The Commentariat -- February 8, 2021

Afternoon Update:

New York Times: "Donald J. Trump's lawyers on Monday denounced the impeachment case against him as partisan 'political theater,' arguing on the eve of the Senate's trial that he bore no responsibility for the deadly assault on the Capitol and that trying a former president at all was unconstitutional. In a 78-page brief submitted to the Senate, the lawyers asserted that Mr. Trump's speech just before the attack 'did not direct anyone to commit unlawful actions,' and that he deserved no blame for the conduct of a 'small group of criminals' who rioted at the Capitol on Jan 6. after he had urged them to 'fight like hell' against his election loss. They also insisted that the Senate 'lacks jurisdiction' to try him at all because he was now a private citizen, calling such an effort 'patently ridiculous.'" The item is part of the Times' impeachment live blog Monday. Politico's story is here and also includes a link to the brief by Trump's lawyers.

Karen Heller of the Washington Post profiles Bruce Castor, one of Trump's top impeachment attorneys and "a magnet for controversy."

Paulina Firozi & Dave Wiegel of the Washington Post: "Rep. Ron Wright (R-Tex.), who had received cancer treatment for years, died Sunday after being hospitalized with covid-19. He was 67.... Wright had announced on Jan. 21 that he tested positive for the coronavirus 'after coming in contact with an individual with the virus last week.' He is the first sitting member of Congress to die after battling covid-19." CNN's story is here.

Erica Werner of the Washington Post: "Sen. Richard C. Shelby (R-Ala.), a fixture of the Senate who chaired the powerful Appropriations Committee, announced Monday that he will retire when his term ends in 2022. Shelby, 86, was first elected to the House in 1978 as a Democrat and won election to the Senate in 1986. He switched parties to become a Republican in 1994. Shelby has been a master of steering projects to his home state and also adept at cutting deals with Democrats. He becomes the fourth Senate Republican to announce his retirement in 2022, and the race to replace him will become another test for the direction of the GOP in the post-Trump era." The New York Times' story is here. The Week has an item here.

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Marie: Never thought I'd get to use this graphic again: ~~~

Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "When the House impeachment managers prosecute ... Donald J. Trump this week for inciting the Capitol attack, they plan to mount a fast-paced and cinematic case aimed at rekindling the outrage lawmakers experienced themselves on Jan. 6, in arguments delivered from the scene of the invasion. Armed with lessons from the first impeachment trial of Mr. Trump, when even Democratic senators complained the arguments were repetitive and sometimes sanctimonious, the prosecutors managing his second are prepared to complete the proceeding in as little as a week, forgo distracting fights over witnesses and rely more heavily on video, according to a half-dozen people working on the case."

Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: "One of Washington's leading conservative constitutional lawyers publicly broke on Sunday with the main Republican argument against convicting ... Donald J. Trump in his impeachment trial, asserting that an ex-president can indeed be tried for high crimes and misdemeanors. In an opinion piece posted on The Wall Street Journal's website, the lawyer, Charles J. Cooper, who is closely allied with top Republicans in Congress, dismissed as illogical the claim that it is unconstitutional to hold an impeachment trial for a former president. The piece came two days before the Senate was set to start the proceeding.... Since the [January 6] rampage, Republicans have made little effort to excuse Mr. Trump's conduct, but have coalesced behind the legal argument about constitutionality as their rationale for why he should not be tried, much less convicted. Their theory is that because the Constitution's penalty for an impeachment conviction is removal from office, it was never intended to apply to a former president, who is no longer in office. Many legal scholars disagree, and the Senate has previously held an impeachment trial of a former official -- though never a former president."

Trump Made Me Do It. Rosalind Helderman, et al., of the Washington Post: "The nine House impeachment managers leading Trump's prosecution made clear in an 80-page brief filed last week that they will argue that his role in inspiring the crowd to action began long before the 70-minute speech he gave that day. They assert that the violence was virtually inevitable after Trump spent months falsely claiming that the election had been stolen from him.... Evidence to bolster the Democratic case has already emerged in federal criminal cases filed against more than 185 people so far in the aftermath of the insurrection.... Court documents show that more than two dozen people charged in the attack specifically cited Trump and his calls to gather that day in describing ... why they decided to take action by coming to Washington." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: One argument I suppose the managers will find ill-advised is nonetheless true: Trump, with his trademark bullying & outright threats, made pawns of the very triers-of-fact, the Republican senators themselves. Even those who clearly despised him, like Lindsey Graham, Marco Rubio & Ted Cruz, quickly learned to fawn over him to preserve their own sorry political careers. They do so not out of admiration by of fear. As for me, I'd tell Josh Hawley, et al., to their faces that Trump has made chumps of them (not that they weren't silly, self-serving blowhards before Trump showed up).

Quinn Scanlan of ABC News: "With his impeachment trial set to begin this week, a narrow majority of Americans say they support the Senate convicting ... Donald Trump and barring him from holding federal office again, according to a new ABC News/Ipsos poll released Sunday.... [Fifty-six percent] of Americans say Trump should be convicted and barred from holding office again, and 43% say he should not be."

One Way Trump Plans to Profit off QAnon. Suzanne Kelleher of Forbes: "For some QAnon conspiracy theorists, [on] March 4, 2021..., Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 19th president of the United States.... At the Trump International Hotel in Washington DC, the least expensive room option is the deluxe king.... At this time of year, it normally runs anywhere from $476 to $596 per night.... On March 3 and 4, the same room is selling for $1,331 per night. That's 180% above the base rate and more than double what you'd pay any other night in February or March, according to the hotel's website. The March 4 rate hike appears to be exclusive to the Trump International.... The day after the pro-Trump mob rioted at the U.S. Capitol, the managing director of Trump International Hotel tweeted, 'So proud of our @TrumpDC In Room Dining Team for record breaking numbers this week.'"

Alayna Treene of Axios: "Kevin McCarthy tried to get Liz Cheney to apologize for how she handled her vote to impeach former President Trump before last week's highly anticipated House GOP conference meeting -- a request she refused, two people with direct knowledge told Axios.... Cheney rolled the dice, refusing her leader's ask and counting on her supporters to keep her as conference chair, the party's No. 3 post in the House. Newly empowered, she's now embracing her role as the Republicans' Trump critic-in-chief." ~~~

~~~ Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Representative Liz Cheney of Wyoming waded deeper into Republicans' identity crisis on Sunday, warning her party on the eve of a Senate impeachment trial not to 'look past' ... Donald J. Trump's role in stoking a violent attack on the Capitol and a culture of conspiracy roosting among their ranks. In her first television interview since fending off an attempt by Mr. Trump's allies to oust her from House leadership over her vote to impeach him, Ms. Cheney said Republican voters had been 'lied to' by a president eager to steal an election with baseless claims of widespread voter fraud. She cautioned that the party risked being locked out of power if it did not show a majority of Americans that it could be trusted to lead truthfully.... She added that Mr. Trump 'does not have a role as a leader of our party going forward.'" ~~~

~~~ David of Crooks & Liars: "Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) on Sunday said that she expects 'many, many criminal investigations' into ... Donald Trump's role in inciting a violent insurrection on January 6. During an interview on Fox News Sunday, host Chris Wallace asked Cheney ... if she would also vote to convict the former president of insurrection if she were a U.S. senator. 'I would listen to the evidence,' Cheney said. 'The Senate trial is [a] snapshot. There's a massive criminal investigation underway.... People will want to know exactly what the president was doing,' she continued. 'They will want to know, for example, if the tweet he sent out calling Vice President Pence a coward while the attack was underway, whether that tweet, for example, was a premeditated effort to provoke violence. There are a lot of questions that have to be answered and there will be many, many criminal investigations looking at every aspect of this and everyone who was involved.'"

