Politix

Michelle Obama's had it with President Trump continuing to block a peaceful transition of presidential power to Joe Biden ... and she's calling on everyone to put their foot down.

The former First Lady says "This isn't a game," and it's clear she's dead serious in her belief that Trump's behavior is a threat to American democracy.

Much like Barack pointing out how he called Trump to congratulate him in 2016 but the Prez has failed to do the same for Biden ... Michelle says she was hurt and disappointed when Hillary Clinton lost, but she sucked it up and did the right thing for the country in helping the Trumps.

Michelle says this "respectful, seamless transition of power" was granted to them by George and Laura Bush, but despite that ... she admits it was hard for her to do the same for Donald because he had "spread racist lies about my husband that had put my family in danger."

But again, Michelle says she put that aside for the sake of the American people, and because doing so is "one of the hallmarks of American democracy."

She goes on to slam Trump for making this about himself, saying, "our democracy is so much bigger than anybody’s ego. Our love of country requires us to respect the results of an election even when we don’t like them or wish it had gone differently—the presidency doesn’t belong to any one individual or any one party."

Barack Obama laid it all out on the table for "60 Minutes" -- offering advice to President Trump, dishing on how we can overcome systemic racism ... and giving rare insight into how pissed Michelle was at him for pushing for the presidency.

44 gave a wide-ranging interview to CBS's Scott Pelley, and the first order of business was Trump's refusal to concede the election ... despite a clear and decisive win for Joe Biden. Barack was asked what he might tell the sitting President in a time like this, and his answer was both meaningful and heartfelt ... this, to someone who by all accounts hates his guts.

Barack says if Trump wants at all to be remembered in any sort of favorable light -- even at this point -- the best thing to do is bow out gracefully and help Biden transition easily ... just like almost all administrations before him. Not only is it tradition -- it's the right thing to do, in BO's eyes anyway.

44 was also asked about systemic racism and police brutality -- specifically, about George Floyd and what he made of the video and the aftermath that followed. First, Barack said he had seen the clip -- which broke his heart. At the same time though, he also says he was heartened to see how many people, regardless of race or party, came out to decry Floyd's death and call it what it was ... murder.

As for what to do about police shootings on African-Americans, Obama said the issue will require more than just looking at how cops and police forces run -- although he said that needs to be reexamined and restructured as well.

In his mind, the police should be looking to get to the root of poverty, inequality and other issues in communities instead of just trying to "keep a lid on things," which he says so many officers in this country are trained to do. He also says that responsibility is on all of us, from the top down -- which extends to corporate America.

Lastly, Obama got brutally honest about how his political ambitions affected his family life -- especially as it pertains to his wife, Michelle, who told him she did NOT want him to run for President ... this according to Barack himself, as told in his new book, "A Promised Land."

Check out the clip to hear what she said to him -- it's clear the former First Lady wasn't totally on board with the White House stint, even after they'd won it. It also says a lot about Michelle's grace in general -- the fact we never saw this side in public speaks volumes.

Kellyanne Conway seems to be on her way out at the White House, but she could still ride the coattails of her 16-year-old daughter ... who might be the next "American Idol!"

Claudia Conway just teased the fact that she's trying out for the reality singing competition show -- posting a video on TikTok in which she says she's about to audition and was in the process of filming her confessional. Claudia also says she's already met Seacrest 👀.

In her brief clip, Claudia turns the camera around and sure enough ... there's a film crew there. You can also see the 'Idol' logo behind her in what appears to be a soundstage setting -- so yeah, it seems legit. Word is 'AI' is, in fact, filming right now -- out here in Cali, no less.

A couple things about this ... for starters, welcome back to TikTok, kid!!! Remember, it looked like Claudia got grounded from using the app a little while ago after spilling alleged tea on Trump's COVID diagnosis, which her mom did NOT like ... as we saw first-hand.

Looks like Claudia's been back online for a minute now -- but the other question this brings up ... who the hell knew she could sing?!? While we mostly see Claudia lip-syncing and dancing to songs on TikTok -- like so many other users -- she actually has some videos of herself where she shows off her pipes. We gotta say ... she ain't half bad!!!

Now that she's 16 and meets the minimum criteria to try out ... it seems Claudia's gonna get some face time with Lionel Richie, Luke Bryan and Katy Perry soon enough here. Considering her rebellious streak, you also gotta wonder if mama bear knows about this 😅.

Anyhoo, something tells us she's got a TV career in the making -- and we might very well be seeing her get some air time when the new 'Idol' season kicks off next year. Stay tuned!

Donald Trump has just shockingly conceded the election ... or did he?

