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Hobbs urges state bar to conduct ethics review of former Arizona attorney general

Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) is urging the Arizona State Bar to launch an ethics investigation of former state Attorney General Mark Brnovich (R) following a report that he worked to hide a report that refuted false claims of voter fraud affecting the state’s elections in 2020. 

Bo Dul, the general counsel for Hobbs’s office, said in a letter to the chief counsel of the state bar obtained by The Washington Post that Brnovich’s conduct was “harmful to our democracy, our State, and the legal profession itself.” 

Dul directed the state bar to review files related to Brnovich’s conduct on the website for the state attorney general’s office. 

“I urge the State Bar to review these files and take any appropriate action,” Dul said. 

The letter comes after the Post reported on Wednesday that internal documents show Brnovich kept a March 2022 report that concluded claims of mistakes and wrongdoing were without merit private. Brnovich had begun an investigation into voting in Maricopa County, where some allies for former President Trump claimed voter fraud had cost him victory in the state, about a year after the election. 

The former AG released an interim report in April 2022 that claimed that voting in the county was “broke,” but it did not include edits from those investigating that would have refuted his claims. He eventually organized an “Election Review Summary” in September that stated that evidence had not been presented to back up voter fraud claims, but it was not released before Brnovich’s term in office ended last month. 

Multiple audits and lawsuits filed in the aftermath of the 2020 election showed no evidence existed to back up claims from Trump and his supporters that widespread voter fraud or procedural issues cost him victory in Arizona or any other state. 

The Post reported that the state bar said it has received at least eight complaints against Brnovich related to his investigation of voting in the 2020 election. 

Brnovich denied the allegations that he hid the final report in a statement, reportedly telling local media outlets that he was pleased with the work his office did on “election integrity.” 

“While subjected to severe criticism from all sides of the political spectrum during the course of our investigations, we did our due diligence to run all complaints to ground,” he said. “Where we were able to debunk rumors and conspiracies, we did so.”

“Nevertheless, we also identified areas we believe the legislature and county officials should address to ensure confidence in future elections,” he added.

Source: TEST FEED1

Nikki Fried to lead Florida Democrats as party chair

Florida Democrats tapped former state Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried as their new chair on Saturday, tasking her with revamping a once-formidable state political party that has struggled to stay competitive in recent years.

Fried, a lobbyist who unsuccessfully challenged former Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.) for the Democratic gubernatorial nod last year, beat out three other prominent Democrats – former state Sen. Annette Taddeo, progressive activist Carolina Ampudia and Broward County Democratic Party Chair Rick Hoye – in a vote by the party’s executive committee. 

She’ll go on to succeed former Florida Democratic Party Chair Manny Diaz, who abruptly resigned last month following a disastrous 2022 midterm election for the party in Florida. 

Fried entered the chair race less than two weeks ago after previously saying she wasn’t interested in the job. But she quickly racked up a long list of influential supporters and emerged as one of the contest’s frontrunners alongside Taddeo. 

In taking the role, Fried will have one of the least-envied jobs in Florida politics. The state Democratic Party has struggled for years with financial shortfalls, rampant infighting, lackluster voter registration efforts and a floundering organizing program. 

While Democrats say that the party’s problems aren’t new, they’ve become clearer in recent years. Republicans overtook Democrats in registered voters in late 2021 – and that advantage has only continued to grow. The latest voter registration numbers out of the state show that there are now over 400,000 more registered Republicans than Democrats.

The 2022 midterms were also punishing for Democrats in Florida. Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) won reelection by a 19-point margin, while Republicans were handed a supermajority in the state legislature. For the first time in over a century, there’s not a single Democrat in statewide elected office.

Fried was the last Democrat to win statewide when she was elected agriculture commissioner in 2018.

Turning the Florida Democratic Party around won’t be easy. It’s down to only a skeletal staff and is in need of a fundraising boost. The 2024 presidential election is also fast approaching, and the GOP’s eventual nominee could very well end up being a Floridian; former President Donald Trump is running for the White House once again and DeSantis is said to be actively preparing for a presidential bid.

