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Biden Announces Plan for Supreme Court Reform - The Tuesday AM Quickie 7/30/24

By Jacob Silverman —

Please never let me get into an autopilot Tesla. -Jacob

ON THE SHOW TODAY

7/30: It's News Day Tuesday!

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Today you'll read about President Joe Biden's plan to reform the Supreme Court and stop presidential immunity; a scary fascist riot in Israel; and the implementation of a six-week abortion ban in Iowa.

THE BIG NEWS

Biden Announces His Plan for Supreme Court Reform

In an op-ed in the Washington Post and a speech at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, TX, President Joe Biden announced his support for a plan to reform the Supreme Court, which has become dangerously right wing. "I have great respect for our institutions and separation of powers," the president wrote. "What is happening now is not normal, and it undermines the public’s confidence in the court’s decisions, including those impacting personal freedoms."

Biden called for 18-year term limits and a code of ethics with mechanisms for enforcement, both of which would have to be passed by Congress – a longshot given universal Republican opposition. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson called it "dead on arrival" and said it was part of a plan to "delegitimize the court."

Biden also announced his support for the "No One Is Above the Law Amendment," a constitutional amendment that would read, "The Constitution does not confer any immunity from federal criminal indictment, trial, conviction, or sentencing by virtue of previously serving as president." A constitutional amendment requires two-thirds approval by both chambers of Congress, followed by approval by 38 state legislatures. It's more than a longshot; it's a generational project, one that Biden sees as potentially part of his presidential legacy.

Biden said that his proposal, which he reportedly discussed with law professor Laurence Tribe, was necessary "to restore trust in the court." Notably, he spoke those words at the library of the last president to decide not to run for re-election. "There are no kings in America,” Biden said. "Each of us is equal before the law. No one is above the law."

Wouldn't it be nice!

Pro-Torture Israelis Storm Military Base

In a scene unprecedented in Israeli history, right-wing Israelis rioted after military police officers were sent to question soldiers who were accused of torturing and sexually assaulting detainees. Joined by well-known extremists and a member of the Knesset, the rioters stormed a military base notorious for the torture and murder of detainees as well as a military court. The Israeli government called back soldiers from Gaza to handle the problem. In violent clashes, soldiers eventually kicked out the rioters, who were defended in the media by the most right-wing elements of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition. One Knesset member, during a video-taped discussion, defended the rape of Palestinian detainees, saying, "If he is a [terrorist] everything is legitimate to do to him."

To be clear: far-right Israelis are rioting against their slightly less right-wing comrades in order to free soldiers who raped detainees. And a swath of Israeli elites supports the rioters and torturers. It's unclear if the fascist uprising will spread, but it's been compared to both January 6 and the Nazi beer hall putsch – neither of which bodes well for a fractious apartheid state currently carrying out a genocide.

Iowa Abortion Ban Goes Into Effect

A law that bans abortion after six weeks of pregnancy went into effect in Iowa yesterday, replacing the previous law, which allowed for abortion up until 22 weeks. The time period is so brief – before many women know they're pregnant – that in practice it nearly functions like a full abortion ban. As it is, four states have similar bans on abortion after six weeks. Fourteen states, all of them heavily Republican, have passed total bans on abortion since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago.

Vice President Kamala Harris denounced the Iowa ban as her campaign kicked off what they're calling Fight for Reproductive Freedom Week of Action, with events in various swing states. "When I am President of the United States, I will sign into law the protections for reproductive freedom," said Harris. Meanwhile, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz – both potential VP candidates – said publicly that they would welcome pregnant Iowans to their states for reproductive care.

QUICKEST QUICKIES

  • FBI Will Interview Trump About Shooting Former President Donald Trump has agreed to be interviewed by the FBI about the shooting at his rally. An FBI agent called it "a standard victim interview, like we would do." The FBI also provided more information about the shooter's numerous purchases of weapons and explosives. via NYT and CBS News.
  • El Chapo's Son Betrayed Fellow Cartel Leader to Get a Better Deal The son of famed drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman kidnapped another shadowy drug trafficker, Israel "El Mayo" Zambada, and took him on a private plane that flew to an airport in El Paso, where they were both arrested. The younger Guzman reportedly betrayed his dad's business partner in order to get a more favorable deal from US authorities, who were surprised by the inclusion of the elder El Mayo. via Reuters and NYT.
  • US Expanding Military Presence in Japan Almost eighty years after the end of WWII, the US government plans to "upgrade" its military presence in Japan. The US will establish a new command post in Japan led by a three-star general, expand military production in Japan, and hold more military exercises with Japanese counterparts. The expansion is part of a plan to "counter" China and is likely to infuriate the rising superpower. via WSJ and CNN.
  • Kamala Harris Wouldn't Ban Fracking As President In a sign of her tacking to the center – pardon the nauseating political cliche – Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign said that she would not ban fracking if she were elected president. Apparently Harris has also dispensed with other progressive policy priorities: she now opposes Medicare For All and wants to increase border enforcement funding. via Politico and NYT.

SOME NUMBER

25 percent

That's the approximate amount of adults 24 to 35 years old in California who live with their parents. Nationwide, it's about 18 percent. The numbers have shot up in the last few decades. Blame the cost of housing, which is especially severe in the golden state.

DON'T MISS MR CLIPS‌

Mike Johnson Starts Sweating When Asked About Abortion Ban

He may approve of the policy, but he doesn't seem ready to defend it in public.

Dem Donors Want Harris To Bail On Biden's Best Decision

Rich corporate donors want a future president Kamala Harris to fire FTC chair Lina Khan, who's been wildly effective.

PARTING WORDS

"I don't want to end up in a bag!! I give up everything.. except my death! I want a complete shroud, 192 centimeters long. I don't give up my body; I want it whole.

I want my arms, my legs, my heart, my head, my twenty fingers, and my eyes too.

I want to return to the womb of the earth, as I was created from it... the same earth here in this country. I don't mind being buried in a mass grave, but I want my name on the headstone, my age as well, and that I am from here, from this slaughtered homeland."

-- From the final words written by Ibrahim Al Ghoul, a Palestinian man who was recently killed by Israeli forces alongside his wife. His two children were severely injured.

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