks from 1,541 on Nov. 1 to 1,120 on Sunday .
But Abbott ’ s assessment of Lubbock County is misleading , given the average number of new COVID-19 cases in the county has continued rising , going from 325 on Nov. 1 to 477 on Sunday .

Don’t mess with Texas — even in the midst of surging COVID cases.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Monday said he won’t budge on his vehement opposition to implementing stricter COVID-19 restrictions, even though the Lone Star state hit a record high in daily infection rates over the weekend.
On Saturday, Texas set a single-day case record of more than 12,500 COVID-19 infections, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services.
Abbott, however, appeared unfazed by the alarming surge of COVID-19 rates in his state during an interview on CNBC on Monday.
When asked whether he plans to implement a lockdown or tighten coronavirus restrictions given the state’s COVID-19 surge, Abbott bluntly replied: “no more lockdowns in Texas.”
The Texas governor brought up automatic restrictions that were implemented in the event of a region’s hospitalization numbers crossing a certain threshold. Abbott then argued that the measures, which include closing bars in those areas, will do enough to stop the spread.
“It has led, for example, to that decrease in spread in El Paso and, I think, the decrease in spread in Lubbock, causing those locations to get better already,” Abbott said.
According to the Washington Post, the seven-day average of new infections in El Paso County has decreased significantly in recent weeks from 1,541 on Nov. 1 to 1,120 on Sunday. But Abbott’s assessment of Lubbock County is misleading, given the average number of new COVID-19 cases in the county has continued rising, going from 325 on Nov. 1 to 477 on Sunday.
Watch Abbott’s remarks below:


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-23--The Glorious Rise And Fall Of Sidney Powell’s Trump Campaign Gig

Sidney Powell lasted barely one Scaramucci as a member of President Donald Trump ’ s legal team , but boy was it a wild ride .
The right-wing lawyer best known for defending former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn went out in a blaze of glory , asserting in a monologue at the Republican Party ’ s headquarters Thursday that a global cabal of communists had conspired with Democrats to steal President Donald Trump ’ s second term from him .
Within three days , she was tossed overboard by the two attorneys who ’ d taken the stage with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ law on her own , ” the Trump campaign said in a statement Sunday .
It was signed by Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis , the two Trump lawyers who had yelled , harangued and astral-projected alongside Powell in that crowded RNC conference room .
Powell has put on a brave face , saying in a statement later Sunday that she never billed the campaign for her services , and that she was still planning on filing an “ epic ” lawsuit to prevent a Joe Biden presidency .
She signed the statement @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” that beckoned to happier times : On Thursday , after she had finished the legal equivalent of a flat-Earther convention alongside Powell and Giuliani , Ellis wrote that her fellow campaign lawyers had , in fact , “ RELEASED THE KRAKEN.
” From The Fever Swamps To Primetime Powell represented the clearest , most direct connection between the Trump campaign and the vast network of conspiracy theorists whose claims about voter fraud and rigged elections have fueled Trump ’ s grievances for months .
For example , over the weekend she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a QAnon conspiracy theorist who goes by “ The Praying Medic ” because he claims to communicate with God .
According to the Praying Medic thread she retweeted , Powell has received “ an avalanche of first-hand , eyewitness testimony from hundreds of patriots ” which , eventually , will be used make the indisputable case that Donald Trump really won the election .
( “ Somehow , patriots neutralized election rigging ” in 2016 , The Praying Medic clarified . )
On-stage with Giuliani and Ellis , Powell walked through another @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voting machine vendor Dominion Voting Systems rigged the election for Biden .
Powell asserted the company ’ s software was “ created in Venezuela at the direction of Hugo Chavez to make sure he never lost an election.
” As evidence , she cited to a single affidavit from someone who claimed they observed votes being manipulated in Venezuela using a software called Smartmatic .
The affiant wrote that Dominion relies upon software “ that is a descendant of the Smartmatic Electoral Management System , ” and that the 2020 U.S. elections were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s 2013 presidential election .
A spokesperson for Dominion characterized Powell ’ s claims as “ not physically possible.
” And while the affiant Powell cited is still anonymous , the case in which they were involved — an effort to prevent Georgia from certifying the election results — was rejected by a federal judge a few hours after the RNC press conference .
“ We see on social media people talking about ‘ blockbusters ’ and ‘ krakens , ' ” Gabriel Sterling , Voting Systems Manager for the Georgia Secretary of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Monday .
“ I want to remind everybody that krakens are myths.
” By the time Powell took the stage Thursday , she ’ d already cycled through one round of internet conspiracy theories .
In a Nov. 6 interview with Lou Dobbs — two days before the network ’ s first reference to Powell as a Trump campaign lawyer — she referred to a theory about “ Hammer & Scorecard , ” a purported supercomputer scheme that would have been able to flip massive amounts of ballots .
“ That would ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the vote that would ’ ve gone across the country and explains a lot of what we ’ re seeing , ” she said .
The theory fell out of fashion a few days later , when The Daily Beast noted that the man pushing it , Dennis Montgomery , had a decades-long history of securing huge paydays based on nonsense theories — such as when Montgomery convinced the U.S. government that he was able to decode messages to Al Qaeda hidden in al Jazeera broadcasts .
And Powell ’ s more recent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that there are “ thousands ” of co-conspirators across several states , as she claimed on Saturday — go well beyond what ’ s been claimed in various courts .
So far , neither the Trump campaign nor Powell have tried to convince a judge under penalty of perjury that seedy voting software , communists , bribery or widespread , systematic fraud are to blame for Trump ’ s loss .
And neither responded to TPM ’ s questions Monday .
But victory is just around the corner !
On Saturday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ week , we will get it ready to file.
” That sounds suspiciously like what she ’ s already been saying for weeks .
On Nov. 10 , an archived version of her website shows , Powell asked patriots for donations for urgent election litigation : “ Over $ 500,000 must be raised in the next twenty-four hours for these suits to be filed .
Millions more will need to be raised to ensure victory.
” Two weeks later , though her name still isn ’ t attached to any litigation , Powell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ future of our Republic , ” she assures donors , “ is at stake .
”

Sidney Powell lasted barely one Scaramucci as a member of President Donald Trump’s legal team, but boy was it a wild ride.
The right-wing lawyer best known for defending former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn went out in a blaze of glory, asserting in a monologue at the Republican Party’s headquarters Thursday that a global cabal of communists had conspired with Democrats to steal President Donald Trump’s second term from him.
"We will not be intimidated…We are going to clean this mess up now. President Trump won by a landslide. We are going to prove it. And we are going to reclaim the United States of America for the people who vote for freedom."—Sidney Powell pic.twitter.com/8KCEOGuL7w — GOP (@GOP) November 19, 2020
Within three days, she was tossed overboard by the two attorneys who’d taken the stage with her.
“Sidney Powell is practicing law on her own,” the Trump campaign said in a statement Sunday. It was signed by Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis, the two Trump lawyers who had yelled, harangued and astral-projected alongside Powell in that crowded RNC conference room.
Powell has put on a brave face, saying in a statement later Sunday that she never billed the campaign for her services, and that she was still planning on filing an “epic” lawsuit to prevent a Joe Biden presidency.
She signed the statement with a hashtag, “#KrakenOnSteroids,” that beckoned to happier times: On Thursday, after she had finished the legal equivalent of a flat-Earther convention alongside Powell and Giuliani, Ellis wrote that her fellow campaign lawyers had, in fact, “RELEASED THE KRAKEN.”
From The Fever Swamps To Primetime
Powell represented the clearest, most direct connection between the Trump campaign and the vast network of conspiracy theorists whose claims about voter fraud and rigged elections have fueled Trump’s grievances for months.
For example, over the weekend she boosted a Twitter thread from Dave Hayes, a QAnon conspiracy theorist who goes by “The Praying Medic” because he claims to communicate with God.
According to the Praying Medic thread she retweeted, Powell has received “an avalanche of first-hand, eyewitness testimony from hundreds of patriots” which, eventually, will be used make the indisputable case that Donald Trump really won the election. (“Somehow, patriots neutralized election rigging” in 2016, The Praying Medic clarified.)
On-stage with Giuliani and Ellis, Powell walked through another QAnon community favorite — the assertion that voting machine vendor Dominion Voting Systems rigged the election for Biden. Powell asserted the company’s software was “created in Venezuela at the direction of Hugo Chavez to make sure he never lost an election.”
As evidence, she cited to a single affidavit from someone who claimed they observed votes being manipulated in Venezuela using a software called Smartmatic. The affiant wrote that Dominion relies upon software “that is a descendant of the Smartmatic Electoral Management System,” and that the 2020 U.S. elections were “eerily reminiscent” of Venezuela’s 2013 presidential election.
A spokesperson for Dominion characterized Powell’s claims as “not physically possible.” And while the affiant Powell cited is still anonymous, the case in which they were involved — an effort to prevent Georgia from certifying the election results — was rejected by a federal judge a few hours after the RNC press conference.
“We see on social media people talking about ‘blockbusters’ and ‘krakens,'” Gabriel Sterling, Voting Systems Manager for the Georgia Secretary of State’s office, told reporters Monday. “I want to remind everybody that krakens are myths.”
‘Hopefully This Week…’
By the time Powell took the stage Thursday, she’d already cycled through one round of internet conspiracy theories.
In a Nov. 6 interview with Lou Dobbs — two days before the network’s first reference to Powell as a Trump campaign lawyer — she referred to a theory about “Hammer & Scorecard,” a purported supercomputer scheme that would have been able to flip massive amounts of ballots.
“That would’ve amounted to a massive change in the vote that would’ve gone across the country and explains a lot of what we’re seeing,” she said.
The theory fell out of fashion a few days later, when The Daily Beast noted that the man pushing it, Dennis Montgomery, had a decades-long history of securing huge paydays based on nonsense theories — such as when Montgomery convinced the U.S. government that he was able to decode messages to Al Qaeda hidden in al Jazeera broadcasts.
And Powell’s more recent assertions of widespread fraud — for example, that there are “thousands” of co-conspirators across several states, as she claimed on Saturday — go well beyond what’s been claimed in various courts.
So far, neither the Trump campaign nor Powell have tried to convince a judge under penalty of perjury that seedy voting software, communists, bribery or widespread, systematic fraud are to blame for Trump’s loss. And neither responded to TPM’s questions Monday.
But victory is just around the corner!
On Saturday, Powell told Newsmax that “hopefully this week, we will get it ready to file.”
That sounds suspiciously like what she’s already been saying for weeks.
On Nov. 10, an archived version of her website shows, Powell asked patriots for donations for urgent election litigation: “Over $500,000 must be raised in the next twenty-four hours for these suits to be filed. Millions more will need to be raised to ensure victory.”
Two weeks later, though her name still isn’t attached to any litigation, Powell kept asking for money. “The future of our Republic,” she assures donors, “is at stake.”
Tierney Sneed contributed reporting.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-23--Surgeon General Reminds WH That COVID Restrictions Apply There Too

