Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

Prediction: the GOP will rethink its strategy of boycotting future committees.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

“Everybody’s entitled to be an idiot.”

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

If you’re pissed about Biden’s speech, he was talking about you.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

Nothing worth doing is easy.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

You can’t love your country only when you win.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

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Reader Interactions

158Comments

  1. 1.

    Zzyzx

    I’m trying to be optimistic on the first night of Hanukkah but the fact that half of the Republican House delegation was willing to sign off on the Texas lawsuit is just so depressing.

  3. 3.

    Kent

    Trump is a mirror or looking glass that you can hold up to anyone and find out who they really are. He has that magical power.

    Pelosi should fucking refuse to seat any of these GOP Congressmen who signed on to election challenges in their own damn states.

  6. 6.

    Zzyzx

    @Baud:

    In terms of practicality, if that’s who they’re going to be, I don’t see how we get ourselves back to the point of a functioning government.

  15. 15.

    TS (the original)

    @Zzyzx:

    Perhaps it is better that they show everyone who they are. May it be held against them for ever and a day.

    My thoughts are why would they stake their political lives on someone like Donald Trump? Is it just proving – yet again – that white supremacy is everything to the republican party because there is 100% nothing else in Donald Trump to make him the hero to be saved.

  16. 16.

    Phylllis

    So I’m on quarantine until 12/22 due to close contact with a co-worker that tested positive. On the upside, this week and next are typically very slow for me at work, so I’m not having to make the commute to sit at my desk and mostly check emails and putter.

  17. 17.

    The Moar You Know

    Now 106 members of Congress filed a brief in favor of Texas’ request to throw out the results of the presidential election in 4 states that didn’t vote for Trump, partly because it’s important the government operate “based on the consent of the governed.”

    @Zzyzx: Tantrumocracy.

    We were 90% of the way there anyhow

    ETA:  this is all performative, of course, the Supreme Court won’t do anything and Biden will be president on Jan 20, 2021.  The concern is frankly that the next four years the GOP will do their level best to make the country ungovernable, and will largely succeed at that.

  18. 18.

    Cacti

    Last night I was told to “get a grip” on my observations that our republic is failing.

    Today, more than half of the GOP House caucus signed on to the Texas attempt a presidential coup by judicial fiat.

    Yeah, I was way off base.  (eyeroll)

  20. 20.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    My favorite part of the current coup attempt to overturn an election is how the media is essentially going along with it as if it’s just totally normal. My go-to reality check is how would they react if Democrats were doing the same thing? I think we know the answer to that. It would be non-stop media outrage. The larger issue still to be solved is that we have asymmetrical political warfare. Democrats are expected to operate within norms and traditions and Republicans can do whatever the fuck they want.

  21. 21.

    JanieM

    On the bright side, where I live, and in most of the US, we are at or beyond the point of the earliest sunset. So, given that don’t get up until a couple of hours after sunrise, the days are already getting longer for me. Yay!

    Anne Laurie — I’m convinced you never actually sleep…every day I’m amazed once again at the COVID round-ups, which if memory serves you’ve been giving us since January 21.

  22. 22.

    kindness

    How is it possible that I continue to be shocked by the behaviour of Republicans?  I always think ‘OMG they can’t top this stupidity/lunacy!’ and then they tell me ‘Challenge Accepted!’ and do.

    I’m reminded of the retort to Senator McCarthy:

    Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?

    Yea no they don’t.  I guess that since all they listen to is their own empirical bubble they don’t see that those outside the bubble are appalled by their ongoing treason.

  23. 23.

    JPL

    @Just Some Fuckhead: Actually that is my most terrifying moment.    just sayin..

    Also Fox news mentioning covid deaths 3 times in 24 hours and 60 plus times Hunter’s tax audit within the same time frame.   wtf happened with trump’s audit?    I for one am scared.

  24. 24.

    debbie

    @Zzyzx:

    From my link, there’s opposition to them from their own party:

    A handful of prominent Republicans, including former Sens. John Danforth (R-Mo.) and Lowell Weicker (R-Conn.) and former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, filed their own brief opposing the case, as did 23 other states and territories, while Ohio’s Republican attorney general filed a brief arguing federal courts “lack authority to order legislatures to appoint electors without regard to the results.”

    All aboard the ? ? !

  25. 25.

    Mike in NC

    Seditious GOP scum who won’t remain faithful to the oaths they took to the Constitution should resign.

  27. 27.

    narya

    Okay, semi-serious question: If they’re going to go down that whole “consent of the governed” path, isn’t that an argument that the democrats should have many more seats in both houses of congress? A republican hasn’t won the popular vote very often in the last two decades, so ? I’m waiting for someone to bring that point up in one of these ridiculous cases.

