There are many years the place nothing occurs, after which there are weeks when many years occur. This was a kind of weeks — however you wouldn’t know that should you tuned into the Sunday cable information reveals, the place interviews with actor Daniel Craig and Donald Trump dominated the airwaves. That’s hardly a fiber-rich media weight loss program.
With all eyes mounted on Trump, America’s highest-paid information anchors managed to overlook among the most impactful tales of the week. From historic wins by Virginia’s Democratic Home of Delegates to Trump’s more and more unhinged Cupboard of Fox Information anchors, we’re taking a deep dive into the tales you missed should you tuned into cable information this weekend.
The Fox Information administration
Donald Trump loves Fox Information—a lot in order that the president-elect has now nominated almost a dozen present or former Fox Information contributors to senior roles in authorities. By now tens of millions of People are acquainted with Secretary of Protection nominee Pete Hegseth, whose personal mom shamed him as an abuser and a drunk. However that’s simply the tip of a really rotten iceberg.
On Wednesday, Trump tapped Fox Information anchor Monica Crowley to function assistant secretary of state and chief of protocol, a task for which Crowley is uniquely unqualified. Not solely is Crowley a registered overseas agent for Ukrainian oligarchs, she’s additionally a serial plagiarist who wholesale copied giant parts of her Ph.D. dissertation.
RELATED STORY: Trump’s latest choose is a Fox Information racist birther plagiarist
“Doctor” Crowley will match proper in alongside bogus lecturers together with “Doctor” Sebastian Gorka, whose Ph.D. dissertation is extensively thought of to be incoherent and fraudulent, and potential Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, who has a lengthy historical past of stealing work from sources as various because the Related Press and … Invoice Clinton? It shouldn’t shock you to find that the majority People aren’t thrilled on the thought of getting Fox Information working the federal government: A current YouGov ballot revealed majorities of voters oppose Trump’s effort to stack his administration with cable information washouts.
Virginia’s Democrats swing for the fences
Virginia’s Democrats at the moment have a razor-thin, one-seat majority within the Commonwealth’s Home of Delegates—however they aren’t letting skinny numbers cease them from passing transformative laws.
This week Home Democrats handed three landmark constitutional amendments by means of the decrease home that will enshrine abortion rights into legislation, codify protections for same-sex marriage and routinely restore voting rights to felons who’ve served their time. If these amendments change into legislation, they might put to relaxation three political points which have roiled the Outdated Dominion for over 20 years. Current polling signifies majorities of Virginians help passing all three.
Virginia’s structure formally bans same-sex marriage, which turned a moot situation in 2014 when the Supreme Courtroom legalized same-sex unions nationwide. But when Trump’s handpicked conservative SCOTUS majority decides to revisit that situation—as some authorized specialists worry they are going to—Virginia’s almost 20,000 same-sex {couples} may discover their rights dissolved at a second’s discover. Democrats at the moment are in a race in opposition to the clock to maneuver all three amendments ahead forward in time to get them in entrance of voters on the 2026 midterm poll.
Let this be a lesson to nationwide Democrats who declare to want supermajorities to get something completed: It’s wonderful what somewhat political braveness (and a statewide coalition of over a dozen activist teams) can do!
Tick tock, TikTok
Company media retailers are among the many largest institutional traders in common social media platform TikTok, which can be why you didn’t see a phrase about America’s looming TikTok ban on the Sunday reveals. That silence is much more noticeable after this week’s federal courtroom ruling that cleared the way in which for the ban, signed into legislation in April, to enter impact on January 19.
That doesn’t imply TikTok will all of the sudden go darkish on President Joe Biden’s final day in workplace. The corporate may additionally promote itself to an American purchaser, although the Chinese language Communist Social gathering has stated it might block any effort to promote the corporate off. Then, in fact, there’s the Trump issue.
Donald Trump was as soon as one of many greatest advocates for a TikTok ban — again when youngsters had been utilizing the platform to make enjoyable of him, naturally. However after taking lavish marketing campaign contributions from TikTok investor and tech billionaire Jeffrey Yass, Trump now helps TikTok. Humorous how that works! Nonetheless, it’s unclear what Trump may really do to cease the legislation, given that it’s going to already be in drive when he assumes workplace on January 20. Understanding Trump, any plan to save lots of TikTok will nearly definitely contain bending the legislation to get his approach.
RELATED STORY: The clock is ticking on TikTok—except Trump steps in
Attain out!
Hold the dialog going all week by sharing tales you assume the media missed with me at @themaxburns on Bluesky! And bear in mind: Should you’re tuned to cable information, you aren’t even getting half of the story.
Till subsequent week, preserve your eyes peeled and keep inquisitive, mates.
