The Commentariat -- March 21, 2019

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Ben White & Steve Shepard of Politico: "... Donald Trump has a low approval rating. He is engaging in bitter Twitter wars and facing metastasizing investigations. But if the election were held today, he'd likely ride to a second term in a huge landslide, according to multiple economic models with strong track records of picking presidential winners and losses." Mrs. McC: A good argument for impeachment.

Rebecca Morin of Politico: "... Donald Trump announced Thursday that the United States will formally recognize Israel's sovereignty over the disputed Golan Heights. 'After 52 years it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability!' the president tweeted."

Mike Allen of Axios: "Close advisers to former Vice President Joe Biden are debating the idea of packaging his presidential campaign announcement with a pledge to choose Stacey Abrams as his vice president.... The popular Georgia Democrat, who at age 45 is 31 years younger than Biden, would bring diversity and excitement to the ticket -- showing voters, in the words of a close source, that Biden 'isn't just another old white guy.'" ...

... Jonathan Chait lists nine reasons this is a good idea for both Biden & Abrams.

Lock Him Up! Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Jared Kushner ... uses an unofficial online messaging service for official White House business, including with foreign contacts, his lawyer told the House Oversight Committee late last year. The lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said he was not aware if Mr. Kushner had communicated classified information on the service, WhatsApp, and said that because he took screenshots of the communications and sent them to his official White House account or the National Security Council, his client was not in violation of federal records laws. In a letter disclosing the information, the Democratic chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee [-- Elijah Cummings (D-Md.)] said that he was investigating possible violations of the Presidential Records Act by members of the Trump administration, including Mr. Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump. He accused the White House of stonewalling his committee on information it had requested for months." What's the problem? ...

... Barbara Ortutay of the AP: "Facebook said Thursday that it stored millions of its users' passwords in plain text for years. The acknowledgement from the social media giant came after a security researcher posted about the issue online.... Facebook said there is no evidence its employees abused access to this data. But thousands of employees could have searched them. The company said the passwords were stored on internal company servers, where no outsiders could access them. But the incident reveals a huge oversight for the company amid a slew of bruises and stumbles in the last couple of years." Mrs. McC: Did I mention Facebook owns WhatsApp? Jared's password is Hot*Grifter2.

Hiroko Tabuchi & David Gelles of the New York Times: "As the pilots of the doomed Boeing jets in Ethiopia and Indonesia fought to control their planes, they lacked two notable safety features in their cockpits. One reason: Boeing charged extra for them. For Boeing and other aircraft manufacturers, the practice of charging to upgrade a standard plane can be lucrative. Top airlines around the world must pay handsomely to have the jets they order fitted with customized add-ons."

Brad Brooks &  Rodrigo Viga Gaier of Reuters: "Brazil's former President Michel Temer was arrested on Thursday in an investigation of alleged graft in the construction of nuclear plant Angra 3, prosecutors told Reuters, rattling the political class and threatening to delay a major pension reform. Temer was president from 2016 to 2018, taking office following the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, for whom he served as vice president for six years. His lawyer confirmed the arrest."

Ernie Suggs of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Jimmy "Carter becomes the oldest living former president in United States history" today.

A Cancer on the Body Politic. Maxwell Tani of the Daily Beast: "Almost 8 in 10 Republicans who watch Fox News say Donald Trump is the most successful president in history. That was just one finding of a new poll showing the deep ideological divide between Fox News viewers and everyone else. The poll results were provided to The Daily Beast by Navigator, a project launched by Democratic groups Global Strategy Group and GBA strategies. They surveyed more than 1,000 registered voters online with the goal of examining the differences in views between Fox News viewers and non-Fox viewers.... The data show numerous ways in which Fox News-watching Republicans have radically different beliefs from non-Republicans and even Republicans who do not watch Fox News."

