Political Dog 101

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    • How’s U guys like the NY Mets!?

      Best start of for them in along time…

      But i always wait fir after the All-Star Game….

  3. Biden is visiting Crystal Lake Illinois – which is a bike ride away from where I live – on Wednesday. Unfortunately, I don’t know where the venue is, but it is unlikely I would be able to go anyway.

      • “Sources told the Chicago Sun-Times that Biden, unless plans change, will appear at the McHenry County College in Crystal Lake. Biden will be at the community college to promote his American Families Plan — a package of proposals dealing with, among other items, child poverty and making college more affordable.”

      • Jason Voorhees stomping (or slashing) ground–Camp Crystal Lake is in New Jersey.

        The Chicago suburbs–specifically Haddonfield– are Michael Myers territory.

        Freddy Krueger is somewhere in Ohio.

        And of course Leatherface has Texas cornered.

        The West Coast is oddly free of teen murdering slashers.

        • Never seen the entirety of any of the movies, but I always thought Camp Crystal Lake was in Illinois.

          I guess this means Jason preferred the Devils to the Blackhawks.

          • The fictional Halloween town would be in Central Illinois.

            I have seen some of the “Scream” franchise, and that takes place in California.

            • … but Amityville is on Long Island, close to a noted political blogger

              • I stay away from the screamers
                Been to that town once or twice….
                Kept truckin….

            • Yeah now that I recall in one of the later Hallo ween sequels they show Haddonfield on the Amtrak line some where between Springfield and Pontiac, IL.

              I forgot about the Scream franchise

    • U’ll know if someone drives u around…..
      The advance work will have begun already….

  4. Have been spending the past four days in western North Carolina mountains around Cherokee.

    Have had quite a few interesting encounters with the folks in the area.All have been friendly ,even with some who were quite ignorant of their home region.

    On Saturday attended the July 4 celebration in Bryson City , a hamlet near the Great Smoky Mountain National Park.It was explained to me that the celebration was being held on the 3rd since the 4th was Sunday and such wouldn’t be proper on the Lords day.The most interesting aspect of the celebration was the booth hosted by some good ol boys selling lemonade and sno cones.They hadan American flag and a Confederate flag flying.Engaging one of the fellows in conversation I asked him whether or not he thought it was incongruous to be celebrating the country’s birthday by flying the flag of rebels who were trying to split the country apart.Surpridingly,,he agreed but said they had always flown it.

    Later a truck drove past that had a flag flying which was obviously custom made with the stars and stripes on one side and the stars and bars on the other.

    What’s also funny about all this is that western North Carolina was well known in the Civil War as a hotbed of pro Unionist sympathy where Confederate forces rarely ventured .

    The vast majority of my sojourn has not been devoted to such cultural phenomena however.Mountain hiking, waterfall viewing and such have occupied most of my time.On my last day today I will take in Harrahs Casino on the Cherokee Indian Reservation.The only question will be how long my self imposed limit of a hundred dollars lasts,probably not long !

    • Glad to hear ur having good time!!
      Force of habit on the flag thing?
      Enjoy!
      A $100 ????
      I think some weather is coming ur way

          • Another Republican kisses Trump ass after knocking him and eats a shit sandwich

            J.D. Vance, the bestselling author and a Republican Senate hopeful, said on Monday that he regretted his since-deleted Twitter posts that criticized Donald Trump, amid accusations of flip-flopping as he vies for a seat in Ohio….

            More…

  5. National Review writer’s choice for the Great American Rock Anthem [especially for Pollydog’s resident rock, blues and pop critics]

    https://www.nationalreview.com/2021/07/what-is-the-great-american-rock-anthem

    Also see the 150-odd comments from the conservative/patriotic side.

    Personally I found key parts of John Cougar Mellencamp’s diction to be just as incomprehensible on the YouTube video as they had been overheard in bars. Now I’ve learned that “Pink Houses” is the song’s title.

    My own choices for non-classical patriotic anthems include “You’re a Grand Old Flag” and “This Land is Your Land”.

  6. President Biden KNOWS he’s in for some political turbulence shortly…..

    Vaccinations

    Afghanistan

    Infrastructure Bills

    Immigration

    • Attempted Hack of R.N.C. and Russian Ransomware Attack Test Biden

      The breach of a Republican National Committee contractor, also linked to Russia, and the global ransomware attack occurred weeks after a U.S.-Russian summit….

