;)
The Commentariat -- August 25, 2021
Marie: For the EIGHTH day, Reality Chex is not accepting comments, through no design or fault of my own. In desperation, I have come up with an interim plan to get around the problem, one that will mean only a little extra work for those of you who have something to say. Here are the easy instructions:
1. In the URL (address line), enter www.realitychex.com/display/Login and return. The login is case-sensitive, so that "L" in "Login" must be capitalized.
2. A log-in page will come up. Type squarespace in the Login box. Type nonsense in the password box. And return. That will get you page to the standard Reality Chex page. (Note: Don't use boldface type; I've put the stuff you have to use in boldface only to make it easier to see.)
3. Type your comment in the Comments box as usual. But at the end of the comment, sign it with your usual Reality Chex handle, because the name of the poster will say "See Above."
Special thanks to all of you who have gone to the trouble to comment under this somewhat cumbersome system.
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Afternoon Update:
We Are Not Amused. Paul Kane & Annie Linskey of the Washington Post: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) blasted two lawmakers who surreptitiously flew into Kabul without approval to examine conditions at the international airport where a massive airlift is underway to evacuate U.S. citizens, allies and vulnerable Afghans. '... there's a real concern about members being in the region,' Pelosi told reporters Wednesday at her weekly briefing. There was an 'opportunity cost' of protecting Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) and Peter Meijer (R-Mich.), she said. 'This is deadly serious. We do not want members to go.' The sentiment was echoed across the Biden administration Wednesday morning. 'The secretary [Lloyd Austin] would have appreciated the opportunity to have had a conversation before the visit took place,' said Department of Defense spokesman John Kirby during his briefing.... 'They certainly took time away from what we had been planning to do that day.'... Some of the harshest criticism came from one of the lawmakers' colleague on the House Armed Services Committee[.] 'Neither one of them should have their ass in Afghanistan right now. The Defense Department has enough to do without having to try to protect two members of Congress. Period,' said Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), the top Republican on the Armed Services panel."
** Sí, Se Puede. Ben Smith of the New York Times: "A group of Afghans who worked for The New York Times, along with their families, touched down safely early Wednesday ... at Benito Juárez International Airport in Mexico City. The arrival of the 24 families was the latest stop in a harrowing escape from Kabul. And Mexico's role in the rescue of journalists from The Times and, if all goes as planned, The Wall Street Journal offers a disorienting glimpse of the state of the American government as two of the country's most powerful news organizations frantically sought help far from Washington. Mexican officials, unlike their counterparts in the United States, were able to cut through the red tape of their immigration system to quickly provide documents that, in turn, allowed the Afghans to fly from Kabul's embattled airport to Doha, Qatar. The documents promised that the Afghans would receive temporary humanitarian protection in Mexico while they explored further options in the United States or elsewhere."
Gives New Meaning to "(In) Loco Parentis." Cameron Jenkins of the Hill: "Dozens of California students and parents are stranded in Afghanistan after taking a summer trip to the country. More than 20 students and 16 parents from the Cajon Valley Union School District in El Cajon, Calif., visited Afghanistan on summer vacation. Now they are among thousands of people who are waiting to leave the country amid the chaotic U.S. withdrawal that has caused political unrest across the nation, according to the Los Angeles Times." MB: This has to be the dumbest school vacation ever organized. Any school employees or board members who approved this trip should resign or be fired. Nitwits.
** John Wagner of the Washington Post: "The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection issued its first sweeping requests Wednesday for records from federal agencies pertaining to the attack on the Capitol and ... Donald Trump's efforts to subvert the election. In letters demanding materials from the National Archives and seven other agencies, Rep. Bennie G. Thompson (D-Miss.), the committee chairman, signaled that an expansive investigation is underway, touching not only on what happened Jan. 6 but also on matters such as 'the former President's knowledge of the election results and what he communicated to the American people about the election.' Thompson gave the agencies a two-week deadline to produce materials and asked Archivist of the United States David Ferriero to use his authority under federal regulations to swiftly address the request for records from the Trump White House.... The requests include information on 'communications within and among the White House and Executive Branch agencies during the leadup to January 6th and on that day,' as well as on issues further removed, such as 'attempts to place politically loyal personnel in senior positions across government after the election.'&" The Huffington Post's story is here.
