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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." 

Washington Post: “'Mary Cassatt at Work' is a large and mostly satisfying exhibition devoted to the career of the great American artist beloved for her sensitive and often sentimental views of family life. The 'at work' in the title of the Philadelphia Museum of Art show references the curators’ interest in Cassatt’s pioneering effort to establish herself as a professional artist within a male-dominated field. Throughout the show, which includes some 130 paintings, pastels, prints and drawings, the wall text and the art on view stresses Cassatt’s fixation on art as a career rather than a pastime.... Mary Cassatt at Work is on view at the Philadelphia Museum of Art through Sept. 8. philamuseum.org”

New York Times: “Bob Newhart, who died on Thursday at the age of 94, has been such a beloved giant of popular culture for so long that it’s easy to forget how unlikely it was that he became one of the founding fathers of stand-up comedy. Before basically inventing the hit stand-up special, with the 1960 Grammy-winning album 'The Button-Down Mind of Bob Newhart' — that doesn’t even count his pay-per-view event broadcast on Canadian television that some cite as the first filmed special — he was a soft-spoken accountant who had never done a set in a nightclub. That he made a classic with so little preparation is one of the great miracles in the history of comedy.... Bob Newhart holds up. In fact, it’s hard to think of a stand-up from that era who is a better argument against the commonplace idea that comedy does not age well.”

Washington Post: “An early Titian masterpiece — once looted by Napolean’s troops and a part of royal collections for centuries — caused a stir when it was stolen from the home of a British marquess in 1995. Seven years later, it was found inside an unassuming white and blue plastic bag at a bus stop in southwest London by an art detective, and returned. This week, the oil painting 'The Rest on the Flight into Egypt' sold for more than $22 million at Christie’s. It was a record for the Renaissance artist, whom museums describe as the greatest painter of 16th-century Venice. Ahead of the sale in April, the auction house billed it as 'the most important work by Titian to come to the auction market in more than a generation.'”

Washington Post: The Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C., which houses the world's largest collection of Shakespeare material, has undergone a major renovation. "The change to the building is pervasive, both subtle and transformational."

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Friday
Oct262018

The Commentariat -- October 27, 2018

Afternoon Update:

Another Horrible Hate Crime. CBS Pittsburgh: "Eight people have been killed and a number of others injured after a shooting situation at The Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill on Saturday. KDKA's Meghan Schiller reports that a suspect, a white male, has surrendered. The SWAT team had been talking with the suspect, and he was crawling and injured. It is unclear the extent of his injuries.... Police sources tell KDKA's Andy Sheehan the gunman walked into the building and yelled, 'All Jews Must die.'... Others had been shot but the extent of their injuries in unknown at this time." ...

... Christopher Mele of the New York Times: "The police in Pittsburgh reported 'multiple casualties' after responding to a report of an active shooter at a synagogue Saturday morning, a police commander said. Chris Togneri, a spokesman for the Pittsburgh police department, said that three officers had been shot and that the suspect was in custody." ...

     ... New Lede & ff.: "At least 10 people were dead and several injured after a gunman opened fire during a service at a synagogue on Saturday morning, law enforcement officials said.Two law enforcement officials identified the suspect as Robert D. Bowers, 46.... Social media activity linked to Mr. Bowers suggested a history of virulent anti-Semitism, filled with slurs and references to anti-Jewish conspiracy theories. Erika Strassburger, the city councilwoman for the district that includes the synagogue, the Tree of Life, said Mr. Bowers surrendered to the police after being barricaded in the building and was taken to the hospital."

