The Conversation -- January 9, 2024

Phil Williams of WTVF-TV Nashville: "A nonpartisan watchdog group has asked a federal ethics agency to investigate Tennessee Congressman Andy Ogles [R] over $1 million of discrepancies in financial disclosures he was required to file with the U.S. House. The Campaign Legal Center (CLC) repeatedly cites NewsChannel 5's reporting in the complaint that was filed Tuesday with the Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), comparing Ogles' conduct to disgraced New York Congressman George Santos. NewsChannel 5 Investigates discovered that, like Santos, Ogles has misrepresented his educational and business credentials.... Specifically, in its complaint, the CLC notes the Maury County Republican's claim to have personally loaned $320,0000 to his 2022 campaign for Congress, 'but Rep. Ogles' financial disclosure reports do not disclose assets that would allow him to make this loan.' As NewsChannel 5 previously reported, on financial disclosures filed with the U.S. House of Representatives, Ogles did not disclose any checking or savings accounts."

Alex Gangitano of the Hill: "President Biden's reelection campaign bashed former President Trump on Tuesday after he said he hoped the U.S. economy would crash in the next 12 months, arguing he doesn't care about people. 'Donald Trump should just say he doesn't give a damn about people, because that's exactly what he's telling the American people when he says he hopes the economy crashes. In his relentless pursuit of power and retribution, Donald Trump is rooting for a reality where millions of Americans lose their jobs and live with the crushing anxiety of figuring out how to afford basic needs,' campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez said. Trump, in an interview with former Fox Business Network host Lou Dobbs on a network launched by MyPillow founder Mike Lindell, called the economy 'fragile' and said he is hoping for a crash within the year. 'And when there's a crash -- I hope it's going to be during this next 12 months because I don't want to be Herbert Hoover,' Trump said in the interview that aired Monday night. 'The one president I just don't want to be, Herbert Hoover.' Former President Hoover had been in office for just a few months when the stock market crashed in 1929, triggering the Great Depression."

Helene Cooper & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has been hospitalized for the past week because of complications after he had prostate cancer surgery, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center said in a statement on Tuesday. A hospital official said Mr. Austin was admitted on Jan. 1 with severe abdominal, hip and leg pain after he underwent what the hospital characterized as a 'minimally invasive surgical procedure' known as a prostatectomy, the week before. The defense secretary, who had developed an infection, was put in intensive care, where excess abdominal fluid was drained. Since then, 'his infection has cleared,' according to the statement, from Dr. John Maddox and Dr. Gregory Chesnut at Walter Reed. Mr. Austin's prostate cancer was detected early and his prognosis was 'excellent,' they said. John F. Kirby, a White House spokesman, said Tuesday that the White House had only learned that day about the diagnosis of prostate cancer." ~~~

~~~ Peter Baker of the New York Times: "The White House ordered cabinet secretaries on Tuesday to keep President Biden's staff informed when they may not be able to perform their duties after Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III was hospitalized for several days last week without telling the president or his staff. In a memo, Jeffrey D. Zients, the White House chief of staff, directed cabinet officers to evaluate their current policies for delegating authority when a secretary is incapacitated and to forward those procedures to the White House for review. In the meantime, Mr. Zients made clear that White House officials expected to be kept up to date about developments like major medical issues." ~~~

~~~ Earlier Tuesday Afternoon. Courtney Kube & Rebecca Shabad of NBC News: " Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December and underwent a minimally invasive procedure to treat and cure it, according to a statement from Walter Reed National Military Center officials on Tuesday. 'Secretary Austin recovered uneventfully from his surgery and returned home the next morning. His prostate cancer was detected early, and his prognosis is excellent,' the officials said. Austin was then admitted to Walter Reed on Jan. 1 'with complications from the December 22 procedure, including nausea with severe abdominal, hip, and leg pain,' the officials said." At 2:30 pm ET Tuesday, this was a breaking story; a Pentagon briefing is to be held soon.

Zinger of the Day: I think it's paradoxical to say that his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed allows him to violate criminal law. -- Appeals Court Judge Karen Henderson, an George H.W. Busha appointee, during oral arguments Tuesday ~~~

~~~ Eric Tucker, et al., of the AP: "With Donald Trump present for the first time in months, federal appeals court judges in Washington expressed deep skepticism Tuesday that the former president was immune from prosecution on charges that he plotted to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The panel of three judges, two of whom were appointed by President Joe Biden, also questioned whether they had jurisdiction to consider the appeal at this point in the case, raising the prospect that Trump's effort could be dismissed. During lengthy arguments, the judges repeatedly pressed Trump's lawyer to defend claims that Trump was shielded from criminal charges for acts that he says fell within his official duties as president....

“Judges [Karen] Henderson and Florence Pan noted the lawyer representing Trump during his impeachment trial suggested that he could later face criminal prosecution, telling senators at the time: 'We have a judicial process in this country. We have an investigative process in this country to which no former officer holder is immune.' 'It seems that many senators relied on that in voting to acquit' Trump, Pan told [Trump's lawyer John] Sauer. J. Michelle Childs also questioned why former President Richard Nixon would need to be granted a pardon in 1974 ... if former presidents enjoy immunity from prosecution.... After the arguments, Trump spoke to reporters at The Waldorf-Astoria hotel, which used to be the Trump International Hotel, calling it 'a very momentous day.' He insisted he did nothing wrong and claimed he was being prosecuted for political reasons. 'A president has to have immunity,' he said."

The New York Times is liveblogging the D.C. Appeals Court hearing of Donald Trump's claim of immunity. The Times is also livestreaming the audio at the linked page; so are MSNBC, CNN & C-SPAN. (Apparently C-SPAN has to be "authenticated." The C-SPAN site is live-transcribing the lawyers' & judges' remarks.) ~~~

     ~~~ CNN's liveblog is here. ~~~

~~~ From the NYT liveblog:

This item, by Charlie Savage, profiles the three judges hearing the case.

Alan Feuer: "... the remarkable thing that [Trump's attorney] John Sauer just said: He is claiming that a president could order an elite commando unit to assassinate a political rival and not be criminally prosecuted unless he was first found guilty at an impeachment proceeding."

Adam Liptak: "Judge Pan says Sauer has conceded that there is no 'absolute immunity' because prosecution after impeachment and conviction is permissible." [MB: Ergo, Sauer seems to have conceded his own argument that jeopardy attaches to impeachment; that is, if there is one circumstance in which impeachment does not create jeopardy, then impeachment itself is not a proceeding to which jeopardy attaches.]

Feuer: "In general, the two Democratic appointees on the three-judge panel -- Childs and Pan -- are asking pretty tough questions, challenging Trump's immunity defense."

Savage: "Judge Pan and Judge Henderson are asking about a statement a lawyer for Trump made during his impeachment that he should not be impeached because he would be subject to prosecution after he left office." Feuer: "Sauer does not have a very strong answer to this query. He simply says that whatever Trump argued during impeachment isn't really relevant to these arguments."

