The Commentariat -- Nov. 17, 2018

Afternoon Update:

Chris Rodrigo of the Hill: "President Trump on Saturday rejected reports that his administration is considering extraditing a foe of Turkish President Tayyip Erdoğan.... NBC News reported Thursday said that the Trump White House had directed the Department of Justice (DOJ) and FBI to reexamine a request from Turkey to extradite [Fethullah] Gülen.... Trump's comments on Gülen echoed those of other administration officials since the release of NBC's report." Mrs. McC: Maybe the NBC report was the result of an administration trial balloon that popped.

The Gentlelady from Mississippi. Ashton Pittman of the Jackson Free Press: "U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith accepted a donation from Peter [Z]ieve, a businessman in Washington state known for his white supremacist views, just days after a video published by Bayou Brief surfaced in which she says she would be 'on the front row' if a supporter invited her to 'a public hanging' '#Zieve donated $2,700, the max donation an individual can make, to Hyde-Smith’s campaign on Nov. 14. Progressive newsletter Popular Info first reported the donation.... Zieve donated over $1 million to Donald Trump in 2016." Mrs. McC: Hyde-Smith's campaign did not say whether or not it would return Zieve's donation. Trump evidently kept the money.

*****

Paranoid-in-Chief. Maggie Haberman & Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "In one conversation after another [Donald Trump] has asked aides and advisers a pointed question: Is Mike Pence loyal? Mr. Trump has repeated the question so many times that he has alarmed some of his advisers. The president has not openly suggested dropping Mr. Pence from the ticket and picking another running mate, but the advisers say those kinds of questions usually indicate that he has grown irritated with someone.... Some Trump advisers, primarily outside the White House, have suggested to him that while Mr. Pence remains loyal, he may have used up his utility.... Mr. Trump has never completely forgotten that during the 2016 campaign Mr. Pence issued a disapproving statement the day after the infamous 'Access Hollywood' tape was made public...."

Commander-in-Chief? Not So Much. Helene Cooper, et al., of the New York Times: "He canceled a trip to a cemetery in France where American soldiers from World War I are buried. He did not go to the observance at Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day. He has not visited American troops in Iraq or Afghanistan.... Rhetorically, Mr. Trump has embraced the United States’ 1.3 million active-duty troops as 'my military' and 'my generals' and has posted on Twitter that under his leadership, the American armed forces will be 'the finest that our Country has ever had.' But top Defense Department officials say that Mr. Trump has not fully grasped the role of the troops he commands, nor the responsibility that he has to lead them and protect them from politics.... On Thursday, Mr. Trump spent less than an hour in a pre-Thanksgiving visit to the Marine Barracks in Washington, three and a half miles from the White House.... On Wednesday, it was Defense Secretary Jim Mattis who visited American troops on the border with Mexico in the latest military deployment under Mr. Trump’s watch." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... The Daily Beast: "In an interview with Fox News’ Chris Wallace, President Trump claimed that he was simply too 'busy' to visit Arlington National Cemetery on Veteran’s Day — but his public schedule and tweets suggest otherwise.... The president admitted he probably 'should have done that,' but claimed he was 'extremely busy on calls for the country.'... Trump’s public schedule for Nov. 12 said the president had 'no public events scheduled.' He also tweeted a total of eight times that day.” --s ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: According to Leonnig & Dawsey of the WashPo (story linked below), Trump spent four hours Monday with his lawyers working on his answers to Bob Mueller's questions. The reporters do write that the session was "broken up by phone calls the president had to take." But the claim that he was "extremely busy on calls for the country" is far-fetched inasmuch as his main activity was covering up his involvement in answering questions about his ties to illegal Russian election-meddling. Obviously, Trump made a choice well before Monday to devote the day to his own interests rather than to giving up part of it to remember military veterans...

... Christopher Rugaber of the AP: "At a veterans’ event Thursday, [Trump] said the unemployment rate for former service members is its best in 21 years. He’s not even close. It’s only a one-year low. And it was even lower 18 years ago, under President Bill Clinton.... The veterans’ unemployment rate fell to 2.9 percent in October, the latest data available, but that is still above the 2.7 percent rate reached in October 2017, also under Trump. That was the lowest joblessness rate for veterans in nearly 17 years.... In May 2000, veterans’ unemployment dropped to a low of 2.3 percent, and he hasn’t reached that. In any event, it’s impossible for Trump to claim an achievement not seen in 21 years on veterans’ unemployment. The data on joblessness for vets only go back 18 years, to 2000." --safari: To summarize: In just one week, the presidunce* manages to disrespect the historical importance of our troops overseas, couldn't summon the courage to visit Arlington Cemetery due to temper tantrums, and then lies directly to Veterans' faces when he's finally forced to meet with them. 

This Russia Thing, Ctd.

Carol Leonnig & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "President Trump on Friday said he has answered a set of questions from special counsel Robert S. Mueller III 'very easily,' and his lawyers are signaling that the president expects to turn over his written answers in the coming days.... The president’s comments, which he made to reporters gathered in the Oval Office for a bill signing, came after his lawyers postponed submitting his answers on Thursday, as they had considered doing.... Trump stressed Friday that he answered the questions personally, not his lawyers. 'My lawyers aren’t working on it. I’m working on it,' Trump said. 'My lawyers don’t write the answers.' The president has met with lawyers nearly every day this week in sessions to review his answers, including a four-hour session Wednesday that was frequently interrupted by other business. Trump spent more than four hours meeting with his attorneys Monday, broken up by phone calls the president had to take, and 90 minutes Wednesday night, according to people familiar with the sessions.... Trump also was asked Friday about recent tweets that seemed to betray a sense of frustration. He called the Mueller probe 'illegal' and said, without evidence, that Mueller’s team was 'screaming and shouting at people, horribly threatening them to come up with the answers they want.' 'I’m not agitated,' he said Friday. 'It’s a hoax.'” ...

... Trump claims the questions are perjury traps: if you misstate what the weather was on a certain day, prosecutors will charge you with perjury:

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Actually, no. Prosecutors don't bring perjury charges for inconsequential mistakes. Also, there's not a chance Trump answered the questions "by himself." What were his lawyers doing during those hours-long meetings? Watching Trump diligently write out his answers in childish block letters? Calling out for Big Macs? ...

... Pamela Brown of CNN: "... Donald Trump and his legal team have taken issue with some of the questions from special counsel Robert Mueller that cover the transition period after the 2016 election, believing it could be off limits under executive privilege as they pertain to the presidency, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. The source would not explicitly say whether the President answered those questions other than to say that there are "responses" to all of the questions that were asked." Mrs. McC: So maybe the "very easily"-executed answers to many of Mueller's questions looked a lot like this:

Devlin Barrett of the Washington Post: "Lawyers challenging the appointment of Matthew G. Whitaker as acting attorney general asked the Supreme Court on Friday to step in and declare that someone else should serve in the role. The filing by lawyer Thomas C. Goldstein, who earlier this week filed a motion in federal court on behalf of Maryland’s attorney general challenging Whitaker’s appointment, is a novel attempt to undo President Trump’s choice to lead the Justice Department after Jeff Sessions was forced out as attorney general on Nov. 7." ...

... Jed Shugerman in a Washington Post op-ed: "President Trump’s appointment of [Matt] Whitaker [as acting attorney general] is a steep drop off a slippery slope of corruption. It’s time to make the Justice Department more structurally independent from presidents and their meddling. Unfortunately, there are even precedents for presidents appointing crony attorneys general as protection from investigation.... [Shugerman runs down the rogue's gallery.] Congress should act to reform and restructure the Justice Department. Congress created the department in 1870 in part to insulate government lawyers and prosecutors from patronage politics and party ma­nipu­la­tion. The past century has betrayed those designs.... Because the attorney general has always served a 'quasi-judicial' function, Congress has the power to make that office more independent from presidential control." ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: Trump believes in corruption. This is classic:

     ... Anita Kumar of McClatchy DC: "President Donald Trump will meet with Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi — who is on his short list be his next attorney general — while he vacations at his Mar-A-Lago resort in Palm Beach for Thanksgiving next week, according to a source close to the president.... Bondi was a Trump surrogate during the 2016 presidential campaign and, more recently, a member of the president’s Opioid and Drug Abuse Commission.... Bondi received a $25,000 campaign donation in 2013 from a charity run by Trump as her office was looking into complaints from customers of Trump University.... Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee had requested the Justice Department to look into whether Trump paid off Bondi. She denied that the two actions were connected." --s

Matthew Mosk & Allison Pecorin of ABC News: "More than three dozen sealed criminal indictments have been added to the federal court docket in Washington, D.C. since the start of 2018.... Several legal experts told ABC News the number of sealed cases awaiting action right now is unusual. Fourteen were added to the docket since late August alone, a review by ABC News has found.... And the inadvertent discovery on Thursday night of what appear to be secret charges pending against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has drawn fresh attention to the mystery. Legal experts told ABC News that the sealed cases could be tied to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s ongoing investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election and possibly part of a quiet effort to protect his investigation from any premature effort to shut it down." ...

... Julian Barnes, et al., of the New York Times: "Soon after he took over as C.I.A. director, Mike Pompeo privately told lawmakers about a new target for American spies: Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks.... The C.I.A. began last year to conduct traditional espionage against the organization, according to American officials. At the same time, federal law enforcement officials were reconsidering Mr. Assange’s designation as a journalist.... Mr. Pompeo and former Attorney General Jeff Sessions unleashed an aggressive campaign against Mr. Assange, reversing an Obama-era view of WikiLeaks as a journalistic entity. For more than a year, the nation’s spies and investigators sought to learn about Mr. Assange and his ties to Russia as senior administration officials came to believe he was in league with Moscow. Their work culminated in prosecutors secretly filing charges this summer against Mr. Assange.... A prosecution of Mr. Assange could pit the interests of the administration against Mr. Trump’s. Mr. Assange could help answer the central question of the investigation by the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III: whether any Trump associates conspired with Russia to interfere in the presidential race."

Real Bad News for Fake-New-Faker-in-Chief. Michael Grynbaum & Emily Baumgaertner of the New York Times: "A federal judge on Friday directed the White House to restore the press credentials of Jim Acosta of CNN, a win for media advocates and news organizations in a major legal test of press rights under President Trump. The judge, Timothy J. Kelly of Federal District Court in Washington, ruled that the Trump administration had most likely violated Mr. Acosta’s due process rights when it revoked his press badge after a testy exchange with the president at a news conference last week. The ruling was a significant but narrow victory for CNN. Judge Kelly, who was appointed by Mr. Trump, declined to weigh in on the First Amendment issues cited by the network, and the White House has the right to appeal. For now, Mr. Acosta can resume working on the White House grounds.... Other legal issues raised in the case were expected to be addressed in later court sessions." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... Mrs. McC: Sarah Sanders immediately issued a statement about "decorum," then lied about the ruling: "Ms. Sanders claimed in her statement that 'the court made clear that there is no absolute First Amendment right to access the White House.' But Judge Kelly did not rule on the First Amendment issues because he granted the temporary return of Mr. Acosta’s pass on due process grounds." ...

... This was all very upsetting to Lou Dobbs. Pilar Melendez of the Daily Beast: "Minutes after a federal judge ordered the White House to reinstate CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s press pass, Fox Business Network host Lou Dobbs took to Twitter to bash the decision, contradicting his network’s company line in the process. 'Outrageously puerile reasoning and ruling: Our district courts are filled with farcical excuses for judges,' Dobbs tweeted.... And so on. "The rant came two days after Dobb’s bosses at Fox News publicly backed CNN’s lawsuit against the Trump administration, filing a supportive amicus brief with other major news networks." Also too, as noted above, Trump appointed this particular "farcial excuse for a judge."

