GOP Lies – Page 13 – Politics Plus

Video Thread 11/5/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:05 pm Open Thread, Politics

Nov 052022

Glenn Kirschner – This would have been the October recap – I’m using an interview with Lawrence instead.

The Lincoln Project – Denial

Meidas Touch – DOJ gives top Trump aide Kash Patel USE IMMUNITY and COMPELS his testimony on Trump CRIMES (Too long, but very explanatory of a rare situation)

Tim Ryan on Twitter

Pretty impressive to watch @TimRyan take a clearly stacked Fox audience from boo’s after he brought up January 6th—to loud applause after not backing down at all.

Not an easy thing to do. (via @atrupar)pic.twitter.com/pQPUyXSQPs

— Sawyer Hackett (@SawyerHackett) November 1, 2022

Mrs. Betty Bowers – The Hypocrisy of Republican Talking Points Revealed!

Beau – Let’s talk about Ukrainian grain and the Russian Navy….

Open Thread November 3, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:04 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Nov 032022

Yesterday, A new story came out about a new political assault. The victim was a candidate for the Pennsylvania State House, which is about as far down the ballot as one can get, unless the municipality elects its dog catcher. But this attack also included an elderly man (69) and blows to the head causing unconsciousness. This is getting ridiculous. Crooks and Liars picked the story up from the local paper; there’s been no national coverage that I know of. Which makes me wonder how many other candidates for downballot offices are getting assaulted and we never hear about it.

Cartoon – 03 1103Cartoon.jpg

Short Takes –

Civil Discourse – A Tale of Two Arizona Voter Intimidation Cases
Quote – The lawyers at Protect Democracy, which represents the League of Women Voters, were busy assembling the evidence. It appears that it was the evidence they were able to put in front of the court in the second case that persuaded Judge Liburdi to reach a different outcome. The League requested an injunction to stop the voter intimidation and attached affidavits that set forth such serious claims that the Judge ordered a hearing, which took place [Novrmbrt 1]. I’m told that the testimony was very powerful…. The best part of the order requires the group to post, both on their website and on their Truth Social page, accurate information about Arizona drop box voting laws and a copy of the court’s orders. I’m imagining a lot of heads exploding when they’re told…the truth.
Click through for full article. Legal representation and the way evidence is presented matters as much as the evidence itself, and maybe more.

Crooks and Liars – Judge To True The Vote Founder: Comply Or Go To Jail
Thursday’s hearing, which took place on the 11th floor of the federal court building in downtown Houston, was the first time either Engelbrecht or Phillips have appeared in court in the matter. Engelbrecht and Phillips testified only after the judge demanded they do so — Hoyt needed their testimony so he could rule on whether the pair should be held in contempt of court for refusing, for weeks, to hand over information he’d ordered they produce to the plaintiffs.
Click through for details. The Arizona intimidators are comparable to Jan 6 participants. These two are more at the Roger Stone-Mike Lindell level.

Food For Thought

Open Thread November 1, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:52 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Nov 012022

Yesterday, I got an update from Axios that there are now Federal charges against David DePape (he had already been charged at the state level). This does not constitute double jeopardy because federal and state are separate “sovereigns.” This is a good sign. Also Faithful America (you mem remember they recently put up a web page against false peophets) now has a new page – 20 Resources to Resist Christian Nationalism. And, I’m sorry to say, even if we win the midterms in landslides, we are going to need every oone of those 20. Well, at least I gor=t confirmed to see Virgil this Sunday. I really like having the confirmation early.

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Short Takes –

Civil Discourse – In Praise of the Federal Judiciary
Quote – Judge Berman Jackson unflinchingly defined who the good guys are and who the bad guys are. That’s a line that has become blurred in public discourse as the former president and his supporters make claims about the people who overran the Capitol and engaged in violence that range from calling them tourists to insisting they were patriots exercising their rights. But today Mr. Head heard the truth from the bench about Officer Fanone, and it’s important for all of us to hear it too: “[Fanone] was protecting the very essence of democracy, the peaceful transfer of power after a democratic election. He was protecting America. That’s who Officer Fanone was. That’s what Officer Fanone was doing. You made choices over and over again to go after him and not disengage.”
Click through for essay. Judge Berman Jackson is, sadly, not the entire Federal Judiciary (if only they were all at least as good as she), but she is certainly a fine representative of it. Her name has come up repeatedly this year, and always for something praiseworthy.

Project on Government Oversight – Study Shows POGO’s Oversight Trainings Increase Congressional Capacity
Quote – Designed for veterans and beginners alike, our monthly seminars feature lessons from some of the most accomplished current and former congressional oversight experts and practitioners, and provide opportunities for congressional staff to ask questions in an off-the-record environment. Although seminars are generally targeted toward committee staff, much of the information shared during these seminars is also helpful to staff in personal offices in their investigations. These nonpartisan training sessions are open to Hill staff regardless of party, chamber, or position, and we also welcome staffers from the Government Accountability Office and Congressional Research Service. These seminars feature current and former members of Congress or congressional staffers from both parties, and we do our best to get panelists from both the House and Senate.
Click through for article. POGO is justifiably proud of their training program(s). It’s too bad that, if the GOP takes over, it will probably have to be scrapped.

Food For Thought

Video Thread 10/30/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 12:07 pm Open Thread, Politics

Oct 302022

Glenn Kirschner – rump flunky Kash Patel pleads the 5th; is DOJ investigative circle really tightening around Trump?

More Perfect Union – Why These Workers Endorsed Their Boss’s Opponent For Congress

Ring of Fire – Tucker Carlson Says Biden Is Arresting People For Having ‘Wrong Thoughts’

VoteVets – WIsen – The Oath (captions) [VoteVets has gone to doing ads for particular districts, many for people I don’t know. But we all know RoJo.]

Liberal Redneck – Inflation and the GOP

Beau – Let’s talk about a cancer vaccine….

Video Thread 10/29/22

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 11:46 am Open Thread, Politics

Oct 292022

Glenn Kirschner – New evidence of Justice Alito’s lies demonstrate need for DOJ investigation & impeachment inquiry

The Lincoln Project – House Of Horrors

Thom Hartmann – Has Authoritarianism Already Taken Over?

Farron Balanced – Trump’s Chef In Hot Water For Possibly Lying To Investigators About Stolen Docs

Amy Schumer on Twitter – I gather not new, but certainly timely)

What Mehmet Oz means when he says abortion should be between “a woman, her doctor, and local political leaders.” #PASenateDebate

Thx @amyschumer pic.twitter.com/qMBSCbOMIY

— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) October 26, 2022

Beau – Let’s talk about the smartest Republican in the room….

Open Thread October 27, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 6:55 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Oct 272022

Yesterday, the weather report said (my paraphrase of a graph) “There might be snow tomorrow [today now], but don’t hold us to that; it might just be a little rain.” Snow for Hallowe’en in Colorado used to be like rain at 5:00 pm on a Florida summer day – you could practically set your watch (time or calendar) by it. But that hasn’t been true for a while now. So we’ll see. Otherwise, a quiet day.

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Short Takes –

Letters From An American – October 23, 2022
Quote – In 1876, “Redeemers” set out to put an end to the southern governments that were elected in systems that allowed Black men to vote. “Rifle clubs” held contests outside Republican political rallies, “Red Shirts” marched with their guns in parades. Their intimidation worked. Democrats took over the South and created a one-party system that lasted virtually unbroken until 1965. Without the oversight that a healthy multiparty system provides, southern governments became the corrupt tools of a few wealthy men, and the rest of the population fell into a poverty from which it could not escape until the federal government began to invest in the region in the 1930s.
Click through for full letter. I learned about “Reconstruction” in school, but I never heard the word “Redemption” in that context. That they should use that word for what they actually did seems to me blasphemous. “Redemption” means “buying back.” Buying involves paying a price. They paid no price – they extorted a price from the powerless.

The Daily Beast – Florida Puts Raging MAGA Moms on Book-Banning Council
Quote – In the name of “curriculum transparency,” Florida’s Republican-controlled state government has appointed several anti-gay and anti-mask conspiracy theorists to take charge of a new effort at public schools: banning books. This hastily assembled censorship council—tasked with retraining public school librarians to abide by new restrictions—is the latest ploy in Gov. Ron DeSantis’ crusade to upend the state’s education system. But the council was also staffed under suspicious circumstances, with the state Education Department ignoring its own call for official candidates from local school districts and instead filling most of the slots with right-wing activists who have a history of proposing book bans. One was even nominated by a religious activist with close ties to the DeSantis administration a week before the department publicly called for candidates, according to government emails, hinting at secret coordination between them.
Click through for details. You can read or listen, your choice. Should Florida just change the name of its high schools to “Hitlerjugend” and be done with it?

Food For Thought

Open Thread October 19, 2022

Posted by Joanne Dixon at 7:09 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Oct 192022

Yesterday, Colorado Public Radio News had a couple of unusual animal news stories. Nine Ukranian refugees have received amnesty at Keenesburg, CO’s Wild Animal Sanctuary. And our native Bighorn sheep and introduced (70+ uears ago) mountain goats are having a turf war over nutritional supplements newly accessible due to climate change. I’ll just provide the links in case anyone wants details. Also, Virgil called – to tell me he’s in prison – apparently he had one of the vivid dreams he has been having and thinks are real, but this time, instead of thinking someone from his past had phoned him, he thought he had been home – and called to tell me where he was. What with all the other dreams, I suppose I shouldn’t have been surprised – but this is a new level and it kind of shook me. At least he still remembers who I am and that we love each other. On the bright side, my ballot arrived. 24 hours from mailing to arrival is pretty darned good, IMO.

Cartoon – 19 Cornwallis RTL

Short Takes –

truthout – Ron DeSantis’s Ousting of Elected Official Sets a Dangerous Precedent
Quote – In an early August press conference, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivered a shocking announcement: He was abruptly suspending Andrew Warren, the elected chief prosecutor for Hillsborough County (Tampa) and an outspoken critic of the governor…. All three of Warren’s opinions cited by DeSantis… stand in direct opposition to the governor’s political goals. The two public officials have clashed over these and other issues repeatedly over the past several years…. Warren … argues that his removal violates the will of Tampa voters who elected him in 2016 and 2020. These voters were further disenfranchised when his replacement was handpicked by DeSantis, who lost Hillsborough County by a nine-point margin in the last gubernatorial election.
Click through for details. This is not even the first time DeSantis has done this. I thought the first time that this couldn’t possibly be legal or constitutional. Yet he seems to be getting away with it.

The Daily Beast – New Book Reveals Jim Jordan’s Dirty Tricks With Impeachment
Quote – The book presents a less than flattering portrait of Jordan, who would likely be the Judiciary Chairman if the GOP takes back the House. He is instead consistently shown to be far more interested in defending Trump than getting down to the truth. The book includes scenes like Jordan heading to the White House to read a transcript of Trump’s call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky before it was released to the public, only to receive a partial account that excluded more concrete evidence of a quid pro quo. Trump’s team, Bade and Demirjian say, wanted House Republicans to go on the record defending Trump before they knew all the facts.
Click through for more, including specific examples. It should be no surprise that Jordan is not actually the loose cannon he appears to be – that is a deliberate choice to muddy whatever waters are likely to impede fascism.

Food For Thought