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

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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Feb132024

The Conversation -- February 14, 2024

Just the Sweetest Valentine's Day Message Ever. Miranda Nazzarro of the Hill: Donald "Trump wished former first lady Melania Trump a Happy Valentine's Day on Wednesday by thanking her for her support throughout his various criminal cases. In a campaign email sent Wednesday morning, Trump offered a 'letter' with the subject line, 'I love you, Melania!' 'Dear Melania, I LOVE YOU. Even after every single INDICTMENT, ARREST, and WITCH HUNT, you never left my side... You've always supported me through everything. I wouldn't be the man I am today without your guidance, kindness, and warmth.... You will always mean the world to me, Melania! From your husband with love, Donald J. Trump.'... Readers were then directed to a website where they could leave their own Valentine's Day message or donate to his reelection campaign." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Isn't it sweet, too, that Trump is thoughtful enough to realizes his wife may not remember who he is, so he identifies himself as her husband and includes his full name? Okay, it is rather unkind of him to blame her for making him the man he is. Still, it almost makes you feel like making a large campaign contribution -- though maybe not to Trump.

House Pines for My Kevin. Rachel Bade of Politico: "... in his fourth month in alleged power, Speaker Mike Johnson has accomplished what once seemed unthinkable: making [former speaker Kevin] McCarthy seem like a skilled strategist and master of the House. Interviews with multiple Republicans over the last few days across multiple House factions -- people who consider themselves on Johnson's team, as well as those who were never enthusiastic about his rise -- describe a speaker who seems to be winging it on major questions of strategy, messaging and basic vote-counting.... 'Kevin would have a strategy, he'd shop it around, then he'd make a play call,' a senior Republican lawmaker said. 'The more I'm around Johnson, the more it's clear to me he doesn't have a plan.'"

Lindsey's Surrender Is Complete. Liz Goodwin & Leigh Ann Caldwell of the Washington Post: "Last May, Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, warmly embracing the embattled leader and later urging President Biden to 'do more' to help the nation as it fights off Russia's invasion. But this week, Graham voted repeatedly against sending $60 billion in aid to that nation as well as against other military funds for Israel and U.S. allies in the Indo-Pacific.... 'I talked to President Trump today and he's dead set against this package,' Graham said on the Senate floor on Sunday.... 'He thinks that we should make packages like this a loan, not a gift,' Graham said.... The episode has also eroded Graham's credibility among colleagues who worked closely with him to shape a bipartisan package of border policy reforms that Republicans demanded be attached to the foreign aid in exchange for their votes -- only to backtrack and help kill it in the end."

Marie: In today's Comments, Patrick wondered if Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) had displaced Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) as the Stupidest Senator. I too was concerned, and I'm here to report that Johnson is holding his own: ~~~

     ~~~ Steve Benen of MSNBC: During an interview conducted over the weekend, "Johnson conceded that the Russian leader is a 'war criminal,' before saying, 'But an awful lot of what Vladimir Putin said was right.' [Johnson then] criticized U.S. sanctions before concluding, 'A lot of the points that Vladimir Putin made are accurate. They're obvious.'" Benen also cited Politico reporting that suggests Johnson voted against aid to Ukraine as a way of "helping" Ukraine, because letting Russia win will end the war faster.

Miranda Nazzarro of the Hill: "... just days after [Donald Trump] threw his support behind his daughter-in-law [Lara Trump] to serve as co-chair of the RNC[, she told Newsmax,] 'Every single penny will go to the No. 1 and the only job of the RNC --that is elected Donald J. Trump as president of the United States and saving this country.'" MB: The RNC's mandate is to aid all GOP candidates, not only its presidential* candidate.

Adam Reiss & Dareh Gregorian of NBC News: "State Judge Arthur Engoron, who presided over the $370 million civil fraud case in New York against ... Donald Trump and his company, is expected to issue his verdict in the trial by the end of the week, a person with direct knowledge of the situation told NBC News. 'It is currently anticipated the Engoron decision will be released on Friday, barring unforeseen circumstances,' the person said Tuesday."

