US politics: Trumpenslammer

[A Horse Named Stranger]

14 minutes ago, Maithanet said:

I don't think the democratic field is weak.  Whitmer and Warnock in particular seem like very promising candidates. 

Hey what about RFK Jr.?

J/k. But don't forget Newsom. He also looks good on paper at least.

So there are a few Democrats who could make up a viable field.

[Maithanet]

4 minutes ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Hey what about RFK Jr.?

J/k. But don't forget Newsom. He also looks good on paper at least.

So there are a few Democrats who could make up a viable field.

How many do you need?  I would much rather have 2-3 really promising candidates than a clown car of 20 mediocre senators. 

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

15 minutes ago, Maithanet said:

I don't think the democratic field is weak.  Whitmer and Warnock in particular seem like very promising candidates. 

Have to disagree. Whitmer has the smallest chances and Warnock's are only slightly better. There's a lack of dynamic leadership unless you look to the younger players and none of them are ready.

[Zorral]

Co-conspirator 6, and free speech vs. fraudulent conspiracy:

August 2, 2023
HEATHER COX RICHARDSON
AUG 3

https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/august-2-2023?

Quote

 

... An email sent by Co-Conspirator 6, the political consultant, matches one sent from Boris Epshteyn to Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani, suggesting that Epshteyn is Co-Conspirator 6. The Russian-born Epshteyn has been with Trump’s political organization since 2016 and was involved in organizing the slates of false electors in 2020. Along with political consultant Steve Bannon, Epshteyn created a cryptocurrency called “$FJB, which officially stands for “Freedom. Jobs. Business.” but which they marketed to Trump loyalists as “F*ck Joe Biden.” By February 2023, Nikki McCann Ramirez reported in Rolling Stone that the currency had lost 95% of its value. ....

. . . rump’s former attorney general William Barr dismissed the idea that the indictment is an attack on Trump’s First Amendment rights. Barr told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins: “As the indictment says, they're not attacking his First Amendment right. He can say whatever he wants. He can even lie. He can even tell people that the election was stolen when he knew better. But that does not protect you from entering into a conspiracy. All conspiracies involve speech. And all fraud involves speech. Free speech doesn't give you the right to engage in a fraudulent conspiracy.” ....

 

Somehow I missed this yesterday, which evidently was no loss to miss:

Quote

.... Rudy Giuliani has his own troubles in the news today [yesterday], unrelated to the attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election. His former assistant Noelle Dunphy is suing him for sexual harassment and abuse, and new transcripts filed in the New York Supreme Court of Giuliani’s own words reveal disturbing fantasies of sexual domination that are unlikely to help his reputation. (Historian Kevin Kruse retweeted part of the transcript with the words, “Goodbye, lunch.”)  ....

This is part of the vortex of shyte They've unleased that has now downgraded the US credit rating for only the second time in history.  Their shyte costs money -- and we pay, not Them.

Quote

 

.... This chaos in the country’s political leaders comes with a financial cost. According to Fitch Ratings Inc., a credit-rating agency, the national instability caused by “a steady deterioration in standards of governance over the last 20 years” has damaged confidence in the country’s fiscal management. Yesterday it downgraded the United States of America’s long-term credit rating for the second time in U.S. history. 

Fitch cited “repeated debt-limit political standoffs and last-minute resolutions,” “a complex budgeting process,” and “several economic shocks as well as tax cuts and new spending initiatives” for its downgrade. The New York Times warned that the downgrade is “another sign that Wall Street is worried about political chaos, including brinkmanship over the debt limit that is becoming entrenched in Washington.”

The timing of the downgrade made little sense economically, as U.S. economic growth is strong enough that the Bank of America today walked back earlier warnings of a recession. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen noted that the key factors on which Fitch based its downgrade had started in 2018 and called the downgrade “arbitrary.” The editorial board of the Washington Post  called the timing “bizarre.” But the timing makes more sense in the context of the fact that House Republicans could not pass 11 of 12 necessary appropriations bills before leaving for their August recess. ...

 

 

[Zorral]

He's scheduled to be arrested and arraigned this afternoon.  I like those words when used about defendant!  Do you think the court house workers will weep copiously for him today as they did when arrested and arraigned for the E.Jean Carroll case? Though he will be fingerprinted the staff won't be taking a new mugshot.

Media in a frenzy to get Biden to say Something Anything about this event.  He continues to refuse to comment at all, as usual.  If it were the other way around you know defendant would be shooting off his mouth and fat digits every second of the day and night.

Edited August 3, 2023 by Zorral

[Zorral]

I continue bemused that the defendant's defense is determinedly running its defense on freedom of speech when that is irrelevant to the charges which are all about criminal conspiracy to defraud and obstruct. Do these great and wise constitutional lawyers not know what these words meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen?  Sheesh, even Roger Stone does.

So the prosecution case is prosecuting the crimes of conspiracy to defraud and obstruct while the defense case is about free speech.  Parallel but not in the same [legal] universe, because the only way this works is to declare criminal acts to be 'free speech' and thus not prosecutable.

Does anyone else find this ... weird?

 

Edited August 3, 2023 by Zorral

[Kalbear]

22 minutes ago, Zorral said:

I continue bemused that the defendant's defense is determinedly running its defense on freedom of speech when that is irrelevant to the charges which are all about criminal conspiracy to defraud and obstruct. Do these great and wise constitutional lawyers not know what these words meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen?  Sheesh, even Roger Stone does.

Doesn't matter, this is the defense for the general public, not for the court.

22 minutes ago, Zorral said:

So the prosecution case is prosecuting the crimes of conspiracy to defraud and obstruct while the defense case is about free speech.  Parallel but not in the same [legal] universe, because the only way this works is to declare criminal acts to be 'free speech' and thus not prosecutable.

Does anyone else find this ... weird?

Not really, because they don't care about things like truth; all they care about is ensuring their base is sufficiently enraged. 

[Varysblackfyre321]

28 minutes ago, Kalnak the Magnificent said:

Not really, because they don't care about things like truth; all they care about is ensuring their base is sufficiently enraged. 

They’re fundamentally authoritarian and have based their identity around trump.

He could literally perform an abortion in Alabama and not lose anyone’s support.

[Mindwalker]

Will we get a mug shot this time?

[Fragile Bird]

4 minutes ago, Mindwalker said:

Will we get a mug shot this time?

No. Apparently mug shots are for identifying criminals if they go on the lam, and Trump has a very well known face, so no mug shot is needed.

[Zorral]

24 minutes ago, Mindwalker said:

Will we get a mug shot this time?

As I posted above, there won't be mug shots for this one, as they have 'shot's already.  But he will be fingerprinted again.

However, Georgia says there will be new ones along with the fingerprinting.

[Jaxom 1974]

Say what you will...I think Biden has a pretty decent corp of social media folks working for him, and he's not afraid to lean into the process...

[Gaston de Foix]

5 hours ago, A Horse Named Stranger said:

Hey what about RFK Jr.?

J/k. But don't forget Newsom. He also looks good on paper at least.

So there are a few Democrats who could make up a viable field.

Newsom is terrible.  Any man who can marry Kimberly Guilfoyle is a man with epically bad judgment.  And breaking lockdown rules to eat at the French Laundry (they never even gave me a reservation, the bastards!).  

[ThinkerX]

7 hours ago, Tywin et al. said:

Many of us complain about how weak the Democratic field of future candidates is, but what does it say about the Republicans' side?... They've literally got nothing. Just speaks to the shitty place our politics are in. 

Well...AOC should be of age in...2028? 

But would her opponent be Gaetz, Boebert, or Scott?

[Zorral]

I confess to all kinds of warm and fuzzy feelings knowing that this is the second time the defendant has been swabbed for the DNA criminal databases. Not a mug shot, but he did have to submit to this and to fingerprinting -- twice!

The arraignment was quick; he was on time, even a few minutes early -- though then he had to wait for the Judge.  Soon after he flew off on private plane back to the NJ golf course.

There were few members of the public on the route and around the court.  The overflow rooms prepared for press and media etc., weren't needed either.

Edited August 3, 2023 by Zorral

[Mr. Chatywin et al.]

41 minutes ago, ThinkerX said:

Well...AOC should be of age in...2028? 

But would her opponent be Gaetz, Boebert, or Scott?

AOC will likely never be president. Her best route is through Congress where she could be Speaker or a powerful senator. 

Gaetz is hated in his own caucus, Boebert is a moron and Scott is there, sorry to say it, only because Republicans needed a black person. This became more true when Mia Love lost her reelection. Lindsey Graham said as much when he made his final pitch for Hershel Walker. 

The Democratic bench of young upcomers isn't great, but the Republicans is literally empty. 

 

[ThinkerX]

Might be interesting to see how far AOC would get in the primaries should she toss her hat in the ring come 2028. After all, dang near every other D contender is either going to be older than dirt or distinctly uninspiring. 

As to Gaetz and Boebert, Trump, alas, demonstrated that those flaws matter little to the base.

[Zorral]

Far too early to be viable.  Hasn't had enough time to forge those critical trusts of back scratching with other politicos and the donors.  Which no matter how honest you are you have to do.  Even Bernie does, don't fool yourself.  Politics is politics and always has been and always will be, even in the Akkadian Empire, Ancient Egypt, Rome, the Mayans, etc., as much as at the court of Harold Godewinnson, Louis XIV, Elizabeth II, the administration of various tyrants, dictators and presidents.

How long did it take for Hillary, despite having been working at it all her life ... and it didn't work . . . .

[A True Kaniggit]

I hope @DMC just pulled a Towelie. 

That he got high and just sort of wandered off. 
 

Not a random car accident or anything of the sort. 

[ThinkerX]

2 hours ago, Zorral said:

Far too early to be viable.  Hasn't had enough time to forge those critical trusts of back scratching with other politicos and the donors.  Which no matter how honest you are you have to do.  Even Bernie does, don't fool yourself.  Politics is politics and always has been and always will be, even in the Akkadian Empire, Ancient Egypt, Rome, the Mayans, etc., as much as at the court of Harold Godewinnson, Louis XIV, Elizabeth II, the administration of various tyrants, dictators and presidents.

How long did it take for Hillary, despite having been working at it all her life ... and it didn't work . . . .

Like I said, it might be interesting to see what happens should AOC make a 2028 run. She has name recognition and would likely be immensely popular among minorities and younger voters. I figure there be a fair shot she'd do well enough to give the elders of both parties heart attacks.