Southern California Edison is being sued by residents and businesses impacted by the Eaton Fire, who allege the Los Angeles utility's equipment may have started the deadly blaze.
The big picture: It's among multiple wildfires that have erupted across the L.A. area since last week in extremely dry conditions with powerful Santa Ana winds, and the National Weather Service has issued a rare "Particularly Dangerous Situation" Red Flag Warning that's set to last until Wednesday.
There have been at least 25 reported wildfire-related deaths, including 17 in the Eaton Fire. The 14,117-acre blaze ignited on Jan. 7 and was 33% contained as of Monday evening, per Cal Fire.
Driving the news: The cause of the Eaton Fire is still being investigated, but lawyers for Singleton Schreiber allege in the lawsuit on behalf of the plaintiffs that it may have begun when Edison's electrical equipment contacted or caused sparks to contact surrounding vegetation.
The complaint that was filed in the L.A. Superior Court against the utility and Edison International says the utility reported itself to the California Public Utilities Commission on Jan. 9 to say "its equipment was located within the general area of ignition."
The complaint added: "Defendants deliberately prioritized profits over safety. This recklessness and conscious disregard for human safety was a substantial factor in bringing about the Eaton Fire."
What they're saying: Southern California Edison spokesperson Jeff Monford said Monday evening SCE was aware that a lawsuit related to the Eaton Fire had been filed, but it had not yet been served with a complaint.
"SCE will review the complaint when it is received. The cause of the fire continues to be under investigation," Monford said by phone.
"Our hearts remain with our communities during the devastating fires in Southern California, and we remain committed to supporting them through this difficult time. SCE crews, contractors and mutual assistance partners are dedicated to safely restoring power to our customers."
Americans have consistently viewed medical workers, K-12 teachers and military officers as the most ethical professions โ but even their ratings have dropped considerably, new Gallup polling shows.
Why it matters: Americans' opinion of the ethics of various professions has stalled at its lowest point โ reflective of declining confidence in U.S. institutions overall.
"Americans interact with numerous professionals in their daily lives, while depending on others they've never met to maintain an efficient, fair and secure society," per the annual survey data, released Monday.
"Whether reflecting personal experience or secondhand reports, Americans' sense of how much they can trust each profession varies widely, likely influencing how they engage with each."
The big picture: The average honesty and ethics ratings for 11 core professions was 30% in Monday's report, down from 40% in 2005.
Three professions had "majority negative" ratings: โ TV reporters, members of Congress and lobbyists.
Those were followed by roles including advertising practitioners, car salespeople, business executives and state officeholders.
Day care providers, funeral directors, police officers and auto mechanics enjoyed "net positive" ratings.
The intrigue: Three of the five professions with "majority positive" ratings were in medical fields, but nursing home operators had "net negative" ratings.
Despite being among the highest in the list, trust in medical doctors and pharmacists has dropped below pre-pandemic levels.
Polling released last year separately showed that more people are trusting in their own ability to assess health information or turn to friends to guidance amid lack of trust in public health agencies.
Grade school teachers also received "majority positive ratings," but Americans have expressed growing dissatisfaction with K-12 education.
Zoom in: Trust in judges and clergy have fallen the most, long-term, although ratings were still net positive for both.
Trust in judges reached a low of 28% in the honesty and ethics rating, a 21-point decrease since the early 2000s.
Public approval of the Supreme Court nearly reached a record low after the court concluded its most recent term, per previous Gallup polling. Approval plunged in particular among Democrats as the high court's rulings have leaned conservative.
Meanwhile, every age group has seen declines in religious affiliations during the past decade.
State of play: U.S. trust in mass media hit a historic low last year, and Monday's report echoes low ratings of TV and newspaper reporters.
55% of respondents rated TV reporters as having "majority negative" honesty and ethical standards, a nine percentage point drop since the early 2000s.
45% said the same of newspaper reporters, which have had consistently low ratings over the years.
Flashback: Nurses have earned the highest rating every year but one since they were added to the survey in 1999.
"The exception was 2001, when firefighters โ included only that year โ earned a record 90% trust rating after their heroism in responding to the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers," the report said.
Methodology: Telephone interviews were conducted Dec. 2-18 with a random sample of 1,003 adults living in all 50 U.S. states and Washington, D.C. The margin of error is ยฑ4 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth's confirmation hearing is becoming a test of will for Republicans on ensuring FBI files aren't distributed throughout the entire Senate.
Why it matters: The Trump transition team is demanding that the president-elect's nominees be treated the same way they insist Joe Biden's were.
That means no FBI background check access for rank-and-file senators, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Senate Armed Services chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and ranking member Jack Reed (D-R.I.) have been briefed on the report. Others have not.
Zoom in: Wicker privately raised the idea of letting his full committee see Hegseth's file, but Trump officials are opposed to sharing it, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The Trump team wants to hold the line on having a consistent standard for all nominees.
Look for them to fight any effort to release Hegseth's file, even if Wicker says there's not much of interest.
Zoom out: Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Dems are huddling tonight on how to respond, as Axios scooped earlier on Monday.
Democrats admit the precedent is on the GOP's side. But they say the nature of Hegseth's nomination โ including allegations of sexual misconduct that he's denied โ at least deserves a conversation.
"We should all be able to see the report and draw our own conclusions about how incomplete it is and even in the modest amount it covers, how much damage it does to Mr. Hegseth," Armed Services committee member Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) told Axios.
The big picture: Hunter Biden was the first child of a sitting president to face criminal charges. He was convicted on felony gun charges in Delaware in June, and pleaded guilty on felony tax charges in California in September.
Driving the news: Weiss criticized President Biden in the report for claiming his son was unfairly prosecuted in the six-year investigation, calling those "baseless accusations" with "no merit."