Jennifer Senior of the New York Times: "Marjorie Taylor Greene ... [is] the latest descendant in a lineage of Republican women who embrace a boffo radicalism, who delight in making trouble and in causing offense.... These women are playing simultaneously into male Republican stereotypes of power -- loving their guns, defending their country from the migrant hordes -- and stereotypes of femininity, to reassure the Republican faithful that they're still real women.... You can also ask whether unconscious gender bias plays a role in the coverage of Greene. Television loves a brassy hot mess.... Hillary Clinton's supporters were fond of the adage, the future is female.'... But we should brace ourselves. That future may be quite different from the one we were expecting. The future often is." Thanks to PD Pepe for the link. ~~~

     ~~~ PD Pepe wrote, "Is our culture still grappling with what women should BE as women? We have always accepted the male disparity, why be surprised at the female's?... I think we need to come to terms with our humanity not in sexual identities but as human beings and like one of the above females in Senior's list once said, 'You can't put lipstick on a pig' but you sure as hell can try." MB: I'm with Pepe. In general, right-wingers, male and female, despise feminism as a social reality. Because Democrats largely preceded them, thus forcing the issue, confederates are slowly coming to terms with the idea that women must have a seat at the table (though not at the head of it -- Palin & Harris are sidekicks, helpmates, as women "should be"). That means, of course, that a woman must be most feminine, in the traditional sense, yet forceful: a narrow, hazardous track to run. In the old days, that would have meant a PTA-type "lady" politician; in today's fake-populist GOP, it means a crude, gun-totin' mama. In the GOP, there's still room for both types of female politicians, but not for tough & effective female leaders like Clinton & Pelosi. ~~~

~~~ AND, according to Charles Darwin, the right is right. Women are not so much the fairer sex as the weaker one and intellectually inferior, Michael Sims writes in a New York Times op-ed. MB: Sims seems surprised that Darwin admired Harriet Martineau, "a prolific journalist and pioneer sociologist," who was a friend, and perhaps more, to Charles' brother Erasmus. It's not surprising at all. Most bigots of every category can justify their prejudices by rationalizing that women, people of color, of exotic religions or exotic places may have "exceptional" members even though "those people," on the whole, just don't measure up. From your standard, "traditional" bigotry to the strange, ridiculous turns of QAnon, bigotry will always find a path, albeit not necessarily direct routes to their destinations. ~~~

~~~ Steve Sack, editorial cartoonist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, applies Occam's Razor to QAnon. Thanks to RAS for the link:

PEN America responds to the New York Times' firing/forced resignation of reporter Don McNeil. Marie: PEN America is occasionally too lefist for me, but I do wholly agree with them here. I think the real problem McNeil encountered was that he didn't know his audience. An adult should be able to figure out that 16-year-olds aren't very good at appreciating the nuances of context. It appears that many NYT staff aren't either, or else they were misinformed about the context when they protested his retention at the paper. As McNeil has said, he "made an error in judgment," and Times management probably should have stood by him. I have long thought that the prohibition of the use of the word "nigger" in any context gives the word too much importance. In fact, I like the way Blacks use it among themselves; still, there is absolutely no circumstance under which I would join in & use it in a conversation among mostly-Black people where the word was being tossed around in a playful way. Food for thought, whether you agree or not.

Tim Weiner of the New York Times: "George P. Shultz, who presided with a steady hand over the beginning of the end of the Cold War as President Ronald Reagan's often embattled secretary of state, died on Saturday at his home in Stanford, Calif. He was 100. His death was announced by the Hoover Institution, where he was a distinguished fellow. He was also professor emeritus at Stanford's Graduate School of Business. Mr. Shultz, who had served Republican presidents since Dwight D. Eisenhower, moved to California after leaving Washington in January 1989. He continued writing and speaking on issues ranging from nuclear weapons to climate change into his late 90s, expressing concern about America's direction."

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The Washington Post's live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here.

Amy Wang & Anne Gearan of the Washington Post: "In his first network television interview since taking office, President Biden acknowledged it will be 'very difficult' for the United States to reach herd immunity at the current rate coronavirus vaccines are being administered in the country and that his administration would utilize all 32 National Football League stadiums as mass vaccination centers to help in the effort. 'It is a national emergency,' Biden said on 'CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell,' referring to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and its effect on schoolchildren and the workforce. Biden indicated that the Trump administration's handling of the pandemic was 'even more dire than we thought.' Since taking office, Biden has used the Defense Production Act to direct companies to ramp up manufacturing of vaccines and protective equipment. On Thursday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told Biden all 32 stadiums would be made available as mass vaccination sites.... In portions of the wide-ranging interview, which aired Friday and Sunday before the Super Bowl, Biden discussed the pandemic, foreign policy and why he believed former president Donald Trump should not have continued access to intelligence briefings."

Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "Senior Democrats on Monday will unveil legislation to provide $3,000 per child to tens of millions of American families, aiming to make a major dent in child poverty as part of President Biden's $1.9 trillion economic relief package. The 22-page bill to dramatically expand direct cash benefits to American families was obtained by The Washington Post ahead of its release. Under the proposal, the Internal Revenue Service would provide $3,600 over the course of the year per child under the age of 6, as well as $3,000 per child of ages 6 to 17. The size of the benefit would diminish for Americans earning more than $75,000 per year, as well as for couples jointly earning more than $150,000 per year. The payments would be sent monthly beginning in July, a delay intended to give the IRS time to prepare for the massive new initiative. The bill ... comes days after Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) surprised policymakers with a proposal to send even more in direct cash per child to American families, lending bipartisan support to the major push for child benefits."

Joel Achenbach of the Washington Post: "The coronavirus variant that shut down much of the United Kingdom is spreading rapidly across the United States, outcompeting other strains and doubling its prevalence among confirmed infections every week and a half, according to new research made public Sunday. The report, posted on the preprint server MedRxiv and not yet peer-reviewed or published in a journal, comes from a collaboration of many scientists and provides the first hard data to support a forecast issued last month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that showed the variant becoming dominant in the United States by late March." A New York Times story is here. Mother Jones has a story here.

William Booth & Carolyn Johnson of the Washington Post: "South Africa will suspend use of the coronavirus vaccine being developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca after researchers found it provided 'minimal protection' against mild to moderate coronavirus infections caused by the new variant first detected in that country. Health Minister Zweli Mkhize said Sunday that the rollout will be paused while scientists assess the data and determine a way forward. Officials had been eager to begin vaccinating health-care workers with the shots after 1 million doses arrived last week."

