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Trump Has Granted Fewer Pardons, Commutations Than Previous Presidents 

Despite the controversial nature of many of Donald Trump’s presidential pardons, including that of his associate, Michael Flynn, this week, Trump has granted clemency far less than any of his predecessors in the past century, according to a U.S. research group.   FILE – Former national security adviser Michael Flynn, right, and his lawyer, Sidney Powell, leaves the federal courthouse in Washington, June 24, 2019.By contrast, Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, issued 212 pardons and 1,715 commutations during his eight years in office. President George H. W. Bush issued 74 pardons but just three commutations during his four years in office.   Individuals may appeal to the president for clemency in two forms — sentence commutation and pardons. Generally, a commutation means a reduction, either partial or full, of a convict’s sentence. A pardon relieves a convict of any remaining punishment and/or future consequences of their crime.   On Wednesday, Trump pardoned Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty in 2017 to lying to FBI agents about a series of conversations he had with Russia’s then-ambassador to Washington, Sergey Kislyak, about Obama administration sanctions during the Trump presidential transition in December 2016.   “Congratulations to @GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!” Trump wrote on Twitter Wednesday, the day before the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday. It is my Great Honor to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted a Full Pardon. Congratulations to @GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 25, 2020 The move came as a federal judge was weighing an abrupt decision by the Justice Department earlier this year to throw out Flynn’s case. Justice Department Drops Case Against Former Trump Adviser FlynnThe move marked a dramatic turnabout in a celebrated case that often inflamed partisan passions in Washington and among the general public Researchers note that while Trump has issued fewer pardons and commutations than his predecessors, the numbers are likely to change in his last two months as president.   “I can’t speculate as to the reason why Trump has issued so few pardons/commutations to date or what may happen in the future,” John Gramlich, a researcher at Pew, told VOA in an email.   “But it’s not unusual for presidents to grant clemency in the later stages of their tenure, so it wouldn’t be a total surprise to see Trump’s numbers go up in the next few weeks,” he added.   Trump’s pardon of Michael Flynn is his 29th to date and his 45th overall act of clemency (including 16 commutations). So far Trump has used his clemency power less than any POTUS in 120+ years, but there’s still plenty of time left in his term. https://t.co/LpzA6CixMJpic.twitter.com/iOooRa0HJk— John Gramlich (@johngramlich) November 25, 2020Trump has granted 0.5% of clemency requests made to his administration. But some legal experts anticipate that he may be likely to grant more pardons, particularly of his past associates, who were indicted on charges similar to Flynn’s, before January.   According to The New York Times, lawyers representing Trump campaign advisers, including Rick Gates and George Papadopoulos, could request clemency from the president as he nears the end of his term.   Gates and Papadopoulous were also convicted of crimes unearthed during special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of the Trump administration’s ties to Russia.   Trump’s first presidential pardon was in 2017 for Joe Arpaio, an Arizona sheriff who was convicted of unlawful racial profiling. The pardon was met with outrage from organizations and activists, including the American Civil Liberties Union, which called the move “a presidential endorsement of racism.” Trump Pardons Ex-Arizona Sheriff Arpaio

        President Donald Trump on Friday granted a pardon to former Arizona lawman and political ally Joe Arpaio, the self-proclaimed "toughest sheriff in America," less than a month after he was convicted of criminal contempt in a case involving his department's racial profiling policy.Trump had signaled this week that the first presidential pardon of his administration would go to Arpaio, 85, whom he has frequently praised for his hard-line immigration stance.I am pleased to inform you that I have just…

                
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Trump Pardons Flynn, Taking Direct Aim at Russia Probe

President Donald Trump pardoned former national security adviser Michael Flynn on Wednesday, taking direct aim in the final days of his administration at a Russia investigation that he has long insisted was motivated by political bias. “It is my Great Honor to announce that General Michael T. Flynn has been granted a Full Pardon,” Trump tweeted. “Congratulations to @GenFlynn and his wonderful family, I know you will now have a truly fantastic Thanksgiving!” Flynn is the second Trump associate convicted in the Russia probe to be granted clemency by the president. Trump commuted the sentence of longtime confidant Roger Stone just days before he was to report to prison. It is part of a broader effort to undo the results of an investigation that for years has shadowed his administration and yielded criminal charges against a half dozen associates. The action voids the criminal case against Flynn just as a federal judge was weighing, skeptically, whether to grant a Justice Department request to dismiss the prosecution despite Flynn’s own guilty plea to lying to the FBI about his Russia contacts.  The move, coming as Trump winds down his single term, is likely to energize supporters who have taken up the case as a cause celebre and rallied around the retired Army lieutenant general as the victim of what they assert is an unfair prosecution. Trump himself has repeatedly spoken warmly about Flynn, even though special counsel Robert Mueller’s prosecutors once praised him as a model cooperator in their probe into ties between Russia and the 2016 Trump campaign. The pardon is the final step in a case defined by twists and turns over the last year after the Justice Department abruptly move to dismiss the case, insisting that Flynn should have never been interviewed by the FBI in the first place, only to have U.S. District Justice Emmet Sullivan refuse the request and appoint a former judge to argue against the federal government’s position. In the months since, a three-judge panel’s decision ordering Sullivan to dismiss the case was overturned by the full appeals court, which sent the matter back to Sullivan. At a hearing in September, Flynn lawyer Sidney Powell told the judge that she had discussed the Flynn case with Trump but also said she did not want a pardon — presumably because she wanted him to be vindicated in the courts. Powell emerged separately in recent weeks as a public face of the Trump’s efforts to overturn the results of his election loss to President-elect Joe Biden, but the Trump legal team ultimately distanced itself from her after she advanced a series of uncorroborated conspiracy claims. The pardon spares Flynn the possibility of any prison sentence, which Sullivan could potentially have imposed had he ultimately decided to reject the Justice Department’s dismissal request. That request was made in May after a review of the case by a federal prosecutor from St. Louis who had been specially appointed by Attorney General William Barr.  Flynn acknowledged lying during the FBI interview by saying he had not discussed with the then-Russian ambassador, Sergey Kislyak, sanctions that had just been imposed on Russia for election interference by the outgoing Obama administration. During that conversation, Flynn urged Kislyak for Russia to be “even-keeled” in response to the punitive measures and assured him “we can have a better conversation” about relations between the two countries after Trump became president. The conversation alarmed the FBI, which at the time was investigating whether the Trump campaign and Russia had coordinated to sway the election’s outcome. In addition, White House officials were stating publicly that Flynn and Kislyak had not discussed sanctions.  But last May, the Justice Department abruptly reversed its position in the case. It said the FBI had no basis to interview Flynn about Kislyak, then the Russian ambassador to the United States, and that any statements he may have made were not relevant to the FBI’s broader counterintelligence probe. It cited internal FBI notes showing that agents had planned to close out their investigation into Flynn weeks earlier.  Flynn was ousted from his position in February 2017 after news broke that he had indeed discussed sanctions with Kislyak, and that former Obama administration officials had warned the White House that he could be vulnerable to blackmail. Flynn was among the first of the president’s aides to admit guilt in Mueller’s investigation, and he cooperated extensively for months. He provided such extensive cooperation that prosecutors did not recommend any prison time and suggested that they would be fine with probation.  But on the morning he was to have been sentenced, after a stern rebuke about his behavior from Sullivan, Flynn asked for the hearing to be cut short so that he could continue cooperating and earn credit toward a more lenient sentence. After that, though, he hired new attorneys — including Powell, a conservative commentator and outspoken critic of Mueller’s investigation — who took a far more confrontational stance to the government.  The lawyers accused prosecutors of withholding documents and evidence they said was favorable to the case and repeatedly noted that one of the two agents who interviewed Flynn was fired from the FBI for having sent derogatory text messages about Trump during the 2016 campaign.  
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Biden Discusses ‘Shared Sacrifices’ as Coronavirus Looms Over Thanksgiving

