May 1, 2022

The New York Times' live updates of developments Sunday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "Speaker Nancy Pelosi became the most senior American official to visit Kyiv, announcing on Sunday that she had met with President Volodymyr Zelensky and had pledged 'to do what is needed to help the Ukrainian people as they defend democracy for their nation and for the world.' The visit on Saturday by Ms. Pelosi and a small delegation of American lawmakers was kept secret until they returned to Poland, where they held a news conference on Sunday morning.... Russia's renewed assault in the east has made only incremental territorial gains while causing widespread carnage, as local leaders and Ukrainian military officials in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions reported fierce battles and as Russian tank columns tried to push into areas that Moscow's forces have pounded with artillery fire. The Russian Defense Ministry said on Sunday that it had struck 800 targets across Ukraine over the past day.... In territory controlled by Russia, the occupying forces were trying to solidify control and taking steps to erase Ukrainian identity. On Sunday, Russian forces in the southern region of Kherson started to enforce the transition to the Russian ruble from Ukrainian currency. At the same time, nearly all internet and cellular service in the region went down over the weekend." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Sunday are here: Speaker "Pelosi walked the streets of Ukraine's capital with House lawmakers, including Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam B. Schiff (Calif.), Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Gregory W. Meeks (N.Y.) and Rules Committee Chairman Jim McGovern (Mass.).... In Kyiv, [President] Zelensky awarded Pelosi with the Order of Princess Olga, a decoration bestowed upon women who have made outstanding contributions to Ukraine.... Civilian evacuations from a Mariupol steel plant that has been the last base for Ukrainian fighters in the besieged port city were expected to continue on Sunday, after a group of about 20 women and children were allowed to leave under a cease-fire that began Saturday." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Sunday are here.

Timothy Bella & Julian Duplain of the Washington Post: "Ukrainian officials say Russian forces have seized more than 2,000 pieces of artwork from the besieged port city of Mariupol. They have been taken to Russian-occupied Donetsk, local channel TV7 reported. The Mariupol City Council wrote in a Telegram message Thursday that Russian forces have raided the three local museums, including the Kuindzhi Art Museum, since the start of the invasion." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Al Jazeera: "Dutch dock workers are refusing to unload a tanker with a consignment of Russian diesel in the port of Amsterdam, a day after a similar action by dockers kept the ship from entering Rotterdam port. The Sunny Liger, a 42,000-tonne tanker was lying at anchor off Amsterdam on Saturday, while port companies were mulling her entry into the Dutch capital. On Friday, dock workers in Rotterdam also refused to handle her cargo. 'Late last night we requested all parties in the port of Amsterdam not to let the ship dock and not to (handle) it,' the FNV trade union's harbour worker branch chairwoman Asmae Hajjari said."

Paul Farhi of the Washington Post: "Washington's media and political elite partied like it was 2019 on Saturday at the annual White House correspondents' dinner, the traditionally glitzy spring gala that staggered back to life after a pandemic-induced two-year hiatus. Despite the continuing specter of the coronavirus, the event once again had all its usual trappings and excesses: a tuxedoed-and-begowned throng of insiders, a smattering of celebrities, an appearance by the president and a big-name comedian to make fun of them and it." The Guardian's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Actually, they partied more like it was 2016, as the so-called then-president* didn't have the guts to go in 2017 and 2018. ~~~

This is the first time the president has attended this dinner in six years. It's understandable. We had a horrible plague, followed by two years of covid. -- President Biden, at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, Saturday

     ~~~ Here's what Sonia Rao of the Washington Post dubs President Biden's best jokes.

Trump said he won the election, but everyone was able to look at the numbers and see that he was wrong. That's why Ron DeSantis is one step ahead. First you ban the math textbooks, then nobody knows how to count the votes. -- Trevor Noah, at the White House Correspondents' Dinner, Saturday ~~~

     ~~~ And these are Trevor Noah's best burns, according to Rao.

As you may know, James Corden is leaving his late-late-nite gig. Apparently, he is in search of new opportunities. Let's see how this one works out:

Kyle Cheney of Politico: "Attorney John Eastman, a key architect of ... Donald Trump's legal effort to overturn the 2020 election, is preparing to provide another 10,000 pages of records to the Jan. 6 select committee, his attorney revealed late Friday.... Eastman had claimed attorney-client privilege over 37,000 pages of post-election emails related to his work for Trump. But under pressure from U.S. District Court Judge David Carter -- who ruled in March that Eastman and Trump likely entered into a criminal conspiracy to overturn the election -- Eastman withdrew privilege claims for nearly a third of that total. In Friday's court filing, Eastman's lawyers indicated that the select committee now wants more time to consider how to handle the remaining 27,000 pages of records that remain in dispute." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Eric Tucker of the AP: "Former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows accused the congressional committee investigating last year's attack on the U.S. Capitol of leaking all of the text messages he provided to the panel in what he says was an effort to vilify him publicly. The argument was made in a filing Friday in Washington's federal court.... In the ... filing, lawyers for Meadows asked a judge to reject the committee's request for a court ruling in its favor that could force Meadows to comply with [committee] subpoenas." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Who's doing the "vilifying" if what's so embarrassing is your own texts?

Graham Kates of CBS News: "Fulton County[,Georgia,] prosecutors will begin selecting participants Monday for a special grand jury to consider whether ... Donald Trump should be charged for his attempts to pressure Georgia officials to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which he lost. Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis ... has said in interviews that the investigation includes a January 2, 2021 phone call in which Trump told Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, 'I just want to find 11,780 votes.' Trump lost the state to Joe Biden by that margin -- an outcome that was affirmed by several recounts."