Way Beyond the Beltway

An Israeli Man Walks Out of His Own Trial. Shira Rubin of the Washington Post: "Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told judges in a Jerusalem court on Monday that he is innocent of corruption charges before abruptly standing, saying 'thank you very much' and leaving with his motorcade. Netanyahu quit the courtroom some 20 minutes after the start of Monday morning's hearing, which continued on without him. The sessions kick-started the second phase of a precedent-setting legal procedure, which, for the first time, involves the indictment of an Israeli prime minister while still in office and campaigning for elections in the coming weeks -- the fourth in two years." MB: You can see here why Bibi & Donald got on so well. This is just what Trump would have done if forced to testify at his impeachment trial.

The Commentariat -- February 7, 2021

Isaac Stanley-Becker of the Washington Post: "The White House on Saturday said President Biden's statement that his predecessor should not receive intelligence briefings did not represent a final decision on the matter, which will instead be resolved by intelligence officials.... Biden has the unilateral authority to deny intelligence access to anyone he chooses, and his remarks seemed to suggest he considered Trump enough of a risk to do so. But his aides said he would leave that decision to his intelligence team.

Dan Diamond, et al., of the Washington Post: "A few weeks after taking office, [President] Biden and his team are confronted with numerous challenges, including smoothing over chaotic operations, boosting flagging morale and staffing up agencies that dwindled. To achieve their policy goals, they must move quickly to communicate a sense of mission, build expertise, improve performance, assure stability and regain public confidence, analysts say. 'They're going to have the traditional challenge of transition, but now they'll have to address the institutional damage [Trump did],' Max Stier, president and chief executive of the nonpartisan Partnership for Public Service, said of the Biden team. 'You had a president who went to war with his own workforce,' Stier added. 'It's not like you flip a switch and the loss of expertise and harm to morale reverse themselves.'... Civil servants have hunkered in a defensive crouch as Trump and his allies demanded political loyalty, tested their professionalism and called them the intransigent 'deep state.'" MB: Since the federal bureaucracy a/k/a deep state is huge, a conventional rhetorical question is, "How much damage can one president* do" Answer: "Trump."

There's A High Monetary Cost to Trump's Lies, Too. Toluse Olorunnipa & Michelle Lee of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump's onslaught of falsehoods about the November election ... has now left taxpayers with a large, and growing, bill. The total so far: $519 million. The costs have mounted daily as government agencies at all levels have been forced to devote public funds to respond to actions taken by Trump and his supporters, according to a Washington Post review of local, state and federal spending records, as well as interviews with government officials. The expenditures include legal fees prompted by dozens of fruitless lawsuits, enhanced security in response to death threats against poll workers, and costly repairs needed after the Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol. That attack triggered the expensive massing of thousands of National Guard troops on the streets of Washington.... Although more than $480 million of the total is attributable to the military's estimated expenses for the troop deployment through mid-March, the financial impact of the president's refusal to concede the election is probably much higher than what has been documented thus far, and the true costs may never be known."

Maggie Haberman & Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: "One of the lead defense lawyers for Mr. Trump [-- David Schoen --] has informed Senate leaders that he is an observant Jew who strictly adheres to the commandment against working on the Sabbath, and thus would be unable to participate in any proceeding that stretched past sundown on Friday or met on Saturday.... In a statement Saturday evening, a spokesman for [Majority Leader Chuck] Schumer said an allowance would be made for Mr. Schoen, but did not elaborate on how.... [Conversations with the relevant parties about the structure of the trial continue.'"

"Just Following [Trump's] Orders" Does Not Work Out Well. Ed Pilkington of the Guardian: "As prosecutors from the House of Representatives prepare to present their case against Donald Trump at his impeachment trial ... for incitement of insurrection, supporters who heeded his call on 6 January to 'fight like hell' and went on to storm the Capitol Building are finding themselves in far greater legal peril.... The mob of fervent Maga acolytes who broke into the US Capitol following an incendiary rally headlined by Trump could face prison for up to 20 years. One month after the events which left five people dead including a US Capitol police officer, there is no sign of the Department of Justice and FBI letting up in their relentless pursuit of the insurrectionists.... Already the number of people who have been arrested, either by the FBI, Capitol police or local Washington DC officers has reached 235, spanning more than 40 states. As the investigation widens and deepens, the focus is tightening on anyone considered to have acted as a coordinator of the action in an attempt to take out the ringleaders."

Ryan Goodman & Justin Hendrix of Just Security: New video footage obtained by Just Security, and published in [in this story], shows connections between [Roger] Stone and leaders of the Proud Boys who may have planned some aspects of the attack. The footage shows Stone and Proud Boys leaders Enrique Tarrio and Ethan Nordean (a.k.a. Rufio Panman) participating together in a demonstration the night before the December 12th 'Stop The Steal' rally in Washington DC.... Extraordinary video footage recently published by the Wall Street Journal shows Nordean in a lead role in the Proud Boys' assault on the Capitol [Jan 6]. The FBI also showed images of Nordean inside the Capitol. Tarrio was not present that day. He had been arrested on the Monday afternoon shortly after he drove into Washington D.C. He was found to be in possession of two high capacity firearm magazines, and charged for possession." The article goes on to establish that, via Roger Stone, there are only two degrees of separation between Trump and the violent groups Proud Boys & Oath Keepers, and those close ties are specific to the events of Jan. 6. ~~~

~~~ Adam Rawnsley of the Daily Beast: "When Oath Keeper Rob Minuta provided security for Roger Stone on the day of the Capitol riot, it wasn't his first time providing muscle for a top Trump aide. Imagery obtained by The Daily Beast shows Minuta marched alongside former Trump National Security Adviser Mike Flynn when he attended a similar march in Washington, D.C. in December which sought to overturn the 2020 election. His appearance in similar roles for Flynn and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones at pro-Trump rallies after the election highlights the troubling network of connections between members of the far-right militia and some of Trump's closest advisers and supporters." ~~~

~~~ Matthew Rosenberg of the New York Times: "Where others see disgrace, [Michael] Flynn, 62, has found redemption. Recast by ... Donald J. Trump's most ardent supporters as a MAGA martyr, Mr. Flynn has embraced his role as the man who spent four years unjustly ensnared in the Russia investigation. He was one of the most extreme voices in Mr. Trump's 77-day push to overturn the election.... Mr. Flynn went so far as to suggest using the military to rerun the vote in crucial battleground states. At one point, Mr. Trump even floated the idea of bringing Mr. Flynn back into the administration, as chief of staff or possibly F.B.I. director, people familiar with the conversations told The New York Times. And now, safely pardoned and free to speak his mind, Mr. Flynn has emerged from the Trump presidency much as he entered it -- as the angry outsider who pushes fringe ideas, talks of shadowy conspiracies and is positioning himself as a voice of a far right that, in the wake of the Capitol riot, appears newly, and violently, emboldened." MB: It isn't only Trump who profits from the crazy, which is another reason the crazy won't stop.

Triumph of the Trumpists

Wyoming. Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "The Wyoming Republican Party on Saturday formally censured Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) because she voted to impeach Donald Trump last month, making the congresswoman the latest in a string of high-profile Republicans punished by their state or local party apparatuses for daring to criticize the former president.... Cheney was rebuked by her state GOP's central committee 'by a resounding margin,' with fewer than 10 members voting against the censure in the Saturday voice vote, the Casper Star-Tribune reported." The AP's story is here.

Michigan. Kathleen Gray of the New York Times: "Ron Weiser, a wealthy real estate developer from Ann Arbor, was elected chair of the Michigan Republican Party on Saturday, bringing along a vice chair who has caused consternation among some factions of the party because of her fierce support of ... Donald J. Trump.... The election partially hinged on who was the more loyal supporter of Mr. Trump, with supporters of Mr. Weiser saying [Laura] Cox[, who has chaired the state party for the last two years,] had failed the party when Joseph R. Biden Jr. won the state by more than 154,000 votes, flipping a key state that went for Mr. Trump in 2016.... [Weiser] won the election for party chair by a two-to-one ratio."

Nebraska. This video Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) cut a couple of days ago has Nebraska Trumpbots hopping mad, Politico report: ~~~

Tankless Toilets? Felicia Sonmez & Derek Hawkins of the Washington Post: "Two Republican House members have been fined $5,000 for bypassing the security screening that was set up outside the House chamber in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob, a senior Democratic aide said Friday. Reps. Louie Gohmert (Tex.) and Andrew S. Clyde (Ga.) appear to be the first members punished under a new rule approved by the House on Tuesday night. Spokespeople for Gohmert and Clyde did not respond to requests for comment, but Gohmert issued a statement Friday night, explaining that he had stepped out to use the restroom and did not know that he needed to be rescreened on his way back in. 'Unlike in the movie The Godfather, there are no toilets with tanks where one could hide a gun, so my reentry onto the House floor should have been a non-issue,' Gohmert said in the statement.... Gohmert called the policy 'unconstitutional' and vowed to appeal the fine, citing ... the speech or debate clause..." of the Constitution. MB: Apparently, Louis thinks taking a piss is a form of speech. I leave it to you to try to follow his "logic." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: "In just a few weeks, lawsuits and legal threats from a pair of obscure election technology companies have achieved what years of advertising boycotts, public pressure campaigns and liberal outrage could not: curbing the flow of misinformation in right-wing media. Fox Business canceled its highest rated show, 'Lou Dobbs Tonight,' on Friday after its host was sued as part of a $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit. On Tuesday, the pro-Trump cable channel Newsmax cut off a guest's [-- the MyPillow guy --] rant about rigged voting machines. Fox News, which seldom bows to critics, has run fact-checking segments to debunk its own anchors' false claims about electoral fraud. This is not the typical playbook for right-wing media, which prides itself on pugilism and delights in ignoring the liberals who have long complained about its content. But conservative outlets have rarely faced this level of direct assault on their economic lifeblood." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: What really happened here, although there's no acknowledgment of it in Grynbaum's report, is that Dobbs the the other dodos got so accustomed to lying about politicians that they eased on in to lying about corporations. This is partially a "Capitalism Is Awesome" story, because libel law is much less forgiving of pundits who disparage corporations (or private citizens) with false statements than it is with those who falsely tar politicians. I don't think Hillary stands of chance to winning a judgment against Miss Margie Q over "Frazzledrip" (see Michille Goldberg's column, linked yesterday), but Dominion & Smartmatic could prevail against media lies that potentially diminish their bottom lines.

Jerry Lambe of Law & Crime: "A federal judge in California has ordered Herring Networks, the parent company of far-right conservative media organization One America News Network (OAN), to pay MSNBC and host Rachel Maddow $250,000 in attorney's fees stemming from a [frivolous] defamation lawsuit that was dismissed last year. Herring in July 2019 filed a lawsuit against Maddow which claimed the liberal host had defamed OAN when she discussed reports that one of the network's contributors also worked for the Russia state news organization Sputnik. Maddow went on to state that OAN 'literally is paid Russian propaganda,' which OAN's parent company claimed was false and defamatory.... Siding against OAN, U.S. District Judge Cynthia Bashant, an appointee of President Barack Obama, dismissed the suit with prejudice. Bashant reasoned that there was 'no set of facts that could support a claim for defamation based on Maddow's statement.'"

The Pandemic, Ctd.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Saturday are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Way Beyond the Beltway

AP: "Mario Draghi on Saturday secured preliminary support from two key parties for forming a new government.... The populist 5-Star Movement and the rightwing League both signalled support for a Draghi-led government, saying they were ready to put aside bitter rivalries for the good of the country and increasing the potential for a broad-based government of national unity. Draghi, 73, the former president of the European Central Bank, completed a first round of talks with political parties this week.... Italy's president asked Draghi this week to form a government after the resignation of ex-premier Giuseppe Conte, who lost support of a smal but key coalition party.

The Commentariat -- February 6, 2021

Afternoon Update:

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Saturday are here.

MSNBC has reported on-air that the White House has clarified that whether or not Loose Lips Trump receives intelligence briefings remains under review. President Biden has expressed his preference and trusts that intelligence agencies "will make the right decision."

This video Sen. Ben Sasse (R-Neb.) cut a couple of days ago has Nebraska Trumpbots hopping mad, Politico report: ~~~

Tankless Toilets? Felicia Sonmez & Derek Hawkins of the Washington Post: “Two Republican House members have been fined $5,000 for bypassing the security screening that was set up outside the House chamber in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a pro-Trump mob, a senior Democratic aide said Friday. Reps. Louie Gohmert (Tex.) and Andrew S. Clyde (Ga.) appear to be the first members punished under a new rule approved by the House on Tuesday night. Spokespeople for Gohmert and Clyde did not respond to requests for comment, but Gohmert issued a statement Friday night, explaining that he had stepped out to use the restroom and did not know that he needed to be rescreened on his way back in. 'Unlike in the movie The Godfather, there are no toilets with tanks where one could hide a gun, so my reentry onto the House floor should have been a non-issue,' Gohmert said in the statement.... Gohmert called the policy 'unconstitutional' and vowed to appeal the fine, citing ... the speech or debate clause..." of the Constitution. MB: Apparently, Louis thinks taking a piss is a form of speech. I leave it to you to try to follow his "logic."

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Jim Tankersley & Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "President Biden, spurred on by a lackluster January jobs report and Democratic support for his $1.9 trillion economic aid proposal, said on Friday that the economy was in need of urgent help and that Republicans should either get on board with a robust stimulus package or expect his plan to pass without their support.... His remarks at the White House came only hours after the Senate endorsed the president's $1.9 trillion stimulus package along party lines, and over unified Republican opposition. Vice President Kamala Harris cast her first tiebreaking vote to approve a budget blueprint, 51 to 50, that will allow the proposal to move forward. The House quickly followed suit on Friday, passing the budget resolution 219 to 209. House committee heads and Democratic leaders met on Friday morning with the president at the White House to discuss legislative strategy.... Representative James E. Clyburn of South Carolina, the majority whip, told reporters that the package 'absolutely' had enough Democratic votes to pass the House. Mr. Biden, emboldened by that support, essentially told Republicans in his most stark terms to date to either suggest changes to the plan that could earn bipartisan support, or prepare for Democrats to bypass them and approve a package that is popular with voters." ~~~

Leaving on a Jet Plane. Annie Karni of the New York Times: "President Biden has served in elected office for almost four decades.... But not all of the accouterments of power are old hat for the country's oldest president. When he [flew] on Air Force One on Friday afternoon to go home to Wilmington, Del., for the weekend, it [was] his first flight aboard the presidential jet in more than two decades, according to more than a half-dozen administration officials and former Biden aides. As President Barack Obama's vice president, Mr. Biden was prohibited from flying on the Boeing VC-25 that is known as Air Force One. For security reasons, the vice president and the president never fly together.... Mr. Biden rode on Air Force One on Friday afternoon, but not the one that has so delighted his predecessors. He jogged up the stairs of the Boeing 757-200, which is a smaller, narrow-body jet used for smaller airports like the one Mr. Biden was set to arrive at in Wilmington."

Luke Broadwater, et al., of the New York Times: "The Senate endorsed President Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package just before sunrise on Friday, voting along party lines over unified Republican opposition to approve a budget blueprint that would allow Democrats to enact it with no G.O.P. support. After a 15-hour voting session that stretched overnight, Vice President Kamala Harris arrived early in the morning to the Senate dais, where she cast her first tiebreaking vote. The Senate adopted the budget measure by a vote of 51 to 50 at about 5:30 a.m. In the marathon session -- known as a vote-a-rama and for which more than 800 amendments were drafted -- Senate Democrats maneuvered through a series of politically tricky amendments that Republicans sought to attach to their budget plan." This is an update of a report also linked early yesterday. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

Biden Makes a Prudent National Security Decision. David Sanger of the New York Times: "President Biden said on Friday that he would bar his predecessor, Donald J. Trump, from receiving intelligence briefings traditionally given to former presidents, saying that Mr. Trump could not be trusted because of his 'erratic behavior' even before the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The move was the first time that a former president had been cut out of the briefings, which are provided partly as a courtesy and partly for the moments when a sitting president reaches out for advice. Currently, the briefings are offered on a regular basis to Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Mr. Biden, speaking to Norah O'Donnell of CBS News, said Mr. Trump's behavior worried him 'unrelated to the insurrection' that gave rise to the second impeachment of Mr. Trump.... 'What value is giving him an intelligence briefing?' Mr. Biden [said]. 'What impact does he have at all, other than the fact he might slip and say something?' The White House said this week that it had been reviewing whether the former president, whose impeachment trial in the Senate begins on Tuesday, should receive the briefings.... The question of how Mr. Trump handles intelligence came up several times during his presidency.... But there was a deeper worry about how Mr. Trump could use intelligence now...." ~~~

     ~~~ Or Maybe Not. An AP story, by Aamer Madhani & Zeke Miller presents Biden's remarks as "should not" rather than "would not": "President Joe Biden said Friday that Donald Trump's 'erratic behavior' should prevent him from receiving classified intelligence briefings, a courtesy that historically has been granted to outgoing presidents. Asked in an interview with CBS News what he feared if Trump continued to receive the briefings, Biden said he did not want to 'speculate out loud' but made clear he did not want Trump to continue getting them." MB: So it's not clear that barring Trump from receiving classified briefings is a done deal. Sanger does not indicate in his NYT report that he has confirmed that Biden had made a decision.

Miriam Jordan & Max Rivlin-Nadler of the New York Times: "President Biden's first immigration crisis has already begun as thousands of families have surged toward the southwestern border in recent weeks, propelled by expectations of a friendlier reception and by a change in Mexican policy that makes it harder for the United States to expel some of the migrants. More than 1,000 people have been allowed to enter the country in recent days in a swift reversal from the Trump administration's near shutdown of the border. Many more are gathering in Mexico in hopes of a similar chance to cross.... The surge poses the first major test of Mr. Biden's pledge to adopt a more compassionate policy along America's border with Mexico. The prospect of large numbers of migrants entering the country during a pandemic could create a strong public backlash for Mr. Biden...."

