Plus three more things you need to know today.
Trump delivers partisan, spiky State of the Union with no mention of impeachment
During Donald Trump’s third State of the Union address, extreme partisanship was on full display, from the president snubbing Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s handshake at the start to Pelosi ripping up a copy of his speech at the finish. In between, Trump touted disputed figures of economic success, bestowed talk radio conservative Rush Limbaugh with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and reunited a military family. Eight Democrats from the House of Representatives opted not to attend the speech, and two others walked out before the proceedings ended.
Buttigieg pulls ahead as Iowa releases partial results
Although the results of the Iowa Democratic Caucus are still emerging, Pete Buttigieg holds a slim lead over Bernie Sanders (who’s actually garnered slightly more votes), followed by Elizabeth Warren. Joe Biden rounded out the bottom of top contenders, failing to meet even the 15 percent viability threshold in some precincts. Biden’s campaign challenged the results, requesting the chance to respond to the numbers before the results were released—a request the Iowa Democratic Party appeared to disregard.
Senate expected to acquit Trump today
As the third presidential impeachment in U.S. history closes today, the Senate vote is expected to fall well short of the two-thirds majority necessary to secure a conviction. Rep. Adam Schiff, who led the Democratic trial managers, warned senators of acquitting Donald Trump. “He has compromised our elections and he will do so again,“ said Schiff.
Nominee for top Pentagon job blamed immigrants for mass killings
J. David Patterson, nominated for the Pentagon’s second-highest personnel role, is withdrawing from consideration after a 2017 op-ed he and a partner wrote for conservative website The Federalist resurfaced. In it, Patterson blamed the surge of mass killings on multiculturalism and the failure of immigrants to assimilate. “Multiculturalism is the antithesis of what the United States stands for,” the op-ed reads. Patterson was a colonel in the Air Force and served in the Pentagon before under George W. Bush.
Emiene Wright Emiene Wright is associate editor at Cardinal & PIne. Before that she was on the 24-hour news desk of the Miami Herald and the Detroit Free Press, and her writing has been featured in Crisis, the Charlotte Observer, and Our State magazine.
