Politics

Law & Crime reports: The National Rifle Association cannot transfer, stay or dismiss the New York Attorney General’s lawsuit filed in Manhattan seeking its dissolution, a judge ruled on Thursday. “Today’s order reaffirms what we’ve known all along: the NRA does not get to dictate if and where they will answer for their actions,” Attorney General Letitia James (D) said …

The New York Times reports: Seeking an end-run around an investigation by the New York attorney general, the National Rifle Association said Friday that it was declaring bankruptcy and would reincorporate in Texas. The gun group was set up in New York after the Civil War. The group’s effort to circumvent New York’s legal jurisdiction raised immediate questions from Letitia …

The Washington Post reports: Metro will shut down more than a dozen stations near the U.S. Capitol and Mall for days around the presidential inauguration because of the possibility of violent protests. Starting Friday, the transit agency will begin closing 13 stations through the following Thursday, the day after President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated on the steps of the Capitol. …

Spectrum’s NY1 reports: After weeks of weighing a candidacy, former presidential candidate Andrew Yang announced on Wednesday night that he is entering the race for mayor. Yang’s campaign released a video showing him in iconic locations across the five boroughs. He plays the piano near the Coney Island boardwalk, rides the subway near Yankee Stadium, watches a skateboarder, and then …

The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports: Sheldon Adelson, who rose from selling newspapers on Boston street corners at age 12 to one of the most successful luxury resort developers, philanthropists and political influencers of his generation, died Monday night at his home in Malibu, California. He was 87. Adelson founded and served as Chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands Corp., …

Axios reports: Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf will step down from his position, Fox News first reported and Axios has confirmed. Word of Wolf’s departure comes a week before the inauguration and the massive security concerns following the Capitol siege. Wolf’s announcement follows last week’s departure of Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, among numerous administration …

The Associated Press reports: Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund is resigning, effective Jan. 16, a spokeswoman for the Capitol Police said Thursday. The announcement comes one day after a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol as lawmakers were attempting to certify Joe Biden’s presidential win. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had called for the resignation of Sund, saying, “There was a …

CBS News reports: The House and Senate will convene Wednesday at 1 p.m. for a joint session of Congress to tally electoral votes from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, confirming President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in the presidential election over expected challenges from Republicans that could lengthen the proceedings. Required under the Constitution, the meeting is typically a …

NBC News reports: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been denied bail, a U.K. court ruled on Wednesday, and will remain in prison while lawyers for the U.S. government try to secure his extradition from Britain. The bail ruling comes just days after the same judge found that Assange could not be legally extradited to the United States to face espionage …

The Associated Press reports: Democrat Raphael Warnock won one of Georgia’s two Senate runoffs Wednesday, becoming the first Black senator in his state’s history and putting the Senate majority within the party’s reach.  A pastor who spent the past 15 years leading the Atlanta church where Martin Luther King Jr. preached, Warnock defeated Republican incumbent Kelly Loeffler. It was a …

Politico reports: Lawmakers’ rebuke of President Donald Trump’s efforts to tank annual defense policy legislation last week has paved the way for a yearslong process to remove the names of Confederate leaders from military bases and scrub other monuments to the secession. But there are still unanswered questions about the nascent process, which must kick off by March, including who …

The Guardian reports: Julian Assange cannot be extradited to the US to face charges of espionage and of hacking government computers, a British judge has decided. The ruling was delivered at the central criminal court by the district judge, Vanessa Baraitser. She said the WikiLeaks founder was likely to be held in conditions of isolation in a so-called supermax prison …

The Wall Street Journal reports: Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) is poised to win her fourth term as House speaker on Sunday, but a narrower Democratic majority and uncertainties caused by the coronavirus pandemic will make for little wiggle room. Pelosi has spent time in recent weeks shoring up support among Democrats to be able to carry a majority of those …

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports: A record 3 million Georgia voters cast their ballots before early voting ended for the U.S. Senate runoffs, setting up a showdown that will be decided on election day Tuesday. The high turnout so far reflects the national importance of the dual runoffs, which will determine control of the Senate. Republican U.S. Sens. Kelly Loeffler and …

The BBC reports: Argentina’s Congress has legalised abortions up to the 14th week of pregnancy, a ground-breaking move for a region that has some of the world’s most restrictive termination laws. Senators voted in favour of the bill after a marathon session with 38 in favour, 29 against and one abstention. Until now, abortions were only permitted in cases of …

The Hill reports: Former first lady Michelle Obama was named the most admired woman in the U.S. for the third consecutive year according to Gallup polling released Tuesday. Ten percent of Americans named Obama as their most-admired woman, followed by Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, the first woman elected to the office, with 6 percent. First lady Melania Trump received 4 …

Reuters reports: Nearly 2.1 million people have cast ballots in a U.S. Senate runoff election in Georgia that will determine whether Democrats control both chambers of Congress and the fate of President-elect Joe Biden’s agenda, according to state data published Thursday. Turnout has been higher in some of the heavily populated areas around Atlanta that delivered Biden a narrow victory …

The Washington Post reports: Civil rights groups and the U.S. Postal Service struck a deal late Wednesday on speedier ballot-handling procedures, avoiding a court fight before the Jan. 5 runoff elections in Georgia that will decide control of the U.S. Senate. The Postal Service and its Justice Department lawyers agreed to treat ballots still in processing plants within three days …

The New York Daily News reports: He’s in. Andrew Yang, who rose to prominence during a longshot presidential run, is throwing his hat into next year’s mayoral race. The City Campaign Finance Board confirmed that Yang registered his campaign on Wednesday.  For months, city politicos have been speculating that Yang might jump into the race, which already boasts a crowded …

The Guardian reports: Vladimir Putin has signed legislation that will grant former presidents of Russia lifetime immunity once they leave office. The bill, which was published online on Tuesday, gives former presidents and their families immunity from prosecution for crimes committed during their lifetime. They will also be exempt from questioning by police or investigators, as well as searches or …