January 21, 2025

Tuesday: Below the Fold

Trump pardons the J6 “hostages,” Rubio confirmed as secretary of state, Senate passes Laken Riley Act, and more.

  • Trump pardons the J6 “hostages”: In what was without a doubt the most fervently awaited executive order of his brand-new second term, Donald Trump last night announced pardons and commutations for all defendants convicted for their actions on January 6, 2021. Trump called them “hostages,” and his sweeping order is a blanket pardon for all but 14 Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, whose sentences he otherwise commuted. The Washington Examiner called it “a stunning repudiation of the Justice Department’s wide-ranging four-year investigation into the Capitol attack, extended to nonviolent rioters, including those who damaged and stole property, and those who engaged in violence.” This repudiation, though, is entirely self-inflicted. As Fox News legal analyst Kerri Urbahn put it, The DOJ “again and again would ask for these incredibly harsh sentences and penalties for mostly relatively minor offenses like trespassing.” She added, “Here in Washington, judges who were not friendly to Donald Trump would consistently knock down the sentences that the DOJ asked for. … So it shows you that even the judges here were thinking, ‘This is too much.’” Indeed, for these “hostages” and their friends and families, it was far too much.

  • Trump tightly defines the two sexes: “It is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female. These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.” So said an executive order from Donald Trump modestly entitled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.” After taking the oath of office yesterday, Trump vowed to do away with efforts by the radical Left to “socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life.” The order thus restores the biological definitions of male and female to the federal government and protects girls and women from boys and men pretending to be girls and women. As the order reads, “Across the country, ideologues who deny the biological reality of sex have increasingly used legal and other socially coercive means to permit men to self-identify as women and gain access to intimate single-sex spaces and activities designed for women, from women’s domestic abuse shelters to women’s workplace showers. This is wrong.” But now, with a few strokes of Donald Trump’s pen, it is rendered right. Time will tell whether this fundamental distinction can be codified into law.

  • Newsom blasts Trump exiting Paris Agreement: Among Donald Trump’s executive actions and orders was a repeat of one he issued during his first term — the withdrawal of the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement. “I’m immediately withdrawing from the unfair, one-sided Paris climate accord rip-off,” Trump said as he signed it. “The United States will not sabotage our own industries while China pollutes with impunity.” Of course, this wise decision is not popular with climate cultists like California Governor Gavin Newsom, who blasted Trump’s decision. “If you don’t believe in science, believe your own d*mn eyes," Newsom huffed. The troubling irony is that Los Angeles is burning thanks in part to Newsom’s dubious pursuit of the green agenda. While Newsom blames the fires on climate change, the real culprits are Democrat leaders who are focused on promoting woke ideology over and against sound government practices, like maintaining and expanding firefighting infrastructure.

  • Full list of Donald Trump’s executive orders (Newsweek)

  • Rubio confirmed 99-0 as secretary of state: At 9:20 ET this morning, Marco Rubio was sworn in as Donald Trump’s secretary of state, after having been confirmed yesterday 99-0 by his former Senate colleagues. Doing the honors was Vice President JD Vance, who called Rubio "a bipartisan solutions-seeker, a guy who can actually get things done, but a conservative of great principal and great vision.” Vance added that Rubio thoroughly “understands the distinctive priorities of President Trump.” That ability to understand what Trump wants should serve Rubio well. “President Trump was elected to keep promises,” he said, “and he’s going to keep those promises.” He went on to note, just as he did during his Senate hearing, that every decision made by the Trump State Department will be governed by the answer to one of three questions: Does it make us stronger? Does it make us safer? Does it make us more prosperous? Upon concluding his remarks, Rubio spoke briefly in Spanish, then turned to Vance and wryly quipped, “I just said, ‘I saved a bunch of money by switching to Geico.’” He then closed by saying, “I want to thank Almighty God and my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

  • Senate advances Pete Hegseth’s nomination (Daily Wire)

  • FBI deputy director retires after Trump sworn in: Minutes after Donald Trump was sworn in, FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate announced his retirement effective immediately. Abbate, who had been at the bureau for over 27 years, was another key figure within the FBI accused of anti-Trump bias. Last month, Senator Chuck Grassley sent a letter to both now-departed FBI Director Christopher Wray and Abbate, calling on them both to step down “for the good of the country,” adding, “I therefore must express my vote of no confidence in your continued leadership of the FBI.” According to a whistleblower within the FBI, Abbate directed employees not to divulge the fact that the FBI had at least 26 confidential human sources at the January 6 Capitol riot. Trump named Brian Driscoll to fill in as acting FBI director until his nominee, Kash Patel, is confirmed.

  • Trump pulls security clearance of 51 national security officials (Fox News)

  • Embattled FEMA director steps aside (Daily Wire)

  • Coast Guard Commandant terminated (Fox News)

  • Ramaswamy exits DOGE: Former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, who was tapped by Donald Trump to co-lead his government efficiency outfit DOGE along with Elon Musk, has decided he’s more interested in seeking political office. Ramaswamy announced that he will be stepping down from DOGE to launch a campaign for the Ohio governorship in 2026. Regarding DOGE, Ramaswamy called it an “honor to help support the creation of DOGE,” adding, “I’m confident that Elon & team will succeed in streamlining government. I’ll have more to say very soon about my future plans in Ohio. Most importantly, we’re all-in to help President Trump make America great again!” With Ohio Governor Mike DeWine picking Lt. Gov. Jon Husted to fill the Senate seat vacated by Vice President JD Vance, it presents a perfect opportunity for Ramaswamy to step in and seek the Republican nomination for the gubernatorial race with little obvious competition yet.

  • Humor: Vivek and Elon ask Trump if they can make a blanket fort in the Lincoln Bedroom (Babylon Bee)

  • Senate passes Laken Riley Act: Somewhat lost amid yesterday’s pomp and ceremony was the Republican-controlled Senate’s approval of an amended version of the Laken Riley Act. Having overcome a potential filibuster — 12 Democrats ultimately joined all 53 Republicans in supporting the bill — the upper chamber now sends the bill back to the House for passage, then to Donald Trump’s desk for his signature. The act honors the 22-year-old Georgia nursing student who was brutally murdered last February by an illegal alien from Venezuela. The bill “empowers federal authorities to detain illegal immigrants arrested for theft and other related crimes until they are deported,” reports National Review. “States will also be able to file legal challenges against members of the federal government if they neglect their duty to enforce immigration law.” As Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn noted, “Laken Riley’s murder was a devastating and senseless tragedy, and we must take action to ensure other American families do not have to endure such unthinkable loss at the hands of criminal illegal aliens.”

  • Fetterman quashes party-switching rumors: With Pennsylvania Democrat Senator John Fetterman’s recent willingness to break with his party on certain issues, like unapologetic support for Israel and securing the border, a few have wondered if he was looking to leave the Democrat Party. The rumors became even more pronounced after Fetterman visited Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago recently. Then yesterday, Fetterman was a notable attendee at Trump’s inauguration (notable in part because he still dressed like a schlub). However, when questioned as to whether he would switch parties, Fetterman quickly dismissed the rumors. “It’s not gonna happen,” he flatly stated. “And even if I wanted to do that, that is a rocket sled to Palookaville to try to switch.” He added, “I would make a pretty bad Republican.” That’s probably an honest assessment.

  • CNN anchors imply Elon Musk gave Nazi salute (National Review) | ADL defends Musk (NY Post)

  • Judge blocks release of Jack Smith’s report on Trump documents case (CBS News)

  • Border Patrol agent allegedly murdered by illegal alien (Daily Wire)

For the Executive Summary archive, click here.

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