(MON 6/6/22 PM)
Johnson wins no-confidence vote ... British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has won a no-confidence vote of his party's parliament members, 211-148, which means he remains in office despite scandals involving crowded, alcohol-infused parties and cover-up of the same during England's COVID-19 shutdown. The Guardian notes however that the vote means a full 40% of British Parliament's Tories failed to back Johnson. After three years as PM Johnson's short-term future is less than solid. (6/6/22 PM UPDATE.)
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Day 103 of Russia’s invasion … President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited Ukrainian troops in the city of Lysychansk Sunday in the eastern Donbas region, just south of the fiercest fighting on the main battlefield of Sievierodonetsk, The Guardian reports. Zelenskyy spoke to Ukrainian soldiers and handed out awards, saying “What you all deserve is victory – that is the most important job. But not at any cost.”
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U.S. and G.B. … The Senate returns from Memorial Day recess Monday, the House of Representatives comes back to the Capitol on Tuesday.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a no-confidence vote by his party’s members of parliament to be held 6-8 p.m. London time (1-3 p.m. Eastern U.S.). Johnson, who has lost much of his party’s confidence over parties he attended during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, needs 180 of 359 of Conservative Party MPs’ confidence to retain his job, the BBC says.
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Tuesday primaries … this week are in California, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico and South Dakota.
Two-term Rep. Chris Jacobs (R-NY) said Friday he will not run for a third term, fearing a primary challenge from the GOP’s hard-right after he said he’d support a ban on assault weapons and limits on high-capacity magazines following the mass shootings in Buffalo and Uvalde, Texas, Roll Call reports. Jacobs believes he could not win an August primary challenge in his re-drawn 23rd District, though he will remain in office to the end of his term in January, and thus will vote on gun regulation legislation expected on the floor of the House next week.
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Summit of the Americas … President Biden and Vice President Harris travel to Los Angeles Wednesday to attend the Summit of the Americas, NPR’s Morning Edition reports. Biden has banned Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua from attending because of their anti-Democratic regimes, which has prompted Mexican President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador to boycott the summit.
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Prime Time Thursday … The much-awaited -- in some circles -- public hearings of the House Select Committee investigating the January 6 Capitol insurrection begin at 8 p.m. Eastern (5 p.m. Pacific). The committee hopes to break through to a wide swath of Americans to show how close all The Donald’s men (and women) came to bringing down our democracy that day.
ICMYI: The Justice Department announced last Friday it will not issue contempt of Congress charges against Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows or former aide Dan Scavino, prompting 1/6 panel chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) and ranking Republican Liz Cheney (WY) to issue a statement that the decision is “puzzling” and asking for more clarity.
Also Friday former Trump trade advisor Peter Navarro was charged by federal prosecutors on contempt charges and arrested by the FBI before he could get on a plane to Nashville.
This came three days after a Washington jury quickly acquitted attorney Michael Sussman of making a false statement to the FBI under Special Counsel John Durham’s investigation of the 2016 Trump-Russia “witch hunt.” Durham was appointed by Trump Attorney Gen. William Barr days before the 2020 presidential election to overturn the narrative on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s influence on Trump’s presidential election victory.
Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-TX) reacted to all this with this in an appearance on Newsmax (per Newsweek): “If you’re a Republican you can’t even lie to Congress or lie to the FBI or they’ll come after you.”
--Todd Lassa