Savage: "In an ominous sign for Trump, Judge Henderson, who has been among the judges more likely to rule in ways favorable to him on the D.C. Circuit, says, 'I think it's paradoxical to say that his constitutional duty to "take care that the laws be faithfully executed" allows him to violate criminal law.'"

Savage: "Both sides [prosecution & Trump] agreed the courts should decide the merits of the issue now, rather than waiting until after any trial. The three judges on the appeals court panel seemed to signal skepticism with Trump's arguments, although the sole Republican appointee, Judge Karen Henderson, appeared worried about unleashing the 'floodgates' of former presidents being routinely prosecuted in the future. We're waiting to see if Trump will speak."

Maggie Haberman: "Trump appeared briefly at the Waldorf Astoria hotel, formerly the Trump hotel. By his side was one of his lawyers, John F. Lauro, who said, 'We can't have a country where every four years there&'s a cycle of political recrimination.'" [MB: So no to "recrimination," but "retribution" is A-OK.]

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Helene Cooper & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "Four top aides to Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III were informed last Tuesday that he had been hospitalized a day earlier but did not notify the White House until two days later, the Pentagon said on Monday. The aides were made aware last Tuesday that Mr. Austin was rushed by ambulance to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., but said nothing to White House officials, awaiting updates on the secretary's medical condition, Maj. Gen. Patrick S. Ryder, the Pentagon spokesman, told reporters. In addition to General Ryder, the aides are Kelly E. Magsamen, Mr. Austin's chief of staff, and Lt. Gen. Ronald Clark, the secretary's senior military aide. General Ryder said that a fourth aide, Chris Meagher, the assistant to the secretary for public affairs, notified him.... The Defense Department is conducting an internal review of the processes and procedures for notifying the White House and Congress should a defense secretary be hospitalized or otherwise incapacitated, General Ryder said.... Mr. Austin remained in the hospital on Monday but was in 'good condition' and conducting official business, General Ryder said."

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "Congress on Monday began an uphill push to pass a new bipartisan spending agreement into law in time to avoid a partial government shutdown next week, with Speaker Mike Johnson encountering stiff resistance from his far-right flank to the deal he struck with Democrats. Ultraconservative House Republicans have panned the $1.66 trillion agreement Mr. Johnson made with Senator Chuck Schumer, the New York Democrat and majority leader, saying it is unacceptable. The agreement essentially hews to the bargain that Congress passed last year to suspend the debt ceiling, which the hard right opposed at the time and had hoped to scale back. It also includes $69 billion in spending that was added as a side deal, money that conservatives sought to block altogether."

Immunity? Ha Ha Ha. Adam Klasfeld of the Messenger: "Donald Trump on Monday lost again in the former president's bid to swat away E. Jean Carroll's defamation lawsuit on the grounds of federal immunity, setting the stage for a potential last-minute petition to the U.S. Supreme Court before a trial that's scheduled to begin next week in Manhattan federal court. In a single-page order, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit declined to rehear Trump's case before the full 13-judge bench, a maneuver known as an en banc appeal. No active judge from the appellate court called for a vote on the matter, according to the ruling."

Meanwhile, in Georgia.... I'm IMU-U-U-UNE! Zachary Cohen of CNN: "... Donald Trump is seeking to have the sweeping criminal conspiracy case against him in Georgia thrown out by arguing he is protected from prosecution under presidential immunity. Trump's immunity claims in the Georgia case, filed on Monday as part of a motion to dismiss state-level criminal charges against the former president, are similar to those argued by his defense team in the federal election subversion case.... Trump's attorney argues that the specific acts in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' indictment 'lie squarely within the "outer perimeter" of the President's official duties.'... On Tuesday, the DC US Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments by attorneys for Trump and special counsel Jack Smith over the same two claims of immunity, a hearing Trump himself is set to attend." (Also linked yesterday.)

Richard Fausset of the New York Times: "A lawyer for one of the defendants charged along with ... Donald J. Trump in the Georgia election interference case said in a court filing on Monday that the district attorney overseeing the case, Fani T. Willis, had engaged in a 'clandestine' relationship with the special prosecutor she hired to help handle it. The filing, from a lawyer representing Michael A. Roman, a former Trump campaign official, provided no proof of the relationship or other claims it contained. It argued that the relationship should disqualify Ms. Willis, her office and the special prosecutor, Nathan Wade, from prosecuting the case. The defense lawyer, Ashleigh B. Merchant, also wrote that Ms. Willis, the district attorney in Fulton County, Ga., was 'profiting significantly from this prosecution at the expense of the taxpayers,' charging that Ms. Willis and Mr. Wade had taken vacations together with money he made working for her office." The CBS News story is here.

Lazaro Gamio & Karen Yourish of the New York Times have constructed a timeline of Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election: "Donald J. Trump pressured state and federal government officials to overturn results of the 2020 election in more than 30 phone calls or meetings, according to The Times's analysis of the indictments related to those efforts.... Most of the officials repeatedly rejected his requests. But Mr. Trump kept asking.... As his efforts with state officials floundered, Mr. Trump tried to persuade Justice Department officials 'to open sham election crime investigations and influence state legislatures with knowingly false claims of election fraud,' prosecutors said.... As Jan. 6 neared, Mr. Trump became determined to persuade Vice President Mike Pence to block congressional certification of Mr. Biden's victory. He conveyed this message in at least nine phone calls and meetings between Dec. 25 and the morning of Jan. 6.... Less than an hour after his [last] call with the vice president, Mr. Trump rallied supporters from a stage near the White House. Soon after, a mob of Trump loyalists stormed and occupied the Capitol, bringing the final electoral count to a halt until order was restored in the building." Emphasis original.

Diana Falzone of Mediaite: "Weeks before the 2020 presidential election, infamous political operative Roger Stone sat across from his associate Sal Greco at a restaurant in Florida. At the time, Greco was an NYPD cop working security for Stone on the side. Their conversation ... focused on two House Democrats for whom Stone harbors particular animosity, Jerry Nadler and Eric Swalwell. In audio of the conversation obtained exclusively by Mediaite, Stone ... [told Greco,] 'It's time to do it.... Let's go find Swalwell.... Then we'll see how brave the rest of them are.... It's either Nadler or Swalwell has to die before the election. They need to get the message. Let's go find Swalwell and get this over with. I'm just not putting up with this shit anymore.' A source familiar with the discussion told Mediate they believed Stone's remarks were serious.... Stone denied making those comments, claiming they were generated by AI. He has previously claimed videos of his comments are actually 'deep fakes.'... Greco did not deny the comments, but said in a text to Mediaite: 'I don't think your reader is interested in ancient political fodder.'" There's more. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Hmmm. Audio? Unless there was a nosyparker sitting in the next booth with a recording device, Greco must have provided the audio.