Eli Stokels & Noah Bierman of the Los Angeles Times: "[Yesterday presented] yet another moment of mixed messages and missed opportunities for leadership from a president who, in times of national crisis, has repeatedly delivered the expected 'presidential' performance only briefly and from a script, before returning to his familiar political attacks. In this case, moreover, the attacks were the very sort that had critics charging that his provocative rhetoric -- including the harsh jibes at [George] Soros, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and others -- were what goaded the would-be bomber to target them.... Aides also refused to say whether Trump had been briefed on the arrest before or after his 10:19 a.m. tweet in which he suggested doubts about the attempted bombs.... Trump's inability to sustain a unifying message in the midst of national trauma -- in this case potential assassinations of two former presidents, former Cabinet officials and several members of Congress -- sets him apart from all predecessors, according to Julian Zelizer, a presidential historian at Princeton University.... Trump did not call any of the Democrats who were the intended targets, as past presidents likely would have."

*****

Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "As he left Washington for his latest campaign rally [in Charlotte, North Carolina], President Trump made it clear that he was no longer going to sit through another news cycle without President Trump at the center.... The president, who made a show on Wednesday of being 'nice' as bomb scares were affecting several of his political enemies, resurrected some of his favorite political insults two days later. Taunts including 'Crooked Hillary' and 'Cryin' Chuck Schumer' were brought out once again in a pull-out-all-the-stops partisan effort 11 days before the midterms. While Mr. Trump did spend a few minutes railing against the Democrats and their immigration policies -- 'A vote for Democrats is a vote for open borders,' he once again falsely claimed -- he reserved special ire for the news media.... 'We have seen an effort by the media in recent hours to use the sinister actions of one individual to score political points against me and the Republican Party,' Mr. Trump said. 'The media has tried to attack the incredible Americans who support our movement to give power back to the people.' Mr. Trump brought up [Maxine] Waters briefly on Friday, but then stopped, saying he wanted to 'be nice.'" ...

... Whiner-in-Chief. Brent Griffiths of Politico: "... Donald Trump on Friday evening accused the media of using a nationwide bomb-threat scare to 'score political points against me' and the GOP ahead of the midterm elections. 'We have seen an effort by the media in recent hours to use the sinister actions of one individual to score political points against me and the Republican Party,' Trump told supporters during a rally in Charlotte, N.C., alluding to the actions of a fervent Trump supporter who was arrested and charged Friday for allegedly sending 14 potentially explosive devices to prominent Democrats.... Trump cast himself as a unifier and chided journalists for covering his administration too critically, calling on the media to cover his administration more fairly and to help end the 'politics of personal destruction.' Echoing a talking point of his political allies, Trump said the media gave Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) a free pass after the accused shooter of the 2017 Republican congressional baseball practice was found to have volunteered for Sanders' presidential campaign and curated a Facebook page of left-wing memes that criticized the president and GOP lawmakers. Trump said he has not blamed Democrats when 'radical leftists seize and destroy public property and unleash violence and mayhem.' The president has recently begun using the slogan 'jobs, not mobs' and as recently as Oct. 20 said 'Democrats produce mobs, Republicans produce jobs.'" Mrs. McC: That last sentence is Griffith fact-checking Trump then & there; we like to see that. ...

William Rashbaum, et al., of the New York Times: "Federal authorities made an arrest on Friday in connection with the nationwide bombing campaign against outspoken critics of President Trump, a significant breakthrough in a case that has gripped the country in the days leading up to the midterm elections. A law enforcement official identified the suspect as Cesar Sayoc Jr., 56, of Aventura, Fla., just north of Miami. The arrest came even as the crude pipe bombs continued to appear across the country. [Besides the pipe bombs sent to Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.)] & former DNI James Clapper, discovered earlier today,] "a third was intercepted before it reached Senator Kamala Harris, a California Democrat. Mr. Sayoc, a registered Republican, has a lengthy criminal history in Florida dating back to 1991 that includes felony theft, drug and fraud charges, as well as being arrested and accused of threatening to use a bomb, public records show.... Photos of [Sayoc's white] van showed that one of the stickers depicted Mr. Trump standing in front of flames and the American flag. Another was of Hillary Clinton's face in the crosshairs of a rifle scope. A third said: 'CNN Sucks." (Also linked yesterday afternoon, but the story has been updated multiple times.) ...

