The Ledes

Monday, March 3, 2025

New York Times: “Pope Francis had two acute respiratory crises on Monday, the Vatican said, stoking further concerns about the health of the 88-year old pontiff, who has been hospitalized in Rome in serious condition for more than two weeks. The pope has been undergoing treatment for double pneumonia and a complex infection in a Rome hospital, and his condition has been alternating between improvements and setbacks.”

The Wires
powered by Surfing Waves
Help!

To keep the Conversation going, please help me by linking news articles, opinion pieces and other political content in today's Comments section.

Link Code:   <a href="URL">text</a>

OR here's a link generator. The one I had posted died, then Akhilleus found one, but it too bit the dust. He found yet another, which I've linked here, and as of September 23, 2024, it's working.

OR you can always just block, copy and paste to your comment the URL (Web address) of the page you want to link.

Note for Readers. It is not possible for commenters to "throw" their highlighted links to another window. But you can do that yourself. Right-click on the link and a drop-down box will give you choices as to where you want to open the link: in a new tab, new window or new private window.

Thank you to everyone who has been contributing links to articles & other content in the Comments section of each day's "Conversation." If you're missing the comments, you're missing some vital links.

Marie: Sorry, my countdown clock was unreliable; then it became completely unreliable. I can't keep up with it. Maybe I'll try another one later.

 

Public Service Announcement

Zoë Schlanger in the Atlantic: "Throw out your black plastic spatula. In a world of plastic consumer goods, avoiding the material entirely requires the fervor of a religious conversion. But getting rid of black plastic kitchen utensils is a low-stakes move, and worth it. Cooking with any plastic is a dubious enterprise, because heat encourages potentially harmful plastic compounds to migrate out of the polymers and potentially into the food. But, as Andrew Turner, a biochemist at the University of Plymouth recently told me, black plastic is particularly crucial to avoid." This is a gift link from laura h.

Mashable: "Following the 2024 presidential election results and [Elon] Musk's support for ... Donald Trump, users have been deactivating en masse. And this time, it appears most everyone has settled on one particular X alternative: Bluesky.... Bluesky has gained more than 100,000 new sign ups per day since the U.S. election on Nov. 5. It now has over 15 million users. It's enjoyed a prolonged stay on the very top of Apple's App Store charts as well. Ready to join? Here's how to get started on Bluesky[.]"

Washington Post: "Americans can again order free rapid coronavirus tests by mail, the Biden administration announced Thursday. People can request four free at-home tests per household through covidtests.gov. They will begin shipping Monday. The move comes ahead of an expected winter wave of coronavirus cases. The September revival of the free testing program is in line with the Biden administration’s strategy to respond to the coronavirus as part of a broader public health campaign to protect Americans from respiratory viruses, including influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), that surge every fall and winter. But free tests were not mailed during the summer wave, which wastewater surveillance data shows is now receding."

Democrats' Weekly Address

Marie (Feb 23): As far as I can tell, there isn't any. I hope I'm wrong, but it looks like Democrats are so screwed up, they can't even put together a couple of minutes of video to tell us how screwed we are.

Out with the Black. In with the White. New York Times: “Lester Holt, the veteran NBC newscaster and anchor of the 'NBC Nightly News' over the last decade, announced on Monday that he will step down from the flagship evening newscast in the coming months. Mr. Holt told colleagues that he would remain at NBC, expanding his duties at 'Dateline,' where he serves as the show’s anchor.... He said that he would continue anchoring the evening news until 'the start of summer.' The network did not immediately name a successor.” ~~~

~~~ New York Times: “MSNBC said on Monday that Jen Psaki, the former White House press secretary who has become one of the most prominent hosts at the network, would anchor a nightly weekday show in prime time. Ms. Psaki, 46, will host a show at 9 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, replacing Alex Wagner, a longtime political journalist who has anchored that hour since 2022, according to a memo to staff from Rebecca Kutler, MSNBC’s president. Ms. Wagner will remain at MSNBC as an on-air correspondent. Rachel Maddow, MSNBC’s biggest star, has been anchoring the 9 p.m. hour on weeknights for the early days of ... [Donald] Trump’s administration but will return to hosting one night a week at the end of April.”

New York Times: “Joy Reid’s evening news show on MSNBC is being canceled, part of a far-reaching programming overhaul orchestrated by Rebecca Kutler, the network’s new president, two people familiar with the changes said. The final episode of Ms. Reid’s 7 p.m. show, 'The ReidOut,' is planned for sometime this week, according to the people, who were not authorized to speak publicly. The show, which features in-depth interviews with politicians and other newsmakers, has been a fixture of MSNBC’s lineup for the past five years. MSNBC is planning to replace Ms. Reid’s program with a show led by a trio of anchors: Symone Sanders Townsend, a political commentator and former Democratic strategist; Michael Steele, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee; and Alicia Menendez, the TV journalist, the people said. They currently co-host 'The Weekend,' which airs Saturday and Sunday mornings.” MB: In case you've never seen “The Weekend,” let me assure you it's pretty awful. ~~~

     ~~~ AP Update: "Joy Reid is leaving MSNBC, the network’s new president announced in a memo to staff on Monday, marking an end to the political analyst and anchor’s prime time news show."

Y! Entertainment: "Meanwhile, [Alex] Wagner will also be removed from her 9 pm weeknight slot. Wagner has already been working as a correspondent after Rachel Maddow took over hosting duties during ... Trump’s first 100 days in office. It’s now expected that Wagner will not return as host, but is expected to stay on as a contributor. Jen Psaki, President Biden’s former White House press secretary, is a likely replacement for Wagner, though a decision has not been finalized." MB: In fairness to Psaki, she is really too boring to watch. On the other hand, she is White. ~~~

     ~~~ RAS: "So MSNBC is getting rid of both of their minority evening hosts. Both women of color who are not afraid to call out the truth. Outspoken minorities don't have a long shelf life in the world of our corporate news media."

As we watch in horror the rapid destruction of our democratic form of government, it is comforting to remember there is life outside politics. I took a break a while ago to enjoy a brief lesson in the history of the moonwalk: ~~~

But it may go back even further:

And this chronological account is helpful:

New York Times: “Chuck Todd, the former 'Meet the Press' moderator and a longtime fixture of NBC’s political coverage, told colleagues on Friday that he was leaving the network. A nearly two-decade veteran of NBC, Mr. Todd said that Friday would be his last day at NBC.... Mr. Todd, 52, is the latest TV news star to step aside at a moment when salaries are being scrutinized — and slashed — by major media companies. Hoda Kotb exited NBC’s 'Today' show this month, and Neil Cavuto of Fox News and CNN’s Chris Wallace departed their cable news homes late last year.”

CNBC: “ CNN plans to lay off hundreds of employees Thursday [Jan. 23] as it refocuses the business around a global digital audience.... The layoffs come as CNN is rearranging its linear TV lineup and building out digital subscription products. The cuts will help CNN lower production costs and consolidate teams, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic changes. Certain shows that are produced in New York or Washington may move to Atlanta, where production can be done more cheaply, said the people. For the most part, the job cuts won’t affect CNN’s most recognizable names, who are under contract, said the people. CNN has about 3,500 employees worldwide.... NBC News is also planning cuts later this week, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss nonpublic changes. While the exact number couldn’t be determined, the job losses will be well under 50....”

 

Contact Marie

Email Marie at constantweader@gmail.com

Page Links
Wednesday
Mar022011

The Commentariat -- March 3

President Obama’s Press Availability with President Calderón & Statement on Libya:

Neil King & Scott Greenberg of the Wall Street Journal: "Less than a quarter of Americans support making significant cuts to Social Security or Medicare to tackle the country's mounting deficit, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.... In the poll, Americans across all age groups and ideologies said by large margins that it was 'unacceptable'' to make significant cuts in entitlement programs in order to reduce the federal deficit. Even tea party supporters, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin, declared significant cuts to Social Security 'unacceptable.'... Amid the union protests in Wisconsin, the poll found that 62% of Americans oppose efforts to strip unionized government workers of their rights to collectively bargain, even as they want public employees to contribute more money to their retirement and health-care benefits."

Gail Collins: "In honor of Women’s History Month, President Obama ordered up the first report on the status of American women since the one Eleanor Roosevelt prepared for John F. Kennedy. It’s chock full of interesting bits of information." Collins notes that the report findings include the information that women "make an average 80 cents for every $1 that men take home." ...

... That's better than nothing. Karen Garcia takes a look at the Organizing for America internship program -- where interns earn zero & have to pay their own expenses -- & finds that it appears to violate the Department of Labor's "very strict rules about unpaid internships."

Glenn Greenwald. Former Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) pledged last year not be become a lobbyist when he retired from the Senate. So naturally, he has just become the most influential lobbyist of them all: head of the Motion Picture Association of America.

Jack Mirkinson of the Huff Post thinks this clip is interesting because Megyn Kelly of Fox "News" gets in an argument with Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) over Justice Clarence Thomas' obligation -- or not -- to recuse himself from hearing cases involved the Affordable Care Act because of his wife's lobbying efforts against the act & the financial support the couple received from anti-healthcare entities. I think it's interesting for the content:

... AND, speaking of Justice Thomas, Roger Shuler, the Legal Schnauzer, reports that, "U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas should be disbarred for his failure to truthfully complete financial-disclosure forms over a 20-year period, according to a complaint filed by the watchdog group Protect Our Elections (POE). In a bar complaint filed with the Missouri Supreme Court, POE attorney Kevin Zeese says Thomas committed multiple violations of the Missouri Rules of Professional Conduct." The story includes a copy of the complaint. Thanks to Jeanne B. for the link. ...

... What Could Possibly Be Wrong with This? Eric Lipton of the New York Times reports on another Republican husband and wife who are double-teaming to game the system: "Louisiana’s biggest corporate players, many with long agendas before the state government, are restricted in making campaign contributions to Gov. Bobby Jindal. But they can [and do!] give whatever they like to the foundation set up by his wife months after he took office.... [Mrs. Jindal's] foundation has collected nearly $1 million in previously unreported pledges from major oil companies, insurers and other corporations in Louisiana with high-stakes regulatory issues, according to a review by The New York Times.... : A photo of [Gov. Jindal] standing alongside his wife appears on a corporate solicitation page on the foundation Web site, and his chief fund-raiser is listed as the charity’s treasurer on its most recent tax return. A state employee from the governor’s office ... manages the foundation’s books."

Yesterday President Obama presented the 2010 National Medal of Arts & National Humanities Awards. Here's a list of recipients, who include Meryl Streep & Joyce Carol Oates.

Right Wing News

The "Genial" Huck Gets Seriously Racist. Steve Kornacki of Salon: after complaining about the media victimized him for "misspeaking," Huckabee said on a radio show yesterday,

Most of us grew up going to Boy Scout meetings and, you know, our communities were filled with Rotary Clubs, not madrassas.

     (See Right Wing News under yesterday's Commentariat for the backstory.) ...

... In another post, Elliott reports that Huckabee actually wrote about Obama's Mau Mau "connection" in a book titled Simple Government. (Elliott notes that, "Huckabee seems to be throwing around the exotic-sounding term 'Mau Mau' every chance he gets.") After speaking with historian David Anderson about the Brits' brutal suppression of the Mau Maus, Elliott concludes that Huck really has no idea of the history & geography of the Mau Mau Revolution, & the claims in his book about Obama are, in the words of Anderson, "stir-fry crazy."

Constitutional Scholar Sarah Palin attacks the Supreme Court's 8-1 decision in the Westboro Church case. Justin Elliott of Salon parses Palin's understanding of the First Amendment: "... criticism of public figures threatens free speech, but peaceful protests she doesn't like should be banned." ...

... Maybe Palin should have had Adam Serwer of American Prospect explain the ruling to her. He sums up the pages & pages it took Chief Justice Roberts to write the Court's majority opinion:

You don't forfeit your First Amendment rights just by being an asshole. -- Adam Serwer

Local News

This Is a Classic. Brett Dykes of Yahoo News: "A proposed immigration bill in the Texas state House ... would make hiring an 'unauthorized alien' a crime punishable by up to two years in prison and a $10,000 fine, unless that is, they are hired to do household chores...."Rep. Debbie Riddle, a tea party favorite who introduced the bill with its glaring loophole, said through a spokesman "that the exemption was an attempt to avoid 'stifling the economic engine' in Texas, which today is, somewhat ironically, celebrating its declaring independence from Mexico in 1836."

News Ledes

New York Times: "The United States has evidence that a former Federal Bureau of Investigation agent who disappeared in Iran four years ago is alive and being held in the region, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said in a statement on Thursday. The former agent, Robert Levinson, who had worked as a private investigator since leaving the F.B.I., disappeared in March 2007 while on a trip to Kish Island, a Persian Gulf resort that is a smuggling hub."

DOJ Gamble Pays Off. New York Times: Roger Vinson, "a federal judge in Florida, stayed his own ruling against the Obama health care law on Thursday, allowing the act to be carried out as the case progresses through the Courts of Appeal and on to the Supreme Court. The judge, making evident his irritation with the Obama administration, sought to speed the process by conditioning the stay on the Justice Department’s pursuit of an expedited appeal, which he ordered filed within seven days."

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Pressure ratcheted up on absent [Wisconsin] Senate Democrats Thursday, as they were found in contempt by GOP senators and Gov. Scott Walker said he will start sending out layoff notices to state unions and workers by the end of Friday if the standoff over his budget-repair bill isn't resolved." ...

... Politico: "The Wisconsin state Senate passed a resolution ordering the 14 Democratic senators who fled the state two weeks ago to return to the Capitol by late Thursday afternoon or face being taken into custody by police."

New York Times: "President Obama demanded Thursday that the embattled Libyan leader, Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi, 'step down and leave' immediately, and said he would consider a full range of options to stem the bloodshed there, though he did not commit the United States to any direct military action. In his most forceful response to the near-civil war in Libya, Mr. Obama said the United States would consider imposing a 'no-fly zone' over the country — a step his defense secretary, Robert M. Gates, warned a day earlier would carry major risks...." ...

... New York Times: "From the feeble cover of sand dunes, under assault from a warplane overhead and heavy artillery from a hill, rebels in this strategic oil city[of Brega]  repelled an attack by hundreds of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi’s fighters on Wednesday, but air strikes were reported to have resumed on Thursday." ...

... New York Times: "Libyan authorities loyal to Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi have captured three crew members of a Dutch naval helicopter who were rescuing European citizens, last Sunday, the Dutch Defense Ministry said on Thursday, the first report of foreigners being by held in Libya’s bloody and unfolding uprising." ...

... AP: "The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court says he will investigate Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi and his inner circle, including some of his sons, for possible crimes against humanity in the violent crackdown on anti-government protesters."

Washington Post: "A close ally of ousted Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak [-- Ahmed Shafiq --] resigned as the country's prime minister Thursday, an apparent bid to head off demonstrations planned for Friday by activists frustrated with the country's slow pace of reform."

New York Times: "A criminal court agreed on Thursday to delay pressing murder charges against the C.I.A. operative, Raymond L. Davis, ruling that that lawyers for Mr. Davis should have more time to prepare for the case."

New York Times: "Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, is set to confirm his intention to explore a presidential campaign [today] — the first step toward becoming an official candidate for the Republican nomination."

AP: "Women and children fled en masse from a disputed flashpoint town between north and south Sudan after fighting this week killed more than 100 people, officials said Thursday. Abyei has long been seen as the major sticking point between the north and south, which voted to secede in January and is on course to become the world's newest country in July."

Comments Off