1/5/22 --

•North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the sea Wednesday, the U.S. military said, its first such bellicose exercise in nearly two months and a reminder that it has no interest in rejoining denuclearization talks anytime soon (AP). 

•Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) will posthumously pardon Homer Plessy for violating in 1892 a state law that required Black people to ride in passenger rail cars that the law described as “separate but equal.” The conviction was upheld in what is considered one of the U.S. Supreme Court’s most egregiously racist decisions, Plessy v. Ferguson (AP).

One Year of Infamy – GOP leaders in the House of Representatives in a private call Tuesday encouraged members to continue attacking President Joe Biden rather than engage in any January 6 commemoration, Politico reports. Meanwhile, Senate Republicans are “relieved” to have the diversion of former Sen. Johnny Isakson’s (R-GA) funeral in Atlanta Thursday. Few Republicans beyond Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming are expected to join a “largely Democratic” commemoration of the Capitol insurrection by supporters of Donald J. Trump and his Big Lie about the presidential election. 

Meanwhile, senior Biden officials have told The Washington Post privately that security at the Capitol was hampered by “lack of high-level information sharing and a failure to anticipate how bad the day could be.”

President Biden and Vice President Harris will deliver remarks Thursday at the Capitol, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has scheduled a moment of silence on the House floor and a prayer vigil on the Capitol steps (per CNN). 

But no Donald J. Trump: The former president has cancelled a press conference planned for Thursday at Mar-a-Lago, The Washington Post reports. He has promised to re-schedule at his pretend “Winter White House” in Florida later this month. Republican leaders are relieved, Politico says, as he continues to evoke “executive privilege” in avoiding testimony for his former aides and himself before the 1/6 committee. We’re sure his attorneys are relieved as well.

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1/6 Committee Wants Hannity to Talk – The House Select Committee investigating the January 6 insurrection wants Fox News host Sean Hannity to appear before the panel as a “fact witness” who “had advanced knowledge regarding President Trump’s and his legal team’s planning for January 6,” USA Today reports. Fox News responded by pointing to Hannity attorney Jay Sekulow’s statement to Axios fearing that “any such request would raise serious Constitutional issues regarding freedom of the press.”

Note: 1.) Talk show host Hannity would never admit to belonging to “the press,” “lamestream media,” or whatever he wants to call it. 2.) No doubt those reported phone calls on January 6 to Donald J. Trump begging him to call off the mob would be of interest nearly as much as any “advanced knowledge.” Could some form of “dereliction of duties” or violating the oath to uphold the Constitution be among the potential charges against the former president?

--Edited by Todd Lassa and Nic Woods