... Here's the criminal complaint against Sayoc, via Lawfare. ...

... Jay Weaver, et al., of the Miami Herald: "Federal agents arrested a South Florida man outside an auto parts store on Thursday as a prime suspect in a string of pipe-bomb mailings to prominent Democrats and other critics of ... Donald Trump. A trail of DNA evidence on the packages or the devices helped investigators narrow a nationwide manhunt to Cesar Sayoc, a 56-year-old man from Aventura, law enforcement sources told the Miami Herald. Sayoc was being questioned by FBI agents with the Joint Terrorism Task Force following his arrest. Agents also seized and towed away his white van, which had most of its windows covered in pro-Donald Trump and right wing stickers. Photos of the van, posted by a Twitter user who said he saw the car at a stoplight in April, show rifle scope images over the faces of H[l]ilary Clinton, left wing filmmaker Michael Moore and President Barack Obama.... The arrest was made at an AutoZone in Plantation instead of his home to avoid any potential dangerous confrontation, sources told the Miami Herald. News partner CBS4 reports a 'loud explosion' was heard at the time of the arrest, possibly from an FBI flash bomb device. Sayoc was a frequent poster on social media sites and his Twitter and Facebook accounts were filled with pro-Trump memes and attacks on Democrats -- including a string linking Andrew Gillum, the Democratic candidate for Florida governor, with billionaire George Soros, a major party donor and recipient of one of the menacing mailings." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Kelly Weill & Will Sommer of the Daily Beast: "Cesar A. Sayoc, the Florida man reported to be the mail bombing suspect, frequently posted conspiratorial pro-Trump messages on Twitter or made threats to Democratic leaders, including some who would later receive potentially explosive devices in the mail this week.... The account and his Facebook profile, which feature pictures of Sayoc, 56, at Trump rallies, also contain some of the same images plastered to Sayoc's van, including flags for Florida's Seminole tribe and collages of pro-Trump and anti-CNN meme stickers. The Facebook account is almost exclusively pro-Trump content, including pictures and videos Sayoc purportedly filmed at one of the president's political rallies.... The account also posted video of what appears to be Sayoc himself chanting Trump's name at what looks like an indoor Trump rally.... And the Twitter feed is littered with far-right conspiracy theories or violent threats aimed at some of President Trump's most outspoken critics. He appears to have repeatedly tweeted about George Soros, the liberal billionaire philanthropist who has long been the target of far-right, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. At one point, Sayoc purportedly wrote 'you will vanish' in a tweet aimed at the billionaire." There's more. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

Via the Miami Herald.

... Philip Bump of the Washington Post deconstructs the images Sayoc attached to the windows of his van. ...

... "A Trump Superfan." New York Times: "The man arrested by the authorities on Friday in connection with a series of bombs sent in the mail appears to be an outspoken supporter of President Trump, according to his posts on social media. The man attended a rally by Mr. Trump in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Oct. 13, 2016; the president's inauguration on January 20, 2017; and then another rally at Orlando Melbourne International Airport on Feb. 18, 2017.... [Cesar] Sayoc, wearing a red 'Make America Great Again' cap, attended Mr. Trump's inauguration...." ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: Although Sayoc identifies with the Seminole Tribe, a spokesperson for the Tribe says "it can find no evidence ... [he] is or was a member or employee of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, or is or was an employee of Seminole Gaming or Hard Rock International." This is not for nothing. Tribal membership is carefully audited. ...

