More hostages were released on Wednesday as the clock ticked towards the end of the Israel-Hamas truce.

Wednesday, November 29, 2023
BY JULIA CLAIRE & CROOKED MEDIA

- Rep. Guy Roeschenthaler (R-PA) ([link removed]) , trying to dunk on Biden but missing a few zeros. Math is hard!

The clock may be running out on the temporary ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

* The extended pause in fighting to swap hostages held by Hamas for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons continued on Wednesday, when the militant group released an additional sixteen hostages. ([link removed]) Hamas claimed that a family of Israeli hostages—the youngest of whom was a ten-month-old baby—was killed during an Israeli bombardment, although that assertion has not yet been verified. Relatives of the family said they had been informed of the report and were “waiting for the information to be confirmed and hopefully refuted by military officials.”

* Israel released 30 Palestinian prisoners (16 minors and 14 women) on Wednesday night. The truce is now set to expire on Thursday morning, but Palestinian officials said that negotiations for a possible extension are ongoing. Before October 7, the United States had been trying to normalize relations between Arab states in the Persian Gulf and Israel. Now, those tentative ties are being strained ([link removed]) . The U.S.-backed vision for regional cooperation in the Middle East that prioritizes economic ties over religious and political differences may have now become something of a Western diplomatic fantasy.

* Speaking of strain, the U.S. relationship with Iran continues to grow increasingly fraught, after Iranian-backed militias launched 70 rocket and drone attacks against American troops in Iraq and Syria in the past seven weeks. The Pentagon responded with four rounds of airstrikes, killing at least 15 people, according to U.S. officials. National security officials fear that a single miscalculation amidst the escalating attacks could trigger a larger conflict in the region ([link removed]) , despite the fact that both countries say they don’t want that to happen.

Back in Washington, Democrats are divided over next steps.

* The Israel-Hamas conflict has created tensions within the Democratic Party, and exposed a rift between the views of its base and those of elected officials ([link removed].) . Now, Democrats in Congress are at odds with each other and the Biden administration over whether to condition aid to Israe ([link removed]) l. The decades-long practice in Washington has been to approve massive amounts of military funding for Israel with very few asterisks. But as the civilian death toll in Gaza continues to soar, Democratic lawmakers are increasingly voicing concern about how U.S. tax dollars will be allocated.

* At a closed-door meeting at the White House on Tuesday, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan met with some 20 Democratic senators who have expressed such concerns, several of whom said that any aid package to Israel should increase humanitarian assistance to Gaza and ensure that Israel is taking verifiable measures to minimize civilian casualties. The White House has requested $14.3 billion to fund Israel’s military campaign against Hamas as part of a national security package that includes additional billions to facilitate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

As the truce nears a possible ending, over 140 hostages remain in Hamas captivity. ([link removed]) The civilian death toll in Gaza now likely exceeds 15,000 ([link removed]) .

Don't forget, tomorrow Crooked is gearing up for another monster Group Thread event, this time covering the baffling-but-unmissable debate between Gavin Newsom and Ron DeSantis. Your favorite Crooked hosts and staff will be on the Friends of the Pod Discord ([link removed]) to watch, roast and provide real time commentary on the action. If you're not already a Friends of the Pod subscriber, head to Crooked.com/friends to learn more and sign up.
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The U.S. government disrupted a plot by an Indian government employee to assassinate a separatist dissident in New York City, according to U.S. prosecutors. The unnamed Indian official who allegedly orchestrated the plot is a self-described “senior field officer” responsible for intelligence. U.S. officials said an alleged middleman named Nikhil Gupta was tasked with hiring a hitman, and Gupta was arrested in Europe and has now been criminally indicted for attempted murder in the U.S.


The target of the alleged plot was a Sikh separatist who has advocated for the independence of part or all of the Indian region of Punjab. While he was not named by prosecutors, he was identified by senior Biden officials speaking to The Washington Post ([link removed]) as Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, general counsel for the New York-based Sikhs for Justice. The group has advocated for the creation of an independent Sikh homeland, which its proponents call Khalistan.

The alleged link between the Indian government and an assassination attempt on U.S. soil raises fresh tensions between the U.S. and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government. The White House said it raised the issue with senior Indian government officials, who supposedly reacted with “surprise and concern.” ([link removed]) But the incident comes soon after Canada claimed there was “credible” evidence tying India to the June murder of another Sikh activist in British Columbia. In both cases, Indian officials have denied any wrongdoing. Bumping off enemies of the regime is the kind of thing people associate with Russian President Vladimir Putin, rather than India’s Modi. But that may be changing.

Henry Kissinger, the only official in U.S. history to serve as both National Security Advisor and Secretary of State at the same time, and who served under both the Nixon and Ford administrations, died at the age of 100 on Wednesday ([link removed]) . He was associated with countless controversial policies like the bombing of neutral Cambodia ([link removed]) during the Vietnam War, orchestrating a coup in Chile ([link removed]) , and support for Argentina’s brutal military junta ([link removed]) . Some critics and historians have called him “cold-blooded,” “amoral,” and a war criminal ([link removed]) . We
see where they’re coming from!


Trump’s former U.N. Secretary Nikki Haley is making a steady climb in the GOP primary and has gotten a boost from a new influx of donors, but faces long odds to overtake her former boss ([link removed]) on the road to the convention.


Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) said he is considering dropping his ten-month blockade of military promotions “soon, but not today.” ([link removed]) Wow, thanks for nothing!


President Biden’s approval rating dropped to a tie with his personal low, just 37 percent ([link removed]) , with 59 percent disapproval.


Elon Musk got Big Mad at a question about companies who have boycotted advertising on his platform (because of the antisemitic posts and conspiracy theories he has amplified there). Musk responded that doing so was “blackmail” and told the companies, “Go fuck yourself. Go. Fuck. Yourself. Is that clear?” ([link removed]) I think we can all agree that men are too emotional to be running our nation’s businesses!

New GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson says he has “real reservations” over expelling Rep. George Santos (R-NY) ([link removed]) . We also have reservations because without him, how will we be entertained???

The average American household now has to spend an additional $11,434 per year just to maintain the same standard of living they had in January of 2021 ([link removed]) before inflation soared to a 40-year high, according to a new analysis from Republican members of the U.S. Senate Joint Economic Committee. Take any GOP-led analysis with a large grain of salt, of course. But the numbers from federal government agencies do show that inflation, particularly in the past three years, has created significant hardships for many working Americans. Hourly pay for workers has increased 13.6 percent since January 2021, but even that boost lags behind the 17 percent increase in inflation over the same period. The very highest earners continue to amass the largest share of overall earnings distribution ([link removed]) . Middle and low-income households
have been hit the hardest. Inflation is cooling rapidly, but many consumers may not be feeling relief because most prices on basics like food have not declined. The major exception to this rule is gas prices, which have consistently fallen month-over-month. In order to lock in the gains made by wage increases, and continue real economic recovery and growth, it might be a good time for Congress to finally raise the federal minimum wage, which has been a shameful $7.25 an hour for almost 15 years.
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High off of their historic wins with the Detroit Three automakers, the United Auto Workers union launched simultaneous public organizing campaigns at thirteen automakers, including Toyota, Volkswagen, and Tesla ([link removed]) . A UAW spokesperson said thousands of workers have already signed union cards. Let’s gooooo!

U.S. economic growth swelled to 5.2 percent in the third quarter ([link removed]) , faster than initially thought and the quickest in nearly two years.
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