May 7, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Marie: I don't do polls, but this is shocking: ~~~

~~~ Presidential Race 2024. Today, a Majority of American Voters Are Fascists. Lauren Sforza of the Hill: "Former President Trump leads President Biden by 7 points in a hypothetical 2024 matchup between the two, according to a new survey. The Washington Post-ABC News poll found that 49 percent of Americans said they would definitely or probably vote for Trump or are leaning toward casting their ballots for him in a hypothetical matchup with Biden in 2024 if Trump and Biden are the Republican and Democratic nominees. About 42 percent said they would definitely or probably vote for Biden or are leaning toward supporting him in 2024. When asked who they would vote for if Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis were the Republican nominee instead of Trump in a matchup with Biden, the governor also led the president by 7 points."

Jack Douglas, et al., of the Washington Post: "The 33-year-old gunman who opened fire on an outlet mall in a Dallas suburb Saturday, killing at least eight people, had an apparent fascination with white supremacist or neo-Nazi beliefs that are now being examined by investigators as a possible motive for the attack, people familiar with the investigation said Sunday. Mauricio Garcia, a local resident, had multiple weapons on him and five additional guns in his car nearby, said people familiar with the investigation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the ongoing probe. Authorities have not released a motive, but a patch on his chest said 'RWDS,' an acronym that stands for Right Wing Death Squad, according to people familiar with the investigation. The phrase is popular among right wing extremists, neo-Nazis and white supremacists, they said...." An AP report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Ken Dilanian & Jonathan Dienst of NBC News: "Texas mall shooting suspect Mauricio Garcia interacted with neo-Nazi and white supremacist content online, two senior law enforcement officials said." This is part of a liveblog.

~~~ President Biden, in a statement: "Yesterday, an assailant in tactical gear armed with an AR-15 style assault weapon gunned down innocent people in a shopping mall, and not for the first time.... Republican Members of Congress cannot continue to meet this epidemic with a shrug.... Once again I ask Congress to send me a bill banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. Enacting universal background checks. Requiring safe storage. Ending immunity for gun manufacturers. I will sign it immediately. We need nothing less to keep our streets safe."

Aileen Graef of CNN: “Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin said Sunday that 'everything is on the table' as the panel scrutinizes new ethics concerns around Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. 'The bottom line is this: Everything is on the table. Day after day, week after week, more and more disclosures about Justice Thomas -- we cannot ignore them,' the Illinois Democrat told CNN's Jake Tapper on 'State of the Union.' 'The thing we're going to do first, obviously, is to gather the evidence, the information that we need to draw our conclusions. I'm not ruling out anything,' he added.... Durbin made clear Sunday that he hasn't reached 'any conclusion' on pursuing subpoenas in relation to Supreme Court ethics issues, but he acknowledged that the absence of Democratic Sen. Diane Feinstein of California would pose a challenge to the committee 'if we go down that path.... Right now, with her absence, it's a 10-to-10 Committee, and the majority is not there, and a proxy vote doesn't count in this circumstance,' Durbin said." MB: Yeah, "the table" is where everything is going to sit until Feinstein resigns & Gov. Gavin Newsom can appoint a new Democrat.

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Trump Can't Remember Affair with Marla Maples. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "Even for a former president known to tell the occasional whopper or 30,000, it's hard to top this one.... At one point [during his deposition in the E. Jean Carroll rape case], Carroll's attorney asked Trump a basic factual question: 'Isn't it true that you were seeing Ms. Maples before you were divorced from Ivana Trump?' Trump responded, amazingly, 'I don't know,' in the sworn deposition. 'It was towards the end of the marriage. So I don't know, really. It could be a lapover, but I don't really know.' (It is not clear what a 'lapover' means, but we're guessing it refers to overlap.) Trump was also asked more generally if he had been seeing women outside of his first marriage, and he responded, 'I don't know.' So the man who engaged in one of the most famous and widely reported-upon affairs in American history apparently isn't sure whether the timeline qualifies it as an extramarital affair."

Maureen Dowd of the New York Times mocks the whiney boys on the Supreme Court, with special shoutouts to Gorsuch, Thomas and Suffering Sam. (Also linked yesterday.)

Aric Toler of Bellingcat & the New York Times & New York Times Reporters: "Jack Teixeira, the Air National Guardsman implicated in a vast leak of classified documents, was fixated on weapons, mass shootings, shadowy conspiracy theories -- and proving he was in the right, and in the know. Even as he relished the respectability and access to intelligence he gained through his military service and top secret clearance, he seethed with contempt about the government, accusing the United States of a host of secret, nefarious activities: making biological and chemical weapons in Ukrainian labs, creating the Islamic State, even orchestrating mass shootings.... The posts are part of a huge trove of previously unreported chat logs obtained by The New York Times. The Discord server, exclusively reviewed by The Times, is one of at least two in which Airman Teixeira shared U.S. intelligence...."

Presidential Race 2024. Slicker and Worser Than Trump. Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: Vivek "Ramaswamy, [a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination and] a lavishly wealthy 37-year-old entrepreneur and author pitching himself as a new face of intellectual conservatism, is promising to go farther down the road of ruling by fiat than Mr. Trump would or could." (Also linked yesterday.)