Emily Davies & Peter Hermann of the Washington Post: "Now, as the government investigates whether ... [two men -- Arian Taherzadeh and Haider Ali -- who posed as federal agents,] may have bribed members of the Secret Service who lived in the building and threatened national security, questions still remain over the motive behind the alleged ruse." MB: This is another of those "Franco is still dead" stories that Patrick pointed out last week, but it gathers & expands on some details of the men's activities. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Maybe in commemoration of May Day, Nicholas Confessore of the New York Times is taking a three-part deep dive into white nationalist Tucker Carlson: "... Mr. Carlson has constructed what may be the most racist show in the history of cable news -- and also, by some measures, the most successful.... Night after night, hour by hour, Mr. Carlson warns his viewers that they inhabit a civilization under siege -- by violent Black Lives Matter protesters in American cities, by diseased migrants from south of the border, by refugees importing alien cultures, and by tech companies and cultural elites who will silence them, or label them racist, if they complain.... His encyclopedia of provocations has only expanded. Since the 2020 presidential election, Mr. Carlson has become the most visible and voluble defender of those who violently stormed the U.S. Capitol to keep Donald J. Trump in office, playing down the presence of white nationalists in the crowd and claiming the attack 'barely rates as a footnote.' In February, as Western pundits and politicians lined up to condemn the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, for his impending invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Carlson invited his viewers to shift focus back to the true enemy at home." Part 1 is here; Part 2 is here; and Part 3, which is mostly audio clips with some context provided, is here. According to the Times, "This series is part of an ongoing examination by The Times of challenges to democratic norms in the United States and around the world." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ TuKKKer Is Not the Problem. What may be the clearest indication that we have deep-seated, extensive and intractable political problems is not the voter suppressing, racist and misogynistic governments of red states or our national Constitutionally-supported minority government that makes it nearly impossible to get anything useful done, but that Tucker Carlson has any audience at all, let alone a large one. -- Ken W., in yesterday's Comments thread ~~~

~~~ Racism Was of the Essence of the Scheme. Scott Lemieux of LG&$: "... the increase in ratings as [Carlson] got more explicitly racist is the real key here.... Without the white nationalist demagoguery he was just another dispensable mediocrity. He became an actual star by grasping the same things about both himself and the Republican electorate that Trump did."

Beyond the Beltway

** Connecticut, a Pro-Woman State. Sarah Nir & Kate Zernike of the New York Times: "Connecticut lawmakers approved a bill late Friday night that takes direct aim at states that have passed aggressive anti-abortion laws as the country prepares for a Supreme Court ruling this summer that could weaken or overturn the constitutional right to abortion enshrined in Roe v. Wade. The Connecticut bill, which Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, has said he intends to sign, would expand the field of people who can perform certain types of abortions beyond doctors, to include nurse-midwives, physician assistants and other medical professionals. And in what lawmakers said could be a model for other states seeking to safeguard abortion rights, the law would also shield abortion providers and patients from lawsuits initiated by states that have banned or plan to ban abortion, even outside their own borders." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Nebraska. Reid Epstein of the New York Times: "A second woman has publicly accused Charles W. Herbster, the Republican candidate for governor in Nebraska endorsed by former President Donald J. Trump, of groping her at a 2019 Republican fund-raising dinner. Elizabeth Todsen said Mr. Herbster grabbed her at the dinner in Omaha and said details of the incident reported earlier this month by the Nebraska Examiner were correct.... The longtime Trump ally has adopted the former president's playbook in responding to the allegations, forcefully denying them, suing his first public accuser, a state senator, and tying her to his political rivals."

News Lede

New York Times: "Naomi Judd, of the Grammy-winning duo The Judds and the mother of Wynonna and Ashley Judd, died on Saturday. She was 76."

April 30, 2022

Afternoon Update:

If you want to watch all or part of the White House Correspondents Association dinner, which is tonight, this Washington Post article tells you where you can watch. "Guests will begin arriving at the Hilton around 5:30 p.m. for the pre-parties sponsored by news organizations. The dinner is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m. The speeches and awards usually start around 9:30 p.m., followed by [President] Biden and [Trevor] Noah. The main event is supposed to end around 10:30 p.m., after which the post-parties ... will begin.... The Washington Post will live-stream the dinner starting around 6:30 p.m. C-SPAN will start its live coverage at 8 p.m. (also live-streamed via C-SPAN.org). CNN's coverage ... will start at 7, though the network says it will cut away for the day's news, including coverage of the war in Ukraine. Similarly, MSNBC said it plans to carry 'portions of the dinner.'"

Maybe in commemoration of May Day, Nicholas Confessore of the New York Times is taking a three-part deep dive into white nationalist Tucker Carlson: "... Mr. Carlson has constructed what may be the most racist show in the history of cable news -- and also, by some measures, the most successful.... Night after night, hour by hour, Mr. Carlson warns his viewers that they inhabit a civilization under siege -- by violent Black Lives Matter protesters in American cities, by diseased migrants from south of the border, by refugees importing alien cultures, and by tech companies and cultural elites who will silence them, or label them racist, if they complain.... His encyclopedia of provocations has only expanded. Since the 2020 presidential election, Mr. Carlson has become the most visible and voluble defender of those who violently stormed the U.S. Capitol to keep Donald J. Trump in office, playing down the presence of white nationalists in the crowd and claiming the attack 'barely rates as a footnote.' In February, as Western pundits and politicians lined up to condemn the Russian president, Vladimir V. Putin, for his impending invasion of Ukraine, Mr. Carlson invited his viewers to shift focus back to the true enemy at home." Part 1 is here; Part 2 is here; and Part 3, which is mostly audio clips with some context provided, is here. According to the Times, "This series is part of an ongoing examination by The Times of challenges to democratic norms in the United States and around the world."

Kyle Cheney of Politico: "Attorney John Eastman, a key architect of ... Donald Trump's legal effort to overturn the 2020 election, is preparing to provide another 10,000 pages of records to the Jan. 6 select committee, his attorney revealed late Friday.... Eastman had claimed attorney-client privilege over 37,000 pages of post-election emails related to his work for Trump. But under pressure from U.S. District Court Judge David Carter -- who ruled in March that Eastman and Trump likely entered into a criminal conspiracy to overturn the election -- Eastman withdrew privilege claims for nearly a third of that total. In Friday's court filing, Eastman's lawyers indicated that the select committee now wants more time to consider how to handle the remaining 27,000 pages of records that remain in dispute."

Emily Davies & Peter Hermann of the Washington Post: "Now, as the government investigates whether ... [two men -- Arian Taherzadeh and Haider Ali -- who posed as federal agents,] may have bribed members of the Secret Service who lived in the building and threatened national security, questions still remain over the motive behind the alleged ruse." MB: This is another of those "Franco is still dead" stories that Patrick pointed out last week, but it gathers & expands on some details of the men's activities.

** Connecticut, a Pro-Woman State. Sarah Nir & Kate Zernike of the New York Times: "Connecticut lawmakers approved a bill late Friday night that takes direct aim at states that have passed aggressive anti-abortion laws as the country prepares for a Supreme Court ruling this summer that could weaken or overturn the constitutional right to abortion enshrined in Roe v. Wade. The Connecticut bill, which Gov. Ned Lamont, a Democrat, has said he intends to sign, would expand the field of people who can perform certain types of abortions beyond doctors, to include nurse-midwives, physician assistants and other medical professionals. And in what lawmakers said could be a model for other states seeking to safeguard abortion rights, the law would also shield abortion providers and patients from lawsuits initiated by states that have banned or plan to ban abortion, even outside their own borders."

Timothy Bella & Julian Duplain of the Washington Post: "Ukrainian officials say Russian forces have seized more than 2,000 pieces of artwork from the besieged port city of Mariupol. They have been taken to Russian-occupied Donetsk, local channel TV7 reported. The Mariupol City Council wrote in a Telegram message Thursday that Russian forces have raided the three local museums, including the Kuindzhi Art Museum, since the start of the invasion."

~~~~~~~~~~

The New York Times' live updates of developments Saturday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "Russia's offensive in eastern Ukraine appears to be faltering, as its troops suffer battlefield losses and logistical and morale problems similar to those they faced in the war's first phase, Western officials and analysts say. As Russian efforts to encircle Ukrainian troops in the east by attacking from three sides seemed to stall in recent days, Ukrainians managed to retake a small town near the northern city of Kharkiv.... Yet Russian forces continued to rain destruction on civilians trapped in Mariupol, some of whom were sheltering at the Azovstal steel plant.... Russian troops occupying Mariupol have plundered more than 2,000 items from its museums and taken them to the city of Donetsk, the capital of an eastern region controlled by Moscow-backed separatists, according to the Mariupol City Council.... Family members of a United States citizen confirmed on Friday that he had died fighting alongside Ukrainians. He is believed to be the first American killed in action in the war. Britain's Foreign Office also confirmed the death of a British national, said to be a former soldier who had been fighting as a volunteer." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Saturday are here: Russia's "slow advance gives little sign that the conflict will end soon. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said there was a 'high' chance of negotiations breaking down because of 'Moscow's playbook on murdering people.'" ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Saturday are here. The Guardian's "full report" is here.

Peter Baker of the New York Times: "President Biden wants Congress to expedite visas for Russian scientists eager to leave their country in the midst of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, an effort to accelerate a brain drain already underway and further deprive President Vladimir V. Putin of some of Russia's top talent. An administration proposal sent to Capitol Hill as part of a larger package requesting $33 billion in spending on the war would suspend for four years the requirement that scientists applying for H1-B visas have a sponsoring employer, eliminating one of the biggest obstacles for many seeking to come to the United States. The measure would apply only to Russian citizens with master's or doctoral degrees in science or engineering fields like artificial intelligence, nuclear engineering or quantum physics. Administration officials argued that such a move would have dual advantages -- costing Russia while benefiting America."

Ian Duncan of the Washington Post: "President Biden met with internal federal agency watchdogs Friday, enlisting inspectors general to guard against waste and fraud as the government spends money from the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package. Biden told the group that a close eye on the money is needed to ensure infrastructure spending goes where it is needed most, rather than invested in projects that would boost the political fortunes of local leaders. 'Strong oversight is, you know, how we're going to deliver for the American people on time and on budget, and making sure the investments get to where they're supposed to go,' he said. The accountability push comes as the federal government ramps up to spend hundreds of billions of dollars in coming years on roads, bridges, broadband, transit networks and water pipes. The White House budget office released a memo Friday to agencies to guide their spending, urging them to prioritize transparency. At the same time, officials said they are seeking to hire 6,000 workers this year to oversee the implementation of the package, with another 2,000 positions to be filled in coming years." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: It often strikes me as odd that Biden fares so poorly on popularity polls, because -- as much as I love Obama -- Biden is the best U.S. president of the 21st century.

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "The Department of Homeland Security's creation of a Disinformation Governance Board has set off a backlash on the right-- even as it's not entirely clear what the perhaps unfortunately named board will do. Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas mentioned the creation of the board in multiple congressional hearings this week.... Amid growing anti-censorship fervor on the right, a bevy of Republicans have suggested that the initiative amounts to policing speech. Elon Musk declared it 'messed up.' Many on the right likened it to the 'Ministry of Truth' from George Orwell's book '1984.'... 'Rather than police our border, Homeland Security has decided to make policing Americans' speech its top priority,' Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) claimed.... Despite Republicans' expressed concern, they didn't press Mayorkas in much detail at hearings Wednesday and Thursday. And the DHS does have a history of tackling disinformation, including during the Trump administration." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Clearly, in the wrong hands (say, a Trumpbot's), such a board could become Orwellian. Nevertheless, right now, it looks more like a hilarious way to "own the wingers."

