March 16, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Marie: Gosh, I've missed hearing from Miss Margie for about two days. She back. With a bomb. ~~~

     ~~~ Sandbagged. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "On Tuesday, [Marjorie Taylor] Greene and a GOP colleague floated sending the U.S. military south while citing ... [an 'explosive device' U.S. Border Patrol had found]. At a field hearing of the House Homeland Security Committee near the Texas-Mexico border, multiple Republicans pointed to the alleged explosive device. 'Chief Ortiz, are you aware that there was an explosive device found by border patrol agents on no man, in an area called no man's land?' Greene asked Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz. Rep. Morgan Luttrell (R-Tex.) cited 'this explosive device that was discovered by one of you border patrol agents.' Rep. Dale W. Strong (R-Ala.) labeled it an 'improvised explosive device being used against U.S. law enforcement.' Greene also tweeted a picture of the 'explosive,' accusing Mexican cartels of 'planting bombs.' Ortiz ... and another witness even seemed unfamiliar with what the Republicans were talking about. But by Wednesday afternoon, Ortiz tweeted that the item was merely a 'duct-taped ball filled with sand.'" Luttrell complained later that agents did not properly report the bomb. MB: I guess not. Finding a bag of sand, even one wrapped in duct tape, in a sandy desert probably doesn't merit an all-points bulletin.

Rebecca Crosby, et al., of Popular Information: "Tuesday night on Fox News, host Jesse Watters asserted that Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) 'donated $74 million to Black Lives Matter.' That was why, Watters claimed, federal regulators did not pursue more aggressive oversight of SVB's business practices. According to this theory, SVB was treated with kid gloves because it was 'woke.' Watters' claim is false. The actual amount that SVB donated to Black Lives Matter was zero. But that didn't stop similar claims from being made repeatedly on Fox News, conservative websites, and social media.... The [fake] reports are based on a database produced by the right-wing Claremont Institute." The reporters explain how Claremont came up with fake numbers.

Victoria Bekiempis of the Guardian: "Federal prosecutors in Washington have reportedly told court officials a thousand more people could be charged in relation to the deadly January 6 Capitol attack. Matthew Graves, the US attorney in Washington DC, sent a one-page letter to the chief judge of Washington DC federal court, apprising her of the potential deluge of defendants, Bloomberg News reported.... Graves said in the letter that justice department officials estimated that another 700 to 1,200 defendants could face charges.... The prosecutor also said he did not know the exact proportion of misdemeanor and felony cases to come but thought there would be a larger proportion of felonies, Bloomberg said."

Virginia. Carry Me Back to Old Virginny. Christine Hauser of the New York Times: ";A Virginia judge relied in part on a 19th century law that defined enslaved people as property in a recent decision to allow a divorced woman to pursue using embryos that she shared with her former husband -- a ruling that has drawn criticism.... 'It is logically possible that he could treat [sharing the embryos] as a distribution of property, but he doesn't have to go into the slave law. So that was a jump, [U.C. Davis bioethics professor Lisa] Ikemoto said. 'In a sense, he is reviving the use of a law that treated humans as property, in the 21st century. It is reprehensible and offensive.'"

France. Sylvie Corbet of the AP: "French President Emmanuel Macron imposed a highly unpopular bill raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 on Thursday by shunning parliament and invoking a special constitutional power. Lawmakers were shouting, their voices shaking with emotion as Macron made the risky move, which is expected to trigger quick motions of no-confidence in his government. Riot police vans zoomed by outside the National Assembly, their sirens wailing. The proposed pension changes have prompted major strikes and protests across the country since January. Macron, who made it the flagship of his second term, argued the reform is needed to keep the pension system from diving into deficit as France's population ages and life expectancy lengthens. The decision to invoke the special power was made during a Cabinet meeting at the Elysee presidential palace, just a few minutes before the scheduled vote, because Macron had no guarantee of a majority in France's lower house of parliament." The Washington Post's story is here.

Libya. Euan Ward of the New York Times: "More than 2.5 tons of natural uranium is missing from a site in war-torn Libya, the director general of the U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Wednesday, telling member states that the agency was searching for the material. The uranium ore itself poses little radiation hazard, said Sinead Harvey, a spokeswoman for the U.N. watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency. But she said the material, contained in 10 drums, still requires safe handling and may present 'a radiological risk as well as nuclear security concerns' if it were not found. The nuclear material was discovered to be missing on Tuesday during an inspection in Libya by the U.N. watchdog, Ms. Harvey said."

Ukraine, et al. AP: "Poland's president said Thursday that his country plans to give Ukraine around a dozen MiG-29 fighter jets, which would make it the first NATO member to fulfill the Ukrainian government's increasingly urgent requests for warplanes. President Andrzej Duda said Poland would hand over four of the Soviet-made warplanes 'within the next few days' and that the rest needed servicing and would be supplied later. The Polish word he used to describe the total number can mean between 11 and 19. 'They are in the last years of their functioning, but they are in good working condition,' Duda said of the aircraft." The Washington Post's story is here.

Luis Martinez of ABC News: "U.S. European Command has released dramatic declassified video taken by the MQ-9 Reaper drone that shows the moment that a Russian Su-27 fighter jet collided with it after attempting to spray the drone with jet fuel. The video was taken from a camera on the drone's underside and shows two different passes taken by the jets to spray the drone, the second one being the collision with the propeller at the rear of the drone, which is visible in the footage.... Communications with the drone were down for a minute [where] the image can be seen pixelating into color bars.... When the video feed resumed one of the propeller blades can be seen damaged from the collision with the Russian fighter. ~~~

U.K. Stephen Castle of the New York Times: "Britain on Thursday became the latest Western country to prohibit the use of TikTok on 'government devices,' citing security fears linked to the video-sharing app's ownership by a Chinese company. Speaking in Parliament, Oliver Dowden, a senior cabinet minister, announced the ban with immediate effect, describing it as 'precautionary,' even though the United States, the European Union's executive arm, Canada and India have already taken similar steps."

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Matt Viser of the Washington Post: "President Biden on Wednesday touted his administration's policies on lowering the cost of prescription drugs and helping recipients of Medicare and Medicaid, programs that have become a major topic of debate as Republicans look for significant budget cuts to trim growing federal deficits. Biden also ramped up his defense of the Affordable Care Act, pointing to the dozens of times Republicans have tried to repeal the signature law signed by President Barack Obama.... Biden spoke on campus [at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas] with a group of medical professionals, dressed in lab coats and scrubs...."

Luz Lazo of the Washington Post: "A federal board on Wednesday approved a Canadian Pacific Railway merger with Kansas City Southern, creating a freight rail system linking North America. The deal is the nation's first major rail merger in more than two decades. The Surface Transportation Board, charged with regulating freight companies, said the merger will foster growth of rail traffic, support passenger operations and shift freight from highways to rail, ultimately resulting in greater safety and benefits to the environment.... The STB had been pressured to defer the decision amid public outcry over increased rail traffic and safety risks from a combined network -- concerns that were heightened last month after a Norfolk Southern train derailment released toxic fumes in northeastern Ohio. The combined company, to be called Canadian Pacific Kansas City, will connect the United States, Mexico and Canada and cover more than 20,000 miles of track -- including 8,600 miles in the United States."

The Clock Ticks on TikTok. David McCabe & Cecilia Kang of the New York Times: "The Biden administration wants TikTok's Chinese ownership to sell the app or face a possible ban, TikTok said on Wednesday, as the White House hardens its stance toward resolving national security concerns about the popular video service. The new demand to sell the app was delivered to TikTok in recent weeks.... TikTok is owned by the Chinese internet company ByteDance. The move is a significant shift in the Biden administration's position toward TikTok, which has been under scrutiny over fears that Beijing could request Americans' data from the app. The White House had been trying to negotiate an agreement with TikTok that would apply new safeguards to its data and eliminate a need for ByteDance to sell its shares in the app. But the demand for a sale ... harks back to the position of ... Donald J. Trump, who threatened to ban TikTok unless it was sold to an American company." An NPR story is here.

Annie Karni & Shawn Hubler of the New York Times: "The Senate on Wednesday confirmed Eric Garcetti, the former mayor of Los Angeles, to be the U.S. ambassador to India, ending a two-year saga that left a top diplomatic post vacant amid allegations that he mishandled workplace misconduct and sexual harassment. Mr. Garcetti was confirmed by a vote of 52 to 42, with a few Democratic senators who had expressed deep reservations voting 'no' but several more Republicans voting in favor of moving forward, effectively saving Mr. Garcetti's bid from collapse. It was a victory for President Biden, who stuck by his political ally in the face of the allegations and the prolonged process that has left the United States without a permanent envoy in one of the world's most populous and geopolitically important democracies." An AP story is here.

Joe Rennison & Jason Karaian of the New York Times: "Stock markets tumbled on Wednesday, as investors fears over the health of the banking industry resurfaced and spread around the world, undoing a rally on Tuesday when the panic appeared to pause. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell 1.6 percent at the open of trading, reversing all of the previous day's gains. European markets were also hard hit, with stocks of many of the region's biggest banks falling sharply, as anxiety persists about the fallout from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, which were seized by regulators after suffering devastating runs on deposits. The catalyst for the day's turmoil appeared to be Credit Suisse, the mistake-prone Swiss bank that has struggled for years to turn around its fortunes, with customers steadily shifting their assets to rival banks. It recorded the most eye-catching decline, with its shares losing roughly 30 percent, setting yet another record low. On Wednesday, the bank's largest shareholder, Saudi National Bank, ruled out providing more money for Credit Suisse as it struggles with its latest turnaround plan." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Michael de la Merced & Maureen Farrell of the New York Times: "Credit Suisse, the 166-year-old institution that was once an emblem of Swiss pride, is fighting for its life after investors, fearing that the bank would run out of money, dumped its stock and sent the price of insuring its debt against a default skyrocketing. After the close of trading in Europe, Switzerland's central bank, the Swiss National Bank, said it would step in and provide support to Credit Suisse 'if necessary.' Early Thursday, Credit Suisse said it would borrow up to 50 billion Swiss francs, or about $54 billion, from the Swiss National Bank to ward off concerns about its financial health. The bank also said it would seek to buy back debt of up to 3 billion Swiss francs." ~~~

     ~~~ Elliot Smith of CNBC: "Credit Suisse shares soared more than 30% at Thursday's market open after the bank said it will borrow up to 50 billion Swiss francs ($54 billion) from the Swiss National Bank. The stock's rally cooled slightly in early trading, but shares were still up 21.8% at 10 a.m. London time (6 a.m. ET)."

