Donald Trump has scheduled about a dozen interviews in the coming weeks with journalists and authors who are penning books about his presidency, many of them follow-ups of books that were highly critical of Trump.

According to Politico, Trump will welcome a parade of writers to his Mar-a-Lago residence where he will spend hours in interviews, obviously trying to spin the disastrous last year of his term and his subsequent ouster by voters.

Among those scheduled:  The New York Times’ Jeremy Peters as well as Maggie Haberman; The Wall Street Journal’s Michael Bender; ABC News’ Chief Washington Correspondent Jon Karl; “Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House” author Michael Wolff; and Washington Post journalists Philip Rucker and Carol Leonnig.  Aides stress that Trump could pull out of any meeting he chooses.

Washington Post: “U.S. Postal Service investigators found no evidence to support a Pennsylvania postal worker’s claim that his supervisors had tampered with mail-in ballots, according to an inspector general’s report – allegations cited by top Republicans to press baseless claims of fraud in the presidential election. Richard Hopkins, a mail carrier in Erie, alleged in November that he overheard the local postmaster discussing plans to backdate ballots received after the Nov. 3 vote and pass them off to election officials as legitimate. Working with Project Veritas, a nonprofit entity that seeks to expose what it says is bias in the mainstream news media, Hopkins publicly released a sworn affidavit recounting those allegations. Sen. Lindsey O. Graham cited Hopkins’s claim in a letter to the Justice Department in November calling for a federal investigation into election results in Pennsylvania, where Joe Biden beat President Donald Trump by more than 81,000 votes, and Democratic candidates outperformed GOP challengers in votes submitted by mail.”

“Graham and many other congressional Republicans refused to accept the outcome of the election for weeks, even after states audited and certified results. Then-Attorney General William P. Barr subsequently authorized federal prosecutors to open investigations into credible allegations of voting irregularities and fraud before results were certified, a reversal of long-standing Justice Department policy. But Hopkins soon recanted, officials from the Postal Service’s Office of Inspector General told members of Congress on Nov. 10, and the new investigation confirmed. In an interview with federal agents, Hopkins ‘revised his initial claims, eventually stating that he had not heard a conversation about ballots at all – rather he saw the Postmaster and Supervisor having a discussion and assumed it was about fraudulent ballot backdating,’ the report states.”

Donald Trump lost nearly a quarter of his net worth in the four years of his presidency despite efforts of special interest groups and Republican advocates to line his pockets, a report by Bloomberg claims.

When he entered office in 2017, Trump had a reported net worth of $3 billion; he entered 2021 $700 million poorer, with an estimated net worth of $2.3 billion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which tracks the value of the world’s wealthiest individuals.

Bloomberg notes that Trump’s holdings could face another precipitous drop in value as more than $500 million in loans and outstanding debt he owes comes due in the next four years, and there are few lenders willing to extend him credit.

“The Georgia sheriff’s official who said the man accused of killing six Asian women and two others in shootings at spas in the Atlanta area had ‘a bad day’ previously shared a photo of racist T-shirts on social media. In a Facebook post from April 2020, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Capt. Jay Baker shared an image of T-shirts based off the Corona beer label that said ‘Covid 19 IMPORTED VIRUS FROM CHY-NA.’ ‘Love my shirt,’ Baker wrote. ‘Get yours while they last.'”

“Baker did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but after BuzzFeed News asked about the shirt, the public Facebook post became unavailable. At their press conference about the shootings on Wednesday, police said it was too early to determine if the suspect was motivated by race, but added that the suspect told officials he had sex addiction issues and targeted the businesses because he wanted to ‘take out that temptation.’ As communications and community relations director at the sheriff’s office, Baker was among the law enforcement speakers who gave an update on the investigation. Speaking about the suspect’s explanation for the shootings, which he allegedly admitted to, Baker said it was ‘a really bad day’ for the shooter” – Buzzfeed.

