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Back in the early 1980s, a prominent liberal and a prominent conservative — television producer/People for the American Way founder Norman Lear and right-wing Sen. Barry Goldwater (R-Arizona) — aggressively criticized the Religious Right and warned that the Moral Majority's Rev. Jerry Falwell Sr., the Christian Broadcasting Network's Pat Robertson, and others in that movement wanted to turn the United States into a theocracy.

Goldwater viewed the Religious Right as terrible for conservatism. Yet the Religious Right only tightened its grip on the Republican Party.

More than 40 years later, the Religious Right is celebrating Donald Trump's victory in the 2024 presidential race. And far-right evangelical Christian fundamentalists, according to HuffPost's Nathalie Baptiste, are ramping up their push to turn public schools into evangelical schools.

READ MORE:'Wrong': Christian GOP senator fears 'slippery slope' of OK school chief’s Bible push

"From displaying the Ten Commandments to demanding that teachers use the Bible in their classrooms," Baptiste reports in an article published on December 6, "conservatives seem determined to blur the lines between church and state by infusing Christianity into public schools. And with Donald Trump headed back to the White House and a conservative majority in the U.S. Supreme Court, reshaping the country's education system is looking increasingly feasible."

Baptiste notes that in late October, the Texas State Board of Education "approved a Bible-based curriculum for public school students in kindergarten through 5th Grade."

"Texas schools will not be forced to use the curriculum, but those that do will be rewarded with extra funding — up to $60 per student," Baptiste explains. "The material uses the Bible in a variety of lessons, including directly quoting from it, as well as teaching about creationism — the Christian belief that God created the Earth in one week — and the crucifixion of Jesus."

Meanwhile, in Oklahoma, Baptiste observes, far-right State Education Superintendent Ryan Walters has "mandated that all public schools must begin teaching the Bible." And in Louisiana, the reporter adds, the GOP-controlled state legislature "passed a law, in June, requiring schools to display the Ten Commandments."

READ MORE: Deep-red states meet 'wall of hostility' in forcing Christian nationalism on public schools

Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, warns that the Religious Right has "globbed onto schools as a place to indoctrinate students."

Laser told HuffPost, "They want to raise the next generation to learn false history, illegitimate science, and to favor Christianity over other faiths and nonreligion."

Heather Weaver, an ACLU attorney in Louisiana, is applauding the federal judge who struck down the Louisiana law as unconstitutional.

Weaver told HuffPost, "This ruling should serve as a reality check for Louisiana lawmakers who want to use public schools to convert children to their preferred brand of Christianity. Public schools are not Sunday schools, and today's decision ensures that our clients’ classrooms will remain spaces where all students, regardless of their faith, feel welcomed."

READ MORE: Christian nationalism’s 'fascist authoritarian agenda' exposed: analysis

Read HuffPost's full article at this link.

Donald Trump is not the first Republican president-elect to complain that Congress spends too much money. But he has made a proposal that is unusual even for a Republican: withholding money or "impounding" money that Congress has already appropriated.

Bloomberg News reporter Steven T. Dennis examines Trump's ability — or inability — to do that in an article published on December 4.

"Trump wants to hold back some money — 'impound' it, in the jargon of Washington — to slash the budget," Dennis explains. "The only problem: There's a 50-year-old law that forbids that exact gambit."

READ MORE:Why this Dem senator is 'considering voting yes on DeSantis' to replace Hegseth

The 50-year-old law that Dennis is referring to is the Impoundment Control Act in 1974, which Congress, Dennis notes, passed to "reassert its power over spending."

"While it set up a fast-track process for the president to quickly seek the approval of Congress if he wanted to override its spending decisions," Dennis explains, "it also established a mechanism for the U.S. comptroller general, who advises Congress, to sue the president for unauthorized impoundments."

The U.S. Constitution, according to Dennis, "explicitly grants Congress control over how much the government can spend."

Back in 1788, Dennis adds, James Madison referenced Congress' "power over the purse."

READ MORE: Senate Republicans 'uncertain they can back' Hegseth: report

Read Bloomberg News' full article at this link (subscription required).

Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth — President-elect Donald Trump's embattled pick to lead the U.S. Defense Department — has been inundated with negative publicity for allegations of everything from sexual assault (which Hegseth has vehemently denied) to public drunkenness and extreme alcohol abuse. Trump has reportedly considered withdrawing the Hegseth nomination and nominating Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the position instead, but Hegseth has vowed to keep making his case for confirmation.

In an article published by The Guardian on December 6, journalist Ben Makuch reports that various watchdog groups are sounding the alarm about Hegseth's "extremist" far-right views —and arguing that someone who holds such opinions is unfit for the defense secretary position.

One of those groups is Taskforce Builder, whose CEO, Kristofer Goldsmith, told The Guardian, "I think it's going to be an absolute disaster. Pete Hegseth is a domestic extremist."

READ MORE:Why this Dem senator is 'considering voting yes on DeSantis' to replace Hegseth

Hegseth's tattoos — some of which, critics say, underscore his far-right Christian nationalist views — have been drawing plenty of scrutiny. But according to Goldsmith, Hegseth's books (which include "The War on Warriors" and "American Crusader") are even more damning.

Goldsmith told The Guardian, "I know that there's been a lot of attention on his crusader tattoos. There hasn't been enough attention on his actual books…. The guy has tattoos … However, the bigotry and the hatred that he put in black and white, that is more important."

The Guardian also interviewed Heidi Beirich, the co-founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE).

Beirich told the publication, "Just as the insurrection was downplayed by Republicans, so too has extremism in the military…. Also, a new screening database for tattoos was created, some tightening up of clearances, and some more investigative clarity. But a more fulsome effort should have been on the table. Of course, Republicans are far more to blame, as they politicized the whole process, made light of the problem and claimed efforts to root out extremists were giving the military a bad name."

READ MORE: Senate Republicans 'uncertain they can back' Hegseth: report

Read The Guardian's full article at this link.

"War Room" host Steve Bannon famously said that a major tactic of the MAGA movement is to "flood the zone with s---." Bannon stressed that the more MAGA Republicans make their opponents feels overwhelmed and disoriented, the more progress they will make.

In a biting column published on December 6, the New York Times' Frank Bruni argues that President-elect Donald Trump's willingness to make so many controversial nominations for his administration is a "tactic," a "blitz approach" and "overkill meant to overwhelm."

The opinion columnist stresses that the terrible nominees are drawing so much attention that Trump will have an easier time getting the nominees who are merely bad confirmed in the U.S. Senate. The goal, according to Bruni, is "desensitizing" Trump's opponents.

READ MORE:Why this Dem senator is 'considering voting yes on DeSantis' to replace Hegseth

"It's galling that he chose a son-in-law's father, Charles Kushner, who spent two years in prison for witness retaliation, tax evasion and making false statements to the Federal Election Commission, to live in 60,000-square-foot splendor in Paris and swan around the Champs-Élysées as the next American ambassador to France," Bruni laments. "But is that any worse than Kash Patel storming around America's capital in the role of FBI director?.... But there’s little sign of serious resistance to Patel's confirmation from Republicans in the Senate. They have slimier fish to fry — for example, Pete Hegseth, Trump's designee for defense secretary."

Trump has reportedly considered withdrawing his Hegseth nomination and offering the position to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis instead. And at least two Democratic senators, Pennsylvania's John Fetterman and Arizona's John Kelly, told CNN they would consider voting for DeSantis for secretary of defense.

DeSantis has drawn more than his share of criticism from Democrats, but Fetterman and Kelly's comments indicate that even Democrats would view the Florida governor as an improvement over Hegseth.

Bruni argues that "Hegseth's troubles better the odds that the conspiracy theorist and carcass fetishist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. winds up the secretary of health and human services and that the al-Assad apologist and Putin fangirl Tulsi Gabbard gets to run national intelligence."

READ MORE: Trump may end America’s place as 'the world’s preeminent cultural and economic force': analysis

"There's only so much resistance that Republican senators can muster — only so many times that lap dogs this thoroughly muzzled can bark," Bruni writes. "Trump's picks for lofty posts speak to his veneration of scoundrels — to his belief that rules are for sissies and the strong take what they want however it must be taken."

READ MORE: MAGA media ramp up 'full-throated defense' of Trump’s embattled defense nominee

Frank Bruni's full New York Times column is available at this link (subscription required).

