;)
The Conversation -- January 26, 2024
Update of the New York Times liveblog of the E. Jean Carroll defamation case against Donald Trump:
Benjamin Weiser, et. al.: "A Manhattan jury on Friday ordered ... Donald J. Trump to pay $83.3 million to the writer E. Jean Carroll for defaming her in social media posts, news conferences and even on the campaign trail ever since she first accused him in 2019 of raping her in a department store dressing room decades earlier. The award included $65 million in punitive damages, which the nine-member jury assessed after finding Mr. Trump, 77, had acted maliciously after Ms. Carroll's lawyers pointed to Mr. Trump's persisting in attacks on her, both from the White House and after leaving office. On a single day recently, Mr. Trump made more than 40 derisive posts about her on his Truth Social website."
Maria Cramer: "Judge Kaplan tells the jurors that they are free of his order to maintain their anonymity. But, he said, 'my advice to you is that you never disclose you were on this jury.'"
Maggie Haberman: "It's hard to express how angry Trump is going to be about this"
Michael Gold: "Donald Trump just posted on Truth Social, calling the verdict 'absolutely ridiculous.' He said he plans to appeal, and again accused Carroll's suit of being a 'Biden Directed Witch Hunt focused on me and the Republican Party.' He adds, 'They have taken away all First Amendment Rights. THIS IS NOT AMERICA!'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: I just hope the court forces Trump to take the $83.3MM out of his own piggybank and doesn't let him get away with collecting the cash from contributors. I'm pretty impressed that Joe Biden can get to anonymous jury members and "direct" them to order Donald Trump to pay millions of dollars to E. Jean Carroll.
Lisa Friedman of the New York Times: "President Biden on Friday paused the permitting process for new liquefied natural gas export facilities in order to analyze their impact on climate change, the economy and national security.... The move could spell trouble for what would be the largest export terminal in the country, a $10 billion proposed project in Louisiana that has drawn scrutiny for its potential environmental impact. Mr. Biden's election-year decision is viewed as a win for climate activists who have pressed the administration to curb fossil fuels at a time when greenhouse gas emissions need to fall rapidly to stave off climate catastrophe."
Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: "Speaker Mike Johnson sought on Friday to choke off the last remaining glimmers of hope for a bipartisan immigration compromise to emerge from Congress this year, repeating that a deal under discussion in the Senate would almost certainly be 'dead on arrival' in the Republican-led House.... As the immigration plan teeters, the fate of additional aid for Ukraine also hangs in the balance, with hard-right House Republicans also dug in against it and threatening to depose Mr. Johnson if he seeks to push it through over their objections."
Oh, the New York Times is liveblogging developments today in E. Jean Carroll's defamation suit against Donald Trump:
Benjamin Weiser & Maria Cramer: "Donald J. Trump walked out of the courtroom on Friday as lawyers trying the defamation case brought against him by E. Jean Carroll made their final pitches to a nine-member jury.... Roberta A. Kaplan, the lawyer for Ms. Carroll, told jurors ... that Mr. Trump has normalized behavior by people on social media who, because of his actions, thought it was acceptable to attack Ms. Carroll. Soon after, Mr. Trump, in an unusual breach of courtroom decorum, stood up and walked out, though Ms. Kaplan continued as if nothing unusual had happened. Mr. Trump returned to the courtroom more than an hour after he left, around 11:15 a.m., just before his lawyer, Alina Habba, began her closing arguments.... Trump appeared frustrated before the proceedings even began, shaking his head repeatedly. When Ms. Kaplan began describing last May's verdict that found Trump had sexually abused Carroll, he grew more frustrated -- scoffing, muttering and shaking his head. ~~~
~~~ "In her argument, Ms. Kaplan focused on the harm she said Mr. Trump inflicted on her client and her reputation, saying that the trial is about 'getting him to stop once and for all.' She emphasized that the only way to do so was to cost him as much money as possible."
Quite a few interesting entries on Robert Kaplan's closing. For instance ~~~
~~~ Cramer: "Roberta Kaplan describes the relentlessness of Trump's attacks. 'The truly shocking part is that false denials and attacks have continued during this trial,' she says. She notes that Trump held a press conference last week 'while you were sitting in this jury box' and lied about Carroll. She plays a clip of the press conference and shows a post he put on Truth Social, his website, where he said he would keep denying her claims."
