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The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

Washington Post: “An early Titian masterpiece — once looted by Napolean’s troops and a part of royal collections for centuries — caused a stir when it was stolen from the home of a British marquess in 1995. Seven years later, it was found inside an unassuming white and blue plastic bag at a bus stop in southwest London by an art detective, and returned. This week, the oil painting 'The Rest on the Flight into Egypt' sold for more than $22 million at Christie’s. It was a record for the Renaissance artist, whom museums describe as the greatest painter of 16th-century Venice. Ahead of the sale in April, the auction house billed it as 'the most important work by Titian to come to the auction market in more than a generation.'”

Washington Post: The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., which houses the world's largest collection of Shakespeare material, has undergone a major renovation. "The change to the building is pervasive, both subtle and transformational."

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Publisher & Editor: Marie Burns


Friday
Jun112021

The Commentariat -- June 12, 2021

Afternoon Update:

G7 Leaders Glad to Be Rid of Trump. Kevin Liptak, et al., of CNN: "Officials attending this week's Group of 7 summit on the Cornish coast in England are emerging shell-shocked after four years dealing with a US president who often appeared intent on injecting animosity into their gatherings. In front of cameras and behind-the-scenes this weekend, officials said the abrasive interjections and lengthy tangents Trump brought to world summits were absent, replaced by a more businesslike and predictable agenda, including on areas of serious disagreement like China. Asked alongside Biden on Saturday whether the United States was back, French President Emmanuel Macron answered yes. 'Definitely, he said.... 'Are you supposed to be looking as if you're enjoying yourself?' quipped Britain's Queen Elizabeth, who later was pictured in friendly conversation with [President] Biden and his wife outside a futuristic biosphere...."

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

Here's a fun Washington Post slideshow of Queen Elizabeth's meetings U.S. presidents. Photos, some videos.

~~~~~~~~~~

The New York Times is liveblogging Saturday's G7 developments. The Guardian's liveblog is here.

Jonathan Lemire, et al., of the AP: "The United States plans to push democratic allies on Saturday to publicly call out China for forced labor practices as the Group of Seven leaders gather at a summit where they will also unveil an infrastructure plan meant to compete with Beijing's efforts in the developing world. The provocative proposal is part of President Joe Biden's escalating campaign to get fellow democratic leaders to present a more unified front to compete economically with China in the century ahead...."

Nick Niedzwiadek of Politico: "Attorney General Merrick Garland affirmed Friday the expansion of voting rights as a 'central pillar' to American democracy.... He said that within 30 days the department would double the Civil Rights Division's voting rights enforcement staff and committed to working with other agencies to combat voting-related disinformation.... Garland urged Congress to enact [the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the For the People Act], an unlikely proposition, but added 'we will not wait for that legislation to act.'" (Also linked yesterday.) The Washington Post story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: IMO, Merrick Garland just doesn't get it. However much he does or doesn't know about the corrupt, anti-American Trump presidency, he has decided to treat it as a presidency. He probably asks himself before making a decision on a Trump-era DOJ matter, "Is this what I would do with an Obama DOJ case?" Wrong question. Garland needs to do pretty much what his boss did when he became president. Go over every damned thing his predecessor did & get rid of 95 percent of it. And that includes staff hires. And it remains to be seen how aggressively his DOJ will try to attack state voter suppression laws. ~~~

     ~~~ Christina Cassidy & Mark Balsamo of the AP: "The Justice Department will scrutinize a wave of new laws in Republican-controlled states that tighten voting rules, Attorney General Merrick Garland said Friday, vowing to take action on any violations of federal law.... 'There are many things open to debate in America, but the right of all eligible citizens to vote is not one of them,' Garland said in his first direct response to the restrictive voting laws being passed in more than a dozen states where Republicans control the legislature and governor's office."

     ~~~ Nicholas Riccardi of the AP explains the differences between the two voting rights bills. (Also linked yesterday.)

Brian Fung & Evan Perez of CNN: "The Department of Justice sent a broad request in February 2018 to Apple as part of its investigation that collected data on members of Congress, staffers and their families. The department demanded metadata on 73 phone numbers and 36 email addresses from Apple, the company said Friday evening. Apple received the subpoena from the Justice Department on Feb. 6, 2018, but it contained no information about who the investigation was targeting or why, the company said. Apple also said determining who the targeted accounts belonged to would have required extensive research." ~~~

~~~ Felicia Sonmez, et al., of the Washington Post: "Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz announced Friday that his office is launching a probe following reports that the department had sought the records of journalists and prominent critics of ... Donald Trump on the House Intelligence Committee. In a statement, Horowitz said the review 'will examine the Department's compliance with applicable DOJ policies and procedures, and whether any such uses, or the investigations, were based upon improper considerations.'... Earlier Friday, Senate Democratic leaders on Friday demanded that former attorneys general in the Trump administration testify over secret subpoenas of [California Democrats Adam] Schiff and [Eric] Swalwell." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mary Jalonick & Michael Balsamo have the AP's story: "Senate Democratic leaders immediately demanded that former Attorneys General Bill Barr and Jeff Sessions, who both oversaw Trump's leak probes, testify about the secret subpoenas. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin said in a statement that 'this appalling politicization of the Department of Justice by Donald Trump and his sycophants' must be investigated. They said that Barr and Sessions are subject to a subpoena if they refuse." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Nadler Sends a Warning to Garland. Guardian (at 18:46 in this liveblog): "Jerry Nadler, the chair of the House judiciary committee..., appears unwilling to wait for the inspector general's investigation, saying that there is 'a very short window' for the justice department to hold those responsible accountable before his committee will 'have no choice but to step in and do the work ourselves'." In a statement, Nadler said, in part, "The Department has a very short window to make a clean break from the Trump era on this matter. We expect the Department to provide a full accounting of these cases, and we expect the Attorney General to hold the relevant personnel accountable for their conduct. If the Department does not make substantial progress towards these two goals, then we on the Judiciary Committee will have no choice but to step in and do the work ourselves." ~~~

~~~ Daniel Lippman, et al., of Politico: "Former Attorney General William Barr on Friday distanced himself from reports that the Trump Justice Department seized communications records belonging to two prominent Democratic lawmakers who were spearheading investigations into ... Donald Trump. In a phone interview, Barr said he didn't recall getting briefed on the moves.... Barr said that while he was attorney general, he was 'not aware of any congressman's records being sought in a leak case.'... Trump 'was not aware of who we were looking at in any of the cases,' Barr said. 'I never discussed the leak cases with Trump. He didn't really ask me any of the specifics.'... Barr said he installed Osmar Benvenuto in DOJ's National Security Division in February 2020 to try to revive the leak investigations after Craig Carpenito, the U.S. attorney for New Jersey, recommended him to Barr...."

     ~~~ Marie: The reporting is confusing & seemingly contradictory: Barr says on the one hand, he has no recollection of any congressman's records being sought in connection with leaks, but on the other hand, he hired a top guy to look into the leaks. Is he saying he authorized continuation of investigations of leaks but didn't know the targets of the leaks were members of Congress? As for Barr's attempts to "distance himself" from Trump's demands, that's pretty ludicrous. As Betsy Swan -- one of the reporters on the Politico story -- pointed out on Chris Hayes' MSNBC show Friday, there's plenty in the public record indicating that Trump expected Barr to come down on Adam Schiff. For instance, after repeatedly accusing Schiff of being a "liar and a leaker," in February 2020 (when Barr was AG), Trump told reporters, "They ought to investigate Adam Schiff for leaking that intelligence," where "that intelligence" referred to Russia's interference in the 2016 election. In another tweet the next day, Trump wrote about, "Just another Shifty Schiff leak. Isn't there a law about this stuff?" This was precisely at the time Barr hired Benvenuto (and others) to re-up leak investigations and about a week after Barr complained in an interview that Trump's tweets "make it impossible for me to do my job." Trump's response to Barr's complaint was a series of tweets in which he asserted that he had a "legal right" to demand that Barr intervene in criminal cases. (And it was at the same time Barr recommended a lighter sentence for Roger Stone than his own prosecutors had suggested and ordered a "review" of the criminal case of Michael Flynn, who previously had pleaded guilty to a felony.) ~~~

     ~~~ Anyhow, I have obtained genuine Zoom video of Barr's phone interview with a Politico reporter: ~~~

~~~ Asawin Suebsaeng & Adam Rawnsley of the Daily Beast: "Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions is telling associates he had no idea his Justice Department seized phone records of two top Democratic congressional critics of... Donald Trump.... Under Sessions, the Justice Department launched dozens of probes into leaks of classified information. Leak investigations skyrocketed 800 percent over the Obama administration -- a statistic he proudly touted in congressional testimony. One of those investigations concerned the disclosure of key details of the probe into Russian election meddling. The targeting of members of Congress' communications -- as well as the seizure of records from reporters at The New York Times, Washington Post, and CNN -- are all believed to be part of that Russia-related leak hunt." The Raw Story has a summary report here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This story, oddly enough, seems to give Barr some plausible deniability, too. DOJ accessed metadata from more than 100 phone numbers and emails associated with just Schiff & Swalwell. If they accessed approximately the same number of accounts allied with the "dozens" of other marks, that would mean they accessed hundred or thousands of accounts. So if Barr's sleuths wanted to de-emphasize their sweeping up the congressmen's metadata, they could have handed him a thick report listing thousands of names, and Barr could have missed a few "Schiffs" and "Swalwells" on that list. As for Sessions, if he really didn't know, then it seems likely Rod Rosenstein, who ran the Russia investigation, is the culprit. Both Sessions & Barr could avoid accountability, and Rosenstein could take the rap.