Todd Richmond of the AP: "A judge on Thursday temporarily blocked Wisconsin Republicans' contentious lame-duck laws limiting the Democratic governor and attorney general's powers, brushing aside GOP lawmakers' concerns that the move leaves thousands of pages of statutes passed in so-called extraordinary sessions susceptible to challenge. Republican legislative leaders immediately vowed to appeal Dane County Circuit Judge Richard Niess' order, saying it will create chaos and calling Niess biased. The order is part of a lawsuit filed by a coalition of liberal-leaning groups. They allege the Legislature met illegally when it passed the lame-duck bills in December."

~~~~~~~~~

Rats! I missed the vernal equinox. It was March 20 this year. Happy Spring! One day in. -- Mrs. Bea McCrabbie

You. Are. Nuts. On Wednesday, Donald Trump dedicated himself to proving George Conway right. Besides feuding with Conway, Trump continued, unbid, his attacks on John McCain, dead war hero, & offered up a nonsensical (and untrue) rationale for rejecting the Mueller report. Stories linked below.

Maggie Haberman, et al., of the New York Times: "For months, President Trump has been unable to shake his grudge against Senator John McCain, who died in August of brain cancer. Planning his funeral, the Republican Arizona senator made it clear that Mr. Trump would not be welcome, leaving the president to fume when his two immediate predecessors, Barack Obama and George W. Bush, eulogized Mr. McCain in a service at Washington National Cathedral. The president's response was to stall on issuing any proclamation of praise, or ordering flags to be flown at half-staff to commemorate the senator's death.... In front of a military audience at a tank plant ... in Lima, [Indiana,] he took [his complaints] to a new level. He said he gave Mr. McCain 'the funeral he wanted, and I didn't get a thank you.' He blamed him for 'a war in the Middle East that McCain pushed so hard.' He said that 'McCain didn't get the job done for our great vets and the V.A.' 'I have to be honest, I've never liked him much,' Mr. Trump said, about 10 minutes into a freewheeling speech that was ostensibly about the resurgence of manufacturing jobs. '... -- probably never will.'" ...

... Sam Brodey of the Daily Beast: "A senior Republican senator with a reputation for not rocking the boat in Donald Trump's Washington spent Wednesday doing just that, issuing blistering criticisms of the president for his continued attacks on the late Sen. John McCain. Sen. Johnny Isakson, a Georgia Republican, appeared on a political talk show on Georgia Public Broadcasting on Wednesday afternoon to denounce the president's most recent comments about the senator and Vietnam war hero who died seven months ago. 'It's deplorable what he said,' Isakson said.... Most of Isakson's colleagues have been far more circumspect, save for Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) who tweeted he 'can't understand why the president would, once again, disparage a man as exemplary as my friend John McCain.'"

Jordan Fabian of the Hill: "President Trump on Wednesday escalated his attacks on George Conway, calling him a 'whack job' who is doing a 'disservice' to his wife, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway. 'I don't know him. He's a whack job, there's no question about it,' Trump told reporters on the South Lawn of the White House before traveling to Ohio." ...

... Daniel Lippman of Politico: "Kellyanne Conway on Wednesday defended ... Donald Trump's attacks on her husband George Conway saying he's 'a counterpuncher' and asserting that the president is free to respond when he's accused of having a mental illness. 'He left it alone for months out of respect for me,' Conway, a senior Trump aide, told Politico in a brief telephone interview. 'But you think he shouldn't respond when somebody, a non-medical professional accuses him of having a mental disorder? You think he should just take that sitting down?'"

Also, Trump is either unaware that (1) NATO = North American Atlantic Treaty Alliance or that (2) Brazil is in South America.

The Trump Scandals, Ctd.

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "President Trump said Wednesday for the first time that he would be okay with making the Mueller report public. And in doing so, he nixed a major argument against its release.... 'I don't mind,' he said when asked whether the report should be public. 'I mean, frankly, I told the House if you want, let them see it.' Trump went on to decry the very existence of the Mueller report..., arguing it is the result of an investigation that never should have been launched. He concluded by again suggesting it should be public but also indicating it may not be. 'Let it come out. Let people see it,' Trump said. 'That's up to the attorney general. And we'll see what happens.'" ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: If you're able to watch videos, you may want to take the time to hear Trump's latest rationale -- delivered at Wednesday's chopper presser -- for why the Mueller report is bogus. After winning one of the greatest elections in the history of the country with 63 millions votes, some guy who was not elected to anything comes "out of the blue" to write a report; Trump and his voters can't understand that. (Even in this summary, I've made Trump sound more coherent than he was:

The Trump Grift, Ctd. Dan Alexander of Forbes: "Donald Trump has charged his own reelection campaign $1.3 million for rent, food, lodging and other expenses since taking office, according to a Forbes analysis of the latest campaign filings. And although outsiders have contributed more than $50 million to the campaign, the billionaire president hasn't handed over any of his own cash.... 'I don't need anybody's money,' he announced on the day he launched his 2016 campaign, standing inside the marble atrium at Trump Tower. 'I'm using my own money. I'm not using the lobbyists. I'm not using donors. I don't care. I'm really rich.'"

Manu Raju, et al., of CNN: "Hope Hicks, the former White House communications director and long-time confidante of ... Donald Trump, plans to turn over documents to the House Judiciary Committee as part of its investigation into potential obstruction of justice. Rep. Jerry Nadler, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, sent Hicks a detailed letter earlier this month, asking for documents on a wide-range of topics, including over former national security adviser Michael Flynn's false statements to the FBI, the firing of then-FBI Director James Comey, Trump's involvement in a hush-money scheme to silence stories about his alleged affairs and the drafting of a misleading 2017 statement to the media about Donald Trump Jr.'s 2016 meeting in Trump Tower with Russians.... Hicks' cooperation comes in stark contrast to former White House chief of staff John Kelly, who is facing an array of questions from the House Oversight Committee over his role in the White House security clearance process. Kelly is allowing the White House counsel's office to respond to the Democrats' demands for information, but Hicks appears to be interacting directly with the House Judiciary Committee."

Kyle Cheney & Anita Kumar of Politico: "Former Trump campaign adviser Rick Gates -- a central cooperating witness for special counsel Robert Mueller -- has been advised by prosecutors not to cooperate with the House Judiciary Committee's broad investigation of ... Donald Trump, his lawyer told lawmakers in a recent letter obtained Wednesday by Politico. But Gates' lawyer, Thomas Green, left open the possibility of assisting the panel 'in the coming months.'... Green's letter was also copied to the House and Senate Intelligence Committees, who he said had also requested Gates' testimony. The decision to delay immediate cooperation with the Democrat-led investigation comes days after Mueller signaled that Gates was still an active cooperator in multiple ongoing investigations."

Jim Tankersley of the New York Times: "The Federal Reserve expressed increasing concern about slowing economic growth as it left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday and showed little appetite for raising them in the near future. The Fed's fairly downbeat economic assessment is at odds with the White House's rosy economic projections, which have continued to predict stronger growth than most other forecasters say is likely. The Fed, in a statement at the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting, said 'growth of economic activity has slowed from its solid rate in the fourth quarter' and cited slowdowns in household spending and business fixed investment. Fed officials now expect economic growth of 2.1 percent for 2019, down from the 2.3 percent it forecast in December." ...

... Paul Krugman: "The 2019 Economic Report of the President is out, and everyone is having fun with the bit at the end that acknowledges the help of student interns -- a list that includes Peter Parker, Aunt May, Bruce Wayne, and Jabba the Hutt.... The White House is passing this off as a deliberate joke. More likely, someone slipped superheroes in to see whether anyone in charge was actually paying attention, and proved that they weren't. But the bigger news from the report involves the supposed economic payoffs from the Trump tax cut. Even the White House now acknowledges that the tax cut won't do all they said it would -- their wildly optimistic economic projections depend on the claimed payoff to other economic policies that they themselves haven't specified.... This report is double voodoo, or voodoo squared: it relies on voodoo economics to make big claims for tax cuts, then adds a whole additional layer of magic to get the growth projections the administration wants to hear."

Helene Cooper & Thomas Gibbons-Neff of the New York Times: "The Defense Department's inspector general said on Wednesday that it was investigating complaints that the acting defense secretary, Patrick M. Shanahan, had been promoting his former employer, the Boeing Company, and disparaging its military contractor competitors. The investigation will examine complaints filed last week by a watchdog group, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington."

Steve Miletich of the Seattle Times: "The FBI has joined the criminal investigation into the certification of the Boeing 737 MAX, lending its considerable resources to an inquiry already being conducted by U.S. Department of Transportation agents, according to people familiar with the matter. The federal grand jury investigation, based in Washington, D.C., is looking into the certification process that approved the safety of the new Boeing plane, two of which have crashed since October."

** Juliet Eilperin & Brady Dennis of the Washington Post: "A federal judge ruled late Tuesday that the Interior Department violated federal law by failing to take into account the climate impact of its oil and gas leasing in the West. The decision by U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Judge Rudolph Contreras marks the first time the Trump administration has been held to account for the climate impact of its energy-dominance agenda, and it could have sweeping implications for the president's plan to boost fossil fuel production across the country. Contreras concluded that Interior's Bureau of Land Management 'did not sufficiently consider climate change' when making decisions to auction off federal land in Wyoming to oil and gas drilling. The judge temporarily blocked drilling on roughly 300,000 acres of land in the state."

"An Extraordinary Departure from the Diplomatic Norm." Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump Jr. and national security adviser John Bolton took to British media to scold the country's political leadership over Prime Minister Theresa May's plan to request a delay in Britain's seemingly endless divorce from Europe. The effort by presidential surrogates is aimed at amplifying the pro-Brexit message among Britons even though the United States has no say in the matter. 'Next Friday, March 29, is supposed to be the British people's Independence Day,' the younger Trump wrote in an opinion piece published Wednesday in Britain's Daily Telegraph. 'But because the elites control London from Brussels, the will of the people is likely to be ignored.' Bolton gave an interview to British broadcaster Sky News, accusing political leaders in London of failing voters who chose more than two years ago to quit the European Union and its collective trade policy. Bolton dangled a separate trade deal between Britain and the United States once Britain rids itself of the E.U., saying 'we are ready to go.' The commentary from members of Trump's inner circle was an extraordinary departure from the diplomatic norm, in which close allies such as the United States and Britain are careful not to appear to be meddling in each other's business."

