;)
The Conversation -- December 30, 2023
Alan Feuer of the New York Times: "Federal prosecutors asked an appeals court on Saturday to reject ... Donald J. Trump's claims that he is immune from criminal charges of plotting to overturn the 2020 election.... 'The presidency plays a vital role in our constitutional system, but so does the principle of accountability for criminal acts -- particularly those that strike at the heart of the democratic process,' wrote James I. Pearce, one of [Jack] Smith's deputies. 'Rather than vindicating our constitutional framework, the defendant's sweeping immunity claim threatens to license presidents to commit crimes to remain in office. The founders did not intend and would never have countenanced such a result.'... [Mr. Trump's] appeal is legally significant because it centers on a question that has never before been asked or fully answered. That is because Mr. Trump is both the first former president to have been charged with crimes and because he has chosen to defend himself in this case with a novel claim: that the office he held at the time should shield him entirely from prosecution." ~~~
~~~ Politico's report, by Josh Gerstein & Kyle Cheney, is here. The DOJ brief, via the U.S. Courts, is here.
Kayla Gallagher of the Messenger: "... Donald Trump claimed in a Truth Social post that droves of migrants are crossing the border into the U.S. to cast ballots for 'crazed' Democrats. 'It's becoming more and more obvious to me why the "Crazed" Democrats are allowing millions and millions of totally unvetted migrants into our once great Country. IT'S SO THEY CAN VOTE, VOTE, VOTE,' Trump wrote in his post Friday. 'They are signing them up at a rapid pace, without even knowing who the hell they are ... Republicans better wake up and do something, before it is too late,' he added. 'Are you listening Mitch McConnell?' People who aren't citizens can't vote in federal and almost all local elections -- and the process for an immigrant to become a citizen typically takes several years."
Ukraine, et al. Constant Méheut & Ivan Nechepurenko of the New York Times: “The Russian authorities said on Saturday that a Ukrainian attack on the city of Belgorod had killed at least 18 people and injured more than 110 others, in the deadliest strike against a Russian city since the beginning of the war nearly two years ago. Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement that Ukraine had hit Belgorod -- a regional center of around 330,000 residents about 25 miles north of the Ukrainian border -- with two missiles and several rockets, adding that the strike was 'indiscriminate' and would 'not go unpunished.'... The strike on Belgorod was in response to Russia's air assault on Friday against Ukraine, said an official from Ukraine's intelligence services, who spoke on the condition of anonymity...." A CNN report is here.
Florida. Still Longin' for de Old Plantation. A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics: "Ron DeSantis ripped Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan in the wake of the Mayor's Office compelling the removal of the Women of the Southland structure from Springfield Park, equating Confederate statues with those honoring American heroes. 'I'm opposed to taking down statues. The idea that we're going to just erase history is wrong. You've seen it now where they tried to take down Thomas Jefferson, they tried to take down George Washington off schools. It just gets so out of hand. So I don't support taking down statues, particularly if you don't have legal authority to do it,' DeSantis said." Thanks to Bobby Lee for the link.~~~
~~~ Marie: When you treat Donald Trump like an American hero, it is not a stretch to treat other traitors as heroes. Interesting that Rhonda chastised Nikki about her not-slavery answer to the question of what caused the Civil War. He said, "It's not that difficult to identify and acknowledge the role slavery played in the Civil War." He forgot to add that slavery was a good thing because many slaves learned trades like blacksmithing.
Another Reason Nikki Haley Should Not Be President*. Nicholas Kerr of ABC News: Haley answered a voter's question by saying she would pardon Donald Trump "for the good of the country" and because it would be wrong for "an 80-year-old man [to be] sitting in jail." MB: Do you suppose she means to pardon all 80-year-old jailbirds? I don't think so.
