The Commentariat -- July 18, 2020

USA Today: "Rep. John R. Lewis, the civil rights icon whose fight for racial justice began in the Jim Crow south and ended in the halls of Congress, died Friday night.... The son of Alabama sharecroppers, Lewis served in Congress for more than three decades, pushing the causes he championed as an original Freedom Rider challenging segregation, discrimination and injustice in the Deep South -- issues reverberating today in the Black Lives Matter movement. He was an organizer of the March on Washington in 1963 along with Martin Luther King Jr., a seminal moment in the Civil Rights movement that led to the passage of voting rights for Blacks two years later. He became a community activist and member of the Atlanta City Council before winning a seat in Congress in 1986. He would go on to become a best-selling author and was awarded the nation's highest civilian award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, by President Barack Obama, the nation's first Black president. Lewis was elected to his 17th term in November 2018."

~~~ Rep. Lewis's New York Times obituary is here. The Washington Post's obituary is here. ~~~

~~~ "The Conscience of the Congress": ~~~

~~~ Barack Obama, in Medium, on the passing of John Lewis: "It's fitting that the last time John and I shared a public forum was at a virtual town hall with a gathering of young activists who were helping to lead this summer's demonstrations in the wake of George Floyd's death. Afterwards, I spoke to him privately, and he could not have been prouder of their efforts -- of a new generation standing up for freedom and equality, a new generation intent on voting and protecting the right to vote, a new generation running for political office."

Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper effectively banned displays of the Confederate battle flag on U.S. military installations, saying in a memo Friday that the 'flags we fly must accord with the military imperatives of good order and discipline, treating all our people with dignity and respect, and rejecting divisive symbols.' The memo does not explicitly mention Confederate banners but states that the American flag is the 'principal flag we are authorized and encouraged to display.'... A defense official..., speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said the White House is aware of the new policy. It was not immediately clear if President Trump supports it.... Esper's new policy does not address the base-naming issue. An amendment in the new defense spending bill would require the Pentagon to change the names as well as remove other Confederate references, symbols and paraphernalia from installations within three years. Trump has threatened to veto the bill if the amendment is included." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Must Not Upset Trump. Lolita Baldor of the AP: "The [Confederate flag-ban] policy, laid out in a memo released Friday, was described by officials as a creative way to bar the flag's display without openly contradicting or angering ... Donald Trump, who has defended people's rights to display it." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Drumpf's Stasi

Erik Ortiz, et al., of NBC News: "Democratic members of Oregon's congressional delegation said Friday they will demand a federal investigation into the deployment of federal officers in Portland, where local leaders say their presence outside federal buildings has inflamed tensions during nightly protests and led to violent confrontations in recent weeks. The lawmakers want the inspectors general of the departments of Homeland Security and Justice to review the 'unrequested presence and violent actions' of 'paramilitary forces with no identification indicating who they are or who they work for.' A spokesman for Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, said she remains concerned about allegations that federal officers under the direction of ... Donald Trump may be arresting people in violation of their constitutional rights. Her office has asked the Department of Homeland Security to stand down its officers, spokesman Charles Boyle said, but 'federal law enforcement agencies are not communicating with us about their activities.... Governor Brown has called for Trump's federal officers to leave Portland and stay off our streets.'"

Emily Gillespie, et al., of the Washington Post: Portland, Oregon, "city officials on Friday demanded the Trump administration remove what they called a heavy-handed army of federal agents who have been grabbing protesters off the streets -- tactics that federal officials defended as legal and necessary to quell ongoing unrest.... One widely shared video showed two men in military garb on the street at night taking a young man wearing all black into custody.... The fight between the White House and the left-leaning city government intensified Friday amid videos and firsthand accounts of mysterious federal agents driving around in unmarked rental minivans and detaining protesters. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler referred to the federal agents as Trump's 'personal army' and said they should leave the city.... Acting secretary of homeland security Chad Wolf traveled to Portland this week to supervise the federal actions there, and he sharply criticized local law enforcement for not getting tough with 'violent anarchists.' Wolf told Fox News on Thursday night that he offered law enforcement assistance to the mayor and local leaders but was asked to 'pack up and go home,' which he said is 'just not going to happen on my watch.'"

** Ryan Haas & Conrad Wilson of Oregon Public Broadcasting: "U.S. Attorney Billy Williams said Friday he wants an investigation into actions of federal officers who have pulled Portland protesters off the street and into unmarked vehicles. Federal officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection have come under significant scrutiny after OPB first reported Thursday that they were involved in constitutionally questionable arrests in Portland.... 'Based on news accounts circulating that allege federal law enforcement detained two protesters without probable cause, I have requested the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General to open a separate investigation directed specifically at the actions of DHS personnel,' Williams said in his statement. At least one officer with the Marshals Service is under investigation for severely injuring a Portland protester July 11 by shooting him in the face with an impact munition round." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: Unless Williams' investigation turns out to be an "investigation," this is a big deal. The U.S. attorney works for Bill Barr, and Donald Trump nominated him. As Trump likes to say, we'll see what happens.

Sergio Olmos, et al., of the New York Times: "Federal agents dressed in camouflage and tactical gear have taken to the streets of Portland, unleashing tear gas, bloodying protesters and pulling some people into unmarked vans in what Gov. Kate Brown of Oregon has called 'a blatant abuse of power.' The extraordinary use of federal force in recent days, billed as an attempt to tamp down persistent unrest and protect government property, has infuriated local leaders who say the agents have stoked tensions.... Late Friday night, Oregon's attorney general said the office had opened a criminal investigation into how a protester was injured near a federal courthouse.... One Portland demonstrator, Mark Pettibone, 29, said he had been part of the protests before four people in camouflage jumped out of an unmarked van around 2 a.m. Wednesday. They had no obvious markings or identification, he said, and he had no idea who they were.... Mr. Pettibone said that he was terrified -- protesters in the city have in the past clashed with far-right militia groups also wearing camouflage and tactical gear -- and that at no point was he told why he was arrested or detained, or what agency the officers were with. He said he was held for about two hours before being released."; A related AP story is here.

Josh Marshall of TPM: "When asked about calls for an investigation into DHS police tactics in Portland, Oregon, Acting Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security Ken Cuccinelli tells NPR not only are they not going to stop but they want to take the tactics nationwide."

This is terrifying and outrageous. Secret police are the purview of authoritarians. Trump is doing this months away from the election because he thinks it helps him. But imagine what happens if he gets four more years. -- Vanita Gupta of the Leadership conference on Civil & Human Rights, in a tweet

Charles Pierce of Esquire: "A major American city is being softly Pinochet'ed in broad daylight. And, if we know one thing, if this president* and his administration* get away with this, it will only get worse. You'd have to be out of your mind -- or comatose since the Fall of 2016 -- not to suspect that this could be a dry run for the kind of general urban mobilization at which the president* has been hinting since this summer's protests began.... Portland may be a dumbshow for dummies, but it also looks like a dress rehearsal. This is not an 'authoritarian impulse.' This is authoritarian government -- straight, no chaser. And this administration has a powerful thirst for it. It will do anything if it thinks it can get away with it in order to benefit a president* who wants to bring the Republic down on his head. Unmarked vehicles, disappearing people off the streets? We need a Truth and Reconciliation Commission now, before the dress rehearsal becomes a road show."

Even Ruth Marcus, the Washington Post's official handwringer, is exercised. She writes, "This is not America." Mrs. McC: Yeah, actually it is. Millions of Americans voted for just this very thing -- because there was not a chance in hell that those particular voters would be caught protesting for civil rights and swept into unmarked vans for their trouble.

Tessa Duvall & Darcy Costello of the Louisville Courier Journal: "Just after midnight March 13, three Louisville police officers fired more than 20 bullets into Breonna Taylor's apartment, striking her five times. But she was still alive -- at least briefly. For at least five minutes, she was coughing as she struggled to breathe, according to her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, who told investigators she was alive as he called her mom and yelled for help.... The Jefferson County coroner disputes that account, telling The Courier Journal that Taylor likely died within a minute of being shot and couldn't have been saved.... Records show that no effort was made to save her. For more than 20 minutes after Taylor was fatally shot at approximately 12:43 a.m. by Louisville officers, the 26-year-old emergency room technician lay where she fell in her hallway, receiving no medical attention, according to dispatch logs."

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Friday are here: "As clashes over face-covering mandates and school reopening plans intensified throughout the United States, the country shattered its single-day record for new cases on Thursday -- more than 75,600, according to a New York Times database. This was the 11th time in the past month that the record had been broken. The previous single-day record, 68,241 cases, was announced last Friday. The number of daily cases has more than doubled since June 24, when the country registered 37,014 cases after a lull in the outbreak had kept the previous record, 36,738, standing for two months." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Friday are here: "The nine largest brick-and-mortar retail companies, which the National Retail Federation ranks based on global sales, have adopted new policies to require customers to wear masks inside U.S. stores. Costco began enforcing masks on May 4, but two months passed before other top retailers followed suit. Walmart, Inc. seemed to have triggered a corporate landslide this week with its announcement on Wednesday that masks would be required in its namesake stores and Sam's Club locations. Seven more of the largest brick-and-mortar retailers in the U.S. announced similar policies within two days: Kroger, CVS Health, Walgreens, Target, Albertsons Companies (which owns Safeway, Tom Thumb, and Acme, among other brands). Lowe's and Home Depot both announced mask requirements Friday."

Griff Witte & Ben Guarino of the Washington Post: "For weeks this summer, it was a seeming paradox of the coronavirus pandemic: cases in the United States were rising but deaths were falling. To the Trump administration, this was evidence that its strategy for combating covid-19 was working. To medical experts, it was only a matter of time before the trajectory changed. And now it has. Nationwide, deaths have begun to rise again. In some of the worst-hit states, especially across the South and the West, new death records are being set daily. As a virus-scarred summer wears on, public health specialists say the numbers are almost certain to continue to climb.... That grim assessment came as the United States on Friday set another record for total cases, with more than 76,000 -- including a new high of nearly 15,000 in Texas alone. More than 900 people died, matching a death count of recent days that has consistently hovered just below 1,000."

Josh Katz, et al., of the New York Times have produced a detailed interactive map of where people say they are wearing masks when they expect to come into contact with others. "Our data comes from a large number of interviews conducted by the global data and survey firm Dynata at the request of The New York Times." Mrs. McC: My area is doing poorly, although I can say that when I do my 6 am grocery shopping, mask-wearers are 100% of the early birds. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

S.N.A.F.U. Dara Lind of ProPublica: "As hospitals across the United States brace for a difficult six months -- with the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic still raging and concerns about a second wave in the fall -- some are acutely short-staffed because of ... a proclamation issued by ... Donald Trump on June 22, barring the entry of most immigrants on work visas.... Hundreds of young doctors were unable to start their residencies on time.... The proclamation stated that doctors 'involved with the provision of medical care to individuals who have contracted COVID-19 and are currently hospitalized' should be exempt from the ban, but it delegated the issuing of guidance to the departments of State and Homeland Security. That guidance has been slow and inconsistent." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Dareh Gregorian of NBC News: "... Donald Trump on Friday continued muddying his administration's messaging on the use of masks to combat the spread of the coronavirus, saying he disagreed with his CDC director about how effective they would be in stopping COVID-19.... In [an] interview [with Chris Wallace]..., Wallace referred to recent comments from ... [CDC] head Robert Redfield that 'If we could get everybody to wear a mask right now, I really do think over the next four, six, eight weeks, we could bring this epidemic under control.'... [Trump told Wallace,] "... I want people to have a certain freedom, and I don't believe in that, no.... And I don't agree with the statement that if everybody would wear a mask, everything disappears.... Hey, Dr. (Anthony) Fauci said "don't wear a mask"; our Surgeon General -- terrific guy -- said don't wear a mask.... All of a sudden, everybody's got to wear a mask, and as you know, masks cause problems too. With that being said, I'm a believer in masks. I think masks are good," he continued."

Bianca Quilantan of Politico: "The White House is blocking CDC officials from testifying next week at a hearing on reopening schools, the House Education and Labor Committee told Politico on Friday. Separately, the CDC confirmed that more guidance for opening schools won't be released until later this month. Committee Chair Bobby Scott had invited CDC Director Robert Redfield, or a designee, to testify before the Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education Subcommittee on July 23 at a hearing on safely reopening schools. The chair asked Redfield to discuss the immediate needs of K-12 public schools as many districts look to reopen in the fall."

John Hudson & Nate Jones of the Washington Post: "The State Department has released an internal cable from 2018 detailing the concerns of U.S. Embassy officials in China about a lack of adequately trained personnel at a virology lab in Wuhan, the city that later became the epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak. Leaked contents of the cable sparked unproven speculation from senior U.S. officials beginning in April that the outbreak occurred as a result of an accident at the Wuhan Institute of Virology. In May, President Trump said he had seen evidence that gave him a 'high degree of confidence' that the coronavirus originated in a Chinese lab. When asked why he was confident, Trump said, 'I can't tell you that. I'm not allowed to tell you that.'... The Washington Post filed a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit for the records. The Post sued in April after the State Department failed to produce the records in the time period required by the law. The full cable does not strengthen the claim that an accident at the lab caused the virus to escape, nor does it exclude the possibility. However, in recent months, skepticism of the accident theory has increased in the scientific community because the genetic sequences of isolates from the bat coronaviruses known to be under research at the lab do not match those of covid-19."

Mrs. McCrabbie: The monologue below is the most concise proof I've seen that Donald Trump cares nothing and knows nothing about governance. It's an amazing, unwitting admission he is clueless about what, if anything, his administration is doing and a four-alarm signal of his cognitive decline:

President* Trump on His Agenda -- White House Remarks, July 16

So we have many exciting things that we'll be announcing over the next eight weeks, I would say. Things that nobody has even contemplated, thought about, thought possible, and things that we're going to get done and we have gotten done -- and we've started in most cases. But it's going to be a very exciting eight weeks, a eight weeks, like I prob- -- I think, Mike, we can honestly say nobody has ever going to see eight weeks like we're going to have. Because we really have -- we have -- we're taking on immigration, taking on education, we're taking on so many aspects of things that people were hopelessly tied up in knots in Congress. They can't -- they've been working on some of these things for 25, 30 years. It wasn't happening. But you'll see levels of detail, and you'll see levels of thought that a lot of people believed very strongly we didn't have in this country. We're going to get things done. We're going to get things done that they've wanted to see done for a long, long time. So I think we'll start sometime on Tuesday. We'll be discussing our one plan on suburbia, but that's one of many, many different plans. Then we're going into the immigration -- the world of immigration, the world of education. We're going into the world of healthcare -- very complete healthcare. And we have a lot of very exciting things to discuss. But cutting of regulation has been really something that I felt we could do, and we could do fairly easily. Nothing is easy in this country. We had statutory requirements where we'd do phase one, and then we'd have to wait 90 days. We'd do phase two, and we'd have to wait 60 days. You'd do phase three, and we're set -- 'Let's do phase four, sir.' 'I'm sorry you have to wait one year.' But we were able to do things that nobody has ever been able to do, or even close, on deregulation.

Source: White House transcript, unedited. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Matthew Choi of Politico: "... Donald Trump on Friday broke his silence on a tell-all book [by his niece Mary Trump].... 'Mary Trump, a seldom seen niece who knows little about me, says untruthful things about my wonderful parents (who couldn't stand her!) and me, and violated her NDA,' Trump wrote on Twitter. 'She's a mess!...'... Speaking with CNN's Chris Cuomo hours after Trump's tweet, Mary Trump echoed previous comments in which she described her uncle as a racist.... Though she conceded it was difficult to maintain relations after her grandfather's death due to an intra-family lawsuit, Mary Trump pointed out that the president had requested she ghost write his second book. She also added that she and her grandmother were 'very close.... My grandfather didn't really have positive feelings for anybody except perhaps Donald,' she said. In response to the president calling her a 'mess,' Mary Trump replied: 'I think it's just an attack he hurls predominately at women and honestly, I'm in very good company. I believe he's said the same thing about Nancy Pelosi and I'm fine with that.'"

Jeff Zeleny & Kevin Liptak of CNN: "The official portraits of former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush were removed from the Grand Foyer of the White House within the last week, aides told CNN, and replaced by those of two Republican presidents who served more than a century ago. White House tradition calls for portraits of the most recent American presidents to be given the most prominent placement, in the entrance of the executive mansion, visible to guests during official events.... The Clinton and Bush portraits were moved into the Old Family Dining Room, a small, rarely used room that is not seen by most visitors."

A Binder Full of Lies. Reed Richardson of Mediaite: "A Reuters photograph of White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany's vast briefing binder offered a peek behind the curtain of the Trump administration's messaging priorities. Taken from the side of the White House briefing room podium, the photograph catches McEnany opening the book, exposing dozens of alphabetized tabs with short category names. During her tenure, McEnany has developed a reputation for flipping open her briefing book after a particularly confrontational question and reading verbatim from pre-written responses, which often included canned attacks on the press or praise from allies.... McEnany's tabs include a number evergreen topics, but several recent ones as well.... But many of the tabs spoke to this White House's favorite boogeymen, with categories such as 'Media,' 'Lies,' 'China,' 'BLM,' 'Privil' suggesting white privilege, and one simply labeled 'Absurd.'... Notably, one tab was labeled 'Karl,' which might be an oppo brief against ABC News White House correspondent Jon Karl, who has frequently clashed with Trump at press conferences."

Elections 2020

Will Weissert of the AP: "Joe Biden said Friday night that he’s begun receiving intelligence briefings as he warned that Russia, China and other adversaries were attempting to undermine the upcoming U.S. election in November.... [Biden] wasn't specific and offered no evidence while addressing a virtual fundraiser with more than 200 attendees. But, in the process, he confirmed receiving classified briefings after saying as recently as late last month that he wasn't getting them but might request one about reports of Russian bounties being offered on U.S. troops in Afghanistan." The Washington Post's story is here.

Brett Samuels of the Hill: "'Fox News Sunday' anchor Chris Wallace in a new interview shut down President Trump's claim that ... Joe Biden is in favor of defunding the police. The president blamed a recent rise in violence in ... major cities on Democratic leadership, saying urban centers are 'stupidly run.' When Wallace noted that Democrats have led cities for decades, Trump ... [said,] 'It's gotten totally out of control and it's really because they want to defund the police, and Biden wants to defund the police.'... 'Sir, he does not,' Wallace interjected. 'Look, he signed a charter with Bernie Sanders,' Trump shot back, referencing a lengthy unity platform unveiled by Biden and the Vermont senator that offers a number of progressive policy proposals. 'And it says nothing about defunding the police,' Wallace said. 'Oh really? It says abolish, it says defund. Let's go. Get me the charter, please,' Trump said, turning to staff off camera. Wallace recounted ... that Trump ... '... couldn't find any indication -- because there isn't any -- that Joe Biden has sought to defund and abolish the police.'... Biden has explicitly and repeatedly said that he does not support defunding or abolishing the police." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: In the exchange, Wallace struck a serious blow to Trump's re-election campaign inasmuch as Trump, in a leap of unintentional irony, is portraying himself as the law-and-order candidate and Biden as a presidential hopeful who would create chaos in America. ~~~

