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Today's Headlines: Clarence Thomas showed up to Congress yesterday and was all sus about why, though Politico reported Republicans say he was there for the special members-only doctor's office. The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that mail ballots postmarked by election day can be counted even if they arrive up to five days later — not what Trump wanted, who went off on the justices despite his own voters benefiting equally — and separately declined to hear his appeal of the E. Jean Carroll verdict, meaning he has to pay her $5 million. The Court also overturned the 91-year-old Humphrey's Executor precedent, allowing Trump to fire FTC commissioners without cause and setting a standard that applies to basically every federal regulator except the Federal Reserve Board, meaning he still can't fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook like he wanted. More major rulings are expected this week on transgender athletes in sports, campaign finance, and birthright citizenship, which the administration is determined to end. In other news, Airbnb cofounder Joe Gebbia, now running Trump's "National Design Studio" alongside DOGE veterans, has reportedly been quietly rebuilding government websites — including passport applications, TrumpRX, and a White House-controlled mirror of vote.gov — with tracking code that records and replays every click, scroll, and keystroke and sends the data somewhere off the public internet, so that's normal. Meanwhile, a Wall Street Journal investigation found that over 1,000 viral Polymarket betting videos showing people winning big were entirely staged — Polymarket paid influencers to post fake wins using a password-protected dupe website that mimicked real trades, then paid clippers to spread the videos, racking up 140 million views of completely fabricated winnings. And finally, Comcast announced it's spinning off NBCUniversal — including Bravo, SNL, Law & Order, the theme parks, and Peacock — to focus on broadband, and investors loved it, sending shares up over 4% after a rough year.
Resources/Articles mentioned:
The Daily Beast: Clarence Thomas, 78, Busted on Mystery Medical Visit
SCOTUS Blog: Justices uphold state law allowing for late-arriving mail-in ballots
The Hill: Supreme Court won’t hear Trump’s bid to overturn Carroll sexual abuse verdict
SCOTUS Blog: Supreme Court allows Trump to fire FTC commissioner and overturns major restraint on presidential power | SCOTUSblog
SCRIPPS News: Eight cases await Supreme Court ruling as major opinion day arrives Monday
The Guardian: ‘It’s dangerous and it’s going to erode trust’: redesign of US government websites stokes surveillance fears | Trump administration
WSJ: They Looked Like They Were Getting Rich on Polymarket—but None of It Was Real
WSJ: Comcast Plans Company Split as Competition Escalates
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