The Commentariat -- May 14, 2020
Afternoon Update:
Jamie Ross of the Daily Beast: "President Trump was wary of making preparations for the coronavirus pandemic because he was concerned doing so would sent the stock market into a panic, the Financial Times reports. In a quote attributed to an unnamed Trump confidant who is said to speak to the president frequently, it's claimed: 'Jared [Kushner] had been arguing that testing too many people, or ordering too many ventilators, would spook the markets and so we just shouldn't do it... That advice worked far more powerfully on [Trump] than what the scientists were saying. He thinks they always exaggerate.'" Read it at Financial Times. Mrs. McC: This is one conspiracy story that sounds completely legit.
Dareh Gregorian of NBC News: "An ousted top Health and Human Services official testified before Congress Thursday that the Trump administration's timeline for a coronavirus vaccine is likely too optimistic -- and said there's currently 'no plan' in place for mass production and distribution of such a drug. Dr. Rick Bright told a House Energy and Commerce Committee subcommittee that hopes for a vaccine within 12-18 months assumes 'everything goes perfectly.... We've never seen everything go perfectly,' Bright said." Mrs. McC: No one seriously expects the Trump administration to plan for something for the public good that is months away and will occur after he might have lost the election. ~~~
~~~ CNN reports four key takeaways from Bright's testimony.
Katie Benner & Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Senator Richard M. Burr, Republican of North Carolina, temporarily stepped down as chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee on Thursday, a day after F.B.I. agents seized his cellphone as part of an investigation into whether he sold hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of stocks using nonpublic information about the coronavirus. The seizure and an accompanying search for his electronic storage accounts, which were confirmed by an investigator briefed on the case, represented a significant escalation of the inquiry by the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission and suggests Mr. Burr, one of the most influential members of Congress, may be in serious legal jeopardy. Given the sensitivity surrounding the decision to obtain a search warrant on a sitting senator, the move was approved at the highest levels of the department, a senior Justice Department official said, meaning that Attorney General William P. Barr signed off on it." The Hill's report is here. ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Oh, guess what. Mitch McConnell gets to pick Burr's temporary replacement. Let's see if he chooses someone likely to spend every waking minute discrediting the Russia probes & "investigating" Biden, Obama and anyone else Trump wants to discredit.
Andrew Desiderio of Politico: "Sen. Dianne Feinstein has turned over documents to the FBI and answered questions from law-enforcement officials about her husband's controversial stock trades, a spokesman for the California Democrat said on Thursday. Feinstein, a former chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, spoke with the agency 'voluntarily' and 'provided additional documents to show she had no involvement in her husband's transactions,' the spokesman added."
Greg Sargent of the Washington Post explains to political reporters (and headline writers) how to write copy that doesn't falsely "boost" Trump's fake attacks. Sargent uses the stories about the release of the "unmasking" document, which -- since it's a nothingburger -- "actually does not 'boost' Trump's claims about the Russia investigation or 'discredit' it. And if there is 'no evidence of wrongdoing,' then it cannot legitimately be 'turned into an election issue.'" Mrs. McC: Sargent's admonitions would apply to electronic media reporters, too. Thanks to Anonymous for the link.
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The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Thursday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Thursday are here. The WashPo is carrying on its front page the hearing of a subcommittee of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce featuring testimony from Dr. Rick Bright.
Jeff Cox of CNBC: "New filings for unemployment claims totaled just shy of 3 million for the most recent reporting period, a number that while still high declined for the sixth straight week, according to Labor Department figures Thursday. The total 2.981 million new claims for unemployment insurance brought the coronavirus crisis total to nearly 36.5 million, by far the biggest loss in U.S. history. Last week's count was revised up by 7,000 to 3.176 million, putting the weekly decline at 195,000. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting 2.7 million new claims."
The New York Times' live updates of coronavirus developments Wednesday are here. The Washington Post's live updates for Wednesday are here. (Also linked yesterday.)
Courtney Subramanian & David Jackson of USA Today: "... Donald Trump is set to tour a medical supply distributor in the political battleground state of Pennsylvania on Thursday as he pressures the state's Democratic governor to move faster on reopening the economy amid the coronavirus pandemic. Trump will tour the Owens and Minor Inc. medical equipment factory in Allentown, where he's expected to deliver remarks on replenishing the nation's stockpile of medical personal protective equipment like masks, gloves, and surgical gowns, all of which are distributed by the 137-year-old Pennsylvania company. The trip comes as Trump has encouraged local protesters and some state Republicans who have threatened to defy Gov. Tom Wolf's plans for a phased reopening of the state's economy. It's just the latest spat between the president and a Democratic governor."
