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Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Wake up. Grow up. Get in the fight.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

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

Our messy unity will be our strength.

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

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

Let me file that under fuck it.

Why is it so hard for them to condemn hate?

Accountability, motherfuckers.

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

In my day, never was longer.

We know you aren’t a Democrat but since you seem confused let me help you.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

Not so fun when the rabbit gets the gun, is it?

When they say they are pro-life, they do not mean yours.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

With all due respect and assumptions of good faith, please fuck off into the sun.

The Giant Orange Man Baby is having a bad day.

They think we are photo bombing their nice little lives.

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You are here: Home / Elections / Biden-Harris 2020 / Friday Morning Open Thread: Look for the Helpers

Friday Morning Open Thread: Look for the Helpers

by Anne Laurie|  January 8, 20218:17 am| 156 Comments

This post is in: Biden-Harris 2020, Open Threads, Proud to Be A Democrat, Republican Stupidity, Trumpery

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Some chairman turnovers with Democrats expected to win the Senate:

Appropriations: Shelby —> Leahy
Banking: Crapo —> Brown
Environment: Barasso —> Carper
Finance: Grassley —> Wyden
Homeland Security: Johnson —> Peters
Judiciary: Graham —> Durbin
Budget: Enzi —> Sanders

— Dave Weigel (@daveweigel) January 6, 2021


Sounds like some major upgrades, there!

Joe Biden is considering asking Congress to help suffering Americans in two steps: give them the balance of their coveted $2,000 coronavirus payments, followed by a $3 trillion tax and infrastructure package. https://t.co/MrMBiILXU0

— Axios (@axios) January 8, 2021

In other news… Mike Pence decides his role is to play a bucket of warm spit:

SCOOP: @VP is expected to attend Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration in whatever form it may take.

“It was a much more difficult decision days ago, but less difficult now.” https://t.co/9Y5zHOQIlo

— Gabby Orr (@GabbyOrr_) January 7, 2021

.@SenSchumer says he and @SpeakerPelosi tried to call @VP this morning to urge him to oust the president.

He said they were kept on hold for 25 minutes & then staff told them that Pence would not come to the phone.

— Daniella Diaz (@DaniellaMicaela) January 7, 2021

And a couple of (relatively sane) center-right dudes do a Statler-Waldorf review:

I watched. This is classic Trump: Someone went to him and said "you'll be impeached again" and so, like Saddam cooperating with the inspectors, he's sullenly doing just enough while still bitching about the unfairness of it.

He has conceded. Great.
Now impeach him again. /1 https://t.co/DdRO7Jco7W

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) January 8, 2021

I know people are going to say "well, he conceded, it's over, move on." No. That's how Trump got away with everything in his life. Put a marker down. Impeach him; make him stand there when Biden is sworn in anyway. We owe it to the Constitution. "Fine, I quit" isn't enough. /3x

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) January 8, 2021

That should get him to behave for, oh, 48 hours tops before he reverts to form.

— Patrick Chovanec (@prchovanec) January 8, 2021

The Beer Belly Putsch has now claimed more American lives than Benghazi. I'm sure Republicans will act accordingly and remove Donald Trump from office for inciting the crowd who attacked an American government installation and killed one of the people trying to defend it. https://t.co/JWJ0KJsA6L

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) January 8, 2021

The adviser confirmed that he was watching television coverage of the siege enthusiastically, but noted that the sight of his own supporters forming a violent mob and destroying property and lives offended him on aesthetic grounds.

— Olivia Nuzzi (@Olivianuzzi) January 8, 2021

Well, that explains the bullshit video he just put out https://t.co/tf7rjNwNdg

— Tom Nichols (@RadioFreeTom) January 8, 2021

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Reader Interactions

156Comments

  1. 1.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 8:19 am

    I want to see Hawley and his ilk stripped of all assignments. Why isn’t anyone talking about that?

  2. 2.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:19 am

    dont worry folks, im sure now that donald trump knows he has an army of chuds willing to die to make him King of the World he’ll chill out and definitely won’t try it again

    — Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew_lawrence) January 8, 2021

  3. 3.

    Punchy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:22 am

    Budget: Enzi —> Sanders

    I misread that as “Benghazi –> Sanders”, a sort of faux-scandal to fried chicken morph.

  4. 4.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:23 am

    “It was a much more difficult decision days ago, but less difficult now.”

    Why was it such a difficult decision for Pence days ago?  It should have been easy as soon as the election results came in.

  5. 5.

    dmsilev

    January 8, 2021 at 8:23 am

    Impeach him, and if the trial extends beyond the 20th, its not a complete waste. The penalty will then be a lifetime ban from holding Federal office.

  6. 6.

    JMG

    January 8, 2021 at 8:23 am

    Something just came to me as I was reading about the soon-to-be-former Chicago CEO who was one of the arrested rioters. Many, although not nearly enough, of the domestic terrorists will be in court next year facing extremely serious federal charges carrying “law and order” length sentences. I am certain that their defenses will feature some variation on “Trump told me to do it” as their lawyers attempt to portray their clients as dupes, not villains. Pardons or no, prosecution of Trump or no, videos of the pre-riot rally are going to be seen, heard and read about in local media day after day. I don’t think the Republican officeholders who have belatedly deserted Trump have to worry about primary challenges too much anymore. Who’s gonna want to have Trump campaign for them now?

  7. 7.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 8:23 am

    @debbie: I think that is done by the party leader, which in the case of Hawley would be McTurtle. Don’t hold your breath.

  8. 8.

    NeenerNeener

    January 8, 2021 at 8:25 am

    Did Trump think he was going to get a repeat of the “Brooks Brothers riot” from 20 years ago that put Dubya in office? Has he seen the Bubbas that attend his rallies?

    Lifetime ban on holding Federal office means no more campaign fund raising. That will really hurt Fat Bastard.

  9. 9.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 8:27 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Then McConnell needs to be censured.

  10. 10.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:27 am

    Hawley problems:-

    -Publisher rescinded book deal
    -Top donor calling for censure
    -Home state papers KC Star/STL Post-Dispatch calling for resignation
    -Mizzou law students calling for resignation
    -Danforth calls his support of him “biggest mistake” of his life
    -Colleagues distancing

    — Erin McPike (@ErinMcPike) January 8, 2021

  11. 11.

    Ocotillo

    January 8, 2021 at 8:27 am

    I was wondering (IANAL) if the damage that was done to the capitol building, if a suit or something could be done and use the over 200 million Trumpy has collected for this scam be used for the repairs?  Most of the mouthbreathers that stormed the place likely don’t have a pot to piss in so go where the money is.  Taxpayers  shouldn’t be on the hook for this goon’s crime.

  12. 12.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 8:27 am

    “Suddenly the squirrel ran up my leg and I thought ‘it’s a small rodent, how bad could this be’, so I stood completely still and they next thing I knew the blood started to fly. It was a wrestling match that got very bloody very quickly,” Frederick said.

