;)
The Commentariat -- January 29, 2019
Afternoon Update:
Top Intelligence Officials Testify Trump Is a Liar and/or a Loon. Sort of. David Sanger & Julian Barnes of the New York Times: "A new American intelligence assessment of global threats has concluded that North Korea is 'unlikely to give up' all of its nuclear stockpiles, and that Iran is not 'currently undertaking the key nuclear weapons-development activity' needed to make a bomb, directly contradicting two top tenets of President Trump's foreign policy. Dan Coats, the director of national intelligence, also challenged Mr. Trump's insistence that the Islamic State had been defeated, a key rationale for his decision to exit from Syria. The terrorist group, the annual 'Worldwide Threat Assessment' report to Congress concluded, 'still commands thousands of fighters in Iraq and Syria,' and maintains eight branches and a dozen networks around the world.... Gina Haspel, the C.I.A. director, said the North Korean government 'is committed to developing a long-range nuclear-armed missile that would pose a direct threat to the United States.'... Perhaps the strongest rebuke of Mr. Trump's security priorities comes in what is missing from the threat assessment: any rationale for building a wall along the southwestern border.... The assessment also argues that while Russia's ability to conduct cyberespionage and influence campaigns is similar to the one it ran in the 2016 American presidential election, the bigger concern is that 'Moscow is now staging cyberattack assets to allow it to disrupt or damage U.S. civilian and military infrastructure during a crisis.' It specifically noted the Russian planting of malware in the United States electricity grid.... Taken together, the report paints a picture of threats vastly different from those asserted by Mr. Trump."
Mark Mazzetti & Adam Goldman of the New York Times: "President Trump's longtime adviser Roger J. Stone Jr. pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to felony charges in the special counsel investigation during a brief federal court appearance in which the often flamboyant Mr. Stone appeared solemn and said little.During the 15-minute proceeding, a lawyer for Mr. Stone, Robert C. Buschel, entered the plea on his client's behalf to charges of obstruction, witness tampering and making false statements. After the hearing, Mr. Stone declined to comment to a throng of reporters following him through the courthouse and outside...." ...
... Mimi Rocah in the Daily Beast: "Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker ... [said] -- in a completely inappropriate public statement -- that he 'thinks' the [special counsel's] investigation is 'close to being completed.'... But there is much about this indictment and other public aspects of the Mueller probe that I do believe support the conclusion that the investigation into whether or not there was a criminal conspiracy is not yet over.... I am talking here about criminal conspiracy, such as conspiracy to violate the campaign finance laws by soliciting or accepting a donation from a foreign entity (Russia or WikiLeaks); and/or conspiracy to defraud the United States by interfering in our free and fair elections; or participation in a computer hacking scheme."
Scott Stedman in Medium: "The developer of the proposed Trump Tower in Moscow that was negotiating with Michael Cohen and the Trump Organization appears to have an unaccounted 6 billion rubles or $90,000,000 after it received a loan from Sberbank in the weeks following the agreement with Trump.... The inconsistency between the stated amount of the loan and the actual amount of money available to IC Expert from Sberbank has not been previously reported.... Though there is no public evidence that any money flowed between any Trump associates and IC Expert, a letter from IC Expert CEO Andrey Rozov to Trump’s lawyer Michael Cohen in September 2015 revealed a plan to use a company in the United States to handle any matters relating to Trump Tower Moscow.... It is unclear if such a corporation was ever incorporated in the United States." --s
Justin Rohrlich of Quartz: "After the sanctions were officially lifted [on three companies controlled by Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, his company] En+ announced the addition of seven new directors to its board.... Three are Russian, two are British, and two are American.... [One of the Americans is] Christopher Bancroft Burnham, chairman and CEO of Cambridge Global Capital LLC.... [He] served as Under Secretary General for Management of the United Nations [where he worked alongside Trump's current national security adviser John Bolton].... [He] is a former Vice Chairman at Deutsche Bank Asset Management and co-founded and led Deutsche Bank's direct private equity group, RREEF Capital Partners.... The En+ release makes no mention of one other notable position Burnham also held: member of Donald Trump's presidential transition team." --safari: Maybe Mr. Burnhan is legit, but given the circumstances maybe they could've found one person NOT directly linked to Agent Orange? ...
