Thursday's Mini-Report, 12.1.16

Today's edition of quick hits:* Tennessee: "Three more people have died in the ferocious wildfire that erupted across Tennessee's Great Smoky Mountains National Park, authorities said Thursday, raising the death toll to 10 as officials continue to assess the damage."* A bit of a surprise out of France: "French President Francois Hollande said on Thursday he would not seek a second term in office in the presidential election in 2017, an unprecedented move that leaves the way open for other left-wing candidates. It is the first time in decades that an incumbent French president has not sought re-election. Hollande is the most unpopular president on record."* A bigger surprise out of California: "Gov. Jerry Brown has tapped House Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles) to be the next attorney general of California. He will succeed Kamala Harris, who was elected to the U.S. Senate in November."* This is an important effort worth watching: "A Republican senator and a Democratic senator have joined forces to try to protect DREAMers and shield them from deportation as concerns mount that President-elect Donald Trump could repeal President Barack Obama's executive action to protect them."* Putin intends to play Trump like a fiddle: "After a wave of euphoria among Russia's political elite over the victory of Donald J. Trump, President Vladimir V. Putin on Thursday gave a more measured response in his annual address to the nation, calling for cooperation but expressing misgivings over some of Mr. Trump's statements about nuclear weapons."* More on this on tonight's show: "[S]even Democratic senators -- led by Oregon's Ron Wyden, a member of the Senate's select committee on intelligence -- have sent the White House a two-sentence letter that suggests they're already aware of troubling specifics about Russia's role in the U.S. election and that they want the rest of America to be aware of them as well."Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.