The Conversation -- January 15, 2025
The New York Times is liveblogging the Senate Judiciary Committee's confirmation hearing of Pam Bondi, whom Donald Trump named as his second choice for attorney general after his first nominee Matt Gaetz flamed out.
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Abigail Hauslohner, et al., of the New York Times: “Senate Democrats on Tuesday hammered Pete Hegseth..., Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary, in a tense confirmation hearing during which lawmakers scrutinized his romantic relationships and alcohol use, cast doubt on his qualifications, and condemned his political rhetoric and past assertions that women do not belong in combat.... [Senate Republicans] deliver[ed] a resounding defense of Hegseth’s selection, which has been plagued by claims of misconduct ranging from an alleged sexual assault in 2017 to accusations of financial mismanagement, excessive drinking and sexism in his previous jobs — all of which he denies.... Tuesday’s hearing ... quickly became a heated rhetorical battle — marked at times by raised voices — as Democrats repeatedly quoted Hegseth’s divisive past statements and Republicans offered him opportunities to clarify controversial views, praised his claims of being a God-fearing and changed man, and chastised Democrats for 'hypocrisy' and being 'ignorant of the facts.'” ~~~
~~~ Marie: "Romantic relationships"? Really? I don't see where (alleged!) drunken sexual assault, multiple infidelities and hitting on work colleagues are in any sense "romantic." ~~~
~~~ The New York Times' liveblog of Tuesday's Senate Armed Services Commitee's confirmation hearing of Pete Hegseth is here. “Pete Hegseth..., Donald J. Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon, sought to defend himself against a raft of criticism during a confirmation hearing on Tuesday, as Democrats pressed him on his views about women in combat and support for convicted war criminals. Mr. Hegseth also claimed to have been the victim of a 'smear campaign' that raised allegations of past misconduct. Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the committee, said in his opening statement that he believed Mr. Hegseth was not qualified to serve as defense secretary, adding that accusations against him, which include an allegation of sexual misconduct and episodes of drinking to excess, were 'alarming.'” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Aaron Blake of the Washington Post has some takeaways: “Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Virginia) ... was the first senator to ask tough questions about parts of Hegseth’s past that have dogged him, including affairs and allegations of sexual assault, alcohol abuse and financial mismanagement. Kaine wound up laying some gloves on Hegseth, who strained to talk around the subjects the senator was broaching.... He had said for years that women shouldn’t serve in combat. But he recently walked that back after meeting with Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), a combat veteran who initially balked at his selection.... Democrats made a point throughout the hearing to suggest that Hegseth and Republicans were trying to avoid tough questions.... [Hegseth] largely avoided a game-changing moment, even as his nomination is still somewhat in doubt.” The AP's “key takeaways” are here. ~~~
~~~ Benjamin Wittes of Lawfare: Hegseth, when addressing his lack of qualifications to head the DOD, testified, “'... as President Trump ... told me, we’ve repeatedly placed people atop the Pentagon with supposedly “the right credentials” . . . and where has it gotten us? He believes, and I humbly agree, that it’s time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm.' This is actually a radical position — and very Trumpy.... You can see in it so many of the central tenets of Trump’s approach to governance: the contempt for expertise and traditional qualifications; the insistence that the only real qualification is authenticity — and that authenticity is somehow wrapped up in performative masculinity; the belief that sounding tough and being tough are the same thing; and the conviction that complexity necessarily reduces to weakness. It’s all right there in the nomination of a proudly unqualified individual who frames his lack of qualifications as qualification of a different, more authentic, variety that reflects what he calls a 'warrior ethos' America has somehow lost in its infatuation with equity.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: BTW, although the National Security Act of 1947 specifies that the Secretary of Defense must come "from civilian life," many of our recent secretaries have had military experience & did get "dust on their boots." In fact, both Secretaries Mattis & Austin had to get waivers of the "civilian" requirement of the 1947 law, because they had so recently served on active duty. ~~~
~~~ Here's Another Kind of Nonqualification "Qualification." Jonathan Last of the Bulwark poses the theory that Hegseth (and other Republicans) are attractive because of their vices, not in spite of them: "My theory is this: Republicans embrace vice not because they believe that the accused Republican figures are innocent, but because they believe they are guilty. And so these voters exist in the hope that their champion will go on to hurt their enemies on their behalf. After all: If a guy is willing to rape a woman, surely he can be counted on to visit destruction on Democrats, or woke generals, or whoever." ~~~
