June 1, 2022

Morning/Afternoon Update:

Reid Epstein & Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "This spring, when Representative Mo Brooks of Alabama was fighting to win over conservatives in his campaign for Senate, he ran a television ad that boasted, 'On Jan. 6, I proudly stood with President Trump in the fight against voter fraud. But when Mr. Brooks placed second in Alabama's Republican primary last week, leaving him in a runoff, he said he was not concerned about fraud in his election.... Many ... Republicans [who objected to the 2020 presidential results] are accepting the results of their primaries without complaint.... This phenomenon was on clear display in 2020, when scores of Republicans who repeated allegations about a 'rigged' presidential race accepted their own victories based on the same ballots."

Democratic Voters Steal Elections; Republican Voters Are as Pure as the Driven Snow. Greg Sargent of the Washington Post: "... many of the same Republicans who insisted that 'voter fraud' cast doubt on Donald Trump's 2020 loss mysteriously don't see fraud at play in elections that they win.... [This] embodies an actual principle of sorts: that when Republicans lose elections, the voting can be presumed illegitimate or suspect, and when Republicans win them, the voting can be presumed legitimate and above suspicion entirely.... Rep. Mo Brooks has now stepped forward to confirm this.... When the Times [story linked above] questioned Brooks..., he essentially gave away the game: 'Mr. Brooks offered a simple answer to why he's not worried about his race: There's no fraud in Republican primaries, he said.'... Pressed further by the Times, Brooks blithely suggested that in Alabama, the fraud took place 'in predominantly Democrat parts of the state.'... [Brooks' assertion is] meant to give some kind of patina of a public rationale for naked efforts to subvert election losses.... And the Alabama Republican's corroboration is noteworthy in light of emerging details [link is to Politico story by Heidi Przybyla, also linked below] about a complex new GOP plan to make this principle actionable in future elections."

Dennis Aftergut in the Bulwark: "John Durham, the special counsel appointed days before the 2020 election by Donald Trump's attorney general William Barr, just lost the only trial he has brought to date in his long tenure.... Durham's loss was one more egg laid in the fetid henhouse where Barr first enlisted Durham to nest in May 2019, tasking him with proving the truth of a lie -- Donald Trump's favorite disinformation campaign at the time, that the FBI's 2016 Trump-Russia investigation was a 'witch hunt.'... As some commentators noted, the indictment [of Michael Sussmann] reeked of non-prosecutorial goals: It seemed that Durham was trying to justify the public money he'd wasted boosting Trump's false narrative that it was the big, bad Clinton campaign behind the Trump-Russia investigation.... Shoddy decisions and the paucity of results characterize Durham's whole tenure. Yet there are no signs that he intends to close up shop anytime soon."

Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden announced new shipments of baby formula from Europe on Wednesday as he prepared to meet with top officials from five baby food companies amid an ongoing shortage that has left parents desperately searching for ways to feed their infants. Enough Kendamil formula to make about four million bottles will be flown to locations across the United States during the next three weeks, White House officials said in a statement. The statement said that United Airlines had agreed to transport the formula from Heathrow Airport in London free of charge for purchase by parents at retail stores.... Two weeks ago, the president responded to severe shortages of baby formula by invoking the Defense Production Act and promising to use the military to speed delivery of baby formula from overseas. Since then, officials said the administration has flown the equivalent of 1.5 million eight-ounce bottles into the United States. Wednesday's announcement is set to more than double that amount, officials said."

Forgot this one this morning: MSNBC: "President Biden met with New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at the White House and praised her for efforts on climate change and combatting gun violence and stressing the important role they play as allies on the global stage." ~~~

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Josh Boak, et al., of the AP: "Focused on relentlessly rising prices, President Joe Biden plotted inflation-fighting strategy Tuesday with the chairman of the Federal Reserve [Jerome Powell], with the fate of the economy and his own political prospects increasingly dependent on the actions of the government's central bank. Biden hoped to demonstrate to voters that he was attuned to their worries about higher gasoline, grocery and other prices whiles still insisting an independent Fed will act free from political pressure. Like Biden, the Fed wants to slow inflation without knocking the U.S. economy into recession, a highly sensitive mission that is to include increasing benchmark interest rates this summer. The president said he would not attempt to direct that course as some previous presidents have tried." (This is an update of a story linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Tyler Pager & Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "The White House launched a new push Tuesday to contain the political damage caused by inflation after President Biden complained for weeks to aides that his administration was not doing enough to publicly explain the fastest price increases in roughly four decades. Aiming to demonstrate to the public that it is responding to its concerns, Biden met with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome H. Powell in the Oval Office, wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal about inflation and sent top aides across major networks to push the administration's economic message. The flurry of activity comes after Biden has privately grumbled to top White House officials over the administration's handling of inflation, expressing frustration over the past several months that aides were not doing enough to confront the problem directly, two people familiar with the president's comments said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations." ~~~

~~~ Kevin Liptak & Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen admitted Tuesday that she had failed to anticipate how long high inflation would continue to plague American consumers as the Biden administration works to contain a mounting political liability. 'I think I was wrong then about the path that inflation would take,' Yellen told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on 'The Situation Room' when asked about her comments from 2021 that inflation posed only a 'small risk.' The admission was the latest indication that the administration's expectations of a normalizing economy were thrown into disarray by the continuing pandemic and the war in Europe." MB: I blame the oil industry. Executives here and abroad are natural enemies of Democratic administrations, plus, of course, they have the overarching goal of keeping oil prices high all the time. You aren't just paying for the industry's incentives when you go to the gas pump. Everything from refrigerators to diapers costs more when haulers have to pay higher transportation costs to get raw materials to manufacturers, then get the finished goods to you. The oil industry has turned lemons -- the pandemic, the Ukraine war, etc. -- into lemonade.

Adam Cancryn of Politico: "The White House's focus on gas prices is bred from two sobering political conclusions top officials have made. The first is that they have little control over the problem. The second is that as prices rise at the pump, so do Democrats' odds of a midterm wipeout -- especially as the average U.S. gallon of gas hits fresh record highs.... In a frantic effort to try to slow gas prices that have risen by a dollar per gallon in just the last three months, Biden aides have internally debated a host of ideas.... The deliberations say they've snagged, in part, because each option comes with complicated tradeoffs and drawbacks...."

Sneaky Pete. Tim Stelloh & Gemma DiCasimirro of NBC News: "A local police chief in Uvalde, Texas, hasn't responded for a follow-up interview in a state investigation into the law enforcement response to an elementary school massacre..., an official said Tuesday. Peter Arredondo, the police chief of Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, participated in an initial interview but has not yet answered requests for follow-ups made two days ago, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety said.... Arredondo is said to be the incident commander who incorrectly believed the gunman to be a barricaded suspect and ordered officers to remain outside during the shooting. After more than an hour, federal agents disobeying the chief's orders entered the school and fatally shot the gunman. On Tuesday, Arredondo was sworn in as a newly elected member of the Uvalde City Council, Mayor Don McLaughlin [R] said in a statement. Officials canceled a ceremony for the event 'out of respect for the families who buried their children today, and who are planning to bury their children in the next few days,' McLaughlin said. But he added that all members, including Arredondo, who was elected this month, were sworn in Wednesday per the city charter." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If you will recall, in a previous statement, McLaughlin left the impression that the swearing-in would be postponed. But, as Lawrence O'Donnell of MSNBC pointed out last night, the city held the administration of the oath in secret and only revealed it, via a statement from the mayor, after the fact. So it appears that McLaughlin can find Arredondo, but Chief Pete is in hiding from Texas law enforcement officials who want to clarify whatever self-serving bull he gave them in his initial interview. I hope the town recalls both McLaughlin & Arredondo. ~~~

~~~ Josh Margolin & Aaron Katersky of ABC News: "The Uvalde Police Department and the Uvalde Independent School District police force are no longer cooperating with the Texas Department of Public Safety's investigation into the massacre at Robb Elementary School and the state's review of the law enforcement response, multiple law enforcement sources tell ABC News.... According to sources, the decision to stop cooperating occurred soon after the director of DPS, Col. Steven McCraw, held a news conference Friday during which he said the delayed police entry into the classroom was 'the wrong decision' and contrary to protocol."

Mark Berman of the Washington Post: "Four days after saying that the gunman who massacred children in a Uvalde, Tex., elementary school had gotten inside through a door 'propped open by a teacher,' the state agency investigating the massacre now says the educator had closed the door.... On Friday, Steven C. McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, seemed to suggest that an employee error played a critical role, saying that the unnamed teacher had previously propped open a door used as an 'access point' by the gunman. 'That back door was propped open,' McCraw said Friday. 'It wasn't supposed to be propped open; it was supposed to be locked.' In an interview with the San Antonio Express News, an attorney who said he represents the teacher ... said the educator had called 911 to report the gunman crashing his vehicle nearby and closed the door while still on the phone.... [Texas Public Safety spokesman Travis] Considine told The Washington Post that investigators had reviewed additional video evidence that let them 'determine that the teacher did indeed remove the rock from the door when she went back into the school, and shut the door.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This teacher might have been the first person in the school to alert police that the gunman was on the scene. So instead of praising her/him for warning them, officials try to finger her as the person who let the gunman into the school. Apparently, s/he had to hire a lawyer to defend her against the accusation.

Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post: "Although candidates in both parties have long used guns as a campaign prop, the images have in recent years become more prevalent, and intentionally provocative, in Republican advertising, holidays greetings and other forms of communication with the public. Such placements convey a cultural and political solidarity with conservatives more powerfully than most anything else, according to Republican strategists and aides.... 'These ads create a dangerous impression that firearms, and assault-style firearms specifically, are casual tools rather than dangerous weapons,' said Kris Brown, the president of Brady, a gun violence prevention organization. 'To use them to grandstand and to provocate is dangerous.'"

Ha! Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "Michael Sussmann, a prominent cybersecurity lawyer with ties to Democrats, was acquitted on Tuesday of a felony charge that he lied to the F.B.I. about having no client in 2016 when he shared a tip about possible connections between Donald J. Trump and Russia. The verdict was a blow to the special counsel, John H. Durham, who was appointed by the Trump administration three years ago to scour the Trump-Russia investigation for any wrongdoing. The case centered on odd internet data that cybersecurity researchers discovered in 2016 after it became public that Russia had hacked Democrats and Mr. Trump had encouraged the country to target Hillary Clinton's emails. The researchers said the data might reflect a covert communications channel using servers for the Trump Organization and Alfa Bank, a Kremlin-linked bank. The F.B.I. briefly looked at the suspicions and dismissed them.... ~~~

~~~ "Mr. Durham [whom AG Bill Barr appointed] used the case to put forward a larger conspiracy: that there was a joint enterprise to essentially frame Mr. Trump for collusion with Russia by getting the F.B.I. to investigate the suspicions so reporters would write about it -- a scheme involving the Clinton campaign; its opposition research firm, Fusion GPS; Mr. Sussmann; and a cybersecurity expert who brought the odd data and analysis to him. That insinuation thrilled supporters of Mr. Trump who share his view that the Russia investigation was a 'hoax,' and have sought to conflate the actual inquiry with sometimes thin or dubious allegations developed by private citizens. In reality, the Alfa Bank matter was a sideshow and tangent...." The AP report is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Twump Is Vewy, Vewy Upset. "... Donald Trump took to his social media platform on Tuesday to rage against Hillary Clinton campaign lawyer Michael Sussmann being acquitted of lying to the FBI. 'Our Legal System is CORRUPT, our Judges (and Justices!) are highly partisan, compromised or just plain scared, our Borders are OPEN, our Elections are Rigged, Inflation is RAMPANT, gas prices and food costs are "through the roof," our Military "Leadership" is Woke, our Country is going to HELL, and Michael Sussmann is not guilty,' raged Trump. 'How's everything else doing? Enjoy your day!!!'" MB: The not-guilty verdict, of course, took the air out of the giant Trump-Barr-Durham hoax balloon. The effort to prove the Mueller investigation was a hoax has gone on for more than three years, and about the only thing they have to show for it is a not-guilty verdict on a single charge of lying to the FBI. ~~~

