May 19, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "Negotiations between top White House and Republican congressional officials over a deal to raise the debt limit hit a snag on Friday when a G.O.P. leader in the talks said it was time to 'press pause,' complaining that President Biden's team was being unreasonable and that no progress could be made. It was a setback in the effort to avert a debt default before a June 1 deadline, though it was not clear whether the delay was a tactical retreat or a lasting blow to chances of getting an agreement. The halt came one day after the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus declared that Republicans should cease negotiations with Mr. Biden and insist on their debt limit legislation, which demanded steep spending cuts in exchange for raising the federal borrowing cap and is a dead letter in the Democratic-controlled Senate. The abrupt announcement of a pause also came just a day after Speaker Kevin McCarthy, Republican of California, told reporters that he believed negotiators could reach a deal in principle as early as the weekend." CNBC's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Every snag is an opportunity. It's Fourteenth Amendment time, Joe!

Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "F.B.I. analysts improperly used a warrantless surveillance program to search for information about hundreds of Americans who came under scrutiny in connection with two politically charged episodes of civil unrest: the protests after the 2020 police killing of George Floyd and the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, a newly declassified court ruling shows. While the F.B.I. has tightened restrictions since then, the disclosure of the misuses is likely to provide fodder to critics of the program as the Biden administration seeks to persuade Congress to renew it. The surveillance program, known as Section 702, empowers the government to collect, without a warrant and from American companies like Google and AT&T, the communications of foreigners abroad who are targeted for intelligence purposes -- even when they are talking with or about Americans."

Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "A Metropolitan Police Department lieutenant who supervised the intelligence branch of the Washington, D.C., police was indicted this week, charged with tipping off former Proud Boys leader Enrique Tarrio about a pending warrant for his arrest just ahead of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.... Shane Lamond, 47, was indicted on one count of obstruction of justice and three counts of making false statements, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia said Friday. A federal grand jury charged Lamond with obstructing the investigation into the burning of [a Black Lives Matter] banner Dec. 12, 2020, when the Proud Boys were roaming the streets of Washington for a pro-Trump event. Between July 2019 and January 2021, Tarrio and Lamond communicated 'at least 500 times using cloud-based messaging services...," the indictment said. They sent approximately 145 messages using a secret chat function on Telegram that causes messages to disappear, the indictment charged, adding 'at least 101 of these messages were destroyed.'"

Presidential Race 2024. Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "The bipartisan political group No Labels is stepping up a well-funded effort to field a 'unity ticket' for the 2024 presidential race, prompting fierce resistance from even some of its closest allies who fear handing the White House back to Donald J. Trump. At the top of the list of potential candidates is Senator Joe Manchin III, the conservative West Virginia Democrat who has been a headache to his party and could bleed support from President Biden in areas crucial to his re-election." MB: These people make me sick.

New York. Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Aidan McLaughlin of Mediaite: "The New York Post dropped a bombshell report last week: amid a nationwide influx of migrants, nearly two-dozen homeless veterans were kicked out of hotels where they were being temporarily housed in order to make room for migrants in upstate New York. The story, which was based on a claim by a veterans advocate, got the front page treatment: 'VETS KICKED OUT FOR MIGRANTS,' bellowed the Post last Saturday.... Naturally, Fox News covered the story enthusiastically, treating it as gospel on nearly every program. Hosts pinned blame for the very local story on [President] Biden.... Then, the story fell apart. First, the hotels that veterans were supposedly booted from told Mid-Hudson News they had no idea what the advocate, YIT Foundation Executive Director Sharon Finch, was talking about. Then, a local Republican New York lawmaker dug into her claims and concluded that she lied.... But wait, it gets worse. The Mid-Hudson News -- kudos to this local paper for some tremendous coverage on this story, by the way -- reported on Friday morning that seven homeless men had come forward to reveal that Finch approached them at a shelter this week, offering to pay them in cash, food, and alcohol to pretend that they were veterans who had been kicked out of the hotels to make way for migrants. [The New York Post printed a correction and a report on their story being false.] Fox News has yet to issue any correction over the story."

On the matter of the federal budget, contributor RAS offers this suggestion:

This is Bob. Bob gets $1,500 a year in food stamps to help feed his family. This is Shell. Shell gets 2 billion a year in subsidies, granted by the government, because it has excellent lobbyists and bribes. pic.twitter.com/KxiLgdCphc

— Amy (she, her) (@DrawingsbyAmy) September 7, 2022

~~~~~~~~~~

On the Left.... Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "Speaker Kevin McCarthy's demand that any deal to raise the debt limit must include stricter work requirements for social safety net programs -- and President Biden's hints that he might be willing to accept such a bargain -- has drawn a backlash from liberal Democrats in Congress, underscoring the tricky politics at play in bipartisan talks to avert a default.... Talk of ... a compromise has set off a wave of anger among liberals on Capitol Hill, who have begun openly fretting that the president might agree to a deal they cannot accept. 'I cannot in good conscience support a debt ceiling proposal that pushes people into poverty,' said Senator John Fetterman, Democrat of Pennsylvania."~~~

~~~ On the Far Right. Mariana Alfaro & Marianna Sotomayor of the Washington Post: "The House Freedom Caucus said it's calling on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to suspend his negotiation on raising the debt limit with the White House and instead focus on getting the House-passed 'Limit, Save, Grow Act' through the Senate. 'There should be no further discussion until the Senate passes the legislation,' a statement from the Republican group said." Mediaite has an item here.

U.S. Kills Shepherd Keeping Watch Over His Flocks. Omar Nezhat, et al., of the Washington Post: "U.S. military officials are walking back claims that a recent strike in Syria killed an influential al-Qaeda figure, following assertions by the dead man's family that he had no ties to terrorists but was a father of 10 tending to his sheep when he was slain by an American missile. Lotfi Hassan Misto, 56, whose family identified him as the victim of a Hellfire missile attack on May 3, was a former bricklayer who lived quietly in this town in northwest Syria, according to interviews with his brother, son and six others who knew him.... The operation was overseen by U.S. Central Command, which claimed hours after the strike, without citing evidence or naming a suspect, that the Predator drone strike had targeted a 'senior Al Qaeda leader.' But now there is doubt inside the Pentagon about who was killed, two U.S. defense officials told The Washington Post. 'We are no longer confident we killed a senior AQ official,' one official said. The other, offering a slightly different view, said 'though we believe the strike did not kill the original target, we believe the person to be al-Qaeda.'"

Azi Paybarah of the Washington Post: "One of President Biden's nominees for a federal appeals court position withdrew from consideration on Thursday after months of rare resistance from Democrats in the Senate, who saw the candidate as controversial. Biden nominated former New Hampshire attorney general Michael Delaney to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in January. But the nomination languished as Congress members from both sides of the aisle raised concerns about Delaney's legal record. Delaney came under criticism from Democrats and Republicans over his controversial stances defending a parental notification law for abortion and representing a private school amid a sexual assault scandal. Democrats who control the Senate Judiciary Committee held the nomination over several times and never brought it up for a vote.... In a letter to the president..., [Delaney] also noted that he was 'deeply indebted' to New Hampshire Democratic Sens. Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan for continuing to support his nomination...."

Gym Jordan Holds a Show Hearing Featuring Discredited Witnesses. Lindsay Whitehurst & Farnoush Amiri of the AP: "Former FBI employees accused the bureau of politicization in congressional testimony Thursday, a day after the agency disclosed that two of the men had seen their security clearances revoked over concerns about how their views of the Capitol attack on Jan. 6, 2021, affected their work.... Former FBI employees Marcus Allen and Steve Friend testified to the panel just hours after the FBI informed [subcommittee chair Jim] Jordan in a letter Wednesday -- obtained by The Associated Press -- that both men had been stripped of security clearances after either attending the Capitol riot in 2021 or espousing alternate theories about the attack.... Democrats dismissed the testimony, calling the hearing another attempt by Republicans on the committee to help ... Donald Trump. 'This select committee is a clearinghouse for testing conspiracy theories for Donald Trump to use in his 2024 presidential campaign,' [top Democrat Del. Stacey] Plaskett [said]." ~~~

     ~~~ Annie Grayer, et al., of CNN: "Three self-described FBI whistleblowers, [two of whom have had their security clearances revoked,] who are key to the Republican narrative that the FBI is weaponized against conservatives, testified at a House hearing Thursday, the latest escalation of Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan's investigation into allegations of discrimination and bias within the FBI.... Democrats ... raised concerns about their access to information about some of those claims and questioned the credibility of the individuals testifying. Del. Stacey Plaskett, the top Democrat on the weaponization subcommittee, pressed Jordan during the hearing on whether Democrats can get access to the testimony from [former agent Marcus] Allen's interview with GOP members of the committee. But much to the dismay of Democrats, Jordan would not budge on providing the interview transcript or video. Jordan said Allen wasn't comfortable including Democrats in his interview and said Democrats aren't entitled to all the evidence collected when it comes to whistleblowers.... 'I find it incredible that evidence that one side has garnered is not going to be shared with the other side,' said Democratic Rep. Linda Sanchez. 'That's now how committees work.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Aaron Blake of the Washington Post highlights some key remarks made during the hearing.

Foghorn Leghorn Smears Anti-Corruption Judge. Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post: Senior Judge "Mark L. Wolf has spent his career fighting against corruption and for the rule of law -- as a public corruption prosecutor, as a federal judge, as a crusader against international kleptocracy. For that, at a hearing on judicial ethics this week, he was rewarded with some of the most shameful treatment in memory by a pair of Republican senators ... -- John Neely Kennedy of Louisiana and Mike Lee of Utah -- ... seemingly more intent on smearing the messenger and defending Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas than on exercising their constitutional oversight responsibilities."

