Trump pressures Pence to reject certification of electoral votes . . . Stories appeared early in the evening Tuesday saying that Vice President Pence had told President Trump that he had no power to act when the Senate counts the votes Wednesday. Trump early Wednesday morning remarked that he thought otherwise. Trump earlier claimed he and Pence were “in total agreement” that the vice president “has the power to act” and block certification of the presidential election results. White House Dossier

 

 

Proud Boys leader banned from DC by judge . . . A judge has banned the leader of the Proud Boys from the nation’s capital after he was accused of vandalizing a Black Lives Matter banner at a historic black church and found with high-capacity firearm magazines when he was arrested. It comes a day after he was arrested arriving in Washington ahead of protests planned by supporters of President Donald Trump to coincide with the congressional vote expected Wednesday to affirm Biden’s election victory. Washington Times

 

DC National Guard will be unarmed for electoral college protests . . . In the face of severe criticism for its response to the George Floyd protests in June, the District of Columbia National Guard will be unarmed in the nation’s capital to support local law enforcement during protests surrounding Congress’s counting of electoral votes that is set for Wednesday.  The Guard will be activated through Thursday. Mayor Muriel Bowser insisted that the 340 local Guard members who will help local law enforcement with traffic, crowd, and access control be unarmed. Only Quick Response Force members, if specifically requested, would carry a baton and shield for personal protection. Washington Examiner

 

Inauguration organizers craft plans if Trump skips proceedings . . . Two weeks before the inauguration, it’s an open question whether President Trump will follow historical precedent and attend President-elect Biden’s swearing-in ceremony. The White House isn’t saying and organizers planning the inauguration are crafting contingency plans if Mr. Trump skips the proceedings. The White House says anonymous sources who claimed to know POTUS's plans for the inauguration day  "have no idea" what they are talking about. Washington Times

 

George W. Bush to attend Biden's inauguration, Jimmy Carter staying home . . . Former President George W. Bush will attend President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Jan. 20, but former President Jimmy Carter won’t make it. New York Post

 

 

Trump Admin formally accuses Russia of recent massive cyber hack . . . In a joint statement, four intel agencies (FBI, NSA, DNI, and CISA), in charge of cyber intelligence and cybersecurity, said that Russia is likely responsible for most or all of the recently discovered SolarWinds cyber compromises. The massive cyber breach affected 18,000 government and non-governmental networks, including under 10 U.S. government agencies. The compromise, whose full scope remains unknown, is serious and it will take a "sustained and dedicated" effort to mitigate it. Office of the Director of National Intelligence

 

 

Trump moves to ban Chines payment apps . . . President Trump moved to ban transactions with Chinese payment applications including Alipay, WeChat Pay and Tencent’s QQ Wallet further stoking tensions with China. The executive order is the latest in a series of moves by the Trump administration to crack down on Beijing before Joe Biden is inaugurated on January 20. Trump Administration has been taking aggressive steps to mitigate the national security threats posed by the pervasive spread of Chinese software apps. Financial Times

 

Iran submits second INTERPOL request to arrest President Trump . . . For the second time, Iran asked Interpol to issue a "red notice" for the arrest of President Trump and dozens of other United States officials in response to the drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani a little more than a year ago.
A red notice from Interpol alerts local authorities to locate and provisionally arrest fugitives of the law "pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action," according to Interpol's website. A red notice is not an arrest warrant. Iranian spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili called Trump "the main culprit" behind Soleimani's death. Washington Examiner

 

US collects $7 million in Iranian assets for terror victims and families . . . The Trump administration seized $7 million in Iranian assets after busting a money-laundering operation and plans to use the funds to pay victims of state-sponsored terrorism and their families. Department of Justice officials took the funds from an American citizen and three Iranians attempting to circumvent American sanctions on Iran in a global criminal effort. Kenneth Zong and three unnamed Iranians are believed to have helped launder $1 billion in Iranian assets worldwide between 2011 and 2014. Washington Free Beacon

