Let me update you on my search for details on the hooligans who attacked the UCLA Gaza encampment last Tuesday evening. First, there was this very good piece in The New York Times about the incident. It’s one of those full-force endeavors where they mobilize a host of journalists and digital forensics experts to pick apart just how an event took place. What was notable to me though was that despite all the moment-by-moment detail and the review of a huge amount of video about just how the attack unfolded and what was involved, it included no information about who the assailants were.

I note this not as a criticism of the journalism but as a measure of just how hard it seems to be to track this information down.

One thing that bedevils current polling on the 2024 presidential race are basic questions about just who will show up and what the electorate will look like. That’s always central to polling and it becomes much more central when the race is tight. (If it’s a 45-55 race the precise composition of the electorate becomes less important.) But take the new Ipsos/ABC News poll out today. The headlines that are running focus on the number for Adults — which are Trump +2. Go to registered voters and it’s Biden +2. Go to likely voters and it’s Biden +4.

It’s possible there have been other polls. But this one released by YouGov is the first I’ve seen since recent events at Columbia, UCLA and other colleges and universities around the country. It shows a very interesting picture — both that the protests are not very popular with the American public but also that — which of course we know — they’re highly complicated for Democratic candidates.

Kate is joined by HuffPost reporter Matt Shuham to talk about how the war in Gaza is refracting domestically, from college protests to presidential politics.

Belaboring The Point is now on YouTube! Check out the latest video episode of the podcast here.

I assume you’re familiar with Kristi Noem/Cricket the executed dog discourse. But I have to flag this new controversy from her memoir, No Going Back. Noem appears to have made up a meeting with North Korea paramount leader Kim Jong Un.

Says Noem: “I remember when I met with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un. I’m sure he underestimated me.” The report casting doubt on that anecdote is from a local outlet, The Dakota Scout.