Miss Margie Profiles Black Male Colleague. Jared Gans of the Hill: "Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) criticized Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on Thursday for 'reckless' and 'dangerous' remarks after she said she felt 'threatened' following an encounter the two had the day before on the steps of the Capitol. Bowman mentioned the lynching of Emmett Till in 1955 and the killing by police in Ferguson, Mo., of Michael Brown in 2014 in criticizing Greene, saying she was putting him in danger with her remarks and playing on racist tropes that demonized Black men.... 'Throughout history, Black men have continually been characterized as aggressive because, one, of our skin color, but two, because we happen to be outspoken and passionate about certain issues,' Bowman said. Greene at a press conference earlier in the day had said that Bowman has a 'history of aggression' toward her and others that she is 'very concerned' about. 'Yelling, shouting, raising his voice. He has aggressive -- his physical mannerisms are aggressive,' she said.... '...I feel threatened by him.'... Bowman said he never invaded Greene's personal space during their interaction and was laughing during the exchange." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I guess this is Miss Margie showing how fearful she is:

~~~ Marie: Fortunately, she is not at all askeert of Rep. Clay Higgins (R-La.), a big ex-cop who forcibly removed a heckler from a sidewalk "press conference" a few of Margie's friends were holding earlier this week. Yesterday, when I linked to an item about the Higgins incident, I wrote that Higgins reactions might have been justified as a reasonable person might have found the heckler's actions to be threatening. I still think that's true, but there's a mitigating factor I didn't know yesterday: Higgins resigned from a Louisiana force in 2004 after using excessive force against an innocent Black bystander, then lied about it. According to a Times-Picayune report (July 2020), "Without justification, Higgins struck [Andre] Richard, grabbed him by the neck and may have kicked him as he lay handcuffed, face-down. Higgins then lied about it to his superiors and falsely accused Richard of battery, records show. He quit the force soon after, as the department was about to impose hefty discipline on Higgins for his misconduct, says Perry Gallow, then chief of the Opelousas Police Department." So that tells you a lot about what you need to know about Higgins' judgment and, in my mind, calls into question his decision to use force against a protester this week.

Annie Karni & Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "When she arrived at the Capitol last week after a more than two-month absence recovering from shingles, Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, 89, appeared shockingly diminished. Using a wheelchair, with the left side of her face frozen and one eye nearly shut, she seemed disoriented.... Ms. Feinstein's frail appearance was a result of several complications after she was hospitalized for shingles in February, some of which she has not publicly disclosed. The shingles spread to her face and neck, causing vision and balance impairments and facial paralysis known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome. The virus also brought on a previously unreported case of encephalitis, a rare but potentially debilitating complication of shingles, according to two people familiar with the senator's diagnosis.... And even before this latest illness, Ms. Feinstein had already suffered substantial memory issues that had raised questions about her mental capacity.” Feinstein continues to refuse to retire. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Democrats' failure to politely force Feinstein into retirement is elder abuse.

Robert Barnes & Cat Zackrzewski of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court ruled for Google and Twitter in a pair of closely watched liability cases Thursday, saying families of terrorism victims had not shown the companies helped foster attacks on their loved ones. 'Plaintiffs' allegations are insufficient to establish that these defendants aided and abetted ISIS in carrying out the relevant attack,' Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in a unanimous decision in the Twitter case. The court adopted similar reasoning in the claim against Google. The court's narrowly focused rulings sidestepped requests to limit a law that protects social media platforms from lawsuits over content posted by their users, even if the platform's algorithms promote videos that laud terrorist groups. That law, Section 230, has emerged as a lightning rod in the politically polarized debate over the future of online speech, as tech companies come under increased pressure to police offensive, harmful and violent posts on their platforms." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that Andy Warhol was not entitled to draw on a prominent photographer's portrait of Prince for an image of the musician that his estate licensed to a magazine, limiting the scope of the fair-use defense to copyright infringement in the realm of visual art. The vote was 7 to 2 Justice Sonia Sotomayor, writing for the majority, said the photographer&'s 'original works, like those of other photographers, are entitled to copyright protection, even against famous artists.' She focused on the fact that Warhol and Lynn Goldsmith, the photographer whose work he altered, were both engaged in the commercial enterprise of licensing images of Prince to magazines.... In dissent, Justice Elena Kagan, joined by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., wrote that the decision 'will stifle creativity of every sort.'" MB: Copyright lawyers must be thrilled by the ruling. ~~~

     ~~~ "You're a Drama Queen!" "You're a Philistine!" Sotormayor & Kagan had a spat, reflected in their opinions: Liptak writes, "Justice Kagan's opinion, Justice Sotomayor wrote, was made up of 'a series of misstatements and exaggerations, from the dissent's very first sentence to its very last.' Justice Kagan responded that Justice Sotomayor wholly failed to appreciate Warhol's art. 'The majority does not see it,' Justice Kagan wrote. 'And I mean that literally. There is precious little evidence in today's opinion that the majority has actually looked at these images, much less that it has engaged with expert views of their aesthetics and meaning.'"

Richard Fausset & Danny Hakim of the New York Times: "The Georgia prosecutor leading an investigation into ... Donald J. Trump and his allies has taken the unusual step of announcing remote work days for most of her staff during the first three weeks of August, asking judges in a downtown Atlanta courthouse not to schedule trials for part of that time as she prepares to bring charges in the inquiry. The moves suggest that Fani T. Willis, the Fulton County district attorney, is expecting a grand jury to unseal indictments during that time period. Ms. Willis outlined the remote work plan and made the request to judges in a letter sent on Thursday to 21 Fulton County officials...."

~~~ Book Reviews. Ed Mazza of the Huffington Post: "Sen. Josh Hawley's (R-Mo.) book on manhood ― called, of course, 'Manhood' ― is finally out, and the reviews have not been very kind. Mazza provides excerpts from some reviews." MB: Not surprisingly, the reviews are a lot funnier than what reviewers found to be a humorless book. And apparently Hawley fails to address his famously manly flight away from the mob of marauders he had hours before given a solidarity air-fist pump.

Beyond the Beltway

Florida Mouse Poop. Brooks Barnes of the New York Times: After warning there could be a price for Gov. Ron DeSantis' retaliation against Disney for the company's criticism of DeSantis' "Don't Say Gay" law, Disney CEO Robert "Iger and Josh D'Amaro, Disney's theme park and consumer products chairman, showed that they were not bluffing, pulling the plug on a nearly $1 billion office complex that was scheduled for construction in Orlando. It would have brought more than 2,000 jobs to the region, with $120,000 as the average salary, according to an estimate from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.... The company's battle with Mr. DeSantis and his allies in the Florida Legislature figured prominently into Disney's decision to cancel the Lake Nona project, according to two people briefed on the matter...." The AP story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Montana. Sapna Maheshwari & David McCabe of the New York Times: "A court battle over First Amendment rights kicked off in Montana on Thursday after a group of TikTok users challenged the state's new TikTok ban, which is set to take effect Jan. 1 and is the first of its kind in the nation. The TikTok users said in a lawsuit that the law violated their First Amendment rights and claimed that the ban, which Gov. Greg Gianforte [R] signed on Wednesday, far outstripped Montana's legal authority as a state. The lawsuit was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court but was added to a public court records system on Thursday. The ban has also set off an outcry from TikTok and civil liberty and digital rights groups."

Texas/Colorado. Olafimihan Oshin of the Hill: "Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) confirmed Thursday that the first bus of migrants has arrived in Colorado.... Abbott [noted] in a news release ... that the migrants were dropped off near the Civic Center Park in Denver." MB: Colorado's governor and U.S. senators are Democrats, as is the mayor of Denver.

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Friday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Friday is here: "The Biden administration has informed European allies that Washington will not block their export of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, a person familiar with the decision told The Washington Post. President Biden has said previously that he opposes the United States sending F-16s to Ukraine. President Biden is in Japan to attend the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima, where the Russian invasion of Ukraine is one of the top items on the agenda. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to attend the meeting in person.... The United States will roll out a 'substantial package' of sanctions that will make it 'even harder for Russia to sustain its war machine,' a senior Biden administration official said Thursday. This involves restricting categories of goods essential to battle and cutting off dozens of Russian and third-country entities from receiving U.S. exports, among other measures, the official said."

COMMUNITY CHEST CARD -- Accounting Error In Your Favor. Collect $3 Billion. Karoon Demirjian, et al., of the New York Times: "The Pentagon has significantly reduced its estimate of the value of weapons it has sent to Ukraine, freeing up at least $3 billion to keep Ukrainian troops supplied in their war against Russia over the next several months. The Biden administration has faced intensifying pressure to explain how it intended to continue supporting Ukraine without asking Congress to replenish its budget. On Thursday, Pentagon and State Department officials told congressional staff members that they had discovered an accounting issue that could make more resources available.... Administration officials said their mistake was one of improper valuation, explaining that they had been calculating the price of each item based on how much it would cost to replace it with new equipment, instead of its sale value.... But instead of placating Congress's concerns, the revelation was met with frustration and anger, as some lawmakers criticized the Biden administration for what they said was an extremely troublesome error."

