;)
April 27, 2022
Morning/Afternoon Update:
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Wednesday are here.
Amy Cheng of the Washington Post has a tougher take on Rand Paul's pro-Russia remarks than did the CNN report linked earlier: "In a contentious exchange at a congressional hearing Tuesday, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) told Secretary of State Antony Blinken that U.S. support for Ukraine to join NATO contributed to Russia's decision to invade. Blinken vehemently objected to Paul's remarks, which were also criticized by Russia experts.... 'You could also argue that the countries that it has attacked were ... part of the Soviet Union,' the senator said; Putin has long wanted a 'sphere of influence' over former Soviet states. Charles Booker, who is seeking the Democratic nomination to run against Paul in November, accused his opponent of 'pushing Putin's propaganda in the Senate.'... Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman ... criticized Paul's remarks. 'By that logic, Britain is justified in attacking the U.S. and colonial powers their former holdings. What century does he live in?' Vindman said." MB: Nice to see Vindman reads Reality Chex comments.
Amy Wang of the Washington Post: "More than 1,400 people, including several foreign leaders, attended the service [for former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright], which began shortly after 11 a.m. Wednesday at Washington National Cathedral, to which Albright had close ties for several decades. In addition to [President] Biden, former president Bill Clinton and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton were slated to deliver eulogies in memory of Albright's life, including her distinction as the nation's first female secretary of state." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Funniest remark, IMO, during the service: one of Albright's daughters said that when she was a child, she called her mother at the office, only to be told that her mother was otherwise occupied: "She's on the floor with Senator Kerry."
Alan Rappeport of the New York Times: "Democratic lawmakers on Wednesday released a report alleging that top Trump administration officials awarded a $700 million pandemic relief loan to a struggling trucking company [now called 'Yellow'] in 2020 over the objections of career officials at the Defense Department. The report, released by the Democratic staff of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, describes the role of corporate lobbyists during the early months of the pandemic in helping to secure government funds as trillions of dollars of relief money were being pumped into the economy. It also suggests that senior officials such as Steven Mnuchin, the former Treasury secretary, and Mark T. Esper, the former defense secretary, intervened to ensure that the trucking company, Yellow Corporation, received special treatment despite concerns about its eligibility to receive relief funds.... Mark Meadows, the White House chief of staff, was a 'key actor' coordinating with Yellow's lobbyists.... The loan raised immediate questions from watchdog groups because of the company's close ties to the Trump administration and because it had faced years of financial and legal turmoil.... Yellow had many connections to the Trump administration."
Ivan Nechepurenko of the New York Times: "The United States and Russia announced on Wednesday a prisoner swap that has freed Trevor R. Reed, a former Marine who was convicted on charges that his family said were bogus, an unexpected diplomatic breakthrough with tensions running high over the Ukraine war. Mr. Reed, who was initially detained in August 2019, was released in exchange for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot sentenced to a lengthy term in the United States on cocaine-trafficking charges." The AP's report is here.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The New York Times' live updates of developments Wednesday in Russia's war on Ukraine are here: "An infuriated Kremlin took direct aim at Europe's economy by cutting off supplies of natural gas to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday, stoking fear that ... Vladimir V. Putin would target more countries that have come to Ukraine's aid. The move by state-run Gazprom came after days of heightened warnings from the United States and its allies that culminated on Tuesday with at least 40 nations pledging to arm Ukraine 'for the long haul.' The most significant shift was from Germany, which announced that it would send dozens of armored anti-aircraft vehicles. Both Poland and Bulgaria, along with most European countries, had rejected a demand by Mr. Putin that natural gas be paid for in rubles, though the contracts for foreign sales generally require payment in dollars." ~~~
~~~ The Washington Post's live updates for Wednesday are here: "The United States and the United Nations said Tuesday that they were monitoring reports of explosions in Transnistria, a breakaway region of Moldova.... Meanwhile, the U.N. said that Putin, during a Tuesday meeting with the organization's Secretary General António Guterres, had agreed 'in principle' to allow civilian evacuations from a Mariupol steel plant that is surrounded by Russian troops. Kyiv said that in recent days the Kremlin has inflicted airstrikes on the plant, where Ukrainian fighters are also holed up. Putin on Tuesday repeated a pledge not to attack the plant, though he has made similar assurances in recent weeks.... Ukrainian officials in Kherson said the Kremlin has installed a pro-Moscow administration in the city, a day after Russian forces seized the city council building."
Karen DeYoung & Annabelle Timsit of the Washington Post: "Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told a gathering of military leaders in Germany that Ukraine's 'resistance has brought inspiration to the free world and even greater resolve to NATO' -- and that ... Vladimir Putin 'never imagined that the world would rally behind Ukraine so swiftly and surely.'... Senior defense officials from [40] NATO and non-NATO countries attended the meeting, part of the new Ukraine Defense Consultative Group. Some nations, such as Israel and Qatar, had representatives at the table, although they were not included on the official list of attendees.... In separate remarks to the group, Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, offered a stark picture of the next phase of the war, as Russia attempts to take full control of southeastern and southern Ukraine.... 'The outcome of this battle, right here, today, is dependent on the people in this room.'"
Unintended Consequences. Robert Burns of the AP: "The longer Ukraine's army fends off the invading Russians, the more it absorbs the advantages of Western weaponry and training -- exactly the transformation ... Vladimir Putin wanted to prevent by invading in the first place. The list of arms flowing to Ukraine is long and growing longer.... If Ukraine can hold off the Russians, its accumulating arsenal of Western weapons could have a transformative effect in a country that has, like other former Soviet republics, relied mainly on arms and equipment from the Soviet era.... U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin convened a meeting Tuesday at Germany's Ramstein air base to work out ways to keep it going, now and for the long run. Defense ministers and top military leaders from approximately 40 countries participated. After the meeting, Austin told a news conference ... the participating nations had agreed to continue similar consultations through monthly meetings, either in person or virtually. 'We've got to move at the speed of war,' Austin said." (Also linked yesterday.)
Komrade Rand Paul Toes the Kremlin Line. Kylie Atwood & Jennifer Hansler of CNN: "Secretary of State Antony Blinken forcefully pushed back Tuesday when Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky pointed out that Ukraine and Georgia were once part of the Soviet Union as Paul appeared to raise Moscow's alleged rationale about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.... The back and forth was prompted by Paul questioning why the US had been 'agitating' for Ukraine to join NATO last fall, which was something Russia ardently opposed as a 'red line.' Blinken argued that it was important to continually defend NATO's open door policy."
Aamer Madhani of the AP: "President Joe Biden has granted the first three pardons of his term, providing clemency to a Kennedy-era Secret Service agent convicted of federal bribery charges that he tried to sell a copy of an agency file and to two people who were convicted on drug-related charges but went on to become pillars in their communities. The Democratic president also commuted the sentences of 75 others for nonviolent, drug-related convictions. The White House announced the clemencies Tuesday as it launched a series of job training and reentry programs for those in prison or recently released." (Also linked yesterday.)
Robert Leonard in a New York Times op-ed: "In under two years in office, President Biden has done more for ... rural America than Mr. Trump ever did. The rural economy is stronger, wages are higher and infrastructure projects are popping up all over. Mr. Biden and his fellow Democrats are responsible for many of the improvements and for bringing back a sense of stability. For the midterms, they should run on these successes -- the American Rescue Plan, the infrastructure bill. And they should run on why they have worked: Democrats should run on Democratic values.... It's not all about what the president has done; some of his success is in what he has undone or cleaned up." Worth reading through because Leonard gives good examples.
He's putting people in jeopardy. -- House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), January 10, 2021, referring to Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.)
It's potentially illegal what he's doing. House Minority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.), January 10, 2021, speaking of Gaetz ~~~
~~~ ** Alexander Burns & Jonathan Martin of the New York Times: "Representative Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican leader, feared in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack that several far-right members of Congress would incite violence against other lawmakers, identifying several by name as security risks in private conversations with party leaders. Mr. McCarthy talked to other congressional Republicans about wanting to rein in multiple hard-liners who were deeply involved in Donald J. Trump's efforts to contest the 2020 election and undermine the peaceful transfer of power.... But Mr. McCarthy did not follow through on the sterner steps that some Republicans encouraged him to take, opting instead to seek a political accommodation with the most extreme members of the G.O.P. in the interests of advancing his own career. Mr. McCarthy's remarks represent one of the starkest acknowledgments from a Republican leader that the party's rank-and-file lawmakers played a role in stoking violence on Jan. 6, 2021 -- and posed a threat in the days after the Capitol attack." Includes audio. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Stephen Collinson of CNN: "... it's now clear that McCarthy and top lieutenants feared that members of their party -- who could have an outsize influence on the lives of Americans next year -- were a security risk. 'This is serious sh[i]t,' McCarthy said on the January 2021 call. Either he doesn't seem to believe that anymore or his political ambitions are more important.... On Tuesday evening, McCarthy ... shrugged off the report, telling reporters 'nope' when asked if the new drama could hurt his hopes of becoming speaker if Republicans win back the House in November. He also told his members to ignore a previous Times report and audio clip of him telling GOP leaders in the days after January 6 that he was considering advising Trump to resign over the insurrection. 'Don't let things like this divide us,' McCarthy said in a closed-door leadership meeting on Tuesday.... As almost always happens in the Trump era, personal ambition and a quest for power triumphed over prudence in the GOP.... While the latest revelations about the possible future speaker's inability to confront his members might alarm a broader electorate, his lax policing of his conference will not harm him inside the GOP. ~~~
~~~ And Yet. Despite McCarthy's Olympics-worthy performance of Backflips for Extremists, they're still criticizing him: ~~~
~~~ Benjamin Siegel, et al., of ABC News: "... Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla...., tweeted..., 'Rep. McCarthy and Rep. Scalise held views about President Trump and me that they shared on sniveling calls with Liz Cheney, not us,' Gaetz said. 'This is the behavior of weak men, not leaders,' he wrote. 'While I was protecting President Trump from impeachment, they were protecting Liz Cheney from criticism.' Earlier Tuesday, Rep. Andy Biggs, R-Ariz., a senior member of the House Freedom Caucus, told the conservative One America News Network that McCarthy's recorded comments regarding social media accounts were 'problematic' and 'the most serious thing.' Fox News host Tucker Carlson also criticized McCarthy on Tuesday, saying on his show, 'Congressman Kevin McCarthy [is] a man who, in private, turns out, sounds like an MSNBC contributor.... And yet unless conservatives get their act together right away, Kevin McCarthy or one of his highly liberal allies ... is very likely to be speaker of the House in January. That will mean we will have a Republican Congress led by a puppet of the Democratic Party,' Carlson said."
Cloak & Daggar. Aaron Blake of the Washington Post explores why the Secret Service attempted to take Mike Pence away from the Capitol in an armored vehicle on January 6, 2021, and why Pence refused, saying dramatically, "I'm not getting in the car." "On MSNBC, host Chris Hayes wagered Monday night that it 'sure sounds like it was a Trump loyalist in charge of Pence's security movements attempting to help Donald Trump effectuate his coup by removing the vice president from the building.'"
Emily Brooks of the Hill: "House Democrats on Wednesday will hold a hearing on Supreme Court ethics and the possibility of impeaching justices, a move that follows the revelation of controversial text messages from Ginni Thomas, the wife of Justice Clarence Thomas. The texts from Ginni Thomas to then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows about the 2020 presidential election and the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot have set off a political firestorm in Washington, raising Democratic ... calls for Clarence Thomas to recuse himself from decisions related to the election and former President Trump.... A memo from Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), the chairman of the House Judiciary courts subcommittee, distributed to members ahead of Wednesday's hearing..., explores codes of conduct for federal judges outside the Supreme Court and summarizes legislative proposals to impose ethics requirements on Supreme Court justices. Notably, the memo also discusses Congress's impeachment authority in the Constitution as one form of regulation of the conduct of Supreme Court justices."
Paul Krugman of the New York Times on Florida Republicans' attack on Disney: "... what Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies ... are symptoms of the transformation of the G.O.P. from a normal political party into a radical movement built around conspiracy theories and intimidation.... Not long ago, using state power to impose financial penalties on corporations for expressing political views you dislike would have been considered beyond the pale. Indeed, it may well be unconstitutional.... The obvious role model here is Viktor Orban's Hungary.... I don't think political reporting has caught up with how thoroughly QAnonized the G.O.P. has become." See also Akhilleus' comments in yesterday's thread. (Also linked yesterday.)
The Big Lie, from the Creation. Doug Clark, et al., of ProPublica: "ProPublica has obtained a trove of internal emails and other documentation that, taken together, tell the inside story of a group of people who propagated a number of the most pervasive theories about how the election was stolen, especially that voting machines were to blame, and helped move them from the far-right fringe to the center of the Republican Party. Those records, as well as interviews with key participants, show for the first time the extent to which leading advocates of the stolen-election theory touted evidence that they knew to be disproven or that had been credibly disputed or dismissed as dubious by operatives within their own camp. Some members of the coalition presented this mix of unreliable witnesses, unconfirmed rumor and suspect analyses as fact in published reports, talking points and court documents. In several cases, their assertions became the basis for Trump's claims that the election had been rigged." MB: Based on sworn testimony & a series of algorithms, I have proved that Trump shot J.R. on Fifth Avenue. Wackadoo, wackadoo, wackadoo. (Also linked yesterday.)
Bob Brigham of the Raw Story: "'In a lawsuit's never-before-seen testimony, Donald Trump admitted to personally overseeing the compensation of an executive whose corporate perks have been under scrutiny by the Manhattan district attorney, potentially strengthening the case against the former president and his company for tax fraud,' The Daily Beast reported Tuesday. 'Trump's sworn testimony was filed in New York state court on Tuesday, as part of a lawsuit against the Trump Organization over the way its security guards manhandled protesters outside Trump Tower in 2015.' In the Oct. 18, 2021 deposition, Trump was asked about Matthew Calamari, Sr., the Trump Organization bodyguard who rose to become the company's chief operating officer. When asked who has 'authority' over Calamari's compensation, Trump repeatedly said, 'It would be me.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: This testimony, obtained in a civil lawsuit, would seem to make it more problematic for Manhattan D.A. Alvin Bragg to decide against bringing criminal charges against Donald Trump.
Neil Vigdor of the New York Times: "Representative Madison Cawthorn was briefly detained by the police on Tuesday after trying to bring a loaded gun through airport security in Charlotte, N.C., in his carry-on bag, the second time in a little more than a year that the North Carolina Republican has been stopped from flying with a firearm.... The police said they cited the congressman with possession of a dangerous weapon on city property." ~~~
~~~ Matthew Chapman of the Raw Story: "On Tuesday, the Washington Examiner reported that experts suspect Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) may have violated insider trading laws when he promoted a cryptocurrency named after a vulgar chant against President Joe Biden. 'On Dec. 29, the beleaguered North Carolina congressman posed at a party with James Koutoulas, a hedge fund manager and the ringleader of the Let's Go Brandon cryptocurrency, a meme coin set up in the wake of the chant mocking President Joe Biden,' reported Andrew Kerr. "'LGB legends. ... Tomorrow we go to the moon!" Cawthorn, who has stated publicly he owns the cryptocurrency, posted on Instagram in response to the picture posted on Koutoulas's Instagram page.' Just one day later, Brandon Brown, the NASCAR driver from which the anti-Biden chant originated, said the meme coin would sponsor his 2022 racing season. 'Multiple watchdog groups told the Washington Examiner that Cawthorn's Dec. 29 Instagram post suggests the lawmaker may have had advanced nonpublic knowledge of LGBCoin's deal with Brown,' said the report."
Rachel Siegel of the Washington Post: "Federal Reserve governor Lael Brainard was confirmed to the Fed's No. 2 role on Tuesday, rising in the leadership ranks as the central bank attempts to rein in the highest inflation in 40 years without wreaking havoc on the economy. Brainard, who has been on the Fed board since 2014, is the first of President Biden's Fed nominees to be confirmed by the full Senate by a vote of 52-43. She was also the only other serious contender for Fed chair."
Carol Rosenberg of the New York Times: "The youngest detainee at Guantánamo Bay, a Yemeni man who has spent his entire adult life in U.S. custody, has been cleared for release, the Pentagon disclosed on Tuesday, but must wait for the Biden administration to find a country willing to offer him rehabilitation. At a Periodic Review Board hearing on Jan. 25, an unidentified U.S. military officer described the detainee, Hassan bin Attash, as believing that 'his capture and subsequent detention had changed the trajectory of his life.' The officer said the now-cleared prisoner was influenced by American culture during his 20 years of detention, which according to a Senate study included at least 120 days at a C.I.A. black site."
The Dancing Trumpettes. Sophia Cai of Axios: "A number of young and prominent Trump-appointed judges are writing their opinions with provocative language, diving into the culture wars in ways offering a audition for a future Supreme Court opening.... Most judges who are would-be justices try to avoid controversy, preserving themselves for a confirmation hearing. But with the specter of former President Trump mounting another run for office, their opinions may not only create opportunity but curry favor with the person who could fulfill their ambitions.... Sarah Isgur, a former Trump administration Justice Department senior official..., said..., 'Once the filibuster was gone for the lower-court judges, what you see is that people no longer need to get votes from the opposing party, but they need to be the most extreme version of their own party,' she told Axios."
Elon Is in for Some Big Surprises. Shira Ovide of the New York Times: "Like Facebook, YouTube and other internet companies, Twitter was forced to morph from hard-liner on free expression to speech nanny. Today, Twitter has pages upon pages of rules prohibiting content such as material that promotes child sexual exploitation, coordinated government propaganda, offers of counterfeit goods and tweets 'wishing for someone to fall victim to a serious accident.'... Soon, [Elon] Musk will be the one confronting the gap between an idealized view of free speech and the zillion tough decisions that must be made to let everyone have a say.... Mr. Musk is a relative dilettante on the topic [of free speech] and hasn't yet tackled the difficult trade-offs in which giving one person a voice may silence the expression of others, and in which an almost-anything-goes space for expression might be overrun with spam, nudity, propaganda from autocrats, the bullying of children and violent incitements.... New laws, including the Digital Services Act in the European Union, require Twitter and its peers to do more to scrub their sites of misinformation and abuse." (Also linked yesterday.)
Apoorva Mandavilli of the New York Times: "Sixty percent of Americans, including 75 percent of children, had been infected with the coronavirus by February, federal health officials reported on Tuesday -- another remarkable milestone in a pandemic that continues to confound expectations.... There may be good news in the data [which the CDC compiled], some experts said. A gain in population-wide immunity may offer at least a partial bulwark against future waves. And the trend may explain why the surge that is now roaring through China and many countries in Europe has been muted in the United States. A high percentage of previous infections may also mean that there are now fewer cases of life-threatening illness or death relative to infections.... At a news briefing on Tuesday, Dr. Ashish Jha, the White House's new Covid coordinator, said that stopping infections was 'not even a policy goal. The goal of our policy should be: obviously, minimize infections whenever possible, but to make sure people don't get seriously ill.'"
Victor Reklaitis of Market Watch: "Vice President Kamala Harris tested positive Tuesday for COVID-19 on rapid and PCR tests, said the VP's press secretary, Kirsten Allen, in a statement. Harris 'has exhibited no symptoms, will isolate and continue to work from the vice president's residence. She has not been a close contact to the president or first lady due to their respective recent travel schedules,' Allen added." (Also linked yesterday.)
Beyond the Beltway
California. Never Mind. Ross Lincoln of the Wrap: "Hours after attempting to intimidate an Los Angeles Times reporter with the threat of criminal charges in retaliation for breaking a story of inmate abuse at the Los Angeles County Sheriff's department, LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva is walking it back. 'I must clarify at no time today did I state an L.A. Times reporter was a suspect in a criminal investigation. We have no interest in pursuing, nor are we pursuing, criminal charges against any reporters,' he said in a statement provided to the LA Times. This despite the easily accessible video of him implying just that. His statement follows widespread outrage from politicians and press freedom organizations over his initial remarks, which came during a press conference that was livestreamed on Tuesday morning. Villanueva announced his department is investigating LA Times reporter Alene Tchekmedyian for a 'leak' involving a use-of-force video that showed deputy violently abusing an inmate."
Florida. Mary Klas of the Miami Herald: "As Florida legislators were rushing through passage of a bill to repeal the special district that governs Walt Disney World last week, they failed to notice an obscure provision in state law that says the state could not do what legislators were doing -- unless the district's bond debt was paid off. Disney, however, noticed and quietly sent a note to its investors to show that it was confident the Legislature's attempt to dissolve the special taxing district operating the 39-square mile parcel it owned in two counties violated the 'pledge' the state made when it enacted the district in 1967, and therefore was not legal.... The [Disney] statement ... quotes the statute which says, in part, that the 'State of Florida pledges ... it will not limit or alter the rights of the District ... until all such bonds together with interest thereon ... are fully met and discharged.... Gov. Ron DeSantis ... [said] that Disney will also be required to pay all outstanding bonds, but he didn't explain how it will happen.'" ~~~
~~~ Sarah Rumpf of Law & Crime has more on the bond fiasco, including an opinion by tax attorney Jacob Schumer that eliminating Disney's special district is legally pretty much un-possible.
Massachusetts. Anemona Hartocollis of the New York Times: A "report by a committee of Harvard faculty members, released on Tuesday, is Harvard's effort to begin redressing the [university's past dependence on slavery], as some other universities have been doing for decades. As part of the process, the university's governing corporation has pledged $100 million in part to create an endowed 'Legacy of Slavery Fund' that would allow scholars and students to bring Harvard's connections to slavery into the light for generations to come.
Michigan. Jonathan Oosting of Bridge Michigan: "State Rep. Matt Maddock, a Trump loyalist and husband of a top Michigan Republican Party official, was kicked out of the House GOP caucus on Tuesday, according to two sources familiar with the development. Sources say current House Speaker Jason Wentworth, R-Wentworth, booted Maddock for 'violating caucus rules.' He allegedly discussed confidential caucus matters publicly, prompting his removal.... Maddock is vying to be the Michigan House GOP's next leader. Trump has endorsed him to replace Wentworth, who is term limited.... The caucus ouster means Maddock will no longer be able to meet with House Republicans behind closed doors to discuss legislative and session strategy ahead of floor votes."
Michigan Republican Unloads on Trump Toadies. Craig Mauger of the Detroit News: "Tony Daunt, a longtime Michigan Republican insider, resigned Tuesday night from the GOP's state committee, saying party leaders had made the coming election a test of 'who is most cravenly loyal' to ... Donald Trump.... Daunt described Trump as a 'deranged narcissist.' 'Incredibly, rather than distancing themselves from this undisciplined loser, far too many Republican 'leaders' have decided that encouraging his delusional lies -- and, even worse -- cynically appeasing him despite knowing they are lies, is the easiest path to ensuring their continued hold on power, general election consequences be damned,' Daunt wrote in his email."
North Dakota. Aysha Qamar of Daily Kos: "One of North Dakota's most powerful lawmakers announced his plans to resign Monday after reportedly exchanging texts with a jailed man facing child pornography charges. According to the Associated Press, the Republican senator identified as Ray Holmberg is the state's longest-serving senator.... According to [an] investigative report [by the Forum of Fargo], Holmberg exchanged at least 72 text messages in August with Nicholas James Morgan-Derosier. Morgan-Derosier is serving charges[*] of possessing thousands of images and videos of sexually abused children.... The text messages themselves were [have not been made?] not public." However, in a court filing that seems to refer to Holmberg (it does not name him) "the text messages requested Morgan-Derosier to bring his boyfriend over for a massage." ~~~
~~~ * Marie: "Serving charges"? An odd construct (in my experience). As far as I can tell, Morgan-Derosier has been charged by not prosecuted.
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Reader Comments (16)
Yes, Senator, and the former Belgian Congo, now the Democratic Republic of the Congo, for a time Zaire, was once part of Belgium.
Are you issuing an invitation to Belgium to return to its former colony with our blessings?
I'm pretty sure Rand is not working toward handing Kentucky back to the Cherokee-Chickasaw-Choctaw prior occupants. Howsomever, Rand being nuts, who knows?
BAN THE BIBLE:
Chaz Stevens, "a self described stunt activist," has come out objecting to the Bible saying, by jove, it should be one of the many books that Florida's new law should ban. Hey, says Chaz, those depictions of rape, cannibalism, bestiality, murder, adultery, God's vengenge with his spite this and spite that–––just to mention a few––-can't be good for young children.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/chaz-stevens-bible-ban_n_6268e98ee4b0ea625c0e2b58
Get that fire going, people, book burning is the newest cool thing in this country along with a bunch of hill country cockleburs running for congress on the GOP ticket. Ain't we got fun!
Yesterday––I think it was yesterday––I'm starting to forget what day it is–––Ken mentioned that if it was a Muslim prayer or some other prayer other than Christian being said on the fields of sport endings, he bets the S.C. would't give the green light. I'm betting the same. And again I ask: In our Constitution there is that thing called separation between Church and State––and it sits there naked and vulnerable and ignored.
"... cockleburrs ... running for congress ..."
And here all along I thought they were dingleberries.
Dear Randy. God calling. Are you fucking insane?
Li’l Randy’s regular yelps typically strike a balance between stupidly funny and stupidly dangerous. To a fake libertarian like the littlest phony, any government spending that doesn’t immediately benefit him is pure socialism. That’s the stupidly funny. Aqua Buddha voted a smug NO on emergency relief for victims of the hurricanes Sandy and Harvey, hoping to burnish his reputation (cough* cough) as a “responsible” legislator. How allowing people to suffer is responsible is one of the many GQP mysteries that may only be revealed post Rapture, if then. We’re told that we will all be judged by god in the afterlife. If so, I’m looking forward to the following exchange:
God: Says here you said “no” to helping people in trouble.
Li’l Randy: (smugly) That’s right. It was socialism.
God: Are you daft? Take this fucker straight to hell!
Howev…come vicious, deadly tornadoes in Kentucky a few months ago and here’s what we get…
Li’l Randy: Biden better help us! We need money! Lots of it! And we need it NOW!!! To hell with socialism! People are in trouble and I need to take credit for helping them!!
So…not socialism when he can take credit for procuring guv’mint money for his state. By the way, Paul’s begging was too late. President Biden, an actual responsible leader, had already prepared an emergency aid package for Kentucky. Without the Li’l Randy grandstanding (gaping hypocrisy, no extra charge).
But then there’s the stupidly dangerous stuff (along with the required Trumpy treason) where the littlest liar spreads rumors about Covid and gets smacked down by a real doctor who cannot any longer brook the fallacious yelps from a self-certified eye poker.
And now we have “Ukraine is not a sovereign state and NATO is to blame for the invasion”.
Unqualified support for a murderous tyrant, couched in some bullshit realpolitik casuistry. You see, Li’l Randy hardly ever has an original idea of his own (excepting his plan to dump his yard waste on a neighbor’s property). His MO is to glom onto some scurrilous piece of intellectually dishonest and dangerous bullshit then spout off and wait for glowing headlines.
The “Ukraine” isn’t a real state” idea comes from the bowels of GQP isolationist-Trumpbots who despise international cooperation (‘mericans first! Right?) and sending aid anywhere but to themselves (see tornadoes, Kentucky). They hate the UN, NATO, The Hague and any other damn thing they can’t wriggle money out of or control.
But in this case, there is no doubt that Ukraine IS a sovereign state, and its people see it as such and don’t want a murderous dictator taking over. This, of course, is never no mind for Li’l Randy. He knows best.
Dangerous little rugtop asshole. That heavenly interview can’t come soon enough for me.
PD and Patrick,
Dingleburrs? Cockleberries? A dead rose by any other name…
@PD Pepe: Chaz there fails to realize there is a reason the Bible is the best-selling book evah: it's "those depictions of rape, cannibalism, bestiality, murder, adultery, God's vengeance with his spite this and spite that." The Bible, particularly the Old Testament, is a gold mine for the prurient mind. No pictures, sadly, but where else can a sex maniac read about all kinds of sex right out in the open and not get a sideways glance?
@Patrick: Of course you're right. I myself, however, am looking for Boris of Britain to attack at any moment & reclaim the so-called United States as a colony. We are, after all, a primarily English-speaking part of the world, a condition some of Li'l Randy's Republican friends insist upon. I can already hum "God Save the Queen" as I learnt it in grade school when it was bastardized (temporarily!) into "My Country 'Tis of Thee."
At least here in West Michigan, the white settlers who forced the
natives off their ancestral lands named a county after them, Ottawa
County. Except they were Odawa Indians. The settlers couldn't spell
very well I guess.
We should return that county to them. It's 99% Republican.
Dear Mr. Akhilleus: Am not too fond of you portraying me but in the case of Randy Pauly I grant you permission. I have had my eye on this creature––and his father, by the way–- for many a day. in this case I have notified someone–-name withheld for privacy sake––- who's a self-certified proctologist.
He's 6 foot 4, 350 pounds, black, and wears a size 11 glove.
Has his large funnel, grease gun, and inspection mirror ready to go. He's waiting for Randy's call.
So thanks for helping me get on the ball re: this bloke whose lie regarding his eye doctor certification always got my ire up. Makes it difficult to concentrate on more serious outlets like choosing what new crime drama is on Netflix and making sure I don't run out of Cheetos. Best, God
When Great Britain, France, Spain and Mexico (I'm pretty sure Randy doesn't consider any of the Native American tribes as owning any land since they never got any deeds notarized before the arrival of the "enlightened" Europeans) take back all their land will we all become illegal immigrants? Will Florida make Spanish the official language?
RAS - no notarized deeds for the entire territory (although individual native americans and some tribes did hold proper deeds for farms and townships, easily ignored when convenient by white settlers), BUT the Proclamation of 1763 promised native Americans the land the now includes Sen (R-Doodyhead) Paul's great state of Kentucky, bluegrass and all. Check it out:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Proclamation_of_1763
@Patrick: On the upside for Li'l Randy, when he is no longer a Kentucky propertyowner, he will not be required by the homeowners' association & rabid neighbors to keep the lawn mowed. The rightful owners can let the place evolve back into as natural a landscape as possible and let the buffalo roam across Rancho Randy.
Just wondering if the original indigenous inhabitants of Kentucky started a war, a la Li’l Randy hero Vladimir Putin, to take back land that was originally theirs, would that self-certified eye poker be okay if he was scalped by someone reclaiming what once belonged to his family? The littlest apologist for genocide seems to think it’s perfectly okay for his Uncle Vlad to murder thousands of Ukrainians, because…well, because,
You see, a lot of schoolchildren in Kentucky were once taught that no Native American tribes lived in that state (this is true). They just used it as a hunting ground. Yeah. Sure. So, in a state comprised of over 40,000 square miles, no indigenous peoples decided to stick around. It was like visiting a theme park. “C’mon kids, we’re gonna walk 400 miles to enjoy hunting a few possums, then we’re going home.”
If you do a search for Native American tribes inhabiting Bowling Green, and Warren County, the littlest bigot’s happy hunting ground, you’ll find this:
The FIRST inhabitants of Warren County came from Virginia after revolutionary war veterans were given land grants in the region. (Emphasis mine).
Very first. And this is is on an official Warren county dot gov website.
The very first inhabitants were white Europeans from Virginia.
The history section on that site goes something like this: life in the Warren Co. region 10,000 years ago. We don’t know shit about that, BUT next? Post revolution era: White guys! Yay! And they own everything!
Fuckin’ A right.
Let’s just conveniently elide thousands of years of native history.
This is the kind of red state history confederates are screaming to hold on to. It’s not just Black Lives Don’t Matter, it’s No Non-white Lives Matter.
And I’m pretty sure that Li’l Randy, should the descendants of the people who originally owned his property show up demanding it back, would call out his phalanx of bodyguards to take them away in handcuffs.
Oh yeah, and about that Li’l Randy scalping…How surprised would the scalper be to have that ratty rug thing come off in his hands before the knife went in? There’d be howls of laughter around the old campfire that night.
That some excellent American histories are not all that uplifting sure makes some real 'Mericans cranky.
I might have mentioned this one on Indian removal here before. Thought it very good.
Here's a review:
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/24/books/review-unworthy-republic-claudio-saunt.html
@Akhilleus: I don't suppose it's politically correct, but I laughed out loud at the difficulty of scalping Li'l Randy.