Kate Conger of the New York Times: "X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk, is potentially violating U.S. sanctions by accepting payments for subscription accounts from terrorist organizations and other groups barred from doing business in the country, according to a new report. The report, by the Tech Transparency Project, a nonprofit focused on accountability for large technology companies, shows that X ... has taken payments from accounts that include Hezbollah leaders, Houthi groups, and state-run media outlets in Iran and Russia. The subscriptions, which cost $8 a month, offer users a blue check mark -- once limited to verified users like celebrities -- and better promotion by X's algorithm, among other perks.... 'It's yet another sign that X has lost control of its platform,' [said Katie Paul, the director of the Tech Transparency Project.]"

~~~~~~~~~~

** Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Tom Suozzi, a former Democratic congressman, won a closely watched special House election in New York on Tuesday, narrowing the Republican majority in Washington and offering his party a potential playbook to run in key suburban swing areas in November. His victory in the Queens and Long Island district avenged a year of humiliation unleashed by the seat's former occupant, George Santos, and stanched a trend that had seen Republicans capture nearly every major election on Long Island since 2021. Mr. Suozzi, 61, fended off the Republican nominee, Mazi Pilip, in a race that became an expensive preview of many of the fights expected to dominate November's general election, especially over the influx of migrants at the border and in New York City." The AP's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: With 93% of the voted counted, Suozzi was leading Pilip 53.9% to 46.1%. This was pretty much a blowout in a race that showed the candidates in close to a statistical tie. ~~~

~~~ Nicholas Fandos & Katie Glueck of the New York Times: "... Mr. Suozzi's campaign ... provided ... a playbook for candidates across the country competing on turf where President Biden and his party remain deeply unpopular. The strategy went something like this: Challenge Republicans on issues that they usually monopolize, like crime, taxes and, above all, immigration. Flash an independent streak. And fire up the Democratic base with attacks -- in this case, nearly $10 million in ads -- on the abortion issue and ... Donald J. Trump.... In both [this race & the race for a Pennsylvania state house seat (story linked below)], the Biden campaign released statements casting the Democratic victories as defeats of Trumpism.... Mr. Trump, for his part, distanced himself from Ms. Pilip, a registered Democrat who never fully embraced him as a candidate, deriding her as a 'very foolish woman' [because she wasn't MAGA enough]."

Can you imagine? A former president of the United States saying that? The whole world heard it. And the worst thing is he means it. No other president in our history has ever bowed down to a Russian dictator. Let me say this as clearly as I can -- I never will. For God's sake, it's dumb, it's shameful, it's dangerous, it's un-American. -- President Joe Biden, Tuesday, on Donald Trump ~~~

~~~ Peter Baker of the New York Times: "President Biden denounced ... Donald J. Trump on Tuesday for encouraging Russia to attack certain NATO allies ... as he implored House Republicans to defy their putative nominee and pass new security aid for Ukraine and Israel. In a televised statement, Mr. Biden said a $95 billion spending package that the Senate passed earlier in the day on a bipartisan vote was imperative to help defeat the 'vicious onslaught' of President Vladimir V. Putin's Russia against Ukraine. And he linked the legislative debate to Mr. Trump's campaign speech siding with Moscow over European allies that he deemed 'delinquent.'" More on the foreign aid package linked below. (Also linked yesterday.) An AP story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It is rare -- in fact, this may be the first time -- for President Biden to criticize Donald Trump from the White House. But this wasn't a political speech so much as it was outrage where outrage was due.

Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: "The United States House of Representatives voted narrowly on Tuesday to impeach Alejandro N. Mayorkas, the homeland security secretary, in a precedent-shattering vote that charged him with willfully refusing to enforce border laws and breaching the public trust. In a 214 to 213 vote, Republicans barreled past the solid opposition of Democrats and reservations in their own ranks to make Mr. Mayorkas the first sitting cabinet secretary in U.S. history to be impeached.... The charges against Mr. Mayorkas are expected to be rejected in the Democratic-led Senate, where conviction would require a two-thirds majority and even some Republicans have called the effort dead on arrival. It was not immediately clear whether senators would hold a trial to consider the articles, or vote to dismiss them.... The charges against him broke with history by failing to identify any such offense, instead effectively declaring the policy choices Mr. Mayorkas has carried out a constitutional crime." This is the pinned item in a liveblog. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Jacqueline Alemany of the Washington Post: "Breaking: House impeaches Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, succeeding on second try, in a rebuke of Biden's immigration policy. The resolution is non-binding, however, and may not go very far in the Senate because even some Republicans don't believe that Mayorkas's actions clear the bar for the high crimes and misdemeanors necessary for conviction. But Mayorkas is the first sitting Cabinet secretary to be impeached in 150 years. This story will be updated." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Lisa Mascaro of the AP: "The U.S. House voted Tuesday to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, with the Republican majority determined to punish the Biden administration over its handling of the U.S-Mexico border after failing last week in a politically embarrassing setback." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: You should have seen the little satisfied smirk on Mike Johnson's face when he announced the impeachment vote. Manu Raju of CNN said the Senate, which is out of session for two weeks, probably would vote to dismiss the two impeachment charges without holding a trial. Viva Mayorkas! ~~~