    I caught a chipmunk in our house recently. I tried to get Miss Kitty the Unburnt, Queen of the Hollers, Breaker of Tethers, Killer of Copperheads to take care of it for us but she just wasn’t interested (the lazy bitch) so I snatched the life support system for a pair of eyeballs off the bookshelf myself and of course s/he tried to bite me (actually did but the way I grabbed it s/he was unable to draw blood) and threw it out the door.

    It is probably regaling the little ones right now with the story of how s/he fought off el Ogro de la Cuenca del Oso.

  13. 13.

    sab

    January 8, 2021 at 8:28 am

    In normal times one wouldn’t laugh out loud reading transition House of Representative Committee Chair assignments. zJust saying. But it made my day.

  14. 14.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 8:28 am

    @germy: Good, he’ll be more popular than ever now.

  15. 15.

    dmsilev

    January 8, 2021 at 8:29 am

    One particular thing I wonder about with the change in Appropriations. Shelby has been a huge supporter of NASA’s giant waste of money called the Space Launch System, which is basically pork for politically connected Space Shuttle contractors and, surprise!, Alabama -located NASA centers. With his hands off the purse strings, will there be a effort to turn down the billions of dollars being spent on this boondoggle?

  16. 16.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 8:30 am

    @Ocotillo: Most of the mouthbreathers that stormed the place likely don’t have a pot to piss in

    Sue those folks anyway: “Got any dreams? We want them too.”

  17. 17.

    There go two miscreants

    January 8, 2021 at 8:31 am

    …told Captain Bligh…

    That’s a smear on Bligh, who, for all his faults, was a competent seaman and managed to get the loyal part of his crew to safety after being cast adrift. Dump, on the other hand, is competent at nothing.

  18. 18.

    RepubAnon

    January 8, 2021 at 8:33 am

    Now that a police officer has died, I’m not sure Trump can pardon his way out of this. I expect that’s a violation of DC city law as well as the Federal violations.

    On a side note, Pence is apparently opposed to a 25th Amendment solution. Profiles in Cowardice gets another chapter.

  19. 19.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:33 am

    This thread reminded me of neighbors I’ve had:

    Let me explain something to those of you who didn't grow up around violently abusive white supremacists.

    *They absolutely do not believe their own bullshit*, but it's useful for them to pretend they do.

    — Lili Saintcrow (@lilithsaintcrow) January 7, 2021

  20. 20.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 8:35 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Ha! I thought that was leading into an article using it as a metaphor for the Trump administration!

  21. 21.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 8:36 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    Also explains why they pissed and shit in the halls.

  22. 22.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 8:39 am

    @RepubAnon:

    The president can pardon DC crimes.

  23. 23.

    Geminid

    January 8, 2021 at 8:41 am

    The day of the the disastrous Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, trump made a much criticized statement that gave unwarranted cover to the right wing protesters. A couple days later he he backed up and made a longer statement that in tone tracked the recording released yesterday. But he let his true feelings come out a day later at trump tower, when he took what was to be an infrastructure program announcement and turned it into a toxic defense of himself and the right-wingers. My Atlanta friend aptly described trump’s tone at the latter event as “savage.” So I expect trump to come out snarling soon.

  24. 24.

    sab

    January 8, 2021 at 8:41 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: My dad’ s cat (now ours since he is blind and dad’s in nursing home) used to be lethal to squirrels. Then one day he approached one from the front not the back and too slow. Massive battle and he got a scar on the nose and almost lost an ear. Squirrel also survived.  He never messed with one again.

  25. 25.

    p.a.

    January 8, 2021 at 8:42 am

    Re: Olivia Nuzzi’s above tweets: donnie tRump, aesthete?.  No fucking stomach for the mayhem and death he instigates.  “Don’t show me how the sausage is made!”  Would have liked to use laughing face emoji, but 5 dead, democracy in the balance…

    (also too, not a slap at Nuzzi; she’s great.  A comment on the Orange Shitstain only.)

  26. 26.

    kindness

    January 8, 2021 at 8:43 am

    I’m so happy Leahy isn’t head of Judiciary like he was during Obama’s term. He’s a good person but he reinstated the 2 blue slip rule and Republicans then used it to deprive Obama of many of his judicial picks. I’m all for being good but not a fan of being stupid.

  27. 27.

    Gin & Tonic

    January 8, 2021 at 8:46 am

    Saw on Twitter that one of the rioters arrested yesterday required a Russian interpreter in court.

    This is my surprised face.

  28. 28.

    Danielx

    January 8, 2021 at 8:46 am

    @debbie:

    Not unexpected, exactly – they’ve been watching Dear Leader figuratively flinging shit for months/years and it wasn’t much of a step for them to take the process from virtual to IRL.

  29. 29.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 8:46 am

    @RepubAnon: All DC law is Federal, FWIW

  30. 30.

    Ramiah Ariya

    January 8, 2021 at 8:46 am

    I wrote an interpretation of the US Capitol attack for my friends (in India) in my FB page. It may interest some of you:
    The best way to understand this is not through politics at all, but religion and psychology.
    The current Seventh Day Adventist church was born out of a movement started by William Miller in 1840s. Miller predicted that Jesus Christ would return to earth on Oct 22, 1844. Many of his followers waited for that day, but Christ did not come, in an event known as the Great Disappointment.
    Subsequently, you would think Miller was denounced as a charlatan. Instead his movement explained that his calculations were correct, but on that day Christ was not supposed to come back to earth. He was only to enter a heavenly sanctuary in heaven itself.
    When brainwashed people come smack across reality, what happens? This has been a field of inquiry for psychologists over many years.
    Fox News has been saying for the past four years that Trump has the love of the vast majority in the United States. A large number of Republicans only consume Fox.
    When the elections happened, that alternate reality clashed with the real world, in which their guy actually lost by 7 million votes.
    I was eager to watch what would happen. It is a once in life-time chance to see what happens when reality intrudes.
    One way was clear – Trump could claim the election was stolen; and walk away complaining about it. That way, his followers could actually face reality.
    But, that is not what happened. Trump claimed that the election was stolen, yes. But he ALSO claimed he could remain as President! He said he was actually going to have a second term, using certain obscure loopholes in their Constitution.
    In order to please him, govt officials followed along; Republican leaders followed along; Fox News followed along – and his supporters were told that IMMINENTLY some secret constitutional provision would be interpreted differently, and he would continue to be President.
    This is how we have to understand what happened there on Jan 6th – on that day, his supporters actually thought they were going to have a revolution and keep Trump in power. They even thought this was bound (or pre-ordained) to happen, because many in the crowd were evangelicals, who associated Trump with God’s own will.
    So, this is what happens when you keep bending reality to fit an alternate vision. People who follow you sincerely go crazy.
    There is no lesson for this in Indian politics. So far we have not created such complete bubbles of propaganda, although the BJP and the Dravidian movement have attempted.

  31. 31.

    Princess Leia

    January 8, 2021 at 8:47 am

    What woke me up in the middle of the night was the bone deep knowledge that these guys would have raped Pelosi or AOC if they had the chance.  Can’t get  that out of my head.

  32. 32.