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden discussed the coronavirus pandemic Wednesday and the “shared sacrifices” Americans are making ahead of Thursday’s annual Thanksgiving holiday.Millions of Americans typically gather with family and friends, many traveling long distances to do so. But this year, with COVID-19 infections spiking across the country, the federal government has urged people to stay home for Thanksgiving, and many are. Even so, millions of people are ignoring the advice and crowding airports to head to destinations across the country.Biden’s transition office said he would tell Americans “that we can and will get through the current crisis together.””Let’s begin that work to heal and unite America as well as the world.” — President-elect Joe Biden pic.twitter.com/rwDZXBu3ct— Biden-Harris Presidential Transition (@Transition46) November 25, 2020Ahead of the speech, his transition team said it was receiving “extraordinary receptions” from officials in the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump to help Biden take control of the U.S. government after his January 20 inauguration.Trump, a Republican, acquiesced in the official start of Biden’s transition to power this week but has not conceded his defeat. However, election officials in key battleground states have declared the Democrat the winner, giving a Biden an unofficial 306-232 edge in the Electoral College that determines the outcome of U.S. presidential contests.Biden adviser Kate Bedingfield told reporters, “The election is over. Everyone has accepted the outcome except President Trump and [Trump lawyer] Rudy Giuliani.”Bedingfield said Biden transition officials were getting information from Trump officials about national security issues the country faces, along with plans for approval and distribution of prospective vaccines to inoculate millions of people against the coronavirus.Biden and Trump have not spoken since the November 3 election, with Biden aide Jen Psaki saying, “We do not feel it is essential to talk with President Trump,” although Biden has said he would be willing to meet with the outgoing president.WATCH: Biden picks his teamSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for Secretary of State Tony Blinken speaks at The Queen theater, Nov. 24, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.Aside from Blinken, Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry to a new position as special presidential envoy for climate, while giving him a seat on the National Security Council. It was a reflection, the Biden transition said, of the incoming president’s commitment to addressing climate change as an urgent national security priority.Biden selected Alejandro Mayorkas to become head of the Department of Homeland Security. A Cuban American lawyer, he is a former deputy secretary at the agency. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the department’s first Latino and immigrant leader.Biden picked former Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, an African American woman and a 35-year veteran of the U.S. Foreign Service who has served on four continents, as U.S. envoy to the United Nations. Biden elevated her role to a seat in his Cabinet, a rank past presidents have also occasionally given the high-profile position.The president-elect chose another woman, Avril Haines, to become director of national intelligence. She is a former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency and a deputy national security adviser. She will be the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community if confirmed.Jake Sullivan, a Biden foreign affairs adviser, was picked to become Biden’s national security adviser.
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Biden to Discuss ‘Shared Sacrifices’ as Coronavirus Looms Over Thanksgiving

