The Conversation -- September 27, 2023

Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "A federal judge overseeing ... Donald Trump's election interference case in Washington, D.C., had denied his request that she recuse herself from the case due to her prior comments in criminal cases against other Jan. 6 defendants. U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan wrote in her opinion that her comments in other Jan. 6 cases, which Trump's team took issue with, 'reflect the information and arguments presented by the defense in each case.'"

Tony Romm of the Washington Post: "With a government shutdown as few as four days away, the Biden administration has started to ration federal disaster aid, delaying the delivery of about $2.8 billion in grants so the money is available in the event of a crisis, according to state and federal officials and budget documents.... The last-minute move has allowed the Federal Emergency Management Agency to shore up its rapidly dwindling budget against the immediate threat of wildfires, hurricanes and other natural disasters as they arise, according to a senior agency official.... Over the past month, FEMA has paused at least $555 million for long-term recovery projects in Florida, including those related to Hurricane Ian last year. It has held back $101 million from Louisiana and another $74 million in California, according to the federal records, which reflect delays through Sept. 18." MB: Thanks, Kevin! Funny how your (probably very short-term) disaster relief comes before everybody else's.

Tracey Tully, et al., of the New York Times: "Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to bribery charges, standing before a magistrate judge in Manhattan federal court, his wife, Nadine, seated nearby. About three hours earlier, the Menendezes had held hands as they pushed through a crowd of journalists and entered the courthouse without answering questions. A lone protester shouted 'Resign!' Ms. Menendez, 56, also entered a not-guilty plea for her role in the bribery conspiracy, which prosecutors said involved weapons sales and aid to the government of Egypt." MB: The number of Democratic senators who have called for Menendez to resign stands at 30 as of early Wednesday afternoon, according to on-air reporting. ~~~

~~~ Ken Dilanian & Frank Thorp of NBC News: "Sen. Robert Menendez ... singlehandedly blocked passage of bipartisan legislation in 2020 that would have strengthened the law regulating foreign influence and lobbying in Washington, Senate records show. The proposed Foreign Agents Disclosure and Registration Enhancement Act grew out of widespread concerns that the current law regulating foreign lobbying had seldom been enforced, and that foreign influence campaigns had successfully infiltrated American politics. Strengthening the law had drawn support from Democrats and Republicans on key committees. In December 2020, after a Republican senator asked for unanimous consent to bring the bill to the Senate floor for a vote, Menendez stood and objected.... The bill had significant support from key Democrats.... Three years later, the Foreign Agents Registration Act, known as FARA, has not been updated."

Choe Sang-Hun & Michael Shear of the New York Times: "Pvt. Travis T. King, the American soldier who crossed into North Korea on July 18, was released into U.S. custody on Wednesday following weeks of diplomacy mediated by the Swedish government, according to senior U.S. administration officials. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the details of Private King's release as he was in transit to a U.S. military base, said he would be reunited with his family in the United States and given physical and mental health support after being held by the North Koreans for 70 days. His first stop after leaving North Korea was China, where U.S. officials were waiting for him. Private King then was put on a plane and flown to a U.S. military facility, though the officials declined identify it."

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     ~~~ Lauren Egan of Politico: "President Joe Biden on Tuesday became the first sitting president to walk a picket line with striking workers, vividly demonstrating his commitment to labor and its central role in his reelection campaign. The president, donning a blue hat with a United Auto Workers symbol, used a bull horn to speak to the crowd of union members dressed in red. He was flanked by United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain. 'The unions built the middle class. That's a fact. Let's keep going,' the president told the crowd. 'You deserve what you've earned and you've earned a hell of a lot more than you're getting paid now.' Biden's choice to show solidarity with striking auto workers at a time of great promise and peril for the labor movement represented a tectonic shift for an office historically known for breaking strikes, not supporting them." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: BTW, I heard on the teevee yesterday that Donald Trump will appear at a non-union shop today (as counter-programming to the GOP presidential* debate) and that his appearance there was arranged by an anti-labor organization. Nice. Trump is probably the most anti-labor president* since Ronald Reagan fired more than 11,000 air traffic controllers in 1981. That, at least, was an illegal strike, unlike the lawful UAW strike.

~~~ Uh, Forced Labor Is Not a Good Look During a Union Strike. Evan Halper of the Washington Post: "Ford Motor Co. is pausing plans to build a $3.5 billion electric vehicle battery plant in Marshall, Mich., as the company faces financial pressure from striking autoworkers and political pressure from lawmakers demanding it sever its ties to a Chinese firm collaborating on the plant. The automaker unveiled plans to build the plant in February, promising it would employ about 2,500 workers to make batteries for new and existing electric vehicles. Ford announced at the time that it would use technology from the Chinese firm Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited, or CATL, the larges battery maker in the world. But since unveiling those blueprints, Ford has become a focus of congressional investigators, who accuse CATL of doing business with mining firms in the Xinjiang region of China. Rampant forced labor in Xinjiang moved the United States to enact a law last year prohibiting import of any materials from there unless it can be proven they were not made with forced labor."

Steve Lohr of the New York Times: "The Biden administration plans to bring back open internet rules that were enacted during the Obama administration and then repealed by the Trump administration. In a speech on Tuesday, Jessica Rosenworcel, chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission, declared that the repeal in 2017 put the F.C.C. 'on the wrong side of history, the wrong side of the law, and the wrong side of the public.' The earlier open internet rules, known as net neutrality, prohibited broadband internet suppliers -- telecommunications and cable companies -- from blocking or slowing online services. It also banned the broadband companies from charging some content providers higher prices for priority treatment, or 'fast lanes' on the internet."

David McCabe of the New York Times: "The Federal Trade Commission and 17 states accused Amazon on Tuesday of illegally protecting a monopoly over swaths of online retail by squeezing merchants and favoring its own services, in the government's most significant challenge to the power of the e-commerce giant and one that could alter the way Americans shop online for everything from toilet paper to electronics. In a highly anticipated lawsuit, the F.T.C. and state attorneys general from New York and other states said that Amazon had stopped merchants on its platform from offering lower prices elsewhere and forced them to ship products with its logistics service if they wanted to be offered as part of its Prime subscription bundle. Those practices led to higher prices and a worse shopping experience for consumers, the agency and states said." NPR's report is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Michelle Lee & Ellen Francis of the Washington Post: "North Korea announced Wednesday that it has decided to deport Travis King, a U.S. soldier who crossed into the country in July, after determining he entered illegally.State media did not specify when or how King would be released.... The United States, which has no formal diplomatic relations with North Korea, has worked with Sweden to help secure King's return. Sweden has an embassy in Pyongyang, but its diplomats have not returned to North Korea since they were ordered to leave during the coronavirus pandemic."

Carl Hulse & Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "Senate Republicans and Democrats reached agreement on Tuesday on a stopgap spending plan that would head off a government shutdown on Sunday while providing billions in disaster relief and aid to Ukraine.... The legislation cleared its first procedural obstacle Tuesday night on a bipartisan vote of 77 to 19. It would keep government funding flowing through Nov. 17 to allow more time for negotiations over yearlong spending bills.... Senate leaders hoped to pass it by the end of the week and send it to the House in time to avert a shutdown now set to begin at midnight Saturday. But there was no guarantee that Speaker Kevin McCarthy would bring the legislation to the House floor for a vote, since some far-right Republicans have said they would try to remove him from his post if he did." ~~~

~~~ Jeff Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: "With days left before the government shuts down, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has embraced steep reductions to the U.S. safety net in an attempt to appease far-right Republican demands for lower spending. If McCarthy can win over conservatives and pass legislation funding the government, Republicans hope to have greater leverage in negotiations with the Democratic-controlled Senate and White House. But far-right votes have remained elusive, leading McCarthy to propose ever larger and still evolving spending cuts.... Hard-right lawmakers have warned that if McCarthy relies on Democratic votes to pass any fiscal bill, they would move swiftly to force him from the speakership.... But even if those bills were approved by the Senate, which they will not be, much of the government would still shut down because federal operations are funded by 12 different bills." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Jacob Bogage of the Washington Post: "Here's what you need to know about a government shutdown, and how it could affect you." (Also linked yesterday.)

Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey is expected to appear in Manhattan federal court on Wednesday morning to be arraigned on federal bribery charges for the second time in eight years. Mr. Menendez, a Democrat, is accused of using his political clout to assist the government of Egypt and three New Jersey businessmen in exchange for hundreds of thousands of dollars, bars of gold bullion and a Mercedes-Benz convertible. Nadine Menendez, 56, the senator's wife of three years, is also expected to be arraigned, alongside her husband, in the federal court after being charged with participating in the yearslong bribery scheme."

Christopher Maag of the New York Times: "Senator Cory Booker called on Senator Robert Menendez, his fellow New Jersey Democrat, to resign Tuesday morning, ending days of silence after Mr. Menendez was indicted on bribery charges. As New Jersey's junior senator, Mr. Booker often has described Mr. Menendez, the senior senator, as a friend, ally and mentor. His decision to condemn Mr. Menendez, and to join the growing chorus of state and federal officials calling on him to step down, demonstrates the deepening crisis facing a senator who until last week had occupied one of the most powerful and secure positions in American politics.... A flood of Democrats, particularly those facing re-election next year in politically competitive states, issued statements calling on Mr. Menendez to step aside." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Early Tuesday afternoon, MSNBC reported that 14 U.S. senators had called for Menendez to resign. Update: Annie Karni of the New York Times reports on the "stampede of Senate Democrats" who are urging Bribe-Me Bob to relinquish his lucrative Senate seat. (Also linked yesterday.) Update 2: MSNBC reported on-air Tuesday night that 24 Democratic senators now have called for Menendez to resign. ~~~

~~~ Michael Luciano of Mediaite: Kevin McCarthy said Menendez should resign, uh, until CNN's Manu Raju reminded him that George Santos too had been indicted on federal criminal charges.

There were people running into the burning building to save the virtue of the Senate over a dress code, but when it comes to a stash of gold bars and 'wads of cash all over the house,' they're silent. It's confusing. -- Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) ~~~

~~~ Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: "... here we are, four days after the Department of Justice gave us all a look at [Sen. Robert] Menendez's [D-N.J.] cash-stuffed jacket and one-kilo gold bars, and a united front of condemnation has yet to materialize.... [Menendez'] refusal to resign is a problem for Democrats both substantively and politically.... His continued tenure in the Senate is an embarrassment to the institution and to the Democratic Party, an embarrassment that will only grow more acute as his prosecution proceeds..., which is why the right-wing senator Tom Cotton [R] of Arkansas declared that Menendez should stay put. And while Menendez's indictment demonstrates the absurdity of Donald Trump's ranting that the Justice Department is rigged against Republicans, it also makes it harder for Democrats to keep the spotlight on Trump's baroque corruption.... The Senate's top Democratic leaders are so far standing behind him, with [Leader Chuck] Schumer (N.Y.) calling him a 'dedicated public servant' who 'is always fighting hard for the people of New Jersey.'"

Benjamin Weiser of the New York Times: "Wael Hana, an Egyptian American businessman who prosecutors say was the linchpin of a corrupt scheme that funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey, was arrested at Kennedy International Airport Tuesday morning after he voluntarily flew to the United States from Egypt to face federal charges in Manhattan, his lawyer said. Mr. Hana pleaded not guilty late Tuesday afternoon before a federal magistrate judge, who ordered him released on a $5 million personal recognizance bond and strict conditions, including the surrender of his passport and the wearing of a GPS monitoring device."

All the Ex-President*'s Trials

** Biggest Loser, Biggest Liar Loses Big on Big Lies. Jonah Bromwich & Ben Protess of the New York Times: "The New York attorney general won a major victory in her civil case against Donald J. Trump on Tuesday when a New York judge determined that the former president fraudulently inflated the value of his assets to obtain favorable loans and insurance deals. The decision by Justice Arthur F. Engoron precedes a [MB: bench] trial that is scheduled to begin Monday, and will considerably smooth Attorney General Letitia James's path forward as she seeks a penalty of about $250 million. Justice Engoron's decision narrows the issues that will be heard, effectively deciding that the trial was not necessary to find that Mr. Trump was liable and that the core of Ms. James's case was valid. It represents a major blow to Mr. Trump.... In his order, Justice Engoron wrote scathingly about Mr. Trump's defenses, saying that the former president and the other defendants, including his two adult sons and his company, ignored reality when it suited their business needs.... The judge also levied sanctions on Mr. Trump's lawyers for making arguments that he previously rejected.... [The lawsuit] to sever the Trump family from leading the Trump Organization." The AP's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Maggie Haberman & Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "... a ruling on Tuesday by a New York State judge that [Donald] Trump had committed fraud by inflating the value of his real estate holdings went to the heart of the identity that made him a national figure and launched his political career. By effectively branding him a cheat, the decision in the civil proceeding by Justice Arthur F. Engoron undermined Mr. Trump's relentlessly promoted narrative of himself as a master of the business world, the persona that he used to enmesh himself in the fabric of popular culture and that eventually gave him the stature and resources to reach the White House.... [Justice Arthur Engoron's] finding imperils both Mr. Trump's public image and his business empire. The former president now faces not only the prospect of having to pay $250 million in damages, but he could also lose properties like Trump Tower that are inextricably linked to his brand. Mr. Trump's lawyer in the case, Christopher M. Kise, called the ruling 'outrageous' and said the decision would be appealed." ~~~