~~~ digby: "Waaaaaaah! Durham struck out and Trump is having a good old-fashioned cry. The problem here is that for his cultists, every time he loses (which is constantly), it just proves how rigged it is." digby points to several examples of the group complaint. MB: Mostly, they blame the "D.C. jury," which is to say, Black people. ~~~

~~~ Paul Waldman & Greg Sargent of the Washington Post: "To appreciate the significance of this moment, you have to remember that Trump and Republicans have spent years working to show that there was never any serious cause for concern about the idea that Russia went to extraordinary lengths to try to swing the 2016 election to Trump.... Durham's flop is only the latest in a long string of failures. 'The Durham probe has turned into what conservatives always accused the Mueller probe of being: a politically premised fishing expedition that has failed to discredit its original target, namely the Russia investigation,' prominent national security lawyer Bradley Moss told us. None of these efforts have been able to disappear a fundamental truth: The stubborn facts show that Russiagate actually was an extraordinarily grave and disturbing scandal."

Another Trumpy Conspiracy Theory Flops. Jason Leopold & Ken Bessinger of BuzzFeed News: "A Justice Department probe found that members of the Obama administration did not seek to reveal the identity of General Michael Flynn 'for political purposes or other inappropriate reasons,' a newly disclosed report reveals. The document details the results of a months-long investigation into the so-called 'unmasking' of Flynn, who briefly served as National Security Advisor to ... Donald Trump.... Republicans later accused officials in the Obama administration of using their positions to reveal anonymized names in classified documents ... in order to target individuals in Trump's orbit. In May 2020, Trump's Attorney General, William Barr, ordered an investigation into the practice of unmasking.... The probe was one of several ordered up by Barr scrutinizing the origins of federal investigations into ties between Trump and the Russian government." The results of the DOJ report have been publicly reported before, but this is the first time the report itself has been made available.

Speaking of Flops. Larry Neumeister of the Huffington Post: "The judge who presided over Sarah Palin's libel case against The New York Times denied her request Tuesday for a new trial, saying she failed to introduce 'even a speck' of evidence necessary to prove actual malice by the newspaper. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff made the assertion in a written decision as he rejected post-trial claims from Palin's lawyers. Her attorneys had asked the judge to grant a new trial or disqualify himself as biased against her, citing several evidentiary rulings by Rakoff that they said were errors."

DOJ Hints It's Investigating Trump. Hugh Lowell of the Guardian: "Peter Navarro, a top White House adviser to Donald Trump, is being commanded by a federal grand jury subpoena to turn over to the justice department his communications with the former president, the former president's attorneys and the former president's representatives.... Certain elements [of the subpoena] appear to suggest that it is related to a new investigation examining potential criminality by the former president.... The confounding aspect of this grand jury subpoena, according to three former assistant US attorneys..., is that targets of investigations are rarely subpoenaed. And 'process' charges such as contempt do not require subpoenas for documents. But the fact that Trump is specifically named in the subpoena -- a reference that the justice department would not have made lightly -- and the specific requests for Navarro's communications with Trump could indicate that this is a criminal investigation examining Trump."

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday blocked a Texas law that would ban large social media companies from removing posts based on the views they express. The court's brief order was unsigned and gave no reasons, which is typical when the justices act on emergency applications. The order was not the last word in the case, which is pending before a federal appeals court and may return to the Supreme Court. The vote was 5 to 4, with an unusual coalition in dissent. The court's three most conservative members -- Justices Samuel A. Alito Jr., Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch -- filed a dissent saying they would have let stand, for now at least, an appeals court order that left the law in place while the case moved forward. Justice Elena Kagan, a liberal, also said she would have let the order stand, though she did not join the dissent and gave no reasons of her own."

The GOP Is Putting Ops in Place to Overturn 2022 Elections. >Heidi Przybyla of Politico: "Video recordings of Republican Party operatives meeting with grassroots activists provide an inside look at a multi-pronged strategy to target and potentially overturn votes in Democratic precincts: Install trained recruits as regular poll workers and put them in direct contact with party attorneys."

Kate Brumback of the AP: "Electronic voting machines from a leading vendor used in at least 16 states have software vulnerabilities that leave them susceptible to hacking if unaddressed, the nation's leading cybersecurity agency says in an advisory sent to state election officials. The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, or CISA, said there is no evidence the flaws in the Dominion Voting Systems' equipment have been exploited to alter election results. The advisory is based on testing by a prominent computer scientist and expert witness in a long-running lawsuit that is unrelated to false allegations of a stolen election pushed by ... Donald Trump after his 2020 election loss.... Amid a swirl of misinformation and disinformation about elections, CISA seems to be trying to walk a line between not alarming the public and stressing the need for election officials to take action." MB: Expect the right to go nuts anyway.

Breaking: Margie Greene Is Still Remarkably Stupid. Jeremy Fuster of the Wrap: "First there was 'gazpacho' police. Now Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has made another equally as amusing vocabulary flub in an attempt to get across her latest conspiratorial claim about Democrats and 'fake meat,' which she says is manufactured in a 'peach tree dish.' On the far-right Georgia congresswoman's most recent broadcast of 'MTG Live,' the streaming broadcast that airs on her social media page, Greene claimed that the government wants 'surveillance on every part of your life,' including on when people are eating a cheeseburger. 'Which is very bad because Bill Gates wants you to eat this fake meat that grows in a peach tree dish so you'll probably get a little zap inside your body that'll say "No, don't eat a real cheeseburger, you need to eat the fake burger,"' Greene said with conviction." MB: I'll never forget when I was in the seventh grade, my science teacher made me put a peach pit in a little flat plastic dish & before that pit even looked like a peach tree it went & zapped me inside like I was Ben Franklin with the key & the kite or something. Science is dangerous. And I think the gazpacho should have arrested the science teacher.

Julia Jacobs of the New York Times: "The actor Kevin Spacey said on Tuesday that he will voluntarily travel to Britain to face criminal sexual assault charges, allowing the authorities there to formally charge him without having to pursue extradition proceedings. Last week, Britain's Crown Prosecution Service announced that law enforcement had authorized the charges, of four counts of sexual assault against three men, as well as one charge of 'causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.' But Mr. Spacey, 62, cannot be formally charged unless he enters England or Wales." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here.

Benjamin Mueller & Eleanor Lutz of the New York Times: "Despite strong levels of vaccination among older people, Covid killed them at vastly higher rates during this winter's Omicron wave than it did last year, preying on long delays since their last shots and the variant's ability to skirt immune defenses. This winter's wave of deaths in older people belied the Omicron variant's relative mildness. Almost as many Americans 65 and older died in four months of the Omicron surge as did in six months of the Delta wave, even though the Delta variant, for any one person, tended to cause more severe illness. While overall per capita Covid death rates have fallen, older people still account for an overwhelming share of them." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Beyond the Beltway

Pennsylvania. Ariane de Vogue of CNN: "Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito agreed Tuesday to temporarily block a lower court decision that allows the counting of undated ballots in Pennsylvania in a case that could directly tip a judicial race and also impact the commonwealth's Republican US Senate primary. Alito, who has jurisdiction over the lower court involved in the case, issued an administrative stay in the case to give the justices more time to consider the issue.... At issue is a federal appeals court decision ordering the state to count undated mail-in ballots that were initially set aside. David Ritter, a Republican state judicial candidate in Lehigh County, wants the Supreme Court to block the appeals court decision, arguing that if the ballots were counted, he would lose his election to Democratic rival Zachary Cohen. How the justices decide the case in the under-the-radar-race could also impact more high-profile contests including the Republican Senate primary between David McCormick and Mehmet Oz, which has gone to a recount. Oz is currently leading by roughly 900 votes."

Virginia. Steve Descano, Fairfax County prosecutor, in a New York Times op-ed: "Almost two and a half years ago, I took my oath of office as prosecutor, and swore to protect my community from those who broke the law. The real threat, I now realize, may stem from those who write the law. If the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, the rights of thousands of Virginian women will be thrown into question.... Our governor has said that he is 'staunchly, unabashedly' against abortion and fully committed to 'going on the offense' against abortion rights in our legislature.... So when the court's draft decision overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked earlier this month, I committed to never prosecute a woman for making her own health care decisions. That means that no matter what the law in Virginia says, I will not prosecute a woman for having an abortion, or for being suspected of inducing one.... I hope prosecutors across the country will join me in choosing to lead on behalf of the women we represent." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Wednesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "The United States is sending advanced rocket systems to Ukraine, the most significant weapons that President Biden has sent since the start of the war, fulfilling a longstanding demand from the Ukrainians and appearing to dismiss concerns that it would be seen by Russia as a provocation.... The head of Ukraine's regional military administration, Serhiy Haidai, said late Tuesday that Russian troops had taken over most of [Sievierodonetsk]. About 12,000 civilians, out of a prewar population of about 100,000, remain in the city, according to an aid group.... Russia is blocking the shipment of 22 million tons of grain in Ukraine, bombarding houses where wheat is stored and mining crop fields, said Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Wednesday are here: "Meanwhile, Russia's Defense Ministry said Wednesday that its strategic missile forces -- responsible for nuclear deterrence and the Yars intercontinental ballistic missile -- were conducting exercises northeast of Moscow. The Kremlin has warned that any country providing advanced weaponry to Ukraine will face harsh repercussions. ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Wednesday are here.

President Biden, in a New York Times op-ed, outlines U.S. goals in Ukraine & lays out what the U.S. is or will be doing to aid Ukraine. ~~~

     ~~~ Peter Beaumont of the Guardian: "Joe Biden has confirmed he will send more advanced rocket systems to Kyiv, a critical weapon that Ukrainian leaders have been asking for as they struggle to stall Russian progress in the Donbas region. The medium-range high mobility artillery rocket systems are part of a new $700m tranche of security assistance for Ukraine from the US that will include helicopters, Javelin anti-tank weapon systems, tactical vehicles, spare parts and more, according to two senior administration officials. The weapons package will be formally unveiled on Wednesday. In a New York Times guest essay published on Tuesday, Biden said Russia's invasion of Ukraine will end through diplomacy but the United States must provide significant weapons and ammunition to give Ukraine the highest leverage at the negotiating table."

Helene Cooper of the New York Times: "The Russian military, beaten down and demoralized after three months of war, is making the same mistakes in its campaign to capture a swath of eastern Ukraine that forced it to abandon its push to take the entire country, senior American officials say. While Russian troops are capturing territory, a Pentagon official said that their 'plodding and incremental' pace was wearing them down, and that the military's overall fighting strength had been diminished by about 20 percent. And since the war started, Russia has lost 1,000 tanks, a senior Pentagon official said last week.... Vladimir V. Putin of Russia appointed a new commander, Gen. Aleksandr V. Dvornikov, in April in what was widely viewed as an acknowledgment that the initial Russian war plan was failing."

Alan Rappeport & David Sanger of the New York Times: "The devastation in Ukraine brought on by Russia's war has leaders around the world calling for seizing more than $300 billion of Russian central bank assets and handing the funds to Ukraine to help rebuild the country. But the movement, which has gained momentum in parts of Europe, has run into resistance in the United States. Top Biden administration officials warned that diverting those funds could be illegal and discourage other countries from relying on the United States as a haven for investment.... Internally, the Biden administration has been debating whether to join an effort to seize the assets, which include dollars and euros that Moscow deposited before its invasion of Ukraine. Only a fraction of the funds are kept in the United States; much of it was deposited in Europe, including at the Bank for International Settlements in Switzerland. Russia had hoped that keeping more than $600 billion in central bank reserves would help bolster its economy against sanctions. But it made the mistake of sending half those funds out of the country."

Viktor Vlad. Victoria Kim of the New York Times: "The European Union's long-delayed deal to embargo Russian oil, finalized late Monday, effectively exempts Hungary from the costly step the rest of the bloc is taking to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. While Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orban, has cast his weekslong opposition to the deal as purely about shielding his country's economy, it was also the latest step in what has been a decade-long turn of Hungary's leadership toward closer alignment with Russia, at times at the expense of relations with its fellow members of the European Union and NATO. The pivot has occurred despite deep-seated suspicion in Hungary of Russian power and influence based on the history of Russian and Soviet troops brutally cracking down on Hungarian uprisings in 1848-49 and in 1956." (Also linked yesterday.)

Mali. Elian Peltier, et al., of the New York Times: "Mali has been fighting armed militants for the past decade, initially with the help of French and later European forces. But as the relationship has deteriorated between France and the Malian military junta, which seized power last year, French forces are withdrawing from Mali, and the [Russian] Wagner Group has moved in -- a step denounced by 15 European countries and Canada, as well as the United States.... [In March, in the central Malian town of Moura,] Malian soldiers and their Russian allies looted houses, held villagers captive in a dried-out riverbed and executed hundreds of men.... Both Malian soldiers and foreign mercenaries killed captives at close range, often without interrogating them, based on their ethnicity or clothes, according to witnesses. The foreigners marauded through the town, indiscriminately killing people in houses, stealing jewelry and confiscating cellphones to eliminate any visual evidence."

News Lede

New York Times: "A jury in Virginia on Wednesday found that the actor Johnny Depp had been defamed by his ex-wife Amber Heard in a 2018 op-ed, a verdict that handed the actor a victory in his long, messy battle over domestic abuse allegations. But the jury's decision was split, also finding that one of the three statements at the center of Ms. Heard's lawsuit, by one of Mr. Depp's lawyers at the time, had been defamatory. The jury awarded Mr. Depp $15 million in compensatory and punitive damages, but the judge capped the punitive damages total in accordance with legal limits, resulting in a total of $10.35 million. The jury awarded Ms. Heard $2 million in damages. The jury's decision came after a six-week trial that transfixed the nation...." MB: Count me as not transfixed. A CNN report is here.

May 31, 2022

Afternoon Update:

Ha! Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "Michael Sussmann, a prominent cybersecurity lawyer with ties to Democrats, was acquitted on Tuesday of a felony charge that he lied to the F.B.I. about having no client in 2016 when he shared a tip about possible connections between Donald J. Trump and Russia. The verdict was a blow to the special counsel, John H. Durham, who was appointed by the Trump administration three years ago to scour the Trump-Russia investigation for any wrongdoing. The case centered on odd internet data that cybersecurity researchers discovered in 2016 after it became public that Russia had hacked Democrats and Mr. Trump had encouraged the country to target Hillary Clinton's emails. The researchers said the data might reflect a covert communications channel using servers for the Trump Organization and Alfa Bank, a Kremlin-linked bank. The F.B.I. briefly looked at the suspicions and dismissed them.... ~~~

