Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) aggressively countered Sen. Rick Scott’s (R-FL) 11-point plan Tuesday as Democrats continue to hammer the party for its tax proposal.
Continue reading “McConnell Forced To Strongly Contradict Rick Scott’s Wacky GOP Agenda Amid Criticisms”Abbott Sued For Ordering Investigations Of Parents With Transgender Children
Texas officials have already begun investigating parents of transgender children following Texas Gov. Greg Abbott’s (R) abrupt directive against care for trans youth in the state last week. And a parent who works for the state agency carrying out the governor’s order — and one of the first parents in the state targeted by an anti-trans rights probe — is waging a legal battle against it.
Continue reading “Abbott Sued For Ordering Investigations Of Parents With Transgender Children”Jan. 6 Committee Subpoenas Trump Adviser Cleta Mitchell, OAN Anchor Christina Bobb
The congressional Jan. 6 Committee on Tuesday subpoenaed several new witnesses in its probe of the Capitol attack, including a prominent Republican lawyer who advised Donald Trump during his effort to steal a second term, and a One America News Network anchor who worked on the side for Rudy Giuliani.
Continue reading “Jan. 6 Committee Subpoenas Trump Adviser Cleta Mitchell, OAN Anchor Christina Bobb”Russia Bombs Kyiv TV Tower After Declaring That Ukrainian ‘Information Attacks’ Are In Crosshairs
Hours after saying that “psychological special operations” based in Kyiv would be under attack, Russia appears to have launched a missile strike on Kyiv’s main TV tower.
Continue reading “Russia Bombs Kyiv TV Tower After Declaring That Ukrainian ‘Information Attacks’ Are In Crosshairs”Why Have Russian Forces Underperformed in Their Opening Offensive?
Twitter is chock full of hyperbole, ignorance and deception. But one of its special qualities is that if you take some care and follow some basic rules you can find people who you can actually learn quite a lot from. They’re out there. And during chaotic and fast-moving news events you can learn a lot from them. One of those people is Michael Kofman, who is one of the people on my list of people to follow to keep track of developments in the Ukraine Crisis. Among other things he’s the Director of the Russia Studies program at the Center for Naval Analyses, the main Navy/Marines think tank in Washington, DC. His opinions may be right or wrong. But given the Navy’s/Marine Corps’ interest in keeping tabs on the Russian military we can be confident he’s highly knowledgable about that topic specifically. I’ve been following his commentary over the last week or so and yesterday he posted a lengthy Twitter thread about what we’ve seen over the last three days.
Continue reading “Why Have Russian Forces Underperformed in Their Opening Offensive?”Ukraine War Pits Families Against Families Across A Once-Fluid Border
For outsiders, it’s hard to understand how interconnected Russia and Ukraine are culturally, socially and historically. The upshot is a war between two countries that share much in common including deep, emotional bonds.
Putin distorts those commonalities for his own ends, but the truth is that the war pits families against families in a region where the border hasn’t alway been sharp or well-defined.
Continue reading “Ukraine War Pits Families Against Families Across A Once-Fluid Border”Biden Yanks Rug Out From Under Flynn And Navarro On Executive Privilege
President Joe Biden continues to swat down ex-President Donald Trump and his cronies’ efforts to stonewall the House Jan. 6 Committee’s investigation, this time focusing on former Trump adviser-turned-QAnon grifter Michael Flynn and ex-Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro.
Continue reading “Biden Yanks Rug Out From Under Flynn And Navarro On Executive Privilege”How Greg Abbott’s Border Deployment Stunt Turned Into A Political Nightmare
Today has a special significance for Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R).
Continue reading “How Greg Abbott’s Border Deployment Stunt Turned Into A Political Nightmare”Russia Bombards Kharkiv As War Enters More Brutal Phase
A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
Heaviest Fighting In Second Largest City
Russian forces fired rockets into the center of Kharkiv, Ukraine on Tuesday, according to Ukrainian authorities. The regional administration building was hit, leaving seven dead and 24 wounded, the authorities said.
