The Morning Commute — 4/27/17

By Bryce Taylor Rudow

"A rousing digest of the day's biggest news, set to a soundtrack worth waking up for."

“Book Worming”

I couldn't find anywhere else to fit this in, but as someone who adamantly believes in the potential of digital libraries, I'd be remiss if I didn't plug this fantastic piece by James Somers in The Atlantic about Google Books' since-thwarted quest to digitally scan every book in existence.

It's a real page-turner page-scroller.

Good morning and good luck,
Bryce T. Rudow
(@brycetrudow)

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* And make sure to follow the April Morning Commute Playlist on Spotify

THE DAILY DONALD: Amendments, aircraft, and “a good chance of getting it”

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THE DAILY DONALD: Amendments, aircraft, and “a good chance of getting it”

FILED IN: PRESIDENT TRUMP, DISSENTING VIEWS, ILL ADVICEFILED IN: PRESIDENT TRUMP, DISSENTING VIEWS, ILL ADVICE

Happy Friday! Enjoy knowing that recent history says some crazy ass news story will break as soon as the sun goes down!

In the meantime...

The Future of Health Care:
A few weeks ago, I promised to not follow the shameless political theater that's been health care reform until there was something tangible and/or meaningful worth talking about. And while I would say 'meaningful' is up for debate, there is, in fact, something tangible worth mentioning, as House Freedom Caucus chairman Mark Meadows and Tuesday Group co-chairman Tom MacArthur have reached a tentative Trumpcare deal that they're calling the MacArthur Amendment, which would let states apply for waivers to get around the rule prohibiting insurance companies from charging higher premiums to people with existing conditions in exchange for more essential health benefits (e.g. prescription drug coverage, pregnancy and mental health services) being included in basic plans.

House Speaker Paul Ryan was optimistic about the proposal while speaking in London earlier this week, and President Trump told reporters at a joint press conference he was holding with Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni that "the plan gets better and better and better, and it’s gotten really, really good, and a lot of people are liking it a lot," adding that "we have a good chance of getting it soon" and touting a vote as early as Wednesday of next week. However, sources with their ears closer to the ground say this is a pipe dream, with one senior GOP congressional aide telling The Atlantic that "the question is whether it can get 216 votes in the House and the answer isn’t clear at this time. There is no legislative text and therefore no agreement to do a whip count on."

* A pleasant reminder: Congress and the White House also have to make sure the government doesn't shut down in 8 days.


The Syria Imbroglio:
Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, while speaking at a joint conference with Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman during the first visit to Israel by a Cabinet official from the new Trump administration, told reporters that the Syrian Air Force have "dispersed their aircraft in recent days" in order to be better prepared for any possible future air strikes by U.S. forces.

Mattis also confirmed that "Syria has retained chemical weapons in violation of its agreement and its statement that they removed them all" before reiterating the U.S. position that further chemical attacks wouldn't be tolerated: "They’d be ill-advised to try to use any again. We have made that very clear with our strike."


Oh, and:

• Attorney General Jeff Sessions says the Justice Department is "going to step up our efforts and already are stepping up our efforts on all leaks," and wants to put "some people in jail" over the disclosures. "Whenever a case can be made, we will seek to put some people in jail," Sessions said during a border-security visit with Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly.
• On a related note, "Federal prosecutors are weighing whether to bring criminal charges against members of the WikiLeaks organization, taking a second look at a 2010 leak of diplomatic cables and military documents and investigating whether the group bears criminal responsibility for the more recent revelation of sensitive CIA cyber-tools, according to people familiar with the case."
• "Budget Director Mick Mulvaney said a $1 trillion spending bill must include funding for a border wall and additional immigration agents, per the AP. That might drive a wedge in negotiations ahead of the government shutdown deadline next week."
• President Trump has authorized Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to investigate U.S. imports on a national security basis under the 1962 Trade Exemption Act, a decades-old law that allows penalties on improper imports (e.g. steel) from certain countries (e.g. China).
• "President Donald Trump's lawyers argued in a Thursday court filing that protesters 'have no right' to 'express dissenting views' at his campaign rallies because such protests infringed on his First Amendment rights. The filing comes in a case brought by three protesters who allege they were roughed up and ejected from a March 2016 Trump campaign rally in Louisville, Kentucky, by Trump supporters who were incited by the then-candidate's calls from the stage to 'get 'em out of here!'"
• Mary McCord, the Justice Department official who is leading the government’s investigation into potential collusion between President Donald Trump’s campaign and the Russian government, informed DOJ employees she will step down next month.
• "The EPA said it will begin the process of shrinking its 15,000 employee workforce through buyouts, following Trump’s executive order last month aimed at shrinking the federal workforce."
• "Property records show Trump's trust and his companies own at least 422 luxury condos and penthouses from New York City to Las Vegas, 12 mansion lots on bluffs overlooking his golf course on the Pacific Ocean and dozens more smaller pieces of real estate. ... The volume of real estate creates an extraordinary and unprecedented potential for people, corporations or foreign interests to try to influence a president.Anyone who wanted to court favor with the president could snap up multiple properties or purposefully overpay. They could buy in the name of a shell company, making it impossible for the public to know who was behind the sales."
• "An Egyptian American charity worker who was imprisoned in Cairo for three years and became the global face of Egypt’s brutal crackdown on civil society returned home to the United States late Thursday after the Trump administration quietly negotiated her release."
• "Justice Neil Gorsuch took his first major action on the U.S. Supreme Court by casting the deciding vote to let Arkansas begin executing a group of death-row inmates."