~~~ Charlie Nash of Mediaite: "... Donald Trump lashed out in an all-caps rant on Tuesday after a New York judge ruled he had committed fraud. It's worth reading Trump's screed, which includes an all-caps paragraph, claiming, among other things, "I AM WORTH MUCH MORE THAN THE NUMBERS SHOWN ON MY FINANCIAL STATEMENTS." He also says, "THE COMPANY HAS HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN CASH, AND VERY LITTLE DEBT." MB: Unless he's had a real bonanza in the past couple of years and used it to pay down his debt, his claim about having "very little debt" is a colossal lie. According to an October 2021 Forbes story, Trump's company then had an estimated $1.3 billion in debt. ~~~

     ~~~ BTW, the NYT story by Haberman & Feuer linked above describes Trump's response to Justice Engoron's ruling like so: "Mr. Trump, in a lengthy post on his social media site, called the statements in the ruling about fraud 'ridiculous and untrue,' and said the decision was a political attack against him in the midst of the presidential campaign." Hardly does it justice.

Kyle Cheney of Politico: "Donald Trump's lawyers said Monday that a gag order proposed by prosecutors would unconstitutionally silence him during key months of the 2024 presidential campaign, urging a federal judge in Washington, D.C. to reject the proposed limits. In a 25-page filing that mirrored some of Trump's own heated political rhetoric, Trump's attorneys said the former president's attacks on potential witnesses, special counsel Jack Smith and even U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan herself are protected by the First Amendment and were not actual threats or incitement of attacks.... Trump has spent the days since prosecutors' gag order proposal went public assailing Smith for making the request. And over the weekend he unleashed a lengthy attack on Mark Milley, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who is also a potential witness in both of Trump's pending federal criminal trials." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Of Milley, Trump wrote on his Twitter-clone site, "This guy turned out to be a Woke train wreck who, if the Fake News reporting is correct, was actually dealing with China to give them a heads up on the thinking of the President of the United States.... This is an act so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!'" Mark Esper, who was Trump's Secretary of Defense when Milley made one of those calls to China, said Monday he had directed Milley to make the call after he himself made a similar call to Chinese officials. Esper called Trump's remarks about Milley "intolerable." (Also linked yesterday.)

There Might Be a Reason Trump Went to That Gun Store. Tori Otten of the New Republic, republished by Yahoo! News: "During a campaign trip to South Carolina, Donald Trump took some time to visit the gun store that sold weapons to the racist Jacksonville, Florida, mass shooter.... The Jacksonville shooter shouldn't have been able to buy the guns in the first place. He was held in Florida state custody in 2017 for mental health issues, disqualifying him from owning a gun under a statute called the Baker Act.... Palmetto State Armory has openly embraced far-right ideology. In 2020, it began marketing its products using imagery and language associated with the 'boogaloo,' slang for racist violence and even a call for full-on race war. It has also come to mean war to topple the government.... You could argue that [Trump's] campaign stop is a kind of tacit statement. He put the spotlight on Palmetto State Armory, praised its inventory, and tried to offer it business...."

Marie: A story by Brett Meiselas of Meidas Touch linked in yesterday's Comments is titled, "Trump Chanted 'Hang Mike Pence' with the Crowd as He Watched on TV." But that title is highly misleading. Meiselas bases his unsupported assertion on an excerpt from Cassidy Hutchinson's newly-released book. According to the excerpt, on the afternoon of January 6, 2021, while the insurrection was in full swing, Hutchinson stood just outside the Oval Office dining room, where Donald Trump was watching the insurrection unfold on TV. The TV was blaring, Hutchinson wrote, and she strained to hear the conversation that was going on inside the dining room. "What is he [Trump] saying? I can't make it out. I hear him say 'hang' repeatedly. Hang? Hang? What's that about?" A few minutes later, when she returned to her office, she learned the insurrectionists "are calling for the vice president to be hanged." While we might speculate Trump was chanting "Hang Mike Pence" along with the mob, Hutchinson never claimed he did so. When a partisan makes an explosive claim, it's essential to evaluate the basis for the claim. In this case, there is no basis.

Adam Nichols of the Raw Story: "Donald Trump's co-defendant Ken Chesebro argued Tuesday that giving the former president 'less than two months' of legal advice doesn't constitute racketeering.... Under Georgia law, for a scheme to be considered racketeering, it needs to have continued for a substantial amount of time.... 'Mr. Chesebro's total involvement in the matter lasted approximately six weeks,' lawyer Scott Grubman wrote." MB: Okay then. Forthwith, criminals must take their time in plotting unlawful schemes. And no bringing in a new gangster at the last minute.

Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "A conspiracy theorist convicted of felony Capitol riot charges told a federal judge at his sentencing Tuesday that he wanted to 'protect the Capitol' by 'arresting the traitors' on Jan. 6 before he was sentenced to more than four years in prison. Ed Badalian, of California, said at his sentencing Tuesday that he was 'frustrated' that officers protecting the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, 'did not join us in arresting the traitors,' referring to members of Congress who did not overturn the 2020 presidential election in Donald Trump's behalf." MB: "These are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand."

Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused Alabama's request to reinstate a congressional map drawn by Republican lawmakers that had only one majority-Black district, paving the way for a new map to be put in place before the 2024 election. Alabama's request to keep its map was the second time in under a year that it had asked the Supreme Court to affirm a limited role of race in establishing voting districts for federal elections in what amounted to a defiant repudiation of lower-court rulings. In the latest twist in the case, the lower court had found that the state had brazenly flouted its directive to create a second majority-Black district or something 'close to it.' The court's order gave no reasons, which is often the case when the justices decide on emergency applications. There were no public dissents. The ruling clears the way for a special master and court-appointed cartographer to create a new map. The special master in the case submitted three proposed maps on Monday, the deadline set by the three-judge federal district court. All three proposals included a second district where Black voters would have the opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice, according to a report filed by the special master." CNN's report is here. Thanks to Ken W. for the link. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This strikes me as pretty amazing, inasmuch as the original decision was 5-4, and Alabama GOP legislators said they had "intelligence" that O'Kavanaugh would flip his vote and support them in a hearing on their latest unconstitutional map.

