The Full Belmonte, 10/18/2023
Biden begins high-stakes Israel visit
Mr Biden held a joint news conference with Mr Netanyahu shortly after landing. Credit: Reuters
“US President Joe Biden's visit to Israel was always going to be a high-stakes gamble, says our North America editor Sarah Smith. The situation has now grown even more volatile following a deadly explosion at the Al Ahli hospital, in Gaza, that killed hundreds of people. Palestinian officials have blamed an Israeli airstrike, but Israel says it was caused by a misfired rocket from the militant group Palestinian Islamic Jihad. After landing in Tel Aviv, Mr Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the hospital blast appeared to have been caused ‘by the other team.’ Mr Biden had been due to also travel to Jordan to hold talks with the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority, which rules the occupied West Bank. That second leg of the trip has now been cancelled.
•'The ceiling fell': A London surgeon working in Gaza described the moments after the blast hit the hospital.
•Widespread outrage: News of the hospital blast sparked protests in countries including Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon. In this video from the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah, security forces can be seen firing tear gas at demonstrators.” [BBC]
Wounded Palestinians sit in Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City after arriving from Al-Ahli hospital on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Abed Khaled)
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR
Gaza’s doctors struggle to save hospital blast survivors as Middle East rage grows
“Doctors in Gaza City faced with dwindling medical supplies performed surgery on hospital floors, often without anesthesia, in a desperate bid to save badly wounded victims of a massive blast that killed civilians sheltering in a nearby hospital amid Israeli bombings and a blockade of the territory. Read more.
Recent developments:
A massive blast rocked Gaza’s Al-Ahli Arab hospital packed with wounded and other those seeking shelter on Tuesday. Hamas blamed an Israeli airstrike, while the Israeli military blamed a rocket misfired by other Palestinian militants. At least 500 people were killed, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said.
U.S. President Joe Biden has landed in Israel in hopes of stopping a spread of the war. Jordan’s foreign minister said his country canceled a meeting there between Biden, Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi.
Hundreds of Palestinians flooded the streets of major West Bank cities including Ramallah. More people joined protests that erupted in Beirut, Lebanon and Amman, Jordan, where an angry crowd gathered outside the Israeli Embassy.” [AP News]
Jordan loses first vote for House speaker
“Rep. Jim Jordan fell short of votes on the first ballot to become the next House speaker, failing to bring an end to the standoff among Republicans that left the chamber without a top leader for two weeks.
Jordan, the conservative firebrand who’s been endorsed for the job by former President Donald Trump, needs 217 of the 221 House GOP caucus members to vote for him to win the gavel. On the first ballot, he received only 200 votes.
Back in January, it took Rep. Kevin McCarthy 15 ballots to win the speakership, but he was ousted earlier this month in a historic vote.
Jordan initially lost the speaker nomination last week to Rep. Steve Scalise, the current number two Republican in the House. But a day later, Scalise abruptly dropped out, after failing to lock down enough support.” [NBC News]
© The Associated Press / J. Scott Applewhite | Speaker nominee Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) on Tuesday.
Two weeks without a Speaker
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) failed Tuesday in his bid for Speaker on the first ballot, falling 17 short of the 217 votes required.
The vote was 200 for Jordan, 212 for House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) — who got the backing of the full Democratic caucus — and 20 for other members, including six for former Speaker Kevin McCarthy(R-Calif.) and seven for House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.), who was nominated for the gavel ahead of Jordan.
After Jordan told reporters early in the day that the House would elect a Speaker on Tuesday no matter how long it took, the next vote won’t take place until 11 a.m. today. Jordan’s Tuesday defeat sets the stage for another protracted race to win the gavel. In January, it took McCarthy 15 ballots over the course of four days to be elected to the top spot (The Hill). Asked if there will be a second vote today, Jordan told The Hill: ‘Oh, yeah.’ Next steps, he said, include ‘listening to members.’
Tuesday’s vote proves that Jordan, the chairman of the Judiciary Committee who was endorsed by former President Trump, still has work to do in persuading holdouts. His allies went into the vote recognizing they may need multiple ballots to secure victory, but with an air of confidence that enough Republicans would eventually come around. The 20-vote defeat may upend that sense of confidence as the conference regroups ahead of today’s scheduled vote (NBC News).