Public opinion research conducted in October shows a shift in one political party that might make Donald Trump’s election on Nov. 5 less of a surprise. A majority of the party now agrees with a sentiment about immigration that has previously been associated with organized hate — that they are “poisoning the blood of the country.”

While October marked the first time respondents were asked that question, responses to others indicated a hard shift against immigrants by Republicans and white evangelical protestants — especially after Trump became president.

The Public Religion Research Institute is a nonpartisan group that studies political issues alongside religious values. Since its founding in 2013, it’s conducted its American Values Survey and done more than 200,000 interviews in the process.

Among its most recent findings was a 50-point gap between Republicans and Democrats over how pressing an issue immigration is for the country. And there now is a huge difference between the parties about whether undocumented immigrants who meet certain criteria should be offered a path to citizenship.

In 2013, 71% of Democrats and 64% of independents believed a path to citizenship should be offered. The percentage for Democrats rose to 77% by October, while it fell to 55% for independents.

But for Republicans, the change was far more dramatic.

In 2013, most Republicans — 53% — believed that qualifying people should be offered a path to citizenship. As of October, just 36% did.

At a recent conference in Washington, D.C., Public Religion Research Institute Founder and CEO Robert P. Jones said that support for a path mostly held steady for Republicans between 2013 and 2019, “then it begins to drop, then it just fell off a cliff beginning last year.”

Jones said the partisan disparity indicates that we’ve entered a new era when it comes to the politics of immigration.

“This is a very, very different world than we were living in even 10 years ago,” he said.

Perhaps not surprisingly, there is a religious element to the disparity.

White evangelical protestants make up the only major religious group that does not have a majority supporting a path to citizenship. That support has fallen from 53% in 2013 to 40% now.

The Public Religion Research Institute survey seemed to find an element of hatred in some of the opposition to allowing more undocumented immigrants to become citizens.

“There were a number of questions that, as a social scientist, I found myself having to ask that I never thought I’d have to ask,” Jones said of the most recent survey.

One was prompted by Trump’s statement a year ago that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country.” The statement has ominous implications because Adolph Hitler, who murdered 6 million Jews along with millions of other targeted groups, made several versions of the statement, including that a male Jew “poisons the blood of others…”

In the survey, Jones asked, “Do you agree or disagree that immigrants who are entering the country today are poisoning the blood of our country?”

A full 34% of Americans agree.

“There is a gigantic partisan gap on this question,” Jones said.

Almost two-thirds of Republicans — 61% — 33% of independents, and just 13% of Democrats agreed that immigrants are poisoning the blood of a nation of immigrants.

Jones, who holds a Ph.D. in religion, said that so many Americans agree with such a statement should concern everyone.

“A racist and hate-filled conception of immigrants has really taken hold with a significant minority of the population,” he said.

Ohio Capital Journal is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Ohio Capital Journal maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor David Dewitt for questions: info@ohiocapitaljournal.com. Follow Ohio Capital Journal on Facebook and X.

In a Wednesday, December 4 post on X, formerly Twitter, former Fox News pundit Monica Crowley announced that President-elect Donald Trump had nominated her for assistant secretary of state. Crowley, in her tweet, said she looks forward to working with Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) — Trump's pick for secretary of state — in 2025.

Because Rubio isn't one of Trump's more controversial nominees, he is likely to receive a bipartisan confirmation from the U.S. Senate next year.

Vanity Fair's Bess Levin, in a biting December 5 column, notes that Crowley is the 12th nominee for Trump's incoming administration who has a Fox News and/or Fox Business background — and she expects that number to keep growing.

READ MORE:MAGA media ramp up 'full-throated defense' of Trump’s embattled defense nominee

"When it comes to the people Donald Trump wants advising him in a second term," Levin argues, "the president-elect has a type. Accused of sexual misconduct? You're a shoo-in for a Cabinet gig. Did time in prison? Step right up. Related to him by marriage? When can you start? Another obvious plus, and one that apparently far outweighs actual experience, is having worked for Fox News or another Fox Corp. subsidiary."

Levin continues, "While Pete Hegseth is the most prominent network personality to have received a nod — in his case, for defense secretary — he's far from the only one Trump has poached from the conservative broadcaster. Others include Sean Duffy for transportation secretary and Janette Nesheiwat for surgeon general, plus multiple additional Fox News contributors."

