Today, voters in Kansas overwhelmingly rejected an amendment to their state constitution that would have stripped it of protections for abortion rights. With 86% of the vote in, 62% of voters supported abortion protections; 37% wanted them gone. That spread is astonishing. Kansas voters had backed Trump in 2020; Republicans had arranged for the referendum to fall on the day of a primary, which traditionally attracts higher percentages of hard-line Republicans; and they had written the question so that a “yes” vote would remove abortion protections and a “no” would leave them in place. Then, today, a political action committee sent out texts that lied about which vote was which.
But - like the Battle of Midway we weren't supposed to win - the path to victory has been revealed by the voters of Kansas: organize against the lies (they informed people what the correct vote was, and they got out the news of the fake text instructions today, and they worked to get people out to vote) and instead of the usual 200-300,000 voters showing up, 700,000 voters showed up and they won. They won because they just put their heads down and their shoulders to the wheel and they didn't moan and complain about being "disappointed." And they won. Lots of people who weren't Democrats voted HELL NO in that election, because there aren't enough Democrats in Kansas to win like that.
So the next time you run across a "genius" telling you how we can't win in November, tell the moron to either pull his head out of his ass and get to work, or get the hell out of the way.
Griddle is hot and The People are voting like it’s Midway. I like the second suggestion…Get out ‘the way. I’m not wasting another minute on people whose heads are not visible. Doubling down is sounding more and more moronic.
And may I add. I recommend your recent Substack essay on Ukraine and the war to this forum and am providing link. It informed me about war strategy in a way that made my understanding of this ongoing war and war in general stronger (the TELLMES factors) along with my conviction that our flag will continue to strongly support Ukraine with whatever means necessary. For freedom. For Democracy. 🇺🇸🇺🇦
Agree for not only TC, Christine and Stuart but there are so many smart people that open my eyes even more. Thank you Heather for creating this space for those of us who care deeply.
I read TC's substack essay this morning and it was a clear and precisely written analysis of the differing strategies of Russia and Ukraine and what would need to happen for a Russian victory and how to counter their strategies. Excellent read!
Here is someone that waves those arms from her kitchen rants and podcasts, pushing people out ‘the way. Politics Girl, Leigh McGowan, on her podcast yesterday with Bharat Ramamurti talking about the economy. To give proper attention to it rather than like the media creating the burgeoning, blame everything on it, balloon of inflation. “What’s going on with the economy?”
I love you 99% of the time. Agree but Rupert still hasn’t told MAGAts a word of truth in Texas, the land of ostriches. Go MAGA (mothers Against Greg Abbott). Dallas Morning News had a big spread about this on Sunday. Joining up…
I love that, Jeri! About time newspapers fight back with real factual news and not be afraid of these cretins. I know they’ve tried but those devils in black robes are not planting any more Rosemary’s babies. In fact, they have awakened a once depressed-who-thought-they-were-doomed-crowd!
Per The Guardian in July, Kansas had to deal with criminal vandalism of Organizing Sites, political signs & purposeful misdirection. Nevertheless, Kansas folks prevailed emphatically.
Turnout for Tuesday’s primary election far exceeded other contests in recent years, with around 900,000 Kansans voting, according to an Associated Press estimate (with 90% of the vote). That is nearly twice as many as the 473,438 who turned out in the 2018 primary election.
Yes, TC, and we need to stop listening to the media telling us of the Democrats doom in the midterms. Every last one of us GET OUT AND DO YOUR JOBS AS AMERICAN CITIZENS. VOTE!
I feel such a sense of shock and betrayal when I hear the constant news drone of "Biden's goin down", "even DEMS are largely unhappy with him." Well that reflects absolutely no Dem that I know, and I don't answer/return calls on my phone for unidentified callers who refuse to leave a VM, so no political survey is hitting my home. I don't believe the mass produced drivel. Every last one of us are headed for the polls when the time comes.
Oh man - I don't know. Mayor Pete is awesome - it is true. Assume a for a moment Biden runs again. That is probable. And that's OK if he is still healthy and his mind is still good. But break up the president / vice-president ticket? Kamala has not been the most inspiring VP, it seems. Not sure why; maybe Biden has just not tasked her with enough. But she really helped in 2020 - first woman of color to be on the ticket. To abandon that - what effect would that have on some important voters?
This is why America was founded and became a beacon to the world. Here the Power does go to the People - and their voice. PS. I just love how there is not a peep on MSM this morning regarding the Dem Wave in KS yesterday. Now if there had been a Republican Wave...
IN KANSAS -- 30% plus registered Republicans voted against the Republican amendment, which would have led to banning abortions according to NBC News National Political Correspondent Steve Kornacki this morning -- 30% of registered Republicans -- GET THAT, TC! And what about the more than 900,000 Kansans (Jayhawkers) who came out to vote in the primary? It's a record!
'Kansas Republicans Face Dark Future in State Where Women Have Rights'
'President elect of the National Organization for Women Patricia Ireland speaks at a prochoice rally in Wichita.'
'KANSAS (The Borowitz Report)—Republicans in Kansas woke up to the dark prospect of life in a state where women have human rights, G.O.P. activists report.'
'Harland Dorrinson, a Republican stalwart in Kansas for more than forty years, said that now, after voters in the state appeared to affirm women should be treated as humans, “I no longer recognize my Kansas.” (Satire, NewYokers)
Plenty of registered Republicans voters are saying no to the Republican Party that would turn them into 'subjects' instead of 'CITIZENS'.
'President Biden put out a rare statement on a state referendum, praising the turnout and result. “Voters in Kansas turned out in record numbers to reject extreme efforts to amend the state constitution to take away a woman’s right to choose and open the door for a state-wide ban,” he said. “This vote makes clear what we know: the majority of Americans agree that women should have access to abortion and should have the right to make their own health care decisions.” He urged Congress to “listen to the will of the American people and restore the protections of Roe as federal law.”
'This is the first concrete evidence of a major backlash against the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision. Forced-birth advocates in Kansas thought that by putting the measure on a primary ballot, for which turnout is historically lower, conservative voters could dominate. Instead, they drove Democrats and a lot of pro-choice independents and Republicans who might not otherwise vote to the polls.' (JenniferRubinOpinionWAPO)
Apologies to TCinLA in putting this comment here, but this is the top comment and is widely being read. If you scroll through much of the comments (as I generally do, time permitting) you will come across the resident troll:
GEOFFREY HENDRICK
Obviously, the letter today got him REAL RILED UP!!
For heaven's sake people, recognize and remember his name and DON'T ENGAGE with him!
I have often read the debates that go on here, people respectfully disagree and debate. That is not at all what this sorry sack of (....) attempts. Is he paid by whomever to sow seeds of discontent? Perhaps. More likely, I think he is a holdover from the days when the landlines had the heavy breathers who'd randomly call people. You will never see this guy enter into a rational conversation, its always an attempt to inflame. There was another troll here about 6 months ago, people just stopped replying and he disappeared, or perhaps he re-upped as GEOFFREY HENDRICK.
Great advice, TC!!! It reminds me of Dolly Parton who shared what she said to folks who tell her what she can't do (don't know where she said this originally, but she quoted herself in a beloved Hallmark Christmas movie - yes, I do watch some of them!! -) "To the people who say we can't do this, could you please get out of the way of those of us who are doing it?!" Yes, onward to Nov. 22!!!!
TC, thanks for your comment. Voter registration increased in Kansas by 1000% the day after the Scotus Enemies of the People overturned Roe, according to MSNBC last night during its vote monitoring. That's not to say that it's a foregone conclusion that the Democrats will prevail in the midterms, but people of all stripes are riled because of the overturn of Roe, and hopefully many more will turn against the Rethuglicans because of their refusal to endorse common-sense firearms regulations, continuing incrimination of fake "electors" and other criminality continually revealed by the J6 Committee. The Dems need to get their act together and amend their messaging regarding the fact that inflation is a world-wide problem that was not caused by Biden's programs - he saved us from going over the cliff; the ongoing abuses of the minority party are constantly displayed as they do their damndest to overturn democracy; and everyone needs to understand the continuing good that Biden has done, regardless of the fact that his delivery is flawed!
We were delighted by the Kansas vote and it was overwhelming which is even better. And yes, keep working in every way possible to win in November. I am taking your advice in your last sentence.
It's panic time in Trumpland. I expect Democrats to use the Kansas landslide vote to bludgeon Republican candidates at every level of government. My prediction would be that the Trumpistas are going to lie about the Kansas referendum result, because that's what they do. They're going to claim that the referendum vote was rigged, and that there were a hoard of ghost ballots from California that were secretly flown in from San Franciso. The runner-up in the Arizona Secretary of State race is already claiming that the election was rigged.
There is a potential remedy for these brazen tactics, and that would be to sue the offending candidates seeking to disqualify them on grounds that their past behavior in denying the outcome of the 2020 election is evidence of their moral turpitude, meaning they are presumptively dishonest, as shown by their earlier behavior since the 2020 elections denying that Joe Biden legitimately won that election.
The bogus Arizona ' election audit' was a complete fiasco. These candidates cannot be trusted to honor their oaths of office because of their public statements. They are completely untrustworthy.
Arthur, you hit it. Sue those rethuglican candidates for their "moral turpitude." Remind voters that those who believe the big lie, are lying....making them untrustworthy in office.
I like the idea of suing the liars! Make life messy and costly for them. The liars and deniers have made life messy and costly for the rest of us! Perhaps the voters of Kansas represent a small glimmer of hope…
I’d go with Kansas voters showing us how big a piece of the pie voters are when motivated and focused. Thank you Kansas. Shining example of who We the People are!!!!!
Would agree with that! I can hope that the citizens of this country will realize the criticality of what it means to vote just like the voters of Kansas did. A shining example of what “turnout” can accomplish.
Hope the Democrat messengers get this story and use it well. I think we're getting better at this. I'm in love with PA Senate candidate John Fetterman His messages are gripping and funny rather than morose and dire, and it's working!
Agree, Chaplain! They're brilliant and hilarious... esp because they're TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!! What a refreshing change from lies, meanness with cruel intentions... (i.e. Swiftboating) Yay for Snookie!! :D
I agree wholeheartedly Arthur. Why should they be allowed to continue, knowing that they have no integrity and will continue with their despicable behavior. I want to cry when I think about what's happened to this country.
Zowie, what an intense collection of emerging action. Thank you so much for this one.
Interesting little side note on the missing phone info - I used to assist with communicating records protocols at my boring little federal agency back in the day. Very typically, "disregard" for records protocols meant that records were left in place... not deleted.
