Morning Report — Democrats bemoan party damage from Biden pardon

In today’s issue:

• Biden’s pardon decision roils Democrats
• Schumer urges Senate to vet Cabinet nominees
• Congress’s funding sprint
• In Angola, Biden spotlights U.S. infrastructure

President Biden knew that Sunday’s pardon for his son, Hunter Biden, after saying all year that he would not intervene, would set off howls from critics.

He boarded Air Force One and flew to Angola on Monday, taking advantage of a planned trip to try to put significant distance between himself and Washington. The uproar followed the president across continents, and Democrats in Congress joined conservatives in registering their anger.

“As a father, I get it. But as someone who wants people to believe in public service again, it’s a setback,” Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Ohio) wrote Monday on social media.

Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet (D) wrote online that Biden wrongly “put personal interest ahead of duty and further erodes Americans’ faith that the justice system is fair and equal for all.” 

Rep. Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.) insisted the president was “wrong” in saying he pardoned his son because he saw a miscarriage of justice inspired by politics rather than criminal gun and tax evasion convictions. 

“This wasn’t a politically-motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies, and was convicted by a jury of his peers,” Stanton posted on social platform X.  

The president, who portrayed himself and his party as antidotes to President-elect Trump’s propensity for interfering in the justice system, instead followed his example by using his powers as president to benefit his 54-year-old son who might otherwise have been sentenced to prison on felony charges this month.

Biden — who entered politics as a 29-year-old lawyer and Delaware councilman and rose to lead the Senate Judiciary Committee and overcome political plagiarism allegations to become vice president and then president — repeatedly contrasted his motives against Trump’s this year using two words: “I’m honest.” 

He publicly insisted he would not pardon his son or commute a prison sentence he feared Hunter Biden would receive. Until Sunday.

Biden, seen by some Democrats as too stubborn and out of touch to make way much earlier for a younger nominee who might have defeated Trump, has put a damper on what might have been a swell of public tributes as he prepares to end half a century of public service next month. 

▪ The Hill: Multiple Democrats slam the president’s pardon of his son. 

▪ Axios: Biden faces growing blowback from House and Senate Democrats after pardoning his son.

Biden left members of his party wide open to the charge of double standards, and he supplied a pretext for Trump to issue controversial pardons of his own — perhaps including people convicted of Jan. 6-related offenses, The Hill’s Niall Stanage writes. 

Trump reacted to Biden’s announcement Sunday by claiming that the rioters convicted for their role in attacking the Capitol in 2021 deserved to be offered the same pardon privilege. 

“Does the Pardon given by Joe to Hunter include the J-6 Hostages, who have now been imprisoned for years?” the president-elect wrote on Truth Social. “Such an abuse and miscarriage of Justice!” 

Just hours earlier, the Trump team based in Florida vowed to overhaul what it said was a “Democrat-controlled” Department of Justice, which convicted the younger Biden on separate charges in Delaware and California. 

“The failed witch hunts against President Trump have proven that the Democrat-controlled DOJ and other radical prosecutors are guilty of weaponizing the justice system,” Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung wrote in a statement. “That system of justice must be fixed and due process must be restored for all Americans.”

▪ The Washington Post: At the end of his first term, Trump used his clemency power as a political weapon, rewarding loyalists and undermining prosecutors. 

▪ The Hill: America’s history of controversial pardons now includes Hunter Biden.

SMART TAKE FROM THE HILL’S BOB CUSACK:

Transition politics are mounting between the White House and Trump’s incoming administration. 

Biden recently brokered a ceasefire deal with Israel and Hezbollah. After Trump’s team took credit for the agreement, Biden officials pushed back, though they confirmed they kept the former president’s staff in the loop. 

The Biden administration has hit the gas on spending money that was allocated in the president’s sweeping infrastructure and health care/energy laws. Trump has vowed to claw back those funds after he is sworn in.

Meanwhile, the administration authorized Ukraine to employ U.S. long-range missiles to strike within Russia, an idea that had been considered for months. People in Trump’s orbit attacked the plan, suggesting it could lead to “World War III.”

Biden also made some news on the health front last week by proposing Medicare and Medicaid cover anti-obesity drugs. Could Trump rescind the policy? Yes, but it could be politically awkward, and that’s the point.

Democratic lawmakers are calling on Biden to do everything he can to cement his policies and make it harder for Trump to upend the federal government in 2025. There’s only so much the administration can do to handcuff the incoming administration but expect more of this activity to come over the next seven weeks.