Presidential Race 2024

Biden on Trump's Lost Cause. Peter Baker of the New York Times: "President Biden sought to rally disaffected Black supporters on Monday with a fiery condemnation of ... Donald J. Trump, linking his predecessor's efforts to overturn the 2020 election to the nation's history of white supremacy in what he called 'the old ghost in new garments.' Speaking from the pulpit of the South's oldest African Methodist Episcopal Church, Mr. Biden drew a direct line from slavery, the Civil War and Jim Crow to the divisions of today. Just as it was a 'self-serving lie' to call the Confederate rebellion a 'noble cause,' the president called Mr. Trump's insistence that he won the election an effort to rewrite history.... The president also took a shot at Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor.... 'Let me be clear, for those who don't seem to know: Slavery was the cause of the Civil War,' Mr. Biden said to applause from the audience." ~~~

     ~~~ Here's an excerpt. Sorry about the image of Fuckface Von Clownstick:

~~~ Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: President "Biden has set himself the task of trying to jolt the country out of its learned helplessness in the face of Trump's exhausting provocations.... On Monday, Biden gave his second campaign speech of the year, at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C., site of a racist mass murder in 2015. It was ostensibly about white supremacy, but its real theme was truth, and the way historical fictions from the Lost Cause of the Confederate South to Trump's big lie about the 2020 election license tyranny and oppression."

Isaac Arnsdorf & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump is expected to return Tuesday to the federal courthouse in Washington where he was arraigned in August on charges of interfering with the 2020 election results, making a voluntary appearance just before the Iowa caucuses. His choice ... reflects the bet he and his campaign are placing on blending his criminal defense with his electoral message.... In a fundraising email that distorted the situation, Trump misleadingly claimed to supporters that Biden was 'forcing me into a courtroom in our nation's capital' and distracting him from campaign strategizing. Attending an appellate oral argument is not uncommon but not required.... On Thursday, Trump is expected to attend closing arguments at his civil fraud trial in New York." ~~~

~~~ Summer Concepcion of NBC News: "... Donald Trump on Monday suggested that if he is re-elected he would have President Joe Biden indicted, a day before an appeals court hears arguments on his claim that presidential immunity protects him from prosecution for his role in the Jan. 6 attack. In a post to his Truth Social platform early Monday, Trump said he plans to attend oral arguments on his presidential immunity claim before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Tuesday.... 'Of course I was entitled, as President of the United States and Commander in Chief, to Immunity. I wasn't campaigning, the Election was long over,' he wrote. 'I was looking for voter fraud, and finding it, which is my obligation to do, and otherwise running running our Country.... If I don't get Immunity, then Crooked Joe Biden doesn't get Immunity,' Trump wrote, before criticizing the Biden administration...." ~~~

     ~~~ Stephen Collinson of CNN: "If he were able to establish in the courts, albeit in a long-shot case, that an ex-president is free from prosecution for alleged crimes he committed while in power, he could not only loosen the constitutional guardrails around the office if he wins in November. He could change the way presidents act in the future -- and the extent to which any autocratic instincts can be held in check. Trump has already given a sobering warning of how he would react if his appeal is denied and he ends up back in the White House.... Trump's beliefs, and misunderstanding, of the job of the presidency were perhaps best summed up by his statement in July 2019 that the Constitution gave him untamed power. 'I have an Article II, where I have to the right to do whatever I want as president,' he said. 'But I don't even talk about that.' Article II of the Constitution lays out the duties of the presidency -- but it does not, in conventional interpretations, at least -- suggest unfettered executive authority."

Aishvarya Kavi of the New York Times: "A driver crashed into an exterior gate near the White House shortly before 6 p.m. Monday and was taken into custody, the Secret Service said, adding that the agency was still investigating whether the crash was intentional.... President Biden was not at the White House during the crash." MB: Okay, so maybe not Trump's fault. ~~~

     ~~~ Trump's Fault. Michael Kosnar & Zoe Richards of NBC News: "Special counsel Jack Smith, who is overseeing the prosecution of ... Donald Trump in two federal cases, was the target of an attempted swatting at his Maryland residence on Christmas Day. According to two law enforcement sources, someone called 911 and said that Smith had shot his wife at the address where Smith lives. Montgomery County Police dispatched units toward the home but were called off when the Deputy U.S. Marshals protecting Smith and his family told police that it was a false alarm and that everyone inside the home was safe." ~~~

     ~~~ Trump's Fault. Rebecca Shabad, et al., of NBC News: "Police and fire trucks showed up Sunday night at the house of Tanya Chutkan, the federal judge overseeing ... Donald Trump's election interference case after she appeared to be the target of an attempted 'swatting' attack. Police confirmed to NBC News that they responded to false reports of a shooting at a house that a witness identified as Chutkan's home. A law enforcement official also confirmed that it was Chutkan's home and that she was home when police arrived at her residence." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Maybe you think swatting is a fairly harmless waste of police time and money, but a few people have been killed in the course of swatting incidents.

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California Special House Election. Azi Paybarah of the Washington Post: "California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) called Monday for a special election for May 21 to fill the remainder of the term of former congressman Kevin McCarthy, the California Republican who retired last month after becoming the first House speaker voted out of his leadership position. The primary will take place on March 19, giving candidates in the solidly Republican, Bakersfield area district longer to campaign than many expected. The race has already attracted a competitive field."

Florida. Patricia Mazzei of the New York Times: "The Republican Party of Florida ousted its chairman on Monday, more than a month after the police in Sarasota confirmed that he was under criminal investigation for sexual assault. For weeks, Christian Ziegler, the chairman, resisted calls for him to step down, keeping the scandal in the headlines.... In mid-December, the state party's executive committee censured Mr. Ziegler and stripped him of his duties and annual salary of $120,000 after Gov. Ron DeSantis, Senator Rick Scott and some county-level Republican chairs had urged him to go. Mr. Ziegler was removed by a voice vote of about 200 party members during a meeting in Tallahassee. Only a handful opposed the motion, which included a statement saying that Mr. Ziegler was no longer a member in good standing with the party. He was replaced by Evan Power, the head of the Leon County Republican Party in Tallahassee, who had been the state party's vice chairman." Politico's story is here.

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Israel/Palestine. The Washington Post's live updates of developments Tuesday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top Israeli leaders Tuesday, as part of a tour of the Middle East aimed at defusing regional tensions and preventing the conflict in Gaza from spreading. On the visit, he is seeking to build a consensus on the future governance of the Palestinian enclave as well as increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza and reduce civilian deaths in the fighting.... Israel said it killed a Hezbollah commander in southern Lebanon -- a rare admission of a targeted killing in another country -- calling it 'part of the war.' In response, Hezbollah said it launched a drone attack on a northern Israeli military base Tuesday. Israel's Supreme Court rejected a petition by the Foreign Press Association to allow foreign media to freely enter into Gaza to report on the conflict, Israeli media reported. According to local outlets, the court found that restrictions on press freedom were necessary to protect Israeli military operations." ~~~

     ~~~ The New York Times' live updates for Tuesday are here. CNN's live updates are here: "US President Joe Biden said Monday he's been quietly working to persuade the Israeli government to 'reduce -- significantly get out of Gaza."

