November 16, 2022

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

** Mary Jalonick of the AP: "Legislation to protect same-sex and interracial marriages crossed a major Senate hurdle Wednesday, putting Congress on track to take the historic step of ensuring that such unions are enshrined in federal law. Twelve Republicans voted with all Democrats to move forward on the legislation, meaning a final vote could come as soon as this week, or later this month. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the bill ensuring the unions are legally recognized under the law is chance for the Senate to 'live up to its highest ideals' and protect marriage equality for all people. 'It will make our country a better, fairer place to live,' Schumer said, noting that his own daughter and her wife are expecting a baby next year.... Three Republicans said early on that they would support the legislation and have lobbied their GOP colleagues to support it: Maine Sen. Susan Collins, North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis and Ohio Sen. Rob Portman.... The other Republicans who voted for the legislation were Sens. Richard Burr of North Carolina, Todd Young of Indiana, Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia, Mitt Romney of Utah, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Roy Blunt of Missouri, Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming and Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan of Alaska."

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: Mitch McConnell of Kentucky was re-elected overwhelmingly as his party's Senate leader on Wednesday, holding off Senator Rick Scott of Florida in the first challenge Mr. McConnell has faced since assuming the post in 2007.... Meeting behind closed doors for more than three hours, Republican senators sat at desks in the Old Senate Chamber ... to hash out their differences and vote. In a final tally of 37-10, with one person voting present, Mr. McConnell easily defeated Mr. Scott. The rest of the Republican leadership has been set with little fanfare or competition: Senator John Thune of South Dakota will remain as the No. 2 position, the minority whip, and Senator John Barrasso of Wyoming will remain as the conference chair, the No. 3 position." ~~~

~~~ Alex Isenstadt of Politico: "The GOP's post-election finger-pointing intensified Tuesday, with two senators calling for an audit of the National Republican Senatorial Committee. During a tense, three-hour-long meeting of the Senate GOP Conference, Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said there should be an independent review of how the party's campaign arm spent its resources before falling short of its goal of winning the majority.... To move forward, Blackburn said, the party needed to determine what mistakes were made.... Over the past week, the political operations aligned with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell and NRSC Chair Rick Scott (Fla.) have clashed openly, blaming the other for the disappointing outcome -- even before Scott launched a long-shot leadership challenge to McConnell."

Marie: Mitch McConnell complained again Tuesday that Republicans' poor "candidate quality" was the reason for some Senate losses. He might have looked at some down-ballot races, too: ~~~

~~~ South Dakota. Sky Palma of the Raw Story: "A South Dakota House candidate who lost his race appeared in court this Tuesday on a charge of second-degree rape, KOTA reports. A South Dakota House candidate who lost his race appeared in court this Tuesday on a charge of second-degree rape, KOTA reports. Bud Marty May, 37, faces 50 years in prison over the Class 1 felony charge. According to the victim, May forced himself on her in a bathroom stall at a bar, telling her, 'I am 6′8, white, it is all consensual.' May then fled the scene but was later detained by police. The Republican candidate initially denied involvement, but then claimed, 'it was simply a hug.'" One of the two winners in May's district was Elizabeth May, Bud's mother.

Vasilisa Stepanenko of the AP: "NATO member Poland and the head of the military alliance both said Wednesday a missile strike in Polish farmland that killed two people did not appear to be an intentional attack, and that air defenses in neighboring Ukraine likely launched the Soviet-era projectile against a Russian bombardment that savaged the Ukrainian power grid. 'Ukraine's defense was launching their missiles in various directions and it is highly probable that one of these missiles unfortunately fell on Polish territory,' said Polish President Andrzej Duda. 'There is nothing, absolutely nothing, to suggest that it was an intentional attack on Poland.' NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, at a meeting of the 30-nation military alliance in Brussels, echoed the preliminary Polish findings, saying: 'We have no indication that this was the result of a deliberate attack.'"

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** John Leicester & James LaPorta of the AP: "Russia pounded Ukraine's energy facilities Tuesday with its biggest barrage of missiles yet, striking targets across the country and causing widespread blackouts. A senior U.S. intelligence official said missiles crossed into NATO member Poland, where two people were killed. A second person confirmed to The Associated Press that apparent Russian missiles struck a site in Poland about 15 miles from the Ukrainian border.... A NATO official ... said the alliance was looking into reports of a strike in Poland. The U.S. National Security Council said it was also looking into the reports. Polish government spokesman Piotr Mueller did not immediately confirm the information from the U.S. intelligence official.... But Mueller said top leaders were holding an emergency meeting due to a 'crisis situation.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Seung Min Kim & Zeke Miller of the AP: "President Joe Biden convened an 'emergency' meeting of the Group of Seven and NATO leaders in Indonesia Wednesday morning for consultations after NATO-ally Poland said a 'Russian-made' missile killed two people in the eastern part of its country near the Ukraine border. Biden, who was awakened overnight by staff with the news of the missile explosion while in Indonesia for the Group of 20 summit, called Polish President Andrzej Duda early Wednesday to express his 'deep condolences' for the loss of life. Biden promised on Twitter 'full U.S support for and assistance with Poland's investigation,' and 'reaffirmed the United States' ironclad commitment to NATO.' Meeting at a large round table in a ballroom in his hotel, the U.S. president hosted the leaders of the G-7, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the European Union, along with the president of the European Council and the prime ministers of NATO allies Spain and the Netherlands."

Tony Romm of the Washington Post: "The White House on Tuesday asked Congress to approve $47.7 billion in new emergency aid to combat the coronavirus [-- $9.25BB --] and augment Ukraine's defenses [$37.7BB], hoping to overcome the staunch Republican resistance that has scuttled such requests in the past. The official request comes as Democrats and Republicans toiled behind the scenes in the hopes of striking a broader spending deal before Dec. 16, the date at which federal funds are set to run dry -- triggering a government shutdown.... In a letter to Congress which accompanied the formal request, the Biden administration also urged lawmakers to approve new funds to help Florida, Puerto Rico and other parts of the country decimated by recent natural disasters." MB: Yes, I realize the numbers don't add up, but I know only what I read in the papers. Besides, the ask will probably rise when the White House figures out how much is needed to help recover from the natural disasters. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: Politico's story, by Caitlin Emma, fills in the missing number: "About $750 million would be spent on efforts to control the spread of monkeypox, hepatitis C and HIV." ~~~

     ~~~ More related to Russia's war on Ukraine is linked below under "Way Beyond the Beltway."

Miriam Jordan & Eileen Sullivan of the New York Times: "A federal judge on Tuesday blocked the government from continuing to use a Trump-era public health emergency measure to swiftly expel migrants who cross the southern border unlawfully, an order that could enable thousands of potential asylum seekers to enter the country. Judge Emmet Sullivan for the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia concluded that the measure, known as Title 42, was 'arbitrary and capricious' and had been implemented in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. Originally invoked by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Title 42 has been used as a key enforcement tool at the border since the Trump administration first implemented it."

