January 15, 2025

Wednesday, January 15, 2025. Annette’s News Roundup.

Felon Donald J. Trump would have been found guilty of interfering with the peaceful transfer of power.

Felon Insurrectionist Trump should not have been allowed to run for the Presidency again.

Jack Smith - “Indeed, but for Mr. Trump’s election and imminent return to the presidency, the office assessed that the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial.”

Read half of the Special Counsel’s report. 137 pages.

https://static01.nyt.com/newsgraphics/documenttools/76c2c1e8fe2e5ae7/d2d77a9c-full.pdf

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California is on fire.

Trump threatens not to provide aid to Americans devastated by the California fires.

Senator Adam Schiff of California reminded the world of how real Americans behave when fellow Americans face catastrophic situations.👇

These Republicans in the House already voted against fire prevention. 👇

What Blue States Can Do If Trump and Republicans Withhold Disaster Aid.

The president-elect and his minions in Congress have threatened to punish California for its liberal policies by letting its people suffer.

Firefighters continue their work in the burning residential areas as wildfires continue to wreak havoc, reaching their fifth day and leaving extensive damage in residential areas of L.A.

As fires continue to devastate Los Angeles County, a president will soon be inaugurated who has promised to withhold federal help from states like California if Democratic lawmakers there don’t sing to his tune. Donald Trump threatened to withhold federal disaster relief from the state just months ago, and he recently repeated that threat.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) chimed in later on Monday. “They don’t deserve anything, to be honest with you,” he said of the prospect of outside aid coming into California, citing “inner-city woke policies.”

The wildfires in California have burned roughly 40,000 acres of land — or about 62 square miles — which is nearly three times the size of Manhattan. The Santa Ana winds are expected to pick up and increase the risk of fires spreading further. If Trump were to deny a state like California federal aid during such a disaster, the consequences could be enormous.

“It would be unprecedented. The longstanding protocol among presidential administrations has been to leave any kind of electoral politics behind when it comes to any disaster declarations,” says Jesse Keenan, an associate professor and director of the Center on Climate Change and Urbanism at Tulane University. “The impacts would be devastating.”

In response to the Los Angeles fires, President Joe Biden on Jan. 8 approved a Major Disaster declaration that directed government funds to support the region’s recovery and help pay for the cost of fighting the fires. The administration also deployed large air tankers and federal firefighting helicopters operated by the U.S. Forest Service to help fight the fires.

“There are different faces to federal involvement in disasters,” says Daniel Farber, a law professor at the University of California, Berkeley. “There’s somebody that’s available beforehand to try to reduce risks of various kinds, there’s the immediate disaster response where you see the guys with the FEMA jackets on the ground, and then there’s this longer term rebuilding process, which can take years, and there’s federal aid for reconstruction.”

Beyond helping deal with the disaster initially, the most significant role of the federal government is to help the affected region recover. Keenan says that means helping to pay for debris removal and the repair of critical infrastructure. When necessary, it may also pay to upgrade infrastructure to help prepare for future threats.

“These are very large upfront costs,” Keenan says. “The federal government, when they deploy this money for debris removal and for individual assistance and all of that money that floods in after a disaster, it really does a lot to stabilize the local economy. Without it — if you remove those federal dollars — you see a real delay in the return of what we call normal, stabilized economic outputs.”

Without that money, Keenan says, it would take these communities a lot longer to recover from a disaster. That might mean another disaster could strike while the recovery from the last one is still ongoing. Federal resources allow a community to recover as quickly as possible and hopefully prepare for the next disaster before it happens.

“You could see damage to the community for years or decades if the federal government sort of boycotted the disaster relief,” Farber adds.

Knowing that the Trump administration may be considering withholding federal aid from blue states in the future, governors and other leaders in these states may want to consider how to prepare for such an occasion. There are some things these lawmakers could do if help is denied, but they will never fully replace the impact of the federal government intervening.

“There is a compact between the states to help each other called EMAC,” Farber says. “That’s been used quite a number of times. That’s a possibility, to make preparations and think about what other states you might want to call on and what you would ask them to do.”

Keenan says he might recommend that blue states start to get financially prepared for disasters in ways they haven’t necessarily needed to in the past. That could involve putting money aside for future disasters and creating lines of credit for municipalities that could be affected.