U.S .
Surgeon General Jerome Adams emphasized on Monday morning that health safety measures apply to everyone , including at White House , ahead of first lady Melania Trump ’ s indoors “ holiday reception ” slated for next week .
“ Good Morning America ” host Cecilia Vega asked Adams about the danger of the party potentially becoming a superspreader event .
“ We want everyone to understand that these holiday celebrations can be superspreader events , so we want them to be smart and we want them to be as small as possible , ” Adams replied .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Disease Control and Prevention ’ s ( CDC ) guidelines on holiday festivities , which urge people to keep the gatherings small and limited to those living in the same household .
“ These apply to the White House , they apply to the American people .
They apply to everyone , ” he continued .
The party will be held at the White House on November 30 , according to the invitation sent from the first lady obtained by ABC News and Axios .
Stephanie Grisham , Trump ’ s chief @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emailed statement that the White House will be providing “ the safest environment possible ” for party attendees by having “ smaller ” guest lists , requiring masks , and other measures .

U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams emphasized on Monday morning that health safety measures apply to everyone, including at White House, ahead of first lady Melania Trump’s indoors “holiday reception” slated for next week.
“Good Morning America” host Cecilia Vega asked Adams about the danger of the party potentially becoming a superspreader event.
“We want everyone to understand that these holiday celebrations can be superspreader events, so we want them to be smart and we want them to be as small as possible,” Adams replied.
The health official pointed to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) guidelines on holiday festivities, which urge people to keep the gatherings small and limited to those living in the same household.
“These apply to the White House, they apply to the American people. They apply to everyone,” he continued.
The party will be held at the White House on November 30, according to the invitation sent from the first lady obtained by ABC News and Axios.
Stephanie Grisham, Trump’s chief of staff, told TPM in an emailed statement that the White House will be providing “the safest environment possible” for party attendees by having “smaller” guest lists, requiring masks, and other measures.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-24--Senate Dem Whip Aims For Top Judiciary Spot After Feinstein Announces Plans To Step Aside

Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin ( D-IL ) announced on Monday night that he was throwing his hat in the ring to fill Sen. Dianne Feinstein ’ s ( D-CA ) leadership position on the Senate Judiciary Committee next year .
“ I intend to seek the top Democratic position on the Judiciary Committee in the 117th Congress , ” Durbin said in a statement .
“ I have served on the Committee for 22 years , and I am its most senior member who does not currently serve atop another Senate Committee.
” “ We have to roll up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ undoing the damage of the last four years and protecting fundamental civil and human rights , ” he added .
The Democrat ’ s announcement came several hours after Feinstein revealed that she would step down as the committee ’ s ranking member next year , though she plans to stay on the committee .
The California senator was widely criticized by liberals last month over her chummy attitude during the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice nominee Amy Coney Barrett , which saw the ranking member hug Judiciary Committee Chair Lindsey Graham @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of the best set of hearings that I ’ ve participated in .
”

Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced on Monday night that he was throwing his hat in the ring to fill Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s (D-CA) leadership position on the Senate Judiciary Committee next year.
“I intend to seek the top Democratic position on the Judiciary Committee in the 117th Congress,” Durbin said in a statement. “I have served on the Committee for 22 years, and I am its most senior member who does not currently serve atop another Senate Committee.”
“We have to roll up our sleeves and get to work on undoing the damage of the last four years and protecting fundamental civil and human rights,” he added.
The Democrat’s announcement came several hours after Feinstein revealed that she would step down as the committee’s ranking member next year, though she plans to stay on the committee.
The California senator was widely criticized by liberals last month over her chummy attitude during the confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice nominee Amy Coney Barrett, which saw the ranking member hug Judiciary Committee Chair Lindsey Graham while declaring that the proceedings were “one of the best set of hearings that I’ve participated in.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-24--Defense Department To Finally Begin ‘Immediately’ Working With Biden Team

The Department of Defense on Monday said it would begin “ immediately ” working with the incoming Biden administration to support the presidential transition becoming among the first government agencies for formally begin cooperating with President-elect Joe Biden ’ s team after a Trump-appointed administrator stalled transition .
“ We will begin immediately implementing our plan to provide support in accordance with the White House and the Biden-Harris team , ” the Defense Department wrote in a statement issued late Monday .
The news comes as the head of the General Services Administration , Emily Murphy , on Monday finally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the start of a formal transition after previously depriving the incoming team of access to key resources needed for a successful transition .
“ The DOD Transition Task Force will arrange and coordinate all DOD contact with the Biden-Harris team , ” the statement said .
“ DOD is prepared to provide post-election services and support in a professional , orderly , and efficient manner that is befitting of the public ’ s expectation of the Department and our commitment to national security.
” Biden made a series of announcements for top jobs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has not yet formally said who will serve as his defense secretary .
The official selected for that role will be tasked with rebuilding confidence in the stability of a department that under Trump has been marred by a series of departures in recent months in addition to President Trump ’ s decision to fire his fourth defense secretary Mark Esper in an effort to weed out those who have not proven to be loyalists to his whims .

The Department of Defense on Monday said it would begin “immediately” working with the incoming Biden administration to support the presidential transition becoming among the first government agencies for formally begin cooperating with President-elect Joe Biden’s team after a Trump-appointed administrator stalled transition.
“We will begin immediately implementing our plan to provide support in accordance with the White House and the Biden-Harris team,” the Defense Department wrote in a statement issued late Monday.
The news comes as the head of the General Services Administration, Emily Murphy, on Monday finally took the first steps to green light the start of a formal transition after previously depriving the incoming team of access to key resources needed for a successful transition.
“The DOD Transition Task Force will arrange and coordinate all DOD contact with the Biden-Harris team,” the statement said. “DOD is prepared to provide post-election services and support in a professional, orderly, and efficient manner that is befitting of the public’s expectation of the Department and our commitment to national security.”
Biden made a series of announcements for top jobs in his administration on Monday, but has not yet formally said who will serve as his defense secretary.
The official selected for that role will be tasked with rebuilding confidence in the stability of a department that under Trump has been marred by a series of departures in recent months in addition to President Trump’s decision to fire his fourth defense secretary Mark Esper in an effort to weed out those who have not proven to be loyalists to his whims.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-24--Trump Emphasizes How Much He Isn’t Conceding After GSA Okays Biden Transition

A defiant President Donald Trump it made clear late Monday night that he plans to go down kicking and screaming in wake of his electoral loss even after the General Services Administration ( GSA ) gave President-elect Joe Biden the green light to formally begin the transition process .
“ What does GSA being allowed to preliminarily work with the Dems have to do with continuing to pursue our various cases on what will go down as the most corrupt election in American political history ?
” he griped in a tweet chock-full of lies about the integrity of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ speed ahead .
Will never concede to fake ballots and ‘ Dominion . '
” “ Dominion ” refers to the debunked far-right conspiracy theory alleging that the tech firm Dominion Voting Systems , which provides software to help states tabulate votes , had manipulated its software to sabotage the vote tallying process in Georgia and Michigan .
Additionally , there is no evidence of “ fake ballots ” swaying the election , and the slew of lawsuits from Trump ’ s legal team alleging mass voter fraud have consistently collapsed .
Earlier @ @ @ @ @ @ @ finally allowed the Biden team to begin its transition and acknowledged the former vice president ’ s electoral victory in the form of a sulky letter claiming she was “ never directly or indirectly pressured ” by the White House to withhold approval of the transition .
“ Contrary to media reports and insinuations , my decision was not made out of fear or favoritism , ” Murphy wrote .
“ Instead , I strongly believe that the statute requires that the GSA Administrator ascertain , not impose , the apparent president-elect.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he had recommended that the official send the letter but insisted that his patently undemocratic attempt to steal the election from Biden through the courts “ STRONGLY continues.
” “ We will keep up the good fight , and I believe we will prevail !
” he tweeted .

