ELAINE CHAO

The House Jan. 6 committee is eyeing a close to its work and a final report laying out its findings about the U.S. Capitol insurrection by the end of the year.

The House Jan. 6 committee has interviewed former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and is in negotiations to talk to several other former members of Donald Trump’s Cabinet.

The House Jan. 6 committee plans to interview more former Cabinet secretaries and is prepared to subpoena conservative activist Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, who’s married to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, as part of its investigation of the Capitol riot and Donald Trump’s role.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan says he will not run for the U.S. Senate.

With traffic fatalities spiking, the nation’s top safety investigator says a widely cited government statistic that 94% of serious crashes are solely due to driver error is misleading and the Transportation Department should stop using it.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and other leading Republicans are intensifying a personal late-stage push to persuade Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan to run for the Senate.

The Biden administration is planning to require that airlines refund fees on checked baggage if the bags get seriously delayed.

The Senate has opened debate on legislation confronting the rise of potential hate crimes against Asian Americans.

FILE - In this Sept. 18, 2019 file photo Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao speaks at EPA headquarters in Washington. Scott Applewhite)The Transportation Department’s watchdog asked the Justice Department to criminally investigate Elaine Chao late last year over concerns that she misused her office when she was transportation secretary under President Donald Trump but was rebuffed, according to a report released Wednesday. According to department emails, Chao directed her staff to include her relatives in the official events and high-level meetings during the trip. The IG report said Justice Department officials ultimately declined to take up a criminal review, saying there “may be ethical and/or administrative issues” but no evidence to support possible criminal charges. As a result, the inspector general's office said in the report it was now closing its investigation “based on the lack of prosecutorial interest” from the Justice Department.

Now those projects are out of the bill. The project was set to receive about $141 million under the bill that passed in the House. The Senate bill is expected to largely mirror the House-approved package, with the most glaring divergence the Senate’s dropping of language boosting the federal minimum wage to $15 hourly. Ad“I learned about it being in the bill when I read about in in the newspaper," Schumer said. The coronavirus bill has hundreds of billions of dollars for schools and colleges, COVID-19 vaccines and testing, mass transit systems, renters and small businesses.

Republicans solidly oppose the $15 minimum wage target as an expense that would hurt businesses and cost jobs. “House Democrats believe that the minimum wage hike is necessary. Therefore, this provision will remain in the" bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said. The overall relief bill is Biden’s first legislative priority. The relief bill would provide millions of people with $1,400 direct payments.

They bolstered their case with accounts from the rioters themselves, some of whom said they were acting on Trump's orders. The former president's defense team insists Trump's speech near the White House was protected under the First Amendment. And they argue he shouldn't be on trial in the Senate because he is no longer in office — an argument Democrats reject. To underscore their point, Democrats showed videos using rioters own words. Trump senior adviser Jason Miller said he expects the defense will wrap up in less than a day.

What is certain for now is that the impeachment trial will be held after Trump has already left office. But it's still unclear exactly how the trial will proceed and if any Senate Republicans will vote to convict Trump. In the House, 10 Republicans joined Democrats in voting to impeach Trump, including Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the third-ranking Republican. Every single House Republican voted against Trump's first impeachment in 2019. DIFFERENT CHARGES, DIFFERENT IMPEACHMENTThis impeachment trial is likely to differ from the last one in many ways.

What is certain for now is that the impeachment trial will be held after Trump has already left office. But it's still unclear exactly how the trial will proceed and if any Senate Republicans will vote to convict Trump. In the House, 10 Republicans joined Democrats in voting to impeach Trump, including Wyoming Rep. Liz Cheney, the third-ranking Republican. Every single House Republican voted against Trump's first impeachment in 2019. DIFFERENT CHARGES, DIFFERENT IMPEACHMENTThis impeachment trial is likely to differ from the last one in many ways.

Pelosi, addressing her hometown San Francisco constituents during an online video conference, shed no fresh light on Democrats' plans. Trump has not publicly made such threats, but officials warn of grave danger if the president is left unchecked. A person on the call said Pelosi also discussed other ways Trump might be forced to resign. ”Democratic leaders have called on Vice President Mike Pence and the Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment to force Trump from office. The House impeached Trump in 2019, but the Republican-led Senate acquitted him in early 2020.

