The Commentariat -- February 17, 2020

Afternoon Update:

Josh Gerstein of Politico: "The judge handling the criminal case that set off a white-hot, national political controversy last week -- the prosecution of ... Donald Trump's longtime adviser Roger Stone -- has ordered both sides to take part in a telephone hearing Tuesday to discuss the status of the case. U.S. District Court Judge Amy Berman Jackson issued the unusual Sunday order after the entire four-person prosecution team withdrew from the case following Attorney General Bill Barr's intervention to rescind their recommendation of a seven-to-nine year sentence for Stone.... Defense attorneys for Stone also filed a second motion for a new trial last week, after Jackson rejected one such motion filed last year.... Stone is currently set to be sentenced Thursday morning in Washington on the seven felony counts that a jury convicted him on last November.... It's unclear whether the judge will decide to proceed with the sentencing as scheduled...."

Karen Scannell & Erica Orden of CNN: "Federal prosecutors are weighing new charges against associates of Rudy Giuliani in connection with a company that paid him $500,000, according to people familiar with the investigation. Prosecutors with the US attorney's office for the Southern District of New York are considering whether to charge Giuliani associate Lev Parnas and at least one of his business partners with misleading potential investors for Fraud Guarantee, the Florida-based company that paid Giuliani.... Parnas co-founded Fraud Guarantee with the idea of providing insurance to companies to protect against fraud. The scrutiny of Fraud Guarantee brings the investigation closer to Giuliani ... and raises questions about what role the former mayor played, if any, in the marketing of the company. A lawyer for Giuliani said his client never had any conversations about investor pitches or marketing with Parnas or his business partner David Correia."

Meredith McGraw of Politico: "... Donald Trump's reelection machine took full advantage of the millions of NASCAR eyeballs watching on race day by airing an ad on Fox and flying a bright red 'KEEP AMERICA GREAT!' banner near the track. Fox carried the event live on television, and Fox News commentator and Trump stalwart Judge Jeanine Pirro, Donald Trump Jr. and girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle watched from a VIP section of the track. Trump's President's Day weekend in Florida demonstrated how Trump plans to approach his 2020 campaign -- showcasing the presidency to his MAGA base and raising money with high dollar donors across the country. Before heading to Daytona, Trump raised $10 million for his reelection and the Republican National Committee with a small private dinner of 40 of his wealthiest supporters." ~~~

~~~ David Edwards of the Raw Story: "The FOX broadcast network seemingly snubbed the president of the United States on Sunday when it cut to commercial while he was speaking. Viewers complained on Twitter that FOX Sports cut away prior to ... Donald Trump's campaign-style speech at the Daytona 500, where he was named grand marshal. FOX's cameras were also criticized for cutting away from Trump's lap at the Daytona 500 in his presidential limo. Instead, fans were treated to a commercial from Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg." One view complained that Fox network cut away because "Communists own the media."

AP & WJLA (Washington, D.C.): "Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam's push to ban the sale of assault weapons failed on Monday after some of his fellow Democrats balked at the proposal. Senators voted to shelve the bill for the year and ask the state crime commission to study the issue, an outcome that drew cheers from a committee room packed with gun advocates. Four moderate Democrats joined Republicans in Monday's committee vote, rejecting legislation that would have prohibited the sale of certain semiautomatic firearms, including popular AR-15 style rifles, and banned the possession of magazines that hold more than 12 rounds."

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Russia, Russia, Russia. Philip Rucker of the Washington Post: "Seven months after [Robert] Mueller's marathon testimony brought finality to the Russia investigation, Trump is actively seeking to rewrite the narrative that had been meticulously documented by federal law enforcement and intelligence officials, both for immediate political gain and for history. Turbocharged by his acquittal in the Senate's impeachment trial and confident that he has acquired the fealty of nearly every Republican in Congress, Trump is claiming vindication and exoneration not only over his conduct with Ukraine -- for which the House voted to impeach him -- but also from the other investigations that have dogged his presidency.... Last week alone, Trump called the Russia investigation 'tainted' 'dirty,' 'rotten,' 'illegal,' 'phony,' a 'disgrace,' a 'shakedown,' a 'scam,' 'a fixed hoax' and 'the biggest political crime in American History, by far.'" (Also linked yesterday.)

Daniel Chaitin of the Washington Examiner: "One of Robert Mueller's former top prosecutors said the outside prosecutor picked [by AG Bill Barr] to review the case against retired Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn is a ruse to investigate President Trump's perceived enemies. Andrew Weissmann, a former Justice Department official who was known as Mueller's 'pit bull' during the Russia investigation, said the Justice Department swapped out the 'loser case' of Andrew McCabe, who escaped criminal charges on Friday for allegedly lying to investigators about authorizing media disclosures, for a fresh one targeting top former FBI officials, including McCabe, led by Jeffrey Jensen, the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri. 'All they did was swapped out a loser case for starting an investigation that is going to be of Comey, McCabe, Pete Strzok,' Weissmann told MSNBC host Chuck Todd.... [Weissmann] said Jensen's appointment was 'interesting' considering that the judge presiding over the Flynn case rejected claims that Flynn was set up by the FBI after seeing the facts about the underlying investigation."

Scott Pelley of CBS News reprises how Trump's fake Crowdstrike conspiracy theory evolved, with help from Vladimir Putin. A "60 Minutes" segment is embedded in the article; Mrs McC: I can't get the video to start.

Get Out! Justin Wise of the Hill: "More than 1,100 former Justice Department (DOJ) officials are calling for Attorney General William Barr to resign in the wake of the DOJ's decision to ask for a shorter prison sentence for Roger Stone.... 'Barr's actions in doing the President's personal bidding unfortunately speak louder than his words,' the group of ex-officials wrote in a letter shared on Sunday by Protect Democracy, a nonprofit advocacy group. 'Those actions, and the damage they have done to the Department of Justice's reputation for integrity and the rule of law, require Mr. Barr to resign.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

Nothing could be more destructive of our system of government, of the rule of law, or Department of Justice as an institution, than any toleration of political interference with the enforcement of the law. -- William Barr, 1991 and 2019 confirmation hearings

~~~ Joyce Vance, in a Time opinion piece: "The President has plainly stated that he does not believe DOJ's criminal work should be free from improper political interference.... So if Barr in fact disagrees with Trump's claim that a President can intervene in criminal prosecutions, including and especially those of his own close friends and associates, he must say so. Silence in the face of so egregious a claim signals agreement.... If Barr truly believes in the rule of law, this is his moment. He can resign to show the country the President is not above the law, but in the more than 48 hours since Trump's tweet [asserting his right to interfere in criminal cases], we've heard nothing from Barr."

