Odds and Ends — 31 May 2024

in #oddsandends6 months ago


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Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, and Debt:

Surprise, surprise. More FUD: Warren prods drug agencies about crypto links to fentanyl trade

US sues Hyundai, others over child labor at Alabama parts plant

Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:

Study reveals persistent risk of death, symptoms in COVID survivors at 3 years

mRNA vaccine by UPenn scientists could manage bird flu outbreak

Politics:

Trump Needs to Win the Votes of Those Who Despise Him

Many voters who don’t much like Biden received an emphatic, unambiguous reminder of why they don’t like Trump. The movement of even a small percentage of voters … could echo decisively through the balance of the race.

An Apology to Harriet Miers

As the public becomes more aware of the bias Alito has always shown in his written opinions, it strikes me that the deepest irony of Alito’s Supreme Court career is that it almost never happened. It was made possible only because people rejected the first choice for his job: Texas litigator Harriet Miers.
Miers was a George W. Bush crony and sycophant. At the time, people said that Miers should not be elevated to the Supreme Court because she would be a partisan hack who would simply do what Bush and the Republican Party told her to do. I know, because I was one of those people. When Bush was unable to push his friend through the confirmation process, he nominated Alito as the backup. I have come to understand that I owe Harriet Miers an apology.

Two More U.S. Officials Resign Over Gaza War

Two more U.S. officials have resigned over the Gaza war, saying that the Biden administration is not telling the truth about Israeli obstruction of humanitarian assistance to more than two million Palestinians trapped and starving in the tiny coastal strip.


Drop, meet Bucket: U.S. to Refer Some Migrants to Greece or Italy

The Biden administration is planning to refer some migrants in Latin America for resettlement in Greece and Italy as part of another effort to discourage people in the region from traveling to the U.S.-Mexico border.

How the Biden Campaign Is Responding to the Verdict

  1. There’s no need to spike the football when the conviction is already dominating the news; 2. polling suggests the race will turn on other issues, so seizing on the conviction could be a trap; and 3. they can always readjust if the conviction somehow turns into more of an anchor for Trump.

Trump Bungled His Trial

They made a series of significant strategic and tactical errors before Michael Cohen even took the stand that appeared likely to be the product of Trump — the client’s — decision-making.