U.S. Senate Results

Republicans will regain the Senate majority. As of Thursday, November they hold 53 seats.

Unless otherwise indicated, the AP has called these races:

Arizona. Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego is projected to have defeated the execrable Kari Lake.

California. Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff is projected to win. Schiff will have won both the general election and a special election to fill the seat of former Sen. Dianne Feinstein, deceased, which is currently held by Laphonza Butler, a "placeholder" appointed by Gov. Gavin Newsom (D). Schiff will be seated immediately.

Connecticut: Democrat Chris Murphy is projected to win re-election.

Delaware: Democrat Lisa Blunt is projected to win.

Florida: Republican Rick Scott is projected to win re-election.

Hawaii. Democratic Sen. Mazie Hirono is projected to win re-election.

Indiana: Republican Jim Banks is projected to win.

Maine: Independent Sen. Angus King is projected to win re-election. King caucuses with Democrats.

Maryland. Democrat Angela Alsobrooks is projected to win over former Republican Gov. Larry Hogan. Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin (D) is retiring.

Massachusetts: Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren is projected to win re-election.

Michigan: Democratic Rep. Elissa Slotkin is projected to win.

Minnesota. Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar is projected to win re-election.

Mississippi: Republican Roger Wicker is projected to win re-election.

Missouri. Republican Road Runner Sen. Josh Hawley is projected to win re-election.

Montana. Republican Tim Somebody-Shot-Me-Sometime Sheehy is projected to have defeated Sen. Jon Tester.

Nebraska. Republican Sen. Deb Fischer has held off a challenge from an Independent candidate.

Nebraska. Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts is projected to win re-election. This is a special election.

Nevada: Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen is (at long last) projected to win re-election.

New Jersey: Democrat Rep. Andy Kim is projected to win the seat previously vacated by Democrat Bob Menendez, who resigned in disgrace after being convicted on federal bribery & corruption charges. Kim will be the first Korean-American to hold a U.S. Senate seat.

New Mexico. Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich is projected to win re-election.

New York. Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand is projected to win re-election.

North Dakota. Republican Sen. Kevin Kramer is projected to win re-election.

Ohio. Republican Bernie Moreno is projected to have defeated Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown. This is the second pick-up for Republicans Tuesday.

Pennsylvania. Republican Dave McCormick is projected to have defeated incumbent Democrat Bob Casey, although Casey has not conceded.

Rhode Island: Democrat Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse is projected to win re-election.

Tennessee: Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn is projected to win re-election.

Texas: Republic Sen. Ted Cruz, the most unpopular U.S. senator, is projcted to win re-election.

Utah. Republican Rep. John Curtis is projected to win the seat currently held by Sen. Mitt Romney (R).

Vermont: Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders is projected to win re-election.

Virginia. Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine is projected by NBC News to win re-election.

Washington. Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell is projected to win re-election.

West Virginia: Republican Gov. Jim Justice is projected to win the seat currently held by Independent Joe Manchin, who is retiring.

Wisconsin. Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin is projected to win re-election. Hurrah!

Wyoming. Republican Sen. John Barrasso is projected to win re-election.

U.S. House Results

By 1:30 am ET Tuesday, the AP had called 211 seats for Democrats & 219 seats for Republicans. (A majority is 220 218.)

But bear in mind that Trump is removing some members of the House & Senate to serve in his administration, which could -- at least in the short run -- give Democrats effective majorities.

Gubernatorial Results

Delaware: Democrat Matt Meyer is projected to win.

Indiana: Republican Sen. Mike Braun is projected to win.

Montana. Horrible person Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte is projected to win re-election.

New Hampshire. Republican Kelly Ayotte, a former U.S. Senator is projected to win.

North Carolina. Democrat Josh Stein is projected to win, besting Trump-endorsed radical loon Mark Robinson.

North Dakota. Republican U.S. Rep. Kelly Armstrong is projected to win.

Utah. Republican Gov. Spencer Cox is projected to win re-election.

Vermont: Republican Phil Scott is projected to win re-election.

Washington: Democrat Bob Ferguson, the Washington State attorney general, is projected to win.

West Virginia: Republican Philip Morrisey is projected to win.

Other Results

Colorado. NBC News projects that the abortions-rights constitutional amendment will pass.

Florida. NBC News projected the abortion-rights state constitutional amendment will fail.

Georgia. Fani Willis is projected to win re-election as Fulton County District Attorney.

Missouri. The New York Times projects that Missouri voters have passed a measure to protect abortion rights.

Nebraska. New York Times: "A ballot amendment prohibiting abortion beyond the first three months of pregnancy passed in Nebraska, according to The Associated Press, outpolling a competing measure that would have established a right to abortion until fetal viability."

