Politix

President Joe Biden commuted the two-decade-long prison sentence of University of Miami booster and Ponzi scheme mastermind Nevin Shapiro ... who previously admitted to illegally plying players with expensive gifts.

The commutation of the 55-year-old convicted felon was one of 1,499 handed down by Biden on Thursday ... a one-day record for a POTUS.

Shapiro pled guilty to 8 felony counts -- and was sentenced to 20 years in Federal prison -- for his role in a $900+ million Ponzi scheme, which he ran from his Capital Investments office in Miami.

Jeff Bezos may have wanted his newspaper to stay out of politics when he killed a Washington Post endorsement for Kamala Harris ... but he sure opened his wallet fast for President-elect Donald Trump.

Here's the deal ... Amazon and Meta have each pledged $1 million to Donald Trump's inauguration fund -- giving the impression they are kissing up to DT after a wishy-washy election season of support.

Trump has scorched both mega tech companies in the past for, among other things, not fawning over him enough during his campaign ... but it appears JB and Mark Zuckerberg are trying to make it right on Day 1 of the incoming administration.

Congressman Tim Burchett wants the U.S. government to step up with military options against drones ... saying he wants to see a few of the crafts shot out of the sky.

A photographer caught up with the representative from Tennessee Thursday... and, Burchett told him America's government is being tested by outside forces -- and, the government is failing the test.

Burchett tell us the government is too comfortable throwing their hands up and saying they've got no idea what the drones are or who is piloting them ... seemingly referencing White House national security communications adviser John Kirby admitting they haven't been able to corroborate any sightings of alleged drones over New Jersey.

Paris Hilton just hit a major milestone -- after tirelessly lobbying for children in the welfare system, her legislation was officially passed by the U.S. Senate overnight.

Not only that, but Hilton’s "Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act" passed unanimously with all 100 senators on board -- making it an absolute win for legislation deeply personal to her after she bravely shared her own painful experiences of abuse at a young age.

The bill still needs to go through the U.S. House of Representatives to reach President Biden’s desk ... but Paris is riding high!

Donald Trump has been on a roll lately and there seems to be no end to his good fortune because he's been named Time magazine's "Person of the Year."

The newly crowned 47th President-elect of the United States posed for a photo on the cover appearing like a man in charge in his dark suit and red tie. Sitting with one hand over the other, Trump has a serious look on his face as he stares into the distance.

Time gave Trump the honor because he marshaled "a comeback of historic proportions, for driving a once-in-a-generation political realignment, for reshaping the American presidency and altering America's role in the world."

Justin Trudeau's sure Kamala Harris would've made more progress for women than Donald Trump ... slamming the U.S. for not advancing feminism -- and branding himself as a feminist.

The Prime Minister of Canada spoke at an event for the Equal Voice Foundation -- an organization dedicated to improving gender representation in politics -- and, he took his close ally -- the United States -- to task ... saying the recent election of Donald Trump didn't progress women's rights.

Watch the video for yourself ... basically, Trudeau says Kamala would've been better for women than Trump -- saying the rights of women were supposed to be on a steady, if difficult, incline.

US-UK relations got a little stronger with a handshake, as Donald Trump greeted Prince William at the ceremonial reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris.

Trump was spotted making his way down the line of world leaders, eventually reaching Prince William, placing his hand on the royal's shoulder as they shared a handshake and a quick conversation Saturday.

The last time Trump and Prince William met was in 2019 when Trump was in office.

The Biden administration is ready to clean house ahead of Donald Trump's return to the Oval Office ... setting up a pricey cleaning service ahead of the handoff.

According tofederal financial documents obtained by TMZ ... the WH has tapped cleaners to do a deep clean of the West Wing, East Wing, and the Eisenhower Executive Office Building next door. The scrub-down will cost a whopping $140,930 ... and actually kicked off last month ahead of Thanksgiving.

The White House is also shelling out an additional $46,800 to have the carpets thoroughly cleaned in the aforementioned spaces ... noting the cleaning was needed before the 2025 Inauguration.

