Just dropped · Trial Balloon · Ep. 195
Shake Up
“The root cause of the longest halt in flight departures to U.S. airports since 9/11 remains unclear after a Saturday press conference by U.S. transportation officials,” CNBC reports.
“Routers and networking equipment appeared to be involved in the technological disruption that grounded flights across the country, but a definitive cause has not been established as of Saturday afternoon.”
CNN: What we know about the cause of the nationwide FAA ground stop.
“The White House won’t commit to complying with potential subpoenas from a Democratic-led Congress and believes company executives who’ve had contact with President Donald Trump may be covered by executive privilege, White House Counsel Will Scharf said,” Bloomberg reports.
“The counsel’s office has added some 15 attorneys to its ranks, with offers to others still outstanding, in preparation for an expected onslaught of probes when the new Congress is sworn in next year.”
Fox News: White House lawyer’s hardball warning to Dems has legal experts on both sides questioning one key threat.
Tom Bartlett: “Measles is undeniably back. The disease, which was declared eliminated in the United States in 2000, is once again endemic, the Pan American Health Organization reportedly decided at a meeting this week.”
“PAHO made that determination based on a set of technical standards, and its official declaration is expected early next week. Those criteria say that measles is endemic when the same strain of the virus causes continuous infections for a year straight; even before this week’s meeting, publicly available data indicated that this was likely the case.”
“But really, the evidence has been clear for some time now: The U.S. is in the midst of a measles crisis unlike any it’s faced in decades. More than 5,000 cases in 45 states have been confirmed this year. Pennsylvania started reporting measles deaths this August; its count is now up to seven. New York has had one death. Wisconsin reported its second yesterday.”
“The midterms have reset Washington’s political equation,” Politico reports.
“That means some long-stalled bipartisan deals might start to move.”
“Before the midterms this month, experts who measure the health of democracies saw the United States experiencing ‘the most dramatic decline in American history,’ in the words of one global index,” the New York Times reports.
“Against the backdrop of such fears, the November election became not just a referendum on President Trump, but also a crucial test of American democracy. In the end, the country passed. Turnout was the second highest for a midterm in more than a century, and Republicans, including Trump, have accepted the results.”
“In the aftermath of the midterm wipeout for Republicans, Joe Rogan, the nation’s top podcaster, has not had a lot to say about politics, instead focusing his program on topics such as Hobbit-like hominids and dinosaurs, which he wanted to assure people were real,” the New York Times reports.
“But on Friday, Rogan, who endorsed Donald Trump in 2024 and was seen as crucial in his winning over young male voters, had a harsh assessment of the president’s policies, as well as, seemingly, his place among male podcasters like himself.”
Said Rogan: “They didn’t just lose the podcast bros. They lost most of the country.”
“Sex. Money. Power. Espionage. As Washington scandals go, this one has everything,” the Washington Post reports.
“But what really makes ex-Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s affair with a suspected Chinese spy an explosive political problem for the White House is that it brings together the very issues that propelled Democrats to their largest congressional majority since 1990. Voters revolted against President Donald Trump’s handling of the economy, with widespread concerns about artificial intelligence, data centers, competition from China, and special access and favors for billionaires.”
“Trump and I won the same border communities: I won them this time, he won them last time.”
— Texas Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa (D), quoted by the Washington Post, stressing she would govern as a moderate.
“Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) signaled that he would consider quitting the Democratic Party if the caucus elected Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen as majority leader, citing disagreements over U.S. policy toward Israel,” The Independent reports.
Said Fetterman: “Yeah, absolutely. It would be troubling if my caucus elects someone like Van Hollen that has really made his name being very anti-hostile to Israel, you know. If you are going to be angry or hostile towards any countries in the region, why not make that, you know, Iran or Hezbollah or Hamas as well too?”
“California Republicans are locked in a civil war over the disastrous midterm elections — with as many as eight legislative seats potentially lost, their state party chair heading for the exit and accusations flying over the waste of millions in campaign money,” the New York Post reports.
“Democrats will hold a supermajority in the next legislative session, and Gov. Gavin Newsom will hand the baton to Xavier Becerra. Meanwhile, Republicans are sending just four members to Congress, and state Assembly Republican Leader Alexandra Macedo lost a historically safe Central Valley seat to a little-known Democrat.”
“With flights grounded for nearly five hours Friday evening, Americans heard from the homeland security secretary. They heard from the transportation secretary. They did not hear from President Trump,” the New York Times reports.
“At least not about the nationwide ground stop, the first major crisis the federal government has faced since the midterm elections. The halt grounded or delayed some 10,000 flights from coast to coast and confirmed what experts have been warning for years: that the nation’s flight safety system is perilously fragile.”
“Instead, the president, who remained behind the scenes at the White House, posted messages to social media that night on other topics.”
The Wrap: Trump stays mum on FAA grounded flight crisis, questionably touts Hollywood business bill instead.
“Jared Kushner, the U.S. president’s son-in-law who has been serving as a negotiator with Russia and Ukraine, said the Trump administration wants to see direct talks between Moscow and U.S. allies in Europe,” Bloomberg reports.
CBS News: U.S. facilitating direct engagement between Europe and Russia.
“SpaceX’s Starship made a triumphant return to Earth on Saturday, caught in midair by giant mechanical arms where its journey began 22 hours earlier,” the Associated Press reports.
“It was the grand finale that Elon Musk and his team hoped for — the first-ever capture of a Starship flying back from space.”
“As Alaska continues to count and report votes weeks after Election Day, it is increasingly unlikely that Republican Sen. Dan S. Sullivan will hang on to his job,” NBC News reports.
“His Democratic challenger, Mary Peltola, is on track to win the still-unresolved Senate race under either possible scenario — with an outright majority, or if the race goes to ranked choice ballots.”
“Persian Gulf governments are preparing with dread for the inevitable: A damaging barrage of inquiries into alleged corruption involving President Donald Trump, his administration and family, by Democrats who swept the House and Senate in last week’s midterm elections, and who have pledged to follow the money wherever it may lead,” the Washington Post reports.
“Democrats on Capitol Hill have warned the governments of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar of the coming investigations.”
“Florida Senate candidate Angie Nixon (D), who lost to GOP incumbent Sen. Ashley Moody in last week’s midterm elections, called Democratic strategist James Carville a ‘racist’ in a Thursday night interview, adding he should ‘go retire,'” The Hill reports.
Said Nixon: “That man is a racist.”
She added: “The way in which he talks and how he has continued to downplay the work that I was able to do and the work that other folks have been able to do, other Black candidates, is just really mad disrespectful. He needs to go retire and stop being disrespectful.”
“As President Donald Trump keeps tasking the Justice Department with new investigations and new targets, the agency’s top ranks are growing thinner,” Politico reports.
“Of the 11 slots DOJ has for assistant attorneys general, who head its major divisions and offices, only three will have permanent, Senate-confirmed leaders if all announced departures and resignations move forward and no replacements are confirmed.”
“There were times when I was tired, and I felt like I couldn’t keep going, but I kept the faith. And that is another tradition of our state. There’s so many people that had faith in Mississippi at times where it seemed impossible.”
— Sen.-elect Scott Colom (D-MS), quoted by The Atlantic.
Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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