The Conversation -- November 27, 2023
E.J. Dionne of the Washington Post attempts to address "two distinct threats" to American democracy: "Preventing Trump from overthrowing liberal democracy is certainly a necessary step, but it's not sufficient. Renewing the fight for a new Voting Rights Act and the access-enhancing reforms in the Freedom to Vote Act is essential. But it's also time to address one of the major flaws of our Constitution: It does not contain an explicit, affirmative guarantee of every citizen's right to vote." Dionne goes into some detail about how the Supreme Court & state legislatures have been chip, chip, chipping away at voting rights. ~~~
~~~ Marie: You know what Dionne never specifies? That both of these threats to democracy are the schemes of the Republican party and its supporters. This is sort of ironic in that Dionne acknowledges the fault of journalism for failing to cover Trump's fascism, then avoids nailing Republicans at all levels for their anti-democratic projects.
Kayla Guo of the New York Times: "More than three dozen members of Congress have announced they will not seek re-election next year, some to pursue other offices and many others simply to get out of Washington. Twelve have announced their plans just this month. The wave of lawmakers across chambers and parties announcing they intend to leave Congress comes at a time of breathtaking dysfunction on Capitol Hill, primarily instigated by House Republicans." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Robert Jimison of the New York Times: "Heres a look at the retirements that have been announced so far."
A Crook Grants a Crook a Last-Minute Commutation. Other Crooks Help Out. Michael Schmidt, et al., of the New York Times: "Jonathan Braun of New York had served just two and a half years of a decade-long sentence for running a massive marijuana ring, when [Donald] Trump, at 12:51 a.m. on his last day in office, announced he would be freed. Mr. Braun was, to say the least, an unusual candidate for clemency.... Mr. Braun's family had told confidants they were willing to spend millions of dollars to get him out of prison. At the time, Mr. Trump's own Justice Department and federal regulators, as well as New York state authorities, were still after him for his role in an entirely separate matter: his work as a predatory lender.... Just months after Mr. Trump freed him, Mr. Braun returned to working as a predatory lender, according to New York State's attorney general.... Nearly three years later, the consequences of Mr. Braun's commutation are becoming clearer, raising new questions about how Mr. Trump intervened in criminal justice decisions and what he could do in a second term.... A New York Times investigation ... found there were even greater ramifications stemming from the commutation than previously known and revealed new details about Mr. Braun's history and how the commutation came about." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Michael Schmidt, et al., of the New York Times: "Here are the main takeaways from our investigation, which is based on documents and interviews with current and former officials and others familiar with Mr. Braun's case: The Commutation Undercut a Federal Criminal Investigation.... The Case Exposed Shortcomings in the Justice System.... The Kushners Had a Role in the Pardon Process."
Gary Fields of the AP: Donald "Trump has not spelled out precisely how he might use the military during a second term, although he and his advisers have suggested they would have wide latitude to call up units.... A law first crafted in the nation's infancy would give Trump as commander in chief almost unfettered power to do so, military and legal experts said.... The Insurrection Act allows presidents to call on reserve or active-duty military units to respond to unrest in the states, an authority that is not reviewable by the courts.... Congress passed the act in 1792. [Joseph Nunn of the Brennan Center] said it's an amalgamation of different statutes enacted between then and the 1870s, a time when there was little in the way of local law enforcement. 'It is a law that in many ways was created for a country that doesn't exist anymore,' [Nunn] said.... Trump already has suggested he might bring back retired Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn.... Flynn suggested in the aftermath of the 2020 election that Trump could seize voting machines and order the military in some states to help rerun the election."
