The Conversation -- November 24, 2024

It's still a clown car, but it ain't funny. And who'd'a guessed? -- it's not running on ethical.

Ken Bensinger & David Fahrenthold of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump is keeping secret the names of the donors who are funding his transition effort, a break from tradition that could make it impossible to see what interest groups, businesses or wealthy people are helping launch his second term. Mr. Trump has so far declined to sign an agreement with the Biden administration that imposes strict limits on that fund-raising in exchange for up to $7.2 million in federal funds earmarked for the transition. By dodging the agreement, Mr. Trump can raise unlimited amounts of money from unknown donors to pay for the staff, travel and office space involved in preparing to take over the government.... And unlike with campaign contributions, foreign nationals are allowed to donate to the transition.... Mr. Trump is the first president-elect to sidestep the restrictions, provoking alarm among ethics experts." ~~~

~~~ Brooke Harrington in the Atlantic: In appointing Elon Musk & Vivek Ramaswamy to reorganize the federal government & slash spending, Trump has established "a new political arrangement...: a broligarchy, in which tremendous power is flowing to tech and finance magnates, some of whom appear indifferent or even overtly hostile to democratic tradition.... Though some of them have previously opposed Trump because of his immigration or tariff policies, the broligarchs share his politics of impunity: the idea that some men should be above the law.... The broligarchs' sense of their innate superiority has led many of them to positions on taxation quite similar to Trump's.... The Trump-friendly broligarchs' political ascendancy turns the rallying cry of the Boston Tea Party on its head, achieving representation with minimal taxation.... The broligarchs are distinct from old-school American oligarchs in one key respect: Their political vision seeks to undermine the nation-state system globally.... Cryptocurrency is the financial engine of the broligarchs' political project." This is a gift-link from laura h. and well-worth a read. Thank to her. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I never got the point of cryptocurrency beyond the scam aspects of it (proved beyond reasonable doubt when Trump got involved in crypto), but Harrington explains how the bros plan to weaken the U.S. and other nation-states -- by replacing the fiat money with crypto, in which they are heavily invested.

Maegan Vazquez of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he has picked Brooke Rollins, a former Trump White House policy adviser, to serve as agriculture secretary.... Rollins is president and CEO of the America First Policy Institute, a group that has put together proposals for a second Trump term. The institute, which has nonprofit status, was launched in 2021 by a group of Trump administration veterans.Like the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025, AFPI has sought to provide policy recommendations for the next Republican presidential administration to efficiently stand up an executive branch that will swiftly undo President Joe Biden's legacy..... The organization is chaired by Linda McMahon, Trump's pick for education secretary.... With Rollins, Trump has now announced the full lineup of his proposed Cabinet secretaries."

Mark Berman & David Nakamura of the Washington Post: "Again and again, when Donald Trump has faced scandal and scrutiny, Pam Bondi was there to defend him. Bondi said the Justice Department's special counsel investigation into whether Trump associates coordinated with Russian interference in the 2016 election needed to be dissolved. She declared that the 45th president's first impeachment in 2019 was a 'sham.' And when Trump was indicted four times after leaving office, Bondi was blunt about who deserved legal scrutiny -- and it wasn't the former president. 'The prosecutors will be prosecuted, the bad ones,' Bondi declared on Fox News in 2023, soon after Trump's fourth set of criminal charges. 'The investigators will be investigated.'"

The Drink-Bleach Brigade. Emily Anthes & Emily Baumgaertner of the New York Times: "Mr. Trump's choices [to lead health agencies] ... have all pushed back against Covid policies or supported ideas that are outside the medical mainstream, including an opposition to vaccines. Together, they are a clear repudiation of business as usual.... Robert F. Kennedy Jr., [slated to lead HHS,] has a long track record of spreading falsehoods about vaccines and using his nonprofit, Children's Health Defense, to promote a database of misleading interpretations of research data. He once asserted publicly that 'there's no vaccine that is, you know, safe and effective.'... Dr. David Weldon, Mr. Trump's pick to lead the C.D.C., has also promoted anti-vaccine views.... While in Congress, Dr. Weldon was known for pushing the false notion that thimerosal, a preservative compound in some vaccines, had caused an explosion of autism cases.... Mr. Trump's choice for F.D.A. commissioner, Dr. Martin Makary -- a pancreatic surgeon at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine -- has been broadly supportive of childhood vaccines. But he has questioned the benefits of certain shots.... Dr. Makary has become known -- in opinion articles and on podcasts and spots on Fox News -- for critiquing vaccine mandates and many other parts of U.S. Covid policies, and for arguing that doctors have underestimated natural immunity." ~~~

     ~~~ Ken W. copied part of an article by Tara Haelle, published in Nature in October, that speaks to "the staggering success of vaccines": "

"A May study in the Lancet estimated that vaccines against 14 common pathogens have saved 154 million lives over the past five decades -- at a rate of six lives every minute. They have cut infant mortality by 40 percent globally and by more than 50 percent in Africa. Throughout history vaccines have saved more lives than almost any other intervention.... The Lancet study found that each life saved through immunization resulted in an average 66 years of full health, without the long-term problems that many diseases cause. Vaccines play a role in nearly every measurement of health equity, from improving access to care, to reducing disability and long-term morbidity, to preventing loss of labor and the death of caretakers."

     ~~~ MB: Ken copied this excerpt without attribution or quotation marks. I've gone back in and added a proper citation. But PLEASE, I ask you all not to pass off the writing of others as your own. It's just by chance that I caught this and was able to identify the real writer.

What if the president*-elect picked as advisor who's more hard-right-crazy than John Bolton? Oh ~~~

     ~~~ Edward Helmore of the Guardian: "Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton has laid into Sebastian Gorka, the president-elect's pick for counter-terrorism chief, as a 'conman' whose selection is not 'going to bode well for counter-terrorism efforts when the [national security council's] senior director is somebody like that'.... Democratic National Committee spokesperson Alex Floyd called Gorka 'a far-right extremist who is as dangerous as he is unqualified to lead America's counter-terrorism strategy'."

Alex Horton & John Hudson of the Washington Post: "Sebastian Gorka, the pugilistic commentator who leveraged fears about Islam as a threat to Western civilization into a short-lived role in the first Trump administration, is poised for a second run inside the White House. Gorka was tapped to serve as deputy assistant to the president and senior director for counterterrorism..., Donald Trump said Friday night. Previously, Gorka was an adviser on national security matters for Trump for seven months until his abrupt exit. The role, which doesn't require Senate confirmation, will position Gorka to provide counsel and input on issues he has focused on for years, including hard-line approaches on militant groups and immigration. But if his previous role at the Trump administration is any indication, he is poised to ruffle feathers even among reverent Trump loyalists and other Republicans, who have described him as fringe and underqualified.... 'Almost universally, the entire team considers Gorka a clown,' said a person close to the national security transition team. 'They are dreading working with him.'"

⭐Gabor Scheiring, a former member of the Hungarian parliament, in Politico Magazine: "Trump's goal this time is to remake the American government to enhance his power. He ... he is following a playbook pioneered by Hungary's Viktor Orbán.... Modern-day autocracies come to power through elections, leading to electoral autocracies. These regimes are built from within the democratic system.... Orbán's power grab program runs on two components that you can think of as hardware and software. The populist hardware consists of hijacked institutions. The software is made up of populist discourses and narratives that are used to create and enlist the consent of the ruled. Dismantling the hardware of the Orbán-Trump project requires first defeating its software.... When economic grievances and cultural resentments combine, they create a potent force, generating consent for the autocrat to do what it takes to change the hardware.... Project 2025 echoes Orbán's playbook, pushing to dismantle liberal influence in the 'administrative state' and strengthen executive power." Scheiring has some suggestions for undermining Trump's rule.

Max Bearak of the New York Times: "Negotiators at this year's United Nations climate summit struck an agreement early on Sunday in Baku, Azerbaijan, to triple the flow of money to help developing countries adopt cleaner energy and cope with the effects of climate change. Under the deal, wealthy nations pledged to reach $300 billion per year in support by 2035, up from a current target of $100 billion. Independent experts, however, have placed the needs of developing countries much higher, at $1.3 trillion per year.... As soon as the Azerbaijani hosts banged the gavel and declared the deal done, Chandni Raina, the representative from India, the world's most populous country, tore into them.... 'It is a paltry sum,' Ms. Raina said.... Speakers from one developing country after another, from Bolivia to Nigeria to Fiji, echoed Ms. Raina's remarks and assailed the document in furious statements."

Robert McFadden of the New York Times: "Fred R. Harris, a maverick Oklahoma Democrat who served eight years in the Senate and who lost a race for his party's 1976 presidential nomination in a populist campaign that challenged politics as usual and proposed radical changes for America, died on Saturday in Albuquerque. He was 94."

The Conversation -- November 23, 2024

All the Best People

Marie: Well, the best, only if you think "Dangerous Clown Car" is the best. Frankly, Trump's choices sound like who-all your right-wing cousin Jed would pick. Jed lives in rural North Dakota and recently -- thanks to a Biden program -- gained access to cable teevee and the Internet. How would Jed, who is not very bright but has an overactive mean streak, make his picks? "Oh, that one, yeah. I seen him on the teevee. He kicks ass. Them liberals won't what hit 'em in the backside." "Oh, that one, she's hot." "Ha ha, that ole boy, he's rich as shit and he's gonna make those commies in China wish they never heard of him." "That other one. He looks like a weaselly nerd, but he'll Project-2025 the grins off those smart-ass revenuers and regulators." "That one, I heard she was a lady wrestler. I'm picking her for education where she'll keep the kids in line." "And that one, he'll make sure nobody sticks no needles in you to where you catch the autism." "Yup, yup, seen that one on the teevee." "And that one, too."

Isaac Arnsdorf, et al., of the Washington Post: "The day after former congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration to lead the Justice Department, Trump pushed ahead with a burst of fresh announcements for planned appointments and nominations, including some controversial picks.... Trump ... nam[ed] hedge fund executive Scott Bessent as his choice for treasury secretary following days of hand-wringing over the position that is fifth in the line of succession and of keen interest to global investors. He also said he'd bring back his first-term budget director, Russell Vought, a key author of the Project 2025 policy blueprint who has advocated for unilaterally rejecting spending that Congress authorized, firing federal workers and taking control of independent regulators.

"Trump also announced plans to bring back controversial foreign policy aide Sebastian Gorka.... Alex Wong, a former representative for North Korea and a State Department adviser, was named to return as the principal deputy to the national security adviser....Trump's choice for labor secretary, Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Oregon), flipped the usual Republican pattern because organized labor lobbied for her while business leaders objected. He named Janette Nesheiwat, a medical contributor on Fox News, as his pick for surgeon general; former congressman Dave Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Johns Hopkins surgeon and public health expert Marty Makary as Food and Drug Administration commissioner; and retired football player and former Texas state representative Scott Turner for secretary of housing and urban development." The AP's report is here. ~~~