OMG! We take time out from our regularly-featured political news & commentary to bring you disturbing news from the society page: ~~~

~~~ New York Times: "Katie Rose Waldman and Stephen Miller, who both work in the Trump White House, were married Feb. 16 at Trump International Hotel in Washington. Rabbi Aryeh Lightstone, who is a senior adviser to David Friedman, the United States ambassador to Israel, officiated. Mrs. Miller, 28, is a special assistant to President Trump and the press secretary to Vice President Mike Pence. From November 2017 to February 2019, she served as a spokeswoman for the United States Department of Homeland Security during the tenure of Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. Mr. Miller 34, is a senior White House adviser, which includes serving as Mr. Trump's top immigration adviser, directly shaping policies that aim to restrict the number of immigrants coming to the country." ~~~

     ~~~ Rishika Dugyala of Politico: "... Donald Trump attended the wedding.... Waldman was also the spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security, where she defended the administration's family separations policy and made some controversial comments about immigrants." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: "Controversial comments"? New York Times (Jan. 3, 2019): "Early Tuesday, American border officers sent tear gas, pepper spray and smoke into Mexico when a group of about 150 migrants tried to cross a border barrier.... In an interview, Fernando Duarte, a 22-year-old Honduran, said the tear gas had affected small children, among others. 'That's when people got furious and started throwing rocks, and I joined them,' he said. 'I was so mad they were throwing that gas when they know there were children with us.'... The Associated Press reported that women, children and journalists were affected by the tear gas, and that its journalists saw rocks thrown only after the tear gas was launched." AP (Jan 1, 2019): "'Once again we have had a violent mob of migrants attempt to enter the United States illegally by attacking our agents with projectiles,' said Katie Waldman, a Homeland Security spokeswoman.... Ms. Waldman said the migrants appeared to be trying to stage a photo-op of their actions in front of 'conveniently invited media.'"

Tom Cotton Pushes Chinese Conspiracy Theory. David Edwards of RawStory: "Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) suggested on Sunday the coronavirus, which has killed over 1,000 Chinese citizens, is a biological weapon developed by the Chinese military.... Cotton admitted that he has no evidence that the disease originated [in a] laboratory.... 'We have such laboratories ourselves in the United States, run by our military,' Cotton explained. 'The burden of proof is on the Chinese Communist Party... we do want to err on the side of caution.'" --s (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Cotton has been pushing this "lab-produced" coronavirus conspiracy theory for a couple of weeks, including during a Senate committee hearing. I hope the committee is looking into how Hunter Biden is behind the coronavirus pandemic plot. Cotton has two degrees from Harvard. I wonder if the Harvard poobahs are figuring out that wrapping wingers in sheepskins is hurting the university's reputation as a serious educational institution. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Paulina Firozi of the Washington Post: "... Cotton acknowledged there is no evidence that the disease originated at the lab. Instead, he suggested it's necessary to ask Chinese authorities about the possibility, fanning the embers of a conspiracy theory that has been repeatedly debunked by experts.... Numerous experts dismissed the possibility the coronavirus may be man-made." Firozi cites other instances in which Cotton cited the conspiracy theory & demanded the "communists" disprove it -- even though the theory has effectively been disproved.

Presidential Race

The Houston Chronicle Editors endorse Amy Klobuchar for the Democratic presidential nomination. They cite her exchange with nasty-boy Brett Kavanaugh: "There in that exchange, we see some of what plagues American political discourse and one thing that can save it: a strong leader who can outwit anger, rise above contempt and exercise the good sense to walk us back from the edge rather than push us closer to it.... Above all, Klobuchar has the secret sauce many Democrats prize most: electability. A candidate whose presidential election would make history, her crossover appeal in and of itself packs a powerful punch. Democrats need someone who can stare down a bully while keeping an eye out for the little guy, someone who can grow the ranks, not divide them. Klobuchar is the woman for the job."

Mrs. McCrabbie: I can't access the Dallas Morning News page, but the paper's editors are declining to endorse any presidential candidate in 2020. They say they're endorsing "policy ideas" instead.

Evan Semones of Politico: "... Joe Biden suggested on Sunday that winning South Carolina's primary is of the utmost importance for continuing his beleaguered campaign. Biden was asked by NBC's Chuck Todd on' Meet the Press' whether South Carolina is the former vice president's last chance to make up ground in the 2020 presidential race after he suffered lopsided losses in Iowa and New Hampshire. 'Well, I think I have to do really well in it, but right,' Biden said. Biden added that then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton endured a string of primary losses in 1992 before picking up his first win, saying that upcoming delegate-rich states with demographics that are favorable to him will help make him the frontrunner before the end of March. Clinton lost in Iowa, New Hampshire Maine and South Dakota before securing his first win in Georgia."

David Leonhardt of the New York Times: "Every Democrat to be elected president in the past half century -- Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter -- started as a long shot, as did a couple of Republicans (Donald Trump and Ronald Reagan).... [In this race,] The problem wasn't Biden. It was the way other Democrats overreacted to him."

Got Milk? Shant Shahrigian of the New York Daily News: In Carson City, Nevada, Sen. Bernie Sanders "had just finished introducing his wife Jane O'Meara Sanders as 'the next First Lady' when a woman walked up to the mic and started rambling about subsidies for the dairy industry, video posted to social media showed.... Two topless kindred spirits hopped onstage to join her. They poured milk on themselves and preened around the podium for just a few moments before security took the protesters away.... The presidential candidate seemed to take the interruption in stride, quipping, 'This is Nevada, there's always a little bit of excitement at no extra cost.' [New York City Mayor Bill] de Blasio, who had introduced Sanders minutes earlier..., was seen on video averting his gaze from the stage and walking away as the scene unfolded."

Devan Cole of CNN: "... Pete Buttigieg responded Sunday to Rush Limbaugh's recent homophobic remarks, saying he doesn't take 'lectures on family values' from the conservative radio host...." Mrs. McC: Limbaugh has been married four times and divorced three times. (Also linked yesterday.)

Mrs. McCrabbie: Mike Bloomberg has a remarkable record of saying stupid stuff. Here are a few to add to the list: ~~~

     ~~~ Andrew Kaczynski & Em Steck of CNN: "Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg said the final Obamacare bill would do 'absolutely nothing to fix the big health care problems' and also called the program 'a disgrace' in comments made in 2010, just months after the law's passage. Speaking at Dartmouth College in July of that year, Bloomberg added that law was just 'another program that's going to cost a lot more money.'It is just one of several comments from Bloomberg identified by CNN's KFile criticizing the landmark Affordable Care Act in the years following its passage, including saying the bill was 'really dysfunctional' and did nothing to solve rising health care costs. Now, a decade later, as he hopes to become the Democratic presidential nominee, Bloomberg has fully embraced the Affordable Care Act, even proposing an additional 'Medicare-like public option' that builds on the law." ~~~

     ~~~ Natasha Korecki of Politico: "In his final year as New York mayor, Bloomberg compared two groups core to the Democratic base -- a local faction of the American Civil Liberties Union and the New York City teachers union -- to the NRA. 'We don't need extremists on the left or the right running our police department, whether it's the NRA or the NYCLU,' the then-mayor Bloomberg said of the New York Civil Liberties Union, in a 2013 speech in which he defended the city's controversial stop-and-frisk policy." ~~~

     ~~~ In case you missed it over the weekend, here's an edifying Washington Post story by Michael Kranish on Bloomberg's sexist remarks & actions, also linked Sunday & late Saturday. ~~~

~~~ Charles Blow of the New York Times: "It is truly a devastating sight to watch liberals who have winced for years at Donald Trump's issues on wealth, race and women allow fear, propaganda and influence mercenaries to push them into supporting a man who has his own issues concerning wealth, women and race.... It's not as if Democrats don't have viable candidates to choose from, none of whom even come close to the scale of Bloomberg's transgressions.... Many voters have bought into the hopeful, cheerful Bloomberg shown in his barrage of ads.... He has done some admirable work as a private citizen. A private citizen is what he should remain." ~~~

~~~ Evan Semones of Politico: "White House counselor Kellyanne Conway on Sunday slammed sexist remarks Michael Bloomberg reportedly made to women who worked for him, saying they are 'far worse' than what ... Donald Trump said on the infamous 'Access Hollywood' tapes." Mrs. McC: For more on the Conway family's opinion of Donald Trump, see what George has to say in the op-ed linked yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.)

A Florida Man Opens Daytona 500. Michelle Martinelli of USA Today: "... Donald Trump participated in the ceremonial pre-race events at Sunday's Daytona 500, the biggest NASCAR race of the year.... The President was greeted with loud cheers during a pre-race speech.... Trump then served as the race's grand marshal -- only the fourth sitting president to do so for a race at Daytona International Speedway -- giving what's commonly described as the most famous words in motor sports: 'Gentlemen, start your engines.' In recent years, the command traditionally has started with the gender-neutral address 'Drivers,' but there were no women competing in the Daytona 500 this year. After fulfilling this grand marshal duties, the motorcade drove down pit road and around the iconic 2.5-mile race track, with the 40-car field and the pace car behind it, which was a first for a sitting president." ~~~

~~~ Daniel Dale of CNN: "... Donald Trump's campaign manager deleted a tweet featuring a dramatic photo of Air Force One at the Daytona 500 after users pointed out that the shot was from President George W. Bush's visit to the NASCAR race in 2004, not from Trump's visit on Sunday. Brad Parscale tweeted the 2004 photo, which shows Air Force One rising above packed stands at the Daytona International Speedway in Florida, and wrote, '.@realDonaldTrump won the #Daytona500 before the race even started.'" Mrs. McC: Yeah, 16 years before the race event started.