A defiant President Donald Trump it made clear late Monday night that he plans to go down kicking and screaming in wake of his electoral loss even after the General Services Administration (GSA) gave President-elect Joe Biden the green light to formally begin the transition process.
“What does GSA being allowed to preliminarily work with the Dems have to do with continuing to pursue our various cases on what will go down as the most corrupt election in American political history?” he griped in a tweet chock-full of lies about the integrity of the election. “We are moving full speed ahead. Will never concede to fake ballots and ‘Dominion.'”
“Dominion” refers to the debunked far-right conspiracy theory alleging that the tech firm Dominion Voting Systems, which provides software to help states tabulate votes, had manipulated its software to sabotage the vote tallying process in Georgia and Michigan.
Additionally, there is no evidence of “fake ballots” swaying the election, and the slew of lawsuits from Trump’s legal team alleging mass voter fraud have consistently collapsed.
Earlier on Monday, GSA administrator Emily Murphy finally allowed the Biden team to begin its transition and acknowledged the former vice president’s electoral victory in the form of a sulky letter claiming she was “never directly or indirectly pressured” by the White House to withhold approval of the transition.
“Contrary to media reports and insinuations, my decision was not made out of fear or favoritism,” Murphy wrote. “Instead, I strongly believe that the statute requires that the GSA Administrator ascertain, not impose, the apparent president-elect.”
Trump claimed shortly afterward via Twitter that he had recommended that the official send the letter but insisted that his patently undemocratic attempt to steal the election from Biden through the courts “STRONGLY continues.”
“We will keep up the good fight, and I believe we will prevail!” he tweeted.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--Trump Complains On Speakerphone To PA GOP That No One Will ‘Overturn’ Election For Him

Midway through President Donald Trump ’ s testimony to the Pennsylvania Senate Majority Policy Committee on Wednesday , Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis received another incoming call on her cell phone .
That was a problem for Trump , because he was addressing the committee via speakerphone , and the beeps from the incoming call to his lawyer ’ s phone were an annoying interruption .
Trump was reportedly planning on attending the meeting in person with Ellis and the campaign ’ s other lead attorney as of late , Rudy Giuliani , but he ultimately decided against it .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ his point across : The Democrats cheated all over the country !
The election was fraudulent !
After all , he ’ d heard a commentator on television say there was no way he ’ d lost Pennsylvania , because “ the energy industry was all for him.
” In fact , not only had he won in Pennsylvania by a lot , he ’ d won “ all of these swing states ” by a lot .
His solution to this predicament was clear : He deserved to win , tallied votes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Why wouldn ’ t they overturn an election ?
” he seethed , referring to the judges who ’ ve rejected his campaign ’ s attempts .
Trump added later : “ We have to turn the election over , because there ’ s no doubt we have all the evidence , we have all the affidavits , we have everything .
All we need is to have some judge listen to it properly.
” Some elected officials might have been aghast at the President ’ s request to deliver him a “ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ will .
But Sen. David Argall ( R ) , the committee ’ s chairman , beamed .
“ What you ’ ve just heard guarantees that 100 years from now , that this is the most important public hearing ever held by this Senate committee , ” he said after Trump hung up .
Judges faced with the Trump campaign ’ s legal pitch haven ’ t been nearly as starstruck .
In case after case , they haven ’ t listened “ properly ” — meaning , they haven ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ So while Giuliani and Ellis ’ appearance before the committee was billed as a hearing on “ 2020 election issues and irregularities , ” Giuliani quickly made clear that he came with a singular demand : Deliver the state for Trump .
In real terms , Giuliani asked the state legislature to simply ignore more than 682,000 votes in Philadelphia and Allegheny County ( home to Pittsburgh ) that he falsely said “ were not observed by any single Republican.
” That ’ s not going to happen — the state has already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Joe Biden won .
But , apparently , the President ’ s team felt it was worth a shot .
“ We don ’ t want to disenfranchise anyone , ” Giuliani said , referring to a judge ’ s ruling against the campaign Saturday that summarized , “ Plaintiffs ask this Court to disenfranchise almost seven million voters.
” “ We want to disqualify 682,000 votes , ” Giuliani continued , “ so that 74 million people are not disenfranchised.
” To support that argument , Giuliani called up a series of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local party officials — each with their own gripe .
Playing prosecutor , Giuliani tried to build the case that hasn ’ t worked before actual judges , under threat of perjury .
Namely : Something smells fishy here , better overturn the election .
Unsurprisingly , the testimony didn ’ t fully cohere .
Some witnesses complained of the distances observers were required to stand away from where ballots were being counted , creating what they described as an insurmountable obstacle to election integrity .
Others complained of the county-by-county patchwork that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ opportunity than others to “ cure ” ballots rejected for technical errors .
David Shestokas , a Republican elections attorney , voiced frustration that mail-in ballots came tri-folded in envelopes , requiring elections workers to flatten them before counting them and creating delays .
“ There ’ d be workers kneading the ballots to try and make them so they could go through the machines !
” he said , calling the process “ absurd and obscene.
” ( Ironically , the state ’ s Republican-controlled legislature failed to pass legislation that would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of mail-in ballots , which would have addressed this concern . )
Lest the proceedings get too pedestrian , some of Giuliani ’ s witnesses spiced things up a little bit , even renewing the conspiracy theory offered by since-sacked Trump campaign attorney Sidney Powell at Giuliani ’ s last off-the-walls event , in which she made her case that communists had infiltrated America ’ s voting system .
“ The voting systems in the U.S. and in Pennsylvania were built to be manipulated , ” he said , explaining the lengthy chain @ @ @ @ @ @ @ behind America ’ s electoral infrastructure .
How did he know ?
Well , Waldron said , “ I know there ’ ve been statements to the contrary , but I personally debriefed the son of a Cuban intelligence officer , who had first-hand knowledge of Hugo Chavez ’ s family members , who told him not to worry about the populist threat against Maduro ’ s election in Venezuela .
Quote-unquote , that ‘ it was guaranteed , their father invested the money to build the SGO voting machine system.
’ ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ doubt this gentleman , ” Waldron said , as the hearing entered its second hour .

Midway through President Donald Trump’s testimony to the Pennsylvania Senate Majority Policy Committee on Wednesday, Trump campaign lawyer Jenna Ellis received another incoming call on her cell phone.
That was a problem for Trump, because he was addressing the committee via speakerphone, and the beeps from the incoming call to his lawyer’s phone were an annoying interruption. Trump was reportedly planning on attending the meeting in person with Ellis and the campaign’s other lead attorney as of late, Rudy Giuliani, but he ultimately decided against it.
Still, the President managed to get his point across: The Democrats cheated all over the country! The election was fraudulent! After all, he’d heard a commentator on television say there was no way he’d lost Pennsylvania, because “the energy industry was all for him.” In fact, not only had he won in Pennsylvania by a lot, he’d won “all of these swing states” by a lot.
His solution to this predicament was clear: He deserved to win, tallied votes and court losses be damned.
“Why wouldn’t they overturn an election?” he seethed, referring to the judges who’ve rejected his campaign’s attempts. Trump added later: “We have to turn the election over, because there’s no doubt we have all the evidence, we have all the affidavits, we have everything. All we need is to have some judge listen to it properly.”
Some elected officials might have been aghast at the President’s request to deliver him a “victory” in defiance of the voters’ will. But Sen. David Argall (R), the committee’s chairman, beamed.
“What you’ve just heard guarantees that 100 years from now, that this is the most important public hearing ever held by this Senate committee,” he said after Trump hung up.
Judges faced with the Trump campaign’s legal pitch haven’t been nearly as starstruck. In case after case, they haven’t listened “properly” — meaning, they haven’t delivered Trump a second term.
So while Giuliani and Ellis’ appearance before the committee was billed as a hearing on “2020 election issues and irregularities,” Giuliani quickly made clear that he came with a singular demand: Deliver the state for Trump.
In real terms, Giuliani asked the state legislature to simply ignore more than 682,000 votes in Philadelphia and Allegheny County (home to Pittsburgh) that he falsely said “were not observed by any single Republican.” That’s not going to happen — the state has already certified it’s results, and Joe Biden won. But, apparently, the President’s team felt it was worth a shot.
“We don’t want to disenfranchise anyone,” Giuliani said, referring to a judge’s ruling against the campaign Saturday that summarized, “Plaintiffs ask this Court to disenfranchise almost seven million voters.”
“We want to disqualify 682,000 votes,” Giuliani continued, “so that 74 million people are not disenfranchised.”
To support that argument, Giuliani called up a series of Republican witnesses — observers, lawyers, local party officials — each with their own gripe. Playing prosecutor, Giuliani tried to build the case that hasn’t worked before actual judges, under threat of perjury. Namely: Something smells fishy here, better overturn the election.
Unsurprisingly, the testimony didn’t fully cohere. Some witnesses complained of the distances observers were required to stand away from where ballots were being counted, creating what they described as an insurmountable obstacle to election integrity. Others complained of the county-by-county patchwork that meant voters in some areas got more opportunity than others to “cure” ballots rejected for technical errors.
David Shestokas, a Republican elections attorney, voiced frustration that mail-in ballots came tri-folded in envelopes, requiring elections workers to flatten them before counting them and creating delays.
“There’d be workers kneading the ballots to try and make them so they could go through the machines!” he said, calling the process “absurd and obscene.” (Ironically, the state’s Republican-controlled legislature failed to pass legislation that would’ve allowed for “pre-canvassing” of mail-in ballots, which would have addressed this concern.)
Lest the proceedings get too pedestrian, some of Giuliani’s witnesses spiced things up a little bit, even renewing the conspiracy theory offered by since-sacked Trump campaign attorney Sidney Powell at Giuliani’s last off-the-walls event, in which she made her case that communists had infiltrated America’s voting system.
Phil Waldron, a retired Army colonel, did the heavy lifting.
“The voting systems in the U.S. and in Pennsylvania were built to be manipulated,” he said, explaining the lengthy chain of title of the corrupt communist DNA behind America’s electoral infrastructure.
How did he know?
Well, Waldron said, “I know there’ve been statements to the contrary, but I personally debriefed the son of a Cuban intelligence officer, who had first-hand knowledge of Hugo Chavez’s family members, who told him not to worry about the populist threat against Maduro’s election in Venezuela. Quote-unquote, that ‘it was guaranteed, their father invested the money to build the SGO voting machine system.’”
“So… I have no reason to doubt this gentleman,” Waldron said, as the hearing entered its second hour.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--‘Not Going To Lose This War’: Biden Vows To Defeat Coronavirus Pandemic

