The Commentariat -- June 29, 2020

Late Morning Update:

Ave, Ave Stare Decisis! Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court on Monday struck down a Louisiana law that could have left the state with a single abortion clinic. The vote was 5 to 4, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. voting with the court's four-member liberal wing but not adopting its reasoning. The chief justice said respect for precedent compelled him to vote with the majority. The case was the court's first on abortion since President Trump's appointments of two justices shifted the court to the right. The Louisiana law, which was enacted in 2014, requires doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals." An NBC News story is here. The AP story is here. Mrs. McC: Gosh, I seem to remember when Sen. Susan Collins (Gullible-Maine) voted to put Cowardly Liar Brett Kavanaugh on the Supreme Court because he assured her that he would preserve abortion rights. ~~~

~~~ Ian Millhiser of Vox: “The Supreme Court just delivered the narrowest, most temporary victory for abortion rights. Though Chief Justice John Roberts, a conservative who votes fairly consistently to uphold abortion restrictions, cast the key fifth vote to strike down a Louisiana anti-abortion law, his opinion makes it clear that his views about abortion haven't changed. The best reading of the Court's decision in June Medical Services v. Russo is that Roberts just gave the constitutional right to an abortion a potentially very brief reprieve. And he did so largely because Louisiana presented the weakest possible case in June Medical. As Justice Stephen Breyer notes in his plurality opinion, June Medical involves a Louisiana law that is 'almost word-for-word identical' to a Texas law the Supreme Court struck down four years ago in Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt (2016).... 'I joined the dissent in Whole Woman's Health and continue to believe that the case was wrongly decided,' the chief justice writes. Nevertheless, 'the question today however is not whether Whole Woman's Health was right or wrong, but whether to adhere to it in deciding the present case.'... But Roberts also signals that he's open to a lawsuit challenging this right on other grounds.

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court ruled Monday that the president is free to fire the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau without cause. The decision, rejecting a federal law that sought to place limits on presidential oversight of independent agencies, was a victory for the conservative movement to curb the administrative state. The vote was 5 to 4, with the court’s five more conservative justices in the majority."

Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court will not take up a challenge to new federal death penalty protocols proposed by the Justice Department, which wants to resume executions as early as July for the first time since 2003. The court, without comment, declined Monday to take up the lawsuit filed by four death row inmates. As is customary, it gave no reason. Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor said they would have accepted the case." Mrs. McC: Barr's purpose might be to make Trump look tough on heinous crime.

Michigan. Timothy Bella of the Washington Post: "A largely peaceful protest in Detroit against systemic racism and police brutality turned violent on Sunday night as a police SUV plowed through a group of protesters, striking multiple people and sending a couple of demonstrators who had climbed on the hood flying from the vehicle. Police accelerated the vehicle multiple times as dozens of protesters surrounded it, according to videos of the incident posted to social media. After each acceleration, protesters could be heard shrieking in shock, pleading for the driver to stop hitting the gas while people were in front of the vehicle and being thrown from its hood.... [Ethan] Ketner[, a protester who filmed the scene,] wrote that 'multiple people injured' were receiving treatment at local hospitals."

Missouri. Teo Armus of the Washington Post: "... as [a] peaceful crowd of about 500 [protesters calling for the removal of the city's mayor] walked along a private, gated street, a white couple ... emerged from a marble mansion.... A barefoot man in a pink collared shirt walked out from the five-story house, carrying a semiautomatic rifle as he appeared to threaten the group. A few feet away, a woman pointed a pistol at the crowd, her finger directly on the trigger.... A video of the scene on social media had been viewed almost 9 million times. President Trump retweeted it without explanation on Monday morning. The White House later declined to say why he did so."

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Allow me to answer for "the White House": "Mr. Trump retweeted the video of rich white people pointing guns at peaceful protesters because he wants everyone to know that he approves of vigilantes threatening lethal force & perhaps shooting you dead for exercising your First Amendment rights. SECOND AMENDMENT!" ~~~

     ~~~ An AP story is here. "Police said they were still investigating but labeled it a case of trespassing and assault by intimidation against the couple by protesters in the racially diverse crowd.... [The barefoot man in the pink shirt] Mark McCloskey told KMOV-TV that a mob rushed toward the home as the family was having dinner and 'put us in fear of our lives.'" Mrs. McC: Well, of course the McCloskeys were in fear of their lives. They were dining at home when a 'racially diverse crowd' happened by.

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Monday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Monday are here: "Jacksonville, the largest city in Florida and host of the Republican National Convention in August, announced Monday that masks will be mandatory in public and indoor locations, as the World Health Organization warned that the outbreak is far from over. The news comes as the global community marked yet another grim milestone on Sunday, with the confirmed worldwide death count from the novel coronavirus surpassing 500,000, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University." Mrs. McC: Hope the Jax police arrest Trump mid-speech, cuff him & throw him in the tank with the usual riffraff. Ugliest mugshot ever.

Jason Slotkin & Mark Katkov of NPR: "In a tweet late Sunday night, President Trump said the intelligence community told him he was not briefed about allegations Russia had offered the Taliban bounty payments to kill Western forces — including U.S. troops -- because it did not find the reports credible[:] 'Intel just reported to me that they did not find this info credible, and therefore did not report it to me or @VP. Possibly another fabricated Russia Hoax, maybe by the Fake News @nytimesbooks, wanting to make Republicans look bad!!!'" Mrs. McC: What's "not credible" is Trump's tweet. In various, and sometimes multiple, forms, the New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, NBC News and CNN all have confirmed the reports. And the U.K.'s Sky News, relying on British intel sources, also has confirmed the story (linked below). There may be others. Moreover, the WashPo (story linked below) also has confirmed that American soldiers were killed for the Russian bounties. Flag-draped coffins are tragically "credible." ~~~

~~~ Jeremy Herb & Lauren Fox of CNN: "A bipartisan group of congressional leaders is demanding the Trump administration explain what it knew about reports US intelligence concluded Russia offered bounties to Taliban fighters to kill US troops.... The swift response underscored the congressional push for information about the US intelligence -- and whether ... Donald Trump was briefed on the matter, which Trump denied. [Speaker] Pelosi also said that the 'Gang of Eight,' the congressional leaders who are briefed on sensitive intelligence matters, were not told about the bounties offered to the Taliban."

~~~~~~~~~~

** Ellen Nakashima, et al., of the Washington Post: "Russian bounties offered to Taliban-linked militants to kill coalition forces in Afghanistan are believed to have resulted in the deaths of several U.S. service members, according to intelligence gleaned from U.S. military interrogations of captured militants in recent months.... The intelligence was passed up from the U.S. Special Operations forces based in Afghanistan and led to a restricted high-level White House meeting in late March.... The disturbing intelligence -- which the CIA was tasked with reviewing, and later confirmed -- generated disagreement about the appropriate path forward, a senior U.S. official said.... As more details have unfolded, the primary controversy in Washington over the weekend revolved around denials by President Trump and his aides that the president was ever briefed on the intelligence.... House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday joined other lawmakers -- including leading Republicans -- in expressing concern and calling for the administration to provide Congress with an explanation. 'This is as bad as it gets, and yet the president will not confront the Russians on this score, denies being briefed,' Pelosi said on ABC's 'This Week.'... Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.), a Trump ally who golfed with the president Sunday..., said it was 'Imperative Congress get to the bottom' of the Russian offer 'to pay the Taliban to kill American soldiers with the goal of pushing America out of the region.'" ~~~

~~~ Eric Schmitt, et al., of the New York Times: "United States intelligence officers and Special Operations forces in Afghanistan alerted their superiors as early as January to a suspected Russian plot to pay bounties to the Taliban to kill American troops in Afghanistan, according to officials briefed on the matter. The crucial information that led the spies and commandos to focus on the bounties included the recovery of a large amount of American cash from a raid on a Taliban outpost.... Interrogations of captured militants and criminals played a central role in making the intelligence community confident in its assessment that the Russians had offered and paid bounties in 2019, another official has said. Armed with this information, military and intelligence officials have been reviewing American and other coalition combat casualties since early last year to determine whether any were victims of the plot.... The details added to the picture of the classified intelligence assessment, which The New York Times reported Friday has been under discussion inside the Trump administration since at least March, and emerged as the White House confronted a growing chorus of criticism on Sunday over its apparent failure to authorize a response to Russia." ~~~

~~~ Trump: I Was Clueless! Lynn Berry & Zeke Miller of the AP: "... Donald Trump on Sunday denied that he had been briefed on reported U.S. intelligence that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing American troops in Afghanistan, and he appeared to minimize the allegations against Moscow. American intelligence officials concluded months ago that Russian officials offered rewards for successful attacks on American service-members last year, at a time when the U.S. and Taliban were holding talks to end the long-running war, according to The New York Times. Trump, in a Sunday morning tweet, said 'Nobody briefed or told me' or Vice President Mike Pence or chief of staff Mark Meadows about 'the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians.... Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us,' he said.... Trump's director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, also said neither the president nor vice president was 'ever briefed on any intelligence alleged' in the Times' report and he said the White House statement was 'accurate.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: This is a remarkable response. Trump is downplaying the attacks as "not many" and saying that "everybody is denying it," when "everybody" = Russia & the Taliban. That is, Trump is once again taking Putin -- and even the Taliban's! -- word over the U.S. intel community's. In addition, a real president who learned that his own intel staff had not informed him of proxy acts of war against U.S. military personnel would immediately find out why, & staff heads likely would roll. ~~~

~~~ Tom Boggioni of the Raw Story: "Appearing on MSNBC early Sunday morning, [Jeremy Bash,] the former chief of staff at the U.S. Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency said it was 'inconceivable' that Donald Trump was not aware that Russia has been paying a bounty for every American soldier killed in Afghanistan and said the administration's protestations 'don't add up.'... 'They don't appear to be denying the underlying intelligence,' Bash began. 'They don't appear to be denying they have intelligence that Russia and Russian intelligence paid Taliban elements to go out and kill U.S. service-members..., but they appear to be saying the president and other senior leaders at the White House were not briefed, which I find totally inconceivable and totally noncredible.'" ~~~

~~~ Juan Cole: "Director of National Security John Ratcliffe, a strong Trump supporter who is a political appointee rather than an intelligence professional, denied the report that Trump was briefed on the GRU instigation. I'll say right away that I don't find Ratcliffe's denial plausible. If the intelligence were gathered, it would have been briefed to the president.... A leak like this makes you ask questions.... The entire scenario is baffling. The most plausible thing in the story is that Trump would have been told that the Russians had harmed US troops, and that Trump should have ignored it and gone on pursuing his creepy friendship with Vladimir Putin. And, yes, you could imagine US military and intelligence analysts seeing that happen and being so frustrated that they risked their careers and possibly their freedom in order to blow the whistle." ~~~

