Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Bark louder, little dog.

You are either for trump or for democracy. Pick one.

rich, arrogant assholes who equate luck with genius

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

Every decision we make has lots of baggage with it, known or unknown.

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

The media handbook says “controversial” is the most negative description that can be used for a Republican.

“A king is only a king if we bow down.” – Rev. William Barber

Republicans do not pay their debts.

Everybody saw this coming.

The snowflake in chief appeared visibly frustrated when questioned by a reporter about egg prices.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. keep building.

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

Lick the third rail, it tastes like chocolate!

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

Compromise? There is no middle ground between a firefighter and an arsonist.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

I have other things to bitch about but those will have to wait.

Stamping your little feets and demanding that they see how important you are? Not working anymore.

I desperately hope that, yet again, i am wrong.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

You are here: Home / Elections / Biden-Harris 2020 / Biden Introduces His Health Team

Biden Introduces His Health Team

by | 186 Comments

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Someone asked below what Xavier Becerra had to say.  I’ll let him speak for himself.  He is first up after Biden.

Them: I have Power!

Us: These are awesome responsibilities and I will try every day to serve the American people to the best of my ability.

(Stepping in for TaMara, who usually posts these.  Having lost Penelope Pearl yesterday, she surely has other things on her mind.)

Now I see why you guys love Xavier Becerra.  I am halfway through, and they are all inspiring.

Reader Interactions

186Comments

  3. 3.

    Kent

    I like Becerra.

    I think the job of HHS Secretary is going to be largely regulatory, not medical. So I think he is the right person for the job

    One of the biggest things he could do is de-regulate the abortion drugs and make them over the counter like in many countries.  Which would be huge in many red states.

  4. 4.

    patroclus

    It looks like the Brexit negotiations have collapsed and the U.K. is headed for a no-deal although they have apparently backed away from torpedoing the Good Friday Agreement.  This will have inimical consequences for them, but also for the EU and the rest of the world.

    And it also looks like the Republicans are going all in on challenging our democracy, which means that they will object to the counting of the electoral votes in early January; creating a brouhaha presided over by Mike Pence which may or may not result in a stalemate/impasse leading to a President Pelosi.

    And it also looks like COVID is going to increase its spread over and above the already-unacceptable level it is at now because of Thanksgiving gatherings that were effectively super-spreaders.

    None of these are good developments.  I’m glad Biden is picking a competent team – hopefully, they’ll get a chance to at least attempt to address all of our numerous problems.

  5. 5.

    Mary G

    I am of course proud of Becerra – he’s beat the administration like a drum in court. Dr. Murthy was very impressive at the Democratic convention, and I consider it a real positive that I have no recollection of what he did as Surgeon General for Obama. I don’t know Dr.  Rochelle Walensky, but the medical people I follow on Twitter are over the moon about her.

  6. 6.

    Baud

    @patroclus:

    creating a brouhaha presided over by Mike Pence which may or may not result in a stalemate/impasse leading to a President Pelosi.

    It won’t.  It’s performance art.

  8. 8.

    jonas

    Wow! Knowledgeable, qualified people with real skills who are there to run agencies well rather than dismantle them!  *wipes away tear

  9. 9.

    Another Scott

    Kinda relatedly, Biden at TheAtlantic:

    […]

    Lloyd Austin retired from military service more than four years ago. The law states that an officer must have left the service at least seven years before becoming secretary of defense. But I hope that Congress will grant a waiver to Secretary-designate Austin, just as Congress did for Secretary Jim Mattis. Given the immense and urgent threats and challenges our nation faces, he should be confirmed swiftly.

    The fact is, Austin’s many strengths and his intimate knowledge of the Department of Defense and our government are uniquely matched to the challenges and crises we face. He is the person we need in this moment.

    The next secretary of defense will need to immediately quarterback an enormous logistics operation to help distribute COVID-19 vaccines widely and equitably. Austin oversaw the largest logistical operation undertaken by the Army in six decades—the Iraq drawdown.

    The next secretary of defense will need to ensure the well-being and resilience of our service members and their families, strained by almost two decades of war. Austin knows the incredible cost of war and the commingled pride and pain that live in the hearts of those families that pay it.

    And the next secretary of defense will have to make sure that our armed forces reflect and promote the full diversity of our nation. Austin will bring to the job not only his personal experience, but the stories of the countless young people he has mentored. If confirmed, he will ensure that every member of the armed forces is treated with dignity and respect, including Black, Latino, Asian American, Native American, women, and LGBTQ service members.

    Above all, I chose Lloyd Austin as my nominee for secretary of defense because I know how he reacts under pressure, and I know that he will do whatever it takes to defend the American people. When the Islamic State emerged as a terrorist threat in Iraq and Syria, endangering the security of America’s people and allies, President Obama and I turned to Austin, who then led U.S. Central Command. He designed and executed the campaign that ultimately beat back ISIS, helping to build a coalition of partners and allies from more than 70 countries who worked together to overcome a common enemy.

    I respect and believe in the importance of civilian control of our military and in the importance of a strong civil-military working relationship at DoD—as does Austin. We need empowered civilians working with military leaders to shape DoD’s policies and ensure that our defense policies are accountable to the American people. Austin also knows that the secretary of defense has a different set of responsibilities than a general officer and that the civil-military dynamic has been under great stress these past four years. He will work tirelessly to get it back on track.

    Moreover, we need leaders like Lloyd Austin who understand that our military is only one instrument of our national security. Keeping America strong and secure demands that we draw on all our tools. He and I share a commitment to empowering our diplomats and development experts to lead our foreign policy, using force only as our last resort.

    […]

    Good words. We’ll see how well he does…

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  10. 10.

