Stop, Drop, And Roll (Through Stop Signs)
February 4, 2022
This week, we shared a story about President Biden searching for Justice Breyer’s replacement. Biden promised to put a Black woman on the bench, but his proclamation received mixed reactions. Please tell us on this survey if you think Biden should follow through on his promise, or look at all candidates, and we’ll share the results next week.
“Think before you speak. Read before you think.” – Fran Lebowitz
A Bad Point Of View
The ladies of ABC’s morning talk show “The View” are known to have animated discussions about sensitive subjects. News journalist Barbara Walters, who created the show in 1997, imagined a multi-generational panel of women debating the day’s “Hot Topics.” In 24 seasons, the show had 22 full-time hosts, some of whom departed amicably, others with rancor. Rosie O’Donnell stormed off set in 2007 after a vicious on-air fight with Elisabeth Hasselbeck over the Iraq War. Current MSNBC anchor Nicolle Wallace was fired from the show in 2014 for not arguing enough with her co-hosts.
Iconic celebrity Whoopi Goldberg has co-hosted The View since 2007, outlasting many others even when she’s espoused controversial positions. In 2007, she defended convicted felon and former quarterback Michael Vick after he pleaded guilty to running a dogfighting ring, arguing the practice was “part of his cultural upbringing.” In 2009, she said director Roman Polanski, convicted in 1979 of assaulting a 13-year-old-girl, hadn’t actually committed “rape rape.” In 2014, she defended now-disgraced comedian Bill Cosby against serial rape accusations, challenging victims about why they hadn’t reported the assaults to police. She was able to extricate herself from those tricky situations by being genuinely relatable, sincerely apologetic, and moving on.
On Monday’s episode of The View, Goldberg and her co-hosts were discussing how the Holocaust-centered graphic novel “Maus” was banned by a Tennessee school board. Goldberg argued the Holocaust “isn’t about race,” but about “man’s inhumanity to man.” When co-host Ana Navarro said the genocide was “about white supremacy … and going after Jews and gypsies and Roma,” Goldberg countered with “Let’s talk about it for what it is–it’s how people treat each other. It’s a problem. It doesn’t matter if you’re Black or white [or Jewish].” The reaction was swift and strident, and even though Goldberg tried explaining herself and apologized numerous times, she was handed a two-week suspension by ABC News president Kim Godwin.
It may have been unintentional, but Goldberg waded into a charged discourse that has polarized the Jewish community – and those who seek to discriminate against them – for centuries. The comments struck a nerve, leading to what Goldberg described as a deluge of accusations of anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial, and criticism from groups like the Anti-Defamation League. Goldberg says she isn’t an anti-Semite. She wasn’t born Jewish, but adopted a Jewish stage name in part because of her positive feelings toward Jews and Jewish culture. But because so many true anti-Semites and European ultra-nationalists are intent on denying that the genocide happened, or insist it’s been exaggerated, Jewish groups are adamant that the historical facts not be distorted, intentionally or accidentally. (TV Insider, Vox, CBS News, Times of Israel)
ISIS Leader Dies In Attack
- Before dawn Thursday, a U.S. Special Operations team assaulted the “safe house” in northwestern Syria belonging to ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi. As commandos attacked the three-story villa, Qurayshi detonated a bomb that killed him and his entire family.
- Terrorism experts say Qurayshi, who had survived multiple setbacks and defeats, was plotting a comeback, including a second act for the violent Islamist self-declared caliphate that had terrorized the region – and elsewhere in the world with its affiliates – until its destruction three years ago. Qurayshi was the second person to lead ISIS in its current incarnation, and his death mirrored that of his predecessor, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who also detonated a bomb after being surrounded by U.S. commandos in a similar raid in 2019.
- Like Baghdadi, Qurayshi held the title of “caliph” ( leader) of the Islamic State, even though the physical caliphate had been destroyed months before he took the helm. When announcing the successful raid, President Biden said: “This horrible terrorist leader is no more.” (WaPo, $)
Boris Behavior
- Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his government have been embroiled in scandal after a damning investigation revealed that multiple parties took place at Downing Street, the location of Johnson’s residence and other government buildings, while the rest of the U.K. was living under strict Covid-19 lockdown rules. The report, released Monday, said the investigation revealed multiple gatherings took place amid a permissive culture of excessive drinking, indicating a “failure of leadership” in Johnson’s government.
