🇺🇸 Under Trump’s Tree

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Good morning, and happy Tuesday! Two little girls from Louisiana that went missing last month are safe, and their dog Artemis is being hailed as a hero…

Plus, in Philadelphia and across the nation, the pandemic has exposed all sorts of problems with trash pickup… 

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FLAG POLLS

📉 President Biden Job Approval: Approve 47, Disapprove 51 (Rasmussen Reports)

📉 President Biden Job Approval: Approve 44, Disapprove 56 (Fox News)

📉 Congressional Job Approval: Approve 27, Disapprove 67 (Fox News)

🐎 General Election: Trump vs. Biden: Biden 45, Trump 43 (Wall Street Journal)

TRENDING

Left: Trump World is imploding — which could be the start of Trump's big comeback (Salon)

Left: The Proud Boys Sedition Trial And The Violence At The GOP's Core (Huffington Post)

Left: The Finale of the Great Internet Grievance Wars Is Here (Slate)

Right: Putin's fashion faux pas: Russian military uniforms unsuitable for combat in brutal winter fight (Fox News)

Right: White House touts Biden's net negative approval rating in end-of-year memo (Washington Examiner)

Right: 6 Huge Takeaways From The Sixth Dump Of ‘Twitter Files’ (The Federalist)

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QUICK CLICKS

73 Year Old Shooter, Christmas Cold Snap, Debt Default

World: Vaughan condo shooting: Gunman who shot dead five in Canada was 73 (BBC)

US: Title 42 to remain in place for now as Chief Justice John Roberts temporarily freezes order meant to end it (CNN)

Weather: Historic Cold Snap Coming For Christmas Across Much Of US (Forbes)

US: FBI issues warning about financial sextortion scheme targeting children, teens (Denver 7)

US: Stacey Abrams campaign in debt after blowout loss (Axios)

Business: Sam Bankman-Fried agrees to extradition to US against ‘strongest possible legal advice’ (NY Post)

World: Ghana to default on most external debt as economic crisis worsens (Reuters)

JAN. 6

Under Trump’s Tree

Yesterday the US House Select Committee on the January 6 Attack recommended criminal charges against Donald Trump. It marks the first time Congress has recommended criminal charges for a former president in US history.

Reporting from the Right: Jan. 6 Committee releases 154-page executive summary detailing Trump's 'unlawful' conduct, criminal referrals (Fox News)

Reporting from the Left: Jan. 6 committee sends DOJ historic criminal referral of Trump over Capitol riot (CNBC)

From The Flag: The committee referred Trump to the Justice Department alleging he's guilty of conspiracy to make a false statement, inciting or assisting an insurrection, obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress, and conspiracy to defraud the US. Here’s more from both sides.

LEFT-LEANING SENTIMENT

The Committee Has Done Its Job, But the Next Step Is Uncertain

• The members of the January 6 committee are patriots who found themselves tasked with investigating a putsch organized by Trump.

• If Trump’s criminal conduct goes unpunished it will be further evidence of our unequal and unfair justice system.

• The committee’s criminal referrals won’t automatically lead to charges against former Trump, so temper your expectations.

“A duty fulfilled: The Jan. 6 Committee wraps up its very important work” Editorial Board, New York Daily News: “After Trump was impeached by the House and acquitted in his Senate trial, the correct decision was that more needed to be done, but Republicans — still too many of them loyal to the traitor Trump — would not agree to a 9/11-type commission with equal membership from both parties. So after months of debate, the House Select Committee to Investigate the Jan. 6 Attack on the United States Capitol was created. But again, Republicans wrongly boycotted the panel, leaving Speaker Nancy Pelosi to appoint GOP members Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, along with the seven Democrats. In the committee’s 18 months, conclusive proof was established and presented to the American public of Trump’s involvement at every step right up to when the insurrectionists smashed into the Capitol screaming ‘Hang Mike Pence!’ and causing the Congress to flee.”