~~~ Trump told the same lie about Biden in the Rose Garden Tuesday: Louis Jacobson of Politifact: "Trump said that a Biden-Sanders 'unity' policy document shows that 'They now want to abolish our police departments. They want to abolish our prisons, I guess.' The document does not say anything about abolishing police departments or getting rid of all prisons."

What Happened to Honor Among Thieves? Sarah Rumpf of Mediaite: “Days after Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale was demoted, he may have new troubles.... A detailed report by Business Insider describes an internal audit the campaign is conducting of 'spending irregularities' during his time helming the president's reelection efforts. The new campaign manager, Bill Stepien, denied that Parscale was being audited but other sources for the story contradicted that. As the Business Insider report details, Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner brought in Jeff DeWit, an accountant and former chief financial officer of NASA, to join the campaign as its new chief operating officer. In an interview Friday, DeWit confirmed that he was 'reviewing all campaign contracts and examining all spending,' BI reports. DeWit denied that the audit was 'targeting' anyone specific, but other Republican sources familiar with the campaign's operations identified Parscale as a likely focus because 'he controlled all campaign spending, from polling and advertising to voter surveys, during a tenure that started in January 2017.'" ~~~

~~~ Grifters Grifting Grifters. Scott Lemieux in LG&$: "The last months of Trump are going to involve a lot of grifters stealing anything that isn't nailed down, which would be funny if the American people weren't going to be among the frequent targets."

Jesse McKinley of the New York Times: "Jamaal Bowman has scored a stunning victory over Representative Eliot L. Engel of New York in a Democratic primary, defeating the 16-term incumbent and overcoming the efforts of the Democratic establishment in a profound show of progressive political power. Mr. Bowman, a middle school principal from Yonkers, was declared the winner on Friday, after a count of absentee ballots verified what seemed clear on Primary Night, when he emerged with a commanding lead over Mr. Engel, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.... In the closing weeks of the campaign, as Mr. Bowman gained momentum and prominent backers, members of the Democratic old guard tried to salvage Mr. Engel's flagging campaign.... The Black Lives Matter movement ... gave a powerful talking point for Mr. Bowman, who is African-American and said he had been physically attacked by police as a child. The Black Lives Matter movement also served as backdrop for a cringe-inducing moment for Mr. Engel. At a news conference in the Bronx in early June, the congressman was caught on microphone suggesting that he was only there because of his contested race. 'If I didn't have a primary,' he said, 'I wouldn't care.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie Note to Donald Trump: "I really don't care" turns out not to be the best campaign message. And two-thirds of the country already knows that's your message, whether or not your wife has it painted on the back of her jacket.

Horrible News for Many Reasons. Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg announced Friday that she is being treated for a recurrence of cancer, this time on her liver, but says she remains able to do her work on the Supreme Court. 'I have often said I would remain a member of the court as long as I can do the job full steam,' Ginsburg said in a written statement. 'I remain fully able to do that.' Ginsburg, 87, and the court's oldest member, has battled cancer four times and has had other health concerns." An AP story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Beyond the Beltway

Wow! Deborah Yetter of the Louisville Courier Journal: "Jerry Lundergan, a former Kentucky Democratic Party chairman and the father of former Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, was sentenced Thursday to 21 months in federal prison for election finance violations related to his daughter's unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Lundergan, 73, of Lexington, was convicted last year along with Dale Emmons, of Richmond, for being part of a scheme to funnel more than $200,000 in illegal campaign donations to the Senate campaign in which Grimes, a Democrat, in 2014 ran unsuccessfully against Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell. Emmons, a campaign consultant hired by Lundergan, was sentenced to nine months in a halfway house, three years of supervised release and fined $50,000. Lundergan also was sentenced to two years of supervised release and fined $150,000." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond

Israel. Mitch Prothero of Business Insider: "Israel is involved in an extended campaign to pressure or damage Iran before President Donald Trump can be voted out of office in the November election, a former Israeli defense official and a current European Union intelligence official told Insider.... These attacks have put the country on edge, with nearly daily reports of fires, explosions, and other mishaps treated as potential foreign sabotage.... The attacks appear to be part of a campaign of 'maximum pressure, minimal strategy,' said the EU intelligence official.... With a broad belief among America's allies that Trump is unlikely to win reelection, Israel's apparent shift in tactics toward high-pressure 'kinetic' operations seem to reflect a belief that under a Biden administration, there would be a move to save the 2015 nuclear deal that had been scuttled by Trump." --s (Also linked yesterday.)

