Trump, who supported Moore and worked for his election, woke up trying to put a lipstick on a pig by claiming that not only did he not fail, but he actually was prescient: “The reason I originally endorsed Luther Strange (and his numbers went up mightily), is that I said Roy Moore will not be able to win the General Election. I was right! Roy worked hard but the deck was stacked against him!” Sure, whatever you say.
Hey, sport: The Celtics try to bounce back from Monday’s embarrassing loss to the Bulls when they face the 14-12 Nuggets at home. Not sure if Kyrie Irving will have recovered enough from his thigh bruise to play.
The Bruins are in Detroit to take on the Red Wings.
Some newspaper editorials have gotten increasingly strident in their criticisms of Trump and his allies. The Wall Street Journal skewered Trump buddy Steve Bannon today for his full-throated support of Roy Moore: “The Alabama result shows that Mr. Bannon cares less about conservative policy victories than he does personal king-making. He wants to depose Mitch McConnell as Majority Leader even if it costs Republicans Senate control. GOP voters, take note: Mr. Bannon is for losers.” Rupert Murdoch isn’t a fan of the Breitbart brat.
Meanwhile, USA Today’s opinion editors raged about Trump’s tweet castigating US Senator Kirsten Gillibrand for daring to criticize him (Trump said she “would do anything” for campaign contributions): “A president who’d all but call a senator a whore is unfit to clean toilets in Obama’s presidential library or to shine George W. Bush’s shoes.” Yes, but what do you really think?
Congressional Republicans have finally found the spine to push back on some of Trump’s ridiculous nominees for federal judgeships, including two guys deemed unqualified by the American Bar Association. One of them, Jeff Mateer, said a couple of years ago that transgender children are part of “Satan’s plan,” and the other, Brett Talley, defended the KKK in 2011 and failed to tell the Senate that his wife is a White House lawyer. Oh, and he has never tried a case in court. So Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, is asking Trump to withdraw the nominations. That’ll go over well. Talley has offered to withdraw.
Meanwhile, Kentucky political leaders are trying to figure out today what to do about a GOP state rep in Kentucky, Dan Johnson, who’s being accused of molesting a member of his church when she was 17. A lengthy report from the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting spells out the sordid details of the alleged assault as well as other accusations against Johnson involving arson (!) and false testimony. Despite calls from both parties that he step down, Johnson is refusing to resign.
It’s that time of year when various organizations are coming out with their “best of” and “something-of-the-year” lists and proclamations. Two of the latest: Merriam-Webster’s Word of the Year is “feminism,” and PolitiFact’s Lie of the Year is Trump’s claim that Russia’s interference in the 2016 election is a hoax.
Variety’s last issue of the year, in which they highlight the biggest story of the year, features New York Times investigative reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey on the cover, crediting their deep and detailed reporting on Harvey Weinstein’s alleged abuse as “breaking open the dam” leading to the flood of women coming forward to say, #MeToo. The issue is out today.
Nominations for the 24th annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards will be announced at 10 a.m. on TNT and TBS.
Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen will hold her last press conference this afternoon before being replaced by a like-minded Trump pick, Jerome Powell. The Fed is expected to raise interest rates by another quarter percent as a gentle brake on the economy. But the Globe’s Evan Horowitz says manipulating interest rates may not be enough to keep the economy on track without igniting inflation.
The European Union’s parliament is voting today on kebabs. Yes, kebabs. Officials are debating whether to ban the use of phosphates in meat cooked on spits, given the possible link between phosphate additives and heart problems. Kebab aficionados say the additives keep the meat juicy. It’s the latest skirmish in the EU’s food safety campaign that has tackled chlorinated chicken, hormonal beef, and GMOs.
Finally, it should be a nice, dark sky tonight, perfect for viewing the annual Geminids meteor shower — unlike last year, when a fuller moon was too bright to get a good look.