Miami Herald: “The night he won his seventh Super Bowl, Tom Brady partied maskless aboard the superyacht of his friend, South Florida billionaire real estate mogul Jeffrey Soffer. Floating off the coast of Tampa on Feb. 7, Brady celebrated at an after party with longtime friends and associates – and some new ones, too. One was Florida House Speaker Chris Sprowls, a Palm Harbor Republican who approached the Super Bowl MVP to congratulate him on leading the home team the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to their first trophy since 2003.”

“It wasn’t the first time Sprowls had met Brady on Soffer’s 311-foot Madsummer, a state-of-the-art vessel roughly as long as a football field. Five months earlier, Soffer had hosted a fundraiser and dinner for Sprowls on the boat and introduced him to Brady and his wife, Gisele Bündchen. Soffer used that opportunity to make a pitch. Details were offered behind closed doors, but the idea was simple: Pass legislation to allow Soffer to move a gambling permit from his Hallandale Beach-based Big Easy Casino to the sumptuous Fontainebleau Resort in Miami Beach, which his family has owned since 2005. The effort to bring gaming to the Beach had been a decade-long ‘obsession’ of Soffer’s, those who know him have said. But, because of Florida’s fraught history with gambling, the strong opposition from local politicians, and the super-sized influence of the Seminole Tribe’s South Florida gaming presence, his efforts had failed.”

#HR1, the Corrupt Politicians Act, is the single most dangerous piece of legislation before Congress.

👎It federalizes all elections.

👎It strikes down every election reform protection at the state level.

👎It mandates ballot harvesting. pic.twitter.com/P9QXWEmoxz

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) March 17, 2021

The House of Representatives voted 413-12 to approve the issuance of Congressional Gold Medals, its highest civilian award, to the Capitol Police and the DC Metropolitan Police officers in honor of their response to the domestic terrorist attack on the Capitol January 6th, Politico reports.

Three medals will be cast:  one each for the headquarters of the Capitol police and the DC Metro Police, and one for display at the Smithsonian.  The bill will now be sent to the Senate, where it has bipartisan support.

A dozen Republicans objected to language in the bill that called the Capitol “the temple of our American Democracy” and labeled the attackers as “a mob of insurrectionists.”

Republican Florida Man Matt Gaetz said the bill was “offensive” because it included “these editorial comments about the January 6th sequence of events,” which he apparently didn’t think was an insurrection.  He added that he didn’t like the fact that it included an exhibit at the Smithsonian, where the violent acts of Trump supporters will be remembered through history.

Miami Herald: “The latest shoe to drop in a long-brewing Florida political scandal came crashing down Wednesday when authorities raided the Palmetto Bay house of former Republican state senator Frank Artiles. Artiles is believed to be tied to a state investigation involving a sham no-party candidate who likely swayed the outcome of a key 2020 Miami-Dade state Senate race. After months of scant information and little public focus, questions over Artiles’ involvement in the race reached an all-time high as the public corruption task force for the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office executed a morning search warrant, seizing box loads of items.”

About one in four of the members of the US House of Representatives have not received the coronavirus vaccine, even though it was made available to them three months ago, as Republicans push for the House to resume normal operations.

According to the Washington Post, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy said in a letter to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi that 75% of the members have received their inoculations, claiming that was sufficient to return to normal operation, which was suspended last March as the pandemic swept across the United States.  McCarthy claims to have gotten the information from the House physician’s office.

An informal poll of House members reflect that the Republican caucus who is balking at getting vaccinated.  The Post contacted 42 offices of House members; 24 answered the question whether the member had been vaccinated.  All eleven Democrats who responded had been vaccinated; only four Republicans had.  Eleven Republicans admitted they had not. 

“A leading Republican hard-liner clashed behind closed doors with House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy on Wednesday, exposing a rift in the Republican conference and suggesting that a chamber-rattling floor protest by the far right isn’t fading anytime soon” Politico reports.

