A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
Black Rock Crumbles
In an unprecedented last-minute intervention, rookie CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss spiked a “60 Minutes” segment on the experiences of Alien Enemies Act detainees at CECOT in El Salvador.
The announcement that the Inside CECOT segment would not run came only hours before airtime Sunday:
The segment had already been widely promoted by CBS News, including in a since-deleted press release …
… and in a promotional teaser:
In a blistering email to her colleagues, 60 Minutes correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi pinned the blame on Weiss for spiking her CECOT segment:
The official line from CBS News is that the segment “needed additional reporting.” Among the issues Weiss raised with the segment: She reportedly objected to the segment’s use of the word “migrants” to describe the Venezuelan nationals deported to CECOT because they were in the U.S. illegally, the NYT reported.
But more alarmingly, Weiss bent over backwards to give the Trump White House another bite at the apple to respond to the segment even though the administration had already declined to comment to “60 Minutes,” according to the NYT:
One of Ms. Weiss’s suggestions was to include a fresh interview with Stephen Miller, a White House deputy chief of staff and the architect of Mr. Trump’s immigration crackdown, or a similarly high-ranking Trump administration official, two of the people said. Ms. Weiss provided contact information for Mr. Miller to the “60 Minutes” staff.
It was this new Weiss-imposed hurdle that especially infuriated Alfonsi. “If the administration’s refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a ‘kill switch’ for any reporting they find inconvenient,” Alfonsi wrote in her email.
The Trump administration had an extraordinary and corrupt level of involvement with the recent $8 billion sale of CBS’ parent company Paramount. To get past the Trump-controlled FCC, the purchaser Skydance agreed to appoint an ombudsman, review the network’s content, and pare back DEI initiatives. The ombudsman ended up being a conservative think tanker with longtime Republican Party ties.
Weiss, widely seen as being tasked with shifting CBS News toward a more administration friendly posture, is in the midst of a major overhaul of the news division.
A Revealing Oops in the Abrego Garcia Case
A quick rundown on developments in the criminal case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia:
- Abrego Garcia became the first criminal defendant to cite White House chief of staff Susie Wiles’ admission to Vanity Fair that President Trump was engaged in “score settling.” It came in a filing in support of his claim of vindictive prosecution.
- In the filing — a motion to enforce subpoenas for testimony from top DOJ officials — Abrego Garcia’s attorneys let slip that the judge in his criminal case had ruled earlier this month in a still-sealed order that associate deputy attorney general Aakash Singh had a “leading role in the government’s decision to prosecute” Abrego Garcia. They later filed a corrected version that redacted the quote pulled from the sealed order.
- The significance of all of this comes in the context of Abrego Garcia’s vindictive prosecution claim. DOJ has tried to shut down any inquiries into the role of DOJ higher-ups in the decision to prosecute Abrego Garcia, insisting that acting U.S. Attorney Robert McGuire alone made the decision. But the judge apparently found that internal DOJ docs show otherwise, which should bolster Abrego Garcia’s effort to obtain more documents and testimony in support of his vindictive prosecution claim.
For a fuller explanation, I wrote about all of this at length over the weekend.
DOJ Finally Appeals Halligan Dismissals
In a sign that it may know it has a weak case, the Trump DOJ waited until the last minute to appeal the dismissals of the indictments of former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Both cases were ordered dismissed when a judge ruled that Lindsey Halligan was invalidly appointed as interim U.S. attorney, so the appeals court will be considering the appointments question.
The Newest Phase of the Epstein Coverup
The Friday deadline imposed by law for the Justice Department to turn over the Epstein files to Congress came and went with brazen new concealment, selective redactions, and disappeared records:
- Despite the deadline, not all of the Epstein files were released.
- The DOJ used the same standard for redacting the identifying information of Epstein victims and applied it to “politically exposed individuals and government officials,” Fox News Digital reported. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche later insisted that there are “no redactions of famous people.”
- At least 16 files that were available Friday on the DOJ’s Epstein webpage — including a photograph showing President Donald Trump — had disappeared by Saturday, the AP reports. Blanche said the files were temporarily removed to redact the names or images of victims who had complained to DOJ.
The Destruction
- Vaccines: In a fundamental shift, the Trump administration plans to stop recommending most childhood vaccines.
- USAID: Congolese rape survivors search in vain for medicine after USAID cuts.
- Smithsonian: The White House doesn’t control museum funding, but it is threatening to withhold monies anyway unless the Smithsonian submits extensive additional documentation for a White House-led review of its exhibits and programming.
The Destruction: End of Year Edition
WaPo: The year Trump broke the federal government
The Cassandras (but in a good way)
The New Republic: The Americans Who Saw All This Coming—but Were Ignored and Maligned
Quote of the Day
“This is an oligarchic and authoritarian takeover of our democracy, yes. But it is fueled by white supremacist ideology. That is the seductive messaging through which so many have been lured into participating in this national betrayal.”–Howard University law professor Sherrilyn Ifill
Hegseth Watch
- Land mines: Hegseth reverses land mine policy to allow use of controversial weapon.
- Chaplain Corps: Hegseth announced an overhaul of the military’s Chaplain Corps, with an emphasis on (presumably Christian) spirituality: “Our chaplains are chaplains, not emotional support officers, and we’re going to treat them as such,” Hegseth said in a video. “Faith and virtue were traded for self-help and self-care.”
- Strikes in Syria: Hegseth declared that U.S. strikes on Islamic State targets inside of Syria were a “direct response” to the Dec. 13 attack that killed three Americans: “This is not the beginning of a war — it is a declaration of vengeance.” Here’s the problem:
In Memoriam
The passings in film this year were especially poignant:
Hot tips? Juicy scuttlebutt? Keen insights? Let me know. For sensitive information, use the encrypted methods here.
Frist. With obligatory cat (commentary). IYKYK.
And second.
ETA: CBS = Cock-holster’s Bullshit Stenographer.
Sticking with “if the WH doesn’t respond, we can’t run the story”
High pitched sound waves, causing headaches, etc. Dog whistle?
In an unprecedented last-minute intervention, rookie CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss spiked a “60 Minutes” segment on the experiences of Alien Enemies Act detainees at CECOT in El Salvador.
The announcement that the Inside CECOT segment would not run came only hours before airtime Sunday:
So, Bari figured this’d hold the audience for fifteen or twenty minutes, satisfy the advertisers and/or please the White House:
Why does Bari Weiss hate CBS?