Dave Portnoy, the founder and owner of Barstool Sports, absolutely lost it over President Joe Biden’s pardon of his son Hunter on Monday, accusing the Democrats’ political class of being “fucking scumbag liars.”

On Sunday, Biden went back on his promise not to pardon his son, instead offering him a sweeping pardon for any and all federal crimes he might have committed between the beginning of 2014 and the present day, prompting Portnoy “to do 1 last political rant after Joe Biden pardoned Hunter Biden.”

After playing a clip of White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre insisting Biden wouldn’t pardon his kin, Portnoy launched into his rant by admitting that he “would probably do the same thing,” but wouldn’t have lied about it.

“Now, this is the point of this rant. And I’ve been saying it over, and over, and over, and why the Democrats got slaughtered in the election because they think they’re morally superior to everybody else. So any Democrat, and lots of them, whenever you say this is like, ‘What a fucking liar Biden and the Democrats are, can you believe it?’ They always [say] ‘Yeah, bup, bup, bup, bup, bup, bup, Trump. Bup bup bup bup bup bup bup bup bup bup bup bup.’ Your brain is broken. Your brain is broken,” he began. “You don’t get it. Because here’s the thing. What the Democrats have done for, I don’t know, 12 years, have taken this moral high ground that we’re the righteous party, the truth, honesty, integrity. And Trump is a threat to democracy. He’s Hitler, and he’s a Nazi, and this, and that. And then the Democrats, whether it’s the primary or this, time and again, they’re worse than anything Trump has ever done. So if you’re like ‘bup, bup, bup, bup, bup,’ it’s not that. It’s the lecturing, it’s the Democrats, this engine just lying straight to our face, pretending they’re the moral, righteous authority, and thinking the American people are so stupid that we don’t see through it. Blow up the Democratic Party!”

He continued:

I’m not saying if you vote Democrat, you’re a liberal, I’m saying the Democratic Party, the people, the talking heads who sit there and call Republicans trash and we’re stupid, no strong women around Trump. This is why you got obliterated in the election, because you guys are all fucking liars. You sit on a house of lies, a throne of lies. You’re no morally better than anybody else. Stop pretending it, we see through you. And time and time and time and time again, your true colors come forward. So stop pretending that you’re this moral, righteous authority, and you’re so true and virtuous. You guys are fucking scumbag liars. And you prove it time and again. And this is just the latest in a long line with Hunter Biden. Yeah, I would pardon my son too if I had one, if I could save his ass, too. I just wouldn’t lie about it like you guys lie about it. And by the way, everybody knew the lie was coming. Everybody! It’s fucking pathetic. That’s it, I’m done, hopefully done with the political rants, but it’s just so crazy. It’s like, and then you’ll see Democrats still trying to be like, defending it. Just give up, blow it up, start over. We’ll see ya the next election.

If you are a member of a travel loyalty program, the end of the year is a crucial time to check in with your status and benefits so you are set up for success in 2025. With the possibility of earning (or losing) status levels or using (or missing out on) valuable credits, here are five important steps to take with your points and miles right now.

Shore up your elite status

If you have or are working toward elite status with an airline or hotel loyalty program, check your balance to determine how many miles or qualifying dollars you need to accrue before the end of the year to maintain or bump up to the next level. Many loyalty programs reset on Jan. 1, so if you are close, it may be worthwhile to book a flight or a stay(cation) this month.

The process and rules for earning and keeping elite status vary by program, but some airlines and hotels allow you to earn on flights and stays booked with points, so you could potentially redeem an award and score status without paying out of pocket. Alternatively, cobranded credit cards sometimes come with elite status as a perk, so you could consider adding one to your wallet.

Check annual spending thresholds

Similarly, check if you are nearing an annual spend threshold on a travel credit card that could earn you rewards like a companion ticket, flight credit, or free hotel night. The American Express Delta SkyMiles Gold card, for example, offers a $200 flight credit with a $10,000 spend in a calendar year, while the World of Hyatt card offers a free night once you've spent $15,000 in a calendar year.

Obviously you shouldn't spend excessively just to spend, but consider strategizing to put any remaining purchases this year toward earning your bonus.

Take advantage of remaining travel credits

Don't let your credit card annual fee be for naught: If you have statement credits, membership credits, or other benefits that expire at the end of the calendar year, redeem them now. Similarly, make sure you activate any offers that end on Dec. 31, such as the Lyft Pink All Access membership on the Chase Sapphire Reserve.

Redeem expiring rewards, points, and miles

Do an audit of your airline and hotel award balances to see what you have available, and make sure you know if and when any of those points and miles expire. Few loyalty programs still use expiration dates, but you don't want to lose rewards you were counting on having later. If any are set to expire at the end of the year, check the program policies for options to defer the date (such as by spending a small portion), or plan to use them now.

