The US will back a joint international effort to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16 and other modern fighter jets, according to a western official.

Joe Biden has already informed fellow leaders attending a G7 summit in Japan of his decision, the official said. The training will begin in the next few weeks at an unspecified site in Europe and will take a few months to complete. Such training would be a prerequisite to the transfer to Kyiv of F-16s and other western warplanes.

The decision represents a dramatic shift in stance by Washington, which had previously presented the supply of F16s to Ukraine as unfeasible. The speed of the U-turn took some allies by surprise.

There had been reports that the US would give a green light for other states to make preparations to supply western fighter jets, but even close allies did not expect Biden to support direct US involvement in a training programme.

“Things are moving really fast in Japan. Faster even than we had dared hoped,” one European diplomat said.

More at https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/19/us-indicates-will-not-block-european-countries-export-f-16-jets-ukraine?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

…No publicly traded company would consider naming Trump to an executive position, or even to a position on its board. None of his billionaire friends would trust him with their money. Even in our debased political culture, the cascade of rape allegations and indictments would force Trump’s resignation as a senator, governor, or legislator.

Trump would not be allowed to own an NFL, NBA, or MLB team, and no one would even think of giving him a management job at a local Burger King. It’s impossible to imagine him being given any position of authority at any school or university in the United States.

…At this point, the Senate would be unlikely to confirm Trump’s appointment to any other position of trust. Someone with Trump’s character would not be granted a security clearance at any level of government. We wouldn’t let the man babysit our children or even walk the dog. We would definitely not buy a used car from the guy. But we might give him back the nuclear codes and control over the military, the FBI, the CIA, the IRS, and the Department of Justice. Americans might make him, once again, the face of America.

…After the release of the Access Hollywood tape, the GOP decided that character did not, after all, matter. Seven years later, neither the indictments for paying hush money to a porn star nor the accusations of assault—and rape—are disqualifying for Republican voters. In the 2024 contest for the presidency, they hardly even register.

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2023/05/trump-reelection-2024-assault-allegations/673957/

NEW YORK — A writer suing Donald Trump took the stand Wednesday to tell jurors that the future president raped her after she accompanied him into a department store fitting room in 1996.

"I'm here because Donald Trump raped me, and when I wrote about it, he said it didn't happen. He lied and shattered my reputation, and I'm here to try and get my life back," she testified.

Trump denies E. Jean Carroll's allegations. He hasn't attended the trial thus far, but his lawyers said Tuesday it's still possible he could decide to testify.

More at https://www.npr.org/2023/04/26/1172189592/e-jean-carroll-rape-lawsuit-trial-trump

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) took to the airwaves yesterday in defense of Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), arguing that it’s up to Feinstein to decide if and when she leaves office before the end of her term. Gillibrand says that many other senators have had serious illnesses that have kept them away from the Senate. “They all deserve a chance to get better and come back to work. Dianne will get better. She will come back to work.” This is not a strong or good argument.

…First, the Democrats have a 51 seat majority. Every day she’s absent makes confirming judges significantly harder. That is especially because she is not only one vote in the Senate. She’s also a critical vote on the Judiciary committee. Without her present, Democrats need at least one Republican vote to advance nominees to the floor. Given GOP control in the House confirming judges is the main thing the Senate is doing now. Every day she’s away is a big deal and she’s been away since February. Feinstein has asked that she be temporarily replaced on the Judiciary Committee. But Republicans have the power to block that move and almost certainly will do so.

…Second, this isn’t a matter of cutting short a Senate career over one illness. Feinstein has already announced she’s not running for reelection. So this would only be ending her Senate career about 18 months ahead of schedule. This is quite different from the time Sen. Lujan (D) of New Mexico, then age 49, was absent from the Senate after suffering a stroke in early 2022. He’s at the start of his Senate career and there’s every reason to think voters might return him to office for decades into the future. He’s thirty nine years younger than Feinstein. Similar facts apply to Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) and his recent absence for treatment of clinical depression. The facts are just totally different.

Third – really the elephant in the room – while we have no formal diagnoses there is quite a lot of evidence that Feinstein is no longer truly capable of carrying out her Senate functions. There appears to be almost universal agreement that she’s suffered a precipitous cognitive and physical decline in recent years. If she were present in the Senate it’s likely that staff and colleagues could pick up the slack and cover for her. But that’s not the case. Taken together, these three facts make Feinstein’s situation categorically different even from Senators who have had to take lengthy time away from the Senate to recover from illness. There’s simply no argument for her remaining in office beyond personal pride and the awkwardness of the situation for those around her.

https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/gillibrands-weak-defense