President-elect Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a searing message to Americans fighting fatigue from the COVID-19 pandemic on Wednesday , urging the U.S. to not give up the fight .
Biden promised his administration will be unrelenting in its battle against a virus that has largely spun out of control as infection rates surge around the country and as his soon-to-be predecessor seems largely resigned to continue politicizing the virus .
“ There is real hope , tangible hope .
So hang on .
Don ’ t let yourself surrender to the fatigue , ” Biden said in an address @ @ @ @ @ @ @ emergence of promising COVID-19 vaccines poised for distribution .
He urged Americans to be vigilant in observing guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to combat the spread of the coronavirus over the Thanksgiving holiday .
The message — mask-wearing and social-distancing , were not new — and yet President Trump who has bunkered strongly since his electoral defeat has remained largely silent in his leadership on curbing the virus even as coronavirus deaths have topped more than a quarter-million in the U.S. “ America is not going to lose @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lives back .
Life is going to return to normal , ” Biden said .
The incoming President offered a thinly-veiled criticism of President Trump ’ s pandemic response , suggesting that none of the science-driven guidance that would be put forward in the coming months as he takes his place in the White House would take sides in a partisan fight .
“ None of these steps we ’ re asking people to take are political statements , ” Biden said .
“ Every one of them is based in science.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the President-elect made after he was declared the projected winner of the presidential election on Nov. 7 , when he said that he would “ marshal the forces of science ” to battle the coronavirus pandemic .
At that time he vowed to make a national pandemic response his top priority even before he is inaugurated as President .
The remarks on Wednesday were a sharp departure from President Donald Trump ’ s continuous efforts to undermine the wisdom of scientists and health experts within his own administration with regard to battling the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ buffeted by a hopeful spirit about a future unhindered by coronavirus , also touched on the nation ’ s recent battle to uphold democracy amid President Trump ’ s ongoing efforts to overturn the will of the people by advancing baseless claims aimed at whittling away the integrity of the vote in a number of battleground states that he lost in his failed reelection bid .
“ Our democracy was tested this year , ” Biden said .
He appeared to indirectly address President Trump when he declared that American democracy would prevail @ @ @ @ @ @ @ observed .
“ In America , we have full and fair and free elections , and then we honor the results .
The people of this nation and the laws of the land won ’ t stand for anything else , ” Biden said .
The President-elect who who will be tasked with serving as a unifying force in a fiercely divided country , called on Americans of all political persuasions to “ come together and work together ” and jointly “ write a newer , bolder , more compassionate chapter in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the vote — the noblest instrument of nonviolent protest ever conceived — we are reminded anew that progress is possible , ” Biden said .

President-elect Joe Biden on Wednesday delivered a searing message to Americans fighting fatigue from the COVID-19 pandemic, urging the U.S. to not give up the fight. Biden promised his administration will be unrelenting in its battle against a virus that has largely spun out of control as infection rates surge around the country and as his soon-to-be predecessor seems largely resigned to continue politicizing the virus.
“There is real hope, tangible hope. So hang on. Don’t let yourself surrender to the fatigue,” Biden said in an address from Wilmington, Delaware, lauding the emergence of promising COVID-19 vaccines poised for distribution. He urged Americans to be vigilant in observing guidance issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to combat the spread of the coronavirus over the Thanksgiving holiday.
"America is not going to lose this war," Biden said in a Thanksgiving address on Wednesday, urging Americans not to surrender to fatigue in combating the coronavirus pandemic. "Life is going to return to normal, I promise you," he said. pic.twitter.com/SyB66Og0mZ — TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) November 25, 2020
The message — mask-wearing and social-distancing, were not new — and yet President Trump who has bunkered strongly since his electoral defeat has remained largely silent in his leadership on curbing the virus even as coronavirus deaths have topped more than a quarter-million in the U.S.
“America is not going to lose this war. You will get your lives back. Life is going to return to normal,” Biden said.
The incoming President offered a thinly-veiled criticism of President Trump’s pandemic response, suggesting that none of the science-driven guidance that would be put forward in the coming months as he takes his place in the White House would take sides in a partisan fight.
“None of these steps we’re asking people to take are political statements,” Biden said. “Every one of them is based in science.”
The comments which were consistent with remarks the President-elect made after he was declared the projected winner of the presidential election on Nov. 7, when he said that he would “marshal the forces of science” to battle the coronavirus pandemic. At that time he vowed to make a national pandemic response his top priority even before he is inaugurated as President.
The remarks on Wednesday were a sharp departure from President Donald Trump’s continuous efforts to undermine the wisdom of scientists and health experts within his own administration with regard to battling the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden’s words buffeted by a hopeful spirit about a future unhindered by coronavirus, also touched on the nation’s recent battle to uphold democracy amid President Trump’s ongoing efforts to overturn the will of the people by advancing baseless claims aimed at whittling away the integrity of the vote in a number of battleground states that he lost in his failed reelection bid.
“Our democracy was tested this year,” Biden said.
He appeared to indirectly address President Trump when he declared that American democracy would prevail and the voters’ vision would be observed.
“In America, we have full and fair and free elections, and then we honor the results. The people of this nation and the laws of the land won’t stand for anything else,” Biden said.
The President-elect who who will be tasked with serving as a unifying force in a fiercely divided country, called on Americans of all political persuasions to “come together and work together” and jointly “write a newer, bolder, more compassionate chapter in the life of our nation.”
“Through the vote — the noblest instrument of nonviolent protest ever conceived — we are reminded anew that progress is possible,” Biden said.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--Trump Announces Pardon For Mike Flynn

