Boeing, Boeing, Gone: President Trump ordered the grounding of all Boeing  737 Max 8 passenger jets, making the US the last country on Earth to do it. His order came after newly-released satellite tracking information showed that the Ethiopian Airlines jet that crashed over the weekend had the same erratic flight behavior as the Lion Air Max 8 that punched into the sea off Indonesia in October.

  The pilots in both planes appeared to be fighting a tendency for the nose of the plane to point down. Both crews lost the fight.

  On Sunday, one of the pilots on the Ethiopian plane reported he was having control problems and asked to return to the airport in Addis Ababa. The primary suspect in both crashes is a flight control system that may be reacting to wrong or confusing information, convincing it that the plane is losing lift and forcing the nose down when it shouldn’t.

  The fuel-efficient Max 8 is Boeing’s best-selling jet ever and the company has 4500 of the planes on order. Trump has been a big promoter of the company.

The Gathering Crowd: Popular former Texas Congressman Beto O’Rourke announced that he’s in the race for president. O’Rourke, who nearly knocked off Republican Sen. Ted Cruz last fall, is a political phenomenon who has tapped deep into the youth vote and small-dollar fund-raising.

Jumpsuit Blues:President Trump’s former campaign chairman Paul Manafort had another no good, very bad day yesterday on which he was sentenced to more prison time and indicted yet again, this time in New York State court.

  Federal Judge Amy Berman Jackson tacked another 3 ½ years onto Manafort’s four years of prison time, saying he is a man who “spent a significant portion of his career gaming the system.”

  That’s in stark contrast to the first judge who said Manafort led a “previously blameless life.”

  The latest sentence was for Manafort’s plea of guilty to conspiracy and fraud, the second case against him. “It is hard to overstate the number of lies and the amount of fraud and the amount of money involved,” the judge said. 

  Manafort pleaded for mercy, claiming he’s a changed man from the scammer he was. “Please let my wife and I be together,” he said. “I am a different person than the one who came before you in October 2017.”

  President Trump crowed at the White House that this case was another vindication for him because it cleared him of election collusion with the Russians, although the case had nothing to do with that. It was all about Manafort’s financial crimes.

  The charges filed in New York are similar to those for which Manafort has already been convicted in federal court, but with talk about President Trump pardoning Manafort, the difference is that Trump cannot excuse Manafort if he is convicted in New York

Emergency, Emergency:As his national emergency continues to simmer without ever boiling,  President Trump has been campaigning in the last 24 hours as it appears the Senate is about to vote down his declaration of an emergency at the southern border. He tweeted, “Republican Senators are overthinking tomorrow’s vote on National Emergency. It is very simply Border Security/No Crime – Should not be thought of any other way. We have a MAJOR NATIONAL EMERGENCY at our Border and the People of our Country know it very well!”

  Trump has the power to veto the vote by both houses of Congress and it appears that he will. Congress has not given Trump money for the wall and if they vote down his emergency that means that they’ve said twice that they don’t want the border wall. He doesn’t seem to care.

Sins of the Father and Mother:With airplanes crashing and Trump buddies going to prison, the national discussion appears to be focused on the college admissions scandal that snared two prominent actresses and a bunch of swells who paid their kids way into college. Students and families who played by the rules are outraged that wealthy people found a way to travel in the fast lane to college.

  “Full House” actress Lori Loughlin  posted a $1 million bond, and so did Felicity Huffman of “Desperate Housewives.”  Loughlin turned herself in, but Huffman was met at her door Tuesday by FBI agents with guns drawn. Now there’s a plot for “Desperate Housewives.”

  Huffman’s husband, actor William Macy, appeared to have known about the scheme, according to the indictment, but was not charged.

  Some of the kids greased into college didn’t know what their parents did on their behalf, but some did. The question now for the colleges and universities is whether to allow those students to stay in school or kick them out.

  Loughlin’s daughter, 19-year-old YouTube star Olivia Jade, is under scrutiny by USC. A university spokesman said in an email, “We are going to conduct a case-by-case review for current students and graduates that may be connected to the scheme alleged by the government.” It said, “We will make informed, appropriate decisions once those reviews have been completed.”

Bomb Cyclone: A winter weather system left as many as 1,100 motorists stranded in blowing snow, causing the governor of Colorado to declare an emergency. One hundred cars piled up in an accident on Interstate 25 near Wellington, Colo. Denver’s airport was closed and interstates were shut down.

Ratta, Tat Tat: In a good old-fashioned Mafia hit, the acting boss of New York’s Gambino crime family was gunned down outside his home on Staten Island last night. Reports say he was also runover.

  Francesco “Frankie Boy” Cali, 53, was considered a unifying force in the mob after John Gotti, the “Dapper Don,” went to prison. Unlike Gotti, Cali kept a low public profile.

  Cali is the first boss murdered in 34 years. In 1985, Paul Castellano was riddled as he arrived at Sparks Steakhouse in Manhattan. Gotti and his underboss, Sammy “Bull” Gravano reportedly watched the hit from nearby.

 Murders like this usually mean more will follow and so will a movie.