Author: J.P. Knowles

Alex Trebek hosted “Jeopardy!” for 36 years with over 8,200 episodes. He left behind a legacy that will never be forgotten and he will be forever missed.

President Trump commented on Detroit Lions and Houston Texans players kneeling during the national anthem during the Thanksgiving Day football game.

Trump wrote just two words on Twitter captioning photos of the Lions’ quarterback Matthew Stafford and the Texans, Deshaun Watson, taking a knee to protest police brutality and racism in the United States.

“No thanks!” wrote the president.

No thanks! https://t.co/IYQSotnMG9

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 26, 2020

From Fox News:

Trump has been a fierce critic of players kneeling during the anthem, accusing them of disrespecting the military. However, multiple players have said that their protest has nothing to do with the military and instead has everything to do with social injustice

Players have knelt during the national anthem since the first week of the NFL season after a summer of racial tension and protests after the deaths of several Black people in police-involved incidents.

NFL broadcasts showed the protests during the anthem during the start of the season but tapered off as the season continued.

Stafford explained to reporters earlier in the season why he was kneeling during the anthem.

“Just felt like it was the right thing at the right time,” he said in September via MLive. “Obviously it’s been an amazing offseason just for our team, for a lot of people, something where there’s been great opportunity for growth and learning and understanding, and just felt like it was the right thing for me.”

The Texans made a statement before their opening game against the Kansas City Chiefs. The team chose to stay in the locker room during the playing national anthem and “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” also known as the Black national anthem. They then joined Chiefs players in a “moment of unity.”

The gestures were a part of the league’s attempt to promote social justice issues. The league had “End Racism” painted in end zones as well.

President-elect Joe Biden is looking to distance his incoming administration from any likeness to the Obama years, as some critics are calling his presidency comparable to that of a third term for former President Barack Obama.

“This is not a third Obama term because we face a totally different world than we faced in the Obama-Biden administration,” Biden told NBC News in an interview this week. “President Trump has changed the landscape, it’s become ‘America First,’ which meant America alone.”

The comparisons come as the president-elect has tapped quite a few individuals for his administration who also served in the Obama White House. Biden said these people were selected because they represent the spectrums of both the American people and the Democratic Party.

During the Democratic primary, some of Biden’s challengers went after him for running on Obama’s legacy despite the fact that circumstances had changed drastically since 2008. He routinely defended the former administration’s stance on issues ranging from health care to immigration.

Former South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg said Democrats would lose again to Trump if they were perceived as “replicating a system that let people down,” which is what he claimed led frustrated voters to elect Trump in the first place.

Even Obama acknowledged in his endorsement video for Biden that if he were running in 2020, his platform would be different than what he previously ran on.

“The world is different – there’s too much unfinished business for us to just look backward,” Obama said. “We have to look to the future.”

As for the ongoing transition, Biden says that he has not heard any information directly from Trump but he believes staffers on their respective sides have been in contact.

Biden did say that doesn’t expect the slow start to his term to impact his ability to carry out his agenda as planned.

Former President Barack Obama called out the Hispanic population who voted for President Trump accusing them of not caring about his “racist” remarks because of their association on social views.

“People were surprised about a lot of Hispanic folks who voted for Trump,” Obama said during “The Breakfast Club” radio show on Wednesday, “but there’s a lot of evangelical Hispanics who, the fact that Trump says racist things about Mexicans, or puts undocumented workers in cages, they think that’s less important than the fact that he supports their views on gay marriage or abortion.”

Political onlookers were surprised by Trump’s improved showing with Hispanic voters during the 2020 election compared to the election in 2016, helping him to an easy victory in several states with significant Hispanic populations like Texas and Florida. Even though a majority still voted for President-elect Joe Biden, Trump’s focus on working-class issues and his stance against socialism appealed to Latinos.

Still, Democrats were worried Trump’s trend of strict immigration policies would alienate the demographic.

Some people criticized Obama for what they saw as inharmonious comments, which sounded reminiscent of his 2008 reference to “bitter” working-class voters who “cling” to their guns and religion. Others pointed out the “cages” he referred to from the Trump administration’s family separation policy were built while he was president.