Nigeria. Sammy Westfall of the Washington Post (May 17): "Assailants attacked a two-vehicle U.S. government convoy in Nigeria on Tuesday, killing four people and leaving some members of the convoy 'unaccounted for,' Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a Wednesday statement. No U.S. citizens were involved, National Security Council communications coordinator John Kirby said in a Tuesday briefing."

News Lede

Washington Post: "Sam Zell, the proudly foul-mouthed real estate tycoon whose daring buyout of the Tribune Co., the publisher of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, was riddled by mismanagement, allegations of sexual harassment and financial calamity that ultimately sent the company into bankruptcy, died May 18 at 81."

May 18, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Mouse Poop. Brooks Barnes of the New York Times: After warning there could be a price for Gov. Ron DeSantis' retaliation against Disney for the company's criticism of DeSantis' "Don't Say Gay" law, Disney CEO Robert "Iger and Josh D'Amaro, Disney’s theme park and consumer products chairman, showed that they were not bluffing, pulling the plug on a nearly $1 billion office complex that was scheduled for construction in Orlando. It would have brought more than 2,000 jobs to the region, with $120,000 as the average salary, according to an estimate from the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.... The company's battle with Mr. DeSantis and his allies in the Florida Legislature figured prominently into Disney's decision to cancel the Lake Nona project, according to two people briefed on the matter...." The AP story is here.

Robert Barnes & Cat Zackrzewski of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court ruled for Google and Twitter in a pair of closely watched liability cases Thursday, saying families of terrorism victims had not shown the companies helped foster attacks on their loved ones. 'Plaintiffs' allegations are insufficient to establish that these defendants aided and abetted ISIS in carrying out the relevant attack,' Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in a unanimous decision in the Twitter case. The court adopted similar reasoning in the claim against Google. The court's narrowly focused rulings sidestepped requests to limit a law that protects social media platforms from lawsuits over content posted by their users, even if the platform's algorithms promote videos that laud terrorist groups. That law, Section 230, has emerged as a lightning rod in the politically polarized debate over the future of online speech, as tech companies come under increased pressure to police offensive, harmful and violent posts on their platforms."

Miss Margie Profiles Black Male Colleague. Jared Gans of the Hill: "Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) criticized Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) on Thursday for 'reckless' and 'dangerous' remarks after she said she felt 'threatened' following an encounter the two had the day before on the steps of the Capitol. Bowman mentioned the lynching of Emmett Till in 1955 and the killing by police in Ferguson, Mo., of Michael Brown in 2014 in criticizing Greene, saying she was putting him in danger with her remarks and playing on racist tropes that demonized Black men.... 'Throughout history, Black men have continually been characterized as aggressive because, one, of our skin color, but two, because we happen to be outspoken and passionate about certain issues,' Bowman said. Greene at a press conference earlier in the day had said that Bowman has a 'history of aggression' toward her and others that she is 'very concerned' about. 'Yelling, shouting, raising his voice. He has aggressive -- his physical mannerisms are aggressive,' she said.... '...I feel threatened by him.'... Bowman said he never invaded Greene's personal space during their interaction and was laughing during the exchange." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I guess this is Miss Margie showing how fearful she is:

Annie Karni & Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "When she arrived at the Capitol last week after a more than two-month absence recovering from shingles, Senator Dianne Feinstein, Democrat of California, 89, appeared shockingly diminished. Using a wheelchair, with the left side of her face frozen and one eye nearly shut, she seemed disoriented.... Ms. Feinstein's frail appearance was a result of several complications after she was hospitalized for shingles in February, some of which she has not publicly disclosed. The shingles spread to her face and neck, causing vision and balance impairments and facial paralysis known as Ramsay Hunt syndrome. The virus also brought on a previously unreported case of encephalitis, a rare but potentially debilitating complication of shingles, according to two people familiar with the senator's diagnosis.... And even before this latest illness, Ms. Feinstein had already suffered substantial memory issues that had raised questions about her mental capacity.” Feinstein continues to refuse to retire. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Democrats' failure to politely force Feinstein into retirement is elder abuse.

~~~~~~~~~~

Alexandra Hutzler of ABC News: "President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he is 'confident' the U.S. will avert default, expressing optimism a crisis could be avoided as he left for a foreign trip even as debt ceiling negotiations were coming down to the wire.... 'We're going to come together because there's no alternative.... All the leaders have agreed we will not default. Every leader has said that.'... The president said he'll be in 'constant contact' with his team while abroad and will be back in time for the 'final negotiation.'... Biden, who has insisted raising the debt ceiling is nonnegotiable, made it a point to emphasize the talks are about contours of the 2024 budget." The New York Times story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ John Wagner, et al., of the Washington Post: "A group of Senate Democrats is circulating a letter urging President Biden to prepare to invoke the 14th Amendment to unilaterally resolve the debt ceiling standoff without involving Congress, according to a copy obtained by The Washington Post ahead of its release. The letter, signed by five senators so far, reflects building unease among White House allies over the direction of negotiations between the president and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on an agreement expected to cut the deficit and raise the debt limit. Liberal lawmakers have balked as Biden entertains spending cuts and new work requirements on federal aid programs -- fueling interest in a solution to the standoff that does not require a deal with McCarthy. The effort comes as House Democrats start to collect signatures for a discharge petition to move legislation that would raise the debt ceiling without any other policy changes, a long-shot procedural move aimed at bypassing the chamber's Republican leaders." (Also linked yesterday.)

Carry On, Airman. Glenn Thrush & Robin Stein of the New York Times: "Air Force officials caught Airman Jack Teixeira taking notes and conducting deep-dive searches for classified material months before he was charged with leaking a vast trove of government secrets, but did not remove him from his job, according to a Justice Department filing on Wednesday. On two occasions in September and October 2022, Airman Teixeira's superiors in the Massachusetts Air National Guard admonished him after reports that he had taken 'concerning actions' while handling classified information. Those included stuffing a note into his pocket after reviewing secret information inside his unit, according to a court filing.... Not only was Airman Teixeira allowed to remain in his job -- he seems to have retained his top-secret security clearance -- but he was subsequently given the second of two certificates after completing training intended to prevent the 'unauthorized disclosure' of classified information.... Two of Airman Teixeira's superiors at the 102nd Intelligence Wing on Cape Cod have been suspended pending completion of an internal investigation by the Air Force inspector general, according to a spokeswoman for the service.... Their access to classified information has been temporarily blocked, she added." An AP story is here. CNN's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is astounding. Authorities were tougher on Donald Trump for stealing classified documents than they were on Teixeira. ~~~

     ~~~ Devlin Barrett of the Washington Post: "The Air National Guard member accused in a high-profile classified leaks case appears to have shared sensitive secrets with foreign nationals.... One of the groups where [Jack Teixeira] shared information had upward of 150 users, officials said, and among the members 'are a number of individuals who represented that they resided in other countries' and whose accounts trace back to foreign internet addresses. Teixeira's 'willful transmission of classified information over an extended period to more than 150 users worldwide' undermines his lawyer's claims that he never meant for the information to be shared widely, prosecutors wrote."

Glenn Thrush of the New York Times: "The U.S. attorney for Massachusetts, Rachael S. Rollins, misused her office to 'boost' a political ally, flouted ethics rules to obtain free tickets from the Boston Celtics and lied under oath to investigators, the Justice Department inspector general said on Wednesday. The 161-page report -- one of the most extraordinary public denunciations of a sitting federal prosecutor in recent memory -- was released a day after Ms. Rollins announced she would resign at the end of this week.... Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz opened an investigation into Ms. Rollins last year after a published report that she had attended a July 2022 Democratic National Committee fund-raiser headlined by Jill Biden.... But the inquiry rapidly expanded to encompass a striking range of apparent misconduct, including efforts to discredit a political rival and her acceptance of flights and a stay at a resort that were paid for by a sports and entertainment company, he said.... The U.S. Office of Special Counsel, another federal watchdog agency, released its own findings on Ms. Rollins shortly after the inspector general's report came out, concluding that she had violated the Hatch Act, which restricts political activity by federal officials."

** Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "The Federal Bureau of Investigation has revoked the security clearances of three agents who either took part in the riot at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, or later expressed views about it that placed into question their 'allegiance to the United States,' the bureau said on Wednesday in a letter to congressional investigators. The letter, written by a top official at the F.B.I., came one day before at least two of the agents -- Marcus Allen and Stephen Friend -- were set to testify in front of a House Judiciary subcommittee investigating what Republicans contend is the 'weaponization' of the federal government against conservatives.... The agents who had their security clearances revoked -- Mr. Allen, Mr. Friend and a third man, Brett Gloss -- have all been suspended by the F.B.I. as the bureau reviews their cases, according to congressional investigators.... A spokesman for [Rep. Jim] Jordan [R-Ohio] ... characterized the F.B.I.'s action as 'a desperate attempt to salvage their reputation' that was coming 'before brave whistle-blowers testify about the agency's politicized behavior and retaliation against anyone who dares speak out.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Read on. If the allegations against these agents are true, they are clearly traitors (under the common meaning of the term "traitor"). Yet for Jim Jordan and his ilk, these traitors are commendable "whistleblowers." I get that Jordan, under the speech-and-debate provision of the Constitution, can say whatever he wants. But I think his support for and admiration of these insurrectionists makes him a traitor, too. ~~~

~~~ A Lovely Bunch of Coconuts. David Smith of the Guardian: "Witnesses set to testify to Congress about the 'weaponisation' of the US government on Thursday have links to far-right groups and a history of supporting conspiracy theories about coronavirus vaccines and the January 6 insurrection, a congressional watchdog [-- the Congressional Integrity Project --] has warned.... [According to the group, 'Stephen] Friend has a record of collaborating with Trump's closest allies.... Kash Patel sent Friend $5,000 almost immediately after they connected in November 2022, and gave Friend a job at a far-right thinktank.'... Witness Garret O'Boyle is a former FBI special agent who ... is a prolific Covid-19 vaccine conspiracy theorist, and once compared Covid-19 vaccine mandates to the Nazi regime.... The project says O'Boyle has supported and publicly engaged with an 'early and prominent' QAnon influencer.... O'Boyle is an election denier who ... claims the FBI has retaliated against him for resisting investigations into the January 6 insurrection...." And so forth.