Tom Jackman of the Washington Post: "Sirhan B. Sirhan, convicted of the 1968 assassination of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, will face a California parole board for the 16th time Friday in a prison outside San Diego. But unlike the first 15 times, no prosecutor will stand to oppose the release of Sirhan, who is now 77. Sirhan was arrested at the scene of Kennedy's shooting in Los Angeles on June 5, 1968, convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death for the assassination of a U.S. senator who appeared headed for the Democratic presidential nomination. The assassination, along with that of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. two months earlier, created a turning point in American history with the sudden elimination of the charismatic leaders of the American civil rights movement and the Democratic Party." MB: I don't think any political assassin should get out of jail. Ever.
New York. Luis Ferré-Sadurní & Jeffery Mays of the New York Times: "Gov. Kathy C. Hochul has chosen Brian A. Benjamin, a Democratic state senator from Harlem, to be her lieutenant governor, the second highest-ranking position in New York State, according to a person familiar with the decision. Ms. Hochul, a Democrat from Western New York who was sworn in as the state's first female governor on Tuesday, is expected to announce the appointment later this week. The selection of Mr. Benjamin, who is Black, underscored Ms. Hochul's attempt to diversify her ticket as she mounts her first campaign for governor next year, choosing a potential running mate who could help broaden her appeal in the voter-heavy New York City region." MB: Or maybe she likes the guy and is comfortable working with him. Not everything is transactional, even in politics.
New York. Marina Villeneuve of the AP: "Delivering another blow to what's left of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo's legacy, New York's new governor acknowledged on her first day in office that the state has had nearly 12,000 more deaths from COVID-19 than Cuomo told the public. 'The public deserves a clear, honest picture of what's happening. And that's whether it's good or bad, they need to know the truth. And that's how we restore confidence,' Gov. Kathy Hochul said on NPR. In its first daily update on the outbreak Tuesday evening, Hochul's office reported that nearly 55,400 people have died of the coronavirus in New York based on death certificate data submitted to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's up from about 43,400 that Cuomo reported to the public as of Monday, his last day in office."
Look, when President Trump was president, you didn't see crisis after crisis. You just didn't see it. I shudder to think about what Covid would have been like under Joe Biden. -- Kayleigh McInany, who must have been on mind-altering drugs while press secretary to the Former Guy, on Fox "News" Tuesday
Leslie Josephs of CNBC: "Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian notified employees Wednesday that they will face $200 monthly increases on their health insurance premiums starting Nov. 1 if they aren't vaccinated against Covid-19, citing steep costs to cover employees who are hospitalized with the virus. Unvaccinated employees will face other restrictions, including indoor masking effective immediately and weekly Covid-19 tests starting Sept. 12, the Atlanta-based airline said in announcing new Covid policies for employees."
South Dakota. He Killed a Man, Fled the Scene, and Is Still Attorney General. Stephen Groves of the AP: "South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg will avoid a trial and take a plea deal on misdemeanor traffic charges in a crash last year in which he hit and killed a man who was walking along a rural highway, a prosecutor said Wednesday. Beadle County State's Attorney Michael Moore, who is one of two prosecutors on the case..., declined to discuss further details of the arrangement. The plea will be entered Thursday, when Ravnsborg's trial was scheduled to begin, he said. Moore said a judge's order that bars state officials from discussing details of the investigation prevented him from disclosing more.... The charges don't affect the Republican's qualification to hold the office of attorney general in South Dakota, but lawmakers from his own party have called for him to step down and pushed for the Legislature to impeach him."
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The Washington Post's live updates of developments in Afghanistan Wednesday are here: "The Taliban has blocked Afghans from Kabul airport -- and is trying to lure key officials back to work .... The Islamist militants have reportedly ordered some mid-level bureaucrats at Afghanistan's finance ministry and central bank to resume work, as the new regime faces a cash squeeze and a looming humanitarian crisis. The hasty departure of trained officials, journalists, human rights advocates and others is leaving the war-torn country lacking in expertise needed to govern, analysts say."
Mark Landler & Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden said Tuesday that the United States intended to withdraw completely from Afghanistan at the end of the month as planned, rebuffing pleas from Britain, France and other NATO allies to keep troops in Kabul and hastening the end of a frantic evacuation that has become a grim coda to two decades of war. Even as Mr. Biden spoke from the White House, officials said the United States had already begun to reduce its military presence at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, sending about 300 of the 5,800 Marines and soldiers home in anticipation of the conclusion of their rescue mission within a week.... But Mr. Biden did not close the door to extending what has become an immense evacuation effort. He said that he had asked the Pentagon and the State Department for contingency plans in case it became necessary to stay longer...."
"The president said that more than 70,000 people had been ferried out of harm's way since Aug. 14, the day before the Taliban swept into power in Kabul; on Tuesday, the Pentagon reported its biggest number of daily evacuations from the Kabul airport so far, saying it had airlifted 21,600 people out of the country over 24 hours."
~~~ Marie: That Biden allowed only two weeks to get out of country 100,000 - 300,000 Americans & Afghans shows that he was never serious about saving these people. You just think about any time you've had a minor problem that only U.S. bureaucracy could solve; did you think the bureaucrats would take care of it in two weeks? Leaving these people behind was always the plan, not a glitch or unforeseen circumstance. ~~~
Kevin Liptak of CNN: "President Joe Biden has decided, in consultation with his national security team, to stick with the August 31 deadline for withdrawing troops from Afghanistan, according to a senior administration official. Biden made the decision mindful of the security risks in remaining the country longer, the official said, and he has asked for contingency plans in case he determines at a later date the US needs to remain in the country for longer." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ From Tuesday's Washington Post live updates: "The Taliban was still allowing foreign nationals to leave, but [Zabihullah] Mujahid said that the group was stopping Afghan nationals from reaching the airport as it was dangerous and their skills were needed to rebuild the country. 'We are asking the American please change your policy and don't encourage Afghans to leave,' he said." A CNBC story is here. MB: Yeah, I wondered how long it would take the Taliban to notice that the best & the brightest were leaving the country. (Also linked yesterday.)
Ken Dilanian, et al., of NBC News: "... it's becoming clear that thousands of the Afghans who helped the U.S. won't be evacuated, a scenario that has engendered deep frustration inside U.S. national security agencies. 'People are furious and disgusted,' said a former U.S. intelligence official.... A defense official said he grew nauseated as he considered how many Afghan allies would be left behind. At the CIA, 'officers feel a real sense of obligation, moral obligation and personal obligation' to the Afghans they supported and trained, said former CIA Director John Brennan.... But the precarious situation for U.S. troops on the ground left [President] Biden with no good options to extend their presence, military officials said."
"Moronic and Selfish." Annie Linskey, et al., of the Washington Post: "Two members of Congress made an unauthorized whirlwind trip to Kabul early Tuesday, leaving less than 24 hours later on a flight used for evacuating U.S. citizens, allies and vulnerable Afghans. The visit by Reps. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) and Peter Meijer (R-Mich.) -- which was not approved as part of the normal process for congressional fact-finding trips -- served as a distraction for military and civilian staffers attempting to carry out frenzied rescue efforts, according to two people familiar with the trip who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk about the matter. It is not clear how the lawmakers, both of whom served in Iraq before being elected to Congress, first entered Afghanistan.... The cloak-and-dagger trip infuriated some officials at the Pentagon and the State Department, where diplomats, military officers and civil servants are working around-the-clock shifts in Washington and at the Kabul airport.... 'They're taking seats away from Americans and at-risk Afghans -- while putting our diplomats and service members at greater risk -- so they can have a moment in front of the cameras,' [said a senior administration official]." ~~~
~~~ Ginger Gibson of NBC News: "Two House members issued a scathing statement Tuesday after they took a secret trip to the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, saying 'Washington should be ashamed' about the effort to evacuate Americans and allies. Reps. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., and Peter Meijer, R-Mich., said they traveled to Kabul, the capital, on Tuesday as part of an effort to persuade President Joe Biden to extend the Aug. 31 deadline to withdraw U.S. troops, which would effectively end the effort to evacuate Americans and others who helped the U.S. over two decades of war. 'After talking with commanders on the ground and seeing the situation here, it is obvious that because we started the evacuation so late, that no matter what we do, we won't get everyone out on time, even by September 11,' the lawmakers ... said in a joint statement. 'Sadly and frustratingly, getting our people out depends on maintaining the current, bizarre relationship with the Taliban.'"
You Can't Play Soccer in a Burqa. Liz Clarke of the Washington Post: "A plane carrying more than 75 Afghan female soccer players, officials and relatives under threat from the Taliban left Kabul on Tuesday, bound for Australia, the first country to offer a haven in response to pleas from a multinational network of athlete advocates and human-rights lawyers. With many more imperiled athletes still in Afghanistan, evacuation efforts are continuing around-the-clock, with outreach to multiple countries including the United States. But the efforts are getting more challenging by the day, according to Haley Carter, a former U.S. Marine Corps officer and former assistant coach of the Afghan women's team. Carter played a key role in orchestrating the initial evacuation, alongside Fifpro, the international soccer players' union, and other advocates working to lobby governments to grant the athletes asylum."
John Hudson of the Washington Post: "CIA Director William J. Burns held a secret meeting Monday in Kabul with the Taliban's de facto leader, Abdul Ghani Baradar, in the highest-level face-to-face encounter between the Taliban and the Biden administration since the militants seized the Afghan capital, according to U.S. officials.... The CIA declined to comment on the Taliban meeting, but the discussions are likely to have involved an impending Aug. 31 deadline for the U.S. military to conclude its airlift of U.S. citizens and Afghan allies." MB: Based on the stories linked above, it would seem the meeting didn't go to well for the U.S. (Also linked yesterday.)
Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "When the Taliban were last in power, Afghan women were generally not allowed to leave their homes [link fixed] except under certain narrowly defined conditions. Those who did risked being beaten, tortured or executed. In the nine days since the Taliban swept back into control, their leaders have insisted that this time will be different.... But early signs have not been promising, and that pattern continued on Tuesday with a statement from a Taliban spokesman that women should stay home, at least for now. Why? Because some of the militants have not yet been trained not to hurt them, he explained. The spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, called it a 'temporary' policy intended to protect women until the Taliban could ensure their safety.... Mr. Mujahid said that women should stay home 'until we have a new procedure,' and that 'their salaries will paid in their homes.'"
Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: "A divided House on Tuesday approved a $3.5 trillion budget blueprint that would pave the way for a vast expansion of social safety net and climate programs, as Democrats overcame sharp internal rifts to advance a critical piece of President Biden's ambitious domestic agenda. Approving the budget was a major step in Democrats" drive to enact their top priorities -- including huge investments in education, child care, health care, paid leave, and tax increases on wealthy people and corporations -- over united Republican opposition. With a single vote on Tuesday, they laid the groundwork to move quickly on legislation that would accomplish those goals, setting a late September deadline for action on a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package.... The vote was 220 to 212 on party lines.... While the budget plan, which passed the Senate this month, does not have the force of law, it allows Democrats to move forward with a fast-track process known as reconciliation. That would enshrine the details of the blueprint in legislation that is shielded from a filibuster, allowing it to pass over the objections of Republicans." The AP's report is here. ~~~
~~~ Toljaso. Heather Caygle, et al., of Politico: "Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a band of Democratic centrists are finalizing a deal that would clear the way for passage of the party's $3.5 trillion budget framework and set a Sept. 27 House vote on infrastructure -- an offer both sides hope will end their weekslong standoff. After several hours of furious negotiating Monday night, Pelosi and her team are close to announcing the compromise, which they hope to put on the floor as soon as Tuesday afternoon, according to several people familiar with discussions. Most, if not all, of the recalcitrant moderates -- led by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J..) -- were expected to accept the deal and back the budget blueprint on the floor later Tuesday, though terms are not yet finalized." (Also linked yesterday. See also yesterday's Commentariat -- including the Comments section -- for context.)
Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "The House voted on Tuesday to restore federal oversight of state election laws under the 1965 Voting Rights Act and expand its reach, as Democrats moved to strengthen a crowning legislative achievement of the civil rights era amid a renewed national fight over access to the ballot box. The legislation, named after Representative John Lewis of Georgia, the civil rights icon who died last year, is a linchpin of the party's strategy to combat voting restrictions in Republican-led states. It would reverse two Supreme Court rulings that gutted the statute, reviving the power of the Justice Department to bar some discriminatory election changes from taking effect and easing the path to challenge others in court. Up against urgent deadlines before next year's midterm elections, Democrats voted along party lines to adopt the bill 219 to 212 in a rare August session, just days after it was introduced. But stiff Republican opposition awaits in the Senate, where a likely filibuster threatens to sink it before it can reach President Biden's desk." NPR's report is here.
