April 26, 2022

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

He's putting people in jeopardy. -- House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), January 10, 2021, referring to Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.)

It's potentially illegal what he's doing. House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), January 10, 2021, speaking of Gaetz ~~~

~~~ ** Alexander Burns & Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican leader, feared in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack that several far-right members of Congress would incite violence against other lawmakers, identifying several by name as security risks in private conversations with party leaders. Mr. McCarthy talked to other congressional Republicans about wanting to rein in multiple hard-liners who were deeply involved in Donald J. Trump's efforts to contest the 2020 election and undermine the peaceful transfer of power.... But Mr. McCarthy did not follow through on the sterner steps that some Republicans encouraged him to take, opting instead to seek a political accommodation with the most extreme members of the G.O.P. in the interests of advancing his own career. Mr. McCarthy's remarks represent one of the starkest acknowledgments from a Republican leader that the party's rank-and-file lawmakers played a role in stoking violence on Jan. 6, 2021 -- and posed a threat in the days after the Capitol attack." Includes audio.

Victor Reklaitis of Market Watch: "Vice President Kamala Harris tested positive Tuesday for COVID-19 on rapid and PCR tests, said the VP's press secretary, Kirsten Allen, in a statement. Harris 'has exhibited no symptoms, will isolate and continue to work from the vice president's residence. She has not been a close contact to the president or first lady due to their respective recent travel schedules,' Allen added."

Unintended Consequences. Robert Burns of the AP: "The longer Ukraine's army fends off the invading Russians, the more it absorbs the advantages of Western weaponry and training -- exactly the transformation ... Vladimir Putin wanted to prevent by invading in the first place.The list of arms flowing to Ukraine is long and growing longer.... If Ukraine can hold off the Russians, its accumulating arsenal of Western weapons could have a transformative effect in a country that has, like other former Soviet republics, relied mainly on arms and equipment from the Soviet era.... U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin convened a meeting Tuesday at Germany's Ramstein air base to work out ways to keep it going, now and for the long run. Defense ministers and top military leaders from approximately 40 countries participated. After the meeting, Austin told a news conference ... the participating nations had agreed to continue similar consultations through monthly meetings, either in person or virtually. 'We've got to move at the speed of war,' Austin said."

Aamer Madhani of the AP: "President Joe Biden has granted the first three pardons of his term, providing clemency to a Kennedy-era Secret Service agent convicted of federal bribery charges that he tried to sell a copy of an agency file and to two people who were convicted on drug-related charges but went on to become pillars in their communities. The Democratic president also commuted the sentences of 75 others for nonviolent, drug-related convictions. The White House announced the clemencies Tuesday as it launched a series of job training and reentry programs for those in prison or recently released."

The Big Lie, from the Creation. Doug Clark, et al., of ProPublica: "ProPublica has obtained a trove of internal emails and other documentation that, taken together, tell the inside story of a group of people who propagated a number of the most pervasive theories about how the election was stolen, especially that voting machines were to blame, and helped move them from the far-right fringe to the center of the Republican Party. Those records, as well as interviews with key participants, show for the first time the extent to which leading advocates of the stolen-election theory touted evidence that they knew to be disproven or that had been credibly disputed or dismissed as dubious by operatives within their own camp. Some members of the coalition presented this mix of unreliable witnesses, unconfirmed rumor and suspect analyses as fact in published reports, talking points and court documents. In several cases, their assertions became the basis for Trump's claims that the election had been rigged." MB: Based on sworn testimony & a series of algorithms, I have proved that Trump shot J.R. on Fifth Avenue. Wackadoo, wackadoo, wackadoo.

Elon Is in for Some Big Surprises. Shira Ovide of the New York Times: "Like Facebook, YouTube and other internet companies, Twitter was forced to morph from hard-liner on free expression to speech nanny. Today, Twitter has pages upon pages of rules prohibiting content such as material that promotes child sexual exploitation, coordinated government propaganda, offers of counterfeit goods and tweets 'wishing for someone to fall victim to a serious accident.'... Soon, [Elon] Musk will be the one confronting the gap between an idealized view of free speech and the zillion tough decisions that must be made to let everyone have a say.... Mr. Musk is a relative dilettante on the topic [of free speech] and hasn't yet tackled the difficult trade-offs in which giving one person a voice may silence the expression of others, and in which an almost-anything-goes space for expression might be overrun with spam, nudity, propaganda from autocrats, the bullying of children and violent incitements.... New laws, including the Digital Services Act in the European Union, require Twitter and its peers to do more to scrub their sites of misinformation and abuse."

Paul Krugman of the New York Times on Florida Republicans' attack on Disney: "... what Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies ... are symptoms of the transformation of the G.O.P. from a normal political party into a radical movement built around conspiracy theories and intimidation.... Not long ago, using state power to impose financial penalties on corporations for expressing political views you dislike would have been considered beyond the pale. Indeed, it may well be unconstitutional.... The obvious role model here is Viktor Orban's Hungary.... I don't think political reporting has caught up with how thoroughly QAnonized the G.O.P. has become." See also Akhilleus' comments in today's thread.

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The New York Times' live updates of developments Tuesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "Top U.S. defense officials are set to meet with NATO allies in Germany on Tuesday to whip up more military support for Ukraine that could help make it harder for Russian forces to rebuild their military capabilities after significant losses. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III ... will try to convince dozens of military leaders on Tuesday that after two months of war, now is the time to expand support and make sure Russia is unable to quickly rebound.... Explosions shook Transnistria, a Russia-aligned breakaway region of Moldova that borders Ukraine and where hundreds of Russian troops are deployed. Ukrainian defense officials accused Russia of causing the explosions as a pretext to invade Ukraine from the west." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Tuesday are here: "... U.N. Secretary General António Guterres ... is meeting with [Vladimir] Putin in Moscow, will lobby for an immediate cease-fire. And Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who leads a NATO member country that has had relatively close relations with the Kremlin, said he hopes to steer Putin toward diplomacy during a call on Tuesday. Top U.S. officials who visited Kyiv on Monday praised Ukrainian resistance and expressed cautious optimism about the country's prospects.... In the eastern battleground, Russian troops are expected to surround Ukrainian forces in hopes of pummeling them in an epic, long-distance ground battle reminiscent of the last century. Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the war had entered a critical stage." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Tuesday are here. The Guardian's full report, by Helen Livingstone, is here: "Russia's foreign minister has accused Nato of fighting a proxy war by supplying military aid to Ukraine, as defence ministers gathered in Germany for US-hosted talks on supporting Ukraine through what one US general called a 'very critical' few weeks. Sergei Lavrov told Russian state media ... that the risks of nuclear conflict were now 'considerable'-- a claim Ukraine's foreign minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said showed Moscow had lost its 'last hope to scare the world off supporting Ukraine'."

David Sanger of the New York Times: "When Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III declared Monday at the end of a stealth visit to Ukraine that America's goal is to see Russia so 'weakened' that it would no longer have the power to invade a neighboring state, he was acknowledging a transformation of the conflict, from a battle over control of Ukraine to one that pits Washington more directly against Moscow.... As Russian war atrocities have become more evident, and Ukraine's need for heavy armor has increased, the lines have grown blurrier and the rhetoric sharper. At the same time, in word and deed, the United States has been gradually pushing in the direction of undercutting the Russian military.... The White House is working to demonstrate publicly that Russia is emerging from the war in a far weaker position, militarily and economically, than it was on Feb. 24." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: For those right-wing saboteurs who write new pieces every week about how Biden is senile and out-of-it, his -- and his administration's -- nimbleness in the face of war makes a mockery of wingers' warnings.

Lorenzo Tondo & Pjotr Sauer of the Guardian & Agencies: "Five railway stations in central and western Ukraine were hit by Russian airstrikes in the space of one hour on Monday, as the war grinds on relentlessly in the south and east of the country. Oleksander Kamyshin, the head of Ukrainian Railways, said five train stations came under fire causing an unspecified number of casualties, as most of Ukraine was placed under an unusually long air raid warning for two hours on Monday morning." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If you were trying to take over somebody else's country, it would make sense to blow up railway tracks that would be used to carry the country's defensive tools. It would make sense to strike a train that was carrying munitions. But it's just mass murder to strike train stations where civilians are waiting for trains. It's another war crime.

Luke Broadwater & Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "It has been clear for more than a year that ultraconservative members of Congress were deeply involved in attempts to keep Mr. Trump in power: They joined baseless lawsuits, spread the lie of widespread election fraud and were among the 147 Republicans who voted on Jan. 6, 2021, against certifying President Biden's victory in at least one state. But in a court filing and in text messages obtained by CNN, new pieces of evidence have emerged in recent days fleshing out the degree of their involvement with the Trump White House in strategy sessions.... Some continued to push to try to keep Mr. Trump in office even after a mob of his supporters attacked the complex."

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "When it comes to whether the proceedings of the Jan. 6 committee will lead to criminal charges, there are two vital questions. Can it be proved that those involved in plotting to overturn the 2020 election: 1. Knew that their actions were illegal, and ... 2. Pressed forward with a plan to interfere with Congress's actions that day?... On the first count, [Mark Meadows' aide Cassidy] Hutchinson confirmed that the White House Counsel's Office repeatedly told those plotting to overturn the election that their plan to use alternate slates of electors -- or go even further -- was not legally sound. Despite this, Meadows and others pressed forward with their attempts to overturn the election and with the Jan. 6 rally. On the second count ... Hutchinson said Meadows was directly warned about the prospect of violence that day. She said Anthony Ornato, a senior Secret Service agent and political adviser to the White House, discussed the subject with him in early January." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

No Love Lost. Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "Hours after a mob ransacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021..., Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell described himself as 'exhilarated' about the potential damage to ... Donald Trump. 'I feel exhilarated by the fact that this fellow finally, totally discredited himself,' McConnell told Jonathan Martin, one of the authors of a new book.... Trump, the Kentucky Republican said, 'was pretty thoroughly discredited by this.... He put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger.... Couldn't have happened at a better time.' 'What do you hear about the Twenty-Fifth Amendment?' he asked Martin, eager for intelligence about whether the Cabinet and vice president might remove Trump from office, according to the book. Then McConnell said, according to the book, that he had spoken to Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) about issuing a joint statement telling Trump to stay away from the inauguration."

** Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "CNN has obtained 2,319 text messages that ... Donald Trump's White House chief of staff Mark Meadows sent and received between Election Day 2020 and President Joe Biden's January 20, 2021 inauguration. The vast trove of texts offers the most revealing picture to date of how Trump's inner circle, supporters and Republican lawmakers worked behind the scenes to try to overturn the election results and then reacted to the violence that effort unleashed at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. The logs, which Meadows selectively provided to the House committee investigating the January 6 attack, show how the former chief of staff was at the nexus of sprawling conspiracy theories baselessly claiming the election had been stolen. They also demonstrate how he played a key role in the attempts to stop Biden's certification on January 6." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ If you have a lot of free time, you can read the text messages here, via CNN. ~~~

Mark I was just told there is an active shooter on the first floor of the Capitol Please tell the President to calm people This isn't the way to solve anything. -- Marjorie Taylor Greene (GQP-Ga.), in a text sent January 6, 2021. @2:28 pm ET, begging Trump & Meadows to save her life

No reply from Trump or Meadows. Astounding. A report by an ally of "an active shooter" ready to mow down members of Congress, & crickets from the White House. -- Marie ~~~

~~~ What Margie Knew. Philip Bump of the Washington Post: During a hearing last Friday, Marjorie Taylor "Greene was asked whether she understood that there had been violence at the Capitol when news first emerged about the building having been breached.... 'I only knew what I was told,' she said. 'I'd heard -- I'd heard a gunshot. We all heard it. And we were so confused. We thought antifa was breaking in or [Black Lives Matter] because those were the riots that had gone on all throughout 2020, day in and day out, just horrible riots all over the country. That was the only thing that made sense to most of us.'... But in the first minutes of the riot, Greene's understanding was very different.... [Greene's 2:28 pm text to Meadows] would not be likely were the rioters supporters of Black Lives Matter or members of antifa.... IOW, if the perps were BLM or antifa, Margie would not have thought Trump would have any power to call them off. She knew they were Trump backers.

~~~ Margie Can't Recall Much about Martial Law, Including How to Spell It. Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) told then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows in January 2021 that some members of Congress were calling for Donald Trump to impose martial law to remain president, according to text messages Meadows recently provided to the select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob.... According to CNN, Greene raised the topic in a text to Meadows on Jan. 17, 2021.... 'In our private chat with only Members, several are saying the only way to save our Republic is for Trump to call for Marshall law,' Greene texted Meadows, misspelling the word 'martial.' 'I don't know on those things. I just wanted you to tell him. They stole this election. We all know. They will destroy our country next. Please tell him to declassify as much as possible so we can go after Biden and anyone else!'... Greene testified in a separate case that she could not recall whether she had advocated for martial law at the time." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Jeremy Barr of the Washington Post: "Fox News host Sean Hannity promised Donald Trump's chief of staff, Mark Meadows, that he would push an Election Day get-out-the-vote message to his radio show listeners, according to communications within a cache of more than 2,000 text messages obtained by CNN.... Meadows ... asked for Hannity's help with messaging, and offered him a slogan to convey to the host's millions of radio show listeners. 'Stress every vote matters,' Meadows wrote.... 'Get out and vote. On radio.' Hannity responded in the affirmative, writing back, 'Yes sir. On it,' before adding, 'any place in particular we need a push.' When Meadows suggested Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Arizona and Nevada, Hannity replied, 'Got it. Everywhere.'... The messages ... suggest that Hannity saw himself as part of the broader pro-Trump campaign apparatus on Election Day...."

Marie: Seldom, if ever, mentioned in stories about Mike Pence's role in the insurrection is that when he refused Trump's pleas to reject Biden electors, pence also was working against his own interests. Had pence refused to accept the Biden electors, he would have engineered a fake victory for Trump ... and for himself.

So Unfaaaair! Jonah Bromwich, et al., of the New York Times: "A New York judge on Monday held Donald J. Trump in contempt of court for failing to turn over documents to the state's attorney general, an extraordinary rebuke of the former president. The judge, Arthur F. Engoron, ordered Mr. Trump to comply with a subpoena seeking records and assessed a fine of $10,000 per day until he satisfied the court's requirements. In essence, the judge concluded that Mr. Trump had failed to cooperate with the attorney general, Letitia James, and follow the court's orders.... One of Mr. Trump's lawyers ... said she intended to appeal the ruling." The AP's report is here. See also Bobby Lee's comment in today's thread. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Miriam Jordan & Eileen Sullivan of the New York Times: "A federal judge on Monday said he would block the Biden administration from exempting migrants from expulsion under a Trump-era public health order until the policy is officially lifted next month. The federal government has announced plans to lift the order, known as Title 42, on May 23 -- a move that is expected to create a considerable surge of migration from Mexico. Several states have challenged the plan, saying it will create chaos on the border and lead to significant impacts on states forced to handle the newly arriving migrants. Judge Robert R. Summerhays of the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana did not yet rule on the issue of whether Title 42, adopted early in the coronavirus pandemic, should be kept in place. But he said he would in the meantime grant a request from the states of Missouri, Louisiana and Arizona to prevent the federal government from taking any early steps to disregard Title 42 for certain migrants and process them under normal immigration procedures."

Bianca Quintanlan & Josh Gerstein of Politico: "The Supreme Court appears poised to rule in favor of a high school football coach fired for his on-field prayers following games. But the justices left doubt Monday about whether they will issue a sweeping ruling backing the religious-freedom rights of school employees or a more narrow decision confined to the unusual facts of the case from Washington state. The religious liberty case argued at the high court Monday stems from a suit filed by Joseph Kennedy, a high school assistant football coach who was fired by Bremerton [Washington State] School District in 2015 after refusing to stop kneeling to pray audibly at the 50-yard after his team's games. While Kennedy and religious freedom advocates contend he was simply exercising his right to express his devotion to God, the school district maintains that his actions were coercive and that players' parents,complained that their children on the team felt compelled to participate." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The New York Times story is here.

Joe Hernandez of NPR: "The National Labor Relations Board has sued the coffee shop chain Starbucks for allegedly retaliating against three employees who were involved in organizing a union. One worker was disciplined, suspended and discharged; another was 'constructively discharged' and a third was put on unpaid leave after the company revoked 'recently granted accommodations,' the NLRB said in a press release. Cornele Overstreet, director of the NLRB region based in Phoenix, asked the U.S. District Court in a filing on Friday to immediately reinstate the employees with their usual schedules and accommodations, among other requests." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

If I don't like the way a multi-billion-dollar corporation treats me, I might return the merchandise, I might boycott the company, I might lodge a complaint. Elon Musk took a different tack. -- Marie

The very rich ... are different from you and me. -- F. Scott Fitzgerald ~~~

~~~ ** Mike Isaac & Lauren Hirsch of the New York Times: "Elon Musk struck a deal on Monday to buy Twitter for roughly $44 billion, in a victory by the world's richest man to take over the influential social network frequented by world leaders, celebrities and cultural trendsetters. Twitter agreed to sell itself to Mr. Musk for $54.20 a share, a 38 percent premium over the company's share price this month before he revealed he was the firm's single largest shareholder. It would be the biggest deal to take a company private -- something Mr. Musk has said he will do with Twitter -- in at least two decades, according to data compiled by Dealogic.... The billionaire, who has more than 83 million followers on Twitter and has romped across the service hurling gibes and memes, has repeatedly said he wants to 'transform' the platform by promoting more free speech and giving users more control over what they see on it. By taking the company private, Mr. Musk could work on the service out of sight of the prying eyes of investors, regulators and others." ~~~

     ~~~ Politico's report is here. CNBC's report is here. ~~~

~~~ Nikki Ramirez & Camden Carter of Media Matters: "Elon Musk's own Twitter use is the biggest sign he's unfit to steer the ship.... A review by Media Matters found that Musk's Twitter account is full of right-leaning content, including COVID-19 misinformation and anti-trans rhetoric, and interactions with numerous right-wing outlets, figures, and conspiracy theorists.... Musk's political allegiances are murky, but his Twitter feed is full of vaguely libertarian and right-leaning content making plain his dislike of anything he deems 'woke.'... Musk also interacts with numerous right-leaning accounts on Twitter, often amplifying their content to his 84 million followers.... Musk also interacts with right-wing political figures such as Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) ... and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.... Since early 2020, Musk has been posting about his skepticism of the severity of COVID-19, spreading harmful misinformation about debunked treatment methods, expressing his dislike of public health measures and vaccine restrictions, and going as far as to compare Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Hitler, in a since-deleted tweet.... Musk has shown a significant lack of empathy for the experiences of Twitter users who are subjected to abuse and harassment. Musk's self-aggrandizing as a champion for free speech is also undercut by his extensive history of malpractice and abuse against his own employees for exercising their speech."

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Beyond the Beltway

Arizona. Johnny Diaz of the New York Times: "The Federal Aviation Administration said on Monday that it was investigating a crash after a stunt that called for two pilots to parachute from nose-diving planes and swap cockpits in midair. No one was injured on Sunday in the stunt, which featured the pilots and skydivers Luke Aikins and Andy Farrington flying over the desert in Eloy, Ariz., about 50 miles northwest of Tucson. They had planned to send their single-engine Cessna 182 planes into tandem nosedives at 14,000 feet and then jump out midair to switch planes. One of the pilots landed safely by parachute as his plane spun out of control and crashed, the F.A.A. said in a statement. The other pilot regained control of his plane and landed safely."

Kansas. Michael Wines of the New York Times: "A state court in Kansas on Monday threw out a newly drawn map of congressional districts as an unconstitutional gerrymander, the latest in a series of similar rulings across the country. The 29th Judicial District Court said that Republicans in the State Legislature had created 'intentional and effective' partisan and racial gerrymanders when they divided the state's major Democratic strongholds among Republican-leaning House districts. Most notably, the Republican plan divided Kansas City along both racial and partisan lines and would have endangered the only one of the state's four House seats held by a Democrat. District Judge Bill Klapper barred the Legislature from holding elections under the plan and ordered the lawmakers to draw new maps that followed his ruling 'as expeditiously as possible.'... The ruling goes directly to the State Supreme Court for review. Four of that court's seven justices have been appointed by Democratic governors, suggesting a reasonable prospect that it will be upheld."

Texas. David Goodman of the New York Times: "The highest criminal court in Texas on Monday ordered a halt to the execution of a Hispanic mother of 14 convicted of killing her 2-year-old child more than a decade ago in a case that has drawn bipartisan outrage. The mother, Melissa Lucio, has long maintained her innocence, and calls for leniency have become widespread in Texas, including among dozens of Democratic and Republican state legislators, as new evidence and expert testimony emerged that cast strong doubt on her guilt. In a three-page decision ordering a stay to the execution that had been set for Wednesday, the Court of Criminal Appeals found that several of the claims raised by her lawyers needed to be considered by a trial court, including that prosecutors may have used false testimony, that previously unavailable scientific evidence could preclude her conviction and that prosecutors suppressed other evidence that would have been favorable to her." The Texas Tribune's report is here.

April 25, 2022

Afternoon Update:

Lorenzo Tondo & Pjotr Sauer of the Guardian & Agencies: "Five railway stations in central and western Ukraine were hit by Russian airstrikes in the space of one hour on Monday, as the war grinds on relentlessly in the south and east of the country. Oleksander Kamyshin, the head of Ukrainian Railways, said five train stations came under fire causing an unspecified number of casualties, as most of Ukraine was placed under an unusually long air raid warning for two hours on Monday morning." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If you were trying to take over somebody else's country, it would make sense to blow up railway tracks that would be used to carry the country's defensive tools. It would make sense to strike a train that was carrying munitions. But it's just mass murder to strike train stations where civilians are waiting for trains. It's another war crime.

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "When it comes to whether the proceedings of the Jan. 6 committee will lead tocriminal charges, there are two vital questions. Can it be proved that those involved in plotting to overturn the 2020 election: 1. Knew that their actions were illegal, and ... 2. Pressed forward with a plan to interfere with Congress's actions that day?... On the first count, [Mark Meadows' aide Cassidy] Hutchinson confirmed that the White House Counsel's Office repeatedly told those plotting to overturn the election that their plan to use alternate slates of electors -- or go even further -- was not legally sound. Despite this, Meadows and others pressed forward with their attempts to overturn the election and with the Jan. 6 rally. On the second count ... Hutchinson said Meadows was directly warned about the prospect of violence that day. She said Anthony Ornato, a senior Secret Service agent and political adviser to the White House, discussed the subject with him in early January."

Margie Can't Recall Much about Martial Law, Including How to Spell It. Felicia Sonmez of the Washington Post: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) told then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows in January 2021 that some members of Congress were calling for Donald Trump to impose martial law to remain president, according to text messages Meadows recently provided to the select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob.... According to CNN, Greene raised the topic in a text to Meadows on Jan. 17, 2021.... 'In our private chat with only Members, several are saying the only way to save our Republic is for Trump to call for Marshall law,' Greene texted Meadows, misspelling the word 'martial.' 'I don't know on those things. I just wanted you to tell him. They stole this election. We all know. They will destroy our country next. Please tell him to declassify as much as possible so we can go after Biden and anyone else!'... Greene testified in a separate case that she could not recall whether she had advocated for martial law at the time." ~~~

     ~~~ ** Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "CNN has obtained 2,319 text messages that ... Donald Trump's White House chief of staff Mark Meadows sent and received between Election Day 2020 and President Joe Biden's January 20, 2021 inauguration. The vast trove of texts offers the most revealing picture to date of how Trump's inner circle, supporters and Republican lawmakers worked behind the scenes to try to overturn the election results and then reacted to the violence that effort unleashed at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021. The logs, which Meadows selectively provided to the House committee investigating the January 6 attack, show how the former chief of staff was at the nexus of sprawling conspiracy theories baselessly claiming the election had been stolen. They also demonstrate how he played a key role in the attempts to stop Biden's certification on January 6." ~~~

Mark I was just told there is an active shooter on the first floor of the Capitol Please tell the President to calm people This isn't the way to solve anything. -- Marjorie Taylor Greene (GQP-Ga.), in a text sent January 6, 2021. @2:28 pm ET, begging Trump & Meadows to save her life

No reply from Trump or Meadows. -- Marie

     ~~~ If you have a lot of free time, you can read all 2,300 text messages here, via CNN. They're arranged in chronological order.

So Unfaaaair! Jonah Bromwich, et al., of the New York Times: "A New York judge on Monday held Donald J. Trump in contempt of court for failing to turn over documents to the state's attorney general, an extraordinary rebuke of the former president. The judge, Arthur F. Engoron, ordered Mr. Trump to comply with a subpoena seeking records and assessed a fine of $10,000 per day until he satisfied the court's requirements. In essence, the judge concluded that Mr. Trump had failed to cooperate with the attorney general, Letitia James, and follow the court's orders.... One of Mr. Trump's lawyers ... said she intended to appeal the ruling." The AP's report is here. See also Bobby Lee's comment in today's thread.

Bianca Quintanlan & Josh Gerstein of Politico: "The Supreme Court appears poised to rule in favor of a high school football coach fired for his on-field prayers following games. But the justices left doubt Monday about whether they will issue a sweeping ruling backing the religious-freedom rights of school employees or a more narrow decision confined to the unusual facts of the case from Washington state. The religious liberty case argued at the high court Monday stems from a suit filed by Joseph Kennedy, a high school assistant football coach who was fired by Bremerton [Washington State] School District in 2015 after refusing to stop kneeling to pray audibly at the 50-yard after his team's games. While Kennedy and religious freedom advocates contend he was simply exercising his right to express his devotion to God, the school district maintains that his actions were coercive and that players' parents complained that their children on the team felt compelled to participate."

Joe Hernandez of NPR: "The National Labor Relations Board has sued the coffee shop chain Starbucks for allegedly retaliating against three employees who were involved in organizing a union. One worker was disciplined, suspended and discharged; another was 'constructively discharged' and a third was put on unpaid leave after the company revoked 'recently granted accommodations,' the NLRB said in a press release. Cornele Overstreet, director of the NLRB region based in Phoenix, asked the U.S. District Court in a filing on Friday to immediately reinstate the employees with their usual schedules and accommodations, among other requests."

The New York Times, believe it or not, is live-updating developments in the negotiations between Twitter & Elon Musk. ~~~

     ~~~ NYT Update: A Done Deal: "Elon Musk struck a deal on Monday to buy Twitter for roughly $44 billion, in a victory by the worlds richest man to take over the influential social network frequented by world leaders, celebrities and cultural trendsetters. The AP's report is here.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here.

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Putin's War Crimes, Ctd.

We want to see Ukraine remain a sovereign country, a democratic country able to protect its sovereign territory. We want to see Russia weakened to the point where it can't do things like invade Ukraine. -- U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, at a press briefing on the Ukraine-Poland border Sunday

The New York Times' live updates of developments Monday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "In a risky and secret visit to Ukraine, the United States' top diplomat and defense officials arrived in Kyiv on Sunday, with announcements of sweeping diplomatic changes and new military aid for the embattled country. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III met with President Volodymyr Zelensky.... In a move of symbolic and practical significance, the delegation told the Ukrainian president that the United States would move to reopen its embassy in Kyiv, and for the first time since 2019, nominate an American official to lead it. President Biden is set to announce the nomination of Bridget Brink, the current U.S. ambassador to Slovakia, as ambassador to Ukraine in Washington on Monday morning, according to a senior State Department official.... In the latest of a series of increasing military aid announcements, Mr. Biden is expected to commit $713 million in new military financing for Ukraine and 15 other nations in Eastern Europe, the State Department official said, raising the United States' total military aid to Kyiv to $3.7 billion since Feb. 24." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Monday are here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates are here. The Guardian's "full report" is here.

Matthew Lee of the AP: U.S. Secretary of State Antony “Blinken said their meeting with the Ukrainians lasted for three hours for wide ranging talks, including what help the country needs in the weeks ahead. 'The strategy that we put in place, massive support for Ukraine, massive pressure against Russia, solidarity with more than 30 countries engaged in these efforts is having real results,' Blinken said. 'When it comes to Russia's war aims, Russia is failing. Ukraine is succeeding. Russia has sought as its principal aim to totally subjugate Ukraine, to take away its sovereignty, to take away its independence. That has failed.'"

Missy Ryan of the Washington Post: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, on the heels of a trip to Kyiv, pledged ongoing American support to Ukraine as it faces the prospect of a protracted war against Russia.... The U.S. officials, in talks during a stay of several hours, said they had informed Zelensky of new military aid and the administration's intent to resume diplomatic operations in Ukraine this week, marking the return of U.S. diplomats for the first time since Russia's invasion began in February. Diplomats will return to the western city of Lviv, where Ukrainians and foreigners have sought shelter from the violence raging elsewhere in the country, a first step to reopening the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine's capital.... 'This will underscore our commitment, and it will make clear that we'll seek to have our diplomats return to our embassy in Kyiv as soon as possible,' a senior State Department official.... While other nations, including Britain, have announced a resumption of embassy operations in Kyiv, the United States has not yet taken that step."

Anushka Patil & Edward Wong of the New York Times: "President Biden nominated Bridget Brink as the U.S. ambassador to Ukraine on Monday.... The Ukraine ambassadorship has lacked a full-time occupant since 2019, when ... Donald J. Trump unceremoniously removed Marie L. Yovanovitch. Shortly after, William B. Taylor Jr., a retired veteran diplomat, stepped in on a temporary basis until early 2020. The post has remained empty during the Biden administration even as dire warnings were issued last year that Russia was planning to invade Ukraine.... The U.S. mission in Ukraine has been managed by the chargé d'affaires, Kristina A. Kvien, a respected diplomat."

Theodoric Meyer & Jacqueline Alemany of the Washington Post: "Lawmakers return to Washington this week after a two-week recess, with Democrats preparing for a major push in the coming months to move legislation before the midterms consume Congress' attention starting in August. With Democrats' control of both chambers at risk, lawmakers are rushing to pass bills that they can run on in November, and Democratic senators working to confirm President Biden's nominees while their fragile majority holds."

James Downie of the Washington Post: Kevin McCarthy plans to do a political stunt today: a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border. "It's a transparent attempt to distract from newly released tapes recorded just after the Jan. 6 insurrection.... [AND] Because ... it fires up the GOP base.... McCarthy..., whether [he admits] it or not, recognize that the easiest way to protect their standing in the Republican Party is to embrace the hate and stoke the same bigoted fury that led a man to open fire in [an El Paso] store," killing 23 people. MB: In fairness to McCarthy, he's quite an experienced stuntman. Just watch him jump through hoops for Donald Trump.

Hope Yen of the AP: "Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren is slamming Rep. Kevin McCarthy as a 'liar and a traitor' over recordings that show the House Republican leader -- despite his denials -- placing responsibility on ... Donald Trump for the Capitol riot and suggesting Trump should resign. It's unusually strong language to use against the House Republican leader, who is in line to become speaker -- second in presidential succession -- if Republicans win control of the House in the November elections. But Warren's statement reflects a swell of Democratic criticism against McCarthy." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Charles Homans of the New York Times: "Evangelical churches have long been powerful vehicles for grass-roots activism and influence on the American right, mobilized around issues like abortion and gay marriage. Now, some of those churches have embraced a new cause: promoting Donald J. Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen.... Trump's narrative of the 2020 election has become a prominent strain in an apocalyptic vision of the left running amok.... [Some evangelical figures] embraced Mr. Trump's claims or argued for the preservation of his rule in spite of his loss. Shortly after the election was called for Mr. Biden, Paula White, a Florida televangelist who served as the White House faith adviser during Mr. Trump's presidency, led a prayer service in which she and others called upon God to overturn the election.... Michael Flynn...."

Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: "A two-star general in the U.S. Air Force was found guilty Saturday of sexual assault, marking the first court-martial and conviction of a general officer in the military branch's 74-year history. Maj. Gen. William T. Cooley faces up to seven years in prison and dismissal from the Air Force for forcibly kissing a woman after a barbecue in Albuquerque in 2018. Cooley will be sentenced in proceedings that begin Monday by Col. Christina M. Jimenez, the senior military judge who presided over the case at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio.... Cooley's conviction comes months after President Biden signed the latest defense spending bill, which included changes to the military's handling of sexual-assault-related prosecutions after years of mounting pressure from Congress."

When You Lose, Oil & Gas Execs Win. Iffah Kitchlew of the Guardian: "CEOs from the largest oil and gas companies received nearly $45m more in combined total compensation in 2021 as compared to 2020 amid the steep rise in gasoline prices across the US over the last year, a new report states. Twenty-eight major oil and gas companies, such as Shell, Exxon, BP and Marathon Petroleum, gave out $394m in total to their CEOs in 2021, according to an exclusive analysis provided to The Guardian.... These figures reflect the companies' massive earnings, brought about largely by the boost in gas prices in the last year. Gas prices experienced a 50% rise in 2021, reaching the highest they have been since 2014."

Lauren Hirsch & Mike Isaac of the New York Times: "Twitter is nearing a deal to sell itself to Elon Musk, two people with knowledge of the situation said.... Twitter's board was negotiating with Mr. Musk into the early hours of Monday over his unsolicited bid to buy the company, after he began lining up $46.5 billion in financing for the offer last week, said the people.... Obtaining commitments for the financing was a turning point for how the board viewed Mr. Musk's bid of $54.20 a share, enabling the company's 11 board members to seriously consider his offer, the people said."

Jonathan Edwards of the Washington Post: When Merriam-Webster's "online dictionary added a new meaning: 'a person whose gender identity is female,' [Jeremy David Hanson wrote in the word's comments,] 'The moron who created this fake definition should be hunted down and shot.... I am sick and tired of these cultural Marxists denying science and destroying the English Language. Merriam-Webster headquarters should be shot up and bombed. Boys aren't girls.' The Massachusetts-based publisher closed its offices for a week as a result. Hanson, 34, was arrested last week and charged with threatening to injure someone using interstate communication. Authorities have accused him of sending 'despicable' anti-LGBTQ threats for years to organizations across the country, including Disney, Land O'Lakes, Hasbro and DC Comics, all to 'evoke fear and division,' according to a news release from the U.S. attorney's office in Massachusetts."

Beyond the Beltway

California. The Misadventures of the "People's Convoy." Mary Papenfuss of the Huffington Post: "A 'People's Convoy' of truckers eventually took the speedy way out of town after Oakland residents pelted the trucks with eggs in a scrambled [MB: ha ha] confrontation captured on video.... According to the California Highway Patrol, the convoy -- which involved about 20 semis, pickup trucks and vans -- initially rolled into the Bay Area last week to plant American flags on the lawn of the San Francisco residence of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). But they couldn't decide which house was hers, according to Daily Beast journalist Zachary Petrizzo. Then the convoy took off Friday for Oakland to protest outside the home of California Assembly member Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) over an abortion-protection bill and a second bill that would have mandated COVID vaccines for private business employees (which she had already put on hold last month), The San Francisco Chronicle reported. As the convoy jammed the streets outside a Safeway grocery store on the way to Wicks' place, residents and stuck drivers reportedly took the opportunity to buy lots of eggs."

California. Even Kevin Wouldn't Pull a Stunt This Stupid. Julian Mark of the Washington Post: "Trevor Jacob's small airplane soared over California's Los Padres National Forest in November when, all of a sudden, the propeller stopped.... Jacob, who was filming himself in the cockpit, cursed repeatedly.... Seconds later, he jumped out of the plane, using a selfie stick to film his descent before deploying a parachute and landing in the wilderness. The episode was captured in a video Jacob later posted to YouTube titled 'I Crashed My Plane,' which also shows the aircraft barreling into the mountainous landscape via cameras affixed to its body. The rest of the video, which has received more than 2.2 million views since being posted in December, features Jacob narrating his trek out of the forest and his eventual rescue.... Now, following a Federal Aviation Administration probe, the agency has revoked his pilot's license, concluding that Jacob crashed the plane as a stunt."

Marie: I don't watch many TV ads, but whenever I happen to see one that features minorities, mixed-race families or gay couples, I'm pleased. At the same time, I sometimes wonder if these ads don't aggravate the bigots. Turns out they do! ~~~

~~~ Michigan. Tom Boggioni of the Raw Story: "According to a report from the Detroit News, a far-right conservative radio host who is running for a seat in the state Senate as a Democrat, recently told listeners that he thinks families should be all white. Last week 'Trucker Randy' Bishop, who previously chaired the Antrim County Republican Party filed to run for a seat representing the 37th state Senate District as a Democrat.... According to the report, Bishop told his followers, 'Can't even watch a college basketball tournament without commercials telling me I have to feel guilty because I think a family should be a White mom, a White dad and White kids. They want us to die and go away....'... You can read more here -- subscription is required."

Way Beyond

** France. Roger Cohen of the New York Times: "Emmanuel Macron won a second term as president of France, triumphing on Sunday over Marine Le Pen, his far-right challenger, after a campaign where his promise of stability prevailed over the temptation of an extremist lurch. Projections at the close of voting, which are generally reliable, showed Mr. Macron, a centrist, gaining 58.5 percent of the vote to Ms. Le Pen's 41.5 percent.... Speaking to a crowd massed on the Champ de Mars in front of a twinkling Eiffel Tower, a solemn Mr. Macron said his was a victory for 'a more independent France and a stronger Europe.'... Ms. Le Pen conceded defeat in her third attempt to become president, but bitterly criticized the 'brutal and violent methods' of Mr. Macron, without explaining what she meant. She vowed to fight on to secure a large number of representatives in legislative elections in June...."

Slovenia. Andrew Higgins of the New York Times: "Europe's once surging movement of nationalist populists suffered a significant setback in Slovenia on Sunday, in the formerly communist east.... In parliamentary elections in Slovenia, a noteworthy test for the appeal of right-wing populism, preliminary results indicated that the prime minister, Janez Jansa, an ardent admirer of ... Donald J. Trump, lost to centrist rivals.... With 95 percent of the vote counted in an election that the opposition called a 'referendum on democracy,' results indicated that Mr. Jansa's Slovenian Democratic Party, competing against 19 rival parties, had won around 24 percent of the vote. That is far behind the 34 percent of its main rival, the centrist Freedom Movement, meaning that Mr. Jansa is highly unlikely to keep his post as prime minister. The results, showing that no single party won a clear majority, presage a period of political haggling as rival groups try to stitch together a stable coalition in parliament."

News Ledes

New York Times': "Ursula Bellugi, a pioneer in the study of the biological foundations of language who was among the first to demonstrate that sign language was just as complex, abstract and systematic as spoken language, died on Sunday in San Diego. She was 91."

New York Times': "... wildfires this past week that have collectively scorched more than 150,000 acres [in Arizona, Nebraska and New Mexico] and forced the evacuations of at least 4,000 homes, officials said. The fires, which have been blamed for at least one death, are part of an early and active season across the country, as wildfires have also plagued California, Colorado and Texas."

April 24, 2022

Afternoon Update:

Youpi! New York Times live updates: "Emmanuel Macron won a second term as president of France, triumphing on Sunday over Marine Le Pen, his far-right challenger, after a campaign where his promise of stability prevailed over the strong temptation of an extremist lurch. Early projections at the close of voting, which are generally reliable, showed Mr. Macron, a centrist, gaining 58.2 percent of the vote to Ms. Le Pen's 41.8 percent. His victory was much narrower than in 2017, when the margin was 66.1 percent to 33.9 percent for Ms. Le Pen, but wider than appeared likely two weeks ago. The French do not generally love their presidents, and none had succeeded in being re-elected since 2002." The AP's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ NYT Update: "Ms. Le Pen conceded to Mr. Macron not long after the polls closed." MB: Apparently, she didn't learn a thing from her friend Donald "I Won" Trump.

Hope Yen of the AP: "Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren is slamming Rep. Kevin McCarthy as a 'liar and a traitor' over recordings that show the House Republican leader -- despite his denials -- placing responsibility on ... Donald Trump for the Capitol riot and suggesting Trump should resign. It's unusually strong language to use against the House Republican leader, who is in line to become speaker -- second in presidential succession -- if Republicans win control of the House in the November elections. But Warren's statement reflects a swell of Democratic criticism against McCarthy."

~~~~~~~~~~

Putin's War Crimes, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Sunday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine sounded a note of optimism before the expected arrival of an American delegation in the capital on Sunday, saying his country had begun to receive the sort of heavy weaponry it needs and could eventually defeat the invading Russian forces. 'It is only a matter of time before all Russian murderers feel what a fair response to their crimes is,' Mr. Zelensky said in his evening address on Saturday. 'It is only a matter of time before all our people all over Ukraine feel what a strong peace is.' Mr. Zelensky said he would meet in Kyiv, the capital, with Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III, the highest-level American officials to visit since the start of the war, to discuss the delivery of more weapons. Neither the State Department nor the Defense Department have publicly confirmed the visit. The two officials are expected to arrive on Sunday, Mr. Zelensky said, as Ukraine's Eastern Orthodox majority marks Easter." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Sunday are here: "Missile strikes killed at least eight people in the southern port city of Odessa, Ukrainian officials said, as many residents were preparing to celebrate Orthodox Easter on Sunday.... In Mariupol, Ukrainian authorities accused Russian forces of striking the Azovstal steel plant, where many of the city's remaining defenders are holed up.... Vladimir Putin publicly ordered his forces last week not to storm the site but to seal it off." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Sunday are here. The Guardian's full report is here.

Cara Anna & Inna Varenytsia of the AP: "The sun came out as Ukrainians marked Orthodox Easter in the capital, Kyiv, on Sunday with prayers for those fighting on the front lines and others trapped beyond them in places like Mariupol. St. Volodymyr's Cathedral in Kyiv was ringed by hundreds of worshipers with baskets to be blessed.... President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a service elsewhere in Kyiv urged Ukrainians not to let anger at the war overwhelm them."

Unsung Heroes: the Belarusian Railroad Saboteurs. Liz Sly of the Washington Post: "Starting in the earliest days of [Russia's] invasion [of Ukraine] in February, a clandestine network of railway workers, hackers and dissident security forces went into action to disable or disrupt the railway links connecting Russia to Ukraine through Belarus, wreaking havoc on Russian supply lines.... The Belarus railway saboteurs can at least claim a role in fueling the logistical chaos that quickly engulfed the Russians, leaving troops stranded on the front lines without food, fuel and ammunition within days of the invasion. Alexander Kamyshin, head of Ukrainian railways, expressed Ukraine's gratitude to the Belarusian saboteurs. 'They are brave and honest people who have helped us,' he said. The attacks were simple but effective, targeting the signal control cabinets essential to the functioning of the railways, members of the activist network said. For days on end, the movement of trains was paralyzed, forcing the Russians to attempt to resupply their troops by road and contributing to the snarl-up that stalled the infamous 40-mile military convoy north of Kyiv."

Whatever Became of Gerhard Schröder? Katrin Bennhold of the New York Times: Former German Chancellor "Gerhard Schröder, who is paid almost $1 million a year by Russian-controlled energy companies, has become a pariah. But he is also a symbol of Germany's Russia policy.... All of Germany is reconsidering the ties with Russia that -- despite years of warnings from the United States and Eastern European allies -- have left Germany deeply reliant on Russian gas, giving Mr. Putin coercive leverage over Europe while filling the Kremlin's war chest. That dependency grew out of a German belief -- embraced by a long succession of chancellors, industry leaders, journalists and the public -- that a Russia bound in trade would have too much to risk in conflict with Europe, making Germany more secure while also profiting its economy. Mr. Schröder ... has become the most prominent face of that long era of miscalculation, not only because he expresses no regret, but because he has also profited handsomely from it, earning millions while promoting Russian energy interests."

A Party Without Principles. Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "There was a time in the nation's capital when lines mattered, and when they were crossed, the consequences were swift and severe.... Yet when the House Republican leader, Representative Kevin McCarthy of California, was shown to have lied about his response to the deadliest assault on the Capitol in centuries and ... Donald J. Trump's culpability for it, there was little expectation that the consequences would be swift or severe -- or that there would be any at all.... It was Mr. Trump himself who showed just how few consequences there could be for transgressions that once seemed beyond the pale for the nation's leaders in 2016, when he survived the release of leaked audio in which he boasted of sexually assaulting women -- then went on to win the presidency.... Tribalism and party loyalty now outweigh any notion of integrity, or even steadfast policy beliefs."

Dan Balz of the Washington Post: "In his ceaseless drive to become the next speaker of the House, [Kevin McCarthy] has demonstrated weakness, hypocrisy and a willingness to lie to save his skin.... McCarthy has ... been craven in bowing to Trump's wishes, fearing that crossing the former president could compromise both his party's hopes of capturing the majority in November's midterm elections and his own desire to lead a Republican-controlled House next year as speaker. He also has been weak in the face of calls to discipline the most extreme members of the House GOP conference -- those who have been the most loyal to Trump and his conspiracy theories, including the false claim that he won the 2020 election.... Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has played a different game but one that also reveals his shared fear of going into open warfare with Trump...."

Ha Ha. Speaking of Blind Ambition. Sarah Burris of the Raw Story: "According to recordings released to New York Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alex Burns, [Kevin] McCarthy was pushing Donald Trump to resign, while also making it clear to the caucus that he opposed Trump's behavior. McCarthy previously said reports about his comments were false -- until the authors released the tapes. Speaking to Joy Reid on MSNBC Friday, Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson said that from what he understands the anti-McCarthy attacks are secretly coming from Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY). '... Today, the buzz in D.C. is all about Elise Stefanik, that she's the one who is behind some of this and she's putting the knife into this guy.... I think Kevin should get a food taster at this point.'" Includes video of the segment. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I speculated the other day that the source of the recordings was Liz Cheney or her staff. But it would be so much better if Stefanik -- who replaced Cheney in the House GOP hierarchy, with Kevin's blessing -- was the culprit.

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is unlikely to be disqualified from the 2022 ballot, and a hearing on that subject Friday probably didn't change this. But the hearing did afford the public our first sworn testimony from a member of Congress about Jan. 6, 2021. Regrettably, the testimony did not shed much light. Greene was combative, evasive and ... repeatedly responded to questions by saying she didn't recall. But a few answers stand out, either because Greene's responses didn't make much sense, or because they're likely to be revisited in the future." Blake runs down four questions along with Greene's phony answers.

** The Conspirators Plot the Insurrection. Luke Broadwater & Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "Before the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, Trump White House officials and members of the right-wing House Freedom Caucus strategized about a plan to direct thousands of angry marchers to the building, according to newly released testimony obtained by the House committee investigating the riot and ... Donald J. Trump's efforts to overturn the election. On a planning call that included Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff; Rudolph W. Giuliani...; Representative Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio; and other Freedom Caucus members, the group discussed the idea of encouraging supporters to march to the Capitol, according to one witness's account. The idea was endorsed by Representative Scott Perry, Republican of Pennsylvania, who now leads the Freedom Caucus, according to testimony by Cassidy Hutchinson, an aide to Mr. Meadows, and no one on the call spoke out against the idea.... [The filing] disclosed testimony that Mr. Meadows was told that plans to try to overturn the 2020 election using so-called alternate electors were not 'legally sound' and that the events of Jan. 6 could turn violent." Read on. Politico's story, also linked yesterday, is here.

Robert McFadden of the New York Times: "Senator Orrin G. Hatch, the Utah Republican who crusaded for conservative causes and outlasted six presidents in a seven-term Senate career that corresponded to the rise of a right-wing movement in America, died on Saturday in Salt Lake City. He was 88." The AP's obituary is here.

Beyond the Beltway

Michigan Republicans Choose Election Deniers. Miles Parks of NPR: "Michigan Republicans picked two candidates -- who deny the 2020 election results and have been endorsed by former President Trump -- to serve as the state's next top elections officer and top law enforcement official. Kristina Karamo, a community college professor who rose to prominence after claiming she saw election fraud in Detroit in the last presidential race, won the three-person race for secretary of state with about 67% of the vote at Saturday's GOP endorsement convention in Grand Rapids. On the November ballot, her opponent will be incumbent Democrat Jocelyn Benson. Matt DePerno, an attorney who has pushed Trump's false claims of election fraud, won the party's endorsement for attorney general. In a runoff race, DePerno took 54% of the vote to defeat former state House speaker Tom Leonard, who was seen as the more establishment Republican candidate. DePerno is now running against incumbent Democrat Dana Nessel.... At this weekend's GOP convention, the party voted resoundingly to support ... Trump's false claims about the 2020 election."

North Carolina. Bob Brigham of the Raw Story: "'A local Republican Party leader in North Carolina threatened to get a county elections director fired or have her pay cut unless she helped him gain illegal access to voting equipment, the state elections board told Reuters. The party official, William Keith Senter, sought evidence to support false conspiracy theories alleging the 2020 election was rigged against ... Donald Trump,' the wire service reported Saturday. Reuters identified Senter as chair of the Surry County Republican Party. His threats were directed at the county's selections director, Michella Huff. 'Senter was "aggressive, threatening, and hostile," in two meetings with Huff, the state elections board said, citing witness accounts,' Reuters reported. 'Huff, who refused Senter's demands, was disturbed by the incident of political intimidation.'"

Utah Senate Race. Lindsay Whitehurst of the AP: "Utah Democrats pulling hard to defeat Republican Sen. Mike Lee took the unusual step Saturday of spurning a party hopeful to instead get behind an independent, former presidential candidate Evan McMullin. Democrats were swayed by calls from prominent members who said McMullin, a conservative who captured a significant share of the vote in Utah in 2016, was the best chance to beat Lee in the deeply conservative state that hasn't elected a Democratic U.S. senator for more than 50 years."

Way Beyond

France. Rick Noack, et al., of the Washington Post: "Polls have opened in a French presidential election runoff that is being closely followed around the globe for its potential to redefine France's position in the Western world, the country's approach to immigration and Europe's relationship with Russia.... This election has already brought the far right closer to the French presidency than ever before." The AP's story is here. The Guardian's report is here.