... David Dayen in the Intercept: "Cesar Sayoc, the Donald Trump-loving Floridian who was taken into custody in relation to pipe bombs mailed to prominent Democrats, was foreclosed on in 2009 by a bank whose principal owner and chair is now Trump's treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin. The documents used to enact the foreclosure were signed by a prominent robo-signer and seemingly backdated. Nonetheless, the evidence was good enough for the famously inattentive Florida foreclosure courts to wave the case through. Years later, Sayoc became a supporter of Trump, who came into office and appointed a treasury secretary who ran the bank that snatched Sayoc's house.... In yet another irony, [George] Soros was one of the investors in the bank that executed the foreclosure on Sayoc's home.... Kamala Harris, another mail bomb recipient, had an opportunity to prosecute OneWest Bank over similar foreclosure-related abuses in California when she was state attorney general, but declined to do so. Eric Holder, yet another recipient, did next to nothing to sanction bankers over foreclosure crimes." ...

... San Francisco Examiner: "Federal and local authorities were investigating reports of suspicious packages in Burlingame and Sacramento this morning. Both packages were allegedly addressed to Democrats who have been outspoken about their opposition to ... Donald Trump. The FBI put out a statement on Twitter at 11:23 a.m. PST on Friday stating that 'explosives technicians are on scene' at a U.S. Postal Service location in on Rollins Road in Burlingame. The package was rendered safe around 1 p.m.... A spokesman for California billionaire and environmental activist Tom Steyer confirmed that the package was addressed to Steyer and intercepted at a mail facility in Burlingame. Steyer has been a vocal critic of President Trump and has spearheaded a campaign to impeach him."

... Jeet Heer of the New Republic: "The Black Leadership Summit [to whom Trump was speaking in the clip above] is organized by Turning Point USA (TPUSA), with Candace Owens, the communications director of the group, being the most prominent leader of the initiative. Trump praised Owens as 'incredible.' On Wednesday, Owens tweeted: 'Caravans, fake bomb threats -- these leftists are going ALL OUT for midterms.' This tweet was later deleted. Owens is one of numerous prominent Trump supporters to float a false-flag conspiracy theory about the mail bombs, implying the they were organized by leftists to make conservatives look bad." ...

... Ashley Parker & Philip Rucker of the Washington Post: "Standing in the White House's ornate East Wing, the president expressed annoyance that numerous bombs sent to Democrats and a news organization that Trump had long demonized had taken the spotlight from his Medicare drug prices announcement [link fixed] the day before. He told the audience of young black leaders he was addressing that the Democratic Party has betrayed them. He laughed along as some in the crowd chanted 'Fake News!' And he echoed a chant of 'Lock him up!' about liberal philanthropist George Soros, one of this week's bomb targets.... Trump ... has shown little interest in trying ... to unify the country.... Throughout the week ... Trump assailed the 'Fake News' media, shirked any personal responsibility for his incendiary rhetoric and, on Friday morning, used his bully pulpit to advance a baseless conspiracy theory that the bombs were both fake and orchestrated by the left. Roughly an hour later, authorities arrested 56-year-old Cesar Sayoc ... whose white van was covered in pro-Trump and anti-Democratic images. Later Friday afternoon, as he departed Washington for a rally in Charlotte, Trump told reporters he has no plans to tone down his rhetoric -- 'I could really tone it up,' he said -- and noted that the suspect 'was a person that preferred me over others.' He also rejected the notion of responsibility: 'There's no blame. There’s no anything.'" ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: It would be hard to read a teleprompter with less apparent enthusiasm while still appearing to be awake:

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie BTW: In his limp remarks, Trump never mentioned the names of any of the targets, nor did he mention the letters F, B & I. Of course others wrote his remarks, but the speechwriters followed his directions. ...

... John Wagner of the Washington Post: "President Trump lamented [in a tweet] Friday that the news media was more focused on covering 'this "Bomb" stuff' rather than politics, a development he asserted was slowing Republican momentum in advance of the Nov. 6 midterms. 'Republicans are doing so well in early voting, and at the polls, and now this "Bomb" stuff happens and the momentum greatly slows -- news not talking politics,' Trump said in a midmorning tweet. 'Very unfortunate, what is going on. Republicans, go out and vote!'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: "This 'Bomb' stuff" targeted two former U.S. presidents, a former vice-president and numerous other high government officials and high-profile private citizens. "This 'Bomb' stuff" threatened the lives of these individuals as well as the lives of an untold number of ordinary USPS workers and office and home workers throughout the country. Trump's concern? Maybe the media's attention to "this 'Bomb' stuff" will help Democrats take over one House of Congress & start investigating me, Donald Trump. "Very unfortunate." ...