~~~ Riley Beggin of Vox has a good summary of the reports here. ~~~

** Alistair Bunkall of Sky News: "British security officials have confirmed to Sky News that the reports about the plot are true.... The report, which was first published on Friday evening by The New York Times, is 'on the nose', according to a source briefed on the matter.... There are currently around 1,000 British troops deployed in Afghanistan, mainly in the capital Kabul, and no confirmation any have been hurt as a result of the Russian efforts." --s

~~~ J.L. Cauvin, on the other hand, says Putin did not place a bounty on our troops; after seeing Donald strongly throw the paper towels at Puerto Ricans, Putin offered to send our troops Bounty paper towels. (Also linked yesterday.)

It was a day ending in "y", so another Trumpatrocity:

** Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Trump on Sunday retweeted a video of one of his supporters yelling 'White power!,' once again using the vast reach of his social media platforms to inflame racial divisions in a nation roiled by weeks of protests about police brutality against black people and demands for social justice reforms. The edited racist video shows a white man riding in a golf cart bearing 'Trump 2020' and 'America First' signs during what appears to be an angry clash over the president and race between white residents of a Florida retirement community.... In response to a protester shouting 'Where's your white hood?' and other taunts, the man in the golf cart pumps his fist in the air and says 'White power!' twice. The two-minute video continues to show profane exchanges between protesters and other Trump supporters riding on more golf carts. The president retweeted the video to his millions of followers just after 7:30 a.m., thanking 'the great people of The Villages,' the Florida retirement community where the clash apparently took place. He added: 'The Radical Left Do Nothing Democrats will Fall in the Fall. Corrupt Joe is shot. See you soon!!!'... Mr. Trump deleted the tweet more than three hours after posting it."* An NPR story is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

     * Mrs. McCrabbie: No, "Mr Trump did not delete the tweet." According to NBC News, someone deleted the tweet while Trump was on the golf course with Lindsey Graham. The "White Power" yells came right at the top of the video, also according to NBC. In fairness to Trump, it does seem quite possible that he didn't notice or see anything wrong with someone yelling "White Power" twice. (An amazed protester immediately repeats it, too: "He said 'White Power.' Did you hear that?" So that's three times.) But it seems like a normal remark to Trump. Neither he nor anyone from the White House condemned the "White Power" sentiment. Judd Deere of the White House eventually put out this statement: ""President Trump is a big fan of The Villages. He did not hear the one statement made on the video. What he did see was tremendous enthusiasm from his many supporters." Big fan. A real president, of course, would be embarrassed if his supporters were doddering old white supremacists & would disavow them.

I will ALWAYS PROTECT PEOPLE WITH PRE-EXISTING CONDITIONS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS,ALWAYS!!! -- Donald Trump, in a tweet last week, after DOJ filed a brief demanding the pre-existing-condition provisions of the ACA be abolished

Trump has claimed nearly 100 times since he took office that he will 'always protect people with preexisting conditions,' but the legal brief filed by the Justice Department last week belies the president's claim. It says point blank that the entire Affordable Care Act -- including its coverage guarantee for people with preexisting conditions -- 'must fall.' -- Salvador Rizzo of the Washington Post

Mark Mazzetti, et al., of the New York Times have written (what I consider) a devastating story on how AG Bill Barr colluded with Michael Flynn's attorney Sidney Powell to drop the charge against Flynn. "Ms. Powell and her client won a significant victory on Wednesday when a divided appeals court panel -- in a surprise ruling written by Judge Neomi Rao, a former White House official whom Mr. Trump appointed to the bench -- ordered Judge Sullivan to drop the case without scrutiny. Judge [Emmet] Sullivan suspended his review but has not dismissed the charge, suggesting that the extraordinary legal and political saga is not yet over." (Also linked yesterday.)

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

John Harwood of CNN: "... Donald Trump, ever impulsive, often acts against his own interests. But nothing tops his self-defeating resistance to mask wearing during the coronavirus pandemic. His dogged stance, mimicked by supporters, undercuts efforts by public health officials to stop the summer resurgence of coronavirus. That in turn impedes efforts to revive the US economy, now staggering under the highest unemployment rate since the Great Depression. Failures on both fronts has left Trump in a deep hole on his pre-eminent priority of winning reelection. And they leave public health experts mystified."

Felicia Sonmez, et al., of the Washington Post: "Vice President Pence on Sunday implored Americans to wear face masks, practice social distancing and stay away from senior citizens protect them amid a new spike in coronavirus infections, as the United States surpassed 2.5 million confirmed cases.... But earlier Sunday, a 'Celebrate Freedom' rally Pence attended at First Baptist Church in Dallas featured a large choir that did not wear masks while singing, despite evidence that some choir practices have served as 'superspreader' events. Members of the choir put on their masks after they finished singing, and about two-thirds of attendees were wearing masks during the event, although many were sitting side-by-side in the pews." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Funny how mike didn't think wearing face masks & practicing social distancing was important till the coronavirus began hitting hard in states that tend to vote Republican. You might think he didn't care when Democrats were getting sick & dying in the long, cold months of winter & spring. ~~~

     ~~~ Jamie Ehrlich of CNN: "A choir of more than 100 people performed without masks at a robustly attended event in Texas at the First Baptist Church on Sunday that featured a speech by Vice President Mike Pence. Nearly 2,200 people attended the 'Celebrate Freedom Rally,' in the Lone Star State, according to rally organizers, which has seen a severe surge in coronavirus cases since easing restrictions.... Throughout the service, the members of the choir sang at full volume, behind an orchestra.... When Pence arrived at the event, he was wearing a mask. Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson, who traveled with the vice president, also wore masks." ~~~

~~~ Justin Wise of the Hill: "... Joe Biden's campaign on Sunday denounced Vice President Pence for his scheduled trip to Dallas, saying it 'epitomizes the dismissive attitude"'the Trump administration has taken toward addressing the coronavirus outbreak. Pence, the head of the White House coronavirus task force, is set to visit Texas Sunday to receive an on-the-ground report from officials about the surge in coronavirus cases throughout the state. He is also scheduled to speak at an event at the First Baptist Dallas, a church led by Pastor Robert Jeffries, during the visit. 'Our leaders should be tackling this pandemic head on and laying out concrete recovery plans for the American people -- not jet setting across the country to hold events that go against basic public health guidance,' Biden campaign manager Kate Bedingfield said in a statement." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Mike Morris & Zach Despart of the Houston Chronicle: "Texas Medical Center hospitals [in Houston] have stopped reporting key metrics showing the stress rising numbers of COVID-19 patients are placing on their facilities, undermining data that policy makers and the public have relied upon during the pandemic to gauge the spread of the coronavirus. The change came one day after the hospitals reported their base intensive care capacity had hit 100 percent for the first time during the pandemic, with projections showing the institutions -- which together comprise the world's largest medical complex -- were on pace to exceed their 'unsustainable surge capacity' by July 6." Oops! Firewalled.

Jamie Ehrlich, et al., of CNN: "Senior Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander said Sunday that he thinks it would 'help' if ... Donald Trump wore a mask because it would eliminate political stigma around doing so as the coronavirus continues to spread across the US. 'If wearing masks is important and all the health experts tell us that it is in containing the disease in 2020, it would help if from time to time the President would wear one to help us get rid of this political debate that says if you're for Trump, you don't wear a mask, if you're against Trump, you do,' the Tennessee Republican, who chairs the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, said on CNN's 'Inside Politics.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Worth Remembering. Catherine Thorbecke & Arielle Mitropoulos of ABC: "At least 45 million people have filed for unemployment since the pandemic began. Yet between March 18 and June 17, as the pandemic raged, the combined wealth of the 614 U.S. billionaires increased by $584 billion[.]" --s

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Sunday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Sunday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Christina Maxouris & Eliott McLaughlin of CNN: "Only two US states are reporting a decline in new coronavirus cases compared to last week: Connecticut and Rhode Island. A rise was reported in a staggering 36 states, including Florida, which some experts have cautioned could be the next epicenter for infections.... Florida reported 9,585 new coronavirus cases Saturday, a single-day record.... The number rivals those of New York's peak in early April (New York's new case tally Saturday was about 6% of Florida's)." (Also linked yesterday.)

Florida. Frances Robles of the New York Times: "On Saturday, for the second straight day, Florida crushed its previous record for new coronavirus cases, reporting 9,585 infections. Another 8,530 were reported on Sunday.... Six-hour lines formed in Jacksonville over the weekend as thousands of people flocked to get drive-through tests. Orlando has seen an explosion of coronavirus: nearly 60 percent of all cases diagnosed in that county came in just the past two weeks.... Statewide, about 20 percent of people aged 25 to 34 are testing positive, [Gov. Ron DeSantis (R)] said at a news conference Sunday.... Much of Florida's new surge in cases appears to follow from the reopening of beaches, bars, restaurants and other social activities. The state's beaches are full and throngs of revelers pack its waterways on boats.... The median age of new coronavirus patients is now 36, the Department of Health said.... Officials have done little so far to halt public interactions.

