Washington, D.C.

On February 11, Donald Trump Jr. was deposed as part of a lawsuit alleging the misuse of inaugural funds for former President Donald Trump, two months after former White House advisor Ivanka Trump was deposed in the same case. Washington, D.C., Attorney General Karl Racine sued the Trump Inaugural Committee and the Trump Organization in January 2020 for abusing over $1 million nonprofit funds to enrich the Trump family.

Court filings show that AG Racine's office, that Trump Jr.'s testimony "raised further questions about the nature of" an invoice related to the inauguration and "revealed evidence that Defendants had not yet produced to the District."

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez went live on Instagram on Monday, recounting the events of the Capitol insurrection on January 6.

Ocasio-Cortez said she was and her legislative director were in her office when they heard "huge violent bangs" on the door and she then hid in the bathroom behind the door.

"I start to hear these yells of 'Where is she, where is she?' and I just thought to myself, they got inside. This was the moment where I thought everything was over," Ocasio-Cortez said. It later turned out that the man banging on her door was a Capitol Police officer.

In a national terrorism bulletin warning, the US Department of Homeland Security warned of heightened domestic terror threat across the United States following the attacks on the US capitol on January 6.

"Throughout 2020, Domestic Violent Extremists (DVEs) targeted individuals with opposing views engaged in First Amendment-protected, non-violent protest activity. DVEs motivated by a range of issues, including anger over COVID-19 restrictions, the 2020 election results, and police use of force have plotted and on occasion carried out attacks against government facilities," the bulletin read. "DHS is concerned these same drivers to violence will remain through early 2021 and some DVEs may be emboldened by the January 6, 2021 breach of the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. to target elected officials and government facilities."

Sen. Thomas R. Carper has introduced a bill to provide for the admission of the State of Washington, D.C. into the Union, meaning if passed, the US capital would become the 51st state of the United States.

The Department of Education has extended "the pause on federal student loan payments and collections and keep the interest rate at 0%." Federal student loan payments have been suspended since March, an extension had previously been drafted in December's stimulus package but was ultimately cut.

"Too many Americans are struggling to pay for basic necessities and to provide for their families. They should not be forced to choose between paying their student loans and putting food on the table," so the statement by the White House.

United States President Donald Trump has handed out 143 pardons shortly before leaving office. The list includes former advisor Steve Bannon, rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black (illegal gun possession), Kwame Kilpatrick the former mayor of Detroit (corruption), Elliott Broidy the ex-Vice-Chairman of the Republican Party (illegal lobbying for Malaysia), Solomon Melgen a prominent ophthalmologist and Trump's neighbour from Palm Beach, Florida (health insurance fraud against senior citizens) and Paul Erickson, conservative activist and ex-boyfriend of alleged Russian spy Maria Butina (money laundering).

All 25,000 National Guard troops tasked with securing the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on January 20 are being vetted by the Pentagon and the FBI amid fears of a coordinated insider attack.

"This type of vetting often takes place by law enforcement for significant security events. However, in this case the scope of military participation is unique. The DC National Guard is also providing additional training to service members as they arrive in DC that if they see or hear something that is not appropriate, they should report it to their chain of command," so Christopher Miller, the acting defence secretary.

The FBI is also investigating US military personnel in preparation for Joe Biden's inauguration. The US military authorities cannot rule out that an attack on the President-elect may come from within its own ranks. All 25,000 National Guards transferred to Washington would have to undergo a security clearance.

The inauguration will take place after the events around January 6th under the strictest security measures.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has published a statement, asking for "information related to violent activity at the U.S. Capitol Building" that happened on Wednesday while the US Senate was to certify the Electoral College results.

"The FBI is seeking information that will assist in identifying individuals who are actively instigating violence in Washington, DC. The FBI is accepting tips and digital media depicting rioting and violence in the U.S. Capitol Building and surrounding area in Washington, DC, on January 6, 2021," the statement reads. "If you have witnessed unlawful violent actions, we urge you to submit any information, photos, or videos that could be relevant at fbi.gov/USCapitol. [...] You may also call ‪1-800-CALL-FBI (1-‪800-225-5324) to verbally report tips and/or information related to this investigation."