- On Thursday, four of the prime minister’s top aides resigned, including head of policy Munira Mirza, chief of staff Dan Rosenfield, principal private secretary Martin Reynolds, and communications director Jack Doyle. Mirza’s departure is the most consequential. She was one of Johnson’s longtime allies and a key political player who helped shape the prime minister’s platform while drawing the ire of others in the Conservative Party. Mirza said her decision to leave was motivated by misleading comments Johnson made Monday about Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labor Party, and Johnson’s failure to apologize for leaving the wrong impression. (CNN)
Additional World News
- Northern Ireland minister orders halt to Brexit agri-food checks (Guardian)
- US to send destroyer, fighter jets to UAE amid Houthi attacks (Al Jazeera)
- 26 dead after high-voltage power cable snaps in Congo market (NBC)
- At Least 60 Dead in Attack on Camp for Displaced People in Congo (NYT, $)
- 12 people found frozen to death, sparking diplomatic row between Turkey and Greece (CNN)
- Israel participates in huge US Mideast naval exercise (Al Jazeera)
- Olympic skeleton racer freed from Beijing isolation facility after tearful video plea for help (Guardian)
Lean, Mean, Election-Blocking Machines
- Bombshell reporting this week reveals new evidence of how far former President Donald Trump was willing to go to stay in office. We all know about him pushing baseless claims of voter fraud in multiple lawsuits, a plot to create a separate set of electors for the Electoral College, and a pressure campaign on his vice president to deny certification of legitimate Electoral College votes won by Joe Biden.
- Now, it’s been revealed that Trump explored numerous proposals to use federal agencies – from Justice, to Defense, to Homeland Security – to seize voting machines in swing states. When his plans were rebuffed by all three federal agencies, Trump tried persuading state lawmakers in contested states like Michigan and Pennsylvania to use local law enforcement to take control of the machines. (NYT, $)
Stop, Drop, And Roll (Through Stop Signs)
- Federal safety regulators at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are considering a probe after Tesla owners complained that their cars were stopping for no reason. Although automatic braking features can help prevent accidents, they can also cause problems or even rear-end collisions if the system stops the car unnecessarily when falsely detecting an obstacle.
- After complaints to the NHTSA soared about the so-called “phantom braking,” Tesla issued an update to its automatic braking software last October. NHTSA has raised a string of safety issues with Tesla. Earlier this week, the EV maker was forced to recall all 53,822 of its vehicles equipped with the “full self-driving” feature because the software was intentionally programmed to slowly roll through stop signs in some scenarios.
- Last year, NHTSA also forced Tesla to disable a feature allowing occupants to play video games on the dashboard computer screen while the car was in motion. The agency is also investigating numerous instances of Teslas in self-driving mode hitting emergency vehicles parked at the site of traffic accidents. (CNN)
Additional USA News
- Oath Keepers founder spent six hours on Zoom with Jan. 6 panel (NBC)
- Garcetti Says He Held His Breath For Maskless Photo With Magic Johnson (Deadline)
- Jeff Zucker resigns from CNN over consensual relationship with key lieutenant (CNN)
- Senator Ben Ray Luján undergoes surgery after a stroke (CBS)
- Juveniles investigated in bomb hoaxes against black colleges (BBC)
- De Blasio, newly departed from office, eyeing congressional run (Politico)
- Key impeachment witness Vindman sues Trump allies over alleged intimidation (NPR)
Masking Too Much
- The 19th-century self-promoting, circus-owning impresario, Phineas T. Barnum, built his career, his reputation, and his fortune on publicity, and didn’t mind being regarded as a scoundrel as long as people paid to see his shows. Barnum is credited with saying “There’s no such thing as bad publicity.” Another Barnum attribution is what he allegedly said to a woman writing an unflattering book about him: “No matter madam, say anything you like about me, but spell my name right.”
- Barnum’s code relates to another, modern-day showman – Rudy Giuliani, who, as we know, has shown up in the strangest places, hawking the most outlandish things. Giuliani isn’t in the spotlight as often as he once was, so he’s looking for opportunities to insert himself back into public view. His latest appearance was as a contestant in last week’s taping of Season 7’s first episode of Fox’s popular primetime series, The Masked Singer. The show is known for its jaw-dropping surprises when celebrity contestants shed their headpieces after they’re eliminated.
- Giuliani did get eliminated, and when he shed his mask, judges Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke got up and left the stage in protest. Later, the judges returned, but the initial reaction to Giuliani was likely the most polarizing the show has seen since 2020, when another controversial Republican politician, Sarah Palin, was unveiled as The Bear. Giuliani’s exit episode won’t air until next month, and if you’re so inclined you can tune in then to see which costume he wore. It’s likely he won’t really care what’s written about the whole thing – as long as they spell his name right. (nku.edu, Quote Investigator, Deadline)
Additional Reads
- Norway bans breeding of British bulldogs, Cavalier King Charles spaniels, citing health concerns (USA Today)
- Lawmakers urge making Lunar New Year a federal holiday (NPR)
- Swedish firm deploys crows to pick up cigarette butts (Guardian)
- Wandering hen taken into custody at Pentagon security area (AP)
- Ship fight: row erupts over wreck in US waters identified as Captain Cook’s Endeavour (Guardian)
- Finally, a Good Use for NFTs: Preserving Street Art (Wired)
- Crashing Nemo: NASA plans watery end for space station in 2031 (NBC)