  31. 31.

    Xavier

    Little known fact: the earliest sunset occurs in early December. Sunsets are already getting a few seconds later every day, and will start being noticeable before long.

  33. 33.

    Kent

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:@Kent: That’s a bit tricky, as long as the member is duly elected they must be seated.

    GOP Congressmen from GA, MI, WI, and PA are saying themselves that they weren’t duly elected.  Since they are saying the election in those states needs to be thrown out.  We should take them at their word.

  35. 35.

    The Moar You Know

    @narya: That’s “consent of the Republican governed” because, as they’ve made very clear, Democratic votes are neither valid nor legal.

  37. 37.

    Miss Bianca

    @Zzyzx: What utter FUCKING bullshit. Can Pelosi refuse to seat these seditious warthogs

    ETA: I wonder who they were? I wonder if my Rep-elect is among them?

  38. 38.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @JPL: Hunter Biden is a private figure and has a clear winning defamation lawsuit against Republicans if he wants to push it. The fact he doesn’t sue makes me think he must be guilty of something.

  39. 39.

    Hildebrand

    @Phylllis: Did you get tested?  I ask, because I colleague who I saw for a short time yesterday (we were both masked and distanced) let me know this morning they tested positive – and my doctor suggested I come in for a test on Monday.  I am definitely getting tested – I hate the anxiety.  So, I’ll be joining you on quarantine.  Hope you are well.

  40. 40.

    John S.

    Progressive groups have pushed for Haaland’s nomination, but some Democratic leaders have expressed hesitation about pulling another House member into Biden’s cabinet, given the party’s very narrow margin in the chamber after last month’s elections.

    Noted without comment.

  42. 42.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    I will say the current coup attempt is a natural progression in the arc of Republicans deciding Democratic presidents are illegitimate for this or that reason. It started with Clinton, got worse with Obama and now we’re where we are with Biden.

  43. 43.

    Phylllis

    @debbie: Yep, there really isn’t anything that needs doing that I can’t do from home right now. I consider time like this to be ‘retirement practice’ anyway.

  45. 45.

    Yarrow

    @Baud:  With you on this. We know who they are.

    @debbie:
    Germany was willing to do the hard work to look at who they were and how they got there. We will recover if we are willing to do and do the work.

  46. 46.

    Miss Bianca

    @Kent: I’m with you on this one. I’d love to see Pelosi explain to them sweetly that if the election is fraudulent for the Presidency in their states, sadly, it’s fraudulent for them as well.

  50. 50.

    JPL

    @Just Some Fuckhead: I have no idea whether that is true or not.   I do know that I didn’t vote for him, so it doesn’t really concern me.  I didn’t vote for the guy who ignores the deaths happening while he is the leader of the free world. .

  52. 52.

    Phylllis

    @Hildebrand: I got tested at a free site not far from my house yesterday. The guidance doc our lead school nurse sent me said to wait until next Monday, but I think my co-worker was symptomatic before this past weekend-she was complaining of a headache last Thursday and was congested. I’m very diligent about my mask-wearing, can only cross my fingers & hope for the best.

  55. 55.

    Fair Economist

    @The Moar You Know:

    this is all performative, of course, the Supreme Court won’t do anything and Biden will be president on Jan 20, 2021. The concern is frankly that the next four years the GOP will do their level best to make the country ungovernable, and will largely succeed at that.

    The problem is that this is probably going to happen with every election going forward, and it’s not always going to be performative.

  56. 56.

    LongHairedWeirdo

    Oh, my god, that (Three Dog Night comic) was the *worst* visual pun setup I’ve seen in a hell of a long time. I think congratulations are in order.

  57. 57.

    Mike E

    @Kent: GOP Congressmen from GA, MI, WI, and PA are saying themselves that they weren’t duly elected.  Since they are saying the election in those states needs to be thrown out.  We should take them at their word.

    Require each of them to sign an affidavit that they hold the entire election as totally legitimate, and only then can they be sworn in

  58. 58.

    The Moar You Know

    My niece is a sophomore Banana Slug!

    @raven: Congrats to her.  It’s become a really difficult school to get into.  It wasn’t when I went there, but my grades were good enough to get in on appeal, lol.  And maybe more importantly, good enough to get out with the piece of paper we all go there for.

    I then lived in town for another 6 years building guitars.  There is quite a town/gown divide there.   The locals need the student money, but hate the students.  It’s a weird place.   Not a part of America in any real sense (a lot of the Green Triangle area – Humboldt/Mendocino/Trinity – is like that too).  I almost stayed for good.  Really glad I did not.

  59. 59.

