Mitch McConnell blocks bipartisan pandemic relief to help his corporate pals, Joe Biden continues to staff up his Cabinet and White House, and Republicans run their 2020 playbook in Georgia. Then messaging expert Anat Shenker-Osorio talks to Jon about why Democrats need to stop selling the recipe and start selling the brownie.

Show notes

Covid Update

• AP: US virus deaths hit record levels with holidays ahead
• CNN: There’s been such a surge of cases that a Nevada hospital is treating patients in its parking garage
• NYT: Most of California Locks Down Again as Coronavirus Strains Hospitals
• NYT: The Virus Is Devastating the U.S., and Leaving an Uneven Toll 
• WSJ: As Covid-19 Vaccines Roll Out, States to Determine Who Gets Shots First 
• NPR: Canada Authorizes Us of Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine
• CNBC: Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid vaccine to immunize the planet ‘more effectively,’ Lancet editor says
• AP: UK probing if allergic reactions linked to Pfizer vaccine
• Reuters: As U.S. companies push to get workers vaccinated, states disagree on who’s essential 
• Gallup: Willingness to Get COVID-19 Vaccine Ticks Up to 63% in U.S. 
• Daily Beast: Trump Cheers ‘Terrific’ RIse in COVID Cases During Off-The-Rails Vaccine Summit 
• NYT: ‘There’s No Place for Them to Go’: I.C.U. Beds Near Capacity Across U.S. 
• Vox: How America’s Covid-19 epidemic ends 
• CNN: Stimulus checks aren’t in the bipartisan relief proposal. Here’s what Congress is offering instead
• Politico: Bernie Sanders leads Dem charge for new stimulus checks
• The Hill: Pelosi, Schumer hit Trump but cite ‘progress’ in COVID relief talks
• NBC: 100M shots in the first 100 days: Biden unveils Covid priorities, introduces health team
• NPR: McConnell Suggests Dropping Biggest Sticking Points to Reach COVID-19 Relief Deal
• Vox: What it would really take to save the economy
• Bloomberg: Mnuchin Unveils $916 Billion Stimulus PItch Including State Aid 
• Brookings: More economic relief and stimulus: Why and how 
• WaPo: Unemployment, sick leave, and housing aid are set to expire in weeks, threatening Americans with sudden financial ruin 
• WaPo: Cities ramp up efforts to send direct checks to residents after $15 million donation from Twitter CEO 
• Forbes: These 7 States and Cities Have Stepped In As Washington Drags Feet on Stimulus Package 
• CNBC: Since Congress can’t agree on a stimulus bill, states and cities are providing relief 

Biden’s Cabinet

• Politico: Building Biden’s Cabinet
• CNN: Biden appears with Gen. Lloyd Austin as he lobbies Democrats to back waiver for defense secretary nominee
• The Atlantic: Why I Chose Lloyd Austin as Secretary of Defense
•   Politico: Questions swirl over Austin’s limited experience
•  WaPo: Biden to name retired Gen. Lloyd Austin as defense secretary
•  Salon: How Michèle Flournoy’s Pentagon dreams collapsed: Progressives fought back 
•  LA Times: Biden faces growing pressure over Defense secretary pick
• Mother Jones: Progressives Debate Whether to Oppose Michèle Flournoy for Defense Secretary 
•  NYT: Michèle Flournoy Again Finds Her Shot at the Top Pentagon Job Elusive 
•  Politico: Biden’s Pentagon pick frustrates women who sought a different history-maker
•  WaPo Analysis: Why is the Defense Department supposed to be led by a civilian?
• NYT: Biden’s Pentagon Pick Reignites Debate Over Civilian Control of Military 
•  Politico: Biden’s reliance on retired military brass sets off alarm bells 
• Axios: Democratic opposition mounts to Biden picking retired general to lead Pentagon
• MSNBC Opinion: Lloyd Austin is Biden’s shakiest Cabinet pick yet 
• Politico: Democrats signal early opposition to Biden’s Defense pick
• The Providence Journal: Will Sen. Reed change stance and support Biden’s pick for Pentagon chief?
•  The Hill: Warren says she will vote against waiver for Biden’s Pentagon pick
•  Mediaite: Bernie Sanders Supports Biden Pick of Lloyd Austin as Defense Secretary, Despite Criticism From Some Democrats 
• NYT: Biden’s Choice for Pentagon Faces Questions on Ties to Contractors
•  Politico: Biden to tap Marcia Fudge to lead housing agency
•  NBC News: Biden picks Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge for HUD secretary, Tom Vilsack to lead Agriculture
• The Hill: Biden picks leave Democrats with slimmest House majority in modern history 
• ABC News: With narrowed majority, Democrats on Hill face hurdles joining Biden Cabinet
• NPR: Biden Plans To Bring Vilsack Back To USDA, Despite Criticism From Reformers
•  Politico: Vilsack chosen as Biden’s Agriculture secretary
•  Axios: What Vilsack as Biden’s agriculture secretary means for energy and climate 
•  AP: Biden’s attorney general search is focused on Jones, Garland
•  CNN: Attorney general remains key spot to fill in Biden Cabinet, with Doug Jones seen as a leading contender
• NBC News: Doug Jones leading contender to be nominated Biden’s attorney general 
•  Axios: Scoop: Trump plots mass pardons, even to people not asking 

Georgia

• FiveThirtyEight: What The Polls Say About Georgia’s Senate Runoffs
• FiveThirtyEight: Where Are Georgia’s Senate Candidates Getting All That Cash From?
• NYT: 2,596 Trades in One Term: Inside Senator Perdue’s Stock Portfolio 
• NYT: In Georgia Debate, Kelly Loeffler Won’t Say Trump Lost
• ABC: 5 key takeaways from Georgia Senate runoff debate 
• WaPo: In the Georgia runoff, just showing up for the debate was apparently the hardest part
• Slate: Jon Ossoff Debated Himself
• WaPo: Kelly Loeffler disqualified herself at Sunday night’s debate 
• NYT: Republicans Make Clear Their Georgia Senate Strategy: Attack Warnock
• Reuters – Trump loyalist Loeffler’s attacks on pastor Warnock risk suburban votes in Georgia’s U.S. Senate race
• Politico: How Georgia’s Senate race pits the Old South against the New South 
• Politico: Republicans prod angry base to turn out again for Georgia runoffs
• WaPo: How votes shifted in the six political states of Georgia
• WaPo: The Trailer: What Trump supporters in Georgia believe 
• Data for Progress / Be a Hero – MEMO: GEORGIA VOTERS SUPPORT PROGRESSIVE ISSUES 
• Politico: Health care vs. ‘radical leftists’: Parties re-running 2020 playbooks in Georgia runoffs 
• NYT: ‘Georgia Is Not New York’: Progressives Adapt Efforts for Senate Runoffs
• Politico: Google will end political ad ban this week
• WaPo: The WNBA influenced the Georgia Senate race, new research finds
• WSJ: After 2020 Losses, Some Democrats Question Party’s Health-Care Focus
• Politico: ‘We’re not some demonic cult’: Democrats fume over faulty messaging
• The Nation – Why Democrats Lose on Social Media While Republicans Lie and Win Big
• NY Mag – Why ‘Socialism’ Killed Democrats in Florida