Trump Announces Pardon For Mike Flynn

President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced his pardon of his former National Security advisor Michael Flynn , who pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to the FBI about his Russian contacts .
Trump himself had fired Flynn from the White House , ostensibly for misleading administration officials about the communications as well .
Before announcing the pardon on Twitter , Trump told Flynn ’ s lawyer Sidney Powell of his decision , Powell confirmed to TPM .
Flynn ’ s prosecution has been in turmoil for several months now .
The Justice Department sought to dismiss Flynn ’ s case @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over the case sought to probe the circumstances of that dismissal request , rather than grant the request immediately .
The pardon marks a denouement to one of the most dramatic episodes of Justice Department politicization during the Trump era .
While it always seemed plausible that Trump would ultimately pardon Flynn — as Flynn ’ s prosecution drove Trump ’ s baseless claims that the Russia probe was a witch hunt — how his Justice Department instead contorted itself in a gambit to clear Flynn of guilt instead prompted widespread concerns about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the judiciary .
The DOJ ’ s maneuvers in the case under Attorney General Bill Barr also appeared designed to launder into public view selected documents from the start of the Russia probe , which Trump ’ s allies in the media in turn used to paint Trump the victim of a Deep State coup .
In a statement Wednesday , White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany leaned into that narrative , calling Flynn a “ victim of partisan government officials engaged in a coordinated attempt to subvert the election of 2016.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ the start of the Russia probe have backed the decision to launch it , and the Justice Department ’ s own insinuations that Flynn was the target of an anti-Trump plot have been undermined by other documents that it has filed in the case .
Flynn is the second key figure in the Russia probe to receive a reprieve from the President .
Earlier this year , Trump granted a commutation to his longtime confidante Roger Stone , who was convicted by a jury last year of lying to Congress in its Russia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler called the pardon “ undeserved , unprincipled , and one more stain on President Trump ’ s rapidly diminishing legacy.
” “ This pardon is part of a pattern , ” Nadler said .
“ We saw it before , in the Roger Stone case — where President Trump granted clemency to protect an individual who might have implicated the President in criminal misconduct .
We may see it again before President Trump finally leaves office .
These actions are an abuse of power and fundamentally undermine the rule @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Schiff likewise saw Flynn ’ s pardon as part of a pattern of Trump abusing his power to “ reward friends and protect those who covered up for him.
” Flynn ’ s false statements stemmed from a Jan. 2017 interview he gave the FBI .
During the interview , he gave false and misleading statements about the communications he had with then-Russian ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak .
In multiple conversations , in December 2016 , Flynn had discussed with Kislyak sanctions the Obama administration was imposing on Russia for its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pleaded guilty in Dec. 2017 , as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller ’ s investigations , to the false statements — a plea he twice affirmed in court , first during his initial 2017 plea hearing and again in 2018 , when he was initially scheduled to be sentenced .
As part of his agreement with Mueller , Flynn also admitted to unregistered lobbying he was doing on Turkey ’ s behalf while serving as a top advisor on the Trump campaign .
While that conduct was not part of the formal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ serious criticism , including from U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan , the judge that is presiding over Flynn ’ s case .
At the aborted 2018 sentencing hearing , Sullivan said that Flynn “ arguably sold ” his “ country out.
” When it was clear from those comments — along with Sullivan ’ s frustration that Flynn ’ s sentencing memos soft pedaled his false statements to the FBI — that the judge was likely to not go along with the easy , incarceration-free sentence Mueller had recommended , Flynn asked to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continue to cooperate with prosecutors and earn that benefit for his final sentence .
But in the summer of 2019 , Flynn fired the legal team that negotiated the plea deal and hired Powell , who had been attacking Mueller in media appearances .
They took a hostile posture to the prosecutors that culminated in Flynn ’ s own indication to the court that he intended back out of the plea agreement , claiming that he had been entrapped by the agents .
For several months , the DOJ continued to defend the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a move that prompted the Mueller probe veteran leading the prosecution , a career attorney , to withdraw from the case — it said it would be seeking a dismissal instead .
The reversal was viewed as the greatest example yet of Trump ’ s ability , via Attorney General Barr , to interfere with the Department ’ s prosecutions .
Barr had been privately asked to dismiss the case by Powell in 2019 .
In her White House statement , McEnany asserted that the Department had “ firmly concluded that the charges @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ This Full Pardon achieves that objective , finally bringing to an end the relentless , partisan pursuit of an innocent man , ” her statement said .
The DOJ ’ s attempt to whitewash Flynn of his guilty plea hit a roadblock earlier this year when Sullivan did not immediately drop the case , and instead signaled he intended to air out in public the ham-handedness of the DOJ ’ s change of course .
The summer was marked by a protracted court fight over whether Sullivan was obligated to automatically drop @ @ @ @ @ @ @ invite so-called friends-of-the-court to file briefings opposing the dismissal .
Sullivan ultimately got the OK from the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C .
Circuit to move forward with his consideration of the dismissal request and the court also OKed Sullivan ’ s move to appoint a retired federal judge , John Gleeson , as a friend of the court to oppose that request .
The judge ’ s last major move in the case was to host a hearing on Sept. 29 .
After the hearing , the judge ordered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the documents it filed and to explain its rationale for wanting the case dropped .
The Justice Department claimed the alterations were inadvertent .
At the hearing , Gleeson pointed to the President ’ s pardon power as a reason why the DOJ should not be allowed to use the judiciary to take Flynn “ off the hook ” instead .
“ If the executive wants to take Michael Flynn off the hook , it could pardon him , ” Gleeson said .
“ Because if it does that , it doesn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ court in the unseemly desire to scuttle the case because the defendant is a friend of the President ’ s. ” Powell , Flynn ’ s lawyer , has been assisting Trump ’ s flailing efforts to overturn his defeat in the 2020 election — though the Trump campaign has tried to distance itself from her more sensational conspiracy theories about a supposedly rigged election .
Trump ’ s effort to reverse the results continues nonetheless , and he ’ s explicitly called for legislators in states that went for Biden to award @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s statement , seemingly without any sense of irony , said it was the 2016 election in which an outgoing President and his allies tried to subvert the will of the people .
“ After the 2016 election , individuals within the outgoing administration refused to accept the choice the American people had made at the ballot box and worked to undermine the peaceful transition of power , ” she said .
This post has been updated .

President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced his pardon of his former National Security advisor Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to the FBI about his Russian contacts. Trump himself had fired Flynn from the White House, ostensibly for misleading administration officials about the communications as well.
It is my Great Honor to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted a Full Pardon. Congratulations to @GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 25, 2020
Before announcing the pardon on Twitter, Trump told Flynn’s lawyer Sidney Powell of his decision, Powell confirmed to TPM.
Flynn’s prosecution has been in turmoil for several months now. The Justice Department sought to dismiss Flynn’s case in May, but the judge presiding over the case sought to probe the circumstances of that dismissal request, rather than grant the request immediately.
The pardon marks a denouement to one of the most dramatic episodes of Justice Department politicization during the Trump era. While it always seemed plausible that Trump would ultimately pardon Flynn — as Flynn’s prosecution drove Trump’s baseless claims that the Russia probe was a witch hunt — how his Justice Department instead contorted itself in a gambit to clear Flynn of guilt instead prompted widespread concerns about the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary.
The DOJ’s maneuvers in the case under Attorney General Bill Barr also appeared designed to launder into public view selected documents from the start of the Russia probe, which Trump’s allies in the media in turn used to paint Trump the victim of a Deep State coup.
In a statement Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany leaned into that narrative, calling Flynn a “victim of partisan government officials engaged in a coordinated attempt to subvert the election of 2016.”
In fact, multiple reviews of the start of the Russia probe have backed the decision to launch it, and the Justice Department’s own insinuations that Flynn was the target of an anti-Trump plot have been undermined by other documents that it has filed in the case.
Flynn is the second key figure in the Russia probe to receive a reprieve from the President. Earlier this year, Trump granted a commutation to his longtime confidante Roger Stone, who was convicted by a jury last year of lying to Congress in its Russia investigation.
In a statement, House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler called the pardon “undeserved, unprincipled, and one more stain on President Trump’s rapidly diminishing legacy.”
“This pardon is part of a pattern,” Nadler said. “We saw it before, in the Roger Stone case — where President Trump granted clemency to protect an individual who might have implicated the President in criminal misconduct. We may see it again before President Trump finally leaves office. These actions are an abuse of power and fundamentally undermine the rule of law.”
House Intelligence Chairman Adam Schiff likewise saw Flynn’s pardon as part of a pattern of Trump abusing his power to “reward friends and protect those who covered up for him.”
Donald Trump has repeatedly abused the pardon power to reward friends and protect those who covered up for him. This time he pardons Michael Flynn, who lied to hide his dealings with the Russians. It’s no surprise that Trump would go out as he came in — Crooked to the end. — Adam Schiff (@RepAdamSchiff) November 25, 2020
Flynn’s false statements stemmed from a Jan. 2017 interview he gave the FBI. During the interview, he gave false and misleading statements about the communications he had with then-Russian ambassador to the U.S. Sergey Kislyak. In multiple conversations, in December 2016, Flynn had discussed with Kislyak sanctions the Obama administration was imposing on Russia for its interference in the 2016 election.
Flynn pleaded guilty in Dec. 2017, as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigations, to the false statements — a plea he twice affirmed in court, first during his initial 2017 plea hearing and again in 2018, when he was initially scheduled to be sentenced.
As part of his agreement with Mueller, Flynn also admitted to unregistered lobbying he was doing on Turkey’s behalf while serving as a top advisor on the Trump campaign. While that conduct was not part of the formal charges Flynn pleaded to, it drew serious criticism, including from U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan, the judge that is presiding over Flynn’s case.
At the aborted 2018 sentencing hearing, Sullivan said that Flynn “arguably sold” his “country out.” When it was clear from those comments — along with Sullivan’s frustration that Flynn’s sentencing memos soft pedaled his false statements to the FBI — that the judge was likely to not go along with the easy, incarceration-free sentence Mueller had recommended, Flynn asked to delay the sentencing, so he could continue to cooperate with prosecutors and earn that benefit for his final sentence.
But in the summer of 2019, Flynn fired the legal team that negotiated the plea deal and hired Powell, who had been attacking Mueller in media appearances. They took a hostile posture to the prosecutors that culminated in Flynn’s own indication to the court that he intended back out of the plea agreement, claiming that he had been entrapped by the agents. For several months, the DOJ continued to defend the prosecutions, but in May — in a move that prompted the Mueller probe veteran leading the prosecution, a career attorney, to withdraw from the case — it said it would be seeking a dismissal instead.
The reversal was viewed as the greatest example yet of Trump’s ability, via Attorney General Barr, to interfere with the Department’s prosecutions. Barr had been privately asked to dismiss the case by Powell in 2019.
In her White House statement, McEnany asserted that the Department had “firmly concluded that the charges against General Flynn should be dropped.”
“This Full Pardon achieves that objective, finally bringing to an end the relentless, partisan pursuit of an innocent man,” her statement said.
The DOJ’s attempt to whitewash Flynn of his guilty plea hit a roadblock earlier this year when Sullivan did not immediately drop the case, and instead signaled he intended to air out in public the ham-handedness of the DOJ’s change of course.
The summer was marked by a protracted court fight over whether Sullivan was obligated to automatically drop the case, or if he could invite so-called friends-of-the-court to file briefings opposing the dismissal.
Sullivan ultimately got the OK from the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to move forward with his consideration of the dismissal request and the court also OKed Sullivan’s move to appoint a retired federal judge, John Gleeson, as a friend of the court to oppose that request.
The judge’s last major move in the case was to host a hearing on Sept. 29. After the hearing, the judge ordered the DOJ to explain apparent alterations to the documents it filed and to explain its rationale for wanting the case dropped. The Justice Department claimed the alterations were inadvertent.
At the hearing, Gleeson pointed to the President’s pardon power as a reason why the DOJ should not be allowed to use the judiciary to take Flynn “off the hook” instead.
“If the executive wants to take Michael Flynn off the hook, it could pardon him,” Gleeson said. “Because if it does that, it doesn’t bind up this judge, this court in the unseemly desire to scuttle the case because the defendant is a friend of the President’s.”
Powell, Flynn’s lawyer, has been assisting Trump’s flailing efforts to overturn his defeat in the 2020 election — though the Trump campaign has tried to distance itself from her more sensational conspiracy theories about a supposedly rigged election. Trump’s effort to reverse the results continues nonetheless, and he’s explicitly called for legislators in states that went for Biden to award him presidential electors instead.
McEnany’s statement, seemingly without any sense of irony, said it was the 2016 election in which an outgoing President and his allies tried to subvert the will of the people.
“After the 2016 election, individuals within the outgoing administration refused to accept the choice the American people had made at the ballot box and worked to undermine the peaceful transition of power,” she said.
This post has been updated.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--Biden Team: We’re Moving On With Or Without Trump