~~~ Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: “Senator Joni Ernst, Republican of Iowa, announced on a local news radio show on Tuesday that she would vote to confirm Pete Hegseth as the next secretary of defense, ending weeks of speculation over whether she would break with ... Donald J. Trump over his pick.... Her decision dramatically increases the likelihood that Mr. Hegseth will have enough votes to be confirmed by the Senate. Because Democrats are expected to oppose him en masse, Mr. Hegseth can afford to lose no more than three Republican votes. After Ms. Ernst’s announcement, only a handful of G.O.P. senators’ votes may be in play; Senators Susan Collins of Maine, John Curtis of Utah, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Todd Young of Indiana have not yet said how they will vote.” Politico has an item here. ~~~
~~~ Jonathan Chait of the Atlantic: “Hegseth’s liabilities can be divided into four categories, each of them individually disqualifying: 1. personal behavior, including allegations of drunkenness on the job, of maintaining a hostile workplace, and of sexual assault[;] 2. lack of managerial experience, or at least positive managerial experience (According to The New Yorker’s Jane Mayer, Hegseth ran two tiny advocacy groups so poorly that he was forced to step down.) 3. a disregard for the laws of war and a habit of excusing the actions of convicted war criminals[;] 4. an enthusiasm for domestic political combat that blends into an inability to distinguish Democrats from enemy combatants[.]... Democrats tried to probe Hegseth’s long record, only to meet endless evasions.” Thanks to laura h. for this gift link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Chait provides a fair summary of the hearing, but he isn't harsh enough. The hearing was an utter farce, worse than the Kavanaugh hearing where Republicans at least found a woman to sit at a tiny desk & ask Bart a few real questions. Joy Reid of MSNBC captured the Republicans' performance when she put her head in her hands, batted her false eyelashes at the camera and sweetly asked, "Do tell us why you're so wonderful, Mr. Hegseth." (or words to that effect) ~~~
~~~ ⭐Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post: “A gross dereliction of duty on the part of the Republican-controlled Senate and the Trump-directed FBI. That is a harsh but unavoidable assessment of the confirmation hearing for Pete Hegseth to serve as Donald Trump’s defense secretary. Both institutions should be ashamed of their performance — Republican senators most of all, as, bullied by the president-elect and intimidated by deep-pocketed, no-holds-barred pressure campaigns, they abdicate their constitutional advice-and-consent responsibility.” MB: Hard to believe that squishy liberal Ruth Marcus wrote such a strong condemnation of Republican senators & Chris Wray's FBI (RAS pointed to Wray's failure in yesterday's Comments). But she did. Even if you don't have a subscription to the WashPo, Marcus' column might be a good place to “spend” one of your freebies. ~~~
~~~ Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: “... this is Trump’s America; abusing and degrading women is obviously not disqualifying for high office.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: David Ignatius, Eugene Robinson & Karen Tumulty of the Washington Post make some sensible observatons in their discussion of the hearing, but IMO, they mostly nibble around the edges of the overarching catastrophe Hegseth's confirmation may foretell. Oh, and in the end, they both-sides their little chat by faulting Senate Democrats for being "ill-prepared" to rebut MAGA doctrine. ~~~
~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post: During the hearing, “Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) ... [asked Hegseth,] 'In June of 2020, then-President Trump directed former secretary of defense Mark Esper to shoot protesters in the legs in downtown D.C., an order Secretary Esper refused to comply with... Would you carry out such an order from President Trump?' [After some back-and-forth during which Hegseth deflected the question, and Hirono persisted, she concluded,] 'That sounds to me that you will comply with such an order.... You will shoot protesters in the leg.' Hegseth didn’t reject her conclusion.” MB: And this (along with other non-answer answers Hegseth gave during the hearing) brings me to drawing my own, larger, conclusion: ~~~
~~~ Marie: The U.S. has the strongest, or certainly one of the strongest, armed forces in the world. Trump not only plans to control those forces; he has set up a method for doing so. He will install an extremely weak Secretary of Defense who is completely in his control. That weak Defense Secretary has pledged to purge the armed services of "woke" (i.e., [progressive or assertive] leaders. The Secretary-in-Waiting yesterday also refused to say he would countermand an unconstitutional or illegal order if issued. (Trump demonstrated a few times in his first term that he was willing to do that; it was only because of pushback from Secretaries of Defense Mattis & Esper that he did not succeed.) Trump has bullied GOP weaklings in the Congress to do his bidding. In addition, Trump has the Supremes under his thumb. That is, there will be absolutely no checks on Trump's schemes and no one in the military chain of command to stop Trump from initiating violent attacks against Americans who cross him, no one to stop him from attacking other countries without provocation. The campaign and election constituted our first live lesson in how democracy dies. We are now witnessing the second phase of that rapid death spiral.