Hey @BarackObama – take a pause from the race-baiting & pandering that built your career & divided a nation to reflect on this: you built the chain link facilities you call cages. #YouBuiltThat #StandUpForAmerica https://t.co/8FHVrVGLx4

— Chip Roy (@chiproytx) November 25, 2020

https://twitter.com/johnrobertgage/status/1331597694025035777?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1331597694025035777%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fpolitics%2Fobama-takes-shot-at-hispanics-who-voted-for-trump

Obama gave a plug for his latest memoir, “A Promised Land,” saying people who live in liberal cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, D.C., sometimes forget the country’s vast size and different viewpoints.

“It’s hard winning in Georgia,” he said, “just like it’s hard winning in Iowa, just like it’s hard winning in a lot of the country.”

President Trump canceled a trip he had planned for Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. However, his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani is still scheduled to appear before the state’s Senate Majority Policy Committee along with Trump campaign Senior Legal Adviser Jenna Ellis for a “hearing” on election issues.

The United States Secret Service had already begun to prepare for the president’s appearance in Gettysburg until it was canceled at the last minute.

The event is not a formal hearing meaning that it is not being conducted officially by the Pennsylvania legislature but instead by a group of Republican lawmakers.

Wednesday @ 12:30 p.m., the #PASenate Majority Policy Committee, chaired by @SenatorArgall, will hold an informational meeting on 2020 election issues. Members will meet in Gettysburg and remotely. Streamed live @ https://t.co/zAbhab5wbs. pic.twitter.com/w4l679nFGI

— PA Senate Republicans (@PASenateGOP) November 24, 2020

Senator Doug Mastriano, who called the meeting, made a statement saying, “Elections are a fundamental principle of our democracy – unfortunately, Pennsylvanians have lost faith in the electoral system. Over the past few weeks, I have heard from thousands of Pennsylvanians regarding issues experienced at the polls, irregularities with the mail-in voting system, and concerns whether their vote was counted.”

The Pennsylvania Senate GOP website says that “the hearing will feature former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani,” who is expected to actively participate.

The informal event is unlikely to result in a noticeable change to the state of the presidential race. The president’s legal team has still not provided any evidence of irregularities that are significant enough to narrow the lead held by President-elect Joe Biden in Pennsylvania and other critical states.

Biden’s victory has already been certified in Pennsylvania and state legislators have maintained that they will not intervene to override the results of the election.

Pennsylvania Senate Majority Leader Jake Corman said that as far back as September he had no intention of having the legislature alter the electoral process. Just last week he told The Philidelphia Inquirer that his stance had not changed.

“The electors are selected by the winner of the popular vote. That is in our state statute,” said Corman “The law states that when the secretary of state certifies the election, the governor appoints the electors. That’s the law. And we will follow the law.”

While several promising coronavirus vaccine candidates could bring the pandemic to a grinding halt, doctors recommended to federal health officials that those who receive the shot should be wary of the side effects, which could include minor body aches and headaches, so they will return for the second half of the dose.

These recommendations from medical experts were given to advisors with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during an online meeting this week.

From Fox News:

Dr. Sandra Fryhofer of the American Medical Association said on Monday during the meeting with the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group of medical experts that advise the CDC, that the side effects “won’t be a walk in the park.” 

Two promising coronavirus vaccine candidates, created by the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and the biotechnology company Moderna, respectively, both require two doses. Participants from both clinical trials have reported side effects after receiving the vaccine candidate, neither of which have been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at this time. (That said, Pfizer, which was the first to announce the results of its vaccine, recently applied for emergency approval for its vaccine from FDA.) 

Earlier this month, one Pfizer vaccine candidate told Fox News that the side effects of the shot were “were a little more severe than I thought.”

“I had some side effects,” Glenn Deshields, a volunteer from Austin, Texas, told “Fox and Friends” at the time. “Basically, I had a headache and a lot of fatigue, injection site pain … maybe three to four days.”

“The second one, it was similar but it was much more muted. It wasn’t as strong. I think I took some Advil and they basically cleared up,” he said. 