Trump manically jumped on twitter Sunday AM, grousing, "He [Biden] won because the Election was Rigged. NO VOTE WATCHERS OR OBSERVERS allowed, vote tabulated by a Radical Left privately owned company, Dominion, with a bad reputation & bum equipment that couldn't even qualify for Texas (which I won by a lot!), the Fake & Silent Media, & more."

Trump was reacting to FNC's Jesse Watters, who said, "There’s something that just doesn’t feel right about this. Joe Biden didn’t earn it, he didn’t really even campaign. He thought was going to lose, you could see it. He ran a losing campaign. So 10 days after the election, how’s he ahead?"

Twitter was quick NOT to cut Trump a break, flagging his tweet as "disputed."

Trump later took back/clarified his "concession," saying, "I concede NOTHING! We have a long way to go. This was a RIGGED ELECTION!"

Trump's protestations have, so far, amounted to nothing. He and his team have been thrown out of court over a dozen times, because they presented no evidence of voter fraud.

As for why Trump won't concede ... well, the easy answer is that he just can't admit defeat, but the core answer is different. Trump will NEVER concede. He will convince his supporters he was robbed and he will continue beating that drum for 4 years. He will beat the drum on TV, radio and online. He will announce his run for 2024, almost like a leader in exile who makes a play to return to his country.

Barack Obama did not want to hit the campaign trail -- it's not really something former Presidents do -- but he felt it was necessary because Donald Trump's tenure "was not normal."

Forty Four appeared on CBS's "Sunday Morning" with Gayle King. He made it clear, he didn't really want to stump for the Dems, but he said, "I think we were in a circumstance in this election in which certain norms, certain institutional values that are so extraordinarily important, had been breached – that it was important for me, as somebody who had served in that office, to simply let people know, 'This is not normal.'"

Obama framed the current American dilemma this way ... "It's very hard for our democracy to function if we are operating on just completely different sets of facts."

He's sure got a point ... the reality is that most Americans now select media that parrots their own views -- especially if it's skewed -- and they distrust media that takes the opposing view. So, both sides get lopsided news.

The former Prez also obliquely addressed criticism, that he didn't do enough for Black America, saying, "I think a lotta people expected, 'Well, we got this young, progressive president. And now suddenly we're gonna eliminate inequality and, you know, we're immediately gonna have universal health care. And we're gonna have climate change legislation, and immigration reform, and criminal justice reform,' and all the things that I wanted to get done. But what I understood very early on is, the federal government, headed by the president, is an ocean liner; it is not a speedboat. Ten years from now, 20 years from now, the work you've done may be appreciated as having been good and helpful. But at the time, it can feel like, 'Wow, this isn't happening fast enough!'"

Obama, who was promoting his new memoir, "A Promised Land," shrugged off King's question of whether he'll help Biden, saying, "He doesn't need my advice. And I will help him in any ways that I can. But now, you know, I'm not planning to suddenly work on The White House staff or something."

Donald Trump's got a new way to pay off his massive debt after leaving the Oval Office ... there are huge sums to be made for speaking engagements.

The 45th President of the United States would easily command upwards of $1 million to speak in front of crowds in America and overseas ... according to folks who help celebs get such deals. Trump could make even more abroad, where his booking fee could reach as high as $2 million.

Lots of famous folks get paid huge sums to speak, and Trump will soon be in high demand ... as will Melania and Ivanka, once the whole lot is out of the White House.

Heavy hitters in the biz tell us Melania will fetch between $75k and $125k to speak in the U.S. and between $125k and $175k abroad. Those estimates assume she stays married to DT, and we're told they would increase if she ever divorces him or writes a tell-all book. How's that for added incentive?!?

Ivanka, we're told, will command the most among Trump's kids ... in part because she was already a published author with her own product lines before entering the White House. Ivanka should rake in between $75k to $100k to speak in the States, compared to $100k to $125k internationally.

Sorry, Don Jr., Eric and Tiffany ... we're told they're only gonna rake in about $75k to speak in the U.S. and there's unlikely to be an international market for them. It's peanuts compared to papa.

Trump will be an easy sell in America, where over 72 million people just voted for him ... and industry insiders expect him to mostly appear at Republican or right-wing events. Internationally, we're told Trump will likely have his first few speaking engagements in places where he's got lots of friends, like Israel and Russia.

The speaking engagements for Trump and his family will likely be very thick on NDA's, we're told, and the agreements would allow Trump to prevent speeches from being recorded.

The money's there for speaking engagements, but we're told PR firms and talent agencies aren't lining up to sign the Trumps as clients ... they fear it would piss off existing clients and spark a mass exodus.

Trump loves the bottom line, and he's also gonna like this ... we're told he will get first-class accommodations and golf trips wherever he gets paid to speak.

Donald Trump ventured outside The White House Saturday AM to greet his supporters who believe he's the victim of election theft, but after he left, violence erupted.

