The Conversation -- September 23, 2024

     ~~~ That's actor Sam Elliott doing the voiceover. Thanks to RockyGirl for the lead.

Alexandra Marquez of NBC News: "In a bid to coax Donald Trump back onto the debate stage with Vice President Kamala Harris, Democrats plan to launch a new messaging campaign dubbing the former president a 'chicken' for saying he won't debate again. The Democratic National Committee will launch static billboards and mobile billboards. The chicken billboards, which will first appear at Trump's rally Monday in Indiana, Pennsylvania, include a digitally altered image of Trump in a chicken suit alongside the words 'There's no debate: Donald Trump's a chicken.'" ~~~

Marie: Oh, I have loved Tom Paxton since I was a girl. He could have loved me better:

But you can see why I still adore him:

"Donald Trump's Imaginary World." Ashley Parker of the Washington Post: "In Donald Trump's imaginary world, Americans can't venture out to buy a loaf of bread without getting shot, mugged or raped. Immigrants in a small Ohio town eat their neighbors' cats and dogs. World War III and economic collapse are just around the corner. And kids head off to school only to return at day's end having undergone gender reassignment surgery. The former president's imaginary world is a dark, dystopian place, described by Trump in his rallies, interviews, social media posts and debate appearances.... It is a distorted, warped and, at times, absurdist portrait of a nation where the insurrectionists who stormed the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to deadly effect were merely peaceful protesters, and where unlucky boaters are faced with the unappealing choice between electrocution or a shark attack. His extreme caricatures also serve as another way for Trump to traffic in lies and misinformation...."

This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job. -- Ryan Routh, from note found in box at friend's house ~~~

~~~ Glenn Thrush & Adam Goldman of the New York Times: "A 58-year-old man accused of trying to assassinate ... Donald J. Trump acknowledged in a prewritten note that he had planned the attack -- and even predicted his failure, according to a federal court filing on Monday. The man, Ryan W. Routh, staked out the grounds of Mr. Trump's golf course in West Palm Beach, Fla., for a month before the episode, the filing said. He positioned himself outside the fence at the sixth hole of the course on Sept. 15, before a Secret Service agent scouting one hole ahead of the former president's group spotted him and the barrel of his gun. At the time he was seen, Mr. Routh had aligned himself directly to the sixth hole, with the intention of shooting Mr. Trump from a relatively short distance with a semiautomatic rifle.... The rifle, equipped with a scope and left at the scene, had a bullet in the chamber and a total of 11 rounds. Investigators also found Mr. Routh's fingerprint on the weapon.... Mr. Routh had left the note at the house [of a friend] several months before the shooting, an indication that he had been planning the assassination for a long time."

Ohio. Brad Reed of the Raw Story: "Portage County, Ohio Sheriff Bruce Zuchowski caused an uproar earlier this month when he posted on Facebook that his supporters should 'write down' the addresses of local residents in the county who had signs supporting Vice President Kamala Harris on their lawns. Now The Daily Beast reports that Zuchowski's department has been stripped of its election security duties after multiple residents expressed discomfort with giving him any oversight role in the upcoming presidential election. The move to boot Zuchowski and his department out of election security duties came Friday when the local Portage County elections board voted to remove it in a 3-1 vote."

David Sanger & Madeleine Ngo of the New York Times: "The Biden administration announced a sweeping initiative on Monday to ban Chinese-developed software from internet-connected cars in the United States, justifying the move on national security grounds. The action is intended to prevent Chinese intelligence agencies from monitoring the movements of Americans or using the vehicles' electronics as a pathway into the U.S. electric grid or other critical infrastructure. The move, most likely the last major cutoff of Chinese products into the United States under the Biden administration, follows the same logic that resulted in the ban on Huawei telecommunications equipment and the investigations into Chinese-made cranes operating at American ports."

Melanie the Mercenary. Pamela Brown, et al., of CNN: "One of the few times [Melania Trump] has appeared at a political event [this year], she's received a six-figure paycheck -- a highly unusual move for the spouse of a candidate. The former first lady spoke at two political fundraisers for the Log Cabin Republicans this year, and she was paid $237,500 for an April event, according to ... Donald Trump's latest financial disclosure form. The payment was listed as a 'speaking engagement.' Trump's latest disclosure form said Melania Trump was paid by the Log Cabin Republicans for the April fundraiser. But it's a mystery who actually cut the check: Charles Moran, president of the Log Cabin Republicans, told CNN earlier this month the group did not put up the money for her to speak.... [The other event took place in July, and the Trump campaign has not yet filed financial disclosures for that period.] Campaign finance and government ethics experts say a payment to a presidential candidate's spouse to appear at political fundraisers in an election is unusual [and] ethically questionable...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Yes, but it's original. Who else gets paid six figures for a gig promoting her own interests while asking guests to fork over even more money to boost her interests?

~~~~~~~~~~

Presidential Race

Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "More than 700 current and former national security leaders, as well as former military officials, endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in a letter released on Sunday, arguing that only she had the temperament and values needed to serve as commander in chief. The signatories of the letter, which was organized by the group National Security Leaders for America, included former secretaries of state and secretaries of defense, former ambassadors and retired generals. They argued that ... Donald J. Trump posed a threat to both national security and the United States' democratic system. Among the most prominent names were the former defense secretaries Chuck Hagel, a Republican who served under President Barack Obama; William Cohen, a Republican who served under President Bill Clinton; and William J. Perry, a Democrat who served under Mr. Clinton.... 'This election is a choice between serious leadership and vengeful impulsiveness,' the letter said. 'It is a choice between democracy and authoritarianism. Vice President Harris defends America's democratic ideals, while former President Donald Trump endangers them.'" (Also linked yesterday.) The Guardian's story is here.

Contributor Jeanne & her daughter went to Tim Walz' rally in Bethlehem, Pa. (near Allentown). See her commentary near the end of yesterday's thread. (MB: If I'm not mistaken, Jeanne lives closer to Leesport, Pa., than to Bethlehem. Think of all of the time Jeanne & her daughter would have saved if they had popped over to Leesport to hear JayDee instead of going all the way to Bethlehem.)

This Could Be the Last Time. Lauren Irwin of the Hill: "Former President Trump said this would be his last presidential campaign and he would not run in 2028 if he loses the race this November."