The Vanity Fair columnist notes that Crowley has been nominated for "a job that deals in foreign diplomacy" but has, according to Media Matters' Matt Gertz, "pushed several bigoted conspiracy theories about President Barack Obama's heritage, including promoting a documentary about his purported 'real father.'"

"After serving as Treasury Department assistant secretary for public affairs during the first Trump Administration," Levin points out, "Crowley (according to Gertz) 'returned to punditry, claiming that the deep state has been trying to destroy Trump through COVID-19…. and assassination attempts.' She was also a contributor to Project 2025."

READ MORE: Why this Dem senator is 'considering voting yes on DeSantis' to replace Hegseth

Bess Levin's full Vanity Fair column is available at this link.

Republican lawmakers on Thursday signaled a willingness to target Social Security and other mandatory programs after meeting with Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, the billionaire pair President-elect Donald Trump chose to lead a new commission tasked with slashing federal spending and regulations.

Though the GOP's 2024 platform pledged to shield Social Security, the party has reverted to its long-held position in the weeks since Trump's election victory, with some lawmakers openly attacking the program while others suggest cuts more subtly by stressing the supposed need for "hard decisions" to shore up its finances. (Progressives argue Social Security's solvency can be guaranteed for decades to come by requiring the rich to contribute more to the program, a proposal Republicans oppose.)

On Thursday, Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.) emerged from a meeting with Musk and Ramaswamy with the message that "nothing is sacrosanct."

"They're going to put everything on the table," said Norman, one of the wealthiest members of Congress.

After airing Norman's remarks, Fox Business reported that Musk and Ramaswamy told lawmakers that no federal program is safe from cuts, "and that includes Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid."

NBC News congressional correspondent Julie Tsirkin said Thursday that after meeting with Musk, Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.)—who was recently elected Senate majority leader for the upcoming Congress—told her that "perhaps mandatory programs are areas that they're looking to make cuts in, like Social Security, for example."

"But again, no specifics were laid out there," Tsirkin added.

Thune has previously voiced support for raising Social Security's retirement age, a change that would cut benefits across the board.

In the days leading up to their Capitol Hill visit, both Musk and Ramaswamy took swipes at Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid and made clear the programs would be in the crosshairs of their advisory commission, which is examining ways to slash federal spending without congressional approval.

Earlier this week, Musk amplified a series of social media posts by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), who once said he hopes to "get rid of" Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. Defenders of Social Security saw Lee's thread, and Musk's apparent endorsement of it, as a declaration of war on the New Deal program.

Days later, Ramaswamy said in an interview with CNBC that "there are hundreds of billions of dollars of savings to extract" from Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, claiming the programs are rife with waste, fraud, and abuse.

"People love to have lazy armchair discussions about, oh, are you going to make cuts to entitlements or not, when, in fact, the dirty little secret is that many of those entitlement dollars aren't even going to people who they were supposed to be going to in the first place," said Ramaswamy, advancing a narrative that observers warned could be used to justify additional bureaucratic barriers making it harder for eligible people to receive benefits.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said Thursday that the Trump-GOP agenda is "so predictable."

"Tax cuts for billionaire donors; benefit cuts for people on Social Security—how the billionaires loot our country (what, not rich enough already, fellas?)," Whitehouse wrote on social media.

In a column on Thursday, MSNBC's Ryan Teague Beckwith wrote that "Republicans somehow keep coming back to the idea of cutting Social Security" despite widespread opposition to such cuts among the American public.

"Would Trump try to cut Social Security? It's hard to say. Over the years, he has staked out every possible position on Social Security—sometimes within hours of each other," wrote Beckwith, noting that Trump previously called the program a "huge Ponzi scheme" and backed calls to raise the retirement age.

"So if Republicans—or Musk—decide to propose changes to Social Security benefits," Beckwith added, "it's possible that he might go along with it."

One of photos released by the New York City Police Department of the suspected UnitedHealthcare CEO shooter Thursday showed him smiling with his mask off, according to The Hill.

CNN's Kaitlin Collins reported Thursday evening, "Wow. Per @JohnMillerCNN, among the interviews law enforcement has been conducting, they spoke to a female employee at the hostel who said, at one point, she asked the then-masked man to lower his mask while flirting with him, which is when this photo released by NYPD today was taken."

