The Conversation -- February 19, 2025
Andrew Kramer & Anton Troianovski of the New York Times: "The simmering feud between President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and ... [Donald] Trump escalated on Wednesday when Mr. Zelensky said the American leader had been 'caught in a web of disinformation' from Russia and Mr. Trump mocked his counterpart as a 'dictator without elections' who had done a terrible job as president. The pointed exchange came one day after officials from the United States and Russia opened talks to end the fighting in Ukraine that excluded the Ukrainian government. Hours after that meeting in Saudi Arabia, Mr. Trump suggested that Ukraine had started the war, a comment that brought a strong rebuttal from Mr. Zelensky on Wednesday morning. 'I would like to have more truth with the Trump team,' Mr. Zelensky said in some of the most overt criticism yet of Mr. Trump and his view of the war in Ukraine.... In a post on his Truth Social account, Mr. Trump responded with a scathing attack on Mr. Zelensky. 'Think of it, a modestly successful comedian, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, talked the United States of America into spending $350 Billion Dollars, to go into a War that couldn't be won, that never had to start, but a War that he, without the U.S. and 'TRUMP,' will never be able to settle,' Mr. Trump wrote. Like his assertions a day earlier, his comments were filled with falsehoods. The United States, for instance, has allocated $119 billion for aid to Ukraine..., not $350 billion." The AP story is here. ~~~
~~~ Anton Troianovski of the New York Times: "In appealing to ... [Donald] Trump, the Kremlin has zeroed in on his desire to make a profit.... Remarkably, the Trump administration appears to be engaging with Russia's message without demanding payment up front. After Ukraine suggested the possibility of natural resource deals to Mr. Trump, his treasury secretary pushed to have the country sign away half its mineral wealth. And Mr. Trump continues to portray American allies as freeloaders, threatening more tariffs and demanding they pay more for their own defense. With Russia, by contrast, the administration seems to be signaling that the one thing Mr. Putin has to do to pave the way for a full reset in Moscow's relationship with Washington is end the war in Ukraine. Many Europeans and Ukrainians fear Mr. Trump will seek a peace deal on Russia's terms, especially after the American president suggested on Tuesday that Ukraine was to blame for the Russian invasion."
Members of Dictators' Club Stick Together. Jack Nicas of the New York Times: Donald "Trump's media company sued a Brazilian Supreme Court justice on Wednesday, accusing him of illegally censoring right-wing voices on social media. The unusual move was made all the more extraordinary by its timing: Just hours earlier, the Brazilian justice had received an indictment that would force him to decide whether to order the arrest of Jair Bolsonaro, the former Brazilian president and an ally of Mr. Trump. The justice is overseeing multiple criminal investigations into Mr. Bolsonaro.... The lawsuit appeared to represent an astonishing effort by Mr. Trump to pressure a foreign judge as he weighed the fate of a fellow right-wing leader who, like him, was indicted on charges that he tried to overturn his election loss. Mr. Bolsonaro had explicitly called on Mr. Trump to take action against Justice Moraes in an interview with The New York Times last month." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Do you think when Trump meets, say, Putin or Bolsonaro, they do the secret handshake? Have they made pinkie blood oaths?
Jonah Bromwich & Benjamin Weiser of the New York Times: "A federal judge on Wednesday is expected to scrutinize the Trump administration's extraordinary attempt to abandon corruption charges against New York City's mayor, a decision that shook the legal community and led to calls for the mayor's resignation. The judge, Dale E. Ho, ordered the Washington prosecutors who sought a dismissal of the case last week to appear in a Manhattan courtroom to address the Justice Department's effort to shut down the case, just months before the mayor, Eric Adams, was scheduled to go to trial. Last week, the acting deputy attorney general, Emil Bove III, directed prosecutors to seek an end to Mayor Adams's prosecution. Mr. Bove said explicitly that his directive was based not on the case's legal merits. The case, he said, was detracting from the mayor's ability to aid ... [Donald] Trump's program of mass deportation. At least seven prosecutors resigned rather than obey, including Danielle R. Sassoon..., interim head of the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan."
