March 6, 2023

Late Morning Update:

Charlie Savage of the New York Times: "In appearing before the Jan. 6 committee last year, Cassidy Hutchinson, the former White House aide who recounted ... Donald J. Trump's conduct in the lead-up to the attacks on the Capitol, shared how her original lawyer had tried to influence her testimony.... She ... said that Mr. Passantino had pressured her to remain loyal and protect the former president. Now, several dozen prominent legal figures, including past presidents of the American Bar Association and the District of Columbia Bar, are seeking to revoke Mr. Passantino's license to practice law. The move reflects intensifying scrutiny over whether Mr. Passantino, a former Trump White House ethics lawyer whose legal fees were covered by Mr. Trump's political action committee, violated his own professional duty, along with a host of other ethical requirements, by putting the interests of a third party over that of his client. In a 22-page complaint filed on Monday with D.C.'s Board on Professional Responsibility, prominent lawyers accused Mr. Passantino of the crimes of subornation of perjury, obstruction of justice, witness tampering and bribery. The latter referred in part to Ms. Cassidy's allegation that his advice to say little to the panel was accompanied by assurances that she would get a 'really good job in "Trump world."'"

Presidential Race 2024. Look, Ma, the Chickens Can Do the Side-Step! David Siders & Meredith McGraw of Politico: "If any subject is verboten in the early stages of the Republican presidential primary, it's the insurrection that once served as a defining point in 2024 frontrunner Donald Trump's career. Whereas Republicans once talked openly about it being disqualifying for the former president, today it is little more than a litmus test in GOP circles of a candidate's MAGA bona fides. None of them want[s] any part of it.... The Jan. 6 avoidance is not just in [Ron] DeSantis' book. [where he never mentions the insurrection, while self-describing as an unapologetic truth-teller]. Mike Pence ... is preparing to resist a grand jury subpoena for testimony about Trump's efforts to overturn the election, seeing only political landmines in testifying. Nikki Haley, asked on a podcast recently if she would describe the riot at the Capitol as an 'insurrection, a riot, or a coup,' went instead with a more banal -- and safer -- description: 'a sad day in America.'" Read on. ~~~

~~~ Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "Apparently, neither the media nor supposedly sober Republicans have learned anything from the past. Trump gave a bonkers speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday.... From the coverage, you would never understand how incoherent he sounds, how far divorced his statements are from reality, and how entirely abnormal this all is.... The press and Republicans' mutual distaste for candidly acknowledging Trump's break with reality and the danger he poses to democracy was on full display on the Sunday shows.... Here are Republicans, some of whom are considering runs for the presidency, who somehow expect to get through a campaign without mentioning the single most disqualifying thing about the leader in the race (other than his mental unfitness): He betrayed the country. Such timidity is itself disqualifying for someone seeking the presidency." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: BTW, Forrest M. has anecdotal evidence in Monday's Comments on how this is playing out in his neck of the woods.

Hannah Natanson of the Washington Post: "Excerpts from Mary Wollstonecraft's 'A Vindication of the Rights of Woman.' Passages from Christopher Columbus's journal describing his brutal treatment of Indigenous peoples. A data set on the New York Police Department's use of force, analyzed by race. These are among the items teachers have nixed from their lesson plans this school year and last, as they face pressure from parents worried about political indoctrination and administrators wary of controversy, as well as a spate of new state laws restricting education on race, gender and LGBTQ issues." An Iowa school superintendent didn't know if teachers could teach or imply or guide students to infer that slavery was wrong, since that was an opinion, not a fact. "The quiet censorship comes as debates over whether and how to instruct children about race, racism, U.S. history, gender identity and sexuality inflame politics.... A study published by the Rand Corp. in January found that nearly one-quarter of a nationally representative sample of 8,000 English, math and science teachers reported revising their instructional materials to limit or eliminate discussions of race and gender. Educators most commonly blamed parents and families for the shift, according to the Rand study." Read on. I find this story more heartbreaking than maddening. If you care about what your children are learning, don't worry. They aren't learning much.

Trae Crowder, the Redneck Liberal, recorded this video before Tennessee governor & one-time drag artiste Bill Lee (R) signed the anti-drag performance bill, but Crowder's message hasn't lost any of its value:

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Matt Viser of the Washington Post: "President Biden came to [Selma, Alabama, a] seminal site of the civil rights movement -- one that lead to the signing of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 -- to try to inject urgency into changing the country's voting rights laws once more.Standing near the Edmund Pettus Bridge, where on March 7, 1965, marchers advocating for voting rights were attacked by police in a day that has become known as 'Bloody Sunday,' Biden said that the right to vote 'was under assault' by a conservative Supreme Court, a host of state legislatures and those who continue to deny the 2020 presidential election results.... Biden is attempting to elevate an issue that he unsuccessfully fought for since the start of his presidency, channeling evocative images to urge Congress to pass voting rights changes despite hardened political divisions on Capitol Hill." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The Guardian's story is here. ~~~

~~~ President Biden's full remarks:

From a Galaxy Far, Far Away

Guilty Until Falsely Convicted Based on Loony Witness Testimony. Lauren Sforza of the Hill: "Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said House Republicans are laying the foundation to restrict funding to the FBI as the House subcommittee launches its investigation into the 'weaponization' of the federal government. Jordan, who chairs both the House Judiciary Committee and the subcommittee on weaponization, told Maria Bartiromo on Fox's 'Sunday Morning Futures' that Republicans will use the 'power of the purse' against the FBI amid their investigation into the agency.... Jordan cited a Fox News report [in which] a former FBI agent, Garret O'Boyle...," made claims the FBI was targeting anti-abortion protesters.... "House Democrats on the Judiciary Committee issued a report earlier this week arguing [that O'Boyle was among] the three witnesses ... [who] did not offer any evidence that the FBI has committed any wrongdoing, but instead gave their opinions."