~~~ As Hattie wrote in yesterday's thread: "Praying for RBG. Dancing for Sir Tom."

The Commentariat -- July 17, 2020

Afternoon Update:

President* Trump on His Agenda -- White House Remarks, July 16

So we have many exciting things that we'll be announcing over the next eight weeks, I would say. Things that nobody has even contemplated, thought about, thought possible, and things that we're going to get done and we have gotten done -- and we've started in most cases. But it's going to be a very exciting eight weeks, a eight weeks, like I prob- -- I think, Mike, we can honestly say nobody has ever going to see eight weeks like we're going to have. Because we really have -- we have -- we're taking on immigration, taking on education, we're taking on so many aspects of things that people were hopelessly tied up in knots in Congress. They can't -- they've been working on some of these things for 25, 30 years. It wasn't happening. But you'll see levels of detail, and you'll see levels of thought that a lot of people believed very strongly we didn't have in this country. We're going to get things done. We're going to get things done that they've wanted to see done for a long, long time. So I think we'll start sometime on Tuesday. We'll be discussing our one plan on suburbia, but that's one of many, many different plans. Then we're going into the immigration -- the world of immigration, the world of education. We're going into the world of healthcare -- very complete healthcare. And we have a lot of very exciting things to discuss. But cutting of regulation has been really something that I felt we could do, and we could do fairly easily. Nothing is easy in this country. We had statutory requirements where we'd do phase one, and then we'd have to wait 90 days. We'd do phase two, and we'd have to wait 60 days. You'd do phase three, and we're set -- 'Let's do phase four, sir. I'm sorry you have to wait one year.' But we were able to do things that nobody has ever been able to do, or even close, on deregulation.

Source: White House transcript, unedited.

Horrible News for Many Reasons. Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg announced Friday that she is being treated for a recurrence of cancer, this time on her liver, but says she remains able to do her work on the Supreme Court. 'I have often said I would remain a member of the court as long as I can do the job full steam,' Ginsburg said in a written statement. 'I remain fully able to do that.' Ginsburg, 87, and the court's oldest member, has battled cancer four times and has had other health concerns." An AP story is here.

Wow! Deborah Yetter of the Louisville Courier Journal: "Jerry Lundergan, a former Kentucky Democratic Party chairman and the father of former Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes, was sentenced Thursday to 21 months in federal prison for election finance violations related to his daughter's unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky. Lundergan, 73, of Lexington, was convicted last year along with Dale Emmons, of Richmond, for being part of a scheme to funnel more than $200,000 in illegal campaign donations to the Senate campaign in which Grimes, a Democrat, in 2014 ran unsuccessfully against Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell. Emmons, a campaign consultant hired by Lundergan, was sentenced to nine months in a halfway house, three years of supervised release and fined $50,000. Lundergan also was sentenced to two years of supervised release and fined $150,000."

Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper effectively banned displays of the Confederate battle flag on U.S. military installations, saying in a memo Friday that the 'flags we fly must accord with the military imperatives of good order and discipline, treating all our people with dignity and respect, and rejecting divisive symbols.' The memo does not explicitly mention Confederate banners but states that the American flag is the 'principal flag we are authorized and encouraged to display.'... A defense official..., speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue, said the White House is aware of the new policy. It was not immediately clear if President Trump supports it.... Esper's new policy does not address the base-naming issue. An amendment in the new defense spending bill would require the Pentagon to change the names as well as remove other Confederate references, symbols and paraphernalia from installations within three years. Trump has threatened to veto the bill if the amendment is included." ~~~

     ~~~ Must Not Upset Trump. Lolita Baldor of the AP: "The [Confederate flag-ban] policy, laid out in a memo released Friday, was described by officials as a creative way to bar the flag's display without openly contradicting or angering ... Donald Trump, who has defended people's rights to display it."

Mitch Prothero of Business Insider: "Israel is involved in an extended campaign to pressure or damage Iran before President Donald Trump can be voted out of office in the November election, a former Israeli defense official and a current European Union intelligence official told Insider.... These attacks have put the country on edge, with nearly daily reports of fires, explosions, and other mishaps treated as potential foreign sabotage.... The attacks appear to be part of a campaign of 'maximum pressure, minimal strategy,' said the EU intelligence official.... With a broad belief among America's allies that Trump is unlikely to win reelection, Israel's apparent shift in tactics toward high-pressure 'kinetic' operations seem to reflect a belief that under a Biden administration, there would be a move to save the 2015 nuclear deal that had been scuttled by Trump." --s

Josh Katz, et al., of the New York Times have produced a detailed interactive map of where people say they are wearing masks when they expect to come into contact with others. "Our data comes from a large number of interviews conducted by the global data and survey firm Dynata at the request of The New York Times." Mrs. McC: My area is doing poorly, although I can say that when I do my 6 am grocery shopping, mask-wearers are 100% of the early birds.

S.N.A.F.U. Dara Lind of ProPublica: "As hospitals across the United States brace for a difficult six months -- with the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic still raging and concerns about a second wave in the fall -- some are acutely short-staffed because of ... a proclamation issued by ... Donald Trump on June 22, barring the entry of most immigrants on work visas.... Hundreds of young doctors were unable to start their residencies on time.... The proclamation stated that doctors 'involved with the provision of medical care to individuals who have contracted COVID-19 and are currently hospitalized' should be exempt from the ban, but it delegated the issuing of guidance to the departments of State and Homeland Security. That guidance has been slow and inconsistent."

Jesse McKinley of the New York Times: "Jamaal Bowman has scored a stunning victory over Representative Eliot L. Engel of New York in a Democratic primary, defeating the 16-term incumbent and overcoming the efforts of the Democratic establishment in a profound show of progressive political power. Mr. Bowman, a middle school principal from Yonkers, was declared the winner on Friday, after a count of absentee ballots verified what seemed clear on Primary Night, when he emerged with a commanding lead over Mr. Engel, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.... In the closing weeks of the campaign, as Mr. Bowman gained momentum and prominent backers, members of the Democratic old guard tried to salvage Mr. Engel's flagging campaign.... The Black Lives Matter movement ... gave a powerful talking point for Mr. Bowman, who is African-American and said he had been physically attacked by police as a child. The Black Lives Matter movement also served as backdrop for a cringe-inducing moment for Mr. Engel. At a news conference in the Bronx in early June, the congressman was caught on microphone suggesting that he was only there because of his contested race. 'If I didn't have a primary, he said, I wouldn't care.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie Note to Donald Trump: "I really don't care" turns out not to be the best campaign message. And two-thirds of the country already knows that's your message, whether or not your wife has it painted on the back of her jacket.

MEANWHILE, Across the Pond:

~~~~~~~~~~

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Friday are here: "As clashes over face-covering mandates and school reopening plans intensified throughout the United States, the country shattered its single-day record for new cases on Thursday -- more than 75,600, according to a New York Times database. This was the 11th time in the past month that the record had been broken. The previous single-day record, 68,241 cases, was announced last Friday. The number of daily cases has more than doubled since June 24, when the country registered 37,014 cases after a lull in the outbreak had kept the previous record, 36,738, standing for two months."

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Thursday are here. Dr. Donnie prescribes PhucPsyence: "The White House press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, reiterated President Trump's view that schools must open in the fall. 'When he says open,' she said, 'he means open and full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school. The science should not stand in the way of this.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

The Man with No Plan. Philip Rucker, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Trump has vowed that the nation's schools must reopen for the fall semester, but neither he nor his administration has detailed a plan for how to do so safely. Trump has boasted that the United States leads the world in coronavirus testing, yet he has declined to produce a national testing plan, and in many communities tests can take a week or longer to process, rendering their results all but useless in slowing the spread. And with case numbers spiking from coast..., Trump's most clearly articulated plan to end the covid-19 pandemic is to predict the virus will 'just disappear' and to bank on a vaccine being ready 'very, very soon.'... There is no cohesive national strategy, apart from unenforced federal health guidelines. Instead, the administration is offering a patchwork of solutions, often in reaction to outbreaks after they occur. Although Trump and his team declare sweeping objectives..., they have largely shirked responsibility for developing and executing plans to achieve them, putting the onus instead on state and local authorities." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

John Bresnahan & Jake Sherman of Politico: "... Donald Trump has signaled to Hill Republicans that he will not sign a new coronavirus stimulus package without the inclusion of a payroll tax cut, according to three sources close to the issue.... The president has been fixated on a payroll tax cut for months, even though it has fallen on deaf ears on Capitol Hill -- Senate Republicans and House Democrats don't care for the proposal, and have resoundingly rejected it." Mrs. McC: Not only would a payroll tax cut further explode the deficit, it obviously does nothing for people who have been laid off because of business shutdowns forced by the coronavirus. (Also linked yesterday.)

Gary Langer of ABC News: "With COVID-19 cases soaring nationally, Americans by nearly a two to one margin distrust what ... Donald Trump says about the pandemic, and six in 10 in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll disapprove of how he's handling it, up steeply since the early days of the outbreak. Just 38% in the national survey now approve of Trump's response, down from 46% in late May.... There's also a disconnect in terms of priorities, with Americans, by 63-33%, saying it's more important to control the spread of the virus than to restart the economy, a goal Trump has stressed.... Concern about catching the disease, moreover, remains persistently high. Sixty-six percent are very or somewhat worried that they or someone in their immediate family might become infected, and an additional 5% of Americans now say this already has happened." Mrs. McC: The amazing part is the huge 38% dingbat club that trusts a guy who suggested taking shots of bleach was a cure for the virus.

Lena Sun & Amy Goldstein of the Washington Post: "On the eve of a new coronavirus reporting system this week, data disappeared from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website as hospitals began filing information to a private contractor or their states instead. A day later, an outcry -- including from other federal health officials -- prompted the Trump administration to reinstate that dashboard and another daily CDC report on the pandemic. And on Thursday, the nation's governors joined the chorus of objections over the abruptness of the change to the reporting protocols for hospitals, asking the administration to delay the shift for 30 days. In a statement, the National Governors Association said hospitals need the time to learn a new system, as they continue to deal with this pandemic. The governors also urged the administration to keep the information publicly available." CDC officials made the decision to take down the data dashboard. The article is free to nonsubscribers. A Politico story is here.

** White House Hides Bad News. Liz Whyte of the Center for Public Integrity: "A document prepared for the White House Coronavirus Task Force but not publicized suggests more than a dozen states should revert to more stringent protective measures, limiting social gatherings to 10 people or fewer, closing bars and gyms and asking residents to wear masks at all times. The document, dated July 14 and obtained by the Center for Public Integrity, says 18 states are in the 'red zone' for COVID-19 cases, meaning they had more than 100 new cases per 100,000 population last week. Eleven states are in the 'red zone' for test positivity, meaning more than 10 percent of diagnostic test results came back positive.... For instance, the document recommends that Georgia, in the red zone for both cases and test positivity, 'mandate statewide wearing of cloth face coverings outside the home.' But Gov. Brian Kemp signed an order Wednesday banning localities from requiring masks.' [More on Kemp linked below.] The 18 states that are included in the red zone for cases in the document are: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Utah. The 11 states that are in the red zone for test positivity are Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, South Carolina, Texas and Washington."

Nathaniel Weixel of The Hill: "Top Trump administration officials are preparing guidance that will recommend people who test positive for COVID-19 do not need to get retested to prove they no longer have the disease. The move, previewed in a call with reporters by the administration's testing coordinator Brett Giroir, comes as the U.S. testing system faces severe strains and a national backlog of results.... Giroir said the guidance, which will be released in the coming days, will apply to people who are isolating at home after testing positive." --s

Trump's "Medical Experts" "Fact-Check" Fauci:

Morgan Chalfant of The Hill: "White House chief of staff Mark Meadows said on Thursday that Anthony Fauci was wrong to liken the coronavirus to the 1918 flu pandemic, calling his remarks 'false' and 'irresponsible.' Meadows made the comments on Fox News after rebuking White House trade adviser Peter Navarro's decision to pen an op-ed criticizing Fauci, the top U.S. infectious disease expert, which the chief of staff said was 'not appropriate.' Meadows went on to argue that not everything that Fauci says is correct." --s ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: It's great for Meadows to share his medical expertise with Foxbots. But, gosh, it turns out Meadows does not have a background in the study of infectious diseases. Why, he's not even a doctor or scientist. In fact, he does not have so much as a bachelor's degree, although he lied about that in official documents until December 2018, when reporters at the Tampa Bay Times noticed Meadows had quietly changed his Wikipedia page to reflect that he had only a two-year degree (A.A.) just as he was being vetted for an administration job. But, hey, thanks, Mark, for correcting Dr. Fauci. ~~~

Joe Concha of The Hill: "Former game show host Chuck Woolery announced Wednesday his son has tested positive for COVID-19, just days after Woolery accused medical professionals and Democrats of lying about the virus in an effort to hurt the economy and President Trump's reelection chances.... The message comes after Woolery tweeted Monday denouncing 'outrageous lies' being told about the coronavirus, comments that Trump retweeted to his more than 83 million followers.... Woolery ... has since deleted his Twitter account[.]" --s ~~~