Calling Doctor Trump. Lauren Egan of NBC News: "... Donald Trump on Wednesday criticized comments Dr. Anthony Fauci made during a congressional hearing about the risks of reopening the country too soon as 'not an acceptable answer.' 'I was surprised by his answer, actually, because, you know, to me it's not an acceptable answer, especially when it comes to schools,' Trump said during a meeting Wednesday afternoon with North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis in the Cabinet Room of the White House. 'He wants to play all sides of the equation,' Trump said of Fauci before emphasizing his confidence that the economy would quickly rebound from the coronavirus pandemic."
Timothy Bella of the Washington Post: "Hours after his remarks to Time magazine [that he couldn't commit to a promise that the presidential election would take place in November, Jared] Kushner..., issued a clarification, saying he was unaware of and not involved in any 'discussions' about changing the date of the 2020 election.... The brief and disconcerting episode raised doubts about Kushner's familiarity with the laws and constitutional provisions governing U.S. presidential elections. As the Congressional Research Service says, 'The text of the Constitution does not appear to contain a constitutional role for the Executive Branch in such decisions.'... 'Kushner's statement reveals amazing ignorance of the Constitution and law,' tweeted Bill Kristol, the neoconservative political commentator and editor at large of the Bulwark. 'It reveals startling arrogance in taking for granted he gets to have some say about when the election is held. It also reveals an utter lack of understanding of his very subordinate role in our democracy.'" Mrs. McC: But nobody is surprised. Everyone already knew that Kushner was remarkably arrogant & ignorant. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
John Wagner of the Washington Post: "Rick Bright, a former top vaccine official removed from his post last month, will testify to Congress on Thursday that the United States faces the' darkest winter in modern history' if it does not develop a more coordinated national response to the coronavirus before an expected resurgence later this year. 'Our window of opportunity is closing,' Bright says in prepared testimony submitted to a subcommittee of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. 'If we fail to develop a national coordinated response, based in science, I fear the pandemic will get far worse and be prolonged, causing unprecedented illness and fatalities....'" A CNN story is here. ~~~
~~~ All the Best People, Ctd. Zeke Miller of the AP: "... Donald Trump is set to name a former pharmaceutical executive to lead his administration's all-out effort to produce and distribute a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year. Moncef Slaoui, a former GlaxoSmithKline executive, will lead 'Operation Warp Speed,' Trump's push to accelerate the vaccine development process for COVID-19, according to an administration official. Slaoui is to serve in a volunteer capacity, and will be assisted by Army Gen. Gustave Perna, the commander of United States Army Materiel Command. The move comes as the president and White House aides hope to produce vaccines for the coronavirus faster than what many scientists believe is realistic. The administration is aiming to have 300 million doses to distribute to Americans by the end of the year, believing a reliable vaccine is the only way to promote an economic rebound.... The initiative is being promoted by ... Jared Kushner...." ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Kushner? Great. That gives me a lot of confidence in whatever dangerous and/or fake vaccine the gang may approve. I suspect there's a good chance Rick Bright would not have signed off on some of the shortcuts "Operation Warp Speed" will have to take to get out a vaccine by the end of the year.
All the Best People, Ctd. A Blind Watchdog with No Sense of Smell. Jason Dearen & Michael Biesecker of the AP: "A former chemical industry executive nominated to be the nation's top consumer safety watchdog was involved in sidelining detailed guidelines to help communities reopen during the coronavirus pandemic, internal government emails show. Now the ranking Democrat on the Senate Commerce. Science and Transportation Committee [-- Maria Cantwell (Wash.) --] is questioning the role played by nominee Nancy Beck in the decision to shelve the guidelines. Beck is not a medical doctor and has no background in virology.... Donald Trump has nominated Beck to be chairwoman and commissioner of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, a position that requires Senate confirmation. Beck is scheduled to appear before the Senate committee later this month. Emails obtained by The Associated Press show that Beck was the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's main point of contact in the White House about the proposed recommendations."
