Tuesday's Campaign Round-Up, 12.20.16

Today's installment of campaign-related news items from across the country.* Newt Gingrich argued yesterday that if members of the incoming Republican administration push ethical boundaries too far, Donald Trump should be prepared to use his presidential pardon power to make the problems go away.* Asked about the Politico story describing Trump's embrace of a private security force, Jason Miller, a spokesperson for the president-elect's transition team, didn't exactly deny it. Instead, Miller said, the matter had been "blown out of proportion."* After hearing about Bill Clinton's latest criticism of him, Trump, unable to let anything go, fired back at the former president via Twitter.* In the race for the DNC chairmanship, Labor Secretary Tom Perez is taking full advantage of his long history working with unions, picking up endorsements from the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union late last week and the International Association of Firefighters yesterday. The AFL-CIO, however, is still backing Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.).* When Republican mega-donor Betsy DeVos, Trump's choice for Secretary of Education, faces a Senate confirmation vote, she'll be seeking support from a variety of Republican senators who've received generous checks from her.* Despite condemning Carlos Slim during the campaign, Trump enjoyed "a lovely dinner" with the Mexican billionaire at a Florida resort over the weekend.* President Obama, who will leave office exactly one month from today, said yesterday he has "some ideas" about how to help the Democratic Party start rebuilding in parts of the country where it's struggling most.* And Sen. Jeff Sessions' (R-Ala.) allies aren't taking any chances when it comes to his Attorney General nomination. A "Confirm Sessions" is now online, and a six-figure ad buy is on the way in the D.C. media market.