Warnock Defeats Walker – With more than 95% of the vote counted late Tuesday, incumbent Democratic Georgia Sen. Raphael Warnock defeated Trumpian Republican challenger Herschel Walker, as projected by the Associated Press. Warnock had 50.5% of the vote in the midterm runoff to Walker’s 49.5%. That’s 1,710,503 votes for Warnock to 1,675,030 for Walker – a margin of 35,473.
Remaining votes to be counted are largely from Democratic-leaning Cobb and DeKalb counties surrounding Atlanta.
A Real Democratic Majority: The 118th Congress’ Senate now consists of 51 Democrats and 49 Republicans, which means that the chamber’s president pro-tem, Vice President Kamala Harris, will not be called in to break ties on party lines, at least in the case of filibuster-proof budget bills. The plus-one Senate Democrat from last November’s midterm election – John Fetterman of Pennsylvania – means that committee membership numbers will not be split evenly, but rather Democrats will have a slight majority, making it a bit easier to move legislation through to the full Senate and to confirm President Biden’s federal judge nominees.
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Trump Organization Guilty of Tax Fraud – A jury found ex-President Trump’s business guilty of all 17 counts of tax fraud and other financial crimes Tuesday (per The New York Times). Prosecutors had charged the Trump Organization of providing off-the-book benefits to executives, including Mercedes-Benzes, expensive apartments and private school tuition for their children and relatives.
Testimony of Chief Financial Officer Alan Weisselberg proved key to the case. The Trump Organization kept Weisselberg as CFO even as the case was being heard in New York’s state Supreme Court in Manhattan.
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Officers Defending Capitol on 1/6 Awarded Medals – Law enforcement officers from the Capitol Police and the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., who responded to the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in a ceremony held in the Capitol Rotunda Tuesday. Medals will be displayed at the U.S. Capitol Police, the Metropolitan Police Department, the Capitol and the Smithsonian Institution, Axios reports. Congress passed legislation last year, signed by President Biden, to award the medals.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA): “Exactly 23 months ago, our nation suffered the most staggering assault on democracy since the Civil War. January 6 was a day of horror and heartbreak. It is also a moment of extraordinary heroism.”
Handshakes Refused: Family of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who died of a stroke after helping defend the Capitol, refused to shake the hands of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa
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