The White House is Considering How to Punish Russian Hackers and More You Missed in Politics Today

It’s difficult to stay up-to-date on what’s happening in this country and to break through the clutter, so we’re here to make it easier. Here’s what we at Countable are reading today:

1. "Obama administration eyes measures to punish Russia for election interference"

"The Obama administration is close to announcing a series of measures to punish Russia for its interference in the 2016 presidential election, including economic sanctions and diplomatic censure, according to U.S. officials."

"The administration is still finalizing the details, which are also expected to include covert action that likely will involve cyber operations, the officials said. An announcement on the public elements of the response could come as early as this week."

Read more at the Washington Post.

2. "Israel to build in Jerusalem, mulls more steps against UN"

"Israel is pushing ahead with building plans in areas the UN Security Council recently declared as occupied Palestinian territory and weighing new steps against UN agencies as the censure from the international body roils domestic politics."

"The moves would expand on steps Israel has taken since the Security Council vote Dec. 23, when the U.S. broke with tradition and declined to veto a resolution Israel considers damaging. At a time when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been boasting of Israel’s improved international standing, the council’s decision threatens to further isolate his country over its half-century of control over Palestinians in the West Bank and east Jerusalem."

Read more at Bloomberg.

3. "House Republicans have proposed punishing representatives who shoot video or take photos on the floor of the chamber — a change in rules seen as a direct response to a dramatic sit-in in June by House Democrats demanding a vote on gun control legislation that was streamed live online. The new policy would result in members of Congress being fined up to $2,500 for digital photography, audio or visual recording or broadcasting on the House floor."

"These changes will help ensure that order and decorum are preserved in the House of Representatives so lawmakers can do the people's work," Ashlee Strong, a spokeswoman for House Speaker Paul Ryan, said in a statement Monday.”

Read more at NBC News.

4. "Defying Trump, California seeks to take lead in climate fight"

"Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders said they would work directly with other nations and states to defend and strengthen what were already far and away the most aggressive policies to fight climate change in the nation."

"The prospect of California’s elevated role on climate change is the latest sign of how this state, where Hillary Clinton defeated President-elect Trump by more than four million votes, is preparing to resist the policies of the incoming White House."

Read more at the New York Times.

5. "Japan PM in Hawaii for landmark Pearl Harbor visit"

"Japanese PM Shinzo Abe has visited several memorials in Hawaii, ahead of a visit to Pearl Harbor, the US naval base attacked by the Japanese in 1941. Abe will be accompanied by US President Barack Obama, making the visit the first by the leaders of both countries since the attack. Abe will pray for the dead but will not issue an apology, his aides said."

"Abe's visit, three weeks after the 75th anniversary of the attack, follows a visit earlier this year to Hiroshima by Obama. He became the first serving US president to visit the Japanese city, where about 150,000 people are believed to have been killed in 1945 by a US atomic bomb."

Read more at the New York Times.

— Erin Wright

(Photo by Kelly Kline / Creative Commons)