WASHINGTON — If it’s Wednesday … Congressional negotiators reach a deal on framework to fund government. … Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell attributes midterm losses to “candidate quality” problems of Trump-backed nominees. … President Biden hosts U.S.-Africa summit and addresses the U.S.-Africa Business Forum. … Scientists, U.S. officials have fun fusion breakthrough. … And it was 10 years ago today when the tragic Newtown, Conn., school shooting took place.
But first: The text messages that Republican members of Congress sent to Trump White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows after the 2020 presidential election are simply jaw-dropping.
Listed below are a few of those Meadows text messages turned over to the Jan. 6 committee that Talking Points Memo published(though NBC News has not been capable of review):
“Mark, Once we lose Trump we lose our Republic. Fight like hell and discover a way. We’re with you down here in Texas and refuse to live under a corrupt Marxist dictatorship. Liberty! Babin”
(Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, Nov. 6, 2020 — someday before the networks projected Biden because the presidential winner; Babin and his office didn’t reply to TPM’s requests for comment.)
“On January 6, 2021, Vice President Mike Pence, as President of the Senate, should call out all electoral votes that he believes are unconstitutional as no electoral votes in any respect — in accordance with guidance from founding father Alexander Hamilton and judicial precedence.”
(Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, Jan 5. 2021; Jordan’s communications director told TPM that Jordan was relaying a theory from a former DOD inspector general.)
“Mark, in seeing what’s happening so quickly, and reading in regards to the Dominion law suits attempting to stop any meaningful investigation we’re at some extent of no return in saving our Republic !! Our LAST HOPE is invoking Marshall Law!! PLEASE URGE TO PRESIDENT TO DO SO!!”
(Rep. Ralph Norman R-S.C., Jan. 17, 2021 — three days before Biden was inaugurated; Norman didn’t reply to TPM to clarify that message.)
One among these members (Norman) belongs to the “Never Kevin Caucus” working to disclaim Kevin McCarthy the speakership; one other member (Jordan) is prone to be chair of the House Judiciary Committee; all three voted to object to the Electoral College results.
In all, these texts — in addition to the others that TPM published — represent an indelible stain on the incoming House GOP majority.
Photo of the Day: 10 years later
Today marks 10 years since 20 first graders and 6 educators were killed in a mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. A memorial opened in November ahead of this month’s anniversary.
Data Download: The variety of the day is … 199
That’s what number of candidates endorsed by former President Donald Trump won their races in November, while 34 of Trump’s preferred candidates lost, per an evaluation from the NBC News political unit. The NBC News Decision Desk didn’t project winners in 33 races featuring Trump-backed candidates. On Monday, the Decision Desk called the ultimate outstanding House race of 2022, meaning there may be now a transparent picture of how Trump’s preferred candidates fared within the midterms.
While Trump’s win record may appear overwhelming at first glance, his record becomes way more mixed with the context that almost all Trump-backed candidates weren’t in competitive races, partly because lots of his preferred candidates were incumbents in deeply Republican areas.
Looking just at contests deemed competitive by the NBC News Political Unit, based on political dynamics of those races and ad spending, 46 of Trump’s candidates won, and 33 lost. Of the 33 who lost, 32 of them echoed Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
Other numbers to know:
Greater than $8 billion: How much the CFTC estimates customers lost through FTX, whose founder, Sam Bankman-Fried, was charged with eight counts related to alleged conspiracy and wire fraud.
2.4 million: The variety of asylum-seekers turned back to Mexico since Title 42 restrictions were instituted on the border.
7.1%: The newest year-over-year increase in the patron price index, a slowdown from past months whilst it stays historically high.
192: The variety of lasers utilized in a nuclear fusion breakthrough on the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
17: The variety of inmates on death row whose sentences were commuted by outgoing Oregon Democratic Gov. Kate Brown.
65%: The share of Americans in a latest LX News/Morning Seek the advice of poll who say they’re satisfied with Iowa and Recent Hampshire’s first positions on the presidential primary calendar.
$2 billion: The quantity being demanded in a lawsuit against Facebook, accusing the platform of playing a task to extend political violence in Africa.
3,500: The minimum variety of deaths brought on by or affected by long Covid, in keeping with a CDC evaluation reported by the Recent York Times.
Eyes on 2024: Feinstein says she has no plans to step down
Democrats already expect to be on defense with the 2024 Senate map, but one deep-blue state could hold a singular query mark: California.
It’s still unclear whether California Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 89, will retire at the tip of 2024. But she told the Los Angeles Times this week that she’s going to “absolutely” serve out the remainder of her term.
“There’s still two years, you already know. Rather a lot can occur in two years,” before adding she’ll announce whether she’ll seek one other term sometime this spring.
“The senator has no plans to step down and can announce her plans for 2024 at the suitable time,” a spokesman told the paper.
If the seat opens up next cycle, either by a Feinstein resigning or retiring, expect a mad dash for the seat between many members of California’s Democratic bench.
In other 2024 news:
Commonwealth campaign: February’s special election to fill Virginia’s Fourth Congressional District gives a latest generation of Black Democrats a chance.
Blame game: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell lamented his party’s “candidate quality” within the midterms, insinuating that former President Donald Trump’s endorsements helped the party fall short in key states.
Covid politics: Florida GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis’ hard-right push for a grand jury related to Covid vaccines and potential negative effects is the most recent way the governor has positioned himself to the correct of Trump on the difficulty.
Asa weighs next move: Outgoing Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson told the Associated Press that he plans to make a call about running for president in early 2023. Hutchinson didn’t rule out supporting Trump if he’s the GOP nominee, but called that possibility “the worst scenario.”
Arizona Senate: Democratic senators are dodging questions about whether or not they’d support Sen. Kyrsten Sinema if she runs for re-election in 2024 now that she’s change into an independent, the Washington Post reports.
ICYMI: What else is occurring on the earth
President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act into law on Tuesday, codifying protections for same-sex and interracial marriages.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers released a latest bill that may ban TikTok over concerns about its ties to China.
The war in Ukraine could hinge on whichever side could produce or procure the most heavy artillery.