Rachel Lerman of the Washington Post: "The Federal Communications Commission has proposed a $5.1 million fine against two right-wing operatives known for perpetuating conspiracy theories, in one of its largest penalties to date. Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman improperly made 1,141 robocalls to cellphones without getting people's consent first, which the law requires, according to the agency. The penalty, which is not final, is the largest proposed by the FCC for this specific violation. The agency has, however, imposed much larger fines for 'spoofing' robocalls, where the caller makes it appear as though a call is coming from a different number. This year it fined Texas telemarketers $225 million. Wohl and Burkman will have a chance to respond, and the penalty could require a commission vote before it is finalized." The NBC News report is here.
Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to block a ruling from a federal judge in Texas requiring the Biden administration to reinstate a Trump-era immigration program that forces asylum seekers arriving at the southwestern border to await approval in Mexico. The court's brief unsigned order said that the administration had appeared to act arbitrarily and capriciously in rescinding the program, citing a decision last year refusing to let the Trump administration rescind the Obama-era program protecting the young immigrants known as dreamers. The court's three more liberal members -- Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan -- said they would have granted a stay of the trial judge's ruling. They did not give reasons. The case will now be heard by an appeals court and may return to the Supreme Court." Politico's story, by Josh Gerstein, is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Here's the rationale, then: We refused to block a humane policy; therefore, in all fairness, we must sustain an inhumane policy. A fascistic interpretation of "law & order." As we've already learned, you can goose-step in a judicial robe. ~~~
~~~ Ian Millhiser of Vox: "One of the most foundational principles of court decisions involving foreign policy is that judges should be extraordinarily reluctant to mess around with foreign affairs. The decision in Texas defies this principle, fundamentally reshaping the balance of power between judges and elected officials in the process.... Technically, this case is still on appeal. The Biden administration requested a stay of [Trump-appointed Judge Matthew] Kacsmaryk's order while its appeal is pending. But the administration is now under an immediate obligation to comply with that order.... Kacsmaryk's opinion, it should be noted, was dead wrong. It effectively claimed that a 1996 law required the federal government to implement the Remain in Mexico policy permanently. That policy didn't even exist until 2019, so the upshot of Kacsmaryk's opinion is that the government violated the law for nearly a quarter-century and no one noticed.... The Supreme Court does not even offer a hint as to why it deemed the Biden administration's original explanation insufficient." Moreover, it doesn't make clear what the Biden administration is supposed to do.
The Pandemic, Ctd.
¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Ellen Nakashima, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden on Tuesday received a classified report from the intelligence community that was inconclusive about the origins of the novel coronavirus, including whether the pathogen jumped from an animal to a human as part of a natural process, or escaped from a lab in central China, according to two U.S. officials familiar with the matter. The intelligence community will seek within days to declassify elements of the report for potential public release, officials said. The assessment is the result of a 90-day sprint after Biden tasked his intelligence agencies in May to produce a report 'that could bring us closer to a definitive conclusion' on the origins of [the] virus.... But despite analyzing a raft of existing intelligence and searching for new clues, intelligence officials fell short of a consensus, said the officials...." CNN's story is here.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)
Florida. Quinnipiac University: "As Florida deals with a surge in COVID-19 cases and a battle intensifies over an executive order issued by Governor Ron DeSantis to ban mask mandates in schools, a majority of people in Florida say 60 - 36 percent that they support requiring students, teachers, and staff to wear masks in schools, according to a Quinnipiac ... University poll of Florida adults released today. There are sharp political divides on this question as Democrats support school mask requirements 98 - 1 percent, independents support them 63 - 32 percent, and Republicans oppose them 72 - 24 percent. Schools should be able to require masks for all students, say 54 percent of Floridians in a separate question, while 44 percent say that parents should decide whether or not their own student will be wearing a mask. On Gov. DeSantis' threat to withhold school leaders' salaries if they require masks for students, 69 percent say it's a bad idea, while 25 percent say it's a good idea. There is agreement across partisan lines, as Democrats say 91 - 8 percent, independents say 70 - 26 percent, and Republicans say 52 - 38 percent that it's a bad idea."