Source: TEST FEED1

By the numbers: U.S. military aid to Ukraine

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, launched just a year ago, has resulted in a stunning amount of U.S. military assistance for the war-torn country.

It’s set off a deep political debate over how much support the U.S. should offer, though so far there’s been more agreement than disagreement about offering aid to Ukraine.

Here’s a look at the numbers behind the spending that shows what U.S. dollars are being used for and how it compares to other federal spending.

$77,500,000,000

Total U.S. spending earmarked for Ukraine from January 2022 to January 2023.

How that stacks up to big ticket non-military items:

$29,300,000,000

Cost of United States military assistance to Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion on Feb. 24, 2021. Click here to see what equipment it funded.

$45,000,000,000

Total additional emergency funds, from the Additional Ukraine Supplemental Appropriations Act, “to advance Ukraine’s overall security, economic recovery, energy security, and capacity to cope with the ongoing humanitarian crisis created by Russia’s attacks.”

$1,900,000,000

Humanitarian assistance to support the displaced, including refugees, and other vulnerable populations and communities both inside Ukraine and throughout the region.

$4,000,000 each

Approximate unit cost of a HIMARS rocket launcher system (plus more than $100K per missile). The U.S. has sent more than 20 HIMARS to Ukraine so far.

$10,000,000 each

Baseline cost of an M1 Abrams tank. The U.S. finally agreed to send 31 of the tanks to Ukraine last month, though they could take months to arrive.

How the world feels about support for Ukraine

$13,000,000,000

Budget support to the Government of Ukraine (GOU) through World Bank mechanisms.

Source:  Kiel Institute

What the U.S. has spent on Ukraine so far vs. other military engagements:

Highlights of how the $29.3 billion in military aid breaks down:

Infantry arms/equipment

• More than 8,500 Javelin anti-armor systems
• Over 50,000 other anti-armor systems and munitions
• More than 1,600 Stinger anti-aircraft systems
• 2,590 TOW missile
• 13,000 grenade launchers and small arms
• Over 111,000,000 rounds of small arms ammunition
• More than 75,000 sets of body armor and helmets
• Thousands of surveillance systems, night vision googles, thermal imagery systems etc.
• C-4 and other explosives for obstacle clearing
• Mines and mine clearing equipment
• More than 350 generators

Air Defense

• 8 NASAM systems
• 12 Avenger air defense systems
• HAWK air defense system missiles
• Laser-guided rocket systems
• One Patriot air defense battery and munitions
• RIM-7 missiles for air defense
• High speed anti-radiation missiles (HARMs)

Manned aircraft

• 20 Mi-17 helicopters

Drones

• More than 700 armed Switchblade drones
• 1,800 armed Phoenix Ghost drones
• VAMPIRE Counter-unmanned aerial systems
• 15 ScanEagle unarmed aerial systems
• Puma unarmed aerial systems

Coastal Defense

• 2 Harpoon coastal defense systems
• 58 coastal and riverine patrol boats
• Unmanned coastal defense vessels
• RIM-7 missiles for air defense

Radar, communications and satellite services

• 4 satellite communication antennas
• 2 radars for drones
• 10 air surveillance radars
• More than 50 counter-artillery radars
• 4 counter-mortar radars
• Tactical secure communications systems

Artillery and ammunition

• 160 155mm Howitzers and up to 1,094,000 artillery rounds
• 72 105mm Howitzers and 370,000 artillery rounds
• 38 HIMARs systems
• 30 120 mm mortar systems and ammunition
• 100,000 rounds of 125mm tank ammunition
• 10,200 155mm rounds of Remote Anti-Armor Mine (RAAM) Systems
• 65,000 152mm artillery rounds
• 50,000 122mm GRAD rockets
• 30 120mm mortar systems and about 166,000 rounds
• 545,000 rounds of 25mm ammunition
• 20 60mm and 82mm mortar systems