Way Beyond the Beltway

Arizona, et al. What Trump Did. Yvonne Sanchez of the Washington Post: "Bill Gates, 51, a lifelong Republican elected to the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors[, whom election deniers targeted and threatened..., has experienced] classic signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition typically associated with wartime veterans and violent assaults. Gates is among many election officials whose lives were upended as they became high-profile targets under the false notion that widespread fraud had tainted the 2020 election. It is an idea that continues to be promoted by ... Donald Trump and his allies.... Even today, more than two years after the election, it is not unusual for election workers to take different routes to their homes and offices to avoid being tailed, train in de-escalation techniques and bolster their home security systems. Conferences for election officials now double as group therapy sessions...."

Ukraine, et al.

The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Sunday in Russia's war on Ukraine is here: "The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog said the situation around the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, Europe's largest, is again becoming 'increasingly unpredictable and potentially dangerous' due to increased military activity in the area, which is near the front lines.... Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the return of 45 Azov Brigade fighters -- hailed for their defense of the besieged city of Mariupol last year. The 42 men and three women were released in an apparent prisoner swap."

Marc Santora, et al., of the New York Times: "An American-made Patriot air-defense missile successfully intercepted one of the most sophisticated conventional weapons in Russia's arsenal for the first time over Kyiv on Thursday night, the Ukrainian air force claimed on Saturday. The downing of a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile by a Patriot missile, confirmed by three senior U.S. officials, appeared to offer the first proof that Russia's hypersonic missiles -- presented as invulnerable by President Vladimir V. Putin -- could be defeated by current Western missile defense systems. 'I congratulate the Ukrainian people on a historic event,' Lt. Gen. Mykola Oleshchuk, the commander of the Ukrainian air force, said in a statement posted on the Telegram messaging app. 'Yes, we have shot down the "unparalleled" 'Kinzhal.'"' (Also linked yesterday.)

U.K. Mark Landler of the New York Times: "Anointed with holy oil and enthroned on St. Edward's chair, King Charles III was crowned on Saturday in a solemn ritual that stretches back more than a millennium but unfolded with multiple concessions to the modern age. The coronation, the first since Queen Elizabeth II's in 1953, was a royal spectacle of the kind that only Britain still stages: four hours of pageantry that began with the clip-clop of horses' hooves on Pall Mall and ended with the vaporous trails of acrobatic jets streaking above Buckingham Palace, as Charles watched from the balcony with Queen Camilla, who had been crowned shortly after him." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post has a visual comparison, in photos & video clips, of the coronations of King Charles III & Queen Elizabeth II.

News Ledes

Another Mass Murder in Hateful America. KTSM El Paso: "Brownsville police say seven people are dead Sunday morning and it appears they were intentionally run over by a motorist. The incident happened at 8:30 a.m. near Minnesota Road and North Bernal Road in front of the Ozanam Center, which is a shelter for migrants and homeless. The victims were sitting on the curb near a bus stop. Lt. Martin Sandoval said seven victims died at the scene who died and another four to six victims were taken to area hospitals. Sandoval said the driver was arrested on charged with reckless driving. Sandoval said more charges will likely be filed. He said it is looking more and more like an intentional act."

Another Mass Murder in Guns America. New York Times: "A gunman opened fire at a crowded mall outside Dallas on Saturday, killing at least eight people and injuring at least seven before a police officer killed him, the authorities said, turning a busy afternoon of shopping into a chaotic and tragic scene. At a news conference Saturday night, Brian E. Harvey, the chief of police in Allen, Texas, did not identify a gunman but said the person acted alone. Chief Harvey said a police officer, who was on an unrelated assignment at the mall at the time of the shooting, heard gunfire, rushed toward it and killed the gunman. A spokesman for Medical City Healthcare, which was treating several victims at three trauma facilities, said the ages of the injured ranged from 5 to 61.... A video circulating on social media appeared to show the gunman, lying on the ground, clad in black and equipped with what appeared to be a tactical vest, multiple rounds of ammunition and a long gun." An ABC News report is here.

Washington Post: "Newton N. Minow, the Federal Communications Commission chairman who in 1961 memorably assailed TV as a 'vast wasteland' and went on to have a towering impact on broadcasting by helping shape public television, satellite communications and presidential debates, died May 6 at his home in Chicago. He was 97."

May 6, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Maureen Dowd of the New York Times mocks the whiney boys on the Supreme Court, with special shoutouts to Gorsuch, Thomas & Suffering Sam.

Ukraine. Marc Santora, et al., of the New York Times: "An American-made Patriot air-defense missile successfully intercepted one of the most sophisticated conventional weapons in Russia's arsenal for the first time over Kyiv on Thursday night, the Ukrainian air force claimed on Saturday. The downing of a Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missile by a Patriot missile, confirmed by three senior U.S. officials, appeared to offer the first proof that Russia's hypersonic missiles -- presented as invulnerable by President Vladimir V. Putin -- could be defeated by current Western missile defense systems. 'I congratulate the Ukrainian people on a historic event,' Lt. Gen. Mykola Oleshchuk, the commander of the Ukrainian air force, said in a statement posted on the Telegram messaging app. 'Yes, we have shot down the "unparalleled Kinzhal."'"

Presidential Race 2024. Slicker, and Worse Than Trump. Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: Vivek "Ramaswamy, [a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination and] a lavishly wealthy 37-year-old entrepreneur and author pitching himself as a new face of intellectual conservatism, is promising to go farther down the road of ruling by fiat than Mr. Trump would or could."

