Will JLo and Shakira be great as Superbowl half-time performers? Will anyone ever top Michael Jackson's 1993 performance?

As for commercials, I have never remembered a single one other than the one with Cindy Crawford and I didn't see it while watching the Superbowl but years later on late night tv.

For those of you watching, feel free to share your thoughts. (I am not watching the game but have it playing on a TV in another room so I know when half-time begins -- the crowd sounds really loud). For those of you not watching, here's an open thread, all topics welcome. [More...]

Donald Trump's lawyers are a snooze. Listening to disjointed Sekolow is like listening to talk radio. Yesterday the lawyer I was listening to in the car who talked about the legal intent of the impeachment clause of the Constitution was very articulate but I thought his citing of the Federalist papers and quotes were selective and didn't paint a fair picture. He kept saying the House didn't give Trump a chance to fight the subpoenas in court before jumping to impeachment. Wasn't it Donald Trump's responsibility to go to court and seek to quash the subpoenas on privilege grounds? Did he do that? (I don't know the answer but I don't remember reading about a legal challenge).

Also, the lawyer kept repeating the equivalent of "good faith reliance upon advice of counsel" as a defense for Trump. Is that a defense to abuse of power? In criminal cases, that defense is usually limited to specific rather than general intent crimes (willfully vs knowingly). I don't see the willful intent in abuse of power (as opposed to obstruction of Congress by disobeying subpoenas but I'm following this sporadically so I may have missed something.

Trump lawyer Pam Bondi's attempts to smear the Bidens will likely only work with diehard Trump supporters who are already conspiracy theorists. But I still don't want Biden to be the nominee based on his horrendous 25 year record on crime legislation. (Bill Clinton has at least admitted the 1994 crime bill was a mistake.) [More...]

Donald Trump must be desperate to misdirect the world's attention from his impeachment trial. Today he upstaged his defense counsel by holding a presser with Benjamin Natanyahu to announce his middle-east peace plan.

He called it a two party solution but it is not.

Via the New York Times:

Rather than a serious blueprint for peace, analysts called it a political document by a president in the middle of an impeachment trial working in tandem with a prime minister under criminal indictment and facing his third election in a year in barely over a month.

Really shocking and sad news today that basketball legend Kobe Bryant, age 41, and his 13 year old daughter Gianna, as well as a teammate of Gianna's and her parent, a pilot, a baseball coach for a community college and others were killed in a helicopter crash today in Los Angeles. The New York Times has updates here.

You don't have to be a basketball fan to be stunned and saddened by this news. Heartfelt condolences to his wife Vanessa and their other children, Kobe's parents, former teammates, Gianna's friends and teammates and everyone who felt a special connection to them. As well as to the families of the pilot and other passengers on the plane.

May they all Rest in Peace. [More...]

It is hard to think of enough accolades for Adam Schiff's many presentations at the impeachment trial of Donald Trump. Update: An hour after writing this I have to take him to task for his cheap dig at criminal defendants in general. ("We all know if a defendant says he didn't do it, he didn't do it." (/snark)). Many who say they didn't do it in fact did not do it. Check the stats of the Innocence Project.) A much better way to make that argument is "It is true that some criminal defendants who insist they didn't do it in fact did not do it. Donald Trump would not be one of them."

Added: One other quibble: Schiff ended with the concept of a fair trial and said "Give America a fair trial." Sorry, but the Sixth Amendement guarantees a fair trial to the accused, the defendant on trial -- not crime victims. In fact, almost all of the Bill of the Ribhts is for the protection of the accused, not to protect crime victims.)

Republicans are too scared for their own hides to buck the Republican Party line. So Donald Trump won't be impeached. If they had an ounce of integrity they would vote to find Donald Trump's impeachment charges are high crimes and misdemeanors and have been proven. The penalty is not up to them, it's written in the Constitution. He shall be removed from office.

There can be only one way to make up for this, and that is for a Democrat to win the presidency in 2020 and appoint an attorney general who will seek and obtain an indictment against Donald Trump and Rudy Guiliani for the actions they undertook with respect to the Ukraine.

One small consolation: Donald Trump will never overturn the moniker that will forever be attached to his name: Donald Trump, impeached by the House of Representatives.

Donald Trump's impeachment trial begins with arguments about the rules. Here is the House Manager's Statement on McConnell's rules. The New York Times reports that McConnell made two modifications after objections: there will be three rather than two days of opening statements and all the documents and evidence from the House proceeding will be entered in the Senate proceedings. The amended version of Sen. Res. 483 is here.

The House Brief and Statement of Facts is here. It's reply to Trump's trial brief is here. [More...]

The New York Times has made its endorsements for Democratic candidate for President. It's picked two candidates, independently. (i.e., the Times is not suggesting a two women ticket). And those candidates are: Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren.

“There will be those dissatisfied that this page is not throwing its weight behind a single candidate, favoring centrists or progressives,” the board writes. “But it’s a fight the party itself has been itching to have” since Hillary Clinton’s defeat in 2016, “and one that should be played out in the public arena and in the privacy of the voting booth.”

.... “Ms. Klobuchar and Ms. Warren right now are the Democrats best equipped to lead that debate. May the best woman win.”

I agree. [More...]

Prince Harry today publicly addressed his sadness at not being able to continue working for the Crown as he and Meghan branch out to live their own lives.

Her Majesty the Queen issued this statement yesterday. It is followed by a statement from Buckingham Palace with the what Harry and Meghan are giving up. In addition to their titles and public funds, they have requested to repay the Crown for the cost of remodeling their residence at Frogmore Cottage ($1.3 million) which will continue to be their home when in England.

As agreed in this new arrangement, they understand that they are required to step back from Royal duties, including official military appointments. They will no longer receive public funds for Royal duties.

[More...]

Time for a new open thread. I know there's lots of attention being paid to the impeachment and Ukraine matters, but surely other things are happening.

This is an open thread, all topics welcome.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Roberts swore in the members of the Senate today as the impeachment trial of Donald Trump begins.

With great pomp and circumstance, the articles of impeachment were brought in by a team of 7 Democrats, and prior to reading them Adam Schiff called out:

“Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye,” the sergeant-at-arms declared, using language from another era to admonish the senators not to speak while Representative Adam B. Schiff, the lead impeachment manager, prepared to read the articles aloud. “All persons are commanded to keep silent upon pain of imprisonment.”

Also today, a GAO report was released finding that Donald Trump broke the law in withholding aid to the Ukraine.

The Parnas documents disclosed by the House y are pretty devastating to Rudy Giuliani and by implication, to Donald Trump. They are available here.

The worst may be that it appears from released text messages between Parnas and Robert Hyde that the former Ukranian ambassador Yovanovitch, who was fired by Trump, was being physically tracked. No wonder she testified she felt she was in danger. The Ukranian Government has initiated a criminal investigation to look into this.

But wait, like any good infomercial, There's More! Lev Parnas has completely broken with Trump and Rudy, says Trump was aware of the plan to get the Ukraine government to investigate Joe and Hunter Biden, and that he's now eager to cooperate fully with the Government. [More...]

The Democrats will debate tonight. You can watch at CNN. Those who will be on the stage:

Joseph R. Biden Jr.
Pete Buttigieg
Amy Klobuchar
Bernie Sanders
Elizabeth Warren
Tom Steyer

Who will glow and who will fade?
Will Bernie and Elizabeth make up?
Will Pete aim his fire at Biden?
Why are Amy and Steyer still here?

I'm glad Wolf Blitzer is moderating. [More...]