... Ken Vogel of the New York Times: "Democrats in Congress are raising ethical concerns about connections between Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and a billionaire Republican donor who stands to benefit financially from the Trump administration's decision to lift sanctions on the Russian oligarch Oleg V. Deripaska's companies. In a letter to Mr. Mnuchin, a Democratic member of the House Intelligence Committee [Jackie Speier (Calif.)] said Mr. Mnuchin's connection to an entertainment business owned in part by the donor, Len Blavatnik, a business partner of Mr. Deripaska's, represented a potential conflict of interest.... Other Democrats are also considering taking steps to investigate Mr. Mnuchin's connections to Mr. Blavatnik, including Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: Sure sounds like an international gang of thieves, doesn't it?
Karoun Demirjian of the Washington Post: "A planned Senate Judiciary Committee vote on William P. Barr's nomination to serve as attorney general has been delayed for a week, as Democrats continue to raise concerns about whether he would allow special counsel Robert S. Mueller III to finish his probe and publicize the results unimpeded. The delay, which is customary for high-profile nominations, is not expected to impede Barr's chances of being confirmed by the full Senate. But it is the latest reflection of the deep partisan tension surrounding Barr's nomination, most of which centers on Democrats' desire to protect Mueller's probe from being unduly constrained."
Maya Averbuch & Kevin Sieff of the Washington Post: "The United States on Tuesday returned a Honduran asylum seeker to Mexico, marking the beginning of a sweeping new policy that forces asylum seekers to wait in Mexico as their claims are processed in American courts. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen planned to visit the San Ysidro port of entry later in the day to 'assess implementation' of the new regulation, according to a DHS statement. The policy is one of the most dramatic changes to the American asylum system in decades -- an attempt by the Trump administration to deter migration by reducing the number of migrants who live and work in the United States while awaiting their court dates. Already the plan has raised numerous human rights concerns, not to mention a flurry of logistical questions that neither the United States nor Mexico has been able to answer."
Felicia Sonmez & Vanessa Williams of the Washington Post: "Democrats have tapped Georgia's Stacey Abrams to deliver the response to President Trump's State of the Union address, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) announced Tuesday. Abrams narrowly lost the state's race for governor in November after a lengthy dispute over blocked votes. She will address the nation in a prime-time speech shortly after Trump finishes his address to a joint session of Congress next Tuesday night. 'She is just a great spokesperson. She's an incredible leader. She has led the charge for voting rights, which is at the root of just about everything else. ... I'm very excited that she's agreed to be the respondent to the president,' Schumer told reporters."
"MAGA Country." TMZ: "'Empire' star Jussie Smollett was brutally attacked by 2 men who beat him up, put his head in a noose and screamed, 'This is MAGA country.' Sources directly connected to Jussie tell TMZ, the actor arrived in Chicago from New York late Monday, and at around 2 AM he was hungry and went to a Subway. We're told when shortly after he walked out on his way home, someone yelled, 'Aren't you that f***ot 'Empire' n*****?' The 2 men -- both white and wearing ski masks -- viciously attacked Jussie as he fought back, but they beat him badly and fractured a rib. They put a rope around his neck, poured bleach on him and as they left they yelled, 'This is MAGA country.' Jussie took himself to Northwestern Memorial where he was treated. He was discharged later Tuesday morning."
*****
The Trump Shutdown, Month Two, Ctd.
Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "The fate of President Trump's $5.7 billion demand for a border wall is now in the hands of a 17-member bipartisan panel that includes some of the most senior members of Congress and, perhaps more tellingly, lacks the most vocal immigration hard-liners on Capitol Hill. Under the agreement Mr. Trump reached last week with congressional Democrats, a committee of Republican and Democratic lawmakers from both chambers -- known as a conference committee -- has until Feb. 15 to come up with a border security package.... The conference panel's members, appointed by House and Senate leaders, are drawn exclusively from the appropriations committees in each chamber, which have a long history of working in a bipartisan way."
Burgess Everett, et al., of Politico: "The Senate GOP has no appetite for another political debacle and is pushing Trump away from closing the government again.... If that [appropriations] committee fails, as many on the Hill privately believe is likely, Trump has touted two paths to again try to build his wall: a shutdown or a national emergency on the border. 'The preferred manner of going forward would be some type of executive action vs. shutdown. But that doesn't mean that shutdown is off the table,' said Meadows, who helped push Trump to shut down the government in the first place. Senate Republicans loathe both options, but for now, they'd choose almost anything over another funding lapse. As Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) put it: 'I don't think we want to face another shutdown. And I certainly don't think we want to have emergency action taken. So the president and Congress will have to come together.'... Some Republican centrists are even suggesting that a bipartisan border agreement could withstand a veto threat." ...
... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: When dealing with a simpleton, the solution is appropriately simple. In the "definitions" section of this part of the omnibus bill, simply define "wall" as a "fence or similar barrier which under no circumstance shall include a concrete, cinderblock, brick or similar masonry structure or barrier." That definition might need some fleshing out; for instance, adding that a certain (large) portion of "wall" is "virtual," i.e., electronic surveillance, etc. You get the idea. In the body of this section, use the term "wall" liberally and in short sentences. Hell, call this whole section of the bill "Border Wall." Then Trump can point to the title & simple sentences as a "win" for His Greatness. Idiot.
Thanks, Trump! Caitlin Emma & Jennifer Scholtes of Politico: "The five-week partial government shutdown cost the U.S. economy about $3 billion in forgone economic activity that won't be recovered, the Congressional Budget Office said in a new report Monday. Because the IRS was among the agencies unfunded during the shutdown, it had to slow down some compliance work. For that reason, CBO estimates tax revenue will be about $2 billion lower in fiscal 2019 and that 'much of the lost revenue ... will not be recouped.'... These CBO estimates did not include indirect effects. As the shutdown dragged on ... the 'risks to the economy were becoming increasingly significant,' including the blow to businesses that could not get federal permits, government-backed loans or grants, the budget scorekeeper said.... The agency projected that an overall $11 billion in losses due to the shutdown over ... Donald Trump's border wall will be offset by a projected $8 billion boost for the GDP through the remainder of the year." (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Ashley Boucher of the Guardian: "The former superintendent [Curt Sauer] of Joshua Tree national park has said it could take hundreds of years to recover from damage caused by visitors during the longest-ever government shutdown.... The park reopened Monday after the record 35-day shutdown, and park workers returned to a state of chaos, including damaged trees, graffiti and ruined trails.... 'There are about a dozen instances of extensive vehicle traffic off roads and in some cases into wilderness,' David Smith, the current ... park superintendent [said].... 'Joshua trees were actually cut down in order to make new roads,' he added." --s
Devan Cole & Kevin Bohn of CNN: "... Donald Trump's second State of the Union address will not take place on Tuesday, an aide to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told CNN.... Trump's director of strategic communications Mercedes Schlapp said Monday that the White House has been in discussions with Pelosi's office about rescheduling the address and that 'we should have a response soon.'" Mrs. McC: She should wait, IMO, till after the government is funded. (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Update. Mrs. McCrabbie: Surprisingly, Speaker Pelosi did not take my advice: ...
... Michael Collins of USA Today: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has invited ... Donald Trump to deliver the State of the Union address at the Capitol on Feb. 5." Mrs. McC: This is a mistake. Trump will deliver the same bound-and-gagged-women pile of horrorscapes he & Stephen Miller dreamed up for the original speech. I will not be listening. (Also linked yesterday.)
This Russia Thing, Etc., Ctd.
Sharon LaFraniere & Katie Benner of the New York Times: "Matthew G. Whitaker, the acting attorney general, announced on Monday that the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III, is wrapping up his investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign and whether the Trump campaign cooperated with Moscow's operation. 'The investigation is, I think, close to being completed, and I hope that we can get the report from Director Mueller as soon as possible,' Mr. Whitaker said. His impromptu remark, at the end of a news conference about an unrelated case, was a highly unusual confirmation of the state of the special counsel's investigation. Justice Department policy ordinarily prohibits public comment on open criminal inquiries, and Mr. Mueller has refused to publicly discuss the investigation since he was appointed in May 2017 to oversee it.... Mr. Whitaker's comments appeared to take even Justice Department officials by surprise. As soon as he described the special counsel's work as nearly over, a spokeswoman shut down the news conference, declaring hastily: 'That's all the time for today. Thank you so much.'"
Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "Michael Cohen, Donald Trump's fixer turned vocal adversary, has swapped out his attorneys, one of his representatives said Monday, asserting that Cohen wanted new representation as he navigates testifying in various congressional inquiries. Lanny J. Davis ... said in a statement that Cohen is bringing on Michael Monico and Barry Spevack -- two veteran Chicago-based lawyers ... -- to replace Guy Petrillo and Amy Lester, who had represented him as he went through proceedings in federal court in Manhattan. A person familiar with the matter said Cohen had fallen behind in his bills to Petrillo and Lester, although Davis disputed that this led to the change.... On Monday, Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Calif.) said Cohen had agreed to appear voluntarily before the House Intelligence Committee on Feb. 8 for nonpublic testimony. He already had been issued a subpoena to appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee, also a closed-door session, and is expected to do so Feb. 12, Davis has said. Cohen had been scheduled to appear in public before a third panel -- the House Oversight Committee -- that same month but backed out last week, citing threats from President Trump and his lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, as well as 'advice of counsel.'"
Kevin Breuninger of CNBC: "A federal judge Monday canceled former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort's sentencing in his Virginia case, which was scheduled for Feb. 8, according to a filing. U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis wrote that Manafort's 'current dispute' in a separate federal case in Washington, D.C., makes it 'prudent and appropriate to delay sentencing in this case.' Mueller's team had previously aimed to delay Manafort's sentencing in Virginia until the special counsel determined that he had finished cooperating with ... Robert Mueller's investigators."
Sara Murray & Katelyn Polantz of CNN: "A defense attorney for Andrew Miller, who's fighting a subpoena from Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, learned Monday afternoon that the special counsel still wants witness testimony for a federal grand jury. Paul Kamenar, the defense attorney, says the assertion from Mueller's team made clear to him that Mueller and the Justice Department are considering an additional indictment of Roger Stone or have plans to charge others.... Miller [is] a former employee of Stone's whom Mueller subpoenaed in mid-2018 to testify to the grand jury. In a court hearing about Miller's testimony, a judge made clear that Mueller sought information Miller had about Stone's communications regarding Wikileaks and Russian hackers around the time they disseminated damaging hacked Democratic emails."
Eric Tucker of the AP: "... Donald Trump's pick for attorney general, William Barr, says Vice President Mike Pence is among the officials with whom he has discussed the special counsel's Russia investigation. Barr said in written responses to Senate questions made available Monday that he and Pence have had occasional conversations since the spring of 2017 on matters including policy and personnel. Some of those conversations included 'general discussion of the Special Counsel's investigation in which I gave my views on such matters as Bob Mueller's high integrity and various media reports. In these conversations, I did not provide legal advice, nor, to the best of my recollection, did he provide confidential information,' Barr told Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, a Rhode Island Democrat."
Matt Miller, speaking on MSNBC, made a point in regard to the revelation in Chris Christie's book that Trump thought firing Michael Flynn would "end the Russia investigation," an assertion Christie, a former federal prosecutor, says caused him to LOL. Flynn "resigned" Feb. 13, 2017. The Trump-Christie dinner was Feb. 14. Thus, it appears Trump fired Flynn not because "he lied to mike pence," which was Trump's cover story, but to "end the Russia investigation." Miller thinks Christie just earned himself an interview with Bob Mueller.
President* Pandermore. Caitlin Oprysko of Politico: "... Donald Trump on Monday cheered on the controversial push to introduce Bible literacy classes to public schools. 'Numerous states introducing Bible Literacy classes, giving students the option of studying the Bible. Starting to make a turn back? Great!' Trump said in a tweet. Trump's tweet came half an hour after Fox News' 'Fox & Friends aired a segment on the subject, though his tweet is not quite accurate. A handful of states are making pushes to introduce elective courses in schools that lawmakers say would teach the Bible in terms of its historical context, and though none have passed, critics have pointed out that such bills could blur the constitutional line separating church and state." Mrs. McC: Apparently it is impossible to explain the First Amendment to Donald Trump.
Mujib Mashal of the New York Times: "American and Taliban officials have agreed in principle to the framework of a deal in which the insurgents would guarantee to prevent Afghan territory from being used by terrorists, and that could lead to a full pullout of American troops in return for larger concessions from the Taliban, the chief United States negotiator said Monday. The American envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad, said those concessions must include the Taliban's agreeing to a cease-fire and to talk directly with the Afghan government, issues that the insurgents have doggedly opposed in the past. 'We have a draft of the framework that has to be fleshed out before it becomes an agreement,' Mr. Khalilzad said in an interview with The New York Times in Kabul.... After nine years of halting efforts to reach a peace deal with the Taliban, the draft framework, though preliminary, is the biggest tangible step toward ending a two-decade war...." (Also linked yesterday.)
