February 24, 2026

Marie: I'm starting the February 25 page now.  

Elliot Morris of Strength in Numbers: “... the numbers Trump faces going into his [SOTU] speech are brutal. Our brand-new February Strength In Numbers/Verasight poll finds the president at his lowest point on virtually every metric. Trump’s overall job approval has fallen to net -22, and he’s now underwater or tied on every single issue we track, including border security, which had been his last remaining bright spot. Democrats have opened a 10-point lead on the generic congressional ballot, the widest we’ve recorded. And voters disapprove of Trump’s tariff policy — presumably his focus, according to [JD] Vance, and which was largely invalidated by the Supreme Court last week — by 21 points. Trump will use his SOTU address to refocus attention on all the 'great things' he has done for the American people in his first year in office. But the average person is saying they don’t support his agenda. The State of our Union, in one term, is anti-Trump.”

Chaos? What Chaos? Ana Swanson of the New York Times: “A new tariff on most global imports went into effect in the United States just after midnight Tuesday at 10 percent, despite ... [Donald] Trump’s pledge over the weekend to impose a 15 percent rate. The 10 percent surprised executives and foreign leaders, who had been expecting the 15 percent rate that Mr. Trump announced in a social media post on Saturday. The change underscored the confusion and uncertainty of the past few days, after the Supreme Court on Friday struck down many of Mr. Trump’s tariffs and he quickly vowed to replace them. A White House spokesman said that the 15 percent increase was still being worked on and that he did not know when it would go into effect. The change would require additional presidential action, he said.”

Meg Kelly & Imogen Piper of the Washington Post: “The U.S. military has rapidly increased its presence near Iran, shifting more than 150 aircraft to bases in Europe and the Middle East since a second round of nuclear talks between the United States and Iran ended without a breakthrough on Feb. 17, according to publicly available flight tracking data and satellite imagery reviewed by The Washington Post. The current presence of U.S. military forces in the region is among the largest in more than two decades, since before the Iraq war in 2003. The buildup comes after ... [Donald] Trump threatened to attack Iran unless a deal can be reached to restrict Iran’s nuclear program, although he has not indicated the goals of such an attack. Iranian officials have said a deal is possible but that reaching one will take time.” ~~~

~~~ Paul Waldman on Public Notice: Donald Trump is “about to write a new chapter in the long and (mostly) ignominious history of American presidents thinking they can bend the world to their will by dropping bombs on foreign countries, yet he himself doesn’t seem to know why, let alone how it’s supposed to end.... There’s been no effort to persuade allies or Congress (let alone obtain an official congressional authorization), and Trump’s own comments about Iran are brief and vague, full of weak attempts to sound tough and his usual 'We’ll see what happens' dodge.... Last June, the US and Israel conducted a series of strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities and military leadership.... When the '12 day war' was over, Trump told the world that the problem of a nuclear Iran had been eliminated. 'The strikes were a spectacular military success,' he said. 'Iran’s key nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated.' Yet here we are eight months later, and it turns out that the Iran nuclear program was not totally obliterated, as was clear at the time.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Trump doesn't explain what he's doing and why, (a) because he doesn't know, and (b) because he is the only person in the world who matters so none of the rest of us is owed an explanation. Being Trump means never having to know what you're doing.

Sore Winner. Ben Stockton of the Telegraph, republished by Yahoo! News: "Donald Trump shared an AI-generated video depicting him punching a Canadian ice hockey player after Team USA clinched the gold medal in Sunday’s Winter Olympics final. The minute-long video posted on Mr Trump’s Truth Social account in the early hours of Monday morning shows the president skating in a suit and tie, pushing over Canadian players before ripping off his gloves and repeatedly punching one of them in the face. Later in the video, Mr Trump scores and is embraced by the USA players.... The USA team was booed as the players made their way onto the ice at the start of the final match. Mr Trump also shared a post from Kari Lake, an anchor, a staunch ally of his who made two unsuccessful bids for governor and the senate.” Thanks to RAS for the lead. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Tell your children that real presidents do not do stuff like this. Real presidents are dignified. They know how to celebrate the home team's victory without pretending (a) that they are the star players who nearly single-handedly won the game, and (b) that they celebrated the victory by violently attacking an opponent, then gloating about it. What a sick fuck! ~~~

 

Gregory Svirnovskiy of Politico: “The federal government has abandoned plans to build an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in New Hampshire, GOP Gov. Kelly Ayotte announced in a social media post Tuesday. The announcement is a major victory for Ayotte, who pleaded her case in conversations with Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem last week.” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: "Pleaded?" I doubt it. I am of the impression that Ayotte is one ruthless harridan. I'll bet she chewed up that puppy-killer (hat o' the day and all) and spit her out. 

Brandon Friedman, a former Obama administration official, compares the floor plan for the new ICE detention facility/concentration camp in Georgia with the floor plans of some other (in)famous blueprints. 

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Marie: I'm still having a lot of trouble opening sites and pages, like the New York Times & YouTube.

Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: Donald “Trump will deliver his State of the Union address on Tuesday at a pivotal moment in his presidency. While Mr. Trump is expected to tout a lengthy list of achievements, his popularity is the lowest it has been since he retook office. Polls show that Americans, by a wide margin, disapprove of him on what were once his winning issues: the economy and immigration. The government is in a partial shutdown. And the Supreme Court — which he hoped would be loyal to him — last week delivered a striking blow against a main pillar of his presidency: his sweeping tariffs imposed on countries across the globe. Republicans are now in danger of losing the House in the upcoming midterm elections, a development that would threaten to derail much of Mr. Trump’s second term, because Democrats would be empowered to subject him to a torrent of investigations.” ~~~