Perry Stein & Jeremy Roebuck of the Washington Post write a useful overview of some of the highlights of Jack Smith's report on Donald Trump's direction of the January 6, 2021, insurrection. The report itself (also linked yesterday), via the Justice Department, is here.
Jacob Bogage & Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump said Tuesday that he will create an 'External Revenue Service' to collect revenue from tariffs, a signal of his determination to impose sweeping duties on imports. In a post on ... his social media platform, Trump said the External Revenue Service will collect revenue from tariffs starting Monday, after he is inaugurated for a second term. The structure of the new government operation was unclear from his post, although two outside advisers ... suggested it could involve renaming an existing office within the Treasury Department.”
S.E.C. Sues Musk. Matthew Goldstein & Kate Conger of the New York Times: “U.S. securities regulators sued Elon Musk in federal court in Washington on Tuesday in an enforcement action arising from his $44 billion purchase of Twitter, now called X. The lawsuit against Mr. Musk, who has become a close adviser to ... Donald J. Trump, is likely to be one of the more contentious final acts of the Securities and Exchange Commission under Gary Gensler, its departing chair. It could also be undercut in just a few days, when Mr. Trump appoints new leadership to take charge of the regulator. The S.E.C. contends that in buying Twitter in 2022, Mr. Musk violated securities laws by amassing a large stock position in the social media company without filing the proper notification. The complaint said he had waited 11 days before filing the required disclosure with the S.E.C. The regulatory filings are required so investors in the marketplace can monitor the moves of large investors and potential takeover bids.” A CNBC report is here.
For years, Donald Trump did everything in his power to try to make people fear us. See, his limited, narrow view of the world made him feel threatened by the existence of two hard-working, highly educated, successful people who happen to be Black. -- Michelle Obama, Democratic National Convention speech, August 2024 ~~~
~~~ Only Black U.S. First Lady Will Skip White Racist's Inauguration. Erica Green & Katie Rogers of the New York Times: “Michelle Obama ... will not attend the inauguration of ... Donald J. Trump, her office said in a statement on Tuesday. 'Former President Barack Obama is confirmed to attend the 60th Inaugural Ceremonies,' the statement said. 'Former First Lady Michelle Obama will not attend the upcoming inauguration.'... It is the second high-profile event in the past two weeks that she has declined to take part in that would have brought her face-to-face with Mr. Trump.... Mr. Trump and the former first lady, Melania Trump, did not attend President Biden’s inauguration in 2021, after Mr. Trump falsely claimed that the election was stolen from him.” ~~~
~~~ BUT There Will Be Billionaires! Cat Zakrzewski, et al., of the Washington Post: “Tech moguls Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are planning to attend ... Donald Trump’s inauguration on Monday, underscoring the deepening ties between prominent tech leaders and the incoming administration after years of acrimony. The billionaire trio is expected to sit together on the dais, a prominent location alongside former presidents, Trump’s family, Cabinet picks and lawmakers, according to a Trump official....” The NBC News story is here. MB: Nothing says “populist” like inviting a trio of billionaires to replace Michelle Obama on the dais. ~~~
~~~ AND There Will Be Flags Flying High! Maegan Vazquez of the Washington Post: “Flags at the U.S. Capitol will now fly at their full height on Inauguration Day and be lowered again the following day in honor of president Jimmy Carter’s death, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) announced Tuesday.... After Carter’s death, President Joe Biden ordered U.S. flags be flown at half-staff for 30 days 'at the White House and on all public buildings and grounds … of the Federal Government in the District of Columbia and throughout the United States and its Territories and possessions' as well as at federal facilities, military installations and vessels abroad.... Republican governors in at least five states — Florida, Iowa, Alabama, Texas and Tennessee — have also ordered U.S. flags be raised on Inauguration Day and lowered again to half-staff on Jan. 21 in honor of Carter.”
Karen DeYoung & Mary Beth Sheridan of the Washington Post: “Less than a week before leaving the White House, President Joe Biden is lifting the state sponsor of terrorism designation for Cuba, nearly four years to the day from when ... Donald Trump, in one of his own last acts in office, put Havana back on the list. The Cuban government is 'concurrently' expected to free 'a significant number of political prisoners' under an agreement it has made with the Catholic Church, including an unspecified number 'before the end of the Biden administration on Jan. 20,' said a senior Biden administration official.... Trump’s pick for secretary of state, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), has been one of the most vociferous critics of Cuba’s communist government and has long advocated harsher sanctions.” The AP's report is here.
Hiroko Tabuchi of the New York Times: “For the first time, the Environmental Protection Agency has warned that 'forever chemicals' present in sewage sludge that is used as fertilizer can pose human health risks, saying in a study on Tuesday that, in some cases, the risks could exceed the agency’s safety thresholds “sometimes by several orders of magnitude.” The agency maintained, however, that the general food supply was not at risk. A growing body of research has shown that the sludge can be contaminated with manmade chemicals known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, which are used widely in everyday items like nonstick cookware and stain-resistant carpets. The chemicals, which are linked to a range of illnesses including an increased risk of cancer, do not break down in the environment, and, when tainted sludge is used as fertilizer on farmland, it can contaminate the soil, groundwater, crops and livestock.” (Also linked yesterday.)
Marie: Gosh, sure looks to me as if Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) would like to beat up on Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas). Luckily, Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) is here to set me straight: according to Brianna Tucker of the Washington Post, Comer ruled that ruled that “take it outside” “could mean 'you could go outside and have a cup of coffee or have a cup of beer' and did not go against [House] committee rules.”
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Israel/Palestine, et al. Wafaa Shurafa & Samy Magdy of the AP: “Hamas has accepted a draft agreement for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the release of dozens of hostages, two officials involved in the talks said Tuesday. Mediators from the United States and Qatar said Israel and the Palestinian militant group were at the closest point yet to sealing a deal to bring them a step closer to ending 15 months of war. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the proposed agreement, and an Egyptian official and a Hamas official confirmed its authenticity. An Israeli official said progress has been made, but the details are being finalized.”
South Korea. Choe Sang-Hun, et al., of the New York Times: “President Yoon Suk Yeol became the first sitting South Korean leader to be detained for questioning by criminal investigators on Wednesday, ending a weekslong standoff over his declaration of martial law that thrust the country into a political crisis. Mr. Yoon’s security guards successfully blocked the investigators from detaining him on Jan. 3, when they made their first attempt to serve a court-issued detention warrant. Since then, the country has been gripped by fears that a violent clash might occur if both sides refused to back down. But when the investigators returned on Wednesday morning with far more police officers, some of them carrying ladders to scale defensive barricades, Mr. Yoon’s bodyguards put up no obvious resistance. Mr. Yoon then struck a deal with massed law enforcement officials to go with them. He was not handcuffed and was allowed to travel to the investigators’ headquarters in a presidential motorcade, rather than in a police car. In a video message released shortly afterward, Mr. Yoon said he agreed to submit to questioning in order to prevent a 'bloody' clash between his bodyguards and the police. But he called the investigation and warrant to detain him illegal.”
U.K. Mark Landler of the New York Times: “Catherine, Princess of Wales, said on Tuesday that her cancer was in remission, lifting a major cloud from the British royal family, which had struggled with serious health concerns for both her and King Charles III.... Her announcement that she was in remission came as she visited the hospital, the Royal Marsden, in west London, where she had been treated.... During the visit to the hospital, Catherine thanked staff members and spoke with other cancer patients..”
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Reader Comments (12)
How does this idiot have a job, never mind one as a senator?