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said Tuesday that the GOP’s weekend pressure campaign to elect Jordan backfired after the first ballot.
‘I believe it was. I’ve talked to a couple of members where they felt that — that’s just not what they needed,’ Donalds said on Fox News when asked if some GOP members were turned off by the online pressure campaign. “‘ don’t think that’s what we should be doing right now.’
One of the notable holdouts Tuesday was Rep. Kay Granger (Texas), the top Republican on the House Appropriations Committee. Granger, alongside other senior appropriators, voted against Jordan. In the past, she and other appropriators, known for their bipartisan work, have clashed with Jordan and like-minded conservative hardliners over spending cuts and threats of a shutdown (The Hill and Roll Call).
Here are the 20 Republicans who voted against Jordan for Speaker.
The Washington Post analysis: Why Jordan’s bid for Speaker failed — for now.
Politico magazine: ‘Everything is just stuck.’ No matter what happens to Jordan, the next Speaker is in for a world of trouble.
NBC News: What to know about Jordan’s record, including his actions on Jan. 6, 2021.
EXPANDING POWERS: Jordan’s first failed bid to secure the Speakership has renewed calls for increasing the limited powers of Speaker Pro Tempore Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.). Jordan’s loss of 20 GOP votes — one more than McCarthy in his first of 15 votes to secure the gavel — has left the GOP even more uncertain of when it can reach consensus over who should lead the party.
Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Penn.), who declined to back Jordan, introduced a resolution that would force a vote to elect McHenry as speaker pro temp until the government funding deadline of Nov. 17 or until a new Speaker is elected – giving him more authority than in his current status as an appointee to the role (The Hill).
‘This is another distraction from us getting the work done that we need to get done,’ Kelly said Monday of McCarthy’s ouster. ‘This gives us the ability to take the curse off of what we’re doing right now.’
The bottom line: Many House Republicans are exasperated and frustrated. If Jordan doesn’t show progress today by reducing the amount of defections by a decent amount, his Speaker bid could be doomed. And if that happens, it’s likely the idea to install a caretaker Speaker — like McHenry — will gain traction.
Axios: Led by the Problem Solvers Caucus, bipartisan talks are gaining steam as Jordan struggles with the Speaker vote.
ZOOMING OUT: A new Yahoo News/YouGov poll shows that Americans increasingly blame House Republicans more than Democrats for the dysfunction on Capitol Hill. The survey found that 66 percent now say conservative Republicans deserve at least ‘some’ blame for ‘the current gridlock in Washington,’ while 64 percent say the same about moderate Republicans.
A ROCKY HISTORY: Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Jordan have been frequent antagonists over the past decade, raising questions about their ability to work together if Jordan manages to clinch the gavel. As The Hill’s Alexander Bolton reports, Jordan led opposition to McConnell’s effort to avoid a national default in 2011, and he also squared off against McConnell and other mainstream Republicans during the October 2013 shutdown over Obamacare. McConnell recently warned that impeachments are ‘bad for the country,’ while Jordan has led the push to impeach President Biden. If Jordan wins the Speakership, the two men will have to put aside their differences to coordinate their strategy ahead of the Nov. 17 government funding deadline and other major issues heading into the 2024 presidential election.” [The Hill]
Trump returns to fraud trial after receiving second partial gag order
“Former President Trump voluntarily returned to a New York courtroom today for the ongoing $250 million fraud trial against him and his company.
Trump was planning for a face-to-face showdown with Michael Cohen, his former fixer-turned-foe who was set to begin testifying today, two sources said last week.
But Cohen said Friday that a health issue will prevent him from testifying this week. On Monday, Judge Arthur Engoron said Cohen’s testimony would be delayed at least a week.
Earlier this month, Engoran issued a partial gag order on Trump after the former president attacked his law clerk on social media.
On Monday, the judge overseeing Trump’s federal election interference case also imposed a partial gag order, barring him from making statements attacking prosecutors, witnesses, or court staff.” [NBC News]
Anti-Jewish, anti-LGBTQ hate crimes spike
Rabbi Levi Notik outside F.R.E.E. synagogue in Chicago's West Rogers Park neighborhood in 2022, after multiple Jewish businesses and synagogues were vandalized. Photo: Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune via Getty Images
“Anti-Jewish and anti-LGBTQ bias crimes jumped in 2022 amid an overall increase in hate crimes, Axios' Russell Contreras writes from new FBI data.