Matthew Chapman of RawStory: "On CNN Wednesday, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) slammed new claims from the White House that state reopening guidelines are being 'edited' -- and suggested there's a more cynical reason why the guidelines have been withheld.... 'As somebody who works in television, has worked in television almost 30 years, a lot of stuff dies in editing,' said anchor Anderson Cooper. 'That's a way to kill stuff. Say yeah, it's being edited. We'll work on it more in editing.'... 'I think this is ultimately about the president wanting to be able to have clean hands,' said Murphy. 'The president doesn't want to lead, so he can armchair quarterback, criticize and critique states and try to pass the buck to somebody else.' --s
Stephen Miller isn't at the office because immigrants his wife exposed him to the coronavirus, but his work goes on ~~~
~~~ Nomaan Merchant & Sonia Perez of the AP: "... the Trump administration is quickly expelling [young migrants & asylum seekers] under an emergency declaration citing the coronavirus pandemic, with 600 minors expelled in April alone. The expulsions are the latest administration measure aimed at preventing the entry of migrant children, following other programs such as the since-rescinded 'zero tolerance' policy that resulted in thousands of family separations.... Meanwhile, as the virus has spread through immigration detention facilities, the U.S. has deported at least 100 people with COVID-19 to Guatemala, including minors."
Del Quentin Welber & Jennifer Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times: "Federal agents seized a cellphone belonging to a prominent Republican senator [Richard Burr] on Wednesday night as part of the Justice Department's investigation into controversial stock trades he made as the novel coronavirus first struck the U.S., a law enforcement official said.... The seizure represents a significant escalation in the investigation into whether Burr violated a law preventing members of Congress from trading on insider information they have gleaned from their official work.... The law enforcement official said the Justice Department is examining Burr's communications with his broker.... Under the STOCK Act, lawmakers are required to disclose their stock market activity but are still allowed to own stock, even in industries they might oversee. The law passed the Senate in 2012 in a 96-3 vote. Among the three senators to oppose the bill was Burr." --s The story is firewalled. The Hill's summary report is here. ~~~
~~~ Sarah Burris of RawStory: "Given sweet legal deals have been handed to the allies of President Donald Trump, reporters and analysts are wondering why the case against a staunch Republican senator [Richard Burr] is even moving forward with an FBI warrant. It was a question Mother Jones reporter Mark Follman asked if it was really more 'about Bill Barr targeting the one powerful Republican who authenticated the Russia investigation.'" --s See also Ken W.'s comment at the end of yesterday's thread.
Calling Doctor Trump. Carolyn Johnson & Steven Mufson of the Washington Post: "The Abbott coronavirus test hailed by President Trump and used by the White House failed to detect infected samples in a large number of cases that were caught by a rival firm, a preliminary study says. The speedy Abbott test, which is supposed to determine in five to 13 minutes whether a person has the virus, missed a third of the positive samples found by the diagnostic company Cepheid when both tests used nasopharyngeal swabs, said the study done by a group from New York University. It missed more than 48 percent when both firms' tests used dry nasal swabs. The former penetrates deeply into the nasal passages, while the latter is less invasive. The study, while preliminary and not yet peer-reviewed, raised questions about a test that has been praised by Trump, who displayed it at a Rose Garden news conference on April 2 and said it created 'a whole new ballgame.'" A Raw Story report is here. ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: The fact that this and other reported studies have not been peer-reviewed doesn't mean the studies would not pass a review, although of course they might not. When legitimate researchers release their work before peer review, they are trying to get their results out quickly, in this case during an emergency.
Heather Long of the Washington Post: "Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell gave a dire warning Wednesday that the U.S. economy could become stuck in a painful multi-year recession if Congress and the White House do not approve more aid to address the coronavirus pandemic's economic fallout. 'Additional fiscal support could be costly, but worth it if it helps avoid long-term economic damage and leaves us with a stronger recovery,' Powell said in a videoconference with the Peterson Institute for International Economics." An AP story is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Katherine Burton, et al. of Bloomberg: "The biggest names in finance are coming around to a view that seemed unlikely a few weeks ago: Stocks are vastly overvalued.... And it's coming as investors start to suspect that the Federal Reserve's support, as well as $3 trillion in Treasury stimulus, may not be enough to compensate for soaring unemployment, a wave of bankruptcies and no end in sight to the pandemic.... And the warnings have caught the attention of President Donald Trump, who's facing re-election and has seen his plans to run on a booming economy shredded by the virus. Trump attacked 'so-called "rich guys"' in a tweet Wednesday." --s Story is firewalled.