If you'd care to read about a soulless cipher, then Alex Pareene's profile in the New Republic of Mitch McConnell is for you.

Presidential Race 2020

Dan Merica of CNN: "Former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper [D] said Wednesday that he would consider putting a woman on his presidential ticket, and then asked why female Democratic presidential candidates are not being asked if they would select a man as their running mate." Mrs. McC: Apparently Hickenlooper is unaware the U.S. has never had a woman president or vice-president & that women are underepresented in Congress, in most state legislatures & in the top jobs in American businesses. ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: That said, I would like to suggest that female candidates consider studying under voice coaches. Kamala Harris & Amy Klobuchar already have good presidenty voices that project gravitas, but Elizabeth Warren & Kirsten Gillibrand, for instance, not so much. Of course, it takes more than a well-modulated voice to win, as Hillary Clinton found out.

Mika and I have been overwhelmed by the reaction @PeteButtigieg got after being on the show. The only other time in twelve years that we heard from as many people about a guest was after @BarackObama appeared on Morning Joe. pic.twitter.com/PoEK4Obtul

— Joe Scarborough (@JoeNBC) March 21, 2019

Laura Holson of the New York Times: "... a parody account pretending to be an imaginary cow owned by Representative Devin Nunes, the California Republican, is more popular on Twitter than the congressman, a day after he sued the account (and Twitter) for $250 million.... The parody account @DevinCow had only 1,200 followers on Monday, but it ended Wednesday afternoon with 467,000, surpassing Mr. Nunes's account with its 395,000 followers. And the count was still growing.... A website now sells Devin Cow T-shirts. Twitter users have been celebrating with cow-themed items and jokes. Even Mr. Nunes's fellow legislators showed their support for the errant beast. Ted Lieu, a Democratic congressman from Southern California, told Mr. Nunes on Twitter to 'lighten up, dude.' Of course, no one might have heard of @DevinCow if Mr. Nunes had not sued Twitter and other users for defamation on Tuesday, seeking $250 million and an end to online mockery he said no one should have to 'suffer in their whole life.'"

Ryan Broderick & Ellie Hall of BuzzFeed News: "Before killing 50 people during Friday prayers at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, and injuring 40 more, the gunman apparently decided to fully exploit social media by releasing a manifesto, posting a Twitter thread showing off his weapons, and going live on Facebook as he launched the attack. The gunman's coordinated social media strategy wasn't unique, though. The way he manipulated social media for maximum impact is almost identical to how ISIS, at its peak, was using those very same platforms. While most mainstream social networks have become aggressive about removing pro-ISIS content from the average user's feed, far-right extremism and white nationalism continue to thrive. Only the most egregious nodes in the radicalization network have been removed from every platform.... Christchurch could be the moment Silicon Valley decides to finally treat white nationalism the way it's been treating ISIS for years." ...

... White Supremacy Pays. Nitasha Tiku of Wired: "... concerns that Big Tech expends more effort to curb the spread of terrorist content from high-profile foreign groups, while applying fewer resources and less urgency toward terrorist content from white supremacists, resurfaced last week after the shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.... For [the big tech companies], failure to police terrorist content by white supremacists is a business decision molded by political pressure, not a legal constraint.... Tech companies say that it is easier to identify content related to known foreign terrorist organizations such as ISIS and Al Qaeda because of information-sharing with law enforcement and industry-wide efforts, such as the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism, a group formed by YouTube, Facebook, Microsoft, and Twitter in 2017.... Law professor Hannah Bloch-Wehba ... says tech platforms built [content moderation] tools in response to pressure from regulators and engineered them to address a specific kind of terrorist threat. 'We just haven't seen comparable pressure for platforms to go after white violence,' and if they do, companies face 'political blowback from the right,'..." ...

... Kelly Weill of the Daily Beast (March 18): "A Virginia police officer assigned to a high school is involved in onboarding new members for a white nationalist group, leaked chat logs reveal. Daniel Morley, 31, is a police officer at L.C. Bird High School in Chesterfield, Virginia. He's also an organizer for Identity Evropa, a white nationalist group. In the group's leaked chat messages, first highlighted by Virginia anti-fascists on Monday, Morley discussed ways to downplay appearances of racism, while still promoting white nationalism. Morley is suspended while Chesterfield County Police Department investigates the allegations...." ...

     ... Zak Cheney-Rice of New York: "... such behavior has become more useful in the post-civil-rights era, as open bigotry has become more taboo in polite company and the explicit racism of Jim Crow-era laws and sumptuary codes ran afoul of federal law, requiring evasive action among its adherents. This is where cries of 'reverse racism' enter the discourse, where claims like Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts's 2007 insistence that 'the way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race' captures the ethos of pols seeking to override civil-rights gains through fealty to a theoretical -- but not actual -- equality.... It is an easy and frequently successful pursuit to obscure racism by dressing it up in nice clothes."

Dylan Matthews of Vox: "Ari Fleischer is a liar. He lies about stuff big and small. And as President George W. Bush's press secretary during the run-up to the Iraq War, he participated in a large effort to exaggerate and misrepresent what the intelligence community believed about weapons of mass destruction and Iraq's (negligible) links to al-Qaeda. But Fleischer does not like it when people point out that he's a liar, so he took to Twitter on Tuesday night to mark the anniversary of the invasion of Iraq and address what is, in his mind, a major tragedy surrounding the war: the fact that people sometimes point out that he and his friends are liars.... Some might argue the real victims of the war are the nearly 300,000 civilians and combatants killed due to an unnecessary invasion, but Fleischer would rather focus on his and his colleagues' hurt feelings."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Marc Caputo & Gary Fineout of Politico: "Andrew Gillum announced a plan Wednesday to register and turn-out 1 million new and low-propensity Florida voters in an effort to crush ... Donald Trump's reelection chances in the nation's largest swing state. 'Voter registration is red flag No. 1,' the former Tallahassee mayor told Politico, calling increased voter registration crucial to the Democratic Party's ability to survive and thrive in Florida."

Kentucky. Child Abuse by Stupid. Deborah Yetter & Tom Loftus of the Louisville Courier Journal: "In a move experts say is medically unsound -- and can be dangerous -- Gov. Matt Bevin [RTP] said in a radio interview Tuesday that he deliberately exposed all nine of his children to chickenpox so they would catch the disease and become immune. 'Every single one of my kids had the chickenpox,' Bevin said in an interview with WKCT, a Bowling Green talk radio station. 'They got the chickenpox on purpose because we found a neighbor that had it and I went and made sure every one of my kids was exposed to it, and they got it..... They were miserable for a few days, and they all turned out fine.' Three medical experts called the practice unsafe and unwise.... In the interview, Bevin also suggested that the government stay out of mandating vaccines. In Kentucky, varicella (chickenpox) is among vaccines mandated for all children entering kindergarten, though parents may seek religious exemptions or provide medical proof that a child has already had the disease." ...

... Only in America. Nick Martin of Splinter: "Bevin is right about one thing, and one thing only: This is indeed America, where shithead anti-vaxxers can not only ascend to some of the highest offices in the land -- don't forget, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul spouted the same bullshit just two weeks ago -- but can then go on a rant about having to vaccinate their nine (!!!) kids and think to themselves that they served as a positive influence on society."

Way Beyond

New Zealand. Kate Lyons of the Guardian: "Jacinda Ardern announced sweeping an immediate changes to New Zealand's gun laws, including the banning of assault rifles and military-style semi-automatics, following the Christchurch mosque shootings. Officials estimate that there are 1.2-1.5 million guns in a country of 5million people. They say they have 'no idea' how many assault rifles are in circulation and roughly 13,500 military style semi-automatic weapons. Ardern also directed officials to develop a gun buyback scheme for those who already own such weapons. She said 'fair and reasonable compensation' would be paid. The government estimates this will cost $100m - $200m[.]" Emphasis original.

News Lede

Guardian: "Rescue teams in Mozambique are struggling to reach the thousands of people stranded on roofs and in trees and urgently need more helicopters and boats as post-cyclone flood waters continue to rise. Mozambique, which was hit by Cyclone Idai over the weekend, has declared a state of emergency and is appealing for international help. Rescue workers, military personnel and volunteers are rushing to save thousands of Mozambicans before flood levels rise further, but with four helicopters, a handful of boats and extremely difficult conditions, have only been able to save about 413 so far."

The Commentariat -- March 20, 2019

Afternoon Update:

** Juliet Eilperin & Brady Dennis of the Washington Post: "A federal judge ruled late Tuesday that the Interior Department violated federal law by failing to take into account the climate impact of its oil and gas leasing in the West. The decision by U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Judge Rudolph Contreras marks the first time the Trump administration has been held to account for the climate impact of its energy-dominance agenda, and it could have sweeping implications for the president's plan to boost fossil fuel production across the country. Contreras concluded that Interior's Bureau of Land Management 'did not sufficiently consider climate change' when making decisions to auction off federal land in Wyoming to oil and gas drilling. The judge temporarily blocked drilling on roughly 300,000 acres of land in the state."