~~~ "Mr. Durham [whom AG Bill Barr appointed] used the case to put forward a larger conspiracy: that there was a joint enterprise to essentially frame Mr. Trump for collusion with Russia by getting the F.B.I. to investigate the suspicions so reporters would write about it -- a scheme involving the Clinton campaign; its opposition research firm, Fusion GPS; Mr. Sussmann; and a cybersecurity expert who brought the odd data and analysis to him. That insinuation thrilled supporters of Mr. Trump who share his view that the Russia investigation was a 'hoax,' and have sought to conflate the actual inquiry with sometimes thin or dubious allegations developed by private citizens. In reality, the Alfa Bank matter was a sideshow and tangent...." The AP report is here.

Zeke Miller, et al., of the AP: "President Joe Biden is set to meet with Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell as soaring inflation takes a bite out of Americans' pocketbooks and the president's public approval. Tuesday's meeting is the first since Powell was renominated in November by Biden to lead the central bank and comes two weeks after his confirmation for a second term by the Senate. It also represents something of a reversal by Biden as inflation has evolved as a threat. The president asserted in April 2021 that he was 'very fastidious about not talking' with the independent Fed and wanted to avoid being seen as 'telling them what they should and shouldn't do.' The White House, along with the Fed, initially portrayed the inflation surge as a temporary side effect caused by supply chain issues as the U.S. emerged from the pandemic.... Inflation has shown signs of moderating but is likely to remain far above the Fed's 2% target through the end of this year."

Virginia. Steve Descano, Fairfax County prosecutor, in a New York Times op-ed: "Almost two and a half years ago, I took my oath of office as prosecutor, and swore to protect my community from those who broke the law. The real threat, I now realize, may stem from those who write the law. If the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, the rights of thousands of Virginian women will be thrown into question.... Our governor has said that he is 'staunchly, unabashedly' against abortion and fully committed to 'going on the offense' against abortion rights in our legislature.... So when the court's draft decision overturning Roe v. Wade was leaked earlier this month, I committed to never prosecute a woman for making her own health care decisions. That means that no matter what the law in Virginia says, I will not prosecute a woman for having an abortion, or for being suspected of inducing one.... I hope prosecutors across the country will join me in choosing to lead on behalf of the women we represent."

Benjamin Mueller & Eleanor Lutz of the New York Times: "Despite strong levels of vaccination among older people, Covid killed them at vastly higher rates during this winter's Omicron wave than it did last year, preying on long delays since their last shots and the variant's ability to skirt immune defenses. This winter's wave of deaths in older people belied the Omicron variant's relative mildness. Almost as many Americans 65 and older died in four months of the Omicron surge as did in six months of the Delta wave, even though the Delta variant, for any one person, tended to cause more severe illness. While overall per capita Covid death rates have fallen, older people still account for an overwhelming share of them."

Viktor Vlad. Victoria Kim of the New York Times: "The European Union's long-delayed deal to embargo Russian oil, finalized late Monday, effectively exempts Hungary from the costly step the rest of the bloc is taking to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. While Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orban, has cast his weekslong opposition to the deal as purely about shielding his country's economy, it was also the latest step in what has been a decade-long turn of Hungary's leadership toward closer alignment with Russia, at times at the expense of relations with its fellow members of the European Union and NATO. The pivot has occurred despite deep-seated suspicion in Hungary of Russian power and influence based on the history of Russian and Soviet troops brutally cracking down on Hungarian uprisings in 1848-49 and in 1956."

