No More Mr. ‘Iowa Nice’ Guy: Former GOP Giant Jim Leach On Siding Against Chuck Grassley
The genteel ex-House Financial Services chairman says he’s “appalled” at today’s GOP, and has switched his registration to Democratic.
Today's Liberal News
The Survivor Vote
This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.John Fetterman wants voters to see his stroke as an asset, not a liability. Some of them absolutely do.But first, here are three new stories from The Atlantic.
Herschel Walker is the perfect candidate for a fallen party.
The Art of the Self-Deal
The epicenter of corruption in the Trump administration was not at the White House, but at the Old Post Office, a dramatic Romanesque landmark a few blocks down Pennsylvania Avenue from the presidential residence.The building, which operated for several years as the Trump International Hotel, became a hot place to see and be seen for a certain set, especially Trump hangers-on (Rudy Giuliani was a regular) and foreign diplomats eager to curry favor—a clear ethical problem.
Trump Made Secret Service Pay ‘Exorbitant Rates’ At His Hotels, Documents Show
Rates the former president charged agents far exceeded the government’s per diem, sometimes exceeding $1,000 a night per room.
Do Sports Matter?
This is an edition of Up for Debate, a newsletter by Conor Friedersdorf. On Wednesdays, he rounds up timely conversations and solicits reader responses to one thought-provoking question. Later, he publishes some thoughtful replies. Sign up for the newsletter here.Last week I asked readers, What role should sports play in a society? What role do they play in ours?Timothy is a critic of contemporary Western sports culture:
In some societies, sport competitions stand in for military competitions.
The COVID Data That Are Actually Useful Now
It is a truth universally acknowledged among health experts that official COVID-19 data are a mess right now. Since the Omicron surge last winter, case counts from public-health agencies have become less reliable. PCR tests have become harder to access and at-home tests are typically not counted.Official case numbers now represent “the tip of the iceberg” of actual infections, Denis Nash, an epidemiologist at the City University of New York, told me.
Biden Covid officials scramble to plan for Omicron subvariant threat
New strains seem to evade treatments used for vulnerable patients — and could complicate the latest White House messaging strategy on Covid.
“The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks”: New Film Explores Untold Radical Life of Civil Rights Icon
The new documentary “The Rebellious Life of Mrs. Rosa Parks” gives a comprehensive look at the legacy of the woman known for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white passenger in 1955, a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement.
‘Michigan could become Texas’ — Voters see stark choice on abortion referendum
A ballot initiative years in the making asks voters whether the state constitution should protect abortion rights.
Without a nasal vaccine, the U.S. edge in fighting Covid is on the line
Foreign rivals are developing vaccines that could stop transmission before the U.S., and that’s a potential biosecurity threat.
South Dakota signals the end of an era on Medicaid expansion
Eleven other states have not expanded Medicaid, but only three — Florida, Mississippi and Wyoming — allow voters to collect signatures for a ballot measure, and none appear likely to do so in the near term.
Indiana Supreme Court allows abortions to continue pending January hearing
While it declined to lift the injunction, the Indiana Supreme Court did agree to Attorney General Todd Rokita’s request to take the case and scheduled oral arguments for January.
Fed’s Powell ignores politics — and may pay a heavy price
It’s a rare moment for a Fed chair to toss aside all political considerations and ignore frantic investors.
The Fed’s Powell is squeezing the global economy
The Fed’s interest rate hikes have fueled market turmoil by boosting the value of the dollar and feeding higher borrowing costs.
The Fed is declaring war on inflation. It could lead straight to recession.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell has pledged to do whatever it takes to curb inflation.
U.S. inflation falls for 2nd straight month on lower gas costs
Despite the signs of moderating price increases, inflation remains far higher than many Americans have ever experienced and is keeping pressure on the Federal Reserve.
G-7 announces price cap deal on Russian oil in win for Yellen
The plan touted by the U.S. Treasury secretary aims to diminish the Kremlin’s revenue while preserving the global oil supply.
Jan. 6 Panel Votes to Subpoena Trump as New Video Shows Pelosi Responding to Insurrection
During the House select committee hearing Thursday, Representative Jamie Raskin revealed never-before-seen footage from January 6 of top lawmakers, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, scrambling to stop the violence and making pleas for law enforcement and military support. Some Republicans had previously accused Pelosi of failing to call the National Guard to protect the Capitol, but the footage aired on Thursday sheds new light on her actions.