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The Washington Post is liveblogging the coronation of King Charles III & Queen Camilla of the U.K. Aw, go ahead and turn on the teevee. Be a witness to history. This is literally a once-a-lifetime event (at least for Chuck & Cam). The New York Times liveblog is here. ~~~

~~~ Marie: I looked for a "summary" video of the whole hoohah but didn't find one. The Times liveblog has a bunch of very short videos that more or less do the trick. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: So here's the BBC's "Coronation Ceremony in Four Minutes":

More Worms Turn. Amy Gardener & Holly Bailey of the Washington Post: "At least eight of the 16 Georgia Republicans who convened in December 2020 to declare Donald Trump the winner of the presidential contest despite his loss in the state have accepted immunity deals from Atlanta-area prosecutors investigating alleged election interference, according to a lawyer for the electors. Prosecutors with the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis (D) told the eight that they will not be charged with crimes if they testify truthfully in her sprawling investigation into efforts by Trump, his campaign and his allies to overturn Joe Biden's victory in Georgia, according to a brief filed Friday in Fulton County Superior Court by defense attorney Kimberly Bourroughs Debrow. Willis has said that the meeting of Trump's electors on Dec. 14, 2020, despite Republican Gov. Brian Kemp's certification of Biden's win, is a key target of her investigation...." (Also linked yesterday.) Politico's story, by Kyle Cheney, is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Danny Hakim of the New York Times: "More than half of the bogus Georgia electors who were convened in December 2020 to try to keep ... Donald J. Trump in power have taken immunity deals in the investigation into election interference there, according to a court filing on Friday and people with knowledge of the inquiry. In addition, Craig A. Gillen, the former deputy independent counsel in the 1980s-era Iran Contra scandal, has been hired to represent a fake elector who could still face criminal charges, David Shafer, the head of the Georgia Republican Party. Mr. Gillen specializes in cases involving racketeering, which is among the charges being weighed by Fani T. Willis, the district attorney of Fulton County, Ga." According to a filing by attorney Kimberley Debrow, eight of her fake-elector clients had accepted immunity deals as had at least one other fake elector.

Clare Hymes & Graham Kates of CBS News: "Attorneys for the writer E. Jean Carroll released about 48 minutes of deposition video shown at the trial in which former President Donald Trump was pressed about Carroll's claim that he raped her in the 1990s. The video was released after media organizations, including CBS News, asked the judge in the case to make it public." MB: Not mentioned in the report is the part where Trump changes his tack on the "Access Hollywood" footage. Instead of sticking with the oft-repeated "locker-room talk" defense, now Trump essentially endorses his remarks about sexual assault, saying that it was true that "stars" can do whatever they want with women and agreeing with Carroll's that he is a "star." That's an admission not only of the veracity of the views he once expressed in the "Access Hollywood" interview but also of the assaults he routinely made on women. ~~~

     ~~~ Below is a portion of Donald Trump's deposition that jurors heard Thursday during the last day of testimony in E. Jean Carroll. Video of the full portion of the deposition shown to the jury is here: ~~~

America's No. 1 Traitor for President*! John Wagner of the Washington Post: "A day after federal prosecutors won their latest high-profile cases against leaders of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol..., Donald Trump lashed out in a social media post at the Justice Department.... 'Back in the USA, but sadly I see so many really bad things happening to our Country,' Trump, who broke ground earlier this week on a golf course in Scotland, wrote on Truth Social, his social media platform. 'The DOJ and FBI are destroying the lives of so many Great American Patriots, right before our very eyes,' he wrote. 'The Court System is a RUBBER STAMP for their conviction and imprisonment. All this while the Radical Left protects and coddles extremists and murderers at a level, and with intensity, never seen before. GET SMART AMERICA, THEY ARE COMING AFTER YOU!!!'" (Also linked yesterday.) This should go under "Presidential Race 2024," but I've filed that under "Normal News," and Trump's remarks are shockingly abnormal, even for him.

You are not a political prisoner, Mr. Schwartz. You are not Alexei Navalny. -- Judge Amit Mehta, in sentencing insurrectionist Peter Schwartz, who called himself "Patriot Pete Political Prisoner in DC" ~~~

~~~ Another Very Fine Insurrectionist Gets Long Jail Sentence. Alan Feuer & Zach Montague of the New York Times: "A Pennsylvania welder [-- Peter Schwartz --] who attacked police officers at the Capitol with a chair and then chemical spray was sentenced on Friday to slightly more than 14 years in prison, the most severe penalty handed down so far in connection with the events of Jan. 6, 2021.... In court papers filed last month, prosecutors said that [Schwartz] and his wife at the time made their way to 'the thick of the violence' at the west terrace of the Capitol, where they 'aggressively participated in the effort to overwhelm the police line.' He later boasted in a text message that he had thrown 'the first chair at the cops,' adding, 'I started a riot.' Prosecutors claimed that the chair he hurled created an opening in the police line, enabling hundreds of other rioters to flood the terrace as police officers retreated. Mr. Schwartz ... then stole a canister of pepper spray and other chemical munitions the police had left behind and used them 'to attack those same officers as they desperately tried to escape the growing and increasingly violent mob.'" The NBC News story is here.

Normal News

Reuters: President Joe Biden said on Friday he was not yet ready to invoke the 14th Amendment to avoid the United States defaulting on its debts as early as June 1, comments which for the first time suggested he has not ruled out the option. 'I've not gotten there yet,' Biden said in an interview with MSNBC when asked about the possibility of invoking the amendment."

Michael Shear of the New York Times: "Neera Tanden, a longtime Democratic adviser who is currently President Biden's staff secretary, will serve as the director of the Domestic Policy Council, the president announced on Friday. Ms. Tanden, who has been a fixture in Washington for more than two decades as an adviser to President Barack Obama and as the president of the Center for American Progress, will replace Susan Rice as Mr. Biden's top domestic policy adviser." (Also linked yesterday.)

Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times: "Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will step down from her position on June 30, she announced on Friday. In an agencywide meeting, Dr. Walensky admitted to having mixed emotions about her decision and broke down in tears, according to people on a conference call with her." (Also linked yesterday.)

New York Times Editors Get Real: "If [Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)] cannot fulfill her obligations to the Senate and to her constituents, she should resign and turn over her responsibilities to an appointed successor. If she is unable to reach that decision on her own, [Sen. Chuck] Schumer, the majority leader, and other Democratic senators should make it clear to her and the public how important it is that she do so.... Her absence is a failure that deprives American voters of full representation on legislation and appointments that will affect them for decades to come.... Ms. Feinstein's difficulties with advancing age are serious and long predate her current illness. Last year, her hometown newspaper, The San Francisco Chronicle, reported that her memory has so deteriorated that she can no longer fulfill her job duties." (Also linked yesterday.)

Presidential Race 2024. Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "In his first interview since announcing that he would seek a second term, President Biden sought to downplay concerns about his age by saying he was the most experienced person to have ever run for the presidency. 'I have acquired a hell of a lot of wisdom and know more than the vast majority of people,' Mr. Biden told the MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle in an interview that aired on Friday night. 'And I'm more experienced than anybody that's ever run for the office. And I think I've proven myself to be honorable as well as also effective.'"

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Still Wrastling with the Mouse. Brooks Barnes of the New York Times: "There is a new wrinkle in the ongoing tussle between Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida and the Walt Disney Company. On Friday, Mr. DeSantis signed a bill into law giving a board that oversees government services at Disney World the ability to void development agreements that had already been approved for the resort." Implementation against Disney is on hold while dueling lawsuits by the parties make their way through the courts. A CNBC report is here.

Georgia. Jason Morris & Sydney Kashiwagi of CNN: "Republican Gov. Brian Kemp of Georgia signed legislation Friday that will create an oversight commission with the power to remove local prosecutors and district attorneys from their jobs. The measure has been heavily criticized by Democrats, including an Atlanta-area DA, who is seriously weighing charges in connection with ... Donald Trump's actions in Georgia during the 2020 election.... Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis ... has vocally opposed the the legislation, warning that it would be 'dangerous' to undo decisions made by voters. In testimony before the Judiciary Committee of the Georgia Senate earlier this year, she also described the bill as racist and retaliatory. 'This bill was never deemed necessary until a historic thing happened in 2020. And let's just talk about it and tell the truth,' Willis testified, saying that in 2020, Georgia went from having five minority district attorneys to 14." MB: This is part of numerous efforts in GOP-controlled states to take local control away from their states' urban areas, particularly those cities and counties controlled by minorities and/or Democrats.

Oklahoma. Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court granted a stay of execution on Friday to Richard Glossip, a death row inmate in Oklahoma, after the state's attorney general, Gentner F. Drummond, a Republican, told the justices that he agreed that Mr. Glossip's execution should be halted. In a rare move, Mr. Drummond wrote that the state had 'come to the difficult but essential conclusion that Glossip's capital conviction is unsustainable and a new trial imperative.' Lawyers call such statements 'confessions of error,' and courts ordinarily give them great weight. The stay issued by the Supreme Court will remain in place while the justices decide whether to hear Mr. Glossip's appeal, and if they do, until they decide it." CNN's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

North Carolina. Rebekah Riess of CNN: "Former North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn pleaded guilty Friday to bringing a loaded handgun through a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport last year, according to his attorney. Cawthorn, whose trial was set to start Friday, entered a guilty plea for the third-degree misdemeanor charge of possession of a dangerous weapon on city property, according to his attorney Missy Owen. The former Republican congressman was fined $250, without probation, and his firearm will be returned, his attorney said." (Also linked yesterday.)

News Lede

CNN: "Authorities in [Allen, Texass,] a suburb of Dallas, are responding to a shooting at an outlet mall, with ATF personnel on the scene at Allen Premium Outlets. There is at least one confirmed shooter who is being reported as deceased on the ground, a law enforcement source told CNN. There is a search for a possible second gunman, according to the source, based on descriptions from witnesses, although the involvement of a second shooter is not confirmed. Congressman Keith Self told CNN's Paula Reid that there are multiple casualties but he declined to specify a number, saying he would leave that information to law enforcement. 'The shooter is dead and I am told by law enforcement that there was only one shooter, they have now confirmed that,' the Republican representative said. 'There are now multiple victims but I am going to leave that to law enforcement to announce. The scene is now secure but it's fluid.'" ~~~

     ~~~ MB: At about 7:40 pm ET, the Allen police chief would not say how many fatalities there were but he did say that nine people were taken to area hospitals that he knows of and that others might have been taken in private vehicles. He said a police officer who was at the shopping mall on an unrelated call heard gunshots; the officer returned fire and killed the shooter.

May 5, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Below is the portion of Donald Trump's deposition that jurors heard Thursday during the last day of testimony in E. Jean Carroll. Video of the full deposition (or at least a major portion of it) is here: ~~~

More Worms Turn. Amy Gardener & Holly Bailey of the Washington Post: “At least eight of the 16 Georgia Republicans who convened in December 2020 to declare Donald Trump the winner of the presidential contest despite his loss in the state have accepted immunity deals from Atlanta-area prosecutors investigating alleged election interference, according to a lawyer for the electors. Prosecutors with the office of Fulton County District Attorney Fani T. Willis (D) told the eight that they will not be charged with crimes if they testify truthfully in her sprawling investigation into efforts by Trump, his campaign and his allies to overturn Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia, according to a brief filed Friday in Fulton County Superior Court by defense attorney Kimberly Bourroughs Debrow. Willis has said that the meeting of Trump’s electors on Dec. 14, 2020, despite Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s certification of Biden’s win, is a key target of her investigation....”