Julia Jacobs of the New York Times: "The actor Kevin Spacey said on Tuesday that he will voluntarily travel to Britain to face criminal sexual assault charges, allowing the authorities there to formally charge him without having to pursue extradition proceedings. Last week, Britain's Crown Prosecution Service announced that law enforcement had authorized the charges, of four counts of sexual assault against three men, as well as one charge of 'causing a person to engage in penetrative sexual activity without consent.' But Mr. Spacey, 62, cannot be formally charged unless he enters England or Wales."

~~~~~~~~~~

** Murder Capital of the World. Annabelle Timsit of the Washington Post: “At least 14 mass shootings have taken place across the United States since Tuesday, from California to Arizona to Tennessee. This Memorial Day weekend alone -- spanning Saturday, Sunday and the federal holiday on Monday -- there have been at least 11 mass shootings.These incidents, gleaned from local news reports and police statements, meet the threshold for mass shootings as defined by the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit research organization. GVA defines a mass shooting as one in which 'four or more people are shot or killed, not including the shooter.' Several of those shootings occurred at parties, and one at a Memorial Day event." See also commentary in yesterday's thread. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ The story has been updated: Make that "at least 15 mass shootings ... since Tuesday," not 14, and 12 mass shootings, not 11, over the holiday.

Alexander Bolton of the Hill: "President Biden said Monday that it's up to Congress to outlaw assault weapons and strengthen background checks for gun sales, telling reporters: 'I can't dictate this stuff.... I can do the things I've done and any executive action I can take, I'll continue to take. But I can't outlaw a weapon. I can't change a background check. I can't do that,' Biden said after stepping off Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House.... The president has made clear in recent days that Senate Democrats led by Sen. Chris Murphy (Conn.) will handle the negotiations on Capitol Hill over gun control." ~~~

     ~~~ Myah Ward of Politico: "President Joe Biden on Monday said he believes there's a 'realization' among 'rational Republicans' that the nation 'can't continue like this,' after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas. Biden, speaking to reporters after his return to the White House, was asked if he believes talks between Republicans and Democrats could produce bipartisan gun legislation after the latest tragedy. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell tapped Texas Sen. John Cornyn to work with Democrats on the legislation. 'I don't know, but I think there's a realization on the part of rational Republicans -- and I consider Sen. McConnell a rational Republican, and Cornyn is as well,' Biden said. 'I think there's a recognition on their part ... that we can't continue like this....'"

White House: "President Biden, the First Lady, the Vice President, the Second Gentleman, the Secretary of Defense, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff participate[d] in a Wreath-Laying Ceremony" yesterday at Arlington National Cemetery. Video.

Carol Lee, et al., of NBC News: "... Faced with a worsening political predicament, President Joe Biden is pressing aides for a more compelling message and a sharper strategy while bristling at how they've tried to stifle the plain-speaking persona that has long been one of his most potent assets. Biden is rattled by his sinking approval ratings and is looking to regain voters' confidence that he can provide the sure-handed leadership he promised during the campaign, people close to the president say. Crises have piled up in ways that have at times made the Biden White House look flat-footed: record inflation, high gas prices, a rise in Covid case numbers -- and now a Texas school massacre that is one more horrific reminder that he has been unable to get Congress to pass legislation to curb gun violence. Democratic leaders are at a loss about how he can revive his prospects by November, when midterm elections may cost his party control of Congress." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oddly, the reporters don't mention the Afghanistan fiasco. But Simon Tisdall of the Guardian is on that case: ~~~

~~~ Simon Tisdall of the Guardian: “Even by Donald Trump's chaotic standards, the 'comprehensive peace agreement' for Afghanistan signed by the US in Doha in February 2020 was a huge own goal.... This was not peacemaking. This was capitulation. The Taliban could hardly believe their luck.... Despite being hobbled by official secrecy, two damning reports this month, one by a US public watchdog, the other by the UK parliament's foreign affairs committee (FAC), lay bare the almost unbelievable incompetence of the two governments. Boris Johnson and the then British foreign secretary, Dominic Raab, failed to effectively challenge the Doha pact, then failed adequately to prepare for the 2021 withdrawal, the FAC report said.... The report of the US special inspector general (Sigar) blamed the calamity on Trump as well as his successor, Joe Biden, and the then Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani. Biden was certainly at fault. He should have insisted on renegotiating Doha and kept some US forces at Bagram base.... European Nato allies should have voiced their misgivings more forcibly. But responsibility lies primarily with the man who set this lethal geopolitical car crash in motion. While boasting of his prowess as a dealmaker, Trump caved to a gang of feudal warlords, who promptly defaulted to tyranny."

Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "It's time for [President]Biden to strongly attack the White-grievance industry. On Saturday -- the day before he departed for Uvalde, Tex. -- President Biden told University of Delaware graduates: 'In the face of such destructive forces, we have to stand stronger. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.' He also warned of the 'oldest and darkest forces in America' preaching hate and 'preying on hopelessness and despair.'... 'Forces' are not the problem; one political movement encased within the Republican Party is.... It's not the plague of 'polarization' or 'distrust' ... that has darkened our society. Bluntly put, we are in deep trouble because a major party rationalizes both intense selfishness ... and deprivation of others' rights (to vote, to make intimate decisions about reproduction, to be treated with respect)." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "The decision of the Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer of New York, to try for a negotiated compromise on new gun laws in the wake of the latest pair of mass shootings may prove to be a high-stakes bet on representative democracy itself, made at a time when faith in Congress -- and the Senate in particular -- is in tatters in both parties.... By raising expectations that a bipartisan deal on gun safety, mental health and school security is even possible, Mr. Schumer is intensifying the spotlight -- not only on Republicans and whether they will come to the table in good faith, but also on the institution of the Senate and its ability to grapple with a pressing national issue like gun violence, so searing in its trauma and obvious in its impact."

Luke Broadwater & Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "Peter Navarro, who as a White House adviser to ... Donald J. Trump worked to keep Mr. Trump in office after his defeat in the 2020 election, disclosed on Monday that he has been summoned to testify on Thursday to a federal grand jury and to provide prosecutors with any records he has related to the attack on the Capitol last year, including 'any communications' with Mr. Trump. The subpoena to Mr. Navarro -- which he said the F.B.I. served at his house last week -- seeks his testimony about materials related to the buildup to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and signals that the Justice Department investigation may be progressing to include activities of people in the White House. Mr. Navarro revealed the existence of the subpoena in a draft of a lawsuit he said he is preparing to file against the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Matthew M. Graves, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia." Politico's story is here.

Alexandra Berzon of the New York Times: "In the days after the 2020 election, [Cleta] Mitchell was among a cadre of Republican lawyers who frantically compiled unsubstantiated accusations, debunked claims and an array of confusing and inconclusive eyewitness reports to build the case that the election was marred by fraud.... Now Ms. Mitchell is prepping for the next election. Working with a well-funded network of organizations on the right, including the Republican National Committee, she is recruiting election conspiracists into an organized cavalry of activists monitoring elections. In seminars around the country, Ms. Mitchell is marshaling volunteers to stake out election offices, file information requests, monitor voting, work at polling places and keep detailed records of their work. She has tapped into a network of grass-root groups that promote misinformation and espouse wild theories about the 2020 election...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Josephine Harvey of the Huffington Post: "An Oklahoma man was arrested last week for his alleged role in the U.S. Capitol riot after one of his college fraternity brothers tipped off the FBI. Levi Roy Gable, 36, was arrested in Tulsa Thursday and charged with four misdemeanor counts of illegally entering the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and engaging in disruptive conduct. According to an FBI affidavit, in the days after the riot, Gable's fraternity brother from roughly 15 years ago notified the FBI. He said he'd seen a series of videos posted on Gable's Facebook account that appeared to have been filmed from inside the Capitol."

All He's Got Is Spite. Paul Waldman of the Washington Post: Donald "Trump's political project can now be described in a single word: spite. His personal animosities and resentments always played a key role in his political decisions, but what's different today is how little anything else seems to animate him. It's why he went to Wyoming to campaign for Harriet Hageman -- and why Hageman herself was an afterthought. All that matters is that she's primarying [Liz] Cheney, whose criticism of Trump has been unrelenting.... What kind of case can a politician so consumed with spite make to the general electorate?... If and when Trump runs again, his bid will have all the anger and hate of his past two campaigns, but none of the optimism he had in 2016. He has been distilled to his bitter, resentful core." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Oren Liebermann of CNN: "The US is set to bring home and identify the remains of unknown World War II soldiers from the only American cemetery in Africa, the US Embassy in Tunisia said on Monday, Memorial Day. The announcement comes after the US and Tunisia signed a memorandum of understanding that will allow the US to exhume the remains of unknown soldiers from the North African American Cemetery and repatriate them for identification and reunification with family members.... The cemetery in Carthage, Tunisia, near the Mediterranean Sea is the burial site for 2,841 US service members from the North African campaign. The Wall of the Missing, a memorial wall bordering the cemetery, lists the names of 3,724 service members who went missing in action and have never been found."