Presidential Race

Shane Goldmacher & Thomas Kaplan of the New York Times: "Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. released statistics on the diversity of his presidential campaign staff on Saturday evening, announcing that 35 percent of his full-time staff members and 36 percent of his full-time senior staff members are people of color. A majority of Mr. Biden's staff members and senior staff members are women -- 53 percent and 58 percent, respectively.... [Donald Trump's] campaign said on Saturday that 25 percent of senior staff members are people of color.... The Trump campaign also said on Saturday that 52 percent of its full-time staff members, and 56 percent of its senior staff members, are women." (Also linked yesterday.) Mrs. McC: Re: Trump campaign, pardon my skepticism. And here's a good reason why:

     ~~~ Zoe Tillman of BuzzFeed News: There are 93 U.S. attorney positions. Trump has filled 81 of them. Of those, seven and women. Two are black: "Louis Franklin Sr. in Alabama and Kenji Price in Hawaii, who is also Asian American." (Also linked yesterday.)

** Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. James Gordon of The Daily Mail: "Bob Woodward, the investigative journalist most famous for his original reporting on the Watergate scandal in 1972, was apparently going to publish a story exposing Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh as being an anonymous source in his 1999 book Shadow: Five Presidents and the Legacy of Watergate ... while serving as a lawyer on [Ken] Starr's team.... Kavanaugh publicly denied ever being a source for Woodward's book in a letter to the Washington Post in 1999.... The fact that Kavanaugh had lied on record enraged Woodward, who was prepared to expose the judge using evidence that he had indeed contributed to the 1999 book.... Woodward's article was due to come out just as he was to be nominated to the Supreme Court in 2018.... The New York Times described the article by two Post journalists who read it as being 'explosive'.... Ultimately, the executive editor of the Washington Post, Martin Baron, stepped in and urged Woodward not to breach his 19-year-old confidentiality agreement and to protect Kavanaugh's anonymity. The piece was ultimately spiked." --s ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Emphasis added. Lying under oath, as he did in his confirmation hearings, is just one step up from lying on record. Kavanaugh was, is & ever shall be a bald-faced liar. Here's the New York Times story, by Ben Smith, titled "Marty Baron made the Post Great Again. Now the News Is Changing." "The revival of The Post by Mr. Baron and its owner, the Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, is perhaps the greatest news business success story of the past decade. But that journalistic revival has in some ways masked a messier story, one of many contradictions.... Mr. Baron's opposition to Mr. Woodward's story, people who work with him said, wasn't about favoring Mr. Kavanaugh, or being afraid of a fight. Publishing the article would simply violate the traditional principle that sources should be protected." It's worth reading.

Elizabeth Dwoskin, et al., of the Washington Post: Largely in an effort to accommodate Donald Trump's incendiary posts, "Facebook has constrained its efforts against false and misleading news, adopted a policy explicitly allowing politicians to lie, and even altered its news feed algorithm to neutralize claims that it was biased against conservative publishers, according to more than a dozen former and current employees and previously unreported documents obtained by The Washington Post. One of the documents shows it began as far back as 2015, when as a candidate Trump posted a video calling for a ban of Muslims entering the United States. Facebook's executives declined to remove it, setting in motion an exception for political discourse. The concessions to Trump have ... paved the way for a growing list of digitally savvy politicians to repeatedly push out misinformation and incendiary political language to billions of people. It has complicated the public understanding of major events such as the pandemic and the protest movement, as well as contributed to polarization."

Beyond the Beltway

Mississippi. Rick Rojas of the New York Times: "Mississippi lawmakers voted on Sunday to bring down, once and for all, the state flag dominated by the Confederate battle emblem that has flown for 126 years, adding a punctuation point to years of efforts to take down relics of the Confederacy across the South. The flag, the only state banner left in the country with the overt Confederate symbol, served for many as an inescapable sign of Mississippi's racial scars and of the consequences of that history in defining perceptions of the state.... The vote in the Mississippi House was 91 in favor of removal and 23 opposed. The vote in the Senate was 37-14. The measure now goes to Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican, who has said he will sign it." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: It's probably worth noting that Mississippi also was the last state to ratify the 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery. The state did not do so until -- wait for it -- 2013.

Way Beyond

Good News Network: "Ocean Voyages Institute says it made history this week, returning to the port of Honolulu Tuesday, after successfully removing 103 tons of fishing nets and consumer plastics from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It more than doubled its own record-setting results from a 25-day stint last year during this 48-day expedition. And, Mary Crowley, the group's founder and executive director, says they are headed back to sea in two days to collect more debris.... The team is committed to 0% ending up in any landfill and is sending the sorted debris to recycling companies to be turned into insulation, energy, etc.... Ocean Voyages Institute is launching a second voyage that will depart in two days to continue clean-up of the area, but its length (between 25-30 days) will be determined by donations and fundraising. You can donate by check, paypal, or other method on their website." --s

China. AP: "The Chinese government is taking draconian measures to slash birth rates among Uighurs and other minorities as part of a sweeping campaign to curb its Muslim population, even as it encourages some of the country's Han majority to have more children. While individual women have spoken out before about forced birth control, the practice is far more widespread and systematic than previously known.... The campaign over the past four years in the far west region of Xinjiang is leading to what some experts are calling a form of 'demographic genocide.' The state regularly subjects minority women to pregnancy checks, and forces intrauterine devices, sterilization and even abortion on hundreds of thousands, the interviews and data show." --s

The Commentariat -- June 28, 2020

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

It's a day ending in "y", so another Trumpatrocity:

** Michael Shear of the New York Times: "President Trump on Sunday retweeted a video of one of his supporters yelling 'White power!,' once again using the vast reach of his social media platforms to inflame racial divisions in a nation roiled by weeks of protests about police brutality against black people and demands for social justice reforms. The edited racist video shows a white man riding in a golf cart bearing 'Trump 2020' and 'America First' signs during what appears to be an angry clash over the president and race between white residents of a Florida retirement community.... In response to a protester shouting 'Where's your white hood?' and other taunts, the man in the golf cart pumps his fist in the air and says 'White power!' twice. The two-minute video continues to show profane exchanges between protesters and other Trump supporters riding on more golf carts. The president retweeted the video to his millions of followers just after 7:30 a.m., thanking 'the great people of The Villages,' the Florida retirement community where the clash apparently took place. He added: 'The Radical Left Do Nothing Democrats will Fall in the Fall. Corrupt Joe is shot. See you soon!!!'... Mr. Trump deleted the tweet more than three hours after posting it."* An NPR story is here.

     * Mrs. McCrabbie: No, "Mr Trump did not delete the tweet." According to NBC News, someone deleted the tweet while Trump was on the golf course with Lindsey Graham. The "White Power" yells came right at the top of the video, also according to NBC. In fairness to Trump, it does seem quite possible that he didn't notice or see anything wrong with someone yelling "White Power" twice. (An amazed protester immediately repeats it, too: "He said 'White Power.' Did you hear that?" So that's three times.) But it seems like a normal remark to Trump. Neither he nor anyone from the White House condemned the "White Power" sentiment. Judd Deere of the White House eventually put out this statement: "President Trump is a big fan of The Villages. He did not hear the one statement made on the video. What he did see was tremendous enthusiasm from his many supporters." Big fan.

Lynn Berry & Zeke Miller of the AP: "... Donald Trump on Sunday denied that he had been briefed on reported U.S. intelligence that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing American troops in Afghanistan, and he appeared to minimize the allegations against Moscow. American intelligence officials concluded months ago that Russian officials offered rewards for successful attacks on American service-members last year, at a time when the U.S. and Taliban were holding talks to end the long-running war, according to The New York Times. Trump, in a Sunday morning tweet, said 'Nobody briefed or told me' or Vice President Mike Pence or chief of staff Mark Meadows about 'the so-called attacks on our troops in Afghanistan by Russians.... Everybody is denying it & there have not been many attacks on us,' he said.... Trump's director of national intelligence, John Ratcliffe, also said neither the president nor vice president was 'ever briefed on any intelligence alleged' in the Times' report and he said the White House statement was 'accurate.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: This is a remarkable response. Trump is downplaying the attacks as "not many" and saying that "everybody is denying it," when "everybody" = Russia & the Taliban. That is, Trump is once again taking Putin -- and even the Taliban's! -- word over the U.S. intel community's. In addition, a real president who learned that his own intel staff had not informed him of proxy acts of war against U.S. military personnel would immediately find out why, & staff heads likely would roll. ~~~

~~~ J.L. Cauvin, on the other hand, says Putin did not place a bounty on our troops; after seeing Donald strongly throw the paper towels at Puerto Ricans, Putin offered to send our troops Bounty paper towels.

Mark Mazzetti, et al., of the New York Times have written (what I consider) a devastating story on how AG Bill Barr colluded with Michael Flynn's attorney Sidney Powell to drop the charge against Flynn. "Ms. Powell and her client won a significant victory on Wednesday when a divided appeals court panel -- in a surprise ruling written by Judge Neomi Rao, a former White House official whom Mr. Trump appointed to the bench -- ordered Judge Sullivan to drop the case without scrutiny. Judge [Emmet] Sullivan suspended his review but has not dismissed the charge, suggesting that the extraordinary legal and political saga is not yet over."

Shane Goldmacher & Thomas Kaplan of the New York Times: "Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. released statistics on the diversity of his presidential campaign staff on Saturday evening, announcing that 35 percent of his full-time staff members and 36 percent of his full-time senior staff members are people of color. A majority of Mr. Biden's staff members and senior staff members are women '' 53 percent and 58 percent, respectively.... [Donald Trump's] campaign said on Saturday that 25 percent of senior staff members are people of color.... The Trump campaign also said on Saturday that 52 percent of its full-time staff members, and 56 percent of its senior staff members, are women." Mrs. McC: Re: Trump campaign, pardon my skepticism. And here's a good reason why:

     ~~~ Zoe Tillman of BuzzFeed News: There are 93 U.S. attorney positions. Trump has filled 81 of them. Of those, seven and women. Two are black: "Louis Franklin Sr. in Alabama and Kenji Price in Hawaii, who is also Asian American."

Justin Wise of the Hill: "... Joe Biden's campaign on Sunday denounced Vice President Pence for his scheduled trip to Dallas, saying it 'epitomizes the dismissive attitude"'the Trump administration has taken toward addressing the coronavirus outbreak. Pence, the head of the White House coronavirus task force, is set to visit Texas Sunday to receive an on-the-ground report from officials about the surge in coronavirus cases throughout the state. He is also scheduled to speak at an event at the First Baptist Dallas, a church led by Pastor Robert Jeffries, during the visit. 'Our leaders should be tackling this pandemic head on and laying out concrete recovery plans for the American people -- not jet setting across the country to hold events that go against basic public health guidance,' Biden campaign manager Kate Bedingfield said in a statement."

Jamie Ehrlich, et al., of CNN: "Senior Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander said Sunday that he thinks it would 'help' if ... Donald Trump wore a mask because it would eliminate political stigma around doing so as the coronavirus continues to spread across the US. 'If wearing masks is important and all the health experts tell us that it is in containing the disease in 2020, it would help if from time to time the President would wear one to help us get rid of this political debate that says if you're for Trump, you don't wear a mask, if you're against Trump, you do,' the Tennessee Republican, who chairs the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, said on CNN's 'Inside Politics.'"

The New York Times' live updates for coronavirus developments Sunday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Sunday are here.

Christina Maxouris & Eliott McLaughlin of CNN: "Only two US states are reporting a decline in new coronavirus cases compared to last week: Connecticut and Rhode Island. A rise was reported in a staggering 36 states, including Florida, which some experts have cautioned could be the next epicenter for infections.... Florida reported 9,585 new coronavirus cases Saturday, a single-day record since the start of the pandemic. The number rivals those of New York's peak in early April (New York's new case tally Saturday was about 6% of Florida's)."