Edward Wong, et al., of the New York Times: "The Trump administration imposed sanctions against Venezuela's state-owned oil company on Monday, seeking to cripple the government of embattled President Nicolás Maduro by cutting off its main source of cash. The move marked the first punitive step by the United States to force Mr. Maduro to give up power since the opposition leader, Juan Guaidó, declared himself interim president last week after years of accusations of corruption in Venezuela at the expense of its people. The sanctions prohibit most American businesses from engaging in transactions with the oil company, Petróleos de Venezuela, S.A., or Pdvsa. Administration officials said the financial penalties are expected to block $7 billion in assets and result in $11 billion in export losses over the next year for Venezuela's government, starving it from its most important source of revenue and foreign currency." ...
... This Is a National Security Advisor? Travis Waldron of the Huffington Post: "Trump administration officials maintained Monday that 'all options' ― including the use of military force ― are on the table concerning its attempts to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from power. And if National Security Adviser John Bolton's notebook is to be believed, deploying troops to the region may be closer to reality than not. During a White House press briefing meant to detail new sanctions on Maduro and Venezuela's state-owned oil company, Bolton was photographed holding a yellow legal pad that read, '5,000 troops to Colombia,' a country sharing a border with Venezuela. The potential security breach was quickly spotted by observers on Twitter after an Associated Press picture from the briefing was published atop stories at NBC and other outlets." Mrs. McC: Wonder if Bolton uses Gmail, like some other government officials, and an unsecured iPhone, a la Trump.
David Sanger, et al., of the New York Times: "The Justice Department unveiled sweeping charges on Monday against the Chinese telecom firm Huawei and its chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, outlining a decade-long attempt by the company to steal trade secrets, obstruct a criminal investigation and evade economic sanctions on Iran. The pair of indictments, which were partly unsealed on Monday, come amid a broad and aggressive campaign by the United States to try to thwart China's biggest telecom equipment maker. Officials have long suspected Huawei of working to advance Beijing's global ambitions and undermine America's interests and have begun taking steps to curb its international presence."
AP: "The author of a new tell-all book about the White House under President Donald Trump says one of Trump's top policy advisers spoke dismissively about refugees. Stephen Miller, who has pushed Trump to adopt stricter immigration policies, is quoted as saying, 'I would be happy if not a single refugee foot ever again touched American soil.'... [The author Cliff] Sims writes that, any time a refugee or immigrant committed a 'gruesome' crime, Miller would walk over to the White House press office to demand that press releases be issued about the cases." --s
AP: "The head of Mexico's immigration agency said Monday that his country won't accept migrants younger than 18 while they await the resolution of their U.S. asylum claims. National Immigration Institute Commissioner Tonatiuh Guillen also said Mexico won't extend the policy beyond a single border crossing, the El Chaparral crossing in Tijuana. Mexican officials had previously said the United States expressed interest in extending the 'remain in Mexico' policy to other border crossings. But Guillen said Mexico will accept only asylum seekers aged 18 to 60 at El Chaparral.... The U.S. has witnessed a surge in asylum claims, especially from Central American families.... With a backlog of more than 800,000 cases, it can take years to settle cases." --s
Scott Bixby of The Daily Beast: "Arrests of undocumented immigrants at courthouses in New York state by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have become so sudden and aggressive that bystanders think they have just witnessed a kidnapping, according to a new report issued Monday. In 'The Courthouse Trap: How ICE Operations Impacted New York's Courts in 2018,' released by the Immigrant Defense Project on Monday, the nonprofit group outlines changes in the enforcement arm of the U.S. immigration system that have resulted in 1700 percent increase since President Donald Trump took office." --s
Make America Sick Again. Annie Snider of Politico: "The Trump administration will not set a drinking water limit for two toxic chemicals that are contaminating millions of Americans' tap water, two sources familiar with the forthcoming decision told Politico. [The chemicals] are present in the bloodstreams of an estimated 98 percent of Americans. And it comes less than a year after the White House and the Environmental Protection Agency faced criticism for delaying publication of a health study on the chemicals, which a White House aide had warned could trigger a 'public relations nightmare.'... EPA's decision means the chemicals will remain unregulated under the Safe Drinking Water Act, according to sources familiar with a still-unreleased draft plan that acting administrator Andrew Wheeler signed off on in late December.... The chemicals, known as PFOA and PFOS, have been linked to kidney and testicular cancer, hypertension and other ailments. Major chemical companies like 3M as well as the Defense Department would face billions of dollars in liability[.]" --s ...
