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It might be time for us to tweak our view of what happened in the 2022 elections. The widely accepted narrative has been that the midterms were a debacle for extremism, and certainly there were some key defeats of high-profile extremist candidates to back up that position. But when you drill down on the numbers, about 50% of all far-right candidates—election deniers, conspiracy theorists, white nationalists, and others—won their races or were essentially uncontested. The Speaker of the House vote demonstrates how much power the extremists still wield in the Republican Party. The GOP holdouts didn’t just “come around” to Kevin McCarthy on the 15th ballot; McCarthy gave up the entire farm to them. Thus, while Donald Trump as an individual may be fading somewhat from the political picture, the movement he started is alive and well. This makes a compelling case for why we need greater competition and choice in the political system, as well as the reforms needed to get there. Because if we keep going down this path, the far-right wing will continue to dominate one of America’s two major political parties. —Miles Taylor, Renew America Foundation
Republican House will vote on bills to curtail abortion and immigration — [ [link removed] ]NBC News [ [link removed] ]
U.S. Treasury to take ‘extraordinary measures’ to stay under debt limit — [ [link removed] ]The Washington Post [ [link removed] ]
No, the GOP isn't going to abolish income tax—or the IRS — [ [link removed] ]Insider [ [link removed] ]
Biden urges Congress to pass bipartisan tech legislation in WSJ op-ed — [ [link removed] ]CNN [ [link removed] ]
Legal woes grow for George Santos as another watchdog files complaint — [ [link removed] ]Roll Call [ [link removed] ]
Ricketts tapped to fill Nebraska's open Senate seat — [ [link removed] ]Politico [ [link removed] ]
Biden and Kishida to bolster U.S.-Japan alliance amid China’s growing power — [ [link removed] ]The New York Times [ [link removed] ]
Taylor Dudley, American held in Russia, is freed, U.S. says — [ [link removed] ]The Washington Post [ [link removed] ]
Israel’s outgoing army chief rebukes Netanyahu's far-right government — [ [link removed] ]NBC News [ [link removed] ]
New gun law: Over 2 dozen sheriffs refuse to enforce Illinois assault weapons ban — [ [link removed] ]ABC News [ [link removed] ]
One big headache
Things were starting to look up for Joe Biden. Inflation was beginning to trend down, his polls were beginning to trend up. But now, he finds himself embroiled in a scandal surrounding the handling of classified documents—something for which he has criticized his predecessor. Attorney General Merrick Garland named federal prosecutor Robert Hur as special counsel yesterday to determine whether the records from Biden's time as vice president had been improperly stored at his residence in Delaware and a think tank in Washington. The White House has pledged to fully cooperate with the probe. —Reuters [ [link removed] ]
How are they different? There are key differences between the Biden investigation and that of Donald Trump. For one, volume. The FBI eventually recovered more than 300 classified documents from Mar-a-Lago last year, compared to a couple dozen in Biden’s case. Another contrast is that Biden’s team quickly and voluntarily returned his documents to government custody, while prosecutors are investigating whether Trump or others actively obstructed government efforts to recover the secret papers. —The Washington Post [ [link removed] ]
What is Congress doing? House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers wrote to two Defense officials this week to request details on what the documents contained, and how they had been handled. And the House Judiciary Committee has launched its own investigation of the case. A letter from Chair Jim Jordan notes that the first tranche of Biden documents was discovered just before the midterm elections, and accuses the Justice Department of deviating “from how it acted in similar circumstances.” —The Guardian [ [link removed] ]
What does this mean for Biden? At best, the stunning development is an unwelcome distraction at an inopportune time that also muddies the case against Trump. It thrusts legal uncertainty over the sitting president and could revive debate among Democrats about the wisdom of Biden’s seeking a second term. The president has informally suggested that he plans to run again in 2024, and so far, no high-profile Democrats have indicated plans to primary him. But a federal probe just might motivate an insurgent candidate to accept that challenge. Stay tuned. —Associated Press [ [link removed] ]
MORE: Biden's whirlwind final days as vice president had aides scrambling to close his White House office — [ [link removed] ]CNN [ [link removed] ]
Montini: Why does Santos still have a job?
“You would be fired. I would be fired. He's in Congress. If any one of us told just one of the lies to get our jobs that [Rep. George] Santos told to get his position in Congress, we would be forced to resign or, more likely, fired on the spot. And for good reason. After all, if you lie to get a job, what would you do while on the job?” —EJ Montini in The Arizona Republic [ [link removed] ]
EJ Montini is a news columnist at The Arizona Republic.
MORE: The mysterious campaign fund that raised big money for George Santos — [ [link removed] ]The New York Times [ [link removed] ]
Ouch, that’s gotta hurt 
A state court in New York has ordered two companies owned by Donald Trump to pay $1.61 million in fines and penalties for tax fraud. The amount, the maximum allowed under state sentencing guidelines, is due within 14 days of today’s sentencing. "This conviction was consequential, the first time ever for a criminal conviction of former President Trump's companies," said Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. Earlier this week, the long-time chief financial officer to Trump's various business entities, Allen Weisselberg, was sentenced to five months behind bars for his role in the criminal scheme. Trump himself was not charged. —NPR [ [link removed] ]
MORE: Lawyers who enabled Trump in election plot face heightened risk of charges — [ [link removed] ]The Guardian [ [link removed] ]
Arizona plans to eradicate extremists 
Arizona may be MAGA Country, but some Republicans there are tired of losing elections with extremist candidates like Kari Lake and Blake Masters. They’ve formed a coalition with Democrats called Save Democracy Arizona to stamp out extremism through election reform. The group aims to put a question on the 2024 ballot that would open the state's primaries, allowing voters to cast their ballots for any candidate, regardless of party affiliation. The state’s current semi-closed primary system requires independents to register with a party to vote in presidential elections and request a ballot from a single party to vote in that party's nonpresidential primaries. Only 10% of independents actually do this, according to Save Democracy. The new system would give the 90% a voice and ultimately result in greater representation. Kudos to the Copper State! —NBC News [ [link removed] ]
MORE: Prosecutor: Proud Boys attacked 'heart' of democracy on Jan. 6 — [ [link removed] ]Associated Press [ [link removed] ]
Kelley: The problem with primaries 
“What’s wrong about the six states—like Iowa—who have a partially open primary or other states who embrace a similar closed system? Very simply, it permits the far-right wing and far-left wing candidates and their respective extremist minions to protect and elect oddballs to run for office. Meanwhile, the truly independent voters are left on the sideline without much say. Partisan primaries…disenfranchise voters. It’s a form of voter suppression and dissuades independents from voting. Low primary turnout means fewer voters are choosing their representatives, giving disproportionate influence to a small subset of voters.” —Doris Kelley in Times-Republican [ [link removed] ]
Doris Kelley is a former member of the Iowa House and former Iowa Board of Parole chair, vice-chair, and executive director.
MORE: Going backwards: House weighs making New Hampshire primaries closed to independent voters — [ [link removed] ]The Keene Sentinel [ [link removed] ]
McCabe: Maybe it’s finally time 
“Today, both major parties are highly unpopular with the American people. The ranks of the politically homeless are larger than ever. The two major parties are very different, and agree on almost nothing. But they do have one thing in common: Both are captives of wealthy donors. Both are widely perceived to be working to benefit a few at the expense of the many. Driving one or both of them to extinction will require a new party that does what the original Republicans did—unite people who disagree about many things but share a longing for a party that can be trusted to reliably act on their behalf on what matters most. Such a party doesn’t need an elaborate platform. It needs a genuine devotion to one simple principle: The will of the people should be the law of the land.” —Mike McCabe in More Verb Than Noun [ [link removed] ]
Mike McCabe is an author, social justice advocate, former candidate for Wisconsin governor, and the editor of the “More Verb Than Noun” newsletter.
MORE: In politics, nobody’s neutral. But a third party could prevent the next Speaker of the House fiasco — [ [link removed] ]Forbes [ [link removed] ]
Jim V. of New York, I think you are 100% correct. Bolsonaro should be on the first plane back to Brazil, and since we have so many jobs unfilled, why shouldn't migrants escaping poverty and violence be allowed to take these jobs? Americans don't want them. —Jean B., Kansas
The views expressed in "What's Your Take?" are submitted by readers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff or the Renew America Foundation.

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