;)
April 18, 2023
Afternoon Update:
** The New York Times is live-updating developments in the Dominion/Fox "News" trial as it gets underway: "The judge in the Fox News defamation case said on Tuesday that the case was resolved, abruptly ending a long-running dispute over misinformation in the 2020 election just as a highly anticipated trial was about to begin. It was a last-minute end to a case that began two years ago and after the disclosure of hundreds of thousands of pages of documents that peeled back the curtain on a media company that has long resisted outside scrutiny. Details of the settlement were not yet known. The agreement was reached a few hours after a jury in Wilmington, Del., was selected on Tuesday, just as opening statements were expected to begin.... Fox Corporation said in a statement that 'we acknowledge the court's rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false.' Lawyers for both sides had been preparing to make their cases to the jury, their microphones clipped to their jacket lapels." (MB: This item, pinned at the top of the live blog, has been revised several times over the course of 10 or 15 minutes, & my citations incorporate revisions.)
~~~ Update: "The settlement includes a $787.5 million payment from Fox, according to Dominion's lawyers." MB: It looks as if, at least at this point, that what Fox got for their 3/4 of a $billion was not having to admit they lied about Dominion & lie every day in every way. That's a win for Fox. ~~~
~~~ Earlier: "... opening statements in the case appeared to be delayed. A jury has been selected and lawyers for Dominion Voting Systems, the election technology company that brought the suit, will be first to offer opening statements in Delaware Superior Court in Wilmington.... The judge ... has authorized a special master to investigate Fox relating to its handling of discovery, an issue he had raised at an earlier hearing." ~~~
~~~ The AP's story, by David Bauder & others, is here.
Missouri. Derrick Taylor, et al., of the New York Times: "Andrew D. Lester, the man accused of shooting Ralph Yarl, a Black teenager, in Kansas City, Mo., turned himself in to the authorities on Tuesday, a day after he was charged with assault in the first degree and armed criminal action."
White House Security So Flimsy Even a Toddler Can Breach It! AP: ";A curious toddler on Tuesday earned the title of one of the tiniest White House intruders after he squeezed through the metal fencing on the north side of the executive mansion. U.S. Secret Service Uniformed Division officers, who are responsible for security at the White House, walked across the North Lawn to retrieve the tot and reunite him with his parents on Pennsylvania Avenue. Access to the complex was briefly restricted while officers conducted the reunification. Officers briefly questioned the parents before allowing them to continue on their way. Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said [in a statement that] officers 'encountered a curious young visitor along the White House north fence line who briefly entered White House grounds.... The White House security systems instantly triggered Secret Service officers and the toddler and parents were quickly reunited.'"
House Republicans in Disarray. Melanie Zanona & Haley Talbot of CNN: "Speaker Kevin McCarthy made a plea to House Republicans during a closed-door meeting Tuesday morning to back his debt ceiling plan, telling them that although it doesn't have to include everything they want, it will help get him to the negotiating table with President Joe Biden. McCarthy also told members that once he is at the table, he can push for other policy provisions down the road, according to multiple sources in the room, underscoring the idea that leadership sees the GOP-only plan as purely a way to strengthen their hand at the negotiating table. Top House Republicans are projecting confidence that they will be able to unite the conference behind a plan and move quickly to pass it. But that is far from certain. Key details of the plan are still yet to be finalized and some members are expressing frustration over the proposal as it stands-- and elements that have not been included."
Senate Republicans in Lock-step. John Wagner & Liz Goodwin of the Washington Post: "Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) on Tuesday voiced his strong opposition to allowing Democrats to temporarily replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) on the Judiciary Committee, stymieing a move sought by Democrats to strengthen the party's hand in confirming judicial nominees during Feinstein's extended absence.... Adding another Democratic vote in the meantime would only serve to allow Democrats to 'force through their very worst nominees,' McConnell said." MB: So once again we wonder, "What's your plan, Chuck Schumer?"