Daniel Dale of CNN: Donald "Trump's lengthy address to [CPAC,] the right-wing gathering in Maryland, was filled with wildly inaccurate claims about his own presidency, Joe Biden's presidency, foreign affairs, crime, elections and other subjects. Here is a fact check of 23 of the false claims Trump made. (And that's far from the total.)"

Azi Paybarah & Devlin Barrett of the Washington Post: “Paul J. Manafort ... agreed to pay $3.15 million to settle a civil case brought by the Justice Department last year over foreign bank accounts that he did not declare to United States officials, according to his lawyer and court documents.... The settlement was announced in paperwork dated Feb. 22 and filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida where Manafort resides. It was reported Saturday by the Florida Bulldog, a nonprofit website. The settlement would end a civil suit the Justice Department filed in April 2022 seeking to force Manafort to pay millions of dollars in fines and interest 'for his willful failure to timely report his financial interest in foreign bank accounts.'"

Presidential Race 2024. Veronica Stracqualursi of CNN: "Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said Sunday that he will not seek the Republican nomination for president in 2024, worried that his candidacy in a crowded primary could help ... Donald Trump clear the GOP field and win the nomination.... After leaving office in January, Hogan said that he was seriously considering running for president. But on Sunday, the longtime Trump critic said that 'the stakes are too high for me to risk being part of another multicar pileup that could potentially help Mr. Trump recapture the nomination.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Not-So-Healthy Choice. Laura Reiley of the Washington Post: The FDA announced in December that it "planned to change the rules for nutrition labels that go on the front of food packages to indicate that they are 'healthy.' Dozens of other food manufacturers and industry organizations have joined Conagra [which makes 'Healthy Choice' meals] in claiming the new standards are draconian and will result in most current food products not making the cut, or in unappealing product reformulations. Under the proposal, manufacturers can label their products 'healthy' only if they contain a meaningful amount of food from at least one of the main food groups such as fruit, vegetable or dairy, as recommended by federal dietary guidelines. They must also adhere to specific limits for certain nutrients, such as saturated fat, sodium and added sugars.... The Consumer Brands Association, which represents 1,700 major food companies from General Mills to Pepsi, wrote a 54-page comment to the FDA in which it stated the proposed rule was overly restrictive and would result in a framework that would automatically disqualify a vast majority of packaged foods." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: In fairness to Healthy Choice, et al., the photo the Post linked with the story appears to be a TV dinner a la Swanson's ca. 1958. (Swanson's is the brand that made TuKKKer Carlson the snickering rich brat he is.) Healthy Choice meals (and I eat them often) don't look anything like TuKKKer's fare.

When the FLOTUS Was a Lesbian. Gillian Brockell of the Washington Post: "When [Evangeline Simpson Whipple] died in 1930, she was buried at her request in Italy next to the love of her life -- a woman with whom she had a relationship that spanned nearly 30 years. That woman, Rose Cleveland, had served as first lady.... When Grover Cleveland took office in 1885, he was a nearly 50-year-old bachelor, a fact that almost derailed his campaign when rumors spread that he had fathered a child out of wedlock. (He had.) Protocol for unmarried or widowed presidents called for a female relative to fill the role of first lady. In stepped his sister, Rose.... Fourteen months in, Rose was relieved of her duties when the president married his 21-year-old ward, Frances Folsom." Rose's love letters to Evangeline have been collected & published in a new book "and make clear that they were more than just friends, according to its editors." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Brockell notes that the couple "didn't hide their relationship from family, and it appears to have been accepted." Evangeline was wealthy & Rose was well-off & well-educated. I had sort of forgotten that being anti-gay is a lower- and middle-class thing. And it has been for longer than any of us can remember.

Beyond the Beltway

Richard Fausset & Danny Hakim of the New York Times: "... several bills [under consideration] in the Georgia legislature ... would make it easier to remove local prosecutors.... Two of the measures ... would create a new state oversight board that could punish or remove prosecutors for loosely defined reasons, including 'willful misconduct.' A third would sharply reduce the number of signatures required to seek a recall of a district attorney. The proposals are part of a broader push by conservative lawmakers around the country to rein in prosecutors whom they consider too liberal...."

Fascista. Patricia Mazzei of the New York Times: "Since his landslide re-election victory..., [an emboldened Gov. Ron DeSantis (R)] has proposed or endorsed policy after policy that has enthralled his supporters and alarmed his detractors: Allow Floridians to carry concealed weapons without a permit or training. Ban diversity and equity programs at public universities. Expand school vouchers. Allow a death sentence without a unanimous jury. Make it easier to sue the news media. Further restrict abortion.... Most -- and perhaps all -- of Mr. DeSantis's wishes will likely soon be granted by the Republican-held State Legislature...." A Politico story is here. The Guardian's story is here.