Weiss said: "The president's characterizations are incorrect based on the facts in this case, and on a more fundamental level, they are wrong."
He wrote that "other presidents have pardoned family members, but in doing so, none have taken the occasion as an opportunity to malign the public servants at the Department of Justice based solely on false accusations."
Editor's note: This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.
House Democrats are warning Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) that tying federal wildfire relief for California to the debt limit could set a new precedent that would come back to bite Republicans.
Why it matters: Disaster prone red states like Florida and Louisiana โ Johnson's home state โ could face a similar squeeze from Democrats if they retake the House, lawmakers told Axios.
"This place is like high school, it's tit for tat when one side breaks a norm. The other side is happy to return the favor," said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), pointing to the removal of members from committees as an example.
If Johnson conditions the aid, Moskowitz said, "California's our largest delegation. You think they're going to forget about that?"
Driving the news: Johnson told reporters Monday that, "I think that there should probably be conditions on that aid. That's my personal view."
"We'll see what the consensus is. I haven't had a chance to socialize that with any of the members over the weekend, because we've all been very busy. But it will be part of the discussion for sure," he said.
It's not clear yet whether the idea has full support among Republicans, with centrist Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) telling Axios "that process will play itself out."
"We want to provide relief to Americans who were impacted by natural disasters of any kind," he said, but California's "disastrous policy decisions โฆ will be part of a discussion."
What they're saying: "I just think it's a really bad precedent, and, yeah, I do think it could have slingshot effects," Rep. Ami Bera (D-Calif.) told Axios in a brief interview at the Capitol.
"Whether it's wildfires in CA, or hurricanes and tornadoes in Louisiana, we should should never condition aid to disaster victims," Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) told Axios, also warning that the move would set a "really dangerous precedent."
House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) said conditioning aid would be "crazy and ridiculous" and would "completely upend Congress."
Between the lines: Lawmakers in both parties told Axios that Johnson's gambit is a clear acknowledgement that both disaster aid and the debt ceiling will require Democratic votes to pass.
Republicans have floated including a debt ceiling increase in the massive party-line fiscal bill they're planning, but that risks touching off a right-wing revolt.
"It's not the issue of conditioning, it's the issue of how do we get it done," said Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.), a top House Appropriations Committee member who acknowledged both measures will "probably" need bipartisan support.
Zoom in: Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), whose district has been directly hit by the wildfires, said it would "obviously be outrageous and unthinkable for Republicans to react differently to a disaster based upon how people voted."
Sherman said he is "not for" conditioning future aid to red states on a partisan objective โ offering an immigration reform package as an example.
But "if Democrats tied Louisiana relief to making sure Social Security stayed solvent, that's a bipartisan objective," he said.
The idea of conditioning aid may also lack universal GOP support, with Rep. Young Kim (R-Calif.) telling Axios in a statement: "If aid is needed, we need to deliver."
The bottom line: "People have lost their lives, homes, and livelihoods," said Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.), whose district has also been impacted by the wildfires.
"I have zero tolerance for partisan bullsh*t right now."
A years-long battle over TikTok's fate in the U.S. could finally end this week, with the deadline for a sale or ban of the popular video-sharing platform set for Sunday.
The big picture: The Supreme Court could issue a ruling any day now, though it appears unlikely to deem the sale-or-ban law unconstitutional, even after President-elect Trump asked for time to resolve the matter.
Context: The law passed last year requires ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, to either sell the app to a U.S. company or shut down operations in the country by Jan. 19. The deadline could be extended 100 days if a sale is underway.
The bill passed with broad bipartisan support and was signed by President Biden.
TikTok and a group of its users challenged the law, saying it violates their First Amendment rights.
Congress said the law was necessary because ByteDance is controlled by the Chinese government, and that its ability to harvest vast amounts of personal information from American users is a national security threat.
Jan. 10, 2025: SCOTUS hearing
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments about the law on Jan. 10 and appeared inclined to uphold it.
Most of the justices homed in on one central point, Axios' Sam Baker reports: The law would allow TikTok to keep operating if it used an algorithm other than the one created by ByteDance. And ByteDance, as a Chinese company, doesn't have First Amendment rights.
"The law doesn't say TikTok has to shut down. It says ByteDance has to divest," Justice Amy Coney Barrett said.
Dec. 27, 2024: Trump asks SCOTUS for ban pause
In a last-ditch effort, Trump asked the Supreme Court to pause the TikTok ban.
His argument was not rooted in any of the First Amendment or national security concerns at issue in the case. Rather, he argued the high court should allow him the time to "resolve the dispute through political means."
"President Trump alone possesses the consummate dealmaking expertise, the electoral mandate, and the political will to negotiate a resolution to save the platform while addressing the national security concerns expressed by the Government," the legal brief states.
Dec. 6, 2024: Federal appeals court upholds ban
A federal appeals court ruled the TikTok law is constitutional.
The three judge panel's opinion set the stage for the Supreme Court fight.
Context: The Justice Department and TikTok had asked the court for the early December ruling in order to seek SCOTUS review before the law's mid-January deadline.
TikTok and ByteDance sued the U.S. federal government to challenge the law, arguing it's unconstitutional.
April 2024: Biden signs TikTok bill
The Senate passes the bill, sending it to President Biden's desk.
Biden shortly after signed the bipartisan law, forcing TikTok's Chinese parent company to divest from its U.S. operations or face a nationwide ban, setting up a protracted legal fight over the fate of the app.
March 2024: House passes bill
The House of Representatives passed the TikTok bill.
May 2023: State TikTok ban
Montana became the first U.S. state to sign legislation banning TikTok.
It came as several other Republican-led states banned TikTok on government-issued devices, but Montana was the first state to impose a total app ban.
However, a federal judge in November blocked the ban before it took effect.
March 2023: Congressional testimony
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chewdefended the company in a hearing before lawmakers, who fiercely advocated for banning the app.
