The Commentariat -- March 9, 2021
Afternoon Update:
Spencer Hsu & Aaron Davis of the Washington Post: "U.S. prosecutors alleged Monday that Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes was in direct contact before, during and immediately after the Jan. 6 Capitol breach with members since charged with plotting to prevent Congress from confirming the results of the 2020 presidential election. In a late-night court filing, prosecutors alleged that Rhodes directed the right-wing, anti-government group to rally during the riot to the southeast steps of the Capitol, after which several members forcibly entered the east side of the building.... Prosecutors said they found 'no discussion of forcibly entering the Capitol until January 6.' But they said the chat messages, combined with Rhodes's previous statements, 'all show that the co-conspirators joined together to stop Congress's certification of the Electoral College vote, and they were prepared to use violence, if necessary, to effect this purpose....'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: Now put that together with this, also from the Hsu/David report: "Separately Monday, prosecutors arrested Roberto Minuta, 36, who prosecutors alleged was an Oath Keepers associate who illegally entered the Capitol after appearing to provide security for Republican strategist Roger Stone outside a Washington hotel on the morning of Jan. 6." We're getting mighty close to Trump here.
Katie Shepherd of the Washington Post: "Jacob Anthony Chansley, often referred to as the 'QAnon Shaman' who donned horns and red-white-and-blue face paint to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, has spent nearly two months pleading with a judge -- and with the public in high-profile interviews -- to let him go free.... U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth was not impressed. On Monday, Lamberth denied Chansley's motion for release in a scathing memorandum that rejected his arguments as 'meritless,' 'mistaken' and 'so frivolous as to insult the Court's intelligence.' The judge said that Chansley was too dangerous to release and continues to pose a threat to the public."
The Chief Stands Alone. Robert Barnes of the Washington Post: "The Supreme Court on Monday revived a former student's lawsuit against the college that blocked his evangelizing on campus, with Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. -- apparently for the first time in his 16-year tenure -- casting a lone dissenting vote. The issue was not the conduct of Georgia Gwinnett College, which kept student Chike Uzuegbunam from spreading the Gospel on campus. The issue was whether Uzuegbunam's demand the college pay him a nominal amount of money in damages -- which could be as little as $1 -- kept his civil rights case alive or whether it was moot once the university agreed to his complaint and ended its offending speech policy. Justice Clarence Thomas said the request for nominal damages was enough to keep the suit alive, in an 8-to-1 opinion."
Isabella Kwai of the New York Times: "Buckingham Palace broke nearly 48 hours of silence Tuesday about a bombshell interview with Prince Harry and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, saying 'the whole royal family is saddened' and expressing concern about the issue of racism the couple had raised.... In a brief statement, Buckingham Palace said that the issues raised by the couple in the interview, 'particularly that of race,' were concerning.... On Tuesday, Piers Morgan, the co-host of 'Good Morning Britain' on ITV news, who came under attack for saying he 'didn't believe a word' of the interview, resigned, the network said. Britain's communications regulator received more than 41,000 complaints about his comment, it said." MB: The Palace has expressed so much "concern," you'd think they had hired Sen. Susan Collins as their PR manager. And of course it's teddibly, teddibly sad Piers lost his job.
Ken W. sent me the "1956" video below. He checked around, though, and quickly learned the video was a hoax. It's such a good hoax, I thought I'd share it. And many thanks to Ken, for doing the checking himself: ~~~
~~~~~~~~~~
Jason Horowitz & Barbara Starr of CNN: "President Joe Biden on Monday announced he has nominated two female generals to positions as 4-star combatant commanders after their promotions had been delayed under the Trump administration. The nominations of Gen. Jacqueline Van Ovost of the Air Force to commander of United States Transportation Command and Lt. Gen. Laura Richardson of the Army to commander of United States Southern Command would make them the second and third woman to lead a Combatant Command if confirmed by the Senate. Biden, during remarks on International Women's Day at the White House on Monday, called Van Ovost and Richardson 'two outstanding and eminently qualified warriors and patriots.'... Biden noted that Van Ovost, a first generation American, flew Air Force Two when he served as vice president during the Obama administration, as well as highlighted Richardson's work as commanding general of US Army North, coordinating the military's medical personal deployed to help with the coronavirus response." ~~~
Katie Rogers & Erica Green of the New York Times: "President Biden on Monday directed the Education Department to conduct an expansive review of all policies on sex and gender discrimination and violence in schools, effectively beginning his promised effort to dismantle Trump-era rules on sexual misconduct that afforded greater protections to students accused of assault. With two executive orders -- one ordering the new education secretary to review those policies, and the other establishing a gender-focused White House policy council -- Mr. Biden, an author of the Violence Against Women Act, waded into an area that has been important to him but has been politically charged for more than a decade." The AP's story is here.
