News Dump for Apr. 16, 2024

US

NBC – Justice Clarence Thomas misses Supreme Court arguments
The conservative justice wasn’t present for oral arguments Monday, and the court didn’t say why. Chief Justice John Roberts said in court that Thomas “is not on the bench today” but would “participate fully” in the two cases being argued based on the briefs and transcripts.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/justice-clarence-thomas-misses-supreme-court-arguments-rcna147826

BBC – Fourth body found weeks after Baltimore bridge collapse
A fourth victim from last month’s Baltimore bridge collapse has been recovered after salvage crews located the body trapped in one of the missing construction vehicles underwater. The family does not want the name to be released, said officials leading the salvage work.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-68819580

CNN – Court documents describe a custody battle and a bloody scene in the alleged killings of 2 women in Oklahoma
Tad Bert Cullum, 43; Tifany Machel Adams, 54; Cole Earl Twombly, 50; and Cora Gayle Twombly, 44, each have been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping and one count of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder “by arranging and planning, the deliberate, intentional, and unlawful taking away of the life of Veronica Butler and/or (Jilian) Kelley,” the charging documents state.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/15/us/missing-oklahoma-women-court-documents/index.html

The Hill – White House declines Comer testimony invite, declaring impeachment investigation ‘over’
President Biden declined to appear before House impeachment investigators, writing in a Monday letter through an attorney that the investigation “is over.” Though brief, the letter tears into the impeachment investigation being led in part by House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.), which has yet to uncover any wrongdoing by President Biden.
https://thehill.com/homenews/4596292-white-house-declines-comer-testimony-invite-declaring-impeachment-investigation-over/

I can’t stop laughing about this.
Guardian – Fake snooze? Trump appears to doze off during first day of hush-money trial
As lawyers engaged in back-and-forth, ex-president’s eyes seemed to close, his head edging down, causing him to right himself.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/15/trump-asleep-first-day-hush-money-trial

Reuters – Jury selection under way in historic Trump criminal trial
The judge in Donald Trump’s trial dismissed dozens of potential New York City jurors on Monday who said they could not fairly decide whether the 2024 Republican presidential candidate illegally covered up a hush money payment to a porn star.
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-makes-history-with-new-york-hush-money-criminal-trial-2024-04-15/

Daily Beast – Gloves Off! DA Wants Trump Punished for Contempt on Day 1
Prosecutors want to hold Trump accountable for his social media posts violating a gag order. The judge has already indicated those posts may be used against Trump in court.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/manhattan-da-asks-judge-to-punish-trump-for-contempt-on-day-one

This is so fucking wrong.
AP – Supreme Court allows Idaho to enforce its ban on gender-affirming care for transgender youth
The justices’ order Monday allows the state to put in a place a 2023 law that subjects physicians to up to 10 years in prison if they provide hormones, puberty blockers or other gender-affirming care to people under age 18. Under the court’s order, the two transgender teens who sued to challenge the law still will be able to obtain care.
https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-transgender-health-idaho-f858bcce9a624ec79edc496414f2130f

Oh really. Do tell.
Daily Beast – Bob Menendez’ Wife Had Corrupt Deal With COVID Lab, Feds Say
New filings in Menendez case confirm The Daily Beast’s reporting that Nadine Menendez’s work for Fusion Diagnostics was tied to an alleged bribery scheme.
https://www.thedailybeast.com/sen-bob-menendez-wife-had-corrupt-deal-with-covid-lab-feds-say

The Hill – House sends foreign surveillance reform bill to Senate
The House on Monday settled its procedural business on a bill to reform the nation’s warrantless surveillance powers, kicking the controversial reauthorization over to the Senate. The Monday vote came after a tie in the chamber on an amendment that would have added a warrant requirement to Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).
https://thehill.com/homenews/house/4596078-house-sends-foreign-surveillance-reform-bill-to-senate/

MSNBC – WATCH: Stephanie Ruhle reveals why Truth Social’s falling stock price is no laughing matter
You may have heard that the stock price of Donald Trump’s social media platform Truth Social has been falling like a rock. But Trump could still stand to rake in huge financial benefits. Stephanie Ruhle breaks down the bizarre and evolving saga of DJT.
https://www.msnbc.com/11th-hour/watch/stephanie-ruhle-reveals-why-truth-social-s-falling-stock-price-is-no-laughing-matter-209050693836

AP – Tennessee schools would have to out transgender students to parents under bill heading to governor
GOP House lawmakers gave near-final passage to the bill on Monday, putting Tennessee just a few hurdles away from joining states such as Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Idaho, Indiana and North Carolina with similar laws. Virginia has such guidance for school boards, as well. The bill goes back for another vote in the Senate, which had already passed a version of it, before it can go to Gov. Bill Lee’s desk for his signature.
https://apnews.com/article/tennessee-transgender-student-bill-2d31c306628049a26fde2f47c90b8b11

Guardian – Robert F Kennedy Jr claims Trump had asked him to be running mate
The assertion followed the launch of a website attacking the independent presidential candidate calling him a ‘leftist radical’
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/15/robert-f-kennedy-jr-trump-presidential-running-mate

Strange but not shocking bedfellows.
NBC – Speaker Johnson’s team briefed conservative influencers on his election bill before Trump meeting
Libs of TikTok, DC_Draino, EndWokeness, and a Jan. 6 defendant accused of looting furniture used to assault officers posted about Speaker Johnson’s elections bill before any public information was available.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/speaker-johnsons-team-briefed-conservative-influencers-election-bill-t-rcna147868

ABC – Rudy Giuliani loses bid to dismiss $148 million defamation judgment in Georgia election workers case
Rudy Giuliani has lost his bid to dismiss the $148 million defamation judgment against him from late last year. The judgment was won by former Georgia election workers Ruby Freeman and Wandrea “Shaye” Moss.
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/rudy-giuliani-loses-bid-dismiss-148-million-defamation/story?id=109264527
PDF: https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.238720/gov.uscourts.dcd.238720.159.0.pdf

AP – Trump says $175 million bond is financially secure, asks judge to reject New York attorney general’s challenge
In court filings Monday night, Trump said the bond secured by Knight Specialty Insurance Company is backed by Trump’s Charles Schwab account with more than $175 million in cash. Knight Specialty can take control of the Schwab account and is fully backed by its parent company to assume any risk, one of Trump’s filings said.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/15/politics/trump-civil-fraud-case-bond-financially-secure/index.html

Allison Gill Thread: I’m sorry. But this filing is shady AF. This is Hankey Subprime’s filing proving that knight insurance can guarantee Trump’s bond. I’m very much looking forward to the April 22 hearing on the matter.
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1780075206327054560.html

NPR – Supreme Court hears challenge to law used to prosecute hundreds of Jan. 6 defendants
The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments Tuesday in a case testing a statute used to prosecute hundreds of defendants charged with invading the Capitol to stop the counting of electoral ballots for president in 2020. That statute is also the basis for one of the four obstruction counts brought against former President Donald Trump in the criminal case currently pending against him in federal court in Washington.
https://www.npr.org/2024/04/16/1243401678/supreme-court-jan-6-prosecutions-law

Politico – Second Republican says they will back effort to oust Johnson from speakership
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) said during a closed-door GOP meeting that he would back Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s (R-Ga.) effort amid rising conservative frustration with the speaker’s proposed foreign aid package.
https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2024/04/16/congress/massie-joins-greene-00152463

NBC – Verified pro-Nazi X accounts flourish under Elon Musk
An NBC News review identified 150 verified “Premium” accounts that have posted or amplified pro-Nazi content.
https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/x-twitter-elon-musk-nazi-extremist-white-nationalist-accounts-rcna145020

Marcy Wheeler – Media Organizations Omit Mention of Trump’s Allegedly Criminal Exploitation of 2020 Debates
https://www.emptywheel.net/2024/04/16/media-organizations-omit-mention-of-trumps-allegedly-criminal-exploitation-of-2020-debates/

NPR – NPR suspends veteran editor as it grapples with his public criticism
NPR has formally punished Uri Berliner, the senior editor who publicly argued a week ago that the network had “lost America’s trust” by approaching news stories with a rigidly progressive mindset. Berliner’s five-day suspension without pay, which began last Friday, has not been previously reported.
https://www.npr.org/2024/04/16/1244962042/npr-editor-uri-berliner-suspended-essay

MSNBC – WATCH: GOP senator slams protestors, urges supporters to take matters in their own hands
Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., on Monday slammed pro-Palestinian protestors blocking the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, and he said if those protesters were in his home state they would have been tossed off the bridge by others. The Morning Joe panel discusses.
https://www.msnbc.com/morning-joe/watch/gop-senator-slams-protestors-urges-supporters-to-take-matters-in-their-own-hands-209062981737

CNN – OAN and Smartmatic settle election defamation case
Voting technology company Smartmatic and the far-right network One America News said Tuesday that they had settled a defamation lawsuit stemming from the outlet’s lies about the 2020 election. “The case has been resolved pursuant to a confidential agreement,” OAN attorney Chip Babcock told CNN. Both parties declined to share details about the settlement.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/16/media/oan-smartmatic-settlement

