December 8, 2021

Afternoon Update:

Jacqueline Alemany & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol said it is preparing to hold Mark Meadows, who served as ... Donald Trump's chief of staff, in criminal contempt for not complying with the panel's subpoena as it ramps up efforts to force former Trump administration officials to cooperate with its inquiry. Committee Chairman Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.) said in a letter sent Tuesday evening to Meadows's attorney, George Terwilliger III, that the panel's patience has run out.... In the letter, Thompson outlined some of the documents that Trump's former chief of staff has already provided to the committee, including a Nov. 7, 2020, email 'discussing the appointment of alternate slates of electors as part of a "direct and collateral attack" after the election.' Also mentioned in the letter is a Jan. 5 email 'regarding a 38-page PowerPoint briefing titled "Election Fraud, Foreign Interference & Options for 6 JAN: that was to be provided "on the hill"' and a Jan. 5 'email about having the National Guard on standby.' ~~~

"Meadows provided the committee last week with 'certain relevant messages' from 'saved and backed up phone data' from his personal cellphone, according to Thompson's letter. The text messages produced by Meadows include a Nov. 6, 2020, correspondence 'with a Member of Congress apparently about appointing alternate electors in certain states as part of a plan that the Member acknowledged would be "highly controversial" and to which Mr. Meadows apparently said, "I love it."'" MB: You can download the letter from Thomson by clicking on the link. I thought maybe Meadows -- I won't appear, I will appear, I won't appear flipflops were a form of delay, but it looks as if he really did change his mind again -- after Trump dissed his book. Some of the docs Meadows provided before deciding he was unable to lunch today would seem to be fairly incriminating.

Katrin Bennhold & Melissa Eddy of the New York Times: "After 16 years as leader of Germany and unofficial leader of Europe, [Angela] Merkel on Wednesday left the office she first took over when President George W. Bush was still in the White House in a characteristically understated way. 'Congratulations dear Mr. Chancellor, dear Olaf Scholz,' Ms. Merkel told her successor in a small gathering at the chancellery.... Ms. Merkel was the central political figure in Germany and Europe through four U.S. presidents and five British and eight Italian prime ministers. Her steady accretion of authority drew admirers and detractors alike, but she remained a singular source of stability for the continent through repeated crises."

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Paul Sonne, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden warned Russian President Vladimir Putin in a video call Tuesday not to mount a new invasion of Ukraine and laid out the economic and security costs Russia would face if the Kremlin chooses to go down that path, as the White House attempts to forestall a renewed war in Europe. Biden also offered a diplomatic route to end the war scare that has arisen since the Kremlin, for the second time this year, massed troops and materiel near the border with Ukraine, raising fears of an offensive far larger and more deadly than its invasion eight years ago." (This is an update of a story linked yesterday afternoon.) The New York Times story, by David Sanger & Michael Crowley, is here.

Useless Commission Writes 288-page Report. Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "The bipartisan commission appointed by President Biden to study possible changes to the federal judiciary unanimously approved a final report on Tuesday that flagged 'profound disagreement' among its members over the issue that led to the panel's creation: calls to expand or 'pack' the Supreme Court with additional justices. By a vote of 34 to 0, the commission approved a 288-page report that offered a critical appraisal of arguments for and against that and many other ideas for changes to the Supreme Court, including imposing 18-year term limits on justices and reducing their power to strike down acts of Congress. But the group did not offer specific recommendations."

A Win for Foghorn Leghorn, a Shame on the Senate. Emily Flitter of the New York Times: “Saule Omarova, a Cornell Law School professor whom critics painted as a communist after President Biden picked her for a key banking regulator job, withdrew from consideration for the post on Tuesday. In a letter to the White House, Ms. Omarova said it was 'no longer tenable' for her to seek the position of comptroller of the currency. Mr. Biden, who said Ms. Omarova had 'lived the American dream' by escaping her birthplace in the former Soviet Union and serving the United States, accepted her request. 'Saule would have brought invaluable insight and perspective to our important work on behalf of the American people,' he said in a statement. 'But unfortunately, from the very beginning of her nomination, Saule was subjected to inappropriate personal attacks that were far beyond the pale.'"

Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "The House on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed a $768 billion defense policy bill after lawmakers abruptly dropped proposals that would have required women to register for the draft, repealed the 2002 authorization of the Iraq war and imposed sanctions for a Russian gas pipeline, in a late-year drive to salvage a bipartisan priority. The legislation, unveiled hours before the vote, put the Democratic-led Congress on track to increase the Pentagon's budget by roughly $24 billion above what President Biden had requested, angering antiwar progressives who had hoped that their party's control of the White House and both houses of Congress would lead to cuts to military programs after decades of growth. Instead, the measure provides significant increases for initiatives intended to counter China and bolster Ukraine, as well as the procurement of new aircraft and ships, underscoring the bipartisan consensus on Capitol Hill for continuing to spend huge amounts of federal money on defense initiatives, even as Republicans lash Democrats for spending freely on social programs.... The lopsided 363-to-70 vote on Tuesday sent the legislation to the Senate, where it is expected to pass with strong bipartisan support as soon as this week."

Emily Cochrane & Margot Sanger-Katz of the New York Times: "The House approved legislation on Tuesday that would pave the way for a swift increase in the debt ceiling amid a Republican blockade, after congressional leaders in both parties agreed to try an unusual maneuver that could avert the threat of a first-ever federal default. The 222-to-212 vote came after days of quiet bipartisan talks to resolve the stalemate culminated in a deal. Only one House Republican, Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, joined Democrats in voting in favor of the measure.... Its passage was not guaranteed in the evenly divided Senate, where Republicans have for weeks refused to let Democrats take up any bill to provide a long-term increase. But Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the minority leader, signaled confidence that enough of his colleagues could accept the solution. The Treasury Department has said that it could breach the statutory limit on its ability to borrow to finance the federal government's obligations soon after Dec. 15 without congressional action." ~~~

~~~ Kelsey Snell of NPR tries to explain the Senate deal on raising the debt limit: "Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., agreed on a proposal that would allow the Senate to increase the federal borrowing limit without the threat of a Republican filibuster. The move is an attempt to end a months-long standoff as Republicans have refused to join Democrats in voting to increase the debt limit.... The approach combines a one-time change to Senate rules with a measure to prevent scheduled cuts to Medicare payments.... If the one-time change passes the Senate, the bill still needs to be signed into law by the president. Only then would the opportunity to increase the federal borrowing limit with a simple majority vote in the Senate kick off. The one-off agreement would allow Senate Democrats to avoid default, assuming the party is unified on the amount of borrowing power they're willing to allow. Democrats say their goal is to choose a figure that will resolve the debt limit until after the midterm elections in November 2022." MB: I still don't get it. It's two different bills, one on Medicare & one, after the first becomes law, could raise the debt limit by majority vote, sans filibuster? Good grief. ~~~

~~~ Well, Yes. Sarah Ferris, et al., of Politico: "The House passed a bill Tuesday night to expedite a debt ceiling fix in the Senate, allowing Democrats to essentially raise the nation's credit limit on their own and thwart a Christmastime default. The measure -- which is the result of an 11th-hour accord between party leaders -- tees up a new path for Congress to hike the nation's borrowing ability, preventing the Treasury Department from running out of cash as soon as this month.... Under the plan, at least 10 Senate Republicans would vote to allow Democrats to raise the debt ceiling with a simple majority. The Senate could start voting to allow this process Thursday, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he's 'confident' the plan has enough GOP support. But both chambers would need to actually hike the debt limit in a separate vote -- one that could take until early next week to clear both the House and Senate." MB: This is ridiculous. After this remarkable demonstration of GOP cowardice, Republicans should never, ever criticize any Democrat for anything less than a felony conviction. (On the other hand, if Mitch will broker this kind of nonsensical pact to ensure the full faith & credit of the USA, let's see if he'll do it for voter rights, too. [Okay, he won't.])

Marianna Sotomayor & Jacqueline Alemany of the Washington Post: "Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) plans to introduce a resolution Wednesday to strip Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) of her committee assignments for repeatedly making anti-Muslim remarks aimed at Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), hoping the action forces House Democratic leadership to punish the lawmaker before the end of the year. Pressley's resolution, first obtained by The Washington Post, comes amid mounting pressure by House Democrats for Boebert to be reprimanded for her Islamophobic attacks that surfaced via video of the Colorado Republican suggesting at an event in her district over Thanksgiving break that Omar was a suicide bomber."

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "Mark Meadows, the former White House chief of staff under ... Donald J. Trump, on Tuesday informed the committee scrutinizing the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol that he was no longer willing to cooperate with its investigation, reversing a deal he reached with the panel just last week to sit for an interview and provide documents.... Instead, he proposed that Mr. Meadows answer questions in writing through what he called an 'orderly process' that would create a 'clear record of questions and related assertions of privilege.' The turnabout was the second in two weeks by Mr. Meadows, who had initially refused to comply with a subpoena from House panel in line with a directive from Mr. Trump, but told the panel last week that he would be willing to provide documents and sit for a voluntary interview." CNN's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Mike Lillis of the Hill: "The leaders of the select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol are vowing to launch criminal charges against Mark Meadows if he refuses to cooperate in the probe.... Meadows ... is scheduled to testify privately before the panel on Wednesday.... 'if indeed Mr. Meadows refuses to appear, the Select Committee will be left no choice but to advance contempt proceedings and recommend that the body in which Mr. Meadows once served refer him for criminal prosecution,' [committee chair Bennie] Thompson [D-Miss.] [MB: and vice-chair Liz Cheney (R-Wy.)] said in a statement." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Meadows' memoir of his happy days in service of Trump was publicly released Tuesday. Meadows thought Trump would love the book. Instead, as Lillis reports, "Trump is reportedly livid about the book, characterizing it publicly as 'fake news.' And Meadows has since walked back his own narrative, saying it was misinterpreted by a liberal media hellbent on disparaging the former president." ~~~

~~~ Zachary Cohen, et al., of CNN: "The House select committee investigating the January 6 riot has formally subpoenaed the phone records of more than 100 people, a substantial number that includes former Trump officials and associates of the ex-President such as his one-time chief of staff Mark Meadows, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. The committee has already begun receiving some data from phone providers, the sources said. The records do not include the content of the calls but rather details about who called or texted whom, when and for how long, giving them the ability to draw a web of communications before, during and after the January 6 attack on the US Capitol. Congressional investigators also believe this data will help them piece together communications between those in ... Donald Trump's official orbit and the people who organized the rally that preceded the Capitol attack and rioters who participated in the violence. While the records do not include information about the substance of those communications, the panel believes it may be able to learn those details from individuals who are cooperating with the investigation.... An attorney for Meadows took issue with the subpoenas, writing in a letter to the committee on Tuesday that they are part of the reason his client will no longer cooperate with the panel." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: According to Meadows' attorney, the objection is that the records sweep would include phone calls that included "intensely personal communications." Really? Is Meadows worried the January 6 investigators will find out Meadows called his girlfriend/boyfriend 16 times? His masseuse? Sorry, Mark; I don't think they care about your "intensely personal" sex life (if you have one).

Dartunorro Clark of NBC News: "Roger Stone, a longtime adviser to ... Donald Trump, is refusing to be deposed or hand over documents to the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, his attorney said in a letter dated Monday. The letter, which Stone provided to NBC News on Tuesday, invokes his Fifth Amendment right not to testify."

Rick Newman of Yahoo! News: "An 'investor presentation' [Donald Trump's new] company recently filed with the Securities and Exchange commission is provoking guffaws among business analysts, with laughable evasions and barely any business strategy. "It does feel like every public action by this company is designed give the impression that it is a joke," Bloomberg analyst Matt Levine wrote on Dec. 7. The oddest part of the [Trump Media & Technology Group] presentation is the 'technology team' listed on Slide 21. The company has apparently filled 30 important jobs already, but it only lists these team members with a first name and last initial. The chief technology officer is 'Josh A.' 'Steve E.' is VP of engineering. One of the senior mobile developers is 'BJ.' Are these real people or stand-ins? We may never know: As a footnote explains: 'personnel subject to change.' One key employee is very well known: Devin Nunes, the pro-Trump California Congressman who's quitting his job in January to become CEO of TMTG, with Trump as chairman. Nunes has no business experience, except for fishy ties to a family farm.... The New Yorker pointed out in a piece of satire [MB: by Andy Borowitz] speculating that Trump will stiff Nunes as he has done with many contractors and investors in his years as a real-estate developer. Maybe it's not satire." ~~~

     ~~~ Thanks to Ken W. for the link. Ken wrote in yesterday's Comments thread that he "can't wait until the stock goes public." MB: Sounds like one of those deals where the initial public offering is $40/share but soon becomes a penny stock. But still, an excellent opportunity to reduce one tax liability for stock gains. RAS also complimented Nunes on his excellent move to join Team Trump just as securities investigators are beginning to look into the shady financing of TMTG: "Nice of him to volunteer to be the latest fall guy." ~~~

~~~ A Giant Grift. Judd Legum of Popular Information calls TMTG "a $1.6 billion mirage. He points out that TMTG's merger with Digital World Acquisition Company (DWAC), a publicly-traded Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC) -- the deal the SEC is investigating -- boosted DWAC's stock to $175/share, pretty amazing for a stock that was previously valued at $10/share. "[The value] has since settled in at around $43, which still values TMTG at almost $1.6 billion.... That's not bad for a company that has no product, no users, no publicly identified executives, and no revenue.... [Under the arrangement between TMTG DWAC, Donald] Trump, before TMTG has a single product or subscriber, could collect $1.3 billion.... It's a deal that makes Trump money and the investors money. The people holding the bag will be retail investors paying premium prices for a mirage of a company because they like Trump."

Meredith McGraw of Politico: "During Brett Kavanaugh's controversial 2018 Supreme Court confirmation hearings..., Donald Trump 'strongly considered' dropping the nominee and instead going with a 'stronger candidate,' according to a new book by Trump's former chief of staff Mark Meadows. It wasn't because of accusations that Kavanaugh had sexually assaulted Christine Blasey Ford while in high school, but because he'd professed that he 'liked beer' during his hearings and was, in Trump's estimation, being too apologetic.... At the time he was having private reservations about Kavanaugh, Trump was publicly fighting for his confirmation, mocking Blasey Ford's testimony at a rally and brushing off concerns from GOP lawmakers about his viability as a Supreme Court nominee." McGraw has more on Meadows' book.

Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post: "The Constitution, [Brett] Kavanaugh posited [during last week's Supreme Court hearing on Mississippi's anti-abortion law], is 'neutral' on abortion, 'neither pro-life nor pro-choice.' Consequently, 'this Court should be scrupulously neutral on the question of abortion ... rather than continuing to pick sides.'... The fundamental flaw here is that the Constitution exists in no small part to protect the rights of the individual against the tyranny of the majority. The Bill of Rights and the 14th Amendment exist to put some issues off limits for majority rule -- as Justice Robert H. Jackson put it in a 1943 ruling protecting the right of Jehovah's Witness schoolchildren not to be forced to salute the flag.... The Supreme Court, in protecting abortion rights, isn't telling women what to do: It is preserving space for them to make their own decisions about their own pregnancies."

** Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "The mainstream media's fixation with false equivalency between the two political parties and fear of criticism from the right has led to distorted coverage and misleading characterizations of the assault on democracy.... A democracy that can no longer recognize existential threats is in no position to defend itself against shameless foes." Rubin provides plenty of examples of the GOP's assault & the media's euphemisms for these attacks. And she faults Democrats for being "apparently ... temperamentally unsuited to calling out their opponents as anti-democratic or un-American." ~~~

~~~ Dan Froomkin of Press Watch interviews Dana Milbank of the Washington Post about his recent column on journalists' being "accessories to the murder of democracy." MB: Froomkin & Milbank used to be colleagues at the WashPo, where Froomkin's blogposts about the White House were among the most popular opinion pieces. Inexplicable, Fred Hiatt fired Froomkin in June 2009, to the dismay & bewilderment of real journalists at other outlets. ~~~

~~~ Barton Gellman of the Atlantic: "Technically, the next attempt to overthrow a national election may not qualify as a coup. It will rely on subversion more than violence, although each will have its place. If the plot succeeds, the ballots cast by American voters will not decide the presidency in 2024. Thousands of votes will be thrown away, or millions, to produce the required effect. The winner will be declared the loser. The loser will be certified president-elect.... Democrats, big and small D, are not behaving as if they believe the threat is real. Some of them, including President Joe Biden, have taken passing rhetorical notice, but their attention wanders. They are making a grievous mistake.... For more than a year now, with tacit and explicit support from their party's national leaders, state Republican operatives have been building an apparatus of election theft.... Trump and his party have convinced a dauntingly large number of Americans that the essential workings of democracy are corrupt, that made-up claims of fraud are true, that only cheating can thwart their victory at the polls, that tyranny has usurped their government, and that violence is a legitimate response." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If, like me, you don't have a subscription to the Atlantic, Gellman's article would be a good place to "spend" a freebie. Gellman cites, at length, a project led by Robert Pape of the University of Chicago, which has conducted a number of surveys & analyses of the January 6 insurrectionists. Here's one finding that stood out for me: the team noticed a number of factors about the insurrectionists that surprised them. But "Only one meaningful correlation emerged. Other things being equal, insurgents were much more likely to come from a county where the white share of the population was in decline." ~~~

     ~~~ Although Gellman's central thesis comes as no surprise to us, I was struck by this statistic about the insurrectionists because of a snippet I heard on NPR as I was driving home Tuesday: a guest made an assertion I never thought of: the reason we are the only developed nation without a national healthcare system is racism; American politicians (in today's U.S. politics, read Republican politicians) don't want minorities to "get free stuff." Huh. That sure explains the virulent opposition to ObamaCare, doesn't it? More generally, the suggestions makes a lot of sense. When Republicans say "socialism" (or "communism" -- see story on Saule Omarova's withdrawal from consideration, linked above), they don't mean "not capitalism"; they mean "not white." Wow!

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Wednesday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Wednesday are here.

Allison Pecorin of ABC News: "Republican-led efforts to repeal President Joe Biden's vaccine mandate on private businesses will once again get a vote in the Senate Wednesday, and this time a repeal is expected to pass. The Senate will likely vote Wednesday on Republican Sen. Mike Braun's effort to repeal the mandate on private sector businesses with more than 100 employees. Every Republican signed onto the proposal.... Some moderate Democrats are expected to back the repeal effort.... Republicans are bringing up the repeal for a vote using a procedural tool called the Congressional Review Act, which allows Congress to overturn rules created by federal agencies and only requires 51 votes to pass the Senate. The bill would still need to go over to the House, where it is unlikely to be brought up by Democratic leadership."

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Tuesday are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Beyond the Beltway

Wisconsin. Patrick Marley of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "A conservative group issued a report Tuesday saying it found no evidence of widespread fraud in Wisconsin's presidential election but believed officials did not closely follow all the state's voting laws. The report by the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty provides Republicans with material they can use to argue Wisconsin's elections system needs to be overhauled. But it also includes findings Democrats can seize on to emphasize that there is no credible evidence to question Joe Biden's victory over Donald Trump in Wisconsin.... Despite ... finding [no evidence of fraud], the institute leveled numerous criticisms at how the election was conducted and contended changes need to be made for future contests. The report comes as Republicans who control the Assembly conduct their own review of the election at a cost of $676,000 to taxpayers. Former state Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman, who is overseeing that review, has focused on many of the same issues that WILL targeted in its report." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Wisconsin Republicans can't find any evidence of voter fraud, but they're going ahead in their tireless effort to ensure "election integrity" by limiting ballot access, gerrymandering & increasing GOP politicians' control over elections, especially federal elections (thanks, Ron Johnson!).

Way Beyond 

France, Turkey, etc. Ben Hubbard & Aurelien Breeden of the New York Times: "The French police arrested a Saudi man on Tuesday in connection with the assassination of the dissident writer Jamal Khashoggi, but French authorities warned that they were still verifying his identity. A French judicial official confirmed that the man, identified as Khalid Alotaibi, 33, was arrested at the Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport north of Paris on the basis of an international arrest warrant issued by Turkey, just before he was to board a flight for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A man by that name is accused of being a member of the team that killed Mr. Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018.... If his identity is confirmed, France could extradite him to Turkey to face charges there." A BBC News report is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

December 7, 2021

Afternoon Update:

Ashley Parker, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a video call Tuesday morning focused on growing tensions over Ukraine as Russia masses troops along the border, prompting fears of a Russian invasion of the Eastern European nation." At 1:25 pm ET, this story appears to be "in progress." MSNBC just received the White House's call readout.

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "Mark Meadows, the former White House chief of staff under ... Donald J. Trump, on Tuesday informed the committee scrutinizing the Jan. 6 attack at the Capitol that he was no longer willing to cooperate with its investigation, reversing a deal he reached with the panel just last week to sit for an interview and provide documents.... Instead, he proposed that Mr. Meadows answer questions in writing through what he called an 'orderly process' that would create a 'clear record of questions and related assertions of privilege.' The turnabout was the second in two weeks by Mr. Meadows, who had initially refused to comply with a subpoena from House panel in line with a directive from Mr. Trump, but told the panel last week that he would be willing to provide documents and sit for a voluntary interview." CNN's story is here.

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

Ben Hubbard & Aurelien Breeden of the New York Times: "The French police arrested a Saudi man on Tuesday in connection with the assassination of the dissident writer Jamal Khashoggi, but French authorities warned that they were still verifying his identity. A French judicial official confirmed that the man, identified as Khalid Alotaibi, 33, was arrested at the Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport north of Paris on the basis of an international arrest warrant issued by Turkey, just before he was to board a flight for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. A man by that name is accused of being a member of the team that killed Mr. Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul in 2018.... If his identity is confirmed, France could extradite him to Turkey to face charges there." A BBC News report is here.

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President Biden, in a proclamation, on "a date which will live in infamy." ~~~

     ~~~ Audrey McAvoy of the AP: "A few dozen survivors of Pearl Harbor are expected to gather Tuesday at the site of the Japanese bombing 80 years ago to remember those killed in the attack that launched the U.S. into World War II."

Ellen Nakashima & Rick Maese of the Washington Post: "The United States will not send President Biden or any U.S. government official to the Beijing Winter Olympics in February to protest China's human rights abuses, the White House announced Monday, in a pointed snub to a country seeking to use the Games to enhance its global standing. Though largely symbolic -- the diplomatic boycott does not affect the ability of American athletes to participate in the Games -- it will be seen as a major affront by Washington's greatest military and economic competitor as China seeks to distract from its increasingly repressive policies at home and aggression abroad."

