Short Takes – 1-4-23

McCarthy allies, opponents signal optimism to breaking House Speaker deadlock. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: “In the final two ballots, a 21st Republican — Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.) — had voted “present.” She later explained that the reason was to entice GOP leaders to recess the House to allow Republicans to gather behind closed doors, and not “waste more time” on the House floor.”

Three scenarios for how the McCarthy Speakership fight could end. TheHill.com article. Pull quote: ““There have to be, in my view, at least two conditions that are met first [for Democratic support for Speaker]. They can’t hold this country hostage with the debt ceiling or government shutdowns. And second, they can’t have subpoena power to do frivolous investigations against the president,” Khanna said on CNN Tuesday evening.”

CSB Celebrates 25th Anniversary. CSB.gov article. Pull quote: “Board Member Sylvia Johnson said, “The CSB maintains its focus to deploy and move reports forward. Utilizing all our resources, we know that the agency can continue to stay on target and complete additional investigations in the first half of this year. We look forward to a productive and successful year.””

Ukraine Keeps Downing Russian Drones, but Price Tag Is High. NYTimes.com article. Pull quote: “Some of Ukraine’s antiaircraft guns, like the Gepard 2 radar-directed mobile gun system, are inexpensive in comparison with other Soviet-era and European defense systems being deployed. But some of the American-made interceptor missiles are fairly expensive compared with drones.”