Reading archive 2024-02-14

Lindsey Graham, a longtime foreign policy hawk, bows to Trump on Ukraine: The shift sends another warning sign to U.S. allies about the isolationist posture spreading within the Republican Party

Store manager charged in robberies at Chinatown Walgreens

Three D.C police officers shot; suspect barricaded in Southeast residence

Opinion  Republicans, once a noble party, fall to ignoble acts on Ukraine aid - "Putin, who has made two wagers, quickly lost the first when he failed to quickly overrun Ukraine. He might, however, win his second wager: that the United States will live down to his disdain for what he considers its decadence. Surely his contempt is partly a response to former president Donald Trump’s political durability, which Putin understands is evidence of America’s retreat from seriousness.

...

"If Putin swallows Ukraine, he will have a combat-seasoned military and a revived military industrial base to serve his undiminished revanchism. The Institute for the Study of War says this would require deploying to Eastern Europe a sizable portion of U.S. ground forces, and the stationing in Europe a large number of stealth aircraft, forcing “a terrible choice” between defending Taiwan and other Asian allies, and deterring or defeating a Russian attack on a NATO member."

Opinion  I was head of the NSA. In a world of threats, this is my biggest worry.

After border bill failure, ICE considers mass releases to close budget gap

Officials sound alarm about new Russian ‘space threat’: Russia has been experimenting with ways to disable satellites, raising concerns that classified intelligence about a new weapon could indicate a strategic threat to national security

House blocks bill to expand state and local tax deduction

Can this man run Donald Trump’s Republican Party?: Michael Whatley, North Carolina’s GOP chairman, is Trump’s pick to lead the RNC alongside daughter-in-law Lara Trump. Some activists already oppose him.

New marketing push by Ozempic and others sparks body-positive backlash: Plus-size influencers are getting paid to promote weight-loss drugs. Some call it ‘an affront’ to what was previously a ‘safe space’ for body acceptance.

As D.C. seeks fairness, a school integration plan divides Capitol Hill: A plan to merge two elementary schools has ignited a debate over who should be educated where

In Kansas City, a tragic end to Super Bowl parade shocks community

Deputy scared by an acorn hitting his cruiser opens fire in street - "Hernandez and Roberts were shooting in crossfire positions and without cover. Hernandez fired his last shots lying on his left side in the road, yelling: 'I’m hit! I’m hit!' 

"He was, in fact, not hit."