July 29, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Josh Dawsey, et al, of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump's political group spent more than $40 million on legal costs in the first half of 2023 to defend Trump, his advisers and others, according to people familiar with the matter, financing legal work that has drawn scrutiny from prosecutors about potential conflicts of interest between Trump and witnesses. Save America, the former president's PAC, is expected to disclose about $40.2 million in legal spending in a filing expected Monday.... Trump's advisers say the costs of providing lawyers for dozens of people are necessary and will continue mushrooming as investigations continue trials are scheduled, and the possibility of indictment looms.... In an indictment unsealed Thursday ... in the classified documents case, authorities allege that Trump called [Carlos] De Oliveira last August to tell him he would pay for his attorney. That same day, authorities said, [Walt] Nauta had a conversation with a different Trump employee who assured Nauta that De Oliveira was loyal to Trump.... The PAC's own fundraising and creation is under investigation, The Post has reported, though the group has not been accused of wrongdoing. Much of the money it is using to pay for legal bills was raised on false claims that the 2020 election was stolen."

Adam Satariano, et al., of the New York Times: Elon "Musk, who leads SpaceX, Tesla and Twitter, has become the most dominant player in space as he has steadily amassed power over the strategically significant field of satellite internet. Yet faced with little regulation and oversight, his erratic and personality-driven style has increasingly worried militaries and political leaders around the world, with the tech billionaire sometimes wielding his authority in unpredictable ways. Since 2019, Mr. Musk has sent SpaceX rockets into space nearly every week that deliver dozens of sofa-size satellites into orbit. The satellites communicate with terminals on Earth, so they can beam high-speed internet to nearly every corner of the planet. Today, more than 4,500 Starlink satellites are in the skies, accounting for more than 50 percent of all active satellites. They have already started changing the complexion of the night sky, even before accounting for Mr. Musk's plans to have as many as 42,000 satellites in orbit in the coming years.... Starlink is often the only way to get internet access in war zones, remote areas and places hit by natural disasters."

From Sea to Sea. Declan Walsh of the New York Times: "Africa's coup belt spans the continent: a line of six countries crossing 3,500 miles, from coast to coast, that has become the longest corridor of military rule on Earth. This past week's military takeover in the West African nation of Niger toppled the final domino in a band across the girth of Africa, from Guinea in the west to Sudan in the east, now controlled by juntas that came to power in a coup -- all but one in the past two years.... Russia has positioned itself as the torch bearer of anti-Western, and especially anti-French, sentiment in a swath of Africa in recent years.... For Wagner's mercurial boss, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the run of coups is a business opportunity. His forces already operate openly in Mali and Sudan in the coup belt, as well as in the nearby Central African Republic and Libya. Hovering on the margins of the St. Petersburg summit this past week, Mr. Prigozhin praised the coup in Niger, then proposed sending his own armed fighters to help." Read on.

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Marie: Some of you didn't think much of my support of a recent column by Maureen Dowd in which she related that her Republican sister Peggy had written to President Biden urging him to acknowledge his seventh grandchild, the out-of-wedlock daughter of Hunter Biden. Well, Joe Biden has vindicated MoDo, Peggy and me: ~~~

~~~ Katie Rogers & Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: "President Biden publicly acknowledged his 4-year-old granddaughter, Navy Joan Roberts, for the first time on Friday, saying in a statement that he and the first lady, Jill Biden, 'only want what is best for all of our grandchildren, including Navy.' The statement came as Mr. Biden faced increasing pressure from critics who said that failing to acknowledge Navy publicly went against the image of a loving patriarch that he has nurtured since the beginning of his political career. 'Our son Hunter and Navy's mother, Lunden [Roberts], are working together to foster a relationship that is in the best interests of their daughter, preserving her privacy as much as possible going forward,' Mr. Biden told People magazine in a statement.... In recent weeks, the president told his son that he wanted to meet Navy when the time was right...."

Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden gave final approval on Friday to the biggest reshaping in generations of the country's Uniform Code of Military Justice, stripping commanders of their authority over cases of sexual assault, rape and murder to ensure prosecutions that are independent of the chain of command. By signing a far-reaching executive order, Mr. Biden ushered in the most significant changes to the modern military legal system since it was created in 1950. The order follows two decades of pressure from lawmakers and advocates of sexual assault victims, who argued that victims in the military were too often denied justice, culminating in a bipartisan law mandating changes. The White House called the changes to the military justice system 'a turning point for survivors of gender-based violence in the military' and said they kept promises Mr. Biden made as a candidate.... The changes had for years been opposed by military commanders. But they were finally embraced by the Pentagon in 2021 and mandated by a law spearheaded by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York." (Also linked yesterday.)

Matt Viser, et al, of the Washington Post: "President Biden is sharply escalating his criticism of Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville, highlighting his blockade of military nominations and using him to criticize other right-wing Republicans he characterizes as extreme, obstructionist and willing to jeopardize the country's national security.... 'Something dangerous is happening,' Biden said Thursday night, speaking at the Truman Civil Rights Symposium. 'The Republican Party used to always support the military, but today, they are undermining the military. The senior senator from Alabama, who claims to support our troops, is now blocking more than 300 military [nominations] with his extreme political agenda.'" ~~~

~~~ Connor O'Brien, et al., of Politico: "Senators flew home for recess Thursday with no solution in sight to Sen. Tommy Tuberville's (R-Ala.) blockade of military promotions, leaving the Pentagon in an unprecedented predicament: By mid-August, the heads of the Army and Navy are slated to retire with no Senate-confirmed leader to replace them. They'll join the Marine Corps, which has had a temporary commandant for the past three weeks, unable to act with the full force that comes with the stamp of approval from the upper chamber.... The logjam affects more than 270 military officers. They include 10 four-star officers, 54 three-stars, 70 two-stars and 139 one-stars, according to a Senate Armed Services Committee aide. Twenty-one of those three- and four-star officers have had their retirements deferred to ensure continuity of command."

But I Take My Science-y Advice From Sen. Potato Head. Chris D'Angelo & Igor Bobic of the Huffington Post: "Two global climate organizations on Thursday confirmed that July is on track to be the single hottest month on record. It is also likely the hottest monthlong stretch in 120,000 years. Nearly 200 million people -- 60% of the U.S. population -- are currently under an extreme heat or flood advisory. But as usual, Republican climate deniers are quick to dismiss the dire impacts. 'There is a very scientific word for this: I's called summer,' Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) told HuffPost when asked about the heat on Thursday. 'It's no hotter right now than it's ever been. I've been in this heat all my life in July and August as a football coach. This world's not heating up, come on.'... 'Southern Louisiana, it's always hot,' [House Majority Leader Steve] Scalise [said'. 'Thank God for air conditioning.'... Meanwhile, the Republican Party is attacking the Biden administration's effort to make home appliances, including air conditioners and dishwashers, more efficient. Fox News and other right-wing media have dutifully dubbed the federal effort as Biden's 'war on appliances.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: "Democrats are largely tuning out the House's lurid and shambolic investigatory hearings, which have so far featured photos of a naked Hunter Biden and a much-hyped star witness who turned out to be a fugitive indicted on charges of, among other things, arms trafficking and acting as an unregistered Chinese agent. Behind this circus, however, is something rather astonishing: A major part of the pretext for a possible impeachment of Joe Biden is exactly the same set of lies about Ukraine that helped persuade Democrats to impeach Donald Trump the first time. [Here Goldberg succinctly recounts the whole story of Trump's attempt to bribe President Volodymyr Zelensky to finger Joe Biden for ... something.] Rather than make a specific case, Republicans are trying to foment the cynical sense that scandal surrounds Biden just as it does Trump. The point is not to hold anyone accountable for actual wrongdoing but to parody the process of trying." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: BTW, you may recall that when Zelensky balked at participating in Trump's plan, Trump urged Zelensky to just go on the air and say his government was investigating Joe Biden. A pundit I read or heard recently (cannot recall who) pointed out that this was exactly the same tactic Trump used to try to overturn the 2020 election. When top DOJ officials said there was no significant election fraud and they would not say there was, Trump told them to just say the election was corrupt and Trump and his minions "would do the rest."

