Monday, Nov. 23, 2020

· House Democrats rejected an offer from the General Services Administration to wait until the following week for a briefing on Administrator Emily Murphy’s refusal to accept President-elect Joe Biden's victory, which would allow the formal transfer of presidential power to begin.

· The GSA gave Biden the formal go-ahead to begin his transition to the presidency, shortly after Michigan certified him as the winner there.

· Politico reported Dianne Feinstein plans to step down as the top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee following blowback from progressives for acquiescing to Amy Coney Barrett's Supreme Court confirmation hearing.

· Biden released a list of nominees for his incoming administration, including Antony Blinken for secretary of state, Avril Haines for director of national intelligence, Jake Sullivan for national security advisor, Alejandro Mayorkas for secretary of homeland security, Linda Thomas-Greenfield for ambassador to the United Nations and former Secretary of State John Kerry for the special presidential climate envoy.

· In a new twist on the “Muslim ban,” President Donald Trump issued a new temporary rule, to take effect Dec. 24 until June 24, that could require travelers from two dozen countries, most of which are African, to pay a bond of as much as $15,000 to visit the United States. The State Department claimed this was because travelers from these countries often overstay their visas.

· Battleground states Michigan and Pennsylvania certified the results of the presidential election in those states, proclaiming Biden the winner.

Tuesday, Nov. 24

· House and Senate appropriators agreed to a bipartisan set of funding levels to establish a path forward on a $1.4 trillion spending package, which they have little time to pass to avert a government shutdown in December.

· Nevada certified the results of the presidential election in that state, declaring Biden the winner.

Wednesday, Nov. 25

· Trump signed off on granting Biden access to intelligence briefings, giving his successor access to information on major national security threats.

· The Federal Communications Commission rejected a petition from ZTE Corp, a Chinese telecommunications firm, requesting reconsideration of the FCC’s June decision to designate it as a national security threat to communications networks.

· Trump pardoned his former national security advisor Michael Flynn, who pled guilty to lying to the FBI during the investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

· Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said he hopes Biden will reverse Trump’s “criminal” foreign policy and return to conditions before his presidency, explaining, “This can be a great solution to a large number of issues and completely change the path and conditions.”

· A veteran CIA officer was killed in Somalia, although how he was killed, his identity and why he was even in Somalia were not disclosed. The officer was part of CIA’s paramilitary division and was a former member of the Navy’s SEAL Team 6.

· The Justice Department created new regulations allowing for the use of more methods of federal executions including firing squads and electrocutions, as the White House rushes to execute five more prisoners before the end of Trump’s term.

Thursday, Nov. 26

· The Supreme Court barred New York state from enforcing limits on attendance at churches and synagogues in high-risk areas during the pandemic.

Friday, Nov. 27

· A Philadelphia federal appeals court rejected another of Trump’s efforts to challenge the presidential election results by blocking Biden from being declared the winner of Pennsylvania. The judges found that the Trump campaign’s claims of fraud and tampering “have no merit.”

Saturday, Nov. 28

· The Pennsylvania Supreme Court dismissed a Republican lawsuit seeking to halt certification of the presidential election results by challenging the state’s 2019 law establishing universal mail voting.

Sunday, Nov. 29

· A Wisconsin presidential election ballot recount in two counties paid for by the Trump campaign revealed Biden still won by over 20,000 votes.

· Top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci warned that Americans should prepare for a “surge upon a surge” of COVID-19 infections following Thanksgiving.