Joan Biskupic of CNN: "Supreme Court officials are escalating their search for the source of the leaked draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade, taking steps to require law clerks to provide cell phone records and sign affidavits, three sources with knowledge of the efforts have told CNN. Some clerks are apparently so alarmed over the moves, particularly the sudden requests for private cell data, that they have begun exploring whether to hire outside counsel. The court's moves are unprecedented and the most striking development to date in the investigation into who might have provided Politico with the draft opinion it published on May 2. The probe has intensified the already high tensions at the Supreme Court, where the conservative majority is poised to roll back a half-century of abortion rights and privacy protections. Chief Justice John Roberts met with law clerks as a group after the breach...."

Elizabeth Dias of the New York Times: "The United States is a nation that has learned to live with mass shooting after mass shooting.... More than one million people have died from Covid, a once unimaginable figure.... An increase in drug deaths, combined with Covid, has led overall life expectancy in America to decline.... Police killings of unarmed Black men continue long past vows for reform.... Has our tolerance as a country for such horror grown, dusting off after one event before moving on to the next? How much value do we place in a single human life?"

Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: "In March and April of 2020, as the coronavirus spread and people isolated in their homes, a doctor in San Diego boasted that he had his hands on a 'miracle cure,' according to prosecutors -- hydroxychloroquine. In mass-marketing emails from his business, Skinny Beach Med Spa, Jennings Ryan Staley said the drug was included in his coronavirus 'treatment kits,' despite the medication becoming increasingly scarce. But Staley had a way of getting it, he later told an undercover federal agent. He planned to smuggle in a barrel of hydroxychloroquine powder with the help of a Chinese supplier, prosecutors said. Staley was sentenced last week to 30 days in prison and a year of home confinement for the scheme. He pleaded guilty last year."

Beyond the Beltway

Missouri. David Edwards of the Raw Story: "A Black pregnant woman was shot five times by Kansas City police despite having her hands up, according to a witness. KCTV first reported that Missouri State Highway Patrol is investigating an officer-involved shooting that occurred on Friday. Highway Patrol said that officers in the Kansas Police Department spotted a vehicle at a Family Dollar that was suspected of being stolen. A witness named Shédanja later told The Kansas City Star that she had seen the shooting and recorded a video of the aftermath." According to KCTV, the woman was taken to the hospital & is in stable condition. MB: With video that I can't stand to watch. Maybe this woman was a shoplifter. Maybe she wasn't. I have no idea. But I do know you don't shoot somebody for stealing a couple of cans of Spaghettios. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

New York. Bryan Pietsch of the Washington Post: "A tabernacle worth $2 million was stolen from a Catholic church in Brooklyn [-- St. Augustine Roman Catholic Church in Park Slope --], New York City police said Monday, in what church officials described as a 'brazen crime of disrespect and hate.' The bejeweled tabernacle -- a container that houses the Eucharist used in the rite of Communion -- is 'irreplaceable due to its historical and artistic value,' the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn said in a statement." The Guardian's story is here.

Texas. Nick Watt, et al., of CNN: "With the first funerals from last week's school shooting taking place this week in Uvalde, Texas, the city's mayor has postponed a city council meeting at which several new members were to be sworn in -- including school police chief, Pedro 'Pete' Arredondo, who had been elected to the council earlier this month.... 'Pete Arredondo was duly elected to the City Council,' the mayor's statement [said]. 'There is nothing in the City Charter, Election Code, or Texas Constitution that prohibits him from taking the oath of office. To our knowledge, we are currently not aware of any investigation of Mr. Arredondo.'... The Justice Department announced Sunday that it will conduct a review of the law enforcement response to the mass shooting."

