;)
The Conversation -- November 21, 2024
Here's the redacted Monterey, California, police report on the 2017 incident in which a woman told police Pete Hegseth had sexually assaulted her. Via NBC News.
Joyce Vance on Substack: “Voters who ignored the facts about the [excellent] economy and used them as an excuse to vote for Trump weren’t people who wanted a change.... They didn't like new policies advanced by the Biden-Harris administration, a more inclusive vision of America where traditionally marginalized people had equal opportunity.... They wanted the 'old stability,' the patriarchy that has run the country for generations. In many ways, that's what’s at the heart of the conservative coalition. It's not a rejection of the established order; it's an embrace of it. If that’s what Trump voters thought they were getting, they may be sorely disappointed.... People who voted their pocketbook without concern for their children, or at least their ability to find someone to clean their house, are going to be in for a rude awakening. We’ll get back on our game and be ready by the time Trump is sworn into office.” Thanks to RAS for the link.
~~~~~~~~~~
Marie: Sorry about the really late start today. Actually, I started at my usual time, but I got stuck on something.
Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: “Federal investigators have established a web of payments among Matt Gaetz [-- Trump's pick for attorney general --] and dozens of friends and associates who are said to have taken part with him in drug-fueled sex parties, according to a document obtained by The New York Times.... Among those who received money from Mr. Gaetz were two women who have testified that he hired them for sex, according to the document and a lawyer for the two women. The lawyer said payments to the women ultimately totaled around $10,000. The document obtained by The Times was assembled by federal investigators during a sex-trafficking investigation into Mr. Gaetz.... It shows how Mr. Gaetz and a friend sent thousands of dollars through Venmo to dozens of people who, according to testimony that is said to have been given to federal and congressional investigators, were involved in sex parties from 2017 to 2020.
“Among those who received payment from Mr. Gaetz’s friend, the document shows, was another woman who, according to people familiar with details of the case, was 17 when she attended one of the parties.... The document uses thumbnail photos of Mr. Gaetz, dozens of women and several other men to show how payments flowed between them. Lines with arrows connect the men and the women, showing, among other things, how much Mr. Gaetz and his associates paid the women.” For the fun of it, take a look at the Gaetz Venmo payments chart, published in Schmidt's report. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Schmidt writes that "The document was obtained by the House Ethics Committee...." so obviously his source is a Democrat on the committee (either a member or a staffer), because ~~~
~~~ Emily Brooks & Mychael Schnell of the Hill: “The House Ethics Committee met Wednesday but did not release its report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz, resisting significant pressure to release its findings after President-elect Trump selected the controversial Florida Republican to be his attorney general.... The panel, which met behind closed doors, took multiple votes, a source familiar with the situation told The Hill, including one to release the report as-is, which failed, another to publish just the exhibits associated with the report, which also failed, and a third to formally 'complete' the report, which passed in a bipartisan fashion.... The committee is scheduled to meet again Dec. 5 'to further consider this matter,' according to Rep. Susan Wild (Pa.), the top Democrat on the panel.” ~~~
~~~ Juliegrace Brufke of Axios: “The House Ethics Committee will not release its report on former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) after Republicans on the panel voted against making the findings public.... The 10-member panel, which is evenly split between Republicans and Democrats — voted along party lines, according to a person familiar with the matter, falling short of the majority vote needed to compel the report's release.” ~~~
~~~ Liz Goodwin, et al., of the Washington Post: “House Ethics Committee investigators probing sexual misconduct allegations against former congressman Matt Gaetz obtained records showing that he paid more than $10,000 to two women who testified before the committee, according to a person familiar with the investigation who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive material. The records that were exhibited during closed-door testimony displayed 27 PayPal and Venmo payments disbursed between July 2017 and January 2019 totaling over $10,000 paid to the two witnesses, that person said. Some of the payments were for sex, the witnesses testified to the committee.” The ABC News story is here. ~~~
~~~ As Akhilleus wrote earlier this week, "I haven’t read anything about [Gaetz] actually raping anyone.... Trump is different. He just goes after women whether they’re interested or not. He’s no better than any other rapist doing time for their crimes." ~~~
~~~ Liz Goodwin, et al., of the Washington Post: “Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee are asking the FBI to provide all documents related to its closed sex trafficking investigation into Donald Trump’s pick for attorney general, former congressman Matt Gaetz (R-Florida), to ensure the material is considered at his confirmation hearing next year.... Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Illinois) and other Senate Democrats on the committee requested the evidentiary file on Gaetz’s alleged sex trafficking in a letter to FBI Director Christopher A. Wray on Wednesday.”
Devlin Barrett of the New York Times: “... Donald Trump has picked Matthew G. Whitaker, who briefly served as acting attorney general in the first Trump administration, to serve as ambassador to NATO in the next one.Mr. Whitaker, 55, served for about three months as the nation’s top law enforcement official after Jeff Sessions stepped down, and before William P. Barr was confirmed to succeed him. His short tenure at the helm of the Justice Department was marked by internal tensions and distrust.... Mr. Whitaker does not bring foreign policy experience to a job that may serve as a focal point for Mr. Trump’s complaints about how much the U.S. pays to help the North Atlantic Treaty Organization keep Europe secure. Mr. Trump has repeatedly voiced skepticism about the alliance, and he has long threatened to withdraw from it. The Guardian's report is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: On the other hand, Whitaker does have a background as an investor in an "investment promotion scam." One of the promoted products: big-dick toilets.
Dani Blum, et al., of the New York Times: “On and off the screen, [Dr. Mehmet Oz -- Trump's choice to runthe $1 trillion Department of Health & Human Services --] has used his influence as one of the nation’s most recognizable doctors to champion healthy habits like a nutritious diet. But he has also sown misinformation — about Covid treatments, weight loss hacks and unproven supplements. He has invested in drug companies, even as he has publicly taken aim at Big Pharma, and has profited from a medical device that he helped invent but that has been subject to several recalls. Over roughly two decades in the public eye, Dr. Oz has drawn the ire of medical experts, members of Congress and even his own peers, including a group of 10 doctors who called for him to be fired from a faculty position at Columbia University, arguing he had shown a 'disdain for science.' (The university appeared to quietly cut its public ties with the physician in 2022.)... Here are five key areas of Dr. Oz’s track record on health.”
Ooh, Yuck. Sharon LaFraniere of the New York Times: “A police report released Wednesday night provided graphic details about a sexual assault accusation against Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s pick for defense secretary. The report also documents Mr. Hegseth’s vehement denials that he coerced the complainant into a sexual encounter at a Monterey, Calif., political conference seven years ago. Mr. Hegseth was never charged with a crime.... The woman, referred to throughout the report as Jane Doe, said Mr. Hegseth took her phone, blocked his hotel room door when she tried to leave, and sexually assaulted her, ejaculating on her stomach. She said that her memory was hazy, and that she had drunk far more alcohol than usual throughout the day. Mr. Hegseth told the police that he repeatedly sought the woman’s consent for sex, making sure 'she was comfortable with what was going on,' including the fact he was not using a condom.”
Rachel Roubein & Dan Diamond of the Washington Post: “... in interviews this week, a half-dozen GOP lawmakers said they had questions or outright concerns about [Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.'s] nomination [to be Secretary of Health & Human Services], with several citing his vaccine skepticism.... 'We’ve got a process,” said Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-Louisiana), a physician and incoming chairman of the Senate Health Committee, adding that Kennedy would get an opportunity to 'define' his views on vaccines when facing lawmakers.... [Kennedy's] selection has alarmed federal health leaders and medical groups, who say Kennedy should be nowhere near the nation’s public health infrastructure given that he has repeated debunked claims about vaccines and made other false or questionable assertions.... In interviews Monday and Tuesday with nearly two dozen senators, several GOP lawmakers said they enthusiastically supported Kennedy’s candidacy.” MB: I have a feeling that somehow Bobby Jr. will be able to satisfy the senators' “concerns.” (Also linked yesterday.)
Beth Reinhard & Abha Bhattarai of the Washington Post: “Linda McMahon resigned 15 years ago from [World Wrestling Entertainment], leaving that televised spectacle behind as she sharpened her public image as a political power broker, donating tens of millions of dollars to Republicans, running for the U.S. Senate and leading the Small Business Administration during ... Donald Trump’s first term. But ... a lawsuit against Linda and Vince McMahon is bringing fresh scrutiny to long-running claims that they mistreated WWE workers. Vince McMahon is also facing separate allegations [currently under investigation by the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York] of sexual abuse and trafficking.... Linda and Vince McMahon face a ... civil suit filed in October by five anonymous plaintiffs who worked decades ago as 'ring boys,' teenagers who helped set up WWE events. The plaintiffs claim the McMahons were aware they were being sexually abused by other high-ranking WWE employees and did not do enough to protect them.... 'Linda is this well-spoken, congenial, bright, well-dressed woman executive, but she helped run a testosterone-fueled business that was seen as very sleazy for a long time,' said Dave Meltzer, a pro wrestling expert....” (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: Trump “called Vince McMahon 'a fantastic guy, and one of the best ever' in an interview last year, after details of the federal investigation had begun to surface...,” according to the linked report. So if SDNY doesn't get on the stick & bring charges against Vince McMahon within the next six weeks, I expect the federal investigation into his mistreatment of young male employees will get “disappeared.”
Trump's Administration: Sleazy Teevee Personalities, Project 2025 Alum ... Oh, and Sex Offenders. ~~~
Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: “After an election where podcasts and influencers played an outsize role, conservatives were quick to declare that traditional media was dead. Turns out a lot of it is just moving into the West Wing.... Donald J. Trump, whose rise was fueled by reality TV stardom, is once again turning to television to recruit the key cast members of his new administration.... At [the rate he is choosing TV personalities], the second season of the Trump administration may end up with more television stars than the first one.... One difference this time around is the sheer size and responsibility of the positions Mr. Trump is filling with figures who are better known for on-air punditry than managerial skill.” ~~~
~~~ Patrick Svitek of the Washington Post: “... Trump ... is assembling an administration that includes some picks for key positions that stand in stark contrast to his repeated efforts to distance himself from Project 2025. The most striking example would be Russ Vought, whom Trump is leaning toward appointing to lead the White House budget office. Vought, who held the same role during Trump’s first term, was an architect of Project 2025.... Trump has named at least four other nominees who are credited by name in Project 2025...: Tom Homan, Trump’s pick for 'border czar'; John Ratcliffe, Trump’s planned nominee for CIA director; Brendan Carr, his selection to head the Federal Communications Commission; and Pete Hoekstra, Trump’s selection for ambassador to Canada.... One of the groups that advised Project 2025, America First Legal, is led by Stephen Miller, a former top Trump aide whom Trump has now picked to return to the White House as assistant to the president, deputy chief of staff for policy and homeland security adviser.”
Marie: In a New York Times article by Charlie Savage & Michael Gold (pub. Nov. 18) on Trump's plans to use the military to aid in deporting undocumented immigrants, the reporters write -- way down in Paragraph 24, if my count is correct -- “And the [Trump deportation] team plans to stop issuing citizenship-affirming documents, like passports and Social Security cards, to infants born on domestic soil to undocumented migrant parents in a bid to end birthright citizenship.” Well, that's a bit of a big deal, innit? David Badash of the New Civil Rights Movement writes that “Trump himself has declared, 'going forward, the future children of illegal aliens will not receive automatic U.S. citizenship.'... Constitutional law professor and political scientist Anthony Michael Kreis last week said,'Birthright citizenship is a foundational concept in American constitutional law. It is a betrayal of the 14th Amendment to suggest otherwise or that it can be discarded with ease....'” ~~~
~~~ So Tom Sullivan of Digby's Hullabaloo asks rhetorically, “If Trump is allowed to revoke the citizenship of some people born in the United States, what’s to stop him from expanding dispossession to anyone he deems insufficiently servile, including Black Americans for whom the post-Civil War amendment was principally written? What other amendments or clauses might Trump dismiss with a wave of his stubby fingers?” Thanks to RAS for the link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: You might answer the what's-to-stop-him question with, "Why, the Supreme Court!" Ha ha ha. Just kidding.
Jeff Stein, et al., of the Washington Post: “Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy vowed 'mass headcount reductions' to the federal government in an opinion piece Wednesday that sketched out their vision for ... Donald Trump’s 'Department of Government Efficiency' in the greatest detail so far. Writing in the Wall Street Journal, Musk and Ramaswamy laid out their plans to slash federal regulations, cut government spending and significantly reduce the number of federal employees. Trump tapped the two with running the DOGE initiative last week, but basic questions about the effort — including its goals, operations and authorities — have primarily remained a source of speculation.” Read on. The Hill's report is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: I know this is horrible, but I find the copycat Nazi aspects of the Department of Government Efficiency comical, if in a sickening way. I doubt Elon & Vivek have any realization of what horrid little fascists they are. I cannot take them seriously. I mean, they're planning to tell federally-employed "legal experts" to tell them how they can lawfully eliminate their own jobs. Do they think this will work? who wrote their WSJ op-ed? Charlie Chaplin ("The Great Dictator") or Mel Brooks ("Springtime for Hitler")?
Paul Campos in LG&$: "If you are saying that Donald Trump won a free and fair election, you are lying to yourself.... Donald Trump’s re-election wasn’t free and fair in a whole bunch of ways, including the fact that it was enabled by enormous amounts of mind-poisoning propaganda, foreign and domestic.... Specifically... the US Constitution would disqualify him from holding the office to which he was just re-elected. Donald Trump tried to overthrow the government by staying in the presidency after he lost an election. That is the very definition of committing insurrection against the lawful government of the United States. The 14th amendment was adopted specifically to bar people like Donald Trump — insurrectionists — from holding federal office." Thanks to RAS for the link. ~~~
~~~ Marie: But but but. Campos is forgetting our Supreme Court, which ruled unanimously this past March that states could not remove Trump from the ballot for violating the 14th Amendment. The Trump judges decliare that only Congress -- via specific legislation -- could interpret the 14th Amendment to mean Donald Trump was disqualified. That is to say, the states could not remove Trump, the Congress chose not to remove him, and the Supremes said that's the way it is. Why, Kavanaugh was even muttering into his beer about "democracy" and fretting about "disenfranching voters."
Adam Reiss, et al., of NBC News: “Donald Trump's attorneys are demanding the judge who presided over his New York hush money trial and conviction immediately throw out the case, saying it would be 'uniquely destabilizing to the country' otherwise. 'Immediate dismissal of this case is mandated by the federal Constitution, the Presidential Transition Act of 1963, and the interests of justice, in order to facilitate the orderly transition of Executive power following President Trump’s overwhelming victory in the 2024 Presidential election,' attorneys Todd Blanche and Emil Bove argued in a letter to Judge Juan Merchan that was made public Wednesday. The letter also cited presidential immunity as a reason to dismiss the case, and maintained Trump is already protected by it.” (Also linked yesterday.)
Pravenna Somasundaram of the Washington Post: “A Tennessee man who was recently convicted of assaulting a police officer during the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol was found guilty in a separate case Wednesday for plotting to kill the law enforcement agents who investigated his role in the insurrection, the Justice Department said. A federal jury convicted Edward Kelley, 35, of Maryville, Tennessee, of conspiring to murder federal employees, including FBI agents. Prosecutors said he created a 'kill list' of the law enforcement staff who investigated him and had planned to attack an FBI office in Knoxville, Tennessee, with car bombs and incendiary devices.”
Annals of "Journalism," Ctd.
“Morning Joke.” Erik Wemple of the Washington Post, who -- obviously -- works for a newspaper, writes (five times) that instead of watching MSNBC's “Morning Joe,” “You're better off reading a newspaper.” MB: I confess I've never watched the show, but I've heard it quite a few times, because I preferred MSNBC's early-morning show to CNN's, so I still had the dial set to MSNBC when “Morning Joe” came on the air. In fact, I've at times had the teevee stuck on MSNBC so long that I found out MSNBC re-airs the first hour of “Morning Joe” later in the morning. You get to hear the same drivel twice!
In yesterday's Comments, Patrick quite rightly complained that in a New York Times article I had linked, the author Devlin Barrett wrote about "... Mr. Trump’s complaints about how much the U.S. pays to help the North Atlantic Treaty Organization keep Europe secure." Patrick wrote, "We don't 'pay to keep Europe secure.'" The construction of the sentence in dispute is such that one could interpret Barrett to mean (1) only that Trump complained about the U.S. paying to keep Europe safe. However, the sentence can just as fairly be interpreted to mean (2) "it's a fact that the U.S. pays to keep Europe safe." Given Barrett's history, I'll go with (2) ... because this is the same Devlin Barrett, a veteran reporter & Pulitzer Prize winner who worked for the Washington Post before joining the Times. Marcy Wheeler wrote this about him in July 2023, "Regurgitating right wing law enforcement claims of scandal credulously is what Devlin seems to do best.... Right wingers seem to like Devlin because he can be trusted to write down what they tell him to write, rather than write what the evidence they describe would indicate." And of course Marcy had the goods to prove her point. (BTW, it was Patrick who first cited Wheeler's critique of Barrett.) That is, it's fair to say that Barrett has adopted Trump's view that the U.S. is paying to keep Europe safe.
David McCabe of the New York Times: “The Justice Department and a group of states asked a federal court late Wednesday to force Google to sell Chrome, its popular web browser, a move that could fundamentally alter the $2 trillion company’s business and reshape competition on the internet. The request follows a landmark ruling in August by Judge Amit P. Mehta of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that found Google had illegally maintained a monopoly in online search. Judge Mehta asked the Justice Department and the states that brought the antitrust case to submit solutions by the end of Wednesday to correct the search monopoly. Beyond the sale of Chrome, the government asked Judge Mehta to give Google a choice: either sell Android, its smartphone operating system, or bar Google from making its services mandatory on phones that use Android to operate. If Google broke those terms, or the remedies failed to improve competition, the government could force the company to sell Android at a later date. In a sweeping filing, the government also asked the judge to stop Google from entering into paid agreements with Apple and others to be the automatically selected search engine on smartphones and in browsers. Google should also be required by the court to allow rival search engines to display the company’s results and access its data for a decade, the government said.” ~~~
~~~ Tony Romm of the Washington Post: “The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced on Thursday that it would subject the largest technology companies to regular inspections and other rigorous oversight, paving the way for the agency to closely monitor the payment services offered by Apple, Google and PayPal-owned Venmo. The new rules amount to a major expansion in the power and reach of the nation’s chief financial watchdog, allowing regulators new and unfettered access to tech giants that offer digital financial tools — much in the same way the U.S. government long has closely monitored traditional banks and credit unions. The CFPB did not specifically name the companies it plans to subject to heightened review.... But the fate of the CFPB’s new regulations face immediate political and legal doubt: Their fate may rest in the hands of ... Donald Trump and the new Republican majority in the House and Senate, which have historically criticized the CFPB for overreach.”
Maegan Vazquez & Mariana Alfaro of the Washington Post: “House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) said Wednesday that transgender individuals would not be allowed into restroom facilities in the Capitol and House office buildings that do not correspond with their sex assigned at birth, announcing the rule change about two weeks after Democrat Sarah McBride of Delaware became the first openly transgender individual elected to Congress. 'All single-sex facilities in the Capitol and House Office Buildings — such as restrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms — are reserved for individuals of that biological sex,' Johnson said in a statement. 'It is important to note that each Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol. Women deserve women’s only spaces.'” The ABC News story is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Marie: Wow, Mike! I'm glad you're “treating all persons with dignity and respect.” (See AP story linked below.)
~~~~~~~~~~
Florida. Vimal Patel of the New York Times: “Florida has become a testing ground for a raft of conservative policies meant to limit or expunge what Republicans describe as 'woke' indoctrination in the state’s schools and colleges.... The slashing of core classes across the state, which has often been based on course titles and descriptions, is meant to comply with a state law passed last year that curbed 'identity politics' in the curriculum. Faculty and student critics have said this latest effort infringes on university autonomy and could reduce students’ exposure to courses they believe are necessary for a well-rounded education.... Rather than trying to regulate what a professor can and cannot say — a legally questionable tactic — the new strategy is taking aim at entire courses.”
Texas. Qasim Nauman of the New York Times: “A federal jury on Wednesday awarded nearly $100 million to the family of Botham Shem Jean, a Black man who was eating ice cream and watching television at home in Dallas when he was shot dead by a white police officer six years ago. Amber R. Guyger, the officer who killed Mr. Jean, used excessive force and violated Mr. Jean’s constitutional rights, the jury concluded. It ordered Ms. Guyger to pay civil penalties to Mr. Jean’s family of $60 million in punitive damages and $38.65 million for their loss and suffering. The civil trial was held in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. The shooting in 2018 set off widespread anger and protests, helping to sharpen focus on the use of violence by law enforcement officers against unarmed Black people in the United States.... It was unclear whether the Jean family would ever see any of the money.... Ms. Guyger was fired by the Dallas Police Department after the shooting. She was found guilty of murder and sentenced in 2019 to 10 years in prison.”
~~~~~~~~~~
Israel/Palestine, et al.
The Washington Post's live updates of developments Thursday in Israel's wars are here: “The International Criminal Court on Thursday issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant, 'for crimes against humanity and war crimes' over the war in Gaza. The court also issued a warrant for Hamas military leader, Mohammed Deif, who was killed in an airstrike in Gaza in July, according to Israeli officials. Prosecutors were not able to confirm whether he is dead or alive, the chamber said, so they issued the warrant. The court also rejected Israel’s challenge to its jurisdiction over 'the situation in the State of Palestine' and over Israeli nationals....
“The United States vetoed a resolution put forward Wednesday in the U.N. Security Council calling for an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip. The United States could not support the cease-fire resolution because it was not contingent on the release of hostages still held in Gaza and because it did not condemn Hamas, U.S. representative Robert Wood said.... Talks over a cease-fire in Lebanon are continuing, with U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein in Israel for discussions with Israeli officials, according to local media. Hochstein left Beirut on Wednesday after two days of meetings with Lebanese officials.”
Karoun Demirjian of the New York Times: “The Senate on Wednesday resoundingly rejected a series of three resolutions to block weapons transfers to Israel, but the move to curtail American support for the war in Gaza drew substantial support from Democrats, reflecting growing consternation in the party over the conflict. Seventeen Senate Democrats and two independents backed at least one of the measures, a display of deepening divisions over Israel’s conduct after 13 months of war and the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians. The vote showed that support for restricting Israel’s military operations has grown beyond just the most progressive lawmakers, with notably more senators joining them than in previous efforts.
“The measures were offered by Senator Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont, who has been a vocal critic of Israel’s tactics in the war. He has also been a frequent critic of the Biden administration for continuing to support Israel militarily despite ample evidence of human rights violations in Gaza. In the days since the election, he has also argued that the administration’s Israel policy is partially to blame for the Democrats’ election losses.”
Ukraine/Russia, et al.
David Stern & Ellen Francis of the Washington Post: “Russian forces launched an intercontinental ballistic missile at the eastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro, Ukraine’s air force said Thursday — an attack that, if confirmed, would represent a dramatic intensification in the missile war between the two nations.... Russia’s Defense Ministry said in its daily report Thursday that its air defense systems 'shot down two U.K.-made Storm Shadow cruise missiles,' but it did not provide any further details. Russian military bloggers reported earlier that the missiles were fired at targets in Russia’s Kursk region. British media outlets, including the BBC, confirmed the attacks, citing unidentified officials, but there have been no official statements.”
Helene Cooper of the New York Times: “Ukraine fired a number of British Storm Shadow cruise missiles into Russia’s Kursk region on Wednesday, a day after firing American long-range missiles into the country, according to Pentagon and Ukrainian officials. Moscow has said that the use of Western weapons to strike deeper into Russian territory is a major escalation, and for months that stance had kept the United States and Britain from allowing Kyiv to use the American long-range missiles or the Storm Shadows. But President Biden last week authorized the first use of the American Army Tactical Missile Systems, known as ATACMS, deep inside Russia.... Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain quickly followed suit, authorizing Ukraine to use the Storm Shadows, officials said. Britain had previously allowed Ukraine to use the missiles against Russian positions within Ukrainian territory.”
6 Comments
Reader Comments (6)
So let me get this straight. Pete (God wills it!) Hegseth, takes a woman’s phone, blocks her from leaving the room, she’s clearly drunk, and he says he “repeatedly asks for her consent”…while he’s sexually assaulting her?
Hmmm…first of all, if she’s drunk or otherwise impaired, trying to finagle or manipulate her into a sexual act is pretty nasty right from the get go, but taking her phone and not allowing her to leave the room until he gets what he wants moves things from asshole to criminal.
But it’s okay, according to Mr. God Wills It, because he “repeatedly” asked if what he was doing was “okay”. Sooo…he’s in the process of doing whatever he wanted to do, sexually, without a clear okay from the victim (she’s not a partner if she hasn’t agreed to anything), because if you have to keep asking, you haven’t gotten the answer you’re looking for. So go ahead anyway?
That’s assault. Period.
All the best people. Redux.
Weddings are on the increase this month and will be until at least
January 20th.
A number of LBGTQ friends have applied for licenses and are
planning weddings.
Seems a lot of people don't trust Trump and all his best people.
Some of them are even Republicans. Pity.
Rachel Maddow
"'Now might be the only chance': Maddow exhorts Senate Democrats to act on Trump nominees"
Joyce Vance
"Voters who ignored the facts about the economy and used them as an excuse to vote for Trump weren’t people who wanted a change. They were people who, actually, didn’t want any change at all. They didn't like new policies advanced by the Biden-Harris administration, a more inclusive vision of America where traditionally marginalized people had equal opportunity. They didn’t want a new generation of leadership. They wanted the “old stability,” the patriarchy that has run the country for generations. In many ways, that's what’s at the heart of the conservative coalition. It's not a rejection of the established order; it's an embrace of it."
ProPublica
"Georgia Dismissed All Members of Maternal Mortality Committee After ProPublica Obtained Internal Details of Two Deaths"
Goose or Gander? It depends.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-administration-freedom-of-information-act-requests-government-transparency_n