~~~ Marie: Sneaking in Sebastian Gorka, the (alleged!) Hungarian Nazi, was deft.

Alan Rappeport & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump picked Scott Bessent to serve as Treasury secretary on Friday, tapping a billionaire hedge fund manager to lead an economic agenda that is expected to be built around raising tariffs and cutting taxes. Mr. Bessent, the founder of the investment firm Key Square Capital Management, has emerged as a central economic adviser to Mr. Trump over the past year. He has called for rolling back government subsidies, deregulating the economy and raising domestic energy production. Unlike many on Wall Street, Mr. Bessent, 62, has also defended the use of tariffs, which are Mr. Trump's favorite economic tool." See also AlterNet story, linked below, re: Walmart's honest admission that that its customers would pay the costs of tariffs.

To the Victor Go the Spoils. Ana Swanson of the New York Times: "As Mr. Trump dangles new and potentially more expensive tariffs [than he imposed in his first term], many companies are already angling to obtain relief. Lawyers and lobbyists in Washington say they are receiving an influx of requests from companies that want to hire their services.... While Mr. Trump has often promised to 'drain the swamp' in Washington, some have argued that these trade rules did the opposite. Tracking by OpenSecrets ... showed that the number of clients lobbying Congress on trade issues ticked up noticeably once Mr. Trump took office.... One recent economic study also found evidence that Trump officials had used the exemption process to reward their supporters and punish opponents. The study, which looked at nearly 7,000 company applications, found that an increase in past contributions to Republicans raised the likelihood of a company's receiving an exemption. A history of past contributions to Democrats, meanwhile, decreased a company’s chances of winning a lucrative exemption."

Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump on Friday picked a key figure in Project 2025 to lead the Office of Management and Budget, elevating a longtime ally who has spent the last four years making plans to rework the American government to enhance presidential power. The would-be nominee, Russell T. Vought, would oversee the White House budget and help determine whether federal agencies comport with the president's policies. The role requires Senate confirmation unless Mr. Trump is able to make recess appointments. The choice of Mr. Vought would bring in a strongly ideological figure who played a pivotal role in Mr. Trump's first term, when he also served as budget chief. Among other things, Mr. Vought helped come up with the idea of having Mr. Trump use emergency power to circumvent Congress's decision about how much to spend on a border wall.... In an interview with The New York Times in 2023, Mr. Vought laid out an agenda of eliminating the independence of certain regulatory agencies that operate outside the direct control of the White House, such as the Federal Communications Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission." Politico's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Scott Lemieux in LG&$: "Project 2025 may not what have been what the marginal Trump supporter was voting for, but it's sure what they're going to get."