Coral Davenport of the New York Times: "The Biden administration plans to restore environmental protections to Tongass National Forest in Alaska, one of the world's largest intact temperate rain forests, that had been stripped away by ... Donald J. Trump. The administration intends to 'repeal or replace' a Trump-era rule which opened about nine million acres, or more than half of the forest, to logging and road construction, according to a White House document published on Friday. The Tongass, in southeastern Alaska, is home to more than 400 species of wildlife, fish and shellfish, including nesting bald eagles, moose and the world's highest concentration of black bears. Among its snowy peaks, fijords and rushing rivers are stands of red and yellow cedar and Western hemlock as well as Sitka spruce trees at least 800 years old."

Biden Hides Trump Hotel Emoluments. Jonathan O'Connell & David Fahrenthold of the Washington Post: "For Donald Trump's entire presidency, top congressional Democrats used every tool at their disposal to investigate the Washington hotel he leased from the federal government, issuing subpoenas, holding hearings and filing a lawsuit to try to bring the inner workings of Trump's luxury property to light.... [President] Biden's team has steadfastly defended some of the protections the Trump administration put in place to conceal Trump's financial interests. The Justice Department under Biden is appealing a lower court judgment in favor of the congressional Democrats in their suit, another move by the agency to defend Trump-era legal positions. Biden's General Services Administration, which holds the lease for the Trump International hotel, has provided only a portion of the documents Congress is seeking and asked that none of them be disclosed publicly." (Also linked yesterday.)

Cecilia Kang of the New York Times: "House lawmakers on Friday introduced sweeping antitrust legislation aimed at restraining the power of Big Tech and staving off corporate consolidation. If passed, the bills would be the most ambitious update to monopoly laws in decades. The bills -- five in total -- take direct aim at Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google and their grip on online commerce, information and entertainment. The proposals would make it easier to break up businesses that used their dominance in one area to get a stronghold in another, would create new hurdles for acquisitions of nascent rivals and would empower regulators with more funds to police companies.... The introduction of the bills, which have some bipartisan support, is the most aggressive challenge yet from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley's tech giants...."

Felicia Sonmez & Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "YouTube has suspended Sen. Ron Johnson from uploading videos for one week after the Wisconsin Republican's account shared a clip in which he touted the supposed benefits of hydroxychloroquine and another drug in fighting covid-19. According to Fox News Channel, a YouTube spokesperson said the video was in violation of Google's policy against medical misinformation.... Johnson's hydroxychloroquine and ivermectin claims are just the latest instance of the senator dispensing false or questionable information about covid-19 and downplaying the seriousness of the pandemic." The Hill's story is here.

Sarah Burnett of the AP: "A Chicago police officer charged with breaching the U.S. Capitol and entering a senator's office during the Jan. 6 insurrection texted photos of himself inside the building while wearing a police department sweatshirt after telling someone he was going to Washington 'to save the nation.' Karol Chwiesiuk, 29, was arrested Friday and faces five misdemeanor counts, including entering a restricted building, disrupting government business and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds with the intent to impede a congressional proceeding. Prosecutors allege in a criminal complaint that Chwiesiuk was among a mob of people who broke into and damaged the office of Sen. Jeff Merkley, an Oregon Democrat. They also say that days before he traveled to Washington to attend a rally supporting ... Donald Trump, Chwiesiuk said in a text to a friend that he was ... was 'Busy planning how to (expletive) up commies.' He later sent photos of himself inside the Capitol, according to prosecutors."

** Ryan Cooper of the Week: "The inspector general (IG) of the U.S. Park Police recently published a report [asserting that] ... 'evidence did not support a finding that the USPP cleared [Lafayette P]ark on June 1, 2020, so that then President Trump could enter the park.'... IG Mark Lee Greenblatt ... instead found that the park was cleared so that some fencing could be put up. Multiple news outlets repeated the IG line.... Don't be led astray by the headlines or the conservative propaganda here. This report does not actually exonerate Trump, and even the most charitable possible conception of events is hideously damning of the former president.... The report does not firmly conclude that Trump's visit had nothing to do with the park clearance, and more importantly, does not remotely count as a thorough investigation into that question.... One of the worst takes on the report (as usual these days) comes from Glenn Greenwald.... In short, whether [or not] the park clearance was initially planned as a cynical political stunt, Trump instantly turned it into one." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: My first thought when I ready theNYT report on the report was that the IG report didn't make a lot of sense because officers began violently clearing the park some 45 minutes before the scheduled evening curfew began. Why would they do that if not to accommodate Trump? Thursday night, Chris Hayes of MSNBC & Carol Leonnig of the Washington Post, without mentioning the timing of the attack on the protesters raised some other questions about the report's conclusions, emphasizing what Cooper also highlights: the IG didn't do much investigating. (Sorry, can't find video of the Hayes/Leonnig discussion.) Also too, Trump appointed Greenblatt to the IG position.

Volker Played Dumb. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "When ... Donald Trump faced his first impeachment in 2019, Republicans focused on a firsthand witness who they claimed helped exonerate Trump: Kurt Volker. But new evidence calls into question a key portion of Volker's testimony, in which he repeatedly downplayed personal knowledge that the investigations the Trump team sought in Ukraine involved now-President Biden.... [Volker] said hadn't been aware of a quid pro quo in which Ukraine would be given something for launching politically convenient investigations for Trump.... CNN this week published a recording of a call between Volker, Trump lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani and a top Ukrainina official, Andriy Yermak, from July 2019.... The recording obtained by CNN shows Giuliani indeed making those [quid pro quo] connections in [the] call.... [Giuliani mentioned Ukraine's investigating Biden more than once during the call.]" MB: Let's face it: anyone associated with Donald Trump is a crook, a liar or both.

Katie Robertson of the New York Times: "Pulitzer Prizes were awarded on Friday to news organizations that provided in-depth coverage of the dramatic turns of 2020, a year dominated by a pandemic that left millions dead and a national conversation on race after the murder of George Floyd. The prize for public service, considered the most prestigious of the Pulitzers, went to The New York Times for its coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, an award shared by many departments at the newspaper. The Pulitzer board also recognized journalism that examined law enforcement practices during a year of worldwide street protests inspired, in part, by the murder of Mr. Floyd, a Black man, by a police officer in Minneapolis. The national reporting award went to The Marshall Project, AL.com, IndyStar and the Invisible Institute for a collaborative investigation on police dogs used as weapons, often against innocent citizens, reporting that led to government reforms.... The board also announced that Darnella Frazier, the teenager who filmed the murder of Mr. Floyd, would receive a special citation." CNN's report is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Poynter has the list of winners here. ~~~

~~~ Elahe Izadi of the Washington Post: "The Pulitzer Prize board awarded a special citation on Friday to Darnella Frazier, the teenager whose cellphone footage of George Floyd's murder last summer led to massive protests and sparked a racial reckoning in the country. Frazier was 17 at the time she filmed Floyd's death under the knee of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, and she testified at Chauvin's trial, where he would eventually be convicted. Her video contradicted the initial police account of Floyd's death. In Friday's announcement, the board said Frazier received the citation for 'courageously reporting the murder of George Floyd, a video that spurred protests against police brutality around the world, highlighting the crucial role of citizens in journalists' quest for truth and justice.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Frazier herself has written, "A lot of people call me a hero even though I don't see myself as one. I was just in the right place at the right time." But that isn't quite right. Frazier showed that even as a child, she had the journalistic instincts to record a bad act, at her peril, and publish it on Facebook. The Pulitzer committee would have been egregiously remiss had it not recognized her. ~~~

~~~ Amaris Costillo of Poynter: Freelance writer Mitchell S. "Jackson, a columnist for Esquire and an assistant professor at the University of Chicago, was named a co-winner of a Pulitzer Prize in Feature Writing for the essay ['Twelve Minutes and a Life,' published in Runner's World], which is a striking portrait of ... [(Ahmaud) Arbery -- a Black man -- [who] was pursued by armed white men and fatally shot while jogging in Glynn County, Georgia.... The account, published on June 18, 2020, is filled with radiant prose and draws from reporting and a bit of Jackson's own personal experience: He described himself as one of the 'rarest of Americans,' a Black Oregonian, and also wrote about the whiteness of the American pastime that is recreational running."

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments are here: "Federal regulators have told Johnson & Johnson that about 60 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine produced at a troubled Baltimore factory cannot be used because of possible contamination, according to people familiar with the situation. The Food and Drug Administration plans to allow about 10 million doses to be distributed in the United States or sent to other countries, but with a warning that regulators cannot guarantee that Emergent BioSolutions, the company that operates the plant, followed good manufacturing practices. The agency has not yet decided whether Emergent can reopen the factory, which has been closed for two months because of regulatory concerns, the people said." (Also linked yesterday.)

Jordan Williams of the Hill: "An advisory panel of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will hold an emergency meeting on June 18 to discuss rare reports of heart inflammation after doses of COVID-19 vaccine. The meeting comes as the CDC looks into few cases of myocarditis, inflammation of the heart muscles, in young people and adolescents who received the shot. During a meeting of the Food and Drug Administration's advisory committee on vaccines on Thursday, the CDC revealed that it had identified 475 cases of myocarditis and pericarditis in people younger than 30 years old."

Sarah Kliff of the New York Times: "The Biden administration is reminding doctors, hospitals, pharmacies and insurers that it is illegal to bill patients for coronavirus vaccines, a letter obtained by The Times shows. The new warning responds to concerns among unvaccinated Americans that they could receive a bill with their shot. A recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that about a third of unvaccinated adults were unsure whether insurance covered the new vaccine." (Also linked yesterday.)

Beyond the Beltway

Missouri. AP: "Republican Missouri Gov. Mike Parson says addressing the clemency petition for a man who's been behind bars for a triple murder for more than four decades is not a 'priority,' even though prosecutors say he didn't commit the crime. Parson noted that Kevin Strickland, 62, was tried 'by a jury of his peers' and found guilty. But he added that he knew there was 'a lot more information out there.' Parson has a backlog of about 3,000 clemency requests, the Kansas City Star reported. He issued almost no pardons before his reelection in 2020 but has since begun issuing a group of pardons monthly.... Several state lawmakers from both sides of the aisle signed a letter seeking a pardon for Strickland, who has maintained his innocence since he was convicted in the April 1978 deaths of three people in Kansas City." MB: A photo of Strickland accompanying the article suggests why Parson is too busy to pardon the victim of such a striking miscarriage of justice: Strickland appears to be Black. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Of course, Parson is way busy locking down other -- probably unconstitutional -- matters. ~~~

~~~ Cameron Jenkins of the Hill: "Missouri Gov. Mike Parson (R) on Thursday announced he will sign legislation to ban state police from enforcing federal gun laws. Under the 'Second Amendment Preservation Act,' federal gun laws that regulate registration for weapons and the tracking and possession of weapons by domestic violence offenders will no longer be enforced, according to the Kansas City Star. Gun control advocates and Democrats have slammed the bill as a 'domestic violence loophole' and dangerous, noting that Missouri faces high rates of gun violence and had the nation's third-highest per-capita rate of gun deaths in 2020.... With the passage of the Second Amendment Preservation Act, the federal law prohibiting gun possession for those convicted of domestic violence would reportedly be deemed 'invalid' in Missouri."

News Ledes

Before Rosa, There Was Martha. New York Times: Martha "White died at 99 on Saturday at a nursing home in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.... White, a Black housekeeper in Baton Rouge, La., was bone-weary coming home from work one day in 1953. As she climbed aboard a city bus, she saw only one seat left, in the 'whites only' section at the front. She took it. 'I was tired,' she told Southern Digest in 2005. 'I looked at the seat, and I sat down.' That simple act was a startling move in the Jim Crow South. She was thrown off the bus, prompting Black residents of the city, Louisiana's capital, to mount a bus boycott. And that protest -- which was settled by a partial desegregation of the city's buses -- would serve as the template for the bigger and more famous bus boycott in Montgomery, Ala., two and a half years later."

Another Weekend In the NRA-USA. KXAN Austin, Texas: "At least 13 people were injured in a shooting in downtown Austin early Saturday morning.... There are many bars in the area.... Two of these patients are in critical condition, according to [Police Chief Joseph] Chacon.... Chacon said he could not say there's not a danger to the public since the suspect's not in custody. However, he said the shooting appears to be isolated just to this area in downtown."

Comments Off
Thursday
Jun102021

The Commentariat -- June 11, 2021

Afternoon Update:

Nick Niedzwiadek of Politico: "Attorney General Merrick Garland affirmed Friday the expansion of voting rights as a 'central pillar' to American democracy.... He said that within 30 days the department would double the Civil Rights Division's voting rights enforcement staff and committed to working with other agencies to combat voting-related disinformation.... Garland urged Congress to enact [the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the For the People Act], an unlikely proposition, but added 'we will not wait for that legislation to act.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Nicholas Riccardi of the AP explains the differences between the two bills.

Felicia Sonmez, et al., of the Washington Post: "Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz announced Friday that his office is launching a probe following reports that the department had sought the records of journalists and prominent critics of ... Donald Trump on the House Intelligence Committee. In a statement, Horowitz said the review 'will examine the Department's compliance with applicable DOJ policies and procedures, and whether any such uses, or the investigations, were based upon improper considerations.'... Earlier Friday, Senate Democratic leaders on Friday demanded that former attorneys general in the Trump administration testify over secret subpoenas of [California Democrats Adam] Schiff and [Eric] Swalwell." ~~~

     ~~~ Mary Jalonick & Michael Balsamo have the AP's story: "Senate Democratic leaders immediately demanded that former Attorneys General Bill Barr and Jeff Sessions, who both oversaw Trump's leak probes, testify about the secret subpoenas. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin said in a statement that 'this appalling politicization of the Department of Justice by Donald Trump and his sycophants' must be investigated. They said that Barr and Sessions are subject to a subpoena if they refuse."

Biden Hides Trump Hotel Shenanigans. Jonathan O'Connell & David Fahrenthold of the Washington Post: "For Donald Trump's entire presidency, top congressional Democrats used every tool at their disposal to investigate the Washington hotel he leased from the federal government, issuing subpoenas, holding hearings and filing a lawsuit to try to bring the inner workings of Trump's luxury property to light.... [President] Biden's team has steadfastly defended some of the protections the Trump administration put in place to conceal Trump's financial interests. The Justice Department under Biden is appealing a lower court judgment in favor of the congressional Democrats in their suit, another move by the agency to defend Trump-era legal positions. Biden's General Services Administration, which holds the lease for the Trump International hotel, has provided only a portion of the documents Congress is seeking and asked that none of them be disclosed publicly."

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments are here: "Federal regulators have told Johnson & Johnson that about 60 million doses of its coronavirus vaccine produced at a troubled Baltimore factory cannot be used because of possible contamination, according to people familiar with the situation. The Food and Drug Administration plans to allow about 10 million doses to be distributed in the United States or sent to other countries, but with a warning that regulators cannot guarantee that Emergent BioSolutions, the company that operates the plant, followed good manufacturing practices. The agency has not yet decided whether Emergent can reopen the factory, which has been closed for two months because of regulatory concerns, the people said."

Sarah Kliff of the New York Times: "The Biden administration is reminding doctors, hospitals, pharmacies and insurers that it is illegal to bill patients for coronavirus vaccines, a letter obtained by The Times shows. The new warning responds to concerns among unvaccinated Americans that they could receive a bill with their shot. A recent Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that about a third of unvaccinated adults were unsure whether insurance covered the new vaccine."

Katie Robertson of the New York Times: "Pulitzer Prizes were awarded on Friday to news organizations that provided in-depth coverage of the dramatic turns of 2020, a year dominated by a pandemic that left millions dead and a national conversation on race after the murder of George Floyd. The prize for public service, considered the most prestigious of the Pulitzers, went to The New York Times for its coverage of the coronavirus pandemic, an award shared by many departments at the newspaper. The Pulitzer board also recognized journalism that examined law enforcement practices during a year of worldwide street protests inspired, in part, by the murder of Mr. Floyd, a Black man, by a police officer in Minneapolis. The national reporting award went to The Marshall Project, AL.com, IndyStar and the Invisible Institute for a collaborative investigation on police dogs used as weapons, often against innocent citizens, reporting that led to government reforms.... The board also announced that Darnella Frazier, the teenager who filmed the murder of Mr. Floyd, would receive a special citation." CNN's report is here.

~~~~~~~~~~

The New York Times is live-updating Friday's G7 meeting developments.

David Sanger & Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden and Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain signed a new version of the 80-year old 'Atlantic Charter' on Thursday, using their first meeting to redefine the Western alliance and accentuate what they said was a growing divide between battered democracies and their autocratic rivals, led by Russia and China. The two leaders unveiled the new charter as they sought to focus the world's attention on emerging threats from cyber attacks, the Covid-19 pandemic that has upended the global economy, and climate change, using language about reinforcing NATO and international institutions that Mr. Biden hoped would make clear< that the Trump era of America First was over." A BBC News story is here.

The New York Times' live updates of President Biden's European trip Thursday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Patrick Wintour of the Guardian: "Senior US embassy diplomats in London, backed by the US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, have directly warned the UK's Brexit negotiator, Lord Frost, that he will inflame tensions in Northern Ireland if he does not compromise over border checks. A meeting between the US charge d'affaires Yael Lampert, currently America's most senior diplomat in London, and Frost led to an urging by the US for Britain to come to a negotiated settlement with the EU, according to an internal UK government note.... Sullivan told a briefing on Air Force One before Joe Biden landed in the UK on Wednesday evening: 'Any steps that imperil or undermine the Good Friday agreement will not be welcomed by the US.'... The US tone suggests the Biden administration is taking close interest in details of the talks, given it has a formal role to uphold the Good Friday deal." (Also linked yesterday.)

Lisa Rein & Eric Yoder of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration on Thursday told federal agencies that more employees can return to their offices as the threat of the coronavirus pandemic ebbs, but it also laid out a permanent work-from-home expansion that will drastically alter the federal government's workplace culture.... The 20-page memo to federal agencies ... maintains what started as an experiment in March 2020 to contend with the public health crisis -- for the immediate future and potentially the long term. As they make plans for a post-pandemic workplace, agencies across the government will be allowed to offer employees flexible schedules and remote work, depending on their needs.... The new policy comes a day after the administration told agencies they should not require their employees to be vaccinated against the coronavirus to return to the office or require them to disclose whether they are vaccinated." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'm all for this change, but in "government towns," this is a serious, probably fatal, blow to downtown business districts that rely on lunchtime walk-in trade -- especially restaurants of course, but also gift shops, bookstores, etc., where workers with nearly an hour to kill would drop in to browse & buy.

Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: "A bipartisan group of senators announced on Thursday that they had reached an agreement on a framework to invest in the nation's aging public works system.... By early evening, five Democrats and five Republicans issued a joint statement announcing an agreement that would be fully paid for, albeit without any specific details about funding.... The preliminary agreement faces steep headwinds on Capitol Hill...." MB: Don't get your hopes up. Besides the hitches Cochrane mentions, Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said the proposal was a non-starter if, as Mitt Romney -- one of the gang of ten -- said, the proposal was not centered on (or didn't even include) climate-change considerations.

Scott Wong of the Hill: "With a rare joint statement, Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her entire leadership team on Thursday sought to quell a growing controversy over Rep. Ilhan Omar's (D-Minn.) remarks equating war crimes committed by the U.S. and Israel to those by the Taliban and Hamas terrorist groups. The joint statement by Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.), Assistant Speaker Katherine Clark (D-Mass.), Democratic Caucus Chairman Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Vice Caucus Chairman Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) came after Omar responded to a request from a dozen Jewish House Democrats to 'clarify' what she meant in her original remarks.... '... drawing false equivalencies between democracies like the U.S. and Israel and groups that engage in terrorism like Hamas and the Taliban foments prejudice and undermines progress toward a future of peace and security for all,' the statement adds. In her clarification, Omar, a progressive Minnesota Democrat and one of the first Muslim women elected to Congress, explained that her original comments had focused on ongoing International Criminal Court probes -- 'not a moral comparison between Hamas and the Taliban and the U.S. and Israel.'"

Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "Democrats and Republicans lobbed withering questions at the FBI as Director Christopher A. Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee Thursday, though their concerns diverged significantly along partisan lines. Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) blasted Wray for the bureau's failure to detect in advance and respond to the mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, while ranking Republican Jim Jordan (Ohio) accused the bureau of intruding on Americans' civil liberties in an eclectic mix of circumstances." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: In his presumably-prepared opening statement, Jim Jordan claimed that when the FBI aided Rudy Giuliani's home, officers "kicked in his door." This was news to me, so I looked it up. According to Rudy himself, agents wakened him at 6 am with a "bang, bang, bang" on his door. So that was a lie, Jim. "Wray repeatedly declined to answer questions about ... the search involving Giuliani." Oh, and Matt Gaetz, whom the FBI is investigating, showed up for the committee hearing & asked questions about the origins of the coronavirus. ~~~

~~~ Alan Feuer & Matthew Rosenberg of the New York Times: "Federal prosecutors filed a wide-ranging conspiracy indictment on Thursday accusing six California men said to be connected to a radical gun rights movement called the Three Percenters with plotting to assault the Capitol on Jan. 6, in the first charges lodged against anyone involved with planning any of the political events held the week of the attack. The 20-page indictment was also the first to be brought against a group of alleged Three Percenters, a loosely organized movement that takes its name from the supposed 3 percent of the U.S. colonial population that fought against the British. The new charges, filed in Federal District Court in Washington, came on the same day that Christopher A. Wray, the F.B.I. director, testified in front of a House committee that prosecutors were pursuing additional conspiracy charges against some of the rioters who stormed the Capitol....

"The two top defendants in the indictment -- Alan Hostetter, 56, a former police chief turned yoga instructor; and Russell Taylor, 40, a wealthy graphic designer with a taste for red Corvettes -- were already under scrutiny by the government after the F.B.I.... Mr. Hostetter and Mr. Taylor were leaders of a group called the American Phoenix Project, which was founded to fight the 'fear-based tyranny' of coronavirus-related restrictions. The group later embraced ... Donald J. Trump's lies about a stolen election, and helped organize a well-attended rally outside the Supreme Court on Jan. 5, where the speakers included Roger J. Stone Jr...." Politico's story is here.

Adam Klasfeld of Law & Crime: "Finding a Proud Boys member's complaints of inadequate medical care behind bars 'without merit,' a federal judge [Royce Lambeth] issued a scathing ruling on Wednesday explaining why he kept him in jail -- and highlighting his vulgar Facebook tirades against the 'pu**y ass bitch' he believed 'ratted' him out following an FBI visit. 'Believe I know who ratted,' Christopher Worrell, 49, told an unidentified user on Jan. 18, the day the FBI interviewed him, according to the ruling. Then, prosecutors quote him indiscreetly posting publicly on his Facebook page: 'SO WHOMEVER [sic] CALLED THE "FEDS" ON ME REST ASSURED I KNOW WHO YOU ARE AND WE WILL BE DISCUSSING THIS SOON!! The best part is you have NOTHING accept [sic] empty accusations!! You are the piece of shit I knew you were!!'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Scott Allen of the Washington Post: "U.S. Capitol Police officer Eugene Goodman, who has been hailed as a hero for protecting lawmakers and facing down a wave of rioters who breached the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, will throw out the ceremonial first pitch at Nationals Park before Washington's game against the New York Mets on June 18, the team announced Thursday."

** This Was a Witch Hunt. Katie Benner, et al., of the New York Times: "As the Justice Department investigated who was behind leaks of classified information early in the Trump administration, it took a highly unusual step: Prosecutors subpoenaed Apple for data from the accounts of at least two Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee, aides and family members. One was a minor. All told, the records of at least a dozen people tied to the committee were seized in 2017 and early 2018, including those of Representative Adam B. Schiff of California, then the panel's top Democrat and now its chairman, according to committee officials and two other people briefed on the inquiry.... Ultimately, the data and other evidence did not tie the committee to the leaks.... But William P. Barr revived languishing leak investigations after he became attorney general a year later. He moved a trusted prosecutor from New Jersey with little relevant experience to the main Justice Department to work on the Schiff-related case and about a half-dozen others...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: As Rachel Maddow said, this fishing expedition "profoundly threatened the separation of powers." ~~~

     ~~~ Manu Raju, et al., of CNN: "Rep. Eric Swalwell of California, another Democrat on the [House Intelligence C]ommittee, told CNN's Don Lemon on Thursday evening that he was notified that his data had been seized as part of the probe as well." ~~~

     ~~~ Myah Ward of Politico: "Rep. Adam Schiff, chair of the House Intelligence Committee, called for an inspector general investigation of the Trump Justice Department on Thursday after a report said that his phone records, along with those of aides and another member of the committee, had been seized — what he condemned as a 'terrible abuse of power.' 'It also makes the Department of Justice just a fully owned subsidiary of the president's personal legal interests and political interests,' the California Democrat told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow."

Azi Paybarah of the New York Times: "Zahid N. Quraishi, a federal magistrate judge and the son of Pakistani immigrants, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate for a federal judgeship in New Jersey on Thursday, becoming the first Muslim Federal District Court judge in the nation's history. Judge Quraishi acknowledged his history-making status after President Biden announced his intention to nominate him in March. 'Candidly,' the judge said, 'I would prefer to be the hundredth, if not the thousandth.' He added, 'I understand what it means to the community.'"

Michael Wayland of CNBC: "The immediate past president of the United Auto Workers was sentenced Thursday to 28 months in prison for his part in a scheme with other leaders to steal as much as $1.5 million in union funds for lavish trips, golfing, alcohol and other luxuries. Gary Jones is the second UAW president to be sentenced as part of a multiyear corruption probe into the prominent American labor union. He is one of 15 people to have been charged, including three Fiat Chrysler executives and his predecessor, Dennis Williams, who was sentenced last month to 21 months in prison. His sentencing is among the last in the investigation, which has tarnished the union's reputation, created mistrust among its members and led to federal oversight of the UAW." MB: These guys are such cliches. (Also linked yesterday.)

Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: As part of a plea deal, Emma Coronel Aispuro, "the wife of Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, the infamous drug lord known as 'El Chapo,' pleaded guilty Thursday morning in Washington to helping his multibillion-dollar criminal enterprise smuggle at least 100 tons of marijuana, cocaine and heroin into the United States." (Also linked yesterday.)

"The Trump Coast." Travis Gettys of the Raw Story: Donald Trump "basks in a 'biosphere' of adoration at [Mar-a-Lago], where he rub elbows with members and guests who posts photos and videos of the twice-impeached one-term president at engagement parties, memorial services and other events, reported Bloomberg.... 'At every moment of his day, Trump is bathed in adulation,' reported Bloomberg's Joshua Green. 'When he enters the dining room, people stand and applaud. When he returns from golf, he's met with squeals and selfie requests. When he leaves Mar-a-Lago, he often encounters flag-waving throngs organized by Willy Guardiola, a former professional harmonica player and anti-abortion activist who runs weekly pro-Trump rallies in Palm Beach.... A steady stream of Republican lawmakers has visited Trump at his club, and his children Ivanka and Donald Jr. have bought multi-million-dollar homes nearby, as have Fox News broadcasters Sean Hannity and Neal Cavuto.... 'It's like if Rachel Maddow and the Pod Save America guys all bought condos in Chicago because they wanted to be close to Barack Obama,' [said Democratic strategist Eddie Vale]." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is what I mean when I cast Trump as a third-rate "celebrity." His biggest fans seem to be Hannity and "a former professional harmonica player."

Rachel Siegel of the Washington Post: "Prices rose by 5 percent in May compared with a year ago, the largest increase since the Great Recession, continuing a steady climb in inflation even as policymakers insist on staying the course. Price spikes often coincide with downturns, and officials from the White House and Federal Reserve have predicted that prices will climb over the coming months, especially compared to a year ago, when the economy was reeling from coronavirus pandemic shutdown. However, the move adds new fuel to the Republican criticism that the Biden administration is spending too much, which could lead to an overheated economy. The most recent inflation figures, released Thursday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, are not rattling the Biden administration nor the Fed. Both predict that prices will continue to rise until supply chains and consumer demand recalibrate and the economy has time to heal." (Also linked yesterday.)

Zoom, Zoom. Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Brian Stelter & Oliver Darcy of CNN: "Jeffrey Toobin returned to CNN as the network's chief legal analyst on Thursday, eight months after he exposed himself during a Zoom call with colleagues at The New Yorker. Toobin was interviewed by anchor Alisyn Camerota ... about that incident, and about recent legal news.... Toobin described himself as a 'flawed human being who makes mistakes' and said his conduct was 'deeply moronic and indefensible.' He added, 'I didn't think other people could see me,' but he admitted that was no defense. In the interview, Toobin expressed apologies to his wife and family, to the people who were on the Zoom call that day, and to his colleagues.... People familiar with the matter said that Toobin exposed himself when he began masturbating during the Zoom, apparently as part of a different video call.... The New Yorker suspended Toobin and fired him a month later, after its internal investigation had been completed." Includes video of the Camerota interview. MB: Maybe old-timers just shouldn't try to multi-task, especially where there's technology involved.

Joe DePaolo of Mediaite: "CNN anchor Jim Acosta is utterly unsparing in his criticism of rival network Fox News -- dismissing the network as a 'bullshit factory' and going hard at one of their lead hosts. Speaking with Mediaite's Aidan McLaughlin for this week's episode of The Interview podcast, the CNN anchor bashed Fox News for what he deemed to be an increasing trend towards outrage content.... '[Tucker Carlson] has these moments where he just sounds like a race-baiting tyrant,' Acosta said. '... It's ginning up anger, and rage, and frustration in a certain segment of the American public. And I do think it does just a great deal of harm to this country.'"

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The Washington Post's live updates of Covid-19 developments Friday are here.

Denise Lu of the New York Times: "More than half of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and it's the remaining unvaccinated population that is driving the lingering deaths, experts say. After the first vaccines were authorized for emergency use in December, with priority given to senior populations before younger groups, the share of those dying who were 75 or older started dropping immediately. In turn, younger populations began to make up higher shares of Covid-19 deaths compared with their shares at the peak of the pandemic -- a trend that continued when vaccine eligibility opened up to all adults. While the number of deaths dropped in all age groups, about half of Covid-19 deaths are now of people aged 50 to 74, compared with only a third in December." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If I were a person who for some reason was afraid to receive the vaccine, this report would make me afraid not to. However, I doubt the vaccine-shy read the lying' librul NYT.

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

Jenny Gross of the New York Times: "... companies are legally permitted to make employees get vaccinated, according to recent guidance from the federal agency that enforces workplace discrimination laws, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Here's the latest about the rules in the United States on vaccinations in the workplace." (Also linked yesterday.)

Dana Milbank of the Washington Post got the coronavirus vaccine and now he's magnetized. He relates some of the upsides & downsides of his altered state. For instance, the morning after he got his first shot, "... as I was eating my oatmeal, my spoon stuck to the roof of my mouth. I might have choked, but fortunately the spoon was jarred loose when the magnetic force slammed me against the refrigerator...."

Beyond the Beltway

Oregon. Mike Baker of the New York Times: "Lawmakers in Oregon ejected one of their colleagues from office for the first time in state history late Thursday night, voting 59 to 1 to oust Representative Mike Nearman for his role in helping a far-right crowd breach the State Capitol in December. Mr. Nearman, who was the only no vote, had faced rising pressure from his Republican colleagues to resign from office this week, days after newly surfaced video showed him apparently coaching people on how they might get inside the closed Capitol. Previous security footage had showed how Mr. Nearman exited the building where protesters had gathered, allowing them inside and setting off a confrontation with law enforcement officers. Mr. Nearman, who faces misdemeanor charges for his actions, said on Thursday that legislative leaders should have never excluded the public from the Capitol -- a decision that was a coronavirus precaution."

Texas. Trumpity-Trump-Trump. Heidi Pérez-Moreno of the Texas Tribune: "Gov. Greg Abbott announced Thursday that Texas will build a border wall along the state's boundary with Mexico -- but provided no details on where or when. Abbott declared his plans during a press conference in Del Rio. He said he would discuss the plans next week. The Biden administration issued a proclamation that stopped border wall construction on his first day of office. Abbott announced the news while discussing a slew of border initiatives...."

Comments Off
Wednesday
Jun092021

The Commentariat -- June 10, 2021

Late Morning, Afternoon Update:

Denise Lu of the New York Times: "More than half of the U.S. population has received at least one dose of the Covid-19 vaccine, and it's the remaining unvaccinated population that is driving the lingering deaths, experts say. After the first vaccines were authorized for emergency use in December, with priority given to senior populations before younger groups, the share of those dying who were 75 or older started dropping immediately. In turn, younger populations began to make up higher shares of Covid-19 deaths compared with their shares at the peak of the pandemic -- a trend that continued when vaccine eligibility opened up to all adults. While the number of deaths dropped in all age groups, about half of Covid-19 deaths are now of people aged 50 to 74, compared with only a third in December." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If I were a person who for some reason was afraid to receive the vaccine, this report would make me afraid not to. However, I doubt the vaccine-shy read the lying' librul NYT.

Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: As part of a plea deal, Emma Coronel Aispuro, 'the wife of Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, the infamous drug lord known as 'El Chapo,' pleaded guilty Thursday morning in Washington to helping his multibillion-dollar criminal enterprise smuggle at least 100 tons of marijuana, cocaine and heroin into the United States."

Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "Democrats and Republicans lobbed withering questions at the FBI as Director Christopher A. Wray testified before the House Judiciary Committee Thursday, though their concerns diverged significantly along partisan lines. Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.) blasted Wray for the bureau's failure to detect in advance and respond to the mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, while ranking Republican Jim Jordan (Ohio) accused the bureau of intruding on Americans' civil liberties in an eclectic mix of circumstances." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: In his presumably-prepared opening statement, Jim Jordan claimed that when the FBI aided Rudy Giuliani's home, officers "kicked in his door." This was news to me, so I looked it up. According to Rudy himself, agents wakened him at 6 am with a "bang, bang, bang" on his door. So that was a lie, Jim. "Wray repeatedly declined to answer questions about ... the search involving Giuliani." Oh, and Matt Gaetz, whom the FBI is investigating, showed up for the committee hearing & asked questions about the origins of the coronavirus.

The New York Times' live updates of President Biden's European trip Thursday are here.

Patrick Wintour of the Guardian: "Senior US embassy diplomats in London, backed by the US national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, have directly warned the UK's Brexit negotiator, Lord Frost, that he will inflame tensions in Northern Ireland if he does not compromise over border checks. A meeting between the US charge d'affaires Yael Lampert, currently America's most senior diplomat in London, and Frost led to an urging by the US for Britain to come to a negotiated settlement with the EU, according to an internal UK government note.... Sullivan told a briefing on Air Force One before Joe Biden landed in the UK on Wednesday evening: 'Any steps that imperil or undermine the Good Friday agreement will not be welcomed by the US.'... The US tone suggests the Biden administration is taking close interest in details of the talks, given it has a formal role to uphold the Good Friday deal."

Rachel Siegel of the Washington Post: "Prices rose by 5 percent in May compared with a year ago, the largest increase since the Great Recession, continuing a steady climb in inflation even as policymakers insist on staying the course. Price spikes often coincide with downturns, and officials from the White House and Federal Reserve have predicted that prices will climb over the coming months, especially compared to a year ago, when the economy was reeling from coronavirus pandemic shutdown. However, the move adds new fuel to the Republican criticism that the Biden administration is spending too much, which could lead to an overheated economy. The most recent inflation figures, released Thursday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, are not rattling the Biden administration nor the Fed. Both predict that prices will continue to rise until supply chains and consumer demand recalibrate and the economy has time to heal."

Michael Wayland of CNBC: "The immediate past president of the United Auto Workers was sentenced Thursday to 28 months in prison for his part in a scheme with other leaders to steal as much as $1.5 million in union funds for lavish trips, golfing, alcohol and other luxuries. Gary Jones is the second UAW president to be sentenced as part of a multiyear corruption probe into the prominent American labor union. He is one of 15 people to have been charged, including three Fiat Chrysler executives and his predecessor, Dennis Williams, who was sentenced last month to 21 months in prison. His sentencing is among the last in the investigation, which has tarnished the union's reputation, created mistrust among its members and led to federal oversight of the UAW." MB: These guys are such cliches.

Adam Klasfeld of Law & Crime: "Finding a Proud Boys member's complaints of inadequate medical care behind bars 'without merit,' a federal judge [Royce Lambeth] issued a scathing ruling on Wednesday explaining why he kept him in jail -- and highlighting his vulgar Facebook tirades against the 'pu**y ass bitch' he believed 'ratted' him out following an FBI visit. 'Believe I know who ratted,' Christopher Worrell, 49, told an unidentified user on Jan. 18, the day the FBI interviewed him, according to the ruling. Then, prosecutors quote him indiscreetly posting publicly on his Facebook page: 'SO WHOMEVER [sic] CALLED THE "FEDS" ON ME REST ASSURED I KNOW WHO YOU ARE AND WE WILL BE DISCUSSING THIS SOON!! The best part is you have NOTHING accept [sic] empty accusations!! You are the piece of shit I knew you were!!'"

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

Jenny Gross of the New York Times: "... companies are legally permitted to make employees get vaccinated, according to recent guidance from the federal agency that enforces workplace discrimination laws, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Here's the latest about the rules in the United States on vaccinations in the workplace."

"The Trump Coast." Travis Gettys of the Raw Story: Donald Trump "basks in a 'biosphere' of adoration at [Mar-a-Lago], where he rubs elbows with members and guests who posts photos and videos of the twice-impeached one-term president at engagement parties, memorial services and other events, reported Bloomberg.... 'At every moment of his day, Trump is bathed in adulation,' reported Bloomberg's Joshua Green. 'When he enters the dining room, people stand and applaud. When he returns from golf, he's met with squeals and selfie requests. When he leaves Mar-a-Lago, he often encounters flag-waving throngs organized by Willy Guardiola, a former professional harmonica player and anti-abortion activist who runs weekly pro-Trump rallies in Palm Beach.... A steady stream of Republican lawmakers has visited Trump at his club, and his children Ivanka and Donald Jr. have bought multi-million-dollar homes nearby, as have Fox News broadcasters Sean Hannity and Neal Cavuto.... 'It's like if Rachel Maddow and the Pod Save America guys all bought condos in Chicago because they wanted to be close to Barack Obama,' [said Democratic strategist Eddie Vale]." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is what I mean when I cast Trump as a third-rate "celebrity." His biggest fans are Hannity and "a former professional harmonica player."

