Yesterday, I learned that Nancy Pelosi had fallen and injured her hip while part of a Congressional delegation to Europe, and is now in a hospital in Luxembourg. “The 84-year-old former speaker is cancelling the rest of her CODEL engagements but ‘continues to work,’ Pelosi spokesperson Ian Krager said in a statement.” It as/is a bipartisan delegation, and apparently some Republicans even offered good wishes and said nice things. The story is on Axios and being updated as new information comes in. I’m glad it wasn’t a knee, which I understand is the most difficult joint to work on and get good results. I wish her a full and speedy recovery.
I didn’t want to wait too long on this analysis by Joyce Vance, so I just squeezed it in when I saw it. (If I’ve said this before, I apologize for the duplication. Apparently the American people simply cannot tolerate a person with as much goodness as Biden has in the Presidency. Jimmy Carter also did not get a second term.) Since he’s apparently not done yet, I can still hope for clemency for Leonard Peltier.
Living in fear is no way to live. On the other hand, if it weren’t for fear, we’d all be dead. A clear eyed fear of actual danger is necessary to survive. Although I don’t remember it, when I was maybe 3 or 4, my Mom, her brother, and I went to Yosemite. At one point, we were fairly close to some bears who were minding their own business. I ran up to one and tried to climb onto it. My Mom about lost it. My Uncle ran to me and the bear and grabbed me off of it before I could be hurt. Was I grateful? No. I was yelling “Bad Unca Bill, won’t let me ride nice bear!” Dictators are predictable in some ways and unpredictable in others. Steve Schmidt addresses ways one can decide to live under those conditions. The more we work at understanding the unpredictable, the more likely we are not to get caught in some less predictable mood swing.
This absolutely didn’t need to happen. But it did. The F* News covers some underlying as well as the obvious facts which make it so bad.
Experts in autocracies have pointed out that it is, unfortunately, easy to slip into normalizing the tyrant, hence it is important to hang on to outrage. These incidents which seem to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with them will, I hope, help with that. As a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as “unceasing,” “grudging,” and “vengeful destruction.”
I hope y’all will bear with me here. We are all aware that Nancy Pelosi has decided to step down from Congressional leadership, essentially planning, it appears, to serve this term in Congress as just another Representative, while also being a resource for the new Minority Leader and Whip for coaching and advice. Somehow, this feels very final – and not just to me. Tributes and rememberances are pouring in, many from the last people you would expect, and, although almost everyone will have seen some of them – and some may have seen all of them – I want to share several in one place here.
The 19th Magazine was named after the 19th Amendment, so it comes as no surprise that it concentrates on women, and especially minoroty women, as well as persona of fluid gender, and their effect on our politics. Of course they would write about Speaker Pelosi. Here’s some of what they said –
Pelosi was considered one of the most effective legislators and political negotiators in Washington, ushering President Barack Obama’s signature health care law, the Affordable Care Act, through the often fractious House of Representatives amid stiff Republican opposition. Pelosi also supervised the passage of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act, the repeal of a 1993 law known as “don’t ask, don’t tell” that directed the Defense Department not to ask about military applicants’ sexual orientation, and two major components of President Joe Biden’s economic agenda. In a statement, Biden praised Pelosi as “the most consequential Speaker of the House of Representatives in our history.”
It’s easy now to forget just what an achievement it was to get the ACA through the House. Congress was so splintered that even President Obama wanted to pull the legislation – and n=Nancy had to argue him into proceeding. Which she did. And it got passed. It was an extraordinary accomplishment, and it spurred an extraordinary effort from readers and member s of Daily Kos: 2,616 red roses were delivered to her DC office, timed to arrive on her 70th birthday.
“She sent half of the roses to Walter Reed Army Medical Center and is distributing the other half to hill staff to thank them for all their hard work on the health reform legislation.” And there’s more to the story – Walter Reed reported some patient responses.
I mentioned these flowers over at Democratic Underground a couple of days ago. I have no idea whether I started something – I didn’t follow up, and so many great mindsthink alike – but yesterday at DU I found this:
I thanked Madam Speaker for service as the best Speaker in US history and wished Paul a speedy recovery. I explained that we raised $4200 for Senator Warnock in her honor and that many of our members had volunteered for GOTV and curing House ballots. I noted that she inspired us every day and that our hearts would be with them this Thanksgiving. The flowers will be delivered on Wednesday so that the Pelosi’s can enjoy them for Thanksgiving. Thanks so much to everyone who participated!