~~~~~~~~~~

The Simple-Minded President* at Home. Tim Noah & Adam Behsudi of Politico: "... Donald Trump heads to Ohio Wednesday embroiled in a fight with General Motors and the United Auto Workers over the closing of GM's Lordstown plant. But his attempts to save manufacturing jobs have battered the auto industry and could erode his loyal base in the Midwest. Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminum have cost Ford and GM about $1 billion each. GM Chief Executive Officer Mary Barra cited the tariffs in November when she announced the 14,000 job cuts that included the Lordstown plant's shuttering. Potentially making things even worse, Trump is now weighing new tariffs on foreign automobiles that could threaten hundreds of thousands of additional U.S. jobs.... Trump's simple formula of demanding that specific plants should stay open doesn't account for the sophistication of the global auto industry. The auto making supply chain is global; foreign companies build cars in the U.S. but with some foreign-made parts. Likewise, cars made abroad often contain American parts. And automakers move workers from plant to plant as demand for different kinds of autos shifts."

The Simple-Minded President* Abroad. John Walcott of Time: "... Donald Trump has taken increased control of negotiations over North Korea's nuclear weapons program, sidelining his own top negotiator and dismissing the warnings of top intelligence and foreign policy advisors in the wake of last month's failed summit in Vietnam, officials familiar with the developments tell Time. In recent days, Trump shut down an effort by Stephen Biegun, nominally the Administration's lead negotiator with Pyongyang, to reestablish a back channel through the North's United Nations mission in New York, according to four U.S. and South Korean officials. At the same time, Trump continues to dismiss the conclusions of the CIA, State and Defense Departments and other agencies that North Korea will not abandon its nuclear weapons program, continuing to insist that he and Kim can negotiate a deal, according to two U.S.officials."

Ben Schreckinger of Politico: "Meeting with [Brazil's President Jair] Bolsonaro at the White House Tuesday, Trump said he was 'honored' by comparisons between the two men's winning presidential campaigns. Trump praised Bolsonaro for running 'a very incredible campaign, some said a little bit reminded people of our campaign,' noting he believed the Brazilian leader 'has done a very outstanding job.'... 'I call it fake news,' Trump said during a joint press conference with Bolsonaro. 'I'm very proud to hear the president use the term fake news.'... Unofficially, the visit marks a milestone for what some see as an emerging new world order of strongmen backed by right-wing insurgencies.... Bolsonaro, nicknamed the 'Trump of the Tropics,' has drawn widespread condemnation in the U.S. for [anti-gay] remarks as well as racist comments, his defense of Brazil's former military dictatorship and his family's ties to violent paramilitary groups. But the Trump administration has embraced him wholeheartedly." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Tim Dickinson of Rolling Stone on how Eduardo Bolsonaro, Jair's son, schmoozed with C-list "celebrities" at Mar-a-Lago as prep for Jair's White House visit. And then how Eduardo (and others) posted pix on Instagram to establish his creds -- Wilbur Ross! Jeanine Pirro! The My Pillow Guy!

Adam Edelman of NBC News: "... Donald Trump doubled down on his criticism of the late Sen. John McCain on Tuesday, telling reporters that he 'was never a fan' of the Arizona lawmaker 'and never will be.' Trump, during an appearance at the White House alongside Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, continued his posthumous broadside against his former foe, saying that he still found it 'disgraceful' that McCain voted against repealing key parts of Obamacare in 2017." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... A. B. Stoddard in the Bulwark: "Later today Sen. Johnny Isakson [R-Ga.] will call out President Trump for his continued disparagement of John McCain. The chairman of the Senate Veteran Affairs Committee said in an exclusive interview on Tuesday that the service of any veteran, let alone McCain, should never be besmirched, that president's comments 'drive me crazy,' and that he plans to speak out at length on Wednesday. Isakson had warned President Trump. When McCain died on August 25th and the flag at the White House remained at full staff, then went down to half staff but back again within one day -- before the traditional end of the period of internment -- Georgia's senior senator considered the show of disrespect 'unthinkable.'"

Josh Dawsey & John Wagner of the Washington Post: "President Trump on Tuesday ratcheted up a remarkable public spat with the husband of one of his top advisers, attacking Kellyanne Conway's husband as a 'total loser' on Twitter in response to the lawyer's persistent questions about his mental health and competence.... The president's tweet also included a dubious assertion from Trump's 2020 campaign manager, Brad Parscale, that the president 'doesn't even know' his senior adviser's husband. But George Conway said in an interview Tuesday that he has had a number of notable interactions with Trump over the past decade, often concerning legal representation and sensitive legal matters since Trump became president. He described the president as 'mendacious' and 'incompetent' and predicted he would not win reelection." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Diversionary Tactics, Ctd. Caitlin Oprysko of Politico: "... Donald Trump escalated his attacks on the husband of one of his top aides and most visible defenders, tweeting Wednesday that George Conway is a 'husband from hell' to his wife Kellyanne. Trump also appeared to claim that Kellyanne Conway, a senior adviser to the president and former Trump campaign manager, played a role in preventing her husband from receiving a high-profile job in the Justice Department in early 2017, despite George Conway's insistence it was he who turned Trump down." ...

... So Then. Aris Folley of the Hill: "George Conway, the husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway and a top critic of President Trump, is firing back after the president called him a 'stone cold loser' and a 'husband from hell.' 'You. Are. Nuts,' Conway wrote in one of two quick tweets responding to the president's early Wednesday morning insults. 'You seem determined to prove my point. Good for you!' Conway said in his first tweet responding to Trump, adding the hashtag #NarcissisticPersonalityDisorder."

The Trump Scandals, Ctd.

Benjamin Weiser & William Rashbaum of the New York Times: "Federal authorities investigating Russian interference in the presidential election obtained search warrants for emails of Michael D. Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer and fixer, beginning in July 2017, according to documents released Tuesday that provide a glimpse into the earliest stages of the inquiry into the president. The documents show that Mr. Cohen's business dealings had already been the subject of an extensive investigation by the time F.B.I. agents conducted a highly public raid on his home and office nine months later, in April of last year. They also show how little the public knew about the Russian investigation in real time as prosecutors zeroed in on Mr. Cohen.... The documents give a rough timeline of how the Cohen investigation unfolded." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... The Washington Post has the warrants here. About 150 pp. are redacted. ...

... Bob Mueller Is Very, Very Busy. Spencer Hsu & Matt Zapotosky of the Washington Post: "Prosecutors with special counsel Robert S. Mueller III's team on Tuesday cited the 'press of other work' in asking a judge to give them until April 1 to respond to the court about a request from The Washington Post to unseal records in Paul Manafort's criminal case. In a two-page filing, Deputy Solicitor General Michael R. Dreeben and prosecutor Adam C. Jed wrote, 'Counsel responsible for preparing the response face the press of other work and require additional time to consult within the government.' A response had been due March 21.... The Post has objected to the abundance of sealed and redacted records in Manafort's Washington case and petitioned the judge in his case, Amy Berman Jackson, to open them to public view." ...

... MEANWHILE. Darren Samuelsohn & Josh Gerstein of Politico: "Rod Rosenstein — the deputy attorney general who appointed the special counsel, signed off on all his major decisions and even spoke on behalf of the investigation at a news conference and in congressional testimony -- is not ready to leave just yet, putting off his previously planned departure for at least a few weeks, a source familiar with his plans confirmed on Tuesday.... His decision to stay put a little longer was taken as yet another sign among a growing body of clues that the special counsel is indeed nearing the finish line."

Ken Dilanian of NBC News: "... legal experts, along with the congressman leading the House Russia investigation, tell NBC News that the most important question investigators must answer is one that may never have been suitable for the criminal courts: Whether President Trump or anyone around him is under the influence of a foreign government. 'It's more important to know what Trump is NOW than to know what he did in 2016,' said Martin Lederman, professor at the Georgetown University Law Center and former deputy assistant attorney general ... during the Obama administration.... In an interview with NBC News, House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said he is steering his investigation in a new direction to focus on it -- and he will demand any relevant evidence compiled by the FBI or Mueller's team. The California Democrat also expressed concern that Mueller hasn't fully investigated Trump's possible financial history with Russia."

Josh Gerstein: "A federal appeals court panel was indisputably hostile Tuesday to a lawsuit accusing ... Donald Trump of violating the Constitution by profiting from his business dealings with foreign countries seeking to curry favor with his administration. The uphill battle the suit faces was evident before the arguments even began Tuesday morning when it was revealed that all three 4th Circuit Court of Appeals judges assigned to the case are GOP appointees, including two of the court's most conservative jurists. One of those judges suggested that the suit could be a precursor to attempting to drive the president from office through impeachment.... The arguments in the so-called foreign emoluments case test largely uncharted areas of constitutional law, but also serve as a reminder of the numerous ethical challenges Trump's administration has faced...."

Stonewall. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), in a Washington Post op-ed: "... President Trump and his allies have complained of Presidential Harassment,' decrying Democrats for having the audacity to request documents and witnesses to fulfill our constitutional responsibilities. The problem is that the White House is engaged in an unprecedented level of stonewalling, delay and obstruction.... The White House has not turned over a single piece of paper to our committee or made a single official available for testimony during the 116th Congress.... The president dictated this approach the day after the election when he threatened a 'warlike posture' against Democrats and then vowed that, at the end of two years, 'I'm just going to blame them.'... If our committee must resort to issuing subpoenas, there should be no doubt about why. This has nothing to do with presidential harassment and everything to do with unprecedented obstruction." ...

... Anita Kumar of Politico: "House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler wrote to the White House last month demanding information about ... Donald Trump's declaration of a national emergency to fund the construction of a southern border wall. Yet Nadler's Feb. 22 deadline came and went with no response. Not only did the Democratic congressman not receive the documents he wanted, he didn't even receive a customary letter back from the White House acknowledging his request. It was just one example of the Trump White House's unusually hostile -- or in this case, non-existent -- response to congressional investigators. In their early response to an onslaught of Democratic requests, Trump officials are breaking from norms set by previous administrations of both parties, according to people who worked in the White House or Capitol Hill during the presidencies of Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Over the last two months, Trump's intent has become clear: He doesn't plan to negotiate with Congress over their demands for information and witnesses the way his predecessors did. Instead, House Democrats are going to have to fight him for everything.... In total, the administration has at least 30 times refused or delayed turning over documents to 12 House committees, according to House Democrats." ...

     ... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: Hardly surprising. This is the Trumpertantrum Presidency*, so stamping his feet & refusing to play by the rules is SOP. Trump is stonewalling not just on matters related to potentially criminal matters, but on everything. For instance, Rep. Cummings mentions first documents related to the White House's mishandling of security clearances. Nadler refers to Trump's fake emergency declaration. There's no indication -- so far, anyway -- that Trump acted criminally in these matters.

Thomas Kaplan of the New York Times: "The United States transportation secretary, Elaine Chao, on Tuesday asked her agency's internal watchdog to conduct an audit of the Federal Aviation Administration's certification of the Boeing 737 Max 8. The F.A.A.'s approval of the 737 Max has come under scrutiny after the crash last week of an Ethiopian Airlines jet, the second deadly crash involving the aircraft in less than five months.... Ms. Chao wrote that she was seeking the audit 'to help inform the department's decision-making and the public's understanding, and to assist the F.A.A. in ensuring that its safety procedures are implemented effectively.'" ...

... Alan Levin & Harry Suhartono of Bloomberg News: "As the Lion Air crew fought to control their diving Boeing Co. 737 Max 8, they got help from an unexpected source: an off-duty pilot who happened to be riding in the cockpit. That extra pilot, who was seated in the cockpit jumpseat, correctly diagnosed the problem and told the crew how to disable a malfunctioning flight-control system and save the plane, according to two people familiar with Indonesia's investigation. The next day, under command of a different crew facing what investigators said was an identical malfunction, the jetliner crashed into the Java Sea killing all 189 aboard. The previously undisclosed detail on the earlier Lion Air flight represents a new clue in the mystery of how some 737 Max pilots faced with the malfunction have been able to avert disaster while the others lost control of their planes and crashed. The presence of a third pilot in the cockpit wasn't contained in Indonesia's National Transportation Safety Committee's Nov. 28 report on the crash and hasn't previously been reported."