NYT Reporters Notice Trump Is the Chaos Candidate. Lisa Lerer, et al., of the New York Times: "Even by the standards of a head-spinning presidential campaign, Donald J. Trump's campaign over the past two weeks has been tumultuous. A period that began when Mr. Trump pushed baseless claims from the debate stage that immigrants in Ohio were stealing and eating household pets ended with him facing attacks over his support of the Republican candidate for governor in North Carolina, who referred to himself as a 'black Nazi' on the message board of a pornographic website. In between, Mr. Trump invited Laura Loomer, a right-wing influencer known for promoting Sept. 11 conspiracy theories, to join him at events commemorating the anniversary of the attacks. He urged a government shutdown, attacked a cornerstone of his own tax policy, declared 'I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!' on social media after she endorsed his rival and -- at events intended to woo Jewish voters -- said '"the Jewish people' would be responsible if he lost the election, prompting fears of antisemitic reprisal.... [AND] Instead of calling for the country to join together and condemn political violence in the aftermath [of a second attempt to assassinate him], he ... blam[ed] what he described as the 'Communist Left Rhetoric' of President Biden and Ms. Harris for the attempts on his life." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So after two weeks of chaos & really stupid chaos, new NYT polls show that Trump is suddenly doing better in battleground states, specifically Arizona, Georgia & North Carolina. Depending upon where you live, half or more than half of the people you pass on the street are nincompoops. That's depressing.

NYT Reporter Notices Trump & Vance Are White Nationalists. Michael Bender of the New York Times: "As ... Donald J. Trump warned supporters on Saturday in Wilmington, N.C., that immigrants were 'taking your jobs,' his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, campaigned about 500 miles north in Leesport, Pa., where he told his crowd that immigrants were taking their homes -- and their children's homes. Battling in a tight race, the Trump-Vance team is sharpening the anti-immigrant nativism that fueled the former president's initial rise to power in 2016, seizing on scare tactics, falsehoods and racial stereotypes. They spread a false claim that Haitian migrants in a small Ohio city were stealing and eating the pets of their neighbors. And they are increasingly failing to draw a distinction between migrants who are in the country legally and those they call 'illegal aliens,' whom they blame for a raft of social ills." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Sadly, Trump's very good brain and JayDee's very good education didn't help them gain any insights into economics: According to Bender, JayDee said, "Our message to Kamala Harris is: Stop giving American homes to foreigners who shouldn't be in this country. Start giving them to American citizens who deserve to be here." Let's overlook the premise that only "Americans" "deserve to be here," and concentrate on the notion that Harris is "giving" "American homes to foreigners." I don't know how the Haitian workers are paying their rent, but I suspect many of them are paying from their own earnings, while many also may receive some kind of federal and/or state assistance. But however they pay the rent, whether or not it can be construed, in part, as a "gift" from Harris, the Haitian refugees are not "taking American homes." They also are not "taking your jobs." Rather, they are expanding demand for housing, thus giving both themselves and Americans more job opportunities. They are helping the economy of the communities in which they live both by increasing the demand for housing, goods and services and by adding jobs to the economy. The immigrants are growing the economy. That's a good thing. You have to be small-minded, mean and ignorant to take the positions Trump & the Bumpkin are espousiing.

Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: "Congressional leaders from both parties unveiled a short-term agreement to fund the government on Sunday, after Speaker Mike Johnson abandoned demands for a longer-term deal that also included new proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registration. The deal, which extends federal appropriations through Dec. 20, includes an additional $231 million to help the beleaguered Secret Service protect candidates during the upcoming presidential election and into next year." (Also linked yesterday.) The AP's story is here.

~~~~~~~~~~

North Carolina Gubernatorial Race. Black NAZI News. Dianne Gallagher & Daniel Strauss of CNN: "Four top operatives on Republican Mark Robinson's campaign for North Carolina governor have stepped down, the campaign announced on Sunday, days after a CNN report uncovered inflammatory comments he made on a porn website. General consultant and senior adviser Conrad Pogorzelski III, campaign manager Chris Rodriguez, finance director Heather Whillier and deputy campaign manager Jason Rizk have stepped down from the campaign." (Also linked yesterday.)

Texas Senate Race. Martha McHardy of Newsweek, republished by MSN: "Ted Cruz is losing to Colin Allred for the first time in the U.S. Senate race, according to new polling. The survey, conducted by Morning Consult between September 9 and 18, showed Allred one point ahead of Cruz, on 45 percent to his 44 percent among 2,716 likely voters. His lead was within the poll's margin of error of +/-2 percentage points." Thanks to RAS for the lead. MB: An Allred win would be such a good thing. I immediately sent his campaign a small contribution. (Also linked yesterday.)

~~~~~~~~~~

Israel/Palestine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of developments Monday in Israel's wars are here.

The Conversation -- September 22, 2024

Maggie Astor of the New York Times: “More than 700 current and former national security leaders, as well as former military officials, endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris in a letter released on Sunday, arguing that only she had the temperament and values needed to serve as commander in chief. The signatories of the letter, which was organized by the group National Security Leaders for America, included former secretaries of state and secretaries of defense, former ambassadors and retired generals. They argued that ... Donald J. Trump posed a threat to both national security and the United States’ democratic system. Among the most prominent names were the former defense secretaries Chuck Hagel, a Republican who served under President Barack Obama; William Cohen, a Republican who served under President Bill Clinton; and William J. Perry, a Democrat who served under Mr. Clinton.... 'This election is a choice between serious leadership and vengeful impulsiveness,' the letter said. 'It is a choice between democracy and authoritarianism. Vice President Harris defends America’s democratic ideals, while former President Donald Trump endangers them.'”

NYT Reporters Notice Trump Is the Chaos Candidate. Lisa Lerer, et al., of the New York Times: “Even by the standards of a head-spinning presidential campaign, Donald J. Trump’s campaign over the past two weeks has been tumultuous. A period that began when Mr. Trump pushed baseless claims from the debate stage that immigrants in Ohio were stealing and eating household pets ended with him facing attacks over his support of the Republican candidate for governor in North Carolina, who referred to himself as a 'black Nazi' on the message board of a pornographic website. In between, Mr. Trump invited Laura Loomer, a right-wing influencer known for promoting Sept. 11 conspiracy theories, to join him at events commemorating the anniversary of the attacks. He urged a government shutdown, attacked a cornerstone of his own tax policy, declared “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT!” on social media after she endorsed his rival and — at events intended to woo Jewish voters — said '”the Jewish people' would be responsible if he lost the election, prompting fears of antisemitic reprisal.... [AND] Instead of calling for the country to join together and condemn political violence in the aftermath [of a second attempt to assassinate him], he ... blam[ed] what he described as the 'Communist Left Rhetoric' of President Biden and Ms. Harris for the attempts on his life.”

