WHAT'S BREWING
JUST 'SKIP THE SENATE TO INSTALL A CABINET' Allies of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said a GOP-controlled Senate would be willing to go along with Biden’s nominations for his administration, as long as they’re centrists. But progressive activists are already putting pressure on the incoming administration to go around the Senate so that McConnell doesn’t get to decide a Democratic Cabinet. “There are legal tools are available and Biden should be unafraid to use every legal tool available — just as McConnell has used to stack the courts,” said Jeff Hauser, founder and director of the Revolving Door Project. [HuffPost]
WORLD FINANCIAL MARKETS CHEER BIDEN WIN Financial markets applauded Biden's victory, lifting major world indexes to record highs. Investors were elated that a divided Congress would gridlock major changes, and were simply relieved that the election process was over. [Bloomberg]
STORM ETA MAKES LANDFALL IN FLORIDA KEYS A strengthening Tropical Storm Eta made landfall on Florida’s Lower Matecumbe Key on Sunday night, days after leaving scores of dead and over 100 missing in Mexico and Central America. The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami declared hurricane and storm surge warnings for the Keys from Ocean Reef to the Dry Tortugas, including Florida Bay. Florida officials closed beaches, ports and COVID testing sites, shut down public transportation and urged residents to stay off the street. Several shelters also opened in Miami and the Florida Keys for residents. [AP]
PROGRESSIVES BLAMED FOR HOUSE LOSSES When Democrats saw losses in close House races across the country, some in the party’s moderate faction erupted in anger against their progressive colleagues. Rep. Abigail Spanberger unseated a conservative Republican in 2018; this time around, she came dangerously close to losing her race in the suburbs of Richmond, Virginia. In a call with the House Democratic caucus, she chided progressive colleagues for opening Democrats up to attacks about “socialism” and wanting to “defund the police” — a rallying cry of the Black Lives Matter movement. [HuffPost]
OCASIO-CORTEZ STRIKES CAUTIOUS TONE Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who won reelection with more than 68% of the vote in New York’s 14th District, criticized leaders and other elements of her party for being distrustful of her and other more progressive members — who, she argued, have been pivotal in winning votes and candidates for the party. She also accused Democrats of historically forgetting about grassroots movements and activists once elections are over, adding it’s to be seen whether the Biden administration will behave any differently. [HuffPost]
ST. LOUIS GUN COUPLE SUE JOURNALIST FOR BLM PHOTO A couple indicted on weapons charges for brandishing guns at anti-racism protesters over the summer have sued the news photographer whose picture showed the incident. Mark and Patricia McCloskey have been charged with felony unlawful use of a firearm and tampering with evidence after waving an AR-15-style assault rifle and semiautomatic pistol at Black Lives Matter protesters from the front patio of their St. Louis home in June. Trump, who has characterized BLM protesters as “terrorists,” has called the McCloskeys' prosecution a “disgrace.” [HuffPost]
ARKANSAS POLICE CHIEF RESIGNS AFTER CALLING FOR DEATH TO 'MARXIST DEMOCRATS' The police chief of a small Arkansas town has resigned after writing social media posts calling for “death to all Marxist Democrats” and saying he hoped certain Democratic leaders, including former President Barack Obama, would be “drawn and quartered.” Marshall Police Chief Lang Holland resigned after it was revealed that he had posted offensive comments on right-wing social media site Parler, Mayor Kevin Elliott announced. [HuffPost] | 