By the numbers: An Axios analysis of FBI data out this week found that anti-Jewish hate crimes jumped 36% in 2022 from the previous year.
Anti-LGBTQ bias crimes rose 19% in a year, and anti-gay hate crimes involving just gay men increased 13%.
Anti-Latino hate crimes went up 6%, and anti-Black bias crimes edged up 4%.
Anti-Asian hate crimes fell dramatically — by 34% — as fears over the pandemic subsided.” [Axios]
Prosecutors intend to recharge Alec Baldwin in deadly “Rust” shooting
“Special prosecutors in New Mexico intend to recharge actor Alec Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal “Rust” shooting, two sources familiar with the matter tell NBC News.
In April, prosecutors dismissed the charge against Baldwin, after learning the gun may have been modified before the shooting and malfunctioned.
Baldwin has maintained he did not pull the trigger on the prop gun that fatally shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the New Mexico set in October 2021.
But a gun analysis report released in August found that the gun had not been modified, and that the trigger had to have been pulled or depressed for it to fire.
Baldwin’s attorneys said in a statement, ‘It is unfortunate that a terrible tragedy has been turned into this misguided prosecution. We will answer any charges in court.’” [NBC News]
California Gov. Gavin Newsom delivers wins and surprises
“Gov. Gavin Newsom has seized the national spotlight as he signed some of the most ambitious laws in the country, showcasing how he plans to govern in his second and final term as leader of the nation’s most populous state. Newsom’s moves are increasingly seen through the lens of a possible presidential bid, though he insists he does not plan to run. Read more.
Why this matters:
Californians rank the economy and jobs as the most important issues in the state, and Newsom has signed key legislation that boosts minimum wages of health care and fast-food workers and increases paid sick leave.
Newsom has also signed two climate proposals that are the most aggressive mandates of their kind in the country, including one that requires billion-dollar companies to annually disclose their emissions.
But the Democrat disappointed progressive advocates by vetoing bills to give unemployment benefits to striking workers, require courts to weigh parental affirmation of children’s gender identity in custody proceedings and decriminalize some psychedelic drugs.” [AP News]
“As the Israel-Hamas war intensifies amid growing anger across the Middle East, the region looks like it’s spiraling downwards in a familiar pattern.
For all of the key actors one thing is clear: There’s no easy way out.
While the visit of US President Joe Biden and European leaders may delay Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans for a ground invasion of Gaza to crush the Hamas militant group that killed more than 1,000 people on Oct. 7, there’s little sign Israel will rethink its approach.
Biden’s trip has already been thrown into disarray after a meeting in Jordan with Arab leaders was called off following an explosion at Al-Ahli Baptist Hospital in Gaza City yesterday that killed hundreds.
That catastrophe sparked a firestorm of protest, with most of the Arab world — already seething over the death toll in Gaza — blaming Israel.
The Israeli military says the evidence points to an errant rocket from Islamic Jihad, a militant group. Biden suggested he agreed with his hosts, saying ‘based on what I’ve seen that appears as though it was done by the other team.’
For the president, the promising diplomatic drive for a rapproachement between Israel and Saudi Arabia is on ice. One of Biden’s main objectives in visiting Israel was to deter Iran, Hezbollah and other regional actors from entering the conflict.
But the outrage over the hospital bombing will be hard to soothe, whoever was behind it.
Some Israeli officials believe their campaign to destroy Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by US and European Union, could take months.
That could play into Netanyahu’s hands by delaying any investigation into the security lapse that allowed Hamas fighters to enter Israel. He’s widely blamed in Israel for the breach.
Relations between Israelis and Palestinians backed by the wider Arab world are in a brutally ugly phase — a reminder that such deeply rooted conflicts never really go away.” — Karl Maier [Bloomberg]
Palestinians evacuate a victim following an Israeli airstrike yesterday on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Photographer: Mohammed Abed/AFP/Getty Images
Ukraine launched U.S.-provided ATACMS missiles at Russian forces for the first time.