Hannah Allam of the Washington Post: "As bloody, hate-fueled attacks rose in 2019, Homeland Security officials pledged to step up their response to domestic terrorism, funding in-depth research that would help them understand the scale of the problem.... More than two years later, that data collection has not begun.... [A DHS] official said around 20 research projects funded by Homeland Security faced varying degrees of delays because of rulings by the DHS's Privacy Office that deemed them high-risk even after researchers repeatedly explained that the information they intended to use was widely available to the public."

To the Moon, Alice. Kenneth Chang of the New York Times: "NASA's majestic new rocket soared into space for the first time in the early hours of Wednesday, lighting up the night sky and accelerating on a journey that will take an astronaut-less capsule around the moon and back. This flight, evoking the bygone Apollo era, is a crucial test for NASA's Artemis program that aims to put astronauts, after five decades of loitering in low-Earth orbit, back on the moon." The is part of a liveblog. The item is pinned to the top of the page. The Guardian's report is here.

Republicans in Disarray

Melanie Zanona, et al., of CNN: "The House Republican conference voted for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to be its leader after an underwhelming midterm election performance launched a search among conservatives for a challenger. The vote puts McCarthy in line to be the next speaker of the House, presuming Republicans win at least three more seats of the 16 that have not yet been projected by CNN. McCarthy won 188-31 against Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, according to multiple sources in the room. It was a secret ballot, and McCarthy only needed to earn a simple majority of the conference.... In January, McCarthy must win 218 votes, a majority of the entire House, to wield the speaker's gavel.... The No. 2 House Republican, Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, won his election to serve as House majority leader without facing any opposition.... And Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, the National Republican Congressional Committee chair, defeated Reps. Jim Banks of Indiana and Drew Ferguson of Georgia to be the House majority whip." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Emily Brooks & Mychael Schnell of the Hill: "House Republicans have elected Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to another term as conference chair during a closed-door, secret-ballot election on Tuesday. Stefanik defeated a challenge from freshman Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), one of two Black Republicans currently serving in the House, in a 144-74." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Mike Lillis of the Hill: "Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar (Texas) on Tuesday revealed more details about the GOP effort to have him jump parties, saying a handful of Republicans -- including a sitting member of Congress -- were part of the pressure campaign to have him join the GOP following his easy victory in last week's midterm elections.... 'They just said, "Name your price,"' Cuellar told reporters in the Capitol. His response was simple. 'No, thank you,' he said.... The Republicans' campaign arm spent millions of dollars supporting his opponent, Republican Cassy Garcia, a former aide to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), only to see Cuellar prevail in a landslide."

Burgess Everett of Politico: "Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) announced a challenge to Mitch McConnell in a closed-door party lunch on Tuesday afternoon, the first such opposition that the Senate GOP leader is facing in 15 years at the helm.... Scott, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee and got nudged to mount opposition to McConnell by ... Donald Trump, was at odds with the GOP leader over strategy and tactics for months before Election Day. McConnell says he already has the votes locked up to win a Wednesday leadership election, and Scott is not expected to garner enough support to come close to toppling the leader. But Scott is pressing forward anyway, as a band of conservatives pushes to delay leadership elections until all the Senate races are determined." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

This Washington Post story, by Liz Goodwin & others, covers the GOP infighting in both the House & Senate.

Christoper Cadelago, et al., of Politico: "Donald Trump ... is running for president again. The 45th president announced his bid for a second term during a primetime event at his Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida. He filed a statement of candidacy as well.... There are renewed fears [among Republicans] about a Trump candidacy following the party's poor showing in the 2022 midterm elections, when a number of candidates backed by the former president failed to win key state and federal offices." ~~~

     ~~~ Michael Bender & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "In his rambling hourlong address, Mr. Trump gave an exaggerated picture of his accomplishments before announcing his candidacy. He quickly fell back into his typical rally fare, full of false statements, inflammatory discussion of immigration and crime, and nods to right-wing culture-war issues.... And he repeatedly expressed grievance over the ongoing investigations into him and his family.... Mr. Trump's insistence on another campaign has set off a roiling debate among Republicans over whether the party can thrive with him as its leader -- and, if not, how it can effectuate a divorce.... Mr. Trump endorsed five candidates in the nation's most competitive House races, according to ratings by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report. All five lost.... Every [Trumpy] election denier who sought to become the top election official in a battleground state was defeated.... He has virtually no campaign team in place." This is part of a liveblog, but it's pinned at the top & is as long as a stand-alone article.

Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: "Donald Trump is a petulant narcissist, so his feuds with Govs. Ron DeSantis and Glenn Youngkin are surely sincere, but they also show that Trump hasn't lost his feral instinct for media attention. In recent months, the former president has become increasingly boring, and after sabotaging Republican hopes for a red wave, his power is at a low ebb. By stoking a Republican Party civil war and announcing his run for president, he can perhaps rekindle interest in a new season of the Trump show. Trump has very little else to keep people watching. On Tuesday, he gave an extraordinarily tedious and droning address announcing his new presidential campaign."

An Upside for Donald. Donie O'Sullivan of CNN:"Facebook's fact-checkers will need to stop fact-checking ... Donald Trump following the announcement that he is running for president, according to a company memo obtained by CNN. While Trump is currently banned from Facebook, the fact-check ban applies to anything Trump says and false statements made by Trump can be posted to the platform by others. Despite Trump's ban, 'Team Trump,' a page run by Trump's political group, is still active and has 2.3 million followers." BUT ~~~

~~~ Uh, Spending More Time with the Family. Caroline Linton of CBS News: "Ivanka Trump ... said Tuesday night shortly after her father announced his 2024 campaign that she does 'not plan to be involved in politics' this time." ~~~