** Julian Barnes of the New York Times: "The Central Intelligence Agency has concluded that the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, ordered the killing of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, according to American officials. The C.I.A. has made the assessment based on the crown prince’s control of the Saudi Arabia, which is such that the killing would not have taken place without his approval, and has buttressed its conclusion with two sets of crucial communications: intercepts of the crown prince’s calls in the days before the killing, and calls by the kill team to a senior aide to the crown prince." ...

     ... ** Shane Harris, et al., of the Washington Post: "In reaching its conclusions, the CIA examined multiple sources of intelligence, including a phone call that the prince’s brother Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi ambassador to the United States, had with Khashoggi, according to the people familiar with the matter.... Khalid told Khashoggi ... that he should go to the Saudi consulate in Istanbul to retrieve the documents and gave him assurances that it would be safe to do so. It is not clear if Khalid knew that Khashoggi would be killed, but he made the call at his brother’s direction, according to the people familiar with the call, which was intercepted by U.S. intelligence.... President Trump has resisted pinning the blame for the killing on Mohammed, who enjoys a close relationship with Jared Kushner, the president’s son-in-law and senior adviser. Privately, aides said, Trump has been shown evidence of the prince’s involvement but remains skeptical that Mohammed ordered the killing.... The CIA’s assessment of Mohammed’s role in the assassination also tracks with information developed by foreign governments...."

Laura Meckler of the Washington Post: "Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Friday released her long-awaited rewrite of rules governing campus sexual harassment and assault allegations, narrowing the cases schools must investigate and giving the accused more rights. The proposed regulation replaces less formal guidelines created under President Barack Obama that tilt more toward accusers. DeVos rescinded the Obama measure a year ago. Under the proposal, fewer allegations would be considered sexual harassment and schools would be responsible only for investigating incidents that are part of campus programs and activities and that were properly reported. Accused students would be entitled to lawyers and cross-examination." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Trump, Ricardel Insult Estonia. Jennifer Jacobs of Bloomberg News: "... Donald Trump offered to nominate Mira Ricardel as ambassador to Estonia after First Lady Melania Trump forced the deputy national security adviser out of the White House, according to two people familiar with the matter. Ricardel turned down the posting to the Baltic state, two of the people said. The president wants to find her a good position, and she’s been presented nearly a dozen jobs from which to choose, according to a senior White House official." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Can This Marriage Be Saved? Michael Isikoff of Yahoo! News: "George T. Conway III, the husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, said the Republican Party has become 'a personality cult' under President Trump and that he would 'move to Australia' rather than vote for the president again. 'I don’t feel comfortable being a Republican anymore,' Conway said in ... about his decision to drop his party registration earlier this year....' Asked if he thinks the president is fully stable, Conway responded: 'No comment.'” (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Tal Kopan of The San Francisco Chronicle: "The number of undocumented immigrant children in government custody has topped 14,000 for the first time, a rise that shows no signs of slowing as the Trump administration enforces policies that are keeping them in government facilities longer. There were 14,056 unaccompanied immigrant minors in Department of Health and Human Services custody on Friday, according to a government source familiar with the number.... The reason is that children who arrive unaccompanied in the U.S. are spending more time in holding facilities before they can be released to suitable adults, often family members.... ICE confirmed in September that it had used that information to arrest undocumented adults who came forward to take custody of children. Previous administrations didn’t look into people’s immigration status when deciding whether to release children into their care, but that changed under President Trump." --s

Alexia Fernández Campbell of Vox: "A group of House Democrats will introduce a bill on Friday to help protect millions of nurses and other health care workers from the high rates of violence they experience on the job. The new bill, called the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act, would require hospitals, nursing homes, rehab centers, and jails to develop a workplace safety plan to protect their workers from violence they experience at the hands of patients — a surprisingly common phenomenon. The bill would also require employers to record and investigate all complaints of violence, and prohibits retaliation against employees who call 911. A draft of the bill was shared with Vox." --s

John Bresnahan of Politico: "The House Ethics Committee has formally sanctioned two members — GOP Rep. Mark Meadows (N.C.) and Democratic Rep. Ruben Kihuen (Nev.) — over sexual harassment-related allegations, the latest sign that fallout from #MeToo movement continues to be felt on Capitol Hill. Meadows was found to have violated House rules 'by failing to take appropriate steps to ensure that his House office was free from discrimination and any perception of discrimination.' This case grew out of an investigation into Meadows' former chief of staff, Kenny West. Meadows kept West on his payroll even after learning of credible harassment allegations against the former aide.... Kihuen, who announced his retirement as the #MeToo movement swept Capitol Hill last year, was found to have 'made persistent and unwanted advances towards women who were required to interact with him as part of their professional responsibilities.' Both lawmakers were reproved by the bipartisan Ethics Committee, the least serious form of punishment it can mete out."

Elana Schor of Politico: "Chuck Grassley plans to trade his Senate Judiciary Committee gavel to lead the Finance Committee next year, he said on Friday — leaving Lindsey Graham in line to replace him as chairman." Mrs. McC: Oh, great. Now Lindsey can go ballistic for as long as he wants every time Democrats find fault with Trump's usual low-par nominees. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Election 2018

David Graham of The Atlantic: "As the outstanding races continue to gradually come in, they are changing the way the midterm elections look. Instead of the 'blue wave' that pundits predicted before Election Day, it’s more like a blue tide — rolling slowly but inexorably in and washing Republicans away.... With the late results in, Democrats have netted 36 seats. In the six remaining races, Democrats lead in three and Republicans lead in three, so if the results hold, Democrats will end up gaining 39 seats — at the high end of the range of predictions heading into Election Day." --s

Florida. Manuel Roig-Franzia & Amy Gardner of the Washington Post: "Sen. Bill Nelson was left with almost no chance of pulling off a comeback to retain his seat Friday after Florida’s two largest counties completed hand recounts that failed to generate the big vote bump the incumbent Democrat needed. Nelson’s underwhelming performances in the recounts in Miami-Dade County and the Democratic stronghold of Broward County, along with three courtroom setbacks, make it almost impossible for the three-term senator and former astronaut to overcome a deficit of more than 12,000 votes in his reelection bid against Gov. Rick Scott (R). The recounts set the stage for a likely Scott victory that would strengthen Republican control of the U.S. Senate and give the nation’s third-most-populous state two GOP senators."

Georgia. Alan Blinder & Richard Fausset of the New York Times: "Stacey Abrams ended her Democratic bid to become governor of Georgia on Friday, acknowledging that she did not have the votes to beat her Republican rival, Brian Kemp, but sounding a defiant note by declaring that an 'erosion of democracy' had kept many of her backers from the polls. The narrow defeat of Ms. Abrams, who would have become the first black woman to be elected governor anywhere in the United States, as well as the apparent loss of Andrew Gillum, who sought to become Florida’s first black governor, at once illuminated the vestiges of Southern history and demonstrated how demographic changes have taken hold across the region and begun to reshape its politics."

Mississippi. Allan Smith of NBC News: "A video surfaced Thursday of Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi saying it might be a 'great idea' to make it harder for some people to vote, and her campaign quickly responded that she was 'obviously' joking. Hyde-Smith, who is in a runoff against Democrat Mike Espy on Nov. 27, made the remark at a campaign stop in Starkville, Mississippi, on Nov. 3. It was posted to Twitter on Thursday by Lamar White Jr., publisher of The Bayou Brief. Smith earlier this week posted video of Hyde-Smith making a comment on Nov. 2 about a 'public hanging' that started a controversy.... Danny Blanton, a spokesman for Espy's campaign, called Hyde-Smith a 'walking stereotype who embarrasses our state.' 'For a state like Mississippi, where voting rights were obtained through sweat and blood, everyone should appreciate that this is not a laughing matter,' Blanton said in a statement." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: That's Senator Cindy there to the left. Now try to picture her back in the 1960s, standing at the front of a crowd of white ladies screaming at little black children on their way to their newly-integrated school. That wasn't hard, was it?

Utah. Paul LeBlanc of CNN: "Two-term Republican Rep. Mia Love on Friday took the lead over her Democratic challenger in Utah's 4th District House race more than a week after election night and after President Donald Trump mocked her for losing. Love leads Democrat Ben McAdams by 419 votes as of Friday evening, CNN results show, giving the congresswoman 50.1% of the vote -- a slim margin above McAdams at 49.9% as votes continue to be counted."

Another Way Man-Made Climate Change Is Devastaing the Planet. Julie Turkewitz & Matt Richtel of the New York Times: "The wildfires that have laid waste to vast parts of California are presenting residents with a new danger: air so thick with smoke it ranks among the dirtiest in the world.... In the communities closest to the Paradise fire, an apocalyptic fog cloaked the roads, evacuees wandered in white masks and officials said respiratory hospitalizations had surged. Nearly 200 miles to the south, in San Francisco, the smoke was so thick that health warnings prompted widespread school closings. Even the city’s cable cars were yanked from the streets. And researchers warned that as large wildfires become more common — spurred by dryness linked to climate change — health risks will almost surely rise."

"Moral Rot". Tara Isabella Burton of Vox: "Activists are castigating Facebook for hiring a public relations firm accused of promoting anti-Semitic conspiracy theories and blamed Jewish billionaire philanthropist George Soros for galvanizing some of Facebook’s critics.... Facebook retained the services of the public relations firm Definers Public Affairs, which had been founded by several Republican political operatives. Definers, in turn, helped push the narrative that critics of Facebook were being bankrolled by Soros and his Open Society Foundations.... Facebook has since cut ties with Definers, and its founder Mark Zuckerberg has denied any knowledge of the strategy, telling reporters that he 'learned about this reading the New York Times yesterday.'... But Facebook’s willingness to partner with those who weaponize information — peddling anti-Semitic conspiracy theories when it’s beneficial, then turning around and accusing its opponents of doing the same — reveals the fundamental moral rot at the core of such an ethos." --s

Karen Zraick of the New York Times: "A lawsuit accusing the publisher of the neo-Nazi site Daily Stormer of coordinating a 'terror campaign' of online harassment against a Jewish real estate agent cannot be dismissed on First Amendment grounds, a federal judge in Montana ruled this week. In his ruling denying a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, Dana L. Christensen, the chief judge for United States District Court in Missoula, Mont., wrote that the real estate agent, Tanya Gersh, was a private citizen, not a public figure, and that the publisher, Andrew Anglin, incited his followers to harass her as part of a personal campaign." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) 

Beyond the Beltway

Very Fine People. Noor Al-Sibai of the Raw Story: "Thirty-nine members of the United Aryan Brotherhood and Unforgiven neo-Nazi groups were arrested in a Florida drug trafficking sting — and one had functional pipe bombs in his home. Tampa’s WFTS-TV reported that the multi-agency sting..., a three-year-long investigation, led to the seizure of more than 110 illegal firearms, a rocket launcher and two pipe bombs from the individuals mostly based in Pasco County, Florida. Authorities also seized 'several pounds' of meth and fentanyl.... The United Aryan Brotherhood is, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the nation’s oldest prison-based white supremacist group. The Anti-Defamation League reported that Unforgiven is a Florida-based neo-Nazi prison group....”

Way Beyond

Dan Sabbagh of the Guardian: British PM "Theresa May is battling to halt a growing revolt from the Tory right after half a dozen more backbenchers came out in favour of a no-confidence vote and the organiser of the rebellion publicly predicted more MPs would follow next week.... The number of backbenchers calling publicly for a no-confidence vote in May’s leadership increased to 23. Rebellious MPs said they were confident of reaching the required threshold of 48 letters to Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the party’s 1922 Committee."

The Commentariat -- Nov. 16, 2018

Afternoon Update:

Real Bad News for Fake-New-Faker-in-Chief. Michael Grynbaum & Emily Baumgaertner of the New York Times: "A federal judge on Friday directed the White House to restore the press credentials of Jim Acosta of CNN, a win for media advocates and news organizations in a major legal test of press rights under President Trump. The judge, Timothy J. Kelly of Federal District Court in Washington, ruled that the Trump administration had most likely violated Mr. Acosta's due process rights when it revoked his press badge after a testy exchange with the president at a news conference last week. The ruling was a significant but narrow victory for CNN. Judge Kelly, who was appointed by Mr. Trump, declined to weigh in on the First Amendment issues cited by the network, and the White House has the right to appeal. For now, Mr. Acosta can resume working on the White House grounds.... Other legal issues raised in the case were expected to be addressed in later court sessions." ...

     ... Mrs. McC: Sarah Sanders immediately issued a statement about "decorum," then lied about the ruling: "Ms. Sanders claimed in her statement that 'the court made clear that there is no absolute First Amendment right to access the White House.' But Judge Kelly did not rule on the First Amendment issues because he granted the temporary return of Mr. Acosta's pass on due process grounds."

Commander-in-Chief? Not So Much. Helene Cooper, et al., of the New York Times: "He canceled a trip to a cemetery in France where American soldiers from World War I are buried. He did not go to the observance at Arlington National Cemetery on Veterans Day. He has not visited American troops in Iraq or Afghanistan.... Rhetorically, Mr. Trump has embraced the United States' 1.3 million active-duty troops as 'my military' and 'my generals' and has posted on Twitter that under his leadership, the American armed forces will be 'the finest that our Country has ever had.' But top Defense Department officials say that Mr. Trump has not fully grasped the role of the troops he commands, nor the responsibility that he has to lead them and protect them from politics.... On Thursday, Mr. Trump spent less than an hour in a pre-Thanksgiving visit to the Marine Barracks in Washington, three and a half miles from the White House.... On Wednesday, it was Defense Secretary Jim Mattis who visited American troops on the border with Mexico in the latest military deployment under Mr. Trump's watch."

Laura Meckler of the Washington Post: "Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Friday released her long-awaited rewrite of rules governing campus sexual harassment and assault allegations, narrowing the cases schools must investigate and giving the accused more rights. The proposed regulation replaces less formal guidelines created under President Barack Obama that tilt more toward accusers. DeVos rescinded the Obama measure a year ago. Under the proposal, fewer allegations would be considered sexual harassment and schools would be responsible only for investigating incidents that are part of campus programs and activities and that were properly reported. Accused students would be entitled to lawyers and cross-examination."

Trump, Ricardel Insult Estonia. Jennifer Jacobs of Bloomberg News: "... Donald Trump offered to nominate Mira Ricardel as ambassador to Estonia after First Lady Melania Trump forced the deputy national security adviser out of the White House, according to two people familiar with the matter. Ricardel turned down the posting to the Baltic state, two of the people said. The president wants to find her a good position, and she's been presented nearly a dozen jobs from which to choose, according to a senior White House official."

Can This Marriage Be Saved? Michael Isikoff of Yahoo! News: "George T. Conway III, the husband of White House counselor Kellyanne Conway, said the Republican Party has become 'a personality cult' under President Trump and that he would 'move to Australia' rather than vote for the president again. 'I don't feel comfortable being a Republican anymore,' Conway said in ... about his decision to drop his party registration earlier this year....' Asked if he thinks the president is fully stable, Conway responded: 'No comment.'"

Elana Schor of Politico: "Chuck Grassley plans to trade his Senate Judiciary Committee gavel to lead the Finance Committee next year, he said on Friday -- leaving Lindsey Graham in line to replace him as chairman." Mrs. McC: Oh, great. Now Lindsey can go ballistic for as long as he wants every time Democrats find fault with Trump's usual low-par nominees.

Allan Smith of NBC News: "A video surfaced Thursday of Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith of Mississippi saying it might be a 'great idea' to make it harder for some people to vote, and her campaign quickly responded that she was 'obviously' joking. Hyde-Smith, who is in a runoff against Democrat Mike Espy on Nov. 27, made the remark at a campaign stop in Starkville, Mississippi, on Nov. 3. It was posted to Twitter on Thursday by Lamar White Jr., publisher of The Bayou Brief. Smith earlier this week posted video of Hyde-Smith making a comment on Nov. 2 about a 'public hanging' that started a controversy.... Danny Blanton, a spokesman for Espy's campaign, called Hyde-Smith a 'walking stereotype who embarrasses our state.' 'For a state like Mississippi, where voting rights were obtained through sweat and blood, everyone should appreciate that this is not a laughing matter,' Blanton said in a statement." ...

... Mrs. McCrabbie: That's Senator Cindy there to the left. Now try to picture her back in the 1960s, standing at the front of a crowd of white ladies screaming at little black children on their way to their newly-integrated school. That wasn't hard, was it?

Karen Zraick of the New York Times: "A lawsuit accusing the publisher of the neo-Nazi site Daily Stormer of coordinating a 'terror campaign' of online harassment against a Jewish real estate agent cannot be dismissed on First Amendment grounds, a federal judge in Montana ruled this week. In his ruling denying a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, Dana L. Christensen, the chief judge for United States District Court in Missoula, Mont., wrote that the real estate agent, Tanya Gersh, was a private citizen, not a public figure, and that the publisher, Andrew Anglin, incited his followers to harass her as part of a personal campaign."

*****

David Remnick of the New Yorker: "The unwinding [of Donald Trump] accelerates daily. The unhinged tweet storms; the thunderbolts of blame and insult; the firing of Jeff Sessions and the appointment of a hyper-obedient acting Attorney General; the invective hurled at the press (and particularly at African-American reporters); the fact-free rants directed at firefighters trying to put out conflagrations amplified by climate change; the obvious fear of looming investigations and the special counsel's report.... The President is losing what last shred of poise he might have possessed.... There is no overestimating the damage that Trump has done and will continue to do."

Our Coy Mister. Erica Warner & Damian Paletta of the Washington Post: "President Trump did not commit Thursday to avoiding a partial government shutdown next month if lawmakers don't give him money to build a border wall, a top Republican senator said, raising the potential for a high-stakes budget battle as the GOP prepares to lose its grip on Congress.... Although they retain full control of Congress for now, Republicans still need support from Democrats to pass any bill in the Senate. Democrats have expressed opposition to giving Trump the money he wants to build his long-promised wall.... [Trump] initially threatened to shut down the government on Oct. 1 if Congress didn't give him the money, but GOP leaders warned such a tactic would hurt them during the midterms. Trump relented under pressure, in part because he was promised that Republicans would work to secure the money in early December."

Lee Moran of the Huffington Post: "Donald Trump on Thursday sought to stifle media reports that his administration is engulfed 'in chaos' and 'in meltdown.'... 'The White House is running very smoothly and the results for our Nation are obviously very good. We are the envy of the world. But anytime I even think about making changes, the FAKE NEWS MEDIA goes crazy, always seeking to make us look as bad as possible! Very dishonest!'... But his early morning Twitter boast attacking 'the FAKE NEWS MEDIA' did not go over well, with many folks suggesting America under Trump is actually a global 'laughingstock.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Zachary Basu of Axios: "President Trump renewed his attacks on the credibility of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation in a series of Thursday morning tweets, using his oft-repeated refrain of 'WITCH HUNT.' 'The inner workings of the Mueller investigation are a total mess. They have found no collusion and have gone absolutely nuts. They are screaming and shouting at people, horribly threatening them to come up with the answers they want. They are a disgrace to our Nation and don't care how many lives the ruin. These are Angry People, including the highly conflicted Bob Mueller, who worked for Obama for 8 years. They won't even look at all of the bad acts and crimes on the other side. A TOTAL WITCH HUNT LIKE NO OTHER IN AMERICAN HISTORY!'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Looks as if John Kelly didn't give Trumpy enough "policy time" Thursday. ...

... Natasha Bertrand of the Atlantic: "It isn't clear what prompted Trump's early-morning tirade [against the Mueller investigation].... But it could be a sign that he received negative news from his legal team or that new indictments against his family or associates are coming down the pike.... He was unusually specific in his accusation that Mueller's investigators were 'threatening' people 'to come up with the answers they want.'" ...

     ... Maggie Haberman, et al., of the New York Times note that Trump wrote the tweets "fresh off three days of private meetings with his personal lawyers [in which they] worked to draft answers to questions posed by the special counsel...." Mrs. McC: This is time Trump could have spent watching Fox "News," tanning & fixing his hair, so maybe that why he was especially irritated at Mueller. ...

... Matt Naham of Law & Crime: "These tweets came not long after the president basically confirmed what everyone already thinks -- that Matthew Whitaker's replacement of Jeff Sessions as acting Attorney General of the United States has everything to do with the Mueller probe. The transcript of Trump's Wednesday interview with the Daily Caller, when he was asked about Whitaker[.]... He was asked about Whitaker, said the Office of Legal Counsel issued a 20-page 'very good' and 'strong' opinion, and then immediately steered the conversation toward Robert Mueller's 'illegal investigation' that 'should have never been brought.'... At least two former federal prosecutors [as well as Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Calif.)] suspect that, actually, Trump has heard something from someone that would indicate he knows more indictments are coming.... The logic here is ultimately pretty simple: the president is privy to certain information in advance of the media." ...

     ... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: The former prosecutors to whom both Bertrand & Naham spoke speculate that Trump's sources are attorneys for some of the investigation's targets. Rachel Maddow speculates -- and I find her suggestion more compelling & far more terrible -- that Trump's source is Matt Whitaker.

This Is the Saturday Night Massacre ... in Slow Motion. Walter Shaub, former director of the Office of Government Ethics, in Slate: "The last time a president made a personnel change to undermine an investigation of his associates, Congress forced him to resign.... President Trump has launched a piecemeal Saturday Night Massacre of his own. He first fired FBI Director James Comey last year for his handling of the Russia probe.... If members of Congress or the American people fail to act, these precedents will become the guideposts for future presidents who follow the path President Trump is blazing. A new tenet of American democracy will become that a president is permitted to evade investigation by firing the heads of agencies that investigate the president's close associates, even when the investigation is the reason for the firings.... Putting a president above the rule of law is a threat to democracy."

Mary Jalonick & Mike Balsamo of the AP: "Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker told Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham in a meeting on Thursday that special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation will proceed, according to a person familiar with the meeting. The meeting with Graham and Whitaker comes as a bipartisan group of senators is pushing legislation to protect Mueller's job." Mrs. McC: Take no comfort in this assertion. Whitaker is a flim-flam artist. But maybe the Graham-Whitaker conversation will further rile Trump. ...

     ... Burgess Everett & Eliana Johnson of Politico: "Senate Republicans are urging ... Donald Trump to quickly nominate a permanent attorney general, hoping a new top law enforcement officer will blunt bipartisan concern over the future of special counsel Robert Mueller and boost the GOP ahead of tough government funding talks." Mrs. McC: Because Senate Republicans don't believe Whitaker, either.

Marshall Cohen of CNN: "A federal judge on Thursday upheld a federal indictment against the Russian troll farm accused of meddling in the 2016 election, handing a victory to special counsel Robert Mueller. In a 32-page opinion, Judge Dabney Friedrich rejected efforts by Concord Management and Consulting to dismiss the indictment, which accused the Russian company of conspiring to defraud the US government. Mueller's team says the company was involved in a well-funded 'troll farm' that pumped out political propaganda to millions of Americans throughout the 2016 presidential campaign. It was the second time that Friedrich, a Trump appointee, sided with Mueller and let the case proceed." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Matt Zapotosky & Devlin Barrett of the Washington Post: "WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange has been charged under seal, prosecutors inadvertently revealed in a recently unsealed court filing -- a development that could significantly advance the probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election and have major implications for those who publish government secrets. The disclosure came in a filing in a case unrelated to Assange. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kellen S. Dwyer, urging a judge to keep the matter sealed, wrote 'due to the sophistication of the defendant and the publicity surrounding the case, no other procedure is likely to keep confidential the fact that Assange has been charged.' Later, Dwyer wrote the charges would 'need to remain sealed until Assange is arrested.' Dwyer is also assigned to the WikiLeaks case. People familiar with the matter said what Dwyer was disclosing was true, but unintentional." ...