Lauren Gurley of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump selected Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer (R-Oregon) to lead the Labor Department, following some heavy lobbying from the Teamsters union.... Teamsters President Sean O'Brien thanked Trump in a post on the social media platform X on Friday.... Chavez-DeRemer's selection was a surprise in Washington and marked an unusual nod toward the labor movement, whose rank-and-file members often embraced Trump during the election. DeRemer, 56, is a moderate Republican who has served on bipartisan congressional caucuses and supported pro-union legislation. She lost her reelection bid this month. Her nomination was fiercely opposed by many business leaders."

Dan Diamond & Rachel Roubein of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump on Friday night named three doctors to oversee the nation's vaccine supply, disease response and other responsibilities central to America's public health, plucking physicians who bring a mix of conservative credentials and Fox News appearances. Trump picked Marty Makary, a Johns Hopkins surgeon, to lead the Food and Drug Administration, a roughly $7 billion agency.... Makary emerged as a prominent critic of the FDA and other public health agencies during the coronavirus pandemic, contending that officials pursued overly harsh vaccination mandates and did not countenance alternative strategies, such as the protections conferred by infections, also known as 'natural immunity.'...

The president-elect defied some predictions by picking Dave Weldon, an internal medicine physician and former GOP congressman, to run the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.... Weldon, as a congressman in the 2000s, sought to remove vaccine safety oversight from CDC and transfer it to an independent agency, arguing that the CDC suffered from conflicts of interest.... Weldon and Makary were recommended by [Robert F.] Kennedy [Jr.]'s advisers.... Trump surprised many in his own party by announcing Janette Nesheiwat, a family and emergency medicine physician, to be the next U.S. surgeon general.... Nesheiwat, who has a limited national profile, is [a Fox 'News' contributor and] the sister-in-law of Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Florida), whom Trump has chosen as his national security adviser. Her sister, Julia Nesheiwat, served as homeland security adviser in the first Trump administration."

Christina Jewett of the New York Times on Dr. Martin Makery [rhymes with "quackery"???], whom Trump has chosen to run the F.D.A. "In recent months, Dr. Makary has publicly sought to align his views with the current pronouncements of" RFK, Jr., who would be his boss. MB: Still, Makery sounds lessy goofy than Bobby Junior and -- unlike Bobby -- Makery is well-credentialed.

Joseph Goldstein of the New York Times has more on Dr. Janette Nesheiwat, Trump's choice for surgeon general and frequent Fox "News" guest.

Carl Gibson of AlterNet: Sebastian Gorka, "a former aide to ... Donald Trump in his first administration has just received a high-profile appointment to the White House National Security Council (NSC) -- despite being a member of a far-right group with ties to Nazi Germany.... In 2017, NBC News reported that Gorka was photographed wearing a medal associated with the Hungarian organization Vitezi Rend (which translates to 'valiant order'), and that he occasionally signs his name with a lowercase 'v' which order members use as an identifier. NBC also cited Jewish newspaper the Forward's report that three Vitezi Rend leaders confirmed that Gorka was a lifelong member. The Forward reported in early 2017 that the State Department described Vitezi Rend as having been 'under the direction of the Nazi Government of Germany.' During World War II, members of the group helped deliver hundreds of thousands of Hungarian Jews into the hands of the Hitler regime, which massacred nearly all of them."

Diana Falzone of Mediaite: ... Donald Trump was misled by cabinet nominees Matt Gaetz and Pete Hegseth about the extent of the misconduct allegations against them, according to several sources who spoke with Mediaite. One source [said the contents of the House Ethics report on Gaetz] were far more damning than Gaetz had led the president-elect to believe.... Another source, who served on the Trump campaign, told Mediaite that when Gaetz was confronted about the allegations of sexual misconduct against him he 'denied, denied, denied.'... A source said Hegseth -- who has been married three times and has pursued multiple extra-marital affairs -- was asked if there were any scandals from his past and even if he had ever signed a non-disclosure agreement. 'He told the campaign there's no issues,' said the source. 'There's no assault issues. There's no NDA. Compounding lies.'...