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is set to discuss the coronavirus pandemic Wednesday and the “shared sacrifices” Americans are making ahead of Thursday’s annual Thanksgiving holiday.Millions of Americans typically gather with family and friends, many traveling long distances to do so. But this year, with COVID-19 infections spiking across the country, the federal government has urged people to stay home for Thanksgiving, and many are. Even so, millions of people are ignoring the advice and crowding airports to head to destinations across the country.Biden’s transition office said he would tell Americans “that we can and will get through the current crisis together.””Let’s begin that work to heal and unite America as well as the world.” — President-elect Joe Biden pic.twitter.com/rwDZXBu3ct— Biden-Harris Presidential Transition (@Transition46) November 25, 2020Ahead of the speech, his transition team said it was receiving “extraordinary receptions” from officials in the outgoing administration of President Donald Trump to help Biden take control of the U.S. government after his January 20 inauguration.Trump, a Republican, acquiesced in the official start of Biden’s transition to power this week but has not conceded his defeat. However, election officials in key battleground states have declared the Democrat the winner, giving a Biden an unofficial 306-232 edge in the Electoral College that determines the outcome of U.S. presidential contests.Biden adviser Kate Bedingfield told reporters, “The election is over. Everyone has accepted the outcome except President Trump and [Trump lawyer] Rudy Giuliani.”Bedingfield said Biden transition officials were getting information from Trump officials about national security issues the country faces, along with plans for approval and distribution of prospective vaccines to inoculate millions of people against the coronavirus.Biden and Trump have not spoken since the November 3 election, with Biden aide Jen Psaki saying, “We do not feel it is essential to talk with President Trump,” although Biden has said he would be willing to meet with the outgoing president.WATCH: Biden picks his teamSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for Secretary of State Tony Blinken speaks at The Queen theater, Nov. 24, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.Aside from Blinken, Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry to a new position as special presidential envoy for climate, while giving him a seat on the National Security Council. It was a reflection, the Biden transition said, of the incoming president’s commitment to addressing climate change as an urgent national security priority.Biden selected Alejandro Mayorkas to become head of the Department of Homeland Security. A Cuban American lawyer, he is a former deputy secretary at the agency. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the department’s first Latino and immigrant leader.Biden picked former Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, an African American woman and a 35-year veteran of the U.S. Foreign Service who has served on four continents, as U.S. envoy to the United Nations. Biden elevated her role to a seat in his Cabinet, a rank past presidents have also occasionally given the high-profile position.The president-elect chose another woman, Avril Haines, to become director of national intelligence. She is a former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency and a deputy national security adviser. She will be the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community if confirmed.Jake Sullivan, a Biden foreign affairs adviser, was picked to become Biden’s national security adviser.
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Biden Discusses ‘Shared Sacrifices’ in Pre-Thanksgiving Day Message

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden discussed the coronavirus pandemic and the holiday season in an address Wednesday.   The speech comes a day before the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, a time when millions of Americans typically gather with family, many traveling in order to do so.  But this year, with COVID-19 infections spiking across the country, the federal government has urged people to stay home. “Let’s begin that work to heal and unite America as well as the world.” — President-elect Joe Biden pic.twitter.com/rwDZXBu3ct— Biden-Harris Presidential Transition (@Transition46) November 25, 2020Biden’s transition office said he will “discuss the shared sacrifices Americans are making this holiday season and say that we can and will get through the current crisis together.” On Tuesday, Biden declared that the United States is “ready to lead the world, not retreat from it,” signaling a sharp pivot from outgoing President Donald Trump’s “America First” credo over the last four years.WATCH: Biden picks his teamSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for Secretary of State Tony Blinken speaks at The Queen theater, Nov. 24, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.Aside from Blinken, Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry to a new position as special presidential envoy for climate, while giving him a seat on the National Security Council. It was a reflection, the Biden transition said, of the incoming president’s commitment to addressing climate change as an urgent national security priority.      Biden selected Alejandro Mayorkas as head of the Department of Homeland Security. A Cuban American lawyer, he is a former deputy secretary at the agency. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be its first Latino and immigrant leader.        Biden picked former Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, an African American woman and a 35-year veteran of the U.S. Foreign Service who has served on four continents, as U.S. envoy to the United Nations. Biden elevated her role to a seat in his Cabinet, a rank past presidents have also occasionally given the high-profile position.        The president-elect named another woman, Avril Haines, as director of national intelligence. She is a former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency and a deputy national security adviser. She will be the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community if confirmed.      Jake Sullivan, a Biden foreign affairs adviser, was named as Biden’s national security adviser.    The president-elect and the newly named officials all wore face masks when they were not speaking, a pointed reminder to Americans that the country is facing a surging number of new coronavirus cases. The United States is moving to approve three vaccines that could begin to control the pandemic, but most Americans will not be able to get the shots until well into 2021.      “To the American people, this team will make us proud to be Americans,” Biden said, adding that the group will bring “experience and leadership, fresh thinking and perspective, and an unrelenting belief in the promise of America.”     Biden also plans to name Janet Yellen, the 74-year-old former chair of the Federal Reserve, the country’s central bank, as his Treasury secretary. If confirmed, she would be the first woman to lead the department.  Biden has yet to decide other Cabinet appointments. He is set to become the 46th U.S. president, and at 78, its oldest.  Trump is continuing his long-shot legal attempt to upend Biden’s November 3 election victory.    Monday night, he acquiesced in his administration making an “ascertainment” that Biden was the likely winner, allowing Biden’s transition to move forward.    But he did not concede and is continuing to pursue lawsuit challenges to the outcome of the election. 
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Biden to Discuss ‘Shared Sacrifices’ as Coronavirus Looms Over Thanksgiving Holiday

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is set to discuss the coronavirus pandemic and the holiday season in an address Wednesday.   The speech comes a day before the U.S. Thanksgiving holiday, a time when millions of Americans typically gather with family, many traveling in order to do so.  But this year, with COVID-19 infections spiking across the country, the federal government has urged people to stay home. Biden’s transition office said he will “discuss the shared sacrifices Americans are making this holiday season and say that we can and will get through the current crisis together.” On Tuesday, Biden declared that the United States is “ready to lead the world, not retreat from it,” signaling a sharp pivot from outgoing President Donald Trump’s “America First” credo over the last four years.WATCH: Biden picks his teamSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for Secretary of State Tony Blinken speaks at The Queen theater, Nov. 24, 2020, in Wilmington, Del.Aside from Blinken, Biden named former Secretary of State John Kerry to a new position as special presidential envoy for climate, while giving him a seat on the National Security Council. It was a reflection, the Biden transition said, of the incoming president’s commitment to addressing climate change as an urgent national security priority.      Biden selected Alejandro Mayorkas as head of the Department of Homeland Security. A Cuban American lawyer, he is a former deputy secretary at the agency. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be its first Latino and immigrant leader.        Biden picked former Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, an African American woman and a 35-year veteran of the U.S. Foreign Service who has served on four continents, as U.S. envoy to the United Nations. Biden elevated her role to a seat in his Cabinet, a rank past presidents have also occasionally given the high-profile position.        The president-elect named another woman, Avril Haines, as director of national intelligence. She is a former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency and a deputy national security adviser. She will be the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community if confirmed.      Jake Sullivan, a Biden foreign affairs adviser, was named as Biden’s national security adviser.    The president-elect and the newly named officials all wore face masks when they were not speaking, a pointed reminder to Americans that the country is facing a surging number of new coronavirus cases. The United States is moving to approve three vaccines that could begin to control the pandemic, but most Americans will not be able to get the shots until well into 2021.      “To the American people, this team will make us proud to be Americans,” Biden said, adding that the group will bring “experience and leadership, fresh thinking and perspective, and an unrelenting belief in the promise of America.”     Biden also plans to name Janet Yellen, the 74-year-old former chair of the Federal Reserve, the country’s central bank, as his Treasury secretary. If confirmed, she would be the first woman to lead the department.  Biden has yet to decide other Cabinet appointments. He is set to become the 46th U.S. president, and at 78, its oldest.  Trump is continuing his long-shot legal attempt to upend Biden’s November 3 election victory.    Monday night, he acquiesced in his administration making an “ascertainment” that Biden was the likely winner, allowing Biden’s transition to move forward.    But he did not concede and is continuing to pursue lawsuit challenges to the outcome of the election. 
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Biden Announces Cabinet Picks