Draw & Quarter Him! Oh, Wait.... John Wagner of the Washington Post: "Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra violated a law that restricts political activities of federal employees when he advocated for the election of Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) at a Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute event in the fall, the Office of Special Counsel has determined.... While federal employees are permitted to express support for candidates when speaking in their personal capacity, the Hatch Act restricts employees from doing so when speaking as a government official. In a response to the findings, Becerra said he regretted what he described as an 'inadvertent violation.'... During the presidency of Donald Trump, numerous administration officials violated the Hatch Act without consequence. In just one episode, [Special Counsel Henry J.] Kerner's office found that at least 13 senior Trump administration officials illegally mixed governing with campaigning before the 2020 election." MB: I can't recall any of Trump's team ever apologized.
Christina Jewett of the New York Times: "The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday approved an additional round of bivalent booster shots for adults who are 65 and over as well as people with compromised immune systems. The effort is to ensure ongoing protection against Covid, which is still claiming more than 1,300 lives each week. The bivalent shots target Omicron variants of the coronavirus. The agency said people who are 65 and older who have not had a bivalent booster shot in at least four months may get another one. For those who are immunocompromised, additional doses of the bivalent vaccine can be given two months after the last shot. Those who are unvaccinated can get a single dose of the bivalent booster, the agency said.... The spring booster approval was for the same formula that was released to protect people from the Omicron variant of the virus." The Washington Post story, which is here, is free to non-subscribers.
Andrew Jeong of the Washington Post: "The Canadian Broadcasting Corp. said it would halt activities on Twitter in protest of the social media platform's decision to label the CBC as 'government-funded media' -- a tag that implies potential government control over editorial content. The episode is part of a broader dispute that has emerged between Twitter and publicly funded news outlets since billionaire Elon Musk took over the company in October."
~~~~~~~~~~
Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Biden plans to sign an executive order on Tuesday directing federal agencies to find ways to make child care cheaper and more accessible, seeking to make progress on a promise he made that stalled in his first two years in office.... Susan E. Rice, the director of the White House's Domestic Policy Council..., said the order would direct some agencies to lower co-pays for services. Other provisions will seek to make Medicare and Medicaid dollars go further. Still others will examine new ways to improve care for veterans and Native American tribes.... But the order does not deliver on the goal Mr. Biden himself identified at the beginning of his presidency, when he proposed $225 billion to fully cover child care for low-income Americans and an additional $200 billion for universal preschool. Those proposals failed to win support in Congress...."
Catie Edmondson & Jim Tankersley of the New York Times: "Speaker Kevin McCarthy on Monday proposed a one-year debt ceiling increase paired with a set of spending cuts and policy changes, backing down substantially from earlier demands but making clear that Republicans would not raise the borrowing limit to avert a catastrophic debt default without conditions. In a speech delivered from the New York Stock Exchange, Mr. McCarthy said House Republicans would vote 'in the coming weeks' on a measure that would lift the debt ceiling into the next year in exchange for freezing spending at last year's levels while enacting stricter work requirements for social programs and a host of regulatory rollbacks. The plan, which would be dead on arrival in the Senate, would set the stage for yet another fiscal confrontation just as the presidential campaign hits a critical period." Politico's story is here. ~~~
~~~ Yeah But. Mariana Sotomayor & Leigh Ann Caldwell of the Washington Post: "After 100 days in control, House Republicans have not reached consensus on how they will handle a vote on raising the debt ceiling.... They have not agreed on what their budget should, or should not, include, with various factions of the conference preparing their own versions.... And behind ... public debates, skepticism and distrust is growing among GOP leaders. The growing rancor and the lack of progress on major legislation have set the stage for months of tumult ahead for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (Calif.).... The coming battles could have profound effects on the U.S. economy as well as on the 2024 election, as House Republicans pursue numerous right-wing policies that could influence races for Congress and the White House." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I'm not sure how "profound" any policy matters will have on the 2024 election. Matt Dowd, appearing on MSNBC, said that 400 members are in non-competitive districts, thanks in great part to gerrymandering. In the Senate, Dowd claims, 80 senators are in non-competitive states. I don't know if Dowd's numbers are exactly right, but he's right in general. Worse still, as long as small-population southern and western states remain Republican-leaning, there's little chance Democrats will hold a filibuster-safe majority. And that's a good enough reason, IMO, to eliminate the filibuster: it gives far too much power to the party that already has far too much power due to structural advantage.