Biden said he was just fine with that, calling it “one of the few things we have ever agreed on." “Donald Trump doesn’t want to be in Washington as the second-fiddle loser standing on stage with Joe Biden,” he said. “To all of those who have asked, I will not be going to the Inauguration on January 20th,” Trump said in a tweet. White House counsel Pat Cipollone has repeatedly warned Trump that he could be deemed responsible for inciting Wednesday’s violence. On Capitol Hill, Democrats laid plans to impeach Trump a second time, with articles of impeachment expected to be introduced on Monday.

FILE - In this Oct. 15, 2020, file photo, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos speaks at the Phoenix International Academy in Phoenix. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao on Thursday became the highest-ranking administration officials to resign over the pro-Trump insurrection. Neither impeachment nor ouster under the 25th Amendment was considered probable with less than two weeks left in Trump's presidency. Yet many White House aides, both senior officials and lower-level staff, were struggling with whether or when to exit, according to two people familiar with internal deliberations at the White House. “They’re all going to have their historic revisionism, they’re all going to have their own imaginary heroism,” Wilson said.

WASHINGTON – With 13 days left in his term, President Donald Trump finally bent to reality Thursday amid growing talk of trying to force him out early, acknowledging he’ll peacefully leave after Congress affirmed his defeat. Trump led off a video from the White House by condemning the violence carried out in his name a day earlier at the Capitol. Deprived of that social media lifeblood, Trump remained silent and ensconced in the executive mansion until Thursday evening. Staff-level discussions on the matter took place across multiple departments and even in parts of the White House, according to two people briefed on the talks. Few aides had any sense of the president’s plans, with some wondering if Trump would largely remain out of sight until he left the White House.

This was a big day, especially for the House and Senate leadership lane, one of my specialties. Smith Goes to Washington” you've seen my work area since a press gallery scene from the movie was filmed there more than 70 years ago. (The Senate chamber, however, was a soundstage). The mob was out of the building by then and, strangely, it almost seemed boring, waiting for the Capitol to be declared safe. The Daily Press Gallery where I work had not been breached.

WASHINGTON – Lawmakers of both parties raised the prospect Thursday of ousting President Donald Trump from office, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that if he wasn't removed, the House may move forward with a second impeachment. Senior Trump administration officials raised the long-shot possibility of invoking Section 4 of the 25th Amendment — the forceful removal of Trump from power by his own Cabinet. Pelosi told a news conference she is waiting for a decision from Vice President Mike Pence and other Cabinet officials. Under the 25th Amendment, Trump could dispute his Cabinet’s finding, but the Cabinet could quickly reaffirm its position, keeping Pence in power while the question fell to lawmakers. As lawmakers assessed damage in the ransacked Capitol, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer also called Thursday for the Cabinet to remove him.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Capitol Police said one of its officer responding to riots at the Capitol on Wednesday has died. Officer Brian D. Sicknick died Thursday due to injuries sustained while on-duty, physically engaging with protesters at the U.S. Capitol, the statement said. ___7:20 p.m.President Donald Trump is conceding to President-elect Joe Biden and condemning the violent supporters of his who stormed the nation’s Capitol. He was a web developer and founder of Trumparoo, a social media site for supporters of President Donald Trump. ___2:35 p.m.House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she’s seeking the resignation of Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund a day after supporters of President Donald Trump stormed the Capitol.

FILE - In this Dec. 12, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington before boarding Marine One. As he prepares to exit the White House, President Donald Trump is rewarding some supporters and like-minded allies with the perks and prestige that come with serving on federal advisory boards and commissions. “But nobody does these things with more politicization than Trump,” Light said. The positions have what Light describes as “gorgeous resume value.”The number of advisory board positions has ballooned over the years. Among the most consequential of the wave of appointments has been with advisory boards at the Pentagon.

