Today’s edition of quick hits:
* As of this morning, 51% of Puerto Ricans are without electricity and 9% are without running water. Hurricane Maria made landfall 61 days ago.
* North Korea: “President Donald Trump on Monday designated North Korea a state sponsor of terror, a move aimed at increasing pressure on the regime.”
* Keystone: “The Keystone XL pipeline cleared a major hurdle on Monday after a Nebraska regulator approved an alternate route for the $8 billion project. The Nebraska Public Service Commission voted to approve TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone XL pipeline in a 3-2 decision that cleared a regulatory hurdle for the proposed 1,179-mile pipeline.”
* Zimbabwe: “Robert Mugabe, 93, who ruled Zimbabwe with an iron grip until the military placed him under house arrest last week, shocked the nation on Sunday night by refusing to say whether he would resign.”
* Glenn Thrush: “The New York Times suspended prominent political reporter Glenn Thrush on Monday following accusations of sexual misconduct, the paper said. The suspension came hours after the news outlet Vox published a report detailing an alleged pattern of inappropriate behavior toward women, particularly young female reporters.”
* Charlie Rose: “Eight women have told The Washington Post that longtime television host Charlie Rose made unwanted sexual advances toward them, including lewd phone calls, walking around naked in their presence, or groping their breasts, buttocks or genital areas.”
* Germany: “Negotiations to form the German government broke down, dealing a blow to Chancellor Angela Merkel and throwing the leadership and direction of Europe’s largest economy into doubt.”
* This guy was the chair of Donald Trump’s campaign in Oklahoma: “Former state Sen. Ralph Shortey has agreed to plead guilty to a child sex trafficking offense for offering to pay a 17-year-old boy for sexual ‘stuff’ last March.” * Why the plaintiffs wanted to take health care from so many people is unclear: “The Arizona Supreme Court on Friday in an unanimous decision rejected a bid from a group of 36 current and former Republican lawmakers to overturn the state’s Medicaid expansion.” * A good line from Michael Gerson on the Trump-Russia scandal: “In all of this, there is a spectacular accumulation of lies. Lies on disclosure forms. Lies at confirmation hearings. Lies on Twitter. Lies in the White House briefing room. Lies to the FBI. Self-protective lies by the attorney general. Blocking and tackling lies by Vice President Pence. This is, with a few exceptions, a group of people for whom truth, political honor, ethics and integrity mean nothing.” Anything to add? Consider this an open thread.
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." Recommended
