Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

New estimates of COVID-19’s infection rates suggest that even with the vaccine on the way, strict social distancing requirements will be necessary to get us through the final months of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the Senate gears up for another impeachment trial. Will this one bring actual consequences? Who knows, but let’s talk about it.

And lastly, ICE pushes to deport a New York City resident despite President Joe Biden’s moratorium on deportations.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

We’re starting to get a clearer picture of how the next few months of the pandemic will go, and unfortunately, it doesn’t look like a massive wave of vaccinations will bring an end to things anytime soon.

According to scientists at Columbia University, the big danger now is that social distancing guidelines and public health measures will be relaxed too early, which they warn could cause millions more to become infected.

The model predicts that if we start lifting restrictions in February, we could suffer as many as 19 million more infections than a scenario where we... don’t do that. The model shows that social restrictions need to be strengthened, not weakened, until late July of this year to get the best-case scenario, though millions of cases can be prevented by simply keeping existing protections in place until that point.

The other big variable is how bad the pandemic already is in certain places. The New York Times reported that epidemiologists think something like 60 percent of North Dakota’s population has already been infected, meaning that even widespread vaccinations won’t do much to stop the spread of the disease.

When things get that bad, the pandemic will basically burn out on its own. So the goal is clearly to prevent the rest of the country from going that way. The Times reports that California, for instance, is teetering right on the edge.

You know what the long and short of all this is, though: keep hanging in there. Wear your mask, stay isolated if you can, protect yourself as best as possible.

Impeachment Trial Update: Still Arguing

You know what time it is: laborious Senate trial for a presidential impeachment! Feels like deja vu, I know.

But this time, things could be different! For one, Donald Trump already isn’t president. So the stakes here aren’t removing him from office, but formally convicting him of impeachable offenses and preventing him from holding office ever again.

The House is transmitting its article of impeachment today, but the Senate’s going to delay the trial for two weeks to let Biden get his cabinet in place.

The big fight right now is whether or not Congress can actually do this. The Constitution, because it’s such an excellent document that definitely hasn’t screwed up the country multiple times, isn’t exactly clear on this issue. But at present, it looks relatively likely Democrats will be mounting a pretty serious attempt to push the effort through.

To actually convict Trump, of course, the Democrats will need to bring along 17 Republicans to hit the two-thirds supermajority. That’s a long shot, but there may be a case to be made with elements of the GOP who have an incentive to make sure Trump can’t come in and wreck the 2024 primary for them again.

Mitt Romney said on Sunday that he both thinks the President committed impeachable offenses when he incited the riot at the Capitol building on January 6, and that a trial after he’d left office was Constitutional. That’s one down at least! 16 more to go.

ICE Defies Biden Order

One of President Joe Biden’s first acts in office was to put a federal moratorium on deportations, but almost immediately, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement is trying to test those limits.

ICE Is pushing for the deportation of 27-year-old Javier Castillo Maradiaga who was originally arrested by the NYPD in 2019 for a pedestrian violation that was later dismissed. But that minor case got him caught in the brutal grind of the immigration system, and he’s currently in custody in a federal detention center in Louisiana. Maradiaga came to New York when he was seven.

His lawyers told the New York Daily News that ICE’s plan to deport Maradiaga at 2 a.m. on Monday morning -- meaning it could have already happened by the time you hear this -- appear to be in conflict with Biden’s executive order signed last Wednesday.

But ICE is just beating around the bush, claiming that the executive order has only made it hit pause on quote “certain removals.” What this means is anyone’s guess, and Maradiaga has already spent 14 months in detention.

It seems like the new executive branch needs to get its underlings in line, and fast.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Well, she’s doing it: Former Trump Press Secretary and professional liar Sarah Huckabee Sanders is expected to announce her candidacy for Governor of Arkansas in a video going up this morning, according to the New York Times. This will be the first big test of a Trump inner-circle person running for a major office.

Reps. Cori Bush and Ayanna Pressley have signed up 35 other Democrats in an effort to push Joe Biden to commute the sentences of all 49 federal prisoners left on death row and end the federal death penalty, in the wake of the Trump administration’s lame-duck drive to execute 13 prisoners in his final days in office.

The New York Times reports that a little-known Pennsylvanian Congressman, Scott Perry, was at the center of a harebrained scheme for the Trump administration to fire the acting attorney general and replace him with a Trump loyalist who would have advanced the crackpot stop-the-steal lawsuits that Trump wanted. You can bet we’re going to see a whole lot more worms like this crawl out of the woodwork as Trump continues to sink.

Look, far be it from us to defend anyone with the last name McCain, but the Arizona GOP is eating itself alive. On Saturday, it issued formal rebukes to Cindy McCain, former Governor Doug Ducey, and former Senator Jeff Flake, because all three were insufficiently loyal to Donald Trump. He’s gone, people, give it a break!

That’s it for the Majority Report’s AM Quickie today. Sam will be with you this afternoon. SAM: Sign off.

JAN 25, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Jack Crosbie

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

Joe Biden has unveiled his national strategy for fighting the coronavirus pandemic. But does it aim high enough?

Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s businesses are hurting, big time. And his creditors will soon come knocking for $300 million – or more – that he owes.

And lastly, the Biden administration is calling a halt to deportations while they figure out what’s going on at the Homeland Security Department. It’s a big relief for immigrant families.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

The new message from the White House is that things may get worse before they get better, but help is on its way. President Joe Biden used his first full day in office yesterday to go on the offensive against the coronavirus, the New York Times reports. He promised to make aggressive use of executive power to tame the worst public health crisis in a century. In a two hundred-page document called the National Strategy for the Covid-19 Response and Pandemic Preparedness, the new administration outlines the kind of centralized federal response that Democrats have long demanded and Donald Trump refused. To carry it out, Biden signed a dozen executive actions in an afternoon White House ceremony.

The Biden plan is in some respects overly optimistic and in others a little timid, according to the Times. His promise to inject one hundred million vaccines in his first hundred days is aiming low, since those hundred days should see twice that number of doses available. Because the approved coronavirus vaccines require two doses, Biden is promising only to vaccinate fifty to seventy million Americans. Biden bristled when a reporter asked if the goal should be higher. He said QUOTE Come on, give me a break, man ENDQUOTE.

The Biden team has been quick to point fingers at the Trump administration’s failures, the Times reports. Jeff Zients, the new White House Covid-19 response coordinator, said QUOTE What we’re inheriting is so much worse than we could have imagined. The cooperation or lack of cooperation from the Trump administration has been an impediment. We don’t have the visibility that we would hope to have into supply and allocations ENDQUOTE. Fair enough, but the new administration can’t expect a long honeymoon. Biden himself acknowledged that the death toll will probably top five hundred thousand next month.

Trump Businesses Bleeding Revenue

Soon we’ll be able to take a break from covering Donald Trump, but this story is too juicy to pass up. According to the Associated Press, Trump is returning to a family business ravaged by pandemic restrictions. Revenue is plunging more than forty percent at his Doral golf property, his Washington hotel and both his Scottish resorts. Trump’s financial disclosure released as he left office this week was just the latest bad news for his empire. It came after banks, real estate brokerages and golf organizations announced they were cutting ties with his company following the storming of the Capitol.