Pam Belluck of the New York Times: "The first drug for women suffering postpartum depression received federal approval on Tuesday, a move likely to pave the way for a wave of treatments to address a debilitating condition that is the most common complication of pregnancy. The drug works very quickly, within 48 hours -- a significant improvement over currently available antidepressants, which can take two to four weeks to have an effect, if they work at all."

The Biggest Losers. Fred Barbash & Deanna Paul of the Washington Post: "Federal judges have ruled against the Trump administration at least 63 times over the past two years, an extraordinary record of legal defeat that has stymied large parts of the president's agenda on the environment, immigration and other matters. In case after case, judges have rebuked Trump officials for failing to follow the most basic rules of governance, including providing legitimate explanations for shifts in policy, supported by facts and, where required, public input. Many of the cases are in early stages and subject to reversal.... Two-thirds of the cases accuse the Trump administration of violating the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), a 73-year-old law that forms the primary bulwark against arbitrary rule. The normal 'win rate' for the government in such cases is about 70 percent, according to analysts and studies. But as of mid-January, a database maintained by the Institute for Policy Integrity at the New York University School of Law shows Trump's win rate at about 6 percent.... Contributing to the losing record has been Trump himself. His reported comments about 'shithole countries,' for example, helped convince U.S. District Judge Edward Chen in San Francisco that the administration's decision to end 'temporary protected status' for hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Central America, Haiti and Sudan was motivated by racial and ethnic bias. At least a dozen decisions have involved Trump’s tweets or comments." Thanks to MAG for the link. See also MAG's commentary in yesterday's thread. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Yeah, it turns out racial animus is not that sturdy a basis for policy decisions. ...

... Trump Won This One. Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: “A narrowly divided Supreme Court said Tuesday that federal authorities have broad authority to detain -- without a bond hearing -- legal immigrants who have committed certain crimes that make them eligible for deportation. It does not matter whether authorities pick up such noncitizens years after they have been released from criminal custody, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote for the majority in the 5-to-4 decision. Federal law mandates detention for certain aliens while awaiting deportation proceedings, he said. 'As we have held time and again, an official's crucial duties are better carried out late than never,' wrote Alito, joined in the outcome by his fellow conservatives." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

King Coal Prevails. Darius Dixon of Politico: "The White House has dropped plans to nominate a veteran lawyer to serve on a key federal energy panel after pressure from Energy Secretary Rick Perry and major coal companies headed by allies of President Donald Trump, two people familiar with the effort told Politico. Politico reported last month that David Hill, who served as the Energy Department's general counsel under President George W. Bush, was the likely candidate for a seat on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. A senior administration official said at the time that Hill was 'almost certain' to be tapped. But Perry and other senior DOE officials opposed giving the post to Hill, who had publicly criticized the Trump administration's push to offer financial aid to coal power plants -- and they were joined in the effort by Joe Craft's Alliance Resource Partners and Bob Murray's Murray Energy Corp., the sources said. Both coal companies are major GOP donors, and Trump has said he planned to nominate Craft's wife, Kelly Knight Craft, to be the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations."

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "There is a Twitter account called 'Devin Nunes' cow that has tweeted nasty things about Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.). Evidently, the account is not actually run by a cow belonging to Nunes. Nunes is now suing his purported cow.... What better way to draw attention to something than to sue what is obviously a parody account claiming to be a creature without the opposable thumbs necessary to fire off a tweet?... What might be most notable about Nunes's suit is that this is the first battle he chose. Nunes said on Sean Hannity's Fox News show Monday night that this is 'the first of many' lawsuits to come. Does he really think his most obvious and airtight case involved ... @DevinCow and @DevinNunesMom?... The legal merits of the case appear highly questionable at best. The standard for defamation of a public figure such as Nunes is much higher than for an average person.... [BUT] Nunes is telegraphing an expansive effort to go after people who hurt Republicans with their public discourse. Its potential impact, not so much legally as from personal behavioral standpoint, shouldn't be so casually dismissed." See related posts linked yesterday. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Josh Kovensky of TPM: "Florida prosecutors offered a deal to New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft whereby charges that he solicited prostitution would be dropped in exchange for Kraft admitting that he would be found guilty at trial, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. Under the terms of the reported deferred prosecution agreement, Kraft would be screened for sexually transmitted diseased, complete a class on prostitution, finish 100 hours of community service, and pay some court costs from the case. Kraft denies the charges. The WSJ also reported that legal experts had raised questions over Florida prosecutors' conduct in the case.... " (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Anemona Hartocollis & Amy Harmon of the New York Times: "The many students enmeshed in the college admissions scandal that was unveiled last week now face a reckoning as universities seek to determine whether they were innocent victims who should keep working toward their degrees or unethical schemers worthy of discipline. The University of Southern California said it had identified six current applicants associated with the case and would reject them. The school informed an additional number of enrolled students who were linked to the scandal that they could not register for classes until administrators had determined their level of culpability. Yale, another university implicated in the fraud, reminded students last week of a longstanding policy to rescind the admission of students who falsify applications. A statement from Stanford said that inaccurate information on a college application was grounds for being 'disenrolled' from the university or having an offer of admission rescinded, 'as has happened regretfully in the past.'"

A Word of Caution. Tom Winter & Rich Schapiro of NBC News: "A notorious California con man has been charged with defrauding donors out of more than $250,000 sent to sham political groups and websites for Beto O'Rourke, Bernie Sanders and other prominent Democrats, prosecutors said Tuesday. John Pierre Dupont, 80, is accused of setting up at least three bogus political action committees, or PACs, and several websites that purported to be raising money for roughly 10 individual Senate candidates, a candidate for governor and for progressive causes, according to a criminal complaint.... The websites Dupont created included Beto4Senate.org, Sanders2016Campaign.org, GillumForFloridaGovernor.org and ImmigrantChildrenUnited.org, according to the complaint." Mrs. McC BTW: Duport isn't a real Dupont; he used to be John Gary Rinaldo. Maybe he was somebody else before that; I don't know.

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Brian Stelter of CNN: "Former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is joining the board of the newly slimmed-down Fox Corporation, the parent company of Fox News. Ryan and three other board of directors were appointed on Tuesday. Appointing these directors was a necessary step as the Murdoch family wraps up the Disney-Fox deal.... The parts of Fox that aren't being acquired by Disney are forming a new company, simply called Fox, that will be run by Rupert Murdoch's son Lachlan Murdoch." Mrs. McC: It heartens me to anticipate just how much more "sincere" Fox personalities will be when they tout the benefits of shivving the poor & middle class. (Also linked yesterday.) ...

... Trouble in the Fox Den. Gabriel Sherman of Vanity Fair: "Trump's [recent Twitter] attacks on Fox have widened the chasm between the network's opinion hosts and the news division, which have been fighting a cold civil war since Roger Ailes was ousted in July 2016. Fox journalists, bristling at being branded an arm of the Trump White House, are lobbying Fox News C.E.O. Suzanne Scott and President Jay Wallace to rein in Fox & Friends, Sean Hannity, Lou Dobbs and [Jeanine] Pirro.... Fox's opinion hosts, meanwhile, have made the case that Fox's prime-time lineup not only reflects the audience's worldview, but is responsible for the majority of the network's advertising revenue.... The outcome of that civil war will be decided by Fox Corporation chairman and C.E.O. Lachlan Murdoch.... Staffers believe he is likely to nudge the network away from its close marriage to Trump.... Two sources close to Lachlan told me that he has likely waited to implement any editorial changes at Fox News until the Disney deal closes on March 20, for fear of antagonizing Trump into opposing it." Also, Hannity doesn't like the Murdochs & they may sell Fox "News."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. GOP Anti-Voters Are at It Again. Samantha Michaels of Mother Jones: "Last November, Florida passed a ballot measure to reenfranchise as many as 1.4 million people with felony records, the largest expansion of voting rights in decades. But less than six months after the historic move, [Republican] state lawmakers are considering legislation that would make it harder for some of them to vote by requiring them to first finish paying all court fines and fees.... On Tuesday, a House subcommittee approved a bill that would prevent people with felony records from voting until they finish paying all court fines and fees, including 'any cost of supervision' like parole, even if those fines and fees were not spelled out by a judge as part of the person's original sentence.... The bill was introduced last Friday and passed out of committee along party lines, with Republicans in favor. The Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, a group that pushed for Amendment 4, slammed it as an 'unconstitutional overreach.'... Others argue the bill would unfairly burden low-income people who can't afford to repay all their fines." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Ah, if only "those people" would stick with the sentiments of Florida's state song: "I'm longin' for the old plantation...." Seriously, Republicans are pining for the good ole days when "those people" knew their "place." The GOP really hates democracy. ...

