text: Good morning. Here’s your Early Warning for Wednesday, 15 December 2021.ADMIN NOTE: To offer a wider array of reporting and prepare for quickening developments, we’re adding a daily situation report (SITREP) for Russia-NATO, Indo-Pacific, and the Homeland. – M.S.TODAY’S BRIEFING:House continues Counter-Trump crusadeCongress raises debt limit by $2.5TLAPD’s cyber tools target citizensRussia-NATO: Russia braces for sanctions, Germany still NATO’s weak linkIndo-Pacific: U.S. sanctions regime begins as China prepares response Homeland: The risk of double digit inflation next yearFar Left Activity Rollup & OutlookSITUATIONAL AWARENESSHOUSE CONTINUES COUNTER-TRUMP CRUSADE: Congress voted 222-208 to hold Mark Meadows, former President Trump’s Chief of Staff, in criminal contempt. Meadows refused further document requests and interviews after initially complying with the Jan 6 investigation. The growing list of former Trump officials now charged with contempt of Congress indicates the highly partisan nature of the proceedings. (AC: The continued investigation of the Capitol Hill protests, but nothing about nationwide destruction throughout 2020 points to political score settling against the former President. The committee is likely trying to extend its relevance well into 2022, as a campaign counterpoint for anti-Trump Republicans and Democrats. The argument will be made in campaign advertisements and speeches that anyone who supported the former administration is responsible for attacking the Capitol, contributing to the worsening political and social divides in our society. – D.M.)CONGRESS RAISES DEBT LIMIT: The House voted to raise the debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion early this morning. The Senate previously advanced a debt ceiling bill, which should fund the government into 2023. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, was quick to point out that the debt ceiling raise “ensures the full faith and credit” of the United States and its ability to pay its bills. (AC: Congress has raised the debt ceiling 25 times in the past roughly 20 years, including five debt ceiling suspensions, at about the same pace and frequency as the preceding 20 years. Additional analysis appears in tomorrow’s Economic Early Warning report. – M.S.) LAPD SCRAPING OPERATION: The Los Angeles Police Department contracted a Warsaw-based “strategic communications” firm to gain insight into protests. The police used a 40-day free trial of ABTShield, which scraped millions of tweets associated with Black Lives Matter, Antifa, election security, and white nationalism. The software assisted in reputation management, threat prediction, and information gathering about community grievances. (AC: This type of software is used to shape behavior as part of a psychological operations campaign. Critics are concerned the program could violate civil liberties, as police investigate political opposition and social movements. Police departments’ use of sentiment analysis and threat detection tools risks an overreliance on technology and increases the likelihood of politicized targeting by law enforcement