    SiubhanDuinne

    January 8, 2021 at 8:47 am

    @debbie:

    Ha! So did I!

  33. 33.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 8:50 am

    I see Durbin got his wish and will get Judiciary even though he really should not as he is the Majority Whip.  Norms?  We don’t need no stinking norms!

  34. 34.

    Betty Cracker

    January 8, 2021 at 8:50 am

    @Ocotillo: I’d love it if prosecutors find away to hold Trump liable financially, but I don’t think it’s true that the seditionist thugs that sacked the Capitol are mostly poor. There are CEOs, business owners and professionals featured in the stories I’ve seen in local and national press. Even our piss ant local paper did a feature on the local sore losers who went to the rally (and allegedly tapped out before incurring criminal liability), and none were exactly downtrodden.

  35. 35.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 8:50 am

    @p.a.:

    “Let them eat Big Mac buns!””

  36. 36.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 8:51 am

    @Ramiah Ariya:

    In one sense, I can understand them. If the Supreme Court or Mike Pence had overturned democracy, what choice would we have had except rebellion?  But we would have been branded as seditionists had we lost, even though our cause would have been righteous.  They lost and they are not righteous.  They should be treated accordingly.

  37. 37.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:54 am

    I would have loved to see Trump, Eric, Don Jr, Ivanka, Kushner and others on their knees scrubbing the Capitol.  Sweeping up broken glass, wiping the stains off the floors and walls.  Cleaning up Pelosi’s office.

    Orange jumpsuits would have been nice too, but I’d be fine with them wearing normal business attire.

  38. 38.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 8:54 am

    @sab: Squirrels ain’t nothing to mess with.

  39. 39.

    sixthdoctor

    January 8, 2021 at 8:56 am

    @germy: That thread is amazing, thank you for posting.

    My favorite book as a kid was The Lorax, and watching all the Trump scum quit or turn on him reminds me of all of the Once-ler’s relatives waving goodbye and leaving after they’ve stripped the Truffula forest bare.

  40. 40.

    Ramiah Ariya

    January 8, 2021 at 8:56 am

    @Baud: I don’t think it is about the cause at all. I think they live in a world where Trump is immensely popular, and he could not have lost. Worse, in QAnon lore, his loss actually became one MORE way in which he was going to lead the Democrats into a trap and arrest all of them. It is like they all live in a dream.

    I wondered, just after the elections, if come Jan 20th they would continue to pretend that Trump was actually President! That is how much they have surrendered to Fox. If Fox had tried that tack, they would have gone along, living in a completely false world.

  41. 41.

    JPopeC

    January 8, 2021 at 8:57 am

    @Ramiah Ariya: Worth noting that, 200 years later, the Seventh Day Adventist Church is still very much alive and kicking, though their influence among evangelicals is negligible.

  42. 42.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:57 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    “I may be a killer, but I’m not a contract killer.”  – Miss Kitty

  43. 43.

    Spanky

    January 8, 2021 at 8:58 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: A squirrel (almost) bit my sister once.

    We’d been sightseeing, and had stopped under some trees with snacks. Damned squirrel ran right up her leg and went for the food. She flung everything frantically, and the squirrel bailed.

    Ironically, we were on the grounds of the US Capitol at the time.

  44. 44.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 8:58 am

    @sixthdoctor:

    She seems to be a novelist.  I’d never heard of her, but the thread made me want to read some of her books.

  45. 45.

    White & Gold Purgatorian

    January 8, 2021 at 8:59 am

    @dmsilev:  Shelby has certainly brought the bacon home to Alabama. I don’t know if the SLS is a useless program or not, but it is worth noting that a huge chunk of that money goes to Mo Brooks’ district and Brooks was one of the chief, and loudest, proponents of throwing out the electoral votes of other states. Our other Senator is that idiot Tuberville, who also supported the failed coup, so the political clout of the whole state, but especially north Alabama, will be taking a huge hit.
    I’ve heard Nancy Pelosi will be bringing back earmarks. Mo Brooks is not in a good position to get any for his district. That’s ok with me. It is sickening to listen to these people hating on the federal government when federal money fuels the local economy, and has for at least 80 years.

  46. 46.

    artem1s

    January 8, 2021 at 8:59 am

    @RepubAnon:

    On a side note, Pence is apparently opposed to a 25th Amendment solution. Profiles in Cowardice gets another chapter.

    Pence doesn’t want to 25th Donnie because he knows he won’t be able to dodge questions about what he did and didn’t know.  He wants to be as far away from briefings and staff meetings as humanly possible.  This is also why all the cabinet members are resigning.  Right now, he has plausible deniability.  He’s Dence but not quite that stupid.

  47. 47.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 8:59 am

    @Baud:

    King Henry: …Methinks I could not die any where so contented as in the king’s company, his cause being just and his quarrel honourable.
    William: That’s more than we know.
    Bates: Ay, or more than we should seek after; for we know enough if we know we are the king’s subjects. If his cause be wrong, our obedience to the king wipes the crime of it out of us.
    William: But if the cause be not good, the king himself hath a heavy reckoning to make; when all those legs and arms and heads, chopped off in a battle, shall join together at the latter day, and cry all, ‘We died at such a place;’ some swearing, some crying for a surgeon, some upon their wives left poor behind them, some upon the debts they owe, some upon their children rawly left.

  48. 48.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 8:59 am

    @Ramiah Ariya:

     I think they live in a world where Trump is immensely popular, and he could not have lost.

    That happens a lot.   Most don’t take it as far as the Trump seditionists did.

    ! That is how much they have surrendered to Fox.

    Fox wants to start attacking Biden.  They aren’t going to pretend Trump is still president.

  49. 49.

    satby

    January 8, 2021 at 9:00 am

    @Baud:  Can he pardon crimes he is implicated in?

  50. 50.

    Soprano2

    January 8, 2021 at 9:00 am

    @germy: The voters of MO knew he was a lying weasel when he ran for the Senate, seeing as how he “promised” not to use the MO AG office as a “ladder” to higher office, then promptly ran for Senate less than two years later. Oh, and he blatantly lied about supporting things in the ACA while he was in court trying to get the whole law overturned. Unfortunately, about 51.5% of MO voters thought he was better than McCaskill anyway. Say what you will about her, she’s 1,000% better than Hawley.

  51. 51.

    Danielx

    January 8, 2021 at 9:02 am

    @Betty Cracker:

    A lot of them evidently had the time and resources to take some time to fly into DC area, cosplay costumes in tow. Those are not the actions of people who have to worry about how they are going to make payments next month. Somehow I don’t suspect the crowd included many of the local poors, say those within a five mile radius of downtown DC.

  52. 52.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 9:03 am

    @germy: Well they could do that today in Khakis — casual Friday!

  53. 53.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:04 am

    @satby:

    George Bush pardoned the Iran Contra folks, although I can’t recall if Bush was in the loop on the underlying activities.

  54. 54.

    Central Planning

    January 8, 2021 at 9:04 am

    Did anyone else see the video of a DC policeman opening up the barricades to protesters and yelling “Go! Go! Go!” ?