Graham Kates of CBS News: "Hunter Biden sued Rudy Giuliani and his former attorney Tuesday, claiming they hacked and manipulated data on an external hard drive associated with his laptop. Giuliani and the attorney, Robert Costello, have frequently acknowledged accessing the hard drive's data. The lawsuit accuses them of having 'dedicated an extraordinary amount of time and energy toward looking for, hacking into, tampering with, manipulating, copying, disseminating, and generally obsessing over data that they were given that was taken or stolen.'" Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

Brooks Barnes of the New York Times: "After 148 days on strike, television and movie writers will begin returning to work on Wednesday. The Writers Guild of America, which represents 11,500 screenwriters, said on Tuesday that three internal boards had voted unanimously to end the strike and send a tentative contract with entertainment companies to members for ratification. The vote will start on Monday and end on Oct. 9. Members are expected to approve the three-year deal.... While not receiving everything it asked for, the union achieved major gains.... [But] much of Hollywood will stay at a standstill: Tens of thousands of actors remain on strike, and no talks between the actors' union, SAG-AFTRA, and the studios have been scheduled."

Presidential Race 2024. Darlene Superville of the AP:"The United Farm Workers on Tuesday announced its endorsement of President Joe Biden for reelection, saying that the Democrat has proven throughout his life to be an 'authentic champion' for workers and their families, regardless of race or national origin. The farm workers' union was co-founded by Cesar Chavez, the late grandfather of Julie Chavez Rodriguez, who[m] Biden named as his 2024 campaign manager. Her father, Arturo Rodriquez, is a past UFW president."

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Canada. Sammy Westfall & Amanda Coletta of the Washington Post: "The speaker of Canada's House of Commons [-- Anthony Rota --] resigned Tuesday amid mounting pressure from lawmakers across the political spectrum after he honored a Ukrainian veteran who fought in a Nazi unit during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's address to Parliament last week." MB: This was an extremely embarrassing international incident, but Rota's suggestion that he didn't know the old guy was a former Nazi seems credible on its face. However, it appears Canadians are more civilized and sensitive than we are, because even the leaders of our liberal-ish party think Bribe-Me Bob is a "dedicated public servant" who deserves to keep his title as the Honorable Gentleman from New Jersey.

Libya. Vivian Yee of the New York Times: "For years, the two aging dams [that broke during a flood two weeks ago] loomed in the mountains above the Libyan city of Derna, riddled with cracks and fissures, threatening the thousands of people living in the valley below. A Turkish company, Arsel Construction, was eventually hired by the Libyan government to upgrade the dams and build a new one. The work, Arsel said on its website at the time, was completed in 2012. By then, the government had paid millions of dollars to the Turkish contractor for preliminary work, according to a government assessment dated 2011. But Arsel left Libya in the turmoil of the 2011 popular revolt against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, the country's longtime dictator. Neither dam was ever repaired, the assessment said, and no third dam ever materialized.... Why the dams went unfixed despite repeated warnings is key to understanding the muddy disaster that wrecked a storied city and traumatized a country. It also goes to the heart of the dysfunction and corruption that have consumed Libya ever since rebels overthrew Colonel el-Qaddafi."

News Ledes

Maryland. Washington Post: "After the CEO of a Baltimore tech start-up was found dead in her apartment with signs of blunt-force trauma to her head, police announced Tuesday that there's a citywide manhunt for a suspect who is considered armed and 'extremely dangerous.' Pava LaPere, 26, who founded EcoMap Technologies and was on this year's Forbes 30 Under 30 list for social impact, was found dead about 11:30 a.m. Monday, according to Baltimore police. Officers had responded to a missing-person call made shortly beforehand, and discovered that LaPere had suffered severe injuries to her head."

Virginia. News4 Washington, D.C.: "Authorities arrested a man who they say was minutes away from carrying out a mass shooting at a church in Northern Virginia on Sunday morning. Rui Jiang, 35, was taken into custody with a loaded gun and extra ammo at Park Valley Church in Haymarket. Authorities said he was on a mission to kill. 'This was a thwarted diabolical plot to kill churchgoers in Haymarket, Virginia .. and local law enforcement stopped it," Chief Kevin Davis of the Fairfax County Police Department said. '... The congregation was making their way into the church. He was in the vestibule of the church about to enter,' Davis said. 'So, minutes or seconds away.' Investigators said they were able to stop the potential massacre thanks to someone who saw troubling posts on Instagram and called police. Several posts showed Jiang pointing a firearm at pictures of churches, authorities said." ~~~

     ~~~ From the Washington Post story: "'I believe God had a hand on us,' the Rev. Barry White, the church's senior pastor, said Tuesday." MB: No, Barry, that wasn't god; it was Fairfax County police and an alert citizen.

The Conversation -- September 26, 2023

** Biggest Loser Loses Big. Jonah Bromwich & Ben Protess of the New York Times: "The New York attorney general won a major victory in her civil case against Donald J. Trump on Tuesday when a New York judge determined that the former president fraudulently inflated the value of his assets to obtain favorable loans and insurance deals. The decision by Justice Arthur F. Engoron precedes a trial that is scheduled to begin Monday, and will considerably smooth Attorney General Letitia James's path forward as she seeks a penalty of about $250 million. Justice Engoron's decision narrows the issues that will be heard, effectively deciding that the trial was not necessary to find that Mr. Trump was liable and that the core of Ms. James's case was valid. It represents a major blow to Mr. Trump.... In his order, Justice Engoron wrote scathingly about Mr. Trump's defenses, saying that the former president and the other defendants, including his two adult sons and his company, ignored reality when it suited their business needs.... The judge also levied sanctions on Mr. Trump's lawyers for making arguments that he previously rejected.... [The lawsuit] to sever the Trump family from leading the Trump Organization." The AP's story is here.

The New York Times is liveblogging President Biden's visit to Michigan where he will walk the picket line with striking UAW workers. ~~~

     ~~~ Lauren Egan of Politico: "President Joe Biden on Tuesday became the first sitting president to walk a picket line with striking workers, vividly demonstrating his commitment to labor and its central role in his reelection campaign. The president, donning a blue hat with a United Auto Workers symbol, used a bull horn to speak to the crowd of union members dressed in red. He was flanked by United Auto Workers president Shawn Fain. 'The unions built the middle class. That's a fact. Let's keep going,' the president told the crowd. 'You deserve what you've earned and you've earned a hell of a lot more than you're getting paid now.' Biden's choice to show solidarity with striking auto workers at a time of great promise and peril for the labor movement represented a tectonic shift for an office historically known for breaking strikes, not supporting them."