“During a closed-door conference meeting, House Freedom Caucus Chair Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) went after McCarthy for not being more supportive of a conservative-led effort to force a series of lengthy – and largely fruitless – procedural votes that have snarled the floor, according to sources in the room. McCarthy, who has been urging Republicans to adopt a more tailored approach, countered that the delaying tactics could prove counterproductive by resulting in fewer GOP bills getting passed. The California Republican wanted to have more of a dialogue, but Biggs wasn’t interested and made clear he still plans to push ahead with his procedural gambit, sources said.”

Axios: “The House voted 242-172 on Wednesday to reauthorize the lapsed Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which gives legal protections to women who have experienced domestic and sexual violence. The original landmark 1994 law, sponsored by then-Senate Judiciary Chairman Joe Biden, expired in 2019. President Biden promised to reauthorize VAWA during his campaign.”

“The House voted in 2019 to reauthorize the legislation shortly after it expired, but it did not pass the then-Republican controlled Senate. Democrats now control the Senate with a razor-thin majority, but it’s unclear whether VAWA will win enough Republican votes to reach the 60-vote filibuster-proof threshold. The legislation was reauthorized three times – in 2000, 2005 and 2013”

“A man wanted by the police was stopped by the U.S. Secret Service and arrested near the residence of Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday, authorities said. Police said they found a rifle and ammunition in that man’s car. Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department said Paul Murray, 31, of San Antonio, Texas, was stopped on in the northwest section of Washington on Massachusetts Avenue near the Naval Observatory, which contains Harris’ residence.”

“Police said they arrested Murray in response to an intelligence bulletin that originated from Texas. Murray was initially detained by Secret Service. Murray was charged with carrying a dangerous weapon, carrying a rifle or shotgun outside of a business, possession of unregistered ammunition and possession of a large capacity ammunition feeding device. The vice president does not currently live at the Naval Observatory, as the residence is undergoing renovations. Harris is living at Blair House, near the White House” – CNBC.

“Tanzanian President John Magufuli, who drew widespread criticism for his denialism of the coronavirus pandemic, has died only five months after he won a second term in a disputed election. He was 61. ‘We have lost our courageous leader, President John Magufuli, who has died from a heart illness,’ Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan said on state television on Wednesday. She announced 14 days of national mourning” Bloomberg reports.

“Nicknamed ‘The Bulldozer’ for his aggressive leadership style, Magufuli won early praise for tackling corruption, reducing wasteful government spending and improving the lives of peasant farmers by waiving dozens of taxes. He also spearheaded the development of new transport links, power plants and more than 1,700 health centers, investments that helped Tanzania’s economy become one of the world’s top performers. Magufuli also drove through controversial reforms aimed at ensuring the nation derived greater benefit from its natural resources, which put his administration on a collision course with foreign mining companies. In 2017, the authorities asked Barrick Gold Corp.’s local unit to pay a whopping $190 billion tax bill – a dispute the company settled by paying $300 million and creating a mining joint venture with the state.”

South Florida Sun-Sentinel: “Say goodbye and good riddance to Dorian, Laura, Eta and Iota. Dorian and Laura were permanently retired as hurricane names Wednesday by the World Meteorological Organization, following the tradition of avoiding the repetition of names of particularly destructive storms. Added to the list were Dexter and Leah. And no longer will storms carry names from the Greek alphabet, which had been used after authorities exhausted the list of names chosen for that year, according to an announcement Wednesday from the World Meteorological Organization.”

“Greek letters were used in last year’s horrific storm season, when a record-breaking number of storms required the use of nine Greek letters, from Alpha through Iota. The Greek letters were ditched for being confusing. Reporters and public officials mispronounced them. Too many letters, such as Zeta and Theta, sounded similar. Forecasters found themselves fielding questions from the media and public about the use of Greek letters rather than about the storms themselves. So now there will be an alternate overflow name list in lieu of the Greek alphabet.”