~~~~~~~~~~

The New York Times is liveblogging President Biden's European adventure. The linked page is Wednesday's liveblog. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ You can watch President Biden's full remarks at RAF Mildenhall, U.K. here. Dr. Jill Biden's remarks begin at about 7:00 minutes in. President Biden's remarks begin at 15:25 minutes in.

Biden Press Plane Bugged! Katie Shepherd of the Washington Post: "The Brood X cicadas that rose from the earth after 17 years underground ... ground[ed] the White House press corps as it headed to Europe for President Biden's first overseas trip in office.... Reporters gathered at a Marriott hotel near Dulles International Airport were told by a White House aide that the insects had flown into the engine, causing mechanical problems that required the airline to obtain a new plane and a new captain for the flight. The journalists ended up delayed more than five hours." MB: Wow! Reporters stuck for five hours in a hotel with a bar. Whatever will they do? (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "The Biden administration intends to revive federal environmental protections for millions of streams, marshes and other bodies of water across the country that had been eliminated by ... Donald Trump in his quest to please home builders, farmers and ranchers. The Environmental Protection Agency made the announcement Wednesday after it said it had found that the changes under Mr. Trump caused 'significant environmental degradation.' The problem is particularly glaring in arid states such as New Mexico and Arizona, where nearly every one of more than 1,500 streams lost environmental protections under the Trump rules, said Michael S. Regan, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency."