Rolling Stone reported, "Law enforcement confirmed to CNN that they had interviewed a female employee of the hostel who said she had asked him to lower his neck gaiter face mask while flirting with him. (Security video frames from a Starbucks, released by the NYPD on Wednesday, showed a suspect whose lower face was covered by such a mask.)"

READ MORE: United Healthcare CEO gunned down outside Manhattan hotel: report

Several journalists and political experts reacted to the news

Crooked Media's What a Day podcast host Jane Costa wrote: "Okay so you're not a top-tier assassin"

New York CNN correspondent Gloria Pazmino replied: "You couldn’t script it if you tried"

Former Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger (FL) said: "Wow."

READ MORE: CEO’s murder provokes 'dark' humor in response to America’s 'dysfunctional healthcare system'

When Never Trump conservatives are asked why they supported now-President Joe Biden in 2020 and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris in 2024, many of them cite foreign policy as one of their top reasons. Biden and Harris, with their aggressive support of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), are — as many Never Trumpers see it — more Reaganesque on foreign policy than President-elect Donald Trump, who they view as dangerously isolationist.

Another main reason is Biden and Harris' views on trade; the vice president was highly critical of Trump's tariff proposals during her campaign. Never Trumpers see Trump as having protectionist views that are a huge departure from traditional Ronald Reagan/Barry Goldwater conservatism.

Democrats won the popular vote in the most of the United States' post-1980s presidential elections; the exceptions were President George W. Bush in 2004 and Trump in 2024. In this year's close election, Trump won the popular vote by roughly 1.4 or 1.5 percent (according to the Cook Political Report).

READ MORE:CEO's murder provokes 'dark' humor in response to America’s 'dysfunctional healthcare system'

In a think piece published by Politico on December 6, author/journalist Joshua Zeitz argues that Trump's victory marks the end of "the American Century" and a time when the U.S. was "the world's preeminent cultural and economic force."

"Donald Trump's second presidential victory represents a sharp break, and perhaps a permanent one, with the American Century framework," Zeith emphasizes. "It's a framework that rested on four key pillars."

Those pillars, according to Zeitz, are: (1) "a rules-based economic order that afforded the U.S. free access to vast international markets, (2) "a guarantee of safety and security for its allies, backed up by American military might," (3) an increasingly liberal immigration system that strengthened America's economy and complemented military and trade partnerships with the rest of the non-communist world," and (4) "an America that valued — and exported to the rest of the world — its technical and artistic skills."

"Whether Trump can or will pursue his agenda remains to be seen," Zeitz explains. "But it's also beside the point. It's what nearly 50 percent of voters just endorsed — steps that would both dismantle and repudiate the American Century framework. Maybe that's not a bad thing."

READ MORE: 'Gut punch': Trump clashes with PA steelworkers over $14.9b sale

Zeitz continues, "At its worst, that framework resembled what scholars refer to as 'imperialism by invitation'…. But the American Century framework has defined the nation's trajectory for well over 80 years. For good or bad, it undeniably made the United States a very prosperous and powerful country."

READ MORE: Why this Dem senator is 'considering voting yes on DeSantis' to replace Hegseth

Joshua Zeitz's full essay for Politico is available at this link.

The Congressional Progressive Caucus on Thursday elected its leaders for the next term, including Rep. Greg Casar as chair.

"The members of the Progressive Caucus know how to fight billionaires, grifters, and Republican frauds in Congress. Our caucus will make sure the Democratic Party stands up to corporate interests for working people," said Casar (D-Texas), who will replace term-limited Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.).

"I'm honored to build on the legacy of Chair Jayapal," Casar continued. "I've fought back against extremist, egocentric autocrats in Texas for my entire adult life. The Democratic Party must directly take on Trump, and it'll be CPC members boldly leading the way and putting working people first."

Casar, who is currently the CPC whip and ran unopposed, will be joined for the 119th Congress by Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) as deputy chair and Jesús "Chuy" García (D-Ill.) as whip.

"The Congressional Progressive Caucus has always served as an incredible vehicle for transformative change, justice, and movement building," noted Omar. "I am honored to have the support of my colleagues to serve another term as the deputy chair of the Progressive Caucus. Over the next term, we are going to fight to build an inclusive movement that meets the moment."

García said that "I am proud to join incoming Chair Casar, Deputy Chair Omar, and all members of the newly elected executive board as we prepare for the 119th Congress—in which I believe the role the CPC plays will be more critical than ever."

"We are a caucus that gives platform to ideas deeply popular across the political spectrum, and a caucus that builds diverse coalitions to get things done," he continued. "I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress and partners across the country who believe in people-centered policies rooted in equity and justice for all."

The CPC, first led by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) in 1991, when he was still in the U.S. House of Representatives, has nearly 100 members. The new caucus leaders are set to begin their terms on January 3 and will face not only a Republican-controlled House and Senate, but also U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, who is set to be sworn in on January 20.

"It is my great honor to pass the torch to the next class of elected leadership of the Progressive Caucus: My dear friends and trusted colleagues Reps. Greg Casar, Ilhan Omar, and Chuy García," said Jayapal.

"I was proud to establish term limits when I became chair in 2018, and have full confidence in the abilities of our new class to lead this caucus in the fight against the worst of the incoming Trump administration while rebuilding our party with a focus on economic justice for working people," she added. "I will be cheering these three new leaders and our new vice chairs at every turn as chair emerita come next year, and my heart is very full knowing we will have them at the helm of the CPC."

Speaking with NBC News on Wednesday, 35-year-old Casar said that "the progressive movement needs to change. We need to re-emphasize core economic issues every time some of these cultural war issues are brought up."

"So when we hear Republicans attacking queer Americans again, I think the progressive response needs to be that a trans person didn't deny your health insurance claim, a big corporation did—with Republican help," he explained. "We need to connect the dots for people that the Republican Party obsession with these culture war issues is driven by Republicans' desire to distract voters and have them look away while Republicans pick their pocket."

According to NBC:

That means the Democratic Party needs to "shed off some of its more corporate elements," to sharpen the economic-populist contrast with Republicans and not let voters equate the two parties, he said. He predicted Trump and the Republican-led Congress will offer plenty of opportunities to drive that distinction, including when it pursues an extension of tax cuts for upper earners."The core of the Republican Party is about helping Wall Street and billionaires. And I think we have to call out the game," Casar said. "The Democratic Party, at its best, can hold people or can have inside of its tent people across geography, across race and across ideology. Because we're all in the same boat when it comes to making sure that you can retire with dignity, that your kids can go to school, that you can buy a house."

Others—including Sanders, who sought the Democratic nomination for president in 2016 and 2020—have issued similar calls since Democrats lost the White House and Senate in last month's elections.

"In the recent elections, just 150 billionaire families spent nearly $2 billion to get their candidates elected," Sanders said Saturday. "Our job in the coming months and years is clear. We must defeat the oligarchs and create an economy and government that works for all, not just the few."

On Thursday, both Sanders and Jayapal, who have led the congressional fight for Medicare for All, reiterated calls for a single-payer healthcare program in response to a social media post by Elon Musk, who is set to co-lead Trump's forthcoming Department of Government Efficiency with fellow billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy.

Pennsylvania showed how much of a swing state it is when — after favoring Joe Biden in the 2020 election — it chose Republican Donald Trump over Democrat Kamala Harris four years later, but only by roughly 1.7 percent. And the state's 2024 U.S. Senate race was another nailbiter, with incumbent Democratic three-term Sen. Bob Casey Jr. narrowly losing to Republican Dave McCormick.

Now, President-elect Trump is engaged in a major debate in Pennsylvania, where he is vowing to block the $14.9 billion sale of U.S. Steel to a Japanese company: Nippon Steele.

In a Monday, December 2 post on his Truth Social outlet, Trump wrote, "Through a series of Tax Incentives and Tariffs, we will make U.S. Steel Strong and Great Again, and it will happen FAST! As President, I will block this deal from happening. Buyer Beware!!!"

READ MORE:Alarm raised over Trump plot to install nominees without Senate approval

But according to Newsweek reporter Sophie Clark, many steelworkers in Pennsylvania want the sale to go through.

"In the Pittsburgh area, where U.S. Steel employs about 3500 people, the company's sale to Nippon has proved popular," Clark reports in an article published on December 4. "Following Trump's statement, Jason Zugai, the vice president of the United Steelworkers Local 2227 branch in West Mifflin, southeast of Pittsburgh, said: 'For me, yeah, very frustrated with the news that came out last night. I didn't expect that to come out, so that was like a gut punch.'"

