Today’s edition of quick hits:
* The basis for a growing humanitarian crisis: “More than 1 million people have fled Ukraine in a rapid exodus after a week of war, as Russia’s military bombarded key cities across the country amid staunch resistance to the invasion.”
* Who in the world would believe this? “Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the military operation in Ukraine was going according to schedule and that objectives that were set have been met successfully.”
* Hopefully this will save some lives: “The U.S. military has established channels to communicate directly with the Russian military as a way to deconflict tactical movements around Ukraine, a senior defense official said Thursday.”
* The latest sanctions: “The Biden administration on Thursday announced new sanctions against additional Russian oligarchs and their families, as U.S. officials prepare for the invasion of Ukraine to intensify in the coming days.”
* Notable ruling out of Texas: “A Texas judge on Wednesday blocked the state from investigating the parents of a transgender teenager over gender-confirmation treatments, but stopped short of preventing the state from looking into other reports about children receiving similar care.”
* Good move: “A career National Security Council staff member under President Donald J. Trump, who was pushed out of her position after she refused to go along with an effort to use the powers of the federal government to silence one of Mr. Trump’s chief critics, has been rehired for the post by President Biden, two people briefed on the matter said on Wednesday.”
* Nursing-home policy doesn’t generate front-page headlines, but it really does matter: “The sometimes wretched state of American nursing home care grabbed the national spotlight in 2020 when COVID-19 swept through facilities across the country, starting with the Seattle nursing home where nearly 40 people died and many more became seriously ill. Now President Joe Biden is proposing to act. And he’s not waiting for Congress to give its approval.” * A new subpoena: “Chairman Bennie G. Thompson today announced that the Select Committee has issued a subpoena for records and testimony from Kimberly Guilfoyle as part of its investigation into the violence of January 6th and its causes. The Select Committee has evidence that Ms. Guilfoyle was in direct contact with key individuals, raised funds for the rally immediately preceding the violent attack on the United States Capitol, and participated in that event.” * I’m genuinely amazed at the speed of his recovery: “Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico returned to Congress on Thursday for the first time since he had a stroke, which kept him away from Washington for weeks and temporarily weakened Democrat’s hold on power in the equally divided Senate.” 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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