Today’s edition of quick hits.
* It sounds like the third day of Donald Trump’s case in New York had something in common with the first two days: “As Trump left the courthouse after attending the civil fraud trial against him and his company, he bashed the judge, the state attorney general and the legal system.”
* This is clearly a White House priority: “President Joe Biden outlined a new round of federal student loan forgiveness on Wednesday to address the ‘unsustainable debt’ that borrowers accumulate to complete their college education. … The Democratic president’s latest step will help 125,000 borrowers by erasing $9 billion in debt through existing programs. In total, 3.6 million borrowers will have had $127 billion in debt wiped out since Biden took office.”
* The latest Jan. 6 sentence: “An Illinois man was sentenced Wednesday to 54 months in prison for assaulting a law enforcement officer and a reporter during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, per the Department of Justice. … Shane Jason Woods, 45, of Auburn, Illinois, was also sentenced to 36 months of supervised release.
* Some of the public might benefit from a refresher: “President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that he would deliver a ‘major’ speech about funding for Ukraine and ‘why it’s critically important for the United States and our allies that we keep our commitment.’”
* On a related note, these munitions were reportedly originally headed to Yemen from Iran: “The U.S. military’s Central Command said in a statement on Wednesday that earlier this week it had transferred about 1.1 million rounds for AK-47 machine guns to Ukraine’s armed forces.”
* By some measures, this appears to be the largest work stoppage of health care workers in U.S. history: “From coast to coast Wednesday, more than 75,000 Kaiser Permanente workers picketed outside of health care facilities, arguing that staffing shortages have reached crisis levels for employees and patients alike.”
* When GOP leaders enter their petty phase: “Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi accused new interim Speaker Patrick McHenry on Tuesday night of kicking her out of her workspace in the Capitol just hours after the chamber’s abrupt change in leadership.”
* In related news: “House Republicans have told Rep. Steny Hoyer to vacate his Capitol hideaway office, the former majority leader’s office confirmed Wednesday.”
* Fascinating research: “Americans are more likely to die before age 65 than residents of similar nations, despite living in a country that spends substantially more per person on health care than its peers. Many of those early deaths can be traced to decisions made years ago by local and state lawmakers over whether to implement cigarette taxes, invest in public health or tighten seat-belt regulations, among other policies, an examination by The Washington Post found. States’ politics — and their resulting policies — are shaving years off American lives.”
* An unexpected sight: “Donald Trump marked the first day of his New York fraud trial by sharing a courtroom sketch depicting Jesus sitting next to him.”
See you tomorrow.