News Ledes

Weather, Weather Everywhere. AP: "A sprawling storm hit the South with tornado warnings and high winds that blew roofs off homes, flipped over campers and tossed about furniture in Florida on Tuesday. Another storm brought cities across the Midwest to a standstill with more than half a foot of snow, stranding people on highways as it headed to the Northeast. In the South, the violent storm with 55 mph (88 kph) winds and hail moved through the Florida Panhandle and into parts of Alabama and Georgia by sunrise Tuesday, along with at least several reports of radar-confirmed tornadoes, the National Weather Service said. A wind gust of 106 mph (171 kph) was recorded before dawn near the coast in Walton County, Florida."

Texas. New York Times: "At least 21 people were injured in an explosion that was most likely caused by a gas leak and substantially damaged a hotel in downtown Fort Worth on Monday afternoon, the authorities said. One person was in critical condition and four were seriously injured, the police said in an evening update. Fourteen people were transported to a hospital, and one person went to a hospital on their own, the police said. Earlier, the authorities had said that one person was missing, but they noted later that the person had been found."

New York Times: "Federal investigators said late Monday that it was possible that the bolts that were supposed to keep a fuselage panel in place were never installed before the panel blew off an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 in a near-disastrous accident on Friday night.... United Airlines said it had found loose bolts on similar panels on some of its Max 9 jets while preparing them for inspection after the midair emergency, and Alaska Airlines said it had also found 'loose hardware' on Max 9s."

The Conversation -- January 8, 2024

I'm IMU-U-U-UNE! Zachary Cohen of CNN: "... Donald Trump is seeking to have the sweeping criminal conspiracy case against him in Georgia thrown out by arguing he is protected from prosecution under presidential immunity. Trump's immunity claims in the Georgia case, filed on Monday as part of a motion to dismiss state-level criminal charges against the former president, are similar to those argued by his defense team in the federal election subversion case.... Trump's attorney argues that the specific acts in Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis' indictment 'lie squarely within the 'outer perimeter' of the President's official duties.'... On Tuesday, the DC US Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments by attorneys for Trump and special counsel Jack Smith over the same two claims of immunity, a hearing Trump himself is set to attend."

News Flash! RAS Solves National Mystery. Discovers the Source of Trump's MAGA Dome (related story linked under "Musings of the Mango Moron"):

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Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "Senate and House leaders announced on Sunday that they had struck an overarching agreement on 2024 government funding, but it was not clear whether they would be able to cement the deal and pass it into law in time to avert a partial government shutdown in less than two weeks. After weeks of negotiations and on the eve of Congress returning from its holiday break, top Senate and House members said they had agreed to set the total amount of spending at nearly $1.66 trillion, bringing funding in line with the deal struck last year between President Biden and then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy that met with vehement conservative opposition." (Also linked yesterday.) The AP's story is here.

Kelly Garrity of Politico: "House Speaker Mike Johnson called suggestions that he is an election denier 'nonsense,' but refused to affirm that President Joe Biden won the 2020 election during an interview that aired Sunday. The Constitution was 'clearly violated during the 2020 election,' the Louisiana Republican told CBS' Margaret Brennan during an interview on 'Face The Nation.'... 'The Constitution was violated in the run up to the 2020 election, not always in bad faith, but in the aftermath of Covid, many states changed their election laws in ways that violated that plain language. That's just a fact,' Johnson said. Saying it was now 'water under the bridge,' Johnson noted that he works 'with President Biden as the President of the United States.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Summer Concepcion of NBC News: "Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. [the fourth-ranking House Republican], on Sunday wouldn't commit to certifying the 2024 election results during an interview on NBC News' 'Meet the Press.'... After [host Kristen] Welker pressed her [twice, Stefanik said,] 'We will see if this is a legal and valid election.... What we're seeing so far is that Democrats are so desperate, they're trying to remove President Trump from the ballot. That is a suppression of the American people.'... Stefanik ... said that she did not vote to certify the 2020 results in the state of Pennsylvania and several other states because there were 'unconstitutional acts circumventing the state legislature and unilaterally changing election law.'" (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So now we know the new talking point, one apparently meant to imply that these folks are sane, that they know the vote tallies show Joe Biden won, but that the election itself was illegitimate. Because "Constitutional violations." Because Covid.

Today's Police Blotter -- Congressional Edition. Guardian: "Rightwing US congresswoman Lauren Boebert is denying allegations that she punched her ex-husband in the face in public after police in Colorado were reportedly called out to an encounter involving the pair Saturday night at a restaurant. The Daily Beast .... said that Jayson Boebert called police claiming that he was a 'victim of domestic violence'. In an interview with the Daily Beast, Jayson Boebert alleged that the congresswoman had 'punched' him in the face several times. He claimed to have a witness to the events. 'I didn't punch Jayson in the face and no one was arrested,' Boebert said in a statement provided to reporter Kyle Clark of television station KUSA.... In an interview with the Denver Post, Jayson Boebert said he told police he does not want to press charges. 'I don't want nothing to happen,' Jayson Boebert said. 'Her and I were working through a difficult conversation.'" MB: Me and Jayson says English sentences is hard ti make.

Trump's Former Golf Caddy Talks! Katherine Faulders, et al., of ABC News: "Special counsel Jack Smith's team has uncovered previously undisclosed details about ... Donald Trump's refusal to help stop the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol three years ago as he sat watching TV inside the White House, according to sources.... Many of the exclusive details come from the questioning of Trump's former deputy chief of staff, Dan Scavino.... Scavino wouldn't speak with the House select committee.... Sources said Scavino told Smith's investigators that as the violence began to escalate that day, Trump 'was just not interested' in doing more to stop it.... After unsuccessfully trying for up to 20 minutes to persuade Trump to release some sort of calming statement, Scavino and others walked out of the dining room, leaving Trump alone, sources said. That's when, according to sources, Trump posted a message on his Twitter account saying that Pence 'didn't have the courage to do what should have been done.' Trump's aides told investigators they were shocked by the post." There's more. (Also linked yesterday.)

Musings of the Mango MoronTM Jeanne

Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "Donald Trump is vowing sweeping changes to the nation's economy that threaten to reignite inflation -- even as the former president blames President Biden for higher prices and says he'll bring the problem under control.... Trump has proposed imposing unprecedented new tariffs on trillions of dollars worth of imports and deporting undocumented workers on a vast scale. Both campaign pledges risk exacerbating the price spikes that have subsided over the last year, according to liberal and conservative economists alike, in addition to some estimates cited by the former president's own advisers. If he's elected, Trump could implement these policies at least in part without needing Congress to act." MB: All together now, "Who pays the tariffs? Not China, et al., as Trump claims, but American consumers."