... Gary Fineout of Politico: "Andrew Gillum has launched a Florida voter registration group dedicated to defeating President Donald Trump's re-election chances in the nation's largest swing state. The former Tallahassee mayor and Democratic nominee for governor is expected to formally announce the effort today at a speech in Miami Gardens. One of the groups working with Gillum -- Bring it Home Florida, named after his signature campaign phrase -- was registered last week by his supporters with the state election division overseeing third-party voter registration organizations."

Texas. O, To Be in Houston... Johnny Simon of Quartz: "A massive fire at a Texas petrochemical storage terminal will continue to burn and spew jet-black smoke for two more days, officials say. Yesterday (March 18), the blaze -- which started March17 — engulfed tanks holding the toxic chemicals naphtha, xylene, and toluene at Intercontinental Terminals Company in Deer Park, near Houston. Naphtha and xylene are components in the production of gasoline and other petroleum products. Toluene, a widely applied solvent, is in nail-polish remover, glues and paint thinner, the Houston Chronicle notes.... Company officials say, as of yesterday, the air-quality measurements had not reached dangerous levels beyond the facility, where photos show the massive column of black smoke emerging from the terminal. Harris County officials warned nearby residents that the smoke could irritate eyes and skin and cause breathing problems."

Way Beyond

Adam Satariano of the New York Times: "European authorities on Wednesday fined Google 1.5 billion euros for antitrust violations in the online advertising market, continuing its efforts to rein in the world's biggest technology companies. The fine, worth about $1.7 billion, is the third against Google by the European Union since 2017, reinforcing the region's position as the world's most aggressive watchdog of an industry with an increasingly powerful role in society and the global economy. The regulators said Google had violated antitrust rules by imposing unfair terms on companies that used its search bar on their websites in Europe. Europe's regulatory approach was once criticized as unfairly targeting technology companies from the United States, but is now viewed as potential global model as governments question the influence of Silicon Valley."

The Commentariat -- March 19, 2019

Afternoon Update:

Ben Schreckinger of Politico: "Meeting with [Brazil's President Jair] Bolsonaro at the White House Tuesday, Trump said he was 'honored' by comparisons between the two men's winning presidential campaigns. Trump praised Bolsonaro for running 'a very incredible campaign, some said a little bit reminded people of our campaign,' noting he believed the Brazilian leader 'has done a very outstanding job.'... 'I call it fake news,' Trump said during a joint press conference with Bolsonaro. 'I'm very proud to hear the president use the term fake news.'... Unofficially, the visit marks a milestone for what some see as an emerging new world order of strongmen backed by right-wing insurgencies.... Bolsonaro, nicknamed the 'Trump of the Tropics,' has drawn widespread condemnation in the U.S. for [anti-gay] remarks as well as racist comments, his defense of Brazil's former military dictatorship and his family's ties to violent paramilitary groups. But the Trump administration has embraced him wholeheartedly."

Adam Edelman of NBC News: "... Donald Trump doubled down on his criticism of the late Sen. John McCain on Tuesday, telling reporters that he 'was never a fan' of the Arizona lawmaker 'and never will be.' Trump, during an appearance at the White House alongside Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, continued his posthumous broadside against his former foe, saying that he still found it 'disgraceful' that McCain voted against repealing key parts of Obamacare in 2017."

Josh Dawsey & John Wagner of the Washington Post: "President Trump on Tuesday ratcheted up a remarkable public spat with the husband of one of his top advisers, attacking Kellyanne Conway's husband as a 'total loser' on Twitter in response to the lawyer's persistent questions about his mental health and competence.... The president's tweet also included a dubious assertion from Trump's 2020 campaign manager, Brad Parscale, that the president 'doesn't even know' his senior adviser's husband. But George Conway said in an interview Tuesday that he has had a number of notable interactions with Trump over the past decade, often concerning legal representation and sensitive legal matters since Trump became president. He described the president as 'mendacious' and 'incompetent' and predicted he would not win reelection."

Benjamin Weiser & William Rashbaum of the New York Times: "Federal authorities investigating Russian interference in the presidential election obtained search warrants for emails of Michael D. Cohen, President Trump's former lawyer and fixer, beginning in July 2017, according to documents released Tuesday that provide a glimpse into the earliest stages of the inquiry into the president. The documents show that Mr. Cohen's business dealings had already been the subject of an extensive investigation by the time F.B.I. agents conducted a highly public raid on his home and office nine months later, in April of last year. They also show how little the public knew about the Russian investigation in real time as prosecutors zeroed in on Mr. Cohen.... The documents give a rough timeline of how the Cohen investigation unfolded."

The Biggest Losers. Fred Barbash & Deanna Paul of the Washington Post: "Federal judges have ruled against the Trump administration at least 63 times over the past two years, an extraordinary record of legal defeat that has stymied large parts of the president's agenda on the environment, immigration and other matters. In case after case, judges have rebuked Trump officials for failing to follow the most basic rules of governance, including providing legitimate explanations for shifts in policy, supported by facts and, where required, public input. Many of the cases are in early stages and subject to reversal.... Two-thirds of the cases accuse the Trump administration of violating the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), a 73-year-old law that forms the primary bulwark against arbitrary rule. The normal 'win rate' for the government in such cases is about 70 percent, according to analysts and studies. But as of mid-January, a database maintained by the Institute for Policy Integrity at the New York University School of Law shows Trump's win rate at about 6 percent.... Contributing to the losing record has been Trump himself. His reported comments about 'shithole countries,' for example, helped convince U.S. District Judge Edward Chen in San Francisco that the administration's decision to end 'temporary protected status' for hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Central America, Haiti and Sudan was motivated by racial and ethnic bias. At least a dozen decisions have involved Trump's tweets or comments." Thanks to MAG for the link. See also MAG's commentary below. ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Yeah, it turns out racial animus is not that sturdy a basis for policy decisions. ...

... Trump Won This One. Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "A narrowly divided Supreme Court said Tuesday that federal authorities have broad authority to detain -- without a bond hearing -- legal immigrants who have committed certain crimes that make them eligible for deportation. It does not matter whether authorities pick up such noncitizens years after they have been released from criminal custody, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote for the majority in the 5-to-4 decision. Federal law mandates detention for certain aliens while awaiting deportation proceedings, he said. 'As we have held time and again, an official's crucial duties are better carried out late than never,' wrote Alito, joined in the outcome by his fellow conservatives."

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "There is a Twitter account called 'Devin Nunes' cow that has tweeted nasty things about Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.). Evidently, the account is not actually run by a cow belonging to Nunes. Nunes is now suing his purported cow.... What better way to draw attention to something than to sue what is obviously a parody account claiming to be a creature without the opposable thumbs necessary to fire off a tweet?... What might be most notable about Nunes's suit is that this is the first battle he chose. Nunes said on Sean Hannity's Fox News show Monday night that this is 'the first of many' lawsuits to come. Does he really think his most obvious and airtight case involved ... @DevinCow and @DevinNunesMom?... The legal merits of the case appear highly questionable at best. The standard for defamation of a public figure such as Nunes is much higher than for an average person.... [BUT] Nunes is telegraphing an expansive effort to go after people who hurt Republicans with their public discourse. Its potential impact, not so much legally as from personal behavioral standpoint, shouldn't be so casually dismissed." See related posts below.

Josh Kovensky of TPM: "Florida prosecutors offered a deal to New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft whereby charges that he solicited prostitution would be dropped in exchange for Kraft admitting that he would be found guilty at trial, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. Under the terms of the reported deferred prosecution agreement, Kraft would be screened for sexually transmitted diseased, complete a class on prostitution, finish 100 hours of community service, and pay some court costs from the case. Kraft denies the charges. The WSJ also reported that legal experts had raised questions over Florida prosecutors' conduct in the case."