** Tamar Hallerman & Bill Rankin of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "In an exclusive interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, five of the 23 special grand jurors recounted what it was like to be a pivotal -- but anonymous -- part of one of the most momentous criminal investigations in U.S. history.... [The jurors said] that they had heard a recording of a phone call [Donald] Trump placed to late Georgia House Speaker David Ralston in which the president asked the fellow Republican to convene a special session of the Legislature to overturn Democrat Joe Biden's narrow victory in Georgia.... The speaker 'basically cut the president off. He said, "I will do everything in my power that I think is appropriate."... He just basically took the wind out of the sails,' [a] juror said.... Ralston and other legislative leaders did not call a special session.... [Former. Sen. David] Perdue, a key Trump ally, was asked about a meeting at Truist Park in December 2020, during which he told Gov. Brian Kemp he wanted the legislature to convene a special session to challenge Biden's victory, a juror said....

"Two of the jurors estimated that as many as 10 witnesses invoked their Fifth Amendment rights, some doing so even when asked to describe their education.... Among the most compelling witnesses, various jurors said, were Fulton County poll workers Ruby Freeman and her daughter Shaye Moss, who had received death threats after being singled out by Trump and his then-attorney Rudy Giuliani. Another mentioned Eric Coomer, the onetime executive for Dominion Voting Systems, who left his job after being vilified. Also mentioned was Tricia Raffensperger, the wife of Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, who broke down when describing the vitriol and threats leveled at her, one juror said.... One juror said she would cry in her car at the end of the day after hearing from witnesses whose lives had been upended by disinformation and claims of election fraud.... [One juror said, 'I tell my wife if every person in America knew every single word of information we knew, this country would not be divided as it is right now.'... 'A lot's gonna come out sooner or later,' one of the jurors said. 'And it's gonna be massive. It's gonna be massive.'" Firewalled. If you can't access the AJC story, digby has most of it here. ~~~

~~~ A CNN story about Trump's phone call to Ralston is here.

Nicki Brown of CNN: "Michael Cohen, the former personal attorney to ex-President Donald Trump, testified Wednesday afternoon in front of a New York grand jury as part of an investigation into hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels.... Cohen testified for 'a couple' of hours Wednesday following about three hours of testimony on Monday, according to his attorney, Lanny Davis.... Daniels, meanwhile, met with prosecutors with the Manhattan district attorney's office Wednesday, according to a tweet sent by her attorney."

Kyle Cheney & Jordain Carney of Politico: "Newly released video of the Capitol attack shows just how close rioters came to a senior GOP senator who was third in line for the presidency on Jan. 6, 2021. The footage, released after media requests to access videos used in connection with a Jan. 6 criminal case, shows the apparent evacuation of Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) from the Senate chamber as a uniformed officer separates him and his security detail from the first wave of rioters who had breached the building.... The video, taken by a rioter who entered the Capitol moments after the breach..., shows the Proud Boy [Dominic Pezzola] gazing past the police officer at the evacuating senator, though it's unclear if he recognized Grassley.... The footage is the latest example of how close powerful government figures came to a direct brush with the mob of ... Donald Trump's supporters.... The footage also underscores the possibility of more significant revelations about Jan. 6 sitting in the thousands of hours of security camera video that Speaker Kevin McCarthy has indicated he intends to release publicly...."

Benjamin Weiser of the New York Times: "Guo Wengui, a fugitive Chinese billionaire, was arrested on Wednesday morning in New York on charges that he orchestrated a complex conspiracy to defraud thousands of his online followers out of $1 billion, the authorities said. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan said Mr. Guo, 52, was charged with 'lining his pockets with the money he stole,' which they said included buying for himself and his close relatives a 50,000-square-foot mansion, a $3.5 million Ferrari and two $36,000 mattresses, as well as financing a $37 million luxury yacht. Mr. Guo is a business associate of Stephen K. Bannon, a onetime top adviser to ... Donald J. Trump. It was on a yacht belonging to Mr. Guo that Mr. Bannon was arrested in a fraud case in August 2020; Mr. Trump later pardoned Mr. Bannon, who had pleaded not guilty, on those charges." The ABC News story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Rebecca O'Brien & William Rashbaum of the New York Times: "A $19 million luxury yacht deal brokered by Representative George Santos between two of his wealthy donors has captured the attention of federal and state authorities investigating the congressman's campaign finances and personal business dealings.... Prosecutors and F.B.I. agents have sought in recent weeks to question the new owner of the 141-foot superyacht -- Raymond Tantillo, a Long Island auto dealer -- about the boat and his dealings with Mr. Santos, including his campaign fund-raising efforts. Mr. Tantillo bought the boat from Mayra Ruiz, a Republican donor in Miami. Mr. Santos negotiated the payment -- $12.25 million up front, with $6.5 million more in installments -- and advised the two on the logistics of turning over the yacht, according to a person familiar with the sale, which took place a few weeks before his election in November." MB: At least we know now where the previously-impoverished George Anthony got some of his money. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Pam Belluck & Allison McCann of the New York Times: "The judge in a closely watched lawsuit seeking to overturn federal approval of a widely used abortion pill questioned lawyers publicly for the first time on Wednesday.... The judge.Matthew J. Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas, said he would decide as soon as possible whether to issue a preliminary injunction that could, at least temporarily, take the pill, mifepristone, off the market.... Julie Straus Harris, [a lawyer for the Justice Department said], 'An injunction here would interfere with every state in the country' and could make abortion access difficult even in cases of nonviable pregnancies and rape." ~~~

     ~~~ Tierney Sneed of CNN: "Over the course of about four hours of arguments, a federal judge in Texas asked questions that suggested he is seriously considering undoing the US Food and Drug Administration's approval of a medication abortion drug and the agency's moves to relax the rules around its use. But the judge, US District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk ... also indicated he was thinking through scenarios in which he could keep the drug's 2000 approval intact while blocking other FDA rules.... Here are takeaways from the hearing[.]" ~~~

     ~~~ Lindsay Whitehurst of the AP: "The case has raised concerns about court transparency and so-called judge shopping.... Research shows that medication-induced abortions are safe and effective, and they were approved by the Food and Drug Administration more than 20 years ago.... The suit was filed in Amarillo, Texas, which meant that it was assigned to U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a former attorney at a Christian law firm who previously wrote critically about Roe. He was appointed by ... Donald Trump and confirmed over fierce opposition from Democrats. Medication is the most common form of abortion in the U.S.... If Kacsmaryk reverses the approval of mifepristone, it could restrict access nationwide. Such a ruling would be an unprecedented challenge to the FDA.... An appeal would go to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which also leans conservative.... The volume of cases filed before Kacsmaryk and other Texas judges has raised concerns [about judge-shopping] among experts.... Kacsmaryk set the first hearing in the closely watched case on a conference call with attorneys. He also asked them to for the 'courtesy' of not publicizing the upcoming arguments...."

Rachel Cohen of Vox: "Earlier this month, Politico broke news that Walgreens, the nation's second-largest pharmacy chain, assured 21 Republican attorneys general that it would not dispense abortion pills in their states should the company be approved to dispense them. The decision was met with sharp protest by Walgreens customers, abortion rights activists, and Democrats, who accused the pharmacy of caving needlessly to pressure. But fear of state prosecution is not the only factor shaping Walgreens' decision-making. Another previously unreported constraint on the company is that its sole supplier of Mifeprex -- the brand-name drug for the abortion pill mifepristone first approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000 -- circulated a list to its corporate clients in January naming 31 states that it would not supply the abortion medication to.... The sole US distributor for Mifeprex is AmerisourceBergen.... Back in January, AmerisourceBergen created its list of 31 states.... Representatives from CVS and Rite Aid, which like Walgreens said they would seek certification, have remained conspicuously quiet on the issue for the last two weeks, and did not return requests for comment." So Walgreens' "decision" not to distribute mifepristone is based on its inability to obtain the drug. And if the reporting is accurate, that would mean that CBS & Rite Aid can't get the drug either. Emphasis added.

Julie Tsirkin, et al. of NBC News: "Sensitive information has been posted online from last week's 'significant data breach' of the health insurance marketplace for Washington, D.C., that affected members of Congress, according to Senate staffers briefed on the hack. In an email to Senate offices, staffers from the Intelligence Committee said they 'learned that breached information is already up on one of the big hacker breach sites.'... The information is 'easily accessible to folks who know how to look for it,' and it 'includes name, address, [Social Security number], [date of birth], desk phone number, what plan you signed up for, and how much your monthly contribution is.'"

Presidential Race 2024. Hahahahaha. Michael Bender of the New York Times: "Donald J. Trump spent much of the past year teasing a presidential campaign..., promising his rally crowds for months that they would be 'very happy' about his [decision on making another presidential* run]. Now, Mr. Trump's allies are accusing Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida of doing the same -- but insisting that he has violated state law. MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Mr. Trump, filed a complaint with Florida officials on Wednesday, alleging that Mr. DeSantis ... is operating a shadow presidential campaign. The super PAC said that Mr. DeSantis should be considered a presidential candidate because he has taken meetings with donors, raised money for a political committee and toured the country to sell books, while allies are reaching out to potential campaign aides.... The pro-Trump super PAC ... is asking the state commission to impose 'the most severe penalties' under Florida ethics law, which include, among other things, impeachment, removal from office, public censure and ballot disqualification.... Mr. DeSantis has appointed five of the nine members of the commission."

Dino Grandoni of the Washington Post: "The National Audubon Society, one of the country's best-known bird conservation organizations, decided in a closed-door vote this week to retain the name of John James Audubon, famed 19th-century naturalist and wildlife illustrator who was also an unabashed enslaver. The move comes even as about half-a-dozen of the organization's regional chapters have pledged to scrub his name from their titles, part of a broader reckoning over the U.S. environmental movement's history of entrenched racism.... Susan Bell, chair of the board, declined to provide a breakdown of the final vote [of the 27-person board]." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff & Sonia Rao of the Washington Post: "An Axios reporter [-- Ben Montgomery --] in Tampa said he was fired this week after he responded to a Florida Department of Education email about an event featuring Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), calling the news release 'propaganda.'" MB: I will seldom be linking Axios items in the future. This is why. ~~~

