Subscribe

Did Russia Encourage Far-Right German Coup Plot? - The Wednesday AM Quickie 12/13/22

By Corey Pein —

A little good news up top, though it was a foregone conclusion once the House and Senate passed it: President Joe Biden signed the Respect for Marriage Act yesterday, saying "this law and the love it defends strike a blow against hate in all its forms." - Corey

Tell your friends to sign up for this M-F newsletter at AMQuickie.com!

THE BIG NEWS

World News Roundup: Africa, South America, and Back Again

We're taking a whirlwind world tour in today's newsletter, folks. There's much to cover even though the U.S. news cycle is slowing down for the holidays.

  • Sources Claim German Far-Right Coup Plotter Met with Russian Diplomats Prince Heinrich XIII of Reuss, who the plotters hoped to install as leader following "Day X," at least twice visited with diplomats at the the Russian consulate in Leipzig, according to sources familiar with the German government's investigation. via the New York Times.
  • Chinese Space Officials Describe Plans for Manned Missions to Mars "I think it's entirely possible they could catch up and surpass us, absolutely," a U.S. Space Force official says. via the NY Times.
  • Aid Groups Slam United Nations for Failing to Declare a Famine in Somalia A lack of data "because of insecurity in some of the worst-affected areas" prevented the UN from making a formal declaration of famine yesterday, which could have real consequences for millions of Somalis without ready access to food. via the Associated Press.
  • South African President Cyril Ramaphosa Survives Impeachment Vote Ramaphosa's African National Congress closed ranks to defend him yesterday from an impeachment inquiry stemming from the claim he had "between $4 million and $8 million hidden in a sofa" on his property. via the NY Times.
  • Six Dead in Peru Protests as Judge Denies Appeal for Pedro Castillo The ousted president's lawyers say his attempt to dissolve Congress doesn't justify a charge of rebellion, while newly sworn in president Dina Boluarte appealed for calm and said she ordered police to refrain from using lethal weapons, "not even rubber bullets," when confronting protesters. via the AP.
  • Brazil: Bolsonaro Supporters Try, Fail to Storm Federal Police Headquarters Yellow-shirted fascists loyal to the outgoing president set fire to cars and tried to storm a government building in a botched insurrection said to be modeled on Donald Trump's Jan. 6, 2021 coup attempt. via the Guardian.
  • Chile Will Try Again to Replace Dictator Pinochet's Constitution On Monday night, a spectrum of parties from left to right agreed on a new process to redraft the constitution, after voters rejected the first attempt at a new constitution in a September referendum. via the AP.
  • Joe Biden Is Planning an Asylum Policy that Looks Like Donald Trump's The administration may cut the number of asylum seekers allowed into the U.S. and reject them outright if they can't prove they face torture in their home countries. via NBC News.

Sustainable Fusion Power Now a 'Few Decades' Away

The U.S. government revealed more details yesterday about the successful fusion energy experiment at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's National Ignition Facility in California. "This milestone moves us one significant step closer to the possibility of zero-carbon abundant fusion energy powering our society," Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told reporters. Livermore Lab director Kim Budil "said there are 'very significant hurdles' to commercial use of fusion technology, but advances in recent years mean the technology is likely to be widely used in 'a few decades' rather than 50 or 60 years as previously expected." Paul Dabbar, a Columbia University policy expert who was undersecretary of energy for science until 2021, told NBC News that with additional government investment, the technology could be developed and commercialized in as few as 10 to 15 years. Let's go then! This is genuinely exciting and hopeful news! And it serves as another reminder that real innovation in science and technology comes from the public sector far more often than from Silicon Valley capitalists.

FTX Charge Sheet Includes Campaign Finance Violations

Crypto conman Sam Bankman-Fried appeared in a Bahamas courtroom yesterday and said he would not waive his right to fight extradition to the U.S., while federal prosecutors in Manhattan unsealed an indictment charging him with eight criminal counts including wire fraud, money laundering, and violating campaign finance laws. The latter charge has many in Washington, D.C. who took his money worried. Bankman-Fried's parents, Stanford Law professors Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, were also in the courtroom; according to CoinDesk, "Bankman-Fried's mother audibly laughed several times when her son was referred to as a 'fugitive' and his father occasionally put his fingers in his ears as if to drown out the sound of the proceedings." The new CEO of FTX, John Ray III, scapegoated the company's founder for all of its criminal conduct at a House Financial Services Committee hearing yesterday, describing the brazen crypto scam as "plain, old fashion embezzlement" carried out by "a small group of grossly inexperienced and unsophisticated individuals." The Securities and Exchange Commission also unveiled a civil complaint against Bankman-Fried and FTX yesterday, calling the company "a house of cards [built] on a foundation of deception." Here's hoping this marks the beginning of the end for a rotten industry.