Kate Christobek: "Trump grew visibly frustrated during the closing statement by E. Jean Carroll's lawyer Shawn Crowley. He shook his head vigorously when Crowley told the jury 'there are ways to lawfully respond to an allegation -- you could say nothing.'... When Crowley made a comment about how Trump's legal team wants the jury to believe he is the victim here, Trump mouthed the word 'true.'" ~~~
~~~ Adam Klasfeld of the Messenger: "A federal judge threatened Donald Trump's attorney Alina Habba with jail time on Friday, after the former president's lawyer kept contesting a ruling after it had been issued. 'You are on the verge of spending some time in the lockup,' senior U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan warned. 'Sit down.' The bombshell remark came moments before the start of closing arguments in Trump's second trial in a case brought by writer E. Jean Carroll."
Shane Goldmacher, et al., of the New York Times: The night Donald Trump won the Iowa caucuses in a landslide, carrying 98 of 99 counties, "the former president and his usual coterie of top aides were joined by about a dozen Iowa staffers headed for New York, boarding the plane his campaign calls Trump Force One.... Mr. Trump had lost Johnson County, home of the University of Iowa, by a single vote. The regional political director who had overseen the area was not given a seat on the plane. The next morning..., she was informed by a terse email from her supervisor that her contract with the Trump campaign was not being renewed. It was the type of ruthlessness the Trump team had deployed in the prior 14 months: Win -- or else.... How Mr. Trump swept the first two states ... is certainly a tale of cutthroat politics. But that's only part of the story. The former president and his allies had luck and a cunning strategy on their side. They put Mr. Trump's unerring instincts for revving up the Republican base and belittling his opponents to effective use."
** Texas, etc. Matthew Choi & Robert Downen of the Texas Tribune: "From the Texas House to ... Donald Trump, Republicans across the country are rallying behind Gov. Greg Abbott's legal standoff with the federal government at the southern border, intensifying concerns about a constitutional crisis amid an ongoing dispute with the Biden administration. At issue is concertina wire that the Texas National Guard has been using as a barrier between the Rio Grande River and Shelby Park, a 47-acre area in Eagle Pass. In a 5-4 decision earlier this week, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the Biden Administration when it vacated a lower court's ruling that prevented Border Patrol agents from cutting the wire to apprehend people who had crossed the river. On Wednesday -- and as the Texas National Guard and state troopers continued to roll out the wire and prevent federal agents from accessing much of the park -- Abbott continued to publicly challenge the ruling and 'hold the line.' He declared that Texas was under an 'invasion,' giving the state the constitutional right to defend itself and claimed that President Joe Biden's practice of paroling migrants into the country amounted to a refusal to enforce current immigration laws."
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The Trials of Trump & the Trump Mob
Benjamin Weiser, et al., of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump took the stand in his own defense on Thursday in the trial of E. Jean Carroll's defamation lawsuit against him, a civil case that grew out of her accusation that he raped her in a department store dressing room in the mid-1990s. His testimony, after days of anticipation, lasted less than five minutes. 'The defense calls President Donald Trump,' Alina Habba, his lead lawyer, told the court. She asked the former president whether he stood by his remarks in a deposition in which he had called Ms. Carroll a liar. 'One hundred percent, yes,' Mr. Trump said. 'She said something; I consider it a false accusation.' Mr. Trump's brief appearance came after much debate before the trial over whether the judge, Lewis A. Kaplan, should ensure Mr. Trump did not stray from the sole issue in the case -- damages. Ms. Carroll's lawyer, Roberta A. Kaplan, had written to the judge, saying Trump might see a political benefit 'from intentionally turning this trial into a circus.'"
The New York Times liveblog of developments Thursday in the E. Jean Carroll defamation case against Donald Trump is here: A few excerpts (more in yesterday's page): ~~~
Benjamin Weiser & Maria Cramer: "... Alina Habba, asked the former president whether he stood by his remarks, in which he called Ms. Carroll a liar. '100 percent, yes,' Mr. Trump said. 'She said something I considered a false accusation.' The judge struck that second statement, and Ms. Habba asked Mr. Trump whether he intended to hurt Ms. Carroll. He said no. 'I just wanted to defend myself, my family and, frankly, the presidency,' Mr. Trump added."; [MB: According to a transcript of the testimony, which Lawrence O'Donnell of MSNBC read on-air, Judge Kaplan also struck "everything after 'no'" in this response. Video below.]
Cramer: "As Habba and Kaplan go back and forth about the testimony, Trump begins talking at the defense table. 'Mr. Trump, you're interrupting these proceedings by talking loudly while your counsel is talking, and that is not permitted,' the judge tells him."
Kate Christobek: "Before he took the stand, Trump appeared upset with the limitations that Kaplan, the judge, put on his testimony. At one point before the jury entered the courtroom, Trump raised his hands and said: 'I never met the woman. I don't know who the woman is.'"
