Today’s edition of quick hits:
* At the White House this afternoon: “President Joe Biden signed an executive order Wednesday aimed at reforming policing practices on the second anniversary of the death of George Floyd. The order creates a national registry of officers fired for misconduct and encourages state and local police to tighten restrictions on chokeholds and so-called no-knock warrants. It also restricts the transfer of military equipment to law enforcement agencies and mandates all federal agents wear activated body cameras.”
* The latest from Uvalde: “The man who gunned down 19 children and two teachers in the Texas elementary school massacre wrote ‘I’m going to shoot an elementary school’ in a Facebook message 15 minutes before he barricaded himself inside a classroom and fired indiscriminately, officials said Wednesday.”
* The Russian invasion’s impact on food is extraordinary: “Moscow’s blockade of Ukrainian ports will ‘further increase the price of many staple food products,’ the U.K.’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday, as Russian forces changed tactics in their bid to encircle two key cities in Ukraine’s east.”
* Kim Jong Un wants attention again: “North Korea test-launched a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile and two shorter-range weapons into the sea Wednesday, South Korea said, hours after President Joe Biden ended a trip to Asia where he reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to defend its allies in the face of the North’s nuclear threat.”
* A notable FTC probe: “A severe shortage of baby formula has prompted the Federal Trade Commission to begin an inquiry into the industry’s consolidation and whether online resellers have taken advantage of desperate families struggling to find formula.”
* I’m surprised this video exists: “Defense attorneys for longtime Proud Boys leader Henry ‘Enrique’ Tarrio and U.S. prosecutors released 22 minutes of video on Tuesday that recorded his movements in Washington, D.C., on the eve of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack, including his meeting in an underground parking garage with Stewart Rhodes, founder of the extremist group Oath Keepers.”
* Ugly priorities: “Republican lawmakers in Indiana on Tuesday banned transgender girls from playing on girls’ sports teams at their schools, overriding the veto of Gov. Eric Holcomb, a fellow Republican who said the measure did not address any pressing problem and exposed the state to lawsuits.” * Confirmation news: “The Senate voted 54-38 Tuesday to confirm Democratic political lawyer Dara Lindenbaum, whose clients included the gubernatorial campaign of Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams, to serve on the Federal Election Commission.” * What’s with all of the elected officials having strokes lately? “North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein was in the hospital Tuesday after suffering what he described as a minor stroke. Stein, 55, said on Twitter that the stroke happened Monday night and that he suffers no lingering effects, but his doctor wants him to rest. He said a small blood clot had been removed.” See you tomorrow.
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."
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