The act listed how the popular vote in a Presidential election in each state goes to the US House where if a states ‘ vote is contested ?
That states Governor’s people decide what the Electoral vote should be counted….
YES!
You read that right….
A Democrat COULD Winn the popular vote in a state and if a Republican Governor had the balls?
They could contest the vote totals and THEN have their people certify THEIR own count……
THAT is the what the Electoral Count Act of 1887 has in place….
It needs to be changed….
Will Congress be able to do so?
Or?
Will Trump & Co. be able to manuever a second term by putting their own sepathgic Governor’s in place?
Might be a bit farfetched?
Might Not?
The push to rewrite the Electoral Count Act of 1887 — enacted more than a century ago in the wake of another bitterly disputed presidential election — has taken on new urgency in recent weeks as more details have emerged about the extent of Mr. Trump’s plotto exploit its provisions to cling to power.
Mr. Trump and his allies, using a warped interpretation of the law, sought to persuade Vice President Mike Pence to throw out legitimate results when Congress met in a joint session on Jan. 6 to conduct its official count of electoral votes.
It was Mr. Pence’s refusal to do so that led a mob of Mr. Trump’s supporters to chant “Hang Mike Pence,” as they stormed the Capitol, delaying the proceedings as lawmakers fled for their lives. Members of Congress and the vice president ultimately returned and completed the count, rejecting challenges made by loyalists to Mr. Trump and formalizing President Biden’s victory….
….
Republicans in Congress have repeatedly blocked efforts by Democrats to alter election laws in the wake of the 2020 crisis, and it is not clear whether a bid to revamp the Electoral Count Act will fare any better. But experts have described the law as “almost unintelligible,” and an overhaul has the support of several leading conservative groups.
“There are a few of us on the committee who are working to identify proposed reforms that could earn support across the spectrum of liberal to conservative constitutional scholars,” said Representative Adam B. Schiff, Democrat of California and a member of the Jan. 6 committee. “We could very well have a problem in a future election that comes down to an interpretation of a very poorly written, ambiguous and confusing statute.”
Representative Liz Cheney, Republican of Wyoming and the vice chairwoman of the committee, said on Thursday that “the 1887 Electoral Count Act is directly at issue” and that the panel would recommend changes to it…
…
The Constitution leaves it up to Congress to finalize the results of presidential elections shortly before Inauguration Day. Article II, Section 1 says, “The president of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted.”…
Note….
The 2024 election college results will be presided over by Vice President Harris…..
image….Credit… Erin Schaff/The New York Times
New Open Thread is HERE….
Congressman Nunes, famous Republican Trump ass kisser from the Central Valley is retiring from Congress.
Where’s the cult boy Daniel when we need him?
Nunes, the guy who committed treason in public, still a young man, is running rather than fight.
Keith, I would rather Nunes not run because he just might win. Maybe he will instead shut up with his conspiracy theories about the 2020 election?
Is that what you are referring to as committing treason in public – or did I just forget or miss something?
He will have a tough re-election due to redistricting, so will Darrell “the car thief” Issa, and chubby homophobe Ken Calvert. All of them got bad districts Zreebs.
I was referring to Nunes bringing top secret information to the White House as Committee Chair, an ethics violation, felony, and potential act of treason.
No wonder Trump is giving him a job.
He will NOT be missed in the Capitol Hall’s one would assume…..
But now we have Solons who make Devin Nunes seem almost civil, civic-minded, calm, impartial and non-partisan:
Matt Gaetz, Tom Cotton,
Lauren Boebert, Paul Gosar, Jim Massie, Marjorie Taylor Greene, …
Unemployment claims just hit a 52 year low!
A GDP that a Republican President could dream about and seven million new jobs have been created under Biden.
But, but the Christmas tree at Fox News!!
Good Morning Folks…..
These are Political Wire’s “thoughts for the week” and I find them both interesting and spot on. The bit about both Germany and Japan being stronger democracies should scare everyone, because it’s true:
The ruling from the DC Court of Appeals that rejected Donald Trump’s claim of executive privilege is about much more than the former president’s claim of “executive privilege.” It’s actually a flashing alarm for investigating what really happened on January 6.
