;)
The Commentariat -- January 17, 2021
In with the New. Michael Shear & Peter Baker of the New York Times: "President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr., inheriting a collection of crises unlike any in generations, plans to open his administration with dozens of executive directives on top of expansive legislative proposals in a 10-day blitz meant to signal a turning point for a nation reeling from disease, economic turmoil, racial strife and now the aftermath of the assault on the Capitol. Mr. Biden's team has developed a raft of decrees that he can issue on his own authority after the inauguration on Wednesday to begin reversing some of President Trump's most hotly disputed policies.... On his first day in office alone, Mr. Biden intends a flurry of executive orders that will be partly substantive and partly symbolic. They include rescinding the travel ban on several predominantly Muslim countries, rejoining the Paris climate change accord, extending pandemic-related limits on evictions and student loan payments, issuing a mask mandate for federal property and interstate travel and ordering agencies to figure out how to reunite children separated from families after crossing the border, according to a memo circulated on Saturday by Ron Klain, his incoming White House chief of staff...." An AP story is here.
Michael Crowley of the New York Times: "President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. said on Saturday that he was 'always going to lead with science and truth' as he announced top science and technology officials on his White House staff, reaffirming trust in the kind of expert research that the Trump administration often ignored or disdained.... The appointees included Eric S. Lander, whom Mr. Biden will nominate to be director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, a position that will for the first time hold cabinet rank.... As Dr. Lander's deputy in the science and technology office, Alondra Nelson, whom was also named by Mr. Biden, is a professor at the Institute for Advanced Study.... Mr. Biden also named two co-chairs of the President's Council of Advisers on Science and Technology: Frances H. Arnold, the first American woman to win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and Maria Zuber, a geophysics and planetary science expert and the first woman to lead a NASA spacecraft mission. Mr. Biden also said that Dr. Francis S. Collins would remain as the director of the National Institutes of Health.... President Trump left the position of science adviser unfilled for 18 months and his administration routinely ignored the guidance of government scientists on issues ranging from the coronavirus pandemic to climate change."
Laura Barron-Lopez & Sabrina Rodriguez of Politico: "In preparation for President-elect Joe Biden to drop a sweeping immigration reform bill as soon as he enters office, congressional Democrats and advocates are drafting legislation, taking the temperature of Republicans -- and gearing up for what they hope will be the defining chapter in a decadeslong battle to pass a pathway to citizenship for all undocumented immigrants. Biden has said he plans to 'immediately' introduce an immigration bill after tking office on Wednesday. And top Latino and immigrant advocacy groups who've seen details of the coming package said they were stunned by the boldness of Biden's plan."
Averi Harper & Beatrice Peterson of ABC News: "Vice President-elect Kamala Harris ... will be sworn in by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, another historic female first. Sotomayor is the first Latina Supreme Court Justice.... The pair both previously served as former prosecutors -- Harris in California, Sotomayor in New York.... For the historic day, Harris has chosen to be sworn in using two bibles. One previously belonged to Mrs. Regina Shelton, who was like a second mother to Harris and her sister Maya.... The second bible belonged to the late civil rights icon and Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, someone who inspired Harris' career path.
Jessica Contrera, et al., of the Washington Post: "A Virginia man has been arrested after law enforcement found at least one firearm and more than 500 rounds of ammunition in his truck as he tried to enter an inauguration security checkpoint near the Capitol on Friday evening with a credential that was not authorized, according to court documents. Wesley Allen Beeler, 31, of Front Royal, drove his Ford F-150 up to a checkpoint on E Street Northeast of the Capitol, where he was met by Capitol Police officers, according to the court documents. Beeler is facing charges stemming from unlawful possession of weapons and ammunition.... His family said he works in private security." The story has been updated. The Hill has a story here.~~~
~~~ Update: A follow-up New York Times story suggests Beeler might not be a radical bent on shooting up D.C.
