Trump lying about speaking to a murder victim's family, debunked claims of Biden banning religious Easter egg designs, voter registration misinformation amplified by Musk, Egypt's president's re-election amid opposition crackdown, a deadly earthquake in Taiwan, delays in Trump's classified documents trial, Trump's dehumanizing rhetoric, U.S. warning Russia about a terror attack, Amazon's misleading "Just Walk Out" technology, Tesla's Q1 delivery miss, downplaying of Jan 6 riots by Johnson, aid distribution challenges in Gaza, legal battles over Trump trial jury instructions, polls showing Trump ahead in swing states, and RFK Jr. equating Biden to an anti-democratic threat.
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1.) WOODTV: Family of woman found dead on highway angered by Trump’s speech.
Yesterday, Trump said he'd spoken with the family of Ruby Garcia, who was recently murdered by an undocumented immigrant in Michigan. Ruby Garcia's family says that isn't true.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The sister of murder victim Ruby Garcia said she and her family were home watching live, in disbelief, as former President Donald Trump told an audience in Grand Rapids that he had spoken with “some of her family.”
“He did not speak with any of us, so it was kind of shocking seeing that he had said that he had spoke with us, and misinforming people on live TV,” Ruby Garcia’s sister, Mavi Garcia, told Target 8.
[TS] Just imagine, for a second, if Joe Biden had done something like this. Trump actually benefits from everyone assuming he is lying (vs just being confused). Also remember that this sort of violence is what Trump is seeking because it helps his reelection. That’s why he blocked the bipartisan border bill in the Senate. That’s why “Caravans” are a thing during an election cycle and drop off almost immediately after (see 2018 data from WaPo):
The original story helped push the false narrative that the Biden White House had banned religious designs at its Easter festivities. [TS] Dozens of prominent republican politicians (House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) etc.) posted their own brand of “outrage” about this false story. At this point I don’t believe a single one apologized for spreading disinformation. Kudos to the Daily Caller for retracting the story.
The Daily Caller has retracted and removed an article falsely accusing the Biden administration of banning religious designs on Easter eggs submitted to a White House art contest.
The retraction comes days after the right-wing media ecosystem ran wild with the story (alongside misleading claims about Transgender Day of Visibility), claiming that it was further proof of President Joe Biden’s supposed war on Christianity.
Reacting to a flyer sent out for the “Celebrating National Guard Families” contest at this year’s White House Easter Egg Roll, The Daily Caller reportedthat the competition “explicitly stipulated that egg designs not feature any ‘religious symbols’ on the Christian holiday.” The Caller’s article helped launch a days-long outrage cycle throughout conservative media, culminating in obsessive coverage across Fox News.
[UPDATE] AXIOS: White House punches back at Republicans on ginned-up Easter outrage.
White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates called out House Speaker Mike Johnson and asked if he would "retract his tweet" that included a link to an article from the Daily Caller that was retracted on Tuesday.
3.) [TS] While we’re talking about disinformation. Here’s a lightning round of recent disinformation on voter registration:
Elon Musk boosts false information about registration, replying: “Extremely concerning” to a tweet that said: “The number of voters registering without a photo ID is SKYROCKETING in 3 key swing states: Arizona, Texas, and Pennsylvania —-” [TS] blah blah blah
[TS] One simple reason you know this is bull without looking it up: Both parties by law have monthly access to the voter registration data. If federal only voters were growing at the rate this guy claims we would have heard about it a long time ago. Of course, we could just focus on one of them (AZ) and pull the federal registrations without a license. The twitter user claimed 200k+
[TS] Just over 21k are registered federal only (without a license). This is extremely irresponsible for someone with Elon’s reach to spread election disinformation. “Just asking questions” goes out the window when you have 100M+ followers. I’m not a Marvel guy, but Spiderman’s Uncle Ben (aka Voltaire) was right when he said “With great power comes great responsibility.” The next Trump attempt to overturn an election with false claims of fraud will have a very powerful ally.
Also, Stephen Richer (Maricopa Country Recorder in AZ) said “Also extremely false. 2 minutes of research required. We haven’t had that many new registrants TOTAL in 2024 in Arizona.”
Dozens of users on Twitter are amplifying more fake news around voter registration. One in particular is about the someone who “ran a query against the Washington State Voter Registration Database and was looking at single addresses with a large number of ACTIVE VOTER REGISTRATIONS at a SINGLE ADDRESS. Here is an example... 77 ST S, SEATTLE, WA - 208 REGISTERED VOTERS:”
[TS] This is both rage bait and a lie. The address is for the Compass Housing Alliance. One of its services is to provide people experiencing homelessness with a mailing address. Washington law allows this for registration.
More voter misinformation: “#ANOTHER: Here is another example of a large number of ACTIVE WASHINGTON STATE VOTERS registered at a single address - A MAILBOX STORE:”
[TS] This one is a postal servicing location for a marina. Dockside Mail provides mailbox rentals and in particular offers “personalized service for liveaboards” (people who live on their boats). Boats don’t have addresses.