DETROIT – The U.S. government's road safety agency is asking for public comment on how it should regulate safe deployment of self-driving vehicles. About 60 companies are already testing autonomous vehicles, some on public roadways without human backup drivers. So far the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has taken a voluntary approach to autonomous vehicles without standards and regulations. That has brought criticism from the National Transportation Safety Board and safety advocates for being too hands-off. His organization petitioned NHTSA seeking autonomous vehicle regulations two years ago but heard nothing, he said.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Transportation Authority will use an $11.9 million grant from the federal government to take eight diesel buses out of service and replace them with eight compressed natural gas buses. Replacing them with cleaner CNG powered buses is part of the JTA’s mission of sustainability. JTA spokesman David Cawton said all buses purchased by JTA since 2015 have been CNG buses. The eight new CNG buses will make a total of 96 CNG buses in JTA’s fleet of 220 buses total. Four other projects in Florida also received funds from the bus and bus facilities grant program:

Twenty-five percent of the Republican president's senior staff are nonwhite, compared to 36% of Bidens senior staff. Along with adding more people of color to his campaign, Biden has promised an administration that looks like America if he is elected on Nov. 3. His campaign declined to discuss minority representation on the campaign staff. The Biden campaign said LGBTQ staff and staff of color hold such positions as senior advisers, deputy campaign managers, national coalitions director, chief financial officer, chief operating officer and national press secretary, among others. Trumps campaign defined its senior staff as senior leaders who meet regularly to make decisions.

At least 10 lawmakers and three congressional caucuses have ties to organizations that received federal coronavirus aid, according to government data released this week. Four car dealerships owned by Kelly received $600,000 to $1.4 million. Mike Kelly Automotive Group, Mike Kelly Automotive LP and Mike Kelly Hyundai and Kelly Chevrolet-Cadillac, all near Pittsburgh, received the money. Buchanan, whose net worth is estimated at $74 million, received three loans for car dealerships totaling $2.7 million to $7 million. Two wineries tied to Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif., and an Iowa farm run by his family received loans worth at least $2 million.

Many were among the first to be approved for a loan in early April, when the administration was struggling to launch the lending program. There is no evidence the companies received favorable treatment as a result of their ties to Trump, and the businesses account for just a fraction of the overall spending under the program. But the distribution of relief money is coming under heightened scrutiny after the Trump administration initially refused to reveal which companies received loans, only to cave under growing bipartisan pressure from Congress. Among the recipients named Monday was the conservative website NewsMax, which was approved for a loan up to $5 million on April 13, the data shows. And Trump donors aren't the only people with ties to the president who have benefited.

At least 10 lawmakers and three congressional caucuses have ties to organizations that received federal coronavirus aid, according to government data released this week. We think it certainly should be illegal" for members of Congress to benefit from a program they created, he said. Car dealerships owned by Kelly received from $450,000 to just over $1 million. At least five car dealerships owned by the husband of Rep. Carol Miller, R-W.Va., also received loans, each ranging from $350,000 to $1 million, the data show. Herns Tulsa-based KTAK Corp., a management company for several McDonalds restaurants, received $1 million to $2 million.

These (lobbying) booms that these people are having, you can really attribute them to their connection to Trump.The White House did not respond to a request for comment. Another section of the order forbids lobbying the administration by former political appointees for the remainder of Trump's time in office. Shannon McGahn, the wife of former White House counsel Don McGahn, worked in 2017 and 2018 as a counselor to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. Felder is listed on a disclosure from the first quarter of 2020 that shows she was part of a team that lobbied Congress and the White House. Public Citizen's Craig Holman, who himself is a registered lobbyist, said the group intends to file ethics complaints with the White House.

The Democratic chairs of three House panels on Tuesday demanded that Mitch Behm be reinstated immediately as acting inspector general. Behm's removal is the latest in a series of politically motivated firings of inspectors general by President Trump,'' the lawmakers wrote. a career employee who has served as acting inspector general since January. Trump has designated Howard Elliott, head of a Transportation Department agency that oversees pipeline safety, to replace Behm as acting inspector general. Still, the lawmakers asked for information regarding ongoing audits, inspections, investigations, evaluations, reviews and other communications regarding Behm's removal and Elliotts qualifications to be inspector general.