The Commentariat -- May 22, 2021

Afternoon Update:

Oh Lordy, let this be the last time we even think of accessing Santorum.com. ~~~

~~~ Jennifer Bendery of the Huffington Post: "CNN has terminated its contract with senior political commentator Rick Santorum after racist, inaccurate remarks he made about Native Americans.... Santorum, a former Republican senator and two-time failed GOP presidential candidate, sparked outrage last month after claiming there was 'nothing' in America before white colonizers arrived and that Native people haven't contributed much to American culture, anyway."

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Saturday are here: "Vaccinations in many American prisons, jails and detention centers are lagging far behind the United States as a whole, prompting public health officials to worry that these settings will remain fertile ground for frequent, fast-spreading coronavirus outbreaks for a long time to come. Nationally, more than 60 percent of people ages 18 or older have received at least one dose of vaccine so far. But only about 40 percent of federal prison inmates, and half of those in the largest state prison systems, have done so. And in immigration detention centers, the figure is just 20 percent.... Many inmates say they mistrust both the vaccine and the prison authorities who try to persuade them to get inoculated. Beyond that, some prison vaccination efforts have been hampered by mistakes."

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Ben Leonard of Politico: "President Joe Biden on Friday delivered a thinly veiled swipe at ... Donald Trump for giving Kim Jong Un 'all that he's looking for' in the previous administration's dealings with North Korea. Speaking at a White House press conference alongside South Korean President Moon Jae-in, Biden said any meeting with the reclusive North Korean leader would come with preconditions, including setting parameters for further discussions on North Korea's nuclear arsenal and deescalation. 'What I would not do is ... do what had been done in the recent past,' Biden said. 'I would not give him all that he's looking for, international recognition as legitimate and ... give them what allowed him to move in a direction of appearing to be more ... serious about what he wasn't at all serious about.'... Biden also announced Friday that he was appointing Sung Kim to be a special envoy to North Korea.... In the press conference, Biden also pledged some 550,000 South Korean soldiers who are in 'close contact' with American military members would get Covid-19 vaccinations."

Dan Lamothe of the Washington Post: "A retired Army officer became one of the most decorated soldiers in U.S. military history on Friday, receiving the Medal of Honor from President Biden at the White House more than 70 years after leading soldiers through a fierce attack during the Korean War. Col. Ralph Puckett Jr., 94, stood in a dress uniform as Biden draped the medal around his neck. He had entered the ceremony in a wheelchair, and a walker was nearby, but set both aside to receive the nation's highest award for valor in combat. Biden, awarding his first Medal of Honor as president, recounted how Puckett braved enemy fire repeatedly as his soldiers took control of Hill 205, frozen high ground about 60 miles from the Chinese border.... South Korean President Moon Jae-in was among the dignitaries attending, becoming what is believed to be the first head of state to attend a Medal of Honor ceremony." White House video of the ceremony is here.

He Did It His Way. David Ignatius of the Washington Post: "One outcome of the [Israeli] war is that the United States is back as a mediator in the 'peace process' business. [President] Biden put it simply in a statement on Thursday announcing the cease-fire: 'I believe the Palestinians and Israelis equally deserve to live safely and securely and to enjoy equal measures of freedom, prosperity and democracy.' He characterized his approach as 'quiet and relentless diplomacy.'... [Biden] seemed this week to have learned something from his sometimes overeager predecessors, operating mostly in private and resisting demands for bluster."

Biden Posts "Help Wanted" Signs. Lisa Rein of the Washington Post: "... a $1.5 trillion preliminary budget the White House released in April ... directs billions of dollars into hiring to help curb climate change, restore enforcement of environmental and workplace laws, and expand safety net programs in housing, education, public health and veterans' health. President Biden vowed during his campaign to restore faith in a federal bureaucracy his predecessor villainized as an unaccountable 'deep state' -- and with debate stirring in Congress on $6 trillion in spending proposed by the White House, that shift now involves persuading Americans to embrace a bigger government.... Even in just a single term, Trump succeeded in his goal of cleaving and disrupting the federal government. Some programs that are crucial to Biden's agenda are so short-staffed that his administration can't yet fully implement his policies, among them enforcement of fair-housing and workplace safety laws. A number of decisions by the Trump administration, including the relocation of key economic research and land management offices, are proving hard to reverse."

Jim Acosta of CNN: "A top aide to Republican Rep. Carlos Gimenez of Florida says he spoke with both the Capitol Police and the FBI on the morning of January 6 after overhearing a man in tactical gear talk about storming the FBI building just hours before the deadly insurrection. Alex Ferro, chief of staff to the Florida GOP congressman, says he heard the comments as he and Gimenez were standing inside the lobby of the Hyatt Regency near Capitol Hill."

David Fahrenthold & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump charged the Secret Service more than $40,000 this spring for rooms that Trump's own protective detail used while guarding him at his Mar-a-Lago Club, according to federal spending records.... While he was president, Trump's properties charged the U.S. government more than $2.5 million, often so that Secret Service agents could use rooms near him.... Trump's decision to charge the Secret Service rent appears unusual -- both for a sitting president and now for a former one.... The closest parallel to Trump was ... Joe Biden. While he was protected as vice president, Biden charged the Secret Service $2,200 per month to use a cottage on his property in Delaware. In total, Biden received $171,600 between 2011 and 2017. Biden has not charged the Secret Service rent since becoming president in January, a White House spokesman said. Historians said they were surprised Trump was still charging the Secret Service, considering that ex-presidents are entitled to an array of other taxpayer-funded benefits, including paid staff and a $219,000-per-year pension." (Also linked yesterday.)

Barbara McQuade in a USA Today op-ed: "New York Attorney General Letitia James's investigation into the Trump Organization ... is no longer 'purely civil' but is also being conducted in 'a criminal capacity,' and she is now working along with Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr.... Tuesday's news ... is a game changer for Trump and his business.... First, launching a criminal investigation indicates that James has found factual predication of criminal intent.... Second, announcing that the investigation is criminal in nature suggests that James's office believes they have evidence sufficient to meet that higher standard [of proof required in criminal cases]. And finally..., a criminal case ... can result not only in fines and restitution for the corporate entity, but also prison sentences for individuals involved in wrongdoing.... These business frauds are the ones that should concern Trump the most. That's because they are what prosecutors refer to as 'paper' cases, meaning they are built not on eyewitness testimony but on documents."

Steve Beynon of Military.com: Ted Cruz's complaint about the "woke" U.S. military -- as compared to masculine Russian army -- "were met with scorn from many in the military and veteran community. Some bashed him for seeming to attack a female soldier even as the Defense Department faces a pervasive sexual assault crisis and tries to make the military more welcoming to women.... Cruz and other Republicans have made recent efforts to turn military issues into a cultural fight. Last month, he wrote a letter to the Pentagon slamming the military for 'being mobilized against the speech of American citizens or in the service of left wing political causes.'"

Margie Takes the GOP's Whiney "Culture" to a New Low. Ryan Nobles of CNN: "Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, during an interview on a conservative podcast this week, compared House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's decision to continue to require members of the House to wear masks on the chamber floor to steps the Nazis took to control the Jewish population during the Holocaust. Greene, in a conversation with the Christian Broadcasting Network's David Brody..., attacked Pelosi and accused her of being a hypocrite for asking GOP members to prove they have all been vaccinated before allowing members to be in the House chamber without a mask. 'You know, we can look back at a time in history where people were told to wear a gold star, and they were definitely treated like second class citizens, so much so that they were put in trains and taken to gas chambers in Nazi Germany,' Greene said. 'And this is exactly the type of abuse that Nancy Pelosi is talking about.' Jewish groups were quick to condemn Greene's remarks."

Paula Reid, et al., of CNN: "Federal authorities investigating alleged sex trafficking by GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz have secured the cooperation of the congressman's ex-girlfriend, according to people familiar with the matter. The woman, a former Capitol Hill staffer, is seen as a critical witness, as she has been linked to Gaetz as far back as the summer of 2017, a period of time that has emerged as a key window of scrutiny for investigators. She can also help investigators understand the relevance of hundreds of transactions they have obtained records of, including those involving alleged payments for sex, the sources said."

Knocking Up a 14-Year-Old Is Totally "Romeo & Juliet." Michael Cummo of the Wyoming Tribune Eagle: "U.S. House candidate Anthony Bouchard [R] had a relationship with and impregnated a 14-year-old girl when he was 18, he told the Star-Tribune late Thursday, hours after he disclosed the relationship in a Facebook Live video to his supporters. Bouchard, who did not specify the girl's age in the video, said he went public with the information to get ahead of the story after learning that people were investigating it in opposition to his candidacy. A Wyoming state senator since 2017, Bouchard has risen in prominence since announcing he would challenge Rep. Liz Cheney following her vote to impeach ... Donald Trump. 'So, bottom line, it's a story when I was young, two teenagers, girl gets pregnant,' he said in the Facebook Live video. 'You've heard those stories before. She was a little younger than me, so it's like the Romeo and Juliet story.'" MB: The star-crossed lovers married in Florida and divorced three years later. The young woman committed suicide at age 20. No Romeo in sight. Have at it, Will Shakespeare. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ John Amato of Crooks & Liars: "This repugnant man [Bouchard] has the audacity to claim that his history is being used in dirty politics and the media swamp to undermine his candidacy.... Statutory rape is apparently now part of the GOP platform."

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. David Folkenflik of NPR: "The New York-based hedge fund Alden Global Capital -- known for slashing its newspapers' budgets to extract escalated profits -- won shareholder approval Friday for its $633 million bid to acquire the Tribune Publishing newspaper chain. The purchase represents the culmination of Alden's years-long drive to take over the company and its storied titles -- including the Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun, New York Daily News and major metro papers from Hartford, Conn., to Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Alden's reputation as a 'vulture' fund had set off a frantic effort by union members in Tribune Publishing newsrooms." ~~~