~~~ Jonathan Swan & Zachary Basu of Axios: "Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie received huge applause at an annual meeting of Republican governors Tuesday morning after blaming former President Trump for GOP failures in the last three elections, according to three sources in the room and a fourth person familiar with the speech.... Christie addressed a room full of hundreds of people -- Republican governors, high-level donors and consultants -- at a hotel in Orlando.... " ~~~

~~~ Mark Sweney of the Guardian: "Rupert Murdoch has reportedly warned Donald Trump his media empire will not back any attempt to return to the White House, as former supporters turn to the youthful Florida governor Ron DeSantis. After the Republican party's disappointing performance in the US midterm elections, in particular the poor showing by candidates backed by Trump, Murdoch's rightwing media empire appears to be seeking a clean break from the former president's damaged reputation and perceived waning political power." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Witness for the Prosecution. Jonah Bromwich & Ben Protess of the New York Times: "... Allen H. Weisselberg on Tuesday testified in the criminal tax-fraud trial of [Donald Trump]'s family business.... Mr. Weisselberg, the company's longtime chief financial officer, pleaded guilty this summer to the same crimes for which the company is now on trial in a Manhattan court. As part of his deal, which is expected to spare him a lengthy prison sentence, Mr. Weisselberg agreed to give evidence against the company, even as he remains on its payroll and has refused to implicate Mr. Trump. Mr. Weisselberg ... provided crucial facts to bolster the Manhattan district attorney's case, which centers on lucrative off-the-books perks that the company paid to Mr. Weisselberg and other executives.... In under two hours of testimony, Mr. Weisselberg admitted that he had received such perks, and that he knew he owed taxes on them that he had not paid. And when the lead prosecutor, Susan Hoffinger, asked him why he did not simply ask for a raise, he responded that a raise would have required the Trump Organization to pay more money to him and to the tax authorities. That roped the company into a scheme that its lawyers have tried to pin wholly on Mr. Weisselberg."

Rebecca O'Brien of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump won a legal battle against his niece Mary L. Trump this week, when a New York judge dismissed Ms. Trump's lawsuit claiming he and other relatives had cheated her out of tens of millions of dollars in inheritance.... In a decision signed Monday, the judge, Robert R. Reed, said Ms. Trump's claims were barred because of a settlement agreement she signed with her family in 2001. Roberta Kaplan, a lawyer for Ms. Trump, said she planned to file an expedited appeal of the ruling...."

Faiz Siddiqui & Jeremy Merrill of the Washington Post: "Elon Musk issued an ultimatum to Twitter employees Wednesday morning: Commit to a new 'hardcore' Twitter or leave the company with severance. Employees were told they had to a sign a pledge to stay on with the company. 'If you are sure that you want to be part of the new Twitter, please click yes on the link below,' read the email to all staff, which linked to an online form. Anyone who did not sign the pledge by 5 p.m. Eastern time Thursday was told they would receive three months of severance pay, the message said." MB: Hardcore employees must prick their pinkies & press a bloody pinkie-print into a box on the form above a pledge of allegiance to Elon forever. All very adultish. ~~~

     ~~~ Kate Conger, et al., of the New York Times: "Elon Musk continued cutting Twitter's work force in his third week of owning the social media company, firing employees who had criticized him and eliminating contractors."

Beyond the Beltway

Georgia. Ava Sasani of the New York Times: "A Georgia county judge on Tuesday blocked the state's ban on abortions after six weeks of pregnancy, saying the law was unconstitutional when the state legislature approved it in 2019 -- more than three years before the U.S. Supreme Court revoked the constitutional right to abortion. The county judge's ruling will allow the immediate legal resumption in the state of abortions performed after the sixth week of pregnancy -- a time when most women have not yet even realized they are pregnant. Judge Robert C.I. McBurney of the Fulton County Superior Court wrote in his order that the six-week ban was enacted when 'everywhere in America, including Georgia, it was unequivocally unconstitutional for governments -- federal, state, or local -- to ban abortions before viability.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: McBurney is the county judge who keeps ordering big shots like Mark Meadows & Rudy Giuliani to come on down to Georgia & testify before Fulton County D.A. Fani Willis's grand jury. I like him.

Georgia Senate Race. Matthew Brown of the Washington Post: "Democrats are suing to force Georgia election officials to allow early voting on a Saturday ahead of the Dec. 6 U.S. Senate runoff election. The suit comes in response to a determination by state officials that law forbids voting right after Thanksgiving and a state holiday that once honored Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.... Without action by the courts, the suit states, Georgia voters 'will be deprived of their right to vote during the advance voting period permitted by Georgia law.'... For many years, the Friday after Thanksgiving was recognized as 'Robert E. Lee's Birthday' in Georgia, even though the Confederate general's birthday was Jan. 19. In 2015, Gov. Nathan Deal (R) supported legislation that changed the name to 'State Holiday.'"

Way Beyond

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

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Wednesday are here: "Investigations are continuing into the origins of a Russian-made missile that exploded in a Polish village on the border with Ukraine on Tuesday, killing two people and raising fears that the conflict in Ukraine could widen into NATO territory. Poland, a NATO member, said the missile was Russian-made, but officials have no 'clear evidence' of who fired it. President Biden said early indications suggested the missile was not fired from Russia, which has denied responsibility. Several countries -- including Ukraine -- use Soviet-era weapons...."

November 15, 2022

Afternoon Update:

** John Leicester & James LaPorta of the AP: "Russia pounded Ukraine's energy facilities Tuesday with its biggest barrage of missiles yet, striking targets across the country and causing widespread blackouts. A senior U.S. intelligence official said missiles crossed into NATO member Poland, where two people were killed. A second person confirmed to The Associated Press that apparent Russian missiles struck a site in Poland about 15 miles from the Ukrainian border.... A NATO official ... said the alliance was looking into reports of a strike in Poland. The U.S. National Security Council said it was also looking into the reports. Polish government spokesman Piotr Mueller did not immediately confirm the information from the U.S. intelligence official.... But Mueller said top leaders were holding an emergency meeting due to a 'crisis situation.'"

Melanie Zanona, et al., of CNN: "The House Republican conference voted for House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy to be its leader after an underwhelming midterm election performance launched a search among conservatives for a challenger. The vote puts McCarthy in line to be the next speaker of the House, presuming Republicans win at least three more seats of the 16 that have not yet been projected by CNN. McCarthy won 188-31 against Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs, according to multiple sources in the room. It was a secret ballot, and McCarthy only needed to earn a simple majority of the conference.... In January, McCarthy must win 218 votes, a majority of the entire House, to wield the speaker's gavel.... The No. 2 House Republican, Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise, won his election to serve as House majority leader without facing any opposition.... And Minnesota Rep. Tom Emmer, the National Republican Congressional Committee chair, defeated Reps. Jim Banks of Indiana and Drew Ferguson of Georgia to be the House majority whip." ~~~

~~~ Emily Brooks & Mychael Schnell of the Hill: "House Republicans have elected Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) to another term as conference chair during a closed-door, secret-ballot election on Tuesday. Stefanik defeated a challenge from freshman Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.), one of two Black Republicans currently serving in the House, in a 144-74."

Burgess Everett of Politico: "Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) announced a challenge to Mitch McConnell in a closed-door party lunch on Tuesday afternoon, the first such opposition that the Senate GOP leader is facing in 15 years at the helm.... Scott, who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee and got nudged to mount opposition to McConnell by ... Donald Trump, was at odds with the GOP leader over strategy and tactics for months before Election Day. McConnell says he already has the votes locked up to win a Wednesday leadership election, and Scott is not expected to garner enough support to come close to toppling the leader. But Scott is pressing forward anyway, as a band of conservatives pushes to delay leadership elections until all the Senate races are determined."

