THE COUNTRY’S IN THE VERY BEST OF HANDS: Maya Angelou’s new stamp features quote that wasn’t hers.

ASHE SCHOW: Few, if any, consequences for those involved in perpetrating rape hoaxes.

When a sensational rape story is found to be fraudulent, there are few ramifications for those who perpetrated the hoax in the first place.

To take the most recent example, no one is getting fired at Rolling Stone for its fraudulent article about a brutal gang rape at the University of Virginia. The fact-checkers who failed to raise sufficient concerns about the lack of corroborating evidence, the editors who removed crucial details that would have made the article’s weaknesses clear, and the author who sought a sensational story to fit an agenda will all keep their jobs. . . .

And beyond those at RS who allowed the hoax to go forward, those who helped spread the story once it was published faced no consequences either. U.Va. president Teresa Sullivan offered no apology for her role in treating Phi Kappa Psi, the fraternity accused in the RS article, as guilty from the start. Similarly, there appears to be no investigation to discover the vandals who smashed windows and spray-painted hateful messages at the fraternity house.

Jackie, the source of the false article, still has her privileged status as a victim, despite there being no evidence that she is the victim of anything.

The same was true of the Duke lacrosse hoax nearly a decade ago. Richard Brodhead is still the president of the university. Wendy Murphy, who spread lie after lie about the case on television throughout the ordeal, is still being asked for her opinion (in fact she was quoted in the now-retracted Rolling Stone article — go figure). The activists and professors who smeared the lacrosse players were never held accountable.

At least with Duke, the prosecutor who targeted the lacrosse players to advance his own personal ambitions was disbarred. The police officer who helped railroad the students was merely reassigned. (He retired in 2008 and committed suicide in 2014, although it is unclear whether his role in the hoax had anything to do with his death.) The accuser, Crystal Mangum, faced no repercussions for filing a false report, and in fact went on to write a book. But in an unrelated twist, she is now serving a prison sentence for second-degree murder.

In the case of Tawana Brawley — arguably the most famous rape hoax in modern U.S. history — she eluded paying defamation damages for 25 years. Al Sharpton, who embraced and lied about that case, has his own show on MSNBC today. Although he was ordered to pay damages as well, he refused for years before his friends finally paid his debt for him.

Meanwhile, in each of these cases, those accused in the initial hoax suffered far greater punishments than the liars who created the hoax. Phi Kappa Psi had their house vandalized and reputation greatly tarnished by the media without receiving an apology from anyone. (They’re now suing.) . . .

Even when rape hoaxes are exposed, political correctness and a demand to adhere to the ultimate “rape culture” narrative keeps false accusers insulated while the wrongly accused suffer.

Yeah, that needs to stop now.

NOT EVERYONE IS AS HAPPY TO BE LIED TO AS THE WASHINGTON PRESS CORPS: Federal judge slams Obama lawyers in immigration case. “A federal judge has issued a scathing rebuke to lawyers for the Obama administration in a case involving the president’s unilateral immigration action. In an order issued Tuesday night, U.S. District Judge Andrew Hanen, who had put a temporary hold on the action, not only refused to lift the hold — he also came very near to accusing administration lawyers of flat-out lying to him.”

CULTURE OF CORRUPTION: Steyer Vows to Spend Big in 2016, Media Suddenly Not Concerned About ‘Money in Politics.’

The media pretends that the Left’s benefactors aren’t really that rich, you know. Nothing like the KOCH BROTHERS FINANCIAL BEHEMOTH. In this post alone, the writer lets Steyer’s NextGen PAC play coy about how much it will spend, while quoting a NextGen memo decrying “the Koch brothers’ unprecedented campaign spending…” In reality, Steyer spent almost $69 million more than the Koch brothers in the last election cycle. . . .

Steyer’s name, on the other hand, is rarely mentioned in the media. He’s practically a publicity ghost. Hell, his name didn’t even make it into the headline of the Reuters post. They referred to him as “green donor.” In fact, the Koch brothers get mentioned twice as many times as Steyer does in the article, and it’s about him.

Tom Steyer is the $74 million elephant in the room and the press barely knows his name or acknowledges his existence.

Wise GOP presidential candidates would do well to mention him often.

Indeed.

THE HILL: Senate Dems waver on Iran bill.

The White House is trying to bottle up bipartisan legislation that would give Congress 60 days to review a final Iran nuclear deal.

The pushback may be having an effect — Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, is now undecided about the legislation after Republicans had touted him as a supporter.

Coons is worried Republicans might use the bill as a political weapon, something the White House has warned about.

“He’s reviewing and making a decision on how he’ll vote next week. He is focused on creating a responsible structure for congressional oversight. He is concerned about the bill becoming a partisan vehicle,” said Sean Coit, Coons’s spokesman.

Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, another Democrat floated as a likely vote to override a veto of the Corker-Menendez bill, softened his stance on Tuesday. A spokesman said it’s “TBD” if Warner will vote for the bill or support a veto override.

“Let’s first see what happens during [the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s] markup next week,” the aide said.

Claiming Coons and Warner as likely allies, the supporters of the Iran legislation believe they have 66 votes, one short of the threshold needed to override a veto from President Obama.

With the bill close to a tipping point, the White House is leaning on Democrats to withhold support.

Well, I’m sure the Menendez indictment sent a signal.

VIA JUDITH CURRY, The American Physical Society’s Draft Statement On Climate Change. “Well, their paragraph on Climate Science is a rather astonishing take on the APS Workshop. Their paragraph on Climate Change seems to come from the Guardian. Their statement on Climate Action reiterates their rather crazy statement in 2007. . . . This is an egregious misuse of the expertise of the APS. Their alleged understanding of issues like spectroscopy and fluid dynamics are not of any direct relevance to the issues they write about in this statement. The statement is an embarrassment to the APS.”

HOW THEY THINK IN THE OBAMA WHITE HOUSE: Laurence Tribe considered “a traitor” for advocacy in climate change case.

CALIFORNIA: To Fight The Drought, Stop Recycling.

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THE COUNTRY’S IN THE VERY BEST OF HANDS: U.S. Advised Citizens Stuck in Yemen to Fly Out of Closed Airports, Board Ship That Can’t Dock. “Today India offered to help evacuate Americans from Yemen, including with flights out of Sana’a and ships from Aden. The first rescue flights are scheduled to leave Tuesday.”

HOWARD KURTZ: Rolling Stone scandal “one of the worst journalistic catastrophes.”

JOURNALISM: “It was almost like they were all reading off the same script.”

SHE SEEMS TO BE HITTING DEMOCRATS, AND STANDING UP FOR FREE ENTERPRISE, MORE THAN MOST: Fiorina defends Uber, Airbnb.

OUCH: Investor’s Business Daily: Hillary Clinton’s Private Server A Foreign Spy Magnet. Yes, you can be pretty sure that foreign governments know all her secrets, and will use them at the appropriate time.

SPENGLER: Some wars should be prevented, and some wars should be preempted. “Most of the great wars of the past would have been far less bloody had they begun sooner.”

HIGHER EDUCATION BUBBLE UPDATE, LEGAL EDUCATION EDITION: Deceptive Statistics 101, Courtesy Of A Law Professor And The New York Times.

Related: The Crisis In American Legal Education.

HE’S TALKING ABOUT RADICAL ISLAMISTS, NOT GREENPEACE: “The enemy is radical Islam. You can’t get around it.” Rand Paul Says He Will Do Anything to Defend America From ‘Haters of Mankind.’

DANGERS: Man, 7 children died from carbon monoxide poisoning, relatives say. Generators are perfectly safe if properly used and positioned, but if not, this sort of thing can happen all too easily. Here are some generator safety tips. And if you’re going to use a portable generator — and probably, even if you’re not, just on general principles — get a carbon monoxide alarm. In this case, the generator was reportedly “in the kitchen.” Uh, no. They need to be outside, and well away from any doors or windows.

21ST CENTURY FAME: So, one of my friends is gloating that she made it into a Buzzfeed clickbait article on breastfeeding pics.

FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS: Orthorexia: When Eating Healthily Becomes a Fixation.

MY DAUGHTER FENCED IN HIGH SCHOOL; MAYBE I SHOULD TAKE IT UP: This is your brain on fencing: How certain sports may aid the aging brain. I suppose boxing is right out, though.

YOU COULD SPEND THAT MUCH ON COUNSELING AND HAVE NOTHING TO SHOW FOR IT: This Stupid Car Saved My Marriage.

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LIST: The 75 Movies Every Man Should See.

JOHN MCWHORTER: The Truth About UVA and Ferguson Isn’t Good Enough for P.C. Crowd. “To many, the Columbia Journalism School report on Rolling Stone’s account of an alleged University of Virginia rape case will seem to be a story about media addicted to seeking sensationalism over accuracy. But the whole sordid affair has been about something much larger: the idea that the pursuit of justice can be separated from facts; that metaphorical truth can be more important than literal truth.”