Clark continues, "Those pushing for the deal point to Nippon's pledge to, per The Guardian, 'invest no less than $2.7 billion into its unionized facilities, introduce our world-class technological innovation, and secure union jobs so that American steelworkers at U.S. Steel can manufacture the most advanced steel products for American customers.'"

Some Pennsylvania steelworkers, however, share Trump's opposition to the sale.

READ MORE: 'Nothing at all historic': Mehdi Hasan debunks false claim that Trump won by a 'landslide'

Interviewed by WTAE-TV Channel 4 (an ABC affiliate in Pittsburgh), United Steelworkers President David McCall said of Nippon Steel, "I don't trust them. And more than that, the fact that they're spending billions — or millions and millions of dollars in PR campaigns, as opposed to answering the needs of our members, concerns us a lot."

McCall added, "I think U.S. Steel in the Pittsburgh area, I think it's an economic engine. Everybody understands that — certainly, good-paying, family-supportive jobs, thousands of them. And so, it's important that we maintain steel, steelmaking here in the Mon Valley."

READ MORE: 'I've seen tougher guys at Starbucks': MAGA country star turns on Republican senator

Read Newsweek's full article at this link.

On Thursday, December 4, conservative Republican Olivia Troye — a former national security aide to ex-Vice President Mike Pence who supported Kamala Harris in the 2024 election — reported, on X, that she had received a letter from Kash Patel's attorney threatening her with legal action and demanding that she retract her "comments on MSNBC about his unfitness to serve as FBI director." But Troye declared, "I stand by my statements."

Patel is among the Trump allies journalist Ross Rosenfeld discusses in an article published by The New Republic the following day. From Patel to "War Room" host Steve Bannon to anti-vaxxer Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Rosenfeld warns, President-elect Donald Trump's second term will have little or no tolerance for dissent.

"Trumpworld stands ready to stamp out dissent," Rosenfeld argues. "Not just the dissent itself, but the dissenters: those heretics who refute the Gospel of Trump and insist that his second coming, and his second administration, stands to deliver nothing but ill to the United States. Those with differing opinions are set to run afoul of those coming to power."

READ MORE:Republicans quietly admit Trump policies could 'prove disastrous' in their areas

Rosenfeld quotes Patel's own words, noting that during an appearance on Bannon's "War Room," he threatened, "We will go out and find the conspirators, not just in government but in the media. Yes, we're going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections."

But Patel, Rosenfeld stresses, is hardly the only Trump ally who has no tolerance for criticism of "King Donald."

Trump has nominated RFK Jr. to head the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

"Robert Kennedy Jr. fits snugly within this movement," according to Rosenfeld. "Like Patel, RFK Jr. has promised to clean house when approved for his new position as secretary of health and human services. He's said he'd likely fire around 600 employees at the National Institutes of Health who don't see his vision."

READ MORE: 'It's a joke': Trump appointee Ramaswamy's economic plan blasted by expert

Rosenfeld adds, "He's also promised to fire, on Day One, 'every nutritional scientist at (the Food and Drug Administration) because all of them are corrupt — all of them are complicit in the poisoning of our children."

READ MORE: 'Nothing at all historic': Mehdi Hasan debunks false claim that Trump won by a 'landslide'

Ross Rosenfeld's full article for The New Republic is available at this link.

With the embattled Pete Hegseth facing allegations of everything from sexual assault (the former Fox News host was never charged with anything and flatly denied the accuser's claims) to public drunkenness and severe alcohol abuse, President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly considering withdrawing his nomination of Hegseth for defense secretary — and nominating Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis instead for that position. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, on December 4, told CNN's Manu Raju he would consider "voting yes" if DeSantis becomes the nominee.

But Hegseth is still Trump's pick for defense secretary, and he has vowed to keep fighting for votes from GOP senators.

During an appearance on The New Republic's "Daily Blast" podcast, Media Matters' Matt Gertz discussed the divide between GOP senators who would like to see someone other than Hegseth as the nominee and far-right MAGA media pundits who are aggressively defending him.

