5 surprising things tucked into Congress nearly 6,000-page spending bill
December 21, 2020
The most significant aspect of Congress omnibus spending bill is the $900 coronavirus relief package embedded within it, but there are a few surprising add-ons â as there usually are in such legislation â tucked into the nearly 6,000-paged text.
One item that snuck in there was the proposed creation of two new Smithsonian museums, one focused on women s history, and the other for the proposed National Museum of the American Latino. Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) had previously blocked standalone bills that would have funded them.
Tucked into the stimulus bill: two new Smithsonian museums pic.twitter.com/vVwVkcXZIR
Trump s reported martial law musings have even some conservatives alarmed
December 21, 2020 In this instance, all that is preserving the Constitution is the military s fidelity to the rule of law, Max Boot writes in
The Washington Post in reference to reports that President Trump has at least discussed the possibility of declaring martial law and seizing voting machines with his former national security adviser Michael Flynn and controversial attorney Sidney Powell in hopes of overturning the presidential election results.
Boot, who considered himself a conservative pre-Trump, acknowledged neither scenario is likely to be realized, but he argues simply talking about the ideas marks a new low for Trump. Never before the in U.S. history has there been a record of a president discussing a military coup to stay in office, he wrote.
Biden receives COVID-19 vaccine on TV: There s nothing to worry about
December 21, 2020
President-elect Joe Biden has received his first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine on live TV, and he s calling on all Americans to do so when they can.
The president-elect on Monday received a shot of Pfizer s coronavirus vaccine at a hospital in Delaware, becoming the latest politician to do so after Vice President Mike Pence received the vaccine publicly on Friday. Officials have been getting the vaccine, which requires a second dose, on camera to help boost confidence among Americans that it s safe and effective. Biden s wife, Jill Biden, also received a dose of the vaccine on Monday.
Trump administration officials subpoenaed in probe into alleged extensive and dangerous political interference at CDC
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar and CDC Director Robert Redfield have both been subpoenaed by a House subcommittee probing allegations of political interference at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis on Monday subpoenaed Azar and Redfield for previously-requested documents, which committee chair Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said was necessary because the Select Subcommittee s investigation has revealed that efforts to interfere with scientific work at CDC were far more extensive and dangerous than previously known,