Mark Sweney of the Guardian: "Rupert Murdoch has reportedly warned Donald Trump his media empire will not back any attempt to return to the White House, as former supporters turn to the youthful Florida governor Ron DeSantis. After the Republican party's disappointing performance in the US midterm elections, in particular the poor showing by candidates backed by Trump, Murdoch's rightwing media empire appears to be seeking a clean break from the former president's damaged reputation and perceived waning political power."

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** Jazmine Ulloa of the New York Times: "Katie Hobbs, who as Arizona's secretary of state stood up to efforts by allies of ... Donald J. Trump to overturn the 2020 election, has clinched a victory in the state's race for governor, according to The Associated Press. Ms. Hobbs, a Democrat, narrowly defeated Kari Lake, a right-wing former newscaster who was talked about as a future leader in a Trump-dominated Republican Party, in a bitter and closely watched race that became a final test of whether candidates molded in Mr. Trump's image could win in battlegrounds. Ms. Lake, one of the most prominent purveyors of Mr. Trump's lies about his 2020 election, followed several other election-denying candidates in defeat.... After the race was called on Monday night, Ms. Lake did not concede defeat, instead suggesting, without citing evidence, that the vote was marred. 'Arizonans know BS when they see it,' she tweeted." MB: Gracious. Read on. Ulloa captured in a few sentences a succinct political obituary for a MAGA flame. ~~~

     ~~~ The AP's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Let us all hope that Lake's loss is the nail in the coffin for the Trumpolini movement. You might want to take a few minutes to enjoy SNL star Cecily Strong's parody of Lake -- embedded in Sunday's page -- because with any luck, Strong won't have Lake to kick around any more. However, Kari may have enjoyed the national spotlight so much that a new & revised Kari Lake will return to fight another day.

Catie Edmondson & Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: "Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, the minority leader, scrounged on Monday for the support he would need to become speaker if Republicans gain control of the House, facing resistance from a newly emboldened right flank as his party grappled with its historically weak performance in the midterm elections.... Mr. McCarthy's troubles reflected disarray in his demoralized party and a fraught path ahead as ... Donald J. Trump prepared to announce a second run for the presidency. Returning to Capitol Hill for a postelection session, Republicans began the week -- which they had expected would be a triumphant victory lap -- limping toward the finish of an election cycle that Mr. McCarthy had confidently predicted would be a G.O.P. bonanza. They were bitterly divided over who should lead what was shaping up to be a tiny and unruly majority." ~~~

     ~~~ Scott Wong & Kyle Stewart of NBC News: "Conservative lawmakers sent a strong message to House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy on Monday, telling him he doesn't have the votes to be the next speaker. The warning shot came just one day before McCarthy heads into a closed-door election seeking to become his party's nominee for speaker of the House starting in January.... Members of the conservative House Freedom Caucus are planning to put up a symbolic challenger to make clear that McCarthy can't reach the magic number needed -- 218 votes -- in the formal floor vote when the new Congress convenes on Jan. 3.... Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz..., confirmed Monday night that he will be challenging McCarthy for the top job.... While several leading conservatives, including Reps. Jim Jordan of Ohio and Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, have already endorsed McCarthy, other conservatives are demanding that he agree to a number of proposed rule changes before they get on board with his bid for speaker. Among the changes they want: Bring back a rule making it easier to force a vote on ousting a speaker."

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "Republicans appear primed to win the narrowest of House majorities -- around 220-215 or 219-216 -- despite winning a majority of the votes nationwide and edging Democrats by around four percentage points." Blake explains why. MB: That is, Democrats celebrate their victories at their own peril: while there have been more votes for Democratic presidential candidates than for Trump in the last two presidential races, there were more votes nationwide for Republicans in last week's vote. The Republican party, sadly, is alive & well.

Marie: In yesterday's Comments, Ken W. generously does the Republicans' post-election "autopsy" for them. Everything Ken writes is, IMO, sensible, straightforward & obvious. I think some of the brighter Republicans would agree if you gave them truth serum. But they have no intention of following Ken's advice.

Seung Min Kim & Zeke Miller of the AP: "President Joe Biden objected directly to China's 'coercive and increasingly aggressive actions' toward Taiwan during the first in-person meeting of his presidency with Xi Jinping, as the two superpower leaders aimed on Monday to 'manage' their differences in the competition for global influence. The nearly three-hour meeting was the highlight of Biden's weeklong, round-the-world trip to the Middle East and Asia, and came at a critical juncture for the two countries amid increasing economic and security tensions. Speaking at a news conference afterward, Biden said that when it comes to China, the U.S. would 'compete vigorously, but I'm not looking for conflict.' He added: 'I absolutely believe there need not be a new Cold War' between America and the rising Asian power." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Stacy Cowley of the New York Times: "A federal appeals court on Monday issued an injunction halting President Biden's student debt cancellation plan, further clouding the future of the president's promise to eliminate hundreds of billions of dollars in debt for tens of millions of people. In a six-page order, three judges from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit unanimously blocked the government from canceling debts while the court considers a lawsuit brought by six Republican-led states, which claim that the president's executive action to wipe out up to $20,000 in federal student loan debt per borrower exceeded his authority.... Two of the three judges -- Ralph R. Erickson and Leonard Steven Grasz -- were appointed by ... Donald J. Trump. The third, Bobby Shepherd, was appointed by former President George W. Bush." ~~~

     ~~~ Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "White House officials are weighing extending a pause on student debt payments after a federal appeals court blocked President Biden's plan to cancel up to $20,000 in debt per borrower, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. In August, Biden announced that the administration would implement student debt forgiveness while simultaneously ending a moratorium on student debt payments that started during the pandemic. But Biden's plan has so far been thwarted in the courts."

William Rashbaum, et al., of the New York Times: "Federal prosecutors in Manhattan said on Monday that they would not bring charges against Rudolph W. Giuliani in a long-running investigation into whether he violated lobbying laws. In a brief letter to the judge overseeing a review of materials seized during a search of Mr. Giuliani's home and office last year, the prosecutors wrote that 'based on information currently available to the government, criminal charges are not forthcoming.'" Politico's story is here.

Devlin Barrett & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "Federal agents and prosecutors have come to believe ... Donald Trump's motive for allegedly taking and keeping classified documents was largely his ego and a desire to hold on to the materials as trophies or mementos, according to people familiar with the matter.... [Investigators'] review [of the classified documents Trump stole] has not found any apparent business advantage to the types of classified information in Trump's possession, these people said. FBI interviews with witnesses so far, they said, also do not point to any nefarious effort by Trump to leverage, sell, or use the government secrets. Instead, the former president seemed motivated by a more basic desire not to give up what he believed was his property, these people said. Several Trump advisers said that each time he was asked to give documents or materials back, his stance hardened, and that he gravitated toward lawyers and advisers who indulged his more pugilistic desires. Trump repeatedly said the materials were his, not the government's -- often in profane terms, two of these people said." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So Trump's Achilles' heel is all in his head? Perhaps a new variant of foot-in-mouth disease.

Perry Stein of the Washington Post: "In separate and clashing legal filings unsealed Monday, Donald Trump's attorneys and the Justice Department once again sparred over whether the former president could lay claim to documents from his time in the White House -- with Trump saying most of the materials were 'personal' and with the government saying, in essence, absolutely not.... [Trump's] lawyers have said that Trump had the right to designate presidential documents as personal ones under the Presidential Records Act. The Justice Department, however, slammed that interpretation of the law as 'meritless.' Saying a president could simply designate presidential documents as personal ones would go against the very purpose of the federal act, the Justice Department wrote in its brief.... The legal filings were submitted to Raymond J. Dearie, the court-appointed special master who was ordered by a federal judge in Florida to review the materials seized from Trump's Florida residence...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: "Meritless"? How about "goofy"?

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "The chairman of the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol said on Monday that a contempt of Congress referral against ... Donald J. Trump 'could be an option' after Mr. Trump failed to appear for a scheduled deposition. Representative Bennie Thompson, Democrat of Mississippi and the chairman of the panel, said in an interview that lawmakers were evaluating their next steps, which could include pursuing a contempt charge.... Mr. Trump filed a suit against the panel on Friday, seeking to block its subpoena that required him to testify and hand over documents related to the effort to overturn the 2020 election. He refused to turn over a single document to the panel and did not show up for a deposition on Monday morning, Mr. Thompson said.... 'His attorneys have made no attempt to negotiate an appearance of any sort, and his lawsuit parades out many of the same arguments that courts have rejected repeatedly over the last year,' [Thomson, in a joint statement with vice-chair Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.)] wrote." The Hill's report is here.

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court paved the way on Monday for the House committee investigating the Capitol attack to obtain phone records of Kelli Ward, the chairwoman of the Arizona Republican Party. As is its custom in ruling on emergency applications, the court's brief order gave no reasons in denying Ms. Ward's request that it block a subpoena. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr. noted dissents, also without giving reasons. Experts in legal ethics have said that Justice Thomas should recuse himself from cases concerning the Jan. 6 attack in light of the efforts of his wife, Virginia Thomas, to overturn the 2020 election. Ms. Thomas's activities included lobbying the speaker of the Arizona House to try to reverse Joseph R. Biden Jr.'s victory in the state." Politico's story is here. MB A guy who probably perjured himself during his Senate hearing is not all that likely to be bothered by even the most obvious ethics standards. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Alan Feuer & Adam Goldman of the New York Times: "The F.B.I. had as many as eight informants inside the far-right Proud Boys in the months surrounding the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, recent court papers indicate, raising questions about how much federal investigators were able to learn from them about the violent mob attack both before and after it took place. The existence of the informants came to light over the past few days in a flurry of veiled court filings by defense lawyers for five members of the Proud Boys who are set to go on trial next month on seditious conspiracy charges connected to the Capitol attack.... Because all of the material remains under a highly restrictive protective order, it is not possible to know what the informants told the government about the Proud Boys' role in the Capitol attack or how that information might affect the outcome of the trial.... Questions about informants ... have included concerns about why the informants were not able to give the government advanced warning about plans to storm the Capitol on Jan. 6...."

Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "On Monday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Gov. Brian Kemp (R-GA) is set to testify before a grand jury on Tuesday, as part of the Fulton County investigation into the plot by ... Donald Trump and his allies to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.... 'Fulton prosecutors previously said they're interested in questioning Kemp about the identities of the people who tried to get in touch with him following the 2020 elections; the contents of phone calls Kemp had with Trump or his associates; evidence the Trump campaign provided in support of its theory that Georgia's election was rigged; whether Trump specifically sought a special election or other relief; and any threats that might have been made,' said the [AJC] report."

** Amy Lang & Liz Goodwin of the Washington Post: "Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) on Monday filed the Respect for Marriage Act, setting up a first procedural vote for Wednesday on the bill that would enshrine marriage equality into federal law. Democrats have warned that same-sex marriage and other rights could be at risk since June, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, which for nearly 50 years had guaranteed the right to an abortion in the United States. In July, the House passed the Respect for Marriage Act, but the Senate delayed its vote on the bill until after the midterm elections.... The Respect for Marriage Act would require that someone be considered married in any state as long as the marriage was valid in the state where it was performed. The bill would also repeal the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which defined marriage as the union of one man and one woman and allowed states to not recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. That law has remained on the books despite being declared unconstitutional by the Obergefell v. Hodges ruling." The Hill's report is here.

