June 16, 2021: Biden And Putin Talk Nukes; Trump Pressured Rosen On Election; NY CA Lift Restrictions

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TODAY'S HEADLINES:


Nuclear weapons are high up on the agenda as the presidents of
the United States and Russia meet today. Former top military
commanders and diplomats from both countries have been urging the
leaders to cooperate to reduce the size of nuclear arsenals.


Meanwhile, emails just released by House
Democrats investigating the January 6th Capitol insurrection show
how Donald Trump tried to get the Justice Department to help
overturn last November’s election. The details are as loopy as
you might imagine.


And lastly, two of the biggest states, New York
and California, have lifted many pandemic restrictions thanks to
progress in their vaccination campaigns. Covid will be with us
for a long time, but public health measures are working, and the
return to normalcy is happening just about on schedule.


THESE ARE THE STORIES YOU NEED TO KNOW:


This read on the day’s big diplomatic news comes from Politico.
Expectations are low that Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin can reach
any significant accommodation during their first presidential
summit today in Geneva – with one possible exception: nuclear
arms control. Washington and Moscow have publicly expressed a
desire to use the summit to reestablish formal talks on the
issue. In the days leading up to the tense meeting, ex-defense
chiefs, foreign ministers and retired nuclear commanders from
both nations also proposed a series of steps the two leaders
could take to help constrain the world’s deadliest arsenals.
Those steps range from a simple pledge to resume regular
negotiations, to a more ambitious public commitment to reduce
current arsenals as a goodwill gesture.


Politico says no one is banking on detailed agreements to emerge
from Geneva. The definition of strategic threats has only grown
more complex now that cyber attacks, political warfare and other
forms of mischief can destabilize entire nations. But both
governments have been striking a similar tone in recent days on
the nuclear front, at least rhetorically. National security
adviser Jake Sullivan expressed the administration’s desire to
get back to a regular dialogue with Moscow on nuclear matters.
Sullivan’s comments came a day after


Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also hinted at a desire to
reach common ground on nuclear issues. The two countries may
never agree on some things, but if Biden and Putin can agree to
keep a lid on the nukes, that’s no small victory.


Trump Pressured Rosen On Election


This deep dive into Donald Trump’s outbox comes from the
Washington Post. Trump’s staff began sending emails to Jeffrey
Rosen, the Number Two at the Justice Department, asking him to
embrace Trump’s claims of voter fraud in the 2020 election at
least ten days before Rosen assumed the role of acting attorney
general. That’s according to new emails disclosed by the House
Committee on Oversight and Reform. On the same day as the
electoral college met to certify the election results, Trump’s
assistant sent Rosen an email with a list of complaints
concerning the way the election had been carried out in Antrim
County, Michigan. The file included a so-called forensic analysis
of the Dominion Voting Systems machines the county employed,
alleging they were calibrated to create fraudulent results. The
claims were false.


According to the Post, the email sheds light on the type of
pressure Trump was putting on the Justice Department to take up
his crusade against Joe Biden’s 2020 victory. The campaign
swiftly accelerated once Rosen was appointed acting attorney
general. On January 1st, former White House chief of staff Mark
Meadows forwarded Rosen a YouTube link. The subject line
suggested it was a video in which a retired CIA station chief
argued that the 2020 election totals were altered by the
Italians. Rosen forwarded the email to his acting deputy, Richard
Donoghue, who responded simply: QUOTE Pure insanity ENDQUOTE. So
Trump’s flunkies knew his election lies were crazy, but said
nothing. More like pure cowardice!


New York, California Lift Restrictions


It’s a mixed bag on the pandemic front. The Associated Press
reports that the US death toll from Covid-19 topped six hundred
thousand yesterday. That’s the bad news. But the good news is
that the vaccination drive has drastically brought down daily
cases and fatalities and allowed the country to emerge from the
gloom and look forward to summer. The milestone came the same day
that California and New York lifted most of their remaining
restrictions, joining other states in opening the way, step by
step, for what could be a fun and close-to- normal summer for
many Americans.


The AP says that with the overall picture improving rapidly,
California – the most populous state and the first to impose a
coronavirus lockdown – dropped state rules on social distancing
and limits on capacity at restaurants, bars, supermarkets, gyms,
stadiums and other places. They’re billing it as California’s
Grand Reopening, just in time for summer. Disneyland is throwing
open its gates. Fans will be able to sit elbow-to-elbow and cheer
without masks at Dodgers and Giants games. In New York, Governor
Andrew Cuomo said yesterday that seventy percent of adults in the
state have received at least one dose of the vaccine. And he
announced that the immediate easing of many restrictions will be
celebrated with fireworks. Massachusetts and Kansas yesterday
lifted their states of emergency. And Maryland’s governor
announced that the emergency there will end on July 1, with the
state no longer requiring masks. It’s time for slightly socially
anxious barbecues!


AND NOW FOR SOME QUICKER QUICKIES:


According to the Washington Post, more than forty million
Americans are in the crosshairs of triple-digit heat this week,
with some spots soaring over one hundred and twenty degrees. The
heat in many areas is dangerous, prompting excessive-heat
warnings in seven Western states. So there you go, homebodies: an
excuse to stay inside post-vaccination.


Stars and Stripes reports that Connecticut Democratic Senator
Richard Blumenthal yesterday called on US Army leaders to
investigate a QUOTE blood curdling ENDQUOTE news report that
found nearly two thousand military firearms went missing during
the last decade. An Associated Press investigation found that
some of the lost or stolen firearms turned up at the scene of
violent crimes. Whoops!


The Los Angeles Times reports that Harvey Weinstein will soon be
extradited to California to stand trial on charges that he
sexually assaulted five women in LA and Beverly Hills. A New York
judge’s ruling yesterday sets the stage for a second trial
focused on the mogul’s alleged pattern of sexually abusing
actresses and models. That’d make two trials and, let’s see...
eighty victims. Sounds like Harvey’s still ahead!


NBC News reports that the manager of a New York City Shake Shack
said he was unlawfully detained and taunted by police after he
was falsely accused last year of poisoning three officers'
milkshakes. The manager, Marcus Gilliam, is now suing members of
the New York Police Department, seeking damages for defamation
and deprivation. Thank you for your service, Mister Shake Shack
Manager, sir.


The New York Times reports that President Biden has named Lina
Khan, a prominent critic of Big Tech, as the chairwoman of the
Federal Trade Commission. Her appointment was a victory for
progressive activists who want Biden to take a hard line against
big companies. Let's hope she makes Mark Zuckerberg sweat -- I
mean, even more than usual.


AM QUICKIE - JUNE 16, 2021


HOSTS - Sam Seder & Lucie Steiner


WRITER - Corey Pein


PRODUCER - Dorsey Shaw


EXECUTIVE PRODUCER - Brendan Finn