"Underlying all of this: each time the media reports on the alleged sexual misconduct of Hegseth and Gaetz -- as well as Trump's pick for education secretary Linda McMahon and her alleged role in concealing sex abuse during her tenure as a WWE executive -- Trump's own sexual misconduct is mentioned." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So Trump is angry because his nominees got caught (allegedly!) committing serious sex crimes, and what so perturbs Trump is that those crimes evoke Trump's own sex-related crimes and (alleged! and adjudicated) sex crimes. But the fact that his Defense Secretary nominee has advocated in writing for using the military to violently attack liberal Americans does not seem to bother Trump at all. ~~~

~~~ Pete Is One Scary-Crazy Dude. Jason Wilson of the Guardian: "Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump's pick for defense secretary, has written in a book that he could imagine a scenario in which the US armed forces would be used violently in American domestic politics.... He wrote that in the event of a Democratic election victory in the US there would be a 'national divorce' in which 'The military and police ... will be forced to make a choice' and 'Yes, there will be some form of civil war.' Hegseth's 2020 book exhorts conservatives to undertake 'an AMERICAN CRUSADE', to 'mock, humiliate, intimidate, and crush our leftist opponents', to 'attack first' in response to a left he identifies with 'sedition', and he writes that the book 'lays out the strategy we must employ in order to defeat America's internal enemies'." See also Jonathan Chait's Atlantic piece, gift-linked yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.)

Katie Lillis, et al., of CNN: "Tulsi Gabbard, Donald Trump's pick to lead the intelligence community, was briefly placed on a Transportation Security Administration list that prompts additional security screening before flights after her overseas travel patterns and foreign connections triggered a government algorithm earlier this year, three sources familiar with the matter told CNN. Gabbard was quickly removed from the list ... after going public with claims she had been added to a 'secret terror watchlist.' A federal official familiar with the program told CNN there are specified criteria for removing or adding individuals and that no one is removed from the list because of public statements they make. Gabbard has claimed she was put on the list because she had criticized then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris in an interview with Fox News -- something two of the sources flatly denied had anything to do with it."

Philip Bump of the Washington Post details how Pam Bondi, Trump's latest pick for attorney general, has flacked for Trump, usually under suspicious circumstances, so Bump has to write sentences like, "an investigation into the interaction determined there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Eric Lipton of the New York Times takes up the matter of Bondi's office deciding not to investigate one of Trump's fakiest scams -- Trump "University" -- after Trump gave Bondi an illegal campaign contribution from his fake "foundation." One thing I didn't know: "Mr. Trump also donated to Kamala Harris while she was attorney general of California, and after reviewing the matter, her office also did not pursue."

Maureen Dowd of the New York Times: "Donald Trump proclaimed that he would be the protector of women. That seems to involve anointing creeps from whom women need protection.... The future is a president who dragged women back to the past by overturning Roe. Trump, who was himself found liable for sexual abuse, moved to elevate three men accused of sexual misconduct -- one with a minor -- to fill three crucial cabinet posts.... It is a searing affront to women.... In putting forward three men accused of sexual misconduct, Trump is conveying that men like himself are the perpetual victims of lies, so it should not be disqualifying. He is turning what he told Billy Bush on the 'Access Hollywood' tape into a presidential mantra: 'When you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything.'" MB: Dowd's description of Trump going the fights with an entourage is sickening.

Reign of Terror -- This Bit Is in the Planning Stages. Amy Gardner, et al., of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump plans to fire the entire team that worked with special counsel Jack Smith to pursue two federal prosecutions against the former president, including career attorneys typically protected from political retribution, according to two individuals close to Trump's transition. Trump is also planning to assemble investigative teams within the Justice Department to hunt for evidence in battleground states that fraud tainted the 2020 election, one of the people said.... It's not clear how quickly or easily Trump could fire career staff... It could take years..., as the untested issue of firing masses of federal workers makes its way through the courts.... Most [of Smith's staff] ... are mid- and upper-level career staffers on detail to the special counsel's team from divisions within the main Justice Department ... or from U.S. attorneys' offices throughout the country." Smith plans to resign before Trump can fire him.

Reign of Terror, Ctd. This Bit Is Playing Out on Xitter. Sarah Burris of the Raw Story: "The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that [Elon Musk,] the 'Department of Government Efficiency' co-director, is tweeting out the names and personal details of federal employees, leading to some of his more than 205 million followers to 'launch blistering critiques of ordinary' workers. Ashley Thomas, a little-known director of 'climate diversity' at the U.S. International Development Financial Corp., was targeted by the billionaire, who called her job 'fake.' The tweet received 32 million views and spawned a flood of memes making fun of her and telling her that her job would be over soon, the report stated.... Read the full report here." (It's firewalled.)

digby, speaking of Elon Musk: "He's no genius, I'm sorry. He's a talented entrepreneur, obviously, but there's no reason to believe he understands anything other than that. When it comes to philosophy, ideology, politics, history -- the world -- he's no better than your average right wing troll on Truth Social, operating from a gut that favors bigotry, selfishness and stupidity. He's clueless about government and he's going to crash and burn." As for Musk's relationship with Trump, "It's not going to work out. Right now Trump may be enjoying the fact that the richest man in the world is his BFF. But before too long he's going to realize that the richest man in the world is trying to usurp him -- the most powerful man in the world -- and he's going to get sick of him. At this point I wouldn't bet on Musk being around even 3 months from now."

Michael Schaffer of Politico Magazine: "Trump won less than 50 percent [of the vote].... The numbers might seem a wee bit jarring to anyone who has been listening to Washington's triumphal Republicans and self-flagellating Democrats -- all of whom seem to have internalized a version of the story that involves a romping, stomping Trump triumph.... Trump's victory was described as 'resounding' by news organizations ranging from the Associated Press to the The Washington Post to the The New York Times to POLITICO. Others offered 'commanding win,' 'runaway win' and 'dominant victory.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ digby: Despite the Trump campaign's claims that his victory was "massive" and "historic," it was neither. Trump himself has claimed to have won "a powerful mandate." And the whole gang is mighty unhappy outlets like the New York Times & Politico Magazine are reporting the facts about his narrow win.(Also linked yesterday.)

Ben Protess of the New York Times: "A New York judge on Friday postponed ... Donald J. Trump's sentencing in his Manhattan criminal case, confirming that the former and future president would not receive his punishment next week. Mr. Trump was convicted in May of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal and was scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday, but his election victory made that all but impossible. The judge had already decided to halt the sentencing while Mr. Trump's lawyers sought to have the whole case thrown out. Prosecutors from the office of Alvin L. Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, declined to drop the case this week, noting that a jury had already convicted Mr. Trump. But they agreed to delay the sentencing and signaled a willingness to freeze the case for four years while Mr. Trump holds office. So far, the judge, Juan M. Merchan, has not ruled on whether to freeze the case or dismiss it." (Also linked yesterday.)

Carl Gibson of AlterNet: "Walmart -- the world's largest retailer -- is now issuing a warning to customers that they may be paying more for the same products if ... Donald Trump makes good on his promise to impose new tariffs on imports. Fortune reported Friday that Walmart's finance chief, John David Rainey, has acknowledged that new tariffs would likely be passed on to the people buying goods imported from overseas. Currently, anywhere from 70% to 80% of goods sold at Walmart are made in China, and could be affected by potential new tariffs. In September, PBS reported that Trump proposed tariffs as high as 60% on imports from China, and 20% tariffs on products made elsewhere.... 'We're going to work with our suppliers as well as our own private brand assortment to continue to try to bring down prices for customers,' [Rainey said]. 'But we're not immune, and tariffs will be inflationary for customers.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is kinda half an admission. Tariffs on foreign-made goods (and on parts used in domestically-assembled goods) will also raise prices on good made primarily in the U.S. Obviously, if you're a U.S. manufacturer, and the price of your competitor's hammer goes from $10 to $20, you're going to raise the price of your $12 hammer to closer to $20. Why? Because your $19 hammer is still the bargain. Your costs have not increased, but your profits have. Yay!

~~~~~~~~~~

Arizona. Adeel Hassan of the New York Times: Elizabeth Gutfahr, the elected treasurer of Santa Cruze County, Arizona, "siphoned off $38 million [in county funds] to acquire about two dozen vehicles -- including Cadillacs and a Mercedes -- buy real estate and renovate her family ranch, the Justice Department said this week. Ms. Gutfahr, 62, who held the post from 2013 through early 2024, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Tucson on Thursday to one felony count each of embezzlement by a public official, money laundering and tax evasion. She could face up to 35 years in prison when she is sentenced in February." MB: On the other hand, a photo of a well-appointed room in her family home demonstrates that the renovations she made at county expense were in good taste. So embezzled funds well-spent.

Florida. Kimberly Leonard of Politico: "Florida will conduct a special election on April 1, 2025 [April Fool's Day], to fill the House seat vacated by Matt Gaetz, kicking off a sprint among Florida Republicans to represent the deep-red district.... On Friday morning, Gaetz said he did not plan to return to Congress but hasn't announced what he'll do next.... The primaries are set for January 28, but whoever wins the GOP nomination will be the heavy favorite over the Democratic pick." (Also linked yesterday.)

