Author: todd.lassa

+339k Jobs in May

FRIDAY 6/2/23

Employers added a higher-than-anticipated 339,000 jobs to the U.S. economy in May, the Labor Department reported Friday, though the unemployment rate inched up to 3.7%, from 3.4% in April. Biggest job gains were in professional and business services, government, health care, construction, transportation and warehousing and social assistance. 

On top of Senate passage of the bill to raise the debt ceiling, Wall Street reacted very positively to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ jobs report Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up nearly 1.8% before noon.

Scroll down…this column to read about how Congress finally averted federal government debt default.

•••

QoTY (so far) – “The Kremlin often claimed it had the second strongest military in the world, and many believed it. Today, many see Russia’s military as the second-strongest in Ukraine.” – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, per Business Ukraine.

--Todd Lassa

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What’s Right

Despite winning only a wafer-thin majority in the House and failing to convert the Senate after the 2022 midterm elections, Republicans led by Speaker Kevin McCarthy were able to force concessions on President Biden’s budget direction upon threat of federal debt default. Opinions vary on how much ahead congressional Republicans came out on this struggle, though McCarthy is being praised in conservative circles for winning new spending limits in exchange for suspension of the ceiling through January 1, 2025. It is also something of a blow to Biden’s reverse-Reaganomics agenda. 

What do you think? Be a Citizen Pundit and hit the Comment section below or in the left column if more appropriate for your political leanings, or email editors@thehustings.news and list yourself as “conservative” or “liberal” in the subject line.

Scroll down for more …

•Lordy, There Are Tapes – Special Counsel on the Mar-a-Lago classified document cache Jack Smith reportedly has a tape of Donald J. Trump acknowledging that he held on to a classified Pentagon document about a potential attack on Iran near the end of his presidency, according to CNN and The New York Times.

•Incumbent Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Wins Runoff – Notching another victory for authoritarianism over liberal democracy?

•Ukraine to Negotiate Peace Without Putin – Ukraine and NATO allies are planning a peace summit without Russia, according to an exclusive by The Wall Street Journal. The summit will be aimed at Kyiv’s terms for ending the war and is to be held ahead of a meeting of NATO nations planned for July. 

•DeSantis Announces on Twitter – And it was not pretty.

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From the Left …

Some Democrats are concerned President Biden will spend Memorial Day weekend at Camp David while Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) and his negotiators remain in Washington to work on a debt ceiling bill, NPR reports, while progressive Democrats would prefer the president would not negotiate at all, and potentially give up hard-fought gains on social safety net programs. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), meanwhile, holds to his position that the White House should fix the problem by invoking the 14th Amendment.

Whether you’re moderate, liberal or progressive, or a reader from the right, we want to hear from you. Comment below, or in the right column or email editors@thehustings.news and indicate how you lean politically in the subject line so we can post your thoughts in the appropriate column.

Also up for discussion:

•Should Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA) resign early and potentially hand the 2024 Democratic primary for her seat to Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)?

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

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Debt Ceiling Crisis Averted

FRIDAY 6/2/23

It is Done – All but President Biden’s signature, coming with a weekend to spare before Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s deadline for averting economic catastrophe. Now all is left is for Fox News pundits to repeatedly declare Republican victory while MSNBC pundits do the same for Democrats and the White House. 

The vote: Perhaps closer than it needed to be, 63-36. The bill suspends the $31.4-trillion debt ceiling to January 1, 2025, and places a two-year cap on discretionary spending.

The quote: “It is so good for this country that both parties have come together at last to avoid default.” – Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).

The irony?: After the Senate voted down 11 amendments for fear the bill would have to go back to the House for reconciliation, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell sought a commitment to take up a supplemental funding bill, according to Roll Call. A supplemental to increase funding for a bill Republicans sought to cut spending from the Biden agenda. 

This is, for Republicans, a matter of defense spending vs. domestic spending.

“We’ll be here ‘til Tuesday until I get commitments that we’re going to rectify some of these problems,” said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), who wants to ensure more funding for the Pentagon, Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel.

Counting the oppo: Five Democratic senators and 31 Republicans voted against the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023. Here is the list, from The Hill:

Democrats:

•John Fetterman, Pennsylvania

•Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts

•Jeff Merkley, Oregon

•Bernie Sanders, Vermont (Independent, but caucuses with the Democrats)

Republicans:

•John Barrasso and Cynthia Lummis, Wyoming

•Marsha Blackburn, Tennessee

•Mike Braun, Indiana

•Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville, Alabama

•Ted Budd, North Carolina

•Bill Cassidy and John Kennedy, Louisiana

•Tom Cotton, Arkansas

•Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, Idaho

•Ted Cruz, Texas

•Steve Daines, Montana

•Deb Fischer and Pete Ricketts, Nebraska

•Lindsey Graham and Tim Scott, South Carolina

•Josh Hawley and Eric Schmitt, Missouri

•Cindy Hyde-Smith and Roger Wicker, Mississippi

•Ron Johnson, Wisconsin

•James Lankford, Oklahoma

•Mike Lee, Utah

•Roger Marshall, Kansas

•Rand Paul, Kentucky

•Marco Rubio and Rick Scott, Florida

•Dan Sullivan, Alaska

•J.D. Vance, Ohio

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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...meanwhile...

THURSDAY 6/1/23

Debt Ceiling Bill Clears House – Democrats moved quickly to fill in when 29 hard-right Republican congressmembers voted against a procedure to advance the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 to the floor for a vote. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) held up a green card indicating to his caucus they should vote with the majority of Republicans in order to push the procedure past the 218 votes needed to pass. 