Georgia. Sean Keenan & Eliza Fawcett of the New York Times: "Hundreds of activists breached the site of a proposed police and fire training center in Atlanta's wooded outskirts on Sunday, burning police and construction vehicles and a trailer, and setting off fireworks toward officers stationed nearby. The Atlanta Police Department said 35 people had been detained, adding that agitators also threw large rocks, bricks and Molotov cocktails. The destruction occurred on the second day of what is supposed to be a weeklong series of demonstrations to protest the building of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, a planned 85-acre campus owned by the city."

Maryland. Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "A fuel tanker crash and explosion that killed the truck's driver and damaged six homes on Saturday probably will require a cleanup of contaminated soil at the site along Route 15 in Frederick County, Maryland Department of the Environment officials said Sunday.... County police reported extensive damage to one home and three vehicles, and minor damage to five other homes and two vehicles." With video & photos.

Ohio. Mirna Alsharif of NBC News & the AP: "There were no hazardous materials on board the 28 cars of a Norfolk Southern train that derailed in Springfield, Ohio on Saturday evening, officials said in a news briefing. This is the second derailment of the company's trains in Ohio in a matter of weeks, after a train carrying dangerous chemicals derailed in East Palestine on Feb. 3. Multiple agencies responded to the train derailment in Clark County, located about 38 minutes from Columbus, at around 5 p.m. The 212-car train was headed to Birmingham, Alabama from Bellevue, Ohio, said Norfolk Southern General Manager of Operations Kraig Barner. 'None of those derailed cars were carrying hazardous material, and there were no injuries reported to the public or the two man crew operating the train,' Barner said." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie's Update: However, CNN reported on-air that some of the train's cars that did not derail did contain hazardous materials.

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al. The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Monday in Russia's war on Ukraine is here: "As the months-long battle for the besieged city of Bakhmut rages on, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky indicated that officials are preparing for the wider war against Russia to continue long into its second year. Work is already underway to shore up heating for next winter, Zelensky said, even as the early days of spring provide some relief to Ukrainians, who have suffered through a frigid winter without reliable power.... Ukrainian troops are 'continuing to inflict high casualties' against Russia's military and mercenary forces in Bakhmut, according to analysts from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), a U.S. think tank, even as they may be conducting a 'limited fighting withdrawal' from the area. Defending the city makes sense from Kyiv's perspective, 'as long as Ukrainian forces do not suffer excessive casualties' because it is wearing down Russian troops and equipment.... Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas's center-right party appears to be on track for a resounding election victory, according to the early results of Sunday's poll. Kallas has been a vocal backer of Kyiv...." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Monday are here. The Guardian's summary report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Estonia. Politico's report on the Estonian election is here.

South Korea/Japan. Michelle Lee of the Washington Post: "South Korea on Monday said it will compensate laborers who were forced to work for Japanese companies during colonization in the first half of the 20th century, a landmark move toward resolving a dispute that has bedeviled relations between the United States' closest allies in Asia for years. Seoul will establish a new foundation that will be funded by South Korean companies, rather than seeking direct payments from the Japanese firms that employed the workers. The South Korean Supreme Court in 2018 ordered the Japanese companies to pay damages to those workers. The decision drew immediate backlash from some plaintiffs and opposition party leaders, underscoring the politically fraught environment surrounding claims stemming from Japan's occupation of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945, and the historical issues that are deeply ingrained in the identities of both countries." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The story doesn't say a word about the fact that almost all of the forced laborers would have died before now. I guess we are to assume the compensation will go to the workers' heirs. But I'm making that up. It's an odd omission from a news article.

News Ledes

Washington Post: "Four U.S. citizens are missing after they were kidnapped from their vehicle by unidentified armed men in Mexico, the FBI said. The Americans came under fire shortly after they crossed the border Friday into the city of Matamoros, across from Brownsville, Tex., the FBI said in a statement posted Sunday on the website of the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City.... Matamoros ... is the second largest city in the northeastern state of Tamaulipas, across from Texas's southern tip. Tamaulipas is one of six Mexican states to which the State Department advises Americans against traveling, citing the risk of crime and kidnapping.... Heavily armed members of criminal groups often patrol border regions in the state."

New York Times: "Judy Heumann, who spent decades attacking a political establishment indifferent to the rights of disabled people and won one fight after another, ultimately joining and reforming the very establishment she once inveighed against, died on Saturday in Washington, D.C. She was 75." ~~~

     ~~~ A statement from President Biden is here.

March 5, 2023

Late Afternoon Update:

Matt Viser of the Washington Post: "President Biden came to [Selma, Alabama, a] seminal site of the civil rights movement -- one that lead to the signing of the Voting Rights Act in 1965 -- to try to inject urgency into changing the country's voting rights laws once more.Standing near the Edmund Pettus Bridge, where on March 7, 1965, marchers advocating for voting rights were attacked by police in a day that has become known as 'Bloody Sunday,' Biden said that the right to vote 'was under assault' by a conservative Supreme Court, a host of state legislatures and those who continue to deny the 2020 presidential election results.... Biden is attempting to elevate an issue that he unsuccessfully fought for since the start of his presidency, channeling evocative images to urge Congress to pass voting rights changes despite hardened political divisions on Capitol Hill." MB: I'll post a video of President Biden's speech when one becomes available.

Presidential Race 2024. Veronica Stracqualursi of CNN: "Former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan said Sunday that he will not seek the Republican nomination for president in 2024, worried that his candidacy in a crowded primary could help ... Donald Trump clear the GOP field and win the nomination.... After leaving office in January, Hogan said that he was seriously considering running for president. But on Sunday, the longtime Trump critic said that 'the stakes are too high for me to risk being part of another multicar pileup that could potentially help Mr. Trump recapture the nomination.'"