~~~ If You're So Rich, Why Don't You Own a Newspaper? Margaret Sullivan of the Washington Post: "It didn't have to turn out this way. Local investors -- especially in a prosperous town like Chicago -- could have stepped forward to block a hedge fund from gaining control of several of the nation's top daily newspapers.... this outcome[, said Ann Marie Lipinski, curator of Harvard's Nieman Foundation and a former top editor of the Chicago Tribune] 'represents a failure of civic leadership' in many communities, but particularly Chicago.... 'We're slowly replacing a functional press with PR spam, hedge fund dudebros, trolling substack opinion columnists, foreign and domestic disinformation, brand-slathered teen influencers, and hugely consolidated dumpster fires like Sinclair Broadcasting,' tweeted the tech journalist Karl Bode...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What Sullivan doesn't say is that local moguls prefer sports vanity projects. They don't invest in journalists; they prefer to bask in their glory in plush, hermetically-sealed box seats at football & baseball games. (These "prestige" boxes, BTW, are usually partially paid for with local tax dollars.) Another reason I despise professional sports.

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Friday are here: "Deaths from Covid-19 and Covid-related causes are likely to be two to three times the number that countries have recorded in their official data, the World Health Organization said on Friday. Some six to eight million people may have now died from Covid-19 or its effects since the start of the pandemic, compared with 3.4 million deaths recorded in countries' official reporting, Dr. Samira Asma, assistant director of the W.H.O.'s data division, told reporters." (Also linked yesterday.)

Another Reason to Get Vaccinated: It's Way Cheaper to Stay Healthy. Sarah Kliff of the New York Times: "Americans with other serious illnesses regularly face exorbitant and confusing bills after treatment, but things were supposed to be different for coronavirus patients. Many large health plans wrote special rules, waiving co-payments and deductibles for coronavirus hospitalizations. When doctors and hospitals accepted bailout funds, Congress barred them from 'balance-billing' patients -- the practice of seeking additional payment beyond what the insurer has paid. Interviews with more than a dozen patients suggest those efforts have fallen short. Some with private insurance are bearing the costs of their coronavirus treatments, and the bills can stretch into the tens of thousands of dollars."

Capitalism Is Awesome, Ctd. Reed Abelson of the New York Times: "Billions of dollars in Covid aid cushioned financial losses caused by the pandemic at some of the nation's largest hospital chains. But those bailouts also helped sustain the big chains' spending sprees as they expanded even more by scooping up weakened competitors and doctors' practices. More consolidation by several major hospital systems enhanced their market prowess in many regions of the United States, even as rural hospitals and underserved communities were overwhelmed with Covid patients and struggled to stay afloat. The buying spree is likely to prompt further debate and scrutiny of the Provider Relief Fund, a package of $178 billion in congressional aid that drew sharp criticism early on for allocating so much to the wealthiest hospital systems, and that had no limits on mergers and acquisitions. The Biden administration is now weighing which hospitals and health providers will get the remaining $25 billion."

Beyond the Beltway

Georgia. Amy Gardner of the Washington Post: "A Georgia state judge on Friday ordered Fulton County to allow a group of local voters to inspect all 147,000 mail-in ballots cast in the 2020 election in response to a lawsuit alleging that officials accepted thousands of counterfeit ballots.... Superior Court Judge Brian Amero ruled on Friday that the nine plaintiffs and their experts could examine copies of the ballots but never touch the originals, which will remain in the possession of Fulton election officials.... The decision marks the latest instance of a local government being forced to undergo a third-party inspection of its election practices amid baseless accusations promoted by ... Donald Trump that fraud flipped the 2020 contest for President Biden."

