Comment on Trump’s Protection Racket

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who battled polio as a child, warned on Friday that anyone seeking a Senate confirmation should “steer clear” of associating with any efforts to undermine public confidence in the polio vaccine, the Washington Post reports. Said McConnell: “The polio vaccine has saved millions of lives and held out the promise of eradicating a terrible disease.

“The second time’s a charm for President-elect Donald Trump — at least when it comes to an election win getting him the establishment recognition he has always sought,” The Hill reports. “Trump has received a display of homage at home and abroad since winning November’s contest over Vice President Harris. It’s the kind of public pomp that eluded him after his shock victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016.”

“President-elect Donald Trump is weighing a bid to save the failing Waldorf-Astoria hotel in Washington, DC – and rebrand it once more as a Trump International Hotel,” the New York Post reports. “Three sources familiar with the situation said that the incoming commander-in-chief’s company, the Trump Organization, is weighing options that include a licensing deal or even possibly buying back the lease on the government-owned, 125-year-old Old Post Office building.”

Donald Trump is meeting with Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook on Friday, the latest in a string of meetings between the president-elect and tech executives, Bloomberg reports.

“A federal appeals court on Friday denied TikTok’s bid to delay a law from taking effect that will ban the popular short-form video app next month if its Chinese parent company does not sell its stake,” CBS News reports. CNN: Federal appeals court declines to temporarily block ban on TikTok, teeing up showdown at SCOTUS over controversial law.

President-elect Donald Trump on Friday evening called for authorities to shoot down the mysterious drones that have been seen in the skies of New Jersey and around the country, The Hill reports.