Lara Jakes & Anatoly Kurmanaev of the New York Times: "As many as 320,000 Venezuelans living in the United States were given an 18-month reprieve on Monday from the threat of being deported, as the Biden administration sought to highlight how dangerous that country has become under President Nicolás Maduro. The immigrants also will be allowed to work legally in the United States as part of the temporary protective status the administration issued as it considers the next steps in a yearslong American pressure campaign to force Mr. Maduro from power.... Though the Trump administration had resisted issuing the same protections -- despite intense lobbying from Mr. Maduro's opponents -- ... Donald J. Trump delayed deportations for many Venezuelans in the United States on his last day in office. Geoff Ramsey, a Venezuela expert at Washington Office on Latin America..., said the legal protective status was generally more durable than a presidential order...." An AP report is here.
Eric Lipton of the New York Times: "The Biden administration moved on Monday to reimpose financial sanctions on an Israeli mining executive who had turned to a team of lobbyists to have the measures eased during ... Donald J. Trump's final days in office. The reversal came after a chorus of complaints from human rights advocates, members of Congress and activists in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the businessman, Dan Gertler, secured access to mining rights for decades through what the Treasury Department during the Trump administration called a series of corrupt deals that had shortchanged Congo of more than $1.3 billion in revenue from the sale of minerals."
Dino Grandoni & Juliet Eilperin of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration took a crucial step Monday toward approving the nation's first large-scale offshore wind farm about 12 nautical miles off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, Mass., a project that officials say will launch a massive clean-power expansion in the fight against climate change. In completing a final environmental review of Vineyard Wind, the Interior Department endorsed an idea that had been conceived two decades ago but had run into a well-funded and organized opposition from waterfront property owners near the tony island, including then-Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D), who died in 2009, and the billionaire industrialist William I. Koch. The $2.8 billion project is set to be built several miles south of the original plan fought by the Kennedy family and will be out of sight from the family's Hyannis compound.... Vineyard Wind awaits a final greenlight from several federal agencies, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which could come as soon as next month." MB: Remember that Trump said the noise from the turbines cause cancer & also causes you to miss your favorite teevee show when the wind dies down. ~~~
~~~ This, however, is true: "A Stanford University researcher concluded that wind farms kill birds at a rate of 0.28 bird deaths per gigawatt-hour (GWh) of energy produced -- lower than nuclear power stations (0.41) but higher than fossil fuel generators (0.17). Researchers noted those rates do not take the impact climate change has on bird habitats into account. Information on mortality rates with offshore turbines is incomplete." So maybe concerns about bird mortality are what inspired the following: ~~~
~~~ For the Birds. Matthew Brown & John Flesher of the AP: "The Biden administration on Monday reversed a policy imposed under ... Donald Trump that drastically weakened the government's power to enforce a century-old law that protects most U.S. bird species. Trump ended criminal prosecutions against companies responsible for bird deaths that could have been prevented. The move halted enforcement practices under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in place for decades -- resulting most notably in a $100 million settlement by energy company BP after the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill killed about 100,000 birds, according to federal data. Some scientists have said that number could be higher. A federal judge in New York in August struck down the Trump administration's legal rationale for changing how the bird treaty was enforced."
