;)
The Commentariat -- October 20, 2018
Afternoon Update:
Washington Post Editors: "Saudi Arabia now has acknowledged that it lied to the world for 17 days about what happened to journalist Jamal Khashoggi when he entered its consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. But the new account offered by the regime of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is utterly devoid of credibility.... That President Trump would pronounce this fable credible only underlines his shameful intent to assist in the attempt of the regime -- and, in particular, the crown prince -- to escape meaningful accountability. As Mr. Trump surely knows, the new Saudi cover story is contradicted not just by evidence collected by Turkish authorities and by journalists but also by the reporting of the U.S. intelligence community. All point to Mohammed bin Salman as the instigator of a premeditated, cold-blooded and brutal murder, followed by the dismemberment of Mr. Khashoggi's body." ...
... Nicholas Kristof: "After lying for more than two weeks about the death of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi government has now announced a series of new lies about his murder in ways that insult both Jamal's memory and our intelligence.... These lies are so blatant and implausible that they underscore how out of touch M.B.S. is, and also suggest M.B.S. believes that he will have the backing of the United States in this cover-up. That's a good bet, since Trump has lately celebrated the assault on a journalist by a Montana congressman and previously suggested that maybe a rogue killer was responsible for killing Jamal.... So what we really have now is a test of Trump and of America itself." Kristof has several suggestions on how the U.S. should go forward.
... Ben Hubbard & David Kirkpatrick of the New York Times: "Saudi Arabia is facing perhaps its greatest international crisis since the revelation that its citizens planned and carried out the attacks on September 11, 2001. Members of the ruling family are increasingly worried about the direction of the country under the leadership of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the 33-year-old favorite son of King Salman and the kingdom's day-to-day ruler.... The one person who could intervene is the king himself, but senior princes have found it nearly impossible to bring their concerns to the 82-year-old monarch, and some doubt he is fully aware of what is happening or willing to change course."
Ivanka's Felony Fraud. Colin Kalmbacher of Law & Crime: "Ivanka Trump misrepresented the sales figures of various Trump-branded properties around the world on multiple occasions over the past decade, according to a lengthy exposé released late Wednesday by public interest news organization ProPublica in conjunction with Manhattan public radio station WNYC. Those real estate-related misrepresentations were almost certainly criminal according to legal experts surveyed by Law&Crime.... The report [linked yesterday] notes, 'The Manhattan district attorney's office [under Cyrus Vance, Jr.] considered charging the Trumps but backed off after a visit from a donor -- Trump's attorney Marc Kasowitz.'... And there's also an apparent coda here: The Manhattan District Attorney's office is now under investigation by the FBI over those corruption and pay-to-play allegations, according to the New York Daily News. In light of the FBI's investigation into Vance's office, it's possible that Ivanka Trump could be facing criminal charges herself over the fraudulent real estate schemes." --s
"Capitalism is Awesome," Ctd. Jennifer Dlouhy of Bloomberg: "White House officials pushed the EPA to maximize savings for the oil industry despite the agency's concern that weakening regulations would allow more methane to escape into the atmosphere, according to newly released documents. The White House pressure campaign came as the Environmental Protection Agency honed a proposal to relax Obama-era requirements governing how frequently oil companies have to check for and repair leaks of methane, an intense greenhouse gas that warms the atmosphere 84 times more than carbon dioxide. Every move to dial back required inspections and reduce industry costs triggered a corresponding climb in projected methane emissions, a jump that appeared to trouble some EPA officials, according to internal documents filed in a government docket Tuesday.... The entire process was driven by an attempt to maximize corporate profits at the expense of public health and the environment, said Amit Narang, a regulatory policy expert with Public Citizen." [Open in private window] --s
Naked Racism. Sam Fulwood III of ThinkProgress: "...[M]ounting evidence brings into clear focus that racial animus was -- and remains -- the foundation for the president's political support.... [A] recent study by the Democracy Fund Voter Study Group, a research collaboration of more than two dozen analysts and scholars spanning the political spectrum, offers insights into the GOP's refurbished reliance on racism to win at the ballot box. And, in the process, the study provides another set of data points to rebuke the white working class economy anxiety argument.... [V]oters appear to understand, correctly, that while Wall Street has greatly benefited from the Trump and Republican-controlled Congress' tax cuts, life on Main Street has improved very little. Hence, there's no room for the GOP to tout any real economic success.... This is a welcome harbinger for next month's midterm elections. Yet, the crucial fact remains that race -- not worries over the economy -- matters more to trigger voters to turn out and vote." --s...