Lil Pump is predicting all Americans' next 4 years will be the best of their lives -- now that his beloved Donald Trump is returning to the White House!!!

TMZ Hip Hop caught up with Pump geeked up at LAX today, rapping his own version of Eminem's "Without Me" to bask in the moment ... somewhat ironic, considering Slim campaigned for the other candidate.

The past few elections created a political monster outta Pump ... he's relentlessly supported Trump through thick and thin and got his wish this past November with the blistering election results.

Trisha Yearwood isn't letting her husband Garth Brooks' legal woes keep her from getting in the holiday spirit ... performing at the annual Christmas tree lighting in Washington, D.C. last night.

The country singer ignored the ongoing chatter surrounding GB's rape lawsuit Thursday evening, taking the stage at the Ellipse in President's Park and performing some festive tunes for the national event.

Decked out in a sparkling red pantsuit, Trisha performed for President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff ... taking a bow after wrapping up her seasonal set.

Barron Trump isn't soaking up the spotlight while attending New York University, and he's using video games to socialize with his peers ... this according to current students.

TMZ spoke with several students at the prestigious Manhattan university, who tell us Barron spends little time on campus ... quickly moving in and out of buildings while surrounded by Secret Service agents and transported in an SUV.

Basically, playing hacky sack in the quad ain't his thing.

Jeff Bezos says stopping the Washington Post, the newspaper he owns, from endorsing a presidential candidate last month was the right move and he's proud of his decision.

The Amazon founder and WaPo owner doubled down on the controversial decision -- a drastic break from tradition -- Wednesday at the Dealbook Summit in New York City.

During a conversation with Andrew Ross Sorkin, Bezos says he knew his decision to put the kibosh on election endorsements would draw tons of backlash ... and it did. The move reportedly resulted in 200,000 readers canceling their subscriptions.

The tragic news of the passing of Kirk Herbstreit's beloved dog, Ben, made its way to the Oval Office ... with President Joe Biden sending his condolences in an emotional letter to the football announcer and his family following the loss.

"Ben brought so much comfort and unconditional love to millions of Americans across our nation," POTUS wrote in the note. "In your most joyful moments and most grief-stricken days, he was there, sensitive to every unspoken feeling and emotion."

"I know what it is like to lose a beloved pet, and I hope you can find some comfort in cherishing the beautiful memories you shared with Ben. He was a good boy."

Sly Stallone is taking responsibility for his past mistakes ... calling himself a "coward" for once mailing his longtime wife Jennifer Flavin a breakup letter via FedEx.

The legendary actor sat down for an interview Tuesday with Fox Nation's "Sean" — and expressed regret about his decision to send the note to Flavin back in 1994 when the couple had been dating for 6 years.

Sly told Hannity, “That’s the most insincere breakup you can get,” before labeling himself a “coward” and stating, “You put it down in words ‘cause you don’t have the guts to do it face to face.”

Los Angeles County's new District Attorney Nathan Hochman was sworn in by Arnold Schwarzenegger Tuesday at the Hall of Justice in downtown L.A.

Hochman is replacing outgoing D.A. George Gascón, who Nathan says was way too soft on violent and repeat offenders during his 4-year term ... and apparently voters agreed.

It's fitting ... Hochman says he's going to terminate a lot of the policies he calls lenient that Gascón was known for ... like not prosecuting drug possession and trespassing offenses ... and he's turning to the "Terminator" star -- and former California governor -- to get his first day in office started.

Victor Willis, who is best known for being a founding member of the Village People, is calling out the media for perpetuating the idea that "Y.M.C.A." is a gay anthem.

We caught up with the songwriter on "TMZ Live" Tuesday, where Victor elaborated on his feelings about his song's reputation and its longtime ties to the LGBTQ+ community.

As he put it ... he never intentionally wrote the song with the intention of it having a queer double entendre. While he has no problem with the LGBTQ+ community adopting the song, he's frustrated with the media for repeatedly perpetuating the idea that track was crafted in order to be a gay anthem.