Trump Administration

Raw Story reports: Speaking on Fox News this Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany accused Playboy reporter Brian Karem of sexism, saying that he should be investigated by the White House Correspondents’ Association. “If you’re a female woman in the Republican Party who takes that podium, guess what your worry is — having a Playboy reporter shout questions at …

Axios reports: White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows has summoned FDA commissioner Stephen Hahn to the West Wing for a 9:30am meeting Tuesday to explain why he hasn’t moved faster to approve the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine, two senior administration officials told Axios. The meeting is shaping up to be tense, with Hahn using what the White House will likely …

Fox News reports: Dr. Scott Atlas, President Trump’s special adviser on the coronavirus pandemic, formally resigned from his post on Monday, Fox News has learned. Atlas, who spoke with the president on Monday, joined the administration in August, and was considered a Special Government Employee (SGE), serving a 130-day detail. Atlas’ role is set to expire this week. Fox News …

Via press release from the White House: The First Family is celebrating their fourth Christmas in the White House. This year’s theme, “America the Beautiful,” is a tribute to the majesty of our great Nation. From coast to coast, our country is blessed with boundless natural wonders. The timeless treasures represented in this year’s holiday showcase remind us of the …

CNBC reports: Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai will step down from his post on January 20, the day President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated, he announced Monday. The announcement means that the FCC could reach a Democratic majority sooner than it would otherwise be able to. Pai’s term was slated to expire in June 2021, though Biden will be able …

Mediaite reports: White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany faced mockery for her botched attempt to attack the communications team President-Elect Joe Biden has chosen for his incoming administration. McEnany reacted to this news coverage by blasting the “completely DISCREDITED” Washington Post and fuming that the Trump Administration didn’t get enough credit for female White House press teams. As it were, …

The Hill reports: The number of coronavirus infections in the United States surpassed 13 million on Friday, just six days after the country hit the 12 million threshold. According to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. has had at least 13,047,202 infections, with at least 264,624 people dead as a result of the virus. The U.S. maintains the …

The Washington Post reports: The Trump administration published an analysis Friday concluding that its rule easing companies’ liability for killing birds would not cause significant environmental harm, clearing the way for it to finalize a major rollback before the president’s term ends on Jan. 20. The administration, which is racing to lock in a series of regulatory changes before President-elect …

ABC News reports: The Justice Department filed a notice of appeal Wednesday as it seeks to intervene in the defamation lawsuit against President Donald Trump by E. Jean Carroll. Last month, a federal judge in New York rejected the Justice Department’s attempt to substitute for President Trump as the defendant in a suit that claimed he defamed Carroll when he …

Politico reports: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers denied a permit for the Pebble Mine in Alaska on Wednesday, effectively killing plans to build the massive copper and gold project that opponents had warned could wipe out the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery. The decision from the Trump administration, which had reversed course several times on the issue, comes just …

The New York Daily News reports: A pair of American women detained by a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent after they were overheard speaking in Spanish at a Montana convenience store have reached an undisclosed settlement in their lawsuit against agency, the ACLU announced. Ana Suda and Martha “Mimi” Hernandez were out buying groceries in the city of Havre, …

ProPublica reports: One proposal has raced through the process with little notice but unusual speed — and deadly consequences. This rule could reintroduce firing squads and electrocutions for federal executions, giving the government more options for administering capital punishment as drugs used in lethal injections become unavailable. The Justice Department surfaced the proposal in August and accepted public comments for …

Reuters reports: The White House is considering rescinding entry bans for most non-U.S. citizens who recently were in Brazil, Britain, Ireland and 26 other European countries, five U.S. and airline officials told Reuters. The Trump administration imposed the bans in a bid to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic. It is not considering lifting separate entry bans on most non-U.S. citizens …

Chris Johnson reports at the Washington Blade: First lady Melania Trump said she wanted to light up the White House in rainbow colors for LGBTQ Pride Month in June, but the plan never came to fruition at a time when Mark Meadows as chief of staff played a role in blocking any sign of solidarity with the LGBTQ community, according …

Bloomberg News reports: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin will put $455 billion in unspent Cares Act funding into an account that his presumed successor, former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, will need authorization from Congress to use. Mnuchin plans to place the money into the agency’s General Fund, a Treasury Department spokesperson said Tuesday. That fund can only be tapped with …

The Washington Post reports: Indoor holiday celebrations like those being arranged at the White House can accelerate the spread of the coronavirus, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome M. Adams said Monday after initially dodging a question about the Trump administration’s plans. “Americans have been told that we can’t even see our families for this holiday, and yet here’s the White House …

Posted this afternoon to Ben Carson’s Facebook page: Thank you everyone for your support and prayers as Candy and I battled COVID-19. I was extremely sick and initially took Oleander 4X with dramatic improvement. However, I have several co-morbidities and after a brief period when I only experienced minor discomfort, the symptoms accelerated and I became desperately ill. President Trump …

The Hill reports: Andrew Giuliani, the son of the president’s personal attorney and a staffer at the White House, tested positive for coronavirus, he tweeted Friday. Giuliani, a special assistant to the president, is the latest White House staffer to test positive for the highly contagious virus in recent weeks. He has worked as a liaison to sports leagues and …

Politico reports: Four senior House Democrats are demanding that GSA Administrator Emily Murphy brief them Monday on the reason she has yet to ascertain Joe Biden’s win in the presidential election, warning that her answers will determine whether they intend to haul her to Capitol Hill for a public hearing, along with other senior General Services Administration officials. “We have …

The Daily Beast reports: The official position of Donald Trump, his administration, and his reelection campaign is that he won the election that he just lost. But one of the campaign’s top surrogates bluntly says that Joe Biden indeed won, and he’s urging the president and the White House to focus on enshrining as many Trump policies as possible before …