     ~~~ Hunter Walker, in TPM interviews Ben Montgomery: "In a conversation with TPM, Montgomery said he felt the situation was an example of how the DeSantis" media 'machine' was impacting the news business.... Montgomery [emailed] DeSantis' press office a message that said, 'This is propaganda, not a press release.' Alex Lanfranconi, a spokesperson for the Florida Department of Education, publicized the exchange less than an hour later by tweeting a screengrab of Montgomery's message."

Beyond the Betway

Michigan. Lauren Gurley of the Washington Post: "The Michigan Senate approved a bill to repeal the state's right-to-work laws in a major victory for organized labor, setting the state up to become one of the first to overturn such laws, which allow workers to opt out of union membership and dues payments. In a narrow 20-17 vote on Tuesday, along party lines, the Michigan Senate passed the bill to revoke the state's right-to-work laws, sending it back to the state's House for final approval. The House voted to pass a similar law last week, but must sign off on final language. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has said she will sign the bill."

Michigan. John Flesher & Ed White of the AP: "A Wisconsin man accused of assisting the key figures in a plot to kidnap Michigan's governor pleaded guilty Wednesday to a lesser charge and will cooperate with prosecutors. Brian Higgins said he attempted to provide material support for terrorism, a crime that carries a maximum prison term of five years. He drove past Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's second home in Antrim County in 2020 while allies waited across a lake for a signal from his laser-style device. Higgins was among five men scheduled to face trial later this year in northern Michigan. They were not charged in the kidnapping conspiracy but were accused of providing key support."

Minnesota. Marie: I'm so glad this Republican state senator doesn't have to sully himself rubbing shoulders with "the poors":

Virginia. Eduardo Medina of the New York Times: "Seven sheriff's deputies in Virginia have been charged with second-degree murder in the death of a Black man with a history of mental illness who died after the officers smothered him as he lay on the ground in handcuffs and leg shackles at a hospital, his family's lawyer and a county prosecutor said on Wednesday. The man, Irvo Otieno, 28, of Henrico County, Va., whose family emigrated from Kenya when he was 4 years old, appeared to have died from asphyxiation, or oxygen deficiency, on March 6 at Central State Hospital in Dinwiddie County, his family's lawyer, Mark Krudys, said in an interview. His family says Mr. Otieno was deprived of medication while in jail that he needed for his mental illness."

Way Beyond

France. Aurelien Breeden of the New York Times: "After waves of protests and rolling strikes that disrupted public transportation and left garbage piling up, all eyes were on the French Parliament on Thursday as it prepared to vote on a measure to increase the retirement age by two years. President Emmanuel Macron's widely unpopular plans to raise the retirement age reached a critical juncture as they came up for a decisive parliamentary vote that could be extremely close. It caps a two-month showdown between the French government and labor unions that is testing Mr. Macron's political agenda." ~~~

     ~~~ Constant Méheut of the New York Times: "Hundreds of thousands of French protesters on Wednesday swarmed cities across the country, and striking workers disrupted rail lines and closed schools to protest the government's plan to raise the legal retirement age, in a final show of force before the contested bill comes to a vote on Thursday. The march -- the eighth such national mobilization in two months -- and strikes embodied the showdown between two apparently unyielding forces: President Emmanuel Macron, who has been unwavering in his resolve to overhaul pensions, and large crowds of protesters who have vowed to continue the fight even if the bill to raise the retirement age to 64 from 62 passes Parliament -- which many believe it will.... On Wednesday, a joint committee of lawmakers from both houses of Parliament agreed on a joint version of the pension bill, sending it to a vote on Thursday."

Israel. Isabel Kershner of the New York Times: "The president of Israel presented a compromise proposal on Wednesday for softening a government plan to drastically overhaul the country's judiciary -- a plan that critics say would destroy the country's liberal democratic system and that has sent hundreds of thousands of protesters into the streets in recent weeks. But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the president's framework, reducing any likelihood of an immediate end to the country's turmoil. In an impassioned speech broadcast live in prime time on Wednesday evening, the president, Isaac Herzog, said Israel was 'in the throes of a profound crisis' and raised the specter of civil war. Israelis have been taking to the streets in rolling protests against the government/s plan."

Japan/South Korea. Michelle Lee of the Washington Post: "South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on Thursday in Tokyo, the first such summit in 12 years as the two biggest U.S. allies in Asia make cautious steps toward rapprochement after years of bitter lows in the relationship.... The summit is a reflection of South Korea's new priority of overcoming historical differences and strengthening security and diplomatic cooperation with Japan and the United States as the three seek to unite against increasing threats from North Korea and China."

Ukraine, et al.

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

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Thursday is here: "Russia is attempting to retrieve the remnants of the U.S. surveillance drone that crashed into the Black Sea after a run-in with Russian warplanes amid reports that Moscow's ships had approached the site of the crash early Thursday -- approximately 56 nautical miles southwest of Crimea's southern tip. U.S. officials blamed the crash on two Russian jets dumping fuel on the drone and later colliding with a propeller on its rear, and said they were investigating its causes. 'We'll be in close coordination with allies and partners at the conclusion of the investigation,' Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters Wednesday on a trip to Ethiopia.... Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke to their counterparts in Russia, in what was the first contact between the two militaries in months. In a news conference Wednesday, Milley said the drone incident followed a pattern of recent behavior by Russia, which included aggressive actions toward aircraft from other nations. 'We have to figure out exactly what the way ahead is,' he said. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu blamed the crash on the drone entering a flight restriction zone unilaterally designated by Russia, he told Austin on the telephone according to a Russian Defense Ministry statement....  Austin said the U.S. military would 'continue to fly and operate wherever international law allows,' noting that the incident took place in international airspace in remarks Wednesday.... Russia, China and Iran are holding joint maritime exercises in the Gulf of Oman until March 19, the Chinese Defense Ministry said Wednesday."

Courtney Kube & Carol Lee of NBC News: "Three U.S. officials familiar with the intelligence said the highest levels of the Kremlin approved the aggressive actions of Russian military fighter jets against a U.S. military drone over the Black Sea on Tuesday. The Russian jets dropped jet fuel on the MQ-9 Reaper, an unprecedented action, and two of the officials said the intelligence suggests the intent seemed to be to throw the drone off course or disable its surveillance capabilities.... Three defense officials and one Biden administration official also said the Russians have already reached the area where the MQ-9 Reaper crashed. The Russians are actively looking for the debris with ships and aircraft, but the U.S. hasn't seen any indication that they've been able to recover any of it, officials said.... The U.S. is unlikely to try to recover the remnants of the crashed drone, according to the three U.S. officials familiar with the intelligence."

Haley Ott of CBS News: "Ukraine has invited Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to visit the country after he called the war there a "territorial dispute" and not one of the United States' "vital national interests."... 'We are sure that as a former military officer deployed to a combat zone, Governor [Ron DeSantis] knows the difference between a "dispute" and war,' Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesperson for Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, tweeted on Tuesday."

March 15, 2023

Afternoon Update:

Joe Rennison & Jason Karaian of the New York Times: "Stock markets tumbled on Wednesday, as investors' fears over the health of the banking industry resurfaced and spread around the world, undoing a rally on Tuesday when the panic appeared to pause. On Wall Street, the S&P 500 fell 1.6 percent at the open of trading, reversing all of the previous day's gains. European markets were also hard hit, with stocks of many of the region's biggest banks falling sharply, as anxiety persists about the fallout from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, which were seized by regulators after suffering devastating runs on deposits. The catalyst for the day's turmoil appeared to be Credit Suisse, the mistake-prone Swiss bank that has struggled for years to turn around its fortunes, with customers steadily shifting their assets to rival banks. It recorded the most eye-catching decline, with its shares losing roughly 30 percent, setting yet another record low. On Wednesday, the bank's largest shareholder, Saudi National Bank, ruled out providing more money for Credit Suisse as it struggles with its latest turnaround plan."

Benjamin Weiser of the New York Times: "Guo Wengui, a fugitive Chinese billionaire, was arrested on Wednesday morning in New York on charges that he orchestrated a complex conspiracy to defraud thousands of his online followers out of $1 billion, the authorities said. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan said Mr. Guo, 52, was charged with 'lining his pockets with the money he stole,' which they said included buying for himself and his close relatives a 50,000-square-foot mansion, a $3.5 million Ferrari and two $36,000 mattresses, as well as financing a $37 million luxury yacht. Mr. Guo is a business associate of Stephen K. Bannon, a onetime top adviser to ... Donald J. Trump. It was on a yacht belonging to Mr. Guo that Mr. Bannon was arrested in a fraud case in August 2020; Mr. Trump later pardoned Mr. Bannon, who had pleaded not guilty, on those charges." The ABC News story is here.

Rebecca O'Brien & William Rashbaum of the New York Times: "A $19 million luxury yacht deal brokered by Representative George Santos between two of his wealthy donors has captured the attention of federal and state authorities investigating the congressman's campaign finances and personal business dealings.... Prosecutors and F.B.I. agents have sought in recent weeks to question the new owner of the 141-foot superyacht -- Raymond Tantillo, a Long Island auto dealer -- about the boat and his dealings with Mr. Santos, including his campaign fund-raising efforts. Mr. Tantillo bought the boat from Mayra Ruiz, a Republican donor in Miami. Mr. Santos negotiated the payment -- $12.25 million up front, with $6.5 million more in installments -- and advised the two on the logistics of turning over the yacht, according to a person familiar with the sale, which took place a few weeks before his election in November." MB: At least we know now where the previously-impoverished George Anthony got some of his money.

Dino Grandoni of the Washington Post: "The National Audubon Society, one of the country's best-known bird conservation organizations, decided in a closed-door vote this week to retain the name of John James Audubon, famed 19th-century naturalist and wildlife illustrator who was also an unabashed enslaver. The move comes even as about half-a-dozen of the organization's regional chapters have pledged to scrub his name from their titles, part of a broader reckoning over the U.S. environmental movement's history of entrenched racism.... Susan Bell, chair of the board, declined to provide a breakdown of the final vote [of the 27-person board]."