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden announced his picks for top diplomatic and national security posts in his forthcoming administration. Biden is pressing ahead with the transition process even though President Donald Trump has yet to formally concede. White House Correspondent Patsy Widakuswara has the latest.Produced by: Bakhtiyar Zamanov 
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Russian Influence Peddlers Carving Out New Audiences on Fringes

After four years of warnings and preparations, the 2020 presidential election did not see a repeat of 2016, when intelligence officials concluded Russia meddled using a combination of cyberattacks and influence operations.  
 
But according to current and former U.S. intelligence officials, as well as analysts, the good news ends there.   
 
The Russians, they warn, have been busy laying the foundation for future success.
 
Instead of relying on troll farms and fake social media accounts to try to sway the thoughts and opinions of American voters, they warn the Kremlin’s influence peddlers have instead gained a new foothold, establishing themselves as part of the United States’s news and social media ecosystem, ingratiating themselves to U.S. audiences on the far right and the far left.
 
“A lot of these campaigns are getting engagement in the millions,” Evanna Hu, chief executive officer of Omelas, told VOA. “They are pretty good at inducing the type of sentiment, a negative sentiment or a positive sentiment in the audience, from their posts.”
 
Omelas, a Washington-based firm that tracks online extremism for defense contractors, has been studying Russian content across 11 social media platforms and hundreds of RSS feeds in multiple languages, collecting 1.2 million posts in a 90-day period surrounding the November 3 election.
 
It found the most prolific Russian outlets included state-backed media outlets like RT, Sputnik, TASS and Izvestia TV.FILE – Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen on the screen of a camera viewfinder in a studio of Russia’s RT television channel in Moscow, Russia, June 11, 2013.“We only look at active engagements, so you have to physically click on something or retweet it,” said Hu, admitting that the estimate for the millions of engagements is still “pretty rough.”
 
Also, Omelas determined that only about 20% of the posts pumped out by Russia’s propaganda and influence machine are in English. Forty percent of the content is in Russian, with the rest going out in Spanish, Arabic, Turkish and a handful of other languages.
 Russian-backed media
 
U.S. officials have been reluctant to speak publicly about the impact these efforts have had on American citizens, in part because there is no easy way to measure the effect.   
 
After the 2016 election, for example, intelligence officials repeatedly said while they were able to conclude Russian efforts expressed a preference for then-candidate Donald Trump, they could not say whether any Americans voted differently as a result.
 
Still, multiple officials speaking to VOA on the condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the subject said it was unlikely that Russia would continue to spend money on these media ventures if the influence operations were not producing results.
 
An August 2020 report by the State Department’s Global Engagement Center, while not sharing a figure, concluded Moscow “invests massively in its propaganda channels, its intelligence services and its proxies.”
 
U.S. election security officials have likewise repeatedly voiced concerns about Russia’s efforts to stake out space in the news and social media ecosystem.
 
“I’m telling you right now, if it comes from something tied back to the Kremlin, like RT or Sputnik or Ruptly, question the intent,” Christopher Krebs, the former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, told a cybersecurity summit in September. “What are they trying to get you to do? Odds are, it’s not a good thing.”FILE – The main newsroom of Russia’s Sputnik news is seen in Moscow, April 27, 2018.Senior CISA officials again called out Russian-backed media while briefing reporters on Election Day (November 3), begging Americans to treat any information coming from Russian-linked sources with a “hefty, hefty, hefty dose of skepticism.”  
 Disinformation payoff
 
To some extent, the repeated warnings about Russian-supported outlets like RT and Sputnik have paid off, at least when it comes to this month’s presidential election.
 
“They (RT and Sputnik) aren’t prominent domains in any of the analyses that we’ve done on false narratives of voter fraud,” Kate Starbird, a University of Washington professor and lead researcher with the Election Integrity Partnership, told VOA via email.
 
“They do sometimes amplify disinformation that is already spreading,” she added. “But they typically come in late and rarely change the trajectory of that disinformation.”
 
Some intelligence officials and researchers warn, though, that for now, that could very well be enough.
 
“You still see people sharing their (Russian) content in America,” said Clint Watts, a former FBI special agent who has been studying Russian disinformation efforts for years. “The reach of Russian news inside the U.S. … is exponentially higher than in other countries. So, they can see a return on it.”
 Redfish red herring
 
To help grow that return even more, and to avoid labels that identify the content as Russian, outlets like RT and Sputnik have also begun pushing content through the social media accounts of some of their most popular hosts, added Watts, currently a non-resident fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy. Then there is the Redfish channel on Instagram, which Watts said has allowed Russia to gain “significant traction.”“They put up a heavy rotation on George Floyd protests, and that is now where you see Americans sharing it routinely, millions and millions of shares,” Watts told VOA. “They dramatically raised their profile, particularly with the political left in the United States and African Americans, who I’m convinced have no idea that Redfish is a Russian outfit.”
 Far-right appeal
 
Russia is also finding ways to resonate with the far right.
 