Another in the Long-running Series "Trump Was Always a Jerk." Michael Schmidt & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "The accusation [in the special counsel's indictments] about [Donald] Trump's desire to have evidence destroyed adds another chapter to what observers of his career say is a long pattern of gamesmanship on his part with prosecutors, regulators and others who have the ability to impose penalties on his conduct. And it demonstrates how Mr. Trump viewed the conclusion of the Mueller investigation [-- which found evidence of Trump's obstruction --] as a vindication of his behavior, which became increasingly emboldened -- particularly in regards to the Justice Department -- throughout the rest of his presidency, a pattern that appears to have continued despite having lost the protections of the office when he was defeated in the election.... [Robert] Mueller's investigation ultimately identified nearly a dozen acts Mr. Trump took that could be seen as obstruction of justice." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I suppose Schmidt & Haberman partially explain Trump's remarkably stupid trick of attempting to erase the surveillance servers at Mar-a-Lago. That is, obstructing authorities has worked in the past. But if you look at the underlying facts of the Mar-a-Lago incident, you have to conclude that Trump is remarkably stupid. He bought those surveillance cameras. He had them installed and wired to servers. He paid the salaries of the IT staff that maintained the surveillance system. And yet. And yet. He had two employees commit crimes in full view of those cameras. It was not until he got a subpoena that Trump came up with the harebrained scheme of destroying the evidence he knew all along was sitting in his own servers. Who but Trump would be dumb enough to commit a crime in front of his own cameras?

Who's "Rabid" and "Lawless?" Kevin Breuninger of CNBC: "Donald Trump on Friday defended the handling of surveillance footage at his Florida home that is at the center of major new criminal charges in the federal case over the former president's retention of classified documents. 'These are my tapes that we gave to them,' Trump told a conservative radio host in his first public interview since being accused of the new crimes.... 'If we wanted to fight that, I doubt we would have had to give it. But regardless, we gave it.'... Trump also repeated his previous assertion that he is shielded by the Presidential Records Act.... Later in the day, Trump fired off several social media posts raging against the Department of Justice. He accused special counsel Jack Smith ... of 'attempting to destroy the lives of two fine people who have worked for me (and have done a great job!) for a long time.' 'This is textbook Third World intimidation by rabid, lawless prosecutors,' Trump wrote on Truth Social. In a follow-up post, he called for Smith, his prosecutors and Attorney General Merrick Garland to be jailed." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Hmm, if Trump thought the tapes could not be subject to subpoena, why did he set his co-conspirators on an unlawful mission to delete them? Why not fight the subpoena in court as he claimed he could have done before he so willingly (ha ha) gave investigators the tape. Trump's two fine employees may be fine indeed, but they also (allegedly!) joined an illegal conspiracy against the federal government, then lied about their actions to federal agents. It isn't the government that "destroyed their lives"; it's Trump -- and of course their own bad choices.

Brad Reed of the Raw Story: "After he lost the 2020 presidential election..., Donald Trump embraced conspiracy theories espoused by attorney Sidney Powell, who herself got them from a woman who claims she has the ability to speak with the wind. However, Rolling Stone now reports that Trump privately 'sneered at the ridiculousness' of Powell's ideas, which involved the late Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez designing voting machines that would be used to steal an American election seven years after his death in 2013. And what's more, special counsel Jack Smith's office has been pressing sources for their memories of Trump's mockery of Powell, whom he reportedly secretly believed to be 'crazy.' 'The special counsel's continuing interest in incidents where Trump either seemed to know -- or was told by his own aides -- that his election conspiracy theories were baseless suggests that prosecutors are likely preparing to demonstrate that Trump's attempts to overturn the election weren't the result of a reasonable or good faith belief in conspiracy theories but instead willful disregard of the facts,' writes Rolling Stone." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The underlying story -- that Trump thought Powell's conspiracy theories were crazy -- is an old one, unearthed by the House January 6 committee and printed in its final report, published in December 2022. But it's good to know prosecutors are following up on that thread.

Meet the Third Man. Devlin Barrett, et al., of the Washington Post: "This previously unreported account of [Carlos] De Oliveira's actions at Mar-a-Lago, and later statements to federal investigators, shows how the longtime Trump employee has become a key figure in the investigation, one whose alleged actions could bolster the obstruction case against the former president.... With De Oliveira, the government has another strong candidate for flipping...." Carlos appeared untruthful from the get-go, when he told agents who were executing an August 2022 search warrant that he couldn't unlock the storage room because he didn't know where the key was. "In January 2023, De Oliveira was questioned by investigators at his home, according to the indictment. His answers left agents more suspicious of him, the people familiar with the situation said. Weeks later, agents seized his phone, the people said. He was subpoenaed to testify in April before the federal grand jury. By that point, it was clear that prosecutors were deeply skeptical of De Oliveira's explanations of his interactions with Trump and Nauta, and his occasional claims of faulty memory." After a "queen-for-a-day" interview in April 2023 in which investigators told De Oliveira he would not prosecuted for any answers he gave, "prosecutors told De Oliveira's lawyer that they believed he was not being truthful and should expect to be charged."

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post on the main things we learned from the superseding classified documents indictment: "The superseding indictment drives home how much this trial will be about the alleged coverup.... The document [Trump 'presented' in Bedminster is one] that he acknowledged in real time he hadn't declassified."

Zach Schonfeld & Rebecca Beitsch of the Hill: "Former President Trump on Friday appealed a judge's ruling that mandated his hush money criminal case be tried in state court in New York. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, a President Clinton appointee, ruled last week that the 34-count indictment was not connected to Trump's role as president, rejecting his request to move the case to federal court in favor of prosecutors' objections. Trump attorneys Todd Blanche and Susan Necheles filed a notice of appeal Friday afternoon, the first step in taking the dispute to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals."

Phil Helsel of NBC News: "A New York man who stole a police radio and badge from a Washington, D.C., police officer who was being beaten by a mob during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S Capitol was sentenced to over four years in prison Friday, prosecutors said. Thomas Sibick, 37, of Buffalo, stole the badge and radio of then-Metropolitan Police Department Officer Michael Fanone, who has been one of several officers attacked that day to testify before Congress. Sibick was sentenced to 50 months, or four years and two months in prison, and was ordered to pay over $7,500, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington said in a statement. He pleaded guilty in March."

I marvel at all the nonsense that has been written about me in the last year. But that's just not happening. And so at a certain point I've said to myself, nobody else is going to do this, so I have to defend myself. -- "Justice" Sam Alito, in an interview for the Wall Street Journal opinions section ~~~

~~~ Mitts Off My Perks, You Article I Riffraff. Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: “Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. said in an interview published Friday that Congress has no authority to impose an ethics policy on the Supreme Court, and he hinted that other justices share his view. In a piece that appeared in the Wall Street Journal opinions section, Alito noted that he and other justices voluntarily comply with disclosure statutes, but he said mandating an ethics code would be beyond Congress's powers.... It is unusual for a justice to comment so definitively on the constitutionality of legislation, especially when bills are under consideration, and any law that is passed could come before the court. The Journal article ... was notable for another reason: It was written in part by David B. Rivkin Jr., a Washington lawyer well-known in conservative legal circles, who has an upcoming case before the court.... Rivkin and Journal editorial features editor James Taranto noted that Alito has now spoken with them 'on the record for four hours in two wide-ranging sessions.'..." The Hill's report is here. ~~~

~~~ Oh Lordy, There's a Text. Scott Lemieux, in LG&$, rips apart some of Alito's arguments. There's this central one, for instance:

Alito: I know this is a controversial view, but I'm willing to say it. No provision in the Constitution gives them the authority to regulate the Supreme Court -- period.

Lemieux: Hmm, I happen to have the text of the Constitution right here and [it reads]: 'the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.'

Presidential Race 2024

Nicholas Nehamas, et al., of the New York Times: "Candidate after candidate at an Iowa Republican dinner on Friday avoided so much as mentioning the dominant front-runner in the race..., Donald J. Trump. But when Mr. Trump took the stage after more than two hours of speeches by his lower-polling rivals, it took him less than three minutes to unleash his first direct attack of the night on his leading challenger, Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida. Mr. Trump not only suggested that Mr. DeSantis was an 'establishment globalist' but called him 'DeSanctis,' which in Mr. Trump's argot is short for the demeaning nickname DeSanctimonious and is so well-known that most attendees clearly got the reference.... The one speaker who did criticize Mr. Trump at length, former Representative Will Hurd of Texas -- who is so far from contention that he's not even attempting to qualify for the first Republican debate next month -- was booed off the stage."

DeSantis May Be Campaigning on the Florida Taxpayer's Dime. Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis was involved in a car crash in Tennessee this week as he traveled for his campaign. He was unhurt in the incident. However, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel, it's only thanks to that crash that the public found out DeSantis is using state government vehicles to travel for his presidential campaign. And even with that knowledge, there's no way to know who is paying for them. The problem arises from legislation passed earlier this year in Florida that carves out the governor's travel from the state's rigorous public transparency laws."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "Read together, [Florida's new 'educational'] guidelines seem like an exercise in equivocation and blame shifting -- an attempt to downplay the enormity of American slavery and its defining feature, hereditary racial bondage. This is bad enough. But then consider, as well, the political context of Florida under [Gov. Ron] DeSantis.... [Florida is] where DeSantis, as governor, has vetoed spending on Black history celebrations, actively worked to reduce the representation of Black voters in the state and promised, if elected president, to change back the name of an Army base in North Carolina from Fort Liberty to Fort Bragg, as in the Confederate general Braxton Bragg.... When the board that approved the language was handpicked by DeSantis -- as part of his crusade against so-called wokeness -- it's hard not to see this new instruction on the history of slavery as yet another part of the Florida governor's larger ideological project."

Ukraine, et al. The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Saturday in Russia's war on Ukraine is here: "A missile strike injured nine people, including two teenagers, in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro, the regional governor Serhiy Lysak said late on Friday. He said the Russian missile attack, the first on the city center in months, hit a high-rise and a building belonging to the Security Service of Ukraine, also known as SBU. In Brazil, justice officials said they could not approve a U.S. request to extradite Sergey Cherkasov, whom the United States accused of being a Russian spy, because they are already processing Moscow's request for him over allegations of drug trafficking.... The International Olympic Committee invited Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan to compete at next year's Paris Games after she was disqualified from the Fencing World Championships in Milan for refusing a mandatory handshake with Russian opponent Anna Smirnova.... Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law moving the date of Christmas from Jan. 7 to Dec. 25, as part of an effort to 'renounce Russian heritage.'"

July 28, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden gave final approval on Friday to the biggest reshaping in generations of the country's Uniform Code of Military Justice, stripping commanders of their authority over cases of sexual assault, rape and murder to ensure prosecutions that are independent of the chain of command. By signing a far-reaching executive order, Mr. Biden ushered in the most significant changes to the modern military legal system since it was created in 1950. The order follows two decades of pressure from lawmakers and advocates of sexual assault victims, who argued that victims in the military were too often denied justice, culminating in a bipartisan law mandating changes. The White House called the changes to the military justice system 'a turning point for survivors of gender-based violence in the military' and said they kept promises Mr. Biden made as a candidate.... The changes had for years been opposed by military commanders. But they were finally embraced by the Pentagon in 2021 and mandated by a law spearheaded by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Democrat of New York."

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post on the main things we learned from the superseding classified documents indictment: "The superseding indictment drives home how much this trial will be about the alleged coverup.... The document [Trump 'presented' in Bedminster is one] that he acknowledged in real time he hadn't declassified.... With De Oliveira, the government has another strong candidate for flipping...."

I Take My Science-y Advice From Sen. Potato Head. Chris D'Angelo & Igor Bobic of the Huffington Post: <"Two global climate organizations on Thursday confirmed that July is on track to be the single hottest month on record. It is also likely the hottest monthlong stretch in 120,000 years. Nearly 200 million people -- 60% of the U.S. population -- are currently under an extreme heat or flood advisory. But as usual, Republican climate deniers are quick to dismiss the dire impacts. 'There is a very scientific word for this: It's called summer,' Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) told HuffPost when asked about the heat on Thursday. 'It's no hotter right now than it's ever been. I've been in this heat all my life in July and August as a football coach. This world's not heating up, come on.'... 'Southern Louisiana, it's always hot,' [House Majority Leader Steve] Scalise [said'. 'Thank God for air conditioning.'... Meanwhile, the Republican Party is attacking the Biden administration's effort to make home appliances, including air conditioners and dishwashers, more efficient. Fox News and other right-wing media have dutifully dubbed the federal effort as Biden's 'war on appliances.'"

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The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand. -- Mark Felt a/k/a Deep Throat, to Bob Woodward, on the Watergate conspirators ~~~

** ~~~ Alan Feuer, et al., of the New York Times: "Federal prosecutors on Thursday added major accusations to an indictment charging ... Donald J. Trump with mishandling classified documents after he left office, presenting evidence that he told the property manager of Mar-a-Lago, his private club and residence in Florida, that he wanted security camera footage there to be deleted. The new accusations were revealed in a superseding indictment that named the property manager, Carlos De Oliveira, as a new defendant in the case. He is scheduled to be arraigned in Miami on Monday.... The revised indictment added three serious charges against Mr. Trump: attempting to 'alter, destroy, mutilate, or conceal evidence'; inducing someone else to do so; and a new count under the Espionage Act related to a classified national security document that he showed to visitors at his golf club in Bedminster, N.J." (This is a rewrite of a story linked yesterday.) The AP's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is obstruction upon obstruction. On May 11, 2022, the DOJ subpoenaed all classified documents in Trump's possession. In Obstruction Scheme 1, which takes place in late May & early June, Trump has Nauta & De Oliveira move around boxes of various items & papers, including classified docs, so Trump can sift through the boxes and rearrange their contents. He has the guys move boxes containing more than 100 classified docs to places where Trump's own attorneys cannot access them. Then Trump falsely tells his lawyers that all of the classified docs in his possession are in a basement storage closet. The attorneys produce 37 classified documents and turn them over to investigators who come to Mar-a-Lago. While there, those investigators see some surveillance cameras. So in Obstruction Scheme 2, which takes place in late June, a grand jury subpoenas the surveillance video. Trump immediately tells Laurel & Hardy to have the surveillance server destroyed. Nauta secretly rushes from Bedminster to Palm Beach to carry out Trump's order, but a reluctant co-worker foils the scheme. ~~~

~~~ You can read the new indictment, via CNN, here. Mission Fail. MB: The section labeled "The Attempt to Delete Security Camera Footage" (begins at page 26) is a hoot. The guys walk through dark tunnels with flashlights & hold clandestine meetings in the bushes next door to Mar-a-Lardo and in a windowless closet. They sound like mobsters: Carlos tells an IT employee he had better delete the footage because "the boss" wanted it done; then Walt checks with another employee because "someone [MB: i.e., Trump] just wants to make sure Carlos is good," and that person's assures Walt that Carlos is loyal. On that assurance, Trump calls Carlos to tell him not to worry as He Trump would pay for Carlos' lawyer. Oh, and the upshot of all this is that neither the Frick & Frack team nor "the boss" get the IT guy to delete the surveillance footage or deep-six the server. The life of Trump would make a decent "B" mob movie. Better yet, maybe the Coen brothers are taking notes. (Also linked yesterday.)~~~

~~~ From CNN's liveblog: "Special counsel Jack Smith has brought additional charges against ... Donald Trump in the case surrounding his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving the White House, according to the court docket. Trump has been charged with three new counts, including one additional count of willful retention of national defense information and two additional obstruction counts, related to alleged attempts to delete surveillance video footage at the Mar-a-Lago resort in summer 2022." You'll have to scroll down to read this content. AND ~~~

     ~~~ "... Smith has filed an additional charge against ... Donald Trump for willfully retaining a top-secret document about Iran attack plans, which he discussed with biographers during a taped meeting at his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey in July 2021, according to the indictment." Scroll down. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Here's Jack Smith's description of the indictment and a rationale why the superseding indictment should not delay the court's trial schedule. Via Marcy Wheeler.