As for the Moderna vaccine, CEO Stephane Bancel last week, following news that the company’s candidate was more than 90% effective in late-stage clinical trials, discussed the shot’s side effects during an appearance on Fox Business’ “Mornings with Maria” with host Maria Bartiromo. 

“The second dose, you have a bit of side effect locally, a bit of pain, a bit of redness, but it goes away by itself,” he said. 

He said the side effects will self-resolve without taking medication. 

“It’s actually a good thing in my immunologist always reminds me that having a bit of immune reaction is a good signal that your immune system is working because the vaccine is being activated,” Bancel said at the time.

Meanwhile, during the meeting with the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, Patsy Stinchfield, a nurse practitioner, pointed out that officials change the wording used when warning the public about side effects. She suggested using the word “response” rather than “adverse reaction.”

“These are immune responses,” she said. “And so if you feel something after vaccination, you should expect to feel that. When you do, it’s normal to have some arm soreness or fatigue, some body aches, and maybe even a fever. It sounds like in some of these trials, maybe even having to stay home from work.”

President-elect Joe Biden spoke with the head of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Monday. NATO, as it is more commonly known, is a security organization that has bonded the United States with much of Europe for over 70 years.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg updated followers on Twitter after the conversation to let them know he had just spoken with Biden “and congratulated him on his election as the next US President. I look forward to working with him to further strengthen #NATO as the cornerstone of our collective security.”

I just spoke to @JoeBiden and congratulated him on his election as the next US President. I look forward to working with him to further strengthen #NATO as the cornerstone of our collective security. https://t.co/GcRVjRQSzQ

— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) November 23, 2020

Stoltenberg also thanked President-elect Joe Biden for being a “long-standing supporter of NATO and the transatlantic relationship.”

In a statement from the Biden transition, it was said that “the president-elect underscored the importance of NATO to U.S. and European security and highlighted the United States’ enduring commitment to NATO – including its bedrock principle of collective defense under Article 5 – and his desire to engage in consultations with Allies on the full range of trans-Atlantic security issues.”

The statement continued, “The president-elect also expressed his desire to work with Secretary General Stoltenberg and Allies to ensure NATO has the strategic orientation and capabilities it needs to strengthen deterrence and to counter new and emerging threats, including climate change and global health security.”

During his time in the White House, President Trump at times had a rocky relationship with NATO and several of its member nations. The president had confrontations with other NATO partners and even appeared to threatened to quit the alliance two years ago.

Biden’s conversation with Stoltenberg was just one of four he had with international leaders on Monday.

On Monday the Michigan Board of State Canvassers voted to certify the critical state’s election results despite President Trump’s ongoing legal challenges.

The committee voted 3-0 in favor of certification. Republican board member Norman Shinkle chose not to vote but instead called for an overhaul of Michigan’s elections procedures.

Ahead of the vote, Shinkle made this final statement, “I do not plan on voting for certification. I believe Wayne County’s certification process needs to be looked at. I think there’s serious problems with it.”

During his final statement, Shinkle pleaded with Michigan to modernize its election procedures. He made note of Florida’s efforts to update its recount procedures after the 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore.

“It is my greatest hope that after the next election, this board will be able to certify the results in an environment where there are no unanswered questions or suspicions that our election was in any way compromised,” he said. “All citizens need to be assured that Michigan is conducting clean, accurate, and professional elections.”

Earlier this month, President-elect Joe Biden secured a projected victory in Michigan which lead to the 270 electoral vote threshold necessary to win the presidential election. President Trump, however, has yet to concede the race while his attorneys have made allegations of fraud in Michigan and several other states.

Trump’s senior legal campaign advisor Jenna Ellis said in a statement, “Certification by state officials is simply a procedural step. We are going to continue combatting election fraud around the country as we fight to count all the legal votes. Americans must be assured that the final results are fair and legitimate.”

Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson disagrees with the Trump campaign’s fraud claims saying the vote proved that “democracy has prevailed.”

“Today’s vote of the State Board of Canvassers to certify Michigan’s November election confirms the truth: the election was fair and secure, and the results accurately reflect the will of the voters. A record-breaking 5.5 million Michigan citizens cast ballots in this election, more than ever before in our state’s history,” said Benson.