READ MORE:Senate Republicans 'uncertain they can back' Hegseth: report

When Sargent asked Gertz if there is "any way Hegseth survives this," the Media Matters reporter responded, "I think there is."

Gertz told Sargent, "What we're seeing right now is a test of the power that the right-wing media has within the MAGA movement. Some sort of flair clearly went up over the last 24 hours because after largely remaining passive and backing off from the nomination as all of these damning reports came out, people at Fox (News) and throughout the right-wing media have started rallying to Hegseth's defense."

Gertz noted that a "full-throated defense of Hegseth" has been "coming from the MAGA movement," including "people like Charlie Kirk, Jack Posobiec."

The Media Matters reporter predicted that MAGA Republicans will ramp up their demonization of the mainstream media in the weeks and months ahead.

READ MORE: Trump may end America’s place as 'the world’s preeminent cultural and economic force': analysis

"When the media actually reports facts about Trump and his administration and his administration figures and policies," Gertz told Sargent, "MAGA will turn everything into a test of whether Republicans are on the side of the liberal media or on the side of Trump. And since Trump has spent years threatening, in another administration, to use the power of the state against the media, he has raised expectations among the MAGA masses that this will happen. So when these big tests start arising, the pressure will intensify on figures in the government to actually do this stuff — not just talk about it, to do it."

READ MORE: Why this Dem senator is 'considering voting yes on DeSantis' to replace Hegseth

One potential addition to President-Elect Donald Trump's administration is Peter Navarro — the former Trump official who served four months in prison earlier this year over his refusal to comply with a congressional subpoena in the January 6 investigation.

In an op-ed published by MSNBC Thursday, MSNBC Opinion writer and editor Zeeshan Aleem submits, "Navarro can serve as a relatively competent lieutenant — at least by Trump’s standards — while the president pursues his promised radical agenda on tariffs and China."

Furthermore, Aleem suggests, "He can also be trusted to help Trump undermine democratic institutions and sit in on top conversations with Trump that could potentially be legally incriminating — and not flip on his boss."

READ MORE: 'I know how you feel about me': Senator swiftly shuts down Postmaster General Louis DeJoy

However, "policy knowledge and more buttoned-up appearance shouldn’t obscure the reality that he is very much a stick of Trumpian dynamite," the MSNBC writer emphasizes.

The MAGA ally " became the first former White House official to be imprisoned for a contempt of Congress conviction," Aleem adds. "In other words, even though Trump didn’t come to Navarro’s rescue, Navarro went to jail refusing to say anything that might strengthen the case against Trump.

"I still have some principles. But not as many as you might think because I don’t have any concern at all about making stuff up about my opponent that isn’t exactly true," Aleem notes that "Navarro wrote in 1998 while reflecting on his many failed efforts to win public office."

Aleem concludes, "Perhaps the best illustration of the kind of figure Navarro is in Trump World — industrious, wonky, obedient — is that even when he was in prison this year for refusing to comply with an inquiry into his involvement in efforts to overturn the election, he was still working on detailed policy proposals for a future Trump administration."

READ MORE: 'You answer to us': Hegseth blasted for saying he only answers to Trump, senators, and God

Aleem's full op-ed is available here.

On laptops and desktops, the top competing operating systems have been Windows and Apple's Mac OS. But on smartphones, the battle has been between Android and Apple's iOS (the platform for iPhones).

iOS debuted in 2007, and Android was unveiled the following year.

Now, in late 2024, the FBI is saying that text messages sent between iPhones and Android-oriented devices are facing a security threat.

READ MORE:'It's a joke': Trump appointee Ramaswamy's economic plan blasted by expert

Cheddar, in a video posted on December 5, reported, "Stop sending texts between iPhones and Androids — that's the stark warning from the FBI. The agency says your messages may be vulnerable to hackers."

"According to reports," Cheddar warned, "Chinese hackers have infiltrated several U.S. network."

In its warning, the FBI wasn't talking about text messages sent from Android users to other Android users or texts between fellow iPhone users — they were strictly warning against Android and iPhone users exchanging texts.

The FBI, according to Cheddar, is recommending that iPhone and Android owners use "encrypted or secure messaging apps like WhatsApp and Signal."

READ MORE: 'Nothing at all historic': Mehdi Hasan debunks false claim that Trump won by a 'landslide'

Watch Cheddar's full video at this link.