Thursday, January 16, 2025

January 16, 2025

Good morning,

Welcome to the news for independent thinkers

Leading the News . . .

Netanyahu says 'last minute crisis' with Hamas holding up approval of Gaza truce and hostage deal . . . Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that a "last-minute crisis" with Hamas was holding up Israeli approval of a long-awaited ceasefire that would pause the fighting in the Gaza Strip and release dozens of hostages. Israeli airstrikes, meanwhile, killed at least 72 people in the war-ravaged territory. Netanyahu began signaling there were issues with the deal just hours after U.S. President Joe Biden and key mediator Qatar announced it was complete. Associated Press

The goal of the war was to eradicate Hamas. While there has been incredible success and sacrifice, the goal has not been achieved.

What to Know About Hostage Deal Reached Between Israel and Hamas . . . Phase one of the deal includes an immediate end to the fighting in Gaza, the withdrawal of the Israel Defense Forces from populated areas of Gaza, and the release of 33 hostages, including women, children, the elderly, and the wounded. Biden added that the "Americans will be part of that hostage release in phase one as well," but did not specify which American hostages remaining in Gaza would be released during the first phase. Daily Signal

Geraldo Rivera Says 'Trump Closed' Ceasefire Agreement By 'Scaring The Hell Out Of Everybody'

Politics

Biden warns of rising democracy-threatening 'oligarchy' in grim farewell speech . . ."An oligarchy is taking shape in America of extreme wealth, power and influence that literally threatens our entire democracy, our basic rights, freedom and a fair shot for everyone to get ahead," Biden said. Biden did not name Trump during his roughly 15-minute address. Billionaire Elon Musk has been a constant at Trump's side ahead of his return to office, and in recent weeks, other prominent figures like Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos have also sought to cozy up to the president-elect. Politico

Hunter Biden was in the Oval for dad's speech as prez urged Americans to 'pay their fair share of taxes'

Biden's Claim He Would Have Beaten Trump Opens Rift With Harris . . . Vice President Kamala Harris has told close allies and family members she is disappointed in President Biden's recent contention that he would have won the 2024 election, according to people familiar with the conversations, straining relations between the two during their final days in the White House. Harris has been reluctant to distance herself from Biden or criticize him throughout her vice presidency. Wall Street Journal

Pam Bondi pledges to end era of America's weaponized federal government . . . Pam Bondi, President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general nominee, said she would end the federal government's politically biased investigations that began nearly 10 years ago when Mr. Trump announced his first White House campaign. "The partisanship, the weaponization will be gone," Ms. Bondi told the Senate Judiciary Committee on the first of her two-day confirmation hearing. "America will have one tier of justice for all." Washington Times

Bondi claps back at Hirono, says she's the only senator who refused to meet with her

Well, there is a certain honesty in that. It's not like Hirono was ever, ever going to vote for her confirmation.

Trump pushing Ramaswamy to fill Vance's Senate seat in Ohio . . . President-elect Donald Trump has encouraged billionaire biotech entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy to consider filling Ohio's vacant Senate seat should the post be offered to him. JD Vance, who previously held the seat, officially resigned Friday to serve as Trump's vice president. Under Ohio law, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) will appoint a replacement for the next two years, and then a special election on Nov. 3, 2026, will decide who serves until the term expires in 2029. Washington Post

D.C. bureaucrats caught living in California, Oregon, Colorado . . . One federal Interior Department employee who is supposed to be working in the Washington area lives in sunny Southern California and rarely, if ever, makes it to the nation's capital. Two others live in Oregon, three live in Colorado, and others are spread across the Southeast and Midwest. The department's inspector general warned that these employees may be bilking the government of extra pay by claiming enhanced wages while living in lower-cost regions. Washington Times

Rep. Ralph Norman: What Trump Told Me After I Voted Against Johnson for Speaker

Jill Biden's bitter parting shot at Nancy Pelosi after she knifed Joe in the back . . . Jill Biden is 'disappointed' with her friend of 50 years, Nancy Pelosi, after she betrayed her husband Joe after his Georgia debate disaster in June. Pelosi has been widely credited as a major player in Biden's July decision to drop out of the race just months before Election Day. After Kamala Harris' loss to Donald Trump, she doubled down, saying that the president should've dropped out of the race sooner to allow for a more open primary to take his spot. Daily Mail