“I would try to create budget line items where I start putting money away — where I have contingency funds, as well as opening pools for lines of credit for local governments,” Keenan says. “It’s not just the cash. It’s also creating credit facilities, which may mean lending pools, that local governments could borrow against for short-term credit needs.”

Farber says that if the federal government decides to deny aid for purely political reasons, states may want to be prepared to sue the government and see how that plays out in the courts.

“If the president just said ‘no’ without an explanation, then it would be really hard to sue,” Farber says. “If the president said it was because you voted against him, then there’s a chance of it succeeding in court.”

The federal government is typically expected to step in and help a community when it faces a natural disaster, the idea being that we’re all in this together, and we should help each other in times of need, regardless of political affiliation. The Biden administration sent federal help to red states that had been ravaged by hurricanes last year, even while Trump tried to claim he was withholding it for political reasons.

“In moments like this, it’s time to put politics aside,” Biden said during a visit to Georgia following Hurricane Helene. “It’s not one state versus another — it’s the United States.”

It’s clear Trump doesn’t see it that way. The president-elect is transactional, and he is spiteful, so states may not be able to consistently rely on federal help going forward. However, Trump may find himself in a political bind if he starts threatening to withhold aid due to how the electoral map looks in this country.

“Disproportionately in this country, disaster declarations are made in red counties,” Keenan says. “You can pick on Nevada or California or Virginia or wherever, but it’s not going to be so easy politically,” he adds, noting that Trump could wind up hurting his own supporters by using disaster relief to carry out his political vendettas.

Perhaps, for this reason, he may be hesitant to do so. That being said, Trump has not always been known to let logic get in the way of his actions. (Thor Benson, Rolling Stone).

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Pete Hegseth is truly unqualified to be Secretary of Defense, and yesterday many Democratic Senators made that clear.

“The most unqualified nominee in recent history.”

That doesn’t bother Trump or his Republican enablers.

Duckworth: How many nations are in ASEAN? Hegseth: We have allies in South Korea, Japan, and Australia Duckworth: None of those countries are in ASEAN

— Acyn (@acyn.bsky.social) 2025-01-14T18:03:33.455Z

Jeff Bezos is truly scum.

Who would have guessed?

What to know about the confirmation hearings for Trump's Cabinet picks this week.

Pete Hegseth, Kristi Noem and Pam Bondi

Some of President-elect Trump's highest profile Cabinet picks will be under fresh scrutiny this week as they brace for tough Senate confirmation hearings that could make or break their nominations.

Why it matters: With Democrats looking to create fireworks and the Republican party deeply divided, the hearings are sure to escalate clashes over Trump's most controversial nominees.

Many of Trump's picks have already met with senators individually, but the high-stakes confirmation hearings will offer them the chance to shine.

For some, they could also be forced to address lingering questions about their past actions and relevant experience.
Here are the hearings Axios is watching closely:

Pete Hegseth

Just weeks ago, Hegseth's nomination as Defense Secretary seemed doomed. The former Fox News co-host and Army veteran faced allegations of sexual misconduct, financial mismanagement and excessive drinking. He has repeatedly denied all the accusations.

At one point, though, Trump was reportedly considering an alternative.

But Hegseth retained Trump's support and rallied Republicans behind him.

What to watch: Hegseth's confirmation hearing is slated for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Kristi Noem

South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is Trump's pick for secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, where she'd play a crucial role in implementing Trump's immigration agenda.

A source close to the governor previously told Axios that her experiences dealing with immigration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have prepared her for the role.

What to watch: Noem's confirmation hearing will take place before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday at 9 a.m.

Marco Rubio

Trump's nomination of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) to serve as the next secretary of state is one of his surest bets, with the senator enjoying bipartisan support in the run-up to his formal evaluation.

Rubio, who has a reputation as a foreign policy hawk, will have his work cut out for him implementing Trump's foreign policy agenda, which includes swift ends to the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

What to watch: Rubio's confirmation hearing will take place at 10 a.m. Wednesday before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Pam Bondi

Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is Trump's pick to serve as attorney general.

