May 4, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Unholy Guacamole! Another Fat Cat Gave Huge Gifts to Clarence Thomas. Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "A Republican donor from Texas paid for two years of private-school tuition for Justice Clarence Thomas's great-nephew, a gift that the justice did not disclose, a friend of the justice acknowledged in a statement on Thursday.... In his statement, Mark Paoletta, Justice Thomas's friend and a former official for the Trump administration, argued that the justice was not required to report the tuition. He pointed to part of a 1978 law that says judges must disclose gifts to dependent children, who are defined as 'a son, daughter, stepson or stepdaughter.' Mr. Paoletta stressed that by that measure, a great-nephew does not qualify." MB: See my correction on May 5. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: That, IMO, is ripe manure. According to ProPublica (linked below), "Thomas gained legal custody of Martin and became his legal guardian around January 1998, according to court records." These gifts were money the Thomases would have had to shell out if their ward was to attend private schools. Martin did not have other means of support, and schoolboys don't pay their own tuition. Maybe Thomas & Trump can be cellmates. I hope they both snore. ~~~

~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post: For a super-wealthy guy like Harlan Crow, what he is known to have paid for Clarence Thomas is akin to nickels and dimes for the rest of us. "Paying $6,000 a month for tuition, then, is the equivalent of someone worth $60,000 paying 36 cents. Buying a home for $133,000 is like someone worth $60,000 paying eight bucks.... This gap in the relative cost of luxury between the enormously wealthy and even powerful members of the D.C. establishment is precisely why it's important that transparency exist." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What's really sad about this is that Clarence Thomas, a descendant of slaves, decided to become the slave of rich White people. I don't think that's what "originalism" is supposed to mean. it is possible Thomas thinks he got the last laugh and fooled the old massas. He didn't.

Shawn Pogatchnik of Politico: "Donald Trump might not testify in a New York civil trial against a woman who has accused him of rape -- but was happy to brand her a 'disgrace' Thursday while golfing at his course in Ireland. The former U.S. president hopped off a golf cart to tell reporters he was flying back to New York later Thursday -- and launched a four-minute diatribe against his accuser, author E. Jean Carroll. She is suing him over an alleged 1996 attack and for defamation.... Trump -- who has provided only a taped deposition and won't be required to testify unless he chooses to do so -- left open the possibility [of testifying]. His New York legal team has ruled out the prospect.... 'I'm going to go back [to New York] and I'm going to confront this woman...,' said Trump, who repeatedly declined to call Carroll by her name and insisted he has 'no idea who she is.'"

Ben Protess, et al., of the New York Times: "Donald J. Trump is seeking to move his criminal case from New York State Supreme Court to federal court, one of his lawyers said on Thursday.... The former president's legal team will submit the so-called notice of removal in federal court in Manhattan, where a judge will then consider the request. The lawyer, Todd Blanche, disclosed the plan during an unrelated hearing on the criminal case in state court.... The effort to move the case to federal court, which is likely to be a long shot, will not have any immediate effect on the state case." An ABC News story is here. MB:Trump probably hopes to move the case to the Southern District of Florida in the chambers of dotty judge Aileen Cannon who made ridiculous (and overruled) rulings in Trump's classified documents case).

Hannah Rabinowitz & Holmes Lybrand of CNN: "Four members of the far-right Proud Boys have been found guilty of seditious conspiracy by a jury in Washington, DC, for their role to forcibly prevent the peaceful transfer of power ... after the 2020 election. Defendants Ethan Nordean, Joseph Biggs, Zachary Rehl, Enrique Tarrio and Dominic Pezzola face[d] a range of charges.... All five defendants were found guilty of other charges related to January 6, including: Obstruction of an official proceeding; Conspiracy to prevent an officer from discharging any duties; Obstruction of law enforcement during civil disorder; and Destruction of government property and aiding and abetting... The jury was unable to reach a verdict on the seditious conspiracy charge against Pezzola. The judge instructed them to continue deliberations." The story has been updated multiple times. ~~~

     ~~~ Update: "A fifth defendant, Dominic Pezzola, was found not guilty of seditious conspiracy after the jury returned for several more hours of deliberation on Thursday. Unlike the other defendants in this trial, Pezzola is not alleged to have a leadership position in the organization and was inactive in Proud Boys group chats." ~~~

     ~~~ Alan Feuer & Zach Montague of the New York Times: “The verdicts, coming after seven days of deliberations in Federal District Court in Washington, were a major blow against one of the country's most notorious far-right groups and another milestone in the Justice Department's vast investigation of the Capitol attack.... The sedition trial sprawled over the course of more than three months and was characterized by frequent delays, frayed relations between the defense and prosecution and several decisions by the presiding judge, Timothy J. Kelly, that tested the boundaries of conspiracy law. Judge Kelly's rulings allowed prosecutors to introduce damning evidence about the violent behavior and aggressive language of members of the Proud Boys who had only limited connections to the five defendants. The rulings also permitted jurors to convict on conspiracy even if they found there was no plan to disrupt the certification of the election, but merely an unspoken agreement to do so." MB: Good news for the country; bad news for the Trumpster.

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Jeanna Smialek of the New York Times: "Federal Reserve officials raised interest rates by a quarter-point on Wednesday in the tenth straight move in their fight against rapid inflation -- but they also opened the door to a possible pause in rate increases. Central bankers lifted rates to a range of 5 percent to 5.25 percent, a level they have not reached since the summer of 2007. The move capped the fastest series of rate increases since the 1980s, as the central bank led by Chair Jerome H. Powell attempts to slow the economy and weigh down price increases." This is part of a liveblog. (Also linked yesterday.)

"Thoughts and Prayers" Makes a "Mockery of Prayer." Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) speaks on the Senate floor about the mass shooting in Atlanta Wednesday: ~~~

Today's Report on Donald Trump's Legal Woes

There's No Defense for Trump. Lola Fadulu, et al., of the New York Times: "A lawyer defending ... Donald J. Trump against the writer E. Jean Carroll's lawsuit accusing him of rape said Wednesday that he would present no witnesses.... On Wednesday, speaking out of the jury's presence, [Joe] Tacopina told Judge Lewis A. Kaplan of Federal District Court in Manhattan that an expert witness the defense had hoped to call on Mr. Trump's behalf was not available." A CNBC story says Tacopina told the court the witness could not appear because of "a health issue." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ The story has been updated to reflect Wednesday's other trial developments. Carroll's attorney played clips of Trump's deposition, and during the testimony of Natasha Stoynoff, a former People magazine reporter, played the "Access Hollywood" tape for the jury. Stoynoff testified that when she went to Mar-a-Lago to do a People interview on the first anniversary of Trump's marriage to Melania, Donald Trump "led her into a room, shut the door, pushed her against the wall and started kissing her. Ms. Stoynoff said she was 'flustered and sort of shocked.'... Ms. Stoynoff told the jury that she decided to write publicly about what happened [only] after Mr. Trump said during a presidential debate that he had never kissed a woman without consent. She testified that she 'felt really upset that he was lying to the American people.'"

Judge Tosses Trump's Nuisance Suit Against the New York Times. Liam Stack of the New York Times: "A New York judge dismissed ... Donald J. Trump's lawsuit against The New York Times on Wednesday, saying the newspaper's Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation into his finances was clearly protected by the First Amendment. When Mr. Trump filed the lawsuit in 2021, he accused the paper and three of its reporters of conspiring in an 'insidious plot' with his estranged niece, Mary L. Trump, to improperly obtain his confidential tax records for a series of stories published in 2018. In a ruling filed on Wednesday afternoon, Justice Robert R. Reed of State Supreme Court in Manhattan wrote that Mr. Trump's claims against The Times and its reporters 'fail as a matter of constitutional law.'... The judge also ordered Mr. Trump to pay legal expenses and associated costs for The Times and its reporters, Susanne Craig, David Barstow and Russ Buettner." The NBC News story is here.

Katelyn Polantz & Paula Reed of CNN: "Prosecutors for special counsel Jack Smith have been asking questions in recent weeks about the handling of surveillance footage from ... Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort after the Trump Organization received a subpoena last summer for the footage, according to multiple sources familiar with the investigation. The handling of the footage, and how employees within the Trump Organization responded to the Justice Department's demand for it, have prompted a new round of grand jury subpoenas to top Trump employees in the last few weeks, the sources told CNN. Longtime Trump Organization executives Matthew Calamari Sr. and his son Matthew Calamari Jr. are expected to appear Thursday before the grand jury investigating possible mishandling of classified documents brought to Trump's Mar-a-Lago home, sources said. Prosecutors are expected to ask them about the handling of the surveillance footage and Trump employees' conversations following the subpoena, according to the sources." ~~~

~~~ Kristen Holmes, et al., of CNN: "Special counsel Jack Smith sat in on the federal grand jury proceeding while former Vice President Mike Pence testified for more than five hours last week, three sources familiar with the matter tell CNN. Smith and Pence interacted while Pence was at the courthouse, and one source described the interaction as respectful."

David Badash of the New Civil Rights Movement in AlterNet: "New York Attorney General Letitia James' Office was forced to request the state Supreme Court judge overseeing her $250 million fraud case against Donald Trump help resolve the failure of the ex-president, his three eldest adult children, and the Trump Organization to hand over documents required for discovery.... [James'] letter [to the Court] ... claims the Trumps have 'either ignored the inquiries, provided non-substantive responses, or passed the buck to counsel no longer engaged in the case.' She is asking 'for Defendants to provide sworn certifications detailing the process they followed for preserving, searching and producing documents in response to OAG discovery notices.'"

Isaac Arnsdorf, et al., of the Washington Post: "Using physical characteristics and interviews with family members, supporters and attorneys, The Washington Post identified five of the roughly 15 men who are featured in the video [of the 'J6 Prison Choir' in which Donald Trump appeared and has promoted]. Four of them were charged with assaulting police, using weapons such as a crowbar, sticks and chemical spray, including against Officer Brian D. Sicknick, who died the next day.... Trump recorded himself saying the Pledge of Allegiance after he heard about the production and wanted to participate, according to the campaign.... 'Our people love those people,' Trump ... [said] at [his first 2024 campaign] rally, speaking of those who were jailed. 'What's happening in that prison, it's a hellhole. ... These are people that shouldn't have been there.'" The article details the crimes the identified men have been accused or convicted of committing on January 6. Trump says the strong sales of the video make him "feel like Elvis."

FBI Arrests Another Very Fine Person. Andrea Cambron & Holmes Lybrand of CNN: “The FBI on Tuesday arrested a Florida man accused of setting off an 'explosive device' in the US Capitol tunnel during the attack on January 6, 2021. In one of the most violent scenes of the Capitol riot, a line of police officers protected an entrance to the building against violent rioters who used poles, bats, fists, stolen riot shields, chemical spray and, according to court documents, small explosives to attack the officers. Daniel Ball, 38, of Homosassa is facing multiple charges in connection with his involvement in the Capitol attack after being arrested last week by the Citrus County Sheriff's Office for allegedly assaulting seven people including two law enforcement officers in unrelated charges in Florida. Ball was identified by his probation officer, after officers showed several photos and videos of him throwing an explosive device at the lower west terrace tunnel, where officers were defending the Capitol."

From Anti-Terrorism Agent to Terrorist. Jonathan Dienst & Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "An ex-FBI official who allegedly urged rioters to 'kill' officers during the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol was previously the supervisory special agent in charge of Homegrown Violent Extremism for the FBI New York Field Office's Joint Terrorism Task Force, a senior law enforcement official told NBC News."

** Joshua Kaplan, et al., of ProPublica: "In 2008, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas decided to send his teenage grandnephew to Hidden Lake Academy, a private boarding school in the foothills of northern Georgia.... For the previous decade, [the boy, Mark Martin,] had lived with the justice and his wife.... Thomas had taken legal custody of Martin when he was 6 years old and had recently told an interviewer he was 'raising him as a son.' Tuition at the boarding school ran more than $6,000 a month. But Thomas did not cover the bill. A bank statement for the school from July 2009, buried in unrelated court filings, shows the source of Martin's tuition payment for that month: the company of billionaire real estate magnate Harlan Crow.... Crow paid Martin's tuition the entire time he was a student there, which was about a year, former school administrator Christopher Grimwood told ProPublica.... Before and after his time at Hidden Lake, Martin attended a second boarding school, Randolph-Macon Academy in Virginia. 'Harlan said he was paying for the tuition at Randolph-Macon Academy as well,' Grimwood said, recalling a conversation he had with Crow during a visit to the billionaire's Adirondacks estate.... If [Crow] paid for all four years at the two schools, the price tag could have exceeded $150,000, according to public records of tuition rates at the schools." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I wonder if, on top of the flagrant corruption, there's massive tax evasion here, too. It's reasonable to suspect that Clarence & Ginni declared Martin as a dependent, and if so, that's about $150,000 in taxable income they might have neglected to declare.

Michael Schmidt, one of the authors of the NYT story (also linked yesterday) about the straw that broke TuKKKer's racist back, said on MSNBC that he thought that Carlson's firing was "a business decision." So, not outraged by racism.

Capitalism Is Awesome, Ctd. Child Slave Labor Edition. Michelle Watson of CNN: "Two 10-year-old children were found working at a Louisville McDonald's restaurant -- sometimes until 2 a.m. -- the US Department of Labor said Tuesday. The revelation was part of an investigation into the child labor law violations in the Southeast. The agency also found three franchisees that own more than 60 McDonald's locations in Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland and Ohio, 'employed 305 children to work more than the legally permitted hours and perform tasks prohibited by law for young workers,' the Labor Department said in a statement. 'Investigators from the department's Wage and Hour Division found two 10-year-old workers at a Louisville McDonald's restaurant among many violations of federal labor laws committed by three Kentucky McDonald's franchise operators,' the release said. 'Investigators also determined two 10-year-old children were employed -- but not paid -- and sometimes worked as late as 2 a.m.'"

Presidential Race 2024. Paul Farhi of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump has spent the better part of the past seven years badmouthing CNN, attacking its reporters as 'enemies of the people' and calling its reporting 'fake news.' He once tried banning one of its journalists from the White House. He routinely mocks its eroding ratings. Yet, on Monday, CNN offered to put Trump on the air live for an hour in prime time -- and Trump accepted.... CNN lined up Trump for its first 'town hall' telecast of the 2024 presidential campaign. The twice-impeached, once-indicted former president will take questions from Republican and undeclared voters in a CNN-produced event next Wednesday in New Hampshire, the state that will hold the first Republican primary next year. The announcement drew expressions of surprise and shock, aimed at both CNN and Trump." Read on. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Without ever mentioning CNN, Chris Hayes of MSNBC wondered how any responsible news organization could carry a livefeed in which Trump could at any time say something harmful to individuals, including public officials. Most broadcast & cable companies air "live" broadcasts on a 4- to 7-second delay in case a speaker utters a swear word. CNN should expand the delay to at least 5 minutes. Meanwhile, as Farhi reports, CNN claims it is holding its so-called town hall "to hold him to account for his words and his actions." But the people asking the questions will be from the audience, not journalists, so Farhi doesn't see how CNN plans to "hold him to account." Contributor Jeanne suggested the other day that she was boycotting CNN. So am I.

Chris Walker of Truthout: "A recent ad created by a super PAC for Donald Trump and shared by the former president's official Facebook page purports that Americans were 'better off' under his watch than they are under current President Joe Biden, depicting a series of pictures meant to stir up feelings of fear and xenophobia in viewers. Some images in the ad, however, supposedly depicting events from Biden's time in office, were actually from Trump's presidential tenure. The ad falsely says that the 'border is wide open' and derides high inflation rates that experts have repeatedly said are not attributable to Biden's policies. It urges viewers to donate to the super PAC."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. DeSantolini Foiled. Ken Bensinger of the New York Times: "Legislation that would have sharply curbed press protections in Florida has stalled in the State Legislature and won't face a vote this year -- a rare example of forces on the right thwarting a piece of Gov. Ron DeSantis's agenda. The bills, introduced in February, proposed sweeping changes to laws that shield media outlets from liability in defamation cases and sought to make it easier for private citizens to file libel suits. Mr. DeSantis has been outspoken in advocating for laws he says would 'hold these big media companies accountable.' But Mr. DeSantis ... appears to have misjudged the issue. In addition to opposition from news outlets and free-speech groups, the legislation faced a wave of resistance from his allies, including right-wing media outlets, Christian organizations and business groups." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ BUT. Andrew Atterbury of Politico: "Florida Republicans passed legislation Wednesday that would make it a misdemeanor trespassing offense for someone to use certain bathrooms that don't align with their sex at birth. The bill, now headed to Gov. Ron DeSantis for his signature, is limited to people using restrooms and changing facilities in state and local government buildings, schools, colleges and detention centers.... In a major change approved with two days left of session, lawmakers significantly scaled the measure back so it no longer applies to bathrooms in restaurants, gas stations and other businesses as it did previously. Despite Republicans curtailing its scope, Democrats still vehemently opposed the legislation, arguing that the policies are targeting transgender people. Republicans, however, argue the bill is are about protecting 'public safety, decency and decorum.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I don't know if it's the state or the federal government that owns & operates Interstate highway rest stops, but I do know for certain that there is (or was) at least one unisex restroom; it's on Interstate 4 north of Orlando. ~~~

~~~ AND. Anthony Izaguierre of the AP: "Florida Republicans on Wednesday approved bills to ban diversity programs in colleges and prevent students and teachers from being required to use pronouns that don't correspond to someone's sex, building on top priorities of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. The two proposals were given final passage by the Republican supermajorities in the House and Senate. DeSantis is expected to sign the bills into law." MB: I'll bet Floridians are so grateful to DeSantis & his Klan for improving their lives in so many ways. But perhaps some are wondering, "Why isn't the legislature addressing mitigation of the giant seaweed blob that is hitting Florida beaches?" ~~~

~~~ The video in the tweet embedded below follows remarks made in today's commentary. Do watch the reaction of State Rep. Kelly Skidmore (D) to Rep. Jeff Holcomb (R) remark:

Florida GOP Representative Jeff Holcomb says the quiet part out loud on the House floor today.

“Our terrorist enemies hate homosexuals MORE THAN WE DO.”

Audible gasping in the chamber.

And then there’s @RepSkidmore’s reaction. 😲 pic.twitter.com/ukH8EZmqL2

— Carlos Guillermo Smith (@CarlosGSmith) May 2, 2023

Georgia Senate Race 2022. Brandon Gage of AlterNet: "Failed United States Senate candidate Herschel Walker (R-Georgia) -- who had the backing of ... Donald Trump -- has been implicated in an 'unprecedented,' 'stunning,' and 'jaw-dropping' scandal involving crimes such as wire fraud and campaign finance violations.Late Wednesday evening, The Daily Beast exclusively reported that Walker solicited 'hundreds of thousands of dollars' from billionaire benefactor Dennis Washington in March of 2022 'for his own personal company -- a company that he never disclosed on his financial statements.' Correspondent Roger Sollenberger revealed that 'emails obtained by The Daily Beast -- and verified as authentic by a person with knowledge of the exchanges -- show that Walker asked Washington to wire $535,200 directly to that undisclosed company, HR Talent, LLC. And the emails reveal that not only did Washington complete Walker's wire requests, he was under the impression that these were, in fact, political contributions.'"

Mississippi Gubernatorial Race 2023. Let's Go, Brandon! No, Really. David Firestone of the New York Times: With Gov. Tate "Reeves up for re-election in November, there are once again hopes that Mississippi could ... elect a governor willing to make a break from the past. And even though Donald Trump won the state by more than 16 percentage points in 2020, there are reasons to think it could happen. For one thing, thanks to a significant scandal involving the misappropriation of welfare funds, Mr. Reeves is extraordinarily unpopular for an incumbent Republican.... For another, he has a promising and energetic Democratic opponent named Brandon Presley who has been polling fairly well and is making a strong case that the state desperately needs a change, advocating a series of popular policies that could make a real difference in the lives of Mississippians, particularly those on the lower economic rungs. The contest is already turning into one of the most interesting races of 2023."

New York. Edwin Rios of the Guardian: "A 30-year-old Black man who regularly danced in the Times Square transit hub was killed on Monday by a rider who put him in a chokehold on the New York City subway. The confrontation took place as an F train traveling north reached the Broadway-Lafayette station in SoHo. Witnesses say Jordan Neely, recognizable to some New Yorkers as a Michael Jackson impersonator, was behaving erratically at the time. Video footage captured by Juan Alberto Vazquez, a freelance journalist, and shared on Facebook, showed Neely kicking as he was held down by passengers. The man who pinned down Neely has not been identified but has been described in local reports as a 24-year-old former US Marine. The man held Neely in a chokehold with his legs wrapped around his body; Neely lost consciousness during the struggle and later died in the hospital. Neely died from compression of the neck, the city's medical examiner determined on Wednesday, classifying his death as a homicide." ~~~

     ~~~ Edward Helmore of the Guardian: "A protest on a downtown Manhattan subway platform over the death of a man suffering an apparent mental health episode aboard a train turned into an angry confrontation over policing and social welfare priorities in New York City on Wednesday.... According to police officials and video, Neely had been harassing passengers on the subway and making threats when he was placed in a minutes-long headlock by a 24-year-old former US Marine. By the time the train pulled into Broadway-Lafayette, a stop that borders the SoHo and NoliTa neighborhoods, Neely was no longer conscious. He was later pronounced dead in hospital.... Forty-eight hours later, Neely's death, and the response to it, threatens to become a flash-point highlighting what some say is a semi-sanctioned vigilante response to homelessness and the mental health crisis, with others defending the actions of the Marine who had asked fellow passengers to call 911." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I used to take subways all the time when I lived in Manhattan, and I can't recall ever seeing a uniformed officer on a train car.

Texas Senate Race 2024. Amy Wang & Liz Goodwin of the Washington Post: "Democratic Rep. Colin Allred (Tex.) will challenge two-term Republican Sen. Ted Cruz for his Senate seat in 2024, Allred announced Wednesday morning. In a video posted to social media, Allred showed footage from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.... On that day, Allred said in the video, he heard glass breaking and texted his wife to say, 'Whatever happens, I love you,' then took off his jacket and 'got ready to take on anyone who came through that door.' He slammed Cruz for voting against the certification of election results that day and for hiding in a storage closet during the attack." ~~~

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Thursday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here. The Guardian's live updates for Thursday are here. The Guardian's summary report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Thursday is here: "Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on Thursday, as the Kremlin blamed Kyiv and Washington for what it claimed was an attempt to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a symbolic visit less than two months after the court issued arrest warrants for Putin and another senior official over the abduction of thousands of Ukrainian children, Zelensky said the Russian president would face an international war crimes tribunal once Ukraine wins the war, according to the Associated Press. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Thursday rejected U.S. and Ukrainian denials of involvement in what Moscow alleged was a drone attack on the Kremlin targeting Putin's residence, calling them 'absolutely ridiculous.'... The drone attack on the Kremlin was probably staged by Russia with an eye on the domestic audience, the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said in an analysis of the incident....

"Ukraine defended itself against a wave of Russian drone attacks against Kyiv and other targets across the country, the Ukrainian air force said early Thursday, shooting down drones flying over the capital. The Ukrainian military claimed that the words 'for Moscow' and 'for the Kremlin' were written on the tails of some of the drones downed in the southern port city of Odessa.... Drone attacks targeted two separate oil refineries in southern Russia overnight, according to local authorities."

David Rising of the AP: "Russia claimed it foiled a Ukrainian drone attack on the Kremlin early Wednesday, calling it an unsuccessful assassination attempt against President Vladimir Putin and promising retaliation for what it termed a 'terrorist' act. Ukraine denied any involvement, saying Moscow could use it for further escalation of the war. Putin wasn't in the Kremlin at the time..., his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia's state news agency RIA Novosti. There was no independent verification of the reported attack on the Kremlin, which Russia authorities said occurred overnight but presented no evidence in support of the claim. Nor did officials say why it took more than 12 hours to report the incident. Ukraine presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak denied any involvement. 'Ukraine has nothing to do with drone attacks on the Kremlin,' he said. He said the claims would provide a pretext for Russia 'to justify massive strikes on Ukrainian cities, on the civilian population, on infrastructure facilities' in coming days." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ The New York Times' liveblog says the paper has verified the video.

Brazil. Terrence McCoy & Marina Dias of the Washington Post: "Brazilian police are investigating whether former president Jair Bolsonaro tried to deceive American authorities into believing, incorrectly, that he had been vaccinated against the coronavirus so he could enter the United States, authorities said Wednesday. Federal police conducted a search and seizure operation at Bolsonaro's Brasília address early Wednesday and arrested several close associates, including a top aide tasked with carrying out Bolsonaro's administrative demands."

May 3, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Jeanna Smialek of the New York Times: "Federal Reserve officials raised interest rates by a quarter-point on Wednesday in the tenth straight move in their fight against rapid inflation -- but they also opened the door to a possible pause in rate increases. Central bankers lifted rates to a range of 5 percent to 5.25 percent, a level they have not reached since the summer of 2007. The move capped the fastest series of rate increases since the 1980s, as the central bank led by Chair Jerome H. Powell attempts to slow the economy and weigh down price increases." This is part of a liveblog.

David Rising of the AP: "Russia claimed it foiled a Ukrainian drone attack on the Kremlin early Wednesday, calling it an unsuccessful assassination attempt against President Vladimir Putin and promising retaliation for what it termed a 'terrorist' act. Ukraine denied any involvement, saying Moscow could use it for further escalation of the war. Putin wasn't in the Kremlin at the time..., his spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russia's state news agency RIA Novosti. There was no independent verification of the reported attack on the Kremlin, which Russia authorities said occurred overnight but presented no evidence in support of the claim. Nor did officials say why it took more than 12 hours to report the incident. Ukraine presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak denied any involvement. 'Ukraine has nothing to do with drone attacks on the Kremlin,' he said. He said the claims would provide a pretext for Russia 'to justify massive strikes on Ukrainian cities, on the civilian population, on infrastructure facilities' in coming days." ~~~

     ~~~ The New York Times' is liveblogging developments. (Also linked below.) The Times says the paper has verified the video.

There's No Defense for Trump. Lola Fadulu, et al., of the New York Times: "A lawyer defending ... Donald J. Trump against the writer E. Jean Carroll's lawsuit accusing him of rape said Wednesday that he would present no witnesses.... On Wednesday, speaking out of the jury's presence, [Joe] Tacopina told Judge Lewis A. Kaplan of Federal District Court in Manhattan that an expert witness the defense had hoped to call on Mr. Trump's behalf was not available." A CNBC story says Tacopina told the court the witness could not appear because of "a health issue."

Michael Schmidt, one of the authors of the NYT story (also linked below) about the straw that broke TuKKKer's racist back, said on MSNBC that he thought that Carlson's firing was "a business decision." So, um, not outraged by racism.

Florida. DeSantolini Foiled. Ken Bensinger of the New York Times: "Legislation that would have sharply curbed press protections in Florida has stalled in the State Legislature and won't face a vote this year -- a rare example of forces on the right thwarting a piece of Gov. Ron DeSantis's agenda. The bills, introduced in February, proposed sweeping changes to laws that shield media outlets from liability in defamation cases and sought to make it easier for private citizens to file libel suits. Mr. DeSantis has been outspoken in advocating for laws he says would 'hold these big media companies accountable.' But Mr. DeSantis ... appears to have misjudged the issue. In addition to opposition from news outlets and free-speech groups, the legislation faced a wave of resistance from his allies, including right-wing media outlets, Christian organizations and business groups."

** At yesterday's Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) explains what the Supremes mean by "personal hospitality." And more. A devastating takedown of Clarence Thomas & other supremes. Thanks to RAS for the lead:

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Helene Cooper & Zolan Kanno-Youngs of the New York Times: "President Biden is sending 1,500 active-duty troops to the southern U.S. border with Mexico, officials said on Tuesday, as the administration braces for a possible influx of migrants seeking to take advantage of the lifting of Covid-era restrictions on asylum. Brig. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters that the troops would fill gaps in transportation, warehouse support, narcotics detection, data entry and other areas. The Pentagon said the additional troops would be armed for self-defense but would not have a law enforcement role. They will be deployed for 90 days to supplement 2,500 National Guard troops who are already at the border." (Also linked yesterday.) The AP's story is here.

Joe May Not Let Us Down, After All. Jim Tankersley of the New York Times: "A standoff between House Republicans and President Biden over raising the nations borrowing limit has administration officials debating what to do if the government runs out of cash to pay its bills, including one option that previous administrations had deemed unthinkable. That option is effectively a constitutional challenge to the debt limit. Under the theory, the government would be required by the 14th Amendment to continue issuing new debt to pay bondholders, Social Security recipients, government employees and others, even if Congress fails to lift the limit before the so-called X-date. That theory rests on the 14th Amendment clause stating that 'the validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.'... Top economic and legal officials at the White House, the Treasury Department and the Justice Department have made that theory a subject of intense and unresolved debate in recent months, according to several people familiar with the discussions." (Also linked yesterday.)

Edwin Rios of the Guardian: "The US Secret Service denied security clearance for Mohamed Khairullah, the longest-serving Muslim mayor in New Jersey, and prevented him from attending a White House Eid al-Fitr event on Monday afternoon marking the end of Ramadan. Khairullah, who was critical of the Trump administration's travel ban in 2017 that restricted entry to the United States from several predominantly Muslim countries, received the call from the Secret Service while he was en route to the White House. President Joe Biden revoked that ban in 2021.... In a statement to [NewJersey.com], United States Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi confirmed that Khairullah was denied entry to the event on Monday night, regretting 'any inconvenience this may have caused' and noting that they were unable to 'comment further on the specific protective means and methods used to conduct our security operations at the White House'. Two days earlier, Khairullah, who has been mayor of Prospect Park, New Jersey, a small town of 6,000 people, for more than 17 years, appeared alongside the state's governor, Phil Murphy, at the gubernatorial mansion for an Eid celebration." (Also linked yesterday.)

Melanie Zanona of CNN: "House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has accepted an invitation to meet with President Joe Biden on May 9 about the debt ceiling, according to a source familiar, setting the stage for a high-stakes moment in the debt ceiling standoff. Biden invited all four Congressional leaders to the meeting."

Democrats Throw a Hail-Mary Pass. Carl Hulse of the New York Times: A "45-page [bill], introduced without fanfare in January by a little-known Democrat, Representative Mark DeSaulnier of California, is part of a confidential, previously unreported, strategy Democrats have been plotting for months to quietly smooth the way for action by Congress to avert a devastating federal default if debt ceiling talks remain deadlocked.... Democrats on Tuesday ... started the process of trying to force [the] debt-limit increase bill to the floor through a so-called discharge petition that could bypass Republican leaders who have refused to raise the ceiling unless President Biden agrees to spending cuts and policy changes.... The strategy is no silver bullet, and Democrats concede it is a long shot." (Also linked yesterday.) An ABC News story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yes, Democrats have to engage in a conspiracy in order to save the country from Republican efforts to destroy it.

Ann Marimow & Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: At a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting Tuesday morning, "Chairman Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) said a cascade of recent revelations about unreported lavish travel and real estate deals would be unacceptable for an alderman, much less ... members of the [Supreme Court]. But the court 'won't even acknowledge it's a problem,' Durbin said. 'Because the court will not act, Congress must.' Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) responded that the focus on Supreme Court ethics is nothing more than an 'unseemly effort by the Democratic left' to raise questions about the legitimacy of the court as it has become more conservative.... As the hearing began, two prominent constitutional experts -- conservative former federal judge J. Michael Luttig and Harvard legal scholar Laurence Tribe -- told the committee in prepared testimony that Congress has the power to impose a code of conduct for Supreme Court justices, but cannot order the high court to come up with rules on its own.... Several ethics experts and former federal judges are expected to testify at the hearing...." (Also linked yesterday.) The report has been updated. ~~~

~~~ Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: "A prominent conservative former federal judge joined a chorus of legal experts from across the political spectrum on Tuesday in calling on Congress to enact new ethical standards for Supreme Court justices, after a series of revelations about the justices' undisclosed gifts, luxury travel and property deals. The statement by Judge J. Michael Luttig, a retired appeals court judge revered by some conservatives, came as the Democratic-led Senate Judiciary Committee prepared to hold a hearing on Supreme Court ethics. Pressure has mounted among progressives for a stricter code of conduct for the justices, the nation's highest judges, who are appointed to lifetime terms and are bound by few disclosure requirements. Congress 'indisputably has the power under the Constitution' to 'enact laws prescribing the ethical standards applicable to the nonjudicial conduct and activities of the Supreme Court of the United States,' Judge Luttig said in a written statement presented to the Judiciary Committee." (Also linked yesterday.)

On the Importance of News Photographers. Katherine Tully-McManus & Nicholas Wu of Politico: "Chuck Schumer spoke to Sen. Dianne Feinstein on Monday and the ailing California Democrat is 'hopeful' she'll return to Washington next week, according to notes the Senate majority leader held at a Tuesday press conference.... Schumer did not address Feinstein's absence aloud during the press conference." Includes photo of Schumer's notes, which he appears to be holding behind his back. ~~~

~~~ Ryan Grenoble of the Huffington Post: "Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) on Tuesday called for ailing Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) to resign, noting the senator's monthslong absence from the Senate Judiciary Committee has stalled work there. Feinstein 'should retire,' Ocasio-Cortez wrote on Bluesky, a nascent social media platform. 'I think criticisms of that stance as "anti-feminist" are a farce,' she added, referencing comments from Feinstein defenders who argue that sexism ― not truancy ― is driving resignation calls."

Heidi Przybyla of Politico: "Leonard Leo, who helped to choose judicial nominees for ... Donald Trump, obtained a historic $1.6 billion gift for his conservative legal network via an introduction through the Federalist Society, whose tax status forbids political activism. Leo first met Barre Seid, the now 91-year-old manufacturing magnate turned donor, through an introduction arranged by Eugene Meyer, the longtime director of the Federalist Society. At the time, Leo was the society's executive vice president, and he is currently its co-chair. Meyer envisioned Seid as a contributor to the society, according to a person familiar with the introduction. Instead, Leo cultivated Seid as a funder of his own dark money network. The result was a $1.6 billion gift announced last year -- which is believed to be the largest political donation ever.... Interviews with people familiar with the internal workings of the Federalist Society, including two board members, paint a picture of a symbiotic relationship in which Leo uses his connection to the vast network of scholars in the society to earn credibility with donors, who then contribute to dark money operations that engage in the kind of partisanship the society officially eschews." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I had no idea the Federalist Society pretended to be nonpartisan. That's laughable. But the fact that Leo is engaged in corrupt fundraising? No surprise there.

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: The Library of Congress on Tuesday released "an enormous trove of the private papers of Justice John Paul Stevens.... They provide a panoramic inside look at the justices at work on thousands of cases, including Bush v. Gore and the 1992 abortion case, Planned Parenthood v. Casey. The papers are studded with candid and occasionally caustic remarks, sometimes echoing current concerns about the court's power and authority.... The newly released files cover the years up to 2005, when Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joined the Supreme Court. They are filled with notes in Justice Stevens's not always legible scrawl, marked-up briefs, draft opinions, vote tallies, memos among the justices, recommendations from clerks and all manner of other paperwork." An interesting read. ~~~

~~~ Joan Biskupic of CNN: "Justice Sandra Day O'Connor provided the early framework that steered the outcome in the dispute over the 2000 presidential election and ensured George W. Bush would win the White House over Al Gore, Supreme Court documents released on Tuesday show. Memos found in the newly opened files of the late Justice John Paul Stevens offer a first-ever view of the behind-the-scenes negotiations on Bush v. Gore at the court. They also demonstrate the tension among the nine justices being asked to decide a presidential election on short deadlines. The documents opened at the Library of Congress help reveal how the now-retired O'Connor, the first woman on the high court and a justice steeped in politics from her early days in the Arizona legislature, partnered with Justice Anthony Kennedy, effectively squeezing out an argument advanced by then-Chief Justice William Rehnquist.... [After reading O'Connor's memo,] Kennedy ... fully separated himself from Rehnquist's view of complete state legislative authority over presidential elections with no check by a state judges interpreting the state's constitution."

Ryan Reilly of NBC News: "The FBI this week arrested a former bureau supervisor in connection with the Jan. 6 riot who they said called for killing officers protecting the Capitol that day. Authorities arrested Jared L. Wise in Oregon on Monday, court records show. An FBI affidavit says he worked as a special agent and a supervisory special agent at the FBI from 2004 until 2017.... Wise was charged with entering and remaining in a restricted building; disorderly conduct in a restricted building; disorderly conduct with an intent to impede an orderly session of Congress; and unlawfully parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building. 'I'm former -- I'm former law enforcement. You're disgusting. You are the Nazi. You are the Gestapo. You can't see it.... Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you!' federal authorities say he told officers before he entered the Capitol. 'Yeah, f--- them! Yeah, kill 'em! Kill 'em! Kill 'em! Kill 'em!'... The initial tip [about Wise's participation in the insurrection] came from someone Wise told about entering the building, according to the affidavit."

Lola Fadulu, et al., of the New York Times: "During her testimony in the civil trial against ... Donald J. Trump, E. Jean Carroll told the court that she had called a friend immediately after leaving the department store where she said he had raped her in the mid-1990s. On Tuesday, that friend [-- writer Lisa Birnbach --] took the witness stand.... 'I want the world to know that she is telling the truth,' Ms. Birnbach [said]. [Birnbach related that Carroll told her about the rape in the spring of 1996.]... Jessica Leeds, a former stockbroker who said Mr. Trump assaulted her on an airplane in the late 1970s, also testified Tuesday afternoon. Ms. Carroll's attorneys called her to establish Mr. Trump's 'modus operandi,' which they said was a pattern of assaulting women." Worth reading the details. (Also linked yesterday.) The story has been updated. ~~~

~~~ Erica Orden of Politico: "Donald Trump will not testify in the civil lawsuit accusing him of raping a woman in the mid-1990s, the former president's lawyer said at trial in Manhattan federal court Tuesday.... Trump's lawyer Joe Tacopina had demurred when asked several times by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan whether Trump would testify, leaving the option open. On Tuesday, however, Tacopina informed Kaplan that Trump had decided against taking the witness stand.... An attorney for [plaintiff E. Jean] Carroll said she expects to play about 45 minutes of a videotaped deposition of Trump for jurors." MB: Of course Trump can't testify. He's busy playing golf in Scotland! ~~~

~~~ Trump Defects! BBC News: "... Donald Trump has said 'it is great to be home' as he arrived in Aberdeen on a visit to his Scottish golf properties. It is Mr Trump's first visit to the UK since 2019 after leaving office. He attended a ceremony to break ground on a new course at his Aberdeenshire resort, Trump International Scotland." MB: Okay, I'll admit it's unlikely Scotland would let him stay even if he tried. (Also linked yesterday.)

Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump got so irritated with ... NBC reporter [Vaughn Hillyard]'s questions about a Manhattan criminal investigation that he grabbed the journalist's phones and demanded that he be removed from an airplane interview, according to audio of the exchange obtained by The Washington Post and as first reported by Vanity Fair. The incident unfolded as Trump, who is seeking the Republican nomination in 2024, was speaking to a small group of reporters aboard his plane after his March 25 campaign rally in Waco, Tex." MB: The Raw Story's report on the incident was linked here yesterday. Oh, and three cheers for Hillyard, who often bravely treads into Trump territory to interview MAGAmaniacs.

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Jeremy Peters, et al., of the New York Times: "A text message sent by Tucker Carlson that set off a panic at the highest levels of Fox on the eve of its billion-dollar defamation trial showed its most popular host sharing his private, inflammatory views about violence and race. The discovery of the message contributed to a chain of events that ultimately led to Mr. Carlson's firing. In the message, sent to one of his producers in the hours after violent Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, Mr. Carlson described how he had recently watched a video of a group of men -- Trump supporters, he said -- violently attacking 'an Antifa kid.'... And then he expressed a sense of dismay that the attackers, like him, were white.... 'It's not how white men fight,' he said. But he said he found himself for a moment wanting the group to kill the person he had described as the Antifa kid.... The text message revealed more about his views on racial superiority.... The text is part of redacted court filings and its contents were previously unreported." The article reproduces Tucker's full text message. The Guardian's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It's unclear what most concerned the board: that Carlson was a racist or that his racism was a "bad look." In a way, the message is exculpatory: it seems to show TuKKKer coming to terms with his own violent, racist views & finding those views beneath the very fine white man he believed himself to be. Moreover, it shows that the board did not see racism as a good thing.

Dell Cameron & Dhruv Mehrotra of Wired: "A doctors’ organization at the center of the ongoing legal fight over the abortion drug mifepristone has suffered a significant data breach. A link to an unsecured Google Drive published on the group's website pointed users last week to a large cache of sensitive documents, including financial and tax records, membership rolls, and email exchanges spanning over a decade. The more than 10,000 documents lay bare the outsize influence of a small conservative organization working to lend a veneer of medical science to evangelical beliefs on parenting, sex, procreation, and gender.... The records show how the College, which the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) describes as a hate group, managed to introduce fringe beliefs into the mainstream simply by being, as the founder of Fox News once put it, 'the loudest voice in the room.'"

Beyond the Beltway

Florida v. Earth. Saul Elbein of the Hill: "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed into law Tuesday a sweeping ban on sustainable investing. House Bill 3 bars state and local governments from factoring in environmental, social or governance (ESG) factors in their decision of whether to invest or contract with specific businesses. It also obligates state-registered banks to make loans to several industries -- including fossil fuels, private prisons or the manufacture and sale of firearms -- that the GOP alleges some large financial firms have been turning away from. House Bill 3 would bar financial institutions from 'discriminating against customers for their religious, political, or social beliefs -- including their support for securing the border, owning a firearm, and increasing our energy independence,' according to a fact sheet from the state of Florida. In his signing ceremony on Tuesday, DeSantis -- standing above a lectern that said GOVERNMENT OF LAWS, NOT WOKE POLITICS -- lambasted ESG as an attempt by 'Davos elites' to 'impose ideology through business institutions.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yes, you can tell a business it can't discriminate on the basis of race, religion, gender, etc., because such discrimination violates the U.S. Constitution and federal laws. But butting in to tell a financial institution that it can't consider environmental impact (or other issues like safety records, for instance) in choosing loan recipients seems both unlawful and remarkably anti-business. Ron & his Klan seem to be trying hard to kick prudence and decency out of Florida. They're doing all they can to make Florida into the nation's hell-hole. It's horrifying.

Florida. Greg Sargent of the Washington Post: "When the Walt Disney Co. went looking for evidence to feature in its new lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, its lawyers found much of what they needed in DeSantis's own recently published memoir.... Numerous quotes taken from 'The Courage to be Free' appear to support the company's central allegation: that the Republican governor improperly wielded state power to punish Disney's speech criticizing his policies, violating the First Amendment.... [In the book, DeSantis] boasts extensively about his war on Disney to advertise how he would marshal the powers of the presidency against so-called woke elites." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ OR, as driftglass succinctly puts it, "Dollar Store Goebbels about to get walloped upside the head with his own book by an army of lawyers for the Happiest Place On Earth." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is another aspect of Trumpism that DeSantis has tried to master -- and failed. Trump often boasts about his various unlawful acts, but so far he has been able to get away with it. DeSantis's boasts of his own unlawful acts may result in a court loss for him, for his Klan and for Florida taxpayers. ~~~

~~~ Florida, the Dark State. Gary Fineout of Politico: The governor's office won't say who is paying for Ron DeSantis's flights around the country, or even around the world. "State Rep. Jeff Holcomb -- the House sponsor of a bill that would shield DeSantis' travel records associated with taxpayer paid travel from scrutiny -- suggested on the House floor on Monday that who pays for the governor's whereabouts ... would still somehow be available.... Supporters of the legislation, which would also cover travel records of other top state officials, say it is needed for security purposes. DeSantis, when asked about it on Monday, said that it wasn't something that he recommended but also said that he gets a lot of threats. But the bill, which is poised to go to his desk..., would also shield records for all past trips from public view." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So there might be a disgruntled time-traveling taxpayer who goes back and throws DeSantis mid-flight from a plane he was on last week??? Yeah, that's plausible. ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Stephen Neukam of the Hill: "Republican lawmakers in Florida on Tuesday approved a bill that would shield the travel records of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and other state leaders from public disclosure. The bill, which passed the Florida House along a party-line vote of 84-31 after clearing the Senate last month, would exempt the travel history of the state's governor and their immediate family, the lieutenant governor, Cabinet members, Senate president, House speaker and the state Supreme Court's chief justice from public records laws."

Florida. Drunken Woman (Allegedly!) Flips Off Gaetz, Spills Wine on Him. Kevin Brueninger of CNBC: "A Florida woman was charged with felony battery after she allegedly threw a glass of wine on Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., officials said Tuesday. The woman, 41-year-old Selena Chambers of Tallahassee, threw the drink at the congressman after 'swearing loudly' at him as she passed him at a wine festival in northwest Florida on Saturday, a person who was with Gaetz at the time told police. That person, Blaine Odom, said that 'Chambers then walked away yelling and flipping him off,' according to an arrest report provided to CNBC by the Walton County Sheriff's Office. But Chambers told an officer at the time of her arrest that she 'was walking and tripped and spilled her drink on Representative Gaetz,' according to the report. She also said that she had consumed alcohol at the festival, and that she recognized Gaetz before spilling her drink." MB: I totally oppose violence against Gaetz. That said, I hope the wine was a full-bodied red.

Minnesota. Chris Boyette & Dakin Andone of CNN: "Authorities have arrested and charged with arson a man federal prosecutors said is responsible for setting fires at two Minneapolis mosques and separately spray-painting the district office door of a Muslim American member of Congress [-- Rep. Ilhan Omar (D) --], according to a news release from the US Attorney's Office for the District of Minnesota. Jackie Rahm Little, 36, also known as Joel Arthur Tueting, was arrested Saturday by the Blue Earth County Sheriff's Office before being taken into federal custody a day later by agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the release said.

Minnesota. Amanda Holpuch of the New York Times: "A former Minneapolis police officer who held back bystanders as other officers restrained George Floyd was found guilty on Monday of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in Mr. Floyd's killing. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill said in the verdict that the former officer, Tou Thao, who had waived his right to a jury trial, 'actively encouraged his three colleagues' dangerous prone restraint of Floyd.' Mr. Thao, 37, was the last of the four officers with unresolved criminal charges in the killing of Mr. Floyd." (Also linked yesterday.)

Montana. Amy Hanson & Matthew Brown of the AP: "Rep. Zooey Zephyr, the transgender state lawmaker silenced after telling Republicans they would have blood on their hands for opposing gender-affirming health care for kids, was barred from returning to the Montana House floor in a Tuesday court ruling that came just hours before the Legislature planned to wrap up its biennial session. District Court Judge Mike Menahan said it was outside his authority to overrule lawmakers who voted last week to exclude Zephyr from the House floor and debates. He cited the importance of preserving the Constitution's separation of powers between the legislative, executive and judicial branches." The New York Times story is here.

New York. More GOP Voter Fraud. Dave Lucas of WAMC Albany: "Three Rensselaer County officials with close ties to the ruling Republican Party were indicted last week on federal charges as part of an investigation into ballot fraud.... According to the U.S. Attorney, Richard Crist, James Gordon, and Leslie Wallace were arrested and charged Thursday with conspiring to violate the rights of county voters during the 2021 election cycle. The alleged ballot scheme in Troy appears to have taken advantage of looser absentee ballot requirements that were in place during the pandemic. Crist is the Director of Operations for Rensselaer County, Gordon is the Director of the Bureau for Central Services of the county, and Wallace works for the county executive.... In January, former Rensselaer County Elections Commissioner Jason Schofield pleaded guilty to unlawfully using the names and dates of birth of voters to fraudulently apply for absentee ballots. The Republican had resigned at the end of December. Last June, Republican Troy City Councilor Kim Ashe-McPherson resigned after pleading guilty to fraudulently submitting absentee ballots in 2021."

North Carolina. Caroline Kitchener & Rachel Roubein of the Washington Post: "Republicans in North Carolina introduced a plan on Tuesday to ban abortion in the state after 12 weeks of pregnancy, a move that would significantly narrow the window for legal abortions but stop short of the more-restrictive bans that have been enacted in other Southern states. The new measure was unveiled just days after proposed bans fizzled last week in two other conservative states -- a near-total ban in South Carolina and a six-week ban in Nebraska.... In North Carolina on Tuesday, female Republican lawmakers took a leading role in introducing the legislation at a surprise press conference, which capped months of closed-door deliberations among Republicans, many of whom had been pushing for a six-week ban."

Way Beyond

Europe. Patrick Smith of NBC News: "Police across Europe and South America arrested more than 100 people Wednesday in a wave of raids against one of Italy's most notorious organized crime groups. A total of 132 people were arrested across 10 countries, in a huge and complex operation involving 2,770 officers, Europol, the international policing agency of the European Union, said in a statement. 'Members of one of the world's most powerful criminal networks have been taken into custody,' said Europol, which described Wednesday's operation as the 'largest-ever coordinated hit' against the 'ndrangehta, arguably the world's richest organized crime group."

Ukraine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of developments Wednesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here. The Guardian's live updates for Wednesday are here. The Guardian's summary report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefing for Wednesday is here: "Russia's defense industry is boosting the pace and volume of weapons production, as the Kremlin's troops are depending on the 'timely replenishment' of arms, according to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. He added that Moscow has made improvements in repairing arms and military vehicles, but that such efforts needed to be 'intensified.' Meanwhile, the European Union is pushing for increased ammunition production for Ukraine, Reuters reported, and Denmark said it has committed $250 million worth of military equipment and financial support to Kyiv....

“Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has not had any conversations with the White House about the massive leak of highly classified U.S. intelligence documents on the Discord messaging platform, he said in a wide-ranging interview with The Washington Post. The leader said he learned of the intelligence leak -- which included grim assessments about Ukraine's prospects in its war with Russia -- when the news broke. Revelations about Russian combat deaths have spurred fears of even worse carnage in the coming months, when Ukraine's anticipated spring offensive begins. The United States said this week that about 20,000 Russians have been killed in action since December and another 80,000 have been wounded i the same period. The rate at which Russian forces are being killed or wounded has spiked in recent months, according to the latest White House estimates."

News Ledes

New York Times: "Dozens of officers from several law enforcement agencies swarmed Midtown Atlanta on Wednesday, searching for a gunman who opened fire in a medical office building, killing one and injuring four others, the authorities said. The gunman, identified as Deion Patterson, 24, stole a vehicle afterward and fled, the Atlanta Police Department said. He left the surrounding area and remained at large late Wednesday afternoon, the authorities said." ~~~

~~~ Update. New Lede: "A gunman who opened fire at a medical office building in Midtown Atlanta on Wednesday, killing one and injuring four others, has been caught after a manhunt that lasted several hours, the authorities said."

CNBC: "Hiring at private companies unexpectedly swelled in April, countering expectations for a cooling job market ahead, payroll processing firm ADP reported Wednesday. Private payrolls rose by 296,000 for the month, above the downwardly revised 142,000 the previous month and well ahead of the Dow Jones estimate for 133,000. The gain was the highest monthly increase since July 2022. The surge comes despite Federal Reserve efforts to slow economic growth and in particular to tame a powerful labor market that has added more than 800,000 jobs this year by ADP's count."

The New York Times story on the apprehension & arrest of the (alleged!) Cleveland, Texas, mass murderer is here. CNN's story is linked in yesterday's Ledes. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: "A day after the man suspected of killing five of his neighbors in a Texas shooting was arrested, the sheriff says his wife has also been taken into custody. Divimara Lamar Nava, 53, wife of suspect Francisco Oropeza, was in custody in connection with the Friday night shooting, according to Montgomery County Sheriff Rand Henderson. Nava had previously denied knowledge of Oropeza's whereabouts, Henderson said, but authorities believe she hid him in the home near Conroe where he was arrested Tuesday. Lamar Nava was arrested early Wednesday and was being held in the Montgomery County jail on a felony charge of hindering the apprehension or prosecution of a known felon, according to online jail records. The records do not list a bond for her and indicate she was arrested by state police at a home in Conroe."

Serbia. New York Times: "A seventh-grade student went on a shooting rampage at a school in Belgrade, Serbia, early Wednesday, killing eight children and a security guard, the Serbian police said. Th police said in a statement that the shooting took place around 8:40 a.m. at Vladislav Ribnikar primary school in the capital. The boy, who was not identified and whose age was not given, used his father's handgun to fire multiple shots into a crowd at the school, the police said. The suspect was apprehended in the schoolyard, the statement said. Six children and a teacher were injured in the attack and taken to the hospital."

May 2, 2023

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Helene Cooper & Zolan Kanno-Youngs of the New York Times: "President Biden is sending 1,500 active-duty troops to the southern U.S. border with Mexico, officials said on Tuesday, as the administration braces for a possible influx of migrants seeking to take advantage of the lifting of Covid-era restrictions on asylum. Brig. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, a Pentagon spokesman, told reporters that the troops would fill gaps in transportation, warehouse support, narcotics detection, data entry and other areas. The Pentagon said the additional troops would be armed for self-defense but would not have a law enforcement role. They will be deployed for 90 days to supplement 2,500 National Guard troops who are already at the border."

Joe May Not Let Us Down, After All. Jim Tankersley of the New York Times: "A standoff between House Republicans and President Biden over raising the nation's borrowing limit has administration officials debating what to do if the government runs out of cash to pay its bills, including one option that previous administrations had deemed unthinkable. That option is effectively a constitutional challenge to the debt limit. Under the theory, the government would be required by the 14th Amendment to continue issuing new debt to pay bondholders, Social Security recipients, government employees and others, even if Congress fails to lift the limit before the so-called X-date. That theory rests on the 14th Amendment clause stating that 'the validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned.'... Top economic and legal officials at the White House, the Treasury Department and the Justice Department have made that theory a subject of intense and unresolved debate in recent months, according to several people familiar with the discussions."

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: A "45-page [bill], introduced without fanfare in January by a little-known Democrat, Representative Mark DeSaulnier of California, is part of a confidential, previously unreported, strategy Democrats have been plotting for months to quietly smooth the way for action by Congress to avert a devastating federal default if debt ceiling talks remain deadlocked.... Democrats on Tuesday ... started the process of trying to force [the] debt-limit increase bill to the floor through a so-called discharge petition that could bypass Republican leaders who have refused to raise the ceiling unless President Biden agrees to spending cuts and policy changes.... The strategy is no silver bullet, and Democrats concede it is a long shot." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yes, Democrats have to engage in a conspiracy in order to save the country from Republicans' efforts to destroy it.

Lola Fadulu, et al., of the New York Times: &"During her testimony in the civil trial against ... Donald J. Trump, E. Jean Carroll told the court that she had called a friend immediately after leaving the department store where she said he had raped her in the mid-1990s. On Tuesday, that friend [-- writer Lisa Birnbach --] took the witness stand.... 'I want the world to know that she is telling the truth,' Ms. Birnbach [said]. [Birnbach related that Carroll told her about the rape in the spring of 1996.]... Jessica Leeds, a former stockbroker who said Mr. Trump assaulted her on an airplane in the late 1970s, also testified Tuesday afternoon. Ms. Carroll's attorneys called her to establish Mr. Trump's 'modus operandi,' which they said was a pattern of assaulting women." Worth reading the details.

Ann Marimow & Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: At a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting Tuesday morning, "Chairman Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) said a cascade of recent revelations about unreported lavish travel and real estate deals would be unacceptable for an alderman, much less ... members of the [Supreme Court]. But the court 'won't even acknowledge it's a problem,' Durbin said. 'Because the court will not act, Congress must.' Sen. Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) responded that the focus on Supreme Court ethics is nothing more than an 'unseemly effort by the Democratic left' to raise questions about the legitimacy of the court as it has become more conservative.... As the hearing began, two prominent constitutional experts -- conservative former federal judge J. Michael Luttig and Harvard legal scholar Laurence Tribe -- told the committee in prepared testimony that Congress has the power to impose a code of conduct for Supreme Court justices, but cannot order the high court to come up with rules on its own.... Several ethics experts and former federal judges are expected to testify at the hearing...." ~~~

~~~ Abbie VanSickle of the New York Times: "A prominent conservative former federal judge joined a chorus of legal experts from across the political spectrum on Tuesday in calling on Congress to enact new ethical standards for Supreme Court justices, after a series of revelations about the justices' undisclosed gifts, luxury travel and property deals. The statement by Judge J. Michael Luttig, a retired appeals court judge revered by some conservatives, came as the Democratic-led Senate Judiciary Committee prepared to hold a hearing on Supreme Court ethics. Pressure has mounted among progressives for a stricter code of conduct for the justices, the nation's highest judges, who are appointed to lifetime terms and are bound by few disclosure requirements. Congress 'indisputably has the power under the Constitution' to 'enact laws prescribing the ethical standards applicable to the nonjudicial conduct and activities of the Supreme Court of the United States,' Judge Luttig said in a written statement presented to the Judiciary Committee."

Florida. Greg Sargent of the Washington Post: "When the Walt Disney Co. went looking for evidence to feature in its new lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, its lawyers found much of what they needed in DeSantis's own recently published memoir.... Numerous quotes taken from 'The Courage to be Free' appear to support the company's central allegation: that the Republican governor improperly wielded state power to punish Disney's speech criticizing his policies, violating the First Amendment.... [In the book, DeSantis] boasts extensively about his war on Disney to advertise how he would marshal the powers of the presidency against so-called woke elites." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is another aspect of Trumpism that DeSantis has tried to master -- and failed. Trump often boasts about his various unlawful acts, but so far he has been able to get away with it. DeSantis's boasts of his own unlawful acts may result in a court loss for him, for his Klan and for Florida taxpayers.

Heidi Przybyla of Politico: "Leonard Leo, who helped to choose judicial nominees for ... Donald Trump, obtained a historic $1.6 billion gift for his conservative legal network via an introduction through the Federalist Society, whose tax status forbids political activism. Leo first met Barre Seid, the now 91-year-old manufacturing magnate turned donor, through an introduction arranged by Eugene Meyer, the longtime director of the Federalist Society. At the time, Leo was the society's executive vice president, and he is currently its co-chair. Meyer envisioned Seid as a contributor to the society, according to a person familiar with the introduction. Instead, Leo cultivated Seid as a funder of his own dark money network. The result was a $1.6 billion gift announced last year -- which is believed to be the largest political donation ever.... Interviews with people familiar with the internal workings of the Federalist Society, including two board members, paint a picture of a symbiotic relationship in which Leo uses his connection to the vast network of scholars in the society to earn credibility with donors, who then contribute to dark money operations that engage in the kind of partisanship the society officially eschews." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I had no idea the Federalist Society pretended to be nonpartisan. That's laughable. But the fact that Leo is engaged in corrupt fundraising? No surprise there.

Edwin Rios of the Guardian: "The US Secret Service denied security clearance for Mohamed Khairullah, the longest-serving Muslim mayor in New Jersey, and prevented him from attending a White House Eid al-Fitr event on Monday afternoon marking the end of Ramadan. Khairullah, who was critical of the Trump administration's travel ban in 2017 that restricted entry to the United States from several predominantly Muslim countries, received the call from the Secret Service while he was en route to the White House. President Joe Biden revoked that ban in 2021.... In a statement to [NewJersey.com], United States Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi confirmed that Khairullah was denied entry to the event on Monday night, regretting 'any inconvenience this may have caused' and noting that they were unable to 'comment further on the specific protective means and methods used to conduct our security operations at the White House'. Two days earlier, Khairullah, who has been mayor of Prospect Park, New Jersey, a small town of 6,000 people, for more than 17 years, appeared alongside the state's governor, Phil Murphy, at the gubernatorial mansion for an Eid celebration."

Trump Defects! BBC News: "... Donald Trump has said 'it is great to be home' as he arrived in Aberdeen on a visit to his Scottish golf properties. It is Mr Trump's first visit to the UK since 2019 after leaving office. He attended a ceremony to break ground on a new course at his Aberdeenshire resort, Trump International Scotland." MB: Okay, I'll admit it's unlikely Scotland would let him stay even if he tried.

Minnesota. Amanda Holpuch of the New York Times: "A former Minneapolis police officer who held back bystanders as other officers restrained George Floyd was found guilty on Monday of aiding and abetting second-degree manslaughter in Mr. Floyd's killing. Hennepin County Judge Peter Cahill said in the verdict that the former officer, Tou Thao, who had waived his right to a jury trial, 'actively encouraged his three colleagues' dangerous prone restraint of Floyd.' Mr. Thao, 37, was the last of the four officers with unresolved criminal charges in the killing of Mr. Floyd."

~~~~~~~~~~

~~~ Marie: Dildo Man Spotted Dick in Conception Bay Near Dick's Cove, Newfoundland. Leyland Cecco of the Guardian: "As he flew his drone over [Newfoundland's Conception Bay, Canadian photographer Ken] Pretty, who hails from the town of Dildo, realized the [iceberg] bore a distinct resemblance to a characteristic part of the male human anatomy.... Facebook ... users speculated that the iceberg would probably soon drift past Dick's Cove, Newfoundland." One Facebook user asked: "Is that where baby icebergs come from?" "A day after Pretty photographed the berg, the bulbous top collapsed." Many, many thanks to unwashed for giving us the headline of the week. (or month. or year.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I suppose you think it's silly that I would put this story at the top of the page. But think about it: Chilly Willie is a singular event. You won't likely see another naturally-occurring giant blue penis. Ever. In fact, this one is already gone, lost to the mists of time and the YouTubes. The rest of the news: new instances of age-old plots: like Ishmael's "Grand Contested Election for the Presidency of the United States' and "Bloody Battle in Affghanistan." Today we have: "President meets with foreign leader"; "Republicans hold hostage world economy"; "major bank fails"; etc. So in a way, I topped the news with the Phallus Maximus for the same reason I'll be watching at least some of King Charles' coronation: it's a rare event.

Speaking of giant dicks, today is the day the Senate is holding the hearing Chief Justice John Roberts declined to attend. Give that man an empty chair at the witness table.

Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "President Biden met with President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. of the Philippines at the White House on Monday, a visit meant to send a message to China that the Filipino leader planned to deepen his country's relationship with the United States. Mr. Marcos's trip comes days after the U.S. and Philippine militaries held joint exercises aimed at curbing China's influence in the South China Sea and strengthening the United States' ability to defend Taiwan if China invades. The exercises were part of a rapid and intensifying effort between the two countries: In February, the Pentagon announced that the U.S. military would expand its presence in the Philippines, and this spring, four new military sites were announced." (This is an update of a story linked yesterday.)

Alan Rappeport & Jim Tankersley of the New York Times: "Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen said on Monday that the United States could run out of money to pay its bills by June 1 if Congress does not raise or suspend the debt limit, putting pressure on President Biden and lawmakers to reach an agreement swiftly to avoid defaulting on the nation's debt. The more precise warning over when the United States could hit the so-called X-date dramatically reduces the projected amount of time lawmakers have to reach a deal before the government runs out of money to pay all of its bills on time. The new timeline could force a flurry of negotiations between the House, Senate and White House over government spending -- or a high-stakes standoff between Mr. Biden and the House Republicans who have refused to raise the limit without deep spending cuts attached." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Frankly, I think Biden should direct Yellen to raise the debt ceiling, whether My Kevin & his Klan go along with it or not. If Congress has approved spending beyond the debt ceiling it has approved, Congress is in effect compelling leaders of the executive branch to violate their oaths of office by failing to preserve the full faith & credit of the U.S.A. A law cannot be Constitutional, IMO, if it forbids executive branch officials from carrying out their Constitutional duties. And, okay, I'm no Laurence Tribe. Update: Oddly, it would appear President Biden is not taking my advice. Update Update: But see Robert Reich's opinion, linked below. ~~~

~~~ Unless this.     ~~~ Tony Romm, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden invited House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and other congressional leaders to the White House next week to discuss the debt ceiling.... Until Monday, Biden had ... refused to haggle with Republicans over an issue that poses such immense risks to the economy. But with Monday's news that default could come as soon as next month, the president set in motion a plan to hold talks on May 9, personally calling McCarthy as well as Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), according to a White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations.... Previously, Republicans have raised the debt ceiling without issuing demands. Three times, they addressed the borrowing cap under ... Donald Trump without demanding fiscal reforms. Each time, Democrats serving in the minority also supplied their votes in a bid to avert a crisis." ~~~

     ~~~ There Is This. John Wagner of the Washington Post: "President Biden on Monday used a White House event celebrating small-business owners -- typically a constituency embraced by Republicans -- to call on the GOP-led House to back off its insistence that raising the nation's debt ceiling be conditioned on steep spending cuts and rolling back several of Biden's priorities. Speaking in the Rose Garden, Biden said lawmakers need to protect the economy by raising the debt limit without what he characterized as 'reckless hostage taking' by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and his allies. Biden argued the consequences would be dire -- including for small-business owners -- if the spending cuts required by the bill that narrowly passed the House last week ever materialized." ~~~

     ~~~ Then This. Adam Cancryn of Politico: "Administration officials on Monday insisted that [President] Biden has no plans to drop his demand for a clean debt ceiling increase, even after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's warning that Congress may only have until June 1 to avert a disastrous default.... House Speaker Kevin McCarthy similarly dug in.... The White House has nevertheless insisted that time -- and politics -- are on its side." ~~~

     ~~~ Robert Reich in a Substack essay: "My advice to Joe Biden: Ignore McCarthy and the Republican radicals. Mr. President, your oath to uphold the Constitution takes precedence. As the supreme law of the land, the Constitution has greater weight than the debt ceiling. Section 4 of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution states that 'The validity of the public debt of the United States ... shall not be questioned.' A debt ceiling that prevents the federal government from honoring its existing financial commitments violates the Constitution" (MB: I'll admit I didn't remember that 14th Amendment clause. So the case for ignoring the hostage-takers is way better than I knew.)

Maureen Farrell, et al., of the New York Times: "Lawmakers and regulators have spent years erecting laws and rules meant to limit the power and size of the largest U.S. banks. But those efforts were cast aside in a frantic late-night effort by government officials to contain a banking crisis by seizing and selling First Republic Bank to the country's biggest bank, JPMorgan Chase.At about 1 a.m Monday, hours after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation had been expected to announce a buyer for the troubled regional lender, government officials informed JPMorgan executives that they had won the right to take over First Republic and the accounts of its well-heeled customers.... For [JPMorgan CEO Jamie] Dimon, it was a reprise of his role in the 2008 financial crisis when JPMorgan acquired Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual at the behest of federal regulators." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Ooh, Jamie, our hero. Oh, wait: “JPMorgan said on Monday that it expected the deal to raise its profits this year by $500 million.”

Kevin Goes to Israel to Mess with U.S. Foreign Policy. Patrick Kingsley & Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: "Speaker Kevin McCarthy offered on Monday to host Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for high-level bipartisan meetings in Congress -- issuing an implicit challenge to President Biden, who has refrained from welcoming the Israeli leader to the White House in a protest against his domestic agenda. The offer fell short of a formal invitation, but the comments were a break with diplomatic custom and tradition, and reminiscent of a similar move by congressional Republicans during the Obama administration when tensions in the U.S.-Israeli alliance were similarly fraught."

Jennifer Bendery of the Huffington Post: "Senate Democrats have been demanding congressional action in response to last month's bombshell report about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failing to disclose hundreds of thousands of dollars in luxury gifts from a GOP megadonor.... That's a stark contrast to Republicans, who have almost unanimously retreated into silence or scoffed at the idea that Congress should do anything to serve as a check on justices' behavior. There's only one GOP senator backing any ethics reforms to the court: Lisa Murkowski of Alaska introduced a bill with Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) that would require the justices to create a code of conduct for themselves and make it public on the court's website. In other words, the bare minimum."

Kate Shaw of the New York Times & Julie Suk in a NYT op-ed: "The fight for the [Equal Rights Amendment] remains critical -- with Roe v. Wade now toppled, it is in fact more critical than ever.... In the hands of the current Supreme Court, the existing Constitution's equality guarantees do far too little to protect women.... The E.R.A. was first introduced in 1923, and in 1972 Congress adopted it by well over the constitutionally required two-thirds supermajorities. It looked to be sailing to ratification, for which the Constitution requires approval by three-quarters of the states. But progress ground to a halt in the late 1970s, just three states short, after a conservative movement led by Phyllis Schlafly ignited fear of an America without patriarchy.... Donald Trump's misogyny helped galvanize a renewed push for the E.R.A., with Nevada ratifying in 2017, Illinois in 2018 and Virginia in 2020, which brought the total to 38 -- the number necessary to ratify an amendment." Congress set a deadline for ratification, plus some states among the 38 rescinded their ratifications. "The debate today is over who decides how to treat both deadlines and rescissions." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I had forgotten about the rescissions. I do think they're problematic, despite Shaw & Suk's argument that the Constitution dictates that Congress can control -- and has in the past controlled -- the ratification process. We can't expect this bunch of Supremes to follow this particular precedent.

Lola Fadulu, et al., of the New York Times: "The writer E. Jean Carroll's case accusing Donald J. Trump of raping her in a department-store dressing room continues Monday in Federal District Court in Manhattan.... Mr. Trump's lawyers on Monday filed an unsuccessful motion for a mistrial, arguing that the court had made 'pervasive unfair and prejudicial rulings.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post liveblogged developments Monday in the trial and provides some details of Joe Tacopina's cross-examination of E. Jean Carroll. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marcy Wheeler: Trump lawyer Joe Tacopina questioned E. Jean Carroll on the stand over a book she wrote wherein she facetiously proposes to dispose of all men. Tacopina didn't understand that Carroll's "proposal" was a reference to Jonathan Swift's famous satirical essay "A Modest Proposal" in which Swift suggests mitigating Irish poverty by eating Irish children. Then Tacopina got mad because Judge Lewis Kaplan recognized the literary reference (which has come up in other court cases) for what it was. "Ultimately this comes off as Tacopina -- and by extension, Trump -- whining that he's not in on the joke, whining that there's some kind of elite culture that Carroll and Kaplan share that grab-them-by-the-pussy types can't be expected to adhere to." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: To be fair to Tacopina, I believe what confused him was that Carroll's satirical proposal was so similar to Ron DeSantis's and Greg Abbott's actual problem-solving measures. Carroll's means of disposing of men was to send them all to Montana and retrain them. This is very much like DeSantis & Abbott's mitigating a large migrant influx by transporting migrants to Martha's Vineyard and Chicago. You may say to yourself, "Why, DeSantis and Abbott are as cruel as Swift's hypothetical baby-eaters!" Yes, yes they are.

~~~ Jonah Bromwich & William Rashbaum of the New York Times: "Lawyers for Donald J. Trump on Monday pushed back against an effort by the Manhattan district attorney's office to limit the former president's ability to publicly discuss evidence in the criminal case against him. The district attorney's office last week asked the judge in the case to restrict Mr. Trump's access to some case material. The office requested that the former president be barred from reviewing the material without his lawyers present, and more broadly from publicizing the prosecution's evidence on social media or through other channels. In a court filing, Mr. Trump's lawyers called the prosecutors' request 'extreme.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I find the requested restrictions just as appropriate as an order to muzzle or isolate a defendant who repeatedly shouts out during his trial. For extreme behavior, extreme remedies. Oh, and lookie how Trump's lawyers are using his very convenient presidential* candidacy to help their case: in their filing they write, "President Trump is the leading Republican candidate for president of the United States. To state the obvious, there will continue to be significant public commentary about this case and his candidacy, to which he has a right and a need to respond, both for his own sake and for the benefit of the voting public."

Marshall Cohen of CNN: "President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, will need to sit for a sworn deposition and answer additional written questions about his investments, art sales and other financial transactions as part of a paternity-related case, an Arkansas judge said Monday. At an extraordinary two-hour court hearing with all parties in attendance, Hunter Biden's attorney Abbe Lowell revealed that his client is paying $20,000 in monthly child support, and has given $750,000 in total to Lunden Roberts, an Arkansas woman who is the mother of their four-year-old daughter. Lowell told the judge he wanted to refute recent tabloid articles that called Hunter Biden a 'deadbeat dad' and that he wanted to 'let the world know' that 'he is paying what is agreed to.' Independence County Circuit Court Judge Holly Meyer also chided Hunter Biden's lawyers for hiding information that should be public, and ordered them to re-submit their filings without redactions. She made the comments during a two-hour hearing that Hunter Biden personally attended.... The hearing was convened after Hunter Biden asked to reduce the monthly payments."

Glenn Thrush of the New York Times: "Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies around the country, especially corrections departments, are struggling to hire and retain employees at all levels, as higher-paying, less demanding jobs draw away people facing rising housing, food and transportation costs. Nowhere has that been more of a problem than at the chronically troubled Bureau of Prisons, with about 160,000 inmates at 122 prisons and camps -- employing a work force of about 34,000 people who often earn less than state and county corrections workers.... About 21 percent of the 20,446 positions for corrections officers funded by Congress -- 4,293 guards -- remain unfilled as of September.... [In some cases,] teachers, case managers, counselors, facilities workers and even secretaries ... have been enlisted to serve as corrections officers, despite having only basic security training." MB: Somewhere in a federal pen today, an inmate may discover that the guard was his 7th-grade shop teacher. Awkward reunion to ensue.

Grace Moon of the Washington Post: "More than 11,000 unionized television and movie writers will go on strike starting Tuesday in a move that could bring Hollywood studios and networks to a halt.... The decision to carry out the first industry-wide strike in 15 years ends months of negotiations between the [Writers Guild of America] and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents Hollywood production companies."

Jeremy Peters of the New York Times: "The New York Times and a consortium of media organizations are asking a judge to rule whether Fox News improperly redacted portions of texts and email exchanges that were introduced as evidence in Dominion Voting Systems' defamation lawsuit against the network. Dominion and Fox settled the case last month for $787.5 million, in what is believed to be the largest out-of-court payout in a defamation case. But left unaddressed was a legal challenge filed by The Times in January that sought to unseal some of what Fox and Dominion had marked as confidential in their legal filings."

Presidential Race 2024. Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "... the Republican Party has gotten weird.... Republican politicians -- from presidential contenders to anonymous state legislators -- are monomaniacally focused on banning books, fighting 'wokeness' and harassing transgender people. Some Republicans are even still denying the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election.... Not only do Americans not care about the various Republican obsessions ... but a large majority say that those obsessions have gone too far.... Taken together, it's as if the Republican Party has committed itself to being as off-putting as possible to as many Americans as possible.... The current state of the Republican Party only strengthens [Joe Biden's] most important political asset -- his normalcy." ~~~

~~~ Presidential* Race 2024. This Is Disgusting: CNN to Begin Sponsoring Trump Again. CNN : "... Donald Trump will participate in a CNN presidential town hall next week in New Hampshire, the network announced Monday. 'CNN This Morning' anchor Kaitlan Collins will moderate the event at St. Anselm College, which will air at 9 p.m. ET on May 10 and will feature the former president taking questions from New Hampshire Republicans and undeclared voters who plan to vote in the 2024 GOP presidential primary. This will be Trump's first appearance on CNN since the 2016 presidential campaign." ~~~

     ~~~ Yes, CNN Solicited Trump. Alex Isenstadt of Politico: "The former president and his staff ... have been in talks with sit-downs with several other notable outlets, including NBC. He has also invited an array of reporters from mainstream outlets to fly with him on his plane to and from campaign events.... But the decision to participate in the town hall is also an implicit rebuke of Fox News.... A person familiar with the discussions said CNN approached the Trump campaign several months ago, and talks between the two sides continued on until Monday, when the plans were locked down." ~~~

     ~~~ Everything's Going Very Smoothly with NBC. Gideon Rubin of the Raw Story: "... Donald Trump during a press gaggle aboard his plane after his Waco, Texas rally in March blew up at NBC News reporter Vaughn Hillyard, according audio obtained by Vanity Fair.... Hillyard was questioning Trump over his Truth Social posts in which the former president had warned of 'potential death and destruction' if he was indicted, and when Hillyard asked Trump for his version of events the former president said. 'I don't want to talk to you.'... [After Hillyard tried to ask several more questions,] Trump lost it. 'Alright, let's go, get him out of here,' Trump said. 'Outta here. Outta here.'" Trump then slammed Hillyard's phones onto a seat.

     ~~~ David Moye of the Huffington Post: "After the event was announced, Twitter users condemned CNN for giving the mendacious former Trump a free, nationwide forum." Moye republishes numerous tweets.

The Pandemic, Ctd. Michael Shear & Noah Weiland of the New York Times: "The Biden administration will end most federal Covid-19 vaccine requirements next week, rolling back a vast assertion of government power that helped bring an end to the worst public health threat in 100 years but roiled American politics in the process."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Tim Craig of the Washington Post: "Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) expanded Florida's death penalty law on Monday, signing a measure making it a capital crime to rape a child under the age of 12, a law that could set up a future U.S. Supreme Court case. Vowing Florida 'stands for the protection of children,' DeSantis signed the law during a campaign-style event in Titusville, touting his record on issues involving 'law and order.' The measure, which overwhelmingly passed the Florida legislature last month with bipartisan support, gives state prosecutors the option of seeking the death penalty if an adult is found guilty of the sexual battery of a child. The law will still go into effect even though it is unconstitutional. In 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 5 to 4 decision that struck down a Louisiana law that allowed a child rapist to be sentenced to death, barring states from executing child sex predators unless they also murdered their victims." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Ron isn't worried. He thinks this Supreme Court will reverse the 2008 decision. And I expect Ron is correct.

Florida. "Have You Left no Sense of Decency?" Lori Rozsa of the Washington Post: "One by one, many of the initial 20 arrests announced by [Florida's] Office of Election Crimes and Security have stumbled in court. Six cases have been dismissed. Five other defendants accepted plea deals that resulted in no jail time. Only one case has gone to trial, resulting in a split verdict. The others are pending. In its first nine months, the new unit made just four other arrests.... Nonetheless..., [Gov. Ron] DeSantis is moving to give the office more teeth, asking the legislature to nearly triple the division's annual budget from $1.2 million to $3.1 million.... [He also] pushed through a bill [making sure a state prosecutor had jurisdiction over the cases].... Defense attorneys say DeSantis is using the statewide prosecutor's office to circumvent the role of local prosecutors, who have declined to pursue such cases." Nope, no sense of decency. (Also linked yesterday.)

Montana. Jacey Fortin of the New York Times: "A state representative in Montana asked a court on Monday to allow her to return to the House floor for the rest of the state's legislative session, arguing that her First Amendment rights had been violated after an escalating standoff over her remarks on transgender issues. Representative Zooey Zephyr, a Democrat from Missoula, was barred last week from participating in deliberations in the House chamber after she made impassioned comments in opposition to a ban on hormone treatments and surgical care for transgender minors. The bill, which passed, has since been signed by Gov. Greg Gianforte, a Republican. MB: And bully. ~~~

"Montana is one of several states where Republican lawmakers have sought this year to prohibit hormone treatments and surgical care for transgender minors.... Republican legislators have characterized transition care as harmful and experimental.... But major medical organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, support this care and say that bans pose serious mental health risks to young people. The increase in state legislation is also part of a long-term campaign by national conservative organizations that see transgender rights as an issue around which they can harness some voters' anger, and raise money." MB: It is refreshing to see a straight news NYT story make clear that this type of legislation is self-serving bull.

Marie: On the day reports emerged of the mass shooting in Cleveland, Texas, Forrest M. opined there would be no "thoughts and prayers" because the victims weren't straight, white & mostly male. Well, Forrest, Governor Greg has not let you down: ~~~

~~~ Texas. Philip Bump of the Washington Post: "On Friday night, a man living in a small town north of Houston allegedly responded to a request from his neighbor to stop firing his rifle by shooting and killing five people in his neighbor's house, including a 9-year-old boy.... On Twitter, [Gov. Greg] Abbott announced a reward for his capture -- including identifying both [the shooter] and the five victims as undocumented immigrants. For what it's worth, that last point appears not to be true. Diana Velasquez Alvarado, 21, seems to have been a legal permanent resident of the country. If the slain boy was born in the United States, he would be a citizen; if not, he would have fallen into the group of minor immigrants that has been long segmented out of discussions about illegal immigration.... The point is that Abbott and his team decided to highlight the immigration status of five people killed in a mass killing.... Had all parties involved been U.S. citizens, that would not have been mentioned by Abbott at all." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Arelis Hernández & Emily Wax-Thibodeaux of the Washington Post: "Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s decision to identify five mass killing victims as 'illegal immigrants' is part of a political evolution for the once-judicious Republican who has escalated his rhetoric to match the rightward moves of the Republican Party. Abbott's comments -- for which his office had to apologize Monday because they were inaccurate -- drew a torrent of outrage, but with Texas Republicans firmly in control of the state, his opponents have had few options to hold him accountable.... When speaking about immigration, he has consistently heightened 'invasion' rhetoric and challenged constitutional norms around immigration, tying migrants to lawlessness and busing them across the country to drop them in Democratic areas." Politico's story is here.

Washington State. Reid Epstein of the New York Times: "Gov. Jay Inslee of Washington State, the nation's longest-serving current governor and one of the Democratic Party's leading climate defenders, will not seek a fourth term in office next year, he announced on Monday. 'Serving the people as governor of Washington State has been my greatest honor,' he said. 'During a decade of dynamic change, we've made Washington a beacon for progress for the nation. I'm ready to pass the torch.' Mr. Inslee, 72, who before becoming governor was elected to Congress eight times, ran for his party's 2020 presidential nomination on a platform of sharply reducing the country's reliance on fossil fuels."

Way Beyond

Sudan. Ruth Maclean of the New York Times: "Thousands of people have descended on a port city in eastern Sudan in recent days, fleeing the violence in the capital and trying to secure their escape aboard vessels heading over the Red Sea to Saudi Arabia. The coastal city of Port Sudan -- the country's biggest seaport -- has been transformed into a hub for displaced people with people stringing together makeshift tents, packing an amusement park for shelter and waiting for help in three-digit heat. The conflict that erupted on April 15 between the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group, has killed more than 500 civilians, according to the World Health Organization, and has thrust Africa's third-largest nation into chaos, with many people displaced but unsure of how to escape the violence. The true number of casualties is likely much higher." (Also linked yesterday.)

Ukraine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of developments Tuesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here. ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live briefings for Tuesday are here: "More than 20,000 Russian troops have been killed and 80,000 have been wounded in Ukraine since December, the U.S. National Security Council said. The numbers are based on 'intelligence that we were able to corroborate over a period of some time,' said NSC spokesman John Kirby. He declined to discuss Ukrainian casualties.... Of the 20,000 Russians killed, half belonged to the Kremlin-backed Wagner mercenary group involved in the heavy fighting in Bakhmut, U.S. officials said. Many Wagner fighters are ex-convicts who did not receive sufficient military training, U.S. officials have said.... New Zealand's new prime minister had his first phone call with [President] Zelensky since becoming leader. Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, who is visiting the United Kingdom to attend King Charles III's coronation, will shake hands with New Zealand troops who are helping to train Ukrainian forces in Britain."

News Ledes

CNN: "The man accused of fatally shooting five people, including a 9-year-old boy, in a Texas home has been taken into custody after a dayslong manhunt, two law enforcement sources told CNN." This is a breaking news story at 8:45 pm ET. ~~~

     ~~~ The report has been expanded: "The suspect, Francisco Oropesa, was found in a house [in Conroe, Texas,] just miles from the home in Cleveland, Texas, where the killings took place, the San Jacinto County Sheriff's Office said. Oropesa -- who is a Mexican national -- was 'caught hiding in a closet underneath some laundry,' Sheriff Greg Capers told reporters during a Tuesday night press conference.... The suspect will be held on five counts of murder with bond set at $5 million, the sheriff said."

AP: "Authorities searching a rural Oklahoma property for two missing teenagers discovered the bodies of seven people Monday, including the suspected remains of the teens and a convicted sex offender who was sought along with them, the local sheriff said. Okmulgee County Sheriff Eddy Rice said the state medical examiner will have to confirm the identities of the victims, but 'we believe that we have found the persons.' He said the bodies were believed to include those of 14-year-old Ivy Webster and 16-year-old Brittany Brewer, along with Jesse McFadden, the felon authorities had said the teens were traveling with.... [Rice] declined to provide details of how they died or other details. The bodies were found during a search near the town of Henryetta, a town of about 6,000 located about 90 miles (145 kilometers) east of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokesman Gerald Davidson said."