A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
Upsidedownism
A classic of the Trump up-is-really-down genre: If Mike Pence had done my bidding on Jan. 6, there’d have been no violence.
Trump was reacting to Pence’s weekend comments denouncing Trump as “wrong” and predicting that history would hold the former president “accountable.”
Trump made his remarks to reporters aboard his plane en route to Iowa for a campaign appearance:
“Had he sent the votes back to the legislatures, they wouldn’t have had a problem with Jan. 6, so in many ways you can blame him for Jan. 6. …
Had he sent them back to Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona, the states, I believe, number one, you would have had a different outcome. But I also believe you wouldn’t have had ‘Jan. 6’ as we call it.”
Putting “Jan. 6” in quotes is priceless.
D’oh!
Prosecutors say a Jan. 6 defendant violated court-imposed travel conditions by attending CPAC(!).
DOJ Calls Out Tucker Carlson’s Jan. 6 Revisionism
Forced to contend with Tucker Carlson’s selective use of Jan. 6 surveillance footage (because defense attorneys in the ongoing Proud Boys trial are trying to make it an issue), the Justice Department in a new filing dismissed Carlson’s video of “QAnon shaman” Jacob Chansley as not new, a tiny snippet of his time in the Capitol, and not showing his most incriminating conduct.
Michael Cohen Set For Second Day Of Grand Jury Testimony
Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen is expected to resume testifying today to the Manhattan grand jury investigating former President Trump’s hush money payments to Stormy Daniels:
- Cohen spent three hours testifying Monday afternoon.
- Trump has “no plans” to accept Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s invitation to testify to the grand jury, according to a Trump attorney.
- Trump attorney Susan Necheles is the lead attorney on the case, according to another Trump attorney, and she has met with Bragg’s office, presumably to try to head off an indictment.
New Chief Judge In DC
The two-year term of U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell as chief judge in DC ends this week. She will be replaced by U.S. District James E. Boasberg.
The chief judge oversees the grand juries in DC, which has placed Howell at the center of the secret grand jury wrangling over two major investigations of Trump: Jan. 6 and the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case.
Trump Faces Trial Next Month On E. Jean Carroll’s Rape Claim
Adam Klasfeld: What to know about the two other Donald Trump accusers allowed to testify at E. Jean Carroll’s rape trial.
Great Read
Sarah Posner: A Christian Chatbot Has Some Bad News For Republicans
SVB Fallout Rattles Financial System
Some of the key highlights from the last 24 hours:
- NYT: Officials with Signature and SVB called for looser financial requirements for midsize banks.
- WSJ: CEO Greg Becker Was There for SVB’s Quick Rise and Even Quicker Fall
- WSJ: “Regulators are planning to take another crack at auctioning failed Silicon Valley Bank, according to people familiar with the matter, after they were unable to find a buyer for the firm over the weekend.”
- Inflation data for February was just released moment ago.
Moody’s Puts 6 US Banks On Downgrade Watch
Moody’s Investors Service is considering downgrading six U.S. regional banks citing concerns over the lenders’ reliance on uninsured deposit funding and unrealized losses in their asset portfolios, Bloomberg reports:
- First Republic Bank
- Western Alliance Bancorp.
- Intrust Financial Corp.
- UMB Financial Corp.
- Zions Bancorp.
- Comerica Inc.
Bank Stocks Show Signs Of Stabilizing
Bloomberg: “A selloff in global financial stocks paused Tuesday after a two-day, $465 billion wipeout.”
Hates Crimes In US Hit All-Time High
WaPo: “Hate crimes in the United States rose in 2021 to the highest level since the federal government began tracking the data more than three decades ago, the FBI said Monday in a new report that also reflected a record spike in attacks targeting people of Asian descent.”
McConnell Moved To Inpatient Rehab
After suffering a traumatic brain injury and broken rib in a fall last week, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) has been moved to an inpatient rehabilitation facility to continue his recovery.
RIP
Former Rep. Patricia Schroeder (D-CO) has died at 82.
Carter Vigil
President Biden let slip that former President Carter invited him to deliver a eulogy at his funeral.
DeSantis: Protecting Ukraine Is Not a Key U.S. Interest
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis released a statement Monday night – via Tucker Carlson – that protecting Ukraine is not a vital U.S. interest:
The venue Mr. DeSantis chose for his statement on a major foreign policy question revealed almost as much as the substance of the statement itself. The statement was broadcast on “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” on Fox News. It was in response to a questionnaire that the host, Mr. Carlson, sent last week to all major prospective Republican presidential candidates, and is tantamount to an acknowledgment by Mr. DeSantis that a candidacy is in the offing.
DeSantis left himself some wiggle room, not going so far as to say that U.S. assistance to Ukraine should be cut off entirely.
Russia Faces New War Crimes Investigations
The International Criminal Court will open two new war crimes investigations into Russia’s conduct in Ukraine, focusing on:
- its alleged abduction of children and their relocation to re-education camps; and
- it deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructre.
Your reminder that the Pentagon is resisting providing intel to the International Criminal Court about Russian atrocities because of the U.S. military’s longstanding fear that it would open the door to prosecuting American personnel for war crimes.
That is of, course, exactly as it should be: The American military should be operating in fear of international consequences for committing war crimes.
A Bird’s-Eye View Of The Catastrophe
A remarkable visual story on the destruction in Antakya, Turkey, where some 20,000 people died in last month’s earthquake:
The earthquake’s death toll across Turkey and Syria now stands around 55,000.
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HA! FIrST!
It’s good to hear that Mitch McConnell has left the hospital for rehab, soon to resume his Über side gig. Wish him well.
Who says CPAC is the most useless thing to infest this planet?
“It’s your fault that I had to threaten you with physical violence.”
–Trump… and every other domestic abuser.
So… the formalities are out of the way. Kind of like playing the national anthem before a Cubs game.
If a national election was held that was limited to GOP voters, if the candidates were Pres. Biden and Vladimir Putin, Putin would win!