New York. Michael Balsamo of the AP: "The two Bureau of Prisons workers tasked with guarding Jeffrey Epstein the night he killed himself in a New York jail have admitted they falsified records, but they will skirt any time behind bars under a deal with federal prosecutors, authorities said Friday.... [They] would instead be subjected to supervised release, would be required to complete 100 hours of community service and would be required to fully cooperate with an ongoing probe by the Justice Department's inspector general, it says."

Ore-Ida Potatoheads, Ctd. I'd Rather Be in Idaho. Kirk Johnson of the New York Times: "A majority of residents in five eastern [Oregon] counties said in nonbinding votes that they would like to leave Oregon and join with their more like-minded conservative neighbors further east in Idaho.... Voters in two other counties, Union and Jefferson, voted last fall to address the question of a border change, a process that will begin with public meetings in the counties, with one set for June.... The odds against success are long. Oregon's Legislature, which is dominated by Democrats, who also control every statewide office, would have to go along with it, as would Idaho's Republican-dominated Legislature -- not to mention the U.S. Congress." ~~~

~~~ Because Bundy for Governor! Audrey Dutton of the Idaho Capital Sun: "He's banned from the Idaho Capitol building, but that didn't stop Ammon Bundy from taking the first step toward running for Idaho governor. Bundy, who lives in Emmett, filed paperwork Friday to appoint a treasurer to a campaign for governor. The anti-government activist appeared to have appointed himself as treasurer, but according to a Secretary of State Office tweet, a treasurer must be a registered Idaho voter. According to the office, Bundy will either need to become a registered voter and refile the paperwork or name a new treasurer and refile.... During the past year, police arrested Bundy multiple times in Boise, with most of those arrests occurring at the Idaho Capitol. He was handcuffed and wheeled out of the Capitol on an office chair after refusing to leave in August. He was banned from the building for a year, but returned, which led to arrests for trespassing. Bundy returned again last month and was arrested twice in one day."

Way Beyond

Israel. Shira Rubin, et al., of the Washington Post: "As a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas militants held into Friday evening, attention shifted from the 11-day conflict to the dire humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, potential political fallout for Israel's embattled prime minister and renewed tensions in Jerusalem.... As bulldozers pushed sand into shell and missile craters, some Gazans returned to their devastated neighborhoods for the first time since the start of the confrontation. They assessed the destruction while celebrating what many characterized as a victory of endurance over a more powerful foe.... Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said 'riots' broke out Friday afternoon, following prayers at al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem's Old City, involving hundreds of Palestinians who 'threw rocks and petrol bombs at police officers.' He said they were then dispersed by Israeli police and that 16 of the demonstrators were arrested."

U.K. Doha Madani of NBC News: "Princes William and Harry pressed for higher standards in the news media following a BBC investigation that found the journalist Martin Bashir used "'deceitful behavior' to secure a landmark interview with Diana, Princess of Wales. William, Duke of Cambridge, said, '... what saddens me most, is that if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised in 1995, my mother would have known that she had been deceived.'... Harry, Duke of Sussex, went a step further and explicitly blamed the media for his mother's death. Many have attributed the paparazzi following her for contributing to the car crash that killed her in Paris." Related stories linked yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.)

Way, Way Beyond

Harry Reid writes a New York Times op-ed about UFOs. He says he doesn't know much, but unless you're one of the select few with the proper security clearance, Harry knows more than you do.

The Commentariat -- May 21, 2021

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Knocking Up a 14-Year-Old is Totally "Romeo & Juliet." Michael Cummo of the Wyoming Tribune Eagle: "U.S. House candidate Anthony Bouchard [R] had a relationship with and impregnated a 14-year-old girl when he was 18, he told the Star-Tribune late Thursday, hours after he disclosed the relationship in a Facebook Live video to his supporters. Bouchard, who did not specify the girl's age in the video, said he went public with the information to get ahead of the story after learning that people were investigating it in opposition to his candidacy. A Wyoming state senator since 2017, Bouchard has risen in prominence since announcing he would challenge Rep. Liz Cheney.... 'So, bottom line, it's a story when I was young, two teenagers, girl gets pregnant,' he said in the Facebook Live video. 'You've heard those stories before. She was a little younger than me, so it's like the Romeo and Juliet story.'" MB: The star-crossed lovers married in Florida and divorced three years later. The young woman committed suicide at age 20. No Romeo in sight. Have at it, Will Shakespeare.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Friday are here: "Deaths from Covid-19 and Covid-related causes are likely to be two to three times the number that countries have recorded in their official data, the World Health Organization said on Friday. Some six to eight million people may have now died from Covid-19 or its effects since the start of the pandemic, compared with 3.4 million deaths recorded in countries' official reporting, Dr. Samira Asma, assistant director of the W.H.O.'s data division, told reporters."

David Fahrenthold & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump charged the Secret Service more than $40,000 this spring for rooms that Trump's own protective detail used while guarding him at his Mar-a-Lago Club, according to federal spending records.... While he was president, Trump's properties charged the U.S. government more than $2.5 million, often so that Secret Service agents could use rooms near him.... Trump's decision to charge the Secret Service rent appears unusual -- both for a sitting president and now for a former one.... The closest parallel to Trump was ... Joe Biden. While he was protected as vice president, Biden charged the Secret Service $2,200 per month to use a cottage on his property in Delaware. In total, Biden received $171,600 between 2011 and 2017. Biden has not charged the Secret Service rent since becoming president in January, a White House spokesman said. Historians said they were surprised Trump was still charging the Secret Service, considering that ex-presidents are entitled to an array of other taxpayer-funded benefits, including paid staff and a $219,000-per-year pension."

Doha Madani of NBC News: "Princes William and Harry pressed for higher standards in the news media following a BBC investigation that found the journalist Martin Bashir used "'deceitful behavior' to secure a landmark interview with Diana, Princess of Wales. William, Duke of Cambridge, said, '... what saddens me most, is that if the BBC had properly investigated the complaints and concerns first raised in 1995, my mother would have known that she had been deceived.'... Harry, Duke of Sussex, went a step further and explicitly blamed the media for his mother's death. Many have attributed the paparazzi following her for contributing to the car crash that killed her in Paris.&" Related stories linked below.

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Barbara Sprunt of NPR: "Following overwhelming support from both chambers of Congress, President Biden signed legislation Thursday that addresses hate crimes throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, with particular emphasis on the increase in violence against Asian Americans. At an event in the East Room of the White House, Biden thanked lawmakers for coming together to pass the legislation. He said standing against hatred and racism, which he called 'the ugly poison that has long haunted and plagued our nation,' is what brings Americans together."

Blinken Disavows Crazy, Insulting Trump Development Plan. Summer Concepcion of TPM: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday assured that the Biden administration has no desire to buy Greenland -- a reported desire of former President Trump's that never came to fruition and set off a diplomatic fallout. While visiting Greenland on Thursday, Blinken told a reporter during a news conference that it was 'correct' that the U.S. does not seek to purchase the autonomous Danish territory, according to Reuters.... Trump, who was scheduled to visit Denmark, abruptly cancelled his trip after its prime minister wouldn't fork over Greenland." Update: The New York Times story is here. MB: Rats. Now if I want to move to Nuuk (capital & largest city, pop. 18,000) without investing in a new passport, I'm out of luck. Okay, until five minutes ago, I never heard of Nuuk.

Marie: For a party whose "leaders" and followers are so obsessed with freeedumb and so virulently "Christian," Republicans are surprisingly averse to the notion that "The truth shall set you free." (said Jesus, according to evangelical's favorite Gospel of [John 8:32]).

Nancy Can Count. Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "By the thinnest of margins, a divided House voted on Thursday to approve $1.9 billion in emergency spending to cover costs related to the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and increase security to prevent a repeat, with progressive Democrats joining Republicans in opposition. The bill passed the Democratic-controlled House by a vote of 213 to 212, leaving its future uncertain in the evenly split Senate, where most legislation needs 60 votes to overcome a filibuster and advance to a vote. Every Republican voted against the security spending plan -- a move that top Democrats cited as further evidence that the party is trying to rewrite the history of the mob violence that unfolded on Jan. 6 by downplaying or outright denying crucial facts and opposing efforts to investigate it."

Dana Milbank: Mitch McConnell came to Donald Trump's rescue -- again. "And McConnell did it with a baldfaced lie.... McConnell announced on Wednesday morning, before the House vote, that he would 'oppose the House Democrats' slanted and unbalanced proposal.' For good measure, he accused Democrats of 'partisan bad faith.'... The bipartisan commission bill was negotiated by Rep. John Katko (N.Y.), the top Republican on the Homeland Security Committee, with House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy's blessing.... Katko argued on the House floor Wednesday ... that the bill was 'nearly identical' to one Republicans introduced.... 'Thanks for not throwing me under the bus, Kevin,' Katko said at a Republican caucus meeting Tuesday, tire treads still imprinted on his face." (Also linked yesterday.)

Fear of Trump. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "... [Rep.] Greg Pence [R-Ind.] [has] arguably the closest personal connection to someone directly targeted by the mob [i.e., his brother mike whom the insurrectionists planned to hang].... As they were marauding through the Capitol, [Donald] Trump ... took to Twitter not to call off the dogs, but to attack [mike] Pence. Alas, [Greg Pence is] hardly the only Republican to apparently set aside Trump's attacks on his family while aligning with Trump.... Trump has also gone after [Mitch] McConnell's wife, former transportation secretary Elaine Chao, mocking her and attacking her over her supposed family ties to China. (Chao was born in Taiwan.) McConnell has in the past labeled similar attacks as racist.... Trump at one point promoted a tweet attacking the appearance of [Ted] Cruz's wife. Trump also suggestively floated a baseless supermarket tabloid conspiracy theory that Cruz's father might have been involved in killing John F. Kennedy." ~~~