Chew at the time repeatedly downplayed the app's connections to China and referenced TikTok's "unprecedented" data security practices compared to unnamed social media competitors.
Still, members of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce came out in support of a full ban of the app in the U.S.
In June 2022, after longstanding pressure from the U.S. government, TikTok began routing all its U.S. user data to Oracle's cloud infrastructure.
Oracle then began vetting TikTok's algorithms and content moderation models to ensure they aren't manipulated by Chinese authorities.
The move was part of Project Texas, a $1.5 billion plan aimed at ensuring Americans that TikTok is safe, their data is secure and "the platform is free from outside influence." The project name refers to Oracle's headquarters in Texas.
TikTok had been preparing Project Texas for over a year by separating its U.S. operations' backend functions and code.
2020: Trump attempts to force sale
Then-President Trump spearheaded the initial effort to ban TikTok with an executive order in 2020, citing national security concerns.
He pushed for an acquisition by Microsoft, which fell through. Software giant Oracle then made a bid to become TikTok's "trusted technology partner" in the U.S.
The future of accessing TikTok in the U.S. will be decided by the Supreme Court any moment now. So far, the justices seem inclined to uphold a bipartisan law that would ban the app as soon as Jan. 19.
Why it matters: The wildly popular short-form video app, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, could imminently vanish from Google and Apple app stores. Beyond disappointing devoted users, the move would also disrupt influencers' multibillion-dollar creator economy.
During oral arguments last week, most of the high court's justices homed in on the central point that under the law, TikTok could continue operating with a different algorithm than ByteDance's. And as a Chinese company, ByteDance lacks First Amendment protections.
State of play: TikTok will not instantly disappear from a device where it's already downloaded on Jan. 19.ButByteDance won't be able to issue updates to the app โ eventually rendering it useless.
The app could more quicklygo dark if Oracle decides to immediately stop hosting TikTok's massive video library. A ban could send the stock plunging since it hosts the company's U.S. data.
TikTok will not be accessible from an internet browser in the U.S. unless a user employs a VPN, which encrypts internet traffic and hides the user's IP address. VPNs are easily attainable online, but a user may not be able to download updates if their app store account is tied to the U.S.
Zoom in: Some TikTok users and creators are already flocking to other social media apps, based on Axios' review of some newly trending apps.
Lemon8, which has the same owner as TikTok and is being promoted by the company as a potential alternative for users, features a mix of Instagram-like photo sharing and TikTok-style short videos. This app and other ByteDance apps would be part of the ban.
Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote in English, is a short-form video app that has surged to the first place in the social networking category in the U.S. Apple app store. It also has a mix of video and live-streaming features.
Other platforms that have similar vertical video features are YouTube with its YouTube Shorts and Instagram with its Reels. Some users have been posting TikTok content to both of these platforms.
By the numbers: TikTok has a stunning 170 million users in the U.S., and just 32% of Americans support a ban, according to a Pew Research Center survey.
The big picture: The push to ban TikTok in the U.S. stems from the "Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act," signed into law last April by President Biden.
The law mandates that ByteDance sell the app by Jan. 19 or face a ban. It gave TikTok up to a year to find an approved buyer for the U.S. version of the app.
The law stems from the U.S. government's concerns for national security over its ties to China, including the spread of misinformation and espionage.
ByteDance has contested this law, arguing that forced divestment is unconstitutional and infringes on First Amendment rights.
What's next: The Supreme Court could issue an order at any time.
President-elect Trump during his first term led initial efforts to ban the app in the U.S. But he's indicated more recently that he's open to trying to save it.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) is forming his kitchen cabinet โ an inner circle of advisers outside of elected leadership, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: A new leader means new alliances and new voices with influence.
Zoom in: Thune is naming four senators as his counselors, a Senate GOP leadership aide tells Axios.
Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who helped give Thune his majority as NRSC chair last cycle.
MarkWayne Mullin (R-Okla.), a Trump ally and vocal supporter of Thune's leadership bid from the start.
John Cornyn (R-Tex.), who ran against Thune for leader and was also a part of McConnell's leadership circle.
Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), who was praised for leading the effort to rewrite the RNC platform last year โ in a Trump-like style.
Zoom out: The unofficial advisory board is invited to join the elected Senate GOP leadership team in regular Monday leadership meetings in Thune's office.
President Biden said Monday that he is leaving the Trump administration a country in a far stronger position than the one he inherited, with a "strong hand to play" when dealing with geopolitical crises.
Why it matters: During his term, Biden sought to counteract much of the "America first" diplomacy enacted during President-elect Trump's administration. Now, his achievements will face the scrutiny of the new Trump administration.
Driving the news: Biden delivered his final foreign policy address at the State Department Monday, a week before Trump will take office.
Biden praised his administration's foreign policy achievements and previewed the challenges still ahead, including wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
"Even so, it's clear: my administration is leaving the next administration with a very strong hand to play. And leaving them an America with more friends and stronger alliances, whose adversaries are weaker and under pressure," Biden said.
Zoom in: Addressing Russia's war in Ukraine, Biden touted the fact that Russia had failed to achieve any of its strategic objectives in the war.
Now, the U.S. must use its advantage to press for a "just and lasting peace for Ukraine."
It should also work to ensure a "more stable, integrated Middle East," Biden said, before noting that "we are on the brink" of a hostage release and ceasefire in Gaza deal.
The bottom line: "At our best, America leads not only by the example of our power, but the power of our example. The past four years we have used that power, not to go it alone, but instead to bring countries together."
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Democrats on the Armed Services Committee will huddle Monday amid a standoff over Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: Only one top Senate Democrat has read Hegseth's FBI background check since it was given to Congress last week. His confirmation hearing begins on Tuesday morning.