The stupidest man in Congress (quite a feat these days, so much competition) this morning went on NPR to show off two new concepts he likely just heard of. Like a little kid who learns a new word and wants to show off a little, Ron Johnson, offering his very learned (*gaacch!*) opinion-thingie on the ongoing California conflagrations sed it’s a “moral hazard” to give that mooching state a single dime. It’s their own fault cuz they didn’t listen and do (second new concept alert) “mitigation” stuff.
He used the term moral hazard three or four times and it’s pretty clear he has no idea what it even means.
As for the mitigation stuff, what California “refuses” to do, which would reduce the number of burning acres by about 95%, according to ol’ Ron: let sheep graze.
That’s his solution. No sheep, no money. He sez the fed’ril guv’mint has no business giving anyone money for disaster relief.
The interviewer asked him if he would approve federal money for hurricane disasters in Florida. Silence. I got the impression he was about to say “Oh, Florida, sure…” but some part of his lizard brain flashed a warning light and he gulped “Well, um, no…I never vote for disaster relief!”
How does this moron even have a job?
Moral hazards? Sheep?
Jesus Fuckin’ Christ. No wonder Trump is president.
Pete (Warrior Boy) Hegseth sez if chicks wanna get in combat they better be qualified!
Hey, wouldn’t it be nice if he were qualified for the job he wants? I’m guessing every woman currently in the military, in any capacity, is light years more qualified for their jobs than this drunken lout for the job of running the Pentagon.
But never mind. The guy who nominated him has zero qualifications for his job too. In fact, if there is such a thing, both of them have negative qualifications. Not only don’t they have any real qualifications for their jobs, they proudly sport characteristics and a history of actions that should, by all rights, have them in jail.
But women…yeah, they better measure up!
@Akhilleus: In fairness to Ron, the L.A. County Fire Department does use goats (and some sheep) to graze hard-to-reach areas. The idea is to create natural fire breaks in a cost-effective way.
As for the rest of it, there's no excuse for Ron Johnson.
@Akhilleus: A paradox indeed. The guys in the top jobs are qualified because they're not qualified, but women who want to serve as, say, infantry grunts must be super-qualified.
So (1) the more important your job, the less experience you need. Or (2) maybe its only women who need to prove themselves. If only Senate Republicans had allowed a second day of questioning Hegseth, maybe we'd find out which it is.
Dress Rehearsal
"Sneak peak at Carrie Underwood and the Village People rehearsing their brand new single "It's Fun to Stay at the KKKK", which will be performed live for the first time at Donald Trump's inauguration."
Participation Awards for Children
"Coca-Cola CEO Awards Trump ‘First Ever Presidential Commemorative’ Diet Coke"
So they admit that Hegseth doesn't know how to do the job of Secretary of Defense (Susie Wiles “That’s what staff is for.”), but other people working there do, but PAB's new administration is going to clean house so they can bring in loyalty test winners to staff the administration. But don't worry because Trump is known for his smoothly run organisations /s. What could go wrong when you have a know-nothing head of one of the most powerful government agencies while also simultaneously trying to replace large portions of career civil servants who have the institutional knowledge to run the agency.
@RAS: And don't forget: a president* who doesn't give a flying fuck about any of it except to make sure he can run some kind of grift.
Inauguration Day, January 20th, is also Martin Luther King Jr. day.
I'm wondering if the president*elect will honor him with a few kind
words.
Do you swear to uphold...
Because they care about trust in journalism,
Robert Reich
@RBReich
"Jeff Bezos's Washington Post editorial board has endorsed Pam Bondi as a "qualified" and "serious" pick for Attorney General.
Nowhere in the endorsement did they mention that she's a former Amazon lobbyist.
Billionaire control of our media is a threat to democracy."
Tom Nichols, in The Atlantic
The GOP Is No Longer the Party of National Security
"What America and the world saw today was not a serious examination of a serious man.
...
Throughout this all, I tried to imagine the reaction in Moscow or Beijing, where senior defense-ministry officials were almost certainly watching Hegseth stumble his way through this hearing. They learned today that their incoming opponent apparently has few thoughts about foreign enemies, but plenty of concerns about the people Trump calls 'the enemy from within.' The MAGA Republicans, for their part, seem eager only for Hegseth to get in there and tear up the Pentagon.
After today, I suspect America’s enemies are happily awaiting the same thing."
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Does t**** have much disdain for expertise that any like-minded bully will do?