* The only countries voting against the resolution were Russia, Belarus, Eritrea, North Korea, and Syria: “The U.N. General Assembly voted Wednesday to reprimand Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and demand that Moscow stop fighting and withdraw its military forces.”
* The latest on the ground in Ukraine: “Russia stepped up its assault on key Ukrainian cities Wednesday, as the seventh day of Moscow’s invasion threatened to bring even greater violence and destruction to civilian areas across the country.”
* DOJ: “The Justice Department launched a task force Wednesday to enforce the new sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Russia. President Joe Biden previewed the creation of the unit in his State of the Union address, saying it would ‘go after the crimes of Russian oligarchs.’”
* Banning Russian flights: “The U.S. will close off its airspace to Russian commercial flights, two people familiar with the Biden administration’s discussions confirmed Tuesday — just days after the European Union and Canada imposed similar restrictions.”
* If inflation is Manchin’s top priority, he probably ought to know that this would likely make inflation worse: “Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said Wednesday he’s planning to introduce legislation with Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, that would prohibit the U.S. and domestic companies from importing Russian crude oil and petroleum.”
* On a related note: “Exxon Mobil Corp. said late Tuesday it is halting operations of its Sakhalin-1 oil and gas venture in Russia, and is taking steps to exit the project as a response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
* If there’s a justification for this, I can’t think of it: “Texas officials have begun investigating parents of transgender adolescents for possible child abuse, according to a lawsuit filed on Tuesday, after Gov. Greg Abbott directed them last week to handle certain medical treatments as possible crimes.”
* Quite an indictment: “Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, for decades the most powerful politician in the state, was indicted Wednesday on federal racketeering charges alleging the 13th Ward political operation that he built was a criminal enterprise that provided personal financial rewards for himself and his associates.”
See you tomorrow.
