Politics

The value of the Venezuelan Bolivar has crashed by 50% in the last two months, breaking above 2000/$ on the black market today for the first time ever. We know this thanks to Gustavo Díaz, a Home Depot employee in central Alabama, who runs one of Venezuela’s most popular and insurgent websites, DolarToday.com, which provides a benchmark exchange rate used by his compatriots to buy and sell black-market dollars.

Five days after meeting with president-elect Donald Trump in what was described as a "candid meeting",  New York Mayor Bill de Blasio delivered what Bloomberg dubbed a "campaign-style rebuke to the President-elect" vowing to resist the "excess of Trump" including federal efforts to deport undocumented immigrants, push more aggressive police actions against minorities or remove health services from women and the poor.

Shortly after Russia admitted that it was moving nuclear-capable rockets to the exclave of Kaliningrad in explicit retaliation for NATO encroachment on its borders, something it had not done until today, another old hotzone has flared up again when moments ago the Russian military reported that Ukranian security operatives have abducted two Russian servicemen in Crimea, and are attempting to press criminal charges against them, the Russian military is reporting.

Mitt Romney is reportedly being considered for Secretary of State as well:

Vice President-elect Mike Pence confirmed Sunday that Romney is under “active consideration” for secretary of state.

“The President-elect was very grateful that Gov. Mitt Romney came in. They had a good meeting. It was a warm and substantive exchange. I know he is under active consideration to be secretary of state of the United States along with some other distinguished Americans,” Pence said on “Fox News Sunday.”

Bloomberg political reporter Jennifer Epstein reports that a gaggle of mainstream media TV executives and anchors entered the Trump Tower elevators shortly before 1pm for a meeting with Donald Trump. Among those named were the who-is-who of the prime time news circuit, including the following.

ABC:

George StephanopoulosMartha RadatzDavid Muir

CBS:

Charlies RoseJohn DickersonNorah O'DonnellGayle King

CNN:

Jeff ZuckerWold BlitzerErin Burnett

Fox: