The Commentariat -- January 26, 2021

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "The first step toward victory is a government that can act. So, sure, moderate Democrats [like Senators Joe Manchin & Kyrsten Sinema] can keep the filibuster if they want. But they should prepare for when the voting public decides it would rather have the party that promises nothing and does nothing than the one that promises quite a bit but won't work to make any of it a reality." Thanks to PD Pepe for the link.

Paul Sonne of the Washington Post: "The commander of the D.C. National Guard said the Pentagon restricted his authority ahead of the riot at the U.S. Capitol, requiring higher level sign-off to respond that cost time as the events that day spiraled out of control. Local commanders typically have the power to take military action on their own to save lives or prevent significant property damage in an urgent situation when there isn't enough time to obtain approval from headquarters. But Maj. Gen. William J. Walker, the commanding general of the District of Columbia National Guard, said the Pentagon essentially took that power and other authorities away from him ahead of a pro-Trump protest on Jan. 6. That meant he couldn't immediately roll out troops when he received a panicked phone call from the Capitol Police chief warning that rioters were about to enter the U.S. Capitol.... The Pentagon required the highest-level approval for any moves beyond that narrow mission, in part because its leaders had been lambasted for actions the D.C. Guard took during last June's racial justice protests...."

Ken Vogel of the New York Times: In the ad hoc clemency system the White House used, people "skipped the line and got their petitions directly on the president's desk because they had money or connections, or allies who did.... Of the nearly 240 pardons and commutations issued by Mr. Trump, only 25 came through the rigorous process for identifying and vetting worthy clemency petitions overseen by the Justice Department, according to a tally kept partly by Margaret Love, who ran the department's clemency process from 1990 to 1997 as the United States pardon attorney. The system has a backlog of 14,000 applications.... In addition to rewarding people ... whose allies could afford to buy access to the highest levels of the administration, the results included pardons for people with direct personal relationships with the former president.... The Justice Department had recommended against clemency for some of the people granted it by Mr. Trump.... And some pardon recipients -- including [Roger] Stone, [Steve] Bannon and [Paul] Manafort -- would not have been eligible under the department's rules, which require people to wait five years after being released from confinement to apply.... 'This is the ultimate corruption of a system that was set up to serve a public purpose, but has been privatized to allow anybody who has connections to get to the front of the line,' said Ms. Love...."

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

Jonathan Drew of the AP: "An increasing number of COVID-19 vaccination sites around the U.S. are canceling appointments because of vaccine shortages in a rollout so rife with confusion that even the new CDC director [Dr. Rochelle Walensky] admitted she doesn't know exactly how many shots are in the pipeline. States were expected to find out their latest weekly allocation of vaccines on Tuesday amid complaints from governors and top health officials about inadequate supplies and the need for earlier and more reliable estimates of how much is on the way so that they can plan accordingly.... The setup [Biden] inherited from the Trump administration has been marked by frustration, miscommunication and unexplained bottlenecks, with shortages reported in some places even as vaccine doses remain on the shelf." ~~~

~~~ Isaac Stanley-Becker of the Washington Post: "Federal allocations of coronavirus vaccine doses to states and other jurisdictions are expected to increase by about 16 percent next week, easing shortages that have intensified nationwide without fully alleviating supply problems. Jeff Zients, coordinator of the White House's coronavirus response, is expected to inform governors of the increase on a call Tuesday afternoon, according to two people...."

Amy Goldstein of the Washington Post: "President Biden is scheduled to take executive actions as early as Thursday to reopen federal marketplaces selling Affordable Care Act health plans and to lower recent barriers to joining Medicaid. The orders will be Biden's first steps since taking office to help Americans gain health insurance, a prominent campaign goal that has assumed escalating significance as the pandemic has dramatized the need for affordable health care -- and deprived millions of Americans coverage as they have lost jobs in the economic fallout. Under one order, HealthCare.gov, the online insurance marketplace for Americans who cannot get affordable coverage through their jobs, will swiftly reopen for at least a few months.... Another part of Biden's scheduled actions ... is intended to reverse Trump-era changes to Medicaid that critics say damaged Americans' access to the safety-net insurance."

Benjamin Din of Politico: "Marty Baron, the executive editor of The Washington Post who led the newsroom to 10 Pulitzer Prizes, will retire at the end of February, he announced in a newsroom memo Tuesday."

Derrick Taylor of the New York Times: "CBS has placed two top TV executives on leave after a report detailing accusations that they had created a hostile work environment, including making disparaging remarks about female and Black employees. The executives, Peter Dunn, the president of CBS television stations, and David Friend, the senior vice president of news for TV stations, were placed on administrative leave pending the results of a third-party investigation, the company said in a statement on Monday.... The suspensions came after The Los Angeles Times published a report on Sunday in which employees accused the executives of 'bullying female managers and blocking efforts to hire and retain Black journalists.'"

Elisabetta Povoledo of the New York Times: "Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte of Italy resigned on Tuesday after weeks of political infighting, thrusting the country into renewed instability as the coronavirus pandemic ravages lives and livelihoods.... As in the rest of Europe, Italy's immunization campaign has been held up by production delays for the vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. At the current pace, it would take almost five years to vaccinate the majority of Italians, according to the most recent data. Mr. Conte's is serving his second consecutive stint as prime minister -- first as the head of an alliance of right-wing nationalists and populists, and then leading a coalition of populists and the center-left establishment that focused almost exclusively on the pandemic."

Donie O'Sullivan of CNN: "Mike Lindell, the CEO of MyPillow, was banned from Twitter Monday night, according to a Twitter spokesperson. Twitter made its decision based on a new policy it enacted after the Capitol insurrection whereby people who repeatedly share election misinformation can be permanently banned....It is not immediately clear which tweets lead [led] to Lindell's ban." MB: Sure hope Mike wasn't your very favorite tweeter.

Is Kellyanne Conway the Mom from Hell? MB: I don't know whether or not this story is true, but according to numerous media reports, Conway posted on Twitter a topless photo of her teenaged daughter Claudia. Claudia & her parents Kellyanne & George have been in a well-publicized battle over the past several months. (Supposedly, Kellyanne quit her White House gig to actually spend more time with her family; posting a nude photo of her daughter does not seem like good use of that time.) Still, it's hard to believe a parent would do this to a child, so I'll give Mrs. Alternate Facts the benefit of the doubt unless & until I learn otherwise.

Rachel Lerman of the Washington Post: "People across the East Coast were having trouble accessing core Internet services Tuesday morning, just as they were logging on for work and school. Users reported trouble loading Gmail, Slack and Zoom -- apps that have become necessities to keep work-from-home life running smoothly during the coronavirus pandemic. On Twitter, which many still were able to access, people reported they were seeing issues with their Verizon Fios Internet service. DownDetector, which tracks reports of outages, showed widespread issues with Verizon, Google, Zoom, YouTube, Slack, Amazon WebServices and others Tuesday just before noon. It was not immediately clear what was causing the outages."

Trouble in Oregon.

Crazy People Run Oregon GOP. Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post: "In Oregon, the state Republican Party isn't just backing ... Donald Trump -- its official position falsely claims that the entire [siege of the U.S. Capitol] was a 'false flag' operation staged to discredit the GOP and silence Trump's supporters. Last week, the state party released a resolution passed by its executive committee that says the supposedly fake operation was meant to undermine Trump and give more power to President Biden, citing websites by John Solomon and the Trump-friendly Epoch Times. 'The violence at the Capitol was a "false flag" operation designed to discredit President Trump, his supporters, and all conservative Republicans; this provided the sham motivation to impeach President Trump in order to advance the Democratic goal of seizing total power,' the resolution says."

Shane Kavanaugh of the Oregonian: "Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler blasted with pepper spray an unmasked man who confronted him and former Mayor Sam Adams with a video camera as the two left a pub Sunday night, the two men told police." Wheeler had an exchange with the man who complained Wheeler had not worn a mask while dining. "The man then followed Wheeler closely as he walked to his car, the mayor told police. 'He had no face mask on and got within a foot or two of my face while he was videoing me,' Wheeler said, according to the police report.... 'I clearly informed him that he needed to back off. He did not do so I informed him that I was carrying pepper spray and that I would use it if he did not back off. He remained at close distance, I pulled out my pepper spray and I sprayed him in the eyes.' Afterward, Wheeler said, he provided the man with a bottle of water to rinse his face."

~~~~~~~~~~

David Lynch, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden on Monday signed an executive order aimed at forcing the federal government to buy more goods produced in the United States, a key part of his campaign pledge to revive domestic manufacturing. Standing in front of a blue backdrop reading 'The Future Will Be Made in America,' the president said he was directing regulators to tighten the definition of American-made products and creating a position in the Office of Management and Budget to oversee stepped-up purchases of domestic goods. The president's order also will make it harder for federal agencies to issue waivers allowing the government to purchase some products made overseas. Under the new rules, agency officials will be required to justify such choices to the White House."

Dave Philipps of the New York Times: "... on Monday ... President Biden signed an executive order reversing the ban on transgender troops that was imposed by the Trump administration. Mr. Biden's order also called an immediate halt to involuntary discharges of transgender troops who were already serving, and for the Pentagon to review the files of any troops forced out under the ban in recent years. The order requires the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to report on progress within 60 days." (Also linked yesterday.)

Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "President Biden on Wednesday will direct federal agencies to determine how expansive a ban on new oil and gas leasing on federal land should be, part of a suite of executive orders that will effectively launch his agenda to combat climate change, two people with knowledge of the president's plans said Monday. An eventual ban on new drilling leases would fulfill a campaign promise that infuriated the oil industry and became a central theme in the fight for the critical battleground state of Pennsylvania, where the natural gas extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has become big business.... The president also will direct the government to conserve 30 percent of all federal land and water by 2030, create a task force to assemble a governmentwide action plan for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, issue a memorandum elevating climate change to a national security priority. Mr. Biden will also create several new commissions and positions within the government focused on environmental justice and environmentally friendly job creation, including one to help displaced coal communities."

Jacob Bogage of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration will resume the process to replace President Andrew Jackson's face on the note with famed abolitionist Harriet Tubman, White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters during her Monday news briefing. A Treasury Department spokesperson confirmed the change. Tubman will become the first Black person on the face of American paper currency and the first woman in generations; Martha Washington appeared on a $1 bill in the 1890s, and Pocahontas was in a group picture on the $20 bill in the 1860s, according to Reuters.... The Obama administration announced plans to put Tubman on the bill in 2016, after she was chosen from among several women in an informal nationwide poll.... Donald Trump and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin scuttled those plans in 2019."

Dan Diamond of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration has selected nurse Susan Orsega to serve as the nation's acting surgeon general, said two people.... Orsega, a career-commissioned officer in the U.S. Public Health Service corps and a longtime infectious-disease specialist, would be among the first nurses to serve in the role of surgeon general, which is often referred to as 'the nation's doctor.' The announcement of Orsega's selection could come as soon as Tuesday, one of the people said. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, a Trump appointee, resigned last week at Biden's request, and Deputy Surgeon General Erica Schwartz, a career official, chose to retire after being passed over as acting surgeon general.... Biden has nominated Vivek H. Murthy, a close adviser who served as surgeon general in the Obama administration, to return to his previous role as the nation's top doctor. However, Murthy's confirmation hearings have yet to be scheduled, said an aide with the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee." The Hill's story is here.

Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "The Senate confirmed Janet L. Yellen, a labor economist and former Federal Reserve chair, to be Treasury secretary on Monday, putting in place a key lieutenant to President Biden at a perilous economic moment, as the new administration tries to revive an economy that has been battered by the coronavirus pandemic. By a vote of 84 to 15, the Senate confirmed Ms. Yellen, making her the first woman to hold the top job at Treasury in its 232-year history. Her quick bipartisan confirmation underscored the support she has from both Republicans and Democrats given her previous stint as Fed chair from 2014 to 2018."

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "Before the Senate can get down to business under new Democratic management, Senator Mitch McConnell, the Kentucky Republican and new minority leader, has forced a confrontation over the [filibuster] rule -- which effectively imposes a 60-vote threshold to take any action -- by refusing to cooperate in organizing the Senate unless Democrats promise not to gut it. Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and the new majority leader, has rebuffed the demand, which has infuriated Democrats who regard it as evidence that Mr. McConnell intends to obstruct Mr. Biden's proposals.... Democrats say they must retain at least the threat that they could one day end the filibuster.... The stalemate has created a bizarre situation in which most Senate committees are frozen under Republican control and new senators cannot be seated on the panels even though Democrats now command the Senate majority." ~~~

     ~~~ ** Update. New Lede: "Senator Mitch McConnell on Monday dropped his demand that the new Democratic Senate majority promise to preserve the filibuster -- which Republicans could use to obstruct President Biden's agenda -- ending an impasse that had prevented Democrats from assuming full power even after their election wins. In his negotiations with Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the new majority leader, Mr. McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, had refused to agree to a plan for organizing the chamber without a pledge from Democrats to protect the filibuster, a condition that Mr. Schumer had rejected. But late Monday, as the stalemate persisted, Mr. McConnell found a way out by pointing to statements by two centrist Democrats, Senators Joe Manchin III of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, that said they opposed getting rid of the procedural tool — a position they had held for months -- as enough of a guarantee to move forward without a formal promise from Mr. Schumer.... But as in past fights over the filibuster, the outcome is likely to be only a temporary solution." The Hill's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Today's Civics Lesson. Marie: The filibuster takes minority rule to the extreme. And because so many low-population states send Republicans to the Senate, the filibuster favors Republicans. As Philip Bump of the Washington Post wrote (Jan. 22), Since it takes only 41 senators to block a vote on a bill, "... you're talking about just under 11 percent of the population. Meaning that senators representing a bit over one-10th of the country could block any legislation from passing.... The point, though, is that even achieving a majority in the Senate is already weighted to less-populous states, which often means more Republican ones. Raising the bar for passing legislation means weighting things even more favorably toward those states. That initial imbalance was written into the Constitution, mind you. The filibuster was not -- and is therefore endlessly under threat." ~~~

     ~~~ Which Makes This Stupid. Burgess Everett of Politico: "'If I haven't said it very plain..., I want to basically say it for you. That I will not vote in this Congress, that's two years, right? I will not vote' to change the filibuster, [Sen. Joe] Manchin (D-W.Va.) said in an interview on Monday afternoon. And I hope with that guarantee in place [Mitch McConnell] will work in a much more amicable way.'" ~~~

     ~~~ AND It Makes This Stupid. David Edwards of the Raw Story: "Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona recently doubled down on her objections to eliminating the Senate filibuster rule.... A spokesperson for Sinema told the Post that the senator is 'against eliminating the filibuster, and she is not open to changing her mind about eliminating the filibuster.'"

Remembering the Kaiser

~~~ Seung Min Kim, et al., of the New York Times: "The House on Monday formally delivered an article of impeachment charging ... Donald Trump with inciting the deadly insurrection at the Capitol, as Democrats prepared to use his own words as evidence against him in his Senate trial next month. With solemn looks on their mask-covered faces, the nine House impeachment managers walked over to the Senate shortly after 7 p.m. Monday to deliver the article against Trump, setting in motion his second Senate impeachment trial. While no final decisions on trial strategy have been made, House managers are concentrating on building their case around Trump personally -- both what he said in the run-up to the Jan. 6 attack and at a rally that day, and how his words were interpreted within the White House and outside of it, according to people familiar with the deliberations." ~~~

~~~ Alexander Bolton & Jordain Carney of the Hill: "Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts will not preside over former President Trump's Senate impeachment trial, which is scheduled to begin in earnest on Feb. 8. Instead, Senate President Pro Tempore Patrick Leahy (Vt.), the most senior member of the Senate Democratic Conference, will preside over the trial. Leahy on Monday confirmed he would wield the gavel and promised to administer 'impartial justice.' 'The president pro tempore has historically presided over Senate impeachment trials of non-presidents. When presiding over an impeachment trial, the president pro tempore takes an additional special oath to do impartial justice according to the Constitution and its laws. It is an oath that I take extraordinarily seriously,' he said in a statement. Leahy vowed he would 'not waver from my constitutional and sworn obligations to administer the trial with fairness, in accordance with the Constitution and the laws.' A spokesman for Leahy said the decision on presiding over the trial is up to Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).... Republican critics say [Leahy's presiding] creates a conflict of interest...." NPR's story is here. MB: As you can see in the video above, Leahy presided over the House's delivery of the article of impeachment.

Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "President Joe Biden on Monday offered his most extensive comments since taking office on ... Donald Trump's impeachment trial, telling CNN, 'I think it has to happen.' Biden made the comment during a brief one-on-one interview with CNN in the halls of the West Wing. He acknowledged the effect it could have on his legislative agenda and Cabinet nominees but said there would be 'a worse effect if it didn't happen.' Biden told CNN he believed the outcome would be different if Trump had six months left in his term, but said he doesn't think 17 Republican senators will vote to convict Trump."

When a "Reassurance" Is a Threat. Burgess Everett, et al., of Politico: "A top political aide to ... Donald Trump spent the weekend quietly reassuring Republican senators that the former president has no plans to start a third party -- and instead will keep his imprint on the GOP. The message from Brian Jack, Trump's former political director at the White House, is the latest sign that Republicans considering an impeachment conviction will do so knowing that Trump may come after them in upcoming primaries if they vote to convict him for 'incitement of insurrection.' Jack did not mention impeachment in his calls. But he wanted the word to get around that Trump is still a Republican -- and for many, still the leader of his party." MB: This, of course, is the Trump version of the mobster (fill-in-the-blank) line: "That's a nice little   job  you have there,  Senator . You wouldn't wanna lose it."

Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post :"The Justice Department's inspector general announced Monday that its office is opening an investigation into whether any current or former department official tried to improperly 'alter the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election' -- a broad review that comes on the heels of a revelation that ... Donald Trump considered replacing his acting attorney general with an official more amenable to his unfounded claims of voter fraud. Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz announced the review in a two paragraph news release, though he noted his jurisdiction would be limited to 'allegations concerning the conduct of former and current DOJ employees,' and he could not examine other government officials [like, say, Donald Trump].... While Horowitz will likely have broad access to Justice Department files and emails, he cannot compel the cooperation of former officials -- which could limit his probe." (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times' story is here. ~~~

~~~ Sam Dunklau of WITF Radio (Harrisburg, Pa.): "U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R-York, Dauphin and Cumberland) said he introduced ... Donald Trump to Department of Justice lawyer Jeffrey Clark -- who, the New York Times reported, was part of Trump's plan to pressure Georgia to overturn its certified election results. In a statement Monday afternoon, Perry also said he talked with Trump and Clark about claims of election fraud. It's unclear when exactly those conversations took place. An email to Perry's spokesman asking for clarification has not been returned yet." (Also linked yesterday.)

Rachel Weiner & Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "A prominent speaker at a 'Stop the Steal' rally held by Trump supporters in Washington the day before the storming of the Capitol was taken into custody Monday on charges of impeding police during the riot. Brandon Straka, 44, of New York was arrested in Nebraska on a felony charge of interfering with police during civil disorder, and illegal entry and disorderly conduct on restricted Capitol grounds.... Straka has since said on social media that he saw 'nobody committing any acts of violence' or vandalism on Jan. 6 and that Trump supporters were able to file into the Capitol.... However..., in one [video], the FBI affidavit [accompany the warrant for Straka's arrest] said, Straka recorded himself in front of a mobbed entrance to the Capitol, urging a crowd to wrest away a riot shield from a police officer and shouting: 'Take it away from him.... Take the shield!... Take it! Take it!'"

Adam Klasfeld of Law & Crime: "The woman alleged to have stolen a laptop from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office during the U.S. Capitol insurrection may have encouraged others to destroy evidence while released to her mother's custody, prosecutors claimed in court on Monday. Prosecutors previously alleged that Riley June Williams, 22, tried to delete her own social media trail to prevent her identification, but they now believe the cover-up continued after a federal judge in Pennsylvania authorized her release to home confinement.... The government is now requesting that the conditions of Williams's release be altered to cut off her internet access and allow investigators to monitor her compliance with that prohibition."

Dave Philipps of the New York Times: "In the weeks since Adam Newbold, a former member of the Navy SEALs, was identified as part of the enraged crowd that descended on the Capitol on Jan. 6..., [nothing] has shaken his belief, against all evidence, that the presidential election was stolen and that people like him were right to rise up.... It is surprising because ... in the Navy, he was trained as an expert in sorting information from disinformation, a clandestine commando who spent years working in intelligence paired with the C.I.A., and he once mocked the idea of shadowy antidemocratic plots as 'tinfoil hat' thinking.Even so..., Mr. Newbold bought into the fabricated theory that the election was rigged by a shadowy cabal of liberal power brokers who had pushed the nation to the precipice of civil war. No one could persuade him otherwise.... Mr. Newbold says he did not enter the Capitol, and he has not been charged with any crimes."

Fashion Tip: Do Not Wear Your Letter Jacket to an Insurrection. Ryan Reilly of the Huffington Post: "Brian Gundersen, a former varsity football player for Byram Hills High School in North Castle Township, New York, is facing charges after the FBI received tips about a man seen storming the Capitol while wearing a letterman's jacket. The jacket included the name of his high school and his former jersey number.... [Gundersen] initially claimed that he never entered the U.S. Capitol but later admitted he had, but he claimed he was pushed into the building by the crowd. He consented to a search of his phone, which turned up a message in which he referenced a photo showing members of Congress taking cover during the attack on the Capitol as 'scared little bitches.' In one message, sent two days after the attack, Gundersen admitted his role in the attack. 'We all stormed the us capital and tried to take over the government,' he wrote. 'We failed but fuck it.'"

Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit on Monday against Rudolph W. Giuliani.... The 107-page lawsuit, filed in the Federal District Court in Washington, accuses Mr. Giuliani of carrying out 'a viral disinformation campaign about Dominion' made up of 'demonstrably false' allegations, in part to enrich himself through legal fees and his podcast. The suit seeks damages of more than $1.3 billion and is based on more than 50 statements Mr. Giuliani made at legislative hearings, on Twitter, on his podcast and in the conservative news media, where he spun a fictitious narrative of a plot by one of the biggest voting machine manufacturers in the country to flip votes to President Biden.... Taken together with a lawsuit the company filed this month against Sidney Powell, another lawyer who was allied with Mr. Trump, the suit represents a point-by-point rebuke of one of the more outlandish conspiracy theories surrounding last year's election." CNN's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "Here are four of the most common false statements Mr. Giuliani made about Dominion Voting Systems. 1.... Mr. Giuliani regularly stated, falsely, that Dominion 'really is a Venezuelan company' and that it 'depends completely on the software of Smartmatic,' a company 'developed in about 2004, 2005 to help Chavez steal elections.'... 2.... Dominion had programmed its machines to flip votes: 'In other words when you pressed down Biden, you got Trump, and when you pressed down Trump you got Biden.'... 3.... Mr. Giuliani zeroed in on Antrim County, Mich., falsely claiming that a 'Dominion machine flipped 6,000 votes from Trump to Biden' there, and that machines in the county were '62 percent inaccurate,' had a '68 percent error rate' and had an '81.9 percent rejection rate.'... 4.... Mr. Giuliani claimed that his accusations, particularly in Antrim County, were backed up by experts. But he largely relied on one man, Russell Ramsland Jr., a former Republican congressional candidate from Texas, who, according to the lawsuit filed by Dominion, had also publicly favored false conspiracy theories."

It's Not Over! David Gilbert of Vice: "Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 19th president of the United States on March 4, 2021. This is the latest conspiracy that QAnon followers have embraced in the wake of President Joe Biden's inauguration last week, and extremist experts are worried that it highlights the way QAnon adherents are beginning to merge their beliefs -- about the world being run by an elite cabal of cannibalistic satanist pedophiles -- with even more extreme ideologies. The latest claims being made by QAnon supporters echo those of the [violent, extremist] sovereign citizen movement, a group of people who believe they are not governed by the same laws as everyone else.... Sovereign citizens believe that a law enacted in 1871 secretly turned the U.S. into a corporation and did away with the American government of the founding fathers." March 4 is the date presidents took office before 1933.

AP: "The Supreme Court on Monday brought an end to lawsuits over whether Donald Trump illegally profited off his presidency. The justices threw out Trump's challenge to lower court rulings that had allowed lawsuits to go forward alleging that he violated the Constitution's emoluments clause by accepting payments from foreign and domestic officials who stay at the Trump International Hotel and patronize other businesses owned by the former president and his family. The high court also ordered the lower court rulings thrown out as well and directed appeals courts in New York and Richmond, Virginia, to dismiss the suits as moot now that Trump is no longer in office. The outcome leaves no judicial opinions on the books in an area of the law that has been rarely explored in U.S. history." MB: I suppose we'll learn more later, but this doesn't make a lot of sense to me. What about all the money Trump collected while he was in office? That's not moot; it happened. (Also linked yesterday.)

Nikhel Sus, et al., of CREW: "National Park Service employees spent nearly 4,000 hours working on the Republican National Convention's massive pro-Trump fireworks show at the National Mall this summer, according to Park Service records obtained by CREW. The display immediately followed former President Trump's final RNC acceptance speech, and culminated with fireworks spelling out 'TRUMP' over the National Mall. The Park Service's total labor costs for the show were more than $177,000, which the RNC appears to have reimbursed. The new records quantify the amount of time one agency spent promoting Trump's reelection campaign, and raise questions about why the RNC was allowed to commandeer so many federal employees, at cost, to put on a political spectacle during their convention."

Jason Williams, et al., of the Cincinnati Enquirer: "Republican Rob Portman will not seek a third term in the U.S. Senate in 2022, he told The Enquirer -- a move that will unsettle politics in both Greater Cincinnati and Washington D.C.... Portman said he hasn't decided how he will vote on impeachment during ... Donald Trump's trial. 'I'm a juror, it's going to happen,' Portman said. 'As a juror, I'm going to listen to both sides. That's my job.' Portman said Trump contributed to partisan gridlock in Washington, and he also laid blame on Trump for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. 'I don't excuse anything President Trump did on Jan. 6 or in the runup to it,' Portman said." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Carl Hulse & Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "Given the Republican tilt of Ohio, which supported Mr. Trump in the presidential election, Republicans would hold the advantage in the race, particularly in a midterm election where the party out of presidential power typically fares well. But the open seat could make it easier for Democrats to compete, particularly if Republicans choose a hard-right candidate with the potential to alienate independents and suburban voters. One of those hard-right prospects, Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, was among the first names mentioned on Monday as a possible replacement for Mr. Portman.... Yet his [high] profile has also made Mr. Jordan a political lightning rod, and a number of Ohio Democrats believe he would be the easiest Republican to defeat."

The Pandemic, Ctd.

Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "President Biden, under pressure to speed up the pace of coronavirus vaccination, said on Monday that he was now aiming for the United States to administer 1.5 million vaccine doses a day -- a goal that is 50 percent higher than his initial target but one that the nation already appears on track to meet."

Joel Achenbach of the Washington Post: "Minnesota officials announced Monday they have identified a person infected with a highly transmissible variant of the coronavirus that has been spreading at alarming rates in recent weeks in Brazil. This is the first report in the United States of the P.1 variant, which has been of particular concern to scientists as they have observed the disastrous surge in infections in the Brazilian city of Manaus. One research study published in the journal Science estimated that 76 percent of the Manaus population already had been infected by the coronavirus. That should have put Manaus close to herd immunity. The new surge has raised fears that the P.1 variant has mutations that allow it to evade the human immune system. Evidence to support this hypothesis remains limited." Free to nonsubscribers.

Teo Armus of the Washington Post: "As the previous administration's coronavirus response coordinator, Deborah Birx provided ... Donald Trump with hard numbers to guide the fight against the pandemic. But all along, she said, Trump was receiving different statistics from someone else. 'Someone out there, or someone inside, was creating a parallel set of data and graphics that were shown to the president,' she said Sunday on CBS's 'Face the Nation.'... 'I saw the president presenting graphs that I never made,' she said. Birx added that she believed at least some of the data had been funneled along by Scott Atlas, then a White House coronavirus adviser. He was widely rebuked for playing down the pandemic despite having no infectious-disease or public health background." The CBS News story is here. CBS News has the full transcript of the interview here. (Also linked yesterday.)

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

Guess What Government Worker Has the Highest Salary. Adam Andrzejewski of Forbes: "Dr. Anthony Fauci made $417,608 in 2019, the latest year for which federal salaries are available. That made him ... the highest paid out of all four million federal employees.... Only federal employees whose salaries were funded by taxpayers were included in the study." MB: I wonder if Trump knew Fauci's salary was higher than his (at $400K).

The Commentariat -- January 25, 2021

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Dave Philipps of the New York Times: "... on Monday ... President Biden signed an executive order reversing the ban on transgender troops that was imposed by the Trump administration. Mr. Biden's order also called an immediate halt to involuntary discharges of transgender troops who were already serving, and for the Pentagon to review the files of any troops forced out under the ban in recent years. The order requires the secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to report on progress within 60 days."

Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department's inspector general announced Monday that its office is opening an investigation into whether any current or former department official tried to improperly 'alter the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election' -- a broad review that comes on the heels of a revelation that ... Donald Trump considered replacing his acting attorney general with an official more amenable to his unfounded claims of voter fraud. Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz announced the review in a two paragraph news release, though he noted his jurisdiction would be limited to 'allegations concerning the conduct of former and current DOJ employees,' and he could not examine other government officials [like, say, Donald Trump].... While Horowitz will likely have broad access to Justice Department files and emails, he cannot compel the cooperation of former officials -- which could limit his probe." ~~~

~~~ Sam Dunklau of WITF Radio (Harrisburg, Pa.): "U.S. Rep. Scott Perry (R-York, Dauphin and Cumberland) said he introduced ... Donald Trump to Department of Justice lawyer Jeffrey Clark -- who, the New York Times reported, was part of Trump's plan to pressure Georgia to overturn its certified election results. In a statement Monday afternoon, Perry also said he talked with Trump and Clark about claims of election fraud. It's unclear when exactly those conversations took place. An email to Perry's spokesman asking for clarification has not been returned yet."

Sarah Kolinovsky & Molly Nagle of ABC News: "President Joe Biden is set to sign a 'Made in America' executive order Monday, fulfilling a long-time campaign promise to increase the amount of federal spending that goes to American companies. The announcement comes at a time when the government is set to spend expansively on efforts to defeat COVID-19, and after a period during which vulnerabilities in the U.S. supply chain were exposed as state and local governments resorted to foreign manufacturers to obtain desperately-needed personal protective equipment.... Biden's executive order will aim to close ... loopholes and cut down on ... waivers [that allow more spending on foreign products], as well as order an increase in domestic content. It will also redefine what can count as domestic content...."

Teo Armus of the Washington Post: "As the previous administration's coronavirus response coordinator, Deborah Birx provided ... Donald Trump with hard numbers to guide the fight against the pandemic. But all along, she said, Trump was receiving different statistics from someone else. 'Someone out there, or someone inside, was creating a parallel set of data and graphics that were shown to the president,' she said Sunday on CBS's 'Face the Nation.'... 'I saw the president presenting graphs that I never made,' she said. Birx added that she believed at least some of the data had been funneled along by Scott Atlas, then a White House coronavirus adviser. He was widely rebuked for playing down the pandemic despite having no infectious-disease or public health background." The CBS News story is here. CBS News has the full transcript of the interview here.

AP: "The Supreme Court on Monday brought an end to lawsuits over whether Donald Trump illegally profited off his presidency. The justices threw out Trump's challenge to lower court rulings that had allowed lawsuits to go forward alleging that he violated the Constitution's emoluments clause by accepting payments from foreign and domestic officials who stay at the Trump International Hotel and patronize other businesses owned by the former president and his family. The high court also ordered the lower court rulings thrown out as well and directed appeals courts in New York and Richmond, Virginia, to dismiss the suits as moot now that Trump is no longer in office. The outcome leaves no judicial opinions on the books in an area of the law that has been rarely explored in U.S. history." MB: I suppose we'll learn more later, but this doesn't make a lot of sense to me. What about all the money Trump collected while he was in office? That's not moot; it happened.

Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "Dominion Voting Systems filed a defamation lawsuit on Monday against Rudolph W. Giuliani.... The 107-page lawsuit, filed in the Federal District Court in Washington, accuses Mr. Giuliani of carrying out 'a viral disinformation campaign about Dominion' made up of 'demonstrably false' allegations, in part to enrich himself through legal fees and his podcast. The suit seeks damages of more than $1.3 billion and is based on more than 50 statements Mr. Giuliani made at legislative hearings, on Twitter, on his podcast and in the conservative news media, where he spun a fictitious narrative of a plot by one of the biggest voting machine manufacturers in the country to flip votes to President Biden.... Taken together with a lawsuit the company filed this month against Sidney Powell, another lawyer who was allied with Mr. Trump, the suit represents a point-by-point rebuke of one of the more outlandish conspiracy theories surrounding last year's election." CNN's story is here.

Jason Williams, et al., of the Cincinnati Enquirer: "Republican Rob Portman will not seek a third term in the U.S. Senate in 2022, he told The Enquirer -- a move that will unsettle politics in both Greater Cincinnati and Washington D.C.... Portman said he hasn't decided how he will vote on impeachment during ... Donald Trump's trial. 'I'm a juror, it's going to happen,' Portman said. 'As a juror, I'm going to listen to both sides. That's my job.' Portman said Trump contributed to partisan gridlock in Washington, and he also laid blame on Trump for the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. 'I don't excuse anything President Trump did on Jan. 6 or in the runup to it,' Portman said."

~~~~~~~~~~

Mike DeBonis & Seung Min Kim of the Washington Post: "When President Biden took office last week, he promised sweeping, bipartisan legislation to solve the coronavirus pandemic, fix the economy and overhaul immigration. Just days later, the Senate ground to a halt, with Democrats and Republicans unable to agree on even basic rules for how the evenly divided body should operate. Meanwhile, key Republicans have quickly signaled discomfort with -- or outright dismissal of -- the cornerstone of Biden's early legislative agenda, a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief plan that includes measures including $1,400 stimulus checks, vaccine distribution funding and a $15 minimum wage. On top of that, senators are preparing for a wrenching second impeachment trial for ... Donald Trump, set to begin Feb. 9, which could mire all other Senate business and further obliterate any hopes of cross-party cooperation.... This reality could force Democrats to choose within a matter of weeks whether they will continue to pursue the sort of bipartisan cooperation that Biden -- and many senators of both parties -- have preached, or whether to pursue procedural shortcuts or rule changes that would sideline the GOP but also are likely to divide their caucus."

Amy Wang, et al., of the Washington Post: "Democratic members of Congress are pressing ahead with preparations for the second impeachment trial of ... Donald Trump, saying there is a 'compelling' case for Trump to be convicted of inciting an insurrection and arguing that moving forward with a trial is imperative for the country's healing. Meanwhile, the fractures within the Republican Party were evident Sunday as GOP senators appeared split over whether it was constitutional to hold an impeachment trial for a president who had already left office. Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), one of Trump's most outspoken GOP critics, stopped short of saying he would vote to convict Trump, while Republican allies of the former president continued to argue that an impeachment trial should be abandoned for the sake of 'unity.'... House impeachment managers are planning to send an article of impeachment to the Senate on Monday, alleging 'incitement of insurrection.'... The second impeachment trial will start Feb. 9...."

Michael Balsamo of the AP: "Federal law enforcement officials are examining a number of threats aimed at members of Congress as the second trial of ... Donald Trump nears, including ominous chatter about killing legislators or attacking them outside of the U.S. Capitol, a U.S. official told The Associated Press. The threats, and concerns that armed protesters could return to sack the Capitol anew, have prompted the U.S. Capitol Police and other federal law enforcement to insist thousands of National Guard troops remain in Washington as the Senate moves forward with plans for Trump's trial, the official said." ~~~

~~~ Andrew Desiderio, et al., of Politico: "... Donald Trump's upcoming Senate impeachment trial poses a security concern that federal law enforcement officials told lawmakers last week requires as many as 5,000 National Guard troops to remain in Washington through mid-March, according to four people familiar with the matter. The contingency force will help protect the Capitol from what was described as 'impeachment security concerns,' including the possibility of mass demonstrations coinciding with the Senate's trial, which is slated to begin the week of Feb. 8." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Katie Benner & Charlie Savage of the New York Times attempt to profile Jeffrey Clark, the DOJ lawyer who bought into conspiracy theories he found on the Internet & conspired with Donald Trump to overturn the results of the Georgia presidential election. MB: The article hints that Clark had left DOJ, so I hunted around & found an article by Bloomberg Law; it's firewalled, so not worth spending a hit on unless you're a Bloomberg subscriber. ~~~

~~~ Ellen Gilmer of Bloomberg Law: "The Trump administration's top environmental lawyer faces career repercussions and possibly ethics probes in the wake of allegations, which he disputes, that he worked with President Donald Trump to try to cast doubt on the 2020 election results.... Clark resigned from the Justice Department Jan. 14, less than a week before the end of Trump's presidency, and didn't have a new job lined up at the time. One legal industry consultant said he'd be 'radioactive' on the job market now." Firewalled.

When You Think Republicans Can't Get More Childish. Reuters: "The Texas Republican senator John Cornyn warned on Saturday that Donald Trump's second impeachment could lead to the prosecution of former Democratic presidents if Republicans retake Congress in two years' time." MB: Hey, let's start with FDR (court packing). Or Jefferson (slaves). But we know their first choice is PresidentObama (too nice). (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Kelly Hooper of Politico: "Sen. Marco Rubio on Sunday said the argument that ... Donald Trump should be impeached so that he can't seek public office again is 'an arrogant statement for anyone to make.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

AND Rand Paul Is Still Rand Paul. Jack Arnholz of ABC News: "Days after President Joe Biden took office and the Democrats took control of the U.S. Senate, Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., would not unequivocally say Sunday that the 2020 presidential election was not stolen and called for an investigation of fraud, without providing evidence. 'The debate over whether or not there was fraud should occur, we never had any presentation in court where we actually looked at the evidence. Most of the cases were thrown out for lack of standing, which is a procedural way of not actually hearing the question,' Paul said on ABC's 'This Week.'... 'No election is perfect,' Stephanopoulos [said]. 'After investigations, counts and recounts, the Department of Justice -- led by (Trump-appointed Attorney General) William Barr -- said there's no widespread evidence of fraud. Can't you just say the words: "This election was not stolen?"' The Kentucky senator responded, 'What I would suggest is that if we want greater confidence in our elections -- and 75% of Republicans agree with me -- is that we do need to look at election integrity.' Paul also did not acknowledge ... Donald Trump's role in sowing doubts about the election."

Sara Sidner & Anna-Maja Rappard of CNN: "In her Ohio hometown [of Woodstock], she's known as an Army veteran who runs a bar and set up a small self-styled militia her boyfriend says she created to help neighbors if tornadoes hit. To the FBI, she's a militant leader who traveled to Washington, DC, and stormed the US Capitol, encouraging others to do the same." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Glenn Kessler of the Washington Post: "Over time, [Donald] Trump unleashed his falsehoods with increasing frequency and ferocity, often by the scores in a single campaign speech or tweetstorm. What began as a relative trickle of misrepresentations, including 10 on his first day and five on the second, built into a torrent through Trump's final days as he frenetically spread wild theories that the coronavirus pandemic would disappear 'like a miracle; and that the presidential election had been stolen -- the claim that inspired Trump supporters to attack Congress on Jan. 6 and prompted his second impeachment. The final tally of Trump's presidency: 30,573 false or misleading claims -- with nearly half coming in his final year."

Zach Montellaro of Politico: "Republican legislators across the country are preparing a slew of new voting restrictions in the wake of ... Donald Trump's defeat. Georgia will be the focal point of the GOP push to change state election laws.... But state Republicans in deep-red states and battlegrounds alike are citing Trump's meritless claims of voter fraud in 2020 -- and the declining trust in election integrity Trump helped drive -- as an excuse to tighten access to the polls. Some Republican officials have been blunt about their motivations: They don't believe they can win unless the rules change." MB: That's the ticket: scream "election fraud," then pass restrictive laws so "those people" can't commit fake voter fraud. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Bo Erickson, et al., of CBS News: "The Biden administration is expected to repeal the ban on transgender Americans from serving in the military, multiple people informed of the decision told CBS News. The announcement is expected as soon as Monday, one senior Defense official and four outside advocates of repealing the ban told CBS News. The senior Defense official told CBS News the repeal will be through executive order signed by President Joe Biden. The announcement is expected to take place at a ceremony with newly-confirmed Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who will order the Pentagon to go back to the policy enacted in 2016 by former Defense Secretary Ash Carter that allowed transgender Americans to serve openly."

Jessica Sidman of the Washingtonian: "A few days into the job, and President Joe Biden has already made his first restaurant visit. After attending mass at Holy Trinity Catholic Church on Sunday, his motorcade made a bagel pitstop at Call Your Mother in Georgetown, according to pool reports. The President didn't actually get out of the vehicle -- a Secret Service agent ducked in to pick up the order. But Biden did wave to the small crowd that quickly gathered at the scene.... Call Your Mother is co-owned by Jeff Zients, who oversees the administration's Covid-19 response.... Biden has now visited the same number of restaurants that Donald Trump did in his entire four years in office. The former President never dined anywhere in DC other than the steakhouse in his Pennsylvania Avenue hotel."

Margaret Sullivan of the Washington Post writes that the only way to rid the country of Fox "News" is for corporations to pull their advertising dollars. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The Pandemic, Ctd.

Aamer Madhani & Lisa Mascaro of the AP: "Top aides to President Joe Biden on Sunday began talks with a group of moderate Senate Republicans and Democrats on a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package as Biden faces increasing headwinds in his effort to win bipartisan backing for the initial legislative effort of his presidency. Lawmakers on the right question the wisdom of racking up bigger deficits while those on the left are urging Biden not to spend too much time on bipartisanship when the pandemic is killing thousands of Americans each day and costing more jobs amid tightening restrictions in many communities. At least a dozen senators met for an hour and 15 minutes in a virtual call with White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese and other senior White House officials. Many hope to approve a relief package before ... Donald Trump's trial, which is set to begin in two weeks, overtakes Washington's attention." ~~~

~~~ Laura Barron-Lopez & Burgess Everett of Politico: "A bipartisan group of senators told White House officials on Sunday that the stimulus spending in President Joe Biden's coronavirus relief plan provides too much money to high-income Americans, an opening setback in the new administration's complex pandemic negotiations with Congress. Biden's proposal would provide $1,400 direct payments to Americans, some of whom senators say don't need the money. Still, the discussion was civil and there was a 'consensus' on the need to act urgently on vaccine distribution, said multiple senators on the call. It was also a sign that the Biden White House will be more hands on than ... Donald Trump, who nearly refused to sign the last relief bill after making a flurry of last-minute requests after the bill already passed Congress."

Aamer Madhani of the AP: "President Joe Biden on Monday will formally reinstate COVID-19 travel restrictions on non-U.S. travelers from Brazil, Ireland, the United Kingdom and 26 other European countries that allow travel across open borders, according to two White House officials. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the order, also confirmed Sunday that South Africa would be added to the restricted list because of concerns about a variant of the virus that has spread beyond that nation. Biden is reversing an order from ... Donald Trump in his final days in office that called for the relaxation of the travel restrictions as of Tuesday."

Amanda Macias of CNBC: "The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warned Sunday that the federal government does not know how much coronavirus vaccine the nation has, a complication that adds to the already herculean task before the Biden administration. 'I can't tell you how much vaccine we have, and if I can&'t tell it to you then I can't tell it to the governors and I can't tell it to the state health officials,' CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky told 'Fox News Sunday.'... In a dig at the Trump administration, Walensky said the lack of knowledge of vaccine supply is indicative of 'the challenges we've been left with.'"

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

Donald McNeil of the New York Times: "For Dr. [Anthony] Fauci, 80, [who has been an advisor to seven presidents,] the past year has stood out like no other. As the coronavirus ravaged the country, Dr. Fauci's calm counsel and commitment to hard facts endeared him to millions of Americans. But he also became a villain to millions of others. Trump supporters chanted 'Fire Fauci,' and the president mused openly about doing so. He was accused of inventing the virus and of being part of a secret cabal with Bill Gates and George Soros to profit from vaccines. His family received death threats. On Jan. 21, appearing in his first press briefing under the Biden administration, Dr. Fauci described the 'liberating feeling' of once again being able to 'get up here and talk about what you know -- what the evidence, what the science is -- and know that's it, let the science speak.' In an hourlong conversation with The New York Times over the weekend, Dr. Fauci described some of the difficulties, and the toll, of working with ... Donald J. Trump." An interesting interview, but all in all, what you would expect an intelligent, rational person to say. ~~~

     ~~~ Best Part of Fauci Interviews: They Infuriate Whozit. Asawin Suebsaeng of the Daily Beast: "In recent days..., Donald Trump has watched from afar as one of his most popular rivals for public attention has been unleashed by the Biden administration to, in part, disparage Trump's handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. And the ex-president hasn't even been able to tweet about it. Dr. Anthony Fauci, once a prominent figure on Trump's coronavirus task force who's now a top COVID-19 adviser to President Joe Biden, began his multi-day blitz to different news outlets that included openly expressing his relief that the old crew was gone and that he could now serve in the Biden administration.... [Trump] reacted in a fit of grievance, self-obsession, TV hate-watching that largely defined his presidency and now-defunct policy-making operations. Fauci's re-emergence on prime-time television ... infuriated the exiled Trump, who began whining about how 'incompetent' the doctor was, and how he probably should have fired Fauci when he had the chance, a source close to the former president and another individual familiar with the matter tell The Daily Beast."

Melissa Quinn & Margaret Brennan of CBS News: "Dr. Deborah Birx, the former White House coronavirus response coordinator under ... Donald Trump, revealed that she had no full-time team in the White House working on the response to COVID-19 under the former president.... 'That's what I was given,' she said. 'So ... I went to my people that I've known all through the last years in government, all 41, and said, can you come and help me? And so I was able to recruit from other agencies, individuals.'... A senior adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence, who led the White House coronavirus task force, confirmed to CBS News that the staff who worked with Birx were from her days with PEPFAR..., [but] disputed the premise that Birx was denied necessary staff. 'There were 7-8 full-time staff detailed from other agencies to her. They were paid,' the senior adviser told CBS News. Pence, meanwhile, was also given no additional White House staff, and his existing team worked on the COVID-19 response." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Georgia. Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post: At a meeting of the Cobb County, Georgia, school board, "school district employee Jennifer Susko pleaded with those on the board who were not wearing masks to put them on in honor of Hendricks Elementary School kindergarten art teacher Patrick Key, 53, who died Christmas Day after he was hospitalized for about six weeks with covid-19. Key's obituary mentioned his appreciation for wearing masks.... Then, Susko asked for a moment of silence to honor Key, and for board members to put on their masks 'as a tribute to this teacher who did everything you asked of him, even teaching through a pandemic.' For the next 13 seconds, some members looked down, a few shifted in their seats. All were quiet. Most were already wearing masks, but at least two men, including Superintendent Chris Ragsdale, who were not wearing face coverings remained maskless."

Mexico. Christopher Sherman of the AP: "Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Sunday he has tested positive for COVID-19 and that the symptoms are mild. Mexico's president, who has been criticized for his handling of his country's pandemic, said on his official Twitter account that he is under medical treatment.... López Obrador, 67, has long been criticized for not setting an example of prevention in public. He has rarely been seen wearing a mask and continued to keep up a busy travel schedule taking commercial flights. He has resisted locking down the economy, noting the devastating effect it would have on so many Mexicans who live day to day. Early in the pandemic, asked how he was protecting Mexico, López Obrador removed two religious amulets from his wallet and proudly showed them off."

News Ledes

New York Times: "Jimmie Rodgers, whose smooth voice straddled the line between pop and country and brought him a string of hits -- none bigger than his first record, 'Honeycomb,' in 1957 -- died on Jan. 18 in Palm Desert, Calif. He was 87."

Indy Star: "Five people and an unborn child were killed early Sunday morning in Indianapolis, in what city police say was the largest mass casualty shooting in more than a decade.... Investigators were led to the grisly crime scene around 4 a.m., after making contact with a juvenile male, whose age police didn't disclose, who was found suffering from gunshot wounds just footsteps away in the 3300 block of East 36th Street between Keystone Avenue and Sherman Drive. It is believed that the boy was wounded in the Adams Street incident. If so, he is the only recorded survivor at this time."

The Commentariat -- January 24, 2021

Afternoon Update:

When You Think Republicans Can't Get More Childish. Reuters: "The Texas Republican senator John Cornyn warned on Saturday that Donald Trump's second impeachment could lead to the prosecution of former Democratic presidents if Republicans retake Congress in two years' time." MB: Hey, let's start with FDR (court packing). Or Jefferson (slaves). But we know their first choice is President Obama (too nice). ~~~

~~~ Kelly Hooper of Politico: "Sen. Marco Rubio on Sunday said the argument that ... Donald Trump should be impeached so that he can't seek public office again is 'an arrogant statement for anyone to make.'"

Andrew Desiderio, et al., of Politico: "... Donald Trump's upcoming Senate impeachment trial poses a security concern that federal law enforcement officials told lawmakers last week requires as many as 5,000 National Guard troops to remain in Washington through mid-March, according to four people familiar with the matter. The contingency force will help protect the Capitol from what was described as 'impeachment security concerns,' including the possibility of mass demonstrations coinciding with the Senate's trial, which is slated to begin the week of Feb. 8."

Zach Montellaro of Politico: "Republican legislators across the country are preparing a slew of new voting restrictions in the wake of ... Donald Trump's defeat. Georgia will be the focal point of the GOP push to change state election laws.... But state Republicans in deep-red states and battlegrounds alike are citing Trump's meritless claims of voter fraud in 2020 -- and the declining trust in election integrity Trump helped drive -- as an excuse to tighten access to the polls. Some Republican officials have been blunt about their motivations: They don't believe they can win unless the rules change." MB: That's the ticket: scream "election fraud," then pass restrictive laws so "those people" can't commit fake voter fraud.

Sara Sidner & Anna-Maja Rappard of CNN: "In her Ohio hometown [of Woodstock], she's known as an Army veteran who runs a bar and set up a small self-styled militia her boyfriend says she created to help neighbors if tornadoes hit. To the FBI, she's a militant leader who traveled to Washington, DC, and stormed the US Capitol, encouraging others to do the same."

Melissa Quinn & Margaret Brennan of CBS News: "Dr. Deborah Birx, the former White House coronavirus response coordinator under ... Donald Trump, revealed that she had no full-time team in the White House working on the response to COVID-19 under the former president.... 'That's what I was given,' she said. 'So ... I went to my people that I've known all through the last years in government, all 41, and said, can you come and help me? And so I was able to recruit from other agencies, individuals.'... A senior adviser to former Vice President Mike Pence, who led the White House coronavirus task force, confirmed to CBS News that the staff who worked with Birx were from her days with PEPFAR..., [but] disputed the premise that Birx was denied necessary staff. 'There were 7-8 full-time staff detailed from other agencies to her. They were paid,' the senior adviser told CBS News. Pence, meanwhile, was also given no additional White House staff, and his existing team worked on the COVID-19 response."

Margaret Sullivan of the Washington Post writes that the only way to rid the country of Fox "News" is for corporations to pull their advertising dollars.

~~~~~~~~~~

So now we know why Bill Barr abruptly resigned a month before the inauguration:

** Kelly Mena of CNN: "... Donald Trump pushed the Department of Justice to directly ask the Supreme Court to invalidate President Joe Biden's election win, people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.... The effort ultimately failed as Trump appointees in the Department of Justice refused to file the lawsuit, according to the Journal. [Then-acting Attorney General Jeffery] Rosen, along with former Attorney General William Barr and former acting Solicitor General Jeffrey Wall, refused to file the Supreme Court case citing that there was no basis to challenge the election outcome and the federal government had no legal interest in whether Trump or Biden won the presidency.... 'The pressure got really intense' after a lawsuit Texas filed in the Supreme Court against four states Biden won was dismissed in early December, [an administration] official told the Journal. An outside lawyer working for Trump drafted a brief the then-President wanted the Justice Department to file, people familiar with the matter told the Journal, but officials refused.... Late Saturday night, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin published a letter from Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee addressed to acting Attorney General Monty Wilkinson asking for his assurance that 'the Department will preserve all relevant materials in its possession, custody, or control,' related to Trump's discussions with [Civil Division acting head Jeffrey] Clark involving a plan to oust Rosen and overturn Georgia's presidential election results. The committee is requesting the materials be released to them no later than the first day of Trump's impeachment trial." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I know that deliberations among the president* & administration officials are privileged, but when the president* & his co-conspirators are attempting to use the DOJ in a scheme to overthrow the results of an election, what they're discussing is a crime of tremendous magnitude & consequence. I feel that Barr, Rosen, Wall & others who knew Trump's intent had an obligation to reveal to the public what was going on in real time, not to wait to leak it to the press after the damage could have been done. See also NiskyGuy's commentary in today's thread.

Katie Benner & Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "It was [Rep. Scott] Perry [R-Pa.], a member of the hard-line Freedom Caucus, who first made Mr. Trump aware that a relatively obscure Justice Department official, Jeffrey Clark, the acting chief of the civil division, was sympathetic to Mr. Trump's view that the election had been stolen, according to former administration officials.... Mr. Perry introduced the president to Mr. Clark, whose openness to conspiracy theories about election fraud presented Mr. Trump with a welcome change from the acting attorney general, Jeffrey A. Rosen, who stood by the results of the election and had repeatedly resisted the president's efforts to undo them. Mr. Perry's previously unreported role, and the quiet discussions between Mr. Trump and Mr. Clark that followed, underlined how much the former president was willing to use the government to subvert the election, turning to more junior and relatively unknown figures for help as ranking Republicans and cabinet members rebuffed him.... After The New York Times disclosed the details of the scheme [to overturn the results of the Georgia presidential election] on Friday, the political fallout was swift."

A Coalition of the Left Saved U.S. Democracy. Alexander Burns of the New York Times: "By the time rioters ransacked the Capitol, the machinery of the left had already been primed to respond -- prepared by months spent sketching out doomsday scenarios and mapping out responses, by countless hours of training exercises and reams of opinion research. At each juncture, the activist wing of the Democratic coalition deployed its resources deliberately, channeling its energy toward countering Mr. Trump's attempts at sabotage. Joseph R. Biden Jr., an avowed centrist who has often boasted of beating his more liberal primary opponents, was a beneficiary of their work.... For the organizers of the effort, it represents both a good-news story -- Mr. Trump was thwarted -- and an ominous sign that such exhaustive efforts were required to protect election results that were not all that close. For the most part, the organized left anticipated Mr. Trump's postelection schemes, including his premature attempt to claim a victory he had not achieved, his pressure campaigns targeting Republican election administrators and county officials and his incitement of far-right violence, strategy documents show."

Matt Zapotosky & Shane Harris of the Washington Post: "The storming of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 crystallized for national security officials that violent extremism is not a threat exclusively imported from foreign shores; it is made in America. These conspiracy-minded, far-right potential threats are police officers and firefighters, Realtors and bartenders, even public officials from across the country, emboldened by the affirmation of ... Donald Trump and each other to publicly espouse racist views or commit violence against the government, analysts say. President Biden's administration will be challenged to deter domestic extremists -- and investigate and prosecute them when their rhetoric spills over into violence. Law enforcement and security officials, experts say, will face significant legal, political and cultural hurdles to battle a disease that seems to have taken hold in the nation's nervous system.... The First Amendment prevents law enforcement from surveilling or investigating Americans based solely on their political views, even if the views are racist or anti-government."

Even Mrs. Betty Bowers, America's Best Christian, seemed somewhat disturbed by the siege of the Capitol. Thanks to NiskyGuy for the link:

The Rapid Evolution of a Dumb Trumpist:

(1) Amanda Terkel of the Huffington Post: "House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) attracted attention [link fixed] last week when he said in a floor speech that ... Donald Trump 'bears responsibility' for the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol.... On Thursday, he told reporters that he didn't actually believe Trump had 'provoked' the mob of his supporters.... He stood by his assertion that Trump does bear some responsibility for what happened. But, he added, so does every other person around the country. 'I also think everybody across this country has some responsibility,' he said. McCarthy then started pointing to Democrats who opposed Trump, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), people who are rude on social media and law enforcement authorities who didn't prepare for the attack as some of the people who were somehow responsible." MB: Yes, I personally blame Maxine Waters, Akhilleus, and myself. (Also linked yesterday.)

(2) Tal Axelrod of the Hill: "House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) said he has 'concerns' over Rep. Liz Cheney's (R-Wyo.) vote to impeach former President Trump, his sternest comments yet on the controversial vote. McCarthy, in an interview with Greta Van Susteren airing Sunday, maintained that he supports keeping Cheney in her role as the No. 3 Republican in the House but said she did not inform him of her decision to impeach Trump before she cast her vote. 'Look, I support her, but I also have concerns. She took a position as a No. 3 member in conference. She never told me ahead of time. One thing about leadership, if we're going to work together, we should understand. We know that this is going to become a difficulty,' he said.... McCarthy has said in the past that he supports Cheney staying in her role as chairwoman of the House Republican Conference, but her vote has led to broad pushback from conservative members of Congress." MB Translation: I am more askeert now of losing my top job than I am of violent, radical revolutionaries taking over the government, threatening the lives of my colleagues & forcing me to hide in lockdown. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Contributor Patrick noticed the similarities between McCarthy & Otter's arguments. Once pointed out, the resemblance is hard to deny:

Tom Jackman of the Washington Post: "Since the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, 38 U.S. Capitol Police employees have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, the head of the officers' union said Saturday. Cases are also climbing among members of the D.C. National Guard stationed around the Capitol. Meantime, the Justice Department said five more people have been arrested in the Capitol riot, including a county jail guard from New Jersey who took an 'emergency holiday' from work to travel to Washington and a Federal Aviation Administration employee from California who is a QAnon follower, court records stated. In another development, two police officers from rural Virginia who had admitted their participation in the Capitol siege were suspended without pay by their department after a search warrant affidavit disclosed that one told a friend on Jan. 10: 'I'm going to war ... DC on the 20th for sure.'... A Defense Department official ... said Friday that coronavirus cases among the thousands of National Guard members who have been stationed at the Capitol in the past two weeks continue to climb, pushing some of them into isolation in hotel rooms in the region. The D.C. National Guard was aware of at least 170 cases as of Friday, with more positive results expected."

Marshall Cohen of CNN: "The Justice Department revealed new charges against a Texas man who allegedly participated in the Capitol attack and posted online death threats against Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and a US Capitol Police officer. Garret Miller of Texas faces five criminal charges stemming from the Capitol insurrection, including trespassing offenses and making death threats. Miller allegedly tweeted, 'assassinate AOC,' according to court documents. He also said the police officer who fatally shot a Trump supporter during the attack 'deserves to die' and won't 'survive long' because it's 'huntin[g] season.' Prosecutors said in newly released court documents that Miller posted extensively on social media before and during the attack, saying a 'civil war could start' and 'next time we bring the guns.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Adam Goldman & Shaila Dewan of the New York Times: "During the four-and-a-half-hour attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, one of the moments when the mob came closest to the lawmakers they were pursuing took place just after 2:30 p.m. On one side of a set of antique wood and glass doors were dozens of lawmakers and their aides trying to evacuate the House chamber. On the other were rioters yelling 'Stop the steal' as they hammered the panes with a flagpole, a helmet and even a bare fist.... At the height of the standoff, a woman named Ashli Babbitt tried to vault through a window. [A Capitol Police] lieutenant, his weapon already extended, pulled the trigger once, killing her in a confrontation that was captured on video and widely viewed around the world. At least three investigations into the security response on Jan. 6 are underway...."

The Beagle That Barked -- and Changed the Senate. Shane Goldmacher of the New York Times: "Tugging a puffer-vest-clad [Rev. Raphael] Warnock for an idealized suburban stroll -- bright sunshine, picket fencing, an American flag -- Alvin [the Beagle] would appear in several of Mr. Warnock's commercials pushing back against his Republican opponent in the recent Georgia Senate runoffs. In perhaps the best known spot, Mr. Warnock, a Democrat, deposits a plastic baggie of Alvin's droppings in the trash, likening it to his rival's increasingly caustic ads. The beagle barks in agreement, and as Mr. Warnock declares that 'we' -- he and Alvin -- approve of the message, the dog takes a healthy lick of his goatee.... There is bipartisan agreement that the beagle played an outsized role in cutting through the clutter in two contests that broke every Senate spending record." Alvin is not Warnock's dog. ~~~

Trouble in Arizona's Republican Party ~~~

~~~ Hank Stephenson & Jennifer Medina of the New York Times: "Arizona Republicans issued rebukes to three of the party's most prominent figures on Saturday, approving resolutions to censure Gov. Doug Ducey, former Senator Jeff Flake and Cindy McCain, the widow of former Senator John McCain. Though largely symbolic, the political scolding during a meeting of the state G.O.P. on Saturday underscored a widening rift in Arizona between party officials who have made clear that their loyalty lies with ... Donald J. Trump and those in the party who refused to support him or his effort to overturn the election results in Arizona, which President Joseph R. Biden Jr. won. And, well beyond Arizona, the rift reflects the stark divisions in the Republican Party nationally in the wake of Mr. Trump's tumultuous departure from office. The party cited Ms. McCain's and Mr. Flake's criticisms of Mr. Trump and Mr. Ducey's use of emergency orders related to the pandemic, which gave him broad control to enact policies without the legislature's approval such as closing 'nonessential' businesses in the spring." ~~~

~~~ Josh Dawsey & Michael Scherer of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump threw himself back into politics this weekend by publicly endorsing a devoted and divisive acolyte in Arizona who has embraced his false election conspiracy theories and entertained the creation of a new 'MAGA Party.' In a recorded phone call, Trump offered his 'complete and total endorsement' for another term for Arizona state party chairwoman Kelli Ward, a lightning rod who has sparred with the state's Republican governor, been condemned by the business community and overseen a recent flight in party registrations. She narrowly won reelection, by a margin of 51.5 percent to 48.5 percent, marking Trump's first victory in a promised battle to maintain political relevance and influence after losing the 2020 election."

MEANWHILE, in Kentucky. Morgan Watkins of the Louisville Courier Journal: "The Republican Party of Kentucky's State Central Committee rejected a resolution Saturday that would have urged Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to fully support ... Donald Trump and condemn his second impeachment.... Republican Party of Kentucky Chairman Mac Brown called the resolution out of order, and the majority of the committee agreed, a member told The Courier Journal after the meeting. The final vote agreeing the resolution should be deemed out of order was 134-49, the member said."

Colin Kalmbacher of Law & Crime: "Without comment, the [Texas supreme court] found that America's foremost conspiracy theorist, Alex Jones, and his flagship media outlet, InfoWars, are subject to liability in four separate defamation lawsuits filed over the past two-plus years. Those lawsuits were filed by parents of children who were killed during the Sandy Hook massacre and by a man Jones and his network falsely identified as the perpetrator of the Parkland massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School." (Also linked yesterday.)

Mike Schneider of the AP: "The U.S. Census Bureau is suspending efforts to create neighborhood-level statistics on the citizenship and age of residents, using 2020 census data, in the latest rollback of Trump administration census-related initiatives that critics feared would be used to favor Republicans and whites during the drawing of state and local districts. As part of an order President Joe Biden signed Wednesday on the 2020 census, the Census Bureau said Friday that it would discontinue efforts to create citizenship tabulations at the city-block level using 2020 census data combined with administrative records. Among his first acts as president, Biden's order revoked two Trump directives related to the 2020 census. The first attempted to discern the citizenship status of every U.S. resident through administrative records, and the second sought to exclude people in the U.S. illegally from the numbers used for apportioning congressional seats among the states." (Also linked yesterday.)

The Pandemic, Ctd.

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

Way Beyond the Beltway

Robyn Dixon & Isabelle Khurshudyan of the Washington Post: "Protesters took to the streets Saturday in nearly 70 cities and towns across Russia calling for the release of jailed opposition leader Alexei Navalny -- a massive show of defiance against President Vladimir Putin and his widening crackdowns against challenges to his power. More than 1,850 people were detained, including Navalny's wife, Yulia. The rallies -- from Russia's Far East to central Moscow -- came less than a week after Navalny returned from Germany, where he recovered from a nerve agent poisoning in August during a trip to Siberia. Navalny was arrested shortly after stepping off the plane. Some 40,000 people participated in the Moscow protest, the Reuters news agency reported, while police said 4,000 people took part." An AP story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ The New York Times is live-updating developments in the Navalny protests. (Also linked yesterday.)