Protesters and counter-protesters got into it as the crowd grew in size throughout the morning.

Trump breezed past the demonstrators in downtown Washington D.C. in his motorcade, as the crowd began to grow. The event is billed the "Million MAGA March" which includes 'Women for Trump' and 'Stop the Steal.' Many of them are marching to protest the election results, claiming without evidence there was massive fraud with mail-in ballots.

There are counterdemonstrations with anti-fascist and anti-racism groups ... always a recipe for confrontations and violence.

The Trump demonstration was promoted by the Proud Boys, Infowars and other right-wing orgs.

Trump tweeted Thursday, "Heartwarming to see all of the tremendous support out there, especially the organic Rallies that are springing up all over the Country, including a big one on Saturday in D.C. I may even try to stop by and say hello. This Election was Rigged, from Dominion all the way up & down!"

Trump may be off to his golf course. As we reported, once he leaves The White House he's poised to make a million dollars plus a pop for speeches. We're told he's also eyeing the possibility of forming his own broadcast network which he would use for the next 4 years and then run again in 2024.

A newly-elected congresswoman is pissed she can't do her HIIT workouts in a gym -- instead having to sweat it out in her hotel -- but the fact she could pull it off might derail her point.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene -- who just won her congressional race in Georgia for the House of Reps. -- posted a video of herself Saturday which shows her in the midst of hardcore exercise ... a routine she says she'd normally do at a CrossFit facility in her home state.

She sounded pretty sour about having to do this in the confines of her D.C. hotel room, writing ... "I work out everyday in a CrossFit gym that is open. With people. Gyms are small businesses that have been devastated by the government mandated shut downs."

Rep. Greene added, "In DC, NOTHING is open bc of Democrat tyrannical control. So here’s my hotel room workout. We must FULLY reopen!" BTW, she's a Republican ... FYI. Also, it looks like Greene can get her CrossFit fix just fine from where she's at -- just sayin'!

Side note ... the GA congresswoman has been picking up major headlines since her Nov. 3 victory -- for one, she vocally rails against coronavirus guidelines, like masks and lockdowns, and parrots much of what President Trump has said these past few months on COVID.

She also flip-flops on her mask-wearing -- just like DT -- which was on full display these past couple days when she and other freshman congressmen and women touched down in the nation's capital for orientation ... where one day she was masked up, and the next not.

President-elect Joe Biden and First Lady-in-Waiting Jill Biden got a little exercise in Saturday before the transition team assembled in Delaware.

Joe and Jill breezed past reporters on their bikes as they said hello, a warm greeting that has not been forthcoming over the last 4 years.

A phalanx of Secret Service agents followed closely behind, which is an interesting sign, right? Although Donald Trump will not concede the election, the Secret Service is certainly acknowledging Biden's the next Prez.

Trump came as close as he's come Friday to acknowledging he may have lost the election, but it's virtually unthinkable he'll concede outright.

TMZ broke the story ... Trump stands to make a fortune -- like other past Presidents -- making speeches for at least a million dollars a pop. Sources also say Trump may be eyeing his own broadcast network which he can use as a megaphone for the next 4 years and then run again in 2024.

Chris Pratt is getting support from celebs who are incensed he's getting dragged on social media because he's conservative and religious, and the latest to chime in is his bro-in-law.

Patrick Schwarzenegger told Variety he was disgusted with Internet trolls labeling him "the worst Hollywood Chris."

Arnold's kid called the moniker "sad," adding, "Twitter is a junkyard right?" He went on to say, "People are so focused on putting other people down to make themselves feel better."

The Twitter smack talk started gaining steam last month. Chris' wife, Katherine, said, "There's so much going on in the world and people are struggling in so many ways ... Being mean is so yesterday. There's enough room to love all these guys.  Love is what we all need not meanness and bullying."

But remember, the big gun came out in the form of Robert Downey, Jr., who ripped into the trolls, saying, "What a world ... The 'sinless' are casting stones at my brother, Chris Pratt ... A real Christian who lives by principle, has never demonstrated anything but positivity and gratitude ... AND he just married into a family that makes space for civil discourse and (just plain fact) INSISTS on service as the highest value."

And, then the knockout blow ... "If you take issue with Chris ... I've got a novel idea. Delete your social media accounts, sit with your OWN defects of character, work on THEM, then celebrate your humanness."

These images tell a sad story, that much of the world may not get out of the COVID grip anytime soon, because hundreds of angry Brits took to the streets to protest in reckless fashion.

The huge crowd gathered at St. George's Hall in the Liverpool City Centre to protest the lockdown that's currently in place as coronavirus explodes both in England and many other parts of the world, including, of course, the USA.

