As I’m sure folks have figured out by now, we are indeed moving to a biweekly cycle–the feedback overwhelmingly skewed in a “yes please save yourself” direction. It’s very possible (and in fact likely) that we’ll need to switch back once Criminal Election Season is truly underway, but for now, we’ll all take this opportunity to breathe. I’m sure we’ll all need it.
Standard standing reminders still apply: I may be well into my seventh year of journalism, but I summarize news within my areas of expertise. NNR summaries often contain some detailed analysis that’s outside my expertise–I’m a lawyer, not a tree trimmer!–but all offroad adventures are marked with an asterisk. And, of course, for the things that are within my lane, I’m offering context that shouldn’t be considered legal advice. Okay, I think that’s about it for the disclaimers. Onward to the news!
Cleanup in Aisle 45:
Boy howdy are we drinking from a gross firehose regarding–I’ve got 45 Election Rejection stories, and a Mitch ain’t one. Here’s what has happened:
- Indictment Season (again). This cycle started out with Trump announcing that he’s a target of the January 6 probe, meaning that he’s a likely candidate for indictment over his actions on January 6–which he followed by announcing he got a second notice about it only yesterday. (As I feel compelled to note every time, this should probably be the thing that disqualifies him from eligibility for President, but this is America so here we are.) Shortly after he made this first announcement, he also picked up new criminal charges on his classified documents case, apparently because he tried to get his people to delete video camera footage. The new indictments bring him to an even 40 criminal charges for that case, for those of you playing the home game. Said case was also scheduled for trial this cycle; the circus is expected to begin on May 20, 2024. In the meantime, Michigan is charging several people involved in Trump’s ‘fake elector’ stunt in the state, and the story also broke that Trump’s PAC has spent $40M just on legal fees since the year began.
After about a million years of fiscal news, the main news story on the Biden Rebuilding front this time is immigration-related. Here’s what I have for you:
- Immigration Interventions. The Biden administration sued Texas this week, disgusted with its illegal floating barriers in the Rio Grande, and presumably also with the state-sanctioned homicide stories that were sent to Texas media by a whistleblower this cycle as well. Meanwhile, a federal judge barred the new Biden asylum plan, correctly noting that it is probably illegal to bar refugees with valid claims under international asylum law.
Your New Normal:
- Health Mini-Roundup. There were a lot of health odds and ends over this news cycle. The unnatural heat wave from last cycle continued, although temperatures have cooled in my area as I type this. In North Carolina, a twister damaged a Pfizer plant, which will likely exacerbate medical supply shortages for up to sixty-five pharmaceuticals. CMS has finally opted to pause redeterminations in twelve states that keep wrongfully kicking people off of Medicaid. In other government news, Congress voted this cycle to address organ donation failures with new legislation. Finally, the CDC reports that COVID hospitalizations are rising again, in what looks like potentially another late summer wave.
The Bad:
- Labor Relation Station. There was a lot of news about organizing this week, and much of it was bad. In Hollywood, NBC Universal gained attention for what appears to be illegally removing tree cover on streets where SAG and WGA workers are picketing, prompting the city of Los Angeles to investigate. Just today, we also learned that the trucking company Yellow is shutting down, laying off 30,000 people. Meanwhile, UPS teetered at the edge of a strike for some of last week, but managed to reach a deal with favorable terms on Tuesday. Broadway avoided a strike through negotiated settlement as well. Finally, after a sixteen-year-old migrant was killed in a poultry plant in Mississippi that isn’t even supposed to employ minors, the country is again paying attention to exploitation of minor migrants and OSHA is investigating the issue.
The Good:
- SCOTUS Interruptus. The Senate Judiciary Committee voted this week to create ethics obligations for SCOTUS, since, y’know, they currently don’t have any. Unsurprisingly, Republicans are very against advancing the proposed bill, on the grounds that it would make bribing not a thing. It’s unlikely this bill will go anywhere, but it’s still edifying to see the Senate Judiciary Committee trying to respond to all of this.
So that’s what I have for you, and I’m sorry, there are no news refunds. For making it through, you deserve this dazed snack session and a more functional government. I’ll be back next time with more restructured and improved news, and I hope you will be back as well–but in the meantime, feel free to ping the National News Roundup ask box, which is there for your constructive comments. Send me questions! Send me feedback! Send me good weather for this week’s camping trip!
National News Roundup 