    Brachiator

    @Kent:

    I like Becerra.

    I think the job of HHS Secretary is going to be largely regulatory, not medical. So I think he is the right person for the job

    Interesting choice. This removes him from the board as a successor to Harris in the Senate.

    I look forward to seeing how he does in his new job.

    Overall, this looks like a great team of competent professionals. How damn refreshing!

  16. 16.

    cain

    Former BJ commentator Emily Hauser lost her mother to COVID. Meanwhile the GOP agrees it is worse than the flu, but is that much worse that we’d  put our economy in jeopardy. Fuck these people, the primary job of govt is to protect its citizens!!

    What the fuck is the wrong with these people, they are sociopaths.

    Jan 20th cannot come fast enough.

  17. 17.

    Mary G

    Whomp whomp!

    WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court rejects Republican bid to reverse certification of Biden victory in Pennsylvania.— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla) December 8, 2020

    Sorry for the redundant redundancy.

  18. 18.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Another Scott:

    The law states that an officer must have left the service at least seven years before becoming secretary of defense. But I hope that Congress will grant a waiver to Secretary-designate Austin, just as Congress did for Secretary Jim Mattis.

    I’m a broken record on this, but if two SecsDef in a row get the waiver, then the law means nothing.

  19. 19.

    piratedan

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: if you can get convictions of the klan in Alabama, then I think that’s an incredibly good start.  He knows and has seen the GOP sausage making in action, he understands that at the heart of the GOP body within, beats the heart of racism/white supremacy.

    so if true, I have no issues with it and I get the distinct impression regarding Jones that it’s NOT about him, its about the job.

  20. 20.

    cain

    @JPL: Biden wins again..

    Biden is that asshole  player in the Mahabharata that keeps winning at dice. There was a show where they played out that scene with the guy keeps saying “I have won again!”

    I’m sure that’s exactly how Trumpers probably think of Biden right now.

    It’s gonna get dangerous come Jan 20th.

  23. 23.

    Hoodie

    @Another Scott:  Local news in NC has positive reviews from people in the Fort Bragg community, where he was commanding officer.  I think he may be a good choice to address strains between civilian and military culture that have arisen from two decades of war and exacerbated by Trump’s attempt to politicize the military.  Flournoy is certainly qualified, but she is more of an inside the beltline person.  I’d trust Biden’s take on this because of Jill’s work with military families.

  25. 25.

    Brachiator

    @cain:

    I’m sure that’s exactly how Trumpers probably think of Biden right now.

    Trumpers are probably still in a fugue state, chanting to themselves that “Trump won!”

  26. 26.

    Another Scott

    @cain: I can see both sides (er…).  On the other hand:

    There’s a compelling argument that some PoC make that whites need to clean up the mess they created.  I think Jones understands that as well as anyone, and better than most.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  31. 31.

    MisterForkbeard

    @JPL: This was the insane Texas case, right? Where the under-felony-indictment state lawyer Texas filed to have PA’s votes nullified?

  32. 32.

    cmorenc

    Meanwhile, dealing with the post-election hangover from a small handful of ActBlue donations – everyone in the democratic party wanting your further money or time now has your email address, and they’re inundating you with emails.  Unless the email address you used was a throwaway junk address to begin with, it’s a task up there with cleaning the Augean stables to try to unsubscribe from the dozens upon dozens upon dozens of campaigns and causes now sending you a blizzard of emails.   I wish there was some sort of universal “kill” switch requirement when campaigns share your email address, permitting you to unsubscribe in a single stroke from all campaign email lists cloned from a common source, instead of having to do it one by one (or abandon the email account in question.

  33. 33.

    Kent

    @Another Scott: I don’t have a lot of insightful thoughts on the Lloyd Austin nomination.  What has occurred to me is that this may be partly a case of Biden giving Jim Clyburn a bone.  Appointing a Black man to run the DOD is a pretty damn big deal.  And Lloyd Austin strikes me as a Clyburn type.  The Congressional Black Caucus was pushing for a Black DOD secretary.

    Honestly the DOD is one of the least important posts in terms of implementing Democratic policy.  At least in my mind.  It isn’t an area where there is a huge set of Democratic policy objectives that are in a different direction from the status quo.  Unlike HHS, State, DOJ, Education, and all the environmental agencies.  The DOD is also the department that is most micro-managed by Congress in terms of budgets.

  34. 34.

    gvg

    @Another Scott: I think you have to show buy in from “both” parties, the majority and the minority. It’s best IMO to show them working together.  I do NOT mean republicans and democrats, I mean POC & whites.

    Although since I mentioned it, it would have been better if both democrats and republicans helped, but that isn’t going to happen now so ignore it and get on with the work.

  35. 35.

    mrmoshpotato

     

    @cain:

    Meanwhile the GOP agrees it is worse than the flu, but is that much worse that we’d  put our economy in jeopardy. Fuck these people, the primary job of govt is to protect its citizens!!

    What the fuck is the wrong with these people, they are sociopaths.

    Asked and answered.

    Jan 20th cannot come fast enough.

    Right there with ya!

  37. 37.

    Brachiator

    Breaking:

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday spurned a request from Republican allies of President Trump to decertify Pennsylvania’s election results, foreclosing hopes from Mr. Trump and his backers that the justices would help deliver him a second term in the White House.

    Short and to the point.

    “The application for injunctive relief presented to Justice Alito and by him referred to the Court is denied,” the order said.

  38. 38.

    MisterForkbeard

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: I’m going with “Good idea”, but that’s partially because I don’t know who else is in the running for it.

    Doug Jones was a great attorney. I’m not sure how good an administrator he is, and he’s going to have a LOT of bullshit and crazy people to clean up in DOJ. And he’d have to do it and consider how best to prosecute and investigate Trump and Republican crimes without actually being partisan about it.