News Lede

The New York Times' live updates of developments in the coronavirus epidemic are here.

The Commentariat -- February 16, 2020

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

Russia, Russia, Russia. Philip Rucker of the Washington Post: "Seven months after [Robert] Mueller's marathon testimony brought finality to the Russia investigation, Trump is actively seeking to rewrite the narrative that had been meticulously documented by federal law enforcement and intelligence officials, both for immediate political gain and for history. Turbocharged by his acquittal in the Senate's impeachment trial and confident that he has acquired the fealty of nearly every Republican in Congress, Trump is claiming vindication and exoneration not only over his conduct with Ukraine -- for which the House voted to impeach him -- but also from the other investigations that have dogged his presidency.... Last week alone, Trump called the Russia investigation 'tainted' 'dirty,' 'rotten,' 'illegal,' 'phony,' a 'disgrace,' a 'shakedown,' a 'scam,' 'a fixed hoax' and 'the biggest political crime in American History, by far.'"

Get Out! Justin Wise of the Hill: "More than 1,100 former Justice Department (DOJ) officials are calling for Attorney General William Barr to resign in the wake of the DOJ's decision to ask for a shorter prison sentence for Roger Stone .... 'Barr's actions in doing the President's personal bidding unfortunately speak louder than his words,' the group of ex-officials wrote in a letter shared on Sunday by Protect Democracy, a nonprofit advocacy group. 'Those actions, and the damage they have done to the Department of Justice's reputation for integrity and the rule of law, require Mr. Barr to resign.'"

Evan Semones of Politico: "White House counselor Kellyanne Conway on Sunday slammed sexist remarks Michael Bloomberg reportedly made to women who worked for him, saying they are 'far worse' than what ... Donald Trump said on the infamous 'Access Hollywood' tapes." Mrs. McC: For more on the Conway family's opinion of Trump, see what George has to say in the linked op-ed below.

Tom Cotton Pushes Chinese Conspiracy Theory. David Edwards of RawStory: "Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) suggested on Sunday the coronavirus, which has killed over 1,000 Chinese citizens, is a biological weapon developed by the Chinese military.... Cotton admitted that he has no evidence that the disease originated [in a] laboratory.... 'We have such laboratories ourselves in the United States, run by our military,' Cotton explained. 'The burden of proof is on the Chinese Communist Party ... we do want to err on the side of caution.'" --s ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Cotton has been pushing this "lab-produced" coronavirus conspiracy theory for a couple of weeks, including during a Senate committee hearing. I hope the committee is looking into how Hunter Biden is behind the coronavirus pandemic plot. Cotton has two degrees from Harvard. I wonder if the Harvard poobahs are figuring out that wrapping wingers in sheepskins is hurting the university's reputation as a serious educational institution.

Devan Cole of CNN: "... Pete Buttigieg responded Sunday to Rush Limbaugh's recent homophobic remarks, saying he doesn't take 'lectures on family values' from the conservative radio host...." Mrs. McC: Limbaugh has been married four times and divorced three times.

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"Turning Paranoia into Policy." Peter Baker & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Mr. Trump has always been convinced that he is surrounded by people who cannot be trusted. But in the 10 days since he was acquitted by the Senate, he has grown more vocal about it and turned paranoia into policy, purging his White House of more career officials, bringing back loyalists and tightening the circle around him to a smaller and more faithful coterie of confidants.... In the last week and a half, Mr. Trump has pushed out two witnesses who testified in the House inquiry, stripped a nomination from an official he blamed for being insufficiently loyal and assailed prosecutors, a judge and even the jury forewoman in the case of his friend Roger J. Stone Jr. His national security adviser has just finished transferring more than 50 career professionals out of the White House and back to their home agencies. The president has brought back two of his earliest and most trusted aides, Hope Hicks and Johnny McEntee, as he retreats into a cocoon of his original 2016 campaign team. And more personnel moves are likely in the days to come.... His decision to turn the Office of Presidential Personnel over to Mr. McEntee, a 29-year-old aide who was once ordered marched out of the White House by John F. Kelly, the White House chief of staff at the time, was born out of concern about who is surrounding him, people familiar with the move said."

George Conway in a Washington Post op-ed: "Anticipating Trump's narcissistic whims and desires ... remains the key to survival in his administration, and outside the White House proper, no one does it better than [Bill] Barr.... So when it came to [Roger] Stone's sentence, Barr likely knew what to do, without ever being told. And he has known what to do, whenever feasible, to keep Trump happy all along.... The most important thing Barr did for Trump, though, involved the arms-for-dirt-on-Biden Ukraine scandal -- which should have prompted a full-blown criminal investigation with a special counsel.... But instead of investigating the Ukraine shakedown, Barr's Justice Department immediately gave the president a clean bill of health. Saving Trump from that criminal investigation was more than what Roy Cohn ever did for any of his clients.... [Trump] now brags, as he tweeted on Saturday, that he is '"the King"' who was targeted but not taken down. And, drawing on a story in the New York Times that suggested he is stained but unshackled, Trump boasted that he has indeed survived '"triumphant"' and '"emboldened"' and '"focused"' more than ever on prosecuting '"his case of grievance, persecution, and resentment."'"”

Devlin Barrett, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Justice Department in the Trump era has repeatedly tasked U.S. attorneys from far-flung offices to parachute into politically explosive cases in Washington, raising concerns among current and former officials that agency leaders are trying to please the president by reviewing and reinvestigating cases in which he is personally or politically invested. After a tumultuous week for federal law enforcement..., several current and former officials expressed alarm at what they characterized as a troubling pattern.... Trump has been asking for advice on who he should fire.... On Saturday morning, Trump fired off a tweet summarizing the Justice Department inspector general's findings that McCabe misled investigators on four separate occasions about authorizing a media disclosure and stating, incorrectly, that the 'IG RECOMMENDED MCCABE'S FIRING.'... Current and former officials said the move to add new prosecutors to the Flynn case seemed to be part of a new pattern of Justice Department political leadership spinning up inquiries that might help Trump and his friends and hurt their perceived foes." ~~~

~~~ Katie Benner, et al., of the New York Times: "In more than three dozen interviews in recent days, lawyers across the federal government's legal establishment wondered aloud whether Mr. Trump was undermining the Justice Department's treasured reputation for upholding the law without favor or political bias -- and whether Attorney General William P. Barr was able or willing to protect it.... Their worries are compounded by the fact that people in Mr. Trump's circle have been mired in so many criminal or ethical scandals that practically any legal action on those cases could be seen through a political lens." When Jessie Liu, whom Trump had appointed U.S. attorney in the D.C. office decided there was insufficient evidence to prosecute Andrew McCabe, Trump rescinded her nomination to a Treasury post, and Steve Mnuchin "delivered the news" to her.

     ~~~ Mrs. Bea McCrabbie: In his big ABC interview, this is the best Barr could come up with to defend the 10,000 lawyers who work for him: "I hope there are no more resignations. We, we like our prosecutors and hope they stay." Thanks, Bill. ~~~