In addition, check for any perks that must be redeemed within a calendar year, such as Marriott's nightly upgrade reward for elite Bonvoy members.

Select choice benefits

Some loyalty programs allow elite status holders to choose additional benefits, like room upgrades, statement credits, lounge memberships, or gifting status to someone else—but those selections often have deadlines around the end of the year. Marriott Bonvoy members have until Jan. 7, 2025 to select their annual choice benefit, while Delta SkyMiles Diamond and Platinum Medallion holders have a Jan. 31, 2025 deadline for the 2024 status year.

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.

I'm a fatalist, averse to the concept of offending destiny by planning for anything, but I still love my Jackery 1000 portable power station. It's partly because I'm vaguely concerned about the power grid going down if there's a disaster, but it's mostly because I like to be comfortable when I'm camping.

Jackery 1000 Solar Generator

$699.00 at Amazon

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Get Deal

$699.00 at Amazon

$1,299.00 Save $600.00

Put simply, The Jackery 1000 is a honkin' huge battery that's 46% off on Amazon for Cyber Monday. It boasts an output of 1,500W—enough to keep your refrigerator or air conditioner running while you wait for the civil authorities—and it weighs less than 24 pounds. You can even charge it with the freakin' sun (if you have a ton of spare time).

While the advantages of having working lights and appliances during a blackout are obvious, it's not like it's gonna sit there gathering dust until the big one hits. You can bring it to a beach party to keep everyone's phones topped off, or you can pair it with an electric throw like this Sunbeam Royal Ultra Fleece and take it camping.

Camping is where I fell in deep, deep love with big battery. I like camping, especially in the autumn, but I hate being cold. I've tried all kinds of sleeping bag and blanket configurations over the years, and I always either wake up shivering in the middle of the night, or have nightmares because I'm cocooned in a little bag like a frozen burrito waiting to be microwaved. But a couple weeks ago, I brought this battery and an electric blanket to the campground, and it changed camping entirely. Totally warm, all night, even though the outside temperature was California-freezing at like 40 degrees. It has enough power to keep a reasonable blanket on all night and charge your cell at the same time, and it doesn't even take up much space in the tent. In short: you need one.

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

A number of pollsters who expressed frustration at the industry’s inability to accurately poll elections with Donald Trump at the top of the ticket told Politico Saturday they more or less figured it out in 2024.

Polls in 2016 and 2020 appeared to show Trump in deep trouble against Democratic rivals Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden. Trump defeated Clinton in 2016 and lost to Biden in 2020.

Since 2016, much has been made of the so-called “shy” or “hidden” Trump voters – those who were apprehensive about admitting they intended to vote for the now president-elect.

Republican pollster Whit Ayres explained, “In the past, we have had a lot of Trump supporters who have simply refused to answer our questions … We call, ‘I’m from the New York Times or The LA Times or The Washington Post, and I’m doing a survey,’ and they go, ‘Well, to hell with you,’ click.”

Democratic pollster Paul Maslin told Politico, “The very same Trump voters who don’t trust experts, don’t trust the media, don’t trust science — also don’t trust pollsters.  We found in several states that simply, they were opting out.” Politico’s Irie Sentner reported:

Opinion researchers swung and missed in 2016 and 2020, systematically underestimating Trump’s level of support. But in 2024, the polls corrected — and both popular vote and swing state results landed within the margin of error for aggregate predictions. Pollsters argue that they finally cracked the challenge of pinning down Trump voters, an elusive segment of the polling population that has caused polls to veer off the mark in previous election cycles when Trump was on the ticket.

[…]

In order to correct course, researchers this year “jumped through a lot of hoops,” Ayres said, in order to reach greater numbers of Trump voters and more accurately predict the outcome. They adjusted modeling of the likely electorate, weighted more heavily certain demographic groups, and adjusted their outreach strategy to non-college-educated voters, who tend to lean Republican.

That manifested in final polling aggregates showing five of the swing states in a dead heat, with Trump having comfortable leads in Arizona and Nevada. The polls also accurately forecasted Trump’s strength with white voters and Harris’ softness with Black and Latino men, which contributed to Trump’s decisive victory. The president-elect ended up sweeping all of the battlegrounds, an outcome pollsters attributed to undecided voters splitting unevenly — and perhaps surprisingly — toward Trump.

Trump won all seven battleground states after most polls showed him statistically tied with Vice President Kamala Harris down the final stretch. Joe Rogan’s late Trump endorsement was flagged as one potential factor that helped some undecided voters break late for him.

Republican pollster Brent Buchanan noted that people who are undecided late tend to vote Democratic but added, “This year, Trump benefited from undecideds.”