~~~ At least Peter Navarro does have a doctorate, albeit in economics. ~~~

~~~ Jeremy Barr of the Washington Post: "Facing intense criticism on social media, USA Today has admitted errors in an opinion piece written by a White House official that attacked Anthony S. Fauci..., saying in a post-publication note attached to the piece that it 'did not meet USA Today's fact-checking standards.' Published online Tuesday evening and in print on Wednesday, the opinion piece was authored by Peter Navarro, who heads the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, and was paired with the provocative headline: 'Anthony Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on.' On Wednesday evening, editorial page editor Bill Sternberg added a note that both explained the piece's origins as well as its mistakes. 'Navarro's response echoed comments made to other news outlets in recent days,' he wrote, alluding to talking points critical of Fauci circulated by White House aides. 'We felt it was newsworthy because it expanded on those comments, put an on-the-record name to the attacks on Fauci, and contradicted White House denials of an anti-Fauci campaign.'... As part of the publication's response to the backlash that stemmed from publication of the piece, USA Today also published a 'fact check' piece on Wednesday night that concluded that 'Peter Navarro's claims about Dr. Anthony Fauci are misleading, lack context.'" (Also linked yesterday.) An AP story is here.

Noah Weiland of the New York Times: "The scientist leading the Trump administration's coronavirus vaccine program will be allowed to remain a government contractor, a decision that permits him to avoid ethics disclosures required of federal employees and maintain his investments in pharmaceutical companies. Two prominent watchdog groups as well as some Democrats in Congress had called for the Department of Health and Human Services to require that the scientist, Dr. Moncef Slaoui, a venture capitalist and a former executive at the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, fall under the same ethics rules as federal employees. The office of the inspector general at H.H.S. responded this week that it could not require such a shift, citing the unusual role that Dr.Slaoui was playing in the administration amid the pandemic." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Common Dreams via RawStory: "Ethics watchdogs on Wednesday slammed a ruling by the Health and Human Services Department's inspector general, who decided this week that Moncef Slaoui, a former pharmaceutical executive now heading the Trump administration's coronavirus vaccine task force, does not have to disclose or divest his investments in the industry. As the co-director of Operation Warp Speed, a public-private partnership aimed at finding a vaccine for Covid-19 by the end of 2020, Slaoui is in the position to award contracts to pharmaceutical companies researching potential vaccines and treatments." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Yeganeh Torbati of Propublica: "White House officials have pushed the U.S. Agency for International Development to purchase thousands of [ventilators] from U.S. companies and donate them abroad.... But the effort has been marked by dysfunction, with little clarity on how countries are chosen or how the ventilators are allocated. A USAID memo seen by ProPublica shows equipment donated to wealthy nations that typically do not get foreign aid, such as NATO countries, and to a few locations ill-equipped to use devices that require round-the-clock staffing and regular maintenance.... But public health experts said that without carefully assessing each country's health care expertise -- and following through to ensure hospitals can keep the machines running -- the donations could go to waste or even risk patients' lives." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Jim Morelli of Boston 25 News: "COVID-19 can seem an indiscriminate killer, but a new study out of Brigham and Women's Hospital suggests several commonalities with its victims.... [T]he study found at least 15% of every age group -- including young adults -- did not survive the disease.... [T]he study found [people with] high rates of obesity ... raises the risk of death from COVID-19.... Other independent risk factors for death from COVID-19 include being male and having coronary artery disease or an active case of cancer. Two striking findings from the study: First, while African-Americans seemed to be admitted to hospitals and ICUs more frequently, they did not die from COVID-19 in disproportionate numbers.... Second, patients admitted to hospitals with fewer ICU beds to begin with had a much poorer prognosis than those treated in hospitals with large numbers of such beds." --s

Arizona, et al. Liz Essley Whyte of the Arizona Republic: "A document prepared for the White House Coronavirus Task Force but not publicized suggests more than a dozen states, including Arizona, should revert to more stringent protective measures, limiting social gatherings to 10 people or fewer, closing bars and gyms and asking residents to wear masks at all times.... The document, dated July 14 and obtained by the Center for Public Integrity, says 18 states are in the 'red zone' for COVID-19 cases, meaning they had more than 100 new cases per 100,000 population last week. Eleven states are in the 'red zone' for test positivity, meaning more than 10 percent of diagnostic test results came back positive." --s

Florida. Coronavirus Shuts Down Coronavirus Ops Center. Isaac Stanley-Becker of the Washington Post: "The coronavirus thrashing Florida has penetrated the state's emergency operations center, a clearinghouse for disaster-related information and a command center of sorts for the pandemic response. A new set of cases caused the center, located in Tallahassee, to shut down Thursday as staff shifted to remote work. One official with knowledge of the events, who spoke on the condition of anonymity..., said 13 people working at the center had tested positive for the novel coronavirus and that the office would be closed at least until Monday. Staff were in the process of clearing out essential equipment." Mrs. McC: How is that a coronavirus "command center" didn't plan for its employees contracting the coronavirus? ~~~

~~~ Chuck Weber of 12 News (Florida): "As local leaders debate the best way to reopen our schools, there's conflicting information about the actual COVID-19 health risks for kids. Palm Beach County School Board members were set to vote Wednesday afternoon on a reopening plan to submit to the state for approval. Last week, board members backed starting with virtual or distance learning when classes begin Aug. 10. But Gov. Ron DeSantis has repeatedly said it's safe to send kids to school and this month.... On Tuesday, Dr. Alina Alonso, the state health department director in Palm Beach County, brought up the positivity test rate among children [which] in the past week ... increased from 29 to above 33 percent. 'That literally means that a third of the age under 18 that we test are positive,' said Alonso, who also, for the second week in a row, mentioned lung damage showing up even in children who are asymptomatic." --s

Georgia. Veronica Stracqualursi & Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced Thursday he is suing Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms over the city's mask mandate, claiming the measure violates his emergency orders.... The lawsuit marks a stunning escalation in the brewing feud between Kemp and Bottoms after the Atlanta mayor introduced her mandatory mask ordinance. Under her order, not wearing a mask within Atlanta's city limits was punishable by a fine and even up to six months in jail.... The lawsuit also comes just one day after Kemp suspended all local government mask mandates despite the rise in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations in his state....Kemp's executive order voids masks mandates imposed by some local governments as Covid-19 cases tick up in cities across the state, already claiming over 3,000 lives. Even as Kemp has been resistant to a statewide mask mandate for Georgia, other Republican governors are now requiring face coverings in their states." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Worth remembering that Kemp is the genius who said in early April that he had had no idea that asymptomatic people could transmit the coronavirus. Newsweek: "Kemp's remarks prompted shocked reactions on Twitter, with Shannon Watts, the founder of Moms Demand Action, noting: 'In a bizarre turn of events, information the rest of the nation had in January didn't reach Georgia Governor Brian Kemp until April.'" Rather than suing Mayor Bottoms, Kemp should be jailed for felony stupid.

Alexander Smith of NBC News: "Hackers from Russia's intelligence services have been attempting to steal information related to the development of a COVID-19 vaccine from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, British officials said Thursday. The attacks have been carried out by a group called "APT29, also known as 'the Dukes' or 'Cozy Bear, which has been been using malware to target various organizations across the three countries, the United Kingdom's National Cyber Security Centre said in a statement. The United States' National Security Agency and Canada's Communications Security Establishment both agree with the assessment, the British officials said." Mrs. McC: IOW, another Russian attack on the U.S. & our allies that Trump will ignore. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update: The Washington Post's report is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Sometimes a Great Moment. Katie Kindelan of ABC News: "The veteran known as Captain Tom who raised tens of millions of dollars for the British National Health Service during the coronavirus pandemic will receive a knighthood from Queen Elizabeth. Captain Sir Thomas Moore will receive the honor during an investiture ceremony on Friday at Windsor Castle. The investiture will be the first that the 94-year-old queen has taken part in since she began following strict stay-at-home orders in March during the pandemic.... Moore originally aimed to raise $1,000 for charity by walking laps in his garden while under lockdown in Buckinghamshire, England. He hoped to complete 100 laps before he turned 100 in late April. Moore's online campaign exploded and by the time he reached his 100th birthday on April 30, the World War II veteran had raised tens of millions of dollars. Moore also received a promotion from Queen Elizabeth to the rank of colonel and a special flyover to commemorate his achievements."

Now, here's a drug that has passed its field tests and is safe for men & women of all ages. Dr. Hattie prescribes:

Finally a job @IvankaTrump is qualified for. pic.twitter.com/dHMEJzB8lL

— Matt Ortega (@MattOrtega) July 15, 2020

~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: Went to the freezer yesterday to find a delicious lunch, and there it was: Si es "Smart Ones" tiene que ser bueno: ~~~

~~~ Anonymous has a great comment in today's thread on Ted Cruz's obvious lie defending free speech & beans: "... My grandparents ate Goya black beans twice a day for nearly 90 years. And now the Left is trying to cancel Hispanic culture and silence free speech. The link Anonymous provides addresses much more than Ted's mythical math. For instance, Susie Meister: "What if, and I'm just spitballing here, Ted Cruz cared about the kids in cages at the border as much as he cares about beans?" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Here's how Republican political analysis works: If Joe Biden says, "Nice day!" he is finally admitting that climate change is a hoax. If Donald Trump says, "Nice day!" he has brought in the sunshine and saved the world from darkness. It's very nuanced.

Ha! Annals of Journalism, Ctd. Cavuto Gave Foxbots an Econ Lesson. Aidan McLaughlin of Mediaite: "Fox News host Neil Cavuto cut away from a speech by ... Donald Trump on deregulation to fact-check his claims regarding the economy of his predecessor. Trump went after the regulations put in place by former President Barack Obama following the 2008 financial crisis -- calling them 'job destroying regulations' -- in his speech from the Rose Garden on Thursday.... Cavuto said ... Trump had 'mischaracterized the regulations that were added under Barack Obama -- they were largely financial related.... You might recall we had this little thing called the financial meltdown,' Cavuto explained, 'and much of those regulations were geared to preventing banks from ever investing in things like risky mortgage securities, pooling them, selling them off.' The Fox News anchor also rejected Trump's premise that those financial regulations yielded devastating results. 'The unemployment rate did, under Barack Obama, go down from a high of 10% to around 4.7%. President Trump, of course, sent that even lower, eventually getting us down to a 3.5% unemployment rate.... 'It was not a disaster under Barack Obama,' Cavuto said. 'Not only did the Dow essentially triple during his tenure, but... those companies did very well. Americans did very, very well....'"

Oliver Darcy of CNN: "Mary Trump's tell-all book had sold a staggering 950,000 copies by the end of its first day on sale, publisher Simon & Schuster said Thursday. That figure, which included pre-sales, as well as e-books and audiobooks, is a new record for Simon & Schuster, the company said. The book ... went on sale Tuesday and portrays President Trump in an unflattering light."

When Crazy Conspiracy Theorists Conspire. Timothy Johnson of Mediaite: "Roger Stone signed a document to accept [Donald Trump's] commutation of his prison sentence during a broadcast of far-right conspiracy theory program The Alex Jones Show[, starring, of course, Alex Jones].... During his appearance, Stone also thanked several conservative media figures for cheerleading his commutation, which included Alex Jones ('who never abandoned me')."

It's About Time. Chris Walker of Truthout: "The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), a nonprofit civil rights organization..., added a new entry to its database of extremists: White House senior adviser Stephen Miller. Miller was added to the organization's website on Wednesday, with the SPLC noting that ... Donald Trump's trusted confidante 'is credited with shaping the racist and draconian immigration policies of President Trump,' including the zero-tolerance policy that led to thousands of children being separated from their families. Miller also shaped the White House's early Muslim ban, pushed for the president to attempt to end the popular ... DACA program, and advised moves to halt the issuance of green cards for immigrants using the coronavirus pandemic as a means to do so, SPLC said." Mrs. McC: Why isn't the Extremist-in-Chief Donald Trump on the list? Miller may have instigated some of Trump's "racist and draconian" policies, but Trump -- at the very least -- embraced and signed off on them.

Carol Morello of the Washington Post: "Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday that the American way of life and its founding principles are 'under attack,' focusing his criticism on voices in the mainstream news media and protesters who have torn down statues of historical figures. Speaking in Philadelphia at the National Constitution Center..., Pompeo said the events roiling the United States today are antithetical to the nation's ideals. 'And yet today, the very core of what it means to be an American, indeed the American way of life itself, is under attack,' he said. 'Instead of seeking to improve America, leading voices promulgate hatred of our founding principles.'" Mrs. McC: If Mike & his boss are "leading voices," I he's right. (Also linked yesterday.)

Sarah Lynch of Reuters: "U.S. Attorney General William Barr installed a new interim U.S. attorney in the Northern District of Alabama on Thursday, the latest appointee to come out of the Justice Department in Washington to serve in an acting capacity as a top federal prosecutor. Prim Escalona, the department's principal deputy assistant attorney general for the Office of Legislative Affairs, will take over from Jay Towns, who resigned on Wednesday to take a job with a defense contractor. A Justice Department spokesman did not have any immediate comment on why Barr tapped Escalona, who does not appear to have a background prosecuting criminal cases based on her LinkedIn profile.... Separately, Barr also recently appointed Deputy Associate Attorney General Stephen Cox as the top prosecutor in the Eastern District of Texas." --s

** Oregon. Jonathan Levinson & Conrad Wilson of Oregon Public Broadcasting: "Federal law enforcement officers have been using unmarked vehicles to drive around downtown Portland and detain protesters since at least July 14. Personal accounts and multiple videos posted online show the officers driving up to people, detaining individuals with no explanation of why they are being arrested, and driving off. The tactic appears to be another escalation in federal force deployed on Portland city streets, as federal officials and ... Donald Trump have said they plan to 'quell' nightly protests.... [I]nterviews conducted by OPB show officers are also detaining people on Portland streets who aren't near federal property, nor is it clear that all of the people being arrested have engaged in criminal activity." --s ~~~

~~~ Samantha Vinograd in a CNN opinion piece (June 7th): "In Washington, DC, alone, there has been a dizzying array of security personnel deployed in the last few days. From members of the military to DC police to the US Bureau of Prisons, the streets have become an alphabet soup of acronyms when it comes to law enforcement and security personnel, all designated -- by various levels of government -- to seemingly promote safety. But, as Americans countrywide exercise their constitutional right to protest peacefully, unnecessary assaults on democratic freedoms and civil liberties have proliferated.... Unmarked officers and 'secret police' have been used in authoritarian crackdowns throughout history. We used to refer to Russian President Vladimir Putin's unidentified proxies during his annexation of Crimea as 'little green men' for wearing unmarked green uniforms. Unattributable shows of force just shouldn't happen in American democracy. They're dangerous on many levels both in the near and longer term." --s

Dan Diamond & Adam Cancryn of Politico: "Congressional Democrats on Thursday condemned Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma after a watchdog report found she mishandled millions of dollars in government contracts, with some lawmakers renewing or issuing new calls for ... Donald Trump to replace his controversial Medicare chief.... In a joint release, the chairs of the House Oversight and Energy and Commerce committees and the top Democrats on the Senate HELP and Finance committees ... also warned that their own year-long investigation -- which drew on 'tens of thousands of pages of documents' provided by contractors and the health department -- would contain further information about Verma's spending and decisions.”

This is another excerpt from the Business Insider piece linked yesterday that should be highlighted. We are all less safe: ~~~

~~~ "[A] NATO military intelligence official who regularly deals with Russian intelligence matters confirmed the nature of Russia's activity. He said NATO had limited some parts of its relationship with the US because of its closeness to Russia. Specifically some worried that US officials would send them its intelligence." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Elections 2020

Jeffrey Jones of Gallup: "Since January, Americans' party preferences have shifted dramatically in the Democratic Party's direction. What had been a two-percentage-point Republican advantage in U.S. party identification and leaning has become an 11-point Democratic advantage, with more of that movement reflecting a loss in Republican identification and leaning (down eight points) than a gain in Democratic identification and leaning (up five points).... Currently, half of U.S. adults identify as Democrats (32%) or are independents who lean toward the Democratic Party (18%). Meanwhile, 39% identify as Republicans (26%) or are Republican leaners (13%)." --s

Elena Schneider of Politico: "Joe Biden has nearly closed the once-yawning cash gap between him and ... Donald Trump, with big donors flooding his campaign and the Democratic National Committee with money in recent months. Trump and the Republican National Committee have spent years building a formidable war chest, starting soon after he was elected and continuing as Democrats burned money in their own primary in 2019 and early 2020. The Trump campaign and its affiliated groups closed out June with $295 million in the bank. But Biden and the DNC, which outraised Trump and the RNC for two consecutive months, has rapidly cut down that advantage to just $53 million, according to Biden's campaign manager, Jen O'Malley Dillon."

Liar-in-Chief Tries out New Lies about Biden. Katie Glueck, et al., of the New York Times: "Facing weak poll numbers and criticism for failing to offer a second-term agenda or a cohesive case against Mr. Biden, the president is accelerating his attacks on his Democratic opponent -- a sign of nervousness for any incumbent.... He has shaken up his campaign staff and intensified a tear-down operation aimed at Mr. Biden with a dizzying barrage of attacks, highlighted by dark, and at times misleading, television ads. Deprived of his favored forum of raucous campaign rallies because of the coronavirus pandemic, Mr. Trump has road-tested his messages in the Rose Garden, at a staid appearance in Atlanta to announce rollbacks of environmental regulations and on Twitter, supplying an onslaught of scattershot and sometimes contradictory criticisms of the former vice president.... The president's lack of discipline is a caution against any Republican hopes that this might be the start of a new chapter."

Justine Coleman & Jonathan Easley of the Hill: "Republicans announced Thursday they will scale back the Republican National Convention in August as coronavirus cases rise in Florida, where President Trump is expected to deliver a speech accepting his party's nomination for reelection. Ronna Romney McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee (RNC), informed members of the decision in a letter on Thursday that blamed the pandemic for the changes. The letter states that admittance to the convention in Jacksonville, Fla., will be limited only to regular delegates for the first three days, amounting to a crowd of about 2,500 people. Trump shifted the site of the celebration from North Carolina to Florida when it appeared the Jacksonville site might allow for large gatherings.... The official business for the convention will still take place in Charlotte, [North Carolina,] but the four-day celebration has been moved to Jacksonville." (Also linked yesterday.)

Maggie Miller of The Hill: "Secretary of StateMike Pompeo on Wednesday expressed confidence that other countries, including potentially Russia and China, would attempt to interfere in the 2020 U.S. elections. 'Yes, I am confident that many countries will do their level best to have an impact on our election,' Pompeo said during a virtual event hosted by The Hill on the future of national security." --s

** Supremes Disenfranchise Florida's Ex-Felons. Gary Fineout of Politico: "In a blow to voting rights that could have consequences for the presidential election, the U.S. Supreme Court let stand a Florida law restricting felon voting rights. The result is that hundreds of thousands of people with past felony convictions in the battleground state likely will be ineligible to vote in the August state primaries and, possibly, the November presidential election.... The high court on Thursday did not explain its decision. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg..., dissented. In a stinging rebuke, Justice Sotomayor said that 'this court's inaction continues a trend of condoning disenfranchisement.'... A study by University of Florida political professor Daniel Smith found that nearly 775,000 people with felony convictions have some sort of outstanding legal financial obligation.... Now the case will return to the appeals court, which is scheduled to hold a hearing Aug. 18, the same day as Florida's primary." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Amy Gardner & Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: "The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Thursday to overturn a federal appeals court's decision that blocked some Florida felons' eligibility to participate in elections -- a major blow to efforts to restore voting rights to as many as 1.4 million people in the battleground state. The decision lets stand a temporary halt by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit of a judge's order that had cleared the way for hundreds of thousands of felons in the state to register to vote." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Mark Stern of Slate Says It Best: "The Supreme Court all but guaranteed that nearly 1 million Floridians will be unable to vote in the 2020 election because of unpaid court debts in a shattering order handed down on Thursday. Its decision will throw Florida's voter registration into chaos, placing a huge number of would-be voters in legal limbo and even opening them up to prosecution for casting a ballot. The justices have effectively permitted Florida Republicans to impose a poll tax in November."

Capitalism Is Awesome, Ctd. Ryan McCarthy of Propublica: "[A]n analysis by ProPublica and First Draft, a global nonprofit that researches misinformation, shows that Facebook is rife with false or misleading claims about voting, particularly regarding voting by mail.... Many of these falsehoods appear to violate Facebook's standards yet have not been taken down or labeled as inaccurate. Some of them, generalizing from one or two cases, portrayed people of color as the face of voter fraud.... The false claims, including conspiracy theories about stolen elections or outright misrepresentations about voting by mail by Trump and prominent conservative outlets, are often among the most popular posts about voting on Facebook[.]" --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Great. False and racist, too. Thanks, Zuck!

Michigan Congressional Race. Quint Forgey of Politico: "Rep. Justin Amash, the Libertarian Michigan congressman who abandoned the Republican Party after calling for ... Donald Trump's impeachment, appeared to confirm reports Thursday that he would not seek reelection to Congress. 'I love representing our community in Congress. I always will,' Amash wrote on Twitter. 'This is my choice, but I'm still going to miss it. Thank you for your trust.'... Amash's apparent acknowledgment that he will not seek reelection in November opens up a Republican-leaning district that both parties were prepared to contest, though Democrats would have had better odds with Amash in the race."

Racist ... and Sexist, Too. Will Hobson & Liz Clarke of the Washington Post: Fifteen "former female [Washington NFL team] employees ... told The Washington Post they were sexually harassed during their time at the club.... [Fourteen] women spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing a fear of litigation because some signed nondisclosure agreements with the team that threaten legal retribution if they speak negatively about the club. [Only one, Emily Applegate, would speak on the record.] The team declined a request from The Post to release former female employees from these agreements so they could speak on the record without fear of legal reprisal.... Team owner Daniel Snyder declined several requests for an interview. Over the past week, as The Post presented detailed allegations and findings to the club, three team employees accused of improper behavior abruptly departed, including Larry Michael, the club's longtime radio voice, and Alex Santos, the team's director of pro personnel. In a statement, the team said it had hired D.C. attorney Beth Wilkinson and her firm, Wilkinson Walsh, 'to conduct a thorough independent review of this entire matter and help the team set new employee standards for the future.'"

Way Beyond the Beltway

James Gallagher of BBC: "The world is ill-prepared for the global crash in children being born which is set to have a 'jaw-dropping' impact on societies, say researchers. Falling fertility rates mean nearly every country could have shrinking populations by the end of the century. And 23 nations - including Spain and Japan - are expected to see their populations halve by 2100. Countries will also age dramatically, with as many people turning 80 as there are being born.... It has nothing to do with sperm counts or the usual things that come to mind when discussing fertility. Instead it is being driven by more women in education and work, as well as greater access to contraception, leading to women choosing to have fewer children." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Yemen/World. Patrick Wintour of the Guardian: "Time is running out to prevent a disastrous oil spill from a deteriorating tanker loaded with 1.1m barrels of crude that is moored off the coast of Yemen, the UN's environment chief has said. Inger Andersen told the UN security council that a spill from the FSO Safer, which has had no maintenance for more than five years, would wreck ecosystems and livelihoods for decades.... Houthi rebels who control the area where the ship is moored have insisted on setting conditions linked to Yemen's six-year civil war before allowing UN inspectors onboard.... The Safer contains 1,148,000 barrels of light crude oil, meaning that if a full spillage occurred the release would be four times larger than the Exxon Valdez disaster off Alaska in 1989, says the UN." --s

News Ledes

AP: "The Rev. C.T. Vivian, an early and key adviser to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. who organized pivotal campaigns in the civil rights movement and spent decades advocating for justice and equality, died Friday at the age of 95. Vivian began staging sit-ins against segregation in Peoria, Illinois, in the 1940s -- a dozen years before lunch-counter protests by college students made national news. He met King soon after the budding civil rights leader's leadership of the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott, and helped translate ideas into action by organizing the Freedom Rides that eventually forced federal intervention across the South.... President Barack Obama honored Vivian with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2013, saying that 'time and again, Reverend Vivian was among the first to be in the action: in 1947, joining a sit-in to integrate an Illinois restaurant; one of the first Freedom Riders; in Selma, on the courthouse steps to register blacks to vote, for which he was beaten, bloodied and jailed.'"

The Wrap: "The Daily Beast foreign editor Chris Dickey died unexpectedly in Paris Thursday at the age of 68. The cause of death was heart failure, according to the Daily Beast's editor in chief Noah Shachtman. The outlet posted a tribute to Dickey's decades-long career, which included stints at the Washington Post and Newsweek, and praised his personality."

The Commentariat -- July 16, 2020

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Thursday are here. Dr. Donnie prescribes PhucPsyence: "The White House press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, reiterated President Trump's view that schools must open in the fall. 'When he says open,' she said, 'he means open and full, kids being able to attend each and every day at their school. The science should not stand in the way of this.'"

The Man with No Plan. Philip Rucker, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Trump has vowed that the nation's schools must reopen for the fall semester, but neither he nor his administration has detailed a plan for how to do so safely. Trump has boasted that the United States leads the world in coronavirus testing, yet he has declined to produce a national testing plan, and in many communities tests can take a week or longer to process, rendering their results all but useless in slowing the spread. And with case numbers spiking from coast..., Trump's most clearly articulated plan to end the covid-19 pandemic is to predict the virus will 'just disappear' and to bank on a vaccine being ready 'very, very soon.'... There is no cohesive national strategy, apart from unenforced federal health guidelines. Instead, the administration is offering a patchwork of solutions, often in reaction to outbreaks after they occur. Although Trump and his team declare sweeping objectives..., they have largely shirked responsibility for developing and executing plans to achieve them, putting the onus instead on state and local authorities."

John Bresnahan & Jake Sherman of Politico: "... Donald Trump has signaled to Hill Republicans that he will not sign a new coronavirus stimulus package without the inclusion of a payroll tax cut, according to three sources close to the issue.... The president has been fixated on a payroll tax cut for months, even though it has fallen on deaf ears on Capitol Hill -- Senate Republicans and House Democrats don't care for the proposal, and have resoundingly rejected it." Mrs. McC: Not only would a payroll tax cut further explode the deficit, it obviously does nothing for people who have been laid off because of business shutdowns forced by the coronavirus.

Carol Morello of the Washington Post: “Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Thursday that the American way of life and its founding principles are 'under attack,' focusing his criticism on voices in the mainstream news media and protesters who have torn down statues of historical figures. Speaking in Philadelphia at the National Constitution Center..., Pompeo said the events roiling the United States today are antithetical to the nation's ideals. 'And yet today, the very core of what it means to be an American, indeed the American way of life itself, is under attack,' he said. 'Instead of seeking to improve America, leading voices promulgate hatred of our founding principles.'" Mrs. McC: If Mike & his boss are "leading voices," I guess he's right.

** Supremes Disenfranchise Florida's Ex-Felons. Gary Fineout of Politico: "In a blow to voting rights that could have consequences for the presidential election, the U.S. Supreme Court let stand a Florida law restricting felon voting rights. The result is that hundreds of thousands of people with past felony convictions in the battleground state likely will be ineligible to vote in the August state primaries and, possibly, the November presidential election.... The high court on Thursday did not explain its decision. Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg..., dissented. In a stinging rebuke, Justice Sotomayor said that 'this court's inaction continues a trend of condoning disenfranchisement.'... A study by University of Florida political professor Daniel Smith found that nearly 775,000 people with felony convictions have some sort of outstanding legal financial obligation.... Now the case will return to the appeals court, which is scheduled to hold a hearing Aug. 18, the same day as Florida's primary." ~~~