Biden communications director Kate Bedingfield and transition senior adviser Jen Psaki on Wednesday denied that the President-elect needs President Trump ’ s help now that General Services Administration chief Emily Murphy has green lit Biden ’ s formal transition .
While Psaki and Bedingfield confirmed during a transition briefing on Wednesday that Biden and Vice-President elect Kamala Harris are expected to receive the Presidential Daily briefing next week , and that the team has been in contact with more than 50 major federal agencies , they also assured that a conversation with the sitting President ( who still refuses to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ When asked whether Biden would need to talk to Trump to ensure a smooth transition , or if the team is receiving “ sufficient information ” from conversations with people in the West Wing and at the agency level thus far , Bedingfield replied that a conversation is not necessary .
“ We do not feel that it is necessary for President-elect Biden to speak with President Trump to get that information , ” Bedingfield said .
“ We believe we ’ ve been getting the information that our teams need.
” Bedingfield @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to speaking with Trump if the sitting President would like to .
“ Certainly should President Trump want to speak with President-elect Biden , then that ’ s something we would work out in the future , ” Bedingfield said .
“ But in terms of whether it is mission critical to being able to move the transition forward efficiently , no.
” Bedingfield and Psaki ’ s remarks comes a day after Biden introduced his first Cabinet and administration picks for national security and foreign policy positions , and highlighted the diversity @ @ @ @

Biden communications director Kate Bedingfield and transition senior adviser Jen Psaki on Wednesday denied that the President-elect needs President Trump’s help now that General Services Administration chief Emily Murphy has green lit Biden’s formal transition.
While Psaki and Bedingfield confirmed during a transition briefing on Wednesday that Biden and Vice-President elect Kamala Harris are expected to receive the Presidential Daily briefing next week, and that the team has been in contact with more than 50 major federal agencies, they also assured that a conversation with the sitting President (who still refuses to concede) isn’t essential.
When asked whether Biden would need to talk to Trump to ensure a smooth transition, or if the team is receiving “sufficient information” from conversations with people in the West Wing and at the agency level thus far, Bedingfield replied that a conversation is not necessary.
“We do not feel that it is necessary for President-elect Biden to speak with President Trump to get that information,” Bedingfield said. “We believe we’ve been getting the information that our teams need.”
Bedingfield added that the transition team is open to speaking with Trump if the sitting President would like to.
“Certainly should President Trump want to speak with President-elect Biden, then that’s something we would work out in the future,” Bedingfield said. “But in terms of whether it is mission critical to being able to move the transition forward efficiently, no.”
Bedingfield and Psaki’s remarks comes a day after Biden introduced his first Cabinet and administration picks for national security and foreign policy positions, and highlighted the diversity of his selections.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--GA Secretary Of State: My Family Voted Trump And Was ‘Thrown Under The Bus’

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger ( R ) said in an opinion piece published in USA Today on Wednesday that even as his state became embroiled in a national dispute over election integrity that was weaponized by the Trump campaign , his own family , who voted for President Donald Trump ’ s reelection “ lost ” when a recount revealed President-elect Biden ’ s lead .
“ My family voted for him , donated to him and are now being thrown under the bus by him , ” Raffensperger said of President Trump .
The remarks come as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of election fraud in a state that typically votes overwhelming Republican and that Trump won in 2016 .
“ By all accounts , Georgia had a wildly successful and smooth election , ” the Republican state official wrote in the op-ed .
“ This should be something for Georgians to celebrate , whether their favored presidential candidate won or lost .
For those wondering , mine lost.
” Raffensperger has received the brunt of President Donald Trump ’ s fury over his election loss in Georgia .
Trump has stooped to his characteristic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in tweets as a “ so-called Republican.
” Trump has repeatedly railed on Raffensperger ’ s efforts to uphold the integrity of the vote in a state that entered battleground status this year and ultimately flipped from ruby red to blue , with Biden ’ s win .
Georgia tallied roughly 5 million votes in this year ’ s election and reported record absentee voter turnout and record-shattering early voting .
Raffensperger said that amid those record-highs he remained committed to his promise when he took office to conduct the state ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the process and its outcome even as high-profile Republicans pressured him to find ways to subtract votes .
Trump ’ s most recent tantrum sprang from a hand recount of the state ’ s vote which on Monday revealed results consistent with the original tally — that President Trump lost to President-elect Joe Biden in Georgia .
Biden led the state by 12,670 votes , according to that count .
Although President Trump has sought to overturn the will of the people in several battleground states since he lost , Raffensperger said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impartially , saying , “ that ’ s not partisan .
That ’ s just American.
” Raffensperger disavowed what he called “ an onslaught of fake news and unrepentant disinformation ” which he said threatened the underpinnings of American democracy .
The GOP official suggested that the losing presidential campaign “ refused to accept the facts ” and angered by the election ’ s initial outcome had been opportunistic in forcing the full hand recount .
A second recount is now underway by Trump ’ s request .
“ Those who had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ process sought to tear it apart at its very foundations , ” Raffensperger wrote , cautioning that the integrity of leaders tasked with carrying out the rules of democracy is critical to preserving its integrity .

Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) said in an opinion piece published in USA Today on Wednesday that even as his state became embroiled in a national dispute over election integrity that was weaponized by the Trump campaign, his own family, who voted for President Donald Trump’s reelection “lost” when a recount revealed President-elect Biden’s lead.
“My family voted for him, donated to him and are now being thrown under the bus by him,” Raffensperger said of President Trump.
The remarks come as Trump and his allies make baseless accusations of election fraud in a state that typically votes overwhelming Republican and that Trump won in 2016.
“By all accounts, Georgia had a wildly successful and smooth election,” the Republican state official wrote in the op-ed. “This should be something for Georgians to celebrate, whether their favored presidential candidate won or lost. For those wondering, mine lost.”
Raffensperger has received the brunt of President Donald Trump’s fury over his election loss in Georgia.
Trump has stooped to his characteristic name-calling, referring to the state official in tweets as a “so-called Republican.” Trump has repeatedly railed on Raffensperger’s efforts to uphold the integrity of the vote in a state that entered battleground status this year and ultimately flipped from ruby red to blue, with Biden’s win.
Georgia tallied roughly 5 million votes in this year’s election and reported record absentee voter turnout and record-shattering early voting.
Raffensperger said that amid those record-highs he remained committed to his promise when he took office to conduct the state’s elections with integrity, ensuring voters confidence in the process and its outcome even as high-profile Republicans pressured him to find ways to subtract votes.
Trump’s most recent tantrum sprang from a hand recount of the state’s vote which on Monday revealed results consistent with the original tally — that President Trump lost to President-elect Joe Biden in Georgia. Biden led the state by 12,670 votes, according to that count.
Although President Trump has sought to overturn the will of the people in several battleground states since he lost, Raffensperger said that elections should be administered fairly and impartially, saying, “that’s not partisan. That’s just American.”
Raffensperger disavowed what he called “an onslaught of fake news and unrepentant disinformation” which he said threatened the underpinnings of American democracy.
The GOP official suggested that the losing presidential campaign “refused to accept the facts” and angered by the election’s initial outcome had been opportunistic in forcing the full hand recount. A second recount is now underway by Trump’s request.
“Those who had so long been beneficiaries of the electoral process sought to tear it apart at its very foundations,” Raffensperger wrote, cautioning that the integrity of leaders tasked with carrying out the rules of democracy is critical to preserving its integrity.