Maria Alfaro of the Washington Post: :The House on Wednesday voted largely along party lines to refer a resolution to expel Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) to the Ethics Committee. The resolution to expel the freshman lawmaker was introduced on Tuesday by Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.). Because Garcia filed it as a privileged motion, under House rules, Republicans were forced to put it to a vote, move to table it or refer it to a committee within two days. They chose to refer it to the Ethics Committee, a move criticized by Democrats, who were looking to quickly oust Santos from their ranks. The final vote on the motion to refer the resolution to the ethics panel was 221-204. Seven lawmakers voted present.... Santos also voted to refer the resolution." A CNN story is here.

Charlie Nash of Mediaite: “Rep. Clay Higgins (R-LA) physically removed a protester from a press conference with Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) on Wednesday as the man screamed, 'Get off me! You're hurting me!' Several recordings showed democratic socialist protester Jake Burdett being pushed by Higgins out of the Washington, D.C. event as the congressman said, 'You're out.'... As Boebert [began to speak], Burdett confronted the congresswoman and pushed beyond the barricades, moving towards her. Higgins responded by physically removing Burdett from the event. Burdett -- who describes himself as a 'progressive activist' and a 'Democratic Socialist' on social media -- claimed in a Twitter post that he was detained by DC police following the incident." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Higgins previously served as an M.P. and as a police officer in several jurisdictions, so in theory he knows how to handle (or manhandle) protesters and hecklers. It does seem to me that a reasonable person could consider Burdett's pushing beyond barricades and moving toward Boebert as threatening, if those barricades established a reasonable distance between the public and the speaker. Needless to say, I'm no fan of Clay Higgins, but I'm not convinced he was wrong to push Higgins back.

How is it possible that Sen. Potatohead is dumber than a steaming Idaho potato? ~~~

~~~ William Thornton of AL.com: "Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville today said yesterday's Durham report shows that 'a whole list of people lied,' including members of Congress, about links between the Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and Russia.... Speaking on 'John Bachman Now,' Tuberville said, 'If people don't go to jail for this, the American people should just stand up and say, "Listen, enough's enough, let's don't have elections anymore.["] I wish there was a special investigation into the voter fraud....'"Tuberville also weighed in on the U.S.-Mexican border situation: "Tuberville said [Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro] Mayorkas had 'lied about this the whole time.... You know, they sent 1,500 troops down there, to make sure they get them in quicker,' he said. 'That's all they did. We need 15,000 down there with guns to help keep them out.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: As usual, Tuberville doesn't seem to know what he's talking about. He has conflated or confused the 2016 election -- which is the subject of John Durham's report -- and the 2020 election, when Donald Trump claimed massive voter fraud. Anyhow, we should definitely not have elections anymore.

Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "The National Archives has informed ... Donald Trump that it is set to hand over to special counsel Jack Smith 16 records which show Trump and his top advisers had knowledge of the correct declassification process while he was president, according to multiple sources.... According to [a] letter [from acting Archivist Debra Steidel Wall to Trump], Trump tried to block the special counsel from accessing the 16 records by asserting a claim of 'constitutionally based privilege.'... The 16 presidential records, which were subpoenaed earlier this year, may provide critical evidence establishing the former president's awareness of the declassification process, a key part of the criminal investigation into Trump's mishandling of classified documents. The records may also provide insight into Trump's intent and whether he willfully disregarded what he knew to be clearly established protocols, according to a source familiar with recent testimony provided to the grand jury by former top Trump officials.... At a CNN town hall last week Trump repeated the claim that simply by removing classified documents from the White House he had declassified them. 'And, by the way, they become automatically declassified when I took them,' Trump said." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: "Constitutionally based privilege"??? Really? That's like asserting that IRS instructions on how to complete your Form 1040 constitute a privileged communication. Ridiculous. Speaking of Trump's lame attempts to claim privilege ~~~

~~~ Alan Feuer & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Timothy Parlatore, one of the lawyers representing ... Donald J. Trump in the federal investigations into Mr. Trump's handling of classified documents and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, has resigned from the former president's legal team.... Mr. Parlatore's withdrawal from the twin special counsel cases leaves Mr. Trump a lawyer short at a moment when prosecutors under [special counsel Jack] Smith seem to be nearing the end of their sprawling grand jury investigations and may be approaching a decision about whether to bring charges.... Since last summer and until recently, Mr. Parlatore played a key role in Mr. Trump's [largely unsuccessful] attempts to use attorney-client and executive privilege to limit the scope of the testimony provided by a series of witnesses who appeared in front of grand juries hearing evidence in both of the matters...." CNN's report is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Tom Jackman of the Washington Post: "An active-duty Marine who entered the Capitol with two of his colleagues from the Quantico Marine Corps Base on Jan. 6, 2021, and then spent more than 50 minutes wandering through the building, pleaded guilty Wednesday to a misdemeanor count of illegally parading or demonstrating in the Capitol. All three Marines work in intelligence gathering, including one at the National Security Agency headquarters in Maryland. Cpl. Micah R. Coomer, 24, is allegedly the fourth active-duty Marine from Quantico to breach the Capitol on Jan. 6, and the first active-duty military member to plead guilty in the riot." MB: It's not exactly reassuring to know that these guys & Jack Teixeira (story linked above) are among the servicemembers entrusted with our national security.

Tierney Sneed of CNN: "The Supreme Court refused to block a local and state ban on assault weapon sales in Illinois, rejecting an emergency request from gun rights advocates and a gun store. A vote count was not disclosed and the court did not explain its action. Wednesday's move by the high court is the latest example of the justices staying out of Second Amendment-related disputes for the moment, after the conservative majority last year issued a major ruling expanding its scope." The Washington Post's report, by Robert Barnes, is here. The New York Times story, by Adam Liptak, is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Ian Millhiser of Vox: "The Supreme Court handed down a very brief order on Wednesday morning that offers gun regulation advocates a slightly surprising -- but likely short-lived — victory.... The case, known as National Association for Gun Rights v. City of Naperville, arose on the Court's 'shadow docket,' a hodgepodge of emergency motions and other expedited matters that the Court sometimes decides without full briefing or oral argument. The most likely explanation for the Court's latest order is that a majority of the justices believed that this case did not warrant this expedited treatment, not that a majority of the Court will ultimately vote to uphold assault rifle bans.... The case will be heard by a federal appeals court in late June, and that court's decision may be reviewed by the Supreme Court under its ordinary, less rushed process for hearing cases. Nevertheless, the Court's brief order in the Naperville case is significant ... because it suggests that at least some key members of the Supreme Court have grown disillusioned with the Court's once-very-frequent use of the shadow docket."

Ann Marimow, et al., of the Washington Post: "A federal appeals court on Wednesday seemed prepared to limit access to a key abortion medication first approved more than two decades ago, expressing deep skepticism that the government followed the proper process when it loosened regulations to make the pill more readily available. A panel of three judges, all of whom have previously supported other types of abortion restrictions, peppered lawyers for the government and the drug manufacturer with questions about why the Food and Drug Administration has allowed mifepristone to be prescribed by a medical professional other than a doctor and sent directly to patients by mail.... Judge James C. Ho rejected the government's argument that the court should not second-guess the expertise of the FDA, which first approved mifepristone in 2000." The CBS News story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Company He Keeps. Marie: If Judge Ho seems familiar to you, perhaps it's because you recall this photo, which Sen. Ted Cruz tweeted of Ho being sworn in by one Justice Clarence Thomas in front of a palatial fireplace in billionaire Harlan Crow's Dallas home & museum for Adolf Hitler & various dictators. ~~~

Honored to attend Jim Ho's swearing in to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals today, alongside Justice Clarence Thomas & Judge Jerry Smith. I am confident my good friend Jim will be an extraordinary appellate judge and a principled jurist faithful to the law. pic.twitter.com/s1tWYu2j2c

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) January 5, 2018

Rizwan Shah of BNN: "Erik Prince, the prominent US billionaire and founder of the private military company Blackwater, has been indicted in Austria for his alleged involvement in trafficking arms to Libya in violation of the United Nations arms embargo. The indictment comes as a result of a United Nations security report issued in February 2021, which provided compelling evidence supporting the allegations against Prince. The report, conducted by a UN expert panel, revealed that Prince orchestrated a covert military operation in Africa, clandestinely supplying Libyan general and warlord Khalifa Haftar with expensive war equipment to support his fight against the government.... The indictment filed in Austria includes criminal charges against Erik Prince and five other individuals allegedly involved in the arms trafficking operation.... The uncertainty surrounding Erik Prince's whereabouts adds a layer of intrigue to the case." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Everything I know about BNN (close to nothing) I learned in a 4-minute search of the Internet. As far as I can tell from my thorough research, BNN (Breaking News Network) is a legitimate source for news. If it is not, I apologize. I've linked the report because contributor Forrest M. mentions the underlying story in today's Comments. As for Prince's unknown whereabouts, maybe Forrest could skulk around his own neighborhood in search of the elusive Prince. bearing in mind that Prince is likely to be armed and dangerous.