WORLD

Waiting for something like to happen in DC. Probably between House GOP members.
BBC – WATCH: Georgian opposition leader punches MP during debate
Opposition leader Aleko Elisashvili punched MP Mamuka Mdinaradze during a debate over a controversial law. Critics say the “foreign influence” bill is inspired by authoritarian laws neighbouring Russia uses to crush dissent. Thousands of protesters demonstrated in the Georgian capital Tbilisi on Monday demanding the withdrawal of the bill.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-europe-68821150

I don’t blame them for holding it against the US.
WAPO – Ukraine, watching U.S. coalition protect Israel, feels alone
When Iran unleashed hundreds of deadly missiles and drones at Israel this weekend, Israelis relied on a crucial tool that Ukraine still does not have: instant, direct assistance from the United States and other partners with military assets in the region.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/04/15/ukraine-israel-contrast-defense-iran/

AP – Israel’s military chief says that Israel will respond to Iran’s weekend missile attack
Israel’s military chief said Monday that his country will respond to Iran’s weekend attack, but he did not elaborate on when and how as world leaders urged against retaliation, trying to avoid a spiral of violence in the Middle East.
https://apnews.com/article/mideast-tensions-israel-iran-drone-attack-aec3627b0b19b42dcafc89a7408dc296

CNN – Spire collapses after fire rips through Copenhagen’s old stock exchange
A huge fire has engulfed Copenhagen’s old stock exchange, one of the Danish capital’s most famous landmarks, causing its spire to collapse as staff and citizens scrambled to rescue paintings and historic artefacts from the blaze. Some passersby even joined emergency services to run inside the burning building and help carry large Renaissance paintings and other objects away from the blaze.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/16/style/copenhagen-old-stock-exchange-fire-intl/index.html

SCIENCE

CNN – NASA rethinks plan to return rare Mars samples to Earth
There have been concerns about the program being too unwieldy due to complexity, expense and a delayed return date, which was originally expected to happen by 2031, but has been pushed after assessments by an independent review board. Budget cuts that have impacted NASA have also put the program at risk.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/15/world/nasa-mars-sample-return-plan-scn/index.html

AP – NASA confirms mystery object that crashed through roof of Florida home came from space station
NASA confirmed Monday that a mystery object that crashed through the roof of a Florida home last month was a chunk of space junk from equipment discarded at the International Space Station.
https://apnews.com/article/space-station-debris-florida-home-8c5cd89b0d9db0f5c274ab9ed1f0713c

ESA Statement – Sleeping giant surprises Gaia scientists
Wading through the wealth of data from ESA’s Gaia mission, scientists have uncovered a ‘sleeping giant’. A large black hole, with a mass of nearly 33 times the mass of the Sun, was hiding in the constellation Aquila, less than 2000 light-years from Earth. This is the first time a black hole of stellar origin this big has been spotted within the Milky Way. So far, black holes of this type have only been observed in very distant galaxies. The discovery challenges our understanding of how massive stars develop and evolve.
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Gaia/Sleeping_giant_surprises_Gaia_scientists

TEXAS

Texas Tribune – Federal judge fines Texas child welfare agency $100K per day for foster care failures
It is the third time the state has been found in contempt over foster care conditions since 2011.
https://www.texastribune.org/2024/04/15/texas-foster-care-federal-judge-fine-contempt/

Texas Tribune – Dozens of Texas water systems exceed new federal limits on “forever chemicals”
The EPA set its first-ever drinking water limits for five types of PFAS chemicals, and nearly 50 of Texas public water systems have reported exceeding the new limits for at least one.
https://www.texastribune.org/2024/04/16/texas-pfas-forever-chemicals-public-water-systems-epa-limit/

MISC

BBC – Tesla lays off more than 10% of its workforce
In a memo, first reported by news website Electrek, billionaire owner Elon Musk told staff there was nothing he hated more, “but it must be done”.
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-68818113

WAPO – ‘Rust’ armorer sentenced to 18 months in prison for fatal shooting
Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March for her role in the fatal shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/2024/04/15/rust-armorer-sentence-hannah-gutierrez-reed/

AP – Weedkiller manufacturer seeks lawmakers’ help to squelch claims it failed to warn about cancer
Stung by paying billions of dollars for settlements and trials, chemical giant Bayer has been lobbying lawmakers in three states to pass bills providing it a legal shield from lawsuits that claim its popular weedkiller Roundup causes cancer.
https://apnews.com/article/bayer-legislation-glyphosate-roundup-lawsuits-cancer-warning-4fa2e6662479f3e60a409ce4439a40ed