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“The Supreme Court on Friday reinstated the death penalty for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, convicted in the 2013 attack that killed three people and left hundreds injured,” the Washington Post reports.
“The vote was 6 to 3, with the liberal justices in dissent.”
“The Biden administration is considering once again extending the freeze on federal student loan payments and interest for roughly 40 million Americans before it expires at the beginning of May,” Politico reports.
Donald Trump told Fox Business that he expected China to invade Taiwan sooner rather than later.
Said Trump: “I do because they’re seeing how stupid the United States is run. They’re seeing that our leaders are incompetent. Of course they’re going to do it. This is their time.”
Mona Charen: “Trump essentially inviting a hostile power to destroy a vibrant democratic ally, kill God knows how many innocents, and crush freedom . . . to make his successor look bad?”
Former attorney general William Barr said that he believes that former president Donald Trump is “responsible in the broad sense of that word” for for the Capitol riots on Jan. 6, 2021, the Washington Post reports.
Said Barr: “I do think he was responsible in the broad sense of that word in that it appears that part of the plan was to send this group up to the Hill. I think the whole idea was to intimidate Congress, and I think that that was wrong.”
“Russia is on course for an economic collapse that will rival or even eclipse the size of the 1998 slump which followed its debt default, although the financial fallout may be less than then,” Bloomberg reports.
“JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s economists told clients in a report on Friday that they expect a 7% contraction in gross domestic product this year.”
“After clinching the Democratic nomination for Texas governor, Beto O’Rourke took the stage and made a promise that could possibly define his fall campaign,” KCEN reports.
Said O’Rourke: “And don’t you think it’s time we legalize marijuana in the state of Texas? I do too. We can get that done.”
The Washington Post reviewed more than 20 hours of video filmed for the documentary, A Storm Foretold, which is expected to be released later this year.
“Roger Stone allowed the filmmakers to document his activities during extended periods over more than two years. In addition to interviews and moments when Stone spoke directly to the camera, they also captured fly-on-the-wall footage of his actions, candid off-camera conversations from a microphone he wore and views of his iPhone screen as he messaged associates on an encrypted app.”
“Job growth accelerated in February, posting its biggest monthly gain since July as the employment picture got closer to its pre-pandemic self,” CNBC reports.
“Nonfarm payrolls for the month grew by 678,000 and the unemployment rate was 3.8%… That compared to estimates of 440,000 for payrolls and 3.9% for the jobless rate.”
New York Times: “As President Vladimir Putin wages war against Ukraine, he is fighting a parallel battle on the home front, dismantling the last vestiges of a Russian free press.”
Just 17% of registered voters in Texas cast a ballot in the 2022 primaries this week, the Texas Tribune reports.
“Senior White House officials designing the strategy to confront Russia have begun quietly debating a new concern: that the avalanche of sanctions directed at Moscow, which have gained speed faster than they imagined, is cornering President Vladimir Putin and may prompt him to lash out, perhaps expanding the conflict beyond Ukraine,” the New York Times reports.
“In Situation Room meetings in recent days, the issue has come up repeatedly.”
Financial Times: Would Putin ever really go nuclear?
New York Times: “Across Ukraine, Russian forces are pressing ahead, laying siege to cities and trying to control vital ports, and Western officials said Moscow’s forces were targeting civilians and critical infrastructure. Russia’s continuing gains in the south could make it harder for Ukraine’s army to fight in other parts of the country.”
“Ukraine’s spirited defense has slowed the Russian advance, notably near Kyiv, the capital, where its forces have attacked a vast armored convoy bearing down on the city. But Russia is adding forces from the south and west in its efforts to take Kyiv, which the Ukrainian military said Friday remained a ‘key’ Russian objective.”
Axios: “Russia’s invasion could destroy Ukraine’s sovereignty or Vladimir Putin’s regime. The outlines of a solution that leaves both intact are murkier.”
“Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert are two backbench freshmen in the House minority, powerless in the official hierarchy and unlikely to gain much power even in a likely Republican majority next year,” the New York Times reports.
“But their antics, violations of decorum and association with white nationalists have elevated their profile far beyond their positions, and Democratic operatives are determined to make them the face of the Republican Party in the looming election season.”
Missouri Senate candidate Eric Greitens (R) is rising in former President Donald Trump’s eyes, Politico reports.
“Greitens has staunchly aligned himself with the former president, become a favorite of the pro-Trump media universe, and distinguished himself as one of the few Republican Senate candidates willing to speak out against McConnell. Now, Trump, who in the past has privately criticized the former governor over the scandal that led to his downfall, is telling people he’s open to endorsing Greitens — despite fears among other powerful Republicans that the Missouri Republican is the only GOP candidate who could potentially lose the seat in November.”
“How long do you need? How many arms and legs and heads should be severed so that you understand? If you don’t have the strength to provide a no-fly zone, then give me planes. Would that not be fair?”
— Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, at a press conference.
Britain’s prime minister Boris Johnson said the “reckless actions of President Putin could now directly threaten the safety of all of Europe,” the BBC reports.
Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) escalates his public battle with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY) by writing a defiant Wall Street Journal op-ed defending his decision to put out a Republican agenda for the midterm elections:
“We are losing this country. The militant left has seized control of the federal government, the news media, big tech, academia, Hollywood, the Democratic Party, most corporate boardrooms and even some of our top military leaders. The elites atop our nation’s institutions are working hard to redefine America and silence their opponents. They want to end the American experiment and replace it with a woke socialist utopia, and we are sitting around watching it happen.”
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.
Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.
Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.
Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.
Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.