memeorandum: Statement on Today's Actions by North American Aerospace Defense Command (U.S. Department of Defense)

8:00 AM ET, February 13, 2023

Top Items:

After Shooting Down Flying Objects, U.S. and Canada Have More Theories Than Answers — The U.S. and Canada are investigating three unidentified flying objects shot down over North America in the past three days. Militaries have adjusted radars to try to spot more incursions.

CNN:

US fighter jet shoots down airborne object over Lake Huron on Sunday — A US F-16 fighter jet shot down another airborne object over Lake Huron on Sunday afternoon at the direction of President Joe Biden, the Pentagon said. — Pentagon press secretary Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder said the object …

ABC News:

Military shoots down another high-altitude object, over Lake Huron, officials say — It's the latest in a string of such incidents. — Another high-altitude object was shot down on Sunday afternoon, this one over Lake Huron, three U.S. officials confirmed to ABC News, marking

Discussion: NOQ Report, Washington Post, The Hill, TASS, Balloon Juice, RedState, New York Daily News, The Liberty Loft, Raw Story, MLive.com, The Gateway Pundit, Vox, TheBlaze, NewsNation, CNBC and BRIGHT

U.S. Department of Defense:

Statement on Today's Actions by North American Aerospace Defense Command — Today at 2:42 p.m. ET, at the direction of President Biden, and based on the recommendations of Secretary Austin and military leadership, an F-16 fired an AIM9x to successfully shoot down an airborne object flying …

Discussion: The Hill, Washington Examiner, NewsNation, The Daily Caller, UPI and Insider

Reuters:

Ruling out aliens? Senior U.S. general says not ruling out anything yet — The U.S. Air Force general overseeing North American airspace said on Sunday after a series of shoot-downs of unidentified objects that he would not rule out aliens or any other explanation yet, deferring to U.S. intelligence experts.

Discussion: Insider, Mediaite, RedState, Bloomberg, Politico, The Daily Beast and Political Wire

Wall Street Journal:

Latest Flying Objects Shot Down Over North America Were Balloons, Schumer Says — F-16 fighter jet shoots down the object over Canadian airspace above Lake Huron — WASHINGTON—The U.S. shot down a fourth flying object Sunday afternoon over Canadian airspace above Lake Huron, a Congressman said in a tweet.

Discussion: Bloomberg, NBC News, CNN, Associated Press, Metro.co.uk, Daily Mail, Reuters, National Review, Axios, Fox News, RedState, TASS, The Gateway Pundit, Forbes, NewsNation, The Debrief, New York Post, TheBlaze, Washington Examiner, Politico, The Western Journal and The Hill

Wendy Wu / South China Morning Post:

China spots mystery object over waters near northern port city — An unidentified flying object was detected over waters near a northern Chinese port city close to the Bohai Sea, with local authorities saying they were ready to shoot it down, mainland media reported on Sunday.

Discussion: Bloomberg, ABC News and The Western Journal

Associated Press:
US jets down 4 objects in 8 days, unprecedented in peacetime

New York Times:

Jack Smith, Special Counsel for Trump Inquiries, Steps Up the Pace — Named less than three months ago to oversee investigations into Donald J. Trump's efforts to hold onto power and his handling of classified documents, the special counsel is moving aggressively.

Discussion: CNN, PoliticusUSA and Politico

David Edwards / Raw Story:
Special counsel ‘moving aggressively’ with ‘sprawling’ probe of Trump: report

Discussion: The Bulwark, CNN and Washington Examiner

Nate Cohn / New York Times:

Ron DeSantis Is Not Scott Walker — His support among Republicans at this early stage of the primary cycle puts him in rare company. — Is Ron DeSantis the next Scott Walker? It's a question I've been hearing a lot lately. — The premise is that there's an important similarity between the two …

New York Times:
DeSantis's Challenge: When, and How, to Counterattack Trump

Discussion: Insider and Mediaite

Mitra Assadi / All Access:

Our commitment to AP African American Studies, the scholars, and the field — Our commitment to AP African American Studies is unwavering. This will be the most rigorous, cohesive immersion that high school students have ever had in this discipline. Many more students than ever …

Discussion: Washington Post, National Review, New York Times, Frontpage Mag, CBS News, The Hill, Washington Examiner, Politico, Rolling Stone and Mother Jones

Joe Hernandez / NPR:
The College Board slams Florida for what it calls ‘slander’ of AP Black history course

Discussion: Insider

Jeffrey S. Solochek / Tampa Bay Times: College Board accuses Florida of political motivations in AP course dispute

Mesfin Fekadu / The Hollywood Reporter:

Rihanna Is Pregnant, Rep Confirms Following Super Bowl Halftime Show — A representative for Rihanna confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the singer is pregnant following her explosive performance Sunday. … Rihanna sang and danced to a number of her hits at the State Farm Arena in Glendale …

Liam Kerr / The Bulwark:

Socialism Sux — Every time a Democrat says “socialism,” a voter swings to the right. — Three years ago “socialism” was the most important subject in American politics. On the Democratic debate stage days before the New Hampshire presidential primary, candidates were asked if they would be concerned by a socialist nominee.

Marianna Sotomayor / Washington Post:

Hopeful freshman lawmakers run up against the reality of a divided House — First-time members from competitive districts ran on working across the aisle. Whether they can isn't clear. — In between new member orientation meetings late last year, incoming Rep. Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.) …

Victoria Guida / Politico:

While Biden celebrates a soft landing, the Fed's Powell is worrying — President Joe Biden is traveling the country touting the resilience of the economy and its remarkably booming job market. — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is sending a very different message …

New York Times:

A Yale Professor Suggested Mass Suicide for Old People in Japan. What Did He Mean? — Yusuke Narita says he is mainly addressing a growing effort to revamp Japan's age-based hierarchies. Still, he has pushed the country's hottest button. — Reporting from Tokyo — His pronouncements could hardly sound more drastic.

Discussion: Fox News, HotAir and Althouse