Today’s edition of quick hits:
* As of a few minutes ago: “The Iowa Democratic Party on Tuesday released partial results from Monday night’s caucus after a lengthy delay caused by a ‘coding issue’ with an app used to report the data. The partial results, which are from each of the state’s 99 counties but are inconclusive, show Pete Buttigieg and Bernie Sanders at the front of the pack, although those positions may not hold when all the votes are eventually counted.”
* Good thinking: “Nevada’s Democratic Party said Tuesday it will not use the trouble-plagued app that has contributed to ongoing delays in the reporting of results in the Iowa Democratic caucuses.”
* This shouldn’t be OK: “Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said the alleged name of the Ukraine whistleblower on the Senate floor as senators debated President Trump’s impeachment on Tuesday…. Paul read aloud his question that named the alleged whistleblower — and had an accompanying poster that also included the name — which Chief Justice John Roberts refused to read during the impeachment trial last week.”
* A bold move in the UK: “Britain will ban the sale of new gas, diesel and hybrid vehicles from 2035, five years earlier than planned, in an attempt to reduce air pollution and fossil fuel emissions, the government announced on Tuesday.”
* Yemen: “Tribal leaders said Saturday a suspected U.S. drone strike destroyed a building housing al Qaeda militants last week in eastern Yemen. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, retweeted several tweets and media reports that seemed to offer confirmation the Jan. 25 strike killed top al Qaeda leader Qassim al-Rimi.” * I’m having one of those “if Obama did this” moments: “Among the guests at the Trump International Golf Club Super Bowl party Sunday night in West Palm Beach, Fla., its host, President Trump, was an unusually conspicuous presence. In an Instagram video taken by a guest and later discovered and republished by the Miami Herald, other attendees — including members of the first family — are seen standing calmly with hand over heart as ‘The Star-Spangled Banner’ plays. The 20-second clip using the front-facing-camera mode shows Trump doing neither. Instead, the president is seen fidgeting, pointing around the room, straightening his jacket and at one point waving his fingers in the air as if conducting an invisible orchestra.” 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." Recommended
