The Daily Skimm

The Story

House Democrats will be taking action against President Trump.

For the siege?

Yes. Last week, hundreds of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol in a deadly siege – scaling walls, shattering windows, beating police officers, and breaking into federal offices. A gallow was erected. Some chanted "hang Pence." Two men allegedly carried zip-tie handcuffs. A pickup truck carrying Molotov cocktails and guns was found near the Capitol. And by one account, rioters were mere seconds away from breaking into the Senate chamber while congressional reps were present. Five people have died.

Tell me about Trump's role.

The president is being accused of inciting the insurrection. At a rally before the attack, Trump told supporters to "walk down to the Capitol" and "fight like hell." He also said that they'll "never take our country back with weakness." Now, some lawmakers – including those whose staff had to hide during the attack – are saying 'enough.'

Go on...

Today, House Democrats are working to pass a resolution calling on VP Mike Pence and Trump's Cabinet to invoke the 25th Amendment. If they agree, Pence and the Cabinet would declare the president unfit for office, making Pence the acting president. But it seems unlikely, so Dems have a backup plan: they'll introduce articles of impeachment against the president. The House could vote on it as early as tomorrow. Then they would normally send it over to the Senate, but given that the Senate's on recess until Jan 19 (the day before President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration), the plans may lay dormant for a while. Read: a few months.

What's the holdup?

House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) said the House could wait until Biden's first 100 days are over, so as to give the new president time to get the ball rolling on his agenda. It would be an unprecedented move: never has a president faced an impeachment trial after leaving office. Nor has one been impeached twice. If found guilty, the Senate could disqualify Trump from ever holding office again. Meaning, he wouldn't be allowed to run in 2024 – something he's reportedly been planning.

What are people saying?

Democrats say repercussions are necessary in order to protect Americans. One poll shows that more than half of Americans believe Trump should be removed from office. But House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said that impeaching Trump with less than two weeks in office would "only divide our country more." Republican Sens. Pat Toomey (PA) and Lisa Murkowski (AK) are urging Trump to resign, saying he's caused enough damage. Meanwhile, Trump has reportedly talked about trying to pardon himself.

theSkimm

There are nine days left in Trump's term. But that is not stopping lawmakers from pursuing accountability for what happened last week from the highest levels of US government: the president himself.

Unfollow

Social media companies have temporarily or permanently banned @realDonaldTrump. Following the violent attack on the US Capitol last week, Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Pinterest, Shopify, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitch, and Discord have restricted President Trump's account or accounts and hashtags affiliated with violence and pro-Trump conspiracies like #StopTheSteal. And it's got people talking about…

Free speech…Some people are asking about it. Here's what you need to know: The First Amendment generally applies when the gov restricts a person's freedom of speech. In this case, private companies (think: Twitter and Facebook) have the liberty to set their own rules and guidelines, and have a right to hit 'mute' on any accounts on their platforms not following T&C. Now, companies that once exempted world leaders like Trump are saying 'a line's been crossed.' But some critics are saying 'too little, too late' and pointing at Trump's years of inflammatory posts. Others are concerned about what this means more broadly: a handful of people able to decide at whim which types of content can reach Americans' eyes.

Parler...The relatively new social media platform has soared in popularity among conservatives who've seen greater restrictions on FB and Twitter. Mostly because, unlike Twitter and Facebook, it's got lax content moderation and doesn't prohibit hate speech or disinformation. But after some users encouraged violence and crime (some even called for violence ahead of Inauguration Day), Apple and Google cut off the service. And Amazon – which hosts the server for Parler – also banned it for its violation of company rules. Now, Parler appears to have gone dark as it looks for another host.

And Also...This

Where people are mourning…

Indonesia. Over the weekend, a passenger jet carrying 62 people crashed into the Java Sea minutes after takeoff. The cause is still under investigation but the 26-year-old Boeing plane was flying amid heavy rain when it lost over 10,000 feet in altitude in less than 60 seconds. Authorities have located the black boxes and are continuing with search and rescue operations. This is the first major crash to affect Indonesia since the Lion Air crash in 2018 – when 189 passengers and crew of the Boeing 737 Max were killed. And it raises further scrutiny around the country's aviation sector, which has been plagued by crashes and safety concerns.

Where there are coronavirus updates…

The US. Last week, it recorded over 21,000 coronavirus-related deaths – the deadliest week to date. One analysis shows that America has been averaging over 2,700 daily deaths and has seen hospitalizations top more than 131,000. The numbers come amid the nation's largest ever vaccination effort, which has faced criticism for its less-than-warp speed.