QUICKEST QUICKIES

  • Report on Warming Arctic Details Disruption for Human, Animal Life The last seven years have been the seven hottest since 1900, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Arctic Report Card says. via the Washington Post.
  • Ron DeSantis Once Again Courts the Antivax Vote Florida's Republican governor wants a grand jury to investigate "any and all wrongdoing" related to Covid vaccines. via NBC News and CNBC.
  • Bureau of Prisons Staff Routinely Sexually Abuse Women Inmates A bipartisan Senate investigation says the perpetrators have included male wardens, pastors, and guards at every level of the prison system. via the New York Times.
  • Mask Up to Fight Fast-Spreading Covid, Flu, and RSV 'Tripledemic' "Nationwide, Covid-19 case rates and hospitalizations have spiked by 56 percent and 24 percent, respectively, over the past two weeks." via the NY Times.
  • Famous Hollywood Mountain Lion P-22 in Stable Condition After Capture California wildlife officials decided to tranquilize the aging cougar after it attacked two pet Chihuahuas, killing one. via the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times.

SOME NUMBER

546

That's how many votes Colorado crackpot Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert won reelection by over conservative Democratic challenger Adam Frisch, per the results of a recount released Monday night.

ON THE SHOW TODAY

12/14: Emma hosts Jamie McCallum, associate professor of sociology at Middlebury College, to discuss his recent book Essential: How the Pandemic Transformed the Long Fight for Worker Justice. Then, Emma is joined by Gerrit Bruhaug, Ph.D candidate at the University of Rochester and research assistant for the Laboratory of Laser Energetics, to discuss the recent groundbreaking development in fusion energy that could pose a threat to fossil fuel production.

DON'T MISS MR CLIPS

Keystone Pipeline Leaks Olympic Swimming Pool of Tar Sands in Kansas

Looks bad!

Marjorie Taylor Greene Says She Would Have Armed Jan. 6 Insurrectionists

This is what it means to be a Republican today.

PARTING WORDS

Mark, in seeing what's happening so quickly...we are at a point of � no return � in saving our Republic !! Our LAST HOPE is invoking Marshall Law!! [sic] PLEASE URGE TO PRESIDENT TO DO SO!!

-- GOP Rep. Ralph Norman of South Carolina, in a text message to Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows sent on January 17, 2021, and obtained by Talking Points Memo. In a statement to Vice News yesterday, Norman, who once brandished a loaded gun during a constituent meeting, said "that text message came from a source of frustration" and "Martial Law was never warranted."

Quickie Discount Code Corner

Hey check it out! Stuff on sale!

IAC Laser Engraving: IAC Laser Engraving is a Leftist-owned Worker Collective started by long time listener, Ryan Lubin in September of 2021. Visit iaclasers.com to order your custom item today and  enter in Coupon Code: "MAJORITY10" at purchase to receive a 10% discount on their AMAZING products."

ExpressVPN: Secure your online data TODAY by visiting this link. That’s https://www.expressvpn.com/majority and you can get an extra three months FREE.

Fast Growing Trees: Go to this link right now, and you’ll get FIFTEEN PERCENT OFF your entire order.

Ritual: Get key nutrients without the B.S. Ritual is offering our listeners 10% off during your first three months. Visit here to start your Ritual today.

Aura: Protect yourself from America’s fastest-growing crime. Try Aura for 14 days for free: https://aura.com/majority

ZBiotics: Go to https://thld.co/zbiotics_majority_0722  and get 15% off your first order of ZBiotics Pre-Alcohol Probiotic by using my code MAJORITY at checkout. ‌‌‌‌HoldOn Bags: HoldOn plant-based compostable kitchen/trash bags: Get 20% OFF with code MAJORITY at https://holdonbags.com/majority

StoryWorth: StoryWorth is an online service that helps every other figure in your life share stories through thought-provoking questions about their memories and personal thoughts. Get started right away with no shipping required by going to https://storyworth.com/majority you'll get $10 of your first purchase!

Henson Shaving: Go to https://hensonshaving.com/majority  and use code MAJORITY for a free 100-pack of blades!

Quip: If you go to this link RIGHT NOW, you’ll get your first refill FREE.

Shopify: Go to this link here for a FREE fourteen-day trial and get full access to Shopify's entire suite of features.

LiquidIV: You can get 25% off when you go to liquidiv.com and use code MAJORITYREP at checkout.

Stamps.com: Start mailing and shipping with stamps.com, and keep more money in your pocket every day. Sign up with promo code MAJORITYREPORT for a special offer that includes a 4-week trial, plus free postage and a digital scale.

ZipRecruiter: Find the right employees for your workplace with ZipRecruiter. Try it FOR FREE at this exclusive web address.

Nutrafol: For FIFTEEN DOLLARS OFF go to https://nutrafol.com/men/ with promo code MAJORITY.

Outer: See the difference at go.liveouter.com/MAJORITY. Plus, for a limited time, get $300 off and FREE shipping.

Sunset Lake CBD: Visit sunsetlakecbd.com.

Grove: Go to this link here today to get a free gift set worth up to fifty dollars with your first order. Plus, shipping is fast and FREE.

Headspace: Try this link, with discount code MAJORITY and get one month FREE of their entire mindfulness library.

StartMail: Start securing your email privacy with StartMail. Sign up today and you’ll get 50% off your first year! Go to this link here for our special promotion!.

CozyEarth: Go to this link here and enter the special promo code MAJORITY at checkout to SAVE thirty-five percent now.