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Iowa Belongs To Donald Trump - The Tuesday AM Quickie 1/16/24

By Jacob Silverman —

I've become fixated on whale instagram videos. Is this part of being middle aged?
-Jacob

ON THE SHOW TODAY

1/16: It's News Day Tuesday! The MR Crew is back from the long weekend! They speak with Dave Weigel, author of the "Americana" newsletter at Semafor, to break down the results from last night's Iowa Republican Caucus.

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Today you'll read about Trump capturing the Iowa Caucus, the country's deep freeze, and an Iranian missile strike in Kurdish Iraq.

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THE BIG NEWS

Trump Dominates in Iowa Caucus

Former President Donald Trump easily won the Iowa Republican presidential caucus. In a historic margin of victory, Trump received about 51 percent of votes, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis finishing around 21.2 percent and Nikki Haley at 19.1 percent. Many observers had Haley pegged to finish just above DeSantis, but that about is the extent of surprises from yesterday.

It didn't matter that it was horrifically cold, that Trump had encouraged supporters to vote even if they die, or that he faces dozens of criminal charges for trying to overturn the last presidential election. More than ever, Trump is the man for the Republican base, and while he may face bigger challenges later in the nominating process, they probably won't come at the ballot box.

In a victory speech, Trump thanked Iowans and called for Americans to come together, something he seems uniquely unqualified to oversee. Next comes New Hampshire and, I'm told, 48 other state primaries, all leading up to the November main event. If we survive till then, anything is possible.

It's Still Really Cold

It really is very cold. Extremely cold. Call-your-grandmother-and-make-sure-she-has-what-she-needs cold. Schools, businesses, and government institutions will be closed across the country this week as about 80 percent of the US will experience below freezing temperatures, according to CNN, which called the arctic blast weather phenomenon "brutal and prolonged." 120 million people face wind chill warnings, when frostbite can set in within minutes. A handful of people have already died in powerful storms while dangerous travel conditions, more precipitation, and potential power outages offer further threats.

The bright side, if it can be called that, is that the big cities on the eastern seaboard haven't seen an inch of snow in almost two years. But mostly the storms have served to highlight the inadequacy of American infrastructure, from failing power grids to insufficient facilities for homeless people, three of whom died, likely of hypothermia, in Milwaukee. Stay warm out there.

QUICKEST QUICKIES

  • Vivek Ramaswamy Suspends Presidential Campaign After a middling 4th place finish in Iowa, and after pouring millions of his own dollars into an insurgent presidential campaign, Vivek Ramaswamy is bowing out of the Republican race. He's certainly the smarmiest of the GOP candidates, and at age 38, we'll probably we dealing with him for a long, long time. via Shelby Talcott/Semafor.
  • Tech Moguls Take a Turn With Dean Phillips Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips, who's apparently challenging Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination, said he might consider Elon Musk and deeply annoying billionaire Bill Ackman for cabinet posts. The mind virus-fearing moguls have lately been testing out Phillips, having failed to get out the starting gate with DeSantis, RFK Jr., Ramaswamy, or really anyone. via Politico.
  • Iranian Fires Missiles Into Erbil The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps announced it had fired missiles at an Israeli "spy headquarters" in Erbil, in Kurdish Iraq, in response to Israeli atrocities in Gaza. The missile strikes took out a prominent Kurdish businessman and are a worrying sign of how Israel's deadly campaign in Gaza is now intertwined with conflicts across the Middle East. via Reuters.
  • Fast-Food Franchises Lead in Child Labor Violations As part of the unfortunate boom in child labor, "child labor violations have more than tripled in the past 10 years, with violations in food service increasing almost sixfold," according to a new investigation. Teenagers are working long hours, missing school and sacrificing their health. via WaPo.

SOME NUMBER

2.2 million

That's how many Palestinians in Gaza – the entire population – are facing food insecurity, according to the WHO. Food, water, and fuel are all in short supply, with videos emerging of thousands of people queuing for basic supplies, children trying to scoop up spilled bags of flour, and parents sacrificing themselves trying to get their kids a meal. Some parts of Gaza are already going through famine, aid workers say, as some Palestinian civilians now risk succumbing to starvation.

DON'T MISS MR CLIPS‌

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Thought Control in Israel and Palestine with Ryan Grim

Ryan Grim joins to talk about the US government's incoherent justifications for Israeli actions in Gaza.

PARTING WORDS

“Today, we find our government backing the destruction of lives and villages not in Vietnam, but in Gaza. We hear the boosters of war claiming that real patriots support the bombing. But we know in this room that there is nothing more patriotic than the pursuit of justice, no matter where that takes us.”

-- UAW President Shawn Fain, speaking in favor of a Gaza ceasefire at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.