... Mark Hand of ThinkProgress: "The Trump administration is reviewing steps it could take to prevent state officials from using their authority under the Clean Water Act to deny permits to developers of natural gas pipelines and other energy infrastructure. The administration is reportedly considering issuing an executive order that would limit the ability of states to block natural gas pipelines and other energy projects. But legal experts countered that Trump would not be able to amend the Clean Water Act simply through the issuance of an executive order." --s (Also linked yesterday.)
"Fuck you, Betsy." Benjamin Wermund of Politico: "Education Secretary Betsy DeVos' proposal to change rules for how schools handle sexual assault allegations has turned the federal site for collecting public comments into a cauldron of anger and obscenity. DeVos, one of ... Donald Trump's few remaining original cabinet secretaries, has not become embroiled in any administration scandals during her two years running the Education Department, but she remains enemy No. 1 for many teachers and activists. The comments reflect not only the divisiveness and emotion surrounding assault investigations but how anything DeVos touches can spark hostility.... As of Friday, there were nearly 72,000 comments on the Education Department's proposed rule. The proposal is controversial, viewed by critics as DeVos doing Trump's bidding to protect sexual harassers, pointing to such accusations against the president. The comments are peppered with references to Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, whose nomination was nearly tanked by sexual assault allegations." (Also linked yesterday.)
Rachel Bade of Politico: "At a panel organizational meeting late last week, House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) agreed to consult with his GOP counterpart for two days before issuing a subpoena to force witnesses to testify. Should ranking Republican Doug Collins of Georgia object, Nadler said he would put the subpoena to a vote of the committee. With a majority on the panel, Democrats would easily prevail on any subpoena question that goes before the full committee — and both parties agree there will likely be many. But Republicans like Collins are singing Nadler's praises just the same.... The new process reflects a transparency that the GOP previously ignored. Republicans changed House rules several years ago so that their panel chairmen could unilaterally subpoena witnesses without consulting with or even notifying Democrats." --s
Make America Hate Again. Allegra Kirkland of TPM: " It's rare for a congressional aide to have her own mini-profile on the Southern Poverty Law Center's website outlining her ties to extremist groups. But such is the case for Connie Hair, chief of staff to Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-TX) and one of the participants at what the New York Times reported was a tense White House meeting last week between President Trump and far-right activists [organized by Ginni Thomas, the longtime conservative activist and wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas] concerned about the threat posed by transgender people and women serving in the military.... But the other attendees mentioned by the Times are worthy of note as well. Beyond Hair, the group reportedly included veteran anti-Islam champion Frank Gaffney and Rosemary Jenks of the anti-immigrant group NumbersUSA. Crystal Clanton, who was hired as an assistant by Ginni Thomas after being booted from conservative youth group Turning Point USA for a text message saying [saying, 'I HATE BLACK PEOPLE. Like fuck them all...I hate blacks. End of story.']...was reportedly on the list of names that Thomas asked to have attend. Whether Clanton ended up actually joining the meeting is unclear." --s
Cameron Joseph of TPM: "If you thought you'd heard the last of Judge Roy Moore, you'd be wrong. The former Alabama Supreme Court Justice whose U.S. Senate bid famously flamed out amidst accusations from multiple women of sexual misconduct isn't done in politics. Moore and his wife Kayla are co-signatories on a letter released Monday by the Conservative Action Project that takes aim at House Democrats' top messaging bill for this Congress, H.R. 1. The letter's signatories include a number of top conservative activists -- including some in President Trump's close orbit." --s
** Ian Millhiser of ThinkProgress: "Lawyers representing a Louisiana abortion clinic and at least two physicians filed an application in the Supreme Court on Monday asking the court to halt a Louisiana law that is identical to a Texas law the justices struck down in 2016. The court is almost certain to deny this application in a 5-4 vote -- possibly as soon as tonight. When it does so, it will effectively mark the end of Roe v. Wade.... [T]hese abortion providers filed this application because a federal appeals court openly defied the Supreme Court's most recent abortion decision. When the court refuses to enforce its own decision, that will send a clear signal to lower court judges throughout the country that they are free to uphold restrictions on abortion.... Should the Supreme Court deny a stay in the [June Medical Services v. Gee] case, moreover, anti-abortion judges will know exactly what that means. It will be a clear signal that they can emulate the Fifth Circuit and openly defy Supreme Court decisions protecting a right to abortion. Roe v. Wade will die a quiet death, and the Supreme Court won't even have to kill it." --s
** Louis Menard of the New Yorker on how the U.S. Supreme Court legalized racial segregation. Mrs. McC: And don't kind yourself; they're at it again.
