Last September, the Hollywood Reporter published a bizarre piece in its “Rambling Reporter” column called “Why Hollywood Keeps Quitting on Harry and Meghan.” The piece read like a Daily Mail hit-piece circa 2018, all about how Meghan storms around the Archewell office in high heels, barking orders and making grown men cry because she’s such a “bully.” The piece was so bizarre and so nasty, it inspired the Sussexes and the Archewell team to actually respond and organize an Us Weekly cover story in which multiple Archewell staffers (current and former) went on the record about how Meghan. They said Meghan is a lovely boss and she isn’t a bully and they enjoy the work they’re doing. The people pushing the “Meghan is a bully” agenda were really mad about that Us Weekly story, remember? They were mad that people went on the record about Meghan and said she was generous and kind. Well, the butthurt people decided to take their unnamed-source asses to Vanity Fair to once again push the agenda. Some excerpts from Vanity Fair’s Sussex cover story:

A former Harpo executive quit because of Meghan? Terry Wood, an executive vice president at Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions, was brought in to be what Meghan would later call her “right hand” when Archetypes won a People’s Choice Award in 2022. The source familiar with the production of Archetypes describes Wood’s anger, saying that she yelled at Spotify staffers when Meghan changed her mind about episodes. (Wood did not respond to VF’s request for comment.)

Meghan’s work patterns: The source who worked in media projects says Meghan’s own relationships with employees tended to follow a familiar pattern. She would be warm and effusive at the beginning, engendering an atmosphere of professional camaraderie. When something went poorly, often due to Meghan and Harry’s own demands—such as a teaser for Archetypes being released five months before the show premiered and before there was any tape to promote—Meghan would become cold and withholding toward the person she perceived to be responsible. The source says it was “really, really, really awful. Very painful. Because she’s constantly playing checkers—I’m not even going to say chess—but she’s just very aware of where everybody is on her board. And when you are not in, you are to be thrown to the wolves at any given moment.” In practice, they say, that manifested as “undermining. It’s talking behind your back. It’s gnawing at your sense of self. Really, like, Mean Girls teenager.” Marie had a different experience with Meghan: “She’s just a lovely, genuine person,” she said.

Meghan yells without yelling!! The person who worked in media projects read stories in the tabloids about Meghan “bullying” palace aides and couldn’t imagine such behavior actually happened. After working with her, though, this person realized, “Oh, any given Tuesday this happened.” While it beggars belief that Meghan actually shouted at a palace aide, as has been reported, a person who interacted with her professionally says, “You can be yelled at even if somebody doesn’t raise their voice. [It’s] funny that people don’t differentiate between the energy of being yelled at and literally somebody screaming at you.”

People needed therapy after working with Meghan? Two sources say a colleague with ties to Archetypes took a leave of absence after working on three episodes, then left Gimlet altogether. Several others described taking extended breaks from work to escape scrutiny, exiting their job, or undergoing long-term therapy after working with Meghan. The person who interacted professionally with her says, “I think if Meghan acknowledged her own shortcomings or personal contributions to situations rather than staying trapped in a victim narrative, her perception might be better.” They added, with the soggy laugh of a plebe rendering judgment on the Duchess of Sussex, “But who am I to criticize Meghan Markle? She’s doing great.”

[From Vanity Fair]

I’ve always been a person who trusts my gut-level instincts about celebrities (and I’m right about 99% of the time). I play a little game of “can I imagine this person doing what they’re accused of?” With all of the Meghan-is-a-bully stories, I’ve never been able to picture it or believe it whatsoever. The stories run contrary to her energy and everything we know about her. The whole “she yells at people without yelling at them” thing is… just odd. What are we doing here, really? What is she actually being accused of again? Like the British stories, no one has any specifics. She throws people to the wolves! Okay, how? She’s a Mean Girl! What are the specific Mean Girl antics? She undermined me! She’s your boss – are you sure she wasn’t just handing you a task? I needed long-term therapy after working on her podcast for a month! Are you being serious right now? Don’t you understand, she’s Black! Is it really that simple?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Instar, Backgrid. Cover courtesy of Vanity Fair.