     ... Update. Matt Miller noted on MSNBC that the FBI identified Sayoc on Thursday and certainly would have told Trump yesterday what they knew about him & the devices he sent. So Trump's tweet about "this 'bomb' stuff" was almost certainly made after he knew the alleged perp was one of his supporters. In addition, FBI director Chris Wray said in a news conference this afternoon that the bombs were not fakes, or as Trump put it "bomb" (in quotation marks). That makes Trump's tweet dismissing the bombs as "bombs" doubly egregious. ...

... Jordan Fabian of the Hill: "Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced on Friday that bombing suspect Cesar Sayoc Jr. has been charged with five federal crimes for sending explosive devices to more than a dozen Democratic political figures, celebrities and news organizations.... The charges include interstate transportation of an explosive, illegal mailing of explosives, threats against former presidents and other persons, threatening interstate commerce and assaulting federal officers.... FBI Director Christopher Wray said investigators used DNA and fingerprint evidence pulled from the packages to locate Sayoc. Wray emphasized 'these are not hoax devices' and described some as 'improvised explosive devices.' The comments came hours after President Trump appeared to cast doubt on whether the devices were real. In a tweet Friday morning, Trump put scare quotes around the word 'bomb,' an apparent nod to false-flag conspiracy theories voiced by some of his supporters." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Maxwell Strachan of the Huffington Post: "... [George] Soros has become the right wing's main boogeymen over the last decade. His most vicious critics tend to be members of the Nazi frog set, employing longtime anti-Semitic tropes to depict Soros as a Jewish puppet master. But other critics make their money at Fox News, where Soros is treated as the Moriarty of liberal America, the spider at the center of a vast web. In the eyes of his most unwavering detractors, Soros is a Nazi-sympathizing, left-wing 'globalist' hellbent on using his billions to destroy the conservative movement.... Since April, people on Fox News have depicted Soros as a 'dirty word' and a 'radical' who 'hates the United States.' Here are other comments about Soros that have been broadcast on Fox News since April, based on TVEyes' rough transcripts.: (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... This Trumpbot, whom NBC News' Ali Vitali met outside Trump's rally in North Carolina, will not let the FBI & all hoodwink him:


... Rick Wilson of the Daily Beast: "Twitter Javerts like Rush Limbaugh, Alex Jones, Ann Coulter, Frank Gaffney, John Cardillo, Laura Loomer, Jacob Wohl, and alt-right thought leader and Pizzagate promoter Jack Prosobiec all jumped to sell the idea that Trump's gushing sewer of inflammatory rhetoric could never inspire a serial bomber. Their mirror-world version of Occam's Razor was that this must be a fiendishly clever leftist plot to disrupt the November elections. Just hours before the arrest of Cesar Sayoc, the president reinforced their fevered belief that this was obviously a left-wing electoral plot.... Trump's unique social media presence is a weapon of radicalization. No one else in the American political landscape stokes the resentments, fears, and prejudices of his base with equal power.... What's shocking about what we've seen from Sayoc's social media feeds is just how ordinary they are in the Trump online ecosystem. The slurry of conspiracy theories (particularly all things Soros), birtherism, xenophobia, boomer memes, and MAGA spank-bank material in his Twitter and Facebook feeds is the raw distillate from Infowars, Breitbart, and Fox.... This is the future of the GOP under Trump; it's not a party; it's a backwater sub-Reddit careening from crisis to crisis, chasing an increasingly elaborate set of conspiracies to paper over the raging inconsistencies of the Dear Leader's message and conduct." ...