Paperwork delays meant the background checks and other materials for top Trump nominees were given to lawmakers late. Democrats have pushed for the reports to be available to all members before the hearings.
Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the panel's top Democrat, met with Hegseth last week. Reed said the meeting did not relieve his concerns about Hegseth's nomination.
Hegseth's hearing is the party's first shot to carry out the demands handed down by Schumer โ skewer Trump's nominees and the MAGA brand.
Zoom in: The background report on Hegseth is particularly important given allegations of sexual assault and financial mismanagement of a nonprofit group.
Republican senators at the time said the allegations were concerning and wanted more details about the complaints.
Hegseth has denied wrongdoing.
The big picture: Schumer has been intimately involved in his caucus' prep for the confirmation hearing showdowns. For him, and for Democrats, the stakes are high.
"Republicans spent four years attacking the Democratic brand and we need to use the hearings to begin returning the favor," Schumer told top Democrats in a private meeting in early January.
The background check issues will likely rear their head in the hearings. Schumer has criticized Republicans for "rushing" the nomination hearings of nominees like Hegseth.
Weather forecasters have only more bad news for firefighters battling the Los Angeles area fires.
Threat level: The National Weather Service's LA forecast office Sunday evening issued a rare "Particularly Dangerous Situation" Red Flag Warning lasting until Wednesday at noon for parts of LA and Ventura counties, warning that high winds could cause "explosive fire growth."
The weather service advises residents "to have multiple ways to receive evacuation information" and to "not do anything that could spark a fire."
Areas under this warning don't include the Eaton Fire but cover western Santa Monica, Simi Valley, Porter Ranch, Ventura and other parts of the hard-hit region.
Zoom in: Winds during this event will be closer to a typical strong Santa Ana, at 50 mph to 70 mph instead of up to 100 mph as seen last week.
But the east-to-west air flow will likely target areas that didn't have such strong winds last week, particularly in Ventura County.
"THIS IS A PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS SITUATION (PDS) FOR PORTIONS OF LOS ANGELES AND VENTURA COUNTIES!" the NWS said in all caps.
Much of Southern California is under some type of Red Flag Warning, with areas of "Extremely Critical" fire weather risk โ the highest category from the Storm Prediction Center (SPC), from today through Wednesday.
Image showing the criteria for ordering a Particularly Dangerous Situation Red Flag Warning. Image: NWS
According to SPC, which issues fire weather outlooks nationally, about 740,000 people are included in the extremely critical area on Monday.
About 8.1 million are located in the "critical" fire weather risk classification, which is just below the maximum alert level.
Between the lines: According to the NWS LA office, before this season, the "PDS" classification had only been used twice before. Both were in 2020.
However, the warning type has only been in existence for about half a decade.
The product is supposed to indicate rare events, but the extraordinarily dry start to the winter wet season this year has meant that the fire season has stretched much deeper into the winter than usual.
This means it overlaps with more high wind events, which is something that climate studies show occurring with greater regularity in coming decades.
Yes, but: The Eaton and Palisades Fires aren't included in the particularly dangerous situation portions of the warnings, according to the NWS, but nearby areas are and the heightened concerns relate to new fire starts as well.
The big picture: The region is suffering from hydroclimate whiplash worsened by human-caused climate change.
Much of Southern California has received virtually no rain in the past eight months.
And seven-day precipitation forecasts don't show measurable rain during the next week, despite January being well into the typical rainy season.
Some ofPresident-elect Trump's highest profile Cabinet picks will be under fresh scrutiny this week as they brace for tough Senate confirmation hearings that could make or break their nominations.
Why it matters: With Democrats looking to create fireworks and the Republican party deeply divided, the hearings are sure to escalate clashes over Trump's most controversial nominees.
Many of Trump's picks have already met with senators individually, but the high-stakes confirmation hearings will offer them the chance to shine.
For some, they could also be forced to address lingering questions about their past actions and relevant experience.
What to watch: Hegseth's confirmation hearing is slated for 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Kristi Noem
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem is Trump's pick for secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, where she'd play a crucial role in implementing Trump's immigration agenda.
A source close to the governor previously told Axios that her experiences dealing with immigration and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have prepared her for the role.
What to watch: Noem's confirmation hearing will take place before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday at 9 a.m.
Marco Rubio
Trump's nomination of Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) to serve as the next secretary of state is one of his surest bets, with the senator enjoying bipartisan support in the run-up to his formal evaluation.
Rubio, who has a reputation as a foreign policy hawk, will have his work cut out for him implementing Trump's foreign policy agenda, which includes swift ends to the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.
What to watch: Rubio's confirmation hearing will take place at 10 a.m. Wednesday before theSenate Foreign Relations Committee.
Pam Bondi
Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is Trump's pick to serve as attorney general.
Bondi's appointment would install a Trump loyalist at the head of the Department of Justice if Trump were to pursue his threats to go after his political enemies.
Bondi was Trump's second public pick for the position, after his initial selection, former Rep. Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration facing . The former Florida lawmaker faced sexual misconduct allegations, which he has repeatedly denied.
What to watch: Bondi's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee will be split across two days, beginning Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. and Thursday at 10:15 a.m.
Upcoming
Some of the most potentially contentious hearings are still to come and haven't yet been set. Still in the awning are:
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. for secretary of health and human services. Kennedy is well known for his history of spreading vaccine misinformation.
Hardline Trump loyalist Kash Patel โ who helped push Trump's 2020 election lies โ for FBI director. Patel will replace current FBI head Chris Wray, who announced last month that he would resign ahead of Trump's inauguration rather than complete his term.
Linda McMahon as secretary of education. McMahon, a former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) executive, has been accused of being complicit in the grooming and sexual exploitation of children. She has denied the allegations.
Tulsi Gabbard's nomination as the next director of national intelligence has raised alarm bells in the intelligence community. In 2017, the former Democratic representative for Hawaii met with then Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and subsequently declared him "not the enemy."