He's a Better Man Than You, Elon Musk. Marc Elias answers Elon Musk's insult. Thanks to RAS for the link.
Marie: As laura h. points out in today's Comments, Tom Nichols of the Atlantic is pretty convinced of the "incompetence" angle, vis-a-vis Don & Elon. Nichols watched Sean Hannity interview Dumb & Dumber Tuesday night and concluded, "This low-key fandango was probably good enough for MAGA fan-servicing purposes, but seems unlikely to reassure the millions of Americans doubtful that the president and the plutocrat know what they're doing. The president seems only dimly aware of the details of Musk's adventures, but he's certain that a smart guy like Musk is furthering his agenda -- whatever it is. Musk, who answers to no one, is full of fervor to kill off government agencies he does not understand, because unelected rich men firing probationary federal employees is apparently how true Jeffersonian democracy is restored to an ailing America.... At some point..., Trump ... could end up throwing Musk off the ship of state, as he has done to so many other of his loyal subordinates. But no matter how it ends, Trump will still be president, and Musk will still be rich. The rest of us, unfortunately, will be living with the damage done." Nichols provides some stunning examples of what nitwits Team President* are. The link is a gift link from laura. ~~~
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~~~ Marie: The kindliest, most upbeat thing you can say about Trump and his enablers is that they are incompetent. That's the tack Edelberg & Harris take in their analysis of the fiscal crisis Trump is threatening (linked below). But I think they're much worse than bumblers. They're vandals and saboteurs. They mean to sack the country and destroy it.
Overnight, A New World Order. Peter Baker of the New York Times: "... Mr. Trump is in the middle of executing one of the most jaw-dropping pivots in American foreign policy in generations, a 180-degree turn that will force friends and foes to recalibrate in fundamental ways.... As far as Mr. Trump is concerned, Russia is not responsible for the war that has devastated its neighbor. Instead, he suggests that Ukraine is to blame for Russia's invasion of it. To listen to Mr. Trump talk with reporters on Tuesday about the conflict was to hear a version of reality that would be unrecognizable on the ground in Ukraine and certainly would never have been heard from any other American president of either party.... Mr. Trump uttered not one word of reproach for Mr. Putin or for Russia, which first invaded Ukraine in 2014, waged a low-intensity war against it through all four years of Mr. Trump's first term and then invaded it in 2022 aiming to take over the whole country.... He makes clear that the United States is done isolating Mr. Putin for his unprovoked aggression against a weaker neighbor and the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of people." ~~~
~~~ Apparently, Trump is bored with the Big Lie, and is now going with a Bigger Lie: ~~~
~~~ Zoe Richards of NBC News: "... Donald Trump suggested Tuesday that Ukraine was responsible for Russia's invasion of the country three years ago, arguing Kyiv could have made a deal to avoid the conflict. 'You should have never started it,' Trump said of Ukraine while criticizing President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who had expressed concern that his country was not included in talks between the U.S. and Russia in Saudi Arabia. 'I think I have the power to end this war, and I think it's going very well. But today I heard, "Oh, well, we weren't invited." Well, you've been there for three years,' Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort. 'You should have never started it. You could have made a deal.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Eli Stokols of Politico: "... Donald Trump mocked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as a poor negotiator and "grossly incompetent" Tuesday, as tensions continued to rise over the administration's direct talks with Russia about ending the war it launched nearly three years ago. The comments come amid criticism from European allies and many American intelligence experts that Ukraine and European nations invested in Ukraine's defense had been excluded from negotiations that began early Tuesday between U.S. and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "This massive reversal of U.S. policy to back Ukraine against the Russian invasion, justified with propaganda talking points pushed by the Kremlin, triggered immediate outrage from policymakers and national security experts alike.... 'Truly, it's time for everyone to admit it, Trump is legitimately a Russian asset,' wrote former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL).... 'Listening to Trump you'd think Ukraine was bombing its own cities and invading its own country,' wrote New Yorker staff writer Susan Glasser." ~~~
~~~ Andrew Kramer of the New York Times: "Shortly after the United States' opening meeting with Russian officials on Tuesday, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine lashed out at the Trump administration's negotiating tactics in his harshest terms yet for excluding Ukrainians from talks on their own country's fate.... Mr. Zelensky protested his exclusion from the discussions by canceling his own planned trip to the Saudi capital.... 'I don't know who will stay, who will leave, or who is planning to go where. To be honest, I don't care,' he said. 'I don't want coincidences, and that's why I will not go to Saudi Arabia.'... The pointed remarks represented a shift from Mr. Zelensky, who has tried to walk a fine line in the face of Trump administration pronouncements, avoiding direct criticism."