On Friday, Vanity Fair dropped their new cover and cover story, all about the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The broader concept of the piece is about marking the five-year anniversary of the Sussexit and assessing how Prince Harry and Meghan are doing professionally. But it hits on and feeds into all of the worst of the tabloid narratives: “Meghan the bully” and “Harry is dumb” and “their marriage is trouble.” A lot of people have been really invested in that last one for a while now. In recent months, the “marriage trouble” storyline has been built on the reality that Harry and Meghan are pursuing separate projects – Meghan has her lifestyle show and brand, and Harry has all of his charity work and Invictus. Separate careers aren’t usually an indicator of divorce, but that didn’t stop Vanity Fair from pushing this very bizarre story about how Meghan was pitching a post-divorce memoir:

A few years ago a rumor began circulating around the book world about another prospective project for Meghan. This story, which a person with knowledge confirms the broad details of, was that Meghan’s team had a conversation with a publishing house to gauge interest in the idea for a potential book. The concept, for which there was no written or formal proposal, was post-divorce. Not a general book on life after marital dissolution, or one about Meghan’s past experience. (She was married to producer Trevor Engelson from 2011 to 2014.) This book—this notion of a book, really—might center on a post-Harry divorce. Not that there was actually one in the works! Just…if this a priori divorce ever came to be, would this publisher theoretically be interested in a book that took place in its aftermath? Another source with knowledge says, “If that’s true to any degree, she would have been approached and not vice versa.” No offer was ever made, and no manuscript was produced. After all: There was no divorce.

[From Vanity Fair]

None of this sounds true at any level. First off, Harry & Meghan are fine and by all accounts, they’re deeply in love and committed to one another, their young children and their life together in California. Secondly, why would Meghan – who is notorious for keeping her business on lockdown – go to anyone in the publishing world with this kind of juicy gossip scoop when everyone knows that the information would get out. Thirdly, it doesn’t make any sense at a business or gossip level – say that Meghan considered divorcing Harry and she was thinking about writing a book about it. Meghan knows, as does everyone in the publishing world, that her memoir would be huge (it would be huge even without a divorce). She wouldn’t have to “pitch” it to any publisher. Multiple publishers would be throwing eight-figure deals at her.

The Daily Mail obviously pulled this story out of the VF piece too, and they ran it as an exclusive, with “Meghan’s friends” shutting down VF’s claims, saying: “If that’s true to any degree, she would have been approached and not vice versa.” My guess is that someone in the publishing world – probably someone at the News Corp-owned Harper Collins, IYKYK – started this rumor as wishful thinking and it has no basis in reality.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, cover courtesy of VF.

The only “buzzy” cultural thing happening around Donald Trump’s inauguration is Michelle Obama letting everyone know that she’s not coming and she’s in her IDGAF Era. I’ve seen DC people talk about how the city has been completely dead in the lead-up to Monday’s inauguration, although I’ve also seen that the MAGA oligarch bros are doing a lot of inaugural balls on Monday night. But still, the energy is low, the buzz is nonexistent, and the vibe is nihilist. Trump was looking at a second inaugural which would have been more poorly attended than the first. So, funny story: bigly macho man Donald Trump is worried about his widdle bone spurs freezing off, so the inauguration is moving indoors. Dude is too stupid to wear layers and a coat, I guess.

President-elect Donald J. Trump said Friday that his inauguration would be moved inside the Capitol Rotunda because of a frigid weather forecast, the first time in 40 years that a presidential swearing-in will be held indoors.

The change for Monday’s inauguration means that far fewer people will be able to watch in person as Mr. Trump officially becomes the 47th president. It also avoids the potential for smaller crowds because of the weather. Mr. Trump was furious about reports that he had smaller crowds in 2017 than President Obama had at his 2009 inauguration.

“The weather forecast for Washington, D.C., with the windchill factor, could take temperatures into severe record lows,” Mr. Trump wrote on his social media website, Truth Social. “I don’t want to see people hurt, or injured, in any way. It is dangerous conditions for the tens of thousands of Law Enforcement, First Responders, Police K9s and even horses, and hundreds of thousands of supporters that will be outside for many hours on the 20th (In any event, if you decide to come, dress warmly!).”

Trump officials had been discussing what to do about the weather well before Mr. Trump decided to have the inauguration moved indoors. Temperatures in Washington on Monday are projected to drop to a low of 11 degrees, with a high of 23 degrees. The last time a swearing-in moved indoors was in 1985 for President Ronald Reagan’s second inauguration, similarly because of cold weather.

