Odds and Ends — 1 December 2025

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s request on Sunday for a pardon that would short-circuit his long-running corruption trial was made in the dryly polite terms of a legal brief, not in the provocative language of a social-media post.
In its sheer audacity, however, it seemed ripped from the playbook of another leader who did not let multiple felony charges, or even a conviction, stop him from seeking power: President Trump.

No event better illustrates Mr. Sacks’s ethical complexities and how his intertwined interests have come together than the July A.I. summit. Mr. Sacks initially planned for the forum to be hosted by ‘All-In,’ which he leads with other tech investors. ‘All-In’ asked potential sponsors to each pay it $1 million for access to a private reception and other events at the summit ‘bringing together President Donald Trump and leading A.I. innovators.’
The plan so worried some officials that Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, intervened to prevent ‘All-In’ from serving as the sole host of the forum.

———— Putin&Krasnov vs. Ukraine ————

EU tells Trump: You can’t pardon Putin for war crimes in Ukraine

———— Hegseth on the Rocks ————

https://twitter.com/PhilEhr/status/1978955487551840580

https://twitter.com/rgoodlaw/status/1995171797084324001

https://twitter.com/SarahLongwell25/status/1995293658397184019

https://twitter.com/krassenstein/status/1994942503708250158

———— Mors Imperii ————

https://twitter.com/brianstelter/status/1995341606447198277

Trump Doubles-Down on Calling Tim Walz ‘Retarded’

Appeals Court: Alina Habba Disqualified to Be U.S. Attorney

The decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit was unanimous against the Trump administration, which has attempted to use a novel mechanism to place lawyers who have not received Senate approval into temporary U.S. attorney positions across the country.

https://twitter.com/BraddrofliT/status/1995201264410575035