A Ball in a China Shop -- What POTUS45 Didn’t Do

Remember when UCLA players LiAngelo Ball, Jalen Hill, and Cody Riley were arrested and detained on shoplifting charges in November while in China for a game? And Donald Trump took credit for intervening and negotiating the players’ release? And preemptively complained that the players would likely not even thank him -- which, of course, they did? Turns out they might have thanked him for no reason. A new report from ESPN finds that the charges had been dropped and the players’ passports returned two days before the White House told them it was involved. A source told ESPN that the players' return flights were already secured by the time WH Chief of Staff John Kelly called to tell the players that the White House was getting involved. The players were released on bail within 24 hours, but UCLA officials reportedly appeased Chinese officials by agreeing to keep the players in China an extra 72 hours after the rest of the team returned home to “avoid the perception that they got off easy.” The incident happened on a Tuesday, and the players returned to the U.S. exactly a week later. More here.