Ground support vehicles

• More than 1,700 Humvees
• 109 Bradley Fighting vehicles
• 298 tactical vehicles to tow weapons
• 34 Tactical Vehicles to recover equipment
• 30 ammunition support vehicles
• 44 trucks
• 88 trailers
• 10 command post vehicles
• More than 100 light tactical vehicles

Tanks and Armored carriers

• 45 refurbished T-72B tanks (sent from the Czech Republic)
• 300 M113 armored personal carriers
• 250 M117 armored security vehicle
• 580 Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicles (MRAPs)
• 100 armored medical treatment vehicles
• 31 MaxxPro MRAP vehicles
• 31 M1 Abrams tanks
• 90 Stryker Armored Personnel Carriers
• 6 armored utility trucks

Timeline of U.S. spending and aid deployment

Since Russia first attacked Ukraine a year ago on Feb. 24, the United States has directed nearly $50 billion in assistance to the war-torn country, including humanitarian, financial, and military support. A timeline of aid deployment:

• Feb. 24, 2022: Russia attacks Ukraine after Kremlin troops amass for weeks along the country’s border.
• Feb. 25, 2022: U.S. pledges its first military aid package to Ukraine, $350 million in weapons that includes Stinger anti-aircraft missiles.
• March 11, 2022: Ukraine takes possession of 5 Mi-17 helicopters pledged by the U.S. in January, with more on the way.
• March 16, 2022: U.S. pledges sending Switchblade Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems – armed drones that are launched from the ground and Kamikaze their targets – to Kyiv along with more Stinger anti-aircraft systems, Javelin anti-tank weapons and more as part of an $800 million package.
• April 13, 2022: U.S. expands the types of weaponry it’s giving to Ukraine in $800 million arms package that include Howitzers, artillery, unmanned boats for coastal defense and other equipment not part of prior aid packages. Foreseeing the war will stretch longer than initially expected, Deputy Defense Secretary Kathleen Hicks sits down with defense CEOs from top firms including Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon, BAE Systems and more to discuss the industrial impact on weapons production for Ukraine.
• April 21, 2022: Pentagon announces Phoenix Ghost attack drones to Ukraine as part of a $800 million lethal aid package.
• May 31, 2022: Administration officials reveal US is sending Ukraine High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS), as part of a $700 million package. The weapon is the first advanced, long-range rocket system sent to Ukraine, with rounds that can fire roughly 50 miles away. The systems give Kyiv more precision on far away targets than previously sent artillery.
• June 15, 2022: U.S. announces it will provide two vehicle-mounted Harpoon coastal defense systems, intended to defend coastlines, as part of a $1 billion military aid package to Kyiv.
• July 1, 2023: Defense Department unveils an $820 million weapons package to include two National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems (NASAMS), air defense systems that can hit targets up to 100 miles away and are used to protect the skis above Washington, D.C.
• Aug. 8 2022: U.S. confirms it has sent AGM-88 High Speed Radiation Missiles (HARM) to Ukraine.
• Aug. 19, 2022: Pentagon announces it would send Ukraine TOW anti-tank missiles for the first time as well as Scan Eagle Unmanned Aerial Systems as part of a $775 million security assistance package.
• Aug. 24, 2022: U.S. commits VAMPIRE Counter-unmanned aerial systems – which uses small missiles to shoot drones out of the sky – as part of a $2.98 billion weapons package.
• Nov. 4, 2022: The Pentagon announces it will for the first time fund tanks – specifically T-72 from the Czech Republic – sent to Ukraine as part of a $400 million military assistance package.
• Dec. 21, 2022: U.S. announces it will give Ukraine a Patriot surface-to-air guided missile defense system as part of a larger $1.85 billion security assistance package. The system – designed to hit mid- and high-altitude targets such as missiles, fighter jets, bombers and drones – is considered a major gain for Ukraine as it had been begging Western officials for the system for months.
• Jan. 6, 2023: Administration announces it will send M2 Bradley Fighting Vehicle to Ukraine for the first time as part of a $3.75 billion new military assistance package.
• Jan. 15, 2023: Ukrainian troops arrive at Fort Sill, Okla., to begin training for several months on Patriot systems.
• Jan. 19, 2023: Pentagon announces $2.5 billion package to include hundreds of additional armored vehicles – including for the first time Stryker armored vehicles.
• Jan. 25, 2023: U.S. agrees to send Ukraine 31 M1 Abrams tanks worth $400 million, changing course after initially insisting the vehicle was not appropriate for the fight and shoring up an agreement with Germany to send its Leopard tanks to the conflict.
• Feb. 3, 2023: The most recent U.S. lethal aid tranche to Ukraine, worth nearly $2.2 billion, includes for the first time the ground-launched small diameter bomb, a bomb-tipped rocket with a range of 90 miles.

