Today’s edition of quick hits.
* Given modern methods of communication, this unusual directive seems wildly unnecessary and quite unsettling: “Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered hundreds of the U.S. military’s generals and admirals to gather on short notice — and without a stated reason — at a Marine Corps base in Virginia next week, sowing confusion and alarm after the Trump administration’s firing of numerous senior leaders this year.”
* The latest from Dallas: “The 29-year-old Texas man who authorities say opened fire on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility, killing at least one detainee, might have been planning the Dallas attack for weeks in an effort to create ‘real terror,’ the FBI said Thursday.”
* The obsessive interest Trump’s DOJ has shown in voter registration lists is unsettling: “The U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday that it had filed lawsuits against California, New York, and four other states for not providing their voter registration lists to the department.”
* Remember, hurricane season runs through late November: “Tropical Storm Humberto formed in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday at the same time Hurricane Gabrielle was racing across the ocean toward the Azores islands, forecasters said. A hurricane warning was in effect for the volcanic archipelago which could experience dangerous conditions from Gabrielle as early as Thursday, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.”
* Why is the White House letting China take a leadership role on climate? “China led several countries in announcing new climate plans on Wednesday and offered a veiled rebuke of the U.S. president’s anti-climate rhetoric a day earlier at the U.N. General Assembly.”
* Scrambling to rehire those who shouldn’t have been fired doesn’t sound very efficient: “Hundreds of federal employees who lost their jobs in Elon Musk’s cost-cutting blitz are being asked to return to work. The General Services Administration has given the employees — who managed government workspaces — until the end of the week to accept or decline reinstatement, according to an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press.”
* A case I’ve been following: “A federal judge refused on Wednesday to reinstate eight former inspectors general who filed a lawsuit after the Trump administration fired them with no warning and little explanation. U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes said that while President Donald Trump likely violated the federal law governing the process for removing the non-partisan watchdogs from office, the firings didn’t cause enough irreparable harm to justify reinstating the watchdogs before the lawsuit is resolved.”
* Holding former presidents legally accountable for crimes is relatively common: “A Paris court on Thursday found former French President Nicolas Sarkozy guilty of criminal association for attempting to use Libya to finance his campaign illegally, The Associated Press reported. He has been sentenced to five years in jail and fined €100,000 (approximately $117,000).”
* The revolving door keeps spinning: “Taylor Budowich, a deputy chief of staff in the White House, is leaving the administration, according to multiple people familiar with his plans. His is one of the highest profile departures from the Trump White House. Mr. Budowich oversaw communications, cabinet affairs and speech writing.”
See you tomorrow.