3 THINGS TO KNOW TODAY:

▪ Package theft by porch pirates is rampant enough that consumers can get insured against such losses this holiday season.

▪ Investor tea leaf reading about future interest rates is brisk, as always. Federal Reserve Board of Governors member Christopher Waller said Monday that he’s leaning toward another rate cut during the central bank’s Dec. 17-18 meeting but worries about inflation. Markets expect another quarter-point rate reduction this month. 

▪ Cervical cancer kills thousands of women each year. Stigma and silence are impeding efforts to prevent it, according to The Hill’s series. 

LEADING THE DAY 

TRUMP’S NOMINATION of Kash Patel to become FBI director — which would require firing current director Christopher Wray or pressuring him to resign before 2027 — ignited a firestorm on Capitol Hill. Some Senate Republicans have already come out in support of his nomination, such as Sens. Ted Cruz (Texas) and Bill Hagerty (Tenn.), but moderate Republicans are on the fence. Meanwhile, write The Hill’s Alexander Bolton and Rebecca Beitsch, Democrats fear Patel’s nomination is another signal that Trump will seek political retribution against his enemies. 

With his nomination, Patel succeeded former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) — briefly Trump’s nominee for attorney general — as the most contentious of Trump’s slate of nominees, potentially giving cover to the likes of Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth and director of national intelligence nominee former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard in their own bids to join the incoming Cabinet in the process. 

Ahead of the confirmation hearings, outgoing Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) urged incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) to preserve the Senate’s “vital role” in ensuring the fitness of Trump’s nominees to hold senior executive and judicial branch positions. Thune is under pressure from Trump to put the Senate into an extended recess to allow the president-elect to make recess appointments to circumvent the Senate confirmation process if necessary.

But Schumer in a letter released Monday said Democrats “stand ready and willing to work” with Republicans to provide “advice and consent” on the nominees — and insisted they undergo traditional Senate vetting, which Trump has indicated he wants to bypass.

Diplomacy: Trump on Monday chose investment banker and billionaire Warren Stephens to be U.S. ambassador to the United Kingdom, a plum posting. The longtime GOP donor based in Arkansas contributed to conservative groups that opposed Trump in 2016 but then supported him in the 2020 and 2024 elections.

Medicare and Medicaid: Potential conflicts of interest may haunt Mehmet Oz’s confirmation to run the health programs. The heart surgeon’s media business has ties to companies whose fortunes he would have a hand in influencing as Trump’s pick to lead the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Department of Justice: Sen. Chuck Grassley (Iowa), the incoming Republican chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said Monday that he had a “good meeting” with Trump’s pick for attorney general, Pam Bondi. The president-elect’s nomination of the former Florida attorney general has been greeted with enthusiasm by the GOP. 

Special elections: Trump’s decision to tap several House Republicans to fill positions in his Cabinet will set off a fresh round of special elections next year, writes The Hill’s Caroline Vakil. Here’s a look at what to know about the upcoming special elections for each of the outgoing or former lawmakers.

WHERE AND WHEN  

• The House will meet at noon. The Senate meets at noon. 
• The president is in Angola. 
• Vice President Harris is in Washington, D.C. and has no public schedule. 
• Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Brussels for foreign minister-level NATO meetings. He is scheduled to meet this afternoon local time with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

ZOOM IN

© The Associated Press | Matt Rourke

CONGRESS IS BACK and sprinting toward a Dec. 20 government funding deadline, setting up a busy three weeks in the chambers’ lame-duck period. While a shutdown isn’t on anyone’s legislative wish list, there’s significant disagreement about how long a short-term funding stopgap should last into Trump’s new term.

In September, lawmakers approved a funding patch to keep the lights on through Dec. 20, setting a pre-holiday deadline that has become commonplace for Congress. As conservatives voiced frustration over the practice, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) made clear at the time that he opposed an omnibus package to fund the government, suggesting the House would work to approve Congress’s 12 regular spending bills individually. But Republicans’ electoral victories in November appeared to change the calculus. 

As Republicans appear likely to push to punt the deadline into the early days of Trump’s administration, the new deadline will tee up a larger fight over government spending as the GOP prepares to control the House, Senate and the White House — and looks to make significant spending cuts while juggling the extension of Trump’s 2017 tax cuts.

Schumer on Monday indicated that bipartisan funding negotiations are “on the right track,” but he warned against “divisive” provisions. Schumer said from the Senate floor that both parties are “making progress negotiating on a bill that can pass the House and Senate with bipartisan support.”