Sentner concluded:

Pollsters have largely blamed Trump as the variable driving inaccuracies in 2016 and 2020. “It’s a Trump issue, not a Republican issue,” said Ayres, who has four decades of GOP polling experience. Looking toward 2028 — the first presidential election without Trump in a dozen years — Eyres predicted “we can reasonably expect whatever problems we had getting Trump voters to go away.”

AP Photo/Susan Walsh

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) said Sunday that he agreed with Elon Musk about reining in some government spending, particularly regarding Defense Department spending.

Musk and venture capitalist Vivek Ramaswamy have been tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to find and eliminate spending deemed unnecessary.

The pair will run the advisory committee the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) once Trump takes office next month.

On his X page on Sunday, Sanders offered support for Musk – a billionaire who he has criticized in the past.

“Elon Musk is right. The Pentagon, with a budget of $886 billion, just failed its 7th audit in a row. It’s lost track of billions,” he wrote. “Last year, only 13 senators voted against the Military Industrial Complex and a defense budget full of waste and fraud. That must change.”

In March 2021, Sanders took to his page to rip Musk and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, describing their combined net worth as “immoral.”

“We are in a moment in American history where two guys — Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos — own more wealth than the bottom 40% of people in this country,” Sanders tweeted. “That level of greed and inequality is not only immoral. It is unsustainable.”

Three days later, after Musk defended his personal wealth and said he intended to use it for the betterment of humanity, Sanders replied, “Space travel is an exciting idea, but right now we need to focus on Earth and create a progressive tax system so that children don’t go hungry, people are not homeless and all Americans have healthcare. The level of inequality in America is obscene and a threat to our democracy.”

Last month, Musk tweeted he would be transparent about what DOGE would slash form the federal budget and why:

Republican Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) called current FBI Director Christopher Wray a “very good man” to lead the Bureau, in the wake of news that President-Elect Donald Trump was orchestrating Wray’s ouster.

Trump appointed Wray to the position in 2017 but has since accused the FBI of becoming “weaponized” against him and his MAGA allies. On Saturday, Trump announced that he was nominating loyalist Kash Patel to replace Wray as FBI director.

Rounds told ABC’s Jonathan Karl, “It doesn’t surprise me that he will pick people that he believes are very loyal to himself.”

Rounds continued:

Chris Wray, you know, who the president nominated the first time around, I think the president picked a very good man to be the director of the FBI when he did that in his first term. When we meet with him behind closed doors, I’ve had no objections to the way that he’s handled himself. And, so, I don’t have any complaints about the way that he’s done his job right now. And, once again, the president has the right to make nominations, but normally these are for a 10-year term.

We’ll see what his process is, and whether he actually makes that nomination. And then, if he does, just as with anybody who is nominated for one of these positions, once they’ve been nominated by the president, then the president gets, you know, the benefit of the doubt on the nomination, but we still go through a process, and that process includes advice and consent, which, for the Senate, means advice or consent sometimes.

Karl then asked if it would be a “mistake” for Trump to fire Wray.

“You know, look…the one thing that we’ve learned is, is we don’t speak for the president-elect. We simply respond when we’re asked questions about what we’re going to do. The message, and one that I feel very strongly about, is, is that there is a constitutional separation. The founding fathers did that for a reason.”

Watch the clip above via ABC News.

(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

Donald Trump on Saturday announced his nomination of Charles Kushner, father of Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner, to serve as United States Ambassador to France. Trump famously issued a presidential pardon for the elder Kushner in 2020 just before leaving office.

Jared Kushner, who is married to Ivanka Trump, served as a senior adviser to the first Trump administration, but has said he does intend to be part of the second.

His father Charles was convicted of tax evasion and witness tampering in 2005, in a prosecution by then-US Attorney Chris Christie in New Jersey. Kushner served two years and was pardoned in 2020 along with Paul Manafort, Roger Stone, and others by Trump.

“I am pleased to nominate Charles Kushner, of New Jersey, to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to France. He is a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, & dealmaker, who will be a strong advocate representing our Country & its interests,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post he shared on Saturday of the Thanksgiving weekend.

I am pleased to nominate Charles Kushner, of New Jersey, to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to France. He is a tremendous business leader, philanthropist, & dealmaker, who will be a strong advocate representing our Country & its interests. Charlie is the Founder & Chairman of Kushner Companies, one of the largest & most successful privately held Real Estate firms in the Nation. He was recognized as New Jersey Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young, appointed to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, & served as a Commissioner, & Chairman, of the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, as well as on the Boards of our top institutions, including NYU.

Congratulations to Charlie, his wonderful wife Seryl, their 4 children, & 14 grandchildren. His son, Jared, worked closely with me in the White House, in particular on Operation Warp Speed, Criminal Justice Reform, & the Abraham Accords. Together, we will strengthen America’s partnership with France, our oldest Ally, & one of our greatest!

Trump’s nominations and appointments for various positions in his second term have continued after he finished his full list of Cabinet-level names last week.