Source: TEST FEED1

Tester hands Democrats 2024 boost with tough road ahead

Democrats got a shot in the arm this week with Sen. Jon Tester’s (D-Mont.) decision to seek reelection.

His announcement hands Democrats a real chance at retaining a seat in GOP territory and puts them on Joe Manchin-watch as the West Virginia Democratic senator weighs his own future in a ruby-red state.

Tester, who announced his decision on Wednesday, is the first major domino to fall for Democrats, who are nervous about maintaining their one-seat majority. 

“It’s huge,” said Rodell Mollineau, who served as a top aide to former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.). “It means it gives us our best opportunity to hold onto the U.S. Senate. … It’s about holding onto seats that might otherwise turn red with no future forecast of how they’d turn blue again.”

Democrats still face an ominous road ahead this cycle. 

They control 23 of the seats up for grabs in 2024, compared to 10 for Republicans who still have a number of paths open to nab the two seats — or just one if they win the White House — needed to take back the majority. And there are fights brewing across the map.

Tester’s reelection bid will give Democrats a solid chance at retaining a seat in GOP territory. (Greg Nash)

Question marks surround Arizona’s contest after Sen. Kyrsten Sinema became an Independent. Sen. Debbie Stabenow’s (D) retirement in Michigan is set to spark a rough and tumble battle on both sides of the aisle to replace her. 

Sen. Sherrod Brown — Ohio’s lone statewide elected Democrat — said he would run for reelection, but the state has increasingly trended red over the past several years. And Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) is recovering from prostate cancer surgery and has yet to make his 2024 plans official, though he is expected to run once again in one of the preeminent swing states in a presidential cycle.

But Montana and West Virginia, two solidly red states with Democratic senators, were thought by many to be the easiest pickup opportunities for Republicans — depending on Tester and Manchin’s plans.

Pressed by a local West Virginia radio host on Wednesday whether he’ll seek a third full term, the West Virginia centrist maintained that he wasn’t sure. 

“I don’t know,” Manchin said, emphasizing each word.  

Tester’s decision heaps pressure on Republicans, who struggled mightily on the candidate quality front in 2022 and are looking to reverse their fortunes this cycle in Montana. 

Reps. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) and Matt Rosendale (R-Mont.) are considered the main contenders to take on Tester next year, but worries persist about both. Zinke has ethics troubles from his time as Interior secretary, while Rosendale lost to Tester in 2018, in addition to losing to Zinke in a 2014 House primary.

Even Republicans acknowledge it could take a formidable opponent to unseat Tester.

“Tester is better at this than most. He knows how to speak in Montana in a way that covers up his voting record. A generic Republican gets beat by Jon Tester despite the fact that whoever is on the top of the ticket on the presidential side wins comfortably,” one GOP operative told The Hill. “We screwed this up five years ago. You can’t let an opportunity like this go to waste while in the minority.”

