A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPM’s Morning Memo.
100th Time’s The Charm?
Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) told Breitbart News Radio on Monday that Republicans should come up with a plan to kill Obamacare again if they take control of Congress and the White House in 2024.
- Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) is absolutely going to love another Republican senator putting out more agenda proposals ahead of the 2022 midterms. It’s really working out for National Republican Senatorial Committee chair Rick Scott (R-FL), who says “hell yeah!” to telling Americans they need to pay more taxes.
- A record 31 million Americans now have health care thanks to Obamacare, the White House reported last year.
Tucker Claims Dems Wanted Russia War With First Trump Impeachment
Fox News host Tucker Carlson argued during his show last night that Democrats were angling for a war against Russia when they impeached Trump because they were trying to punish him for “failing to back a proxy war in Ukraine” (actually, what happened was Trump tried to withhold military aid to Ukraine in exchange for dirt on Biden, but okay Tucker).
- Carlson also blamed Republicans, who he claimed didn’t speak out against the impeachment because they wanted war too, “Maybe even more than the Democrats did.” Dun dun dun!
- Sen. Ron Johnson (R-WI) also is trying to blame Russia’s Ukraine invasion on those involved in Trump’s first impeachment, including retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman.
The Debate Over Russian Oil Ban
Though the U.S. and its allies have slapped Russia with sanction after sanction over its unprovoked attack on Ukraine, they’ve been reluctant to take a major step to punish the Kremlin: A ban on Russian-imported oil. That reluctance seems to be waning in recent days, however.
- New York Times: “Venezuela could be a fill-in for Russian oil, but critics fear aiding another strongman.”
- Politico: “Biden warms to a Russian oil ban. Congress may not give him a choice.”
- Wall Street Journal: “How Oil Giants’ Bets on Russia, Years in the Making, Crumbled in Days”
SCOTUS Bats Away GOPers’ Bid To Uphold Gerrymandered Maps
North Carolina and Pennsylvania are keeping the neutral district maps that were drawn by state courts after striking down Republicans’ gerrymandered district lines in the two states: The Supreme Court declined to take up state Republicans’ challenges against the maps on Monday, dashing hopes for another Alabama.
- Democrats are likely to gain a seat in North Carolina under the new map, the Associated Press notes.
- However, SCOTUS’ decision isn’t necessarily the victory for voting rights groups that it appears to be on its face.
Florida’s Top Health Official Discourages Giving Kids COVID-19 Vaccine
Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo announced on Monday that the state’s health department will release guidelines recommending against vaccinating healthy kids against COVID-19.
- It’s a flat rejection of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) recommendation that all children ages five and up get the vaccine.
- Ladapo, who was appointed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), has been railing against governmental COVID measures to the point of claiming that masks aren’t saving lives and accusing the CDC of using “shaky studies, shaky methods” in its handling of the pandemic.
Lynching Finally About To Become Federal Crime
Biden is poised to sign the anti-lynching bill, aka the Emmett Till Antilynching Act, after the Senate passed it unanimously on Monday.
- The House passed the measure by a 422–3 vote last month. Reps. Andrew Clyde (R-GA), Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Chip Roy (R-TX) voted against it.
- There’ve been more than 200 attempts to pass a bill criminalizing lynching since 1918.
Grassley Complains About Dems’ Speedy SCOTUS Confirmation Plan (LOL)
Ranking Senate Judiciary Committee member Chuck Grassley (R-IA), after backing Amy Coney Barrett’s two-minute confirmation right before the 2020 election, says Democrats need to hold their horses with Supreme Court Justice nominee Ketanji Brown Jackson’s confirmation process, which they plan on starting on March 21. After all, there’s “the integrity of our constitutional advice” and “thoroughness of the vetting process” to think about, crucial things that shouldn’t be sacrificed for an “arbitrary timeline,” according to Grassley.
In Case You Missed It
New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) roasted the disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday after he whined during a speech at at a Brooklyn church that he was a victim of cancel culture and “prosecutorial misconduct” in James’ sexual harassment investigation.
- “Serial sexual harasser Andrew Cuomo won’t even spare a house of worship from his lies,” James said in a withering statement through her reelection campaign.
- The prosecutor also called Cuomo a “sick, pathetic man.”
Graphic Design Is My Passion
A pretty hilarious oopsie on Fox News host Laura Ingraham’s show last night:
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