David McCabe of the New York Times: "The Federal Trade Commission and 17 states accused Amazon on Tuesday of illegally protecting a monopoly over swaths of online retail by squeezing merchants and favoring its own services, in the government's most significant challenge to the power of the e-commerce giant and one that could alter the way Americans shop online for everything from toilet paper to electronics. In a highly anticipated lawsuit, the F.T.C. and state attorneys general from New York and other states said that Amazon had stopped merchants on its platform from offering lower prices elsewhere and forced them to ship products with its logistics service if they wanted to be offered as part of its Prime subscription bundle. Those practices led to higher prices and a worse shopping experience for consumers, the agency and states said." NPR's report is here.

Jeff Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: "With days left before the government shuts down, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) has embraced steep reductions to the U.S. safety net in an attempt to appease far-right Republican demands for lower spending. If McCarthy can win over conservatives and pass legislation funding the government, Republicans hope to have greater leverage in negotiations with the Democratic-controlled Senate and White House. But far-right votes have remained elusive, leading McCarthy to propose ever larger and still evolving spending cuts.... Hard-right lawmakers have warned that if McCarthy relies on Democratic votes to pass any fiscal bill, they would move swiftly to force him from the speakership.... But even if those bills were approved by the Senate, which they will not be, much of the government would still shut down because federal operations are funded by 12 different bills." ~~~

~~~ Jacob Bogage of the Washington Post: "Here's what you need to know about a government shutdown, and how it could affect you."

Christopher Maag of the New York Times: "Senator Cory Booker called on Senator Robert Menendez, his fellow New Jersey Democrat, to resign Tuesday morning, ending days of silence after Mr. Menendez was indicted on bribery charges. As New Jersey's junior senator, Mr. Booker often has described Mr. Menendez, the senior senator, as a friend, ally and mentor. His decision to condemn Mr. Menendez, and to join the growing chorus of state and federal officials calling on him to step down, demonstrates the deepening crisis facing a senator who until last week had occupied one of the most powerful and secure positions in American politics.... A flood of Democrats, particularly those facing re-election next year in politically competitive states, issued statements calling on Mr. Menendez to step aside." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Early Tuesday afternoon, MSNBC reported that 14 U.S. senators had called for Menendez to resign. Update: Annie Karni of the New York Times reports on the "stampede of Senate Democrats" who are urging Bribe-Me Bob to relinquish his lucrative Senate seat.

Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused Alabama's request to reinstate a congressional map drawn by Republican lawmakers that had only one majority-Black district, paving the way for a new map to be put in place before the 2024 election. Alabama's request to keep its map was the second time in under a year that it had asked the Supreme Court to affirm a limited role of race in establishing voting districts for federal elections in what amounted to a defiant repudiation of lower-court rulings. In the latest twist in the case, the lower court had found that the state had brazenly flouted its directive to create a second majority-Black district or something 'close to it.' The court's order gave no reasons, which is often the case when the justices decide on emergency applications. There were no public dissents. The ruling clears the way for a special master and court-appointed cartographer to create a new map. The special master in the case submitted three proposed maps on Monday, the deadline set by the three-judge federal district court. All three proposals included a second district where Black voters would have the opportunity to elect a candidate of their choice, according to a report filed by the special master." CNN's report is here. Thanks to Ken W. for the link. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This strikes me as pretty amazing, inasmuch as the original decision was 5-4, and Alabama GOP legislators said they had "intelligence" that O'Kavanaugh would flip his vote and support them in a hearing on their latest unconstitutional map.

Kyle Cheney of Politico: "Donald Trump's lawyers said Monday that a gag order proposed by prosecutors would unconstitutionally silence him during key months of the 2024 presidential campaign, urging a federal judge in Washington, D.C. to reject the proposed limits. In a 25-page filing that mirrored some of Trump's own heated political rhetoric, Trump's attorneys said the former president's attacks on potential witnesses, special counsel Jack Smith and even U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan herself are protected by the First Amendment and were not actual threats or incitement of attacks.... Trump has spent the days since prosecutors' gag order proposal went public assailing Smith for making the request. And over the weekend he unleashed a lengthy attack on Mark Milley, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who is also a potential witness in both of Trump's pending federal criminal trials." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Of Milley, Trump wrote on his Twitter-clone site, "This guy turned out to be a Woke train wreck who, if the Fake News reporting is correct, was actually dealing with China to give them a heads up on the thinking of the President of the United States.... This is an act so egregious that, in times gone by, the punishment would have been DEATH!'" Mark Esper, who was Trump's Secretary of Defense when Milley made one of those calls to China, said Monday he had directed Milley to make the call after he himself made a similar call to Chinese officials. Esper called Trump's remarks about Milley "intolerable."

Graham Kates of CBS News: "Hunter Biden sued Rudy Giuliani and his former attorney Tuesday, claiming they hacked and manipulated data on an external hard drive associated with his laptop. Giuliani and the attorney, Robert Costello, have frequently acknowledged accessing the hard drive's data. The lawsuit accuses them of having 'dedicated an extraordinary amount of time and energy toward looking for, hacking into, tampering with, manipulating, copying, disseminating, and generally obsessing over data that they were given that was taken or stolen.'" Thanks to RAS for the link.

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Alex Gangitano of the Hill: "President Biden on Monday bashed House Republicans for heading towards a government shutdown, saying that they shouldn't be elected if they can't do their job to fund the government. 'Funding the government is one of the most basic, fundamental responsibilities of the Congress and if Republicans in the House don't start doing their job, we should stop electing them,' Biden said in remarks at the White House. Biden noted that he made a deal with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) in May that led to an increase in the debt ceiling. Under that deal, lawmakers voted for legislation that set ceilings on spending for the next year. Now conservatives in the House are seeking to make deeper cuts than that deal. Biden accused the GOP of not abiding by the debt-ceiling agreement.... Biden's reelection campaign earlier on Monday hit House Republicans for heeding former President Trump's calls to dig in on a shutdown. Last week, the Biden campaign called out Trump for rooting for a shutdown, saying that the former president doesn't care about the ramifications it would have for Americans families."

Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "Senator Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, returned Monday to Union City, the community where he rose to political prominence, to offer a clear answer to former allies who have called for his resignation in the face of federal bribery charges: No. 'The allegations leveled against me are just that -- allegations,' Mr. Menendez said at a news conference at a community college not far from where he grew up, the child of Cuban refugees. 'I recognize that this will be the biggest fight yet," he said, adding that once the judicial process concluded, he expected that "not only will I be exonerated, I will still be New Jersey's senior senator.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Amanda Macias of CNBC: "Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey suggested Monday that hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash seized by federal investigators from his home as part of a probe that led to his bribery indictment came from his personal savings account. 'I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account, what I have kept for emergencies and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba,' Menendez said during a press conference in Union, New Jersey." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Lawrence O'Donnell of MSNBC pointed out Monday that this obviously is a phony excuse for stashing nearly $500K in cash in his home. Menendez is a U.S. citizen, born in New York City in 1954 after his parents immigrated from Cuba the previous year. Fidel Castro led a revolution that toppled the government in 1959, and thereafter his Communist administration did confiscate Cubans' bank deposits -- beginning at least five years after the Menendez family left Cuba. (O'Donnell also pointed out that Menendez is a member of the Senate Banking Committee, so it's mighty odd he doesn't trust U.S. banks.) In any event, there is no "history" of Menendez' family's facing confiscation of funds. But hey, maybe his family did keep gold bars lying around the house. And a free Mercedes in the garage.

