A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
A Good Guy Without A Gun
A remarkable account of the heroics of Richard M. Fierro, a retired Army major who was watching a drag show at a Colorado Springs gay club with his wife and daughter and her boyfriend, when he heard the sound of small arms fire.
- “I don’t know exactly what I did, I just went into combat mode. I just know I have to kill this guy before he kills us.”
- “These kids want to live that way, want to have a good time, have at it. I’m happy about it because that is what I fought for, so they can do whatever they hell they want.”
- “I grabbed the gun out of his hand and just started hitting him in the head, over and over.”
- “In combat, most of the time nothing happens, but it’s that mad minute, that mad minute, and you are tested in that minute. It becomes habit. I don’t know how I got the weapon away from that guy, no idea. I’m just a dude, I’m a fat old vet, but I knew I had to do something.”
- “Driving home from the hospital I told them, ‘Look, I’ve gone through this before, and down range, when this happens, you just get out on the next patrol. You need to get it out of your mind.’ That is how you cured it. You cured it by doing more. Eventually you get home safe. But here I worry there is no next patrol. It is harder to cure. You are already home.”
The boyfriend was killed in the shooting.
Preach, Brother
Scoopage
Maricopa County clarifies to TPM’s Kaila Philo the exact circumstances in which its top election official spent election night in an undisclosed location under the armed guard of sheriff’s deputies.
The Day Ahead
This afternoon, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in the the Mar-a-Lago documents case. We’ll be covering closely. Please join us!
Reminder: DOJ wants the appeals court to end the specious special master process put in place by U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon. The appeals court has already shown deep skepticism toward the trial judge’s rulings in the case, so the Justice Department is expected to prevail. But we’ll get a better sense of where the appeals court stands and perhaps how quickly it will rule in today’s proceedings.
Meanwhile down in Georgia, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Mike Flynn are scheduled to testify in the grand jury investigation into Trump’s 2020 election meddling.
Special Counsel Gets Started
Special counsel Jack Smith effectively entered his appearance in the Mar-a-Lago case yesterday. Smith remains in Europe recovering from injuries sustained in a bike accident.
The worst thing about the special counsel mechanism is that it personalizes prosecutions and turns it into a mano-a-mano confrontation between prosecutor and defendant.
There is something about the depersonalized legions of career prosecutors at DOJ doing their slow, plodding work that vindicates the law. The press coverage always tries to turn it into a showdown at the OK Corral, but it’s hard when the prosecutors are more or less replaceable figures in an institutional setting. Special counsel, though, tees up a certain kind of highly personalized coverage. Alas, here we go.
The Price Of Trumpism
The final numbers are in: 2 of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Donald Trump will be returning to the new Congress.
High On Their Own Supply
LOL headline of the day: GOP centrists prepare to ‘flex our muscles’
2024 Is Gonna Be Insane
The race among those not named Trump to come off as Trump-like is going to be not just shameless but damaging in its own right. Here’s a sample: Trump-lite Mike Pompeo declares teachers union head Randi Weingarten the most dangerous person in the world.
Jury Deliberating In Oath Keepers Case
After more than six weeks of trial testimony, closing arguments wrapped up Monday, and the seditious conspiracy case against Stewart Rhodes and his fellow Oath Keepers is now with the jury. Stay tuned.
On Again Off Again … And Back On?
The new Manhattan DA can’t seem to make up his mind. After shutting down the criminal investigation of Donald Trump immediately after taking office, prompting the resignations of top prosecutors, Alvin Bragg reportedly wants back in the game now.
The New York Times account is long and convoluted and suggests a renewed focus on Trump’s hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels. But it doesn’t appear as if new prosecutorial steps will be taken any time soon.
Scoundrel Watch
Alex Jones has been moving money around – LOTS of money – since the Sandy Hook families began closing in on damage awards against him of more than $1 billion, according to this well-reported Washington Post piece.
‘The Majority Of Those Who Died Were Children’
More than 200 people dead in earthquake in Indonesia.
No Turning Back
Earthset
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I saw on TV earlier Fierro said the drag queen stomped on the guy’s head with her heels, I hope she was wearing stilettos.
Poor Elmo… poor, poor Elmo
Oh my. Saudis beat Argentina but this guy enjoyed it.
Smith remains in Europe recovering from injuries sustained in a bike accident.
No hurry Jack, you get better. We have all the time in the world. Nothing pressing here, nothing that can’t wait while you heal, convalesce, arrange travel back to the States and get up to speed. Might have been someone else qualified to hit the ground running, but here in America we understand recreation, and its pitfalls. See you soon. We hope.
He’s brave!