~~~ Kremlin Cruz. David Moye of the Huffington Post: "Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) ... suggested [in a tweet] that the Russian army was better prepared than America's 'woke emasculated military.' The smarmy Texas senator made the comments while retweeting a video that contrasted a Russian recruiting video of men working out with a U.S. recruiting video from a female soldier who credited her desire to serve her country to her two moms.... Many Twitter users felt Cruz was the wrong person to be talking about emasculation, considering the way he supported ... Donald Trump even after Trump attacked the looks of Cruz's wife, Heidi Cruz, and falsely suggested the senator's father helped assassinate John F. Kennedy." Moye republishes some great tweety responses. Brian Williams of NBC News noted that while Ted had never served in the military, he had been to Princeton, Harvard and Cancun. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. The Washington Post story is here. Ted's tweet was even more offensive than the HuffPost let on. According to the WashPo story, Ted tweeted that "the contrast with Russia's campaign ... made American soldiers 'into pansies.'" MB: Maybe that Lorena Bobbitt gal, the QAnon rep from Colorado, can "fix" Ted, one way or another.

Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "U.S. authorities have arrested three more alleged associates of two right-wing groups in the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol, including one who allegedly shouted, 'Let's take the f---ing Capitol!' an hour before the assault while marching with a large group of Proud Boys around the building. Charging papers identified Daniel Lyons Scott, 28, of Bradenton, Fla., as the Proud Boys member nicknamed 'Milkshake,' who ... allegedly yelling about taking the Capitol.... Also arrested Thursday was James Breheny, 61, an alleged Bergen County, N.J., coordinator for the Oath Keepers.... Separately, Arizona resident Micajah Joel Jackson, 25, was arrested Tuesday after turning himself in to the FBI in Phoenix on charges of trespassing and disorderly conduct at the Capitol."

Daniel Lippman of Politico: "... Donald Trump sought to oust FBI Director Christopher Wray last spring and replace him with counterintelligence head William Evanina, according to three former Trump officials.... Under the plan, the former officials said, Kash Patel -- a former aide to Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) and a fierce critic of the Russia probe -- would have become the bureau's deputy director. Previously unreported details of the proposal reveal just how seriously the former president took his grievances against the intelligence and law enforcement establishment. It shows Trump at his mercurial peak, ordering up the removal of his own appointee in a fit of rage, only to back down when then-Attorney General William Barr threatened to resign if he followed through with the maneuver. (Aspects of this story were first reported by Business Insider.)"

Michael Gerson of the Washington Post: Liz Cheney "has accused a former president of her party of employing the threat of violence as a tool of intimidation. And election officials around the country -- Republican and Democratic -- can attest to the results: Death threats. Racist harassment. Armed protesters at their homes.... If Trump has a political philosophy, one of its main tenets is toxic masculinity -- the use of menace and swagger to cover his mental and moral impotence." Gerson explains how Trump, et al., are using the threat of violence as an election strategy.

Jeremy Herb & Jessica Schneider of CNN: "The Trump administration secretly sought and obtained the 2017 phone and email records of a CNN correspondent.... The Justice Department informed CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr, in a May 13 letter, that prosecutors had obtained her phone and email records covering two months, between June 1, 2017 to July 31, 2017. The letter listed phone numbers for Starr's Pentagon extension, the CNN Pentagon booth phone number and her home and cell phones, as well as Starr's work and personal email accounts.... The seizure of Starr's records is the third disclosure in as many weeks where the Trump administration used its Justice Department to secretly obtain communications of journalists or to expose the identity of critics of ... Donald Trump's allies.... Three Washington Post reporters who covered the FBI's Russia investigation were told earlier this month that last year the Justice Department had obtained their phone records from 2017. In 2018, the Justice Department disclosed it had also obtained 2017 phone and email communications from a reporter for Buzzfeed, Politico and the New York Times who had written stories about Russia."