Florida. Fenit Nirappil & Dan Diamond of the Washington Post: "The top health official of the nation's third-largest state called Friday for a halt to adding fluoride to Florida's water, citing controversial studies that suggest the widely hailed public health practice poses a risk to developing brains. Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo issued a recommendation citing 'the neuropsychiatric risk associated with fluoride exposure, particularly in pregnant women and children,' and noting the availability of alternative sources of fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash.... Ladapo's announcement comes three weeks after Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is ... Donald Trump's choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, said the Trump administration plans to issue a similar recommendation nationwide next year. Kennedy's remarks drew rebukes from public health experts who say that the practice has helped protect Americans' teeth, particularly in vulnerable communities where children might not regularly brush their teeth." Thanks to Ken W. for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

Texas. Troy Closson of the New York Times: "Texas education officials on Friday approved a new elementary school curriculum that draws from the Bible, the final step of a contentious effort to expand religious instruction in the state. The reading and language arts curriculum, which will be optional for schools, could serve as a model for conservative Christian leaders in other states.... The curriculum incorporates into English lessons stories from the Bible such as Jesus and his Sermon on the Mount, the parable of the Prodigal Son and the Old Testament tale of Esther." (Also linked yesterday.) The AP story is here.

The Conversation -- November 22, 2024

Ben Protess of the New York Times: "A New York judge on Friday postponed ... Donald J. Trump's sentencing in his Manhattan criminal case, confirming that the former and future president would not receive his punishment next week. Mr. Trump was convicted in May of falsifying business records to cover up a sex scandal and was scheduled to be sentenced on Tuesday, but his election victory made that all but impossible. The judge had already decided to halt the sentencing while Mr. Trump's lawyers sought to have the whole case thrown out. Prosecutors from the office of Alvin L. Bragg, the Manhattan district attorney, declined to drop the case this week, noting that a jury had already convicted Mr. Trump. But they agreed to delay the sentencing and signaled a willingness to freeze the case for four years while Mr. Trump holds office. So far, the judge, Juan M. Merchan, has not ruled on whether to freeze the case or dismiss it."

Michael Schaffer of Politico Magazine: "Trump won less than 50 percent [of the vote].... The numbers might seem a wee bit jarring to anyone who has been listening to Washington's triumphal Republicans and self-flagellating Democrats -- all of whom seem to have internalized a version of the story that involves a romping, stomping Trump triumph.... Trump's victory was described as 'resounding' by news organizations ranging from the Associated Press to the The Washington Post to the The New York Times to POLITICO. Others offered 'commanding win,' 'runaway win' and 'dominant victory.'" ~~~

~~~ digby: Despite the Trump campaign's claims that his victory was "massive" and "historic," it was neither. Trump himself has claimed to have won "a powerful mandate." And the whole gang is mighty unhappy outlets like the New York Times & Politico Magazine are reporting the facts about his narrow win.

Pete Is One Scary-Crazy Dude. Jason Wilson of the Guardian: "Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump's pick for defense secretary, has written in a book that he could imagine a scenario in which the US armed forces would be used violently in American domestic politics.... He wrote that in the event of a Democratic election victory in the US there would be a 'national divorce' in which 'The military and police &... will be forced to make a choice' and 'Yes, there will be some form of civil war.' Hegseth's 2020 book exhorts conservatives to undertake 'an AMERICAN CRUSADE', to 'mock, humiliate, intimidate, and crush our leftist opponents', to 'attack first' in response to a left he identifies with 'sedition', and he writes that the book 'lays out the strategy we must employ in order to defeat America's internal enemies'." See also Jonathan Chait's Atlantic piece, gift-linked below.

Philip Bump of the Washington Post details how Pam Bondi, Trump's latest pick for attorney general, has flacked for Trump, usually under suspicious circumstances, so Bump has to write sentences like, "an investigation into the interaction determined there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges."

Florida. Kimberly Leonard of Politico: "Florida will conduct a special election on April 1, 2025 [April Fool's Day], to fill the House seat vacated by Matt Gaetz, kicking off a sprint among Florida Republicans to represent the deep-red district.... On Friday morning, Gaetz said he did not plan to return to Congress but hasn't announced what he'll do next.... The primaries are set for January 28, but whoever wins the GOP nomination will be the heavy favorite over the Democratic pick."

Fenit Nirappil & Dan Diamond of the Washington Post: "The top health official of the nation's third-largest state called Friday for a halt to adding fluoride to Florida's water, citing controversial studies that suggest the widely hailed public health practice poses a risk to developing brains. Surgeon General Joseph A. Ladapo issued a recommendation citing 'the neuropsychiatric risk associated with fluoride exposure, particularly in pregnant women and children,' and noting the availability of alternative sources of fluoride in toothpaste and mouthwash.... Ladapo's announcement comes three weeks after Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who is ... Donald Trump's choice to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, said the Trump administration plans to issue a similar recommendation nationwide next year. Kennedy's remarks drew rebukes from public health experts who say that the practice has helped protect Americans' teeth, particularly in vulnerable communities where children might not regularly brush their teeth." Thanks to Ken W. for the link.

Texas. Troy Closson of the New York Times: "Texas education officials on Friday approved a new elementary school curriculum that draws from the Bible, the final step of a contentious effort to expand religious instruction in the state. The reading and language arts curriculum, which will be optional for schools, could serve as a model for conservative Christian leaders in other states.... The curriculum incorporates into English lessons stories from the Bible such as Jesus and his Sermon on the Mount, the parable of the Prodigal Son and the Old Testament tale of Esther."

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Fritz Farrow of ABC News: "President Joe Biden on Wednesday awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to former Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards at a private ceremony, the White House said. Richards, the daughter of the late Texas Gov. Ann Richards, left the reproductive health care organization in 2018 after leading it for 12 years. Earlier this year, Richards revealed she was battling glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer -- the same that killed Biden's son Beau." (Also linked yesterday.)

Eric Tucker & Alanna Richer of the AP: "... Donald Trump on Thursday named Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, to be U.S. attorney general just hours after his other choice, Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name from consideration. Bondi is a longtime Trump ally and was one of his lawyers during his first impeachment trial, when he was accused - but not convicted -- of abusing his power as he tried to condition U.S. military assistance to Ukraine on that country investigating then-former Vice President Joe Biden. Bondi was among a group of Republicans who showed up to support Trump at his hush money criminal trial in New York that ended in May with a conviction on 34 felony counts. She's been a chair at the America First Policy Institute, a think tank set up by former Trump administration staffers." MB: There is a reason Trump is choosing awful Floridians for a top job; it has something to do with humiliating Gov. DeSantolini, and I'm not going to bother to figure out just how that is supposed to go down. (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here.

     ~~~ Liz Goodwin, et al., of the Washington Post: "Bondi was a local prosecutor in Hillsborough County [Tampa], Florida, and ran to be the state's attorney general in 2010. In that position, she joined other Republican state attorneys general in suing unsuccessfully to strike down the Affordable Care Act.... In 2013, Trump's charity made a $25,000 contribution to a political group backing Bondi, in violation of federal tax rules. Trump's foundation later called the donation an error. The contribution was additionally controversial because it coincided with Bondi's decision not to pursue fraud complaints against Trump's for-profit real-estate-seminar business. She endorsed Trump in the 2016 Republican primary.... Bondi was among the Trump supporters and surrogates who trumpeted claims without evidence that fraud had occurred in the 2020 election." (This story also is linked below.) MB: So Trump & Bondi also have a kind of criminal bond. Sweet.

⭐ Eric Tucker of the AP: "Matt Gaetz withdrew Thursday as ... Donald Trump's pick for attorney general following continued scrutiny over a federal sex trafficking investigation that cast doubt on the former congressman's ability to be confirmed as the nation's chief federal law enforcement officer. The Florida Republican's announcement came one day after meeting with senators in an effort to win their support for his confirmation to lead the Justice Department. 'While the momentum was strong, it is clear that my confirmation was unfairly becoming a distraction to the critical work of the Trump/Vance Transition,' Gaetz said in a statement announcing his decision." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Peter Baker, et al., of the New York Times: "Matt Gaetz ... abruptly withdrew his bid to become attorney general on Thursday in the first major political setback for President-elect Donald J. Trump since his election this month. Mr. Gaetz has consistently denied the allegations, but his prospective nomination ran into trouble in the Senate, where Republicans were deeply reluctant to confirm someone to run the same Justice Department that once investigated him for allegations of sex trafficking an underage girl.... Two people with direct knowledge of Mr. Gaetz's thinking said he made the decision to pull out after concluding that he would not have the votes in the Senate for confirmation.... The collapse of Mr. Gaetz's selection underscored the haphazard way that Mr. Trump has gone about assembling his new administration. He picked Mr. Gaetz almost on a whim last week without extensive vetting, knowing that allegations were out there, but essentially daring Senate Republicans to accept him anyway.... Mr. Trump did not indicate who he might select as attorney general instead." MB: Better call Saul. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Liz Goodwin, et al., of the Washington Post: "Gaetz and Vice President-elect JD Vance spent Wednesday courting votes in the Capitol among GOP senators who sit on the Judiciary Committee, one of whom warned that Gaetz's confirmation hearing would be like 'Kavanaugh on steroids.'... In those private meetings, Gaetz and Vance acknowledged that they were lacking the support they needed, according to a person familiar with the discussions.... Gaetz seemed nervous and did not appear familiar with the scope of the Justice Department, the person said.... 'I think that was appropriate,' said Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) when asked for his reaction to the news that Gaetz withdrew.... There was a widespread recognition in Trump's orbit that Gaetz did not have the votes to get confirmed, said a person involved on Trump's team.... Trump had not realized that his announcement of Gaetz's selection would come just before the potential release of a House Ethics Committee report on Gaetz, and was furious at the pick's failure. 'The game changed as of today,' the person said. 'McConnell just told MAGA, "I took down your golden boy in a week."'" (This story also is linked above.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Gaetz has been credibly accused of having sex with a minor, participating in drug-fueled orgies and of trafficking sex workers, he can't get along with his Congressional colleagues, he's barely practiced law, and he's "unfamiliar with the scope of the Justice Department." And here's how the reporters characterize him in the lede to this story: one "of the president-elect's unconventional Cabinet picks." Un-effing-conventional. Right. Choosing Caligula's horse would be "unconventional" (though as Akhilleus pointed out several days ago, not as bad as Trump's picks). ~~~

     ~~~ Scoop! Trump Pulled the Plug. Marc Caputo of the Bulwark: "Eight days after making the snap decision to nominate Matt Gaetz to be the nation's next attorney general, Trump phoned him Thursday morning to tell him he wouldn't get confirmed, according to a source briefed on the conversation. The president-elect explained that Republican senators were too troubled by the sex scandals and investigations surrounding Gaetz and that the constant and salacious distractions had doomed him. 'You don't have the votes,' Trump said, according to the source. 'These senators aren't moving.' Another source familiar with the conversation between Trump and Gaetz said Gaetz had acknowledged he had between four and six Republican votes against him. He could only lose three.... Dumping Gaetz constituted a remarkable about face for Trump, who had not only been adamant that Gaetz would be his attorney general but who had floated the possibility of using a recess appointment to install him." ~~~