~~~ Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "The word 'gold' appears 26 times in the federal indictment unsealed Friday against Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey along with his wife, Nadine, and three businessmen. There are details about the senator's internet searches for the price of gold and Ms. Menendez's trip to a jeweler to sell gold and photos of the serial numbers stamped on some of the 13 gold bars found in their home. Yet gold is rarely mentioned in the financial disclosure forms he is required to file annually as a senator, showing up for the first time last year." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Ha Ha. Brian Schwartz of CNBC: "Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., will return $5,000 in contributions from a political action committee tied to Sen. Bob Menendez 'in envelopes stuffed with $100 bills' because of the New Jersey Democrat's indictment on bribery charges, Fetterman's spokesman said.... Fetterman was the first Democratic senator to call on Menendez to resign after he and his wife, Nadine Menendez, were charged with three bribery-related counts in federal court in New York. On Monday, two other Democrats, Sens. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Peter Welch of Vermont, also called for Menendez to step down." strong> MB: Monday night on MSNBC, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) also called for Menendez to resign. ~~~

~~~ Judd Legum of Popular Information: "Despite the prodigious evidence of criminal conduct presented in the indictment, [Chuck] Schumer is correct that Bob Menendez and the other defendants have a 'right to due process and a fair trial.'... There is not, however, a Constitutional right to be a member of the U.S. Senate.... The Constitution contemplates a higher standard for elected officials than avoiding criminal convictions. The U.S. Senate is empowered to expel any member 'for disorderly behavior' -- it requires a two-thirds vote.... In 2017, Leeann Tweeden, a conservative radio talk show host, accused then-Senator Al Franken (D-MN) of "having forced an unwanted kiss on her during a 2006 U.S.O. tour.' Over the next couple of weeks, seven other women accused Franken of inappropriate touching or kissing. About half of Franken's accusers remain anonymous. There were no criminal charges or any investigation of Franken's alleged conduct. Nevertheless, Schumer called on Franken to resign immediately, urging him not to wait for the 'due process' of an Ethics Committee investigation[.]... Schumer was joined by more than 30 of his Democratic colleagues.... Unlike Franken, Menendez was a member of Senate leadership and, as former chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Menendez has personally assisted the campaigns of many Senators, including by raising money."

Wherein Fox Accidentally Steps on House GOP False Claim. Philip Bump of the Washington Post: One of the central reasons House Republicans give for impeaching President Biden is that he "had sought the ouster of Ukraine's prosecutor general, Viktor Shokin, to benefit Burisma and Hunter Biden[. This claim] was debunked in 2019." In an interview with former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, Brian Kilmeade of Fox "News" accidentally made clear that the claim was bogus. After Poroshenko said he fired Shokin because he was a "completely crazy person," Kilmeade said, "Okay, so ... [Shokin ] didn't get fired because of Joe Biden.' Poroshenko confirmed that he did not...." Thanks to Ken W. for the link.

Book Review. The Old Gray Fox Ain't What She Used to Be. Justin Peters of the Washington Post: As Michael Wolff details in his new book, "Fox isn't what it used to be. While the network's ratings remain relatively strong today, the business of cable is in a sharp downturn, and Fox's core demographic is only getting older.... An alarming amount of money is flowing out of the network these days, most notably in the form of the $787.5 million it will pay Dominion Voting Systems.... And despite the network's best recent efforts to sideline [Donald] Trump -- whom [Rupert] Murdoch reportedly despises -- and boost the presidential ambitions of Florida governor Ron DeSantis, Trump continues to lead the 2024 GOP presidential field.... Wolff more or less traces the network's ongoing crackup back to 2016: the year of [Roger] Ailes's ouster and Trump's political ascent.... [Ailes'] exit left a power vacuum atop the network, filled by hacks and scions incapable of rising to the needs of the moment.... It makes for an entertaining read."

TuKKKer Stars on Russian TV. Mary Ilyushina of the Washington Post: "The blustering American TV personality Tucker Carlson has lambasted the United States for sending too much aid to Ukraine, called Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky 'sweaty and rat-like' and given credence to Russia's baseless justifications for its invasion. The former Fox News host's rhetoric on the war -- he has called it a U.S.-led 'regime-change war' against Russia -- and his attacks on Zelensky's government -- 'a pure client state of the United States State Department' -- aligns so well with the major propaganda points of Russian state television that one channel has decided to broadcast Carlson's new show on X...-Twitter, to millions of Russians, though apparently without Carlson&'s permission.... The idea of a Tucker Carlson show as part of regularly scheduled programming in Russia seemed to herald the next step in the melding of right-wing American MAGA punditry and Kremlin propaganda."

Sarah Burris of the Raw Story lists some of the highlights of Rachel Maddow's interview of former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson. Among them, Matt Gaetz tried to nail Hutchingson during a GOP weekend at Camp David, but Kevin McCarthy dispatched Gaetz, telling Gaetz to "Get a life." In respond to Hutchinson's allegation, Gaetz said he didn't remember this and another incident she recounted in her book, but that he and Hutchinson had dated years ago. Hutchinson responded that she had never dated Gaetz: ~~~

Marin Scotten in the Guardian: "Many animals raised for meat in the US spend their lives in spaces barely bigger than their own bodies.... While these conditions are part of what makes factory-farmed meat so cheap in the US, a growing number of consumers are rejecting these brutal practices, with more than a dozen states even enacting their own laws to ban them. But a new proposal in Congress would reverse these advances in animal welfare, threatening to upend years of work -- and victories -- by animal rights activists, farmers and food safety advocates. The Republican-led Ending Agricultural Trade Suppression, or Eats, Act aims to end the authority of states and localities to set animal welfare and food safety standards. If passed, it could also jeopardize more than 1,000 state and local health and safety laws that set food-quality requirements and stop the spread of invasive species and zoonotic diseases like avian flu." Thanks to RAS for the link.

(Alleged) Criminal Wants to Buy Glock. Maggie Haberman & Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "A spokesman for ... Donald J. Trump [-- Steven Cheung --] posted a video on Monday showing him at a gun shop in South Carolina, declaring that he had just bought a Glock pistol. The post on X...-Twitter, included video of Mr. Trump..., who is facing four criminal indictments. He looked over the dullish gold firearm, a special Trump edition Glock that depicts his likeness and says 'Trump 45th,' as he visited the Palmetto State Armory outlet in Summerville, S.C. 'I want to buy one,' he said twice in the video.... Under the main federal gun law, 18 U.S.C. 922, it is illegal for merchants to sell firearms to people who are under indictment for crimes carrying sentences of more than a year.... Within two hours of the initial post on social media, Mr. Cheung deleted his post, and issued a statement saying, 'President Trump did not purchase or take possession of the firearm. He simply indicated that he wanted one.' A man who answered a phone registered to the shop's owner hung up when a reporter called." Emphasis added. ~~~