[From The NY Times]

Apparently, Trump now plans to have his supporters pile into the Capital One Arena to watch the now-indoor inauguration, and he promises to join them afterwards. Which is BS – after the swearing in, there’s a lunch, and then an hours-long parade, and then the inaugural balls. He can’t just peel off and spend a couple of hours with his fascist fans. Apparently, MAGA donors are pissed off, because there are only 600 available seats in the Capitol Rotunda. Anyway, these are the people who want to invade and colonize Canada and Greenland – they’re too scared of a little cold weather! Nah, really they’re scared that they’re going to look like giant losers.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid, Cover Images.

Patrick Dempsey won’t return to the Scream franchise, so they’re recasting “Sidney’s husband” with Joel McHale. I’m fine with that! [Just Jared]
A much better look for Felicity Jones. [RCFA]
Orville Peck is replacing Adam Lambert. [Socialite Life]
Everyone hopes Cameron Diaz is really back! [LaineyGossip]
“Cursed” 2010s commercials. [Pajiba]
Gwendoline Christie is always a delight. [Go Fug Yourself]
TikTok will officially go down on Sunday? [OMG Blog]
How many NCIS spinoffs are really needed though? [Seriously OMG]
Photos of celebrities volunteering for fire relief. [Hollywood Life]
A Before the 90 Days update. [Starcasm]
Worst casting decisions of all time? I agree with some of the picks on this list, but I think history will be kind to Keanu Reeves in Dracula. [Buzzfeed]

Florence Pugh recently chatted with the Times to promote We Live In Time, her weepy drama with Andrew Garfield. I still haven’t seen it and I don’t want to – I dislike those kinds of manipulative grief-p0rny films. But I do support Florence, who apparently had a big life change because of the movie. After filming it, she broke up with Zach Braff and took a real break from her career for the first time in a decade. She speaks about that and (what else?) body image and standing up for herself online:

Her father wants her to stay “100 per cent Flo Pugh”. “And so I always prodded at things. I’m not nasty — I hope people think I’m kind. But there are fine lines women have to stay within, otherwise they are called a diva, demanding, problematic. And I don’t want to fit into stereotypes made by others. It is really exhausting for a young woman to just be in this industry, and actually other industries. But I’ve always been encouraged to have a voice.”

How ‘We Live in Time’ changed her life: “When I finished filming my life changed,” Pugh explains. She broke up with her long-term boyfriend, the actor Zach Braff, in 2022 and has dated a few people, none famous, since. “Relationships came and went, and I had this opportunity to look at my life away from my work. And I realised, OK, I need to wake the f*** up. I had to look away from my career, from movies, from wanting to be this kind of actor, that kind of actor. Or how many awards I would love to get before I pass away. That’s been my focus for ten years, but I want to make sure that the things I need to do, whether children, family, change, change in relationships … well, I realised I need to make changes now. Because I’m a worker bee and that is why I’ve never wanted a break. Everything was just, wow! What’s next? And it is only ten years in that I can now go, oh, I need to do a bit of my life.”

The sniping criticism of her body: “Look, not everybody has legs that go on for days. I remember watching this industry and feeling that I wasn’t represented. I remember godawful headlines about how Keira Knightley isn’t thin any more, or watching women getting torn apart despite being talented and beautiful. The only thing people want to talk about is some useless crap about how they look. And so I didn’t care to abide by those rules. I’ve loved challenging ideas I don’t like.”

Challenging men’s BS: “I wanted to challenge how women were perceived, how we are supposed to look… Actually I wasn’t trying to challenge. I just wanted to be there, to make space for a version of a person that isn’t all the things they used to have to be. I’m proud I’ve stuck by myself and look the way I look — I’m really interested in people who are still angry with me for not losing more weight, or who just hate my nose ring. I am not going to be able to just change the way that things are — but I can certainly help young women coming into this industry by making conversations happen where they weren’t before.” Recently she revealed that she has had her eggs frozen after a diagnosis of endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome.

Playing characters who were marginalised in the 1800s: “Well, it’s always been fashionable to tell a woman how she should live her life. Or that the decisions they are making are wrong or too loud. It’s about control, isn’t it? It’s still ultimately about suppressing one sex, and we’re dealing with it all the time.”