~~~~~~~~~~

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

** Toluse Olorunnipa, et al., of the Washington Post: "Six months after the novel coronavirus was first detected in the United States, a record surge in new cases is the clearest sign yet of the country's historic failure to control the virus -- exposing a crisis in governance extending from the Oval Office to state capitals to city councils. President Trump -- who has repeatedly downplayed the virus, sidelined experts and misled Americans about its dangers and potential cures -- now finds his presidency wracked by an inability to shepherd the country through its worst public health calamity in a century. The dysfunction that has long characterized Trump's White House has been particularly ill-suited for a viral outbreak that requires precision, focus and steady leadership, according to public health experts, administration officials and lawmakers from both parties.... On Friday, Vice President Pence used the first White House coronavirus task force briefing in almost two months to praise Trump's handling of the virus and cast aside concerns about a record spike in new infections.... Later Friday, the United States recorded more than 40,000 new coronavirus cases -- its largest one-day total." ~~~

~~~ Sabrina Tavernise, et al., of the New York Times: "More than four months into fighting the coronavirus in the United States, the shared sacrifice of millions of Americans suspending their lives -- with jobs lost, businesses shuttered, daily routines upended -- has not been enough to beat back [the novel coronavirus].... The result has been a realization for many Americans that however much they have yearned for a return to normalcy, their leaders have failed to control the coronavirus pandemic.... Months of mixed messages have left many exhausted and wondering how much of what they did was worth it.... A lack of federal leadership also meant that states lacked a unified approach.... Just as the country needed to stay shut down longer, many states -- mostly with Republican governors -- took their foot off the brake, and Mr. Trump cheered them on.... And there is little clarity on what comes next."

The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Saturday are here. "As the United States reached its third consecutive day with a record number of new reported coronavirus infections, officials were urgently rethinking their strategies to head off new infections. The U.S., which leads the world in total confirmed cases and deaths, reported more than 45,000 new infections on Friday, according to a Times database. Before this week, the country's largest daily total had been 36,738 on April 24." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Saturday are here. "Across the United States, health departments reported 44,782 new coronavirus infections on Saturday -- surpassing the previous single-day record of 43,715, which was set on Friday. It is the fifth straight day the country has hit a new single-day record.... Saturday's U.S. record of new single-day cases did not include numbers from Louisiana and Rhode Island, which did not report their daily cases." ~~~

~~~ "Facing a surge of new coronavirus cases, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott expressed regret for allowing bars to reopen so early, saying Friday that he did not realize how fast the virus would spread." Mrs.McC: That's what happens, Greg, when you align yourself with a stupid, narcissist POTUS*. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Edward Moreno of the Hill: "The U.S. reached over 2.5 million confirmed coronavirus cases on Saturday as several states experience record-breaking spikes of infections amid efforts to reopen the economy. According to a count by Johns Hopkins University, as of Saturday, 2,501,244 have tested positive for the coronavirus in the U.S. and 125,435 people have died." Mrs. McC: AND Donald Trump, who doesn't want to talk about it, went golfing. I wish a reporter, at the next opportunity, would ask him, "Since you don't want to do your job, Sir, why don't you quit?"

** Joshua Partlow & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "In the hours before his rally in Tulsa, President Trump's campaign directed the removal of thousands of 'Do Not Sit Here, Please!' stickers from seats in the arena that were intended to establish social distance between rallygoers, according to video and photos obtained by The Washington Post and a person familiar with the event. The removal contradicted instructions from the management of the BOK Center, the 19,000-seat arena in downtown Tulsa where Trump held his rally on June 20. At the time, coronavirus cases were rising sharply in Tulsa County, and Trump faced intense criticism for convening a large crowd for an indoor political rally, his first such event since the start of the pandemic.... The actions by Trump's campaign were first reported Friday by Billboard Magazine." Includes short video of campaign workers removing stickers. Mrs. McC: Dear Trumpbots: Your Dear Leader, who called you "warriors" at the Tulsa rally, doesn't mind if you warriors die for the noble cause of providing him a slightly-better campaign picture. Chumps. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Protection for Trump But Not for You Chumps. Kevin Liptak & Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "... the measures meant to protect [Donald Trump] from catching the [corona]virus have scaled up dramatically. As he seeks to insert rival Joe Biden's health into the presidential campaign, Trump has voiced escalating concern about how it would appear if he contracted coronavirus and has insisted on steps to protect himself, even as he refuses to wear a mask in public and agitates for large campaign rallies where the virus could spread. When he travels to locations where the virus is surging, every venue the President enters is inspected for potential areas of contagion by advance security and medical teams, according to people familiar with the arrangements. Bathrooms designated for the President's use are scrubbed and sanitized before he arrives. Staff maintain a close accounting of who will come into contact with the President to ensure they receive tests. While the White House phases out steps such as temperature checks and required mask-wearing in the West Wing -- changes meant to signal the country is moving on -- those around the President still undergo regular testing." (Also linked yesterday.)

I was going to go to Bedminster, New Jersey, this weekend, but wanted to stay in Washington, D.C. to make sure LAW & ORDER is enforced.... -- Donald Trump, Friday

Apparently Trump can see protesters at Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, D.C. from his golf course in Potomac Falls. -- Mrs. Bea McCrabbie  ~~~

~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: In light of Trump's disappearing act Friday, I thought maybe he was sick with something -- like Covid-19. But no. Guardian: "Donald Trump visited one of his own private golf courses in Virginia on Saturday as America continued to see fallout from a rapid surge in coronavirus cases. The trip came a day after the US president said he would stay in Washington DC to 'make sure law and order is enforced' amid ongoing anti-racism protests.... On Friday night Trump tweeted that he was cancelling a weekend trip to his Bedminster, New Jersey golf course because of the protests which have rocked the capital, including taking down statues of confederate figures." A trip to Bedminster, with staff, would have violated New Jersey's quarantine rule, though Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy said Trump was welcome as an "essential worker." How a fat man golfing is an essential worker beats me.

Evan Semones of Politico: "Vice President Mike Pence has postponed campaign events in Florida and Arizona 'out of an abundance of caution' as both states experience a spike in coronavirus cases, a Trump campaign spokesperson confirmed Saturday. Pence was set to make stops in each state this coming week as a part of his 'Faith in America' tour, and will also not appear at an additional Florida event Thursday organized by pro-Trump group America First Policies."

"60 Minutes"/CBS News: "Federal officials failed to immediately stop the distribution of many COVID-19 antibody tests they knew were flawed, leading to inaccurate data about the spread of the virus. Congress is now investigating why the FDA did not review the tests it allowed to be distributed widely throughout the U.S.... The FDA said it would allow the antibody tests to enter the US market and would do so without a formal review. Over 200 companies hit the market with the tests.... It took 50 days for the FDA to reverse its course on antibody tests.... By then, many American municipalities had already used the tests to determine whether they could send essential workers like EMTs, policemen and firemen back to work.... In May, [the FDA] began requiring test developers to apply for emergency authorization and submit data to show their tests worked. It was too late, says Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi."

New York Times: "At least 54,000 residents and workers have died from the coronavirus at nursing homes and other long-term care facilities for older adults in the United States, according to a New York Times database. As of June 26, the virus has infected more than 282,000 people at some 12,000 facilities.... While 11 percent of the country's cases have occurred in long-term care facilities, deaths related to Covid-19 in these facilities account for more than 43 percent of the country's pandemic fatalities.... In 24 states, the number of residents and workers who have died accounts for either half or more than half of all deaths from the virus." The article includes numerous charts & graphs. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McC: New Hampshire, where I live, is the worst: 80% of deaths are associated with nursing homes, but other states are nearly as bad. What the article does not document is how many people live & work in nursing homes. According to this and other sites, about 1.5 million Americans live in nursing homes. If we assume, generously, that another 500K work in these homes, we can bump up the number of those associated with nursing homes to 2 million. The population of the U.S. is 328.2, so that would mean that only 0.6% (that is, less than one percent) of Americans live or work in nursing homes.

Michigan. Sheena Jones of CNN: "People who visited a bar in East Lansing, Michigan, are being asked to self-quarantine because roughly 85 people contracted Covid-19 after visiting the establishment this month, a health official says. That number is up from the 34 reported Wednesday and is expected to rise, Ingham County Health officer Linda S. Vail told CNN."

Texas. Moore Stupid Republican Tricks. Meena Venkataramanan of the Texas Tribune: "Harris County, where Houston is located, has the highest number of coronavirus cases and deaths in the state, but the Texas GOP plans to press forward with plans to hold an in-person convention from July 16-18 in the city's George R. Brown Convention Center.... The Texas GOP convention is expected to draw about 6,000 attendees, roughly half of what it would expect for such a convention in normal times, according to [Texas Republican party executive director Kyle] Whatley. The party's website brands its annual convention as the 'largest political gathering in the free world.' Whatley said registrations are 'increasing exponentially.'..."