▪ The Hill: Republican governors are calling on congressional leaders not to pass a one-year extension of the 2018 farm bill rather than a new package as the December deadline looms. 

▪ The Hill: A new bill with bipartisan support would commission studies on the use of artificial intelligence in the banking and housing sectors, where lawmakers have been sounding an alarm about algorithmic price fixing and commercial misconduct enabled by new technologies.

COMMITTEE MOVES: Encouraged by some colleagues,Rep. Jamie Raskin (Md.) launched a bid Monday to be the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, challenging friend and veteran lawmaker Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), 77, for the post on the powerful panel.

Rep. Raúl Grijalva (D-Ariz.), 76, will not seek another term atop the House Natural Resources Committee. Democrats have pressured House elder statesmen to step aside from committee posts. 

ELSEWHERE

© The Associated Press | Hussein Malla

MIDDLE EAST: The White House is concerned the fragile ceasefire in Lebanon could unravel after Israel and Hezbollah exchanged fire in recent days, U.S. officials told Axios. If the ceasefire collapses, Israel could expand its ground operation in southern Lebanon, escalating the region’s conflict. But so far, the uneasy truce between Israel and Hezbollah appears to be holding — even as the two sides accuse each other of breaching the deal.

In Gaza, the Israeli military has been expanding its presence in recent months, fortifying military bases and demolishing Palestinian buildings. The move suggests that it may be preparing to exert long-term control over the area.

▪ NBC News: Moshe Yaalon, a former Israeli defense minister, accused his country of committing war crimes and ethnic cleansing in Gaza. It’s a rare criticism from Israel’s own security community about military operations in the enclave.

▪ The Washington Post: Trump’s pick of former pastor and Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as his Israel ambassador reflects a long evangelical alliance.

BIDEN IS IN ANGOLA for the only visit to sub-Saharan Africa of his presidency and perhaps his last overseas trip before he leaves office. The president had long promised to visit sub-Saharan Africa, but the trip was delayed until his final weeks in office. He is the first American president to travel to the region since 2015.

With the trip, Biden had hoped to draw attention to his commitment to Africa at a time when the U.S. is in competition with China on the continent. But the messaging was largely overshadowed by Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter. In Angola, Biden will showcase U.S.-backed infrastructure projects designed to link three sub-Saharan nations and announce initiatives related to global health and security cooperation.

▪ Reuters: The start of Biden’s visit to Angola is overshadowed by his son’s pardon.

▪ The Washington Post: Biden surges arms to Ukraine, fearing Trump will halt U.S. aid.

OPINION 

■ Biden did what many fathers would do: Save his child, by Eugene Robinson, columnist, The Washington Post.

■ ‘America First’ will expose Europe’s soft underbelly, by Douglas Schoen and Saul Mangel, opinion contributors, The Hill.  

THE CLOSER

© The Associated Press | NOAA

And finally … 🌎 Fifty-four years ago this week, the Environmental Protection Agency opened its doors after former President Nixon linked arms with Congress to enact the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. As Nixon explained in a message to lawmakers, the goal was to “make peace with nature and begin to make reparations for the damage we have done to our air, to our land and to our water.”

At the time, Americans had begun to acknowledge the effects of pollution because they experienced it. Oil spills fouled California beaches. Ohio’s Cuyahoga River, filled with chemical contaminants, burst into flames. The Hudson River was on the receiving end of 1.3 million pounds of toxic polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) discharged by General Electric over three decades. NASA images from space made Earth’s air pollution visible to the naked eye.

Nixon assembled an efficiency council to recommend how to organize, consolidate and coordinate federal programs and evolving scientific findings to help curb pollution. He then turned to Congress to bless the federal efforts under one agency, the EPA. By late 1970, the Senate approved the Clean Air Act without a dissenting vote. One House member opposed it. 

Although the EPA has been at the center of GOP crosshairs for years, the agency’s actions and goals in Congress have not always wound up splintered neatly along partisan lines.

Trump, as a candidate in 2016 and again in 2024, campaigned to eliminate the EPA, or at least shrink its power. EPA opponents shifted their strategy in recent years to the courts. The president-elect’s new government efficiency advisory team under billionaire Elon Musk and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy (who plan to meet with House Republicans Wednesday) have EPA in their deregulatory sights.

Trump’s choice to be the agency’s next administrator is former New York Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin, tasked by the president-elect to “ensure fair and swift deregulatory decisions that will be enacted in a way to unleash the power of American businesses.”

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