The disclosure showed sizable debt facing the company of more than $300 million, much of it coming due in the next four years, the AP reports. The disclosure report shows only revenue figures, not profits, but the hit to Trump’s business appeared widespread. The National Doral Golf Club outside of Miami took in $44.2 million in revenue, a drop of $33 million from 2019. The Trump International Hotel in Washington, once buzzing with lobbyists and diplomats, generated just $15.1 million in revenue, down more than sixty percent. Trump’s Turnberry club in Scotland took in less than $10 million, down more than sixty percent. Revenue at the family’s golf club in Aberdeen also dropped by roughly the same proportion.

The financial blow from former business partners cutting ties to Trump could be sizable, the AP says. The PGA of America canceled a tournament at Trump’s Bedminster club in New Jersey. Several banks said they would no longer lend to the company. And New York City said it would be canceling contracts with the company, including those running skating rinks and a golf club in the Bronx. Revenue at that course, the Trump Golf Links at Ferry Point, fell twenty percent last year to $6.4 million. Maybe he should downsize. Try mini golf.

Homeland Security Pauses Deportations

The Biden administration has ordered US immigration agencies to focus their energies on threats to national security and public safety, the Washington Post reports. The policy shift ends a four-year stretch during the Trump administration that exposed anyone in the United

States without papers to deportation. Acting Homeland Security Secretary David Pekoske issued a memo hours after Biden’s inaugural setting strict limits for arresting and deporting immigrants while the department reviews its policies. He also imposed an immediate hundred-day pause on many deportations, to take effect no later than today.

Pekoske is in charge as the Senate considers the nomination of Alejandro Mayorkas, the former deputy DHS secretary during the Obama administration, according to the Post. The memo is the first step in a broader plan to find a different solution for the eleven million undocumented immigrants in the US, many of whom are essential workers, have lived here for years and have children who are citizens. Congress has not passed a major citizenship bill since 1986. Biden has unveiled legislation that would allow millions to apply for citizenship.

The Post says that during the review period, DHS said it will impose sensible priorities for enforcing civil immigration laws. Starting February 1st, immigrants eligible for deportation will fall into three categories: National security threats, such as spies or terrorists; border crossers who arrived on or after November 1st; and aggravated felons currently serving time for crimes such as murder or drug trafficking, after they are released from prison. Immigrants who voluntarily waive their rights to remain in the US, after seeking legal counsel, may be deported. Biden has said it was a QUOTE big mistake ENDQUOTE to deport as many people as the Obama administration did. Biden will announce additional immigration actions on January 29th. This country is desperate for sanity on immigration. Maybe we’ll finally get it.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Two suicide bombers detonated explosive vests in a crowded market in central Baghdad yesterday morning, killing at least thirty-two people in the biggest such attack in several years, according to the New York Times. ISIS eventually claimed responsibility, although it’s supposedly been defeated.

The Washington Post reports that Lieutenant General Charles Flynn, the brother of disgraced former national security adviser Michael Flynn, was involved in a key meeting during the US Army’s response to the US Capitol insurrection. What’s more, the Army falsely denied this fact for days. How strange! Maybe Congress will figure it out.

The Biden administration fired the National Labor Relations Board’s general counsel, Peter Robb, on Wednesday night, ending the tenure of a figure seen as a foe by worker advocates and labor unions, according to the Post. Biden will now need to nominate a replacement, who must receive Senate confirmation. May we suggest Scabby the Rat?

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is proposing to give former Donald Trump two weeks to prepare his legal case for his second impeachment trial, Politico reports. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has not yet transmitted the article of impeachment to the Senate, but said yesterday she would do so QUOTE soon ENDQUOTE. Let’s get it over and done.

JAN 22, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Corey Pein

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

The world is a little bit safer today. Joe Biden is back in the White House after four years of malarkey and madness, and ready with seventeen day one actions.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s flunkies began to face international sanction almost immediately upon the end of his tenure. And his most loyal followers are distraught – how sad.

And lastly, supply shortages are causing states to cancel thousands of appointments for people who hoped to get the coronavirus vaccine. Here’s hoping Biden can turn this situation around, and fast.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

The Trump era is over. Joe Biden yesterday was sworn in by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts as the forty-sixth president of the United States. In his inaugural speech, surrounded by thousands of National Guard troops who were mostly off-camera, Biden addressed the violence at the Capitol on January 6th. He vowed that white supremacy and domestic terrorism will never prevail. He said QUOTE Today we celebrate the triumph not of a candidate but of a cause, the cause of democracy... Democracy has prevailed ENDQUOTE. He also called for unity, calling it the path forward at a historic moment of crisis and challenge. Kamala Harris, the first woman vice president and the first VP of color, was sworn by Justice Sonia Sotomayor. She was escorted to the platform by Eugene Goodman, a Capitol Police officer who faced down members of the mob two weeks ago. Lady Gaga belted out the national anthem, Jennifer Lopez sang “This Land Is Your Land,” and young poet Amanda Gorman recited a poem she completed only after the insurrection. Garth Brooks also performed.

Biden wasted no time attempting to undo some of the worst actions of Donald Trump’s tenure in the White House. He signed seventeen executive orders, memorandums and proclamations yesterday, according to the New York Times. He ended Trump’s efforts to leave the World Health Organization and enacted a mask mandate on federal property. He signed orders reversing Trump’s immigration crackdowns, and repealed Trump’s so-called Muslim

Ban. He signed a letter indicating that the US will rejoin the Paris climate accords, and an executive order overturning several of Trump’s destructive environmental policies. He also extended federal moratoriums on evictions and on federal student loan payments. Not bad for a first day.

China Sanctions Trump Cronies

Donald Trump took his last trip on Air Force One yesterday morning, landing in Florida, where with any luck he will endure a form of internal exile. Republican state representative Anthony Sabatini has proposed renaming US Route 27 after Trump, according to the Washington Post. But Democratic members of Congress Joaquin Castro of Texas and Linda Sanchez of California plan to introduce legislation banning federal property from ever being named in Trump’s honor. Sanchez went so far as to tell People magazine that QUOTE not even a bench [should] ever bear the name of this traitor ENDQUOTE.

Trump surrendered the White House after a late night of signing last-minute pardons and other clemency orders for one hundred and forty-three people, the New York Times reports. Beneficiaries included Steve Bannon, his former chief strategist; Elliott Broidy, one of his top fund-raisers in 2016; and a series of politicians convicted of corruption. The White House did not announce the pardons until after midnight. As Biden was being sworn in yesterday, China imposed sanctions on former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, trade adviser Peter Navarro, and other Trump administration officials, saying they had damaged the US-China relationship with QUOTE crazy moves ENDQUOTE. Tough break, fellas!