Dominic Rushe of the Guardian: "The top five executives at the US’s largest companies have amassed close to $9bn in tax-free retirement saving accounts while many of their employees have struggled to set aside any funds for retirement, according to a new report released on Thursday ... [by the Institute for Policy Studies and Jobs With Justice.... Income taxes will be due on this compensation when they withdraw the funds, but in the meantime, they benefit from the tax-free compounding of investment returns. These so-called 'top hat' plans allow unlimited tax-deferred retirement while ordinary workers face strict limits on their 401(k) retirement plan contributions. The survey found that at many of these companies, a sizeable percentage of workers -- in some cases as much as half -- had no money in their 401(k)s.... At Walmart, CEO Doug McMillon held more than $169m in his deferred compensation account at the end of 2022 -- enough to generate a monthly retirement check of more than $1m, according to the report. Meanwhile, among eligible participants in Walmart's 401(k) plan, nearly half (46%) have zero balances saved for retirement. The median pay at Walmart is $27,136."

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Oliver Darcy of CNN: "While accepting the prestigious Columbia Journalism Award and serving as the school's 2023 commencement speaker, Christiane Amanpour on Wednesday became the first network anchor to publicly voice dissent with management over the [Trump] town hall, which has spawned a storm of fierce backlash. Amanpour, CNN's chief international anchor, disclosed that she had met with CNN boss Chris Licht this week and that the two 'had a very robust exchange of views' about the matter.... 'I still respectfully disagree with allowing Donald Trump to appear in that particular format,' the veteran anchor said, contending that the American people had demonstrated with their votes in the last three elections that they are well aware of his behavior.... In private, the town hall has been widely criticized by [CNN] employees at all levels across the organization." ~~~

     (~~~ Marie: BTW, for the crap-ass job she did in fact-checking Trump, Kaitlan Collins, who moderated the fake town-hall meeting and is a graduate of the Tucker Carlson School of Journalism, has been rewarded with the prestigious job of anchoring CNN's 9 pm hour.)

Presidential Race 2024. Hannah Knowles & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis plans to officially enter the 2024 presidential race next week, as the Republican gathers top fundraisers in Miami, according to two people...." More news about DeSantolini linked below.

Beyond the Beltway

Colorado, Florida. Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "Republicans suffered surprising losses Tuesday in mayoral races in Jacksonville, Fla., and Colorado Springs, dealing a blow to the GOP in two longtime conservative strongholds and highlighting the limits of waging hyperpartisan campaign battles in local races. In Jacksonville, Florida's most populous city, Democrat Donna Deegan upset Republican Daniel Davis by about 4 percentage points to win the mayor's race. Deegan's victory flips the mayoral seat of the largest city in the United States that was held by a Republican.... And in Colorado Springs, political newcomer and business executive Yemi Mobolade, an independent, defeated Republican Wayne Williams by a decisive margin Tuesday night, surprising many in the conservative-leaning city that ... Donald Trump won handily in 2020.... Deegan, 62, and Mobolade, 44, leaned into a message of unity throughout their campaigns, largely ignoring national partisan politics...."

Florida. Nicholas Nehamas & Patricia Mazzei of the New York Times: "Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, an all-but-declared presidential candidate, has stepped up his headline-hunting travel and events ahead of an official announcement, traversing the state and trying to hoover up national attention as he signs the sharply conservative legislation he believes can propel him to the Republican Party's nomination. On Wednesday, Mr. DeSantis signed a slew of measures that hit all the culture-clash notes his base has rewarded him for, including bills banning gender-transition care for minors, preventing children from attending 'adult live performances' like drag shows and restricting the use of preferred pronouns in schools." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: When last I lived in Florida, voters passed a state constitutional amendment protecting the rights of pregnant pigs. Now they need to pass an amendment protecting the rights of guinea pigs, because Ron DeSantolini is making all Floridians guinea pigs as part of his grotesque performances designed to make himself more popular among righty-right-wing MAGA voters.

Montana. Sapna Maheshwari of the New York Times: "The governor of Montana, Greg Gianforte [Arrr], signed a bill on Wednesday to ban TikTok from operating inside the state, the most extreme prohibition of the app in the nation and one that will almost certainly be challenged in court. The ban will take effect on Jan. 1.... The legislation prohibits mobile app stores, like those run by Apple and Google, from offering TikTok within the state. A trade group funded by Apple and Google has said in recent months that it is impossible for the companies to prevent access to TikTok in a single state.... The American Civil Liberties Union said on Wednesday that the legislation 'flouts the First Amendment.'" The CBS News report is here.

New York. Benjamin Weiser & Lola Fadulu of the New York Times: "Judge [Vernon] Broderick imposed eight consecutive life sentences on [New York City bike path mass murderer Sayfullo] Saipov -- one for each fatality -- and consecutive sentences totaling 260 years on other counts.... [Previously,] the jurors [had] deadlocked at 7-to-5 in favor of a life sentence.... About 20 victims, family members and others addressed the court, in person or in writing, aiming their anger, sadness and, in a few cases, their forgiveness directly at Mr. Saipov.... Mr. Saipov, speaking through an Uzbek interpreter, also addressed the court. Showing no remorse, he spoke for almost an hour, ultimately focusing on what he said was the persecution of Muslims around the world." He expressed pride in murdering non-Muslims.

New York. Max Foster & John Miller of CNN: "Prince Harry and his wife Meghan were involved in a 'near catastrophic car chase' involving paparazzi in New York City on Tuesday night, his spokesperson says. The couple were followed by a 'swarm' of paparazzi, but there was no car accident, according to a law enforcement source. The incident happened after Harry accompanied Meghan to the Women of Vision Awards, held at the city's Ziegfeld Ballroom. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were also traveling with Doria Ragland, Meghan's mother." Paparazzi on motorcycles, scooters & in cars followed the party for nearly two hours. MB: OR, they could have rented a car with heavily-tinted windows & ignored the paparazzi. You can't lead a car chase if you don't, you know, drive. And you are not particularly likely to be involved in "near catastropic" situations if you don't lead that chase by driving erratically and/or at excessive speeds. Harry is 38 years old; Markle is 41. Time to grow up. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Much Ado About Not Much. Karla Adam, et al., of the Washington Post: "A New York Police Department spokesperson said the presence of many photographers made the couple's transport 'challenging,' adding that they arrived at their destination safely without any collisions or injuries. A taxi driver who transported the couple for a part of their journey after attending the event told The Washington Post in an interview that he would not call the incident a chase, adding that he felt safe during the ride." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

South Carolina. Kate Zernike of the New York Times: "The South Carolina House of Representatives approved a ban on most abortions after six weeks of pregnancy on Tuesday night, setting up a repeat fight in a red state that has become an unexpected battleground over abortion. The vote came after roughly 24 hours of often rancorous debate in a rare special session called by the governor, and fell largely along party lines, 82 to 33. Because the House amended a bill passed earlier by the Senate, the bill now goes back to the Senate for another vote.... The bill will test a South Carolina Supreme Court ruling in January, which found a right to abortion in the state Constitution and struck down a previous six-week ban. That opinion was written by the court's only female justice, who retired shortly after. The legislature replaced her with a man, who was supported by the conservative Freedom Caucus in the House."

Texas. David Montgomery & David Goodman of the New York Times: "Over the opposition of Democrats and the loud protests at the Capitol this month, the Texas Legislature voted on Wednesday to approve a bill banning hormone and puberty blocking treatments, as well as surgeries for transgender children. The state is poised to become the largest state to ban transition medical care for minors. The final version of the bill included a limited exemption for those transgender children who were already receiving medical treatment before the bill's passage, though it also required those patients to 'wean' themselves off the medications over an unspecified period of time."

Way Beyond

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

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Thursday are here: "Explosions rocked Kyiv early Thursday, according to its mayor, as Russia continued a wave of strikes on the Ukrainian capital.... Debris from missiles fell on the city, but no casualties were reported.... Ukraine's air force said it destroyed 29 of 30 missiles and four drones during the overnight strikes. Elsewhere, a young boy was killed by Russian shelling in the southern Kherson region, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address.... Russia agreed to a two-month extension of the Black Sea grain deal, a day ahead of its expiration on Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced.... China's special representative for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, met with Zelensky and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba during his visit to Ukraine, China's Foreign Ministry said. Beijing is willing to promote efforts to restore peace based on its 12-point proposal and will 'continue to provide Ukraine with assistance within its capacity,' according to a statement."