     ... The New York Times story, by Charlie Savage & Michael Schmidt, is here.

Erik Wemple of the Washington Post: "Justice Department lawyers, defending the Trump administration's revocation of [CNN reporter Jim] Acosta's credentials, submitted a brief on Wednesday responding to CNN's lawsuit seeking their restoration. The network is seeking a restraining order against the White House, an action that government lawyers are opposing on a number of grounds.... In a hearing before U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly on Wednesday afternoon, Deputy Assistant Attorney General James Burnham was forced to expound upon these arguments. It was unsightly." Read on for details. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Carol Lee, et al., of NBC News: "Trump administration officials last month asked federal law enforcement agencies to examine legal ways of removing exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen in an attempt to persuade [Turkey's president Recep] Erdogan to ease pressure on the Saudi government..., four sources said. The effort includes directives to the Justice Department and FBI that officials reopen Turkey's case for his extradition, as well as a request to the Homeland Security Department for information about his legal status, the four people said.... Career officials at the agencies pushed back on the White House requests, the U.S. officials and people briefed on the requests said.... [An earlier request] took place under Trump's former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, whose ties to Turkey came under scrutiny in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election meddling." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... OR, as Eric Levitz puts it: "In order to help an Islamist theocracy get away with executing one American immigrant [Jamal Khashoggi], Trump is (reportedly) trying to find a legal rationale for letting another (much less totalitarian) Islamist theocracy execute a different American immigrant [Fethullah Gulen].... In an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal earlier this week, Marco Rubio wrote that Donald Trump's ... nationalistic ethos was rooted in his deep appreciation for America's 'identity as a nation committed to the idea that all people are created equal, with a God-given right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.'... It seems safe to say, contra Rubio, that Trump is less of an American nationalist who harbors a deep commitment to human rights than an American solipsist who is ready and willing to abet crimes against humanity if he believes that he stands to benefit personally from doing so." ...

... Just Saying. Josh Kovensky of TPM: "The Trump Organization continues to accept millions from foreign governments. Three weeks ago, ABC reported that a Turkish business group had moved to cancel an event at Trump's DC hotel amid negotiations over Gulen's fate. Saudi officials have organized diplomatic events at Trump's Washington hotel since his inauguration. The country rents out a floor of one of Trump's New York buildings." ...

... P.S. It Won't Work. Roy Gutman of the Daily Beast: "Turkey pressed on with its demands for a full accounting from Saudi Arabia for the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi early last month -- dismissing a Saudi prosecutor's indictments Thursday as an attempt to cover up the murder. Turkey also rejected a reported White House plan to expel Fethullah Gulen, an Islamic preacher, from the United States in exchange for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan easing the pressure for a full investigation.... The Turkish rejection of the reported U.S. bid was both swift and blunt. 'At no point did Turkey offer to hold back on the Khashoggi investigation in return for Fethullah Gulen's extradition,' a senior Turkish official said Thursday night. Turkey's request for Gulen's extradition and the investigation into the Khashoggi murder 'are two separate issues. They are not connected in any way, shape or form.'"

... Sonam Sheth & John Haltiwanger of Business Insider: "Foreign-policy veterans were floored Thursday following a bombshell report that the White House considered extraditing one of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's top enemies to get Ankara to back off the investigation into the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi.... [Fethullah] Gulen is a legal US resident and a green-card holder who's been living in Pennsylvania since the late 1990s.... Ned Price, the former senior director of the National Security Council under President Barack Obama, said..., 'This is the Trump administration seeking to barter away a US resident who has lived here legally for years.'... Diplomatic, immigration, and law-enforcement officials during the Obama administration determined that Turkey's case for Gulen's extradition did not meet the required threshold.... Randa Slim, the director of conflict resolution at the Middle East Institute, echoed that view.... "If the White House seriously considered it, it shows to what lengths the [Jared] Kushner camp was willing to go to protect their young protege in Riyadh," she added. Slim was referring to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who once reportedly bragged that he had Kushner, a senior White House adviser, 'in his pocket.'"

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: It seems to me that Trump's plan to barter away a long-time legal American resident to help Trump's friend & client get away with murdering another American resident is also one more way Trump is discouraging immigration. Isn't it foolish to seek refuge in the U.S. if, on the POTUS*'s whim, you might be deported back to a country that is planning to execute you?

Sheila Kaplan & Jan Hoffman of the New York Times: "Stopping short of its threatened ban on flavored e-cigarettes, the Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday that it would allow stores to continue selling the products, but only from closed-off areas that are inaccessible to minors. At the same time, the agency moved to outlaw two traditional tobacco products that disproportionately harm African Americans: menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars. The proposed menthol ban would be the most aggressive action the F.D.A. has taken against the tobacco industry in nearly a decade, and it was notable given the Trump administration's business-friendly approach to regulatory issues. If it clears the usual federal regulatory hurdles, a process which could take at least two years, the menthol ban could make a significant dent in cigarette sales. Menthol cigarettes account for about 35 percent of cigarette sales in the United States." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post: "The Treasury Department has designated 17 Saudi Arabians for involvement in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, imposing sanctions that freeze any assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit Americans from dealings with them. All of the 17, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement, were 'involved in the abhorrent killing' that 'targeted and brutally killed a journalist who resided and worked in the United States [and] must face consequences for their actions.' Mnuchin indicated that the United States would continue investigating to determine whether others were also responsible and said that 'the government of Saudi Arabia must take appropriate steps to end any targeting of political dissidents or journalists.' The Treasury announcement followed the release of a statement in Riyadh saying 11 unnamed Saudi citizens had been indicted in the crime.... It said authorities would seek the death penalty against five of those indicted. Neither statement implicated Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom Turkey has indirectly accused of ordering Khashoggi's death. A spokesman for the Saudi prosecutor, speaking at a news conference in Riyadh, said Mohammed had no knowledge of the operation." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Tierney Sneed of TPM: "The top scientist at the Census Bureau [John Abowd] testified Wednesday that then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions exerted 'political influence' when he directed Justice Department staff not to meet with census experts about the Justice Department's request to add a citizenship question to the census.... Abowd's testimony was in the ongoing federal trial in New York over Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross's move to add a citizenship question to the census.... Ross called Sessions personally in the fall of 2017 seeking that the Justice Department formally request a citizenship question, which it did in ... December 2017.... The Census Bureau concluded that adding the question would be costly and would result in less accurate data.... Abowd's team sought to meet with Justice Department staff to discuss this assessment in early 2018. Sessions directed the Justice Department to cancel the meeting[.]" --s

Betsy's Bodyguards. Heidi Przybyla of NBC News: "Education Secretary Betsy DeVos began receiving around-the-clock security from the U.S. Marshals Service days after being confirmed, an armed detail provided to no other cabinet member that could cost U.S. taxpayers $19.8 million through September of 2019, according to new figures provided by the Marshals Service to NBC News. While it remains unclear who specifically made the request, former Attorney General Jeff Sessions granted the protection on February 13, 2017, a few days after DeVos was heckled and blocked by a handful of protesters from entering the Jefferson Academy, a public middle school in Washington.... The cost of security provided to DeVos was $5.3 million in fiscal year 2017 and $6.8 million for fiscal year 2018, according to the Marshals Service -- an amount that is ultimately reimbursed by the Education Department. The estimated cost for fiscal year 2019 is $7.74 million. That far exceeds the $3.5 million spent on security for former EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, who resigned in July amid questions about lavish spending habits during his 17-month tenure at the agency. An EPA inspector general report ... found the price tag for Pruitt's security detail was 'not justified' and far exceeded the security costs incurred under past EPA heads. Typically, cabinet secretaries are protected by security arranged by their departments' internal enforcement units."

Mark Hand of ThinkProgress: "Raymond David Vela, President Trump's nominee to be director of the U.S. National Park Service (NPS), mentioned climate change on Thursday as he read from prepared remarks during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Hearing a Trump nominee cite climate change as an issue that must be tackled is a rare, if not unheard of, occurrence.... The National Park Service has gone almost two years without a director. Vela has been with the parks service for almost 30 years; most recently, he served as superintendent of Grand Teton National Park." --s

Trump's Best Crooks, Ctd. Michael Biesecker of TPM: "The Trump administration's top environmental official for the Southeast has been arrested on Alabama state ethics charges related to a scheme to help a coal company avoid paying for a costly toxic waste cleanup. Trey Glenn was booked into a county jail in Birmingham on Thursday before being released on a $30,000 bond. Glenn was appointed last year as chief of the Environmental Protection Agency's regional office in Atlanta, which oversees operations in eight states. Glenn is charged with multiple ethics violations stemming from his prior work as a coal-industry consultant opposing federal Superfund cleanup efforts. He resigned as director of the Alabama Department of Environmental Management in 2009 following another ethics scandal." --s

Democrats Have Their Fights in Public. Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "Representative Nancy Pelosi asserted Thursday that she has enough support among her colleagues to become the next speaker of the House, as the first hint of opposition emerged from an Ohio Democrat, Representative Marcia Fudge, who said she is considering a run. 'Come on in, the water's warm,' Ms. Pelosi said, dismissing the notion that Ms. Fudge was a threat. Asked if she had the 218 votes necessary to win the speakership, she said emphatically, 'Yes.' Ms. Pelosi is an exceptionally skilled politician, and many Democrats say she remains the odds-on favorite to return to the post in January. Her comments came as the fight over whether she should be speaker is heating up among her colleagues, exposing deep divisions over the role of gender in leadership at a time when a so-called pink wave put the party back in the House majority." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

... Matt Fuller of the Huffington Post: "Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio) is all but announcing her intention to run for House speaker against Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), testing the waters Thursday by slamming Pelosi and foregrounding issues of race.... During the course of our interview, the former Congressional Black Caucus chairwoman made it clear she thinks Pelosi has not been a vocal enough advocate for African-Americans in Congress, she dismissed suggestions that Pelosi had led Democrats back to the majority, and she painted herself as equally liberal as Pelosi.... Fudge said this was about a fresh start in Congress, making sure that Democratic leadership reflects the voters who gave Democrats the majority ― specifically, African-American women.... Fudge also suggested Pelosi is simply unpopular with Democrats. She pointed to polling suggesting that Pelosi has a 17 percent favorability rating, and that more Democrats oppose Pelosi being speaker than those who support her." ...

... AND Democrats Fight in Private. Anthony Adragna, et al., of Politico: "A fight broke out in a closed-door meeting of House Democrats over climate change as a powerful veteran lawmaker fought with freshman star Rep.-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other members-elect over the creation of a special panel for the issue. New Jersey Rep. Frank Pallone, incoming chairman of the powerful Energy and Commerce Committee -- backed by a number of other committee members -- slammed the creation of the new climate panel, according to multiple sources in the room. Pallone argued that his committee and other existing panels within the House could take on the issue aggressively." Mrs. McC: The old guard are finding out that the new kids don't know their place. Too too bad.

"We Are Ruled by Monsters & Fools." Ian Millhiser of ThinkProgress: "On Thursday, Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) delivered a speech to the conservative Federalist Society that would have been more at home on Alex Jones' radio show than at a gathering of many of the most powerful lawyers and judges in the country.... [Lee] claims 'the left' will start a civil war unless federal highway system abolished.... Lee warned of a brewing civil war, and claimed that the only way to avert violence would be to eradicate a long list of federal programs including 'the interstate highway system,' funding for 'K through 12 public education,' 'federal higher education accreditation,' 'early childhood education, the Department of Commerce,' 'housing policy, workforce regulation,' and what Lee labeled the 'huge glut of federally owned land.'"