NYT Reporter Notices Trump & Vance Are White Nationalists. Michael Bender of the New York Times: As ... Donald J. Trump warned supporters on Saturday in Wilmington, N.C., that immigrants were 'taking your jobs,' his running mate, Senator JD Vance of Ohio, campaigned about 500 miles north in Leesport, Pa., where he told his crowd that immigrants were taking their homes — and their children’s homes. Battling in a tight race, the Trump-Vance team is sharpening the anti-immigrant nativism that fueled the former president’s initial rise to power in 2016, seizing on scare tactics, falsehoods and racial stereotypes. They spread a false claim that Haitian migrants in a small Ohio city were stealing and eating the pets of their neighbors. And they are increasingly failing to draw a distinction between migrants who are in the country legally and those they call 'illegal aliens,' whom they blame for a raft of social ills.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Sadly, Trump's very good brain and JayDee's very good education didn't help them gain any insights into economics: According to Bender, JayDee said, “Our message to Kamala Harris is: Stop giving American homes to foreigners who shouldn’t be in this country. Start giving them to American citizens who deserve to be here.” Let's overlook the premise that only “Americans” “deserve to be here,” and concentrate on the notion that Harris is “giving” “American homes to foreigners.” I don't know how the Haitian workers are paying their rent, but I suspect many of them are paying from their own earnings, while many also may receive some kind of federal and/or state assistance. But however they pay the rent, whether or not it can be construed, in part, as a “gift” from Harris, the Haitian refugees are not “taking American homes.” They also are not “taking your jobs.” Rather, they are expanding demand for housing, thus giving both themselves and Americans more job opportunities. They are helping the economy of the communities in which they live both by increasing the demand for housing, goods and services and by adding jobs to the economy. You have to be small-minded, mean and ignorant to take the positions Trump & the Bumpkin are espousiing.

Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: “Congressional leaders from both parties unveiled a short-term agreement to fund the government on Sunday, after Speaker Mike Johnson abandoned demands for a longer-term deal that also included new proof-of-citizenship requirements for voter registration. The deal, which extends federal appropriations through Dec. 20, includes an additional $231 million to help the beleaguered Secret Service protect candidates during the upcoming presidential election and into next year.”

Black NAZI News. Dianne Gallagher & Daniel Strauss of CNN: “Four top operatives on Republican Mark Robinson’s campaign for North Carolina governor have stepped down, the campaign announced on Sunday, days after a CNN report uncovered inflammatory comments he made on a porn website. General consultant and senior adviser Conrad Pogorzelski III, campaign manager Chris Rodriguez, finance director Heather Whillier and deputy campaign manager Jason Rizk have stepped down from the campaign.”

Contributor Jeanne & her daughter went to Tim Walz' rally in Bethlehem, Pa. (near Allentown). See her commentary in today's thread.

Texas Senate Race. Martha McHardy of Newsweek, republished by MSN: "Ted Cruz is losing to Colin Allred for the first time in the U.S. Senate race, according to new polling. The survey, conducted by Morning Consult between September 9 and 18, showed Allred one point ahead of Cruz, on 45 percent to his 44 percent among 2,716 likely voters. His lead was within the poll's margin of error of +/-2 percentage points." Thanks to RAS for the lead. MB: An Allred win would be such a good thing. I'm sending his campaign a small contribution right now.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: “President Biden hosted the leaders of Australia, India and Japan at his home in Wilmington, Del., this weekend, seeking to use his fourth and final 'Quad summit' to cement the alliance between the United States and Indo-Pacific nations and to counter China’s rising influence in the region. Mr. Biden used the summit to expand both his 'cancer moonshot' initiative and the Quad Fellowship, a scholarship program designed to build ties among the next generation of scientists and technologists. The four leaders also signed a maritime agreement and announced a joint Coast Guard mission. The Quad alliance has existed for more than a decade, but Mr. Biden was the first president to convene a meeting among the leaders of the nations as a foursome.... Mr. Biden has often said that 'all politics is personal,' and the decision to open his home in Wilmington — the first time he has invited foreign leaders there — reflected his conviction that deep relationships are the best way to forge constructive alliances.”

Presidential Race

Samantha Waldenberg of CNN: “Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday accepted an invitation from CNN to debate former President Donald Trump on October 23, challenging her rival to another engagement on a public stage in the final weeks of the campaign.” The story has been updated to reflect Trump's response/ MB: I heard on the teevee (at 3pm ET Saturday) that Chickenman Trump said he would not debate Harris again. He said it was because the proposed debate would occur after early voting had commenced. Trump debated Joe Biden on October 22, 2020; i.e., after early voting had begun. And he debated Hillary Clinton on October 19, 2016, after early voting had started. (Also linked yesterday.) The Washington Post's story is here.

Maeve Reston of the Washington Post: “Former president Barack Obama headlined his first solo fundraiser for Kamala Harris in Los Angeles on Friday night, bringing in $4 million for her campaign as he framed the election as a struggle against radical forces in America that want to take the country backward. The event was part of the increasingly active role that Obama is playing in Harris’s effort as he wields his popularity within the Democratic Party to power grassroots fundraising and to galvanize younger voters to turn out in what could be a margin-of-error race.” 

Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood. Neil Vigdor & Michael Gold of the New York Times: “Speaking for just over an hour at a boisterous rally on an airport tarmac in Wilmington, N.C., Mr. Trump made no mention of [his designated gubernatorial candidate, Lt. Gov. Mark] Robinson or the scandal surrounding him, even as he gave shout-outs to a number of the state’s officials and politicians. And Mr. Robinson, who has denied the accusations [that he called himself a 'black NAZI' on a porn site years ago], was conspicuous by his absence. Instead, Mr. Trump delivered a fairly standard rally speech, attacking Vice President Kamala Harris and the Democrats on the economy and immigration while digressing to criticize Ms. Harris’s livestreamed event this week with Oprah Winfrey; to call her running mate, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, 'weird'; to say that he would ask Elon Musk to help him send rockets to Mars; and to claim falsely that an Olympic boxer was transgender....

