It ceases to become patriotism. As a child, I remember reading about post-revolution farmers laying down their plowshares to serve a year or two in government. It was understood that serving one’s government was a patriotic, albeit temporary, duty, not a career. Growing beans, potatoes, and corn made you a...
governing
Trumpites were fond of saying promises made, promises kept at the end of his disastrous administration. They could not say that the promises made to the middle class and the poor were kept. The public is still awaiting his secret health care plan—promised a week into his presidency. Infrastructure became...
Former Republican and still conservative Steve Schmidt is a real patriot. He has put country over party with this imploring statement. Steve Schmidt is a real patriot x x YouTube Video Watch Politics Done Right T.V. here. I am sure I can't entirely agree with Steve Schmidt on economics and...
The predictability of the Republican party is as thinly veiled as the Trump presidency, made of tissue paper, and lies. The tissue, because the former President was full of it and flush with lies. At the height of Hillary Clinton’s popularity, flip-flopping Kevin McCarthy, the now House minority leader, said...
When people who are supposed to be governing, half of the country is being abused. I know some personal things happening from deep red republican judges also allowing things to happen that is not upholding the law. I can’t even go into what is happening personally from even judges...
It depresses me to acknowledge this, but the Republicans’ commitment to blatant and serial lying, and Orwellian “make believe” governing, pose a real threat by overwhelming the public debate and individual’s efforts to stay grounded. While a bit well-worn (and of uncertain provenance), this quote is fundamentally true: “A lie can travel halfway around...
Here’s the latest news today out of New Jersey courtesy of Monmouth University’s latest poll: x NEW JERSEY POLL: @GovMurphy job approval still significantly higher than his pre-pandemic ratings.57% approve (71% in April 2020)35% disapprove (21%) 8% no opinion (8%) APPROVE By PARTY:88% – DEM (92% in April 2020)48% –...
Peak cynicism has arrived. Tucker Carlson pimps a version of the nanny-state with more police confrontations because he thinks cops should stop children from wearing masks by enforcing child abuse laws. Apparently making a child wear a mask is like punching them in the face or the equivalent of exhibitionism....
Senator John Kennedy (R-LA) was born in the heart of the old Democratic south. He is a devout southerner, born in Mississippi, and attended college at both the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt in Tennessee. At age sixty-nine, I believe it is safe to say that the one-time southern Democrat,...
By way of a baffling and contradictory threat in explaining his position, Senator Mitch McConnell, in his best southern drawl, warned “Co-cola” to not be “stupid.” Addressing a gaggle of reporters in Kentucky, McConnell said, “It’s quite stupid to jump in the middle of a highly controversial issue,” he went...
A physical Trump library may never come to pass except as some money-laundering real estate scheme. The tweets don’t take up space, and planning for a library would suggest “Trump’s done being president” and that’s not something he’s ready to concede, Anthony Clark went on to predict that Trump’s presidential...
Apparently John (no relation) Kennedy (R-LA) may endorse those sober drivers who run over demonstrators in Oklahoma, because a guy who “went to Oxford” should know something about logical fallacies. x Hours after America's second mass shooting in a week, Sen. John Kennedy downplays the gun problem by noting that...
In September of 2013, Republicans attempted to curtail full funding of the Affordable Care Act but their efforts came to an absurd end. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) spent just over 21-hours regaling the public with a tale penned by Dr. Seuss, the wisdom of Ashton Kutcher, and the World Wrestling...
The measure passed by 398 to 14, with one voting “present.” All of the “no” and “present” votes came from Republicans. 14 House Republicans voted against a resolution condemning the military coup in Myanmar, per @kristin__wilson:Lauren BoebertAndy BiggsMatt GaetzTom MassieKen BuckMary MillerChip RoyJodey HiceAlex MooneyScott PerryAndy HarrisTed BuddBarry MooreMarjorie Taylor...
Senator Ron Johnson said the blatant part out loud, that he fears black people and not white people. When confronted about his remarks, surprise, surprise, he accused his detractors of playing the “race card.” Mr. Johnson uttered one of the most overt racist statements in recent political history. Johnson recognized...
Last night, I happily threw out any notion of nutrition and ordered dinner from a fast-food restaurant. I am far from being a foodie or a snob. I enjoy a good cheeseburger and fries just like the next plumber named Joe. Watching what I eat, as I get older, is...
The sparse number of actual carbon capture and sequestration projects plus weak carbon markets amplify the problems of the climate crisis yet to be revisited, post-Trump. Two heartland examples in North Dakota and Texas show how there are several interlocking problems addressing the climate crisis that must be included in future environmental policy. More specifically...
I’ve always admired Naomi Klein since reading her terrific and insightful book “The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism.” She has a NYT editorial column up yesterday, expounding on her prior theme in relation to Texas’s recent disaster, titled “Why The Republicans Fear The Green New Deal,” in which she...
I took a day to think about the death of radio personality Rush Limbaugh. My immediate thoughts were snark-provoking. Although Limbaugh spent over 30 years mining the cavernous depths of cruelty, I wanted to suppress the urge to welcome the death of his brand of political divisiveness—but who am I...
The not-guilty verdict ending the impeachment trial of Donald J. Trump was as expected, but it revealed something even more sinister about the Republican party. After the Senate trial ended, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, made a public display of the hypocrisy in the GOP. He prattled on about the former...
From November 1994 to October 1995, the so-called trial of the century took place. It centered around murder, race, sex, athletics, and hero-worship. America was drawn to it like a badly made tv melodrama. We were subjected to constant tv break-ins, with breathless reporters recounting every gasp, sigh, and eye-roll...
Ben Sasse is still a RW member of the GQP, but he can still afford to offend his state party. x Sen. Ben Sasse to the Nebraska GOP State Central Committee: “You are welcome to censure me again. But let’s be clear about why this is happening: It’s because I...
These past Dispatches were obviously a Trump-era commentary. Maybe I need to to come up with a new name. But since the Biden presidency is only weeks old, I thought I would continue this for a bit. So, in the spirit of a new beautiful day, below are some interesting rea...
It’s not so much “when you’ve lost the National Review…”, but the attempt to ensure that there might be an autonomous, conservative GOP rather than a Trumpist party. Aside from fanciful premises about “process” repeated during the House floor debate, the National Review still supports impeachment. He urged a crowd to...
Some big news today out of Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman says he is taking “a serious look” at another run for the U.S. Senate in 2022, an ambition he plans to share with supporters on Friday. “The 2022 cycle in Pennsylvania is going to be one of the...
M-i-c-k-e-y, Why because we like it. M-M-MMT. “We collectively decide just what counts as a resource, economic base, or productive work.” OTOH, it could all be trippin’ on bong hits. The superlative science fiction writer Kim Stanley Robinson’s latest novel, The Ministry For The Future, is essentially about using MMT to...
Yesterday, Pence (well, the DOJ) responded, as required, to Loony Gohmert’s lawsuit by saying the Vice President doesn’t have the power to do what Gohmert wants, and anyway he picked the wrong target to sue. The court required Gohmert to respond by 9 AM today. Clearly the court didn’t think...
There are now so many pardon requests there’s a spreadsheet for them, but Trump’s so angry at the lost loyalty, the list could be smaller. Trump just sees no evil, even in a mirror. There may be a firing spree, among other irrational acts by a Trump now confronted by...
Then Senator Mitch McConnell, the Republican minority leader, had a strategy for his party: use his extensive knowledge of Senate procedure to slow things down, take advantage of the difficulties Democrats would have in governing and deny Democrats any Republican support on big legislation. Now “If I’m still the majority...
Donald Trump is the grift that keeps on grifting. And he has 42 more days to embarrass our country and everyone in it. And, damn, is he ever obliging. He’s almost completely given up on governing so he can focus 100 percent on keeping the job he has no interest in...
The Georgia Senator runoff elections are critical to the country’s ability to move forward, and to move out from under the heavy thumb of Moscow Mitch. But they are critical to the GOP’s return as a legitimate force in American politics — which can only happen if they lose in...
Now that Grampa Rage Diapers is on his way to becoming a private citizen without his own attorney general mob consigliere paid for by the taxpayers, we can begin to unwrap all the DJT-focused lawsuits and Trump family criminal mischief like so many magical Christmas gifts. And today brings even...
1-22 record in legal challenges as GOP loses again, this time on the watchers of vote counting in Philadelphia. x Breaking: The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has rejected the Trump campaign's claim that Republicans lacked access to Philadelphia's vote count proceedings. The ruling was 5-2 against the campaign.https://t.co/tdNwajyk0Q — Kyle Griffin...
Spend any time talking to a Republican and eventually you will hear emotional complaints about the Participation Trophy — trophies given to every kid who participates in Little League or similar games regardless of whether they win. A number of Republicans believe this is destroying the American character. It occurred to...
Some very encouraging news today courtesy of Morning Consult’s latest poll: x #NCsen:Cunningham (D) 47% (+6)Tillis (R-inc) 41%.#AZsen:Kelly (D) 49% (+8)McSally (R-inc) 41%.#MIsen:Peters (D-inc) 49% (+9)James (R) 40%.#COsen:Hickenlooper (D) 50% (+10)Gardner (R-inc) 40%@MorningConsult, LV, 10/2-11https://t.co/7AsGqSmIR8— Political Polls (@Politics_Polls) October 13, 2020 And in the presidential election: x COLORADOBiden 54%Trump 40%...
A new analysis by Moody’s Analytics definitively demonstrates to those predisposed to conventional economic analysis that Trump is a loser, especially in terms of the economy. Biden’s economic plans aren’t even radical, simply democratic and less inequitable. Trump’s short-attention-span policies have always been wham-bam, wait for two weeks, there’ll be a new...
There’s a lot going on but I wanted to make sure the biggest toss-up Governor race of this cycle still gets some attention. The Huffington Post has a great piece out profiling gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Greg Gianforte (R. MT) and his long record of being very anti-Science which is very...
Trump just said, and I quote: “absentee good, mail-in very very bad.” (Orange man… bad) President Donald Trump said the quiet part out loud, admitting he’s intentionally withholding money from the U.S. Postal Service to undermine its ability to handle mail-in voting in the 2020 election. “They need that money in...
The Supreme Court in June released a flurry of opinions some of which were applauded by myself and many others as we braced ourselves for the worst. For example, LGBT rights being upheld. But since the summer recess, they have issued many important decisions. What they are doing is hiding...
The Supreme Court in June released a flurry of opinions some of which were applauded by myself and many others as we braced ourselves for the worst. For example, LGBT rights being upheld. But since the summer recess, they have issued many important decisions. What they are doing is hiding...
Haberman calls it “A re-election effort adrift, at once paralyzed by Mr. Trump’s erratic behavior yet also dependent on him to execute his own Houdini-like political escape.” And Yet Tucker Carlson may be planning his ascendancy to the 2024 GOP nomination only partially assuming Trump’s loss this year: “The moment Trump leaves, they will...