Of the two, Republicans worry more about the possibility of Rosendale emerging from a primary and a repeat of the 2018 contest when Tester defeated him by more than three percentage points two years after former President Trump carried the state by more than 20 points. 

“Jon Tester beats Matt Rosendale. We saw this in 2018. We can’t just have a guy with an R next to his name,” the GOP operative continued, bringing up the often-used line about Rosendale’s accent. “He’s from Maryland, and he sounds like it. They should have put that guy into speech therapy and beat the hell out of [his accent].”

Even Republicans admit that ousting Tester will not be easy to achieve. (Greg Nash)

Zinke, according to one source, is in “no rush” to make a decision, and he likely has more than a year to do so. Multiple sources also indicated Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen (R) is looking into a potential campaign. 

However, Republicans this time around believe they have an ace up their sleeve in Sen. Steve Daines (R-Mont.), who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) this cycle and has made it a priority to defeat his Big Sky state colleague. 

“I don’t think anyone should underestimate [Tester], but I believe his luck is going to run out this cycle because there’s no one who knows his playbook better than the Daines team,” said Brian Walsh, who served as the NRSC’s communications director in 2012 when Tester won his first reelection bid. “He’s been very fortunate the last three times to face a candidate who was ultimately not the best candidate Republicans could put forward. If Republicans put up a decent candidate, they should win the race.”

Tester, however, has some positive winds blowing in his direction. According to a Morning Consult survey taken in January, 60 percent of Montanan respondents approve of Tester’s work. In addition, a recent poll conducted by a GOP firm shows him leading both Zinke and Rosendale, and holding a 1-point advantage over Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R), who has yet to announce whether he will seek reelection in 2024. 

Operatives in the state and nation are convinced that absent Tester, no other Democrat in the state could put up much of a fight, let alone win this race.

“Could someone meet that moment? Absolutely not,” one Montana Democratic operative told The Hill. “Unless there’s someone hidden under a rock no ones seen so far, no.” 

Source: TEST FEED1

Apple Watch ban: Here's what happens next

An extensive legal battle is brewing after the Biden administration declined to veto an International Trade Commission (ITC) import ban on the Apple Watch. 

The ITC ruled in December that Apple infringed on wearable heart monitoring technology patented by California startup AliveCor. Apple currently uses an electrocardiogram sensor in question in its high-end Apple Watch models.  

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on Tuesday allowed the ITC decision to go through, despite Apple’s apparent lobbying effort to get the Biden administration to block the potential ban on its popular smartwatch. 

From here, the two companies are set to engage in a drawn-out legal dispute. Here’s what will happen next. 

Appeals court will decide Apple’s fate

The Commerce Department’s Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) ruled in December that the AliveCor patents at the center of the ITC case were invalid. The PTAB decision put the ITC’s Apple Watch import ban on hold.

AliveCor is appealing the PTAB ruling, while Apple is appealing the ITC ruling. A federal appeals court will ultimately decide whether Apple Watches will face an import ban.  

William Mandir, a partner at intellectual property law firm Sughrue Mion, said that appeals courts typically side with the PTAB decision around 75 percent of the time, giving Apple an early advantage. 

“In general, it’s an uphill battle, which on its face seems to favor Apple,” Mandir said. “But you’d have to really dive into the specifics to see what the merits are on appeal.”

AliveCor first shared its technology with Apple in 2015 in hopes of securing a partnership with the tech giant.

The startup said that Apple introduced Apple Watch models in 2018 that had built-in heart monitoring sensors — and blocked third-party app providers from accessing users’ heart rate data — forcing AliveCor to cancel sales of its Apple Watch heart monitoring accessory. 

Those claims would be moot if an appeals court affirmed the PTAB ruling. Apple said in court filings that it first began developing and patenting its own heart monitoring systems more than a decade ago.

“The patents on which AliveCor’s case rest have been found invalid, and for that reason, we should ultimately prevail in this matter,” an Apple spokesperson said in a statement.   