Patriots Take a Knee for Justice. Molly Hensley-Clancy of the New York Times: "Before the [National Women's Soccer League's] first game of its rebooted season, every starter from the Portland Thorns, the league's most popular team, and the North Carolina Courage, the league's defending champion, took a knee during the national anthem. The players said the action, which they had debated this week in their locker rooms -- and which gave each player the choice to take part or not -- was a protest against 'racial injustice, police brutality and systemic racism against Black people and people of color in America.'... When the N.W.S.L. became the first professional team sports league in the United States to return to play, kicking off a monthlong tournament in Utah, it did so with Black Lives Matter shirts and armbands, and with players on one knee."

** David Leonhardt of the New York Times: "Despite decades of political change '' the end of enforced segregation across the South, the legalization of interracial marriage, the passage of multiple civil rights laws and more -- the wages of black men trail those of white men by as much as when Harry Truman was president. That gap indicates that there have also been powerful forces pushing against racial equality.... The traditional statistics on the black-white wage gap ... examine only people with earnings. As social scientists put it, the traditional numbers ignore the 'zero values' [men who have given up looking for work or are incarcerated]."

Trump Tweets "Wanted" Posters. Rebecca Falconer of Axios: "Four men have been charged with destruction of federal property for allegedly trying to tear down the Andrew Jackson statue outside the White House this week, the Department of Justice said in a statement on Saturday night.... The announcement came hours after President Trump retweeted images of 15 people the U.S. Park Police said they and the FBI Washington Field Office's Violent Crimes Task Force were seeking to identify for 'vandalizing' the statue and 'other related crimes.' Trump signed an executive order on Friday to denounce protesters who vandalized Civil War and World War II monuments. Most statues that have been torn down in recent weeks have been symbols of the Confederacy, Axios' Orion Rummler notes."

Kentucky. Austin Ramzy of the New York Times: "One man was killed and another person was injured in a shooting Saturday evening in a park where protesters against police violence have gathered for weeks in Louisville, Ky., the authorities said. Videos posted online showed a man standing on the edge of Jefferson Square Park firing more than a dozen shots that sent protesters scrambling for shelter among tents and park benches. One man died at the scene, and another person who was shot was found across the street at the Hall of Justice and taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, the Louisville Metro Police Department said in a statement."

Mississippi. Rick Rojas of the New York Times: On Saturday, "both chambers of [Mississippi's] Republican-led Legislature voted, with the support of supermajorities, to push ahead with legislation that would remove the [state] flag ... embedded with the blue bars and white stars of the Confederate battle flag ... and lay the framework for replacing it.... The flag, the only state banner left in the country with an overt Confederate symbol, has been the target of opposition that crosses racial, partisan and cultural divides.... Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican, said on Saturday morning that he would sign a bill to change the flag. The announcement signals a marked evolution in the governor's thinking on the subject, as he had previously said that any decision over changing the flag should be made directly by voters, not lawmakers." A Mississippi Today story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Kayleigh Skinner, who was the lead reporter on the Mississippi Today story, said on MSNBC last night that what appears to have turned the tide was major corporations like WalMart urging legislators to ditch the Confederate flag. Makes me wonder if it wouldn't be useful for activists to do more lobbying of corporations on this as well as on other matters. If big campaign contributors withheld contributions from recalcitrant legislators, they would abandon their reprehensible "principles" in a Mississippi minute.

New Jersey. Laura Aratani of the Washington Post: "Princeton University's board of trustees has voted to remove Woodrow Wilson's name from its school of public and international affairs, saying the late president's segregationist policies make him an 'especially inappropriate namesake' for a public policy school.... The school will now be known as the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. In addition, trustees voted to change the name of a residential college that had been named for Wilson to First College." Politico's story is here.

White House: Trump & Pence Knew Nothing. Edward Moreno of the Hill: "White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany denied a Friday report from the New York Times President Trump and Vice President Pence were briefed on American intelligence findings that Russian military operatives offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants to kill coalition forces in Afghanistan, including US troops, amid peace talks. Citing White House officials briefed on the matter, the Times reported that Trump and Pence were briefed on the intelligence findings and that the White House's National Security Council held a meeting about the issue in late March. McEnany denied any such briefing, saying in a statement Saturday that, 'While the White House does not routinely comment on alleged intelligence or internal deliberations, the CIA Director, National Security Advisor, and the Chief of Staff can all confirm that neither the President nor the Vice President were briefed on the alleged Russian bounty intelligence.'"

     ~~~ The New York Times report, also linked yesterday, is here. The Guardian/Observer now has a good summary report of the Times story. The Washington Post also has independently reported the story. The Post story does not specifically state that Trump & Pence were briefed. But if Trump was not briefed, why the hell not? Russians killing American soldiers by proxy is a very big deal. The Wall Street Journal report puts it this way: "The intelligence assessment regarding Russia's actions in Afghanistan was delivered to the White House earlier this spring, and until recently had been known only to a handful of officials, a person familiar with it said." If we are to believe both Mac-a-Ninny & "a person familiar," then White House staff kept it from Trump. ~~~

~~~ Spencer Kimball of CNBC: "Joe Biden has accused Donald Trump of betraying his duty as president, after a report claimed the White House knew for months Russian intelligence offered Afghan militants bounties to kill U.S. soldiers but did not punish Moscow. 'His entire presidency has been a gift to Putin, but this is beyond the pale,' Biden said during a virtual town hall Saturday. 'It's betrayal of the most sacred duty we bear as a nation to protect and equip our troops when we send them into harm's way. It's a betrayal of every single American family with a loved one serving in Afghanistan or anywhere overseas.... President Trump, the commander in chief of American troops serving in a dangerous theater of war, has known about this for months according to the Times and done worse than nothing. Not only has he failed to sanction or impose any kind of consequences on Russia for this egregious violation of international law, Donald Trump has continued his embarrassing campaign of deference and debasing himself before Vladimir Putin.... He has had this information according to the Times and yet he offered to host Putin in the United States and sought to invite Russia to rejoin the G7.'" Update: A New York Times story is here.

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "The House tried and failed on Friday to invalidate stringent rules imposed by the Trump administration on student loan forgiveness, falling short of overriding a veto by President Trump. The override effort, which would have revived bipartisan legislation to overturn regulations put in place last year by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, failed by a vote of 238 to 173, lacking the two-thirds majority it would have needed to pass. Six Republicans joined every Democrat in voting to defy Mr. Trump's position." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Presidential Race

Maureen Dowd of the New York Times: "In the last election, Trump milked white aggrievement to catapult himself into the White House. But even Republicans today recognize that we have to grapple with systemic racism and force some changes in police conduct '' except for our president, who hailed stop-and-frisk in [an interview with Sean Hannity Thursday]. The other scary narrative is about our 'protean' enemy, as Tony Fauci calls Covid-19, which Trump pretends has disappeared, with lethal consequences.... The president showed off his sociopathic flair by demanding the repeal of Obamacare -- just because he can't stand that it was done by Barack Obama. Millions losing their jobs and insurance during a plague and he wants to eliminate their alternative? Willful maliciousness. And this at the same time he has been ensuring more infections by lowballing the virus, resisting more testing because the numbers would not be flattering to him, sidelining Dr. Fauci and setting a terrible example."

Alex Isenstadt of Politico: "Donald Trump knows he's losing. The president has privately come to that grim realization in recent days, multiple people close to him told Politico, amid a mountain of bad polling and warnings from some of his staunchest allies that he's on course to be a one-term president.... What should have been an easy interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity on Thursday horrified advisers when Trump offered a rambling, non-responsive answer to a simple question about his goals for a second term. In the same appearance, the normally self-assured president offered a tacit acknowledgment that he might lose when he said that Joe Biden is 'gonna be your president because some people don't love me, maybe.'... Trump has time to rebound, and the political environment could improve for him. But interviews with more than a half-dozen people close to the president depicted a reelection effort badly in need of direction -- and an unfocused candidate who repeatedly undermines himself." ~~~

~~~ Trump's Second Term Agenda: Me, Myself and I. Evan Semones of Politico: "Sen. Chuck Grassley laid blame on Fox News -- and ... Donald Trump -- on Saturday over failing to articulate what his administration's second term priorities would be during a recent interview with the news organization. The Iowa Republican tweeted that Trump got 'off point' when asked by Fox's Sean Hannity what his goals would be if re-elected, but appeared vexed at Hannity for helping the president 'digress' instead of helping Trump form a more intelligible answer. 'Does FOXNews want Trump Re-elected?' Grassley wrote. Trump was widely criticized for his meandering answer to the softball question, in which he promoted his experience and attacked former national security adviser John Bolton instead of focusing on initiatives and policies he'd promote if given another four years in office." Mrs. McC: Because it's the purpose of a "news" network to support Trump's campaign.

Donald Trump Steals Things. You Can't Always Get What You Want. AP: "The Rolling Stones are threatening Donald Trump with legal action for using their songs at his rallies despite cease-and-desist directives. The Stones said in a statement on Sunday that their legal team was working with the BMI music rights organisation ... to stop the use of their material in Trump's reelection campaign.... The 1969 classic You Can't Always Get What You Want was a popular song for his events. It was played again at the close of Trump's recent rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, an indoor event criticised for its potential to spread coronavirus. Other musicians and their representatives have also complained about having their music associated with Trump's events. The family of the late Tom Petty said it had issued a cease-and-desist order after his song I Won't Back Down was used in Tulsa."

There's a Sucker Born Every Minute. Cecilia Kang & Sheera Frenkel of the New York Times: PizzaGate is back. Since the nutty conspiracy theory took hold among right-wingers in 2016, "Facebook, Twitter and YouTube managed to largely suppress PizzaGate. But now, just months before the next presidential election, the conspiracy theory is making a comeback on these platforms -- and on new ones such as TikTok -- underlining the limits of their efforts to stamp out dangerous speech online and how little has changed despite rising public frustration.... The theory has morphed. PizzaGate no longer focuses on [Hillary] Clinton and has taken on less of a political bent. Its new targets and victims are a broader assortment of powerful businesspeople, politicians and celebrities, including [Justin] Bieber, Bill Gates, Ellen DeGeneres, Oprah Winfrey and Chrissy Teigen, who are lumped together as part of the global elite. For groups like QAnon, PizzaGate has become a convenient way to foment discontent."