    HO. LY. SHIT. I believe it but really don’t want to.

  55. 55.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:05 am

    @Soprano2:

     Say what you will about her,

    And a lot of privileged people did complain about her.

  56. 56.

    Geminid

    January 8, 2021 at 9:05 am

    @Ocotillo: Lawsuits by people injured at the Charlottesville rally have more or less shut down Richard Spencer and his neo-nazi outfit. I think this is one reason Gavin MacInnis distanced himself from his Proud Boys in 2018. Years before, MacInnis made a lot of money through Vice Magazine, and he did not want to lose it. But some say Gavin MacInnis still runs the Proud Boys.

  57. 57.

    Central Planning

    January 8, 2021 at 9:06 am

    @Spanky:

    Kudos on the Monty Python reference!

  58. 58.

    rp

    January 8, 2021 at 9:06 am

    @germy: Sartre said something similar:

    Never believe that anti-Semites are completely unaware of the absurdity of their replies. They know that their remarks are frivolous, open to challenge. But they are amusing themselves, for it is their adversary who is obliged to use words responsibly, since he believes in words. The anti-Semites have the right to play. They even like to play with discourse for, by giving ridiculous reasons, they discredit the seriousness of their interlocutors. They delight in acting in bad faith, since they seek not to persuade by sound argument but to intimidate and disconcert. If you press them too closely, they will abruptly fall silent, loftily indicating by some phrase that the time for argument is past.

  59. 59.

    Soprano2

    January 8, 2021 at 9:07 am

    @Ramiah Ariya: I don’t think it is about the cause at all. I think they live in a world where Trump is immensely popular, and he could not have lost.

    This is my experience of Trump supporters. I asked one of them if they thought Trump actually won because most of the people they know voted for Trump, and they said yeah. They can’t comprehend that there are millions of people out there in other parts of the U.S. who don’t want Trump as president. To be fair, my  husband says that most of the people in the world aren’t really real to us, because we don’t have any actual experience of them. I expect that there are people living in liberal cities who cannot conceive of the place where I live.

  60. 60.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:08 am

    @rp: Oh my, that’s apt.

  61. 61.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    January 8, 2021 at 9:08 am

    Ashli Babbitt can rest in peace knowing her death was a hoax.

  62. 62.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 9:09 am

    @Soprano2: Speaking of people running for Senate —

    I just read John Fetterman, Lt. Governor of Penn., Is throwing his hat in the ring.  This is good and his cause(s) are just(ice).

    What I know to be True:

    All work has dignity.

    All paychecks must too.

    Union Way of Life is sacred + built this nation.

    Healthcare is a basic human right.

    LGBTQIA ?️‍? deserves Equal Protection Under The Law.

    Immigration Makes America, America ??https://t.co/x7TVtn01oI— John Fetterman (@JohnFetterman) January 8, 2021

  63. 63.

    citizen dave (aka mad citizen)

    January 8, 2021 at 9:09 am

    @germy: That’s what I can’t get out of my mind this week–all these R a-holes who took days/weeks/months to acknowledge the Biden/Harris win.  I can’t help but think that if there was any chance, any way of overturning the results in some way they could do it without looking bad (in their own minds and the larger nation), they would have done it.  If there had been ONE state in serious dispute because of a virtual tie, or 10 or 100 fraudulent vote, they would have been totally on board with an overthrow.  While I know and am thankful the Dems had the House, if that had not been the case I have no doubt they might have done something otherwise.

    Have been thinking about how Harris (I think it is her) likes to quote the maxim: When someone shows you who they are, believe them.

    (good morning rant–I feel better)  (As I’m listening to a question about how the grid operator issued a conservative operations notice Wednesday afternoon not just for DC but their whole footprint–in case other protests popped up in other cities.  So basically, we didn’t know if a revolution would take place.)

  64. 64.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:10 am

    @Immanentize: Good.

  65. 65.

    Soprano2

    January 8, 2021 at 9:11 am

    @Baud: And a lot of privileged people did complain about her.

    These are the people who don’t have any experience with Missouri, and don’t understand that she’s the absolute best Democrat who could get elected in a statewide race right now. She’s a lot more liberal than Joe Manchin, for example. You’d think people in politics would understand that you cannot elect the same person in a place like MO that you can in CA.

  66. 66.

    Michael Cain

    January 8, 2021 at 9:13 am

    Sanders makes me nervous.  Unless the filibuster is broadly repealed, the instructions issued by the budget committees for the reconciliation bills are going to have to be very, very much a matter of compromises.  So Pelosi, Schumer, Yarmuth, and Sanders doing the right things in the budget resolution is likely a tricky necessity.

  67. 67.

    Bobby Thomson

    January 8, 2021 at 9:13 am

    @Princess Leia: they had zip ties and a hanging scaffold.  They fully intended to have a real revolution with real summary executions.  We are very lucky that enough security personnel were not compromised.

  68. 68.

    Princess Leia

    January 8, 2021 at 9:16 am

    @Bobby Thomson: Very lucky.

  69. 69.

    rikyrah

    January 8, 2021 at 9:16 am

    Good Morning, Everyone ???

  70. 70.

    Gin & Tonic

    January 8, 2021 at 9:16 am

    WaPo tells me that Dominion (the voting machine co) has sued Sidney Powell for $1.3 Bn for defamation. I’m sure they don’t expect to get that money, but good for them.

  71. 71.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 9:17 am

    On the morning of Jan. 6, Ginni Thomas—wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas—endorsed the protest demanding that Congress overturn the election, then sent her “LOVE” to the demonstrators, who violently overtook the Capitol several hours later. She has not posted since. pic.twitter.com/378CHMkFN5

    — Mark Joseph Stern (@mjs_DC) January 8, 2021

  72. 72.

    rikyrah

    January 8, 2021 at 9:17 am

    @Gin & Tonic:

    Discovery will be lit!

  73. 73.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 9:18 am

    @Baud:
    Fetterman is a real populist, not an astroturf version. It will be interesting to see what they throw at him.

  74. 74.

    mali muso

    January 8, 2021 at 9:19 am

    Take a moment to read SciFi author (and all around good guy) John Scalzi’s take on the path the Republican party has taken.  But What if We Didn’t

    …

    The Republican Party is a traitor to the ideals and practice of democracy in the United States. It fomented, aided and abetted an insurrection. A regrettable number of its members in the national government have signed on for sedition over the peaceful transfer of power (“The peaceful transfer of power? Okay, but what if we… didn’t?”). These seditious members should be drummed out of Congress, right now, and some Republicans who are in power should be charged with crimes. The Republican Party got us as close as we have gotten since the Civil War to the collapse of our democracy, not by accident, but by design, and had the implementation of that design been only a little more competent, both now and over the last few years, it might have succeeded. The GOP is an enemy of the United States — not conservatism as a whole, but its party (although at the moment I have no great kind thoughts about conservatism, either) — and if it had any institutional capacity for shame and self-reflection, it would end itself.