~~~ President Biden's statement is here, via the White House: "History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship that has targeted an honorable public servant in order to play petty political games."

Liz Goodwin of the Washington Post: "The Senate passed a $95 billion national security package to aid Israel, Ukraine and other U.S. allies early Tuesday after a months-long debate that has deeply divided congressional Republicans. The bill passed 70-29, after 22 Republicans joined Democrats in approving the aid. But House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) preemptively rejected the legislation on Monday night, saying in a statement that the package's failure to address U.S. border security makes it a nonstarter in the House. 'In the absence of having received any single border policy change from the Senate, the House will have to continue to work its own will on these important matters,' Johnson said in a statement. 'America deserves better than the Senate's status quo.'" Politico's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

Party of Putin, Ctd. Sky Palma of the Raw Story: "The House GOP's star witness in the Oversight Committee's investigation into Hunter Biden turns out to be connected to a Russian oligarch, The Daily Beast reported Tuesday. High-profile investor Tony Bobulinski has links to Russian billionaire Viktor Vekselberg, a Ukrainian-born energy magnate who's been a longtime close ally of Vladimir Putin's, according to the report. 'In 2017, Vekselberg reportedly funneled $500,000 to an LLC run by Donald Trump's former attorney and fixer Michael Cohen, supposedly with the intention of influencing the new administration to let Russia illegally occupy parts of Eastern Ukraine,' The Beast's report stated. Vekselberg has been sanctioned more than once by U.S. law enforcement in regards to Russia's attempts to influence the 2016 election and the nation's aggression towards Ukraine, but Republicans are trying to ignore his links to Bobulinski. On Tuesday, Bobulinski will appear for a private interview with the House panel looking into impeaching President Joe Biden." (Also linked yesterday.)

Party of Putin, Ctd. Comrade Potatohead. Howard Koplowitz of Al.com: "Russian President Vladimir Putin is 'open to peace' but "D.C. warmongers' want to extend the conflict in Ukraine, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., said in explaining why he opposes the $60 billion aid package for Ukraine. 'Vladimir Putin wants out of this -- you heard that on Tucker Carlson,' Tuberville told Fox Business' Larry Kudlow during an appearance on the network Monday to discuss the Senate bill that ties funding for Ukraine and Israel to border security provisions."

Annie Karni of the New York Times: "The racist discourse by Republican members of Congress, both in casual comments and in official statements, has become so commonplace that it now often slips by without any real condemnation from the G.O.P. Democrats frequently call for apologies but no longer expect any response, and those futile denunciations quickly disappear into a morass of polarized content on social media. The pattern is playing out as the Republican Party once again coalesces behind former President Donald J. Trump.... His approach has encouraged some Republicans to freely use rhetoric that denigrates people based on ethnicity, religion or nationality. 'The nature of Trumpism is to embolden extremism,' said Representative Ritchie Torres, a Black Democrat from New York.... Mr. Torres said the sad reality was that 'the extreme elements have concluded that racism might be bad morals but it's good politics.'" Read on. Karni provides sickening examples of what passes for GOP discourse." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Judy Kurtz of the Hill: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) is blasting a politically charged episode of 'Curb Your Enthusiasm,' saying it 'lied' and painted conservatives in her state and supporters of former President Trump as 'racists and red necks.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Well, that's mighty peculiar, because here's part of what Annie Karni writes about Greene's Congressional performance (linked above): "When Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican of Georgia, stood on the House floor this month to announce her proposal to censure the only Somali-born member of Congress, she said she was seeking punishment for 'Representative Ilhan Omar of Somalia -- I mean Minnesota.'... Ms. Greene has been fund-raising off her proposed censure of Ms. Omar, which was written relying on a mistranslation of her remarks in Somali that spread virally on right-wing social media, and she has fed the loop by amplifying the hate and misinformation online."