Dog Bites Man. Exiled to Delaware. Katie Rogers of the New York Times: "President Biden's two German shepherds have been moved to the family home in Delaware after one of the animals showed ongoing aggressive behavior to White House staff, according to a news report. A report published by CNN on Monday evening said that the dogs, Champ and Major, had been moved after Major had what one person described as a 'biting incident' with a member of the White House's security staff.... A person familiar with the dogs' whereabouts said that Champ and Major had been moved to the family home in Delaware, but added that it was typical for them to stay there when Jill Biden, the first lady, was traveling." CNN's story is here. MB: BTW, this is sort of a big story in Right Wing World. Maybe they'll try to conjure up a "mean dog" scandal.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Tuesday are here.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Monday are here. They include news of the new CDC guidelines for vaccinated people. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The Washington Post's live updates for Monday are here.
** Lena Sun & Lenny Bernstein of the Washington Post: "Federal health officials released guidance Monday that gives fully vaccinated Americans more freedom to socialize and pursue routine daily activities, providing a pandemic-weary nation a first glimpse of what a new normal may look like in coming months. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said people who are two weeks past their final shot face little risk if they visit indoors with unvaccinated members of a single household at low risk of severe disease, without wearing masks or distancing. That would free many vaccinated grandparents who live near their unvaccinated children and grandchildren to gather for the first time in a year. Long-distance travel is still discouraged, however. The CDC also said fully vaccinated people can gather indoors with those who are also fully vaccinated. And they do not need to quarantine, or be tested after exposure to the coronavirus, if they have no symptoms." This article is free to nonsubscribers. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ The CDC's new guidelines for vaccinated people are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Tony Romm & Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "House lawmakers are set to vote as soon as Tuesday on a roughly $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package, putting President Biden on track to sign his first major legislative accomplishment into law by the end of the week. Democrats in the chamber are expected to approve the bill -- which includes a dramatic expansion of pandemic aid and federal safety net programs -- despite changes to critical elements of the stimulus adopted by the Senate over the weekend." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Karoun Demirjian of the Washington Post: "A review of security at the U.S. Capitol commissioned after the deadly riot on Jan. 6 found that Capitol Police are too 'understaffed, insufficiently equipped, and inadequately trained' -- and woefully lacking in intelligence capabilities -- to protect Congress from a similar future attack. The 15-page draft report from retired Army Lt. Gen Russel Honoré, whom House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) tasked last month with leading the security review, outlines recommendations to address the identified shortfalls in physical and operational security. But it is unclear whether a divided Congress will heed the guidance or whether the report ... will become the latest flash point in an increasingly partisan debate over how thoroughly lawmakers should enhance the Capitol's fortifications -- and how much money they should spend.... Honoré and his team spent Monday briefing rank-and-file House lawmakers about the report's contents. According to their findings, threats to lawmakers have increased fourfold since a year ago, both within D.C. and in members' home states."
Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "A Missouri man who prosecutors say threatened to lynch a Black congressman the day after the Jan. 6 siege at the U.S. Capitol and a Jewish congressman in 2019 was ordered by a federal judge on Monday to remain in custody. The man, Kenneth R. Hubert, made the menacing comments toward the two Democratic representatives, Emanuel Cleaver II of Missouri and Steve Cohen of Tennessee, according to prosecutors, who contended that Mr. Hubert's release on bond would present a danger to the community."
Rachel Weiner, et al., of the Washington Post: "A man linked by prosecutors to the Oath Keepers and Republican strategist Roger Stone was arrested Monday in New York and charged with criminal involvement in the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. Roberto Minuta, 36, of Texas is accused of obstructing the formal counting of presidential election votes, trespassing and attempting to cover up his crimes. He was ordered released on a $125,000 bond over the objections of federal prosecutors.... [Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin] Gianforti said Minuta came to the Capitol dressed in gear identifying him as a member of the right-wing Oath Keepers group -- citing a video in which he appears with Stone that morning. Federal prosecutors have alleged that members of the Oath Keepers conspired to storm the Capitol to prevent President Biden from taking office. Minuta was carrying a firearm and pepper or bear spray on Jan. 6, according to prosecutors; he was also armed when he was arrested Saturday at his tattoo parlor in New York. Upon his arrest, he questioned why antifa and Black Lives Matter adherents were not being targeted instead, Gianforti said."
The Party of White Supremacists. Christopher Mathias of the Huffington Post: "Rep. Paul Gosar (R-Ariz.) posted on Twitter the motto of a white nationalist group on Sunday, a little over a week after delivering the keynote address at the group's conference in Florida. '#AmericaFirst,' Gosar tweeted above a meme showing a cartoon of what appears to be a sex worker leaning into a man's car and saying, '$50 WHATEVER YOU WANT BABY.' The man sitting in the car replies: 'CAN YOU ... TELL EVERYONE AMERICA FIRST IS INEVITABLE.' 'America First is inevitable' is the motto of the 'America First' white nationalist movement headed by the racist and anti-Semitic podcaster Nick Fuentes." MB: Gosar's Congression colleagues don't seem a bit concerned about his extensive association with the white supremacist group, though they would like to get rid of members who voted to impeach terrorist-inciter Donald Trump.
Peniel Joseph, in a CNN opinion piece: "While Americans should rightfully applaud (and many are) the voter rights advocacy and organizing done by Stacey Abrams, the voter education campaign waged by the WNBA and LeBron James' continued investment in protecting the franchise for African Americans, the fact that they have to do such work almost 60 years after the Voting Rights Act is a national tragedy.... It is no accident that the White siege at the US Capitol building took place the day after Black voters in Georgia helped elect the first Black senator and gave Democrats a razor-thin Senate majority.... Contemporary voter suppression efforts are simply updated disenfranchisement techniques first institutionalized during the 19th century and now, through the assistance of the former president, the Republican Party and right-wing media outlets, buffed and polished to a high gloss that normalizes anti-Black racism through lies about voter fraud and cheating inevitably occurring wherever Black votes are cast." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Joe Biden isn't helping. In the past 24 hours, I have twice heard his press secretary Jen Psaki insist President Biden opposes eliminating the filibuster. Psaki doesn't hedge the way even Joe Manchin does; she flat-out says Biden is against dumping the filibuster and biparitisanship, blah-blah. The House's voting rights act will not pass in the Senate if at least ten Republican votes are required.
Senate Race 2022. Buh-bye: the Trump Effect. Nicholas Fandos of the New York Times: "Roy Blunt of Missouri, the No. 4 Senate Republican, announced on Monday that he would not seek re-election in 2022, the latest in a string of party veterans who have opted to exit Congress as the G.O.P. remakes itself in the mold of ... Donald J. Trump. Mr. Blunt, a fixture of the Republican establishment, had told reporters in January that he was planning to run for a third term and had taken steps to avoid alienating the former president. But with his surprise announcement on Monday, he joined a growing group of institutionalists who have chosen to leave rather than potentially subject themselves to party primaries that promise to be contests of which candidate can tie himself more closely to Mr. Trump." ~~~
~~~ Marie: This is hilarious. Republicans are so concerned that they might cross the former Lord High Executive* that they're quitting rather than risk Trump's humiliating them. As Brian Williams said, Blunt "became a full-on Trumper." But that's not enough. Mitch was worried Trump would hurt his attempts to become majority leader again? Ha ha. Trump is already doing it, discouraging even fullblown Trumpists from seeking re-election. In place of the old guard turned Trump apologists, Fandos writes, "... has emerged a crop of Trump acolytes who have mirrored the former president's combative style, shunned compromise with Democrats and so far been more willing to buck Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the long-serving top Republican leader with whom Mr. Blunt closely allied himself."
The Former Guy
The Grifter-in-Chief Demands: Send Me the Money. Jill Colvin of the AP: "The Republican National Committee is defending its right to use ... Donald Trump's name in fundraising appeals after he demanded they put an end to the practice. In a Monday letter to Trump attorney Alex Cannon, RNC chief counsel J. Justin Riemer said the committee 'has every right to refer to public figures as it engages in core, First Amendment-protected political speech' and said 'it will continue to do so in pursuit of these common goals.' But he maintained that Trump had also 'reaffirmed' to the chair of the RNC, Ronna McDaniel, over the weekend 'that he approves of the RNC's current use of his name in fundraising and other materials, including for our upcoming donor retreat event at Palm Beach at which we look forward to him participating.' Trump responded to the letter with a statement that put that agreement in doubt. 'No more money for RINOS'..., he stated. 'They do nothing but hurt the Republican Party and our great voting base -- they will never lead us to Greatness.' He instead again urged his supporters to send their contributions directly to his own Save America PAC by using his personal website, adding, 'We will bring it all back stronger than ever before!'" ~~~
~~~ MEANWHILE. Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "The Republican National Committee is moving part of its spring donor retreat next month to Mar-a-Lago from a nearby hotel for a dinner speech that will be headlined by ... Donald Trump, according to Republicans involved in the planning of the event. The move, which highlights the former president's continued grip over the GOP, comes amid a spat over the use by RNC and other Republican organizations of Trump's likeness and image in fundraising, as well as anxiety about how Trump plans to use his influence in the 2022 midterms." The Raw Story has a summary report here. ~~~
Kara Scannell of CNN: "The Manhattan district attorney's office subpoenaed documents from an investment company that loaned the Trump Organization millions of dollars for its Chicago skyscraper in a sign that the investigation into the former president's finances continues to expand, according to people familiar with the investigation. Prosecutors issued the grand jury subpoena to Fortress Investment Management late last year, the people said, as part of their wide-ranging investigation into ... Donald Trump and his company. Investigators' interest in how Trump and his company treated the Chicago loan is an expansion of an inquiry that encompasses multiple aspects of the Trump business." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I did see a couple of media stories yesterday about how Trump is returning to New York City for a brief visit, for the first time since he left D.C. under duress. I ignored the stories, because I don't care, but at the end of yesterday's Comments thread, unwashed did speculate as to why Trump might visit the home town where he is so unwelcome. I endorse any & all of unwashed's best guesses.
Trump Requests Mail-in Ballot. Hannah Morse of the Palm Beach Post: "... Donald Trump is set to fulfill his civic duty as a private citizen and vote in the town of Palm Beach's municipal election. Despite his false claims about mail voting during the 2020 election cycle, Trump requested a mail ballot on Friday for the third time in his Palm Beach County voter history."
Beyond the Beltway
Georgia. Voter Suppression, Jim Crow-style. Ari Berman of Mother Jones: "Following unexpected Democratic victories in Georgia in November and January, Republicans in the state Senate voted Monday to significantly curtail the right to vote. On Monday afternoon, the legislators approved a bill repealing no-excuse absentee voting, which 1.3 million voters used to cast ballots by mail in 2020, including 450,000 Republicans. They were also set to consider a bill on Monday evening ending automatic voter registration, which 5 million of the state's 7.6 million voters used to register since it was implemented in 2016. The Senate bills follow the passage of a sweeping House bill last week that cuts weekend voting days -- including on Sundays, when Black churches hold 'Souls to the Polls' get-out-the-vote drives -- restricts the use of mail ballot drop boxes, prevents counties from accepting grants from nonprofits to improve their elections, adds new voter ID requirements for mail ballots, gives election official less time to send out mail ballots and voters less time to return them, and even makes it a crime to distribute food and water to voters waiting in line. Collectively, these bills represent the most sustained effort to roll back access to the ballot in Georgia since the Jim Crow era. The same is true nationally, where Republicans have introduced 253 bills in 43 states in the first two months of this year to make it harder to vote." ~~~
~~~ Iowa. Voter Suppression, Ignoramus-style. Stephen Gruber-Miller of the Des Moines Register: "Four months after Iowans voted in record numbers, Gov. Kim Reynolds [R] has signed legislation cutting the state's early voting period and closing the polls an hour earlier on Election Day. The Iowa Legislature approved the measure and sent it to Reynolds' desk late last month. Every Republican present for debate in the House and Senate voted for the legislation. Every Democrat voted against it. Reynolds, a Republican, signed the law Tuesday. Iowa is among a national wave of Republican-led states whose leaders have expressed concerns about the integrity of the 2020 elections, taking the lead from ... Donald Trump, who falsely claimed the election was stolen from him. States such as Florida and Georgia have undertaken high-profile efforts to limit absentee voting after the practice surged in 2020." MB: "Expressed concern," my ass. Please tell me how cutting voting hours shows concern for election integrity. C'mon, try.