Israel and mediators from Egypt, the U.S. and Qatar have given Hamas a final draft agreement for the release of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a ceasefire in Gaza,two senior Israeli officials and a source familiar with the details said.
Why it matters: The indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas have reached a critical point a week before President-elect Trump is sworn into office.
Trump has threatened there would be "hell to pay in the Middle East" if Hamas didn't release the hostages by the time he is inaugurated.
About 98 hostages are still being held in Gaza, among them seven Americans. Roughly half of the hostages, including three Americans, are believed to be still alive, according to Israeli intelligence.
More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
Driving the news: The sources said the mediators are awaiting Hamas' response to the draft. An Israeli official said the leader of Hamas's military wing in Gaza, Mohammed Sinwar, will decide whether to agree to the deal.
Two Israeli officials said Hamas' response is expected in the next 24 hours.
Israeli officials said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to make new concessions about the Palestinian prisoners who would be released as part of the deal and about the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Netzarim and Philadelphi corridors in Gaza.
"It seems that we are headed for a deal," an Israeli official said, adding that they are waiting for Hamas' response and "only then will we know for sure."
The other side: A Hamas official told Reuters on Monday that "the negotiation over some core issues made progress and we are working to conclude what remains soon."
The latest: President Biden in a speech at the State Department on Monday said "we are on the brink" of a hostage-release and ceasefire in Gaza deal.
"We are pressing hard" to close the deal, Biden said.
A senior Israeli official told reporters in a briefing on Monday that there is "progress in all components of the agreement."
"We are working in coordination with the mediators and with both U.S. administrations โ the outgoing and incoming. The best, optimal conditions have been created for a deal to take place," the official said.
The official added that Israel is ready to immediately implement the deal. "I don't know if it's a matter of hours, days or more until the talks are completed. We want it to happen quickly," the official said.
Zoom in: According to the draft agreement, 33 hostages would be released in the first phase of the deal, including women, children, men over the age of 50 and men under the age of 50 who are wounded and sick.
Hamas has not yet provided information on the condition of those 33 hostages, the Israeli official said. Israel's assessment is that most are alive.
The hostages would be released gradually throughout the first phase of the agreement, which would last 42 days. At the same time, there would be a ceasefire in Gaza.
During the first phase, Israeli Defense Forces would also gradually withdraw to a buffer zone in Gaza near the border with Israel, the official said. The IDF would leave the Netzarim corridor in the center of the Gaza Strip and the Philadelphi corridor on the border between Gaza and Egypt โ twoareas that have been a sticking point in past negotiations.
But Israel won't completely withdraw from Gaza until all of the hostages are returned,the Israeli official said.
Palestinians would also be allowed to return to northern Gaza during the first phase of the deal. An Israeli official said there would be "security arrangements" to ensure no militants or weapons are movedto the northern part of the Strip.
Hundreds of Palestinian prisoners would also be released, including those who murdered Israelis. The exact number of prisoners to be released will be determined only after Hamas clarifies which of the hostages to be released are alive, the official said.
The Israeli official said Palestinian prisoners who murdered Israelis would not be released to the West Bank, but declined to say where they would be released to. Hamas members who participated in the Oct. 7 attack would not be released in the first phase.
On the 16th day of the first phase of the agreement, negotiations would begin on the implementation of the second phase of the deal, which is supposed to end with a full withdrawal of IDF forces from the Gaza Strip and a permanent ceasefire.
The senior Israeli official said in the briefing that the second phase wouldinclude the release of all the living and dead hostages still held by Hamas.
The deal would also includes an increase in humanitarian aid to Gaza , according to the official, who added that Israel is working on a way to prevent Hamas from taking control of the aid in order to make it difficult for the group to govern Gaza again.
Zoom out: Biden spoke on the phone Monday with the Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim al-Thani and discussed efforts to reach a deal, the White House said. Biden is expected to speak with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Monday as well.
The Qatari emir met on Monday with a delegation of senior Hamas officials led by chief negotiator Khalil al-Haya.
The emir also held a joint meeting with Biden's top Middle East adviser Brett McGurk and President Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff to discuss the hostage deal. Both are in Doha for the negotiations.
What they're saying: White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said at a Bloomberg event in Washington, DC on Monday that there's been "considerable" pressure on Hamas to come to an agreement.
"There is a distinct possibility we can get this deal done this week," Sullivan said.
Sullivan said he spoke on Monday morning with McGurk, and with the prime minister of Qatar and Israeli negotiators. A source familiar said Israeli Mossad Director David Barnea was on the call. Barnea, Israeli Shin Bet Director Ronen Bar and IDF general Nitzan Alon traveled to Doha on Saturday for talks about the deal.
The source said Netanyahu told Biden in a call on Sunday that he wants the deal as it is right now and is willing to conclude the negotiations as soon as possible.
"There is a general sense that this is moving in the right direction. It is there for the taking. The question is if we can get everyone to say yes," Sullivan said.
Editor's note: This is a developing story. Please check back for details.
Why it matters: The push is the latest sign of the party's efforts to rebrand and bring in new audiences after a disappointing 2024 cycle.
Driving the news: The new rapid response @FactPostNews initiative will try to combat online misinformation and respond to Trump administration actions by pushing out memes, videos and graphics.
The account will be run by many of the same people who led the @KamalaHQ social media account during the 2024 campaign.
@FactPostNews will start on X, Threads, and Bluesky and will eventually expand to TikTok, Facebook, and Instagram.
"The Republican disinformation machine is powerful, but we believe a stronger weapon is giving people the facts about how Trump and his administration are screwing over the American people," DNC chief mobilization officer Shelby Cole said in a statement.
Between the lines: The account will also take a branding cue from social media accounts that have huge, loyal followings, such as PopCrave and PopBase.
