MinnPost:
The Nazgûl ride again. All nine.
Politico:
Jacqueline Alemany/Washington Post:
Adam Wren/Politico Magazine:
I think Biden’s biggest issue isn’t his age, it’s his lack of performative value. I think it’s a feature, not a bug, but many voter disagree. meanwhile:
On the Israel Hamas war, the New York Times has some supply relief news:
and some news on the hospital strike:
Since no one trusts anyone, making a case for the facts is a hard sell. Meanwhile an opinion piece from Haaretz:
In other news, Bolts magazine:
From Cliff Schecter:
YouTube Video
Tom Emmer, endorsed by McCarthy, favored to be next speaker candidate
A source familiar with the situation said Emmer, R-6th District, began making calls to his Republican colleagues soon after the closed-door meeting that ousted Jim Jordan was over Friday afternoon.
Since McCarthy, R-Calif., was ousted from the speakership earlier this month, Emmer has been considered a possible replacement. But Emmer, who now holds the No. 3 position as House majority whip, was eying the No. 2 position, that of majority leader held by Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La, if Scalise were elevated to speaker. But like Jordan, Scalise failed to win the necessary 217 votes on the House floor that would win him the job.
Jordan, R-Ohio, not only lost a third vote on the floor for speaker Friday, he also lost a secret ballot among Republican members who said they no longer wanted him as speaker designate. That opened the door to any Republican member who wants to try for the highest Republican leadership position to the U.S. House.
Members were given a Sunday deadline to decide whether they will run.
FROM STEFANIK: LIST OF OFFICIAL SPEAKER CANDIDATES: Bergman (MI): Donalds (FL): Emmer (MN); Hern (OK); Johnson (LA); Meuser (PA); Palmer (AL); Scott (GA); Sessions (TX)
— Billy House (@HouseInSession) October 22, 2023
The Nazgûl ride again. All nine.
Politico:
Liz Cheney decries intimidation in House speaker battle
She saw it as one more way the Republican Party has lost its way.
Cheney said those tactics were an indication how bad things have gotten in American politics. “That kind of acceptance of violence is completely inappropriate and dangerous in our politics,” she said.
Two weeks ago, Cheney said she was worried about Jordan becoming speaker because of his ties to former President Donald Trump when he was seeking to overturn the 2020 election. “Jim Jordan knew more about what Donald Trump had planned for January 6 than any other member of the House of Representatives,” she said in a speech at the University on Minnesota.
On Sunday, Cheney said she was glad that Jordan was ultimately not elected speaker but wants her former Republican colleagues to be more vocal in standing up to those like Jordan who kowtowed to Trump.
Jacqueline Alemany/Washington Post:
Concerns about Jordan’s election denialism flare during failed bid for speaker
Along with several of his peers in the House Republican conference, Jordan refused to comply with a subpoena for testimony from the House Select Committee that investigated the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Throughout the course of its investigation, the committee unearthed evidence that Jordan had materially relevant communications with Trump and others about activities pertaining to Jan. 6.
Jordan’s role in Jan. 6 and his election denialism were not an organizing nor central factor for the roughly two dozen Republicans who voted against his speaker bid. But some Republican lawmakers — even some who supported Jordan’s bid — raised concerns about his continued refusal to acknowledge Joe Biden’s 2020 election win when asked by peers this week.
Adam Wren/Politico Magazine:
He Was Once a Favorite of the Right. Now, Mike Pence Can’t Get a Crowd of 15 to a Pizza Ranch.
The former vice president has gone all out to win Iowa. But is anyone listening?
Was the appearance here at the Trojan Bowl a savvy play to win over Iowans or the desperate act of a campaign running out of options? “Desperate for sure,” David Kochel, the veteran Iowa GOP strategist who worked on both of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaigns and Jeb Bush’s political action committee, told me later that night.
Biden's calls today have included: - Israel's Netanyahu - Pope Francis - Canada's Trudeau - France's Macron - Germany's Scholz - Italy's Meloni - Britain's Sunak
— Oblivier Knox (@OKnox) October 22, 2023
I think Biden’s biggest issue isn’t his age, it’s his lack of performative value. I think it’s a feature, not a bug, but many voter disagree. meanwhile:
Former President Trump allegedly shared sensitive information with Mar-a-Lago member Anthony Pratt on calls he had with the leaders of Iraq and Ukraine, according to new audio leaked to Australian media https://t.co/E2DO7qWHLw
— Axios (@axios) October 23, 2023
On the Israel Hamas war, the New York Times has some supply relief news:
Second Aid Convoy Arrives in Gaza Amid Growing Fears of a Widening Conflict
The United Nations said 14 more trucks carried aid into the enclave late Sunday, as the Biden administration urges Israel to delay a ground invasion.
A second aid convoy crossed into the Gaza Strip from Egypt late Sunday, the latest attempt to stem a growing humanitarian crisis in the enclave as Israeli forces struck the West Bank and traded volleys with Hezbollah along the Lebanese border.
and some news on the hospital strike:
Hamas Fails to Make Case That Israel Struck Hospital
A senior Hamas official says “nothing is left” of the munition that hit the Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza City last week, killing hundreds. Israel says the explosion was caused by a misfired Palestinian rocket.
Since no one trusts anyone, making a case for the facts is a hard sell. Meanwhile an opinion piece from Haaretz:
Netanyahu Is an Existential Threat to Israel's Survival
Israel's fragility, internally and internationally, is the fault of Iran and its proxies, and of the country's failed leader, Netanyahu. The U.S. and Germany are offering unprecedented support – military, moral, diplomatic –to shore up the Israeli public, but also to prevent an astronomical death toll in Gaza
If at first Netanyahu's efforts were to weaken the state institutions in order to sabotage criminal proceedings against him, by January 2023 he moved to dismantle them altogether, reducing them to such a low level of functionality that Israel, in many aspects, began to resemble a failed state.
Why did he do this? He believed that he was betrayed by the state itself -- as some would put it – the "deep-state". So according to his logic, it was not only necessary to take control of its institutions, but essentially, destroy them. A key tool in this operation was his move to appoint loyalists with minimal qualifications – if any.
The dysfunctionality has been evident to all, most clearly seen first with the unrestrained deadly rampage of criminal gangs in the Israel’s Arab towns and cities and unchecked violence by West Bank settlers towards Palestinians.
In other news, Bolts magazine:
A Pair of Election Deniers Are Running To Take Over Election Offices In Washington
Two politicians who stoked distrust about elections are on the ballot in populous Washington counties in coming months, and ordinary election workers could be caught up in the fray.
Robert Sutherland and Doug Basler have a lot in common.
The two Republicans have spent the better part of the past three years sowing doubt about Washington state’s election system, filing frivolous lawsuits that questioned the mail ballot system, and running (and losing) races for office.
And now, they’re both running against avowedly nonpartisan, experienced election administrators in an attempt to take control of two of their state’s largest county election offices.
From Cliff Schecter:
YouTube Video