Bondi's appointment would install a Trump loyalist at the head of the Department of Justice if Trump were to pursue his threats to go after his political enemies.

Bondi was Trump's second public pick for the position, after his initial selection, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration facing . The former Florida lawmaker faced sexual misconduct allegations, which he has repeatedly denied.

What to watch: Bondi's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee will be split across two days, beginning Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. and Thursday at 10:15 a.m.

Upcoming

Some of the most potentially contentious hearings are still to come and haven't yet been set. Still in the awning are:

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of health and human services. Kennedy is well known for his history of spreading vaccine misinformation.

Hardline Trump loyalist Kash Patel — who helped push Trump's 2020 election lies — for FBI director. Patel will replace current FBI head Chris Wray, who announced last month that he would resign ahead of Trump's inauguration rather than complete his term.

Linda McMahon as secretary of education. McMahon, a former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) executive, has been accused of being complicit in the grooming and sexual exploitation of children. She has denied the allegations.

Tulsi Gabbard's nomination as the next director of national intelligence has raised alarm bells in the intelligence community. In 2017, the former Democratic representative for Hawaii met with then Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and subsequently declared him "not the enemy." (Axios).

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Good enough for Nixon, it should have been good enough for Trump..

Speaker Orders Capitol Hill Flags Raised for Inauguration.

Flag at half-staff.

President-elect Donald J. Trump had complained that flags were scheduled to fly at half-staff — a symbol of mourning for former President Jimmy Carter — on the day of his inauguration.

Speaker Mike Johnson on Tuesday announced that American flags at the Capitol would be temporarily raised on Monday for President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inauguration, effectively defying a presidential order put in place last month to mourn the death of former President Jimmy Carter.

The move came after Mr. Trump complained that flags were scheduled to be at half-staff during his inaugural ceremony. President Biden ordered all flags to be lowered to half-staff for one month following Mr. Carter’s death on Dec. 29, following tradition and U.S. flag code.

“On Jan. 20, the flags at the Capitol will fly at full staff to celebrate our country coming together behind the inauguration of our 47th president, Donald Trump,” Mr. Johnson said in a statement announcing the change. He said flags would return to half-staff the next day to continue honoring Mr. Carter through the end of January.

Earlier this month Mr. Trump expressed his frustration over the possibility of flags remaining lowered during his inauguration, saying in a post on social media that, “Democrats are all ‘giddy’” about the imagery. He made it clear that he would push for a change, adding that “no American can be happy about it.”

“Let’s see how it plays out,” he said.

Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, told reporters this month that Mr. Biden was not considering modifying or briefly suspending his flag order to accommodate Monday’s ceremonies.

Shortly after Mr. Carter’s funeral services, American flags at Trump’s private Florida club, Mar-a-Lago, were raised back to full height. And in a move of solidarity with the incoming president, Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas also ordered all flags be raised to full staff at the state’s capitol and other state buildings for Inauguration Day.

“While we honor the service of a former president, we must also celebrate the service of an incoming president,” Mr. Abbott said in a statement on Monday announcing the change.

Republican governors in Alabama, Iowa, Nebraska and Florida also announced that flags in their states would be raised on Monday and returned to half-staff the next day.

“In light of the importance of this day, and on this patriotic occasion, I hereby order all flags to be raised to full staff at the Florida Capitol and across all state buildings, installations and grounds for the inauguration of the 47th president of the United States, Donald J. Trump,” Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida wrote in a memo on Tuesday.

Mr. Trump had asserted that his would have been the first presidential inauguration where flags were not flying at full staff. But President Richard Nixon recited his oath of office at the United States Capitol in January 1973 with flags flying at half-staff because of the death of President Harry Truman 25 days earlier.

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Musk is being attacked from every direction.

Bannon vows to have Musk "run out" of the White House.

Steve Bannon will "do anything" to keep Elon Musk out of the incoming administration, the former Trump White House adviser said in a new interview.

Why it matters: The conservative media firebrand's comments to Corriere della Sera about the tech billionaire whom Trump has tapped to co-lead the Department of Governmental Efficiency (DOGE) mark an escalation in a MAGA-world civil war over immigration as the president-elect prepares to begin his second term.