According to the August report by the Global Engagement Center, Russian proxy websites like Canada’s Global Research website or the Russian-run Strategic Culture Foundation amplify conspiracy theories about subjects like the coronavirus.
 
Researchers like Watts say that propaganda then sometimes finds its way onto far-right websites such as ZeroHedge or The Duran, where it gets amplified again.
 
Another researcher warned that Russian efforts are also resonating with far-right conspiracy theorists, some of whom will pick up propaganda from proxy sites, or more mainstream sources like RT.
 
“All of these Q(Anon)-driven accounts — they love the Russian stuff,” the researcher told VOA on the condition of anonymity, given the sensitivity of the work.
 Into the mainstream
 
Not all Russian propaganda efforts circulate on the fringes of American politics. Some of the narratives hang around and are repeated often enough that they become difficult to ignore.
 
“So then, they can get somebody else from the American far right or far left to pick up on that story and then eventually snowball that so mainstream picks up on it … coopting the American media in a sense,” said Omelas’s CEO, Hu.  
 
Other times, Russia’s influence peddlers have found their contributors thrust into the spotlight.
 
For example, on November 20, U.S. President Trump repeatedly retweeted Wayne Dupree, who regularly writes opinion pieces for RT.We have great support on the Election Hoax! https://t.co/ChpkuZvc4s— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 20, 2020 
Just days earlier in a RT opinion piece, Dupree slammed what he described as “the fraudulent and brazen behavior of these Democrats to destroy the election’s integrity.”“They are all going to fall hard, along with the major news networks that have sought to brainwash the American people,” Dupree added. “The entire system is coming down, folks. Get ready.”
 
A number of researchers and U.S. counterintelligence officials say the incident falls into what has become an all-too familiar pattern.It’s actually quite a bit worse than that, the whole convergence of Kremlin media and conservative media…. https://t.co/dlJsUeeZOo— Clint Watts (@selectedwisdom) November 20, 2020In June, U.S. officials and lawmakers warned that RT purposefully courted outspoken, local U.S. police officers and union officials, attempting to use their reactions to protests sweeping across the country to further inflame tensions.
 
“They know they no longer need to do their own work,” National Counterintelligence and Security Center Director William Evanina told Hearst Television in October.  
 
“They’re now taking U.S. citizens’ information, and they are taking it and amplifying it,” he said. “Whether it be conspiracy theorists or legitimate folks who have wrong information, they get amplified consistently.” 
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Biden Transition to US Power Formally Starts

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden’s transition to power in Washington has formally started after a government agency declared him the apparent winner of the 2020 presidential election, even as President Donald Trump continues his long-shot attempt to upend Biden’s victory at the polls.Biden’s team of advisers immediately started reaching out Monday night to Trump officials throughout the government to learn about possible national security threats the country faces, and other immediate issues Biden will face when he is inaugurated January 20.Pentagon officials said Biden transition team members contacted the Defense Department soon after Emily Murphy, the administrator of the General Services Administration, determined that Biden is the “apparent” election winner and that the transition can begin. Murphy’s action allows Biden to tap public funds for the transition, to receive security briefings and his transition officials to gain access to federal agencies.What Resources Does the Biden Transition Get? Federal law provides for certain activities to ensure a smooth transition of power It was not immediately clear when Biden would receive his first classified national security briefing as president-elect. Biden has discussed security issues with his team of intelligence and military advisers but has yet to be handed the President’s Daily Brief, the U.S. intelligence community’s assessment of worldwide threats.Of immediate concern for Biden is the fight to control the surging number of coronavirus cases in the U.S. Biden officials want information on the Trump administration’s timetable to approve three vaccines against the virus in the next few weeks and plans for widespread inoculations of Americans starting before the end of the year and extending well into 2021.Health officials say approval of the vaccines by the Food and Drug Administration could prove to be more uneventful than the difficult task of distributing the vaccines throughout the country and scheduling millions of people to get the shots. Polls show about four in 10 Americans are wary about getting vaccinated or have already decided against it, potentially making it more difficult to control the pandemic.Other Biden transition teams are contacting officials at numerous agencies throughout the government to verse themselves on pending policy issues as well as to learn the extent to which the Trump administration removed staff members over the last four years to get rid of what the president deemed to be an entrenched “Deep State” at odds with his view of a limited government.Meanwhile, at his transition base in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware, Biden introduced some of the top appointees he named Monday, including Antony Blinken as secretary of State, Avril Haines as director of national intelligence and Alejandro Mayorkas as Homeland Security chief.Trump reluctantly eased the path for the orderly Biden transition to power to start by acquiescing in Murphy’s declaration that Biden was the apparent winner of the contentious, months-long campaign.Trump said the transition was “in the best interest of our country.”But the president vowed to continue his fight against the election outcome, saying, “Our case STRONGLY continues, we will keep up the good … fight, and I believe we will prevail!”Trump offered no concession to Biden and has not called him with congratulations, even as numerous world leaders have offered good wishes to the prospective 46th U.S. president.Trump’s defeat makes him the fifth U.S. president in the country’s 244-year history to lose re-election after a single four-year term in the White House.Trump has lost more than 30 legal challenges alleging vote and vote-counting irregularities in key battleground states but did not acknowledge defeat in allowing the Biden transition to power to move forward. Trump is continuing several lawsuits or appeals of cases he has lost to try to overturn Biden’s victory. 
On Tuesday morning, Trump said on Twitter, “Remember, the GSA has been terrific, and Emily Murphy has done a great job, but the GSA does not determine who the next President of the United States will be.” 
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Pennsylvania Certifies Biden as Winner of Presidential Election