The Traveling GOP Fantasy Circus Comes to Manhattan! Luke Broadwater & Jonah Bromwich of the New York Times: "Two weeks after Alvin L. Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, announced 34 criminal charges against former President Donald J. Trump, House Republicans descended on his home turf on Monday to hold a hearing attacking Mr. Bragg's record on crime, leveling exaggerated and sometimes outright false charges. Representative Jim Jordan, Republican of Ohio and the chairman of the Judiciary Committee, convened his panel at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Building to hear from an array of witnesses who have been outspoken critics of Mr. Bragg for a session that was ostensibly about crime in New York City but whose unmistakable subtext was an effort to tarnish the man who is prosecuting Mr. Trump.... The witnesses described New York -- where crime has plummeted in recent decades but spiked during the pandemic, as in other cities -- as being in a state of decay, and blamed Mr. Bragg's policies.... The hearing was repeatedly interrupted by protesters and outbursts." ~~~
~~~ Rubes & Goobers. Charles Pierce of Esquire: "You see, instead of trying to run a crooked former president* to ground, [Jim] Jordan was attempting to express his great, lifelong concern for the people and property of New York City, who are the primary victims of a crime wave that exists only in the heads of Jordan and his fellow Republicans, and when is [Alvin] Bragg going to do something about that?... The Republicans were an incredible passel of rubes and goobers; Ben Cline of Virginia expressed his fear that Alvin Bragg might personally turn his beloved Shenandoah Valley into Times Square, circa 1973.... The witnesses appeared to be sincere, and grateful for the chance to tell their stories, which made Jordan's cynical use of them all the more disgusting, and his fellow Republicans tried very hard to be more cynical and disgusting than he was. But the one thing the visitors didn't want to talk about was this country's insane attraction to its firearms, an odd omission given the events of the past two weeks." Firewalled.
Liz Goodwin of the Washington Post: "Senate Republicans lined up against Democrats' push to temporarily replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) on the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, appearing to doom Democrats' plan to solve the political and tactical problems caused by her extended health-related absence." MB: Your move, Chuck Schumer.
** Chris Panella & Brent Griffiths of Business Insider, republished by MSN: "Clarence Thomas' mother is living rent-free in the home GOP megadonor Harlan Crow bought from the family, according to CNN. And that deal may have saved her more than $150,000 in rent for the property, according to Zillow estimates.... An occupancy agreement allows Thomas' 94-year-old mother, Leola Williams, to stay in the home without paying rent for the rest of her life, CNN reported. While Williams doesn't pay rent, she's responsible for other expenses such as property taxes and insurance, CNN added. According to Zillow's estimates for what the property would cost to rent, Williams could have saved as much as $154,900 over the years." MB: CNN's reporting contradicts what ProPublica found last week. According to ProPublica, "A Crow Holdings company soon began paying the roughly $1,500 in annual property taxes on Thomas' mother's house, according to county tax records. The taxes had previously been paid by Clarence and Ginni Thomas." From what I gather, Clarence is either Leola Willaims' only living child or the only one with the means to help with her support. If that's true -- and ProPublica checked the public records, then that adds another -- at minimum -- $15,000 to the $155K that Harlan Crow has put directly in Clarence's pocket. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Ariane De Vogue of CNN: "Justice Clarence Thomas intends to amend his financial disclosure forms to reflect a 2014 real estate deal he made with a GOP megadonor -- an acknowledgment that the transaction should have been disclosed almost a decade ago, a source close to Thomas tells CNN. The deal between Thomas and Harlan Crow, a Dallas real estate magnate and long-time friend of Thomas, involves the sale of three Georgia properties, including the home where Thomas' mother, Leola Williams, 94, currently lives. The source said Thomas has always filled out his forms with the help of aides, and that it was an oversight not to report the real estate transaction. Thomas believed he didn't have to disclose because he lost money on the deal, according to the source." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: I'm sorry, Clarence, but amending your forms to reflect one of the deals the press caught you hiding does not solve your massive disclosure fail. You need to retire. Today. On the bright side, now you'll have plenty of time to go camping in the Walmart parking lots. ~~~
~~~ Eugene Robinson of the Washington Post: "It was hard for me to believe that Thomas could be as much of a puppet of the most reactionary forces in American society as he seemed. But now, there is overwhelming evidence that that's exactly what he is.... Thomas expects the nation to take seriously his views on the subtlest contours of the Constitution. He also expects us to believe he cannot understand a clear and simple instruction on a disclosure form.... Thomas doesn't believe in affirmative action or protecting voting rights, though he benefited from both. He does believe in living the good life among millionaires and billionaires whose interests he just happens to protect in his opinions." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Robinson poses a question similar to one that has perplexed me for years: how can a Black justice repeatedly rule in ways that particularly harm Black Americans? As it has for Robinson, ProPublica's recent reporting has answered that question: Thomas would rather associate with super-wealthy white Americans, especially the ones who treat him to luxuries most of us don't enjoy. Disenfranchised Black voters, Black people who can't afford health insurance, etc. -- they are not going to take Clarence Thomas on fancy vacations or relieve him of responsibility for the care of his elderly mother. ~~~
~~~ In today's Comments, Akhilleus offers the most convincing explanation for Thomas's political "philosophy."
~~~Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "... penalties for either falsifying or 'knowingly or willfully' failing to file or report required information include fines of as much as $71,316 per omission and, potentially, a criminal referral.... The idea that [Clarence] Thomas will face any penalty, much less an official investigation by the Supreme Court, is obviously wish-casting. The politics of the court, the lack of any internal check on the court's members and the general unwillingness of Congress to challenge the court's power -- or even scrutinize its affairs -- mean Thomas can act with relative impunity.... It is apparently no harm and no foul for a justice of the Supreme Court to show willful and repeated indifference to disclosure requirements under the law. Here, it's worth saying that Justice Thomas is notoriously unforgiving of criminal defendants who make procedural mistakes. In a 2022 opinion for the court, he narrowed the scope of appeals for state prisoners -- including those on death row -- who believe they received inadequate legal representation. Thomas says those prisoners can no longer present new evidence to support their claim.... With a little money and a little power -- or at least a seat on the Supreme Court -- the law becomes less of a directive and more of a suggestion."
Are All of Trump's Supporters Creeps? digby republishes much (all?) of a Daily Beast story: "A key figure in the pro-Trump 'Stop the Steal' campaign has apologized after being accused of asking teenage boys for sexual pictures. Ali Alexander has become one of the most ubiquitous figures in the MAGA movement. Trump himself reportedly requested that Alexander speak at his rally before the riot, with his appearance only quashed by a last-minute intervention from Trump's aides.... 'I apologize for any inappropriate messages sent over the years,' Alexander wrote, adding later, 'When I've flirted or others have flirted with me, I've flexed my credentials or dropped corny pick up lines. Other times, I've been careless and should've qualified those coming up to me's (sic) identities during flirtatious banter at the start.'... [After a disagreement with Alexander, far-right jerk Milos] Yiannopoulos started releasing video interviews and other evidence meant to prove that Alexander sexually propositioned [two] adult men in their 20s and at least two teenagers." Alexander repeatedly asked the young men for dick pics, which would be "good jack off material." ~~~
~~~ Digby describes Alexander as "recently working with Marjorie Taylor Greene, so this is surprising: ~~~
~~~ Jennifer Bahney of Mediaite: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) is calling on the Federal Bureau of Investigation to look into far-right MAGA supporter Ali Alexander for allegedly propositioning underage boys he met in Nick Fuentes' White supremacist organization.... 'This is disgusting textbook predation of underage boys. And Nick Fuentes was in on it. #NickKnew,' Greene tweeted about accusations he propositioned boys for nude photos.Twitter users posted photos of Greene smiling alongside Nick Fuentes and Ali Alexander."
David Bauder, et al., of the AP: The Fox "News"-Dominion trial is supposed to begin today. ~~~
~~~ Dominick Mastrangelo of the Hill: "Former President Trump is urging Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of Fox Corp., to embrace his false allegations of voter fraud if the media mogul is to give testimony during a jury trial in the defamation lawsuit facing Fox News this week." MB: Apparently Trump is unaware -- or doesn't care -- that the judge in the case already ruled that Fox's statements about Dominion's voting machines were false.
