Crooked Media - What A Day: Oh hi, Ohio!

It was a terrible night for the haters and losers! (Republicans)
 

• Especially considering Tuesday was an off-year election, Democrats had a pretty great night. In a major victory for reproductive rights, Ohio’s ballot measure codifying abortion into the state Constitution passed, and Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) won reelection in deep-red Kentucky. A Democrat also won an open seat on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court after campaigning on a pledge to uphold abortion rights. Ohio also legalized recreational marijuana use, so we raise a hang-ten sign to the Buckeye State. 
   

• What’s more, Democrats took full control of the Virginia statehouse, flipping the House and retaining their majority in the state Senate. This will block Republicans—including Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA)—from being able to pass new abortion restrictions, something Youngkin had promised to do. For months, news outlets have been breathlessly talking up the possibility that Youngkin could be a late entry into the GOP presidential primary. Last night put that possibility to rest. 
   

• In one year, voters will head to the polls across the United States for the 2024 presidential election. Neither party has officially nominated a candidate, but the overwhelming likelihood is a rematch between President Biden and disgraced former president Donald Trump. President Biden’s razor-thin lead in most polls evaporated in October, particularly among demographic groups crucial to his win in 2020. The latest CNN poll shows Trump edging him out by four points among registered voters.

The past few weeks have seen under-reported electoral victories as well: School board seats. 
 

• Voters across the country issued a loud rebuke of conservative candidates in local school board elections. School boards, once largely nonpartisan, have in recent years become culture war hotbeds, and the breeding ground for hundreds of book bans and restrictions on how schools can talk about race and gender, if at all. The American Federation of Teachers said that candidates who publicly endorsed conservative groups like Moms For Liberty and the 1776 Project lost about 80 percent of their races nationally. 
   

• American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten said that voters “don’t want to engage in this banning of books or censoring of honest history or undermining who kids are,” and characterized the candidates who did win as “pro-public school.” Hell yeah! There were some exceptions, however. In York County, PA, the 1776 Project reported on social media that 36 of the 37 candidates they endorsed had won. Conservatives also took control of the school board in Cypress-Fairbanks, TX, the state’s third-largest district. 

Tuesday night’s results show that there are major galvanizing political issues that can propel Democrats towards more victories in 2024 and beyond. It’s up to the Biden administration to win back the trust of the voters who put them in office, and deliver for the people who come out to vote for Democratic policies.

The third and (thankfully!) final GOP Primary debate is happening tonight. But no need to lose brain cells watching it. Catch tomorrow’s Pod Save America episode for some sweet political analysis, everything you missed from the debate, and hear election day reactions from Dan, Favreau, and Tommy. All in one place! New episodes of Pod Save America drop every Tuesday & Thursday.

At least 19 people were killed on Wednesday in an alleged Israeli airstrike on a house near a hospital in Gaza’s Jabalia refugee camp. The Israeli government did not immediately comment on the attack. If confirmed, it would be the third strike on Gaza’s largest refugee camp in just one week. Strikes on October 31 and November 1 flattened multi-story buildings and killed at least 195 civilians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The Israeli government said that the attacks killed two Hamas commanders and an unspecified number of militants. Thousands of civilians continued to flee southward under Israeli orders to evacuate the northern half of the territory, though airstrikes continued on southern neighborhoods as well. 

Qatar has continued to mediate discussions between Hamas and Israel, with the United States also coordinating. Current negotiations aim to release 10 to 15 hostages held by Hamas in exchange for a 1 to 2 day humanitarian pause in fighting, Reuters reported a source as saying. In recent days, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly rejected calls for a pause unless hostages are released first. The United States is pressuring Israel to accept the proposed deal, Reuters reported an Egyptian security official as saying. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he had urged Netanyahu for a humanitarian pause. The foreign ministers of the G7 countries (the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, and Japan), gathered today in Tokyo, also issued a joint statement calling for a pause.

Disgraced former president Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka took the stand in his New York civil fraud trial on Wednesday and gave the old “I can’t recall” song-and-dance when questioned about his company’s fraudulent inflation of the valuation of his properties. 

Speaking of Trump, the Minnesota Supreme Court dismissed an effort to ban him from the state’s primary ballot on the grounds of the 14th Amendment. The amendment states that no one who has “engaged in insurrection or rebellion” after swearing to support and defend the Constitution can hold public office. 

The FDA approved a new diabetes drug for treating obesity patented by insulin maker Eli Lilly, paving the way for widespread insurance coverage for the expensive medication.

Sudanese paramilitaries have seized control of cities in the country’s western region of Darfur from the government army. This is the most significant military breakthrough by the Rapid Support Forces since the war began seven months ago, and may unleash a new spate of violence. Of the region’s five capitals, three of the five fell in quick succession over the past two weeks, and a number of major military bases have been captured or deserted. 

House Republicans continued their sham impeachment inquiry into President Biden, issuing subpoenas to his son Hunter and his brother James. 

Amazon has laid off more than 27,000 employees in the past year, with a new round of layoffs shrinking their Music division on Wednesday.

The three giant pandas in Washington’s Smithsonian National Zoo are headed to China after the country decided not to renew or sign any new leases with American zoos amidst growing tension between the two countries. Hey, leave the pandas out of this!

The House of Representatives voted to censure Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), the only Palestinian-American member of Congress, over her criticism of Israel. Despite a forceful defense from many of her Democratic colleagues, including Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), 22 Democrats voted to censure her. Tlaib defended herself, saying, “The idea that criticizing the government of Israel is antisemitic sets a very dangerous precedent. And it’s been used to silence diverse voices speaking up for human rights across our nation.” In the entire history of the House of Representatives, only 26 members have ever been censured. In February, Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), the only other Muslim woman in Congress, was removed from the House Foreign Relations Committee for her criticism of Israel.

Los Angeles isn’t known for being walkable. But the fantasy Los Angeles of our gay, progressive dreams? That’s a different story. 

Lace up a pair of Cariuma x Lovett Or Leave It kicks and step into a world where people can safely ride bikes while reading Gay News, dogs can surf, and the rant wheel has arms and legs. They’re the perfect shoes to kick off the fall, whether you’re gearing up for work, school, or another day of following your dog around until they poop.

Like all Cariuma shoes, they’re ethically and sustainably made with organic cotton canvas, natural rubber, cork, and recycled plastics. Plus, your pair plants two trees in the Brazilian rainforest through Cariuma’s in-house Ecological Restoration program. 

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The Screen Actors Guild bargaining committee approved a tentative deal with the studios to end the union’s historic strike. The deal must now be ratified by the union’s rank-and-file. 

Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta announced that it will require political campaigns to disclose their use of artificial intelligence in advertisements in an attempt to stem some of the more harmful effects of the technology ahead of the 2024 presidential election.