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Brandi Buchman of Law & Crime: "For the second time in a month, the appeals court in Washington, D.C., has ruled once again that Donald Trump is not immune from lawsuits brought against him by police officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. On Dec. 1, three judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled against Trump in a case brought by Capitol Police Officers James Blassingame and Sidney Hemby, as well as lawmakers including Reps. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and Bennie Thompson, D-Miss.... Now, in a ruling released Friday, the appeals court ... concluded that a different lawsuit first brought in August 2021 by USCP Officer Conrad Smith and seven of his colleagues, was virtually 'indistinguishable' from the Blassingame case. MB: It is notable that in both of these cases, the appeals court judges ruled against Trump's argument that he was immune from the suits because all that incitement stuff constituted "official acts." (Also linked yesterday). ~~~
~~~ Marie: I had to do a little checking (here and here), but I found that two of the three judges heard both cases. The CBS News report is here.
Benjamin Weiser & Jonathan Bromwich of the New York Times: "Michael D. Cohen, the onetime fixer for ... Donald J. Trump, mistakenly gave his lawyer bogus legal citations concocted by the artificial intelligence program Google Bard, he said in court papers unsealed on Friday. The fictitious citations were used by the lawyer in a motion submitted to a federal judge, Jesse M. Furman. Mr. Cohen, who pleaded guilty in 2018 to campaign finance violations and served time in prison, had asked the judge for an early end to the court's supervision of his case now that he is out of prison and has complied with the conditions of his release. The ensuing chain of misunderstandings and mistakes ended with Mr. Cohen asking the judge to exercise 'discretion and mercy.'... The episode could have implications for a Manhattan criminal case against Mr. Trump [-- the Stormy Daniels hush-money case --] in which Mr. Cohen is expected to be the star witness." A new attorney for Cohen could not verify the citations and so informed Judge Furman....
"The issue of lawyers relying on chatbots exploded into public view earlier this year after another federal judge in Manhattan, P. Kevin Castel, fined two lawyers $5,000 after they admitted filing a legal brief filled with nonexistent cases and citations, all generated by ChatGPT. Such cases appear to be rippling through the nation's courts, said Eugene Volokh, a law professor at U.C.L.A..., said he had counted a dozen cases in which lawyers or litigants representing themselves were believed to have used chatbots for legal research that ended up in court filings." An ABC News report is here. MB: Wow, fake law! This AI stuff sounds perfect for Sam Alito. He no longer has to crib from imperfect amicus briefs filed by Friends of Leo; he and his clerks can sit at their computers generating "original" fake case law that totally supports whatever preconceived opinion or prejudice he has in mind.
Presidential Race 2024
Maggie Haberman & Jonathan Swan of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump's advisers are preparing as soon as Tuesday to file challenges to decisions in Colorado and Maine to disqualify Mr. Trump from the Republican primary ballot because of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol, according to a person familiar with the matter. In Maine, the challenge to the secretary of state's decision to block Mr. Trump from the ballot will be filed in a state court. But the Colorado decision, which was made by that state's highest court, will be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court...."
David Sharp of the AP: "The decision [to remove Donald Trump from Maine's primary ballot] exposed [Secretary of State Shenna] Bellows to hate and vitriol on social media -- along with posts showing support -- and her office said Bellows and members of her staff were subjected to threats, something she called 'unacceptable.' At least one [Maine] Republican lawmaker has vowed to pursue impeachment against ... Bellows despite long odds in the Democratic-controlled Legislature.... Among Maine's congressional delegation, only Democratic U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree, who represents the liberal 1st Congressional District, supported Bellows' conclusion that Trump incited an insurrection...." U.S. Rep. Jared Golden (D), & Senators Angus King (I) & Susan Collins (R) all expressed variations on the let-the-people-decide theme song. MB: Golden voted to impeach Trump for inciting the insurrection, and King & Collins voted to convict him.