A Valentine's Day Story for Our Time. Marie: Your intended give you a beautiful engagement ring. But he didn't buy it or inherit it. He acquired it as part of a bribe. Then he haggled over the value of the bribe. (Alledgedly!) ~~~

~~~ Tracey Tully & Benjamin Weiser of the New York Times: "A luxury Mercedes-Benz, gold bars, exercise equipment and stacks of cash featured prominently in a federal indictment that charged Senator Robert Menendez with accepting a sordid array of bribes. Now, prosecutors say a diamond engagement ring for the senator's future wife, Nadine Menendez, was also part of the elaborate bribery scheme -- and a source of infighting between co-defendants who are expected to stand trial together in May. Wael Hana, a longtime friend of Ms. Menendez's who is also charged in the alleged conspiracy, attempted to cheat her out of the full value of the ring, according to court documents filed late Monday by prosecutors in Manhattan.... [In the new filing,] there are snippets from secretly recorded conversations and details about where investigators found two bags filled with roughly $100,000 in cash each.... As part of the bribery plot, prosecutors said Mr. Hana arranged for carpet installation at Ms. Menendez's home." CNN's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: If you read through the details of this report, you might be thinking Senator Bob is going to jail.

Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was released from his latest hospitalization Tuesday ... as he endures a difficult recovery from prostate cancer that included surgery in December and a lengthy stay in intensive care last month. Austin, 70, was discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Maryland about 3:30 p.m., the Pentagon said in a statement. He resumed his duties as defense secretary about 5 p.m. and is expected to continue his recovery from home and participate remotely in meetings Wednesday. Austin's doctors, John Maddox and Gregory Chesnut, said in the statement that he developed a bladder problem 'related to his December 2023 prostate cancer surgery' and that his condition when he returned to the hospital again Sunday 'indicated a need for close monitoring by the critical care team and supportive care.'" The NBC News story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ The DOD's statement is here.

Josh Gerstein & Kyle Cheney of Politico: "Chief Justice John Roberts is giving prosecutors a week to respond to ... Donald Trump's request to keep his federal criminal election-subversion trial on hold while he tries to persuade the Supreme Court to scuttle it entirely on the grounds of presidential immunity. A brief docket entry from the court Tuesday morning said special counsel Jack Smith has until next Tuesday at 5 p.m. to address the emergency application Trump's lawyers filed at the high court Monday." (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here.

Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times: "The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is considering loosening its recommendations regarding how long people should isolate after testing positive for the coronavirus, another reflection of changing attitudes and norms as the pandemic recedes. Under the proposed guidelines, Americans would no longer be advised to isolate for five days before returning to work or school. Instead, they might return to their routines if they have been fever free for at least 24 hours without medication, the same standard applied to the influenza and respiratory syncytial viruses. The proposal would align the C.D.C.'s advice with revised isolation recommendations in Oregon and California. The shift was reported earlier by The Washington Post, but it is still under consideration, according to two people with knowledge of the discussions." (Also linked yesterday.)

Trisha Thadani, et al., of the Washington Post: In 2022, a "Tesla Model 3 barreled into a tree and exploded in flames, killing [Hans] von Ohain, a Tesla employee and devoted fan of CEO Elon Musk. [Passenger Erk] Rossiter, who survived the crash, told emergency responders that von Ohain was using an 'auto-drive feature on the Tesla' that 'just ran straight off the road.'... In a recent interview, Rossiter said he believes that von Ohain was using Full Self-Driving, which -- if true -- would make his death the first known fatality involving Tesla's most advanced driver-assistance technology.... Since federal regulators began requiring automakers to report crashes involving driver-assistance systems in 2021, they have logged more than 900 in Teslas, including at least 40 that resulted in serious or fatal injuries, according to a Post analysis. Most involved Autopilot, which is designed for use on controlled-access highways. No fatal crash has been definitively linked to the more sophisticated Full Self-Driving, which is programmed to guide the car almost anywhere...." (Also linked yesterday.)

