“This is a day that is going to loom very large in American history.”
— Presidential historian Michael Beschloss, on MSNBC.
Turkey Now Supports Finland and Sweden in NATO
“A diplomatic dispute that had blocked Finland and Sweden from joining NATO was resolved on Tuesday, when the alliance’s secretary general announced that Turkey had agreed to lift its veto on the membership applications of the two Nordic countries following three hours of talks,” the New York Times reports.
“If Finland and Sweden join NATO, it would mark one of the most significant expansions of the alliance in decades at a time when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has radically altered Europe’s security calculus. It also underscores how the war in Ukraine has undermined President Vladimir V. Putin’s aim of weakening NATO by pushing Sweden and Finland, which were neutral and nonaligned for decades, into the alliance’s arms.”
Reaction to the Surprise January 6 Hearing — Part II
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Exchange of the Day
Video testimony of Michael Flynn testifying before the January 6 Committee, with Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) doing to the questioning:
CHENEY: Gen. Flynn, do you believe the violence on Jan. 6 was justified morally?
FLYNN: Take the Fifth.
CHENEY: Do you believe the violence on Jan. 6 was justified legally?
FLYNN: Fifth.
CHENEY: Gen. Flynn, do you believe in the peaceful transfer of power in the United States of America?
FLYNN: The Fifth.
Reaction to the Surprise January 6 Hearing
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The Surprise January 6 Hearing
Former Trump White House aide Cassidy Hutchinson is schedule to publicly testify at a special hearing of the January 6 Committee at 1 p.m. ET.
Leave your reactions in the comments.
Howard Stern Floats Presidential Bid
Howard Stern revealed on his radio show that he’s considering running for president, largely so he can pack the Supreme Court after the constitutional right to abortion was eliminated last week.
Said Stern: “I’m actually gonna probably have to run for president now.”
He added: “This is Trump’s legacy. Hope he’s happy. Back alley abortions. … He’s deranged, these justices are deranged.”
Lauren Boebert Blasts Separation of Church and State
Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) told worshipers at a religious service: “The church is supposed to direct the government. The government is not supposed to direct the church. That is not how our Founding Fathers intended it.”
She added: “I’m tired of this separation of church and state junk that’s not in the Constitution. It was in a stinking letter, and it means nothing like what they say it does.” Her comments were first reported by the Denver Post.
Alan Simpson Backs Cheney’s Re-Election
A new ad for Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY) features former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-WY), a political icon in the state, backing Cheney’s re-election, NBC News reports.
“But in an interview with NBC News about the ad, the Wyoming political giant minced few words about his frustration with former President Donald Trump, who is backing a primary challenge against Cheney over her repeated criticism of the former president.”
Man Who Slapped Giuliani’s Back Charged with Assault
“A 39-year-old man who allegedly slapped Rudy Giuliani on the back Sunday has been charged with assault with intent to cause physical injury, harassment in the second degree and menacing in the third degree and was released on his own recognizance after a court appearance Monday,” CNN reports.
Tucker Carlson Issues Warning to Biden Foes
Tucker Carlson interviewed John Eastman, and called his situation a “reminder to anyone who didn’t vote for Joe Biden to erase your texts and emails every single day.”
GOP Candidate Called Rival ‘Scumbag’ in Text
New York gubernatorial candidate Harry Wilson (R) called rival Lee Zeldin (R) and an aide “scumbags” in a group text that he accidentally sent to Zeldin.
Abortion and Democracy
Michael Gerson: “For the foreseeable future, the abortion debate — with all its tragic complexities — has been returned to the realm of democracy. And there is little evidence our democracy is prepared for it.”
Quote of the Day
“I never believed them. I didn’t believe them. That’s why I voted against them.”
—Vice President Kamala Harris, quoted by CNN, on the centrist senators who felt betrayed by Justices Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh overturning Roe v. Wade
Manchin Won’t Say If He Supports Biden in 2024
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) wouldn’t tell the New York Times whether he’d back Joe Biden for President in 2024 — or consider a third-party run of his own.
What to Watch in Today’s Primaries
Politico breaks down the primaries today in Colorado, Illinois, Mississippi, New York, Oklahoma and Utah.
“Democrats have a lot riding on Tuesday’s primaries. The Republican primaries, that is.
“Facing hurricane-force electoral headwinds in November, Democrats have launched an unprecedented effort to meddle in GOP nominating contests across the country, elevating extreme candidates and attacking Republican hopefuls they view as greater threats in the general election.”
What Cassidy Hutchinson Might Say
Cassidy Hutchinson, a top aide to Trump chief of staff Mark Meadows, will testify today before the January 6 Committee.
Playbook: “Hutchinson knows a lot. Before, on, and after Jan. 6, she had close proximity to both Meadows and then-President Donald Trump.”
Said Hutchinson: “Almost all, if not all, meetings Mr. Trump had, I had insight on.”
Punchbowl News: “Hutchinson also testified that she saw Meadows burn papers in his office after meeting with Rep. Scott Perry (R-PA) in the weeks before Jan. 6. Perry played a key role in the push to appoint Jeffrey Clark, a DOJ environmental lawyer, as acting attorney general in order to use the Justice Department to bolster Trump’s false election fraud claims.”
CNN: “Hutchinson told the January 6 committee that Trump had suggested to Meadows he approved of the ‘hang Mike Pence’ chants from rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol.”
Mitch McConnell’s Court Delivers
New York Times: “Mr. McConnell is indisputably a chief architect — if not the chief architect — of the conservative court that has shaken the nation over the past week with a string of rulings on abortion, guns and religion — a trifecta of searing cultural issues.”
“While much of the public recoiled at the decisions and the prospect of more to come in the years ahead, Mr. McConnell, a deep admirer of Justice Antonin Scalia, saw the culmination of a personal push to reshape the court in the image of the conservative judicial icon.”
“That history-making feat came at a price: the embrace of Donald J. Trump. Mr. McConnell and his fellow Republicans might have had their misgivings about Mr. Trump, but they were more than willing to set aside any reservations — and Senate comity — in zealous pursuit of a reliably conservative court. Mr. Trump, however problematic, was a means to their end.”