Election 2018

California. Scott Wong of the Hill: "Democrat Katie Porter unseated incumbent Rep. Mimi Walters (R-Calif.), marking the first time Democrats have won the inland Orange County district since its creation in 1983. The Associated Press called the race on Thursday, nine days after Election Day. Porter's victory represented the fifth GOP seat that Democrats flipped in the 2018 midterms, an devastating blow to the new Republican leader, California Rep. Kevin McCarthy. Walters ... was one of a handful of vulnerable Republicans who voted for and defended both Trump's Obamacare repeal bill and his tax cuts law. Porter, a consumer-protection attorney, seized on Walters's unapologetic support of the Trump agenda, running ads that said her GOP opponent voted with the president 98 percent of the time."

Florida. What a Mess. Sean Sullivan, et al., of the Washington Post: "The five-day sprint to run ballots in Florida through counting machines for a second time ended Thursday, with the state ordering a manual recount of results in the U.S. Senate race, where about 12,600 votes separated Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson from Republican Rick Scott, the state's governor. No such measure was ordered in the governor's race, where former congressman Ron DeSantis (R) held an edge over Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum (D). At least three counties did not submit new totals for the machine recount and are relying on counts from last week." Mrs. McC: The three counties -- Palm Beach, Broward & Hillsborough (Tampa) -- are all Democratic-leaning. ...

... SNAFU. Alex Harris of the Miami Herald: "With just 15 minutes to go before Thursday's deadline, Broward County finally finished recounting every vote. At least, that's what officials told reporters and the canvassing board at 2:45 p.m. In a surprise announcement at nearly 6 p.m., Broward's director of elections planning, Joseph D'Alessandro, told the canvassing board the county actually turned in results to the state two minutes late. They won't count officially. Broward's original count, due Nov. 10, will stand until the manual recount totals come in Sunday at noon. The manual recount will be added to the first official count." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: D'Alessandro's excuse? "... “my unfamiliarity with their [the state's] website." Okay, why should the director of elections planning know the least little thing about the state's website? Guess he forgot the "planning" part of his title. On the other hand, why should the state refuse a download that's two minutes late? Oh, Governor/Candidate Rick Scott.

... Emily Mahoney of the Miami Herald: "Nine days after Election Day, and one machine recount later, it is all but official: Ron DeSantis is Florida's next governor. The results of the statewide machine recount which rolled by the Thursday 3 p.m. deadline, solidified what most already knew, as DeSantis has already made himself busy with transitioning to power and creating a new government. In the governor's race, it was an anticlimactic finish to the dramatic machine recount -- plagued with technical issues and an avalanche of lawsuits -- with almost not change in the margin between DeSantis and his Democratic opponent, Andrew Gillum, since this weekend. Still, about .41 percentage points separate the two candidates, or just under 34,000 votes."

Maine. Kevin Miller of the Portland Press Herald: "Democrat Jared Golden was declared the winner of Maine's 2nd Congressional District race on Thursday following a historic tabulation of ballots using ranked-choice voting. Golden, a Marine Corps veteran and state lawmaker from Lewiston, began the day roughly 2,000 votes behind incumbent Republican Rep. Bruce Poliquin. But Golden surged past Poliquin by slightly less than 3,000 votes after the ranked-choice votes of two independents in the race were redistributed Thursday afternoon.... This is the first time in U.S. history that a congressional race was decided using ranked-choic voting, which allows voters to cast ballots for their favorite candidate but also rank other candidates in order of preference.... Poliquin is challenging the constitutionality of ranked-choice voting in federal court, and the campaign could ask for a recount of the results." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Several commentators have pointed out that New England's House delegation will now be totally GOP-free. Damned East Coast librul elites.

Natasha Korecki & Darren Samuelsohn of Politico: "A day after he was arrested on domestic violence allegations, Stormy Daniels attorney and 2020 aspirant Michael Avenatti suggested on social media that pro-Trump activist Jacob Wohl was behind his legal ordeal. 'First Mueller and now me. When we are fully exonerated I am coming for you Jacob Wohl aka Surefire,' Avenatti tweeted. Avenatti did not further explain the tweet or respond to a request for comment. Wohl, a former hedge fund manager and right-wing blogger, is a central figure in a widely dismissed plot accusing special counsel Robert Mueller of sexual misconduct. At a recent Northern Virginia news conference where he made the claims against Mueller, Wohl acknowledged his connection to a firm called Surefire Intelligence. That private intelligence firm's Twitter account on Thursday tweeted a link to Avenatti's arrest then declared: 'Surefire Intelligence strikes again.'... After his arrest, Avenatti's ex-wife and his second wife, Lisa Storie-Avenatti, with whom he is in the midst of a divorce, released statements defending Avenatti, saying he had never demonstrated evidence of violence."

Dylan Scott of Vox: "After two years of Donald Trump and his anti-immigrant rhetoric, fewer immigrant families are using federal food stamps — even though no formal changes have been made to the program or its eligibility rules.... The implication ... is families who should still be eligible for those benefits -- and who still need them -- have voluntarily decided to leave the program for fear that they would be at risk if they applied through the official channels.... In other words, it appears Trump is making immigrant families too afraid to apply for federal assistance so they can afford food." --s ...

... AND in case you thought Trump's fake caravan scare had no real consequences for us true-blue bona fide U.S citizens:

... Words Matter. Allegra Kirkland & Josh Kovensky of TPM: "Federal prosecutors on Thursday requested that the avowed neo-Nazi [Jeffrey Raphiel Clark] who was friends on social media with the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter be held in a Washington, D.C. jail while he awaits trial on gun charges.... The new court documents ... contain transcripts of Clark's interview with an FBI agent following his arrest.... Jeffrey purportedly said that the Pittsburgh synagogue shooter 'did it because he's a white nationalist and he's mad at Jews.' 'He was upset with what ... what he sees as Jewish groups destroying America based on what he saw from that caravan, the migrant caravan that was going on, and he decided he wanted to retaliate,' the court filing cites Jeffrey as saying." [Emphasis mine] --s

Joe Romm of ThinkProgress: "The stunning price drops in wind and solar power have continued. No longer are U.S. solar and wind plants merely cheaper than coal plants -- they are also more affordable than new natural gas plants. And this is without subsidies or a price on carbon.... The bad news, however, is that while renewables are projected to capture two-thirds of the $10 trillion the world will invest in new generation through 2040, this will not be enough to avoid catastrophic warming." --s ...

... Jonathan Watts of the Guardian: "China, Russia and Canada’s current climate policies would drive the world above a catastrophic 5C of warming, according to a study that ranks the climate goals of different countries. The US and Australia are only slightly behind with both pushing the global temperature rise dangerously over 4C above pre-industrial levels says the paper, while even the EU, which is usually seen as a climate leader, is on course to more than double the 1.5C that scientists say is a moderately safe level of heating.... The aim of the paper is to inform climate negotiators as they begin a two-year process of ratcheting up climate commitments, which currently fall far short of the 1.5-to-2C goal set in France three years ago." --s

Beyond the Beltway

Thomas Fuller, et al., of the New York Times: "Within hours of the flames igniting in Northern California last week, an instant new homeless crisis was born. In a state already suffering an acute housing shortage, the fire that swept through the town of Paradise and neighboring hamlets has once again laid bare one of California's biggest vulnerabilities: With each disaster — wildfire, mudslide or earthquake — there are thousands of people who cannot find homes in a market that for years has had very little vacancy."

Connor Sheets of AL.com: "A former state trooper shot Greg Griggers, the district attorney for Alabama's 17th Judicial Circuit, in the face Thursday afternoon in Demopolis, according to Michael Jackson, district attorney for Alabama's 4th Judicial Circuit. After he shot Griggers, the former trooper was shot to death, reportedly by a law enforcement officer.... Jackson said the shooter has been identified as Steven Smith, Jr., a former state trooper who was previously questioned in connection with a 1996 incident in which someone used a shotgun to shoot up the home of Sumter County Circuit Judge Eddie Hardaway, the first black judge to preside over Sumter, Marengo and Greene counties.... Griggers, who serves as district attorney of Greene, Marengo and Sumter counties, was transported to a hospital and is expected to survive, according to Jackson." --s

Way Beyond

Andrew Roth of the Guardian: "Russia’s repeated arrests of opposition leader Alexei Navalny are politically motivated, the European court of human rights (ECHR) has ruled, in a sharp rebuke of the Russian authorities that is sure to provoke anger in Moscow. In a ruling released on its website, the Strasbourg-based court ruled that seven arrests of the Russian corruption whistleblower dating from 2012 to 2014 were politically motivated under the terms of the European convention on human rights, to which Russia is a partner. The arrests were aimed at 'suppressing political pluralism', the ruling said. In a final, binding decision, the court's grand chamber ordered Russian authorities to pay €63,000 (£55,600) in compensation for moral harm, material damages and court costs." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Rebecca Ratcliffe of the Guardian: "Central African Republic risks sliding into full-scale war, an aid agency has warned, after the UN security council failed to agree terms for extending a peacekeeping mission in the country. Jan Egeland, secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, said international efforts to solve the crisis were failing and civilians were routinely being targeted." --s

News Ledes

Los Angeles Times: "The death toll from the devastating Camp fire jumped to 63 on Thursday as search crews recovered seven more bodies in the burn area. The number of people unaccounted for jumped dramatically to 631 people, up from 130 on Wednesday evening. Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea told reporters that crews found three bodies in Magalia, three in Paradise and one in Concow. One body in Paradise was found in a car that had been flipped on its side. The blaze has scorched 141,000 acres and destroyed 11,862 structures. It was 40% contained as of Wednesday evening."

New York Times: "William Goldman, who won Academy Awards for his screenplays for 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid' and 'All the President's Men' and who, despite being one of Hollywood's most successful screenwriters, was an outspoken critic of the movie industry, died on Friday in Manhattan. He was 87.... In his long career, which began in the 1960s and lasted into the 21st century, Mr. Goldman also wrote the screenplays for popular films like 'Misery,' 'A Bridge Too Far,' 'The Stepford Wives' and 'Chaplin.' He was a prolific novelist as well, and several of his screenplays were adapted from his own novels, notably 'The Princess Bride' and 'Marathon Man.'"

The Commentariat -- Nov. 15, 2018

Afternoon Update:

Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "Representative Nancy Pelosi asserted Thursday that she has enough support among her colleagues to become the next speaker of the House, as the first hint of opposition emerged from an Ohio Democrat, Representative Marcia Fudge, who said she is considering a run. 'Come on in, the water's warm,' Ms. Pelosi said, dismissing the notion that Ms. Fudge was a threat. Asked if she had the 218 votes necessary to win the speakership, she said emphatically, 'Yes.' Ms. Pelosi is an exceptionally skilled politician, and many Democrats say she remains the odds-on favorite to return to the post in January. Her comments came as the fight over whether she should be speaker is heating up among her colleagues, exposing deep divisions over the role of gender in leadership at a time when a so-called pink wave put the party back in the House majority."

Zachary Basu of Axios: "President Trump renewed his attacks on the credibility of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation in a series of Thursday morning tweets, using his oft-repeated refrain of 'WITCH HUNT.' 'The inner workings of the Mueller investigation are a total mess. They have found no collusion and have gone absolutely nuts. They are screaming and shouting at people, horribly threatening them to come up with the answers they want. They are a disgrace to our Nation and don't care how many lives the ruin. These are Angry People, including the highly conflicted Bob Mueller, who worked for Obama for 8 years. They won't even look at all of the bad acts and crimes on the other side. A TOTAL WITCH HUNT LIKE NO OTHER IN AMERICAN HISTORY!'" ...

