Trump didn’t swear on a Bible. Does it matter?

Eagle-eyed watchers of President Donald Trump’s inauguration noticed that he kept his left hand at his side and did not place it on the Bible held by First Lady Melania Trump as he took the oath of office.

Did it matter?

Constitutionally speaking, no. Though swearing upon a Bible is a tradition, the Constitution does not require it. In fact, some presidents have taken the oath of office without a Bible. Two such occasions followed the deaths of presidents.

When Warren G. Harding, the 29th president, died of an illness in San Francisco on Aug. 2, 1923, Vice President Calvin Coolidge was on vacation in Vermont. What happened next in the family farmhouse is described by “The Smithsonian Book of Presidential Trivia”: “Coolidge’s father, a notary public, administered the oath of office to his son by the light of a kerosene lamp.” There was a family Bible available but it was not used.

—Los Angeles Times

‘DOGE’ to have its day — in court

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s new “Department of Government Efficiency” came under legal attack within minutes of its official creation Monday, as various public interest groups filed multiple lawsuits accusing the advisory panel of violating federal rules on transparency and other practices.

Suits filed by groups such as the American Federation of Teachers, Public Citizen and National Security Counselors, call for Trump’s panel — nicknamed DOGE — to cease its operations until it complies with a 1972 law designed to ensure that advisory panels operate in a transparent and unbiased manner.

Another suit, filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, seeks to obtain all records from the Office of Management and Budget related to DOGE. The public should have access to those records particularly given “the threats to numerous environmental protections” through administrative rollbacks of Biden-era regulations, the group’s complaint argues.

The suits raise new questions about whether the group will be allowed to function as Trump initially conceived or whether changes must be made to its organizational structure. Despite its name, the DOGE is not actually a federal department and is operating outside of government as an advisory panel, although its members are working closely with GOP lawmakers in Congress as well as executive branch officials.

—CQ-Roll Call

California's Bay Area universities double down on commitment to protect students regardless of immigration status, travel restrictions

University of California, Berkeley law student Adel Asad was at home with his family in Pakistan during winter break when he received an email from the university encouraging students to return to campus before President Donald Trump inauguration on Monday.

In 2017, during Trump’s first presidential term, he signed an executive order temporarily banning the entry of those from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen, citing security concerns. President Joe Biden rescinded the policy, but Trump has said he plans to reinstate and expand it.

“It’s very scary,” Asad said. “It’s bleak.”

Amid student concerns over Trump’s promises to crack down once more on immigration and travel from certain countries, Bay Area universities say they are committed to supporting international students and those living in the country illegally.

—The Mercury News

Putin says Russia is open to dialogue on Ukraine with Trump

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia’s ready for talks with the U.S. on the war in Ukraine as he offered congratulations to incoming President Donald Trump on his inauguration.

“We congratulate the U.S. president-elect on taking office,” Putin said Monday at a televised meeting of his security council ahead of the inauguration in Washington. Russia welcomed Trump’s desire to restore direct contacts and his statements on the need to prevent a third world war, he said.

“We are open to dialogue with the new U.S. administration on the Ukrainian conflict,” Putin said. “Its goal should not be a short truce, not some kind of respite for regrouping forces and rearmament with the aim of subsequently continuing the conflict, but a long-term peace based on respect for the legitimate interests of all people, all nations that live in this region.”

Trump said earlier this month that a meeting with Putin is being set up, raising the prospect that he could push to start negotiations to make good on his pledge to bring a swift end to the war in Ukraine. The two leaders haven’t yet spoken directly since Trump won election as president in November.

—Bloomberg News