The Justice Department is investigating an alleged "bribery-for-pardon" scheme at the White House, according to heavily redacted documents made public by the DC District Court on Tuesday afternoon.

The documents do not name the individuals involved, but allege that an individual offered "a substantial political contribution in exchange for a presidential pardon or reprieve of the sentence."

Prosecutors are further investigating a "secret lobbying scheme" in which two unidentified people acted as lobbyists to senior White House officials "without complying with the registration requirement of the Lobbying Disclosure Act".

President-elect Joe Biden on Sunday tapped Jen Psaki, a former White House communications director in the Obama administration, to be the new White House Press Secretary. In addition, deputy Biden campaign manager Kate Bedingfield will serve as communications director as the head of an all-female communications team when Biden takes office on Jan. 20, 2021

"I am proud to announce today the first senior White House communications team comprised entirely of women," Mr Biden said in a statement. "These qualified, experienced communicators bring diverse perspectives to their work and a shared commitment to building this country back better."

White House aide Stephen Miller confirmed Tuesday that he has tested positive for Covid-19 and has been self-isolating for the past five days.

"Over the last 5 days I have been working remotely and self-isolating, testing negative every day through yesterday. Today, I tested positive for COVID-19 and am in quarantine," so Miller in a statement.

His wife Katie Miller, who is Vice President Pence's communications director, has tested negative on Tuesday morning. Mrs Miller had Covid-19 several months ago.

Chad Gilmartin and Karoline Leavitt, two deputies to White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany, have tested positive for Covid-19, according to two sources of CNN. Gilmartin tested positive in the past 24 hours, while Leavitt did so a few days ago.

Greg Laurie, a pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside, California who attended last week's White House Rose Garden Event for Amy Coney Barrett, has tested positive for Covid-19. Laurie told CNB News that he learned of his infection over the weekend and that he was doing well.

Last week, Laurie also attended large prayer rally events in Washington, D.C. with Franklin Graham and Vice President Mike Pence.

TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, have filed a complaint in Washington federal court on Friday night, asking a judge to block the Trump administration's executive order that would block Chinese social-media networks, especially TikTok and WeChat, to do business with U.S. companies.

TikTok, which has over 100 million users in the United States, said the ban would "irreversibly destroy the TikTok business in the U.S."

Hundreds of people have gathered outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. on Friday night to mourn the death of the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Former President Barack Obama has released a statement on the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on medium.com in which he praises her as "a warrior for gender equality" who helped "us see that discrimination on the basis of sex isn’t about an abstract ideal of equality; that it doesn’t only harm women; that it has real consequences for all of us."

Obama wrote that Ginsburg "inspired the generations who followed her, from the tiniest trick-or-treaters to law students burning the midnight oil to the most powerful leaders in the land" and that he was "profoundly thankful for the legacy she left this country."

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R) pledged Friday to bring President Trump's Supreme Court nominee replacing the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg to a Senate vote.

"President Trump's nominee will receive a vote on the floor of the United States Senate," so McConnell.

Senate Majority Whip John Thune is backing McConnell, saying: "I believe Americans sent a Republican president and a Republican Senate to Washington to ensure we have an impartial judiciary that upholds the Constitution and the rule of law. We will fulfil our obligation to them."

CNN reports that "GOP aides are skeptical that there is enough time to confirm a nominee before November 3" as the process usually takes around two to three months but "that process could be sped up if McConnell, who controls the majority of the chamber, has the votes to confirm a replacement."

The "No TikTok on Government Devices Act" bill by Senator Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) was unanimously approved bu the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday. The bill states U.S. federal employees would be barred from using Chinese-owned mobile video app TikTok on government-issued devices.

The bill now moves to the Senate floor.

Washington Redskins team staffers have been accused of sexual harassment and verbal by 15 former female employees and two journalists. The Washington Post reported Thursday that Richard Mann II made sexual comments to a female employee. He was fired last week. Also a video of Larry Michael, former senior VP of content, appeared where he talked about the attractiveness of a college intern. He retired on Wednesday. The Washington Redskins have hired attorney Beth Wilkinson and launched an internal investigation.