“I Don’t Want People to Know That We Lost”: Trump Knew Biden Won, But Kept Pushing Election Lies
During Thursday’s hearing, the January 6 House committee aired video evidence showing how Donald Trump repeatedly made false claims about voter fraud that directly contradicted facts presented to him by top advisers. “These actions, taken directly by the president himself, made it clear what his intentions were: to prevent the orderly transfer of power,” said Congressmember Elaine Luria.
“All Hell Is Going to Break Loose”: How Trump’s Inner Circle Prepared for Violence Ahead of Jan. 6
The House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol held what may have been its final public hearing on Thursday. The meeting ended with the committee unanimously voting to subpoena former President Donald Trump, likely setting the stage for a court battle. During the hearing, Congressmember Zoe Lofgren of California detailed how Trump had developed a plan to declare victory in the 2020 election regardless of the actual outcome.
Two Voices from Russia & Ukraine on Putin, Resistance Inside Russia & Their Views on Anti-Imperialism
Russia launched a fourth day of missile strikes against multiple Ukrainian cities and towns Thursday, targeting Ukraine’s electricity systems and leaving many areas without power. The escalated attacks come after President Vladimir Putin had accused Ukraine of blowing up a key bridge connecting Russia to Crimea last week. Meanwhile, the United Nations General Assembly has voted overwhelmingly to condemn Russia’s annexation of four territories seized from Ukraine.
Marjorie Taylor Greene Claims She’s A Jan. 6 ‘Victim’ During Wild Debate
The Georgia lawmaker has referred to those arrested in the riots as “political prisoners.
Dr. Oz Has Some Uncomfortably Specific Thoughts About Drinking His Own Pee
The GOP Senate candidate also spoke gleefully of stabbing his sister in the head with a needle as a youth.
Chris Christie Says Trump Took Files As ‘Trophies’ To Soothe His Wounded Ego
Trump still “can’t believe he’s not president,” said the former New Jersey governor. He still craves all the ” trappings.
The ‘signs from employers angry about paying workers’ genre gets a new entry
The passive-aggressive sign about how hard it is to be a business expected to treat workers with basic decency is an increasingly common genre, or at least one getting a new audience thanks to social media. A Sizzler in Murrieta, California, has dived in with an entry that’s drawn well over a thousand comments on Reddit.
“SURCHARGE: In support of the California Minimum Wage increase, a 3.
Take a look at the new documentary exposing evangelical charlatan Jerry Falwell Jr.’s hypocrisy
Jerry Falwell Jr.’s fall from grace was, like everything else over the last five or so years, predictably trite. The son of Jerry Falwell Sr., Junior stepped into his father’s camel-sized shoes and used his father’s political connections to promote the very lucrative (and tax exempt) morality of evangelical Christianity. At the peak of his powers, with Donald Trump by his side, Falwell Jr.
Ukraine Update: Putin suffers yet another diplomatic humiliation; fog of war envelopes Kherson
UPDATE: Sunday, Oct 16, 2022 · 6:33:02 PM +00:00
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kos
Ukraine is VERY aggressively asking people to abide by operational silence in Kherson, and there is wide adoption by the pro-Ukrainian side.
Alex Jones mocks $1 billion Sandy Hook verdict, but his fellow conspiracy theorists freak out
Alex Jones, who long ago demonstrated his estrangement from reality, has been putting on a brave front in the wake of this week’s jury verdict in Connecticut awarding the parents of the victims of the Sandy Hook massacre nearly $1 billion in damages for having smeared them relentlessly after the tragedy.
New research finds that watching Fox News during a pandemic really can be deadly
Some day, when my head’s removed from cryogenic storage after science discovers a cure for gouging out your own eyes with an oyster fork at the sight of Donald Trump, I’ll tell my grand-clones about that time thousands of people died painful, undignified deaths from watching television.
“But Aldous Prime,” they’ll say.
Biden Has ‘No Plans’ To Meet With Saudi Crown Prince, Will Act Strategically After Oil Cutback
“He is going to act methodically,” White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Sunday.