~~~ Erica Orden & Kara Scannell of CNN: "... the Stone situation has reverberated across the country in the past few days, with prosecutors incensed over the apparent intervention by Attorney General William Barr to lighten the sentencing recommendation for Trump's ally, along with fear of what some perceive as a growing political directive coming from Washington. On the West Coast, one federal prosecutor said there was an overwhelming sense of 'outrage' felt in his office.... The fears over potential political interference are particularly acute in New York, where prosecutors with the US attorney's office in Manhattan handle high-profile cases.... Some concerns arose even before the Stone situation. In the past two weeks, the Justice Department has twice ordered US attorney's offices around the country to participate in what some of them perceive as politically charged actions, according to people familiar with the matter. First, the department ordered prosecutors to hold news conferences, make statements and use social media to promote Barr's initiative to crack down on 'sanctuary cities.'... the Justice Department later retracted the demand, the person said.... The department also instructed federal prosecutors to write op-eds to push for passage of pending legislation on fentanyl."

Nimble Bill Often Asks, "How High?" When Trump Says "Jump." Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: Bill Barr's intervention in the Mike Flynn case "bears striking similarities to the case of Roger Stone, whose sentence recommendation Barr intervened to reduce this week, triggering upheaval within the Justice Department. In each case, Trump criticized the department's treatment of a Trump ally; in both cases, Barr has inserted himself in an unorthodox manner that invites accusations of politicization. Those also invite comparison to U.S. Attorney John Durham's investigation. Trump practically begged the Justice Department to probe the origins of the Russia investigation. After former attorney general Jeff Sessions begged off such theories, Barr took over and appointed Durham to look into it. The New York Times reported this week that Durham appears to be 'hunting for a basis to accuse Obama-era intelligence officials of hiding evidence or manipulating analysis.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Blake cites Andy McCabe as the prime example of one who got away. But that's not quite true. Somebody at Justice held up a decision on McCabe's case for two years and likely gave up only at the judge's insistence & the department's failure to make a case to a grand jury as convincing as those against the proverbial ham sandwich. Moreover, Barr is still going after McCabe in appointing a Trump-friendly U.S. attorney to "review" prosecutors' handling of the McCabe matter. It's unlikely McCabe will be indicted, but he's still under a lumpy Trumpy cloud. AND he still got fired & lost his pension some of his pension benefits because of a dubious 11th-hour order signed by Jeff Sessions.

Jack Guy & Nada Bashir of CNN: "In a CNN interview, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday strongly rejected ... Donald Trump's claim Ukraine is corrupt. He also said he is ready for another phone call with Trump and open to visiting the White House.... '... When I had a meeting with President Trump and he said that in previous years (Ukraine) was such a corrupt country, I told him very honestly and I was very open with him. I told him that we fight with corruption. We fight each day," Zelensky told Christiane Amanpour during [a] town hall interview [in Munich, Germany]. 'Please, please stop saying that Ukraine is a corrupt country, because from now, it's not true. We want to change this image,' he added."

Ken Dilanian, et al., of NBC News: "When the CIA gave Trump a list of major terror leaders to kill, he said he'd never heard of them. Instead..., 'He would say, "I've never heard of any of these people. What about Hamza bin Laden?"' one former official said, [naming the youngest son of Osama bin Laden]. 'That was the only name he knew,' a Pentagon official added.... An examination of the process that led to the strike against Hamza bin Laden puts a spotlight on how Trump has approached what is among the most weighty responsibilities of the U.S. president in the post 9/11 era: deciding which of America's enemies should be marked for death.... Former CIA official Douglas London, who led an agency unit targeting senior terrorists in 2018, says that what he called Trump's 'obsession' with bin Laden's son 'is one example of the president's preference for a "celebrity" targeted killing versus prioritizing options that could prove better for U.S. security.'" Mrs. McC: Significant factor: "Fox News ... devoted significant airtime to the release of ... CIA documents and [a]the video of the younger bin Laden."

Presidential Race

AP: "Democrats are starting to cast votes in Nevada's presidential caucuses as the still-crowded field of candidates is fanning out across Las Vegas. Early voting started Saturday morning at more than 80 locations across the state. Nevada Democrats are holding four days of early voting for their caucuses, the first test of a candidate's appeal to a diverse population with strong labor unions. Early votes cast on paper ballots will be added to in-person caucus votes made on Feb. 22, when Democrats will attend about 2,000 precinct meetings around the state." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Michelle Price & Steve Peoples of the AP post a roundup of yesterday's campaign events in Nevada. Biden attacked Sanders & Sanders attacked Bloomberg, an attack that would make more sense if Bloomberg were actually running in Nevada.

Sarah Burnette & Michelle Price of the AP: "... Amy Klobuchar says she no longer believes English should be the national language of the U.S., disavowing a vote she took more than a decade ago as she tries to build support in a state where Hispanics make up a critical constituency.... The senator also faced questions about comments she made about border security during a 2006 campaign debate, and her 2007 vote for an immigration bill that would have beefed up fencing and enforcement among the U.S.-Mexico border.... [Pete] Buttigieg ... knocked Klobuchar without naming her for supporting the confirmation of U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Kevin McAleenan."

Sahil Kapur & Ali Vitali of NBC News: "... Elizabeth Warren is pitching herself as the Democratic candidate who can unify the party's progressive and moderate wings, a play that could lead her down [a] bridge to nowhere, unless her message can quickly find some resonance. At the same time, Warren's also feeling pressure from outside allies to return to her old 'fighter' persona.... 'The problem that Warren has is all of the Bernie people think she's a neoliberal shill and all of the centrists think she's a raging Maoist,' said Sean McElwee, a left-wing organizer.... 'The people who want Medicare for All don't believe she wants it, and the people who don't want Medicare for All do believe she wants it.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: I don't see a contradiction here: Warren is saying she can (1) unify the party (2) to fight for ordinary Americans. It makes sense to me. However, I agree that it's hard to discern the actual policy positions of the candidate who has the most detailed policy positions. Nonetheless, for the most part, the candidates' position papers don't matter as much as their ability to get something through Congress, and that can happen only if Mitch McConnell is not majority leader. That's an argument for a "unifier" and against a hardliner or neophyte.