Presidential Race 2024. America's No. 1 Traitor for President*! John Wagner of the Washington Post: “A day after federal prosecutors won their latest high-profile cases against leaders of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol..., Donald Trump lashed out in a social media post at the Justice Department.... 'Back in the USA, but sadly I see so many really bad things happening to our Country,' Trump, who broke ground earlier this week on a golf course in Scotland, wrote on Truth Social, his social media platform. 'The DOJ and FBI are destroying the lives of so many Great American Patriots, right before our very eyes,' he wrote. 'The Court System is a RUBBER STAMP for their conviction and imprisonment. All this while the Radical Left protects and coddles extremists and murderers at a level, and with intensity, never seen before. GET SMART AMERICA, THEY ARE COMING AFTER YOU!!!'”

Michael Shear of the New York Times: “Neera Tanden, a longtime Democratic adviser who is currently President Biden’s staff secretary, will serve as the director of the Domestic Policy Council, the president announced on Friday. Ms. Tanden, who has been a fixture in Washington for more than two decades as an adviser to President Barack Obama and as the president of the Center for American Progress, will replace Susan Rice as Mr. Biden’s top domestic policy adviser.”

Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times: “Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, will step down from her position on June 30, she announced on Friday. In an agencywide meeting, Dr. Walensky admitted to having mixed emotions about her decision and broke down in tears, according to people on a conference call with her.”

Oklahoma. Adam Liptak of the New York Times: “The Supreme Court granted a stay of execution on Friday to Richard Glossip, a death row inmate in Oklahoma, after the state’s attorney general, Gentner F. Drummond, a Republican, told the justices that he agreed that Mr. Glossip’s execution should be halted. In a rare move, Mr. Drummond wrote that the state had 'come to the difficult but essential conclusion that Glossip’s capital conviction is unsustainable and a new trial imperative.' Lawyers call such statements 'confessions of error,' and courts ordinarily give them great weight. The stay issued by the Supreme Court will remain in place while the justices decide whether to hear Mr. Glossip’s appeal, and if they do, until they decide it.” CNN's story is here.

Rebekah Riess of CNN: "Former North Carolina Rep. Madison Cawthorn pleaded guilty Friday to bringing a loaded handgun through a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport last year, according to his attorney. Cawthorn, whose trial was set to start Friday, entered a guilty plea for the third-degree misdemeanor charge of possession of a dangerous weapon on city property, according to his attorney Missy Owen. The former Republican congressman was fined $250, without probation, and his firearm will be returned, his attorney said."

New York Times Editors Get Real: "If [Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)] cannot fulfill her obligations to the Senate and to her constituents, she should resign and turn over her responsibilities to an appointed successor. If she is unable to reach that decision on her own, [Sen. Chuck] Schumer, the majority leader, and other Democratic senators should make it clear to her and the public how important it is that she do so.... Her absence is a failure that deprives American voters of full representation on legislation and appointments that will affect them for decades to come.... Ms. Feinstein’s difficulties with advancing age are serious and long predate her current illness. Last year, her hometown newspaper, The San Francisco Chronicle, reported that her memory has so deteriorated that she can no longer fulfill her job duties."

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The Vast Right-Wing Conspirators Are in Trouble

** As the Rats Turn. Maggie Haberman, et al., of the New York Times: “Federal prosecutors investigating ... Donald J. Trump’s handling of classified documents have obtained the confidential cooperation of a person who has worked for him at Mar-a-Lago..., multiple people familiar with the inquiry said.... The existence of an insider witness, whose identity has not been disclosed, could be a significant step in the investigation.... The witness is said to have provided investigators with a picture of the storage room where the material had been held.... Prosecutors believe ... Mr. Trump’s valet, Walt Nauta..., has failed to provide them with a full and accurate account of his role in any movement of boxes containing the classified documents. In the past few weeks, at least four more Mar-a-Lago employees have been subpoenaed, along with another person who had visibility into Mr. Trump’s thinking when he first returned material to the National Archives.... Prosecutors have also issued several subpoenas to ... the Trump Organization seeking additional surveillance footage from Mar-a-Lago.... Prosecutors have questioned a number of witnesses about gaps in the footage....

“One of the previously unreported subpoenas to the Trump Organization sought records pertaining to Mr. Trump’s dealings with a Saudi-backed professional golf venture known as LIV Golf, which is holding tournaments at some of Mr. Trump’s golf resorts. It is unclear what bearing Mr. Trump’s relationship with LIV Golf has on the broader investigation, but it suggests that the prosecutors are examining certain elements of Mr. Trump’s family business.” MB: OR, prosecutors are wondering if Trump shared classified documents with the Saudis, an act of treason.

