Key Takeaways
- Jim Jordan lost a second House Speaker ballot, prompting discussions on expanding acting Speaker McHenry's authority.
- Senator Bob Menendez was prohibited from a classified Israel briefing due to his federal bribery indictment.
- Justice Amy Coney Barrett supported a Supreme Court code of conduct amidst ongoing ethical discussions.
- Douglass Mackey received a seven-month prison sentence for 2016 election interference tactics.
- Motions to dismiss for Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell in the Georgia election interference case were denied.
Deep Dive
- Judge McAfee denied motions to dismiss filed by Kenneth Chesebro and Sidney Powell in the Georgia election interference case.
- The court ruled that Chesebro's memos are admissible due to the crime-fraud exception.
- The trials for Chesebro and Powell are still scheduled to proceed.
- Jim Jordan lost a second ballot for Speaker of the House by a larger margin, despite alleged threats and calls from prominent Republicans.
- Discussions among House aides and scholars explore explicitly granting expanded authority to acting Speaker Patrick McHenry, particularly given global events and potential government shutdown.
- A bipartisan plan was circulated to empower McHenry through January 3rd, with moderate Democrats proposing 15-day increments for specific legislative actions.
- Former Speakers Boehner and Gingrich have endorsed empowering McHenry to address legislative gridlock.
- Douglass Mackey, known as Ricky Vaughan, was sentenced to seven months in prison for conspiring to interfere with voters' rights during the 2016 election.
- Mackey spread fraudulent messages, including a deceptive image mimicking the Clinton campaign's font and logo, encouraging people to vote via invalid text methods.
- The Justice Department highlighted the conviction and sentencing as a commitment to prosecuting those who threaten democracy and voting rights.
- Senator Bob Menendez has been prohibited from attending a classified briefing on Israel.
- The prohibition is due to his federal indictment for bribery and acting as a foreign agent for Egypt.
- Calls for his resignation, including from Senator John Fetterman, have intensified, with Fetterman also pushing for his expulsion from the Senate.
- Justice Amy Coney Barrett stated that a code of conduct for the Supreme Court would be a good idea.
- Barrett indicated that the justices are in agreement on upholding high ethical standards.
- She declined to speculate on why the court has not yet adopted such a code.