Trumped-up Charges? Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "The defense team for a cybersecurity lawyer who was indicted in September by a Trump-era special counsel asked a judge on Monday to set a trial date sooner than the prosecutor wants -- while disclosing evidence recently turned over to them that appears to contradict the charge. The materials could make it harder for the special counsel, John H. Durham, to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the cybersecurity lawyer, Michael Sussmann, is guilty of the charge against him: making a false statement to the F.B.I. during a September 2016 meeting about possible links between Donald J. Trump and Russia. The newly disclosed evidence consists of records of two Justice Department interviews of the former F.B.I. official to whom Mr. Sussmann is accused of lying, each of which offers a different version of the key interaction than the version in the indictment. That official [-- James A. Baker --] is the prosecution's main witness.... Mr. Baker's accounts ... have been inconsistent...."

Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "Marc Short, the former chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, is cooperating with the January 6 committee, a significant development that will give investigators insight from one of the highest-ranking Trump officials, according to three sources with knowledge of the committee's activities. CNN is also reporting for the first time that the committee subpoenaed Short a few weeks ago. Short remains one of Pence's closest advisers and is a firsthand witness to many critical events the committee is examining, including what happened to Pence at the Capitol on January 6 and how ... Donald Trump pressured the former vice president not to certify the presidential election that day."

Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "Representative Devin Nunes, a California Republican who emerged as one of ... Donald J. Trump's most loyal and pugnacious allies, announced on Monday that he would resign from Congress after 19 years to become the chief executive officer of Mr. Trump's new media and technology company. Mr. Nunes faced almost impossible odds in being re-elected to the Central Valley district that his family has farmed for three generations. A new map emerging from an independent citizens' redistricting commission was almost certain to flip it from a district Mr. Trump won handily to one President Biden would have won. But political analysts and politicians in the district had predicted that Mr. Nunes ... would jump to a newly created, Republican-friendly district.... Mr. Nunes's decision to take over Mr. Trump's fledgling media enterprise instead of the influential House panel that writes tax and health care policy signals where he thinks power lies in the Republican Party and the conservative movement." Politico's story is here. Thanks to Ken W. for the lead. In yesterday's thread, unwashed speculated on the role of Devin Nunes' Cow in the Trump media empire. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Being a member of Congress cannot be a fun job. But there's hardly a worse, more humiliating job in the U.S. than "Donald Trump employee." ~~~