Heather Cox Richardson, being a historian, naturally provided a little history –
Pelosi was elected to Congress in a special election in 1987, becoming one of 12 Democratic women (now there are more than 90). She was first elected speaker in 2007, the first woman ever to hold that role. She was speaker until the Democrats lost the House in 2011, then was reelected to the position in 2019, and has held it since. Jackie Calmes of the Los Angeles Times tweeted: “As an ex–Congress reporter, I can speak to the records of 8 of the 55 House speakers, 4 Dem[ocrat]s & 4 R[epublican]s back to Tip O’Neill. I’m not alone in counting Pelosi as the best of the bunch. 2 Dem[ocratic] presidents owe their leg[islati]v[e] successes to her; 2 GOP presidents were repeatedly foiled by her.”
Robert Reich commented:
I had the privilege of working with her, and although I didn’t agree with her on everything she did or refused to do (I was disappointed at her initial resistance to a bill that would bar House members from actively trading in stocks, for example), she will go down as one of the most effective and forward-looking Speakers in American history. At a time when America came as close as we’ve ever come to losing our democracy, Pelosi effectively beat back Trump, refusing to bow to his demands. (One of her most memorable public moments was ripping up Trump’s vacuous and hateful 2020 State of the Union Address in front of millions of American viewers.) She led two successful efforts to impeach him (although the Senate shamefully failed to convict). She organized the January 6 committee, making sure it was bipartisan yet without it containing any Republican election-denier.
But I think I am most powerfully impacted by things said by people who were in direct opposition to her politically. People who disagreed with her the most. Such as John Boehner.
And Steve Schmidt:
She passed a test that was laid out by President-Elect John Kennedy in front of the Massachusetts Legislature on the eve of his ascension to the Office of President of the United States.+
First, were we truly men of coursge – with the courage to stand up to one’s enemies – and the courage to stand up, when necessary, to one’s associates-the courage to resist public pressure, as well as private greed?
Secondly, were we truly men of judgment-with perceptive judgment of the future as well as the past-if our own mistakes as well as the mistakes of others-with enough wisdom to know what we did not know, and enough candor to admit it?
Third, were we truly men of integrity-men who never ran out on either the principles in which they believed or the people who believed in them-men who believed in us-men whom neither financial gain nor political ambition could ever divert from the fulfillment of our sacred trust?
Finally, were we truly men of dedication-with an honor mortgaged to no single individual or group, and compromised by no private obligation or aum, but devoted solely to serving the public good and the national interest.
It is a tragedy of our era that so few men and women have kept faith with that test laid out by John Kennedy. That is why Nancy Pelosi should be celebrated and honored.
Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone, we certainly could use more like her. I suspect AOC is such a one, and Katie Porter, and I hope they get their chances to demonstrate it, and that they are seen for it. But I also know there are others out there. Help us help them build a climate in which they can be heard and seem and appreciated. In Nancy’s place, that is what I would want my legacy to be.
The Furies and I will be back.
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It’s another busy day here in the CatBox, and my back is in a lot of pain. Tomorrow is a WWWendy day, but she won’t come until late afternoon, so I’ll be in the saddle. Last I heard my Broncos were winning 13-7.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 3:12 (average 5:26). To do it, click here. How did toy do?
Cartoon:
Short Takes:
From Alternet: Progressives are pushing for Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to use Section 3 of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to avoid seating any Republican House members who have publicly supported President Donald Trump’s attempt to steal the election from Democratic President-Elect Joe Biden.
That’s because Section 3 of the 14th Amendment literally says that anyone who has tried to rebel against the Constitution after having pledged to protect it can’t hold political office. This would include any GOP House members who signed onto an amicus brief supporting Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s bogus Supreme Court case seeking to toss hundreds of thousands of votes in four swing states, so that Trump can steal a democratically decided election.
The Section reads: “No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. ”
It would be fully justified, and Pelosi ought to do it, but she won’t. No tiene los cojones! RESIST!!
From NPR: Immigration activists are gearing up for a fight to push President-elect Joe Biden to do more to counter the measures taken by President Trump that made life more uncomfortable for the 11 million undocumented immigrants living in the county.
But they may find they get less than they hope for from the Biden administration, which finds itself having to balance the demands of activists with the inherent limits on executive powers.
Biden pledged during his campaign to use those powers to reverse many of President Trump’s most controversial actions. His plan includes a 100-day moratorium on deportations, restoring protections for young immigrants brought to the country illegally as children, and eliminating Trump’s restrictions on asylum seekers.
But some immigrant-rights groups like the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services, Movimiento Cosecha and United We Dream want more.
Personally, I think we should happily accept whatever help the Biden administration gives immigrants and refugees. Then we should fight for more. RESIST!!
From YouTube (a blast of Christmas): Nat King Cole – O Little Town of Bethlehem
Last weekend, Resident Donald Trump*, Fuhrer of the Nazi Republican Reich, promised a press conference in which he would explain how he would provide his own relief plan for the American People. It was really a campaign rally, delivered at taxpayer expense from his own Bedminster, NJ country club, while greedy Republican billionaires cheered him on. Everything he said and everything his supporters, like Larry Kudlow, said later were lies.
According to the Washington Post, his so-called unemployment relief created a whole new program that would take months to set up. States would have to pay $100 of the $400 per person per month payments, and pay for the administration of the program. Trump also said he would suspend payroll taxes. These are not taxes at all, but the entitlement payments that fund Social Security and Medicare. He said he will terminate those “taxes”, if reelected. The so-called rent relief provides for studies, but no relief at all. The measure on student loans is just a two month extension of the relief Democrats passed in March.
According to the NY Times, the Trump* plan included no relief for small businesses, schools, or state and local governments.
According to Market Watch, workers would still be on the hook to repay the payroll tax relief by April 15. Unless governors request the unemployment relief and can afford to pay their share, workers will receive nothing. Since Republicans are funding the program with money repurposed from from disaster relief funds, the program will run out of money in two months and leave nothing for disaster relief during hurricane season.
On the other hand, if Trump steals the White House again, and eliminates the “payroll taxes” permanently, Republicans will have an excuse to cut Social Security and Medicare, as they have wanted to do for years.
In short, this is nothing but a dog and pony show, intended to make Trump* look good before the election, but providing virtually no relief.
It’s a busy day, here in the CatBox. I haven’t lost a meal since Tuesday, and Propanol has managed my back pain to a 2-3 level so far this morning. Store to door is delivering groceries this afternoon, and I’ll need to put them away. I am quite tired, though, because I ate late and got to bed late. WWWendy is flying to Iowa for a few days to see a boyfriend. I’m trying to talk her out of it. If she goes, she’ll be coming this Saturday and next Tuesday. Have a great day.
Jig Zone Puzzle:
Today’s took me 3:24 (average 5:26). To do it, click here. Not edible. How did you do?
Cartoon:
I know of 5 more times US troops have intervened there.
Trump* Virus Update:
Short Takes:
From Crooks and Liars: House Democrats held a meeting this morning to get out in front of Trump on a coronavirus relief bill and make sure their priorities are included, MSNBC reporter Leigh Anne Caldwell said.
“It’s to ensure that people who aren’t receiving any income because of coronavirus get relief and that those who are food insecure also get some relief,” she said.
What’s that translating to in a draft bill in the House of Representatives, including sick leave for people who either have to be quarantined because of coronavirus or who actually have the virus. Other things, an extension of unemployment insurance and an extension of food stamps and aid for kids who get free and reduced lunches at school, but can’t go to school because their schools are closed.”
Criminal Fuhrer Trump* refused to negotiate with Pelosi on the Trump* Virus relief bill, so she went ahead, and it will pass the House tomorrow. Will Bought Bitch Midnight Moscow Mitch sit on it, or will Trump* veto it to exacerbate Americans’ suffering? RESIST!!
From YouTube (MSNBC Channel): U.S. Unprepared For Expected Explosion In Coronavirus Cases
While nobody can be completely prepared for a pandemic of this magnitude, the ineptitude of criminal Fuhrer Trump* and the Republican Reich will kill hundreds if not thousands of Americans. RESIST!!
From YouTube (CNN Channel): Camerota to Pence: Why are number of tests going down?
Damn! If pseudo-Christian Pence gets hos nose any deeper in his criminal Fuhrer’s ass, he’ll be able to see the bottom of Trump’s* tonsils. The reason the number of tests are going down, according to Occam’s Razor, is that we have a diminishing supply of tests available. Nevertheless, criminal Fuhrer Trump* refused FREE tests from WHO! RESIST!!
From YouTube (a blast from the past): Lemon Pipers – Green Tambourine
Last night, Nancy Pelosi told a lie. She said, “the President of the United States”. I looked at the screen, but there was no President there, just the criminal Resident Donald Trump”* Then his lies began, as soon as he began to speak, and I knew this would be no SOTU. It was the State of the Republican Reich.
Nancy Pelosi’s hands told the story of a nauseating night in Washington.
As Donald Trump took his place at the front of the House chamber for his third and possibly final State of the Union address, the House speaker and most senior Democrat in Congress reached out for a handshake, only to be rebuffed.
Seventy-eight minutes later, Pelosi, as she often tends to, got her revenge by ripping up her copy of the president’s speech while still in her position on the dais.
You could cut the atmosphere with a knife. Pelosi was the mastermind of Trump’s impeachment in this very chamber just weeks ago, staining his record in future school textbooks for all time.
But somehow, with seven of the Democrats who had pressed the impeachment case against him as impeachment managers glaring up at him from a prominent position, the president, like Bill Clinton before him, managed to resist using the “i” word throughout his speech. That, at least, was a departure from his gloves-off campaign rallies.
Yet Trump being forced to suppress his id was somehow even worse. The tension, grievance and resentment seething below the surface was almost palpable. The president’s tissue of lies and partisan swipes left Democrats heckling, throwing up their hands or walking out of the chamber in despair… [emphasis added]
Here are seven notable lies that Trump told during the speech:
1. “We will always protect patients with pre-existing conditions.”
This one was flagged by CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale before Trump began speaking. Republicans, despite claiming credit for President Barack Obama’s achievement at passing into law protections for people with pre-existing health conditions, are in fact backing a lawsuit that seeks to dismantle those protections.
2. “Thanks to our bold regulatory reduction campaign, the United States has become the #1 producer of oil and natural gas in the world, by far.”
Dale flagged this one as false too, explaining: “The US became #1 in 2012, under Obama, though its advantage has grown under Trump.”
They had Frothy, aka “Man on Dog” on the panel?!!? Santorum is “the frothy mixture of lube and fecal matter that is sometimes the byproduct of anal sex”. Otherwise it was a good panel! And it was the State of the Republican Reich!
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!!
Yesterday’s impeachment hearings were an exercise in boredom, until the votes that made the Fuhrer of the Republican Reich the Impeached Resident. Now what? Bought Bitch Moscow Mitch has made it abundantly clear that he considers his job is not to run an impartial trial, but to protect Trump. This morning I heard him call the Articles passed in the House “constitutionally incoherent”. He said he does not consider them worthy of consideration. Way back during the Mueller Report days, when Nancy Pelosi still opposed impeachment, I said several times that Democrats, and honest Republicans, if there were any, should impeach Trump to present the case to the American people. Then, they could hold the Articles of Impeachment to deny Trump his demanded acquittal in Bought Bitch Mitch’s kangaroo court. In retrospect, it was a good idea. If we can’t get a fair trial, hold on!
Moments after a historic vote to impeach President Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the House could at least temporarily withhold the articles from the Senate — a decision, she suggested, that could depend on how the other chamber chooses to conduct its trial on Trump’s removal.
“We cannot name managers until we see what the process is on the Senate side,” she said, referring to the House “managers” who present the case for removal to the Senate. “So far we haven’t seen anything that looks fair to us. So hopefully it will be fair. And when we see what that is, we’ll send our managers.”
The comments came as a group of House Democrats pushed Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other leaders to withhold the articles — a notion that has gained traction among some on the political left as a way of potentially forcing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to conduct a trial on more favorable terms for Democrats. And if no agreement is reached, some have argued, the trial could be delayed indefinitely, denying Trump an expected acquittal.
Pelosi would not answer questions about whether she was entertaining an indefinite hold on the articles — one that could prevent a trial from taking place before the next presidential election… [emphasis added]
I found it particularly interesting that the man taking the lead on this idea is my own Representative, Earl Blumenauer [D-OR].
…Representative Earl Blumenauer, Democrat of Oregon, said he had spoken to at least 40 Democrats who were concerned that Mr. McConnell would not conduct a fair trial, and who wanted Ms. Pelosi to delay sending the articles to the Senate until she learned more about how the proceedings would move forward.
“What is gained by accelerating this process?” he asked. He said Democrats should “let the speaker work her magic” to “get some sort of assurance, if it’s possible, that there will be a level playing field.”
In addition, some Democrats — including some of the chamber’s most progressive lawmakers — have advocated simply never sending the articles of impeachment to the Senate, to deny Mr. Trump an almost certain acquittal in the Republican-controlled chamber, where a two-thirds vote — 67 senators — are needed to convict. Ms. Pelosi has not ruled that out, but House leaders are not seriously contemplating that course, the Democratic officials said… [emphasis added]