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--David Perdue Boosted Wealth With Well-Timed Stock Trades As Pandemic Hit

WASHINGTON ( AP ) — As the ravages of the novel coronavirus forced millions of people out of work , shuttered businesses and shrank the value of retirement accounts , the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged to a three-year low .
But for Sen. David Perdue , a Georgia Republican , the crisis last March signaled something else : a stock buying opportunity .
And for the second time in less than two months , Perdue ’ s timing was impeccable .
He avoided a sharp loss and reaped a stunning gain by selling and then buying the same stock @ @ @ @ @ @ @ company on whose board of directors he once served .
On Jan. 23 , as word spread through Congress that the coronavirus posed a major economic and public health threat , Perdue sold off $ 1 million to $ 5 million in Cardlytics stock at $ 86 a share before it plunged , according to congressional disclosures .
Weeks later , in March , after the company ’ s stock plunged further following an unexpected leadership shakeup and lower-than-forecast earnings , Perdue bought the stock back for $ 30 a share , investing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Those shares have now quadrupled in value , closing at $ 121 a share on Tuesday .
The Cardlytics transactions were just a slice of a large number of investment decisions made in the early days of the pandemic by Perdue and other senators .
They stirred public outrage after it became clear that some members of Congress had been briefed on the economic and health threat the virus posed .
The transactions were mentioned briefly in a story published by the Intercept in May .
Now that Perdue is locked in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 5 runoff , his trades during a public health and economic crisis have become an issue in what already has become a negative , expensive campaign that will determine which party controls the Senate .
There is no evidence that Perdue , who is among the wealthier members of the Senate , acted on information gained as a member of Congress or through his long-standing relationship with company officials .
It ’ s illegal to use nonpublic information gained as a company insider or member of Congress to make investment decisions .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sale , the fact that he quickly bought Cardlytics stock back when it had lost two-thirds of its market value and his close ties to company officials all warrant scrutiny .
“ This does seem suspicious , ” said John C. Coffee Jr. , a Columbia University law school professor who specializes in corporate and securities issues .
But he added , “ You need more than suspicions to convict.
” The Perdue campaign declined a request for an interview with the senator .
In a statement , Perdue spokesperson John Burke said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but did not provide details .
“ The bi-partisan Senate Ethics Committee , DOJ and SEC all independently and swiftly cleared Senator Perdue months ago , which was reported on , ” Burke said .
Perdue ’ s opponent , Democrat Jon Ossoff , has seized on his stock trading while trying to brand him as a “ crook.
” Perdue is not the only senator on the ballot in Georgia .
Sen. Kelly Loeffler , also a Republican , is running against Democrat Raphael Warnock in a bid to complete the remainder @ @ @ @ @ @ @ term .
Perdue ’ s Cardlytics transactions fit into a broader pattern of stock moves he made when the coronavirus first struck the U.S. At the time , Perdue publicly maintained that the economy was strong and praised President Donald Trump during a Feb. 24 interview on Fox News Channel for “ executing the greatest economic turnaround in U.S. history.
” A series of swift transactions in his portfolio told a different story , however , showing the senator dumped some company stocks , while investing in others — like protective equipment maker @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were poised to do well during the pandemic .
Perdue has previously said that outside financial advisers make most of his trades .
But Donna Nagy , an Indiana University law professor , said that type of arrangement doesn ’ t preclude Perdue from directing an adviser to make specific transactions .
She said one way for members of Congress to avoid questions about their financial holdings is to put them in a blind trust , which Perdue has not done .
“ All of these questions about the motivations behind our members @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could be alleviated if Congress passed a law that limited investments , ” said Nagy , who specializes in securities law .
“ Ordinary citizens should not have to question members of Congress about their investments.
” The issue was enough of a liability that Perdue abruptly sold off between $ 3.2 million and $ 9.4 million of his stock portfolio over a four-day period in mid-April , according to an Associated Press review of mandatory financial disclosures he has submitted to the Senate .
He did not sell his stock in Cardlytics @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the same degree of scrutiny faced by some of his colleagues .
Republican Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina drew the most attention and stepped down as Senate Intelligence Committee chair amid a probe of his sale of upward of $ 1.7 million in stock , which came when he was privately warning some well-heeled constituents about the virus while publicly downplaying the threat .
Cardlytics works at the intersection of banking and online marketing .
It helps run rewards programs for financial institutions , including Wells Fargo , using data the banks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to them — similar to what Facebook does with targeted ads .
The company did not respond to a request for comment .
After the March turmoil , its share price dramatically rebounded .
Lynne Laube , Cardlytics ’ current CEO , said the pandemic had a lot to do with it , driving consumer interest in savings programs .
“ I hate to say this pandemic is playing in our favor , but it ’ s playing in our favor , ” she said during an earnings call in May .
Perdue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ options offered for his service on the company ’ s board from 2010 to 2014 , when he stepped down after winning his Senate seat , Securities and Exchange Commission filings show .
The company , which at the time had not yet gone public , also offered him options that would become available in October 2020 and January 2022 .
Perdue ’ s latest financial disclosures do not indicate whether he has exercised the options that became available in October .
But according to Coffee , the Columbia University law professor , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the company .
“ I ’ ve never seen options extended from 2014 to 2022 , ” he said .
“ That ’ s a very long extension.
” While Perdue left the company ’ s board , he has maintained ties to some of its executives , who have donated more than $ 30,000 to his political committees .
Donations made to Perdue account for nearly 80 % of all giving to federal candidates by Cardlytics employees over the past decade , records show .
Perdue , meanwhile , has used social @ @ @ @ @ @ @ August 2016 , he took a tour of its office and posed for a photo with Laube and then-CEO Scott Grimes , which he posted to Facebook .
In fall 2019 , he introduced Laube and Grimes at a gala in Atlanta , where they received a business achievement award .
Isakson , who served with Perdue , took steps to avoid the type of scrutiny Perdue is now facing .
Isakson , a Republican , put most of his own holdings in a blind trust after some of his assets drew unwanted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I need to be as patently pure and patently clean as anybody , and the best way to do that is a blind trust , ” Isakson , who served on the Senate ’ s finance and ethics committees , told the Atlanta Journal Constitution in 2017 .
“ I don ’ t know what I own .
”

WASHINGTON (AP) — As the ravages of the novel coronavirus forced millions of people out of work, shuttered businesses and shrank the value of retirement accounts, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged to a three-year low.
But for Sen. David Perdue, a Georgia Republican, the crisis last March signaled something else: a stock buying opportunity.
And for the second time in less than two months, Perdue’s timing was impeccable. He avoided a sharp loss and reaped a stunning gain by selling and then buying the same stock: Cardlytics, an Atlanta-based financial technology company on whose board of directors he once served.
On Jan. 23, as word spread through Congress that the coronavirus posed a major economic and public health threat, Perdue sold off $1 million to $5 million in Cardlytics stock at $86 a share before it plunged, according to congressional disclosures.
Weeks later, in March, after the company’s stock plunged further following an unexpected leadership shakeup and lower-than-forecast earnings, Perdue bought the stock back for $30 a share, investing between $200,000 and $500,000.
Those shares have now quadrupled in value, closing at $121 a share on Tuesday.
The Cardlytics transactions were just a slice of a large number of investment decisions made in the early days of the pandemic by Perdue and other senators. They stirred public outrage after it became clear that some members of Congress had been briefed on the economic and health threat the virus posed. The transactions were mentioned briefly in a story published by the Intercept in May.
Now that Perdue is locked in a pitched battle for reelection in a Jan. 5 runoff, his trades during a public health and economic crisis have become an issue in what already has become a negative, expensive campaign that will determine which party controls the Senate.
There is no evidence that Perdue, who is among the wealthier members of the Senate, acted on information gained as a member of Congress or through his long-standing relationship with company officials. It’s illegal to use nonpublic information gained as a company insider or member of Congress to make investment decisions.
But legal experts say the timing of his sale, the fact that he quickly bought Cardlytics stock back when it had lost two-thirds of its market value and his close ties to company officials all warrant scrutiny.
“This does seem suspicious,” said John C. Coffee Jr., a Columbia University law school professor who specializes in corporate and securities issues. But he added, “You need more than suspicions to convict.”
The Perdue campaign declined a request for an interview with the senator. In a statement, Perdue spokesperson John Burke said the senator had been cleared of wrongdoing but did not provide details.
“The bi-partisan Senate Ethics Committee, DOJ and SEC all independently and swiftly cleared Senator Perdue months ago, which was reported on,” Burke said.
Perdue’s opponent, Democrat Jon Ossoff, has seized on his stock trading while trying to brand him as a “crook.”
Perdue is not the only senator on the ballot in Georgia. Sen. Kelly Loeffler, also a Republican, is running against Democrat Raphael Warnock in a bid to complete the remainder of retired Sen. Johnny Isakson’s term.
Perdue’s Cardlytics transactions fit into a broader pattern of stock moves he made when the coronavirus first struck the U.S.
At the time, Perdue publicly maintained that the economy was strong and praised President Donald Trump during a Feb. 24 interview on Fox News Channel for “executing the greatest economic turnaround in U.S. history.”
A series of swift transactions in his portfolio told a different story, however, showing the senator dumped some company stocks, while investing in others — like protective equipment maker DuPont and pharmaceutical company Pfizer — that were poised to do well during the pandemic.
Perdue has previously said that outside financial advisers make most of his trades.
But Donna Nagy, an Indiana University law professor, said that type of arrangement doesn’t preclude Perdue from directing an adviser to make specific transactions. She said one way for members of Congress to avoid questions about their financial holdings is to put them in a blind trust, which Perdue has not done.
“All of these questions about the motivations behind our members of Congress and their personal securities trading could be alleviated if Congress passed a law that limited investments,” said Nagy, who specializes in securities law. “Ordinary citizens should not have to question members of Congress about their investments.”
The issue was enough of a liability that Perdue abruptly sold off between $3.2 million and $9.4 million of his stock portfolio over a four-day period in mid-April, according to an Associated Press review of mandatory financial disclosures he has submitted to the Senate. He did not sell his stock in Cardlytics.
Still, Perdue has largely avoided the same degree of scrutiny faced by some of his colleagues.
Republican Sen. Richard Burr of North Carolina drew the most attention and stepped down as Senate Intelligence Committee chair amid a probe of his sale of upward of $1.7 million in stock, which came when he was privately warning some well-heeled constituents about the virus while publicly downplaying the threat.
Cardlytics works at the intersection of banking and online marketing. It helps run rewards programs for financial institutions, including Wells Fargo, using data the banks have gathered on their customers to market to them — similar to what Facebook does with targeted ads.
The company did not respond to a request for comment.
After the March turmoil, its share price dramatically rebounded. Lynne Laube, Cardlytics’ current CEO, said the pandemic had a lot to do with it, driving consumer interest in savings programs.
“I hate to say this pandemic is playing in our favor, but it’s playing in our favor,” she said during an earnings call in May.
Perdue acquired 75,000 shares in Cardlytics through stock options offered for his service on the company’s board from 2010 to 2014, when he stepped down after winning his Senate seat, Securities and Exchange Commission filings show. The company, which at the time had not yet gone public, also offered him options that would become available in October 2020 and January 2022.
Perdue’s latest financial disclosures do not indicate whether he has exercised the options that became available in October.
But according to Coffee, the Columbia University law professor, it’s an unusual move by the company.
“I’ve never seen options extended from 2014 to 2022,” he said. “That’s a very long extension.”
While Perdue left the company’s board, he has maintained ties to some of its executives, who have donated more than $30,000 to his political committees. Donations made to Perdue account for nearly 80% of all giving to federal candidates by Cardlytics employees over the past decade, records show.
Perdue, meanwhile, has used social media to publicize the company. In August 2016, he took a tour of its office and posed for a photo with Laube and then-CEO Scott Grimes, which he posted to Facebook. In fall 2019, he introduced Laube and Grimes at a gala in Atlanta, where they received a business achievement award.
Isakson, who served with Perdue, took steps to avoid the type of scrutiny Perdue is now facing. Isakson, a Republican, put most of his own holdings in a blind trust after some of his assets drew unwanted attention in 2012.
“I said I need to be as patently pure and patently clean as anybody, and the best way to do that is a blind trust,” Isakson, who served on the Senate’s finance and ethics committees, told the Atlanta Journal Constitution in 2017. “I don’t know what I own.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--Fox News Settles With Seth Rich’s Parents Years After Pushing Conspiracy Theory

