Pence Under Pressure to Invoke 25th | Stalin Diner Faces Purge

After banning @realDonaldTrump Friday, Twitter had to delete “Hang Mike Pence” tweets that went viral this weekend. The vice president is facing the fury of Trump and his base after presiding over Trump’s electoral defeat Wednesday, despite the deadly Capitol assault. While earlier reports indicated Pence wouldn’t consider invoking the 25th Amendment, which allows Cabinet members to remove a president, sources told CNN he still might. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has announced a resolution, to be introduced today, urging Pence to act “because this president represents an imminent threat.” If he doesn’t, the House will move for a second impeachment this week.

Sources: The Guardian, CNN, WSJ (sub)

2. Indonesia 737 Crash Again Troubles Boeing

It wasn’t a 737 Max. But Boeing representatives must again address a deadly crash as Indonesian searchers follow pings from another doomed 737’s black boxes in the Java Sea. Sriwijaya Air Flight 182, which mysteriously dove 10,000 feet, hitting the water at 500 mph and killing 62 aboard just after taking off from Jakarta, was a 737-500. But it’s difficult to avoid comparisons between Saturday’s crash and Lion Air Flight 610, which crashed in 2018 after the 737 Max’s anti-stall software malfunctioned. The tragedy is also likely to spotlight Indonesia’s deadly aviation record, among the worst in Asia.

Sources: NY Magazine, NYT, AP

3. Capitol Police Chief: Bid to Prep for Riot Stymied

The “optics” would be bad. That’s what outgoing Chief Steven Sund, in his first interview since resigning after Wednesday’s Capitol riot, says he was told when he asked to put D.C. National Guard troops on standby for the protests. House Sergeant at Arms Paul Irving and his Senate counterpart, Michael Stenger, wanted to avoid declaring an emergency, maintains Sund, who said Stenger suggested informally asking the Guard to “lean forward” just in case. Neither official has commented. The storming resulted in one Capitol officer’s death, and another who defended the building reportedly took his own life Saturday.

Sources: Washington Post, Fox 5 DC

4. Corporate Donors Cut Off US Election Deniers

It’s no longer a safe bet. The Capitol attack has prompted several major corporations including Marriott International, Commerce Bank and the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association to pause contributions to Republican legislators who contested President-elect Joe Biden’s Nov. 3 win. The health insurer said it was cutting off “lawmakers who voted to undermine our democracy.” Commerce Bank had given $5,000 to Sen. Josh Hawley, the first senator to back the election reversal effort. Others donors are likely to follow, leaving campaign funding watchdogs like Public Citizen’s Craig Holman to marvel: “I’ve never heard of this happening before.”

Sources: Reuters, Washington Post, WSJ (sub)

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5. Also Important …

Known COVID-19 infections around the world have surpassed 90 million, with nearly 2 million deaths. Preliminary results of Sunday’s Kyrgyzstan elections indicate that Sadyr Japarov, a nationalist recently imprisoned for kidnapping a politician, has been elected president with 80 percent of the vote. And citing “a political situation not of our making,” organizers of one of golf’s biggest tournaments voted Sunday to terminate its agreement to hold the PGA Championship at President Trump’s golf course in Bedminster, New Jersey.

Coronavirus Update: Hoping to immunize 15 million health care workers and vulnerable Britons by mid-February, U.K. health authorities are opening seven mass vaccination centers around England.

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It ended with a purge. The novelty of the Soviet Union’s most notorious leader glaring down at customers and staff dressed as secret police wore off quickly. After opening Thursday, Moscow’s Stalin Doner shop drew crowds “like in front of the Lenin mausoleum,” boasted owner Stanislav Voltman, along with journalists and the authorities. While there was no “legal reason” to shut down, “colossal pressure” from local officials forced his hand. Despite his regime’s estimated 700,000 executions and historic levels of repression and paranoia, Stalin is still credited with defeating Nazi Germany and time has moderated his infamy.

Source: Reuters

2. Citing Calls for Violence, Amazon Boots Parler

Big Tech is barring the door. The right-wing social media platform, recently banned by Google and Apple app stores, has also lost its web hosting. Amazon pulled Parler’s plug this weekend after “a steady increase” in violent content, like messages urging armed “patriots” to march on Washington the day before President-elect Biden takes office. Meanwhile, Twitter, criticized for a double standard after banning @realDonaldTrump Friday, has also deleted a tweet by China’s Washington Embassy saying Uighur women were “emancipated” and no longer “baby making machines” — after investigations accused Beijing of forcibly sterilizing Uighur prisoners.

Sources: BuzzFeed, Slate, BBC

3. The GOP’s Tattered Parachute

Like it or not, Republicans’ future is tethered to a losing candidate who incited an insurrection. For the party to survive, it needs to chart a very different course. OZY’s Sunday Magazine examines how the GOP might shift its priorities, possibly enlisting new leaders like ex-Govs. Nikki Haley and John Kasich or ushering in policy diversions like fighting climate change, valuing Main Street over Wall Street and isolating white nationalists while welcoming people of color. But before those wounds can heal, party leaders must reckon with an angry, red-hatted demographic that still thinks Trump won on Nov. 3. Share your thoughts on the future of the GOP here.

Source: OZY

4. Fauci Says Theaters Could Reopen by Fall … Maybe

The immunologist is all the buzz in Tinseltown. Dr. Anthony Fauci told a virtual conference of entertainment professionals this weekend that he could see theaters reopening for movies and live performances this fall. But he qualified that ray of hope by saying vaccination programs must be done “correctly” and audiences would still need to mask up. Demonstrating how miserable the current picture is, would-be blockbuster Wonder Woman 1984 scrounged just $3 million in its third weekend for a total box office of $32.6 million — but will get stiffed by some closing theaters that can’t pay their bills.

Sources: NYT, Deadline

5. Browns Win First Playoff Game Since 1994

Cleveland rocks! For the first time since Netscape Navigator was a thing, the Browns won a playoff game, upsetting the Pittsburgh Steelers 48-37. The wild card matchup started with a fumble that Cleveland defenders grabbed for a touchdown, and was compounded by more missteps from Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger, including three interceptions. Also back in the postseason saddle was Tampa Bay, beating Washington 31-23 in Saturday’s wild card game. But it wasn’t the Bucs QB’s first rodeo: With six Super Bowl trophies, Tom Brady is set for an epic duel with Saints veteran Drew Brees in Sunday’s divisional matchup.

Sources: CBS, ESPN