4.) AP: Egypt’s president is sworn in for a third 6-year term after running virtually unopposed.
President Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt was sworn in for a third six-year term on Tuesday after being re-elected in a December vote in which he faced no serious challengers.
El-Sisi won 89.6% of the vote in the December election, 66.8% turnout of the 67 million registered voters. He ran against three virtually unknown opponents.
[TS] Sisi’s message of “if you oppose me you’ll be thrown in prison” must have really resonated with Egypt’s swing voters.
5.) AP: A strong earthquake shakes Taiwan, damaging buildings and causing a tsunami
A powerful earthquake rocked the entire island of Taiwan early Wednesday, collapsing buildings in a southern city and creating a tsunami that washed ashore on southern Japanese islands.
A five-story building in lightly populated Hualien appeared heavily damaged, collapsing its first floor and leaving the rest leaning at a 45-degree angle. In the capital, Taipei, tiles fell from older buildings and within some newer office complexes.
Taiwan’s earthquake monitoring agency gave the magnitude as 7.2 while the U.S. Geological Survey put it at 7.4. It struck at 7:58 a.m. about 18 kilometers south-southwest of Hualien and was about 35 kilometers (21 miles) deep.
6.) THE GUARDIAN: Judge’s inaction in Trump classified documents case dashes July trial hopes.
Trump almost certainly won’t go to trial in July in the classified docs case — as the Special Counsel requested — with Judge Cannon declining to set a trial schedule a month after she was presented with potential options.
The US district judge Aileen Cannon received proposed trial start dates from Trump and the special counsel Jack Smith more than a month ago in advance of a hearing ostensibly to settle the matter in Fort Pierce, Florida, but she has still not decided when the proceeding will begin.
As a result, Trump has been able to avoid filing certain pre-trial motions that have to be completed before the case can proceed to trial, playing into his strategy of trying to delay the case as much as possible before the 2024 election in November.
Trump’s legal strategy for all of his criminal cases has been to delay, under the calculus that winning re-election would enable him to appoint a loyalist as attorney general who could direct prosecutors to drop the case, or pardon himself if he was convicted.
7.) [TS] Trump at speech in Grand Rapids, MI referring to a migrant who murdered someone in GA: "They're not humans. They're animals ... I'll use the word 'animal,' because that's what they are."
This is at the same rally in Grand Rapids (same one he lied about calling Ruby Garcia’s family).
[TS] We should always refrain from using dehumanizing language, even for those who have committed heinous acts. Why?
It erodes human dignity and democratic values. Dehumanizing anyone, no matter how abhorrent their crimes, opens the door to denying them basic human rights and dignities. This undermines the principles of human rights and respect for life that modern democracies are built upon.
It can enable and escalate violence. When people are stripped of their humanity through language, it becomes easier to justify violence, harsh treatment, and even extrajudicial actions against them. History shows how dehumanizing rhetoric has paved the way for atrocities.
It coarsens society. The normalization of dehumanizing speech against any group, even criminals, contributes to an overall climate of denigration, hostility and lack of empathy in public discourse. This toxic environment can spread to how other groups are viewed and treated.
It's a slippery slope. Starting down the path of dehumanization, even if initially only applied to the "most evil," can expand to devaluing wider segments of the population over time based on race, religion, politics or other attributes.
It compromises justice and rehabilitation. If societies view even perpetrators of violence as less than human, it prevents proportional punishment, undermines due process, and eliminates the possibility of reform and societal re-entry after paying one's debt.
[MORE FROM THE SPEECH] Trump: “If we don’t win on November 5th, I think our country is going to cease to exist. It could be the last election we ever have. I actually mean that. If we don’t win, I think this could be the last election we ever have.”
8.) POLITICO: Congress is gearing up to give President Joe Biden a powerful new financial tool to strengthen Ukraine, in a move that could redefine modern economic diplomacy.
At issueisbipartisan legislation approved by House and Senate committees that would let the administration confiscate around $5-8 billion in Russian sovereign assets under U.S. jurisdiction and use the money to help finance Ukraine’s recovery. Discussions on the plans are expected to ramp up in the coming weeks as Congress hashes out a new Ukraine aid bill
9.) [TS] A relatively popular Anti-left / anti-woke twitter account “EndWokeness” posted about the CA min wage hike to $20/hr for fast food workers. They posted images of the before/after prices at In-N-Out:
[TS] Price changes:
Fries went up: 0 cents
Shakes: 5 cents
Hamburgers: 10 cents
Cheeseburgers: 15 cents
Double-double: 25 cents
Fast food workers min wage went up: $4.00 an hour (vs $16).
Even on the double-double, the price change was only 5% higher. Compare that with a roughly ~25% increase in wages. Seems like a trade most people would take.
10.) Donald Trump has filed a pre-motion letter (again) to recuse Judge Juan Merchan.