Caleb Howe of Mediaite: "... Donald Trump held multiple rallies in Iowa over the weekend ... and made many campaign promises such as solving the Ukraine war, saving the country from President Joe Biden, and when speaking in Newton, to 'build a giant dome over our country to protect us from a hostile source.'... 'And, you know, those domes are starting to work,' said Trump, referencing defense systems such as Israel's notable 'Iron Dome' and referring back to the 'Star Wars' defense initiative proposed under legendary Cold War victor, Republican President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. Trump then did a small performance complete with the 'bing, bing, bing' sounds to liven up the quiet audience on the subject of a dome. 'You know, when I watch, uh, our guys operate those things, it's unbelievable. Missile coming in, missile coming in. These geniuses sit down. Most of them are, you know, they're from MIT. But they sit down, bing bing bing bing, boom, ph-sheee. It's gone. It's amazing.'" Thanks to Akhilleus for the link. MB: I think Trump understands Israel's "Iron Dome" is not like that fancy silverplate one I put over the turkey to keep it warm after I've taken it out of the oven, but I can't be 100% sure. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: One thing Trump's comical giant-dome promise reinforces besides our confidence in his crazy: he cares nothing about international peace and maintaining relationships with other countries. That's a fatal flaw in any U.S. leader. Here's how Trump justifies his promised multi-trillion-dollar giant dome: "I mean, isn't that better than giving other countries billions of dollars? Billions. We're going to get billions of dollars out of the countries and so they can build a dome, but we don't have a dome ourselves. We're going to have the greatest dome ever." Here again, it's necessary to try to guess what he means, but what I think he means is that he's taking an every-country-for-herself approach to the dysfunctional family of nations. He'll withhold military aid to our allies and let them fend for themselves.

The Art of the Deal. If Only Lincoln Had Been as Smart as Trump. Marianne LeVine of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump suggested Saturday at a campaign event [in Iowa] that the U.S. Civil War 'could have been negotiated,' a remark that drew criticism from historians as well as political opponents. 'The Civil War was so fascinating, so horrible,' Trump said. 'So many mistakes were made. See, there was something I think could have been negotiated, to be honest with you. I think you could have negotiated that. All the people died, so many people died. You know, that was the disaster.' Trump went on to ... suggest that 'Abraham Lincoln, of course, if he negotiated it, you probably wouldn't even know who Abraham Lincoln was.'... David Blight, a history professor at Yale University, described Trump's suggestion that the Civil War could have been negotiated as 'elementary school nonsense' and 'historically ignorant.'... Former House member Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) posted on X: 'Which part of the Civil War "could have been negotiated"? The slavery part? The secession part? Whether Lincoln should have preserved the Union?...'" CNN's story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The odd part about this is that Trump has no idea he embarrasses himself every time he opens his mouth.

Forrest M. pointed out in yesterday's Comments that Trump was not merely a better president* than Lincoln because he would have negotiated the states out of the Civil War before it started. Why, in his spare time, he's a brilliant scientist, too! ~~~

     ~~~ Kelly McClure of Salon: At an event in Iowa (where somehow he got to talking about magnetic elevators): "Trump said, 'Think of it, magnets. Now all I know about magnets is this, give me a glass of water, let me drop it on the magnets, that's the end of the magnets. Why didn't they use John Deere? Why didn't they bring in the John Deere people? Do you like John Deere? I like John Deere.' After a bit more along these same lines, Trump did a little dance and left the stage." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: That's a radical scientific theory, akin to the theory of drinking bleach to cure Covid. Oddly, any number of sciency guys write this, or a variation thereof: "Magnets work great underwater. You can even get special magnets ... to pick up objects containing iron that have fallen into lakes or wells."

Marie: If the late, great Norm Macdonald were saying exactly this stuff, with a twinkle in his eye and a sardonic half-smile, you'd be laughing your head off. When a madman who was president* and might become president* again says it, with no irony intended, it ain't funny, McGee. ~~~

~~~ Presidential Race 2024

Colleen Long & Zeke Miller of the AP: "On Monday, [President] Biden heads to Charleston, South Carolina, to Mother Emanuel AME Church, the site of a 2015 racist massacre in which nine Black churchgoers were shot to death during Bible study. The event comes after a blunt speech by the Democratic president on the eve of the anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol, in which he excoriated ... Donald Trump for 'glorifying' rather than condemning political violence. It's a grim way to kick off a presidential campaign, particularly for a man known for his unfailing optimism and belief that American achievements are limitless. But his campaign advisers and aides say it's necessary to lay out the stakes in unequivocal terms, particularly after a few years without the cultural saturation of Trump's words and actions. And it's an effort to set up the contrast they hope will be paramount to voters in 2024." The New York Times story is here. MB: Wonder if Biden will mention former S.C. Gov. Nikki Slavery-Denier Haley at the site of this racist slaughter.

Maggie Astor of the New York Times: "In a flurry of appearances and commentary, former Representative Liz Cheney has stepped up her denunciations of ... Donald J. Trump in a last-ditch effort to persuade Republicans not to nominate him again. [After remarks on Friday and Saturday (previously reported in stories linked here),] in an interview on Sunday on 'Face the Nation' on CBS News, she denounced Mr. Trump's attempts to end or delay his criminal trials by arguing that he had immunity against charges related to anything he did in office.... 'He's trying to delay his trial because he doesn't want people to see the witnesses who will testify against him,' she continued.... She endorsed efforts to remove him from ballots under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment."

New York Times Editors: "During his many years as a real estate developer and a television personality, then as president and as a dominant figure in the Republican Party, Mr. Trump demonstrated a character and temperament that render him utterly unfit for high office. As president, he wielded power carelessly and often cruelly and put his ego and his personal needs above the interests of his country. Now, as he campaigns again, his worst impulses ... are escalating as he tries to regain power.... Re-electing Mr. Trump would present serious dangers to our Republic and to the world. This is a time not to sit out but instead to re-engage." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The sentiment, "So-and-So is so bad, he could not get elected dogcatcher" is no longer hyperbole. Trump would be such a horrible dogcatcher that the SPCA would bring impeachment proceedings his first week on the job.

Marie: Here's another major difference between the Biden and Trump administrations that I'd sort of forgotten. I was watching a rerun of CNN's special on the insurrection, and it included a clip of former Assistant AG Steven Engel testifying before the January 6 committee that he told Trump on January 3, 2021, "I've been with you through four attorneys general, including two acting attorneys general, but I couldn't be part of this," "this" being the installation of Jeffrey Clark as AG. Trump was always unceremoniously firing top aides & Cabinet members, including the most important Cabinet officer, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, whom Trump reportedly canned while Tillerson was on the can. Contrast this record with a sentence from Missy Ryan's report (linked below): "Almost every seat in [Biden]'s Cabinet is filled by the same person he picked more than three years ago, with loyalty going both ways."

Missy Ryan, et al., of the Washington Post: "President Biden retains confidence in Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, officials said Sunday, despite widespread surprise and consternation following the Pentagon chief's failure to disclose a prolonged hospitalization to the White House or the public last week.... A Pentagon spokesman, Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder, said on Sunday that Austin was transported by ambulance to Walter Reed on Jan. 1 after suffering 'severe pain' following his procedure on Dec. 22. He was placed in intensive care, and then remained there 'in part due to hospital space considerations and privacy,' Ryder said. The days-long silence, a departure from the disclosure that routinely occurs regarding the whereabouts and health conditions of the president and top Cabinet members, elicited bewilderment and frustration across the Biden administration and among leading members of Congress. Even top officials at the White House, including national security adviser Jake Sullivan, were not informed of Austin's hospitalization until late afternoon Jan. 4."

Valerie Gonzolez & Elliot Spagat of the AP: Mexico has increased "enforcement actions that U.S. officials say have contributed to a sharp drop in illegal border crossings. In addition to forcing migrants from trains, Mexico also resumed flying and busing them to the southern part of the country and started flying some home to Venezuela.... Arrests for illegal crossings into the U.S. from Mexico fell to about 2,500 on Monday, down from more than 10,000 on several days in December, according to U.S. authorities."

Christian Davenport of the Washington Post: "A commercial spacecraft bound for the lunar surface lifted off from Cape Canaveral early Monday in the first launch of a U.S. space mission designed to land softly on the moon since the last of the Apollo flights in 1972. The Peregrine spacecraft, designed and operated by Astrobotic, an aerospace company based in Pittsburgh, carries a suite of science experiments but no people. Its launch at 2:18 a.m. Eastern was the first flight of the United Launch Alliance's Vulcan rocket. The launch was only the first step in a perilous and complicated journey to the moon, but if all goes well, the six-foot-tall lander is expected to touch down Feb. 23."

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California. Colbi Edmonds of the New York Times: "California is barred again from enforcing its ban on guns in most public places after a federal appeals court ruled on Saturday that a lower court's block on the ban should stand.... After concealed-carry permit holders and other gun-rights organizations sued the state, arguing that the law was unconstitutional, Judge Cormac J. Carney of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California blocked enforcement of the law, on Dec. 20.... Just last weekend, on Dec. 30, a panel of judges at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit put the injunction on hold, clearing the way for the law to take effect. But on Saturday, a different set of Ninth Circuit judges dissolved that ruling, reinstating the lower court's injunction."

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Israel/Palestine. The Washington Post's live updates of developments Monday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet leaders in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on Monday, as part of a tour of the Middle East that will include a trip to Israel, aimed at preventing the war in Gaza from escalating. The World Health Organization said visits to central Gaza's last functioning hospital, al-Aqsa, revealed 'sickening scenes' of people being treated on blood-streaked floors amid 'troubling reports' of nearby fighting and the forced evacuation of patients and workers.... Speaking in Doha, Qatar, Blinken described the killing of the son of Al Jazeera's Gaza bureau chief as 'an unimaginable tragedy.' Hamza al-Dahdouh, 27, was a reporter like his father.... Israeli forces struck Lebanon overnight, hitting what they said were "Hezbollah targets' near the country's border with Israel...." ~~~

     ~~~ The New York Times' live updates for Monday are here. CNN's live updates are here.

News Ledes

Washington Post: “The door plug that blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight over Portland, Ore., on Friday has been found in a schoolteacher's backyard, amid investigations into the explosive depressurization accident that triggered an emergency landing and resulted in extensive damage to the inside of the Boeing 737-9 Max airplane.... The NTSB ... [had] asked people living or working near the site of the emergency landing to check their rooftops for any fallen parts, and to search their security camera recordings around the time of 5:11 p.m. for any potential evidence that would help investigators.... NTSB investigators were unable to uncover communications from the cockpit voice recorder, which overwrites itself every two hours and was not recovered before the recording had been automatically erased. [NTSB Chair Jennifer] Homendy called on the Federal Aviation Administration to implement a rule that would require the automatic overwrite time to be increased to 25 hours, a standard she said the NTSB has called for and is 'consistent with Europe and many other countries.'" ~~~

     ~~~ CNN's report is here. ~~~

~~~ New York Times: "The Alaska Airlines plane that lost a piece of its fuselage in midair on Friday was not being used in long flights over water because a pressurization warning light had gone off during three recent flights, the National Transportation Safety Board said on Sunday."

New York Times: "A conveyor belt of extreme and powerful weather systems is expected to move across the United States this week, bringing blizzards to the center of the country and heavy rain and flash flooding to the Northeast, forecasters warn." MB: Here in the balmy Northeast, I did get nearly a foot of snow yesterday.

The Conversation -- January 7, 2024

Carl Hulse of the New York Times: "Senate and House leaders announced on Sunday that they had struck an overarching agreement on 2024 government funding, but it was not clear whether they would be able to cement the deal and pass it into law in time to avert a partial government shutdown in less than two weeks. After weeks of negotiations and on the eve of Congress returning from its holiday break, top Senate and House members said they had agreed to set the total amount of spending at nearly $1.66 trillion, bringing funding in line with the deal struck last year between President Biden and then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy that met with vehement conservative opposition."