Import ban won’t happen anytime soon

The appeals process is expected to drag into the middle of 2024, as the general timeline for PTAB appeals is 12 to 18 months, according to AliveCor.

That means Apple Watch models won’t face an import ban for some time, and Apple could explore several avenues to avoid the ban entirely.

AliveCor is pushing for a settlement where Apple pays the startup to license its heart-monitoring technology. That would prevent an Apple Watch import ban, but AliveCor said that Apple hasn’t shown interest in settling.  

“We can license our IP to them tomorrow or the next second if they would like to, but they don’t want to have a conversation. It’s all about going with litigation rather than innovation,” AliveCor CEO Priya Abani told The Hill. 

Even if Apple lost the appeal and chose not to settle, the company could still keep Apple Watch sales alive by making modifications to the device.

“They would have to take out the feature that was found to infringe or disable it. Another option is they could keep the feature if there’s a way to redesign it so it still works but doesn’t infringe the patent,” Sughrue Mion managing partner John Rabena said. “The watches wouldn’t go away, but maybe a feature would.” 

Apple Watch sparked other legal challenges

AliveCor is pursuing a separate antitrust lawsuit against Apple, which it expects to go on trial in early 2024.

The startup claims that Apple made software updates accompanying the introduction of its own heart monitoring app that prevented other companies from accessing Apple Watch users’ heart rate data, blocking competition and cutting off AliveCor users. 

“With a single update, Apple thus eliminated competition that consumers clearly wanted and needed, depriving them of choice for heart rate analysis that is better than what Apple can provide,” AliveCor wrote in its May 2021 complaint. “And all for an incremental value gain for an already-two-trillion-dollar company.”

Apple argued that it’s under no obligation to to provide its platform for use by another company.

A federal judge in March 2022 ruled against Apple’s bid to dismiss the lawsuit, stating that the update’s purpose was to “prevent third parties from identifying irregular heart rate situations and from offering competing heart rate analysis apps.” 

Abani said that Apple frequently uses a similar tactic with other app developers to quash competition, saddling users with fewer choices and less innovative technology. She described AliveCor’s lawsuit as a “David vs. Goliath battle” with enormous implications for the future of startups in the U.S.

Apple was dealt another blow last month when an ITC judge ruled that Apple infringed on pulse oximeter sensors patented by medical tech company Masimo.

The case will go before the full commission this year, where the ITC could enact yet another import ban on Apple Watch models that use the technology. 

Source: TEST FEED1

The Memo: Trump’s surprise — a slightly conventional campaign

Former President Trump is doing something shocking — he’s running a campaign that is starting to look quite conventional.

This week alone, Trump has issued several policy proposals. He has announced the hiring of seasoned senior staff in the first-caucus state of Iowa. And he has visited East Palestine, Ohio in the wake of the Feb. 3 train derailment, using the power of his former office to intensify the spotlight on residents — and on himself.

Altogether, the current tone is quite different from the tumult the American public has been used to since Trump began his first campaign for the White House almost eight years ago.

Trump allies are reveling in the change.

“People think they know what to expect of Donald Trump in 2024. They are wrong,” said Michael Caputo, a longtime friend and adviser to the former president. “They recognize the caustic social media messages, they recognize his tactic of giving a nickname to every competitor. But they ain’t seen nothing yet.”

Caputo and others note the seasoned campaigners who are around the former president from the start this time around, including senior adviser Susie Wiles, renowned for her knowledge of campaigns in Florida in particular, pollster Tony Fabrizio and policy adviser Vince Haley.

Trump has also taken to releasing more detailed proposals than were seen previously, especially during his 2016 seat-of-the-pants campaign.

The campaign is currently gathering these ideas under the overall rubric of “Agenda47.” Trump, the 45th president, would also become the 47th president if he won a second term in 2024.