~~~~~~~~~~

Michael Shear of the New York Times: President "Biden traveled on Tuesday to Monterey Park, [California,] where a gunman killed 11 people in January during Lunar New Year festivities at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio, to announce a handful of steps designed to improve enforcement of existing [gun] laws that have so far failed to prevent mass shootings in one American community after another. 'Today, I'm announcing another executive order that will accelerate and intensify this work to save lives,' Mr. Biden told a small audience in Monterey Park that included family members and victims of the shooting, which terrorized the Asian American community here.... Mr. Biden, who spent time meeting privately with relatives of the shooting victims, during his public remarks offered a somber recounting -- one by one -- of the 11 people who were killed on 'a day of festivity and light turned into a day of fear and darkness.'... But the president is constrained by the Second Amendment and a political system that has so far refused to make progress on his demands for universal background checks for gun sales, a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines and the repeal of immunity from liability for gun manufacturers." An NBC News story is here.

Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "The Biden administration said Tuesday that it was withdrawing a land swap deal that would have helped to clear the way for construction of a road through a wildlife refuge in Alaska. The move is a reversal of the government's position and one that could put an end to a project that would cut through the vast wild area, originally protected under President Jimmy Carter. The land swap to create a road through Izembek National Wildlife Refuge was approved under the Trump administration to link King Cove with an airport in nearby Cold Bay. Deb Haaland, the secretary of the Interior Department, said the agency would reconsider an older land swap developed in 2013 that would allow for a road with more restricted use but would still enable Native and other community members in the remote area to access emergency medical care."

Matthew Goldstein & Katie Benner of the New York Times: "The Justice Department has opened an investigation into the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.... The investigation is in its early stages and it is unclear just what federal prosecutors are focused on.... One potential focus could be sales of company shares by several bank executives in the weeks before the bank's failure, several legal experts said. The sales generated millions of dollars in proceeds, though some of the bank's executives sold stock pursuant to insider selling plans that set the timing of such sales in advance.... For example, under a prearranged plan, Silicon Valley Bank's former chief executive, Gregory Becker exercised options in early March that permitted him to sell shares worth about $3 million.... A number of lawyers said they expected the S.E.C. to also open an inquiry." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ As mentioned in the Comments yesterday & the day before: ~~~

     ~~~ Julian Mark of the Washington Post: "The recent implosion of Silicon Valley Bank escalated culture war arguments, as some conservative politicians ... blamed the bank's downfall on 'woke' practices. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) called SVB 'one of the most woke banks' because of its 'ESG-type' policies -- a reference to environmental, social and corporate governance-driven investing that has been embraced by billion-dollar asset managers and scorned by conservatives of late. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ... said Sunday that Silicon Valley Bank's diversity, equity and inclusion requirements 'diverted from them focusing on their core mission.' And Monday, Fox News host Tucker Carlson said diversity and inclusion standards are why 'big banks are now increasingly incompetent.'... There's no evidence that SVB's sustainable investing or diversity initiatives contributed to its collapse. Experts have instead pointed to a perfect storm of SVB's significant holdings in U.S. Treasuries and the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes. As the Fed raised interest rates, SVB's bond holdings became less valuable, and the bank sold Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities at a $1.8 billion loss. The disclosure sparked panic...." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Pure bull, as you might suspect. According to Paul Krugman (also linked yesterday), SVB "didn't lend [tech start-ups] a lot of money, since they were often flush with venture capital cash. Instead, the cash flow went in the opposite direction, with tech businesses depositing large sums with S.V.B. -- sometimes as a quid pro quo but largely, I suspect, because people in the tech world thought of S.V.B. as their kind of bank." And as pointed out here, there and everywhere, S.V.B. was instead investing primarily in patriotic American long-term bonds like the disappointing gifts your grandparents might have given you for your birthdays. I suppose you could indirectly blame wokeism on the bank's failure if you think that making the bank more attractive to progressives caused tech companies to park their money with S.V.B. I suppose the Comer/DeSantis/Carlson wing would be more partial to S.V.B. if they had run a more white supremacist sort of PR program. ~~~

     ~~~ Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: Also pushing the woke theory of S.V.B. failure: Donald Trump, Jr., Stephen Miller & Josh Hawley, among others. "... this deflection is worth noting for what it represents: the relentless effort to mystify real questions of political economy in favor of endless culture war conflict.... It's not as if no one thought this collapse could happen. 'The failure of Silicon Valley Bank is a direct result of an absurd 2018 bank deregulation bill signed by Donald Trump that I strongly opposed,' Senator Bernie Sanders said in a statement on Sunday. Senator Elizabeth Warren made a similar point in an essay published in The Times on Monday [also linked below].... The people who blame wokeness for the collapse of a bank ... want to ... obscure the extent to which they and their allies are complicit in -- or responsible for -- creating an environment in which banks collapse for lack of appropriate regulation." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

But His Laptop! Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "The contents of one of [Hunter Biden's] laptops, revealed in 2020, have inspired a fantastical conspiracy theory that has been comprehensively debunked by, among others, Asha Rangappa..., of Yale University ... and [a] former FBI agent.... In October 2020, [about 50 former intelligence] officials crafted a statement that appeared in Politico alleging that appearance of the laptop and emails purporting to relate to Hunter Biden's time on the board of a Ukrainian gas company, Burisma, 'has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.'... [Now], House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Intelligence Committee Chairman Michael R. Turner (R-Ohio) sent letters to the signatories, demanding all documents relating to the statement and directing the former officials to appear for transcribed interviews.... It isn't clear where this is going from here." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Sara Murray, et al., of CNN: "House Oversight Chairman James Comer said in a statement Tuesday the US Treasury Department will allow him to review certain bank activity reports related to members of the Biden family and their business partners. 'After two months of dragging their feet, the Treasury Department is finally providing us with access to the suspicious activity reports for the Biden family and their associates' business transactions,' Comer said in the statement.... Comer has claimed -- without offering any evidence -- that financial records, particularly those involving foreign business deals, could show improper influence over Joe Biden." MB: Wait, wait! Two whole months? Trump's Treasury Department "delayed" releasing Trump's tax returns for nearly four years while Trump sued to keep the returns secret. The Trump Treasury Department intended to never comply with Congressional requests for documents, even where the law explicitly stated the IRS -- a division of Treasury -- was required to do so. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Judy Kurtz of the Hill: "The family of the singer behind the classic tune, 'This Land is Your Land' has a message for Sen. Josh Hawley: This song is not your song to 'co-opt.' The Missouri Republican referenced the 1940 folk music hit by Woody Guthrie last week when introducing the This Land is Our Land Act, S. 684, which would 'ban Chinese corporations and individuals associated with the Chinese Communist Party from owning United States agricultural land.'... 'In this particular case, the co-opting or parodying of the lyric by those not aligned with Woody's lyrics -- i.e. misrepresentation by autocrats, racists, white nationalists, anti-labor, insurrectionists, etc. -- is not condoned,' Nora Guthrie [-- Woody's daughter --] said. While saying she accepted 'This Land is Your Land' being used for political purposes from time to time, Guthrie explained, 'We do not consider Josh Hawley in any way a representative of Woody's values therefore we would never endorse or approve of his reference to Woody's lyrics.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Not a good day for Kaiser Donald to visit with senators.

Hugo Lowell of the Guardian: "Federal prosecutors in New York involved in the criminal investigation into Donald Trump's social media company last year started examining whether it violated money laundering statutes in connection with the acceptance of $8m with suspected Russian ties, according to sources familiar with the matter. The company -- Trump Media, which owns Trump's Truth Social platform -- initially came under criminal investigation over its preparations for a potential merger with a blank check company called Digital World (DWAC) that was also the subject of an earlier probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission.... The extent of the exposure for Trump Media and its officers for money laundering remains unclear." Lowell provides some of the shady backstory.

Pence Traps Trump into Confessing! Philip Bump of the Washington Post, in a rather convoluted but logical argument, claims Donald Trump just acknowledged that he was responsible for the January 6 insurrection: Trump "says that Pence sending electoral slates back to states would have averted the riot by Trump supporters. This is true.... [Trump is saying that the crowd rioted because Pence didn't do the thing Trump said he could do, which the vice president couldn't. He's saying that the crowd was there to see the election results overturned and became enraged when they weren't. Trump is saying that Jan. 6 was his fault.... Trump isn't doing what he's often done before, which is to suggest that the crowd was simply a group of excited patriots who got a bit out of hand. Now he admits they were reacting to what Pence didn't do, which necessarily depends on what Trump said Pence could do." MB: Now, try to explain this to Donald Trump.

Ed Shanahan of the New York Times: "A Princeton University student was charged on Tuesday with being part of a violent mob that assaulted law enforcement officers during the Capitol riot on Jan. 6, 2021, federal prosecutors said. The student, Larry F. Giberson Jr., was among a group of rioters who pushed against a phalanx of officers defending the Capitol at a tunnel entrance, according to an affidavit filed by a federal agent. With Mr. Giberson at the front of the crowd as the confrontation unfolded, one officer was briefly crushed between the rioters and the tunnel doors, the affidavit says. Mr. Giberson, 21, waved other rioters into the tunnel and joined a second round of shoving against the officers, the affidavit says. He also tried, unsuccessfully, to start a chant of 'Drag them out!' and cheered on others as they used weapons and pepper spray to attack the police guarding the tunnel, the affidavit says."

Perry Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: "A federal judge on Wednesday will consider an unprecedented effort to undo long-standing government approval of the abortion medication used in most pregnancy terminations nationwide. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk is expected to question lawyers in the case that seeks to restrict access to mifepristone, the medication first approved by the Food and Drug Administration more than 20 years ago.The high-stakes hearing ... will be the first time the judge engages directly with lawyers for the Justice Department, representing the FDA; the company that manufactures and distributes the drug; and the antiabortion group challenging the medication. Kacsmaryk could rule at any time following the hearing, potentially disrupting access to the widely used drug, including in states where abortion is legal.... Kacsmaryk, a nominee of ... Donald Trump, has attracted criticism from abortion rights advocates because of his long-held antiabortion views.... Public health professionals and legal experts have denounced the lawsuit as unsupported by scientific evidence."

Vimal Patel of the New York Times: "On Tuesday, [Wellesley College] students supported a referendum that had polarized the campus and went straight to the heart of Wellesley's identity as a women's college. The referendum, which was nonbinding, called for opening admission to all nonbinary and transgender applicants, including trans men. Currently, the college allows admission to anyone who lives and consistently identifies as a woman."