Maggie Haberman: "Trump's much-anticipated testimony lasted just over three minutes. His lawyer, Alina Habba, was extremely limited in what she was allowed to ask him. He was supposed to stick to tighter limits on what he could say on the stand. In unsurprising news, he strayed from it.... Trump's approach was to try to get his denials of sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll into the record, which the judge wouldn't allow. When the judge read aloud that a previous trial found Trump had assaulted her and described it graphically, Trump let out a loud 'uch!' that could be heard several rows back."
Christobek: "Trump walked slowly as he left the courtroom after his testimony. He spoke loudly enough for the members of the audience to hear: 'This is not America. Not America. This is not America.'"
Cramer: "After Trump's testimony, the judge dismissed the jury for the day and called a recess, but the lawyers are coming back today to go over how to instruct the jury on the law. Closings will be tomorrow and the jury could start deliberating right after.
~~~ CNN liveblogged the E. Jean Carroll defamation case developments yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
Zachary Cohen, et al., of CNN: "A current and former law partner to Nathan Wade, the special prosecutor leading the 2020 election subversion case in Georgia, have been told to expect a subpoena to testify at a hearing next month on whether he and the district attorney who brought the case should be disqualified over their alleged affair and financial ties, sources familiar with the matter tell CNN. The district attorney, Fani Willis, also is expected to be subpoenaed, sources say, and possibly others in her office. The Fulton County judge overseeing the criminal case against ... Donald Trump and his allies called for the hearing to address claims from one of Trump's co-defendants that Willis and Wade have a conflict of interest. Citing financial statements turned up in Wade's current divorce proceeding, lawyers for Trump's co-defendant, Mike Roman, argue that Willis financially benefited when Wade took her on lavish vacations after she hired him as special prosecutor." ~~~
~~~ Steve Reilly of the Messenger: "Donald Trump on Thursday joined an effort by his co-defendant in the Georgia election-racketeering case to disqualify District Attorney Fani Willis and dismiss her charges over allegations of impropriety.... In a six-page filing Thursday, the former president's Georgia legal team adopted and supplemented [fellow defendant Mike] Roman's motion, and its claims 'that an improper intimate personal relationship existed between Special Prosecutor Wade and District Attorney (DA) Willis, that Wade has been paid over $650,000 by the DA, and that taxpayer monies were used by Wade to take the DA on lavish vacations.'"
Zach Montague of the New York Times: "Peter Navarro, a trade adviser to ... Donald J. Trump who helped lay plans to keep Mr. Trump in office after the 2020 election, was sentenced on Thursday to four months in prison for defying a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Mr. Navarro, 74, was found guilty in September of two misdemeanor counts of criminal contempt of Congress.... In a contentious exchange with Judge [Amit] Mehta, [Mr. Navarro's lawyer Stanley] Woodward repeatedly predicted that an appeals court would side with Mr. Navarro on constitutional grounds. 'This case is far from over,' he said." (Also linked yesterday.) NPR's story is here.
Tom Boggioni of the Raw Story: "Steven Bannon's refusal to pay his lawyer close to $500K in legal fees may end up inadvertently exposing more evidence of financial fraud by the former Donal[d] Trump adviser. According to a report from the Daily Beast's Jose Pagliery, Bannon stiffed longtime attorney Robert Costello..., and a judge has ordered him to pay the $480,487 that is way overdue.... Bannon has asked a judge to keep Costello's law firm from reviewing his bank statements, with Pagliery writing, 'a request that has required Bannon to awkwardly concede that his personal finances likely have evidence that could bolster the Manhattan District Attorneys case against him,' involving fraudulent fundraising to build a wall between the U.S. and Mexico.... Bannon's current attorney, Harlan Protass, admitted as much in a recent filing, writing of Costello's law firm, 'DHC's taking of post-judgment discovery from Mr. Bannon poses a significant risk of compromising Mr. Bannon's Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: I must say I was unaware a person had a Fifth Amendment right to hide his bank account records. If that were true, many fraudsters would be off the hook.