Ernesto Londoño of the New York Times: "As the former head of the state's American Civil Liberties Union, [Maine Secretary of State Shenna] Bellows did not shy away from divisive issues. But her ballot decision on Thursday was perhaps the weightiest and most politically fraught that she had faced -- and it sparked loud rebukes from Republicans in Maine and beyond. In an interview on Friday, Ms. Bellows defended her decision, arguing that [Donald] Trump's incitement of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol made it necessary to exclude him from the ballot next year.... 'The United States Constitution does not tolerate an assault on the foundations of our government, and Maine election law required that I act in response.'... After holding a hearing this month in which she considered arguments from both Mr. Trump's lawyers and his critics, Ms. Bellows explained her decision in a 34-page order issued on Thursday night.... Ms. Bellows said it was not uncommon for secretaries of state to bar candidates from the ballot if they did not meet eligibility requirements, and noted that she refused to allow Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, to appear on the state's Republican primary ballot after he failed to get enough signatures." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I have heard pundits arguing on the teevee that (1) one person shouldn't be allowed to decide who's on the ballot, (2) that Bellows isn't a lawyer, (3) that she should have recused herself because she's "political," (4) that her hearing did not meet criminal or even civil courtroom standards, included hearsay evidence, etc. (5) And of course the commonplace "let the people decide at the ballot box." BUT (1) That's the law in Maine. (2) So what? (3) Secretaries of states are all either elected officials or are appointed by elected officials, so they're all "political." (4) If you are convicted in court of a crime, you may lose your liberty; if you lose a civil case in court, you may have to compensate the winner. If you don't get to run for president*, you haven't lost a thing. You and I don't get to run for president, either; are we whining? (5) The people decided long ago that officials who represent will make some decisions for us: like who qualifies to run for office. And besides all that, those who are disqualified from the ballot have the option to sue -- which is exactly what Donald Trump is doing. Everybody needs to calm down a little.
Perry Bacon of the Washington Post: Arguments against removing Donald Trump from the ballot "fail to grasp the threat that he poses and the gravity of his previous actions.... Democracy is not just elections; it's also a broader system of rules, laws and norms.... Trump ... only supports elections if he is declared the winner. It cannot be a requirement of democracy that you allow the election of leaders who will then end free and fair elections -- and therefore democracy itself.... Officials [in Colorado & Maine] are only stepping in now to enforce democratic principles because for three years, so many others haven't.... The real affront to democracy is Trump, not officials following laws intended to keep people like him from gaining power." Bacon cites Republican senators, the DOJ/Merrick Garland, & Republican voters as slackers. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Oh, and there's a glaring mistake in Bacon's column. I'll let you find it.
Steven Portnoy of ABC News takes a look at the adoption of Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment. MB: I get the impression that Portnoy thinks his historical perspective casts doubt on the use of the amendment to remove Trump from the ballot. I think the opposite is true.
Angelo Fichera of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump has repeatedly tried to appeal to Christian voters in recent weeks by accusing the Biden administration of criminalizing Americans for their faith. On multiple occasions this month, Mr. Trump has claimed that President Biden has 'persecuted' Catholics in particular. Mr. Biden himself is Catholic." Fichera looks at three categories of Trump's tall tales and finds one false, one misleading and one lacking context.
What do you want me to say about slavery? -- Nikki Haley, after she stumbled over a question about the cause of the Civil War & failed to mention slavery ~~~
~~~ Alexandra Petri of the Washington Post: "I thought Donald Trump's description of Abraham Lincoln as 'a man of great intelligence' who 'did something that was a very important thing to do, and especially at that time,' couldn't be topped, but I guess I was wrong. Ah, the Republican Party! Unofficial slogan: We Refuse to Learn History, and We're Eager to Repeat It.... But, look, 'What caused the Civil War?' is just one of a whole host of straightforward questions that no GOP presidential candidate can hope to answer. I have taken the liberty of predicting Haley's responses to analogous questions. Try this at home and you, too, can enjoy a fun, alarming word salad where 'capitalism' and 'limited government' are thrown in at intervals, like pecans. Happy 2024!" Here's one example Q&A: Q: "Was it good or bad that a mob descended on the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, yelling 'Hang Mike Pence' and trying to prevent certification of the presidential election?" A: (laughs) "Don't go easy on me! I think the Capitol is certainly, in the hearts of Americans, a place, and capitalism itself is so important. What do you think?"
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If you live in a state spelled with only four letters and barely a hint of consonant, then yesterday was a pretty good day for the kids in your neighborhood.
