The Death of Baghdadi: The leader of the Islamic State who wrought so much death, suffering, and destruction in the Middle East was killed in a US commando raid in Syria, President Trump announced yesterday from the White House.

  “Last night, the United States brought the world’s No. 1 terrorist leader to justice,” Trump said in a nationally televised address. “Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead.”

  Baghdadi was occupying a house in northwest Syria where it was surprising to find him. Some of the tipoff information appears to have come from Kurdish fighters. Trump also thanked Russia, Turkey, Syria, and Iraq for their cooperation — a lineup of authoritarian regimes.

  While Trump told Russia of the raid in advance, he later said he didn’t tell Congressional leaders because Washington is “a leaking machine.”

  Trump made the announcement with schoolyard braggadocio. “The thug who tried so hard to intimidate others spent his last moments in utter fear, in total panic and dread, terrified of the American forces bearing down on him,” he said. The President described Baghdadi’s followers as “losers” and “frightened puppies.”

  The operation involved US helicopters and a lot of firepower. Pictures show that the compound was reduced to rubble. At least five defenders were killed while there were no American casualties.

  Baghdadi is said to have retreated into a tunnel with three children and then detonated a suicide vest, taking the kids with him. Trump said quick tests on the body confirmed his identity.

  Trump said, Baghdadi “died after running into a dead-end tunnel whimpering and crying and screaming all the way.” Because that last information comes from Trump, you have to put it down as questionable.

Yes Man: In news that otherwise might have dominated the weekend, former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly said he warned President Trump that he would be impeached if he didn’t appoint a strong person to replace him.

  Kelly told an interviewer, “I said, whatever you do — and we were still in the process of trying to find someone to take my place — I said whatever you do, don’t hire a ‘yes man,’ someone who won’t tell you the truth — don’t do that. Because if you do, I believe you will be impeached.”

  Trump appointed Mick Mulvaney, the director of the Office of Management and Budget to be Acting Chief of Staff. Now Trump is on the road to impeachment.

  In keeping with the way the White House speaks of once-praised former staff members, Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said, “I worked with John Kelly, and he was totally unequipped to handle the genius of our great President.”

  She’s a yes m’am.

The Road to Impeachment: A former deputy national security adviser scheduled for impeachment testimony today has asked a federal judge to rule whether he must respond to the Congressional subpoena or obey President Trump’s order not to cooperate. Charles Kupperman asked whether he should assert “immunity from congressional process” as directed by the President.

   In an unusual Saturday session, Philip Reeker, a US diplomat who oversees European affairs, told House investigators that he tried to defend former ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch from a smear campaign but was overruled by top State Department officials.

  By some accounts, Yovanovitch was seen by Trump allies as an obstacle to the President’s back-channel foreign policy with Ukraine, including the freezing of nearly $400 million in military aid until Ukraine agreed to investigate Trump’s political rival Joe Biden and his son. 

  Democratic Rep. Stephen Lynch of Massachusetts said Reeker’s questioning lasted much longer than planned because it was “a much richer reservoir of information than we originally expected.”

  With the noose of impeachment tightening, Trump might be expected to be building a defense team, but he says he isn’t. During a press spray on Friday, Trump said, “But here’s the thing: I don’t have teams. “Everyone’s talking about teams. I’m the team.”

The Boos of October: President Trump was met with loud and sustained booing and shouts of “Lock him up!” last night as he appeared at the fifth World Series game between Washington and the Houston Astros.

  Houston won the game 7-1, giving them a 3-2 lead in the series as they head home for the final two games.

The Halloween Index: Retailers say they expect Americans to shell out $8.8 billion this Halloween on costumes, candy and general crap. That may sound massive, but it will be the second year in a row that Halloween spending has dropped. It suggests a softening in consumer spending

  In a year in which tariffs imposed on $360 billion-worth of Chinese imports combined with signs of looming recession, it’s … sorry to say this … scary.

Consumer spending accounts for more than 70 percent of the US economy.

  While we’re on the topic, the offensive Halloween costume has become an evergreen story. Sombreros are a big no, of course. This year there’s the sexy border patrol agent costume; the bridal gown for a five-year-old, and the “Fake News” mini dress. 

  High on the list of politically incorrect are geisha outfits; Sexy Handmaid’s Tale; and terrorists costumes because that might be offensive to terrorists. Mitch McConnell costumes are still acceptable. 

Resigned to It: California Congresswoman Katie Hill resigned amid accusations that she’s had an affair with a male staffer and engaged in other spicy behavior.

The Obit Page: Former Michigan Rep. John Conyers Jr., a champion of liberal causes who was the longest-serving black member of Congress, died at home in Detroit at age 90.

  Conyers was the only member of the House Judiciary Committee to participate in impeachment inquiries against both Presidents Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton. He resigned in 2017 after two women accused him of inappropriate behavior.

Cancel His Subscription: President Trump tweeted on Saturday that, “The Fake Washington Post keeps doing phony stories, with zero sources, that I am concerned with the Impeachment scam.” That’s interesting, because the White House has cancelled its subscriptions to The Times and The Washington Post.

  “Cancel my subscription” is the running joke of the newspaper business. 

  Columnist Maureen Dowd writes for The NY Times that, “He can’t quit us. The relationship of Donald and the media is the greatest love affair — and mutual addiction — of all time. When he cancels subscriptions, it’s like an angry lover tearing up pictures of a woman he is obsessed with but cannot win over.”

  Dowd writes, “So, Mr. President, given that you are shorn from The Times and The Post, I feel an obligation to fill you in on what you’re missing: You’re about to be impeached.”

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