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Georgia. A Win for Democracy. David Edwards of the Raw Story: "In a defeat for MAGA election crusaders, Georgia's Republican-controlled State Board of Elections voted down a measure that would have limited the use of absentee voting. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that the board considered an effort from Republican member Janice Johnston to limit no-excuse absentee voting, which became more popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, on Tuesday a majority of the Board of Elections voted to uphold no-excuse absentee voting."

Kansas. Julie Bosman of the New York Times: "A 45-year-old Kansas man has been charged in the theft of a life-size bronze statue of the baseball legend Jackie Robinson from a park in Wichita, Kan. The police in Wichita said on Tuesday that the motive for the crime was probably to sell the statue for scrap metal. The man, Ricky Alderete, was charged on Monday with felony theft, aggravated criminal damage to property and making false information, the police said. Lt. Aaron Moses of the Wichita Police Department said that an investigation was continuing, but that concerns that the theft of the statue might have been racially motivated had been put to rest." The chief of the Wichita Police said the department expected it would be making more arrests in the case. So I'm still thinking racism was an underlying factor.

Michigan. Edward Helmore of the Guardian: "A Republican Michigan politician has been stripped of his office staff and committee assignments after sharing a social media post about the racist 'great replacement' theory about a coordinated effort to diminish the influence of white people through immigration and low birth rates. The Republican state representative Josh Schriver had his privileges removed by the Michigan house speaker, Joe Tate, but will still be able to vote on legislation. The decision came a week after Schriver, a first-term lawmaker, uploaded a picture that depicted Black figures covering most of a map of the world, with white figures in small areas of Australia, Canada, northern Europe and the northern US. The bottom of the graphic read 'The great replacement!' The picture was originally posted by Jack Posobiec, a far-right pundit, and reposted on X by Schriver."

Pennsylvania State House Race. Adam Edelman of NBC News: "Democrats won a state House special election in Pennsylvania on Tuesday night, preserving the party's narrow majority in the closely watched battleground state, The Associated Press projected. In the race for the open seat in the 140th state House District, Democrat Jim Prokopiak, a school board member in Bucks County, defeated Republican Candace Cabanas. Prokopiak's victory gives Democrats a narrow 102-100 majority in the state House, preventing another tie in the chamber.... Republicans control the state Senate, while Democrats hold the governorship. The win in Bucks County -- a purple slice of the northern suburbs of Philadelphia -- was hailed as positive news by national Democrats...."

Texas. Natalie Contreras, a new U.S. citizen, writes in the Texas Tribune that even though she is an elections reporter, it took her three tries to get Texas to properly process her application: "... not everyone has the ability, the time, or the resources to ask questions, double-check their registration status, and make multiple attempts. Being able to participate in democracy should not be this hard."

Wisconsin. Wow! Another Win for Democracy. Alice Herman of the Guardian: "Wisconsin lawmakers voted on Tuesday to adopt legislative maps drawn by the Democratic governor, Tony Evers -- inching the state closer to undoing the extreme gerrymander that has ensured Republican control of the state for more than a decade. The pair of votes in the Republican-dominated state assembly and state senate are a sign that the years-long battle over Wisconsin's legislative maps may be finally drawing to a close, giving Democrats a chance to win control of the state legislature in upcoming elections for the first time since 2012. The vote is the result of a December ruling from the Wisconsin supreme court that the current state assembly and senate maps are unconstitutional, ordering the state to adopt new legislative maps before the 2024 election -- and setting a mid-March deadline. Republican and Democratic lawmakers, the governor and multiple third-party groups submitted revised maps to the court for consideration, and in a 1 February report, consultants hired by the court to review them said that the GOP-drawn maps maintained the partisan gerrymander and 'do not deserve further consideration'. The maps submitted by Democrats retained a Republican advantage, the consultants found, but to a much-reduced degree."

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Indonesia. Sui-Lee Wee & Muktita Suhartono New York Times: "Indonesia's defense minister, a feared former general who was removed from the army after he was found responsible for the kidnapping of political dissidents, appeared on track to winning the presidential election outright on Wednesday, casting doubts on the future of one of the world's most vibrant democracies. The candidate, Prabowo Subianto, had a commanding lead in the three-way race for president, with more than 58 percent of the vote, according to unofficial tallies that have a history of accurately predicting the final results."