Iowa. Mitch Smith of the New York Times: "A federal judge in Iowa temporarily blocked on Friday the enforcement of a law backed by Republicans that banned books describing sex acts from public school libraries. In granting the preliminary injunction, Judge Stephen Locher said that the law 'makes no attempt to target such books in any reasonable way.... Instead, it requires the wholesale removal of every book containing a description or visual depiction of a "sex act," regardless of context,' the judge wrote. 'The underlying message is that there is no redeeming value to any such book even if it is a work of history, self-help guide, award-winning novel or other piece of serious literature. In effect, the Legislature has imposed a puritanical "pall of orthodoxy" over school libraries.' The publisher Penguin Random House and the best-selling authors John Green and Jodi Picoult were among the plaintiffs who challenged the measure on free-speech grounds. Judge Locher, who was appointed by President Biden to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, also blocked a portion of the law that imposed limits on instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity before seventh grade." The AP's report is here.
Ohio. Amy Harmon of the New York Times: "Mike DeWine, the Republican governor of Ohio, vetoed a bill on Friday that would have barred transgender minors from receiving puberty blockers, hormone therapy and surgeries, a rare rejection in what has been a concerted effort by the Republican Party to mobilize cultural conservatives around transgender issues for the 2024 primaries.... On Friday, Mr. DeWine said that if the bill were to become law, 'Ohio would be saying that the state, that the government, knows better what is medically best for a child than the two people who love that child the most, the parents.' The governor reached his decision after visiting hospitals and meeting with families 'both positively and negatively affected' by gender-affirming care last week, a spokesperson said.... The Ohio legislature, where Republicans hold a supermajority, could override Mr. DeWine's veto." Politico's story is here.
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Israel/Palestine
The Washington Post's live updates of developments Saturday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "As Israel's military campaign in Gaza intensifies, Secretary of State Antony Blinken has approved a $147.5 million arms sale to Israel through an emergency authority that bypasses the standard congressional review process. In a Friday announcement, the State Department said the proposed sale of 155-mm artillery shells and related equipment is consistent with the U.S. commitment to Israel's security and efforts to help it 'develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability.' UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, said Friday that IDF soldiers fired on a U.N. aid convoy returning from a delivery in northern Gaza, an incident U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths condemned as 'unlawful.'... South Africa on Friday called on the International Court of Justice to find that Israel's war in Gaza is a violation of the Genocide Convention of 1948. The filing accused Israel of engaging 'in genocidal acts against the Palestinian people in Gaza.' Israel's Foreign Ministry called on the court to dismiss the filing, which it 'rejects with disgust.'" ~~~
~~~ The New York Times' live updates for Saturday are here. CNN's live updates are here: "The UN has expressed alarm after more than 100,000 displaced people arrived in Rafah in recent days, a southern city that is the most densely populated in Gaza. It warned disease and food shortages were worsening already 'dire living conditions.' The influx comes as Israel expands its operations in southern Gaza, where its military said it was fighting Hamas with snipers and tank fire. But battles are also underway in the north, the initial focus of Israel's campaign to destroy the militants."
Adam Goldman, et al., of the New York Times: "... a New York Times investigation found that [on October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel,] Israel's military was undermanned, out of position and so poorly organized that soldiers communicated in impromptu WhatsApp groups and relied on social media posts for targeting information. Commandos rushed into battle armed only for brief combat. Helicopter pilots were ordered to look to news reports and Telegram channels to choose targets. And perhaps most damning: The Israel Defense Forces did not even have a plan to respond to a large-scale Hamas attack on Israeli soil, according to current and former soldiers and officers.... Much of the military failure was due to the lack of a plan, coupled with a series of intelligence missteps in the months and years before the attack."