Way Beyond the Beltway

Ed O'Loughlin of the New York Times: "Ireland's Parliament appointed Micheal Martin, a center-right politician, as prime minister on Saturday as the country deals with the coronavirus and fallout from a housing crisis. Mr. Martin replaces Leo Varadkar, a doctor who drew acclaim for his handling of the coronavirus outbreak but who had been a caretaker prime minister since a February general election delivered a loss of seats for his party but no clear winner. The new government, the result of more than four months of negotiations, will be the first to include the country's two rival center-right political movements -- Fianna Fail, led by Mr. Martin, and Fine Gael, led by Mr. Varadkar. The two parties have alternated in power since the foundation of the modern Irish state in 1922." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)"

News Lede

New York Times: "Charles Webb, who wrote the 1963 novel 'The Graduate,' the basis for the hit 1967 film, and then spent decades running from its success, died on June 16 in East Sussex, England. He was 81.... Mr. Webb's novel, written shortly after college and based largely on his relationship with his wife, Eve Rudd, was made into an era-defining film, directed by Mike Nichols and starring Dustin Hoffman and Anne Bancroft, that gave voice to a generation's youthful rejection of materialism."

The Commentariat -- June 27, 2020

Afternoon Update:

** Joshua Partlow & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "In the hours before his rally in Tulsa, President Trump's campaign directed the removal of thousands of 'Do Not Sit Here, Please!' stickers from seats in the arena that were intended to establish social distance between rallygoers, according to video and photos obtained by The Washington Post and a person familiar with the event. The removal contradicted instructions from the management of the BOK Center, the 19,000-seat arena in downtown Tulsa where Trump held his rally on June 20. At the time, coronavirus cases were rising sharply in Tulsa County, and Trump faced intense criticism for convening a large crowd for an indoor political rally, his first such event since the start of the pandemic.... The actions by Trump's campaign were first reported Friday by Billboard Magazine." Includes short video of campaign workers removing stickers.

The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Saturday are here. "As the United States reached its third consecutive day with a record number of new reported coronavirus infections, officials were urgently rethinking their strategies to head off new infections. The U.S., which leads the world in total confirmed cases and deaths, reported more than 45,000 new infections on Friday, according to a Times database. Before this week, the country's largest daily total had been 36,738 on April 24."

~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Saturday are here. "Facing a surge of new coronavirus cases, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott expressed regret for allowing bars to reopen so early, saying Friday that he did not realize how fast the virus would spread." Mrs.McC: That's what happens, Greg, when you align yourself with a stupid, narcissist POTUS*. People get sick and die.

Protection for Trump But Not for You Chumps. Kevin Liptak & Kaitlan Collins of CNN: "... the measures meant to protect [Donald Trump] from catching the [corona]virus have scaled up dramatically. As he seeks to insert rival Joe Biden's health into the presidential campaign, Trump has voiced escalating concern about how it would appear if he contracted coronavirus and has insisted on steps to protect himself, even as he refuses to wear a mask in public and agitates for large campaign rallies where the virus could spread. When he travels to locations where the virus is surging, every venue the President enters is inspected for potential areas of contagion by advance security and medical teams, according to people familiar with the arrangements. Bathrooms designated for the President's use are scrubbed and sanitized before he arrives. Staff maintain a close accounting of who will come into contact with the President to ensure they receive tests. While the White House phases out steps such as temperature checks and required mask-wearing in the West Wing -- changes meant to signal the country is moving on -- those around the President still undergo regular testing."

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "The House tried and failed on Friday to invalidate stringent rules imposed by the Trump administration on student loan forgiveness, falling short of overriding a veto by President Trump. The override effort, which would have revived bipartisan legislation to overturn regulations put in place last year by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, failed by a vote of 238 to 173, lacking the two-thirds majority it would have needed to pass. Six Republicans joined every Democrat in voting to defy Mr. Trump's position."

Ed O'Loughlin of the New York Times: "Ireland's Parliament appointed Micheal Martin, a center-right politician, as prime minister on Saturday as the country deals with the coronavirus and fallout from a housing crisis. Mr. Martin replaces Leo Varadkar, a doctor who drew acclaim for his handling of the coronavirus outbreak but who had been a caretaker prime minister since a February general election delivered a loss of seats for his party but no clear winner. The new government, the result of more than four months of negotiations, will be the first to include the country's two rival center-right political movements -- Fianna Fail, led by Mr. Martin, and Fine Gael, led by Mr. Varadkar. The two parties have alternated in power since the foundation of the modern Irish state in 1922."

~~~~~~~~~~

The Trumpidemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Friday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Friday are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Gina Kolata of the New York Times: "At the beginning of the pandemic, the coronavirus looked to be another respiratory illness. But the virus has turned out to affect not just the lungs, but the kidneys, the heart and the circulatory system -- even, somehow, our senses of smell and taste. Now researchers have discovered yet another unpleasant surprise. In many patients hospitalized with the coronavirus, the immune system is threatened by a depletion of certain essential cells, suggesting eerie parallels with H.I.V.... In [one] study, the investigators identified three patterns of immune defects, and concluded that T cells and B cells, which help orchestrate the immune response, were inactive in roughly 30 percent of the 71 Covid-19 patients they examined. None of the papers have yet been published or peer reviewed."

Rwanda, Yes; U.S.A., No. Michael Birnbaum & Quentin Ariès of the Washington Post: "European diplomats are poised to approve an agreement on which foreign travelers they want to welcome starting on July 1, as the European Union reopens its external borders for the first time since March, but with the coronavirus still raging in the United States, the possibility of allowing American tourists hasn't even figured into the discussion, according to six diplomats familiar with the talks.... Expected to be approved: Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia and Uruguay.... Visitors from China would be allowed to enter Europe only if Beijing drops measures against E.U. travelers.... The list is subject to final approval on Saturday, but diplomats said it was unlikely to change." The New York Times story is here.

Anne Gearan & Yasmeen Abutaleb of the Washington Post: "The Trump administration on Friday claimed 'remarkable progress' in fighting the coronavirus pandemic, despite a surge of cases in the South and West.... Vice President Pence held the first public briefing of the coronavirus task force in nearly two months and sought to deliver an upbeat message that is at odds with warnings from public health experts. The vice president also dodged the question of whether people should wear masks in public, as his own administration recommends, and said campaign rallies that pack people together in violation of public health guidance will continue.... 'Well, the freedom of speech, the right to peaceably assemble, is enshrined in the Constitution of the United States and we have an election coming up this fall,' Pence said.... Pence offered no new strategies to combat the rapidly spreading virus and minimized record daily case counts in several states as 'outbreaks in specific counties.'... Anthony S. Fauci ... pleaded with Americans to take the virus seriously and continue taking precautions some four months into a national state of partial paralysis. 'We are all in it together and the only way we're going to end it, is by ending it together,' Fauci said." ~~~

