CDC official ordered to delete email

TOP STORIES

‌

Friday, December 11

‌

DEMS BRISTLE AT BIDEN CABINET PICKS President-elect Joe Biden started his Cabinet rollout strong. But the process seems to have gone off the rails since then, with the transition team battling leaks targeting women of color rumored to be under consideration, unease from some key allies, and questions of whether people are being chosen for patronage or political reasons. “I think it’d be great to see a more cohesive vision across the entire Cabinet,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday. [HuffPost]

‌

BIDEN ON DEFENSIVE AFTER PUSH FOR POLICE REFORM DELAY The incoming administration is on the defensive after leaked audio revealed that Biden recently warned civil rights leaders against immediate action on police reform, out of fear it would hurt Democrats’ chances at winning the upcoming Senate runoff elections in Georgia. During a meeting with civil rights leaders on Tuesday, audio of which was obtained by The Intercept, the presidet-elect insisted that Republicans’ ability to define the Democratic Party as one in favor of defunding the police is how they “beat the living hell out of us” in downballot races. [HuffPost]

‌

TRUMP ADMINISTRATION EXECUTES BRANDON BERNARD The federal government executed 40-year-old Brandon Bernard on Thursday, his punishment for acting as an accomplice to a crime when he was 18 years old. The government proceeded despite high-profile opposition from five of nine surviving jurors who sentenced Bernard to death, the prosecutor who defended his death sentence on appeal, several members of Congress, 23 current and former prosecutors, and reality television star and criminal justice reform advocate Kim Kardashian West. [HuffPost]

Get the latest coronavirus updates on our dedicated page

SANDERS AND HAWLEY JOIN FORCES TO PUSH FOR CHECKS Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) teamed up on Thursday to introduce an amendment that would provide another round of direct payments to Americans as lawmakers struggle to reach a deal on another coronavirus relief package. The political odd couple says members of Congress shouldn’t leave town for the holidays without providing more help for the income cuts so many have faced during the health crisis. [HuffPost]

‌

GABBARD INTRODUCES ANTI-TRANS BILL Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) introduced legislation in the House on Thursday that would bar schools from receiving federal funding if they allow transgender girls and non-binary people to compete on sports teams consistent with their gender identities. The bill — co-sponsored by Republican Rep. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma — was met with immediate outrage from transgender activists and allies who labeled the legislation “blatantly transphobic.” [HuffPost]

‌

CDC OFFICIAL SAYS SHE WAS ORDERED TO DELETE EMAIL A senior Centers for Disease Control and Prevention manager told congressional investigators she was ordered to delete an email that suggested attempted interference from the Trump administration in COVID-19 reports to the public, according to a transcript released Thursday. Rep. James Clyburn (D-S.C.) said it raises “serious concern about what may be deliberate efforts ... to conceal and destroy evidence that senior political appointees interfered with career officials’ response to the coronavirus crisis.” [AP]

WHAT'S BREWING

‌

ONE OF THE BIGGEST OBSTACLES TO A STIMULUS DEAL There’s a possible agreement coming together on another coronavirus stimulus. And the question isn’t whether congressional leaders and the president can seal the deal; it’s whether they can get out of the way. The question is particularly important for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who’s perhaps more resistant than anybody to an agreement. Unlike Democratic leaders, the Kentucky Republican has pointedly refused to endorse the bipartisan framework. [HuffPost]

‌

WHITE HOUSE STAFF MUST TRANSFER WITH 'PROFESSIONALISM' The White House chief of staff and White House counsel reportedly asked staff via email to prioritize “preparations for a smooth transition” on Thursday and to remain professional ahead of Biden’s inauguration next month, despite President Donald Trump’s ongoing efforts to spread lies about his election loss. “Approach this project with the same professionalism and energy you have brought to all of your work in the past,” the email said. [HuffPost]

‌

JEWISH AMERICANS GATHER ON ZOOM FOR HANUKKAH Jewish Americans from a variety of branches of the faith are celebrating Hanukkah with smaller-than-usual gatherings this year. Many Jewish Americans are already accustomed to more intimate celebrations, so the recent successful Supreme Court challenge to New York restrictions on in-person worship by some Orthodox groups won’t mean much as far as their Hanukkah plans. [AP]

‌

AUSTRALIA ABANDONS VACCINE AFTER FALSE HIV POSITIVES Clinical trials of a COVID-19 vaccine being developed by the University of Queensland in Australia and biotech firm CSL have been scrapped after participants returned false-positive HIV test results in phase one of the trial. Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Friday announced the government made the decision after receiving scientific advice and stressed that the government was prepared for some vaccine candidates to fail. [HuffPost]

‌

ABOUT 30% OF ANIMAL SPECIES AT RISK OF EXTINCTION The Red List, an inventory of threatened species maintained by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, was updated Thursday. It lists more than 35,700 species — representing almost 30% of all plant and animal species evaluated by the IUCN — as currently threatened by extinction. These include all of the world’s freshwater dolphins, almost one-third of all oak trees and 40% of all amphibians. [HuffPost]

BEFORE YOU GO