... Jonathan Chait: "... the relationship between the two parties and violence is not symmetrical, and the fact that alleged bomber Cesar Sayoc had a strong identification with Trump and his partisan message is not a coincidence. The Republican Party encompasses an extremist fringe that nurtures violence in a way the Democratic Party does not. Political violence -- when it is attached to political ideology at all, as opposed to simple mental illness -- is associated with Manichean, paranoid, illiberal thought.... The difference is that the left-wing version resides outside the boundaries of two-party politics, because the Democratic Party is fundamentally liberal not radical.... The Republican Party, on the other hand, has followed a course that has made its rhetoric amenable to extremism. Republican radicalism enabled the rise of a conspiratorial authoritarian president, and that president has expanded the bounds of the party's following farther out to the fringe. It is getting harder and harder to distinguish the 'normal' elements of conservatism from the 'kook' parts. That some of those kooks would resort to violence is not an accident but a statistical likelihood. Trump's party is a petri dish for diseased minds."


Elise Viebeck of the Washington Post: Newt "Gingrich, speaking Thursday at an event held by The Washington Post, said that if Democrats subpoena Trump's tax returns during the next Congress, Trump will be 'trapped into appealing to the Supreme Court.' 'And we'll see whether or not the Kavanaugh fight was worth it,' he said. The remark, which drew audible gasps from the audience, suggested Republicans like Gingrich are counting on Kavanaugh to protect the secrecy of Trump's tax returns if Democrats take control of the House in November and begin aggressively investigating his finances. Trump has repeatedly refused to release his tax returns. Releasing them is a practice followed by previous presidents and the major parties' White House nominees."Mrs. McC: Josh Marshall commented on Gingrich's remark in a post safari linked yesterday.

Michelle Boorstein & Samantha Schmidt of the Washington Post: "... thousands filled the soaring nave of the Washington National Cathedral for the interment service of Matthew Shepard, the young man whose murder 20 years ago horrified the nation and became a milestone in the fight for gay rights.... Presiding over the worship service at the second-largest cathedral in the country, in front of a crowd of about 2,025 people, was Bishop Gene Robinson, whose elevation in the early 2000s as the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopal Church marked another huge -- and controversial -- milestone in the push for LGBT equality.... Rippling through the Cathedral at times was the crackling energy of a political rally, with Robinson urging the crowd not to simply commemorate Shepard but to train their eyes on continued discrimination against sexual minorities, especially transgender people, who he called a 'target' right now." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Election 2018

One target of Trump and the mail bomber doesn't seem to be quaking in his boots:


... John Verhovek of ABC News: "An at times incredulous former President Barack Obama returned to the campaign trail again Friday ahead of the November midterms, attacking what he calls outright lies by Republicans on the issue of health care and telling the crowd in Milwaukee, Wisconsin: 'In Washington, they have racked up enough indictments to field a football team.'... Stumping for Sen. Tammy Baldwin, gubernatorial candidate Tony Evers, and a slew of Democratic congressional candidates in the Badger State, Obama again cast the election as a critical and fateful moment for the nation."

Kansas. Mitch Smith of the New York Times: "On Election Days past, voters cast their ballots at the only polling place in this town of 27,000: the sprawling civic center on the north side of Dodge City. But with a construction project expected to start there soon, the county clerk moved the polls this year almost four miles away, past the railroad tracks and beyond the city limits. That switch, which in some places might be little more than a footnote in a local newspaper, stoked anger and was perceived by some Democrats as a blatant attempt to suppress the vote of Dodge City's Hispanic majority. On Friday, the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas filed a federal lawsuit asking a judge to intervene and reopen the civic center for voting. The swift backlash and widespread attention to Dodge City's change came in no small part because of restrictive voting laws championed by Kansas' secretary of state, Kris Kobach, a frequent A.C.L.U. foe who also happens to be the Republican nominee in this year's extremely close race for governor.... [The county clerk, Debbie Cox (R),] said she had mailed letters to residents about the new polling place this fall, but she acknowledged that newly registered voters also received cards not long ago bearing the earlier address, not the new one." ...

