The Conversation -- September 20, 2024

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." ~~~

     ~~~ 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."

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." ~~~

     ~~~ 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.

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 five-page summary report, via the Secret Service, is here.

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."

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." ~~~

     ~~~ 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"? I'm saddened, too, that the presidential candidate I support often feels she has to wear spike heels a public events. I like it when she shows up for events wearing sneakers. If she were a lying SOS, like Donnie & JayDee, I would be so saddened that I would renounce her.

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. "

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."

The New York Times' live updates of developments Friday in Israel's wars is 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."

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Presidential Race

Erica Green of the New York Times: "Vice President Kamala Harris harnessed the star power of one of her most powerful surrogates -- and one of America-s foremost interviewers -- to lay out a powerful pitch for her campaign on Thursday, as she passionately confronted pressing issues during a livestream forum with Oprah Winfrey. The event, 'Unite for America,' was hosted by Ms. Winfrey and drew hundreds of thousands of viewers.... The event brought together members of over 100 online groups that have coalesced around Ms. Harris since she became the Democratic nominee, including White Dudes for Harris, Cat Ladies for Kamala and Latinas for Harris. Also joining virtually were celebrities that included Chris Rock, Ben Stiller, Jennifer Lopez, Tracee Ellis Ross and Meryl Streep.... Here [Ms. Harris] addressed questions from the audience and Ms. Winfrey about issues like immigration and gun violence, and what would happen if her opponent..., Donald J. Trump, didn't accept the results of the election should he lose a second time." An ABC News report is here.

Lauren Gurley of the Washington Post: "A wave of local and regional Teamsters union branches in battleground states rushed to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris after the national Teamsters union declared that it would not endorse a presidential candidate for the first time in nearly three decades. Teamsters regional councils -- representing hundreds of thousands of members and retirees -- in Michigan, Wisconsin, Nevada and western Pennsylvania -- endorsed Harris hours after Teamsters President Sean O'Brien revealed Wednesday that the union would withhold its endorsement.... Separately, powerful local Teamsters unions in Philadelphia; New York City; Long Beach, Calif.; and Miami -- as well as the union's National Black Caucus and a group of retirees -- have endorsed Harris and urged members to vote for her."

Frances Vinall of the Washington Post: "James P. Hoffa, the longtime former leader of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, on Thursday called the union's decision not to endorse a presidential candidate in the 2024 race a 'critical error,' adding that Democratic nominee Kamala Harris was the 'correct choice for labor and working families.'... 'There is only one candidate in this race that has supported working families and unions throughout their career,' he added, 'and that is Vice President Kamala Harris.'"

Donald Trump and NC GOP leaders embraced Mark Robinson for years knowing who he was and what he stood for including disrespect for women and inciting violence. They reap what they sow. -- North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper ~~~

~~~ Stephen Collinson of CNN: "An already fiercely fought presidential contest in the critical swing state [of North Carolina] was thrown into greater turmoil Thursday by a stunning CNN investigation [story linked below] revealing a porn-site scandal surrounding Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Robinson.... [Robinson's] proximity to [Donald] Trump, who dubbed him 'Martin Luther King on steroids' and had him on stage at a recent rally, jolted the White House race. Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign swiftly highlighted the scandal's national implications and tried to equate Trump with Robinson as it argues that the ex-president is anti-woman, immoral, extreme and unfit to serve.... Robinson is the latest in a string of outlandish and often vulnerable candidates who rose because they flattered Trump.... It would be an ironic historical coda if Trump becomes collateral damage to a Republican who would have been anathema to the old GOP but who thrived in the smash mouth political era the ex-president nurtured.... As mayhem envelops Trump, Harris has been doing the grunt work of a traditional campaign as she tries to inch toward the White House." The New York Times story is here.

Donald Trump has used a speech about antisemitism as an opportunity to embrace antisemitic tropes and attack the American Jewish community. -- Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs ~~~

~~~ Scapegoating: "The act of blaming a group for something bad that has happened or that someone else has done." The most antisemitic of antisemitic tropes is to scapegoat Jews. So here's what Donald Trump said at one campaign event designed, supposedly, to denounce antisemitism and at an event for Israeli Americans: ~~~

     ~~~ Chris Cameron & Michael Gold of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump, speaking on Thursday at a campaign event in Washington centered on denouncing antisemitism in America, said that 'if I don't win this election,' then 'the Jewish people would have a lot to do with a loss.' Mr. Trump repeated that assertion at a second event, this one focused on Israeli Americans, where he blamed Jews whom he described as 'voting for the enemy,' for the hypothetical destruction of Israel that he insisted would happen if he lost in November. Mr. Trump on Thursday offered an extended airing of grievances against Jewish Americans who have not voted for him. He repeated his denunciation of Jews who vote for Democrats before suggesting that the Democratic Party had a 'hold, or curse,' on Jewish Americans and that he should be getting '100 percent' of Jewish votes because of his policies on Israel." ~~~

⭐ Thom Hartmann in a Substack essay, on how Donald Trump and Mike Johnson are plotting to disenfranchise millions of women. "Trump, on his failing, Nazi-infested social media site, ranted Tuesday that Republicans must get 'every ounce' of the SAVE Act [Safeguard American Eligibility Act] passed or shut down the government 'in any way, shape, or form.'... Lacking a passport or other proof of citizenship with their married names, they must produce both a birth certificate (with the seal of the state where it was issued; no copies allowed) and a current form of identification -- both with the exact same name on them. That could instantly disqualify about 90 percent of all married women without passports or other proof that matches their birth certificates or proof of a legal name change." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Doesn't sound Constitutional, does it? Now, picture the Supreme Six Super-Suppression Specialists. Okay then.

Suppressing Nebraska's Democratic Voters. Neil Vigdor & Reid Epstein of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump's allies are resurrecting efforts to change how Nebraska awards its five electoral votes, a hybrid system that could deliver a single but decisive vote to Vice President Kamala Harris from a reliable red state in one tiebreaking scenario.... All five Republicans who represent the state in Congress are pushing for Nebraska to return to a winner-take-all system of awarding electoral votes that had been used before 1992 and was based on the statewide popular vote. Under the state's current hybrid system, its electoral votes are split: Two go to the winner of the statewide popular vote, and the other three are based on who wins the popular vote in each of Nebraska's three U.S. House districts.... Also on Wednesday, Senator Lindsey Graham, Republican of South Carolina, visited Nebraska, where he too advocated for the state to change its rules."

Shawn McCreesh of the New York Times: Donald Trump got irritated when George "Clooney wrote a guest essay for The New York Times in July imploring President Biden to drop out of the race. Mr. Clooney had just hosted a fund-raiser for the president and observed him up close. So he had a certain credibility, and his article made an impact.... Mr. Trump ... [wrote,] 'So now fake movie actor George Clooney, who never came close to making a great movie, is getting into the act. He's turned on Crooked Joe like the rats they both are....' He concluded that, 'Clooney should get out of politics and go back to television. Movies never really worked for him!!!!' On [Jimmy] Kimmel's program Tuesday night, Mr. Clooney swiped back: 'I will if he does. That's a trade-off I'd do.' Ordinarily none of this would matter -- and who is to say it really does? -- but for the fact that Mr. Trump, formerly the star of 'The Apprentice,' clearly craves the approval of fellow stars." (Also linked yesterday.)

Marie: It's pitchfork time! Trump says he's going to show up in Springfield within the next two weeks. If I were a city authority, I'd tell Trump (and/or JayDee) not to come and that if he does come, I'd tell him that law enforcement will stop him at the town line. I'm serious.

Jeff Stein & Marianna Sotomayor of the Washington Post: "... Republican lawmakers and many other conservatives find themselves in ... [an] awkward position ... over [Donald Trump]'s increasingly extreme trade proposals.... The party's lawmakers overall appear to be hearing what they want to from Trump even as his rhetoric sharply escalates.... Trump recently said tariffs 'don't affect our country,' contradicting mainstream economists, and has implausibly claimed they can solve everything from foreign policy crises to inflation.... Since leaving office..., Trump has dramatically intensified his trade rhetoric and proposals, fueling fears a second term would lead to a global trade war.... While his exact intentions are hard to discern, Trump is leaving little room for interpretation -- he clearly plans to use tariffs in a way that most Republicans will ultimately dislike, said Doug Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, a center-right think tank." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I guess I should break it to you here that the Congress in its wisdom has given the POTUS control over tariffs. That is, Trump can impose tariffs at will without getting Congressional approval. In this case, even without the Supremes' gift of immunity, Trump "has an Article II where he has a right to do whatever he wants." I meant to run this Chris Hayes segment yesterday, but it hasn't lost its sell-by date. Hayes emphasizes something I have not: that Trump's tariffs-fix-everything "plan" would of course lead affected countries to adopt retaliatory tariffs against the U.S., IOW, there would be a global trade war:

I Can Be Cruel & Defame Innocent, Defenseless People Because I'm a Belligerent, Ignorant White Bully. Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "Senator JD Vance of Ohio ... said on Wednesday that he would continue to describe Haitian residents in Springfield, Ohio, as 'illegal aliens' even though most of them are in the country legally.... 'If Kamala Harris waves the wand illegally and says these people are now here legally, I'm still going to call them an illegal alien,' he said in response to a reporter's question after a rally in Raleigh, N.C. 'An illegal action from Kamala Harris does not make an alien legal.' [MB: Of course Harris did not wave a magic wand; she did not do anything, legal or illegal, to allow Haitian refugees into the country.] Congress created the temporary protected status program in 1990 and presidents from both major parties have used it in response to wars, natural disasters and other humanitarian crises in various countries. The program allows people from countries designated by the Department of Homeland Security to live and work legally in the United States for 18 months, a period that the department can renew indefinitely.... Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio ... and the mayor of Springfield, Rob Rue, both Republicans, have denounced the false claims from Mr. Vance and Mr. Trump." (Also linked yesterday.)

Louie Louie, Oh No No No. Suppressing Votes -- Especially Democrats' -- in Swing States. Noah Pransky of NBC News New York: "In 2020, when the United States Postal Service began an ambitious plan to modernize and consolidate services -- in the middle of the pandemic -- its slow service wound up disenfranchising tens of thousands of voters whose ballots never made it to their elections offices in time. Four years later -- by some measures -- USPS performance is now actually worse, with another nail-biter of an election fast-approaching. Compounding the risk that slow mail could affect the election: NBC found some of the country's slowest mail is in presidential swing states with strict mail ballot delivery deadlines. 'It's a disgrace,' Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger said of USPS delivery performance. 'They need to understand the importance [of election mail] and they need to make no more excuses.'" ~~~

     ~~~ ⭐  Do see all the comments in today's thread on Louie's excellent job performance.

Elon Musk, Another Putin Puppet. David Ingram of NBC News: "As Elon Musk increasingly weighed in on politics in the last several years, he used his massive following on his social media app X to repeatedly amplify content from a company that appears to be at the center of an alleged Russian covert operation to manipulate U.S. public opinion ahead of the 2024 election. Musk, one of the world's richest people, boosted content from creators and accounts tied to Tenet Media at least 60 times, resharing the operation's posts and engaging in back-and-forth replies with Tenet's paid pundits on X. Musk's posts, shared with his 198 million followers, put Russia-aligned conservative talking points in front of possibly tens of millions of eyeballs, according to the viewership data published by X.... The day after the indictment dropped, Musk accused The Associated Press of pushing anti-Trump 'propaganda' in its coverage of Tenet Media. And he posted in defense of the right-wing podcasters \ Tenet had retained, agreeing with another conservative commentator, Ben Shapiro, that the men were deceived." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: While it's true that Musk is "one of the world's richest people," it's also true that Putin may be richer. Even Musk thinks so. (Musk means "richer than I," not "richer than me.") And -- whether or not Musk knows it (and I suspect he does) -- they're teaming up against us ordinary people.

OMG! Katie Robertson of the New York Times: "A star New York Magazine political reporter has been placed on leave after disclosing a personal relationship with the former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. In a statement posted online on Thursday night, New York Magazine said that its Washington correspondent, Olivia Nuzzi, had recently acknowledged to the magazine's editors that she had engaged in a relationship 'with a former subject relevant to the 2024 campaign while she was reporting on the campaign.' The outlet said the relationship was 'a violation of the magazine's standards around conflicts of interest and disclosures.' A person familiar with the matter confirmed that the relationship was with Mr. Kennedy.... Ms. Nuzzi, in a statement to The New York Times on Thursday, said..., 'The relationship was never physical but should have been disclosed to prevent the appearance of a conflict. I deeply regret not doing so immediately and apologize to those I've disappointed, especially my colleagues at New York.' A representative for Mr. Kennedy said, 'Mr. Kennedy only met Olivia Nuzzi once in his life for an interview she requested, which yielded a hit piece.'" Oliver Darcy, now of Status, broke the news.

Maria Sacchetti, et al., of the Washington Post: "Acting Secret Service director Ronald L. Rowe Jr. is urging Congress to heavily invest in the protective agency after two apparent assassination attempts against ... Donald Trump, saying the service must confront its shortcomings and better position itself to handle a dangerous 'new reality.' Rowe, in a wide-ranging interview with The Post, said the guardians of U.S. presidents, former presidents and other top officials are desperate for more counter-snipers and investigators, upgraded armored limousines for motorcades, and a greater supply of ballistic glass. He said that the agency's aging Maryland training center lacks studios to train agents for real-world attacks and that agents are working more hours in a state of hypervigilance than anyone should."

Brian Mann of NPR: "For the first time in decades, public health data shows a sudden and hopeful drop in drug overdose deaths across the U.S.... National surveys compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already show an unprecedented decline in drug deaths of roughly 10.6 percent. That's a huge reversal from recent years when fatal overdoses regularly increased by double-digit percentages. Some researchers believe the data will show an even larger decline in drug deaths when federal surveys are updated to reflect improvements being seen at the state level, especially in the eastern U.S." Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

Evan Halper of the Washington Post: "Pennsylvania's dormant Three Mile Island nuclear plant would be brought back to life to feed the voracious energy needs of Microsoft under an unprecedented deal announced Friday in which the tech giant would buy 100 percent of its power for 20 years. The restart of Three Mile Island, the site of the worst nuclear accident in U.S. history, would mark a bold advance in the tech industry's quest to find enough electric power to support its boom in artificial intelligence. The plant, which Pennsylvanians thought had closed for good in 2019 amid financial strain, would come back online by 2028 under the agreement, according to plant owner Constellation Energy. If approved by regulators, Three Mile Island would provide Microsoft with the energy equivalent it takes to power 800,000 homes, or 835 megawatts. Never before has a U.S. nuclear plant come back into service after being decommissioned, and never before has all of a single commercial nuclear power plant's output been allocated to a single customer." MB: I believe if I lived in Harrisburg, I'd be askeert. I can still picture then-President Jimmy Carter touring the plant after the 1979 meltdown.

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Kentucky. Emmett Lindner & Orlando Mayorquín of the New York Times: "The sheriff of a rural eastern Kentucky county walked into a courthouse on Thursday afternoon and shot and killed a district judge in his chambers after an argument, the police said. Mickey Stines, 43, the sheriff in Letcher County, turned himself in after shooting Judge Kevin Mullins and was charged with first-degree murder, Trooper Matt Gayheart of the Kentucky State Police said at a news conference on Thursday evening. The shooting happened at about 2:55 p.m. inside the Letcher County Courthouse in Whitesburg, a city in southeastern Kentucky. The sheriff was taken to a local jail and had been cooperative with investigators, Trooper Gayheart said.... Mr. Stines ... was and was re-elected in 2022." CNN's story is here. MB: Bad choice, voters!

Mississippi. Jerry Mitchell, et al., of the New York Times: "The Justice Department announced Thursday that it had expanded its investigation into the suburban Mississippi sheriff's department where a self-described 'Goon Squad' of deputies has been accused of torturing people for nearly two decades. Investigators will seek to determine if the Rankin County Sheriff's Department engaged in a pattern of unconstitutional policing through widespread violence, illegal searches and arrests or other discriminatory practices. Rankin County came to national attention last year after deputies, some from the Goon Squad, tortured two Black men in their home and shot one of them, nearly killing him. Six officers pleaded guilty and were sentenced to federal prison in March."

⭐ North Carolina Gubernatorial Race. Andrew Kaczynski & Em Steck of CNN: "Mark Robinson, the controversial and socially conservative Republican nominee for governor of North Carolina, made a series of inflammatory comments on a pornography website's message board more than a decade ago, in which he referred to himself as a 'black NAZI!' and expressed support for reinstating slavery, a CNN KFile investigation found. Despite a recent history of anti-transgender rhetoric, Robinson said he enjoyed watching transgender pornography, a review of archived messages found in which he also referred to himself as a 'perv.' The comments, which Robinson denies making, predate his entry into politics and current stint as North Carolina's lieutenant governor. They were made under a username that CNN was able to identify as Robinson by matching a litany of biographical details and a shared email address between the two. Many of Robinson's comments were gratuitously sexual and lewd in nature. They were made between 2008 and 2012.... The comments were made under the username minisoldr, a moniker Robinson used frequently online."

Pennsylvania Voter Suppression. Maggie Astor & Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "The Republican National Committee and the Pennsylvania Republican Party are suing to try to stop election officials in the state from letting voters correct technical problems with their mail ballots. The Republican lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the Pennsylvania Supreme Court against Secretary of State Al Schmidt and the state's 67 county election boards, would also stop voters from being able to cast a provisional ballot if their mail ballot is rejected over a technical problem. The lawsuit argues that state law prohibits election officials from notifying voters of such errors and allowing them to be fixed in time to have their ballot counted, a process known as curing. More than half of states allow curing for some types of errors.... Donald J. Trump railed against the process as he falsely alleged election fraud in 2020 and tried to overturn his loss, and it has been a point of contention since then in Pennsylvania and in other states."

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Israel/Palestine, et al.

Aaron Boxerman & Euan Ward of the New York Times: "The Israeli military carried out dozens of airstrikes against the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah on Thursday, one of the most intense waves of bombardment this year. The strikes came hours after Hezbollah's leader vowed that 'retribution will come' to Israel after audacious attacks on Hezbollah's pagers and walkie-talkies. The device explosions killed at least 37 people and left many Israelis and Lebanese fearful of a worsening conflict between Hezbollah and Israel. In his first speech since the devices blew up on Tuesday and Wednesday, Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader, conceded that his group had 'endured a severe and cruel blow.' He accused Israel of breaking 'all conventions and laws' and said that it would 'face just retribution and a bitter reckoning.'"

The New York Times' live updates of developments Thursday in Israel's wars are here. (Also linked yesterday.)

The Conversation -- September 19, 2024

⭐ Thom Hartmann in a Substack essay, on how Donald Trump and Mike Johnson are plotting to disenfranchise millions of women. "Trump, on his failing, Nazi-infested social media site, ranted Tuesday that Republicans must get 'every ounce' of the SAVE Act [Safeguard American Eligibility Act] passed or shut down the government 'in any way, shape, or form.'... Lacking a passport or other proof of citizenship with their married names, they must produce both a birth certificate (with the seal of the state where it was issued; no copies allowed) and a current form of identification -- both with the exact same name on them. That could instantly disqualify about 90 percent of all married women without passports or other proof that matches their birth certificates or proof of a legal name change." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Doesn't sound Constitutional, does it? Now, picture the Supreme Six Super-Suppression Specialists. Okay then.

I Can Be Cruel & Defame Innocent, Defenseless People Because I'm a Belligerent, Ignorant White Bully. Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "Senator JD Vance of Ohio ... said on Wednesday that he would continue to describe Haitian residents in Springfield, Ohio, as 'illegal aliens' even though most of them are in the country legally.... 'If Kamala Harris waves the wand illegally and says these people are now here legally, I'm still going to call them an illegal alien,' he said in response to a reporter's question after a rally in Raleigh, N.C. 'An illegal action from Kamala Harris does not make an alien legal.' [MB: Of course Harris did not wave a magic wand; she did not do anything, legal or illegal, to allow Haitian refugees into the country.] Congress created the temporary protected status program in 1990 and presidents from both major parties have used it in response to wars, natural disasters and other humanitarian crises in various countries. The program allows people from countries designated by the Department of Homeland Security to live and work legally in the United States for 18 months, a period that the department can renew indefinitely.... Gov. Mike DeWine of Ohio ... and the mayor of Springfield, Rob Rue, both Republicans, have denounced the false claims from Mr. Vance and Mr. Trump." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It's pitchfork time! Trump says he's going to show up in Springfield within the next two weeks. If I were a city authority, I'd tell Trump (and/or JayDee) not to come and that if he does come, I'd tell him that law enforcement will stop him at the town line. I'm serious.

Brian Mann of NPR: "For the first time in decades, public health data shows a sudden and hopeful drop in drug overdose deaths across the U.S.... National surveys compiled by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already show an unprecedented decline in drug deaths of roughly 10.6 percent. That's a huge reversal from recent years when fatal overdoses regularly increased by double-digit percentages. Some researchers believe the data will show an even larger decline in drug deaths when federal surveys are updated to reflect improvements being seen at the state level, especially in the eastern U.S." Thanks to RAS for the link.

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

Shawn McCreesh of the New York Times: Donald Trump got irritated when George "Clooney wrote a guest essay for The New York Times in July imploring President Biden to drop out of the race. Mr. Clooney had just hosted a fund-raiser for the president and observed him up close. So he had a certain credibility, and his article made an impact.... Mr. Trump ... [wrote,] 'So now fake movie actor George Clooney, who never came close to making a great movie, is getting into the act. He's turned on Crooked Joe like the rats they both are....' He concluded that, 'Clooney should get out of politics and go back to television. Movies never really worked for him!!!!' On [Jimmy] Kimmel's program Tuesday night, Mr. Clooney swiped back: 'I will if he does. That's a trade-off I'd do.' Ordinarily none of this would matter -- and who is to say it really does? -- but for the fact that Mr. Trump, formerly the star of 'The Apprentice,' clearly craves the approval of fellow stars." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I don't follow movie stars, so I didn't realize how charming Clooney was. As late-nite interviews go, this was a good one, IMO: ~~~

     ~~~ Also, I think this was the opening bit on the same show, and it gave me a chuckle. But then I love Matt Damon:

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Presidential Race

Peter Baker of the New York Times: "More than 100 former national security officials from Republican administrations and former Republican members of Congress endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday after concluding that their party's nominee, Donald J. Trump, is 'unfit to serve again as president.' In a letter to the public, the Republicans, including both vocal longtime Trump opponents and others who had not endorsed Joseph R. Biden Jr. in 2020, argued that while they might 'disagree with Kamala Harris' on many issues, Mr. Trump had demonstrated 'dangerous qualities.' Those include, they said, 'unusual affinity' for dictators like President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and 'contempt for the norms of decent, ethical and lawful behavior.' 'As president,' the letter said, 'he promoted daily chaos in government, praised our enemies and undermined our allies, politicized the military and disparaged our veterans, prioritized his personal interest above American interests and betrayed our values, democracy and this country's founding documents.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Josh Boak & Tom Krisher of the AP: "The International Brotherhood of Teamsters declined Wednesday to endorse Kamala Harris or Donald Trump for president, saying neither candidate had sufficient support from the 1.3 million-member union.... The Teamsters' rebuff reflected a labor union torn over issues of political identity and policy, one that mirrors a broader national divide. Vice President Harris has unmistakably backed organized labor, while former President Trump has appealed to many white blue-collar workers even as he has openly scorned unions at times." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ BUT. Alex Nieves of Politico: "West Coast Teamsters announced their endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday, just minutes after national Teamsters leadership declined to issue a presidential endorsement. The move represents a sharp break within the powerful union's membership in liberal states like California, where ... Donald Trump remains a widely unpopular political figure. The union's national headquarters released internal survey results earlier in the day that showed close to 60 percent of its members backed Trump." Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ AND Tommy Christopher of Mediaite: "Vice President Kamala Harris score endorsements from Teamsters groups in key battleground states on the same day the national Teamsters announced they wouldn't be endorsing Harris or ... Donald Trump.... Teamsters groups in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Nevada endorsed VP Harris.... A pair of groups representing more than 300,000 Teamsters in Northern and Southern Nevada, California, Hawaii, and Guam also endorsed Harris.... The [Harris] campaign noted previous endorsements from Teamsters groups as well, including from battleground Pennsylvania."

Queens Man Comes Home. Michael Gold of the New York Times: "On the day that he was originally set to return to his hometown and receive the sentence for his 34 felony convictions..., Donald J. Trump found himself a few miles east, basking in the raucous adulation of a packed arena on Long Island. Standing in front of thousands at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., Mr. Trump received a local hero's reception, as he drew an exaggerated depiction of a New York in decline, made false claims and hammered Democrats over crime, inflation and immigration.... Mr. Trump appealed directly to his New York supporters, promising to renovate the city's subway, to turn ground zero into a federally managed national monument and to restore a state and local tax break that he did not acknowledge he had limited during his presidency.... And as he tried to make the case that he could flip New York, he continued to stoke fear around immigration." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The "raucous adulation" here reminds me of the Queens residents who cheered their neighbor the mobster John Gotti and happily attended his block parties. Heck, we may be talking about some of the very same people, for all I know. Pathetic. Nevertheless, He's "the greatest of all time": ~~~

Trump: I'm the greatest of all time. Maybe greater even than Elvis pic.twitter.com/8PGDRZW0kr

— Acyn (@Acyn) September 18, 2024

Marie: Trump has long claimed that people say he looks like Elvis. Maybe so.

Marie: Akhilleus did my work for me, so I'll just copy his post: ~~~

     ~~~ Akhilleus: "A legend in his own mind. Here's Fatty reveling in the memory of stuff that never happened. Recalling his incredible, earth shattering, never before in history winning debate performance, Trump revels in his memory of the reaction of the audience at the debate. 'They went wild' he says. There was no audience." MB: Apparently if you lie all the time, the truth fades until it loses all value, and your Walter Mitty fantasies become your own delusional reality. If there's something more dangerous than a compulsive liar in the Oval Office, it is someone who cannot distinguish fact from fiction.

Trump Tries to Turn the Tables. Lisa Lerer of the New York Times: "For months, Donald J. Trump and his allies have described a nation facing almost unthinkable darkness. The United States is under 'under invasion' from 'thousands and thousands and thousands of terrorists,' Mr. Trump told thousands at a rally on Friday in Las Vegas. Babies are being 'executed after birth.' America faces the prospect of a 'nuclear holocaust.' Three days later, after facing his second assassination attempt in two months, Mr. Trump raised what has become an all-too-common American problem: incendiary political speech. But not his -- that of his rivals.... 'Because of this Communist Left Rhetoric, the bullets are flying, and it will only get worse!' Mr. Trump wrote in a social media post on Monday.... Such methods are part of a signature playbook Mr. Trump returns to when he is accused of wrongdoing: He accuses his opponent of the exact same thing.... His remarks amount to a flip of a well-worn political script....

"On Monday, [JD] Vance used the assassination attempt to deflect from Democratic denunciations over his own role in stoking fear in Springfield, calling on Democrats to tone down their rhetoric toward Mr. Trump and Republicans, while also ratcheting up his accusations that they bore responsibility for the two assassination attempts. In a 1,200-word social media post Monday night, Vance accused Democrats of 'censorship' and 'moral blackmail.'..." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So, after telling Democrats and the media to self-censor because they have been calling out Trump for doing and saying anti-democratic, dangerous things, Vance now accuses them of censoring Trump and him. Maybe Vance means this to be political sleight-of-hand, but I'm not 100% sure JayDee realizes how abhorrent his double standard is. He's essentially arguing that his side should be free to say what it wants, but their side must STFU. ~~~

On the same day Ohio's GOP guv sent state police to 17 schools in Springfield after threats of violence, the men who incited those threats are demanding that the rest of us tone down our rhetoric. This is rich. By which I mean unmitigated bullsh*t. -- Charlie Sykes, conservative commentator, on X

~~~ David Badash of AlterNet: "The Atlantic's David Frum, a conservative and former Bush White House speech writer, on Tuesday wrote: 'The difference: The upsetting things said by Trump and Vance are not true. The upsetting things said about Trump and Vance are true. Trump really did mount a violent coup against the Constitution. He and his relatives really did take bribes in office, including from foreign governments. He really was helped into power by Russian espionage agencies. He really did steal secret documents from the US government after his election defeat. And Vance really did, and by his own admission, intentionally 'create stories' for political advantage that put residents of his state at risk of physical harm.'... Joe Walsh, the former Republican Tea Party Congressman[, wrote,] 'The sad truth is this: I's not at all surprising that someone would try to kill him,' he said of Trump. 'Every day for 9yrs, he's spewed hate, spread division, and incited violence like no other. Every day.... Every day, he's attacked this person or that person, this group or that group. In cruel, ugly ways. Every day for 9yrs he's been hating on people and inciting violence against people....'"

They're Eating the Dogs. They're Eating the Cats.

They Knew They Were Lying from the Get-go. Matt Gertz of Media Matters: "Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance told reporters on Tuesday that it was their job -- not his -- to fact-check his claim that Haitians were stealing and eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. The Wall Street Journal did just that, revealing on Wednesday morning that Springfield's city manager told Vance's office that the story was baseless, soon after the Republican vice presidential nominee started publicly making the racist claim. A Vance staffer contacted Springfield City Manager Bryan Heck on the morning of September 9 and 'asked point-blank, "Are the rumors true of pets being taken and eaten?"' Heck told the Journal. 'I told him no. There was no verifiable evidence or reports to show this was true. I told them these claims were baseless.' The Haitian immigrant saga is a testament to the right's refusal to abide by anything resembling evidentiary standards, their demagogic response when anyone dares to point out that their claims are unsubstantiated -- and how their lies can spiral wildly out of control." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ digby sez, "Here's an excerpt and a gift link to the whole [WSJ] article." (MB: I tried digby's WSJ gift link, and it worked for me. If it doesn't work for you, try it from digby's page [linked at "sez".]) ~~~

     ~~~ But, as Alex Wagner of MSNBC put it, Trump & Vance will never give up on their lies because "Springfield isn't really in Ohio. It's a symbol of the MAGA worldview." ~~~

~~~ Megan Lebowitz of NBC News: "... Donald Trump said at a rally Wednesday that he would travel to Springfield, Ohio, the focal point of unsubstantiated claims targeting Haitian migrants, 'in the next two weeks.' 'I'm going to go there in the next two weeks. I'm going to Springfield, and I'm going to Aurora in Colorado, Trump said at a rally in Uniondale, New York.... Trump has repeatedly spread debunked rumors related to Venezuelans in [Aurora]. ~~~

~~~ Michael Shear of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump had been in office for less than six months when he ... insisted one afternoon in 2017 that immigrants from Haiti should not be let into the United States, shocking his chief of staff, secretary of state, homeland security secretary and others gathered in the Oval Office by declaring that people from the beleaguered nation 'all have AIDS.' Now, as he runs for a second term, Mr. Trump is once again denigrating Haitians, part of a pattern that goes back years and appears to have its roots in the early 1980s, when the Centers for Disease Control stigmatized Haitians as a particular threat in the spread of AIDS, driving years of panic about the newly discovered disease. Mr. Trump, a self-described germophobe, has persisted in that debunked belief even though it was formally abandoned by the C.D.C. nearly four decades ago.... At the beginning of 2018..., he said that Haiti was among a series of 'shithole countries' ... and Mr. Trump worked to make it harder for Haitians to immigrate." ~~~

~~~ Philip Bump of the Washington Post explores how JayDee Vance tries to justify his lies about pet-eating Haitian legal refugees: He suggests "he has private knowledge of the accuracy of his claims. What he presents, though, is stuff from the right-wing bubble. [In his initial post, on September 9,] he wrote, 'Reports now show that people have had their pets abducted and eaten by people who shouldn't be in this country.' There were no such 'reports' beyond the claims circulating on the internet. One was a fourth-hand report on Facebook of a stolen cat that was no more than a rumor. Another focused on a photo of a random Black man in a different city. A third looped in a story about an American woman eating a cat in a different part of the state. But notice what Vance doesn't offer: evidence that he'd heard reports from actual constituents." ~~~

~~~ Matt Arco of NJ.com: "'The Vance campaign provided the Wall Street Journal with a police report to prove their claims about cat-eating Haitians in Springfield. The WSJ spoke to the woman who filed it, who said she later found her cat alive and well in her basement. She also apologized to her Haitian neighbors.' Justin Baragona posted to X with a link to a story in The Wall Street Journal."

Marie: Yesterday RAS posted a tweet in which we learned that Trump's plan to lower the cost of groceries was to raise the prices of imported foods. Sure, that's obviously crazy, but it turns out that Trump said something different from that, and the "raise the price of imported food" was a summary/guess/sanewash of what Trump actually said. Here it is. Spelled out. (Scroll down a bit.) (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ In fairness to Trump, his ramblings about energy and interest rates and farmers and the nice room where he met some farmers and windmills is just as coherent as his answer to a question about why cryptocurrency (Trump's newest venture/Scam-o'-the-Week) is so important to the U.S.: (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

It’s A.I., it’s so many other things. You know, A.I., peaking of an interest in future, it needs tremendous electricity capability beyond anything I've ever heard. If you take all the electricity coming out of the U.S., in order to have it to be dominant in A.I. you need twice that amount. Just for this one thing. Who would make that? You need twice the electricity we already have. China is already building electric plants. They want to build them for the A.I., and it's very important, but you need tremendous electric -- and in this country, because of our strong environmental impact statement problems that we have, you know, China doesn't have those problems. -- Donald Trump, "explaining" the impact of cryptocurrency

Nick Corasaniti & Alexandra Berzon of the New York Times: "Donald J. Trump's escalating calls to investigate and prosecute election officials he sees as 'corrupt' are sounding alarms among democracy experts and the local and state workers.... In recent social media posts, Mr. Trump has said that election officials 'involved in unscrupulous behavior will be sought out, caught, and prosecuted at levels, unfortunately, never seen before in our Country.' The November election, he added, 'will be under the closest professional scrutiny and, WHEN I WIN, those people that CHEATED will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law, which will include long term prison sentences so that this Depravity of Justice does not happen again.' On its face, the statements are promises to enforce the law. But coming from Mr. Trump, a politician who has repeatedly claimed to see corruption and fraud where there is no evidence of either and who as president pressured law enforcement officials to act on his complaints, the words raise the prospect that government officials could be investigated and prosecuted for conducting a fair election."

David Klepper & Eric Tucker of the AP: "Iranian hackers sought to interest President Joe Biden's campaign in information stolen from rival Donald Trump's campaign, sending unsolicited emails to people associated with the then-Democratic candidate in an effort to interfere in the 2024 election, the FBI and other federal agencies said Wednesday. There's no indication that any of the recipients responded, officials said, and several media organizations who have said they also were approached with stolen material did not publish it. Kamala Harris' presidential campaign called the emails from Iran 'unwelcome and unacceptable malicious activity' that were received by only a few people who regarded them as spam or phishing attempts." ~~~

     ~~~ Rebecca Beitsch of the Hill: "The FBI and other intelligence agencies revealed Wednesday that Iran attempted to share information stolen during its hack on the Trump campaign with the Biden campaign and continues to send material to various media outlets.... Despite assurances from the intelligence community that no one from the Biden-Harris team responded to the emails, the Trump campaign raised the specter that their rivals may have used the information. 'This is further proof the Iranians are actively interfering in the election to help Kamala Harris and Joe Biden because they know President Trump will restore his tough sanctions and stand against their reign of terror. Kamala and Biden must come clean on whether they used the hacked material given to them by the Iranians to hurt President Trump. What did they know and when did they know it?,' Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement.

"... House Intelligence Committee ... Chair Mike Turner (R-Ohio) similarly fired off a series of questions, asking 'what did they do' with the information. Meanwhile, ranking member Jim Himes (D-Conn.) noted that Trump previously called for Russia to hack the Clinton campaign, suggesting he 'should sit this one out.'" The New York Times story is here.

~~~ David Gilmour of Mediaite: "... Donald Trump accused Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris of 'ILLEGALLY SPYING' on his campaign and asked whether she would 'RESIGN IN DISGRACE' so that the 'COMMUNIST LEFT' could pick a new nominee." ~~~

     ~~~ Okay for Me, Not for Thee. Marie: It is hilarious that Trump has accused and his campaign suspects the Harris campaign of spying. Trump and his 2016 campaign not only used information Russia obtained via Wikileaks but also collaborated with Russian operatives and solicited Russia to perform additional hacks of Clinton's campaign. In addition, when he was president*, Trump told George Stephanopoulos of ABC News that he would gladly use intel obtained from foreign governments against his opponent: "'It's not an interference, they have information -- I think I'd take it, Trump said. 'If I thought there was something wrong, I'd go maybe to the FBI -- if I thought there was something wrong.... It's called oppo research,' he [said]."

"Childless Cat Ladies," Ctd. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "From virtually the moment Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) was selected as Donald Trump's running mate two months ago, their campaign has been doing cleanup work on his past comments deriding women who don't have children -- women he at one point labeled 'childless cat ladies.' But ... Tuesday night the Trump campaign .. doubled down on spotlighting Vice President Kamala Harris's lack of biological children. Appearing onstage with Trump at a campaign town hall in Flint, Mich., Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R) said, '... my kids keep me humble. Unfortunately, Kamala Harris doesn't have anything to keep her humble.'" MB: Hilariously, both the Trump campaign & Sanders are now pretending that Sanders really meant what should keep Harris humble was Biden's failed policies. Right.

The whole Trump team is so busy defending all manner of lies and bad decisions that this defense of what many would argue was, well, ill-advised exposure could get lost in the deluge: ~~~

     ~~~ Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "In what is certainly a first for a former first lady, Melania Trump is defending her past work as a nude model ... and blaming 'the media' for scrutinizing it. In a 45-second video clip posted to her social media accounts on Wednesday, Mrs. Trump, 54, provided some of the most extensive remarks she has given about the topic -- or any topic, really -- since her departure from the White House in January 2021. 'Are we no longer able to appreciate the beauty of the human body?' Mrs. Trump asks in the video, as images of classical paintings and sculptures, including John Collier's 'Lady Godiva' and Michelangelo's 'David,' cycle across the screen. 'We should honor our bodies and embrace the timeless tradition of using art as a powerful means of self-expression.' Her defense of nude modeling ... was part of a series of videos promoting a memoir set for release in October. But the latest message struck a somewhat jarring chord: Her career as a model has not been the subject of broad news coverage since the 2016 presidential race."

digby: These two women will not be voting for Donald Trump. For good reasons.

Bethany McLean in the Washington Post reviews Lucky Loser, a book by Russ Buettner & Susanne Craig, about how Donald Trump squandered his father's fortune. The book "shows in meticulously documented detail how 'even when Trump appeared to be at his best, he was failing,' with massive losses on his core business. The authors prove that without his father's support, Trump would have been nothing..... In the decade that ended in 1995, a decade in which Trump was supposedly a huge success, he recorded more than $1.1 billion in business losses on his tax returns, which the authors call a 'failure of historical proportions.'... Buettner and Craig delve into all the aspects of Trump's life to show how he was able to create the facade that he did. This is a page turner, with spectacular anecdotes.... The book also demonstrates in convincing detail that Donald Trump has always been exactly as he is."

Christopher Rugaber of the AP: "The Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its benchmark interest rate by an unusually large half-point, a dramatic shift after more than two years of high rates that helped tame inflation but also made borrowing painfully expensive for American consumers. The rate cut, the Fe;s first in more than four years, reflects its new focus on bolstering the job market, which has shown clear signs of slowing. Coming just weeks before the presidential election, the Fed's move also has the potential to scramble the economic landscape just as Americans prepare to vote. The central bank's action lowered its key rate to roughly 4.8%, down from a two-decade high of 5.3%, where it had stood for 14 months as it struggled to curb the worst inflation streak in four decades. Inflation has tumbled from a peak of 9.1% in mid-2022 to a three-year low of 2.5% in August, not far above the Fed's 2% target." (Also linked yesterday.)

Julie Weil of the Washington Post: "The IRS recovered $263 million from a single individual, ending more than a decade of tax evasion and one of its biggest whistleblower cases ever, according to lawyers from three firms involved in the case.The three informants will split $74 million, nearly a third of the government's proceeds and the largest award allowed by law, the lawyers said." ~~~

     ~~~ Dear IRS: There is a guy who lives in a big house in Palm Beach and his name is Donald Trump and he brags how smart he is cheating on his taxes and you can read all about what a tax cheat he is in the New York Times and please send me my humungous reward in a certified check. Yours truly, Whistleblowing Marie

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "The House on Wednesday defeated a $1.6 trillion stopgap spending bill to extend current government funding into March and impose new proof-of-citizenship requirements on voter registration, as Republicans and Democrats alike rejected Speaker Mike Johnson's proposal to avert a shutdown at the end of the month. The bipartisan repudiation was entirely expected after several Republicans had made clear they would not back the spending plan and Democrats almost uniformly opposed the voting-registration proposal. The vote was 220 to 202, with 14 Republicans joining all but three Democrats in opposition. Two Republicans voted present.... The speaker, under pressure from ... Donald J. Trump and the hard right to insist on the proposal, plunged ahead on Wednesday anyway, working to show members of his party that he was fighting for their principles."

⭐ Dana Milbank of the Washington Post in a well-timed adaptation from his book Fools on the Hill, on Mike Johnson's House speakership, a job Mike said God told him how to get. "At the moment, Johnson and his caucus are in a typical crisis of their own making. The government runs out of money in less than two weeks, and Trump has ordered Johnson to shut it down if Democrats won't swallow a poison pill that makes it harder to register to vote." Milbank goes on to outline some of House Republicans' failures & pratfalls. It's quite a record. And really, this Congress did set some records. "The chaos has one source. While Johnson and his House GOP colleagues may think they've been hearing the voice of God, they've actually been heeding the voice of the 'Orange Jesus.'..."

Brooke Migdon of the Hill: "The House voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to award a Congressional Gold Medal to tennis legend and equal rights advocate Billie Jean King, bestowing the nation's highest civilian honor on a female individual athlete for the first time. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) introduced the bill to recognize King last September on the 50th anniversary of the tennis Hall of Famer's 1973 victory over Bobby Riggs in the 'Battle of the Sexes,' still the most-watched tennis match of all time. The same year, King successfully lobbied for equal prize money for men and women at the U.S. Open and founded the Women's Tennis Association.... A House companion bill to award King the medal drew broad bipartisan support, amassing nearly 300 co-sponsors from either side of the aisle." (Also linked yesterday.)

Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.) schools GOP Congressmembers on their inaccurate "illegal immigration" chart. One would think members of Congress would know when a presidential* term ends. Apparently not: ~~~

Garcia: It says that Trump left office at this point in the chart. That's not when Donald Trump left office. Donald Trump actually left office right here on this chart. You can see that the actual immigration and border crossings was already going up by the time Donald Trump left pic.twitter.com/4iOPOadvAa

— Acyn (@Acyn) September 18, 2024

     ~~~ Via Alex Griffing of Mediaite.

William Broad & Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs of the New York Times: "... the first two days of a formal hearing by a Coast Guard panel into the [Titan submersible] disaster, which began Monday, have raised basic questions about that ... [implosion] and taken detailed testimony that supports an unsensational finding. 'Throughout the descent,' the opening report of the Marine Board of Investigation states, the crew sent 'no transmissions which indicated trouble or any emergency.' That finding centers on the official examination of the communications between the submersible and its mother ship, as well as expert analysis of the submersible's last known act -- the dropping of its weights."

Georgina Rannard of BBC News: "Radio waves from Elon Musk's growing network of satellites are blocking scientists' ability to peer into the universe, according to researchers in the Netherlands. The new generation of Starlink satellites, which provide fast internet around the world, are interfering more with radio telescopes than earlier versions, they say. The thousands of orbiting satellites are 'blinding' radio telescopes and may be hindering astronomical research, according to Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)."

Ben Sisario & Julia Jacobs of the New York Times: "A federal judge on Wednesday ordered Sean Combs to remain in jail until his trial for sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy, rejecting an appeal by the music mogul's lawyers requesting that he be released on bail. Judge Andrew L. Carter Jr. said at a hearing in Lower Manhattan that Mr. Combs posed a risk of witness tampering and was a danger to the safety of the community. He rejected an unusual proposal from Mr. Combs's legal team in which he would have remained at his mansion in Florida, monitored around the clock by a private security force. The lawyers had offered a $50 million bond for his release."

Hurubie Meko of the New York Times: "Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced Hollywood producer, pleaded not guilty to a new sex-crime indictment in a Manhattan court on Wednesday, months after a previous conviction was thrown out. The Manhattan district attorney's office, which is prosecuting Mr. Weinstein on the charge of sexually assaulting a woman in a Manhattan hotel in 2006, is also retrying the earlier case. The new charge of committing a criminal sexual act in the first degree is just the most recent legal trouble for a man who was the center of accusations that set off the global #MeToo movement. Mr. Weinstein, 72, has also been convicted in California on sex charges and faces a prison term there."

~~~~~~~~~~

Kentucky. Maria Paul of the Washington Post: "Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) on Wednesday signed an executive order banning 'conversion therapy' for minors -- skirting the Republican-led state legislature and setting up a likely legal challenge. Beshear said the new policy, which goes into effect immediately, is an overdue step to protect children from a widely discredited medical practice that attempts to change a person's sexual orientation or gender identity.' See Akhilleus's commentary on this at the end of yesterday's Comments thread.

Ohio Court: Sometimes "Anti-gerrymandering" Equals "Gerrymandering"! Courtney Cohn of Democracy Docket: "On a 4-3 decision on Monday, the Ohio Supreme Court largely upheld ballot language for a redistricting amendment that the initiative's organizers argue is misleading and deceptive. Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) said the Ballot Board will reconvene Wednesday morning to make 'minor adjustments' to the initiative's language as ordered by the state Supreme Court.... Citizens Not Politicians, a campaign to end gerrymandering, collected thousands of signatures for an initiative that would take the power of drawing congressional and legislative maps away from politicians and vest it in a citizen redistricting commission. Then, last month, the GOP-controlled Ballot Board voted to approve Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R)'s title and language for the amendment, instead of what the initiative's organizers wrote. Citizens Not Politicians then sued the board, arguing the language they adopted was so biased and inaccurate it violated the Ohio Constitution.... The group said the purpose of the amendment is to end partisan gerrymandering, but the adopted ballot language said it would '[e]stablish a new taxpayer funded commission of appointees required to gerrymander the boundaries of state legislative and congressional districts to favor the two largest political parties in the state of Ohio.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Here is a Substack essay decrying the court's decision by David Pepper, former chair of the Ohio Democratic party. Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.)

~~~~~~~~~~

China. Joseph Menn & Ellen Nakashima of the Washington Post: "The United States and allied countries said Wednesday they had taken control of a network of 260,000 internet-connected cameras, routers and other devices that the Chinese government had been using to spy on sensitive organizations. The operation, which occurred last week, took aim at a botnet known as Flax Typhoon, which U.S. officials said was run by a government contractor in Beijing, a publicly traded company called Integrity Technology Group. The FBI won a court order to send the infected devices commands that detached them from the network. U.S. authorities said the cyberspies used the devices as steppingstones to hide their tracks when they breached government and industry institutions in America, Taiwan and elsewhere. The authorities cited the same intention after a previous seizure in December and January."

Israel/Palestine, et al.

Niha Masih of the Washington Post: "The U.N. General Assembly on Wednesday overwhelmingly voted in favor of a resolution demanding that Israel end its 'unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory' within 12 months. The nonbinding resolution also said that Israel should withdraw its military forces; halt the expansion of settlements and evacuate all settlers from occupied land; and demolish parts of a separation wall constructed inside the occupied West Bank. A majority of members == 124 countries -- voted in favor. Fourteen countries, including Israel and the United States, voted against the resolution and 43 countries abstained. It also asks member states to cease arms transfers to Israel when there are reasonable grounds to believe that they might be used in the occupied territory and to impose sanctions on settlers involved in violence against Palestinians."

The New York Times' live updates of developments Wednesday in Israel's wars is here: "Another wave of wireless devices, including walkie-talkies, exploded in Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon, local authorities said, a day after at least 12 people were killed and thousands more injured in Lebanon in an apparently coordinated attack that targeted members of Hezbollah by blowing up their pagers. Lebanon's health ministry said the second wave of blasts involving wireless devices killed at least one person and wounded more than 100. A senior Lebanese security official and a Hezbollah official, who asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the issue, said among the devices that exploded were hand-held radios -- commonly known as walkie talkies -- belonging to Hezbollah members." (Also linked yesterday.)

Ukraine, et al. Oh, Right. Cat Zakrzewski of the Washington Post: "Pro-Kremlin websites and social media accounts are promulgating the unsubstantiated claim that Ukraine orchestrated a potential assassination attempt against Donald Trump.... Shortly after Ryan Wesley Routh was identified as the suspect believed to have pointed a rifle toward a Florida golf course where Trump was playing Sunday, Russian state media outlets and officials on social media painted the 58-year-old as an agent working on behalf of Kyiv. Routh's social media posts show he was a staunch supporter of Ukraine who traveled there and attempted to join the war effort, but Ukrainian government officials have denied that he had any links to the government or military. The claims were soon echoed by conservative commentators in the United States, according to an analysis from the company NewsGuard."

News Lede

New York Times: "A body believed to be of the suspect in a Kentucky highway shooting that left five people seriously injured this month was found on Wednesday, the authorities said, ending a manhunt that stretched into a second week and set the local community on edge. The Kentucky State Police commissioner, Phillip Burnett Jr., said in a Wednesday night news conference that at approximately 3:30 p.m., two troopers and two civilians found an unidentified body in the brush behind the highway exit where the shooting occurred.... The police have identified the suspect of the shooting as Joseph A. Couch, 32. They said that on Sept. 7, Mr. Couch perched on a cliff overlooking Interstate 75 about eight miles north of London, Ky., and opened fire. One of the wounded was shot in the face, and another was shot in the chest. A dozen vehicles were riddled with gunfire."

The Conversation -- September 18, 2024

They Knew They Were Lying from the Get-go. Matt Gertz of Media Matters: "Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance told reporters on Tuesday that it was their job -- not his -- to fact-check his claim that Haitians were stealing and eating pets in Springfield, Ohio. The Wall Street Journal did just that, revealing on Wednesday morning that Springfield's city manager told Vance's office that the story was baseless, soon after the Republican vice presidential nominee started publicly making the racist claim. A Vance staffer contacted Springfield City Manager Bryan Heck on the morning of September 9 and 'asked point-blank, "Are the rumors true of pets being taken and eaten?"' Heck told the Journal. 'I told him no. There was no verifiable evidence or reports to show this was true. I told them these claims were baseless.' The Haitian immigrant saga is a testament to the right's refusal to abide by anything resembling evidentiary standards, their demagogic response when anyone dares to point out that their claims are unsubstantiated -- and how their lies can spiral wildly out of control."

Brooke Migdon of the Hill: "The House voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to award a Congressional Gold Medal to tennis legend and equal rights advocate Billie Jean King, bestowing the nation's highest civilian honor on a female individual athlete for the first time. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) introduced the bill to recognize King last September on the 50th anniversary of the tennis Hall of Famer's 1973 victory over Bobby Riggs in the 'Battle of the Sexes,' still the most-watched tennis match of all time. The same year, King successfully lobbied for equal prize money for men and women at the U.S. Open and founded the Women's Tennis Association.... A House companion bill to award King the medal drew broad bipartisan support, amassing nearly 300 co-sponsors from either side of the aisle."

Josh Boak & Tom Krisher of the AP: "The International Brotherhood of Teamsters declined Wednesday to endorse <Kamala Harris or Donald Trump for president, saying neither candidate had sufficient support from the 1.3 million-member union.... The Teamsters' rebuff reflected a labor union torn over issues of political identity and policy, one that mirrors a broader national divide. Vice President Harris has unmistakably backed organized labor, while former President Trump has appealed to many white blue-collar workers even as he has openly scorned unions at times." ~~~

     ~~~ BUT. Alex Nieves of Politico: "West Coast Teamsters announced their endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday, just minutes after national Teamsters leadership declined to issue a presidential endorsement. The move represents a sharp break within the powerful union's membership in liberal states like California, where ... Donald Trump remains a widely unpopular political figure. The union's national headquarters released internal survey results earlier in the day that showed close to 60 percent of its members backed Trump." Thanks to RAS for the link.

Christopher Rugaber of the AP: "The Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its benchmark interest rate by an unusually large half-point, a dramatic shift after more than two years of high rates that helped tame inflation but also made borrowing painfully expensive for American consumers. The rate cut, the Fed's first in more than four years, reflects its new focus on bolstering the job market, which has shown clear signs of slowing. Coming just weeks before the presidential election, the Fed's move also has the potential to scramble the economic landscape just as Americans prepare to vote. The central bank's action lowered its key rate to roughly 4.8%, down from a two-decade high of 5.3%, where it had stood for 14 months as it struggled to curb the worst inflation streak in four decades. Inflation has tumbled from a peak of 9.1% in mid-2022 to a three-year low of 2.5% in August, not far above the Fed's 2% target."

Court: Sometimes "Anti-gerrymandering" Equals "Gerrymandering"! Courtney Cohn of Democracy Docket: "On a 4-3 decision on Monday, the Ohio Supreme Court largely upheld ballot language for a redistricting amendment that the initiative's organizers argue is misleading and deceptive. Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R) said the Ballot Board will reconvene Wednesday morning to make 'minor adjustments' to the initiative's language as ordered by the state Supreme Court.... Citizens Not Politicians, a campaign to end gerrymandering, collected thousands of signatures for an initiative that would take the power of drawing congressional and legislative maps away from politicians and vest it in a citizen redistricting commission. Then, last month, the GOP-controlled Ballot Board voted to approve Secretary of State Frank LaRose (R)'s title and language for the amendment, instead of what the initiative's organizers wrote. Citizens Not Politicians then sued the board, arguing the language they adopted was so biased and inaccurate it violated the Ohio Constitution.... The group said the purpose of the amendment is to end partisan gerrymandering, but the adopted ballot language said it would '[e]stablish a new taxpayer funded commission of appointees required to gerrymander the boundaries of state legislative and congressional districts to favor the two largest political parties in the state of Ohio.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Here is a Substack essay decrying the court's decision by David Pepper, former chair of the Ohio Democratic party. Thanks to RAS for the link.

The New York Times' live updates of developments Wednesday in Israel's wars is here: "Another wave of wireless devices, including walkie-talkies, exploded in Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon, local authorities said, a day after at least 12 people were killed and thousands more injured in Lebanon in an apparently coordinated attack that targeted members of Hezbollah by blowing up their pagers. Lebanon's health ministry said the second wave of blasts involving wireless devices killed at least one person and wounded more than 100. A senior Lebanese security official and a Hezbollah official, who asked to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the issue, said among the devices that exploded were hand-held radios -- commonly known as walkie talkies -- belonging to Hezbollah members."

Marie: Earlier today, RAS posted a tweet in which we learned that Trump's plan to lower the cost of groceries was to raise the prices of imported foods. Sure, that's obviously crazy, but it turns out that Trump said something different from that, and the "raise the price of imported food" was a summary/guess/sanewash of what Trump actually said. Here it is. Spelled out. (Scroll down a bit.) ~~~

~~~ In fairness to Trump, his ramblings about energy and interest rates and farmers and the nice room where he met some farmers and windmills is just as coherent as his answer to a question about why cryptocurrency (Trump's newest venture/Scam-o'-the-Week) is so important to the U.S.: ~~~

It's A.I., it's so many other things. You know, A.I., speaking of an interest in future, it needs tremendous electricity capability beyond anything I've ever heard. If you take all the electricity coming out of the U.S., in order to have it to be dominant in A.I. you need twice that amount. Just for this one thing. Who would make that? You need twice the electricity we already have. China is already building electric plants. They want to build them for the A.I., and it's very important, but you need tremendous electric -- and in this country, because of our strong environmental impact statement problems that we have, you know, China doesn't have those problems. -- Donald Trump, "explaining" the impact of cryptocurrency

Peter Baker of the New York Times: "More than 100 former national security officials from Republican administrations and former Republican members of Congress endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday after concluding that their party's nominee, Donald J. Trump, is 'unfit to serve again as president.' In a letter to the public, the Republicans, including both vocal longtime Trump opponents and others who had not endorsed Joseph R. Biden Jr. in 2020, argued that while they might 'disagree with Kamala Harris' on many issues, Mr. Trump had demonstrated 'dangerous qualities.' Those include, they said, 'unusual affinity' for dictators like President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia and 'contempt for the norms of decent, ethical and lawful behavior.' 'As president,' the letter said, 'he promoted daily chaos in government, praised our enemies and undermined our allies, politicized the military and disparaged our veterans, prioritized his personal interest above American interests and betrayed our values, democracy and this country's founding documents.'"

Trump Tries to Turn the Tables. Lisa Lerer of the New York Times: "For months, Donald J. Trump and his allies have described a nation facing almost unthinkable darkness. The United States is under 'under invasion' from 'thousands and thousands and thousands of terrorists,' Mr. Trump told thousands at a rally on Friday in Las Vegas. Babies are being 'executed after birth.' America faces the prospect of a 'nuclear holocaust.' Three days later, after facing his second assassination attempt in two months, Mr. Trump raised what has become an all-too-common American problem: incendiary political speech. But not his -- that of his rivals.... 'Because of this Communist Left Rhetoric, the bullets are flying, and it will only get worse!' Mr. Trump wrote in a social media post on Monday.... Such methods are part of a signature playbook Mr. Trump returns to when he is accused of wrongdoing: He accuses his opponent of the exact same thing.... His remarks amount to a flip of a well-worn political script....

"On Monday, Mr. Vance used the assassination attempt to deflect from Democratic denunciations over his own role in stoking fear in Springfield, calling on Democrats to tone down their rhetoric toward Mr. Trump and Republicans, while also ratcheting up his accusations that they bore responsibility for the two assassination attempts. In a 1,200-word social media post Monday night, [JD] Vance accused Democrats of 'censorship' and 'moral blackmail.'..." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So, after telling Democrats and the media to self-censor because they have been calling out Trump for doing and saying anti-democratic, dangerous things, Vance now accuses of censoring Trump and him. Maybe Vance means this to be political sleight-of-hand, but I'm not 100% sure JayDee realizes how abhorrent his double standard is. He's essentially arguing that his side should be free to say what it wants, but their side must STFU.

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Presidential Race

Erica Green & Nicholas Nehamas of the New York Times: "Vice President Kamala Harris said on Tuesday that ... Donald J. Trump's unfounded claims about Black migrants in an Ohio city were 'hateful rhetoric' and 'tropes' that had been 'designed to divide us as a country.' 'This is exhausting, and it's harmful,' she said during an interview with Black journalists in Philadelphia. 'And it's hateful, and grounded in some age-old stuff that we should not have the tolerance for.... It's got to stop.' Ms. Harris's remarks on Tuesday at a gathering of the National Association of Black Journalists were her most forceful yet about the Trump campaign's escalating attacks on migrants and communities of color, and her first time directly addressing the situation in Springfield, Ohio.... In her interview, Ms. Harris laid out the city's distress, pointing to children who could not attend school and law enforcement officers who had been stretched thin.... She said she had spoken with Mr. Trump earlier on Tuesday, checking in to make sure that he was OK and reiterating her sentiment that 'there's no place for political violence in our country.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Matt Brown & Darlene Superville of the AP: "Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday decried ... Donald Trump for inflammatory rhetoric about migrants in Springfield, Ohio, and on other topics, saying voters should make sure he 'can't have that microphone again.'" ~~~

Joseph Menn of the Washington Post: "Russian propagandists are escalating attacks on the presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris with false but widely circulated videos on social media, including one that featured an actor accusing Harris of a nonexistent hit-and-run that paralyzed a girl, Microsoft researchers said Tuesday. That video was a viral hit, spread by X accounts with as a many as a half-million followers, despite first appearing on a newly minted San Francisco news outlet that soon vanished. Posts featuring the video racked up 7 million views on X alone, and were also on Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. Another video manufactured an assault on an attendee of a rally for ... Donald Trump, garnering millions of views, Microsoft said. One depicted a fake New York billboard with vulgar messages saying Harris wanted to change children's gender. It drew hundreds of thousands of views on X. In all, Microsoft called out three Russian government-backed groups in addition to those described in federal charges last week against employees at propaganda network RT." (Also linked yesterday.) The AP story is here.

Elizabeth Spiers of the New York Times: "Figures on the political right, including JD Vance, Donald Trump and various conservative internet celebrities, have accused [Vice President] Harris of affecting a Southern accent on the campaign trail, and implied that it was a kind of deception. Ms. Harris, who is not from the South, wasn't using a Southern accent, though.... What Ms. Harris was slipping into was Black English. There's nothing unusual about her using Black English because to state the obvious (to everyone except Donald Trump, apparently) Ms.Harris is Black.... Conservatives find her accent infuriating for one very specific reason: because they buy the negative stereotypes. They associate Southern accents with less educated, working-class people who, if they're white, might be racist -- and that's a demographic that conservatives cynically regard as their property. So Republicans who think that ... a Black Democrat using a Southern accent is stealing their shtick, or their votes." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Never mind, I guess, that Trump and Vance each have affected not an accent but an entire personal identity that does not comport with reality, and they have done so for political purposes. Trump, the bankruptcy king, pretends he was a successful businessman. And JayDee, well, JayDee is still trying on identities. For a while he pretended to be a hillbilly, and for another (possibly overlapping) while, he played the part of a slick investment advisor. And now, after condemning GOP racism (see, for instance, Andrew Kaczynski's post, linked below), he's doing the xenophobic racist thing.

Brett Samuels of the Hill: "Former President Trump said Tuesday that both President Biden and Vice President Harris were 'so nice' in their calls following an apparent assassination attempt on Trump, hinting that it made it more difficult to attack them. 'He was so nice to me yesterday. In one way I sort of wish the call wasn't made because I do feel a little -- He's so nice. "I'm so sorry about what happened and all that,"' Trump said at a campaign town hall in Michigan, recounting his call with Biden on Monday. 'Same with Kamala today. She could not have been nicer,' Trump added. 'But the fact is we have to have people that are respected by the opponent.' Earlier in the event, Trump referred to the 'very nice call' he had with Harris, eliciting boos from the crowd. 'No, it was very nice,' Trump said as the crowd jeered." Of course, Trump mispronounced Harris's name, calling her KaMAHlah instead of KAmala. ~~~

~~~ Marie: In the same fake town hall, Trump boasted about allowing oil drilling in "Bagram in Alaska," although Bagram was a US Air Force base in Afghanistan. Moments later, he tried to clean up his mistake, only to descend into meaningless babble. Meanwhile, the so-called moderator Sarah Huckleberry Sanders looked on lovingly through it all. Link is to a Mediaite post. ~~~

~~~ Earlier in the event, Gov. Sanders went down the well-trod childless cat lady path: ~~~

     ~~~ Michael Luciano of Mediaite: "Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders took a potshot at Vice President Kamala Harris because the Democratic nominee does not have biological children.... 'So, my kids keep me humble,' she told the crowd. 'Unfortunately, Kamala Harris doesn’t have anything keeping her humble.'... Last year, Sanders signed a bill into law making it easier for employers in Arkansas to hire children."

It's OK If You're Trump. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump and his campaign have quickly responded to Sunday's threat to the former president's life by blaming Democrats. High on their list of alleged offenses? Democrats' having called Trump a 'threat to democracy' and a 'fascist.'... There remains no evidence that the gunmen in the two incidents were actually incited by Democrats' rhetoric. But even if we set all that aside, Trump's argument is flawed by a significant deficit: He uses these talking points a lot more than his opponents right now -- and has been for months.... According to a Washington Post review of campaign appearances and social media posts, Trump has called Harris, the Democrats or other perceived foes a 'threat to democracy' a dozen times in the past month and more than 20 times since Harris got into the race.... Trump has also used the 'fascist' label at least seven times in the past month, and he used it dozens more times before that. He invoked fascism twice Friday alone, including by calling Harris a 'radical-left Marxist communist fascist.' Harris and her campaign haven't used such rhetoric nearly as much in recent months.... [Over the years, Trump] has repeatedly and suggestively promoted the prospect of political violence." ~~~

     ~~~ CNN ran an (incomplete) montage Tuesday of Trump's calling Harris a fascist and scum and so on. Via Mediaite.

Huh. Kate Kelly, et al., of the New York Times: "... Donald J. Trump gave his Secret Service detail short notice that he would be golfing at his course in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Sunday, causing agents to forgo a scan of the perimeter, according to two people familiar with the events. The decision not to survey the course at Trump International Golf Club, because of a lack of time, before Mr. Trump's outing allowed a man with a gun to sit concealed in bushes for almost 12 hours." ~~~

~~~ Jonathan Swan, et al., of the New York Times: "The acting director of the Secret Service told ... Donald J. Trump that significant additional security arrangements and planning would be needed if he wanted to continue safely playing golf, according to three people with knowledge of their conversation. The agency's acting director, Ronald L. Rowe Jr., made the recommendation on Monday afternoon at a meeting with Mr. Trump in his office at Mar-a-Lago, his private club and home in Palm Beach, Fla." (Also linked yesterday.)

Amanda Marcotte of Salon: "... Sen. JD Vance went to Yale Law School. The Ohio Republican was selected as Donald Trump's running mate in no small part because of his overrated intellectual chops. In the 207-word announcement adding Vance to the ticket, Trump used the word 'Yale' four times and even made sure to note that Vance graduated 'Summa Cum Laude' from Ohio State University. Vance fashions himself a public intellectual, spending endless hours giving chin-scratching interviews on right-wing podcasts and to Ross Douthat of the New York Times. He name-drops far-right and even Nazi academics like Carl Schmitt and flings around plenty of five-dollar words.... Watching interviews with Vance suggests his main job is to 'translate' Trump's babble into coherent-sounding talking points.... The term 'sanewashing' was coined to describe the bad habit of journalists who rewrite Trump's rambling nonsense into sentences that make sense, but for Vance, it's a full-time job." Do read on.(Also linked yesterday.)

Andrew Egger of the Bulwark: JD "Vance's pivot to hand-wringing about extreme rhetoric is truly shameless coming from the current GOP ticket. Under Vance's furrowed-brow rules of engagement, calling a political opponent a fascist threat to democracy is way over the line. But calling an opponent a communist threat to democracy, as Trump says daily of Kamala Harris? Less of an issue, apparently. Vance's attempt at rhetoric-policing is particularly ridiculous this time around -- and not just because Trump accused Harris of being a fascist less than two weeks ago.... [Trump and Vance are] crying foul on their opponents' rhetoric while continuing shamelessly to hit below the belt. 'Their rhetoric is causing me to be shot at,' Trump said during a Fox News interview [Monday]. 'They are the ones that are destroying the country.... They are the real threat.' At about that same time, his campaign sent out a fundraising email saying Joe Biden 'truly hates our country' and was allowing 'an invasion' that is 'terrorizing U.S. citizens.'... But lowering the temperature doesn't mean ignoring the truth. We needn't lose sleep over calling Trump a 'threat to democracy,' for instance: In 2020, he ... [tried] by both fraud and force to reinstall himself as president contrary to the laws ... and the voted will of the people. He continues to deny the outcome of that election and is open about not accepting the outcome of the coming one." (Also linked yesterday.)

Andrew Kaczynski of CNN: "A week after President Barack Obama won reelection in November 2012, JD Vance, then a law student at Yale, wrote a scathing rebuke of the Republican Party's stance [link fixed] on migrants and minorities, criticizing it for being 'openly hostile to non-whites' and for alienating 'Blacks, Latinos, [and] the youth.' Four years later, as Vance considered a career in GOP politics, he asked a former college professor to delete the article. That professor, Brad Nelson, taught Vance at Ohio State University while Vance was an undergraduate student.... Nelson told CNN that during the 2016 Republican primary he agreed to delete the article at Vance's request, so that Vance might have an easier time getting a job in Republican politics. However, the article ... remains viewable on the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine." (Also linked yesterday.)

Shakezula of LG&$: "If someone says they're going to blow up a school, but no schools have exploded, does it count as a threat? According to Senator JD Vance, it does not. In fact, people who say the bomb threats are bomb threats are trying to silence him, because of course he;s the real victim.... To Vance the fact that investigators eventually determined a batch of threats are hoaxes means people who reported on the bomb threats that he inspired, and apparently wants, owe him an apology. 'I'm still waiting on a correction and apology from the left wing journalists. They lied about these bomb threats to silence us. Why? Because they don't want to talk about Kamala Harris's border policies making housing unaffordable for American citizen[s.]"

No Key to the City for Donald. Zoe Richards of NBC News: "The Republican mayor of Springfield, Ohio, the city that has been the target of unfounded claims from ... Donald Trump and his running mate about Haitian immigrants' eating residents' pets said Tuesday that a visit from Trump would tax the city's resources. 'It would be an extreme strain on our resources. So it'd be fine with me if they decided not to make that visit,' Mayor Rob Rue said at a news conference at City Hall."

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Michael Luciano of Mediaite: "Fox News host Sean Hannity blamed liberal politicians for the actions of two would-be assassins of ... Donald Trump and falsely claimed they were Democrats.... [Ryan] Routh is registered as an 'unaffiliated' voter in North Carolina and donated more than $100 on ActBlue, a Democratic fundraising platform. According to CNN, Routh indicated on Facebook he may have voted for Trump in 2016, but had soured on the former president. [Thomas] Crooks, meanwhile, was a registered Republican and made a small donation on ActBlue. He had also searched for locations where Trump and President Joe Biden were scheduled to appear."

Perry Stein of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump's legal team has requested a 30-day extension to respond to the government's appeal of U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon's dismissal of his classified-documents case, making it less likely that a ruling on whether the indictment should be restored will come before Inauguration Day. The former president is very likely to be granted the extension. Special counsel Jack Smith did not oppose the request, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit in Atlanta -- where the government's appeal was filed -- says first-time requests for 30-day extensions should be approved. Trump's lawyers said they can't meet the court's Sept. 25 deadline because they are juggling other due dates related to Trump's separate federal election interference case in D.C." (Also linked yesterday.)

Kylie Cheung of Jezebel: "John McEntee, who served in the Trump administration and helped write Project 2025, said in a viral TikTok that women aren't 'bleeding out' from abortion bans [as Vice President Harris asserted during her debate with Donald Trump].... 'Can someone track down the women Kamala Harris says are bleeding out in parking lots because Roe v. Wade was overturned? Don't hold your breath,' McEntee says in the clip, posted to ... his right-wing dating app.... Carmen Broesder, an Idaho woman who documented her 19-day miscarriage on TikTok in December 2022, expressing fear that she would die before any hospital helped her.... As of Tuesday, Broesder's TikTok has six million views and over 34,000 comments, including many from women sharing similar horror stories. She said the response has been 'overwhelming and reinforcing,' but expressed concern 'that many feel dismissed and erased in their own experiences.'" MB: This site may have a subscriber firewall.

Summer Ballentine & Steve Leblanc of the AP: "The FBI and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service on Tuesday were investigating the origin of suspicious packages that have been sent to or received by elections officials in more than 15 states, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or that any of the packages contained hazardous material.... The FBI is collecting the packages, some of which contained 'an unknown substance,' agency spokesperson Kristen Setera in Boston said in a statement.... The latest scare comes as early voting has begun in several states...." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What kind of a nitwit thinks a fun thing to do is to sit home addressing envelopes to elections officials, shaking baby talc into the envelopes, sealing (licking?) the envelopes, stamping them (not cheap these days), then running them down to the post office? I mean, really, why would anyone do that?

MSNBC: "The Senate once again took a vote on protecting IVF, but Trump -- the self-proclaimed 'leader on fertilization' who is never shy about forcing his Republicans to support or kill a bill -- was nowhere to be found. All but two Republicans voted against the bill -- and JD Vance skipped the vote." ~~~

~~~ Annie Karni of the New York Times: "Senate Republicans on Tuesday blocked an election-season bid by Democrats to advance legislation that would guarantee federal protections and insurance coverage for in vitro fertilization treatments, the second time in three months that the G.O.P. has thwarted the broadly popular measure. Democrats orchestrated the failed vote, just weeks before the November elections, in part to highlight Republican opposition to abortion rights and its implications for access to other reproductive health care services. They sought to remind voters that the G.O.P. was holding firm against federal protections for I.V.F. even after ... Donald J. Trump called himself a 'leader' on the issue and said he supported requiring insurance companies or the federal government to cover the treatments." CNN's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.)

Alexander Bolton of the Hill: "Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) is warning colleagues that it would be 'politically beyond stupid' for Congress to stumble into a government shutdown a few weeks before Election Day, saying Republicans would 'certainly' get the blame. McConnell made his comments a few hours after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) unveiled his plan to vote this week on a bill that pairs a six-month continuing resolution with legislation backed by former President Trump that would require proof of citizenship to vote. Johnson was forced to yank the same bill from the floor last week in the face of widespread opposition within his own party." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So, Mitch, was it "politically beyond brilliant" to vote with nearly your entire caucus against federal IVF protections? Just asking.

Let's hear from Sen. Foghorn Leghorn (R-La.), who stands up for his right to bigotry: ~~~

Ben Sisario & Julia Jacobs of the New York Times: "Sean Combs, the embattled music mogul, has been indicted on three counts of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation to engage in prostitution. In the indictment, which was unsealed on Tuesday, prosecutors in the Southern District of New York accused Mr. Combs of running a 'criminal enterprise' that for years threatened, abused and coerced women, and included accusations of forced labor, kidnapping, arson, bribery and obstruction of justice. To commit these acts, the prosecutors said, Mr. Combs relied on the help of the employees of his business." (Also linked yesterday.) An AP report is here. ~~~

     ~~~ CNN live-updated developments yesterday. The liveblog includes a copy of the indictment: "Sean 'Diddy' Combs was denied bail and taken into custody Tuesday after pleading not guilty in federal court to charges of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking. Prosecutors argued the music mogul should not be released because he had previously reached out to witnesses and victims." (Also linked yesterday.)

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Arizona. Wayne Schutsky of NPR: "Election officials in Arizona have discovered a flaw in the state's voter registration system that could disqualify nearly 100,000 people from voting in state and local races just weeks before early ballots will hit mailboxes. A state law that went into effect in 2004 requires Arizona voters to provide proof of citizenship to register to vote in state and local elections, though individuals that do not provide proof can still register to vote for federal offices like president and U.S. Senate using a federal only form. Arizona's voter registration system pulls information from the state's driver's license database as a method of proving citizenship, but the Maricopa County Recorder's office found a flaw with the database, which incorrectly showed that some people provided proof of citizenship when they applied for a driver's license.... The discovery sent election officials in Arizona down a rabbit hole that revealed tens of thousands of voters in every county in the state have not provided the documentation required to vote a full ballot under Arizona law. Now [elections officials] are asking the Arizona Supreme Court to decide how to deal with the voters affected by the revelation."

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Israel/Palestine, et al.

Sheera Frenkel & Ronen Bergman of the New York Times: "Israel carried out its operation against Hezbollah on Tuesday by hiding explosive material within a new batch of Taiwanese-made pagers imported into Lebanon, according to American and other officials briefed on the operation. The pagers, which Hezbollah had ordered from Gold Apollo in Taiwan, had been tampered with before they reached Lebanon, according to some of the officials. Most were the company's AP924 model, though three other Gold Apollo models were also included in the shipment. The explosive material, as little as one to two ounces, was implanted next to the battery in each pager, two of the officials said. A switch was also embedded that could be triggered remotely to detonate the explosives. At 3:30 p.m. in Lebanon, the pagers received a message that appeared as though it was coming from Hezbollah's leadership, two of the officials said. Instead, the message activated the explosives. Lebanon's health minister told state media at least 11 people were killed and more than 2,700 injured." A Reuters report is here. (Reuters story linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ David Ignatius of the Washington Post: "The scene in Lebanon on Tuesday was like something out of a bizarre James Bond movie -- with pagers exploding simultaneously in the pockets of hundreds of Hezbollah fighters around the country in what appeared to be an ingenious Israeli operation that combined cyberwar with sabotage. But Hezbollah ... could trigger the all-out regional war U.S. officials have been trying to head off for nearly a year.... Biden administration officials were quick to distance themselves from the attack in Lebanon, saying they had not been given any prior notice. For President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the timing couldn't be worse: This sharp escalation and risk of a wider war comes less than two months before the presidential election -- and it might detonate any chance of a Gaza cease-fire deal and the release of Israeli hostages."