State capitols around the country were mostly calm but under heavy guard yesterday for fear of more violence by Trump supporters. Biden’s inauguaration also drove Trump’s most rabid supporters, the followers of the Q-Anon conspiracy theory, to despair. Some, however, are still urging their comrades to QUOTE trust the plan ENDQUOTE, and hold out hope for a miraculous Trump revival. Whatever. Finally, HuffPost reports that federal authorities yesterday arrested Joe Biggs, a prominent member of the Proud Boys who promoted the Capitol insurrection. It’s too late for a Trump pardon now. Harsh, bro.

US States Suffer Vaccine Shortages

The push to inoculate Americans against the coronavirus is hitting a roadblock, the Associated Press reports. A number of states are reporting they are running out of vaccine, and tens of thousands of people who managed to get appointments for a first dose are seeing them canceled. The full explanation was unclear, but last week the Health and Human Services Department suggested that states had unrealistic expectations for how much vaccine was on the way.

About half of the thirty-one million doses distributed to the states by the federal government have been administered so far, according to the AP. However, only about two million people have received the two doses needed for maximum protection against Covid-19. Countries across Europe are also having problems getting enough doses. In the US, some states have suggested they may run out of vaccine by today and are unclear when new doses will arrive.

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said yesterday that the city had to cancel twenty-three thousand appointments for people awaiting their first dose this week, the AP reports. The reason? Inadequate supply. In Florida, local media reported a similar problem in the Miami area, where the Baptist Health care system canceled appointments that had been scheduled for first doses. San Francisco’s health department said it is likely to run out of vaccine today, in part because the state pulled back on administering a batch of Moderna shots after several health workers suffered what may have been a bad reaction. West Virginia, which has run one of the speediest vaccination drives in the country, in part by using small-town pharmacies, said it didn’t receive an expected increase in doses this week. This is where the feds need to step in and use the government’s vast resources to boost production. Capeesh?

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Kroger yesterday pulled the Indiana Oath Keepers from its community rewards initiative, which funneled an unknown amount of donations from customers to the right-wing extremist group. But according to the Washington Post, the Indiana Oath Keepers are still participants in a similar donation program called Amazon Smile – at least for now...

The AP reports that Italian police have recovered a five-hundred-year-old copy of a Leonardo da Vinci painting that was stolen from a Naples church during the pandemic. The man whose apartment police found the painting in claimed he’d bought it at a market. Sounds like a real bargain.

Police in the United Kingdom found eight hundred and twenty-six cannabis plants in an indoor farm in London’s financial district, Reuters reports. The plants were in a building near the Bank of England. But we thought banker types preferred cocaine?

In the final hours of the Trump presidency, immigration officials detained a nine year-old Haitian boy with a valid US visa, separated him from his elder brother and incarcerated him, the Guardian reports. Vladimir Fardin was sent to a refugee resettlement facility in southern California as an unaccompanied minor, and his older brother Christian Laporte was deported to Mexico. Advocates are worried about the boys and appalled at the cruelty of the Trump policy. May America be done with such inhumanity forever.

JAN 21, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Corey Pein

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

Donald Trump is out, and Joe Biden is in, after decades of striving for the highest office in the land. The 46th President will be inaugurated today at noon, at the age of 78.

Meanwhile, in New York City, the police are busy violently re-establishing the status quo, by arresting essential union employees outside of a picket line protest on Monday in Queens and battling with Black Lives Matter protesters elsewhere in the city.

And lastly, the Democrats have put together the first potentially big piece of legislation of their new majority term, a sweeping voting rights bill that could re-enfranchise millions of formerly incarcerated people.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

By the time you hear this, Donald Trump will have just a few hours left as president of the United States. Everything else aside, that’s great to say out loud. He’s done! He’s gone!

That means the big day has finally come for Joe Biden, who has been half-heartedly seeking to be President for decades at this point. Biden will be inaugurated in the middle of a heavily militarized green zone on the Capitol Steps at noon, at the age of 78, and will then retire to the White House, where his Peloton bike will probably be waiting for him if it clears the cybersecurity guys.

D.C. is a ghost town right now, as federal authorities learned their lesson about domestic insurrection about two weeks too late and have locked the place down. At the moment, there don’t appear to be any big plans for right wing protests, but we’ll have to see how the day goes.

Trump, for his part, is going out with a whimper. In a video address on Tuesday night, he listed his so-called accomplishments and vowed that the movement he started was quote “only just beginning.” endquote. How lasting his impact is remains to be seen, but there’s no doubt that he inspired horrible things during his time in office.

And now he’s gone -- by the time you hear this, he’ll probably be boarding his last Air Force One flight to Florida before he loses his plane privileges, slinking off back to the familiar comforts of Mar A Lago coronavirus superspreader swamp parties, where, with any luck, he’ll rot away quickly.

Cops Enforce Status Quo

In New York City, however, it’s business as usual. And by that we mean the cops are beating up essential workers and cracking down on protesters. This is the status quo, and a sure sign of what we have to look forward to for the next four years.

On Monday night, for instance, the NYPD arrested several peaceful striking workers at the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Market in New York City. The workers there were demanding a small raise of $1 per hour, with an extra 60 cents thrown in for health care benefits. Their bosses had offered them 32 cents.

For some context, these workers are the backbone of the largest produce market in the country, many of whom make just $40,000 a year despite union pay minimums, which is far from sufficient to support a family in New York.

The NYPD responded, and early on Tuesday morning, the union representing the striking workers posted video of cops rushing the picket line and making arrests as strikers chanted “hands up, don’t shoot.”

This may be shocking, but it’s not really outside of the norm. Also on Monday night, the NYPD cracked down on Martin Luther King Jr. Day protests at City Hall Park, attacking protesters with batons and making violent arrests.

The cops aren’t going to change their behavior unless they’re forced to. And despite the changeup coming in Washington, it looks like the rest of the country is going to go on just like it was.

Democrats Try For Voting Rights

But lastly, some encouraging news: The Democrats are reportedly setting up their first chance to flex their new majority in the House and Senate with a sweeping voting rights bill, introduced on Tuesday in the Senate by Oregon’s Jeff Merkley.

The Senate Bill, which is called the For the People Act, is a close mirror of a concurrent bill introduced earlier this month in the House. If the Democrats can push it through, it could be one of the first major victories of the Biden administration.

The bill would do a couple crucial things: make online, automatic, and same-day voter registration mandates for every state, and also restore voting rights to anyone who is not currently incarcerated. That alone would re-enfranchise millions of voters, and combined with new, easier ways to register could strike a devastating blow to the GOP’s key voter suppression tactics in upcoming elections.

The test now becomes whether the Democrats can wield their new power to pass laws effectively enough to get this through both the House and Senate. McConnell isn’t going anywhere, and it’s a given that he’ll use every dirty trick at his disposal to keep these bills from becoming law, because he knows if he does it’ll throw more congressional races into the mix despite the GOP’s constant gerrymandering.

What we’ll learn soon as well is how much energy the new president will put behind the bill. Here’s hoping he comes out of the gate strong on this one.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Speaking of the Senate and passing bills: remember yesterday’s story about current Majority Leader Schumer already kowtowing to former Majority Leader McConnell? It just got worse: McConnell is reportedly pressing to get a guarantee that Democrats won’t end the filibuster in the two parties agreement for how the split Senate will work.

