The Full Belmonte, 10/5/2023
House speaker battle heats up after McCarthy ouster
“The battle to become the next House speaker is heating up, after Kevin McCarthy was ousted from the top leadership role in a historic vote Tuesday.
McCarthy said he would not run again after a small group of Republicans, led by Rep. Matt Gaetz, who were angry that McCarthy cut a deal with Democrats to avoid a government shutdown last weekend, rebelled and forced motion to vacate his seat.
Rep. Jim Jordan, a conservative hardliner and staunch Trump supporter, became the first lawmaker to publicly announce his bid today for the speakership.
Jordan spoke to reporters after meeting with Rep. Steve Scalise, the number two Republican in the House, to tell him about his decision. Hours later, Scalise announced he is also running for speaker.
Scalise is battling blood cancer, but when asked if he is physically up for the job Tuesday, he said, ‘I feel great.’
Whoever seeks the speakership will face the same math problem McCarthy encountered in January. With the GOP’s slim majority in the House, it took him 15 ballots to get to the 218 votes he needed to win the gavel.
The House is set to hold an election for McCarthy’s replacement next Wednesday. For now, North Carolina Rep. Patrick McHenry will serve as Speaker Pro Tempore.
One of McHenry’s first acts as temporary speaker was to boot top DemocratsNancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer out of their offices at the Capitol.” [NBC News]
President Biden canceled an additional $9 billion in student debt, days after repayments resumed following a three-year pause.
“The move affects 125,000 people who qualify under existing programs, including people on permanent disability and public-service workers such as teachers and firefighters.”
Read more at New York Times
Justices Hear Civil Rights Dispute About Disability Activist
The arguments focused on whether the activist, Deborah Laufer, has the right to sue a Maine hotel, even though she did not plan to stay there.
Reporting from Washington
Oct. 4, 2023
“The Supreme Court wrangled on Wednesday over the question of whether a disability rights activist could sue a hotel for violating a federal disability law, even if she never planned to stay there.
Several justices appeared skeptical of the case itself and whether there was even a dispute to resolve.
‘This is like dead, dead, dead, in all the ways something can be dead,’ Justice Elena Kagan said during an argument that lasted about an hour and a half. ‘To use that case as the vehicle for deciding an important issue, an issue that probably is going to need to be decided at some point but surely could come up in a live case, I guess it just doesn’t seem like something that a court should be anxious to do.’
The activist, Deborah Laufer, a Florida woman diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, had sued an inn on the southern coast of Maine, claiming it violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, a civil rights law that requires hotels to disclose accessibility information.
Ms. Laufer is what is known as a ‘tester,’ a self-appointed person who challenges companies over violations of the act. According to court papers, she has filed more than 600 lawsuits over the issue. Such challenges typically demand that a company admit it broke the law and then fix the issue, as well as pay legal fees.
At issue is whether such testers can force businesses to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act even if they never planned to visit the business. Although the question presented is narrow, the decision could have broader repercussions for other types of tester cases, including those involving housing discrimination.
However, Ms. Laufer has asked the court to dismiss the case. The hotel is now under new ownership, and its website has been updated to reflect disability accommodations….” Read more at New York Times
Trump leaves trial, won’t rule out serving as new House speaker
“Former President Donald Trump left in the middle of the third day of his $250 million civil fraud trial in New York, saying ‘the whole system is corrupt,’ and mentioning he’d rather be on the campaign trail as he departed.
Trump, who is not obligated to be in court for the trial, was not expected to return for the rest of the day’s proceedings.
Earlier, he addressed calls from the far-right for him to serve as the new House speaker, and did not rule it out.
‘A lot of people have been calling me about speaker,’ Trump told reporters outside the courtroom. ‘All I can say is we will do whatever is best for the country.’
Trump also said today that he did not encourage Gaetz to oust McCarthy.
The Constitution doesn’t specifically say the speaker must be a member of the House.
But Trump may be disqualified under the GOP conference’s own rules barring individuals indicted for a felony from serving in leadership.” [NBC News]
Trump camps out
Former President Trump speaks to the media during the third day of his civil fraud trial in New York. Photo: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images
“Former President Trump has spent an unusual three days camped out at the civil fraud trial against him and his business empire, Axios' Erin Doherty writes.
Why it matters: He's rarely in one place, focused on one topic, for multiple days.
Trump's made his mountain of legal woes central to his 2024 presidential campaign.
He's seized on the ongoing fraud trial, and his voluntary appearances at the Manhattan courthouse have become an extension of the campaign trail.
What's happening: Trump has repeatedly turned up before TV cameras stationed outside the courtroom to deride the trial — in sometimes violent terms — as a ‘witch hunt’ from politically motivated prosecutors.
The judge overseeing the trial imposed a gag order after Trump attacked a law clerk on social media.