The governor of the U.S. state of Pennsylvania said Tuesday that Joe Biden has been certified as the winner of the presidential election in the state.Governor Tom Wolf tweeted that the Pennsylvania Department of State had certified the election results for president and vice president. “As required by federal law, I’ve signed the Certificate of Ascertainment for the slate of electors for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.”Biden’s win denies Pennsylvania’s 20 electoral votes to President Donald Trump, who has made the state the centerpiece of his unsuccessful legal campaign to overturn the November 3 election results.The certified results say Biden won 3.46 million votes in the state, while Trump captured 3.38 million and Libertarian Jo Jorgensen 79,000.Trump won Pennsylvania in 2016 by about 44,000 votes over Hillary Clinton.US Agency Ascertains Biden as Election Winner, Lets Transition BeginThe move clears the way for the start of the transition of Trump’s administration and allows Biden to coordinate with federal agencies on plans for taking over January 20Pennsylvania Secretary of State Kathy Boockvar said that state elections officials and poll workers are “the true heroes of our democracy” after working “extremely long hours to ensure that every qualified voter’s vote is counted safely and securely.”A federal judge dismissed a Trump campaign lawsuit on Saturday that would have stopped the certification of the election in Pennsylvania, saying the suit lacked evidence and offered only “strained legal arguments without merit and speculative accusations.”On Monday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled that mail-in ballots are valid even if a voter did not completely fill out the outer envelope.
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Biden, Like Trump, Embraces Presidential Executive Orders

U.S. presidents often change government policy through presidential actions, issuing executive orders, proclamations or memoranda, bypassing Congress and the legislative process. Mike O’Sullivan reports, President Donald Trump has relied heavily on the tactic, and President-elect Joe Biden has promised to do the same.
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What Resources Does the Biden Transition Get?

The U.S. General Services Administration has determined president-elect Joe Biden is now eligible for certain resources and access as part of a 1964 law enacted to promote an orderly transition of executive power in the United States. Between now and his January 20 inauguration, Biden will be building out his administration, putting in place staff both to begin carrying out his policy vision when his term begins and to be able to immediately handle the national security aspects of the job. The transition team gained access to a government internet domain and email, quickly launching buildbackbetter.gov. Biden will receive information about classified threats to national security, covert military operations and pending decisions the Trump administration may have on possible uses of military force. Members of the transition team and people selected for national security positions can begin to be issued security clearances that will be necessary for doing their jobs.  Key appointees can also take part in orientation sessions to familiarize them with the workings and best practices of a government agency. The Trump administration will conduct emergency preparedness exercises with Biden’s staff. Heads of government agencies can start working with transition officials in order to ensure a smooth handover and uninterrupted execution of the government’s operations.  That includes efforts such as communicating with health experts about the plans to distribute coronavirus vaccines. Biden’s team can use up to $6.3 million in federal funding for its transition operations.  It also gains access to federal office space, including areas where Biden can receive sensitive intelligence briefings. 
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Biden Taps Veteran US Diplomat Linda Thomas-Greenfield as UN Ambassador 

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden has named veteran diplomat Linda Thomas-Greenfield to join his forthcoming Cabinet as his pick for U.N. ambassador, his transition team announced Monday. The post requires Senate confirmation.Thomas-Greenfield has worked in both Democratic and Republican administrations during her 35-year State Department career. An Africa specialist, she served as U.S. ambassador to Liberia, and held posts in Kenya, The Gambia and Nigeria. Under President Barack Obama, she served as the assistant secretary for the Bureau of African Affairs (2013-2017), developing and managing Washington’s policy toward sub-Saharan Africa. She has also worked in Geneva at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. Thomas-Greenfield was a senior manager at the State Department, where she served as director general of the Foreign Service and director of Human Resources from 2012 to 2013, handling matters related to the State Department’s 70,000 employees. She took to Twitter on Tuesday saying she was “blessed for this opportunity.” “I’ve had the privilege to build relationships with leaders around the world for the past thirty-five years. As U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, I’ll work to restore America’s standing in the world and renew relationships with our allies,” the longtime diplomat tweeted. I’ve had the privilege to build relationships with leaders around the world for the past thirty-five years. As U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, I’ll work to restore America’s standing in the world and renew relationships with our allies. Blessed for this opportunity.— Linda Thomas-Greenfield (@LindaT_G) November 23, 2020Earlier, Thomas-Greenfield tweeted her mother taught her to lead with kindness and compassion and she would bring that ethos to her mission at the United Nations if she is confirmed.  
 My mother taught me to lead with the power of kindness and compassion to make the world a better place. I’ve carried that lesson with me throughout my career in Foreign Service – and, if confirmed, will do the same as Ambassador to the United Nations.— Linda Thomas-Greenfield (@LindaT_G) November 23, 2020Former colleagues also responded to her selection alongside long-time Biden foreign policy aide Anthony Blinken as the president-elect’s choice for secretary of state.  
 The choices for the two jobs I know best are outstanding. @ABlinken understands how @joebiden sees the world and will lead @StateDept with vision and respect.@LindaT_G is a valued colleague and veteran diplomat who will restore US leadership and cooperation at the @UN— Madeleine Albright (@madeleine) November 23, 2020I have worked with @ABlinken and w/ Linda Thomas-Greenfield since the Clinton years. What a perfect team – intellect, humanity, decency, care for others, patriots, wisdom. With brilliant Jake Sullivan NSA, US back better.— Wendy R. Sherman (@wendyrsherman) November 23, 2020  
Former U.S. Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman told VOA that the choice of the “highly respected” Thomas-Greenfield is “brilliant” and would be a big morale booster for career foreign service officers. Feltman, who was also the United Nation’s political chief from 2012 to 2018, said he saw Thomas-Greenfield in action many times. “I saw Linda work the room at African Union summits, and she is amazingly effective and efficient at pushing her agenda with 54 African leaders,” he said. “She leavened her diplomatic approach with real human empathy and warmth. I think she will be perfect for restoring U.S. leadership at the U.N. and sort of rebooting the U.N. and our multilateral alliances for meeting today’s challenges.”  President-elect Biden is elevating the post of U.N. ambassador to Cabinet level. In recent Democrat administrations the position has been part of the Cabinet. President Donald Trump chose to make his first U.N. ambassador, Nikki Haley, a Cabinet member, but did not elevate his current envoy, Kelly Craft.   Early life  Born in 1952 in the southern state of Louisiana, Thomas-Greenfield, who is African-American, was one of eight siblings. She said her father left school in the third grade to help support his family.  “He couldn’t read or write, but he was the smartest man I knew,” she said of him in a TED talk last year.   Thomas-Greenfield said her mother also had limited education, but a big heart. In addition to raising her own children, she took in eight siblings who lost their mother so they would not be separated.  “I didn’t have successful, educated role models in my life, but what I did have – I had the hopes and dreams of my mother, who taught me at a very early age that I could face any challenge or adversity put in my path by being compassionate and being kind,” Thomas-Greenfield said.   The former assistant secretary of state grew up during the civil rights era and graduated from a segregated high school. She then went on to Louisiana State University, which had to be forced to accept Black students by a court order.   Thomas-Greenfield said she faced harassment there and noted that David Duke, the former leader of the white supremacist group the Ku Klux Klan, was an LSU student at the same time she was, and had already started to preach hatred.   In 2012, LSU asked her back to speak at graduation.   “I thanked the university for giving me the experiences that made me into the successful person that I had become,” she said. “Adversity is a source of strength.”  Life-changing experience  In April 1994, Thomas-Greenfield arrived in Kigali, Rwanda, as ethnic Hutu extremists began their 100-day genocide against minority Tutsis.  She very nearly became a causality of the atrocities, confronted by a “glaze-eyed man” who was ready to kill her. She remained calm and spoke to the man and survived. But of the genocide, she said, “It changed my life forever.”  FILE – United States Secretary of State John Kerry, center, reacts as Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari shakes hands with Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Linda Thomas-Greenfield at the presidential villa in Abuja, Aug. 23, 2016.Thomas-Greenfield’s deep knowledge of Africa will serve her well at the United Nations, where more than half the peace and security operations the Security Council authorizes are based on the continent.   She has a traditional diplomatic style, said Ambassador Ronald Neumann, president of the American Academy of Diplomacy, of which Thomas-Greenfield is a member.  “She puts a lot of attention on listening, on understanding where the other person is coming from, and therefore ensuring that she can prepare the best way of persuading them to do what she wants,” Neumann told VOA. He added that she will also be ready to build alliances.   Thomas-Greenfield will need to employ her diplomatic style in coping with challenges to U.S. influence at the United Nations, where the Trump administration has cut funding, withdrawn from agencies and international accords, and pursued an “America first” policy.   “The United States is going to have to compete for influence far more assertively than we are accustomed to doing at the U.N.,” Feltman said. “China has become far more assertive at the U.N. than it was, say at the beginning of Obama administration. You have a lot of middle powers that are not willing to defer to the great powers – they have their own interests in their own region.”   There will also be a long list of other issues awaiting her attention if she is confirmed: COVID-19, climate change, Iran’s nuclear program, the changing Middle East, and the growing refugee and migrant crisis.   
 