     ~~~ digby is bearish: "The odds of this enterprise ever making any money are very long. Trump is a terrible businessman and what Nunes knows about running a company and social media is confined to suing a twitter user and losing. Should work out great."

~~~ Matthew Goldstein & David Enrich of the New York Times: "Securities regulators have opened investigations into the planned merger of a nascent social media company backed by ... Donald J. Trump with a so-called blank-check company that raised nearly $300 million in an initial public offering in September. The investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority were disclosed Monday in a regulatory filing by Digital World Acquisition Corporation, the special purpose acquisition company that intends to merge with Trump Media Technology Group. Both regulators are looking for information regarding the trading in shares of Digital World. The S.E.C. is also looking into 'documents and communications' between Digital World and Trump Media.... The investigation ... comes after The New York Times reported that the chief executive of Digital World, Patrick Orlando, had talks with representatives of Trump Media as far back as March about doing a deal." The report is part of the Times' business updates for Monday. The Washington Post story is here. MB: I'll bet you're way surprised that a business deal involving Donald Trump could be suspect. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) CNBC has a story here.

Emma Brown, et al., of the Washington Post: "In the months after ... Donald Trump lost the November election, lawyer Sidney Powell raised large sums from donors inspired by her fight to reverse the outcome of the vote. But by April, questions about where the money was going -- and how much there was -- were helping to sow division between Powell and other leaders of her new nonprofit, Defending the Republic.... Records reviewed by The Washington Post show that Defending the Republic raised more than $14 million, a sum that reveals the reach and resonance of one of the most visible efforts to fundraise using baseless claims about the 2020 election. Previously unreported records also detail acrimony between Powell and her top lieutenants over how the money -- now a focus of inquiries by federal prosecutors and Congress -- was being handled." MB: I'll bet you're way surprised that a fundraising scheme cooked up by Donald Trump's lawyer could be suspect. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Audra Burch & Tariro Mzezewa of the New York Times: "The Justice Department announced on Monday that it had closed an investigation into the abduction and murder of Emmett Till, the African American teenager whose gruesome killing by two white men more than six decades ago in Mississippi helped begin the civil rights movement. In a news release dated Dec. 6, federal officials said there was not enough evidence to pursue charges in the case, which was reopened after a historian claimed in a book that Carolyn Bryant Donham, the central witness whose account of an encounter with Emmett led to his death, had recanted the most salacious portions of her story -- that he had grabbed her and made sexually suggestive remarks. Citing the statute of limitations and Ms. Donham's denial that she had ever changed her story, the Justice Department said it could not move forward with prosecuting her for perjury." A Politico report is here.

Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "Former senator Robert J. Dole, who died Sunday at age 98, will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol rotunda on Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Monday."

Bob Dole, in a Washington Post op-ed. Dole "drafted early in 2021 to be published around the time of his death": "We have overcome our biggest challenges only when we focused on our shared values and experiences. These common ties form much stronger bonds than political parties. I cannot pretend that I have not been a loyal champion for my party, but I always served my country best when I did so first and foremost as an American.... By leading with a shared faith in each other, we become America at its best: a beacon of hope, a source of comfort in crisis, a shield against those who threaten freedom. Our nation's recent political challenges remind us that our standing as the leader of the free world is not simply destiny. It is a deliberate choice that every generation must make and work toward. We cannot do it divided."

Matt Schudel of the Washington Post: "Fred Hiatt, a onetime foreign correspondent who in 2000 became The Washington Post's editorial page editor and greatly expanded the global reach of the newspaper's opinion writers in the era of 9/11, the election of Barack Obama and the destabilizing presidency of Donald Trump, died Dec. 6 at a hospital in New York City. He was 66. He had sudden cardiac arrest on Nov. 24 while visiting his daughter in Brooklyn, said his wife, Margaret 'Pooh' Shapiro, and did not regain consciousness. He had been treated for heart ailments in the past." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The Pandemic, Ctd.

Hannah Knowles of the Washington Post: “Federal health authorities issued a warning Monday against travel to several European countries as well as Jordan and Tanzania amid growing fears of the omicron variant, telling people to make sure they are fully vaccinated if they must visit. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said to avoid travel to France, Portugal, Cyprus, Andorra and Liechtenstein, grouping all in a Level 4 category that represents a 'very high' level of the coronavirus."

Beyond the Beltway

Georgia Gubernatorial Race. Amy Gardner & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: Donald Trump lobbied hard to get former Sen. David Perdue (R) to run against current Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, ensuring a nasty primary race.

Illinois. Sonia Rao of the Washington Post: "Former 'Empire' actor Jussie Smollett, facing six felony disorderly conduct charges for allegedly filing a false police report about being the victim of a hate crime, took the stand in a Chicago courtroom Monday to testify in his own defense. He reiterated his stance that there 'was no hoax.'"; Politico's report is here.

New York. Billionaire Thief. Tom Mashberg of the New York Times: "Michael H. Steinhardt, the billionaire hedge fund pioneer and one of New York's most prolific antiquities collectors, has surrendered 180 stolen objects valued at $70 million and been barred for life from acquiring any other relics, the Manhattan district attorney's office said in a statement Monday. The prosecutor's office struck an agreement with Mr. Steinhardt after a four-year multinational investigation that determined that the seized pieces had been looted and smuggled from 11 countries, trafficked by 12 illicit networks and appeared on the international art market without lawful paperwork, the office said." MB: I think the old fart should go to jail.

New York. Shayna Jacobs of the Washington Post: "A woman who says she had a years-long sexual relationship with Jeffrey Epstein told jurors on Monday that Ghislaine Maxwell played a key role in facilitating their encounters, first telling her that Epstein was a philanthropist interested in helping young people and then encouraging her to give him massages. The former British model, actress and musician testified in Maxwell's sex-trafficking trial under the pseudonym Kate, although she has been named in interviews she has given in the past about alleged abuse by Epstein. Because she was not under the legal age of consent when she was involved with Epstein, jurors in U.S. District Court in Manhattan were told she is not one of Maxwell's alleged sex-trafficking victims."

Texas. Katie Benner, et al., of the New York Times: "The Justice Department sued Texas on Monday over the state's plan to redraw its voting districts, saying it would essentially make ballots cast by Black and Latino voters count for less than those of others. In announcing the suit, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland said that the redistricting plan that the state's Republican-led legislature approved in October violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which says that voters cannot be denied equal access to the political process based on their race or ethnicity. The suit was the second in a little over a month to be filed by the Justice Department challenging Texas over voting. The department sued the state in early November over a new voting law that it argued would disenfranchise Texans who do not speak English, people with disabilities, older voters and those who live outside the United States." Politico's story is here.

Way Beyond

Germany. Geir Moulson of the AP: Chancellor Angela Merkel is "leaving office at age 67 to praise from abroad and enduring popularity at home. Her designated successor, Olaf Scholz, is expected to take office Wednesday. Merkel, a former scientist who grew up in communist East Germany, is bowing out about a week short of the record for longevity held by her one-time mentor, Helmut Kohl, who reunited Germany during his 1982-1998 tenure."

Haiti. Amanda Coletta of the Washington Post: "Three more of the 17 missionaries who were kidnapped by a notorious street gang in Haiti in October have been released, Ohio-based Christian Aid Ministries said Monday. The three, who were freed Sunday night, 'are safe and seem to be in good spirits,' the organization said in a statement. Two other members of the group were released last month; 12 remain in captivity."

December 6, 2021

Afternoon Update:

Matthew Goldstein & David Enrich of the New York Times: "Securities regulators have opened investigations into the planned merger of a nascent social media company backed by ... Donald J. Trump with a so-called blank-check company that raised nearly $300 million in an initial public offering in September. The investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority were disclosed Monday in a regulatory filing by Digital World Acquisition Corporation, the special purpose acquisition company that intends to merge with Trump Media Technology Group. Both regulators are looking for information regarding the trading in shares of Digital World. The S.E.C. is also looking into 'documents and communications' between Digital World and Trump Media.... The investigation ... comes after The New York Times reported that the chief executive of Digital World, Patrick Orlando, had talks with representatives of Trump Media as far back as March about doing a deal." The report is part of the Times' business updates for Monday. The Washington Post story is here. MB: I'll bet you're way surprised that a business deal involving Donald Trump could be suspect.

Emma Brown, et al., of the Washington Post: "In the months after ... Donald Trump lost the November election, lawyer Sidney Powell raised large sums from donors inspired by her fight to reverse the outcome of the vote. But by April, questions about where the money was going -- and how much there was -- were helping to sow division between Powell and other leaders of her new nonprofit, Defending the Republic.... Records reviewed by The Washington Post show that Defending the Republic raised more than $14 million, a sum that reveals the reach and resonance of one of the most visible efforts to fundraise using baseless claims about the 2020 election. Previously unreported records also detail acrimony between Powell and her top lieutenants over how the money -- now a focus of inquiries by federal prosecutors and Congress -- was being handled." MB: I'll bet you're way surprised that a fundraising scheme cooked up by Donald Trump's lawyer could be suspect.

Matt Schudel of the Washington Post: "Fred Hiatt, a onetime foreign correspondent who in 2000 became The Washington Post's editorial page editor and greatly expanded the global reach of the newspaper's opinion writers in the era of 9/11, the election of Barack Obama and the destabilizing presidency of Donald Trump, died Dec. 6 at a hospital in New York City. He was 66. He had sudden cardiac arrest on Nov. 24 while visiting his daughter in Brooklyn, said his wife, Margaret 'Pooh' Shapiro, and did not regain consciousness. He had been treated for heart ailments in the past."