Mike Isaac of the New York Times: "Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, said on Tuesday that it planned to lay off about 10,000 employees, or roughly 13 percent of its work force, the latest move to hew to what the company's founder, Mark Zuckerberg, has called a 'year of efficiency.'... In November, Meta laid off more than 11,000 people, or about 13 percent of its work force at the time." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) CNBC's story is here.

Julia Jacobs of the New York Times: "The special prosecutor named to the 'Rust' case stepped down on Tuesday after lawyers for Alec Baldwin, who is being charged with involuntary manslaughter in the killing of a cinematographer on the film set, argued that her appointment as a prosecutor violated the New Mexico Constitution because she also serves as a state lawmaker. It was the second recent setback for the prosecution. Last month prosecutors downgraded the charges Baldwin faced in the killing of the cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, after his lawyers argued that the Santa Fe County district attorney had erred by initially charging him under a law that was not passed until months after the shooting."

How to Get Two (or More!) Teslas for the Price of One. Daniel Wu of the Washington Post: "Rajesh Randev's s "car was one of two white Teslas parked next to each other on a Vancouver, B.C., street and, in a rush to pick up his children from school, he had gone to the wrong one. Somehow, his Tesla app unlocked a stranger's car -- and allowed him to drive off in it, he said.... He first told his story to Global News last week when he received no replies after reporting the incident to Tesla, he said." Meanwhile, Mohammed Esaeyh -- the brother of the owner of the car Randav was driving -- was able to get into Randev's car -- still in the parking lot -- using the owner's key card. Randev was able to drive Esaeyh's car for about an hour-and-a-half, including making a couple of stops, without any trouble. Randev & Esaeyh later met up to amicably exchange vehicles. "Tesla did not respond to requests for comment." MB: Yo, Elon! Maybe you'll want to get back to working on those Teslas.

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Sara Boboltz of The Huffington Post: "The state of Florida moved to strip the Hyatt Regency Miami hotel of its liquor license on Tuesday in retaliation for hosting a Christmas-themed drag show, alleging that minors had been in attendance, which is against state law.... The venue had admitted minors if they were accompanied by an adult.... A department spokesperson told Insider that the Hyatt has 21 days to request a hearing and can keep selling alcohol until a final decision is made.Another Florida venue, the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, similarly found itself in the agency's crosshairs for hosting a Christmastime drag show last year."

Mississippi. Timothy Bella of the Washington Post: "The family of a Black man is calling for a federal investigation into his death after local authorities in Mississippi said they did not suspect foul play after the man's body was found dismembered. Police say his wounds may have been caused by an animal. Rasheem Carter, 25, called his mother for help in early October, telling her that a group of White men in three trucks were chasing him and yelling racial slurs at him in Laurel, Miss., his mother, Tiffany Carter, said at a Monday news conference in Jackson. His remains were found in the woods roughly 20 miles away outside of Taylorsville, Miss., on Nov. 2, after he had been missing for about a month." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Wednesday in Russia's war on Ukraine is here: "Hungary further delayed NATO ratification for Sweden and Finland. The ruling Fidesz party confirmed the postponement of the process to Reuters after an opposition lawmaker said Fidesz was delaying a parliamentary session that was set for next week. Stockholm and Helsinki have sought to enter the transatlantic alliance but acceptance requires a sign-off from all NATO members. While Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said he supports ratification, some lawmakers in his party have dragged their feet.... Train fanatic Mikhail Korotkov spent years documenting unique trains, including a particularly unusual one belonging to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He was the first train enthusiast to post a photo of the sleek, silver train with red-and-gray detailing. But ... an intimidating transcript of his private phone conversations was delivered to him -- via messages on his YouTube page -- in what Korotkov interpreted as a threat from the Kremlin. Afraid for his safety, Korotkov has fled Russia." ~~~

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

Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "A pair of Russian fighter jets intercepted and forced down an American surveillance drone over the Black Sea on Tuesday, U.S. officials said, with one Russian jet colliding with the propeller of the unmanned aircraft after both Russian warplanes dumped fuel on it. The incident prompted Air Force drone pilots to bring down the MQ-9 Reaper in international waters in what U.S. officials said has become a 'pattern of dangerous actions by Russian pilots' while interacting with American and allied aircraft in international airspace. The actions, U.S. military officials said in a statement, 'could lead to miscalculation and unintended escalation' between the two countries." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The story has been updated:

"A State Department spokesman, Ned Price, told reporters that senior U.S. officials intended to communicate 'our strong objections.' 'We are summoning the Russian ambassador to the department, where we will convey this message,' Price said, adding that, in Moscow, the U.S. ambassador to Russia, Lynne M. Tracy, had relayed the Biden administration's dissatisfaction to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The New York Times story is here. CNN's story is here. ~~~

~~~ Marie: Maybe I should mention that the U.S. drone that was downed was not some little toy like the one you gave the kids for Christmas. It looks like a real airplane, but without a pilots' cabin. There's a photo in this CNBC story.

Rubio Stands Up to DeSantis. Leo Sands, et al., of the Washington Post: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is dismissing Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a 'territorial dispute and says protecting the European nation is not a vital U.S. interest.... On Tuesday, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (R) took issue with DeSantis describing the first land war in Europe since World War II as a 'territorial dispute.' In an interview, Rubio told radio host Hugh Hewitt, 'It's not a territorial dispute in the sense that any more than it would be a territorial dispute if the United States decided that it wanted to invade Canada or take over the Bahamas.... This is an invasion,' said Rubio, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, adding, 'I think we do have an interest' in the conflict." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Jonathan Swan & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Republican foreign policy hawks recoiled at Mr. DeSantis's statement on 'Tucker Carlson Tonight' on Fox News on Monday night, in which the governor deviated from the position held by most of the Republican establishment on Capitol Hill, including Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the minority leader.... Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, said in an interview on Tuesday morning that he 'could not disagree more' with Mr. DeSantis's characterization of the stakes attached to the defense of Ukraine. 'The Neville Chamberlain approach to aggression never ends well,' said Mr. Graham.... And Senator John Cornyn of Texas told Politico he was 'disturbed' by Mr. DeSantis's comments.... Former Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey ... said that the remarks were 'a naïve and complete misunderstanding of the historical context of what's going on,' and that authoritarians would fill the void if the U.S. retreated from global leadership.... In 2014 and 2015, after Mr. Putin annexed Crimea from Ukraine, Mr. DeSantis criticized President Barack Obama as not doing enough to support Ukraine." ~~~

     ~~~ Steve M.: "... DeSantis and Trump aren't as out of sync with the party's presidential hopefuls as you'd think. Questions about Ukraine were posed to quite a few declared and possible Republican presidential candidates. Tucker Carlson posted the responses on Twitter. South Dakota governor Kristi Noem -- a strong contender for the VP slot if Trump is the nominee -- sounded quite similar to the two front-runners[.]... Texas governor Greg Abbott probably isn't running for president, but he was sent the questionnaire, and he's also a skeptic[.]... Even Tim Scott, who's clearly supportive of aid to Ukraine, wants to sound like a skeptic[.]... And finally, I want to draw attention to the answer from one of the few declared candidates, Vivek Ramaswamy.... He wants us to be ready for a shooting war with China, and also for a shooting war with Mexico, which makes him sound a lot like Lindsey Graham, Dan Crenshaw, and Marjorie Taylor Greene, who've all recently raised the possibility of using the U.S. military in Mexico.... Ramaswamy's pounding of the China and Mexico war drums is a preview of tomorrow's Republicanism today."

News Lede

Washington Post: "An intensifying nor'easter, unleashing heavy snow, rain and strong winds, is clobbering the Northeast and the storm won't relent until Wednesday. The weight of the snow on trees and power lines combined with gusts over 40 mph has cut power to more than 250,000 customers. The highest number of outages were in eastern New York and western Massachusetts, according to the utility tracker PowerOutage.us.... Precipitation arrived late Monday and has been falling as snow -- heavy at times -- across interior regions of the Northeast and New England. The snow has been piling up, especially across higher elevations, with accumulations already around 30 inches in the hardest hit areas, and some spots likely to soar as high as three feet by the time the storm ends. Numerous businesses and schools closed Tuesday because of difficult to impossible travel conditions. Hundreds of flights have been canceled or delayed across the Northeast." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I don't think I have nearly 30" here (it's still dark, so I can't tell), but my power was out most of the day yesterday. It's back on now, but that doesn't mean it will stay on. Update: It's light now, and I'm looking at another of what I like to call "a fucking winter wonderland." Tree limbs are heavy with snow, and as beautiful as they may be, they also signal more power outages caused by downed limbs.

March 14, 2023

~~~ Aaron Hutcherson of the Washington Post suggests numerous recipes for pie to celebrate the day. MB: Luckily for me, I bought a frozen apple pie yesterday, so I will rely on the Burns Family Recipe: "Turn on the oven and put it in." Update: The blizzard has taken the power out here, so my Extravagant Pi(e) Day Celebration will have to wait.

Afternoon Update:

Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "A pair of Russian fighter jets intercepted and forced down an American surveillance drone over the Black Sea on Tuesday, U.S. officials said, with one Russian jet colliding with the propeller of the unmanned aircraft after both Russian warplanes dumped fuel on it. The incident prompted Air Force drone pilots to bring down the MQ-9 Reaper in international waters in what U.S. officials said has become a 'pattern of dangerous actions by Russian pilots' while interacting with American and allied aircraft in international airspace. The actions, U.S. military officials said in a statement, 'could lead to miscalculation and unintended escalation' between the two countries." This is a developing story.

