Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Aiding Ukraine: “President Joe Biden announced Wednesday that the U.S. would be sending Ukraine the high mobility artillery rocket system, or HIMARS. ‘This new package will arm them with new capabilities and advanced weaponry, including HIMARS with battlefield munitions, to defend their territory from Russian advances,’ he said in a statement.”
* This situation is not improving: “A local police chief in Uvalde, Texas, hasn’t responded for a follow-up interview in a state investigation into the law enforcement response to an elementary school massacre that left 19 children and two teachers dead, an official said Tuesday.”
* On a related note, state police originally told the public that a teacher left open a back door at Robb Elementary School. That wasn’t quite right: “An exterior door at Robb Elementary School did not lock when it was closed by a teacher shortly before a gunman used it to get inside and kill 19 students and two teachers, leaving investigators searching to determine why, state police said Tuesday.”
* The Buffalo shooting: “A grand jury on Wednesday charged the white 18-year-old accused of fatally shooting 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket with domestic terrorism motivated by hate and 10 counts of first-degree murder. Payton Gendron, who has been in custody since the May 14 shooting, is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday in Erie County Court.”
* Last week, President Joe Biden had an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal about inflation. Today, the Democrat has an op-ed in The New York Times about Ukraine: “The invasion Vladimir Putin thought would last days is now in its fourth month. The Ukrainian people surprised Russia and inspired the world with their sacrifice, grit and battlefield success. The free world and many other nations, led by the United States, rallied to Ukraine’s side with unprecedented military, humanitarian and financial support. As the war goes on, I want to be clear about the aims of the United States in these efforts.” * Remember, keep expectations low: “Democratic and Republican negotiators will huddle virtually for a second day Wednesday as they try to hammer out legislation in response to last week’s mass shooting at a Texas elementary school that killed 19 children and two teachers.” * Breakthroughs like these are always worth celebrating: “Adm. Linda L. Fagan will shatter one of the last glass ceilings in the military on Wednesday when she takes the oath as commandant of the Coast Guard and becomes the first female officer to lead a branch of the American armed forces.” 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."
Latest Post
Recommended
