Julie in Massachusetts catches Sen. Eric Schmitt preparing for his next committee hearing: ~~~
Trump Is a Drag -- Paxton. Theodore Schleifer of the New York Times: “Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee for Senate in Texas, told a group of conservative donors and lobbyists last week that ... [Donald] Trump’s midterm convention in Dallas had hurt Mr. Paxton politically, according to an audio recording obtained by The New York Times. The recording, which is muffled at times, captures Mr. Paxton being asked, 'Do you feel like he’s a little bit of a drag?' It is not clear from the audio whom the questioner is referring to. Mr. Paxton responds: 'So to be honest with you, the numbers — when we did that convention — it dropped our numbers. Everybody’s numbers dropped. Right now, yeah, not good.'... Mr. Paxton’s comments at the Washington fund-raiser echo other private whispers by Republicans that the party’s convention would not be helpful, given Mr. Trump’s sagging approval ratings. Since the gathering, the midterm outlook for Republicans has only darkened....” The link is a gift link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Even during the fake convention, where he was supposed to be boosting Paxton, Trump said of the senatorial candidate, "Some may not like the way he dresses. I don’t. They may not like the way he talks. I can see that. You may not like the way he looks." So even Trump says Paxton is an ugly, sloppy, ill-spoken candidate, and that isn't even taking into account Paxton's long, scandal-plagued career, his impeachment by the state GOP-led house and other law enforcement actions against him, his infidelity to his wife, etc., etc. So he's the worst candidate imaginable. And yet Trump can drag him down further. Oh, did I mention Paxton owns a lot of real estate? See Talarico ad embedded below.
Mattathias Schwartz & Devlin Barrett of the New York Times: “The Justice Department on Wednesday accused two of Minnesota’s federal judges of engaging in misconduct for comments made to The New York Times about how their court handled the administration’s immigration surge in Minneapolis this winter. In a six-page complaint filed with the Judicial Council of the Eighth Circuit, which includes the Minnesota district, the department alleged that the judges’ comments violated ethics rules that limit what judges are allowed to say publicly, particularly on pending cases. It singles out Judge Patrick J. Schiltz and Judge John R. Tunheim, both of whom were quoted in the Times article. At a news conference on Wednesday, Attorney General Todd Blanche accused the judges of 'obvious bias' for giving interviews to The Times about the Trump administration’s immigration surge in Minnesota this winter. Judge Schiltz told The Times that the administration’s actions had 'created a grave threat to the rule of law.' Mr. Blanche called those comments 'overtly political.'” The link is a gift link.
Colby Smith of the New York Times: “The Federal Reserve’s internal watchdog found no evidence of illegal behavior or administrative misconduct associated with the central bank’s nearly $2.5 billion project to overhaul its headquarters in Washington, D.C., even as it concluded that the renovations were poorly managed and lacked sufficient budget constraints. In a sweeping 120-page report, the Fed’s independent inspector general on Wednesday provided the most comprehensive overview to date of what caused extensive cost overruns on the project, which has been underway since 2022. It identified a range of missteps, including the Board of Governors’ failure to obtain a total cost estimate until the work was well underway or to establish a 'guaranteed maximum price.'
“The project last year became a major front in ... [Donald] Trump’s campaign to pressure the Fed into lowering interest rates. Mr. Trump repeatedly criticized Jerome H. Powell, who served as Fed chair until May, for the cost overruns and frequently raised the question of whether he had committed fraud as he floated the idea of firing him. The Federal Reserve Act stipulates that the president can remove a sitting Fed official only 'for cause,' which has long been interpreted to mean gross negligence or a dereliction of duty. Mr. Trump’s attacks on Mr. Powell culminated in a criminal investigation led by the Justice Department over whether Mr. Powell misled Congress about the project.” The link is a gift link.
Marie: I suppose akaWendy has seen this ad, but I hadn't: ~~~
Patrick, citing a New Republic report, says the White House has "fixed" America.gov so it no longer contradicts the Dear Leader. Fact-checker Daniel Dale of CNN says the same. Related NYT story linked below.