~~~ Amy Gardner & Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: "The U.S. Supreme Court declined on Thursday to overturn a federal appeals court's decision that blocked some Florida felons' eligibility to participate in elections -- a major blow to efforts to restore voting rights to as many as 1.4 million people in the battleground state. The decision lets stand a temporary halt by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit of a judge's order that had cleared the way for hundreds of thousands of felons in the state to register to vote."

Now, here's a drug that has passed its field tests and is safe for men & women of all ages. Dr. Hattie prescribes:

Mrs. McCrabbie: I see where USA Today is catching up with me & other critics: ~~~

~~~ Jeremy Barr of the Washington Post: "Facing intense criticism on social media, USA Today has admitted errors in an opinion piece written by a White House official that attacked Anthony S. Fauci..., saying in a post-publication note attached to the piece that it 'did not meet USA Today's fact-checking standards.' Published online Tuesday evening and in print on Wednesday, the opinion piece was authored by Peter Navarro, who heads the Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy, and was paired with the provocative headline: 'Anthony Fauci has been wrong about everything I have interacted with him on.' On Wednesday evening, editorial page editor Bill Sternberg added a note that both explained the piece's origins as well as its mistakes. 'Navarro's response echoed comments made to other news outlets in recent days,' he wrote, alluding to talking points critical of Fauci circulated by White House aides. 'We felt it was newsworthy because it expanded on those comments, put an on-the-record name to the attacks on Fauci, and contradicted White House denials of an anti-Fauci campaign.'... As part of the publication's response to the backlash that stemmed from publication of the piece, USA Today also published a 'fact check' piece on Wednesday night that concluded that 'Peter Navarro's claims about Dr. Anthony Fauci are misleading, lack context.'"

Finally a job @IvankaTrump is qualified for. pic.twitter.com/dHMEJzB8lL

— Matt Ortega (@MattOrtega) July 15, 2020

Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: Went to the freezer just now to find a delicious lunch, and there it was: Si es "Smart Ones" tiene que ser bueno: ~~~

~~~ Anonymous has a great comment in today's thread on Ted Cruz's obvious lie defending free speech & beans: "... My grandparents ate Goya black beans twice a day for nearly 90 years. And now the Left is trying to cancel Hispanic culture and silence free speech. The link Anonymous provides addresses much more than Ted's mythical math. For instance, Susie Meister: "What if, and I'm just spitballing here, Ted Cruz cared about the kids in cages at the border as much as he cares about beans?" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Here's how Republican political analysis works: If Joe Biden says, "Nice day!" he is finally admitting that climate change is a hoax. If Donald Trump says, "Nice day!" he has brought in the sunshine and saved the world from darkness. It's very nuanced.

Justine Coleman & Jonathan Easley of the Hill: "Republicans announced Thursday they will scale back the Republican National Convention in August as coronavirus cases rise in Florida, where President Trump is expected to deliver a speech accepting his party's nomination for reelection. Ronna Romney McDaniel, the chairwoman of the Republican National Committee (RNC), informed members of the decision in a letter on Thursday that blamed the pandemic for the changes. The letter states that admittance to the convention in Jacksonville, Fla., will be limited only to regular delegates for the first three days, amounting to a crowd of about 2,500 people. Trump shifted the site of the celebration from North Carolina to Florida when it appeared the Jacksonville site might allow for large gatherings.... The official business for the convention will still take place in Charlotte, [North Carolina,] but the four-day celebration has been moved to Jacksonville."

Alexander Smith of NBC News: "Hackers from Russia's intelligence services have been attempting to steal information related to the development of a COVID-19 vaccine from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, British officials said Thursday. The attacks have been carried out by a group called "APT29, also known as 'the Dukes' or 'Cozy Bear, which has been been using malware to target various organizations across the three countries, the United Kingdom's National Cyber Security Centre said in a statement. The United States' National Security Agency and Canada's Communications Security Establishment both agree with the assessment, the British officials said." Mrs. McC: IOW, another Russian attack on the U.S. & our allies that Trump will ignore. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: The Washington Post's report is here. ~~~

~~~ This is another excerpt from the Business Insider piece linked below that should be highlighted. We are all less safe: ~~~

~~~ "[A] NATO military intelligence official who regularly deals with Russian intelligence matters confirmed the nature of Russia's activity. He said NATO had limited some parts of its relationship with the US because of its closeness to Russia. Specifically some worried that US officials would send them its intelligence." --s

Noah Weiland of the New York Times: "The scientist leading the Trump administration's coronavirus vaccine program will be allowed to remain a government contractor, a decision that permits him to avoid ethics disclosures required of federal employees and maintain his investments in pharmaceutical companies. Two prominent watchdog groups as well as some Democrats in Congress had called for the Department of Health and Human Services to require that the scientist, Dr. Moncef Slaoui, a venture capitalist and a former executive at the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, fall under the same ethics rules as federal employees. The office of the inspector general at H.H.S. responded this week that it could not require such a shift, citing the unusual role that Dr. Slaoui was playing in the administration amid the pandemic." ~~~

~~~ Common Dreams via RawStory: "Ethics watchdogs on Wednesday slammed a ruling by the Health and Human Services Department's inspector general, who decided this week that Moncef Slaoui, a former pharmaceutical executive now heading the Trump administration's coronavirus vaccine task force, does not have to disclose or divest his investments in the industry. As the co-director of Operation Warp Speed, a public-private partnership aimed at finding a vaccine for Covid-19 by the end of 2020, Slaoui is in the position to award contracts to pharmaceutical companies researching potential vaccines and treatments." --s

Yeganeh Torbati of Propublica: "White House officials have pushed the U.S. Agency for International Development to purchase thousands of [ventilators] from U.S. companies and donate them abroad.... But the effort has been marked by dysfunction, with little clarity on how countries are chosen or how the ventilators are allocated. A USAID memo seen by ProPublica shows equipment donated to wealthy nations that typically do not get foreign aid, such as NATO countries, and to a few locations ill-equipped to use devices that require round-the-clock staffing and regular maintenance.... But public health experts said that without carefully assessing each country's health care expertise -- and following through to ensure hospitals can keep the machines running -- the donations could go to waste or even risk patients' lives." --s

Ryan McCarthy of Propublica: "[A]n analysis by ProPublica and First Draft, a global nonprofit that researches misinformation, shows that Facebook is rife with false or misleading claims about voting, particularly regarding voting by mail.... Many of these falsehoods appear to violate Facebook's standards yet have not been taken down or labeled as inaccurate. Some of them, generalizing from one or two cases, portrayed people of color as the face of voter fraud.... The false claims, including conspiracy theories about stolen elections or outright misrepresentations about voting by mail by Trump and prominent conservative outlets, are often among the most popular posts about voting on Facebook[.]" --s ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Great. False and racist, too. Thanks, Zuck!

James Gallagher of BBC: "The world is ill-prepared for the global crash in children being born which is set to have a 'jaw-dropping' impact on societies, say researchers. Falling fertility rates mean nearly every country could have shrinking populations by the end of the century. And 23 nations - including Spain and Japan - are expected to see their populations halve by 2100. Countries will also age dramatically, with as many people turning 80 as there are being born.... It has nothing to do with sperm counts or the usual things that come to mind when discussing fertility. Instead it is being driven by more women in education and work, as well as greater access to contraception, leading to women choosing to have fewer children." --s