Bob Herman of Axios: "Roughly 27 million people ... likely have lost job-based health coverage since the coronavirus shocked the economy, according to new estimates from the Kaiser Family Foundation.... Most of these people will be able sign up for other sources of coverage, but millions are still doomed to be uninsured in the midst of a pandemic.... For the 27 million people who are losing their job-based coverage, about 80% have other options, said Rachel Garfield, a health policy expert at the Kaiser Family Foundation and lead author of the report." Mrs. McC: And you thought we needed national health care for all. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Jonathan O'Connell of the Washington Post: "The Aspen Institute think tank accepted more than $8 million in federal small-businesses funds despite having a $115 million endowment and a board of trustees populated by billionaires. As with other larger employers -- including public companies, the Los Angeles Lakers and private prep schools -- it does not appear that the Aspen Institute violated the rules of the program, managed by the Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration." Mrs. McC: C'mon. To a board full of billionaires, an $8MM gift is a pittance. It's so wrong to complain they taking money that would otherwise go to a few dozen struggling mom & pop shops in the hinterlands. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Alison Rourke of the Guardian: "The World Health Organisation has warned that coronavirus 'may never go away' as its experts predicted that a global mental health crisis caused by the pandemic was looming.... A report by the WHO's mental health department to the UN ... said the world could expect to see an upsurge in the severity of mental illness, including amongst children, young people and healthcare workers." --s
Michigan. Beth LeBlanc of the Detroit News: The lawyer for Owosso barber Karl Manke announced that "a Shiawassee County Circuit judge had denied a request for a temporary restraining order from state Attorney General Dana Nessel that would have resulted in the barbershop's immediate closure. The order by Shiawassee County Circuit Judge Matthew Stewart came several hours after Nessel requested the judge issue a court order backing a Friday Michigan Department of Health and Human Services shutdown edict under the public health code for violating of Whitmer's stay-home order." Manke's barbershop drew national attention when armed citizens sporting Trump paraphernalia threatened to shoot local police if they tried to close down the shop." Mrs. McC: Just guessing, but I suspect Judge Stewart is an elected official up there in Trump country. Update: Yup, and his current term ends at the end of this year. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) Bobby Lee's remarks in yesterday's Comments thread are instructive.~~~
~~~ Update. Michigan Isn't Done with Covid Karl. Michael Levenson of the New York Times: "A Michigan barber who reopened his shop in defiance of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's orders had his business and professional licenses suspended on Wednesday, the latest step in his escalating battle with the state. The barber, Karl Manke, 77, who has been cutting hair in Owosso, Mich., for almost 60 years, likened Michigan under Ms. Whitmer, a Democrat, to 'a police state.' He said he planned to keep cutting hair, despite the suspension of his licenses.... [Michigan AG Dana] Nessel's office declined to say how it would enforce the suspension of the licenses, stating, 'Our office is involved in pending legal action against Mr. Manke, so we cannot comment on these issues.'... David A. Kallman, Mr. Manke's lawyer, said his client was contesting the various actions in court. He said Mr. Manke won an initial victory on Monday, when a judge denied the state's request to immediately shut Mr. Manke's shop and gave Mr. Manke until May 22 to respond in court."
Nebraska. How to Keep the Case Count Down: Don't Report It. Peter Whoriskey of the Washington Post: "For weeks, people in rural communities in Nebraska charted the rise of coronavirus cases at the state's several meatpacking plants.... As of the first week of May, public health officials reported 96 at the Tyson plant in Madison; 237 at the JBS plant in Grand Island; and 123 arising from the Smithfield plant in Crete. There were other cases around the state, too, and the counts were climbing. At least three were reportedly dead. Then the numbers stopped. In a change initiated last week, Gov. Pete Ricketts (R) announced at a news conference that state health officials would no longer share figures about how many workers have been infected at each plant. The big companies weren't sharing numbers either, creating a silence that leaves workers, their families and the rest of the public blind to the severity of the crisis at each plant.... Ricketts ... recommended that local health departments withhold the case counts unless they get permission from the plants." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
UPDATE: Shortly after this story was published, Tyson and the Elkhorn Logan Valley Public Health Department announced the results of testing at the company's plant in Madison, Neb. Of the employees and contractors who work at the Madison plant, 212 tested positive for coronavirus. The company said that it would also release the results of testing at its other plants to employees, government officials and other stakeholders.
