“A British High Court ruled Friday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can be extradited to the United States to face charges of violating the Espionage Act,” the Washington Post reports.
House Approves Curbs on Presidential Power
“The House on Thursday passed a sweeping package of constraints on presidential power, which Democrats framed as a response to Donald Trump’s norm-busting presidency and Republicans unanimously opposed for the same reason,” the New York Times reports.
“By a nearly party-line vote of 220 to 208, the House approved the Protecting Our Democracy Act, which would impose new curbs on executive power. Proponents of tighter government ethics have long sought many of the measures, and Republican have supported them, but they have been recast as partisan issues because of their association with Mr. Trump.”
Reuters: “The bill will now head to the Senate, where it is not expected to surpass the chamber’s 60-vote threshold to move forward.”
Michigan Official Who Disputed Election Dies of Covid
“William Hartmann, one of two Republican election officials from Michigan who initially refused to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election in Wayne County, where Joe Biden had trounced Donald Trump, died on Nov. 30 at a hospital near Detroit,” the New York Times reports.
“About two weeks before Mr. Hartmann’s death, which was confirmed by the Michigan Republican Party, his sister, Elizabeth Hartmann, wrote on Facebook that he was ‘in ICU with Covid pneumonia and currently on a ventilator.’”
“Mr. Hartmann had been outspoken in his opposition to Covid vaccines.”
Seattle Councilmember Pulls Ahead In Recall Effort
“Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant pulled ahead of a ballot measure to recall her in Thursday’s vote count, earning 50.3% of the total counted votes,” the Seattle Times reports.
“Sawant has gained ground two days in a row, overcoming a 53% lead held by the recall effort on Tuesday.”
Omicron Wave Heads for the U.K.
“With cases of the Omicron variant doubling every three days and the government doing an about-face on restrictions it had long resisted, Britain is bracing for a new coronavirus surge, unsure if it will be a relatively minor event or a return to the dark days of earlier pandemic waves,” the New York Times reports.
“Early evidence in Britain backs up tentative findings elsewhere, notably in South Africa, where the heavily mutated new variant is already widespread: It appears to be the most contagious form of the virus yet, a previous case of Covid-19 provides little immunity to it, and vaccines seem less effective against it. But it also seems to cause less severe illness than earlier variants.”
A Complete History of Watergate
Coming soon: Watergate: A New History by Garrett Graff.
Recent revelations like the release of more Nixon tapes — and the identity of “Deep Throat” himself — means that the full story has never been told from start to finish.
Watergate: A New History
- Amazon Kindle Edition
- Graff, Garrett M. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 823 Pages - 02/15/2022 (Publication Date) - Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster (Publisher)
The Biden Boom
Robert Shapiro: “While many people are uncomfortable communicating bad news, Democrats have a problem these days talking about good news, especially on the economy.”
“Based on the data, President Biden and the Democratic Congress are set to preside over the strongest two-year performance on growth, jobs, and income in decades—so long as the current cycle of inflation eases, and the Omicron variant does not trigger another round of shutdowns. The future paths of inflation and the pandemic are large and important unknowns—but if they break right, everything else points to a Biden boom through 2022.”
New York City Will Allow Non-Citizens to Vote
The New York City Council approved a measure “that will allow immigrants who are not U.S. citizens to vote for mayor and other key municipal positions, a historic move that is igniting threats of legal challenges from Republicans and hopes from Democrats that other cities will follow suit,” the Washington Post reports.
Cuomo Aide Dug Up Dirt on Accuser
Former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s closest advisors used a campaign finance aide to seek potentially damaging information on Lindsey Boylan, who has accused him of sexual harassment, CNBC reports.
House Committee Gets Mark Meadows’ Texts
Former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows provided the House select committee investigating the January 6 riot with text messages and emails that show he was “exchanging with a wide range of individuals while the attack was underway,” CNN reports.
“These communications offer a window into what people were texting to Meadows on January 6, what he was telling them about Trump in real time, and what the former President was doing for those hours while the Capitol was under attack.”
A source familiar with the communications says the texts “may not reflect well” on Trump.
Alabama Lawmakers Seek to Mirror Texas Abortion Law
Nearly two dozen Republican state lawmakers in Alabama filed a bill mirroring a Texas law banning abortion at six weeks of pregnancy and allowing anyone to sue a woman who has an abortion for $10,000, AL.com reports.
Appeals Court Denies Trump Effort to Shield Records
A U.S. appeals court ruled against former President Donald Trump’s effort to shield documents from the House Select Committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection, affirming a lower court’s ruling, the AP reports.
From the decision: “On the record before us, former President Trump has provided no basis for this court to override President Biden’s judgment and the agreement and accommodations worked out between the Political Branches over these documents.”
An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is expected within the next two weeks.
Mark Walker Stays In Senate Race for Now
Former Rep. Mark Walker (R-NC) will remain in North Carolina’s U.S. Senate race for the remainder of the year and spend the next few weeks mulling a run for a House seat, despite former President Donald Trump urging him to bow out of the 2022 Senate contest, the AP reports.
‘A Very Bad Day for Donald Trump’
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) said that “this is a very bad day for Donald Trump and the NRA” when commenting on New York Attorney General Letitia James’ (D) decision to run for reelection and drop out of the Democratic governor’s race.
Democratic Elites More Supportive of Progressive Policies
Data for Progress: “Progressives often argue Democratic insiders are too moderate or conservative, and that the personal political preferences of these elite actors prevents the party from embracing a transformative progressive change.”
“However, our new analysis suggests that political elites are more supportive of a wide array of progressive policies than the average likely voter.”
Mark Meadows Did Not Properly Store Official Records
Mark Meadows and the National Archives are in talks over potential records he did “not properly” turn over from his personal phone and email account, Politico reports.
Pence Navigates Trump’s Shadow
“There were all the trappings of a day on the presidential campaign trail: a fundraiser, schmoozing with local activists, holiday parties and a visit to a local bakery, where the potential candidate posed for pictures and bought a slice of cake,” the AP reports.
“But former Vice President Mike Pence insisted his tightly scheduled swing through New Hampshire on Wednesday was simply focused on next year’s midterms, when control of Congress is at stake.”
Said Pence: “To be honest with you, all of my focus is on 2022 because I think we’ve got a historic opportunity for not just a winning election, but a realignment election. So I’m dedicating all of my energy to the process of really winning back the Congress and winning statehouses in 2022. And then in 2023, we’ll look around and we’ll go where we’re called.”
Finland’s Prime Minister Goes Clubbing After Covid Contact
“Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin has apologized for going clubbing after coming into close contact with a Covid-19 case,” the BBC reports.
“She was initially told she did not need to isolate because she had been fully vaccinated, but later missed a text that advised her to do so.”