And with that, the House went on to pass the bill with a bipartisan 314-117 vote, The Hill reports. “Nay” votes break down to 71 Republicans and 46 Democrats. The bill covers the debt ceiling until January 1, 2025, when President Biden and staff will be writing his second inaugural address or preparing to turn over the White House keys to his Republican challenger.

Speaker McCarthy’s future might be far less certain, as dissenting Republicans are not tamping down talk of whether a single congressmember might move to vacate him.

But don’t tarry; on to the Senate: Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) expects to bring the bill to the Senate floor Friday, three days ahead of potential federal government default. 

•••

Republican Candidates on Deck – Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie plans to announce his candidacy for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination before the end of this week in New Hampshire, his 2016 campaign’s Waterloo. Former Vice President Mike Pence plans to announce next Wednesday, Axios reports.

•••

Lordy … There is a Tape – Federal prosecutors have obtained an audio tape recording of ex-President Trump acknowledging that he held on to a classified Pentagon document about a potential attack on Iran near the end of his presidency, multiple sources have told CNN. In the recording, sources said, Trump said he would like to share information about an attack on Iran, but he is aware of limitations on his ability, post-president, to declassify records, two of the sources told the cable news network. 

The recording reportedly was made at Trump’s Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club by communications specialist Margo Martin between the former president and two people working on former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows’ book. 

Special Counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into Trump allegedly holding on to classified documents he should have turned over to the National Archives when he left the White House in 2021 is said to be nearing its end. No indictments have been issued so far.

--TL

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WEDNESDAY 5/31/23

House Rules Moves Debt Ceiling Bill, But … The Rules Committee voted 7-6 to move the debt ceiling compromise bill to the full House, which is set to vote on it Wednesday. “Libertarian-minded” Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) provided the crucial seventh vote, The Washington Post reports. But as many as 30 House Republicans on Wednesday could vote against the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 negotiated between President Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA). 

While the punditocracy debates which side won this fight to avoid economic disaster by averting government default, “roughly a dozen” members of the hard-right House Freedom Caucus took to a Capitol Hill news conference to criticize the deal McCarthy made with Biden, according to the WaPo. Some progressive Democrats have slammed Biden for giving up too much, though the criticism is starting to look like sandbagging to cover for a very experienced negotiator. A sufficient number of House Democrats – perhaps all 213 – certainly will fill in for 30 or so Freedom Caucus members casting “nay” votes. 

Upshot: That doesn’t leave McCarthy off the Freedom Caucus hook. As we’ve all learned from his drawn-out 15-ballot election to become speaker last February, it takes only one House member to move to vacate him from that role, and MAGA-minded Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) has refused to rule out such a move.

•••

Ukraine to Negotiate Peace Without Putin – Ukraine and NATO allies are planning a peace summit without Russia, according to an exclusive by The Wall Street Journal. The summit will be aimed at Kyiv’s terms for ending the war and is to be held ahead of a meeting of NATO nations planned for July.

--TL

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TUESDAY 5/30/23

House Takes Up Debt Ceiling Bill – Speaker Kevin McCarthy says the full House will take up the debt ceiling bill negotiated with the White House last week, the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, on Wednesday. But first, the House Rules Committee, led by a 9-4 Republican majority must move the bill forward. Three members of the Freedom Caucus who sit on Rules could potentially stick up the bill: Reps. Chip Roy (R-TX), Ralph Norman (R-SC) and Thomas Massie (R-KY).

McCarthy wants the bill to advance as-is, but Norman told NPR the bill would have to go to the full House Wednesday with amendments.

“The bill as-is is unacceptable,” Norman told Morning Edition.

Upshot: McCarthy appointed the three Freedom Caucus members to the Rules Committee in exchange for their support to become speaker.

•••

Up on The Hill – Only the full Senate was scheduled to be in session Tuesday through Friday this week, but the House will be in session for part of the week to try and advance the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 ahead of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s June 5 federal default ETA.

•••

Drone Attack Hits Moscow – A drone attack hit Moscow Tuesday morning, “just hours” after a “barrage” of Russian airstrikes killed one and injured more than a dozen in Kyiv, The Washington Post reports, “a prelude to a major escalation in hostilities.” It also comes ahead of Ukraine’s anticipated offensive to push Russian troops back across the Dnipro River. Moscow Mayor Sergei Subyanin confirmed the attack, which damaged two residential buildings.

UPDATE -- Russia claims at least eight drone attacks by Ukraine, calling them "terrorist attacks." (Per NPR)

•••

Trump Attorney Says He Was Diverted from Classified Docs – Trump attorney Evan Corcoran said he was told classified documents taken by the former president would be found only in Mar-a-Lago’s storeroom, according to a scoop in The Guardian. Corcoran was waived off from searching elsewhere at the Florida compound, including Donald J. Trump’s office, where the FBI found the most sensitive material anywhere on the property in their search last summer. Thirty-eight classified documents were found in the storage room.

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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Memorial Day 2023

Who Won the Debt Ceiling Fight? -- Neither Republicans nor Democrats on Capitol Hill are likely to be terribly satisfied with the Biden-McCarthy deal to lift the $31.4-trillion federal debt ceiling through the next presidential election. Even before the 99-page bill was released late Sunday progressive Democrats expressed disappointment that the White House was willing to negotiate at all over its hard-fought agenda. 

Meanwhile, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) told the eponymous host of MSNBC’s Inside with Jen Psaki there may not be enough Republican support to pass the bill, taking away the potential victory from the only clear winner, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Last week, Yellen eased up on her warning that the government could run out of money to pay its bills by June 1, by four days, to June 5. 

The deal raises the debt limit through January 2025, in time for either another default showdown with a re-elected President Biden or a new round of cuts with his Republican challenger if successful. In Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s (R-CA) bill narrowly passed in the House last April, HR 2811, the debt ceiling would have been covered to 2033.

The deal that now will go to the full House and Senate keeps non-defense spending essentially flat through fiscal year 2024, the Associated Press reports, and raises it by 1% in FY25. It would match Biden’s defense budget proposal for FY24 at $886 billion and fund non-defense spending at $704 billion. It aims to limit federal budgetary growth to 1% per year for the next six years, beginning in FY25.

Other provisions:

•Gives special treatment to West Virginia’s Mountain Valley natural gas pipeline, the subject of a fight with environmental groups for years. While this is not treated as the lead provision elsewhere, it demands mention at the top of our list as a concession to the state’s senators, especially moderate-right Democrat Joe Manchin (the junior senator is Republican Shelley Moore Caputo). 

•The above Robert Byrdian item is in conjunction with a provision that simplifies some requirements for environmental reviews. It would simplify environmental assessments and impact statements, giving environmental agencies one year to complete, or up to two years for “complex” impacts on the environment. Though a longtime item on Republicans’ wish lists, the GOP removed this item from the White House’s Inflation Reduction Act in retaliation against Manchin for supporting the IRA in the first place.

•Rescinds about $30 billion in unspent coronavirus relief funds.

•Rescinds $1.4 billion in new Internal Revenue Service funding targeted to tax fraud. In all, $21.4 billion of $80 billion in additional funding to the IRS would be rescinded. 

•Expands work requirements for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance (SNAP – formerly food stamps).

•Fully funds medical care for veterans at levels included in Bidens FY24 blueprint, including $20.3 billion in funds for veterans exposed to toxic substances.

Left in-tact: No new work requirements for some Medicaid recipients, no repeal of the clean energy tax credit.

Biden: “Good news. The agreement prevents the worst possible crisis, a default, for the first time in our nation’s history.”

McCartby: “At the endo of the day, people can work together to be able to pass this.”

•••

Erdogan, 3, Liberal Democracy, 0 – Authoritarianism dealt liberal democracy another blow Sunday when Recep Tayyip Erdo¨gan won a third five-year term as president of Turkey in a runoff election Sunday. He beat Kiliçda Ro¨glu with 52.1% to the challenger’s 47.5%, with all but 0.57% of the vote counted, Al Jazeera reports. Erdo¨gan was Turkish prime minister, taking over in 2003 before running for president.

--TL

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FRIDAY 5/26/23

Two Years of Debt Ceiling Relief? – Republicans and the White House are inching toward a debt ceiling deal late Thursday that would lift borrowing caps to some-time in 2025 and freeze spending to current levels, rather than impose the 8% cut imposed by HR 2811, the House imposed in its bill passed in late April, according to CQ Roll Call. HR 2811 also would impose discretionary caps to 2033.

President Biden stands firm… on work requirements for certain safety-net programs, which may be the biggest sticking point. If negotiators can reach a deal here, the full House would likely vote on the debt relief bill this weekend and hand it over to the Senate in time for June 1. 

Upshot: Assuming some version of the above is passed and signed in time – before next Thursday – the debt ceiling issue will become a big issue in the 2024 elections, both presidential and congressional as Biden seeks to continue his work to dismantle Reaganomics, while a Republican president and control of Congress would give conservatives the chance to restore spending cuts imposed by the House bill.

•••

Rhodes Gets 18 Years – Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes was sentenced to 18 years for seditious conspiracy for his role in the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. An attorney himself, Rhodes said he “felt like a character in a Franz Kafka novel” and compared himself to a Soviet dissident sentenced to years in a prison camp, according to NPR’s All Things Considered. 

Current lead Republican candidate for president in 2024, Donald J. Trump, has said he would pardon some of those convicted of participating in the January 6th insurrection, though he has not singled out individuals who rioted.

•••

Texas House to Impeach AG – Texas’ majority Republican House has adopted 20 articles of impeachment against the state’s Republican attorney general, Ken Paxton, Texas Public Radio reports. Articles of impeachment includes allegations Paxton disregarded official duties, misappropriated public resources and committed constitutional bribery and obstruction of justice. 

This stems from four employees of the AG’s office turned whistle-blowers who made and reported accusations about Paxton’s misdeeds. Most relate to a $25,000 contribution to Paxton by Austin real estate investor Nate Paul, TPM’s The Texas Newsroomreports. 

Paxton denies all articles of impeachment and says they are an effort to overturn his win in the 2022 elections. He is on the hook for $3.3-million paid to the whistleblowers. After the House votes to impeach, the case would go to the Texas senate, where Paxton’s wife is a member.

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

…to the Right

Reader Comments

On 'Santosland Diaries' (Center Column -- 5/18/23):

Santos is a congenital liar and I do NOT believe him when he says he's conservative! Conservatives are NOT drag queens!

-- Tyrone Barr (Via Facebook)

•••

What do you make of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ 2024 presidential campaign launch on Elon Musk’s Twitter? Is there an opportunity for a traditional Republican candidate like Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina to rise up the polls? 