     ~~~ Caroline Vakil of the Hill: "... CNN reporter Alayna Treene later said the news outlet had confirmed Trump hadn't bought the firearm."

Rachel Scully of the Hill: Former President Trump pledged to investigate Comcast, the parent company for NBC and MSNBC, if he is elected in 2024, saying it 'will be thoroughly scrutinized for their knowingly dishonest and corrupt coverage of people, things, and events.... They are almost all dishonest and corrupt, but Comcast, with its one-side and vicious coverage by NBC NEWS, and in particular MSNBC, often and correctly referred to as MSDNC (Democrat National Committee!), should be investigated for its "Country Threatening Treason,"' Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Sunday." MB: I suppose he'll soon be directly threatening particular hosts and anchors. Most dangerous man in the U.S., bar none. (Also linked yesterday.)

Zoe Richards of NBC News: "A judge granted Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' request to restrict identifying information about jurors in the Georgia election interference case, a new court filing shows. In a two-page order Monday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee imposed strict limits regarding the identities of jurors involved in any trial in the case against ... Donald Trump and 18 co-defendants. The court's standing rules restrict using photographic or electronic equipment without a judge's consent. McAfee's order offers additional protections by prohibiting drawing in an identifiable manner or otherwise recording images, statements or conversations of jurors or prospective jurors. He further ordered that jurors and prospective jurors be identified only by their numbers in court filings while the trial is pending, and he prohibited disclosing juror information that would reveal their identities, including names, addresses, telephone numbers or identifying employment information."

Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "... it is difficult to think of another justice, in the history of the Supreme Court, who has been as partisan and as ideological and as venal as [Clarence] Thomas, to say nothing of the fact that significant parts of his life have been subsidized by the largess of some of the wealthiest men in the country.... Clarence Thomas appears as immune to shame as the most recent Republican president. And he has also made it clear, over the course of his career on the court, that there is essentially nothing his opponents could do that would pressure him off the bench. The only official recourse is impeachment, which would be a nonstarter even if there weren't a Republican-led House of Representatives.... The Constitution says that federal judges, including members of the Supreme Court, 'shall hold their Offices during good Behaviour.'... Thomas's behavior is, to my mind, clearly impeachable under the standard the Constitution sets."

Shane Goldmacher & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Fox News announced on Monday that it was hosting a debate in late November between Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida and Gov. Gavin Newsom of California == a highly unusual clash between two of the nation's best known political leaders who are not running for the same office. Fox News -- calling it a 'a red vs. blue state debate' -- said the 90-minute event featuring the Republican governor of Florida and the Democratic governor of California will be held in Georgia and will air on Nov. 30 on Sean Hannity's show. Mr. Newsom and Mr. DeSantis had both agreed to have Mr. Hannity moderate the debate." MB: Sadly, I have no idea where to find Fox on my teevee, so I guess I'll have to skip it. An ABC News story is here.

Hiroko Tabuchi & Blacki Migliozzi of the New York Times: "... to strike oil in America, you need water. Plenty of it. Today, the insatiable search for oil and gas has become the latest threat to the country's endangered aquifers, a critical national resource that is already being drained at alarming rates by industrial farming and cities in search of drinking water. The amount of water consumed by the oil industry, revealed in a New York Times investigation, has soared to record levels. Fracking wells have increased their water usage sevenfold since 2011 as operators have adopted new techniques to first drill downward and then horizontally for thousands of feet. The process extracts more fossil fuels but requires enormous amounts of water. Together, oil and gas operators reported using about 1.5 trillion gallons of water since 2011, much of it from aquifers, the Times found. Fracking a single oil or gas well can now use as much as 40 million gallons of water or more." Thanks to laura h. for the link.

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Canada. Rob Gilles of the AP: "The speaker of Canada's House of Commons apologized Sunday for recognizing a man who fought for a Nazi military unit during World War II. Just after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered an address in the House of Commons on Friday, Canadian lawmakers gave 98-year-old Yaroslav Hunka a standing ovation when Speaker Anthony Rota drew attention to him. Rota introduced Hunka as a war hero who fought for the First Ukrainian Division. 'In my remarks following the address of the President of Ukraine, I recognized an individual in the gallery. I have subsequently become aware of more information which causes me to regret my decision to do so,' Rota said in a statement.... I particularly want to extend my deepest apologies to Jewish communities in Canada and around the world. I accept full responsibility for my action,' Rota said.... Canadian lawmakers cheered and Zelenskyy raised his fist in acknowledgement as Hunka saluted from the gallery during two separate standing ovations.... Vladimir Putin has painted his enemies in Ukraine as 'neo-Nazis,' even though Zelenskyy is Jewish and lost relatives in the Holocaust. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office said in a statement that Rota had apologized and accepted full responsibility for issuing the invitation to Hunka and for the recognition in Parliament."

Canada. Maham Javaid & Evan Hill of the Washington Post: "At least six men and two vehicles were involved in the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar outside his place of worship, according to video reviewed by The Washington Post and witness accounts, suggesting a larger and more organized operation than has previously been reported.... In a bombshell announcement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Canada's House of Commons last week that authorities were pursuing 'credible allegations' that agents of the Indian government were involved in the killing."

News Lede

New York Times: "David McCallum, the Scottish-born actor who became a surprise sensation as the enigmatic Russian spy Illya Kuryakin on 'The Man From U.N.C.L.E.' in the 1960s and found television stardom again almost 40 years later on the hit series 'N.C.I.S.,' died on Monday in New York. He was 90."

The Conversation -- September 25, 2023

Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "Senator Robert Menendez, Democrat of New Jersey, returned Monday to Union City, the community where he rose to political prominence, to offer a clear answer to former allies who have called for his resignation in the face of federal bribery charges: No. 'The allegations leveled against me are just that -- allegations,' Mr. Menendez said at a news conference at a community college not far from where he grew up, the child of Cuban refugees. 'I recognize that this will be the biggest fight yet,' he said, adding that once the judicial process concluded, he expected that 'not only will I be exonerated, I will still be New Jersey's senior senator.'" ~~~

