;)
February 10, 2022
Afternoon Update:
Luke Broadwater, et al., of the New York Times: "The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol has discovered gaps in official White House telephone logs from the day of the riot, finding few records of calls by ... Donald J. Trump from critical hours when investigators know that he was making them. Investigators have not uncovered evidence that any official records were tampered with or deleted, and it is well known that Mr. Trump used his personal cellphone, and those of his aides, routinely to talk with aides, congressional allies and outside confidants. But the sparse call records are the latest major obstacle to the panel's central mission: recreating what Mr. Trump was doing behind closed doors during crucial moments of the assault on Congress by a mob of his supporters." An ABC News story is here. ~~~
~~~ Ryan Nobles, et al., of CNN: "White House call records now in possession of congressional investigators do not reflect calls made to or from ... Donald Trump as the violence unfolded on Capitol Hill on January 6, 2021, leaving them with gaps so far in their understanding of what transpired that day, three sources familiar with the House investigation into the insurrection tell CNN. The records the House select committee has obtained do not contain entries of phone calls between the President and lawmakers that have been widely reported in the press."
BTW, in today Comments, contributor Patrick revealed why Donald Trump was so upset about toilets not flushing properly. "People are flushing toilets 10 times, 15 times, as opposed to once," Trump complained back in December 2019. Looks like "people are" should be "I am." ~~~
~~~ Steve M. "Much of the response to [today's toilet-flushing] story is anger at [reporter Maggie] Haberman because she saved this information for her book rather than reporting it in real time[.]... So, yes, Haberman should have told us about the document-flushing when she knew about it, because it should have mattered. But it's unlikely that it would have mattered. We had very good reasons to believe that Trump was willfully destroying records in violation of the law -- but Trump wasn't held accountable, and if anyone had tried to hold him accountable, Republican outrage and wagon-circling would have made accountability impossible, as it has been throughout Trump's time in politics. So, yes, elite journalism is failing us -- but so is a system in which lawless Republicans have a veto over any attempt to make their own face consequences." ~~~
~~~ David Corn of Mother Jones explores whether or not Trump could be successfully prosecuted for records destruction & whether or not that would disqualify him from running for president*. Corn concludes disqualification "would be an uphill constitutional climb." MB: I do think it would be difficult for any candidate, even Trump, to run for president* from a cell at Club Fed. "Does this orange jumpsuit make my ass look fat?" "No, Don, your ass is fat."
Amber Phillips of the Washington Post: "When ... Donald Trump is accused of wrongdoing, his almost-reflexive response is to vociferously deny it and try to accuse his accusers instead.... Which is what makes Trump's reaction to reporting that he violated the Presidential Records Act by destroying official documents and taking others with him to Florida so interesting.... Here's part of what he said:
"'Following collaborative and respectful discussions, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) openly and willingly arranged with President Trump for the transport of boxes that contained letters, records, newspapers, magazines, and various articles. Some of this information will someday be displayed in the Donald J. Trump Presidential Library for the public to view my Administration's incredible accomplishments for the American People.'
"It suggests that legal experts have gotten in Trump's ear and said this is something he needs to take seriously, rather than launch his usual political bombs."
Justin Jouvenal of the Washington Post: "A top deputy overseeing election issues for Virginia's new Republican attorney general resigned Thursday after The Washington Post questioned the office about Facebook posts she had made praising Jan. 6, 2021, rioters and falsely claiming Donald Trump won the 2020 election. Former deputy attorney general Monique Miles also espoused unfounded conspiracy theories about voter fraud and election interference in more than a dozen Facebook comments that spanned months. Four people who interacted with Miles on Facebook confirmed the authenticity of the posts. Victoria LaCivita, a spokeswoman for Attorney General Jason Miyares, said the office had been unaware of the Facebook posts before The Washington Post, which obtained screenshots of the posts, shared them on Thursday morning." The Hill's story is here. ~~~
~~~ Marie: Aw, Monique seems highly qualified to "oversee election issues." Nice vetting job there, Jason. I hear Sidney Powell is looking for a job, Jason. She has plenty of experience "overseeing election issues," too.
Michael Grynbaum of the New York Times: "The New York Times is free to publish documents pertaining to the conservative group Project Veritas after a New York State appeals court temporarily stayed an order by a state trial judge that had been denounced by First Amendment advocates and journalism groups. In a decision made public on Thursday, the appeals court said the order would not be enforced until a formal appeal could be heard. The decision means that, for now, The Times can publish certain documents and will not have to turn over or destroy any copies of the documents in its possession."