Drew Harwell of the Washington Post: Last Thursday afternoon a tweet "using the name and logo of the pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co., ... immediately attracted a giant response: 'We are excited to announce insulin is free now.' The tweet carried a blue 'verified' check mark, a badge that Twitter had used for years to signal an account's authenticity -- and that Twitter's new billionaire owner, Elon Musk, had, while declaring 'power to the people! suddenly opened to anyone, regardless of their identity, as long as they paid $8. But the tweet was a fake.... Inside the real Eli Lilly..., officials scrambled to contact Twitter representatives and demanded they kill the viral spoof.... Twitter, its staffing cut in half, didn't react for hours.... By Friday morning, Eli Lilly executives had ordered a halt to all Twitter ad campaigns -- a potentially serious blow, given that the $330 billion company controls the kind of massive advertising budget that Musk says the company needs to avoid bankruptcy. They also paused their Twitter publishing plan for all corporate accounts around the world.... [Friday] morning, Musk tweeted that the launch of Twitter's new $8 verification regime was 'overall proceeding well.'... When Eli Lilly's share price sank 4 percent on Friday -- in line with a drop in other health care stocks -- many Twitter users credited the fake account...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The Trump corruption complex is back in business. It is a remarkable revelation on the expected eve of his presidential candidacy announcement. Even without that, it would be stunning as another in a series of sweetheart deals from the Saudi government to the Trump family. -- Robert Weissman of Public Citizen ~~~

~~~ Eric Lipton, et al., of the New York Times: "The Trump family has struck a deal with a Saudi-based real estate company to license its name to a housing and golf complex that will be built in Oman, renewing a swirl of questions about ... Donald J. Trump's mixing of politics and business just as he appears poised to announce a third presidential candidacy. News of the deal, the first such international marketing agreement the Trump Organization has negotiated since Mr. Trump left the White House, emerged as the former president already faces a string of investigations into his business.... Mr. Trump had close ties with the Saudi government during his tenure in the White House, authorizing billions of dollars in weapons sales and defending the government there after the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi. His son-in-law, Jared Kushner, secured a $2 billion investment from a fund led by the Saudi crown prince six months after leaving the White House."

Luke Broadwater & Eric Lipton of the New York Times: "Officials from six nations spent more than $750,000 at ... Donald J. Trump's hotel in Washington when they were seeking to influence his administration, renting rooms for more than $10,000 per night, according to documents that his former accounting firm turned over to Congress. The governments of Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and China spent more money than previously known at the Trump International Hotel at crucial times in 2017 and 2018 for those countries' relations with the United States, according to the documents, which were obtained by the House Oversight Committee and released on Monday. The officials spent freely at the hotel, the records show.... The Oversight Committee has previously estimated that the hotel received more than $3.75 million from foreign governments from 2017 to 2020, raising concerns about possible violations of the Constitution's foreign emoluments clause.... The documents also show that Republican lobbyists working on behalf of these countries -- some operating without registering as foreign agents, as required by law -- spent tens of thousands more at the Trump hotel during the same periods." The report goes on to detail how the White House gave favorable treatment to some of these governments as they were patronizing Trump facilities. CNN's report is here.

Marie: I've avoided a number of stories about this guy, but here ya go: ~~~

     ~~~ David Yaffe-Bellany of the New York Times: "In less than a week, the cryptocurrency billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried went from industry leader to industry villain, lost most of his fortune, saw his $32 billion company plunge into bankruptcy and became the target of investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Justice Department.... The empire built by Mr. Bankman-Fried, who was once compared to titans of finance like John Pierpont Morgan and Warren Buffett, collapsed last week after a run on deposits left his crypto exchange, FTX, with an $8 billion shortfall, forcing the firm to file for bankruptcy. The damage has rippled across the industry, destabilizing other crypto companies and sowing widespread distrust of the technology." This is a long piece that incorporates an interview with Bankman-Fried.

Beyond the Beltway

New York. Jonah Bromwich of the New York Times: "Lawyers for people detained on Rikers Island intend to ask a federal judge to take control of the jail complex away from New York City, according to a letter filed with the court on Monday, setting the stage for a potentially pivotal hearing this week. The lawyers' intention to request an outsider -- called a receiver -- to run the jails was conveyed in a letter filed by a federal official appointed to monitor the island lockup, where close to 5,900 people are held. The letter could be the first step in a drawn-out process that determines the future of Rikers, where conditions have deteriorated precipitously over the past two years." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The Washington Post's live briefings of developments Tuesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "The moment has come for Russia to completely withdraw from Ukraine's sovereign territory, President Volodymyr Zelensky told a meeting for Group of 20 countries, which include Russia, and asked for the world's support in pursuing what he presented as Kyiv's 'formula for peace.' The alternative, he said, would mean allowing Russia to 'build up its forces, and then start a new series of terror and global destabilization,' according to a transcript from Ukraine's presidential office.... In his G-20 address, Zelensky demanded the full withdrawal of Russian forces from all of Ukraine as a necessary condition for any 'real' end to hostilities, alongside nine other demands he made of Moscow, including guarantees for food and energy security, and granting freedom to Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians.... Western leaders are unfairly trying to blame the conflict on Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, referring to the summit's draft joint declaration.... [Lavrov] attended [the summit] in place of President Vladimir Putin.... when CIA Director William J. Burns met with Sergei Naryshkin, head of Russia's foreign intelligence service, on Monday in Ankara, Turkey. The Russian ambassador in Washington is expected to meet with White House officials on the same issue on Tuesday." ~~~

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

Katie Bo Lillis, et al., of CNN: "The US has intelligence that Russia may have delayed announcing its withdrawal from the Ukrainian city of Kherson in part to avoid giving the Biden administration a political win ahead of the midterm elections, according to four people familiar with the intelligence.... President Joe Biden last week appeared to hint that the US believed that the timing of Russia's announcement was more than mere coincidence. 'I find it interesting they waited until after the election to make that judgement, which we knew for some time they were going to be doing, and it's evidence of the fact that they have some real problems -- the Russian military,' Biden said at a press conference last Wednesday."

Seung Min Kim, et al., of the AP: "Leaders of the world's largest economies remain divided over Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but they appeared ready Tuesday to convey a strong message from most condemning the nine-month war that has devastated Ukraine and sent food and energy prices soaring. A draft declaration by leaders of the Group of 20 major economies under discussion Tuesday echoes the condemnation of Russia's war on Ukraine by the United Nations, while acknowledging differing views among members. The statement seen Tuesday by The Associated Press 'deplores in the strongest terms the aggression by the Russian Federation' and 'demands its complete and unconditional withdrawal from the territory of Ukraine.' The draft statement reiterates the stance expressed in the UN General Assembly's March 2 resolution."

Turkey. Ben Hubbard & Sifak Timur of the New York Times: "The Turkish authorities arrested a woman on Monday they suspect was behind the deadly bombing in central Istanbul a day earlier, saying she had been sent to Turkey from Syria by Kurdish militants to carry out the attack.... Turkey accused the United States of complicity in the attack because America has long maintained a military partnership with a Kurdish-led militia in Syria. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, during a visit to the site of the attack on Monday, dismissed condolence messages from the United States, saying this was like 'the killer is among the first ones returning to the scene.' The United States is an ally of Turkey in NATO...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

November 14, 2022

Afternoon Update:

Seung Min Kim & Zeke Miller of the AP: "President Joe Biden objected directly to China's 'coercive and increasingly aggressive actions' toward Taiwan during the first in-person meeting of his presidency with Xi Jinping, as the two superpower leaders aimed on Monday to 'manage' their differences in the competition for global influence. The nearly three-hour meeting was the highlight of Biden's weeklong, round-the-world trip to the Middle East and Asia, and came at a critical juncture for the two countries amid increasing economic and security tensions. Speaking at a news conference afterward, Biden said that when it comes to China, the U.S. would 'compete vigorously, but I'm not looking for conflict.' He added: 'I absolutely believe there need not be a new Cold War' between America and the rising Asian power."

Marie: In today's Comments, Ken W. generously does the Republicans' post-election "autopsy" for them. Everything Ken writes is, IMO, sensible, straightforward & obvious. I think some of the brighter Republicans would agree if you gave them truth serum. But they have no intention of following Ken's advice.

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court paved the way on Monday for the House committee investigating the Capitol attack to obtain phone records of Kelli Ward, the chairwoman of the Arizona Republican Party. As is its custom in ruling on emergency applications, the court's brief order gave no reasons in denying Ms. Ward's request that it block a subpoena. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr. noted dissents, also without giving reasons. Experts in legal ethics have said that Justice Thomas should recuse himself from cases concerning the Jan. 6 attack in light of the efforts of his wife, Virginia Thomas, to overturn the 2020 election. Ms. Thomas's activities included lobbying the speaker of the Arizona House to try to reverse Joseph R. Biden Jr.'s victory in the state." Politico's story is here. MB: A guy who probably perjured himself during his Senate hearing is not all that likely to be bothered by even the most obvious ethics standards.

Devlin Barrett & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "Federal agents and prosecutors have come to believe ... Donald Trump's motive for allegedly taking and keeping classified documents was largely his ego and a desire to hold on to the materials as trophies or mementos, according to people familiar with the matter.... [Investigators'] review [of the classified documents Trump stole] has not found any apparent business advantage to the types of classified information in Trump's possession, these people said. FBI interviews with witnesses so far, they said, also do not point to any nefarious effort by Trump to leverage, sell, or use the government secrets. Instead, the former president seemed motivated by a more basic desire not to give up what he believed was his property, these people said. Several Trump advisers said that each time he was asked to give documents or materials back, his stance hardened, and that he gravitated toward lawyers and advisers who indulged his more pugilistic desires. Trump repeatedly said the materials were his, not the government's -- often in profane terms, two of these people said." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So Trump's Achilles' heel is all in his head? Perhaps a new variant of foot-in-mouth disease.

Drew Harwell of the Washington Post: Last Thursday afternoon a tweet "using the name and logo of the pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co., ... immediately attracted a giant response: 'We are excited to announce insulin is free now.' The tweet carried a blue 'verified' check mark, a badge that Twitter had used for years to signal an account's authenticity -- and that Twitter's new billionaire owner, Elon Musk, had, while declaring 'power to the people! suddenly opened to anyone, regardless of their identity, as long as they paid $8. But the tweet was a fake.... Inside the real Eli Lilly..., officials scrambled to contact Twitter representatives and demanded they kill the viral spoof.... Twitter, its staffing cut in half, didn't react for hours.... By Friday morning, Eli Lilly executives had ordered a halt to all Twitter ad campaigns -- a potentially serious blow, given that the $330 billion company controls the kind of massive advertising budget that Musk says the company needs to avoid bankruptcy. They also paused their Twitter publishing plan for all corporate accounts around the world.... [Friday] morning, Musk tweeted that the launch of Twitter's new $8 verification regime was 'overall proceeding well.'... When Eli Lilly's share price sank 4 percent on Friday -- in line with a drop in other health care stocks -- many Twitter users credited the fake account...."

New York. Jonah Bromwich of the New York Times: "Lawyers for people detained on Rikers Island intend to ask a federal judge to take control of the jail complex away from New York City, according to a letter filed with the court on Monday, setting the stage for a potentially pivotal hearing this week. The lawyers' intention to request an outsider -- called a receiver -- to run the jails was conveyed in a letter filed by a federal official appointed to monitor the island lockup, where close to 5,900 people are held. The letter could be the first step in a drawn-out process that determines the future of Rikers, where conditions have deteriorated precipitously over the past two years."

Turkey. Ben Hubbard & Sifak Timur of the New York Times: "The Turkish authorities arrested a woman on Monday they suspect was behind the deadly bombing in central Istanbul a day earlier, saying she had been sent to Turkey from Syria by Kurdish militants to carry out the attack.... Turkey accused the United States of complicity in the attack because America has long maintained a military partnership with a Kurdish-led militia in Syria. Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu, during a visit to the site of the attack on Monday, dismissed condolence messages from the United States, saying this was like 'the killer is among the first ones returning to the scene.' The United States is an ally of Turkey in NATO...."