    To which I see the Republican Party saying, “Okay, but what if we… didn’t?” Because even now I can tell you that from the GOP point of view the problem isn’t the damage that party has wreaked upon the US and its people. The problem is its plan didn’t work.

    …

  75. 75.

    TS (the original)

    January 8, 2021 at 9:20 am

    He said they were kept on hold for 25 minutes & then staff told them that Pence would not come to the phone.

    Got his moment in the sun & then reverted to being himself – rude and ignorant.

  76. 76.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:20 am

    @rikyrah: 

    Good morning.

  77. 77.

    Just One More Canuck

    January 8, 2021 at 9:20 am

    @OzarkHillbilly: especially in Toronto

    Knife-wielding squirrel captured on camera in Toronto (blogto.com)

  78. 78.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 9:20 am

    @germy: I said a few days back that I would like to see her comms over the last few weeks.  It may be one way to dislodge a Justice.  Alito’s too because he is all in to the crazy.

  79. 79.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 9:20 am

    Today was truly a microcosm of U.S. history: Black and allied movements showing the promise of a fully realized democracy, followed up by extremely predictable white backlash, and ending with the ruling elites feigning innocence.

    — Amanda Boston, Ph.D. (@atboston) January 7, 2021

  80. 80.

    Danielx

    January 8, 2021 at 9:22 am

    @Baud:

    I think they live in a world where Trump is immensely popular, and he could not have lost.

    By happy coincidence the very same world in which he himself resides.

    Until recently I self debated whether he really believed there was substantive fraud behind his loss or whether he simply could not psychologically accept defeat (you large fucking loser!) and therefore came up with all these artificial constructs/reasons to explain why he could not have lost. At this point, however, it’s a distinction without a difference.  Whether he actually believes his own bullshit isn’t relevant, the maggots take their cue from his words and actions.

    Not bothering with the MAGAts nicety at this point. These people are maggots in a suppurating wound on the body politic.

  81. 81.

    Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes

    January 8, 2021 at 9:25 am

    Were I Biden, I’d say:

    “Fine, Don. Pardon yourself. I’ll honor it.

    In the spirit of dealmaking and honor, I’ll also honor the Iranian extradition request. Make your choice.”

  82. 82.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 9:27 am

    @Immanentize:

    Didn’t they kick him out of the state chamber during a vote? I’d like to see some consequences for that.

  83. 83.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:27 am

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes:

    Small price to pay for stopping their nuclear program. Do the deal.

  84. 84.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 9:28 am

    @germy: “It’s cold, I’m gonna go take a nap on the cushion behind the wood stove. Come and get me when it’s time for dinner.” What Miss Kitty really said.

  85. 85.

    rikyrah

    January 8, 2021 at 9:29 am

    YES.??

    Were some of the terrorists trying to steal and burn the mahogany boxes containing the Electoral College votes?— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) January 8, 2021

  86. 86.

    JR

    January 8, 2021 at 9:29 am

    @Immanentize: I like Fetterman, but word from insiders at Gov. Wolf’s office is that he’s not a particularly hard worker. Maybe that changes.

  87. 87.

    Baud

    January 8, 2021 at 9:31 am

    @rikyrah:

    Not to take away anything from the staffers who saved the electoral votes, but I read that there were in fact backups if they had gotten destroyed.

    I nonetheless expect Hollywood to somehow turn this into a Nicolas Cage movie about the stealing the electoral vote count.

  88. 88.

    Geminid

    January 8, 2021 at 9:31 am

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: The Iraqi judiciary has also indicted trump for the killing of Iranian General Solemeini. This was only a few days ago, and they probably waited to be sure he could not retaliate.

  89. 89.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 9:33 am

    It’s tempting to use the analogy of rats fleeing a sinking ship to describe the growing number of Republican elected officials starting to speak out against Donald Trump. But that's really not fair to rats, who tend not to be complicit in driving ships to the bottom of the sea.

    — Dan Rather (@DanRather) October 17, 2020

  90. 90.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 9:34 am

    @Baud: A lot of us complained about her, and in the next breath said, “Thank god we have her.”

  91. 91.

    comrade scotts agenda of rage

    January 8, 2021 at 9:34 am

    @Soprano2:

    I called her Feckless Claire for a reason.  Me and a lot of realistic Dems in Misery were of that mindset.  Whenever I’ve used that moniker for her in here, I know several people beat me up for it.

    More liberal than Manchin?  Sure.  But only up to a point.  One of my favorite comments was from a friend back there, reliable door knocker and phone banker, also doing it like I did in a blood-red rurl county:

    She’s the poster child for timid pols.  And before anybody tells me “but she’s in Misery”, yeah, blah, blah, blah.  She has no excuse.  If she spent half as much time listening to her constituents and acting on their behalf as she does bashing half of those that got her elected and triangulating for money she wouldn’t be in such a precarious position.

    That was always her problem in that she couldn’t generate enthusiasm among what we called “Casual Democrats” to get off their asses and vote for her.

    My other favorite quote about her was from Charlie Pierce:

    Claire McCaskill remains in my mind both fundamentally necessary and fundamentally useless.

    But yeah, despite her massive shortcomings as a Democrat and a politician, it’s sad that such a travesty of a human being as Hawley defeated her.

    And fuck John Dansforth.  Biggest mistake my ass.  Party loyalty and wresting that seat away from a Democrat trumped everything else.

  92. 92.

    Another Scott

    January 8, 2021 at 9:34 am

    ICYMI, …

    In 2017, Senator-Elect Raphael Warnock was arrested in the Capitol rotunda for *praying* in opposition to the GOP’s assault on health care.

    Just think about that, given the events on January 6th. pic.twitter.com/vyK0ZJhoFx— Nick Knudsen ?? (@NickKnudsenUS) January 8, 2021

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  93. 93.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 9:35 am

    @Central Planning: “That’s no ordinary squirrel!”

  94. 94.

    Anonymous At Work

    January 8, 2021 at 9:35 am

    1.  Which is most exciting: Brown, Sanders or Wyden as Committee Chairs?
    2. Hawley and the other Senate insurrectionists should be stripped of their ability to be on “Select” committees and anything where Schumer has any authority.  Pelosi should do the same with the 130 House members, especially on things like “Select Intelligence”.  Remember Gaetz breaking into a classified briefing THAT HE COULD HAVE ENTERED ON HIS OWN ANYWAY?
  95. 95.

    Enhanced Voting Techniques

    January 8, 2021 at 9:37 am

    If you watch Bo on You Tube, he was talking about a report this whole mess is Trump knows he lost but this is theater from Trump to projecting his “brand” as a fighter with his base, except Trump is such an idiot he went over the line people are dead.

  96. 96.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 9:37 am

    I had completely forgotten about the time Matt Gaetz and his cronies pulled this stunt:
    House Republicans Literally Storm the Impeachment Hearings
    Same energy as the MAGATs invasion, except Matt’s father is wealthier and more connected than most CHUDs, and the House Republicans wore tailored suits rather than fur and camo.

  97. 97.