~~~~~~~~~~

Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "The Biden administration is expected to announce this week that no US government officials will attend the 2022 Beijing Olympics, implementing a diplomatic boycott of the games, according to several sources. The move would allow the US to send a message on the world stage to China without preventing US athletes from competing."

Paulina Villegas of the Washington Post: "[A family] photo was posted on Twitter by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) on Saturday, along with the caption: 'Merry Christmas! ps. Santa, please bring ammo.... Everyone in the image is holding a long gun.... Both Democratic and Republican elected officials, Michigan residents still reeling from the school shooting last week that left four dead, and parents of gun violence victims all took to Twitter to criticize Massie's Christmas photo. Meanwhile, some conservative politicians, pundits and media personalities jumped to his defense.... 'I'm pro second amendment, but this isn't supporting right to keep and bear arms, this is a gun fetish,' Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.)...." ~~~

     ~~~ Sarah Burris of the Raw Story: "In describing the photo, [conservative commentator Charles] Sykes, [speaking on MSNBC,] called it nothing more than a 'd*ck pic,' photos that men send unsolicited to women of their penis to show off their masculinity. Sykes explained that Massie's need to show off how big his gun is.... [Host Lindsey] Reiser came back after the panel discussion and apologized to 'families' who may have been watching and heard Sykes refer to Massie's guns the way he did." MB: Yeah, "What's a dick pic, Mommy?"

Katharine Seelye of the New York Times: "Bob Dole, the plain-spoken son of the prairie who overcame Dust Bowl deprivation in Kansas and grievous battle wounds in Italy to become the Senate majority leader and the last of the World War II generation to win his party's nomination for president, died on Sunday. He was 98." (Also linked yesterday.) Dole's Washington Post obituary is here. An AP report is here. ~~~

~~~ Christopher Mele of the New York Times: "Leaders from across the political spectrum offered tributes to Bob Dole, the former Senate majority leader and Republican presidential nominee who died on Sunday, hailing him as a war hero and statesman who dedicated his life to public service. 'Bob Dole was a man to be admired by Americans,; President Biden said on Twitter. 'He had an unerring sense of integrity and honor.'" Biden's full statement is here. ~~~