Ukraine, et al. Constant Méheut and Daria Mitiuk of the New York Times: "Russia targeted Ukrainian cities with more than 150 missiles and drones on Friday morning, in what Ukrainian officials said was one of the largest air assaults of the war. At least 26 people were killed, and more than 120 were wounded, according to Ukrainian authorities, and critical infrastructure was damaged.... For several hours on Friday, missiles, drones and debris slammed into factories, hospitals and schools in cities across Ukraine, from Lviv in the west to Kharkiv in the east.... Thanks to its powerful air defense systems, Ukraine has often been able to shoot down most, if not all, Russian weapons targeting cities in recent months. But on Friday the Ukrainian military said it had shot down only 114 missiles and drones out of a total of 158... The Ukrainian authorities had warned for months that Russia was stockpiling high-precision missiles to pound Ukrainian cities when cold weather began to bite....
"Yet Republican lawmakers in Congress have declined to pass a new $50 billion security package for Ukraine unless the law also imposes new restrictions on migrants trying to cross the southern U.S. border, and negotiations are continuing. Washington said on Wednesday that it was releasing the last Congress-approved package of military aid currently available to Kyiv. Ukraine's supply of surface-to-air missiles -- key ordnance needed to down incoming Russian missiles -- is now running short." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Alex Gangitano of the Hill: "President Biden on Friday issued a scathing statement against Russian President Vladimir Putin after Russia's latest attacks on Ukraine, the largest aerial assault since the war began. 'It is a stark reminder to the world that, after nearly two years of this devastating war, Putin's objective remains unchanged. He seeks to obliterate Ukraine and subjugate its people. He must be stopped,' Biden said.... The president called on Congress to provide more aid for Ukraine, noting Ukraine used air defense systems from the U.S. and other allies to fend off the attack. 'The American people can be proud of the lives we have helped to save and the support we have given Ukraine as it defends its people, its freedom, and its independence. But unless Congress takes urgent action in the new year, we will not be able to continue sending the weapons and vital air defense systems Ukraine needs to protect its people. Congress must step up and act without any further delay,' Biden said."
News Ledes
CNN: "Massive waves and coastal flooding are wreaking havoc for a third day in many of California's coastal communities, where extreme conditions have forced water rescues, washed away cars and injured a handful of enthralled onlookers. The unusually large surf -- often towering over 20 feet -- has prompted beach closures along the California coast and sent damaging deluges of water into several beachside streets, homes and businesses."
New York Times: "Tom Wilkinson, the actor who could turn a manic lawyer, a steel-foreman-turned-stripper and parts small and large into mesmerizing turns, winning Oscar nominations and plaudits for his performances in movies like 'Michael Clayton' and 'The Full Monty,' died on Saturday, according to The Associated Press. He was 75."
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Reader Comments (11)
The temptation this morning would be to rail against the education system that has allowed us to get to our absurd pass. Easy enough to do, what with all the ignorance leaping and abounding, but I'll save that diatribe for another time, when I'm more in need of easy pickings.
Instead a comment on the complaints about the Colorado and Maine decisions to keep the would-be dictator off the ballot.
It would seem the more fundamental issue is not whether the Fourteenth Amendment applies to the Pretender or who applies it and not whether one person or a coffee klatch of robes make the decision.
The sticking point for me is rather the fear that instead of one or a handful of people deciding an election for the rest of us, that the rest of us, millions who live in the same country as myself, might purposely put that dangerous, demented clown back in office.
On this morning's Perry Bacon Challenge:
Could the glaring error be that Crisco has been removed from the Maine ballot?
or more likely that in ".... because none of them have tried to overturn the results of an election" the "have" should be "has?"
I'm partial to the latter.
@Ken Winkes: Perry Bacon of the WashPo makes the same point. However, your ultimate concern does double back on your original temptation -- "to rail against the education system that has allowed us to get to our absurd pass."
I have come to believe over the past months that a huge swath of the human population favors dictatorship over democracy. These people would rather have a dictator to adore & to follow than to have to make difficult decisions themselves. Naturally, they want a dictator who seems in sync with their own prejudices; they don't want a dictator like, say, Joe Biden, who might tell them to wear masks or be considerate to others.
