CROOKS vs. SICKOS (Or, "What's going on with our politicians and oligarchs?")
❧ Former Bernie Sanders campaign advisor Faiz Shakir is running for DNC chair. In a public statement, Shakir said that the other candidates for the role—including Ken Martin and Ben Wikler, the current frontrunners—are “debating how clean to keep the kitchen while the Titanic is going down,” and that “The Democratic brand is the issue, and we’re spending time worrying about, oh, the consultant contract and whether this state party has enough funding here or there.” It’s a pitch for more fundamental change to the party after the crushing electoral defeat it just suffered, something that’s definitely badly needed. (NBC)
It’s an open question if the Democratic Party CAN be reformed, but Shakir wants to try. (Image: ACLU)
❧ With two GOP senators—J.D. Vance (R-OH) and Marco Rubio (R-FL)—taking roles in the incoming Trump administration, there are two new appointees coming in to fill the vacancies they left behind:
Governor Ron DeSantis has already named a replacement for Rubio: State Attorney General Ashley Moody. She’s a pretty standard Trump pick: In 2020, she joined other Republican AGs in attempting to overturn his election loss. She’s also tried to stop abortion rights and marijuana legalization ballot initiatives from being put to the public. Funnily, the Associated Press also refers to her as “a kind of Florida royalty” because she was named the “queen of the Florida Strawberry Festival” in 1993. Not really sure why the AP considered this a relevant piece of information, but congratulations to her!
Ohio’s Senate seat has been a bit more interesting: It appears that Governor Mike DeWine has settled on his lieutenant governor Jon Husted, who is most renowned for allegedlytaking bribes from an energy company in exchange for a government bailout, to fill the vacancy. However, President-elect Trump reportedly wanted it to go to Vivek Ramaswamy—an odd revelation since Vivek is supposed to co-lead the “Department of Government Efficiency” with Elon Musk. It was a bit of a mystery why Vivek was taken out of the running, but it now makes a bit more sense…
❧ In a late-breaking piece of Vivek news, the Cincinnati Inquirerreports that he’ll soon be announcing a run for Ohio governor instead. If he wins, get ready for state funds allocated to build statues of Steve Urkel or the mean band teacher from Whiplash all over the state to encourage “excellence.”
One day, he’ll convince another human being to wear the “TRUTH” hat.
❧ Despite taking a beating at his confirmation hearing earlier this week, Trump’s nominee Pete Hegseth appears on track for confirmation as Secretary of Defense. At the hearing, Hegseth struggled to answer questions about his marital infidelities, the sexual harassment accusations against him, and his drinking. He flat-out lied about his disparaging views on women in the military. He defended his role in securing pardons for convicted war criminals. And he refused to say whether he’d disobey an unlawful order given by President Trump (like the one he once gave to the Joint Chiefs of Staff to “shoot” racial justice protesters “in the legs”). It probably would have gone even worse if Senate Democrats had taken the time to actually question him about his foreign policy beliefs, which are horrible and a way bigger deal than his personal scandals.
Four Republicans would need to vote against Hegseth to tank his nomination. And Joni Ernst, one of the few Republicans who appeared on the fence, declared after the hearing that she would confirm him, which makes his confirmation virtually a sure thing. God help us.
❧Trump’s pick for Treasury secretary, billionaire former hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, also had his confirmation hearing.He told the Senate that making Trump’s tax cuts—which primarily benefitted the wealthy—permanent was “the most important economic issue of the day.” When asked whether he’d support raising the federal minimum wage, which has been stuck at $7.25 since 2009, he responded, “No, sir.” We love right-wing populism, don’t we folks? (Rolling Stone)
❧ The Supreme Court has unanimously upheld the TikTok ban, which is set to go into effect on Sunday—the day before Trump is sworn into office. Bizarrely, Joe Biden, who signed the ban in the first place, came out against it at the last minute, and Democrats introduced legislation to extend the deadline for it to be bought by an American company. Biden says he won’t enforce the ban for the single day he’ll be able to do that, leaving it in the hands of Trump. Even though he was among the first to suggest banning TikTok, Trump now says that he opposes the ban taking effect too, and may pause it once he enters office.
WE’RE ON XIAOHONGSHU (小红书)!