May 17, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "The National Archives has informed ... Donald Trump that it is set to hand over to special counsel Jack Smith 16 records which show Trump and his top advisers had knowledge of the correct declassification process while he was president, according to multiple sources.... According to [a] letter [from acting Archivist Debra Steidel Wall to Trump], Trump tried to block the special counsel from accessing the 16 records by asserting a claim of 'constitutionally based privilege.'... The 16 presidential records, which were subpoenaed earlier this year, may provide critical evidence establishing the former president's awareness of the declassification process, a key part of the criminal investigation into Trump's mishandling of classified documents. The records may also provide insight into Trump's intent and whether he willfully disregarded what he knew to be clearly established protocols, according to a source familiar with recent testimony provided to the grand jury by former top Trump officials.... At a CNN town hall last week Trump repeated the claim that simply by removing classified documents from the White House he had declassified them. 'And, by the way, they become automatically declassified when I took them,' Trump said." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: "Constitutionally based privilege"??? Really? That's like asserting that IRS instructions on how to complete your Form 1040 constitute a privileged communication. Ridiculous. Speaking of Trump's lame attempts to claim privilege ~~~

~~~ Alan Feuer & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: “Timothy Parlatore, one of the lawyers representing ... Donald J. Trump in the federal investigations into Mr. Trump's handling of classified documents and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, has resigned from the former president's legal team.... Mr. Parlatore's withdrawal from the twin special counsel cases leaves Mr. Trump a lawyer short at a moment when prosecutors under [special counsel Jack] Smith seem to be nearing the end of their sprawling grand jury investigations and may be approaching a decision about whether to bring charges.... Since last summer and until recently, Mr. Parlatore played a key role in Mr. Trump's [largely unsuccessful] attempts to use attorney-client and executive privilege to limit the scope of the testimony provided by a series of witnesses who appeared in front of grand juries hearing evidence in both of the matters...." CNN's report is here.

Nicholas Nehamas & Patricia Mazzei of the New York Times: "Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, an all-but-declared presidential candidate, has stepped up his headline-hunting travel and events ahead of an official announcement, traversing the state and trying to hoover up national attention as he signs the sharply conservative legislation he believes can propel him to the Republican Party's nomination. On Wednesday, Mr. DeSantis signed a slew of measures that hit all the culture-clash notes his base has rewarded him for, including bills banning gender-transition care for minors, preventing children from attending 'adult live performances' like drag shows and restricting the use of preferred pronouns in schools." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: When last I lived in Florida, voters passed a state constitutional amendment protecting the rights of pregnant pigs. That was all well and good. Now they need to pass an amendment protecting the rights of guinea pigs, because Ron DeSantolini is making all Floridians guinea pigs as part of his grotesque performances designed to make himself more popular among righty-right-wing MAGA voters.

Alexandra Hutzler of ABC News: "President Joe Biden on Wednesday said he is 'confident' the U.S. will avert default, expressing optimism a crisis could be avoided as he left for a foreign trip even as debt ceiling negotiations were coming down to the wire.... 'We're going to come together because there's no alternative.... All the leaders have agreed we will not default. Every leader has said that.'... The president said he'll be in 'constant contact' with his team while abroad and will be back in time for the 'final negotiation.'... Biden, who has insisted raising the debt ceiling is nonnegotiable, made it a point to emphasize the talks are about contours of the 2024 budget." The New York Times story is here. ~~~

~~~ John Wagner, et al., of the Washington Post: "A group of Senate Democrats is circulating a letter urging President Biden to prepare to invoke the 14th Amendment to unilaterally resolve the debt ceiling standoff without involving Congress, according to a copy obtained by The Washington Post ahead of its release. The letter, signed by five senators so far, reflects building unease among White House allies over the direction of negotiations between the president and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on an agreement expected to cut the deficit and raise the debt limit. Liberal lawmakers have balked as Biden entertains spending cuts and new work requirements on federal aid programs -- fueling interest in a solution to the standoff that does not require a deal with McCarthy. The effort comes as House Democrats start to collect signatures for a discharge petition to move legislation that would raise the debt ceiling without any other policy changes, a long-shot procedural move aimed at bypassing the chamber's Republican leaders."

How is it possible that Sen. Potatohead is dumber than a steaming Idaho potato? ~~~

~~~ William Thornton of AL.com: “Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville today said yesterday's Durham report shows that 'a whole list of people lied,' including members of Congress, aboutlinks between the Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and Russia.... Speaking on 'John Bachman Now,' Tuberville said, 'If people don't go to jail for this, the American people should just stand up and say, "Listen, enough's enough, let's don't have elections anymore.["] I wish there was a special investigation into the voter fraud....'" Tuberville also weighed in on the U.S.-Mexican border situation: "Tuberville said [Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro] Mayorkas had 'lied about this the whole time.... You know, they sent 1,500 troops down there, to make sure they get them in quicker,' he said. 'That's all they did. We need 15,000 down there with guns to help keep them out.'"; ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: As usual, Tuberville doesn't seem to know what he's talking about. He has conflated or confused the 2016 election -- which is the subject of John Durham's report -- and the 2020 election, when Donald Trump claimed massive voter fraud. Anyhow, we should definitely not have elections anymore.

Tierney Sneed of CNN: "The Supreme Court refused to block a local and state ban on assault weapon sales in Illinois, rejecting an emergency request from gun rights advocates and a gun store. A vote count was not disclosed and the court did not explain its action. Wednesday's move by the high court is the latest example of the justices staying out of Second Amendment-related disputes for the moment, after the conservative majority last year issued a major ruling expanding its scope." The Washington Post's report, by Robert Barnes, is here. The New York Times story, by Adam Liptak, is here.

Max Foster & John Miller of CNN: "Prince Harry and his wife Meghan were involved in a 'near catastrophic car chase' involving paparazzi in New York City on Tuesday night, his spokesperson says. The couple were followed by a 'swarm' of paparazzi, but there was no car accident, according to a law enforcement source. The incident happened after Harry accompanied Meghan to the Women of Vision Awards, held at the city's Ziegfeld Ballroom. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were also traveling with Doria Ragland, Meghan's mother." Paparazzi on motorcycles, scooters & in cars followed the party for nearly two hours. MB: OR, they could have rented a car with heavily-tinted windows & ignored the paparazzi. You can't lead a car chase if you don't, you know, drive. And you are not particularly likely to be involved in "near catastropic" situations if you don't lead that chase by driving erratically and/or at excessive speeds. Harry is 38 years old; Markle is 41. Time to grow up. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: Karla Adam, et al., of the Washington Post: "A New York Police Department spokesperson said the presence of many photographers made the couple's transport 'challenging,' adding that they arrived at their destination safely without any collisions or injuries. A taxi driver who transported the couple for a part of their journey after attending the event told The Washington Post in an interview that he would not call the incident a chase, adding that he felt safe during the ride."

~~~~~~~~~~

Tuesday Election Results. Mariana Alfaro & Maeve Reston of the Washington Post: Pennsylvania. “Democrats managed to hold on to the Pennsylvania state House as Heather Boyd was projected to keep the suburban Philadelphia seat in their hands in a critical special election being watched closely by both parties.... And Cherelle Parker, a former state legislator and city councilor who framed herself as tough on crime, was projected to win the Democratic nomination in a crowded field for Philadelphia mayor, according to the Associated Press. She'll be the strong favorite, and the first female mayor of that city, in November if she wins in the heavily Democratic city....

"In Kentucky, Gov. Andy Beshear -- a popular Democrat in a red state -- was projected the Democratic winner in his reelection campaign. He's set to face state Attorney General Daniel Cameron (R), a protege of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) who was backed by Donald Trump. And incumbent Secretary of State Mike Adams (R) beat back two election deniers, including a candidate endorsed by national election conspiracy theorist and MyPillow guy Mike Lindell."

Florida. Jared Gans of the Hill: "Democrats are projected to flip control of the mayor's office in Jacksonville, Fla., the largest city in the country with a GOP leader, according to CNN and NBC. AP projected that Democrat Donna Deegan defeated Republican Daniel Davis to succeed Mayor Lenny Curry (R), who is term-limited. Deegan, who will be the city's first female mayor, won against Davis in a runoff on Tuesday after the two candidates advanced from a blanket primary earlier this year. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) endorsed Davis back in March."

Matt Viser & Tyler Pager of the Washington Post: "President Biden heads to Japan on Wednesday for a wide-ranging trip that marks a renewed push on his part to confront China's growing political, military and economic power, at a time when some experts warn that tensions between the two superpowers have grown dangerously high.... The trip is aimed at bolstering support for Ukraine, combating climate change and tackling global inflation. But more than any other issue, it is meant to counter China, a global superpower that will not be at the meetings but will be very much top of mind.... Administration officials say Biden has made clear that he does not want a new Cold War with China, and that he has pushed to engage with the Chinese in areas where there is mutual interest or where it is crucial to avoid dangerous outcomes. But aides say the success of that effort depends in part on how firmly other countries ally with the United States in taking on Beijing's aggressiveness."

