White House News (白宮消息) | Dec. 11, 2020

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Biden’s Win Is Sealed

Dec. 10 -  Associated Press: “Biden’s victory was essentially locked in Tuesday by the so-called safe harbor deadline set by federal law for states to finish their certifications and resolve legal disputes. It’s an insurance policy to guard against Congress trying to manipulate the electoral votes that will be cast next week and sent to the Capitol for counting on Jan. 6.”     source

President Trump has backed the Texas-led Supreme Court case
Texas Supreme Court Lawsuit: 18 states have joined a campaign to overturn Donald Trump’s US election defeat - here’s why

President Donald Trump has thrown his support behind the latest Republican lawsuit
Dec. 10 - Republicans have launched yet another lawsuit to have election results nullified in key states won by president-elect Joe Biden.

Led by Texas attorney general Ken Paxton the lawsuit is asking the Supreme Court to invalidate millions of votes counted in Georgia, Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania citing widespread voter fraud, despite no evidence.

Republicans have launched yet another lawsuit to have election results nullified in key states won by president-elect Joe Biden.     continue to read

FBI agents seek Texas attorney general records in Paxton probe

Dec. 11 - Federal agents served at least one subpoena Wednesday on the office of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in an ongoing investigation into allegations that Paxton abused his authority by helping a friend and campaign donor.

Three sources confirmed to the American-Statesman and KVUE-TV that FBI agents delivered the request for information to the agency’s headquarters on West 14th Street. The sources did not immediately know how many subpoenas were issued or what information FBI agents sought.

Federal authorities are investigating claims by former top Paxton aides that he used his position to aid Austin investor Nate Paul, whose offices were raided by the FBI last year.     continue to read

Warren Kenneth Paxton Jr.[1] (born December 23, 1962) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the Attorney General of Texas since January 2015. Paxton is a Tea Party conservative.[2] He previously served as Texas State Senator for the 8th district and the Texas State Representative for the 70th district.
Paxton has been under indictment since 2015 on securities fraud charges relating to activities prior to taking office; he has pleaded not guilty.[3][4] In October 2020, several high-level assistants in Paxton's office made allegations accusing him of "bribery, abuse of office and other crimes".[5][6][7]

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美方“制裁”闹剧纯属玩火
拜登能否带领美国重回正轨？
20201209 | 《今日关注》CCTV中文国际
Dec 10, 2020

White House News (白宮消息) | Dec. 10, 2020

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Pete Buttigieg reportedly really wants a Cabinet spot — but not just any Cabinet spot

Dec 10 - Pete Buttigieg is reportedly ready to make his political return — if President-elect Joe Biden can find a suitable place for him.

The former South Bend, Indiana, mayor proved a strong contender in the crowded 2020 Democratic primaries before dropping out and endorsing Biden. He's now seeking a spot in the Biden administration, and is a little picky about where he ends up, people familiar with the matter tell Axios.

Buttigieg's top choice in a Biden administration was reportedly ambassador to the United Nations — a Cabinet-level post in Buttigieg's preferred arena of foreign policy. But Biden passed Buttigieg over for that role, giving it to Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who has worked in Foreign Service almost as long as Buttigieg has been alive.

It's not that Biden isn't fond of Buttigieg; He has gone so far as to compare the former mayor to his late son Beau. Instead, Biden has been focused on picking women and people of color for his top spots — something that has frustrated those looking for LGBTQ leaders in the Democratic administration, Washington Blade reports. And Buttigieg hasn't made it easy for Biden to include him either. Buttigieg shook off talks of being Biden's Office of Management and Budget director because he wanted a "real Cabinet" position and not a "staff-level" job, a Democratic insider tells Washington Blade. He also reportedly squashed talks of leading the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Now, Biden is considering giving Buttigieg a high-profile ambassadorship, potentially even sending him to China, Axios reports. Buttigieg is also reportedly being considered for some remaining domestic roles — something his supporters see as a way to build his profile before another presidential run.

More stories from theweek.com
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The Trumps are reportedly preparing to move out of the White House
Biden reportedly selects Katherine Tai as trade representative

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Joe Biden ‘Should Be Disqualified From The Presidency,’ Former Clinton Adviser Says

Dec. 10 - Former Democratic Party operative Peter Daou said Tuesday evening that President-elect Joe Biden “should be disqualified from the presidency.”

Daou tweeted a video which, he claimed, shows that Biden has acted inappropriately around young women and children.

The former Washington insider slammed President Donald Trump — who has been accused of unwarranted physical contact and assault — but called on liberals to hold Biden to the same standard.