Since TikTok’s fate has been uncertain for a while now, many Americans have decided to do exactly what their government doesn’t want them to: switch to an even more Chinese app. It’s called Xiaohongshu (小红书), which literally translates to “little red book,” but is better known in the English-speaking world as “RedNote.” It’s basically the same as TikTok, but with Instagram-style image posts mixed in and heavier moderation (no posting about sex or drugs, for instance.) And because Current Affairs (时事)is always on the beating pulse of the zeitgeist, we’re on there now as account #95434387779! If you have the app, hit us up on there, and 有一个美好的周末！
❧ Joe Biden gave his farewell address on Wednesday, in which he warned that America was descending into an “oligarchy.” He warned of the “dangerous concentration of power in the hands of a very few, ultra-wealthy people” under incoming president Donald Trump, who will wreak havoc “if their abuse of power is left unchecked.” Biden is absolutely correct about this (In fact, editor-in-chief Nathan J. Robinson warned about “The Consolidation of Oligarchy” on the very same day Biden gave this speech!) Of course, it’s a bit harder to hear coming from Biden, who saw the oligarchy become a lot more powerful under his watch: As Fortunepoints out, the richest 100 Americans gained $1.5 trillion during his term of office.
❧ In one final act of indignity, the Biden State Department had journalists Max Blumenthal and Sam Husseini forcibly removed from its final press briefing after they confronted Secretary of State Antony Blinken for his role in the genocide in Gaza:
AROUND THE WORLD
❧ After a period in which he appeared poised to sabotage it once again, Benjamin Netanyahu has finally agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza. At least, he’s agreed to a temporary one. The deal as it currently stands has three phases. The first is a “full and complete ceasefire,” which will last for six weeks. During this time, Hamas is expected to release 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. In the meantime, Israel will withdraw from populated areas and the more than 2 million displaced Gazans will be allowed to begin returning home. (Though many of their homes have been reduced to rubble. Nearly 69 percent of the buildings in Gaza had been destroyed or damaged as of December 1.) There would also be a lift on Israel’s restrictions on humanitarian aid, which will hopefully ameliorate some of the hunger and illness the people of Gaza have been subjected to.
It’s after the six-week ceasefire ends that things get a lot dicier. Negotiations are meant to continue during that phase to ensure further hostage and prisoner exchanges and a total withdrawal of Israeli troops. However, the farthest-right part of Netanyahu’s coalition—led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir—has been threatening to topple his government if he goes through with the deal. According to the Israeli outlet Mako, Netanyahu promised Smotrich that after the six-week ceasefire, fighting would resume. Trump has reportedly made similar assurances that he’d back Netanyahu if he decides to resume the bombardment. Shortly after the announcement of the ceasefire, his incoming national security adviser, Mike Waltz, confirmed this, telling Fox News, “If they [Israel] need to go back in, we’re with them.” As relieved as we are to see a momentary reprieve for the people of Palestine, there’s good reason to be skeptical of its longevity.
Notice how “U.S. recognition of a Palestinian state” isn’t on here?
❧ One surprising group is happy about Trump’s victory: the people of Somaliland. This breakaway region declared independence from Somalia 33 years ago, but is not recognized by most of the world—including the United States. However, many people there believe that Trump could change that. In Project 2025, the right-wing Heritage Foundation’s policy playbook for a second Trump administration, Somaliland was one of just two African countries listed in the section on “Sub-Saharan Africa.” (The fact that the document almost completely ignores Africa is not surprising—Trump is, after all, the guy who once called Namibia “Nambia.”)
It calls for “the recognition of Somaliland statehood as a hedge against the US's deteriorating position in Djibouti.” The latter nation is home to the only permanent U.S. base in Africa, but China has also been expanding its influence there, hence conservative fears about our “deteriorating position.” There’s a high likelihood that Trump does not know or care what Somaliland is. But other Republicans do seem somewhat interested in it, including Congressman Scott Perry, who introduced a bill to formally recognize the territory last month. (BBC)
❧ In some long-awaited good news, Cuba has been removed from the United States’ “State Sponsors of Terror” list. According to the BBC, the decision came after a deal “brokered by the Catholic Church,” in which the Cuban government agreed to release 553 prisoners (presumably political ones). In exchange, the country’s name would be cleared of the “sponsor of terror” label and the devastating sanctions that come with it. Unfortunately, like the Gaza ceasefire, this moment of relief might not last long. Donald Trump—who put Cuba on the list in the first place—will soon be the U.S. president again, and he’s bringing notorious Cuba hawk Marco Rubio with him as his nominee to run the State Department. When they get into power, we in the U.S. will have to keep pushing for justice for the Cuban people, who’ve already suffered more than enough. (Jacobin)
Protesters gathered outside the White House last month demanding an end to blockade and the removal of Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. (Photo: Hannah Craig via People's Dispatch)
❧ South Korea’s president, Yoon Suk Yeol, was arrested on Wednesday following his bumbling attempt to declare martial law in December to purge “anti-state” forces. Last time authorities attempted to arrest Yoon, they were stared down by presidential security. But this time, there was no effort to protect Yoon as 3,000 police officers stormed into his residence. The president released a video stating that he was giving himself up to avoid a bloody clash. But Yoon’s attorneys still plan to fight his prosecution, claiming that the Corruption Investigation Office that executed the warrant does not have the explicit authority to investigate insurrection, which he has been charged with. (Washington Post)
❧ Some of the largest whale species on Earth can live a lot longer than we previously thought, according to new research published this week. It’s been understood since the 1990s that Bowhead whales could live to the age of 200. But a study in the journal Science Advances suggested that the industrial scale hunting of sperm, blue, fin and right whales “masked” the ability of these species to live to similar ages. The study found that these ages could be reached again if human factors were discounted. Unfortunately, human factors are quite a big threat to whales, and conservationists have urged countries like Japan and Iceland to stop hunting them. (The Guardian)
Bonus animal fact: Fin whales are the second-largest animal species in the world! (Photo: Animalia)
RIP DAVID LYNCH
What can we say about the legendary surrealist director that hasn’t been said already? Lynch isn’t usually thought of as a particularly “political” artist, but the third season of Twin Peaks contains one of the most searing condemnations of American militarism and the nuclear bomb ever put to film—it outdoes even Oppenheimer. Lost Highway (1997) is also highly underrated, and worth revisiting.