The United States Passed 400,000 coronavirus deaths on Tuesday, the last full day of Trump’s disastrous term. He previously claimed that he’d have done a good job if he kept deaths to 100 or 200,000. Those tragic numbers speak for themselves.

Senator Josh Hawley, last seen egging on the riot that stormed the Capitol building on January 6, used his time today to delay confirmation of Joe Biden’s pick for the Department of Homeland Security. To be fair, the DHS probably shouldn’t exist in the first place, but it’s good to know which side Hawley is still on: the one that’s actively seeking a coup.

And finally, Trump released his final list of pardons and grants of clemency on Tuesday. The list is mostly a good lineup of cases that have been pushed by criminal justice advocates for years, perhaps in an attempt to give the big guy a little goodwill as he exits office. True to form, though, Trump reportedly had to be talked out of handing out pardons to his own kids and Republican lawmakers on his last day in office.

That’s it for the Majority Report’s AM Quickie Today! Sam will be with you later.

JAN 20, 2020 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Jack Crosbie

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

Joe Biden’s Inauguration is tomorrow, and just in time, the nation’s authorities are beginning to address the threat posed by right wing extremists, both inside and out of the government.

Meanwhile, the Democrats have regained the Senate for the first time in over five years, and are already finding ways to give some of their power away, agreeing to a split-power structure with Mitch McConnell even though they have the deciding vote with VP-elect Kamala Harris.

And lastly, in more depressing news from the Administration that takes over tomorrow, Joe Biden’s potential picks for extremely important anti-trust positions are already alarming Big Tech critics due to their numerous conflicts of interest.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

The New York Times reported on Monday that the Pentagon has recently accelerated its efforts to root out white nationalists within the armed forces. That’s nice of them! Perhaps a little late, however, considering the notable presence of current and former military members at the January 6 Capitol riots.

This also comes on the heels of an Associated Press report that the FBI was vetting national guard troops sent to DC to protect Joe Biden’s Inauguration over fears of an insider attack. I wish they’d thought of doing that vetting, you know, before the guys were sent to the capital and issued guns, but sure. Better late than never.

The vetting is something that’s been done in the past -- they did it for Donald Trump’s 2017 inauguration as well, according to the Times, and will only apply to troops who will be near Biden himself on the day of. That certainly still leaves a lot of wiggle room!

The FBI is also reportedly setting its sights on the hardcore militias and right wing extremist groups that helped lead the attack on the Capitol. These are the guys who extremism researchers said to worry about days and days before the attack, so once again, the government is a step behind. The general militia types also prize military experience and knowledge, of course, so the two trends are linked. Glad to see that someone in charge is finally figuring things out.

Schumer And McConnell, Sitting In A Tree

Meanwhile, we’re about to have a new Senate, which could look a lot like the old Senate. Democrats have the majority. Yes, the actual makeup of the Senate is a dead heat at 50-50. But with the VP’s deciding vote, the Democrats are in control, provided they can get their basically-republican members like Joe Manchin to go along with things.

And yet, Chuck Schumer seems to be taking a very lenient line with former Majority leader Mitch McConnell, otherwise known as the chief architect of basically everything horrible that Congress did in the past four years.

CNN reports that Schumer and McConnell are close to ironing out a power-sharing agreement that would govern how some of the procedural workings of the body go down once things kick off after Biden takes over. The rules are being modeled on the last 50-50 split of the senate in 2001, and largely govern how bills get out of committee and who holds the power in those committees.

These are agreements that Schumer and McConnell have to make, of course, but it’s a bad sign for progressives to see the status quo reassert itself so quickly.

McConnell has for years been playing a different game than his Democratic peers, using every possible procedural trick and inch of power than he can take to screw over the Democrats as much as possible.

That’s his prerogative, of course, but it’s incredibly frustrating that the Democrats don’t seem to be willing to play as rough as he does. Here’s hoping that once Congress starts deliberating with Kamala Harris in the tiebreaking seat, the Democrats don’t give McConnel any more inches to extend into miles.

Biden's Picks To Break Up Big Tech Used To Work For Big Tech

Well here we are again: it’s time for the weekly update into the Biden Administration’s staffing. Today the forecast is: not great!

The Department of Justice has an extremely important division that covers federal anti-trust cases: the big legal decisions that govern how major companies can form and wield monopolies against the American public. The biggest anti-trust cases of this generation, of course, are two active cases against Google and Facebook, and activists hope a case against Amazon will soon follow.

The Assistant Attorney General who leads this division is a federal appointee. Right now, the Intercept reports that Biden’s leading candidate is a woman named Renata Hesse, a former Justice Department official in the Obama Administration. But take onee quick guess where else Hesse has worked.

If you guessed Google or Amazon, well, they’re both correct! A decade ago, the Intercept reports, Hesse worked with Ted Cruz -- yes, that Ted Cruz -- to defend Google in an antitrust case. She was also involved in the merger between Amazon and Whole Foods, rounding out her experience in companies that she’d be dealing with directly if she got her new job.

So let’s take a quick look at the next guy rumored to be in the running for the spot. His name is Juan Arteaga, and he also worked for the Obama Justice department! What are his other credentials? Well, according to the Intercept, he defended JPMorgan Chase and several other financial firms in fraud cases and also represented AT&T in its merger with Time Warner.

As you can see, this is painting a pretty grim picture when it comes to what the Biden administration is going to do to break up the big tech companies. Right now, it looks like both candidates for the job will have to recuse themselves left and right. Not exactly the most productive strategy.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Florida’s state authorities are still throwing the book at Rebekah Jones, a former public servant who was fired and then persecuted for trying to keep an accurate tally of the state’s coronavirus deaths. She’s now been arrested on counts of downloading a state computer file without authorization.

A bill to abolish the death penalty passed Virginia’s state senate’s judiciary committee, where it had failed just a year ago, sending a clear signal that the state may outlaw capital punishment in the near future.

Trump’s Census Director, Stephen Dilliam, resigned from his post on Monday, finally crumbling under the scrutiny that he had let Trump’s racist and xenophobic politics interfere with his job at the supposedly nonpartisan agency. His term was supposed to end in December of 2021, but it seems like he saw the writing on the wall.

And finally, as Trump enters the last few hours of his presidency, the Times reports that he’s planning a wave of pardons for Tuesday, which involve both disgraced politicians like NY politico Sheldon Silver and celebrities like Rapper Lil Wayne. He’s expected to release that list today, his last full day in office.

That’s it for the majority report’s AM quickie! The full show, as always, will bring Sam to you live at noon eastern.

JAN 19, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Jack Crosbie

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

Joe Biden to the rescue? The President-elect last night previewed his first major policy package, targeting the pandemic and the economic crisis that has come with it.

Meanwhile, dozens of white supremacist on a federal terrorism watch list were present for the storming of the Capitol last week. Investigators are looking into possible foreign financing behind the insurrection.