Shawn Pogatchnik of Politico: “Donald Trump ... was happy to brand [E. Jean Carroll] a 'disgrace' Thursday while golfing at his course in Ireland. The former U.S. president hopped off a golf cart to tell reporters he was flying back to New York later Thursday – and launched a four-minute diatribe against his accuser.... She is suing him over an alleged 1996 attack and for defamation.... Trump – who has provided only a taped deposition and won’t be required to testify unless he chooses to do so – left open the possibility [of testifying]. His New York legal team has ruled out the prospect.... 'I’m going to go back [to New York] and I’m going to confront this woman...,' said Trump, who repeatedly declined to call Carroll by her name and insisted he has 'no idea who she is.'” More on this in the New York Times story linked below. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

Luc Cohen, et al, of Reuters, republished by Yahoo!: "Jurors in Donald Trump's civil rape trial on Thursday saw a video deposition in which the former U.S. president defended private comments he made in 2005 about grabbing women sexually without asking. Trump was asked by a lawyer for ... E. Jean Carroll, about the 2005 'Access Hollywood' tape, where he said on a hot microphone that 'when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything... Grab 'em by the pussy.' 'Historically, that's true, with stars... if you look over the last million years,' Trump said in the video deposition taken last October.... [Also played in court: the part of the deposition in which Trump] mistook Carroll for an ex-wife in a black-and-white photograph that shows him speaking to people at an event. 'It's Marla,' he said, referring to his second wife Marla Maples. When [Carroll's lawyer] asked him if he was saying the picture depicted Maples, Trump's lawyer Alina Habba said, 'No, that's Carroll.' Carroll's lawyers have argued that the episode, made public in January, undermines Trump's argument that Carroll was not his type." ~~~

     ~~~ Benjamin Weiser, et al., of the New York Times: “In the video clips, [Donald Trump] sits at a table, dark-suited and solemn, answering questions posed by [Carroll's attorney Roberta] Kaplan. He calls Ms. Carroll 'a wack job,' 'sick' and 'a nut job' and turns his disdain on Ms. Kaplan, calling her a 'political operative' and a 'disgrace' and insulting her to her face.... On Thursday, the jury heard from ... Carol Martin[, a friend of Carroll's whom Carroll told about the rape].... 'It was a very disconcerting thing to hear,' Ms. Martin said. She said she had advised Ms. Carroll not to tell anyone or to go to the police because Mr. Trump had a lot of lawyers who would 'bury her.... I am not proud that that’s what I told her,' Ms. Martin testified....

“[Also, Judge Lewis Kaplan called Trump's bluff.] 'I have to go back [to New York] for a woman that made a false accusation about me, and I have a judge who is extremely hostile,' Mr. Trump said, according to Reuters. But in court Thursday afternoon, Mr. Tacopina made it clear to the judge ... that Mr. Trump would not testify, which he said he had confirmed with his client before arriving at court that morning. Judge Kaplan, noting that he was aware of news reports of Mr. Trump’s comments from Ireland, said that he would allow Mr. Tacopina to file a motion as late as 5 p.m. Sunday asking the judge to allow Mr. Trump to testify on his own behalf. 'If he has second thoughts, I will at least consider it,' Judge Kaplan said.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: In a court proceeding, a respectable litigant does not call the other party “a wack job” or “a nut job” and does not “insult her to her face.” It is quite easy to express your profound disagreement with an antagonist without name-calling and insults. There is apparently no situation in which Donald Trump knows how to behave.

Ben Protess, et al., of the New York Times: “Donald J. Trump is seeking to move his criminal case from New York State Supreme Court to federal court, one of his lawyers said on Thursday.... The former president’s legal team will submit the so-called notice of removal in federal court in Manhattan, where a judge will then consider the request. The lawyer, Todd Blanche, disclosed the plan during an unrelated hearing on the criminal case in state court.... The effort to move the case to federal court, which is likely to be a long shot, will not have any immediate effect on the state case.” An ABC News story is here. MB: Yeah, Trump probably hopes to move the case to the Southern District of Florida in the chambers of dotty judge Aileen Cannon, who made ridiculous (and soon overruled) rulings in Trump's classified documents case). (Also linked yesterday.)

** Hannah Rabinowitz & Holmes Lybrand of CNN: "Four members of the far-right Proud Boys have been found guilty of seditious conspiracy by a jury in Washington, DC, for their role to forcibly prevent the peaceful transfer of power from ... Donald Trump to Joe Biden after the 2020 election. Defendants Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, Enrique Tarrio and Dominic Pezzola face[d] a range of charges.... All five defendants were found guilty of other charges related to January 6, including: Obstruction of an official proceeding; Conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging any duties; Obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder; and Destruction of government property and aiding and abetting... The jury was unable to reach a verdict on the seditious conspiracy charge against Pezzola. The judge instructed them to continue deliberations." The story has been updated multiple times. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update: "A fifth defendant, Dominic Pezzola, was found not guilty of seditious conspiracy after the jury returned for several more hours of deliberation on Thursday. Unlike the other defendants in this trial, Pezzola is not alleged to have a leadership position in the organization and was inactive in Proud Boys group chats." ~~~

     ~~~ Alan Feuer & Zach Montague of the New York Times: “The verdicts, coming after seven days of deliberations in Federal District Court in Washington, were a major blow against one of the country’s most notorious far-right groups and another milestone in the Justice Department’s vast investigation of the Capitol attack.... The sedition trial sprawled over the course of more than three months and was characterized by frequent delays, frayed relations between the defense and prosecution and several decisions by the presiding judge, Timothy J. Kelly, that tested the boundaries of conspiracy law. Judge Kelly’s rulings allowed prosecutors to introduce damning evidence about the violent behavior and aggressive language of members of the Proud Boys who had only limited connections to the five defendants. The rulings also permitted jurors to convict on conspiracy even if they found there was no plan to disrupt the certification of the election, but merely an unspoken agreement to do so.” MB: Good news for the country; bad news for the Trumpster. (Also linked yesterday.) 