Whether you are a pro-MAGA conservative, an “anti-woke” DeSantis supporter, a more traditional, pro-business Republican or a reader from the left, we want to hear from you. Comment below, or in the right column or email editors@thehustings.news and indicate how you lean politically in the subject line.

Also up for discussion:

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

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Downgrade Imminent?

Fitch Ratings placed U.S. credit on a negative watch Wednesday, in case the White House and Republican lawmakers fail to reach a deal on the debt ceiling, The Hill reports.

Become a citizen pundit and help us advance our quest for civil discussion over real news stories. Hit the Comment section below, or in the right column if more appropriate for your politics or email us at editors@thehustings.news.

Among debate issues; 

• Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), a close ally of President Biden (who was senior senator from Delaware when his first term began in 2001) has announced he will not seek a fifth term next year. Carper is the fourth incumbent Democratic senator choosing not to run in 2024, after Diane Feinstein of California, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan and Ben Cardin of Maryland.

•Will debt-ceiling discussions put the kibosh on President Biden’s agenda, and on his legacy as well?

•Should Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA) resign early and potentially hand the 2024 Democratic primary for her seat to Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)?

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

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Musk Drops Poop Emoji on DeSantis, Self

THURSDAY 5/25/23

By Todd Lassa

A bunch of tech bros – female as well as male, but mostly male – enter a Twitter space called Twitter Spaces and fumble with the technology for 20 minutes. Until minute 21, the man of the hour is nowhere to be heard (it’s audio-only).

Preparation?

Elon Musk sycophants being the type of sycophants that give Trump sycophants a run for their money, the tech bros stumble over each other trying to explain how this sh*t show is a sh*t show only because Musk has too many followers (no mention of how many might be the bots the new owner promised to root out when he dropped $44 billion on the company) clogging the system.

Anyone familiar with Musk’s Tesla quarterly earnings calls with analysts would recognize his performance Wednesday night.

One tech bro – the female in the crowd – compares Twitter Spaces’ technical issues with Musk’s SpaceX “intentionally” blowing up the biggest-ever space rocket on purpose. There’s the beta test.

“Ron DeSantis just crashed Twitter,” one tech bro exclaims. “Imagine what he’s going to do to Donald Trump.”

Jake Tapper had 568,000 viewers on CNN the previous night, another tech bro says. Musk already was up to 728,000. Tech bros just love big numbers.

These are tech bros rationalizing the sh*t show behind Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis long-awaited declaration he is running against former President Trump for the GOP presidential nomination.

DeSantis tells all the listener-“viewers” he is declaring his candidacy “ to lead our great American comeback.”

Issues?

The mess at our southern border. Drugs coming in through the southern border. Crime in our cities. A president who takes his cues from the woke mob.

“We must restore sanity to our nation.”

“Woke” will become a drinking game for DeSantis stump speeches.

Embracing energy independence; the DeSantis version of “drill, baby, drill.”

“We must reject attacks on our law enforcement,” DeSantis declares, using a talking point that could cut both ways, against the January 6th insurrection as well as “defund the police.” The governor promises to actually build a border wall. as an “energetic executive who will take on the issues” as well as “reconstitutionalize the executive branch.” 

DeSantis touts his lax COVID lockdown and how Disneyworld was open when Disneyland was not. By the time “journalist questions,” including one about the Second Amendment by ex-Brietbart News/ex-NRA flak Dana Loesch concludes the Musk sh*t show incumbent presidential candidate Joe Biden has trolled DeSantis with the tweet, “this link works,” to his campaign website. Several pundits from the other side say Twitter Spaces had much lower viewership – as low as 139,000 – than the tech bros had claimed. The Daily Mail runs a Trumpian front page headline: “Ron’s Desaster.”

Still, Loesch proclaimes she will vote for the Florida governor in her primary (leaving open the likelihood she will vote for Trump in the general). Musk’s free-speech open forum is full of hard-right pundits, asking the same sort of fawning softballs that New Hampshire citizens lobbed at Trump during his CNN Town Hall.

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

McCarthy’s Latest Hail Mary

The debt ceiling standoff is “not my fault,” Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) told reporters Wednesday, as he sent negotiators back to the White House. He said more time was needed to reach a deal (The Boston Globe).

You can join the political conversation and become a citizen pundit with your Comments in the section on this page (or on the left page, if more appropriate), or email editors@thehustings.news. 

Civil comments are welcome from never-Trumpers and pro-MAGAs alike. 

There’s plenty of issues on which to weight in, including the shaky start to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential run, and Republicans’ refusal to expel Rep. George Santos (R-NY) from the House of Representatives. 

Also up for discussion:

•Nice guy Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC) beat Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis by a few days in declaring his presidential campaign earlier this week. 

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

______

Carper Announces Retirement

Democratic Delaware Sen. Tom Carper announced he will not run for a fifth term in 2024, The Hill reports. 

“After a good deal of prayer and introspection and more than a few heart-to-heart conversations, we decided I should do neither,” Carper, 76, said in his announcement in which he referred to having considered running for re-election and then riding off into the sunset. 

“Hands-on favorite” to replace him is Delaware’s Democratic Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, who served as an aide to Carper when he was the state’s House member-at-large and told Politico earlier this year she would consider a Senate run if her former boss retired. 

Before he was elected junior senator to Joe Biden in 2000, Carper had served two terms as governor of Delaware after his tenure in the House. Carper becomes the fourth Democratic senator to announce retirement after the 2024 elections, after California's Diane Feinstein, Michigan's Debbie Stabenow and Maryland's Ben Cardin.