Saturday was Bloomberg Day at the Times & WashPo: ~~~

~~~ The New York Times story, by Alexander Burns & Nicholas Kulish, begins with an anecdote about Michael Bloomberg's expressed doubts about the #MeToo movement & sex abuse allegations against TV personality Charlie Rose and ending with his $100MM contributions to mostly female 2018 Congressional candidates. "A Times examination of Mr. Bloomberg's philanthropic and political spending in the years leading up to his presidential bid illustrates how he developed a national infrastructure of influence, image-making and unspoken suasion that has helped transform a former Republican mayor of New York City into a plausible contender for the Democratic nomination.... In all, Mr. Bloomberg has spent at least $10 billion on his charitable and political pursuits. The vast majority has gone to philanthropy, for causes that reflect his personal interests and passions, including $3.3 billion to his alma mater, Johns Hopkins University." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ The Washington Post story, by Michael Kranish, centers on Bloomberg's treatment of women: "Several lawsuits have been filed over the years alleging that women were discriminated against at Bloomberg's business-information company, including a case brought by a federal agency and one filed by a former employee, who blamed Bloomberg for creating a culture of sexual harassment and degradation. The most high-profile case was from a former saleswoman. She sued Bloomberg personally as well as his company, alleging workplace discrimination. She alleged Bloomberg told her to 'kill it' when he learned she was pregnant. Bloomberg has denied her allegation under oath, and he reached a confidential settlement with the saleswoman.... While allegations about Bloomberg's comments and treatment of women have received notice over the years, a review by The Post of thousands of pages of court documents, depositions obtained under the Freedom of Information Act and interviews with witnesses underscores how Bloomberg and his company, Bloomberg LP, have fought the claims...." Includes a link to The Compleat Book of Profane & Sexist Remarks by Mike Bloomberg. Mrs. McC: On the upside, we can be sure he's pro-choice! (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Eric Levitz of New York on why Democrats should not sell their souls to a billionaire: "Mike Bloomberg has offered blue America a Faustian bargain: Forfeit all credibility on the issues of money in politics and democratic reform, and he will spend whatever it takes to make the bad man in the White House go away.... But Democrats would be fools to accept Bloomberg's indecent proposal.... As a political matter, allowing a Wall Street tycoon to win the Democratic nomination by leveraging his personal fortune to outbid all of his rivals (and many state and local Democratic Party organizations) for top-shelf campaign staff, and inundate the airwaves with an unprecedentedly exorbitant blitzkrieg of paid messaging, would deprive Democrats of what has long been their chief electoral asset: the perception that their party is less beholden to the rich than the GOP... Hillary Clinton's mere perceived coziness with such fat cats ... was (ostensibly) sufficient to undermine the Democrats' populist edge four years ago...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Isaac Stanley-Becker of the Washington Post: "... a detailed review by The Post found that the chaotic [Iowa caucus counts] were years in the making, and that the responsibility extends beyond the local party leaders who have borne the brunt of the criticism."

Evan Semones of Politico: "Vermont Gov. Phil Scott on Saturday said he'll back Bill Weld for the 2020 Republican presidential nomination, an endorsement the Weld campaign touted as the first sitting Republican governor to publicly oppose ... Donald Trump's reelection. In a press conference, first reported by Vermont's WPTZ, Scott announced his decision to back the fellow Republican and former Massachusetts governor."

Way Beyond the Beltway

Amy Qin of the New York Times: "Under fire for its response to the coronavirus epidemic, China's authoritarian government appears to be pushing a new account of events that presents President Xi Jinping as taking early action to fight the outbreak that has convulsed the country. But in doing so, the authorities have acknowledged for the first time that Mr. Xi was aware of the epidemic and involved in the response nearly two weeks before he first spoke publicly about it -- and while officials at its epicenter in the city of Wuhan were still playing down its dangers. That new account risks drawing the president, China's most powerful leader in decades, directly into questions about whether top officials did too little, too late." ~~~

~~~ Raymond Zhong & Paul Mozur of the New York Times: China "is battling the coronavirus outbreak with a grass-roots mobilization reminiscent of Mao-style mass crusades not seen in China in decades, essentially entrusting front line epidemic prevention to a supercharged version of a neighborhood watch.... Residential lockdowns of varying strictness -- from checkpoints at building entrances to hard limits on going outdoors -- now cover at least 760 million people in China, or more than half the country's population, according to a New York Times analysis of government announcements in provinces and major cities."

News Lede

Washington Post: "The status of passengers on two cruise ships -- the Diamond Princess in Japan and the Westerdam in Cambodia -- are posing logistical and public health challenges for governments as they try to contain the spread of covid-19 and to repatriate citizens. In China, meanwhile, the rate of growth for new cases appears to be slowing. Forty-four Americans who were traveling on the Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan have been infected. They will stay at hospitals in Japan to recover. Hundreds of Americans who've been quarantined on the Diamond Princess since Feb. 5 have been evacuated from the ship and will be flown to the U.S. on chartered planes -- then quarantined again for 14 more days. Several governments are scrambling after an 83-year-old American woman on board the Westerdam cruise liner docked in Cambodia tested positive twice for the coronavirus infection after traveling to Malaysia."

The Commentariat -- February 15, 2020

Late Morning/Afternoon Update:

AP: "Democrats are starting to cast votes in Nevada's presidential caucuses as the still-crowded field of candidates is fanning out across Las Vegas. Early voting started Saturday morning at more than 80 locations across the state. Nevada Democrats are holding four days of early voting for their caucuses, the first test of a candidate's appeal to a diverse population with strong labor unions. Early votes cast on paper ballots will be added to in-person caucus votes made on Feb. 22, when Democrats will attend about 2,000 precinct meetings around the state."

It's Bloomberg Day at the Times & WashPo: ~~~

~~~ The New York Times story, by Alexander Burns & Nicholas Kulish, begins with an anecdote about Michael Bloomberg's expressed doubts about the #MeToo movement & sex abuse allegations against TV personality Charlie Rose and ending with his $100MM contributions to mostly female 2018 Congressional candidates. "A Times examination of Mr. Bloomberg's philanthropic and political spending in the years leading up to his presidential bid illustrates how he developed a national infrastructure of influence, image-making and unspoken suasion that has helped transform a former Republican mayor of New York City into a plausible contender for the Democratic nomination.... In all, Mr. Bloomberg has spent at least $10 billion on his charitable and political pursuits. The vast majority has gone to philanthropy, for causes that reflect his personal interests and passions, including $3.3 billion to his alma mater, Johns Hopkins University." ~~~

~~~ The Washington Post story, by Michael Kranish, centers on Bloomberg's treatment of women: "Several lawsuits have been filed over the years alleging that women were discriminated against at Bloomberg's business-information company, including a case brought by a federal agency and one filed by a former employee, who blamed Bloomberg for creating a culture of sexual harassment and degradation. The most high-profile case was from a former saleswoman. She sued Bloomberg personally as well as his company, alleging workplace discrimination. She alleged Bloomberg told her to 'kill it' when he learned she was pregnant. Bloomberg has denied her allegation under oath, and he reached a confidential settlement with the saleswoman.... While allegations about Bloomberg's comments and treatment of women have received notice over the years, a review by The Post of thousands of pages of court documents, depositions obtained under the Freedom of Information Act and interviews with witnesses underscores how Bloomberg and his company, Bloomberg LP, have fought the claims...." Includes The Compleat Book of Profane & Sexist Remarks of Mike Bloomberg. Mrs. McC: On the upside, we can be sure he's pro-choice! ~~~

~~~ Eric Levitz of New York asserts Democrats should not sell their souls to a billionaire: "Mike Bloomberg has offered blue America a Faustian bargain: Forfeit all credibility on the issues of money in politics and democratic reform, and he will spend whatever it takes to make the bad man in the White House go away.... But Democrats would be fools to accept Bloomberg's indecent proposal.... As a political matter, allowing a Wall Street tycoon to win the Democratic nomination by leveraging his personal fortune to outbid all of his rivals (and many state and local Democratic Party organizations) for top-shelf campaign staff, and inundate the airwaves with an unprecedentedly exorbitant blitzkrieg of paid messaging, would deprive Democrats of what has long been their chief electoral asset: the perception that their party is less beholden to the rich than the GOP.... Hillary Clinton's mere perceived coziness with such fat cats ... was (ostensibly) sufficient to undermine the Democrats' populist edge four years ago...."

Nimble Bill Often Asks, "How High?" When Trump Says "Jump." Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: Bill Barr's intervention in the Mike Flynn case "bears striking similarities to the case of Roger Stone, whose sentence recommendation Barr intervened to reduce this week, triggering upheaval within the Justice Department. In each case, Trump criticized the department's treatment of a Trump ally; in both cases, Barr has inserted himself in an unorthodox manner that invites accusations of politicization. Those also invite comparison to U.S. Attorney John Durham's investigation. Trump practically begged the Justice Department to probe the origins of the Russia investigation. After former attorney general Jeff Sessions begged off such theories, Barr took over and appointed Durham to look into it. The New York Times reported this week that Durham appears to be 'hunting for a basis to accuse Obama-era intelligence officials of hiding evidence or manipulating analysis.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: Blake cites Andy McCabe as the prime example of one who got away. But that's not quite true. Somebody at Justice held up a decision on McCabe's case for two years and likely gave up only at the judge's insistence & the department's failure to make a case to a grand jury as convincing as those against the proverbial ham sandwich. Moreover, Barr is still going after McCabe in appointing a Trump-friendly U.S. attorney to "review" prosecutors' handling of the McCabe matter. It's unlikely McCabe will be indicted, but he's still under a dark Trumpy cloud. AND he still got fired & lost part of his pension in a dubious 11th-hour order signed by Jeff Sessions.