“A small number of the missiles were secretly sent to Ukraine in recent days to augment Kyiv’s long-range strikes during an important stage of its counteroffensive, according to people familiar with the matter. Ukraine has long sought the surface-to-surface missiles that can be fired by the Himars launchers the U.S. first provided last year. Separately, Russia’s legislature voted unanimously to revoke its ratification of a significant international nuclear-test-ban treaty, a move that threatens to intensify global insecurity.” [Wall Street Journal]
“Chinese President Xi Jinping portrayed his signature Belt and Road Initiative as a sweeping alternative to the US-led world order, a vision endorsed in person by Russian leader Vladimir Putin. In a speech in Beijing today marking the infrastructure project’s 10th anniversary, Xi criticized unilateral sanctions, geopolitical rivalry and bloc politics. While he didn’t identify any country, the remarks were clear references to recent US policy toward China.” [Bloomberg]
Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a welcoming ceremony at the Belt and Road Forum, in Beijing yesterday. Photo: Sergei Savostyanov/AFP via Getty Images
“The Indian government’s use of the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act to clamp down on the press is sending a chill through a country that prides itself on being the world’s largest democracy. Journalists and activists argue the authorities are misusing the law to silence critics just months ahead of an election that could give Prime Minister Narendra Modi a third term.” [Bloomberg]
Student organizations protest against the media crackdown in New Delhi on Oct. 4. Photographer: Kabir Jhangiani/ NurPhoto/Getty Images
“India’s LGBTQ ruling. In a blow to LGBTQ rights in the world’s most populous country, India’s Supreme Court refused to legalize same-sex marriage on Tuesday. A five-justice bench said the creation of such a law should be left up to India’s Parliament. However, the chief justice also stated during the ruling that queerness is a ‘natural phenomenon’ and told the government to ensure the ‘queer community is not discriminated against because of their gender identity or sexual orientation.’ This year, the country’s top court heard 20 petitions to legalize same-sex marriage.
In 2018, India’s Supreme Court reversed a colonial-era law that criminalized same-sex intercourse. However, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, other discriminatory LGBTQ laws forged while under British rule have been protected, with top leaders emphasizing Hinduism’s view of procreation between a man and woman as the defining status of marriage.” [Foreign Policy]
“Unauthorized meetings. Georgia’s constitutional court approved the opening of impeachment proceedings against President Salome Zourabichvili on Tuesday for violating the country’s constitution by making unauthorized foreign trips. In September, members of the ruling Georgian Dream party called for Zourabichvili’s removal for meeting with leaders in Berlin and Brussels without government approval. Zourabichvili had hoped the visits would help Georgia obtain European Union membership.
Zourabichvili condemned the ruling and said Georgian Dream is trying to ‘kill Georgia’s European future and democracy.’ An impeachment vote will be held in the coming days, marking the first such case in the country’s history.” [Foreign Policy]
“From Europe to the Americas, governments are erecting barriers and castigating refugees as they grapple with a migration crisis that touches raw nerves among voters and the political class. Not so in Brazil, where Venezuelans fleeing the once-wealthy petro state are welcomed with open arms by officials who process their paperwork, offer them jobs and provide airfares to relocate them to work in its vast agricultural industry, Andrew Rosati and Denise Lu report.” [Bloomberg]
In Brazil's Amazon, rivers fall to record low levels during drought
“The Amazon River is falling to never before seen lows, exposing vast stretches of dry sand, amid intense drought. Communities are cut off and struggling for drinkable water.” Read More at AP News
“Once dubbed the Wunderkind of Austria, former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz faces perjury charges in a trial today set to rake over events that triggered the political downfall of Europe’s then-youngest leader and a rising star on the center-right. Kurz, who allegedly lied under oath to a parliamentary inquiry into a 2019 scandal, faces as many as three years in prison if convicted.” [Bloomberg]
“Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov arrived for his first visit to North Korea in about five years, as the US made fresh accusations that Pyongyang is supplying weapons to help Moscow in its invasion of Ukraine.” [Bloomberg]
“A visit to Washington by the EU’s two top officials later this week was supposed to focus on Ukraine, trade and countering China, but Israel’s conflict with Hamas has injected new urgency into the summit.” [Bloomberg]
“A Ugandan militia group linked to Islamic State killed two foreign tourists and their local guide at a national park bordering the Democratic Republic of Congo, police said.” [Bloomberg]
Universities struggle with war responses
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
“American academic institutions are grappling with how to respond to the Israel-Hamas war for fear of angering students, faculty, donors and alumni, Axios' Emma Hurt and Eleanor Hawkins report.