I could blither on about that but instead would be interested if GSA, which provides offices and computer and phone services had records of phone replacement schedules for those agencies and departments. That would be revealing.
They are burrowed very deep and it will take some heavy duty mining to reveal all the traitors. They are still counting on chump returning and making all this go away. But Justice is on to them and catching up fast. Rupert, get out of the way.
Knowing admin folks in DOJ, those replacement records and schedules are most definitely still around... the admins who do the work are somewhat anal about things like that. They're in somebody's files on their work computer somewhere.
Firstly, thank you, Heather Cox Richardson, for this amazing news. Thank you, Kansas, for your vote for freedom. Thank you, Jon Stewart and Company for pushing back to get the PACT Act passed (or as Heather would say, "Oopsie Poopsie!") Thank you, Family Reunification Task Force for your continuing efforts to reunite families at the border. Thank you to all of the "text erasure" investigators for using your flashlights.
And, finally: yesterday, I advocated for our dear professor to be a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I would like to add Rusty Bowers and Alexander Vindman to that list.
Lynell, what a great line-up to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I actually believe the people of AZ have lost their moral compasses. Rusty Bowers is an honest man who has been torn down for being honest, for stepping up. Vindman continues to push forward in spite of his "honesty". And Heather deserves to be honored for her honest interpretations of the daily events.
We can only hope that the AZ-Republicans-Who-Vote-In-Primaries are the ones with a lost moral compass, not the voters as a whole. That's the point of the quasi-judicial tone of the 1/6 hearings -- with the Supreme Court full of bobbleheads, the only judges who matter now are the Voters.
Here in AZ. My read is that the R's have set themselves up for a very embarrassing Fall election. Their candidates are the far 'whackdoodle' variety. Kansas is a 'weak signal' as we futurists call it.
Nicely put, Pam. If I was good at debating, I'd argue against Bowers' take on how our country should be run (crappy politics?) But I would argue few could compete with his honesty, integrity, and moral compass.
Morning, Christine! When it comes to pushing back against Republican senator votes, do you know where a citizen who has two Democratic senators can register their objection to Republicans like the Jon Stewart folks did to get the act finally passed?
When Senators in a state support a citizen’s vote and views, then turn eyes to national level. Look for races in states, especially close geographically, and support the candidates that are fighting for democracy to prevail. Also, look to League of Women Voters in their county or city to get advisement on how to support other state chapters. Or Common Cause or Indivisible or Women’s March. If I were a citizen in FL with two Dem senators and governor, I would be totally involved with next door neighbor Georgia’s politics more than I am. There are so many avenues available out of complacency. Start with LWV if they have local chapter.
Salud, fab Lynell.
(And by the way, a new candidate on my gold medal list is Rachel Sweet, the campaign manager for Kansans for Constitutional Freedom, which led the effort to defeat the amendment.)
Thank you, Christine. So, for instance, I can add my voice to Common Cause or LWV in response to the R's when they tried to scuttle the PACT Act. I'm looking not to have to contribute more than I already regularly do (Common Cause, Fair Fight, Abrams, Marcus, and several more!) every time something comes up. High-Five, and thanks again!
Does not have to be monetary contribution. Can be phone banking or writing. Can be attendance at rallies or knowing campaign schedules of candidates close enough to support.
I am in the same boat. I am 100% pleased with my senators (Merkley and Wyden) and my representative (DeFazio). I'd love to be able to make a difference in other places (Val Demmings already has a contribution).
We still are a nation. I stay in contact with Stacy Abrams campaign. My objections to scum politicians in Georgia mean a lot to her. Support Democracy. Wherever your eyes roam.
Morning, Lynell. Indeed, I am glad to see the passage of the PACT Act. I am devoutly hoping that the rumors that "nothing is ever really erased" are true.
I have no basis in fact, Ally - none, nada, less than miniscule - but I'd bet my bottom dollar if it was yours or my texts, they'd be un-erased in a New York minute!
Yep. It will depend if the “un-erasers” are for democracy and rule of law…. Or not. I tend to think they are getting ready with anti-erasers. Prob look like Ghostbuster wand machines.
Lynell, at first I disagreed with your including Rusty Bowers because "In June, Bowers told the Associated Press: 'If he is the nominee, if he was up against Biden, I’d vote for him again. Simply because what he did the first time, before COVID, was so good for the country.'"
But now: "'I’ll never vote for him, but I won’t have to,' Bowers said. 'Because I think America’s tired and there’s some absolutely forceful, qualified, morally defensible and upright people, and that’s what I want. That’s what I want in my party, and that’s what I want to see.'” (https://news.yahoo.com/rusty-bowers-never-vote-for-trump-again-jan-6-arizona-160540737.html)
A very high-five yes, Mim. I cringed when he said he'd vote for him again, but then did a turnaround. When I chose Bowers, it was sort of a stand-alone assessment of someone with integrity who wouldn't be swayed where it really mattered. "I didn't want to win by cheating."
All that said, Vote Blue in '22 and Once More in '24!!
"I advocated for our dear professor to be a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I would like to add Rusty Bowers and Alexander Vindman to that list." Absolutely on the mark, Lynell. Thank you!
Has the tide turned toward saving democracy? Indeed it has. But November is an entirely new challenge. Voter suppression laws, gerrymandering, threats not to certify results, and a growing GOP call for volunteer poll “watchers.” They won’t just be watching. They’ll seek to intimidate voters and cause chaos in Democratic strongholds.
The new-found optimism will mean nothing without a voter turnout for the ages.
Public sentiment is overdue a revolution Since the recognition of Nixon's abuses of power, the Republican Party has gone from corrupt to monstrous. And really it was Reagan who struck the first blow to democracy as an ideal, which was where his rhetoric on the excesses of "government" were, if you look at them, really aimed. So-called "Supply Side Economics" was semi-feudalistic, and inimical to the form of governance that Lincoln praised. The flood of general prosperity Republicans promised has yet to materialize even now, and by the government's own figures has made many things worse; not even counting multiple debacles such as the GW's Iraq war, the Subprime Crash, and the Katrina and COVID fumbles, not to mention core party plotted insurrection.
Yet the Republican Party retains legitimacy in the eyes of a huge number of Americans, and the scale of their train-wreck of their connivances still inadequately brought to focus. The Jan 6th Committee requires widespead pubic solidarity.
Poor and middle class Republicans have been hoodwinked by the Oligarchs for decades. The super rich use their money to spread lies and keep their tax free status in place. Yes, I am talking to you Peter Thiel.
Is this the beginning of a "let them eat cake" moment?
I think it exists but is parallelized by the mental malware of cult ideology and pandering to our more immediate-survival oriented, and evolutionarily-older "reptile brain", which is part of our kit.
And what feels good about this latest turn-about, at least as it seems, you're right Michael... it'll be the November voting that tells the tale. Good on ya, Kansas.......
'... this moment increasingly feels like it’s about more than abortion rights, crucial though they are. The loss of our constitutional rights at the hands of a radical extremist minority has pushed the majority to demonstrate that we care about the rights and freedoms that were articulated—however imperfectly they were carried out—in the Declaration of Independence.; (Letter)
Radical-right wing extremists in the Republican Party, anti-government, anti-tax, anti-regulation and 'pro-life' movements, in militias, on school boards, in law enforcement, the legal profession, and in our families --- wherever you are in the USA, in Russia and elsewhere remember WE the People --- Let us always remember how strong we are together.
Yes,I think they( we know who”they” are) are just getting started.On their chopping blocks are gay marriage,reversal of climate change legislation,altering or ending Social Security,Medicare and Medicaid, phasing out public schools in favor of private, chartered ones,the continued repression of women and other minorities and much more.They are trying to take us back to 1851 before the Civil War when slavery was the law of the land and wealthy white men called all of the shots.The mainstream media doesn’t talk much about this because they are all owned by billionaires whose lives won’t be affected by this and whose main reason d’etre is profit.
Yes, your phrase "voter turn-out for the ages" is key here. Voters everywhere but especially those in swing states must show up and vote with such gargantuan numbers that calls of fraud from Republicans will fall on deaf ears. When the votes are close or marginal is when the fraudsters gather and try to discount results. We must all be Kansans and show these horrid fascist right wingers that we will not be taken for granted while our rights are being trampled upon by an insipid minority.
The popular vote totals in 2020 were gargantuan. And still………………..the numbers don’t matter. They will claim fraud because they lost, our and simple. This is a Power game as much as a numbers game. We need the numbers - as in Voter Turnout- but we also need the Narrative to counterpunch their expected attack.
Perhaps we'll need "poll watcher" watchers. Let them wear T-shirts bearing TFG's head photo-shopped onto a naked infants body, with the subtitle "The Emperor has no clothes". Or perhaps just "Trump for Emperor-NOT" in bold letters.
Dirk, When the heart button doesn’t turn red, refresh your page and it should then show it’s red. If not, just click on it again, and it should turn red. You'll have to scroll to find the comment you Liked, but it'll be there.
I agree but I do believe Americans are on to their intimidation game and will have the fortitude to face them down and VOTE! ( I believe and I also PRAY I’m right.)
Yes, we all are praying that you are right. I think sites like this help to make knowing people more aware. It is the "unknowing" ones and the willfully ignorant that we must worry about.
Nesrly all ov thode fascii sd t gactics were attempted in Kansas & failed. As TC noted, there were many, first time Primary Voters in Kansas. Help voters to turn out massively Everywhere.
Are all these extremist conservatives English majors gone rogue? The lengths they go to to twist language, like this Kansas abortion bill worded to dupe people into thinking yes means no. It's like they've taken diagraming sentences to the dark side. That said, Kansas voters untangled the verbal briar patch and won their case. Bodes well for the November chicanery to come.
Never practice celebrating victory, especially a future victory. Remember the complacency in 2016? I feel hopeful. The opposition is not above skullduggery or massive turnouts.
I am allowing myself to savor this small victory. Lord knows we on the left have earned a bit of a victory lap but I will not get anywhere near to complacency. There is too much at stake with a ton of work to do in a short time.
"Still, voters turned out to protect abortion rights in such unexpectedly high numbers it suggests a sea change."
Voters usually do not just turn out. People work very hard to Get Out The Vote. Certainly the news has been full of reporting on abortion rights activists doing just that in Kansas. And in doing so they were able to overcome all the obstacles Republican right wing extremists threw in their path - including really dirty tricks. And also their successful efforts disproved all the voter suppression messaging from the Left - that your vote doesn't count and the system is too broken to work.