    Fair Economist

    @JPL:

    Also Fox news mentioning covid deaths 3 times in 24 hours and 60 plus times Hunter’s tax audit within the same time frame. wtf happened with trump’s audit? I for one am scared.

    Had they found anything, the NYT would have frontpaged it ten times before the election. Hunter’s clean, at least WRT his taxes.

  62. 62.

    PJ

    @Just Some Fuckhead: 
    If Hunter Biden was guilty of something, and the GOP had evidence of it, Trump would have had him prosecuted by now.

    Re defamation, Hunter Biden is a public figure, so he would have to prove malice, which would probably not be that difficult to do, assuming that some of the documentation was probably fabricated, and the people promoting knew or had reason to know it came from untrustworthy sources and knew it was false or published it with reckless disregard for the truth.
    But there is at least one good reason not to sue:
    It would draw even more attention to himself when it looks like he is doing his best not to detract from his father and his family. If a defamation suit went to trial, all of his ill-advised and impulsive behavior would be in the media for weeks or months, embarrassing his family (he has non-adult children) and distracting his father from his job. Can you imagine the questions that would get thrown at Joe every day? “What about this thing Hunter is supposed to have done?” Filing a defamation suit would be a no-win situation.

  63. 63.

    The Moar You Know

    The problem is that this is probably going to happen with every election going forward, and it’s not always going to be performative.

    @Fair Economist:  I agree.  I will be leaving the country for good within the next four years to establish permanent residency and, if possible, citizenship in an EU nation.  I read all the history I needed to read about how this ends.

  65. 65.

    PsiFighter37

    106 Republicans outed themselves as outright traitors today.

    If I were Doug Jones, Nancy Yates, or any of the other contenders for AG, I would be studying what sedition laws are on the books. This kind of behavior calls for consequences.

  66. 66.

    MoCA Ace

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    That’s a bit tricky, as long as the member is duly elected they must be seated.

    She can make a great show of demanding that they prove they were not elected through massive fraud.  When they complain about the absurdity of proving a negative she has them…

    Hey I can dream

    ETA:  what Mike in Pasadena said

  67. 67.

    LongHairedWeirdo

    @Just Some Fuckhead: No, he’s not a private figure. You don’t get to be *asked* if you’re willing to become a public figure. Ask Lizzie Borden.

    Note that no one has to actually *say* that he did something wrong, and most people don’t. They simply highlight the opportunity, and let the reader draw their own conclusion. And for some people – I believe Tucker Carlson is one – the courts will accept “this guy says such crazy sh!t all the time, no one can consider his statements defamatory.”

    (Now, me, I feel that, if Fox wants to say “whoa, you can’t count on Tucker not to spew batsh!t crazy conspiracy theories” they should be forced to play a disclaimer before and after each show, before advancing that defense in any lawsuit. However, I’m not a lawyer, and I’m sure, for rightwingers, there’s a very sound reason why that would be a horrible infringement on free speech, that would be completely forgotten if there was ever a liberal-equivalent.)

  68. 68.

    Quiltingfool

    I noticed that several Missouri Representatives signed on as amicus to the Texas debacle, including my Rep, Vicky Hartzler.  I was surprised that Billy Long (I think Soprano lives in his district) didn’t join in, that’s his wheelhouse.  I’m so damned ashamed of my state — not surprised, but ashamed.  However, former Senator Danforth was pretty disgusted by the brief; I think the phrase “jiggery-pokery”  was used to reference the contents of the brief.

    I know it won’t happen in my state, but I wish these bastards would be voted out.  Well, it could happen, but we need  intensive rehabilitation and Democratic Party help here.  I need to figure out how I can help.

  71. 71.

    mrmoshpotato

    Someone ask Steve what he was up to all of his professional life. Bastard.

    "The Republican Party is an organized conspiracy for the purposes of maintaining power for self-interest and the self-interest of its donor class. There is no fidelity to the America idea and ideal.” Steve Schmidt pic.twitter.com/T32FXXGPmA— Cliff Yaffe (@CliffYaffe) December 10, 2020

  74. 74.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Quiltingfool: but we need intensive rehabilitation and Democratic Party help here

    Help in the form of NANCY SMASH’S big fuckin’ hammer?

    ETA – or were you thinking along the lines to firing the whole damned party into the Sun?

  79. 79.

    Roger Moore

    @Fair Economist:

    The problem is that this is probably going to happen with every election going forward, and it’s not always going to be performative.

    IMO, this is one reason it’s really important that the suits not just be crushed but be treated as the absolute nonsense they are.  We need to push really hard for sanctions against the idiots pushing these suits to make it clear to the next batch of idiots that there will be consequences for trying to overturn democracy.

  81. 81.

