The Commentariat -- September 27, 2021
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "A U.S. judge said Monday he will grant the unconditional release of John W. Hinckley Jr. effective in June 2022, 41 years after he shot President Ronald Reagan and three others outside a D.C. hotel. The court acted after the Justice Department agreed last week to end court and medical supervision of Hinckley, who was freed from a government psychiatric hospital to live with his mother in Williamsburg, Va., in 2016."
William Vaillancourt of Rolling Stone: "A Department of Homeland Security whistleblower leveled a series of bombshell accusations Sunday in his first television interview, accusing his Trump administration superiors of pressing for manipulated intelligence on three critical subjects: Russian support for Donald Trump, the Mexican border, and the white supremacist threat inside the United States. Brian Murphy, the former principal deputy undersecretary in DHS's Office of Intelligence and Analysis, filed a whistleblower complaint last year -- as well as a handful of internal complaints and reports -- that all painted a frightening picture of how things were running in the department tasked with keeping Americans safe. 'From the outset, there were three things that I was told that we would look to manipulate intelligence on and bend the truth about,' Murphy told George Stephanopoulos on ABC's This Week. 'And I told them upfront that I wasn't going to do it.'... Murphy said he felt 'intense pressure to try to take intelligence and fit a political narrative' -- accusing administration officials of demanding information be manipulated to burnish Trump's image and help his messaging[.]"
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Luz Lazo, et al., of the Washington Post: "Federal investigators began Sunday to probe the cause of an Amtrak passenger train derailment that killed three people and injured dozens, resulting in a scramble to get those wounded to hospitals across a rural part of the state. Eight of the train's 10 cars derailed about 4 p.m. local time Saturday near Joplin, nearly 200 miles north of Helena, Mont., Amtrak said in a statement, adding that an estimated 141 passengers and 17 crew members were aboard at the time. Liberty County Sheriff Nick Erickson estimated that as many as 30 people were injured. By Sunday, five remained hospitalized in Great Falls, 'all of them stabilized,' said Sarah Robbin, disaster and emergency services coordinator for Liberty County."
Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California said on Sunday night that the House would vote on a bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure bill on Thursday, giving Democrats more time to reach a consensus on President Biden's sprawling domestic policy package. The vote will come hours before government funding -- as well as key transportation programs addressed in the infrastructure bill -- is scheduled to lapse on Oct. 1, leaving lawmakers with a narrow margin for error." An NBC News story is here. ~~~
~~~ Maya Parthasarathy of Politico: "House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday said that Democrats will pass an infrastructure bill with $550 billion in new spending sometime this week but wouldn't specify exactly when or nail down the timing for the $3.5 trillion social spending package. The House last month voted for a Sept. 27 deadline to bring the bipartisan infrastructure plan to the floor. On Sunday, Pelosi didn't specify when this week it would be voted on." ~~~
~~~ Marie: When I was in college, there were weeks around finals when I had no time to read the daily newspaper, so I would allow the papers to stack up, sometimes for nearly a month. Then, when the crunch had passed, I would read the papers, one by one. Not surprisingly, I discovered that this saved me a lot of time because I didn't have to read all the speculative stories about what could/would happen re: various coming crises. By the time I read the papers, the crises had been resolved, or not. Right now, the media are full of hand-wringing stories about the Biden presidency and how it hangs on what "Democrats in disarray" may do to sink it. My attitude about linking these stories runs sort of on the philosophy of those piled-up newspapers: we'll find out what happens when it happens (or doesn't). Based on stories I have linked, you all know pretty much how the system works, so I don't see much point in linking speculative stories that have little to add to the known facts.
Hmm. Zach Dorfman, et al., in Yahoo! News: "In 2017, as Julian Assange began his fifth year holed up in Ecuador's embassy in London, the CIA plotted to kidnap the WikiLeaks founder, spurring heated debate among Trump administration officials over the legality and practicality of such an operation. Some senior officials inside the CIA and the Trump administration even discussed killing Assange, going so far as to request 'sketches' or 'options' for how to assassinate him. Discussions over kidnapping or killing Assange occurred 'at the highest levels' of the Trump administration, said a former senior counterintelligence official. 'There seemed to be no boundaries.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: I was a bit skeptical about this story -- even tho one of the co-authors is Michael Isikoff, whom I like -- until I read Marcy Wheeler's take. Now I'm really skeptical:
~~~ Marcy Wheeler: "When last we saw Zach Dorfman get a big scoop, he managed to present claims about Eric Swalwell appropriately cooperating with the FBI in a counterintelligence investigation so wildly out of context that the story fed false claims about Swalwell for most of a year. His big story about Mike Pompeo's vendetta against WikiLeaks -- with Sean Naylor and Michael Isikoff -- is bound to be a similar example.... In short, this is a very long story that spends thousands of words admitting that its lead overstates how seriously this line of thought was pursued." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Our Climate Legacy. Sarah Kaplan of the Washington Post: "If the planet continues to warm on its current trajectory, the average 6-year-old will live through roughly three times as many climate disasters as their grandparents, [a] study finds. They will see twice as many wildfires, 1.7 times as many tropical cyclones, 3.4 times more river floods, 2.5 times more crop failures and 2.3 times as many droughts as someone born in 1960." ~~~
~~~ Marie: And of course some of the kids won't "live" through the disasters. They will die because of them. This is a legacy born of greed & laziness. Environmentalists were getting plenty of airtime in the 1970s, when the grandparents were young adults, making choices for their families. Most made the right choices for the environment only when local governments forced them to do things like recycle or gas periodically became unaffordable.
The Pandemic, Ctd.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here. the Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Monday are here.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Sunday are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Beyond the Beltway
Colorado. Emma Brown of the Washington Post: "... events in Mesa County[, Colorado, where the county clerk, Tina Peters, who is also the elections supervisor, is an adherent to right-wing conspiracy theories & a "protectee" of the MyPillow Guy,] represent an escalation in the attacks on the nation's voting system, one in which officials who were responsible for election security allegedly took actions that undermined that security in the name of protecting it. As baseless claims about election fraud are embraced by broad swaths of the Republican Party, experts fear that people who embrace those claims could be elected or appointed to offices where they oversee voting, potentially posing new security risks.... [Donald] Trump in recent months has endorsed several proponents of the 'big lie' to become secretaries of state in key battlegrounds. And experienced election administrators at the local level have been fleeing their jobs amid skyrocketing stress and threats to their personal safety." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Texas. David Cohen of Politico: "Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday defended U.S. Border Patrol agents seen charging at migrants on horseback, saying he would hire them if they fear being fired. 'You have a job in the state of Texas,' he told host Chris Wallace on 'Fox News Sunday.' 'I will hire you to help Texas secure our border.'... Abbott said the fault for any misbehavior should be placed on [President] Biden and members of his administration because they didn't keep the Haitian migrants from crossing from Mexico into Del Rio, Texas. He also said that Texas was going to assume some of the functions of border control, even though the U.S. Constitution assigns the federal government that responsibility." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: OR, Greg, you could get those agents to start patrolling the major roads between Texas & Oklahoma to whip the young women trying to travel to Oklahoma to get abortions. ~~~
Sabrina Tavernise of the New York Times: "As soon as the [Texas law largely banning abortions] took effect this month, Texans started traveling elsewhere, and Oklahoma, close to Dallas, has become a major destination.... Oklahoma does not require two trips to a clinic to get an abortion in most cases, so it has been a common choice.... The effects of the new law have been profound: Texans with unwanted pregnancies have been forced to make decisions quickly, and some have opted to travel long distances for abortions. As clinics in surrounding states fill up, appointments are being scheduled for later dates, making the procedures more costly. Other women are having to carry their pregnancies to term."
Way Beyond
Germany. The New York Times' live updates of developments in Germany's elections Monday are here: "As Germany's election results came into sharper focus on Monday, no party won decisive majority but the loser was clear: Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats. After 16 years in power under Ms. Merkel's leadership, they saw their share of the vote collapse by nearly nine points, garnering only 24.1 percent of the vote. It was the party's worst showing in its history, and the election signaled the end of an era for Germany and for Europe." ~~~
~~~ The New York Times' live updates of developments in Germany's elections Sunday are here: "Germans appeared to vote for change on Sunday. With a majority of voting districts reporting, the Social Democratic Party had a slim lead, hovering around 26 percent, more than a percentage point ahead of Christian Democratic Union, which had just over 24 percent of the vote. With final results not likely to come until early Monday, the race could still tip either way. But as the hours wore on and more results came in, the Social Democrats' lead looked increasingly likely to hold." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
~~~ The Washington Post's live updates are here. Politico has a liveblog of the election results here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ Colin Meyn of the Hill: "Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD) won a narrow victory in Sunday's general election, topping the outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in the race to replace her after she stepped down following 16 years in power.... However, the slim margin of 1.6 percentage points separating the top two parties means that both could potentially form a ruling coalition and it could take weeks or months of horse trading before a new government takes shape."
Iceland. Rachel Pannett of the Washington Post: "Iceland heralded a weekend election result that would have made it the first country in Europe to have more women than men in parliament. But the celebrations were brief: A late recount put it just below gender parity. Early results showed women won 33 seats in Iceland's 63-seat parliament, known as the Althing, up from 24 in the previous vote. Hours later, a surprise recount in the west of the country changed the outcome, leaving female candidates with 30 seats, according to state broadcaster RUV. That is still the highest representation for women in Europe, at nearly 48 percent, ahead of Sweden and Finland with 47 percent and 46 percent, respectively."
Switzerland. AP: "Switzerland voted by a wide margin to allow same-sex couples to marry in a referendum on Sunday, bringing the Alpine nation into line with many others in western Europe. Official results showed the measure passed with 64.1% of voters in favor and won a majority in all of Switzerland's 26 cantons, or states. Switzerland's parliament and the governing Federal Council supported the 'Marriage for All' measure. Switzerland has authorized same-sex civil partnerships since 2007." (Also linked yesterday.)
U.K. Stephen Castle of the New York Times: "Responding to an escalating crisis, Prime Minister Boris Johnson of Britain reversed course this weekend and offered thousands of visas to foreign truckers to combat a driver shortage that has left some supermarket shelves empty and caused long lines at gas stations. The decision, announced late Saturday, reflects the growing alarm within the government over a disruption to supplies that has prompted panic buying and, in some places, caused fuel to run out and gas stations to close."
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Reader Comments (6)
A headline on the Newsweek site offers this stunning revelation:
“Fox News Host Complains of Being Attacked by Trump Fans for Reporting Facts on Arizona Audit”.
(Use best Gomer Pyle voice) Well, surprise, surprise, surprise!
Who’d a thunk it? Fox viewers outraged by the truth about their loser leader. And over and above that, a Fox host stunned by this reaction. Talk about not knowing your audience. Fox host Howard Kurtz, who does some sort of media, blah, blah, blah thingy on Faux, reported that Fatty, after a 12 year recount performed in Maricopa County, Arizona, is an even bigger loser than originally thought.
The Trump brownshirts were not pleased.
Um, Earth to Howard: do you not watch your own network? Do you not get that whack job liars, traitors, and douchebag demagogues dominate both on the air and in the BarcaLoungers at home? Unpleasant and inconvenient truths are treated as dirty lies told by evil monsters. Use your own analogy…inconvenient truths are to Fox viewers as…Agent Orange is to your backyard greenery,…polysyllabic words are to the Trump brothers? Masks and vaccines are to…oh, you get it.
This just in: fire chief learns that gasoline and matches are not a good combo. Film at 11.
https://www.newsweek.com/fox-news-host-complains-being-attacked-trump-fans-reporting-facts-arizona-audit-1632840
Saw a clip of Fathead in Georgia—. Lying his head off for the monster inmates. Am not amused. I guess it is “legal” but I guess I no longer care how many lemmings die. In fact, I hope they do. Who needs hordes of deluded nitwits…. I just wish the press would quit covering the twice-impeached lunatic and his fans. Been wishing that for more than six years. Thank you, MSM..
Brian Murphy was asked to burnish trump's image. One definition
of burnish is 'to make brown'. Does that mean no one liked the
orange and wanted their savior to be brown?
The opposite of burnish probably is tarnish. That fits him better in
every way.
And Liz Cheney decides she was wrong to oppose same sex marriage.
Was that before or after her sister (I think it was) married a woman?
Marie,
I share your impatience with the endless reports about nothing presented as news. That may be one reason I'm partial to history books. While the authors' interpretations may be disputable, they are at least present to mull over, not like all the speculation about what might transpire.
Thought the Infrastructure Groundhog Weeks during the Pretender's time were kinda funny, but don't find the current endless maneuvering and speculation about the same subject at all amusing. Tiresome and disappointing, more like it.
Like you, I'd rather check in when it's all over and done...
Time to pick up again that book on the history of the origins and emergence of our Indian removal policies and their relationship to the slave state's hunger for more land to grow cotton that predated the Trail of Tears.
It's a period and subject I don't know much about and am pretty certain won't change again by tomorrow.
How the rich Ivy League men and women lie and get away with it: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/26/business/media/ozy-media-goldman-sachs.html#commentsContainer. Shame gets bred out during prep school days; the successful learn to shank while smiling. Throw them in jail without their "resources".
Justice: Hinckley rewarded for poor marksmanship.
ps. A long standing pet peeve with sentencing guidelines. Had the shot been mortal, he would not be walking. What's the diff? Same intent.