Jonathan Weisman & Annie Karni of the New York Times: "Besieged by multiplying scandals and salacious accusations, Representative Madison Cawthorn, Republican of North Carolina, is under mounting pressure from both parties to end his short career in Congress. In rapid succession, Mr. Cawthorn, who entered Congress as a rising star of the party's far right, has been accused of falsely suggesting that his Republican colleagues routinely throw cocaine-fueled orgies, insider trading and an inappropriate relationship with a male aide. This week, he was detained at an airport, where police said he tried to bring a loaded handgun onto an airplane, the second time he has attempted that." ~~~

~~~ Dana Milbank of the Washington Post: "It has belatedly occurred to fellow Republicans that [Rep.] Madison Cawthorn [R-N.C.] might be a liability.... But Cawthorn is a monster of Republicans' own creation. His character flaws were fully displayed when he first ran for Congress in 2020: nods to white supremacists, extravagant lies, accusations of sexually predatory behavior, overt racism and a long list of driving offenses. Craven Republican leaders knew all that -- and embraced him unreservedly. Ousting Cawthorn ... won't cure this Republican illness; the North Carolina congressman is just a symptom. More than 50 QAnon believers have run for Congress as Republicans in 2022, the liberal watchdog Media Matters reports. Several who participated in the events of Jan. 6, 2021, have run for Congress.... Cawthorn and the many rising oddballs and extremists are the inevitable result of Republican leaders' choices: drawing increasingly uncompetitive districts, blessing unlimited dark money, exercising timid leadership, embracing disinformation, flirting with white nationalism, stoking conspiracies and undermining elections." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "A second member of the extremist group Oath Keepers pleaded guilty Friday to seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and will cooperate with federal prosecutors to avoid a possible multiyear prison term. Brian Ulrich, 44, of Guyton, Ga., was arrested in August on charges of joining a group of right-wing Oath Keepers members who planned and organized travel to Washington, stashed firearms in an Arlington hotel, then sent several individuals with tactical gear, helmets and radios into the Capitol.... Ulrich pleaded guilty to two of five felony counts, seditious conspiracy and obstructing an official proceeding (Congress's certification of the 2020 election results on Jan. 6).... Prosecutors agreed in a plea deal to drop the three other counts -- conspiring to prevent an officer from discharging his or her duties, aiding and abetting, and evidence tampering." Politico's report is here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Ben Protess, et al., of the New York Times: "... in the weeks since the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg, stopped presenting evidence to [grand] jurors about [Donald] Trump, new signs have emerged that the former president will not be indicted in Manhattan in the foreseeable future -- if at all. At least three of the witnesses once central to the case have either not heard from the district attorney's office in months, or have not been asked to testify, according to people with knowledge of the matter. In recent weeks, a prosecutor at the Manhattan district attorney's office who played a key role in the investigation has stopped focusing on a potential case against Mr. Trump, other people with knowledge of the inquiry said -- a move that followed the resignation earlier this year of the two senior prosecutors leading the investigation. And the remaining prosecutors working on the Trump investigation have abandoned the 'war room' they used to prepare for their grand jury presentation early this year...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Michael Sisak of the AP: "Donald Trump's lawyers, seeking to reverse their client's $10,000-per-day contempt fine, provided a New York judge Friday with an affidavit in which the former president claims he didn't turn over subpoenaed documents to the state attorney general's office because he doesn't have them. The judge, though, was unmoved and refused to lift sanctions he imposed on Trump on Monday. Judge Arthur Engoron criticized the lack of detail in Trump affidavit, which amounted to two paragraphs, saying that he should have explained the methods he uses to stores his records and efforts he made to locate the subpoenaed files.... Frank Runyeon, a reporter for the legal publication Law360, said that Engoron held an impromptu hearing Friday, without a court stenographer, in which he addressed the affidavits from Trump and his lawyers and ruled to keep the contempt fine in place." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Fox's Sean Hannity exchanged more than 80 text messages between Election Day 2020 and Joe Biden's January 2021 inauguration, communications that show Hannity's evolution from staunch supporter of ... Donald Trump's election lies to being 'fed up' with the 'lunatics' hurting Trump's cause in the days before January 6.... Initially after the November 2020 election, Hannity appeared to be all in with Trump's false election claims. On November 29, he texted Meadows saying he had his team trying to prove election fraud: 'I've had my team digging into the numbers. There is no way Biden got these numbers. Just mathematically impossible...." But several weeks later, as Trump's team lost court challenges and the wild claims from attorneys Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell failed to materialize into anything more than false conspiracy theories, Hannity's tone shifted.... By New Year's Eve, Hannity ... appeared to accept the fact that the election was over...." The Hannity/Meadows texts are here, via CNN. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Trump's Border Wall Is a Death Trap. Nick Miroff of the Washington Post: "Since 2019, when the [border wall's] height was raised to 30 feet along much of the border in California, the number of patients arriving at the UC San Diego Medical Center's trauma ward after falling off the structure has jumped fivefold, to 375, the physicians [at UC-San Diego] found. Falling deaths at the barrier went from zero to 16 during that time, according to the report, citing records maintained by the San Diego county medical examiner. The falling incidents are a subset of the soaring number of injuries, deaths and rescues occurring all across the southern border, where immigration arrests have reached an all-time high under President Biden. Migrants attempting to evade capture have drowned in the Rio Grande, died of exposure in South Texas and Arizona, and disappeared into the Pacific Ocean during smuggling attempts at sea."

Annals of Journalism, Ctd. Max Tani in Politico Magazine: It's not easy for White House reporters to be journalistic stars now that Joe Biden is president. "Biden ... has been a journalistic sedative.... Attention isn't his brand, the way it is with Trump, and his staff exerts far more control over his time and his media interactions, alongside their efforts to eliminate traces of palace intrigue from political coverage. The president does few interviews and his communications team has an informal policy of not engaging in gossip stories ... and chide reporters who they don't think focus enough on policy. Press secretary Jen Psaki rarely expresses emotion from the podium, where she speaks slowly and avoids lengthy confrontations with reporters.... 'Jen ... is very good at her job, which is unfortunate,' one reporter who has covered the past two administrations from the room said. 'And the work is a lot less rewarding, because you're no longer saving democracy from Sean Spicer and his Men's Wearhouse suit. Jawing with Jen just makes you look like an asshole.'" (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Beyond the Beltway

Idaho. Rebecca Boone of the AP: "A former Idaho lawmaker was convicted Friday of raping a 19-year-old legislative intern after a dramatic trial in which the young woman fled the witness stand during testimony, saying 'I can't do this.' The intern told a Statehouse supervisor that Aaron von Ehlinger raped her at his apartment after the two had dinner at a Boise restaurant in March 2021. Von Ehlinger said the sex was consensual. At the time, the Lewiston Republican was serving as a state representative, but he later resigned. Von Ehlinger, 39, was found guilty Friday of rape. He was found not guilty of sexual penetration with a foreign object."

Texas. David Goodman & Edgar Sandoval of the New York Times: Gov. Greg Abbott's (R) "aggressive posture has done little to stem the tide [of immigrants entering Texas] and also exposed him to fierce criticism that he is using his authority to meddle in a policy area that belongs to the federal government.... Now Mr. Abbott is weighing whether to invoke actual war powers to seize much broader state authority on the border. He could do so, advocates inside and outside his administration argue, by officially declaring an 'invasion' to comply with a clause in the U.S. Constitution that says states cannot engage in war except when 'actually invaded.' Top lawyers for Mr. Abbott and for the Texas attorney general, Ken Paxton, met this month to debate the move, which would put the state in a head-on collision with the federal government by allowing state police to arrest and deport migrants...."

April 29, 2022

Afternoon Update:

Aaron Blake of the Washington Post: "The Department of Homeland Security's creation of a Disinformation Governance Board has set off a backlash on the right -- even as it's not entirely clear what the perhaps unfortunately named board will do. Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas mentioned the creation of the board in multiple congressional hearings this week.... Amid growing anti-censorship fervor on the right, a bevy of Republicans have suggested that the initiative amounts to policing speech. Elon Musk declared it 'messed up.' Many on the right likened it to the 'Ministry of Truth' from George Orwell's book '1984.'... 'Rather than police our border, Homeland Security has decided to make policing Americans' speech its top priority,' Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) claimed.... Despite Republicans' expressed concern, they didn't press Mayorkas i much detail at hearings Wednesday and Thursday. And the DHS does have a history of tackling disinformation, including during the Trump administration." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Clearly, in the wrong hands (say, a Trumpbot's), such a board could become Orwellian. Nevertheless, right now, it looks more like a hilarious way to "own the wingers."

Dana Milbank of the Washington Post: "It has belatedly occurred to fellow Republicans that [Rep.] Madison Cawthorn [R-N.C.] might be a liability.... But Cawthorn is a monster of Republicans’ own creation. His character flaws were fully displayed when he first ran for Congress in 2020: nods to white supremacists, extravagant lies, accusations of sexually predatory behavior, overt racism and a long list of driving offenses. Craven Republican leaders knew all that -- and embraced him unreservedly. Ousting Cawthorn ... won't cure this Republican illness; the North Carolina congressman is just a symptom. More than 50 QAnon believers have run for Congress as Republicans in 2022, the liberal watchdog Media Matters reports. Several who participated in the events of Jan. 6, 2021, have run for Congress.... Cawthorn and the many rising oddballs and extremists are the inevitable result of Republican leaders' choices: drawing increasingly uncompetitive districts, blessing unlimited dark money, exercising timid leadership, embracing disinformation, flirting with white nationalism, stoking conspiracies and undermining elections."

Spencer Hsu of the Washington Post: "A second member of the extremist group Oath Keepers pleaded guilty Friday to seditious conspiracy in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and will cooperate with federal prosecutors to avoid a possible multiyear prison term. Brian Ulrich, 44, of Guyton, Ga., was arrested in August on charges of joining a group of right-wing Oath Keepers members who planned and organized travel to Washington, stashed firearms in an Arlington hotel, then sent several individuals with tactical gear, helmets and radios into the Capitol.... Ulrich pleaded guilty to two of five felony counts, seditious conspiracy and obstructing an official proceeding (Congress's certification of the 2020 election results on Jan. 6).... Prosecutors agreed in a plea deal to drop the three other counts -- conspiring to prevent an officer from discharging his or her duties, aiding and abetting, and evidence tampering." Politico's report is here.

Ben Protess, et al., of the New York Times: "... in the weeks since the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin L. Bragg, stopped presenting evidence to [grand] jurors about [Donald] Trump, new signs have emerged that the former president will not be indicted in Manhattan in the foreseeable future -- if at all. At least three of the witnesses once central to the case have either not heard from the district attorney's office in months, or have not been asked to testify, according to people with knowledge of the matter. In recent weeks, a prosecutor at the Manhattan district attorney's office who played a key role in the investigation has stopped focusing on a potential case against Mr. Trump, other people with knowledge of the inquiry said -- a move that followed the resignation earlier this year of the two senior prosecutors leading the investigation. And the remaining prosecutors working on the Trump investigation have abandoned the 'war room' they used to prepare for their grand jury presentation early this year...."

Michael Sisak of the AP: "Donald Trump's lawyers, seeking to reverse their client's $10,000-per-day contempt fine, provided a New York judge Friday with an affidavit in which the former president claims he didn't turn over subpoenaed documents to the state attorney general's office because he doesn't have them. The judge, though, was unmoved and refused to lift sanctions he imposed on Trump on Monday. Judge Arthur Engoron criticized the lack of detail in Trump affidavit, which amounted to two paragraphs, saying that he should have explained the methods he uses to stores his records and efforts he made to locate the subpoenaed files.... Frank Runyeon, a reporter for the legal publication Law360, said that Engoron held an impromptu hearing Friday, without a court stenographer, in which he addressed the affidavits from Trump and his lawyers and ruled to keep the contempt fine in place."

Jamie Gangel, et al., of CNN: "Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and Fox's Sean Hannity exchanged more than 80 text messages between Election Day 2020 and Joe Biden's January 2021 inauguration, communications that show Hannity's evolution from staunch supporter of ... Donald Trump's election lies to being 'fed up' with the 'lunatics' hurting Trump's cause in the days before January 6.... Initially after the November 2020 election, Hannity appeared to be all in with Trump's false election claims. On November 29, he texted Meadows saying he had his team trying to prove election fraud: 'I've had my team digging into the numbers. There is no way Biden got these numbers. Just mathematically impossible...." But several weeks later, as Trump's team lost court challenges and the wild claims from attorneys Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell failed to materialize into anything more than false conspiracy theories, Hannity's tone shifted.... By New Year's Eve, Hannity ... appeared to accept the fact that the election was over...." The Hannity/Meadows texts are here, via CNN.

Annals of Journalism, Ctd. Max Tani in Politico Magazine: It's not easy for White House reporters to be journalistic stars now that Joe Biden is president. "Biden ... has been a journalistic sedative.... Attention isn't his brand, the way it is with Trump, and his staff exerts far more control over his time and his media interactions, alongside their efforts to eliminate traces of palace intrigue from political coverage. The president does few interviews and his communications team has an informal policy of not engaging in gossip stories ... and chide reporters who they don't think focus enough on policy. Press secretary Jen Psaki rarely expresses emotion from the podium, where she speaks slowly and avoids lengthy confrontations with reporters.... 'Jen ... is very good at her job, which is unfortunate,' one reporter who has covered the past two administrations from the room said. 'And the work is a lot less rewarding, because you're no longer saving democracy from Sean Spicer and his Men's Wearhouse suit. Jawing with Jen just makes you look like an asshole.'"

~~~~~~~~~~

How to Blow Up Peace Talks. Well, blow them up. With missiles. ~~~

~~~ The New York Times' live updates of developments Friday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "Five Russian missiles flew into Kyiv on Thursday just after talks ended there between President Volodymyr Zelensky and the United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, Mr. Zelensky said in his nightly address.... Russian forces have continued to strike the Azovstal complex, where Mariupol's last defenders and an unknown number of civilians remain. In the latest attack, Russian bombs landed in a field hospital there, killing or further injuring dozens of wounded soldiers, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.... The British military is expanding its participation in a British-led multinational deployment to Europe to deter further Russian aggression by sending 8,000 troops, British officials said." ~~~

     ~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Friday are here: "... senior U.S. officials are laying the groundwork for a different global security order. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told U.S. lawmakers the world had changed dramatically and declared support for Finland and Sweden joining NATO.... In the battle for eastern Ukraine, Russian forces are making 'slow and uneven' progress and moving forward at a pace of just several kilometers a day, hampered by logistical challenges, according to the Pentagon." ~~~

     ~~~ The Guardian's live updates for Friday are here. The Guardian's summary of developments is here.

Alan Fram, et al., of the AP: "President Joe Biden asked Congress on Thursday for an additional $33 billion to help Ukraine fend off Russia's invasion, a signal that the U.S. is prepared to mount a robust, long-term campaign to bolster Kyiv and weaken Moscow as the bloody war enters its third month with no sign of abating. Biden's latest proposal -- which the White House said was expected to support Ukraine's needs for five months -- has more than $20 billion in military assistance for Kyiv and for shoring up defenses in nearby countries. There is also $8.5 billion in economic aid to help keep Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's government functioning and $3 billion for food and humanitarian programs around the world." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Bryan Pietsch, et al., of the Washington Post: "The White House on Thursday announced a proposal to allow U.S. authorities to liquidate the assets of Russian oligarchs and donate the proceeds to Ukraine, seeking what appears to be broad new legal powers to expand America's financial war on the Kremlin amid bipartisan pressure in Congress.... The White House has not revealed the legislative text behind its Russian oligarchs proposal but said the proposal 'would improve' the federal government's ability to send seized funds to Ukraine. Under current law, the United States can typically only freeze -- not seize or liquidate -- the assets of sanctioned individuals. Civil liberties groups had raised concerns that prior congressional proposals to do so ran afoul of constitutional protections by allowing federal law enforcement to circumvent judicial procedure. It was not immediately clear how the White House would seek to change existing statute without violating those protections." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Catie Edmondson of the New York Times: "The House on Thursday overwhelmingly passed legislation that would allow President Biden to use a World War II-era law to quickly supply weapons to Ukraine on loan, sending the measure to Mr. Biden's desk hours after he urged Congress to approve tens of billions of dollars' worth of additional emergency aid for Kyiv. The 417-to-10 vote to invoke an extraordinary, eight-decade-old law created to battle Hitler reflected a growing bipartisan sense of urgency in Congress to bolster the Ukrainian military as it digs in for an ugly and protracted artillery war in the south and east of the country. The Senate passed the legislation unanimously this month."

Amy Cheng of the Washington Post: "Prosecutors filed their first war crimes charges Thursday against 10 Russian service members accused of torturing and taking civilians hostage on the outskirts of the capital. The Russians are not in custody, and the charges were filed in absentia to Ukrainian courts.... Zelensky said Thursday that the Russian servicemen were part of the 64th Guard Motorized Brigade, which ... Vladimir Putin recently honored in a presidential decree.... It is highly unlikely that the Russian troops will ever stand trial in Ukraine, but it is still useful for Kyiv to continue legal proceedings, said Steven Freeland, an international law expert at Western Sydney University."

Paul Sonne & Mary Ilyushina of the Washington Post: "The U.S. government has assessed that Russian intelligence was behind an attack earlier this month on a Nobel Prize winner and prominent Russian editor who had criticized the Kremlin's war against Ukraine. Dmitry Muratov, the editor of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, was about to travel on a train from Moscow to Samara, Russia, on April 7 when an assailant attacked him with a mixture of red paint and acetone, leaving his eyes with a chemical burn. The assailant yelled, 'Muratov, here's one for our boys' -- a reference to Russian forces fighting in Ukraine."

Justin McCurry of the Guardian: "The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has described how Russian forces came close to capturing or assassinating him in the early hours of the invasion [in an interview with Time magazine reporter Simon Shuster.]... The Ukrainian military told Zelenskiy that Russian strike teams had parachuted into Kyiv to kill or capture him and his family.... Gunfights broke out around the government quarter as night fell on the first day of the war, Shuster wrote. 'Guards inside the compound shut the lights and brought bulletproof vests and assault rifles for Zelenskiy and about a dozen of his aides.'... Russian troops made two attempts to storm the compound while Zelenskiy's family were still inside, according to Shuster."

Zolan Kanno-Youngs & Stacy Cowley of the New York Times: "President Biden said on Thursday that he is considering wiping out some student loan debt and will make a final decision 'in the coming weeks.'... During the campaign in 2020, he said he would 'make sure that everybody in this generation gets $10,000 knocked off of their student debt.'... The president made clear that his decision would disappoint at least some progressive Democrats and advocates who ... want him to wipe out $50,000 or more per borrower."

Christina Jewitt of the New York Times: "The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday announced a plan to ban sales of menthol-flavored cigarettes in the United States, a measure many public health experts hailed as the government's most meaningful action in more than a decade of tobacco control efforts. The ban would most likely have the deepest impact on Black smokers, nearly 85 percent of whom use menthol cigarettes, compared with 29 percent of white smokers, according to a government survey.... Menthol cigarettes make up about one third of the $80 billion U.S. cigarette market, and about 18.5 million Americans smoke them."

Jacob Bogage of the Washington Post: "Sixteen states, the District of Columbia and environmental activist groups are suing the U.S. Postal Service to block its purchase of 148,000 gas-guzzling delivery trucks over the next decade, alleging the agency has vastly underestimated the vehicles' costs and adverse ecological impact. The suits brought on by the state attorneys general, Earthjustice and the Natural Resources Defense Council contend the mail service relied on faulty assumptions and miscalculations to justify spending as much as $11.3 billion on gas-powered vehicles that get 8.6 mpg...." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "Dividing 6 to 3 along ideological lines, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that victims of discrimination that is forbidden by four federal statutes may not sue if the only harm was emotional distress."

Hugo Lowell of the Guardian: "The House select committee investigating the January 6 attack on the Capitol is expected to issue letters requesting voluntary cooperation from House minority leader Kevin McCarthy and around a dozen other Republican members of Congress, according to two sources familiar with the matter. The panel intends to issue a letter to McCarthy -- the top House Republican -- and is considering further letters to Scott Perry, Jim Jordan, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Mo Brooks, Lauren Boebert, Andy Biggs, as well as some Republican senators, the sources said.... The scope and subjects of the letters are not yet finalized, and the sources cautioned that the members of Congress approached for cooperation may still change. On Thursday, [committee Chairman Bennie] Thompson said only that he would send letters to McCarthy and other Republicans."

Alexandra Ulman & Nathan Layne of Reuters: There have been "eight known attempts to gain unauthorized access to voting systems in five U.S. states since the 2020 election. All involved local Republican officeholders or party activists who have advanced Trump's stolen-election falsehoods or conspiracy theories about rigged voting machines, according to a Reuters examination of the incidents.... [For example,] in southern Michigan, a pro-Trump clerk who has expressed support for the QAnon conspiracy theory on social media defied state orders to perform maintenance on a voting machine on the unfounded belief that doing so could erase proof of alleged fraud. In another Michigan case, a Republican activist impersonated an official from a made-up government agency in a plot to seize voting equipment. Some of the people and groups involved in the vigilante election-investigator movement are drawing financial support from [Mike] Lindell, the My Pillow Inc chief executive and one of the most visible backers of Trump's false fraud claims." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: My guess is that in 2024, some of this voting-machine tampering will be "authorized" by the new pro-Trump QAnon-type elections officials who are now running to take over local & state elections offices.

Yet Another Reason to Be Askeert of "Illegals." Jazmine Ulloa of the New York Times: The border "between Mexico and the United States has once again become a fixation of the Republican Party.... Republican leaders and candidates are increasingly claiming without basis that unauthorized immigrants are gaining access to the ballot box. Voter fraud is exceptionally rare, and allegations that widespread numbers of undocumented immigrants are voting have been repeatedly discredited. Yet that fabricated message -- capitalizing on a concocted threat to advance Mr. Trump's broader lie of stolen elections -- is now finding receptive audiences in more than a dozen states across the country, including several far from the U.S.-Mexico border.... In Ohio..., Mr. Trump whipped up fears of 'open borders and horrible elections' at a rally on Saturday, calling for stricter voter ID laws and proof of citizenship at the ballot box.... In Macomb County, Mich..., many voters at the county G.O.P. convention this month said they feared that immigrants were entering the country illegally ... to ... [cast] fraudulent ballots for Democrats."

The following is an ill-advised link, for a number of reasons: ~~~

~~~ Laura Collins of the Daily Mail: "New video of scandal-ridden GOP Rep Madison Cawthorn having his crotch felt by a close male friend and staff member is at the center of a complaint calling for an investigation into him and filed with the Office of Congressional Ethics today.... The extraordinary footage ... shows Cawthorn, 26, in a car with his close aide and his scheduler Stephen Smith, 23. Cawthorn sits in the driver's seat apparently filmed by Smith as he adopts an exaggerated accent and says, 'I feel the passion and desire and would like to see a naked body beneath my hands.' The camera then pans back to Smith who says, 'Me too' as Cawthorn can be heard laughing. Smith then films himself reaching his hand over and into Cawthorn's crotch. The video is one of several exhibits filed in support of the ethics complaint drafted by political group Fire Madison Cawthorn.... Among the many allegations is the claim that representative for North Carolina's 11th district provided thousands of dollars in loans and gifts to Smith...."

"Ask Me Nicely." Reid Wilson of the Hill: "In the aftermath of devastating storms that knocked out power to tens of thousands of people in Connecticut in August 2020, Gov. Ned Lamont (D) called the White House seeking federal help. Hours later, then-President Trump called back. 'There's something you want to ask me about FEMA?' Trump said, according to Lamont's recollection. 'Well, ask me nicely.' The anecdote, reported by the New York Times journalists Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns in their forthcoming book, 'This Will Not Pass,' is just one of a series of Trump's interactions with governors that struck many state executives as blatant departures from the norms of cooperative governing. The book, obtained by The Hill prior to its release on Tuesday, depicts Trump as a mafia don, demanding loyalty from supplicants and political opponents alike...." Read on.

Trump fans are (a) Sadists; (b) Masochists; (c) Sadomasochists; (d) All of the above; (e) None of the above. Only one answer is wrong.

Devlin Barrett of the Washington Post: "Paul Manafort, the former Donald Trump campaign chairman who was convicted of financial crimes then pardoned by his old boss, was sued Thursday by the Justice Department, which is seeking $3 million over undeclared foreign bank accounts.... The lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court in West Palm Beach, Fla., seeks a court order forcing Manafort to pay millions of dollars in fines and interest 'for his willful failure to timely report his financial interest in foreign bank accounts' -- specifically, for failing to report his foreign accounts in 2013 and 2014.... Manafort's lawyer, Jeff Neiman, said in a statement that his client has been trying for months to resolve the reporting issue, which he dismissed as 'simply failing to file a tax form.'" Politico's report is here.

Jay Peters of the Verge: "As part of his pitch to raise funds to acquire Twitter, Elon Musk apparently 'floated' the idea of cutting jobs at Twitter to improve its bottom line, according to a Bloomberg report. 'While nothing is set in stone -- and Musk himself had no access to Twitter's non-public financials at the time -- he specifically mentioned job cuts' during discussions with banks, the report says. The Washington Post reported that Musk discussed making 'efficiencies' at the company in the conversations with bankers, 'which could include job cuts.'"

Beyond the Beltway

California. Don Thompson of the AP: "California's attorney general on Thursday subpoenaed ExxonMobil as part of what he called a first-of-its-kind broader investigation into the petroleum industry for its alleged role in causing a global plastic pollution crisis, allegations that the company called meritless. Attorney General Rob Bonta said the industry for decades has encouraged the development and use of petroleum-based plastic products while seeking to minimize public understanding that their widespread use harms the environment and public health."

California. "Steps toward Autocracy." Elahe Izadi & Paul Farhi of the Washington Post: Los Angeles County"Sheriff Alex Villanueva called a news conference to forcefully deny the allegations [published in the Los Angeles Times] -- and to take aim at [LA Times reporter Alene] Tchekmedyian. Standing in front of a placard with photos of the reporter, a political rival and the county's inspector general, Villanueva announced the three were part of a criminal leak investigation.... Villanueva's effort to publicly implicate a reporter for doing her job -- an attempt to intimidate her, some argued -- reflects a brazen trend of officials using government power to punish or push back on journalists for articles they don't like.... 'It is another form of degrading trust in our institutions,' said Tom Rosenstiel, a University of Maryland journalism professor.... 'These are steps toward autocracy.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What with Villanueva's making his remarks at a news conference, reporters recorded his dog & pony show. The fact that he was caught on tape, as it were, apparently made no difference. According to Rachel Maddow, Vinnanueva denied he said what he said anyway. They don't care.

Michigan. Nick Corasaniti & Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "... The state party chose two candidates endorsed by [Donald Trump], both outspoken preachers of 2020 election falsehoods, as its contenders for the state's top law enforcement officer and its chief of election administration. But ... that move at a convention last weekend ... has ruptured the Michigan Republican Party.... This week, Tony Daunt, a powerful figure in Michigan politics with close ties to the influential donor network of the DeVos family, resigned from the G.O.P.'s state committee in a blistering letter, calling Mr. Trump 'a deranged narcissist.' Major donors to the state party indicated that they would direct their money elsewhere. And one of Mr. Trump's most loyal defenders in the State Legislature was kicked out of the House Republican caucus."

Michigan. Lindsey Bever of the Washington Post: Terance Calhoun was arrested in Detroit Nov. 3, 2006, on the suspicion of attempted rape in [one] case and rape in another. He did not match the description of the perp and his DNA did not match DNA collected at one scene. He pleaded no contest to lesser charges, and went to jail. In 2019 Wayne County investigators finally evaluated the DNA the evidence & exonerated Calhoun. He was released from jail April 27, 2021, after 15 years of incarceration.

North Carolina. War on Education, Ctd. Stephanie Saul of the Washington Post: "A prestigious national academic group charged on Thursday that North Carolina's legislature had politically interfered with the operations of the University of North Carolina for more than a decade, creating a hostile academic and racial climate at its campuses, including the flagship in Chapel Hill. A report by the American Association of University Professors details how Republican lawmakers, after taking over the General Assembly in 2010, wrested control of the university system's Board of Governors as well as the trustees of its 17 individual campuses, influencing chancellor appointments and closing academic centers dedicated to fighting poverty, pollution and social injustice. The report concludes that racism is institutionalized in the system."

Oklahoma. War on Women, Ctd. Caroline Kitchener of the Washington Post: "The Oklahoma House approved a Republican bill on Thursday that would ban abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. The law would take effect immediately, cutting off access for patients from Texas who have flooded into Oklahoma since a similar law passed there last fall.... Oklahoma's bill is modeled after the restrictive Texas ban, which has evaded court intervention with a novel legal strategy that empowers private citizens to enforce the law. The bill, which includes exceptions in medical emergencies but not rape or incest, cleared the Oklahoma Senate in March. It now goes to Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), who is expected to sign it, and it will take effect with his signature." (Also linked yesterday.)