Annals of Journalism, or Something

Josh Dawsey & Sarah Ellison of the Washington Post: "CNN anchor Chris Cuomo advised his brother, New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, and senior members of the governor's staff on how to respond to sexual harassment allegations made earlier this year by women who had worked with the governor, according to four people familiar with the discussions. Cuomo, one of the network's top stars, joined a series of conference calls that included the Democratic governor, his top aide, his communications team, lawyers and a number of outside advisers.... The cable news anchor encouraged his brother to take a defiant position and not to resign from the governor's office, the people [familiar] said.... The behind-the-scenes strategy offered by Chris Cuomo, who anchors CNN's 9 p.m. nightly newscast, cuts against the widely accepted norm in journalism that those reporting the news should not be involved in politics.... In a statement, CNN acknowledged that Chris Cuomo took part in the strategy sessions, saying his involvement was a mistake.... The network said Cuomo will not be disciplined." The Hill has a summary report here.

Mark Landler of the New York Times: "On Thursday, [25 years after then-BBC reporter Martin Bashir interviewed Princess Diana of Britain,] an inquiry concluded that Mr. Bashir deceived Diana's brother, Charles Spencer, to obtain the interview. And it faulted the British Broadcasting Corporation's management for covering up Mr. Bashir's conduct, which included creating fake bank statements to undermine a rival news organization.... The conclusions, though not unexpected, are a black eye for the BBC at a time when it has been under pressure from the Conservative government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson for its news coverage. The government has threatened to overhaul the compulsory license fee that finances most of the BBC's operations.... A previous internal BBC investigation -- led by Tony Hall, who later became the broadcaster's director general -- did not even consult Mr. Spencer before pronouncing Mr. Bashir an 'honest and honorable man.'... The BBC, which commissioned the independent inquiry in November, issued a contrite response, admitting that 'the process for securing the interview fell far short of what audiences have a right to expect.'" A CBS News story is here.

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Thursday are here. (Also linked yesterday.) The Washington Post's live updates for Thursday are here.

The Covid Caucus. Paige Cunningham of the Washington Post: "Fewer than half of House Republican members have agreed to be vaccinated against the coronavirus, according to a CNN survey. Around 45 percent have been vaccinated, compared with at least 92 percent of Senate Republicans and all Senate and House Democrats.... Yet it's Republican members who are also rebelling against masks.... A dozen refused to put on masks in the House chamber this week, my colleague Felicia Sonmez reports."

Having trouble gettng a Covid vaccine in your area? Why not take a vacci-cation -- to Mongolia! ~~~

~~~ Alexandra Stevenson of the New York Times: "Mongolia, a country of grassy hills, vast deserts and endless skies, has a population not much bigger than Chicago's.... But during a pandemic, being a small nation sandwiched between two vaccine makers with global ambitions can have advantages. At a time when most countries are scrambling for coronavirus vaccines, Mongolia now has enough to fully vaccinate its entire adult population, in large part thanks to deals with both China and Russia. Officials are so confident about the nation's vaccine riches that they are promising citizens a 'Covid-free summer.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times explores the cult-like dictates of Mother Teresa's Missionaries of Charity.

Beyond the Beltway

Arizona. Jane Timm of NBC News: "Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs said Thursday that the voting machines Republicans turned over to private companies as part of their audit of the 2020 election are no longer safe for use in future elections. In a letter sent to Maricopa County officials and shared with NBC News, Hobbs, a Democrat, cited security concerns about losing the chain of custody over the equipment when it was handed over to the auditors and urged the county to get new machines. If it does not, her office would consider decertifying the equipment involved in the audit, she wrote. That would remove the machines from service." A Washington Post story is here. ~~~

~~~ Brad Reed of the Raw Story: "The Trump-backed 'audit' of the 2020 election in Arizona is sinking deeper into madness, as Arizona GOP Chairwoman Kelli Ward this week threatened her own party's officials with arrest. The Daily Beast reports that the audit has been driving divisions within the state GOP even deeper, and Ward is now pushing for the arrest of Republican election officials in Maricopa County if they refuse to comply with the auditors' demands. 'There have to be consequences,' Ward earlier this week. 'There could be arrests of people who are refusing to comply.'"

The idea that history is a project that's decided in the political arena is a recipe for disaster. -- Raul Ramos, University of Houston historian ~~~

~~~ Texas, etc. Simon Romero of the New York Times: "... a flurry of [Republican-]proposed measures that could soon become law would ... try to reframe Texas history lessons and play down references to slavery and anti-Mexican discrimination that are part of the state's founding.The proposals in Texas, a state that influences school curriculums around the country through its huge textbook market, amount to some of the most aggressive efforts to control the teaching of American history. And they come as nearly a dozen other Republican-led states seek to ban or limit how the role of slavery and pervasive effects of racism can be taught, [including Louisiana, New Hampshire and Tennessee]. Idaho was the first state to sign into law a measure that would withhold funding from schools that teach such lessons." ~~~