What it’s all about: “I mean, the world is not exactly fun right now. Whether you’re in your teens having to manoeuvre life on your phone, because the internet’s terrifying, or the wars with many people dying. There’s so much crap, but this reminds everyone that the reason we’re here is to love and be loved. There aren’t car chases. Or aliens. But it’s real — because there is a time frame on our lives and it shouldn’t be something we wait for to happen. Life should be something we’re in control of.”

[From The Times]

“Well, it’s always been fashionable to tell a woman how she should live her life.” Amen. That’s a message I wish more young women and girls understood, that none of this is new, even if it feels new or it feels heightened because of the internet. It’s always been the case that men are in women’s business. It’s always been the case that women’s bodies are policed and controlled. As for what she does online to defend herself and her body/looks… she can do whatever she wants, obviously, and I’m sure her words have helped other women. That being said, I do feel like there’s a razor’s edge to walk between “defending yourself from trolls” versus “doing something attention-seeking and attacking people for having an opinion.”

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

As I’ve mentioned in several posts now, I saw The Substance over the holidays and I loathed it. While I thought it was an interesting concept and *some* of the body horror was well-executed, they really drove the whole story off of a f–king cliff for the last hour. It was trying to be high-minded about the toxic messages of worshipping youth and beauty, but they also wanted to exploit youth and beauty too. Anyway, Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley did the best they could with the material they were given, and both actresses are getting nominations all over the place. Demi has been campaigning more than Margaret, but Margaret has just introduced a “struggle narrative” to her campaign. Apparently, because of all of the facial prosthetics, she had a severe breakout which affected her for about a year.

In a recent interview on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast, Margaret Qualley said it took “a year” for her skin to recover from the irritation caused by the face prosthetics used in “The Substance.” The damage was so bad that director Coralie Fargeat had to frame out her face in certain shots.

“At the end, when they’re shooting up my skirt in the beginning credits, and it’s like the palm trees all around and they have all these long lenses from the bottom, that’s just because my face was so f–ked up,” Qualley said. “They couldn’t shoot my face anymore.”

The acne from the prosthetics lasted long after “The Substance” wrapped and persisted as she began shooting her next film, “Kinds of Kindness,” in which she played four characters: Vivian, Martha, Rebecca and Ruth. Luckily, the acne played to her benefit in the Yorgos Lanthimos drama.

“So, you know the character that has all that acne? That was just my acne from the prosthetics,” Qualley said. “And I was like, ‘Oh this is kind of perfect. I’m playing all these different characters. For one of them, we’ll use all my crazy prosthetic acne.’ It took me probably a year to recover physically from all of it.”

[From Variety]

This reminded me of Scarlett Johansson talking about how all of the Marvel actors get rashes from their superhero suits and they basically have dermatologists on stand-by. Honestly, as someone who gets a rash at the drop of a hat, Margaret’s story is its own horror story. She should sue! Seriously, her skin’s reaction to those janky prosthetics affected her work! Does this make you want to vote for her in the supporting category?

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.

Jessica Alba’s divorce is starting to freak me out a little bit. It’s just so… un-Hollywood. In Hollywood, even the most generous and warm divorces have some spice and drama. I mean, a marriage is ending, clearly two people have fought about something, whether it’s infidelity, money, careers, kids. Even if two celebrities manage to be completely mature and loving in their divorce, there’s still drama over divorce lawyers or assets or PR! But not Jessica Alba and Cash Warren. At least not yet. I don’t even get the sense that Alba and Warren are making an effort to position themselves in any kind of way, and neither party seems particularly concerned about their image or their assets. Even TMZ’s announcement about their separation last week didn’t feel one-sided or dramatic. And now this – Jessica Alba has announced on Instagram that her marriage is over. This is what she posted:

“I’ve been on a journey of self realization and transformation for years – both as an individual and in partnership with Cash.”

“I’m proud of how we’ve grown in our marriage over the last 20 years and it’s now time for us to embark on a new chapter of growth and evolution as individuals.

“We are moving forward with love, kindness and respect for each other and will forever be a family. Our children remain our highest priority and we request privacy at this time.”