~~~~~~~~~~

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

Fred Imbert of CNBC: "The number of Americans who filed for unemployment benefits rose more than expected last week as the country continues to grapple with the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. Initial weekly jobless claims came in at 1.3 million for the week ending July 11, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists polled by Dow Jones expected a print of 1.25 million. It was also the 16th straight week in which initial claims totaled at least 1 million. Continuing claims -- which refer to those receiving benefits for at least two straight weeks -- totaled 17.33 million for the week of July 4." ~~~

~~~ Reuters: "U.S. retail sales increased more than expected in June, but the budding economic recovery is being threatened by a resurgence in new Covid-19 infections and high unemployment. The Commerce Department said on Thursday retail sales rose 7.5% last month. That was on top of the 18.2% jump in May, which was the biggest gain since the government started tracking the series in 1992. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast retail sales advancing 5% in June."

The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Wednesday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Wednesday are here: "Sidelined by the White House and harshly criticized in an extraordinary op-ed from a top adviser to the Trump administration, Anthony S. Fauci -- the nation's top infectious-disease expert -- said in an interview with the Atlantic published Wednesday that the country needs to focus on a surging virus 'rather than these games people are playing.'"

Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "After several days spent weathering attacks from White House officials, Dr. Anthony S. Fauci hit back on Wednesday, calling recent efforts to discredit him 'bizarre' ... in an interview with The Atlantic published on Wednesday ... and a hindrance to the government's ability to communicate information about the coronavirus pandemic.... On Wednesday, Peter Navarro, Mr. Trump's top trade adviser, published a brazen op-ed article in USA Today describing Dr. Fauci as 'wrong about everything.' Over the weekend, another of Mr. Trump's top advisers shared a mocking cartoon that portrayed Dr. Fauci as a leaky faucet. Other White House officials have targeted Dr. Fauci by distributing opposition research-style documents to reporters that detail what they say are his mistakes. All the while, White House officials -- including the president and the press secretary -- assert in the face of the evidence that there is no concerted effort to attack Dr. Fauci...., but so far [they have] not attacked the substance of [Navarro's] piece." An ABC News story is here. ~~~

~~~ Quint Forgey of Politico has a related story here. ~~~

Ultimately, it hurts the president to do that. When the staff lets out something like that and the entire scientific and press community push back on it, it ultimately hurts the president. -- Anthony Fauci, in an Atlantic interview this week

~~~ Jill Colvin & Zeke Miller of the AP: "... a person familiar with the matter said Trump himself was amused by the spat, believing Navarro highlighted errors by Fauci and helped reduce his public stature, which has grated on some in the West Wing for months.... 'Peter Navarro's statement or op-ed, whatever you want to classify it as, was an action that is a violation of well-established protocols that was not supported overtly or covertly by anyone in the West Wing,' [chief-of-staff Mark] Meadows told reporters aboard Air Force One on Wednesday evening. His 'comments really just reflect Peter Navarro's personal thinking and not the thinking of the West Wing.'" ~~~

~~~ Brian Williams of MSNBC said the LA Times is reporting that a senior White House official said Navarro had Trump's permission to write the op-ed and encouraged him to do so. ~~~

~~~ Kadia Goba & Dan Vergano of BuzzFeed News: "... thousands of ... doctors [are] publicly defending Fauci. The Infectious Diseases Society of America released a statement Wednesday speaking on behalf of its 12,000 medical doctors, research scientists, and public health experts, saying they won't be 'sidelined' and calling the campaign to discredit Fauci 'disturbing.'... The American Society for Microbiology also wrote a letter Tuesday to Vice President Mike Pence expressing its support for Fauci and other health officials 'prioritizing science-based public health strategies to address the COVID-19 pandemic​.'... During an unrelated White House event on Wednesday..., Donald Trump skirted questions on whether he’s OK with Navarro's op-ed.... 'I get along very well with Dr. Fauci,' Trump said. When pressed on the question again, 'That's Peter Navarro, but I have a very good relationship with Dr. Fauci.' Later, the president told reporters that Navarro made a statement 'representing himself. He shouldn't be doing that.'" Mrs. McC: It's pretty impressive that even the nation's biggest bully has figured out he can't win by dissing Fauci. ~~~

~~~ Kevin Drum of Mother Jones debunks Peter Navarro's diatribe/op-ed against Anthony Fauci. Drum zeroes in on Navarro's "proofs" that Fauci got everything wrong: "... it turns out to be just the latest in an increasingly common conservative genre: a piece that links to articles that literally make the opposite of the point the author is claiming." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Gee, when the New York Times published a hateful, error-dotted op-ed by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), the newsroom revolted & the editorial page editor resigned. But when USA Today publishes a hateful, error-filled op-ed by a top administration official -- well, crickets.

~~~ Summer Concepcion of TPM: "... Mitch McConnell (R-KY) on Wednesday threw his support behind Dr. Anthony Fauci as the White House continues its efforts to discredit the top official in its coronavirus task force. When McConnell was asked during a press conference on Wednesday about his level of confidence in Fauci, after the Senate leader argued that Fauci has been the best source of advice since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, McConnell replied 'total.'" Mrs. McC: Obvious follow-up question: "What's you level of confidence in Donald Trump?" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Amy Goldstein & Lena Sun of the Washington Post: "State health leaders, public health experts and hospital officials warn that an abrupt change in how the Trump administration requires them to report coronavirus data will increase the burden on facilities already strained by the pandemic and could impede the distribution of critical medicines. The opposition came after the Department of Health and Human Services notified governors and hospital leaders this week that it was changing the protocol for sending the federal government daily information about coronavirus patients, supplies and bed capacity.... Officials also suggested that states might want to get the National Guard to assist hospitals -- an idea the industry has condemned." An AP report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: Also too, as Chris Hayes of MSNBC noted, the point person for disseminating information to the public is loudmouthed super-partisan Michael Caputo, a protégé of Roger Stone. Great! ~~~

The Trump Administration is going to have to give a full justification for this, because until they do, it's hard to see how this step won't further sideline public health experts and obscure the severity of this crisis. -- Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), in a tweet ~~~

~~~ Adriel Bettelheim of Politico: "An HHS-imposed change in how hospitals and states report coronavirus data to the government is drawing fierce criticism from public health groups and congressional Democrats concerned that the Trump administration could manipulate the numbers for political purposes.... A group of public health experts including former CDC Director Tom Frieden called the change unproductive, noting that Inadequate funding for health data at CDC and local agencies is already hindering a response to Covid-19. The experts said the new reporting system would be complicated to set up, adding that the administration hadn't consulted with state and local officials ahead of time." ~~~

~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Can't imagine why anyone thinks HHS would do a lousy job: ~~~

~~~ Dan Diamond & Adam Cancryn of Politico: "A top Trump administration health official violated federal contracting rules by steering millions of taxpayer dollars in contracts that ultimately benefited GOP-aligned communications consultants, according to an inspector general report set to be released today. The contracts, which were directed by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services chief Seema Verma, were only halted after a Politico investigation raised questions about their legality and the agency had paid out more than $5 million to the contractors.... The report paints a detailed portrait of Verma's use of federal contracts to install allies who managed high-priority projects and exercised broad authority within CMS, while circumventing the agency's career officials and funding projects that ethics experts have said wasted taxpayers' money."

Griff Witte of the Washington Post: "... masks on Wednesday moved ever closer to becoming a new national reality in America's pandemic-scarred life, with businesses, states and health experts preaching their promise as the country's last line of defense against a fast-growing viral threat. Even as the White House continued to resist pushing for a national mask mandate, evidence abounded that face coverings were becoming a de facto requirement -- and not only in big cities where they have been in widespread use for months. Alabama's governor, who leads one of the country's most conservative states, on Wednesday said people would be obligated to wear masks when leaving the house..., mean[ing] nearly half of all states now have a mandate.... Walmart Inc., issued the same requirement for shoppers in its stores.... 'Shopping in a store is a privilege, not a right,' said the National Retail Federation."

Uh, Not in Georgia. Jeremy Redmon, et al., of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: "Gov. Brian Kemp (R) on Wednesday extended Georgia's coronavirus restrictions while explicitly banning cities and counties from adopting rules requiring masks or other face coverings, a measure that could bolster the state's case in a possible legal battle ... against a string of cities that have defied Kemp's emergency order by requiring masks.... Kemp's executive order -- which was set to expire Wednesday evening -- still encourages, rather than requires, Georgians to wear masks in public. The governor has called such a requirement 'a bridge too far,' and his office has said local mandates are unenforceable.... The rate of new tests [in Georgia] that are positive for the disease is soaring...." Mrs. McC: Ali Velshi of MSNBC (I think it was) noted that when Kemp met Trump Wednesday, he donned a mask. Trump did not.

Florida. Skyler Swisher of the South Florida Sun Sentinel: "Nearly one-in-three children tested for the new coronavirus in Florida has been positive, and a South Florida health official is concerned the disease could cause lifelong damage even for children with mild illness. Dr. Alina Alonso, Palm Beach County's health department director, warned county commissioners Tuesday..., '[X-rays] are seeing there is damage to the lungs in these asymptomatic children.... We don't know how that is going to manifest a year from now or two years from now,' Alonso said.... Her comments stand in contrast to [not-a-doctor] Gov. Ron DeSantis' messaging that children are at low risk, and classrooms need to be reopened in the fall."

Oklahoma. KFOR-TV Oklahoma City: "One day after the Sooner State saw it's largest spike in COVID-19 cases, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt ... announced he was tested for COVID-19 on Tuesday and his results came back positive. He is currently quarantining at home." Mrs. McC: Oddly, that part about Stitt's testing positive is the last part of the story, at least as it's currently written. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Update. Nicholas Wu & Courtney Subramanian of USA Today: "Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt announced Wednesday he had tested positive for the coronavirus weeks after attending ... Donald Trump's rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where he sat, bare-faced, among top state officials in a crowd of thousands." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Barbara Hoberock of the Tulsa World: "Stitt said he was 'not thinking about a mask mandate at all.... I am just hesitant to mandate something that is problematic to enforce,' the governor said." ~~~

~~~ Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "The coronavirus pandemic has for the first time infected one of the nation's governors. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) says he was 'pretty shocked' to have that distinction. But Stitt has also been among the most cavalier about the threat posed by the virus. The most visible example of Stitt's attitude toward the virus came last month, when he encouraged President Trump to hold a rally in Tulsa even as health officials balked. Stitt then attended the rally while, like the vast majority of people there, declining to wear a mask. 'My response to those folks, the naysayers, is: When is the right time?' Stitt said to critics of the rally.... In March, Stitt ... tweeted a picture of him and his children in a crowded restaurant and commented, 'It's packed tonight!'... [Stitt ultimately bowed to pressure to declare a coronavirus state of emergency.] At the time, Oklahoma was one of just eight states -- all of them with GOP governors and also in the middle of the country -- who resisted the stricter stay-at-home or 'shelter-in-place' orders."