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Biden Chooses Antony Blinken for Secretary of State

President-elect Joe Biden has announced several of his top cabinet picks, naming his long-time close adviser and former deputy secretary of state Antony Blinken as his choice to be the next secretary of state. VOA’s Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine has more on Blinken, who is known as a staunch supporter of international alliances, human rights and refugees.
Produced by: Barry Unger
 
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Biden Names His Diplomatic, National Security Team

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden named his top diplomatic and national security team for his incoming administration on Monday, including one of his closest foreign affairs advisers, Antony Blinken, to be secretary of state.Biden also named a former top U.S. diplomat, one-time Secretary of State John Kerry, to a new position as special presidential envoy for climate while holding a seat on the National Security Council. It was a reflection, the Biden transition said, of the incoming president’s commitment to addressing climate change as an urgent national security issue.Biden is set to become the 46th U.S. president, and at 78, its oldest, at his inauguration on January 20, even as President Donald Trump continues his long-shot legal attempt to upend the Democrat’s November 3 election victory.Biden, overseeing his transition to power in Washington from his home in Wilmington, Delaware, selected Alejandro Mayorkas as head of the Department of Homeland Security. A Cuban American lawyer, he is a former deputy secretary at the agency, and if confirmed by the Senate, would be its first Latino and immigrant leader.The incoming U.S. president picked an African American, former Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, a 35-year veteran of the U.S. Foreign Service who has served on four continents, to serve as the U.S. envoy to the United Nations. Biden elevated her role to a seat in his Cabinet, a rank past presidents have also occasionally given the high-profile position.FILE – Then-Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Linda Thomas-Greenfield, right, testifies during a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 9, 2014.Biden picked another woman, Avril Haines, as director of national intelligence. She is a former deputy director of the Central Intelligence Agency and a deputy national security adviser, She will be the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community.Jake Sullivan, a Biden foreign affairs adviser, was named as his national security adviser.In announcing the appointments, Biden said, “We have no time to lose when it comes to our national security and foreign policy. I need a team ready on Day One to help me reclaim America’s seat at the head of the table, rally the world to meet the biggest challenges we face, and advance our security, prosperity, and values.”“This is the crux of that team,” Biden said. “These individuals are equally as experienced and crisis-tested as they are innovative and imaginative. Their accomplishments in diplomacy are unmatched, but they also reflect the idea that we cannot meet the profound challenges of this new moment with old thinking and unchanged habits — or without diversity of background and perspective. It’s why I’ve selected them.”Biden appears set to re-engage the United States in an array of global alliances that Trump abandoned over the last four years.The 58-year-old Blinken is a veteran of U.S. foreign affairs decision-making for two decades, and according to multiple news accounts, agrees with Biden on the need for the U.S. to play a leading role again in world affairs, a change from Trump’s “America First” credo that at times left the United States at odds with other long-time Western allies.In his first days in office, Biden has said he plans to overturn Trump policies and rejoin the Paris climate agreement, stop the U.S. exit from the World Health Organization and attempt to again join other nations in the international pact to curb Iran’s nuclear weapons development.Blinken, if confirmed by the Senate, would become the face of U.S. diplomacy. He served first under former President Bill Clinton, then later as deputy secretary of state and deputy national security adviser under former Democratic President Barack Obama when Biden was vice president. And while Republican former President George W. Bush was in power, Blinken was the Democratic staff director for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.Biden could announce other Cabinet-level nominations on Tuesday even as Trump continues to contest Biden’s election and tries to avoid becoming the third U.S. leader in the last four decades to be ousted after a single term in the White House.FILE – President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris participate in a meeting with state officials, at The Queen Theater, Nov. 19, 2020, in Wilmington, Delaware.Virtual meeting with mayorsBiden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on Monday are meeting virtually with the U.S. Conference of Mayors. The non-partisan organization includes the mayors of more than 1,400 cities, each with a population of 30,000 or more.The conference has pushed for more federal aid to state and local governments as the number of coronavirus cases surges in the U.S. But negotiations for more relief have stalled between Congress and the White House. Biden has called for a new aid deal before he takes office but prospects for its passage by the end of December are uncertain.Trump is continuing to claim he won the election despite Biden’s unofficial 306-232 majority vote in the Electoral College. The electoral vote determines U.S. presidential elections, not the national popular vote, although Biden leads there, too, by more than 6 million votes.Trump’s legal fight against the election results has been fruitless so far, with his campaign losing or withdrawing 34 lawsuits claiming vote and vote-counting fraud in key battleground states Biden was projected to win to claim a four-year term in the White House.Trump is pursuing other lawsuits and appeals of decisions he has lost, attempting to upend Biden’s win.
 