I have been shocked to watch some public figures try to rewrite history, claiming rioters behaved 'in an orderly fashion' like ordinary tourists, or martyrizing convicted January 6 defendants as 'political prisoners' or even, incredibly, 'hostages.'... That is all preposterous. But the Court fears that such destructive, misguided rhetoric could presage further danger to our country. -- Federal Judge Royce Lambeth, resentencing notes in the case of the U.S. v. James Little ~~~
~~~ Kyle Cheney of Politico: "The longest-serving district judge on the federal bench in Washington, D.C., warned Thursday that false rhetoric about the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol -- including the sorts of lies hurled by ... Donald Trump and some of his congressional allies -- poses an ongoing danger to the nation. Judge Royce Lamberth, a Reagan appointee to the bench, said the 'destructive' misinformation, spread by political leaders who have downplayed and misrepresented the attack, had become pervasive.... Though he did not mention Trump by name, Lamberth specifically called out language used by Trump and, more recently, Trump allies like Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), describing Jan. 6 defendants as 'hostages.' It was a remarkable jeremiad from a veteran jurist who has presided over dozens of Jan. 6 criminal cases and more than 10 trials."
Presidential Race
Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "... President Biden ... traveled to the shores of a bay near Lake Superior on Thursday to stand at the foot of the Blatnik Bridge, a structure that his administration said would have failed by 2030 without a $1 billion infusion provided by the bipartisan infrastructure law that Mr. Biden championed. The president was there to talk infrastructure and the economy, and to contrast his performance with that of his predecessor and likely challenger in the general election..., Donald J. Trump.... Mr. Biden talked about the $6.1 billion that had been invested in Wisconsin and the $5.7 billion in Minnesota, located just over the bridge, which supports agriculture, shipping and forestry industries in the upper Midwest.... As the president spoke, Mr. Trump was taking the stand in a defamation trial in New York, offering a striking split-screen comparison that the Biden campaign has welcomed.... Bipartisan law or not, no Republican lawmakers assembled to greet Mr. Biden. ('I'm sorry to say the vast majority voted against it,' Mr. Biden said, a number that includes Rep. Tom Tiffany, a Republican representing the district where the bridge is located.)" CNN's story is here.
Sarah Fortinsky of the Hill: "Former President Trump can remain on Maine's primary ballot until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the 14th Amendment case in Colorado, the top court in Maine declared Wednesday, dismissing an appeal from Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows (D). In a unanimous decision, the Maine Supreme Judicial Court upheld a lower judge's order that required Bellows to wait for the U.S. Supreme Court to decide on the Colorado ballot case before she could withdraw, modify or uphold her decision to block Trump's name from Maine's March 5 primary ballot." (Also linked yesterday.)
Digby republishes would-be dictator Donald Trump's ten-point plan to dismantle democratic institutions. MB: As far as I can tell, the plan is a gen-u-wine Trump & Co. production, not something that wiser minds gleaned from Trump's various pronouncements & rants. Digby also publishes transcript excerpts of a conversation among New York Times reporters Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Swan & Charlie Savage, in which they discuss how effective they think Trump & his team of miscreants would be a second time around. Thanks to RAS for the link.
Megan Lebowitz of NBC News: "... Donald Trump threatened Wednesday to blacklist anyone who donates to Nikki Haley's presidential campaign. Trump wrote on Truth Social that anyone who makes a contribution to the Haley campaign 'from this moment forth, will be permanently barred from the MAGA camp.'" Thanks to Akhilleus for the link. MB: What do kids do at MAGA Camp? Go kayaking? Make woven plastic lanyards? Teepee the girls' bunkhouse? Without explaining how much fun you'll miss by not going to Maga camp, Trump's threat is pretty toothless. (Also linked yesterday.)
Dan Froomkin: "That a delusional, dissembling, and despotic Donald Trump remains in serious contention for the presidency in 2024 is a profound indictment of the journalism profession. It indicates that a torrent of misinformation is flowing unimpeded, that there are grave misunderstandings about the state of the country, and that the threat he poses to our democracy has not been made sufficiently clear.... Political journalism needs ... to fight as enthusiastically against misinformation as Fox and its ilk spread it;... to call Trumpism what it is: Fascism;... to stop letting Trump supporters disguise their true motivations behind empty words;... make an assertive case for reality, e.g.: the nation is not awash in crime; the border is not wide open; the economy is not in the toilet (it's doing amazingly well); Joe Biden is not mentally incompetent; government is working."