Brian Stelter of CNN: "Former Speaker of the House Paul Ryan is joining the board of the newly slimmed-down Fox Corporation, the parent company of Fox News. Ryan and three other board of directors were appointed on Tuesday. Appointing these directors was a necessary step as the Murdoch family wraps up the Disney-Fox deal.... The parts of Fox that aren't being acquired by Disney are forming a new company, simply called Fox, that will be run by Rupert Murdoch's son Lachlan Murdoch." Mrs. McC: It heartens me to anticipate just how much more "sincere" Fox personalities will be when they tout the benefits of shivving the poor & middle class.

~~~~~~~~~~

Ask a Dumb Question, Get a Useless Answer. Kevin Breuninger of CNBC: "... Donald Trump on Monday touted poll results that appeared to show more Americans than ever siding with his oft-repeated accusation that special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia probe is nothing more than a 'witch hunt.' But some polling experts took issue with the phrasing of the survey question, saying it may have skewed the results. 'President Trump has called the Special Counsel´s investigation a "witch hunt" and said he´s been subjected to more investigations than previous presidents because of politics. Do you agree?' the new USA Today/Suffolk University poll asked 1,000 registered voters in live telephone interviews between March 13 and 17. The survey found that 50 percent of respondents said they agreed.... Multiple polling experts took exception to the structure of the question ... because it asks three things within a single question."

David Enrich of the New York Times: Donald "Trump's financial ties with Deutsche Bank are the subject of investigations by two congressional committees and the New York attorney general. Investigators hope to use Deutsche Bank as a window into Mr. Trump's personal and business finances.... Over nearly two decades, Deutsche Bank's leaders repeatedly saw red flags surrounding Mr. Trump.... But Deutsche Bank had a ravenous appetite for risk and limited concern about its clients' reputations. Time after time, with the support of two different chief executives, the bank handed money -- a total of well over $2 billion -- to a man whom nearly all other banks had deemed untouchable." Read on for details of just what a risky bet Deutsche Bank made, again & again. It's a long article. Trump didn't learn to lie & cheat & renege on debts & commitments the day he announced his run for the presidency.

Cheating After the Last Dog Dies. Nico Hines of the Daily Beast: Cambridge Analytica "filed for the British equivalent of chapter 11 bankruptcy last year after secret recordings of its boss, Alexander Nix, emerged in which he claimed that Trump's data gurus had carried out illicit election campaigns all over the world. The company was also accused of using up to 87 million clandestinely harvested Facebook profiles to create a state of the art voter database that helped Trump win election in 2016. A lawyer representing a New York professor, who believes his private data was misused..., claims Cambridge Analytica’s data secrets are being shielded from justice and exposure by [bankruptcy] administrators in the pay of a shadow company set up by a band of executives linked to the Trump campaign veterans. The [British] High Court heard that administrators had deliberately misled a judge during a previous hearing by obfuscating their financial links to Emerdata, a company which was set up by Nix, Rebekah Mercer, and other senior figures who were previously involved with Cambridge Analytica." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Like Trump, these people are crooks, and like Trump, they come up with scams for every occasion. ...

... AND Speaking of the Mercers... Caroline Orr in Byline Times: "Trump's top donor, Robert Mercer, is at the centre of a multimillion-dollar anti-Muslim propaganda industry responsible for creating and spreading the same Islamophobic rhetoric found in the New Zealand shooter's manifesto.... Between 2014 and 2016, the Mercer Family Foundation donated a quarter of a million dollars to the New York-based Gatestone Institute, an anti-Muslim think tank that warns of a looming Muslim takeover of Europe leading to a 'Great White Death.'... Not coincidentally, many of the videos [produced by Gatestone & a Canadian partner] also feature clips of news articles from Breitbart, the far-right platform financed by Robert Mercer — just one of many examples of how this network of Mercer-affiliated anti-Muslim organizations and individuals uses its own propaganda across platforms to make it appear more credible and to expand its reach.... Prominent tech companies like YouTube, Google, and Facebook play a major role in this cycle by disseminating extremist content to specific audiences through features like micro-targeting and algorithmically-produced recommendations and suggestions. This was the case with Secure America Now, a secretive right-wing organization bankrolled by Robert Mercer. In 2016, the dark money group produced a series of Islamophobic propaganda videos and aired them during the final weeks of the presidential election."

Ken Vogel & Katie Benner of the New York Times: "A long-running federal investigation into a former White House counsel in the Obama administration is reaching a critical stage, presenting the Justice Department with a decision about whether to charge a prominent Democrat as part of a more aggressive crackdown on illegal foreign lobbying. The case involving the lawyer, Gregory B. Craig, was transferred in January from federal prosecutors in New York to those in Washington. The previously undisclosed move was driven by Justice Department officials in Washington, and reflects an eagerness within the department to prosecute violations of lobbying laws.... The investigation centers on whether Mr. Craig should have disclosed work he did in 2012 -- while he was a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom -- on behalf of the Russia-aligned government of Viktor F. Yanukovych, then the president of Ukraine.The work was steered to Mr. Craig by Paul Manafort...."

Lupe Luppen of Yahoo! News: "A high-profile counterterrorism prosecutor who handled the guilty plea of retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn has departed Robert Mueller's team, according to a spokesman for the special counsel's office. 'Zainab Ahmad has concluded her detail with the Special Counsel's Office but will continue to represent the office on specific pending matters that were assigned to her during her detail,' Peter Carr said in a statement. The announcement of Ahmad's departure comes on the heels of press reports that her colleague Andrew Weissman, the lead prosecutor on Paul Manafort's case, would leave the office in coming days. The end of Ahmad's detail is sure to be seen as another indication that the special counsel's investigation is winding down."

Amanda Hoover of NJ.com: “Anthony Comello, the 24-year-old arrested in New Jersey Saturday for allegedly gunning down a mob boss in Staten Island last week, will return to New York to face the murder charge against him. Comello waived his extradition rights Monday during a hearing in Ocean County Superior Court before Judge Wendel Daniels. He is expected to appear in court in Staten Island next Monday, March 25.... In the courtroom, Comello held his open handcuffed palm up to reporters, showing a symbol and several words scrawled in pen. 'MAGA forever' and 'united we stand' were some of the phrases he had printed, while others were not entirely legible." Mrs. McC: Somehow, Donald Trump is featured in every American crime story. You might think criminals see him as a role model. ...

... Matt Stieb of New York: "Comello's other sketches -- a large 'Q' in the middle of his hand, and the phrases 'United We Stand' and 'Patriots in Charge' -- suggest the influence of the bizarre and wholly uncredited QAnon theory.... It's unclear how much weight should be placed onto Comello's conspiracist proclivities: online theories such as QAnon are laced with irony and misdirection, and to take their presence at face value in the courtroom is probably shortsighted. Still, the fact that the story -- a young man kills a Sicilian crime boss and shows up in court with conspiracist hand-drawings -- was a minor moment on an otherwise normal Monday suggests the irreversible damage that the Trump era has wrought on our understanding of the definition of a 'normal' news cycle."

Mrs. McCrabbie: Donald Trump tweeted or retweeted a total of 50 times over the weekend, according to MSNBC. (Maybe this is another sign he'll get the Mueller report this week [not that we will].) He isn't finished:

... He Takes No Responsibility for Encouraging White Supremacists. Jordan Fabian of the Hill: "President Trump on Monday accused the news media of blaming him for last week's deadly shootings on a pair of mosques in New Zealand. 'The Fake News Media is working overtime to blame me for the horrible attack in New Zealand. They will have to work very hard to prove that one. So Ridiculous!'" (Also linked yesterday.) ...

... Brett Samuels of the Hill: "President Trump on Monday called Joe Biden a 'low I.Q. individual' after the former vice president had a slip of the tongue and nearly announced he was running for president in 2020. 'Joe Biden got tongue tied over the weekend when he was unable to properly deliver a very simple line about his decision to run for President, Trump tweeted. 'Get used to it, another low I.Q. individual!'" Mrs. McC: I guess we'll have to consider Trump a low-IQ individual -- okay, we do, we do -- since "slips of the tongue" and word salad are his specialties. Bigly. (Also linked yesterday.)

Can This Marriage Be Saved? Tina Nguyen of Vanity Fair: "The uneasy rift between White House adviser Kellyanne Conway and her husband, the indefatigable Trump critic George Conway, appeared to widen this weekend, when Kellyanne was forced to address their difference of opinion on the record. 'No, I don't share those concerns,' she told reporters Monday morning, referring to a series of tweets in which her husband suggested that her boss has a diagnosable mental disorder and that his 'condition is getting worse.'" ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: I have a sneaking suspicion that Kellyanne agrees with George 100 percent, & he is expressing her true opinions of Trump.

This Is Hilarious. Paul Bedard of the (right-wing) Washington Examiner: "Facebook abruptly censored the account of President Trump's chief social media guru, blocking him for simply responding to a question from a reader. Dan Scavino Jr. said on Facebook that his page was blocked without notice."

CBP Targets Americans at Border. Julia Ainsley of NBC News: "At least one journalist and four American immigration attorneys have been stopped and questioned at border stations in Arizona and Texas in recent months, according to their interviews with NBC News. These are i addition to 59 others whose names were on a list to be pulled aside by border agents in San Diego.... A spokesman for Customs and Border Protection told NBC News that the Department of Homeland Security's inspector general was investigating the practice, which he said was specific to San Diego. But Taylor Levy and Hector Ruiz, whose names were not included on the San Diego list, were stopped 700 miles to the east in El Paso, Texas. Levy and Ruiz both provide legal assistance to asylum-seekers on the U.S. and Mexican sides of the border." (Also linked yesterday.)

Noah Lanard of Mother Jones: "Twenty-five years ago, Democrats and Republicans felt the same way about immigrants: The Pew Research Center found that nearly two-thirds of both parties agreed they were a burden.... By the time Donald Trump launched his presidential campaign, the share of Democrats and independents who said immigrants strengthen America had nearly doubled, while Republican opinion on the question had barely budged.... And under Trump, anti-immigrant sentiment has fallen even further as the president's rhetoric about immigrants alienates large swaths of the public.... The United States is in the midst of a two-decade-long shift in favorof immigration, and it is only accelerating under Trump. For all the nativist movement's efforts over the decades to rein in immigration, the chances of preserving a white majority are effectively gone." --s

Paul Sonne & Erica Werner of the Washington Post: "Acting defense secretary Patrick Shanahan identified all of the projects that could possibly be affected by President Trump's decision to use emergency authorities to take up to $3.6 billion in military construction funds for his border wall. Shanahan had promised to deliver the list to lawmakers by the end of the day last Thursday during a tense hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee. The Pentagon didn't send the file to Capitol Hill until midday Monday, prompting anger from lawmakers who had been requesting it for weeks. The $12.9 billion pool of initiatives includes military construction projects approved and appropriated by Congress but not yet contracted out by the Pentagon.... Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee..., urged fellow senators to take into consideration the projects in their home states when voting on whether to override Trump's veto of a congressional resolution rejecting his national emergency."

Clive Irving of The Daily Beast: "[T]he next version of the [Boeing] MAX series, the MAX-10, is also at the center of safety concerns. And those concerns again involve how Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration work together to certify the safety of new airplanes.... Concerns about the MAX-10 ... focus on its ability to meet the strict standards set for evacuation in the event of an emergency: flight attendants have just 90 seconds in which a cabin must be evacuated.... The MAX-10, due to go into airline service next year, is the largest of the 737 series, designed to carry 230 passengers in coach class seating.... Having that number of seats in a single-aisle jet reflects the pressure from budget airlines for 'densification,' a euphemism for cabins in which seat width and the space between rows of seats is reduced to new minimums. The MAX-10 will take the art of densification to its limits.../ FAA and Boeing were on the same page in believing that although the MAX-10's cabin would be carrying 30 more passengers than the MAX-8 there was no need for new safety rules to be applied to it." --s

Steve King Is Still Crazier than Donald Trump. Reis Thebault of the Washington Post: "Rep. Steve King has civil war on his mind. The Iowa Republican broached the subject in a Saturday evening Facebook post -- a bizarre meme of two fighting Frankenstein figures, one red and one blue, each an amalgamation of states based on their political leanings. 'Folks keep talking about another civil war,' the meme read. 'One side has about 8 trillion bullets, while the other side doesn't know which bathroom to use.' King, who Congress recently stripped of committee assignments over his comments about white supremacy, annotated the image with a smirking emoji and mused, 'Wonder who would win....' The implication was incendiary: King was openly pondering violent, armed conflict, apparently joking about Republican-leaning states fighting their Democratic-leaning neighbors in a second American civil war.... King deleted the post, which he shared on an official campaign page, on Monday."

Josh Israel of ThinkProgress: "Missouri Republican Josh Hawley presented himself as a 'constitutional conservative' committed to 'fighting for the people's liberties' in his 2018 campaign for U.S. Senate. But on Monday, he endorsed Donald Trump Jr.'s call for action to force private tech companies to protect and privilege conservative hate speech on their platforms.... It is particularly noteworthy that Hawley and Trump Jr. are claiming online censorship days after an alleged white nationalist killed 50 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.... A report from the social media tracking company NewsWhip also noted last week that recent changes to Facebook's algorithm have actually led to increased engagement on posts by conservative outlets like Fox News and, among the less mainstream sites, LifeZette and Breitbart." --s

Revenge of the Trumpbots. Bryan Lowry & Lindsay Wise of the Kansas City Star: "U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt has been disinvited from a local GOP gathering in Christian County, Missouri, next month amid a backlash over his vote to block ... Donald Trump's use of emergency powers to build a border wall. The senior GOP senator from Missouri was one of 12 Republicans who joined Democrats in voting against Trump's national emergency declaration, a move that has sparked anger within the president's base. As a Republican sharing the ballot with Trump in 2016, Blunt squeaked out a narrow 3-point win on Trump's coattails. His vote on Thursday angered ardent Trump supporters across Missouri, who saw it as a betrayal."

Daily Beast: "Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) sued Twitter, two anonymous Twitter accounts, and political consultant Liz Mair for more than $250 million, alleging that the defendants engaged in 'negligence, defamation per se, insulting words, and civil conspiracy.' In the suit, Nunes accuses Twitter of having a 'political agenda' by allowing two anonymous accounts -- 'Devin Nunes' Mom' (@DevinNunesMom) and 'Devin Nunes' Cow' (@DevinCow) -- and Mair to attack, defame, and demean him." ...

... Jonathan Chait: "I have spent innumerable hours excavating the loopy theories emanating from Nunes. And yet none of that prepared me for the full barking mad preposterousness of his lawsuit. It might by the most staggeringly juvenile and inadvertently hilarious document I have ever read. Nunes's legal case hinges on the argument that Twitter is not merely a platform for users, but a media company with a distinct point of view.... His lawsuit asserts that the existence of very mean tweets 'runs contrary to every tenet of American Democracy, including the guarantees of both the First Amendment and Article I, § 12 of the Virginia Constitution....' ... Building atop his foundation of a completely false factual understanding of how Twitter operates and what the First Amendment means, Nunes builds the rest of his suit around detailed recounting of the mean tweets he has suffered and the pain they have caused him." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Nunes' "interpretation" of an Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. citation boggles the mind. The lawsuit reads like a parody of frivolous lawsuits. He'll probably sue Chait, too. And maybe me.

E. A. Crunden of ThinkProgress: "Deadly and historic flooding is plaguing states across the Midwest, isolating entire towns and upending the region in what experts worry is an ominous preview of future climate change impacts. National media has been slow to cover the tragedy, which has left several states, including Nebraska, Missouri, and Iowa, all reeling from turbulent weather conditions. As of Sunday, nine million people across 14 states were under a flood advisory." --s

Mark Olalde of Mother Jones: "The remnants of an abandoned gold and silver mine scar the Little Rocky Mountains just south of the Fort Belknap Indian Community in Montana, bleeding polluted orange water into streams that meander through the reservation.... Pegasus Gold Corp., a Canadian company that owned that mine and several others in the state, went bankrupt and folded 20 years ago. That left a legacy of water pollution and a cleanup bill nearing $100 million -- with no end in sight.... Pegasus isn't an isolated case. Especially in the drought-prone West, the outdated and opaque regulatory system meant to ensure money is available to restore water and land at gold, copper and other hardrock mines often falls short.... Pollution seeping from these mines regularly contaminates waterways. There's often no end date to treatment costs, billions of dollars of which have been shouldered by taxpayers." --s

Chavie Lieber of Vox: "You might not know where all your recycled goods go, but they're a part of a vast ecosystem that spans the globe and contributes t a $200 billion industry. One country that used to be the biggest importer of recycled materials, especially for the US, is China. But last year, it stopped accepting most foreign recyclables& as part of an effort to crack down on the country's pollution. As a result of this ban, the global recycling system has been crumbling, and plenty of cities in the US are now struggling to figure out what to do with their recycled goods." --s

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Erik Wemple of the Washington Post illustrates how Fox "News" tries to find a balance between airing the hate speech Donald Trump enjoys hearing & retaining mainstream advertisers.

Catherine Garcia of the Week: "The private texts between Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and his girlfriend, Lauren Sanchez, published in January were supplied to the National Enquirer by her brother, Michael Sanchez, who was paid $200,000 for the messages, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.... Michael Sanchez, a talent agent for reality show judges and pundits and a fervent supporter of President Trump, frequently passed along stories to top Enquirer editor Dylan Howard, the Journal reports." Mrs. McC: Technically, I suppose this belongs under the "Annals of 'Journalism'" heading because the Enquirer is technically a "news magazine." In the same way I'm technically a candidate for Miss America.

Way Beyond the Beltway

Netherlands. Jon Henley of the Guardian: "Armed police were searching multiple buildings in the Dutch city of Utrecht on Monday after a possible terrorist shooting on a tram left at least three people dead and nine injured, some seriously.... [The attack] happened at about 10.45am at a tram stop on the city's central 24 Oktoberplein junction, a police spokesman, Bernhard Jens, told reporters at the scene. The mayor of Utrecht, Jan van Zanen, said in a video statement at least three people had died in the attack and nine more were wounded, three of them seriously. Van Zanen said police 'are not ruling out -- in fact, we are assuming' a terrorist motive." (Also linked yesterday.) ...

     ... New York Times Update: "After a nearly eight-hour manhunt, the police said they had arrested a Turkish-born man who had been identified as a suspect in the shooting. It was not clear how many people were involved." (Also linked yesterday.)

U.K. Jessica Elgot of the Guardian: "The House of Commons Speaker has thwarted any attempt by Theresa May to bring a third meaningful vote to parliament, unless there has been substantial change to the Brexit deal. With Theresa May's plans thrown into chaos by the move, one of her chief law officers warned the government could be forced to cut short the parliamentary session and restart in order to bring back the Brexit deal." (Also linked yesterday.)