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Tuesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "As Russian and Ukrainian forces traded blistering artillery barrages and engaged in fierce fighting across towns and villages in eastern Ukraine, European Union leaders gathered on Tuesday for the second day of a summit aimed at pressing efforts to punish Russia while bolstering the battered Ukrainian economy. After weeks of tough talks finally led to agreement on an embargo on billions of dollars' worth of Russian oil and a package of sanctions aimed at the Russian economy, European leaders are now wrestling with how to help Ukraine export millions of tons of grain despite an effective naval blockade from Russia that has kept ships stranded at port.... At the same time, European leaders are working on a broader economic relief package worth more than $9 billion to be delivered over the course of 2022. ~~~

~~~ "Fighting in eastern Ukraine has reached pitched levels this week, according to Ukrainian and Russian officials, as Russia directed the might of its artillery and missile systems on an already devastated 75-mile stretch of land straddling the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. For weeks, they have rained fire on the last Ukrainian-controlled city in the Luhansk region, Sievierodonetsk, forcing civilians unable to flee to cower in basements and bomb shelters.... President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine offered condolences in his nightly address to the family and colleagues of the French journalist Frédéric Leclerc-Imhoff, who was killed on Monday in eastern Ukraine. Kalush Orchestra, the Ukrainian band that won the Eurovision Song Contest, auctioned off its trophy and the lead singer's signature pink bucket hat to buy drones for the Ukrainian army." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Tuesday are here: "Russian forces now control 'around half' of Severodonetsk, one of the last major Ukrainian-held areas of the country's eastern Luhansk region, local officials said. Capturing the city would be a major symbolic victory for Russia.... A Ukrainian court found two Russian soldiers guilty of shelling civilian sites, including an educational institution, during fighting in Kharkiv and sentenced them Tuesday to 11 ½ years in prison.... [Ukraine's] chief prosecutor intends to try a Russian soldier for allegedly killing a civilian and raping his wife, which would be the first case of wartime rape to be heard in court -- although the accused is not in Ukrainian custody.... [President] Zelensky has denounced Russia's blockade on Ukrainian ports for halting the export of 22 million tons of grain. He accused the Kremlin of using African and Asian countries as 'bargaining chips.' Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stressed the need to establish a safe passage for sea exports of grain." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Tuesday are here.

Dan Sabbagh of the Guardian: "Joe Biden has said the US will not supply Ukraine with rockets that can reach into Russia, in an attempt to ease tensions with Moscow over the potential deployment of long-range missiles with a range of about 185 miles. The White House has been weighing up pleas from Ukraine -- which is losing ground in the battle for Donbas -- for multiple-launch rocket systems (MLRS) to offset Moscow's increasingly effective use of long-range artillery, amid Russian warnings that doing so would cross a red line. 'We are not going to send to Ukraine rocket systems that can strike into Russia,' Biden told reporters on Monday after arriving back at the White House after a weekend in Delaware."

Emily Rauhala & Quentin Ariès of the Washington Post: "European Union countries finally reached a deal to wean off Russian oil, their most significant effort yet to hit the Russian economy over the war in Ukraine, though the impact will be softened by an exemption for pipeline oil, a concession to landlocked holdouts, most notably Hungary. After weeks of negotiations, the 27 countries agreed on Monday to end seaborne deliveries of Russian oil. Pipeline deliveries will continue to flow. Several countries will also get extensions or exemptions, according to E.U. officials and diplomats. European Council President Charles Michel said the agreement would cover more than two-thirds of Russian oil imports, cutting off a 'a huge source of financing for its war machine.' E.U. officials and diplomats will still have to agree on technical details in the coming days and the sanctions must be formally adopted by all 27 nations." The Guardian's report is here.

Meryl Kornfield & Tara Bahrampour of the Washington Post: "A French photojournalist covering evacuation efforts in eastern Ukraine was killed during a Russian strike that hit the humanitarian truck he was in, officials say. Frédéric Leclerc-Imhoff, who was carrying press credentials, was fatally wounded after shrapnel pierced the armored evacuation truck that was about to pick up refugees near Severodonetsk, a focal point of the ongoing battle, according to Ukrainian officials. The shrapnel struck his neck." Politico's report is here.

Canada, Our More Civilized Neighbor. Ian Austen & Vjosa Isai of the New York Times: "Most owners of what Canada calls 'military-style assault weapons' would be required to turn over their firearms to a government buyback program under legislation introduced on Monday, which would tighten the country's already stringent control of firearms. The Canadian government also announced new regulations that will ban the sale, purchase, importation or transfer of handguns. 'We are capping the number of handguns in this country,' Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Monday. The handgun sales ban and the proposed assault weapons law are the latest in a series of steps Mr. Trudeau has taken to restrict firearms since 22 people were killed in rural Nova Scotia by a gunman in 2020, in the deadliest rampage in the country's history. The legislation, which could apply to tens of thousands of firearms, is expected to pass." A CNN story is here.

Colombia. Julie Turkewitz of the New York Times: "The Colombian establishment is lining up behind Rodolfo Hernández, a populist businessman with an incendiary streak, to defeat the leftist former rebel Gustavo Petro.... Hernández [is] a former mayor and wealthy businessman with a populist, anti-corruption platform whose outsider status, incendiary statements and single-issue approach to politics have earned him comparisons to Donald Trump.... Mr. Hernández once called himself a follower of Adolf Hitler, has suggested combining major ministries to save money, and says that as president he plans to declare a state of emergency to deal with corruption, leading to fears that he could shut down Congress or suspend mayors."

France. Through It All, She Kept on Smiling. Daniel Victor & Maria Cramer of the New York Times: A "protester, whom officials have not named, faked a disability to get close to the Mona Lisa, according to the Louvre.... [He sprang from his wheelchair and pounded] on the glass that shields the painting. Then ... the man smeared what appeared to be cake all over the glass protecting [Leonardo's painting].... After the man smeared the glass, he was tackled by security guards.... Videos on social media showed that the man, speaking in French, yelled that there were .people who were destroying the planet' and 'that's why I did it.'"

France. Oh, L'Horreur! AFP: "French officials on Monday continued their centuries-long battle to preserve the purity of the language, overhauling the rules on using English video game jargon. While some expressions find obvious translations -- 'pro-gamer' becomes 'joueur professionnel' -- others seem a more strained, as 'streamer' is transformed into 'joueur-animateur en direct'. The culture ministry, which is involved in the process, told AFP the video game sector was rife with anglicisms that could act as 'a barrier to understanding' for non-gamers. France regularly issues dire warnings of the debasement of its language from across the Channel, or more recently the Atlantic."

News Lede

New York Times: "Agatha, the year's first named storm in the eastern Pacific region, was moving across southern Mexico on Tuesday morning as a tropical storm, a day after making landfall as a Category 2 hurricane. Agatha came ashore on Monday afternoon just west of Puerto Angel, a fishing town in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, with heavy rains and winds of nearly 105 miles per hour -- strong enough to uproot trees, cause major power losses and rip roofs off well-built homes. It was downgraded to a tropical storm on Monday night. As of 1 a.m. local time on Tuesday, Agatha was moving northeast at nearly eight miles per hour, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in an advisory. Parts of Oaxaca state could receive as much as 16 inches of rain later in the day, with isolated amounts of 20 inches, the center said."

May 30, 2022

Afternoon Update:

** Murder Capital of the World. Annabelle Timsit of the Washington Post: "At least 14 mass shootings have taken place across the United States since Tuesday, from California to Arizona to Tennessee. This Memorial Day weekend alone -- spanning Saturday, Sunday and the federal holiday on Monday -- there have been at least 11 mass shootings. These incidents, gleaned from local news reports and police statements, meet the threshold for mass shootings as defined by the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit research organization. GVA defines a mass shooting as one in which 'four or more people are shot or killed, not including the shooter.' Several of those shootings occurred at parties, and one at a Memorial Day event." See also commentary in today's thread.

Missouri. David Edwards of the Raw Story: "A Black pregnant woman was shot five times by Kansas City police despite having her hands up, according to a witness. KCTV first reported that Missouri State Highway Patrol is investigating an officer-involved shooting that occurred on Friday. Highway Patrol said that officers in the Kansas Police Department spotted a vehicle at a Family Dollar that was suspected of being stolen. A witness named Shédanja later told The Kansas City Star The Kansas City Star that she had seen the shooting and recorded a video of the aftermath." According to KCTV, the woman was taken to the hospital & is in stable condition. MB: With video that I can't stand to watch. Maybe this woman was a shoplifter. Maybe she wasn't. I have no idea. But I do know you don't shoot somebody for stealing a couple of cans of Spaghettios.

Alexandra Berzon of the New York Times: "In the days after the 2020 election, [Cleta] Mitchell was among a cadre of Republican lawyers who frantically compiled unsubstantiated accusations, debunked claims and an array of confusing and inconclusive eyewitness reports to build the case that the election was marred by fraud.... Now Ms. Mitchell is prepping for the next election. Working with a well-funded network of organizations on the right, including the Republican National Committee, she is recruiting election conspiracists into an organized cavalry of activists monitoring elections. In seminars around the country, Ms. Mitchell is marshaling volunteers to stake out election offices, file information requests, monitor voting, work at polling places and keep detailed records of their work. She has tapped into a network of grass-root groups that promote misinformation and espouse wild theories about the 2020 election...."

Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "It's time for [President]Biden to strongly attack the White-grievance industry. On Saturday -- the day before he departed for Uvalde, Tex. -- President Biden told University of Delaware graduates: 'In the face of such destructive forces, we have to stand stronger. We cannot outlaw tragedy, I know, but we can make America safer.' He also warned of the 'oldest and darkest forces in America' preaching hate and 'preying on hopelessness and despair.'... 'Forces' are not the problem; one political movement encased within the Republican Party is.... It's not the plague of 'polarization' or 'distrust' ... that has darkened our society. Bluntly put, we are in deep trouble because a major party rationalizes both intense selfishness ... and deprivation of others' rights (to vote, to make intimate decisions about reproduction, to be treated with respect)."

All He's Got Is Spite. Paul Waldman of the Washington Post: Donald "Trump's political project can now be described in a single word: spite. His personal animosities and resentments always played a key role in his political decisions, but what's different today is how little anything else seems to animate him. It's why he went to Wyoming to campaign for Harriet Hageman -- and why Hageman herself was an afterthought. All that matters is that she's primarying [Liz] Cheney, whose criticism of Trump has been unrelenting.... What kind of case can a politician so consumed with spite make to the general electorate?... If and when Trump runs again, his bid will have all the anger and hate of his past two campaigns, but none of the optimism he had in 2016. He has been distilled to his bitter, resentful core."

~~~~~~~~~~

Zeke Miller & Elliot Spagat of the AP : "President Joe Biden grieved with the shattered community of Uvalde on Sunday, mourning privately for three hours with anguished families of the 19 schoolchildren and two teachers killed by a gunman. Faced with chants of 'do something' as he departed a church service, Biden pledged: 'We will.' At Robb Elementary School, Biden visited a memorial of 21 white crosses -- one for each of those killed -- and first lady Jill Biden added a bouquet of white flowers to those already placed in front of the school sign. The couple then viewed individual altars erected in memory of each student, the first lady touching the children's photos as they moved along the row. After visiting the memorial, Biden attended Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, where several victims' families are members, and one of the families was in attendance." A Washington Post story is here.

Katie Benner of the New York Times: "The U.S. Justice Department said on Sunday that it will review the law enforcement response to the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, at the request of its mayor, Don McLaughlin. 'The goal of the review is to provide an independent account of law enforcement actions and responses that day, and to identify lessons learned and best practices to help first responders prepare for and respond to active shooter events,' the Justice Department said in a statement." The Guardian's report is here.