Matthew Goldstein & Katie Benner of the New York Times: "The Justice Department has opened an investigation into the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank.... The investigation is in its early stages and it is unclear just what federal prosecutors are focused on.... One potential focus could be sales of company shares by several bank executives in the weeks before the bank's failure, several legal experts said. The sales generated millions of dollars in proceeds, though some of the bank's executives sold stock pursuant to insider selling plans that set the timing of such sales in advance.... For example, under a prearranged plan, Silicon Valley Bank's former chief executive, Gregory Becker, exercised options in early March that permitted him to sell shares worth about $3 million.... A number of lawyers said they expected the S.E.C. to also open an inquiry." ~~~

~~~ As mentioned in yesterday's & today's Comments: ~~~

     ~~~ Julian Mark of the Washington Post: "The recent implosion of Silicon Valley Bank escalated culture war arguments, as some conservative politicians ... blamed the bank's downfall on 'woke' practices. House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) called SVB 'one of the most woke banks' because of its 'ESG-type' policies -- a reference to environmental, social and corporate governance-driven investing that has been embraced by billion-dollar asset managers and scorned by conservatives of late. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ... said Sunday that Silicon Valley Bank's diversity, equity and inclusion requirements 'diverted from them focusing on their core mission.' And Monday, Fox News host Tucker Carlson said diversity and inclusion standards are why 'big banks are now increasingly incompetent.'... There's no evidence that SVB's sustainable investing or diversity initiatives contributed to its collapse. Experts have instead pointed to a perfect storm of SVB's significant holdings in U.S. Treasuries and the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes. As the Fed raised interest rates, SVB"s bond holdings became less valuable, and the bank sold Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities at a $1.8 billion loss. The disclosure sparked panic...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Pure bull, as you might suspect. According to Paul Krugman (also linked below), SVB "didn't lend [tech start-ups] a lot of money, since they were often flush with venture capital cash. Instead, the cash flow went in the opposite direction, with tech businesses depositing large sums with S.V.B. -- sometimes as a quid pro quo but largely, I suspect, because people in the tech world thought of S.V.B. as their kind of bank." And as pointed out here, there and everywhere, S.V.B. was instead investing primarily in patriotic American long-term bonds like the disappointing gifts your grandparents might have given you for your birthdays. I suppose you could indirectly blame wokeism on the bank's failure if you think that making the bank more attractive to progressives caused tech companies to park their money with S.V.B. I suppose the Comer/DeSantis/Carlson wing would be more partial to S.V.B. if they had run a more white supremacist sort of PR program. ~~~

     ~~~ Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: Also pushing the woke theory of S.V.B. failure: Donald Trump, Jr., Stephen Miller & Josh Hawley, among others. "... this deflection is worth noting for what it represents: the relentless effort to mystify real questions of political economy in favor of endless culture war conflict.... It's not as if no one thought this collapse could happen. 'The failure of Silicon Valley Bank is a direct result of an absurd 2018 bank deregulation bill signed by Donald Trump that I strongly opposed,' Senator Bernie Sanders said in a statement on Sunday. Senator Elizabeth Warren made a similar point in an essay published in The Times on Monday [also linked below].... The people who blame wokeness for the collapse of a bank ... want to ... obscure the extent to which they and their allies are complicit in -- or responsible for -- creating an environment in which banks collapse for lack of appropriate regulation."

But His Laptop! Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "The contents of one of [Hunter Biden's] laptops, revealed in 2020, have inspired a fantastical conspiracy theory that has been comprehensively debunked by, among others, Asha Rangappa..., of Yale University ... and [a] former FBI agent.... In October 2020, [about 50 former intelligence] officials crafted a statement that appeared in Politico alleging that appearance of the laptop and emails purporting to relate to Hunter Biden's time on the board of a Ukrainian gas company, Burisma, 'has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation.'... [Now], House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and Intelligence Committee Chairman Michael R. Turner (R-Ohio) sent letters to the signatories, demanding all documents relating to the statement and directing the former officials to appear for transcribed interviews.... It isn't clear where this is going from here."

Sara Murray, et al., of CNN: "House Oversight Chairman James Comer said in a statement Tuesday the US Treasury Department will allow him to review certain bank activity reports related to members of the Biden family and their business partners. 'After two months of dragging their feet, the Treasury Department is finally providing us with access to the suspicious activity reports for the Biden family and their associates' business transactions,' Comer said in the statement.... Comer has claimed -- without offering any evidence -- that financial records, particularly those involving foreign business deals, could show improper influence over Joe Biden." MB: Wait, wait! Two whole months? Trump's Treasury Department "delayed" releasing Trump's tax returns for nearly four years while Trump sued to keep the returns secret. The Trump Treasury Department intended to never comply with Congressional requests for documents, even where the law explicitly stated the IRS -- a division of Treasury -- was required to do so.

Mike Isaac of the New York Times: "Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, said on Tuesday that it planned to lay off about 10,000 employees, or roughly 13 percent of its work force, the latest move to hew to what the company's founder, Mark Zuckerberg, has called a 'year of efficiency.'... In November, Meta laid off more than 11,000 people, or about 13 percent of its work force at the time."

Rubio Stands Up to DeSantis. Leo Sands, et al., of the Washington Post: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is dismissing Russia's invasion of Ukraine as a 'territorial dispute and says protecting the European nation is not a vital U.S. interest.... On Tuesday, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio (R) took issue with DeSantis describing the first land war in Europe since World War II as a 'territorial dispute.' In an interview, Rubio told radio host Hugh Hewitt, 'It's not a territorial dispute in the sense that any more than it would be a territorial dispute if the United States decided that it wanted to invade Canada or take over the Bahamas.... This is an invasion,' said Rubio, vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a member of the Foreign Relations Committee, adding, 'I think we do have an interest' in the conflict." More on DeSantis's views on Russia's war on Ukraine linked below.

Judy Kurtz of the Hill: "The family of the singer behind the classic tune, 'This Land is Your Land' has a message for Sen. Josh Hawley: This song is not your song to 'co-opt.' The Missouri Republican referenced the 1940 folk music hit by Woody Guthrie last week when introducing the This Land is Our Land Act, S. 684, which would 'ban Chinese corporations and individuals associated with the Chinese Communist Party from owning United States agricultural land.'... 'In this particular case, the co-opting or parodying of the lyric by those not aligned with Woody's lyrics -- i.e. misrepresentation by autocrats, racists, white nationalists, anti-labor, insurrectionists, etc. -- is not condoned,' Nora Guthrie [-- Woody's daughter --] said. While saying she accepted 'This Land is Your Land' being used for political purposes from time to time, Guthrie explained, 'We do not consider Josh Hawley in any way a representative of Woody's values therefore we would never endorse or approve of his reference to Woody's lyrics.'"

Mississippi Timothy Bella of the Washington Post: "The family of a Black man is calling for a federal investigation into his death after local authorities in Mississippi said they did not suspect foul play after the man's body was found dismembered. Police say his wounds may have been caused by an animal. Rasheem Carter, 25, called his mother for help in early October, telling her that a group of White men in three trucks were chasing him and yelling racial slurs at him in Laurel, Miss., his mother, Tiffany Carter, said at a Monday news conference in Jackson. His remains were found in the woods roughly 20 miles away outside of Taylorsville, Miss., on Nov. 2, after he had been missing for about a month."

~~~~~~~~~~

Michael Shear & Edward Wong of the New York Times: "President Biden took his most aggressive step yet on Monday to counter China's military expansion in the Asia-Pacific region, formally unveiling plans with Britain and Australia to develop and deploy nuclear-powered attack submarines. Standing in front of the U.S.S. Missouri, a nuclear submarine, at the Point Loma naval base in San Diego, Mr. Biden and the leaders of the other two countries described the naval partnership as a critical way to confront China at a time of heightened tension with Beijing. It will create, U.S. officials said, a 'nuclear stewardship' among the allies.... For the first time in 65 years, Mr. Biden said, the United States will share the technology at the heart of its nuclear submarines, allowing Australia to build powerful war machines that will grow into fleets capable of facing off with Chinese vessels...." This is an update of a story linked yesterday.

Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "As a candidate, Joseph R. Biden promised voters worried about the warming planet 'No more drilling on federal lands, period. Period, period, period.' On Monday, President Biden approved an enormous $8 billion plan to extract 600 million barrels of oil from pristine federal land in Alaska. The distance between Mr. Biden's campaign pledge and his blessing on that plan, known as the Willow project, is explained by a global energy crisis, intense pressure from Alaska lawmakers (including the state's lone Democratic House member), a looming election year and a complicated legal landscape that government lawyers said left few choices for Mr. Biden." Read on for the explanation. The Guardian's story is here.

The Wisdom of Joseph Biden, Sr. Taiyler Mitchell of the Huffington Post: "President Joe Biden bashed a wave of anti-trans legislation from Florida Republicans, calling their efforts to ban gender-affirming care and enact other anti-LGBTQ policies 'cruel' and 'close to sinful.' On Monday's episode of 'The Daily Show,' actor and former Obama administration staffer Kal Penn spoke with Biden about his support for LGBTQ rights.... Penn also asked Biden how he came to support same-sex and interracial marriages -- both of which he signed into law. 'My dad was dropping me off [in high school]. I remember I'm about to get out of the car and I look to my right. Two well-dressed men in suits kissed each other,' Biden told Penn. 'I'll never forget, I turned and looked to my dad. He said, "Joey, it's simple. They love each other."... And it's just that simple."

Rachel Pannett of the Washington Post: "President Biden inadvertently revealed that he has been asked by former president Jimmy Carter, who entered home hospice care last month, to deliver a eulogy. Speaking at a fundraiser in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., on Monday evening, Biden said..., 'He asked me to do his eulogy.'... Catching himself, [he added]: 'Excuse me, I shouldn't say that.' The two presidents have a long-standing relationship...." CNN's report is here.

