Thursday, January 2, 2025

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1/ Trump blamed “criminal” immigrants for the New Year’s Day attack in New Orleans that was carried out by a U.S. Army veteran from Texas. In the early hours of New Year’s Day, a man drove a truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street in New Orleans, which left at least 15 dead. The driver behind the attack was Shamsud-Din Jabbar, is a Texas-born U.S. citizen and Army veteran. The FBI said Jabbar acted alone and had posted several videos online before the attack “proclaiming his support for ISIS.” Nevertheless, Trump posted: “When I said that the criminals coming in are far worse than the criminals we have in our country, that statement was constantly refuted by Democrats and the Fake News Media, but it turned out to be true.” He added later: “Our Country is a disaster, a laughing stock all over the World! This is what happens when you have OPEN BORDERS, with weak, ineffective, and virtually nonexistent leadership.” Hours later, a Tesla Cybertruck exploded outside of Trump’s hotel in Las Vegas, which killed the driver and injured seven. The man inside the Tesla Cybertruck was an active-duty soldier in the Army. Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said their investigation indicates that the driver shot himself in the head immediately before the vehicle exploded. A gun was found at the driver’s feet. The FBI said “there is no definitive link between the attack” in New Orleans and Las Vegas. (Bloomberg / New York Times / HuffPost / New Republic / NBC News / Associated Press / CNN / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / NPR / Washington Post)

2/ Mike Johnson doesn’t have the votes to remain speaker of the House with less than 24 hours until the start of the 119th Congress. While Trump has endorsed Johnson for a second term and no other Republican has challenged him, several Republican lawmakers haven’t committed to voting for him yet because of the way he handled the year-end spending bill. Republican Thomas Massie is a firm no and several members of the House Freedom Caucus have said they are undecided. Failure to elect a speaker could delay certification of Trump’s victory, and Congress has never tried to certify a presidential election without a House speaker in place. To be elected speaker, Johnson needs to win a majority of members who vote. The House is divided 219-215, meaning with full attendance Johnson can only lose one Republican vote to retain the speakership if all Democrats vote against him. Trump, meanwhile, plans to host a “victor...

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