“That doesn’t negate the fact that Biden should be disqualified from the presidency, with multiple allegations of inappropriate contact.”

The video Daou shared was created by professor Anthony Zenkus, an expert on trauma. The compilation suggested that Biden has a habit of violating women and children’s personal space by touching and kissing them without consent.

In the clip, Zenkus claimed that the Democrat’s behavior resembles that of a predator who ignores people’s boundaries.
Predators, the expert said, “will engage with the child and continue them despite the fact that a child squirms away or pulls away or voices any sort of discomfort, verbally or nonverbally.”

In a tweet, Zenkus explained that he “made this video to help people understand how to keep children safe, and also to call out Biden’s unsafe behaviors.”     continue to read

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US President Donald Trump arrives to deliver remarks on the stock market during an unscheduled appearance in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC on November 24, 2020.
17 states tell Supreme Court they support Texas bid to reverse Biden win

Dec. 10 - Seventeen states whose elections were won by President Donald Trump told the Supreme Court on Wednesday that they support Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s bid to file a lawsuit that could effectively reverse President-elect Joe Biden’s projected Electoral College victory.

The filing backing Paxton by those states came a day after he asked the Supreme Court for permission to sue Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, all of which Biden won, over their voting processes.

Later Wednesday, Trump filed a motion to intervene in the case “in his personal capacity” as a presidential candidate. The Supreme Court has yet to rule on Paxton’s request.

The states supporting the suit, all of which have Republican attorneys general, are Missouri, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, and West Virginia.

Trump defeated Biden in the popular vote in all of those states, though one of Nebraska’s electoral votes was awarded to Biden.     continue to read

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‘This is madness’: Romney lashes out at Republicans threatening to protest Electoral College vote
Joe Biden’s popular vote lead has grown to over 7 million, and results confirming his win have been certified by states, including key battlegrounds

Dec. 10 -Mitt Romney has torn into fellow Republicans threatening to disrupt the Electoral College vote confirming Joe Biden as the winner of the presidential election.

The Utah senator said: “This is madness. We have a process, recounts are appropriate, going to the court is appropriate, and pursuing every legal avenue is appropriate, but trying to get electors not to do what the people voted to do is madness.”

Senator Romney’s comments were first reported by NBC News reporter Frank Thorp V, as Donald Trump’s campaign and supporters in the party continue to attempt legal action in battleground states to try and overturn the 2020 election results.

He continued: “It would be saying, 'Look, let's not follow the vote of the people, let's instead do what we want’. That would not be the way a democratic republic ought to work.”

Asked if he was very confident that anything like that would be rejected, Mr Romney replied, yes.     continue to reaad

PBS NewsHour full episode, Dec. 9, 2020
Dec. 10, 2020
Wednesday on the NewsHour, COVID cases and deaths continue to surge in the U.S. with hospital beds in short supply, drug testing rules in Alabama are holding some people down after they are released from jail, Facebook comes under fire from states claiming the social media giant needs to be reigned in, and a look at how women are being impacted by the economic fallout from the pandemic.

White House News (白宮消息) | Dec. 9, 2020

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President Donald Trump has threatened to veto the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act unless certain provisions are included.

House Passes Defense Bill as Republicans Revolt Against Veto-Wielding Trump

Dec. 8 - On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) despite President Trump's threats to veto the defense spending bill without certain concessions.

Trump had objected to a provision in the act that called for the renaming of U.S. military installations that had named after Confederate Army leaders. The repeal of Section 230, which protects social media platforms from being considered the publishers of third-party content, was not included in the NDAA. On Tuesday, Trump reiterated his claims that he would veto the NDAA.

I hope House Republicans will vote against the very weak National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which I will VETO," Trump tweeted. "Must include a termination of Section 230 (for National Security purposes), preserve our National Monuments, & allow for 5G & troop reductions in foreign lands!"

With 355 representatives voting for the NDAA and only 78 representatives voting against it, the NDAA received more than the two-thirds majority necessary to override any attempt to veto the act. Next, the NDAA will go to the U.S. Senate.     continue to read

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Congressional Republicans refuse to acknowledge they are preparing for Biden's inauguration

Dec. 8 - A high-level Inauguration planning meeting on Capitol Hill ended in acrimony Tuesday after House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer offered up a motion that the small committee – known as the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies (JCCIC) -- affirm that it is preparing for the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden. Although all three Democrats on the committee voted in favor of the motion, their Republican counterparts voted against it, resulting in a deadlock.

