Today’s edition of quick hits:
* Vice Adm. Joseph P. Aucoin, the head of the Seventh Fleet: “Two days after ordering a rare suspension of ship operations worldwide, the Navy relieved the commander of the fleet that had sustained four accidents in Asia and the deaths of more than a dozen sailors this year.”
* The backlash continues: “The fallout from President Donald Trump’s equivocal response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, continues this week, with the resignation of US Science Envoy Daniel Kammen. ‘Acts and words matter,’ Kammen wrote in a letter announcing his decision. ‘To continue in my role under your administration would be inconsistent with the United States Oath of Allegiance to which I adhere.’”
* Speaking of Charlottesville: ‘Workers covered a statue of Robert E. Lee and Thomas ‘Stonewall’ Jackson in Charlottesville, Virginia, with a black tarp on Wednesday afternoon in a symbol of mourning for the woman who was killed after a white nationalist rally earlier this month.”
* Low expectations: “Presidential son-in-law and adviser Jared Kushner returned to the Mideast this week to revive negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. But any optimism that an unconventional Trump administration might be able to jump-start meaningful talks has been complicated by political crises on both sides.”
* A case worth watching: “The Secret Service has agreed to stop erasing White House visitor log data while a lawsuit demanding public access to some of the information goes forward. Justice Department lawyers said in a court filing Tuesday night that, pending resolution of the case, the Secret Service will suspend its practice of disposing of the information after it is transferred to a White House records repository.” * The latest threat: “A few days before fatal vehicle attacks in Spain, a branch of al-Qaeda called for even broader strikes on railroads across the U.S. and Europe.” * If you read Baker’s concerns, he appears to want stenographers: “Gerard Baker, the editor in chief of The Wall Street Journal, has faced unease and frustration in his newsroom over his stewardship of the newspaper’s coverage of President Trump, which some journalists there say has lacked toughness and verve. Some staff members expressed similar concerns on Wednesday after Mr. Baker, in a series of blunt late-night emails, criticized his staff over their coverage of Mr. Trump’s Tuesday rally in Phoenix, describing their reporting as overly opinionated.” 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