The Last Days of the Mad Kaiser
Lisa Lerer of the New York Times: "For four years, President Trump bullied his rivals and intimidated his enemies. He commanded the world stage and commandeered social media, spreading torrents of misinformation and falsehoods. From Israel' to Iowa, Mr. Trump was inescapable -- and seemingly unstoppable. Since the attack on the U.S. Capitol, his power has been rapidly disappearing, evaporating in a cloud of recriminations and condemnation.... He departs isolated and diminished, leaving behind a Capitol transformed into a war zone, a frayed body politic and a fractured Republican Party that has been ousted from power.... Marooned in the White House, Mr. Trump is facing the lowest job approval of his time in office, polling shows, and increasingly negative reviews for his post-election behavior. He plans to leave Washington hours before President-elect Joe Biden is sworn in, making him the first president since Andrew Johnson in 1869 to skip the inauguration of his successor. (Mr. Johnson was also impeached.)"
** The Trump Crime Family's Black Market -- in Pardons. Michael Schmidt & Ken Vogel of the New York Times: "As President Trump prepares to leave office in days, a lucrative market for pardons is coming to a head, with some of his allies collecting fees from wealthy felons or their associates to push the White House for clemency, according to documents and interviews with more than three dozen lobbyists and lawyers. The brisk market for pardons reflects the access peddling that has defined Mr. Trump's presidency as well as his unorthodox approach to exercising unchecked presidential clemency powers. Pardons and commutations are intended to show mercy to deserving recipients, but Mr. Trump has used many of them to reward personal or political allies.... One lobbyist, Brett Tolman, a former federal prosecutor who has been advising the White House on pardons and commutations, has monetized his clemency work, collecting tens of thousands of dollars, and possibly more, in recent weeks to lobby the White House for clemency for [his clients].... Mr. Trump's former personal lawyer John M. Dowd has marketed himself to convicted felons as someone who could secure pardons because of his close relationship with the president, accepting tens of thousands of dollars from a wealthy felon and ... and other potential clients.... John Kiriakou, a former C.I.A. officer convicted of illegally disclosing classified information..., was ... told ... Rudolph W. Giuliani could help him secure a pardon for $2 million. Mr. Kiriakou rejected the offer, but an associate ... alerted the F.B.I." ~~~
~~~ Here's what Rudy says he is doing -- when he's not working big grifts, we presume: ~~~
~~~ Jonathan Karl & Will Steakin of ABC News: "... Rudy Giuliani tells ABC News he's working as part of the president's defense team in his upcoming second impeachment trial -- and that he's prepared to argue that the president's claims of widespread voter fraud did not constitute incitement to violence because the widely-debunked claims are true.... A few hours later, Giuliani -- who led the president's efforts to overturn the 2020 election results -- was spotted at the White House. Giuliani's involvement in Trump's impeachment defense comes as many of the lawyers involved in the president's first impeachment, including White House counsel Pat Cipollone and his deputies and outside lawyers Jay Sekulow and Jane and Marty Raskin, do not plan to return for the second trial.... Giuliani dismissed the validity of the single article of impeachment accusing Trump of inciting violence against the government on the grounds that the president's rally speech did not incite the riot because there was a delay between the speech and the attack. 'Basically, if [incitement] is going to happen, it's got to happen right away,' he said. 'You'd have to have people running out, you'd have to have people running out of that frozen speech, right up to the Capitol...," Giuliani said." ~~~
~~~ Marie: Uh, Rudy, the people were "running right up to the Capitol" even before Trump finished speaking (NYT link). Looks as if Trump's "defense" will be a circus of lies.
Michelle Goldberg of the New York Times: "The siege of the Capitol wasn't a departure for Trump, it was an apotheosis. For years, he's been telling us he wouldn't accept an election loss. For years, he's been urging his followers to violence, refusing to condemn their violence, and insinuating that even greater violence was on the way. As he told Breitbart in 2019, in one of his characteristic threats, 'I have the tough people, but they don&'t play it tough -- until they go to a certain point, and then it would be very bad, very bad.'... Throughout his presidency, Republicans pretended not to hear what the president was saying.... The violent far right appears to have been emboldened by the experience of being treated as valued constituents.... Right-wing extremist activity usually abates during Republican administrations, when conservatives feel less existentially threatened. But Trump kept the far right's paranoia and sense of grievance at a constant boil, and gave them permission to act. The people at the Capitol who said they were there because the president wanted them to be weren't necessarily delusional."
Lauren Leatherby & Anjali Singhvi of the New York Times time out "critical moments in the Capitol siege": "From the Trump rally to the violent breach of the Capitol and its aftermath, here is a moment-by-moment look at some of the pivotal events on Jan. 6, when thousands of protesters flooded the Capitol grounds and many rioters came within steps of members of Congress, who were gathered to certify the presidential election results."
