What Zander's been reading this week
Zander's Weekend Facts #145 - Sunday, November 17, 2024
I’m taking a bit of a break from the headlining column because… life. Unfortunately, life elsewhere certainly did not cease this past week, so here’s a couple of articles I’ve read over the last couple of days to help keep you up to speed with all the world’s happenings. 😎
The New York Times - Trump’s Cabinet Picks Test Senate G.O.P.’s Deference
Axios - What happens if Trump eliminates the Department of Education
USA Today - Voters blamed Biden and Harris for rising costs. Was that fair? We asked economists
The Wall Street Journal - The Democrats Need Another Bill Clinton
NPR - Trump promised the 'largest deportation' in U.S. history. Here's how he might start
NPR - Biden was given a film camera. The result? A new, intimate view of the White House
You can also go read last week’s newsletter in the off chance you missed it:
America failed
It’s the Saturday night after the 2024 presidential election. My playlist consisting of Elton John, Luke Combs, and others is booming in my headphones. Alabama’s domination of LSU is on full display on the television that sits in the corner of my eye. And I have absolutely no idea how I should start writing this newsletter.
Rapid-fire Facts
Here’s a recap of the top news headlines from the past week:
Trump Cabinet Picks: President-elect Donald Trump announced several key appointments to his next administration last week. Trump made several controversial moves including tapping former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) as attorney general, picking Fox News host Pete Hegseth to be defense secretary, and nominating Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health and human services secretary. Gaetz resigned from Congress after the announcement, with a House Ethics Committee report into allegations against Gaetz not having been released. Hegseth was investigated in 2017 for a sexual assault allegation and was flagged by fellow service members while serving in the Army National Guard as a possible “insider threat.” Kennedy has voiced many conspiracy theories on vaccines in recent years.
NBC News - A majority of Senate Republicans doubt Matt Gaetz will be confirmed as attorney general, sources say
NBC News - Pete Hegseth, Trump's pick for defense secretary, faced sex assault allegation
CBS News - Fellow National Guardsman told superiors Hegseth might be "insider threat" before Biden inauguration
NBC News - From 'brilliant' to 'dangerous': Mixed reactions roll in after Trump picks RFK Jr. for top health post
Congress Elections: The Republican Party will hold a trifecta in Washington after capturing control of the House of Representatives. According to the Associated Press, Republicans have clinched the 218 seats necessary for control of Congress’s lower chamber. Democrats are projected to have won 212 seats with five seats yet to be called. The margin that the GOP leads by will be consequential as President-elect Donald Trump has already selected three Republican members of Congress to serve in his administration.
Inflation: The October inflation report showed prices rising higher than the previous month. The consumer price index rose 2.6% year-over-year in October, higher than September’s 2.4% but in line with expectations. Prices rose 0.2% month-over-month, also in line with prior expectations and steady with the last three months. Adjusted for inflation, the Bureau of Labor Statistics also reported that average hourly earnings rose 1.4% from October 2023.
Infowars: The far-right media outlet Infowars, most commonly known for its owner Alex Jones peddling conspiracy theories on its platforms, was put up for auction last week. In June, a bankruptcy judge ordered Jones to sell several of his assets, including Infowars, in order to pay nearly $1.5 billion in damages after he claimed the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax. The auction, which took place Wednesday, was won by Global Tetrahedron, the publisher of satirical news outlet The Onion.
Zander’s Facts Sporting Club
Here are the latest headlines from the sports world in the Sporting Club:
NFL Week 11: Perhaps the game of the regular season in the NFL will go down later today as the Chiefs, the last undefeated team in the league, travel to Buffalo to take on the Bills at 4:00 pm ET. At the same time, the Falcons take on the Broncos and the Seahawks face the 49ers. Earlier at 1:00 pm ET, the Packers play the Bears, the Jaguars face the Lions, and the Ravens visit the Steelers. Tonight at 8:20 pm ET, the Chargers host the Bengals, and the Texans take on the Cowboys tomorrow night at 8:15 pm ET. Week 11 began on Thursday night as the Eagles took the NFC East lead with a 28-16 win over the Commanders.
College Football Week 12: #12 Georgia scored a massive home win against #7 Tennessee on Saturday night in college football’s game of the week. Many other games featured College Football Playoff implications, including #1 Oregon surviving a trip to Wisconsin 16-13, #3 Texas fending off Arkansas 20-10, and #2 Ohio State cruising by Northwestern 31-7 at Wrigley Field. Elsewhere, #21 South Carolina used a last minute score to beat #23 Missouri 34-30, Florida took down #22 LSU 27-16, Arizona State upset #16 Kansas State 24-14, and #20 Clemson beat Pittsburgh 24-20.
NWSL Playoffs: The Washington Spirit clinched a spot in the National Women’s Soccer League Championship game by taking down NJ/NY Gotham in penalties on Saturday. The second semifinal in the NWSL Playoffs takes place later today as the Orlando Pride host the Kansas City Current at 3:00 pm ET on ABC. Regardless of this afternoon’s result, the NWSL Championship will take place in Kansas City on Saturday, kicking off at 8:00 pm ET on CBS and Paramount+.
NBA/TNT Sports: Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of TNT Sports, has reportedly settled its lawsuit with the NBA. WBD had originally sued the league after being shut out of the NBA’s new rights deals, which begin next season with Disney’s ESPN, Comcast’s NBC Sports, and Amazon Prime Video. The settlement will allow TNT Sports to continue operate the NBA’s digital properties and the NBA TV cable channel. A separate deal reported on Saturday night will move TNT’s popular “Inside the NBA” studio program to ESPN beginning next season.
Wrapping up the Facts
That’s a wrap on this week’s edition of Zander’s Weekend Facts. The Facts in print return next Sunday, November 24, 2024.