Giuliani says he won’t be on Trump impeachment defense team

Trump was impeached by the House for a second time last week.

President Donald Trump is slated to hand over control of the White House to President-elect Joe Biden in three days.

The House of Representatives voted to impeach Trump last Wednesday on an article for "incitement of insurrection" for his role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol -- making him the only president to be impeached twice.


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Trump awarded 8 arts and humanities medals as the House voted to impeach him

President Trump on Wednesday awarded the National Medal of Arts to five people, including country singers Toby Keith and Ricky Skaggs, and the National Humanities Medal to two people and a museum, the White House said Thursday.

Trump awarded the medals as the House voted to impeach him.

Keith is a supporter of Trump’s who performed for the then-incoming president at a 2017 inauguration-eve “Make America Great Again Welcome Celebration and Concert” at the Lincoln Memorial. Skaggs is also a Trump supporter who endorsed him in 2016.

One of the humanities medal recipients, Kay Coles James, is the president of the conservative Heritage Foundation.

The museum that received the humanities award was the National World War II Museum in New Orleans.

-ABC News' Ben Gittleson


White House official to lawmakers on impeachment: 'Knock it off'

Director of the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy Peter Navarro, in an interview with Fox Business Thursday, blasted the House's impeachment vote as a "travesty" and blamed the Democratic Party for the country's violence.

"The Democratic Party did violence to this country by attacking a president, who I believe was legally elected on Nov. 3," Navarro said. "I would say to these people on Capitol Hill, knock it off, stop this. Let the man leave peacefully with his dignity."

The false and unsubstantiated belief that the presidential election was stolen from Trump played a large role in driving some of his supporters to storm the U.S. Capitol last week in a siege that left at least five people dead and Trump impeached for a second time.

Navarro went on to predict if the election were held again "today," Trump would be elected, and added, "If he runs in 2024, he will be elected then."

-ABC News' Elizabeth Thomas


Preliminary plan to close National Mall on Inauguration Day

There is a preliminary plan to close the entire National Mall to the public for Inauguration Day amid security concerns, ABC News has confirmed.

The Washington Post was the first to report on the development, but The National Park Service has said it will make an announcement on the Mall following ongoing discussions with the Secret Service, the Biden Inaugural team and D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser.

Traditionally, members of the public gather on the National Mall -- bookended by the Capitol building and Lincoln Memorial -- for viewing of the inauguration on large jumbotrons.

But the Mall's potential closure comes in the wake of a violent seige on the U.S. Capitol building last week, which left at least five people dead, and amid heightened security concerns regarding armed protests being planned ahead of Biden's inauguration on Jan. 20.

Security preparations for next week have already increased with up to 20,000 National Guard troops authorized to provide security at the Capitol and around Washington, D.C., for next week's ceremony, according to a Defense Department official.

Bowser has already warned visitors to stay away from the District for the inauguration due to threats of both the coronavirus pandemic and of violence.

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this post reported that the entire National Mall would be closed to the public for Inauguration Day amid security concerns. The text has been updated to reflect the fact that the closure is only a preliminary plan.

-ABC News' Dee Carden and Josh Margolin


Republican governor who faced Trump's wrath to attend Biden inauguration

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, has announced he will attend Biden’s inauguration after weeks of attacks from Trump for signing the certification of Arizona's election results affirming Biden's narrow win in the state.

“It doesn't matter who you supported in the election — once the election is over, we put country before party. Never has it been more important than right now to observe these traditions for the whole world to see," Ducey said in a statement Thursday.

"I was honored to represent Arizona at the inauguration of President Trump in 2017, and I am honored to represent our state at the 59th Inaugural Ceremonies next week. President-elect Biden is assuming office at a critical time in our nation’s history, and I wish him well," he added.

The Arizona Republican Party is scheduled to meet a few days later on Jan. 23, when members will vote on censuring some apparent party foes including Ducey, Cindy McCain and former Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz.

-ABC News' Meg Cunningham


Officials issue wide-ranging ‘threat assessment’ ahead of Biden’s inauguration 

The FBI, DHS, Secret Service and U.S. Capitol Police, along with several local law enforcement agencies, have issued an extensive "threat assessment" surrounding Wednesday's inauguration.

It covers a range of threats surrounding the inauguration, including not only physical threats from domestic terrorists but also influence campaigns from Russia, China and Iran stemming from the Capitol siege. It even covers physical threats from drones.

The memo says domestic extremists is the “most likely” threat to the inauguration, citing recent incidents of ideologically motivated violence, including the deadly mob at the U.S. Capitol building.

Regarding foreign concerns, the assessment said that since the incident at the Capitol, “Russian, Iranian, and Chinese influence actors have seized the opportunity to amplify narratives in furtherance of their policy interest amid the presidential transition.”

“We have not identified any specific, credible information indicating that these actors intend to explicitly commit violence,” it added. “Furthermore, we have not identified any specific, credible cyber threat to critical infrastructure supporting the upcoming Presidential Inauguration nor a specific credible cyber threat to military or law enforcement personnel supporting the event."

The memo did say, however, that Russian state media has “amplified themes related to the violent and chaotic nature of the Capitol Hill incident, impeachment of President Trump, and social media censorship.”

Iranian state media has “continued to stoke claims that President Trump encouraged and incited the violence, as well as calls to invoke the 25th amendment,” the memo added. It has also “amplified perceived concerns related to President Trump’s mental health and the prospect of other risky actions he could take before leaving office.”

Finally, it noted that Chinese media has “seized the story to denigrate US democratic governance -- casting the United States as broadly in decline -- and to justify China’s crackdown on protestors in Hong Kong."

Lastly, the memo warned that drones could disrupt law enforcement operations at the inauguration, though it added that it does not have “specific, credible information” indicating malicious actors have plans to use unmanned aircraft systems to target the event.

-ABC News’ Mike Levine