memeorandum: The persistence of “locker room talk” (Scott Johnson/Power Line)

9:55 AM ET, December 20, 2016

Top Items:

A Historic Number of Electors Defected, and Most Were Supposed to Vote for Clinton — The Electoral College on Monday voted for Donald J. Trump to win the presidency. Seven electors, the most ever, voted for someone other than their party's nominee. — Of 306 electors pledged to vote for Donald J. Trump

Discussion: Los Angeles Times, The Daily Caller, Politico, Outside the Beltway, The Week, Townhall.com, MichelleMalkin.com, New York Magazine and The Geller Report

New York Times:

Time to End the Electoral College — By overwhelming majorities, Americans would prefer to elect the president by direct popular vote, not filtered through the antiquated mechanism of the Electoral College. They understand, on a gut level, the basic fairness of awarding the nation's highest office …

Louis Nelson / Politico:

NYT: U.S. should end ‘antiquated mechanism’ of Electoral College — The United States must rethink how it elects its presidents, the New York Times wrote in an editorial published Monday, and do away with the “antiquated mechanism” of the Electoral College, which on Monday officially handed Donald …

Discussion: Wall Street Journal, Daily Kos and New York Times

CNN:

Electors remain faithful to Trump and select him as official winner — (CNN)Donald Trump has surpassed the necessary 270 votes in the Electoral College, the next step in the official process to become President. — Trump received 304 electoral votes to Hillary Clinton's 224.

New York Times: Electoral College Settles Donald Trump's Victory, but Little Else

The Seattle Times:
Four Washington state electors break ranks and don't vote for Clinton

Discussion: TheBlaze, Denver Post, RT, The Daily Caller, Grist, CBS Dallas, Business Insider and CBS News

Ben Kamisar / The Hill:
Electoral College: Where the vote stands

Discussion: Politico, New York Times, The Right Scoop, Hot Air, Townhall.com, David Bright, The Point, Liberal Values, RT and The Portland Press Herald

Jessie Hellmann / The Hill:
Trump touts ‘historic’ Electoral College victory

Discussion: John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Sputnik International, Mediaite, Raw Story and The Daily Caller

The Local:

LIVE: Berlin police ‘unsure’ if they have right man for truck attack — Live updates from Berlin after a truck ploughed into a Christmas market on Monday night, killing 12 people and injuring 48. — A large truck drove into a crowded Christmas market in west Berlin at around 8.30pm on Monday evening.

Discussion: The Sun, The Guardian, NPR, Telegraph, RT, Hot Air, Sputnik International, The Times of Israel, The Local, The Gateway Pundit, CBS New York, twitchy.com, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion, NBC News and Mediaite

New York Times:
Berlin Christmas Market Was Target of Terrorist Attack, Angela Merkel Says

Discussion: Gothamist, Raw Story, The Geller Report and Politico

CNN:
Berlin Christmas market attack suspect a refugee, security sources say

Discussion: Instapundit and ImmigrationProf Blog

Washington Times:
At least 9 dead, many injured in truck attack on Berlin Christmas market

Discussion: New York Post, The Jawa Report, John Hawkins' Right Wing News, Victory Girls Blog, The Geller Report, The Gateway Pundit, The Local, twitchy.com, The Week, TheBlaze and RT

Reuters:
Merkel says asylum-seeker may have carried out Christmas market attack

Discussion: Power Line, Fox News, Steyn Online, Independent Journal Review, RedState, The Week, Jezebel, Mediaite and TheBlaze

Darran Simon / CNN:
Berlin police: 9 dead, at least 50 injured in truck crash

Carrie Levine / Center for Public Integrity:

Donald Trump's sons behind nonprofit selling access to president-elect — New Texas-based group not legally required to disclose its donors — A new Texas nonprofit led by Donald Trump's grown sons is offering access to the freshly-minted president during inauguration weekend …

Discussion: NBC News, alan.com, Political Wire, New York Magazine, The Week, Occupy Democrats, Washington Post, Politico, Raw Story, Common Dreams, Talking Points Memo and The Hill

Robbie Gramer / Foreign Policy:

Austrian Far-Right Politicians Travel to Moscow to Grease Ties Between Trump, Putin — If Putin can't mend ties with European governments, he'll at least always have its far-right parties. On Monday, the leaders of Austria's far-right Freedom party, fresh off an election loss …

Discussion: The Week and Bloomberg

Alison Smale / New York Times:

Austria's Far Right Signs a Cooperation Pact With Putin's Party — BERLIN — The leader of the Austrian far-right Freedom Party has signed what he called a cooperation agreement with Russia's ruling party and recently met with Lt. Gen. Michael T. Flynn, the designated national security adviser …

John Sharp / al.com:

Mobile official apologizes for Christmas tree at Trump rally removed from public park — President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a rally at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on Saturday, Dec. 17, 2016, in Mobile, Ala. In the background is a large cedar tree that was cut down at Public Safety Memorial Park …

Discussion: Hullabaloo

David Leonhardt / New York Times:

Democrats Had a Knife, and the G.O.P. Had a Gun — President Obama and Gov. Pat McCrory of North Carolina don't agree on many policy questions. But they have found themselves facing a similar political situation this year. And their very different reactions capture the deep — and alarming …

Ryan Cooper / The Week:
How Republicans' frightening power play in North Carolina will go national

Discussion: USA Today, Daily Kos, The Daily Caller and Vox

Darren Samuelsohn / Politico:

Gingrich: Congress should change ethics laws for Trump — Newt Gingrich has a take on how Donald Trump can keep from running afoul of U.S. ethics laws: Change the ethics laws. — Trump is currently grappling with how to sufficiently disentangle himself from his multibillion-dollar business …

Discussion: Politicus USA, Media Matters for America and The Diane Rehm Show

Jessie Hellmann / The Hill:
Gingrich suggests Trump pardon advisers who break the law

Discussion: RedState

Matt Shuham / Talking Points Memo:
Gingrich Suggests Trump Simply Pardon Family That Breaks Anti-Nepotism Law

Discussion: Hullabaloo

Rebecca Savransky / The Hill:

Trump's vow to overturn DACA could cost US billions: report — 's plans to overturn President Obama's executive order protecting illegal immigrants brought to the U.S. as children could cost the country tens of billions of dollars, according to a new study.

Discussion: CNNMoney and alan.com

Stuart Rothenberg / Washington Post:

Can Republican senators get to 60 seats in 2018? — (Photo by Melina Mara/The Washington Post) — The GOP's strong 2016 election showing raises a crucial question: Do Republicans have any chance of netting eight Senate seats - and a filibuster-proof majority - in 2018?

Catherine Rampell / Washington Post:

Trump's OMB pick seems poised to ignite a worldwide financial crisis — It's not the sexiest White House job. But it might soon be among the most dangerous. — Over the weekend, President-elect Donald Trump tapped Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-S.C.) to be his director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Discussion: Rewire and New York Magazine

Nick Bilton / Vanity Fair:

Inside the Desperate, Year-Long Hunt to Find Donald Trump's Rumored Apprentice Outtakes — Throughout the election, both the media and the Clinton camp were obsessed by outtakes from the reality show, amid allegations of hair-raising things said by the now president-elect.

Discussion: The Daily Beast

Tierney Sneed / Talking Points Memo:

GOP Rep's Vision Of Post-ACA World: You Wait To Treat Your Kid's Broken Arm — A Republican congressman outlined the way he would like to see the health care system operate if Obamacare is repealed, as GOP lawmakers are promising. It is a brave new world in which parents would wait …

Discussion: No More Mister Nice Blog, ECHIDNE OF THE SNAKES, Lawyers, Guns & Money and ACASignups.net

Shandra Martinez / MLive.com:
Son's broken arm: Bill Huizenga says people must be responsible for own health care costs

Discussion: Occupy Democrats and Raw Story

Judd Legum / ThinkProgress:

Under political pressure, Kuwait cancels major event at Four Seasons, switches to Trump's D.C. hotel — After Election Day, everything changed. — By Judd Legum and Kira Lerner — The Embassy of Kuwait allegedly cancelled a contract with a Washington, D.C. hotel days after the presidential election …

Discussion: New York Magazine, Politicus USA, The Talking Dog, Talking Points Memo and Mother Jones

Alex Pfeiffer / The Daily Caller:

Dallas Cops Have No Record Of Eichenwald Police Report — The Dallas Police Department informed The Daily Caller Monday that there is no police report or investigation into the alleged Twitter assault of Newsweek writer and Dallas resident Kurt Eichenwald. — A Twitter user under the handle …

Discussion: RedState, Instapundit and twitchy.com

Neil Eggleston / Blog Daily Listings RSS:

President Obama Grants 153 Commutations and 78 Pardons to Individuals Deserving of a Second Chance — Today, President Obama granted clemency to 231 deserving individuals — the most individual acts of clemency granted in a single day by any president in this nation's history.