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Public Service Announcement

Washington Post: "Americans can again order free rapid coronavirus tests by mail, the Biden administration announced Thursday. People can request four free at-home tests per household through covidtests.gov. They will begin shipping Monday. The move comes ahead of an expected winter wave of coronavirus cases. The September revival of the free testing program is in line with the Biden administration’s strategy to respond to the coronavirus as part of a broader public health campaign to protect Americans from respiratory viruses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), that surge every fall and winter. But free tests were not mailed during the summer wave, which wastewater surveillance data shows is now receding."

Help!

To keep the Conversation going, please help me by linking news articles, opinion pieces and other political content in today's Comments section.

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OR you can always just block, copy and paste to your comment the URL (Web address) of the page you want to link.

Note for Readers. It is not possible for commenters to "throw" their highlighted links to another window. But you can do that yourself. Right-click on the link and a drop-down box will give you choices as to where you want to open the link: in a new tab, new window or new private window.

Thank you to everyone who has been contributing links to articles & other content in the Comments section of each day's "Conversation." If you're missing the comments, you're missing some vital links.

New York Times: “Chris Wallace, a veteran TV anchor who left Fox News for CNN three years ago, announced on Monday that he was leaving his post to venture into the streaming or podcasting worlds.... He said his decision to leave CNN at the end of his three-year contract did not come from discontent. 'I have nothing but positive things to say. CNN was very good to me,' he said.”

New York Times: In a collection of memorabilia filed at New York City's Morgan Library, curator Robinson McClellan discovered the manuscript of a previously unknown waltz by Frédéric Chopin. Jeffrey Kallberg, a Chopin scholar at the University of Pennsylvania as well as other experts authenticated the manuscript. Includes video of Lang Lang performing the short waltz. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The Times article goes into some of Chopin's life in Paris at the time he wrote the waltz, but it doesn't mention that he helped make ends meet by giving piano lessons. I know this because my great grandmother was one of his students. If her musical talent were anything like mine, those particular lessons would have been painful hours for Chopin.

New York Times: “Improbably, [the political/celebrity magazine] George[, originally a project by John F. Kennedy, Jr.] is back, with the same logo and the same catchy slogan: 'Not just politics as usual.' This time, though, a QAnon conspiracy theorist and passionate Trump fan is its editor in chief.... It is a reanimation story bizarre enough for a zombie movie, made possible by the fact that the original George trademark lapsed, only to be secured by a little-known conservative lawyer named Thomas D. Foster.”

Washington Post: “Comedy news outlet the Onion — reinvigorated by new ownership over this year — is bringing back its once-popular video parodies of cable news. But this time, there’s someone with real news anchor experience in the chair. When the first episodes appear online Monday, former WAMU and MSNBC host Joshua Johnson will be the face of the resurrected 'Onion News Network.' Playing an ONN anchor character named Dwight Richmond, Johnson says he’s bringing a real anchor’s sense of clarity — and self-importance — to the job. 'If ONN is anything, it’s a news organization that is so unaware of its own ridiculousness that it has the confidence of a serial killer,' says Johnson, 44.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'll be darned if I can figured out how to watch ONN. If anybody knows, do tell. Thanks.

Washington Post: “First came the surprising discovery that Earth’s atmosphere is leaking. But for roughly 60 years, the reason remained a mystery. Since the late 1960s, satellites over the poles detected an extremely fast flow of particles escaping into space — at speeds of 20 kilometers per second. Scientists suspected that gravity and the magnetic field alone could not fully explain the stream. There had to be another source creating this leaky faucet. It turns out the mysterious force is a previously undiscovered global electric field, a recent study found. The field is only about the strength of a watch battery — but it’s enough to thrust lighter ions from our atmosphere into space. It’s also generated unlike other electric fields on Earth. This newly discovered aspect of our planet provides clues about the evolution of our atmosphere, perhaps explaining why Earth is habitable. The electric field is 'an agent of chaos,' said Glyn Collinson, a NASA rocket scientist and lead author of the study. 'It undoes gravity.... Without it, Earth would be very different.'”

The New York Times lists Emmy winners. The AP has an overview story here.