I too wish for a leader who expresses my values, but I do know that the best leaders are not available, and of course there's no such thing as a benevolent dictator. When I was a little girl, my father pointed me to a cartoon in the newspaper that depicted a father telling his son something like, "People who are qualified to run the country are too smart to run for office." I got the message even then, and it has proved true. Not only that, even the best people are not necessarily successful at wrangling with the miscreants with whom they share power.
I had a conversation with a young doctor this week in which we agreed that human beings are not the products of "intelligent design." And it isn't just that our bodies are poorly designed -- they are -- it's that our minds (or souls, if one must) can be quite rotten & selfish & stupid. Some of us, and not necessarily of our own volition, turned out better than rotten, selfish & stupid, and we should be grateful for that.
@Ken Winkes: I was thinking of the first one, but you're right on the second one, too, which I didn't notice.
This for anyone interested in viewing trump's "starring role" in
Home Alone 2.
I tried to time his appearance in the film, but it was too short to even
time.
https://www.instagram.com/p/C0HFhgCuBjq/
@Forrest Morris: Ha ha. Here's a 40-second YouTube video of the same. But Donald Trump appears in it for only 4, count 'em 4, seconds. Isn't it amazing how Trump made a success of "Home Alone 2" in just a 4-second cameo? What a guy!
Yeah, but that four seconds of screen time cost the producers millions.
Home Alone 2, the one Fatty claims he made a hit, made $130 million less than the first one, Home Alone, the one without a bully shoving his face in front of the camera.
A short while later, Fatty had to sell the Plaza at a huge loss, after fucking up his genius plan for the place.
Everything he touches he fucks up, including, and especially, the United States.
Yesterday I heard a report about the skyrocketing number of incidents involving aggressive and violent passengers in the air travel industry. Something like 2,000 complaints of passengers misbehaving in just the last year.
There were several ideas offered as the reason for such an increase in boorish and sometimes dangerous behavior, passengers drinking before flights, a general loss of patience, the number of flights fully booked, flight delays, and, of course Covid, which is now blamed for anything and everything.
But those things (minus Covid) have always been part of air travel. True, fight delays are more common recently (the Southwest computer hack was a particularly egregious example last year), but I think there’s something else in the mix as well: Trumpism, or to put it more broadly, the widespread belief on the right that the first and best response to things they don’t like are aggression, insults, threats of violence, actual violence, and a complete dismissal of the problems and concerns and conditions faced by others.
Trump, Fox taking heads, PoT pols, far-right commentators, even the Supreme Court, model a way of being in the world based on getting what you want no matter what. Trump famously instructed his MAGA minions to attack the Capital because he was pissed at the outcome of the election. During rallies he egged on his MAGA bullies to physically attack protesters. How often do right-wing media hacks like Bannon and Alex Jones trumpet the necessity of dealing violently with those who disagree with them?
This crap has seeped into the general consciousness and prompts responses based on the belief that nothing matters but what you want. Problems? Fuck that! Scream at those people, threaten them. It’s all very infantile, but that’s a huge part of Trumpism as well.
I’ve been flying a lot recently and not long ago, I heard (didn’t see it, too many people in the way) a screaming match at an airport gate. Never seen anything like it before. It went on for five minutes or more.
No. It’s not all Trump, but his example of boorish, ignorant, violent aggressiveness has been taken up by millions. Maybe a lot of them were already on the cusp (latent assholes) but Trump has taught them that being actual assholes is a thing to be proud of.
Fly the (un)friendly skies, courtesy of the Donald.
DeSantis fina;;y weighed in on the Confederate monument removal ans is definitely against it. https://floridapolitics.com/archives/650555-ron-desantis-rebukes-donna-deegans-decision-to-remove-jacksonville-confederate-monument/
Just for fun, read the comments following the statement.
Bobby Lee,
Yeah, the comments were fun. "Ken" even left one.
"... it would be wrong for "an 80-year-old man [to be] sitting in jail."
I'm looking forward to the geriatric crime spree that will ensue when men (women too?) realize that at 80 its ollie ollie in free. They're probably not too good at the strong-arm stuff, but can steal a lot of cash with a ball-point and a good copy machine. Poor Bernie Madoff, his timing was premature.