The war room relaunch is the latest example of the Democratic Party trying to sharpen its online presence โ particularly on alternative media platforms โ after the election revealed that Trump's media strategy broke through.
Zoom out: The DNC is also teeing up fresh economic attacks on Trump as he takes office, per a memo obtained by Axios.
Over the next several weeks of confirmation hearings, the DNC will try to spotlight the personal wealth of many of Trump's picks for key government positions, per the memo.
The DNC will also warn that Trump's proposed policies will walk back some of the economic progress made under President Biden.
"Trump's MAGA loyalists in Congress are gearing up to push through these unfit billionaire picks and Trump's anti-working families agenda," the memo reads.
Zoom out: The economy โ and Trump's repeated focus on it on the campaign trail โ was a major reason for his victory in November.
As the candidate associated with the incumbency, Vice President Harris struggled to make a compelling economic pitch to voters.
The bottom line: It's never too early to start messaging for 2028 (and 2026).
With their new initiatives out this week, the DNC is signaling where its priorities will lie, at least in the beginning days of the new Trump administration: Economic messaging and refining their digital outreach.
A non-profit closely aligned with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) is preparing its first major investment in the 2026 election with a campaign aimed at dinging Republicans on the economy.
Why it matters: The effort comes as President-elect Trump and congressional Republicans are preparing a hulking fiscal policy package that could define the 119th Congress.
Driving the news: House Majority Forward, the issue advocacy arm of House Majority PAC, is launching a $10 million "economic accountability" campaign.
The campaign will include TV and digital ads to "hold Republicans accountable for refusing to lower costs," according to a press release first shared with Axios.
It will also involve research and polling to "develop a deeper understanding of how Republican policies are hurting American wallets."
HMF president Mike Smith said: "Speaker Mike Johnson and House Republicans have only just been sworn in, but they're already breaking their promises by failing to lower costs. It's time to stop playing games, and start working for the American people."
Between the lines: The plan represents something of a shift in strategy for Democrats after an abortion-centered message of "freedom" failed to carry them to victory last year.
Top Democrats told Axios in the aftermath of the Nov. 5 election that a difficult political environment driven by years of inflation ultimately doomed Vice President Harris.
Trump successfully pitched himself as a change candidate, promising to upend the national and global economic order with an agenda of immigration restrictions, trade barriers and dismantling regulations.
The other side: "The failed Biden administration and their allies in Congress decimated our economy with a far-left agenda of reckless spending and extreme America-last policies," said Courtney Parella, a spokesperson for GOP-aligned non-profit American Action Network.
"That's why Americans chose and trust Republican leadership โ to restore the economy, lower costs, and deliver for families," she said.
A historic Black community that grew out of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s is among the communities wiped away by devastating wildfires charring through Los Angeles County.
The big picture: The Eaton Fire has all but flatted the many Black-owned homes and businesses in the unincorporated area of Altadena, California, in San Gabriel Valley and the Verdugos regions.
Zoom in: The community of 42,000 residents โ 18% are Black โ has been among the hardest hit by wildfires that so far have claimed 24 lives and burned away over 12,000 structures across the county.
The Eaton Fire alone charred more than 1,000 structures and killed at least five people in Altadena, per the Los Angeles Times.
Octavia E. Butler, the late-pioneering Black science fiction novelist who wrote about a wildfire from climate change starting on February 1, 2025, in her novel "Parable of the Sower," is buried in an Altadena cemetery.
The cemetery caught fire, the LA Times reports.
Zoom out: Satellite images of burning buildings in Altadena examined by Axios show that last week, a large portion of the community was in flames or burned to ash.
The images give clues to how quickly the fire moved to long-protected communities because of high winds and drought conditions.
The whole community was ordered to evacuate when the Eaton Fire began last week and has since claimed many of the community's churches, landmarks and much of its downtown.
Maxar shortwave infrared closer satellite image of burning buildings in Altadena, California. Photo: Maxar Technologies via Getty Images
State of play: Much attention on the wildfires has focused on the destruction of homes in wealthy areas and of celebrities, but Altadena's devastation shows how middle-class areas and communities of color were also hit.
In the days after the Eaton Fire started, Black residents returned to homes passed down by family members only to see them gone as the fire burned block.
The community, where 58% of residents are people of color, also saw many Latino and Asian American residents return to rubble.
Danny Robinson and Sharon Beckford sift through the rubble of their family's home that the Eaton Fire in Altadena destroyed. Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Among those returning to ash in Altadena was Shawn Brown, a Black homeowner. She told The Associated Press she lost her home and a charter school she founded.
She had a message for fellow Black homeowners in the wake of despair: "I would tell them to stand strong, rebuild, continue the generational progress of African-Americans."
Flashback: In 1960, 95% of Altadena's residents were white, according to Altadena Heritage, a nonprofit organization that seeks to preserve the community's history.
After President Lyndon Johnson signed several civil rights bills, including The Fair Housing Act of 1968, Altadena's Black population grew from 4% in 1960 to 27% in 1970.
Altadena was one of the few communities offering housing and loans to Black Americans during the Civil Rights Movement. As a result, it became a popular community for a growing Black middle class seeking to escape discrimination elsewhere.
Black Panther leader Eldridge Cleaver (1935 โ 1998) and wife, professor and activist Kathleen Cleaver, play with their children Ahmad and Joju in front of Eldridge Cleaver's mother's home in Altadena in 1977. Photo: Nik Wheeler/Corbis via Getty Images
Stunning stat: Before the fire, the Black homeownership rate stood at 81.5% โ nearly double the national rate for Black homeowners, per the AP.
What we're watching: Recovering and rebuilding efforts typically overlook communities of color, who struggle amid the maze of insurance bureaucracies and federal disaster relief programs.