Ben Casselman of the New York Times: "The U.S. economy continued to grow at a healthy pace at the end of 2023, capping a year in which unemployment remained low, inflation cooled and a widely predicted recession never materialized. Gross domestic product, adjusted for inflation, grew at a 3.3 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said on Thursday. That was down from the 4.9 percent rate in the third quarter but easily topped forecasters'; expectations and showed the resilience of the recovery from the pandemic's economic upheaval." As Akhilleus writes in today's thread, no mention of how well the economy is doing under President Biden. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Bryan Mena of CNN: "The US economy remained shockingly robust in the fourth quarter to close out a remarkably strong 2023 as consumers and businesses continued to spend, crushing expectations of a recession." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ You'll Not See Nothing Like the Mighty Yellen. Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen defended the Biden administration's economic agenda on Thursday, drawing sharp contrasts with the policies of the Trump administration.... In a speech at the Economic Club of Chicago, Ms. Yellen argued that the Biden administration had successfully navigated challenging headwinds caused by the pandemic and led a recovery that has outpaced those in the rest of the world. She also suggested that the Biden administration needed more time to tackle affordability issues, such as improving access to child care and housing.... Pointing to Mr. Trump's repeated pledges to rebuild America's roads and bridges, she recalled how those promises went unfulfilled. 'Our country's infrastructure has been deteriorating for decades,' Ms. Yellen said. 'In the Trump administration, the idea of doing anything to fix it was a punchline.' Ms. Yellen also assailed Mr. Trump's tax cuts, castigating him for enacting a 2017 tax law that she said enriched corporations, increased America's budget deficit and did little to make the economy stronger.... Treasury secretaries tend to avoid wading into politics, but Ms. Yellen told reporters ahead of her speech that she believed it was important to lay out the policy differences between the Trump and Biden administrations." (Also linked yesterday.)
Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: "The emerging bipartisan border deal is hitting fresh snags among Republicans on Capitol Hill because of the opposition of ... Donald J. Trump.... Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the minority leader, told Republicans privately on Wednesday that the politics of the issue had been complicated by Mr. Trump's rise and his hostility to the agreement, putting the party 'in a quandary,' according to lawmakers who participated in the meeting.... The remarks ... were striking coming from a Republican who has toiled to distance himself and his party from the former president. Mr. McConnell has vociferously backed the proposed border compromise and has been a chief proponent of a stalled effort to send tens of billions of dollars in military aid to Ukraine, which Republicans have said must be tied to the deal." (Also linked yesterday.) The NBC News story is here. ~~~
~~~ Annie Karni of the New York Times: "As ... Donald J. Trump moves closer to becoming his party's presidential nominee and Republican lawmakers consolidate behind him, he is wielding a heavier hand than any time since leaving office over his party's agenda in Congress. His vocal opposition to the emerging border compromise has all but killed the measure's chances in a divided Congress as he puts his own hard-line immigration policies once again at the center of his presidential campaign.... For a Congress that has struggled for more than a year to do the bare minimum of legislating, Mr. Trump's dominance among Republicans is yet another drag on the institution's ability to function in an election year when his name is likely to be on the ballot.... His 'America First' approach to foreign policy already helped to sap G.O.P. support for sending aid to Ukraine for its war against Russian aggression, placing the fate of that money in doubt.... On Thursday, after members grew alarmed that Mr. McConnell's message signaled the death knell for any potential deal, he clarified in a second meeting that he was still moving ahead with the border-Ukraine package." ~~~
~~~ Manu Raju, et al., of CNN: "Senior Senate Republicans are furious that Donald Trump may have killed an emerging bipartisan deal over the southern border, depriving them of a key legislative achievement on a pressing national priority.... In recent weeks, Trump has been lobbying Republicans both in private conversations and in public statements on social media to oppose the border compromise being delicately hashed out in the Senate, according to GOP sources familiar with the conversations -- in part because he wants to campaign on the issue this November and doesn't want President Joe Biden to score a victory in an area where he is politically vulnerable.... 'This proposal would have had almost unanimous Republican support if it weren't for Donald Trump,' [a] Republican senator said." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Meanwhile, let's do impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas because he hasn't solved the never-ending border problem, given the limitations Congress has placed on the administration. ~~~
~~~ Rebecca Beitsch of the Hill: "Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) sided with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) in his feud with the federal government over razor wire along the U.S.-Mexico border.... 'I stand with Governor Abbott. The House will do everything in its power to back him up,' Johnson wrote on X.... 'The next step: holding Secretary Mayorkas accountable,' he wrote.... Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) earlier this week called for a federalization of the Texas National Guard, which as a military unit is ultimately under the command of [President] Biden as commander in chief."
Jim Rutenberg & Kate Conger of the New York Times: "In the spring of 2020, when ... Donald J. Trump wrote messages on Twitter warning that increased reliance on mail-in ballots would lead to a 'rigged election,' the platform ran a corrective, debunking his claims.... This month Elon Musk, who has since bought Twitter..., echoed several of Mr. Trump's claims about the American voting system, putting forth distorted and false notions that American elections were wide open for fraud and illegal voting by noncitizens. This time, there were no fact checks. And the X algorithm -- under Mr. Musk's direct control -- helped the posts reach large audiences, in some cases drawing many millions of views. Since taking control of the site, Mr. Musk has dismantled the platform's system for flagging false election content, arguing it amounted to election interference. Now, his early election-year attacks on a tried-and-true voting method are raising alarms among civil rights lawyers, election administrators and Democrats."