~~~~~~~~~~

Amy Wang, et al., of the Washington Post: "Democrats on Sunday were celebrating retaining their majority in the Senate after Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) was projected to win reelection, even as control of the House remained undetermined.... 'Maybe the Republican Party, which has been so negative on so many different issues, will realize that the election was a clarion call by the American people: Stop all this negativity, stop flirting with autocracy, stop spending your time denying the election, and work to get something done,' [Senate Majority Leader Chuck] Schumer [N.Y.] said.... Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) on NBC's 'Meet the Press' on Sunday credited [President] Biden and Democratic voters for the midterm wins.... 'It was not anything that we ever accepted when the pundits in Washington said we couldn't win because history, history, history. Elections are about the future,' [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi [Calif.] said on ABC's 'This Week.'... '... Our candidates ... had courage, they had purpose, and they understood their district.'" Meanwhile, various Republicans were pointing fingers at Donald Trump or Mitch McConnell. ~~~

~~~ Donald Who? Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "... as Republicans sought to explain their unexpectedly weak election performance in interviews on Sunday, the morning after Democrats clinched control of the Senate, some of them denied [that Donald Trump was the head of the party]. 'We're not a cult....,' Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana said.... 'When any party is out of power, as Republicans are now, we don't have a single leader,' [Sen. Tom] Cotton [Ark.] said...." While Cassidy said he wanted to concentrate on bipartisan legislation, hardliner Rep. Jim Banks (Ind.) said he wanted Republicans to investigate the Biden administration and "to be the last line of defense to block the Biden agenda." ~~~

     ~~~ It's Called Legislating, You Blithering Idiot. Brad Dress of the Hill: "Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) on Sunday said Senate GOP leadership 'caved' to Democrats on a number of legislative bills over the past year, citing that as one reason Republicans did not perform as well as projected in the midterm elections. Scott, the chair of the Senate Republicans' campaign arm, told Maria Bartiromo on Fox News channel's 'Sunday Morning Futures' that Republicans 'caved in on the debt ceiling, caved in on a gun bill, caved in on a fake infrastructure bill.... We [made] it difficult for our candidates.... We can't do that.'" MB: IOW, we lost in election after election because we got a few things done (none of which was a big tax cut for the rich).

Daniel De Vise of the Hill: "Democrats ... won big with young women. Exit polls show 72 percent of women ages 18-29 voted for Democrats in House races nationwide. In a pivotal Pennsylvania Senate race, 77 percent of young women voted for embattled Democrat John Fetterman, helping to secure his victory." MB: Those little ladies will be ever so sorry because they'll never find husbands now.

Georgia Senate Runoff. Look Away, Look Away, Dixieland! Itoro Umontuen of the Atlanta Voice: "There will not be any early voting on the Saturday before the December 6th Senate runoff between Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock, D-Georgia, and Republican opponent Herschel Walker because it will take place on the day after a state holiday that was initially created to honor Confederate general Robert E. Lee."

Matt Viser, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping launched a high-stakes meeting [in Indonesia] on Monday, the first in-person exchange between them as their nations' leaders and at a time of extreme tensions between the global powers.... As reporters were being ushered out of the [meeting] room [after a photo op], a TV producer called out to ask Biden if he would raise human rights during the talks. A man on the Chinese side yanked the producer backwards by her backpack and she lost her balance but didn't fall. Two White House staff members then intervened and said the producer should be left alone." A Politico report, by Jonathan Lemire, is here. ~~~

~~~ The New York Times is liveblogging the meeting between President Biden & Xi Jinping. The Guardian is liveblogging the G20 meeting.