Presidential Race 2020
Edward-Isaac Dovere, now of the Atlantic: Howard "Schultz, the former Starbucks CEO, says in a 60 Minutes interview ... that he is thinking very seriously about a presidential run -- but he stops short of a full announcement. He makes clear, however, that if he moves forward, he will do so as an independent. Already top Democratic operatives working for presidential candidates and beyond say they're worried that the only thing he'll accomplish is making sure Donald Trump gets reelected. It's more than just sniping at a prospective opponent; word that he might invest in an independent run has many of them clearly worried about how he'd split votes in a general election." (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Trump Has Figured Out Schultz Is His Best Hope. Brett Samuels of the Hill: "President Trump on Monday taunted Howard Schultz, who is considering a 2020 presidential bid, tweeting that the former Starbucks CEO 'doesn't have the "guts" to run.' 'Watched him on @60Minutes last night and I agree with him that he is not the "smartest person,'" Trump tweeted. 'Besides, America already has that! I only hope that Starbucks is still paying me their rent in Trump Tower!'" (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Dan Merica, et al., of CNN: "Bill Burton, a former adviser to President Barack Obama, defended his decision to join Howard Schultz's team as the former Starbucks CEO considers an independent presidential bid in 2020, pushing back against suggestions that Schultz could be a spoiler. Burton was one of the original aides to the Obama campaign 12 years ago and went on to be deputy press secretary in the White House. His addition to Schultz's team will lend the former Starbucks CEO credibility but it will also amplify the pushback to Schultz's potential bid from Democrats who believe it would jeopardize their chances at defeating ... Donald Trump. That pushback was palpable in the statement released by Democratic public affairs firm SKDKnickerbocker, Burton's previous employer. 'Bill Burton has left the firm to pursue projects he could not have pursued or participated in at SKDK,' said a spokesperson for the group." ...
... Armado Garcia of ABC News: "Billionaire and former CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, launched his book tour in New York City on Monday, but it's his presidential ambitions that caused a stir at the sold out event inside a Barnes & Noble. As Schultz began to speak at the event, he was interrupted by a heckler who was escorted out by security. 'Don't help elect Trump, you egotistical billionaire a[ss]hole. Go back to getting ratioed on Twitter. Go back to Davos with the other billionaire elite who think they know how to run the world,' the heckler said." Mrs. McC: I'll vote for the heckler. If he runs as a Democrat. ...
... ** Jonathan Chait: Howard "Schultz appears to be one of those rich people who has confused his success in one field with a general expertise in every other field that interests him. His apparently sincere belief that he can be elected president is the product of a sincere civic-minded commitment to the public good and an almost comic failure to grasp how he might accomplish this.... Schultz believes that the large cohort of Americans who identify as 'independents' indicates a market for a centrist candidate positioned between the two parties.... That is not factual." Read on. Mrs. McC: Schultz is like Trump, but less malevolent & more naive. (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Gene Robinson: "Just what we need, another ego-crazed billionaire with zero experience in government who thinks he is destined to be president. What could go wrong?... He is quite capable of reelecting President Trump.... At present, the specter of a second Trump term looks comfortably remote.... He does have a chance in 2020, however, if the anti-Trump vote is split between two or more candidates.... Perhaps, he should angle for a Cabinet post. Or just have a decaf latte and chill."
Caleb Howe of Mediaite: "On Meet the Press, venerable news anchor Tom Brokaw ... argued 'the Hispanics' should 'work harder' at assimilation." Mrs. McC: Yeah, they should get them some MAGA hats & listen to more country & western music. Also, less béisbol, more football, & I don't mean soccer. (Also linked yesterday.) ...