    Bill Arnold

    @kindness:

    Yea no they don’t. I guess that since all they listen to is their own empirical bubble they don’t see that those outside the bubble are appalled by their ongoing treason.

    Let them know. They need to know what it feels like to be loathed as anti-American authoritarian traitors(/seditionists/whatevers) by tens of millions of genuinely patriotic Americans.
    All of them have email addresses and most of them have an official twitter account, and their offices also have physical addresses and phones.
    No death/bodily harm threats though.

    Perhaps they should not be seated?
    14th Amendment (Section 3)
    Perhaps they are seditionists? (IANAL and don’t much care; to me they’re traitorous scum, like the henchmen of the treasonous slaveholders that my ancestors killed in the War of the Rebelion, though shots haven’t been fired. Yet.)
    CHAPTER 115—TREASON, SEDITION, AND SUBVERSIVE ACTIVITIES
    If feeling feisty,
    “Amendment II
    A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed.”
    Etc.

  82. 82.

    Kent

    @John S.:Progressive groups have pushed for Haaland’s nomination, but some Democratic leaders have expressed hesitation about pulling another House member into Biden’s cabinet, given the party’s very narrow margin in the chamber after last month’s elections.

    They better be really fucking safe seats in states with Dem governors.  Haaland’s District is D+7 which is only borderline safe and maybe not very.

    I would be more comfortable with say a nomination of biking and transit advocate Earl Blumenauer to Secretary of Transportation as he is from the Oregon 3rd Congressional District (Portland) which is D+24 and it’s time for some new blood and POC to represent Portland anyway.

  83. 83.

    LongHairedWeirdo

    @Just Some Fuckhead: Yes, it’s very self-serving, in this case.

    What makes you think Republicans haven’t been manipulating the media and journalism, using this very specific methodology, for years now?

    Michael Schiavo became a public figure once there was interest in the fate of his wife, and the court-ordered removal of a feeding tube, to be done by her guardian (who was Michael at the time). If you read the Florida court decisions, you see that if the Republicans had a duty to be honest, they’d be in trouble, because they’d have engaged in gross negligence – not doing even the *most obvious* steps in investigating the matter, checking facts *or* the law, before making accusations.

    The Hunter Biden BS-fest is small potatoes for them, nowadays.

  86. 86.

    Kent

    @Fair Economist: The problem is that this is probably going to happen with every election going forward, and it’s not always going to be performative.

    It’s only performative because they aren’t likely to win.  They’d be doing it with much more heated fury if they thought they could pull it off.

  92. 92.

    Keith P.

    @Kent: Didn’t the Dems put themselves in a similar position re: the Senate years back? They cabineted themselves into a slim minority, and a red state Senator died or flipped or something.

  93. 93.

    Roger Moore

    @Mike in Pasadena:

    Well then, we need to challenge whether they were duly elected.

    That’s a double-edged sword. You have to accept their claim that the election was fraudulent to avoid seating them, but that plays into their game.

    They would probably be happy not to be seated for a while if it let them scream about election fraud for a while longer.  It’s not as if they’re going to be accomplishing anything with their votes anyway, and “Nancy Pelosi was so scared of me she refused to let me do the job you sent me to Washington to do” is probably valuable for their reelection campaign.

  95. 95.

    Roger Moore

    @Gin & Tonic:

    They are arguing that their own election was illegitimate.

    Not really.  They’re arguing that the Democrats cheated and stole a bunch of votes.  Under that theory, they won in spite of the election being illegitimate, not because of it, so they deserve their seats.

  97. 97.

    Dan B

    @mrmoshpotato: Please watch Michelle Martin’s interview of Steve Schmidt on Amanpour and Company.  He describes his evolution.  He’s much more clear about what the GOP has become than most Dems, in fact the Vast Majority of Dems.  His sustained low level fury is a tonic.

    Michelle Martin said she hopes to interview him again – rare for her.

  98. 98.

    PsiFighter37

    What do people make of the announcements on policy today? Honestly, the Susan Rice one makes little to no sense to me – domestic policy is not her expertise whatsoever. McDonough for VA also makes little sense, unless the view is that they want a competent administrator keeping things in line.

    Obviously any of these folks are a big improvement on Trump’s low-quality hires, but these seem uninspired. Patrick Murphy at VA would have been a great pick, IMO.

  100. 100.

    Dan B

    @The Moar You Know: Watch Schmidt’s interview on Amanpour.  If you’re looking for blameless don’t look to our blogmaster either.

    And: Watch the fucking interview for Dog’s sake!  Then repeat your talking point that he’s guilty if you still must.

  101. 101.

    Kent

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:@Kent: Governors have no role in filling House seats, they are always filled by special election.