“A Michigan judge ruled last week Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson (D) broke state law when she unilaterally issued rules related to absentee balloting, legitimizing a key claim made by the Trump campaign in its legal challenges to the 2020 election. Benson issued several unilateral orders during the 2020 election including sending absentee ballot applications to all registered voters. She also issued ‘guidance’ on how to evaluate absentee ballots, a move Michigan Court of Claims Chief Judge Christopher Murray held violated the state’s Administrative Procedures Act”

“In the guidance, Benson said ‘slight similarities’ in signatures on absentee ballots should lead a counter to decide ‘in favor of finding that the voter’s signature was valid.’ Murray ruled Benson violated the law ‘because the guidance issued by the Secretary of State on October 6, 2020, with respect to signature matching standards was issued in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act (APA)’. Murray’s ruling came after Allegan County Clerk Bob Genetski sued Benson over Benson’s order which Hall described as a ‘mandatory directive requiring local election officials to apply a presumption of validity to all signatures on absent voter ballots'” – Breitbart.

Monmouth: “While most Americans (62%) say Biden won the presidency fair and square, about one-third (32%) continue to believe his victory was only due to voter fraud – a number that has remained unchanged from polls taken immediately after the November election and after the inauguration. About 1 in 10 American adults (12%) say they will never accept Biden as president (similar to 10% in January). Among Republicans, nearly two-thirds (65%) maintain Biden’s win was due to voter fraud and 29% say they will never accept him as president. One in four Americans believe that, regardless of the actual actions taken on January 6th, the anger that led to the riot was justified either fully (8%) or partially (18%). Those saying the anger that led to the attack was at least partially justified includes 40% of Republicans, 30% of independents, and even 10% of Dems.”

“Nearly half the public (47%) says white nationalism played a major role in the violent attack on the Capitol and another 23% says it played a minor role. Just 22% say it played no role at all in the uprising. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of Americans say white nationalism in the United States is a problem overall, including 47% who say it is a big problem. Another 34% say it is not a problem at all. Nearly 9 in 10 Democrats (88%) say it is a problem while just under 4 in 10 Republicans (38%) agree. A majority of independents (59%) say white nationalism is a problem for the country. People of color (73% overall, including 60% who say it is a big problem) are more likely than those who are white (59% overall and 39% big problem) to see this as a problem. Among white Americans, there is not much difference in the overall view of white nationalism as a problem when comparing those with a college degree (63%) to those without a college education (57%). However, white college graduates (48%) are more likely than non-college whites (35%) to see it as a big problem.”

The Internal Revenue Service is planning on extending the deadline to file taxes to mid-May after a chaotic year in which a number of policies complicated tax laws on both state and federal levels, Bloomberg reports.

According to three sources, the IRS has not yet determined the exact date for the rescheduled deadline, but they anticipate it will be in the middle of May, giving taxpayers an additional month from the traditional April 15th filing deadline.  With millions of Americans receiving aid, either individually or through businesses entities they run, tax requirements are still being worked out concerning what is taxable income versus what is tax free.

Leaders in Congress, as well as accountants and tax preparers, had lobbied for the delay given the complexity of people’s finances, business loans and grants, and federal and state aid packages.

The president of the Philadelphia-area Proud Boys cell, Zack Rehl,  was arrested by FBI agents Wednesday for his participation in the January 6th domestic terrorist attack at the Capitol, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

The 35-year-old Rehl was arrested during an 8 a.m. raid at his home in the Philadelphia neighborhood of Port Richmond after photos and video emerged of him leading a crowd of Proud Boys marching to the Capitol and of him later in a Senate office smoking a cigarette.

Rehl was recorded with Ethan Nordean, the leader of the Seattle Proud Boys, and Joseph Biggs, a leader of the Florida cell, leading a group of around 100 alleged members of the organization in a march to the Capitol January 6th.  Rehl was show leading chants and issuing orders through a bullhorn, as well as using military-style hand signals to direct the group.  Nordean and Biggs have previous been arrested by the FBI for their roles in the insurrectionist attack; Nordean is alleged in court documents to have been the operational leader of the Proud Boys on January 6th.