Natalie Allison, et al., of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump signed an executive order on Tuesday challenging the independence of the nation's major trade, communications and financial regulators, setting up a potential Supreme Court fight that could give him significantly more power over those agencies' decisions, budgets and leadership. The executive order, which Trump signed at ... Mar-a-Lago..., is the latest in a series of executive actions he has taken since returning to office that advance a broad and controversial theory of executive power. The White House has already insisted Trump has unilateral authority to drastically cut the federal workforce, spending and programs, and essentially dismantle entire agencies without congressional approval. Tuesday's order adds the suggestion that Trump's power extends to direct control over agencies ... that -- according to laws passed by Congress and signed by Trump's predecessors -- are supposed to enjoy some measure of independence." Politico's story is here.
David Bauder of the AP: "... Donald Trump said Tuesday that he will continue to restrict The Associated Press' access to his events and news conferences until the news outlet goes along with his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico in its reports. He acknowledged that the move was a presidential retaliation against the news agency's editorial policy. 'We're going to keep them out until such time as they agree that it's the Gulf of America,' Trump said, speaking to reporters ... at Mar-a-Lago, his Florida estate.... It was the first time the president himself had commented on the issue since the White House began not allowing AP to cover several of his events last week.... 'The Associated Press just refuses to go with what the law is,' Trump said, an apparent reference to his executive order renaming the Gulf. No law prevents the AP from choosing the style it deems fit.... While Trump characterized AP as standing alone against the name change, outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post are also using Gulf of Mexico.... He also said ... that AP '... [are] doing us no favors. And I guess I'm doing them no favors. That's the way life works.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: No, this is not the way life works, at least not in a democracy that depends upon a free press to function. It is not the press's job to do "favors" for the government officials it covers. The press has a responsibility for accuracy, not acquiescence. Notice, too, the attempt to control other peoples' words; Bauder reports, "White House deputy chief of staff Taylor Budowich told Axios that the administration is concerned about AP 'weaponizing language through their Stylebook to push a partisan world view.'" Of course it is not the AP that is weaponizing language but the authoritarian Trump. This may sound like a petty, even a funny, controversy. But at heart, it tramples on the First Amendment and on the functioning of our system of government even as it bolsters Trump's totalitarian tendencies.
Wendy Edelberg & Ben Harris in a New York Times op-ed: "The true risk [of a fiscal crisis in not the debt; it] is our political leaders doing something wildly irresponsible that unnerves financial markets.... [Donald] Trump has brought budgetary chaos with extraordinary speed.... With DOGE itching to meddle in Treasury payment systems, the president may soon have the means to withhold payments at his personal whim. 'We're even looking at Treasuries,' he told reporters ominously when discussing his plans to commandeer the payment system. 'It could be that a lot of those things don't count.'... The $28 trillion market for Treasuries -- by far the most important financial market in the world -- depends first and foremost on trust.... Imagine if Mr. Trump threatens to withhold debt payments...." Thanks to laura h. for the link.
Marie: It almost defies the laws of probability that so few White House reporters play Stump Trump, even though that is, in theory, their job. But wouldn't it be fun to see a reporter ask Trump a question framed around Calvin's assumption here? And then the reporter would follow up if Trump blows her off with "What a stupid question!" And then we could watch Trump's head explode. So then the staff, in deference to squeamish sensibilities, would have to replace Trump's missing head with whatever cover-up they might find nearby: like a pointy white hood. Thanks to RAS for the link.
