politics

Summary

A 2017 police report details sexual assault allegations against Pete Hegseth, Fox News host and Trump’s defense secretary nominee.

A woman claimed Hegseth blocked her in a California hotel room, took her phone, and assaulted her.

Hegseth denied wrongdoing, asserting the encounter was consensual.

The investigation, which included witness accounts and medical exams, led police to refer the case to prosecutors, but no charges were filed.

Hegseth later settled financially with the accuser. Despite the controversy, Trump remains supportive of his nomination.

Fox News stated it was unaware of the incident.

Summary

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy are leading the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), tasked with recommending $500 billion in federal spending cuts.

Their agenda includes defunding organizations like Planned Parenthood and public broadcasting, using recent Supreme Court rulings to justify overturning federal regulations and enabling mass federal worker layoffs.

Critics warn this could undermine public health, civil rights, and gun control regulations.

DOGE’s recommendations, aligned with Trump’s goals, aim to scale back federal oversight and reduce spending but face legal and practical challenges. A final report is due by July 2026.

Summary

JD Vance deleted a tweet defending his Senate absences that unintentionally revealed Donald Trump is interviewing candidates to replace FBI Director Christopher Wray before his term ends in 2027.

Vance faced backlash from Trump ally Grace Chong for missing votes on Biden’s judicial nominees and responded by calling her a “mouth breathing imbecile,” explaining he was busy helping Trump vet officials.

Trump later criticized GOP senators for skipping votes, prompting Vance to return to the Senate and delete his controversial post.

Chong has mocked Vance online.

Summary

Donald Trump narrowly won the 2024 presidential election, securing the smallest popular vote margin for a victor in modern U.S. history, with just 1.6% over Kamala Harris.

Despite his win, Democrats performed unexpectedly well in down-ballot races, flipping Senate seats in swing states Trump carried and maintaining the House balance.

Republicans lack a clear mandate as Trump’s plans for deportations, ending birthright citizenship, political retribution, and tariffs clash with voters’ hopes for economic relief.

There’s likely to be backlash as voters realize the gap between what they wanted and what Trump plans to deliver.

Summary

Sen. Lindsey Graham defended Matt Gaetz, Trump’s nominee for attorney general, saying allegations of sexual misconduct should not disqualify him based on “a media report.”

Gaetz denies the claims, which include sexual misconduct with a high school student, drug use, and improper gifts, asserting they were part of an extortion plot.

While the FBI convicted someone for extortion related to the allegations, Gaetz was not charged.

Some Senate Republicans, like Sen. John Cornyn, are pressing for the release of a bipartisan House Ethics Committee report on the matter.

Summary

Linda McMahon, Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Education, previously resigned from the Connecticut State Board of Education in 2009 after falsely claiming she held a degree in education.

McMahon, co-founder of WWE and former head of the Small Business Administration, holds a degree in French and a teaching certificate.

Her nomination has drawn criticism for her lack of public education experience and alignment with Trump’s policies, including rolling back LGBTQ+ protections under Title IX.

If confirmed, McMahon will oversee contentious student loan forgiveness battles and Trump’s push to dismantle the Department of Education.

For context, at least one of the girls was below the age of consent

Pennsylvania officials gathered at the Capitol in Harrisburg on Wednesday to mark the Transgender Day of Remembrance. It was a means of memorializing transgender Americans and Pennsylvanians who died by violence or suicide in the past year.

Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham has offered President-elect Donald Trump the use of a 1,402-acre ranch in Starr County, on the U.S.-Mexico border, for the construction of deportation facilities.

Buckingham, a Republican, made the offer in a letter sent to Trump on Tuesday in which she pledged to support what she described as "the largest deportation of violent criminals in the nation's history."

Summary

The North Carolina House passed a controversial bill allocating $227 million for Hurricane Helene relief while including provisions to reduce powers of the incoming Democratic governor and attorney general.

Critics, including Democrats, called it a “power grab,” citing changes like stripping the governor’s control over the State Board of Elections and limiting the attorney general’s ability to challenge state laws or advocate for utility customers.

Republicans defended the bill as necessary, but some GOP lawmakers opposed it.

The bill now heads to the Senate and may face a gubernatorial veto.

Butthead took his sex workers to “Pretty Woman”.

Remember, when Dukakis lost the presidential election because he sat in a tank?