We begin on Friday, December 18th, Vice President Pence is inoculated with the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer-BioNTech live on television in an effort to “promote the safety and efficacy of the vaccine and build confidence in the American people.”
The FDA later grants emergency authorization for the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Moderna, making it the second approved vaccine for public use in the United States.
Monday, December 21st, as Congress passes a $900 billion COVID relief package, President Trump meets with a group of congressional Republicans at the White House to strategize their last-ditch attempt to challenge the results of the 2020 presidential election during the January 6th Electoral College certification in Congress.
Tuesday, December 22nd, President Trump calls on Congress to approve $2,000 stimulus checks after they passed a $900 billion COVID relief bill, which included $600 checks, threatening to not sign the legislation.
Meanwhile, the president doles out some Christmas gifts in the form of presidential pardons and clemency to 20 different people, including George Papadopolous, who pleaded guilty in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Trump-Russia probe, four Blackwater guards convicted in the killings of Iraqi civilians, and three corrupt former members of Congress.
Wednesday, December 23rd, President Trump makes good on his threat and vetoes the $741 billion defense spending bill (also known as the NDAA) because it did not include language repealing Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act that protects social media companies from being liable for the content they allow on their websites. Also, the NDAA included language to change the names of military installations that commemorate Confederate leaders.
Meanwhile, Trump dishes out more presidential pardons, including to his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort, his longtime adviser and friend Roger Stone, and even a family member, Charles Kushner, the father of the president’s son-in-law and White House adviser, Jared Kushner.
Skipping past Christmas and on to Sunday, December 27th, after all the grandstanding, President Trump signs the $900 billion COVID relief bill ahead of Monday’s deadline to avert a government shutdown.
The White House never gave an explanation for why the president signed the relief bill despite his initial objections. But just imagine how crazy things could’ve been if there was a government shutdown in the middle of a pandemic and presidential transition following an election that’s still being disputed by the sitting president.
Monday, December 28th, the House pulls off a doubleheader, voting overwhelmingly for $2,000 stimulus checks and then votes to override President Trump’s veto of the $741 billion defense spending bill.
Meanwhile, Republican Congressman Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, and a group of President Trump’s defeated electors file a lawsuit against Vice President Pence in an effort to toss out the rules that dictate Congress’ certification of the Electoral College results on Jan. 6th.
Tuesday, December 29th, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell blocks the House bill to deliver $2,000 stimulus checks, tying the measure to election security and repeal of Section 230. The move is a short-term victory over Democrats as Republicans, led by President Trump, were breaking ranks in support of the $2,000 stimulus checks.
In spite of this victory, this could have serious consequences in the Georgia Senate runoff, where Republican incumbents David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler are trying to hold onto their seats.
Friday, January 1st, days after the House overrode Trump’s veto of the defense spending bill, the Senate followed suit, voting 81-13 to override Trump’s veto.Meanwhile, a federal judge dismisses Rep. Louie Gohmert’s lawsuit against Vice President Pence, ruling that they lacked proper standing.
Sunday, January 3rd, as the 117th Congress is sworn in and Nancy Pelosi wins her fourth term as Speaker of the House, the Washington Post releases a full audio recording of President Trump’s phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which the president implored Raffensperger to search around for 11,780 votes that he believes are owed to him and would give him victory in the state.
While the start of 2020 made it look like the United States was going to go to war with Iran at any moment, in 2021, the war will be fought in Congress as a number of congressional Republicans led by Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley will challenge the Electoral College certification.
This is the grand finale for the Trump presidency. Once Congress puts its seal on the results, that’s the ballgame. Will Trump continue to fight if it doesn’t go his way or concede to President-elect Joe Biden and attempt to unite the country? Whatever the case may be, it will be too little, too late.