Israel/Palestine, et al.

The Washington Post's live updates of developments Wednesday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "Israeli forces and Hezbollah militants continued to exchange fire across the border with Lebanon. On Wednesday morning, Israel's ambulance service said one woman was killed by rocket fire in the country's north. On Tuesday, Israel's military said it struck Hezbollah targets after two people were reported to have been seriously injured by a Hezbollah rocket attack." ~~~

     ~~~ The New York Times' live updates for Wednesday are here. CNN's live updates are here.

Vivian Yee, et al., of the New York Times: "Negotiators from multiple countries met in Cairo on Tuesday, struggling to reach an agreement to temporarily stop the war in the Gaza Strip, as international concern mounted over Israel's plan to press its ground offensive into the city of Rafah, where more than half of the territory's population has sought refuge. Talks involving lower-level officials will continue for another three days, according to an Egyptian and an American official briefed on the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomacy. They described the negotiations on Tuesday as promising, but Israel and Hamas were still not close to a deal."

News Ledes

New York Times: "A shooting near Kansas City's Union Station on Wednesday left one person dead and at least 21 others [-- 9 of whom are children --] with gunshot wounds, turning a Super Bowl victory celebration into a scene of chaos as thousands of fans in red jerseys ran for safety. It was unclear who was responsible. Three people had been detained, the Kansas City police chief [Stacey Graves] said at a news conference. She did not name them and said that investigators had not identified a motive.... At least two of the people in custody had been armed, the police said, and a third person had also been detained, the chief said.... The chief asked the public to provide any video or other information that could help the authorities determine what had happened.... The celebration of the Chiefs' victory ended with a rally in front of Union Station, an Amtrak hub and tourist spot in downtown Kansas City, Mo. 'As soon as the rally concluded, there were shots fired on the west side of Union Station,' Chief Graves said, adding, 'I know one of the suspects was immediately pursued on foot.'" This is a liveblog. It is an update of a developing story linked earlier.

Washington Post: "Three D.C. police officers serving an arrest warrant related to animal cruelty were shot and wounded Wednesday morning near Benning Park in Southeast Washington, prompting a nearly 13-hour standoff that ended with police taking the suspect into custody, authorities said. The armed standoff in the 5000 block of Hanna Street SE finally ended just before 9 p.m., having disrupted schools and forced neighbors out of their homes along a street with small brick houses and plots of grass. A police spokesman confirmed Wednesday night the suspect was in custody. Authorities said the officers were not seriously injured."

Comments Off

Reader Comments (13)

“Chief Justice John Roberts is giving prosecutors a week to respond to ... Donald Trump’s request to keep his federal criminal election-subversion trial on hold while he tries to persuade the Supreme Court to scuttle it entirely on the grounds of presidential immunity.”

Meanwhile, Chief Justice Roberts gives himself five or six months to think about it.

Might not be the same as ruling that Trump is immune from any and all consequences for his crimes, but it oughta be almost as good.

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

A man using Elon Musk’s auto-drive feature on his Tesla runs right off the road into a tree, causing the car to burst into flames.

Musk, using the self-drive feature, does the same thing with Twitter.

Go figure.

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterAkhilleus

Candidate problems

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterRAS

Will Bunch

"To see last Thursday unfold in real time was like watching the wreck of a slow-moving train, with democracy heading like Wile E. Coyote toward a cliff and nobody — not a Supreme Court bought and paid for by billionaires, nor a judiciary too easily gamed by inertia, nor a Congress engineered to produce only gridlock and gibberish, nor a gullible news media lacking backbone — throwing the switch to stop it. And the American people?
No one bothered to get off the couch.

For a lot of folks, the 2024 election is starting to feel like déjà vu all over again, a replay of 2016. That year, the news media and a good chunk of the political establishment — so convinced America could never elect a buffoonish demagogue, determined to show toughness toward the expected 45th president — turned a mini-scandal over Hillary Clinton’s private email server into the second coming of Watergate. Trump’s victory, and the media’s complicity, led to a popular meme of a neighborhood flooded by 6 feet of water with a barely visible road sign, “But Her Emails.”

