Trump Endorses Supplicant Mike Johnson For Speaker

INSIDE: Matthew Graves ... Elon Musk ... Jimmy Carter

Dec 31, 2024

A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.

Thank You!

As we put a wrap on 2024, a word of thanks for reading Morning Memo and supporting TPM this year. It’s been a momentous and difficult year, and there’s no immediate relief in sight.

We now sit on the brink of a highly uncertain and foreboding era in which Donald Trump had retaken the White House and authoritarianism is on the march globally, putting democracy back on its heels. Later this week a new Republican-controlled Congress will be sworn in, and while it’s only been six years since the GOP controlled the White House and both chambers of Congress, it feels like a very different time than 2017-2019.

Trump Endorses Mike Johnson For Speaker

In post on Truth Social, President-elect Donald Trump endorsed Rep. Mike Johnson (R-LA) to retain the House speakership ahead of a vote by the new House on Friday.

It’s not clear whether Trump’s support – itself an unusual involvement by an incoming president in the affairs of the legislative branch – will be enough to bring the most rabid right-wing members into line behind Johnson and avoid an extended, multi-ballot saga like then-Rep. Kevin McCarthy endured in 2023.

If Johnson does successfully run the gauntlet of his own conference, he will more dependent on the president than any speaker in modern times.

Is The GOP Gonna Take Itself Hostage Over The Debt Ceiling?

With complete GOP control in Washington, the dynamics of its debt-ceiling hostage taking have changed pretty dramatically. But it’s not clear if Republicans themselves recognize that yet. Democrats seem to.

“It’s the bear trap in the bedroom Republicans love to leave around for negotiating purposes,” Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) told Politico. “Now that they’ve got the trifecta, it loses some of its negotiating appeal and remains extremely, extremely dangerous.”

Graves To Resign As US Attorney In DC

DC U.S. Attorney Matthew M. Graves, who has led the investigation and prosecution of Jan. 6 rioters since November 2021, will resign his post effective Jan. 16, before Trump takes office.

Trump Loses Appeal Of E. Jean Carroll Verdict

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the smaller of the two verdicts that writer E. Jean Carroll won against Donald Trump for sexual abuse and defamation, rejecting Trump’s appeal. Joyce Vance has more.

Elon Musk Watch

The NYT paints quite the scene at Mar-a-Lago since the election:

Mr. Trump has bragged to people that Mr. Musk — the world’s richest man — is “renting” one of the residential spaces at Mar-a-Lago. It is unclear how much Mr. Musk will ultimately end up paying for the cottage, which historically has rented for at least $2,000 a night, according to a person with knowledge of the fees.

Carter To Lie In State Before State Funeral

President Biden declared Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025, to be a national day of mourning for the late Jimmy Carter, culminating in a state funeral for the former president at National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. President Biden will deliver a eulogy. The sons of President Gerald Ford and Vice President Walter Mondale will read eulogies written by their fathers, who predeceased Carter. Ahead of the funeral, Carter will lie in state in the Capitol Rotunda beginning Jan. 7.

Golden Dukes Unveiled!

There are no winners, only losers.

King Coal

The International Energy Agency’s annual report released this month showed a continuing surge in the consumption of coal worldwide, particularly in China and India. As Javier Blas noted:

The IEA now estimates that global coal demand surged to an all-time high of 8,771 million metric tons this year, up 1% from 2023, as electricity demand rose faster than expected. That shouldn’t be a surprise: The energy transition requires electrifying everything. Renewables are doing some of that job, but coal remains, the go-to fuel to power the energy transition. Worse, the IEA revised higher its historical data, so the increase comes from a significantly higher baseline than before. The world is consuming a lot more coal than we thought – and therefore, it’s polluting the atmosphere a lot more than we thought, too.

Kilauea Summit Eruption Continues

A new eruption at the summit of Kilauea volcano in Hawaii began Dec. 23 and has continued intermittently for the past week, with fountaining lava spreading across the crater floor. A live view of the ongoing eruption:

See Ya Next Year

No Morning Memo on New Year’s Day. We’ll resume in earnest on Thursday.

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