... Lee Moran of the Huffington Post: "Donald Trump on Thursday sought to stifle media reports that his administration is engulfed 'in chaos' and 'in meltdown.'... 'The White House is running very smoothly and the results for our Nation are obviously very good. We are the envy of the world. But anytime I even think about making changes, the FAKE NEWS MEDIA goes crazy, always seeking to make us look as bad as possible! Very dishonest!'... But his early morning Twitter boast attacking 'the FAKE NEWS MEDIA' did not go over well, with many folks suggesting America under Trump is actually a global 'laughingstock.'" ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Looks as if John Kelly didn't give Trumpy enough "policy time" today.

Sheila Kaplan & Jan Hoffman of the New York Times: "Stopping short of its threatened ban on flavored e-cigarettes, the Food and Drug Administration said on Thursday that it would allow stores to continue selling the products, but only from closed-off areas that are inaccessible to minors.At the same time, the agency moved to outlaw two traditional tobacco products that disproportionately harm African Americans: menthol cigarettes and flavored cigars.The proposed menthol ban would be the most aggressive action the F.D.A. has taken against the tobacco industry in nearly a decade, and it was notable given the Trump administration's business-friendly approach to regulatory issues. If it clears the usual federal regulatory hurdles, a process which could take at least two years, the menthol ban could make a significant dent in cigarette sales. Menthol cigarettes account for about 35 percent of cigarette sales in the United States."

Karen DeYoung of the Washington Post: "The Treasury Department has designated 17 Saudi Arabians for involvement in the killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, imposing sanctions that freeze any assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibit Americans from dealings with them. All of the 17, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement, were 'involved in the abhorrent killing' that 'targeted and brutally killed a journalist who resided and worked in the United States [and] must face consequences for their actions.' Mnuchin indicated that the United States would continue investigating to determine whether others were also responsible and said that 'the government of Saudi Arabia must take appropriate steps to end any targeting of political dissidents or journalists.' The Treasury announcement followed the release of a statement in Riyadh saying 11 unnamed Saudi citizens had been indicted in the crime.... It said authorities would seek the death penalty against five of those indicted. Neither statement implicated Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom Turkey has indirectly accused of ordering Khashoggi's death. A spokesman for the Saudi prosecutor, speaking at a news conference in Riyadh, said Mohammed had no knowledge of the operation."

Carol Lee, et al., of NBC News: "Trump administration officials last month asked federal law enforcement agencies to examine legal ways of removing exiled Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen in an attempt to persuade [Turkey's president Recep] Erdogan to ease pressure on the Saudi government..., four sources said. The effort includes directives to the Justice Department and FBI that officials reopen Turkey's case for his extradition, as well as a request to the Homeland Security Department for information about his legal status, the four people said.... Career officials at the agencies pushed back on the White House requests, the U.S. officials and people briefed on the requests said.... [An earlier request] took place under Trump's former national security adviser, Michael Flynn, whose ties to Turkey came under scrutiny in special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election meddling."

Marshall Cohen of CNN: "A federal judge on Thursday upheld a federal indictment against the Russian troll farm accused of meddling in the 2016 election, handing a victory to special counsel Robert Mueller. In a 32-page opinion, Judge Dabney Friedrich rejected efforts by Concord Management and Consulting to dismiss the indictment, which accused the Russian company of conspiring to defraud the US government. Mueller's team says the company was involved in a well-funded 'troll farm' that pumped out political propaganda to millions of Americans throughout the 2016 presidential campaign. It was the second time that Friedrich, a Trump appointee, sided with Mueller and let the case proceed."

Erik Wemple of the Washington Post: "Justice Department lawyers, defending the Trump administration's revocation of [CNN reporter Jim] Acosta’s credentials, submitted a brief on Wednesday responding to CNN's lawsuit seeking their restoration. The network is seeking a restraining order against the White House, an action that government lawyers are opposing on a number of grounds.... In a hearing before U.S. District Judge Timothy J. Kelly on Wednesday afternoon, Deputy Assistant Attorney General James Burnham was forced to expound upon these arguments. It was unsightly." Read on for details.

Kevin Miller of the Portland Press Herald: "Democrat Jared Golden was declared the winner of Maine's 2nd Congressional District race on Thursday following a historic tabulation of ballots using ranked-choice voting. Golden, a Marine Corps veteran and state lawmaker from Lewiston, began the day roughly 2,000 votes behind incumbent Republican Rep. Bruce Poliquin. But Golden surged past Poliquin by slightly less than 3,000 votes after the ranked-choice votes of two independents in the race were redistributed Thursday afternoon.... This is the first time in U.S. history that a congressional race was decided using ranked-choice voting, which allows voters to cast ballots for their favorite candidate but also rank other candidates in order of preference.... Poliquin is challenging the constitutionality of ranked-choice voting in federal court, and the campaign could ask for a recount of the results."

Andrew Roth of the Guardian: "Russia's repeated arrests of opposition leader Alexei Navalny are politically motivated, the European court of human rights (ECHR) has ruled, in a sharp rebuke of the Russian authorities that is sure to provoke anger in Moscow. In a ruling released on its website, the Strasbourg-based court ruled that seven arrests of the Russian corruption whistleblower dating from 2012 to 2014 were politically motivated under the terms of the European convention on human rights, to which Russia is a partner. The arrests were aimed at 'suppressing political pluralism', the ruling said. In a final, binding decision, the court's grand chamber ordered Russian authorities to pay €63,000 (£55,600) in compensation for moral harm, material damages and court costs."

*****

Kirk Semple & Elisabeth Malkin of the New York Times: "Hundreds of migrants in the caravan traveling from Central America have begun arriving in the northern Mexico border city of Tijuana, setting up a potential confrontation with the American authorities that has been brewing for weeks. Their arrival in Tijuana marked the end of one struggle -- making it safely to the United States border. But it signaled the start of another to get across that border, something that President Trump has promised to impede, even for those seeking asylum. Mr. Trump has labeled the caravan an invasion, deployed American soldiers to the border and made changes to asylum rules in efforts to confront it. A few of the migrants who have made it to Tijuana were already trying to figure out how to get appointments with American border officials to present their cases for sanctuary, migrants' advocates said. Most, however, appear to be biding their time and considering their options, including seeking sanctuary in the United States, trying to cross illegally or remaining in Mexico."

Gabriel Sherman of Vanity Fair: "... Donald Trump's West Wing [is careening] through one of the most turbulent weeks of his presidency. 'This is a level of insanity I've never seen before,' one former West Wing staffer told me.... What's surprising to some advisers about how bad the past week has been is that Trump initially seemed to take the midterm losses in stride.... Trump told people that his barnstorming rally schedule had mobilized his base and held Republican losses to historical lows, while increasing Republican gains in the Senate. 'He really thought he won the midterms,' a prominent Republican who spoke with Trump said. But by Wednesday, after hours of commentary about the suburbs' distaste for him and with seat after undecided House seat slipping toward the Democrats, his mood slid, too, hitting bottom in a bizarre and combative press conference." ...

     ... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: I guess this is what happens when reality invades your delusions. As for Trump's belief that he had "held Republican losses to historical lows": Domenico Montanaro of NPR: "... more than a week after Election Day, Democrats have increased their House gains to a net of 34 seats — and, when all the vote is counted, they may get to 39. Make no mistake: That is a very big wave.... It's the most House seats gained by Democrats since the wave election following Watergate. President Richard Nixon resigned in August 1974, leading to Democrats' pickup of 49 seats that fall." ...

... Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "Trump's continued foul mood about the whole thing leads to this question: Is he surprised? What happened last Tuesday and has happened since then has been very much in line with almost all of the projections. The national polls were largely right on the money, and the House had been expected to flip Democratic for months. But for months Trump publicly doubted all that. He [kept saying] there was a 'red wave' coming.... As with his myriad falsehoods and conspiracy theories, there's another option: He has crafted his own reality, which is significantly rosier than actual reality.... The totality of it suggests he wasn't exactly prepared for this outcome.... Perhaps he truly believed he was a popular president prepared to shock prognosticators again. Maybe he really thinks his approval rating among African Americans is 40 percent, even though there's no conceivable way that's true. As indicators of how insulated from reality he often finds himself, it's a pretty good case in point."

Nicholas Fandos & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "President Trump threw his support behind a substantial revision of the nation's prison and sentencing laws on Wednesday, opening a potential path to enacting the most significant changes to the criminal justice system in a generation. The tentative legislative package, developed by a bipartisan group of senators and called the First Step Act, builds on a prison overhaul bill already passed overwhelmingly by the House by adding changes that would begin to unwind some of the tough-on-crime federal policies of the 1980s and 1990s that incarcerated African-American offenders at much higher rates than white offenders."

Macron Goes High. Alissa Rubin of the New York Times: "The French president responded Wednesday evening to President Trump's scathing personal attack on him, declining to lash out and instead taking the long view. In a television interview on the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, which President Emmanuel Macron was visiting, he made clear that he was not going to respond in kind, but hew to both countries' longstanding common interests. 'I do not do policy or diplomacy by tweets,' he said.... Many French people were taken aback by the tone of Mr. Trump's comments, which the French newspaper Le Monde called 'violent.' However, some people observed that Mr. Trump was simply treating Mr. Macron the way he has treated other allies who had hosted him." ...

     ... Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: "Some people" are right: Trump really is the guest from hell. He behaves badly during the visit, embarrassing you in front of friends. Then -- no matter how accommodating & solicitous you were -- he slams you after he leaves. ...

... Michael Rose of Reuters: "... Donald Trump, who attacked his French counterpart in a series of tweets on Tuesday, should have shown 'common decency' instead since the country was mourning the anniversary of deadly attacks in Paris, a French government spokesman said. In five posts sent on the same day France marked the anniversary of the 2015 attacks that killed 130 people, Trump blasted the key U.S. ally over its near defeat to Germany in two world wars, its wine industry and President Emmanuel Macron's approval ratings.... 'Yesterday was November 13, we were marking the murder of 130 of our people,' [spokesman Benjamin] Griveaux said. 'So I'll reply in English: "common decency" would have been appropriate.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "... as the [right-wing Federalist Society] prepares to gather on Thursday for the start of this year's convention, more than a dozen prominen conservative lawyers have joined together to sound a note of caution. They are urging their fellow conservatives to speak up about what they say are the Trump administration's betrayals of bedrock legal norms.... The group, called Checks and Balances, was organized by George T. Conway III, a conservative lawyer and the husband of President Trump's counselor, Kellyanne Conway." (Also linked yesterday.)

Trump Loses Even Fox "News." Haley Britzky of Axios: "Fox News is supporting CNN's lawsuit against the Trump administration over the White House's revocation of Jim Acosta's press pass and plans to file an amicus brief in the case, according to a statement from the network's president Jay Wallace." (Also linked yesterday.)

This Russia Thing, Ctd.

Flake's Last Stand. Paul McLeod of BuzzFeed News: Outgoing "Republican Sen. Jeff Flake says he will block all of President Trump's judicial nominees until his bill to protect special counsel Robert Mueller goes to a vote. Flake's move comes after Trump forced Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign and appointed Matt Whitaker, a Trump loyalist who has repeatedly criticized Mueller's investigation, as acting attorney general.... Wednesday when Flake sought unanimous consent to bring his bill to protect Mueller forward for debate[,] Majority Leader Mitch McConnell refused, blocking the bill.... Flake is the swing vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee and, with Democrats, can vote down judicial nominations. McConnell could still bring these nominations forward to the Senate floor against the will of the committee...." ...