Marcy Wheeler points to "... a key paragraph of the superseding indictment ... [which] shows how Trump uses legal representation to secure loyalty. It's a fact pattern that crosses both of Trump's crimes, and may well be in the expected January 6 indictment. It may help to break down the omerta currently protecting Trump." That is, Trump keeps poor people from testifying against him by promising to pay their lawyers' fees. MB: It isn't surprising that both Nauta & De Oliveira have Trump-PAC-paid lawyers. Legal codes of ethics demand that lawyers represent their clients, not the entities who pay them, but it would appear Frick's & Frack's are, um, conflicted. You may recall that January 6 witness Cassidy Hutchinson said that her Trump-allied lawyer urged her to "forget" what she heard at the White House and hinted her "faulty memory" would pay off in the form of lucractive job offers; it was not until she got another lawyer that she testified truthfully to the January 6 investigators.

Tierney Sneed of CNN: "Special counsel Jack Smith has charged a third defendant, Carlos De Oliveira, in the Trump Mar-a-Lago classified documents case, according to court files.... De Oliveira was the maintenance worker who helped Nauta move boxes of classified documents around Mar-a-Lago after the Justice Department first subpoenaed Trump for classified documents last May." (Also linked yesterday.)

Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post: “If the allegations in the latest indictment of Donald Trump hold up, the former president is a common criminal -- and an uncommonly stupid one.... According to the superseding indictment handed up late Thursday, even after Trump knew the FBI was onto his improper retention of classified information, and even after he knew they were seeking security camera footage from the Mar-a-Lago storage areas where the material was kept -- in other words, when any reasonably adept criminal would have known to stop digging holes -- Trump made matters infinitely worse. The alleged conduct ... is nothing short of jaw-dropping...." ~~~

~~~ Oh, Yeah? Let's Ask the Trumpettes! Zach Schonfeld of the Hill: "Former President Trump's campaign lashed out Thursday at new charges levied against him and his associates in his Mar-a-Lago classified documents case, calling it an attempt to harass Trump and those around him. 'This is nothing more than a continued desperate and flailing attempt by the Biden Crime Family and their Department of Justice to harass President Trump and those around him,' the campaign said in a statement."

Lawrence O'Donnell pointed out Thursday that the superseding indictment makes clear that Walt Nauta was not an unwitting employee who accidentally got caught up in a misadventure that got away from him; rather, he was a willing & enthusiastic co-conspirator, who went to great lengths to implement Trump's scheme.

Chutzpah! Laura Jarrett of NBC News: "On top of the new charges against the former president about his alleged mishandling of classified documents comes word from the special counsel that Trump wants to be able to discuss classified discovery [at Mar-a-Lago] outside of a classified setting. Clearly baffled, prosecutors from the special counsel's team write in part in the latest court filing: 'There is no basis for the defendant's request that he be given the extraordinary authority to discuss classified information at his residence, and it is particularly striking that he seeks permission to do so in the very location at which he is charged with willfully retaining the documents charged in this case...." This is part of a liveblog and you may have to scroll down.

**Uh-oh. Josh Dawsey, et al., of the Washington Post: "Lawyers for ... Donald Trump were meeting Thursday morning with prosecutors from special counsel Jack Smith's office, more than a week after Trump said he received a letter from the Justice Department telling him he could face criminal charges in connection with his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The meeting, confirmed by a person familiar with the matter..., is another sign that Smith could be close to seeking an indictment of Trump in the Justice Department's long-running elections probe." At 8:35 am ET Thursday, this was a developing story. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update: Adam Reiss & Vaughn Hillyard of NBC News (at 11:14 am ET): "Trump's attorneys Todd Blanche and John Lauro have met with prosecutors in Smith's office, according to three sources. The lawyers were told to expect an indictment, two sources said." This is part of a liveblog. You'll have to scroll down. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update 2: Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "... Donald Trump posted on Truth Social saying his lawyers met on Thursday to appeal to special counsel Jack Smith that 'an indictment would only further destroy the country.' Trump's attorneys went into their meeting with the special counsel Thursday not to argue the facts of the case against indicting Trump, but instead with a broader appeal that indicting him would only cause more turmoil in the country's political environment, two sources familiar with the meeting said." This is part of a liveblog. You'll have to scroll down. (Also linked yesterday.)

Chang Che of the New York Times: "A Kentucky man who used a flagpole to batter a door near the House chamber during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol was found guilty in federal court in Washington on Wednesday on nine counts, including civil disorder and disruption of an official proceeding, prosecutors said. Chad Barrett Jones, 45, of Mount Washington, Ky., was part of a standoff in the Speaker's Lobby that ended in the death of Ashli Babbitt, 35, an Air Force veteran who was fatally shot by a Capitol Police lieutenant as rioters tried to breach the House chamber, prosecutors said. During the encounter, which was captured on video from multiple angles, rioters came close enough to lock eyes with lawmakers, separated only by a few officers and antique wood-and-glass doors. Judge Richard J. Leon of the Federal District Court in Washington found Mr. Jones guilty after a bench trial on two felony and seven misdemeanor charges, including the destruction of government property."

Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "Former Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley pleaded guilty to a federal crime on Thursday in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Kelley pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of entering and remaining on restricted grounds.... Kelley ran for governor in Michigan in 2022 as a Republican, He was arrested last June, before the Republican primary, and was, for a time, leading in the polls." MB: Too bad it's just a misdemeanor. Kelley probably won't get jail time. And I was thinking he would have made a nice simpatico cellmate for Donald Trump. (Also linked yesterday.)

Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: "The Senate on Thursday gave overwhelming approval to the annual defense policy bill, sidestepping a contentious debate over abortion access for service members and quashing efforts to limit aid for Ukraine in a show of bipartisanship that set up a bitter showdown with the House. The vote was 86 to 11 to pass the bill, which would authorize $886 billion for national defense over the next year. It includes a 5.2 percent pay raise for troops and civilian employees, investments in hypersonic missile and drone technology, and measures to improve competition with China. But its fate is deeply in doubt as the measure heads for what is expected to be a contentious negotiation between the Democratic-led Senate and the Republican-led House, where right-wing hard-liners have attached a raft of conservative social policy mandates." MB: And then the whole damned Congress packed up and went home for a five-week summer vacay. ~~~

~~~ Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "House Republicans abandoned efforts to pass a spending bill to fund the Agriculture Department and the F.D.A. on Thursday before heading home for summer break, stymied by internal divisions over funding and social policy that threaten to make it impossible for them to avoid a shutdown in the fall. Caught between hard-right conservatives who wanted tens of billions of dollars cut from the legislation and more mainstream Republicans who oppose abortion-related restrictions that the far right insisted upon adding, G.O.P. leaders abruptly pulled the plug on their plans to pass the $25 billion bill. That added the agriculture measure to a looming legislative pileup in September, when Congress will have just weeks to pass a dozen spending bills or a temporary patch to avoid a government shutdown on Oct. 1." Politico's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Meanwhile, I heard on the teevee tape of Kevin McCarthy boasting Thursday about how Republicans in Congress, unlike Democrats, get things done. It's like Donald Trump's boasting about his "perfect phone calls"; i.e., the one to Zelensky that got him impeached and the one to Raffensperger that is about to get him indicted, probably twice.