Kelly Garrity of Politico: "House Speaker Mike Johnson called suggestions that he is an election denier 'nonsense,' but refused to affirm that President Joe Biden won the 2020 election during an interview that aired Sunday. The Constitution was 'clearly violated during the 2020 election,' the Louisiana Republican told CBS' Margaret Brennan during an interview on 'Face The Nation.'... 'The Constitution was violated in the run up to the 2020 election, not always in bad faith, but in the aftermath of Covid, many states changed their election laws in ways that violated that plain language. That's just a fact,' Johnson said. Saying it was now 'water under the bridge,' Johnson noted that he works 'with President Biden as the President of the United States.'" ~~~

~~~ Summer Concepcion of NBC News: "Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. [the fourth-ranking House Republican], on Sunday wouldn't commit to certifying the 2024 election results during an interview on NBC News' 'Meet the Press.'... After [host Kristen] Welker pressed her [twice, Stefanik said,] 'We will see if this is a legal and valid election.... What we're seeing so far is that Democrats are so desperate, they're trying to remove President Trump from the ballot. That is a suppression of the American people.'... Stefanik ... said that she did not vote to certify the 2020 results in the state of Pennsylvania and several other states because there were 'unconstitutional acts circumventing the state legislature and unilaterally changing election law.'" ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So now we know the new talking point, one meant to imply that these folks are sane, that they know the vote tallies show Joe Biden won, but that the election itself was illegitimate because "Constitutional violations." Because Covid.

Trump's Former Golf Caddy Talks! Katherine Faulders, et al., of ABC News: "Special counsel Jack Smith's team has uncovered previously undisclosed details about ... Donald Trump's refusal to help stop the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol three years ago as he sat watching TV inside the White House, according to sources.... Many of the exclusive details come from the questioning of Trump's former deputy chief of staff, Dan Scavino.... Scavino wouldn't speak with the House select committee.... Sources said Scavino told Smith's investigators that as the violence began to escalate that day, Trump 'was just not interested' in doing more to stop it.... After unsuccessfully trying for up to 20 minutes to persuade Trump to release some sort of calming statement, Scavino and others walked out of the dining room, leaving Trump alone, sources said. That's when, according to sources, Trump posted a message on his Twitter account saying that Pence 'didn't have the courage to do what should have been done.' Trump's aides told investigators they were shocked by the post." There's more.

The Art of the Deal. If Only Lincoln Had Been as Smart as Trump. Marianne LeVine of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump suggested Saturday at a campaign event [in Iowa] that the U.S. Civil War 'could have been negotiated,' a remark that drew criticism from historians as well as political opponents. 'The Civil War was so fascinating, so horrible,' Trump said. 'So many mistakes were made. See, there was something I think could have been negotiated, to be honest with you. I think you could have negotiated that. All the people died, so many people died. You know, that was the disaster.' Trump went on to ... suggest that 'Abraham Lincoln, of course, if he negotiated it, you probably wouldn't even know who Abraham Lincoln was.'... David Blight, a history professor at Yale University, described Trump's suggestion that the Civil War could have been negotiated as 'elementary school nonsense' and 'historically ignorant.'... Former House member Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) posted on X: 'Which part of the Civil War "could have been negotiated"? The slavery part? The secession part? Whether Lincoln should have preserved the Union?...'" CNN's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: The odd part about this is that Trump has no idea he embarrasses himself every time he opens his mouth.

Forrest M. points out in today's Comments that Trump was not only a better president* than Lincoln because he would have negotiated the states out of the Civil War before it started. Why, in his spare time, he's a brilliant scientist, too! ~~~

     ~~~ Kelly McClure of Salon: At an event in Iowa (where somehow he got to talking about magnetic elevators): "Trump said, 'Think of it, magnets. Now all I know about magnets is this, give me a glass of water, let me drop it on the magnets, that's the end of the magnets. Why didn't they use John Deere? Why didn't they bring in the John Deere people? Do you like John Deere? I like John Deere.' After a bit more along these same lines, Trump did a little dance and left the stage." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: That's a radical scientific theory, akin to the theory of drinking bleach to cure Covid. Oddly, any number of sciency guys write this, or a variation thereof: "Magnets work great underwater. You can even get special magnets, called retrieving magnets, to pick up objects containing iron that have fallen into lakes or wells."

~~~~~~~~~~

Helene Cooper & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: "It took the Pentagon three and a half days to inform the White House that Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III had been hospitalized on New Year's Day following complications from an elective procedure, two U.S. officials said Saturday. The extraordinary breach of protocol ... has baffled officials across the government, including at the Pentagon. Senior defense officials say Mr. Austin did not inform them until Thursday that he had been admitted to the intensive care unit at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. The Pentagon then informed the White House.... On Saturday night, Mr. Austin issued a mea culpa. 'I recognize I could have done a better job ensuring the public was appropriately informed,' he said in a statement. 'I commit to doing better.' Mr. Austin added, 'This was my medical procedure, and I take full responsibility for my decision about disclosure.' President Biden and Mr. Austin spoke by telephone Saturday night, a U.S. official said, adding that the president was glad to hear that Mr. Austin is recovering. Another official said that the president has full confidence in his defense secretary." Politico's story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Wait a minute. Didn't inform "the public";? Joe Biden isn't "the public." He's Austin's immediate boss and, BTW, President of the United States. There may or may not be a good reason for the defense secretary to keep private a serious medical condition during a time the U.S. is involved in two wars, but it's up to the president to make that determination. Moreover, I don't see how a proper temporary chain of command could have been put in place if the Pentagon didn't know the boss was laid up in an ICU. Austin or a family member should have informed appropriate officials as soon as it was feasible.

Ann Carrns of the New York Times: "The Internal Revenue Service is rolling out a free option for filing federal tax returns this year to some residents of a dozen states.... Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington State and Wyoming are participating.... Last month, the agency published details of its plan to test an in-house filing system, in which taxpayers submit their federal tax returns directly to the agency online at no cost.... The direct file pilot will be open to low- and moderate-income taxpayers with simple returns.... Residents of 12 states are eligible to participate if they meet certain criteria.... While the direct filing system is starting on a limited basis, it has already faced some resistance, particularly from commercial tax-preparation companies.... Many filers already have the option to prepare and submit free electronic returns based on their income, either through I.R.S. Free File, a partnership with do-it-yourself tax software firms, or directly through some commercial providers."

Happy Third Anniversary, Folks! Shania Shelton of CNN: "The FBI on Saturday arrested three people in Florida who were charged in connection with the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021, and were considered fugitives after fleeing from law enforcement. Jonathan Daniel Pollock, Olivia Michele Pollock and Joseph Daniel Hutchinson III were taken into custody early Saturday morning, according to a press release from the FBI. They are scheduled to appear in federal court in Ocala, Florida, on Monday. The arrests come on the third anniversary of the attack on the Capitol."

Melanie Zanona & Kaanita Iyer of CNN: "The Justice Department has released new footage from the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol that shows a dramatic moment of rioters shouting through broken glass at two Republican lawmakers.... In the newly released eight-minute clip, rioters stare down Republican Rep. Troy Nehls of Texas and Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma -- who at that time was a member of the House -- through cracks in the entrance to the House chamber as they face the guns pointed at them by two members of law enforcement.... The video was shot by Damon Beckley, who was found guilty of obstructing the electoral college certification and of civil disorder. Beckley is set to be sentenced in February." Thanks to RAS for the lead. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: I turned on closed captioning because naturally I didn't want to miss a word of this scintillating colloquy, but you can turn off CC. I especially like it that one of the dimwitted insurrectionists call these members of Congress "socialist pigs." Nehls & Mullin are a couple of the most incorrigible goobers on the Hill.

Maegan Vazquez & Marianna Sotomayor of the Washington Post: "House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) will be away from Washington until February so he can receive a stem cell transplant as part of his treatment for blood cancer, further dwindling the House Republicans' narrow majority. Scalise's temporary absence comes as the House is facing down significant deadlines.... Another Republican, Rep. Bill Johnson (Ohio) is retiring later this month to lead Youngstown State University -- narrowing the House GOP's bench further. That means Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) can only afford to lose two members of his party to pass any legislation, or rely on Democratic support for measures."

Presidential Race 2024

The Road to Hell Is Lined with Warning Signs. Cate Cadell of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump did not sign a loyalty oath requested of candidates for election in Illinois that asks, among other things, to swear that they won't support overthrowing the government, according to an analysis of candidate petitions by the local news outlets WBEZ and Chicago Sun-Times.... The loyalty pledge is not required but is a long-standing tradition that candidates undertake as part of that paperwork. Trump has not publicly acknowledged the decision but had signed the oath during his presidential campaigns in 2016 and 2020.... The oath remains enshrined in Illinois law but has been struck down as unconstitutional on free speech grounds in federal courts. Other candidates, including President Biden and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), filed signed oaths along with their petitions, according to the local media reports." Here's the Sun-Times/WBEZ story.