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Vermont. Abigail Hauslohner & Hannah Allam of the Washington Post: "Police in Vermont are investigating the possibility of a 'hate-motivated' crime in the shooting Saturday evening of three Palestinian college students in downtown Burlington, Vt. Burlington police on Sunday said that a 'white male with a handgun' approached the three students as they walked through downtown and, 'without speaking,' shot the three men at least four tims before fleeing on foot. 'All three victims were struck, two in their torsos and one in the lower extremities,' the Burlington Police Department said in a statement. All three remain hospitalized, one with very serious injuries, the department added. In a later statement, Burlington police said Jason J. Eaton, 48, had been arrested in connection with the shooting.... The [American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee] said the three men are students at Brown University, Haverford College and Trinity College, respectively, and had gathered in Burlington to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with Awartani's grandmother. The ADC also said the students were wearing kaffiyehs, the traditional Arab scarf associated with Palestinians, when they were attacked." CNN's story is here.
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Israel/Palestine
The Washington Post's live updates of developments Monday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "As the end of the fragile four-day pause in fighting nears in Gaza, officials on both sides have said they are open to extending it to exchange more of the hostages taken by Hamas for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.... Under the terms of the agreement, the pause could be extended by a day for every additional 10 hostages released by Hamas beyond the initial 50. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday evening that this 'would be welcome,' though he also vowed to continue the war after the pause, with the aim of 'eradicating Hamas.'... Abigail Edan, 4, was released by Hamas on Sunday, the first American hostage freed as part of the deal. She was the youngest of the 10 Americans believed to have been taken hostage after the militant group's Oct. 7 attack on Israel. 'She's been through a terrible trauma,' President Biden said." ~~~
~~~ The New York Times live updates for Monday are here. CNN's live updates are here.
Marie: Only a very stupid person would think the way to "eradicate" a widespread, broadly-popular terrorist organization like Hamas is to inflict the kind of mass murder and destruction that gave the terrorist group acceptance in the first place. Netanyahu isn't stupid, so he has a different agenda. Update: See Akhilleus' commentary below.
Peter Baker & Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "President Biden on Sunday hailed the release of Avigail Idan, who turned 4 years old during her seven weeks in Hamas captivity and was the first American citizen to be freed by the group in recent days. The president vowed to keep working to secure freedom for others in captivity and extend the pause in the fighting.... Avigail, whose name has been rendered as Abigail in American media, is a dual U.S. and Israeli citizen and was seized on Oct. 7 after Hamas fighters killed her parents. She was among the 17 people held captive who were turned over on Sunday as part of a temporary cease-fire deal. Her case became the focus of widespread international attention and concern as she turned 4 on Friday. Mr. Biden said Avigail's mother was killed in front of her when Hamas fighters stormed their kibbutz. The child then ran to her father, who was shot and killed while using his body to shield her, and she then ran to neighbors for help, Mr. Biden said." CNN's story is here.
Ben Brasch & Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "U.S. naval forces on Sunday thwarted the attempted hijacking of a tanker owned by an Israeli billionaire as the vessel transited near Yemen in the Gulf of Aden, according to U.S. officials and the tanker's parent company. Five people, all armed, were detained in the incident, according to a news release issued by U.S. Central Command. Officials said the USS Mason, along with other ships and aircraft, responded to a distress call from the M/V Central Park, and that the Mason pursued the unidentified 'attackers,' who attempted to flee. The chase ended with their 'eventual surrender,' the news release says. After the attempted hijacking was disrupted, two ballistic missiles were fired toward the Mason and the Central Park from Houthi-controlled territory in Yemen, officials said. Both missiles landed in the water about 10 nautical miles from the vessels, and no one was injured, the news release says."
Ukraine, et al. Matthew Bigg of the New York Times: "A Ukrainian strike on a power station in Russian-held territory in eastern Ukraine overnight cut power to towns and cities, the pro-Russian authorities there said on Sunday, less than a day after Moscow launched a record number of attack drones toward Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital. The overnight attack was another sign of Kyiv's determination to inflict damage on its adversary's electricity infrastructure before what many in Ukraine expect will be a renewed wintertime assault by Russia on Ukraine's power grid."