Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Save the date: “The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to begin confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh on Sept. 4, Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, announced Friday.”
* So much for Trump liking Tayyip Erdogan: “President Donald Trump abruptly announced Friday that he would double the rate of import tariffs on Turkish metals — forcing Turkey to ask citizens to buy its own crashing currency. The Turkish economy was already mired in crisis amid worsening relations with Washington and worries over soaring inflation and unemployment.”
* Grand jury: “Attorneys for Andrew Miller, a former aide of ex-Trump adviser Roger Stone, said that Miller has been held in contempt of court for refusing to appear in front of the grand jury hearing testimony in special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe, his lawyers said Friday.”
* The MAVNI (Military Accessions Vital to National Interests) Program: “The Army has halted forcible discharges of soldiers who were recruited through a program that offers citizenship to skilled immigrants in exchange for military service. But it is not clear whether the step puts an end to the expulsion policy or is just a pause in the Army’s effort to curtail a program that its leaders say poses a security risk.”
* There are new top-secret cables from a secret prison in Thailand, when it was run by Gina Haspel, who’s now CIA director. The documents provide “at times graphic detail on the techniques the agency used to brutally interrogate Qaeda captives” held at the facility. * Jim Jordan’s OSU controversy: “A conservative group that has been defending embattled Rep. Jim Jordan released a quote from a former Ohio State University wrestler on Thursday in which he appears to recant his claim that the congressman — when he was an assistant coach — knew that the team doctor was sexually abusing the athletes.” * Keep this in mind the next time the president starts bragging about recent wage growth: “U.S. workers’ paychecks are worth less than they were a year ago, the labor department reported Friday, as modest wage gains have failed to keep pace with inflation. Inflation rose 2.9 percent from July 2017 to July 2018, the Labor Department said, while average hourly pay increased 2.7 percent over the same period.” 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