Drip Drip. Missy Ryan, et al., of the Washington Post: "Egypt paused a plan to secretly supply rockets to Russia last month following talks with senior U.S. officials and instead decided to produce artillery ammunition for Ukraine, according to five leaked U.S. intelligence documents that have not been previously reported. The Washington Post last week reported on another document that exposed a covert scheme by Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi in February to provide Russia with up to 40,000 122mm Sakr-45 rockets, which can be used in Russian multiple-launch rocket launchers. Sisi instructed his subordinates to keep the project secret 'to avoid problems with the West,' the document said. But the new documents, which The Post obtained from a trove of material allegedly posted on Discord by a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard, appear to show Sisi in early March backing away from plans to supply Moscow, a move that would have represented a major rebuke to Cairo's most generous Western ally, the United States." ~~~
~~~ Tim Starks & Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post: "The United States eavesdropped on United Nations Secretary General António Guterres's conversations with other U.N. officials, according to four classified reports obtained by The Washington Post. The documents, two of which haven't been previously reported, summarize intercepted conversations that shed new light on Guterres's interactions with top U.N. officials and world leaders, including detailing what they describe as his 'outrage' over being denied a visit to a war-torn region in Ethiopia and frustrations toward Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The documents are part of trove of national security reports, allegedly leaked onto the online messaging platform Discord by a member of the Massachusetts Air National Guard...."
Beyond the Beltway
Florida. Brooks Barnes of the New York Times: "... Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida punched Disney anew on Monday, announcing new legislation that would override the company's recent effort to sidestep state oversight of its theme parks. Mr. DeSantis also suggested a variety of potential punitive actions against Disney -- the state's largest private employer and corporate taxpayer -- including reappraising the value of Walt Disney World for property tax levies and developing land near the entrances to the resort. 'Maybe create a state park, maybe try to do more amusement parks -- someone even said, like, maybe you need another state prison,' Mr. DeSantis said at a news conference near Disney World." CNN's report is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: DeSantoliniWorld or DeSantis State Penitentiary? I'm going with the prison thing. The prison could have a hole in the fence leading to the Disney World campus, so all the jailbirds could have "access" to Disney's visitors. That would fix Mickey Mouse, all right! But there is an upside for Disney: that hole in the fence goes two ways. Your ticket to ride would also grant you entry to Slammer World, where you could buy tasty prison food, romp in the prison exercise yard, get a little zap on the electric chair and "interact" with hardened criminals! ~~~
~~~ Washington Post: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to 'make America Florida.' As the Republican gears up for a likely presidential run, we created this guide to current legislative proposals in the Sunshine State that offer a lens into his vision for the country. The bills cover topics such as permitting gunowners to carry a concealed weapon without a license and eliminating funding for diversity and equity initiatives in state universities."
You've heard about driving while Black. You've heard about all the other issues that Black people confront in life. Can you not knock on the door while Black? It's almost like you can't exist. -- Kansas City, Mo., Mayor Quinton Lucas ~~~
~~~ Missouri. Livia Albeck-Ripka, et al., of the New York Times: In Kansas City, Mo., an 84-year-old White man shot 16-year-old Ralph Yarl, who is Black, after Yarl knocked on his door (or rang the doorbell), mistaking the address for a similar one a block away. "The white man who answered the door there shot him in the head and again in the arm after he fell, according to prosecutors. Somehow, Ralph made his way, bleeding, to another nearby house. There, he was told to lie on the ground while someone called for help, his family said. The homeowner who shot him, Andrew D. Lester, 84, was taken into custody by the police for 24 hours then released without charges on Friday. Over the weekend, anger began to spread in the community. Protesters marched on Mr. Lester's home on Sunday, while the Kansas City police chief, Stacey Graves, acknowledged the public frustration at a news conference. The teenager was released from the hospital on Sunday evening, his father said. As pressure mounted on Monday afternoon, the Police Department said in a statement that it had submitted the case file to the Clay County prosecuting attorney's office. The prosecutor, Zachary Thompson, publicly identified Mr. Lester a few hours later and announced that he had been charged, saying what many already believed: 'There was a racial component to the case.'... ~~~
"It was not clear if the teenager had knocked on Mr. Lester's door or if he rang the doorbell, but he did not 'cross the threshold' into the man's home, Mr. Thompson said. The shots from a .32-caliber handgun were fired through a glass door, the prosecutor said, adding that there was no indication that 'any words were exchanged.'" According to on-air reports, Yarl had to go to three houses before anyone would help him; the person who helped ordered him to lie on the ground with his hands up. The AP story is here.