~~~ Paula Reid & Sarah Ferris of CNN: "The woman who says she had sex when she was a minor with then-Rep. Matt Gaetz told the House Ethics Committee she had two sexual encounters with him at one party in 2017, sources familiar with her testimony tell CNN. The woman, who was 17 years old at the time, testified that the second sexual encounter, which has not previously been reported, included another adult woman. She also testified to both sexual encounters in a civil deposition as part of a related lawsuit, sources said. After being asked for comment for this story, Gaetz announced he was backing out as ... Donald Trump';s attorney general nominee.... The other woman who was an adult at the time has denied participating in the alleged second encounter, according to multiple sources...." (Also linked yesterday.)

Here's the redacted Monterey, California, police report on the 2017 incident in which a woman told police Pete Hegseth had sexually assaulted her. Via NBC News. New York Times story, by Sharon LaFraniere, linked yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

⭐~~~ Jonathan Chait of the Atlantic: "Hegseth has devoted a great deal of time to documenting his worldview, including three books published in the past four years.... The man who emerges from the page appears to have sunk deeply into conspiracy theories that are bizarre even by contemporary Republican standards.... He considers himself to be at war with basically everybody to Trump's left, and it is by no means clear that he means war metaphorically.... And given the power he is likely to hold -- command over 2 million American military personnel -- he is almost certainly far more dangerous than any of [Trump's other nominees].... Hegseth puts forward a wide range of familiarly misguided ideas: vaccines are 'poisonous'; climate change is a hoax (they used to warn about global cooling, you know); George Floyd died of a drug overdose and was not murdered; the Holocaust was perpetrated by 'German socialists.' Where Hegseth's thinking begins venturing into truly odd territory is his argument ... that the entire basic design of the U.S. public education system is the product of a century-long, totally successful communist plot.... [He] calls for the 'categorical defeat of the Left,' with the goal of 'utter annihilation,' without which 'America cannot, and will not, survive.'... Hegseth incessantly equates the left to wartime enemies." Oh, read on. Thanks to laura h. for this gift link, which she made at the end of yesterday's Comments. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Should Hegseth make it as far as Senate hearings, it sounds as if Democrats should hold a story time, where they perform dramatic readings of portions of Hegseth's insane rantings. Maybe at the ends of their allotted times they could ask some pointed questions.