** Emma Brown, et al., of the Washington Post: “Conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo arranged for the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to be paid tens of thousands of dollars for consulting work just over a decade ago, specifying that her name be left off billing paperwork, according to documents reviewed by The Washington Post. In January 2012, Leo instructed the GOP pollster Kellyanne Conway to bill a nonprofit group he advises and use that money to pay Virginia 'Ginni' Thomas, the documents show. The same year, the nonprofit, the Judicial Education Project, filed a brief to the Supreme Court in a landmark voting rights case[: Shelby County v. Holder].... Clarence Thomas was part of the 5-to-4 majority.... Leo, a key figure in a network of nonprofits that has worked to support the nominations of conservative judges, told Conway that he wanted her to 'give' Ginni Thomas 'another $25K,' the documents show. He emphasized that the paperwork should have 'No mention of Ginni, of course.'... In all, according to the documents, the Polling Company paid Thomas’s firm, Liberty Consulting, $80,000 between June 2011 and June 2012, and it expected to pay $20,000 more before the end of 2012.... The arrangement reveals that Leo ... has worked to provide financial remuneration to [Clarence Thomas'] family.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: In response to the Post's reporting, Leo wrote that the he and the Thomases were “dear friends.” Previously, in defending the lavish gifts the Thomases received from Harlan Crow, Clarence Thomas has said that the Crows “are among our dearest friends.” Looks as if “dear friends” is an agreed code to be employed when reporters or investigators ask pesky questions about the usual secret payoffs in their corrupt circle. These people are just mobsters with better manners. ~~~

~~~ Charlie Savage of the New York Times: “A Republican donor from Texas paid for two years of private-school tuition for Justice Clarence Thomas’s great-nephew, a gift that the justice did not disclose, a friend of the justice acknowledged in a statement on Thursday.... In his statement, Mark Paoletta, Justice Thomas’s friend and a former official for the Trump administration, argued that the justice was not required to report the tuition. He pointed to part of a 1978 law that says judges must disclose gifts to dependent children, who are defined as 'a son, daughter, stepson or stepdaughter.' Mr. Paoletta stressed that by that measure, a great-nephew does not qualify.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: That, IMO, is ripe manure. According to ProPublica (linked yesterday), “Thomas gained legal custody of Martin and became his legal guardian around January 1998, according to court records.” These gifts were money the Thomases would have had to shell out if their ward was to attend private schools. Martin did not have other means of support, and schoolboys don't pay their own tuition. Maybe Thomas & Trump can be cellmates. I hope they both snore. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Marie: I'm sorry, I misunderstood this story yesterday. In fact, when I re-read the lede, it still looks to me as if Savage means that Paoletta paid for two years of the kid's private school tuition & board. But from reporting I've heard on the teevee, Paoletta is merely confirming that Crow paid for two years of the boy's schooling. That to me means "at least two years." BTW, in an appearance Thursday afternoon on MSNBC, Andrew Weissberg agreed with me about the Thomas' potential tax fraud problem.

~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post: For a super-wealthy guy like Harlan Crow, what he is known to have paid for Clarence Thomas is akin to nickels and dimes for the rest of us. “Paying $6,000 a month for tuition, then, is the equivalent of someone worth $60,000 paying 36 cents. Buying a home for $133,000 is like someone worth $60,000 paying eight bucks.... This gap in the relative cost of luxury between the enormously wealthy and even powerful members of the D.C. establishment is precisely why it’s important that transparency exist.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What's really sad about this is that Clarence Thomas, a descendant of slaves, decided to become the slave of rich White people. I don't think that's what "originalism" is supposed to mean. it is possible Thomas thinks he got the last laugh and fooled the old massas. He didn't.

Normal News

Helene Cooper of the New York Times: “President Biden is expected to announce soon that he has chosen Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr., the Air Force chief of staff, to become the country’s most senior military officer, according to two U.S. officials. If he is formally nominated and approved by the Senate, General Brown will succeed Gen. Mark A. Milley, whose term as the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff expires at the end of September. General Brown would be only the second Black man to become chairman, following Colin L. Powell, who served in that position during the presidencies of George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.”

Azi Paybarah of the Washington Post: “A bipartisan group of former defense secretaries — including two who served in Donald Trump’s administration — say that military readiness and U.S. national security are being harmed by one senator’s delay of the quick approval of nearly 200 military promotions because of his objection to the department’s abortion policy. That delay, which Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) began in March, 'risks turning military officers into political pawns, holding them responsible for a policy decision made by their civilian leader,' the former defense secretaries wrote in a letter to Senate leaders Thursday. The letter to Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) follows concerns raised by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who urged the Senate in March to move ahead with the promotions. Austin told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee that the blockade on military promotions caused a 'ripple effect in the force that makes us far less ready than we need to be.'”

Zoe Richards of NBC News: "Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., on Thursday defended her ongoing absence from the Judiciary Committee amid calls for her resignation, insisting that there has been 'no slowdown' of President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees as she recovers from shingles.... The statement did not provide details about a return date to Washington.... While Senate Democrats have been able to advance several of Biden’s nominees with Republican votes, they had to pause on others that fell short of bipartisan backing." MB: Also, Senate Democrats can't do anything about the Supremes when one senator is absent. Feinstein's problem isn't shingles; it's dementia. I don't blame her for this; I blame someone who is "advising" her. Maybe a staff member afraid of losing a job' maybe a supposed friend; I don't know. Democrats must do something.