Jill Biden says Melania Trump declined tea invite

Culture

The Christian Content Takeover: Why 'Rosary Over Rogan' Is Bigger Than You Think . . . Faith-based content has exploded in new media and is increasingly piercing through mainstream culture, culminating in a Christian podcast overtaking top-dog "The Joe Rogan Experience" on Apple podcasts. Ascension's prayer-focused podcast "The Rosary in a Year," which is hosted by Father Mark-Mary Ames, recently debuted at No. 1 on the Apple podcast charts in all categories, topping even podcast behemoth Joe Rogan, prompting celebratory and good-natured headlines about "Rosary over Rogan." Daily Wire

Pornography age-verification laws get warm reception at Supreme Court . . . The Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed open to upholding a Texas law requiring age verification for accessing pornography online. The case, Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton, centers on First Amendment concerns, as petitioners representing the pornography industry say the law infringes on the privacy rights of adults due to the requirement to input either government IDs or financial information to access pornographic websites in the Lone Star State. Washington Examiner

National Security

TikTok C.E.O. Plans to Attend Trump Inauguration . . . The chief executive of TikTok plans to attend President-elect Donald J. Trump's inauguration and has been invited to sit in a position of honor on the dais, where former presidents, family members and other important guests traditionally are seated, two people familiar with the plans said Wednesday. The invitation to the executive, Shou Chew, went out from the Trump Vance Inaugural Committee, the people said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss Monday's inauguration. New York Times

Trump considers executive order hoping to 'save TikTok' from ban or sale in U.S. law

Marco Rubio vows foreign policy focused on core U.S. interests if confirmed . . . Sen. Marco Rubio, President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of state, told a confirmation hearing Wednesday that China poses the most significant threat to the U.S. and must be countered with new foreign and domestic policies. The former senator from Florida faced little opposition from Democrats during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing. He said the incoming administration plans to pursue a foreign policy centered on advancing American core interests that reflect Mr. Trump's "America First" agenda. Washington Times

Rubio Warns That If US Doesn't 'Change Course,' China Will Control Every Aspect Of Our Lives

Waltz Teases 'Consequences' For Ex-Intel Officials Who Signed Hunter Biden Disinfo Letter . . . Incoming national security advisor Mike Waltz said there "should be consequences" for former intelligence officials who signed the infamous Hunter Biden laptop disinformation letter, in an exclusive interview with the Daily Caller. He said "the signers of that letter did great damage to the trust of the American people and our law enforcement, our intelligence agencies." Daily Caller

Some immigrants are already leaving the US in 'self-deportations' as Trump's threats loom

International

Israel supplied Iran with centrifuge platforms containing explosives, top official acknowledges . . . Israel supplied Iran with centrifuge platforms containing explosives for its nuclear enrichment program, a top Iranian official has acknowledged for the first time, underscoring the sophistication of sabotage programs targeting the Islamic Republic. The comments also acknowledged details previously reported in Israel about a 2021 attack on Iran's underground Natanz nuclear enrichment facility. The Hill

You should also know

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin launches new rocket on first test flight . . . Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin rocket, the New Glenn, lifted off successfully from Florida early Thursday after it's first launch attempt was scrubbed Wednesday. This flight is Bezos' attempt to get into the private space race. The successful launch could open up competition for Elon Musk's SpaceX. The New Glenn began its first ever ascent toward the stars Thursday morning and Blue Origin, said the first flight's key objective, was just to get into orbit. Fox Business

Rudy Giuliani's Florida condo, World Series rings on the line in latest trial . . . Rudy Giuliani will again square off in court against two Georgia election workers Thursday, this time seeking to keep his Florida condominium and other prized possessions from the women who won a $146 million defamation judgment against him. Giuliani faces trial in New York over whether his Palm Beach, Fla., condo, which he claims as his permanent residence, must be turned over to Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, who he has falsely asserted for years engaged in widespread 2020 election fraud. The Hill

Guilty Pleasures

Dunkin' donuts . . . is out of donuts . . . Dunkin' dropped the "Donuts" from its brand name years ago. Now — at least across Nebraska, New Mexico and some other states — it doesn't have doughnuts on the shelves either. Dunkin' stores in Omaha, Lincoln and Grand Island in Nebraska all had no doughnuts in their cases Thursday and Friday and put up signs on their doors and drive-thru kiosks informing customers that the pastries were unavailable "due to a manufacturing error." Some locations did offer "Munchkins," or doughnut holes, on Friday. Associated Press

Thank God we sill have Munchkins.

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