This is another attempt by Trump to get Merchan off of his case. The Judge should rule that Trump already had his bite at the apple when he filed a recusal motion last year that was denied. Trump can argue it on appeal if he gets convicted. He doesn't get to keep filing the same motion over and over.
[RELATED-ISH] American College of Trial Lawyers denounces Trump's attacks on judges and prosecutors, says the remarks could foment violence and 'should be universally condemned.'
11.) [TS] Seeing news go around that Ex-Trump Election Lawyer John Eastman Has Been Disbarred - This is not true (yet).
He hasn’t been officially disbarred (yet). A judge has recommended he be disbarred and the bar has put him into “inactive” status pending a decision from the CA Supreme Court.
12.) WaPo: U.S. told Russia that Crocus City Hall was possible target of attack.
In an unusual move, U.S. officials shared highly specific information about a terrorist plot with an adversary country
More than two weeks before terrorists staged a bloody attack in the suburbs of Moscow, the U.S. government told Russian officials that Crocus City Hall, a popular concert venue, was a potential target, according to U.S. officials familiar with the matter.
The high degree of specificity conveyed in the warning underscores Washington’s confidence that the Islamic State was preparing an attack that threatened large numbers of civilians, and it directly contradicts Moscow’s claims that the U.S. warnings were too generalto help preempt the assault.
The U.S. identification of the Crocus concert hall as a potential target — a fact that has not been previously reported — raises new questions about why Russian authorities failed to take stronger measures to protect the venue, where gunmen killed more than 140 people and set fire to the building. A branch of the Islamic State has taken credit for the attack, the deadliest in Russia in 20 years. U.S. officials have publicly said the group, known as Islamic State-Khorasan, or ISIS-K, “bears sole responsibility,” but Russian President Vladimir Putin has tried to pin the blame on Ukraine.
[TS] I think it’s good that we share counter-terrorism leads, even to adversaries. Ultimately, it’s the citizens of the country who suffer — not the government/leaders who suffer from the attacks.
13.) GIZMODO: Amazon Ditches 'Just Walk Out' Checkouts at Its Grocery Stores.
Amazon Fresh is moving away from a feature of its grocery stores where customers could skip checkout altogether.
Just over half of Amazon Fresh stores are equipped with Just Walk Out. The technology allows customers to skip checkout altogether by scanning a QR code when they enter the store.
Important quote here:
Though it seemed completely automated, Just Walk Out relied on more than 1,000 people in India watching and labeling videos to ensure accurate checkouts. The cashiers were simply moved off-site, and they watched you as you shopped.
[TS] I always thought this was some cool technology. I had no idea it was just ….outsourcing cashiers. Seems like they misled customers, no?
14.) Tesla shares drop on news that Q1 car deliveries fell 14% short of analysts’ average estimate.
15.) House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) describes January 6 insurrectionists as "people who were just there and happened to be walking through the building.”
[CONTEXT] Johnson called into Fox from a secured location within the Capitol complex he refused to disclose after rioters stormed the building on Jan. 6.
16.) [TS] Not news, just a comment: Who is going to distribute aid in Gaza?
The Biden Administration cut off funds to UNRWA (pending internal investigation), the largest aid distributor in Gaza, while the next largest - American Near East Refugee Aid is suspending humanitarian operations just like World Central Kitchen after deadly Israeli strikes on their staff.
I think we need to fund UNRWA for now as a stop-gap. Maybe insert hand picked senior leaders while the investigation is ongoing and have their own step aside until it’s complete.
17.) Jack Smith has filed his response to the jury instruction order by Cannon (re-Trump classified documents trial).
"Both scenarios rest on an unstated & fundamentally flawed legal premise...That legal premise is wrong, & a jury instruction... that reflects that premise would distort the trial."
Smith says "if you really think that's what the law says, tell us now so we can appeal to the 11th circuit before double jeopardy attaches. A clearly erroneous jury instruction would cause us to seek a writ of mandamus" (I'm paraphrasing):
Smith says "even though your interpretation is wrong, fundamentally flawed and erroneous, we will write your two incorrect scenarios because you directed us to (again, paraphrasing):
Jack Smith says "before we write up your garbage, we have taken the time to write an actual jury instruction based on the law for you to check out."
“Asked to choose which candidate has the better physical and mental fitness to handle the White House, 48% pick Trump and 28% say Biden.” Behind on economy and border but ahead on abortion rights.
19.) NBC: RFK Jr. calls Biden a greater threat to democracy than Trump.
In an interview on CNN, Kennedy argued that Biden "has used the federal agencies to censor political speech," appearing to refer to a case before the Supreme Court that could affect the level of contact between government officials and social media companies regarding content removal.
[TS] This is not a serious person.
Keep in mind, per NEWSWEEK: Donald Trump and RFK Jr have the same largest donor: Timothy Mellon, heir to the Mellon banking fortune, donated $5 million to the Trump-aligned MAGA Inc. fundraising attempts in January, as well $5 million to a Super PAC supporting the Democrat-turned-independent's presidential bid the same month, Federal Election Commission (FEC) listings reveal.
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