~~~ Alana Wise of NPR: "The White House Coronavirus Task Force renewed calls for vigilance on Friday, acknowledging rising cases across Southern states in parts of California.... Vice President Pence insisted 'this moment is different' than what the United States was grappling with two months ago, noting that the percentage of people requiring hospitalization from the virus was considerably lower than it was early on during the pandemic and the number of fatalities are declining. 'We're in a much better place,' Pence said. But he urged young people to take precautions to avoid spreading the disease to more vulnerable people. The group's first briefing in weeks [was] held at the Department of Health and Human Services rather than at the White House...." (Also linked yesterday.) Politico's story is here. ~~~

~~~ Deny and Dismiss. Michael Shear & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "The return of the televised task force news conference -- at which reporters were limited to only a handful of questions -- revived the deep disconnect between Washington and the states where local officials spent Friday sounding the alarm and, in some cases, halting the reopening that Mr. Trump has so often encouraged.... An hour after [the task force session] was over, the president addressed a panel of industry officials, political allies and White House economic advisers for a self-congratulatory session about how successful the economic recovery has been.... [Trump] showed some concern when his personal valet, who serves his food, was diagnosed with the coronavirus and Mr. Pence's press secretary tested positive. But since then, Mr. Trump has maintained a posture of denial and dismissiveness."

Pelosi Calls Out the Cowardly Liar. Alana Wise of NPR: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday told NPR she agreed with ... Joe Biden's assessment that mask usage should be mandated on the federal level amid a surge of coronavirus cases across the United States. She blamed the Trump administration for failing to accept the seriousness of the pandemic.... 'In fact, the reason the CDC hasn't made it mandatory is because they don't want to embarrass the president, or insult the president, whatever it is,' Pelosi said, calling Trump 'cowardly' for not wearing a face mask."

Caitlin Oprysko & Quint Forgey of Politico: "A pair of GOP governors on Friday moved to impose new mitigation measures in their states amid record numbers of new coronavirus infections, with both Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis ordering bars closed and Texas placing new restrictions on other businesses the governor said were linked to the virus's resurgence. Texas and Florida are among around a dozen other states that have hit the brakes on reopening their economies amid a resurgence of the virus across the South and West affecting more than half of the states in the country. That both governors -- who are close allies of ... Donald Trump and were criticized for resisting calls to lock down their states in the pandemic's early days -- have not only pressed pause on reopening but reimposed some restrictions, speaks to the severity of the outbreaks in two of the most populous states in the country." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ David Lim of Politico: "The Trump administration is reversing its decision to cut federal support for five drive-thru coronavirus testing sites in Texas this month after a formal request from Gov. Greg Abbott and criticism from Sens. John Cornyn and Ted Cruz.... But there's a catch: Federal coronavirus testing czar Brett Giroir said HHS will continue funding the Texas sites for two weeks past the previously announced June 30 cutoff. What happens after that point isn't clear.... The federal government is still set to end funding in late June for six sites spread across four other states: Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey and Pennsylvania."

Jake Johnson of Common Dreams: "The Trump administration in April quietly issued a sweeping waiver exempting members of Congress and other federal officials from ethics rules in order to allow them and their families to apply for small business coronavirus relief loans without facing conflict of interest reviews. The existence of the ethics waiver was reported Friday by the Washington Post and met with alarm by good government advocates who warned the 'blanket approval' from the Small Business Administration (SBA) opens the door to abuse of Paycheck Protection Program funds designed to help struggling small businesses stay afloat." --safari: Seen in the aggregate, there are no "ethics" to this administration. At all. ~~~

     ~~~ ** Jonathan O'Connell & Aaron Gregg of the Washington Post: "Because the administration has not yet released any information about the individual borrowers, it is unknown how many members of Congress or SBA officials have benefited from the nearly $700 billion program, but several representatives did, according to media reports and financial records." Rep. Susie Lee (D-Nev.) was among Nevada legislators who lobbied the Trump administration not to exclude casinos from the SBA loans, "as the SBA had long done'" She never did mention that her husband Daniel Lee owned a casino company, a company that then applied for & received $5.6 million in loans. However, that $5.6 million was not exactly a "loan": "As long as the loans are used appropriately, they are turned into grants and forgiven.... One of the wealthiest, Rep. Roger Williams (R-Tex.), said in a May 5 blog post that his auto dealerships had received loans. Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.) said that businesses owned by her family had received PPP loans, after they were disclosed in the Columbia Tribune."

Miriam Jordan of the New York Times: "Citing the severity of the coronavirus pandemic, a federal judge in Los Angeles on Friday ordered the release of migrant children held in the country's three family detention centers. The order to release the children by July 17 came after plaintiffs in a long-running case reported that some of them have tested positive for the virus. It applies to children who have been held for more than 20 days in the detention centers run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, two in Texas and one in Pennsylvania. There were 124 children living in those facilities on June 8, according to the ruling." A CNN story is here.

Maryland. Ovetta Wiggins of the Washington Post: "A Maryland man who organized rallies to pressure Gov. Larry Hogan (R) to lift the state's stay-home order says he has tested positive for the novel coronavirus and does not plan to provide names of people with whom he had contact to public health officials for contact tracing. Tim Walters, a co-founder of ReOpen Maryland, said on social media this week that he has had a dry cough for months but it recently worsened. He then began to experience an excruciating headache, a fever and the inability to focus with one of his eyes, which led to vertigo.... Walters said he had long suspected he might have the virus but was surprised by the toll it was taking on him this week." Mrs. McC: Yeah, the side effects of stupid are often surprising.

Oklahoma. AP: "A journalist who attended ... Donald Trump's rally in Tulsa last week said Friday he has tested positive for COVID-19. Oklahoma Watch reporter Paul Monies said he was notified Friday of his positive diagnosis. 'I'm pretty surprised,' Monies wrote on Twitter. 'I have zero symptoms (so far) and I feel fine....' Monies said he was inside the rally for about 6 hours on Saturday at the BOK Center and that he wore a mask and mostly practiced social distancing, except for when he went to the concourse to get a snack.... An epidemiologist at the Oklahoma City-County Health Department who notified Monies of his positive result said it's difficult to determine if he contracted the coronavirus at the rally."

Teo Armus of the Washington Post: "With coronavirus infections rapidly spreading across the American South and West and more states making masks a requirement, dozens of sheriffs ... are staging a rebellion against state governments. An adherence to their interpretation of Constitution, they say, comes before any kind of public health advice." Thanks to Ken W. for the link. Mrs. McC: I have a comment on the sheriffs in yesterday's thread. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Ha Ha Ha. Max Cohen of Politico: "... Donald Trump on Friday morning canceled his scheduled weekend trip to his private golf club in Bedminster, N.J. The trip had drawn criticism as Trump said he would not follow New Jersey guidelines and would ignore a mandatory 14-day quarantine for travelers coming from states with coronavirus spikes. Trump visited Arizona on Tuesday amid a rapid rise in cases there. White House spokesman Judd Deere had justified the decision by claiming 'the president of the United States is not a civilian.' New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy [D] told CNN that Trump did not have to follow the quarantine guidelines because he is considered an essential worker." Mrs. McC: Trump is neither "essential" nor a "worker." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Edward Moreno of the Hill: "President Trump said in a Twitter post Friday that he's staying in Washington, D.C., instead of going to his golf club in New Jersey over the weekend 'to make sure LAW & ORDER is enforced' in the nation's capital.... 'I was going to go to Bedminster, New Jersey, this weekend, but wanted to stay in Washington, D.C. to make sure LAW & ORDER is enforced,' he said in a tweet. 'The arsonists, anarchists, looters, and agitators have been largely stopped. I am doing what is necessary to keep our communities safe -- and these people will be brought to Justice!'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Right. We did not see Donald Trump Friday (as far as I know*). He did not show up for the coronavirus task force meeting. He did not star in a melodramatic public display of scrawling his name on an executive order "protecting monuments," (story linked below) the purpose of which was to energize his base. And he's not going to New Jersey because he has to stay in Washington, D.C., to protect the District from looters and anarchists. Translation: "I have Covid-19, and I'm not going to admit it." *As Shear & Haberman of the NYT report (linked above), Trump did meet with "industry leaders" & others Friday afternoon.

Morgan Chalfant of the Hill: "President Trump said Friday [afternoon in a tweet] that he has signed a 'very strong' executive order aimed at protecting federal monuments and statues from vandalism amid the ongoing protests against racial inequality and police brutality.... The White House has not released details on the executive order."

Family Matters. Lachlan Cartwright & William Bredderman of the Daily Beast: "Lawyers acting on behalf of ... Donald Trump's brother, Robert -- who was in an intensive-care unit just days ago -- refiled for a temporary restraining order against ... [publication of a tell-all book by Mary Trump] in Dutchess County, New York. The new legal maneuver comes a day after a judge in Queens Surrogate Court tossed an attempt by Robert Trump's celebrity attorney, Charles Harder, to stop explosive family secrets being printed, citing 'several improprieties' in the filing that rendered it 'fatally defective.'"

** Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: "American intelligence officials have concluded that a Russian military intelligence unit secretly offered bounties to Taliban-linked militants for killing coalition forces in Afghanistan -- including targeting American troops -- amid the peace talks to end the long-running war there, according to officials briefed on the matter. The United States concluded months ago that the Russian unit, which has been linked to assassination attempts and other covert operations in Europe intended to destabilize the West or take revenge on turncoats, had covertly offered rewards for successful attacks last year. Islamist militants, or armed criminal elements closely associated with them, are believed to have collected some bounty money, the officials said.... The intelligence finding was briefed to President Trump, and the White House's National Security Council discussed the problem at an interagency meeting in late March, the officials said.... The White House has yet to authorize any step, the officials said." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: As the NYT reporters remind us, Trump has already taken Putin's side against U.S. intelligence agencies' conclusions. In addition, Trump has invited Putin back into the G-7(8) & has removed troops from Germany as a favor to Russia. And just this week, Trump said Congressional Democrats were "far more unreasonable and actually they're a little crazy," when compared to Putin & other dictators like Kim Jun-un. He said this, of course, knowing that Russia had put bounties on U.S. soldiers in acts of war. There's a reason that Trump accused Barack Obama of treason this week: it's called "projection." Trump is notorious for accusing his rivals of crimes & misdemeanors of which he knows he himself is guilty. ~~~

     ~~~ Bob Brigham of Raw Story has a brief summary of the NYT report & tweeted commentary. Dan Nexon of LG&$ has more of the text of the NYT report here. Mrs. McC: Nexon calls the Russia-financed attacks "one-sided Cold War." Sounds like a hot war to me.

     ~~~ Adam Silverman of Balloon Juice: Russia has "been waging a form of low intensity, irregular, and unconventional war against the US and our partners and allies in Afghanistan.... Until Putin faces some real consequences for his actions and those of his subordinates who are successfully freelancing, he will continue to wage his 21st century form of war against the US, our allies, and our partners. The longer we wait to provide him with real consequences, the more likely it becomes that when we do, we will have limited ourselves to options that are very, very costly."

Dareh Gregorian of NBC News: "The Trump administration does not have the authority to use military funding to pay for construction of a border wall, a federal appeals court panel ruled on Friday. In a 2-1 ruling, a 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel found that diverting $2.5 billion Congress had appropriated for the military violated the Constitution and is unlawful. The executive branch 'lacked independent constitutional authority to authorize the transfer of funds,' the ruling said. 'These funds were appropriated for other purposes, and the transfer amounted to "drawing funds from the Treasury without authorization by statute and thus violating the Appropriations Clause." Therefore, the transfer of funds here was unlawful."' The decision upheld a ruling by a federal judge in California who last year found that the Trump administration's funding scheme was against the law. A coalition of states led by California had filed suit to block the move." The dissenting judge was a Trump nominee. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Here's what I don't get. Trump went to Arizona this week to stand in front of his wall & boast about how much of it he's built. If the money for the build is coming from funds unlawfully diverted from other sources, how is Trump to pay it back? From his office supply fund? Or what? BTW, as Trump refuses to wear masks because they're so cumbersome & unnecessary, he was happy to go stand out in 109-degree heat wearing a conventional suit & tie. What's the greater burden? A mask or a suit in temps hot enough to fry the fat off his ample bacon?

Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "A federal judge has ordered Roger Stone to report to prison July 14, granting him a two-week delay because of the coronavirus pandemic, but not the two months that President Trump's confidant had requested with prosecutors' assent.... 'This affords the defendant seventy-five days beyond his original report date,' [Judge Amy Berman] Jackson said in the notice, pointing out that she had originally ordered Stone to surrender to prison within two weeks after she denied his motion for a new trial in mid-April. Jackson also allowed Stone to remain under home confinement until July 14, in accordance with Justice Department policy and 'the strong medical recommendation submitted' by Stone's defense. Jackson's notice indicated that the delay would allow Stone time to quarantine himself so as not to take the novel coronavirus from his home in South Florida to the prison." A Politico story is here.

Brandi Buchman of Courthouse News Service: "Once an informal adviser to President Donald Trump and later a witness for the Mueller probe, George Nader was sentenced to 10 years in prison Friday for possession of child pornography and transporting a minor into the United States for sex.... Nader pleaded guilty in March,less than a year after federal prosecutors charged him over graphic images found on multiple devices belonging to Nader, including videos of toddler-age boys engaging in sex acts with young goats and other farm animals.... Nader awaits sentencing for separate federal charges in Washington related to his coordination of illegal foreign contributions to President Trump's inaugural fund as well as Hil[l]ary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign." --s A Washington Post story is here.

Theodoric Meyer of Politico: "The Justice Department is prosecuting the legendary lobbyist Jack Abramoff on felony conspiracy charges. Again. More than 14 years after he pleaded guilty in the biggest Washington lobbying scandal in a generation, Abramoff has agreed to enter guilty pleas on charges of conspiracy and failing to register as a lobbyist for his role in two separate schemes, according to the Justice Department.... An undercover FBI agent separately later hired Abramoff to lobby ... a member of Congress but [he] didn't register to do so.... [Abramoff] served three and a half years after pleading guilty in 2006 to felony counts of conspiracy, fraud and tax evasion as part of a wide-ranging lobbying scandal.... Abramoff's prosecution is a watershed moment in the enforcement of federal lobbying law: It appears to be the first time the Justice Department has filed criminal charges under the Lobbying Disclosure Act, which requires lobbyists representing domestic clients to register with Congress but is thought to be widely flouted." Emphasis added. ~~~

~~~ As Rachel Maddow pointed out Friday night, Congress passed the Lobbying Disclosure Act specifically in response to the original Abramoff scandal. Jack has been hoist on his own petard.