New York Times: “Hvaldimir, a beluga whale who had captured the public’s imagination since 2019 after he was spotted wearing a harness seemingly designed for a camera, was found dead on Saturday in Norway, according to a nonprofit that worked to protect the whale.... [Hvaldimir] was wearing a harness that identified it as “equipment” from St. Petersburg. There also appeared to be a camera mount. Some wondered if the whale was on a Russian reconnaissance mission. Russia has never claimed ownership of the whale. If Hvaldimir was a spy, he was an exceptionally friendly one. The whale showed signs of domestication, and was comfortable around people. He remained in busier waters than are typical for belugas....” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, Lord, do not let Bobby Kennedy, Jr., near that carcass. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: “There’s no evidence that a well-known beluga whale that lived off Norway’s coast and whose harness ignited speculation it was a Russian spy was shot to death last month as claimed by animal rights groups, Norwegian police said Monday.... Police said that the Norwegian Veterinary Institute conducted a preliminary autopsy on the animal, which was become known as 'Hvaldimir,' combining the Norwegian word for whale — hval — and the first name of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'There are no findings from the autopsy that indicate that Hvaldimir has been shot,' police said in a statement.”

New York Times: Botswana's “President Mokgweetsi Masisi grinned as he lifted the diamond, a 2,492-carat stone that is the biggest diamond unearthed in more than a century and the second-largest ever found, according to the Vancouver-based mining operator Lucara, which owns the mine where it was found. This exceptional discovery could bring back the luster of the natural diamond mining industry, mining companies and experts say. The diamond was discovered in the same relatively small mine in northeastern Botswana that has produced several of the largest such stones in living memory. Such gemstones typically surface as a result of volcanic activity.... The diamond will likely sell in the range of tens of millions of dollars....”

Click on photo to enlarge.

~~~ Guardian: "On a distant reef 16,000km from Paris, surfer Gabriel Medina has given Olympic viewers one of the most memorable images of the Games yet, with an airborne celebration so well poised it looked too good to be true. The Brazilian took off a thundering wave at Teahupo’o in Tahiti on Monday, emerging from a barrelling section before soaring into the air and appearing to settle on a Pacific cloud, pointing to the sky with biblical serenity, his movements mirrored precisely by his surfboard. The shot was taken by Agence France-Presse photographer Jérôme Brouillet, who said “the conditions were perfect, the waves were taller than we expected”. He took the photo while aboard a boat nearby, capturing the surreal image with such accuracy that at first some suspected Photoshop or AI." 

 

Contact Marie

Email Marie at constantweader@gmail.com

Friday
Jul242020

The Commentariat -- July 25, 2020

Late Morning Upate:

The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Saturday are here.

Tal Axelrod of the Hill: "A longtime staffer for Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-Fla.) died from the coronavirus on Friday, the congressman announced, becoming the first known congressional aide to die from the illness. Buchanan said in a statement that he was 'devastated' by the death of Gary Tibbetts, a field representative who had been a member of the congressman's staff since 2011."

Piper McDaniel of the Oregonian: "Thousands of Portlanders amassed late Friday downtown and witnessed another tense face-off with federal officers, who used tear gas and shot impact munitions toward protesters.... At least 4,000 people poured Friday night into the city's core. It was the largest crowd since early weeks of the protests that started 58 days ago.... By 10:30 p.m., a line of veterans stood in front of the federal courthouse, preparing for the looming confrontation. A row of women tied to the Wall of Moms group also staged near the courthouse." As unwashed points out in today's Comments, both sides were using leaf blowers! to throw the gas back on the other side. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Obviously, Trump has sent troops (or whoever they are) in with the purpose of making the situation worse, not better. He wants the news to lead with his dytopian shows of force against Americans. "There's nothing more important in our country than keeping our people safe," Trump said this week. That's true; that's his main job. And he is wantonly doing the opposite.

Kim Chandler of the AP: "Civil rights icon and longtime Georgia congressman John Lewis was remembered Saturday -- in the rural Alabama county where his story began -- as a humble man who sprang from his family's farm with a vision that 'good trouble' could change the world. The morning service in the city of Troy in rural Pike County was held at Troy University, where Lewis would often playfully remind the chancellor that he was denied admission in 1957 because he was Black, and where decades later he was awarded an honorary doctorate."

~~~~~~~~~~

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Friday are here: "The top U.S. public health agency issued a full-throated call to reopen schools in a package of new 'resources and tools' posted on its website Thursday night that opened with a statement that sounded more like a political speech than a scientific document, listing numerous benefits for children of being in school and downplaying the potential health risks. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published the new guidance two weeks after President Trump criticized its earlier recommendations on school reopenings as 'very tough and expensive,' ramping up what had already been an anguished national debate over the question of how soon children should return to classrooms. As the president was criticizing the initial C.D.C. recommendations, a document from the agency surfaced that detailed the risks of reopening and the steps that districts were taking to minimize those risks." Mrs. McC: This is a straight news report that rightly fingers the CDC for putting Trump before science. It's appalling. Here's hoping some CDC scientists will cry foul. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ ** Laura Meckler & Rachel Weiner of the Washington Post: "The leader of the nation's premier public health agency Friday amplified President Trump's call for schools to reopen, releasing new documents edited by the White House that gloss over risks and extol the benefits of in-person learning. Still, Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said there should be exceptions for 'hot spots,' and he used a metric that would include parts of at least 33 states. The mixed messaging was another indication of how public health officials at the CDC have been squeezed between Trump's demand for a normal school year and an out-of-control virus.... On Friday, Redfield told reporters the new documents were cleared by the White House, and officials familiar with them, speaking on the condition of anonymity..., said at least one was substantially edited by White House officials. The opening statement was written at the Department of Health and Human Services, Redfield said." Emphases added. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: I wonder if Redfield is aware he has turned the CDC into a second- or third-rate public health agency, an agency that until recently was considered the best in the world. Those "suburban housewives" who don't want to send their children to school are better at public health policy than the CDC.

