Who needs friends in high places when you have family? Both Joe & Donnie proved last week that they're in it for their families to win it...or to avoid jail time. Either way, it's all the same.
Trump, Take Two
Federal employees are on edge, fearing they may lose their jobs or an even worse scenario: being targeted by Elon Musk and subsequently being harassed by his online minions.
Kash Patel, Donnie’s pick for the FBI director, is raising flags among Dems and Republicans. Patel is a known conspiracy theorist, and many believe he will stop at nothing to exact revenge against Trump’s political adversaries.
Another interesting cabinet pick is billionaire Charles Kushner, Donnie’s potential ambassador to France. Charles, the father of Trump’s son-in-law Jared, is no stranger to scheming and scamming. He went to prison for tax evasion, costing the IRS over $200K-$325K and for blackmailing his brother-in-law with a sex scandal to prevent him from cooperating with investigators. Yes, you read that correctly. Who said billionaires are all good people that simply worked harder than the rest of us?? BTW, Trump pardoned Kushner before leaving office in 2020.
Massad Boulos, another billionaire and the father of Trump’s other son-in-law, will be the new advisor on Arab & Middle Eastern affairs. Boulos’ appointment will not need to be confirmed by the Senate.
Keeping Up with Biden & Harris
Speaking of pardons, President Biden did a complete 180 and pardoned his son Hunter before leaving office. If you recall, Hunter was convicted earlier this year on tax and gun charges and, while Joe previously claimed that he wouldn’t interfere with the legal process, he stepped in just before his son faced a max of 42 years in prison. Guess he didn't trust the judicial system after all.
Leaders from VP Harris’ presidential campaign spoke on Pod Save America to debrief their 107-day sprint to Election Day. To sum it all up, if they had to do it again, it doesn’t seem like much would change.
While a ceasefire in Gaza is still unlikely during Biden’s term, the POTUS and France’s President Macron were able to secure a truce between Israel & Lebanon last week.
Congress, What’s Good?
The inauguration hasn’t even happened yet and there’s already a bill to shutter the Department of Education. A Republican senator from South Dakota introduced the Returning Education to Our States Act. which would redistribute current DOE programs and funding to other federal agencies, effectively rendering the department useless.
Dems in the House celebrated their Thanksgiving breaks with an unfortunate and scary side of bomb threats. 9 Representatives from Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island were notified of threats targeting their homes, though none were actually found. This comes after 2 Republicans nominated to Donald Trump’s cabinet said they also received threats earlier in the week. The FBI is said to be investigating all threats, but has not released information on potential motives or suspects.
In upcoming committee meetings:
The Secret Service’s failure surrounding the attempts on Donnie’s life
Social Justice Round Up
Walmart is the latest among large corporations to announce the elimination of their DEI program. The company has reneged on their commitment to focus on racial or gender equity within its corporate operations, in customer communications, and when hiring suppliers.
Private prisons stand to make a lot of money with the incoming administration’s harsh immigration policies.
The racists are feeling bold again. There’s been an increase in racist incidents against minority and queer communities since Trump’s election.
Two Indianapolis police officers will stand trial for involuntary manslaughter and reckless homicide for the death of a Black man named Herman Whitfield III. They were called out to Whitfield’s parents’ home to help him through a mental health crisis and unfortunately did the exact opposite.
What the Health
World AIDS Day was yesterday and sistas are on our minds for a very specific reason. Black women make up 54% of new HIV cases nationwide and most of them are in heterosexual relationships. While many of the available treatments are advertised to homosexual men, some healthcare experts are on the ground to get the message out to those that are most impacted.
Ulcerative colitis is already no fun, but it has the nerve to impact one's sleep patterns too. Here are some tips on how to get better rest during a colitis flare up.
Though slightly higher amongst children, this flu season is currently less severe than past seasons at this same time of year. Thank goodness.
Around the Diaspora
Despite worsening conditions and a failed attempt to have Kenyan police combat the gang violence, the UN says it’s not leaving Haiti.
Benin is giving citizenship to the descendants of West Africans that were forced from the Continent as part of the transatlantic slave trade. Starting this month, applicants over the age of 18 that can prove their African ancestry and who have a parent born before 1944 can apply to become Beninese nationals.
Guyana and Brazil have agreed to establish 3 new direct bus routes between the countries, expanding connectivity for travelers and to residents of both countries.
Our Black Jobs & Our Black Money
Are responses to your resume feeling dry these days? Check out this template that the Job Father says consistently works for him and his clients. If you’re curious about the Job Father and his credentials, he’s helped 100s of Black folks break into tech and he has plans to see even more of us make it.
Culture that Pops
Are we still side-eying Ja Rule? The rapper is in the process of completing a school in Ghana that he may or may not have paid for with the Fyre Festival funds he scammed from all those rich kids.
Issa Rae opened up a new restaurant that highlights the rich Black history of South Central Los Angeles. We may be a little biased when we say this, but…we really, really love what she's doing.
Meet the pastor & church orchestra that’s offering young musicians of color a place to thrive.
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