New Mexico. Rebecca Klar of The Hill: "New Mexico will require face coverings in all public spaces starting Saturday as the state moves forward with the first phase of its reopening plan, Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) said Wednesday.... The state is mandating everyone wear face coverings in indoor and outdoor public spaces. People exercising outdoors are exempt from the requirement." --s
Texas. Marty Johnson of the Hill: "Texas, which began to open its businesses at the beginning of May, has reported more than 1,000 new cases of COVID-19 for five consecutive days as the state struggles to curb the coronavirus pandemic.... On Tuesday, Anthony Fauci ... appeared before the Senate Health Committee and warned that states who reopen their economies too quickly could see new outbreaks of the disease that could result in 'needless suffering and death.'... Fauci stressed that states follow the reopening guidelines released by the White House, specifically citing that states should see a 14-day consecutive decline in daily new COVID-19 cases before beginning to reopen. Texas has failed to reach that benchmark. Also on Tuesday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) warned cities to not enforce stricter coronavirus restrictions than those the state government has mandated during the state's first reopening phase, which Abbott has slated to run through May 18." ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: "Struggles to curb the coronavirus pandemic"? It seems more like Texas state officials are "struggling" to ensure that more Texans get sick. ~~~
~~~ Manny Fernandez & David Montgomery of the New York Times: "When Jamie Williams decided to reopen her East Texas tattoo studio last week in defiance of the state's coronavirus restrictions, she asked Philip Archibald for help. He showed up with his dog Zeus, his friends and his AR-15 semiautomatic rifle. Mr. Archibald established an armed perimeter in the parking lot outside Crash-N-Burn Tattoo, secured by five men with military-style rifles, tactical shotguns, camouflage vests and walkie-talkies.... In at least a half dozen cases around the state in recent days, frustrated small-business owners have turned to heavily armed, militia-style protesters like Mr. Archibald's group to serve as reopening security squads.... Similar situations have unfolded in other states -- armed members of the Michigan Liberty Militia challenged Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's stay-at-home orders recently inside the State Capitol, and armed members of the Michigan Home Guard helped reopen a barbershop in the town of Owosso. But Texas appears to be turning such goings-on into a cottage industry." If you have a NYT subscription, read on.
Wisconsin. State Conservo-Supremes Move to Kill off Residents. Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post: "The Wisconsin Supreme Court's conservative majority sided with Republican legislators and struck down on Wednesday the decision by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers's administration to extend a stay-at-home order intended to quell the spread of the novel coronavirus. The 4-3 decision limits Evers's ability to make statewide rules during emergencies such as a global pandemic, instead requiring him to work with the state legislature on how the state should handle the outbreak. The justices wrote that the court was not challenging the governor's power to declare emergencies, 'but in the case of a pandemic, which lasts month after month, the Governor cannot rely on emergency powers indefinitely.' Evers condemned the court's decision...." A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report is here.
Helen Davidson of the Guardian: "Organisations conducting research into Covid-19 may be targeted by computer hackers linked to the Chinese government, according to the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security ... warn[ing] on Wednesday that institutions and companies involved in vaccines, treatments and testing for the coronavirus should take additional security measures to protect data and be aware of the potential threat. 'China's efforts to target these sectors pose a significant threat to our nation's response to Covid-19,' the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency said...." --s
Where's the Beef? David Garcia & P.J. Huffstutter of Reuters: "More Mexican steaks and other beef cuts are headed north of the border after the coronavirus outbreak has hobbled U.S. meat processing plants, potentially offsetting fears of shortages ... but angering American ranchers.... [I]n the United States just four major beef-packing companies -- Cargill Inc..., Tyson Foods Inc..., JBS ... and National Beef Packing... -- control more than 80% of the business. The shift toward foreign supplies has angered many U.S. ranchers, who argue the consolidation of the meatpacking sector and shuttering of processing plants is limiting access to their own marketplace." --s
Capitalism Is Awesome, Ctd. Tom Polansek of Reuters: "U.S. President Donald Trump ordered meat processing plants to stay open to protect the nation's food supply even as workers got sick and died. Yet the plants have increasingly been exporting to China while U.S. consumers face shortages, a Reuters analysis of government data showed.... While pork supplies tightened as the number of pigs slaughtered each day plunged by about 40% since mid-March, shipments of American pork t China more than quadrupled over the same period, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data." --s
Wear a Mask or STFU. Neel Patel in MIT's Technology Review: "Thousands of droplets from the mouths of people who are talking loudly can stay in the air for between eight and 14 minutes before disappearing, according to a new study. The research, conducted by a team with the US National Institutes of Health and published in PNAS Wednesday, could have significant impact on our understanding of covid-19 transmission." A coronavirus carrier will release droplets containing the virus into the air when "coughing and sneezing.... But speech can release thousands of oral fluid droplets into the air too."