Erika Edwards of NBC News: "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention acknowledged Friday that a significant number of COVID-19 patients do not recover quickly, and instead experience ongoing symptoms, such as fatigue and cough. As many as a third of patients who were never sick enough to be hospitalized are not back to their usual health up to three weeks after their diagnosis, the report found."

Bill Saporito of the New York Times: "... with the president trying to distance himself from responsibility for the coronavirus crisis, and Southern governors amplifying the damage with their flawed reopening strategies, the nation's retailers have become the first line of defense against the pandemic. From the headquarters of Walmart (which includes Sam's Club) and Starbucks came the directive that all customers must wear masks. The conservative Southeasterner and liberal Northwesterner were followed by other national retailers, including Kohl's, CVS, Walgreens, Publix and Target.... [A] vacuum of responsibility ... is compelling the businesses that are expert at selling coffee, underwear and groceries to manage the pandemic across their swath of the economy. That they are doing a better job than the Trump administration is beyond pathetic." (Also linked yesterday.)

Jeff Stein & Erica Werner of the Washington Post: "With days to go before enhanced jobless benefits expire, the White House and Senate Republicans are struggling to design a way to scale back the program without overwhelming state unemployment agencies and imperiling aid to more than 20 million Americans. The hang-up has led to an abrupt delay in the introduction of the GOP's $1 trillion stimulus package. The White House and Democrats have said they want a deal by the end of the month, but Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) suggested Friday that reaching an agreement could take several weeks, a timeline that could leave many unemployed Americans severely exposed." Emphasis added. Mrs. McC: House Democrats passed a bill extending the coronavirus stimulus package in mid-May. So that's more than two months that Republicans have left Americans twisting, twisting slowly in the wind.

Texas. Paging Sarah Palin. Chacour Coop of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram: "The situation [in Starr County] was not always as dire in this rural South Texas county.... In April, its aggressive and successful approach to beating the coronavirus was spotlighted by NBC News.... But after Gov. Greg Abbott issued orders for the reopening of the state, overriding local control and decision-making, COVID-19 cases surged.... Now Starr County is at a dangerous 'tipping point,' reporting an alarming number of new cases each day, data show. Starr County Memorial Hospital -- the county's only hospital -- is overflowing with COVID-19 patients. The county has been forced to form what is being compared to a so-called 'death panel.'... A committee will deem which COVID-19 patients are likely to die and send them home with family[.]" --s (Also linked yesterday.)

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a request from a church in Nevada to block enforcement of state restrictions on attendance at religious services. The vote was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joining the court's four more liberal members to form a majority. The court's brief order was unsigned and gave no reasons, which is typical when the justices act on emergency applications. The court's four more conservative members filed three dissents...."

Severely Fake News Coming to a TV Station Near You. Oliver Darcy of CNN: "Local television stations owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group are set to air a conspiracy theory over the weekend that suggests Dr. Anthony Fauci ... was responsible for the creation of the coronavirus. The baseless conspiracy theory is set to air on stations across the country in a segment during the program 'America This Week' hosted by Eric Bolling. The show, which is posted online before it is broadcast over the weekend, is distributed to Sinclair Broadcast Group's network of local television stations, one of the largest in the country. A survey by Pew Research Group earlier this year showed that local news was a vital source of information on the coronavirus for many Americans, and more trusted than the media overall."

U.K. Peter Walker of the Guardian: "Boris Johnson has labelled people opposed to vaccinations 'nuts' as he urged the public to use an expanded flu jab programme to ease pressure on the NHS if there is a second wave of coronavirus this winter. Visiting a doctor's surgery in east London to promote the extension of free flu jabs to more people, Johnson told staff: 'There's all these anti-vaxxers now. They are nuts, they are nuts.' The prime minister's comments highlight the worries in government and among NHS leaders that a potential rise in Covid-19 infections in the coming months, coupled with a bad winter flu season, could overwhelm health services." (Also linked yesterday.)

