Today's Pete Hegseth Defense Secretary hearings are the first big, public test of how many of Trump's cabinet picks will get confirmed, regardless of their qualifications. "Hegseth was grilled about excessive drinking allegations, sexual assault accusations, and his shifting public view on women in combat." Even with all of his personal flaws and troubling positions, the biggest questions regarding Hegseth are related to his utter lack of experience running a large organization like the Defense Department. While the televised hearings make the news, the key fight is behind the scenes. And that fight has been brutal. Jane Mayer in The New Yorker on The Pressure Campaign to Get Pete Hegseth Confirmed as Defense Secretary. "The Trump team’s efforts to crush dissent range from public-media campaigns targeting vulnerable senators in conservative states (and paid for by unelected billionaires) to more underhanded tactics aimed at intimidating and discrediting potentially hostile witnesses. Hegseth’s lawyer, Tim Parlatore, for instance, has threatened to sue Jane Doe, Hegseth’s anonymous rape accuser, and her lawyer for defamation if her allegations prevent him from being confirmed. So far, it appears that such tactics may be working." And the more these tactics work in the early days of Trump's second stint in the White House, the more likely they are to work as we move forward.

+ Meanwhile, as Trump's inauguration approaches, we're finally getting our first look at Jack Smiths report (PDF) on the incoming president's criminal misdeeds. Of course, we all saw most of the crimes with our own eyes in real time. But these days, even witnessed truths aren't those we universally hold as self-evident. NYT (Gift Article): Special Counsel Report Says Trump Would Have Been Convicted in Election Case. "But for Mr. Trump’s election and imminent return to the presidency, the office assessed that the admissible evidence was sufficient to obtain and sustain a conviction at trial." That could be American history's most significant But for...

2

Brink Different

We don't know how many of the hostages in Gaza are still alive. We don't know all the details about the political pressure campaign to get a deal done ahead of the US transition of power. And like every other deal that's shown promise during this relentless conflict, we don't know if the latest deal between Hamas and Israel will actually happen. But it's been a long time since we've seen the world hope in a headline from the region. CNN: Hopes rise for Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal. And from BBC: Ceasefire agreement 'right on the brink', says Blinken, as details of deal emerge.

3

Hot Air

"More howling, whipping, fire-stoking winds have arrived in Los Angeles. They are expected to strengthen by dawn and may blow up to 70 miles per hour. Some gusts could rekindle parts of the major blazes tearing through the city’s hills and suburbs. Others could start new fires. It may seem hard to understand why the combined resources of the federal government, California and Los Angeles haven’t been able to defeat the wildfires after a week of fighting them. The winds are a major reason." (And regardless of the sick mudslinging and finger pointing, we're not talking about political winds.) NYT (Gift Article): The Airborne Flames. "The gusts hurl embers across great distances, spreading fire quickly and thwarting efforts to pinch it off. Planes and helicopters that spray water and flame retardant can’t fly. Firefighters on the ground can’t battle the flames on streets and hillsides without fear they’ll be incinerated."

+ The winds made it impossible to fight the fires early on. And they're still preventing thousands of people from returning home. LA Times: ‘Particularly dangerous’ weather warning for L.A. fires are in effect, gusts of up to 72 mph reported.

+ Jimmy Kimmel was pitch perfect in his first monologue after the fires, sharing the intense agony and shock being felt by the people in Los Angeles, while also noting the inspiring acts of courage and community that have defined the response.

4

Mixed Martial Law

"The story of how a president of the United States wound up cage-side in Madison Square Garden that night is also the story of MMA, a sport that over the past 30 years has gone from being a late-night cable TV sideshow to a new American pastime. MMA is street fighting distilled into sport, practiced by professional athletes who have tuned every cell of their body for violence. As it happens, that’s something a whole lot of people want to watch." Rolling Stone (Gift Article): Empire of Blood: How Dana White’s UFC Conquered America. "White has effectively run the UFC since 2001. Under his tenure, the UFC has become synonymous with MMA and served as the driving force behind the sport’s transformation into a global sensation. White’s more than 25-year devotion to the sport and making money from it has made him its principal god, his authority largely unchecked by investors and fighters alike. The UFC’s rise and current dominance have paralleled that of a new political movement centered, similarly, on one man: Trump."

5

Extra, Extra

Parking Will Be Limited: "Billed as the world’s largest human gathering, India is hosting a once-in-a-decade religious event from Monday that gives Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party a fresh opportunity to promote its Hindu nationalist agenda." The event will draw a crowd. Like a really big crowd. As many as 400 million are expected. Bloomberg (Gift Article): World’s Largest Gathering Puts Modi’s Hindu Agenda in Spotlight. And from the NYT (Gift Article): The World’s Largest Human Gathering Begins in India.

+ CelsiU.S.: "Every generation gets the energy boost it deserves, and so we get Celsius: a Goop-ified version of Red Bull, with a 'Make America Healthy Again' vibe." WaPo (Gift Article): The U.S. government runs on Celsius. Just ask anyone on Capitol Hill. (It takes caffeine for these folks to run the country. It takes something a lot stronger for the rest of us to witness them them running it.)

+ Driven to Drink: At least Celsius is sugar free. While Americans are cutting back on sugary drinks, exports are strong. How soda is changing the world.

+ X Post Facto: "Chinese officials have reportedly discussed selling TikTok's US operations to Elon Musk as the threat of a US ban looms." Finally, Elon will have a platform to share his views....

+ Will Not Attend: Former first lady Michelle Obama will skip the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump. (Same.)

+ Coffee Pot: Starbucks doesn’t want to be America’s public bathroom anymore. If you want to hang out at Starbucks, you're gonna have to buy something.

6

Bottom of the News

"There is a movie star you’ve never heard of, but whom you’ve almost certainly heard. She’s in Toy Story and Babe, How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Home Alone 3. You can catch her in Les Misérables. And if you’re a fan of being frightened, she’s also in End of Days and Pet Sematary. Once you’re familiar with her work, you start to hear her everywhere." ‘A kitten on heat with a racy physique’: the mystery of the bloodcurdling cat screech used in hundred of movies.

+ "Months after mysterious black balls forced the closure of some of Sydney's most famous beaches, small marble-like debris has begun washing up on the city's shores again." Marble-sized balls force Sydney beaches to close. This mystery seems pretty obvious. The world is losing its marbles.