Mirna Alsharif of NBC News & the AP: "There were no hazardous materials on board the 28 cars of a Norfolk Southern train that derailed in Springfield, Ohio on Saturday evening, officials said in a news briefing. This is the second derailment of the company's trains in Ohio in a matter of weeks, after a train carrying dangerous chemicals derailed in East Palestine on Feb. 3. Multiple agencies responded to the train derailment in Clark County, located about 38 minutes from Columbus, at around 5 p.m. The 212-car train was headed to Birmingham, Alabama from Bellevue, Ohio, said Norfolk Southern General Manager of Operations Kraig Barner. 'None of those derailed cars were carrying hazardous material, and there were no injuries reported to the public or the two man crew operating the train,' Barner said." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie's Update: However, CNN is reporting on-air that some of the train's cars that did not derail did contain hazardous materials.

"Fox & Friends" finally publicly addresses the Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit against Fox "News":

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Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump has filed a motion asking a federal judge to prevent his former vice president, Mike Pence, from testifying to a grand jury about specific issues that Mr. Trump is claiming are protected by executive privilege.... The sealed filing was made on Friday, according to the person briefed on the matter.... Mr. Pence has said he will try to fight the subpoena, but has indicated it will be under the 'speech or debate' clause of the Constitution, which applies to legislators." CNN's report is here.

Marie: I don't feel quite as sleazy linking a New York Post Page Six article (as I did yesterday) about George & Kellyanne Conway's planned divorce inasmuch as both the New York Times and Washington Post also covered it a day later. But I confess I still think it was cheesy of me and none of my business.

Peter Baker of the New York Times reports on a recording of a Fox "News" Zoom conference call among some executives and anchors that shows how they panicked after Fox called Arizona for Joe Biden & Fox viewers turned off the network. The execs soon decided that the way to "handle" the correct call was to fire the guys who made it. Oh, and not surprisingly, some Fox honchos are into paranoid conspiracy theories: "Tom Lowell, the managing editor for news, said Fox had been left 'as the canary in this nasty coal mine,' suggesting other networks had deliberately delayed calls out of malice. 'I think some outlets willfully held back calls that they probably could have made to watch us twist in the wind,' he said."

They Aren't Merely Fascists. They're Also Despicable Deplorables. Christopher Mathias of the Huffington Post: "... it ... became clear at CPAC that the Republican campaign against trans kids isn't just a mere ploy to energize its base -- it could also be the beginning of an insurgent fascist campaign to erase trans people from public life altogether. [After Sebastian Gorka & Marjorie Taylor Greene spoke against transgender medical treatment,] Michael Knowles, the host of 'The Michael Knowles Show' on The Daily Wire, gave a speech at CPAC that, at moments, sounded genocidal.... 'If [transgenderism] is false [as Knowles falsely claims it is], then for the good of society ... transgenderism must be eradicated from public life entirely,' he said. Eradicated. The crowd roared again." And there was more.

Marie: How the GOP continues to thrive baffles me. They don't just oppose Democrats; they're against most Americans: racial, ethnic & religious minorities, women of child-bearing age, the elderly, people who get sick, adults and young people who are not 100% straight, members of the news media, doctors, scientists, college professors, teachers & all government employees, including volunteers on local boards, Republican "freaks" like Jeb Bush (see Trump remark below below). And more! Odds are that you belong to at least one group Republicans mock, deride and try to "eradicate" or at least subdue.

Presidential Race 2024

Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post: "Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Saturday, [Donald] Trump reveled in his strong showing in the annual confab's 2024 presidential straw poll, winning 62 percent of the vote among the attendees.... The former president spent his wide-ranging, nearly two-hour remarks rehashing the 'America First' agenda that has played well with his base.... 'In 2016, I declared I am your voice,' he said. 'Today, I add: I am your warrior. I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed: I am your retribution.'... This year's confab was particularly dominated by conservatives backing Trump, or trying to appeal to his supporters.... Before Trump's speech, Brazil's former president, Jair Bolsonaro, a right-wing leader who was dubbed the Tropical Trump, roused crowds in the afternoon in a wide-ranging speech that touched on his efforts to expand gun rights in the country and to protect the freedom to refuse vaccinations." Politico's report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Jill Colvin, et al., of the AP: "... Donald Trump cast himself Saturday as the only Republican candidate who can build on his White House legacy but shied away from directly critiquing his potential rivals, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.... 'We had a Republican Party that was ruled by freaks, neo-cons, globalists, open borders zealots and fools. But we are never going back to the party of Paul Ryan, Karl Rove and Jeb Bush,' he said."

Michael Bender, et al., of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump said on Saturday that he would not drop out of the 2024 presidential race if he was indicted in one of several investigations he is facing.... 'Oh absolutely. I wouldn't even think about leaving,' he said, adding that he believed an indictment would increase his poll numbers.... Mr. Trump made the comments to a group of conservative media before his speech to the Conservative Political Action Coalition conference in National Harbor, Md.... In his remarks on Saturday, Mr. Trump repeatedly cast the prosecutors as corrupt and politically motivated, citing no evidence. As he has for years, he cast the investigations not as result of his own actions, but as an effort to silence the voices of his supporters. 'I didn't know the word "subpoena,"' said Mr. Trump, who has sued and been sued hundreds and hundreds of times in civil courts and was first investigated by federal officials in the 1970s in Brooklyn."

Reid Epstein of the New York Times: "On Saturday [Marianne Williamson] announced herself as the first Democratic challenger to President Biden -- who hasn't said himself that he's running again. In her campaign kickoff speech, Ms. Williamson, 70..., sounded ... like a Bernie Sanders-style liberal, focused on economic justice, corporate power and what she called the intentional blindness of powerful federal government officials to poverty in America.... Few in Democratic politics are taking her entry into the race seriously."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida, the Fascist State. New York Times Editors: "... a bill that is moving through the Florida House and is based on longstanding goals of Gov. Ron DeSantis..., represents a dangerous threat to free expression in the United States." The editors go into some of the provisions of the bills, and they're no different from what you'd expect in any repressive regime like Russia or China. "A sledgehammer bill like the one in Florida, however, wielded for transparent political reasons, would create enormous damage on the way to the high court, particularly if other states decide to copy its language." MB: The problem, as I see it, is not so much the damage the bill would cause "on the way to the high court," but the damage it would cause after "the high court" approved all or some of its provisions. You won't be able to make fun of Sam Alito any more.

Nevada. Natasha Korecki of NBC News: "Nevada Democrats have ousted a slate of democratic socialists who took over the state party two years ago, ending a troubled reign marked by divisions and infighting. Judith Whitmer was booted from her position as chair in a Saturday vote, with a new slate headed by Nevada Assemblywoman Daniele Munroe-Moreno assuming control of the party. Munroe-Moreno, who is the first Black woman elected to lead Nevada Democrats, was backed by a slew of elected officials as well as the so-called Reid Machine, the powerful organization first brought together by the late Nevada Sen. Harry Reid. The results come after a tumultuous term under Whitmer, who repeatedly clashed with key figures in the party. Establishment Democrats charged that she had at times undermined her own party, including Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, who was in a close re-election race last cycle."

South Carolina. Southern Gothic, Ctd. Gillian Brockell of the Washington Post: Convicted murderer Alex "Murdaugh faces dozens of charges related to financial crimes, and documentaries have highlighted a number of additional deaths that are or could be connected to the family, including of a housekeeper and two classmates of Murdaugh's children. There's also a suicide-for-hire plot Murdaugh is alleged to have arranged, so that a hefty life insurance payout would go to his surviving son, nicknamed Buster. Incredibly, the suspicious 1940 death of Murdaugh's great-grandfather, Randolph Murdaugh Sr. -- who started the family's legendary law firm -- also led to a payout benefiting his son, who was likewise nicknamed Buster.... On his way home [from a visit to a friend who lived a few towns over], at about 1 a.m. on July 19, [1940,] his car somehow came to a stop at a railroad crossing. Moments later, a freight train slammed into the car, killing him instantly, the sheriff said. He was 59.... The train's engineer testified that as the train approached, Murdaugh Sr.'s car was stopped near the tracks, and Murdaugh Sr. raised his hand and seemed to wave at him, according to DeWitt. Moments before the train crossed, the engineer said, the car sped up and then stopped directly on the tracks."

Texas. Nicky Robertson of CNN: "Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas was censured Saturday by the state GOP for 'for lack of fidelity to Republican principles and priorities,' the party announced. The Texas Republican Party took issue with several House votes and stances by the second-term congressman, including his vote for the Respect for Marriage Act, his opposition to a GOP-led border security measure and the fact that he was the lone House Republican to vote against his conference's rules package earlier this year. Gonzales represents Texas' 23rd Congressional District, which stretches along the US-Mexico border between El Paso and San Antonio. The district is home to Uvalde, where a mass shooting at an elementary school last year killed 19 children and two teachers. After the shooting, Gonzales voted in favor of bipartisan gun-safety legislation -- another vote cited in the censure resolution."

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al. The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Sunday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "A grueling seven-month battle for the front-line city of Bakhmut is coming down to street-by-street fighting and skirmishes on rural roads and settlements on its outskirts, where Ukrainian forces are digging narrow trenches into the muddy ground to fortify their positions. Ukrainian officials say Russian forces have not seized full control of the city, whose capture would offer the Kremlin a symbolic victory after months of battleground setbacks and Ukrainian counteroffensives.... Ukrainian resupply routes out of Bakhmut are 'increasingly limited,' according to the British Defense Ministry."

Israel. Bar Peleg, et al., of Haaretz: "Despite the heightened police presence and the force used by officers against protesters earlier in the week, over 180,000 Israelis protested the government's planned judicial overhaul throughout the country on Saturday night, for the ninth week in a row. After the demonstration ended, protesters attempted to cross the barricade that blocked off the Ayalon Highway in Tel Aviv. Police tried to obstruct those who broke through, but several thousand people made their way onto the main road and began marching."

News Lede

Washington Post: "Storms have knocked out power for more than 1 million Americans and caused at least 10 deaths, after heavy winds and possible tornadoes pummeled Kentucky, Michigan and other parts of the South and Midwest.... Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said Saturday that at least five Kentuckians had died as a result of the storm after the state had wind gusts of more than 70 mph and flash flooding. In Alabama, three people were killed by falling trees, and storm-related deaths were also reported in Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee, according to the Associated Press." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yeah, well, I have 14" of snow to shovel from yesterday's storm here in the Northeast, and it snowed a little last night, too.

March 4, 2023

Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "President Biden and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany on Friday showed a united front on the war in Ukraine, vowing to keep Western support intact amid mounting concerns that China could move to supply weapons to Moscow. Speaking to reporters before a private meeting in the Oval Office, Mr. Biden said that both leaders would work in 'lock step' for as long as it takes to provide military support to Kyiv.... In a statement on Friday, the White House said that the two leaders discussed their 'commitment to impose costs on Russia for its aggression for as long as necessary,' and that they 'exchanged perspectives on other global issues,' without naming China.... Still, Mr. Scholz arrived in Washington hours after speaking to the German Parliament and directly calling on Beijing -- his country's largest trading partner -- to 'use your influence in Moscow to press for the withdrawal of Russian troops.'... Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said on Friday that 'every step China takes toward Russia makes it harder for China with Europe and other countries around the world.'" ~~~

~~~ Glenn Thrush of the New York Times: "Attorney General Merrick B. Garland made an unannounced visit to Ukraine on Friday to reaffirm America's commitment to help hold Russia responsible for war crimes, a Justice Department spokeswoman said. Mr. Garland held several meetings with President Volodymyr Zelensky and foreign law enforcement officials in Lviv, while attending the United for Justice Conference, the department said in an email. During the conference, Mr. Garland 'reaffirmed our determination to hold Russia accountable for crimes committed in its unjust and unprovoked invasion against its sovereign neighbor,' the email said." More on Russia's war against Ukraine linked below under Way Beyond the Beltway. CNN's report is here.

Zolan Kanno-Youngs of the New York Times: "Nearly 60 years after one of the first Black officers in the Special Forces was nominated -- and then overlooked -- for the nation's highest military honor, President Biden on Friday awarded the Medal of Honor to that officer, Col. Paris Davis, for exemplifying 'everything our nation is at our best.... Brave and big hearted. Determined and devoted. Selfless and steadfast. American,' Mr. Biden said of Colonel Davis, who refused to leave behind his fellow soldiers in the midst of battle after suffering multiple gun shot injuries.... Arriving in Vietnam just a month after the bloody civil rights march in Selma, Ala., Colonel Davis and three other Special Forces troops led South Vietnamese volunteers to strike an enemy camp on June 18, 1965, when they came under fire. Even after a grenade blasted off part of his trigger finger and several other soldiers were shot down, he kept fighting. When reinforcements arrived and he was ordered to evacuate, he refused to leave before saving his medic. All four of the Special Forces soldiers made it out alive." ~~~

Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "President Biden had a cancerous lesion removed from his chest during his physical last month, the president's doctor said Friday. The existence of the lesion was included in the summary of Mr. Biden's physical at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in mid-February. On Friday, Dr. Kevin C. O'Connor, the president's longtime physician, said a biopsy confirmed that it was basal cell carcinoma, a common and relatively unaggressive form of skin cancer." An AP story is here.

Joe Jacquez of the Hill: "Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi criticized President Biden's handling of a GOP-led resolution that would overturn parts of a District of Columbia crime bill, decrying that he should have given Democrats 'a heads up.' 'If he was going to do it I wish he would've told us first, because this was a hard vote for the House members,' Pelosi said at a University of Chicago event on Friday, after being asked whether she agreed with Biden on the bill. 'And it's a hard vote for the Senate members. And the mayor of District of Columbia even differed from the legislators who passed it, so it wasn't that clear.'... But if the president's going to do it, hey, could you give us a heads up too in the House?'"

Hannah Dreier & Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "Members of Congress are pressing for stricter laws to prevent and penalize the use of child labor and tougher vetting by the Biden administration of adults who take custody of unaccompanied migrant children, as revelations about the exploitation of underage migrants by employers have prompted outrage among policymakers. Days after an investigation by The New York Times revealed the explosive growth of migrant child labor in the United States, federal and state enforcement agencies have begun a crackdown on companies that employ children, and the Biden administration is under pressure to make broader changes to the way it deals with minors who arrive in the country without their parents. Top Senate Democrats sent a letter Friday demanding answers from the secretaries of the federal health and labor agencies by April 1, saying they were 'deeply disturbed' that 'large numbers of unaccompanied noncitizen children are being placed with exploitative sponsors and working long hours in dangerous conditions.'... Senator Richard J. Durbin, the No. 2 Senate Democrat and chairman of the Judiciary Committee..., and other Democrats also are proposing tough new legislation to increase maximum civil fines and criminal penalties for violations of child labor laws, as well as make it more difficult for employers to get around existing prohibitions against hiring minors."

First, Indict All the Lawyers. Jacqueline Alemany, et al., of the Washington Post: "Federal prosecutors investigating efforts to overturn the 2020 election have asked witnesses extensive questions about the actions of Rudy Giuliani.... Investigators looking into classified documents taken to Mar-a-Lago ... have sought to force testimony from another Trump lawyer, Evan Corcoran, by saying there is evidence that the former president used the attorney's legal services in furtherance of a crime. And prosecutors have repeatedly sought information on the actions of yet another Trump lawyer, Boris Epshteyn, in connection with both classified documents and Trump's false electors scheme.... They have quizzed multiple Trump attorneys involved with the documents case...."

Judge Curbs McCarthy Plan to Aid & Abet Insurrectionists. Kyle Cheney of Politico: "A federal judge on Friday denied a Jan. 6 defendant's request to delay her imminent trial in order to review thousands of hours of security footage recently made available by Speaker Kevin McCarthy. U.S. District Court Judge James Boasberg said he understood why Sara Carpenter -- who is facing two felony charges for her actions at the Capitol -- would like time to review the material. But he said she had failed to explain why any additional footage of her movements inside the building would be exculpatory, particularly when prosecutors had already turned over footage of the vast majority of Carpenter's 34 minutes inside the building. Boasberg ... -- who is set to become Washington D.C.'s chief district court judge later this month -- ... worried that widely permitting Jan. 6 defendants to slow down their criminal proceedings in order to review this footage could 'derail dozens of trials that are set in the next few months.'"

Casey Gannon of CNN: "A New York man who assaulted former Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police Officer Michael Fanone during the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol pleaded guilty on Friday to several felony charges. Thomas Sibick, 37, pleaded guilty to assaulting, resisting or impeding of an officer and two counts of theft. On January 6, Sibick, along with others, attacked Fanone and forcibly took his badge and radio. Prosecutors said that Sibick falsely claimed to the FBI that he tried to help Fanone and used the emergency button on the radio to signal help. Yet evidence showed that Sibick did not press the button until 16 minutes after Fanone was escorted to safety.... Prosecutors also said that Sibick was not truthful about what he did with Fanone's badge and radio following the attack on the Capitol. While he told law enforcement he threw Fanone's badge in a dumpster in Buffalo, New York, investigators later learned that Sibick had buried Fanone's badge in his backyard. The badge was ultimately returned to investigators covered in dirt."

Daniella Silva of NBC News: "The U.S. Capitol Police confiscated an assault-style 'ghost gun' and a handgun capable of automatic fire during the arrests of two people near the Capitol, police said Friday. Police said they found the M4-style 'ghost gun' and a 'Glock handgun with a full auto switch' on Thursday during the arrests of two suspects while patrolling the complex.... Kwame T. Keith, 24, of Hyattsville, Maryland, and Justin B. Campos, 19, of Landover, Maryland, were arrested after police encountered them while they were in a stolen car, police said. 'The arrests were made a short walk from the Congressional Buildings and across the street from television studios Members of Congress frequently use,' [a police] statement said."

Jane Timm of NBC News: "Two progressive groups want the Federal Election Commission to investigate Fox Corp. and ... Donald Trump's 2020 campaign for breaking campaign finance laws. On Friday, End Citizens United PAC filed a complaint with the FEC arguing that Fox Corp. chair Rupert Murdoch broke the law when he shared Joe Biden's campaign ad and debate strategy with Trump adviser Jared Kushner.... According to a [Dominion Voting system] filing citing Murdoch's sworn deposition, the Fox boss admitted to providing a preview of the ads with Kushner before they were public, as well as sharing Biden's debate strategy during the 2020 campaign.... 'Fox Corporation's blatant and cavalier act is a prohibited corporate contribution. The commission must immediately investigate,' wrote End Citizens United President Tiffany Muller.... Media Matters for America also filed an FEC complaint Friday against the two entities, alleging that Fox made 'illegal corporate in-kind contribution.'"

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. "Mostly Crickets."Katie Robertson & Stuart Thompson of the New York Times: "Over the past two weeks, legal filings containing private messages and testimony from Fox hosts and executives revealed that many of them had serious doubts that Democrats stole the 2020 presidential election through widespread voter fraud, even as those claims were made repeatedly on Fox's shows. The revelations, made public in a defamation lawsuit against Fox brought by Dominion Voting Systems, have generated headlines around the world. But in the conservative media world? Mostly crickets. On 26 of the most popular conservative television news networks, radio shows, podcasts and websites, only four -- The National Review, Townhall, The Federalist and Breitbart News == have mentioned the private messages from Fox News hosts that disparaged election fraud claims since Feb. 16, when the first batch of court filings were released publicly, according to a review by The New York Times. The majority -- 18 in all, including Fox News itself -- did not cover the lawsuit at all with their own staff. (Some of those 18 published wire stories originally written by The Associated Press or other services.)... One of those, The Gateway Pundit, published three articles that included additional unfounded allegations about Dominion...."

From the Gossip Page. Oli Coleman & Ian Mohr of the New York Post's Page Six: "Page Six hears that Kellyanne Conway, the longtime advisor to ... Donald Trump, and George Conway, the longtime tormentor of President Trump, have decided to divorce after 22 years of marriage."

Vaugh Hillyard & Dareh Gregorian of NBC News: "Nick Fuentes, the antisemitic white nationalist provocateur who dined with ... Donald Trump last year, was 'removed' from the premises of the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland, the chair of the group that stages the event said Friday. 'We removed Nick Fuentes from his attempt to attend our conference. His hateful racist rhetoric and actions are not consistent with the mission of CPAC,' Matt Schlapp said in a statement posted on Instagram."

Presidential Race 2024

Isaac Arnsdorf & Meryl Kornfield of the Washington Post: "Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley stepped into the hallway after speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Friday to supporters asking for selfies and autographs -- and, from others, a less friendly greeting. 'We love Trump, we love Trump!' a crowd around her started chanting. Some Haley supporters shouted her name back as the former U.N. ambassador escaped with staff to an elevator. The dust-up showed the risks of taking the primary fight to what has clearly become Trump's home turf. Though CPAC has long been seen as a big-tent forum for the conservative movement and a mandatory cattle call for presidential hopefuls, the annual conference has increasingly grown into a stomping ground for the 45th president and his 'Make America Great Again' wing of the GOP. Trump will speak at the event Saturday." The report goes on to describe the Trumpy scene at the "conference."