~~~ These legislators' proposals are akin to -- but worse than -- this: ~~~

~~~ North Carolina. Katie Robertson of the New York Times (May 19): "Nikole Hannah-Jones, a Pulitzer Prize-winning writer for The New York Times Magazine, was denied a tenured position at the University of North Carolina after the university's board of trustees took the highly unusual step of failing to approve the journalism department's recommendation.... The Republican-controlled North Carolina Legislature appoints the university system's Board of Governors, which has significant control over the university's board of trustees." MB: UNC is a state-run university (the first one in the country). My husband taught at UNC for decades, and departments always decided/voted on who earned tenure. I'm not saying that granting tenure was not political -- at every university, it's as political as can be (tho usually not on a left-right continuum) -- but at UNC, the trustees kept their noses out of the decisions. It appears from the report that Hannah-Jones will hold a distinguished chair funded by the Knight Foundation, and the department was "allowed" to grant her the chair.

South Carolina. "Are We There Yet?" as a Life-saving Defensive Measure. Hannah Knowles of the Washington Post: An armed hijacker from Fort Jackson commandeered a school bus, driver & 18 children. "Then, the kids -- the kindergartners especially -- started peppering him with questions, [the driver] said." The hijacker, apparently tired to the barrage of questions, ordered the driver to stop the bus & ordered everybody off. The "suspected" hijacker, "Jovan Collazo, was quickly apprehended and charged with kidnapping, armed robbery, carjacking and other offenses, authorities said."

Way Beyond

The New York Times' live updates of developments is the Israel armed conflict Friday are here: "The sirens across southern Israel were silent on Friday, and the thunder of bombs bursting in Gaza City was replaced by sounds of celebratory gunfire as a fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas went into force, bringing an end to more than 10 days of fighting that claimed more than 200 lives."

** Steve Hendrix, et al., of the Washington Post: "Israel's security cabinet voted Thursday night to approve a cease-fire in its 11-day aerial battle with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, according to the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The cabinet, made up of top security officials and ministers, voted unanimously 'to accept the Egyptian initiative for a bilateral cease-fire without any conditions, which will take effect later,' according to a statement. Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, has also agreed with the Egyptian proposal. Taher al-Nounou, a media advisor to the head of the Hamas political bureau, said, 'We were informed by our brothers in Egypt that an agreement had been reached for a mutual and simultaneous ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, starting at 2 am on Friday, May 21, 2021. And that the Palestinian resistance will abide by this agreement as long as the occupation is committed.'" The AP's story is here.

The Commentariat -- May 20, 2021

Late Morning Update:

Dana Milbank: Mitch McConnell came to Donald Trump's rescue -- again. "And McConnell did it with a baldfaced lie.... McConnell announced on Wednesday morning, before the House vote, that he would 'oppose the House Democrats' slanted and unbalanced proposal.' For good measure, he accused Democrats of 'partisan bad faith.'... The bipartisan commission bill was negotiated by Rep. John Katko (N.Y.), the top Republican on the Homeland Security Committee, with House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy's blessing.... Katko argued on the House floor Wednesday ... that the bill was 'nearly identical' to one Republicans introduced.... 'Thanks for not throwing me under the bus, Kevin,' Katko said at a Republican caucus meeting Tuesday, tire treads still imprinted on his face."

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Thursday are here.

Having trouble getting a Covid vaccine in your area? Why not take a vacci-cation -- to Mongolia! ~~~

~~~ Alexandra Stevenson of the New York Times: "Mongolia, a country of grassy hills, vast deserts and endless skies, has a population not much bigger than Chicago's.... But during a pandemic, being a small nation sandwiched between two vaccine makers with global ambitions can have advantages. At a time when most countries are scrambling for coronavirus vaccines, Mongolia now has enough to fully vaccinate its entire adult population, in large part thanks to deals with both China and Russia. Officials are so confident about the nation's vaccine riches that they are promising citizens a 'Covid-free summer.'"

~~~~~~~~~~

Loveday Morris, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on a phone call Wednesday that he 'expected a significant de-escalation today on the path to a ceasefire,' according to the White House, in the most assertive language used publicly by the administration since Israel and Hamas began exchanging rocket fire 10 days ago. Biden's urging came amid mounting international demands for a cease-fire. Netanyahu has repeatedly said that the operation will not stop until Israel achieves its military objectives." (Also linked yesterday.) CNN's story is here.

Mike DeBonis, et al., of the Washington Post: "Republican leaders are trying to sink legislation establishing an independent commission on the deadly Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol that would probably scrutinize ... Donald Trump's role in the riot and his conversations with Republican lawmakers that day. The bill passed the House on a 252-to-175 vote Wednesday with 35 Republicans supporting the measure, but its chances of clearing the Senate dimmed after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) came out against the bill earlier in the day." A CNN story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Alayna Treene & Jacob Knutson of Axios: "[Thirty-five] House Republicans voted in support of the bill, underscoring the fault lines within the party in the aftermath of the insurrection. The amount of Republican support makes it far more difficult for Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to try to dismiss the commission outright as a partisan effort.... Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has promised the bill will get a vote, but it's still unclear how many Republicans will get on board." ~~~

~~~ Yeah, Well, Mom Always Liked Mikey More. Amanda Turkel of the Huffington Post: "Rep. Greg Pence (R-Ind.) opposes an independent commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, even though his own brother [mike] was a central target of the mob's fury." ~~~

Ed Mazza of the Huffington Post: "Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) has had it with the Republican members of the House who attacked a proposed bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol that was carried out by pro-Trump insurrectionists. After thanking those in the GOP who supported the measure ― 35 Republicans ultimately broke ranks and voted in favor of the commission ― Ryan lit into those who voted against it." Thanks to PD Pepe for the link. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So yeah, I guess Tim Ryan is running for Senate. ~~~

~~~ Mike DeBonis of the Washington Post: "Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Wednesday that he will oppose legislation to create a commission tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol -- a signal that the legislation will not have the votes to get through the Senate. 'After careful consideration. I've made the decision to oppose the House Democrats slanted and unbalanced proposal for another commission to study the events of January the 6th,' he said on the Senate floor. The bipartisan commission would have an equal number of Republicans and Democrats, five on each side[.]" Politico's story is here. MB: Yes, but the proposed commission is "slanted & unbalanced" because it won't have a majority of Republicans, all of them complaining about antifa communists in Oregon & praising "patriot tourists" in D.C. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Marie: Sorry for the language, but it looks as if the Turtle is still Trump's bitch. ~~~

     ~~~ Olafimihan Oshin of the Hill: "... [Donald] Trump called for an immediate end to the debate over a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol riot the night before the House is expected to approve the plan. 'Republicans in the House and Senate should not approve the Democrat trap of the January 6 Commission. It is just more partisan unfairness and unless the murders, riots, and fire bombings in Portland, Minneapolis, Seattle, Chicago, and New York are also going to be studied, this discussion should be ended immediately,' Trump said in a statement Tuesday night. 'Republicans must get much tougher and much smarter, and stop being used by the Radical Left. Hopefully, Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy are listening!' he added." MB: Mitch, evidently, was listening. ~~~

~~~ Olivia Beavers & Sarah Ferris of Politico: "A statement released Wednesday on Capitol Police letterhead, said to be authored by multiple officers on the force, delivered a rare public rebuke of top Republicans for opposing a proposed bipartisan commission to investigate the Jan. 6 Capitol riot that injured scores on their force. The unsigned missive was sent to the offices of every member of Congress hours before the House was set to vote on legislation creating the commission.... The department distanced itself from the statement, noting that it 'has no way of confirming it was even authored by USCP personnel. The U.S. Capitol Police does NOT take positions on legislation.'... [The letter] was distributed by the office of Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.)... Raskin's staff told fellow House offices that multiple officers were behind the letter and chose to remain anonymous 'because they are afraid of retribution for speaking out.'"