~~~~~~~~~~
Having failed to kill Smith on its first attempt, Alabama has selected him as its 'guinea pig' to test a method of execution never attempted before. The world is watching. -- Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in dissent of the Supreme Court's majority decision to allow the execution to go forward ~~~
~~~ ** Alabama. Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs & Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: "Alabama carried out the first American execution using nitrogen gas on Thursday evening, killing a convicted murderer whose jury had voted to spare his life and opening a new frontier in how states execute death row prisoners.... The jury that convicted him of murder in 1996 also voted 11 to 1 to sentence him to life in prison rather than death, but the judge overruled their decision.... The execution of the condemned prisoner, Kenneth Smith, 58, began at 7:53 p.m. Central time, and he was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m. in an execution chamber in Atmore, Ala., according to John Q. Hamm, the state prison system's commissioner. The U.S. Supreme Court allowed the execution to move forward over the objections of its three liberal justices and concerns from death penalty opponents that the untested method could cause Mr. Smith to suffer.... State lawyers had previously claimed in court filings that an execution by nitrogen would ensure 'unconsciousness in seconds.' He then 'shook and writhed' for at least two minutes before beginning to breathe heavily for several minutes. Eventually, the journalists said, his breathing slowed until it was no longer apparent.... Lee Hedgepeth, a reporter in Alabama who witnessed the execution, said Mr. Smith's head moved back and forth violently in the minutes after the execution began. 'This was the fifth execution that I've witnessed in Alabama, and I have never seen such a violent reaction to an execution,' Mr. Hedgepeth said." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I view this as state-sponsored murder. The people -- in the form of a jury -- decided against killing Smith, but an agent of the state -- a judge -- overruled the will of the people. Then state actors in the prison system carried out the execution (twice!). ~~~
~~~ Jan Hoffman of the New York Times: "Supporters of the [nitrogen gas] method say it is fast and painless. But earlier this month, the United Nations Human Rights Office urged Alabama to stop the execution, saying it could amount to torture and be in violation of human rights treaties that the United States has agreed to. Alabama would be the first state to use nitrogen hypoxia, but other states are interested in employing the method."
Connecticut. There Was a Crooked Mayor and He Won a Crooked Race.... Dan Rosenzweig-Ziff of the Washington Post: "A Connecticut mayor whose September primary election win was invalidated after ballot-fraud allegations won a do-over primary Tuesday, months after his case became a flash point in conservative arguments about debunked theories of voter fraud.... Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim, whose supporters allegedly stuffed absentee ballots on his behalf, won reelection over John Gomes in the Tuesday Democratic primary, according to the Associated Press.... Donald Trump ... and his allies ... see the case -- which resulted in a mayor formerly convicted of conspiracy winning a general election that had been voided by the courts -- as evidence that Democrats are committing widespread fraud. Elections experts say those claims are baseless and that the Bridgeport case is unique."
~~~~~~~~~~
Israel/Palestine
The Washington Post's live updates of developments Friday are here: "An attack on a crowd of people waiting for aid in Gaza City on Thursday killed at least 20 and injured 150, Gaza’s Health Ministry said. The Associated Press reported that Israeli forces opened fire at a roundabout, citing witnesses and the Health Ministry." ~~~
~~~ CNN's live updates for Friday are here.
Emily Rauhala & Steve Hendrix of the Washington Post: "The International Court of Justice on Friday ordered Israel to do more to prevent the killing and harm of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, a landmark decision that is part of the case determining if genocide is taking place, and will add to pressure to change course in the military campaign. The court did not, however, order a cease-fire as requested by South Africa, though it said Israel must submit a report in one month outlining the measures it has taken to give effect to the court's orders." MB: I don't see how an order to "do more"; will help much.
Julian Barnes, et al., of the New York Times: "William J. Burns, the C.I.A. director, plans to travel to Europe to meet with senior Israeli, Egyptian and Qatari officials, in a sign the United States is pushing to secure a deal to release the hostages being held in the Gaza Strip and broker a prolonged cease-fire, according to U.S. officials. U.S. officials said Israel's apparent willingness to agree to a cessation of hostilities in return for the release of more hostages being held in Gaza has created a new opening for negotiations. Any new deal would likely include phased releases of hostages, though the White House is hoping that a more ambitious one, possibly leading to the release of all of the remaining hostages, might be possible."