      More…

      • I’m surely no expert in these things, but the question did pop up in my mind, “why the RNC?”: we know why they wanted the DNC’s files (to make strategic leaks through Julian Assange and the entirely fictional Guccifer 2.0), but why the GOP?

        My suspicion is that maybe the Russians and Russian mob want the RNC files is to mine them for e-mail and postal addresses, together with demographics, of RNC contributors, in order to either spam them for cash or feed them useful misinformation to affect their votes (for whoever the Siberian candidates might be this time around and the next) and interactions with other like-minded voters (e.g. to start some helpful viral rumour).

        Sorry for the run-on, run-on sentence sentence. 😉

  7. Morning People……..

    Some GOPer’s are REALLY off the deep end….

    Post’s coming……

  8. England 2-1 over Denmark after extra time.

    But the awarding of a penalty kick to Harry Kane in extra time (which he succeeded into converting to England’s second goal) is apparently a highly questionable call since the physical contact for which the PK was awarded isn’t at all obvious from the tape.

    The first English goal (9 minutes after Denmark scored the first goal) — in the first half of regulation time — was actually an Own Goal by Kjaer against his own side.

    England go on to play Italy on Sunday at 3 p.m. EST (= 8 p.m. BST).

    Italy and Spain tied yesterday at 1-1 at the conclusion of regulation and extra time, but Italy won 3 subsequent penalty kicks against Spain’s 2.

  9. Mass. Gov. Charlie Baker’s Dem & GOP rivals:

    Democrats running for governor are pitching fundamental change. Is that what Mass. voters want?

    By Emma Platoff Boston Globe Staff,
    Updated July 6, 2021, 9:50 a.m.

    For Harvard professor Danielle Allen, “this is a moment for transformation.”

    State Senator Sonia Chang-Díaz says it’s time to reject a “status quo” that doesn’t work for everyone.

    And Ben Downing, a former state senator, insists “small politics and small solutions don’t meet the moment.”

    In the early days of the primary campaign, the three Democrats running for governor next year are voicing strikingly similar messages: Don’t settle for Governor Charlie Baker’s narrow, slow incrementalism! Elect me, they exhort, and we’ll build a better, fairer state together — sooner.

    But their pitch faces the strong headwind of public opinion: Many are happy with the Massachusetts they’ve got, and more still approve of the governor who’s currently leading it.

    Baker’s job approval ratings remain among the highest in the nation, and in a recent poll, nearly two-thirds of respondents said Massachusetts was “heading in the right direction,” a consistent trend here in recent years….

    https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/07/06/metro/democrats-running-governor-are-pitching-fundamental-change-is-that-what-massachusetts-voters-want/

    >b>Geoff Diehl announces bid for governor; he’s first Republican to enter race

    By Nick Stoico Globe Correspondent,
    Updated July 4, 2021, 5:50 p.m.

    Geoff Diehl, a Republican former state representative from Whitman and 2018 challenger to US Senator Elizabeth Warren, announced on the Fourth of July that he is running for governor, making him the first Republican to enter the race.

    Diehl, 52, made the announcement during a holiday “Freedom Festival” barbeque in Hadley organized by the Western Mass GOP Patriots Political Action Committee, according to his campaign manager, Amanda Orlando.

    In a statement Sunday evening, Diehl pledged that as a candidate in the 2022 race, he will be “backing the blue,” indicating his support for law enforcement personnel, and said it is “time to re-empower the individual.”

    “It is time for a new path forward . . . It is time to free our economy,” he said. “It is time to help our children overcome the damage inflicted by government over this past year. A time to provide our communities with a safe and healthy tomorrow.”

    Diehl was not available for an interview Sunday, Orlando said.

    Diehl’s bid sets up a possible primary faceoff with Republican Governor Charlie Baker, who has not definitively said whether he will seek a third term. If Baker stays out of the race, many expect Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito would seek the Republican nomination.

    Baker’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday evening.

    Diehl was cochair for former president Donald Trump’s Massachusetts campaign during the 2016 presidential election. As a Senate candidate in 2018, Diehl, a conservative Republican, campaigned as a Trump supporter who would champion his policies in the Senate. He emerged as the party’s candidate to face Warren, who ultimately won reelection…

    https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/07/04/metro/geoff-diehl-announces-bid-governor-first-republican-step-into-race/

    • Ole’ Joe’s easy style IS popular with most Americans….

      They have had enough ‘change’….

  10. Washington Post /ABC News Poll

    93% of Democrats say they are vaccinated or plan to do so

    49% of Republicans say they are vaccinated or plan yo do so.

    Conclusion:Half the Republican Party are now active virus spreaders.

    Disgusting

    • Here in S.C.

      Some colleges have been contemplating requiring students to be vaccinated before the fall semester.

      Virus Spreading Republicans in the State Legislature have passed a law prohibiting the same.

      Can’t blame this on Trump.Nope ,this is who Republicans are now.So imbued with an irrational hate that they apparently want people to get infected.

      Sickening

      • In Missouri where the present outbreak is one of the worst ,a similar thing is playing out with Republican legislators more eager to pass legislation to protect virus spreaders than stop the present spread.

        I can’t think of a more detestable bunch.

        • The non-Republicans who refuse to get vaccinated (whether that includes james not), are the same feelings present?

          • What Democratic politicians in Missouri are trying to impede vaccination efforts?

              • Everyone R or D shoukd be vaccinated. Whether they are being lazy or misinformed they need to snap out of it.

                Now do you have any examples of elected Democrats doing what South Carolina Republicans have done–prohibiting vaccine requirements? Or what Missouri Gov Mike Parson has done–come out against federal workers going door to door in low vaccine areas like SW Missouri?

                • Life exists beyond politicians and politics. Vote against the people you dislike by all means. That is what democracy is about.

                  Attacking people politically because they do not want to get vaccinated is only going to make them more determined not to.

                  Young children and the immuno-compromised cannot get vaccinated at this point. They are not to blame. The best thing to do beyond being vaccinated yourself is to not have any sort of physical association with someone who chooses not to.. mostly for their own safety.

    • If that logic dictates they are spreading it to each other, do you really view it as a tragedy? At least a couple of Democrats here would raise a glass to it.

    • Despite CG’s false equivalencies that anti vaxx sentiment is on both sides this poll clearly shows one party embraces rejection of the vaccine.

      That is clearly reflected in GOP legislative and executive action in states like SC and MO.

      The Democrats who are not yet vaccinated need to get their ass in gear and get it done. But this poll shows they are not vaccine skeptics in the same manner as Republican rank and file and elected officials.

      • Why make the political aspect the only factor though? We both agree that getting vaccinated is the right thing to do and people who are choosing not to are wrong. You would certainly not criticize African-Americans in such a way though even as the facts show they are far more unlikely to get vaccinated than whites (or even more so Asian-Americans)

        Not everything should be about politics. There should be strategies to try to convince people to get vaccinated. Insulting people you wish to motivate usually backfires, so which is more important? Seeing people get vaccinated or insulting people you have political disagreements with? It comes across as the latter.

        Ultimately, the non-vaccinated are putting themselves at risk. Since I am vaccinated, I really am not worrying about Covid at this point. People have to take personal responsibility and make their own choices. As a matter of freedom it should not be “illegal” to not get vaccinated.

        • If 93% of Democrats are vaccinated or plan to be vaccinated then your assertion that African Americans are more resistant to getting vaccinated than white Americans is pure bullshit.

          People of color are the core of our party.

          Rural whites are the most resistant to being vaccinated. That is clear in both these poll results and the fact that 90% white Pulaski County MO is only 11% vaccinated while 50% African American St. Louis is 45% vaccinated.

          • I posted a link the other day. African-Americans are a minority group, There are more white people so as a total number there will be more white people who have not been vaccinated but cannot do a direct correlation statistically in such a way or looking just at a very low population, racially homogeneous country. Come on man. You cannot really be suggesting that most Democrats are black? That would be a goofy-right wing theory.

            Asian-Americans are most likely to have been vaccinated and African-Americans the least likely.

            https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/latest-data-on-covid-19-vaccinations-race-ethnicity/

            • From the link:

              “Overall, across these 40 states, the percent of White people who have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose (47%) was roughly 1.4 times higher than the rate for Black people (34%) and 1.2 times higher than the rate for Hispanic people (39%) as of July 6, 2021.”

              https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/issue-brief/latest-data-on-covid-19-vaccinations-race-ethnicity/

              So, this data shows the percent of African-Americans who have been vaccinated is lower than the rate of “Republicans”, which would be described accurately as a heavily white party.

              There are more “Republicans” in America than African-Americans, so the raw number is larger, but the percentage is clearly lower.

              Yet, only one group is attacked and insulted in very harsh terms.

              The problem of the non-vaccinated is multi-front, including Trump supporters, African-Americans, and young people in general. There are different reasons and factors at place.

              It needs to be understood why these people are not getting vaccinated at this point and what could, if anything, most effectively be done to convince them.

            • Can you give me examples of prominent African Americans politician or otherwise who are anti vaxx?

              • Why is this about politicians or celebrities or whatever? It would be nice perhaps though if LeBron James endorsed the vaccine. He seems to be reluctant to speak about it, although he has been very vocal on other matters. but that is not what this is about.

                The average African-American citizen is less likely to be vaccinated than a white person (and Hispanics as well to a smaller degree). The average African-American citizen is less likely to be vaccinated than a “Republican.”

                So, is this still an access issue even as the supply is definitely there now? Are there people who want to be vaccinated but do not know how? If so, that will take outreach. Or is there a suspicion about vaccines from an historical standpoint that logically should not be present today as it relates to this. Are people hearing rumors about what might happen down the road if vaccinated and want to “wait and see?”

                This all goes far beyond D or R or politicians trying to raise money by “owning” the other side.

        • I’m not about “insulting” people. I’m about holding politicians who are thwarting vaccination efforts to task.

          You just don’t want Republican politicians held accountable for being anti vaxx.

          Again if there are Democratic politicians who have given aid and comfort to anti vaxxers or have stood in the way of requirements that would drive vaccination rates up among all despite political leaning point them out here.

          I’ll take their Democratic ass to task!

          Again

          • You have to realize that you insult people a lot, going back a very long time, and it has seemed to have increased as time goes by.

            No, I am not saying I am perfect in that regard either, but let’s not pretend that you are Mr. Rogers.

            • If I am curt with the unvaccinated it is because time is of the essence.

              Now anyone reading who has not gotten their shot:
              Pretty please with sugar in top –fet your fucking vaccine

              • The only logical explanation to the insults, etc, is that you are demonstrating “tough love” and I truly do not think you have love for Republicans in general.

                I think you like to be political. That’s your right, but you should own it.

                • Pfizer plans to seek U.S. authorization for a Covid-19 booster shot and is developing an updated vaccine that better targets the Delta variant

                  WSJ..,,

                  • Over the past month, several states have seen nearly no increase in their vaccination rates across races and ethnicities, as the highly-contagious Covid-19 delta variant spreads in undervaccinated pockets of the country.

                    Louisiana, where less than 40% of the population has had at least one dose, vaccinated just 0.4% of White people, 0.6% of its Black population and 1.3% of Hispanics over the past month. North Carolina and Delaware have also seen relatively little progress with both White and Black people.

                    Overall, vaccination rates across populations have nearly halved compared to May. On average, states vaccinated 3.8% of Hispanic people, 2.8% of Black people and 2% of White people over the last four weeks.…

                    Bloomberg.,…

                    • james do you wish to confirm your vaccination status or simply state “I will not address it on here” so people will at least no longer ask?

                      However, if you are not vaccinated, is there a reason why that could shed light on this topic?

                    • Minorities make up most of the Democratic voting base…..

                      Therfore?

                      The 93% ‘Have’ probably has a good amount of ‘will’….

                      Or ?

                      ‘Maybe’?

                      The fact is the country has NOT. Got even 70% with one shot…..

                      And NOT 50% with BOTH…..

                      This IS gonna be a hard cell….

                      It’s summer time …..

                      The politicians are falling all over themselves to reopen everything Delta variant be damn

                      Like any other virus?

                      The numbers overall will go up in the winter….

                      90% of people around my way wear masks insider….
                      Some even outside in minority area’s mostly….

                • And if he hasn’t been vaccinated yet he needs to get on it.

                  James is not a Democratic politician.

              • Do you not think we should hold politicians who espouse anti vaxx sentiment for political purpose to a higher standard than your average lay person who is either not vaccinated because of misinformation or because they are putting it off?

                Who should know betrer?

                • You will vote against and oppose Republican politicians regardless of their position on the vaccine. That’s what you do as a partisan Democrat and that’s fine, but own it.

                  I mean, I made a very difficult decision to vote for Biden, and after I did that, you only insulted me more and worse. You like it when people are on the other side as you.

                • Generally speaking, the average person (which as political junkies is not us) does not listen or care about what politicians are saying.

                  There is a Trump factor and as I said, kissing Trump’s ass and making the vaccine about him would have a whole lot of people lined up to get the shot.

                  He is pretty much (even Obama does not hold this sway like he once did) the only political figure with a “cult following.”

                  So, if you want the cult to get vaccinated you pretty much have to “join” them in the cult for the persuasion to work.

                  • Yes most people don’t care about politician s. But they have yo abide by their legislation. Do you not agree that these politicians standing in the way of vaccination requirements are hindering vaccination numbers?

                    • These vaccination requirements do not apply to me since I am vaccinated so maybe I do not need to think about it as much. As a matter of Constitutionality though, I think vaccine mandates cannot go too far. Politicians on both sides are trying to involve themselves in the tribal cultural war.

                    • …. As of Wednesday, 25.9 percent of Black people and 31.9 of Hispanic people in the country had received at least one dose, compared to 33.7 percent of white people.
                      “Over the last few weeks we have seen some trends that suggest some

                      According to the CDC, in the past two weeks, Hispanic people have accounted for just over 34 percent of first doses administered; roughly 17 percent of the U.S. identifies as Hispanic.

                      Black people have received a little more than 12 percent of first doses given in the past 14 days; about 13 percent of the country is Black..

                      The Hill….

                    • There IS a social- economic side to this for minority and non-minority American’s….

                    • Despite being vaccinated, I would have been reluctant to attend the July 4 REO Speedwagon concert at Lake in the Ozarks, MO, where the segments shown on CNN showed everybody in the crowd looked exactly like the “Get a Brain” Cardinals fan.

                    • james, what is the reason you do not want to tell us? You tell us many other things.

                      The assumption by not telling us automatically is that you have made the choice to not get vaccinated.

                      This is only relevant because you offer comments on here and post stories that seem to be critical of the “anti-vaxx” which naturally raises the issue of hypocrisy.

  11. U want everyone to be vaccinated. Democrat Republican Libertarian or Vegetarian
    .
    Again I ask for examples of Democratic elected officials who have given the same aid and comfort to anti vaxxers that Republican politicians have. .

  12. More of Biden’s voters were white than any other race. Statistics can be tricky unless you know how to interpret them in regards to sampling, controls, etc. The link I have posted makes it easier to see the data.

  13. One can theorize that nearly all white Democrats are vaccinated, but at present, white Democrats are also likely to be among the wealthiest and highest educated people in the country, so there are also socio-economic factors at play.

    I also think upscale white collar Republicans (to the extent they still exist) are heavily likely to be vaccinated. Asian-Americans, who are more vaccinated than anyone else, also tend to be among the most highly educated groups in the country and economically more well off than other racial minorities.

    There are factors at play causing African-Americans , Hispanics, and lower-income and less educated whites to all not be vaccinated at rates comparable to the rest of the population.

    There are different reasons why but there would also seem to be some connection to how often people in all these groups might visit doctors in general

  14. What Democratic politicians are “trying to involve themselves in the tribal cultural war” when it comes to the COVID vaccine?

    Seems to me if so many African Americans are hesitant to be vaccinated as you claim those who represent majority Black districts would be playing politics since it’s “both sides” no?

    • If they are trying to make vaccines mandatory in a governmental sense. I do not know the internal debates going on in all the states in that regard. I believe private businesses and companies should be able to do what they want in regards to requiring vaccines.

      I do not understand the second point. As mentioned, I do not believe people follow politicians. Those who are in elected office though tend to be richer than the average person and usually are highly educated so it’s the same socio-economic disconnect. I do not think that black politicians who represent heavily black areas are likely to push for government mandates on vaccines.

      • Republicans ARE ALREADY fighting mandates and passports…..

        Biden and Governors will NOT want to touch the subject with the actual shot numbers now…..

        They have enough issues just about masks…

        Some private businesses ARE going ahead with them….

  15. Lets NOT FORGET that Republicans are opening another front on race by trying force educators to NOT talk about racism in America….

    Folks?

    Race IS in everything in this country

    Pandemics

    Jobs

    Politics

    Money

    Immigration

    Whatever?

    • If as you say “race is everything in America”, I would also hope you would not be afraid to tell us if you yourself were African-American or if you had any close relatives that were, or as you have put it in regards to others “mixed” as that would make your perspective more relevant.

  17. Ex-Cong. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, was once a Democratic office-holder; were he as an officeholder to advocate the anti-vax views for which he got kicked off Instagram, I certainly would denounce him. Were he still in Congress (or were he a political executive) and in a position to penalize those who require their eligible staff, clients or students to get vaccinated, I would have no hesitancy in condemning him. *

    And, rather than give examples of current Democratic or non-white leaders (RFK Jr is now definitely marginal) who try to forbid vaccination requirements, CG tries to multiply different sorts of statistics to reach conclusions that are only speculative. While I (and apparently CG) don’t currently have the time, patience or expertise to find the statistics he’s fishing for (and may not find), the specific data he needs to substantiate his assertions. The more specific polling data do exist.

    * I have not hesitated to criticize RFK’s apologies for the “Bolivarian” despotism of Húgo Chávez, even though I understood RFK’s gratitude for Venezuelan state (PdVSA) petroleum for his Citizens’ Energy Corporation aid to the underheated.

      • Thanks, CG. Out here in Southern New England, it’s sometimes hard to keep our John Kennedys, Joe Kennedys and Robert Kennedys straight.

        (As the line in Vaughn Meader’s hit 1961 satirical LP The First Family urges, “Vote for the Kennedy of your choice, but vote !”)

        So, RFK Jr lacking, find me a Democratic (or minority) officeholder who’s trying to restrict vaccination requirements,

        • I’m not criticising you for not collecting the statistics, CG, just your stab at trying to mix different statistics to estimate (for example) the racial distribution of vaccine-reluctant Democrats — when the cross-tabs (rather than mere calculations) are almost certainly available.

          Same goes for those trying to make counter-arguments with the same methods.

          • A statistic is a statistic. If you can find a survey that you believe is more reliable than Kaiser, than you can present it.

            I think the data as it relates to racial disparities and vaccinations has been taken as a given in the scientific community though.

            • Statistic’s ARE like accountants numbers….

              They CAN say different things….

              DSD is right….

              How a questions IS asked make a YUGE difference…

              And ur right also CG….

              Different people on both sides of the political coin uses the numbers to their advantage…

              • Are you vaccinated is an easy question. It’s not really open to interpretation. And numbers are numbers.

                I don’t get the obstinacy on this beyond the desire to declare “Republicans are horrible and only Republicans are horrible.”

                It’s not easy to miss.

                • Has it crossed your mind that you insult James CG?

                  Sometimes your comments to him make it sound like you don’t even consider him a person.

                  Today your whole distraction was pointing our that I may sometimes insult people, something you think I do because I’m hyper partisan (I’ve never put my party preference on my license plate).

                  I don’t know how else to react to those who are willfully ignorant. I draw a distinction between those who are being lazy in getting vaccinated and those who now adopt such antagonism towards the vaccine, Dr. Fauci, etc as a religion. You want me to “tone it down” I guess. Sorry. I won’t.

  19. Claire McCaskill is. (correctly I believe) saying that evangelical ministers in rural Missouri should be promoting the vaccine.

    In the interest of fairness I think African American ministers should do the same.

    My Congresswoman Cori Bush, a former minister, has been doing so.

  20. Morning

    Parts of the storm have reached us here

    How about u Jack?

    Coming ur way DSD…..

    • The National Weather Service in Norton has issued a * Flash Flood Warning for… Southeastern Worcester County in central Massachusetts… Western Norfolk County in eastern Massachusetts… South Central Middlesex County in northeastern Massachusetts… West Central Bristol County in southeastern Massachusetts… Kent County in Rhode Island… Providence County in Rhode Island… * Until 400 PM EDT Friday.

      * At 911 AM EDT, Doppler radar indicated bands of moderate to heavy rain passing through the Providence to Worcester corridor and Worcester to Framingham Corridor, and surrounding communities. Radar estimates between 0.5 and 1 inch of rain has fallen. Additional rainfall amounts of 1 to 3 inches are expected in the warned area during the next few hours. Flash flooding is expected to begin shortly.
      HAZARD…Flash flooding caused by heavy rain.
      SOURCE…Radar.
      IMPACT…Flash flooding of small streams, urban areas, highways, streets and underpasses as well as other poor drainage and low-lying areas.
      * Some locations that will experience flash flooding include… Worcester, Providence, Warwick, Cranston, Pawtucket, Framingham, East Providence, Woonsocket, Marlborough, Shrewsbury, Coventry, Cumberland, Natick, North Providence, Franklin, West Warwick, Needham, Johnston, North Attleborough and Milford.
      PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS… Be aware of your surroundings and do not drive on flooded roads. Hilly terrain can make low lying poor drainage areas particularly dangerous in heavy rain. Do not attempt to cross flooded roads. Find an alternate route.

  21. I understand the CPAC conference starts today, and that it is starting two leading conservative voices who recently addressed a QAnon conference: Allen West and Louie Gohmert.

    • CPAC also features a number of Oath Keepers and Proud Boys attendees.

      Trumps storm troopers.

      CPAC for years has billed itself as the premier “conservative “ event in the country.If this motley collection of Trumpites, White Nationalists, and mentally unbalanced kooks life Goehmert and West is the future of “conservatism?”

      Then my past definition of “bunk” in defining it is no longer operative.They are now over the edge.

      It’s just pure “T”….Trash!

  22. As in so many areas within the conservative/Republican/broad-right ecosystem, the Trumpists are said to have taken over CPAC — once a pretty broad forum for those no less conservative than (say) National Review — and pushed out people like its former president, Al Cárdenas.

  23. Texas man who waited ‘over six hours’ last Super Tuesday to vote now faces illegal voting charges

    By Ed Lavandera, Chris Boyette and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN
    Updated 12:02 PM ET, Sun July 11, 2021

    A Texas man who told CNN he waited for “a lit bit over six hours” at a polling center in Houston to participate in Super Tuesday last year was arrested and charged this week with two counts of illegal voting.

    According to a June 24 indictment from the Texas attorney general’s office, Hervis Earl Rogers, 62, voted in the November 6, 2018, general and special elections and the March 3, 2020, Democratic primary election despite being on felony parole for a 25-year sentence for burglary. Because he was on felony parole, he was ineligible to vote under Texas law, according to the Texas attorney general office.
    He was previously convicted of felony burglary charges in 1989 and 1995, according to the indictment.
    Rogers could face up to 40 years in prison for the two felony charges of illegal voting, a second degree felony in Texas. The person commits the offense if they knowingly vote or attempt to vote in an election in which they know they’re ineligible.
    In Texas, ex-felons are permitted to vote once they have completed both their sentences and all the terms of their supervised release, such as parole.
    Rogers did not know that he was voting illegally, the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, who is representing Rogers, told CNN Friday.
    Andre Segura, ACLU Texas’ legal director, told CNN that Rogers fully believed that he was legally eligible to vote.
    “That’s why he went and stood in line for almost seven hours and spoke to CNN about it. He felt he was doing the right thing,” Segura explained. “Where’s the evidence he knew or intended to vote illegally?”
    Lawyers are now trying to get an understanding of what the status of his criminal history was at the time he voted.
    Segura said he believed that Rogers was no longer on parole as of a few months ago.
    “(Attorney General Ken Paxton) wants to create a narrative of widespread voter fraud. We don’t think this is a case that should gotten to this point,” he said, also calling the charges against Rogers “a misuse of resources.”
    Segura said this sends a chilling signal that a possible innocent mistake can turn into something this serious….

    http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/cnn_allpolitics/~3/wBsDJq00MlM/index.html

    • No the operative words are “Texas Attorney Generals office.”

      That’s the bailiwick of Ken Paxton ,a good Texas Republican vote suppressor.

        • Based on the facts of this case, is anybody suggesting that he should have been allowed to vote?

          As the law is, he clearly was ineligible to vote.

          The legal process should determine whether or not he knew he was attempting to vote illegally. All defendants in our system have a presumption of innocence. Nonetheless, it was definitely illegal for him to vote, regardless of who he intended to vote for or how long he waited in line.

          • More from the NY Times…..

            …Experts say that disparities in sentencing can make felony voting laws inherently discriminatory against minorities and people with low incomes. And the process for former felons to return to the voter rolls can be confusing, with muddled and frequently changing rules, making it difficult for people trying to vote legally to know what to do.

            Mr. Rogers’s story ricocheted around social media after he was identified as the very last person in line to vote at his polling place. Houston Public Media reported at the time that Mr. Rogers arrived at the polls just before 7 p.m. and waited roughly six hours to vote, long after the polls had closed and many others had left the line.

            “It is insane, but it’s worth it,” Mr. Rogers told Houston Public Media while waiting in line….

            …

            …He could face upward of 40 years in prison — 20 years for each charge, according to Mr. Buser-Clancy, who added that Mr. Rogers’s past criminal record meant that the sentence could be even higher.

            “He’s facing the possibility of an extremely harsh sentence,” he said. “Second-degree felonies are normally reserved for aggravated assault, and to apply it to Mr. Rogers’s case, it just shows how unjust that is.”

            Texas’ attorney general, Ken Paxton, who is under investigation for professional misconduct after he challenged President Biden’s win in court, brought the charges against Mr. Rogers. He has made it a mission of his office to prosecute voter-fraud cases, which are very rare in the United States and tend to be minor mistakes when they do happen.

            “Hervis is a felon rightly barred from voting under TX law,” Mr. Paxton wrote on Twitter. “I prosecute voter fraud everywhere we find it!”…

            More……

            • Jack was right….

              The Texas AG IS the issue here…

              Applying the law IS something government and courts have wide discretion in…

              • The law is the law.

                There should be an agreement between sides, with all that they disagree on, that people will not vote illegally and in return the other side will not make up falsehoods about illegal voting. It has to work both ways.

                Generally speaking, voter fraud and illegal voting is the biggest potential problem in local elections and in primaries.

                • The biggest potential problem is saying there was widespread voter fraud when there wasn’t.

                  I don’t know if this guy knew he was not eligible to vote, but I would probably not have known that. One would think that people who have served their sentence should be eligible to vote.

                  The law should be fair. What type of person would believe this deserves up to 40 years. In prison?

                  • There actually has been littke to no voter fraud across the country and media likes to spotlight any GOPer incidents….

            • It is very unlikely he will serve prison time, but the facts are that he voted, more than once, illegally.

                • If in this 2020 primary, he were voting for Bernie Sanders or any other Democrat candidate over Joe Biden, you would be the first to want his vote thrown out.

          • In abstract theory, CG, you could make that argument.

            But as Jack could no doubt recite to you in greater detail, these disenfranchisements (sometimes for life) for crimes were a classic way for the white Dixiecrats to thwart one of the Republican Party’s greatest achievements (over furious Democratic opposition): the Fifteenth Amendment.

            Until recent times, Florida’s disenfranchisement lasted for life: once convicted of a felony, no voting rights except by a difficult and rarely successful appeal. And something like a quarter of Afro-American Floridian men had some kind of criminal record.

            Although Florida’s voters removed these disqualifications after incarceration, the Republicans promptly tried to thwart the voters’ intentions by denying the vote until all other conditions, such as fines, court costs, parole and probation had been satisfied.

            • The article states that the law in Texas is once that a former convict meets all requirements of their release and parole that they be allowed to vote again. I would tend to approve of that. I think there should be a system in place to allow former convicts back into all aspects of society, including voting.

              Whether he knew he was voting illegally or not will have to be determined. Usually, ignorance of the law is not an excuse for illegal activity. The bottom line is that his votes should not have counted. My views are of course without any consideration of race, gender, background, or political beliefs. The law should be the law.

  25. Would this guy have been prosecuted if he wasn’t black? I doubt it. If this guy was a white Republican, is there a Republican who would have recommended prosecution? Many Texas Republicans don’t even think the Jan 6 rioters should be prosecuted.

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