Here's CNN's report on the lawsuit against Linda McMahon, Trump choice for Education Secretary, in which plaintiffs (five John Does) allege she "knowingly enabled the sexual exploitation of children by a World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) employee." Washington Post story, by Reinhard & Bhattarai, linked yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.)

Here's a moment in the never-ending comedy series, "Trump Grifts": ~~~

Can't Dance, Can't Sing, Sells Guitars. Charlie Nash of Mediaite: "... Donald Trump announced the release of a series of 'limited edition' signed guitars on Wednesday, with the 'Make America Great Again' emblazoned instruments selling for as much as $10,000. 'Coming Soon! The Limited Edition "45 Guitar. Only 1,300 of each Acoustic and Electric Guitars MADE -- Some personally signed!' announced Trump in a social media post, attached to a photo of him holding one of the guitars. On its website, Trump Guitars boasts it is 'the only guitar officially endorsed by President Donald J. Trump.'" In the monologue embedded yesterday, Jimmy Kimmel says Trump can't play guitar. I would give that a 99.9 percent chance of being true. (Also linked yesterday.)

Marie: According to Google's dictionary, "retribution" is "punishment inflicted on someone as vengeance for a wrong or criminal act." So 99 percent of Trump's pledge to obtain "retribution" against his perceived enemies is not retribution at all, because the actions of his foes were neither wrong nor criminal. Perhaps Trump really is seeking "retaliation" or "punishment," but there too is an implication that one's adversaries have committed some wrongful act. So in my opinion, Trump is going for pure assault. And here the assault begins: ~~~

~~~ Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump on Wednesday instructed congressional Republicans to block the passage of a bipartisan federal shield bill intended to strengthen the ability of reporters to protect confidential sources, dealing a potentially fatal political blow to the measure -- even though the Republican-controlled House had already passed it unanimously. The call by Mr. Trump makes it less likely that the bill -- the Protect Reporters from Exploitative State Spying Act, or PRESS Act -- will reach the Senate floor and be passed before the current session of Congress ends next month.... Mr. Trump issued the edict in a post on his Truth Social platform Wednesday afternoon. Citing a 'PBS NewsHour' report about the federal shield legislation, he wrote: 'REPUBLICANS MUST KILL THIS BILL!'

"Mr. Trump has exhibited extreme hostility to mainstream news reporters, whom he has often referred to as 'enemies of the people.' In his first term as president, he demanded a crackdown on leaks that eventually entailed secretly seizing the private communications of reporters, including some from The New York Times, The Washington Post and CNN." (Also linked yesterday.)

So we're on about Chapter 3 of the Department of Government Efficiency comedy series, and some familiar characters are about to join the cast: ~~~

~~~ Rebecca Shabad of NBC News: "The House Oversight Committee announced Thursday that Republicans plan to create a subcommittee that would work with Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy on ... Donald Trump's recently announced advisory group, the 'Department of Government Efficiency.' The GOP-controlled panel said in a post on X that the subcommittee, which would be formed for the next Congress starting in January, would be chaired by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., told Fox News that the subcommittee would 'align with the Trump administration's priorities to eliminate government waste, streamline the federal government's operations and cut red tape that's stifling jobs and increasing costs for the American people.'" (Also linked yesterday.) The New York Times story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: As you know, Comer and Greene are old hands at buffoonery, and should be welcome additions to the high jinks. Will Jim keep up his hilarious history of making pratfalls the way he did when "investigating" Joe & Hunter Biden? Who will Miss Margie -- who has blamed Jews for wildfires and Democrats for hurricanes -- pick as the scapegoat for government inefficiency?

Reid Epstein of the New York Times: "Speaking on Thursday to a group of young, Democratic elected officials, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg made a case for reorienting how the party communicates with voters, even as he warned that expressing outrage at ... Donald J. Trump would not be enough to lead Democrats to victory.... 'We've got to figure out how to take online conversations offline at scale,' he said. 'While it is not obvious how to do that, that is something that through human history until about 15 years ago, we all did. And so we're going to have ways to do that that might on some level be a return to form but on other levels, entail information environment work that is unfamiliar to people who have taken a free press in a democratic society for granted.'"

Greg Sargent of the New Republic, republished by Yahoo! News: "You probably missed it, because it created barely a ripple in the media, but last Friday, a federal judge appointed by Donald Trump struck down one of President Biden's most pro-worker policies: his effort to ensure that far more Americans benefit from overtime pay. Around four million salaried workers with lower incomes are the losers in this decision, yet it generated startlingly few news stories and no outraged missives from leading columnists.... The Justice Department hasn't said whether it will appeal the decision striking the rule down. It should, to compel Trump to either keep defending it or actively let it die." Read all of Sargent's piece. This isn't about one mean judge; it's about GOP politicians' hypocrisy and their ever-so-fake embrace of working people. (Also linked yesterday.)

It Takes More than $148MM to Shut Up Rudy. Brandi Buchman of the Huffington Post: "A civil contempt hearing is now on the books in Washington, D.C., for Rudy Giuliani -- just a day after two election workers he defamed, Ruby Freeman and Shaye Moss, notified a judge that they believed the former New York City mayor has continued to smear them publicly. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell ordered Giuliani on Thursday to respond to the motion for civil contempt by Dec. 2.... In recent comments on his podcast..., Giuliani repeated his lie that the mother-daughter duo passed a USB drive to each other containing votes for Joe Biden when they were working the polls at an arena in Atlanta in Nov. 2020.... Giuliani's statements aired on Nov. 12 and Nov. 14.... In one of the podcasts this month, Giuliani claimed the women were 'quadruple-counting votes.' He also seemed to criticize Howell, who will oversee the civil contempt hearing, by calling her 'bloodthirsty.'"

Joyce Vance on Substack: "Voters who ignored the facts about the [excellent] economy and used them as an excuse to vote for Trump weren't people who wanted a change.... They didn't like new policies advanced by the Biden-Harris administration, a more inclusive vision of America where traditionally marginalized people had equal opportunity.... They wanted the 'old stability,' the patriarchy that has run the country for generations. In many ways, that's what's at the heart of the conservative coalition. It's not a rejection of the established order; it's an embrace of it. If that's what Trump voters thought they were getting, they may be sorely disappointed.... People who voted their pocketbook without concern for their children, or at least their ability to find someone to clean their house, are going to be in for a rude awakening. We'll get back on our game and be ready by the time Trump is sworn into office." Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

Tobi Raji of the Washington Post: "Senate Democrats have reached a deal with their Republican counterparts to confirm a dozen judges nominated by President Joe Biden while pulling four of his nominees from consideration, the latest step in a battle over who controls the nation's federal courthouses on the eve of a second Donald Trump presidency.... A spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-New York) told The Washington Post that all of Biden's remaining appeals court nominees will be withdrawn as part of the deal struck with Republicans to get 12 lower-court judges confirmed. He said none of the four had the 50 votes needed for Senate confirmation.... Seven other nominees will not advance. They are still in committee or awaiting confirmation hearings....