Texas. They're Ultra-conservative, but They Really Don't Like Ted. Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editors: "U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz represent the hard left and right of American politics. Neither stands in the middle ground, where the real work is done to lead America. But only O'Rourke seems interested in making deals or finding middle ground. That is why the El Paso Democrat would make the best senator for Tarrant County's future, and the future of Texas.... This Editorial Board has recommended conservative Republicans such as George W. Bush and Mitt Romney for president, along with U.S. Sens. John Cornyn and Kay Bailey Hutchison. But Cruz does not measure up. This office needs a reset. The Star-Telegram Editorial Board endorses Beto O'Rourke for U.S. senator."


Brian Stelter of CNN: "While negotiations continue between Megyn Kelly and NBC, the network announced on Friday that her 9 a.m. talk show has been canceled. 'Megyn Kelly Today is not returning,' the network said in a statement. 'Next week, the 9 a.m. hour will be hosted by other "Today" co-anchors.' Her exit from NBC News is not official yet. But it will be soon. It's a foregone conclusion among all the players involved, multiple sources said Thursday." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Too bad she mixed it up with Trump. Otherwise, she's a natural to replace Jim Mattis as Secretary of Defense.

Garret Keizer, in the New Republic, writes that nihilism explains Trumpism.

Beyond the Beltway

Karen Zraick & Matt Stevens of the New York Times: "A gunman who killed two people at a Kroger supermarket in Jeffersontown, Ky., on Wednesday tried to enter a predominantly black church minutes before the attack, the police said on Thursday. The man, Gregory Bush, 51, of Louisville, was arraigned Thursday on two counts of murder and 10 counts of wanton endangerment. He was ordered held with bail set at $5 million. The police said they were investigating the motive for the attack, which killed Vickie Lee Jones, 67, and Maurice E. Stallard, 69. Both were black, while Mr. Bush is white, and the son of a witness said his father heard the gunman make a racist remark during the episode, though the police said they could not confirm that account. Mr. Bush has a history of mental illness, Chief Sam Rogers of the Jeffersontown Police Department said at a news conference on Thursday." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond

BBC News: "Saudi Arabia's foreign minister has said the suspects in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi would be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia. At a conference in Bahrain, Adel al-Jubeir accused the western media of 'hysteria' in its coverage of the case. His comments come a day after Turkey said it wished to extradite 18 Saudi nationals authorities say were involved in the murder.... 'On the issue of extradition, the individuals are Saudi nationals. They're detained in Saudi Arabia, and the investigation is in Saudi Arabia, and they will be prosecuted in Saudi Arabia,' Mr al-Jubeir told a security conference in Bahrain. Turkey and Saudi Arabia are not known to have an extradition treaty."

Comments Off

Reader Comments (12)

The famous line from "Cool Hand Luke"––"What we got here is a lack of communication"––is the very opposite of what we got HERE. It's apparently clear that people like C.S.––he doesn't deserve a full name recognition ––connects like velcro to Donald Trump–-he's their Daddy–-he's their leader especially to the alt-right groups like the Proud Boys. These demented dolts rally round the man who speaks to them only–-suddenly they feel embolden to carry out his messages. We have had singular nut cases along with groups that caused violence in our history; what we have never had are these kinds of individuals and groups working FOR the president of the United States! Chait says it well: "Trump's party is a petri dish for diseased minds."

But within this pathetic state of affairs here comes Elizabeth Warren with a new housing proposal–-a brilliant plan to close the racial wealth cap.
https://slate.com/business/2018/10/elizabeth-warren-housing-plan-racial-wealth-gap.html

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterPD Pepe

It is impossible for the Thug-in-Chief to extricate himself from the dozen or so attempts by one his most fervent followers to help him out by murdering those Daddy Trump hates.

