Good morning. I'm James Holman from the Washington Post and this is the Daily

202 for Wednesday, December 16th. In today's news, California's governor orders 5,000 more body bags in the face of soaring COVID deaths.

The US government spent billions on a system for detecting hacks, the Russians outsmarted it.

And Joe Biden picks a domestic climate czar,

as President Trump further eviscerates the Endangered Species Act on his way out the door.

But first, the big idea.

President Trump attacked Senate Majority Leader

Mitch McConnell in a tweet storm at 1 a.m.

for acknowledging that Joe Biden won the

election. McConnell held a conference call for all the Senate Republicans yesterday

afternoon to plead with them not to join House Republicans in their effort to challenge the election

results on January 6th when the Electoral College results are tabulated.

McConnell said it would be a terrible vote for Republicans because it would force all of them to either choose between

voting for Trump or against democracy. And he doesn't want them to be forced to choose in such a public

fashion. McConnell was backed up on the call by fellow Republican leaders John Thune and Roy Blunt.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito from West Virginia said afterwards that there was no pushback.

John Barazzo, the number three in Republican leadership

from Wyoming, said he hasn't heard of any Republican senator

being willing to join the effort to contest the results.

But Trump allies in the House say they have not given up and they have multiple

options to forge ahead.

Senator Ron Johnson, the Republican from Wisconsin, said he will not challenge the results

...