Here on Mt. Desert Island where Federalist Society honcho, Opus Dei acolyte, civil rights opponent, Dark Lord of Dark Money shell corporation shell games, Susan Collins funder, and all around stinker Leonard Leo cavorts and conspires at his NorthEast Harbor citadel, locals have been legally protesting his role in stacking the Supreme Court with lying like minded racist right wing religious extremists. Leo called in the police, claiming that a young protestor had yelled at his 11 year old. The protestor claims he only tried to engage Leo himself. It is a 'he said, he said' with no witness or evidence to confirm details of either claim. It is thought Leo had this protestor arrested to scare off others and that Leo brought in mention of his daughter to skew the narrative and claim victimhood for himself - to obscure the disproportionate power he has to embroil a young man of very modest means and no clout in a judiciary process which Leo has been instrumental in corrupting. It is like Susan Collins calling in the police against people chalking their thoughts on the sidewalk near her home. The young man was arrested, taken to the county jail, and released on payment of bail. It seems ominous that police rushed to this step rather than deescalation. In my experience, while there are some decent police here, there are also some jerks. Meanwhile ... Leo goes on with his vacation and this local family is paying a steep price for their activism.
Getting out the vote is hard work! And who has the time to do that work? The Democratic women’s club I’m a part of, it’s mostly retired people. And getting the vote out is what they’re doing! Precinct Chairs are organizing and doing the footwork! Since I have to go to the classroom, I’m limited to what I can do. So I write postcards to people registered as Democrats. As just one part of everything being worked on. We can overcome the complicated wording, gerrymandering, misinformation, if we just can get people to the polls! Kansas proved it!
I hope one of his fellow protesters puts out a GoFundMe page for him. Organized peaceful protesters need funding to do what they do. Our police power is mishandled by the wealthy. 😡
Letter Writing is GOTV. ThankYou. I started volunteering once my PTA days were over. In retirement, more. I like writing LTEs and canvassing, phone banking not so much. Almost all of us can find some time. Every minute counts.
I just finished writing out the last of my 200 postcards! They are stamped and ready to go at the beginning of October! I was even aware enough to purchase the stamps prior to the price increase 😊👍🏻. Thinking about volunteering for another 100.
I received my 250 post cards just before I left on vacation. I knew I wouldn’t touch them while I was traveling so they are now waiting for me on my kitchen counter. However, someone tipped me off about the price increase and I searched out a post office in Ellsworth, Maine and bought my stamps on the road! I’m gearing up to start writing this week.
Not seeing a way to post the samples here. I use free postcard templates I downloaded, 110 lb card stock (because my printer can't handle 120 or above), my own drawings and photos (I sketch like mad) and my small printer.
My cost is about 3 cents a card compared to 35-60 cents at a copy place (but they can do even nicer work, so there is that).
There are a few tricks about design, size and placement of images, mailability and printing strategies that save ink. I do our simple designs (producing 2000 cards very shortly!) and would be happy to figure out a way to help others interested in making their own on the cheap and pretty.
ThankYou. I will keep you updated. It was just reported in regional paper, will look in local paper when it comes out tomorrow. When I dropped something by, Mom seemed surprised, but bet I'm just the first. The costs, including legal fees, are very high for anyone caught up in the system. Of course, Leo knows that.
We often look for symbolism - I'll give it a shot. You have the earliest sunrise in the US. Maybe finding Leo and telling him off is an early sign of an awakening. One can hope. This is a man who should be exposed and haunted for what he has done.
Can someone put a tracker on him so the people who believe in the real Constitution and true democracy can find him at every restaurant he eats in? He is part of a cabal that is turning back the clock on human rights. His blood is so evil it should never be donated.
I find your including Sotomayor on your list objectionable. There is no evidence that her religion plays an inappropriate role in her work on the bench. Not all Catholics are Opus Dei. Being a Catholic doesn't make you a right wing religious extremist - as with any religion it obliges you to reform your religion, and pay attention to its role in society and its involvement with civic authority - and to keep religious irrationality out of your involvement in civic society. Whatever your religion you are obliged by the Constitution to keep it out of government, especially on the Supreme Court. I don't even think their militant Catholicism is the worst offense of Coney Barrett et al - I'd say their entirely cynical allegiance to the cult of Originalism and Textualism, their hypocrisy, their lying and other ethical failings - primarily in service to the GOP and Big Money - are worse offenses to the robe. And do more harm. Leo's being more Catholic than the Pope is less of a problem than all the above, as is his direct involvement with funneling dark money into the system to institute injustice and to destroy the judiciary to serve his 1% paymasters.
If "Catholic" is one of the columns, without including Justice Sotomayor, the list is not honest and therefore suspect. Her inclusion is critical, because she is NOT part of the cabal and therefore shows that the worse factors are the ones we need to worry about; that being Opus Dei and the Federalist Society. It isn't the religion, it is the extremism. President Biden and Speaker Pelosi are also Catholic.
Ally, you mentioned Pelosi. While watching Democracy Now! this morning, an editor in Taiwan told us that most of the citizens there heard the word 'Pelosi' and thought it was the name of a typhoon.
LOL! There IS a difference but it would take centuries to describe what it is. There is also an American Irish Catholic which is different again from Irish Catholic....."The woods are lovely, dark and deep".......mostly dark and deep.
I just remember hearing Biden say that he's of Irish decent from last week. I hadn't known that. But I did know he was a catholic. My mother was from Somerville, Massachusetts, which is a suburb of Boston. My Godmother was named Madeline Durham, she was a single woman of Irish decent, event though she lived in the Italian North End of Boston, which, like other cities in the U.S., is broken into parts of different nationalities. I think the Irish area was called Southie, the largely black population was in Roxbury, etc. I'm forgetting several other parts of the city of Boston proper. Brighton was another, and there is Dorchester. I looked on a map of Boston, but the one I have doesn't give enough detail. Anyway, I'm dragging this on far too much. Have a great day!
"Not all Catholics are Opus Dei. Being a Catholic doesn't make you a right wing religious extremist..."
Thank you, Lin. The extremes often distort both religious and civic values to serve a partisan ideology. Catholics who have melded their far right religious and political ideologies ( including some Bishops) do neither religion nor the civic public square any favors. Originalism and Textualism plague and calcify both Constitution and Scrptures.
Besides, her first name isn't Sota. I liked the 'idea' of this till i saw it.
Must vigorously agree with many who object to her being included as if she's part of this deliberate 'stacking' of the Court for nefarious legislating from the bench.
oh no, sorry Anne-Loise ... i didn't mean you called her that. when i looked at the chart, that's what it said. yes, bizarre... and likely a typo. just noticed it is all. no worries.
I’ll use it. And I’m glad you included Sotamayer. Meme reflects her religion does not bias her to the extreme right and money powers that support them.
So great to hear from you again, lin! You always have something up your sleeve to say and boy, this was a great one! Leo is the one who should be subpoenaed. He is the one running the Pro-Rape Party. Why do I see this Society as a bunch of people in a cult dressed in dark robes, candelabras set up with long candles burning amongst a misty foggy background, in an underground cave, chanting some bullshit gibberish over a sacrificial lamb (person/child)?
Kansas did the right thing by a 20 pt margin. I thought we might have a chance to squeak out a win but 60-40 is a delightful surprise. Turnout was huge, too. Double what it was in the last off-year primary. Here’s a nice WaPo comment from a Jayhawker (special pts for the historically significant bit about Missouri, the always-been-awful state):
mountaincricket (commenter’s handle)
Yep - people don’t generally understand Kansas politics. Abortions were allowed here prior to Roe. The history of the abortion debate in Kansas over the last thirty years is fascinating.
A commentator on either MSNBC or CNN this evening reminded us that Kansas was admitted to the Union as a Free State, and that is a positive historical foundation for today's vote to keep the right to choose abortion care.
The extent of complicity - even if it was just to cover their asses - is revealing. That Trump appointees ran roughshod over career employees is ominous. Maybe they were thinking of Alexander Vindman and the price he paid for doing the right thing.
The fact is, without a Democratic majority to investigate, all of this would have been buried. And if we do not preserve the Democratic majority it will be. With Mitch McConnell, Kevin McCarthy, and the GOP out for blood and perverting government, again. Now is the time to unite and Get Out The Vote for Democratic candidates.
Steve Schmidt said the Republican Party should be burned to the ground. As a former Republican, he should know. I am continually amazed that support for Republicans is as high as it is. A decent person like Biden is vilified by people who support criminally treasonous Trump.
I believe that most of the “regular” people who vilify Biden are those who’ve been brainwashed by FOX news and don’t have a clear thought of their own. They are mostly “victims” in their own minds. Victims of their employers, victims of their parents, victims of teachers “who didn’t like them”, victims of their “do better” neighbors. Small minded, little gnats on society that have no understanding that Republicans are using them not protecting them.
So: who knows? What color was Jesus? Who knows? What color are mid eastern people - today. Lost tribe? Israeli citizens, Arabs and Jews? What color are whites of Barbados? What is passing? In people of in-part Negro extraction? Once called mulatto.. by anthropologists. Assimilation re Jews.. what does assimilation mean? Define outing ..
Jeri, a lot of thoughts crossed my mind that my better angels stopped me from typing!! So, this one "better" thought--at least you know straight up what she is. You don't have to go through nearly 30 years of a friendship to discover someone's true colors, as I did.
You might want to ask--"do you ever WASH that shirt? Might want to think about doing so!"
Who will follow Kansas's lead? Welcome positive news! On the other hand:
"The Defense Department reportedly wiped the phones of key Trump Pentagon officials at the end of the former president’s administration, erasing any texts from key witnesses to events surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, CNN reported." What the hell? Unbelievable.
When it becomes clear from whom the orders came in the Defense Department, the Secret Service and the rest of the defeated former president's administration, to destroy text messages and other records of communications, the dominos will start to fall. The operation was extensive enought for more than just a few to know. Soon, at least one will speak up and identify those who ordered the breaking of the law and deserving of prosecution. Undoubtedly the DOJ via the FBI is already quietly into this.
It is conceivable that the two you suggest were possibly tools of others, far smarter than either of them, and who have taken great pains to hide their identities ... or even the Russians.
Jack, I would be willing to bet that that your final suspect has been involved in every mess that Trump's filthy boots tracked in on Day One! It continues.
I truly hope so. Someone with a spine will come forward. I find it hard to believe in this age of technology there isn’t still a record of what is missing.
About time to see the term treasonous! When I used that term with someone a couple of years ago, they were telling me that was so extreme and put the brakes on. I’ve never seen it any other way!
