Tag: Washington, D.C.

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—The redaction of the Mueller report stalled on Monday after the Attorney General, William Barr, passed out from inhaling fumes from multiple Sharpie markers. Barr, who had been working around the clock to redact the report before its release, reportedly lost consciousness while trying to black out a seventy-four-page section detailing Donald Trump, Jr.,’s contacts with more than three dozen Russian individuals. “You cannot use that many Sharpies, for hours on end, without proper ventilation,” a Justice Department staffer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said. “This was a disaster waiting to happen.” The insentient Barr was rushed to Walter Reed medical center, where a grim-faced hospital spokesperson described his condition as “Ben Carson–like.” At the White House, the press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, offered a more upbeat assessment. “We expect Attorney General Barr to make a swift and full recovery, so that he can get to work on the President’s taxes,” she said.

Ernest Frederick “Fritz” Hollings is born in Charleston, the son of Adolph and Wilhelmine Hollings. Immediately receives a commission and joins the U.S. Army to take part in World War II. He received the Bronze Star and seven campaign ribbons. Elected to the S.C. General Assembly as a Democratic representative from Charleston. Elected governor, serving from 1959 to 1963. At 37, he was South Carolina’s youngest governor of the 20th century. Wins special election to the U.S. Senate to complete the unexpired term of Johnston, who died in office. Four years later she became the senator’s second wife. Hollings announces bid for Democratic nomination for president. He retires from the Senate after 38 years.

Actress Angelina Jolie says she isn't closing the door on trading Hollywood for Washington. "Never say never," the actress told People magazine when asked if she could see herself running for office. “[But] right now I am looking to others for leadership," Jolie, 43, added. A special envoy for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the "Maleficent" star and human rights activist has long flirted with a political bid. "If you asked me 20 years ago, I would've laughed," Jolie said of a move into politics in a December interview with the BBC. "I always say I'll go where I'm needed. In 2014, Jolie said she would "consider" a possible political run. But, the Academy Award-winner said at the time, "It's not something I'm actively seeking at this moment." But laws around the world, Jolie noted, also have to be enforced. One initiative the mother of six is working on is a proposal "for a permanent international body to investigate war crimes, including mass rape and other sexual and gender-based violence.”

WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—German Chancellor Angela Merkel demanded that Donald Trump issue a “complete and sincere apology” to the German people, after Trump claimed incorrectly, on Tuesday, that his father was born in Germany. “Of the many insulting things that Donald Trump could say to the German people, alleging that his father was born here is by far the most hurtful,” she said. “He must take it back at once.” Merkel said that Germany would consider breaking off diplomatic relations with the U.S. immediately if Trump did not acknowledge “that his father was born somewhere else.” Despite widely available evidence that Trump’s father, Fred Trump, was born in the Bronx, the White House press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, stuck by Trump’s story on Tuesday afternoon. “The President is proud that his father was born in a great foreign country like Germany, and not in a bad foreign country like Puerto Rico,” she said.

Now, as he considers a run for president, Mr. Biden is struggling to prevent a strength from turning into a crippling liability; on Tuesday alone, two more women told The New York Times that the former vice president’s touches made them uncomfortable. Mr. Biden has denied acting inappropriately but has said he will “listen respectfully.” So far, no prominent Democrat has suggested he not run, and the women complaining about him have not claimed sexual harassment or assault. Other women have stepped forward to say Mr. Biden’s touches were welcome. But the accusations lodged against Mr. Biden have raised questions about when a “tactile politician” crosses the line into inappropriateness. “It opens the door for a discussion about whether Joe Biden can actually credibly take on Donald Trump on a series of issues that the Democratic Party is seen as quite strong on,” said Jennifer L. Lawless, an expert on women in politics at the University of Virginia. But she said it was particularly uncomfortable because she had just shared her own story of sexual assault and had expected Mr. Biden — an architect of the 1994 Violence Against Women Act — to understand the importance of physical boundaries. “These are supposed to be people you can trust.” D. J. Hill, 59, a writer who recalled meeting Mr. Biden in 2012 at a fund-raising event in Minneapolis, said that when she and her husband, Robert, stepped up to take their photograph with the vice president, he put his hand on her shoulder and then started dropping it down her back, which made her “very uncomfortable.” Her husband, seeing the movement, put his hand on Mr. Biden’s shoulder and interrupted with a joke. “Only he knows his intent,” she said. “This is stuff mostly that he’s done in front of everybody,” said David Axelrod, who was a senior adviser to President Barack Obama while Mr. Biden was vice president. The controversy around Mr. Biden erupted over the weekend when Lucy Flores, a former candidate for lieutenant governor of Nevada, described how Mr. Biden placed his hands on her shoulders, leaned in to smell her hair and “proceeded to plant a big, slow kiss on the back of my head” before she went onstage at a campaign rally.

