Today’s edition of quick hits:
* A great report: “In political terms, Russia’s interference was the crime of the century, an unprecedented and largely successful destabilizing attack on American democracy. It was a case that took almost no time to solve, traced to the Kremlin through cyber-forensics and intelligence on Putin’s involvement. And yet, because of the divergent ways Obama and Trump have handled the matter, Moscow appears unlikely to face proportionate consequences.”
* Middle Eastern demands: “Saudi Arabia and three other Arab countries that recently cut diplomatic ties with Qatar issued a harsh list of demands on Friday, insisting that the wealthy but tiny Persian Gulf nation shut down the news network Al Jazeera, abandon ties with Islamist organizations and provide detailed information about its funding for political dissidents.”
* Rachel mentioned this one briefly on the show last night: “CBS News has confirmed that congressional investigators are interested in whether Trump campaign associates obtained information from hacked voter databases.”
* Nice FOIA work: “Former US Attorney Preet Bharara sent an email to Justice Department officials in New York to express concern about a voicemail he received in March from President Donald Trump’s secretary, Madeleine Westerhout, according to emails BuzzFeed News obtained on Thursday from the Department of Justice under the Freedom of Information Act.”
* The outrage remains elusive: “Al Baldasaro, a former President Trump campaign adviser who called for Hillary Clinton to be ‘shot for treason’ over her handling of the 2012 Benghazi, Libya, attacks, visited the White House for a bill signing on Friday.”
* Sadly predictable: “Newly-elected House Oversight and Government Reform Chairman Trey Gowdy does not plan to investigate Russia’s meddling in the 2016 election or questions of whether President Donald Trump obstructed justice.” * A growing mess in Trump World: “White House counsel Don McGahn has largely stepped back from managing Donald Trump’s response to the expanding Russia investigation, but that hasn’t stopped the president from lashing out at him about it anyway.” * And more good news on Steve Scalise’s status: NBC News reported this afternoon that the House Majority Whip has now been moved out of the intensive care unit. 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