... Brokaw Apologizes for Being Parochial Old White Guy. Caitlin Oprysko of Politico: "NBC News veteran Tom Brokaw apologized Sunday evening for comments he made earlier in the day on 'Meet the Press' calling for Hispanics in the U.S. to 'work harder at assimilation.' The comments ... sparked a quick backlash both on social media and on set from PBS "NewsHour" White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor, who also appeared on the same 'Meet the Press' panel. 'I am sorry, truly sorry, my comments were offensive to many. The great enduring American tradition of diversity is to be celebrated and cherished,' he wrote on Twitter, part of a flurry of posts backtracking on his earlier remarks.... 'I would just say that we also need to adjust what we think of as America. You're talking about assimilation. I grew up in Miami, where people speak Spanish, but their kids speak English,' [Alcindor] ... told Brokaw. 'And the idea that we think Americans can only speak English, as if Spanish and other languages wasn't always part of America, is, in some ways, troubling.'" (Also linked yesterday.)
Benjamin Mayo of 9to5Mac: "A significant bug has been discovered in FaceTime[, an Apple app].... The bug lets you call anyone with FaceTime, and immediately hear the audio coming from their phone -- before the person on the other end has accepted or rejected the incoming call.... Apple has taken Group FaceTime offline in an attempt to address the issue in the interim). Naturally, this poses a pretty privacy problem as you can essentially listen in on any iOS user, although it still rings like normal, so you can't be 100% covert about it. Nevertheless, there is no indication on the recipient's side that you could hear any of their audio.... There's a second part to this which can expose video too[.]" ...
... Julie Wong & Alex Hern of the Guardian: "The flaw was discovered amid increasing concern over privacy by regulators around the globe and -- embarrassingly for Apple -- was exposed on Data Privacy Day, a global event instituted by the Council of Europe in 2007 to raise awareness among businesses and consumers about the importance of protecting privacy. Hours before the bug was first revealed to the public, Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive, had tweeted that 'the dangers are real and the consequences are too important' to not institute 'vital privacy protections'.... The bug was discovered the day before Apple's quarterly results call, already expected to be a fraught affair due to the company's unprecedented decision to slash its revenue forecast by at least $5bn (£3.8bn).... Apple has attempted to distinguish itself from rival technology companies such as Google and Facebook by boasting about its privacy record."
Beyond the Beltway
New Jersey. David Wildstein of the New Jersey Globe: "State Sen. Dawn Addiego will switch parties and become a Democrat, giving Senate President Steve Sweeney and South Jersey Democratic leader George Norcross a major political victory. The four-term senator from Burlington County brings the total number of South Jersey Democratic senators to seven and expands Sweeney's lock on the Senate Democratic caucus." ...
... Mrs. McCrabbie: In case you think the name "David Wildstein" sounds familiar, you're right. He's the Bridgegate guy who pleaded guilty to two federal felonies. Even though Wildstein & Chris Christie knew each other from high school, don't think he's good enough to be a friend of the newly-minted famous author: As Christie said during the hullabaloo around the Bridgegate scandal, "We didn't travel in the same circles in high school. You know, I was the class president and athlete. I don't know what David was doing during that period of time."
North Carolina. Ian Millhiser of ThinkProgress: "For the last several election cycles, North Carolina has not held democratic elections for its state legislature ... thanks to an aggressive gerrymander that all-but-ensures Republican control in North Carolina. Yet two recent developments -- one of them very recent -- make it exceedingly likely that North Carolina will have free and fair elections in 2020. The first is a lawsuit, Common Cause v. Lewis.... That suit asks the state courts to declare that partisan gerrymandering violates the state constitution, and to 'establish new state House and state Senate districting plans' for 2020. The second development is North Carolina Chief Justice Mark Martin's announcement on Friday that he plans to leave his court in order to become dean of Regent University Law School.... Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper will appoint a replacement for Martin who will serve until the next election. That means that the state Supreme Court, which is already heavily Democratic, is about to have a 6-1 Democratic majority. The state's gerrymandered maps are, to say the least, unlikely to survive contact with such a court.... 2020 is a Census year, whoever prevails in that year's state legislative races will get to draw the maps for the next ten years." --s (Also linked yesterday.)
Way Beyond
Baby Steps. Bethan McKernan of the Guardian: "Authorities in the United Arab Emirates have been ridiculed after it emerged that all of the winners of an initiative designed to foster gender equality in the workplace were men.... A United Nations Development Programme study from 2018 found that the UAE was the Gulf country that ranked highest for gender equality and had made significant progress in bringing women into the workforce. The report found that by 2015, 135,000 Emirati women participated in the labour market, compared with just 1,000 in 1975, and 43% of women now hold bachelor's degrees, compared with 23% of men." --s (Also linked yesterday.)
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