1. Alarming EPA pick
Oklahoma attorney general Scott Pruitt has been tapped to lead the Environmental Protection Agency, Trump officials said. The choice was decried as extreme, even cynical.
Summary
As state attorney general, Pruitt sued the EPA multiple times, including a pending lawsuit to topple the EPA’s Clean Power Plan, the centerpiece of Barack Obama’s climate change strategy. Pruitt has said the climate change “debate” is “far from settled”. Almost all climate scientists disagree.
'Sad and dangerous'
Trump's nominee to lead EPA, Scott Pruitt, is a climate denier who's worked closely with the fossil fuel industry. That's sad and dangerous.
— Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) December 7, 2016
2. Homeland security pick
Trump has reportedly chosen retired general John Kelly, 66, a former head of US Southern Command, to run the department of homeland security. Kelly’s son Robert, a first lieutenant in the marines, was killed in combat in Afghanistan in 2010.
Kelly tapped for homeland security
Summary
General Kelly on his son. pic.twitter.com/sbaqHe7kGu
— Ben Domenech (@bdomenech) December 7, 2016
3. Branstad picked for China
Terry Branstad, the longtime Iowa governor who hopped on the Trump train early and delivered his state by 10 points, was tapped to be ambassador to China, with Trump praising Branstad’s “longtime relationship with President Xi Jinping.”
Trump says no to regime change
4. Trump is Time’s annual person
Time magazine named Trump person of the year. Trump gave the magazine an interview with several salient bits, including a promise that “I’m going to bring down drug prices, I don’t like what has happened with drug prices.”
On Obama's race to topple foreign regimes
We will stop racing to topple foreign regimes that we know nothing about, that we shouldn’t be involved with. Instead our focus must be on defeating terrorism and destroying Isis, and we will.
– Donald Trump, in North Carolina last night
... and another thing:
.@tedcruz passionately defending cheese: "Queso is made to be scooped up with tortilla trips, dribbling down your chin and onto your shirt." pic.twitter.com/8j1u4ix5W0
— Jordan Rudner (@jrud) December 7, 2016
... and another thing:
Trivia: name the only county in America that voted for Obama by 20%+ in 2012 AND voted for Trump by 20%+ in 2016.
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) December 7, 2016