~~~~~~~~~~

Fun with Don & Billy

The Dictator at the Top. ... the public is listening to what's going on, and I don't think people like the fact that you got somebody at the top basically trying to dictate whether somebody should be prosecuted. I just think it's a banana republic when we go down that road.... -- Judge Reggie Walton, while presiding over Andrew McCabe's case

"I Have an Article 2 Right to Do Whatever I Want." Matt Zapotosky & John Wagner of the Washington Post: "A day after Attorney General William P. Barr publicly warned President Trump not to tweet about the Justice Department, Trump did just that, declaring that he has the 'legal right' to ask his top law enforcement official to get involved in a criminal case. In his tweet, Trump quoted Barr from a television interview Thursday in which he asserted that the president had never asked him to do anything related to a criminal case. 'This doesn't mean that I do not have, as President, the legal right to do so, I do, but I have so far chosen not to!' Trump added in his own voice." Mrs. McC: BUT, as New York's Daily Intelligencer notes (no link), "Ok, but Loretta Lynch and Bill Clinton met on a plane once." Barr said Trump's tweets were making it "impossible" for him to do his job. So time to resign, Bill. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Cristina Cabrera of TPM has the story here. "Additionally, Trump's claim that he has 'so far chosen not to' get involved in a criminal case is a lie: He asked then-FBI Director James Comey to drop the criminal investigation into Michael Flynn in 2017, according to Comey's memos on their meeting and his sworn testimony to Congress." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

A standard Trump progression: I didn't do it. I didn't do it, but I could do it. I did do it, so what? I did do it, and it was right to do it. -- Rep. Justin Amash (I-Mich.), in a tweet

Sally Yates in a Washington Post op-ed: "The imperative of Justice Department independence from political influence has deep roots.... Presidents and department leaders from both parties have recognized that for case decisions to have legitimacy, they must be made without political influence -- whether real or perceived.... Until now.... From virtually the moment he took office, President Trump has attempted to use the Justice Department as a cudgel against his enemies and as a shield for himself and his allies."

~~~ See Billy Go. See Billy Try to Fix a Mess. Go, Billy, Go. ~~~

     Chapter 1. This Story Makes Trump Happy. Charlie Savage, et al., of the New York Times: "Attorney General William P. Barr has assigned an outside prosecutor to scrutinize the criminal case against President Trump's former national security adviser Michael T. Flynn, according to people familiar with the matter. The review is highly unusual and could trigger more accusations of political interference by top Justice Department officials into the work of career prosecutors. Mr. Barr has also installed a handful of outside prosecutors to broadly review the handling of other politically sensitive national-security cases in the U.S. attorney's office in Washington, the people said. The team includes at least one prosecutor from the office of the United States attorney in St. Louis, Jeff Jensen, who is handling the Flynn matter, as well as prosecutors from the office of the deputy attorney general, Jeffrey A. Rosen. Over the past two weeks, outside prosecutors have begun grilling line prosecutors in the Washington office about various cases -- some public, some not -- including investigative steps, prosecutorial actions and why they took them, according to the people." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Carol Lee of NBC News: "The inquiry also coincides with recent moves by Trump to vindicate his allies and exact revenge on his perceived enemies, including individuals who were involved with former special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation or testified in the House Democrats' impeachment probe.... The inquiry into Flynn's FBI interview could be aimed at several former officials Trump has repeatedly criticized publicly, including former FBI Director James Comey and former Deputy FBI Director Andrew McCabe, people familiar with the inquiry said.... Comey and McCabe signed off on sending two agents to interview Flynn. One of the agents was Peter Strzok.... They also said it could be part of an effort to make a presidential pardon of Flynn more palatable.... [Jeff] Jensen's inquiry seems similar to one Barr assigned to the U.S. attorney in Connecticut, John Durham, examining the origins of the FBI's investigation into potential ties between Trump's 2016 campaign and Russia." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Evan Perez, et al., of CNN have more background on Barr's Trump-pleasing move. Mrs. McC: While there has been a great deal of speculation in the press about the reason for Barr's "impossible" interview and its timing, it occurs to me that Barr's knowledge that the NYT story was about to drop is likely one of them. The story is yet further evidence of Barr's "collusion" with Trump's underhanded efforts to help his friends & punish his enemies. Barr likely thought an interview in which he ostensibly complained about Trump's interference in DOJ matters & claimed he (Barr) was ever-so-independent would be a fine antidote to another major story demonstrating that Barr is helping Trump pervert the principle of "equal justice under law."

     Chapter 2. This Makes Trump Mad. Adam Goldman of the New York Times: "Andrew G. McCabe, the former deputy F.B.I. director and a frequent target of President Trump, will not face charges in an investigation into whether he lied to investigators about a media leak, his defense team said on Friday. The decision by prosecutors in Washington ends a case that had left Mr. McCabe in legal limbo for nearly two years. It also appears to be a sign that Attorney General William P. Barr wants to show that the Justice Department is independent from Mr. Trump: The notification came a day after Mr. Barr publicly challenged the president to stop attacking law enforcement officials on Twitter and said the criticisms were making his job more difficult. The prosecutors informed Mr. McCabe's lawyers of their decision by phone on Friday morning, the lawyers, Michael R. Bromwich and David Schertler, said in a statement." A CNN story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Matt Zapotosky, et al., of the Washington Post: "The move was said to infuriate Trump, who has raged publicly and privately in recent months that McCabe and others he considers political enemies should be charged with crimes.... A White House official said that Trump was not given a heads-up and was upset, and that White House lawyers moved to calm the president. The official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to reveal internal discussions, said Trump 'believes very strongly that action should be taken.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Tom Winter & Dareh Gregorian of NBC News: "The decision was released on the same day it was revealed that a federal judge had expressed concerns months ago that [Andrew] McCabe's case was looking like a 'banana republic' prosecution.... The Justice Department's decision came the same day it was required by a judge to make details about the McCabe investigation public in a case stemming from a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit brought by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The court transcripts released [Friday] ... show prosecutors struggling with how to proceed in his case, and the judge in the matter expressing concerns about political pressure.... [Judge Reggie Walton said,] 'I just think the integrity of the process is being unduly undermined by inappropriate comments and actions on the part of people at the top of our government [i.e., Donald Trump].... And I think as a government and as a society, we're going to pay a price at some point for this.' Trump has sounded off repeatedly about McCabe ... over the past three years...." ~~~

     ~~~ Betsy Swan & Adam Rawnsley of the Daily Beast: “Jordan Libowitz, a spokesperson for CREW, said the eventual release of the court transcripts on Friday, after a lengthy court battle, showed that the government was 'trying to cover up the fact that they were stringing this [lawsuit] along while looking for a reason to indict McCabe.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Josh Gerstein of Politico: "McCabe's lawyers were told last September that he should expect to be indicted on charges stemming from inaccurate statements he made to FBI investigators about his actions around the time of the 2016 election. However, no indictment was ever returned, leading to speculation that the Washington-based grand jury probing the matter took the rare step of rejecting charges." ~~~

~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: McCabe is not out of the woods yet. As noted above, Bill Barr has "outside counsel" looking over the shoulders of line prosecutors in the McCabe matter, and the Senator Most Reminiscent of the Toiletpaper on Donald Trump's Shoe has plan to harass McCabe, too: ~~~