The Jerk Who Dares Not Say His Name. Aarone Blake of the Washington Post: "... Mike Pompeo tested quite a message [at CPAC] Friday. 'Don't hand that government more power under the guise of conservatism,' the likely GOP presidential contender and former secretary of state said. 'We shouldn't look for larger-than-life personalities, but rather we should fight power in the rooms like this one.' Pompeo continued: 'We can't become the left, following celebrity leaders with their own brand of identity politics -- those with fragile egos who refuse to acknowledge reality.... We can't shift blame to others, but must accept the responsibility that comes to those of us who step forward and lead.'" Blake goes on to break down Pompeo's very personal attack on Donald Trump.

Larry Neumeister of the AP: "A former U.S. Army private from Kentucky who was devoted to a violent extremist group seeking to erode or destroy Western civilization was sentenced to the maximum 45 years in prison Friday for plotting a murderous terrorist attack on his paratrooper unit. Ethan Melzer's hands trembled as the judge said he deserved the maximum because of the lasting harm he caused by sharing U.S. military secrets with other followers of a radical violent group known as the Order of Nine Angles, or 09A, and other terrorist groups. U.S. District Judge Gregory H. Woods rejected the 24-year-old's claim to be a remorseful, reformed man, saying it was more likely he was 'playing another role' in pursuit of leniency just as he had 'played soldier' so he could conspire to try to murder fellow paratroopers."

Beyond the Beltway

Florida. Andrew Kaczynski, et al., of CNN: "An appointee to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis&' new oversight board in control of Disney's special tax district called homosexuality 'evil' last year and shared a baseless conspiracy theory that tap water could be making more people gay. On Monday, the Republican governor appointed Ron Peri, an Orlando-based former pastor and the CEO of The Gathering -- a Christian ministry focused on outreach to men -- as one of five people who will now oversee the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the government body that has given Disney unique powers in Central Florida for more than half a century." MB: In case you were wondering what a DeSantis administration would look like. I know it's wrong to laugh at people who are so dangerous & hateful, but it's hard not to suspect Peri is having an affair with the Culligan man.

Ohio. What Could Possibly Go Wrong? Tom Perkins of the Guardian: "Contaminated soil from the site around the East Palestine train wreck in Ohio is being sent to a nearby incinerator with a history of clean air violations, raising fears that the chemicals being removed from the ground will be redistributed across the region. The new plan is 'horrifying', said Kyla Bennett, a former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) official now with the Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility non-profit. She is one among a number of public health advocates and local residents who have slammed Norfolk Southern and state and federal officials over the decision.... Environmental researchers say the combustion of vinyl chloride almost certainly created dioxins, a highly toxic chemical that can remain in the environment for years. However, the EPA has resisted calls to test for it, and the agency removed from its website the results of its in-depth soil analyses, so it's unclear which chemicals are in the soil.... The ground also likely contains PFAS, informally called 'forever chemicals' because they do not naturally break down, and no human-made method to destroy the compounds has been fully developed."

South Carolina. Nicholas Bogel-Burroughts & Jacey Fortin of the New York Times: "A judge sentenced Alex Murdaugh to life in prison on Friday for the murders of his wife and son, condemning the once-wealthy and influential Southern lawyer to spend the remainder of his life behind bars, a powerful rebuke from the rural South Carolina legal system that his family dominated for more than a century. Judge Clifton Newman handed down the sentence after berating Mr. Murdaugh for nearly 20 minutes, urging the lawyer he had previously encountered in courtrooms to come clean about the shocking crime and the lies he said Mr. Murdaugh had told to cover it up."

Utah. Sam Metz of the AP: "Utah Gov. Spencer Cox [R] said Friday that he plans to sign a measure that would effectively ban abortion clinics from operating in the state, meaning hospitals will soon be the only places where they can be provided in the state. After passing through the [Republican-controlled] state Senate on Thursday with minor amendments, it returned to the [Republican-controlled] Utah House of Representatives Friday morning, where it was approved and then sent to the governor for final approval. The move comes less than a year after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade decision, returning the power to regulate abortions to states."

Wyoming. Joanna Slater of the Washington Post: "Lawmakers in Wyoming approved measures on Thursday that will make it nearly impossible to terminate a pregnancy, part of a dramatic reshaping of laws governing abortion across the country in the post-Roe v. Wade era. The two bills prohibit abortions, with narrow exceptions including cases of rape and incest, and criminalize the use of medications to cause abortions. The bills were passed by both houses of the state legislature and await the signature of Gov. Mark Gordon (R), who has approved antiabortion measures in the past."

Way Beyond

Ukraine, et al. The Washington Post's live briefing of developments Saturday in Russia's war on Ukraine is here: "Law enforcement officials from the United States, the European Union, Britain and other jurisdictions met Friday in Lviv, including U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, who traveled to the Ukrainian city unannounced.... The United States signed an agreement designed to expand information-sharing regarding alleged Russian war crimes, involving Ukraine, Lithuania, Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia and Romania, Garland said. Meanwhile, American prosecutors are aiding their Ukrainian counterparts to build cases against war criminals.... The United States announced a new $400 million military assistance package for Ukraine that includes more ammunition for artillery, armored vehicles and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, or HIMARS.... In Bakhmut, Ukrainian forces appeared to be still in control of some parts of the city, despite claims by pro-Kremlin forces that they had encircled the town, The Washington Post reported. ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Saturday are here. The Guardian's summary report is here.