DOGE Should Cut Trump's Golf Outings. S.V. Date of the Huffington Post: "Donald Trump has already spent $10.7 million of taxpayer money to play golf since retaking the White House last month, an expense that appears to have escaped the attention of his 'Department of Government Efficiency' waste, fraud and abuse hunters. The golf-related expenses -- which are likely to recur most weekends while Trump is in office -- have somehow flown below the radar of Elon Musk and his 'high-IQ' team, as Trump calls them, of programmers who are ransacking their way through the federal budget and labeling items they do not like or appear not to understand as 'fraud.' Even as they point out five- and six-figure contracts and grants as wasteful, they have ignored each of Trump's seven-figure golf trips to date."
Lindsay Whitehurst of the AP: "A federal judge refused Tuesday to immediately block billionaire Elon Musk and the Department of Government Efficiency from accessing government data systems or participating in worker layoffs. U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan found that there are legitimate questions about Musk's authority, but said there isn't evidence of the kind of grave legal harm that would justify a temporary restraining order. The decision came in a lawsuit filed by 14 Democratic states challenging DOGE's authority to access sensitive government data. The attorneys general argued that Musk is wielding the kind of power that the Constitution says can only be held by those who are elected or confirmed by the Senate. The Trump administration, for its part, has maintained that layoffs are coming from agency heads, and asserted that despite his public cheering of the effort Musk isn't directly running DOGE's day-to-day operations himself.... [Chutkan wrote that the states'] questions about Musk's apparent 'unchecked authority' and lack of Congressional oversight for DOGE are legitimate and they may be able to successfully argue them later." (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: According to on-air MSNBC reporting, Judge Chutkan did not believe an affidavit submitted to her by the government claiming that Elon Musk was merely a presidential advisor & was not in charge of DOGE. Both Trump & Musk have made statements affirming that Musk runs DOGE. Chutkan rejected the claim that Musk had no authority and told the Trump lawyers to remember that they had a duty to be truthful. But if not Musk, then who? ~~~
~~~ Who's the Boss? Joe DePaolo of Mediaite: Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has no idea. Neither does Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller. Even DOGE employees don't know & have been unable to get a straight answer.
Josh Gerstein of Politico: "A federal judge has temporarily blocked the CIA and the Office of Director of National Intelligence from firing 11 people whose jobs were eliminated to comply with ... Donald Trump's executive order seeking to end federal diversity programs. U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga issued an order Tuesday pausing the firings after a hearing in Alexandria, Virginia, in response to a lawsuit filed by intelligence officers who said the dismissals violated their constitutional rights and federal law. Trenga, an appointee of President George W. Bush, issued an administrative stay directing the agencies to keep the employees on administrative leave while barring any effort to cut off their pay or fire them."
So much for FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) requests to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Musk fired the people responsible for handling the requests. It is, of course, against the law to deny FOIA requests without cause. (And, no, "cause" is not "we fired the staff.") ~~~
~~~ Travis Gettys of the Raw Story: "Members of the 'privacy team' in an office that oversees the hiring of federal workers were fired, which limits how much access the public is granted to government records. CNN learned about the firings in the Office of Personnel Management after filing a request for records under the Freedom of Information Act related to security clearances for Elon Musk and anyone else involved with the Department of Government Efficiency. 'Good luck with that, they just fired the whole privacy team,' responded an agency email address to the network's FOIA request. The agency's privacy team ensures data privacy practices meet legal requirements and protect the public's trust, according to the office's website, and complying with records requests is a legal duty that carries penalties enforceable in court. 'The move to block outside access to government records related to DOGE personnel also runs counter to Musk's claims that his team is attempting to be as transparent as possible,' CNN noted."
File Under "Whoops! Did Not Know What We Were Doing." ~~~
(a) Kelsey Ables of the Washington Post: "The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday that it is moving to correct the accidental firing of several people working on the federal government's response to an outbreak of avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu.... The USDA firings come as bird flu is wreaking havoc on the agriculture sector and as egg prices soar to a record high." The NBC News story is here.
