;)
The Conversation -- November 13, 2023
~~~ Abbie VanSickle & Adam Liptak of the New York Times: "The Supreme Court announced on Monday that it had issued an ethics code [link fixed] for the justices after a series of revelations about undisclosed property deals and gifts intensified pressure on the court to adopt one. In a statement by the court, the justices said they had adopted the code of conduct 'to set out succinctly and gather in one place the ethics rules and principles that guide the conduct of the members of the court.'... Left unclear was how the code will be enforced." Emphasis added.
~~~ So here's the ethics code, via the Court.
Turns out the New York Times is liveblogging Donnie Jr.'s testimony. No doubt it's all very interesting. Let's see (in descending order, except for the overview at top):
Jonah Bromwich & Kate Christobek: "Donald Trump Jr. ... began testifying again Monday in the civil fraud case against his father and the family business, giving expansive answers to questions from his own lawyer about the Trump Organization. In a return appearance in a proceeding that has featured a parade of Trumps on the witness stand, Mr. Trump was relaxed as he talked up the family business, calling his father a 'visionary' and praising amenities including the Central Park view from Trump Tower and the vaults inside the company's 40 Wall Street building.... [Judge Arthur Engoron] brushed aside objections from lawyers for the state, who rested their case last week. 'Let him go ahead and talk about how great the Trump Organization is,' he said."
Bromwich: Junior says the Trump Org is "'much more of a meritocracy.' He and his two siblings all eventually became executive vice presidents." [MB: Because, obviously, the kids are meritorious.]
Christobek: "It's hard to state how different the last hour has been compared with the first six weeks of this trial. Until this morning, witnesses have typically been shown spreadsheets, emails or financial statements. Today, Donald Trump Jr. has been shown dozens of pictures of Trump luxury properties and monologued at length about them. The judge, Arthur F. Engoron, is patient with this, perhaps welcoming the change of pace."
Christobek: "The attorney general's lawyers have often appeared frustrated during this trial, but this morning's session may take the cake. Several have, at times, cradled their heads in their hands, or sat back with their arms crossed."
Bromwich: "Donald Trump Jr. is talking about the licensing deal for a hotel in Waikiki, Hawaii, and how successful it was. This month, it was announced that the hotel will no longer be linked with the Trump name. It's becoming a Hilton."
Bromwich: "Donald Trump Jr. is asked what he envisions as the future of the Trump Organization. Interestingly, he makes no reference to this case but rather talks about the election next November as the determining factor, suggesting that if his father wins, the company's development may be on hold for a little while and 'sued into oblivion for the foreseeable future.'"
Bromwich: "With that, the direct examination is over. Colleen Faherty, the lawyer from the attorney general's office who questioned Donald Trump Jr. on his first appearance, will cross examine him now."
Bromwich: "Faherty ... starts right in on some of the properties he's described glowingly, noting some problem with them, including that 40 Wall Street's occupancy rate has dropped significantly and that the Waikiki hotel is abandoning the Trump brand to become a Hilton."
Bromwich: "... Faherty ... is already done. The cross-examination took less than 5 minutes and there will be no re-direct. Donald Trump Jr. is done for the day and he leaves the courtroom. We should get another witness momentarily."
Bromwich: "The next witness is Sheri Dillon, who worked as a lawyer for ... Donald J. Trump and some of his companies. Dillon helped guide Trump when he took the White House as he tried to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest, and announced he was putting his sons in charge of his company.... Dillon is testifying about the tax benefits of conservation easements, and that's where we'll leave it for the day."
Michael Balsamo of the AP: "Secret Service agents protecting President Joe Biden's granddaughter opened fire after three people tried to break into an unmarked Secret Service vehicle in the nation's capital, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The agents, assigned to protect Naomi Biden, were out with her in the Georgetown neighborhood late Sunday night when they saw the three people breaking a window of the parked and unoccupied SUV, the official said.... One of the agents opened fire, but n one was struck by the gunfire, the Secret Service said in a statement. The three people were seen fleeing in a red car, and the Secret Service said it put out a regional bulletin to Metropolitan Police to be on the lookout for it." MB: Wait a minute. There was more than one agent on the scene and the best description they could come up with was "red car"? You might think one of them would consider getting the plate number. Anyhow, BOLO for a red car. Ooh, one just passed my front yard. Should I call it in?
Virginia Elections. Luke Broadwater of the New York Times: "Representative Abigail Spanberger, a prominent Virginia Democrat who was repeatedly able to win in a conservative-leaning district, announced on Monday that she would run for governor in 2025, leaving open a competitive seat that could be crucial to her party's efforts to win back control of the House next year. Ms. Spanberger, 44, is seen as among the strongest Democratic contenders to succeed Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican who is term-limited. Her decision not to seek re-election to Congress leaves House Democrats scrambling to hold a seat that is regularly in play for both parties." ~~~
~~~ MEANWHILE. Arizona Congressional Race. Rebecca Falconer of Axios: "Jacob Chansley, who rose to notoriety as the 'QAnon Shaman' following the Jan. 6 U.S. Capitol riot, plans to run for Congress as a Libertarian candidate in the 2024 general election.... Chansley was sentenced in November 2021 to 41 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to a felony charge of obstructing an official proceeding in relation to the Capitol attack. His lawyers said during court proceedings that he had disavowed both QAnon conspiracy theories and former President Trump. Chansley was released to a Phoenix halfway house last March.... The U.S. Constitution does not bar convicted felons from holding federal office."
Shira Rubin, et al., of the Washington Post: "The standoff between Israeli troops and the Hamas militants who Israel maintains are taking cover in buildings designated for humanitarian purposes deepened Monday, as the death toll soared and the most vulnerable Gazans continued to get caught in the crossfire. These kinds of buildings, including hospitals, schools, mosques and those belonging to aid groups or international organizations, have been increasingly in the crossfire during Israel's ground invasion of Gaza, focusing on Hamas infrastructure in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. In the past three days, at least 32 people, including three children from the intensive care unit, have died in al-Shifa, Gaza's largest hospital, which is surrounded by Israeli troops, Medhat Abbas, spokesman for the Gaza Health Ministry, said Monday."
Sam Roberts & Maggie Haberman of the New York Times: "Maryanne Trump Barry, a former federal judge who was an older sister of Donald J. Trump and served as both his protector and critic throughout their lives, has died. She was 86. She died at her home on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, according to three people familiar with the matter. Two of them said the police were called to the home early Monday morning.... Judge Barry had been on the federal bench in New Jersey, a position that Mr. Trump's fixer, the lawyer Roy M. Cohn, was credited with helping her attain during President Ronald Reagan's tenure in the 1980s. She retired in 2019 after she became the focus of a court investigation stemming from an investigation by The New York Times into the Trump family's tax practices."
~~~~~~~~~~
Dan Lamothe & Kyle Rempfer of the Washington Post: "The Pentagon on Sunday announced a new round of airstrikes on Iranian facilities in Syria that officials said were linked to dozens of recent attacks targeting U.S. troops there and in neighboring Iraq, this time causing an undetermined number of fatalities among proxy fighters backed by Tehran. The operation marked a significant escalation by the Biden administration, which has sought to deter the sharp rise in violence against American forces in the Middle East without provoking a broader regional conflict as tensions flare over the war in Gaza. In a statement, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said that these latest strikes had been carried out in eastern Syria on facilities used by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and groups affiliated with it. They hit a training facility near the city of [Bukamal] and a 'safe house' near Mayadin, he said.”
Jacob Bogage & Jeff Stein of the Washington Post: "With less than a week before federal spending laws expire, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) on Saturday unveiled a novel and uncertain plan to temporarily extend funding -- but it's already been rejected by the Senate and White House, increasing the odds of a government shutdown. Johnson's proposed stopgap funding bill, called a continuing resolution or 'CR,' would leave funds for different federal agencies to expire at different times, according to three people familiar with the House leader's plans, requiring Congress to confront multiple deadlines in the coming months or risk repeated partial government shutdowns.... The two-tiered proposal was originally favored by the far-right House Freedom Caucus, whose views often influence Johnson. But key members of that group have more recently been skeptical of the plan because it lacks spending cuts.... Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, on Friday called the staggered funding plan 'the craziest, stupidest thing I've ever heard of.'"
I Told You He Was Crazy. Quinn Scanlan & Madison Burinsky of ABC News: "... Donald Trump came to believe a fringe conspiracy theory that he could be reinstated long after leaving office and before the next election, a new book by ABC's 'This Week' co-anchor Jonathan Karl reveals.... The idea was not based in law and was clearly unconstitutional, but it was supported by some of Trump's most devout followers, MyPillow CEO Michael Lindell chief among them. Lindell had claimed that Trump would be able to move back into the White House on Aug. 13, 2021.... Karl learned while reporting for his new book that Trump was talking in private a lot about the baseless notion of being reinstated -- so much so that some of his advisers were concerned he actually believed he could somehow force Biden out of the White House before the next election."