Harper Neidig of the Hill: "A federal appeals court on Thursday ruled against President Trump in a lawsuit alleging that he's violated the Constitution's Emoluments Clauses. The decision from the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals keeps the case alive, rejecting the president's efforts to preserve immunity from the suit, which was filed by the attorneys general from Washington, D.C., and Maryland. The court did not rule on the merits of the case against Trump."
** Judge Sullivan Is Not Amused. Katie Benner of the New York Times: "The federal judge overseeing the case against President Trump's former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn appointed a hard-charging former prosecutor and judge on Wednesday to oppose the Justice Department's effort to drop the case and to explore a perjury charge against Mr. Flynn. Judge Emmet G. Sullivan's appointment of the former judge, John Gleeson, was an extraordinary move in a case with acute political overtones. Mr. Flynn pleaded guilty twice to lying to investigators as part of a larger inquiry into Russia's interference in the 2016 election.... Judge Sullivan also asked Judge Gleeson to explore the possibility that by trying to withdraw his pleas, Mr. Flynn opened himself to perjury charges.... 'This is extraordinary for the judge to appoint somebody to argue against a prosecutors' motion to dismiss a criminal case,' [former federal prosecutor Samuel] Buell said. 'But it's extraordinary for a prosecutor to move to dismiss this sort of criminal case.'... Judge Gleeson, who served on the federal bench in Brooklyn and ran the criminal division in the federal prosecutor's office there, has already made plain his skepticism of the Justice Department's motion to dismiss the Flynn case. He co-wrote an op-ed article this week in The Washington Post urging Judge Sullivan to scrutinize it." Axios has a summary report here. Law & Crime has a story here. ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: When the story of the DOJ's decision to drop charges against Flynn broke last week, reports generally discounted the possibility that Judge Sullivan would "do something" other than approve the "Justice" Department's decision. ~~~
~~~ Adam Goldman & Katie Benner of the New York Times: "A key former F.B.I. official cast doubt on the Justice Department's case for dropping a criminal charge against ... Michael T. Flynn during an interview with investigators last week, according to people familiar with the investigation. Department officials reviewing the Flynn case interviewed Bill Priestap, the former head of F.B.I. counterintelligence, two days before making their extraordinary request to drop the case to Judge Emmet G. Sullivan. They did not tell Judge Sullivan about Mr. Priestap's interview.... The department's motion referred to notes that Mr. Priestap wrote around the bureau's 2017 questioning of Mr. Flynn, who later pleaded guilty to lying to investigators during that interview. His lawyers said Mr. Priestap's notes ... suggested that the F.B.I. was trying to entrap Mr. Flynn, and Attorney General William P. Barr said investigators were trying to 'lay a perjury trap.' That interpretation was wrong, Mr. Priestap told the prosecutors reviewing the case. He said that F.B.I. officials were trying to do the right thing in questioning Mr. Flynn and that he knew of no effort to set him up." A Raw Story summary report is here. ~~~
~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Now that Barr's bagmen at DOJ have been caught hiding Priestap's interview from Judge Sullivan, "A Justice Department official said that they were in the process of writing up a report on the interview and that it would soon be filed with the court," according to the Goldman-Benner report. Yeah, right. Whenever my mother asked my little sister why she hadn't done some assigned chore, my sister-- who was a child -- would say, "I was just about to." Barr & His Bagmen are trying that obviously fake -- and childish -- excuse to cover up their cover-up. They are so corrupt that they should be prosecuted. ~~~
~~~ Emily Bazelon & Eric Posner in a New York Times op-ed: "This week, more than 2,000 former officials of the Justice Department and the F.B.I. called on Attorney General William Barr to resign for dropping the prosecution of Michael Flynn, who had pleaded guilty to lying to the F.B.I.... It's easy to grow numb to the abuses of the Trump era. But Mr. Barr's intervention in the Flynn and Stone cases is a deviation even from the standards at the outset of Mr. Trump's presidency.... Congress erred by allowing the independent counsel statute to expire. The potential that political considerations could warp decisions by the president and attorney general require this extra check on the executive branch. The best way to stop the downward spiral of the Justice Department is to protect it from its own boss." Mrs. McC: The writers seem to suggest that Barr is the most corrupt AG since Nixon's pal John Mitchell held the job. Mitchell went to jail; I'd be satisfied if Barr had to wear an ankle bracelet & be confined to his home except on any approved outing, when he would have to wear a striped prisoner's outfit. ~~~