"The extent to which Republicans are refusing to accept the outcome of the election and recognize Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as our next President and Vice President is astounding," Hoyer said in a statement after the meeting. "Their continued deference to President Trump's post-election temper tantrums threatens our democracy and undermines faith in our system of elections."

Senator Amy Klobuchar, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Hoyer voted in favor of the motion. Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, and Senate Rules Committee Chairman Roy Blunt voted no.     continue to read

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From left, Steny Hoyer, Nancy Pelosi, Roy Blunt, Mitch McConnell, Amy Klobuchar.
Republicans block inaugural committee from recognizing Biden win

Dec. 9 - Republicans on the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies voted against a resolution that would have affirmed the committee was preparing for the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) announced Tuesday.

Why it matters: By voting against the resolution, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) and House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy effectively blocked the committee from publicly recognizing Biden as president-elect...     continue to read

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell suggested dropping discussions about two items that have been big sticking points.
Confusion grips Capitol amid flurry of stimulus plans

Party leaders and rank-and-file lawmakers are both struggling to reach a Covid deal.

Dec. 8 - No one seems to know what’s going on with coronavirus relief anymore.

In the span of an afternoon, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell suggested dropping discussions on the two biggest sticking points. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin offered a new proposal to Speaker Nancy Pelosi. A bipartisan group of senators is still working to finalize language on a $908 billion package. And President Donald Trump endorsed new stimulus checks.     continue to read

PBS NewsHour full episode, Dec. 8, 2020
Dec. 9, 2020
Tuesday on the NewsHour, Britain gets the first COVID-19 vaccine, President-elect Joe Biden names his health care advisers, a retired army general is tapped to be the next secretary of defense, and the pandemic and social stigmas complicate the process of integrating the formerly incarcerated back into society.

White House News (白宮消息) | Dec. 8, 2020

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Then-US Vice President Joe Biden (L) meets with General Lloyd Austin, the commander of United States Forces - Iraq (USF-I), and US ambassador in Iraq James Jeffrey (unseen) at the US embassy upon the former's arrival at Baghdad on a surprise visit on November 29, 2011. AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images

Biden picks retired Gen. Lloyd Austin to be his secretary of defense, source says

Dec. 8 - (CNN)President-elect Joe Biden has selected retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin, the former commander of US Central Command, to be his secretary of defense, a source familiar with the decision told CNN on Monday.

If confirmed by the Senate, Austin would be the first Black man to lead the Department of Defense.
In addition to serving as commander of United States Central Command, Austin previously served as the vice chief of staff of the Army.Politico was first to report on Biden's selection of Austin. The Biden transition team declined to comment to CNN.
Austin would need a congressional waiver to be confirmed for the civilian post because he retired from active-duty service only four years ago. Federal law requires seven years of retirement from active duty before taking on the role.     continue to read

Lloyd James Austin III (born August 8, 1953) is an American retired four-star general of the United States Army who served as the 12th commander of United States Central Command (CENTCOM). Austin was the first Black commander to head the organization.[1]
Before CENTCOM, Austin served as the 33rd vice chief of staff of the United States Army from January 31, 2012, to March 8, 2013. He was also the last commanding general of United States Forces – Iraq, Operation New Dawn, which ended on December 18, 2011, and then Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army. Austin retired from the Army in April 2016.
In December 2020, it was announced that Austin would be nominated to serve as the United States Secretary of Defense in the Biden administration.

info. from Wikipedia

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Lloyd James Austin III is being considered for Secretary of Defense.
Who is Lloyd J. Austin? Biden considers Mobile native for top Pentagon slot

Nov. 30 - President-Elect Joe Biden is reportedly considering Mobile native and retired four-star general Lloyd J. Austin III for Secretary of Defense.
If confirmed by the Senate, Austin, 67, would be the first Black American to fill the position.

Austin, a retired Army general and head of the U.S. Central Command, is one of several potential candidates.

According to The New York Times, Biden is also looking at Michèle Flournoy, a senior defense official for Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama; Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, who formerly served as a deputy energy secretary and National Security Council member, and Jeh Johnson, who became Secretary of Homeland Security under Obama.

CNN reports that Austin would need a congressional waiver to be confirmed for the civilian post because he retired from active-duty service four years ago.     continue to read

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美要在西太发起大规模军事行动？
20201206 |《今日关注》CCTV中文国际
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Pompeo Designates ‘Violators Of Religious Freedom’ Including China, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo designated new “violators of religious freedom” Monday, announcing new action intended to protect “those who simply want to exercise this essential freedom.”