... Eric Levitz of New York adds a little of the play-by-play: "... on Wednesday, with the midterms in the rearview mirror -- and a potential crisis of the rule of law rapidly approaching -- Republican senator Jeff Flake and his Democratic colleague Chris Coons tried, once again, to persuade McConnell to allow a vote on the Special Counsel Independence and Integrity Act. 'He's said nobody's been fired and the special counsel is not in danger. That is not the case now,' Flake reasoned on Monday evening. But, in a shocking development, the Senate Majority Leader refused to provide the unanimous consent required to advance the bill Wednesday afternoon -- a move that raises the harrowing possibility that Mitch McConnell is not always honest about the motivations behind his procedural machinations."

Catherine Garcia of the Week: "... Robert Mueller's investigators are looking into whether Republican operative Roger Stone ... attempted to intimidate a witness, people who have spoken with Mueller's team told The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.... Witnesses told the Journal they were asked by the Mueller team about allegedly threatening messages Stone sent to [Randy] Credico, telling him he was going to 'sue the f[uc]k out of him and calling him a 'loser, a liar, and a rat.'" ...

... Anna Schecter of NBC News: "Six days before WikiLeaks began releasing Hillary Clinton campaign chairman John Podesta's emails, Roger Stone had a text message conversation with a friend about WikiLeaks, according to copies of phone records obtained exclusively by NBC News.... The text messages provided by Stone to NBC News show that [friend Randy] Credico appeared to be providing regular updates to Stone on WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's plans in the days before the hacked emails were released. In the texts, Credico told Stone he had insights into Assange's plans through a longtime friend, who was also Assange's lawyer, according to the text messages."

Jonathan Chait: "The point [of Robert Mueller's investigation] is to establish legal accountability for the president. Well-functioning democracies don't have criminal oligarchies running the country with legal impunity. The kind of deep systemic corruption Trump is implementing, in which establishing a political alliance with a ruling family is a key step in amassing and protecting wealth, depends on selective legal enforcement. More to the point, it requires business partners. Maybe Donald Trump can't be hauled off to prison, but his partners can. And that prospect can scare off the collaborators Trump needs. Second, and more to the point, even if Robert Mueller can't kick Trump out of the White House directly and the Senate won't, there's a body of people who can: the 2020 electorate. And the Trump investigations are building a powerful case that will be brought to bear on that election.... The breadth of Trump's legal exposure exceeds that of any president in American history.... He barely managed to win the presidency as a brash, controversial novelty. He will have to win it a second time as a known crook." (Also linked yesterday.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: One thing Chait is not figuring into his 2020 calculation is that Americans like to give their presidents a second term even when the president isn't especially popular. Gerald Ford lost because Richard Nixon. Jimmy Carter lost because of double-digit inflation, an energy crisis (gas lines) & other problems like the Iran hostage fiasco. Bush I lost in a three-way race; Ross Perot was the "decider" of 1992 election. (Also linked yesterday.)

Melanie Gets Her Gal. Anne Gearan, et al., of the Washington Post: "As [Melania Trump's staff] prepared the flight manifest for the [first lady's trip to Africa], deputy national security adviser Mira Ricardel became angry that [no] seats on the first lady's government jet were assigned to ... Ricardel or another NSC staffer.... [Ricardel] threatened to revoke NSC resources associated with the trip, meaning no policy staff would advise the first lady during her visits to Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Egypt. Bad blood between Ricardel and Melania Trump and her staff continued for weeks after the trip, with the first lady privately arguing that the NSC's No. 2 official was a corrosive influence in the White House and should be dismissed. But national security adviser John Bolton rebuffed the first lady and protected his deputy, prompting the first lady's spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, to issue an extraordinary statement to reporters Tuesday effectively calling for Ricardel's firing.... The first lady's statement came after months of tension in the White House over Ricardel's abrasive interactions with staffers in both the East Wing and the West Wing, according to several current and former staffers.... After an uncomfortable day of limbo, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders announced Wednesday evening that Ricardel was leaving the White House." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: If half of Ricardel's rap sheet is accurate, she has no business working anywhere she has to deal with, you know, people. Or animals. Or plants. Whining about a seat on the plane? I guess Ricardel didn't remember what happened to crybaby Newt Gingrich.

Nicole Gaouette & Elizabeth Landers of CNN: "... Donald Trump has nominated handbag designer Lana Marks to be the next US ambassador to South Africa. Marks a Florida resident and member of Trump's exclusive Mar-a-Lago resort, according to a source familiar with the club, was born and raised in South Africa, where she attended the University of the Witwatersrand and the Institute of Personnel Management in Johannesburg, the White House said in a statement.... Marks is known for luxury handbags in exotic animal skins, such as ostrich and alligator, with prices that can hover above $19,000. One of her more expensive creations, a $400,000 clutch, has been carried on the red carpet.... Described by the Palm Beach Daily as 'like Trump, a relentless self-promoter,' Marks speaks Afrikaans and Xhosa, two of South Africa's languages, according to the White House." Mrs. McC: According to New York mag (no link), "She'll be the fourth member of the club to be picked by Trump for an ambassadorship." Anyhow, she should fit right in with South Africa's political leaders. Maybe she can sell them some nice handbags.

Shawn Boburg & Robert O'Harrow of the Washington Post: "... Matthew G. Whitaker's path to the top of the Justice Department was decidedly offbeat. Over the past two decades, Whitaker -- now the acting attorney general -- has owned a day-care center, a concrete supply business and a trailer manufacturer, state records show. He led a taxpayer-subsidized effort to build affordable housing in Des Moines, but he walked away from the stalled project two years ago after the city threatened him with a lawsuit. In 2004, when he started a five-year stint as U.S. attorney in the Southern District of Iowa, Whitaker cited a personal-injury case and a dispute involving a dry-cleaning business as some of his most consequential legal work. When he left office, he started a modest legal practice and a short-lived lobbying and consulting firm.... One White House official acknowledged that Whitaker, who had been [Jeff] Sessions's chief of staff, received little vetting.... In a statement, Justice Department spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said he underwent 'all the usual vetting and procedures' and is qualified for the job. 'Acting AG Whitaker has litigated both criminal and civil cases, both as a U.S. Attorney and throughout his years in private practice,' she said." ...

... Tom Hamburger, et al., of the Washington Post: "Acting attorney general Matthew G. Whitaker received early warnings that customers were complaining that an invention-marketing company he advised might be a fraud, according to several people familiar with his role, but Whitaker vigorously defended the company and remained on its board until joining the Justice Department in 2017.... The company shut down in May and agreed to pay a settlement of nearly $26 million to resolve a wide-ranging Federal Trade Commission complaint that it bilked customers.... Ed Magedson, the founder of the Arizona-based Ripoff Report, said he received a phone call from Whitaker in early 2015 after the website posted complaints about World Patent Marketing. 'He threatened me, using foul language,' said Magedson, whose website sells companies a program to improve their reputation among consumers. 'He threatened to sue and to ruin my business if I did not remove the "false reports."' At one point, Whitaker said he would refer Ripoff Report to the Department of Homeland Security, Magedson said.... 'He was yelling.'... Justice Department officials have said Whitaker served in a limited capacity as an outside legal adviser to World Patent Marketing and was not involved in the company's day-to-day operations.... When the FTC subpoenaed Whitaker for his records related to the company in October 2017, he failed to provide any information, telling investigators that he was busy at that time moving from Iowa to Washington for a new job, the people said. At the time, Whitaker was preparing to assume his post as chief of staff to then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions." ...

... ** Jack Holmes of Esquire writes "An Exhaustive Timeline of Our New Acting Attorney General's Astoundingly Crooked Career. Year by year, the onetime Iowa tight end descended into grifting and scamming. He's a perfect match for his new boss.... Trump has appointed an unscrupulous grifter to be Acting Attorney General of the United States, because that is exactly the kind of person he attracts. He does this because he thinks he can get away with it. His base, and the spineless Republicans in the Senate, will let him. Will the rest of us?" ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie Note: When I played the video, it had an ad (Elizabeth Warren scolding about something for me; maybe something different for you) halfway thru, but there was more to following.

... Ryan Reilly of the Huffington Post: "The Justice Department's quasi-judicial Office of Legal Counsel told ... Donald Trump before he forced former Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign that he could appoint an official who had not been confirmed by the Senate, like acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker, to take his place. A 20-page OLC opinion authored by Assistant Attorney General Steven Engel, released by the Justice Department on Wednesday, states that OLC had 'previously advised that the President could designate a senior Department of Justice official, such as Mr. Whitaker, as Acting Attorney General.' The OLC opinion conceded that it was rare for the acting attorney general to be an individual not confirmed by the Senate. The only example they found was from 1866, before the creation of the Justice Department. Nevertheless, the opinion concluded that Trump's appointment of Whitaker would be legitimate." The article includes a copy of the opinion. (Also linked yesterday.)

Laura Meckler of the Washington Post: "Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is set to release a sweeping overhaul of how colleges and universities must handle allegations of sexual assault and harassment, giving new rights to the accused, including the ability to cross-examine their accusers, people familiar with the matter said. The proposal is set for release before Thanksgiving, possibly this week, and replaces less formal guidance issued by the Obama administration in 2011. The new rules would reduce liability for universities, tighten the definition of sexual harassment, and allow schools to use a higher standard in evaluating claims of sexual harassment and assault.... The new direction has been welcomed by men's rights groups, who say the Obama guidelines were weighted in favor of the accusers, and by some university administrators who found the Obama version overly prescriptive and confusing. The proposed rule will dodge a related controversial matter regarding the rights of transgender students."

Suzy Khimm, et al., of NBC News: "From his earliest days in office, HUD Secretary Ben Carson has repeatedly said he joined the Trump administration to fix the 'rats, roaches, bed bugs, mold, lead and violence' that he witnessed as a surgeon in low-income communities. Under the Trump administration, the number of HUD apartments cited for unsafe, unhealthy and physically deteriorating living conditions has been on the rise. An NBC News investigation has found that more than 1,000 out of HUD's nearly 28,000 federally subsidized multifamily properties failed their most recent inspection -- a failure rate that is more than 30 percent higher than in 2016, according to an analysis of HUD records.... HUD has lost hundreds of staff members in the wake of a hiring freeze mandated by ... Donald Trump. HUD's enforcement office, tasked with going after the worst landlords, now has the lowest staff levels since 1999, according to a federal watchdog.... A dozen current and former HUD officials -- both political appointees and career staff -- also describe a climate of inertia under Carson that they say is undermining the department's work."

Bad, Worse, Worst. Ed Kilgore: "... Kevin McCarthy was elected House Minority Leader in a surprisingly easy 159-43 victory over conservative leader Jim Jordan of Ohio, a founding member of the ever-fractious House Freedom Caucus. McCarthy, previously the second-ranking House Republican, will succeed retiring Speaker Paul Ryan as leader of a diminished GOP band in the lower chamber.... House Republicans quietly lifted Steve Scalise to the No. 2 leadership position (he retains the same title, Whip), while electing Liz Cheney -- you-know-who's daughter -- to the No. 3 position as chair of the House GOP Conference." ...

... Kyle Cheney, et al., of Politico: "House Republicans immediately resumed a wartime posture Wednesday after electing their new leadership -- vowing to aggressively resist Democrats' agenda and work to recapture the House majority after being routed in last week's elections. In his first news conference after Republicans chose him to be House minority leader next year, Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) largely attributed the GOP wipeout to historical trends while also repeatedly blaming spending by former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg as the cause of several Republican defeats in close contests." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: According to Open Secrets, Democrats took in about $1,463MM, or nearly $1.5BB, in contributions this election cycle. Mike Bloomberg reportedly gave (or at least pledged) $100MM to Democratic candidates for the House & Senate. That is a boatload of money, but it also is less than seven percent of Democrats' total take. HOWEVER, Mike Bloomberg is Jewish. He has a "Jewish-sounding" name. He was mayor of a city with the largest Jewish population in the world. If you don't think McCarthy's fingering Bloomberg was another anti-Semitic dogwhistle to the GOP bigot base, then you don't know Kevin McCarthy.

