The Full Belmonte, 1/24/2024
Trump wins New Hampshire
PHOTO: CHIP SOMODEVILLA/GETTY IMAGES
“NASHUA, N.H. — Former President Donald Trump won the New Hampshire primary, tightening his grip on the Republican Party’s presidential nomination and setting up a bitter general election rematch with President Joe Biden.
Trump’s back-to-back wins in Iowa and New Hampshire make him the only non-incumbent Republican candidate in modern political history to win the first two nominating contests. It intensifies pressure on his last remaining major competitor, Nikki Haley, to exit the race.”
Read the latest at POLITICO
Nikki Haley Vows to Stay in Campaign Race: ‘Far From Over’
“Nikki Haley may be finished in the Granite State, but she’s not out of the race just yet. True to her word last week, when she promised not to abandon her presidential bid no matter how New Hampshire’s primary shook out, the former South Carolina governor made it clear she intends to fight all the way to the bitter, bitter end. ‘You’ve all heard the chatter among the political class,’ Haley told her supporters after the primary was called for Donald Trump on Tuesday night. ‘They’re falling all over themselves saying this race is over.’ Some in the crowd shouted back at her that ‘it’s not over!’ as she pressed on. ‘Well, I have news for all of them,’ Haley continued. ‘New Hampshire is first in the nation, it is not the last in the nation. This race is far from over. There are dozens of states left to go. And the next one is my sweet state of South Carolina.’ Shortly after, Trump posted the word ‘DELUSIONAL!!!’ to his Truth Social account. Haley dumped an eye-watering $30 million in ad buys into New Hampshire, outspending all of her opponents, including Trump. In return, she eked out only a narrower defeat than last time, when she finished a distant third to the former president and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the Iowa caucuses. DeSantis tapped out six days later.”
Read it at The Daily Beast
Biden wins a New Hampshire write-in campaign
“A write-in campaign for President Joe Biden won the New Hampshire Democratic primary Tuesday, after the state was stripped of its delegates by the Democratic National Committee.
Voters who wrote in Biden’s name beat out Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) and self-help author Marianne Williamson, according to three news networks, with early counts of unprocessed write-in ballots outnumbering votes for Phillips by a more-than-three-to-one margin.”
Read the latest at POLITICO
Oregon lawmakers backpedal on pioneering decriminalization law
Democratic lawmakers in Oregon on Tuesday unveiled a sweeping new bill that would undo a key part of the state’s first-in-the-nation drug decriminalization law. Read more.
Why this matters:
The bill would recriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs as a low-level misdemeanor, in a recognition that public opinion has soured on the measure after one of the nation’s largest spikes in overdose deaths and intensifying pressure from Republicans.
Researchers say it’s too soon to determine whether the law has contributed to the state’s deadly overdose surge, and supporters of the measure say the approach of arresting people for possessing and using drugs didn’t work.” [AP News]
Alaska Airlines found loose bolts on “many” of its Boeing Max 9 jets.
“The details: The airline’s CEO said he was “angry” yesterday after inspections found more problems following a terrifying midflight blowout on one of the planes this month.
What else to know: The FAA is investigating how a Boeing 757 operated by Delta lost a wheel before takeoff, the agency said yesterday, further increasing scrutiny of the company.”
Read this story at Washington Post
A man was convicted of killing a woman who entered the wrong driveway.
“The case: Kevin Monahan, 66, fatally shot Kaylin Gillis, 20, in April when she mistakenly pulled into his driveway in New York. He was found guilty of murder yesterday.
The bigger picture: The killing was one of multiple high-profile incidents last spring in which people were shot after mistakenly approaching someone they did not know.”
Read this story at Washington Post
Jury selection underway in trial of Michigan school shooter’s mother
“Jury selection began today in the trial of Jennifer Crumbley, the mother of the Oxford High School shooter.
Jennifer Crumbley, and her husband James Crumbley, each face four counts of involuntary manslaughter for the four students their son fatally shot at the school in 2021.
Prosecutors have said the Crumbleys bought their son the gun he used in the massacre, ignoring warnings signs about his mental health issues.