New York Congressional Race. Rebecca Shabad of NBC News: "Rep. George Santos, R-N.Y., announced Monday that he is running for re-election, despite calls for him to resign and ongoing investigations at the federal, state and local levels."
Ohio. Michael Levenson & Jesus Jiménez of the New York Times: “A grand jury in Ohio has decided not to charge eight Akron police officers in the death of Jayland Walker, a 25-year-old Black man who was shot dozens of times by the police after an attempted traffic stop and a chase last summer during which he shot at the police, the state's attorney general said on Monday. Mr. Walker was killed on June 27, 2022, after the Akron police tried to stop his car. When Mr. Walker did not pull over, video released by the police showed, officers chased him, first in vehicles and then on foot. Officers said that they thought Mr. Walker had fired a weapon from his car and that they feared he would fire again, prompting them to shoot him.... Mr. Walker was unarmed when the police pursued him on foot and fatally shot him. Eight Akron police officers fired a total of 94 shots at Mr. Walker, and he sustained 46 gunshot wounds, the attorney general's office said."
** Oklahoma. First Kill All the Journalists. Really. Sean Murphy of the AP: "Oklahoma's governor is seeking the resignation of four county officials after a newspaper's audio recording apparently captured some of them complaining about two of the paper's journalists and knowing hit men and where two holes are dug. A portion of the recording was released by the paper, and it also appears to capture one of the four making racist comments about Black people. Gov. Kevin Stitt said Sunday he was seeking the resignations of McCurtain County Sheriff Kevin Clardy and three other county officials: sheriff's Capt. Alicia Manning, District 2 Commissioner Mark Jennings and Jail Administrator Larry Hendrix.... More than 100 people gathered outside the McCurtain County Courthouse in Idabel on Monday, with many of them calling for the sheriff and other county officials to resign."
Way Beyond
Ukraine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of develoments Tuesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here. The Guardian's live updates for Tuesday are here. The Guardian's summary report is here. ~~~
~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Tuesday is here: "A Moscow court rejected U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich's appeal of spying charges on Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal reporter, 31, was seen standing inside a glass-enclosed defendant dock as he appealed the charges, which could bring up to 20 years in prison if he is convicted.... Western officials called for the immediate release of Vladimir Kara-Murza, a top Kremlin critic and opposition lawmaker. He was convicted of treason and sentenced by a Russian court to 25 years in prison, the harshest penalty handed down yet to an opponent of the invasion of Ukraine. Kara-Murza, a dual national of Britain and Russia and a Washington Post Opinions contributor, described the closed trial as 'politically motivated.'... Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the command posts of his forces in Ukraine's Luhansk and Kherson regions, where he was briefed by top commanders, the Kremlin said Tuesday.... Russia's Wagner mercenary group appears to be back in favor with the Kremlin, according to analysts at the Institute for the Study of War.... Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva met with Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, on Monday as the White House issued a stern rebuke of his weekend accusations that the United States was 'encouraging' the war." ~~~
~~~ CNN's report on Russia's denial of appeal by Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich is here. The Guardian's report on Vladimir Kara-Murza's 25-year sentence is here.
Northern Ireland. Rory Carroll & Lisa O'Carroll of the Guardian: "Bill Clinton has expressed optimism that there will be a breakthrough in Northern Ireland's political deadlock and a restoration of power sharing. The former US president made the prediction on Tuesday after meeting Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the leader of the Democratic Unionist party, which holds the key to resolving the crisis.... Clinton is in Belfast this week with his wife, Hillary, for a conference at Queen's University to mark the Good Friday agreement's 25th anniversary. He shared a platform on Monday with the former British and Irish prime ministers Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern, who exhorted the DUP to revive Stormont."
Sudan. The New York Times is liveblogging developments in the Sudanese civil war. ~~~
~~~ Katharine Houreld, et al., of the Washington Post: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Tuesday that a U.S. diplomatic convoy in Sudan came under fire in what he called a 'reckless' and 'unacceptable' attack as rival armed forces clash in some of the country's worst violence in years." The Guardian's story is here.