Doha Madani of NBC News: "A New York man was charged in connection with the Capitol riot in Washington after allegedly talking about his involvement in the Jan. 6 mob at his dentist's office. Daniel Warmus, of Alden, New York, was arrested Tuesday and charged with violent entry and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building or without authority, and knowingly with the intent to impede and the orderly conduct of government, according to the Department of Justice. The FBI received a tip about Warmus' involvement from an unidentified person who overheard Warmus discussing his experience at his dentist's office, the complaint against him said. Warmus allegedly played a video he took inside the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot and said he had smoked marijuana while he was there. A subsequent investigation identified Warmus on security footage inside the Capitol...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I guess it didn't occur to Dan that his dental hygienist might be a patriot who believes, however vaguely, in the orderly transfer of power.

Ray Hartmann of the Raw Story: "Daniel Paul Gray of Florida was charged [Tuesday] with multiple crimes of violence against police officers at the January 6 Capitol riot.... Gray is accused of having altercations with multiple police, one in which he caused a female police officer to fall down the western rotunda stairs 'and became visibly injured.' Gray bragged about it all in a self-shot monologue, the FBI said.... Now the video itself has been captured by the FBI.... 'We started pushing the police out the back of the Capitol. We pushed them from the front to the back of the Capitol.... This is far from over, that was the coolest thing I've ever done in my life, so stay tuned.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Nina Golgowski of the Huffington Post: "Centenarians who survived the 1921 destruction of a thriving Black district in Tulsa, Oklahoma, told members of Congress at a hearing on Wednesday that they are still waiting for justice. 'By the grace of God, I am still here. I have survived. I have survived to tell this story,' Lessie Benningfield Randle, 106, said in front of the House Judiciary;s Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee. 'Hopefully now you all will listen to us while we are still here.' The hearing was timed to align with the centennial of what's known as the Tulsa race massacre, in which a white mob leveled a Black community called Greenwood in May 1921, razing businesses, killing an estimated 300 Black people and leaving another 10,000 homeless. Randle was one of three survivors to speak about the atrocities and is part of a reparations lawsuit filed last year against the city of Tulsa, the county of Tulsa, the state of Oklahoma, and the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce for the two-day attack."