Zolan Kanno-Youngs & Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "President Biden and congressional leaders in both parties emerged from a White House meeting on Tuesday offering glimmers of hope about eventually reaching a deal to raise the nation's borrowing limit, even as they conceded they were still far from averting a default that could come as soon as June 1. With time dwindling to strike a compromise that could make it through Congress in time to avoid an economic catastrophe, Mr. Biden said he would cut short a diplomatic trip to Asia to be on hand for a potential breakthrough. Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the California Republican, said it was possible that such a deal could materialize within days now that the president had agreed to dispatch his top advisers for stepped-up negotiations." ~~~

~~~ Paul Krugman of the New York Times: "... it was also obvious [ever since Republicans took control of the House] that the Biden administration needed a strategy to head off the looming [debt ceiling] crisis. More and more, however, it looks as if there never was a strategy beyond wishful thinking.... On one side, it signaled that it was terrified of the consequences of default; on the other, it made it clear that it was unwilling even to consider any alternatives to an increase in the debt limit.... And sure enough, after months of asserting that it would never engage in negotiations over the debt ceiling..., the administration is now ... negotiating over the debt ceiling.... There's a real possibility that Biden officials will in the end be forced by sheer Republican intransigence to adopt unconventional methods after all -- a task that will be made much harder by the fact that those same officials have spent months trash-talking the approaches they may need to follow. But I don't see any way to regard this whole episode as anything but a disastrous failure to face up to the reality of an opposition party controlled by extremists."

Crackerjack Secret Service Agents Didn't Notice Drunken Intruder. Carol Leonnig & Tyler Pager of the Washington Post: "The U.S. Secret Service is investigating how a man entered the home of President Biden's national security adviser in the middle of the night roughly two weeks ago without being detected by agents guarding his house, according to three government officials. The unknown man walked into Jake Sullivan's home at about 3 a.m. one night in late April and Sullivan confronted the individual, instructing him to leave, two of the people briefed on the incident said. There were no signs of forced entry at the home, according to one of the people. Sullivan has a round-the-clock Secret Service detail. But agents stationed outside the house were unaware that an intruder had gotten inside the home, located in the West End neighborhood of Washington, until the man had already left and Sullivan came outside to alert the agents, the two people said. The intruder appeared to be intoxicated and confused about where he was, according to people briefed on the incident. There is no evidence the person knew Sullivan or sought to harm him, they said." The AP's story is here.

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "Ever since Senator Joe Manchin III, the conservative West Virginia Democrat, cast the crucial vote last year for the Inflation Reduction Act, delivering President Biden his biggest legislative victory to date, the bill has weighed him down politically. Mr. Manchin's poll numbers in his solidly Republican and coal-rich state dropped last year after he played a critical role in writing the climate, health and tax legislation.... The senator, who is up for re-election next year and has been flirting with a presidential run of his own, has declared a sort of legislative war against the measure he helped push through Congress. He has professed frustration and dismay at what he calls the 'radical climate agenda' that he says is driving the Biden administration's rollout of the law. And he is still irritated that his colleagues failed to include one of his top priorities: an initiative to speed permitting of energy projects."

     Cat Zackrzewski, et al., of the Washington Post: "OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman delivered a sobering account of ways artificial intelligence could 'cause significant harm to the world' during his first congressional testimony, expressing a willingness to work with nervous lawmakers to address the risks presented by his company's ChatGPT and other AI tools. Altman advocated a number of regulations -- including a new government agency charged with creating standards for the field -- to address mounting concerns that generative AI could distort reality and create unprecedented safety hazards. The CEO tallied 'risky' behaviors presented by technology like ChatGPT, including spreading 'one-on-one interactive disinformation' and emotional manipulation. At one point he acknowledged AI could be used to target drone strikes. 'If this technology goes wrong, it can go quite wrong,' Altman said."

Maanvi Singh & Abené Clayton of the Guardian: "A bizarre exchange with reporters has raised new questions about the return of Dianne Feinstein, California's senior senator who has been absent from Washington for months due to shingles. Jim Newell, a reporter for Slate, ran into Feinstein shortly after the 89-year-old lawmaker voted on the Senate floor on Tuesday. When he and another journalist asked Feinstein how she has been received by her colleagues since returning to Washington, Feinstein appeared to insist that she had never left. 'I haven't been gone. I've been working,' Feinstein told Newell and another reporter, according to a Slate article published Tuesday. She was asked if she meant she had been working remotely, to which Feinstein responded: 'No, I've been here. I've been voting. Please. You either know or don't know.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is not bizarre. Feinstein has dementia' Everyone in the Senate knows it. It is cruel and irresponsible not to engineer her resignation.

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "When James R. Clapper Jr., the former director of national intelligence, testifies on Wednesday behind closed doors on Capitol Hill, he will be the sixth former intelligence official to be hauled before Congress as part of what has become an intense focus of House Republicans: a public letter sent during the height of the 2020 presidential campaign. Republicans have seized on the document, signed by 51 former intelligence officials..., as a prime piece of evidence ... that the missive was written at the behest of President Biden's allies to distract from salacious material found on the abandoned laptop of his son Hunter Biden, and that it ultimately helped the elder Mr. Biden defeat ... Donald J. Trump. In the letter, reported at the time by Politico, former intelligence officials holding impressive national security credentials wrote that they believed that the contents of the laptop -- full of evidence of drug use, prostitution and foreign business deals -- could be part of a Russian campaign aimed at influencing the election, though they emphasized that they had no knowledge that was true.... Three years later, no concrete evidence has emerged to confirm the assertion that the laptop contained Russian disinformation, and portions of its contents have been verified as authentic. Republicans now say they have uncovered evidence that the letter was part of a Biden campaign operation." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It is impossible for me to exaggerate how little I care what kind of crap Hunter Biden was up to in 2020 & before. He does not have a government job, he is not part of a Biden "kitchen cabinet," as far as I know, and the Saudis have not given him $2BB in funny money.

Azi Paybarah of the Washington Post: "House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) rebuffed a move by Democrats to expel Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), telling reporters the matter should be handled by the bipartisan House Ethics Committee. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) introduced a measure Tuesday to expel Santos, who was recently indicted. Under House rules, the privileged motion would require a vote, a move to table or referral to committee within two days. The measure stands little chance in the chamber, where it would need a two-thirds majority to pass. 'I think these accusations are very serious,' but 'you have to have process,' McCarthy said Tuesday in Washington.... Santos was charged by federal prosecutors earlier this month with 13 financial crimes, including defrauding his donors, using their money for his personal benefit and wrongfully claiming unemployment benefits."

Sad News from the Gossip Pages. Jesse Paul & Nancy Lofholm of the Colorado Sun: "U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert has filed for divorce from her husband, Jayson, the Garfield County Republican announced Tuesday. The couple has been married for roughly two decades." (Also linked yesterday evening.)

Marie: Yesterday I linked a Guardian story about a lawsuit against Rudy Giuliani that included this allegation: "The lawsuit also included an allegation that Giuliani asked [the complainant Noelle] Dunphy 'if she knew anyone in need of a pardon' because 'he was selling pardons for $2m, which he and President Trump would split'. The complaint added that he told Dunphy she could refer people seeking pardons to him as long as she avoided 'the normal channels' of going through the office of the pardon attorney, a role within the Department of Justice, which could be subject to public disclosure." In her first segment, Nicole Wallace of MSNBC ran a segment on the suit. NYT reporter Michael Schmidt reminded us that a story he & Ken Vogel reported a story in January 2021, that had, well, surprisingly similar content:

“A onetime top adviser to the Trump campaign was paid $50,000 to help seek a pardon for John Kiriakou, a former C.I.A. officer convicted of illegally disclosing classified information, and agreed to a $50,000 bonus if the president granted it, according to a copy of an agreement. And Mr. Kiriakou was separately told that Mr. Trump's personal lawyer Rudolph W. Giuliani could help him secure a pardon for $2 million. Mr. Kiriakou rejected the offer, but an associate, fearing that Mr. Giuliani was illegally selling pardons, alerted the F.B.I. Mr. Giuliani challenged this characterization.... Mr. Kiriakou said he also broached his quest for a pardon during a meeting last year with Mr. Giuliani and his associates on another subject at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, which involved substantial alcohol. When Mr. Giuliani went to the bathroom at one point, one of his confidants turned to Mr. Kiriakou and suggested Mr. Giuliani could help. But 'it's going to cost $2 million -- he's going to want two million bucks,' Mr. Kiriakou recalled the associate saying." ~~~

     ~~~ I guess we know now why, as he was being ushered out the White House door, Trump pardoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich (D), who went to jail for attempted to sell the U.S. Senate seat Barack Obama vacated in 2021 just before he became president.

Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "The limping conclusion to John H. Durham's four-year investigation of the Russia inquiry underscores a recurring dilemma in American government: how to shield sensitive law enforcement investigations from politics without creating prosecutors who can run amok, never to be held to account.... Attorney General William P. Barr set [Mr. Durham] up to fail the moment he assigned Mr. Durham to find evidence proving Mr. Trump's claims about the Russia investigation.... Credit for Mr. Durham's only courtroom success, a guilty plea by an F.B.I. lawyer who doctored an email during preparations for a wiretap renewal, belongs to [DOJ inspector general Michael] Horowitz, who uncovered the misconduct.... Before Mr. Horowitz released his December 2019 report, Mr. Durham [unsuccessfully] lobbied him to drop [the] finding [that there was no evidence that F.B.I. actions were politically motivated.]... Mr. Barr's public statements about Mr. Durham's investigation also helped foster [false] perceptions that he had found something big." Read on. MB: Savage is one of the best analysts in mainstream journalism, and his ability to synthesize years of developments into a short, cogent storyline is impressive. ~~~