Amy Cheng, et al., of the Washington Post: "Police in Ottawa are warning that any protesters blocking streets for the self-described 'Freedom Convoy' may be 'arrested without a warrant,' as raucous protests against vaccine mandates and coronavirus restrictions blocked a third border crossing with the United States early Thursday. The protests, which have led to at least 23 arrests and 80 criminal investigations in the capital, are sparking debate among officials over how best to de-escalate the situation there and at U.S.-Canada border crossings, where blockades have disrupted the flow of goods and people. Some are warning that mass arrests could prove counterproductive or even lead to violence.... Police in Manitoba province said the typically bustling Emerson crossing into North Dakota was 'shut down' after a convoy of vehicles and farm equipment blocked traffic heading both north and south.... So far, two major ports of entry -- the Ambassador Bridge connecting Detroit to Windsor, Ontario, and the Coutts crossing linking Montana to Alberta -- have been closed or partially blocked.... ~~~
"Some protesters believe that 'they are fighting for a cause that is worth dying for,' [Windsor Mayor Drew] Dilkens said. 'That type of sentiment translates into different behaviors than any normal protests.'... About 25 percent of attendees inside some 400 trucks stationed at the scene are believed to be children, police say, which could complicate the ways in which officers respond to those protesting." MB: In addition, I heard on CNN that some protesters are wielding tire irons & other weapons.
~~~~~~~~~~
Dan Lamothe, et al., of the Washington Post: "The Biden administration on Wednesday readied plans for U.S. military forces to help evacuate Americans once they cross into Poland should Russia attack Ukraine, preparations that came one day ahead of a major Russian military exercise on Ukraine's border that some officials fear could provide cover for an invasion. About 7,500 Americans are registered with the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv and thousands more could be in the country but the U.S. government has no way to track them, according to U.S. officials." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Basta! Matt Zapotosky, et al., of the Washington Post: "The National Archives and Records Administration has asked the Justice Department to examine Donald Trump's handling of White House records, sparking discussions among federal law enforcement officials about whether they should investigate the former president for a possible crime, according to two people familiar with the matter. The referral from the National Archives came amid recent revelations that officials recovered 15 boxes of materials from the former president's Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida that were no handed back in to the government as they should have been, and that Trump had turned over other White House records that had been torn up. Archives officials suspected Trump had possibly violated laws concerning the handling of government documents -- including those that might be considered classified -- and reached out to the Justice Department, the people familiar with the matter said." A CNN report is here. (Also linked yesterday.) ~~~
~~~ Reid Epstein & Michael Schmidt of the New York Times: "The National Archives and Records Administration discovered what it believed was classified information in documents Donald J. Trump had taken with him from the White House as he left office, according to a person briefed on the matter. The discovery, which occurred after Mr. Trump returned 15 boxes of documents to the government last month, prompted the National Archives to reach out to the Justice Department for guidance, the person said. The department told the National Archives to have its inspector general examine the matter, the person said. It is unclear what the inspector general has done since then, in particular, whether the inspector general has referred the matter to the Justice Department." ~~~
~~~ Marie: I'm sure all the custodial staff at Mar-a-Lago have tippy-top secret security clearance.
Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "The House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol issued a subpoena on Wednesday to Peter Navarro, a White House adviser to ... Donald J. Trump who was involved in what he called an 'operation' to keep Mr. Trump in office after he lost the 2020 election.... In his book, titled 'In Trump Time,' and in interviews with The New York Times and other outlets, Mr. Navarro has said that he worked with Stephen K. Bannon and other allies of Mr. Trump to develop and carry out a plan to delay Congress's formal count of the 2020 presidential election results to buy time to change the outcome.... On Wednesday, [Mr. Navarro] said he would not comply with the committee's subpoena, citing Mr. Trum's invocation of executive privilege." MB: I think you can open the pdf containing the committee's letter here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) The ABC News story is here.
Jon Swaine of the Washington Post: "In the weeks after the 2020 election, Rudolph W. Giuliani and other legal advisers to ... Donald Trump asked a Republican prosecutor in northern Michigan to get his county's voting machines and pass them to Trump's team, the prosecutor told The Washington Post. Antrim County prosecutor James Rossiter said in an interview that Giuliani and several colleagues made the request during a telephone call after the county initially misreported its election results. The inaccurate tallies meant that Joe Biden appeared to have beaten Trump by 3,000 votes in a Republican stronghold, an error that soon placed Antrim at the center of false claims by Trump that the election had been stolen. Rossiter said he declined. 'I said, "I can't just say: give them here." We don't have that magical power to just demand things as prosecutors. You need probable cause.' Even if he had had sufficient grounds to take the machines as evidence, Rossiter said, he could not have released them to outsiders or a party with an interest in the matter." County elections officials soon corrected & acknowledged the mistakes. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) CNBC has a summary story here.
Mike Allen of Axios: "While President Trump was in office, staff in the White House residence periodically discovered wads of printed paper clogging a toilet -- and believed the president had flushed pieces of paper, Maggie Haberman scoops in her forthcoming book, 'Confidence Man.'" MB: Remember how Trump made a huge deal of Hillary Clinton's use of a private email server? "But the Emails/Lock Her Up" was his main case against her: that we couldn't have a president who improperly treated sensitive documents. So now we have reports that Trump stole -- a/k/a "improperly removed" -- documents, tore up documents, tossed documents in waste baskets, had documents sent to burn bags, flushed documents down the toilet, even ate documents. Any way he could think of to break the paper trail. Evidence of a guilty conscience? I would say so. ~~~
~~~ Kurt Bardella of USA Today: "... in October 2016, House Republicans launched a series of hearings attacking the then-Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton over her emails[.]... From the same forces that brought you the chorus of 'Hillary's emails' and the smash hit 'Lock Her Up' comes a new spin on an old song, 'Do As I Say, Not As I Do.'... [Based on news reports of Donald Trump's destruction & theft of presidential documents,] you would think Republicans would be foaming at the mouth, chanting 'Lock Him Up' and calling for an immediate series of hearings and subpoenas to be issued to anyone who was a part of the Trump White House. And yet, nothing. Crickets. Silence." Firewalled.
The Big Cover-up. Stephen Collinson of CNN: "A stunning daily stream of revelations is shedding new light on the depraved effort by Donald Trump, his aides and extremist Republicans to cover up the former President's constitutional arson and desperate bid to steal power after the 2020 election. It is extraordinary that more than 13 months after the US Capitol insurrection, the depth of Trump's lawlessness and abuses of power is still coming into view.... New evidence and reporting already strongly suggests Trump's team presided over multiple schemes to discredit the election; sought to steal President Joe Biden's win in the states with rogue lawyers; encouraged fake electors; and sought to block its certification in Congress. Wednesday's revelations alone underscored the vast scope of the [January 6] committee's investigation, the troubling breadth of the subversion effort and what increasingly looks like a Trump world cover-up."
Benjamin Siegel & Will Steakin of ABC News: "Sarah Matthews, a Trump White House press aide who resigned over the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol, appeared Tuesday for an interview with the House select committee investigating the attack.... Matthews ... appeared before the committee voluntarily, a source told ABC News. She is one of several former Trump aides approached by the committee who now work as GOP congressional staffers."
Jack Jenkins of Religion News Service: "A team of scholars, faith leaders and advocates unveiled an exhaustive new report Wednesday (Feb. 9) that documents in painstaking detail the role [white] Christian nationalism played in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and calling it an unsettling preview of things to come." MB: While the news report does give a few examples of Christian symbols displayed or promoted at the insurrection & before, Jenkins' story mostly focuses on scholars' opinions of the part Christian nationalism played in the insurrection. So not too convincing.
Reimagining the Soup Nazi. MTG Is So Ignorant. David Moye of the Huffington Post: During an interview for a right-wing news podcast, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Q) discussed a brief investigation the Capitol Police conducted into suspicious entries on a whiteboard in the open office of Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas). Greene meant "to compare the Capitol Police to the the Gestapo. However, she ... mistakenly referring to the Capitol Police as 'Nancy Pelosi's gazpacho police.'" Charles Pierce was upset: "Do not cast asparagus on the gazpacho police!" he tweeted.
David Kihara of Politico: "A Florida collectibles dealer connected to the federal investigation into Rep. Matt Gaetz [R-Fla.] formally entered a guilty plea in Orlando on Wednesday.... Joe Ellicott, known as 'Big Joe,' pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to commit fraud and drug charges and has agreed to cooperate with federal authorities. Ellicott is a relatively minor figure in the ongoing Gaetz probe but was listed on a federal grand jury subpoena in December 2020 along with Gaetz and several other men.... Federal authorities have been looking into whether Gaetz obstructed justice and paid to have sex with a 17-year-old about five years ago...."
Catie Edmondson & Mark Walker of the New York Times: "... In recent years, and particularly since the beginning of [Donald] Trump's presidency, a growing number of Americans have taken ideological grievance and political outrage to a new level, lodging concrete threats of violence against members of Congress.... Many of them, [a New York Times] review showed, were fueled by forces that have long dominated politics, including deep partisan divisions and a media landscape that stokes resentment. But they surged during Mr. Trump's time in office and in its aftermath, as the former president's own violent language fueled a mainstreaming of menacing political speech and lawmakers used charged words and imagery to describe the stakes of the political moment. Far-right members of Congress have hinted that their followers should be prepared to take up arms and fight to save the country, and in one case even posted a video depicting explicitly violent acts against Democrats.... Overall, threats against members of Congress reached a record high of 9,600 last year, according to data provided by the Capitol Police, double the previous year's total."
"The Supreme Court Has Crossed the Rubicon." Linda Greenhouse of the New York Times on the 5-4 Supreme Court shadow-docket ruling to stay lower courts' rulings against Alabama Republicans' gerrymandering which violated the remnants of Voting Rights Act: "Chief Justice Roberts objected that the ordinary standards under which the Supreme Court grants a stay of a lower court opinion had not been met.... Justice Elena Kagan, joined by Justices Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor, also dissented in a more extensive opinion that accused the majority of using the court's emergency 'shadow docket not only to intervene improperly on behalf of the state but also to change voting rights law in the process.... What happened Monday night was a raw power play by a runaway majority that seems to recognize no stopping point, [especially because the same justices refused to stay Texas' unconstitutional abortion law]." (Also linked yesterday afternoon.) ~~~
~~~ In yesterday's Comments, P.D. Pepe recommended this New Yorker story on Amy Coney Barrett's long game. Firewalled.
Jeremy Peters & Colin Moynihan of the New York Times: "Lawyers for The New York Times attempted on Wednesday to establish that members of its staff acted diligently and responsibly after learning that an editorial published in 2017 incorrectly linked a mass shooting in Arizona to the political rhetoric of Sarah Palin, who is suing the news organization for defamation. The jury weighing Ms. Palin's suit against The Times in federal court in Lower Manhattan also heard briefly on Wednesday from Ms. Palin herself. But with late afternoon approaching, Judge Jed S. Rakoff adjourned for the day after Ms. Palin's lawyer had questioned her for roughly 15 minutes, touching only on biographical points about her political career and life in Alaska."
Marisa Iati, et al., of the Washington Post: "Police shot and killed at least 1,055 people nationwide last year, the highest total since The Washington Post began tracking fatal shootings by officers in 2015 -- underscoring the difficulty of reducing such incidents despite sustained public attention to the issue.... The total comes amid a nationwide spike in violent crime -- although nowhere near historic highs -- and as people increasingly are venturing into public spaces now that coronavirus vaccines are widely available."
The Pandemic, Ctd.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Thursday are here. The Washington Post's live Covid-19 updates for Thursday are here.
Lenny Bernstein, et al., of the Washington Post: "Mask mandates continued to fall in traditionally cautious blue states Wednesday as the number of U.S. coronavirus cases plunged, covid-19 hospitalizations dropped below 100,000 and the government's chief medical adviser, Anthony S. Fauci, said the country is 'on the road to approaching normality.' In New York, Illinois and Rhode Island, governors said they would soon end requirements that adults wear face coverings in public indoor places and some, including Massachusetts, promised children would no longer have to wear them in school."
Sheryl Stolberg of the New York Times: "The White House has been meeting with outside health experts to plan a pandemic exit strategy and a transition to a 'new normal,' but the behind-the-scenes effort is crashing into a very public reality: A string of blue-state governors have gotten ahead of President Biden by suddenly abandoning their mask mandates. The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, said pointedly on Wednesday that while Covid-19 caseloads are dropping overall and her agency is working on new guidance for the states, it is too soon for all Americans to take off their masks in indoor public places." A related AP story is here.
Canada/U.S. Rob Gillies & Tom Krisher of the AP: "A blockade of the bridge between Canada and Detroit by protesters demanding an end to Canada's COVID-19 restrictions forced the shutdown Wednesday of a Ford plant and began to have broader implications for the North American auto industry. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, stood firm against an easing of Canada's COVID-19 restrictions in the face of mounting pressure during recent weeks by protests against the restrictions and against Trudeau himself. The protest by people mostly in pickup trucks entered its third day at the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. Traffic was prevented from entering Canada, while U.S.-bound traffic was still moving."
Matt Gertz of Media Matters: "Fox News" ... stars have ... [been] regaling their audiences with fawning coverage of Canadian truckers protesting their country's COVID-19 vaccine requirements -- and encouraging the development of similar activism in the U.S.... The network devoted 7 hours and 59 minutes to the story from the first mention of the convoy we found on January 18 through noon on February 9. Prime-time stars Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity are among the convoy's biggest fans at the network.... Fox's propagandists have cheered on the truckers as 'freedom fighters,' 'civil rights hero[es],' and 'the face of individualism and rebellion,' while denouncing the purported 'totalitarianism' of the Canadian government."
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Wednesday are here. (Also linked yesterday afternoon.)
Beyond the Beltway
Florida. Adela Suliman of the Washington Post: "President Biden has slammed legislation proposed by Republicans in Florida that aims to restrict some discussions in the state's schools about sexual orientation and gender identity. Biden, in a tweet on Tuesday, called the proposal a 'hateful bill' and said he would give his full support to the young people who may be affected. Critics have dubbed it the 'Don't say gay' bill -- but supporters say it is about parental rights. 'I have your back, and my Administration will continue to fight for the protections and safety you deserve,' Biden wrote to the LGBTQ community. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) seemingly signaled his support for the bill on Monday ... [and Tuesday]." ~~~
~~~ Marie: DeSantis argued Tuesday that "Schools need to be teaching ... all those basic stuff." But he included science & history and the U.S. Constitution among "all those basic stuff," and if schools are going to teach biology, American history & U.S. government, they will inevitably have to throw in some material that causes some parents & students "discomfort, guilt and anguish."
Florida. Gillian Brockell of the Washington Post: "The Florida state legislature kicked off Black History Month by advancing bills that would allow parents to sue a school if any instruction caused students 'discomfort, guilt or anguish.' The bills have been endorsed by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who last year said he wanted to ban critical race theory and 'wokeness' from being taught in Florida schools.... Critics point out that it's challenging, to say the least, to provide a remotely sufficient accounting of history in the United States, or anyplace else, without discussing uncomfortable subjects. Florida is no exception. Here are some moments in Florida history that may be difficult to teach without causing discomfort." ~~~
~~~ Marie: We did take "Florida history" when I was in school. Two of the atrocities Brockell cites took place after I was graduated from high school., but not one of the other historic incidents Brockell discusses got any mention in our history books or by our teachers. And, yeah, since learning of these events as an adult, I have definitely felt "discomfort and anguish." Guilt, not so much.
Kansas. John Hanna of the AP: "Republican legislators in Kansas on Wednesday overrode the Democratic governor's veto of a redistricting plan that politically hurts the state's only Democrat in Congress, likely plunging Kansas into a national legal brawl amid the contest for control of the U.S. House. Prominent Democratic attorney Marc Elias, who has pursued lawsuits in states including Georgia, North Carolina and Ohio, tweeted: 'Kansas will be sued.' The 85-37 vote in the Kansas House overturned Gov. Laura Kelly's veto of a map that splits the state's side of the Kansas City area between two districts, making it harder for U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids to win reelection this year. Davids is the state's first openly gay and Native American woman in Congress."
News Ledes
CNBC: "Consumer prices in January surged more than expected over the past 12 months, indicating a worsening outlook for inflation and cementing the likelihood of substantial interest rate hikes this year. The consumer price index, which measures the costs of dozens of everyday consumer goods, rose 7.5% compared to a year ago, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That compared to Dow Jones estimates of 7.2% for the closely watched inflation gauge. It was the highest reading since February 1982."
The AP's live updates of Olympics events & results is here. CNN's live updates are here.
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Reader Comments (16)
Gazpacho police? You say gazpacho, I say gestapo…
So what’s next in culinary secret police, bouillabaisse bobbies? Fried chicken federales?
Wait! My real grifting just got started!
Noted legal scholar, historian, and expert on what makes a great member of congress, Tommy Tupperware (R- Gerrymanderville), is having a sad.
“You can’t do anything anymore!” he whined. The thing he likes doing most, of course, is not his job, because he doesn’t know jack about congress, but using the information he gets in that body to make himself rich. But now there’s a move afoot to prevent congress critters from doing exactly that.
Buying and selling stocks using information heard in congressional cloak rooms or committees is the textbook definition of insider trading, which is a big, illegal no-no. But not for Coach Tommy. “Pfizer selling at 39.25, General Motors down 20%! HIKE!”
Coach Tommy made over 130 stock trades last year. He’s supposed to make timely reports on all of these. He didn’t. Not a one. To the tune of almost a million bucks. Yippee! Free money!
But now he’s pissed. “If they pass this thing, they’ll never get anyone to come here” he moaned. Well, I guess if they’re sleazy ass grifting corner cutting scofflaws like Coach Tommy, maybe not. Isn’t this like saying the quiet part out loud? “I’m really only here to pad my pockets”. And Coach Tupperware isn’t the only one guilty of late stock reports. There are miscreants on both sides, but the R’s (as usual in anything shady and personally rewarding for them) are far and away the winners.
In addition to Coach Tommy’s negligent 132 trades, we have a Tennessee R who failed to properly report hundreds of trades amounting to over $10 million! Now that’s some serious grifting.
Anyone who doesn’t get the impropriety of congressional insiders making money on information they glean in hearings and elsewhere, doesn’t belong in congress. They belong at the RNC. Or on Fox.
https://www.businessinsider.com/tommy-tuberville-ridiculous-to-ban-lawmakers-from-trading-stocks-2022-2?amp
Some things:
1. DiJiT, who lives for print inches and air time, is getting them. A year after he moved out, his odor not only lingers but intensifies as flocks of chickens look for roosting spots.
2. DiJiT will glide away from the Presidential Records Act violations. His base and GOP votewhores don't care ... to them, unlike HRC's e-mails, DiJiT's document debauches just reflect his boyish exuberance and life-long practice of ripping stuff up and having others to clean the mess. As for the law, DiJiT will just say that he did not mean to deny the ripped docs to the Archives ... he has people that tape them back together, and that's just the way he does paper. If he wanted to destroy paper it would go into a cross-cut shredder (every USG office that handles classified has one or more) and would be unreconstuctable. And you can bet it did. As to the e-Bay-attractive docs and chachkas that were in Mar-a-Lardo, blame it on staff. You think DiJiT packs boxes? No, some unnamed intern is to blame. But there's really no blame, because who cares? (Seriously ... State Department's Protocol Office stores foreign gifts. During the "transition", lots went missing. The same political-appointee people who work there also work Blair House and White House admin and trip support. Someone may have seen the souvenir and collectibles value of things like Kim Jong Il love letters, boxed them up, and intended to recover them on the other end. Staffers use AF1 to smuggle stuff all the time.)
3. The Archives story mentions that "a toilet" in the White House was often clogged with paper. Remember when DiJiT complained about water volume and pressure regulations, showers, dishwashers, toilets? When he said that sometimes it took several flushes to clear the bowl in the WH? I think we have the answer now.
4. What a dipsh1t. Even though we still have to read about him, we can take comfort in the fact that he is no longer near anything hyperdangerous, like The Button or a signing pen.
@Akhilleus: I have a feeling Congress will accidentally forget to pass the latest anti-stock-trading bill. But if they should pass something with teeth, it could be a really good thing. Members of Congress are supposed to be public servants, not wheelers & dealers. Maybe if the law makes it more difficult for them to wheel & deal, some jerks with plans to get rich off their insider knowledge will decide not to run for office at all. And maybe the Tommy Potato Heads will quit. More likely, they'll all find ways to get around whatever law is passed.
I don't know beans, but I think what you call federales are Mexican frijoles.
The National Archive wants the DoJ to look into yet another Fatty crime? Fuggedaboutit. Merrick Garland is way too busy ignoring all the other criminal and treasonous actions by Trump and his legion of thugs and crooks. Maybe next year.
As though we don't have enough lousy news to wade through I came across this in the NYT. It's all about chicken––the real birds, not the "Fried chicken Federales" that Ak mentions. Watch the video on this and sink deeper into despair at our corporate system of bird consumption. If you want your chicken to be treated humanly you best be ready to pay $6 dollars a pound and most super markets don't even stock that kind.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/10/opinion/factory-farming-chicken.html
Was wondering whether Fatty and his minions, when pushing for making America great again, meant thumbs up for The Rosewood Massacre in 1923 or/and The Ocoee Election Day after that in Florida–- always wondered what decade we would specify as GREAT.
Meanwhile I'm still trying to get my mind around the "Great One" throwing ripped up documents into the W.H. toilet resulting in clogging and overflowing. The more we learn the more we realize that we had a man playing the role of the President of the U.S. with little regard for the office except how it suited him. Someone said "He besmirched the role of President"––-I'd say he royally fucked up the whole system bringing it back to those halcyon days when we were so very great! Smell the scent of all that nostalgia!
Where was Joe the Plumber when trump needed him?
Joe wasn't actually a real plumber anyway. He was a Republican
playing one without a plumber's license so said the state of Ohio.
I had to get a license from the state of Michigan to buy wholesale
and all the other stuff landscapers do.
So I think all politicians should have to be licensed and pass exams
and background checks like all us little people.
@PD Pepe: I couldn't stand to watch that video, but I'm aware of how mass producers treat the chickens that go in the supermarkets where most of us shop. Years ago, I kept trying to roast chicken French-style, and every time, my efforts flopped. Then I realized the problem wasn't my cooking but the raw ingredient I started with: fat American chickens. So I switched to free-range chicken (yes, more expensive) and voila! my husband said, "This chicken tastes just like the chicken we ate in Beaune." Yes, it did. (I brined the chicken first.)
So since then, I've only bought free-range chickens. The way I cut down on cost is to buy fewer chickens. I also buy free-range turkey, but that requires planning ahead, and most supermarkets (at least the popular ones where I shop) don't carry free-range turkeys -- you have to special-order them.
@Forrest Morris: The reason they don't give candidates for Congress tests is that most of them couldn't pass even a very easy test on the Constitution, a copy of which they carry around in their pockets to prove they're real Americans. I'll bet Tommy Potato Head couldn't name the three branches of the federal government: the Senate, the House & the states, maybe???
The three branches of the federal government are the Potomac, the Anacostia, and Rock Creek.
See, not so hard!
Then there's the Olive Branch, which is way beyond the scope of
any Republican politician.
PD: "cultured chicken" made from cells has reduced costs 57% in the past 6 months so a chicken breast is $1.70/lb cost of production. (Chemical and Engineering News, this past fall.) Free range chicken that Marie mentions, require more time and space to grow tasty. Cultured chicken are fed a scientifically controlled diet of corn, soy, and wheat by ADM, Cargill, Conagra, and Tyson to name some. Tasty they will not be. These guys will green-wash your conscience to think you are helping the planet while helping these guys. Sort of like tobacco helps small farmers and your grandpa smoked a corn cob pipe on the front porch. Go buy wild Alaska pink salmon from Aldi. Better quality, better practices.
Patti Davis has something nice to say about her father.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/02/09/ronald-reagan-dad-taught-me-about-holocaust/
If true, will have to adjust my opinion of the “I can’t recall” president, He certainly broke what has become the Republican Rule.
My comment:
Because Republicans fear reality, they like to hide behind walls.*
They like border walls and gates on their communities.
Walls to keep non-white immigrants out.
Walls to keep accurate history from their children.
Walls to hide the science they don't like from themselves and from everyone else.
And when they can't build a wall, they cover with lies the realities that make them uncomfortable and that they don't want others to know.
And I hear at least one prominent Republican just tears reality up and flushes it down the toilet.
An entire political party afraid of everything, hiding under their beds, not realizing that's where ghosts hang out.
*An Akhilleus exception to the Republican Rule. They sure don’t like any walls that discourage their energetic pursuit of corruption.
It still amazes me that Republicans like Tommy are so eager to confess to their crimes in public. Peter Navarro just got suboenaed because he went all over tv telling anyone who would have him how Trump and his Congress criters would steal the election on January 6th. They even had a cool manly football name for it, the Green Bay Sweep. Unfortunately the lack of investigations and prosecutions are of no surprise. Powerful white guys getting away with murder is par for the course.
I wonder if the Chinese and other foreign spys at Mar-a-lago found anything good in those boxes before they got sent back to the Archives?
Deputy Virginia AG resigns amid scrutiny over Facebook posts praising Jan. 6 rioters
https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/593738-deputy-virginia-ag-resigns-amid-scrutiny-over-facebook-posts-praising
This does not bode well for the new election regime in VA.
A new study shows the effects of covid-19 on the heart, it's not good.