Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Middle East: “Israeli warplanes struck dozens of suspected Iranian military targets in Syria early Thursday, in a furious response to what Israel called an unsuccessful Iran rocket attack launched from Syria.”
* Mark your calendars: “President Donald Trump announced Thursday that his long-expected summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will take place in Singapore on June 12.”
* Will Senate Republicans listen? “Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain wants the Senate to reject the nomination of Gina Haspel to lead the Central Intelligence Agency.”
* House Democrats released “more than 3,500 Russian-bought Facebook ads Thursday…. The majority of the ads target politically divisive issues like gun control, race relations and immigration. Much of the wording is awkward, as though translated into English, and inflammatory.”
* On a related note, if you wanted to see all of the Russian ads, here you go.
* ISIS: “Five senior Islamic State officials have been captured, including a top aide to the group’s leader, in a complex cross-border sting carried out by Iraqi and American intelligence, two Iraqi officials said Wednesday.”
* SCOTUS: “Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley on Thursday encouraged Supreme Court justices flirting with retirement to immediately step down, saying he would like to push through a nominee before the midterm elections.”
* Interesting move: “California took a major step Wednesday toward becoming the first state to require solar panels on nearly all new homes, the latest sign of how renewable energy is gaining ground in the U.S.” * Brian Benczkowski: “A group of U.S. Senate Democrats on Wednesday said they would oppose President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the Justice Department’s criminal division over his ties to a Russian bank allied with the Kremlin.” * And speaking of troublesome nominees: “Adam Lerrick has withdrawn as President Donald Trump’s nominee for assistant Treasury secretary for international finance, after languishing for more than a year without Senate confirmation.” 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