•••

Become a citizen pundit and help us advance our quest for civil discussion over real news stories. Hit the Comment section below, or in the right column if more appropriate for your politics or email us at editors@thehustings.news.

Among debate issues; Will debt-ceiling discussions put the kibosh on President Biden’s agenda, and on his legacy as well?

Should Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA) resign early and potentially hand the 2024 Democratic primary for her seat to Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA)?

Also up for discussion:

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

Democratic Delaware Sen. Tom Carper announced he will not run for a fifth term in 2024, The Hill reports.  “After […]

…meanwhile…

WEDNESDAY 5/24/23

We’re ‘Nowhere Close,’ but ‘Don’t Worry’ – That’s the message from Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) (above) after talks with the White House broke down again Tuesday on the debt ceiling issue nine days ahead of potential economic pandemonium. 

“Well look. There are certain things that divide us and we know what that is,” McCarthy told reporters (The Washington Post). “You cannot spend more money next year than we did this year, clear as day. We’ve got to help people get back to work with work requirements. You have to cut this red tape where people can build again in America. You know there’s a lot of avenues out there that they’ve got to find. You’ve got to come to agreement there.”

Line in the sand: McCarthy emphasized that Democrats want to “spend more money next year than they did this year. 

“That’s the red line. Not gonna happen.”

And so it goes.

•••

Primary Season – Trial Season – Manhattan judge Juan Merchan has scheduled the criminal trial against Donald J. Trump in the case of alleged hush money paid to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to begin March 25, 2024, smack-dab in the middle of GOP presidential primary season. The judge advised the ex-president to cancel all obligations for the duration, which could last months, according to The Guardian. Trump sat in on the proceedings via video, from his Mar-a-Lago home. 

Merchan also barred Trump’s attorneys from disseminating evidence to third parties or posting it on social media, and he required some sensitive material to be kept only by those attorneys. 

Trump boilerplate reaction: The former prez took to his own site, Truth Social, to claim “First Amendment rights,” saying his “freedom of speech” had been violated by scheduling the trial “right in the middle of primary season.”

Meanwhile: Fresh off a $10 million verdict against Trump related to sexual abuse and defamation, writer and advice columnist E. Jean Carroll filed “very substantial” additional charges after the former president’s appearance at a CNN Town Hall last week. Carroll alleges Trump made “disparaging remarks” against her in the CNN appearance.

--TL

_______________________________________________

(President Biden cut short his Indo-Asian tour last week to work with Speaker McCarthy on a debt ceiling deal by June 1. Biden met as part of the G7 in Hiroshima, Japan, last week.)

Nine Days to Economic Collapse – A reminder that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen says the government will have to stop making some payments after June 1 if Congress does not raise the debt limit. The good news is that Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) says that while there’s no deal with the White House yet, a debt limit meeting Monday was “productive.”

A key negotiator for McCarthy, Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-NC) said negotiators were able to “better explain” to each other the policies over which they were fighting for or against, Roll Call reports.

“I think the tone tonight was better than any other time we had discussions,” McCarthy said. “I felt it was productive … I think we were able to really focus on the areas of difference.”

Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA), said whatever doesn’t get approved in the debt limit negotiations regarding energy infrastructure permitting (his area of expertise) could be moved separately after Congress approves a deal. 

Meanwhile, tax increases in the Biden agenda are not part of the discussion. 

“We’re not looking at revenue,” McCarthy said.

Speaker McCarthy said he and Biden will be talking every day now, with the goal of reaching a deal by the end of this week so that both chambers can vote for it next week.

--TL

_______________________________________________

Meanwhile This Week

Will the Debt Ceiling Crush Us? – Fresh off his return from the Group of Seven Summit in Hiroshima, Japan (above), President Biden has agreed to re-open talks with Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) on the debt ceiling. About 11 days remain until almost certain economic calamity, according to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who called June 1 a “hard deadline,” NBC News reports.

“My assumption is that if the debt ceiling isn’t raised, there will be hard choices to make about what bills go unpaid,” Yellen said on Meet the Press.

Negotiations have been on-again, off-again between a White House that does not want to cede its hard-fought attempt to reverse 40 years of trickle-down Reaganomics and a GOP that refuses to let Biden’s Neo New Deal happen. They ended abruptly late last Friday to leave all those concerned feeling a bit like Adam West’s character in the mid-‘60s Batman TV show, thrown into a trick death room, by the villain of the week, with the ceiling closing in on the floor. Holy crushed agenda, Batman. 

Negotiators for the White House and the Speaker – led by Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA) – ran for about two-and-a-half hours Sunday night, with the “crux of the talks” centering on the extent and duration of federal spending, The Washington Postreports. 

Going to XIV?: In a press conference at the G7 Summit, Biden said he believes he has the authority to invoke the 14thAmendment to raise the debt ceiling. Sunday’s negotiations were set after a phone call between Biden and McCarthy during the president’s flight home, and in a Capitol Hill press conference following, McCarthy told reporters; “My discussion with the president, I think, was pretty productive. I think we can solve some of the problems if he understands what we are looking at.”

Yep, that’s as positive as it gets.

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What’s Left of Bahkmut? -- Nothing – it “now lives only in our hearts,” Volodymyr Zelniskyy said in his appearance at the G7 summit (WaPo), though the Ukrainian president disputed Vladimir Putin’s claim that Russia has full occupation and control of the devastated city. Zelenskyy compared Russia’s destruction to that of the G7’s host city, Hiroshima, Japan, which was destroyed by the first use of a nuclear bomb, by the U.S., in 1945. 