Annie Karni & Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "It has been decades since there was any real uncertainty at the top of the Republican Party in the Senate. But Senator Mitch McConnell's alarming freeze-up at a news conference on Wednesday at the Capitol, as well as new disclosures about other recent falls, have shaken his colleagues and intensified quiet discussion about how long he can stay in his position as minority leader, and whether change is coming at the top.For months even before he had an apparent medical episode on camera on Wednesday while speaking to the press, Mr. McConnell, the long-serving Republican leader from Kentucky, has been weakened, both physically and politically."

Manu Raju of CNN: "Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, who froze during a news conference Wednesday and earlier this year suffered a concussion after falling down, has also endured two other falls this year, according to multiple people familiar with the matter," once in Finland in February & earlier this month at Reagan International while deplaning. (Also linked yesterday.)

Marie: Early Thursday, I wrote in the Comments, "Like Dianne Feinstein, Mitch should retire." The next thing you know, ~~~

     ~~~ Kristin Wilson of CNN: "Sen. Dianne Feinstein had to be corrected and told to vote during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Thursday.... During Thursday's hearing, Feinstein was meant to cast her vote on the Defense Appropriations bill, requiring her to say 'Aye' or 'Nay,' when her name was called. When she didn't answer, Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state tried to prompt her. 'Say aye,' she said, repeating herself three times to Feinstein. Feinstein then started to read from prepared remarks, and was interrupted by an aide whispering in her ear. 'Yeah,' Murray said once again. 'Just say "aye."' 'OK, just,' Feinstein replied. 'Aye,' Murray repeated once more. Then Feinstein sat back in her chair. 'Aye,' she said, casting her vote." (Also linked yesterday.)

Maegan Vazquez & Mariana Alfaro of the Washington Post: "Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.) reportedly scolded a group of Senate pages late Wednesday evening, using expletives to curse out the teenagers because they were lying on the floor of the Capitol Rotunda. According to Punchbowl News, Van Orden was giving a tour 'for several dozen visitors around midnight' when he saw the pages lying on the floor in the Rotunda and taking photos because it was their final week as pages. Van Orden called the pages 'lazy s----' and told them to 'get the f--- up' off the floor, sources told the outlet. Senate pages are typically high school students who have a number of responsibilities assisting with the day-to-day operations at the Capitol, including shuttling material within the halls of Congress and acting as support staff. When the Senate continues its work late into the night, as it did Wednesday evening, pages are known to rest in the Rotunda -- which is midway between the House and Senate chambers." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I was preparing to write something like, "In fairness to Van Orden, at midnight he was probably drunk," when I read this graf down-story: "The lawmaker's communications director, Anna Kelly, also sought to provide additional context after a photo circulated of Van Orden's Capitol Hill office, appearing to show several empty bottles of alcohol in the trash and on a desk shortly before the incident with the pages allegedly occurred. Kelly shared a tweet with The Post, which said the congressman 'regularly hosts beer and cheese tours with constituents. The congressman hosted roughly 50 constituents and visitors yesterday before a private tour of the Capitol.'" So I'll have to remove the "probably." Both Senate Leaders -- Schumer & McConnell -- expected Van Orden to apologize to the teenagers. He did not.

Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way to complete a controversial Mid-Atlantic natural gas pipeline, agreeing that Congress greenlighted the project as part of a behind-the-scenes deal to raise the nation's debt ceiling. Without comment, the justices lifted a lower court's halt on the remaining construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which will stretch 300 miles through rugged mountains in West Virginia and Virginia. Environmentalists claim that the pipeline threatens lands, water resources and endangered species along the way, and have found some success blocking final approval at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond. But much of the pipeline is already built. During the tense negotiations earlier this summer to keep the nation from defaulting on its debts, House Republicans and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin III of West Virginia wrangled a deal with the Biden administration to cut the courts out of the process. The bill ... expressly stripped courts of jurisdiction to review 'any action' by a federal agency granting authorization for the construction and operation of the pipeline." Politico's report is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Now, there's a great way to avoid judicial review. Just tuck into every bill a "mitts off, judges" clause. And Democrats could sweeten their bills with, "no Republican-appointed judges may review or rescind any part of this law." If Bibi Netanyahu had thought of this, he could have avoided all those problems with his effort to neuter Israel's judiciary.

Erica Green & Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "President Biden will announce new measures on Thursday aimed at helping communities across the country deal with extreme weather, as rising temperatures scorch much of the country and amplify alarms about the climate crisis. The announcement, to be made in an auditorium on the White House grounds, will come on a day when the National Weather Service is warning that temperatures in the nation's capital could hit triple digits for the first time in nearly seven years. White House officials said the new measures would include funding to improve weather prediction, grants to help ensure clean drinking water across the West and protections for workers who are most vulnerable to heat deaths." MB: I sure as hell hope this invalidates the Texas legislature/Greg Abbott's law outlawing water breaks for construction workers. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Marie: Here are some measures President Biden announced, via NPR. It doesn't appear he has precluded enforcement of Texas' no-water-breaks-for-workers law, which goes into effect in September. (Also linked yesterday.)

~~~ Raymond Zhong of the New York Times: "Weeks of scorching summer heat in North America, Europe, Asia and elsewhere are putting July on track to be Earth's warmest month on record, the European Union climate monitor said on Thursday, the latest milestone in what is emerging as an extraordinary year for global temperatures. Last month, the planet experienced its hottest June since records began in 1850. July 6 was its hottest day. And the odds are rising that 2023 will end up displacing 2016 as the hottest year. At the moment, the eight warmest years on the books are the past eight." (Also linked yesterday.)

Presidential Race 2024

Too askeert to go after frontrunner Donald Trump (he's about 30 points ahead of his nearest rival), GOP presidential candidates attack each other:

Lucy Hodgman of Politico: "Republican presidential candidate Tim Scott on Thursday criticized competitor Ron DeSantis on his support for Florida education standards requiring students to be instructed on the 'benefits' of slavery. Asked by a Politico reporter about the curriculum requirement at a campaign stop outside Des Moines, the South Carolina senator said he hoped that 'every person in our country, and certainly running for president, would appreciate that' slavery had no benefits to enslaved people. 'There is no silver lining in slavery,' Scott said. 'Slavery was really about separating families, about mutilating humans and even raping their wives. It was just devastating."

Miranda Nazzaro of the Hill: "GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley is pushing back against fellow White House hopeful Chris Christie's (R) claims that she and some other candidates do not call out former President Trump enough. 'Well I'm not obsessively anti-Trump like he is,' Haley said in an interview with Fox News Digital. 'I talk about policies,' she added, pointing to times she has 'disagreed with Trump,' including over Jan. 6, government spending and the Russia-Ukraine war."

Capitalism Is Awesome -- Just Ask Elon. Steve Stecklow & Norihiko Shirouzu of Reuters: "About a decade ago, Tesla rigged the dashboard readouts in its electric cars to provide 'rosy' projections of how far owners can drive before needing to recharge, a source told Reuters. The automaker last year became so inundated with driving-range complaints that it created a special ... 'Diversion Team' in Las Vegas to cancel as many range-related appointments as possible.... The directive to present the [overly] optimistic range estimates came from Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk.... Driving range is among the most important factors in consumer decisions on which electric car to buy, or whether to buy one at all.... Tesla was fined earlier this year by South Korean regulators who found the cars delivered as little as half their advertised range in cold weather."

Beyond the Beltway

Tennessee. David Nakamura & Mark Berman of the Washington Post: “The Justice Department on Thursday opened a sweeping civil rights investigation into allegations that the Memphis Police Department systematically used excessive force and discriminated against Black residents, dramatically escalating federal oversight seven months after the police beating death of Tyre Nichols. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said the probe is not based on any single instance of misconduct but was launched after the department's broad review of public records and information provided by community members." (Also linked yesterday.)

Way Beyond

Israel. The Plot Thickens. Patrick Kingsley of the New York Times: “... on Wednesday night, some of [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu's closest allies provided a glimpse of how they could intervene in his prosecution. Eleven lawmakers from Mr. Netanyahu's right-wing party, Likud, introduced a bill that would strip the attorney general -- who has been critical of the government -- of the right to oversee the prosecution of government ministers, including the prime minister. The move sparked anger among the opposition and an Israeli public that has taken to the streets for months to protest the government's efforts to assert more authority over the judiciary.... Although the Likud leadership disowned the bill and its lead proponent pulled it back, its introduction by about a third of its legislators in Parliament, raised questions about the party's intent."

Ukraine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of developments Friday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here. The Guardian's live updates are here. The Guardian's summary report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Friday is here: "Ukraine has reported gains in the southeast after launching a new counteroffensive push.... Ukraine's defense ministry said a U.S. citizen was killed in battle near Bakhmut. It identified him as a volunteer fighter and former Green Beret named Nicholas Maimer, the latest American veteran to die fighting alongside Ukrainian forces.... Vladimir Putin said 'Russia's attention to Africa is growing steadily' and that this 'is reflected in our plans to step up our diplomatic presence on the continent.' He said Russia was 'ready to restore and open new Russian missions abroad.' The Russian leader, seeking to boost ties, is hosting African leaders at the St. Petersburg summit, although far fewer African heads of state are attending compared to the first Russia-Africa summit in 2019." MB: Yeah, too bad Russia's refusal to allow safe passage to ships carrying Ukrainian ag products is starving Africans.

July 27, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

** Alan Feuer, et al., of the New York Times: "Federal prosecutors investigating ... Donald J. Trump on charges of illegally handling classified documents unsealed charges on Thursday against a new defendant -- a maintenance worker at Mar-a-Lago.... The worker, Carlos De Oliveira, who is the head of maintenance at the property and also once parked cars there, was charged with conspiracy to obstruct efforts to retrieve the documents. He was joined to a pre-existing indictment filed in Florida last month accusing Mr. Trump and the aide, Walt Nauta, of a conspiracy to obstruct the government's repeated attempts to retrieve the material.... Mr. De Oliveira was caught on a surveillance camera moving boxes into a storage room at Mar-a-Lago ... in the days between the issuance of a grand jury subpoena demanding all remaining classified material in Mr. Trump's possession and a visit by federal prosecutors to see Mr. Trump's lawyers and enforce the subpoena. Phone records show that Mr. De Oliveira also called an information technology worker at Mar-a-Lago last summer. The call caught the government's attention because it was placed shortly after prosecutors issued a subpoena to Mr. Trump's company, the Trump Organization, demanding the footage from the surveillance camera near the storage room." ~~~

