Eric Columbus

DEEP DIVE INTO SLUSH FUND! Read @annabower.bsky.social and me in @lawfaremedia.org as we explore what it is, where it come from, and what can be done about it. www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-...

(Jeopardy-host voice) "Former Vice President Dick Cheney and rapper Jay Z have this in common."

CURTAINS FOR ZOOSHA (G Flip must be short for "Grunt Flip")

Israel's election is tomorrow. My summary from recent polling and what to look for tomorrow TL;dr, Eisenkot opposition coalition 56 Netanyahu govt coalition 50 Arab parties = 14 (seem necessary for Eisenkot). And the 3.5% threshold is a big deal again. shugerblogcom.wordpress.com/2026/10/26/i...

Important reporting and it is wild that the relevant disclosure is “years later on tax returns” rather than “during the election.” A Democratic Congress could pass a law to fix that part.

You really need to work hard to be the most obsequious member of Trump’s cabinet — by, for instance, eating lunch at Cheesecake Factory and alerting Fox Business, so they can interview you in defense of Obama’s joke about the White House decor. Well done Secretary Bessent! Your move, Doug Burgum!

“We’re self-confident men,” says the guy who on Oct. 13 told a fan “I love you too sir. In a totally platonic way, to be clear. I'm the vice president, not James Talarico.”

A Catholic Latina might impose Shakira Law.

NEW: @lawfaremedia.org Editor in Chief (and my boss) @benjaminwittes.lawfaremedia.org joins @kennethroth.bsky.social @froomkin.bsky.social, Beverly Gage & others in a @knightcolumbia.org lawsuit challenging President Trump’s policy of expelling reporters from the White House.

ME: Sounds like he wants a — MY BRAIN: Don’t say it ME: He wants a MINAJ A TROIS

Look where Vance is headed right after the Serbian strongman loses. (Turns out there’s one in Montana, who knew?) flatheadbeacon.com/2026/10/23/v...

Lula Goes HARD

www.redbubble.com/i/art-board-...

At 1,319 words, is this cri de coeur about disrespect from Bill Maher his longest post ever? He even used two paragraph breaks! He's growing into the job.

🇧🇷🗳️ Et voilà, c'est fait : Datafolha annonce la réélection de @lulaoficialbluesky.bsky.social pour un quatrième mandat. Un incroyable retournement de situation trois semaines après un premier tour désastreux !

For some reason my top guy on the vote count in Brazil is French. (I started following him for the vote count in Hungary.)

this should be the link for today's 9th circuit hearing: www.ca9.uscourts.gov/cases/stream...

Delighted to see my old firm, WilmerHale, including the great former Solicitor General Seth Waxman, on the brief.

No one who voted to elect the last Democratic senator from Kansas is alive today.

Trump supporters delight in Trump’s cruelty, of course, but they also engage in their own vile speech and actions as a virtual initiation rite into the MAGA movement — it’s the way that they demonstrate that they have the "courage" necessary to take on the left. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/25/o...

In fairness (sorry), the film flatlined the second it expanded from 4 to 472 screens. It's not You Can See Everything; it's four hours, with good but not great reviews, about someone who's already in our faces 24/7. But I do think we should watch for how easy, or not, it becomes to stream or rent.

“.. Video footage, Sheriff Greene said, clearly showed a woman being punched in the face. ‘I know what people saw, and if I saw that video, too, I’d be like, ‘My God, why didn’t the police do anything?’” @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/10/24/u...

Blanche thinks we can’t read his lawsuit. He’s plainly trying to stop the certification of Alaska’s election depending on how it turns out. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Has anyone asked Ramaswamy how much he or his campaign paid this elderly, destitute woman to appear in his ad? bsky.app/profile/bgru...

Trump take treat apnews.com/article/hall...

Same energy

These lines were in RFK Jr's inaugural speech as HHS Secretary in February 2025. No idea why Trump is repeating them now.

It's only 1:30pm but I'm pretty sure this is the most interesting article I'll read today (h/t @johnthorn.bsky.social) www.jta.org/2026/10/23/s...

Over on the bad site, a defense of the ad featuring Amy Acton's mother is that Acton's story doesn't make sense because someone can't just escape justice by leaving the state for such a serious crime. That's simply not true. Over a decade ago @bradheath.bsky.social did a great piece on this:

@annabower.bsky.social, @ericcolumbus.bsky.social, and @mollyroberts.bsky.social weigh the strengths and weaknesses of Comey's motions to dismiss the indictment against him over a "86-47" seashells post and discuss what they reveal about the government’s investigation and theory of the case.

Furthermore—Alaska has ranked-choice voting! Anyone confused about the Sullivans can rank them 1-2, and the order doesn't matter, because the minor Sullivan will be eliminated before the final tabulation!

Hmm I wonder who this "impartial American media organization" will be www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-st...

Great piece on a reporter who tells the truth about Ukraine to an audience in thrall to a leader who spouts endless lies on the subject.

the sheep detectives 2: ewe can see everything

Yes, brilliant move sir! Take the single most repulsive Republican campaign ad of my entire life and make it national issue for the whole party! Genius!

Trump applauds Ramaswamy’s attack on a 12-year-old rape victim