Sen. Ruben Gallego's son tells Kamala Harris "I'm sorry you didn't win"

New Majority Leader Thune kicks off Senate session with pledge to preserve filibuster

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — New Senate Majority Leader John Thune is kicking off the new session with a promise to preserve the filibuster, saying in his first floor speech as leader that his priority will be to “ensure the Senate stays the Senate.”

Thune, R-S.D., and Senate Republicans are taking power on Friday a little more than two weeks before Donald Trump will be inaugurated, cementing a firm GOP hold on Washington. And Thune will have to navigate his new responsibilities along with the new president, who has made clear he expects allegiance from Congress – and has previously called for eliminating the filibuster.

Opening up the two-year Senate session Friday after new and returning senators were sworn in, Thune said the legislative tactic that allows senators to delay consideration of a measure and require 60 votes for passage has “perhaps the greatest impact in preserving the Founders’ vision of the Senate.”

“There are a lot of people out there who would like to see the Senate turn into a copy of the House of Representatives,” Thune said. “And that is not what our founders intended or what our country needs.”

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/senate-thune-republicans-filibuster-trump-a520b71c6f071d5aa74d38105d6b7088

Watch live: Harris swears in new senators

WTF, Megan McCain?

Statement from Trump about the passing of President Jimmy Carter

Biden reportedly regrets ending re-election campaign and says he'd have defeated Trump

Source: The Guardian

Joe Biden regrets having pulled out of this year’s presidential race and believes he would have defeated Donald Trump in last month’s election – despite negative poll indications, White House sources have said.

The US president has reportedly also said he made a mistake in choosing Merrick Garland as attorney general – reflecting that Garland, a former US appeals court judge, was slow to prosecute Donald Trump for his role in the 6 January 2021 insurrection while presiding over a justice department that aggressively prosecuted Biden’s son Hunter.

With just more than three weeks of his single-term presidency remaining, Biden’s reported rueful reflections are revealed in a Washington Post profile that contains the clearest signs yet that he thinks he erred in withdrawing his candidacy in July after a woeful debate performance against his rival for the White House, Trump, the previous month.

The president stepped aside – to be replaced as his party’s nominee by the US vice-president, Kamala Harris – after mounting pressure from fellow Democrats, who cited polling evidence that appeared to show him heading for a near-certain election drubbing from Trump, who was seeking a historic return to the White House as the Republicans’ nominee.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/dec/28/joe-biden-regrets-dropping-out-re-election

What happens if we don't elect a House Speaker by January 6th?

The initial vote of the newly convened House, scheduled for January 3, will focus on the election of a Speaker. Subsequently, on January 6, the House is set to convene to certify the outcome of the 2024 election.

It is important to note that no legislative activities can take place in the House until a Speaker is appointed, and the certification of the election must occur on January 6. This raises the question: what are the implications if a Speaker has not been elected by that date? Could this potentially postpone the certification of Trump's election victory until after the 6th, but before the 20th? Furthermore, what would be the consequences if a Speaker remains unselected by January 20?

That seems to indicate that the President Pro Tempore would become Acting President, since that would be the next position in line. Biden and Harris will be out no matter what on noon of the 20th.

No President, no VP, no Speaker. That means (wait for it) 91 year old Chuck Grassley would become Acting President. And I thought Trump was too old...

On the morning of January 20th, Biden should decare that Trump did indeed win the 2020 election, and hand it over

Then, as noon approaches, Trump can't legally take office because of the 22nd Amendment, since he already won twice before.

Just in case anyone doesn't know, this post is in jest.

What us 80's kids in NY/NJ think of the drones (Caution - Gen X humor!)

Suspect arrested for allegedly setting on fire and killing a woman on a NYC subway car

Source: CNN

A 33-year-old man was arrested Sunday after allegedly setting on fire and killing a woman on a New York subway train in what authorities called a “brutal murder” and an example of “depraved behavior.”

The assailant approached the woman without saying a word, ignited her clothes and she was enveloped in flames “in a matter of seconds,” police said. Surveillance video appears to show the suspect sitting on a station bench and watching the woman burn as police officers responded.

“Unbeknownst to the officers who responded, the suspect had stayed on the scene and was seated on a bench on the platform just outside the train car, and the body-worn cameras on the responding officers produced a very clear detailed look at the killer,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. She noted the suspect appeared calm when he initially approached the victim.

The suspect was identified as Sebastian Zapeta-Calil, a 33-year-old Guatemalan citizen who entered the US unlawfully sometime in the past six years, according to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesperson Jeff Carter.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/22/us/nyc-subway-fire-woman-death/index.html