This week marked 80 years since the bombing of Pearl Harbor and America’s entry into World War II. It’s striking that Germany and Japan now have stronger democracies than the United States.
I couldn’t bring myself to link to the Politico article this week suggesting that Vice President Kamala Harris was overly “wary” and “too paranoid” to use Bluetooth headphones. That’s because it actually makes sense.
I got more than a dozen emails from readers suggesting I “need to apologize” for defending Jussie Smollett, the actor who was found guilty yesterday of falsely reporting a hate crime. Of course, I never once posted news about the case and never really followed it.
With New York City allowing non-citizen immigrants the right to vote in local elections, they’ve handed Republicans an issue to bash Democrats that’s perhaps even more politically potent than “defunding the police.” Sen. Tom Cotton has already taken the bait.
It must be a miserable existence to think everyone around you — even your allies — are out to get you. (I am sure he is referring to Trump here, don’t you think?)
Can’t talk more today. We’re getting ready for our holiday party tomorrow after a two year COVID pause. Vaccinated only, and people must show their vaccination cards. Even so, we have a record number attending tomorrow, people are very eager to get back to normal.
Have a good weekend everyone.
I don’t find it far fetched at all.
And I imagine most of the other posters here don’t either.
It’s way past time that you understand what the Republican Party has become.
Why do you think they have been “reforming” all these state election laws?Because they are civic minded citizens?
The steal is in and these extremists and totalitarians will do Anything to gain power.Lies, cheating, stealing?Nothing is beyond them…Nothing!
Then the light from the Committee and the media needs to shine MORE brightly….
And the judges need keep doing their jobs as they did in just about EVERY post election Trump conspired Bull Shit case that his lawyers are being ordered to reimburse people for and has generated billion dollar law cuts from voting machine companies …
Republicans in Red state’s DID stand up it should noted….
Some of them have been replaced for doing so…
Some are still standing strong and have been threatened…
And those same Republicans that you are now fawning over?
What ?They are heroes because they refused t steal an election.In some cases their lawyers warned them they might go to jail.
All of them supported the so called “reforms” pushed by Trump.
“Reforms “ you yourself were blasting away at not long ago
As usual, you contradict yourself over and over and make no sense.
You just refuse to see what has happened to the Republican Party .
For Congressman Thomas Massie and many Conservatives, nothing captures the spirit of Christmas more than a family picture in front of the Christmas tree with each person brandishing a gun.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/05/us/thomas-massie-kentucky-representative-guns-family-photo/index.html
Even though it is still early for Christmas cards, I suspect the timing of the photo was no accident.
It may be early for Xmas cards, but Chanukah has already begun; maybe they should pose like that around a menorah (with one gun lighting up each candle) . 😉
Sick.
Contrast this with how the Minnesota Vikings wore the Oxford High school’s logo in their warmups against the Lions, despite the fact that there are few vikings fans in Michigan. Now that is class – the opposite of what Massie did,
Where is the post on Trump Fraying at the edges now that Purdue backed by Trump is running for Georgia governor?
For those who thought Kemp wasn’t a big enough prick.
Morning people
Breaking Devin Nunes (R-Ca) wii NOT RUN. Again for office….
Remember him?
Nunes will be working FOR Trump’s new media Company as CEO…….
Oh?
The SEC is looking at how the company
Is being put together…….
Investors have pledged a Billion start up money for the venture
Pwire piece says Dem’s new House district map was gonna cost him …….
The redistricting thing works NOTH ways, eh?
MSNBC had a nice tribute to Bob Dole this morning using very flattering language and calling him an American patriot.
They could have focused on the negative such as Dole’s support of Trump and his appearance at Trump’s convention, nut it was left unmentioned. Even though I believe we should not whitewash our history, this was one time eBay I am pleased that Dole’s flaws were not exposed.