Iowa. What First Amendment? Ryan Foley of the AP: "Advocates for journalism and human rights in the U.S. and abroad have pressed Iowa authorities to drop the charges [against Des Moines Register reporter Andrea Sahouri], arguing that Sahouri was simply doing her job by documenting the newsworthy event. Iowa Democrats have blasted one of their own, longtime Polk County Attorney John Sarcone, for pursuing the case. [Sahouri's then-boyfriend Spenser Robnett, who came to her rescue when Des Moine police officer Des Moines Officer Luke Wilson pepper-sprayed her. He is also on trial.]... Prosecutors pressed ahead with their case despite local, national and international pressure to drop the rare effort to punish a working reporter.... Wilson testified on the first day of trial for Sahouri and Robnett on misdemeanor charges of failure to disperse and interference with official acts." The Washington Post's story is here.
New York. Jesse McKinley & Luis Ferré-Sadurní of the New York Times: "The New York State attorney general has named Joon H. Kim, a former acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Anne L. Clark, an employment discrimination lawyer, to lead the investigation into sexual harassment accusations made against Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo. The selection of the lawyers, who will be armed with subpoena power, clears the way for investigators to begin looking into Mr. Cuomo, a third-term Democrat who has seen his political fortunes hammered in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment and other questionable behavior toward young women." ~~~
~~~ David Goodman & Jesse McKinley of the New York Times: "The publisher of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo's book on his leadership during the pandemic said it had stopped promoting the title because of an inquiry into the withholding of data on the deaths of nursing home residents. Sales of the book, 'American Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the Covid-19 Pandemic,' had already slowed severely as the governor found himself embroiled in overlapping crises of his own making, including a drumbeat of accusations about his inappropriate behavior toward younger women and his aides' manipulation of nursing home data." A Mediaite summary story is here.
U.K. The Melancholy Wives of Windsor. Sarah Lyall of the New York Times: "While the British tabloids like to cast Meghan in the villainous role of the Duchess of Windsor -- the American divorcée who lured away their king in 1936 and lived with him in bitter exile, causing an irreparable family rift -- Harry and Meghan seem determined to position her instead as a latter-day Diana, a woman mistreated by her in-laws, more sinned against than sinning.... [Harry] raised the subject again on Sunday, drawing parallels between the experiences of his mother and his wife and saying, of Diana, that he has 'felt her presence through this whole process.'... 'What I was seeing was history repeating itself,' he said, though he described the treatment of Meghan as 'far more dangerous' because of the ubiquity of social media and the corrosive element of racism.... It felt Shakespearean, the sense of history repeating itself through the immutable structure of a royal lineage and an ancient institution.... Meghan's discussion in the interview of her mental health struggles as a royal wife, of loneliness and desolation and thoughts of suicide, was reminiscent of Diana's account of the bulimia and depression that consumed her during her own marriage. Both women said they had desperately sought help from the family, only to be ignored and rebuffed." ~~~
~~~ The British Tabloids Are Not Amused. Piers Morgan, for instance, writes in the Daily Mail that the interview was nauseating. Other adjectives that comprised his "initial thoughts": "Sickening. Shameful. Self-pitying. Salacious. Scandalous. Sanctimonious. Spectacularly self-serving." Okay, thanks, Piers.
News Lede
New York Times: "Roger Mudd, the anchorman who delivered the news and narrated documentaries with an urbane edge for three decades on CBS, NBC and PBS and conducted a 1979 interview that undermined the presidential hopes of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, died on Tuesday at his home in McLean, Va. He was 93."
Share Article