1. ‘It made sense to commute’
In his final news conference, Barack Obama was asked whether his decision to commute Chelsea Manning’s sentence would encourage leaking. “Chelsea Manning has served a tough prison sentence,” he said.
75% of adult Americans did not vote for Trump
'She took responsibility'
Chelsea Manning has served a tough prison sentence. It has been my view that given she went to trial, that due process was carried out, that she took responsibility for her crime, that the sentence she received was very disproportionate relative to what other leakers had received … I feel very comfortable that justice has been served.
– Barack Obama
2. Pence calls Manning ‘traitor’
Vice-president-elect Mike Pence said Obama’s decision to commute Manning’s sentence was a “mistake”. Pence called Manning a “traitor”.
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3. Can Trump make America great?
In a new series, the Guardian explores a Pennsylvania county that voted twice for Obama – but flipped for Trump. We ask Trump voters about how the election felt and what they expect Trump to do. “It’s almost like I left the country for eight years, and now it’s back,” one said.
'Systematic discrimination'
Obama: If there's "systematic discrimination," efforts to restrict voting, round up DREAMers, or "silence dissent or the press," I'll speak.
— Daniel Dale (@ddale8) January 18, 2017
4. Obama dismisses Assange
Asked to comment on Julian Assange’s promise to return to the United States (since revoked), Obama said: “I don’t pay a lot of attention to Mr Assange’s tweets, so that wasn’t a consideration in this situation.”
12 podcasts for the Trump presidency
5. EPA pick sees climate ‘debate’
Scott Pruitt, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), told a senate panel that there is still “some debate” over the role of human activity in climate change and defended his relationship with the fossil fuel industry.
Jimmy Kimmel weighs in
Put simply, Scott Pruitt is a piece of shit. If you care about the outdoors, stop him https://t.co/jh4VM7SECx #PruittHearing
— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) January 18, 2017
6. 2016 warmest year yet
Last year was the warmest on record, scientists announced on Wednesday, with Nasa and Noaa both stressing the primary driver of the warming trend is the burning of fossil fuels and other human activity. Of the 17 hottest years on record, 16 have occurred this century.
...and another thing:
“This is a job of such magnitude that you can’t do it by yourself,” Obama says. pic.twitter.com/y0bpUXLhDW
— Matt Viser (@mviser) January 18, 2017