Tal Axelrod of ABC News: "Former Vice President Mike Pence said in an exclusive interview with ABC's 'World News Tonight' anchor David Muir that ... Donald Trump's rhetoric was 'reckless' as a mob of his supporters ransacked the Capitol last year -- with Pence and others temporarily forced into hiding. 'I mean, the president's words were reckless. It was clear he decided to be part of the problem,' Pence told Muir.... 'The president's words that day at the rally [before the riot] endangered me and my family and everyone at the Capitol building.'"

Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: "While in office..., Donald J. Trump repeatedly told John F. Kelly, his second White House chief of staff, that he wanted a number of his perceived political enemies to be investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Mr. Kelly said.... Mr. Kelly said that among those Mr. Trump said 'we ought to investigate' and 'get the I.R.S. on' were the former F.B.I. director James B. Comey and his deputy, Andrew G. McCabe. His account of Mr. Trump's desires to use the I.R.S. against his foes comes after the revelation by The Times this summer that Mr. Comey and Mr. McCabe had both been selected for a rare and highly intrusive audit by the tax agency in the years after Mr. Kelly left the White House.... At the time both audits occurred, the I.R.S. was led by a Trump political appointee....

"Mr. Kelly said that ... Mr. Trump discussed using the I.R.S. and the Justice Department to investigate the former C.I.A. director John O. Brennan; Hillary Clinton; Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and the owner of The Washington Post, whose coverage often angered Mr. Trump; Peter Strzok, the lead F.B.I. agent on the Russia investigation; and Lisa Page, an F.B.I. official who exchanged text messages with Mr. Strzok that were critical of Mr. Trump." Keeping it classy, a spokeswoman for Trump denied the allegations & called Kelly a psycho.

Benjamin Weiser & William Rashbaum of the New York Times: "Across America, [U.S. private] investigators are increasingly being hired by a new kind of client — authoritarian governments like Iran and China attempting to surveil, harass, threaten and even repatriate dissidents living lawfully in the United States, law enforcement officials said.... Most appear to have been used unwittingly, and later cooperated with the authorities; a few, however, were charged.... [In a New York City case], Manhattan federal prosecutors filed kidnapping conspiracy charges in July 2021 against an Iranian intelligence official and three associates, all in Iran. None are likely to be apprehended if they remain there, but officials said the goal, beyond protecting potential victims, was to expose and deter plots devised at the highest levels of a foreign government."

Way Beyond the Beltway

Ukraine, et al.

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

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefings for Monday are here: "A triumphant President Volodymyr Zelensky visited ... [Kherson] recaptured just days ago by his country's troops, saying in a speech in the central square that the victory marked the 'beginning of the end of the war.' Standing in front of a raucous crowd of several hundred people, Zelensky said Western-supplied weapons played a crucial role in recent battlefield victories but that they were paid for in Ukrainian blood. Zelensky made the visit as the city began assessing damage and evidence of what he said were 'hundreds' of war crimes during eight months of Russian occupation. Basic services -- ranging from water and power supplies to the city's postal system -- are slowly being restored for Kherson's residents.... Elsewhere, heavy fighting continued in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine.... Zelensky plans to address the Group of 20 summit via video on Tuesday, and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is in Asia this week to meet with his counterparts and discuss support."

Then They Took the Animals in the Zoo. Robyn Dixon of the Washington Post: "Russia's military has gained a reputation for looting its way across Ukraine, taking washing machines, electronics, cultural artifacts and even the bones of the lover of Empress Catherine II. But the latest theft -- including seven raccoons, two female wolves, peacocks, a llama and a donkey from Kherson Zoo -- entered the realm of farce. A private Crimean zoo, Taigan Lion Park, owned by Oleg Zubkov, filmed him inexpertly grabbing raccoons by their tails and dumping them into cages in a YouTube video.... Zubkov called the theft a humanitarian mission.... Zubkov ... was convicted of negligence after one of his tigers bit off the finger of a 1-year-old boy in September 2021."

Turkey. Ben Hubbard & Sifak Timur of the New York Times: "A bomb attack struck a bustling pedestrian thoroughfare in central Istanbul on Sunday, killing at least six people, in what officials said could be a terrorist attack, and shattering a sense of calm as Turkey's tourist industry works to recover from the pandemic.The attack was the deadliest in Turkey in more than five years...."

News Ledes

New York Times: "Samuel Folsom, one of the last surviving Marine fighter pilots of World War II, who engaged in aerial dogfights and shot down two Japanese bombers in the horrific struggle for the strategic island of Guadalcanal at a crucial juncture in the Pacific war, died on Saturday in Sherman Oaks, Calif. He was 102.... In the vast undertaking to capture and hold Guadalcanal in the late summer and fall of 1942, Lieutenant Folsom was a 22-year-old aviator who had never flown at high altitude and had fired the wing guns of his Grumman F4F Wildcat only once, in a training exercise in California.... During Lieutenant Folsom's three months on the island, nearly half of his squadron's pilots were killed or wounded. In dogfights, the faster, more maneuverable Zeros often riddled his plane with bullets. He was wounded twice by shrapnel and once by a bullet that gashed his leg. When he ran out of ammunition, he escaped by flying into clouds and circling back to his tiny airstrip...."

New York Times: "A student gunman was at large after he fatally shot three people and wounded two others at a garage on the University of Virginia campus late Sunday night, the authorities said. Around 6:30 a.m. Eastern time on Monday, the university again urged people in and around campus to remain sheltered in place as the authorities searched for the suspect. Classes on Monday were canceled.... The University of Virginia Police Department identified the gunman as Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who the university president said in an email to the campus was a student at the school.... Mr. Jones was described by the police as wearing a burgundy jacket, bluejeans, red shoes and possibly driving a black sport-utility vehicle." ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Marie: Law enforcement stated on-air at about 11:15 am ET that the suspect was in custody. No further information. ~~~

     ~~~ NYT liveblog update: "A University of Virginia student has been arrested and charged in the shooting deaths of three members of the school's football team and the wounding of two other people Sunday night, university officials said Monday. The suspect is being charged with three counts of second-degree murder and three counts of using a handgun in the commission of a felony, the authorities said.... [A campus lockdown] was lifted around the time the suspect was arrested without incident near Richmond, Va., about an hour's drive from Charlottesville. The university's president, Jim Ryan, identified the three students who were killed as Devin Chandler of Virginia Beach; Lavel 'Tyler' Davis of Dorchester, S.C.; and D'Sean Perry of Miami."