    Villago Delenda Est

    January 8, 2021 at 9:37 am

    Every one of those replaced GOP committee chairs is unworthy of the office; they proved that back in February when they voted to acquit the Traitor-in-Chief who flouted his own oath of office the instant he finished “swearing” to it.

  98. 98.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 9:38 am

    @Immanentize: I love that guy. Wish he was ours.

  99. 99.

    artem1s

    January 8, 2021 at 9:38 am

    @Baud:

    George Bush pardoned the Iran Contra folks, although I can’t recall if Bush was in the loop on the underlying activities.

    yes, he was.  he got away with not having to testify except to say “I don’t recall” because he was merely acting President for the Raygun sock puppet at the time of the crimes.  The whole thing was engineered by the Bush Crime family and the usual suspects who reappeared under the W sock puppet regime.

  100. 100.

    topclimber

    January 8, 2021 at 9:40 am

    @mali muso: I am hoping that the GOP’s history will be that of the Party that started with Lincoln and resistance to slavery and ended with Trump and decades of embracing racism.

  101. 101.

    Another Scott

    January 8, 2021 at 9:41 am

    BlueVirginia.US:

    By Bill Rice, a student at Georgetown University Law Center

    What we saw on display in Washington, DC yesterday, January 6th, was fascism, plain and simple. And if there’s one thing we know about fascism from world history, it’s that it cannot be tolerated and must be met with a strong, definitive response. Those who participated in, facilitated, or otherwise supported such fanatical violence aimed at overturning our constitution and our democracy must be held accountable for their actions. To let such actions go unanswered is only to let this cancer to our democracy fester and grow.

    Our nation is rightfully having this conversation at the national level, for instance with elected officials discussing exercising Section 4 of the 25th Amendment and introducing Articles of Impeachment against President Trump for inciting the violence. Of important note is Congresswoman Cori Bush’s resolution calling for the expulsion of those members of Congress who “have sought to overturn the 2020 Presidential election.”

    In Virginia, one of our very own legislators openly participated in this seditious, violent madness. State Senator Amanda Chase not only participated in the rally that preceded the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol building, she was a speaker at the event. During this speech, she repeated conspiracy theories about election fraud while emphasizing the importance of Second Amendment rights. Even after she left the event and witnessed the violent coup attempt that occurred after, Senator Chase went on to post on social media defending the actions of these insurrectionists, saying that: “when you back people in Virginia and across the United States into a corner, you will end up with a revolution. And I believe that’s what you’re starting to see.”

    […]

    The violent insurrection we witnessed Wednesday in our nation’s capitol, by bigoted hoards of modern-day fascists, was reminiscent of the violence enacted by white mobs against Black voters attempting to exercise their right to vote during the Reconstruction era. During this time, the perpetrators of such violence were rarely held to account. We cannot repeat the mistakes of the past. Senator Amanda Chase must be held to account for her participation in this anti-democratic, fascist insurrection.

    +1

    Oh, she’s running for VA Governor…

    There must be consequences, or these things will keep happening.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  102. 102.

    Ken

    January 8, 2021 at 9:42 am

    staff told them that Pence would not come to the phone.

    Am I reading too much into the use of “would not”, versus “could not”?

  103. 103.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 9:42 am

    @Just One More Canuck: Run away!

  104. 104.

    Ken

    January 8, 2021 at 9:43 am

    @Baud: Small price to pay for stopping their nuclear program. Do the deal.

    Right. Omelets and eggs, price any patriot would pay for their country, et cetera.

  105. 105.

    OzarkHillbilly

    January 8, 2021 at 9:44 am

    @Danielx:Whether he actually believes his own bullshit…

    He doesn’t.

  106. 106.

    Danielx

    January 8, 2021 at 9:45 am

    I have taken some small satisfaction in contemplating that this has been the worst week of Mitch McConnell’s misbegotten life.

  107. 107.

    debbie

    January 8, 2021 at 9:46 am

    @JR:

    Pray that geg6 doesn’t see your post!

  108. 108.

    rikyrah

    January 8, 2021 at 9:46 am

    @Just One More Canuck:

    I still remember the crab that had escaped from a pot and found a ??

     

    ???

  109. 109.

    Ken

    January 8, 2021 at 9:46 am

    @Baud: I nonetheless expect Hollywood to somehow turn this into a Nicolas Cage movie about the stealing the electoral vote count.

    Or if not Hollywood and Cage, one of those little “Christian movie” production companies and some subset of Kirk Cameron, Gary Busey, and Joe Rogan.

  110. 110.

    Wapiti

    January 8, 2021 at 9:47 am

    @Le Comte de Monte Cristo, fka Edmund Dantes: :snort: The Iranians might feel like the dog that caught the car. For a few moments.

  111. 111.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    January 8, 2021 at 9:47 am

    @Ken: Pence was prolly slam-up in a prayer-a-thon.

  112. 112.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 9:48 am

    The 75,000,000 great American Patriots who voted for me, AMERICA FIRST, and MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, will have a GIANT VOICE long into the future. They will not be disrespected or treated unfairly in any way, shape or form!!!— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 8, 2021

    Don’t you dare, Libs.

  113. 113.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 9:48 am

    @Ken:

    Produced by Mark Burnett and his wife.

  114. 114.

    Ken

    January 8, 2021 at 9:51 am

    @sab: In normal times one wouldn’t laugh out loud reading transition Committee Chair assignments.

    Give the writers some credit.  I hadn’t even known there was a Republican Senator named “Crapo”.  A bit juvenile, perhaps.

  115. 115.

    leeleeFL

    January 8, 2021 at 9:51 am

    @germy:  Thank you for that lovely picture.  Won’t happen, of course.  But it would be soooo enjoyable?

  116. 116.

    lowtechcyclist

    January 8, 2021 at 9:52 am

    @Immanentize: 

    I just read John Fetterman, Lt. Governor of Penn., Is throwing his hat in the ring. This is good and his cause(s) are just(ice).

    I was already becoming a fan of this guy. Now I like him even more.

  117. 117.

    Ken

    January 8, 2021 at 9:53 am

    @Danielx: I have taken some small satisfaction in contemplating that this has been the worst week of Mitch McConnell’s misbegotten life.

    With about 40 hours still to go.  Plenty of time for a COVID diagnosis, or for his wife to decide she and her money will be safer with the relatives in China.

  118. 118.

    mali muso

    January 8, 2021 at 9:54 am

    @topclimber: From your lips to god’s ears.

  119. 119.

    Amir Khalid

    January 8, 2021 at 9:55 am

    @Ken:

    I don’t think you are.

  120. 120.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 9:57 am

    @debbie: Yes they did, when the “GOP Simps” as Fetterman calls them, refused to seat a Democratic State Senator who won his race, and all the challenges in public and court.  It was ugly.  But Fetterman is a get even type, but he waits.

  121. 121.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    January 8, 2021 at 9:59 am

    @Baud: Another good reason for DC statehood

    The president can pardon DC crimes

  122. 122.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 10:01 am

    @JR: Sorry, this made me giggle a bit — Is being a hard worker a requirement for the US Senate??