 

 

Europe faces recession risk as COVID infections remain high . . . The eurozone economy likely contracted in the final three months of last year, according to surveys of purchasing managers, as rising coronavirus cases and government restrictions weighed on activity in the dominant services sector. With infection rates still high, there appears to be little prospect of a strong rebound in the early months of this year, and a risk that the currency area will fall back into recession. Wall Street Journal

 

China blocks WHO from entering country to study COVID-19 origin . . . The head of the World Health Organisation has said he is "very disappointed" China has denied its experts access to investigating the origins of coronavirus. A ten-strong team of international scientists and virologists had been due to set off in early January as part of a long-awaited mission to probe early cases of coronavirus, first reported over a year ago in China's Wuhan province. Sky News

 

Hong Kong police arrests 53 activists under national security law. . .  Hong Kong police arrested 53 former lawmakers and democracy proponents Wednesday for allegedly violating the new national security law by participating in unofficial election primaries for the territory’s legislature last year. The mass arrests, including of former lawmakers, were the largest move against Hong Kong’s democracy movement since the law was imposed by Beijing last June to quell dissent in the semi-autonomous territory. Associated Press

 

Kim Jong Un admits his economic plan for North Korea has failed . . . In his opening speech to the congress of the Workers' Party, Mr Kim confessed his five-year finance program had failed to achieve its goals "in almost all areas to a great extent". The North Korean leader described the difficulties facing his government as "the worst-ever" and "unprecedented". Sky News

 

Hmm. I wonder why that is?

Macy's to close more locations as part of plan to shutter 125 stores in 3 years . . . Forty-five Macy's stores are expected to close by the middle of the year. The department store chain announced in February 2020 that it planned to cut 2,000 jobs and close one-fifth of its stores or roughly 125 locations over the next couple of years. Macy's closed approximately 30 stores last year as part of the plan. USA Today

 

NRA last minute push to boost Republicans in Georgia . . .Second Amendment advocates were making a last-minute push to turn out gun voters in the Georgia runoff elections as part of a multimillion-dollar effort to put guns at the forefront of the 2020 campaign. NRA planned to send 100,000 text messages to supporters in Georgia on Tuesday encouraging them to vote in the Senate elections. That's the final part of a $4.5 million effort by the gun group to frame the races as the last defense against new federal gun control. By contrast, Federal Election Commission records show the top gun-control groups have spent just under $103,000 on the two races. Washington Free Beacon

 

Strong growth of firearms ownership, concealed carry permits in 2020 . . . Although 2020 brought extraordinary challenges to many Americans, last year did come with a silver lining for advocates of a strong Second Amendment right—unprecedented growth in the number of Americans who embrace their right to keep and bear arms. Americans bought an estimated 21 million firearms in 2020, with 8.4 million Americans buying a gun for the first time last year. The number of concealed carry permits holders continued to grow, albeit at a slower rate than in past years, likely due to record-long delays in permit processing and shutdowns because of COVID-19. The Heritage Foundation’s interactive Defensive Gun Use Database registered 11 cases of defensive gun use in 2020. Daily Signal.

Given the ever increasing calls from the "democratic" extremists to defund the police - even in the face of  growing  instances of "peaceful" protesters destroying property, and burning cities -  the American people are taking their families' security in their own hands.

 

Utah man pleads guilty in a cemetery dig seeking treasure  . . .  A Utah man has pleaded guilty after authorities said he was caught digging in a Yellowstone National Park cemetery in search of hidden treasure.

Rodrick Dow Craythorn, 52, of Syracuse, Utah, entered the plea to illegally excavating or trafficking in archaeological resources and to damaging federal property.  Craythorn was searching for a treasure chest containing coins, gold and other valuables left in the backcountry a decade ago by Santa Fe, New Mexico, art and antiquities dealer Forrest Fenn, who published a book with a poem containing clues to where the treasure could be found. He could face up to 12 years in prison and $270,000 in fines. Associated Press