Axios PM

December 07, 2021
Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 455 words, a 2-minute read.
🇺🇸 Situational awareness: The funeral for former Sen. Bob Dole will be held at Washington National Cathedral on Friday at 11 a.m. ET (invited guests only). Leader Dole will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on Thursday. More information.
1 big thing: Biden threatens Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks on a video call with President Biden. Photo: Mikhail Metzel via Getty Images
President Biden threatened President Putin during a two-hour video call with harsh economic sanctions if Russia invades Ukraine.
- "[T]here was no finger wagging, but the president was crystal clear," said national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
- The White House said Biden and Putin also discussed the "strategic stability" dialogue between the U.S. and Russia, ransomware attacks and the Iran nuclear negotiations.
The big picture: Russia's military activity on Ukraine's border triggered alarms of a potential large-scale Russian invasion in early 2022, Axios' Zachary Basu and Dave Lawler report.
- Sullivan said Biden made clear to Putin that, “things we did not do in 2014, we are prepared to do now.”
The other side: Putin has blamed Ukraine's pro-Western government and NATO for escalating tensions with Russia.
- He sought legal guarantees from Biden that NATO would not expand to the East or deploy offensive missile systems on Ukrainian soil, according to the Kremlin readout.
2. NASA's risky plan
Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios
NASA is getting more ambitious with partnerships for its Moon program and space stations, reports Axios Space author Miriam Kramer.
Why it matters: This model of public/private partnership can pose risks for NASA, particularly when it comes to extremely difficult pieces of technology.
- SpaceX founder Elon Musk raised concern last week that the company could go bankrupt if its gamble on building Starship doesn't play out.
- NASA is relying on SpaceX as its sole provider of a human lander to get people to the Moon.
3. Catch up quick
A statue of Robert E. Lee after being removed from Market Street Park in Charlottesville, Va., in July. Photo: John McDonnell/The Washington Post via Getty Images
- "Swords Into Plowshares": Charlottesville will give the bronze statue of Robert E. Lee removed from public display to an African American history museum that plans to melt it down and transform it into public artwork. Go deeper.
- Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows will no longer cooperate with the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, his attorney said. Go deeper.
- Kyle Rittenhouse told a conservative podcast it was "probably not the best idea to go down" to Kenosha, NBC News reports.
- The U.S. reached 60% vaccination: 71% of the population has received a vaccine dose and 23% has been boosted. Go deeper.
4. The day that lived in infamy

80 years ago today, the Japanese military bombed Pearl Harbor, leading to President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "Day that will live in infamy" speech and the U.S. entry into World War II.
Below: President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden place a wreath at the World War II Memorial to mark National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

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