~~~ MEANWHILE. Jordain Carney of The Hill: "Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) is requesting interviews with a slew of current and former Justice Department and FBI officials as part of his panel's probe into the department's handling of the investigation into Russia's election interference and the Trump campaign. Graham sent a letter to Attorney General William Barr on Friday asking that he make 17 officials, many of whom are identified only by title, available for interviews.... Graham has said he plans to call former FBI Director James Comey, former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, former Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe to testify as part of his investigation." --s

Alexander Mallin of ABC News: "Before breaking his silence Thursday in an interview with ABC News, Attorney General William Barr complained privately 'for weeks' to ... Donald Trump about his tweets and public statements related to Justice Department investigations, a person familiar with the matter said Friday. Despite those apparent warnings, however, Trump over the past several weeks was unrelenting in his targeting of his various political enemies in speeches and over Twitter like former FBI Director James Comey, former FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe and former special counsel Robert Mueller.... The public pressure facing Barr to reassert the DOJ's independence only further escalated following a tweet by Trump congratulating Barr for 'taking charge' of the [Roger] Stone case, just hours after he ordered the reversal of the previous sentencing recommendation put forward by prosecutors of seven to nine years.... According to the person, the Justice Department had disclosed to the White House that the interview with ABC News would occur, though they said the White House was not made aware about what Barr would say or his plan to criticize the president until after the interview taped."

Colin Kalmbacher of Law & Crime: Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) has filed a ten-page ethics complaint against William Barr with the Justice Department's inspector general & the Office of Professional Responsibility. The complaint "accuses Barr of violating several Justice Department rules, guidelines and procedures" and cites numerous instances of Barr's alleged unethical actions & remarks.

MEANWHILE. Spencer Hsu & John Wagner of the Washington Post: "Defense attorneys for Roger Stone demanded a new trial Friday, one day after President Trump suggested that the forewoman in his longtime political confidant's case had 'significant bias.' The legal motion could affect Stone's Feb. 20 sentencing date on charges of witness tampering and lying to Congress. The basis for the request was filed under seal Friday, but its existence was disclosed in a court order by U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who gave U.S. prosecutors until Feb. 18 to respond."

Rosalind Helderman & Tom Hamburger of the Washington Post: "As the Senate impeachment trial of President Trump drew to a close..., federal prosecutors in New York contacted witnesses and sought to collect additional documents in an investigation related to Trump's personal attorney Rudolph W. Giuliani, according to people familiar with their activities. The recent steps -- including an interview with a witness last week -- indicate that the probe involving Giuliani and two of his former associates is moving forward.... [Meanwhile,] Attorney General William P. Barr said this week that the department had established an 'intake process' to accept information about Biden gathered by the president's personal attorney. Officials confirmed Giuliani's tips are being routed to the U.S. attorney's office in Pittsburgh. At the same time, the U.S. attorney's office in the Southern District of New York -- which Giuliani led in the 1980s -- appears to be continuing its wide-ranging investigation of his activities and those of his former associates Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, including their efforts in Ukraine." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: That's right. At the same time one U.S. attorney is looking to prosecute Giuliani for matters at least tangentially related to his efforts to dig up fake dirt on Joe Biden, another U.S. attorney is collecting that same fake information as if it were a treasure-trove of hot tips. An upside, perhaps, is that the crap Pittsburgh collected might help confirm some of the facts & connections SDNY is trying to establish; that is, Giuliani may be providing the DOJ with evidence against himself. If he is indicted, I imagine he'll get off on account of diminished capacity.

(Uh oh. Another Story to Make Trump Mad.) Jacqueline Feldscher of Politico: "The Army will not investigate Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, the former National Security Council staffer who testified in the president's impeachment investigation, the service's top civilian said Friday. Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy made the announcement at an event just days after ... Donald Trump said he imagined the military would 'take a look at' whether Vindman should face disciplinary action for the 'horrible things' he told House investigators about the president's phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last July."

Adam Bienkov of Business Insider: "UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has canceled a trip to the US planned for next month after a furious phone call from ... Donald Trump in which Trump slammed down the phone on the prime minister. Johnson had been due to visit Washington last month but repeatedly delayed the trip after a series of rows with the president over Iran, Huawei, and a rejected request by the prime minister to extradite the wife of a US diplomat. The disagreements culminated in a phone call last month in which Trump hung up on Johnson, according to officials with knowledge of the conversation." Mrs. McC: So another reason Trump wants to keep staff from listening to his phone calls with foreign leaders: his own behavior is embarrassing. (Also linked yesterday.)

Your Tax Dollars at Play. S.V. Date of the Huffington Post: "... Donald Trump returned to Mar-a-Lago on Friday evening for the 29th golf-related trip of his presidency to his for-profit Palm Beach, Florida, resort, raising his total taxpayer golf tab to $133.8 million. That figure translates to 334 years of the presidential salary that Trump and his supporters frequently boast he is not taking."

Matthew Lee & Kathy Gannon of the AP: "The United States and the Taliban have reached agreement on a temporary truce that will take effect in the coming days and, if successfully completed, will lead to a formal cease-fire, the start of peace negotiations between all Afghan sides next month and the ultimate withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, a senior U.S. official said Friday. The official said the agreement for a seven-day 'reduction in violence' is 'very specific' and covers the entire country, including Afghan government forces. There were indications a formal announcement could come as early as the weekend." (Also linked yesterday.)

Anne Gearan & Colby Itkowitz of the Washington Post: "A White House memo justifying the U.S. strike that killed Iranian military leader Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani in January makes no mention of an imminent threat, which was President Trump's rationale for the attack. The two-page memo made public by the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Friday instead says the Soleimani strike was carried out in response to previous attacks and to deter Iran from conducting or supporting attacks in the future.... Congressional Democrats, and some Republicans, were furious that Trump approved a deadly military attack that threatened to escalate tensions in an already strained region without consulting Congress."

State Secrets. David Herszenhorn of Politico: "U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Friday in an encounter the American side apparently wanted to keep under wraps. The State Department made no announcement of the meeting, which took place in Lavrov's own dedicated meeting room at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof.... Pompeo's aides also did not provide any readout after the meeting ended.... Asked about the meeting by Politico, a State Department official confirmed that there had been a 'pull aside' with Lavrov but gave no further details.... A Russian journalist traveling with Lavrov said the U.S. side had requested that there be no press conference or joint statements and that photographers not even be invited to take a picture of the two top diplomats shaking hands." --s

Caitlin Dickerson & Zolan Kanno-Youngs of the New York Times: "The Trump administration is deploying law enforcement tactical units from the southern border as part of a supercharged arrest operation in sanctuary cities across the country, an escalation in the president's battle against localities that refuse to participate in immigration enforcement.... The move reflects President Trump's persistence in cracking down on so-called sanctuary cities, localities that have refused to cooperate in handing over immigrants targeted for deportation to federal authorities. It comes soon after the Justice Department and Department of Homeland Security announced a series of measures that will affect both American citizens and immigrants living in those places." The AP has a story here.