•••

Up on the Hill – Aside from this little effort to raise the debt ceiling in a few days to avoid crashing the economy, the full House of Representatives is in session Monday through Thursday, while the Senate remains on break. The full Senate is then in session Tuesday and Wednesday of the following week, after Memorial Day, Monday. That’s how much time is left to stick with a commitment to pay our bills.

---Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

DeSantis to Launch Campaign on Twitter

Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk told The Wall Street Journal’s London CEO Council Summit in a virtual broadcast that he had a “major announcement” coming – Musk will interview Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Twitter Spaces Wednesday at 6 p.m. Eastern time. NBC News scooped DeSantis’ plans to announce ahead of Musk’s virtual appearance at the CEO Council Summit.

DeSantis also is expected to make his run formal by filing with the Federal Election Commission Wednesday, the WSJ says. It’s all part of DeSantis’ multi-day rollout.

Did we bury the lede? Depends on whether you consider DeSantis’ drawn-out announcement he will run for the GOP nomination for president next year more or less newsworthy compared with anything Twitter-owner Musk does. For his part, Musk says he would make no endorsements for the ’24 presidential race, but rather he wants to establish Twitter Spaces as a public town square (as opposed, we presume, to a “private” town square).

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Scott Files to Run in '24

Tim Scott, the only Black Republican in the Senate, has filed paperwork to become the second GOP candidate for president from South Carolina, after its former Gov. Nikki Haley, NPR’s Morning Edition reports. Scott’s upbeat, optimistic attitude is considered a counterpoint to the party’s current frontrunner in the ’24 presidential race, ex-President Trump.

Meanwhile, Republican West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice has announced he will challenge centrist Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-WV) expected re-election bid in 2024, according to Morning Edition. In 2016, Manchin endorsed Justice – a coal industry magnate that Forbes once called a billionaire – for his first bid for the state’s governor. 

•••

Join the political conversation and become a citizen pundit with your Comments in the section on this page (or on the left page, if more appropriate), or email editors@thehustings.news. 

Civil comments are welcome from never-Trumpers and pro-MAGAs alike. 

There’s plenty of issues on which to weight in, including the shaky start to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential run, and Republicans’ refusal to expel Rep. George Santos (R-NY) from the House of Representatives. 

Also up for discussion:

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

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On the Left

Contributing pundit Ken Zino comments on last week’s CNN Town Hall with lead Republican candidate for president in 2024, Donald J. Trump in “A Starving Rat Emerges from His Overfilled Swamp.”

What do you think? Should CNN have even invited the ex-president who still insists he won the 2020 election, to air his familiar grievances and pitch his MAGA positions before an adoring, credulous New Hampshire audience?

Hit the Comment section below, or in the right column if that’s how you lean, or email comments to editors@thehustings.news.

Also up for discussion, from the center column:

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow, continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could become fond memories of our economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•Rep. George Santos (R-NY) pleaded not guilty last week to federal fraud charges. The judge in the case set bail at $500,000 and confiscated his passport. Santos will be able to cast House votes, though he will not hold any committee memberships. He plans to run for re-election in 2024.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

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…meanwhile…

FRIDAY 5/19/23

Haley Welcomes DeSantis – From Des Moines, where Decision ’24 already is heating up, former North Carolina governor and UN ambassador Nikki Haley grabbed a bit of spotlight from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (above), who is expected to announce his presidential candidacy next week.

“Welcome to the race. We’ve been waiting,” Haley said in an exclusive interview with The Hill. “I’m glad that he’s going to be out there because I want the American public to see who they’re choosing from.”

Haley was the second GOP candidate to announce, after Donald J. Trump, in February.

Meanwhile, back in Florida: Disney has cancelled plans for a $900 million Florida campus in Orlando’s Lake Nona and will close one of its most expensive attractions, the “Star Wars” adventure hotel, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Lake Nona, where more than 2,000 new employees were to work, is dead, Josh D’Amaro, head of Disney’s Parks, Experiences and Products division said.

“Given the considerable changes that have occurred since the announcement of this project, including new leadership and changing business conditions, we have decided not to move forward.”

Though “changing conditions” include Disney’s “significant” job and budget cuts, they also include a governor, DeSantis, who is not acting a Republican when it comes to his treatment of big business.

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Feinstein Resists Early Retirement – “Early” for the 89-year-old senator from California means before her current term is up in January 2025. Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-CA) already has announced she will not run again, and Democratic Reps. Barbara Lee, Adam Schiff and Katie Porter each have announced their intention to fill her shoes. 

Feinstein appeared “shockingly diminished” upon her return to the Senate last week after she was out more than two months for complications from shingles. Key among them was the revelation of a previously unreported case of encephalitis, The New York Times reports. The shingles also spread to Feinstein’s face and neck, resulting in Ramsey Hunt syndrome. 

While the drumbeats for her early retirement continue and she continues to resist, Feinstein only needs to remain in office to the March 5, 2024 primary, when Democratic voters in the state will choose from Lee, Porter and Schiff. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom has stated his intention of choosing California’s first female senator, which could set up Lee as the catbird seat candidate for next year.

--TL

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THURSDAY 5/18/23

Santosland Diaries -- House Republicans defeated a symbolic House Democrat resolution to expel truth-challenged Rep. George Santos by referring the resolution to the Ethics Committee, by a 221-204 party line vote. Democrats on the Ethics Committee voted “present” to avoid conflict of interest, according to NPR. The unsuccessful expulsion resolution was introduced by Rep. Robert Garcia (D-CA).