(b) DOGE Confuses "Million" and "Billion," Lies About It. Aatish Bhatia, et al., of the New York Times: "The Department of Government Efficiency ... published on Monday a list of government contracts it has canceled, together amounting to about $16 billion in savings itemized on a new 'wall of receipts' on its website. Almost half of those line-item savings could be attributed to a single $8 billion contract for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. But ... a closer scrutiny of a federal database shows that a recent version of the contract was for $8 million, not $8 billion. A larger total savings number published on the site, $55 billion, lacked specific documentation.... Even the $8 million is an upper bound on the amount saved by canceling the contract." DOGE later removed a screenshot showing the contract was worth only $8 million, not $8 billion, but it still reported that it had saved $8 billion.
(c) Lena Sun & Carolyn Johnson of the Washington Post: "The Trump administration reversed a plan to shut down the government website that ships free coronavirus tests to households late Tuesday, after The Washington Post reported that the administration was preparing to end the program and was evaluating the costs of destroying or disposing of tens of millions of tests. The Post reported on Tuesday afternoon that the administration was evaluating the costs of destroying tests that would otherwise be provided free to Americans.... A half-hour before the planned shutdown, Department of Health and Human Services spokesman Andrew Nixon sent a statement to The Post confirming that COVIDtests.gov would shut down at 8 p.m. Tuesday. But he said the tests would not be destroyed and 'will remain in inventory until they meet their expiration date.'... Then, 12 minutes before the site's planned shutdown, Nixon sent a new statement saying COVIDtests.gov would not be pulled offline at this time.... Internal documents show that officials at HHS had been considering two options: either disposing of or continuing to ship more than 160 million tests, valued at more than half a billion dollars. Only a small fraction of the tests are expired...."
No "Whoops!" here. Musk just has no idea what he's proposing. ~~~
~~~ Musk Spitballs a $400 Billion Rebate. Sophia Cai of Politico: "Elon Musk said he will bring to ... Donald Trump a proposal to send Americans rebate checks representing a portion of the money they save by slashing the federal government.... The plan calls for returning 20 percent of the savings generated by the Department of Government Efficiency back to taxpayers in the form of direct payments.... Budget experts warn that such a rebate program would require congressional approval, and lawmakers may prefer to use that money in other ways."
Forget About Food Safety. Christina Jewett of the New York Times: "Jim Jones, the director of the Food and Drug Administration's food division, resigned on Monday, citing what he called 'indiscriminate' layoffs that would make it 'fruitless for him to continue.' In his resignation letter, Mr. Jones estimated that 89 people of the 2,000 in his division were fired over the weekend, many of them freshly hired to do more in-depth work on chemical safety to protect the nation's food supply.... Mr. Jones also singled out Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the newly appointed secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, for criticizing the F.D.A. as being too beholden to the industries it oversees and for vowing to to dismiss the agency's nutrition staff. 'The secretary's comments impugning the integrity of the food staff, asserting they are corrupt based on falsities, is a disservice to everyone,' Mr. Jones wrote in the letter.... The food division's staff members were among about 700 people fired from the F.D.A. over the weekend. People who were let go by email said their supervisors were not aware of the cuts and had no say in them."
Kate Selig of the New York Times: "The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston was abruptly closed to visitors on Tuesday, and the federal agency that operates the site did not provide any explanation for the sudden disruption. Members of the Kennedy family said that Elon Musk's so-called Department of Government Efficiency had fired members of the library's staff, forcing the temporary closure. Kennedy's grandson, Jack Schlossberg, wrote in a social media post that an official with the National Archives and Records Administration, which oversees presidential libraries, had instructed the Kennedy Library to fire probationary staff members. 'This is a direct attack on our past to rewrite a new future -- yet another example of stealing history from the American people,' Mr. Schlossberg wrote in a statement. 'It has nothing to do with government efficiency.'"