Kyle Cheney reports an interesting account of a meeting among Jack Smith & other prosecutors and Donald Trump's attorneys, based on an account by Jonathan Karl in his newest book, Tired of Winning. The anecdote at the end, about Trump's sending a factotum, John McEntee, to the Pentagon to shut up the Army's top guys who had said the military would play no role in determining the results of the 2020 election because Trump was contemplating have the military go around the country collecting voting machines. According to Karl, Acting Defense Secretary "Chris Miller spoke to both of them and anticipates no more statements coming out," read McEntee's note, which was included in a massive batch of documents posted publicly by the select committee. "If another happens, he will fire them." "Trump, according to Karl, tore up the note after reading it. And the version obtained by the select committee was clearly reconstructed from several torn pieces by aides who delivered the repaired missive to the National Archives."
Jonah Bromwich of the New York Times: "Donald Trump Jr. ... will testify Monday in his father's civil fraud trial.... He is being called by defense lawyers as they begin their arguments in the trial, which began five weeks ago and could last until mid-December.... In his first appearance, on Nov. 1, Donald Trump Jr. testified after being called by prosecutors that he had no direct involvement in annual financial statements that his family's business gave banks and insurers, despite language in the statements suggesting that he was partially responsible for them."
Presidential Race 2024
Maggie Haberman & Shane Goldmacher of the New York Times: "Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, who tried carving out a space in the Republican presidential field with a hopeful message built on his life story -- the son of a single mother, he rose from poverty to become the only Black Republican in the Senate -- announced on Sunday that he was suspending his campaign.... A number of staff members learned that the campaign was being suspended from watching television, three people familiar with the matter said.Mr. Scott had canceled events in Iowa over the weekend, with his campaign saying he had the flu.... Mr. Scott said he had no intention of endorsing another candidate in the Republican primary race." MB: Big mistake, Tim. The Absolute Ruler expects fealty. The AP's report is here.
In honor of our great Veterans on Veteran's Day, we pledge to you that we will root out the Communists, Marxists, Fascists, and Radical Left Thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our Country, lie, steal, and cheat on Elections, and will do anything possible, whether legally or illegally, to destroy America, and the American Dream. The threat from outside forces is far less sinister, dangerous, and grave, than the threat from within. Despite the hatred and anger of the Radical Left Lunatics who want to destroy our Country, we will MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! -- Donald Trump, in a supposed Veterans Day message ~~~
~~~ A paragraph for readers who can't handle the subtle nuances of Mein Kampf. -- Journalism Prof. Bill Grueskin
... calling people 'vermin' was used effectively by Hitler and Mussolini to dehumanize people and encourage their followers to engage in violence. -- Historian Ruth Ben-Ghiat
Please tell us if this reminds you of any earlier historical figure. -- Historian Michael Beschloss
The use of 'vermin' ... appears in history in chiefly in one context, and one context only.... [It is] straight-up Nazi talk, in a way [Trump has] never done quite before. -- Michael Tomasky of the New Republic
This vermin must be destroyed. The Jews are our sworn enemies, and at the end of this year there will not be a Jew left in Germany. -- Adolf Hitler, 1939
I apologize for underplaying this yesterday. Once again, argumentum ad Hitlerum is not a logical fallacy. -- Marie Burns ~~~
~~~ Marianne Levine of the Washington Post: "... Donald Trump denigrated his domestic opponents and critics during a Veterans Day speech Saturday, calling those on the other side of the aisle 'vermin' and suggesting that they pose a greater threat to the United States than countries such as Russia, China or North Korea. That language is drawing rebuke from historians, who compared it to that of authoritarian leaders.... Trump's use of the word 'vermin' both in his speech [in Claremont, N.H.,] and in a Truth Social post on Saturday drew particular backlash." ~~~
~~~ Olafimihan Oshin of the Hill: "Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) on Sunday compared a hypothetical second Trump White House term to that of President Vladimir Putin's Russia and other authoritarian leaders in response to Trump's veiled threats that he would go after his political opponents if reelected. 'Well, the role of the government in his view is to advance his political fortunes and destroy his political enemies. So what would a second term look like? It would look a lot like Vladimir Putin in Russia. It would look a lot like [Prime Minister Viktor Orban] in Hungary -- illiberal democracy, meaning democracy without rights, or liberties, or respect for the due process, the system, the rule of law,' Raskin said on MSNBC's 'Inside with Jen Psaki.'" ~~~
~~~ Meanwhile, Jill Colvin of the AP writes a report outlining Trump's plans for a second administration that, IMO, is unnaturally calm in its tone, despite the fascistic nature of Trump's plans: "A mass deportation operation. A new Muslim ban. Tariffs on all imported goods and 'freedom cities' built on federal land.... [Trump's] ideas, and even the issues he focuses on most, are wildly different from President Joe Biden's proposals. If implemented, Trump's plans would represent a dramatic government overhaul arguably more consequential than that of his first term." MB: This is a bit like saying Hitler plans to remove civil liberties and his political opposition by violent means, but his Weimer opponents have different ideas. Crank it up, Jill.
~~~ Update. To make matters worse, again IMO, the AP seems to have decided to both-sides their report of Trump's and Biden's "visions." So AP editors assigned Chris Megerian to write about President Biden's plans for a second administration, as if there was some equivalency in Trump's plans to destroy liberal democracy and Biden's plans to, you know, cut some prescription drug costs. I despair.
Annals of "Journalism," Ctd. Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post: "It's past time to reevaluate political coverage. Polling fixation is unenlightening if not misleading.... Many media outlets after Jan. 6, 2021, vowed to focus more on threats to democracy. (Occasionally, they do; but it doesn't dominate coverage, as polling does). However, most are stuck in overhyped horse-race coverage and endless chatter over meaningless Republican debates." Thanks to Patrick for the link.
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New York. William Rashbaum, et al., of the New York Times: "Federal authorities are investigating whether Mayor Eric Adams, weeks before his election two years ago, pressured New York Fire Department officials to sign off on the Turkish government's new high-rise consulate in Manhattan despite safety concerns with the building, three people with knowledge of the matter said. After winning the Democratic mayoral primary in July, Mr. Adams contacted then-Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro in late summer 2021 and urged him to allow the Turkish government to occupy the building at least on a temporary basis. The building had yet to open because fire officials had cited safety issues and declined to sign off on its occupancy, the people said. The unusual intervention by Mr. Adams is being examined as part of a broader public corruption investigation by the F.B.I. and federal prosecutors in Manhattan that led to the seizure of the mayor's electronic devices by federal agents early last week...."
~~~~~~~~~~
Israel/Palestine. The Washington Post's live updates of developments Monday in the Israel/Hamas war are here: "Gaza's health-care and communications infrastructure is collapsing under the strain of intense fighting. The World Health Organization's director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said Sunday that Gaza's largest hospital, al-Shifa, it 'is not functioning as a hospital anymore' after days without power, water or reliable internet and 'constant gunfire and bombings in the area.' Its second-largest hospital, al-Quds, is out of service because of power outages and fuel shortages, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said. Palestinian officials predict communications and internet in the enclave will shut down completely this week if it does not receive fuel and after significant infrastructure damage from Israeli strikes. Israel's military denied striking al-Shifa Hospital or targeting civilians." ~~~
~~~ The New York Times' live updates for Monday are here. CNN's live updates are here.
France. Sylvie Corbet & Barbara Surk of the AP: "More than 180,000 people across France, including 100,000 in Paris, marched peacefully on Sunday to protest against rising antisemitism in the wake of Israel's ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza. Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, representatives of several parties on the left, conservatives and centrists of President Emmanuel Macron's party as well as far-right leader Marine Le Pen attended Sunday's march in the French capital amid tight security. Macron did not attend, but expressed his support for the protest and called on citizens to rise up against 'the unbearable resurgence of unbridled antisemitism.'"
U.D. Karla Adam of the Washington Post:"In a major shake-up of his top leadership team Monday, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak appointed the former prime minister David Cameron as foreign secretary and fired Suella Braverman, his prominent home secretary. Cameron, who served as prime minister from 2010 to 2016, will take over from James Cleverly, who was appointed as the new home secretary, a position that oversees domestic security, law enforcement and immigration. Cleverly is taking over from Braverman, who is out of a job following criticism that she stoked tensions by saying police sympathized with pro-Palestinian protesters."
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Reader Comments (22)
The Both Siderism will only get worse as the campaign year progresses. Trump and his treasonous horde are accorded respect they in no way deserve. Biden, on the other hand, has his every minor slip and the occasional jumbled word splashed across front pages and the top of nightly news lead-ins as if he’s on the way to the home.
It’s like over here is little Joe, building a house with his Lincoln Logs, but…oops, he only added three windows. “There should be four!” They sniff. Across the street we have little Donnie. He has Lincoln Logs too, but he set them on fire and with the remaining pieces, is threatening to kill the cat. “Donnie promises to have the best Lincoln Log building ever!” says the news lady, as little Donnie is trying to stick his hand up her skirt.
But both sides are pretty much equal. Oh, except for that window. Tut-tut.
The Lincoln Logs. "People don't remember, nobody ever heard of it till I came along, nobody remembered it for a long time or they didn't use it at least, I use it all the time: Abraham Lincoln was a Republican." -- Donald Trump, ca. 2020
Today's Wapo paper has the story of DiJiT vermin below the fold on A2. The headline says DiJiT "echoes" Hitler and Mussolini. Progress?
Yes, one does wonder who could possibly think the "visions" offered by Biden and the Pretender are equivalent...since they are entire universes of meaning and consequence apart.
Maybe it's the fundamental forces at work in a capitalist society: gravity and inertia.
"Inertia" references the horserace trope the media cannot seem to shed. There has to be a contest of some kind and if the teams are not evenly matched, interest wanes. Who wants to pay attention to a game whose outcome is pre-determined? Or buy a paper or watch a station or...that persists in reporting on a race that is no race at all?
And the "gravity?" The pull of money. The media is dependent on its advertisers, who don't want their dollars and products associated with anything that might be considered "radical." Reports that tarnish an entire party, that dismiss it as a serious contender and instead portray it as a serious danger to the nation would pull the media and its audience out of their middle of the road comfort zone with unpredictable and therefore frightening consequences.
Gravity and inertia have been around for a long time, and are habits apparently very hard to break.
At first I thought the Veteran's Day quote was from Joseph McCarthy,
but then it didn't mention The Gays, just the Communists and
Liberals, etc.
Then there's donald's old friend Erik Prince who goes on trial Thursday
in Austria for violating the War Materials Act. Seems he and his
cohorts transformed some civilian aircraft into combat aircraft and sold
them to countries such as Bulgaria.
Violations of that act can get you up to 3 years in prison. Can donald
pardon an old friend if he's prisoned in Austria? Bet he'll try.
Thoughts and prayers (from sister Betsy DeVos).
https://www.profil.at/investigativ/trump-vertrauter-erik-prince-commende-woche-in-oestereich-vor-gericht/402665051
This week we get to see what’s happening under the big top of the Trumpy Family Burn ‘em and Bailout Circus in NYC. The Trumpy four ring legal circus will roll out the book jugglers and fiscal clowns as the defense makes its (*ahem*) case, as it were.
The decision has already been made. They’re a bunch of crooks. Fatty and El Spawno Stupido will try to hold on to their rat infested company and we will hear, as the above article maintains, Eric the Stupid claim that all financial filings were legit. This will be an interesting ploy since every member of the Trump El Spawno Stupido clan has declared total ignorance of the financial end of their empire*. “We don’t know nuthin’” they all whined. But now Eric’s going to assure everyone that he’s certain everything was fine? It’s like someone who can’t read looking at a jumble of magnetic letters on the fridge and declaring it to be a quote from Shakespeare.
Over and above all that, as we get closer to the event horizon for Trump Co. absorption into the black hole of corporate Armageddon, the pearl clutchers are ready to lecture us (and Judge Engoron) that there is no way the Trump real estate empire can be guillotined. “Oh no! They can’t do that!”
Yes. They can, and they should.
Look, plenty of companies much bigger, richer, and far more influential than Fatty’s penny ante operation have been folded, spindled, and mutilated. Think of Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns, Enron, which had assets of over $60 billion.
The Trump Crime Family must be given the gas.
After the defense rests, we’ll see. I’ve got my popcorn and cotton candy! Send in the clowns!
*Favorite takedown from last week’s lie fest: Eric the Stupid claimed not to know anything about financials.”I’m in the concrete and construction end of the business” he bragged. To which Jimmy Kimmel (I think it was Kimmel) replied “Eric Trump knows about as much about concrete as the construction worker guy in the Village People”.
Correction: That should be "Los Spawnos Stupidos." Dumb and Dumber to me.
Burn 'em and Bailout Circus? Great!
Or how about "Los aparecer estupido (male) estupida (female)."
During the next Trump administration, immigration will be limited to Good Germans.
Marie,
Thanks for that reminder of the time Trump found out Lincoln was a Republican. It’s beyond infuriating how that fat fuck and others in his party try, whenever their racism boils over, to haul out the Lincoln connection. “We can’t be white supremacists! See? We’ve got Lincoln. Now fuck off.”
But Lincoln fought a war against white supremacists and traitors, and today the Republican Party is the party of white supremacists and traitors. There is zero resemblance between the party of Lincoln and the party of Trump. It’s like saying here’s two guys, they both use paint; one guy is Vincent Van Gogh, the other spray paints swastikas on Jewish headstones. Same, right? Both very good painters.
And the fact is, Abraham Lincoln couldn’t get elected dog catcher running as a Republican today. And never mind his politics, his command of vocabulary alone would rule him out. “Mystic chords of memory? What kinda shit is that?”
And don’t forget, most of these people glomming on to Honest Abe are white supremacist, gun loving traitors.
Lincoln was murdered by a white supremacist traitor. With a gun.
I guess Fatty hasn’t learned about John Wilkes Booth yet. Very stable genius must have its limitations.
I found this pretty amusing. https://www.newsweek.com/evangelicals-rejecting-jesus-teachings-liberal-talking-points-pastor-1818706. We're following Jesus, but he's going the wrong way!
What the rubes don't understand is that the "Radical Left Thugs" includes anyone who so much as suggests that the Dear Leader used the wrong fork for his salad at dinner. Well, OK, he wouldn't eat salad, but you get the idea.
Just ask Michael Cohen, Bill Barr, or any number of sycophants who followed the DL until they reclaimed the tiniest morsel of a moral compass.
I guess we will see if the 14th Amendment's insurrectionist clause applies to anyone other than those who literally fought in the original Civil War now that the Qanon Shaman is running for office. Will attacking Congress while it was in session to certify the election and terrorizing it's members be enough to disqualification Chansley? Probably not with our right wing courts.
Was that fleeing car MAGA red or Commie red?
Breaking news! Or maybe broken news…
Supreme Court sez maybe, sort of, I guess… to a code of ethics for that body.
No word on what exactly will be required of lying cheats like Thomas and Alito, but back door investigations based on leaks about early talks suggest that Justices will agree to pinky swear not to do any more unethical shit and then lie about it.
Little Johnny, when asked what sort of enforcement regimens might be in place suggested bed without supper two nights in a row and no HBO in the offending judge’s office for three hours a day between 2 and 5 AM for a solid week.
Look out, kids! That sounds SERIOUS!
RAS: Chansley will not be DQ'd because of the 14th Amendment, which bars people who had previously taken the oath to defend the Constitution and then broke that oath by insurrection.
He will, of course, be barred by the voters because of poor fashion choices.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP_I63kfg2g
Wait…according to Junior, the Trump organization is a meritocracy?
Two questions: who told him that word, and if that’s true, how in the holy hell did Cokehead Junior and Stupid Eric get jobs there? Just a few days ago they claimed they didn’t know shit about financials and just signed whatever was put in front of them, like this guy.
Okay, I don’t want to alarm anyone, but just for the heck of it, I looked up “pinky swear” to see where it came from (apparently, in Japan, if you pinky swear and don’t follow through, you have to cut your finger off…a bit harsh, in’it?).
So, you know how when you Google something you’ll often see a long list of questions on the topic generated by an algorithm based on frequent questions asked about it online?
Well here’s a doozy:
“Is a pinky swear legally binding?”
Um…I’m really hoping this is from three thousand five year olds and not registered voters. If so, you know who they’re voting for.
Akhilleus,
Have frequently read that "meritocracy" has caused all our problems.
Alway thought the hurried arguments in meritocracy's disfavor were unconvincing, if only because they were too one-dimensional. There are many good things to be said about sorting people according to their merit, I'd think, but I also see some cons.
But now, after Junior's statement, I'm moving in the direction of the cons.
That is, unless some reach their high position or office on the basis of something other than their merit....
I didn't see where Ginni Thomas signed the ethics code.
BTW, Lincoln was a Republican, and George Wallace was a Democrat.
Jack,
But Jesus wouldn't have been such a weenie if he'd had an AR-15.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/11/13/us/social-gospel-movement-uaw-strike-blake-cec/index.html
The "weak" Jesus making a return,,, on the picket lines.