Odds and Ends — 23 May 2023
We’re getting our garden in rather late this year. Crossing fingers for a long growing season.
Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, and Debt:
‘There was all sorts of toxic behaviour’: Timnit Gebru on her sacking by Google, AI’s dangers and big tech’s biases (thanks to @shanibeer for bringing this to my attention)
Crypto Hacks Are Down and Hackers Tend to Return Stolen Money
Panama Canal Imposes Shipping Restrictions to Cope With Worsening Drought
U.S. Default Would Impact Global Economy
If the debt crisis roiling Washington were eventually to send the United States crashing into recession, America’s economy would hardly sink alone.
The repercussions of a first-ever default on the federal debt would quickly reverberate around the world. Orders for Chinese factories that sell electronics to the United States could dry up. Swiss investors who own U.S. Treasurys would suffer losses. Sri Lankan companies could no longer deploy dollars as an alternative to their own dodgy currency.
Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:
Florida Man:
Text Messages Tie DeSantis Closely to Lev Parnas
Ukrainian-American businessman Lev Parnas and his business partner were arrested in 2019, accused by the U.S. government of funneling a Russian oligarch’s money into American political campaigns.
One recipient of Parnas’ donations — Florida Governor Ron DeSantis — has said he was barely an acquaintance.
But DeSantis and Parnas worked more closely together than the Republican governor has disclosed, according to a detailed account of their relationship Parnas provided to Reuters and 63 previously unreported text messages from DeSantis to Parnas between May and October 2018, as DeSantis campaigned for governor.
DeSantis Recruited Police Officers with Violent Records
Numerous police officers lured to new jobs in Florida with cash from Governor Ron DeSantis’s flagship law enforcement relocation program have histories of excessive violence or have been arrested for crimes including kidnapping and murder since signing up.
Politics:
GOP Ratchets Up Debt Ceiling Demands
Congressional Republicans have not only rejected a new White House offer to essentially freeze domestic spending at FY2023 levels, they’re now demanding work requirements for SNAP recipients that are more rigid than those they originally proposed. They’re also insisting on adding new immigration provisions from the GOP’s recently passed border bill — which, mind you, Republicans didn’t include in their own debt ceiling bill.
The GOP’s dug-in position comes at the end of a week when both President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy acknowledged that a budget deal would have to be bipartisan. Vote-counters on the Hill believe that any eventual deal will need the backing of about 100 House Democrats since a number of conservatives will never support a compromise. Yet given what Republican negotiators are now countering, they’re far from that number.
This may explain why Biden’s now talking 14th Amendment, something he was dismissing just a few days ago.
“…even if President Biden has no intention of doing this or resorting to other extraordinary measures it is insane to rule it out in advance publicly. At a minimum he needs Republicans to think he might take an action that would leave them with no ransom at all. Otherwise you’re simply negotiating against yourself.” — Josh Marshall
Harlan Crow wants to stop talking about Clarence Thomas.
Trump’s Second Term Vision Comes Into Focus
Donald Trump’s second-term governing plans are coming into clearer focus, as he lays out a vision for a dramatic expansion of federal power — particularly the presidency.
In public statements, videos and posts on his campaign’s website, Trump complains about Washington’s ‘swamp’ — but lays out a plan that would give him, as president, more control of virtually every facet of life in America.
Trump’s plans go well beyond the provocative promises he made during his recent CNN town hall — to pardon nearly all of the convicted Jan. 6 rioters (there have been about 500), and to immediately broker an end the war in Ukraine.
A liar, a coward, and a traitor walk into a bar.
— Middle Age Riot (@middleageriot) May 21, 2023
The bartender says, "What'll it be, Speaker McCarthy?"
Jack Smith Has 50 Pages Of Real-Time Notes From Evan Corcoran
FWIW, Seymour Hersh on the Ukraine Refugee Question (for those who don’t know Hersh, he has a track record of either being very right or very wrong)
Ukraine war: Satellite images reveal Russian defences before major assault
Why Trump Wants U.S. to Default on Debt
You don’t need to be a stable genius to know that a bad economy typically hurts the incumbent in a presidential race. And Trump is desperate to get the immunity from prosecution that being elected president would provide him. He’s terrified of what’s coming from Special Counsel Jack Smith. So he’ll apparently nuke the world economy to protect himself.
His MAGA minions in the House of Representatives also understand that voters’ first instinct for an economic crisis is to blame the incumbent president. But just in case that point was missed by the few GOP representatives who still worry a bit about what’s best for the country, Trump’s Truth Social post on Friday was sending them a message. He might as well have written, I’ll come after you if you vote to raise the debt ceiling.
John Durham Claims To Know Better Than Anthony Trenga And Two Juries
Russia Sanctions Trump’s Enemies
Russia has expanded its list of sanctioned Americans in a tit-for-tat retaliation for the latest curbs imposed by the United States. But what is particularly striking is how much President Vladimir Putin of Russia is adopting perceived enemies of former President Donald Trump as his own.
None of them has anything to do with Russia policy, and the only evident reason they would have come to Moscow’s attention is because Mr. Trump has publicly assailed them.
really weird how Donald Trump's enemies list and Vladimir Putin's enemies list are identical. I guess it must just be one of those inexplicable coincidences that keep on happening
— Jeff Tiedrich (@itsJeffTiedrich) May 22, 2023
Clinton Foundation Probe Lasted Until Trump’s Final Days
The Justice Department kept open the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s family foundation for nearly all of President Donald J. Trump’s administration, with prosecutors closing the case without charges just days before he left office.
Newly released documents and interviews with former department officials show that the investigation stretched long past when F.B.I. agents and prosecutors knew it was a dead end.
Comer Admits the Point of His Biden Family Investigation
Rep. James Comer (R-KY) on Monday inadvertently implied that House Republicans’ high-profile investigation into President Joe Biden’s family members and their finances is actually about helping Donald Trump win the presidency in 2024.
E. Jean Carroll Seeks More Damages from Trump
E. Jean Carroll, who this month won $5 million in damages from former President Donald Trump, is now seeking a ‘very substantial’ additional amount in response to his insults on a CNN program just a day after she won her sexual abuse and defamation case.
Ms. Carroll’s filing Monday in Manhattan federal court seeks to intensify the financial pain for Mr. Trump. The jury in her civil case found him liable on May 9 for sexual abuse and defamation.
Serendipity:
Actor Rick Dalton Has Passed Away According to Quentin Tarantino
The fictitious performer faced some notable struggles in the summer of 1969.
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