Summer Concepcion of NBC News: "President Joe Biden said Monday that people should 'rest assured' after his administration acted to ease uncertainties about the banking system in the wake of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank last week, the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history.... 'Thanks to the quick action of my administration over the past few days, Americans can have confidence that the banking system is safe,' Biden said. 'Your deposits will be there when you need them.' Biden explained that he instructed his team to protect U.S. workers and small businesses and detailed their actions to protect customers' deposits and not put taxpayer dollars at risk, to hold those responsible accountable, and not to protect investors in the bank. The president said the management of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, a second institution that was included in the plan, would be fired. 'If the bank is taken over by FDIC, the people running the bank should not work there anymore,' he said.... The president said he will ask Congress and the banking regulators to strengthen rules for banks to make it 'less likely this kind of bank failure would happen again.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Adam Cancryn, et al., of Politico on how the Biden administration saved Silicon Valley start-ups, and how it almost didn't happen because "President Joe Biden began the weekend highly skeptical of anything that could be labeled a taxpayer-funded bailout.... At 1 p.m. Friday, [Treasury Secretary Janet] Yellen convened a team to come up with a battle plan: Fed Chair Jerome Powell, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg, Acting Comptroller of the Currency Michael Hsu, and San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly, whose regional branch oversaw the bank. Yet as officials worked through the weekend -- mostly in open-ended virtual meetings tying several agencies together -- to determine the blast radius of SVB's failure, they concluded that failing to protect the bank's depositors could leave small businesses across the country unable to access money needed to pay workers and keep their operations going.... Biden eventually came around to the view that an emergency rescue was the only viable option after multiple briefings Friday through Sunday from chief of staff Jeff Zients and new National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard.... Throughout the weekend, Biden's inner circle emphasized the potential impact on workers' paychecks, which they believed would resonate both with the president and the public, said one of the people familiar with the deliberations. And they urged Biden to speak to the public before U.S. markets opened to ward off runs on other regional banks." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The likelihood of any Trump "team" putting together such an intricately-designed plan is around nil.

~~~ Stacy Cowley of the New York Times: "The unexpected seizure of two banks in three days by regulators intensified fears of a broader financial crisis, sending the stocks of more than two dozen banks into free fall on Monday, even as President Biden reassured Americans that the banking system was resilient and that customers&' money was safe. Banks of various sizes in different parts of the country ... found themselves battling market turmoil as customers rushed to withdraw their deposits and investors, worried about more runs, dumped bank stocks.... On a day when the S&P 500 stock index ended up flat, shares of First Republic tumbled 60 percent and Western Alliance slumped 45 percent.... Last week, Silvergate, a cryptocurrency focused bank, said it would shut down; between Friday and Sunday, the government seized Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. On Monday, the Federal Reserve announced that it would conduct a review of Silicon Valley Bank's oversight. The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, on whose board the former chief executive of Silicon Valley Bank, Gregory Becker, sat until Friday, was responsible for supervising the failed bank." ~~~

~~~ Abha Bhattarai of the Washington Post: "The Federal Reserve's aggressive year-long fight against inflation has hit its first major roadblock with the collapse of two large banks that have cast a pall over the U.S. financial system. The crisis, which has already prompted a large response from the Fed and other regulators in the form of a new special lending facility and measures to make depositors of the failed banks whole, is raising questions about whether the central bank can continue to hiking interest rates in the face of an increasingly fragile financial system.... The likely U-turn comes less than a week after Fed Chair Jerome H. Powell told Congress he 'would be prepared to increase the pace of rate hikes' if the job market and other parts of the economy remained resilient."

~~~ Paul Krugman of the New York Times: "If there is one thing almost all observers of the economic scene have agreed about, it is that the issues facing the U.S. economy in 2023 are very different from those it faced in its last crisis, in 2008.... We probably aren’t looking at a systemic financial crisis.... Yet suddenly we seem to be replaying some of the same old scenes.... Once things have stabilized, its assets will probably be worth enough, or almost enough, to pay off depositors without an infusion of additional funds. And then we'll be able to return to our regularly scheduled crisis programming." Krugman provides a cogent explanation of why S.V.B. failed. If you want to know, read what he writes. ~~~

~~~ Tolja So. Elizabeth Warren in a New York Times op-ed: "... These recent bank failures are the direct result of leaders in Washington weakening the financial rules.... Greg Becker, the chief executive of Silicon Valley Bank, was one of the many high-powered executives who lobbied Congress to weaken the [Dodd-Frank] law. In 2018, the big banks won. With support from both parties..., Donald Trump signed a law to roll back critical parts of Dodd-Frank. Regulators, including the Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, then made a bad situation worse, letting financial institutions load up on risk.... S.V.B. suffered from a toxic mix of risky management and weak supervision. For one, the bank relied on a concentrated group of tech companies with big deposits, driving an abnormally large ratio of uninsured deposits.... [Similarly, New York State's Signature Bank, which the FDICalso took over this weekend, relied heavily on] risky cryptocurrency firms....Congress, the White House and banking regulators should reverse the dangerous bank deregulation of the Trump era.... Mr. Powell's disastrous 'tailoring' of these rules has put our economy at risk, and it needs to end -- now." Read on. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "Senator Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican and minority leader who suffered a concussion in a serious fall last week, was released from the hospital on Monday and will move to a physical rehabilitation center before returning to the Senate, according to his office.... [McConnell spokesman David] Popp said Mr. McConnell had also suffered a 'minor rib fracture' in the fall that his medical team discovered during his hospitalization. He is being treated for that injury as well." An AP story is here.

Comer Pleads Ignorance of Trump Inquiry. Plus Hunter Biden! Luke Broadwater & Jonathan Swan of the New York Times: "House Republicans have quietly halted a congressional investigation into whether Donald J. Trump profited improperly from the presidency, declining to enforce a court-supervised settlement agreement that demanded that Mazars USA, his former accounting firm, produce his financial records to Congress. Representative James R. Comer, Republican of Kentucky and the chairman of the Oversight and Accountability Committee, made clear he had abandoned any investigation into the former president's financial dealings -- professing ignorance about the inquiry Democrats opened when they controlled the House -- and was instead focusing on whether President Biden and members of his family were involved in an influence-peddling scheme. 'I honestly didn't even know who or what Mazars was,' said Mr. Comer, who was the senior Republican on the oversight panel during the last Congress, while Democrats waged a lengthy legal fight over obtaining documents from the firm." Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the committee, accused Comer of coordinating the shutdown with Trump's attorneys, and Raskin produced receipts. An NBC News story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Zachary Cohen, et al., of CNN: "House Oversight Chairman James Comer has quietly subpoenaed Bank of America asking for records relating to three of Hunter Biden's business associates, the committee's ranking Democrat, Rep. Jamie Raskin, disclosed in a letter sent to Comer on Sunday. The subpoena was broad and called for 'all financial records' spanning 14 years, beginning in 2009, according to a copy of the letter obtained by CNN. Bank of America has since turned over a considerable number of materials in compliance with the subpoena, a source familiar with the communications told CNN. The subpoena specifically targets US citizen John Robinson 'Rob' Walker and other associates of President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, who formed ... 'a joint venture' with executives of CEFC China Energy, a now-bankrupt Chinese energy conglomerate, according to the letter." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Tierney Sneed & Ariane de Vogue of CNN: "The federal judge overseeing a challenge to the federal government's approval of a medication abortion drug announced Monday that there will be a hearing Wednesday in the case -- an announcement that comes after reports the judge had privately sought to delay announcement of the hearing. The hearing will be at 9 a.m. CT on Wednesday, according to the new order from US District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk.... If the judge grants the request to block access to the drug nationwide, it could make the pills harder to obtain even in states where medication abortion is legal."

Charlie Savage of the New York Times: Beryl A. Howell, the chief judge of the D.C. Federal District Court, has reach the end of her term, and "a new chief judge, James E. Boasberg, takes over..., dropping Judge Boasberg into tangled disputes over executive privilege and other grand jury issues central to the federal special counsel investigation into the events surrounding Jan. 6, along with [Donald] Trump's handling of classified documents after leaving office. There is no obvious reason to believe that the turnover will bring a major new approach: Both are experienced jurists and Obama appointees, and in handing down sentences to ordinary Jan. 6 defendants, neither has been a particularly harsh nor usually lenient outlier.... Judge Boasberg is also a former homicide prosecutor in Washington who has been a judge for more than 20 years. He has bipartisan credentials: President George W. Bush appointed him in 2002 to the D.C. Superior Court, which handles state court-style criminal and civil cases in Washington, before President Barack Obama elevated him in 2011 to the Federal District Court." Savage provides more biographical information & touches on some of the high-profile matters Boasberg has adjudicated. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Christopher Kane of the Washington Blade: "White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre issued a statement Monday condemning the homophobic and misogynistic remarks made by former Vice President Mike Pence during the Gridiron Club dinner Saturday night. At the event, Pence said Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg -- the country's first openly gay cabinet secretary -- 'took maternity leave' following the birth of his and husband Chasten's twins in 2021, adding that the country subsequently suffered postpartum depression via airline and air travel issues. 'The former vice president's homophobic joke about Secretary Buttigieg was offensive and inappropriate, all the more so because he treated women suffering from postpartum depression as a punchline,' Jean-Pierre said in a statement she shared with the Washington Blade.... Associated Press Chief White House Correspondent Zeke Miller reported Pence's 'jokes' were not well received by the room." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Ed Pilkington of the Guardian: "As Rupert Murdoch's Fox Corporation battles to contain the Dominion lawsuit scandal that has engulfed its top executives and stars, another crisis is building in the wings that has the potential to cause further turbulence for the media empire. Smartmatic's lawsuit against Fox News has attracted only a fraction of the attention garnered by the legal action of Dominion Voting Systems. Yet both firms are suing Fox for defamation related to its coverage of Donald Trump's stolen-election lie, and both pose a serious threat to Fox's finances and reputation.... Smartmatic ... [is' demanding damages of $2.7bn [in damages].... Last week the New York state supreme court in Manhattan gave the green light for the case to proceed against Fox News, the Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo, the former business anchor Lou Dobbs and Trump's former lawyer Rudy Giuliani.... Smartmatic claims that more than 100 false statements were broadcast by Fox News hosts and guests. Smartmatic was falsely said to have been involved in 2020 election counts in six battleground states -- in fact, it was present only at the count in Los Angeles county." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Gail Collins & Bret Stephens of the New York Times have a conversation about Tucker Carlson, Biden's budget proposal & oil-drilling approval, Mitch McConnell, and the 2024 presidential election: "Stephens: They say that hypocrisy is the homage that vice pays to virtue, but in this case it's the tribute that cynicism pays to cowardice.... As for Fox, the way in which it is trying to 'respect' its viewers is to lie to them." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Michael Sisak of the AP: "Donald Trump's former lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen testified Monday before a Manhattan grand jury investigating hush money payments made on the former president's behalf. A Trump loyalist turned adversary, Cohen spent around three hours answering questions in the secret proceeding. He is scheduled to return again for more testimony Wednesday, his lawyer said as the pair emerged from the courthouse." The New York Times story, by Ben Protess and others, is here.