News Lede
NBC News:“A New York man was accused of fatally shooting a 20-year-old woman after her friend pulled into the driveway of a home that they mistakenly believed belonged to another friend, authorities said Monday. Kevin Monahan, 65, is alleged to have fired at the car after the group of four friends realized they'd pulled into the wrong driveway and were leaving the home in Hebron, roughly 50 miles north of Albany, Washington County Sheriff Jeffrey Murphy told reporters." ~~~
~~~ Marie: You can bet that Monahan there murdered a young woman on the theory that "a man has a right to protect his own home." And where did he get that idea? From the NRA & their Republican vassels promoting & proliferating "castle doctrine" laws, a common law concept developed in medieval England to exempt a person from having a "duty to retreat" and to use force in defense of his own home. When people persistently used my driveway as a turnaround, I suppose I could have gone after them with a shotgun. Instead, I bought a sign for each end of the driveway that say something like "Private Property -- Please Do Not Use as a Turnaround." The effect was that people quit treating my driveway as a public road and nobody died. You might see that result as an upside to rational behavior.
Share Article
Reader Comments (14)
Clarence the Cross Eyed Liar, Pt. 21
Try as they might, Party of Traitor supporters of Clarence (Coke Can Pubic Hair) Thomas, will have a hard time convincing the non Kool-Aid addicts that he’s anything but a scarily unethical, corrupt, hyper partisan liar.
So where does the cross eyed part come in?
Let’s defer to our old pal William of Ockham.
Here’s Clarence TCEL as a young man, attending a couple of rather exclusive schools in New England, Holy Cross in Massachusetts, and Yale Law School in Connecticut, both quite a ways from Pin Point, Georgia where he grew up.
He has made clear his feelings of being shunned by the privileged rich white kids during his school days. I’m sure it couldn’t have been easy for a poor black kid back then (it still isn’t, thanks in no small part to Thomas himself). Chips on shoulders can last a lifetime.
As he progressed through the Justice system, he no doubt ran into plenty of wealthy white lawyers in private practice making millions by fixing parking tickets (so to speak) for their wealthy white friends. After a bruising (but not sufficiently bruising) confirmation hearing, that chip no doubt grew exponentially. Now here he was, a Supreme Court Justice, but still he wasn’t in the club with the rich kids. Then…they invite him in. “Hey, Clarence, c’mon in old buddy. Hang with the billionaires. All you have to is fix a few parking tickets and you can live it up just like the rest of us. Ethics? Ethics, schmethics.” Hell, he even married a woman who grew up in a well off white Republican family from the Midwest. He was getting his bona fides in order.
Clarence had the chance to do two things. Live like one of those rich white lawyers in private practice, AND stick it to the liberal intelligentsia he despised for shunning him in law school. And after getting tight with the Dark Lord, he glommed on to that originalist bullshit as the perfect way to do it.
The chance to be high and mighty and suffer no consequences for highly unethical behavior must have crossed his eyes pretty early on, that and the fact that he married Lady fucking Macbeth who perhaps encouraged his worst instincts.
It’s all pretty simple really. He envied the rich upper class white kids who, he believed, looked down on him. His ascension to the Court wasn’t the goal as it might be for others, it became a means to an end: feeling rich and accepted. He even made sure to stick it to the entire African-American community whenever he could to bolster his rich, white guy bona fides.
Billy O’s tenet is always a useful first step when looking at any problem.
The problem we have now, however, is how to get rid of this cross eyed fucker and his Out Damn Spot wife.
Rupert Murdoch: liberal newspaperman!
Funny, in’it?
Faux, in attempting to escape its fate as the avatar of lying scumbags, is trying to use Sullivan v New York Times as its escape hatch.
Sullivan, as you all probably know, involved a Montgomery, AL police commissioner (that’s the Sullivan guy) suing the liberal (back then) NY Times for running a paid opinion piece that took his police force to task for its racist and violent ways during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. (And not for nothin’, but can you think of a current media outlet that would have cheered the racism and violence?)
An Alabama court found for its racist sons (natch), but the Supreme Court saw it differently. They came down squarely on the need for the First Amendment to protect journalists from defamation suits. Defamation suits are not impossible to pursue but the court ruled that there needed to be clear cut proof that the journalist(s) acted with malice…
“…that is, with knowledge that it was false or with reckless disregard of whether it was false or not.”