$5 > $Billions. Lauren Villagran of the El Paso Times: "Smugglers in Juárez have engineered camouflage hook-and-ladders made of rebar that blend in so well with the border wall that it can be hard to detect, according to U.S. Border Patrol.... The ladders appear to be made with two poles of 3/8-inch rebar and four thinner poles, outfitted with steps and bent over at the end in a U, to hook on the top of the wall. It's the sort of cubed rebar support structure used in construction in Mexico, called castillo.... Six meters of castillo costs 99 pesos, or about $5.30[.]" --safari: Just a reminder that we're blowing up UNESCO biospheres for this vanity project.

Catherine Rampell of the Washington Post: "Over the past few months, the Trump administration has quietly been rolling out a Kafkaesque new processing policy for select categories of visas: If any fields on a form are left blank, it will automatically be rejected. Even if it makes no sense for the applicant to fill out that field. For example, if 'Apt. Number' is left blank because the immigrant lives in a house: rejected. Or if the field for a middle name is left blank because no middle name exists: rejected, too.... The policy change, at first affecting just asylum applicants, was announced without fanfare on the USCIS website sometime in the fall." (Also linked yesterday.)

Amy Goldstein of the Washington Post: "A federal appeals court on Friday struck down the Trump administration's decision to allow states to compel some Medicaid recipients to work or prepare for a job in exchange for their health benefits. In a unanimous decision that blocks the first state that had imposed work requirements, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit ruled that President Trump's health officials had been' arbitrary and capricious' in allowing Arkansas to launch a Medicaid program called 'Arkansas Works' two years ago.... The administration did not indicate whether it might appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court." Mrs. McC: Isn't "arbitrary and capricious" the motto of this administration? I thought it was embroidered in pig-latin on King Donald's fake coat of arms. (Also linked yesterday.) An NBC News story is here.

Presidential Race

Quint Forgey of Politico: "Bernie Sanders is leading the 2020 Democratic field in Nevada, according to a survey released Friday, with the Vermont senator's campaign showing momentum ahead of the third presidential nominating contest next week. The Nevada poll, conducted by the GOP polling firm WPA Intelligence on behalf of the Las Vegas Review-Journal and AARP Nevada, reports that 25 percent of the state's likely Democratic caucusgoers support Sanders. Former Vice President Joe Biden comes in second place with 18 percent of respondents, followed by Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren with 13 percent. Behind the three top-polling candidates are billionaire activist Tom Steyer with 11 percent; former South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg with 10 percent; and Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar, also with 10 percent. Eight percent of those surveyed said they were undecided, and 5 percent favored another candidate."

Dylan Scott of Vox: "Sen. Bernie Sanders now holds critical polling leads in the 2020 Democratic primary: New surveys show him ahead in California and Texas, the biggest prizes in the upcoming Super Tuesday elections on March 3."

Amy Wang & Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post: "Allies of President Trump have sharply focused attention on the sexual identity of presidential contender Pete Buttigieg in recent days, questioning in stark terms whether Americans are ready for a gay candidate who kisses his husband onstage. The attacks are prompting blunt responses from Buttigieg's allies and even his Democratic rivals, who call the remarks inappropriate and offensive. The exchanges were ignited by radio host Rush Limbaugh, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Trump last week and who framed his comments as an ostensible analysis of how Democrats feel.... The episode is a window into what Buttigieg could face if he becomes the Democratic nominee. Buttigieg did not publicly address Limbaugh's remarks, but his surrogates and supporters pushed back." ~~~

     ~~~ Mrs. McCrabbie: It looks as if the GOP party line will more-or-less follow Rush's construct. When Geraldo asked Trump if Americans would vote for a gay presidential candidate, Trump said, "I think there would be some that wouldn't, and I wouldn't be among that group, to be honest with you."

David Siders of Politico: "Days after her surprising third-place finish in the New Hampshire primary, [Amy] Klobuchar is facing a storm as aspects of her record get more scrutiny in the presidential campaign. For Klobuchar, the hostile questioning is a sign of her arrival as a serious contender. But it also comes at a precarious time, as she scrambles to make inroads in Nevada and South Carolina -- two racially diverse states in which she has little demonstrated support..., [and] her opponents are beginning to cut her down."

Nick Corasaniti of the New York Times: "In South Carolina, four presidential candidates are running ads featuring praise from former President Barack Obama. In Nevada, Senator Bernie Sanders, Tom Steyer and Pete Buttigieg are pitching their candidacies in Spanish. And Mr. Steyer has gone negative, attacking Mr. Sanders of Vermont for failing to provide a price tag for his 'Medicare for All' plan, calling former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. 'another insider' and Mr. Buttigieg, the former mayor of South Bend, Ind., an 'untested newcomer.'" Several of the ads are embedded in the article.

(Hey, Kids. This Story Makes Trump Happy, Too.) Larry Neumeister of the AP: "Michael Avenatti, a lawyer who gained fame by representing a porn star in lawsuits against Donald Trump, was convicted Friday of trying to extort sportswear giant Nike. The verdict was returned Friday by a Manhattan federal jury after it deliberated charges of attempted extortion and honest services fraud in what prosecutors say was an attempt by Avenatti to extort up to $25 million from Nike with threats to otherwise harm it.... Avenatti, 48, became prominent during frequent cable television program appearances in 2018 and 2019 as journalists courted him for information about porn star Stormy Daniels and her claims of a Trump tryst before he became president and a payoff to remain silent about it. At his peak of notoriety, Avenatti even considered running for president himself." (Also linked yesterday.)

Hannah Natanson, et al., of the Washington Post: "Since Trump's rise to the nation's highest office, his inflammatory language -- often condemned as racist and xenophobic -- has seeped into schools across America. Many bullies now target other children differently than they used to, with kids as young as 6 mimicking the president's insults and the cruel way he delivers them. Trump's words, those chanted by his followers at campaign rallies and even his last name have been wielded by students and school staff members to harass children more than 300 times since the start of 2016, a Washington Post review of 28,000 news stories found. At least three-quarters of the attacks were directed at kids who are Hispanic, black or Muslim, according to the analysis. Students have also been victimized because they support the president -- more than 45 times during the same period." Mrs. McC: Don't worry; Melanie's anti-bullying program will fix this. (Also linked yesterday.)

Beyond the Beltway

Georgia. Mark Niesse of the Atlanta-Journal Constitution: "A wave of people signed up to vote in Georgia last year, adding 322,000 active voters to the rolls ahead of a presidential election.... The rising number of voters from demographic groups that tend to support Democrats could make the Republican-leaning state more of a battleground than ever, with a presidential race, two U.S. Senate seats and three open U.S. House seats on the ballot this year.... The number of Georgia voters in the 18-34 age group has jumped 68% since October 2016.... Meanwhile, the portion of the electorate that is white has fallen since 2016 ... accounting for 59% ... from 62% four years ago.... [T]he proportion of active voters 65 and older ... has declined from 24% in 2016 to 19% today.... The number of new voters ... has outpaced voter registration cancellations." --s

News Ledes

New York Times: "A.E. Hotchner, a novelist, playwright, biographer, literary bon vivant and philanthropist whose life was shaped and colored by close friendships with two extraordinarily gifted and well-known men, Ernest Hemingway and Paul Newman, died on Saturday at his home in Westport, Conn. He was 102.

The New York Times' live updates of developments in the coronavirus epidemic are here.