Pompeo announced that the U.S. designated Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, Nigeria, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as “Countries of Particular Concern” for “systematic, ongoing, egregious violations of religious freedom.” (RELATED: China Committing ‘Demographic Genocide’ Against Uighurs Through Forced Abortion, Sterilization, Mass Detention, AP Investigation Finds)

The Secretary of State also noted that Comoros, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Russia have been placed on a Special Watch List for “severe violations of religious freedom,” and that extremist groups al-Shabaab, al-Qa’ida, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Houthis, ISIS, ISIS-Greater Sahara, ISIS-West Africa, Jamaat Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin, and the Taliban have been designated “Entities of Particular Concern.”

Dec. 7 - Today the U.S. designates Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, Nigeria, the DPRK, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as countries of concern under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 for engaging systematic, ongoing, egregious religious freedom violations.

— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) December 7, 2020
“We have not renewed the prior Entity of Particular Concern designations for al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula and ISIS-Khorasan, due to the total loss of territory formerly controlled by these terrorist organizations,” Pompeo said in a statement.
“While these two groups no longer meet the statutory criteria for designation, we will not rest until we have fully eliminated the threat of religious freedom abuses by any violent extremist and terrorist groups.” (RELATED: Pompeo Demands China End ‘Horrific’ And ‘Dehumanizing’ Forced Abortions, Sterilizations Of Uighurs)

Sudan and Uzbekistan are no longer on the special watch list due to progress in their respective governments, Pompeo said, citing “courageous reforms of their laws and practices stand as models for other nations to follow.”
 
“And yet our work is far from complete,” he said. “The United States will continue to work tirelessly to end religiously motivated abuses and persecution around the world, and to help ensure that each person, everywhere, at all times, has the right to live according to the dictates of conscience.”     source

White House News (白宮消息) | Dec. 7, 2020

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Biden expected to nominate Xavier Becerra to lead Health and Human Services

Dec. 6 - (CNN)President-elect Joe Biden is poised to nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, a Biden transition official tells CNN.

Becerra, a former member of Congress, emerged as the leading contender for the critical role after other candidates with more health care expertise were ruled out.

The New York Times was first to report the expected nomination.Becerra is the first Latino to serve as the attorney general of California and has been in the post since 2017. He has been a fierce opponent of President Donald Trump, and the state of California has brought more than 100 lawsuits against the President and his administration's policies.

More than half of the lawsuits are over environmental policies, according to the Los Angeles Times, that the Trump administration had either put in place or removed. Becerra has also been a leader in the fight to protect the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, an Obama-era program that Trump has attempted to abolish that has shielded from deportation certain undocumented immigrants who came to the US as children.

Becerra was also under consideration to serve as US attorney general, CNN previously reported.

The attorney general served 12 terms in Congress as a member of the US House of Representatives and held several leadership posts. He was the chair of the House Democratic Caucus, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the ranking member of the Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security. He was also the first Latino to serve as a member of the Ways and Means Committee.

Becerra also served one term in the California Legislature and is a former deputy attorney general with the California Department of Justice.      source

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California Attorney General Xavier Becerra speaks during a press conference at the California State Capitol on March 7, 2018 in Sacramento, Calif.

Biden will pick California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead Health and Human Services
The incoming administration has tried to elevate more diverse candidates to frontline positions.

Dec. 6 - WASHINGTON — President-elect Joe Biden will nominate California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to lead the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, three sources familiar with the decision said.

Becerra, 62, is a former 12-term member of the House of Representatives and a vigorous defender of the Affordable Care Act who led the defense of the law in the Supreme Court last month.

If confirmed, he would be the first Latino to lead the massive department, as the incoming administration tries to elevate more diverse candidates to frontline positions. Biden offered Becerra the position in a Friday phone call.     continue to read

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Two people look out at the skyline of the Central Business District in Beijing, on April 16. China is moving firmly and clearly ahead of its rivals, according to the latest OECD economic outlook. Photo: Reuters

China’s economic rise is unstoppable – the US should explore a partnership instead
China is advancing as an economic power no matter what the US throws at it. This demands a response of acceptance and partnership rather than destructive opposition

Dec. 7 - If you are an Olympic running champion and you glance over your shoulder to see a rival gaining on and threatening to overtake you, what do you do – put on an extra spurt to show you are still the best, acknowledge your worthy opponent, or try to hobble him so he falls behind?

For America, President Donald Trump chose the last option, launching against China, a competitor nation breathing down its neck.

It is easy to see why any Oval Office inhabitant should feel uneasy. China is moving firmly and clearly ahead of its rivals, according to the latest Economic Outlook by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.     continue to read