Katherine Faulders & Benjamin Siegel of ABC News: "Congressional investigators preparing for ... Donald Trump's impeachment trial are zeroing in on the actions of the president and his associates around the insurrection at the Capitol.... The House impeachment managers and their team of lawyers are examining materials, including videos, photos and social media posts, for possible links between individuals close to Trump and some involved in the riot at the Capitol.... Examining the actions of Trump, his aides and allies before and during the riot could help House impeachment managers make their case that the 45th president's comments to supporters at a Jan. 6 rally outside the White House were the culmination of a weekslong effort to overturn the election results.... At least fourteen individuals who stormed the Capitol building have since said they were following Trump's encouragement. Democrats also are working to piece together what Trump did behind closed doors the day of the insurrection...." ~~~

~~~ Legal Scholars Trash Trump's Impeachment Defense. Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Claims by ... Donald J. Trump's lawyers that his conduct around the Jan. 6 Capitol riot is shielded by the First Amendment are 'legally frivolous' and should do nothing to stop the Senate from convicting him, 144 leading First Amendment lawyers and constitutional scholars from across the political spectrum wrote in a new letter circulated on Friday.... The lawyers argued that the constitutional protections do not apply to an impeachment proceeding, were never meant to protect conduct like Mr. Trump's anyway and would likely fail to shield him even in a criminal court.... The public retort came after Mr. Trump's lawyers, Bruce L. Castor Jr. and David Schoen, indicated this week that they planned to use the First Amendment as part of their defense when the trial opens on Tuesday.... Among the 144 lawyers, scholars and litigants who signed the letter, a copy of which was shared with The New York Times, were Floyd Abrams, who has fought marquee First Amendment cases in court; Steven G. Calabresi, a founder of the conservative Federalist Society; Charles Fried, a solicitor general under Ronald Reagan; and pre-eminent constitutional law scholars like Laurence Tribe, Richard Primus and Martha L. Minow.... Many of the signatories to Friday's letter had signed onto a previous one pushing back on another key argument in Mr. Trump;s defense: the assertion that the Senate does not have jurisdiction to try a former president because the Constitution does not explicitly grant it that power." ~~~

     ~~~ Here's the letter, including the names & institutional affiliations of the signers, via the NYT.

Bob Brigham of the Raw Story: "... Donald Trump is receiving money from his unsuccessful re-election campaign as he faces over $1 billion in debt. 'Donald Trump's reelection campaign, which never received a cent from the former president, moved an estimated $2.8 million of donor money into the Trump Organization -- including at least $81,000 since Trump lost the election,' Forbes reported Friday. 'In addition, one of the campaign's joint-fundraising committees, which collects money in partnership with the Republican Party, shifted about $4.3 million of donor money into Trump's business from January 20, 2017, to December 31, 2020 -- at least $331,000 of which came after the election,' Forbes reported." MB: Yeah, well, he needs the money since Biden may not give him any secret intelligence to sell.

Ryan Mac & Rosie Gray of BuzzFeed News: "The Trump Organization negotiated on behalf of ... Donald Trump to make Parler his primary social network, but it had a condition: an ownership stake in return for joining.... Parler offered a 40% stake in the company.... The deal was never finalized, but legal experts said the discussions alone, which occurred while Trump was still in office, raise legal concerns with regards to anti-bribery laws. Talks between members of Trump's campaign and Parler about Trump's potential involvement began last summer, and were revisited in November by the Trump Organization.... [Former Trump campaign manager Brad] Parscale and Trump campaign lawyer Alex Cannon met with Parler CEO John Matze and shareholders Dan Bongino and Jeffrey Wernick at Trump's Florida club Mar-a-Lago in June 2020 to discuss the idea. But the White House counsel's office soon put a stop to the talks..., ruling that such a deal while Trump was president would violate ethics rules.... Discussions were revived in the weeks following the election..., but the deal fell apart after the Capitol invasion. Following that event, Apple and Google removed Parler from their app stores, and Amazon kicked the company off its cloud hosting service, forcing the site offline."

Worst President* Ever Granted Worst Pardons Ever. Beth Reinhard, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Constitution gives the president the virtually unchecked power to grant clemency. Trump's use of that power reflected how he viewed the presidency through the prism of his own interests and as a way to reward friends and spite enemies, according to longtime clemency advocates and people who participated in the process. His transactional approach largely sidelined low-level offenders who had waited years after filing petitions through the Justice Department and elevated those with personal connections to the White House -- or the money to pay someone with those connections. Even Trump allies who advised the White House on clemency say they were startled and disappointed by who was on the final list. In all, Trump granted 237 pardons and commutations, according to the Justice Department, the majority of which he issued in a frantic final session with White House lawyers during his last night as president.... 'Along with the devastating harm Trump wrought upon clemency as an institution are the unfathomable injustices of Trump diverting the power from those critically needing and warranting clemency to his menagerie of undeserving recipients,' said Larry Kupers, who ran the pardon office at the beginning of the Trump administration.... A cottage industry emerged of lawyers and lobbyists who sought to leverage their access to the White House for clients seeking pardons." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

Quint Forgey of Politico: "Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said Friday she was glad to be booted from her House committee assignments -- slinging a series of sharply partisan attacks while also conceding that she was 'sorry' for her past conspiratorial statements. In remarks to reporters outside the Capitol, the Georgia Republican claimed she had 'been freed' by the bipartisan vote on Thursday that stripped her of her seats on the House Budget and the House Education and Labor panels." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ MTG Calls Colleagues "Morons." New York Times: "Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, Republican of Georgia, lashed out at Democrats on Friday in her first comments after the House voted to strip her of her committee assignments. 'I woke up early this morning literally laughing thinking about what a bunch of morons the Democrats (+11) are for giving some one like me free time,' she wrote on her personal Twitter account, referring to the slim margin by which Democrats control the House. 'In this Democrat tyrannical government, Conservative Republicans have no say on committees anyway,' she said, adding, 'Oh this is going to be fun!'... Her defiance erased even the slim hopes of House Republican leaders that Ms. Greene, empowered by her devotion to Mr. Trump, would quiet down in the name of party unity after her rebuke." From the Times' political updates Friday. MB: She won't think it's so much fun when Trump get mad at her for all the attention she's getting. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Cristina Marcos & Mike Lillis of the Hill name the eleven Republican "morons" who voted to expel Marjorie Greene from House committees: Reps. Adam Kinzinger (Ill.), Fred Upton (Mich.); Reps. Mario Diaz-Balart, Carlos Gimenez and Maria Elvira Salazar, all from Florida; Reps. and John Katko, Chris Jacobs, & Nicole Malliotakis, all from New York; Rep. Chris Smith (N.J.); Rep. Young Kim (Calif.) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.). (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

     ~~~ Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times writes about Hillary Clinton and "Frazzledrip," an insane QAnon theory. "The lurid fantasy of Frazzledrip refers to an imaginary video said to show Hillary Clinton and her former aide, Huma Abedin, assaulting and disfiguring a young girl, and drinking her blood. It holds that several cops saw the video, and Clinton had them killed. When [Marjorie] Greene posted a picture of Donald Trump with the mother of the slain N.Y.P.D. officer Miosotis Familia on Facebook, one of her commenters described Frazzledrip and wrote, 'This was another Hillary hit.' Greene replied, 'Yes Familia..., I post things sometimes to see who knows [sic.] things....'" Goldberg interviews Clinton for her thoughts on the attacks on her, which as soon as Bill Clinton entered public life. Hillary Clinton described Frazzledrip as "'a Salem Witch Trials line of argument against independent, outspoken, pushy women. And it began to metastasize around me.' In this sense, Frazzledrip is just a particularly disgusting version of misogynist hatred she's always contended with.... Nothing about QAnon or Marjorie Taylor Greene is entirely new. Social media has just taken the dysfunction that was already in our politics, and rendered it uglier than anyone ever imagined."

~~~ Tim Egan of the New York Times has a plan that he thinks would improve the quality of Republicans the party sends to Washington, D.C.: Take the nominating process away from the party "activists and give it to the people. We already have a way to make it work. In Washington, along with California, the top two vote-getters in a congressional primary, regardless of party affiliation, advance to the general election." This makes representatives more accountable to their constituents than to their party. "The downside of the top-two system is that it might leave, say, a majority-Democratic district without a Democratic candidate in the general election. If something like a half-dozen Democratic candidates were to split the primary vote equally, it could allow two Republicans to get just enough to make the general.... [And] in a heavily one-party state, this system probably wouldn't save a profile in courage.... Liz Cheney, now under ferocious attack by Trumpers in Wyoming for her vote to impeach, might be doomed in a state that Trump took by 43 points." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: With all of the sky-is-falling wailing about how we have to save the Republican party to save the two-party system, a more sensible alternative could be to figure out how we can re-jig voting systems to at least limit the percentage of nutjobs who wind up in Congress. Some states, including Maine, with its ranked-choice voting is one method. (The system got rid of former wingnut Gov. Paul LePage.) The Founders did not envision a two-party system, and ending up with a system that more resembled parliamentary governments in which it is often necessary for parties to get together in a coalition to "form a government" might lead to a less noxious Congress. This would mean, for instance, assuming that 30 percent of voters were Trumpist types, the number of Trumpy members of Congress would not exceed about 30 percent.

Matthew Mosk, et al., of ABC News: "A new video has surfaced showing ... Donald Trump's longtime adviser Roger Stone in Washington, D.C., on the morning of Jan. 6, flanked by members of the Oath Keepers militia group just hours before the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building. In the video, which was obtained and reviewed by ABC News, Stone takes pictures and mingles with supporters outside a D.C. hotel as Oath Keepers hover around him.... 'So, hopefully we have this today, right?' one supporter asks Stone in the video, which was posted just after 10 a.m. on the morning of the rally. 'We shall see,' Stone replies. It is not known to what they were referring.... Whether men seen standing with Stone on Jan. 6 were participants in the mob assault on the Capitol is unclear.... In recent weeks, photos have surfaced online showing several people involved in the assault on the Capitol posing at various events with Stone.... Oath Keepers were known to be providing security for Stone during his D.C. visit." (See also ABC News story, linked above, re: Trump's impeachment trial.)

Mixed Messages. Mark Mazzetti & Adam Goldman of the New York Times: "On Jan. 4, the intelligence division of the United States Capitol Police issued a report listing all the groups known to be descending on the city and planning to rally for ... Donald J. Trump two days later, such as the Prime Time Patriots, the MAGA Marchers and Stop the Steal. The dispatch ... gave low odds that any of the groups might break laws or incite violence, labeling the chances as 'improbable,' 'highly improbable' or 'remote.' But the document ... never addressed the odds of something else happening: that the groups might join together in a combustible mix leading to an explosion of violence. But just a day earlier the same office had presented a slightly more ominous picture. The Capitol Police's intelligence division ... warned of desperation about 'the last opportunity to overturn the results of the presidential election' and the potential for significant danger to law enforcement and the public. The documents show how the police and federal law enforcement agencies produced inconsistent and sometimes conflicting assessments of the threat from American citizens marching on the Capitol as Mr. Trump sought to hold on to power. That lack of clarity in turn helps explain why the government did not bring more urgency to security preparations for a worst-case outcome." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)

In this Reuters photo, you can clearly see a DC officer (MPDC) defending the Capitol.

~~~ ** They Can Protect & Serve, But They Can't Vote. Colbert King of the Washington Post: "... on Jan. 6, when the U.S. Capitol was invaded by a rampaging pro-Trump mob, it was the District's Metropolitan Police Department that rode to the rescue.... Within minutes, D.C. police responded to the distress signal with a force that, at the height of the attack, numbered 850 officers -- nearly one-quarter of the MPD.... Sixty-five MPD officers suffered injuries.... 'MPD's police officers were engaged in a literal battle for hours. Many were forced into hand-to-hand combat,' acting police chief Robert J. Contee III testified to the House Appropriations Committee on Jan. 26.... Congress, to this day, has not delivered formal recognition of the District of Columbia's heroic role in saving the Republic.... But District residents are not allowed a vote in Congress or have the authority to spend our locally raised tax dollars without congressional approval. We can help save the Capitol complex and the Supreme Court, but we can't appoint our own judges."

Harper Neidig of the Hill: "A woman who federal prosecutors say was directing a mob with a bullhorn during the riot at the Capitol last month was arrested on Thursday and charged with multiple federal crimes. Rachel Marie Powell was arrested in Pennsylvania, according to documents posted on the Department of Justice's website. Powell is facing five charges, including depredation of government property, entering a restricted area with a dangerous weapon and obstruction of an official proceeding, an offense that carries a possibility of up to 20 years in prison.... The FBI identified Powell as a woman who was seen in viral social media and news footage blaring instructions to rioters who were breaching the Capitol building on January 6.... [An FBI] affidavit shows pictures of a woman wearing a pink hat helping to use a large pipe as a battering ram to break into the Capitol building." A related CBS Pittsburgh story, also linked yesterday, said neighbors claimed Powell & her children had not been at home for at least a week "and are apparently hiding in an unknown location...."

Florists Are the Nicest Insurrectionists. Marshall Cohen of CNN: "A Texas florist charged in connection with the US Capitol insurrection will be allowed to go to Mexico later this month, a federal judge ruled Friday. The case involving Jenny Cudd got national attention this week after she wrote to a judge asking for permission to visit Riviera Maya, Mexico, for a four-day retreat this month. On Friday, Judge Trevor N. McFadden of the DC District Court granted her request. McFadden, a Trump appointee, noted that the Justice Department did not oppose Cudd's request to visit Mexico. 'The Court also notes (Cudd) has no criminal history and there is no evidence before the Court suggesting the Defendant is a flight risk or poses a danger to others,' McFadden wrote in a written order.... In court filings, the Justice Department has described Cudd as unrepentant for her role in the insurrection, citing her comments in Facebook posts and interviews shortly after the riot. 'F--- yes, I am proud of my actions, I f---ing charged the Capitol today with patriots today. Hell, yes, I am proud of my actions,' Cudd said in the Facebook video, according to court records."

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Elahe Izadi of the Washington Post: "Two New York Times journalists who had recently attracted scrutiny for their past conduct -- and, in one case, sparked an outcry from staff against management -- have left the organization, according to notes sent to the newsroom by top Times editors Friday evening. High-profile science reporter Donald G. McNeil Jr.'s departure comes after the Daily Beast reported that he had repeated a racial slur during a 2019 trip to Peru for high school students. The Times also confirmed that McNeil, who has been a key reporter covering the coronavirus pandemic, 'had used bad judgment by repeating a racist slur in the context of a conversation about racist language.' McNeil initially responded to the report by telling The Washington Post, 'don't believe everything you read,' without elaborating. The other departure is Andy Mills, whose past behavior and employment status came under scrutiny by his colleagues and his peers in the podcasting world after the collapse of 'Caliphate,' which he helped produce and host along with star Times reporter Rukmini Callimachi." The New York Times story, by Marc Tracy, is here. ~~~

     ~~~ A Daily Beast story, by Blake Montgomery & Lachlan Cartwright, describes McNeil's "departure" as an "ouster." There's a difference.

Annals of "Journalism," Ha Ha Ha. Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: "Lou Dobbs, one of ... Donald J. Trump's most loyal media supporters, abruptly lost his pulpit on Friday when Fox Business canceled his weekday television show, which had become a frequent clearinghouse for baseless theories of electoral fraud in the weeks after Mr. Trump lost the 2020 presidential race. Mr. Dobbs's decade-long tenure at the network ended with little warning -- a guest host filled in for his Friday slot -- only a day after the election technology company Smartmatic filed a defamation lawsuit against Rupert Murdoch's Fox Corporation and Fox News. The suit, which seeks damages of at least $2.7 billion, also named Mr. Dobbs as an individual defendant along with two other Fox anchors, Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro. Smartmatic specifically cited Mr. Dobbs's program, which by late last year had become so packed with falsehoods about Mr. Trump's defeat that Fox Business was forced to run a fact-checking segment debunking some of its own anchor's assertions. Executives at Fox did not elaborate on Friday about why they had canceled Mr. Dobbs's program, which was the top-rated show on Fox Business...." An AP story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Brendan Karet & Nikki Ramirez of Media Matters: "Lou Dobbs had joined Fox after his birtherism led to him being forced out at CNN, became known at Fox for his over-the-top pro-Trump propaganda." ~~~

     ~~~ Oliver Darcy of CNN: "... Smartmatic's suit poses real threat to Fox. University of Georgia media law professor Jonathan Peters noted on Twitter that 'libel law makes it difficult to prevail where the plaintiff is a public figure and/or where the speech involved a matter of public concern....' But, Peters added that he believed the 'smart money' is on Smartmatic. That seemed to be the general consensus among legal experts who commented on the case Thursday. Despite Fox describing the suit as 'meritless,' [defendant Sidney] Powell calling it a 'political maneuver,' and [defendant Rudy] Giuliani saying he looked forward to discovery, most legal experts believed it to have some bite. This lawsuit is a legitimate threat -- a real threat,' CNN legal analyst Ellie Honig said. 'There is a real teeth to this.'" ~~~

~~~ James Poniewozik of the New York Times: "TV's latest, most outrageously paranoid conspiracy-thriller has arrived. It has everything: cyberespionage, evil vote-stealing machines, wicked media cabals. And it aired Friday on One America News Network. It is 'Absolute Proof,' a two-hour-plus disinfomercial made and hosted by Mike Lindell, the chief executive of the MyPillow company and a fervent advocate of the myth that the 2020 election was stolen from Donald J. Trump and handed to President Biden. Mr. Lindell paid OANN to air it multiple times starting Friday.... Even OANN, which has courted election truthers, seemed to realize that 'Absolute Proof' was volatile content. A mammoth disclaimer before the broadcast emphasized that Mr. Lindell purchased the airtime and that 'the statements and claims expressed in this program are presented at this time as opinions only.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Kellen Browning & Tiffany Hsu of the New York Times debunk three false claims Mike Lindell makes in his excellent foray into fantasy journalism. ~~~

     ~~~ Colin Kalmbacher of Law & Crime: "... it looks like a defamation lawsuit is incoming regardless [of OAN's extensive disclaimer] -- one that could prove financially ruinous for the upstart conservative outlet.... The lead attorney for one of Lindell's targets says that disclaimer is not nearly enough to escape liability for airing the Lindell program. Thomas Clare represents Dominion in a series of lawsuits against high-profile Trump adherents, attorneys and others who promoted those false conspiracy theories. Dominion recently put OAN on notice that their broadcasts were relevant to the company's pending legal actions and previously warned OAN and others that defamation lawsuits are 'imminent' over the continued promotion of those unsupported vote-swapping claims. '"Nice try" by OAN, but it definitely does not relieve them of liability,' Clare told Law&Crime. 'To the contrary, we warned them specifically and in writing that they would be broadcasting false and defamatory statements of fact if they broadcast the program, and they made the affirmative decision to disregarded that warning and broadcast it anyway.'"

The Pandemic, Ctd.

Carolyn Johnson & William Wan of the Washington Post: "A trial of an experimental coronavirus vaccine detected the most sobering signal yet that people who have recovered from infections are not completely protected against a variant that originated in South Africa and is spreading rapidly, preliminary data presented this week suggests.... In the placebo group of the trial for Novavax's vaccine, people with prior coronavirus infections appeared just as likely to get sick as people without them, meaning they weren't fully protected against the B.1.351 variant that has swiftly become dominant in South Africa.... The finding, though far from conclusive, has potential implications for how the pandemic will be brought under control, underscoring the critical role of vaccination, including for people who have already recovered from infections.... Anthony S. Fauci ... noted that it appears a vaccine is better than natural infection in protecting people, calling it 'a big, strong plug to get vaccinated' and a reality check for people who may have assumed that because they have already been infected, they are immune."

Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "A splintered Supreme Court on late Friday night partly lifted restrictions on religious services in California that had been prompted by the coronavirus pandemic. The court ruled in cases brought by South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista and Harvest Rock Church in Pasadena. The churches said restrictions imposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, violated the Constitution's protection of the free exercise of religion.... In a brief, unsigned opinion, the court blocked that total ban but left in place a 25 percent capacity restriction and a prohibition on singing and chanting. Justices Clarence Thomas and Neil M. Gorsuch said they would have blocked all of the restrictions. Justices Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan dissented, saying they would have left all of the restrictions in place." Politico's story, by Josh Gerstein, is here.

The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Friday are here.

Ben Leonard of Politico: "Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has ordered more than 1,000 active-duty troops to help speed up state Covid-19 vaccination efforts, Andy Slavitt, a senior adviser to the White House's Covid response team, announced Friday. Some of the military members will arrive for deployment in California within the next 10 days, beginning around Feb. 15, with more missions 'to come,' Slavitt said at a White House Covid response briefing on Friday. Austin approved a Federal Emergency Management Agency request to help 'augment and expedite vaccinations across the country,' Slavitt said." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~

~~~ Isaac Stanley-Becker of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration announced a handful of initiatives Friday aimed at accelerating mass inoculations against the coronavirus and expanding production of rapid tests and surgical gloves to help control the pathogen. In the most immediate action, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved a request from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to deploy 1,110 troops to support vaccination sites.... Biden has vowed to stand up 100 new sites in 30 days.... As of Thursday, there were 175 federally supported vaccination sites throughout the country, according to a FEMA leadership brief.... Federal support includes the National Guard, whose services some states enlisted from the outset of the immunization campaign late last year. In a bid to boost supplies of the shots and of other critical equipment, the Biden administration also said Friday that it was taking several steps under the Defense Production Act.... The [Biden] administration will expand the priority ratings [granted to Pfizer] to include more equipment..., [to include] filling pumps and filtration units as examples.... The new ratings for Pfizer, along with moves to expand the supply of at-home coronavirus tests and surgical gloves, marked the Biden administration's first formal use of the Defense Production Act.... The administration was using powers under the Defense Production Act to boost domestic manufacturing of at-home coronavirus tests." The story is free to nonsubscribers.

Red State Quackery

Iowa. KCCI Des Moines: "Gov. Kim Reynolds [R] has eliminated most of her COVID-19 restrictions in the latest health proclamation. According to the Governor's Office, the proclamation removes indoor mask requirements in public spaces, gathering limits and restrictions on businesses starting 12:01 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 7.... This comes the same week Iowa was ranked No. 47 in the country for its vaccine distribution, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That is worse than all other states except Idaho and Missouri. Reynolds addressed this in a press conference earlier this week."

Missouri. Summer Ballentine of the AP: "A Missouri state lawmaker refused to resign after being indicted on federal fraud charges for falsely claiming a treatment she sold contained stem cells that could help with COVID-19 and other illnesses. Rep. Tricia Derges [R] in an email to the House speaker this week wrote that her'innocence will prevail.' The Republican from the southeastern Missouri city of Nixa said her lawyer 'has this handled.'... Fellow Republican House Speaker Rob Vescovo stripped Derges of all her committee assignments on Monday, when a 20-count indictment against her was unsealed. The federal indictment by a grand jury also accuses the 63-year-old of illegally providing prescription drugs to clients and making false statements to federal agents investigating the case. Vescovo on Wednesday asked Derges to step down. Derges told Vescovo that she'll continue representing her constituents' by voting even though she no longer serves on committees." ~~~

     ~~~ Jaclyn Peiser of the Washington Post (Feb. 3): "Derges, a 63-year-old Republican who was elected to the state House in November, now faces 20 criminal charges, including wire fraud and distribution by means of the Internet without a valid prescription, a federal grand jury indictment unsealed on Tuesday revealed.... Derges, a licensed assistant physician from Nixa, Mo., has run Ozark Valley Medical Clinic since 2014, and operates three locations in southwest Missouri.... Derges claimed her Regenerative Biologics stem cells could treat patients suffering from 'tissue damage, kidney disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ('COPD'), Lyme Disease, erectile dysfunction, and urinary incontinence,' according to the indictment.... Despite [a] warning [that the concoction she sold contained no live stem cells], she continued to run promotional seminars and market her product to patients as containing stem cells, according to federal prosecutors.... In total, Derges's patients paid her approximately $191,815 [for the fake cure.]... Derges also claimed the treatment could cure covid-19 and promoted it on Facebook."

News Ledes

New York Times: "Christopher Plummer, the prolific and versatile Canadian-born actor who rose to celebrity as the romantic lead in perhaps the most popular movie musical of all time, was critically lionized as among the pre-eminent Shakespeareans of the past century and won an Oscar, two Tonys and two Emmys, died on Friday at his home in Weston, Conn. He was 91.... For years..., Mr. Plummer disparaged ... the beloved 1965 musical 'The Sound of Music' in which he starred ... as saccharine claptrap, famously referring to it as 'S&M' or 'The Sound of Mucus.'... '...That damn movie follows me around like an albatross.'"

New York Times: "Leon Spinks, who scored one of boxing's greatest upsets when he defeated Muhammad Ali to capture the heavyweight championship in February 1978, but lost his crown in a rematch seven months later and never again found glory in the ring, died on Friday night in Henderson, Nev. He was 67."