Eight years later, here we are again."

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterRAS

Taking the liberty of moving this one, which I posted late last night to early this morning (both times Pacific), because I thought it interesting, especially in light of yesterday's New York election results...

For want of a vote?

https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4466861-democrat-misses-close-mayorkas-impeachment-vote-due-to-covid-19/

February 13, 2024 | Ken Winkes


Tho' I wonder if she had voted, if an R vote might have changed in response.


And this morning's irony? According to new CDC guidelines, she didn't have--won't have-- to isolate....

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

@Ken W. Saw your comment last night when you first posted it. The article doesn't make clear where Chu was when she got her diagnosis. If she was in California, then there was really no way for her to responsibly get to the House to vote. However, if she was in D.C., she should have put on clean clothes, masked up, driven to the "office," donned surgical gloves and stepped into the chamber to cast her vote.

As for the "flight-delayed" excuse, I'm not buying it. I know these MOCs have tight schedules, but you have to build in wiggle-room when an important vote is likely to be called. My God, Al Green showed up right after having major surgery.

February 14, 2024 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

Is Ron Johnson still the stupidest senator, or has Tommy Tuberville claimed that title now?

The competition is always close, with these and several others.

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterPatrick

Elon Musk. I'm currently reading a biography of Elon written by
Walter Isaacson.
Elon hires only the best people, the reason being, as far as I can
determine, to tell them how stupid they are. Only he has all the right
answers. If some underling happens to come up with a brilliant idea,
Elon will take credit for it and if they complain, it's 'you're out.'
Guess he should have listened to those car people while developing
his self-driving car.
When he was developing PayPal, he went to New York to see if he
could recruit Rudy Guiliani to be a political fixer and guide him
through the policy intricacies of being a bank. As soon as he walked
into Rudy's office, he knew it wouldn't work.
It was like walking into a mob scene, surrounded by goonish
confidantes. He and his henchmen were eager to line their pockets,
asking for 10% of the company, but they knew nothing about Silicon
Valley. The meeting was over before it began.

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterForrestMorris

@Patrick: Now that you ask, I thought I'd better check, and I wish to report that the contest between Tuberville & Johnson remains close to a tie. Johnson is hanging in there:

Steve Benen of MSNBC writes, " Johnson conceded that the Russian leader is a 'war criminal,' before saying, 'But an awful lot of what Vladimir Putin said was right.' [Johnson then] criticized U.S. sanctions before concluding, 'A lot of the points that Vladimir Putin made are accurate. They’re obvious.'” Benen also included some Politico reporting that suggests Johnson voted against aid to Ukraine as a way of "helping" Ukraine, because letting Russia win will mean the war will end faster.

February 14, 2024 | Registered CommenterMarie Burns

My response to Gail Collins today: "This is a disaster. What we really need in this country is a veto-proof Republican majority so we can slide down the chute into a warm vat of authoritarianism that will uphold the ridiculous Christianity of the governing majority.

"Really, why not just get it over with? So much angst. Before you laugh this off, remember that this country 'elected' Trump in 16 and could again in 24. Good economic numbers when Biden is President don't matter because how can we have a good economy if the man with a very good brain is on the sidelines?

"So, authoritarianism it is. Let's not slow it down by electing those infernal Democrats."

I'm getting sick and tired of caring.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/14/opinion/tom-suozzi-new-york-congressional-race.html?login=smartlock&auth=login-smartlock#commentsContainer

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterJack Mahoney

A national security threat in addition to the Republican Party?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/02/14/national-security-threat-mike-turner/

Good to know.

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterKen Winkes

Another senseless shooting, this time at the Kansas City Super Bowl victory parade. Multiple casualties taken to hospital.

Where, oh where are the 'good guys with a gun when you need them?"

February 14, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterBobby Lee

Bobby Lee—. They were there—all 800 cops and others (MO has no limits on guns)—. Worked great, didn’t it?

February 15, 2024 | Unregistered CommenterJeanne
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