    The Lt. Governor is not a very powerful position in Pennsylvania.  It is interesting that is the initial salvo against him from insiders who undoubtedly have different candidates they would prefer.  I know this — his wife is a tireless worker for social justice.  I admit I know her deeds better than his.

  123. 123.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    January 8, 2021 at 10:02 am

    @Baud: The difference between sedition and revolution is who won

  124. 124.

    Gin & Tonic

    January 8, 2021 at 10:02 am

    A year ago today, Iran shot down Ukraine International Airlines flight #752, killing 176 innocent people.

  125. 125.

    BC in Illinois

    January 8, 2021 at 10:02 am

    @germy:

    And the responses are overwhelmingly “TRUMP FOREVER” !

  126. 126.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 10:04 am

    @JR: To add — Fetterman has been much more vocal about the ratfuckery in PA by the GOP than Wolf.  I thought it was an effective pas de deux.  But maybe it was Wolf following while Fetterman led?

  127. 127.

    Cameron

    January 8, 2021 at 10:09 am

    @Immanentize: I really like him.  I think he’d make an excellent Senator.

  128. 128.

    germy

    January 8, 2021 at 10:11 am

    @BC in Illinois:

    I’m so old I remember when “Pete Forever, Ringo Never!” was screamed.  George Harrison even got a black eye in a scuffle with an angry crowd over the new drummer.

  129. 129.

    Fair Economist

    January 8, 2021 at 10:11 am

    @Immanentize: I hope Fetterman runs for Governor because Wolf is termed out. If Fetterman runs for Senate we’ll have a weaker candidate for PA Governor and no place for Wolf. What a waste that would be.

  130. 130.

    topclimber

    January 8, 2021 at 10:11 am

    @Ken: Normally I would worry about giving the Iranians access to a President and his deep knowledge of classified national security matters, but this is Trump we are talking about. He of the 100 words or less security briefings.

  131. 131.

    frosty

    January 8, 2021 at 10:14 am

    @Immanentize: I think he’d be better as Governor. Throw the hat, yes, but into a different ring.

  132. 132.

    artem1s

    January 8, 2021 at 10:14 am

    @mali muso:

    To which I see the Republican Party saying, “Okay, but what if we… didn’t?” Because even now I can tell you that from the GOP point of view the problem isn’t the damage that party has wreaked upon the US and its people. The problem is its plan didn’t work.

    that right there is everything you need to know about the GOP in a nutshell and the reason there is no compromise, no argument, no way to convince them to change course.  They are like Bill Belichick always trying to figure out the next way to game the system – even if they don’t have to.  Winning is everything and they will cross one line after another to test whether they can get away with it and make that line the new normal. Every scenario is a win/lose.  If someone else wins, they must be losing.  If they win, then YEA!  That has to mean more for us.  In every compromise they always find a way to take back the land they have conceded.  And every concession will contain weasel words that negates the concession. This is why Donnie owns them.  He is the purest distillation of the GOP id they have ever experienced. He is their highest high yet, and they are going to crash hard when they have to go cold turkey.

  133. 133.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 10:15 am

    @Fair Economist: Ahhh, so that’s why Wolf’s people are running Fetterman down.  Let them fight.  That is why we have primaries.

  134. 134.

    Ken

    January 8, 2021 at 10:15 am

    @topclimber: And his staff learned that at least 10 of the 100 words in the briefing had to be “Trump” or they lost his attention.  I’ll bet his retention is like that classic Far Side, “What Dogs Hear”:  “blah blah blah blah Trump blah blah blah blah…”

  135. 135.

    taumaturgo

    January 8, 2021 at 10:18 am

    China foreign Office comments about the white people overthrown in Washington DC.

    AFP: A woman was shot dead during the storming of the U.S. Capitol and three others died after suffering medical emergencies. Does the Chinese foreign ministry have any comments on the violence that has taken place? Separately, what are the ministry’s comments on some people in the country comparing Washington’s riots with the unrest in Hong Kong? Some have described it as “a beautiful sight”.

    Hua Chunying: We have noted what’s now unfolding in the United State. We believe that people in the United States certainly hope for an early return of normal order.

    You mentioned that four people were reportedly killed in this incident, and you also described some reactions from the Chinese citizens. I would also like to share some of my thoughts with you.

    First, the Chinese people have the right and freedom to make their opinions and comments online. I believe that for many people, seeing those scenes in the United States has brought back a sense of deja vu, though they brought out some quite different reactions from certain people in the United States, including from some media.

    You mentioned the unrest in Hong Kong. In July 2019, radical and violent protesters in Hong Kong broke into the Legislative Council, ransacking the main chamber, smashing facilities, tossing toxic liquid and powder at police officers, and even biting off one police officer’s finger and stabbing another. But the Hong Kong police showed maximum restraint and professionalism and no protester ended in death. However, as you mentioned, there are already four deaths in Washington of which the situation is less violent and destructive than that in Hong Kong.

    If you still remember how some U.S. officials, lawmakers, and media described what’s happened in Hong Kong, you can compare that with the words they’ve used to describe the scenes in Capitol Hill. I made a note of some words they used. They all condemned it as “a violent incident” and the people involved as “rioters”, “extremists” and “thugs” who brought “disgrace”. Now compare that with what the Hong Kong violent protesters were called, like “a beautiful sight” you brought up and “democratic heroes”. They said that “American people stand with them”.

    What’s the reason for such a stark difference in the choice of words? Everyone needs to seriously think about it and do some soul-searching on the reason.

    We believe that the American people still cherish peace and safety, especially when they are still struggling with a difficult pandemic situation. We hope that they will have their peace, stability, and safety back as soon as possible.

    Besides, I noticed that the spokesperson of the bureau of international exchanges of the China Media Group issued a statement saying that many news outlets, including a Chinese one, were attacked by demonstrators at their usual live positions outside Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Our thoughts are with the reporters out there and we call on the U.S. side to take necessary measures to safeguard journalists’ safety.

  136. 136.

    artem1s

    January 8, 2021 at 10:20 am

    @TS (the original):

    He said they were kept on hold for 25 minutes & then staff told them that Pence would not come to the phone.

    Got his moment in the sun & then reverted to being himself – rude and ignorant.

    yes and no.  he already had to step outside his comfort zone when he had to call out the National Guard.  I read this more as “I’m not in charge, don’t want to be in charge, and you can’t make me be in charge”. He’s claiming it’s not his job to fix Trump and sticking to it.  So not rude as much as childish and terrified now that he is faced with the whirlwind he has reaped. Given how pissed Mother was that he took the nomination in the first place, he’s got to be pissing his pants at the notion of having to face her now.  I imagine he’s pretty much frozen in terror much of his waking hours.  Fine by me.

     

  137. 137.

    Fair Economist

    January 8, 2021 at 10:27 am

    @Danielx: I read an interview (warning Politico) with recently resigned White House comms director Alyssa Farah and she claims that the White House, including Trump, knew that they’d lost very quickly, and had pretty much expected it because all the states went as their internal polling had predicted besides GA. In particular she said Pennsylvania, the one they really needed to flip and made such a fake stink about, was “a very heavy lift”. Then in December people in the White House started thinking they could hold on to power and that’s when she quit. She’s apparently a really hardline conservative but, like Romney and unlike most conservatives, sedition is too much for her.