~~~ Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "President Biden has ordered U.S. flags at the White House, federal buildings and grounds, military posts, naval stations, embassies and consulates to be flown at half-staff until Dec. 9 to honor former senator Robert J. Dole...." ~~~

~~~ Maggie Astor of the New York Times repeats some of Bob Dole's acerbic jokes. Some are funny; some not so much.

Betsy Swan & Meredith McGraw of Politico: "A former D.C. National Guard official is accusing two senior Army leaders of lying to Congress and participating in a secret attempt to rewrite the history of the military's response to the Capitol riot. In a 36-page memo, Col. Earl Matthews, who held high-level National Security Council and Pentagon roles during the Trump administration, slams the Pentagon's inspector general for what he calls an error-riddled report that protects a top Army official who argued against sending the National Guard to the Capitol on Jan. 6, delaying the insurrection response for hours. Matthews' memo, sent to the Jan. 6 select committee this month and obtained by Politico, includes detailed recollections of the insurrection response as it calls two Army generals -- Gen. Charles Flynn, who served as deputy chief of staff for operations on Jan. 6, and Lt. Gen. Walter Piatt, the director of Army staff -- 'absolute and unmitigated liars' for their characterization of the events of that day.... Matthews' memo does not insinuate that Gen. Charles Flynn's actions on Jan. 6 were shaped by his brother [Michael], who has been subpoenaed by the select committee, and does not mention Michael Flynn."

News from the Funny Papers. Martin Pengelly of the Guardian: "The double negative, a common grammatical elephant trap, claimed a high-profile victim on Saturday night. Donald Trump. In a statement, the former president said: 'Anybody that doesn't think there wasn't massive election fraud in the 2020 presidential election is either very stupid, or very corrupt!' There was no massive election fraud in the 2020 presidential election, which Trump lost to Joe Biden by 306-232 in the electoral college and by more than 7m ballots in the popular vote. But Trump thinks, or at least says, that there was massive election fraud. Though his own formula would therefore make him 'very stupid, or very corrupt', his claims have had deadly effect, stoking the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January." When a person who claims to have "a very good brain" turns out to be "very stupid, or very corrupt," it's "Sad!" (Also linked yesterday.)

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Monday are here.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Sunday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Props to PD Pepe & Forrest M. for pointing out in yesterday's thread how very smart Dr. Margie Greene (or, as she's known in the home of the unwashed, Majorette Traitor Gangrene) is: ~~~

Every single year more than 600,000 people in the US die from cancer. The country has never once shut down. Not a single school has closed. And every year, over 600,000 people, of all ages and all races will continue to die from cancer. -- Majorie Taylor Greene, in a tweet

** Trump, One-man Super-spreader, Ctd. Ashley Parker & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post follow Donald Trump's seven-day reckless coronavirus trail: "From the day he tested positive until his hospitalization [about a week later], Trump came in contact with more than 500 people, either those in proximity to him or at crowded events, not including rallygoers, according to a Washington Post analysis of the president's interactions during that period. That seven-day window reveals a president and chief of staff who took a reckless, and potentially dangerous, approach to handling the coronavirus, including Trump's own positive test. Trump and [Chief-of-Staff Mark] Meadows hid Trump's positive test not just from the public, but also from his inner circle and from his top public health officials. He took part in a debate with Democratic rival Joe Biden three days later, never revealing the test result to Biden or event organizers. And Trump took no extra precautions, such as mask-wearing or social distancing, to protect those he came in contact with in the days following the positive test. By the end of October, more than two dozen people in Trump's orbit would test positive for the coronavirus."

Louisiana. AP: "A Norwegian Cruise Line ship with at least 10 passengers and crew members infected with COVID-19 docked Sunday in New Orleans, where health officials said they were trying to disembark people without worsening the spread of the coronavirus illness. Local news outlets in New Orleans confirmed the Norwegian Breakaway had arrived in the city. The ship departed New Orleans on Nov. 28. The Louisiana Department of Health said in a late Saturday news release that over the past week, the ship made stops in Belize, Honduras and Mexico." MB: "Breakaway" is an appropriate name for a ship carrying passengers with breakaway cases of the virus.

Beyond the Beltway

Colorado. Santa's Got a Gun. Jacklyn Peiser of the Washington Post: The Colorado Springs sheriff's department tweeted out a photo of a man dressed as Santa Claus who had stopped in the sheriff's office to get a concealed-carry permit. The tweet, according to the sheriff, "was meant to advertise concealed handgun permits, [but] was swiftly met with outrage and condemnation. Three hours later, the department in Colorado Springs apologized.... 'What is your message to children here?' [one person] tweeted. 'Santa has a legally concealed weapon? For protection against elves, reindeer, children who take a peek on Xmas eve? There is enough anxiety among children already.'" MB: I dunno. It's beginning to look a lot like an iconic American image of Christmas, isn't it? ~~~

Guess who came in to receive his Concealed Handgun Permit today? 🎅

Did you know the El Paso County Sheriff's Office has issued 49,750 Concealed Handgun Permits with another 2,560 awaiting to be issued?

For more info please visit our website: https://t.co/AbGrPigOUZ pic.twitter.com/ELmffXcfjA

— EPCSheriff (@EPCSheriff) December 3, 2021

Georgia Gubernatorial Race. Richard Fausset & Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "David Perdue, the former U.S. senator from Georgia and ally of Donald Trump, plans to announce on Monday that he will run in a Republican primary against the state's incumbent governor, Brian Kemp, according to people familiar with Mr. Perdue's plan. Mr. Trump has vowed to orchestrate Mr. Kemp's defeat as payback for the governor's refusal to help overturn the former president's November election loss in the state. The news of Mr. Perdue's pending announcement, first reported on Sunday by Politico, illustrates both the grip the former president still wields over the G.O.P. and his willingness to upend state races entirely because of his personal pique toward Republicans he feels are insufficiently loyal to him.... The Republican nominee will likely face Stacey Abrams, the Democratic superstar whose national fame will allow her to amass a huge campaign war chest."

North Carolina Senate Race. Natalie Allison of Politico: "Donald Trump brokered a deal this weekend to clear the North Carolina GOP Senate field for Rep. Ted Budd, the candidate he endorsed in June but who has failed to emerge so far as the clear frontrunner. During a meeting at Mar-a-Lago on Saturday, Trump pledged to endorse former GOP Rep. Mark Walker, who is currently in third place in the Senate primary, if Walker leaves the race and runs again for the House instead, according to multiple sources present at the gathering."

Tennessee. Hannah Knowles of the Washington Post: "Symbols of the Confederacy filled the room where an all-White Tennessee jury last year decided to convict Tim Gilbert, a Black man. Gold lettering on the door welcomed people to the 'U.D.C. Room' honoring the United Daughters of the Confederacy. Framed on the wall: the flag known as the 'Blood Stained Banner.' A portrait of Confederate leader Jefferson Davis watched over the deliberations. Three state appeals court judges agreed last week that Gilbert, 55, deserves a new trial on counts of aggravated assault and other charges. They said that some evidence in Gilbert's trial was improperly admitted and that officials failed to show that the Confederate memorabilia did not interfere with the verdict. The defendant had said the decorations 'embolden' juries to act with racial prejudice." MB: The only surprise to me is that there are three state judges in Tennessee who found the memorabilia racist. Good for them.

Way Beyond

Jason Horowitz of the New York Times: "Pope Francis returned Sunday to a refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos, the site of one of the definitive moments of his papacy, seeking to elevate the plight of migrants -- what he called a 'shipwreck of civilization' -- to the top level of global concerns, along with the pandemic and climate change.... Francis' remarks came at one of the concluding, and in many ways culminating, events of a five-day trip to Cyprus and Greece meant to renew focus on migration, an issue he has never wavered on, even as the world's attention has faltered. And when the world has paid attention, it has usually been in a way opposite from how he had hoped. Migrant flows have fueled nationalist and populist surges in majority-Catholic countries like Italy and Poland. Hungary has claimed that its antimigrant policies and border towers protect Christian culture. And while Europe's populist season has somewhat abated, a politically amenable hard line against asylum seekers has seeped into the status quo."

Myanmar. New York Times: "A court in Myanmar on Monday sentenced Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the country's ousted civilian leader, to four years on charges of inciting public unrest and breaching Covid-19 protocols. She is facing a series of rulings that could keep her locked up for the rest of her life. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, who was detained in a military coup in February, had been facing a maximum imprisonment of 102 years on a total of 11 charges." This is a live-updates page. An AP story is here.

Russia. Andrew Kramer of the New York Times: "When cybersleuths traced the millions of dollars American companies, hospitals and city governments have paid to online extortionists in ransom money, they made a telling discovery: At least some of it passed through one of the most prestigious business addresses in Moscow. The Biden administration has also zeroed in on the building, Federation Tower East, the tallest skyscraper in the Russian capital. The United States has targeted several companies in the tower as it seeks to penalize Russian ransomware gangs, which encrypt their victims' digital data and then demand payments to unscramble it.... That this high-rise in Moscow's financial district has emerged as an apparent hub of such money laundering has convinced many security experts that the Russian authorities tolerate ransomware operators. The targets are almost exclusively outside Russia, they point out, and in at least one case documented in a U.S. sanctions announcement, the suspect was assisting a Russian espionage agency."