Today's Headlines: Democrats will dominate the next Congress, but about 30 House races are still uncalled, and Mississippi’s Senate race is a nail-biter, with Scott Colom leading Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith by under 2,000 votes while 3,600 mail ballots could still arrive. Alaska could take days or weeks, and while Mary Peltola leads Dan Sullivan by roughly 600,000 votes, Trump posted that the “fake Dan Sullivan’s” votes should go to the “REAL” one and the election is over, though the other Sullivan only got about 3,600 votes. Elsewhere on the ballot, Nithya Raman ousted Karen Bass in the LA mayor’s race, ten of ten states with data center measures voted to restrict them (and only one of 41 local initiatives was pro-data-center), and Democrats’ six new trifectas could push the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact past 270 electoral votes, meaning the next presidential election could be decided by the popular vote. Trump, meanwhile, is responding to the biggest rebuke in decades by obsessing over decor, signing an order to preserve his Oval Office gold moldings as a national monument so “stupid people” can’t touch them, while Pete Hegseth looks like the fall guy for the unpopular Iran war and Democrats’ first impeachment target, though Trump says he has “every intention” of keeping him, WaPo says he’s not in the running for Tennessee’s Senate seat, and Axios reports a decision on restarting major Iran strikes is “coming soon.” Markets had one good day before reality hit: the Nasdaq lost about $2.5 trillion (including $1 trillion from the Mag 7) and the S&P 500 fell 4.4%, and the WSJ reports Anthropic’s IPO is wobbling as investors doubt its $1.5 trillion valuation, which may drop by roughly half a trillion (it’s still reportedly eyeing the week before Thanksgiving). Meta, TikTok, and Google sued California over its Digital Age Assurance Act, which bans “addictive feeds” for under-16s and takes effect January 1, while LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 and is shutting down. The DOJ is also reportedly pursuing a criminal investigation into who leaked the Dobbs decision in 2022, with grand jury subpoenas out and Judge Pirro reportedly overseeing it, even though it’s unclear what law was broken, and civil rights chief Harmeet Dhillon became the first post-midterm resignation. Finally, a London jury found Russell Brand guilty of one count of rape and three counts of sexual assault after 8.5 hours of deliberation, and the judge promised “significant custodial time” and denied bail.
Resources/Articles mentioned:
The Hill: Mississippi has an unexpectedly close Senate race but no recount procedure
Politico: Trump: Alaska’s incumbent GOP senator would ‘easily’ win if given ‘fake’ challenger’s votes
LA Times: Mayor-elect Raman will lead L.A. at a pivotal moment
WaPo: A nationwide backlash against data centers erupts at the polls
Mother Jones: America Finally Has the Votes to End the Electoral College
NYT: Trump Moves to Make Oval Office a National Monument
The Hill: Trump defends Hegseth but acknowledges easier path to replacing him before new Congress
Axios: Trump meets with national security team, says Iran war decision coming "soon"
WSJ: Wall Street Gets $2.5 Trillion AI Reality Check With Historic Rout of Tech Stocks
WSJ: Major Investors Are Skeptical Anthropic IPO Can Achieve $1.5 Trillion Valuation
The Hill: Meta, TikTok, Google sue California over child online safety restrictions
Axios: LIV Golf collapse imminent after BC Partners withdraws
NYT: DOJ Steps Up Leak Investigation on Supreme Court Decision Overturning Roe v. Wade
MS Now: Harmeet Dhillon resigns as chief of DOJ Civil Rights Division
NYT: Russell Brand Is Found Guilty of Rape and Sexual Assault
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