And lastly, Donald Trump is having a hard time finding lawyers to defend him in his second impeachment trial. I guess Rudy can fail, after all.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

They’re calling it the American Rescue Plan. President-elect Joe Biden, who will take over the pandemic response in five days, gave a speech last night on his plans to combat the coronavirus and address its economic consequences, the Washington Post reports. His remarks came as more than four thousand Covid-19 deaths were reported in the United States for the second day in a row.

The plan is divided into three major areas, according to the Post: $400 billion for provisions to fight the coronavirus, while reopening schools; more than $1 trillion in direct relief to families, including through stimulus payments and increased unemployment benefits; and $440 billion for aid to communities and businesses. The legislation includes a number of priorities sought by top congressional Democrats, from increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour to adding billions in funding for childcare. Biden said QUOTE We need more action, more bipartisanship, and we need to move fast ENDQUOTE.

The measures are narrowly tailored in an effort to garner GOP support, Biden’s team told the Post. The overall price tag is below $2 trillion. It will be followed by a broader recovery plan with more expansive Democratic priorities. But after campaigning as a bipartisan dealmaker, Biden wants to give Republicans the opportunity to get behind his first legislative effort as president. You might say he’s offering them an off-ramp from the road to insurrection. That part sounds like a longshot, frankly, but this is Joe Biden we’re talking about.

Foreign Insurrection Financing Investigated

Don’t call them patriots. The Washington Post reports that dozens of people on a terrorist watch list were in Washington for pro-Trump events on January 6th, when a violent mob stormed the US Capitol. The majority of the watchlisted individuals in Washington that day are suspected white supremacists. Their past conduct so alarmed investigators that their names had been previously entered into the national Terrorist Screening Database, a massive set of names flagged as potential security risks, the Post’s sources said. The watch list is larger and separate from the no-fly list the government maintains, and those listed are not automatically barred from any public or commercial spaces.

While the FBI is hunting hundreds of rioting suspects who have dispersed back to their hometowns, the Post reports, federal agents are increasingly focused on the Proud Boys. Privately, some federal law enforcement officials have described the group as roughly equivalent to a nascent street gang. But other officials have expressed concern that the group may be growing rapidly into something more dangerous and directed.

Separately, Yahoo News reports that law enforcement is investigating whether a series of large Bitcoin donations were linked to the assault on the Capitol. On December 8th, someone made a simultaneous transfer of Bitcoins worth more than $500,000 to twenty-two different virtual wallets, most of them belonging to prominent right-wing organizations and personalities. Right-wing figures and websites, including VDARE, the Daily Stormer and Nick Fuentes, received generous donations from a bitcoin account linked to a French cryptocurrency exchange. The suspicious December transaction, along with other intelligence, has prompted law enforcement and intelligence agencies to investigate the sources of funding for individuals who participated in the Capitol insurrection. The government is hoping to prevent future attacks but also to uncover potential foreign involvement in or support of right-wing activities, Yahoo’s source said. The plot thickens!

Trump Lacks Impeachment Defense

Donald Trump, on the eve of facing a second impeachment trial, is having trouble finding a legal team to defend him, Bloomberg News reports. Allies of the outgoing president have been looking for representation but so far are coming up short. Lawyers who defended

him in the previous impeachment trial, including Jay Sekulow, have said no this time. Other lawyers who have defended Trump, including Pam Bondi, aren’t interested. Some of the lawyers have privately said what Trump did was indefensible.

Alan Dershowitz also defended Trump the first time around. He isn’t planning to represent the president now, Bloomberg reports. Rudy Giuliani is also unlikely to be on the president’s defense team, an administration official said. His conduct at the rally preceding the Capitol raid could be examined during an impeachment trial.

Separately, ABC News reports that the Trump family is pulling up stakes. Donald and Melania Trump have made no secret of their impending move to Florida after January 20, but they won't be alone. The president's eldest son, Donald Trump Junior, and his girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle have been house-hunting in the Palm Beach area. Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, also plan to relocate to the Sunshine State in the coming weeks, having recently purchased a plot of land in the Miami area.

In related real estate news, the Washington Post reports that the Secret Service detail assigned to Jared and Ivanka spent months searching for a restroom to use on the job. After resorting to a porta-potty, the agents finally found a toilet to call their own. But it came at a cost to US taxpayers. Since September 2017, the federal government has been spending $3,000 a month – more than $100,000 to date – to rent a basement studio, with a bathroom, from a neighbor of the Kushners. All this because agents were banned from using any the six point five bathrooms in Javanka’s mansion. Charming.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

The New York State attorney general sued the New York City Police Department yesterday over widespread abuses in how officers handled Black Lives Matter protests last summer, the New York Times reports. The AG, Letitia James, wants a federal monitor to oversee the department’s policing tactics at future protests. She also wants a court to declare that the practices the department used during the protests were unlawful. Get ’em Letitia!

Rick Snyder, the former governor of Michigan, was arraigned on misdemeanor charges yesterday in connection with his role in the Flint water crisis. The Times reports thatnhe was charged with two counts of willful neglect of duty. If he is convicted, he faces imprisonment of up to one year or a maximum fine of $1,000. It ain’t much but it’s something.

Joe Biden plans to name Jaime Harrison as his pick to lead the Democratic National Committee, the Washington Post reports. A former chairman of the South Carolina Democratic Party, Harrison last year raised $130 million in his losing race against Senator Lindsey Graham. Harrison is not expected to face a challenger, and his candidacy was promoted by Congressman James Clyburn, a close Biden ally.

Puerto Rican police are investigating the death of a transgender man found with multiple gunshot wounds, NBC News reports. Samuel Edmund Damián Valentín, shot January 9, is the seventh known transgender person to die by violence in Puerto Rico since last February. Advocates say the police aren’t doing enough. Hopefully more awareness on the case will cause them to pick up the pace.

JAN 15, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Corey Pein

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

Donald Trump yesterday became the first United States president to be impeached twice. Congratulations, sir!

Meanwhile, new details continue to surface about cooperation between last week’s Capitol mob and elected Republican officials. Not to mention the corporate money that backs them.

And lastly, the United States government has announced a trade ban on certain products from China made with forced labor. A fifth of the global cotton supply is at stake, and major clothing brands are implicated.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

It’s done. History has been made. Again. And hopefully not for a third time, because one insurrection was exciting enough. The House voted yesterday to impeach Donald Trump on a charge of inciting violence against the US government. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell left open the possibility of voting to convict at a trial, which would occur after Trump leaves office next week, the Washington Post reports. The Senate could vote on barring Trump from future elective office if he is convicted.

The final vote in the House yesterday was two hundred and thirty-two to one hundred and ninety-seven, with ten Republicans voting with Democrats for impeachment. It was reportedly the most bipartisan impeachment ever.