Evan Hill, et al., of the New York Times: "Rosanne Boyland, a 34-year-old Trump supporter from Georgia who died during the attack on the Capitol on Jan. 6, appears to have been killed in a crush of fellow rioters during their attempt to fight through a police line, according to videos reviewed by The Times. Though the videos have circulated widely, Ms. Boyland's presence in them had gone unnoticed until now, and the manner of her death had previously been unclear. The videos show her body on the ground just outside a door on the Capitol's west side that was the scene of some of the day's worst violence." Includes photographic evidence.
Kimberly Kindy, et al., of the Washington Post: "... police chiefs across the country are confronting the uncomfortable reality that members in their own ranks were among the mob that faced off against other law enforcement officers. At least 13 off-duty law enforcement officials are suspected of taking part in the riot, a tally that could grow as investigators continue to pore over footage and records to identify participants. Police leaders are turning in their own to the FBI and taking the striking step of reminding officers in their departments that criminal misconduct could push them off the force and behind bars.... It marks a notable break in the so-called 'blue wall of silence,' an aspect of police culture that encourages officers to turn a blind eye to misconduct by fellow officers.... That fellow police officers were the target of much of the mob's brutality is another important factor that may have prompted whistleblowing.... The revelation that officers participated in the chaos was the latest hit for law enforcement's reputation, coming on the heels of a year in which police violence spurred nationwide protests and activists called for cutting police funding."
Trump Made Me Do It. Rosalind Helderman, et al., of the Washington Post: "The accounts of people who said they were inspired by the president to take part in the melee inside the Capitol vividly show the impact of Trump's months-long attack on the integrity of the 2020 election and his exhortations to supporters to 'fight' the results. Some have said that they felt called to Washington by Trump and his false message that the election had been stolen, as well as by his efforts to pressure Congress and Vice President Pence to overturn the result. But others drew an even more direct link -- telling the FBI or news organizations that they headed to the Capitol on what they believed were direct orders from the president issued at a rally that day. While legal experts are split on whether Trump could face criminal liability for his role in the events of Jan. 6, testimony from rioters who felt directed to take part in illegal acts by his speech could inform a decision by prosecutors about whether to attempt to build a case. Short of that, the testimony from rioters is likely to be cited in Trump's upcoming impeachment trial in the Senate and could become evidence should people injured in the Capitol attack seek to file civil suits against Trump."
Heavy has more on Jenna Ryan, girl realtor/rioter, who thinks she merits a pardon for merely answering Trump's call on what she described as one of the best days of her life. Thanks to RAS for the link.
David Kirkpatrick, et al., of the New York Times: "Much is still unknown about the planning and financing of the storming of the Capitol, aiming to challenge Mr. Trump's electoral defeat. What is clear is that it was driven, in part, by a largely ad hoc network of low-budget agitators, including far-right militants, Christian conservatives and ardent adherents of the QAnon conspiracy theory.... And the sheer breadth of the movement ... suggests it may be far more difficult to confront than a single organization.... [There were] many grass-roots efforts to bring Trump supporters to the Capitol, often amid calls for revolution, if not outright violence.... A few prominent firebrands, an opaque pro-Trump nonprofit and at least one wealthy donor had campaigned for weeks to amplify the president's false claims about his defeat, stoking the anger of his supporters." MB: The article & accompanying photo captions call these wingnuts "conservatives." But conservatives don't aim to overthrow the government by violent means. Can you imagine David Brooks wielding a lead pipe as he stormed a federal building?
A Dramatic Effect of Dumping Trump. Elizabeth Dwoskin & Craig Timberg of the Washington Post: "Online misinformation about election fraud plunged 73 percent after several social media sites suspended President Trump and key allies last week, research firm Zignal Labs has found, underscoring the power of tech companies to limit the falsehoods poisoning public debate when they act aggressively. The new research by the San Francisco-based analytics firm reported that conversations about election fraud dropped from 2.5 million mentions to 688,000 mentions across several social media sites in the week after Trump was banned from Twitter. Election disinformation had for months been a major subject of online misinformation, beginning even before the Nov. 3 election and pushed heavily by Trump and his allies."
Bob Brigham of the Raw Story: "When controversial MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell visited the White House on Friday, a Washington Post reporter captured a photo of 'martial law' appearing on the notes he brought with him. Lindell said he was there to brief Trump on what he was missing out on after his lifetime suspension from Twitter. 'Following his meeting with President Trump on Friday, MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell said in a Facebook interview with Right Side Broadcasting News today that he's praying that the military presence in Washington is part of Trump's plan to retain power,' Tim Miller of The Bulwark reported Saturday. 'In Lindell's interview -- which has garnered hundreds of thousands of views on Facebook in just a few hours -- he recounts the details of his meeting with the president and rattles off a series of unintelligible conspiracies in a Minnesota lilt.' Lindell believes he has 'proof' of election fraud, pushing the debunked conspiracy theory that incited the fatal January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol." ~~~
~~~ Marie's Shopping Tip of the Day: It appears, according to a tweet & retweet embedded in Brigham's story, you can get a nice discount on a My Pillow product by entering the discount code "QANON." Really.
Tal Axelrod of the Hill: "Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said the Senate should consider removing Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) via the 14th Amendment over their objections last week to the Electoral College results. Speaking to PBS's 'Firing Line' on Friday night, Manchin said the Senate should explore the option after a violent mob, riled up by President Trump and convinced by Republicans such as Hawley and Cruz that the election was fraudulent, ransacked the Capitol in one of the darkest points in American democracy.... '... Ted's a very bright individual, and I get along fine with Ted, but what he did was totally outside of the realm of our responsibilities or our privileges.'"
Lachlan Markay, now of Axios: "The communications director for Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado, a firebrand Republican freshman who boasts about carrying a gun to work, has quit after less than two weeks on the job.... Ben Goldey's resignation cited last week's insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, which came amid efforts by Boebert and other Republican lawmakers to block certification of President-elect Joe Biden's Electoral College victory.... Goldey ... has a more establishment pedigree [than Boebert]. He was the press secretary at the Department of Interior until this year, and previously worked for ... Mitch McConnell.... Goldey's resignation underscores larger Republican divisions, particularly in the House, where ten GOP members ... voted to impeach Trump on Wednesday.... On the other side of the Capitol[,] Sen. Ted Cruz's communications director, Lauren Blair Bianchi, also resigned on Monday, reportedly over Cruz's role in the effort to deny certification for Biden."
Wow, this crowd has some fight in it.... I just rolled down from the Capitol building.... And I will tell you, the courage I see in this crowd is not represented on that hill.... But my friends, the Democrats, with all the fraud they have done in this election, the Republicans hiding and not fighting, they are trying to silence your voice.... But my friends, when I look out into this crowd, I can confidently say, this crowd has the voice of lions. There is a new Republican Party on the rise that will represent this country, that will go and fight in Washington D.C.... But my friends, we're not just doing this for Donald Trump, we are doing this for the Constitution. Our Constitution was violated. -- Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), speaking at the rally preceding the January 6 Capitol insurrection
Literally, I ... I ... I ... In hindsight, you know, I wish I could've ... uhh ... if I could, you know ... I probably would've ... obviously ... knowing what happened later in the day ... I wish I would've been like, 'Just so you know, we are peaceful protesters.' -- Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C), days later, defending his speech
Another Last-Minute Fast One. Ellen Nakashima of the Washington Post: "Acting defense secretary Christopher C. Miller ordered the director of the National Security Agency to install on Saturday a former GOP political operative [-- Michael Ellis, a Devin Nunes acolyte --] as the NSA's top lawyer [-- until now, a civil service job --], according to four individuals familiar with the matter.... Miller gave NSA Director Paul Nakasone until 6 p.m. Saturday to install Ellis in the job, according to several people who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the matter's sensitivity. The 6 p.m. deadline passed without Nakasone taking action.... Ellis's naming, made under pressure from the White House, drew criticism from national security legal experts. It 'appears to be an attempt to improperly politicize an important career position,' wrote Susan Hennessey, a former lawyer in the NSA Office of General Counsel, on Lawfare.... It was unclear Saturday evening what the Pentagon's next move would be." A CNN story is here.
Way Beyond the Beltway
Uganda. Abdi Dahir of the New York Times: "... after a bitter and bloody campaign marked by a lethal crackdown on the opposition, an internet blackout and accusations of vote tampering and rigging -- the president, Yoweri Museveni of Uganda, was declared victor of a sixth, five-year term in office. His rival, Bobi Wine, says the election was unfair, a contention backed by independent international observers. For the world, Uganda's election was a vivid demonstration of how autocrats use elections to cement their hold on power. For the country's younger generation, and throughout Africa, it was a sign of how intractable the old systems are. On Saturday, Mr. Wine was holed up in his house -- which was surrounded on Friday by Mr. Museveni's security forces -- and declaring that Mr. Museveni had 'fabricated' the election results." MB: Wow! Something like this could happen only in a shithole country, right?
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Reader Comments (11)
"Madison" - a few years ago that was THE most popular newborn girls' name. Hawthorne is about the right age. Hmmm.
Oops. Cawthorn.
If you read Madison Cawthorn's stats on Wickipedia, you would actually think you were reading about a 25 year old
donald trump (without the inheritance).
Info about Madison Cawthorn: https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2021/01/madison-cawthorn-capitol-insurrection-washington.html#comments.
HOT POCKETS:
With or without the Don and his Larry's, Mo's, and Curley's there will remain those hot pockets of "vengeance will be mine" folks who are calling for a Civil War. Listening to Biden's list of "to do's" makes me giddy––actual plans for getting us back on track with engineers who know a thing or two about running a country.
But back to those pockets: It appears that those frozen stick in the micro wave fast foods correspond to the above fire in the belly group; 762,000 pounds of Hot Pockets have been recalled for potential glass, and plastic contamination. Someone at the top is having the collywobbles this morning while many who devoured these cheesy delights are thinking of suing?
As far as imagination goes: Yes, it would be a leap to imagine David Brooks brandishing a two by four and crashing the Capitol but a lack of imagination gave us four years of unadulterated chaos and corruption.
Speaking of feckless frauds...this Cawthorn person takes the cake, the frosting, the cake stand, silverware and napkins. Well, maybe not the napkins. Uncivilized louts don’t use napkins, they wipe the crumbs and the drool off on their sleeves.
Cowardly walk backs and pusillanimous excuse making have become staples in the Age of Trump wherein pompous braggadocio is replaced by craven dissembling, and out and out lies. Oh, he never said what he said, but if he did, it was only a joke. The violent caterwauling, once the testicles retract and shrinkage sets in, turns to pablum puking blather as the toughies run away as fast as ever they can from their bomb throwing.
So we see zip-tie guy crying about how he was only looking for friendly Officer Krupke so’s he could give them back. Little miss Life Coach for Treason and Jesus sez she did nothing wrong, but just in case, could she have a pardon, pretty please? Then there’s all this jabberwocky about protecting the Constitution by treasonous wretches who use it like truck stop toilet paper.
At least have the courage of your convictions. One minute it’s “Hang the Democrats! Overthrow the government!” and the next it’s “Oh my...I didn’t actually mean that! Please! Believe me!”
And Fatty, who started the whole thing, crying about how phantom experts analyzed each syllable of his call to arms against the government and declared it pure as the driven snow. I think they meant yellow snow.
Weeping anal cysts, the lot of them.
Oh, and by the way, Cawthorn needs a course in remedial English to go along with courses in Civics 101 and American History. “Democrats with all the fraud they have done...” wouldn’t even make it in an ESL test. Idiot.
I was thinking this morning about all the ways Trump has stoked this insurrection over the past few months. The direct exhortations have received attention, but he did so in other ways, too. For instance, in October, Savannah Guthrie asked Trump (repeatedly) to disavow QAnon. Trump would have none of that. All he would says is, "I know nothing about QAnon.... I do know they are very much against pedophilia. They fight it very hard, but I know nothing about it." As Guthrie continued to press, Trump replied, "I'll tell you what I do know about: I know about Antifa and I know about the radical left. And I know how violent they are and how vicious they are. And I know how they're burning down cities run by Democrats, not run by Republicans."
Guthrie had described QAnon beliefs to Trump as "this theory that Democrats are a Satanic pedophile ring and that you are the savior of that." Any normal person would say, "Of course that's ridiculous. Democrats aren't pedophiles & I'm not vanquishing them to save children from their clutches." But not Trump. Instead, he more or less endorsed QAnon as a swell group of people who opposed pedophilia (and implied by his refusal to disavow the theory that maybe Democrats really are less a political party & more a vast, evil ring of pedophiles). What a hulking pile of ... stuff (it's Sunday).
This, of course, is akin to "good people on both sides," but even crazier. If you think there's no one worse than a confirmed racist & neo-Nazi sympathizer, I give you Donald Trump. Any every Republican who refuses to condemn him.
@Marie: Sorry but you can't give me donald trump, not today, not ever.
Walking back from the drugstore yesterday, I happened upon a woman (no, not Betsy) sitting on her steps hand feeding a squirrel. So I stopped to chat with her and her pet squirrel. The conversation got around to vaccinations so I told her that I'm scheduled for the first shot tomorrow and that she should call the county health department to get an appointment.
That set her off on a rant like you wouldn't believe. First she told me that her brother is a medical doctor in New York so he knows what's going on regarding the vaccines and Joe Biden.
After standing there with my mouth open for about 5 minutes I was able to ask her why she brought up Biden because he's been out of office for 4 years.
It seems her brother had told her about the vaccine reserves that weren't there that Biden had released to be used as first shots instead of second shots.
Again, it's me with the mouth open in disbelief.
I tried to explain that this happened on trump's watch and involved the head of HHS to absolutely no avail.
She got up and said it's getting too cold out here.
I feared she might throw the squirrel at me so made a hasty retreat.
You just can't get through to some people, ever.
The Times, in the story about Trump pardons for sale, linked above, makes sure to point out that, well, both sides do it. They provide a link to a story about Clinton pardons. But that was nothing like what’s going on now. But never mind, “both sides” bullshit will never die. Trying to fabricate false equivalencies where Trump is concerned is a ridiculous enterprise. It’s like saying “Both sides break the law”. But Democrats Jay walking does not equate to Trump fomenting a murderous, treasonous riot. But oh well, both sides.
Internet out from last week's windstorm where we were last night, so you might think of this as the Sermon delivered at a late morning (WA time) Sunday service.
"I can still remember sitting in the cramped, flimsy car with a man I dreaded seeing. The small back seat piled with newspapers, we drove around town in his Renault Dauphine, stopping one block after the next, where he would send me out to knock on strangers’ doors to sell subscriptions to the Seattle newspaper I delivered.
Shy seventh grader that I was, I hated that door-knocking so much that every time he picked me up down at City Hall, my heart sank.
After a few years, the man in the Dauphine disappeared from my life, but the car’s advertising slogan still sticks in my memory. “Forty million Frenchman can’t be wrong.” Turned out that when it came to that underpowered deathtrap, they could. The slogan might have sold Americans a few crummy French cars, but when reality set in, the Dauphine quickly departed the American scene.
The other day Bill Bruch, Skagit County Republican Chair, brought those days and that car to mind when he was reported to have said he’d consider changing his opinion about the thoroughly debunked claims of election fraud “if a majority of the 72.4 million people who voted for Trump changed their minds as well.”
That remark neatly sums up much of today’s Republican Party. If others share your beliefs, true or not, having plenty of company is enough. That’s the case for millions of Republicans who, contrary to all evidence, believe the presidential election was rigged and that Antifa bullies, not Trump loyalists, just ravaged our Capitol.
Some unsupported beliefs are relatively harmless, like those of the many who take comfort in believing guardian angels watch over them (abcnews.com.)
But those who accept Trump’s election lies seem bent on buying a very dangerous car and insisting the entire nation ride in it."
(Ducked the temptation to follow the "dangerous car" in the sentence above with "the new and untested autocratic transmission....")
This is a few days old, but, still, nice to know. The MAGAman who beat the uniformed police officer with the American flag (" I thought he was antifa ...") has been arrested.
It is bad enough that those chuckleheads like to wear the flag for underwear, bathing suits, hats, capes, truck decorations, beach blankets and diapers. Etc.
But to beat a cop with it in the House? Extremely poor flag etiquette and bad taste.
In addition to being murderous thugs and idiots, thse people have no couth.
The good news? They'll get to see the flag every day in court and prison.
https://people.com/crime/man-seen-video-beating-police-officer-american-flag-arrested/