Tennessee. Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: “A federal court on Wednesday ordered a pause on the execution of Christa Pike, convicted of the murder of a classmate in 1995, just hours before she was set to die by lethal injection in Nashville. Ms. Pike, 50, would have been the first woman executed in Tennessee in more than 200 years. But her lawyers mounted a fierce last-ditch campaign to stop the execution, arguing that her defense at her initial trial had failed to consider her history of child sexual abuse and neglect. The ruling came after the Supreme Court on Tuesday had declined to intervene in the execution. Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, also denied a request to allow Ms. Pike to serve out the remainder of her life in prison. The office of Jonathan Skrmetti, Tennessee’s attorney general, quickly appealed directly to the U.S. Supreme Court after Wednesday’s ruling, calling it a 'technical issue' and vowing to 'advocate for the lawfully-imposed sentence.'” The link is a gift link.
Gerry Shih & Lior Soroka of the Washington Post: “A flight carrying about 180 passengers to Tel Aviv from Dubai made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday after one of the pilots stabbed another and sought to hijack the plane before being subdued, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. One of the pilots 'apparently tried to crash the aircraft with everyone on board,' Netanyahu said in a video address, adding that he spoke to an Israeli passenger who, along with a crew member, 'managed to force their way into the cockpit, and together they subdued the pilot who had carried out the stabbing as he was trying to sabotage the plane’s systems.' Nearly all of the passengers on board were Israeli, Netanyahu added. All passengers arrived in Tel Aviv on an alternate Flydubai flight Wednesday evening....
“The suspect, the co-pilot who attacked the captain on the flight, was an Omani national, said an Israeli security official.... Videos filmed on the flight, circulating online, show two injured people lying on the aircraft floor, covered in blood and wearing oxygen masks.... Eyal Datz, 44, an Israeli filmmaker on the flight, said... the crew opened the cockpit door, and three Israeli passengers helped overpower the assailant and handcuffed him. Then, another person who was in the cabin took control of the plane....” Related NYT liveblog linked below.
U.K. Michael Shear of the New York Times: “Prime Minister Andy Burnham of Britain said Wednesday that his government believes Iran 'played a part' in the incident on Sunday at an air base used by American bombers in the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran.... Mr. Burnham told the BBC in an interview..., 'It remains an ongoing, complex and serious police investigation, and of course we are working closely with our colleagues in the United States of America.'”
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It's Show-and-Tell Day in Washington, D.C. Ian Duncan & Cat Zakrzewski & Shira Ovide of the Washington Post: “... Donald Trump launched America.gov, a government chatbot for researching public services, as part of a day-long event featuring members of his Cabinet and tech executives. AI company leaders are also set to meet with him and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana).... Last week, it was disclosed that the federal government itself had been a victim [of rogue AI 'agents,'] with a handful of websites probed by AI agents deployed by ChatGPT maker OpenAI. Yet, even as the public’s concerns have grown and Democrats in Congress have pressed for regulation, Trump has largely dismissed the risk, calling it a 'hoax.'” MB: Of course he has. According to Art Intel, “Donald Trump and his family already hold millions of dollars in stock and business ventures tied directly to artificial intelligence and data centers.” (Also linked yesterday.) The link has been changed to a gift link. ~~~
~~~ The story has been updated. New Lede: “After weeks of Washington being gripped by a wave of fear about artificial intelligence gone awry, the Trump administration on Tuesday sought to reassure a skeptical public that it can embrace the technology — and trust the industry to police itself. Standing with the world’s richest and most powerful tech executives Tuesday outside the West Wing..., Donald Trump said that he and they had signed a voluntary accord intended to ensure the industry develops AI safely. Trump described the agreement as 'morally binding.' The text suggests that codifying its terms may make sense 'over time.' The agreement capped a day in which Trump sought to reinforce his pitch that AI is an engine of prosperity that should not be restrained by government.” A CNBC story is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: An agreement signed by Donald Trump that is “morally binding” is worthless.
~~~ Ha Ha. Chris Cameron of the New York Times: “A new A.I.-powered search tool that ... [Donald] Trump unveiled Tuesday to help Americans get information from the federal government provides facts that contradict false claims he has made about topics such as election fraud and immigration. In an event announcing the website’s launch, Mr. Trump said the tool was 'damn good' and would be 'one front door for every single question' someone could ask of the federal government. 'With America.gov..., everything will be answered easily and quickly,' [Mr. Trump said]. But the president would not like many answers that America.gov provides. Citing official government sources, the chatbot, which calls itself 'America,' fact-checks an extensive list of Mr. Trump’s most common false claims....
“According to America.gov: It is Americans, and not foreign companies, that pay for Mr. Trump’s import tariffs; U.S. elections are generally safe and secure and prosecuted cases of voter fraud are 'tiny' compared to the hundreds of millions of votes cast; Mr. Trump is wrong when he says that 25 million immigrants illegally crossed the border under his predecessor, President Joseph R. Biden Jr.; Consumer prices are not going down, as Mr. Trump frequently claims.” The link is a gift link. Read on. An ABC News story is here.
Paul Krugman: “For those of us who remember the giddy optimism that greeted the tech boom of the 1990s, the widespread negativity towards AI is astonishing.... Only 28 percent of Americans believe that AI technology should move full speed ahead. Everyone else wants it slowed down or stopped, temporarily or permanently. Of course, Donald Trump remains a huge booster. He believes that the public’s antipathy towards AI is just a marketing problem — and that he can solve that problem by forcing everyone to call it 'super intelligence'. But [a Wall Street] Journal poll also says that only 7 percent of Americans trust Trump’s leadership in regulating AI.... [There are good reasons to be very afraid of A.I.]... There is also, however, a more prosaic reasons for the public’s dislike of AI: This is a technology of, by and for oligarchs, with hardly any of the benefits trickling down to regular Americans.... Here we have a technology that is enriching a small number of people, but whose creators warn may destroy millions of jobs if not the world. And even the usual argument for pro-oligarch policies — job creation! — falls flat because hardly any jobs are being created even in the short run.”
The Fish Rots from the Head Down. David Gilmour of Mediaite: “... Donald Trump personally helped craft a series of taxpayer-funded TV ads promoting himself and his administration, including hand-picking some of the footage and imagery used in the spots, according to a new report. CNN reported Tuesday that a source revealed Trump was directly and creatively involved in the campaign, which has drawn criticism from Democrats and Republicans alike as it airs just weeks before the November midterms. Two Trump advisers told the network the commercials were produced in-house by Trump’s own video team, part of the communications operation responsible for promoting the administration’s message.” Thanks to RAS for the lead. MB: The CNN story is firewalled. You can read the whole CNN story on the link RAS provided, but I'm a little leery of the source, part of the archive.today "family." You can decide for yourself. I did open the link RAS provided, and my computer didn't blow up. Yet. (Also linked yesterday.)~~~
~~~ Steven Portnoy, et al., of ABC News: "The Trump administration used funds from the Department of Homeland Security to air TV ads featuring ... Donald Trump in recent days, according to sources familiar with the matter. Federal budget records indicate the money was moved into a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) account for 'commemorative events' on Sept. 19 and federal contract data shows that a contract of $20 million was awarded the next day to the LMD Agency, a Maryland-based advertising agency for a 'National Media Campaign.' Days later, the ads began airing.... Democrats on the Senate Appropriations Committee responded by sending a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin demanding he answer questions about the breakdown of the funds, whether the ads are expected to continue, and DHS's role in facilitating their airing." (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Lisa Mascaro & Ali Swenson of the AP, published by the Independent (without crediting the AP): "The Department of Homeland Security has allocated $20 million toward campaign-style advertisements praising ... Donald Trump, drawing widespread backlash from both Republicans and Democrats who argue the move misuses taxpayer funds and likely violates anti-propaganda laws. In a letter sent Tuesday to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, two top Democratic senators stated that the money was drawn from Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill' and was originally designated for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 'We should not have to remind you that using government funding to create or air political ads like the ones that have been running over the last few days is illegal and a shockingly corrupt misuse of taxpayer dollars,' wrote Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, and Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut, the ranking Democrat on the subcommittee overseeing Homeland Security funding.
"Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, compared Trump's ads to those used by authoritarian former leader Viktor Orban of Hungary. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a Republican from South Dakota, said it 'shouldn’t be paid for with taxpayer dollars.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie BTW: During his AI speech yesterday, Trump boasted he did not accept his presidential* salary and complained that nobody gave him credit or showed him appreciation for that. He did not mention, of course, how he has monetized the presidency to the point that he and his family have raked in billions of dollars. Indeed, that $20 ad buy courtesy of Markwayne Mullin was a gift to Trump, one stolen from the American taxpayer. The $400,000 annual presidential* salary is comparative peanuts.
Headline: “The Kennedy Center was solvent when Trump took over. Then its finances collapsed.” Federica Cocco & Naema Ahmed of the Washington Post: “In the 19 months since ... [Donald] Trump took over the Kennedy Center, the institution has borrowed everything its bank would lend it, dipped into money donors had given on condition it never be spent, and written off pledges from supporters who stopped paying, according to confidential board documents and tax filings.... Trump said the center was 'losing hundreds of millions of dollars' when he took over, and his board has warned of 'bankruptcy.' It is true that when Trump took over, the center was in worse shape than it was in 2021, when it was flush with pandemic relief funds. But the old leadership handed over an institution that was better off financially than in most years before covid.” More on the Kennedy Center linked below.
Dan Mangan of CNBC: "A federal appeals court panel on Tuesday rejected a bid to pause sanctions imposed on two attorneys for ... Donald Trump over their handling of his $10 billion lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service. The three-judge panel in the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the attorneys, Alejandro Brito and Daniel Epstein, failed to show they were likely to succeed in arguing that Miami U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen Williams lacked sufficient basis when she found the lawyers acted in bad faith in the civil suit. The panel also said the appeal was premature. The panel noted that Williams has not made a final decision on whether to grant a request by a group of former judges that she reopen the case — which was controversially settled out of court in May — and also has not decided a question about attorneys’ fees."
Will The Last One Out Please Shut Off the Lights. Erika Solomon, et al., of the New York Times: “U.S. forces formally withdrew from Iraq on Wednesday, ending a two-decade military presence that stoked years of devastating bloodshed and leaves behind a battered nation struggling to unshackle itself from its two most powerful, and now warring, allies. After toppling Saddam Hussein in 2003, the brutal dictator who ruled Iraq for nearly 24 years, American forces are making their second withdrawal from the country. The U.S. invasion and subsequent occupation, which ended in 2011, left a country reeling from sectarian bloodletting and militant insurgencies that cost nearly 4,500 U.S. lives and killed more than 115,000 Iraqis, according to the most modest counts. American forces ultimately returned three years later — this time to lead the fight against the Islamic State, the jihadist force that once seized swathes of Iraq and Syria and became notorious for its slaughter of Shiite Muslim Iraqis, public killings of hostages, and torture and enslavement of women from Iraq’s Yazidi minority.” The link is a gift link.
Tara Copp of the Washington Post: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to announce deeper cuts to the military’s top ranks, reducing the total number of positions for general and flag officers by as much as 20 percent, officials told The Washington Post on Tuesday. The potential cuts could impact the careers of hundreds of current and rising military leaders following scores of firings and denied promotions that Hegseth has directed.... Former top defense officials, congressional Democrats and some fellow Republicans who are alarmed by his leadership purge and efforts to impose structural changes argue that the moves are politically motivated and threaten to do lasting harm.... Sen. Jack Reed (Rhode Island), the Senate Armed Services Committee’s top Democrat, issued a statement Tuesday chastising Hegseth for not publicly explaining his personnel moves to date and imploring him to consult with Congress before pursuing any additional reductions in the military’s senior officer ranks. 'The Secretary’s history of obfuscation around this issue gives us cause for skepticism,' Reed’s statement said, 'and it is his burden to dispel it.'”
Anushka Patil of the New York Times: “An Air Force major who was arrested after protesting ... [Donald] Trump has been recommended for a general court-martial, the most severe type of military trial.... An investigating officer who issued a report to the military convening authority also recommended that some charges related to prohibited partisan political activity be dismissed. The convening authority, typically a commander with the power to refer charges to a court-martial and assemble the court-martial itself, will decide on the recommendations. The recommendations are not binding, but it is rare in the military justice system for a convening authority to depart from them when making prosecutorial decisions.... Major Jason Watson was arrested in uniform on the steps of the Capitol in July as he called for the president’s impeachment. He has argued that the president has violated the Constitution, and that Mr. Trump and Vice President JD Vance should be removed from office. During his preliminary hearing, he told the court that he acted not out of partisanship but to uphold his oath to defend the Constitution.” The link is a gift link.
Trumpish Treachery, Ctd. George Conway puts it succinctly: "In a normal administration counterintelligence agents at the FBI would be investigating this photo. In this administration, the FBI director is in the photo." Michael Weiss, in the squeet Conway linked, explains. Thanks to RAS for the link. MB: Because nothing could make me watch Star Wars movies, I did not know the meaning of Mos Eisley, to which Weiss refers. My assistant Art Intel tells me it's a spaceport town, which is a "wretched hive of scum and villainy." That, to me, also is a fine description of the Trump White House. And, IMO, the FBI can still investigate why the FBI director is socializing with a suspected double agent. Since we already know, Kash drinks himself stupid(er), you have to suspect he's spilling secrets to Abedelaziz. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Garrett Graff reviews the latest scandals involving Kash Patel. Well worth the read.
Edgar Sandoval & Hamed Aleaziz of the New York Times: “A man who was shot by an immigration agent during a traffic stop in Austin, Texas, this month was charged on Tuesday with assaulting a federal officer during that encounter. The man, Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, was charged with one count of assaulting, resisting, interfering and impeding a federal officer, according to the criminal complaint filed Monday in the Western District of Texas. It adds that he struck an agent with his car’s mirror as he drove away from an attempted stop. He remains at a detention center in Texas. The complaint includes a mention that one of the agents was wearing a body camera, which captured some of the incident. The government provided still images of what unfolded, but the full footage has not been released. A spokeswoman for Mr. Garces Perez’s lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, said in a statement that the charges were surprising. Noting that a bullet remains lodged in Mr. Garces Perez’s body, the statement condemned the Department of Homeland Security’s actions.” The link is a gift link.
The New York Times liveblogged the Senate Judiciary Committee's interrogation of former Special Counsel Jack Smith. The link is a gift link. From the pinned item at 10:30 am ET: “Jack Smith, who as special counsel twice charged Donald J. Trump with criminal offenses after his first term, is appearing before members of Congress on Tuesday as Republicans vow to scrutinize his every word for possible prosecution. Republican lawmakers have urged that Mr. Smith face charges, claiming his answers about his investigations into Mr. Trump were misleading. Mr. Smith defended his actions in his opening statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee, saying Mr. Trump engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the 2020 election and unlawfully retained classified documents after leaving office. 'I will not be silenced by the continued threats of prosecution from the president or others,' he said. The former prosecutor denied there was any political motivation for the cases he brought. 'If asked whether to prosecute a former president today, based on the same facts, I would do so regardless of whether that president was a Republican or a Democrat.'” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: The hearing adjourned at about 1:15 pm ET. At 1:00 pm ET, I read the NYT reporters' entries. The Republicans on the committee are disgraceful. They are shamelessly defend a known criminal at the same time they falsely accuse his would-be prosecutor of criminal malfeasance. This is not politics-as-usual. It's wanton character assassination. ~~~
~~~ Here's an example. That's Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) doing the questioning in the video embedded below. He thinks he's asking Smith a "Law & Order"/Jack McCoy gotcha question, then accuses Smith of perjuring himself. In fact, Schmitt has no idea WTF he's talking about, as Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) explains near the end of the video. Schmitt's mistake is pretty damned funny: ~~~
~~~ Update. Marie: I was scarcely the only person who enjoyed Schmitt's epic faceplant. It was the biggest story in D.C. Nobody told it better than Chris Hayes, who put the moment in context. (Oh, and watch the little smile Schmitt can't hold back when he thinks he has caught Jack Smith in a lie.) Highly recommended viewing: ~~~
~~~ Hayes' interview of Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) adds more insider info. that helps explain how the denouement went down. Schiff also notes that when Republicans hold these hearings to vilify Jack Smith, "they never contest the facts of [Trump's] guilt ... because they can't." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Jack Smith remarked during the hearing that he did not understand why Republicans accused him of conducting a partisan investigation when his main witnesses against Donald Trump would have been ... Republicans. ~~~
~~~ Lawrence O'Donnell gives Schmitt the Joe McCarthy Award, though O'Donnell does concede that "the disgraced, alcoholic, lying madman Joe McCarthy actually had more dignity than Eric Schmitt" ~~~
~~~ Jeremy Roebuck of the Washington Post: “Former special counsel Jack Smith forcefully defended his derailed efforts to prosecute ... Donald Trump on Tuesday.... Testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Smith rejected Republican assertions that his investigations of the then-former president were driven by partisanship or were used to improperly surveil GOP lawmakers during the Biden administration.... The proceeding quickly devolved into an opportunity for the former special counsel’s critics to deliver a public tongue-lashing. 'No matter what you say, there’s no legitimate basis for what you did,' committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said. Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Missouri) piled on, telling Smith he 'will go down as a total dirtbag.'... The nearly four-hour flogging grew so intense that Sen. Cory Booker (D-New Jersey) marveled at the relentlessness of the Republicans’ message. 'This is gaslighting of the American people,' he said, telling Smith, 'I am so sorry that they’re attempting to put investigators on trial while ignoring the extraordinary conduct that that they are duty bound to really investigate.'” The link is a gift link. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ At 2:00 am ET today, the top story on the New York Times' online front page was titled, "As Jack Smith Testifies, a Senator's Accusation of Perjury Falls Apart." The subhead: "A Republican eager to prove the former special counsel was dishonest appeared to instead demonstrate his own confusion over basic facts." Here's the report, by Devlin Barrett & Charlie Savage; this is a gift link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: I'll have to admit that the only U.S. senator from Missouri whom I could name off the top of my head up until yesterday morning was this guy: ~~~
~~~ Now I can name all two of them. Congratulations, Missouri voters; you sure know how to pick 'em! ~~~
~~~ Kyle Cheney & Chris Marquette of Politico: “Armed with subpoena power in Congress and a friendly Justice Department on their side, Republican lawmakers have spent two years promising to expose former special counsel Jack Smith as the leader of an anti-Trump witch hunt that morphed into a full-blown attempt to take down the Republican establishment. Sen. Eric Schmitt of Missouri unsuccessfully sought to implicate Smith in a plot to attend a sporting event as a cover for investigating Trump election interference claims, then called him a 'dirtbag.' Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana said the former prosecutor made him 'want to throw up in my mouth.' And Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, comparing him to 'Javert from “Les Mis,’” said Smith’s probe was 'the most egregious abuse of power in the history of the Department of Justice.” Senate Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley insisted the hearing was 'not the end' of his investigative work, but the four-hour grilling had the feeling of finality.” ~~~
~~~ Marie: Paul Campos republishes an essay by someone. I don't know who wrote it (maybe Campos did???), but it's a good, irreverent explanation of what Eric Schmitt was up to. It's been more than 50 years since Deep Throat (Mark Felt) said of Nixon's crew, "These are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand." And yet. And yet. It remains a rule of thumb when it comes to elected Republicans and their staffs.~~~
~~~ Don Moynihan tries to suss out what-all went down. Marie: In the course of his speculating, it become evident that there was a conspiracy -- not between Jack Smith & Fani Willis, of course, but within Right Wing World, where facts are instantly forgettable. Yesterday, Schmitt was a player in that conspiracy, and -- since facts don't matter -- Moynihan thinks his extraordinary gaffe might not hurt him much. To follow up on a comment by RAS yesterday, the whole incident turned into a bit of a feminist victory. It never dawned on Schmitt that Smith and his crew would have gone to a women's basketball game -- which he did. And Schmitt clearly was humiliated when another women -- Sen. Amy Klobuchar -- exposed his stupid failure to check facts. ~~~
~~~ Heather Cox Richardson reminds us, "The case [against Trump's attempt to retain the presidency after he lost the election] can be resumed once Trump is no longer president."
Jonathan Edwards of the Washington Post: “A bipartisan effort to ban the demolition of presidential memorials — including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — was blocked Monday night in the Senate by an objection from Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah). Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Oregon), who led the effort with fellow Democrats and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), sought to pass the bill by unanimous consent, a procedure that allows a motion or action unless a single senator objects. On Tuesday, Merkley and Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-Maine) said they would work to pass the legislation in both chambers of Congress.... Earlier this month, [Donald] Trump warned that the performing arts venue could eventually be “ripped down” without his intervention. Hours later, he was photographed aboard Air Force One examining a large printout about the center whose partially visible title appeared to read 'Kennedy Center DEMOLIS[HED].'” (Also linked yesterday.)
Joseph Gedeon of the Guardian: “The US Senate on Tuesday evening rejected along mostly party lines a Democratic resolution that would have forced the state department to report to Congress on violence in the occupied West Bank, including the killings of nine American citizens by Israeli settlers or security forces over the last few years. The resolution, led by the Maryland Democrat Chris Van Hollen, would have given the state department 30 days to report to Congress on those deaths and on wider human rights conditions in the territory, including Israel’s detention of Palestinian children. The resolution failed to advance by a vote of 47 to 51. Pennsylvania senator John Fetterman, a Democrat, joined Republicans in voting against the resolution, while Kentucky Republican Rand Paul voted in favor.”
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| Rep. Baird in one of his happy places. |
Abbie Van Sickle of the New York Times: “The Supreme Court on Tuesday gave ... [Donald] Trump a temporary victory on a central piece of his mass deportation agenda, agreeing the administration can, for now, resume rapidly deporting immigrants to countries other than their own. Although the justices cleared the way for the policy to continue, they also announced that the court would fast-track the case and hear oral arguments about it in December.... The one-page emergency ruling was unsigned and gave no vote count, as is typical in such cases. On the line in December will be Mr. Trump’s policy of sending people to countries where they have no ties, including nations that have faced allegations of human rights abuses. Among the countries migrants have been sent to are Liberia, Equatorial Guinea, Costa Rica, Honduras and the Central African Republic. The court’s three liberal justices noted that they would have denied the government’s request to resume the deportations.” The link is a gift link. An NBC News story is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Maybe one of the court reforms could be to deport the six confederate justices to the Central African Republic, where they would be left to rot in jail & the protein in their diets would be maggots. ~~~
~~~ Chris Geidner sees "A split-screen of the Supreme Court allowing Trump to expand his authoritarian efforts as appeals courts are increasingly supporting district courts’ accountability efforts." ~~~
~~~ Josephine Walker of Axios: Donald "Trump's administration on Monday filed its 41st application to the Supreme Court's shadow docket, a milestone that matches the total number of petitions it filed during his entire first term — in less than two years.... The record highlights how often the president has turned to SCOTUS to secure authority to temporarily revive policies blocked by lower courts.... '... the shadow docket, the emergency docket, is used and should be used for actual emergencies,' [Stephen Spaulding ... [of] the Brennan Center for Justice] says."
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New York. Mihir Zaveri of the New York Times: “A Staten Island judge on Tuesday dealt a major setback to Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s push to raise taxes on the wealthy, saying that the city had mishandled the rollout of a tax on high-end second homes and must start over. The judge, Wayne M. Ozzi of State Supreme Court on Staten Island, sided with a group of homeowners who had sued the city. The homeowners had argued that the Mamdani administration’s Department of Finance did not try hard enough to determine who should owe the tax before moving toward collecting it. 'Homeowners are being substantially harmed and penalized needlessly by D.O.F.’s method of implementing the tax law,' Justice Ozzi wrote. The lawsuit did not challenge the legality of the tax on second homes, also known as pieds-à-terre. Unveiled by Gov. Kathy Hochul in the spring and backed by the mayor, the tax was popular among voters and hailed by Mr. Mamdani’s supporters as a way to make good on his pledge to 'tax the rich.'” The link is a gift link. ~~~
~~~ Update. Mira Bhakta of the Hill: “New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s office filed an appeal on Tuesday following a Staten Island judge’s ruling that barred notices from being sent to homeowners affected by the pied-à-terre tax. A city official told The Hill the appeal invoked the 'auto stay,' which under New York law allows the city to continue with its implementation of the tax on second homes worth more than $5 million and puts Judge Wayne Ozzi’s ruling on hold.”
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| Bryon Noem. Perhaps these are two of the irreconcilable differences. |
~~~ Julianne McShane of MS NOW: "Former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has filed for divorce from her husband of over three decades, Bryon Noem, six months after a tabloid published photos that appeared to show him wearing women’s clothing and fake breasts and reported that he maintained a secret online presence in which he communicated with adult performers."
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Middle East. The New York Times is live-updating developments following an in-flight altercation in the cockpit. The link is a gift link. From the pinned item at 6:15 am ET: “A clash in the cockpit of an airliner flying from Dubai to Tel Aviv Wednesday morning prompted Israel and Saudi Arabia to scramble fighter jets in fear of a hijacking, officials said. Passengers described to Israeli news outlets a terrifying melee that left one crew member bleeding from a stab wound and ended with his attacker subdued by passengers. The plane landed safely at a civil-military airport in Tabuk, in northwestern Saudi Arabia. The flight, FlyDubai Flight 1073, sent distress signals and abruptly reversed course near the Saudi-Jordanian border about two hours and fifteen minutes into its trip. Officials of three Israeli government agencies said it appeared that the pilot and co-pilot had gotten into a fight and one of them sent the distress signal.”