During debate on the House floor, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said Trump bears responsibility for last week’s violent takeover of the Capitol but proposed he be censured rather than impeached. Holding Trump accountable, McCarthy said, would only fan the flames of partisan division. Congressman Jaime Raskin of Maryland, the lead impeachment manager, had a concise response to that argument. He said QUOTE It’s a bit much to be hearing that these people would not be trying to destroy our government and kill us if we just weren’t so mean to them ENDQUOTE. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Trump must go, calling him a clear and present danger. Representative Hakeem Jeffires of New York went farther, calling Trump QUOTE a living, breathing impeachable offense ENDQUOTE.

Trump released a video statement disavowing political violence. He reportedly spent the day furious, watching television.

Republicans Ignore Capitol Security

The number of National Guard troops deployed to Washington, DC ahead of Joe Biden’s inauguration has reportedly swelled to twenty thousand, double what was initially pledged. News photos showed service members resting on the floors of the Capitol. Not everyone is happy about the increased security. A dozen or more Republicans in the House, including gun-toting Colorado Representative Lauren Boebert, have refused to comply with newly installed metal detectors outside the chamber. Some are concerned that these Republicans may be showing future armed insurrectionists how to circumvent security.

And there is new information about how GOP elected officials may have coordinated with the mob that took the Capitol last week. The Washington Post reports that weeks before the siege, right-wing activist Ali Alexander told his followers he was planning something big for January 6th. Alexander, who organized the Stop the Steal movement, said he hatched the plan alongside three GOP lawmakers: Representatives Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar of Arizona, and Mo Brooks of Alabama. All are hard-line Trump supporters. And Politico reports that Democratic Representative Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey witnessed colleagues escorting people through the Capitol on January 5th for what she described as reconnaissance ahead of the next day’s violent insurrection. Sherrill did not identify the lawmakers, but has referred her information to authorities. Democrats are also investigating. Finally, two Capitol Police officers told BuzzFeed News they wouldn’t be surprised if lawmakers helped plan the attack.

Beyond Washington, Politico reports that the Capitol riot was fueled by a deep network of GOP statehouse support. Lawmakers from more than a dozen states attended the January 6th rally, while scores more cheered on the mob from afar. Meanwhile, corporations and industry groups have donated at least $170 million in recent years to Congressional Republicans who rejected Joe Biden’s victory over Trump, according to Public Citizen, an advocacy group. So the insurrectionists have money, they have numbers, and they have outrage. But pretty soon, at least, they won’t have Congress – or the White House.

US Bans Chinese Cotton

This news of global trade and diplomacy comes via the Associated Press. The US government announced yesterday that it will halt imports of cotton and tomatoes from the Uighur region of China. The AP is calling it the most sweeping action yet to pressure the Communist Party over its campaign against ethnic minorities. Officials said Customs and Border Protection will use its authority to block products suspected of being produced with forced labor to keep out cotton, tomatoes and related products from the Xinjiang region of northwest China. The region is a major global supplier of cotton, so the order could have significant effects on international commerce.

According to the AP, the order will put economic pressure not just on China but major global retailers who import goods produced by people under conditions that are akin to modern-day slavery. Scott Nova, executive director of the Worker Rights Consortium, said QUOTE Any global apparel brand that is not either out of Xinjiang already, or plotting a very swift exit, is courting legal and reputational disaster. The days when any major apparel brand can safely profit from Xinjiang cotton are over ENDQUOTE. The consortium estimates the US ban affects about twenty percent of the global cotton supply.

China has imprisoned more than one million people, including Uighurs and other mostly Muslim ethnic groups, in a vast network of concentration camps, the AP reports. People have been subjected to torture, sterilization and political indoctrination in addition to forced labor as part of an assimilation campaign. China denies allegations of rights abuses and forced labor, saying it aims only to promote economic and social development in the region and stamp out radicalism. It also rejects criticism of what it considers its internal affairs. Well, we’ll stop criticizing when they stop abusing people.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

The US recorded an all-time, one-day high of four thousand, three hundred and twenty-seven Covid-19 deaths on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press. The nation’s overall death toll from the pandemic has topped three hundred and eighty thousand, closing in fast on the number of Americans killed in World War II. I think we’ve set enough records here, please, that’s enough.

Wildfire smoke now accounts for up to half of all fine-particle pollution in the Western US, according to the Los Angeles Times. A new study by researchers at Stanford University and UC San Diego blames climate change for worsening air quality and health risks in both urban and rural communities in recent years. Excuse me, I’m choking up a bit at this news.

Italy opened a huge trial yesterday of three hundred and twenty-five defendants linked to a powerful mafia syndicate in the southern region of Calabria. According to the New York Times, the charges include murder, extortion, usury, money laundering, drug trafficking, corruption, and more. Prosecutors hope to prove collusion among mobsters and public officials, politicians, businessmen and members of secret lodges, and we can’t wait for the movie.

Joe Biden yesterday named Samantha Power, the former US Ambassador to the United Nations, as his choice to lead the US Agency for International Development. It’s another Biden appointment that will thrill the center and annoy the left, as he is wont to do.

JAN 14, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Corey Pein

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

For the second time, and with one week until Joe Biden’s inauguration as president, Congress is impeaching Donald Trump. Security is ramping up and members of Congress are concerned about further assaults on the government.

Meanwhile, it turns out the Federal Bureau of Investigation did produce a report that a violent mob was bound for the Capitol last week. But it remains unclear why law enforcement acted like it was no big deal.

And lastly, the federal government issued new guidelines in hopes of dispensing the coronavirus vaccine faster. Now everyone over sixty five should be eligible for a shot.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

The US House of Representatives is set to vote this morning on articles of impeachment against Donald Trump. Several top House Republicans have said they will vote to impeach. Last night, House Democrats passed a resolution calling on Vice President Mike Pence to remove Trump using the Twenty-Fifth Amendment to the Constitution. However, in a letter Pence confirmed he would not cooperate in the effort. The White House does not expect to mount a forceful impeachment defense, Politico reports, knowing that Trump is unlikely to be convicted in the Senate. But just how unlikely remains a moving target. According to the New York Times, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is pleased that Democrats are impeaching Trump, believing that it will make it easier to purge him from the Republican party.

Trump spoke yesterday in Alamo, Texas, where he visited the border wall. Earlier in the day he disclaimed all responsibility for last week’s mob and said efforts to remove him from office were QUOTE causing tremendous anger ENDQUOTE. In other words: you made us do it.

The Huffington Post reports that Capitol Police briefed Democrats on Monday night about three more potentially gruesome demonstrations planned in the coming days. The first is being billed as the largest armed protest ever to take place on American soil. Another is a protest in honor of Ashli Babbitt, the woman killed while trying to climb into the Speaker’s Lobby during last Wednesday’s siege of the Capitol. And another demonstration, by far the

most concerning to members of Congress, would involve insurrectionists forming a perimeter around the Capitol, the White House and the Supreme Court. The mob would then block Democrats from entering the Capitol – perhaps even killing them – so that Republicans could take control of the government. These threats may not materialize. But according to the Associated Press, fifteen thousand National Guard members are deploying to Washington, DC, to help provide security. Military officials are working with the Secret Service to determine which Guard members may need additional background screening. The Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a memo to the entire US military yesterday condemning the Capitol riot and confirming Joe Biden will become commander in chief of the armed forces on January 20th. Meanwhile, the FBI is warning about armed protests at all fifty state capitols leading up to Biden’s inauguration. It’s tense, folks. Tense!