Garcia raised the question of privilege, which allows members to force a vote on certain resolutions without support of House leadership. House leaders then have two days to bring the resolution to the floor.

Santos was indicted last week on federal criminal charges, including wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and making false statements to the House.

Doing the math: It takes two-thirds majority to expel a congress member for what would be only the fourth time in U.S. history, Roll Call reports. If successful, it would reduce Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s four-vote majority to just three. McCarthy said the Justice Department’s investigation of Santos should proceed as the congress member continues to participate in floor votes. 

On MSNBC’s All in With Chris Hayes, Rep. Becca Balint (D-VT) said other House Republicans “cheer” Santos’ vote as he helps them make laws. 

“They are certainly interested in protecting him,” Balint said. 

--TL

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WEDNESDAY 5/17/23

Deal or No Deal? – Anyone who ever has been involved in labor negotiations from either side will recognize the pattern of the dance between President Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) over raising the debt ceiling in time to avoid economic disaster. For weeks, months even, each side stands firm while blaming the other for not negotiating in good faith. 

Biden will not give up hard-fought programs like the Inflation Reduction Act to assure the federal government will pay its debts incurred over the last fiscal year. McCarthy and his thin House majority will not pay those debts unless the White House cuts back on its spending. The two sides get closer, closer, closer, though they never seem to be close to a deal until the last possible minute. Then suddenly, a breakthrough. Or not, though Congress and the president have always come through in the past. 

With barely two weeks to go until a very likely economic meltdown as early as June 1, if the government doesn’t pay its bills, we’re in that amorphous period where the union is determined not to strike and the employer truly does not want the down-time, but progress is not obvious.

Tuesday, Biden said he would cut short a diplomatic trip to Asia, which begins with a G7 summit in Hiroshima. But Biden has cancelled a planned trip afterward to Australia, next week in order to concentrate on the debt ceiling. Both Biden and McCarthy “showed signs of optimism” after an hour-long meeting in the Oval Office Tuesday afternoon (labor negotiations are never that short), The New York Times reports.

“We just finished another good, productive meeting with congressional leadership about a path forward to make sure America does not default on its debt,” Biden said.

McCarthy told reporters that he could see a deal reached “by the end of the week.”

Apparently the White House sees the Republican light on calling back unspent COVID relief bills.

We predict a spoiled Memorial Day weekend for one or both of the chambers.

--TL

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TUESDAY 5/16/23

Durham Reports on Trump Investigation – John Durham, a special counsel appointed in 2019 by then-Attorney Gen. William Barr to investigate the investigators in alleged Russian tampering into the 2016 Trump campaign, released more than 300 pages of criticism for the way the FBI handled the probe, The Washington Post reports. 

According to Durham’s report, the FBI’s investigation of Trump’s first presidential campaign – codenamed ‘Crossfire Hurricane’ was based on “raw, unanalyzed and uncorroborated intelligence.” 

Conversely, the FBI “proceeded cautiously” on alleged influence by a foreign actor in the 2016 Clinton campaign, WaPo says. The FBI’s conduct in Crossfire Hurricane previously came under fire in a 2019 report by the Justice Department’s inspector general, which did not find “documentary or testimonial evidence of intentional misconduct” on the part of the Trump campaign. 

Democrats have denounced the Durham report, which comes after an investigation from which no one was sent to jail.

Trump, who predicted four years ago the special counsel would uncover the “crime of the century” on Monday claimed victory, writing in social medial; “the American Public was scammed, just as it is being scammed right now by those who don’t want to see GREATNESS for AMERICA!”

--TL

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Meanwhile This Week

MONDAY MAY 15, 2023

More UK Arms to Ukraine – The United Kingdom will send “hundreds” more missiles and attack drones to the Ukraine, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced in a meeting with President Volodomyr Zelinskyy in England, Monday, Time reports. Sunak told Zelinskyy, who landed at Sunak’s Chequers country retreat; “your leadership, your country’s bravery and fortitude are an inspiration to us all.”

On Sunday for the third stop on a whirlwind European tour that also included Paris and Rome, Zelinskyy told reporters in Berlin he is not interested in negotiating a peace deal with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, whom he called “insane.” 

“It’s a joke for him. He does not understand what is happening. He is an insane human,” Zelinskyy said, according to a Ukrainian government readout of a press conference following his talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as reported by Newsweek. 

“Putin started the war. Russia took lives. The war is on our land. …

“We have not proposed an artificial plan,” Zelinskyy continued. “We have proposed how to get out of this situation, to end the war, according to the law, respecting the UN Charter, international law, people, values.” Ukraine’s Peace Formula is a 10-point plan that outlines Kyiv’s conditions for peace, and Zelinskyy says he is “not interested” in meeting with Putin for peace talks.

•••

Erdogan Beats Earthquake – Incumbent Recep Tayyip Erdo¨gan pulled out an upset, but not quite a victory, against Republican People’s Party (CHP) challenger Kiliçda Ro¨glu in Turkey’s presidential election Sunday. Erdogan received 49.51% of the vote, not enough to avoid a runoff, but well ahead of Ro¨glu’s 44.88%, a “bitter disappointment” for the challenger who had led in many polls. 

Third-party candidate Sinan Og¨an took 5.17% of the vote, indicating the potential to flip Sunday’s vote in the runoff.