READ MORE ❯

• "Trump’s First 100 Days: What has Trump accomplished so far?" by Elise Viebeck
• "The looming government shutdown deadline, explained" by Tara Golshan
• "4 Hours at the White House With Ted Nugent, Sarah Palin and Kid Rock" by Glenn Thrush

WHILE LISTENING TO ❯

• "We Both Have Nothing To Fear" - Skyway Man

Pre-election shootout in Paris leaves officer, gunman dead; ISIS claims responsibility

FILED IN: TERRORIST ATTACKS, ELECTION MEDDLING, HINTS OF INFLUENCE

Last night, a gunman wielding an assault rifle opened fire on a police car parked on the city's most iconic boulevard, the Champs-Élysées, killing the officer inside and sparking a public shootout that resulted in the attacker's own death at the hands of responding officers. This comes just days after two men were arrested in Marseille when they were found to have stockpiled weapons, ammunition, and a highly volatile explosive for what authorities called an "imminent" terrorist attack — and just days before France's presidential election.

In fact, the 11 candidates were having their final 'debate' on France 2 at the time of the attack, which immediately became the sole topic of conversation once news of it spread. Politically speaking, far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen, whose poll numbers were already on the rise, looks to gain the most from the ISIS-claimed attack, with even amateur pundit Donald J. Trump tweeting, "Another terrorist attack in Paris. The people of France will not take much more of this. Will have a big effect on presidential election!"

* "Nearly 1 in 4 links shared by social media users in France in the days leading up to elections contained fake news, according to a new study published by U.K.-based firm Bakamo on Wednesday...Much of it favored anti-E.U. candidates — both on the far right and far left — and revealed hints of Russian influence."

READ MORE ❯

• "Deadly Paris shooting could influence voters on eve of French presidential election" by James McAuley
• "What to Know About the Champs-Elysees Shooting in Paris" by Aric Jenkins,Alana Abramson
• "How Marine Le Pen could take France out of the EU" by Shane Savitsky

WHILE LISTENING TO ❯

• "Pound Cake / Paris Morton Music 2" - Drake, feat. Jay Z

“Google’s plan to dominate online ads even more”

FILED IN: SEARCH ENGINES, AD BLOCKERS, DOMINANT ROLESFILED IN: SEARCH ENGINES, AD BLOCKERS, DOMINANT ROLES

The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that Google is planning on adding an ad blocker to its Chrome web browser that would filter out advertisements that are deemed 'intrusive' (based on standards set by the third-party Coalition for Better Ads), effectively meaning that one of the world's largest advertising-funded companies (it accounts for 80% of Google's total revenue) will soon gain even more control over those increasingly valuable digital assets.

With roughly 1 in 4 internet users already using some sort of ad blocker technology, the move is being hailed as an attempt by Google to get in on, then dominate, that market, while simultaneously making their Chrome browser (which currently enjoys 56% of search's market share) that much more appealing. "It's a move that could potentially strengthen Google's already dominating position in the digital ad space," Jakob Holm Kalkar, VP at Blackwood Seven media agency, told Axios. "Google, more or less, controls the browser market and an introduction of an ad-blocking feature would therefore, by default, secure a strong position in the ad-blocking market and through that an even more dominant role in the advertising space."

* For my thoughts on ad blocking, especially as it relates to online publishing, please click here.

READ MORE ❯

• "Google's plan to dominate online ads even more" by Sara Fischer
• "Why Google has to build its own adblocker" by Shona Ghosh
• "The First-Ever Banner Ad on the Web" by Adrienne LaFrance

WHILE LISTENING TO ❯

• "The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot" - Brand New

TIME reveals ‘The 100 Most Influential People in the World’

FILED IN: TIME, INFLUENCE, PLEASANT SURPRISES

Yesterday, TIME released this year's installment of their annual, much-anticipated (and much-debated) list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Per usual, there are some obvious choices (Jeff Bezos, Ivanka Trump), some pleasant surprises (Donald Glover, Margaret Atwood), some not-so pleasant ones (Demi Lovato, Reince Priebus), and some real wildcards (Theo Epstein, Margot Robbie).

My personal favorite write-ups (of the ones I've read so far):

• Donald Glover by Tina Fey
• Sandra Day O'Connor by Sonia Sotomayor
• Jeff Bezos by Buzz Aldrin
• Jordan Peele by Barry Jenkins
• Vladimir Putin by Mikhail Gorbachev

READ MORE ❯

• "The 100 Most Influential People in the World 2017" by Nancy Gibbs
• "The Story Behind the TIME 100 Most Influential People's Covers" by Alexandra Genova

WHILE LISTENING TO ❯

"About Time" - Elliot Moss

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