Face masks were almost non-existent and there was zero social distancing, as protesters expressed their displeasure with the restrictions. There was also an anti-vax element to the demonstration.

Police were out in force, as the Merseyside Police Dept. issued a statement, calling the demonstrators "selfish and irresponsible."

Sixteen people were arrested for breaching public order, as well as violating coronavirus rules than prohibit mass gatherings.

The British government has issued stay-at-home orders, with exceptions for essential runs.

Barack Obama is reminding the nation he congratulated Donald Trump as soon as he won the election ... a courtesy the President's refusing to extend to Joe Biden.

The former president ripped Trump for failing to acknowledge Biden as president-elect with so much as a congratulatory phone call in an interview with "CBS This Morning," telling Gayle King Trump is damaging our democracy with the way he's eschewing what's traditionally been a peaceful -- and cordial -- transfer of power.

Obama recalled election night 2016, saying he stayed up until the wee hours of the morning to phone Trump and congratulate the president-elect. Obama says he was doing what presidents do, just as George W. Bush graciously did during Obama's historic 2008 victory.

Trump's refusal to concede and call up president-elect Biden is clearly not sitting well with Obama.

As you know ... Obama previously chided Trump and the GOP for continuing to make baseless claims of election fraud in an interview with "60 Minutes," telling Scott Pelley it undermines the country.

Obama points out Biden and 2016 Trump will end up with the same number of Electoral College votes, 306, but says half the country likely won't take that into account if they keep consuming conservative media ... which Obama says presents voter fraud allegations as fact.

President Trump has surfaced with great news -- the whole country will be getting the COVID-19 vaccine next spring, unless you live in NY ... where all you're getting is screwed by the Trump v. Cuomo war.

The President made his first public remarks since the election, Friday at the White House ... and proudly announced Operation Warp Speed is ready to distribute Pfizer's vaccine as soon as it gets FDA approval. He's projecting delivery will begin in April.

Great news, right? Well, POTUS also served up a side dish of petty with the vaccine. He said NY state will NOT be getting the vaccine because Gov. Andrew Cuomo said he doesn't want it.

Trump was referring to comments the Gov. has made about not trusting a vaccine if the Trump administration rushes its approval. Well, The Prez is taking him at his word, and went on to rip Cuomo for his COVID-19 response in the Empire State.

The good news for NYers is there's still time for both men to squash the beef, and Trump did say everything could change if Cuomo calls and asks for the vaccine. Translation: Kiss the ring, then you'll get the meds.

However, the Governor's Office tells TMZ, "Trump has failed with his pandemic response, lied to the Americans about how bad it was when he knew otherwise & was fired by voters for his incompetence. Governor Cuomo is fighting to ensure the communities hit hardest by COVID get the vaccine."

Doesn't sound like an attempt to make peace.

The wild card, of course, is President-elect Joe Biden, who it appears WILL be in the Oval Office come April -- so, maybe Cuomo doesn't see a need to bow to Trump.

While Trump did not take any questions from reporters, he did make one reference to the election, saying, "This administration will not be going to a lockdown. Who knows which administration it will be ... I guess time will tell."

It's the closest he's come to acknowledging defeat, but still ... NOT a concession speech.

Claudia Jordan thinks Donald Trump was always cool to her because he wanted to get in her pants, and now she's comparing him to folks like Thomas Jefferson. That's NOT a Presidential reference, either.

The "Celebrity Apprentice" alum opened up about her reality show days with Trump while on the latest edition of the Political Junkeez podcast. It's no secret she hates DT now, but back then she says they got along fine enough -- but added that was only "because he wanted to f**k."

Now, she didn't accuse him of trying anything untoward -- sounds like it was more of a vibe she got from Trump -- but did say no one should take his admiration for her as a sign he's not racist.

In fact, she compared him to slave owners who had sex with their slaves.

Claudia competed on seasons 2 and 6 of "Celebrity Apprentice," but also knew Trump from her days in the Miss USA competition.

Everyone knows Kamala Harris made history by being voted in as the first Black, Asian and female Vice President, but some people don't know she used to date Montel Williams!!!

That fun fact is all the buzz on the Internet Friday, as photos of the VP-elect and the longtime talk show host from a 2001 charity event have popped up again.

The pic also includes Montel's daughter, Ashley, as he has an arm around both women ... who are all smiles along with him.

Funny thing is, Williams dropped this juicy nugget of info more than a year ago on Twitter, when he confirmed a story circulating about his relationship history with Harris. Guess people weren't paying attention to Montel's tweets back then, plus she hadn't been selected as Biden's running mate back then.

Montel said they "briefly dated" about 20 years ago while they were both single. He also seemed annoyed over the love life stories about the Senator, and wondered if there was some sexism to it.