    It might be best to have someone who hasn’t been an elected Democrat for this.

  39. 39.

    White & Gold Purgatorian

    @piratedan:  I like what you say about my senator, Doug Jones, having personal knowledge of the GOP sausage making techniques. Vote suppression and election rigging/stealing is a field where the GOP is currently making a hell of a lot of sausage. As a native Alabamian, Jones will understand exactly what to look for in that area.

    Here in Alabama, the wealthy and privileged (who were Democrats back then) removed political power from most ordinary citizens via the 1901 Alabama State Constitution. It was passed via voter fraud, which was acknowledged at the time, yet the document has stood and served its purpose for over 100 years. Once people lose their political voice to money and power it is a long uphill climb to get it back. I’d expect an AG Jones to give serious attention to election protection so the whole country doesn’t end up like Alabama. He knows that slippery slope firsthand.

  42. 42.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Brachiator:

    “The application for injunctive relief presented to Justice Alito and by him referred to the Court is denied,” the order said.  Later adding, “Your entire fucking fascist party should just pack up and flee to Russia now.  And take all of your Trump humper voters with you!” 

  43. 43.

    Brachiator

    @Roger Moore:

    I’m still holding out for John Chiang for US Senate.

    I agree that he would be a great choice.

    But a strong bench of contenders, including Representative Barbara Lee and Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia.

  44. 44.

    schrodingers_cat

    @cain: Duryodhan keeps winning at dice because the dice are loaded and he is cheating. Not a good analogy for Biden.

  46. 46.

    TaMara (HFG)

    @Watergirl – thanks for posting this. I have, thank DOG, a couple of very busy days ahead, so posting will probably be sparse. But it does keep my mind occupied, which is a very good thing.

  48. 48.

    japa21

    @Gin & Tonic: I understand your point but disagree with your conclusion. I do have very mixed feelings on this. I do believe civilian control is important and needs to be emphasized.

    OTOH, is there a civilian better qualified to handle the mess that the current administration has made of the DoD? I honestly don’t know. A question that to me is very important is what Austin’s relationships are with other countries in terms of restoring trust, something both the DoD and DoS have to work together on.

    From Biden’s wording, it almost seems to me that he views this as a temporary appointment with something like a 2 year life span.  I want to know who Austin’s main deputy will be.

  49. 49.

    TS (the original)

    @patroclus:

    When Biden does become President – the Senate obstruction of Obama will seem like nothing compared to what McConnell will do if he remains Senate leader next year.

    And here the world was thinking a sane USA was reappearing.

  51. 51.

    Scout211

    @cmorenc:

    I wish there was some sort of universal “kill” switch requirement when campaigns share your email address, permitting you to unsubscribe in a single stroke from all campaign email lists cloned from a common source, instead of having to do it one by one (or abandon the email account in question.

    This.

    It is so annoying and starts feeling too much like a giant marketing scam.  Sigh.  One by one, we unsubscribe . . . over and over.

  53. 53.

    cain

    @Another Scott:

    I don’t think that’s a good reasoning – clueless people will keep on being clueless. Better to have a PoC who understands the system and how insidious it is as a matter of strategy. While that doesn’t mean there isn’t someone who isn’t a PoC that can also be strategic, but it’s a lot more personal to a black person when going after the system.

  54. 54.

    Immanentize

    I know that I probably have a different idea about what a law means versus many here, but the LAW about the Secretary of Defense is clear —

    IF a President appoints someone who is a “civilian,” which includes people who have been out of the military for more than 7 years, then Congress need take no special action regarding that appointment.

    IF the President appoints someone currently in the military or who has left the military but for some period of less than seven years, then Congress can be asked to waive the prior exclusion.

    This is how law works — It may happen if certain other things happen.  That is the law.  There is no permanent crushing of any norm here, because there is a law that defines the whole sum of the norm.  The law is normative.

    You may think th elaw sucks.  You may think that no military person who ever served should be Secretary of Defense.  You may think Austin would be horrible in this position.  You may think all three and more.

    But the law itself, including the Congressionally passed legal process for a waiver, is the norm.

  55. 55.

    cain

    @WaterGirl:

    @cain: That’s awful.

    Yeah, it swept through the retirement center she was staying at. She’s going through some dark thoughts in regards to the administration and the sheer incompetence. These deaths are needless.

  56. 56.

    Amir Khalid

    @JPL:

    But it doesn’t seem a good omen for the other case — the one where Texas is suing a group of swing states — does it? I read the Reuters story on that other case, and it looks as flimsy as any involving the Giuliani/Powell/Ellis “legal strike force”.

  58. 58.

    jl

    Biden put at least one person who is an expert at occupational health and safety on the task force. That is a good sign. Protection of essential workers has been almost non-existent in the US. It is a very serious equity issue, and a very serious control issue.

    IMHO, I think two things are still needed, and one at the top level.

    Population health education and and communication has been horrible in the US, from what I’ve seen and heard. We have to get away from hectoring and shaming the general population. There is a long history of successful practice in this area, and it needs to be tapped. Fauci and Jerome Adams seem to be the only high officials I know of  who show understanding about it, and Adams is leaving. For example, Fauci and Adams are the only two federal officials who periodically have taken open questions directly from the public. I think Julia Marcus would be a great addition, though maybe doesn’t need to be at the very top.

    And at the very top, there is a need for more people who have had actual practical field experience in emerging disease epidemic control. We  need more expertise in doing control when there are a lot of known unknowns, and unknown unknowns, and apparent knowns that are wrong and may change tomorrow. Fauci is the only one I know of who has this experience with HIV/AIDS. But yeesh, he has been the only one showing high level expertise in so many areas, the guy needs some help

  59. 59.

    Barbara

    @Scout211: I think with Act Blue, technically, when you contribute to an individual candidate (even through a joint donation), they probably have to provide your information to the candidate just for federal compliance purposes (e.g., limits on donations).  I don’t think they share beyond that.  But yes, I agree, when I start receiving emails from people whose names I barely know and I am not even sure where they are running, that’s probably because they were on someone’s “Red to Blue” or similar kind of list.  The only real recourse is to unsubscribe from the individual list, or not donate to group fund raisers.

  60. 60.

    cain

    @schrodingers_cat:

    @cain: Duryodhan keeps winning at dice because the dice are loaded and he is cheating. Not a good analogy for Biden.

    oh sure – the man was a total cheater. I think mostly I was recalling that scene on TV – so more the visual not the mechanics behind it.

  62. 62.

    Kent

    @japa21:

    @Gin & Tonic: I understand your point but disagree with your conclusion. I do have very mixed feelings on this. I do believe civilian control is important and needs to be emphasized.

    OTOH, is there a civilian better qualified to handle the mess that the current administration has made of the DoD? I honestly don’t know. A question that to me is very important is what Austin’s relationships are with other countries in terms of restoring trust, something both the DoD and DoS have to work together on.

    From Biden’s wording, it almost seems to me that he views this as a temporary appointment with something like a 2 year life span.  I want to know who Austin’s main deputy will be.

    I’m betting this is partly a concession to Jim Clyburn and the Congressional Black Caucus, whom Biden owes big time for his primary win on super Tuesday as well as his win over Trump.

  63. 63.

    JPL

    Cobb county is opening 50 percent fewer early voting sites for the special election.   Cobb turned blue big time, but until January  republicans are in charge.

  65. 65.

    Baud

    @Kent:

    a concession to Jim Clyburn and the Congressional Black Caucus

    That makes it sound insider-y.  I think a whole lot of PoC outside of government are also pushing for more PoC in senior positions.

  66. 66.

    Roger Moore

    @Barbara:

    But yes, I agree, when I start receiving emails from people whose names I barely know and I am not even sure where they are running, that’s probably because they were on someone’s “Red to Blue” or similar kind of list.

    It’s even worse.  There’s nothing that prevents one campaign from selling your data to another.  I get email from candidates I’m sure I’ve never donated to, and the only way they could have gotten my email is from another candidate I did donate to.  It’s annoying as hell.

  67. 67.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Immanentize: I’m just some dumb guy posting shit on a blog, not a law-school professor, but it seems to me that if Congress is asked for, and grants, a waiver for a legal exclusion every time that comes up, then the waiver becomes normative and not the exclusion.

  71. 71.

    Barbara

    @JPL: No, he was giving them the chance to respond, which is what you would do for any litigant in any case.

    This was a case where the plaintiff, a true horse’s rump if there ever were one, was trying to get the federal judiciary to supersede a state supreme court’s interpretation of its own law based on the idea that an incorrect interpretation of state law violated the plaintiff’s U.S. constitutional rights.

  72. 72.

    Hoodie

    @Immanentize: Agree, this objection is kind of silly.   The law allows for the waiver and seven years is kind of an arbitrary threshold.   Austin is a civilian now, not part of the military chain of command.  I didn’t have a big problem with Mattis being SecDef.  He seemed to be ok at the job, at least preferable to a civilian lobbyist like Esper.  If the pick is a nod to Clyburn, I’m ok with that as long as the guy is qualified, which he seems to be.

  74. 74.

    Anya

    @Amir Khalid: very true but I just hate the whole culture of military worshiping that keeps edging us ever closer to a place where we put them above elected civilians. It’s where fostering of that culture will lead us that keeps me awake at night.

  77. 77.

    JPL

    @Barbara: The problem with me is I see Alito’s name and immediately start to panic.    Even Thomas doesn’t elicit the same response from me.

  79. 79.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @cain:

    Former BJ commentator Emily Hauser lost her mother to COVID.

    I’m really sorry to hear that, and she has my condolences. I often think of Emily Hauser, and miss her on BJ. Where do you follow her, if you don’t mind my asking?

  81. 81.

    Barbara

    @Amir Khalid: The Texas case is simply crazy.  Texas is using  a jurisdictional argument for situations where two states are having a fight between themselves (think border disputes or conflicting claims to water rights) in order to try to challenge laws and legal decisions of another state.  It’s gonzo.

  84. 84.

    Another Scott

    @Roger Moore: That can be kinda fun, though.

    E.g. I sent a little bit of money to McCain and Bradley in January 2000 (“I’ll support the ‘moderates’…).  I know McCain sold my contact info to others, and I’m still getting RWNJ stuff occasionally (e.g. a monthly newsletter from Hillsdale College – “A Sensible and Compassionate Anti-COVID Strategy” by some crank at Stanford).  If they want to waste their money, Ok by me.

    FWIW.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  85. 85.

    Barbara

    @JPL: They don’t get to choose who happens to be on duty when the request comes in.  I can’t remember how they allocate this responsibility, but Alito was just happenstance.

    The other thing is that conservatives — or these conservatives — don’t seem to understand the essential conservative Supreme Court project, which is to keep legal relief as narrow and mean as it can possibly be.  Don’t you remember Amy Covid Barrett testifying that “not every wrong can be righted by a federal court.”  That was right wing dog whistling that she is going to bar the court door to as many people as she possibly can.

    They aren’t contaminating their project for Trump even if he is the one who has enabled them to take it as far as they can.

  87. 87.

    jonas

    @Barbara: It’s literally a stunt by the state’s absolutely bonkers wingnut AG to show how “committed” to Trump he is by filing a bogus SCOTUS case. I’m sure he’s planning to fundraise and/or advance his political career with it. His ass should be sanctioned into oblivion.

  88. 88.

    debbie

    @Kent:

    I think his proactiveness on behalf of California consumers has been exemplary.

    (I don’t care if that’s not a real word.)

  89. 89.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @cain:

    Biden is that asshole player in the Mahabharata that keeps winning at dice. There was a show where they played out that scene with the guy keeps saying “I have won again!”

    I’m sure that’s exactly how Trumpers probably think of Biden right now.

    Ninety-nine out of a hundred Trumpers couldn’t pronounce or spell Mahabharata, let alone pick up on a metaphor from it.

  93. 93.

    Redshift

    @cain:

    Meanwhile the GOP agrees it is worse than the flu, but is that much worse that we’d  put our economy in jeopardy. Fuck these people, the primary job of govt is to protect its citizens!! 

    And worst of all, they screwed the pandemic response and the economy, because it wasn’t actually one of the other.

    That’s one thing I think our people failed to argue successfully during the campaign. (I don’t fault them too much, there was so much bullshit to fight.) The GOP successfully convinced a of people the choice was between their way, which was to open up for the good of “the economy” and pretend they were doing as well as anyone else in the pandemic, or the (supposed) Democrats’ way, which was to shut down the economy and hide in our basements until the pandemic was over, because Democrats hate business and want you to go bankrupt. All the while blocking government action which would have helped businesses forced to shut down temporarily so we could get the pandemic under control.

    Grrr…

  95. 95.

    Immanentize

    @Gin & Tonic: No reason to be snotty, but what you say is simply not accurate.  If Congress was to allow a waiver for Austin, it just means that Congress has decided, in this one particular instance, that a waiver is warranted.  Could someone in the future claim — “Well you granted it before, you should do it now!”  Sure, but that is a not very good argument as Congress gets to exercise its discretion in each case.

    It is a bit like probabilities.  Just because a coin flips heads twice in a row does not mean it must be heads again.  It might be, or it might not be; because each flip is an independent act and each flip has a 50/50 chance of being one or the other but one result does not infect the following ones.

    As I said previously, I do not think this is a great move for norm building even within what is legal.  But it might be a necessary move given current circumstances.  If Austin is really the right move at this moment — and I have no insight into the vast array of details that make up hat calculus, then it would be proper, under the law, to seek his appointment.  Biden thinks Austin is the person he needs right now and I frankly haven’t heard great aruments for a better choice other than his prior military service.  Which for some in Congress, will be enough to vote against the waiver.

    Each Congresscritter can make up his or her mind as to the correct outcome on that question.  This time, and for all furture times this will come up, if it ever doeas again.

    If Congress believes ex-military should be excluded at all times in every case, they can make a law doing so.  They have not.

  98. 98.

    Kent

    @Baud:That makes it sound insider-y.  I think a whole lot of PoC outside of government are also pushing for more PoC in senior positions.

    Of course.  I just expect Clyburn to have the loudest voice.  And justifiably so.  He’s earned it.   But I also think he speaks for a LOT of moderate middle class Black folk who gave Biden the victory in PA, GA, MI, and WI.

  100. 100.

    Patricia Kayden

    @patroclus: Try as they may, Republicans aren’t going to overturn the election results.  They can put on a dog and pony show to appease Trump but he lost.

  101. 101.

    debbie

    Has this article been shared? The author was just reviewed on NPR. She is so much more direct than anyone else I’ve read about Trump’s attempted coup.

    The president has repeatedly and baselessly claimed that the election was stolen from him, and continues to do so daily. He is, effectively, charging that election officers around the country are involved in a dangerous conspiracy and that the incoming president is the leader of this illegal attempt.

    The president and his key allies have repeatedly called for Republican state legislators to steal the election for him by appointing new electors who will support him instead of backing the winner of the state’s electoral votes.

    The president, who has the power to appoint judges for lifetime appointments, and who has appointed nearly a third of federal judges on the crucial circuit-court level in the United States—more than any other president in recent history at this point in their presidency—has asked the courts to throw out valid votes wholesale, especially in cities with minority voters.

    Right after the election, a legal adviser to the president stated on national television: “We’re waiting for the United States Supreme Court—of which the president has nominated three justices—to step in and do something. And hopefully Amy Coney Barrett will come through.”

    The president’s high-profile allies are holding rallies where supporters are chanting “Lock him up!,” calling for the imprisonment of Georgia’s Republican governor, who is opposing his attempts to steal the election. (Georgia conducted two thorough recounts of the votes and found that the margin by which Trump lost the election holds.)

    The president personally called the two Republican canvassers in Wayne County, Michigan, and then both signed affidavits attempting to rescind their certification of the vote in that state. They had earlier tried to block certification of votes from Detroit, providing a glimpse of what could happen if a more competent president tried to steal an election.

    The president has amplified messages that call for people to “fight back hard” against the allegedly stolen election.

  102. 102.

    NotMax

    @Baud

    Silly me. I thought the highest rank created for Space Force is First Donald.

    Along with substitutes for stars. “He’s a four-tee First Donald.”

    //

  104. 104.

    jl

    Biden’s pick for head of CDC is very promising. She has been talking about several areas where US covid control effort has been very deficient, even in the more competent states like CA, NY and WA. There are signs that she will pay a lot more attention to getting the US an actual testing program.  Using surge capacity in testing, and well designed surveillance, contact tracing, and pulse mass testing programs have done a lot for many  European countries. Most of them are knocking down their resurgences very quickly, and good testing programs seem to be playing a big role.

    Is Rapid Frequent #COVID19 testing going to be a key component under new CDC Leadership?

    @michaelmina_lab

    The just named incoming CDC director @RWalensky is the senior author of an influential study (with
    @ADPaltiel) showing the huge benefits of frequent testing.

    https://twitter.com/michaelmina_lab/status/1335763135295328256

  105. 105.

    Kent

    @Barbara:@Amir Khalid: The Texas case is simply crazy.  Texas is using  a jurisdictional argument for situations where two states are having a fight between themselves (think border disputes or conflicting claims to water rights) in order to try to challenge laws and legal decisions of another state.  It’s gonzo.

    It is especially gonzo because TX has some of the least defensible and most racist elections laws in the country.  Do they really want to defend their voter suppression against a lawsuit from say OR or WA?  That’s a huge can of worms for them to open up, and would lead to Federalizing of state elections.

  107. 107.

    H-Bob

    @Hoodie: “I didn’t have a big problem with Mattis being SecDef” by overlooking him pushing the Theranos snake oil on the DOD after his retirement!

  109. 109.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

     

     

    @Baud:  Admiral Akbar told Biden he doesn’t want to come out of retirement, he feels it would be a trap.

  111. 111.

    jonas

    @debbie: Interfering with election officials like this is both a state and a federal crime. He absolutely has to be prosecuted for this shit.

  113. 113.

    Kent

    @Spanky:@Immanentize, et al: Given that the Senate under Mitch will refuse to confirm any Secdef Nominee Biden puts forward, is this a moot argument?

    I don’t think they will.  I think they will pick and choose the scalps that they want to take.   And it won’t be a conservative Black 4-star general.  It will much more likely be someone like Becerra, who has tortured the Trump Administration for 4 years at California AG and has a much bigger paper trail.

    Austin and probably Janet Yellin are the two most likely confirmations in my opinion.  Certainly the two most likely to get moderate GOP support.

  114. 114.

    Patricia Kayden

    @debbie: Keep in mind that Trump never had approval ratings higher than 50% and that polls consistently showed that Biden was going to win the election. Trump should have expected to lose.  He has never been a popular president and he never tried to expand his base.

  115. 115.

    trollhattan

    @jl:

    Needless to say, we could have had frequent comprehensive testing months ago. FRUSTRATING.

    Fast turnaround testing, used broadly, can still make a big difference.

  118. 118.

    schrodingers_cat

    @H-Bob: The excuse making for General Theranos has been epic. I have to say that President Obama was a good judge of character for not buying into the Warrior Monk mythology.

    Some monk he is,  now he is shilling for the UAE.

  121. 121.

    JPL

    @NotMax:  ha.. His butt is still in jail.      I did read that betting sites, still had trump at ten percent.     It was a wtf moment for me, because some think he can overturn the election results.

  122. 122.

    TS (the original)

    @JPL:  I do too. I couldn’t work out why Alito didn’t refuse to accept the brief in the first place. Looked 100% political to me.

  123. 123.

    Amir Khalid

    @Spanky:

    Don’t you remember? Fudge was replaced as Minister for Magic by Rufus Scrimgeour, who was in turn replaced by Voldemort’s man, Pius Thicknesse, who started the campaign of persecution against non-Purebloods. (Thicknesse was replaced after the Battle of Hogwarts by Kingsley Shacklebolt, a member of the Order of the Phoenix.) Considering Fudge was oblivious to the looming threat of Voldemort for so long, he would not be a good pick for Biden’s cabinet.

  126. 126.

    Kent

    @JPL:@SiubhanDuinne: Nice.   Maybe Heidi Heitkamp will get agriculture.

    Why would she be a good pick?  She seems like she would be another Tom Vilsack who was pretty fucking gutless and lame (not sticking up for Shirley Sherrod) and basically rolling over for the ethanol industry and big agra during his 8 years.

  130. 130.

    TS (the original)

    @Kent:

    Certainly the two most likely to get moderate GOP support.

    But McConnell has to bring the vote to the floor if he is still Senate leader (or do I have that incorrect?) and I doubt he will let any of them get a vote.

  133. 133.

    JPL

    @Kent: Definitely good point, but my thinking was more political, and trying to figure out how to win some of those states.   Greenfield appeared to be an excellent candidate for Iowa, but nope.    It might be time to just let them go.

  136. 136.

    WaterGirl

    @jl: I don’t know whether you were able to listen to all of what Biden said, but he did say there is more hiring in this area to come.

    I think this is a good start.  A very good start.

  138. 138.

    Roger Moore

    @Amir Khalid:

    Don’t you remember? Fudge was replaced as Minister for Magic by Voldemort’s man, Pius Thicknesse, who started the campaign of persecution against non-Purebloods.

    You have it all wrong.  Cornelius Fudge was replaced after it was clear Voldemort had returned, but by Rufus Scrimgeour.  Pius Thicknesse became minister after Scrimgeour was killed by Death Eaters.

  140. 140.

    WaterGirl

    @Kent: You could be on to something.

    I saw a quote from Clyburn yesterday that caused me to do a literal double-take.

    It was something like: [some woman’s name that I didn’t know] may not be in [some position] in the cabinet, but she will be in the cabinet.

    I thought that was an extraordinary statement.

  141. 141.

    SiubhanDuinne

     

    @Spanky:

    Huh?

    Congresswoman Marcia Fudge is Biden’s choice for HUD Secretary.

    And former Governor Tom Vilsack is apparently the designate for Secretary of Agriculture.

  145. 145.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Mary G:

    Thank you so much! Not familiar with Dame Magazine, but have bookmarked it, and added her Twitter to the few accounts I follow.

  146. 146.

    J R in WV

    @cmorenc:

    Meanwhile, dealing with the post-election hangover from a small handful of ActBlue donations – everyone in the democratic party wanting your further money or time now has your email address, and they’re inundating you with emails. Unless the email address you used was a throwaway junk address to begin with, it’s a task up there with cleaning the Augean stables to try to unsubscribe from the dozens upon dozens upon dozens of campaigns and causes now sending you a blizzard of emails.

    I have to say I do not recognize your description of ActBlue nor Democratic candidates at all~!!~ I have made a lot of contributions over the past 2 years, and while I did get a lot of email — all it takes is one unsubscribe click to stop that candidate’s mail from arriving ever again, unless you make another contribution…

    And no one that I didn’t contribute to has ever sent me a serious begging inquiry letter.

    I got lots of serious thank you letters, and a couple of very pleasant phone calls from candidates willing to chat with a supporter from 1500 miles away. This after I explained why I wouldn’t be attending the successful election party — because I’m a Democratic supporter from many states away from their home states.

  150. 150.

    Dan B

    @jl: I agree with you about public health communication being key with every fiber of my being.  We have too many technically competent people who don’t understand mass communication.  I was reminded of this by a documentary maker on Christiane Amanpour last night.  Hus team filmed in Wuhan at the beginning of the pandemic.  He focused on the stories of the patients and the nurses.  I will remember forever the few seconds of film of a CP member screaming into the phone to his family that he wanted to die, “because nobody can endure this..”  That and the two nurses trying to keep a crowd of panicked people from breaking down the door to the clinic.  These visceral messages are extremely personal and potent.  Combined with clear messaging and guidance from experts they can overcome our partisan (GOP) impasse.

    More data will accomplish nothing especially since the majority of the public likely glaze over when you say pandemic.  Visceral imagery is our only chance of breaking through.

    We are woe if we maintain our current approach.  The virus could get into our animal population and become endemic with mutations emerging regularly.

  151. 151.

    CaseyL

    @MisterForkbeard: No, this case originated in PA.  The TX case is still on the docket, gladdening MAGAt hearts (“They only denied cert for PA because TX is a bigger better case!”).

  152. 152.

    Kent

    @sab:@SiubhanDuinne: I like Vilsack but he totally fucked beyond belief as aag Sec last time. Fuck.

    According to Wikipedia, he tried to resign during the Obama Administration because he was bored and had nothing to do and Obama talked him out of it.

    Why would he want a second go around?  Maybe he’s more bored now, representing the Dairy Industry lobby.  If we are trying to avoid the revolving door then Vilsack is the poster boy for it.

  153. 153.

    Roger Moore

    @J R in WV:

    And no one that I didn’t contribute to has ever sent me a serious begging inquiry letter.

    You’re incredibly lucky, then.  I get a lot of emails, not just from the candidates I’ve donated to.  I also get a ton of emails from various PACs and the like.  Many of these candidates and PACs are very spammy, sending me multiple emails every day.  The worst of them sounded like they were in constant panic mode, talking about how they needed contributions Now!, Now!, Now! to have the slimmest chance.  They’ve been good about unsubscribing me when I ask*, but I would say it’s fair to describe what I get for my contributions as a deluge of emails.

    *The only exception was Jamie Harrison, who was very spammy and whose unsubscribe system was broken.  I was eventually able to get his campaign to shut up by using their “don’t send me anything for the next two weeks” link, but they really needed to look at their system.

  155. 155.

    TS (the original)

    @mrmoshpotato:

    He will obstruct – for any reason or no reason – as per today with refusing to say Biden won the election. Pure evil. He sees the majority of the American people as his serfs.

  157. 157.

    J R in WV

    @Roger Moore:

    I wish ActBlue had a “please don’t email me or sell my email address” checkbox. It would make a great site that much better.

    I very much doubt that ActBlue sells data to anyone. I think they provide donor data to the person being contributed to, which is probably required by Federal election law.

  158. 158.

    Kent

    @JPL:@Kent: Definitely good point, but my thinking was more political, and trying to figure out how to win some of those states.   Greenfield appeared to be an excellent candidate for Iowa, but nope.    It might be time to just let them go.

    I don’t think it’s time to let those states go.  It is never time to give up on any state.  But appointing some long-in-the-tooth politician who couldn’t keep their seat in those states isn’t necessarily the key to winning them back.

    Think about if the shoe was on the other foot.  For example, I live in WA.  There is no way that a GOP president appointing some loser GOP politician from WA that we already rejected is going to win me back to the GOP.   All that would do is piss me off.   Putting someone new in place who actually pushes forward policies that I like might do the trick on the margins.  But most likely I’m never going to vote GOP anyway.

    Pandering usually never works.  Just push forward the policies you think are best, and do your very best to communicate what you are doing and why, and let the chips fall where they may.

  159. 159.

    frosty

    @cmorenc: I just looked at my junkmail folder in my Yahoo account that I’ve used with ActBlue. Holy shit, it’s all political stuff! I delete and unsubcribe from the ones that make it through, but I had no idea there were so many coming at me.

  160. 160.

    Roger Moore

    @J R in WV:

    What I meant is that ActBlue should let you say that you don’t want to be spammed and pass that message on to the campaign.  I’m sick and tired of getting campaign spam not only from the people I have given money but also from everyone they’ve sold my information to.  Those emails should be opt-in, and it’s bullshit that I have to waste my time unsubscribing from a bunch of email lists I never signed up for.

  162. 162.

    Roger Moore

    @Roger Moore:

    I should add that not putting donors onto a million and one email lists is probably in the best interests of ActBlue and the candidates it raises money for.  Every time I think about donating, I stop to consider if it’s worth the hassle, and there have been times when I have decided not to donate because I just don’t want to deal with it.  At the same time, I have never once donated in response to a begging email.  So in my case, at least, deluging me with emails has a negative return; I’m sure I can’t be the only one.

  164. 164.

    jl

    @Dan B: I was thinking of lower key but important things.

    Adams has given demos and detailed plain English explanations for homemade masks, rules for handling and putting on/off masks, putting a filter on a fan, how to set ventilation systems for effective control. Probably made him a low class laughing stock among the Trumpsters, but that kind of thing is important to educate population and get engagement and buy-in. Fauci’s done the same to a lesser extent. And as I noted, Adams and Fauci only ones I’ve seen to take questions directly  from the public, and always take a minute to be optimistic, give some effective positive motivation, even when things are crashing, as they are right now.

    Also, compare some of the Japanese, German, Danish, Taiwanese PR materials to what little we see in US. I think some have been featured on BJ. They have some humor, optimistic motivation, interesting enough to stay in a person’s memory.

  165. 165.

    Amir Khalid

    Recent events have somewhat clouded my memory of the Harry Potter story, but I did remember to add Rufus Scrimgeour to my original comment.

  166. 166.

    Ken

    @Brachiator: foreclosing hopes from Mr. Trump and his backers that the justices would help deliver him a second term in the White House.

    I hope Trump’s revenge for this heinous act of betrayal involves releasing the secret files on the justices’ finances and personal history.

  167. 167.

    Roger Moore

    @jl:

    I will say I’ve been startled by Fauci’s reach.  I was very surprised to see him show up on a Slow Mo Guys video, though it makes sense in that case, since it was a video showing droplet and aerosol generation in slow motion, including how masks reduce them.  He clearly understands the importance of public outreach.

  168. 168.

    Gvg

    @Gin & Tonic: I don’t like it, but no the law actually allows the waiver, so the law is still valid.

    Biden has done so many other things right, I am not going to worry about this until there is reason. Obama appointed just a few that didn’t go well, so did Bill Clinton. Nobody can be perfect in another’s eyes. Look at the whole picture and the total appointments.

  169. 169.

    Immanentize

    @Kent: I agree with this.  Tanden is a clear target because of the Justice Dem opposition.

    But every POC the Republicans oppose is a potential win for Democrats among their true base.

  171. 171.

    Dan B

    @debbie: My specilation is the Emperor Tang is hoping a large number of his supporters will rise up to overturn the vote and resorting to violence is fine with him.  The problem is chaos is random in its victims.  Trumpnis used to the legal / mob route of minimal violence.

    And has been repeatedly said, the GOP is complicit.  There are only a few that see the anarchy that lies ahead when norms are breached.

  175. 175.

    burnspbesq

    @MisterForkbeard:

    It might be best to have someone who hasn’t been an elected Democrat for this.

    Now that Becerra is off the board, I’m hoping for Maura Healy, the Massachusetts AG. My personal view is that that level of administrative experience is a prerequisite, and no U.S. Attorney’s office (not even SDNY or CDCa) provides it.

    Plus she kicks ass.

  176. 176.

    danielx

    According to the most recent FEC report, Trump has spent $8.8 million on legal efforts to overturn the election but has used that effort to raise more than $200 million, sending hundreds of email pitches to donors begging them to contribute to his quest to save the election from being stolen by dastardly Democrats.

    There is no Steiner Roberts Court counterattack, but in the meantime…banking coin. Working out his feelings of injury and betrayal (by his own appointed judges!) is important, but continuing the grift is paramount.

  177. 177.

    burnspbesq

    @Kent:

    Do they really want to defend their voter suppression against a lawsuit from say OR or WA?  That’s a huge can of worms for them to open up

    There is not one scintilla of evidence that Paxton is capable of the level of strategic thinking that you’re talking about.

  178. 178.

    burnspbesq

    @CaseyL:

    It takes a majority to grant leave to file a case as to which the Supreme Court has original jurisdiction. I agree with Prof. Vladeck: NFW.

  180. 180.

    Dan B

    @jl: I agree that we need the basics from the experts, and some optimistic and humorous communication.  What struck me about this Documentary from Wuhan is how, even I who knows that people and hospital workers are suffering, felt like images were seared into my psyche.

    I remember how during polio that images of physical therapy and iron lungs, even movies about “brave” kids stoically enduring suffering, were common fare.  There were messages of staying safe and closing swimming pools, the practical measures, but the stories with visceral content got people to line up for vaccines.

    We’re missing that now unless we’re like Emily, our former commenter, and it’s right next door or in the friends or family.

    Data and facts inform but personal stories move us to action.

  181. 181.

    Dan B

    @burnspbesq:  Bob Ferguson AG  of WA is another kick ass AG.  I believe he’s won 88 suits against Trump.  His drawback is he’s whiter than Wonder Bread, but he is as awesome as he is unassuming.

    Good to hear about Healy.

  185. 185.

    Gin & Tonic

    @Immanentize:

    It is a bit like probabilities.  Just because a coin flips heads twice in a row does not mean it must be heads again.  It might be, or it might not be; because each flip is an independent act and each flip has a 50/50 chance of being one or the other but one result does not infect the following ones.

    Which is not at all like the law. Yes, each coin flip is independent. Each legal case is not – otherwise why does the word “precedent” ever get used? Each time a waiver is granted, it influences the likelihood of a future waiver. The law is not inseparable from human nature.

  186. 186.

    jl

    @WaterGirl: 
    ” Not Tom VIlsak. Ugh. ”
    Wasn’t he Secty of Agriculture once already?
    I’d like to hear what he did so great that merits another stint.
    OTOH, if the Trumpsters are going to burn the joint down, maybe he is a good pick because he already knows how to put the pieces back together?

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