Fox News and Newsmax would not have been as courteous if a Democratic Party icon had died,
To that last point, I looked on YouTube at various clips from news coverage of Walter Mondale’s passing back in April. Most local and national outlets did a few minutes, though MSNBC logged as much as 9 minutes on his life and influence. Fox, on the other hand, did a half minute blurb on him, half of which was Tucker kissing up to Ron DeSantis. So…Fox did a whopping 17 seconds on Mondale, complete with the gem “He was liked by people who knew him, whether or not one liked his politics.”
I wonder how much coverage FOX gave to Rich Limbaughs passing in February.
Actually I don’t. The important thing is that gasbag is no longer spouting hate.
Fast forward a quarter century or so, and we’ll probably all be saying the same thing about Tucker and Sean Hannity. They’re just about as odious as Rush Limpdong.
The Republican election lawyer Ben Ginsberg is calling on congressional Republicans to update the law that Donald Trump tried to manipulate to steal a second term.
The Electoral Count Act, which governs how Electoral College votes are tallied, is vulnerable to partisan attacks, as legal observers and Democrats have been saying for months.
On Sunday, Ginsberg argued that the 1887 law’s vague wording and application could be bad news for his own party…….
Talking Points Memo
I guess Ginsburg realized Harris will be the VP next time?
Morning……
For all the posts that are put up on here, was there any thought about having one for Bob Dole, after his passing?
President Biden
@POTUS
United States government official
As we mark National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, we honor the patriots who perished, commemorate the valor of all those who defended our nation, and recommit ourselves to carrying forth the ensuing peace and reconciliation that brought a better future for our world.
I believe every poster here that day posted an RIP to Bob Dole and all were very complimentary of him and his service to the country.
It was noted by one that it was unfortunate Dole felt the need to endorse Donald Trump.
I myself put it down to his loyalty to his Republican Party which doesn’t exist anymore ,however, I don’t let that ,done when he was over 95 years old ,take away from his record of service.
He was a good man.
It was directed towards james not having a “Bob Dole” post since he does so many other posts for so many other things. I made one for my blog though.
Send it to me….
I’ll post it…
He was too busy declaring this pandemic essentially over.
And compiling proof that the GOP was moving on without Trump
The Political Education of Peter Meijer
The Atlantic has a very good profile of freshman Rep. Peter Meijer (R-MI), in which he describes what he saw during the Capitol insurrection:
“On the House floor, moments before the vote, Meijer approached a member who appeared on the verge of a breakdown. He asked his new colleague if he was okay. The member responded that he was not; that no matter his belief in the legitimacy of the election, he could no longer vote to certify the results, because he feared for his family’s safety.”
Said Meijer: “Remember, this wasn’t a hypothetical. You were casting that vote after seeing with your own two eyes what some of these people are capable of. If they’re willing to come after you inside the U.S. Capitol, what will they do when you’re at home with your kids?”
This doesn’t actually surprise me. https://www.ajc.com/news/this-has-been-happening-for-a-long-time-modern-day-slavery-uncovered-in-ga/SHBHTDDTTBG3BCPSVCB3GQ66BQ/?outputType=amp
Josh Duggar found guilty. Good. Hope he is locked up for an extremely long time.
Hopefully, Jussie Smollett will also be found guilty in a different case in short order.
I laughed my ass off when I got the news bulletin on my phone about that family values preachin’ reality TV star going down in a ball of fire.
Smollett was apparently just endorsed by BLM on account of “we can never believe the police.”
Police have their issues,. Indeed, every little thing they do is not magic. But that guy’s pretty clearly guilty of bad acting and more.
A verdict has been reached…
Dave Wasserman
@Redistrict
Maryland becomes the 20th state to complete a new congressional map. Democrats have made Rep. Andy Harris’s (R) #MD01 more competitive, but they stopped well short of a maximal 8D-0R gerrymander. Initial
@CookPolitical
rating for the new #MD01: Lean R.
GUILTY
5 out of 6 counts
A jury convicted Jussie Smollett on multiple charges that he orchestrated a fake attack on himself and lied to police about it in 2019.….