This month, he has advocated typically hard-line measures to fight crime, to underline his opposition to so-called ESG investing — the acronym stands for investing which factors in environmental, social and governance concerns — and to boost American energy.

While there was plenty of Trumpian rhetoric, there were at least some specifics.

On crime, Trump said he would require local police departments in receipt of Department of Justice grants to return to the ultra-controversial stop-and-frisk policies of the past, and to cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) “to arrest and deport criminal aliens.”

On ESG, he promised to issue an executive order if reelected that would prohibit the use of such criteria in managing retirement accounts.

On energy, he said he would once again take the United States out of the Paris accords on climate change and “rapidly issue approvals for all worthy, energy infrastructure projects.”

The point is less the political rights and wrongs of these proposals than the fact that they are being made at all.

One open question, of course, is the degree to which Trump’s shift is being driven by the desire to fend off the challenge likely to be posed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).

DeSantis has said next to nothing about his 2024 plans but he is widely expected to announce a campaign in the next few months. Polls show him to be clearly Trump’s most serious competitor for the GOP nomination.

DeSantis, unlike Trump, still has his hands on the levers of power. He has been using that power to make headline-grabbing announcements with national resonance for conservatives. 

On Thursday, DeSantis announced a push for stricter immigration measures in his state, including the mandatory use of E-Verify by private as well as public employers, and a revocation of the right to in-state tuition rates for unauthorized migrants.

DeSantis has previously pushed back on a proposed Advanced Placement course in African American studies, on the grounds that it allegedly put forth too much of a political agenda. And he has successfully asked the Florida Supreme Court to set up a grand jury to look into whether there was malfeasance in the claims made about COVID-19 vaccines.

With all that going on from his likely nemesis, Trump could hardly do nothing on the policy front.

But the former president has his advantages in other areas too, not least the symbolic heft of the office he held for four years.

He put that to use on Wednesday during his visit to East Palestine, Ohio. 

Trump accused the Biden administration of “indifference and betrayal” of the people in the small eastern Ohio town. Speaking from behind a lectern adorned with his name, he contended that the people there needed “answers and results” rather than “excuses.”

The relative decorum of the speech was a marked contrast to how Trump sometimes behaved in office, even in disaster zones. In 2017, visiting Puerto Rico after a hurricane, he famously threw paper towels into the crowd in the manner of a basketball player taking a free throw.

It would be foolish to exaggerate the extent to which Trump has gone conventional, of course. 

The inflammatory rhetoric still goes hand-in-hand with these more modulated moves. He continues to falsely claim the 2020 election was rigged and to minimize the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot. He will keep blasting away in vicious terms at prosecutors whose probes are targeting him.

The MAGA Trump base, therefore, is in no danger of thinking he has done soft or sold out to the hated “swamp.” 

But there has been a noticeable shift nonetheless — one that even Republicans who have been skeptical of Trump can’t help but notice.

“What you see,” said Doug Heye, a former communications director for the Republican National Committee, “is somebody who still declares himself the outsider, trying to play very much an insider game.”

The Memo is a reported column by Niall Stanage.

Source: TEST FEED1

McConnell calls Ukraine aid a 'direct investment' for US against Putin's 'war machine’

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) affirmed that U.S. aid to Ukraine is a “direct investment” in the country’s interests and against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “war machine” on the first anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion. 

The senate minority leader said in a statement on Friday that U.S. national security is tied to stability and security in Europe and preventing Russian forces from advancing in the continent. 

“As my fellow leading Republicans and I have explained, it is not an act of charity for the United States and our NATO allies to help supply the Ukrainian people’s self-defense,” he said. “It is a direct investment in our own core national interests.” 

McConnell added that the United States has largely been sending older weapons from its stockpile, allowing the U.S. to replenish its inventory with more modern versions of what’s being sent abroad. 