"At the same time, lawmakers are facing new pushback against a bill that would increase the number of federal judges across the country, with some Democrats reluctant to give Trump more judgeships to fill. The bill -- known as the Judges Act -- was initially bipartisan, passing unanimously in the Senate over the summer. It remained stalled in the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday night as lawmakers headed home for the Thanksgiving recess." The Huffington Post's report is here.

Katie Glueck of the New York Times: "Senator Bob Casey, a three-term Democrat from Pennsylvania long seen as an institution in state politics, conceded on Thursday to his Republican challenger, the former hedge-fund executive David McCormick, amid a recount in one of the nation's top Senate races." (Also linked yesterday.)

Thalia Beaty & Farnoush Amiri of the AP: "The U.S. House passed legislation Thursday that would give the Treasury Department unilateral authority to strip the tax-exempt status of nonprofits it claims support terrorism, alarming civil liberties groups about how a second Trump presidency could invoke it to punish political opponents.... The proposal has drawn concern from a range of nonprofits who say it could be used to target organizations, including news outlets, universities, and civil society groups, that a future presidential administration disagrees with. They say it does not offer groups enough due process.... Critics also see it as redundant as it is already against U.S. law to support designated terrorist groups.... The bill passed 219-184, with the majority of the support coming from Republicans who accused Democrats of reversing course in their support for the 'common sense' proposal only after Donald Trump was elected to a second term earlier this month."

Marie: I am happy to report that Monica Hesse of the Washington Post has a column today in which she explains to Rep. Nancy Mace (R-N.C.) the geography of public women's restrooms in the United States, including, presumably in the U.S. Capitol and its adjunct buildings. Hesse also reminds the Congresswoman that if she is super-worried that incoming Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.) will see Nancy's ankles while she is using a toilet in a Capitol restroom, that Nancy has her very own private bathroom to which she can repair when the necessity arises.

Audra Burch of the New York Times: "The number of hate groups, as identified by the Southern Poverty Law Center, is resurging after a period of decline during the height of the pandemic.... Flash displays of hate and white power are happening more frequently in the United States, a trend that experts say is a reaction to changing demographics, political turmoil and social catalysts. More than 750 such incidents have taken place since 2020, according to the Anti-Defamation League, with more than half of them occurring in the last 18 months.... Almost every week, small white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups have been descending on downtowns, gathering in public parks or rallying on the grounds of state houses and courthouses across the country.... National experts describe a familiar pattern: Small groups of mostly masked men chant and wave swastika or white power flags in public and yell racial slurs at targets as varied as immigrants, Black people, Jews and L.G.B.T.Q. people. They unfurl offensive banners over highways or post racist fliers in communities. The demonstrations are typically captured on video and ricochet across social media to large audiences."

Ellen Nakashima of the Washington Post: "The Chinese government espionage campaign that has deeply penetrated more than a dozen U.S. telecommunications companies is the 'worst telecom hack in our nation's history == by far,' a senior U.S. senator told The Washington Post in an interview this week. The hackers, part of a group dubbed Salt Typhoon, have been able to listen in on audio calls in real time and have in some cases moved from one telecom network to another, exploiting relationships of 'trust,' said Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Virginia), chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee and a former telecom venture capitalist. Warner added that intruders are still in the networks. Though fewer than 150 victims have been identified and notified by the FBI -- most of them in the D.C. region, the records of people those individuals have called or sent text messages to run into the 'millions,' he said, 'and that number could go up dramatically.'"

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Georgia. How to Cover Up State-sanctioned Womanslaughter. Amy Yurkanin of ProPublica: "Georgia officials have dismissed all members of a state committee charged with investigating deaths of pregnant women. The move came in response to ProPublica having obtained internal reports detailing two deaths. ProPublica reported in September on the deaths of Amber Thurman and Candi Miller, which the state maternal mortality review committee had determined were preventable. They were the first reported cases of women who died without access to care restricted by a state abortion ban, and they unleashed a torrent of outrage over the fatal consequences of such laws.... 'Confidential information provided to the Maternal Mortality Review Committee was inappropriately shared with outside individuals,' Dr. Kathleen Toomey, commissioner of the state Department of Public Health, wrote in a letter dated Nov. 8 and addressed to members of the committee. 'Even though this disclosure was investigated, the investigation was unable to uncover which individual(s) disclosed confidential information. Therefore, effective immediately the current MMRC is disbanded, and all member seats will be filled through a new application process.'" Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The appropriate reaction to Toomey's directive is to pass a law requiring that, with the permission of the deceased's heir(s), the record of each incident of preventable death be released to the public. I don't expect the GOP-controlled Georgia legislature to do that, of course.

Illinois. Todd Feurer of CBS News Chicago: "The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday overturned former 'Empire' actor Jussie Smollett's conviction for orchestrating a hate crime hoax. Smollett was convicted of five counts of disorderly conduct and sentenced to 150 days in jail in 2021, but was released after only six days behind bars while he appealed his case. Smollett has maintained his innocence from the beginning. Smollett claimed he was the victim of a racist and homophobic attack near his Streeterville apartment in January 2019 after he walked several blocks for a Subway sandwich shop. After police investigated his claims, detectives later focused on Smollett himself, and he was charged with staging a fake hate crime against himself with brothers Abel and Ola Osundairo, who later testified he paid them to stage the attack." (Also linked yesterday.)

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Brazil. Why Does This Sound So Familiar? Ana Ionova of the New York Times: "The Brazilian authorities announced on Thursday that they were recommending criminal charges against former far-right President Jair Bolsonaro over his role in a broad plot to cling to power after he lost the 2022 presidential election. The accusations sharply escalate Mr. Bolsonaro's legal troubles and highlight the extent of what the authorities have called an organized attempt to subvert Brazil's democracy. After Mr. Bolsonaro narrowly lost to the current president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, a leftist, he refused to acknowledge defeat but left office anyway. Brazil's federal police urged prosecutors to charge Mr. Bolsonaro and three dozen others, including members of his inner circle, for the crimes of 'violent abolition of the democratic rule of law, coup d'état and criminal organization.'

"The charges are the culmination of a sweeping two-year investigation in which police raided homes and offices, arrested senior aides to Mr. Bolsonaro and secured confessions and plea deals with people involved in the plot. The announcement comes two days after four members of an elite military unit, including a former top aide to Mr. Bolsonaro, were arrested and accused of planning to assassinate Mr. Lula shortly before he took office in January 2023."