November 21, 2022
Afternoon Update:
Jonah Bromwich, et al., of the New York Times: "Manhattan prosecutors rested their case in the tax fraud trial of Donald J. Trump's family business on Monday without calling a witness they had previously planned to question, an indication of confidence after the company's longtime chief financial officer testified last week. The former chief financial officer, Allen H. Weisselberg, strengthened the prosecution's hand as he admitted to his participation in a tax scheme that the company, the Trump Organization, is also charged with.... Donald Bender, who for years was an outside accountant for Mr. Trump and the company..., works for the accounting firm Mazars USA, [and] has been cooperating with prosecutors since at least last year. Last week, [prosecutors] said in court that they expected to call Mr. Bender, but reversed that plan. The Trump Organization's lawyers indicated Monday morning that they plan to call him as a defense witness instead."
Alabama. Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs of the New York Times: "Alabama's governor issued a sweeping order on Monday suspending all executions in the state and ordering a review of Alabama's execution process following a series of problems delivering lethal injection drugs this year. The move by Gov. Kay Ivey, a Republican, comes four days after prison officials said they had been unable to insert one of two intravenous lines into Kenneth Eugene Smith before his death warrant expired at midnight. That episode was the third time this year in which Alabama executioners failed to reach a death row prisoner's veins and the second time in less than two months that the problems forced the state to call off an execution. Ms. Ivey said she had asked the state's attorney general to withdraw Alabama's two pending requests for execution dates and seek no more until the investigation is over. She ... also said that ...'legal tactics and criminals hijacking the system' were responsible for the problems." MB: By this, Ivey apparently meant she blamed last-minute appeals. Don't think Kaye has gone soft on the death penalty. She hasn't.
Lauren Gurley of the Washington Post: "One of the largest railroad unions narrowly voted to reject a contract deal brokered by the White House, bringing the country once again closer to a rail strike that could paralyze much of the economy ahead of the holidays, union officials announced on Monday. The union representing roughly 28,000 rail conductors, SMART Transportation Division, voted the deal down by 50.9 percent, the union said. The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, which represents engineers, announced on Monday that 53.5 percent of members voted to ratify the deal. These unions represent 57,000 workers and are the largest and most politically powerful of the 12 rail unions in contract discussions."
~~~ Marie: Thank goodness the turkeys aren't named Donald & Lindsey, but President Biden did get in some jokes about Trump.
Jonah Bromwich, et al., of the New York Times: "The Manhattan district attorney's office has moved to jump-start its criminal investigation into Donald J. Trump, according to people with knowledge of the matter, seeking to breathe new life into an inquiry that once seemed to have reached a dead end. Under the new district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg, the prosecutors have returned to the long-running investigation's original focus: a hush-money payment to a porn star [Stormy Daniels] who said she had an affair with Mr. Trump.... For Mr. Bragg, the hush-money developments suggest the first signs of progress since he took office at the beginning of the year, when he balked at indicting Mr. Trump in connection with his business practices." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Michael Cohen has been wondering for a long time why he went to jail for the illegal payment to Daniels when he made the payment at Trump's behest & Trump repaid him. Maybe Bragg finally has begun to wonder about that, too.
Bill Barr in Common Sense: "It is painfully clear from his track record in both the 2020 election and the 2022 midterms that Donald Trump is neither capable of forging [a] winning coalition or delivering the decisive and durable victory required. Trump's extraordinarily divisive actions since losing in 2020 are not those of someone capable of leading a party, much less a country.... Trump's willingness to destroy the party if he does not get his way is not based on principle, but on his own supreme narcissism. His egoism makes him unable to think of a political party as anything but an extension of himself -- a cult of personality."
~~~~~~~~~~
E.J. Dionne of the Washington Post: "It's a shame that Kevin McCarthy skipped Speaker Nancy Pelosi's 15-minute speech on Thursday announcing she was stepping down as the House's Democratic leader. For the California Republican who hopes to be speaker himself, it was an ungracious act, of course, but also something worse. Ignoring Pelosi was a big mistake, because McCarthy has a lot to learn about what made her consequential. So do the Democratic leaders who will follow her.... The most important lesson she has to teach is ... [that] she had an overarching purpose.... Pelosi always knew where she wanted the country to go and which reforms were necessary to getting there.... Pelosi-ism ... comes down to this: If you don't have principles that define what you're fighting for, there's no point to being in politics. But if you're impractical, you won't achieve your objectives." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Sorry, E.J. I don't think McCarthy is smart enough to understand your well-articulated point, much less even try to carry it off.
Eric Lipton & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "The Trump family's newest business partners are middle eastern governments. A deal signed last week with a Saudi real estate developer makes Donald Trump "part of a project backed by the government of Oman itself. The deal leaves Mr. Trump, as a former president hoping to win the White House again, effectively with a foreign government partner that has complex relations with the United States...."
Caroline Frost of Deadline: "Following Elon Musk's decision to reinstate Donald Trump on Twitter..., it seems the former president isn't interested. 'I don't see any reason for it,' Trump said via video when pressed on the subject by a panel at the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual leadership meeting, as reported by Reuters. Instead, Trump said, he would stay with his new platform Truth Social, developed by his Trump Media & Technology Group -- where, of course, his posts and engagement draw money for him, rather than Musk."
In a New York Times op-ed linked last week, Anand Giridharadas took down the Four Billionaires of Last Week's Apocalypse: Musk, Bezos, Bankman-Fried & Trump. What Giridharadas didn't do, Reality Chex contributors filled out in the Comments section. Complementing the discussion are remarks by Thomas Keller, whom digby cites & RAS called to our attention:
Elon "Musk is yet another example of the libertarian-to-far-right-pipeline -- a stark reminder that this type of libertarianism has always been driven by a desire of elites to do as they please and be freed from regulation of any kind, from demands for fairness and equality.... In general, from a democratic perspective, it's highly problematic that these tech oligarchs are amassing so much power and influence. They are not democratically controlled in any way.... Finally, there is this: White male hero worship of the worst kind. The message here seems to be that we'll just have to live with the damage these tech oligarchs cause -- and be grateful for all the wonders with which they are supposedly blessing the world. No, no, no."
By Manu Cornet.
~~~ Marie: The underlying question is this: who should have the power to moderate social media? We already know the answer is not Zuckerberg & Musk, et al. And some of us can tell you from personal experience that it's not a group like the priggish moderators at the New York Times. But it also isn't politicians like Gym Jordan & Miss Margie. If you have an answer, do share.
Beyond the Beltway
Arizona. Bob Brigham of the Raw Story: "As Republican Kari Lake refuses to concede she lost the Arizona governor's race and Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich investigates unsubstantiated allegations of voter fraud, the GOP chairman of the Maricopa Board of Supervisors has gone into hiding. 'Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates confirmed on Sunday that he was transferred (to an undisclosed location) and provided a security detail after workers at the Arizona county elections office faced months of escalating death threats that made it increasingly difficult to do their job,' The Daily Beast reported. 'Gates, a Republican, has faced particular backlash as a vocal critic of false election claims spurred by Trump's election denialism in 2020.' The top lawyer for the county has also reported feeling threatened by an RNC attorney working with Lake's campaign." ~~~
~~~ 12News Phoenix: "A Chandler Republican recently elected to the Arizona House of Representatives says that she will not cast her vote on any bill unless the 2022 election is redone. Liz Harris, recently elected to represent Legislative District 13 which encompasses much of Chandler, issued the statement on Instagram and her campaign website saying in part "it has become obvious that we need to hold a new election immediately. Despite winning her own election, Harris alleges that there were 'clear signs of foul play' which necessitated her demands. There has been no evidence of this."
Way Beyond
Ukraine, et al.
The Washington Post's live briefings of developments Monday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "The nearly nine-month-old conflict is showing no signs of abating as winter approaches and both sides gear up to continue the fight well into next year.... The state of the war has led to suggestions, including from the Pentagon, that it could be time for Ukraine to negotiate a political solution to the conflict with Russia -- which almost certainly would require surrendering some territory. [President] Zelensky, who is preparing for a number of international addresses this week, said: 'We will do everything to make the world accept the Ukrainian peace formula.'"
Malachy Browne, et al., of the New York Times: "A series of videos that surfaced on social media last week has ignited a debate over whether Ukrainian forces committed war crimes or acted in self-defense as they tried to capture a group of Russian soldiers who were then killed. The videos show the grisly before-and-after scenes of the encounter earlier this month, in which at least 11 Russians, most of whom are seen lying on the ground, appear to have been shot dead at close range after one of their fellow fighters suddenly opened fire on Ukrainian soldiers standing nearby. The videos, detailed [in this article] and whose authenticity has been verified by The New York Times, offer a rare look into one gruesome moment among many in the war, but do not show how or why the Russian soldiers were killed."
News Ledes
New York Times: "A man shrouded in body armor and wielding an AR-15 style rifle, attacked an L.G.B.T.Q. nightclub in Colorado Springs on Saturday night, in a rampage that killed at least five people and injured at least 25 others. At least one person inside the nightclub, Club Q, tackled and subdued the gunman, the authorities said, helping to prevent further bloodshed. Mayor John Suthers of Colorado Springs said that a man had grabbed a handgun from the gunman and then hit him with it, subduing him. When the police burst into the club, the man was still on top of gunman, pinning him down, Mr. Suthers said. The owners of the club, who had looked at surveillance tape, lauded the actions of two patrons whom they said they did not know but who, together, had overpowered the gunman and held him on the floor until police arrived." An AP story is here. ~~~
~~~ The New York Times is liveblogging developments. "Investigators filed murder and hate crimes charges on Monday against the suspect...."
CNN & Reuters (published by CNN): "At least 46 people have died after a 5.6-magnitude earthquake hit Indonesia's West Java province on Monday, according to the country's National Agency for Disaster Management (BNPB). A further 700 were left injured, according to Major General Suharyanto, head of the BNPB. The quake hit the Cianjur region in West Java province at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles), according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS)." ~~~
~~~ Update: According to this New York Times story, at least 162 people were killed, and the toll is likely to rise.
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Reader Comments (12)
Career advice
There are professions that allow for certain, shall we say, human failings or character flaws, as long as those shortcomings aren’t intrinsically detrimental to advancement and success in those fields.
Richard Wagner was a racist prick and a volatile egomaniac, but these deficiencies didn’t prevent him from becoming a groundbreaking, legendary composer.
Scott Fitzgerald was a lush, but still turned out beautiful literature.
Steve Jobs’ ruthless pursuit of his goals didn’t exactly make him Mr. Friendly, but he turned an idea conceived in a garage into a billion dollar company.
But say you hated children. Elementary school teacher? Ahhh…prob’ly not.
A blind person could become a great piano player but maybe not a heart surgeon.
Suppose you had trouble differentiating real numbers, rational numbers, and cardinal numbers. Mathematician? Hmm…don’t think so.
Now say you were narcissistic, self-serving, ideologically motivated, caustically dismissive of other positions, even ones with longstanding precedence, injudicious, prone to specious arguments, thin skinned, and given to snarky disdain for those you considered your enemies.
Would this person make a good Supreme Court justice? How about a night court judge? Dancing with the Stars judge? Nah. Fuggedaboutit.
Sorry, Sam. You picked the wrong field. Those particular traits do, however, point directly to a perfect career match:
Republican politician.
No Partaking Zone
The Fat Fascist sez he ain’t gonna partake in no legal stuff about how he’s a crook, a liar, a traitor, and all around bad actor.
Great idea! This could change the face of the entire justice system. Say you get arrested for burgling your neighbor’s backyard shed (C’mon, you know you always had your eye on those rose bush clippers!). The judge says “Okay, Mr. Snatch and Grab, how do you plead?”
And taking your cue from donnie the judicial jenius, you say “Yer honah, I don’t partake!”
Wow! What a great idea! The result? Pandemonium in the court? Eons of legal precedents overturned?
Nope.
Judge says “Bailiff, take this idiot back to the lockup. He’s further charged with contempt of court and being a moron. Six months and a thousand dollar fine! Next!”
Like all Trumpy ideas, it sounds stupid. It IS stupid. Partake of that, Tubby.
So, AK: Thought you were going toward the just-elected AZ “legislator” who states she won’t be doin’ any legislatin’ she is being paid to do. Why are we surprised? So many repugs are like this— why put up with it? No real employers would, and I guess that points to repugs as a group. They are useless and dangerous. They aren’t good citizens. They are trash. Starting at the top.
AK, your Mr S&G could also just tell the judge that he is declaring his candidacy for president. Demand special treatment. And remind everyone about his Article II.
Jeanne,
Shhhh….we don’t WANT her to vote on anything. Is she going to vote for something useful and worthwhile, something that will benefit the common weal? Of course not! Let her sit in her fancy office watching Fox and holding her breath until she turns blue in the face.
@Jeanne & Akhilleus: Turns out there was voter fraud of a sort: not by the voters but on the voters. Miss Lizzie there told voters she was going to serve them in the state legislature, then after she "won" the, ah, "fraudulent" election (never will understand how when Republicans win, that particular isolated vote count is A-okay), she told them "only kidding!"
AK and Marie: excellent points-- it's true-- we don't really want her to participate in the business of states, cuz she will do it in bad faith anyhow. True, Marie: we in PA have wondered since 2020 how come the local (R) downballot races were completely fancy free of fraud, while, mysteriously, Dominion or some Italians or Venezuelans changed the presidential votes to exclude Dump the Unknowing from the presidency he had so richly enriched (mostly himself--). Our county re-elected Smucker this time, again, and he doesn't see anything weird about any of it this time, but LAST time, hoo boy... Sheesh.
Happy Turkeys: Chocolate and Chip were pardoned and will go to rehab or something so they can improve on being turkeys...:)
Looks like Barr is OK with all the Pretender's "flaws" as long as he's still winning.
But the collusion with Russia and the "perfect" phone call were fine.
Boy, that guy makes me sick.
How he became someone the press listens to passeth all understanding.
His statements should be me with raucous laughter, if noted at all.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/21/opinion/midterms-abortion-trump.html
Naivete?
Or a cynical attempt to dissociate oneself from the more visible and egregious consequences of a really bad marriage?
Possibly a little of both...
Fact is the pro-life movement, once it strayed form the stage of personal conviction and behavior, was naturally allied to the worst instincts of the Republican Party: its holier-than-thou condescension, its ties to white Christian fundamentalism, its penchant for patriarchal authoritarianism, and the self-satisfaction derived from donning the mantle of easy virtue.
Not to mention the obvious hypocrisy of a movement that clearly cares more for fetal life than any that might survive birth, a hypocrisy that differs little in form from the hypocrisy Republicans rely on regardless of the issue. Fiscal responsibility? Ha! Respect for free speech? Double Ha!
With those traits in common, since Trump's brand of Republicanism made a political virtue of all that is wrong and unsavory with his adopted party, it was inevitable that the pro-life movement and Trump would jump into the same bed.
Now a sensitive soul has discovered it was a marriage made in Hell and suddenly wants a divorce, ironically enough, once a cause of excommunication for all Catholics...
Oh, what to do? What to do?
So much hand-wringing on the Right.
Is there anyone so evil, racist or depraved that Elon Musk would not allow them on Twitter?
I saw a brief clip of Margaret Hoover and William Barr talking about Trump. Barr said he would vote for Trump in 2024 if he was the republican nominee for president. Knowing all that he does know about this man, he'd still vote for him because he's the republican nominee???
Tom Sullivan has a post at digby's pointing out some of the intellectual (or lack thereof) dishonesty of the right and their brain dead thoughts on what is going on in the world.
"A lengthy article by Matt McManus in Current Affairs (h/t Greg Sargent) studies the impulses driving anti-intellectualism on the right. What intellectuals on the right mean to defend (and conserve) is power and privilege. The existential threat, the wolf at the door, as it were, is any idea(s) that might make the ruled take issue with their rulers:
The heart of the problem for conservatives is this: they instinctively fear that excess and critical intellectualism will induce anyone and everyone to “submit” authority to the “discussion” of each individual. In other words, the individual might have thoughts and ideas that lead them to question authority figures like kings and presidents. Imagine that!"
"“Why would ANTIFA interrupt the certification of an election in which their candidate won?” Selvig asks." No thinking allowed.