Trump's Stormtroopers, Ctd.

Rebecca Ellis of Oregon Public Broadcasting: "U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon has temporarily curbed the use of force by federal officers deployed to Portland, restricting their interactions with legal observers and journalists observing nightly protests against police violence. On Thursday afternoon, Simon issued a temporary restraining order on officers from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Marshals Service sent to Portland to guard federal buildings. The restrictions will last for two weeks. The judge is still considering a longer-lasting injunction against federal law enforcement. The order comes as part of a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union in Oregon, alleging law enforcement has been targeting and attacking journalists at the protests." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Zoe Tillman of BuzzFeed News: "A federal judge on Friday denied a request by the Oregon attorney general's office for an order that would require federal law enforcement officers in Portland to identify themselves when making arrests and place limits on the detention and arrests of protesters. US District Judge Michael Mosman found that state Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum lacked standing to bring a lawsuit on behalf of Oregon residents because her office hadn't articulated any specific state interest beyond the constitutional rights of individuals." That is, Mosman ruled that the issue was one of "standing" and he did not address the meat of the suit.

No, They're Not Merely Protecting Federal Property. Mike Baker, et al., of the New York Times: "The aggressive incursion of federal officers into Portland has been stretching the legal limits of federal law enforcement, as agents with batons and riot gear range deep into the streets of a city whose leadership has made it clear they are not welcome.... [In one instance,] they moved down Main Street and continued up the hill, where one of the agents announced over a loudspeaker: 'This is an unlawful assembly.' By the time the security forces halted their advance, the federal courthouse they had been sent to protect was out of sight -- two blocks behind them.... The arrival of the federal agents caused the protests to swell and focused the ire of protesters onto the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse, across from a park shaded by mature trees. What began as a movement for racial justice became a broader campaign to dislodge the federal forces from the city.... More than 40 protesters have been arrested, and dozens now face federal criminal charges."

How to Get Around a Supreme Court Decision: Ignore It. Andrew Crespo in a Washington Post opinion piece: 'The deputy director of President Trump's new federal police force does not know what the word 'arrest' means." Richard Cline claimed at a news conference this week that grabbing an individual off the street & holding him in a van was not an "arrest" and therefore not subject to Fourth Amendment probable cause requirements. Cline is wrong. According to a 1979 Supreme Court decision, "such conduct is 'indistinguishable from a traditional arrest,' which need not be accompanied by bureaucratic processes like fingerprinting, booking or a formal arrest record to count as an arrest for purposes of the Fourth Amendment."

Siobhán O'Grady of the Washington Post: "The United Nations human rights office called on U.S. security forces to limit their use of force against peaceful protesters and journalists Friday, as clashes between federal agents and demonstrators continue in Portland, Ore.... In June, the U.N. Human Rights Council decried violent police tactics and called for an inquiry into systemic racism in the United States. The resolution came after an unusual debate on 'systemic racism, police brutality and violence against peaceful protests' in the United States, requested by all 54 countries in Africa. It was adopted unanimously by the 47 countries that belong to the council.... The United States withdrew from the council in 2018." Mrs. McC: So in case you're one of those American "patriots" touting "American exceptionalism," the U.N. is here to remind you that you live in an exceptionally violent, racist nation. (Also linked yesterday.)


How to Get Around a Supreme Court Decision: Ignore It. Emily Davies
of the Washington Post: "Trump administration officials said during a federal court hearing Friday that they have not 'granted nor rejected' any applications for a program designed to protect young undocumented immigrants from deportation, but rather have put them 'on hold' as the government discusses the future of the program. The virtual hearing in the U.S. District Court in Maryland was the first time the administration addressed reports that the Department of Homeland Security was not accepting applications for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program -- despite a recent Supreme Court ruling and a federal judge's order requiring the government to resume accepting applications." Mrs. McC: It appears the Trumpies are following John Yoo's advice.

Keith Bradsher & Steven Myers of the New York Times: "As the United States lashed out against the 'new tyranny' of China, Beijing on Friday ordered the closure of the American consulate in Chengdu, a retaliatory move that threatens to drive the two powers into an even deeper divide. Beijing blamed the Trump administration for the deterioration in relations, calling its own action justified after Washington told China this week to shutter its consulate in Houston and accused its diplomats of acting illegally. A Chinese official, in turn, denounced American diplomats in Chengdu, a southwestern city, for interfering in China's affairs." (Also linked yesterday.)

Joseph Rich of Bloomberg: "On July 22, 27 distinguished District of Columbia attorneys, including former bar presidents and a former senior lawyer in the D.C. Bar disciplinary office, filed a comprehensive D.C. Bar complaint detailing the pattern of Attorney General William Barr's ethical violations over the last 16 months. The meticulously researched, 37-page complaint details how Barr has continuously violated the D.C. Bar Rules of Professional Conduct prohibiting deceitful and dishonest conduct, interference with the administration of justice, conflicts of interest and a failure to support the Constitution.... Over the last several months, up to 2,500 former Department of Justice attorneys have strenuously objected on three occasions to Barr's unethical actions and political interference in the DOJ';s law enforcement decisions. Our democracy depends on a Department of Justice that acts as an independent arbiter of equal justice, not as an arm of the president's political apparatus." --s (Also linked yesterday.)

Jeremy Stahl of Slate: "On Thursday, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addressed retiring Republican Rep. Ted Yoho's nonapology for calling her a 'fucking bitch' earlier in the week. In 10 devastating minutes, Ocasio-Cortez shamed the Florida congressman as emblematic of a culture of misogyny and workplace harassment, tied the Republican Party to that abuse, and once again demonstrated that she is one of the most impactful voices in the House Democratic Caucus.... The speech linked her political opponents directly to crudely sexist language, attitudes, and culture, which has been turning a critical swing-voting bloc of college-educated white women away from the Republican Party in droves." (Also linked yesterday.)

Presidential Race

Annie Karni, et al., of the New York Times: "Mr. Trump ... attributed ... [his] abrupt cancellation of the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville, Fla..., to Florida's soaring rate of coronavirus cases.... But the timing ... was influenced by the imminent need for the Republican Party to book an enormous number of hotel rooms in Jacksonville and sign other costly service agreements.... There were other urgent factors involved in the decision, including the health of party officials and delegates coming from across the country, and Mr. Trump's sinking political standing, which was largely attributable to months of inattentiveness to the virus.... Jacksonville organizers were facing open resistance from local officials.... Faced with all that tumult, Mr. Trump chose instead to cancel the convention in an effort to cast himself as putting safety first. But many of Mr. Trump's top political advisers had already become convinced that the convention stood a better chance of generating embarrassing news stories -- like his recent, unsuccessful rally in Tulsa, Okla. -- than a bounce in the polls." ~~~

But I looked at my team, and I said, 'The timing for this event is not right. It's just not right with what&'s happened recently -- the flare up in Florida -- to have a big convention.... I have to protect the American people. That's what I've always done. That's what I always will do. That's what I'm about. They said, 'Sir, we can make this work very easily. We have great enthusiasm. Incredible enthusiasm. Even the polls say about the most enthusiasm they've seen. We can do this safely, and we can do it responsibly.' And I said, 'There's nothing more important in our country than keeping our people safe.... So, I told my team, 'It's time to cancel the Jacksonville, Florida, component of the GOP Convention.' -- Donald Trump, Thursday, claiming it was his idea to cancel the GOP convention (includes "sir" tell) ~~~

~~~ Michael Scherer, et al., of the Washington Post: "Advisers convinced Trump that canceling the convention could help him politically ... as he tries to pay closer attention to the coronavirus, show that he cares about the health of Americans and improve his sagging poll numbers.... The president publicly mocked former vice president Joe Biden on Twitter for planning a virtual convention 'where he doesn't have to show up.' He accused Democratic governors of denying him rally permits for political advantage and dismissed the warnings against mass gatherings."

"One of the Great Memories of All Time" Didn't Happen. I was going into a thing called the Robin Hood Foundation. I'll never forget it. It was just about the night I announced [I would run for president] or whatever. My wife looked at me, she said, 'You know, I hear people booing.'... You know, it's the first time in my life I was ever booed. -- Donald Trump, in an interview this week

This story could not possibly be true: Trump has not attended the Robin Hood Foundation gala since 2011. Also, the 2015 gala was held in May, a month before Trump announced his candidacy. Also, Trump had been booed in public on multiple occasions before 2015.... [Trump] has previously called [the incident] 'one of the great memories of all time.' --Daniel Dale of CNN

News Ledes

Weather Channel: "Hurricane Hanna's eye is now coming ashore in South Texas ahead of landfall later today, with the potential for dangerous rainfall flash flooding extending well inland into northeast Mexico. Sustained winds have increased to 85 mph according to the Hurricane Hunters. The hurricane's eyewall is moving inland south of Corpus Christi. Some areas between Corpus Christi and Brownsville will get a break in the wind and rain as Hanna's eye moves ashore. Conditions are deteriorating in much of South Texas, with increasing rainfall and wind gusts, as Hanna intensifies. A 79 mph gust has been reported in Laguna Madre, Texas."

Honolulu Star-Advertiser: "A hurricane warning has been issued for Oahu, while Hawaii County and Maui County remain under a hurricane watch.... As of 11 a.m., the storm was located about 325 miles east of Hilo and about 520 miles east-southeast of Honolulu with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph. Douglas was moving toward the west-northwest near 18 mph and expected to continue in the same motion over the next couple of days with a slight decrease in forward speed today, forecasters said. Douglas is forecasted to be near the main Hawaiian islands late tonight and move over the other islands Sunday and Monday."

New York Times: "Regis Philbin, the talk- and game-shows host who regaled America over morning coffee with Kathie Lee Gifford and Kelly Ripa for decades, and who made television history in 1999 by introducing the runaway hit 'Who Wants to Be A Millionaire,' died on Friday night. He was 88.”"

Reader Comments (18)

Off rhe net for the next week.

Take care of yourselves and your families.

When I get back, I'd note there will be only double digits of days before November.

And. maybe the "hot spots" will get some control over their recently risen temperatures while we're gone.

July 24, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

The Chief Justice (even handedly?) tossed one to the Blue Team, but I'm leaning toward Gursuch on this one.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/supreme-court-denies-plea-from-nevada-church-that-it-is-hurt-while-casinos-reopen/2020/07/24/9b99cbf8-cc48-11ea-91f1-28aca4d833a0_story.html?hpid=hp_hp-banner-main_scotusnevada-925pm%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans

July 24, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Wait...Trumpskyev’s staff call him “Sir”? Not Fatty, or Shithead, or Jingydong the Royal Douche?

Who’da thunk it?

“Sir! We can make this work very easily!” Make what work? An order for an extra large pepperoni pizza with a side of garlic bread sticks?

Maybe they can order from that pizzagate child sex ring place that Trumpy supporter shot up. Prob’ly get two for one with the prezidenshul child sexual assault discount.

“Order for Fatty, to go! Have Pippi Longstocking deliver it.”

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Gorsuch..Gorsuch.

Be grateful you all will be spared my spastic fingers for a week.

As I said, keep well. Will miss you all.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

I think I've figured out what happened to Trump's "memory" even if -- and that's a big "if" -- he can recall 5 unrelated words in sequence for 5 minutes (and, no, as Patrick pointed out the other day, that's not "Person, woman, man, camera, TV").

When something that is significant to Trump happens to him, like all of us, he remembers the event. But then he starts hashing it over in his mind and aggrandizing his part in it. He imagines himself being far more heroic than he was (or conversely, his "enemies" being far worse). He imagines the event being far more dramatic and more significant than it was. It's a Walter Mitty thing. It doesn't take long for Trump to believe the imagined event, in some iteration, is what really happened. As his imagination evolves, so does his "memory" of the real event.

I used to write fiction, and of course I often used a real event as a jumping-off point for the fictional story. When you write, you rewrite. And rewrite. Because I spent a lot more time thinking about the fictional version of a real event than I had about the real event, occasionally I could not quite remember what had actually happened. It's not that the fictional event became "real" to me; it's just that the fictional event had come to occupy more "space" in my mind. It, to some extent, superseded the actual event. Of course, I wasn't taking an event & making myself more heroic, as Trump does; I was using my own experience to tell part of a story about a fictional character. These imaginary events were not designed to make my character (or me) look better -- sometimes the opposite was what I had in mind -- and they were not designed to invent a new history of me.

But I can see how Trump, who makes himself the superhero of every event, quickly forgets the details of the real event, and the imaginary superhero event becomes real to him. Thus, something that might have happened at one time and at one place in some version suddenly takes place at a more critical time, at a more important event, in a different version. His underlings (that would be everyone) call him "sir" all the time because they admire him so much. They want to do things that are wrong or unwise and he "corrects" them, even if in fact they have been begging him for weeks to make exactly that "decision."

BTW, Joe Biden has done the same thing. Here Snopes checks on Biden's supposed "arrest" in South Africa in the 1970s. And, yeah, the fake story got more dramatic and more significant in the retellings.

July 25, 2020 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

Bea, highly plausible. All DiJiT's stories are war stories. All war stories are lies.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPatrick

Finally, some good news. The CT legislature passed a bill 144-2 authorizing mail-in ballots for November's election due to COVID-19. Previously, it was only going to be allowed for the Aug. 11 primaries.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered Commenterunwashed

I was catching up on news clips this morning and noticed a typo on Rachel’s graphic regarding the British Open shenanigans. It should have read: Exit Through The GRift Shop.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterNiskyGuy

Before Fatty graced our country with the presidency he said this:

"I made up all sorts of stories and they [the press] would print it."

Lawrence Tribe called this man "a monster" last night on MSNBC.

We are on the brink–-what happens next will depend on the strength of this republic. It's like rediscovering the extreme fragility of life.

I, too, wrote a lot of fiction–-a lot of stories that like Marie's " These imaginary events were not designed to make my character (or me) look better -- sometimes the opposite was what I had in mind -- and they were not designed to invent a new history of me." The world that Trump operates in is an imaginary rendition of how he wants us to view him. I suggest he wrote that script years ago when he had to continue the notion that he was his father's favorite. Life has a way of knocking that kind of thing askew––Trump has made sure it stays in place.

I envy Ken getting away –––I can only do that standing still.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

@unwashed: Yeah––aren't we lucky!

And as if we didn't have enough problems, now the FDA says at least 77 hand sanitizers may be toxic. I, myself, never used them–-soap and water was sufficient.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/24/hand-sanitizer-recall/

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

Ken: I prefer GorSUCK, even though I never use that -suck as a verb. And even though he has been mildly sympathetic toward native Americans.

Pardon me, as I go make my tea out of hand sanitizer... Would you like some from my always-present holster, SIR?

Glad the federal judges are on the case, propping up Dump's militia...s/

This country is so far beyond "on the skids" we will all need to look up to see the Pebble mine...

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterJeanne

The Battle of the Leaf Blowers.

Now this is getting ridiculous:
"The flow of tear gas caused protesters to disperse at times, some becoming sick as others remaining towards the front of the courthouse with leaf blowers directing the gas back to the courthouse. Federal agents had leaf blowers of their own to counteract."

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered Commenterunwashed

A good piece by Roger Cohen (NYT) who tells us that the German people find the "American lurch towards authoritarianism" under Trump alarming and frightening. A recent cover in Der Spiegel portrays Trump as "Der Feuerteul"––the Fire Devil. (Picture of the cover inserted).
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/24/opinion/trump-germany.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

To add to this morning's surfeit of Federal criminal ineptitude in the name of "law enforcement": https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2020/07/25/barbara-boxer-regret-dhs/?hpid=hp_hp-banner-low_boxer-col-655am%3Ahomepage%2Fstory-ans#comments-wrapper. This mea culpa advert by Barb Boxer I will amend with this piece: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/17/us/barbara-boxer-lobbying-firm.html. A couple things I'd like to note is in the NYtimes piece, Boxer says she will "bring a progressive point of view". Mind you, as far as ex-senators go she's better than most but progressive she ain't. She is co-opting 'nice'/"progressive" for her packaging. Now, she says she is sorry about helping establish the DHS. Yup.

I was certain when the DHS was established that this flowering of Lubyanka Square on the Potomac would go sideways. Little ol' me with no insider info like Barb and Jane Harman and that whole military industrial complex supporting crowd. Just notice their personal investments and work activities; that is a sure ID of intent. I bring today's article forward as an example to illustrate that we are every bit as bright (possibly brighter) than our elected representatives and often we are brighter, wiser, and less disingenuous than them, too. Ask soon to be former Rep. Eliot Engel how well disingenuous works. It may be appropriate in the case of Boxer that Kamela Harris took over her seat. "Meet the new boss, same as the old boss", Pete Townshend.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered Commentercitizen625

Furthermore: because AOC and people like her need to be considered and nurtured is this: https://www.thecut.com/2020/07/aoc-speech-ted-yoho-new-york-times.html#_ga=2.94328285.195022382.1595696288-1256285253.1595696288. She is a bright light; that is why they spend so much energy trying to extinguish her. The author does a nice job of explaining how the Big Guys go about marginalizing and diminishing AOC.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered Commentercitizen625

So now Fatty’s federales have leaf blowers to make sure gassed Americans stay gassed. They’re saying, in effect, how dare you try to keep us from hurting you! The Dear Leader demands that you lie down and take your beating. That’s how we do it in a fascist country.

How much will you beg me that were these protesters white supremacist Cliven Bundy militia types, there’d be no violent confrontations, no tear gas, no dragging people into unmasked vans for the Stasi to interrogate and intimidate, and no leaf blowers.

It’s one law for Fatty’s thugs and another for everyone else. This fucking guy better lose by 20 points in November. And Biden better not pull an Obama and allow these Nazi fucks to get off scot free.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

“Bet”, no begging needed. Typing on an iPhone without my reading glasses is never a good idea.

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

The days of Trumps humiliation may be over. If he can work a deal with Microsoft like the NBA has, empty arenas are a thing of the past.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-microsoft-nba/microsoft-nba-team-up-to-put-virtual-fans-in-basketball-arenas-idUSKCN24P2CI

July 25, 2020 | Unregistered CommenterBobby Lee
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