~~~ Tyler Pager of the New York Times: “'It’s going to be a long speech,' Mr. Trump said, 'because we have so much to talk about.' The president spent part of the weekend preparing for Tuesday’s address by reviewing the speech with a small group of advisers.... Mr. Trump has long eschewed traditional preparation for major events such as joint addresses to Congress or presidential debates. He does not like to practice reading the speech out loud, but he spent time mimicking the setup of the House chamber.... Mr. Trump is expected to host the traditional lunch on Tuesday with anchors from the five main networks: NBC, CBS, ABC, Fox and CNN. Officials said Mr. Trump also invited guests from new media outlets. They declined to specify which anchors would be attending the lunch.”

All of his adult life, Donald Trump has insulted and belittled women, openly, publicly, tape rolling, and often without consequence. These young women said "Enough": ~~~

~~~ Betsy Klein of CNN: “The gold medal-winning US Olympic women’s hockey team has declined an invitation to ... Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, citing scheduling issues. The invite came after Trump regaled the US men’s team by phone Sunday as the players celebrated their historic Olympic victory, even offering to send a military plane to bring them to Washington, DC.... Trump added: 'I must tell you, we’re gonna have to bring the women’s team — you do know that.' If they weren’t invited, the president said, ''I do believe I probably would be impeached, OK?' Members of the team laughed.... [Trump spoke] over a speakerphone held by FBI Director Kash Patel in the locker room.... The moment — and the players’ response —prompted significant backlash on social media.... It is not clear whether the male athletes will follow through on the plans, but the women have declined the invitation.” Thanks to RAS for the link. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

~~~ Steve M., on the appeal of Trump's misogyny. MB: For what it's worth, I think Steve gets this just right. ~~~

John Hudson & Tara Copp of the Washington Post: “As the Trump administration weighs an attack on Iran, the Pentagon’s top general has cautioned ... Donald Trump and other officials that shortfalls in critical munitions and a lack of support from allies will add significant risk to the operation and to U.S. personnel.... Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, expressed his concerns at a White House meeting last week with Trump and his top aides ... cautioning that any major operation against Iran will face challenges because the U.S. munitions stockpile has been significantly depleted by Washington’s ongoing defense of Israel and support for Ukraine.... Separately, in Pentagon meetings this month, Caine also has raised concerns about the scale of any Iran campaign, its inherent complexity and the possibility of U.S. casualties, one person said. The general has said that any operation would be made all the more difficult by a lack of allied support....” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ An Axios story is here. A related NBC News story is here. 

Heather Cox Richardson: “On Sunday the head of the international trade committee in the European Parliament, Bernd Lange, posted: 'Pure tariff chaos on the part of the US government. No one can make any sense of it anymore — just open questions and growing uncertainty for the [European Union] and other US trading partners.' Lange noted that it is unclear if the United States will adhere to its trade deals, 'or even be able to at all.' He proposed pausing the process of approving the E.U.’s trade deal with the U.S.  'until we have a comprehensive legal assessment & clear commitments from the US side.' [Monday] morning, the European Parliament agreed. After the [Supreme Court] decision, officials from India postponed a trip to the U.S. to finalize a trade deal....

“At 9:34 [Monday] morning, Trump threatened: 'Any Country that wants to “play games” with the ridiculous supreme court decision, especially those that have “Ripped Off” the U.S.A. for years, and even decades, will be met with a much higher Tariff, and worse, than that which they just recently agreed to. BUYER BEWARE!!!...' Fifteen minutes later, he posted: 'As President, I do not have to go back to Congress to get approval of Tariffs. It has already been gotten, in many forms, a long time ago! They were also just reaffirmed by the ridiculous and poorly crafted supreme court decision!...'”

Jessica Dickler of CNBC: “The Supreme Court struck down a centerpiece of ... Donald Trump’s tariff agenda on Friday, also dealing a blow to the possibility of sending so-called tariff dividend checks to families, experts say. 'Tariff dividends were a long shot from the beginning,' said certified financial planner Stephen Kates, a financial analyst at Bankrate. 'Given the White House’s lack of authority to unilaterally issue stimulus checks to Americans, the idea was largely aspirational,' he said. Any such broad-based benefit program would require legislation passed by Congress.... 'Even if tariffs were to return to prior levels and generate revenue for a broad stimulus program, there does not appear to be sufficient political support to move such a measure through Congress,' Kates said. 'The odds of this policy moving forward is now effectively zero.'” ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Westcoastman figured this out last week. I would add that Trump had spent the tariff money many times over. Besides passing out $2,000 dividends, he said tariffs would pay down the national debt, replace the income tax, support farmers & provide child care. This is like my handing you a crisp dollar bill & telling you to go buy five things at the dollar store (where the cheapest price is now $1.25, I hear). 

Stephen Fowler of NPR: "The Justice Department has withheld some Epstein files related to allegations that ... [Donald] Trump sexually abused a minor, an NPR investigation finds. It also removed some documents from the public database where accusations against Jeffrey Epstein also mention Trump. Some files have not been made public despite a law mandating their release. These include what appears to be more than 50 pages of FBI interviews, and notes from conversations with a woman who accused Trump of sexual abuse decades ago when she was a minor. NPR reviewed multiple sets of unique serial numbers appearing before and after the pages in question.... NPR's investigation found dozens of pages that appear to be catalogued by the Justice Department but not shared publicly.... Other files scrubbed from public view pertain to a separate woman who was a key witness for the prosecution in the criminal trial of Epstein's co-conspirator, Ghislaine Maxwell, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking." ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: One might think that our Attorney General Pam Bondi lied under oath to Congress AND is engaging in a massive cover-up to protect her degenerate boss.  

Scott Nover & Daniel Gilbert of the Washington Post: “Peter Attia, a physician and prominent longevity influencer, is stepping down from his role as a CBS News contributor after the Justice Department released hundreds of previously undisclosed emails between him and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to two people.... Attia was part of a new slate of contributors announced in January, amid editor in chief Bari Weiss’s plans to remake the network. But Attia never appeared on the network in that capacity....  The Hollywood Reporter first reported on Attia’s decision Monday.... 'You [know] the biggest problem with becoming friends with you?' Attia wrote to Epstein in an email on June 24, 2015. 'The life you lead is so outrageous, and yet I can’t tell a soul …' In another email dated Feb. 19, 2016, Attia used vulgar language referring to women’s genitals. 'P---y is, indeed, low carb,' he wrote. “Still awaiting results on gluten content, though.'” (Also linked yesterday.) An AP story is here. ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: Special congrats to Bari Weiss for her excellent judgment. 

Guardian: “Peter Mandelson has been arrested by detectives investigating claims he committed misconduct in public office during his friendship with the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Video footage showed him being driven away from his home in an unmarked car shortly after being escorted from his home by officers. The Metropolitan police have been investigating the alleged leaking by Mandelson of Downing Street emails and market-sensitive information to Epstein.” (Also linked yesterday.)

Poppy Wood, et al., of the Telegraph: “Jeffrey Epstein hid computers and photographs from United States authorities in secret storage lockers across the country.... He leased at least one unit from 2003, when he was part of a Florida social set that included Donald Trump. Credit card receipts obtained by The Telegraph show regular storage payments continued until 2019, the year of his death. Search warrants reviewed by The Telegraph suggest US authorities never raided the lockers, raising the possibility that they may contain unseen evidence relating to Epstein and his associates.... While Epstein has long been suspected of collecting compromising material on his associates, relatively few such photographs or videos have emerged.... The FBI had previously said there was no evidence Epstein was storing compromising material.” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~

     ~~~ Marie: So is this just remarkably incompetent investigating by an agency that has "investigation" in its name? OR, is RAS right? -- "The more I read the more I come to the conclusion that the authorities didn't want to know about Epstein." It sure seems prudent to share RAS's suspicions. 

More Murder at Sea, Ctd. Raquel Uribe of NBC News: “The U.S. struck another alleged drug trafficking boat in the Caribbean, killing three people, the military announced Monday afternoon.... The targeted boat on Monday was 'transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Caribbean and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations,' U.S. Southern Command said in a post on X, adding that no U.S. forces were harmed. It did not provide evidence that the boat or people on board were involved in drug trafficking.” ~~~

     ~~~ Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: “The strike raised the death toll in the American campaign against people it accuses, without providing evidence, of smuggling drugs at sea to at least 150.” The link appears to be a gift link. The NBC News story put the murder toll at “at least 137.”

France 24: "France's top diplomat Monday requested that US Ambassador Charles Kushner no longer be allowed direct access to members of the French government after he skipped a meeting to discuss comments by the administration of ... Donald Trump over the fatal beating of a far-right activist.... The [Trump] administration ... condemned the role of 'violent radical leftism' in the case.... The ambassador – whose son, Jared, is married to Trump's daughter, Ivanka – sent a senior official from the embassy in his place, citing personal commitments, a source told AFP. The ministry, however, left the door open for reconciliation."

Steve Benen of MS NOW on everything wrong with Kash Patel's beer-guzzling excursion in Milan. See related stories linked in yesterday's page as well as video of Kash's locker-room antics.

Attorney Boxwine Will Not Be Putting Congressmembers to Death for Citing U.S. Law. Ryan Reilly of NBC News: “Jeanine Pirro's office has decided to stop pursuing the case against six Democratic lawmakers who urged members of the military and intelligence communities in a social media video not to comply with unlawful orders, three people familiar with the matter told NBC News.... In a series of social media posts..., Donald Trump said the lawmakers were traitors who committed 'SEDITION AT THE HIGHEST LEVEL.' While Trump suggested the lawmakers’ behavior was possibly punishable by death, a grand jury found no evidence of a crime.”

A Cockroach Never Changes Its Spots. (Or Something Like That.) Alanna Richer & Eric Tucker of the AP: “A federal judge on Monday permanently barred the release of special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into ... Donald Trump’s hoarding of classified documents. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, who was nominated to the bench by Trump, granted a request from the president to keep under wraps the report on an investigation alleging Trump stored sensitive documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate after he left the White House following his first term and obstructed government efforts to get them back. Smith and his team produced a two-volume report on the classified documents investigation and a separate probe into Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.... Both investigations produced indictments that were abandoned by Smith’s team after Trump’s November 2024 election win in light of longstanding Justice Department legal opinions that say sitting presidents cannot face federal prosecution.

“Attorney General Pam Bondi had already determined that the report was “an internal deliberative communication that is privileged and confidential and should not be released.'... Cannon’s order, however, blocking the release also applies to Bondi’s successors at the Justice Department.... A First Amendment group and watchdog organization that have been pressing for the report’s release could presumably continue to fight in higher courts for it become public.” Thanks to RAS for the link. As RAS comments, “Somebody is buffing up their resume for Alito's possible retirement.” (Also linked yesterday.)

To Akhilleus & Ken W.: Here's a concurring opinion (see yesterday's Comments): ~~~ 

~~~ Liz Dye on Substack: “You Do Not, Under Any Circumstances, Gotta Hand It To Chief Justice Roberts. Ditto for Barrett and Gorsuch.... Adam Liptak, chief legal affairs correspondent at the New York Times called it 'a declaration of independence,' congratulating the 'controlled, cerebral chief justice' for staring down 'the biting, brazen president.' Times opinion columnist David French ... [gushed] 'On this day the presidency is stuffed back into its box. On this day the separation of powers prevails. And on this day the Constitution holds.'.... Trump’s claim that he can shout 'Emergency!' and steal Congress’s tariff power was stupid a year ago when the first challenges were filed.

“It was stupid in May, when a three-judge panel of the Court of International Trade declared them unlawful, for the exact same reasons just reached by the Supreme Court. It was stupid in August when the Federal Circuit agreed, but sent it back to the trial court to figure out what the hell to do after SCOTUS blew up nationwide injunctions in Trump v. CASA. And it was stupid in September when the Supreme Court granted cert, effectively staying the CIT’s injunction and allowing Trump to collect the illegal levies. At any point, the justices could have put a stop to this nonsense. But ... Chief Justice Roberts said, 'Eh, let’s go with door number two. Seems like the safer option.' American taxpayers footed the bill for this fecklessness....” (Also linked yesterday.)

⭐David Nakamura & Sarah Blaskey of the Washington Post: “A former instructor for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Monday accused the agency of dramatically slashing training standards for new officers and lying to Congress about it.... Ryan Schwank, who resigned from his job at an ICE academy in Georgia last week, told congressional Democrats at a hearing that the agency eliminated 240 hours of 'vital classes' from a mandatory 580-hour training program, including instruction about the legal boundaries for the use of force, how to safely handle firearms, and the proper way to detain and arrest immigrants.... He ... said that a two-hour class on the rights of protesters was shortened into 10 minutes of discussion.... Ahead of the hearing, Schwank provided a joint panel of House and Senate Democrats copies of internal ICE documents that he said show the extent of the cuts.... 

“During his testimony in the House on Feb. 10, [Acting Ice Director Todd] Lyons ... [said the agency] has not reduced the 'meat of the training.'... On his first day [as an instructor, Schwank] said, he was asked to review an internal memo, signed by Lyons, that said ICE officers are authorized to use administrative warrants, approved by senior ICE officials, to enter private residences. That marked a shift from the federal government’s long-standing position that officers must obtain judicial warrants signed by federal judges....  Schwank said he was ... told he could not talk about [Lyon's memo] publicly or even take notes [on it].... 'ICE is teaching cadets to violate the Constitution and attempting to cloak it in secrecy by demanding I lie about it,' he said.” (Also linked yesterday.) An MS NOW story is here.

Huh. Edgar Sandoval of the New York Times: “The only passenger in the car when an American citizen was shot and killed by a federal officer in South Texas last year had planned to speak up and contradict the government’s account of the shooting. However, the passenger, Joshua Orta, died in an unrelated car crash over the weekend. Mr. Orta, 25, was in the passenger seat on March 15, 2025, when his childhood friend, Ruben Ray Martinez, 23, was shot multiple times in South Padre Island by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer after the authorities said he failed to comply with commands to exit his vehicle. In a written statement obtained by The New York Times, Mr. Orta said that the two men had offered no resistance to law enforcement officers and were trying to comply with commands to turn around the car when the situation got out of control and Mr. Martinez was shot. Mr. Orta had provided his version of events in the statement, which was taken in September by lawyers representing Mr. Martinez’s family.... He was planning to sign the statement and cooperate with investigators hired by the family before he died ... in a fiery car crash at around 1 a.m. on Saturday when he lost control of the vehicle he was driving and struck a utility pole. The car caught on fire and Mr. Orta died before the three other people in the car, including a stepsister, were able to pull him out, according to [a second-hand account].”

Marianne LeVine, et al., of the Washington Post: “The Department of Homeland Security’s plans to temporarily suspend TSA PreCheck were conceived by DHS Secretary Kristi L. Noem and her top adviser, Corey Lewandowski, but then pulled back after the White House intervened, according to a White House official and a person close to the Trump administration.... Juliette Kayyem, a former assistant DHS secretary under President Barack Obama, said that from an operations perspective, the agency’s initial announcement that it would temporarily suspend TSA PreCheck 'made no sense, given the explanation they gave.' She said she saw it as an attempt to score 'political points' against Democrats.”

Ali Swenson of the AP: “For years as an environmental lawyer, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. crusaded against a controversial herbicide ingredient known as glyphosate, even winning a landmark case against chemical giant Monsanto by arguing that its Roundup weedkiller contributed to his client’s cancer. But now that he’s the nation’s top health official, Kennedy is falling in line with ... Donald Trump after he issued an executive order that’s aimed at boosting glyphosate’s production. The order would also grant limited legal immunity to manufacturers if they’re following federal directives. Kennedy on Sunday evening posted a lengthy statement on social media that calls pesticides 'toxic by design' but frames Trump’s move as necessary for agricultural stability and national security.... As Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again supporters grow impatient with a Republican-led administration that’s largely resisted their calls to regulate pesticides, they’re speaking up about what they view as a betrayal of their support.” ~~~

     ~~~ Ruth Reader, et al., of Politico: “Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s decision to endorse increased production of a chemical herbicide he has previously called a carcinogen has sparked a furious reaction among his followers and stressed the MAGA-MAHA alliance.” MB: The only funny part about this is that these starry-eyed imbeciles thought Trump & RFKJ would not betray them.

David Goodman & Edgar Sandoval of the New York Times: “Representative Tony Gonzales, a Republican from a Texas border district, faced growing pressure to resign on Monday amid allegations that he had coerced a sexual relationship with a staff member who later killed herself. Mr. Gonzales sent 'sexual texts' to the staff member, Regina Santos-Aviles, and appeared to pressure her into a relationship, according to Bobby Barrera, a lawyer for Ms. Santos-Aviles’s husband. Mr. Barrera said in an interview that he had reviewed the text messages. In the messages, Mr. Barrera said he saw Ms. Santos-Aviles telling the congressman over text message that she didn’t 'think this is appropriate.' And yet despite that, Mr. Gonzales continued to 'coerce her to make requests of a sexual nature,' Mr. Barrera said. Images and descriptions of text messages between Mr. Gonzales and Ms. Santos-Aviles were published on Monday, including by The San Antonio Express-News, leading several Republican and Democratic members of Congress to call for Mr. Gonzales’s resignation.” ~~~

     ~~~ Melanie Zanona, et al., of NBC News: “In a series of late-night messages from May 9, 2024, Gonzales asked his then-staffer to 'send me a sexy pic.' He went on to ask her 'favorite position' and then mentioned multiple sexual acts.... NBC News reported last week that the Office of Congressional Conduct has concluded an investigation into the alleged affair, according to two sources familiar with the investigation. According to House rules, it is not allowed to transmit its report to the House Ethics Committee so close to Texas’ March 3 primaries, in which Gonzales faces a serious challenge.” MB: Read on for Bible Mike's amusing commentary on Gonzales; it's a master class in speaking out of both sides of  one's mouth. Nike's skillful doublespeak notwithstanding, the Judeo-Christian ethic does not sit well with his oral "perversity."

Peter Eavis of the New York Times: “FedEx filed a lawsuit on Monday demanding a refund of the U.S. tariffs that the Supreme Court ruled were unlawful last week.... The company is expected to be one of many that will sue for a refund. FedEx did not state a dollar amount that it is seeking. Analysts say the emergency tariffs that the Supreme Court rejected, which ... [Donald] Trump began imposing a year ago, had raised as much as $175 billion for the U.S. government.”

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Northeast U.S. Anthony Izaguirre, et al., of the AP: “Monday’s storm that meteorologists are calling the strongest in a decade dumped more than 2 feet (61 centimeters) of snow in parts of the Northeast. By Tuesday, roads were beginning to reopen, mass transportation was coming back online in some cities and power had returned for some of the hundreds of thousands who had lost electricity in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware and Rhode Island.... The weather service referred to Monday’s storm as a classic bomb cyclone/nor’easter off the Northeast coast.A bomb cyclone happens when a storm’s pressure falls by a certain amount within a 24-hour period.... More than 2,000 flights in and out of the United States were canceled Tuesday....” ~~~

Estimated snowfall totals, Sunday afternoon to Monday evening.

      ~~~ Tim Craig, et al., of the Washington Post: “A furious winter storm blanketed the Northeast on Monday, dumping epic amounts of snow, forcing thousands of flight cancellations, closing roads, crippling public transit and bringing normal life to a grinding halt in a region home to more than 40 million people. Parts of at least five states — New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts — reported snowfall greater than two feet as of Monday evening. Earlier in the day, the powerful nor’easter, comparable in strength to a Category 2 hurricane, was violently swirling southeast of the Cape Cod region of Massachusetts, as heavy snow bands continued to pinwheel around the strengthening storm, battering large swaths of the Northeast.”

California. Maeve Reston of the Washington Post: “Nick Reiner ... pleaded not guilty Monday to two first-degree murder charges in the December stabbing deaths of his parents, 78-year-old filmmaker Rob Reiner and photographer Michele Singer Reiner, 70. Reiner’s arraignment had been delayed for several months after his high-profile attorney, Alan Jackson, abruptly withdrew from the case. A public defender, Kimberly Greene, was assigned to take it over. Reiner, 32, made no public remarks during the brief hearing, responding with a simple “yes” to Judge Theresa R. McGonigle’s question about whether he was pleading not guilty as his attorney had indicated.”

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Mexico. Marie Verza of the AP: “Surveillance of a romantic partner helped put the Mexican armed forces on the trail of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, the notorious leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel known as 'El Mencho,' who was captured and killed Sunday, Mexican authorities said Monday. Mexican Defense Secretary Gen. Ricardo Trevilla said that Sunday’s Mexican special forces operation, which included U.S. intelligence information, ended when special forces found Oseguera Cervantes 'hidden in the undergrowth' in his home state of Jalisco. After several shootouts, eight gunmen were killed and the drug lord and two of his bodyguards were wounded. They were taken into custody and died on the way to Mexico City, Trevilla said. In all, more than 70 people were killed in the operation and the ensuing violence, including security forces, suspected cartel members and others.”