Open Thread – 1/18/2020

Posted by TomCat at 8:51 am Blog News, Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jan 182020

It’s another crappy day, here in the CatBox, and I ALMOST went back to bed. Oh well, I get the camera in my gut in less than a month now. Tomorrow is a High Holy Day in the Church of the Ellipsoid Orb, the Festival of Conference Finality. May the Orb shine it’s blessed light on your team, if it has survived. I’ll be out of the saddle on Sunday and Monday. Sunday is a WWWendy Day and we have a very stinky TomCat and lots of chores to manage. Please expect no more than a Personal Update or Open Thread. On Monday I have an appt. with my cardiologist. If you remember, a few weeks back, I was telling my PCP about my heartburn, when an acid bubble came up my esophagus. I put up my hand to my chest, winced, and lowered my head in pain. Megan freaked out. She slapped on the EKG stickers, and once she realized I wasn’t having a heart attack, she insisted I make an appointment with Lisa. That was set back a few weeks ago, because TriMet Lift was two hours plus late and could not pick me up until well after my appointment time. So Monday I hope to publish a Personal Update, and an MLK Day article, prepared a day in advance. I hope to be back in the saddle Tuesday. Have a great weekend.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 4:24 (average 4:27). I’m amazed I beat the average. To do it, click here. How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Alternet: In the past, Sen. Susan Collins of Maine was among the most popular Republicans in New England — a region of the United States that has become increasingly Democratic in recent years. Collins, first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1996, was reelected by 17% in 2002, 23% in 2008 and 38% in 2014. But that was before Donald Trump became president, and according to polling by Morning Consult, Collins now enjoys 42% approval and 52% disapproval — making her the most unpopular politician in the U.S. Senate.

During the first quarter of 2017, according to Morning Consult, Collins enjoyed 67% approval in Maine. But the last quarter of 2019 found her overtaking Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in terms of unpopularity.

It could not have happened to a more deserving bitch (apologies to female dawgs)! Maine… Vote Blue!! RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): President Donald Trump Picks Jeffrey Epstein Lawyers For Impeachment

How much do you want to bet that Barrf and the Republican Reich had Epstein killed to cover up their own crimes? Of course Fuhrer Trump* would pick pervert-friendly lawyers. Birds of a feather… RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): –

Ah… the memories! RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

Open Thread – 1/15/2020

Posted by TomCat at 8:57 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jan 152020

It’s a busy day, here in the CatBox. It’s cold out, and we had a light dusting of snow. WWWendy will come this evening to de-stink the raunchy TomCat, help with chores, and put out my out clothes for tomorrow. Tomorrow is my preliminary appointment with the thoracic surgeon, who will excise my lung tumors. I leave at around 7:00 AM and return around Noon. Therefore, please expect no more than a minimal Personal Update from me tomorrow. Happy Hump Day!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 4:44 (average 8:29). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From The New Yorker: Rudolph Giuliani’s offer to act as Donald J. Trump’s defense attorney at the President’s impeachment trial has received unanimous support from congressional Democrats, who are now demanding that he perform such a role.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer told reporters on Tuesday that Giuliani’s participation as Trump’s lawyer during his Senate trial was, as far as they were concerned, “nonnegotiable.”

“Rudy Giuliani has demonstrated over the past three years that he can represent the President as no one else can,” Pelosi said. “If he is not the President’s lawyer in the Senate, that would be a deal-breaker for me.”

Concurring with Pelosi, Schumer added, “My Democratic colleagues in the Senate are prepared to pay Mr. Giuliani’s hourly fees, in cash, to make this thing happen.”

Dang, Andy! That would be wonderful! With Rudy 911 representing his Fuhrer, even Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch might vote to convict and remove! RESIST!!

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): Shocking New Evidence Rocks Trump Impeachment Before Senate Trial

Marie Jovanovich should be very, very afraid. Robert F. Hyde, the Republican congressional candidate stalking her for Trump*, looks like as vile a Republican pervert as Judge Roy Moore, Injustice Kavanookie, or even the biggest pervert of all, impeached Fuhrer Trump*. RESIST!!

From CBS: [BREAKING] House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has revealed the impeachment managers for President Trump’s upcoming Senate trial, naming the members who will prosecute the case against the president on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

She announced her selections Wednesday morning:

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler
Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren
Congressman Hakeem Jeffries
Congresswoman Val Demings
Congressman Jason Crow
Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia

Godspeed, one and all! RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): Pictures of Matchstick Men

I love the wah wah guitar in this one! Ah… the memories! RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch Has Votes for Show Trial

Posted by TomCat at 7:41 am Politics

Jan 082020

Since virtually all the news today seems focused on War Criminal Trump’s* Iran fiasco, I thought I’d switch back to the Senate’s most evil Republican, Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch. He has corralled the swing-state Republicans, who we hoped might demand witnesses, to goose-step behind Fuhrer Trump’s* impeachment kangaroo court to be conducted without witnesses or evidence.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday that he has the votes to set the ground rules of the impeachment trial for President Donald Trump — without Democrats’ support.

McConnell first made the remarks during a closed-door lunch with his fellow Republican senators on Capitol Hill, an official in the room told CNN, before McConnell made the announcement publicly during a news conference following the lunch. McConnell made clear he had no plans to move forward on a trial until the two articles of impeachment are sent to the Senate, as he has said publicly.

“We have the votes once the impeachment trial has begun to pass a resolution essentially the same, very similar to the 100-to-nothing vote in the Clinton trial, which sets up what’s best described as a phase one,” McConnell said Tuesday.

All McConnell needs is 51 senators — or a simple majority of the 100-member chamber — to vote to approve those ground rules. Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Mitt Romney of Utah have said they back the leader’s approach… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <CNN>

McConnell Rolls Out Trump Trial Plan Without Witnesses, Democrats Say It’s A ‘Cover-Up’

Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch is comparing apples to road apples. In the Clinton impeachment trial, the testimony of all the major witnesses was already public. In the Trump* kangaroo court, The Republican Reich has blocked most major witnesses from testifying. In the Clinton impeachment trial, we had a Republican Senate trying a Democratic President. They were biased against Clinton. In the Trump* kangaroo court, a Republican Senate is trying their own beloved Fuhrer and are desperate to protect him from the consequences of his crimes at all cost. So any attempt by Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch to claim that the two trials are equivalent is pure bullshit.

Maine, Alaska, and Utah need to be plastered with ads about their Senators’ hypocrisy!

RESIST!!

Open Thread – 1/3/2020

Posted by TomCat at 8:55 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Jan 032020

It’s a queasy day here in the CatBox, and I had trouble finding material, because the Republican war to retain power (see lead article) is dominating the news. TGIF!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:24 (average 4:36). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Cartoon:

Drill Baby Dingbat, aka Bloody Bullseye Barbie, put a bullseye in Gabby Giffords campaign headquarters inspiring a Republican Ammosexual terrorist to shoot her and 18 others, killing 6.

Short Takes:

From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): New Unredacted Emails Contain ‘Clear Direction From POTUS To Hold: Report

It sounds to me like it may be time for another Article of Impeachment against Fuhrer Trump* and criminal charges against the other Republicans involved. RESIST!!

From Common Dreams: Reproductive rights advocates on Thursday seized on an amicus brief signed by more than 200 members of Congress, including two conservative Democrats, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to consider overturning Roe vs. Wade as the latest example of the assault on women’s freedom.

The brief was signed by 168 members of the House and 39 senators. Two House Democrats joined their Republican colleagues, led by House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) in the effort—Reps. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.) and Dan Lipinski (D-Ill.).

Lipinski drew the ire of progressive Democrat Marie Newman, who is challenging him in the 2020 primary.

“His position in Congress jeopardizes the health of women in IL-03 and across the country,” Newman tweeted. “My opponent does not trust women and is not fit to represent us.”

I trust I speak for all of us at Politics Plus in endorsing Marie Newmann and any progressive challenging Collin Peterson in the primary. Damn DINOs! RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): White Room

Ah… the memories! RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

Bullshit*

Posted by TomCat at 8:44 am Politics

Dec 302019

Fuhrer Drumpfenfarten, aka Bone Spurs, aka Putin’s Pet Pervert will now be known throughout eternity as Trump*. Therefore is it not appropriate to identify the lame attempts by Barrf, Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch, Faux Noise, and the rest of the criminal Republican Reich to justify those crimes as Bullshit”?

The New York Times has a comprehensive look this morning at the timeline and actions surrounding the withholding of aid to Ukraine, and I strongly suggest you read it all. But this was the ultimate in political appointees (most with personal and professional ties to Mick Mulvaney) creating rationales to justify whatever Trump wanted: Just ignore the law! Like the political operatives they are, they had little interest in whether there was a valid legal basis for their arguments, they just wanted something that sounded good enough to sell, and came up with something that cemented Trump’s vision of himself as a monarch, unaccountable to anyone:

By late summer, top lawyers at the budget office were developing a proposed legal justification for the hold, based in part on conversations with White House lawyers as well as the Justice Department.

Their argument was that lifting the hold would undermine Mr. Trump’s negotiating position in his efforts to fight corruption in Ukraine.

The president, the lawyers believed, could ignore the requirements of the Impoundment Control Act and continue to hold the aid by asserting constitutional commander in chief powers that give him authority over diplomacy. He could do so, they believed, if he determined that, based on existing circumstances, releasing the money would undermine military or diplomatic efforts.

Inserted from <Crooks and Liars>

That certainly illustrated the need for more witnesses. The more we discover, the more pleased I an that Speaker Pelosi [D-CA] is standing up to Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch’s bullshit*!

RESIST!!

Open Thread – 12/29/2019

Posted by TomCat at 7:36 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 292019

This is my only article today. WWWendy is coming to the CatBox for chores and my de-stinking. We have lots to do. In addition my Broncos are televised this afternoon. I did manage to eat a small portion of beans and rice for lunch, a small portion of soup for supper and a small donut for breakfast. It’s a relief to go a whole day without throwing up for the first time in days! Go Broncos!

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:05 (average 4:53). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From Alternet: Republican Senators have not bought into Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s impeachment strategy as the Senate trial looms.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) explained the dynamic during an interview on the Connecticut Network.

“I’ve talked to anywhere from five to 10 of my colleagues who have very severe misgivings about the direction that Mitch McConnell is going in denying a full, fair proceeding with witnesses and documents. My hope is that they will say publicly what Sen. Murkowski did, and really hold Mitch McConnell accountable,” Blumenthal said, as reported by The Hill.

Earlier this week, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) publicly questioned McConnell’s strategy during a Christmas Eve interview with local television station KTUU.

Republicans are consummate liars. I’ll believe this, if and only if they vote against Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch! RESIST!!

From YouTube (CNN Channel): NYPD stepping up presence in Brooklyn after a series of possible anti-Semitic hate crimes

It appears there are more Republican hate criminals in Brooklyn than I thought! RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past):

Ah… the memories! RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

Biden Screws the Pooch Again

Posted by TomCat at 7:49 am Politics

Dec 282019

For those who do not know, “screw the pooch” comes from Tom Wolfe’s book, The Right Stuff, and means to commit a grievous, usually fatal, error. Joe Biden screwed the pooch by claiming that, if subpoenaed, he will refuse to testify in Trump’s* impeachment trial, as run by Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch.

Returning to the campaign trail after Christmas, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. on Friday stood by his comments that he would not comply with a subpoena to testify at President Trump’s impeachment trial in the Senate.

In a meeting with the editorial board of The Des Moines Register, whose endorsement in the Iowa caucuses is coveted by presidential hopefuls, Mr. Biden argued that complying with a subpoena and testifying would essentially allow Mr. Trump to succeed in shifting attention onto Mr. Biden and away from the president’s own actions.

“The reason I wouldn’t is because it’s all designed to deal with Trump doing what he’s done his whole life: trying to take the focus off him,” Mr. Biden told the newspaper. “The issue is not what I did.”

“This is all about a diversion,” Mr. Biden added. “And we play his game all the time. He’s done it his whole career.”… [emphasis added]

Inserted from <NY Times>

MSNBC has more.

Joe Biden Stands By Refusing To Testify In Trump Impeachment Trial

Here are the problems. First, by refusing to testify Biden would break the law. Second, refusing to testify gives the appearance that he has something to hide. Third, he is giving Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch an excuse to disallow all witnesses. Fourth, he would be doing exactly what Trump* is doing. How can a casual prospective voter tell the difference? Even though his reasons for wanting to refuse are spot on, this is NOT the behavior of a winning candidate.

That said, should Democrats be foolish enough to nominate Biden, I will support him 100%. Biden at his absolute worst is infinitely superior to Trump* at his absolute best.

RESIST!!

Open Thread – 12/22/2019

Posted by TomCat at 8:01 am Open Thread, Personal, Politics

Dec 222019

It’s a busy day here in the CatBox. WWWendy is due in about 90 minutes, and we have lots of chores to do. Tomorrow I have my GI appointment. I fear that they will just schedule me for tests at the lab. I so hope I’m wrong. I need some relief NOW! I should be back in the saddle on Christmas Eve. Go Broncos.

Jig Zone Puzzle:

Today’s took me 3:37 (average 5:25). To do it, click here. How did you do?

Cartoon:

Short Takes:

From NY Times: American military and intelligence officials tracking North Korea’s actions by the hour say they are bracing for an imminent test of an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching American shores, but appear resigned to the fact that President Trump has no good options to stop it.

If the North goes ahead with the test in the coming days — Pyongyang promised a “Christmas gift” if no progress had been made on lifting sanctions — it would be a glaring setback for Mr. Trump’s boldest foreign policy initiative, even as he faces an impeachment trial at home.

The score? Fat Korean Maniac 2 – Fat Russian-controlled Maniac 0. RESIST!!

From YouTube (Parody Project Channel): A REPUBLICAN CHRISTMAS – Parody | The Freedom Toast (Guest Post)

Magnificent! The Republican Reich hope they die soon. JD send me an update on them, please. RESIST!!

From TPM: According to newly released documents, the White House moved to freeze military aid to Ukraine less than two hours after President Donald Trump’s July 25th call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

The documents were obtained with a FOIA request by the Center for Public Integrity and published Friday night.

“Based on guidance I have received and in light of the Administration’s plan to review assistance to Ukraine, including the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative, please hold off on any additional DoD obligations of these funds, pending direction from that process,” Mike Duffey, an Office of Management and Budget official, wrote in a July 25 email to OMB and Pentagon officials. “Given the sensitive nature of the request, I appreciate your keeping that information closely held to those who need to know to execute direction.”… [emphasis added]

So what we have here is an order from imFuhrer Trump* to hold up the aid and cover up the act of doing it. That’s a criminal violation of the Impoundment Act. RESIST!!

From YouTube (a blast from the past): Rascals People Got To Be Free

Ah… The memories! RESIST!!

Vote Blue!!

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