Associated Press: “About half of eligible Americans have received booster shots, there have been nearly 80 million confirmed infections overall and many more infections have never been reported. One influential model uses those factors and others to estimate that 73% of Americans are, for now, immune to omicron, the dominant variant, and that could rise to 80% by mid-March.”
Trump Ordered to Testify
A judge ruled that Donald Trump and his two eldest children, Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr., “must answer questions under oath in New York state’s civil investigation into his business practices,” the AP reports.
“The ruling is almost certain to be appealed, but if upheld it could force the former president into a tough decision about whether to answer questions, or stay silent, citing his Fifth Amendment right against self incrimination.”
New York Times: “The inquiry by the attorney general, Letitia James, and a parallel criminal investigation led by the Manhattan district attorney are examining whether Mr. Trump improperly inflated the value of his assets to receive favorable loans.”
All Members of Congress Can Attend State of the Union
All members of Congress will be permitted to attend State of the Union address on March 1, per the Capitol physician, Punchbowl News reports.
Amendments Likely on Short-Term Funding Bill
“The Senate cleared an initial hurdle to staving off a shutdown, advancing a stopgap spending patch by a 65-30 bipartisan vote. But the proverbial jet fumes of a recess have not yet worked at speeding things up ahead of the Friday deadline,” Politico reports.
“Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has indicated GOP senators will insist on several amendment votes — and lawmakers are pushing for controversial ones on crack pipes and vaccine mandates.”
Paul Threatens to Block Resolution Supporting Ukraine
Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) warned that he will block quick passage of a symbolic resolution supporting Ukraine and sending a warning to Russia unless it incorporates changes he wants, The Hill reports.
Said Paul: “We have some amendments to it. We believe that it should say nothing in this resolution is to be construed as an authorization of war and nothing in this resolution is to be construed as authorizing the use of troops into Ukraine.”
How Well Could Russia’s Economy Withstand Sanctions?
Wall Street Journal: “Russia has taken steps to buffer itself against the economic blow that sanctions could impose. The country has trimmed its budget, beefed up foreign exchange reserves and sought to diversify its trade portfolio to become less dependent on the EU for export revenues.”
Top Democrat Fondly Remembers ‘Really Pure’ Ecstasy
DCCC Chair Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY) reminisced on Morning Joe about the “really pure” MDMA of his youth.
The U.S. Is Now Energy Independent
“For decades, politicians have talked about the U.S. achieving energy independence, a seemingly elusive goal of producing enough fuels to avoid relying on the rest of the world to fill up gas tanks and keep electricity flowing,” Axios reports.
“It’s elusive no more. The U.S. produced more petroleum than it consumed in 2020, and the numbers were essentially in balance in 2021.”
Why Did Nixon’s Team Order the Break-In?
Vanity Fair runs an excerpt of Garrett Graff’s must-read book, Watergate: A New History.
“Given the scale and breadth of the crime and corruption that surrounded Nixon’s presidency, it’s all the more surprising that no one was ever charged with ordering the burglary of the DNC, located in the 11-story Watergate complex in Washington, D.C. In fact, five decades after the night of June 17, 1972, the actual rationale for the break-in remains one of our greatest unsolved national mysteries: What were they actually doing there in the first place?”
Sale
Watergate: A New History
- Hardcover Book
- Graff, Garrett M. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 832 Pages - 02/15/2022 (Publication Date) - Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster (Publisher)
Durbin Wants New Justice Confirmed by Early April
“Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin (D-IL) said that he wants the Senate to confirm President Biden’s forthcoming Supreme Court nominee by the start of a two-week April break, signaling he wants the president to move faster than his end-of-the-month deadline,” The Hill reports.
Said Durbin: “I’d like to get this done before the Easter break because that adds two weeks to the process, and I think we can do it… We would like to complete it on the floor before we break for Easter, and that’s April the 9th.”
Domestic-Abuse Allegation Dogs GOP Candidate
Teddy Daniels (R) is running for Pennsylvania lieutenant governor as an award-winning police officer, but court records and news archives obtained by Rolling Stone reveal he was caught committing “unbecoming conduct” at one police department and suspended at another.
In addition, Daniels’ ex-wife claimed in court that he was “physically and mentally abusive” during their marriage and later harassed her at her workplace, and both she and another woman have accused him of being negligent in paying child support.
Voters Like Biden, But Not His Policies
From a new Quinnipiac poll:
- 34% like Joe Biden as a person and also like most of his policies;
- 21% like Joe Biden as a person but don’t like most of his policies;
- 4% don’t like Joe Biden as a person but do like most of his policies;
- 37% don’t like Joe Biden as a person and also don’t like most of his policies.
Said pollster Tim Malloy: “Biden still clearly connects with voters on a personal level. It’s his policies that don’t click.”
McConnell Rips Proposed Gas Tax Holiday
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) removed any doubt that Republicans will oppose the gas tax pause being proposed by some Democrats, Politico reports.
Said McConnell: “Oh, and just to make the political games transparent, they want this to expire right after the midterms, as soon as the next Congress is sworn in.”
Trump Endorses Woman Accused of Abusing Child
Donald Trump offered his “Complete and Total Endorsement” of Monica De La Cruz (R), a congressional candidate in Texas “whose campaign has been dogged by an allegation that she was abusive toward her estranged husband’s daughter,” the Washington Post reports.
Nick Kristof Can’t Run for Oregon Governor
“Oregon’s Democratic primary race for governor narrowed significantly Thursday, with the state Supreme Court ruling that former New York Times columnist Nick Kristof can’t run because he does not meet the state’s three-year residency requirement,” the Oregonian reports.
“Kristof has raised at least $2.7 million to fund his now-defunct campaign for governor, money he can now donate to other candidates and campaigns, return to donors or save for another future run for office.”
Where Democracy Is on the Ballot This Year
FiveThirtyEight: “This year, 27 secretaries of state and 30 attorneys general will be elected nationwide (other states either elect them in other years or don’t elect them at all). And since the secretaries of state and attorneys general who are elected in 2022 will wield power in 2024, this year’s elections could plunge our democracy into further danger if would-be election subverters win them.”
Mike Lindell Now Planning to Drop Pillows Over Canada
After his initial shipment of MyPillow products was denied entry into Canada, Mike Lindell told the Daily Beast about a backup plan to get free pillows to Canadian truckers: drop them from the sky via a helicopter.
Lindell said the pillows will have “little parachutes,” while adding “make sure you put that part in, or it could be dangerous.”
Russia Accuses Ukrainian Military of ‘Crimes’
“Russia has filed a report with the United Nations alleging that Ukraine’s military has committed ‘crimes’ against residents of the eastern Donbas region,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
And this would be the “false flag” Biden suggested was coming.