Maryland. Gov. Larry Hogan (R) in a Washington Post/Outlook opinion piece, trashes Donald Trump for his stubborn refusal to do anything to confront the coronavirus. Mrs. McC: Reading what Hogan & his wife Yumi went through to try to get testing supplies for Maryland, some of which has been reported previously, is maddening.

California. Rashaan Ayesh of Axios: "The 2021 Rose Parade on New Year's Day has been canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Pasadena Tournament of Roses Association announced Wednesday.... The last time the Rose Parade was canceled was in 1945 because of World War II."

** Tim Arango, et al., of the New York Times: "Almost from the moment George Floyd encountered the police on May 25, with a gun pointed at him, he appeared terrified and emotionally distraught, according to police camera footage that was newly made available for viewing Wednesday at a courthouse in downtown Minneapolis. Mr. Floyd was visibly shaken, with his head down, and crying, as if he were in the throes of a panic attack, as he put his hands on the steering wheel in response to a frantic order from an officer. He told the officers over and over that he was claustrophobic, as two officers struggled to push him to the back seat of a police vehicle. Throughout the video, he never appeared to present a physical threat to the officers, and even after he was handcuffed and searched for weapons, the officers seemed to be more concerned with controlling his body than saving his life, the footage showed. The video offers the fullest portrait yet of the tragic events around Mr. Floyd's killing.... The footage was made available for viewing Wednesday ... but was not allowed to be copied or recorded." ~~~

     ~~~ A Washington Post report is here. The Minneapolis Star Tribune's report is here.

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Based on reporters' accounts, it seems the police tortured Floyd before they murdered him. Allegedly.

Missouri. Night Rider in the White House. Meagan Flynn, et al., of the Washington Post: "The prosecutor investigating the St. Louis couple who aimed guns at protesters says she has received racist attacks and death threats that have worsened as President Trump has thrown his support behind the couple. 'This is a modern-day night ride, and everybody knows it,' St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner (D) said in an interview with The Washington Post, referring to the terroristic forays of the Ku Klux Klan into African American neighborhoods in the 19th and 20th centuries. 'And for a president to participate in it, in the larger context of racism and cronyism, is scary.'... Both the president and Republican governor [Mike Parson] have offered impassioned defenses of Mark and Patricia McCloskey, who went viral after brandishing guns at protesters on the private street outside their mansion."

** Mitch Prothero of Business Insider: "Russia routinely exploited a US policy of increased information sharing to target Chechen dissidents, according to three law-enforcement and intelligence officials in Europe. The practice emerged after the Trump administration backed a policy of sharing more secret information with Russia, in hope of strengthening relations. Sources told Insider Russia routinely sought information on its targets of choice -- dissidents who fled the rule of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. The US appears to have received little in return.... The officials Insider spoke with confirmed the existence of the modern-day US-Russian arrangement after a former US intelligence official described it on the JustSecurity blog." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

What's He Hiding? Ctd. Shayna Jacobs of the Washington Post: "President Trump intends to fight the Manhattan district attorney's effort to access his tax records after last week's defeat at the Supreme Court, and may argue now that attempts to subpoena his accounting firm are politically motivated, Trump's lawyers told a judge on Wednesday.... Lawyers for Cyrus Vance, Jr.'s office, which faces a looming statute-of-limitations deadline should he decide to pursue a felony case, said in Wednesday's joint filing that the district attorney could enforce the subpoena immediately but would give the president until July 27 to file his new claims before doing so."

After pimping Goya food products how long will it be until Ivanka is shilling out for automobiles and big box stores? -- Bobby Lee, in yesterday's Comments thread ~~~

~~~ Darlene Superville of the AP: "Ivanka Trump on Wednesday defended tweeting a photo of herself holding up a can of Goya beans to buck up a Hispanic-owned business that she says has been unfairly treated, arguing that she has 'every right' to publicly express her support. Government watchdogs countered that ... Ivanka Trump doesn't have the right to violate ethics rules that bar government officials from using their public office to endorse specific products or groups.... The White House would be responsible for disciplining Ivanka Trump for any ethics violation but chose not to in a similar case involving White House counselor Kellyanne Conway in 2017. White House chief of staff Mark Meadows told reporters accompanying the president to Atlanta on Wednesday that he doubted Ivanka Trump would face any repercussions." Mrs. McC: The screenshot of Ivanka's tweet, which accompanies the story, is a classic. Ivanka truly looks like a Latina hawking beans in a can. ~~~

~~~ Wait, Wait! It Gets Worse. (You Knew It Would.) Justin Wise of the Hill: "President Trump on Wednesday shared a photo on Instagram with several Goya Foods products as the White House doubled down on its public support of the company even as a similar tweet from Ivanka Trump raised concerns about the violation of ethics rules for public officials. The photo, taken from the Oval Office, was promoted on the president's Instagram account.... The White House strongly pushed back against the criticism Ivanka Trump faced, claiming the media and the 'cancel culture movement' was responsible." Mrs. McC: I'd like to see Joe & Jill in their kitchen whipping up some delicious Ortega chili bowls with a side of fat-free Ortega refried beans. ~~~

~~~ Jenna Grande of CREW: "President Trump's Chief of Staff Mark Meadows appears to have violated the Hatch Act twice during separate interviews with Fox News, according to a complaint sent today to the Office of Special Counsel by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). While appearing in his official position as White House Chief of Staff, Meadows advocated in both interviews for President Trump's reelection and against his 2020 opponent, Joe Biden, and in one he also endorsed the Republican candidate running for his former congressional seat.... 'It is alarming and disturbing to see the president's Chief of Staff so blatantly violate the law by using his official position for politics. As one of the highest ranking officials in the White House, he should know better,' said CREW Executive Director Noah Bookbinder.... The Hatch Act prohibits executive branch employees from 'us[ing their] official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with or affecting the result of an election.'"

All the Best People ... Leak. Dan Diamond, et al., of Politico: "In the middle of a devastating pandemic and a searing economic crisis, the White House has an urgent question for its colleagues across the administration: Are you loyal enough to ... Donald Trump? The White House's presidential personnel office is conducting one-on-one interviews with health officials and hundreds of other political appointees across federal agencies, an exercise some of the subjects have called 'loyalty tests' to root out threats of leaks and other potentially subversive acts just months before the presidential election, according to interviews with 15 current and former senior administration officials.... The reinterviewing exercise is being led by Johnny McEntee, a 30-year-old who's been a Trump aide since the 2016 campaign and was installed earlier this year as chief of the White House personnel office and is responsible for filling thousands or jobs across the federal agencies."

Elections 2020

Max Greenwood of the Hill: "Former Vice President Joe Biden has widened his lead over President Trump to 15 points in a new national Quinnipiac University poll. The poll released Wednesday shows Biden with 52 percent of the vote to Trump's 37 percent, the widest lead for the presumptive Democratic nominee recorded by a Quinnipiac survey to date. A similar poll from last month found Biden leading Trump by 8 points."

Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "President Trump is shaking up his re-election team with less than four months until November's vote, replacing his campaign manager, Brad Parscale, in an acknowledgment of the president's diminished standing in nearly all public and private polling since the spring. Mr. Parscale, who was named campaign manager unusually early, in February 2018, will step out of the job and Bill Stepien, currently the deputy campaign manager and a veteran political operative, will take over. Mr. Parscale will stay on with the campaign, becoming a senior adviser for data and digital operations.... Jared Kushner ... confirmed the moves Wednesday night.... Mr. Parscale has no background in politics, and he suffered something of a mortal wound in the role three weeks ago when a much-hyped rally in Tulsa, Okla., to 'reboot' Mr. Trump's campaign was sparsely attended." Mrs. McC: The problem could be the product, not the packager. Update: A Politico story is here.

Alabama. Amber Phillips of the Washington Post on the lessons Jeff Sessions' humiliation teach other elected Republicans. (Also linked yesterday.)

Texas. Annie Karni of the New York Times: "Dr. Ronny L. Jackson, the former White House physician with no political experience who ran a campaign based on his close relationship with President Trump, won a Republican runoff election for a House seat in Texas on Tuesday night, effectively stamping his ticket to Congress next year." Jackson, who ran in a crowded primary field, got a good deal of help from the Trump campaign. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ And Jackson Is Still the Great Doctor He Always Was. Quint Forgey of Politico: "Ronny Jackson ... said Wednesday that Americans should not be required to wear masks to slow the spread of the coronavirus. 'I think that wearing a mask is a personal choice, and I don't particularly want my government telling me that I have to wear a mask. And so I think that's a choice that I can make,' Jackson told 'Fox & Friends.' The remarks from Jackson, a retired Navy rear admiral who served as the personal doctor for Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump, not only contradict the universal guidance of public health experts, but also undermine Texas Gov. Greg Abbott -- who has mandated that most of his state's residents wear a mask." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Mark Berman & Tim Elfrink of the Washington Post: "In an early morning, 5-4 order, the Supreme Court cleared the way for the second federal execution this week. The decision, with all four liberal justices dissenting, comes after the court allowed the first federal execution since 2003 to proceed on Tuesday. In an order posted after 3 a.m. on Thursday, the court lifted two separate injunctions blocking the execution of Wesley Purkey, 68, who was convicted in 2003 of raping and murdering 16-year-old Jennifer Long. He killed Long in 1998, and that same year, he also killed 80-year-old Mary Ruth Bales, court records show."

Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post: "Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg left Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore on Wednesday, a day after being admitted for treatment of a possible infection. The court's spokeswoman, Kathy Arberg, said in an emailed statement that Ginsburg 'is home and doing well' but provided no other details about the justice's condition."

Major Twitter Hack. Sheera Frenkel, et al., of the New York Times: Wednesday afternoon, "dozens of the biggest names in America -- including Joseph R. Biden Jr., Barack Obama, Kanye West, Bill Gates and Elon Musk -- posted similar messages on Twitter: Send Bitcoin and the famous people would send back double your money. It was all a scam, of course, the result of one of the most brazen online attacks in memory. A first wave of attacks hit the Twitter accounts of prominent cryptocurrency leaders and companies. But soon after, the list of victims broadened to include a Who's Who of Americans in politics, entertainment and tech, in a major show of force by the hackers. Twitter quickly removed many of the messages, but in some cases similar tweets were sent again from the same accounts, suggesting that Twitter was powerless to take back control of the accounts. The company eventually disabled broad swaths of its service, including the ability of verified users to tweet, as it scrambled to prevent the scam from spreading further.... The attack was concerning to security experts because it suggested that the hackers could have easily caused much more havoc." A Politico story is here.

Capitalisim Is Awesome, Ctd. Timothy Floyd of Reuters: "The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation believes firms in the nearly $10-trillion private investment funds industry are being used as vehicles for laundering money at scale, according to a leaked intelligence bulletin prepared by the agency in May.... It also said the industry lacks adequate anti-money laundering programs and called for greater scrutiny by regulators, which have yet to issue rules for the industry.... The FBI bulletin cites four cases of planned or reported laundering operations, involving hundreds of millions of dollars, using private funds. One of those cases led to a criminal conviction.... The bulletin was contained among a cache of law enforcement documents, dubbed 'BlueLeaks', which were obtained through a security breach at a web development firm." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond the Beltway

Archie Bland of the Guardian: "The statue of slave trader Edward Colston was replaced in Bristol on Wednesday morning -- with a sculpture of one of the protesters whose anger brought him down. The figure of Jen Reid, who was photographed standing on the plinth with her fist raised after the 17th century merchant was toppled by Black Lives Matter demonstrators last month, was erected at dawn by a team directed by the artist Marc Quinn.... After meticulous planning to ensure the statue could be erected quickly enough to have it in place before officials arrived, the vehicles left the scene about 15 minutes after they got there.... The ambush sculpture is likely to reignite the debate over public statuary in the UK that began with the toppling of the Colston figure five weeks ago." --s (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)