The Crumbleys, who have both pleaded not guilty, will be tried separately. Last month, their son was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.” [NBC News]
“The U.S. Education Department tells NPR it will fix a math mistake with its Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) that would have cost students $1.8 billion in federal aid. The problem is the result of a congressionally-mandated overhaul of the form that didn’t adjust for inflation.
The department says it will fix it in time for the 2024-2025 school year, but hasn't specified how. Financial aid experts and college administrators say it could either try to fix it before sending student FAFSA data to colleges, or send the wrong data for now and promise to update it later.” [NPR]
A large Russian military transport plane crashed near the border with Ukraine, killing everyone onboard, Moscow said.
“Russia accused Ukraine of downing the plane. Kyiv did not directly comment on Moscow’s claims, including that 65 Ukrainian P.O.W.s were onboard.”
Read more at Washington Post
Israel-Hamas War
“Israeli forces said a blast that killed around 20 troops came after militants fired on them while they were demolishing a neighborhood to create a buffer between Gaza and Israel. The U.S. opposes a buffer zone.” [New York Times]
“Palestinian detainees recounted being stripped and beaten by Israeli forces. A U.N. office has said Israel’s treatment of Gazan detainees might amount to torture.” [New York Times]
“U.S. forces again struck the Houthis in Yemen as well as other Iran-linked militias in Iraq.” [New York Times]
“The war has given the Houthis an international audience for their anti-American and anti-Israeli message. Read how the Houthis became an effective militia.” [New York Times]
Nearing the Finish Line
Turkish parliamentarian Fuat Oktay chairs a Foreign Affairs Committee session in Ankara, Turkey, on Dec. 26, 2023.Adem Altan/AFP
“Turkey’s parliament approved Sweden’s NATO membership bid on Tuesday, clearing one of the last few hurdles left for Sweden to become an official member of the alliance. The measure passed with 287 votes for it to 55 against, with four abstentions. The ruling Justice and Development Party, main opposition Republican People’s Party, and Nationalist Movement Party all supported accession. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is now expected to ratify the decision within the coming days.
Sweden first applied for NATO membership alongside Finland in 2022 following the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, reversing a two-centuries-long policy of neutrality. The bloc approved Finnish membership last April, thereby doubling NATO’s border with Russia and strengthening its Baltic defenses.
But despite Stockholm and Helsinki initially promising to join NATO together, Turkish pressures delayed Swedish membership. Erdogan said he would not grant Sweden accession unless Stockholm cracked down on members of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) living in Sweden. Turkey and several other foreign powers consider the PKK a terrorist organization. To appease Turkish demands, Stockholm passed an anti-terrorism bill in June 2023 that criminalizes being a member of a terrorist group, but Swedish freedom of speech laws prevent the government from stifling public support for Kurdish independence. Stockholm—alongside Finland, Canada, and the Netherlands—also carved a path forward last year toward relaxing policies restricting arms exports to Turkey.
Erdogan hinted that Swedish ratification was also linked to the United States approving the sale of 40 new F-16 fighter jets to Turkey to modernize the nation’s warplane fleet. During a trip to Istanbul this month, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the White House is expected to finalize the sale once Turkey votes on Swedish NATO membership. However, some members of the U.S. Congress continue to oppose the deal due to Turkey’s flawed human rights record.
If Erdogan ratifies the vote, Hungary will become the last remaining holdout preventing Sweden from joining the 31-nation military alliance. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban invited Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to Budapest on Tuesday for NATO negotiations. ‘Political and security cooperation needs unconditional trust,’ Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said.” [Foreign Policy]
“IDF military losses. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) suffered their deadliest day of the Israel-Hamas war on Monday when 24 soldiers were killed, an Israeli official announced on Tuesday. Twenty-one of the soldiers were killed when two buildings that the IDF had previously mined for demolition collapsed after militants targeted a nearby tank. Three others were killed in a separate attack. ‘In the name of our heroes, for the sake of our lives, we will not stop fighting until absolute victory,’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Nearly 220 Israeli soldiers have been killed since war broke out on Oct. 7. According to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, more than 25,000 Palestinians have been killed in the past three months.
