New Orleans attack: The FBI identifies the truck driver in the New Orleans terrorist attack as Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a U.S. citizen from Houston, Texas. He was killed in a shootout with police after driving his truck into a crowd on Bourbon Street. The death toll stood at 15 this morning with about three dozen people hospitalized with injuries. Jabbar was an ISIS sympathizer and had an ISIS flag attached to the trailer hook on the rented truck he used in the attack.
Trump: Donald Trump has falsely identified the truck driver in the New Orleans mass killing as an immigrant. Trump posted on social media that the New Orleans attack shows that what he has been saying about immigrant criminals coming into the U.S. is true and that Democrats and the news media are wrong to say otherwise. Trump also said that crime in the U.S. is at levels no one has ever seen before, when crime rates in the U.S. actually have been steadily falling.
Las Vegas: Investigators are trying to determine whether the explosion of a Tesla vehicle outside of the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas yesterday was a terrorist incident related to the mass killing in New Orleans. The Tesla truck had been rented from the same source in Colorado as was the truck used in the New Orleans killing, according to preliminary information released by investigators. One person in the Tesla vehicle was killed and seven people were injured. Fireworks, gas cans and camping fuel canisters were found in the burned out vehicle.
Johnson: Donald Trump has endorsed Rep. Mike Johnson to become Speaker of the House in the 119th Congress that is due to convene tomorrow. However, Johnson is facing opposition from Republican extremists who are angry at him for having made a deal with the Democrats to temporarily avoid a government shutdown. Some supporters of Johnson are making the argument that a fight over the speakership would delay the certification of Donald Trump as the next president by interfering with the scheduled Jan. 6 recording of Electoral College votes.
Gaza: The director general of the Gaza Police was among the eleven people reported killed overnight in an Israeli attack. Gaza officials accuse Israel of targeting Major General Mahmoud Salah in order to create more chaos. Israel did not admit to killing Salah, but did admit to killing his deputy. Israel said the deputy was a terrorist who worked closely with Hamas. Â
Medals: President Biden was scheduled to award Presidential Citizens Medals today to former Republican Congresswoman Liz Cheney and Democrat Congressman Bernie Thompson for their work on the House committee that investigated the Jan. 6 attempt to overthrow the government and keep Donald Trump in the White House. Thompson was chairman of the committee and Cheney was the Republican co-chair. Biden was scheduled to award medals to 20 people at today’s ceremony.