Ohio, etc. Eduardo Medina of the New York Times: "Ohio State University announced on Tuesday that all students, faculty and staff would be required to be vaccinated against Covid-19 during the fall semester, becoming one of the first large state universities to issue a vaccine mandate that extends beyond students.... WBNS 10 reported that hundreds of people went to the Ohio Statehouse on Tuesday to voice support for a Republican-backed bill that would prohibit employers from requiring workers to be vaccinated. Louisiana State University said on Tuesday that all its students would have to either submit proof of vaccination or 'be tested for Covid on a regular basis.' The University of Minnesota also issued a mandate for students to be vaccinated following the F.D.A.'s approval. And in New York, all in-person students in the state and city university systems are required to be vaccinated."
Beyond the Beltway
Georgia Senate Race. Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post: "Former football running back Herschel Walker has filed paperwork to run for a U.S. Senate seat in Georgia, challenging freshman Sen. Raphael G. Warnock (D) with the backing of ... Donald Trump. While a formal announcement is still expected to come, filings with the Federal Election Commission on Tuesday confirm rumblings that Walker, a football hero at the University of Georgia before his National Football League career bookended with stints with the Dallas Cowboys, plans to run after changing his voter registration from Texas to Georgia last week." A Politico story is here. ~~~
~~~ MB: Let me once again remind reporters everywhere that there's pretty much no such thing as a "football hero," and there is especially nothing heroic about playing any professional sport. The only sort of "football hero" I can think of is someone like Colin Kaepernick, who used his status as a player to advance the cause of justice; his heroism was only tangentially related to the game.
New York. Cuomo Commutes Sentences of Five Murderers. Michael Wilson & Jesus Jiménez of the New York Times: "In the waning hours of his final day in office, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo commuted the prison sentence of one of the members of the gang behind the infamous robbery of a Brink's armored car in 1981 that left two police officers and a guard dead, a politically motivated ambush that continues to reverberate 40 years later. David Gilbert is serving a 75-years-to-life sentence for his role in the crime as a member of the Weather Underground, which stole $1.6 million in cash from the armored car outside the Nanuet Mall near Nyack, N.Y. The decision does not mean he will automatically be released from prison. Mr. Gilbert will be granted a parole hearing in the weeks to come, according to Monday's announcement." Cuomo also commuted the sentences of four others who had been convicted for murder. (Also linked yesterday.)
Pennsylvania. Elise Viebeck of the Washington Post: "Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania plan to formally launch hearings as part of an investigation into the 2020 vote in the state, the latest GOP-backed effort to revisit an election that ... Donald Trump has falsely claimed was fraudulent.... The Pennsylvania investigation is the latest sign of how Republican leaders in key battleground states are bowing to ongoing pressure from Trump and his base to investigate baseless allegations that voting irregularities tainted the November election.... Republican lawmakers in Pennsylvania have sought an investigation of the 2020 election since late last year, capitulating to demands from Trump and his supporters to scrutinize President Biden's 80,555-vote win in the state -- despite a lack of evidence of voter fraud."
Texas. Taxpayer-funded Report by State AG Ken Paxton Finds AG Paxton Totally Innocent! James Barragan of the Texas Tribune: "Nearly 11 months after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's former top aides accused him of accepting bribes, Paxton's office on Tuesday published a 374-page internal report that concludes he's innocent of the allegations. Last October, seven former employees told authorities that they believed Paxton was using his power as attorney general to aid Nate Paul, a campaign donor and Austin real estate developer, who whistleblowers have said helped Paxton remodel his home and gave a job to a woman with whom Paxton allegedly had an affair. All of those employees were either fired or left the office under pressure after their complaint. Four of the employees filed a whistleblower lawsuit saying Paxton used his position to help Paul's business interests, investigate his foes and help settle a lawsuit. But in Tuesday's report, Paxton's office said there was no basis for a criminal complaint against their boss, a second-term Republican..... The FBI is reportedly investigating the claims by Paxton's former employees." Thanks to Akhilleus for the link. Do see his commentary below, the tone of which seems, like, almost sarcastic.
News Lede
New York Times: "Charlie Watts, whose strong but unflashy drumming powered the Rolling Stones for over 50 years, died on Tuesday in London. He was 80."
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