Open Thread - Happy Shark Week

President Joe Biden has reversed course and issued a broad and sweeping pardon for his son, Hunter Biden. Statement from the White House: "Today, I signed a pardon for my son Hunter. From the day I took office, I said I would not interfere with the Justice Department’s decision-making, and I kept my word even as I have watched my son being selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted.

Janey Godley died last month "but she still believed to her dying day that Trump is a country mile away from anyone who should come near to power." Very Rev Kelvin Holdsworth, Provost of St Mary's Cathedral spoke at her funeral and rather slyly worked in one of her most famous sayings, to the mourners' delight. Source: Daily Record Janey Godley forgave a large number of people ahead of her death - but she still singled out Donald Trump for harsh criticism.

Fox News guest Lucy Caldwell, a Democratic strategist, argued that sexual assault allegations against Pete Hegseth should be taken seriously after President-elect Donald Trump nominated him to be defense secretary. On Sunday's Media Buzz program, host Howard Kurtz explained that Hegseth and other nominees had faced "credible" threats of violence. "Also, Thanksgiving Day, Lucy, there were threats against four House Democrats in Connecticut," Kurtz said. "No matter whom it's targeted against, violence is never the right way to resolve these issues," Caldwell agreed.

Her name is Porsha Ngumezi. She was 35 years old when a Texas doctor chose not to perform a routine D&C when she miscarried because the procedure can also be used to end pregnancies. She died as a result. From ProPublica: Over the course of six hours on June 11, 2023, Porsha Ngumezi had bled so much in the emergency department at Houston Methodist Sugar Land that she’d needed two transfusions.

Americans and security experts are shocked that Donald Trump chose Kash Patel to lead the FBI. Trump's Secretary of Defense pick Pete Hegseth is so abusive towards women that his own mother called him out for his horrible behavior. Rolling Stone reported that Penelope Hegseth wrote her son Pete "belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around, and uses women for his own power and ego." But historian Timothy Snyder reminds us that Trump has a plan behind his 'crazy' cabinet picks.

Rep. Claudia (R-NY) Tenney complained because President-elect Donald Trump was "the only world leader" who had not been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize. During a Sunday interview on Fox News, host Jackie Deangelis pointed out that a cease-fire between Hezbollah and Israel was on the table during the final months of Joe Biden's presidency. "There's a new sheriff in town," Tenney said of Trump.