Kara Scannell & Sonia Moghe of CNN: "The New York attorney general's office has opened a criminal tax investigation into top Trump Organization officer Allen Weisselberg, increasing the legal pressure on the long-time aide to ... Donald Trump, people familiar with the investigation say. The pressure on Weisselberg is mounting from two directions with the attorney general looking into his personal taxes, while prosecutors in the district attorney's office are digging into his role at the Trump Organization, his personal finances, and benefits given to his son Barry, a long-time employee of the Trump Organization." The New York Times story is here. ~~~

~~~ Marie: It turns out that the Desk of Donald J. Trump is as stupid. vain & unintentionally funny as he is. (Why does Donald get only an inanimate desk? Devin Nunes got a cow.) Here's the first (long) sentence of a pathetic, hilariously Trumpy screed the desk wrote: "I have just learned, through leaks in the mainstream media, that after being under investigation from the time I came down the escalator 5 ½ years ago, including the fake Russia Russia Russia Hoax, the 2 year, $48M, No Collusion Mueller Witch Hunt, Impeachment Hoax #1, Impeachment Hoax #2, and others, that the Democrat New York Attorney General has 'informed' my organization that their 'investigation' is no longer just a civil matter but also potentially a 'criminal' investigation working with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office." ~~~

     ~~~ Donald doesn't understand what the media do. They don't "leak" stories; people leak to them, and they report the leaks. So there are no "leaks in the media." But the reports of the criminal investigation were not leaks. New York AG Letitia James put out a public statement announcing that she had joined with the Manhattan D.A. in conducting a criminal investigation. CNN & others simply reported the public statement (with added context). And why did Trump learn of this through the media? Since James had -- according to her statement -- already informed the Trump Org (would that be you, Eric?) of the criminal turn of events, you might think someone in the Trump Org would phone the Top Guy with the news. Maybe those who constitute the Trump Organization are too afraid of Donald to be the messengers.

Stating the Obvious, Again. Martin Pengelly of the Guardian: "... behind the scenes [during the 2020 election campaign], with donors and advisers, [President] Obama ... called [Donald] Trump a 'madman', a 'racist, sexist pig', 'that fucking lunatic' and a 'corrupt motherfucker'. The remarks are reported in Battle for the Soul: Inside the Democrats' Campaigns to Defeat Donald Trump by Edward-Isaac Dovere, a staff writer at the Atlantic, which will be published next week. The Guardian obtained a copy. Extracts of Dovere's candid reporting have been published elsewhere -- including a passage in which the now first lady, Jill Biden, is quoted as saying now Vice-President Kamala Harris should 'go fuck herself' after a memorable debate-stage attack on Joe Biden early in the primary." ~~~

     ~~~ Here's an excerpt from Dovere's book, republished in Politico. Dovere was, until recently, a reporter for Politico. The excerpt centers on the campaign-trail dust-up between Biden & Harris.

Quoctrung Bui, et al., of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court's decision Monday to hear a case about a Mississippi law that would ban most abortions after 15 weeks could end up weakening or even overturning Roe v. Wade. Depending on the ruling, legal abortion access could effectively end for those living in much of the American South and Midwest, especially those who are poor, according to an analysis updated this week. In more than half of states, though, legal abortion access would be unchanged, according to the analysis...." Includes map. (Also linked yesterday.) A related story, on Texas' new no-abortion law, is linked below under "Beyond the Beltway."

Missouri U.S. Senate Race. Katie Shepherd of the Washington Post: "Mark McCloskey's star rose quickly in the Republican Party after he and his wife pointed guns at racial justice protesters marching through their gated St. Louis neighborhood last summer -- even as the couple was each hit with a felony weapons charge over the incident. He appeared on cable news to defend his actions and to vilify the peaceful crowd that was marching to St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson's nearby house. He gave a prime-time address at the 2020 Republican National Convention last August. Now, nearly a year after video of the tense faceoff with protesters went viral, McCloskey, 64, has announced plans to run for the Senate. On Tuesday, McCloskey told Fox News host Tucker Carlson that he would seek to replace Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), who is retiring and will not run for reelection in 2022." MB: Words fail me. (Also linked yesterday.) A CBS News story is here.

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Wednesday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Michael Birnbaum & Chico Harlan of the Washington Post: "The European Union has agreed to open its borders to vaccinated Americans and others, after more than a year in which travel into the bloc has been severely restricted, a spokesman said Wednesday.... One final round of approvals will be necessary in the coming days, but the sign-off is not in doubt after ambassadors agreed to the plan on Wednesday. The precise timing of when the borders will actually open is not yet clear.... All the coronavirus vaccines available in the United States would be greenlighted, but vaccines manufactured in Russia and China would not be. The E.U. guidance is not binding, meaning that some countries could choose to be more or less restrictive than the bloc as a whole." (Also linked yesterday.) The Hill has a story here.

Beyond the Beltway

The United States of Trump

Cameron Joseph of Vice: "The Republican Party chairs of Texas and Wyoming have flirted with secession from the United States. Oklahoma's Republican chair has called Islam a 'cancer.' The Oregon GOP called the Capitol insurrection a 'false flag' operation. And at least 19 Republican state chairs -- including most of the ones in key swing states -- publicly pushed former President Trump's big lie about the election. A Vice News review of public positions of all 50 GOP state chairs shows a significant number are openly pushing conspiracy theories, spouting unhinged rhetoric, and actively undermining voters' trust in democracy.... [Trump's] conspiratorial claims about the election run even deeper in the states than in Washington -- and will guide the grassroots for years to come.... Former GOP officials say it was entirely predictable that the state parties would get Trumpier while he was president, but found it notable that the trend has continued since he left office.

Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "On Wednesday, writing for the Los Angeles Times, Doyle McManus warned that GOP allies of ... Donald Trump are doing their utmost to strip power from local election officials, in a bid to give the national party more power to challenge and review election results they don't like. 'Pro-Trump forces in dozens of states are now working to change election laws to make it harder for Democrats to win -- and easier for Republicans to challenge the results if their candidate loses,' wrote McManus. 'If they're successful, the chaotic aftermath of the 2020 election may only have been a rehearsal for a second round in 2024. In at least 36 states, Republican legislators have proposed laws to weaken the autonomy of local election officials and put more power over vote-counting in the hands of legislators.'..." McManus's column is here.

Florida. Trump 1, Seminoles 0. Jonathan O'Connell & Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: "Florida legislators approved a legislative package Wednesday that will dramatically expand gambling in the state and sets the stage for ... Donald Trump to pursue a casino license at his Doral golf resort. The legislation includes a 30-year compact with the Seminole Tribe of Florida, negotiated by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), a Trump ally. The compact includes a provision barring the tribe from interfering should the state issue a gambling license to a facility more than 15 miles 'in a straight line' from the tribe's Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood. Trump's Doral resort, which he purchased in 2012 and then spent an estimated $250 million renovating, is slightly more than 15 miles away.... The tribe's opposition has been a major obstacle to efforts to establish new casinos.... It's unclear whether Donald Trump played a role in shaping the legislation, but the former president unexpectedly issued a statement last week endorsing the bill's author, Senate President Wilton Simpson, for state agriculture commissioner (even though Simpson has not announced a run for the position)." The Hill has a summary story here.

Georgia. Eric Bradner of CNN: "In a bid to bolster ... Donald Trump's lies about widespread fraud in the 2020 election, Trump's Republican allies are now seeking Arizona-style audits in other swing states -- including Georgia, where the former President's false claims have set off an intraparty war. A day after Trump said in a statement that Georgia should follow Arizona's lead, former Georgia state Rep. Vernon Jones, a Trump supporter who is challenging incumbent Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in next year's GOP primary, proposed an audit Wednesday."

Kansas. Fine! I'll Call My Own Damned Grand Jury! A Young Woman with Guts. Peter Kendall of the Washington Post: "For three years, the local [Kansas] prosecutor has resolutely refused to make [a rape case against a person then-college student Madison Smith says raped her]: that what began as consensual sex in a college dorm room became a rape, and that she was unable to say 'stop' because her classmate was strangling her. But Smith invoked a vestige of frontier justice that allows citizens in Kansas to summon a grand jury when they think prosecutors are neglecting to bring charges in a crime. The law, dating to the 1800s, was originally used to go after saloonkeepers when authorities ignored violations of statewide prohibition. The 22-year-old graduate is believed to be the first to convene a citizen grand jury after a prosecutor declined to pursue a sex-crime charge." (Also linked yesterday.)

Louisiana. Jim Mustian of the AP: "Louisiana state troopers were captured on body camera video stunning, punching and dragging a Black man [-- Ronald Greene --] as he apologized for leading them on a high-speed chase -- footage of the man's last moments alive that The Associated Press obtained after authorities refused to release it for two years.... The 2019 arrest outside Monroe, Louisiana, is the subject of a federal civil rights investigation.... Louisiana officials have rebuffed repeated calls to release footage and details about what caused the 49-year-old's death. Troopers initially told Greene's family he died on impact after crashing into a tree during the chase. Later, State Police released a one-page statement acknowledging only that Greene struggled with troopers and died on his way to the hospital." MB: Read the whole story. It's horrible. It's torture. It's murder. It's a big fat cover-up. And forget the "allegedly."

Ore-Ida Potatoheads. Douglas Perry of the Oregonian: "Five eastern Oregon counties voted Tuesday in favor of considering becoming part of Idaho. Baker, Grant, Lake, Malheur and Sherman counties join Union and Jefferson, which voted last year to require county officials to study or promote joining Idaho.... Several prominent elected officials in Idaho, including Gov. Brad Little, have expressed support for the movement.... Moving Oregon counties into Idaho remains a long shot, for no matter how many Oregon counties say they want to be part of Idaho, the two state legislatures -- and ultimately the U.S. Congress -- would have to give their approval."

Texas. Edgar Sandoval & Dave Montgomery of the New York Times: "Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas signed into law on Wednesday one of the nation's most restrictive abortion measures, banning the procedure after six weeks of pregnancy and thrusting the state into the advancing national debate over reproductive rights. The legislation, also known as the 'heartbeat law,' amounts to an outright ban on abortion, as many women are not aware they are pregnant at the six-week mark. It also would allow any private citizen to sue doctors or abortion clinic employees who would perform or help arrange for the procedure. The Texas law arrives at a potentially pivotal moment.... This week the Supreme Court announced it would consider a case from Mississippi that could undermine Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that established a constitutional right to abortion."

Way Beyond

Israel. Fares Akram & Joseph Krauss of the AP: "Israel unleashed another wave of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip early Thursday, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding several, and Hamas fired more rockets, even as expectations rose that a cease-fire could be coming. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pushed back against calls from the U.S. to wind down the Gaza offensive, appearing determined to inflict maximum damage on Hamas in a war that could help save his political career. Still, officials close to the negotiations say they expect a truce to be announced in the next 24 hours. Explosions shook Gaza City and orange flares lit up the pre-dawn sky, with bombing raids also reported in the central town of Deir al-Balah and the southern town of Khan Younis. As the sun rose, residents surveyed the rubble from at least five family homes destroyed in Khan Younis. There were also heavy airstrikes on a commercial thoroughfare in Gaza City."

News Lede

CNBC: "The procession of Americans heading to the unemployment line fell last week, with jobless claims totaling a fresh pandemic-era low of 444,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Economist surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting 452,000 new claims as the jobs picture improves thanks to an accelerated economic reopening across the country. The total represented a decline from the previous week's 478,000."