Election 2018

Of the White Men, By the White Men, For the White Men. Ben Jacobs of the Guardian: "Pictures of the newly elected members of the House of Representatives have highlighted a stark difference between the diversity of incoming Democrats and incoming Republicans.... The proportion of white men within the Democratic caucus is set to drop from 41% to 38% next year, while the same percentage is set to rise among Republicans from 86% to 90%."

Florida. Sean Sullivan & Isaac Stanley-Becker of the Washington Post: "Florida's historic recount was thrown once more into uncertainty Thursday when a federal judge ruled that voters whose mail-in and provisional ballots were rejected because of issues with their signatures will have two more days to resolve the problems and possibly have their votes counted. The decision by Judge Mark Walker of the U.S. District Court in Tallahassee came just hours ahead of the Thursday afternoon deadline for elections officials to complete a machine recount. It is particularly notable in the too-close-to-call Senate race, in which Gov. Rick Scott (R) leads Sen. Bill Nelson (D) by fewer than 13,000 votes.... The judge concluded that mail-in voters weren't notified of the discrepancy until it was too late to fix, while state law gives provisional voters no opportunity to resolve apparent signature irregularities." ...

... Glenn Thrush, et al., of the New York Times: "At least 5,000 ballots from all voters -- and perhaps twice that many -- were left uncounted across Florida as a result of signature mismatches, according to various estimates from the Florida secretary of state and analysts examining the latest data.... A particular vulnerability was documented in a pre-election study by the American Civil Liberties Union in Florida, which found that young voters were more likely to have their mail-in ballots rejected because, in part, they did not use their handwriting enough to develop a steady signature.... Most schools, parochial or otherwise, no longer teach penmanship -- and only about 10 states still retain cursive writing requirements in their curriculum guides.... Yet the signature remains the main means of identifying voters in Florida and many other states, despite research showing that signatures change as people age, become ill, fall out of practice or are simply in a rush." ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: One Floridian whose ballot was rejected because of a so-called signature mismatch: "Patrick Murphy, a former Democratic congressman from South Florida... He only found out after the 5 p.m. deadline on Nov. 6 had passed." So a former Congressman's vote didn't count. I too voted absentee, so I don't know if my vote counted (tho I did not get a reject notification). ...

... Crazy Old White Guy Invents New Voter Fraud Conspiracy Theory. David Smith of the Guardian: "Donald Trump has claimed without evidence that people wear disguises to vote illegally in Florida.... 'The Republicans don't win and that's because of potentially illegal votes,' Trump told the conservative Daily Caller website. 'When people get in line that have absolutely no right to vote and they go around in circles. Sometimes they go to their car, put on a different hat, put on a different shirt, come in and vote again. Nobody takes anything. It's really a disgrace what's going on.' He also called for new national ID laws with a bizarre assertion: 'If you buy a box of cereal -- you have a voter ID.'" ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: Yes, Donald, the surly clerks at the Piggly Wiggly are always making me show my voter ID card. Even when I wear my "I voted" sticker, they card-check me. This past summer, Trump falsely claimed Americans needed picture IDs to buy groceries. Now he's upped it to a voter IDs. This would mean that you have to register to vote to buy groceries. A non-citizen, an ex-felon, a 16-year-old -- anyone who is ineligible to vote -- will starve to death if he can't forage for food. The claim is beyond absurd. No one would believe this one. Well, maybe someone: if you notice a person showing his voter ID at Publix, he's a Trumpbot.

New Jersey. Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "Andy Kim, a New Jersey Democrat who had been locked in a neck-and-neck race for Congress, has defeated his Republican opponent, a two-term incumbent and staunch ally of President Trump, according to a final vote tally. After a drawn-out vote count, Mr. Kim, a former national security adviser under President Barack Obama, was declared the winner by a slim margin, beating Representative Tom MacArthur, who wrote a key amendment in the effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act, according to The Associated Press. The victory by Mr. Kim caps a devastating midterm election for Republicans in New Jersey. With 11 Democrats now holding House seats, Representative Chris Smith is the lone Republican in Washington from New Jersey; the last time Democrats had such a large advantage Woodrow Wilson was in the Oval Office."

Utah. Robert Gehrke of the Salt Lake Tribune: "Since election night, [Rep.] Mia Love's [R] campaign has hung its hopes on ballots counted after election night being better for her than the ones that were reported after polls closed. So far they've been right, and Wednesday's results out of Salt Lake County were a huge blow to Democrat Ben McAdams. Love won the day, taking 6,318 of the new votes to 5,964 for McAdams. That cut McAdams' lead to 873 votes, with about 64,000 ballots still to come from both Utah and Salt Lake counties.... Love's campaign filed a lawsuit Wednesday morning, demanding they should have a right to challenge ballots in Salt Lake County -- which frankly looked like a last-ditch effort to fight off every possible Democratic ballot. But she may not need it."

Nolan McCaskill & John Bresnahan of Politico: "The Congressional Black Caucus passed a vote of no confidence in Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez on Wednesday, the latest sign of lingering bad blood between lawmakers on Capitol Hill and the Democratic Party's top official."

Capitalism Is Awesome, Ctd. "Delay, Deny & Deflect." Sheera Frenkel, et al., of the New York Times: "... as evidence accumulated that Facebook's power could ... be exploited to disrupt elections, broadcast viral propaganda and inspire deadly campaigns of hate around the globe, [Mark] Zuckerberg and [Sheryl] Sandberg stumbled. Bent on growth, the pair ignored warning signs and then sought to conceal them from public view. At critical moments over the last three years, they were distracted by personal projects, and passed off security and policy decisions to subordinates, according to current and former executives. When Facebook users learned last spring that the company had compromised their privacy in its rush to expand, allowing access to the personal information of tens of millions of people to a political data firm linked to President Trump, Facebook sought to deflect blame and mask the extent of the problem. And when that failed -- as the company's stock price plummeted and it faced a consumer backlash -- Facebook went on the attack.... Ms. Sandberg has overseen an aggressive lobbying campaign to combat Facebook's critics, shift public anger toward rival companies and ward off damaging regulation. Facebook employed a Republican opposition-research firm to discredit activist protesters, in part by linking them to the liberal financier George Soros. It also tapped its business relationships, lobbying a Jewish civil rights group to cast some criticism of the company as anti-Semitic." ...

... Max Read of New York: "Having heard from scores of politicians, activists, academics, and even former employees about the dangerous effects of 'fake news' influence campaigns, Facebook finally landed on a solution: Create its own. As they say, if you can't beat 'em, hire a Republican opposition-research firm to write blog posts 'play[ing] down the impact of Russians' use of Facebook.' According to the Times, in October 2017 Facebook hired a political consultancy called Definers Public Affairs -- whose Silicon Valley branch is run by Tim Miller, a former Jeb Bush staffer and contributor at Crooked Media -- to apply 'political campaign tactics' and 'campaign-style opposition research' to Facebook's public-relations campaign. One of these tactics? Seed the conservative blogosphere with 'positive content ... about your company and negative content ... about your competitor[.]'"

Michael Finnegan & James Queally of the Los Angeles Times: "Michael Avenatti, the lawyer for porn actress Stormy Daniels, has been arrested in Los Angeles on suspicion of domestic violence, police said. The celebrity attorney was arrested around 2 p.m. Wednesday ... based on allegations stemming from an incident that took place in West L.A. on Tuesday, said ... a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman. Avenatti has lived in a luxury apartment complex in that section of Century City. The allegations were made by a woman who had 'visible injuries,' including bruises, according to a law enforcement official who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Avenatti was released after posting $50,000 bond late Wednesday.... 'I have never struck a woman,' he said. 'I will never strike a woman.'"

Chris Mooney & Brady Dennis of the Washington Post: "Scientists behind a major study that claimed the Earth's oceans are warming faster than previously thought now say their work contained inadvertent errors that made their conclusions seem more certain than they actually are. Two weeks after the high-profile study was published in the journal Nature, its authors have submitted corrections to the publication. The Scripps Institution of Oceanography, home to several of the researchers involved, also noted the problems in the scientists' work and corrected a news release on its website, which previously had asserted that the study detailed how the Earth's oceans 'have absorbed 60 percent more heat than previously thought.'... The central conclusion of the study -- that oceans are retaining ever more energy as more heat is being trapped within Earth's climate system each year -- ... hasn't changed much despite the errors." (Also linked yesterday.) ...

     ... Mrs. McCrabbie: This is a normal kind of error that one would expect to occur occasionally -- and is in fact one reason scientists publish their studies in popular journals like Nature. Trying to replicate results is part of the process. Unfortunately, the person who discovered the study's central error -- a British mathematician named Nic Lewis -- is a climate change skeptic. So of course wingers are having ... a day at the beach, so to speak. ...

     ... RAS, in yesterday's thread: "The fact that scientists didn't automatically dismiss Lewis is another point in their favor. The wingers ignore any information that doesn't come come from one of their preapproved sources. Scientists on the other hand have an open mind and are willing to accept criticism. They can adjust their views and incorporate new information no matter where it comes from. It is why one group deals in facts and the other deals mainly in fantasy."

Meet One of Trump's "Very Fine People." Jessica Schulberg, et al., of the Huffington Post: "Jeffrey Clark, the 30-year-old man federal agents arrested [in Washington, D.C.,] Friday after he called the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting a 'dry run' and his relatives worried he might try to launch a race war, wasn't shy about being a neo-Nazi. In April 2017, when someone asked Clark at a White House rally organized by 'alt-right' coiner Richard Spencer whether he considered himself a fascist, he said no ― he considered himself a Nazi. Antifa activists photographed him at the deadly Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August 2017. He has posed for pictures in front of Nazi symbols and holding Nazi memorabilia. On Gab, the favored social network of racists and anti-Semites, Clark had the username @PureWhiteEvil and called himself 'DC Bowl Gang,' a reference to Dylann Roof, the bowl-cut racist who murdered nin black churchgoers in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015." (Also linked yesterday.)

Way Beyond the Beltway

Stephen Castle of the New York Times: "Prime Minister Theresa May of Britain faced down hard-line critics Wednesday and won the support of a jittery and divided cabinet for a plan to quit the European Union, preserving her push to avert an economically damaging rupture with the bloc in March. For Mrs. May, frequently criticized as wooden and lacking in strategic thinking, the victory represented a rare validation of her leadership. It also provided a glimmer of light at the end of the Brexit tunnel." ...

... Oopsy Update. William Booth & Karla Adam of the Washington Post: "The minister in charge of helping Britain leave the European Union, Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, abruptly resigned from Prime Minister Theresa May's government on Thursday morning, saying he could not support the withdrawal agreement approved by her cabinet the night before. It was a stinging setback for May. Also quitting their posts were two other ministers and a junior minister in the Brexit ministry. The rapid-fire resignations sent shudders through London and E.U. headquarters in Brussels, raising the possibility that May does not have the support she needs to pursue her deal for a softer, slower-moving Brexit, a plan loaded with compromises that few in Britain like."

Ben Hubbard of the New York Times: "Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor said on Thursday that he was requesting the death penalty for five people suspected of involvement in the killing of the Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi at the country's consulate in Istanbul. Speaking to reporters in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, a spokesman for the public prosecutor said that the 15-man team sent to confront Mr. Khashoggi had orders to return him to the kingdom, but instead made a decision on the spot to kill him after he resisted. The statement was the kingdom's latest effort to explain the killing on Oct. 2 of Mr. Khashoggi, a Virginia resident who wrote columns for The Washington Post that were critical of some Saudi policies."

News Lede

New York Times: "Roy Clark, the country singer and multi-instrumentalist best known as a longtime host of 'Hee Haw,' the television variety show that brought country music to millions of households each week, died on Thursday at his home in Tulsa, Okla. He was 85."