Asleep at the Wheel. Li Zhou of Vox: "Latino voters could make the difference in some of this year's most competitive congressional races -- particularly in places like Arizona, California, and Texas where they make up more than 20 percent of the electorate. Given high anti-Trump sentiment among Latino voters -- and a strong preference for Democratic candidates — these voters could help spur a 'blue wave' in November. But Democrats have to reach them and turn them out to vote first.... In an October 16 poll, the groups found that 55 percent of Latino voters haven&'t experienced any form of election outreach from Democrats or Republicans.... At the same time in the 2016 election, almost the exact same proportion of Latino voters also said that they hadn't received any outreach." --s
Tim Johnson of McClatchy DC: "In three states, the referee for the midterm elections is also on the field as a player. Elected secretaries of state in Georgia and Kansas -- who in their official capacities oversee the elections in their states -- are running for governor. Ohio's secretary of state is running for lieutenant governor. All are Republicans. They have faced scattered calls to resign but have refused to do so." -- safari: Democrats could never get away with this, nor should they. But IOKIYAR.
Josh Israel of ThinkProgress: "A shockingly racist radio ad from a super PAC calling itself Black Americans for the President's Agenda went viral on Thursday evening. The spots, running on radio stations popular with black voters in Arkansas and Missouri, urge black women to back Republican Rep. French Hill in Arkansas' 2nd congressional district, Republican Missouri Attorney General Josh Hawley in his U.S. Senate campaign, and GOP candidates in general. Their factually inaccurate argument: if Democrats accused Brett Kavanaugh of sexual predation without evidence, black 'men and boys' will be subject to 'race verdicts, life sentences, and lynchings when a white girl screams "rape!"' The donors bankrolling this committee, however, appear to be rich [white], conservative ideologues, not the actual 'Black Americans' they claim to be.... [To his credit] Hill tweeted that he condemned the 'appalling' and 'outrageous ad in the strongest terms.'" --s...
Missouri. Bryan Lowry & Brian Murphy of McClatchy DC: "A new radio ad seeks to frighten black voters away from Sen. Claire McCaskill's campaign by suggesting the Democrat supports lynchings.... Another of the group's Missouri ads accuses McCaskill, the Democratic incumbent who supports abortion rights, of not caring 'that black babies that are aborted three times more likely than white babies....'" --s
Alabama. Kim Chandler of TPM: "Congressional [Democratic] candidate Mallory Hagan said Thursday that a worrisome number of Alabama voters have been removed from active voter lists, prompting her to create a committee to assist people who encounter problems before and on Election Day. Hagan's campaign said more than 55,000 voters in the 3rd Congressional District have been disqualified or labeled inactive since February 2017, according to numbers they obtained.... She announced the creation of a committee of lawyers who will volunteer their assistance to voters. In addition, her campaign will staff a hotline for voters to report any concerns. People can also check their voting information at the secretary of state's web site myinfo.alabamavotes.gov." --s
Michigan. John Bowden of the Hill: "A Michigan Republican women's PAC is backing two Democratic candidates in November over their Trump-supporting opponents, pointing to
Iowa. Christopher Mathias & Nick Robins-Early of the Huffington Post: "Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) visited Austria in August and gave an extensive interview to a far-right publication there in which he spelled out, in clearer and more shocking terms than he ever has before, his white nationalist worldview. The eight-term congressman, up for re-election next month, talked to Caroline Sommerfeld of the Austrian far-right propaganda site Unzensuriert (which means 'uncensored' in English).... King discussed his belief in the superiority of European culture over others. He talked fearfully of falling fertility rates in the West and spoke at length about his belief that Europe and America are threatened by Muslim and Latino immigration. 'If we don't defend Western civilization, then we will become subjugated by the people who are the enemies of faith, the enemies of justice,' King said. The interview is remarkable, capturing a sitting U.S. congressman completely fluent in modern white nationalist talking points just weeks before an election he is favored to win." Mrs. McC: If Steve King is the "master race," I sure don't want to be in it.
Colorado. Mark Hand of ThinkProgress: "[A] Colorado ballot initiative would expand the buffer zones between homes and industrial oil and gas facilities. As with other ballot initiative attempts in the past, Colorado's anti-fracking activists are sending the oil and industry into a frenzy, despite the relatively modest nature of the proposition.... The industry has so far raised $30 million to defeat the measure, about 40 times the money that environmental groups have raised. But Proposition 112 is far from radical. It doesn't call for banning fracking in Colorado. The measure would simply keep new wells farther away from homes and schools.... The industry's spending of million of dollars appears to be working. Polls show the final vote on the proposition is going to be extremely close, according to supporters of the proposition." --safari: Who in their right mind would vote against this?
Joe Romm of ThinkProgress: "A disturbing new study finds that global warming helped drive as much as a 60-fold decline in insect population in Puerto Rico's tropical rainforest between 1976 and 2013. 'Our results suggest that the effects of climate warming in tropical forests may be even greater than anticipated,' said lead author, biologist Brad Lister, of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). And that's a potentially catastrophic problem given that the forest saw 3.6°F (2°C) warming during that time -- yet warming this century is on track to be far greater.... These new findings follow several studies in recent years that found collapsing insect populations around the world.... So these findings are 'a real wake-up call -- a clarion call -- that the phenomenon could be much, much bigger, and across many more ecosystems,' invertebrate expert David Wagner (who was not involved in the study) told the Washington Post. He added, 'This is one of the most disturbing articles I have ever read.'" --s
*****
** After 17 Days, the Saudis Come up with a Cover Story. Ben Hubbard of the New York Times: "Saudi Arabia announced on Saturday that Jamal Khashoggi, the dissident Saudi journalist who disappeared more than two weeks ago, died after an argument and fistfight with unidentified men inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Eighteen men have been arrested and are being investigated in the case, according to statements released through state-run media. None were identified. State media also reported that Gen. Ahmed Al Asiri, the deputy director of Saudi intelligence, and other high-ranking intelligence officials had been dismissed. They did not say whether the men's firing had any connection to the Khashoggi case or whether they were being investigated for playing a role in it." ...
... Mark Landler & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "President Trump broke with his own intelligence agencies on Friday, appearing to accept Saudi Arabia's explanation that the journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed by accident during a fistfight, while the United States' spy agencies are increasingly convinced that he was assassinated on high-level orders from the Saudi royal court. Mr. Trump, who has cultivated Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and made Saudi Arabia the linchpin of his Middle East strategy, has been deeply reluctant to point a finger at the prince, despite evidence linking him to Saudi operatives who entered the country's consulate in Istanbul the same day that Mr. Khashoggi disappeared there. Asked during a visit to an Air Force base in Arizona whether he viewed the Saudi explanation as credible, Mr. Trump said, 'I do.'... 'I think we're getting close to solving a big problem,' Mr. Trump told reporters at the Luke Air Force Base.... Mr. Trump's response sets up a clash with Congress, where Republicans and Democrats both tarred the Saudi explanation as lacking credibility." ...
... Christopher Cadelago & Brent Griffiths of Politico: "... Donald Trump on Friday evening praised Saudi Arabia's statement acknowledging the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in its Istanbul consulate, adding that he would prefer 'some form' of sanctions on the kingdom while stressing that arms sales should remain untouched. 'I think it's a great first step,' Trump said in Arizona, where he will be holding a rally later, according to a pool report." ...
... Aziz El Yaakoubi of Reuters: "Speaking to reporters in Scottsdale, Arizona, Trump said it was too early to say what the consequences for the incident might be, but that the U.S. Congress would be involved in determining the American response. Asked whether Saudi sanctions were one of the measures he was considering, Trump said, 'Could be, could be,' though he provided no details. 'We're going to find out who knew what when and where. And we'll figure it out,' Trump added." ...
... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: So a 60-year-old chubby guy walks into a consulate to pick up some paperwork he was told was ready. Oh, maybe the paperwork isn't ready after all, so he raises his voice & to everyone's surprise, he starts punching people. Totally believable. The next thing you know, 15 security guys who happened to have just arrived from Saudi Arabia pile on -- all innocently of course -- one wielding a bone saw. They accidentally cut off the man's fingers, strangle him, chop up his body, shove the parts into some cases they happen to have handy, & off they go with the body parts to Saudi Arabia in a plane that just happens to be waiting. Sure, coulda happened that way. Then again, if you gave the dumbest Hollywood screenwriter 17 days to come up with a story about how a guy who walked into a consulate died, he could have come up with 17 more plausible scenarios, most of which still would be too ridiculous to make it into production. Nevertheless, an old fat boy who's so suspicious of others that he thinks Democrats are paying Hondurans to invade the U.S. (which is an incredible insult to the desperate refugees, but never mind that), that very suspicious guy, says the guy-walks-into-a-consulate-and-starts-a-fistfight is plausible. ...
... Kareem Fahim & John Hudson of the Washington Post: "... no individual had put more pressure on [Saudi Arabia] ... than Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In the weeks after Khashoggi disappeared at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Erdogan and his aides ... narrated the crisis, focusing the world's attention on what they said was a brazen, state-sponsored assassination on its soil. Grisly details of the alleged killing were released to the Turkish and international news media.... Turkey's revelations may have helped push the Saudi government to reverse its repeated denials of wrongdoing and announce early Saturday that it had arrested 18 people and fired several top officials in the case.... For Erdogan, the benefits of turning up the heat on Saudi Arabia and its young crown prince ... were apparent.... The two countries have competed for influence in the Middle East and clashed over Turkey's support for Qatar in a feud that divided the region. Erdogan has little personal affection for Mohammed, who referred to Turkey this year as part of a regional 'triangle of evil,' along with Iran and regional Islamist groups." ...
... Mnuchin to Schmooze with Assassination, Inc. Damian Paletta & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin has decided to take part in an anti-terror finance meeting with Saudi security officials and their Middle Eastern counterparts in Riyadh later this month, opting to attend despite growing global outrage over the suspected murder of a U.S.-based journalist at the hands of Saudi operatives, according to three people familiar with his travel plans. The security gathering next week is separate from a Riyadh financial summit that Mnuchin announced on Thursday he would not attend."
Matt Zapotosky, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department announced Friday it had charged a Russian woman who prosecutors say conspired to interfere wit the 2018 U.S. election, marking the first criminal case that accuses a foreign national of interfering in the upcoming midterms. Elena Khusyaynova, 44, was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors said she managed the finances of 'Project Lakhta,' a foreign influence operation they said was designed 'to sow discord in the U.S. political system' by pushing arguments and misinformation online about a host of divisive political issues, including immigration, the Confederate flag, gun control and National Football League protests during the national anthem. The charges against Khusyaynova came just as the Office of the Director of National Intelligence warned that it was concerned about 'ongoing campaigns' by Russia, China and Iran to interfere with the upcoming midterm elections and the 2020 race.... Court papers say Khusyaynova's operation was funded by Russian oligarch Yevgeniy Prigozhin, an associate of Russian President Vladimir Putin who is known as 'Putin's chef,' and two companies he controls: Concord Management and Consulting, and Concord Catering." ...
... Andrew Prokop of Vox: "This is the same Russian 'troll farm' that was the focus of charges filed by special counsel Robert Mueller's office back in February, and accused of crimes related to interfering with the 2016 election. But the DOJ says this interference is still continuing as the 2018 midterms approach -- and gives new details of what the Russian trolls have been up to while Donald Trump has been president. The operation, budgeted at $1 million or more per month, involved creating false online personas.... The charging document described how this activity would play out on Twitter. Phony liberal accounts -- @wokeluisa, @KaniJJackson, @JemiSHaaaZzz -- would attack Republicans, including Trump. Meanwhile, phony conservative accounts — @Amconvoice, @JohnCopper16, and @CovfefeNationUS (really) -- would attack Democrats.... 'Information warfare' sounds frightening, but sometimes trolls are just that: trolls." ...
... Sarah Burris of the Raw Story: "CNN's Jake Tapper noticed ... Donald Trump's strange disinterest and denial in the arrest of a Russian woman accused of attempting to hack the 2018 election. 'Nothing to do with my campaign,' Trump said while at a campaign stop in Arizona Friday. 'All of the hackers and all of the -- everybody that you see, nothing to do with my campaign. If they're hackers, a lot of them probably like Hillary Clinton better than me.'... '... one would think this is going to be like, "This is going to stop. My Justice Department is on it. I want to protect the integrity of the vote." No -- "I had nothing to do with it!"' Tapper said, reiterating Trump's response. CNN's Sara Murray note[d] this has been the concern, the president doesn't seem to be interested in protecting the vote." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: I thought Trump's response was just weird. He didn't seem to know that 2016 & 2018 are different years. It's 2018 now, Donald, & neither you nor Hillary Clinton is on the ballot. He's the POTUS* & he's very confused.
Matt Naham of Law & Crime: "Special counsel Robert Mueller continues to examine the 2016 hack of the Democratic National Committee and whether various individuals had knowledge of it before documents were dumped on WikiLeaks. These individuals include Jerome Corsi..., former Trump campaign advisor Roger Stone and the associates of the deceased Peter W. Smith. According to Byron Tau of the Wall Street Journal, 'Mueller has Stone's telephone records and evidence Smith had foreknowledge of hacks' by the fictitious persona known as Guccifer 2.0."
Darren Samuelsohn & Josh Gerstein of Politico: "Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort appeared in federal court in a wheelchair on Friday and his lawyer said he's dealing with 'significant issues' tied to his health because of his confinement at a Northern Virginia jail. The attorney, Kevin Downing, didn't specify what the problem was in open court but a source familiar with the situation later explained the longtime GOP operative who has been confined since mid-June is dealing with an issue related to his diet and has inflammation in his foot. Manafort, 69, was wearing a green prison jumpsuit labeled on the back 'ALEXANDRIA INMATE' and no shoe on his right foot during the proceedings.... The hearing, called to address Manafort's ongoing cooperation with special counsel Robert Mueller tied to his subsequent guilty plea in Washington D.C., concluded with U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis setting a Feb. 8 sentencing date for Manafort. Ellis also formally dismissed 10 counts against Manafort where the jury had failed to reach a verdict."
Darren Samuelsohn: "... Donald Trump's critics have spent the past 17 months anticipating what some expect will be among the most thrilling events of their lives: special counsel Robert Mueller's final report on Russian 2016 election interference. They may be in for a disappointment. That's the word Politico got from defense lawyers working on the Russia probe and more than 15 former government officials with investigation experience.... The public, they say, shouldn't expect a comprehensive and presidency-wrecking account of Kremlin meddling and alleged obstruction of justice by Trump — not to mention an explanation of the myriad subplots that have bedeviled lawmakers, journalists and amateur Mueller sleuths. Perhaps most unsatisfying: Mueller's findings may never even see the light of day." (Also linked yesterday.)
David Nakamura, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Trump administration's struggles to curtail illegal immigration have exposed a deep rift among the president and his top advisers, one that could lead to changes in the Cabinet and undermine the government's response to a record surge of migrant families at the southern border. Even as President Trump continues to consider immigration to be a political winner..., tensions in the West Wing have reached a boiling point. A profane shouting match over immigration this week among top aides prompted Chief of Staff John F. Kelly to storm out of the White House.... Trump's own escalating frustration has led him to excoriate aides for not taking more aggressive actions.... He has ruminated this week over the possibility of sending more soldiers to the border, even though thousands of National Guard troops have been deployed there since April with no evidence of a deterrent effect.... 'Close the whole thing!' Trump demanded at one point during an Oval Office meeting, the officials said. He was talked out of it by advisers who highlighted the effect such a measure would have on more than $600 billion in U.S.-Mexico annual trade, as well as the potential damage to bilateral relations, according to the officials." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: Kudos to the migrants whose persistence Trump has not been able to completely frustrate. These desperate people seeking safety have got under Trump's skin in a way Democrats have failed to do. I hope the old fat boy blows a gasket, & his last word is "Mexico."
Matthew Choi of Politico: "The White House Correspondents' Association condemned ... Donald Trump Friday after he lauded a lawmaker from Montana a day earlier for body slamming a Guardian reporter. 'All Americans should recoil from the president's praise for a violent assault on a reporter doing his Constitutionally protected job,' White House Correspondents' Association president Olivier Knox said in a statement. 'This amounts to the celebration of a crime by someone sworn to uphold our laws and an attack on the First Amendment by someone who has solemnly pledged to defend it. We should never shrug at the president cheerleading for a violent act targeting a free and independent news media.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Jamiles Lartey of the Guardian: "Journalists expressed disgust with Donald Trump's remarks at a rally Thursday night in Montana, where he praised and joked about the unprovoked assault on a Guardian US journalist by the state's congressman, Greg Gianforte. 'Gianforte is a criminal. He pled guilty to [assault]. The president is congratulating a criminal on committing a crime,' said New York Times correspondent Binyamin Appelbaum.... Axios national political reporter Jonathan Swan replied: 'Nothing tough about jumping a reporter for asking you a substantive question. Just unhinged,' before also pointing out that Gianforte and his staff lied about the assault to police and the public. 'Only reason Gianforte got caught is because there was a tape,' Swan said. A spokeswoman for the British prime minister Theresa May said on Friday: 'Any violence or intimidation against a journalist is completely unacceptable.'... CNN reporter Jim Acosta, who was at the rally in Montana, observed: 'The disturbing part of Trump's jokes about Gianforte was the effect on the crowd. I saw one young man in the crowd making body-slam gestures. He looked at me and ran his thumb across his throat. I talked to him after the rally was over. He couldn't stop laughing. A number of journalists pointed out how Trump's comments are especially troubling this week, coming as evidence mounts that Saudi Arabian crown prince Mohammed bin Salman is directly linked to the presumed murder of journalist and Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi.... 'Tonight [Trump] celebrates an assault on a reporter in Montana at the same time as his Administration tries to minimize the murder of a reporter in Turkey. His words matter, and they reveal his character, said New Yorker and CNN contributor Jeffrey Toobin." (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "One can hardly fathom the twisted psyche of a president who, after acknowledging that Jamal Khashoggi, a contributing columnist for The Post's Global Opinions, had likely been murdered, would go before a cheering mob to lavish praise on a U.S. congressman who physically attacked a journalist.... Trump won't apologize, of course, nor will his devoted base hold his remarks against him.... This is what they love about him -- the contempt for a free press, the celebration of male thuggishness, the mindless emotional outbursts. Somehow it empowers them, to side wit brutes and bullies, to revel in the silencing of a free press." ...
... Jonathan Chait has a good take on Trump's praise of violence against journalists. "Trump is telling Republicans everywhere that they can help gain power and esteem through violence against journalists. His crowd's enthusiasm vindicates him." The one thing Chait omits as that even as Trump praises Gianforte & helps MBS craft a cover story, Trump is regaling the same crowd with poetry like, "Democrats produce mobs, Republicans produce jobs." That is, he is (falsely) accusing Democrats of exactly the same behavior he is advocating in Republicans. (Also linked yesterday.)
Julian Borger of the Guardian: "John Bolton is pushing for the US to withdraw from a cold war-era arms control treaty with Russia, in the face of resistance from others in the Trump administration and US allies, according to sources briefed on the initiative. Bolton, Donald Trump's third national security adviser, has issued a recommendation for withdrawal from the 1987 intermediate-range nuclear forces treaty (INF), which the US says Russia has been violating with the development of a new cruise missile.... The US has briefed its European allies this week about the proposal.... The briefing alarmed UK officials who see the INF as an important arms control pillar. The treaty marked the end of a dangerous nuclear standoff in 1980s Europe... Bolton, who has spent his career opposing arms control treaties, is seeking to shrug off the traditional role of national security adviser as a policy broker between the agencies, and become a driver of radical change from within the White House. Former US officials say Bolton is blocking talks on extending the 2010 New Start treaty with Russia limiting deployed strategic nuclear warheads and their delivery systems." ...
... ** Update. David Sanger & William Broad of the New York Times: "The Trump administration is preparing to tell Russian leaders next week that it is planning to exit the landmark Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, in part to enable the United States to counter a Chinese arms buildup in the Pacific, according to American officials and foreign diplomats. President Trump has been moving toward scrapping the three-decade-old treaty, which grew out of President Ronald Reagan's historic meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev in 1986. While the treaty was seen as effective for years, Russia has been violating it at least since 2014 in an effort to menace other nations. But the pact has also constrained the United States from deploying new weapons to respond to China's efforts to cement a dominant position in the Western Pacific and to keep American naval forces at bay. Because China was not a signatory to the treaty, it has faced no limits on developing intermediate-range nuclear missiles, which can travel thousands of miles."
Katie Benner of the New York Times: "During his 20 months in office, Attorney General Jeff Sessions has swept in perhaps the most dramatic political shift in memory at the Justice Department, from the civil rights-centered agenda of the Obama era to one that favors his hard-line conservative views on immigration, civil rights and social issues. Now, discontent and infighting have taken hold at the Justice Department, in part because Mr. Sessions was so determined to carry out that transformation that he ignored dissent, at times putting the Trump administration on track to lose in court and prompting high-level departures, according to interviews over several months with two dozen current and former career department lawyers who worked under Mr. Sessions.... President Trump has exacerbated the dynamic, they said, by repeatedly attacking Mr. Sessions and the Justice Department in baldly political and personal terms. And he has castigated rank-and-file employees, which career lawyers said further chilled dissent and debate within the department." (Also linked yesterday.)
So Much for That Promotion. Grace Segers of CBS News: "Suzanne Israel Tufts has resigned her post at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD Secretary Ben Carson sent an email to staff last week congratulating Tufts, whom he said would be leaving to take the job as acting inspector general at the Interior Department. However, the current acting IG, Mary Kendall, had not been informed that she was apparently being replaced, which the Interior Department says could only be done at the president's request. A spokesperson for Kendall told CBS News on Wednesday that she was still on the job and has not received any indication from the White House or the department that she is being replaced.... In a statement, Raffi Williams, deputy assistant secretary for public affairs at HUD, confirmed Tufts' departure. 'Secretary Carson thanks her for her service to the Administration and the country. We wish her all the best,' he said." Mrs. McC: Kinda sounds as if Tufts had served her purpose -- letting Carson off the hook for buying that pricey dining set -- and now he can hardly wait to get her out the door. ...
... Odder Than I Thought. Lisa Rein, et al., of the Washington Post: "Suzanne Israel Tufts was scheduled to be interviewed Friday morning for another inspector general position elsewhere in the government.... But she did not show up for the appointment.... In recent days, Tufts was referred by the White House to interview with a group of inspectors general who vet potential candidates for permanent, Senate-confirmed watchdog positions. As with the acting job her candidacy for a permanent position at another agency was highly unusual because inspectors general, while Senate confirmed, are not supposed to be partisan.... She had not been at work for at least two months..., but was still on the payroll." Anyway, Tufts seems to be off the government payroll. But everything is going very smoothly.
Election 2018
David Leonhardt of the New York Times: "The end of Robert Mueller's investigation. The loss of health insurance for several million people. New laws that make it harder to vote. More tax cuts for the rich. More damage to the environment. A Republican Party molded even more in the image of President Trump. These are among the plausible consequences if the Republicans sweep the midterm elections and keep control of both the House and Senate. And don't fool yourself. That outcome, although not the most likely one, remains possible. The last couple of weeks of polling have shown how it could happen. Voters who lean Republican -- including whites across the South -- could set aside their disappointment with Trump and vote for Republican congressional candidates. Voters who lean left -- including Latinos and younger adults -- could turn out in low numbers, as they usually do in midterm elections."
** Alaska. Tegan Hanlon & Annie Zak of the Anchorage Daily News: "Alaska Gov. Bill Walker announced Friday he is dropping his bid for re-election and endorsing Democrat Mark Begich against Republican Mike Dunleavy. Walker, elected as an independent, made the announcement Friday afternoon at the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention, three days after former Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott stepped down from both his office and the re-election campaign over unspecified 'inappropriate comments' he made to a woman. 'Every decision I have made as your governor, I have made on the basis of what I believe is best for Alaska,' Walker told the crowd. 'With that said, effective today, I am suspending my campaign for re-election as governor.' There were gasps from the audience.... Walker, a Republican-turned-independent, was elected in 2014 on a so-called unity ticket with Mallott, a Democrat, and defeated incumben Republican Sean Parnell."
** Texas. Houston Chronicle Editors: "... we enthusiastically endorse Beto O'Rourke for U.S. Senate. The West Texas congressman's command of issues that matter to this state, his unaffected eloquence and his eagerness to reach out to all Texans make him one of the most impressive candidates this editorial board has encountered in many years. Despite the long odds he faces -- pollster nonpareil Nate Silver gives O'Rourke a 20 percent chance of winning -- a 'Beto' victory would be good for Texas, not only because of his skills, both personal and political, but also because of the manifest inadequacies of the man he would replace. Ted Cruz -- a candidate the Chronicle endorsed in 2012, by the way -- is the junior senator from Texas in name only. Exhibiting little interest in addressing the needs of his fellow Texans during his six years in office, he has kept his eyes on a higher prize. He's been running for president since he took the oath of office .... For Cruz, public office is a private quest; the needs of his constituents are secondary." Read on. Mrs. McC: This is a rousing endorsement of O'Rourke & a hearty condemnation of Cruz. ...
... So here's an an Akhilleus likes, but it was not cut by a candidate. It is kinda perfect. "C'mon, Ted":
Florida. A list of the Miami Herald's endorsements for statewide & local offices, as well as state constitutional amendments, is here. The editors have endorsed Sen. Bill Nelson (D) for re-election & will endorse Andrew Gillum (D) for governor.
Indiana. Justin Mack & Holly Hays of the Indianapolis Star: "Many Hoosiers who saw the latest Joe Donnelly ad entitled 'Ax' may have viewed it and thought, 'well, there's a fella who likes to chop his own wood!' But fans of HBO's 'Veep' looked at it and said, 'boy, this sure looks familiar.' That's because the Donnelly ad posted to his YouTube page Wednesday is very similar to a commercial called 'Chopping' that aired on the Julia Louis-Dreyfus led comedy for fictional congressional candidate Jonah Ryan. The similarities, from the location to the close-up shots of wood being chopped on a stump, were pointed out on Twitter by Jerry Dunleavy.... In August, Mike Braun's campaign pulled its campaign ad known as 'Doers' after it was pointed out that shared similarities with a Chevron ad, according to the Indiana Democratic Party. The two shared the tagline 'doers,' as well as similar graphic design elements." Braun is Donnelly's GOP opponent. Mrs. Mc.C: You'd think Sen. Donnelly would be smart enough not to duplicate his opponent's goof. But no. (Also linked yesterday, along with a couple of "Veep" videos, which I did not bring forward.)
Minnesota. Andrew Kaczynski & Jamie Ehrlich of CNN: "Republican Rep. Jason Lewis [Minnesota] once mocked women who were traumatized by unwanted sexual advances.... The Minnesota congressman made his comment during a November 2011 broadcast of 'The Jason Lewis Show,' a syndicated radio program that aired from 2009 until 2014 before he was elected to the House in 2016. Lewis was discussing sexual harassment allegations leveled against then-Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain.... '... how traumatizing was it?' Lewis said. 'How many women at some point in their life have a man come on to them, place their hand on their shoulder or maybe even their thigh, kiss them, and they would rather not have it happen, but is that really something that's going to be seared in your memory that you'll need therapy for? You'll never get over?... Come on! She wasn't raped,' Lewis added, using a voice mocking an emotionally distraught woman.... After CNN's KFile contacted Lewis' campaign for comment, a law firm representing ... the radio network that produced Lewis' show, sent a letter demanding that CNN 'cease and desist' from using the copyrighted radio show.... CNN is using the audio under the 'fair use' doctrine...."
Way Beyond the Beltway
Griff Witte of the Washington Post: "Europe's top court ordered Poland's government on Friday to immediately halt implementation of a controversial law designed to force more than a dozen of the nation's Supreme Court justices into early retirement. The surprise decision by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) sets up a potential clash between European authorities and the right-wing Polish government, which has been accused of subverting the rule of law with a bid to pack Supreme Court with sympathetic judges. The Polish government had no immediate reaction to the ruling. But Polish officials have earlier suggested they might defy the ECJ's will if the court sought to intervene in what the government sees as a purely domestic matter." (Also linked yesterday.)
Share Article
Reader Comments (4)
@Ak: Wanted you to know I enjoyed your comments yesterday, especially the introduction to n t 1 which I clicked on and agree that it is a most impressive site. Like you, I loved those little journals and recalled that I was lucky to live at a time when literature was key. When encountering friends, it was always, "so what are you reading now?" Once I paid a visit to a new neighbor, found her poolside reading "Daniel Martin" by John Fowles, a book I loved as well as its author, and right there it cemented our friendship. But that was long ago and even though PBS is doing their "Great America Read" we have lost the art of intensive reading and the ability to write well. But back to your new found journal on line. After reading the long piece you were discussing I clicked on "Sick Puppy," a short story by Lucinda Rosenfeld, about a sexual relationship that borders on the pathological. Dinner was late due to my immersion in said story so when the mister wondered what had kept me, I said, "blame it on Akhilleus."
I tend to agree with your argument of not impeaching the goat-footed balloon man–-I'd like it very much if he just implodes. And one day someone will write a brilliant play about this time when furies abound and a leader was found wanting and corrupt.
As for the explanation from the Saudi's for the murder of Khashoggi, I agree with Marie that it is so lame and silly even the worst crime author could come up with a more plausible explanation. And as horrible as this crime is, the devastation in Yemen is an even greater atrocity and the Saudi's need to be held accountable NOW and WE and the British must stop all arm sales NOW. Does money talk (I'm not even including Trump here–-he'd turn in anyone if it would benefit him) that loudly so that we have lost our sense of decency, our sense of compassion? When young children are being starved like this, even if they recover their brains have been compromised. This, again, is what evil looks like.
Had just a few moments to check RC and the NYTimes last night and darn it! because of my long-standing interest in the matter got drawn into the Time's Bret Stephens piece on affirmative action at Harvard.
Guess I wanted to see if he would say something as dumb as usually comes out of the mouth of conservatives on the topic. He did.
Kept me up later than I wished last night but I posted this:
"When the Supremes pulled the teeth of the Voting Rights Act, the majority's logic was that the deliberate suppression of voting rights for minorities was pretty much a thing of the past in our Post-Racial society.
(Wonder if that conservative majority has paid any attention to what has happened since, as state after state has deliberately sought to limit voting access to specific vulnerable groups likely to vote the wrong way. Likely not."
It strikes me the attack on affirmative action college admissions--the Harvard case is only the latest-- is based on the same false assumption. No matter how much the Right pretends otherwise, while the clothing racism might wear has changed over the years, it is still very much with us, in our schools, our communities, and at work, and again it takes a special brand of willful blindness to ignore it.
Robert's truism about the way to stop racial discrimination that you are so pleased to quote ("The only way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discrimination on the basis of race") is a nice sounding circularity--and no more than that. Of course, he's right, in the same simple-minded manner as saying the way to stop robbing banks is to stop robbing banks and suggesting the power of that argument is so great in itself that we no longer need laws against bank robbery.
If we truly care about racism, we ought to say instead that only when racism in all its nefarious forms disappears from all other aspects of our society should we abandon affirmative action, because only then will it not be needed."
This morning I would add this more explicit conclusion: The fact is of course, it's evident our conservative Supremes don't care about our nation's endemic racism, no more than they care about its expression in voter suppression. Nor do they care about our headlong rush to plutocracy. The Citizens United decision was another similar exercise in self-imposed naivete, of shutting ones eyes to reality, the SOP of what I have come to call the LPP, the Let's Pretend Party created for and peopled by children who refuse to grown up.
They want the entire nation to be a playground for the rich, white people who condescend to allow them into their clubs, and in the Big Baby who now leads them they couldn't have chosen anyone more qualified .
Poor Trump. Trying to get the Trump tower built in Riyadh and pretend to be POTUS at the same time just doesn't work.
An Oldie but Goodie:
Obama's Use of Complete Sentences Stirs Controversy
by Andy Borowitz
"In the first two weeks since the election, President-elect Barack Obama has broken with a tradition established over the past eight years through his controversial use of complete sentences, political observers say...
"Millions of Americans who watched Mr. Obama's appearance on CBS's 60 Minutes on Sunday witnessed the president-elect's unorthodox verbal tick, which had Mr. Obama employing grammatically correct sentences virtually every time he opened his mouth..."
You betcha! and we thought Bush was bad.
Mrs. McCrabbie: Hadda cut the hell out of this comment. Copyright infringement.