~~~ Earlier. Marie: Okay, Ken Delanian of NBC News now is reporting that special counsel lawyers filed a superceding indictment and that it contains not only charges against Carlos De Oliveira but also additional charges for Donald Trump and Walt Nauta. Two of the three new charges against Trump are for obstruction related to deleting surveillance footage. Uh, wow!

~~~ You can read the new indictment, via CNN, here. MB: The section labeled "The Attempt to Delete Security Camera Footage" (begins at page 26) is a hoot. The guys walk through dark tunnels with flashlights & hold clandestine meetings in the bushes next door to Mar-a-Lardo and in a windowless closet. They sound like mobsters, telling an IT employee he had better delete the footage because "the boss" wanted it done; then Walt's checking with another employee because "someone [MB: i.e., Trump] just wants to make sure Carlos is good," and that person assuring Walt that Carlos is loyal. Trump then calls Carlos to tell him not to worry as He Trump would pay for Carlos' lawyer. Oh, and the upshot of all this is that neither the Frick & Frack team nor "the boss" get the IT guy to delete the surveillance footage. The life of Trump will make a couple of decent "B" mob movies. Better yet, let's hope the Coen brothers are taking notes. ~~~

~~~ From CNN's liveblog: "Special counsel Jack Smith has brought additional charges against ... Donald Trump in the case surrounding his alleged mishandling of classified documents after leaving the White House, according to the court docket. Trump has been charged with three new counts, including one additional count of willful retention of national defense information and two additional obstruction counts, related to alleged attempts to delete surveillance video footage at the Mar-a-Lago resort in summer 2022." You'll have to scroll down to read this content. AND ~~~

     ~~~ "... Smith has filed an additional charge against ... Donald Trump for willfully retaining a top-secret document about Iran attack plans, which he discussed with biographers during a taped meeting at his Bedminster golf club in New Jersey in July 2021, according to the indictment." Scroll down.

Tierney Sneed of CNN: "Special counsel Jack Smith has charged a third defendant, Carlos De Oliveira, in the Trump Mar-a-Lago classified documents case, according to court files.... De Oliveira was the maintenance worker who helped Nauta move boxes of classified documents around Mar-a-Lago after the Justice Department first subpoenaed Trump for classified documents last May." MB: Ken Delanian of MSNBC said that De Oliveira's "name has been added to the docket," which doesn't necessary mean he has been charged.

Marie: Early Thursday, I wrote in the Comments, "Like Dianne Feinstein, Mitch should retire." The next thing you know ~~~

     ~~~ Kristin Wilson of CNN: &"Sen. Dianne Feinstein had to be corrected and told to vote during a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on Thursday.... During Thursday's hearing, Feinstein was meant to cast her vote on the Defense Appropriations bill, requiring her to say 'Aye' or 'Nay,' when her name was called. When she didn't answer, Democratic Sen. Patty Murray of Washington state tried to prompt her. 'Say aye,' she said, repeating herself three times to Feinstein. Feinstein then started to read from prepared remarks, and was interrupted by an aide whispering in her ear. 'Yeah,' Murray said once again. 'Just say "aye."' 'OK, just,' Feinstein replied. 'Aye,' Murray repeated once more. Then Feinstein sat back in her chair. 'Aye,' she said, casting her vote."

**Uh-oh. Josh Dawsey, et al., of the Washington Post: "Lawyers for ... Donald Trump were meeting Thursday morning with prosecutors from special counsel Jack Smith's office, more than a week after Trump said he received a letter from the Justice Department telling him he could face criminal charges in connection with his efforts to overturn the 2020 election. The meeting, confirmed by a person familiar with the matter..., is another sign that Smith could be close to seeking an indictment of Trump in the Justice Department's long-running elections probe." At 8:35 am ET, this was a developing story. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: Adam Reiss & Vaughn Hillyard of NBC News (at 11:14 am ET): "Trump's attorneys Todd Blanche and John Lauro have met with prosecutors in Smith's office, according to three sources. The lawyers were told to expect an indictment, two sources said." This is part of a liveblog. You'll have to scroll down. ~~~

     ~~~ Update 2: Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "... Donald Trump posted on Truth Social saying his lawyers met on Thursday to appeal to special counsel Jack Smith that 'an indictment would only further destroy the country.' Trump's attorneys went into their meeting with the special counsel Thursday not to argue the facts of the case against indicting Trump, but instead with a broader appeal that indicting him would only cause more turmoil in the country's political environment, two sources familiar with the meeting said." This is part of a liveblog. You'll have to scroll down.

David Nakamura & Mark Berman of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department on Thursday opened a sweeping civil rights investigation into allegations that the Memphis Police Department systematically used excessive force and discriminated against Black residents, dramatically escalating federal oversight seven months after the police beating death of Tyre Nichols. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke said the probe is not based on any single instance of misconduct but was launched after the department's broad review of public records and information provided by community members."

Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way to complete a controversial Mid-Atlantic natural gas pipeline, agreeing that Congress greenlighted the project as part of a behind-the-scenes deal to raise the nation's debt ceiling. Without comment, the justices lifted a lower court's halt on the remaining construction of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which will stretch 300 miles through rugged mountains in West Virginia and Virginia. Environmentalists claim that the pipeline threatens lands, water resources and endangered species along the way, and have found some success blocking final approval at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in Richmond. But much of the pipeline is already built. During the tense negotiations earlier this summer to keep the nation from defaulting on its debts, House Republicans and Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin III of West Virginia wrangled a deal with the Biden administration to cut the courts out of the process. The bill ... expressly stripped courts of jurisdiction to review 'any action' by a federal agency granting authorization for the construction and operation of the pipeline." Politico's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Now, there's a great way to avoid judicial review. Just tuck into every bill a "mitts off, judges" clause. And Democrats could sweeten their bills with, "no Republican-appointed judges may review or rescind any part of this law." If Bibi Netanyahu had thought of this, he could have avoided all those problems with his effort to neuter Israel's judiciary.

Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "Former Michigan Republican gubernatorial candidate Ryan Kelley pleaded guilty to a federal crime on Thursday in connection with the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Kelley pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of entering and remaining on restricted grounds.... Kelley ran for governor in Michigan in 2022 as a Republican, He was arrested last June, before the Republican primary, and was, for a time, leading in the polls." MB: Too bad it's just a misdemeanor. Kelley probably won't get jail time. And I was thinking he would have made a nice simpatico cellmate for Donald Trump.

Manu Raju of CNN: "Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell, who froze during a news conference Wednesday and earlier this year suffered a concussion after falling down, has also endured two other falls this year, according to multiple people familiar with the matter," once in Finland in February & earlier this month at Reagan International while deplaning.

Erica Green & Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "President Biden will announce new measures on Thursday aimed at helping communities across the country deal with extreme weather, as rising temperatures scorch much of the country and amplify alarms about the climate crisis. The announcement, to be made in an auditorium on the White House grounds, will come on a day when the National Weather Service is warning that temperatures in the nation's capital could hit triple digits for the first time in nearly seven years. White House officials said the new measures would include funding to improve weather prediction, grants to help ensure clean drinking water across the West and protections for workers who are most vulnerable to heat deaths." MB: I sure hope this invalidates the Texas legislature/Greg Abbott's law outlawing water breaks for construction workers. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Marie: Here are some measures President Biden announced, via NPR. It doesn't appear he has precluded enforcement of Texas' no-water-breaks-for-workers law, which goes into effect in September.

~~~ Raymond Zhong of the New York Times: "Weeks of scorching summer heat in North America, Europe, Asia and elsewhere are putting July on track to be Earth's warmest month on record, the European Union climate monitor said on Thursday, the latest milestone in what is emerging as an extraordinary year for global temperatures. Last month, the planet experienced its hottest June since records began in 1850. July 6 was its hottest day. And the odds are rising that 2023 will end up displacing 2016 as the hottest year. At the moment, the eight warmest years on the books are the past eight."

~~~~~~~~~~

Bryan Mena of CNN: "The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark lending rate by a quarter point Wednesday, lifting interest rates to their highest level in 22 years. It's the 11th rate increase since the Fed began its inflation fight in March 2022, and comes just one month after the central bank hit pause in order to assess the state of the economy after the failures of three regional banks since the spring. Fed officials are estimating one more rate hike this year, according to their latest set of projections. Inflation's steady slowdown in recent months has been encouraging for American consumers and businesses, but officials reiterated in their post-meeting statement that 'inflation remains elevated' and that the Fed 'remains highly attentive to inflation risks.'..."

John Sakellariadis of Politico: "The Biden administration has tapped former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley to head the Social Security Administration, the White House announced Wednesday. O'Malley, a Democrat, will require Senate confirmation to take over at the agency, which oversees a $1 trillion budget and is responsible for distributing benefits to older adults and disabled people." (Also linked yesterday.)

Rebecca Shabad & Liz Brown-Kaiser of NBC News: "Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell suddenly stopped speaking during a weekly Republican leadership press conference on Wednesday afternoon, appearing to freeze, and then went silent and was walked away. McConnell, R-Ky., had been making his opening remarks and suddenly stopped talking. His Republican colleagues asked if he was okay and Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., escorted McConnell away from the cameras and reporters.... A few minutes later, McConnell walked back to the press conference by himself. When asked about his health, he said he was fine." This is painful to watch: (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here. ~~~

Helene Cooper of the New York Times: "Even by the extraordinary standards of contemporary political theater, Wednesday's House Oversight subcommittee hearing on U.F.O.s stood out. There, in a somber chamber of the Rayburn House Office Building, a former national intelligence official told elected representatives that the U.S. government is sheltering alien spacecraft.... David Grusch..., in sworn testimony..., said that longstanding covert programs within the U.S. government possess materials of nonhuman origin that were taken from crash sites.... A succession of lawmakers rebuked what they characterized as decades of unnecessary secrecy in government programs that studied unexplained phenomena. Representative Tim Burchett, Republican of Tennessee, lamented a 'cover-up' that he said stretched far beyond partisan politics.... Under pressure from Congress, the Pentagon and intelligence agencies have gathered hundreds of reports of unexplained phenomena. Officials have said that most of the incidents involved airborne trash, Chinese spying efforts or weather balloons, and that none of the videos or other material collected provides evidence of alien visitation."

A Liar AND [Allegedly!] a Crook. Grace Ashford of the New York Times: "In the years since [Rep. George] Santos [R-N.Y.] first ran for the House in 2020, he has become adept at finding ways to extract money from politics. He founded a political consulting group that he marketed to other Republicans. He sought to profit from the Covid crisis, using campaign connections. And he solicited investments for and from political donors, raising ethical questions.... Mr. Santos ... has not been charged with personal use of campaign funds. But a review of his political career found several previously unreported examples of how he sought to use the connections he made as a candidate for public office to enrich himself." The writers open with a Santos scheme that sounded to the mark a lot like the fake Nigerian prince email scam. (Also linked yesterday.)

Perry Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: "A federal judge on Wednesday delayed accepting a plea deal for President Biden's son Hunter, saying the terms as written by prosecutors and defense lawyers may not be constitutional, but also signaling the agreement could be approved in the future. The deal that had been struck in June began to unravel near the start of the three-hour hearing. U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika asked a series of questions that revealed a disagreement between federal prosecutors and Biden's lawyers over whether the agreement -- in which he would plead guilty to two tax misdemeanors and likely avoid jail time -- would protect him from the possibility of additional criminal charges. The complications marked another twist in a case that has been clouded for years by questions about possible political bias, prosecutorial delay, and debate over whether Hunter Biden was being treated too harshly or too gently because of his father's status as a former vice president and, later, president." (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here. The Guardian's story is here.

How to Become a Multimillionaire on a Justice's Measly $285K Salary. Steve Eder, et al., of the New York Times: Book "deals have become highly lucrative for [Supreme Court] justices, including for those who have used court staff members to help research and promote their books.... Other federal judges are bound by the Code of Conduct for United States Judges.... One of the tenets ... says that 'a judge should not to any substantial degree use judicial chambers, resources or staff to engage in extrajudicial activities.'... The Times reported earlier this year that justices have heavily relied on their staff to support other paid outside work, including teaching, despite a judicial advisory opinion -- which the justices say they voluntarily follow -- that staff members should not help 'The Times reported earlier this year that justices have heavily relied on their staff to support other paid outside work, including teaching, despite a judicial advisory opinion -- which the justices say they voluntarily follow -- that staff members should not help 'in performing activities for which extra compensation is to be received.'"

Rebecca Shabad & Frank Thorp of NBC News: "Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said Wednesday that it seems like Donald Trump's final White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, might be cooperating with the federal probe into the former president. Christie was reacting to a brief exchange captured on video Wednesday morning in Washington between Meadows and an NBC News reporter, who asked Meadows whether he has testified before a federal grand jury. 'I don't talk about anything J6-related,' Meadows said.... 'Watching that video,' Christie said in an interview on MSNBC's 'Andrea Mitchell Reports,' 'that looks to me like somebody who is cooperating with the federal government.' Christie [-- a former U.S. attorney --] said witnesses who testify before grand juries can talk publicly about it if they want to. 'The only time you can't do it is when the government has a cooperation agreement with you and they say, "No talking about this; the only time we want to hear you talking is when you're on the witness stand,"' he said."