What he's saying: "I will have Elon Musk run out of here by Inauguration Day" on Jan. 20, Bannon told the Italian outlet, per excerpts from the interview published in English by Bannon's former employer Breitbart over the weekend.

"He will not have full access to the White House. He will be like any other person," Bannon said.

"He is a truly evil guy, a very bad guy. I made it my personal thing to take this guy down."

Driving the news: The MAGA-world division emerged last month over the H-1B visa scheme that's designed to attract skilled foreign workers to the U.S. and which the South African-born naturalized U.S. citizen Musk has said he held.

Some in MAGA world want to restrict immigration and promote U.S. workers, but Axios' Ben Berkowitz and Zachary Basu note others want to cut costs and increase efficiency, regardless of who does the work.

Musk branded Republicans opposed to the scheme "hateful, unrepentant racists" following anti-Indian rhetoric online in relation to the scheme, and Trump publicly backed the world's richest person over the visas.

"This thing of the H-1B visas, it's about the entire immigration system is gamed by the tech overlords, they use it to their advantage, the people are furious," said Bannon in his interview, adding that Musk's "sole objective is to become a trillionaire."

Bannon said Musk "should go back" to South Africa. "Why do we have South Africans, the most racist people on earth, white South Africans, we have them making any comments at all on what goes on in the United States?" he said.
Zoom out: Musk donated millions of dollars to Trump's 2024 presidential campaign after endorsing him in July following the assassination attempt on the Republican leader at a Butler, Pennsylvania, rally.

Musk has said he voted for Democrats Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden in previous presidential elections.

Bannon cast doubt on Musk's intentions during his interview.
"He will do anything to make sure that any one of his companies is protected or has a better deal or he makes more money," he said. His aggregation of wealth, and then — through wealth — power: that's what he's focused on."

Between the lines: Trump fired Bannon during his first administration. However, the "War Room" podcast host remains an influential figure in MAGA world.

Bannon was released from prison in October after serving a four-month sentence on contempt of Congress charges for refusing to comply with a subpoena related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.

Representatives for Musk's companies, Bannon and Trump did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment in the evening.

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Michelle Obama says no again.

Good for her!

Michelle Obama Will Skip Trump’s Inauguration

Mrs. Obama also declined to attend the funeral of Jimmy Carter last week, which would have put her face-to-face with Mr. Trump.

Michelle Obama, the former first lady, will not attend the inauguration of President-elect Donald J. Trump, her office said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Former President Barack Obama is confirmed to attend the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies,” the statement said. “Former First Lady Michelle Obama will not attend the upcoming inauguration.”

The statement did not provide an explanation for why Mrs. Obama was skipping the inauguration, which is traditionally attended by former presidents and their spouses. But it is the second high-profile event in the past two weeks that she has declined to take part in that would have brought her face-to-face with Mr. Trump.

Mrs. Obama has expressed personal disdain for the president-elect, who pushed the lie that her husband was not a U.S. citizen and has a history of making racist and sexist statements.

“For years, Donald Trump did everything in his power to try to make people fear us,” she said during her speech at the Democratic National Convention in August.

“See, his limited, narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hard-working, highly educated, successful people who happen to be Black,” she added.

Mrs. Obama did not accompany her husband to the funeral of former president Jimmy Carter last week, which every other living former president and first lady attended. Mrs. Obama’s absence at Mr. Carter’s funeral was attributed to a scheduling conflict, but it was notable that by protocol, she would have been seated next to Mr. Trump, who engaged Mr. Obama in a conversation during the ceremony.

The Obamas, who served as surrogates for Vice President Kamala Harris on the campaign trail, issued a statement shortly after the election congratulating Mr. Trump on his victory.

“This is obviously not the outcome we had hoped for, given our profound disagreements with the Republican ticket on a whole host of issues,” the statement said. “But living in a democracy is about recognizing that our point of view won’t always win out, and being willing to accept the peaceful transfer of power.”

Mrs. Obama is not the first to buck the tradition of former first families attending an inauguration. Mr. Trump and the former first lady, Melania Trump, did not attend President Biden’s inauguration in 2021, after Mr. Trump falsely claimed that the election was stolen from him. (New York Times)

The Vice President made her opinion clear too.👇

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