Violence is a feature of Trumpism, not a mistake.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

A true Trump supporter. No bombs go off. Leaves his prints and DNA behind. Announces just before election what making America great really means. Embarrasses all Republicans.

And shame on media for focusing on terrorist attack. My frustration is that the word 'pathetic' doesn't make it.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMarvin Schwalb

The FATuous one must never, ever be blamed for inciting violence.
I think he doesn't even hear what comes out of his pie-hole because
it's been a lifelong thing with him, just comes naturally.
Remember way back when he said Hillary shouldn't have body
guards so it would be easier for the 2nd amendment people to take
her out, or something to that effect. Of course Faux news said he
was only joking. I don't think so.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterforrest morris

Had a choice yesterday to attend presentations by either Mike McFaul, former ambassador to Russia, or Anthony Kennedy. Chose the former.

It was easy. Since Citizens United, don't want to hear even one syllable of Kennedy drivel. While at the McFaul event (fortunately more than a mere promo for the book which he has recently plumped on the RMS and other MSNBC outlets), though, I did hear some buzz about Kennedy's son from someone who had made the same choice. Kennedy's son's Deutsche Bank reportedly extended major loans to the Pretender when he was still pretending to be something else, and there was talk of a delayed quid pro quo among the three, Kennedy the elder, the younger and the Pretender. Had missed that one, so checked this morning. "Washington Post" called the stories that floated about the time Kennedy deferred to the Pretender and the eventual Kavanaugh "thinly sourced," but that is the kind of conspiracy I like to hear because even if it's not true, considering the characters, of lack of character, involved on all sides, it's hardly outlandish...

In today's news aggregation above was particularly taken by all the lines drawn between the bomb mailer and those who either carelessly and dishonestly tossed him into the foreclosure heap or might have rescued him from it and did nothing.

I consider that web and all the sins of commission and omission it represents the premier parable of our time.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

WaPo: Fatal shooting at Pittsburgh synagogue leaves multiple casualties

Making America Great

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMarvin Schwalb

Oh, I forgot to mention it's the media's fault.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterMarvin Schwalb

I paused in the Duty Free shop earlier today. Next to the cash registers, there were piles of chocolate bars with the pretender's face and name, and a big American flag. I despair. I couldn't even bring myself to pick one up to see who is making this shit.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterNiskyGuy

Fatty’s solution to the latest mass killings, the murder of Jews in Pittsburgh (for being Jews)?

More guns.

And, very likely, more lies. The killer is a big fan of Trump’s current favorite lies about the migrant caravan coming to America to kill nice white people, steal our stuff, and take our jobs.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

@NiskyGuy: Don't lament that you didn't purchase at the time you
saw them. You can Google trump candy and find many different
ones. My favorite looks like a million dollar bill and written
below the FATuous ones face is "because i'm richer than you".
Available from Snyder's Candy, Mars, Hershey & Jelly Belly.
Some companies will do anything for money.

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered Commenterforrest morris

Comment Posted By A New York Times Reader Re:
Synagogue Slaughter (Now 11 Dead / 4 Police Wounded) -

“Who will condemn Trump's flirtation with alt-Right neo-Nazis now? Jared Kushner? Sheldon Adelson? Bibi Netanyahu? Nahhhh!”

October 27, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterAuntHattie

Worth Star-Telegram Editors: "U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz represent the hard left and right of American politics. Neither stands in the middle ground, where the real work is done to lead America. But only O’Rourke seems interested in making deals or finding middle ground."
No wonder Texas has so many stupid politicans elected if this is the advice they are getting from their newspapers. Both candidates are uncompromising fringe candidates. Except for the one who is not. Seriously?

October 28, 2018 | Unregistered CommenterRAS
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