Africa. It has topped 3 million confirmed COVID-19 cases. South Africa reportedly accounts for more than 30% of the continent's total infections (over 1.2 million cases) and is currently dealing with a more contagious variant of the virus. And while the high numbers could be because of the country's high testing rate compared to other African countries, the president is weighing additional restrictions as the country awaits the first 1.5 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine later this month.

What'll have people geeking out...

CES 2021. Today, the 54th annual tech show kicks off virtually for the first time ever. It could showcase disinfectant gadgets, next-gen fitness equipment, and robots that'll help you cook dinner, among other tech. Code us in.

What's prompting backlash…

Vogue.

Who's planning their return...

You couldn't help but wonder...

Here we are. 11 days into 2021. Whether you're a resolution fan or not, it's never a bad idea to check in on your habits. And do everything you can to set yourself up for success. So we partnered with WW (Weight Watchers Reimagined) to share a few tips. Drumroll, please…

Start small. You don't have to make five-star, three-course gourmet meals every night just because you're trying to cook more. Set manageable milestones, and build up to the kinda chef you wanna be.
Remove friction. If you're trying to make a behavior a habit, you want to create a situation where it's as easy as possible to do that behavior. Trying to eat more fruit and veg? Chop some peppers and wash your berries beforehand so they're ready when you are.
Keep tabs. Tracking your progress can help you stay organized – and motivated. The WW app makes it easy with their action plan and progress report features. Take the new personal assessment to get a custom wellness plan.

It's week two of our 21-day How to Skimm Your Life Challenge, brought to you by Bank of America, Blue Apron, and Lancôme. Ready, set, Skimm your life.

Today's challenge: Trim some phone contacts. Because your ex-boyfriend's uncle probably doesn't need to be in there anymore. Don't just phone this one in. Take 10 minutes to delete people you no longer, well, contact. If you have an iPhone, log onto iCloud to mass delete. Hit the command key and hold it down to select all the people you want to kiss goodbye. Hit the gear icon in the bottom left and select "delete." Bye, bye, bye.

Better late than never. Check out last week's challenges here.

Here are our favorite picks to help you take a break today…

1. 15 products that'll help you live your smartest life in 2021. Out with the old, in with the new. We've got a budgeting journal, reusable produce bags, and a powerful bathroom scrubber. Let us upgrade ya.

2. Colorful cookware straight out of a fancy magazine. Le Creuset's cast iron dutch oven is ideal for braising, roasting, frying...basically anything you do in the kitchen. And it's made to last. Oh, and now it comes in Agave, a beautiful combo of lush green and striking blue. Get cooking.*

3. 13 productivity hacks TikTokers swear by. Turns out the app that gave us weird cooking ideas and viral dance challenges also happens to have some incredible work hacks. Thanks for everything, TikTok.

PS: Want more? Sign up to get weekly recs in your inbox.

*PS: This is a sponsored post.

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That's definitely how the saying goes. This language learning app teaches words you'll actually use in real conversations. And uses speech recognition tech to help you pronounce them juuust right. PS: Skimm'rs get up to 60% off. Vamos.*

*PS: This is a sponsored post.

Skimm’rs

We like to celebrate the wins, big and small. Let us know how your friends, neighbors, coworkers (and yes, even you) are making career moves, checking off goals, or making an impact in the community.

Rising together...Cory M, Alexa N, and Janelle R (TX). They co-founded Rise Coterie, an inclusive Dallas-Fort Worth-based organization designed to empower women working toward their personal and professional goals. More here.

Read all about it...Chau M (NY). After her NYC events business closed down due to the pandemic, she's pivoted its site. Now it's a hyper-local newsletter that shares breakdowns of local news to BIPOC millennial New Yorkers. Check it out.

(Some) Birthdays...theSkimm's Meg Gegler (NY), Allison Statter (CA), Halley Stennes (AL), Kelly Bloom (CA), Emma Trim (NY), Lisa Stenger (IL), Dana Sobh (MI), Jacki Coster (LA), Jennifer Hamilton (GA), Susan Lydon (SC), Becki Mckee (SC), Janice Aragona-Hollingsworth (NJ), Hayley Banyai-Becker (CO), Karen Eisengruber (TN), Paige Hazzan (NY)

*Paging all members of theSkimm. Reach out here for a chance to be featured.

Skimm’d by Maria del Carmen Corpus, Mariza Smajlaj, Clem Robineau, and Julie Shain