~~~ Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "A report by the special counsel John H. Durham on the origins of the F.B.I.'s investigation into the Trump campaign's work with Russia recommended no further prosecutions, produced no startling revelations and declined to suggest any 'wholesale changes' to F.B.I. rules for politically sensitive investigations.... Yet the former president and his allies in the conservative media bubble and in Congress found in Mr. Durham's 306-page report what they needed. In their view, the contents amplify a long-held position that the F.B.I.'s investigation into Russia's intervention in the 2016 election, known as Crossfire Hurricane -- and the Trump campaign's active or passive abetting of it -- was a political vendetta concocted by Hillary Clinton and her willing accomplices in federal law enforcement." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Surprise, Surprise. Except that Durham's "report about nothing" has been published, this is pretty much a reprise of Bill Barr's "explaining" the Mueller report findings to the public. It would not matter if Durham had titled the report, "No Official Corruption Found," MAGA voters/Foxbots would believe whatever their dear leaders said was in the report. ~~~

~~~ Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post: "There have been four major investigations into Russian intervention in the 2016 presidential election and the FBI's handling of the subject -- a 2019 report released by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, a 2019 Justice Department inspector general report, a bipartisan report by the Senate Intelligence Committee issued in 2020 by a GOP-controlled Senate, and now a 2023 report released by special counsel John Durham. All told, the reports add up to about 2,500 pages of dense prose and sometimes contradictory conclusions. But broad themes can be deduced from a close reading of the evidence gathered in the lengthy documents, as well as indictments and testimony on related criminal cases. Russia tried to swing the 2016 election to Trump[.]... The FBI had reason to investigate a tip [from an Australian diplomat] suggesting Trump campaign involvement[.]... The Trump campaign welcomed help from Russia[.]... The "Steele dossier" proved to be a red herring[.]

** Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times explores Republicans' embrace of vigilantism against liberals and people of color. He also does a great job of explaining the meaning of the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

Justin George & Ian Duncan of the Washington Post: "A personal computer in Russia was used to breach [Washington, D.C.] Metro's computer network earlier this year after the transit agency repeatedly was warned that cybersecurity deficiencies left its systems open to information theft and national security threats, according to a report released Wednesday. The unauthorized January log-in into Metro's cloud-based system from a computer belonging to a former I.T. contractor drew the attention of Metro's Office of the Inspector General (OIG). The watchdog agency had warned Metro for months that investigators had uncovered widespread and long-standing security issues, including years of missing computer security updates, interdepartmental disputes that hamstring Metro's cybersecurity team, Russia-based contractors receiving high-level clearances and other security holes that required immediate attention. Metro's sluggish response prompted Inspector General Rene Febles in recent weeks to elevate the concerns to federal law enforcement, homeland security and transportation agencies while briefing multiple congressional committees...."

Erin Cox of the Washington Post: "Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed into law Tuesday new gun-control bills to restrict who can carry guns in public and where they can bring them, measures the National Rifle Association immediately challenged in federal court. Gun rights activists have been eager to leverage a watershed Supreme Court decision in June that expanded the Second Amendment's reach, as left-leaning states rushed to buttress their long-standing concealed carry permit restrictions that the ruling effectively overturned. Since the ruling, the number of people [in Maryland] now allowed to carry concealed guns in public has more than tripled, according to data from the Maryland State Police." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The extremist Supreme Court has made this country unsafe for anyone, anywhere. (Oh, except for themselves. They all have protection at home [though who knows how good that is!], and they work in a gun-free building.

Jacob Bogage of the Washington Post: "Federal prosecutors have subpoenaed tech mogul Elon Musk for records as part of a lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase, court records showed Monday, surrounding the bank's relationship with convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein. The government charged in its lawsuit that the bank helped facilitate Epstein's long history of child sex trafficking, and used Epstein's relationships with other wealthy individuals to procure new business. Lawyers from the U.S. Virgin Islands wrote in a motion that 'Epstein may have referred or attempted to refer' Musk, the owner of Twitter and chief executive of SpaceX, to JPMorgan as a client. JPMorgan has said the allegations are meritless. Prosecutors told Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the Southern District of New York that they have been unable to serve Musk the subpoena. They asked Monday for permission to serve Tesla instead as Musk's registered agent.... But Musk's counsel would not grant permission to accept the subpoena on his client's behalf. Instead, prosecutors hired a private investigative firm to locate Musk and hand-deliver the records, but a courier was turned away upon arrival at Tesla's Austin headquarters...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I don't think the lede is correct. The government has not subpoenaed Musk if he has not received the subpoena. It's like saying "The sheriff has jailed the fugitive," while officials are still looking for the guy. Besides, Musk has already testified on Twitter: "On Twitter late Monday, Musk called the subpoena 'idiotic on so many levels,' and said of Epstein, 'That cretin never advised me on anything whatsoever.'" ~~~

~~~ Chris Isidore of CNN: "Elon Musk launched a baseless Twitter attack on George Soros, a frequent target for antisemitic conspiracy theories, accusing the financier of hating humanity days after Soros disclosed having sold off a modest stake in Tesla.... In a tweet late Monday, Musk compared him to X-Men villain Magneto, who like Soros was a survivor of the Holocaust, according to the comics' back story for the character. When a Twitter user defended Soros as having good intentions..., Musk responded, 'You assume they are good intentions. They are not. He wants to erode the very fabric of civilization. Soros hates humanity.' Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, a civil right group that tracks and battles incidents of antisemitism, criticized Musk's comment and said it 'will embolden extremists.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Baby Elon Stamps His Widdle Feet. Dan Milmo of the Guardian: Elon Musk "said he is 'allowed to say what I want to', as he defended a tweet posted on Tuesday saying [George Soros] 'reminds me of Magneto' -- the Jewish villain in the X-Men series. In an interview with US broadcaster CNBC on Tuesday, he said: 'I'll say what I want to say and if the consequence of that is losing money, so be it.'" MB: It apparently never occurs to Musk that his antisemitic tweets have any effect on Soros, on other Jews or on Musk's own Twitter followers. Nope, it's all about whether or not Elon makes money.

     ~~~ Marie: It has become more and more clear that when Musk promised Twitter would be a "free-speech" zone, what he meant was "free slander." ~~~

~~~ Donald Moynihan in the Bulwark: "Elon Musk's ownership of Twitter is forcing us to come to terms with a new reality: a social media platform where the person running it is himself spreading the misinformation.... Musk often refers to himself as moderate or independent, but he routinely treats far-right fringe figures as people worth taking seriously -- and, more troublingly, as reliable sources of information.... Elon Musk ... loves conspiracy theories.... Musk's skepticism seems largely to extend to criticism of the far-right, while his credulity for right-wing sources is boundless.... Musk had his own stock of misinformation to add to the pile.... All of this was already concerning when Musk was simply the world's wealthiest man and worst shitposter, but it should frankly alarm us now that he oversees the decisions of the major social media platform where he posts." Moynihan cites numerous examples to back up his claims about Musk's crazy right-wing disinformation enhancement program.

Beyond the Beltway

Florida/Texas. This Could End Badly. Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he's sending [1,301] law enforcement officers -- along with aircraft, drones and boats -- to Texas, deploying state resources toward an issue he is likely to make a centerpiece of his expected presidential run.... The move comes at the request of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R), who on Tuesday 'urged the nation's Governors' to help with border security in his state, according to a statement from his office. DeSantis was quick to answer, and the personnel and equipment may start heading to Texas as early as Wednesday. The deployment comes amid DeSantis's ongoing criticism of President Biden and federal immigration policies."

Massachusetts. Alanna Richer & Eric Tucker of the AP: "Massachusetts U.S. Attorney Rachael Rollins will resign following a monthslong investigation by the Justice Department's inspector general into her appearance at a political fundraiser and other potential ethics issues, her attorney said Tuesday. The Justice Department's watchdog has yet to release its report detailing the findings of its investigation, but an attorney for Rollins told The Associated Press that she will be submitting a letter of resignation to President Joe Biden by close of business Friday. The resignation of a U.S. attorney amid ethics concerns is an exceedingly rare phenomenon and is especially notable for a Justice Department that under Attorney General Merrick Garland has sought to restore a sense of normalcy and good governance following the turbulent four years of the Trump administration."

North Carolina. Kate Kelly of the New York Times: "North Carolina's Republican-dominated legislature upheld a bill Tuesday night to ban most abortions after 12 weeks, overriding the Democratic governor's recent veto of the new restrictions. The success of the override vote was a victory for Republicans and a critical test of their new, but slim, supermajority. The vote, taken in both chambers in back-to-back sessions, means a dramatic change for abortion access in North Carolina, where abortion is currently legal up to 20 weeks. The vote also restricts access for women across the South, who have traveled to North Carolina for abortions from states where the procedure was banned. The new law is set to take effect July 1."

Oregon. Mike Baker of the New York Times: "Frustrated, powerless and with little hope of regaining significant influence anytime soon, Republican lawmakers in Oregon have in recent years turned repeatedly to a disruptive tactic: boycotting their own legislature. The stalling strategy, with senators fleeing the State Capitol to avoid casting a vote, has at times proved effective in a state where two-thirds of lawmakers must be present in order for the legislature to conduct business. It has been so disruptive that voters altered the Constitution last year to punish those who were repeatedly absent by barring them from re-election.... This week, in the first significant test of the new law, three state senators reached the legal threshold of 10 unexcused absences.... Republicans have signaled that they may challenge the new constitutional provision in court." Thanks to Ken W. for the lead.

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of developments Wednesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here.: "The chair of Ukraine's Supreme Court was removed from his post after being arrested in a bribery investigation, two anti-corruption bodies said on Tuesday. The agencies did not identify the chair by name, but said it was the Supreme Court chief. On Tuesday, Vsevolod Knyazev was dismissed as chief justice after an overwhelming majority of the court's judges voted to strip him of the position, according to local news reports. The authorities accused the justice of accepting $2.7 million in bribes." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Wednesday is here. The Guardian's live updates for Wednesday are here. The Guardian's daily summary report is here.

News Lede

New York Times: "The man accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students last year has been indicted by a grand jury and will be arraigned on murder charges next week, a court spokesman said Wednesday. The suspect, Bryan Kohberger, a former graduate student in criminology at a nearby university, was arrested in the case in December but has yet to enter a plea."