Glenn Kirschner – AG Merrick Garland appoints a special counsel to investigate Trump’s crimes. Will justice EVER come?
The Lincoln Project – War Drums
MSNBC – The Stark Contrast Between Pelosi’s Accomplishments And The House GOP Agenda (another long one … but it covers 20 yearsa
Real Subtitles? – Bad day for the general.
Baby elephant tickles Kenyan journalist’s nose with trunk during news report VERY short -and very cute.
Beau – Let’s talk about Native artifacts being returned….
Yesterday, the radio opera was “Don Pasquale” by Gaetano Donizetti, a comic opera (with elements of farce), written especially for four particular singers (so the four leads’ part are ver showy.) It’s very critical of old age,although the libretto makes it pretty chear ir isn’t Pasquale’s age that’s his problem – it’s his gigantic ego (thinks he’s “he who must be obeyed.” Sound familiar?) Unrealistic though it may be (if only it were that easy to cure a narcissist!), it has moments of great humor and moments of great beauty, and also quite possibly the best “patter” song (a duet for baritone and bass) outside of Gilbert and Sullivan. That’s not just my opinion – it gets encored in many productions – not today, though it was warmly applauded. Like all comedies, this one is best when the principals do their utmost to play it dead straight. The humor of a comic character is in who the character is, and normally he or she should not be aware that he or she is funny Which may be one reason (though I believe there are many) why good comedians have so much more strength that they are usually given credit for. In other news, the snow was almost gone (by today it will have disappeared) under the brightly shining sun. In still other news, the Project on Government Oversight (POGO) newsletter for the week was all about the Fourteenth Amendment. I can’t link to their newsletters, but I can link to their report and to their press release on the report.
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The New Yorker – Larry Krasner and the Limits of “Law and Order”
Quote – Republicans blame Krasner for the spike in violent crimes in [Philadelphia] since 2020, and claim that his refusal to prosecute to the fullest extent allowed by law is the reason why. After the recall of Chesa Boudin, then the district attorney of San Francisco, following a campaign that was bankrolled by a few wealthy activist donors—the more typical affront to democracy—Pennsylvania Republican Party officials seek to abuse their power and simply remove Krasner from office themselves. On Wednesday, remarkably, lawmakers began that process, voting for his impeachment.
Click through for details. Of course any “spike in violent crimes … since 2020” is going to be directly traceable to the pandemic, and the failure of Republicans to deal with it or protect the citizenry. But they don’t even believe their own BS. This was a stunt to rally their base to the midterms. If the facts in this article don’t make you angry, check your pulse and oxygen.
truthout – Dem Lawmaker Circulates Letter in Congress Calling for Trump’s Disqualification
Quote – “Give[n] the proof — demonstrated through the January 6th Committee Hearings, the 2021 impeachment trial, and other reporting — that Donald Trump engaged in insurrection on January 6th with the intention of overturning the lawful 2020 election results, I have drafted legislation that would prevent Donald Trump from holding public office again under the Fourteenth Amendment,” Cicilline wrote…. Cicilline’s bill “details testimony and evidence demonstrating how Donald Trump engaged in insurrection against the United States” based on revelations made during the January 6 committee’s hearings, his letter says.
Click through for full article. One would think the Fourteenth Amendment would be enough. It was enough to disqualify Couy Griffin in New Mexico, and that verdict has stood up in the New Mexico Supreme Court. But there is not yet a comtemporary Federal precedent (to set a precedent a verdict must come from an apellate court or higher) and solid legal backing is needed sooner than that is likely to happen.
The Real News Network – In Key Swing States, Union Members Are Democrats’ Last Line Of Defense
Quote – And that’s what we’re here to talk about today, because we’ve got a really exciting panel here with folks with the amazing UNITE HERE union canvassing in states around the country including key battleground states like Nevada, Arizona, and Pennsylvania. And we’re going to introduce y’all to those folks in just a second, and we’re going to talk a bit about the canvassing work that they’re doing, what it means for them as union members to be fighting this fight, what they are hearing from people on the ground that they are talking to by knocking on countless doors in these states. They’re really, really doing the essential work that needs to be done to reach people, to understand what people are going through and what they want from these elections.
Click through for full transcript of panel. It’s a long transcript, and I realize I am preaching to the choir here, but it has some good information.
Food For Thought
Glenn Kirschner – Mike Pence reveals Trump’s crimes in book but WON’T testify about Trump’s crimes to the J6 committee
The Lincoln Project – Trump’s Announcement (I doubt they would, but technically, the people atopped from leaving could sue him for the tort of false arrest.)
MSNBC – Secy. Austin: Poland Missile Incident ‘Most Likely’ Caused By Ukrainian Air Defense
Ring of Fire – DOJ Hits Back At Trump Claims In New Court Filing
Colbert – The Announcement The Former President Should Have Made
Kitten Left Without a Home is Adopted by One Special Momma
Beau – Let’s talk about Trump as Speaker of the House…. (It took me a bit to check the cap … but way under 2 minutes.)
Yesterday – yup. it snowed. a few inches on the non-paved ground, and a few stray flakes and clumps on the concrete. So it won’t interfere with driving by Sunday. In bad news, Adam Frisch conceded to Lauren Boebert. Sigh. Sorry, guys. At least we have the Senate. And at least Colorado is sending a delegation of 5 Dems and 3 Qpubs, rather than a delegation of 4 and 3. Also, I don’t nknow how long I will be able to keep up three short takes, but I have a bit of a backlog. And – Merrick Garland has appointed a Special Counsel in the Trump cases. His name is Jack Smith. I’m betting he did this, not so much to avoid the appearance of partisanship, but to put this investigation out of bounds for the GOP’s plans to “investigate” (read harass) everyone in the Biden administration. Of course he’s not saying that. Why give them ideas?
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Short Takes –
Letters from an American – November 16, 2022
Quote – The election of a House speaker can be a way for different factions to test out their power at the beginning of a session. If McCarthy can’t muster the necessary votes, the speakership could open to a far more moderate Republican who could get Democratic votes. That shift might, in fact, look good to a number of Republicans who see how thoroughly voters in some areas rejected extremism in the midterms. Or the need for more moderate votes could swing McCarthy away from the MAGA crowd. It’s not clear yet, but it might tell us a lot. In 1856, at a time when party alignments were shifting markedly, it took the House two months and 133 ballots finally to choose Representative Nathaniel Banks of Massachusetts, and by then, everyone knew exactly who backed whom.
Click through for full letter. She covers several topics, but what caught my attention was her historian’s take on the Speakership.
Mother Jones – Why Lauren Boebert Might Lose
Quote – Most analysts assumed that Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) would cruise to victory in her solidly red district, which became even more Republican after redistricting. In 2020, Boebert defeated her Democratic opponent by six percentage points. This year, FiveThirtyEight gave Boebert a 97 in 100 shot of winning. In June, when Boebert won her primary, I declared, “It looks like two more years of Lauren Boebert in Congress.”
Click through for article. Of course, she didn’t lose – but dayum, it was close. Maybe next time. Right now I’m hoping she does run again , because that would be our only chance for a Democratic pickup, but that may change.
Wonkette – Hey, Lame-Duck Congress! How About Ending The Stupid Debt Limit While You Still Can?
Quote – Under the weird rules governing the reconciliation process, budget related bills can be passed with a simple majority in the Senate, without Senate Republicans being able to filibuster. Taking the debt ceiling off the table would thwart already-announced GOP plans to use the debt ceiling as a lever to force big budget cuts, possibly including dangerous changes to Medicare and Social Security, like raising the retirement age, cutting benefits, or partially privatizing one or both programs. They’ve already said that’s what they’ll do if they take over the House. Out loud, with their mouths and everything.
Click through for more. I’m afraid they are saying they will not even consider it. That is really a pity, because it is, frankly, stupid.
Food For Thought
Glenn Kirschner – Trump’s announcement of another presidential run will have ZERO impact on criminal investigations
The Lincoln Project – It begins again
MSNBC – Liz Cheney Gets The Last Word In Arizona After Lake’s Defeat
Farron Balanced – IRS Asks Supreme Court To PLEASE Let Them Release Trump’s Tax Returns (Weeks can go by without me finding even one from both of Farron’s channels combined. As of now, I have a backlong such that I may not get to all of them before they are obsolete. Go figure.)
Puppet Regime – Rishi Sunak Doesn’t Want To Hear It
Guy Saves Bald Eagle From Drowning In River
Beau – Let’s talk about the GOP distancing from Trump….
Yesterday, I slept in. When I did get up, the sun was nowhere in sight, which is reasonable, because, if there was going to be snow this week, last night would be the night. But it wasn’t the low light that kept me sleeping. It was the fact that I had accomplished a bunch of things Wednesday which I had apparently been stressing about more than I reasized, and therefor had not slept well Tuesday night, and I was unstressed and catching up. The snow, if it comes, will be mostly overnight, so by the time I know, this will have posted. I’ll try to catch y’all up. Also, yesterday at 4:00 a.m. local, Boebert was down to less than a 600 vote lead, with more ballots than that stlll not counted. CPR reported that some of those uncounted ballots had been in timely but deliberately held back to preserve anonymity for the late voters – which makes a lot os sense if one has ever worked Colorado elections – Colorado is an anonymity (privacy) hawk. The only election I ever worked whre I had the faintest clue how people voted was a small single-issue one where we hand-counted absentee ballots – and we took every precaution not to know – but the darned vote was unanimous, which defeated our precautions.
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Crooks & Liars – The Threat Of Right-Wing Extremism Is Far From Over
Quote – [Ruth Ben-Ghiat, an expert on authoritarianism and a professor at NYU, said] we can never forget that no matter who Fox News, the Murdochs and the GOP elites get behind, that the goal is more authoritarianism, Ben-Ghiat continued. “The goal is to make it easier to have an autocratic system prevail and to convince Americans that we did have a lot of election deniers who won, that elections are too compromised and too corrupt to be a valid way of choosing leaders. And that opens the door to coup attempts and other kinds of authoritarian machinations.”
Click through for opinion and short video. People who hold authoritarian beliefs tend to be “true believer” types. They aren’t going tobe weaned away from those beliefs by one loss – or one anything. This battle is far from over.
Huff Post – ‘We Have The Votes’: The Senate Will Act This Week To Codify Same-Sex Marriage
Quote – Same-sex marriage has been legal nationwide since 2015, when the Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples are guaranteed the fundamental right to marry under the Constitution. But after the now-conservative court struck down Roe v. Wade in June ― tossing out nearly 50 years of precedent on reproductive rights ― Democrats and some Republicans are anxious about the court’s plans for weakening other civil rights.
Click through for details. They said they had the votes – and they did. They took the vote yesterday. It now goes to the House, which is still Democratic, and it will pass.
Food For Thought
Glenn Kirschner – Cassidy Hutchinson & Mike Flynn to testify to Georgia grand jury about Trump’s election crimes
Meidas Touch – Zelensky Raises Ukrainian Flag in Kherson After LIBERATION (It’s too long, but the Kherson footage is worth hanging on for.)
The Lincoln Project – Last Week in the Republican Party, November 15, 2022
Ring of Fire – Lauren Boebert’s Seat In Danger As More Ballots Are ‘Fixed’ (by thie time this posts it may be over. But it’s a good description of the “curing” process, which 24 states allow.)
Cat Abandoned When Owners Moved Jumps Into His Rescuer’s Arms
Beau – Let’s talk about Trump in heels and Kari Lake….
Yesterday, I did manage to get the trash and recyclables out to the curb for today’s pickup. Also, more updates appear to indicate that the missile hitting Poland (and killing between 2 and 5 people – depending on the source) was not intentional on anyone’s part – although it would not have happened had ussia not been shooting missiles all over Ukraine out of pure spite. NATO is going to have to do a lot of talking and thinking about it but, no one is looking at World War III.
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Crooks & Liars – ‘Political Contamination’: Jamie Raskin Slams 155 Election Deniers In Congress
Quote – CBS host Margaret Brennan reported on Sunday that her network had tallied election deniers who will serve in the new Congress. According to the tally, deniers of the election won 155 House seats and nine Senate seats in the U.S. Congress. That was in addition to 18 wins at the state level. “That’s a statement about the political contamination of the GOP by Donald Trump,” Raskin told Brennan. “Kevin McCarthy and other leaders in the Republican Party are now required to make a decision about whether they’re going to try rid themselves of Donald Trump and his toxic influence on the party.”
Click through for article. Let’s for the sake of argument assume they have 218 seats. 218 – 155 = 63 non-deniers, at most. I find myself wondering whether McCarthy is even Trumpy enough for them. Because if he isn’t, he’s toast. And his replacement could be far sorse.
Politico – Biden to Pelosi: ‘I Hope You Stick’
Quote – “I hope you stick,” Biden told Pelosi in a phone call after congratulating her on the caucus’s unexpected victories and asking about her convalescing husband, according to Democrats familiar with the conversation. Pelosi interjected to note her personal considerations and Biden continued, “I know it’s family first but I hope you stick,” before Pelosi deflected again. Biden wasn’t on the ballot and Pelosi faced little challenge in her San Francisco district, but you wouldn’t have known it from their reactions to the results. The soon-to-be 80-year-old president and the 82-year-old speaker, mutual admirers with similar roots and shared grievances toward critics and wise-guy pundits, were bullish about their prospects and felt vindicated by the party’s success.
Click through for – more details than you might like. The article degenerates into comments from just about everyone but Nancy herself about what she should do. (And I’m sick of hearing about Biden’s “low approval rating.” It’s higher than Trump** EVER had in all four years.) But the mutual respect between Pelosi and Biden shines through and makes up for that.
Food For Thought
