Crooked Media - What A Day: On High Commissioner ground

More unthinkable violence unfolded in Gaza on Tuesday, this time at a refugee camp. 
 

• At least 50 Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike that hit a densely-populated refugee camp in northern Gaza. Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Lt. Colonel Richard Hect confirmed the airstrike on Jabalia refugee camp, telling CNN it was carried out to target “a very senior Hamas commander in that area.” Hect added, “We’re looking into it and we’ll be coming out with more data as we learn what happened there.” Eyewitness Mohammad Al Aswad described the scene to CNN by phone, saying: “Children were carrying other injured children and running, with grey dust filling the air. Bodies were hanging on the rubble, many of them unrecognized. Some were bleeding and others were burnt.” The IDF reported that the targeted Hamas commander was responsible for a kibbutz massacre during the October 7 attack that killed 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians. 
   

• Two top White House advisers, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on Tuesday urging Congress to fund President Joe Biden’s request for $106 billion for Ukraine, Israel, and U.S. border security. Both said that it was vital to national security that Congress provide $61.4 billion for Ukraine, $14.3 billion for Israel, $9 billion in humanitarian relief for Israel and Gaza, $13.6 billion for U.S. border security, and several billion in military and economic development programs in Asia intended to counter China’s influence there. Distribution of food and medical supplies in Gaza has faltered due to a chronic shortage of fuel, overcrowding caused by the displacement of civilians, and major damage to the enclave’s infrastructure from ongoing airstrikes. 
   

• Blinken, asked later about the administration’s stance on the possibility of a ceasefire, repeated that a ceasefire would “simply consolidate what Hamas has been able to do and...potentially repeat what it did another day.” He did suggest that the administration might support a “humanitarian pause.” Many Democratic lawmakers have, in the past two weeks, also spoken in favor of a humanitarian pause, a temporary break in fighting to allow for aid delivery, rather than a full ceasefire to end fighting outright. The Pentagon’s top special operations policy official, Christopher Maier, said on Tuesday that American commandos are on the ground in Israel aiding efforts to locate the more than 200 hostages thought to still be held by Hamas.

Western involvement in the conflict, particularly the outsized role of the United States, has had rippling political consequences. 
 

• Support for President Biden among Arab Americans has plummeted in response to his handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict. Biden enjoyed 59 percent support among Arab voters as of 2020. This has now dwindled to just 17 percent according to a new national poll from the Arab American Institute (AAI). The majority of respondents also said they did not identify as Democrats for the first time since the group began polling in 1997. The National Muslim Democratic Council—a coalition including Democratic Party leaders from battleground states such as Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania—has urged the president to use his influence with the Israeli government to broker a ceasefire by 5pm Eastern time on Tuesday.
   

• The director of the New York office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Craig Mokhiber, retired from his post in a letter on Saturday, protesting the U.N. for “failing” to prevent what he called a genocide of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. Mokhiber called the United States, United Kingdom, and much of the European Union “wholly complicit in the horrible assault,” writing that they are “refusing to meet their treaty obligations” as outlined under the Geneva Conventions. Mokhiber, who after 31 years at the U.N. had reached retirement age, has drawn controversy in the past for labeling Israel an apartheid state and for his support of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement aimed at pressuring Israel over its occupation of the Palestinian territories. Secretary of State Blinken plans to visit Israel on Friday to meet with government officials there before making other stops in the region, according to a State Department spokesperson. 

In his testimony before the Senate on Tuesday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned, in what some took as an oblique reference to the troubled history of American military actions abroad, “The things that you do on the battlefield, if you’re not thoughtful…could create a resistance to your effort that lasts for generations. And so there is an operational and strategic imperative to make sure that we’re doing the right things as we outline our objectives and prescribe our techniques.”

Happy Halloween! Today marks the end of the Spooky Season. If the thought of celebrating with a scary movie night secretly puts you off your candy corn, Ruined is the podcast for you. Hosted by horror aficionado and Lovett or Leave It head writer Halle Kiefer and her squeamish friend and co-host, Alison Leiby, Ruined unpacks a different horror movie every week. And for those of you like Alison, who are too scared to watch, fear not – Halle will ruin the movie for you! Let Ruined help you survive spooky season with your dignity intact. Listen each week wherever you get your podcasts.

One of our least favorite shadowy billionaires and a shadowy dark-money fundraiser are going to have to go on C-SPAN! Let’s hear it for the boys!!! Sens. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), heads of the Judiciary Committee, announced on Tuesday that they plan to subpoena right-wing megadonor Harlan Crow and right-wing fundraiser Leonard Leo: the two men most instrumental in refashioning the Supreme Court into a kind of hyper-conservative Christian legal Death Star. Both Crow and Leo have been subjects of lengthy and deeply-reported features at nonprofit investigative outlet ProPublica, whose “Friends of the Court” series has focused on the brazen and extensive corruption of arch-conservatives Clarence Thomas and, to a lesser extent, Samuel Alito. 

Perhaps the most alarming discovery made over the course of this reporting is that Supreme Court Justices are uniquely immune from consequences for flouting the ethical and moral standards of their profession. “By accepting these lavish, undisclosed gifts, the justices have enabled their wealthy benefactors and other individuals with business before the Court to gain private access to the justices while preventing public scrutiny of this conduct,” Durbin and Whitehouse wrote in an official Judiciary statement. They also took a not-so-subtle jab at Chief Justice John Roberts (who will probably go down in history as the guy who presided over the end of the Voting Rights Act and the beginning of prosecutions for basic gynecology). “The Chief Justice could fix this problem today and adopt a binding code of conduct. As long as he refuses to act, the Judiciary Committee will.” Let ‘er rip, fellas!

The Senate confirmed Jacob Lew as the next U.S. ambassador to Israel on Tuesday, filling a pivotal post in a 53-43 vote. Lew served as Treasury Secretary during the Obama administration. Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Rand Paul (R-KY) were the only Republicans who joined all Democrats in voting to confirm Lew. 

Pakistan is moving to expel 1.7 million undocumented migrants from the country, forcing many Afghan refugees to return to Taliban rule. 

The Supreme Court heard arguments on Tuesday in a pair of cases based in California and Michigan dealing with whether or not public officials can block their critics on social media. 

Disgraced FTX founder and fraudster billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried concluded his defense testimony in his fraud trial on Tuesday, saying he feels “regret” for not looking into the $8 billion his hedge fund borrowed from his company before it collapsed. Whoopsie-daisy!

A retired Republican state senator from North Dakota, 79-year-old Ray Holmberg, was arrested on Monday and charged with traveling to Europe with the intent of paying for sex with a minor, as well as soliciting images of child sexual abuse. 

Tesla won its first U.S. trial on Tuesday over allegations that its Autopilot feature led to a death. The automaker, led by CEO and our Least Favorite Guy Elon Musk, faces several other similar lawsuits across the country. 

The Screen Actors Guild announced late on Monday night that the union and the studios remain far apart on key issues. The two camps met again on Tuesday.

This newsletter is sponsored by BetterHelp.

When you're at your best, you can do great things. But you can’t always be at the top of your game, and it’s normal to feel overwhelmed or like you aren’t showing up in the ways that you want to sometimes. Working with a therapist can help you get closer to the person you want to be. Because when you feel empowered, you can take on whatever life throws at you.

If you’re thinking of starting therapy, BetterHelp is a great option. It’s convenient, affordable, and entirely online.
 

Just fill out a brief questionnaire to get matched with a licensed therapist based on your unique needs and preferences. Then you can start communicating with your therapist in whatever format works for you – via video, phone, or live chat sessions. If your first match isn’t the perfect fit, switch therapists any time at no additional charge.

Life is unpredictable, and it’s impossible to know what’s around the corner. Consistency has to come from within. Find your empowerment, so you’re ready for anything that comes your way.
 

Visit BetterHelp.com/WAD to get ten percent off your first month.

The Justice Department urged a federal judge on Tuesday to block a multi-billion dollar acquisition of Spirit Airlines by JetBlue Airways. President Biden’s DOJ argued that the merger will lead to higher fares and fewer flights for consumers, continuing its commitment to enforcing antitrust legislation. 

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT) filled in last-minute to emcee the bipartisan Washington Halloween dog parade after Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) came down with Covid. Man, Romney is really taking this whole “retirement victory lap” to new heights. 

Happy Halloween!! Don’t let the loudest person you know on social media convince you of the “drug-laced candy” myth.