Haley Byrd of CNN: "House Democrats approved a bill to admit Washington, DC, as a state on Friday, marking the first time either chamber of Congress has advanced a DC statehood measure. The bill, introduced by DC's nonvoting House member, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, would shrink the federal capital to a small area encompassing the White House, Capitol building, Supreme Court, and other federal buildings along the National Mall. The rest of the city would become the 51st state, named the Washington, Douglass Commonwealth after abolitionist Frederick Douglass. The bill passed with a vote of 232-180. Rep. Collin Peterson of Minnesota was the only Democrat to join Republicans in voting against it. Independent Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan also voted no.... Democrats in recent weeks have argued the necessity for statehood has never been clearer, after the Trump administration mobilized federal law enforcement to respond to protests about systemic racism in policing.... Proponents of making DC a state also point to the area's large population, which surpasses the populations of Wyoming and Vermont." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Some Democrats also have noted that D.C. residents, in the aggregate, pay more in federal taxes than do residents of many other states. And of course, as the District's license plates declare, residents are subject to "Taxation without Representation." The bill will never even come up for a vote in Mitch McConnell's Senate, and Trump has promised to veto it, if it did. ~~~

~~~ Oh, Them Darkies. Tim Murphy of Mother Jones: "Opponents of DC statehood have, quite often over the years, rolled out a set of by-the-book arguments to make the case for why the federal district ought to remain as it is. They suggest a constitutional amendment is needed to change its status, for instance, or that the Founders wanted the city to be its own thing. But on Thursday, Arkansas Republican Sen. Tom Cotton cut through the euphemism and simply laid out the nature of his opposition directly. Cotton hit some of the familiar notes.... The core of Cotton's argument, though, was about the people who live there.... He argued that its economy and political leanings disqualified it from full representation. Its citizens, he suggested, were incapable of governing themselves responsibly and, in any case, did not deserve a voice in Congress because they hold jobs he considered illegitimate.... It was a startlingly blunt assertion -- that Washingtonians should be entitled to fewer rights because they are simply the wrong kind of people." Read on. ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: This is to say that Cotton-Pickin' Tom used the Senate floor (where, BTW, he is protected by the Constitution's Speech or Debate clause) to announce that he is a white supremacist. At least he did so without wearing his hood.

Elections 2020

"TikTok Grandma" Mary Jo Laupp Joins Biden Coalition. Kellen Browning of the New York Times: Mary Jo Laupp, who made "a TikTok video she had made urging people to reserve tickets to President Trump's June 20 rally in Tulsa, Okla. — and then not show up -- ... has been recruited by the Biden Digital Coalition, a grass-roots organization, to put her TikTok skills to work supporting the presidential campaign of Joseph R. Biden Jr. The coalition, made up of about 100 people -- many of whom are alumni of other Democratic presidential campaigns -- works to amplify pro-Biden messages and build engagement on social media. While it is not part of Mr. Biden's campaign, it is in contact with Biden staff members."

Aamer Madhani & Jonathan Lemire of the AP: "... Donald Trump is sharpening his focus on his most ardent base of supporters as concern grows inside his campaign that his standing in the battleground states that will decide the 2020 election is slipping. Trump turned his attention this week to 'left wing mobs' toppling Confederate monuments and visited the nation's southern border to spotlight progress on his 2016 campaign promise to build a U.S.-Mexico border wall. He ignored public health experts warning Americans to avoid large gatherings by holding two large campaign events in Oklahoma and Arizona, parts of the country where coronavirus infections are surging. With his rhetorical turn, Trump is feeding red meat issues to a base that helped spur his upset victory over Hillary Clinton in 2016. But he risks appearing to ignore larger issues that are jolting the country, like the pandemic and racial injustice, while underplaying economic issues, even though polling shows that to be an area where Trump performs relatively well." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court said on Friday that it would not require Texas to let all eligible voters vote by mail. The Texas Democratic Party and several voters had urged the court to reinstate a federal trial judge's injunction requiring state officials to allow all voters, and not just those who are 65 or older, to submit their ballots by mail. They relied on the 26th Amendment, which lowered the voting age to 18 and said the right to vote 'shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of age.' The court's brief order gave no reasons, which is typical when the justices rule on emergency applications, and there were no noted dissents. Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued a statement saying that the question in the case raised 'weighty but seemingly novel questions regarding the 26th Amendment.' But she said the court was right not to address those questions in the context of an emergency application. 'I hope,' she wrote, 'that the court of appeals will consider the merits of the legal issues in this case well in advance of the November election.'" A Law & Crime story is here.

Common Dreams via RawStory: "After 10 months, the Federal Elections Commission in May regained a quorum with the confirmation of Republican appointee Trey Trainor -- and promptly lost it just over five weeks later on Friday when commissioner Caroline Hunter resigned to join the Koch-funded group Stand Together, leaving the regulatory body again essentially powerless as the November general election draws closer.... The White House announced in response to Hunter's departure that President Donald Trump will appoint Allen Dickerson, legal director at the Institute for Free Speech, a right-wing think tank devoted to removing barriers to unlimited campaign spending by outside groups and dark money organizations." --s

Lorenzo Franceschi-Biccierai of Vice News: "A data broker that tracked Black Lives Matter protesters also tracked the locations of Evangelical Christians on election day 2016 using their cell phones and used that data to help push get-out-the-vote messaging, according to the company's own CEO. Mobilewalla, a data broker headquartered in New York City, purchases and collects location and other personal data about cellphone users, and then sells it to companies for marketing purposes. On Thursday, BuzzFeed News reported that Mobilewalla had tracked the almost 17,000 protesters who went to the streets to join Black Lives Matter demonstrations in the last month. In 2017, the company's CEO Anindya Datta revealed another controversial project. During an overlooked podcast interview, Datta said Mobilewalla 'played a key role in the U.S. presidential election' in 2016. 'We were a very key data arm for one of the major parties,' Datta said, refusing to specify which one of the two parties." --s

Marie Fazio of the New York Times: "A Mississippi man was charged in connection with a phone call threatening to kill a United States representative and his staffers, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday. The man, Newton Wade Townsend, 52, of Brandon, Miss., was charged on Tuesday with threatening a public official. Court records, which only identify the congressman by the initials B.T., said that the threat was made on June 1. Congressman Bennie Thompson, a Democrat, said that he received a threat from Mr. Townsend on his office phone, and that the Capitol Police investigated the matter.... Mr. Thompson is the only black legislator, and the only Democrat, representing Mississippi in Congress." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Barbara Ortutay of the AP: "Facebook said Friday that it will flag all 'newsworthy' posts from politicians that break its rules, including those from ... Donald Trump. Separately, Facebook's stock dropped more than 8%, erasing roughly $50 billion from its market valuation, after the European company behind brands such as Ben & Jerry's and Dove announced it would boycott Facebook ads through the end of the year over the amount of hate speech and divisive rhetoric on its platform. Later in the day, Coca-Cola also announced it joined the boycott for at least 30 days. CEO Mark Zuckerberg had previously refused to take action against Trump posts suggesting that mail-in ballots will lead to voter fraud, saying that people deserved to hear unfiltered statements from political leaders. Twitter, by contrast, slapped a 'get the facts' label on them.... Zuckerberg said the social network is taking additional steps to counter election-related misinformation. In particular, the social network will begin adding new labels to all posts about voting that will direct users to authoritative information from state and local election officials." ~~~

~~~ But Not Climate Change! Judd Legum of Popular Information: "Last year, Facebook partnered with an organization, Science Feedback, that would bring in teams of Ph.D. climate scientists to evaluate the accuracy of viral content.... But now Facebook has reportedly decided to allow its staffers to overrule the climate scientists and make any climate disinformation ineligible for fact-checking by deeming it 'opinion.' The organization that requested the change, the CO2 Coalition..., has close ties to the fossil fuel industry, says its views on climate change are increasingly ignored by the mainstream media. Now it plans to use Facebook to aggressively push climate misinformation on the public -- without having to worry about fact checks from climate scientists." --s ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Facebook's position is nonsensical. If climate science is opinion, then so is everything, including my opinion that it don't rain in Indianapolis in the summertime.

Beyond the Beltway

Alabama. Carol Robinson of al.com: "The last surviving Ku Klux Klan member convicted in the 1963 bombing of the Sixteenth Baptist Church in Birmingham that killed four little girls has died. Thomas E. Blanton, 82, died of natural causes Friday morning at William E. Donaldson Correctional Facility in Jefferson County. He was found at 5 a.m. having cardiac issues and taken to the infirmary at Donaldson. He went into full arrest and was pronounced dead at 6:10 a.m., according to Jefferson County Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates. An autopsy performed found no evidence of trauma or foul play...."