Today’s edition of quick hits.
* It’ll take time for Florida to fully come to terms with the damage from Hurricane Ian: “Ian, one of the most powerful storms to ever hit the United States, wreaked havoc across the state, cutting power to 2.5 million customers, leaving several hospitals without water and trapping thousands of residents in their homes.”
* Preparing for the casualty count: “President Joe Biden on Thursday said Hurricane Ian may have been responsible for ‘substantial loss of life’ and could end up being the deadliest storm in Florida history.”
* Ian isn’t done: “North Carolina and South Carolina were on alert Thursday as Ian made its way toward them after cutting a path of destruction through Florida and regaining strength over the Atlantic Ocean.”
* In Puerto Rico: “The Biden administration moved Wednesday to allow a non-U.S. flagged ship to transport fuel to Puerto Rico, following pressure to waive a rule in the face of a diesel shortage after Hurricane Fiona.”
* No good can come of this: “Russia will formally annex four regions of Ukraine partially controlled by its military, the Kremlin announced Thursday, in a major political escalation of the war against its neighbor.”
* In related news: “NATO on Thursday left the door open to possible military action in response to what it said was deliberate sabotage after explosions on underwater natural gas pipelines between Russia and Europe.”
* Oakland’s school shooting: “Six people were shot on Wednesday at a school campus in Oakland, in a burst of gunfire that erupted minutes before hundreds of students were scheduled to be dismissed for the afternoon.”
* Philadelphia’s school shooting: “Police said Wednesday that they are searching for five shooters who ambushed a group of teens outside a Philadelphia high school killing one 14-year-old and wounding four other teenagers after a football scrimmage.”
* The bill still needs to pass the House: “The Senate voted 72-25 on Thursday to pass a bill to keep the government funded until Dec. 16, putting Congress on a path to averting a shutdown this weekend.”
* Speaking of the Senate, it won’t have an October session: “Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Thursday that the Senate will not vote until after the midterm election, allowing incumbents to stay home and campaign.”
* Lucas Denney’s sentence: “A former military police officer from Texas — who excitedly planned for physical violence at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, engaged in hand-to-hand battle with police there for nearly 90 minutes, then lied about being in Washington when questioned by the FBI — was sentenced Wednesday to slightly more than four years in prison.” * Monkeypox: “At-risk people who received a single dose of the monkeypox vaccine in U.S. efforts against the virus appeared to be significantly less likely to get sick, public health officials announced Wednesday, even as they urged a second dose for full protection.” * Reuters published a striking report about an apparent intelligence failure in which the CIA failed to support Iranian informants. * Judicial confirmations: “The U.S. Senate on Thursday confirmed Arianna Freeman to be the first Black woman to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. The vote was 50 to 47.” * And Tucker Carlson speculated on the air this week that the United States might be responsible for damaging two underwater gas pipelines in Europe. Since Russia has been accused by much of the West for the alleged sabotage, Russian media seemed awfully excited to promote the Fox News host’s bonkers conspiracy theory. 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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