Shawn Hubler & Luis Ferré-Sadurní of the New York Times: In Democratic-controlled states like New Jersey, New York and California, governors and legislators are rushing to enact firearms safety laws. "In Republican-controlled statehouses, however, the moves evoked an equal and opposite reaction. A day after Uvalde, rural conservatives in Pennsylvania and Michigan beat back Democratic attempts to force votes on long-blocked gun safety legislation. And in Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott and other Republican officials blamed the school massacre on a gunman with mental health problems, not gun laws. They accused Democrats of politicizing the situation with calls for gun control.... The state actions come as hope for congressional consensus has waned to a flicker, not only on gun violence, but on an array of American social issues..., , including abortion and civil rights.... As they publicly mourned the tragedy in Uvalde, Republican senators showed scant signs that they had budged."

Julia Shapero of Axios: "Attorney General Merrick Garland warned about threats to democracy in the U.S. and abroad in a commencement speech at Harvard University on Sunday.... Garland, who is a Harvard alumnus, pointed to efforts to undermine the right to vote, violence against particular groups of people, the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and the Russian invasion of Ukraine abroad as the 'many ways in which democracy is under threat.'"

Trump's Revenge Tour Makes a Stop in Wyoming. Dave Weigel & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump is ... rallying aggressively behind [Liz Cheney's] primary challenger Harriet Hageman, who he is wagering can topple his most outspoken Republican critic in Congress. He hit the trail over the weekend in a very different Wyoming from years past, one where thousands cheered him as he railed against Cheney and looped together what he called the 'failed foreign policy of the Clintons, Bushes, the Obamas and the Bidens.'... The Aug. 16 primary in Wyoming is shaping up as the next big test of Trump's effort to unseat Republican elected officials who have been critical of him and who fought his falsehood-ridden attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election." ~~~

~~~ Joanna Walters of the Guardian: "As the House committee investigating the attack on the US Capitol by extremist supporters of Donald Trump prepares to start public hearings next week, the former president >called the insurrection on January 6, 2021, a hoax. Trump spoke at a rally in Wyoming on Saturday night in support of the Republican primary challenger in the midterm elections to congresswoman Liz Cheney. Cheney sits on the committee and has been vilified by Trump since she voted in favor of his historic second impeachment over the insurrection. Addressing the sub-capacity crowd at a rally in Casper for Republican candidate Harriet Hageman, Trump slammed Cheney, saying: 'As one of the nation's leading proponents of the insurrection hoax, Liz Cheney has pushed a grotesquely false, fabricated, hysterical partisan narrative.'

Vikram Dodd of the Guardian: "British authorities are pursuing the return of Kevin Spacey from the US to face sexual assault charges. An official familiar with the process told the Guardian the UK would seek the actor's formal extradition unless he decided to come back voluntarily. The international criminality directorate, a special Home Office unit, will act on behalf of police and prosecutors. Experts in extradition say US police may soon be sent to find Spacey, 62, and detain him on behalf of British authorities."

Beyond the Beltway

California. Vimal Patel of the New York Times: "Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was charged with driving under the influence of alcohol in Napa County, Calif., on Saturday night, according to the county's website. Bail for Mr. Pelosi, 82, was set at $5,000. County records show he was released from custody on Sunday morning. The charge he faces is a misdemeanor. Ms. Pelosi, a Democrat, has not addressed the arrest publicly. On Sunday, she delivered a commencement address at Brown University. News of her husband's arrest was reported by TMZ. A spokesman for Ms. Pelosi, Drew Hammill, said she was not with her husband during the incident."

New York. Amy Harris of the New York Times: "Ten people were injured at the Barclays Center [in Brooklyn] early Sunday morning when a loud noise heard on the street outside incited panic, sending throngs of people running as they tried to escape what they thought was a gunman."

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Monday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "... European leaders will be gathering in Brussels for a two-day summit focused on the war in Ukraine.On the agenda of the European Council meeting is a package of sanctions against Russia, including an oil embargo.... President Volodymyr Zelensky is scheduled to address the European leaders by video link on Tuesday. On Sunday, Mr. Zelensky sought to build morale among his fighters by making a rare journey outside Kyiv to visit the country's northeast, near Kharkiv, which is still under shelling.... He was visiting eastern Ukraine as his military announced a counteroffensive in Kherson, a key city in the south that had been of the first to fall to Russia when the war began in February.... [Ukrainian officials] said the maneuver would require the delivery of Western artillery systems that had been promised by the United States and other allies. Those weapons are now showing up at frontline positions in the war's eastern theater.... Ukraine's defense minister, Oleksiy Reznikov, said that sophisticated Harpoon anti-ship cruise missiles had arrived. He said the missiles came courtesy of Denmark and would be used to try to break Russia's Black Sea blockade and to protect the port city of Odesa." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Monday are here: "Russian troops' assault on Severodonetsk, one of the last Ukrainian-held cities in the country's eastern Luhansk region, continued Sunday as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said 90 percent of the city's buildings and all of its 'critical infrastructure' had been destroyed.... A Russian ship was seen in new satellite images picking up grain in annexed Crimea and unloading it in Syria last week, with Ukrainian officials alleging that Moscow is stealing one of the country's main exports. In the hard-hit Donetsk region, 115 miners are stuck underground because of power outages, a provincial leader said Sunday. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will have separate telephone conversations Monday with the Ukrainian and Russian presidents 'to encourage the parties to operate channels of dialogue and diplomacy,' he said." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Do you think it would be a good idea -- or perhaps idiotic -- for the U.S. & E.U. to start signaling to Russia that the West will never support Russia's annexation of any part of Ukraine, so Putin should get over it? ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Monday are here.

Colombia. Julie Turkewitz of the New York Times: "Two anti-establishment candidates, Gustavo Petro, a leftist, and Rodolfo Hernández, a right-wing populist, captured the top two spots in Colombia's presidential election on Sunday, delivering a stunning blow to the country's dominant conservative political class. The two men will compete in a runoff election on June 19 that is shaping up to be one of the most consequential in the country's history. At stake is the country's economic model, its democratic integrity and the livelihoods of millions of people pushed into poverty during the pandemic. The Petro-Hernández face-off, said Daniel García-Peña, a Colombian political scientist, pits 'change against change.'"

U.K. Jennifer Hassan of the Washington Post: "In a sea of bright red military uniforms..., Prince William, on horseback, inspected the Irish Guards, an Irish infantry regiment that is part of the British Army. While the display of pomp and pageantry unfolding in London on Saturday was extensive, it was just a 90-minute rehearsal. The rehearsal ... was staged just a few days before Thursday's ceremony, known as Trooping the Colour. It's held annually to mark the queen's official birthday, which is in June, but this year it also kick-starts a string of events celebrating her Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years on the throne. The 96-year-old monarch usually takes the salute at the ceremony, but it remains unclear how involved the queen will be this year.... If the queen passes these ceremonial duties to another royal family member Thursday, it will be the first time in her reign she has done so, the Sunday Times reported."

News Ledes

New York Times: "Rescue workers recovered 21 bodies on Monday after a daylong effort to reach the site of a plane crash in the rocky heights of the Himalayas, according to officials in Nepal. The Canadian-made De Havilland DHC-6 Twin Otter, operated by Tara Air and carrying 19 passengers and three crew members, took off on Sunday morning from the central Nepali city of Pokhara and was headed for Jomsom, a tourist destination popular with trekkers.... 'We recovered 21 dead bodies,' said Netra Prasad Sharma, the chief administrator of Mustang District, where the crash occurred. 'One is still missing.'"

New York Times: "Hurricane Agatha, the first named storm this year in the eastern Pacific, intensified rapidly on Sunday, packing winds of up to 110 miles per hour and heavy rains that threaten to unleash potentially fatal floods and mudslides when it makes landfall in Mexico on Monday, the National Hurricane Center said. Agatha, which was upgraded from a tropical storm on Sunday, had sustained winds that exceeded the threshold for a Category 2 hurricane. Forecasters said it was expected to become a 'major hurricane' -- with maximum sustained winds of 111 m.p.h. or greater -- before it reaches the coast of southern Mexico on Monday afternoon or evening. The Mexican state of Oaxaca could get as much as 16 inches of rain, with isolated amounts of 20 inches, the center said on Sunday night."