MY NEW YORK POST CHRISTMAS COLUMN: In a Christmas season of renewal, Trump’s boldness is bringing hopeful change.

And this bit probably isn’t entirely within the Christmas spirit, but then again naughty boys are supposed to get a lump of coal. “The hysteria led to two assassination attempts — and after a brief pause, lasting about 15 minutes, they started calling him Hitler again. A lesser man would have folded under the pressure. Just imagine how fast Mitt Romney would have tucked his tail between his legs, apologized for existing and Stockholm-Syndromed himself into being a Democratic Party tool. (Well, OK, you don’t really have to imagine that.)”

Plus thoughts on Millei and Bukele.

IF, AS SOME ARE URGING, HE BLANKET-PARDONS ALL ILLEGALS YOU CAN EXPECT THE MENTAL COMPETENCY ISSUE TO BE SERIOUSLY RAISED:

.@POTUS was deemed unfit to be charged in the classified documents case, but is now mentally sound enough to issue pardons and commute sentences? When and where do we draw the line that we don't let them cross?

— Rep. Tim Burchett (@RepTimBurchett) December 23, 2024

Contracts, wills, and other legal actions are null and void if a party is mentally incompetent, as Joe Biden obviously is. The Congress and the Trump Department of Justice should investigate whether these pardons for depraved murderers are binding.

Who is making these decisions…

— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) December 23, 2024

I should note that when Tennessee Governor Ray Blanton’s term was coming to an end, and he was under investigation for pardon-selling, they swore in his successor, Lamar Alexander, three days early to limit the damage and to prevent Blanton from pardoning himself. The Lieutenant Governor, John Wilder, referred to that as “impeachment, Tennessee style.” Ned McWherter, who was Speaker of the state House at the time, and later Governor, told me that they weren’t sure it was constitutional under the state constitution, but that if they were fighting it out in court later, Blanton wouldn’t be able to pardon anyone regardless. I don’t think Blanton every contested his replacement. But that was a bipartisan affair — Wilder and McWherter and Blanton were all Democrats, and Alexander was a Republican — and swearing in Trump early wouldn’t get the same kind of support from Democrats.

CIVIL RIGHTS UPDATE: In Range v. US, a win for gun rights. After the case was GVR’d back to the Third Circuit (they Granted certiorari, Vacated the judgment below, and Remanded for further consideration) after Rahimi, the Third Circuit has stuck by its, er, guns, and held that the nonviolent crime of making a false statement on a food stamp application isn’t enough for a lifelong loss of gun rights. Full opinion is here. I’ve only skimmed it briefly (all 165 pages) but I’ll probably have more later, though probably after Christmas. Interestingly, only two judges from the 15 judge en banc panel dissented.

OPEN THREAD: Monday, Monday.

THE NEW SPACE RACE: Liechtenstein signs the Artemis Accords. “Liechtenstein is the 52nd country to sign the Artemis Accords and the 19th to do so this year. The country, which is neither a member of the European Union nor European Space Agency, has a modest presence in space, and is perhaps best known as the country that Rivada Space Networks has used for spectrum filings for its proposed broadband constellation. It follows Thailand, which signed Dec. 16, and Panama and Austria, which signed in separate ceremonies Dec. 11.”

SHADES OF RESUBLIMATED THITOMILINE: Quantum Physicists Just Found Evidence of ‘Negative Time.’

Classical reference in headline.

COFFEE. IS THERE ANYTHING IT CAN’T DO? Coffee and Tea Linked to Lower Cancer Risk in Groundbreaking Study.

JOHN LUCAS: “No person is above the law!” No one should be surprised. It was just one more lie in a four-year series of lies.

I GUESS HE’S NOW THE REVEREND DENZEL WASHINGTON: Denzel Washington joins the ministry. “He attended the church as a child and later testified about being filled with the Holy Spirit after visiting another congregation with fellow actor Robert Townsend in the 1980s. According to Bryant, the actor’s baptism and licensing were not only spiritual milestones but also a return to his roots.”

Certainly more worthy of the title than the “Reverend” Al Sharpton.

FASTER, PLEASE: Study sheds new light on what causes long-term disability after a stroke, offers new path toward possible treatment.

NEWS YOU CAN USE: Winter Driving Tips for Snow and Ice: How to Stay Safe on Slippery Roads.

Can’t believe we need to know this, I thought snowfalls were soon to become a thing of the past.

I ALREADY LIKE THEM, YOU DON’T HAVE TO SELL ME: Oh No. . . Texas Allegedly Has the Weakest Gun Control Laws in the Nation.

HMM: Having Your Tonsils Out as a Child May Have a Drastic Impact on Your Life. “A study by an international team of researchers now suggests this relatively common procedure could increase a patient’s risk of developing an anxiety-related disorder later in life.”

HMM: Introducing perceptein, a protein-based artificial neural network in living cells. “Westlake University in China and the California Institute of Technology have designed a protein-based system inside living cells that can process multiple signals and make decisions based on them.”

EXCORIATION IS GOOD, LEGISLATION IS BETTER: Automakers excoriated by Senators for fighting right-to-repair: OEMs also called out for selling data they collect on drivers.

MY LATEST SUBSTACK ESSAY: Never Give Up! Never Surrender!

OF COURSE NOT: A fentanyl antidote is saving lives. But it isn’t ending the fentanyl crisis.

JAMES LILEKS: Christmas traditions, and how to break them.

BUT NOT THE MORE ATTRACTIVE MEMBERS OF EITHER GROUP, HENCE THE DESPERATION:

Luigi discourse being increasingly about how hot he is and decreasingly about why he did it—a handy reminder that the Left is now almost entirely women and gay men.

— Paul Heron (@Paul_Heron_) December 21, 2024

INDEED:

Tell me more about “toxic masculinity” pic.twitter.com/WVbQR0BC26

— Oilfield Rando (@Oilfield_Rando) December 23, 2024

KURT SCHLICHTER: No Circular Firing Squads This Time, Republicans.

#JOURNALISM: This is What Happened—This is How it is Reported.

LIFE IN THE BLUE ZONES:

The Subway Burning Victim’s Name was AMELIA CARTER.

She was 29 years old. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/w9ffed1NNO

— Henry (@HenryBack2Play) December 23, 2024

EMPTY HONORS FOR A HOLLOW MAN: Fauci holds several ‘professor’ titles at Georgetown but never teaches.

Dr. Anthony Fauci is a “distinguished university professor” at Georgetown University but does not appear to have taught a single course since his appointment, nor does he have any future classes scheduled.

The title of “University Professor” is “Georgetown’s highest professional honor that recognizes extraordinary achievement in scholarship, teaching and service,” according to the university announcement.

It has been a year and a half since the Jesuit Catholic university announced Fauci would have the title at its medical school. He also joined the McCourt School of Public Policy at the same time.

Bearing false witness.

OF COURSE: SJP leader at George Mason University whose home had anti-Semitic and pro-terrorist signs once urged school to bash Jewish state.