The war is ‘exposing those fault lines’ on college campuses, which are ‘places to have disagreement, dissent, conversation ... in the classroom or out of the classroom,’ says Kristen Shahverdian, who runs nonprofit PEN America's programming around free expression best practices.
But in times of crisis, schools ‘cannot use language that's evasive or unclear,’ she said.
Catch up fast: Attempts to leave space for nuance in school statements about the conflict have been denounced for not strongly condemning the atrocities committed by Hamas — prompting apologies and second statements.
Indiana University President Pamela Whitten issued a second statement last week after her first message featuring a broad reference to violence in the Middle East prompted outrage. A former student body president said it ‘displayed cowardice.’
University officials have been pressed to reprimand some pro-Palestinian student groups that criticized Israel.
Harvard leaders released an initial statement last week saying they were ‘heartbroken by the death and destruction unleashed by the attack by Hamas that targeted citizens in Israel.’
A coalition of pro-Palestinian student groups released a letter holding ‘the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.’
Following pressure from alumni, Harvard president Claudine Gay published a second statement saying those students didn't speak for the university. Some of those pro-Palestinian students then had their names and photos displayed on a truck funded by a conservative group.” [Axios]
Restaurants serve up AI
A robot server at I Can Barbecue Korean Grill in Tustin, Calif. Photo: Leonard Ortiz/Orange County Register via Getty Images
“Wendy's, IHOP, Chipotle, Sweetgreen and other quick-serve restaurant chains are rapidly adding AI to their front- and back-of-house operations, Jennifer A. Kingson writes for Axios What's Next.
Robot servers and bartenders interact with customers.
Kitchen robots shoot kale into salads, fry tortilla chips and cook burgers.
What's happening: Wendy's teamed with Google Cloud to introduce voice automation at the drive-thru.
IHOP also is working with Google Cloud, offering personalized recommendations to people who order online. (How about some hash browns with those blueberry pancakes? Bacon?)
Chipotle is testing an automated system from a company called Hyphen that uses ‘intelligent dispensers’ to plop toppings on bowls or salads ordered via an app.
Sweetgreen acquired Spyce, a robotic food-prep company, and is using its technology to speed up service by preparing salads faster, as the Wall Street Journal reports.” [Axios]
Overnight Taters
Tim Nwachukwu/Getty Images
The Phillies' undeniable power
“At this point, I’m convinced I could buy a Phillies jersey at the team store, sneak onto the field, step up to the batter’s box and hit exactly two home runs. Bryce Harper has had a double-homer game this postseason. Nick Castellanos has done it twice. Kyle Schwarber joined the party last night.
Schwarber’s dinger disco sparked the Phillies to a 10-0 blowout win and a 2-0 series lead that feels unbreakable. The Rangers will have their turn to impress us again tonight, but it’s hard to pick against the Phillies as World Series favorite at this point. A couple of notes:
Aaron Nola was again spectacular for the Phillies, throwing six scoreless innings. He was inconsistent during Philly’s run through last year’s playoffs; he’s allowed just two runs over 18.2 innings in three playoff starts this year. If he continues the 2023 trend, start sizing the rings.
The Phillies bats will likely see Brandon Pfaadt (who posted a 5.72 ERA this year) start for the Diamondbacks in a crucial Game 3 on the road. Can the D-backs get off the mat?
Tonight, Houston faces a similarly daunting task: A road playoff game, down 2-0, against Max Scherzer. First pitch is at 8 p.m. ET on FS1.” [The Athletic]
Miniature ‘Star Wars’ X-wing gets over $3 million at auction of Hollywood model-maker’s collection
“A miniature X-wing Starfighter used in 1977 a “Star Wars” film sold for over $3 million at auction in Dallas over the weekend. The X-wing was part of an auction of items that the late Hollywood model maker Greg Jein both collected and created.”Read More at AP News
TODAY IN HISTORY
“On October 18, 1962: James D. Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins (pictured above) were honored with the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology for determining the double-helix molecular structure of DNA. Historians are still trying to determine if the scientists stole data from fellow scientist Rosalind Franklin. (AP Photo/Anthony Camerano)” [AP News]