'...The challenges Jimmy faced as President came at a pivotal time for our country and he did everything in his power to improve the lives of all Americans. For that, we all owe him a debt of gratitude. Melania and I are thinking warmly of the Carter Family and their loved ones during this difficult time. We urge everyone to keep them in their hearts and prayers. ...'
'...Mobile users in the US should swiftly move away from using unencrypted SMS and adopt phishing-resistant multifactor authentication (MFA), the latest guidance from the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has urged.
The guidance was prompted by the threat posed by Chinese-affiliated threat groups, including Salt Typhoon. This advanced persistent threat (APT) group recently targeted at least eight US telecommunications firms in a massive cyber espionage campaign. ...adopt an end-to-end encrypted messaging app like Signal instead.
The Agency also recommended moving away from SMS-based MFA and replacing it with phishing-resistant MFA, choosing from the various FIDO2-enabled options listed by the Fast Identity Online (FIDO) Alliance. Users should enable MFA across all their services, mainly social media and services provided by Microsoft, Google and Apple.
“For Gmail users, enroll in Google’s Advanced Protection (APP) program, as it strengthens your defenses against phishing and account hijacking,” added the Agency.
Other recommendations include:'
'...Biden on Monday commuted the sentences of 37 of 40 men on federal death row — a list that includes at least five child killers and several mass murders — in a stunning act of clemency just two days before Christmas. Biden, 82, gave the reprieve to the nation’s most violent...'
'...Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Władysław Bartoszewski said the country is “obliged to respect the provisions of the International Criminal Court.” ...The war started when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, murdering over 1,000 civilians and kidnapping hundreds of hostages. In response, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have invaded the Gaza Strip to eliminate the terrorist threat while rescuing those being held as hostages. ...'
'...Guided Tax Software provides free online tax preparation and filing at an IRS partner site. Our partners deliver this service at no cost to qualifying taxpayers...Go here if you just want free forms from the IRS.'
'...CNN — Congress voted to avert a shutdown early Saturday morning after House GOP leaders dropped a demand from Donald Trump over the debt limit...The House voted Friday evening and the Senate voted shortly after midnight to pass a bill that extends government funding into March and provides disaster relief and farm aid, but does not include a suspension of the debt limit, which Trump had called on Republicans to address. President Joe Biden must still sign the stopgap bill into law. ...Democrats balked at the plan, arguing that the GOP effort to suspend the debt limit would help Trump pass his tax plan.'
'... “We need a clean CR," Tuberville emphasized. "We need to kick this thing down the road or we need to just shut the government down and come back first week in January because nobody is going to miss a paycheck.”
“Shut it down, let everybody get a calm, cool head," he continued. "Let President Trump and his team along with as you said the big four get together, work at it, get things done the right way and let’s do what’s best for the American people. ...'
'...“There’s a chance today a clean CR [continuing resolution], short term clean CR, it may be for two, three weeks,” Mullin said. “That was something that was discussed, you know, late last night, you know, even some discussions this morning. I’m not going to say that’s going to happen, but you know, that’s really the option that’s on the table.”
If Johnson does move forward with a clean, short-term stopgap, it is unclear if that will muster enough votes to clear the House. A handful of Republicans have historically opposed continuing resolutions...'
'...Speaker Mike Johnson might be in the DOGE House.
Billionaire entrepreneurs Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy on Wednesday turned against House GOP leadership, raging about a stopgap measure to avert a government shutdown and actively encouraging rank-and-file Republicans to kill it.
“This bill should not pass,” Musk bluntly posted on his X platform, later wondering, “Ever seen a bigger piece of pork?” in reference to a photo of the legislative text. ...'
'...But like other parts of the fed-led censorship apparatus, the interagency entity underwent civil rights-eviscerating mission creep, expanding its mandate to suppress the speech of Americans guilty of wrongthink.
The evidence of this emerged in Daily Wire v. State Department, whose plaintiffs allege that the GEC’s funding, promoting and marketing of internet “risk-raters” Global Disinformation Index and NewsGuard amounted to First Amendment-violating censorship-by-proxy.
These groups aim to purge purported mis- and disinformation by threatening the business models of outlets that publish news and views they deem illegitimate.
They do so by starving those outlets of vital ad revenue, placing them on de facto blacklists that companies use in determining where not to advertise, to protect “brand safety.”...'
' Musk is developing an email service that could challenge Google’s Gmail. It remains unclear whether this will be a standalone app or integrated within X. ...Musk confirmed that it will have a DM-style interface you see on messaging platforms. The service will apparently provide an email address that delivers messages directly to a plain-text DM inbox, eliminating threads and formatting commonly associated with traditional email....'
'...Trump said his administration "will now restore the rule of law for all Americans." "Under the leadership of Christopher Wray, the FBI illegally raided my home, without cause, worked diligently on illegally impeaching and indicting me, and has done everything else to interfere with the success and future of America," Trump told Fox News Digital. "They have used their vast powers to threaten and destroy many innocent Americans, some of which will never be able to recover from what has been done to them." ...'
'...President-elect Donald Trump is promising expedited federal permits for energy projects and other construction worth more than $1 billion. ...While Trump did not specify who would be eligible for accelerated approvals, dozens of energy projects proposed nationwide, from natural gas pipelines and export terminals to solar farms and offshore wind turbines, meet the billion-dollar criteria.'... “Trump is unabashedly and literally offering to sell out America to the highest corporate bidder,'' said Lena Moffitt, executive director of Evergreen Action, an environmental group.
