Trump acknowledges his defeat for the first time, ensures orderly transition: In a statement posted to his social media director's Twitter, Trump says he totally disagrees with the outcome of the election but "nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th." The White House apparently had no idea that Trump made this statement.
...fight to ensure that only legal votes were counted. While this represents the end of the greatest first term in presidential history, it’s only the beginning of our fight to Make America Great Again!”
— Dan Scavino🇺🇸🦅 (@DanScavino) January 7, 2021
Zuck has had enough: Facebook now plans to block Trump from posting to his Facebook and Instagram accounts indefinitely.
The shit storm is far from over: Democratic lawmakers are fucking pissed. Several dozen are calling for the impeachment of Trump for inciting riots leading to the yesterday's storming of the Capitol—though it's not likely happen.
However: A steady stream of Trump administration officials are resigning, most prominent among them Mick Mulvaney, former chief of staff and current special U.S. envoy to Northern Ireland. "I can't do it, I can't stay," said Mulvaney in an interview, adding that Trump was "not the same as he was eight months ago." I guess desecrating Congress is the line!
4 people from the Capitol mob are dead: One woman and two men died of "separate medical emergencies" during last night's siege, D.C. Police Chief Robert Contee said yesterday. The other woman, now identified as Ashli Babbit from San Diego, was shot and killed by law enforcement. A military veteran and avid Trump supporter, Babbitt traveled to D.C. to participate in the yesterday's loyalist protest. “Nothing will stop us … they can try and try and try but the storm is here and it is descending upon DC in less than 24 hours … dark to light!” she wrote on Twitter, dropping a few phrases popular among the QAnon crowd. .
And 68 people have been arrested: According to D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser's spokesperson, last night's arrestsinclude the charges of possession of an illegal firearm, illegal possession of other weapons (metal knuckles & a blackjack-like weapon), curfew violations, and unlawful entry on the Capitol grounds. The FBI and other federal law enforcement officials are expected to make "dozens" of charges against Capitol rioters as the agencies spent all night "ingesting" surveillance video, using freaky facial identification software to match faces with social media posts. MAGA is no match for Big Brother.
Of course, how did this even happen in the first place? D.C. Police tactics were baffling to say the least. Nothing like politely helping a Trump supporter down the steps of the Capitol or taking a selfie with rioter to say, "Get the hell out!"
It’s a dark day in America when a UNITED STATES Capitol police officer decides to take a selfie with a TERRORIST! And they wonder why WE don’t feel safe! pic.twitter.com/UZsLnS2s68
— NAACP (@NAACP) January 6, 2021
As Trump supporters stormed the Capitol: The U.S. reported 3,963 deaths, a new single-day coronavirus record. New Hampshire, Oklahoma, and Pennsylvania also set records in their daily death toll. While yesterday looked like a battle, we must remember, the real enemy is the one we cannot see.
Washington state also released COVID-19 vaccine tiers, timeline: Extending through April. State health secretary Dr. Umair Shah said the state hasn't yet approved vaccinating people in the B1 tier, but expects to later this month. The Seattle Times reports the federal government has sent our state 522,550 doses of Pfizer's and Moderna's vaccines; we've administered a little bit more than a fourth of them. Health officials also plan to release an online questionnaire tool called PhaseFinder on January 18 to help residents figure out when they can get that sweet, sweet vax.
In yesterday's madness, I completely missed that the state released COVID-19 vaccination tiers and timeline stretching into the spring via @evanbush https://t.co/lfDYoOgJn6 pic.twitter.com/x6dRWzjakq
— jasmyne keimig (✿◕‿◕) (◡‿◡✿) (@jasmynekeimig) January 7, 2021
Biden is expected to name Judge Merrick Garland as his pick for Attorney General: Garland was infamously snubbed in 2016 when the Republicans refused to even hold hearings after a seat opened up on the Supreme Court. Biden is apparently confident that this time around will be different. And with a Democratic controlled House and Senate, he's probably right.
Giuliani is a walking circus: Trump's personal lawyer left a rambling voicemail on the wrong politician's phone. He meant to call Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama to strategize about slowing Congress's roll last night, but instead left a message with an unnamed senator who leaked it. Giuliani asked Tuberville to object to every state to give Trump's side more opportunity to pressure lawmakers to pull their vote. The senator from Alabama did no such thing as he didn't, um, get the message. What a bozo.
A newly sworn-in West Virginia lawmaker was among yesterday's mob: Rep. Derrick Evans (R) livestreamed (and then deleted) videos from inside the Capitol building. In a Facebook post, Evans called himself as "an independent member of the media to film history" and said he did not participate in any destructrion nor did he have any "negative interactions" with the police. His colleagues down in West Virginia aren't pleased with actions.
787,000 Americans filed for unemployment last week: Which is down from 800,000 expected by analysts, says Yahoo! Finance. Continuing claims came in at 5.072 million, down from the week prior. An additional 4.5 million people filed claims under the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, which has been extended until at least March thanks to the $900 billion virus relief package passed by Congress.
Today will start out foggy, then turn sunny: Go take a walk and unglue yourself from your screen.
Clouds & fog clearing to partly sunny this afternoon. Rain to start Fri but turning to off and on showers that will decrease by afternoon with some clearing. A dry day on Sat. Sun will start with rain then dry and clear in the afternoon. #k5weather pic.twitter.com/tsbdKkbl5M
— Rich Marriott (@rtmarriott) January 7, 2021
I mean, it is in the name: One man is suing King's Hawaiian Rolls because they aren't made in Hawai'i. The class action lawsuit accuses the sweet roll maker of misleading the public and claims that King's Hawaiian "essentially invented this category of food." The lawsuit is calling for the company to change their name and other unspecified damages, says KOMO.
For your listening pleasure: "Pitch the Baby" by Cocteau Twins.