“Their will is clear and unequivocal,” she added.

Michelle Anzaldi, a clerk of the Pittsfield Election Commission, says the officials worked very hard to make sure the election ran as smoothly as possible and while there was no evidence of voter fraud, officials had identified “lots of human errors” that could have been avoided.

President-elect Joe Biden has made his first round of Cabinet announcements and he knows there are hard times ahead when it comes to confirming his nominees through a Senate, especially one that may still be controlled by Republicans.

Reporters asked Biden if he expects Republicans to put up a fight to block his Cabinet nominees who will need the approval of the Senate to be confirmed.

Biden responded, “Are you kidding me?”

Currently, the balance of power for the next Senate based on this month’s elections is 50 Republicans and 48 Democrats. That means Democrats would have to win both of the twin runoff elections for Georgia in January to make it an even Senate.

If that were to happen, Vice President-elect Kamala Harris would vote to break the tie, giving her her party a slight majority in the chamber. But if Democrats were to lose Georgia GOP Senator Mitch McConnell will hang on to the Senate majority leader title.

On Monday morning Biden announced a few key Cabinet appointments, a few of which include Antony Blinken as secretary of state, Alejandro Mayorkas as secretary of homeland security, Avril Haines to make history as the first woman to lead the intelligence community, and John Kerry, former Secretary of State, as presidential climate envoy.

During the Obama administration, Blinken and Mayorkas were confirmed to deputy secretary level cabinet positions despite little support from the GOP.

Reporters also asked Biden why he chose to release names of national security nominees first.

He replied, “Because it’s national security.”

The former vice president made these statements as he was arriving at his temporary transition headquarters in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, where he would join Harris for a virtual meeting with the United States Conference of Mayors.

Harris began by telling the mayors, “You all are where the rubber meets the road. You’re on the ground. You walk the streets of America where people recognize you… You are the ones who take the heat on a daily basis.”

Biden wrapped up the meeting by thanking the mayors, telling them, “all of you are on the frontlines from the beginning. As we head into this dark winter… we want you to know we’re here for you.”

The United States General Services Administration chief Emily Murphy let President-elect Joe Biden know that he has been formally recognized as the apparent winner of the 2020 presidential election and would now be moving forward with transition proceedings.

This information effectively put an end to a very long standoff in which the Biden transition team made accusations against Murphy and her agency for retaining important transition resources needed for a smooth transition of power.

In Murphy’s letter to Biden, she writes, “Please know that I came to my decision independently, based on the law and available facts. I was never directly or indirectly pressured by any Executive Branch official—including those who work at the White House or GSA—with regard to the substance or timing of my decision.  To be clear, I did not receive any direction to delay my determination.”

Murphy and the entire GSA have faced harsh criticism recently over the decision to delay recognizing Biden as president-elect. The Biden transition team went as far as to threaten legal action, accusing the GSA of putting national security at risk and hampering preparations to fight the coronavirus pandemic by refusing to provide support for the incoming administration.

According to Murphy, this recent decision was based on “developments involving legal challenges and certifications of election results.”

In a series of tweets, President Trump thanked Murphy for her efforts to handle the ascertainment process since Election Day.

“I want to thank Emily Murphy at GSA for her steadfast dedication and loyalty to our Country,” wrote the president. “She has been harassed, threatened, and abused – and I do not want to see this happen to her, her family, or employees of GSA. Our case STRONGLY continues, we will keep up the good fight, and I believe we will prevail!”

“Nevertheless,” he continued, “in the best interest of our Country, I am recommending that Emily and her team do what needs to be done with regard to initial protocols, and have told my team to do the same.”

The Biden transition team said the GSA’s decision to ascertain Biden as president-elect would provide “the incoming administration with the resources and support necessary to carry out a smooth and peaceful transfer of power.”

“This final decision is a definitive administrative action to formally begin the transition process with federal agencies,” said the Biden-Harris team. “In the days ahead, transition officials will begin meeting with federal officials to discuss the pandemic response, have a full accounting of our national security interests, and gain complete understanding of the Trump administration’s efforts to hollow out government agencies.”