~~~ Andrew Desiderio & Betsy Swan of Politico: "Acting Director of National Intelligence Richard Grenell on Wednesday sent top Republican senators a list of former senior Obama administration officials who might have been involved in efforts that 'unmasked' former national security adviser Michael Flynn -- including former Vice President Joe Biden. The release comes amid a furious campaign by ... Donald Trump and his allies to accuse former President Barack Obama and his top deputies of illegally targeting the Trump campaign and the incoming Trump administration. In recent days, the president has coined the term 'Obamagate' to accuse his predecessor of seeking to undermine him and target his top associates -- though he has struggled to articulate or prove any specific wrongdoing. Grenell sent the list ... to Sens. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) a day after the lawmakers wrote to Grenell and Attorney General William Barr calling on them to release information about efforts by Obama administration officials to 'unmask' U.S. citizens who were subject to government surveillance. The list ... also includes high-level officials such as former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, former FBI Director James Comey and former White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough. Thirty-nine people in total are listed, ranging from White House officials to diplomats and Treasury Department officials. Grenell declassified the list last week." A New York Times story is here. ~~~
~~~ Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "On Wednesday..., Donald Trump's acting spy chief Richard Grenell sent top Republican senators a memo outlining all of the people who may have been involved in the 'unmasking' of former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn..., a clear attempt to boost the president's 'Obamagate' conspiracy theory. But experts were quick to note that the memo itself blows a huge hole in Trump's narrative, by showing how Obama administration officials acted completely legally and through proper channels to investigate a national security risk." Many of the cited tweets also point out that the unmasking of Flynn was routine & went through ordinary channels. As Eli Honig wrote, "'Unmasking' sounds vaguely sinister but it means intel agents flagged Flynn's suspicious contacts with Russia - which Flynn would later lie to the VP and FBI about, for some reason - and officials found out who he was, with proper approvals and through authorized channels."
Presidential Election. Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court seemed ready on Wednesday to allow states to require members of the Electoral College to cast their votes for the presidential candidates they had pledged to support. In two arguments concerning 'faithless electors' from the states of Washington and Colorado, several of the justices focused on the practical consequences of their ruling or, as Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh put it, 'the avoid-chaos principle of judging.' 'If it's a close call or a tiebreaker,' he said, 'we should not facilitate or create chaos.'... Several justices said neither the words of the Constitution nor historical materials provided a clear answer. That meant, they said, that the matter should be left to the states." A CNN story is here.
Congressional Race. Jennifer Medina of the New York Times: "Mike Garcia, a former military pilot and newcomer to Republican electoral politics, has defeated his Democratic opponent in a special election to fill a House seat in Southern California. The victory is the first time the G.O.P. has flipped a Democratic held seat in California since 1998 and is a significant win in an election that was primarily conducted by mail and reflected the country's bitter partisan mood. Mr. Garcia and Christy Smith, a Democratic member of the State Assembly, competed to replace former Representative Katie Hill, who resigned last year after admitting to an affair with a campaign staff member. The two candidates will meet again in November, when both are planning to run for a full term." A Politico story is here.
Some Good News. Brad Plumer of the New York Times: "The United States is on track to produce more electricity this year from renewable power than from coal for the first time on record, new government projections show, a transformation partly driven by the coronavirus pandemic, with profound implications in the fight against climate change. It is a milestone that seemed all but unthinkable a decade ago, when coal was so dominant that it provided nearly half the nation's electricity. And it comes despite the Trump administration's three-year push to try to revive the ailing industry by weakening pollution rules on coal-burning power plants."
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