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Biden to Name First Cabinet Members Tuesday 

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is expected to name the first members of his Cabinet on Tuesday, reportedly including former deputy secretary of state Antony Blinken as his choice to lead the State Department. Blinken has close ties to Biden after serving in high-level national security roles while Biden was vice president during the Obama administration.  His expected nomination was reported by multiple news organizations late Sunday. Also among the expected Cabinet picks are Linda Thomas-Greenfield, a former assistant secretary of state for Africa, as Biden’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, and Jake Sullivan to be Biden’s national security adviser. No concession, new fraud allegations
While Biden is transitioning to become the country’s 46th president at his inauguration on January 20, Trump has refused to concede the election. On Sunday, the outgoing U.S. leader told his followers on Twitter, “We will find massive numbers of fraudulent ballots…Fight hard Republicans.”  It’s all about the signatures on the envelopes. Why are the Democrats fighting so hard to hide them. We will find massive numbers of fraudulent ballots. The signatures won’t match. Fight hard Republicans. Don’t let them destroy the evidence! https://t.co/qN2jHGeWEN— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 22, 2020But Trump’s legal fight has been fruitless so far, with his campaign losing or withdrawing 34 lawsuits claiming vote and vote-counting fraud in key battleground states Biden was projected to win to claim a four-year term in the White House.  Trump has not upended the vote count in any state, leaving intact Biden’s unofficial 306-232 majority vote in the Electoral College. It determines U.S. presidential elections, not the national popular vote, although Biden leads there, too, by more than 6 million votes.  Trump’s legal team filed an appeal Sunday after its latest courtroom defeat contesting the election came late Saturday in Pennsylvania, whose 20 electoral votes Biden won by an 81,000-vote margin. U.S. District Judge Matthew Brann declared that the Trump campaign had presented “strained legal arguments without merit and speculative accusations” in its effort to throw out millions of votes in Pennsylvania and hand the state’s electoral votes to Trump.“In the United States of America, this cannot justify the disenfranchisement of a single voter, let alone all the voters of its sixth most populated state,” Brann wrote.Republicans urge Trump to accept loss
After Brann’s decision was announced, a key Republican Trump supporter in the state, Senator Pat Toomey, urged the president to accept his election loss.FILE – Sen. Pat Toomey returns from a break in the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, at the Capitol in Washington, Feb. 3, 2020.“President Trump has exhausted all plausible legal options to challenge the result of the presidential race in Pennsylvania,” Toomey said. “I congratulate President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris on their victory. They are both dedicated public servants and I will be praying for them and for our country.” Another Trump adviser, former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, told the ABC show, “The conduct of the president’s legal team has been a national embarrassment.”Christie said Trump should concede and that Republicans should instead focus on winning two Senate run-off elections in the southern state of Georgia in early January that will determine whether Republicans or Democrats control the Senate for the next two years.“The rearview mirror should be ripped off,” Christie said.
After a hand recount of 5 million votes, Georgia Friday certified Biden’s victory there, while Pennsylvania and the midwestern state of Michigan could do the same on Monday. The Trump campaign has since requested another recount of the votes in Georgia.  FILE – Officials work on ballots at the Gwinnett County Voter Registration and Elections Headquarters, Nov. 6, 2020, in Lawrenceville, near Atlanta, Georgia.Transition stalled
Despite his legal setbacks, Trump has refused to authorize his administration to cooperate with Biden on his transition to power.  Biden aide Klain rebuked Emily Murphy, the Trump-appointed head of the General Services Administration, for so far refusing to ascertain that Biden is the apparent election winner so that federal funding can be made available for the transfer in control of the government and Biden aides can talk with officials at numerous agencies. “I hope that the administrator of the GSA will do her job,” Klain said, referring to Murphy. Klain said the Republican president’s efforts to overturn the results were a disgrace, “definitely not the democratic norm.” “A record number of Americans rejected the Trump presidency, and since then Donald Trump’s been rejecting democracy,” Klain said. Klain said that with the surging outbreak of the coronavirus in the United States, Biden’s inauguration would be “scaled down” from the normal large event on the steps of the U.S. Capitol followed by a luncheon with key lawmakers, a parade down Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House and gala inaugural balls in the evening.  But he said plans have not been finalized. “There is something here to celebrate,” Klain said. “We just want to do it in a safe way.” 
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