Delaware Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long (D) announced that she’s running for governor, the Delaware News Journal reports.
Archives for September 12, 2023 at 2:04 pm EDT
Pro-Israel Democrats Face Early Challenges
“While AIPAC has indicated that it is weighing a more aggressive approach to challenging anti-Israel incumbents this election cycle, the pro-Israel group is facing some early complications as several of its favored House recruits remain undecided about running,” Jewish Insider reports.
“Meanwhile, in a couple of pivotal races involving Squad members, the field of challengers is growing, potentially reducing the chances for an upset.”
Colombian Cocaine Output Soars to Record
“Colombian cocaine output surged to a record last year, with the drug flooding into new markets and fueling violence across the planet,” Bloomberg reports.
House GOP Weaponizes Impeachment
Politico: “The start of an inquiry also reflects how quickly impeachment has been downgraded from an ultra-rare proceeding to a political weapon in Congress: House Republicans have yet to turn up a smoking gun that would substantiate high crimes and misdemeanors or link the president to money Hunter Biden received in Ukraine and China. The GOP argues that the inquiry will give the panels more opportunity to dig deeper into the matter.”
“Some Democrats reacted by rubbing their hands at the prospect of McCarthy forcing his swing-seat incumbents into a vulnerable position if Republicans overplay their hand. But this is nonetheless a major move against Biden that could make him more vulnerable politically and put Hunter’s struggles front and center.”
“It’s a tale as old as time, or at least January 2023, all in all: The hard right prevails, McCarthy goes back on his word to hold on to power, moderates roll over, and the whole thing is likely headed nowhere in the Senate.”
Super PAC Attacks Tim Sheehy in Montana
“A mysterious new super PAC with apparent ties to Democrats is going on air hitting Montana Republican Senate hopeful Tim Sheehy over unpaid loans — nine months before he’ll even face primary voters,” Politico reports.
“The group, Last Best Place PAC, made a $134,000 buy on broadcast and cable to run Tuesday through Sept. 25. The 30-second spot raps Sheehy, who runs an aerial firefighting company, as a multimillionaire who “got rich off government contracts” and then walked away from a $770,000 loan.”
Extremists Keep Trying to Trigger Mass Blackouts
Attacks on the U.S. power grid are on the rise, threatening to upend lives all across the country, Politico reports.
“Utilities reported 60 incidents they characterized as physical threats or attacks on major grid infrastructure, in addition to two cyberattacks, during the first three months of 2023 alone… That’s more than double the number from the same period last year.”
Mexico’s Moment
“The new Cold War is a business opportunity, and Mexico looks better placed than almost any other country to seize it,” Bloomberg reports.
“US-China tensions are rewiring global trade, as the US seeks to reduce supply-chain reliance on geopolitical rivals and also source imports from closer to home. Mexico appeals on both counts—which is one reason it’s just overtaken China as the biggest supplier of goods to the giant customer next door.”
Bonus Quote of the Day
“I will confess to you all, I did not expect to be president.”
— 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang, quoted by CNN at a book launch party.
McCarthy Opens Impeachment Probe Into Biden
Speaker Kevin McCarthy announced that he is directing House committees to open an impeachment inquiry into President Biden.
The House will not vote to open the inquiry, something McCarthy had indicated the chamber would do.
Washington Post: “The inquiry would center on whether Biden benefited from his son Hunter Biden’s business dealings, among other issues, McCarthy said.”
Trump Staffers Feel Like They’re Facing Prison
Peter Navarro said that his contempt of Congress conviction has “everybody in that frigging White House” feeling as if they are grappling with “massive legal bills and prison time,” The Guardian reports.
Lamenting that prosecutors had pushed to “stick me in leg irons… and with half a million dollars of legal bills”, Navarro pledged to seek a reversal of his conviction from an appellate court.
Poverty Rate Soared in 2022 as Aid Ended
“Poverty increased sharply last year in the United States, particularly among children, as living costs rose and federal programs that provided aid to families during the pandemic were allowed to expire,” the New York Times reports.
“The poverty rate rose to 12.4 percent in 2022 from 7.8 percent in 2021, the largest one-year jump on record, the Census Bureau said Tuesday. Poverty among children more than doubled, to 12.4 percent, from a record low of 5.2 percent the year before.”
Fraudsters Stole $1 of every $7 in Covid Jobless Aid
“Fraudsters may have stolen as much as $135 billion in federal unemployment aid during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a report released Tuesday by the Government Accountability Office, which found the theft encompassed roughly one out of every seven dollars set aside for jobless Americans during the public health crisis,” the Washington Post reports.
Putin Says Trump Is Victim of Political ‘Persecution’
“Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday waded into the debate over the criminal charges faced by Republican election candidate Donald Trump, saying the cases against the former U.S. president amount to political ‘persecution’ and expose U.S. weakness,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Said Putin: “This shows the whole rottenness of the American political system, which cannot claim to teach others about democracy. What’s happening with Trump is a persecution of a political rival for political motives.”
Biden or Bust
Jonathan Chait: “It seems clear enough that Joe Biden is up to the job of being president. The economy is booming, especially for the poor and working class; he has signed more bipartisan legislation (on infrastructure, guns, and domestic manufacturing) than anybody expected; and he has held together the western alliance while maintaining a dogged defense of Ukraine’s sovereignty after Russia expected to swallow up its smaller neighbor.”
“But whether Biden is up to the task of running for president is another matter. The national polls show a virtual tie with Biden leading Donald Trump, on average, by less than a point. Since the Electoral College has given Trump a substantial edge in each of the past two elections, it seems as though Biden needs much more than that. He won by 4.4 percentage points in 2020, and had he performed just over half a point worse, Trump probably wouldn’t have even needed to try to steal a second term.”
Kim Jong Un in Russia Amid U.S. Warnings
“North Korean leader Kim Jong Un arrived in Russia by private train to the strains of a military band on Tuesday for talks with President Vladimir Putin – amid warnings from Washington they should not trade weapons,” Reuters reports.
Energy Secretary’s Staff Blocked EV Car Charger
“An EV driver in Georgia called the police on the US Energy Secretary, Jennifer Granholm, after her staff blocked a public charger with a gasoline car to ‘reserve’ it for her upcoming convoy of EVs that she was using to highlight the White House investment in electric vehicles,” Electek reports.
Trump Has Another 14th Amendment Challenge
“A liberal group filed a lawsuit Tuesday to block former President Donald Trump from the 2024 presidential ballot in Minnesota, the second major lawsuit in two weeks that hopes to invoke the 14th Amendment’s arcane ‘insurrectionist ban,'” CNN reports.
Kevin McCarthy Faces the Perfect Storm of Demands
NBC News: “The issues — from government funding and aid for Ukraine to a potential impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden — are significant individual challenges. Taken together, they amount to a daunting Rubik’s Cube for McCarthy, who must align a host of competing interests. He has little time, a paper-thin majority and a Democratic-led Senate and White House that are ready to play legislative whack-a-mole against right-wing priorities.”
“Looming over the end-of-the-month deadline is that some right-leaning Republicans insist McCarthy’s job isn’t safe if they don’t get what they want.”
Semafor:”Congressional aides have begun talking about a shutdown as an inevitability, and there’s widespread doubt about whether McCarthy can evade one while still holding onto his job.”