Isaac Arnsdorf & Marianne LeVine of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump observed the third anniversary of the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol by glorifying people charged in the riot, repeating baseless claims that left-wing or government interlopers caused the breach, and attempting to turn the term 'insurrection' against his political opponents. The remarks were part of an ongoing escalation of Trump's and other Republicans' efforts to minimize, justify and deny the violence of three years ago while also defending the Trump supporters who committed it.... 'He's now directly saying that violence and criminality is okay if it's in service of my power,' said Michael K. Miller, a political science professor at George Washington University...."

Matt Viser & Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post: "A few hours after [President] Biden had given a sweeping denunciation of Trump, calling him a sore loser and a threat to American democracy, the former president made fun of Biden's childhood speaking impediment. 'Did you see him? He was stuttering through the whole thing,' Trump said to a chuckling crowd on Friday in Sioux Center, Iowa. 'He's saying I'm a threat to democracy. "He's a threat to d-d-democracy,"' he continued, pretending to stutter. 'Couldn't read the word.' The remark was not true; Biden said the word 'democracy' 29 times in his speech, never stuttering over it. Trump's comment also marked a particularly crass form of politics that he has exhibited throughout his career that places politeness and human decency at the center of the 2024 presidential election.... 'His speeches last about three minutes, you know why? Because he runs out of fuel,' Trump said during a campaign event in Newton, Iowa, on Saturday. (Biden's speech on Friday was 32 minutes.)"

Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Marie: Yesterday I pointed to this New York Times he-said/he-said article as representing one of the worst current examples of both-sider "journalism"; out there. I see that the writers have revised the thrust story by adding this paragraph near the top: "Three years after the former president's supporters stormed the Capitol, Mr. Trump and his campaign are engaged in an audacious and baseless attempt to paint Mr. Biden as the true menace to the nation's foundational underpinnings. Mr. Trump's strategy aims to upend a world in which he has publicly called for suspending the Constitution, vowed to turn political opponents into legal targets and suggested that the nation's top military general should be executed." The Times also changed the headline from "Clashing Over Jan. 6, Trump and Biden Show Reality Is at Stake in 2024," to "Trump Signals an Election Year Full of Falsehoods on Jan. 6 and Democracy." Apparently others also were incensed, at least about the headline. (This is a Daily Beast link; the site is firewalled.) ~~~

     ~~~ Update: See also Marcy Wheeler's critique of recent MSM "journalism" on Biden's speech & Trump's reactions: "The reason Trump projects his own failures on other people is because journalists never fail to reward him for it, presenting his false claims alongside true ones, leaving the impression that truth is up for debate, that professionals are helpless to discern which of these claims are true. Trump's goal is to degrade the very notion of truth. And this kind of journalism only helps him do that." Wheeler also mentions the NYT headline change.

Jamelle Bouie of the New York Times: "Too many commentators have spent too much time fretting over Trump's voters -- and how they might react to the effort to remove the former president from the ballot -- and not enough time thinking about the tens of millions of voters who have said, again and again, that they do not want this man or his movement in American politics.... Trump's voters are not the only ones who count." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Bouie doesn't say so, but I expect a good deal of that "fretting" has to do with the violent propensities of Trumpites, who, besides having no impulse control, don't put much stock in democratic processes. See video above.

~~~~~~~~~~

Florida. Nicolás Rivero of the Washington Post: "In this Florida development, no one pays an electricity bill. It's not because of subsidies, but by design: All of the 86 homes built or planned in Hunters Point, a residential development about an hour south of Tampa, boast 14 solar panels and a 12-kilowatt-hour home battery in the utility closet.... Hunters Point is the first residential development in the world to get a LEED Zero Energy certification, according to the U.S. Green Building Council, which means the entire community produces more electricity than it consumes.... In addition to reducing planet-warming carbon emissions, the solar panels and batteries in the homes at Hunters Point make them less likely to lose power in a storm."

Marie: I told you candidates for public office get disqualified for all kinds of reasons: ~~~

Ohio. Emily Schmall of the New York Times: "A transgender woman was disqualified from a race for the Ohio House of Representatives after she did not include her previous name in election materials, raising the prospect that transgender candidates would face similar barriers elsewhere. Vanessa Joy, a real estate photographer running as a Democrat in Ohio's 50th District, was informed in a letter from the Stark County Board of Elections on Tuesday that she had been disqualified from the state House race. The board cited a state law that requires a person running for office to list on the candidacy petition any name changes within five years of an election, and it gave Ms. Joy until Friday afternoon to appeal. Ms. Joy ... said in an interview that she had appealed the board's decision and planned to challenge the law in court."

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Israel/Palestine. The Washington Post's live updates of developments Sunday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken is visiting the Middle East as the United States seeks to avoid escalation in the region, prioritizing the prevention of a wider war between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, The Washington Post reported. Nearly 90 percent of Gaza's population has been forcibly displaced in three months of war, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said, warning that a famine is looming.... The Israeli military has dismantled Hamas's 'military framework' in northern Gaza, Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, an Israel Defense Forces spokesman, said. The IDF will now focus on similar operations in the Strip's central and southern areas, he said. Israel says it has killed 8,000 Hamas fighters in northern Gaza." ~~~

     ~~~ CNN's live updates for Sunday are here. ~~~

     ~~~ Hagari's assertion notwithstanding, CNN's main-page top left-hand column headline is "Israel is nowhere near destroying Hamas." Rob Picheta: "Now, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) is shifting to a new phase of its war on Hamas in Gaza -- and there are signs its objectives are changing too.... 'IDF leadership understands very well that the most they can do is severely degrade the military capabilities of Hamas,' [Middle-East expert Bilal] Saab said.... And as international pressure increases, so too could domestic unease towards Netanyahu -- an embattled prime minister eager to point to tangible victories. 'There is a race against time,' said Saab, outlining the key questions facing Israel's leadership. 'At what price is this tactical success going to come, and how much time do the Israelis have to achieve that tactical success without suffering from more significant international outrage?'"

News Ledes

New York Times: "The Federal Aviation Administration on Saturday ordered U.S. airlines to stop using some Boeing 737 Max 9 planes until they were inspected, after one of those planes lost a piece of its body in midair, terrifying passengers until the plane landed safely. Alaska and United Airlines on Saturday began canceling dozens of flights after grounding their Max 9 fleets so the planes could undergo the federally mandated inspections."

New York Times: "Maj. Mike Sadler, a World War II navigator on the trackless Sahara of North Africa, who guided Britain's first special forces across sand seas on daring behind-the-lines night raids that blew up enemy aircraft on the ground and troops in their billets, died on Thursday in Cambridge, England. He was 103." MB: This obituary may be nearly half as colorful as Mr. Sadler's exploits, some of which are recounted in a BBC TV series.