- BBC: “Missile hits centre of Ukraine’s second-biggest city”
- Washington Post: “Russian invasion escalates as massive convoy nears Kyiv and Kharkiv assaulted”
- New York Times: “An explosion rocks Kharkiv a day after shelling in a residential neighborhood.”
- CNN: “Crucial period ahead for Kyiv as massive Russian column closes in on Ukraine’s capital”
- Wall Street Journal: “Russian Forces Target Ukrainian Civilian Areas as Missile Hits Central Kharkiv”
Dem Nevada Guv And Wife Threatened At Restaurant
A video first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal shows Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) and his wife Kathy Sisolak being harassed and followed around by a couple of men shouting about racist conspiracy theories at a restaurant on Sunday.
- One of the men calls Sisolak a “New World Order traitor piece-of-shit bastard” and repeatedly asks him if he has security with him. The man also screams “you working-for-China piece of shit!” at Sisolak and his wife, who is of Chinese descent, as they leave the restaurant.
- The other man says something about Sisolak “hiding the hydroxychloroquine,” right-wingers’ infamous COVID miracle drug, though most of what he says in that moment is inaudible. He also tells Sisolak and his wife that they ought to be hanged for treason.
- Sisolak’s office responded to the incident later on Monday saying the matter was being investigated, and that the governor was “deeply disappointed in how this incident unfolded, particularly with the language used to talk about First Lady Kathy Sisolak’s heritage.” Sisolak’s daughter was with him at the restaurant.
McCarthy Says He Plans To Meet With MTG To Discuss White Nationalist Appearance
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) said on Monday that it was “appalling and wrong” for far-right Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Paul Gosar (R-AZ) to speak at the America First Political Action Conference (AFPAC) organized by white nationalist Nick Fuentes this weekend.
- McCarthy told Punchbowl that he plans on meeting with Greene this week to discuss it. It’s unclear if he’s planning to do the same with Gosar.
- The Arizona Republican’s attendance at the conference this year wasn’t even his first; he went to last year’s AFPAC too.
- Greene defended her appearance at the conference on Saturday, claiming that she didn’t know about Fuentes’ well-established white nationalist beliefs.
Date Set For Ketanji Brown Jackson’s Confirmation Hearing
Senate Democrats plan to kick off the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson on March 21, a Democratic aide told Politico.
WH Drops Blanket Mask Mandate Ahead Of SOTU
Effective today, the White House is lifting its requirement that fully vaccinated people wear masks in the area, ahead of Biden’s first State of the Union address tonight.
- The House withdrew its mask mandate in time for the speech too.
- Biden will speak at 9:00 p.m. ET. Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) is giving the Republicans’ response to his speech.
Manchin Joins GOPers To Block Abortion Rights Protection
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) voted with Republican senators to block a debate on Monday over the Women’s Health Protection Act, legislation that would codify access to abortion as red states chip away at reproductive rights and the Supreme Court threatens to strike down Roe v Wade.
Trump Appeals Judge’s Order For Him To Testify In NY Probe
The ex-president is predictably fighting a Manhattan judge’s order for him, plus Ivanka and Donald Trump Jr., to testify under oath in New York Attorney General Letitia James’ (D) civil investigation into the Trump Organization.
Dem Rep. Ted Deutch Not Running For Reelection
House Ethics Committee Chair Ted Deutch (D-FL) announced on Monday that he’ll be leaving Congress when his term ends this year, having accepted an offer to serve as the chief executive officer of the American Jewish Committee.
- The tally of House Democrat-Republican retirements ahead of the 2022 midterms now stands at 31-13, per the House Press Gallery’s poorly-named “Casualty List.”
WTF Read Of The Day
“Dr. Bronner’s, the Soap Company, Dips Into Psychedelics” – The New York Times
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Where Things Stand: DeSantis Makes A Big Show Of Rejecting Biden Call For Nat’l Guard Troops Ahead Of SOTU
Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis tweeted triumphantly this afternoon that he rejected the Biden administration’s request for states to send National Guard troops to Washington, D.C. ahead of Tuesday’s State of the Union speech.
Continue reading “Where Things Stand: DeSantis Makes A Big Show Of Rejecting Biden Call For Nat’l Guard Troops Ahead Of SOTU”