Today’s edition of quick hits:
* An intensifying disaster: “Wildfires from Malibu to rural lands nearly 500 miles to the north continued to rage Friday, as California authorities reported the first fatalities from the devastating blazes. Five people burned to death in their cars as they tried to get away from flames in the Camp Fire, according to the Butte County Sheriff’s Office.”
* RBG: “Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was released from the hospital Friday, a day after she was admitted and treated for three fractured ribs following a fall in her office. Ginsburg, 85, planned to work from home Friday.”
* The White House was not pleased with the ruling: “A federal judge in Montana has blocked construction of the $8 billion Keystone XL Pipeline to allow more time to study the project’s potential environmental impact.”
* The litigation on this will be fierce: “The Trump administration, invoking national security powers meant to protect the United States against threats from abroad, announced new rules Thursday that give President Trump vast authority to deny asylum to virtually any migrant who crosses the border illegally.”
* One last regressive step on his way out the door: “Former Attorney General Jeff Sessions has drastically limited the ability of federal law enforcement officials to use court-enforced agreements to overhaul local police departments accused of abuses and civil rights violations, the Justice Department announced on Thursday.” * Mitch McConnell has already said he’s against this: “Sens. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) and Chris Coons (D-Del.) plan to ask for a floor vote on legislation to shield Special Counsel Robert Mueller from a firing when the upper chamber returns to session next week, Flake said on Thursday.” * A woman’s nightmare continues: “More than a month after testifying before the Senate Judiciary Committee, Christine Blasey Ford is still getting death threats…. Because of the abuse she’s receiving, Ford has had to move four times. She can’t go to work as a professor at Palo Alto University, and it’s unclear when she’ll be able to return, according to NPR. She needs a private security detail.” Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past." Recommended