“He’s an affectionate person, to children, to senior citizens, to everyone, but that’s just not the way.” Over the past week, Biden – who has long been expected to launch a bid to be the Democratic candidate for the presidency in 2020 any time now – has been the subject of damaging news reports after two women accused him of inappropriate behavior towards them. Pelosi said the two allegations of unwelcome contact should not keep Biden from running for the presidency in 2020. “I don’t think it’s disqualifying,” she told the event on Tuesday. The former Nevada lawmaker Lucy Flores described in an essay for the Cut her discomfort when Biden kissed her on the head during a campaign event in 2014. She has since said the episode is disqualifying and that he should not run. Joe Biden's very bad week: has his White House run failed before it begins? Asked on Monday about the accusations against Biden, Pelosi said: “I don’t think that this disqualifies him from running for president, not at all.” But Biden’s potential Democratic rivals haven’t rushed to back him up. Over the weekend, the presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren and Kirsten Gillibrand came closest to calling out the former vice-president. Gillibrand, a New York senator, said, “If vice-president Biden becomes a candidate, this is a topic he’ll have to engage on further.” Ultraviolet, a women’s advocacy group, tweeted: “Joe Biden cannot paint himself as a champion of women and then refuse to listen and learn from a woman who says his actions demeaned her. “Neither the Bernie Sanders campaign nor anyone involved in it, planted, planned, persuaded, cajoled or otherwise urged Lucy Flores or anyone else to tell their story.

Why do Americans love boycotts? If you want to stick it to conservatives, don’t buy Hobby Lobby craft supplies, Yuengling beer, or Chick-fil-A sandwiches. If you’re eager to own the libs, then avoid Nike shoes, Gillette razors, and Keurig coffee machines. These actions may not make much of a difference to corporate bottom lines, but they are a reminder that arguments over symbols—salad combs, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Navy Yard apartment—are increasingly filling our rotted-out political core. That’s why it’s kind of amazing that, even in these blisteringly partisan times, a holiday like July 4 still spans cultural divides. (Last year’s “A Capitol Fourth” concert at the Capitol featured the Beach Boys, country star Luke Combs, and gospel singer CeCe Winans.) That could be because more than eight in ten Americans still think the US is better than most other nations and enjoy celebrating the birthday of the country they love. Or, more likely, it could be because Donald Trump hadn’t quite figured out how to insert himself into the holiday. It’s too early to know whether Trump’s July 4 party will be something truly new and different or if it will prove to be political vaporware, like Space Force, the DC military parade, and the Wall before it. Here’s the thing to remember: The Mall fireworks cap off one of the best days around here.

WASHINGTON — Even as the White House claims vindication from the summary of special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings in the Russia probe, the American public does not see a clear verdict about whether President Donald Trump has been cleared of wrongdoing. But a third of Americans — 31 percent — say they’re not sure if Trump has been cleared. In February, Trump’s approval rating stood at 46 percent, but this month’s shift is within the poll’s margin of error. Warning signs for Trump for 2020 — and some Democratic presidential candidates, too While the poll did not find a significant shift in the president’s approval rating, it showed some continued weak spots as he prepares to run for re-election. A combined 58 percent of voters are either uncomfortable (37 percent) or have reservations about (21 percent) Bernie Sanders’ 2020 bid. For Joe Biden, who has yet to formally announce a presidential bid, a combined 47 percent are either enthusiastic (17 percent) or comfortable (30 percent) with him as a candidate, compared with 48 percent who say they’re either uncomfortable or have reservations. A combined 73 percent of Democrats say they’re either enthusiastic (33 percent) or comfortable (40 percent) with Biden as a candidate, while just 25 percent either have reservations (19 percent) or are uncomfortable (6 percent). For Warren, 23 percent of Democratic primary have reservations, and 10 percent are very uncomfortable. But a significant chunk of Democratic voters — about one in five — don’t know enough about those candidates to express an opinion. Among all Americans, 23 percent have a positive opinion of her, while 34 percent have a negative one.