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Reader Comments (21)
Is that a pig up in the sky?
Why, yes it is. And another one on the witness stand. A thing so rare as to merit inclusion right up there with porcine levitation, Trump not being allowed to lie and rant to his tiny little blackened heart’s content.
His very few lies were immediately stricken from the record by a judge who showed that fat pig who was boss in a court of law.
Trump, who clearly believes that no rules, no laws, no generally agreed upon forms of conduct should be able to constrain his infantile behavior, found himself pretty much speechless when not permitted to lie, in case you were wondering what that heretofore miraculous event might look like.
Mirabile non dictu!
Of course, like the sullen, soiled brat he is, once he hefted his fat ass off the stand and waddled out of the courtroom, he had to blubber about this not being America. Well, not the Amerika he envisions in his twisted, evil little mind, perhaps. That nightmare land of dictatorial delusions. So he slithered out as fast as those chubby ham hocks could trundle.
Trump without the lies!
Man, look at that pig go. He must be over Kansas by now.
And speaking of lying…
Here’s that other stable genius, Elon Musk, using his broke-ass social media thingie to spread dangerous disinformation designed to kneecap democracy, sowing the seeds of disillusion and distrust in the coming elections.
Because the only way people like Trump and Musk and the entire Party of Traitors and their many tentacled media apparatus can win an argument is by lying. Their ideas are so meritless and bereft of the tiniest sliver of value that they die an instantaneous, wretched death like so many vampires under the rising sun, and thus the only way to prop them up is through an endless spider web of lies.
QED.
Akhilleus' remark about lying and this from the NYT this morning generated (artificially?) a passing thought or two:
The deepfaked Taylor Swift for starters:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/26/arts/music/taylor-swift-ai-fake-images.html
Then: Glad to see "X" has some standards. They say, anyway, they're getting rid of the faked Taylor porn as swiftly as they identify it.
And then: If they don't like a naked Taylor because it's faked, why all the other fake stuff they have no trouble with?
And further: Just as porn, even that acknowledged to be fake, still has an audience of millions eager to be titillated by it, the political, social and environmental deepfakes that X has no problem posting and promulgating have their audience, too, equally eager to have their own twisted desires met.
Call all the easily disproved lies and conspiracy theories about voting, about immigrants, Jews, Blacks, liberals, the Biden crime family, socialism, communism, etc, generated and spread by Right wing media and the Red Net the political porn it is, but recognize political porn would not exist if millions of deviants didn't lap it up.
@Ken Winkes: Why, Ken, it's so unfa-a-a-ir of you to compare Elon's election porn to "traditional" -- but computer-generated -- porn. Besides, I'll bet if the fake naked bodies were Nancy Pelosi or Kamala Harris, the site formerly known as Twitter would have no problem with it. Not all porn is the same.
I'll bet the fat f--k is hoping for a really huuuuuge fine. The bigger
the fine, the more he'll rake in from those MAGAs.
Even though lots of them are living paycheck to paycheck, they're
still dumb enough to give money to a self proclaimed billionaire.
There's a sucker born every day.
Who would Jesus execute?
How would he do it?
Trump isn't the only one who can identify a picture of a whale
@RAS: And trump will probably want to make Coco his secretary
of education. (Sorry Betsy, you're out).
NBC News
"The U.S. just sold its helium stockpile. Here’s why the medical world is worried.
MRI machines need thousands of liters of liquid helium to function. Health care workers say they can’t afford any disruptions to the helium supply chain.
massive underground stockpile based in Amarillo, Texas, that supplies up to 30% of the country’s helium.
The sale has been in the works for more than a decade. Congress first mandated it through the Helium Stewardship Act of 2013. It was initially supposed to occur in 2021, but a series of delays — in part due to the same logistical and regulatory issues threatening shutdowns today — postponed the auction to Thursday"
The Representative candidates in Colorado's 4th congressional
district held a debate last night, according to the NY Times.
At one point, candidates were asked to raise their hands if they had
ever been arrested. Six of the nine raised their hands, to cheers and
applause from the audience.
Must be the reason trump has so many devotees. Jailbirds, idiots,
rapists, thieves, just to name a few.
https"//politicalwire.com/2024/01/26/most-of-gop-field-in-colorado-
race-has-been-arrested/
That should have been 'The Republican candidates' in Colorado's 4th.
Trump trial
"Roughly 20 minutes after walking into the courtroom, Donald Trump stormed out of closing arguments in a civil trial to determine how much money he owes E Jean Carroll for repeatedly defaming her.