“​​Trump should be prosecuted in the courts” Keir Bradford-Grey, Philadelphia Inquirer: “One of the bedrock values of our country’s justice system is that everyone, regardless of their socioeconomic status, is treated equally in the face of the law. That premise sometimes shifts on shaky ground, and the legal system loses credibility when it fails to uphold these values of equity and justice. Our leaders cannot afford to let that happen when it comes to the insurrectionists who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. … Throughout this year’s televised hearings, we’ve had a front-row seat to former President Donald Trump’s probable cause hearing… I was reminded of the unprecedented, egregious, and fundamentally illegal nature of these events. Trump tried to manipulate, pressure, and browbeat his subordinates into breaking the law for his own personal gain. He incited a riot when he encouraged his supporters to break the law, knowing that violence was likely.”

One more opinion piece from the Left: Why Jan. 6 committee criminal referrals won’t force DOJ to act Jordan Rubin, MSNBC Opinion

RIGHT-LEANING SENTIMENT

More False Narratives With Democrats Fearful of Trump’s Political Power

• Democrats remain deathly afraid that Trump will win the presidency again, which is why they push the false “incitement” narrative.

• The January 6 committee is working in tandem with the DOJ to give it political cover toward indicting Trump in Washington DC, a left-leaning jurisdiction.

• January 6 is more important to people who hated Trump to begin with, although his status is wounded among many Republicans.

“Democrats Still Fear Trump's Return to the White House” Matt Margolis, PJ Media: “I’ve been very honest about Trump’s weakened position heading into 2024… Yet, Democrats seem just as terrified of him returning to the White House as ever. (Last week) 41 House Democrats introduced a bill to prevent him from seeking the presidency in 2024 under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which disqualifies someone from holding office if they ‘engaged in insurrection or rebellion.’ Despite their best efforts, Democrats have failed to prove Trump has done anything of the sort, yet they’re clinging to this narrative in the hopes of preventing him from becoming president again. … The partisan January 6 Committee has repeatedly claimed to have evidence of incitement but has never produced it. In fact, various text messages released by the committee actually exonerated Trump — not that this stopped the committee from falsely characterizing them as incriminating.”

“January 6th Committee Will Jump the Shark With Final Move Against Donald Trump” Bonchie, RedState: “As I’ve said from the beginning, all of this is coordinated. The January 6th committee isn’t dropping these referrals into a vacuum. Rather, they’ve gone through all this pomp and circumstance knowing the DOJ is patiently waiting for the hook it needs to indict Trump. The illusion of political will has been created, even if the committee itself is full of nothing but bitter, anti-Trump partisans. In this case, the lack of evidence for any of the charges being levied doesn’t matter. … How do you commit insurrection without organizing and executing an insurrection or without telling people to do so? Those are issues a fair justice system would tear apart. We don’t have one of those, though. The DOJ knows it can indict a ham sandwich and secure convictions in the DC jurisdiction. The only question left is the timing.”

One more opinion piece from the Right: This is the end of Trump Park MacDougald, Unherd

FLAG THIS

Hearings Not Very Influential, Plus How Polling Plays a Role

The January 6 committee’s hearings seem to have had little impact on the public’s perception of that day’s events, as far as former President Trump’s culpability. In June, 42% considered him directly responsible, but in August that number had slipped to 38% (Monmouth University).

Meanwhile, a political consultant claims Trump’s lagging poll numbers make it more likely he’d ever face prison time (The Hill).

FLAG FINDS

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WATERCOOLER

Panama Invaded, Preventing Porch Pirates, Town of Y

On December 20, 1989, the US invaded Panama in an attempt to overthrow military dictator Manuel Noriega, who had been indicted in the United States on drug trafficking charges and was accused of suppressing democracy in Panama, as well as endangering US nationals. Above, US soldiers can be seen preparing to take La Comandancia in the El Chorrillo neighborhood of Panama City.

Consumer Reports: How to Keep Packages From Being Stolen by Porch Pirates

Atlas Obscura: Krampus Is the Christmas Icon We Need—And Maybe the One We Deserve

Big Think: Why scientists can’t give up the hunt for alien life

Today I Learned the town of Why, Arizona was originally known as just "Y" due to the Y-shaped intersection of two roads. It changed its name to "Why" due to an Arizona state law requiring town names to be at least 3 letters long.