LA Times
It would be very disturbing if BLM did endorse Smollett. Hopefully, and more likely it was just one prominent person of BLM and not the entire organization.
I have no doubt that Smolette is guilty.
When last I checked, “Black Lives Matter” seemed to name several distinct (though related) groups. The current BLM site is focussed on all minorities (inc. LGBTQIA+), while the original movement (or perhaps just another part of it) had moved to the “Movement for Black Lives”. (Remember the Tea Party Express vs the Tea Party Patriots?)
I did once look at an earlier BLMs site to see what its program was, and how much I agreed with it. But BLM had assembled a bunch of minority-group advocates in Washington, whose ultimate joint platform seemed just to be a collection of different laundry lists (half-a-dozen to a dozen individual programs, each with a dozen planks.)
Now that doesn’t mean I’m certain that BLM didn’t back Justin Smollett but that if this endorsement came from just one individual member or segment of BLM, I would not be astonished in the slightest degree.
From official website of official group:
https://blacklivesmatter.com/statement-regarding-the-ongoing-trial-of-jussie-smollett/?__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=99zPyljwGj2Ojdl.6ahSXxZFpYlLXX54wWDYLZ3vgEQ-1639149886-0-gaNycGzNCD0
They state they will continue working for the “abolition of police.”
BLM is made up of multiple groups….
And the movement has grown and evolved I’d think….
Hence the scattered platform?
“black lives matter” is a concept and a noble, important one.
Black Lives Matter is a specific organization, with Marxist ties.
CG?
ALL of the people marching for the BLM concept are NOT Marxist…
I have no idea WTF that came from…
No politican , lawmakers or most of all Democrat in his/her right mind has embraced ‘defund the police’….
Most places have actually added to their budgets…
I know ur carrying this for the GOPer line , but it just has little to no traction….
And the cops made money on O/T with protests ….
It’s not a lie or a falsehood to say that “BLM supports Smollett” — although the link that CG provided does it in the most circuitous, roundabout way* — but it’s also not false to say that this seems incomplete: just as one could say “The Tea Party supports…” referring to the Tea Party Patriots even when the Tea Party Express might not take a different view or no position at all.
* Although posted on the BLM web-site, it does not say that the statement is BLM’s, but just that it is a “a statement from Dr. Melina Abdullah, Director of BLM Grassroots and Co-Founder of BLM Los Angeles”.
The broader 50-group Movement for Black Lives site says nothing at all about Justin Smollett.
Nor would one suspect they would….
Josh Duggar had previously resigned from the Family Research Council because as President Tony Perkins noted, the sexual molestation of children charges “made it difficult for him to do his job effectively” with an organization that believes it promotes moral values.
Michigan official who disputed election and opposed vaccines dies after being hospitalized with Covid.
William Hartmann, one of two Republican election officials from Michigan who initially refused to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election in Wayne County, where Joe Biden had trounced Donald J. Trump, died on Nov. 30 at a hospital in Wyandotte, Mich., near Detroit. He was 63.
About two weeks before Mr. Hartmann’s death, which was confirmed by the Michigan Republican Party, his sister, Elizabeth Hartmann, wrote on Facebook that he was “in ICU with Covid pneumonia and currently on a ventilator.” Mr. Hartmann had been outspoken in his opposition to Covid vaccines….
He drew national attention after he and another Republican member of the Wayne County Board of Canvassers, Monica Palmer, refused to certify the election results. Mr. Biden had won the county, which includes the city of Detroit, with 68 percent of the vote, compared with 31 percent for Mr. Trump….
Mr. Hartmann made it clear on his own social media accounts that he did not believe in Covid vaccines. He suggested that vaccine passports, showing proof of vaccination, were something out of Nazi Germany.
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/12/09/world/omicron-variant-covid/michigan-official-who-disputed-election-and-opposed-vaccines-dies-after-being-hospitalized-with-covid
I’m sure he was also
“Pro Life.”
Yeah this Republican moron was all over Facebook with his rants against “the jab”.
Triple jabbed and still alive here
What say you coffin boy?
Poetic justice to the evildoer.
Another ICU hospital bed available to the innocent.
Morning….
Shouldn’t the anti-Vaccers find it odd that so many prominent anti-vaccer advocates are dying of Covid-19, but few (if any) prominent pro-vaccine advocates are dying?
Robert F Kennedy Jr says Sirhan Sirhan didn’t kill his father.
He comes by it honestly, his mother is nuts. There was bound to be one kid that carries it forward.
Ted Cruz had the gall to show up at Bob Dole’s funeral (and appears to be the only one not wearing a mask.)
This is after Cruz regularly attacked Dole as part of his failed 2016 Presidential campaign. Dole made it clear that he despised Cruz.
Bob Dole dud not suffer fools lightly. It’s one of the things I most liked about him. And Cruz is most definitely a fool!
Your being kind Scott about Cruz…
Monkees star Michael Nesmith dies at 78.
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/monkees-michael-nesmith-dead-1270079/
There is a report that Bibi Netanyhu feels he has to justify congratulating zPresident Biden for his becoming President?
What dies Trump think?
He ‘owned’ the former Israeli Prime Minister?
More on Trump being pissed off at the former Israeli PM congratulating Biden for his win….
Guardian staff and agencies
Fri 10 Dec 2021 21.59 EST
Donald Trump spat an expletive about his old ally, Israel’s ex-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for congratulating Joe Biden on his victory in last year’s election, according to a new book.
Trump lashed out in an interview for a book on US-Israel relations during his presidency, the author Barak Ravid wrote on the Axios website on Friday. Trump’s remarks were also published by the English-language website of Israel’s Yediot Aharonot newspaper.
“Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu were the closest of political allies during the four years they overlapped in office, at least in public. Not any more,” Ravid wrote.
“I haven’t spoken to him since,” Trump told Ravid in an interview. “Fuck him.”….
More….
VERY INTERESTING…..
Robert Reich
@RBReich
Anybody notice that the filibuster rule was just changed to allow the debt ceiling to be raised with just 51 votes? So why can’t filibuster rule be changed to allow passage of voting rights by just 51 votes? Hmmm, Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema?
It is worth reminding ourselves that the increase in white supremacy activity particularly happening in the US are also happening in Europe.
https://www.cnn.com/style/article/banksy-colston-bristol-black-lives-matter-protest-statue-scli-intl-gbr/index.html
Morning Folks….
No surprise there Z….
Unfortunately ?
Somethings are uniquely human….
The tornado damage and loss of life in Kentucky is horrific. There was also an Amazon warehouse that collapsed killing at least two in Edwardsville, IL about half hour from me. No damage here though thankfully.
Post coming on this
Tornado season is considered March through May in Illinois, although it is not at all uncommon to have one outside those months. But I certainly don’t recall anything in December!
Is this somehow potentially related to global warming? Inquiring minds want to know!
Dixie Alley is considered a close second to the classic Tornado Alley, and the peak months usually are in Winter(roughly November to January). The warmer temperatures on average down here as opposed to the rest of the country make it somewhat a more conducive environment.
Now that said, I don’t think Kentucky constitutes Deep South quite the way AL, GA, MS, TN, and the Carolinas do. I know for sure IL doesn’t. Is this a matter of climate change, though? Almost certainly.
I do not recall EVER receiving tornado warnings when I lived in Scranton, NJ, Charlotte, Baton Rouge or Austin, but we get them at least twice a year in my area in northeastern IL. Usually they never touch down (much like my Chicago Bears). The company I used to work for in the Chicago suburbs used to report that a tornado was spotted and to stay away from the windows, and everyone would run to the windows to see what was happening. This happened every time there was a tornado warning!
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dixie_Alley
Nice Press release….
Not much of a chance….
Los Angeles Times
@latimes
In response to Texas abortion law, Newsom calls for legislation to restrict assault weapons
…
Office of the Governor of California
@CAgovernor
If states can shield their laws from review by federal courts, then CA will use that authority to help protect lives.
We will work to create the ability for private citizens to sue anyone who manufactures, distributes, or sells an assault weapon or ghost gun kit or parts in CA.
There simply is no way this would survive 2nd Amd challenges…
This was a surprise – at least to me, and it is from a good source…
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/most-reported-us-omicron-cases-have-hit-fully-vaccinated-cdc-2021-12-10/
Another surprise is that the WHO still says there are no confirmed Omicron deaths to date – although I understand the process to confirm deaths takes awhile.
In the meantime, the Delta variant continues to kill =especially the unvaccinated.
Britain reported the first known Omicron death.
Morning All….
REALLY….WTF cares?
Elon Musk Is Time’s Person of the Year
Elon Musk has been named Time magazine’s 2021 Person of the Year.
This in Politicalwire…
Biden Underwater In New Hampshire
A new New Hampshire Journal poll in New Hampshire finds 70% of registered voters believe the country is on the wrong track.
That may explain why President Biden underwater with Granite Staters by 14 points, with a 43% favorable/57% unfavorable number.
( Trump WON this state BIG last November)
I wonder if this person was vaccinated or not. I have just spent the morning scheduling our rapid tests when we arrive in London next week. We are required to quarantine until we get our results and will test before we leave SFO, rather complicated, and not sure how folks will be monitored. But we’re supposed to get our results in an hour. So we shall see.
Boy does Boris look like a fool. By-election tomorrow in a “blue wall” constituency. The results should be interesting.
The Reuters report said it was unknown if the person was vaccinated or had any underlying condition.
https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/britain-says-omicron-spreading-phenomenal-rate-2021-12-13/
Morning….
Debt Ceiling Update….
Sorry Donald
Biden isn’t gonna follow ir example ……
The Senate passed a measure Tuesday night to raise the debt limit to nearly $31 trillion as Democrats race to clear the increase before the United States risks an economically devastating default.
The chamber voted 50-49 to adopt the legislation. Across the Capitol, House Democrats are ready to clear the measure for President Joe Biden’s signature as soon as Tuesday night, saving the Treasury Department from fully exhausting its ability to pay interest on the nation’s $29 trillion in loans — an economic crisis that could hit as soon as Wednesday.
Politico…
The Senator who did not vote on raising the debt ceiling was Cynthia Lummis, Republican of Wyoming.
So with only 49 (all R) rather than 50 opposed, the Vice President’s casting vote was not necessary.
https://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=117&session=1&vote=00498
Thanks DSD….
The GOPer’s figured out a way get it done and duck Trump?
No, James, although I can’t find the details, Sen. Lummis’ absence was not what clinched the ceiling raise, since VP Harris would have made the vote 51-50 (instead of 50-49).
The Democrats reached a deal with Sen. McConnell by which enough Republicans would invoke (or at least not oppose) cloture that the bill could reach (over any filibuster) the Senate floor, while still allowing all the GOP Senators to claim that they voted against raising the debt ceiling (as demanded by their base and by Donald Trump’s).
Since I can’t find a roll call for cloture on the bill (Senate Joint Resolution 33), I presume it passed by voice vote (leaving no written record to be used in future campaign commercials).
The House voted to accept the Senate Debt Ceiling bill which now goes to President Biden….
There will be NO Govt shutdown as McConnell said from the jump…..
…..
The bill, which lawmakers passed 221-209, with one Republican voting yes, raises the federal debt ceiling by $2.5 trillion to increase the limit to close to $31 trillion.…
The Hill
The Republican who voted for raising the debt limit was retiring Rep. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois.
The only two Republican votes to hold Mark Meadows in contempt of Congress were those of Kinzinger and Liz Cheney (Wyo.), who are the only GOP members of the Jan. 6th Special Committee.
No Republicans voted for the Combating International Islamophobia Act. (which may yet face failure or weakening in the Senate).
No Democratic Member failed to vote for any of these three bills or resolutions.
Clark Higgins of Louisiana (R) was the only member who failed to vote on any of these three bills. Mike Rogers (R-Alab.) and Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.) did not vote on the debt ceiling rise.
https://clerk.house.gov/Votes
The ‘Trump Effect’ is alive and well but will NOT stop the government from running….
Just make GOPer’s hide in plain sight…
What a shame
Morning All
Morning….
I knew Pat McCrory from when he first ran for City Council in Charlotte. I worked with his wife, and I met McCrory when he came to the office. In those early days (was it the late eighties?), I would describe McCrory as rather conservative- even by NC standards, and I am pretty sure Jesse Helms was still in office. So I can’t help but shutter when I hear that today’s GOP is calling McCrory a liberal! How the GOP has changed!
https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/12/politics/fact-check-nc-senate-mccrory-attack-ad-trump-romney-blm/index.html
Yet there are some here who refuse to accept that glaring reality.
They seem to think if Trump would just go away the Republican Party would revert to where it was in the GW Bush days.
The time for that is long gone.
Trump merely ripped the veneer of civility that Republicans had draped around their party and exposed the cruel maliciousness that lie just beneath the surface.
The trash has been released into the body politic of the old GOP and there’s no turning back.
I totally agree.
Spot on Jack!
I would add that some of us recognized the evil that was below the surface for sometime, while some still don’t see it. How can Republicans justify not holding Meadows in contempt? I would have thought that making sure that Congress is not overthrown by neofascist terrorists should have been a priority to more than just two House Republicans, but I have been overestimating the integrity of Republicans for some time.
History is not going to be kind to these Republican enablers unless it is written by the neofascists, which unfortunately is a real and growing possibility.
Does anyone deny that the Republicans are setting it up to really steal the next election no matter how many votes they lose by? There aren’t enough what abouts in the whole world to justify what they are doing because “both side do it.”
Even in Florida the only people who have been charged with voter fraud are registered Republicans. There is no evidence, none, that the Democrats cheated in 2020 to get Joe Biden elected, but folks who should know better won’t say that.
Schumer is edging to get a Voting Right bill vote by forgetting the filibuster for it…..
We’ll see….
Keith, This how desperate the GOP was to find voting fraud in the black community. Sentenced to five years for filing a provisional ballot that wasn’t even ever counted.
https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights/fighting-voter-suppression/crystal-mason-thought-she-had-right-vote-texas
I recall how when I went to vote in Texas in 2005, they had changed where I was supposed to vote without me being provided notice. I found out that the precinct that was moved was overwhelmingly Democratic. And when I went to the new location, the GOP poll watcher tried to do all she could to intimidate me and invalidate my vote. By the way, I voted for more Democrats that day than I planned to when I left my house.
It will be hand to hand combat is some states next year on Election Day. The fact that so many Republicans seem to think an election was stolen and they need to do something about it and the “about” is voter suppression is astounding.
So, changing polling places on Election Day will be the least of it.
Large parts of the Union (and perhaps the Union itself) may resemble the political structure of the South between the end of Reconstruction and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 — nominally pluralist, libertarian and democratic but (relying on a combination of fear, violence and populist demagogy) in reality an iron one-party oligarchy.
That’s a pretty good comparison.
Go over to the new open thread people ….
This one will become unreadable for some people with the numbers above 100….
Evasive Republican Politician of the Day: Kansas Sen. Roger Marshall, M.D.: Get your booster if you’re vulnerable but mandates won’t work:
Too long to paste his whole interview today with Chuck Todd on Meet the Press here, but here’s one of the weirder extracts:
“Look, I think I’ve been one of the leaders from the start, encouraging people to get the vaccine. I was leading the charge back in July of 2020, saying, “We’re going to have a vaccine. Let’s get it out the door.” In the summer of this year, I was encouraging people to get boosters. If the CDC could have pivoted sooner, we would have saved thousands of lives. I think being honest with people, the CDC needs to acknowledge natural immunity. Look, as a physician, I was never able to talk anybody into stopping smoking by a mandate or by trying to argue with them. It was by being honest and communicating with them. I would just encourage all those folks who have not gotten the vaccine yet to talk to their doctor about it. And by the way, let’s talk about eating healthy and exercising every day and getting seven hours of sleep, avoiding stress. Those are the things that we can all be doing to help minimize the impact of this virus.”
https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/news/meet-press-december-12-2021-n1285799
Similar dodging when he talks about the legitimacy of the 2020 election, etc.
I don’t understand the argument that “mandates don’t work”.. Of course they work, unless there are people who would get the vaccine if not for the mandate. But if people are that stupid, they would likely have made other poor decisions in their life that would have led to an early death anyway.
With the prevalence of Delta, vaccinations are needed for us to get back to normal.
Covid-19 deaths now exceeds 800,000. There are 4 states with a smaller population than that: VT, AK, WY and ND, and DC.
If all those dead of Covid in the U.S. had been residents of Washington, D.C., (pop. 690,000) the city would be empty.
The same would be true if all those 800,000+ had lived in Seattle (737,000), Austin (Texas), Denver, Nashville, Oklahoma City, El Paso or Boston (675,000).
And had the pandemic’s victims lived in San Francisco, Charlotte or Indianapolis, that city would have fewer than 100,000 survivors.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_by_population
You are wrong about Austin, my old stomping ground. Although it doesn’t have a pro sports team (but does have U of TX), its population is now close to 1m
You are (0f course) right, Zreebs. (about Austin’s population). When I’m sleepy, it really doesn’t matter how much time I take, I won’t notice the slips I make.
So, right now, all of America’s Covid-19 deaths so far would wipe out only about 4/5 or 5/6 of Austin’s people, not 100+%.
… That Vermont has never elected a woman to the Senate or House of Representatives is the source of not a little embarrassment here and flies in the face of the state’s reputation as a liberal, progressive place.
It’s not that Vermont voters don’t like women. It’s just that they love incumbents, and, in the nation’s second least populous state, with just one congressional seat, opportunities to serve in Washington rarely arise.
Last week, Lieutenant Governor Molly Gray, a former aide to Welch, launched her bid for Congress. On Monday, a week to the day after Gray made her announcement, Becca Balint, the first woman and first openly gay person to serve as president of the Vermont State Senate, said she would run for the seat, too.
Both Gray and Balint are Democrats, and many political observers here think a third female Democrat, state Senator Kesha Ram-Hinsdale, is likely to run, too. Other women serving in the Legislature are also considering bids.
The only candidate to say she’ll run for the seat as a Republican so far is Marcia Horne, a marketing consultant who ran unsuccessfully for Welch’s seat in 2020 as an independent. Vermont hasn’t elected a Republican to the either the House or Senate since 1988, and both of them, former congressman Peter Smith and former senator Jim Jeffords, eventually quit the Republican party.
Once you get past [Republican Gov. Phil] Scott, the most popular and powerful politicians in the state are not only Democrats but mostly women. Besides Gray, Balint and House Speaker Jill Krowinski lead the Legislature.
With women comprising more than 40 percent of the Legislature, Vermont has long been near the top of state legislatures in political gender equality. Nationwide, women account for 30 percent of state legislators, while Rhode Island leads the nation with 45 percent. Massachusetts ranks last in New England, with 31 percent.
Vermont regularly tops Bloomberg’s state rankings on overall gender equality, based on five categories: health coverage, pay ratio, labor force participation, college degree attainment, and numbers living in poverty….
Kevin Cullen, Boston Globe columnist
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2021/12/13/metro/sure-thing-vermont/
To indicate how Republican Vermont used to be, she was the only state to vote for both William Howard Taft in 1912 (with Utah) and Alf Landon in 1936 (with Maine).
The only Republican presidential candidate between the G.O.P.’s founding in 1854 and 1990 to lose Vermont was Barry Goldwater in 1964.
But like Cong. Peter Welch (now D) and Sen. James Jeffords (now Ind.) in 1988, Pres. George H.W. Bush was the last Republican to win the Green Mountain State. Since 1990, Vermont has always voted for Democratic or independent candidates for Federal office.