In her closing statement, Ms Carroll’s attorney Roberta Kaplan told jurors that the former president “acts as if these rules of law just don’t apply to him.”
His attacks didn’t stop after he was found liable for defamation and sexual abuse in a $5m jury verdict, she noted.
“Not at all,” Ms Kaplan said. “Not even for 24 hours.
Mr Trump then stood up from the defence table, where he was seated next to attorney Alina Habba, and walked out of the hearing, to which he had arrived late.
“The record will reflect that Mr Trump just rose and walked out of the courtroom,” US District Judge Lewis Kaplan said.
Mr Trump returned to the courtroom for defence closing arguments from Ms Habba."
Homo Trumpicus
Reading through a chapter on human evolution examining the adaptations that allowed the species to go from Homo Erectus to early Homo Sapiens, about 200,000 years ago, and then to Homo Sapiens 2.0 (us, basically) roughly 70,000 years ago, I was struck by how important certain developments were for both the survival of the species and its rise to dominance, and then I thought about how few of those developed traits are present in the MAGA tribe.
Actually, none.
Prominent among the traits promoting survival and success as a species was the ability to collaborate, to work together developing ideas, habits, and technologies benefiting the entire group.
This trait is entirely absent in MAGA world. Homo Trumpicus, in fact, believes that collaborative efforts to benefit everyone are grounds for immediate expulsion from the tribe (see border policy, eg).
Another trait vital to the species’ success was (and is) curiosity, that is, the impulse for discovery, a by-product of which is the ability to learn new things, which of course requires sharp discernment, an absolute need to understand what’s factually true and what is absolute nonsensical bullshit. Two guys go off into unknown territories. They come back and each has a map. The first guy shows his group the actual way to go to new hunting grounds and landmarks denoting bad stuff to avoid. The second guy shows his buddies a map he just made up. The two groups go out exploring. The second group is never seen again. Facts matter.
But not to Homo Trumpicus.
Another interesting biological development that allowed Homo Sapiens to turbocharge its success (and which led, partially, to the extinction of Homo Erectus) was the reduction in testosterone in the males. This allowed for less chest thumping, unnecessary, violent confrontations, and pointless dick measuring, and more fruitful collaboration, further development of the arts, and greater intellectual advancement and innovation.
Here is yet another trait Homo Trumpicus lacks. Here’s where the tribe’s leader says “Punch him in the face!” The other tribe says “Let’s figure out a better solution”. One tribe succeeded. The other went extinct.
So, the traits that allowed Homo Sapiens to dominate the planet, collaboration, advanced intellect, a belief in facts, have served the species well. It allowed us to leave the confines of the planet and set foot on a different astral body.
Now, a show of hands, class. How many think Homo Trumpicus could put one of their tribe on the moon?
Answer (from them): Huh? The moon is made of cheese. That’s stupid. I should punch you in the face!”
Extinction can’t come too soon for me.
I think all of those Homo Trumpicans from the red states should be
shipped off to the red planet, Mars.
That would leave the rest of us to enjoy what's left of the blue state,
Earth.
Everything in Trump World has to be worse.
"Big Pharma has invested big money in the organizations planning what a MAGA policy agenda will look like in a new Trump administration. Not surprisingly, that policy playbook contains a major gift for the drug industry: a swift end to the Biden administration’s landmark program to allow Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices"
$83 million? The fat rapist won’t pay a single cent of it. He’ll whine to the MAGAts to pay it for him (or one of his many scam-bag PACs) because he’s such a poor victim.
I second Marie’s hope that the Rapist/Defamer in Chief is ordered to fork over those millions out of his own pile of I’ll-gotten profits, piled up illegally while he was president*, but I doubt that sort of directive falls within the power of the court. He won’t pay a cent of it. I mean, he doesn’t pay for anything.
Florida Republicans just said that their citizens are good for a $5 million initial down payment towards Trump's legal problems. (DeSantis said he would veto it, but Republicans have the votes to push it through). I'm sure the other MAGA states will also be throwing money at him soon enough.
Who pays?
Republican states willing to pay the expenses of a proven rapist and tax their citizens to come up with the cash? That ought to play well.
The Republican Party itself?
MAGA idiots?
I've seen some marriages break up because one of the partners was just too expensive to keep.
Could this be one of them?
More from the seamy side of the aisle.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/matt-gaetz-privately-told-colleagues-his-real-motivation-for-mccarthy-ouster-was-ethics-probe
Oh, could it be good news?
But the Senate is not the House....
https://www.cnn.com/2024/01/26/politics/senate-deal-shutdown-border/index.html