AND…according to reams of documentation involving on-air host-liars, Faux knew without a doubt that they were spreading lies. Christ, someone (I think Hannity) even used the actual word “reckless” in an e-mail complaining about Lou Dobbs’ latest barking mad claims of unprovable and non-existent election fraud. They have tape of Bartiromo asking nut job Sidney Powell for proof. Powell had none, but Bartiromo shrugged and took her to air anyway to spout blithering nonsense. Murdoch himself instructed his minions to fuggedabout truth and give the MAGA droolers what they wanted.
“Reckless disregard”, like you read about.
And now, the most virulent, right wing, fascism loving media operation since Father Coughlin’s weekly radio screeds, is trying to save itself by calling upon a decision rendered to defend a liberal paper against claims of defamation by right-wing racists.
Like I said, funny, in’it?
All I can say now is “Go Dominion! Kick their asses!”
(And please don’t let there have been a settlement last night!!!)
Krugman (NYT) takes on the powerful and the rich and brings in Musk, Fox, DeSantis, Trump and Thomas for good measure. He ends his essay with this:
"I still believe that the concentration of wealth at the top is undermining democracy. But it isn’t a simple story of plutocratic rule. It is, instead, a story in which the attempts of the superrich to get what they want have unleashed forces that may destroy America as we know it. And it’s terrifying."
And one of these powerful forces is the gun lobby and manufacturers of those guns. Mass shootings are now regular occurrences and we learn ringing a doorbell or driving in the wrong driveway can get you shot. Meanwhile we hear of dick-pics and priest sexual abuse continue to wash over our fair lands. Now–-one can argue that nothing has really changed––the U.S. has always been on the brink of chaos and wobbly democracy, we just know more because of social media––– but the smell of a different kind of damage is in the air and as Krugman noted–––it's terrifying.
:
AK: Your rundown of Thomas corresponds with Jane Mayer's book "Strange Justice" –--a book I read many moons ago. You, as you usually do, colorfully and cleverly, pin point that huge chip that has been on this man's shoulder for years. The sexual stuff ––-porn and taunting young females with lewd stories and come-ons is something else that hasn''t been fully examined and probably won't be but my guess it figured in with his anger somehow.
@P.D.Pepe: Good point. I'd guess Clarence's "high-tech lynching" remark was intended to imply that Clarence's workplace indiscretions would never have come up if he had been White. I guess he had forgotten all about the Gary Hart scandal, which had occurred only a few years before Thomas' confirmation hearings and had forced Hart out of the presidential race, possibly resulting in the election of Bush Pere, who then nominated Thomas to the high court. (Decades later, a Democratic operative alleged that famed dirty-trickster and Bush campaign manager Lee Atwater had told Strother that he set up Hart to get rid of Bush's chief rival for the presidency.)
@Akhilleus: Yeah, ain't it funny how "conservatives" scream bloody-murder about "liberal" court rulings, then use those same rulings to save their own asses?
A universally applicable explanation of the otherwise inexplicable:
Q: What do you get when you have no sense of shame, that "painful feeling of humiliation or distress caused by the consciousness of wrong or foolish behavior?" ala Merriam...
A: A Republican.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/media/2023/04/18/dominion-fox-trial/?
Well........shit!
Why, @Ken Winkes, I do believe you are consternated.
So how does this award impact the other Trump cases?
@Bobby Lee: I would say not at all. The only interests that were served by the settlement were those of the parties.
Dominion, which I heard is valued at well less than $100MM, got a huge influx of cash.
And Fox doesn't have to run a crawl for the next year that reads, "We're lying to you, we're lying to you, what you're hearing right this minute is a lie. We lie because you, Dear Viewer, are an ignorant rube and losers who can't handle the truth. You want us to tell you fabulous stories & wacko conspiracy theories which we repeat to keep you tuned in & the My Pillow guy buying ad time."
I should add that the public interest was served by the discovery that Dominion filed over the past several weeks.
Dominion-Faux
The lies will continue. No Fox addict will hear or care about this settlement. The lies will continue.
Evil wins again.
Love the way all it takes these days in our beloved country to duck any real consequence for lying, cheating and stealing is plenty of money.
Another sure indicator that the only important American value is money. Dare I say it Trumps everything else?
On the bright side, I'm assured that the lies I've told will never cost me three quarters of a billion dollars.