Michelle Yeoh, who won the Oscar yesterday for Best Actress in a Leading Role, is also a United Nations Development Program goodwill ambassador. She writes in a New York Times op-ed about her first-hand experience of an earthquake in Nepal. "To fully recover from a disaster and be prepared for the next one, the specific needs of women and girls must be factored into the humanitarian response. Women must also play leadership roles in the recovery process. But women are woefully underrepresented in the decision making that affects their prospects of survival in times of crisis.... This year we are halfway toward the 2030 target date to achieve what the United Nations calls Sustainable Development Goals, a blueprint for a shared global vision of a world without poverty or inequality. What I have learned through my work with U.N.D.P. is that realizing these global goals will be possible only if we achieve true gender equality, everywhere, and in all aspects of life -- especially in times of crisis -- and in anticipation of the next disaster." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Presidential Race 2024. Michael Bender of the New York Times: "Three days after [Ron] DeSantis drew a strong crowd of 1,000 people for a speech on an icy Friday morning [in Davenport, Iowa], [Donald] Trump's arrival shut down traffic by 2 p.m. Monday afternoon. The enthusiastic Trump crowd, wrapped in Trump flags and dressed in bootleg pro-Trump shirts -- 'Jesus, Trump & Freedom,' read one -- started lining up at 7 a.m. for an event 11 hours later at the 2,400-seat, standing-room-only Adler Theater.... Speaking to reporters on his private flight to Iowa on Monday, Mr. Trump responded [to Mike Pence's Gridiron dinner comments about him] by blaming Mr. Pence for the Capitol attack and mocking his single-digit polling in hypothetical primary polls.... Mr. Trump has also grown acutely aware of Mr. DeSantis's rise in Republican circles, fixating on the Florida governor's whereabouts, crowd sizes and book sales, both in private conversations and in public posts on his social media website.... He also took on Mr. DeSantis directly [at the Davenport event]...." ~~~

     ~~~ Jonathan Allen of NBC News: "Taking aim at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis Monday..., former President Donald Trump told the crowd at a jam-packed rally [in Davenport, Iowa,] that he will 'protect Iowa ethanol from anyone who wishes to destroy it.' DeSantis ... often voted as a member of Congress to restructure or slash subsidies for agricultural products, including ethanol.... But Trump was met with relative silence from an otherwise raucous crowd when he unleashed his barrage against DeSantis, which included barbs about votes that would have reduced benefits for recipients of Medicare and Social Security.... Many of Iowa's political leaders remain uncommitted to any candidate in a field that is still developing." More on Don & Ron linked under "Ukraine, et al." ~~~

~~~ In the long-running serial, "Not My Fault," Donald Trump blames mike pence for the insurrection: ~~~

~~~ Deflect & Deny. Isaac Arnsdorf & Maeve Reston of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump on Monday sharply rebuked Mike Pence's assertion that history would hold him accountable for the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol, telling reporters that his former vice president should shoulder the blame for the violent riot that day by Trump's supporters. 'Had he sent the votes back to the legislatures, they wouldn't have had a problem with Jan. 6, so in many ways you can blame him for Jan. 6,' the former president said, referring to Pence's refusal to reject the electoral college votes in Congress as Trump wanted him to do that day. 'Had he sent them back to Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, the states, I believe, number one, you would have had a different outcome. But I also believe you wouldn't have had "Jan. 6" as we call it.'... In December, Congress approved bipartisan legislation to clarify the procedures for certifying the electoral college results. Trump argued that the change demonstrated that Pence did have the authority to do what he wanted before the new law. 'He had the right to send them back, otherwise they wouldn't have changed the Voting Act,' Trump told reporters on the plane....

"The Post reported last week that Trump has been invited by the Manhattan district attorney to testify before a grand jury, according to three people with knowledge of the proceedings.... Responding to a question about the probe on the tarmac Monday, Trump said no one has asked him about testifying." the Huffington Post's story is here.

Katharine Seelye of the New York Times: "Patricia Schroeder, a trailblazing feminist legislator who helped redefine the role of women in American politics and used her wit to combat egregious sexism in Congress, died on Monday. She was 82.... Ms. Schroeder, who was a pilot and a Harvard-trained lawyer, had a long and distinguished career in the House of Representatives. She was a driving force behind the passage of the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993, which guaranteed women and men up to 18 weeks of unpaid leave to care for a family member. She helped pass the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act, which barred employers from dismissing women because they were pregnant and from denying them maternity benefits. And she championed laws that helped reform spousal pensions, opened military jobs to women and forced federally funded medical researchers to include women in their studies."

Beyond the Beltway

Maryland. Ovetta Wiggins of the Washington Post: "A federal judge issued a bench warrant Monday for Roy McGrath, once a top aide to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R), after he did not appear in court for the first day of trial on wire fraud and embezzlement charges, according to federal prosecutors. McGrath was charged in federal and state court in 2021 with dozens of charges stemming from his time working for a quasi-governmental agency he led before serving as Hogan's chief of staff. By Monday afternoon, McGrath appeared to remain a fugitive as authorities had not announced if he had been located.... McGrath, who lives in Florida, has been free on his own recognizance since his initial court appearance in October 2021. Officials from the Collier County Sheriff's Office in Florida said they had responded to a request to go to his home but did not locate him." MB: Oh, somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico, a man has headed his boat toward a Caribbean or Central American paradise.

New York. Benjamin Weiser & Lola Fadulu of the New York Times: "Sayfullo Saipov, a native of Uzbekistan who killed eight people in a 2017 terrorist truck attack on a Hudson River bike path, will be sentenced to life in prison after members of a Manhattan federal jury deadlocked as they decided his fate. The jurors told Judge Vernon S. Broderick on Monday that they could not agree on whether to impose the death penalty as the government had sought. Under the law, a unanimous verdict was required for capital punishment."

South Carolina. Southern Gothic, Ctd. Stephen Neukam of the Hill: "Republican lawmakers in South Carolina are considering a change to the state's criminal code that would make a person who gets an abortion eligible for the death penalty. The bill being considered in South Carolina, dubbed the South Carolina Prenatal Equal Protection Act of 2023, would redefine 'person' under state law to include a fertilized egg, giving it at the point of conception equal protection under the state's homicide laws, including the death penalty.... The bill does not provide an exception for rape or incest...."

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

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

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Tuesday are here: "Ukrainian troops repelled Russian attacks in towns around Bakhmut, Ukraine's military said Tuesday.... Russia agreed to extend the Black Sea grain deal that aims to prevent a global food crisis by letting Ukraine export vital food sources from its southern coast, 'but only for 60 days,' Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin said. That is half the length of the previous renewal, in November.... Ukraine will explore ways to demine farmlands, [President] Zelensky said.... Russia is employing people without appropriate education and experience at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Ukraine's Defense Ministry said, increasing the chance of a nuclear catastrophe.... The proposed $842 billion U.S. defense budget for the next fiscal year includes little funding for Ukraine, The Post reported. But the Pentagon plans to ask Congress for additional funds to support Ukraine in separate requests."

Isabelle Khrshudyan, et al., of the Washington Post: "The quality of Ukraine's military force, once considered a substantial advantage over Russia, has been degraded by a year of casualties that have taken many of the most experienced fighters off the battlefield, leading some Ukrainian officials to question Kyiv's readiness to mount a much-anticipated spring offensive. U.S. and European officials have estimated that as many as 120,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed or wounded since the start of Russia's invasion early last year, compared with about 200,000 on the Russian side, which has a much larger military and roughly triple the population from which to draw conscripts. Ukraine keeps its running casualty numbers secret, even from its staunchest Western supporters. Statistics aside, an influx of inexperienced draftees, brought in to plug the losses, has changed the profile of the Ukrainian force, which is also suffering from basic shortages of ammunition, including artillery shells and mortar bombs, according to military personnel in the field.... Such grim assessments have spread a palpable, if mostly unspoken, pessimism from the front lines to the corridors of power in Kyiv, the capital."

Putin's American Collaborators. Jonathan Swan & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida has sharply broken with Republicans who are determined to defend Ukraine against Russia's invasion, saying in a statement made public on Monday night that protecting the European nation's borders is not a vital U.S. interest and that policymakers should instead focus attention at home. The statement from Mr. DeSantis, who is seen as an all but declared presidential candidate for the 2024 campaign, puts him in line with the front-runner for the G.O.P. nomination..., Donald J. Trump.... Mr. Trump has already said he would let Russia 'take over' parts of Ukraine in a negotiated deal.... The [DeSantis] statement was broadcast on 'Tucker Carlson Tonight,' on Fox News.... Mr. Carlson is one of the most ardent opponents of U.S. involvement in Ukraine. He has called President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine a corrupt 'antihero' and mocked him for dressing 'like the manager of a strip club.'" An NBC News story is here.

Marlise Simons of the New York Times: "The International Criminal Court intends to open two war crimes cases tied to the Russian invasion of Ukraine and will seek arrest warrants for several people, according to current and former officials.... The cases represent the first international charges to be brought forward since the start of the conflict and come after months of work by special investigation teams. They allege that Russia abducted Ukrainian children and teenagers and sent them to Russian re-education camps, and that the Kremlin deliberately targeted civilian infrastructure.... It was not clear whom the court planned to charge in each case.... Some outside diplomats and experts said it was possible that President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia could be charged, as the court does not recognize immunity for a head of state in cases involving war crimes, crimes against humanity or genocide. Still, the likelihood of a trial remains slim, experts say, as the court cannot hear cases in absentia and Russia is unlikely to surrender its own officials." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

U.K. Karla Adam of the Washington Post: "Britain's state broadcaster and its highest-paid presenter announced Monday that they reached a deal that would put sports legend Gary Lineker back on the air after he was suspended for criticizing the government's migration policies.... The director general of the BBC, Tim Davie, apologized and said the broadcaster would launch an independent review of its social media guidelines, with a focus on freelancers, like Lineker." (Also linked yesterday.)

News Lede

Washington Post: "A high-impact winter storm is brewing and preparing to wallop much of the Northeast, from the northern Mid-Atlantic to New England, with rain, heavy snow and powerful winds Monday night through Wednesday. What was a minor swirl in the atmosphere off the Carolina coast Monday morning will rapidly explode into the largest snowstorm of the winter for some, and a heavy rainstorm with possible flooding for others. About 20 million people across 11 states in the Northeast, particularly New York state and New England, are covered by winter weather alerts. A heavy, wet snowstorm -- combined with powerful gusts -- will probably shut down swaths of the region during the storm's peak." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: At first light, I see I am having another blizzard at my house. According to the weather folks, I can expect a foot of heavy, hard-to-shovel snow. (Not so hard for me; when the snow is deep, I take two scoops: one picking up the top half, the second picking up the bottom.)