“If Putin were given a green light to destabilize Europe, invading and killing at will, the long-term cost to the United States in both dollars and security risks would be astronomically higher than the miniscule fraction of our GDP that we have invested in Ukraine’s defense thus far,” he said. 

He called on the Biden administration and U.S. allies to act more decisively in ensuring that their combined assistance to Ukraine and investments in their own militaries happen at the “speed of relevance.” He said experience has shown that weakness and hesitation are what provokes Putin to act. 

“The road to peace lies in speedily surging Ukraine the tools they need to achieve victory as they define it,” McConnell said. 

The Kentucky Republican said that he has spent the past week traveling with some other GOP senators to meet with leaders of U.S. allies to assure them that the country will continue to invest in its military in order to keep the NATO alliance strong and push them to make greater investments in their defenses to reduce the burden on the U.S. 

The country has shown strong bipartisan support for helping Ukraine throughout much of the war over the past year, but some GOP members of Congress — such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) — have called for ending U.S. aid to Ukraine. 

“We don’t pay taxes to fund foreign country’s wars who aren’t even NATO ally’s,” Greene tweeted Monday. 

But other Republican leaders, like McConnell, have been steadfast in maintaining support for Ukraine, telling participants of the Munich Security Conference last week that “Reports about the death of Republican support for strong American leadership in the world have been greatly exaggerated.”

Source: TEST FEED1

Pence hints at spring decision on 2024 bid in NBC interview

Former Vice President Mike Pence told NBC News’ Ali Vitali that he believes that by spring his “family expects to have a very clear sense of [their] calling,” hinting at an announcement for a 2024 election bid.

Pence also took aim at former President Trump, telling NBC that “the times call for different leadership, and I’m confident we’ll have better choices than my old running mate come 2024.”

The former Indiana governor also reaffirmed his stance that he would not comply with a subpoena from the Department of Justice’s special counsel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol, even if he were compelled to testify by a federal judge.

He then reiterated to NBC News that he believes it would be “unconstitutional” for him to testify against Trump, as he served in the Trump administration.

Last week, a former federal judge — who once served as an informal adviser to Pence — raised doubts about Pence’s reasoning for opposing a subpoena to testify.

J. Michael Luttig argued that any constitutional right Pence had to not testify should yield to the process of a criminal investigation. 

Pence and his team say that since he was serving as the former president of the Senate at the time of the insurrection, that it essentially made him a member of the legislative branch and he would therefore be shielded from the subpoena under the “speech and debate” clause of the Constitution.

Trump and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley are the only two high-profile candidates to enter the 2024 race for the Republican nomination thus far. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Sen. Tim Scott are also on the list of potential GOP candidates.

On the Democrat side, President Joe Biden has yet to announce his plans for reelection, but First Lady Jill Biden alluded during a trip to Kenya that it would be coming soon. Marianne Williamson, a prominent progressive who ran for president in 2020, confirmed on Thursday that she will run again for the Democratic nomination for president in 2024. 

Source: TEST FEED1

Biden orders weekend door-to-door checks in Ohio after train derailment

President Biden issued an order Friday directing federal agencies to check-in with residents of East Palestine, Ohio, after a train derailment earlier this month.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Environmental Protection Agency and Federal Emergency Management Agency will go door-to-door, visiting homes to see how families are doing and connect them any resources they may need.

After hurricanes and other natural disasters, similar “walk teams” perform the same duties. Biden didn’t specifically say how many homes need to be visited, but he said he told employees to visit as many homes as possible by Monday.

The announcement comes amid frustrations from Republicans toward the administration’s response to the disaster. House Republicans opened an investigation into the Feb. 3 derailment and have slammed Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg for what they have called a delayed response.

Democrats meanwhile have blamed former President Trump and his administration for rolling back rail and environmental regulations during his term.

Buttigieg also criticized the rollbacks when he visited the site of the derailment on Thursday, one day after Trump delivered a speech in East Palestine, slamming Buttigieg and Biden’s response.

Source: TEST FEED1