Erdo¨gan, Turkey’s president for 20 years, took his hit in the polls over a slow government response February’s earthquake, which claimed 50,000 lives, and his low interest rates to revive the economy that resulted in 85% inflation, according to The Guardian.

The bigger picture: Though his nation is a NATO member, Erdo¨gan has cozied up to Vladimir Putin, in part by refusing to enforce Western sanctions against Russia after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and buying heavily discounted Russian oil, The New York Times reports. Erdo¨gan opposes Sweden’s application for NATO membership unless Stockholm first hands over Kurdish refugees, particularly those from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party. Erdo¨gan during his tenure also has jailed dissidents and suppressed independent media.

Though Western officials assiduously avoid being accused of interfering in Turkish politics, “it is an open secret that European leaders, not to speak of the Biden administration, would be delighted if Erdo¨gan were to lose,” the NYT says.

•••

More Debt-Ceiling Tuesday – President Biden is scheduled to resume talks with Congressional leaders over the debt ceiling Tuesday, NBC News and Bloomberg News reported Sunday, after a weekend of talks between Congressional and White House staffers. Biden was quoted from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, Sunday as being “optimistic” over reaching a deal by a potential June 1 deadline for the federal government running out of money to pay its bills. 

“I think they’re moving along, hard to tell,” Biden said. “We have not reached the crunch point yet.”

•••

Up On The Hill – Both chambers are in session Monday through Thursday. The Senate only is in session Friday.

--Compiled and edited by Todd Lassa

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COMMENTS: editors@thehustings.news

On the Right

Pundit-at-large emeritus Stephen Macaulay hardly has kinder things to say about former President Trump’s appearance in a CNN Town Hall last week than left-column contributor Ken Zino, in his right-column commentary, “That’s Entertainment.” The column reflects a never-Trumper conservative viewpoint. 

Whatever your viewpoint, including pro-Trump, we want to hear from you. Hit the Comment section on this page or the one on the left, if that’s how you lean, or email us at editors@thehustings.news and indicate whether you are right or left in the subject line.

Also up for discussion, from the center column:

•The Consumer Price Index was up 4.9% in April, still too high for the Federal Reserve, but reflecting a slow and continuing improvement over last year. Meanwhile, the Labor Department reported a week earlier that the U.S. economy added 253,000 jobs in April, higher than most economists had predicted. This comes after the Fed indicated its latest quarter-point interest rate hike might be its last for a while. All these high numbers could be fond memories of our 2023 economy if Congress fails to pass a debt ceiling increase in coming weeks.

•Rep. George Santos (R-NY) pleaded not guilty last week to federal fraud charges. The judge in the case set bail at $500,000 and confiscated his passport. Santos will be able to cast House votes, though he will not hold any committee memberships. He plans to run for re-election in 2024.

•A Manhattan court awarded E. Jean Carroll $5 million in her sexual abuse and defamation case against Donald J. Trump, who of course, will appeal.

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A Starving Rat Emerges from His Overfilled Swamp

By Ken Zino

I agree with ex-President Trump that the U.S. has a big mental health problem. It was on full display Wednesday night on CNN. Worse, in seven months it could be extended for four more years, 18 months from now if the seditionist in chief gets re-elected.

Starving from his lack of political power, the loser once again -- in front of an adoring audience -- served up the same conspiracy fantasies, outright lies, racist and sexual attacks, economic nonsense -- that made him a political force. 

Trump bit voraciously coming out of the political swamp he over-filled even as he promised to “drain” it. He started with rigged election lies. He wouldn't commit to honoring the results of the next election if it were “rigged.” 

Along the way he called the female moderator Kaitlin Collins "a nasty person" for repeatedly trying to get answers to questions he consistently ducked as he kept talking over her, a form of broadcast sexual assault. He also attacked yet again the woman whose lawsuit resulted in a New York civil jury finding him liable of sexual abuse and defamation this week.

Trump claimed the war in Ukraine would not have happened if he were president, ignoring his previous stance that the invasion showed Putin was a genius. If reelected, he would end the war in 24 hours? He once again attacked our European NATO allies, saying they are getting a free ride as the US supports democracy in Ukraine. He refused to say if he wants Ukraine to win the war against the Russian attack.

He took credit for the Roe v. Wade upset, while disparaging the U.S. justice system and its juries. He ducked a federal abortion ban question, saying that pro-life people now have something to negotiate with. He would decide based on his so-called judgment of what's right for those concerned, slipping in that he thinks the Reagan exceptions might have a place. 

Trump called a Black police officer a thug. He will pardon the January 6 insurrectionists, praising violent criminals. On his former vice president, Mike Pence, pursued by a lynch mob after Trump falsely said Pence had the power to overturn the election results; “I don’t feel he was in any danger; Pence was the one who did something wrong.” Still no apology to Pence. 

The Chinese people in Washington D.C.’s Chinatown don't speak English. Immigrants are carrying diseases and flocking here. He did build the wall. His separation of families worked, implying he would bring it back.

Yes, we should default on our loans. To hell with Hamilton and that full faith and credit nonsense. Default now because it will be easier now than later? 

Yes, the U.S. has a big mental health problem. Trump hasn't changed. He is unfit to lead a constitutional republic. The Republican party-sons need therapy. Our mental health problem grows. 

The rest isn't silence, there are more acts to stage. Chaos created by a starving rat feasting on falsehoods continues. Criminal investigations are still ongoing in Washington and Georgia over classified documents and false electors and obstruction of justice. This tragedy needs to close without a sequel. 

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