Now: Chief Judge Howell in DC has agreed to temporarily keep Thomas Hale-Cusanelli in custody pending further review of his detention status, after a NJ magistrate judge granted release and the govt filed an emergency motion to stop that from happening (see thread)

NEW: Georgia’s secretary of state has certified the results of the Senate runoff victories by Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, clearing the way for the two Democrats to take office on Wednesday and flip control of the Republican-held chamber.

Breaking NYT: Officials with Dominion Voting Systems have sent Mike Lindell, the CEO of MyPillow, a legal letter warning of pending litigation over his baseless claims of widespread fraud involving their machines.

New: The chief judge of the DC federal court has temporarily halted a ruling by a judge in Arkansas that would allow Richard Barnett — the man photographed sitting in Pelosi's office — to go free pending trial. He'll be transferred to DC pending a review of the detention decision

UPDATE: Magistrate judge turns down prosecutors' request to delay Pelosi-office-desk-sitter's release to house arrest. Richard Barnett expected to be released tom'w under GPS monitoring and order to stay off internet. Feds plan appeal to keep him in jail

The Fulton County district attorney is weighing an inquiry into possible election interference and is said to be considering hiring an outside counsel.

ATLANTA — Prosecutors in Georgia appear increasingly likely to open a criminal investigation of President Trump over his attempts to overturn the results of the state’s 2020 election, an inquiry into offenses that would be beyond his federal pardon power.

The new Fulton County district attorney, Fani Willis, is already weighing whether to proceed, and among the options she is considering is the hiring of a special assistant from outside to oversee the investigation, according to people familiar with her office’s deliberations.

UPDATE: Prosecutors asking for 3-day stay, say colleagues in DC want to appeal release order. Judge taking stay under advisement.

NOW: A judge has ordered Jacob Chansley, known as the "QAnon shaman," held in custody while his case goes forward, agreeing with the gov't that he is a flight risk and a danger.

"He will take the law into his own hands and will not respect the United States' law."

Despite conditions that favored cooling, we've never recorded higher temps.

Today, NASA and NOAA are announcing that 2020 was one for the record books, tying with 2016 for the warmest year since we've been tracking temperatures. NASA rates 2020 as the warmest ever, although by a margin that's not large enough to reach statistical significance; NOAA reverses the order, also without a significant difference between the two years. Whatever its precise rank, 2020 was the continuation of a worrying trend—the past seven years are all on the list of the seven warmest years on record, regardless of which source you turn to for your global temperatures.

NEWS: GOP Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler is a YES on impeaching Trump, becoming the fifth House Republican to back impeachment.