Today’s edition of quick hits:
* The door that was ajar now appears closed: “Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said that a proposal from Democrats to approve $2,000 stimulus checks ‘no realistic path to quickly pass the Senate,’ effectively killing one of President Trump’s top priorities in the final days of his presidency.”
* Vaccines: “The Trump administration’s Operation Warp Speed blamed a variety of factors including snowstorms, the holidays, storage challenges and general inexperience for the slower-than-expected rollout of Covid-19 vaccines this month.”
* This is among today’s most important stories: “The Census Bureau plans to announce it will miss a year-end deadline for handing in numbers used for divvying up congressional seats, a census official said. That delay could undermine President Donald Trump’s efforts to exclude people in the country illegally from the count if the figures aren’t turned in before President-elect Joe Biden takes office.”
* The latest out of Nashville: “Investigators are exploring several conspiracy theories as potential motives behind the Christmas Day bombing outside an AT&T building in Nashville, including evidence that the bomber believed in lizard people and a so-called reptilian conspiracy, two senior law enforcement officials told NBC News on Wednesday.”
* It’s a narrow policy, but a step forward nevertheless: “Argentina on Wednesday became the largest nation in Latin America to legalize abortion, a landmark vote in a conservative region and a victory for a grass-roots movement that turned years of rallies into political power.”
* A case we’ve been watching: “The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has retained forensic accounting specialists to aid its criminal investigation of President Trump and his business operations, as prosecutors ramp up their scrutiny of his company’s real estate transactions, according to people familiar with the matter.” * Economic relief: “Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Tuesday that badly needed direct Covid-19 relief payments were being paid out as early as Tuesday night as a measure to increase the payments to $2,000 from $600 is stalled in the Senate.” * Awful, but not surprising: “Former Trump National Security Adviser Michael Flynn is going all in on the QAnon conspiracy theory, promoting an online store to sell QAnon hats and T-shirts, the proceeds of which will benefit his partnership with a prominent QAnon booster.” See you tomorrow.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
Latest Post
Recommended