Well, you silly old folks. Too bad you're about to be scammed. We of the FBI were going to warn you so maybe you could keep your life savings, but no can do. Meeting cancelled. The president* sez faggedaboudit. Thanks to RAS for the link. MB: When you think about it, the fewer of these types of community outreach presentations there are, the better, as far as Trump is concerned. I mean, how is going to scam people if the FBI keeps warning people off his grifts? (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Besides, we're all just wasted space, in the eyes of the very few People Who Matter. ~~~
~~~ Paul Waldman on Substack: "... Trump 2.0 is yet another attack by the super-rich against everyone else.... They believe that there is a small number of people who matter, and a great mass of people who deserve nothing.... Absolutely nothing in what Musk has done to date shows even the slightest interest in 'efficiency.'... [As Musk and his minions see it,] most of humanity is simply not human. We are ... bits of programming to be moved around at Elon's whim. Only he and the people who aspire to be like him are actors, decision-makers, molding the world to conform to their bold interplanetary vision.... Fire thousands of federal workers, cut off vital services -- who cares? Those people don't matter." Mitt Romney called47% of Americans "moochers,"; his running mate Paul Ryan said 60% of Americans were "takers"; Elon and Donald apparently believe 99% of us are expendible. Thanks to Ken W. for the link.
Marie: I guess it isn't bad enough that in fear of diversity initiatives, the Muskrats are firing federal employees whose jobs it is to protect civil rights (see Natanson/Dehghanpoor story linked yesterday). Now a Trump official is suggesting it is illegal for members of Congress to even inform constituents of their civil rights: ~~~
~~~ Ailia Zehra of the Hill: Donald "'s 'border czar' Tom Homan said Monday he asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) whether Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's (D-N.Y.) efforts to educate people about their rights while facing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is impeding the agency's operations. Speaking on Fox News, Homan said he finds it disturbing that 'any member of Congress wants to educate people how they evade law enforcement.'... When the Fox News host asked him if he thought Ocasio-Cortez was breaking the law, Homan said he would leave that question to the DOJ." Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: I'm no lawyer. But it seems to me that what Ocasio-Cortez is doing is similar to what a cop does when s/he -- as is required by U.S. law (and the Constitution) -- reads an arrestee his or her Miranda rights. Both AOC and the cop may prevent a person who in fact is guilty of a crime from incriminating himself. Here's the thing: that's an integral part of the American system of justice. Read yer Bill o' Rights, Tom.
Carol Leonnig & Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "The head of the criminal division in the U.S. attorney's office in D.C. resigned Tuesday morning after declining to comply with an urgent Trump administration demand to freeze the assets of a multibillion-dollar Biden administration environmental grant initiative and launch a criminal investigation, according to two sources familiar with the matter and the official's resignation letter. Veteran prosecutor Denise Cheung's resignation came in response to a Justice Department effort to assist ... Donald Trump's new head of the Environmental Protection Agency, who said last week that he would try to rescind $20 billion in grants awarded by the Biden administration for climate and clean energy projects, according to two people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to discuss it publicly. Cheung wrote in her resignation letter that while she and the FBI were ready to ask a bank to freeze the assets immediately, she refused a last-minute order from interim U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. to open what she called an unfounded investigation sought by the office of acting Deputy Attorney General Emil S. Bove, according to a resignation letter obtained by The Washington Post." Politico's report is here. (Also linked yesterday.)
Jeremy Barr & John Hudson of the Washington Post: "The State Department has ordered the cancellation of all news subscriptions deemed 'non-mission critical,' according to internal email guidance viewed by The Washington Post. The move aligns with the Trump administration's crackdown on media companies that count the U.S. government as paying customers. A Feb. 11 memo sent to embassies and consulates in Europe described the mandate as part of an effort to reduce spending.... Embassy security teams rely on news coverage to prepare for diplomatic travel in conflict zones.... A Feb. 14 memo directed procurement teams at embassies and consulates to prioritize the termination of contracts with six news organizations in particular: the Economist, the New York Times, Politico, Bloomberg News, the Associated Press and Reuters. State Department personnel were told that they could submit a request to maintain a news subscription but that it 'must be done within 1 sentence.'"
Amanda Seitz of the AP: "To earn the vote he needed to become the nation's top health official, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. made a special promise to a U.S. senator [Bill Cassidy (R-La.)]: He would not change the nation's current vaccination schedule. But on Tuesday, speaking for the first time to thousands of U.S. Health and Human Services agency employees, he vowed to investigate the childhood vaccine schedule that prevents measles, polio and other dangerous diseases. 'Nothing is going to be off limits,' Kennedy said, adding that pesticides, food additives, microplastics, antidepressants and the electromagnetic waves emitted by cellphones and microwaves also would be studied."
Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "The Senate on Tuesday voted 51 to 45 to confirm Howard Lutnick to be ... [Donald] Trump's commerce secretary, putting in place one of the administration's top economic officials who will help oversee an agenda around tariffs and protectionism. Mr. Lutnick, who was the chief executive of the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, became a central economic adviser to Mr. Trump over the past year and led his transition team. He has defended tariffs as a tool to protect U.S. industries from international competition, promoted lower corporate taxes and called for an expansion of energy production."
Please, Sir, May I Have More? Liz Goodwin of the Washington Post: "Even as many Republicans praise the ultimate goal of streamlining the federal government, some GOP senators spanning the ideological spectrum from Katie Boyd Britt (Alabama) to Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) have lobbied the Trump administration to reconsider its cuts or pauses to federal grants that support biomedical research and labs, or for programs supporting Native American tribes."
Dan Froomkin, who has a new site called Heads Up News, has "put together an eclectic list of somewhat more concrete things you can do to resist the Trump agenda." Thanks to RAS for the link. MB: I have been looking for sensible suggestions like Froomkin's. Most Oh-What-Can-We-Do suggestions run to fairly dumb or very narrow. Dan has some good ideas. For you and me.
Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Evan Hurst, in a Tuesday morning round-up at Wonkette seemed a tad unimpressed with Peter Baker's thesis about how "Making [Canada] a state ... would almost surely cost Republicans control of the House, trim their majority in the Senate and make it harder for them to win the White House in future elections." Hurst writes, "Much of the internet is currently about how the New York Times's Peter Baker is a bad journalist and doesn't understand journalism and thinks this is all a fucking game and is no better than a Nazi collaborator the way he normalizes Donald Trump. But sure, Peter, WHAT IF WE JUST SEIZED CANADA? Is there a BOTH SIDES to consider here? Fuck you." MB: In fairness to Baker, he does preface his "analysis" with a disclaimer: "Few in Washington take the prospect all that seriously, of course." As for me, I would not mind being part of Canada. In fact, had I been living in Canada all my life, I would be able to speak French, albeit with a bad Canadian accent (or as some French would argue, Canadian dialect). (Also linked yesterday.)
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Brazil. Jack Nicas of the New York Times: "Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil's former president, was charged on Tuesday with overseeing a vast scheme to hold on to power after losing the 2022 election, including one plot to annul the vote, disband courts and empower the military, and another to assassinate the nation's president-elect. The accusations, laid out in a 272-page indictment, suggest that Brazil came strikingly close to plunging back into, in effect, a military dictatorship nearly four decades into its modern democracy. Attorney General Paulo Gonet Branco indicted Mr. Bolsonaro and 33 other people, including a former spy chief, defense minister and national security adviser, accusing them of a series of crimes against Brazil's democracy. The charges essentially adopted recommendations from Brazil's federal police made in November." The AP's report is here; thanks to RAS for the link.
The Netherlands. Marie: I was think yesterday it wouldn't be so bad if Canada bought the U.S. Now RAS finds this Dutch fellow who makes me think it might be a better idea to sell off the country a piece at a time: ~~~
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Outer Space. Robin Andrews of the New York Times: "Astronomers on Tuesday said that the asteroid designated 2024 YR4 had become the most likely sizable space rock ever forecast to impact planet Earth. The object, first detected in December, is 130 to 300 feet long and expected to make a very close pass of the planet in 2032. Its odds of impacting Earth on Dec. 22 of that year currently stand at 3.1 percent.... Although 2024 YR4 would not come close to decimating a country, it could scar or demolish a city with a direct hit. And there is a very slim chance that it might." MB: The U.S. astronomers tracking YR4 work for the Asteroid Threat Assessment Project, part of NASA. Trump and Musk will probably fire them. Because they're redundant, or poor performers, or corrupt, or 150 years old, or have salaries in the $8 billion range. Whatever.
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