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☆ Crab cakes, beef and banana splits: Biden's South Korea state dinner menu unveiled
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Jeff Mason | Thomson Reuters | Jeff Mason Is A White House Correspondent For Reuters. He Has Covered The Presidencies Of Barack Obama | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, April 24 (Reuters) - Guests at President Joe Biden's and first lady Jill Biden's state dinner with their South Korean counterparts will feast on Maryland crab cakes and braised beef short ribs followed by banana splits for dessert, the White House said on Monday. The meal itself will kick off with crab cakes along with cabbage, kohlrabi, fennel and cucumber slaw. "We hope to showcase the harmony of our cultures and our people intertwined," at the dinner, she said. The first lady worked with Chef Edward Lee, author of "Smoke & Pickles" and "Buttermilk Graffiti," along with the White House chefs to design the menu. "The first person I called was my mother," Lee said, noting she had immigrated to the United States from Korea.

☆ Airbnb CEO says his $75 billion company was rejected by investors—until a $40 box of cereal turned things around
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky and his two co-founders did it with $40 boxes of cereal. Specifically, they sold self-designed cereal boxes featuring then-presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain as a breakfast option in Airbnbs. The cereal proved popular, selling more than 1,000 boxes and making $30,000 for the company, Chesky said. It might have never happened without the cereal: Airbnb was rejected by multiple major investors during its first year of operations, Chesky noted in a 2015 Medium post. "The investors that rejected us were smart people, and I am sure we didn't look very impressive at the time," he wrote.

☆ With His Tale of Shipwreck, David Grann Is Steady as He Goes
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-14 | by ( Jennifer Szalai | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

THE WAGER: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder, by David GrannThere were multiple moments while reading David Grann’s new book, “The Wager,” about an 18th-century shipwreck, when it occurred to me that the kind of nonfiction narratives The New Yorker writer has become known for share something essential with a sturdy ship. A vessel freighted with historical controversy, tangled facts and monomaniacal characters needs to be structurally sound, containing and conveying its messy cargo. It should be resilient yet nimble enough to withstand the unpredictable waters of readers’ attentions and expectations. The men were survivors of the H.M.S. Wager, a British man-of-war that had left England nearly a year and a half before, part of a squadron that had been tasked with capturing a Spanish galleon filled with treasure.

☆ Trump again defends Putin and rips into DeSantis for calling him an 'authoritarian gas station attendant' and a 'war criminal'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ron DeSantis called Putin "basically a gas station with a bunch of nuclear weapons." Trump knocked DeSantis over the comments, claiming the rhetoric could lead to war. Trump has a long history of defending Putin and called his justification for invading Ukraine "genius." —Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) March 29, 2023Representatives for DeSantis and Romney did not immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment. In the interview last week in which he called Putin a war criminal, DeSantis said his comments had been "mischaracterized."

DeSantis' muddled messaging on Ukraine and the multiple legal investigations into Trump mean that this year’s primary race “is a vast sea of uncertainty,” said Whit Ayres, a Republican strategist and former DeSantis pollster. Metals magnate and donor Andy Sabin backed Trump in 2016 and 2020 but is now planning to spend money in the Republican primary on “anybody but Trump." Enthusiastic crowds of Trump supporters were mostly quiet when he mocked DeSantis at two recent rallies. For now, despite the volatility, Trump and DeSantis remain the two leading contenders, said David Tamasi, a Republican donor and lobbyist. "You have two candidates getting 75-80% of the vote," said Tamasi, who previously backed Trump but is not this time.

☆ After calling the Russia-Ukraine war a 'territorial dispute,' DeSantis says Putin is a 'war criminal' and 'basically a gas station with a bunch of nuclear weapons'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ron DeSantis called the Russia-Ukraine war a "territorial dispute" last week. When asked about the comment, DeSantis said Russia's invasion was "wrong" and Putin was a "war criminal." Ron DeSantis used some of his harshest words yet for Russian President Vladimir Putin and the invasion of Ukraine. DeSantis's comments come after he downplayed the US interest in the war, referring to it as a "territorial dispute" between Russia and Ukraine. When asked about his "territorial dispute" comment, DeSantis told Morgan his words had been "mischaracterized," adding that "obviously" Russia invaded last year, as well as Crimea in 2014, and was "wrong" to do so.

☆ Fact Check-A video clip does not show John McCain confronting Rand Paul for opposing Ukraine joining NATO
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A video from 2017 shows U.S. senator John McCain characterizing fellow senator Rand Paul as “working for” Russian President Vladimir Putin, after Paul said he objected to Montenegro joining NATO. The clip was shared on social media (here), (here), (here) with captions such as: “The late Sen. John McCain called out Rand Paul for objecting to the proposal for Ukraine join NATO. So, I repeat again, the senator from Kentucky is now working for Vladimir Putin.”But McCain and Paul were referring to the possibility of Montenegro, not Ukraine, joining NATO. A second video (here) from March 27 shows Paul saying that he opposed the U.S. committing to defend “yet another country” (at timecode 02:08:17). A clip shows John McCain confronting Rand Paul about his objection to Montenegro, not Ukraine, joining NATO.

☆ Italy's own version of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is shaking up politics in Rome
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Italy has a new face in its national politics that's being compared to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the popular Democrat lawmaker stateside. Elly Schlein was elected as the center-left party Partito Democratico (PD) leader earlier this month — the first female to get the job. Earlier in her political career, she volunteered in the 2008 Obama campaign, when Barack Obama faced off against John McCain. But the picture might be changing, with Rome electing the first female prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, in October. Giorgia Meloni and Elly Schlein are emblematic of that change," he added.

☆ US sanctions three people for abuse of Russian opposition politician
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Katharine Jackson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, March 3 (Reuters) - The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on three Russians it accused of serious human rights abuses against Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza, who was arrested last year after speaking out against the war in Ukraine. The U.S. Treasury Department said the sanctions target Elena Anatolievna Lenskaya, Andrei Andreevich Zadachin and Danila Yurievich Mikheev for abuses under the Global Magnitsky Act. Kara-Murza, who holds both British and Russian citizenship and was a pallbearer at the 2018 funeral of U.S. Senator John McCain, was a close aide to opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was shot dead in central Moscow in 2015. Kara-Murza has pushed for the U.S., Canada, European Union and Britain to use Magnitsky-style sanctions to target human rights abusers and corrupt actors in Russia, the Treasury Department said.

☆ Opinion | Can Nikki Haley Surprise the G.O.P. Field? Our Columnists Weigh In.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( New York Times Opinion | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Gray Not so long ago, the Republican National Committee was predicting continued electoral doom unless the party expanded beyond its mostly white base. Did Trump stamp out the ambitions of her generation for good, putting an end to the dream of a friendlier, more moderate Republican Party? Madrid Over 70 percent of Republican primary voters are white, so her candidacy will test the viability of a nonwhite candidate. Haley is too representative of the party elite’s desires to be seen as a plausible tribune of the working class. She is selling the idea that she is somehow both distinct enough to separate herself from the former president she continues to support and similar enough to win the nomination with this Republican Party.

☆ Ron DeSantis backed deep cuts to Social Security and Medicare while in Congress. Trump is ready to hammer him for it ahead of 2024.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Trump has made it clear that he will attack DeSantis' past support for changes to Social Security and Medicare. It would have also increased the full retirement age for Social Security to 70 as well. The AARP tore into Ryan's proposal at the time, particularly for its proposed changes to social security. Trump has made it clear that he would not propose cuts to Social Security and Medicare and is ready to attack 2024 nomination challengers who have in the past. Insider couldn't find any comments he made at the time, but he was far from the only Republican or even the only Florida Republican to vote against the bill.

☆ Meet Bernie Marcus, the Home Depot co-founder who is fearful of 'socialism' and 'woke' workers ruining America
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Ben Tobin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: 1 min

He has also actively given to Republican politicians, donating $64 million to political causes over the years such as the campaigns of former President Donald Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, and Sen. John McCain, according to data from the Federal Election Commission. Ric Feld, Evan Vucci/AP ImagesSource: Insider

In 2016, New Hampshire Republicans lifted Donald Trump’s candidacy after he lost in Iowa, becoming the first state to embrace the future president. Chris SununuWhile Trump is considered the early favorite, the doubters, naysayers and haters in the New Hampshire Republican Party could steer him off course. “Just fill in the blanks.”Sununu argued that New Hampshire Republicans are tired of drama and are ready for a new face. New Hampshire Republicans are reeling from the losses in November. I do not think it’s a foregone conclusion,” said New Hampshire Republican Mike Dennehy, a onetime adviser to the late presidential candidate Sen. John McCain.

WASHINGTON — Democratic Rep. Ruben Gallego announced Monday he will run for the Arizona U.S. Senate seat currently held by centrist Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who left the Democratic Party in December to become an independent. In his statement Monday, Gallego said: “The problem isn’t that Senator Sinema abandoned the Democratic Party — it’s that she’s abandoned Arizona. Karrin Taylor Robson, who narrowly lost to Lake in the 2022 primary after spending $20 million of her family’s money, is seriously considering a Senate run, a source close to her said. And Mark Lamb, the Pinal County sheriff, is also considering a Senate run in 2024, said an Arizona Republican source. A Gallego adviser said he's prepared for a two-way race if Sinema steps aside or a three-way race if she chooses to run.

Congress' failure to pass any meaningful immigration reform stretched to more than two decades in the last session, which ended last month. Here's a timeline of Congress' failure on immigration since President Bill Clinton left office. The bill passed the House, and the Senate passed the Comprehensive Reform Act of 2006, which was backed by the Bush White House. 2013 — With President Barack Obama in the White House, a bipartisan group of senators, nicknamed the Gang of 8, negotiated an immigration reform bill that was approved in the Senate. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., speaks about immigration reform legislation on Capitol Hill on April 18, 2013.

☆ Home Depot's 93-year-old cofounder who said 'nobody works' anymore because of 'socialism' has donated $64 million to elect Trump and the Republican party over the years
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Kelsey Vlamis | Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Bernie Marcus, the billionaire cofounder of Home Depot, said Thursday "nobody works" anymore. Marcus donated millions to Trump in 2016 and 2020, and more to other Republicans over the years. In an interview with the Financial Times published Thursday, 93-year-old Bernie Marcus said "nobody works, nobody gives a damn," blaming the change on "socialism." In 2020, he made two separate donations of $5 million each to the Preserve America PAC, a single-candidate PAC that supports Trump. Marcus has also donated extensively to House and Senate races, contributing to a long list of Republican lawmakers that includes Sens.

WASHINGTON — The 2022 midterm elections were full of surprises. Republicans began the year favored to notch big victories, yet they fell short and barely captured control of the House. Lake was widely seen as the election-denying candidate with the best chance to win a statewide race in a key battleground in the 2022 elections. Secretary of state contenders who echoed Trump’s fabricated claims of a stolen election lost, including Mark Finchem in Arizona, Kristina Karamo in Michigan and Jim Marchant in Nevada. Their wins led Democrats to win every competitive House race and gain control of the state House for the first time in more than a decade — although recent vacancies have called that majority into question.

☆ Kyrsten Sinema's party switch may make life that much harder for her already stressed out Hill staff
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Warren Rojas | Nicole Gaudiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Kyrsten Sinema's staff have had a tough time on Capitol Hill, with complaints of a "demoralizing" workplace. "He (and his staff) built a lot of good relationships with other senators and their staff," Overland wrote of the goodwill Lieberman had earned during his career. "Sen. Sinema has been in office less than one term and has been causing headaches for the party pretty much the entire time." A Sinema spokesperson declined to comment for this story. John LaBombard, Sinema's former communications director, said on Friday that Sinema told her staff about her decision in advance and he had not heard any negative reaction so far.

☆ Republicans struggle in the Southwest as Latino voters stick with Democrats
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-11 | by ( Natasha Korecki | Natasha Korecki Is A Senior National Political Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +10 min

It belies a conventional narrative that Democrats were universally ceding Latino voters to the Republican Party, a story line repeated throughout the run-up to the Nov. 8 midterms. Instead, indicators show the GOP in danger of losing Latino voters in this region, a prospect that could mean being boxed out of the Southwest for the long term. In New Mexico, the state with the most residents identifying as Hispanic or Latino in the country, Latino Democrats won nearly every statewide race. Even with some Latino voters staying home, NBC News exit polling showed that Cortez Masto won more than 60% of that vote. Still, there’s plenty of danger signs for Democrats when it comes to Latino voters, particularly among men.

Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema’s announcement Friday morning that she was abandoning the Democratic Party to become an independent may require Democrats to modify their catchphrase. Her desperate leap out of the Democratic Party will someday make a compelling story for her book. In response, the Arizona Democratic Party took the serious step of censuring Sinema for her behavior. She’ll almost certainly need to fend off that challenge without the institutional Democratic Party resources she would otherwise have enjoyed. Her desperate leap out of the Democratic Party will someday make a compelling story for her book.

☆ Kyrsten Sinema's Democratic defection without a difference
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Zachary B. Wolf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Specter’s switch from the Republican to the Democratic Party briefly gave Democrats a filibuster-proof majority and allowed them to pass the Affordable Care Act. Joe Lieberman, the moderate Democrat and former longtime senator, lost a Democratic primary in Connecticut in 2006, largely over his support for the Iraq war. A defection without a differenceArizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema appears to be different as she becomes the 22nd senator to change party affiliation while in office. A Senate independence trioSinema will be the first independent senator who isn’t from New England in more than a generation. The most complete political evolution may be that of Lincoln Chafee, the Rhode Island politician who was a Republican senator, independent governor and failed Democratic and Libertarian presidential candidate.

☆ How almost $427 million in taxpayer money is locked away in a forgotten government fund — and lawmakers won't spend it or return it
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( Dave Levinthal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

The intended beneficiaries of the taxpayer-fueled Presidential Election Campaign Fund — presidential candidates — don't want it, as they're soured by its restrictions on their election fundraising and spending. An accounting of the Presidential Election Campaign Fund, as of October 31, 2022. Several nonprofit leaders told Insider that Congress could use the Presidential Election Campaign Fund money to immediately ease suffering, particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the 2019-20 congressional session, two Republican lawmakers sponsored similar bills that attempted to kill the Presidential Election Campaign Fund. Until that or any other repurposing decision comes down, the FEC continues to spend taxpayer resources keeping the Presidential Election Campaign Fund alive.

The Cuban restaurant Versailles has been a fixture in Miami's Little Havana neighborhood for the last 50 years. Courtesy VersaillesIt's also drawn celebrities, including Beyoncé and Jay-Z, and has been a destination for international tourists looking to eat a Cuban meal or just hang out outside la ventanita, sipping a Cuban coffee, nibbling a guava pastry and absorbing the surrounding culture. Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain drinks a Cuban coffee with Felipe Valls Sr. during a campaign visit to Versailles in 2011. “This is kind of their ground zero, the epicenter of the Cuban American community. On its website, Versailles calls itself “the world’s most famous Cuban restaurant.”

Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola has won a full two-year term representing Alaska in the House, NBC News projected Wednesday, defeating former governor and GOP vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin. Shortly after news broke that she had won a full term on Wednesday night, Peltola tweeted "WE DID IT!!!" The outcome of the Nov. 8 election for the state's at-large House seat — as well as other contests, including for Senate — had been delayed for weeks because of Alaska’s new ranked-choice voting system where voters rank the candidates in order of preference. After the first round of voting, Peltola led Palin by more than 20 percentage points, with Republican Nick Begich, a scion of one of Alaska’s most well-known political families, in third. It means that a Democrat will hold the at-large House seat for the next two years, after Young and the GOP had controlled it for nearly five decades.

☆ Live Results: Mary Peltola defeats Sarah Palin and others: Alaska's at-large district US House election
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Hanna Kang | Katie Balevic | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola won against three others — including Sarah Palin — in Alaska's at-large congressional district. Alaska has only one congressional district and therefore does not go through a redistricting process. Democratic Rep. Mary Peltola of Alaska has defeated three challengers in Alaska's at-large congressional district general election — most notably former Gov. Palin, the former governor of Alaska, has known Peltola for years and served alongside her in the Alaska state house. Although Alaska's 2022 general election, much like the special election, will largely be centered around Peltola and Palin, Alaska's ranked choice voting system makes this a four-way race.

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