[From Alba’s IG]

Hilariously, she didn’t even pin that IG, at least she hadn’t pinned it as of this writing. She just tossed it off like it was a random announcement about some minor gig. So, I have a small theory about this – I think Alba and Warren’s marriage was obviously more like a loose partnership in recent years, and they were basically just staying together for the kids. Maybe they also had a trial separation, or they agreed to spend more time apart. I think Alba is the one who decided to pull the plug, and she expects Cash to not put up much of a fight about anything. Maybe she’s fine with everything she’s built being part of the community property of their marriage too.

Also: People Mag reported exclusively that Alba hired a divorce lawyer. Us Weekly says that Cash and Jessica plan to file for divorce soon and Cash is moving out, but things have slowed down because of the Southern California fires. Hm.

Photos courtesy of Alba’s IG and Avalon Red.

The Kansas City Chiefs play the Houston Texans on Saturday, the start of the Playoffs. Travis Kelce said a few days ago that Taylor Swift would attend the game, which is notable because she’s now skipped a few games. By my records, the last game she attended was on December 21 (when the Chiefs also played the Texans). Taylor seems to enjoy having a football-player boyfriend, and she’s pretty comfortable attending all of the Chiefs’ home games at Arrowhead. Travis told Stephen A. Smith this week that Taylor isn’t even encouraging him to retire after this season.

Taylor Swift is not getting in the way of Travis Kelce’s desire to keep playing football. During a stop on The Stephen A. Smith Show on Wednesday, Jan. 15, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, 35, was asked if Swift, also 35, was “encouraging” him to retire since football is a violent sport.

“She’s fully encouraging me to enjoy playing this game,” Kelce told host Stephen A. Smith. “She loves coming to Arrowhead [Stadium] and coming to the games and cheering for me, so I got all the support in the world to keep chasing these dreams.”

Earlier in his interview with Smith, 57, Kelce said he was not thinking about retirement at the moment. Instead, he is thinking about the playoffs, which start for the Chiefs on Saturday, Jan. 18, against the Houston Texans at Arrowhead Stadium.

“I love everything that I’m doing in this building,” Kelce said. “But at the end of the day, I’m not having that extreme success on the field as I have individually, man. I’m excited for these next couple games to play up at Arrowhead, to finish this season off.”

Kelce said he would “reevaluate” his career as he “always” does.

“And I’ll probably tell myself how much I love this thing,” he continued. “It’s something you have to keep in perspective, man. I never want to get to the point where I’m not helping this team win or I’m hurting this team more than I’m helping this team. As long as I’m coming out here playing good football and enjoying coming into the building every day with my guys, you’ll see me in a Chiefs uniform.”

The Chiefs are hoping to become the first NFL team in history to win three consecutive Super Bowls. The team has already won three since 2019.

[From People]

My guess is that his feelings on retirement will depend a lot on whether the Chiefs make the Super Bowl and, if that happens, whether they win another ring. If they make it to the Super Bowl, it will be really difficult for Travis to retire, because what will he tell himself? He didn’t have the best season and yet he made it to the biggest game. Anyway, I’m sure Taylor is encouraging him to do whatever he wants and follow his dreams. But she’s also helping him prepare for his post-football career in a way – their relationship has eased his path to a major career outside of football, as a host/actor/producer and whatever else he wants to do.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Avalon Red.

The Hugh Jackman/Sutton Foster relationship launch tour is still in full effect. So far, we’ve had exclusive date night pictures via People, paparazzi shots of them making out in the parking lot of an In-N-Out Burger, and snaps of Hugh watching Sutton perform in the musical “Once Upon a Mattress” in Los Angeles. Well, another day, another Hutton(Sugh?) sighting. I was wondering where they would pop up next and now we have our answer. If you had “taking a romantic stroll through Los Angeles in their comfy clothes” on your bingo card, you can cross it off! The PDA tour is all gas, no breaks.

The Deadpool & Wolverine star and two-time Tony Award winner stepped out in Los Angeles for a casual stroll together on Jan. 8, and the pair were practically beaming while taking in some sun.

For the early morning outing, Sutton, 49, kept cozy in a pair of dark salmon joggers, green slippers and a gray crewneck sweatshirt. Meanwhile, Hugh, 56, matched her comfy aesthetic, rocking a dark gray crewneck that read “East Hampton Gym,” navy blue joggers and a pair of blue slip-on sneakers.

And the couple—who confirmed their romance earlier this month, when they were spotted walking hand-in-hand following a dinner date in Santa Monica, Calif.—stayed close while getting some fresh air, holding tightly onto each other’s hands while Hugh carried a tin foil food tray to deliver to a friend’s house. At one point, they turned toward each other as they rounded a street corner, smiling and sharing a big laugh.

