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The Daily Briefing

YOUR MORNING NEWS ROUNDUP

Fri Dec 13 2024

Jane Onyanga-Omara | Audience Editor

President Biden promised to take "more steps" following the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history. Dr. Mehmet Oz has invested in companies that do business with the agency he would run if he becomes the country's top health insurance regulator. Taylor Swift and Beyoncé came out on top at the Billboard Music Awards.

👋🏾 I'm Jane, Daily Briefing author. It's Friday the 13th. Why do some consider the day so unlucky?

Who's next after Biden's single-day record act of clemency?

First came President Joe Biden's controversial pardon this month of his son, Hunter Biden. It was followed Thursday by the largest single-day act of clemency in modern history: commuting the sentences of nearly 1,500 people and pardoning 39 others convicted of nonviolent crimes.

Biden promised to take "more steps in the weeks ahead" as he announced the sweeping reprieves for nonviolent, mostly drug-related offenders he said have successfully reintegrated into their communities and deserved a "second chance."

•	Biden and his senior aides are considering potential preemptive pardons for individuals they fear President-elect Donald Trump might target for criminal investigations.
•	Meanwhile, criminal justice advocates want Biden to sign off on all 10,000 pending clemency petitions.
•	Other activists and progressive Democrats are urging Biden to commute the sentences of 40 men on federal death row, fearing the return of Trump will restart federal executions, which had been paused under the Biden administration.

RSVP? Dems split on snubbing or showing up for Trump's inauguration

Donald Trump's second inauguration will be a triumphant return for a former president many believed to be permanently barred from Washington four years ago after denying his 2020 election loss. But for Democrats and their allies, Jan. 20, 2025 is a dreaded date. And they're not sure about attending the time-honored transfer of power in person. "I'm not quite sure what I would be celebrating with his inauguration," Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland told USA TODAY. For Democrats who agree with Raskin, no amount of calls for returning to normalcy will persuade them to attend Trump's swearing-in ceremony. Read more

More news to know now

•	"Steady progress": Crews aided by rain, cooler temps in containing Malibu's Franklin Fire.
•	Family of Hannah Kobayashi turns off GoFundMe donations, offers refund after woman found.
•	Players paid thousands for a new chance at college football. Where did the money go?
•	Wife of "missing kayaker" Ryan Borgwardt, who staged his own death, files for separation.
•	Elon Musk's skyrocketing net worth: He's the first person with over $400 billion.

What's the weather today? Check your local forecast here.

Missing American Travis Timmerman found in Syrian prison

An American man who said he illegally entered Syria on foot from Lebanon as part of a Christian pilgrimage and then spent about seven months in a Damascus prison, spoke to reporters on Thursday. Travis Timmerman, 29, was found by residents this week wandering barefoot in a suburb south of Syria's capital. The Missouri man appears to have been freed along with thousands of detainees from Syria's jails after the toppling of the country's longtime dictator, President Bashar Assad. Syrian residents and journalists initially mistakenly believed Timmerman was Austin Tice, an American journalist who vanished in Syria more than a decade ago. Read more

Travis Timmerman speaks with reporters in a house in Damascus on Dec.12, 2024, after he was found after rebels toppled longtime President Bashar al-Assad.

ABDULAZIZ KETAZ, AFP via Getty Images

Dr. Mehmet Oz had up to $33 million in companies doing business with agency he'd run

Dr. Mehmet Oz, President-elect Donald Trump's pick to be the top health insurance regulator in the country, has invested in companies that do business with the agency he would run. Oz, Trump's choice to run Medicare, Medicaid and the insurance marketplace under the Affordable Care Act, owned up to $33.7 million in stock in these companies when he filed a financial disclosure during his unsuccessful 2022 campaign for Senate in Pennsylvania. "All nominees and appointees will comply with the ethical obligations of their respective agencies," Brian Hughes, a spokesperson for the Trump-Vance transition, said in a statement to USA TODAY when asked if Oz still owns these stocks. Read more

Today's talkers

•	College football awards: Full list of winners for the 2024 season.
•	Turn 16 PTO days into 55 days of vacation: Here's which days to request.
•	Meet some of the pets entered in USA's Favorite Pet contest.
•	Zillow gives a peek inside Santa's house on Jingle Bell Boulevard.

Taylor Swift makes history at Billboard Music Awards, Beyoncé wins first country accolade

Taylor Swift made history at the Billboard Music Awards (BBMAs), becoming the most decorated artist of all time. Going into the Thursday night broadcast − on the eve of her 35th birthday − the "Bejeweled" singer was tied with Drake at 39 career wins each. The odds were in her favor with 17 nominations in 16 categories. The singer-songwriter walked away with 10 BBMAs for her work in 2024. Meanwhile, Beyoncé took home her first country award after her eighth studio album "Cowboy Carter" garnered the award for top country female artist. Read more

Beyoncé and Taylor Swift.

ROBYN BECK, AFP via Getty Images

Photo of the day: 'Squirrel stuck in a tree' tops funniest wildlife photos

A photo capturing a squirrel in what appears to be a compromising position is the winner of the Nikon Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards 2024. For what judges described as "his excellent capture of a red squirrel stuck in a tree," Italian photographer Milko Marchetti was announced the winner at the awards ceremony in London this week.