More than four years after the tragic death of their son Seth Rich — and after Fox News falsely suggested that he was part of a seedy story involving WikiLeaks — Rich ’ s parents have settled a lawsuit with the cable network .
A paragraph-long court filing in Joel and Mary Rich ’ s suit Tuesday closed their years-long legal effort against Fox News , the former FoxNews.com reporter Malia Zimmerman and Ed Butowsky , a key player in the false Seth Rich conspiracy theory that Fox pushed to millions .
Yahoo News reported that the confidential settlement terms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s family , but neither side confirmed that to TPM .
The emotional distress suit focused on a story Fox News published in 2017 about Rich ’ s death during what police said was a botched robbery .
In the since-removed Fox News story , Zimmerman wrote that federal investigators and Rod Wheeler , a private investigator hired by Butowski on behalf of Rich ’ s family , had discovered evidence that Rich was in contact with WikiLeaks .
The website published the hacked Democratic emails that rocked the 2016 presidential election .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that Russian agents hacked those emails , but the Fox story suggested that Rich was Wikileaks ’ source .
The story was quickly discredited ( and eventually removed ) but nonetheless was the subject of much on-air chatter for a week afterward by Sean Hannity and others .
Rich was a DNC tech staffer at the time of his death , and the conspiracy theory posited that his death was a result of the leak , rather than a robbery attempt .
Wheeler , a former Fox News contributor and private detective , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the story was published , alleging that Zimmerman fabricated quotes attributed to him .
That suit was dismissed in 2018 .
The Washington Post ’ s Erik Wemple noted that Zimmerman ’ s contributions to Fox News ’ website ended in late 2017 , and a Fox News spokesperson told him that she was no longer with the network .
“ The settlement with Fox News closes another chapter in our efforts to mourn the murder of our beloved Seth , whom we miss every single day , ” Joel and Mary Rich @ @ @ @ @ @ @ allows us to move on from the litigation we initiated in response to Fox News ’ May 2017 article and televised statements concerning Seth ’ s murder .
We are pleased with the settlement of this matter and sincerely hope that the media will take genuine caution in the future.
” A district judge dismissed Rich ’ s parent ’ s suit in 2018 , but an appeals court judge reinstated it the following year .
Hannity was set to be deposed in the case in recent months , as were Fox Business @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
A Fox News spokesperson said in a statement , “ We are pleased with the resolution of the claims and hope this enables Mr. and Mrs. Rich to find a small degree of peace and solace moving forward .
”

More than four years after the tragic death of their son Seth Rich — and after Fox News falsely suggested that he was part of a seedy story involving WikiLeaks — Rich’s parents have settled a lawsuit with the cable network.
A paragraph-long court filing in Joel and Mary Rich’s suit Tuesday closed their years-long legal effort against Fox News, the former FoxNews.com reporter Malia Zimmerman and Ed Butowsky, a key player in the false Seth Rich conspiracy theory that Fox pushed to millions.
Yahoo News reported that the confidential settlement terms included a seven-figure payment to Rich’s family, but neither side confirmed that to TPM.
The emotional distress suit focused on a story Fox News published in 2017 about Rich’s death during what police said was a botched robbery.
In the since-removed Fox News story, Zimmerman wrote that federal investigators and Rod Wheeler, a private investigator hired by Butowski on behalf of Rich’s family, had discovered evidence that Rich was in contact with WikiLeaks. The website published the hacked Democratic emails that rocked the 2016 presidential election. Robert Mueller’s investigation later found that Russian agents hacked those emails, but the Fox story suggested that Rich was Wikileaks’ source.
The story was quickly discredited (and eventually removed) but nonetheless was the subject of much on-air chatter for a week afterward by Sean Hannity and others. Rich was a DNC tech staffer at the time of his death, and the conspiracy theory posited that his death was a result of the leak, rather than a robbery attempt.
Wheeler, a former Fox News contributor and private detective, separately sued the network for defamation after the story was published, alleging that Zimmerman fabricated quotes attributed to him. That suit was dismissed in 2018.
The Washington Post’s Erik Wemple noted that Zimmerman’s contributions to Fox News’ website ended in late 2017, and a Fox News spokesperson told him that she was no longer with the network.
“The settlement with Fox News closes another chapter in our efforts to mourn the murder of our beloved Seth, whom we miss every single day,” Joel and Mary Rich said in a statement.
“It allows us to move on from the litigation we initiated in response to Fox News’ May 2017 article and televised statements concerning Seth’s murder. We are pleased with the settlement of this matter and sincerely hope that the media will take genuine caution in the future.”
A district judge dismissed Rich’s parent’s suit in 2018, but an appeals court judge reinstated it the following year.
Hannity was set to be deposed in the case in recent months, as were Fox Business host Lou Dobbs and other Fox staffers.
A Fox News spokesperson said in a statement, “We are pleased with the resolution of the claims and hope this enables Mr. and Mrs. Rich to find a small degree of peace and solace moving forward.”


talkingpointsmemo--2020-11-25--Gaetz Urges Trump To Go Wild With Pardons, Including A Self-Pardon, To Own The Libs

Rep. Matt Gaetz ( R-FL ) , one of President Donald Trump ’ s top allies in Congress , on @ @ @ @ @ pardon himself and a litany of other people before his presidency ends in January .
@ @ @ @ @ News , Gaetz applauded reports of Trump ’ s plan to pardon former national security @ @ @ @ @ President Trump should pardon Michael Flynn .
He should pardon the Thanksgiving turkey .
He @ @ @ @ @ himself to his administration officials to Joe Exotic if he has to , ” the @ @ @ @ @ to the star of the Netflix series “ Tiger King , ” who was convicted @ @ @ @ @ murder-for-hire plot .
“ Because you see from the radical left a bloodlust that will @ @ @ @ @ come after the people who ’ ve worked so hard to animate the Trump administration @ @ @ @ @ vigor and the effectiveness that delivered for the American people , ” he continued .
@ @ @ @ @ the President ought to wield that pardon power effectively and robustly .
”

Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), one of President Donald Trump’s top allies in Congress, on Tuesday night encouraged Trump to pardon himself and a litany of other people before his presidency ends in January.
During an interview with Fox News, Gaetz applauded reports of Trump’s plan to pardon former national security adviser Michael Flynn.
“President Trump should pardon Michael Flynn. He should pardon the Thanksgiving turkey. He should pardon everyone, from himself to his administration officials to Joe Exotic if he has to,” the GOP congressman said, referring to the star of the Netflix series “Tiger King,” who was convicted for animal abuse and a murder-for-hire plot.
“Because you see from the radical left a bloodlust that will only be quenched if they come after the people who’ve worked so hard to animate the Trump administration with the policies and the vigor and the effectiveness that delivered for the American people,” he continued. “So I think that the President ought to wield that pardon power effectively and robustly.”
Watch Gaetz below: