“Bill de Blasio, the former mayor of New York City, announced on Friday that he would run for Congress in a newly created district stretching from Lower Manhattan to his home in Brooklyn, jumping into a crowded Democratic primary field,” the New York Times reports.
Group Chat Links Roger Stone to Capitol Rioters
New York Times: “At least three members of the group chat are now facing charges in connection with the riot at the Capitol in January 2021. They include Owen Shroyer, the right-hand man of the conspiracy theorist Alex Jones; Enrique Tarrio, the onetime chairman of the Proud Boys; and Stewart Rhodes, the leader of the Oath Keepers militia.”
“But the focus of the chat was always the man whose photo topped its home page: Roger J. Stone Jr., a longtime political operative and adviser to Mr. Trump.”
Boris Johnson’s Father Becomes French Citizen
British prime minister Boris Johnson’s father, Stanley Johnson, has become a French citizen, The Guardian reports.
The elder Johnson campaigned for the UK to remain in the EU in 2016, while his son Boris led the leave movement.
Doug Mastriano Warned of ‘Hitlerian Putsch’
“Two decades before he was Republican nominee for Pennsylvania governor, Doug Mastriano warned in a master’s thesis that the United States was vulnerable to a left-wing ‘Hitlerian Putsch’ that would begin with the dismantling of the U.S. military and end with the destruction of the country’s democracy,” the Washington Post reports.
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Boris Johnson Likely to Survive ‘Partygate’
“A long-awaited report into the partygate scandal by senior civil servant Sue Gray is unlikely to force Boris Johnson from office,” the Financial Times reports.
Jordan’s King Denounces His Half Brother
“King Abdullah II of Jordan issued a royal decree Thursday restricting the communications and movements of his half brother Prince Hamzah bin Hussein, whom Jordanian authorities accused last year of taking part in a coup attempt against the king,” the Washington Post reports.
“The letter — an extraordinary public airing of a family conflict — was the latest twist in a royal drama that began more than a year ago, when Hamzah was placed under house arrest and accused of fomenting a coup along with Bassem Awadallah, a former top aide to the king, and Sharif Hasan, a little-known member of the royal family.”
Number on Unemployment Hits 52-Year Low
“The number of people receiving unemployment benefits fell in early May to the lowest point in more than 50 years, adding to signs the U.S. labor market remains unusually tight,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Israeli Government Teeters on Brink
“Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett’s government is facing a new threat to its existence after a second lawmaker quit the ruling coalition Thursday, leaving it with a minority in parliament less than a year since coming to power,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
The Coming Food Catastrophe
The Economist: “By invading Ukraine, Vladimir Putin will destroy the lives of people far from the battlefield—and on a scale even he may regret. The war is battering a global food system weakened by covid-19, climate change and an energy shock. Ukraine’s exports of grain and oilseeds have mostly stopped and Russia’s are threatened. Together, the two countries supply 12% of traded calories. Wheat prices, up 53% since the start of the year, jumped a further 6% on May 16th, after India said it would suspend exports because of an alarming heatwave.”
“The widely accepted idea of a cost-of-living crisis does not begin to capture the gravity of what may lie ahead.”
North Korea Reports 2 Million ‘Fever Cases’ In a Week
North Korea had nearly 2 million “fever cases,” affecting 7.7% of the population, and 63 deaths in just a week since it reported the nation’s first confirmed Covid cases May 12, Caixin Global reports.
Russia Moves to Sign Up Older People for Military
“In a sign of Russia’s urgent need to bolster its war effort in Ukraine, parliament said on Friday it would consider a bill to allow Russians over 40 and foreigners over 30 to sign up for the military,” Reuters reports.
Biden’s Approval Hits New Low
A new AP-NORC poll finds President Biden’s approval rating dipped to 39% — the lowest point of his presidency — with deepening pessimism emerging among members of his own Democratic Party.
Of particular concern for Biden ahead of the midterm elections, his approval among Democrats stands at 73%, a substantial drop since earlier in his presidency. In AP-NORC polls conducted in 2021, Biden’s approval rating among Democrats never dropped below 82%.
Red States Not Prepared for Post-Roe Baby Boom
“The red states poised to ban or severely limit abortion already tend to have limited access to health care, poor health outcomes and fewer safety net programs in place for mothers and children,” Axios reports.
“If the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, as it’s expected to, the ensuing increase in births will likely leave families in tough circumstances and strain systems that are already hanging by a thread.”
‘Cheating by Tweeting’
Kellyanne Conway writes in her new memoir that husband George was “cheating by tweeting” anti-Trump sentiments, People magazine reports.
Republicans Warn that Herschel Walker Can’t Win
“The Republicans running against Herschel Walker for U.S. Senate are crisscrossing the state this week, looking for every vote they can get and making a similar argument: Walker can’t win in a November general election against Democrat Raphael Warnock,” the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.
Two Members of Biden Advance Team Sent Home
“Two Secret Service employees — an agent and an armed physical security specialist — in South Korea to prepare for President Joe Biden’s impending arrival are being sent home after an alleged alcohol-fueled incident that ended with a report being filed with local police,” ABC News reports.
Eastman Provides Details of Trump’s Direct Role
“John Eastman, the attorney who architected Donald Trump’s last-ditch legal strategy to overturn the 2020 election, revealed Friday that he routinely communicated with Trump either directly or via ‘six conduits’ during the chaotic weeks that preceded the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol,” Politico reports.
“In a late-night court filing urging a federal judge to maintain the confidentiality of his work for Trump, Eastman provided the clearest insight yet into the blizzard of communications between Trump, his top aides, his campaign lawyers and the army of outside attorneys who were working to help reverse the outcome in a handful of states won by Joe Biden.”