~~~ Tracey Tully of the New York Times: "The word 'gold' appears 26 times in the federal indictment unsealed Friday against Senator Robert Menendez of New Jersey along with his wife, Nadine, and three businessmen. There are details about the senator's internet searches for the price of gold and Ms. Menendez's trip to a jeweler to sell gold and photos of the serial numbers stamped on some of the 13 gold bars found in their home. Yet gold is rarely mentioned in the financial disclosure forms he is required to file annually as a senator, showing up for the first time last year."

Rachel Scully of the Hill: "Former President Trump pledged to investigate Comcast, the parent company for NBC and MSNBC, if he is elected in 2024, saying it 'will be thoroughly scrutinized for their knowingly dishonest and corrupt coverage of people, things, and events.... They are almost all dishonest and corrupt, but Comcast, with its one-side and vicious coverage by NBC NEWS, and in particular MSNBC, often and correctly referred to as MSDNC (Democrat National Committee!), should be investigated for its "Country Threatening Treason,"' Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Sunday." MB: I suppose he'll soon be directly threatening particular hosts and anchors. Most dangerous man in the U.S., bar none.

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Carl Hulse & Annie Karni of the New York Times: "With a potential government shutdown now less than a week away, President Biden and other administration officials this weekend intensified their warnings of the consequences of closing government agencies as they pressed congressional Republicans to find a way out of their spending stalemate. Both the president and the transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, made public calls for Republicans to resolve their differences before next Sunday, when federal funding is set to lapse. They noted that a shutdown would mean that members of the military would go without paychecks, air travelers could experience disruptions and a variety of programs safeguarding the public would be shuttered. Yet even after a weekend of private haggling at the Capitol, there was no sign that the G.O.P. was moving toward a resolution."

Dan Lamothe, et al., of the Washington Post: Gen. Mark "Milley, whose four-year tenure as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff ends with his retirement this month, will exit center stage as one of the most consequential and polarizing military chiefs in recent memory, leading America's armed forces through a fraught period that included the precarious final months of Donald Trump's presidency, a disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, and Washington's high-stakes standoff with Moscow." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It seems to me that there are times, especially when we have a deranged president*, that the chairman of the joint chiefs must put country before blind obedience to the commander-in-chief, and either act or speak out to right dangerous decisions. In most cases, I would support the chairman, even when I disagreed with his actions or statements. The exception would be when s/he erred toward military aggression.

Michael Schmidt, et al., of the New York Times: "As the prosecutions of [Donald] Trump have accelerated, so too have threats against law enforcement authorities, judges, elected officials and others. The threats, in turn, are prompting protective measures, a legal effort to curb his angry and sometimes incendiary public statements, and renewed concern about the potential for an election campaign in which Mr. Trump has promised 'retribution' to produce violence. Given the attack on the Capitol by Trump supporters on Jan. 6, 2021, scholars, security experts, law enforcement officials and others are increasingly warning about the potential for lone-wolf attacks or riots by angry or troubled Americans who have taken in the heated rhetoric. In April, before federal prosecutors indicted Mr. Trump, one survey showed that 4.5 percent of American adults agreed with the idea that the use of force was 'justified to restore Donald Trump to the presidency.' Just two months later, after the first federal indictment of Mr. Trump, that figure surged to 7 percent."

News Flash! Miss Margie Is Remarkably Ignorant. David McAfee of the Raw Story: In the spirit of ecumenicism, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) tweeted a Hanukkah message to celebrate Yom Kippur. It included an image of a menorah. "'Everyone's making fun of Marjorie Taylor Greene for putting a menorah on her Yom Kippur message, but in her defense she thought it was an eight-pronged Jewish space laser,' [comedy writer Frank Lesser] wrote." MB: Think of it as sending you a birthday card for Mothers Day. It's the thoughtlessness that counts.

Brooks Barnes & John Koblin of the New York Times: "Hollywood's bitter, monthslong labor dispute has taken a big first step toward a resolution. The Writers Guild of America, which represents more than 11,000 screenwriters, reached a tentative deal on a new contract with entertainment companies on Sunday night, all but ending a 146-day strike that has contributed to a shutdown of television and film production. In the coming days, guild members will vote on whether to accept the deal, which has much of what they had demanded, including increases in compensation for streaming content, concessions from studios on minimum staffing for television shows, and guarantees that artificial intelligence technology will not encroach on writers' credits and compensation." The NBC News story is here.

Presidential Race 2024. E.J. Dionne of the Washington Post: Donald "Trump's standing in the polls is less about his strength than about the weakness of the rest of the field -- and the traditional Republican Party.... It didn't have to be like this, because the strength of Trump's lock on the party is vastly exaggerated.... His primary foes have plainly failed to impress voters. At least as important, they and Trump's (often secret) party critics were unwilling to risk enraging him and his supporters.... That's no way to beat a brawler who'll do anything to win.... In the short term, Republican strategists see no path to rebuilding a more moderate coalition. The party's primary electorate is concluding that in a closely divided country, Trump is about as electable as any of his less-than-stellar rivals."

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Florida, California. Luz Lazo of the Washington Post: "Rail company Brightline began operating trains Friday from Miami to Orlando, using the fastest American trains outside the Northeast Corridor to become the first privately owned passenger operator to connect two major U.S. metropolitan areas in decades. The debut of the 235-mile, 3.5-hour ride completes a $6 billion private investment in Florida. With the Orlando segment complete, Brightline says it will move to advance a $12 billion high-speed railway project from Las Vegas to Southern California, with a goal to put trains traveling at 186 mph on America's tracks by 2028."