    OK, point taken.  But I think Governors or Secretaries of State do have discretion in how fast Special Elections are called and conducted.

  102. 102.

    Peale

    @Just Some Fuckhead: They told Hilary to shut up and go away immediately and complained when she did that not all that unusual thing and wrote a memoir. I’m surprised they haven’t taken to blaming her now for not having the guts to get California to sue Wisconsin back in 2016.

  103. 103.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @Roger Moore: I think it would be awesome to find out that Trump cheated to get 12 million more votes than in 2016 but Democrats outcheated him to get 16 million more votes than 2016 and that’s the reason Trump is so pissed.

  104. 104.

    WaterGirl

    @PsiFighter37:  Are these senate-confirmed positions?

    My speculation is that they are putting folks in places that aren’t necessarily where they want them long-term.

    Get the senate approval, because who gives a fuck if Susan Rice is doing domestic policy, then later you can get that person in where you want them without having to get the senate approval for that spot.

    If these aren’t senate-confirmed positions, then I have no idea.  When I heard about Susan Rice, my response was WTF?

  105. 105.

    Richard

    @The Moar You Know: i hope so. What do they hope to gain? A nice tombstone? A little slice of hate pie? We made the libtards cry again?

    Is that what they are about? They sure act that way. I don’t understand what they want. I still don’t get it. What do they want and how can they live without 80 millions of their neighbors?

  106. 106.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    @Dan B:

    Some folks here want to complaint about the Lincoln Project “moving the needle”, but that never was their point. It was twofold – to make it OK for primarily  GOP voters to split tickets (probably a percent or so here and there) and to cause Trump to make errors in response to their material, which I thought very effective.

     

    As to the current state of things, I’m fairly petrified with concern over the “after”. I’m not alone; a number of prominent folks are.

    Wife has been told that next year, she’ll be earning 10% of her 2019 pay, and that’s after taking a 75% cut in 2020. Commissions might not resume until 2Q of 2022.

  108. 108.

    geg6

    @PsiFighter37:

    As someone who is forced to work with the VA every day and has seen the arbitrary and ever changing rules and reporting of the last four years, anyone with excellent administrative skills would be welcome by me with great relief and open arms.  I also read that he and his wife are very connected to veteran charities.  He may know more about veteran needs than you think.  As for Susan Rice, I’m scratching my head a bit over that, but maybe he just feels comfortable working with her and admires her skills.  I got nuthin’ on that one.

  109. 109.

    mrmoshpotato

    @WaterGirl: I doubt he saw the party in that way a few years ago.

    Oh we know he didn’t.  Doesn’t mean that it wasn’t exactly that though.

  110. 110.

    RSA

    @burnspbesq: Pennsylvania:

    Texas further claims, again based on Dr. Cicchetti’s analysis, that “[t]he same less than one in a quadrillion statistical improbability” can be found “when Mr. Biden’s performance in each of those Defendant States is compared to former Secretary of State Hilary Clinton’s performance in the 2016 general election.” Bill of Complaint at ¶ 11. For this assertion, Dr. Cicchetti simply assumes that the likelihood of a given Pennsylvania voter in 2020 voting for Biden was the same as that of a Pennsylvania voter in 2016 voting for Hillary Clinton—and then concludes, based on that assumption, that the 2020 results were quite improbable. App. 6a ¶¶ 18–20. But it should not be necessary to point out that the 2016 and 2020 elections were, in fact, separate events, and any analysis based on the assumption that voters in a particular state would behave the same way in two successive presidential elections is worthless.

    I do feel better. That was an incisive analysis.

  112. 112.

    Dan B

    @mrmoshpotato: I was very leery of The Lincoln Project,  warning friends away from donating, until I watched Schmidt’s interview on Amanpour.  I don’t agree with his Chamber of Commerce policy but I want him on our side.  He’s big artillery, more so than almost every Dem.  Katie Porter is close as is Lt. Gov. John Fetterman.  But they don’t have the experience putting together a mass media campaign.

    Saying that Schmidt should be dismissed completely because of his past is like telling a sharpshooter with a checkered past to get lost in a battle.  And we are in a War.  Right now.

  113. 113.

    burnspbesq

    @RSA:

    The footnote to that part is very inside-baseball, but very important. The reference to Daubert is intended to signal to the Court that this jackalope would never be allowed to testify, because he isn’t an “expert” and his methods don’t meet the standards of the discipline.

  114. 114.

    PsiFighter37

    @WaterGirl: VA is, domestic policy is not. I assumed Rice would get a job in the White House that was not confirmable, given how the Senate has turned out (she would otherwise be SecState IMO, if Democrats had picked up the seats the polls were saying they would). That said, her entire professional career in the political arena has been around foreign policy. If they really wanted her, she should have gotten NSA again. Given that Biden has picked Murthy and Vilsack to reprise their roles, I don’t get why he would not do so about foreign policy (although, given his background in the Senate, I think Biden has much stronger opinions about foreign policy than domestic policy). I know that Rice was on the shortlist for VP, and maybe this is viewed as a way to get her more exposure on that side, but it still doesn’t make sense or add up.

    At the end of the day, it’s not a huge role – I had to look up who Obama had in place, and while I remember the lady’s appointment, it simply was not that prominent a position. Maybe it’s just a stealth way to put a foreign policy advisor he wants back in the WH, although having her on a ‘senior advisor’ would be better, IMO.

  115. 115.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @Dan B: I’d like some contrition along the lines of Stuart Stevens. Even Jennifer Rubin, who has been a consistent hard voice against Trump, has never accounted for her previous douchebaggery.

  117. 117.

    Bill Arnold

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:
    Does Powell v. McCormick really cover what’s in the 14th amendment? (I know the argument is farcical, but at least the thoughts flow. Convince me that it is as farcical as the Texas complaint.)
    https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/amendmentxiv

    Section 3.
    No person shall be a Senator or Representative in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any state, who, having previously taken an oath, as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any state legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any state, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by a vote of two-thirds of each House, remove such disability.

  118. 118.

    Dan B

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:  I agree after watching Schmidt’s interview on Amanpour.  He explained that well to Michelle Martin.  They seem to have good strategy and excellent psychological profiles to continue to take down the most egregious and influential promoters of Trumpism.  We – US citizens – need that.

    Very sorry to hear about the threat to your financial well being.  We’re living low on the hog in anticipation of Mnuchin plunging the country into depression to cripple Biden / Harris.  Total evil monster.

  119. 119.

    Uncle Cosmo

    @burnspbesq: That was the most entertaining legal brief I’ve ever read. Particularly appreciated two lines on page 17:

    “[H]e who comes into equity must come with clean hands.”

    (Ouch!) And

    Texas literally seeks to decimate the electorate of the United States

    for its use of “decimate” in its exact (not figurative) sense (“to reduce by one-tenth”).

  121. 121.

    Kattails

    @Just Some Fuckhead: As someone pointed out when the laptop thing came up, the problem is that if they hacked his phone, they (Reps in collusion with Russia) can manufacture shit. They can use real, innocuous images and texts and mix them in with Photoshopped crap and make it all look real.  So the issue is that you can’t even acknowledge anything because you don’t know what they have and how they’ve distorted it. It really sucks.

    If I were inclined to stick pins in voodoo dolls, one with Putin’s face on it would be at the top of my list. McConnell second.

  123. 123.

    Dan B

    @geg6: Word is that Susan Rice would never be approved by Mitch or any other GOP’ers.  This seems like one way to keep her talents in the Biden administration.

  124. 124.

    Bill Arnold

    @Just Some Fuckhead:

    I think it would be awesome to find out that Trump cheated to get 12 million more votes than in 2016 but Democrats outcheated him to get 16 million more votes than 2016 and that’s the reason Trump is so pissed.

    Alternatively, the Republicans rigged certain battleground states (probably not Georgia, which went with voter suppression) in both 2016 and 2020, but in 2020 they underestimated the late-counted Democratic vote by several 10s of thousands, and now they’re freaked out because a proper investigation would detect this and some of them would hang.
    This is at least as consistent as the Republican theories, and also explains Trump’s 2016 win. (And Scott/DeSantis in Florida 2018)
    These games can be played by anyone who can spin up conspiracy theories and is willing to arrange for them to go viral even though they’re dangerous. (This is not hard.) That Republicans went with this is a vivid proof of their power-seeking amorality.

  126. 126.

    Dan B

    @mrmoshpotato: Schmidt’s interview spells out his rift with the GOP has gone on for more than a decade.  Chamber  of Commerce Repub met the racists long ago and tried to fight them from the inside.  Finally gave up or saw the light.

  127. 127.

    Barbara

    @burnspbesq: That brief was outstanding.  The amici filed by Washington D.C. and other states was also good, although it emphasized different points (that’s what you do when you can organize your amici).

  128. 128.

    David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch

    It wouldn’t surprise me if Hunter did something illegal.  But they’ve been investigating his taxes for three years in secret and haven’t found anything.  It smacks of Whitewater (endless investigation finding nothing).     I was audited once, it took six months, not 3 years and counting.

  129. 129.

    Dan B

    @Just Some Fuckhead:  I’d like public contrition too but I felt Schmidt’s messaging to Michelle Martin is more effective.  He’s not admitting he was wrong directly.  That would put him in the position of being a traitor to GOP/Trump.  As a person who feels his morals are being betrayed by the Trumpsters he is on a better position to speak to their uneasiness with the crudeness of Trumpism.

    I’d love to hear your take on the Amanpour interview.  It’s longer and more in depth than his interviews on other media.  I found the context he provided to be persuasive.*

    *Not that I support his free-market beliefs, the opposite.  But he seems like we can work with his defects for the most part.

  130. 130.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Just Some Fuckhead: I’d like some contrition along the lines of Stuart Stevens. Even Jennifer Rubin, who has been a consistent hard voice against Trump, has never accounted for her previous douchebaggery.

    Exactly.  No admission for how they fucked this country for decades.  I’m listening to the Martin interview right now, and apparently it’s the progressives that need to watch their messaging.  Are we going to make the Trump trash sad by calling them fascists?

    And Schmidt really needs to stop saying “Trumpism.”  This isn’t Trumpism.  It’s the logical end of the Republican party.

    And a thousand apologies for having animosity towards a fascist party, a party that’s been a goddamned fucking pile of shit for longer than I’ve been alive.  Sorry about that, Steve!

    The Soviet shitpile mobster conman didn’t destroy Rethuglicans’ belief in democracy.  This has been a long time coming.

    ETA – and it’s been more like forty years instead of the past four.

    Don’t You Dare Call It Trumpism – Crooks and Liars August 2016

  131. 131.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Just Some Fuckhead: 

    My favorite part of the current coup attempt to overturn an election is how the media is essentially going along with it as if it’s just totally normal. My go-to reality check is how would they react if Democrats were doing the same thing? I think we know the answer to that. It would be non-stop media outrage. The larger issue still to be solved is that we have asymmetrical political warfare. Democrats are expected to operate within norms and traditions and Republicans can do whatever the fuck they want.

    QFT. I have no idea how we can create a more level playing field, but dammit, something’s gotta change.

    Earlier this year, I looked up how many newspapers demanded Clinton’s resignation over l’affaire Lewinsky. Can’t remember the exact number, but it was over 100 of them.

    Trump has done nothing as 300,000 Americans have died of Covid-19 – worse than nothing, really, as he’s whipped up opposition to any and every Dem governor’s attempts to rein in the spread of the virus. And how many newspapers or other media outlets have demanded that he resign on that account? A few have, but I doubt it’s cracked double digits.

    And if any at all have suggested that anyone should suffer political consequences on account of this attempt to overturn a free and fair election with a clear result, I’ve missed it.

  135. 135.

    Quiltingfool

    @Soprano2: I’m gonna say Billy was eating lunch when the signing took place.

    I’m gonna write ol’ Vicky an email as soon as I get calm enough to not use swear words.

  136. 136.

    lowtechcyclist

    @satby:

    @PsiFighter37: Possibly you might understand better if you read about why Rice was selected and the thinking behind the move. I mean, these announcements come with some background and context , at least if you dive deeper than the headline.

    I really hadn’t thought much about Biden’s selection of Rice for domestic policy chief until I read your link, other than to think that it sounded odd but maybe there’s some explanation.

    To me, the notion that managerial experience is this scarce but easily transferable talent is bullshit.  Many domestic policy issues really do take some time to understand, and her time will be the scarce asset here.

    This is no time to learn on the job; this Administration needs to be ready to fire a shitload of missiles in its opening weeks: it needs to be doing one necessary but (usually faux-) controversial thing after another, so that the Rethuglicans don’t have the chance to focus on any of them.

    There are surely people with wide and deep knowledge of domestic policy on the left side of the political spectrum who are also topnotch managers.  Biden should have found one.

    The article also gave the rationale for Vilsack – that he was on good terms with large-scale farmers – and that took Vilsack’s nomination down a notch in my eyes as well.  There are a lot more small farmers than large-scale farmers; if you’re going to try to make inroads in rural America, might want someone who knows what they want.

    I don’t think either nomination (or the VA guy) are terrible choices, but to me they all seem like missed opportunities to make much better ones.

  137. 137.

    Dan B

    @satby: “Domestic policy as not that different than foreign policy.”

    May be more true than ever since there are plenty of states that seem to regard the USA as a scary adversary.

  138. 138.

    Another Scott

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: “Duly elected” may be doing the heavy lifting there. I’m reminded of a discussion here a few weeks/months ago.

    Wikipedia – 40th Congress:

    House members:

    Kentucky: Vacant x 1
    Texas: Vacant x 4
    Virginia: Vacant x 8
    Mississippi: Vacant x 5

    I don’t expect something similar, but who knows! I know Pelosi is taking names and won’t forget.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  140. 140.

    Quiltingfool

    Well, I just sent Vicky Hartzler, Mo Rep, my opinion on her support of the Texas brief.  I told her she was an oath breaker (violating her oath to the Constitution) and is without honor.

    I’m pretty sure she doesn’t give a shit what I think.  She tends to avoid town halls, so she is both a coward AND doesn’t give a shit what her constituents think.

  141. 141.

    Dan B

    @zhena gogolia: Thanks for watching!  I do not share some large portions of Schmidt’s policy views – I’m assuming economic policy, social welfare, and national security.  But he is a morally guided communication strategist who is furious at the cavalier disregard for a huge majority of American citizens.

    His barely contained fury matches that of the Democrats I hold in highest regard.  They are the same ones that thrill us in testimony and in inspiring the public.

  143. 143.

    debbie

    @Dan B:

    I’ve listened to a few interviews. I think he’s great and I am grateful for the Lincoln Project and their entire campaign.

  144. 144.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @debbie: What I like about the Lincoln Project is they didn’t ever let up. When stupid Trump predictably got Covid, Democrats went into mourning, said “we’re going to suspend our campaign ads against Trump.” Lincoln Project said, “nah, we’re going to keep doing the same thing we’ve been doing.” And that was the right decision because Trump never stopped attacking while he had Covid.

    Democrats are always convinced there’s some upside to looking like the better person in politics. There isn’t.

  146. 146.

    satby

    @Dan B: I thought it was an interesting interview too.I agree with Schmidt politically probably not at all, but his rage at his former party is something to behold. And I do believe that their ads helped some small percentage of Republicans to feel ok about splitting tickets to vote against Trump. We needed all those votes, so that was a good thing.

  147. 147.

    The Moar You Know

    i hope so. What do they hope to gain? A nice tombstone? A little slice of hate pie? We made the libtards cry again?

    Is that what they are about? They sure act that way. I don’t understand what they want. I still don’t get it. What do they want and how can they live without 80 millions of their neighbors?

    @Richard:  Um, OK.  In case you are not joking, what they want is power.  All the power.  Same as it always has been through history.  POWER.

  148. 148.

    Another Scott

    @?BillinGlendaleCA: Yeah, I saw you mentioning that after I replied.  Still Nancy knows how this stuff works, also too.

    We’ll see.

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (“Who, again, doesn’t expect them not to be seated, but wouldn’t be surprised if there were, say, Ethics investigations launched…”)

  149. 149.

    cwmoss

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Max Kennerly on Twitter:

    “More than a dozen just won re-election in PA, GA, MI, or WI. Fine, they can have it their way: they admit they weren’t duly elected (because of ‘unconstitutional irregularities’), and so Powell v. McCormack doesn’t apply. A simple majority of the House can vote to exclude them.”

  151. 151.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Just Some Fuckhead: What I like about the Lincoln Project is they didn’t ever let up. When stupid Trump predictably got Covid, Democrats went into mourning, said “we’re going to suspend our campaign ads against Trump.”

    The Democrats had to let up then.  Can you imagine the howls from the American Fascist Party (formerly GOP) if they hadn’t?  The bastards’ whole thing is to scream bloody murder at being poked while they’re actively trying to take a claw hammer to your face.

  152. 152.

    MoCA Ace

    @David ??Merry Christmas?? Koch: they’ve been investigating his taxes for three years in secret and haven’t found anything.

    Of course they haven’t.  And it comes out now so that the IRS/FBI under Biden can’t come out and say it’s all a bunch of trumped up charges.  If they do that it’s obvious that Daddy quashed the investigation to save his corrupt son.  These fuckers know how to shiv a guy.

  154. 154.

    Bill Arnold

    @MoCA Ace:

    And it comes out now so that the IRS/FBI under Biden can’t come out and say it’s all a bunch of trumped up charges.

    D.J. Trump’s Federal tax returns won’t be (illegally) protected by Mnuchin once he’s gone. Then it gets interesting. No reason to believe that Trump doesn’t cheat on taxes when he cheats on everything (and everyone) else. Including golf.
    Commander in Cheat: How Golf Explains Trump (Rick Reilly, 2019)

  156. 156.

    Original Lee

    Just found out a colleague of my husband’s died from the virus. He had tested positive a month ago, and immediately quarantined himself for the requisite period. He had not yet gotten the two-in-a-row negative tests, so had been working at his apartment and suddenly stopped responding to texts and emails. As he lived alone, his emergency contact was notified and had to get the police to help him get inside. All too common a story nowadays. The only saving grace is that nobody else that had contact with him has tested positive.

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