‘I'd rather be right now in Iowa. I'd rather be in New Hampshire or South Carolina or Ohio or a lot of other places,’ Trump said today.
Between the lines: The New York civil fraud trial is an anomaly for the former president, who's notorious for veering off on tangents.
Trump, who faces 91 criminal counts across four jurisdictions, has largely limited his in-person court appearances to ones that are required.
What we're watching: When Trump will show up at the courthouse again.
He left the trial during a lunch break today to return to Mar-a-Lago, according to CNN. He didn't indicate when he'd be back in New York.” [Axios]
Birth rate bump
Data: CDC. Map: Axios Visuals
“There are signs of a slight late-pandemic birth rate bump after declining almost every year since 2007, Axios' Alex Fitzpatrick and Kavya Beheraj write from CDC data.
The nationwide birth rate — down 23% between 2007 and 2022 — ticked up last year. It was flat in 2021.
Why it matters: The birth rate is a closely watched figure for myriad reasons.
It tends to fall as income rises, meaning lower birth rates can be a reflection of prosperity at both the national and individual levels.
Some fear that if the birth rate dips too low, it will bring about a crisis where there are too few young people to care for an aging populace.” [Axios]
Urgent search after mass shooting at Morgan State University
Jerry Jackson/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images
“No one is in custody after the mass shooting that wounded five people at Morgan State University in Baltimore Tuesday night, police said today.
The shooting occurred just as students were leaving a coronation ceremony, part of homecoming week at the historically Black university, the school’s president said, forcing the campus into lockdown for hours.
The five victims were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, and four of them are students at the university, according to police.
Investigators have not provided information on a suspect or suspects, and police said they do not yet know how many shooters were involved. All classes have been canceled today.” [NBC News]
Largest health care worker strike in U.S. history now underway
“More than 75,000 unionized employees of Kaiser Permanente walked off the job today, beginning the largest health care worker strike in U.S. history.
The unions are demanding better pay and benefits, and a long-term plan to address staffing shortages in the wake of the Covid pandemic.
The union said in a statement that it launched the three-day strike in protest of Kaiser’s “bad faith bargaining.”
Kaiser Permanente, one of the nation’s largest not-for-profit health providers, said in a statement that it already leads in ‘total compensation in every market where we operate.’
Kaiser said it has plans in place to ensure patients continue receiving care during the strike.” [NBC News]
NYPD searching for suspect in social justice advocate stabbing
“New York police are asking for the public’s help in their search for a man who fatally stabbed a social justice advocate on the sidewalk in front of his girlfriend.
Surveillance video (warning: disturbing) captured the unidentified man stabbing Ryan Carson multiple times, in what appeared to be a random attack.
Carson, 32, was waiting for a bus with his girlfriend after attending a wedding early Monday morning when the horrific incident occurred, NBC New York reported.
The NYPD has released a photo of the suspect and is asking the public for information to help find him.” [NBC News]
Illustration: Natalie Peeples/Axios
“Fifa has confirmed that the men’s football World Cup in 2030 will be held across six countries in three continents. Spain, Portugal and Morocco are the co-hosts, with three opening matches taking place in Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay. The decision is ‘horrendous for supporters [and] disregards the environment,’ a group of European football supporters said.” [BBC]
“UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is proposing a gradual ban on tobacco smoking, by raising the minimum age for purchase by one year every year. He also scrapped part of a high-speed railway project between Birmingham and Manchester.” [BBC]
“Pakistan has ordered all unauthorised Afghan asylum seekers to leave the country by November - an estimated 1.7 million people. The Taliban government urged Pakistan to rethink its ‘unacceptable’ move.” [BBC]
Simone Biles leads U.S. women's team to seventh straight world gymnastics title
Americans' seventh consecutive title broke a tie with China’s men. The team gold was Simone Biles’ 33rd medal at the world championships and Olympics.
USA TODAY
“ANTWERP, Belgium — The U.S. women got another world title. And a couple of spots in the history books to go with it.
The Americans won their seventh consecutive team title at the world gymnastics championships, breaking a tie with China’s men. The Chinese won six from 2003 to 2014. The U.S. women have now won every team title dating back to 2011.
The team gold also was Simone Biles’ 33rd medal at the world championships and Olympics, tying Vitaly Scherbo for most by any gymnast. Biles already is the most-decorated gymnast, male or female, at the world championships with 26 medals, 20 of which are gold.
Biles closed the meet with an authoritative routine on floor exercise. She got massive height on her tumbling passes and, after having to pull her heels up to stay in bounds on the first, nailed the landings on her last three passes. The crowd went wild as she finished, and coaches Cecile and Laurent Landi and the rest of the Americans lined up to hug her.
Her score of 15.166 gave the U.S. women a total of 167.729, almost 2.2 points ahead of Brazil. When it flashed, Biles hugged young teammate Joscelyn Roberson, who was injured before the meet began.” [USA Today]