In today’s Hollywood machine, which seems to only be interested in churning out Ant-Man sequels and other mediocre slop, Lynch was a truly unique artist, and it’s an indictment of that machine that he had so much trouble getting funding to make feature films in his later years.
We can only aspire to look this cool in our 70s. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)
AROUND THE STATES
❧ Los Angeles landlords are trying to take advantage of the horrific fires that have swept across the state. (Shocking, we know!) As thousands of people have lost their homes in the inferno, there has been increased demand for housing. Landlords have jumped at the opportunity to wring these desperate tenants out for every penny—increasing rents by as much as 124 percent in some cases. Thankfully, California has a law against jacking up the prices of goods, including housing, more than 10 percent in times of crisis, so those found guilty could face a year in jail or a $10,000 fine. Still, it just goes to show the sort of totally inhuman behavior that the drive to maximize profit often inspires. (Fox 11 Los Angeles)
❧ Less than a month after the assassination of its CEO, UnitedHealth has been caught in another horrifying scandal. This time it’s about cancer treatment, as a new Federal Trade Commission report reveals that the conglomerate and its OptumRX subsidiary have been overcharging patients by more than 1000 percent for life-saving cancer drugs. And they wonder why people have so much sympathy for Luigi… (Fortune)
WHAT YOU CAN DO
Nominate someone to be the Labor Organizer of the Year!
This exciting new award is being presented by In These Timesmagazine, and it comes with a $25,000 prize for the organizer themselves, plus another $25,000 for their union or other organization. Do you know someone who’s been working hard to bring people together and fight for better wages and conditions? Send their name in for consideration! Nominations opened yesterday, and they close at midnight on January 31.
❧ New Mexico just got a valuable new tool to track “wandering cops.” That’s another name for cops who get kicked off one police force, often for violent misconduct, only to travel to a different jurisdiction and get hired again. It happens disturbingly often, but the nonprofit National Police Index has just released a database of employment data for all 5,185 cops currently walking around New Mexico, which is more complete than the information the state’s Department of Public Safety offers online. The data reveals that 252 of them had previously been fired, and 150 have had “five or more employers” in law enforcement, which makes it possible they’re “wandering cops.” Like with any potential threat to your life, it’s a good idea to be warned if they’re around—and the NPI offers databases for 22 other states, too. (Source NM)
❧ We’re often told that “capitalism breeds innovation.” However, this week it appears that the “innovation” consists of General Mills releasing a line of soup-flavored cough drops, which look disgusting. Could we have a little less “innovation,” please? (The Takeout)
This is not a satirical ad from the magazine. This is a real product.
The emperor tamarin has great facial hair (and kind of looks like Kaiser Wilhelm II!)
There are many distinctive-looking monkeys in this world, from the crimson butt of the baboon to the imposing schnoz of the proboscis monkey. But one of the most underrated primates of all is the emperor tamarin (Saguinus imperator), a handsome species native to Peru, Brazil, and Bolivia. Both the males and females have enormous handlebar mustaches, and when German explorers first saw the tamarins in 1907, they thought they looked a lot like their boss, Kaiser Wilhelm II. We can see the resemblance, but we’d take the monkey over Wilhelm any day:
Writing and research by Stephen Prager and Alex Skopic. Editing and additional material by Nathan J. Robinson and Lily Sánchez. Header graphic by Cali Traina Blume. This news briefing is a product of Current Affairs Magazine. Subscribe to our gorgeous and informative print edition here, and our delightful podcast here.
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