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Alexandra Glorioso & Patricia Mazzei of the New York Times: “A federal jury acquitted Andrew Gillum, the Democrat who lost the 2018 Florida governor’s race to Ron DeSantis, of lying to the F.B.I. on Thursday. But jurors failed to reach a verdict on charges related to whether Mr. Gillum and a close associate diverted campaign funds when Mr. Gillum was running for governor. After more than four days of deliberation, the 12-member jury said it had reached agreement only on the charge that Mr. Gillum made false statements when the F.B.I. interviewed him in 2017. Judge Allen C. Winsor of the Federal District Court in Tallahassee declared a mistrial on one conspiracy charge and 17 fraud charges against Mr. Gillum and Sharon Lettman-Hicks. Mr. Gillum, 43, and Ms. Lettman-Hicks, 54, a friend and mentor since he was in college, were indicted last June over how they had raised and used political funds when he was the mayor of Tallahassee and a candidate for governor. Two of the initial 21 charges were dropped just before the trial began last month. Ms. Lettman-Hicks, who was tried jointly with Mr. Gillum, had been indicted only on the conspiracy and fraud charges on which the jury failed to reach a verdict.”

The Little Dictator. Beth Reinhard of the Washington Post: Last summer, Gov. Ron DeSantis sent two state police (FDLE) agents to Texas to lay “the groundwork for a politically charged operation ... to fly border-crossers from San Antonio to the liberal haven of Martha’s Vineyard....  DeSantis has increasingly deployed FDLE outside its traditional portfolio and in support of his own political agenda, according to a Washington Post review of court documents, state records and interviews with more than a dozen current and former administrators and agents.... Inside FDLE, many members balked at these directives from the governor’s office, which they viewed as political stunts orchestrated to raise DeSantis’s national profile, The Post’s interviews found, and some who openly resisted the governor’s priorities were pushed out.” The story details how DeSantis and former (now Senator) Gov. Rick Scott (R) abused the FDLE and how DeSantis has justified that abuse: "Alexander Hamilton something, something, something."

Iowa. Jacob Bogage of the Washington Post: “Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Thursday said she will sign a bill to roll back labor protections for children, allowing them to work longer hours and take jobs that had been prohibited. The measure would permit children as young as 14 to work in roofing, construction and demolition, provided they are part of educational or apprenticeship programs and a parent has granted permission for the work. They would also be allowed to do light assembly work and assist customers in businesses that sell fireworks, as long as no machines are present. The legislation eliminates state regulations on the number of hours 16- and 17-year-olds can work and allows them to serve alcohol in restaurants with parental permission.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yes, But. People under the age of 18 cannot work in “establishments where nude or topless dancing is performed.” So it's okay for 14-year-olds to fall off the roof, but they must not see topless dancers. Now, that's child protection. Nice work, GOP! It seems Repubicans all around the country are bent on bringing to life satirical literature and performance art.

North Carolina. David Chen & Kate Kelly of the New York Times: “North Carolina hastily approved legislation on Thursday that would ban most abortions after 12 weeks of pregnancy, setting the stage for a likely test of the Republican Party’s new, but slim, supermajority. After an emotional, five-hour debate, the Senate, by a vote of 29-20, approved a ban the House had already passed the night before. The bill now goes to the state’s Democratic governor, who has called it 'extreme,' and said he would veto it.... But the legislature has the potential to override his veto.... In a video he posted to Twitter on Thursday, the governor, Roy Cooper, urged residents to help uphold his veto by pressuring four Republicans who had campaigned to protect women’s reproductive health to break from their party.... Last month, a longtime Democrat, Representative Tricia Cotham, unexpectedly switched parties, giving Republicans narrow supermajorities in both chambers. When she was still a Democrat, Ms. Cotham promised to help codify Roe v. Wade in her state. Yet she voted in favor of the 12-week ban on Wednesday.”

Way Beyond

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

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Friday is here: "The head of Russia’s Wagner mercenary group, which has been fighting for control of Bakhmut since last summer, announced Friday he would withdraw his forces from the city on May 10 — the day after Russia’s Victory Day military parade — because of insufficient ammunition. In a letter published on his Telegram channel, Yevgeniy Prigozhin demanded that the Defense Ministry sign an order indicating the date on which it would replace Wagner forces involved in a brutal battle for the hotly contested city in eastern Ukraine.... The Wagner chief’s letter followed a graphic late-night video posted on Telegram, in which he displayed dozens of corpses of Wagner fighters killed in Bakhmut on Thursday. Prigozhin then launched into a furious, obscenity-laden tirade...."

U.K. The Washington Post has an overview of Charles & Camilla's coronation. “The service at Westminster Abbey in London will begin at 11 a.m. London time (6 a.m. Eastern time) on Saturday, May 6.... The service, along with the parades to and from the abbey, will run for several hours. The king and queen will also appear on the balcony at Buckingham Palace with other royal family members.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: They said on the teevee that the procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey will begin at 5 a.m. ET.

~~~ David Lammy -- a Labour party leader who represents the London neighborhood of Tottenham and "some of the poorest people in Britain" -- in a New York Times op-ed remembers his mother, a native of Guyana, and her celebrations of royal events. King Charles III "has returned five times [to Tottenham after 2011 riots] and brought his many charities, without news releases or fanfare. I have been struck by how easily my constituents strike up a conversation with him and by how much he knows about the many Commonwealth countries he has spent his life visiting. In some ways, Charles III has done more for my constituents ... than most politicians."