NBC:
Connecticut Congress members targeted with bomb threats on Thanksgiving
Five of the state's seven Democratic lawmakers said they were notified of bomb threats targeting their homes, but no devices were found.
Democratic Reps. Jim Himes, Jahana Hayes, Joe Courtney, John Larson and Rosa DeLauro announced in written statements that they had been targeted. The office of Sen. Chris Murphy, also a Democrat, confirmed to NBC News that he was a target, as well. CBS' local affiliate reported earlier Thursday that Murphy received the threat.
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"There is no place for political violence in this country, and I hope that we may all continue through the holiday season with peace and civility," Himes said in a statement, in which he also expressed gratitude for law enforcement.
There’s typically a dearth of political news on a major holiday (hence the short roundup today, abbreviated, if you will). Alas, there’s the above story. This is a thing that has no legitimate place in America, yet is becoming all too common.
Washington Post:
After Lebanon cease-fire, Israeli families hope for hostage deal
Hostage families are pushing the Biden administration and the Trump transition team to help secure the release of their loved ones.
“I try to avoid the term ‘optimism,’” said Dekel-Chen, whose son, Sagui, and some 250 other Israelis were dragged by Hamas-led militants from Kibbutz Nir Oz into Gaza last October.
And yet Dekel-Chen and members of six other families of American hostages have met for marathon sessions with Biden administration representatives, including national security adviser Jake Sullivan, and with associates of President-elect Donald Trump. They are conveying the message they’ve repeated for more than 400 days: For their loved ones, held in brutal conditions in Gaza, each passing moment could mean death.
As much as you may dislike the process, a negotiation over hostages in this setting is difficult and fraught. There is no simple or easy solution.
It’s not just a 220-215 House with a narrower margin than this year by one seat. Without Matt Gaetz (resignation), Elise Stefanik (headed to the UN) and likely National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, it’s essentially a 217-215 House until spring.
Sounds manageable, eh? What could go wrong?
In the meantime, here’s a rundown of key designees from PBS:
Who are the people Trump has picked for key positions in his second administration so far
President-elect Donald Trump is filling key posts in his second administration, and it’s shaping up much differently than his first. He’s prioritizing loyalists for top jobs.
Bhavik Lathia on X via threadreader:
I'm going to keep it 💯: I'm a fan of @TVietor08, @jonfavs, and the #PodSaveAmerica community
They took podcasting seriously at a time when many on our side overlooked it, and connected it to mobilizing voters and activating volunteers. That's objectively good stuff 🧵
Eva Bellin and Kurt Weyland/Washington Post:
Why American democracy will survive
Students panicked after Trump’s win, but our research on autocracy points to democracy’s resilience.
It became clear to us that it was important to stanch this alarm. While the stunning result of Donald Trump being elected president again has legitimately raised concerns about what a domineering populist with autocratic leanings might do, our research on populism and de-democratization in Latin America, the Middle East, Europe and Asia suggests that catastrophizing is not in order here.
Populist leaders cannot strangle democracy at will; certain institutional vulnerabilities are a necessary precondition. Such weaknesses were exploited by Hugo Chávez in Venezuela, Nayib Bukele in El Salvador, Viktor Orban in Hungary, Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey and Kais Saied in Tunisia. But the institutional framework of the United States is firm and resilient. It is capable of containing the ambitions of a power-hungry president and serving as a stalwart hedge against de-democratization.
That will be put to the test.
Noah Smith/Noahpinion:
The best-case scenario for Trump's second term
An optimistic Thanksgiving post.
BUT, I also do have to admit that Trump’s first term turned out much better than I expected! Trump did foment social and political chaos, but consider the following:
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The economy demonstrated strong growth, with workers at the bottom of the distribution reaping especially large wage gains.
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Thanks to Trump’s rhetoric, the U.S. belatedly woke up to the various threats posed by China, and realized that unilateral free trade has many drawbacks.
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Trump did not lock Hillary Clinton up, or persecute his political enemies in general.
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Trump did great on Covid relief spending, carrying American households through the pandemic and propelling a rapid economic recovery after the pandemic.
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Trump’s Operation Warp Speed was the best Covid vaccine development effort in the world, creating new and highly effective vaccines in a very short period of time, and saving a very large number of lives.
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Very few U.S. government institutions suffered long-lasting damage as a result of Trump.
There are different players this time around, with removed guard rails and a rogue SCOTUS. But we shall see.