“Mr. Trump made a direct appeal to women, repeating claims that he had made in a lengthy all-caps social media post overnight, insisting that women were 'more stressed and depressed and unhappy than they were four years ago.'” MB: Well, see, Trump did say one true thing. Sure, four years ago many women were “stressed, depressed and unhappy” that the three anti-abortion justices Trump had appointed to the Supreme Court might overturn Roe v. Wade, but it wasn't until 2022 that they did so. ~~~

     ~~~ Mr. “They Let You Do It” Sez He Would Be Better President for Women. Meg Kinnard & Erik Verduzko of the AP: “Donald Trump returned to North Carolina on Saturday, stumping in the southern battleground state with direct appeals to women, claiming he would be a better champion for them than Vice President Kamala Harris.... Trump argued women would be safer and more prosperous with him as president and would 'no longer be thinking about abortion.'... 'I will protect women at a level never seen before. They will finally be healthy, hopeful, safe and secure,' Trump said. 'Their lives will be happy, beautiful, and their lives will be great again. So women, we love you. We’re going to take care of you.'... Voters overwhelmingly say they trust Harris to do a better job handling abortion policy, with 55% favoring her while 27% favored Trump in a new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: You could take Trump at his word. Or you could ask him why he repeatedly promoted Mark Robinson for N.C. governor, a man who is so anti-woman that he said we should go back to the days women couldn't vote, that the bodies of pregnant women and mothers belong to men, and that abortion must be banned in the U.S. because unwanted pregnancies are the results of women "not responsible enough to keep their skirts down." And that's saying nothing about admitted & adjudicated rapist Trump's astounding disdain for women. ~~~

     ~~~ OR you could check out Trump's social media site where yesterday, just yesterday, he called MSNBC anchor Stephanie Ruhle a "bimbo." Yeah, Trump definitely "will protect women at a level never seen before."

Trump Would Toss the Constitution on Day One. Derek Hawkins, et al., of the Washington Post: “Donald Trump has a long list of executive actions he says he wants to carry out on his potential first day back in the White House. Among them: Begin mass deportations, eliminate perks for electric vehicles and ban transgender women from women’s sports. Since launching his bid for a second term, Trump has made 41 distinct promises about what he says he wants to do 'on day one' as president, and he has mentioned those promises more than 200 times on the campaign trail.... His proposals often envision stretching the powers of the Oval Office beyond how previous presidents — including Trump himself — have invoked them.... Many of Trump’s promises fall outside the scope of a president’s authority under the Constitution, according to legal experts. Even some of those that are within his purview would face legal or logistical challenges that would make them all but impossible to carry out on a short timeline.” ~~~

~~~ Marie: BTW, if you don't quite recall what a thug Trump was during his presidency*, Rachel Maddow's "From Russia with Lev" provides a timely reminder. I watched it yesterday afternoon. If you happen to have Xfinity cable (or maybe some other cable or satellite connection), you can just speak to your remote (as if you're a crazy person) and say "From Russia with Lev," and up pops a link to stream the movie. (Big advantage over watching live: you can fast-forward through the ads.) Otherwise, if you jump through some hoops, you might be able to access it via this NBC page.

MEANWHILE, JayDee Sticks Up for Mark Robinson. Lauren Mayk & Megan Lebowitz of NBC News: “Sen. JD Vance on Saturday reacted for the first time to the bombshell report about Mark Robinson, the Republican candidate for governor in North Carolina, saying..., 'The allegations are pretty far out there, of course, but I know that allegations aren’t necessarily reality.'... When asked whether Vance believes Robinson's denial that the comments were made by him, Vance said..., 'I don’t not believe him, I don’t believe him — I just think that you have to let these things sometimes play out in the court of public opinion.'” MB: Gosh, I guess JayDee is open-minded after all.

Nazi Pillows on Sale at Significant Price Point. Carl Gibson of AlterNet: "Far-right election denier Mike Lindell's MyPillow is now being advertised at a significant discount. One historian is pointing out that the pillow's new price is a reference to a prominent neo-Nazi rallying cry. On the social media platform Bluesky, Willamette University history professor Seth Cotlar observed that the official @MyPillowUSA X ... account tweeted an advertisement for its product with a posted price of $14.88. As the Southern Poverty Law Center explained, the number '1488' is a reference to the '14 words' slogan frequently used by neo-Nazis: 'We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children.' The '88' is a reference to the eighth letter of the alphabet twice, interpreted by neo-Nazis to mean 'Heil Hitler.'... The MyPillow advertisement — which is still live on the account as of Saturday afternoon — was praised by numerous X users who made Nazi references."

Katie Hawkinson of the Independent: “New York Magazine’s Washington correspondent Olivia Nuzzi sent 'demure/ nude photos to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. which he later bragged about, two new reports claim....[Seventy]-year-old RFK Jr ... is married to the actor Cheryl Hines. Nuzzi apparently sent nude photos to the former independent presidential candidate, Puck News reported on Friday. Kennedy then bragged to his friends about receiving intimate photos of Nuzzi, The Daily Beast reported Saturday. These boasts ultimately made their way back to her boss, New York Magazine editor David Haskell.... On Friday, Nuzzi’s partner Ryan Lizza, a reporter at Politico, released a statement which referred to Nuzzi as his 'ex-finacée,' indicating the pair have broken up.” (Also linked yesterday.)

Blinkin' Elon Blinks. And Blinks. And Blinks. Jack Nicas & Ana Ionova of the New York Times: “After defying court orders in Brazil for three weeks, [Elon] Musk’s social network, X, has capitulated. In a court filing on Friday night, the company’s lawyers said that X had complied with orders from Brazil’s Supreme Court in the hopes that the court would lift a block on its site. The decision was a surprise move by Mr. Musk, who owns and controls X, after he said he had refused to obey what he called illegal orders to censor voices on his social network. Mr. Musk had dismissed local employees and refused to pay fines. The court responded by blocking X across Brazil last month. Now, X’s lawyers said the company had done exactly what Mr. Musk vowed not to: take down accounts that a Brazilian justice ordered removed because the judge said they threatened Brazil’s democracy. X also complied with the justice’s other demands, including paying fines and naming a new formal representative in the country, the lawyers said.”

~~~~~~~~~~~

Texas. Erika Edwards, et al., of NBC News: “The number of women in Texas who died while pregnant, during labor or soon after childbirth skyrocketed following the state’s 2021 ban on abortion care — far outpacing a slower rise in maternal mortality across the nation, a new investigation of federal public health data finds. From 2019 to 2022, the rate of maternal mortality cases in Texas rose by 56%, compared with just 11% nationwide during the same time period, according to an analysis by the Gender Equity Policy Institute.... 'There’s only one explanation for this staggering difference in maternal mortality,' said Nancy L. Cohen, president of the GEPI. 'All the research points to Texas’ abortion ban as the primary driver of this alarming increase.... Texas, I fear, is a harbinger of what’s to come in other states.'...” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: This is state-decreed homicide.

Wisconsin Senate Race. Wis Politics: “A bombshell report this morning from Dan Bice of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed that Banco Azteca, a bank reportedly tied to the Mexican cartel flew $26 million of cash across the U.S.-Mexico Border to [GOP Senate candidate] Eric Hovde’s bank in California. As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel detailed, Banco Azteca was cut off by several other U.S. banks over 'risk and compliance concerns' after reporting linked it to cartel activity. An executive of the bank was recently implicated in a federal indictment detailing his attempts to bribe a member of the U.S. Congress to get U.S. banks to once again do business with the bank. Despite this, Eric Hovde’s bank flew $26 million of cash from Mexico City to Irvine, California as part of a deal with Banco Azteca last December. This shocking revelation comes as Hovde has refused to disclose which foreign banks and governments his bank has done millions of dollars of business with.” Thanks to RAS for the lead. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: According to the Hill's poll of polls, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D) has a 5-point lead over Hovde, but Wisconsin is notorious for overcounting Democratic votes. Baldwin appeared on MSNBC Thursday or Friday and said the race was neck-and-neck.

~~~~~~~~~~

France. Ellen Frances & Marisa Bellack of the Washington Post: “French Prime Minister Michel Barnier unveiled the country’s new government Saturday, seeking to end months of political uncertainty, if not the accompanying acrimony. Barnier’s newly named cabinet marks a tilt to the right and will need to maintain enough support across France’s National Assembly to avoid being dissolved with a no-confidence vote. Members of the left-wing alliance that won the most seats in July’s legislative elections — and led the effort to keep the far right out of power — objected that the slate of ministers was undemocratic, representing the election’s losers. France has had only an acting government since July’s snap elections concluded with no bloc of parties securing a governing majority of seats.”

Israel/Palestine, et al. The New York Times' live updates of developments Sunday in Israel's wars are here: “Reeling from a wave of audacious Israeli attacks, Hezbollah on Sunday responded with a barrage of missiles that went deeper into Israeli territory than most previous salvos, reinforcing fears of a broader regional war. Air raid sirens went off in the early hours of Sunday in scores of towns in northern Israel, and officials tightened restrictions on public gatherings in areas including the Golan Heights and Galilee. Most of Hezbollah’s missiles, fired from Lebanon, where it is based, were intercepted by Israel’s air defense system, and there were reports of only minor injuries. Nonetheless, it was clear that life had been disrupted in many places.”

The Conversation -- September 21, 2024

Samantha Waldenberg of CNN: "Vice President Kamala Harris on Saturday accepted an invitation from CNN to debate former President Donald Trump on October 23, challenging her rival to another engagement on a public stage in the final weeks of the campaign.: MB: I just heard on the teevee (at 3pm ET Saturday) that Chickenman Trump said he would not debate Harris again. He said it was because the proposed debate would occur after early voting had commenced. Trump debated Joe Biden on October 22, 2020; i.e., after early voting had begun. And he debated Hillary Clinton on October 19, 2015, after early voting had started.

Erika Edwards, et al., of NBC News: "The number of women in Texas who died while pregnant, during labor or soon after childbirth skyrocketed following the state's 2021 ban on abortion care -- far outpacing a slower rise in maternal mortality across the nation, a new investigation of federal public health data finds. From 2019 to 2022, the rate of maternal mortality cases in Texas rose by 56%, compared with just 11% nationwide during the same time period, according to an analysis by the Gender Equity Policy Institute.... 'There's only one explanation for this staggering difference in maternal mortality,' said Nancy L. Cohen, president of the GEPI. 'All the research points to Texas' abortion ban as the primary driver of this alarming increase.... Texas, I fear, is a harbinger of what's to come in other states'..."

Wisconsin Senate Race. Wis Politics: "A bombshell report this morning from Dan Bice of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed that Banco Azteca, a bank reportedly tied to the Mexican cartel flew $26 million of cash across the U.S.-Mexico Border to [GOP Senate candidate] Eric Hovde's bank in California. As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel detailed, Banco Azteca was cut off by several other U.S. banks over 'risk and compliance concerns' after reporting linked it to cartel activity. An executive of the bank was recently implicated in a federal indictment detailing his attempts to bribe a member of the U.S. Congress to get U.S. banks to once again do business with the bank. Despite this, Eric Hovde's bank flew $26 million of cash from Mexico City to Irvine, California as part of a deal with Banco Azteca last December. This shocking revelation comes as Hovde has refused to disclose which foreign banks and governments his bank has done millions of dollars of business with." Thanks to RAS for the lead. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: According to the Hill's poll of polls, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D) has a 5-point lead over Hovde, but Wisconsin is notorious for overcounting Democratic votes. Baldwin appeared on MSNBC Thursday or Friday and said the race was neck-and-neck.

Katie Hawkinson of the Independent: "New York Magazine's Washington correspondent Olivia Nuzzi sent 'demure/ nude photos to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. which he later bragged about, two new reports claim....[Seventy]-year-old RFK Jr ... is married to the actor Cheryl Hines. Nuzzi apparently sent nude photos to the former independent presidential candidate, Puck News reported on Friday. Kennedy then bragged to his friends about receiving intimate photos of Nuzzi, The Daily Beast reported Saturday. These boasts ultimately made their way back to her boss, New York Magazine editor David Haskell.... On Friday, Nuzzi's partner Ryan Lizza, a reporter at Politico, released a statement which referred to Nuzzi as his 'ex-finacée,' indicating the pair have broken up."

~~~~~~~~~~~

Presidential Race

Reid Epstein & Nicholas Nehamas of the New York Times: "Rallying supporters in two battleground states, Vice President Kamala Harris signaled on Friday that her closing campaign message would focus on the life-or-death risks that abortion bans pose to American women -- and on the argument that ... Donald J. Trump is to blame. In Madison, Wis., a crowd that had been ebullient suddenly grew hushed as Ms. Harris spoke about her visit with the family of a Georgia woman who died of sepsis after waiting for more than 20 hours for medical care to treat an incomplete medication abortion.... Earlier in the day, Ms. Harris traveled to Georgia, where [Amber Nicole] Thurman and another woman, Candi Miller, died after delays in medical care tied to state abortion restrictions, according to reporting by ProPublica. Their deaths occurred in the months after Georgia passed a six-week ban made possible by the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade."

Maeve Reston & Clara Morse of the Washington Post: "Kamala Harris's campaign raised more than four times as much as Donald Trump's effort in August, capitalizing on the surge of Democratic enthusiasm during the first full month of her presidential campaign. But the super PACs aligned with Trump are continuing to raise large sums from high-dollar donors as the two candidates enter the final sprint before November."

Alex Gangitano of the Hill: "Vice President Harris's campaign's unveiled an ad on Friday highlighting former President Trump's praise for North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson (R), seeking to link the two Republicans following a bombshell CNN report [also linked below] on the gubernatorial candidate. The 30-second spot ... includes clips from Trump talking about Robinson, calling him 'better' than Martin Luther King Jr., 'outstanding,' and saying 'he's been an unbelievable lieutenant governor.' The ad ... also includes clips of Robinson talking about his hard-right views on abortion.... Harris's campaign has been eying North Carolina, a state that Trump won in 2016 and 2020, as a flip this cycle." (Also linked yesterday.) More on Robinson linked under "North Carolina" below. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I'm so glad to see the Harris campaign running these hard-hitting ads. Biden's campaign was wa-a-a-ay too polite. You often had to look for the message. Harris' spots are blunt & tough. ~~~

~~~ Trump Stays True to Black NAZI Guy. Matt Dixon, et al., of NBC News: "Donald Trump is facing calls both from his allies and from within his own campaign to pull his endorsement from scandal-plagued North Carolina gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson, according to four people familiar with the discussions. So far, however, there are no plans for the former president to formally drop him.... On Friday morning, [Trump campaign press secretary Karoline Leavitt] told NBC News that reports that Trump is considering pulling that endorsement are 'false.'... Robinson will not be attending a Trump rally planned for Saturday in Wilmington, North Carolina...."

Dawn Roberts in a Des Moines Register op-ed: "I served as an Iowa state co-chair of the Nikki Haley for President campaign.I think both parties let us down by selecting two candidates for president in or near their 80s. I was at a loss. Then, when President Joe Biden stepped down and endorsed Kamala Harris as his replacement, I decided to see who she really was. I was impressed with how she handled herself saying that she wanted to 'earn everyone's support.' She showed willingness to listen to a wider range of views to solve problems. So I am supporting Kamala Harris for president. I am a lifelong Republican."

Nikole Killion of CBS News: "More than 50 former football players and coaches, including several Pro Football Hall of Famers and Super Bowl MVP's, announced their endorsement Friday of Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. The group represents 25 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU's) and consists of 10 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees, two Super Bowl champions and MVPs, former No. 1 overall picks and some of the first Black athletes and coaches to break the color barrier.... The announcement is being rolled out on National Black Voter Day, an initiative aimed at getting Black Americans registered to vote by November."

Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "The International Brotherhood of Teamsters may not officially be endorsing a presidential candidate this year, but a scathing analysis concluded that its president has already done Donald Trump 'an unreasonably large favor.' Sean O'Brien divided the union, one of America's largest when he spoke at the Republican National Convention. That divide only deepened after union leadership declined to make a presidential endorsement for the first time in 28 years, with several local units coming forward to make their endorsements for Vice President Kamala Harris. O'Brien's predecessor James P. Hoffa even condemned the move. All of these decisions suggest that O'Brien is 'confused' about his responsibility to workers and not sure how to handle politics as a union leader, wrote Timothy Noah for The New Republic published on Friday." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I was surprised when I linked to an article the other day that reported O'Brien said one reason for not endorsing Harris was that 60% of rank-&-file Teamsters supported Trump. But, even if the poll was accurate, most unions don't let members control endorsements; rather, one purpose of a union endorsement is to educate members on why a particular candidate is the better/best choice.

For Us, It Is the Eve of the Autumnal Equinox. In Trumpland, It's Springtime for Hitler. Rachel Maddow pointed out last night that this past week has been Don & JayDee's Nazi Week. At two events, one meant to condemn antisemitism, Trump made the antisemitic accusation to an audience of Republican Jews that if he lost the election, it would be largely the Jews' fault. (About 2.4 percent of Americans are Jewish.) Then JayDee sat for a second interview with Tucker Carlson (whom Maddow did not name but she showed clips of him) who was just off an interview with an "historian" who praised Hitler. TuKKKer, in return, praised the fake historian as "the best and most honest popular historian in the United States." Finally, we learned this week that Trump's handpicked candidate for governor of North Carolina, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, had called himself "a black NAZI" and said Hitler was better than U.S. political leaders at a time when Barack Obama was POTUS. ~~~

~~~ AND There's This. Christopher Mathias of the Huffington Post: "Last weekend..., Donald Trump posted another anti-immigrant screed to Truth Social. It would have been unremarkable ― at least, graded on the Trumpian curve of extreme xenophobia ― except for one word. '[We will] return Kamala's illegal migrants to their home countries (also known as remigration),' he wrote. 'I will save our cities and towns in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and all across America.'... '#Remigration has had a massive conceptual career," Martin Sellner -- leader of the Austrian chapter of Generation Identity, a pan-European white supremacist network -- tweeted in his native German. 'Born in France, popularized in German-speaking countries and now the term of the hour from Sweden to the USA!'... [Sellner] has been at the vanguard of pushing 'remigration' -- a euphemism for ethnically cleansing non-white people from Western countries -- into the popular political lexicon in Europe.... Trump's use of 'remigration' ... underscor[es] the degree to which ... [the Republican party] is sourcing many of its talking points and policy ideas directly from neo-fascists."

Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "Donald Trump's repeated assertion on Thursday that 'the Jewish people would have a lot to do with' his loss if Kamala Harris prevailed on Election Day set off a mix of outrage and concern among Jewish leaders on Friday, raising fears that ardent supporters of the former president could be incited against Jews in an era of rising political violence."

Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "Political violence has always been part of American public life. But to the extent that it is today an acute problem, it is impossible to separate from the terrible influence of Donald Trump. On Monday, Trump blamed Democrats for political violence. 'Because of this Communist Left Rhetoric, the bullets are flying, and it will only get worse,' he wrote.... 'Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at, when I am the one who is going to save the country,' he said in an interview with Fox News.... In 2016, reported hate crimes jumped by 226 percent in counties that hosted Trump campaign rallies.... Hate crimes reached a 16-year high during Trump's time in office, with a significant increase of violence against Latinos.... There is only one politician who has placed violence at the center of his movement. Only one politician who is running for president on a promise of 'retribution.' Only one politician who has promised that if he is elected again, he will unleash the state against a wide array of disfavored groups."

Even When There Were Guardrails.... Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: In an Oval Office meeting in the spring of 2018, Donald Trump told aides that if AG Jeff Sessions would not prosecute Hillary Clinton & Jim Comey, Trump would prosecute them himself. White House counsel Don McGahn was able to head Trump off, but "the episode marked the start of a more aggressive effort by Mr. Trump to deploy his power against his perceived enemies despite warnings not to do so by top aides. And a look back at the cases of 10 individuals brings a pattern into clearer focus: After Mr. Trump made repeated public or private demands for them to be targeted by the government, they faced federal pressure of one kind or another.... A closer examination [of the cases] reveals the degree of concern and pushback against Mr. Trump's demands inside the White House. And it highlights how closely his expressed desires to go after people who had drawn his ire were sometimes followed by the Justice Department, F.B.I. or other agencies....

"The story of that period has a powerful resonance today as Mr. Trump, angered in part by the two federal and two state-level indictments of him since leaving office, threatens to carry out a campaign of retribution if he returns to the White House. He has signaled that a second Trump administration would be stocked not with people who served as guardrails during his first term, but with carefully vetted loyalists who would eagerly carry out his wishes." It's worth looking at the linked story that outlines the retribution brought against people who aggravated Trump. ~~~

     ~~~ Even if you don't have an NYT subscription, you might want to scroll down the Times' front page, which currently (and certainly not for long) has a video of Schmidt discussing his story. (If the video disappears off the front page, it can be accessed here.)

Arizona. Patrick Marley & Yvonne Sanchez of the Washington Post: "The Arizona Supreme Court's chief justice ruled Friday that nearly 100,000 voters should receive regular ballots this fall even though there is no record that they had submitted documentation to state officials proving they are citizens. The battleground state's high court issued its ruling three days after officials told the justices they had recently discovered state computer systems had identified some longtime residents as having provided citizenship documents even though they had not. Election officials said they were confident all or nearly all of the voters are citizens, but some allies of ... Donald Trump seized on the issue to suggest large numbers of immigrants could be voting illegally. Voting by noncitizens is exceedingly rare...." Thanks to Ken W. for the link.

Georgia. Nick Corasaniti & Johnny Kauffman of the New York Times: "The Georgia State Election Board is set to vote on Friday on a package of nearly a dozen rules that would change the way elections are conducted amid growing pressure from almost every level of Georgia state government advising the board that it is operating outside of its legal authority.... The proposals come just 45 days before the election, after poll workers have been trained and ballots have been mailed to overseas voters. On Thursday, the attorney general's office took the rare step of weighing in on the proposed rules, saying they 'very likely exceed the board's statutory authority.' The fight comes as the election board is under increasing pressure from critics already concerned that it has been rewriting the rules of the game in a key swing state to favor ... Donald J. Trump, including potentially disrupting certification of the election if Mr. Trump loses in November. Last month, the board granted local officials new power over the election-certification process, a change that opponents say could sow chaos." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update. Amy Gardner of the Washington Post: "The Georgia State Election Board approved a rule Friday requiring counties in the critical presidential battleground to hand-count all ballots this year, potentially upending the November election by delaying reporting of results by weeks if not months. The change was spearheaded by a pro-Trump majority that has enacted a series of changes to the state's election rules in recent weeks and approved the hand-count requirement despite a string of public commenters who begged them not to. Critics included democracy advocates who accused the board of intentionally injecting chaos and uncertainty into the presidential contest, as well as election supervisors and poll workers who said hand counts would take too long, cost money and almost certainly produce counting errors. The office of the Republican state attorney general, which is responsible for advising the board, wrote in an opinion that the change was unlawful." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Where Chaos Is Not a Bug but a Feature. Ari Berman of Mother Jones on how these Trumpists could overturn a Harris win: "If there's a lengthy dispute over the vote count, Georgia could miss the December 11 deadline for certifying its Electoral College results. If no candidate receives the 270 votes necessary to win the Electoral College as a result, the presidential election would be thrown to the House of Representatives, where Republicans control a majority of state House delegations, allowing them to swing the election to Trump. 'It is not just a nightmare scenario, it's a very real possibility,' [voting rights activist Stacey] Abrams told me recently...." MB: And Abrams drew this conclusion before the very latest rules change.

Nebraska. Patrick Marley, et al., of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump spoke by phone this week with a Nebraska state senator as part of a last-minute push to change how the state allocates its electoral votes and block the easiest path Vice President Kamala Harris has to win the White House.... The change is supported by Trump, [Gov. Jim] Pillen, all of the state's U.S. senators and congressmen, and a majority of the unicameral legislature, according to people involved in the process. But Republicans have not yet been able to convince a supermajority of the legislature -- all 33 Republican state senators -- which would be needed to override a filibuster to pass the change before the November election.... [Sen. Lindsey] Graham met Wednesday with Pillen and around two dozen state senators about the proposal...."

Digby, in Salon, comments on the various GOP plans to overturn or toss state election results favoring Harris, including in Nebraska, where "Senator Lindsey Graham ... [is] leading a delegation for Donald Trump ... to try to convince the Republican legislature to change their electoral college system to winner-take-all all.... This first came up a few months back but it didn't go anywhere because Maine, which has a similar system, said they would do the same which would make it a wash. Unfortunately, the deadline for Maine to do that appears to have passed which explains why the Republicans are moving on it now. Graham thinks it's perfectly legitimate to have them change the law 6 weeks before the election for the clear purpose of benefiting Donald Trump but they screamed bloody murder over some rules changes in 2020 to deal with the deadly pandemic. They like to call this 'election integrity.'"

Nevada. Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court said on Friday that it would not restore the Green Party's presidential candidate, Jill Stein, to the Nevada ballot in the coming election. Democrats had challenged her eligibility, saying her party had submitted flawed paperwork. The court's brief order gave no reasons, which is typical when it acts on emergency applications. There were no noted dissents. The Nevada Supreme Court ruled this month that the Green Party's failure to submit a sworn statement required by state regulations meant that its candidates could not appear on the ballot." (Also linked yesterday.)

Mike DeWine Is Sad. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) in a New York Times op-ed: "As a supporter of former President Donald Trump and Senator JD Vance, I am saddened by how they and others continue to repeat claims that lack evidence and disparage the legal migrants living in Springfield. This rhetoric hurts the city and its people, and it hurts those who have spent their lives there. The Biden administration's failure to control the southern border is a very important issue that Mr. Trump and Mr. Vance are talking about and one that the American people are rightfully deeply concerned about. But their verbal attacks against these Haitians -- who are legally present in the United States == dilute and cloud what should be a winning argument about the border. The Springfield I know is not the one you hear about in social media rumors. It is a city made up of good, decent, welcoming people. They are hard workers == both those who were born in this country and those who settled here because, back in their birthplace, Haiti, innocent people can be killed just for cheering on the wrong team in a soccer match." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Shorter DeWine: Trump & Vance are repeatedly attacking the good people of my hometown with racist lies, but I'm voting for them anyway. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Really? Really? DeWine is "saddened" that Don & JayDee have defiled his hometown?

Mychael Schnell & Rebecca Beitsch of the Hill: "The House unanimously passed a bill Friday that seeks to bolster former President Trump's security, the first legislative move the chamber has made in response to the second apparent assassination attempt against the Republican presidential nominee. The House cleared the legislation -- titled the Enhanced Presidential Security Act -- in a bipartisan 405-0 vote, sending it to the Senate for consideration. It's unclear if the upper chamber plans to consider the measure, though similar legislation has been proposed by Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.)." MB: I hope there's something in the bill that says, "but only if that arrogant SOB cooperates with his security detail." (Also linked yesterday.)

Maria Sacchetti of the Washington Post: :The Secret Service is responsible for multiple security failures that led to the July 13 assassination attempt against ... Donald Trump ... at a campaign rally in Butler, Pa., according to the results of the first report on the attack released Friday. The elite protective agency's internal review found that agents failed to use technology that might have detected the attacker as he flew a drone over the rally venue hours earlier. Trump's protective detail had no idea police were frantically searching for a suspicious person, until shots were fired into the crowd. And the Secret Service, which is the lead agency in charge of security for presidents, former leaders and other top U.S. officials, never directed local police snipers to cover a nearby rooftop even though the snipers were willing to do it, the report found." The story has been updated to include commentary by Acting Director Ronald Rowe. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ The five-page summary report, via the Secret Service, is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Trump's Lawyers Thumb Noses at Judge Chutkan. Alan Feuer of the New York Times: Donald Trump's lawyers "used what was supposed to have been a procedural request for more information from prosecutors to demand that the judge strike the charges altogether -- or at least remake the carefully considered schedule she set this month for pursuing next steps in the proceeding. 'This case should be dismissed,' the lawyers wrote in the first sentence of their 30-page motion to Judge Tanya S. Chutkan. 'Promptly.' While that sort of blunt assertion might not have been surprising in a filing that was actually meant to seek dismissal, Judge Chutkan had requested only that the lawyers weigh in on a procedural question.... And yet ... the lawyers sought to repurpose the filing to their client's own ends, employing the same type of combativeness expressed by Mr. Trump in discussing the charges against him." (Also linked yesterday.)

Jose Pagliery in NOTUS: "Rep. Matt Gaetz attended a drug-fueled sex party in 2017 with the 17-year-old girl at the center of the alleged sex trafficking scandal, according to legal documents filed to a Florida federal court shortly before midnight Thursday, which cite sealed affidavits from three eyewitness testimonies.... One eyewitness cited in the court filings, a young woman referred to as K.M., provided a sworn affidavit that claimed the teenage girl was naked, partygoers were there to 'engage in sexual activities,' and 'alcohol, cocaine, ecstasy -- and marijuana' were present. The teenage girl was identified in the filings only as A.B.... This marks the first time that sworn testimony has been referenced in public court filings alleging that the congressman attended one of the long-rumored parties tied to an alleged underage sex scandal." MB: Gaetz would have been 34 or 35 years old at the time of the party.

Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: "What Trump has done to the Republican Party, [Elon] Musk has done to Twitter.... It was always bad, but now it's much worse. Because Musk has ruined its system for verifying users and gutted its content moderation, it's teeming with fake news.... White nationalists have been welcomed back onto the platform, and many journalists have fled.... [Similar to Trump's takeover of the GOP,] Musk has transformed Twitter into a dull, fetid cesspool of white nationalism and paranoid lies. But by making it an extension of his own disordered id, he's taken a platform that has always been toxic and decreased its relevance, especially to those outside the right.... Musk spent a fortune on the largest megaphone he could find, only to discover that the more he shouts into it, the fewer people are listening."

Declan Harty of Politico: "The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to seek sanctions against Elon Musk after he missed previously scheduled testimony for the regulator's investigation into his $44 billion purchase of Twitter, according to a court filing. It was the second time the billionaire tech mogul skipped out on testifying for the probe of the acquisition of the social media site.... Musk was slated to testify on the morning of Sept. 10 at the SEC's Los Angeles office.... However, just hours before the testimony's scheduled start, one of Musk's attorneys notified the SEC that he would not be able to attend because he had to 'urgently travel' to Cape Canaveral, Florida, the day before for SpaceX's latest launch, Polaris Dawn, according to the filing."

~~~~~~~~~~

California. Heather Knight of the New York Times: "A California firefighter was arrested Friday morning after allegedly setting five fires in wine country during what has already been a bad year for wildfires in the state. Robert Hernandez, a 38-year-old fire apparatus engineer with Cal Fire, the state's main firefighting agency, was arrested on suspicion of setting fires on forest land near the Northern California towns of Geyserville, Healdsburg and Windsor between Aug. 15 and Sept. 14. The fires remained small, burning less than an acre of land combined, because local residents and firefighters worked quickly to extinguish them, according to Cal Fire."

North Carolina Gubernatorial Race. Hannah Knowles & Amy Gardner of the Washington Post: "A porn site user linked to North Carolina gubernatorial nominee Mark Robinson praised Adolf Hitler's book 'Mein Kampf' in addition to declaring himself a 'black NAZI,' according to screenshots obtained by The Washington Post.... 'Mein Kampf is a good read,' the user, dubbed 'minisoldr,' wrote in a thread seeking book recommendations. 'It's very informative and not at all what I thought it would be. It's a real eye opener.' The book, an autobiography by Hitler, casts Jews as an 'eternal parasite.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I suppose you could call reading & espousing Nazi propaganda a form of porn, but it still seems odd that a person would use a porn site called Nude Africa to praise Hitler & the Nazis. ~~~

     ~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post: Mark Robinson tries out the latest version of the "I was hacked" defense: "AI did it!" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Oh, and it turns out Mark Robinson has a very fine collection of detailed models of SS soldiers. He shares photos of the miniatures on a Website called UltimateSoldier.net. Allegedly. Could have been an AI deep-fake, you know. Via Paul Campos in LG&$.

Texas/New Mexico. Kelly Rissman of the Independent: "In an effort to prevent migrant crossings from the southern border, Texas installed a razor wire along its border with New Mexico, not Mexico -- upsetting the southwestern state's governor. Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced on September 14 that his state would be 'TRIPLING our razor wire border barriers to deny illegal entry into our state and our country.' However, rather than installing the razor wire along the Rio Grande river bank that faces Mexico, KTSM on Tuesday captured footage of Texas Army National Guard troops installing it along a bank that faces New Mexico.... New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, told The Independent in a statement that Republican Abbott's latest move was a 'political stunt' that will have 'will have no meaningful impact on our nation's broken immigration system.'"

~~~~~~~~~~

Israel/Palestine, et al.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Saturday in Israel's wars are here.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Friday in Israel's wars are here: "The Israeli military on Friday carried out an airstrike in Beirut that it said killed a senior Hezbollah commander wanted by the United States for his role in bombings in the 1980s that killed hundreds. Hezbollah did not immediately confirm that the commander, Ibrahim Aqeel, had been killed in the strike.... Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military spokesman, told reporters that Mr. Aqeel was meeting other militants underneath a residential building in an attempt to 'use civilians as human shields.'... Mr. Aqeel has been accused by the United States of being involved in two terrorist attacks in 1983 that killed more than 350 people at the U.S. Embassy in Beirut and the U.S. Marine Corps barracks." (Also linked yesterday.)