Matt O'Brien, et al., of the AP: "The White House dropped Trump-era executive orders that attempted to ban the popular apps TikTok and WeChat and will conduct its own review aimed at identifying national security risks with software applications tied to China, officials said Wednesday. A new executive order directs the Commerce Department to undertake what officials describe as an 'evidence-based' analysis of transactions involving apps that are manufactured or supplied or controlled by China. Officials are particularly concerned about apps that collect users' persona data or have connections to Chinese military or intelligence activities. The department also will make recommendations on how to further protect Americans' genetic and personal health information, and will address the risks of certain software apps connected to China or other adversaries, according to senior administration officials." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Zachary Cohen & Christina Carrega of CNN: "Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday defended a series of controversial arguments made by the Justice Department in recent weeks that endorsed legal positions held by ... Donald Trump and the previous administration. Garland was pressed to explain those moves while testifying before several Senate subcommittees. Specifically, he was asked about the department's support for arguments related to an assault allegation against the former President and the release of a memo of regarding handling the Mueller investigation." MB: Gosh, Merrick, I am not persuaded. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Paul Murphy of CNN: "Texas' Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland is on 'active shooter lockdown,' according to the base's Facebook page. 'All base personnel implement LOCKDOWN procedures and immediately take cover," the base posted on Facebook and Twitter. A second post said there were no immediate reports of injuries after the incident that took place outside one of the gates. '(Base) emergency responders are working with the San Antonio police department to clear the area and search for the shooters,' the post says." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Laurie McGinley of the Washington Post: "Two members of a Food and Drug Administration advisory panel resigned this week after the agency's contentious decision to approve an Alzheimer's drug over the objections of its outside advisers. David S. Knopman, a neurologist at the Mayo Clinic, said Wednesday in an email to The Washington Post that he did not 'wish to be part of a sham process' that ultimately resulted in the agency's approval Monday of Biogen's Aduhelm, also known as aducanumab.... Earlier this week, Joel S. Perlmutter, a neurologist at Washington University in St. Louis, resigned from the committee ... 'due to this ruling by the FDA without further discussion with our advisory committee.'"

Jonathan Weisman & Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "A jaw-dropping report by ProPublica detailing how America's richest men avoided paying taxes has intensified interest in Congress, even among some Republicans, in changing the tax code to ensure that people like Jeff Bezos and Warren Buffett pay their fair share. For Republicans, the idea that the tax code should give preferential treatment to investment has been sacrosanct, ostensibly to promote economic growth and innovation that could benefit everyone. But the news this week showed how the treatment of stocks, bonds, real estate and huge loans taken off those assets has sent the tax bills of the richest Americans plummeting. 'My intention as the author of the 2017 tax reform was not that multibillionaires ought to pay no taxes,' said Senator Patrick J. Toomey, Republican of Pennsylvania, who helped write the law that slashed taxes by more than $1 trillion. 'I believe dividends and capital gains should be taxed at a lower rate, but certainly not zero.'" The ProPublica report, also linked here Tuesday (June 8), is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Something else that's "jaw-dropping" is that members of Congress either didn't know about this or are pretending it's news to them ... inasmuch as even billionaires like Buffett himself have been complaining publicly about this inequity for at least ten years. How is it we knew but Pat Toomey didn't?

GOP "Negotiator" Doesn't Know What "Negotiation" Means. Ben Leonard of Politico: "Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said Wednesday that she was 'frustrated' that the White House 'kept moving the goalposts on us' after infrastructure negotiations with the Biden administration fell apart Tuesday. 'I'm a bit disappointed and frustrated that the White House really kept moving the ball on me and then just finally brought me negotiations that were untenable and then ended the negotiations altogether,' Capito said in a Fox News interview." MB: Shelley, dear, "moving the goalposts" is exactly what negotiators do. You tell Joe Manchin you'll sell him your golden Trump ring for $5,000. Joe offers you $1,000 & a promise to endorse you in a radio ad. You tell Joe $2,500 & a TV endorsement. Joe counters back at $2,000 & two radio ads. That's negotiating, Shelley. Both of you "move the goalposts." And you do know that ring will turn Joe's finger green, don't you? You Republicans always cheat. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Joel Shannon of USA Today: "U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, a Texas Republican, appeared to stun a Forest Service official by suggesting the agency fight climate change by altering the orbits of Earth or the moon. The question came during a live-streamed national parks, forests and public lands subcommittee meeting of the National Resources Committee on Tuesday and was followed by social media mockery.... Gohmert said he understood NASA's data shows the Earth's and the moon's orbits are 'changing slightly.... And so, is there anything that the National Forest Service or BLM can do to change the course of the moon's orbit or the Earth's orbit around the sun? Obviously, that would have profound effects on our climate.'... '... if you figure out a way that you in the Forest Service can make that change, I'd like to know,' Gohmert said.... 'I know the answer to the question...," tweeted U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu, a Democrat from California. 'Captain Marvel. She can alter planetary orbits with her superpowers. I’m going to work on a bipartisan resolution asking for her help.'" Thanks to Akhilleus for the link. See also his commentary below. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Reading about Louie's scientific expertise wasn't a complete waste of time for me. Thanks to the always-well-informed Ted Lieu, I learned that Captain Marvel had changed her sexual identity.

Florida U.S. Senate Race. Rebecca Shabad of NBC News: "Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., made her Senate bid official Wednesday, announcing that she plans to challenge Republican Marco Rubio for his seat next year. Demings made the announcement in a three-minute video in which she shared her story serving in Orlando's police department, where she worked her way up to serving as its first female chief of police.... In a statement Wednesday, Rubio bashed Demings...," ... MB: essentially revealing that Demings is a Democrat. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Katelyn Polantz & Evan Perez of CNN: "The Trump administration battled with CNN for half a year to obtain the email records of a reporter and insisted it all take place under an extraordinary order of secrecy, CNN's lead attorney revealed on Wednesday. The pursuit -- which started in July 2020 under then-Attorney General William Barr with a demand for two months' of CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr's 2017 email logs -- continued even after a federal judge told the Justice Department its argument for access to Starr's internal emails was 'speculative' and 'unanchored in any facts.' The Trump administration's secret pursuit represents a highly unusual and unrelenting push for journalists' records. It included putting CNN general counsel David Vigilante under a gag order prohibiting him from sharing any details about the government's efforts with anyone beyond the network's president, top attorneys at CNN's corporate parent and attorneys at an outside law firm."

Alex Rogers, et al., of CNN: "Former Trump White House counsel Don McGahn confirmed before a congressional panel last week that ... Donald Trump urged him to oust special counsel Robert Mueller, who investigated his 2016 campaign's ties to Russia, according to a transcript released Wednesday.... McGahn told the committee that he didn't call [Deputy AG Rod] Rosenstein in part because he feared that Rosenstein could resign if he felt pressured. 'What I was not going to do is cause any sort of chain reaction that would cause this to spiral out of control in a way that wasn't in the best interests, at least as a lawyer, what I thought was in the best interests of my client, which was the President,' said McGahn.... McGahn's retelling of his interactions largely affirmed Mueller's final, public report, and the questioning was limited to topics documented in the Mueller investigation.... Trump has denied the episodes with McGahn -- but the interview with Congress has allowed McGahn to again put on record -- under threat of criminal penalty if he were to lie -- that Trump pushed to shut down the Mueller investigation." ~~~

~~~ Betsy Swan & Sarah Ferris of Politico: "Former White House lawyer Don McGahn said he felt 'trapped' by ... Donald Trump's relentless insistence that he have Special Counsel Robert Mueller ousted, according to newly released transcript of his testimony to the House Judiciary Committee." The New York Times report is here.

Annie Karni of the New York Times: "A federal watchdog said on Wednesday that the United States Park Police had been planning to clear protesters from a park near the White House well before they learned that ... Donald J. Trump was going to walk through the area last year. The report by the Interior Department's inspector general concluded that 'the evidence did not support a finding' that the Park Police had cleared the area just for Mr. Trump, who strode through it on June 1 last year before posing for photographs in front of St. John's Episcopal Church holding a Bible.... The 30-page report by the Interior Department's inspector general offers new details about the Park Police's decision-making. And the sequence of events described in the report suggests that the operation to clear the area turned violent soon after the Park Police were informed of Mr. Trump's arrival. But the report's author was careful to warn it was not to be seen as a definitive account of the day, in part because so many other law enforcement agencies were involved. The inspector general, Mark L. Greenblatt, noted that it was not in his jurisdiction to investigate what the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies knew and who might have ordered them to use force to clear the park." The Washington Post's report is here. A CNN report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: According to Karni, Greenblatt calls his report "a fulsome review of everything in our jurisdiction." I wonder if Greenblatt is aware that "fulsome" means "complimentary or flattering to an excessive degree." I don't think if I had written a fulsome report, I would advertise it. I did write to Greenblatt asking him about his remarkable admission. ~~~

     ~~~ The fulsome report, via the Interior Department, is here.

Travis Gettys of the Raw Story: "The editorial board for the Boston Globe made the case this week for holding [Donald] Trump criminally accountable for his obstruction of justice, efforts to overturn his election loss in Georgia and inciting an insurrection Jan. 6 aimed at stopping the certification of Joe Biden's electoral win, arguing that prosecution was the only way to ensure future presidents conducted themselves honorably and lawfully.... The editors agreed the decision to prosecute a former president for crimes committed in office was a heavy responsibility, but they argued that it was necessary to preserve the rule of law -- and other democracies had successfully charged former leaders.... 'A commander in chief tried his very best to subvert democracy,' they argued. 'He attacked his own country. Five people died. Allowing him to go unpunished would set a far more dangerous precedent than having Trump stand trial. To reform the presidency so that the last four years are never repeated, the country must go beyond passing laws: It must make clear through its actions that no person, not even the president, is above them.'" The Globe editorial is here.

Samantha Gross & Martin Vassolo of the Miami Herald: "The Doral city council on Wednesday voted 4-0 to ban gambling and casinos from the city unless approved by residents in a referendum, weeks after Gov. Ron DeSantis negotiated a $500 million gaming deal with the Seminole Tribe of Florida. Critics believe the compact was tailored to allow casinos at properties such as the Trump National Doral Miami resort or the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel, which local officials fear will bring negative impacts to their communities. DeSantis has dismissed those concerns as 'idiotic politics.'... The gaming deal, among other things, stops the Tribe from objecting to the transfer of existing slot machine licenses to anywhere 15 miles from its flagship casino in Hollywood, language that opens the door to ... Donald Trump purchasing a license and transferring it to his Doral golf resort. The Trump Doral resort is about 18 miles from the Hollywood casino and is run by Eric Trump, who told The Washington Post in March that a Doral location would be 'unmatched from a gaming perspective.'... Local gambling bans alone may not be enough. Miami Beach, which banned casinos in 2017, retained law firm Shubin & Bass to help fend off any attempts from the Legislature to bring gambling to the city." MB: You have to sign in to read the story. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is such a shame, because you only have to look at Donald to see how perfectly he fits the role of sleazy casino owner, strutting around a slot machine room, putting his hand too low on the back of a scantily-clad waitress, sitting down at a large table with a bunch of small-time gangsters while a Sinatra impersonator sings "I Did It My Way." Donald Trump was born to be a creepy casino owner, and those thoughtless Doral councilmembers have a nerve depriving him of his destiny.

** Brady Dennis & Steven Mufson of the Washington Post: "The firm behind the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline officially scrapped the project on Wednesday, months after President Biden revoked a cross-border permit for the controversial pipeline and more than a decade after political wrangling over its fate began. The pipeline, which would have stretched from Alberta's boreal forests to the refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast, became the center of a broader controversy over climate change, pipeline safety, eminent domain and jobs. Those same concerns have spawned similar battles to stop pipelines in states including Montana, Minnesota and Virginia.... Donald Trump approved a right of way for the Keystone XL on his third day in office, though the pipeline remained bogged down in courts and by the Nebraska Public Service Commission.... 'When this fight began, people thought Big Oil couldn't be beat,' Bill McKibben, the founder of environmental activism group 350.org who led sit-ins against Keystone XL in 2011 at the White House, said in a statement. 'But when enough people rise up we"re stronger even than the richest fossil fuel companies.'"

Nicole Perlroth, et al., of the New York Times: "Criminals, often operating in hidden reaches of the internet,flocked to Bitcoin to do illicit business without revealing their names or locations. The digital currency quickly became as popular with drug dealers and tax evaders as it was with contrarian libertarians. But this week's revelation that federal officials had recovered most of the Bitcoin ransom paid in the recent Colonial Pipeline ransomware attack exposed a fundamental misconception about cryptocurrencies: They are not as hard to track as cybercriminals think. On Monday, the Justice Department announced it had traced 63.7 of the 75 Bitcoins -- some $2.3 million of the $4.3 million -- that Colonial Pipeline had paid to the hackers...."

Brian Fung of CNN: "The meat supplier JBS USA paid an $11 million ransom in response to a cyberattack that led to the shutdown of its entire US beef processing operation last week, the company said in a statement Wednesday evening. The ransom was paid after most of the company's facilities had come back online, JBS said." The Washington Post's story is here.

The Pandemic, Ctd.

Sharon LaFraniere, et al., of the New York Times: "President Biden, under pressure to aggressively address the global coronavirus vaccine shortage, will announce as early as Thursday that his administration will buy 500 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and donate them among about 100 countries over the next year, according to people familiar with the plan. The White House reached the deal just in time for Mr. Biden's eight-day European trip.... 'We have to end Covid-19, not just at home, which we're doing, but everywhere,' Mr. Biden told American troops after landing at R.A.F. Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. 'There's no wall high enough to keep us safe from this pandemic or the next biological threat we face, and there will be others. It requires coordinated multilateral action.'" MB: That's half-a-billion doses, in case you didn't notice.

Ohio. Andrea Salcedo of the Washington Post: "Sherri Tenpenny, a Cleveland-based doctor invited as an expert witness Tuesday to a hearing in the Ohio House..., falsely told legislators that the drugs could leave people 'magnetized.'... 'They can put a key on their forehead. It sticks. They can put spoons and forks all over them and they can stick..., [she testified].... Her baseless remarks -- which also suggested that vaccines 'interface' with 5G cellular towers -- didn't elicit strong pushback from legislators.... Instead, some GOP representatives thanked Tenpenny for testifying in front of the Ohio House Health Committee, with one praising a podcast she hosts as 'enlightening in terms of thinking.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I've been vaccinated, so as soon as I heard Dr. Tenpenny's testimony, I tossed all my keyrings, what with their now being useless, antiquated hardware. Well, imagine my surprise when I tried to slap my housekey on my forehead & the sucker fell right off!

Beyond the Beltway

Massachusetts. Hannah Knowles of the Washington Post: "Verda Tetteh used her graduation speech [at Fitchburg High School, where most students are 'economically disadvantaged,] to talk about resilience.... Tetteh, whose family is from Ghana..., had secur[ed] a prestigious state scholarship and admission to Harvard. Later at last Friday's graduation she got her school's highest honor: a 'General Excellence' award that came with $40,000.... The ceremony went on. But as the assistant principal wrapped up his address, Tetteh made her way back to the podium for something unscripted.... She hoped that administrators would consider giving her award money to someone going to a community college like the one that helped her mom. 'I am so very grateful for this, but I also know that I am not the one who needs this the most,' she said. Out on the grass, her classmates [gave her] ... her second standing ovation that day.... The school will honor Tetteh's wishes for the money."

Texas. Jake Bleiberg of the AP: "The Texas bar association is investigating whether state Attorney General Ken Paxton's failed efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election based on bogus claims of fraud amounted to professional misconduct. The State Bar of Texas initially declined to take up a Democratic Party activist's complaint that Paxton's petitioning of the U.S. Supreme Court to block Joe Biden's victory was frivolous and unethical. But a tribunal that oversees grievances against lawyers overturned that decision late last month and ordered the bar to look into the accusations against the Republican official. The investigation is yet another liability for the embattled attorney general, who is facing a years-old criminal case, a separate, newer FBI investigation, and a Republican primary opponent who is seeking to make electoral hay of the various controversies."

Way Beyond

Russia. Andrew E. Kramer & Anton Troianovski of the New York Times: "A Russian court on Wednesday designated Aleksei A. Navalny's political movement as an extremist network, a remarkable move that sent a message to President Biden ahead of his meeting next week with President Vladimir V. Putin: Russian domestic affairs are not up for discussion. The court decision -- taken almost certainly with Mr. Putin;s blessing -- is bound to push the movement further underground after several months in which the Kremlin;s yearslong effort to suppress dissent had entered a more aggressive phase. Under the law, Mr. Navalny's organizers, donors, or even social-media supporters could now be prosecuted and face prison time."

News Lede

USA Today: "Hiring picked up in May as employers added 559,000 jobs amid falling COVID-19 cases, a loosening of business constraints and stepped-up vaccinations, more than offsetting persistent worker shortages. The unemployment rate fell sharply from 6.1% to 5.8%, the Labor Department said Friday. The labor shortages continued to temper hiring. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg had estimated that 674,000 jobs were added last month."

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