FBI Warned Of Violence

We’re learning more about intelligence failures at the Capitol. A day before rioters stormed Congress, an FBI office in Virginia issued an explicit internal warning that extremists were preparing to travel to Washington to commit violence and QUOTE war ENDQUOTE. This news comes from an internal document reviewed by The Washington Post. It contradicts a senior official’s declaration the bureau had no intelligence indicating anyone at last week’s pro-Trump protest planned to do harm.

The document says FBI Norfolk received information about calls for violence to begin on January 6 in Washington, DC. It cites an online thread that discussed specific calls for violence, including this one: QUOTE Be ready to fight. Congress needs to hear glass breaking, doors being kicked in, and blood from their BLM and Pantifa slave soldiers being spilled. Get violent. Stop calling this a march, or rally, or a protest. Go there ready for war. We get our President or we die. Nothing else will achieve this goal ENDQUOTE.

An FBI official familiar with the document told the Post that within forty-five minutes of learning about the alarming online conversation, the Norfolk FBI office wrote the report and shared it with others within the bureau. It was not immediately clear how many law enforcement agencies outside the FBI were told. Multiple law enforcement officials have said privately in recent days that the level of violence exhibited at the Capitol has led to difficult discussions within the FBI and other agencies about race and terrorism. There is concern that

investigators failed to register the degree of danger because the overwhelming majority of the participants at the rally were white conservatives fiercely loyal to Donald Trump. Go figure.

Government Expands Vaccine Eligibility

Health authorities are changing tack on the coronavirus. Barely a month into a mass vaccination campaign, the Associated Press reports, the Trump administration unexpectedly shifted gears yesterday to speed the delivery of shots. Health and Human Services Alex Azar has announced two major changes. First, the government will no longer hold back required second doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, practically doubling supply. Second, states should immediately start vaccinating other groups lower down the priority scale, including people age sixty-five and older, and younger people with certain health problems.

Meanwhile, the New York Times reports that scientists are envisioning what a post-vaccine world might look like – and what they see is comforting. The coronavirus is here to stay, but once most adults are immune – following natural infection or vaccination – the virus will be no more of a threat than the common cold. That’s according to a study published in the journal Science yesterday.

The virus is a menace now because it is an unfamiliar pathogen that can overwhelm the adult immune system, which has not been trained to fight it, the Times says. That will no longer be the case once everyone has been exposed to either the virus or vaccine. Children, on the other hand, are constantly challenged by pathogens that are new to their bodies, and that is one reason they are more adept than adults at fending off the coronavirus. Eventually, the study suggests, the virus will be of concern only in children younger than five, subjecting even them to mere sniffles – or no symptoms at all. In other words, the coronavirus will become endemic, a pathogen that circulates at low levels and only rarely causes serious illness.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Sheldon Adelson, a billionaire casino tycoon, newspaper owner, and Republican megadonor, died on Monday in Malibu, California. The cause was complications related to treatment for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, according to the Washington Post. He was eighty- seven.

At least five members of Congress have now tested positive for Covid-19 after sheltering in place with lawmakers who refused to wear masks during the assault on the US Capitol last week. They include Democrat Pramila Jayapal of Washington State, who assailed Republicans for QUOTE creating a superspreader event on top of a domestic terrorist attack ENDQUOTE. Gosh, it’s almost like they’re trying to do harm.

Deutsche Bank, which has been Donald Trump’s primary lender for two decades, has decided not to do business with Trump or his company in the future, according to the New York Times. Trump currently owes Deutsche Bank more than $300 million, which is due in the next few years. Surely he’s good for it.

India’s supreme court has suspended a series of controversial new agriculture laws that had prompted hundreds of thousands of farmers to stage a months-long protest in Delhi, the Guardian reports. Farmers argued that the new laws put them at greater risk of poverty and losing their land to large corporations. Protest gets results!

JAN 13, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Corey Pein

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

The assorted rats in the Trump administration continue to flee his sinking ship. Today, it was Acting Homeland Security head Chad Wolf, while business leaders and other institutions cut ties en masse.

Meanwhile, the right wing hints at further violence for the days leading up to Joe Biden’s inauguration, while DC authorities scramble to contain the crazies in their midst.

And lastly, the ACLU is pressuring the Department of Justice to postpone three federal executions scheduled for this week, citing coronavirus risks. Even a short stay could be enough to give death row inmates a chance to live if Trump leaves office.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

The Trump administration has been toxic since the start, but in recent days even the assorted scum that have hung on this long have started to jump ship. The list of resignations at this point is too long to count: Betsy DeVos, Elaine Chao, Mick Mulvaney, and so many more from the West Wing and various departments in the Executive Branch.

The latest is acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf, who led the department through Trump’s use of it as his private police force to beat, harass, and kidnap protesters across the country during the widespread movement for black lives this summer.

Wolf will remain in the DHS at a lower position, but is clearly seeking some distance from the big man in office, for obvious reasons. Will it be enough to save his career as an authoritarian ghoul? Time will tell.

Meanwhile, business are finally deciding that any profits they may still glean from associating with Trump probably aren’t worth it in the long run. In recent days ecommerce giant Shopify terminated Trump-linked stores and hotel chain Marriott dropped their PAC donations.

But perhaps one of the funniest and most cutting betrayals was by Trump’s beloved Professional Golfers Association voted to terminate a contract to play the PGA championship at Trump’s Bedminster resort in 2022. Even the golfers are ditching him! It’s just too good.

Right Wing Plans More Violence

Even as Trump’s star wanes faster than one of those cheap glow-in-the-dark stickers you put on kids ceilings, the right wing isn’t done with their violent fantasies about taking over the nation.

Authorities and extremism reporters now warn that various right wing groups and militias may be coalescing around demonstrations at various state capitols in the days leading up to Biden’s inauguration next Wednesday.

Security in DC is expected to be massively beefed up: at least 10,000 national guard troops will be deployed to the city for inauguration, and it seems pretty unlikely that DC authorities will let themselves get clowned on again.

To add more chaos to the mix, Capitol Police and the Secret Service also have to deal with traitors in their own midst. Capitol Police said Monday that they had suspended two officers and placed more than a dozen under investigation for their roles in aiding or abetting the rioters last week. Meanwhile, the Secret Service said that it had placed one officer under investigation after she allegedly posted comments on Facebook supporting the rioters and accusing lawmakers who supported Biden’s victory of treason.

But even if DC gets its house in order, the right wing is also allegedly planning mass armed demonstrations outside of various state capitols, which have already seen similar events and attacks over the past few months. It’s going to be a dicey last few days.

Activists Oppose Lame Duck Executions

And finally, legal activists are seeking to block one of the Trump administration’s final acts of barbarism, asking for a temporary stay in three federal executions that are scheduled for this week.

