President Joe Biden asked Congress for $100 billion on Monday to respond to natural disasters and other emergencies, likely the president’s final domestic spending request as he prepares to leave the White House with some crucial priorities unfinished.
Biden is seeking $40 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster relief fund, the nation’s primary short-term recovery vehicle; $24 billion to assist farmers who lost crops and livestock in recent hurricanes and top-off antipoverty food aid programs; and $12 billion for housing assistance.
The request, submitted in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana), builds on Biden’s previous funding requests, which the GOP-controlled House has declined to consider.

Republican Senator John Thune of South Dakota threatened on Sunday to sanction the International Criminal Court (ICC) if it did not drop its application for an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu.
Last Wednesday, Thune was elected to be the next Senate Majority Leader once Republicans take control over the Senate in January.

Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida has said he plans to make a decision on who he will tap to replace outgoing Sen. Marco Rubio in the US Senate.  Sen. Rubio will be leaving his position in the Senate to become Trump’s Secretary of State.
Governor DeSantis says his office has begun the process of vetting several possible candidates.  One candidate gaining a lot of noise is President Trump’s daughter in-law, Lara Trump.  Lara Trump is currently the Republican National Committee co-chair, and some Trump allies have begun to call for her to become Florida’s next Senator, including Sen. Rick Scott, Sens. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Katie Britt of Alabama, as well as Rep. Anna Paulina Lune of Florida.

Jose Ibarra, the man accused of fatally attacking Augusta University student Laken Riley during her morning jog in February, appeared in court on Monday for the second day of his trial.
Ibarra, wearing a striped shirt and black pants, was escorted into the courtroom at the Athens-Clarke County courthouse by security guards. His wrists were bound in handcuffs as he entered the courtroom of Superior Court Judge Patrick Haggard around 7:15 a.m.
According to prosecutors, Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan immigrant living illegally in the U.S., attacked 22-year-old nursing student Riley as she jogged along trails near Lake Herrick on the University of Georgia campus in Athens on the morning of February 22.

A man, drenched in blood and armed with two knives, rampaged across Manhattan in a brutal daytime stabbing spree that left two men dead and a woman fighting for her life, according to police reports.
The suspected attacker, identified as a mentally ill homeless man with a long history of arrests in New York City, was apprehended by a courageous officer with the aid of several bystanders, including a cab driver and a British tourist, officials said. NYPD Chief of Detectives Joe Kenny confirmed these details, as reported by the NY Post.

The Democratic National Committee workers’ union on Monday condemned layoffs by the organization, saying permanent employees were terminated last week with one day’s notice and no severance pay.
While staff jobs at campaign offices routinely end after elections, the DNC laid off permanent employees, including people who had been told their positions would continue after the election, the staff union said in a statement.

Benny Gantz, leader of the National Unity Party in the opposition, released a video on Monday detailing the conditions that would enable northern Israeli residents to return home.
Gantz opened the video by saying: “The basic condition that would allow the residents of northern Israel to return home is the IDF’s freedom to operate against any violation by Hezbollah or other terror organizations.”
Speaking as ceasefire negotiations continue, Gantz said: “The IDF’s great achievements must lead to any arrangement in Lebanon being the basis for the security reality in the years to come. This is the only way to be able to return the residents to the north safely, and this is the only way to restore their trust.”

President-elect Donald Trump revealed on Monday that he intends to nominate former Wisconsin Congressman Sean Duffy as the next secretary of transportation.
At 53 years old, Duffy marks the second occasion that Trump, who is 78, has drawn from Fox News’ roster of personalities to fill a key role in his administration.
Duffy, who spent over eight years representing Wisconsin’s 7th District in Congress and previously worked as a prosecutor, currently serves as a contributor for Fox News and co-hosts the evening program “The Bottom Line” on Fox Business Network.
Just last week, Trump also announced his selection of Pete Hegseth, an Army National Guard veteran and co-host of “Fox & Friends Weekend,” for the position of secretary of defense.

State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller speaks regarding the location of Hamas leadership outside Gaza.

About a dozen masked neo-Nazis marched with swastika flags through Ohio’s state capital of Columbus on Nov. 16, with at least one member of the group chanting a racial slur. While police made no arrests, they did detain a few individuals.
“We will not tolerate hate in Ohio,” said Gov. Mike DeWine in a statement. “Neo-nazis—their faces hidden behind red masks—roamed streets in Columbus today, carrying Nazi flags and spewing vile and racist speech against people of color and Jews. There were reports that they were also espousing white power sentiments.”