Fears are mounting about the possibility of a global Ebola outbreak. The CDC has already initiated various deterrents, including redirecting flights from the Democratic Republic of Congo and surrounding countries to Washington Dulles and Atlanta airports.
But fear not – the US has its best man on the job. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. yesterday told ABC News, with regard to Ebola, “we’re working on it.” This morning, he posted a 21-second clip on X in which he corners and catches two Black Racers with his hands during a visit to Dr. Oz’s home.
The clip is captioned, “Cheryl cheerleads the removal of a pair of Black Racers from Dr. Oz’s patio.” Several voices cheer RFK on as he smiles and proudly displays the snakes for the camera.
At the end, you can hear Kennedy’s wife Cheryl Hines insisting “honey, honey, let it go. Oh my God.”
In Africa, modern medicine often makes way for more esoteric, traditional remedies. As America faces up to the possibility of a rare sub-Saharan epidemic, it’s encouraging to see that its primary witch doctor is hard at work taming serpents. He may need to handle a few more snakes in the coming days.
On our radar
LET’S GET PHYSICAL President Trump had a physical exam at Walter Reed Medical Center this morning.
GREEN GREEN GRASS The Department of Homeland Security had to clarify which green-card applicants can stay in the US while filing, after a Friday bulletin suggested that all petitioners would have to leave and apply from outside the country.
ALABAMA SHAKES A federal court has blocked Alabama’s redistricting effort. The attempted change would have given Republicans an advantage in six of the state’s seven congressional districts.
Reptile fund
The reconciliation bill to fund ICE and Border Patrol faces fresh delays in the Senate. The vote on the bill has been postponed after GOP lawmakers revolted over the DoJ’s plans for a $1.8 billion fund to compensate victims of the “weaponization” of justice.
Lawmakers such as Senator Thom Tillis want conditions on who can apply – barring, for example, January 6 protesters who assaulted police officers – and are threatening to block the reconciliation bill until their concerns are addressed. “So the nation’s top law enforcement official is asking for a slush fund to pay people who assault cops? Utterly stupid, morally wrong – take your pick,” said Mitch McConnell.
A meeting between Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche and GOP lawmakers on Thursday to discuss these issues reportedly devolved into a shouting match. The term “reconciliation bill” is beginning to sound like a cruel joke.
Reports of the death of Vance 2028 are greatly exaggerated
Is the J.D. Vance 2028 presidential run over before it’s even started? That’s the suggestion in a piece from the Daily Mail’s Phillip Nieto, which describes the VP as “more isolated than ever” following Tulsi Gabbard’s forthcoming departure from the cabinet. “Vance is a non-event in the West Wing,” according to a “source close to the President.”
Nieto’s sources describe how the war in Iran changed the terrain for doves such as Vance and Gabbard and helped to elevate the more hawkish Secretary of State. “[Marco] Rubio has more mojo than Vance,” one White House insider says. “The President listens to him. Vance is out of step and has been for a long time.”
Team Vance, for what it’s worth, denounced the report as “just a flimsy compilation of completely illegitimate sources who have no idea what they’re talking about.”
President Trump has touted both Vance and Rubio as good 2028 options for the Republican party – and it would be some reversal for Vance to bow out now. It also does not seem likely that Vance would continue as VP were Rubio to be anointed as successor by Trump.
That said, there could be more eclectic contenders for the GOP nomination. “We’re Not Talking Enough About President Candace Owens,” declares a Sarah Longwell headline in the Bulwark. Cockburn thinks we’re talking about it just the right amount…
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