Communities like Altadena near wildfire-prone areas may consider building fire-prevention walls or barriers, as Octavia E. Butler foresaw in her futuristic novels.
What he's saying: "I will have Elon Musk run out of here by Inauguration Day" on Jan. 20, Bannon told the Italian outlet, per excerpts from the interview published in English by Bannon's former employer Breitbart over the weekend.
"He will not have full access to the White House. He will be like any other person," Bannon said.
"He is a truly evil guy, a very bad guy. I made it my personal thing to take this guy down."
Driving the news: The MAGA-world division emerged last month over the H-1B visa scheme that's designed to attract skilled foreign workers to the U.S. and which the South African-born naturalized U.S. citizen Musk has said he held.
Some in MAGA world want to restrict immigration and promote U.S. workers, but Axios' Ben Berkowitz and Zachary Basu note others want to cut costs and increase efficiency, regardless of who does the work.
Musk branded Republicans opposed to the scheme "hateful, unrepentant racists" following anti-Indian rhetoric online in relation to the scheme, and Trump publicly backed the world's richest person over the visas.
"This thing of the H-1B visas, it's about the entire immigration system is gamed by the tech overlords, they use it to their advantage, the people are furious," said Bannon in his interview, adding that Musk's "sole objective is to become a trillionaire."
Bannon said Musk "should go back" to South Africa. "Why do we have South Africans, the most racist people on earth, white South Africans, we have them making any comments at all on what goes on in the United States?" he said.
Musk has said he voted for Democrats Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden in previous presidential elections.
Bannon cast doubt on Musk's intentions during his interview.
"He will do anything to make sure that any one of his companies is protected or has a better deal or he makes more money," he said. His aggregation of wealth, and then โ through wealth โ power: that's what he's focused on."
Between the lines: Trump fired Bannon during his first administration. However, the "War Room" podcast host remains an influential figure in MAGA world.
Bannon was released from prison in October after serving a four-month sentence on contempt of Congress charges for refusing to comply with a subpoena related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Representatives for Musk's companies, Bannon and Trump did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment in the evening.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a "60 Minutes" interview airing Sunday he's retiring early because he didn't want to thrust the Bureau "deeper into the fray" after facing intense criticism from President-elect Trump.
During the "60 Minutes" interview, Wray addressed being criticized over FBI investigations by both a Republican and a Democratic president.
Context: The president said after issuing a presidential pardon for his son Hunter Biden following his conviction on felony gun charges and guilty plea on felony tax charges that he believed "raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice."
What he's saying: "This is a hard job. You're inevitably going to make different people angry, often very powerful people," Wray said on "60 Minutes."
"But part of the essence of the rule of law is to make sure that facts, and the law, and proper predication drive investigations, not who's in power, not who wants it to be so or not so," he told CBS' Scott Pelley.
On his relationship with Trump souring after the FBI investigated alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election results, Wray said an investigator's job was to "follow the facts wherever they lead, no matter who likes it."
Zoom in: Wray was criticized following the FBI search of Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in 2022 in an investigation into the storage of classified documents, which resulted in one of two since-dismissed federal criminal cases the president-elct.
Wray told Pelley the FBI strived to follow the rules throughout their investigation, and he believed they did this.
A search warrant is "not anybody's first choice" and investigators always try less intrusive means, like receiving information voluntarily or if not via a subpoena, said Wray, who described himself during the interview as a "conservative Republican."
"Only if, after all that, we learn that the agents haven't been given all of the classified material and in fact those efforts have been frustrated, even obstructed, then our agents are left with no choice but to go to a federal judge, make a probable cause showing, and get a search warrant," he said. "That's what happened here."
Wray said he hadn't had "any interaction with the Biden White House about investigations into the former president and neither to his knowledge had anyone else from the FBI.
The bottom line: Wray said in his 7.5 years of experience as FBI chief he'd seen "people often claim to be very interested in independence and objectivity until independence and objectivity lead to an outcome they don't like."
He added: "Truth is truth, not necessarily what either side wants it to be. And ultimately all we can do at the FBI is make sure that we stay focused on doing the work in the right way. Following our rules and not letting preferences, partisan or otherwise drive or taint the approach."
Threat level: Wray told Pelley that China's government targeting U.S. civilian critical infrastructure was the biggest threat the incoming Trump administration faced.
Meanwhile, "the most challenging type of terrorist threat we face" is online radicalization from extremist groups.
Wray noted the FBI's investigation into the New Orleans New Year's Day terrorist attack indicated the suspect was "radicalized online" and he "appears to have been inspired โ from afar โ by ISIS."
Los Angeles County is facing "critical fire conditions" after firefighters have for days battled deadly wildfires that have razed entire neighborhoods, and the situation is expected to worsen this week.
Threat level: The National Weather Service issued a rare "Particularly Dangerous Situation" Red Flag Warning that's due to start early Tuesday into Wednesday for parts of L.A. County and Ventura County, warning that winds will be high enough to cause "explosive fire growth.
The areas under this warning do not include the Eaton Fire, but do include western Santa Monica, Simi Valley, Porter Ranch, Ventura and other parts of the hard hit region.
The winds will not be as strong as the previous event but strong enough to meet the high-end criteria.
The big picture: The death toll rose to at least 24, per the L.A. County medical examiner's Sunday evening update. Another 16 have been reported as missing, Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna said during a Sunday briefing.
More than 100,000 residents remain under evacuation orders and over 12,000 structures have been destroyed.
Situation report: The Kenneth, Sunset and Lidia fires have been 100% contained,Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a Sunday update.
The Hurst Fire was at 89% containment Sunday evening, per Cal Fire.
Sixteen of the reported deaths have been attributed to the Eaton Fire, while the remaining eight have been categorized with the Palisades Fire.