Jack, Call Mo. Vaughn Hillyard of NBC News: "Former Rep. Mo Brooks is 'mildly surprised' that special counsel Jack Smith's office has not sought a meeting with him to discuss his accusations that ... Donald Trump urged him to help 'rescind' the 2020 election.... Brooks, a Republican who represented an Alabama district in Congress, said in an interview that he would meet with prosecutors if they ask.... 'I was shocked [Trump] was so blatant about it -- illegal conduct.'... Brooks previously said Trump had made requests to overturn the 2020 election as late as September 2021.... 'Donald Trump wanted me to do four things: advocate rescinding the election, advocate physically removing Joe Biden from the White House, advocate reinstating Donald Trump as president of the United States and advocate a new special election for president of the United States -- all of which violate the U.S. Constitution and federal law,' Brooks said. 'And after I got done explaining that to him, he withdrew his endorsement and endorsed my opponent [in a primary race for a U.S. Senate seat].'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It's possible that the reason Jack hasn't called Mo is that Jack has spoken to a dozen other members of Congress who told him the same thing: that Donald Trump told them to overturn the election in any number of ways that were clearly illegal or unconstitutional.

Michael Kranish of the Washington Post: "As Donald Trump considered another White House run last year, his company's finances were at risk of spiraling into crisis. The former president's longtime lender and several banks with his deposits had cut ties in the days around the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by his supporters, at a time when Trump had hundreds of millions in loans coming due. In February 2022, the accounting firm that had worked for him for two decades dropped Trump and advised against relying on his 'statement of financial condition,' a metric banks use to evaluate the risks of a loan.... One day after the warning ... became public..., -- a Republican donor named Gregory Garrabrants [-- the blunt-spoken president and CEO of Axos, a little-known online-only financial company] -- signed off on a $100 million loan for Trump Tower.... Three months later, Garrabrants approved a second deal that provided $125 million for Trump's Doral resort.... Axos also financed part of a loan that helped facilitate the $375 million purchase of Trump's D.C. hotel by a group of investors. The Axos loans to Trump were vital to stabilizing his post-presidential finances and enabling him to mount [his 2024] campaign."

Thief-in-Chief to Return Artefacts to Israel. Michael Sainato of the Guardian: "Donald Trump will finally return ancient artifacts sent to the US by Israel in 2019 after the items had a lengthy stay at Mar-a-Lago. Israel sent the items to the US in December 2019 for a Hanukkah event at the White House.... ended up [at Mar-a-Lago] when Republican donor Saul Fox gave them to the then president Trump at a [December] 2021 Hanukkah party at Mar-a-Lago. The items were entrusted to Fox after the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic delayed retrieval of the items as the Israel Antiquities Authority did not want to entrust the items to a shipping company. Fox told the Wall Street Journal that he thought the items were to be given to Trump permanently. Previous efforts by senior Israeli officials to retrieve the artifacts over the past several months had failed." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: According to the story, Fox gave the artifacts to "then president Trump" at a December 2021 Hanukkah party. But Trump was not president* (except maybe in his own mind) in December 2021. Weird. Here's a New York Times backstory that doesn't pretend Trump was still president* when Fox "gave" him the artifacts.

Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "Rudolph W. Giuliani has admitted that while acting as a lawyer for ... Donald J. Trump, he made false statements in asserting that two Georgia election workers had mishandled ballots while counting votes in Atlanta during the 2020 election. The admission by Mr. Giuliani came in court papers filed on Tuesday night as part of a defamation lawsuit that the two workers, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, had brought against him in Federal District Court in Washington in December 2021. The suit accused Mr. Giuliani and others of promoting a video that purported to show Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss -- who are mother and daughter -- of manipulating ballots while working at the State Farm Arena for the Fulton County Board of Elections.... But Mr. Giuliani, insisting that he still had 'legal defenses' in the case, said that he continued to believe his accusations about Ms. Freeman and Ms. Moss were 'constitutionally protected' under the First Amendment. He also refused to acknowledge that his statements had caused the women any damage...." Giuliani said he was making his admissions to save litigation costs. Politico's report is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yesterday MSNBC & CNN repeatedly played a video of false accusations Giuliani made against the women after the 2020 election. In the video, Rudy accuses them of "passing around USB ports," making the accusation even more ludicrous than intended. A "USB port" is where you dock a USB "flash drive" or "stick." That is, it's an outlet in the computer itself where you plug in a USB stick or other connector. If the women were passing around "ports," they would have had to surreptitiously hand off big ole computers. Just stupid.

Tom Jackman of the Washington Post: "A Kentucky man who was part of a mob smashing windows to the House Speaker's Lobby in the Capitol on Jan. 6, which led to Ashli Babbitt trying to climb through before being fatally shot by police, was convicted Thursday of two felonies and seven misdemeanors, including obstruction of an official proceeding and destruction of government property. Chad Barrett Jones, 45, of Mount Washington, Ky., was captured on video as part of a group of Donald Trump supporters cursing U.S. Capitol Police officers who were standing outside the glass doors to the Speaker's Lobby while members of Congress were preparing to evacuate as rioters neared."

Nicholas Kristof of the Washington Post has a fairly good column on the inequality inherent in college admissions policies.

Way Beyond the Beltway

Ukraine, et al.

The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Thursday in Russia's war on Ukraine is here: "Ukraine has launched a new push against Russian lines, achieving some gains in the south, Kyiv said. A U.S. official said it was unclear 'what the purpose' of these moves may be.... The goal of Ukraine's latest military push is to reach the Sea of Azov.... Swedish officials accused the Kremlin of backing a disinformation campaign to discredit Stockholm -- which is set to join NATO soon -- in the eyes of Muslims. Copies of the Quran have been burned at demonstrations in the country, triggering outrage among Muslims, including in Turkey, a NATO member country that was slow to agree to Sweden's accession to the transatlantic alliance.... The White House is exploring 'less efficient' land routes to export grain from Ukraine, after Russia withdrew from the Black Sea grain deal last week." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Thursday are here. The Guardian's summary report is here.

Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "President Biden has quietly ordered the U.S. government to begin sharing evidence of Russian war crimes in Ukraine with the International Criminal Court in The Hague, according to officials familiar with the matter, signaling a major shift in American policy. The decision, made by Mr. Biden in recent days, overrides months of resistance by the Pentagon, which had argued that it could pave the way for the court to prosecute American troops, according to the officials." The Guardian's story is here.

Israel. Patrick Kingsley & Aaron Boxerman of the New York Times: "Israel's Supreme Court said Wednesday that it would begin in September to review a contentious new law that diminishes the court's own role, setting the stage for a constitutional crisis and renewed social turmoil if the judges then overturn the legislation. The decision sets up a looming clash between the executive branch of government and the highest court in the land. The Supreme Court must now decide whether to reassert its dominance over Prime Minister Benjamin's Netanyahu's government -- or it must accept the move to reduce its own power. Either conclusion is likely to provoke widespread anger, since the issue has become a proxy for a much broader battle over Israel's character." (Also linked yesterday.)

U.K. Emine Sinmaz of the Guardian: "Kevin Spacey wept and said he was humbled after being cleared of sexual assault in one of the UK's most high-profile #MeToo trials. The 64-year-old Oscar-winning actor sobbed in the dock as he was found not guilty on Wednesday of sexually assaulting four men after a four-week trial at Southwark crown court." (Also linked yesterday.)

News Lede

Washington Post: "Charles Wurster, a scientist whose battle to ban pesticides helped save the bald eagle and other endangered bird species, and led to the founding of the Environmental Defense Fund, one of America's premier environmental groups, died July 6 at his daughter's home in Arlington, Va. He was 92."