  138. 138.

    Fair Economist

    January 8, 2021 at 10:32 am

    @Immanentize:

    Ahhh, so that’s why Wolf’s people are running Fetterman down. Let them fight. That is why we have primaries.

    If both are in the Senate primary then neither will be in the Governor primary. That could cost us the governorship and give the Republicans a trifecta for the 2024 election. Do you want to risk that?

  139. 139.

    lowtechcyclist

    January 8, 2021 at 10:42 am

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    @Central Planning: “That’s no ordinary squirrel!”

    Stuffed animals/objects on the shelf above my desk:

    Killer Rabbit

    Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch (one, two, FIVE!!)

    Black Beast of Aaarggh

  140. 140.

    Immanentize

    January 8, 2021 at 10:58 am

    @Fair Economist: I certainly have no say in the matter.  Does Pennsylvania really have such a weak bench of possible Democratic candidates?  Sad.

  141. 141.

    Warblewarble

    January 8, 2021 at 11:01 am

    Karens ,Chads and ragtag tRUMPian losers can all be dealt with in good time. What need be dealt with the utmost urgency are the guys with the ziptags and sophisticated communications . They and those they work with and for remain a real and ongoing danger,until they have been brought to book.

  142. 142.

    PsiFighter37

    January 8, 2021 at 11:03 am

    @Immanentize: I would think AG Josh Shapiro would be running for governor.

    Would also be curious to read where folks say Wolf’s people are crapping on Fetterman. I haven’t seen that so far.

  143. 143.

    Hellbastard

    January 8, 2021 at 11:06 am

    Great, Patrick “I have steadfastly protected the rights of the minority” Leahy in charge of Appropriations. I’m sure he’ll bend over backwards to make sure his GOP colleagues are happy for the sake of comity and norms.

  144. 144.

    Elizabelle

    January 8, 2021 at 11:11 am

    @Ken:  WRT the Gary Larson cartoon:

    Ginger > Trump

  145. 145.

    H.E.Wolf

    January 8, 2021 at 11:28 am

    @Immanentize: William: But if the cause be not good, the king himself hath a heavy reckoning to make; when all those legs and arms and heads, chopped off in a battle, shall join together at the latter day, and cry all, ‘We died at such a place;’ some swearing, some crying for a surgeon, some upon their wives left poor behind them, some upon the debts they owe, some upon their children rawly left.

    William: …it will be a black matter for the king that led them to it.

    (Imm, thank you. That whole speech is one that has hit home for me every time since I first heard it, many years ago.)

  146. 146.

    Citizen Alan

    January 8, 2021 at 11:44 am

    @Ramiah Ariya:  How difficult would it be to have the nsa scour Twitter, identify everyone who had a Q related tag on their page, identify their real names, And put them on the terrorist watch list for the rest of their lives

  147. 147.

    misterpuff

    January 8, 2021 at 12:06 pm

    @p.a.: Donald Trump was annoyed by the violent siege on the Capitol Wednesday — which left several dead — because it looked “low class,” according to his adviser. “He doesn’t like low class things.”

     

    So that’s another lie we can add to the list. When Trump said We love you, he meant We would have loved you more if you looked like Movie Nazis and not fat asses. Especially the asshat with horns.

  148. 148.

    Gravenstone

    January 8, 2021 at 12:07 pm

    @OzarkHillbilly: Miss Kitty the Unburnt

    Um, was there ever a Miss Kitty the Burnt?

  149. 149.

    karen marie

    January 8, 2021 at 12:10 pm

    @Spanky: Public squirrels are the worst. They’re so used to people feeding them, they lose their fear. I got chased by a mob of squirrels in Boston’s Public Garden because they refused to believe I had no more peanuts.

     

    Pigeons can be just as bad. I got mobbed by 1,000 hungry flying rats in Venice when I made the rookie mistake of being the first out that morning to feed them.

  150. 150.

    misterpuff

    January 8, 2021 at 12:17 pm

    @misterpuff: Trump should have remembered his “History of the World” by Mel Brooks:

     

    The Peasants are revolting!

    The King: They stink on ice.

  151. 151.

    karen marie

    January 8, 2021 at 12:22 pm

    @germy: What the everloving fuck?

  152. 152.

    Lukeness

    January 8, 2021 at 12:54 pm

    Reportedly, three days after the President Elect promised GA voters that electing Ossoff and Warnock would mean $2000 direct payments, Sen. Manchin, who our magnanimous host is proud of, says he won’t support that. This kind of thing will guarantee a massive loss of seats for Dems in the next election.

  153. 153.

    Villago Delenda Est

    January 8, 2021 at 1:05 pm

    @misterpuff: Donald is the epitome of “low class”.  Just look at his rococo beyond rococo decorating taste.

  154. 154.

    NotMax

    January 8, 2021 at 1:19 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est

    Rocoocoo.

    ;)

  155. 155.

    J R in WV

    January 8, 2021 at 1:26 pm

    @sab:

    My dad’ s cat (now ours since he is blind and dad’s in nursing home) used to be lethal to squirrels. Then one day he approached one from the front not the back and too slow. Massive battle

    We had for many years beginning in the mid-1970s a giant white tom cat with many big red spots, who was named Ralllph for the sounds he made when he was happy.

    Late in his life, after we had moved into the country on our little WV farm, he jumped a big fox that was moving in on chickens, which Ralph regarded as his pet birds.

    Wife heard the rumpus out the kitchen door, and grabbed a post-hole handle, a stout length of turned ash, and hit that fox like Tiger Woods hits a golf ball, which saved Ralph’s life. Fox had him down in the winter fresh creek working on drowning him.

    That was the end of Ralph’s aggressive days. He was a great cat who moved in one day when an appliance repairman came to work on the washing machine. Told us he was sure the cat lived with us, walking in like he owned the place. Which he did the next 17 or 18 years.

  156. 156.

    J R in WV

    January 8, 2021 at 4:11 pm

    @Another Scott:

    Quoting a law student who said:

    State Senator Amanda Chase not only participated in the rally that preceded the violent attack on the U.S. Capitol building, she was a speaker at the event. During this speech, she repeated conspiracy theories about election fraud while emphasizing the importance of Second Amendment rights. Even after she left the event and witnessed the violent coup attempt that occurred after, Senator Chase went on to post on social media defending the actions of these insurrectionists, saying that: “when you back people in Virginia and across the United States into a corner, you will end up with a revolution. And I believe that’s what you’re starting to see.”

    Ms Chase is guilty of providing aid and comfort to the insurrectionists, and should be investigated, indicted, and based upon this quote, convicted and imprisoned, as providing aid and comfort is all it takes to be guilty of insurrection. Remember the folks who put John Wilkes Booth up for a night after his murder of President Lincoln? They went to jail. So should this ignorant, lying, fascist, female cur!

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