Newsom announced he's deployed a further 1,000 California National Guard personnel to the Los Angeles area, taking the number assisting in firefighting efforts to 2,500.
State of play: Red flag warnings for much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties are set to remain in place until Wednesday as gusty winds and low relative humidity persist, the National Weather Service's L.A. office said Sunday evening.
NWS expects the offshore Santa Ana winds that have been making fighting the fires extremely difficult to pick back up after a brief reprieve, which could complicate firefighters' efforts to contain the flames.
Dry vegetation coupled with "prolonged extreme fire conditions" will support "rapid spread and erratic behavior" of new or existing fires, per NWS. The Eaton Fire may be less affected by strong winds than the other blazes.
By the numbers: Over 35,000 customers in Los Angeles County were without power about 12:30am Monday ET, per PowerOutage.us.
Context: Parts of Southern California are experiencing their driest start on record.
An overlap of rare climate factors is in part to blame for the rapidly spreading blazes, as the bone-dry region grapples with the worst high wind event in Southern California since 2011, per Axios' Andrew Freedman.
While the fires are not the largest wildfires the state has faced, they are among the most destructive on record.
Vice President-elect JD Vance said Sunday those day-one actions should send a message to "illegal immigrants all over the world: You are not welcome in this country illegally."
Here's what you may have missed when newsmakers hit the airwaves this Sunday, January 12.
1. Vance: "America is closed to illegal immigration"
Vice President-elect JD Vance visits "Fox News Sunday" with anchor Shannon Bream at FOX News D.C. Bureau on Jan. 11. Photo: Paul Morigi/Getty Images
Vance said in an interview aired Sunday that the Trump administration will release "dozens of executive orders" on day one signaling that "America is closed to illegal immigration."
The big picture: He dismissed questions about the humanitarian concerns surrounding Trump's mass deportation promises, arguing that family separation is a "dishonest term."
"If you say, for example, in the United States we have a guy who's convicted of a violent crime and has to go to prison, we want that guy to go to prison," he said. "But yes, it does mean that that guy is going to be separated from his family."
Vance argued Democrats "hide behind" raising alarms about a lack of compassion for families at the border.
"It is not compassion to allow the drug cartels to traffic small children," he argued. "It is not compassionate to allow the worst people in the world to send minor children, some of them victims of sex trafficking, into our country. That is the real humanitarian crisis at the border."
Fox News' Shannon Bream pushed back, noting that violent criminals are a small slice of the millions of undocumented immigrants living in the U.S.
Vance replied that law enforcement action is necessary to end the border crisis, saying the country can't buy into "the lie ... from the extreme left" that "law enforcement at the American southern border is somehow not compassionate to families who want to cross illegally."
Flashback: A federal judge in 2023 banned the separation of families at the U.S. southern border until 2031 to deter migrants from crossing.
That ruling could prevent the return of the first Trump administration's controversial policy that saw thousands of children separated from their parents.
Tom Homan, Trump's incoming "border czar," played a key role in crafting the policy.
Trump has suggested he'll use the military for immigration raids and has said he'd be open to detaining immigrants in camps.
2. Newsom taking Trump's threats to withhold California aid seriously
Gavin Newsom speaks with NBC's Jacob Soboroff during a "Meet the Press" interview aired Jan. 12.
Trump has threatened to withhold federal aid from California on severaloccasions โ both during and after his first White House stay.
And amid the catastrophic fires tearing through Los Angeles County, Trump has repeatedly heaped blame on California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
It's not immediately clear how Trump would handle the fires if they're still blazing when he takes over the White House.
Driving the news: "That's his style," Newsom said on NBC's "Meet the Press," highlighting a slate of times Trump delayed or threatened to block aid to the Golden State and others.
He said he takes the threats "seriously to the extent that in the past it's taken a little bit more time" to deliver federal aid during political tension with Trump.
Zoom out: Vance, asked in a "Fox News Sunday" interview aired Sunday if Trump would withhold aid to Californians, said Trump "is the president for all Americans."
But he blamed the fires' rampant spread in part on a "serious lack of competent" California officials.
Reality check: The fires ignited amid a rare overlap of climate factors: the worst high wind event in Southern California in over a decade, and extremely dry conditions.
What they're saying: Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) said Sunday that he's ready to work with Trump to make sure there is "no gap, no air between us" when rebuilding and helping victims heal after the deadly fires.
"I've been in Congress a long time, approving aid after disasters. I never once even considered, is this hurricane hitting a red state or a blue state?" Schiff said.
He added: "We need the incoming president to view it that way."
3. Lankford flips on Tulsi
Sen. James Lankford speaks during an interview aired Jan. 12 on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) made former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard's path to confirmation a bit easier Sunday when he said he would vote yes for her as director of national intelligence.
Why it matters: With the GOP's Senate majority so small, all of Trump's Cabinet appointees can only risk losing a few Republican votes, and several in the party have seemed reluctant to vote for Gabbard.
Between the lines: Lankford previously said he wanted Gabbard to explain where she stands on Section 702, which allows the U.S. to engage in targeted surveillance of foreign nationals living outside the United States, which Gabbard opposed while in Congress.
Last week, Gabbard said she supports Section 702 and that she would "uphold Americans' Fourth Amendment right" if confirmed as the nation's top spy.
What they're saying: "[Section 702] was a very important piece for me," Lankford said on NBC News' "Meet the Press."
He added that Section 702 is a key part of the DNI job, "to make sure we're actually watching for people to come attack us and stopping them before they do."
State of play: 13 proposed members of Trump's Cabinet will sit for confirmation hearings this week, including Pete Hegseth (Sec. of Defense) on Jan. 14 and South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (Sec. of Homeland Security) on Jan. 15.
A date for Gabbard's confirmation hearing has not been set.
A CNN graphic displays the dates for this week's Senate confirmation hearings.