Hugh and Sutton—who were friends for nearly a decade before sparking romance rumors—certainly haven’t been shy about packing on the PDA. Shortly after their first public date night, the duo were seen locking lips while grabbing burgers from In-N-Out in Los Angeles.

During that date, the Greatest Showman actor leaned toward the Younger alum, who cradled his face for a steamy makeout session while they waited in the drive thru line at the famed establishment.

[From E News Online]

So, at one point, while their relationship was still only whispers and TikTok vids, I actually thought that Hugh and Sutton would remain under the radar and stay fairly lowkey. Given that their relationship basically started while both were married to other people, I really did think that they would take the Ariana Grande/SpongeBob Sidepiece route of laying low. I was wrong! They are clearly all-in, with spirit fingers. All of these sudden pap strolls…it’s giving Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas during lockdowns. Remember when they used to do their daily Dunkin runs/dog walks/pap strolls? That wasn’t even five full years ago, yet it feels like it was another lifetime. Anyway, Hugh and Sutton and all of their pap strolls absolutely have that Ben/Ana “look at us” energy. Someone get these two thirsty bitches a glass of water.

Lovebirds Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster seem overjoyed that their relationship is now out in the open after months of rumors swirling around the former co-stars.

The pair were spotted holding hands while taking a romantic morning stroll together.

They beamed with joy,… pic.twitter.com/tVkCv04Joj

— backgridus (@BackgridUS) January 15, 2025

Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster look happier than ever amid his divorce drama with ex Deborra-lee Furness https://t.co/mckWnOp9Hr pic.twitter.com/aAQWRlh81T

— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) January 16, 2025

photos credit: Robin Platzer/Twin Images/Avalon, Roger Wong/Instar Images, John Nacion/startraksphoto.com/Cover Images

President Joe Biden has been especially active in his final days in office. This week, he gave his farewell address and spoke about the rising American oligarchy, as well as the tech industrial complex. He also spearheaded a long-awaited Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal, which was finalized this week. And now this: what will probably be his final sweep of pardons and commutations. President Biden got a lot of sh-t after Thanksgiving last year when he announced a full and unconditional pardon of his son Hunter Biden. Since then, people have been on “pardon watch” and Pres. Biden has given them a lot to talk about. In December, Biden did sweeping pardons of 1,500 people, mostly people with nonviolent drug-related convictions. He just did another round of commutations today – 2,500 people will have their sentences commuted.

President Biden announced on Friday that he would commute the sentences of nearly 2,500 inmates serving long prison terms for nonviolent drug offenses, the broadest commutation of individual sentences ever issued by a U.S. president.

The commutations are for offenders who received harsher sentences for drug crimes than they would under current practices, a move aimed at reversing longstanding criminal justice disparities, Mr. Biden said. Those disparities disproportionately affected Black people and fueled mass incarceration, many experts say.

“This action is an important step toward righting historic wrongs, correcting sentencing disparities and providing deserving individuals the opportunity to return to their families and communities after spending far too much time behind bars,” Mr. Biden said in a statement.

Mr. Biden said he would consider additional pardons, which wipe out convictions, and commutations, which leave the guilty verdict intact but reduce some or all of the punishment, in the coming days. Among others, Mr. Biden has been considering pre-emptive pardons for a number of former elected officials and other people his successor, President-elect Donald J. Trump, may target for political retribution.

Mr. Biden said his latest commutations would help those who received sentences based on now-discredited distinctions between crack and powder cocaine, or faced inflated charges for drug crimes. Mr. Biden said in his statement that he was following the lead of Congress, which over the past two decades has passed legislation to remedy decades-long disparities spurred by tough-on-crime laws, such as mandatory minimum sentences.

[From The NY Times]

Good. I’m glad he’s doing this and I’m glad he’s been highlighting the issue of drug sentencing and the changes already being made at the state and federal level over mandatory-minimum drug sentencing. I hope he pardons or commutes every nonviolent drug offender, honestly. F–k it. As for the chatter about whether Pres. Biden will issue preemptive pardons to people in Trump’s crosshairs… I don’t know. I will be very curious to see if it happens and whether it would make a difference either way.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images.