Yep. I’ve been put on notice for pointing out the obvious. When I see all the posts they let slide! Like really?! Oh I was talking facts! That’s when they don’t like it!
The DOJ needs to be all over this! If we can't depend on the Defense Department to ensure national security, i.e. protect the country from those who seek to harm us, then Government will lose all legitimacy. Heads need to roll, and the harshest punishment given to those who sought to undermine/destroy our government.
This was part of a coup and everyone who signed-on knew exactly what they were part of, and they also believed that they were going to pull it off. When the coup failed, the insurrectionists had to destroy the evidence that would directly implicate them.
I repeat, the DOJ must act decisively and without delay.
Chip, I agree 100%. It appears there are many in high positions of national security and public trust who'd sell the country down the river for a taste of power. The fact that the DOD was willing to bend to the wishes of the extreme right then attempt to wipe any evidence of collusion clean calls for swift action against all participants from the top down. What more does the DOJ need?
They just knocked the entire state of red Idaho off their perch. Atty Gen Garland spoke clearly about it yesterday regarding abortion access. Best was his reminder of FEDERAL FUNDS that go to states for things like hospitals and schools and a state will comply with federal law and regulation as they accept funds into their state budgets. As in, we are a nation, not a confederacy numnuts.
You know this and I know this .... I think I will pass it on to my House representative. My two Senators, unfortunately, were probably part of the coup.
Daria, good to see you here. And, YES...it is unbelievable the extent to which tRumpistas went to erase anything that is connected to 1/6. "What the hell?"
The massive scope of the sedition, treason, plotting and planning at all levels of the government, it seems, is mind-boggling.
To throttle Rusty Bowers? Unsurprising. If you have any dignity or scruples or moral compass, TFG's administration will turn on you, as they did with the noble Vindman brothers.
Kudos to Kansas. Methinks Republicans will squeal come midterms in November when the American public starts to throw the trash out. Too bad we can't do the same for the Supreme Judicial Court which cannot extricate itself from the weight (and erroneous entanglement) with religion.
I like the idea of 66 senators. My mother used to say, “Shoot for the moon. If you miss, at least you will fall among the stars.” The Dems need to always be working and planning to uphold democracy. The R’s have been working and planning on many levels, from many directions for many years to dismantle our democracy, actually since the New Deal. We cannot afford to not pay attention to the behind the scenes actions. Our collective “house” needs fumigating to get rid of all the termites causing destruction.
From the NY Times: This is the conspiracy-theorist/do our own electors/in DC on Jan. 6 person who won the GOP nomination for Secy of State in Arizona. "A Michigan transplant, Mr. Finchem, 65, has spent more than seven years as a lawmaker from a district outside Tucson, which during a recent visit was a boiling 115-degree valley set amid mountains and cactuses. He has embraced a sun-baked sheriff aesthetic, favoring large cowboy hats that belie his Detroit birthplace, and was the Arizona coordinator for the Coalition of Western States, a group that once supported the armed occupation of federal land in Oregon.
He speaks in sober and serious tones and presents himself as a common-sense family man. When asked about his family life by one interviewer, he said his “kids are all grown and gone” and added that nowadays, “I’m thinking about my grandkids” in battles he takes on.
But his family life has been rocky. He has been married four times and estranged for more than two decades from two adult children, and he does not know their children, family members said. (He also has two stepchildren.)
He talks frequently about his experience as a police officer and firefighter in Kalamazoo, Mich. But personnel records obtained from that city’s Department of Public Safety, which he left in 1999, include this note in his file: “Retired, poor rating, would not rehire.” A department spokesman declined to comment."
Correctly, and perhaps understandably in circumstances of extreme frustration, but deplorably stupidly. Even more so than Obama's equally accurate but . . . impolitic . . . "They cling to guns or religion."
Many instances of obstruction, destruction of evidence, requests for pardons from various people. How to tie together in an indictment? Was it from, orders above or from several 'associate directors' of actions, disparate self-directed instances of malfeasance. Given GOP history of 'falling in line' and Trump's obsessive micromanagement and demands for loyalty, disparate self-directed instances of malfeasance sounds unlikely. Who are the keys to this puzzle such that, if unlocked by facing a lengthy prison sentence, their memory become clear?
"Americans Will Always Do the Right Thing — After Exhausting All the Alternatives"
"Because the former administration did not keep records of the children or where they were sent, reunifying the families has been difficult, and as many as 1000 children out of the original 5000 who fell under this policy remain separated from their parents."
If this was a declared war, would this not be a war crime? "The former administration did not keep records..." What must it be like to be one of those families? What kind of regime does things like this? What kind of political organization?
Rhetorical and yet it does not quite feel real to me that our government would do such a thing in plain sight in our lifetime. Atrocities and government often go together, and our own society's history is no exception, but it's one thing to view this as national history and another to witness something so organized, sociopathic and blatant in the present. And part of the horror is how passively it has been publicly treated, by myself included, despite current efforts of repair. Somehow the magnitude of the crime seems to be consistently underappreciated.
I find that sense of "normalcy" in the face of such acts truly frightening. Are we not witnessing grave injuries and great crimes? So broad an array of crimes in fact that it has become hard to keep a focus? Hopefully, as Dr. Richardson is indicating, sociopathy may have overplayed it's hand, but the persecution of immigrant families has remained, so far as I can tell, only a peripheral part of public consciousness, my own included, and despite efforts to undo the worst of it, this magnitude of the callous assault on human rights would seem to ethically demand much keener attention.
What is this psychosis that has infected the GOP to continue hanging on to the lies of the former president? Extremists last night won a majority of the county commissioner seats in what has been a conservative, but well-run, county in MI. They will eliminate our county's DEI office, attempt to hamstring the county health department, and try to run the public schools. They are scary people.
Republicans really are The Enemy of the People.
But - like the Battle of Midway we weren't supposed to win - the path to victory has been revealed by the voters of Kansas: organize against the lies (they informed people what the correct vote was, and they got out the news of the fake text instructions today, and they worked to get people out to vote) and instead of the usual 200-300,000 voters showing up, 700,000 voters showed up and they won. They won because they just put their heads down and their shoulders to the wheel and they didn't moan and complain about being "disappointed." And they won. Lots of people who weren't Democrats voted HELL NO in that election, because there aren't enough Democrats in Kansas to win like that.
So the next time you run across a "genius" telling you how we can't win in November, tell the moron to either pull his head out of his ass and get to work, or get the hell out of the way.
Sizzlin’, TC. Sizzlin’.
Griddle is hot and The People are voting like it’s Midway. I like the second suggestion…Get out ‘the way. I’m not wasting another minute on people whose heads are not visible. Doubling down is sounding more and more moronic.
And may I add. I recommend your recent Substack essay on Ukraine and the war to this forum and am providing link. It informed me about war strategy in a way that made my understanding of this ongoing war and war in general stronger (the TELLMES factors) along with my conviction that our flag will continue to strongly support Ukraine with whatever means necessary. For freedom. For Democracy. 🇺🇸🇺🇦
https://tcinla757.substack.com/p/russia-is-losing-in-ukraine?r=l2aa7&s=r&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&utm_source=direct
Grateful that the work of journalists and scribes is still freely available to us. A common good of Democracy.
Unita. 🗽
Everybody might also benefit from reading Lawrence Freedman writing on Substack on the Ukraine-Russia conflict
Freedman is definitely the go-to.
So glad that I can access expertise and perspectives that I had no clue about. Thank you TC and Christine
Agree for not only TC, Christine and Stuart but there are so many smart people that open my eyes even more. Thank you Heather for creating this space for those of us who care deeply.
Thanks, as well, to Stewart for mentioning the excellent Lawrence Freedman sub stack on China/Russia as well.
Agreed, Christine.
I read TC's substack essay this morning and it was a clear and precisely written analysis of the differing strategies of Russia and Ukraine and what would need to happen for a Russian victory and how to counter their strategies. Excellent read!
Here is someone that waves those arms from her kitchen rants and podcasts, pushing people out ‘the way. Politics Girl, Leigh McGowan, on her podcast yesterday with Bharat Ramamurti talking about the economy. To give proper attention to it rather than like the media creating the burgeoning, blame everything on it, balloon of inflation. “What’s going on with the economy?”
Give a listen. Leigh has a knack for focus. https://youtu.be/Usp2d5BhZow
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She’s my fave!!
Very good article. Just sent the link to a Ukrainian friend of mine. Thanks.
I love you 99% of the time. Agree but Rupert still hasn’t told MAGAts a word of truth in Texas, the land of ostriches. Go MAGA (mothers Against Greg Abbott). Dallas Morning News had a big spread about this on Sunday. Joining up…
Truth? Rupert? That's not how he got where he is. (And behated of all) (I just made that word up).
"behated" - that's perfect and I am adding it to my vocabulary.
I love that, Jeri! About time newspapers fight back with real factual news and not be afraid of these cretins. I know they’ve tried but those devils in black robes are not planting any more Rosemary’s babies. In fact, they have awakened a once depressed-who-thought-they-were-doomed-crowd!
I hope you are correct. We can certainly use that crowd.
Per The Guardian in July, Kansas had to deal with criminal vandalism of Organizing Sites, political signs & purposeful misdirection. Nevertheless, Kansas folks prevailed emphatically.
Yes, dirty tricks and the pro choice still prevailed.
Turnout for Tuesday’s primary election far exceeded other contests in recent years, with around 900,000 Kansans voting, according to an Associated Press estimate (with 90% of the vote). That is nearly twice as many as the 473,438 who turned out in the 2018 primary election.
900.000! Way to go, Kansas!! And now we're "not in Kansas any more", we are in the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!
Welcome home.
Per Jay Kuo Substack today, 140,000 votrd soley to support abortion rights & reproductive health for the interstate region.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Yes, TC, and we need to stop listening to the media telling us of the Democrats doom in the midterms. Every last one of us GET OUT AND DO YOUR JOBS AS AMERICAN CITIZENS. VOTE!
I feel such a sense of shock and betrayal when I hear the constant news drone of "Biden's goin down", "even DEMS are largely unhappy with him." Well that reflects absolutely no Dem that I know, and I don't answer/return calls on my phone for unidentified callers who refuse to leave a VM, so no political survey is hitting my home. I don't believe the mass produced drivel. Every last one of us are headed for the polls when the time comes.
Exactly. I love what Biden is doing and yet no one has called and asked my opinion. Of course I don’t answer if I don’t know who’s calling either. 😁
Absolutely! However, I do wish we had a few younger dynamic candidates to rally younger voters for 2024.
Right now I favor Pete Buttigieg on a ticket for Vice Pres.
Let me qualify that. If a “new” ticket were introduced because President Biden was not doing a second term.
And for president, if Mayor Pete is VP nominee?
Oh man - I don't know. Mayor Pete is awesome - it is true. Assume a for a moment Biden runs again. That is probable. And that's OK if he is still healthy and his mind is still good. But break up the president / vice-president ticket? Kamala has not been the most inspiring VP, it seems. Not sure why; maybe Biden has just not tasked her with enough. But she really helped in 2020 - first woman of color to be on the ticket. To abandon that - what effect would that have on some important voters?
V.P. Harris was given two very difficult tasks by Pres. Biden: fix the refugee crisis at the southern border, stave off the assault on voting rights.
https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/06/kamala-harris-saddled-with-difficult-tasks-by-biden.html
Haven't heard of much progress on the border, and apparently negative progress on voting rights. They are difficult problems to say the least.
This is why America was founded and became a beacon to the world. Here the Power does go to the People - and their voice. PS. I just love how there is not a peep on MSM this morning regarding the Dem Wave in KS yesterday. Now if there had been a Republican Wave...
I just love you. Sometimes.
Hopefully the Good Times. :-)
🤣❤️
IN KANSAS -- 30% plus registered Republicans voted against the Republican amendment, which would have led to banning abortions according to NBC News National Political Correspondent Steve Kornacki this morning -- 30% of registered Republicans -- GET THAT, TC! And what about the more than 900,000 Kansans (Jayhawkers) who came out to vote in the primary? It's a record!
'Kansas Republicans Face Dark Future in State Where Women Have Rights'
'President elect of the National Organization for Women Patricia Ireland speaks at a prochoice rally in Wichita.'
'KANSAS (The Borowitz Report)—Republicans in Kansas woke up to the dark prospect of life in a state where women have human rights, G.O.P. activists report.'
'Harland Dorrinson, a Republican stalwart in Kansas for more than forty years, said that now, after voters in the state appeared to affirm women should be treated as humans, “I no longer recognize my Kansas.” (Satire, NewYokers)
Plenty of registered Republicans voters are saying no to the Republican Party that would turn them into 'subjects' instead of 'CITIZENS'.
'President Biden put out a rare statement on a state referendum, praising the turnout and result. “Voters in Kansas turned out in record numbers to reject extreme efforts to amend the state constitution to take away a woman’s right to choose and open the door for a state-wide ban,” he said. “This vote makes clear what we know: the majority of Americans agree that women should have access to abortion and should have the right to make their own health care decisions.” He urged Congress to “listen to the will of the American people and restore the protections of Roe as federal law.”
'This is the first concrete evidence of a major backlash against the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision. Forced-birth advocates in Kansas thought that by putting the measure on a primary ballot, for which turnout is historically lower, conservative voters could dominate. Instead, they drove Democrats and a lot of pro-choice independents and Republicans who might not otherwise vote to the polls.' (JenniferRubinOpinionWAPO)
TROLL ALERT!!:
Apologies to TCinLA in putting this comment here, but this is the top comment and is widely being read. If you scroll through much of the comments (as I generally do, time permitting) you will come across the resident troll:
GEOFFREY HENDRICK
Obviously, the letter today got him REAL RILED UP!!
For heaven's sake people, recognize and remember his name and DON'T ENGAGE with him!
I have often read the debates that go on here, people respectfully disagree and debate. That is not at all what this sorry sack of (....) attempts. Is he paid by whomever to sow seeds of discontent? Perhaps. More likely, I think he is a holdover from the days when the landlines had the heavy breathers who'd randomly call people. You will never see this guy enter into a rational conversation, its always an attempt to inflame. There was another troll here about 6 months ago, people just stopped replying and he disappeared, or perhaps he re-upped as GEOFFREY HENDRICK.
👊👊👊
Great advice, TC!!! It reminds me of Dolly Parton who shared what she said to folks who tell her what she can't do (don't know where she said this originally, but she quoted herself in a beloved Hallmark Christmas movie - yes, I do watch some of them!! -) "To the people who say we can't do this, could you please get out of the way of those of us who are doing it?!" Yes, onward to Nov. 22!!!!
Stand up, America!
Yes!
TC, thanks for your comment. Voter registration increased in Kansas by 1000% the day after the Scotus Enemies of the People overturned Roe, according to MSNBC last night during its vote monitoring. That's not to say that it's a foregone conclusion that the Democrats will prevail in the midterms, but people of all stripes are riled because of the overturn of Roe, and hopefully many more will turn against the Rethuglicans because of their refusal to endorse common-sense firearms regulations, continuing incrimination of fake "electors" and other criminality continually revealed by the J6 Committee. The Dems need to get their act together and amend their messaging regarding the fact that inflation is a world-wide problem that was not caused by Biden's programs - he saved us from going over the cliff; the ongoing abuses of the minority party are constantly displayed as they do their damndest to overturn democracy; and everyone needs to understand the continuing good that Biden has done, regardless of the fact that his delivery is flawed!
TCinLA--I sincerely hope that everyone who reads your comment takes that last sentence to heart!
Bravo, bravo, bravo, sir!!
We were delighted by the Kansas vote and it was overwhelming which is even better. And yes, keep working in every way possible to win in November. I am taking your advice in your last sentence.
Sage advice, TC.
It's panic time in Trumpland. I expect Democrats to use the Kansas landslide vote to bludgeon Republican candidates at every level of government. My prediction would be that the Trumpistas are going to lie about the Kansas referendum result, because that's what they do. They're going to claim that the referendum vote was rigged, and that there were a hoard of ghost ballots from California that were secretly flown in from San Franciso. The runner-up in the Arizona Secretary of State race is already claiming that the election was rigged.
There is a potential remedy for these brazen tactics, and that would be to sue the offending candidates seeking to disqualify them on grounds that their past behavior in denying the outcome of the 2020 election is evidence of their moral turpitude, meaning they are presumptively dishonest, as shown by their earlier behavior since the 2020 elections denying that Joe Biden legitimately won that election.
The bogus Arizona ' election audit' was a complete fiasco. These candidates cannot be trusted to honor their oaths of office because of their public statements. They are completely untrustworthy.
Arthur, you hit it. Sue those rethuglican candidates for their "moral turpitude." Remind voters that those who believe the big lie, are lying....making them untrustworthy in office.
I just love that word - turpitude.
Puts one in mind of the toxic chemical Turpentine.
👏🏼👏🏼
The stain goes all the way to the bone. More than a Scarlet Letter
I like the idea of suing the liars! Make life messy and costly for them. The liars and deniers have made life messy and costly for the rest of us! Perhaps the voters of Kansas represent a small glimmer of hope…
I’d go with Kansas voters showing us how big a piece of the pie voters are when motivated and focused. Thank you Kansas. Shining example of who We the People are!!!!!
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Would agree with that! I can hope that the citizens of this country will realize the criticality of what it means to vote just like the voters of Kansas did. A shining example of what “turnout” can accomplish.
Hope the Democrat messengers get this story and use it well. I think we're getting better at this. I'm in love with PA Senate candidate John Fetterman His messages are gripping and funny rather than morose and dire, and it's working!
Agree, Chaplain! They're brilliant and hilarious... esp because they're TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!! What a refreshing change from lies, meanness with cruel intentions... (i.e. Swiftboating) Yay for Snookie!! :D
Excellent!
I agree wholeheartedly Arthur. Why should they be allowed to continue, knowing that they have no integrity and will continue with their despicable behavior. I want to cry when I think about what's happened to this country.
Well said.
Yes!
Zowie, what an intense collection of emerging action. Thank you so much for this one.
Interesting little side note on the missing phone info - I used to assist with communicating records protocols at my boring little federal agency back in the day. Very typically, "disregard" for records protocols meant that records were left in place... not deleted.
I could blither on about that but instead would be interested if GSA, which provides offices and computer and phone services had records of phone replacement schedules for those agencies and departments. That would be revealing.
They are burrowed very deep and it will take some heavy duty mining to reveal all the traitors. They are still counting on chump returning and making all this go away. But Justice is on to them and catching up fast. Rupert, get out of the way.
Knowing admin folks in DOJ, those replacement records and schedules are most definitely still around... the admins who do the work are somewhat anal about things like that. They're in somebody's files on their work computer somewhere.
Firstly, thank you, Heather Cox Richardson, for this amazing news. Thank you, Kansas, for your vote for freedom. Thank you, Jon Stewart and Company for pushing back to get the PACT Act passed (or as Heather would say, "Oopsie Poopsie!") Thank you, Family Reunification Task Force for your continuing efforts to reunite families at the border. Thank you to all of the "text erasure" investigators for using your flashlights.
And, finally: yesterday, I advocated for our dear professor to be a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I would like to add Rusty Bowers and Alexander Vindman to that list.
Thank you, Team of Heather!
Lynell, what a great line-up to receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I actually believe the people of AZ have lost their moral compasses. Rusty Bowers is an honest man who has been torn down for being honest, for stepping up. Vindman continues to push forward in spite of his "honesty". And Heather deserves to be honored for her honest interpretations of the daily events.
We can only hope that the AZ-Republicans-Who-Vote-In-Primaries are the ones with a lost moral compass, not the voters as a whole. That's the point of the quasi-judicial tone of the 1/6 hearings -- with the Supreme Court full of bobbleheads, the only judges who matter now are the Voters.
Here in AZ. My read is that the R's have set themselves up for a very embarrassing Fall election. Their candidates are the far 'whackdoodle' variety. Kansas is a 'weak signal' as we futurists call it.
Greetings Charlie, from Mesa! “Whackdoodle” doesn’t begin to describe these crazies but it’s a start.
Oh I pray that this is so, Charlie!!
Nicely put, Pam. If I was good at debating, I'd argue against Bowers' take on how our country should be run (crappy politics?) But I would argue few could compete with his honesty, integrity, and moral compass.
Not much feels as good as picking the right team.
Cheers, Sister Lynell. 🗽🥂
Morning, Christine! When it comes to pushing back against Republican senator votes, do you know where a citizen who has two Democratic senators can register their objection to Republicans like the Jon Stewart folks did to get the act finally passed?
When Senators in a state support a citizen’s vote and views, then turn eyes to national level. Look for races in states, especially close geographically, and support the candidates that are fighting for democracy to prevail. Also, look to League of Women Voters in their county or city to get advisement on how to support other state chapters. Or Common Cause or Indivisible or Women’s March. If I were a citizen in FL with two Dem senators and governor, I would be totally involved with next door neighbor Georgia’s politics more than I am. There are so many avenues available out of complacency. Start with LWV if they have local chapter.
Salud, fab Lynell.
(And by the way, a new candidate on my gold medal list is Rachel Sweet, the campaign manager for Kansans for Constitutional Freedom, which led the effort to defeat the amendment.)
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Thank you, Christine. So, for instance, I can add my voice to Common Cause or LWV in response to the R's when they tried to scuttle the PACT Act. I'm looking not to have to contribute more than I already regularly do (Common Cause, Fair Fight, Abrams, Marcus, and several more!) every time something comes up. High-Five, and thanks again!
Does not have to be monetary contribution. Can be phone banking or writing. Can be attendance at rallies or knowing campaign schedules of candidates close enough to support.
You're a treasure trove, Christine.
I am in the same boat. I am 100% pleased with my senators (Merkley and Wyden) and my representative (DeFazio). I'd love to be able to make a difference in other places (Val Demmings already has a contribution).
Morning, Ally! I've let Val slip unintentionally, so glad to hear you're on it!
I’d like to know that also! I love that our senators are Dems but am so frustrated my objections mean nothibg to Greg Abbott.
We still are a nation. I stay in contact with Stacy Abrams campaign. My objections to scum politicians in Georgia mean a lot to her. Support Democracy. Wherever your eyes roam.
Unita. 🗽
Morning, Lynell. Indeed, I am glad to see the passage of the PACT Act. I am devoutly hoping that the rumors that "nothing is ever really erased" are true.
I have no basis in fact, Ally - none, nada, less than miniscule - but I'd bet my bottom dollar if it was yours or my texts, they'd be un-erased in a New York minute!
Yep. It will depend if the “un-erasers” are for democracy and rule of law…. Or not. I tend to think they are getting ready with anti-erasers. Prob look like Ghostbuster wand machines.
Lynell, at first I disagreed with your including Rusty Bowers because "In June, Bowers told the Associated Press: 'If he is the nominee, if he was up against Biden, I’d vote for him again. Simply because what he did the first time, before COVID, was so good for the country.'"
But now: "'I’ll never vote for him, but I won’t have to,' Bowers said. 'Because I think America’s tired and there’s some absolutely forceful, qualified, morally defensible and upright people, and that’s what I want. That’s what I want in my party, and that’s what I want to see.'” (https://news.yahoo.com/rusty-bowers-never-vote-for-trump-again-jan-6-arizona-160540737.html)
A very high-five yes, Mim. I cringed when he said he'd vote for him again, but then did a turnaround. When I chose Bowers, it was sort of a stand-alone assessment of someone with integrity who wouldn't be swayed where it really mattered. "I didn't want to win by cheating."
All that said, Vote Blue in '22 and Once More in '24!!
Thanks, I missed that..and I live here!
AMEN! AMEN! AMEN, Lynell!! You’ve said everything I have felt and wanted to express. We, THE PEOPLE, sure pack a punch, don’t we? 🥊🥊🥊🥊
Evening, Marlene! You're the best pack puncher I know!
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What a perfect tribute to Heather!!!
"I advocated for our dear professor to be a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. I would like to add Rusty Bowers and Alexander Vindman to that list." Absolutely on the mark, Lynell. Thank you!
How can we advocate for Heather to get that award? She is a true defender of democracy.
Has the tide turned toward saving democracy? Indeed it has. But November is an entirely new challenge. Voter suppression laws, gerrymandering, threats not to certify results, and a growing GOP call for volunteer poll “watchers.” They won’t just be watching. They’ll seek to intimidate voters and cause chaos in Democratic strongholds.
The new-found optimism will mean nothing without a voter turnout for the ages.
For the ages by all voting-eligible ages.
Public sentiment is overdue a revolution Since the recognition of Nixon's abuses of power, the Republican Party has gone from corrupt to monstrous. And really it was Reagan who struck the first blow to democracy as an ideal, which was where his rhetoric on the excesses of "government" were, if you look at them, really aimed. So-called "Supply Side Economics" was semi-feudalistic, and inimical to the form of governance that Lincoln praised. The flood of general prosperity Republicans promised has yet to materialize even now, and by the government's own figures has made many things worse; not even counting multiple debacles such as the GW's Iraq war, the Subprime Crash, and the Katrina and COVID fumbles, not to mention core party plotted insurrection.
Yet the Republican Party retains legitimacy in the eyes of a huge number of Americans, and the scale of their train-wreck of their connivances still inadequately brought to focus. The Jan 6th Committee requires widespead pubic solidarity.
Very, very well said.
Poor and middle class Republicans have been hoodwinked by the Oligarchs for decades. The super rich use their money to spread lies and keep their tax free status in place. Yes, I am talking to you Peter Thiel.
Is this the beginning of a "let them eat cake" moment?
That requires some independent thought. I don't think that exists over in Fauxville.
Hahahahaha, Ally. Fauxville. I say Whoville needs to invade and straighten out the Grinch.
🗽
I think it exists but is parallelized by the mental malware of cult ideology and pandering to our more immediate-survival oriented, and evolutionarily-older "reptile brain", which is part of our kit.
Exactly what they respond to; that constant thread/agitation.
❤️
And what feels good about this latest turn-about, at least as it seems, you're right Michael... it'll be the November voting that tells the tale. Good on ya, Kansas.......
'... this moment increasingly feels like it’s about more than abortion rights, crucial though they are. The loss of our constitutional rights at the hands of a radical extremist minority has pushed the majority to demonstrate that we care about the rights and freedoms that were articulated—however imperfectly they were carried out—in the Declaration of Independence.; (Letter)
Radical-right wing extremists in the Republican Party, anti-government, anti-tax, anti-regulation and 'pro-life' movements, in militias, on school boards, in law enforcement, the legal profession, and in our families --- wherever you are in the USA, in Russia and elsewhere remember WE the People --- Let us always remember how strong we are together.
Yes,I think they( we know who”they” are) are just getting started.On their chopping blocks are gay marriage,reversal of climate change legislation,altering or ending Social Security,Medicare and Medicaid, phasing out public schools in favor of private, chartered ones,the continued repression of women and other minorities and much more.They are trying to take us back to 1851 before the Civil War when slavery was the law of the land and wealthy white men called all of the shots.The mainstream media doesn’t talk much about this because they are all owned by billionaires whose lives won’t be affected by this and whose main reason d’etre is profit.
Yes, your phrase "voter turn-out for the ages" is key here. Voters everywhere but especially those in swing states must show up and vote with such gargantuan numbers that calls of fraud from Republicans will fall on deaf ears. When the votes are close or marginal is when the fraudsters gather and try to discount results. We must all be Kansans and show these horrid fascist right wingers that we will not be taken for granted while our rights are being trampled upon by an insipid minority.
The popular vote totals in 2020 were gargantuan. And still………………..the numbers don’t matter. They will claim fraud because they lost, our and simple. This is a Power game as much as a numbers game. We need the numbers - as in Voter Turnout- but we also need the Narrative to counterpunch their expected attack.
Perhaps we'll need "poll watcher" watchers. Let them wear T-shirts bearing TFG's head photo-shopped onto a naked infants body, with the subtitle "The Emperor has no clothes". Or perhaps just "Trump for Emperor-NOT" in bold letters.
Remember the Norwegian cartoon? And this was before he'd even been inaugurated (with the biggest crowd in history, the likes of which has never been seen...) https://www.snopes.com/tachyon/2017/01/trump-cartoon-banned.jpg
The little "like" button doesn't work, so I'll have to be verbose. Nice post, Ms. Luccarini, I don't recall seeing this nice piece of editorial art!
Dirk, When the heart button doesn’t turn red, refresh your page and it should then show it’s red. If not, just click on it again, and it should turn red. You'll have to scroll to find the comment you Liked, but it'll be there.
I do indeed remember that cartoon. And that HUGE election crowd. <sarcasm font>
🙄 here you go. (My face every time he waxes on about crowds).
Never saw that, thank you!
Forwarding it on to friends.
I had not seen that either! Love it!
How true, the evil has been busy in Texas.
I agree but I do believe Americans are on to their intimidation game and will have the fortitude to face them down and VOTE! ( I believe and I also PRAY I’m right.)
Yes, we all are praying that you are right. I think sites like this help to make knowing people more aware. It is the "unknowing" ones and the willfully ignorant that we must worry about.
Nesrly all ov thode fascii sd t gactics were attempted in Kansas & failed. As TC noted, there were many, first time Primary Voters in Kansas. Help voters to turn out massively Everywhere.
Are all these extremist conservatives English majors gone rogue? The lengths they go to to twist language, like this Kansas abortion bill worded to dupe people into thinking yes means no. It's like they've taken diagraming sentences to the dark side. That said, Kansas voters untangled the verbal briar patch and won their case. Bodes well for the November chicanery to come.
Never practice celebrating victory, especially a future victory. Remember the complacency in 2016? I feel hopeful. The opposition is not above skullduggery or massive turnouts.
I am allowing myself to savor this small victory. Lord knows we on the left have earned a bit of a victory lap but I will not get anywhere near to complacency. There is too much at stake with a ton of work to do in a short time.
"Still, voters turned out to protect abortion rights in such unexpectedly high numbers it suggests a sea change."
Voters usually do not just turn out. People work very hard to Get Out The Vote. Certainly the news has been full of reporting on abortion rights activists doing just that in Kansas. And in doing so they were able to overcome all the obstacles Republican right wing extremists threw in their path - including really dirty tricks. And also their successful efforts disproved all the voter suppression messaging from the Left - that your vote doesn't count and the system is too broken to work.
Here on Mt. Desert Island where Federalist Society honcho, Opus Dei acolyte, civil rights opponent, Dark Lord of Dark Money shell corporation shell games, Susan Collins funder, and all around stinker Leonard Leo cavorts and conspires at his NorthEast Harbor citadel, locals have been legally protesting his role in stacking the Supreme Court with lying like minded racist right wing religious extremists. Leo called in the police, claiming that a young protestor had yelled at his 11 year old. The protestor claims he only tried to engage Leo himself. It is a 'he said, he said' with no witness or evidence to confirm details of either claim. It is thought Leo had this protestor arrested to scare off others and that Leo brought in mention of his daughter to skew the narrative and claim victimhood for himself - to obscure the disproportionate power he has to embroil a young man of very modest means and no clout in a judiciary process which Leo has been instrumental in corrupting. It is like Susan Collins calling in the police against people chalking their thoughts on the sidewalk near her home. The young man was arrested, taken to the county jail, and released on payment of bail. It seems ominous that police rushed to this step rather than deescalation. In my experience, while there are some decent police here, there are also some jerks. Meanwhile ... Leo goes on with his vacation and this local family is paying a steep price for their activism.
Getting out the vote is hard work! And who has the time to do that work? The Democratic women’s club I’m a part of, it’s mostly retired people. And getting the vote out is what they’re doing! Precinct Chairs are organizing and doing the footwork! Since I have to go to the classroom, I’m limited to what I can do. So I write postcards to people registered as Democrats. As just one part of everything being worked on. We can overcome the complicated wording, gerrymandering, misinformation, if we just can get people to the polls! Kansas proved it!
I hope one of his fellow protesters puts out a GoFundMe page for him. Organized peaceful protesters need funding to do what they do. Our police power is mishandled by the wealthy. 😡
Letter Writing is GOTV. ThankYou. I started volunteering once my PTA days were over. In retirement, more. I like writing LTEs and canvassing, phone banking not so much. Almost all of us can find some time. Every minute counts.
I just finished writing out the last of my 200 postcards! They are stamped and ready to go at the beginning of October! I was even aware enough to purchase the stamps prior to the price increase 😊👍🏻. Thinking about volunteering for another 100.
You Rock Star!
So awesome! Yes, I ordered stamps online when I heard they were going up.
I received my 250 post cards just before I left on vacation. I knew I wouldn’t touch them while I was traveling so they are now waiting for me on my kitchen counter. However, someone tipped me off about the price increase and I searched out a post office in Ellsworth, Maine and bought my stamps on the road! I’m gearing up to start writing this week.
Yay!!! I did 10-15 every night while watching TV. Before you know it, you’ll be done and ready!
Excellent catch on the postage!
So agree! (Just finished printing the sample designs I worked up for our postcarding group!)
Postcard Groups are great! ThankYou. See above.
Share, please.
Not seeing a way to post the samples here. I use free postcard templates I downloaded, 110 lb card stock (because my printer can't handle 120 or above), my own drawings and photos (I sketch like mad) and my small printer.
My cost is about 3 cents a card compared to 35-60 cents at a copy place (but they can do even nicer work, so there is that).
There are a few tricks about design, size and placement of images, mailability and printing strategies that save ink. I do our simple designs (producing 2000 cards very shortly!) and would be happy to figure out a way to help others interested in making their own on the cheap and pretty.
Take it National.
Only heard of Leonard Leo in last few years. Toxic evil it seems. Any way to contribute to this young man.
ThankYou. I will keep you updated. It was just reported in regional paper, will look in local paper when it comes out tomorrow. When I dropped something by, Mom seemed surprised, but bet I'm just the first. The costs, including legal fees, are very high for anyone caught up in the system. Of course, Leo knows that.
❤️
Thank you, don't want to forget
That’s what I was thinking. Lin…the young man met bail. Does he need lawyer?
We often look for symbolism - I'll give it a shot. You have the earliest sunrise in the US. Maybe finding Leo and telling him off is an early sign of an awakening. One can hope. This is a man who should be exposed and haunted for what he has done.
Can someone put a tracker on him so the people who believe in the real Constitution and true democracy can find him at every restaurant he eats in? He is part of a cabal that is turning back the clock on human rights. His blood is so evil it should never be donated.
Here is a link to more info on the protests.
https://mainebeacon.com/activists-protest-outside-maine-mansion-of-conservative-supreme-court-architect/
Here is more info. Read and be afraid. Very afraid.
https://www.centralmaine.com/2019/08/18/why-did-trumps-judge-whisperer-buy-a-house-on-the-maine-coast/
Leonard Leo and Susan Collins? I can't even....
Lin, You might want to use my meme in Social media - please feel free to do so!
https://my2senses.com/2022/08/03/opus-dei-the-scotus-screws-women-in-the-light-of-day/
I find your including Sotomayor on your list objectionable. There is no evidence that her religion plays an inappropriate role in her work on the bench. Not all Catholics are Opus Dei. Being a Catholic doesn't make you a right wing religious extremist - as with any religion it obliges you to reform your religion, and pay attention to its role in society and its involvement with civic authority - and to keep religious irrationality out of your involvement in civic society. Whatever your religion you are obliged by the Constitution to keep it out of government, especially on the Supreme Court. I don't even think their militant Catholicism is the worst offense of Coney Barrett et al - I'd say their entirely cynical allegiance to the cult of Originalism and Textualism, their hypocrisy, their lying and other ethical failings - primarily in service to the GOP and Big Money - are worse offenses to the robe. And do more harm. Leo's being more Catholic than the Pope is less of a problem than all the above, as is his direct involvement with funneling dark money into the system to institute injustice and to destroy the judiciary to serve his 1% paymasters.
If "Catholic" is one of the columns, without including Justice Sotomayor, the list is not honest and therefore suspect. Her inclusion is critical, because she is NOT part of the cabal and therefore shows that the worse factors are the ones we need to worry about; that being Opus Dei and the Federalist Society. It isn't the religion, it is the extremism. President Biden and Speaker Pelosi are also Catholic.
Ally, you mentioned Pelosi. While watching Democracy Now! this morning, an editor in Taiwan told us that most of the citizens there heard the word 'Pelosi' and thought it was the name of a typhoon.
I love that!!
Agree.
Don't forget that Biden is "Irish Catholic."
Sorry that I don’t know the difference between Catholic and Irish Catholic.
LOL! There IS a difference but it would take centuries to describe what it is. There is also an American Irish Catholic which is different again from Irish Catholic....."The woods are lovely, dark and deep".......mostly dark and deep.
I just remember hearing Biden say that he's of Irish decent from last week. I hadn't known that. But I did know he was a catholic. My mother was from Somerville, Massachusetts, which is a suburb of Boston. My Godmother was named Madeline Durham, she was a single woman of Irish decent, event though she lived in the Italian North End of Boston, which, like other cities in the U.S., is broken into parts of different nationalities. I think the Irish area was called Southie, the largely black population was in Roxbury, etc. I'm forgetting several other parts of the city of Boston proper. Brighton was another, and there is Dorchester. I looked on a map of Boston, but the one I have doesn't give enough detail. Anyway, I'm dragging this on far too much. Have a great day!
"Not all Catholics are Opus Dei. Being a Catholic doesn't make you a right wing religious extremist..."
Thank you, Lin. The extremes often distort both religious and civic values to serve a partisan ideology. Catholics who have melded their far right religious and political ideologies ( including some Bishops) do neither religion nor the civic public square any favors. Originalism and Textualism plague and calcify both Constitution and Scrptures.
Agree on Sotomayor! She was appointed long before tfg got his dirty hands on everything.
Besides, her first name isn't Sota. I liked the 'idea' of this till i saw it.
Must vigorously agree with many who object to her being included as if she's part of this deliberate 'stacking' of the Court for nefarious legislating from the bench.
It said you were replying to me, but I certainly didn't say her first name is "Sota". Bizarre!
oh no, sorry Anne-Loise ... i didn't mean you called her that. when i looked at the chart, that's what it said. yes, bizarre... and likely a typo. just noticed it is all. no worries.
Indeed. One might note that Biden is a devout Catholic.
I’ll use it. And I’m glad you included Sotamayer. Meme reflects her religion does not bias her to the extreme right and money powers that support them.
So great to hear from you again, lin! You always have something up your sleeve to say and boy, this was a great one! Leo is the one who should be subpoenaed. He is the one running the Pro-Rape Party. Why do I see this Society as a bunch of people in a cult dressed in dark robes, candelabras set up with long candles burning amongst a misty foggy background, in an underground cave, chanting some bullshit gibberish over a sacrificial lamb (person/child)?
... person/child/infant ...
Lots of jerks behind the badge. Some of them intentional, some of them just plain dumb.
Par for the course.
Kansas did the right thing by a 20 pt margin. I thought we might have a chance to squeak out a win but 60-40 is a delightful surprise. Turnout was huge, too. Double what it was in the last off-year primary. Here’s a nice WaPo comment from a Jayhawker (special pts for the historically significant bit about Missouri, the always-been-awful state):
mountaincricket (commenter’s handle)
Yep - people don’t generally understand Kansas politics. Abortions were allowed here prior to Roe. The history of the abortion debate in Kansas over the last thirty years is fascinating.
Kansas is not Missouri.
Kansas is not Oklahoma.
Kansas is not Texas or Nebraska.
Kansas is definitely Kansas.
A commentator on either MSNBC or CNN this evening reminded us that Kansas was admitted to the Union as a Free State, and that is a positive historical foundation for today's vote to keep the right to choose abortion care.
Yes. There’s a long history of bad blood between Kansas and the pack of murderous slavers who live in Missouri.
The extent of complicity - even if it was just to cover their asses - is revealing. That Trump appointees ran roughshod over career employees is ominous. Maybe they were thinking of Alexander Vindman and the price he paid for doing the right thing.
The fact is, without a Democratic majority to investigate, all of this would have been buried. And if we do not preserve the Democratic majority it will be. With Mitch McConnell, Kevin McCarthy, and the GOP out for blood and perverting government, again. Now is the time to unite and Get Out The Vote for Democratic candidates.
Steve Schmidt said the Republican Party should be burned to the ground. As a former Republican, he should know. I am continually amazed that support for Republicans is as high as it is. A decent person like Biden is vilified by people who support criminally treasonous Trump.
I believe that most of the “regular” people who vilify Biden are those who’ve been brainwashed by FOX news and don’t have a clear thought of their own. They are mostly “victims” in their own minds. Victims of their employers, victims of their parents, victims of teachers “who didn’t like them”, victims of their “do better” neighbors. Small minded, little gnats on society that have no understanding that Republicans are using them not protecting them.
The evil is always busy.
Trump Tide ebbing. Whale has beached.
Something smells in the state of Florida......with apologies to Hamlet.
Stuart .. Florida is Texas is Alabama is Mississippi is Arizona is Oklahoma is Georgia is, Yes, say it, America. Elizabeth Bishop. One Art. https://i.etsystatic.com/23805348/r/il/58029c/3118691569/il_794xN.3118691569_csn7.jpg
Thank you.....
Wish that were true in my assisted living facility. The old crone wears her t shirt every day calling Biden a parasite. Pukeifying
Make sure your shirt for justice is a much brighter color and has bigger letters, fab Jeri!
Unita. 🗽
Ask the old Crony how she feels about Blacks, Obama, Kamala Harris, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, MLK and Jesus the Jew.
She'll probably retort that Jesus wasn't Black.
So: who knows? What color was Jesus? Who knows? What color are mid eastern people - today. Lost tribe? Israeli citizens, Arabs and Jews? What color are whites of Barbados? What is passing? In people of in-part Negro extraction? Once called mulatto.. by anthropologists. Assimilation re Jews.. what does assimilation mean? Define outing ..
What about the Jewish part? Find a retort for that one, biddy bye. 🙄
Jeri, a lot of thoughts crossed my mind that my better angels stopped me from typing!! So, this one "better" thought--at least you know straight up what she is. You don't have to go through nearly 30 years of a friendship to discover someone's true colors, as I did.
You might want to ask--"do you ever WASH that shirt? Might want to think about doing so!"
Just let that sink in to her!!!
Who will follow Kansas's lead? Welcome positive news! On the other hand:
"The Defense Department reportedly wiped the phones of key Trump Pentagon officials at the end of the former president’s administration, erasing any texts from key witnesses to events surrounding the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, CNN reported." What the hell? Unbelievable.
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/defense-dept-wiped-phones-trump-pentagon-officials-jan-6-texts
When it becomes clear from whom the orders came in the Defense Department, the Secret Service and the rest of the defeated former president's administration, to destroy text messages and other records of communications, the dominos will start to fall. The operation was extensive enought for more than just a few to know. Soon, at least one will speak up and identify those who ordered the breaking of the law and deserving of prosecution. Undoubtedly the DOJ via the FBI is already quietly into this.
Exactly. The archive destruction demands prosecution right to the top. Who initiated it? My bet it’s Meadows and his boss.
It is conceivable that the two you suggest were possibly tools of others, far smarter than either of them, and who have taken great pains to hide their identities ... or even the Russians.
Yep.
Jack, I would be willing to bet that that your final suspect has been involved in every mess that Trump's filthy boots tracked in on Day One! It continues.
Meadows is scum.
Right. There have to have been lower-level workers who knew and have no reason to go to jail and destroy their future to protect the higher-ups.
This was a blatant cover-up and as you say there has to be many people who knew and wanted no part of it.
I truly hope so. Someone with a spine will come forward. I find it hard to believe in this age of technology there isn’t still a record of what is missing.
About time to see the term treasonous! When I used that term with someone a couple of years ago, they were telling me that was so extreme and put the brakes on. I’ve never seen it any other way!
It’s difficult being a visionary. Keep on, keep on.
Me too, got banned from T and FB for saying so. They had community standards that tolerated no truth about chump.
Yep. I’ve been put on notice for pointing out the obvious. When I see all the posts they let slide! Like really?! Oh I was talking facts! That’s when they don’t like it!
I've never seen it any other way either, Denise.
Helsinki did it for me.
The DOJ needs to be all over this! If we can't depend on the Defense Department to ensure national security, i.e. protect the country from those who seek to harm us, then Government will lose all legitimacy. Heads need to roll, and the harshest punishment given to those who sought to undermine/destroy our government.
This was part of a coup and everyone who signed-on knew exactly what they were part of, and they also believed that they were going to pull it off. When the coup failed, the insurrectionists had to destroy the evidence that would directly implicate them.
I repeat, the DOJ must act decisively and without delay.
Chip, I agree 100%. It appears there are many in high positions of national security and public trust who'd sell the country down the river for a taste of power. The fact that the DOD was willing to bend to the wishes of the extreme right then attempt to wipe any evidence of collusion clean calls for swift action against all participants from the top down. What more does the DOJ need?
They just knocked the entire state of red Idaho off their perch. Atty Gen Garland spoke clearly about it yesterday regarding abortion access. Best was his reminder of FEDERAL FUNDS that go to states for things like hospitals and schools and a state will comply with federal law and regulation as they accept funds into their state budgets. As in, we are a nation, not a confederacy numnuts.
🗽
https://wapo.st/3BDG932
(WaPo article about Idaho and the DOJ lawsuit)
You know this and I know this .... I think I will pass it on to my House representative. My two Senators, unfortunately, were probably part of the coup.
Daria, good to see you here. And, YES...it is unbelievable the extent to which tRumpistas went to erase anything that is connected to 1/6. "What the hell?"
Very good morning, Pam! ⚘
What was previously “unbelievable” is now believable because of the scum.
But…..sounds like we are on it Fab Daria. “Get your motors runnin…”. And we won’t blow it this time.
Unita. 🗽 https://youtu.be/egMWlD3fLJ8
Salud, dear Christine! We are on it for sure!
No accident and hopefully punishable by law. They must never get away with this....
First! Evening & many thanks, Heather. ♡
The massive scope of the sedition, treason, plotting and planning at all levels of the government, it seems, is mind-boggling.
To throttle Rusty Bowers? Unsurprising. If you have any dignity or scruples or moral compass, TFG's administration will turn on you, as they did with the noble Vindman brothers.
Kudos to Kansas. Methinks Republicans will squeal come midterms in November when the American public starts to throw the trash out. Too bad we can't do the same for the Supreme Judicial Court which cannot extricate itself from the weight (and erroneous entanglement) with religion.
Get 66 Senators and you can clean house everywhere. Including the no-longer-Supreme court.
I like the idea of 66 senators. My mother used to say, “Shoot for the moon. If you miss, at least you will fall among the stars.” The Dems need to always be working and planning to uphold democracy. The R’s have been working and planning on many levels, from many directions for many years to dismantle our democracy, actually since the New Deal. We cannot afford to not pay attention to the behind the scenes actions. Our collective “house” needs fumigating to get rid of all the termites causing destruction.
66? Dreaming of 53
I’m dreaming Route 66. https://youtu.be/tg2EbJy-9dc
Impeachment of a Supreme Court Justice takes 2/3 of the senate... no? Check...
What a day! Thanks for everything you’re doing to help save our democracy. 🙏🏼
VOTE. Often.
Well, as often as is legal😉
😂
From the NY Times: This is the conspiracy-theorist/do our own electors/in DC on Jan. 6 person who won the GOP nomination for Secy of State in Arizona. "A Michigan transplant, Mr. Finchem, 65, has spent more than seven years as a lawmaker from a district outside Tucson, which during a recent visit was a boiling 115-degree valley set amid mountains and cactuses. He has embraced a sun-baked sheriff aesthetic, favoring large cowboy hats that belie his Detroit birthplace, and was the Arizona coordinator for the Coalition of Western States, a group that once supported the armed occupation of federal land in Oregon.
He speaks in sober and serious tones and presents himself as a common-sense family man. When asked about his family life by one interviewer, he said his “kids are all grown and gone” and added that nowadays, “I’m thinking about my grandkids” in battles he takes on.
But his family life has been rocky. He has been married four times and estranged for more than two decades from two adult children, and he does not know their children, family members said. (He also has two stepchildren.)
He talks frequently about his experience as a police officer and firefighter in Kalamazoo, Mich. But personnel records obtained from that city’s Department of Public Safety, which he left in 1999, include this note in his file: “Retired, poor rating, would not rehire.” A department spokesman declined to comment."
Trump is a magnet for losers, or as Hillary correctly identified, deplorables!
Correctly, and perhaps understandably in circumstances of extreme frustration, but deplorably stupidly. Even more so than Obama's equally accurate but . . . impolitic . . . "They cling to guns or religion."
Another phony pretending to be human. Thinks he will rule, May he be sent packing. May have to donate to his Nov opponent. Help me Google…
Ann Weller - "From the NY Times:"
[Gift Link]
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/01/us/politics/mark-finchem-arizona-elections.html?unlocked_article_code=AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACEIPuomT1JKd6J17Vw1cRCfTTMQmqxCdw_PIxftm3iWka3DFDm4biPkORJCH_0bRZKF4IN46xTfeSt5HO78iQbl71O5NOEpkDgSsr5CYmZMDOGM1tYe3FCsQ7q76YIoZo3Xsf3Xrb6B23qG-tBaLdzG8XfPYgSd3OF5uoZZ6cQyv3mhblviUDuF2joZ43_lxAppwRiwSJ3Xf54meAB16O9-FaRvX-1N2D7kfAWeP6Ibav7EQcwxSCkbERWd94ws_69BbMdARO8XvPkJqOZq-0fhKVDsefMr-DIYxRoPUi7xhrbfNzBSMw8a8zPgyf75GTl-8T3D4luhrCsoi_JIw5g&smid=url-share
Thank you
Many instances of obstruction, destruction of evidence, requests for pardons from various people. How to tie together in an indictment? Was it from, orders above or from several 'associate directors' of actions, disparate self-directed instances of malfeasance. Given GOP history of 'falling in line' and Trump's obsessive micromanagement and demands for loyalty, disparate self-directed instances of malfeasance sounds unlikely. Who are the keys to this puzzle such that, if unlocked by facing a lengthy prison sentence, their memory become clear?
"Americans Will Always Do the Right Thing — After Exhausting All the Alternatives"
"Because the former administration did not keep records of the children or where they were sent, reunifying the families has been difficult, and as many as 1000 children out of the original 5000 who fell under this policy remain separated from their parents."
If this was a declared war, would this not be a war crime? "The former administration did not keep records..." What must it be like to be one of those families? What kind of regime does things like this? What kind of political organization?
Rhetorical questions, right? We all know the answers.
Rhetorical and yet it does not quite feel real to me that our government would do such a thing in plain sight in our lifetime. Atrocities and government often go together, and our own society's history is no exception, but it's one thing to view this as national history and another to witness something so organized, sociopathic and blatant in the present. And part of the horror is how passively it has been publicly treated, by myself included, despite current efforts of repair. Somehow the magnitude of the crime seems to be consistently underappreciated.
I find that sense of "normalcy" in the face of such acts truly frightening. Are we not witnessing grave injuries and great crimes? So broad an array of crimes in fact that it has become hard to keep a focus? Hopefully, as Dr. Richardson is indicating, sociopathy may have overplayed it's hand, but the persecution of immigrant families has remained, so far as I can tell, only a peripheral part of public consciousness, my own included, and despite efforts to undo the worst of it, this magnitude of the callous assault on human rights would seem to ethically demand much keener attention.
What is this psychosis that has infected the GOP to continue hanging on to the lies of the former president? Extremists last night won a majority of the county commissioner seats in what has been a conservative, but well-run, county in MI. They will eliminate our county's DEI office, attempt to hamstring the county health department, and try to run the public schools. They are scary people.
More than scary, evil on steroids. Religious fervor for a clown with a flame thrower.