Today’s edition of quick hits.
* An extraordinary scene in Minnesota: “Thousands of protesters shut down parts of Minneapolis and St. Paul on Friday as hundreds of businesses closed their doors, and workers and students stayed home to demand an end to the sweeping immigration crackdown that has roiled the Twin Cities for weeks.”
* Sounds like a death sentence: “The Trump administration plans to deport at least 40 Iranian nationals back to Iran as early as Sunday, according to three sources with knowledge of the flight, the first known deportations to the country since President Donald Trump threatened its leaders over their treatment of protesters.”
* The fact that the European Union found it necessary to hold an emergency meeting in response to radical threats from the U.S. is itself remarkable: “Following an emergency summit on the state of the trans-Atlantic relationship, European leaders announced that they would soon propose an investment package for Greenland and would direct part of a surge in security spending toward the Arctic.”
* Speaking of Europe: “President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine used a blunt speech before the world’s political and business elites on Thursday to take aim at European countries, denouncing their inability to stop Russia’s aggression and their timid response to President Trump’s threat to seize Greenland.”
* Ever get disinvited to a party that you didn’t want to go to anyway? “President Trump rescinded on Thursday his invitation for Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada to join his “Board of Peace,” an organization that he had founded to oversee a peace deal between Israel and Hamas in Gaza but that he has now tried to broaden into an institution to rival the United Nations.”
* When the administration tries to prosecute journalists, pay attention: “A federal magistrate judge in Minnesota refused to approve a criminal complaint against the former CNN anchor Don Lemon in connection with a protest at a church in St. Paul, according to people familiar with the matter.”
* The latest War Powers Act vote in the House: “The House on Thursday just barely defeated a resolution that would have barred President Trump from taking further military action in Venezuela without congressional approval, weeks after he ordered a raid there without consulting or winning approval from lawmakers. The measure failed in an unusual tie vote of 215 to 215, with two Republicans crossing party lines in favor.” * The future of TikTok: “President Donald Trump and TikTok said Thursday that the company had formed a joint venture to keep the video-sharing app operating in the U.S. under new American leadership.” * On Thursday night, Trump accidentally said, “Peace is so destructive for everyone.” If recent history is any guide, the White House will insist that this wasn’t a mistake. Have a safe weekend.
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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