Monday also marked the IDF’s largest operation in the Gaza Strip in a month, with troops seizing expansive swaths of the southern city of Khan Younis, including two of its main hospitals. Netanyahu said that Monday’s IDF casualties and Israel’s assault on Khan Younis do not change his administration’s goals. Israel recently proposed a two-month cease-fire in exchange for Hamas releasing all remaining hostages. The militant group has yet to respond to the deal.” [Foreign Policy]
“Death sentence. Iranian authorities hanged 23-year-old Mohammad Ghobadlou on Tuesday for ‘corruption on Earth’ and murder related to his involvement in anti-government protests in September 2022. Ghobadlou was accused of killing a police officer with his car in response to Iran’s morality police killing 22-year-old Mahsa Amini for allegedly not wearing a headscarf properly. Amnesty International condemned the rulings on Friday as ‘grossly unfair sham trials, marred by torture-tainted ‘confessions’ and failure to order rigorous mental health assessments despite [Ghobadlou’s] mental disability.’
A group of 50 psychiatrists wrote a letter to the court asking the justices to allow a committee of mental health professionals to examine Ghobadlou before his sentencing. Ghobadlou was believed to have bipolar disorder and was reportedly not taking medication at the time of the incident, but judicial officials ignored the request. Tehran has executed at least eight people allegedly involved in the protests and arrested thousands more. Hundreds of demonstrators were killed during the initial wave of marches.” [Foreign Policy]
“Tremors across China. A roughly 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck China’s Xinjiang province near the Kyrgyzstan border on Tuesday, killing at least three people and causing extensive damage to the region. Local officials suspended railway operations, and around 1,000 rescue workers were deployed to the area, worried that a winter cold front could worsen the quake’s death toll.
The natural disaster is just the latest in a series of environmental tragedies to rock the country in recent weeks. On Sunday, a major landslide in China’s southwestern Yunnan province killed at least 47 people. And last month, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake killed at least 127 people and injured hundreds more in the northern Gansu province.” [Foreign Policy]
Return-to-office mandates don’t help companies make more money.
“How we know: Researchers compared average change in quarterly results and company stock price at companies with office mandates and ones without. There was no difference.
But it does have an effect: Being made to return to offices makes workers less happy, less productive and more likely to look for a new job.”
Read this story at Washington Post
A scientific breakthrough could save the northern white rhino from extinction.
“What to know: Scientists have successfully transferred a rhinoceros embryo for the first time, it was announced this morning, leading to a pregnancy in a southern white rhino.
What it means: It unlocks a way to save the northern white rhino — through surrogacy. Only two females of the species exist, and neither can get pregnant.”
Read this story at Washington Post
Jon Stewart will return to host “The Daily Show” on Monday nights during the 2024 election campaign.
“Stewart, who hosted the Comedy Central show from 1999 to 2015, will also be an executive producer.” [New York Times]
13 Oscar nominations for "Oppenheimer"
Photo: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images
“‘Oppenheimer’ is the movie to beat at this year's Oscars, leading the way with 13 nominations, including best picture, best director and best actor.
‘Poor Things’ followed with 11 nominations, also including best picture. ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ was nominated in 10 categories.” [ Axios]
Surprising snubs stole the spotlight at the Oscar nominations.
“The top movies: “Oppenheimer” led the pack yesterday with 13 nods, followed by “Poor Things” and “Killers of the Flower Moon.” The 96th Academy Awards will air March 10.
The big surprise: There wasn’t much love for “Barbie.” Neither its director, Greta Gerwig, nor its star Margot Robbie were nominated. (Find the other shocks here.)”
Read this story at Washington Post
SPORTS
“N.B.A.: The Milwaukee Bucks shocked the league by firing their head coach, Adrian Griffin, just 43 games into his tenure, which he finished 30-13. The former Celtics and Sixers coach Doc Rivers is a leading candidate to replace him.” [New York Times]
“Baseball: Adrián Beltré, Todd Helton and Joe Mauer were elected to the Hall of Fame, the organization announced.” [New York Times]
“A unique donation: The former Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud, who now plays for the Houston Texans, gave a large sum directly to the school’s name, image and likeness collective, the first publicly known contribution of the sort.” [New York Times]
“Charles Osgood, the longtime host of “CBS Sunday Morning,” has died at 91 after a battle with dementia, his family said.” [NBC News]