A group of former corrections officers from Indiana on Monday petitioned acting Attorney General Jeff Rosen to temporarily postpone three federal executions planned for this week at the government’s Terre Haut prison.

The officers cited the coronavirus pandemic as their main reasoning for foregoing the executions, as vaccination of prisoners and staff has already begun but isn’t finished yet. But if they’re successful in getting a temporary stay, it could change everything for the prisoners on death row, as Biden has indicated that he’s open to abolishing the federal death penalty.

That makes it all the more evil that the Trump administration has pushed an almost unprecedented rush of federal executions in recent days.

Propublica reported on Monday that quote "Justice Department officials scheduled executions in defiance of court orders, flouted pandemic safety measures and lied about it, and demanded that judges yield to the administration's self-imposed deadline of January 20” endquote.

Seems like things are pretty clear: Trump wants these three prisoners dead, and he doesn’t care who else he endangers to make that happen. We can only hope someone in a position of power comes down on the side of mercy.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

Bill Bellicheck, the notoriously antagonistic coach of the New England Patriots, refused President Trump’s offer of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Man, if even Bellicheck refuses to go near you, you know things must be bad, and we all know this one’s going to get Trump where it hurts.

Meanwhile, Conservative commentator Dan Bongino, last seen vowing to go bankrupt before allowing big Tech to censor the conservative platform Parler, has now announced that he is bankrupt, after big tech censored the conservative platform Parler. Who could possibly have seen this coming!

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, who was barricaded inside the Capitol during the siege last week, said that she had tested positive for coronavirus today. She believes she was infected by maskless Republican members who were in the room with her.

And finally, Buzzfeed News reports that a disgruntled State Department employee briefly changed the official web pages for the department to say that Donald Trump and Mike Pence’s terms in office were ending on Monday night. This prediction did not, unfortunately, come true.

That’s it for the Majority Report’s AM Quickie! Stay tuned for the full show this afternoon.

JAN 12, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Jack Crosbie

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn

Welcome to Majority.FM's AM QUICKIE! Brought to you by justcoffee.coop

TODAY'S HEADLINES:

The House of Representatives could vote as early as Tuesday on new articles of Impeachment against the President, charging him with inciting the riot that briefly took over the Capitol building last week.

Meanwhile, the widespread social media crackdown on far right-wing apps, pages, and organizing spaces continues as big tech firms finally decide to purge some outspoken fascists from their services.

And lastly, the coronavirus vaccine rollout is still a mess, and contrasting stories from Florida and New York show that state governments have a delicate needle to thread in the absence of Federal leadership.

THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:

The House of Representatives could vote as early as Tuesday to impeach President Donald Trump for the second time.

The new article of impeachment was introduced by Representatives David Cicilline of Rhode Island, Jamie Raskin of Maryland and Ted Lieu of California. It charges Trump with quote . “willfully inciting violence against the government of the United States.” endquote.

So far, 210 of 222 Democrats in the House have signed on. Meanwhile, more and more reps from either side of the aisle are calling for Trump’s immediate resignation, including two Republicans. Of course, there’s absolutely no way that will happen, but still.

If the House does vote to impeach, though, there’s almost no way that Trump will actually be removed from office. And it’s also unlikely that we’ll see action on that front for weeks, if not months.

Nancy Pelosi has indicated that she would wait to forward the impeachment on from the House to a Senate trial until after Biden’s first 100 days in office.

There’s two reasons for that: she says she doesn’t want to distract from his first days in office with a big Senate trial, which, sure, whatever, but it also means that Trump could face an actual Senate trial on charges of inciting violence with a Democrat-controlled Senate.

Knowing our Democrats, chances still seem low that Trump will actually pay for his crimes, but we’ll see how things shake out over the next few weeks.

Silicon Valley Finds its Spine

Our great tech overlords have finally discovered their spine -- or perhaps the recent bloodshed at the U.S. Capitol has finally made doing the right thing the safer choice.

Over the weekend, Apple removed right-wing social media app Parler from its service, as did Amazon and Google. This follows the end-of-week purge of both Donald Trump’s personal accounts on Twitter and Facebook, as well as those of thousands of right wing agitators and overt fascists. Even Parler had to take down some posts when people like Trump-linked lawyer L. Lin Wood started calling for Mike Pence to face a firing squad.

It’s worth noting that all of these platforms had literally years to make these moves. The far right has been organizing widely on all of these apps and services since before Trump was elected, often by the algorithms of tech giants like Facebook.

Conservatives’ response to this has been the familiar refrain: tears and whining about how they’re being censored.

It’s especially dumb when it comes from elected officials like Trump himself, who literally has the biggest media platform in the world at his disposal regardless of whether or not he can send tweets from his gilded bathroom.

Vaccine Rollout Still Varied

The coronavirus vaccine rollout is still a slow, uneven process across America, as states struggle to figure out best practices in the absence of clear federal leadership.

It appears that we’re seeing two big mistakes. In New York, for instance, Governor Andrew Cuomo’s harsh penalties and strict guidelines meant that many doses of the vaccine languished on shelves because healthcare professionals couldn’t find enough eligible people to give them to.

In light of widespread criticism, Cuomo has finally relaxed some of these restrictions, widening the pool of people eligible to get the vaccine so that more doses can be administered as soon as possible.

But in Florida, the opposite problem is happening. The New York Times reports that the state’s distribution system is disorganized, and its eligible population is huge: everyone over the age of 65 is eligible for the vaccine, and thanks to the state’s huge elderly population, demand is way over supply.

Vaccines distributed on a first-come-first-serve basis to those groups draw massive lines and often result in people being turned away.

The hope is that the Biden administration will seek to immediately sort out this situation with some kind of clear federal program. It’s wild to think, of course, how much easier all this would be if the U.S. had some kind of consistent, universal health care system administered by the Federal Government. Maybe we’ll have it in time for the next pandemic.

AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:

St. Louis’s Board of Alderman’s public safety committee voted 6-1 last week to endorse a contract with an Ohio-based company that does aerial surveillance of cities, meaning the city’s residents will be subjected to low-altitude planes surveilling them at any time and passing information to authorities.

In Barcelona, city officials are taking a hard line against landlords with vacant rental units, saying that unless they’re filled, the government will take over their properties for half their market value and rent them out to low-income tenants. Sounds like a great plan for places like New York City, where luxury apartments sit unused and thousands of families struggle to find homes.

JP Morgan Chase, perhaps belatedly realizing that its massive donations to political candidates are not the best look right now, has said it will pause PAC donations to both Republicans and Democrats for the next six months, as if a brief break from destroying the political system with dark money will make things better for everyone.

An early sign of hope from President-elect Biden, who on Saturday called to set aside deficit concerns and embark on a massive federal spending campaign to prop up the economy. We’ll see if he makes good on that, but if he does he’ll have one key ally in the Senate: Bernie Sanders, who will likely be the new Budget chairman.

That’s it for the Majority Report’s AM Quickie today! Sam will be with you in a few short hours.

JAN 11, 2021 - AM QUICKIE

HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner

WRITER - Jack Crosbie

PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn