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Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Today’s GOP: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

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

A democracy can’t function when people can’t distinguish facts from lies.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

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

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

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

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

A Senator Walker would also be an insult to reason, rationality, and decency.

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Sadly, there is no cure for stupid.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

Republicans in disarray!

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

Battle won, war still ongoing.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

I’m pretty sure there’s only one Jack Smith.

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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Friday Evening Open Thread: Split Screens

Friday Evening Open Thread: Split Screens

by Anne Laurie|  January 6, 20236:13 pm| 174 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads, Proud To Be A Democrat!, Republican Stupidity, Republican Venality, Republicans in Disarray!

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Day 4: Gonna chill in the office with Hodge between votes.

It’s been a long week! #SpeakerVote #HeyHodge pic.twitter.com/UEHS0nJa7N

— Rep. Jimmy Gomez (@RepJimmyGomez) January 6, 2023

House members gather to mark the second anniversary of January 6th

Only one Republican member was present. Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick. pic.twitter.com/j2dLSeACNi

— Kristin Wilson (@kristin__wilson) January 6, 2023


President Biden honors the late Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick posthumously. Accepting on his behalf are Sicknick’s parents. pic.twitter.com/e9x3ou1W7j

— Joey Garrison (@joeygarrison) January 6, 2023

Rep. David Trone (D-MD) gets a standing ovation from fellow Dems as he casts a vote for Jeffries. Trone had shoulder surgery this morning and has returned to the Capitol to raise the threshold for McCarthy to reach majority.

— Jesse Rodriguez (@JesseRodriguez) January 6, 2023

After effectively turning it into a powerless ceremonial office. I still remember, after 40 years now, being in meetings with Speaker Tip O'Neill working on getting the Social Security rescue bill thru the House in 1983. McCarthy's not fit to shine Tip's shoes.

— AuntSophie ???? (@AuntSophie1) January 6, 2023

"Wow, the American people really don't like that we're lunatics, what should we do?"

"What if we stayed lunatics but added Paul Ryan's politically toxic policy agenda?"

"Brilliant!"

— Matthew Gertz (@MattGertz) January 6, 2023

Welp, looks like we’ve got a solid Dem majority in 2025.

Frontline Republicans who vote for this will be committing electoral suicide. https://t.co/83hEaWeS1d

— Dana Houle (@DanaHoule) January 6, 2023

Let. Them. Fight…

Wow, MTG ?

kevin mccarthy is a sniveling little spineless sellout,he is America last, he is morally bankrupt and a dictator that didn't even consider the great majority of Americans feelings, he is corrupt as all get out, I mean c, mon. pic.twitter.com/chgX58SEb9

— Lady Lady Heidi A.B.🇺🇸🤝🇷🇺🤝🇮🇱♥️🦅🐻 (@LadyladyHeidiAB) January 6, 2023

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    174Comments

    1. 1.

      gwangung

      January 6, 2023 at 6:18 pm

      Rep. Gomez has a MUCH better alternative than almost anybody in the Capitol.

      Reply
    2. 2.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:20 pm

      For tonight’s Speaker vote, Biggs and Crane have both said no, they will not vote for McCarthy. Crane was one of the two they were really working on, along with Rosendale, so a disappointment for McCarthy.

      Hunt and Buck are both returning to the House, so that means that McCarthy will need 218 votes. With the two votes from Hunt and Buck, he will have 216 (assuming everyone stays with him).

      That leaves McCarthy to find 2 votes from Boebert, Gaetz, Good, and Rosendale.

      Reply
    3. 3.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 6:21 pm

      MAGA Republican radicals did this for a balanced budget vote?

      Reply
    4. 4.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:22 pm

      McCarthy’s latest strategy is to try to persuade holdouts to vote Present rather than for anyone but him. If he can persuade 3 of them to do that, that reduces the total number of votes for named candidates to 431, at which point his 216 votes would be a majority.

      Reply
    5. 5.

      mali muso

      January 6, 2023 at 6:24 pm

      Super excited…a friend has a connection that has scored me and the kiddo a tour of the White House (for later this month).

      Reply
    6. 6.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:24 pm

      Per CNN, this is what McCarthy gave up:

      • Any member can call for a motion to vacate the speaker’s chair
      • McCarthy’s leadership PAC won’t play in open primaries in safe districts
      • Hold votes on key conservative bills, including balanced budget amendment, congressional term limits, border security
      • A debt ceiling hike must be paired with spending cuts
      • Move 12 appropriations bill individually
      • More Freedom Caucus representation on committees, including the House Rules Committee
      • Cap discretionary spending at fiscal 2022 levels, which would amount to lower levels for defense and domestic programs
      • Allow for 72 hours to review bills before they come to floor
      • Give members ability to offer more amendments on the House floor
      • Create an investigative committee to probe the “weaponization” of the federal government
      • Restore the Holman rule which can be used to reduce the salary of government officials
      Reply
    7. 7.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 6:24 pm

      @mali muso:

      👍

      Reply
    8. 8.

      OverTwistWillie

      January 6, 2023 at 6:27 pm

      Reconvening in the dead of night to slip through all their crooked deals.

       

      Typical.

      Reply
    9. 9.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 6:29 pm

      @PaulB:

      • Create an investigative committee to probe the “weaponization” of the federal government

      Finally, we’ll get to the bottom of Trump’s shenanigans!

      Reply
    10. 10.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:30 pm

      A key part of this agreement is for House GOP to present a BALANCED budget over 10 years – using the 2022 baseline, per multiple sources.

      That could be a potentially devastating move for Republicans, as they would need massive cuts to the safety net in order to make that goal, assuming that they mostly leave taxes and defense spending alone.

      Reply
    11. 11.

      MisterForkbeard

      January 6, 2023 at 6:30 pm

      @PaulB: McCarthy had also offered holdouts specifically that he’d kick some Democrats of their choices off committees. I wonder if that’s still in there, and just not ‘official’ because he’ll do it anyway?

      Reply
    12. 12.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 6:30 pm

      @PaulB:

      Amazing that almost all of those demands are “economic” issues, not culture war.

      Reply
    13. 13.

      Alison Rose

      January 6, 2023 at 6:30 pm

      If magic were real and I had some, I’d make it so any conservative misusing MLK’s words got an electric shock to their junk every time.

      Reply
    14. 14.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:32 pm

      @MisterForkbeard: I wonder if that’s still in there, and just not ‘official’ because he’ll do it anyway?

      That’s my take on it. He threatened that even before the election, as payback for kicking MTG off of committees. He promised to retaliate by kicking a few Democrats off of committees in return, assuming that he has the votes.

      ETA: A quick Google search shows that he promised to strip Ilhan Omar, Adam Schiff, and Eric Swalwell of their assignments.

      Reply
    15. 15.

      Anoniminous

      January 6, 2023 at 6:37 pm

      Can little Kevie get the votes?

      The tension builds

      Reply
    16. 16.

      Alison Rose

      January 6, 2023 at 6:37 pm

      Also, Newsom was inaugurated today and his speech was really good (link should be cued up to the right spot, but if not, skip ahead to about 14:45). There’s a bit of California bragging, of course, but hey, it’s well-earned. His vision for the state and our future is a good one, and as we like to say here, since we do tend to be leaders in a lot of areas, as goes California, so goes the nation.

      Reply
    17. 17.

      Mallard Filmore

      January 6, 2023 at 6:38 pm

      @Alison Rose: 

      If magic were real and I had some, I’d make it so any conservative misusing MLK’s words got an electric shock to their junk every time.

      While *I* would certainly enjoy watching that, I don’t think that would stop them.

      Reply
    18. 18.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:39 pm

      @Baud: Amazing that almost all of those demands are “economic” issues, not culture war.

      Could be, but if you assume that all of them are all in on the culture war stuff, McCarthy may not have needed to explicitly put it on the table.

      If everyone agrees to pass an anti-CRT bill, an anti-transgender bill, an anti-abortion bill, then you don’t need to negotiate.

      Reply
    19. 19.

      NotMax

      January 6, 2023 at 6:39 pm

      FYI.

      Democratic officials’ homes, offices shot up in New Mexico

      Reply
    20. 20.

      karen marie

      January 6, 2023 at 6:39 pm

      I was working and missed the end of today’s House party.  Are they off for the weekend?

      Reply
    21. 21.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 6:40 pm

      Is a balanced budget actually bad as a concept?

      Reply
    22. 22.

      Suzanne

      January 6, 2023 at 6:40 pm

      I looked back at my FB memories from this day two years ago. I wrote:

      “If only there had been a way to foresee the occurrence of this totally unpredictable event, instigated by this totally unpredictable man.”

      Reply
    23. 23.

      Another Scott

      January 6, 2023 at 6:42 pm

      @PaulB:

      • And a pony

      These folks are clowns with no memory at all of what it was like when these “policies” were in place in the past.  E.g. the 72 hour thing.  They were windowdressing and ignored when the choice was to uphold the stupid 72 hour thing or make the last flight home.

      It’ll be interesting to see how much of a public battle there is about the rules.

      Also too, catturd2 has spoken.  Sorry Qevin.

      (groucho-roll-eyes.gif)

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    24. 24.

      Sparkedcat

      January 6, 2023 at 6:43 pm

      The six remaining crazies having been sufficiently bought off will vote present thereby allowing McCarthy to  become Speaker. Act I of the of the 118th Congress will then come to a close. The second act of the 118th Congressional shithow will then begin.

      Reply
    25. 25.

      Mai Naem mobile

      January 6, 2023 at 6:44 pm

      @PaulB: i don’t understand newbie Eli Crane. He doesn’t represent a bright red district like Gosar. It’s been represented by Dems before. I would have to look it up but my guess is that Debbie Lesko’s district is redder than Crane’s and Lesko voted for McCarthy all along.

      Reply
    26. 26.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 6:45 pm

      @MisterForkbeard:

      @PaulB:

      They sure are acting as if they won by a landslide and didn’t just barely win the House. It’s incredibly brazen. I can never get over that

      Reply
    27. 27.

      NotMax

      January 6, 2023 at 6:45 pm

      Also FYI.

      Over a million total? Magic 8-ball sez “Lkely.”

      The hottest reality show in America this week is being broadcast live on the country’s nonprofit public service broadcaster.

      C-SPAN’s live coverage of the House of Representative’s first attempts to elect a speaker was watched by at least 379,000 households on Tuesday, The Wall Street Journal reported. That marks a 161% increase over the opening day of the prior Congress two years ago.
      [snip]
      That figure is an estimate from Samba TV, which tracks viewership on smart TVs. So it doesn’t count people who streamed the proceedings on C-SPAN’s website — or watched their live-stream of the House on other TV channels.
      [snip]
      According to the Samba TV estimates, though, C-SPAN viewership on Tuesday was higher than that of some cable reality shows. The latest episode of Southern Hospitality, the new Southern Charm spinoff on Bravo, had an audience of around 300,000 households, according to USTVDB.com, which tracks ratings. Episodes of Growing Up Chrisley on E! had less than 300,000 last fall. Source

      Reply
    28. 28.

      Ken

      January 6, 2023 at 6:46 pm

      @PaulB:

      • Move 12 appropriations bill individually

      Oh, please. Like they’ll even get 12 bills written, much less out of committee.

      Reply
    29. 29.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:47 pm

      @karen marie: Are they off for the weekend?

      No, they’re returning at 10:00 tonight to vote again. McCarthy insists he has the votes.

      Reply
    30. 30.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 6:47 pm

      @Ken:

      Wait till they learn the House supply cabinet doesn’t have crayon.

      Reply
    31. 31.

      NotMax

      January 6, 2023 at 6:48 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      National debt has been going down since Biden took office.

      Reply
    32. 32.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 6:49 pm

      @NotMax:

      Debt or deficit?

      Reply
    33. 33.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 6:49 pm

      @NotMax:

      The deficit has, but not the actual debt IIRC

      Reply
    34. 34.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:50 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Is a balanced budget actually bad as a concept?

      In a word, yes, it absolutely is. One simple scenario: let’s say that the country goes into a recession, there’s a stock market correction, people stop spending, etc.

      In a balanced budget scenario, the federal government has to make additional cuts, since tax revenue would be down. This would both deepen and lengthen the recession. Even worse, the recession would mean greater demand on the safety net, so you’re reducing spending at the same time you’re increasing the need for the spending.

      A balanced budget at the federal level is a truly terrible idea.

      Reply
    35. 35.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:51 pm

      @NotMax: National debt has been going down since Biden took office.

      No, the annual deficit has decreased, but the overall national debt continues to rise. The last time the debt actually decreased was during the Clinton administration.

      Reply
    36. 36.

      mrmoshpotato

      January 6, 2023 at 6:52 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      They sure are acting as if they won by a landslide and didn’t just barely win the House. It’s incredibly brazen. I can never get over that 

      Because they’re assholes.  Same reason they always bellow that a Democratic President never has a mandate.

      Reply
    37. 37.

      NotMax

      January 6, 2023 at 6:52 pm

      Did mine eyes deceive me on driving very locally for couple of minor but necessary errands today? Gas prices for regular posted as under a fin at $4.99.

      Reply
    38. 38.

      gwangung

      January 6, 2023 at 6:53 pm

      @PaulB: Not that this will make any impression to any one on the right.

      Reply
    39. 39.

      Sparkedcat

      January 6, 2023 at 6:53 pm

      @NotMax: The deficit has been going down under Biden. The national debt increases by the second every day.

      Reply
    40. 40.

      Alison Rose

      January 6, 2023 at 6:54 pm

      @Mallard Filmore: Look, I don’t kink-shame, but I don’t wanna know if MTG has a pain fetish.

      Reply
    41. 41.

      eclare

      January 6, 2023 at 6:54 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):   YES!!!

      It would be disastrous at the federal level.

      Reply
    42. 42.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:55 pm

      Punchbowl news reports that if McCarthy wins tonight, they plan to swear in members and pass the rules package immediately, a package that would include the concessions listed above.

      Reply
    43. 43.

      Splitting Image

      January 6, 2023 at 6:56 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      Is a balanced budget actually bad as a concept?

      Yes. The entire point is to force spending cuts simply by electing Republicans. With a balanced budget amendment, they could immediately cut taxes by 50% or 90% and force spending cuts to happen automatically.

      State governments in the U.S. generally have to balance their budgets, which gives them no leeway whatsoever to deal with emergencies like hurricanes, earthquakes, and the like. That’s why FEMA has to be a federal agency. To say nothing of a localized downturn like Detroit’s auto industry. Michigan couldn’t use deficit spending to goose Detroit’s rebuild, so without federal help, the downturn became a depression.

      Reply
    44. 44.

      NotMax

      January 6, 2023 at 6:56 pm

      @Baud

      Oops-a-doodle. Deficit. Blame it on only now getting around to pouring the first cuppa joe.

      No wet noodles handy with which to flagellate self.

      Reply
    45. 45.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 6:56 pm

      @Mai Naem mobile: I don’t understand newbie Eli Crane. He doesn’t represent a bright red district like Gosar.

      All I’ve heard is that Crane has said, “In my district they don’t support Kevin McCarthy.”

      Reply
    46. 46.

      Matt McIrvin

      January 6, 2023 at 6:57 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): A balanced budget is not bad in itself (the budget was more than balanced under Clinton, when there was a budgetary surplus), but requiring the budget to be balanced is bad. It would make some sense to try to run surpluses during boom times and deficits in recessions.

      And, of course, Republicans always want to cut taxes to the bone and balance the budget by cutting social spending, regardless of how the economy is doing.

      Reply
    47. 47.

      Kirk Spencer

      January 6, 2023 at 6:57 pm

      @PaulB: So no time taken to ensure the recent changes were entered correctly? That’s never caused problems in the past. /s

      Reply
    48. 48.

      zhena gogolia

      January 6, 2023 at 6:58 pm

      @Alison Rose: Yeah.

      Reply
    49. 49.

      Dan B

      January 6, 2023 at 7:00 pm

      @NotMax:  A six year old shot a teacher in Newport News.

      Too bad there wasn’t a good six year old with a gun.  /s

      Reply
    50. 50.

      Mike in NC

      January 6, 2023 at 7:01 pm

      @PaulB: McCarthy insists he has the votes.

      “The war situation has developed not necessarily to Japan’s advantage,” Emperor Hirohito, surrender speech, 1945.

      Reply
    51. 51.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:04 pm

      @PaulB:

      @Matt McIrvin:

      @Splitting Image:

      @eclare:

      Gotcha

      Reply
    52. 52.

      hilts

      January 6, 2023 at 7:04 pm

      @PaulB:

      Thanks for your depressing, but useful updates.

      It sounds like a done deal for ratfucker McCarthy.

      Reply
    53. 53.

      Omnes Omnibus

      January 6, 2023 at 7:05 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Yes.  The comparison with a family budget is fatuous.  Go read about the New Deal.  Go read Keynes.  Hell, make it less technical, read Galbraith.

      Reply
    54. 54.

      TooManyJens

      January 6, 2023 at 7:06 pm

      @mrmoshpotato:

      Same reason they always bellow that a Democratic President never has a mandate.

      Because the Real Americans vote for them and not for Democrats, of course. So if they lose an election it’s been stolen by illegitimate usurpers, and if they win it’s the will of the people.

      Reply
    55. 55.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:08 pm

      Gaming this out, assuming that everyone but the 6 holdouts votes as they did earlier today. There will be 434 members voting tonight, with 216 votes for McCarthy, 212 votes for Jeffries, and 6 uncertain votes.

      If 2 of the 6 vote for McCarthy, he wins.

      If 1 of the 6 votes for McCarthy and 1 votes Present, McCarthy wins.

      If 3 of the 6 vote Present, McCarthy wins.

      Reply
    56. 56.

      MisterDancer

      January 6, 2023 at 7:08 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Is a balanced budget actually bad as a concept?

      Do you like social services? Because the whole-assed point of this “Balance the Budget/Cut Debt” wankery is to Defund the New Deal, and everything socially benefiting, since.

      That’s it. That’s the whole game, and has been since the Conservative Movement started muttering about Debt in the late 1970s. the only thing that’s changed is that these yahoos are so committed to a concept that prior Conservatives just paid lip service to, they they’ll dismantle the core of American economic growth and stability — not to mention the WHOLE DAMN WORLD — without a decent replacement.

      Balancing the budget has Nothing to do with real economic stability and responsibility.

      Reply
    57. 57.

      Citizen Alan

      January 6, 2023 at 7:08 pm

      The republicans will never be satisfied until the majority of Americans and the overwhelming majority of non white, non Christian Americans are homeless and starving.

      Reply
    58. 58.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:09 pm

      I wonder if the full moon will generate enough tide to float The McCarthy off the stinking mud bank it’s been stuck on. Then at least at it will have a chance to sink in open water.

      Reply
    59. 59.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:09 pm

      Is the size of the national debt and poor yields on bonds for the last decade related?

      Reply
    60. 60.

      Elizabelle

      January 6, 2023 at 7:11 pm

      @Geminid:  And, next Friday is the 13th.

      Beautiful full moon out there tonight.  Whether yokels be skulking and plotting under it, or not.

      Reply
    61. 61.

      craigie

      January 6, 2023 at 7:13 pm

      @NotMax:

      I regularly see $4.49 now and actually paid $3.99 last week near LAX.

      Reply
    62. 62.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:14 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): A balanced budget is bad if you want one every year. That’s a way to turn a recession into a depression.

      Reply
    63. 63.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:15 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Is the size of the national debt and poor yields on bonds for the last decade related?

      Not really. There’s some crossover impact but it’s not that simple.

      Reply
    64. 64.

      Another Scott

      January 6, 2023 at 7:15 pm

      @Splitting Image: +1

      Not only that, but being forced to have a balanced budget every year leaves money on the table that could be used for the economy to grow.  It’s like demanding people buy houses with cash as opposed to taking out a loan.  IIRC, some economist made a decent case that a healthy deficit is about 3% of revenue (which would be about $4.64T x 0.03 = $139B – so we are running high deficits now, but we’re still recovering from the Pandemic and decades of under-investment so that’s not unusual).

      Plus, as a consequence of the way the federal budget accounting is done, if Social Security runs a surplus then it Increases the national debt.  Why?  Because SS money doesn’t sit in a vault somewhere, it gets loaned to the Treasury and moved out into the economy.  And has to be paid back, so it’s a debt.

      Most of the federal debt is money like that that we owe ourselves.

      A balanced federal budget, and trumped-up panic about the federal debt (when Democrats are in office), are both colossally stupid ideas. The federal budget is not like a family budget, and it’s wrong to think that it is.

      Thanks.

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    65. 65.

      eclare

      January 6, 2023 at 7:16 pm

      @PaulB:   As always, thank you for the maths.

      Reply
    66. 66.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:16 pm

      @MisterDancer:

      @Geminid:

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      When does the size of the debt start to matter?

      Reply
    67. 67.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:18 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): When there is a Democratic President!

      Reply
    68. 68.

      The Thin Black Duke

      January 6, 2023 at 7:19 pm

      These yahoos in the GOP have massive hard-ons just thinking about grabbing that Social Security and Medicare money. That’s it. Don’t overthink it.

      Reply
    69. 69.

      eclare

      January 6, 2023 at 7:20 pm

      @Geminid:   Huh.  My ex is a paramedic, and I know it’s not scientific, but he said everyone dreaded full moons.  The crazy really came out.

      Reply
    70. 70.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:22 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): When does the size of the debt start to matter?

      Well, for starters, when a country cannot afford to pay the interest on the debt. You’re asking questions that could easily require book-length answers. There is nothing simple about these topics.

      Well, other than that a balanced budget requirement at the federal level would be a truly awful idea.

      Reply
    71. 71.

      eclare

      January 6, 2023 at 7:23 pm

      @Geminid:   You win the internets!

      None of this mattered when the R house lowered the Corp tax rate to 21% from 35%.  That is an unprecedented drop.  I have worked in tax for thirty years, a decrease that big is staggering.

      Reply
    72. 72.

      karen marie

      January 6, 2023 at 7:23 pm

      @PaulB: Thank you!

      That’s insane.

      Reply
    73. 73.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 7:24 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      As of 2021, Japan had the highest general government debt-to-GDP ratio of the countries for which the IMF had available data at 262.5%. Next was Venezuela, with a reading of 240.5%. The U.S. was fifth with a debt-to-GDP ratio of 128%.

       

      I haven’t heard that the Japanese people were hurting too much despite claims of “low growth.”

      Reply
    74. 74.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:24 pm

      @Geminid:

      Funny, but hasn’t the Fed kept interest rates artificially low for the last decade partly because of the high national debt as the debt servicing payments could put a strain the US’ finances if interest rates were higher? Isn’t low yields bad for investors, including retirees?

      Reply
    75. 75.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:27 pm

      @karen marie:  That’s insane.

      They wanted the delay to give them a little time to work on the last 6 holdouts, plus time to get Buck and Hunt back. Buck is returning from an unspecified medical issue and Hunt was with his wife and their premature infant. Both are supposed to be in the chamber this evening.

      Reply
    76. 76.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:28 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Funny, but hasn’t the Fed kept interest rates artificially low for the last decade partly because of the high national debt as the debt servicing payments could put a strain the US’ finances if interest rates were higher?

      No. That’s not part of the Fed’s charter.

      Edited to add that this is clearly a topic you’re obsessing over. Might I suggest you do some reading offline before pursuing this further?

      Reply
    77. 77.

      Matt McIrvin

      January 6, 2023 at 7:29 pm

      @Another Scott: Yeah, the funny thing is that even if we were to take the “household budget” analogy as valid, households use debt to finance things all the time. It can be done to excess, but it’s a tool in the toolbox.

      Reply
    78. 78.

      Kirk Spencer

      January 6, 2023 at 7:29 pm

      So I’m wondering if the push for the flat tax will make a resurgence?

      Gads, I’m glad we kept the senate.

      Reply
    79. 79.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:30 pm

      Talk about rubbing it in!

      A few hours ago Politico Magazine put up an article titled:

        Kevin Who? In McCarthy’s Hometown, a Different Take on His Fate

      It’s more like an indifferent take. The reporter found that outside a few Republican officials, even McCarthy’s supporters were not too wrapped up in the Speaker election (unlike people on a blog I could name!).

      Democrats were gloating, and some people did not know who their congressman was.

      Reply
    80. 80.

      Matt McIrvin

      January 6, 2023 at 7:30 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): No, they kept rates low as economic stimulus, to encourage spending and investment. Now they’re raising them to control inflation.

      Reply
    81. 81.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:31 pm

      Reply
    82. 82.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 7:33 pm

      Regardless, the best way to reduce the deficit is to have Dems in charge so we can fix the tax code.

      Reply
    83. 83.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:33 pm

      @PaulB:

      @PaulB:

      @Matt McIrvin:

      @Matt McIrvin:

      Thanks for the explanations

      Reply
    84. 84.

      Hoppie

      January 6, 2023 at 7:35 pm

      @Alison Rose: Does EmptyGee have junk?  Just curious.

      Reply
    85. 85.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:35 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I think the Fed kept interest rates low because the economy was growing so slowly they were afraid raising them would put us back in a recession. The lower debt payments were an ancillary benefit.

      Low rates do cause problems for some groups and maybe systemically in some ways, but they are not directly related to the deficit or national debt (I think).

      Reply
    86. 86.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:36 pm

      @Baud: Regardless, the best way to reduce the deficit is to have Dems in charge so we can fix the tax code.

      Yup. It’s also a good way to determine if someone you’re talking to is serious about deficit reduction (rather than just mouthing partisan platitudes). If tax cuts are off the table, they’re not serious about the deficit. It’s pretty much that simple.

      Reply
    87. 87.

      Matt McIrvin

      January 6, 2023 at 7:36 pm

      @Kirk Spencer: What I’m hoping is that people are smarter about it now. Incredible to think there was a time when Jerry Brown had a flat tax proposal.

      Reply
    88. 88.

      Elizabelle

      January 6, 2023 at 7:37 pm

      @Baud:   Yesss!  That’s the main thing, and fighting words to Republicans.

      Reply
    89. 89.

      Alison Rose

      January 6, 2023 at 7:39 pm

      @Hoppie: To me “junk” is gender neutral.

      Reply
    90. 90.

      Sister Golden Bear

      January 6, 2023 at 7:39 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Same as it ever was. They’ve acted like that repeatedly over the years.

      Reply
    91. 91.

      H.E.Wolf

      January 6, 2023 at 7:39 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): ​
       I recommend you get the classic economics book for laypeople – The Worldly Philosophers, by Robert Heilbroner – and read/skim the chapter on Keynes.

      I’m sure there are newer books out there, but my recollection is that Heilbroner was good at clear explanations, without talking down to the reader.

      Reply
    92. 92.

      Alison Rose

      January 6, 2023 at 7:41 pm

      John Oliver did a good episode explaining the National Debt a couple years back. Referring to Dubya as a “lovable little human rights violation” was a choice moment.

      Reply
    93. 93.

      Sister Golden Bear

      January 6, 2023 at 7:42 pm

      @Alison Rose: CNN needs to bring on a professional dominatrix to explain Kevin’s humiliation fetish.

      Reply
    94. 94.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:42 pm

      @eclare: More anecdotal evidence: a feature about a woman magistrate I read a few years ago quoted her saying that domestic violence cases peaked during full moons.

      Reply
    95. 95.

      Eunicecycle

      January 6, 2023 at 7:42 pm

      @eclare: my daughter used to be a labor and delivery nurse and she swore there were more babies born under full moons. She dreaded those nights, too!

      Reply
    96. 96.

      Gvg

      January 6, 2023 at 7:43 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): yes. Good lord you should know this by now. A nations finance doesn’t go in a fiscal year. You borrow when interest rates are low and invest in things that will pay off long term not that year. You pump money into the economy when times are bad and tax when things are booming too much. You spend when emergencies happen then pay like depressions, wars to exist and disasters which don’t happen to fit in fiscal balances.

      it’s following tiny rules for timid minds which can’t deal with the big wide world. Like gold buggery.  Governing by slogans not wisdom.

      Reply
    97. 97.

      different-church-lady

      January 6, 2023 at 7:44 pm

      @Alison Rose: ​
        Feminine when playing Black Eyed Peas, masculine when playing The Lonely Island.

      Reply
    98. 98.

      lollipopguild

      January 6, 2023 at 7:44 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I am so old that I remember when Bill Clinton and Al Gore not only balanced the  budget they created a surplus. Then Bush the lessor got elected.

      Reply
    99. 99.

      Alison Rose

      January 6, 2023 at 7:46 pm

      @different-church-lady: LOLOL

      Reply
    100. 100.

      James E Powell

      January 6, 2023 at 7:46 pm

      @Mai Naem mobile:

      The only Republicans I understand – meaning that what they do & say makes sense to me – are the loud & proud bigots. They are deplorable, even evil, but they make sense.

      Stated another way.

      Reply
    101. 101.

      different-church-lady

      January 6, 2023 at 7:47 pm

      @lollipopguild: ​
       

      I remember when Bill Clinton and Al Gore not only balanced the budget

      And earned the undying enmity of shitlibs evermore.

      Reply
    102. 102.

      the pale scot @ gmail

      January 6, 2023 at 7:47 pm

      @PaulB:

      the federal government has to make additional cuts, since tax revenue would be down.

      Just look at the UK’s austerity budgets after the financial meltdown. Every other developed country opened the spigots. The UK GDP stagnated while the rest of us grew at a decent rate.

       

      12 years of Tory rule has devastated the NHS, the police, all indicators of well being are falling, and the Tories are still in la la land

      Reply
    103. 103.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:47 pm

      @Sister Golden Bear: Maybe they’ll bring on the Democrats’ Chief Whip, Katherine Clark. She looks the part!

      Reply
    104. 104.

      Poe Larity

      January 6, 2023 at 7:47 pm

      They’re not going to have enough people to fill all those laptop committees.

      Reply
    105. 105.

      eclare

      January 6, 2023 at 7:49 pm

      @lollipopguild:   And Greenspan argued that the govt having a surplus was bad.

      Reply
    106. 106.

      James E Powell

      January 6, 2023 at 7:49 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      Go read about the New Deal.  Go read Keynes.  Hell, make it less technical, read Galbraith.

      Or simply compare 2009-2011 with 2020-2022.

      Reply
    107. 107.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 7:51 pm

      McCarthy is confident enough about his victory tonight to whip votes for the House Rules package. Tom Emmer, “Majority Whip-Elect,” has sent out a note to House Republicans:

      The House will reconvene at 10:00 p.m. and proceed to the fourteenth ballot for the Election of the Speaker of the House.

      Members are strongly encouraged to remain on the floor throughout business this evening.

      Following the Election of the Speaker, the Speaker will swear-in all Members and Delegates on the House floor.

      After the swearing-in, the House will debate H. Res. __ – Adopting the Rules for the 188th Congress.

      At approximately 1:45-2:15 a.m., we will have our last vote series of the week on the Previous Question, Motion to Commit, and adoption of the House Rules Package.

      Reply
    108. 108.

      Hoppie

      January 6, 2023 at 7:51 pm

      @Alison Rose: Got it.  Or them, I guess.  Thanks.

      Reply
    109. 109.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:51 pm

      @H.E.Wolf:

      Thank you, I’ll check that one out!

      Reply
    110. 110.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 7:54 pm

      @the pale scot @ gmail:

      the pale scot @ gmail

      Did you intend to change your balloon juice nym?  Or did a stray “@gmail” accidentally make it into your nym?

      Reply
    111. 111.

      Frankensteinbeck

      January 6, 2023 at 7:55 pm

      I really need to know how all these offers are represented in the rules package, because if they’re just McCarthy making promises, or even just votes that are going to be taken, he might as well be farting show tunes for all it matters legislatively.  ‘Present a budget’ is gigantically different from ‘only a balanced budget can be voted on.’

      @The Thin Black Duke:

      These yahoos in the GOP have massive hard-ons just thinking about grabbing that Social Security and Medicare money.

      But they’re not talking about spending it on other things, or privatization.  They’re talking about removing the money completely.  The massive hard-on is for hurting people.

      Reply
    112. 112.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 7:55 pm

      @PaulB: What a dick McCarthy is.

      Many of these new reps likely have families that want to attend the swearing in, and he wants to do it in the fucking middle of the night?

      What a dick!  But I repeat myself.

      Reply
    113. 113.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 7:58 pm

      @WaterGirl:

      McCarthy has a monomaniacal obsession with becoming Speaker, even if he’s the weakest Speaker in history. It’s really weird. And yes he is a dick

      Reply
    114. 114.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 7:58 pm

      @PaulB: Like in the Speaker contest, 5 defectors can sink the Rules. This is not neccessarily  a done deal.

      Reply
    115. 115.

      Gvg

      January 6, 2023 at 7:59 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): no. Low interest rates for everything for a decade mean the feds also offer a low rate. Which is yield. They are safer than banks or other investments so their rates can be really low.
      it also indicates the government hasn’t been competing for more bond money (offering higher rates to get people to choose bonds instead of other things like private stocks). This is partly because the government hasn’t been authorized to invest in enough things like infrastructure and research that it should have been and was in smarter times. It’s why our roads and bridges need repair, our education has fallen behind and hospitals are closing.

      After the revolutionary war, our government invested in us, in a ton of things like roads and canals and later railroads which paid off for a more prosperous country. This group of fiscal balanced budget idiots think they understand money, but they are business idiots with slogans. Nearsighted slogans. And they are afraid.

      Reply
    116. 116.

      prostratedragon

      January 6, 2023 at 8:00 pm

      “Beetles in the Bog,” War

      Reply
    117. 117.

      James E Powell

      January 6, 2023 at 8:01 pm

      Is it possible this clown show is going to continue till next week? I am already tired of it. I feel like McCarthy as a weak speaker constantly be harried by the crazies in his party is the best possible outcome for us. The looser his hold on his party, the more likely President Joe can twist enough arms to get things passed. Or maybe I’m just being overly optimistic.

      Reply
    118. 118.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 8:02 pm

      @WaterGirl: What a dick!

      But don’t you see?

      “Because it took this long, now we learned how to govern. So now we’ll be able to get the job done,” McCarthy added.

      McCarthy is hoping that this will come across as “strong, decisive action” after the days of uncertainty and incompetence. That there is no rush, that doing this overnight is completely unnecessary, doesn’t matter; he needs this pointless gesture and is hoping that the optics will work in his favor.

      Reply
    119. 119.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 8:03 pm

      @Gvg:

      Seriously, thanks for the explanation : )

      Reply
    120. 120.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 8:04 pm

      @Geminid: Like in the Speaker contest, 5 defectors can sink the Rules. This is not neccessarily  a done deal.

      You’re absolutely right, but McCarthy thinks that he has the votes for the whole thing: not just himself as Speaker but also the votes for the rules, suitably modified with all of the concessions he has made.

      His vote counting thus far has been … lacking. We’ll see if he can count any better tonight.

      Reply
    121. 121.

      Kirk Spencer

      January 6, 2023 at 8:04 pm

      @Matt McIrvin:

      What I’m hoping is that people are smarter about it now.

      I feel as though you have not been watching this whole speaker election thing. Except you did say “hope”, not “expect”.

      Reply
    122. 122.

      BC in Illinois

      January 6, 2023 at 8:08 pm

      @PaulB:

      After the swearing-in, the House will debate H. Res. __ – Adopting the Rules for the 188th Congress.

      At approximately 1:45-2:15 a.m., we will have our last vote series of the week on the Previous Question, Motion to Commit, and adoption of the House Rules Package.

      Wait – – I thought that McCarthy’s masters were demanding that every bill have a 72-hour notice, so that all the members could pretend to read it.

      Reply
    123. 123.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 8:08 pm

      @Geminid: Like in the Speaker contest, 5 defectors can sink the Rules. This is not neccessarily  a done deal.

      Bolstering your point: Tony Gonzalez (R-TX), has now announced via Twitter that he is a “NO on the house rules package.”

      Reply
    124. 124.

      Frankensteinbeck

      January 6, 2023 at 8:09 pm

      @PaulB:

      His vote counting thus far has been … lacking. We’ll see if he can count any better tonight.

      I’m not sure he gives a shit about passing the rules package as promised or any other way once he’s Speaker.  I think he’s made it pretty plain that the title is his goal.  Once he’s got it, his motivation to fight for anything drops like a rock.  I don’t know.  We’re hearing rumors about promises, at this point.

      Reply
    125. 125.

      Baud

      January 6, 2023 at 8:09 pm

      @PaulB:

      I’ll be sad if McCarthy face plants again when I’m asleep.

      Reply
    126. 126.

      Eolirin

      January 6, 2023 at 8:11 pm

      @BC in Illinois: The rules package is not technically a bill is it?

      Reply
    127. 127.

      H.E.Wolf

      January 6, 2023 at 8:11 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): ​
       It’ll either be helpful, or not. :) Feel free to pitch it into the wastebasket if it doesn’t appeal to you!

      Reply
    128. 128.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 8:12 pm

      @PaulB:

      By the way, thanks for your “live reporting” on threads on the GOP House Circus over the last couple of days. Protects my sanity lol

      Reply
    129. 129.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 8:15 pm

      @PaulB: Yes, like his comment earlier: “I counted.”  Like him saying that erases the past 4 days.  Un-fucking-believable.

      Reply
    130. 130.

      HumboldtBlue

      January 6, 2023 at 8:16 pm

      So, once they all get sworn in and the rules have been passed, can a Dem then stand up and demand a vote to vacate the speaker’s chair?

      Reply
    131. 131.

      David 📢 Speaker 📢 Koch☑️

      January 6, 2023 at 8:22 pm

      The local radio station that carries baseball broadcasts turns into Hate Radio overnight. During the summer, when I would go out at night, I’d start the car and Hate Radio would be on and all they did was SCREAM about Mexicans. Not exaggerating. Without except, it was SCREAMING hatred of Mexicans. And the person they personally attacked wasn’t the president or DHS, it was McCarthy. They kept frothing at the mouth that he’s a RINO and “betrayed us on the border”.

      Reply
    132. 132.

      Steeplejack

      January 6, 2023 at 8:22 pm

      @PaulB:

      Golly, shouldn’t they allow 72 hours for members to read the rules package before voting on it? 🤔

      Reply
    133. 133.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 8:24 pm

      @HumboldtBlue:

      I’d like to know the answer to that too

      @Steeplejack:

      I like the way you think and would like to subscribe to your newsletter

      Reply
    134. 134.

      Skepticat

      January 6, 2023 at 8:25 pm

      @NotMax: I (cheerfully) paid $2.29 a gallon in Portland, Maine, yesterday. Of course, for an year and a half after Dorian in The Bahamas, gas and diesel were $7 a gallon, so anything under that looks comparatively acceptable to me.

      Reply
    135. 135.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 8:26 pm

      @PaulB: The concessions McCarthy made to the radicals will be resented by other caucus members. Some may dig in their heels over various provisions. They may also want to hold out a vote or two as a “flex,” to show the radicals  who prolonged this election that they can play the obstruction game as well.

      Reply
    136. 136.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 8:34 pm

      @HumboldtBlue: I certainly hope so!

      Reply
    137. 137.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 8:35 pm

      @Steeplejack: I hope there is a Dem who is willing to do just that.  Point of order and all that.

      Reply
    138. 138.

      Matt McIrvin

      January 6, 2023 at 8:36 pm

      @Kirk Spencer: No, I mean the general public. There was a time when even US liberals were on board with these goofy schemes. They’re not any more.

      Reply
    139. 139.

      The Pale Scot

      January 6, 2023 at 8:36 pm

      @the pale scot @ gmail:

      Sorry, I had JS turned off

      Reply
    140. 140.

      Geminid

      January 6, 2023 at 8:39 pm

      @Geminid: People voting “no” on the Rules package would also send a message to McCarthy that he cannot take them for granted.

      I’m not saying the Rules won’t pass, just that some in the caucus have good reason to jam it up.

      Reply
    141. 141.

      David 📢 Speaker 📢 Koch☑️

      January 6, 2023 at 8:40 pm

      @Geminid: ​
       

      B5

      YOU SUNK MY BATTLESHIP!

      Reply
    142. 142.

      Sure Lurkalot

      January 6, 2023 at 8:45 pm

      @eclare:

      And Greenspan argued that the govt having a surplus was bad.

      As I recall, he also argued that credit default swaps were uber safe because of “counterparty surveillance”. Good times.

      We still have Larry Summers rooting for higher interest rates and millions of unemployed. Because inflation is somehow only caused by workers, no rent seeking going on in America, no sir.

      Reply
    143. 143.

      Chetan Murthy

      January 6, 2023 at 8:47 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): This article by Krugman from …. 24 years ago lays out why forcing a balanced budget is a bad idea.

      https://slate.com/business/1998/08/baby-sitting-the-economy.html

      Reply
    144. 144.

      BlueGuitarist

      January 6, 2023 at 8:51 pm

      @Omnes Omnibus:

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      @James E Powell:
      “The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.” JK Galbraith

      Reply
    145. 145.

      prostratedragon

      January 6, 2023 at 8:52 pm

      @Geminid: ​ Heh — the EverKevin.

      Reply
    146. 146.

      Skepticat

      January 6, 2023 at 8:53 pm

      @Steeplejack:

      What is this reading of which you speak?

      Reply
    147. 147.

      Fair Economist

      January 6, 2023 at 8:53 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      Is a balanced budget actually bad as a concept?

      In the long term, yes. For a modern financial system to work it needs large amounts of extremely secure and extremely liquid assets to trade. Only governmental debt qualifies. As the economy grows there needs to be more governmental debt to trade, which means the government must over time run a deficit.

      Now there can be *too much* government debt and so sometimes temporary balanced budgets or small surpluses are good, and too large a deficit can be bad; but overall the government needs to run a deficit.

      Thomas Levenson’s book “Money for Nothing” talks some about how the debt creation system the British created partly to clean up the South Seas Bubble was one of their great advantages against the French in the 18th century contest for worldwide supremacy. And they eventually won that supremacy carrying a debt twice the size of the one we have now (relative to the economy), just to indicate how much slack we have left.

      Reply
    148. 148.

      PaulB

      January 6, 2023 at 8:54 pm

      @Geminid: I’m not saying the Rules won’t pass, just that some in the caucus have good reason to jam it up.

      Fair point. Not to mention that some of them are undoubtedly pissed off at the crazy caucus and how much McCarthy had to give them, so might register their displeasure by voting no on the rules package, even as they vote yes for McCarthy.

      I’ve been spending far too much time online these past few days, so I’m going to take the evening off. I’ll find out tomorrow morning whether McCarthy succeeded or not. Be well, everyone.

      Reply
    149. 149.

      scav

      January 6, 2023 at 8:57 pm

      @WaterGirl: Someone should get him a gold star chart for his new accomplishments.  Counting!! What could be next!?  ooooooo, I hear A is for Apple. . . . or maybe take a little rest and master the shape ball first.

      Reply
    150. 150.

      karen marie

      January 6, 2023 at 9:04 pm

      @PaulB:  It finally pays to be on the west coast.  It won’t be the middle of the night for me.  Nice!

      Reply
    151. 151.

      H.E.Wolf

      January 6, 2023 at 9:04 pm

      @PaulB: ​
       Thank you for all of your liveblogging today!

      Reply
    152. 152.

      Ruckus

      January 6, 2023 at 9:04 pm

      @Mallard Filmore:

      Depends on the voltage. Something on the order of 440v might just get their attention.

      Reply
    153. 153.

      karen marie

      January 6, 2023 at 9:05 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):   Because on Monday we’re going to be back doing it all over again after a single House member calls for a new speaker vote.  Hahahaha.

      Reply
    154. 154.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 9:25 pm

      Can anyone find a link to this debacle Vote 14 on YouTube?

      Because I am not finding a link on YouTube or on CSPAN.

      edit: Another Scott found it.

      Reply
    155. 155.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 9:27 pm

      @scav: hahaha

      Reply
    156. 156.

      Another Scott

      January 6, 2023 at 9:28 pm

      Meanwhile, ICYMI, BallsAndStrikes.org:

      It may be a new year, but the Supreme Court is stuck in the same place: mired in an ethics scandal of its own creation. Last week, Jo Becker and Julie Tate of The New York Times reported that since 2003, an alarming proportion of donations to the Supreme Court Historical Society—a nonprofit “dedicated to the collection and preservation of the history of the Supreme Court”—have come from lawyers and firms with cases before the Court, corporations, or other special interest groups.

      Donations to the Society matter because they come with special access to the justices. The Chief Justice serves as the honorary chair of the organization’s board of trustees, and the justices regularly appear at gala events, lectures, and forums where wealthy donors can get some high-priced face time. The Rev. Rob Schenck, a former anti-abortion activist, recently testified before the House Judiciary Committee that he encouraged fellow activists to build relationships with the conservative justices by donating to the Society. “I believe we pushed the boundaries of Christian ethics and compromised the high court’s promise to administer equal justice,” Schenck said.

      There is nothing inherently wrong with donating to a nonprofit like this. But the lack of a binding ethics code for Supreme Court justices has blurred the social and professional lives of the justices and people with stakes in the outcomes of the Court’s work. Schenck, for example, has described his practice of researching the justices’ family and religious histories to find points of commonality, and to buttonhole them at Society events. He knew his influence campaign was working when Justice Clarence Thomas invited him to his chambers to show off a wood-mounted Ten Commandments display, which members of Schenck’s group had given him as part of their efforts to promote the public placement of these monuments.

      […]

      Grr…,
      Scott.

      Reply
    157. 157.

      Another Scott

      January 6, 2023 at 9:29 pm

      @WaterGirl: This seems to be it:

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFIN_qULL14

      HTH!

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    158. 158.

      Michael Bersin

      January 6, 2023 at 9:30 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      Yes.

      If revenue was greater than expenditures in any given year and the surplus was socked away for a rainy day…wait, that will never happen.

      National emergencies and natural disasters and pandemics, just to name a few, don’t pay attention to balanced budget amendments,

      Reply
    159. 159.

      gene108

      January 6, 2023 at 9:30 pm

      @Baud:

      Amazing that almost all of those demands are “economic” issues, not culture war.

      The culture war is being handled by Republicans at the state and local level.

      Reply
    160. 160.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 9:32 pm

      @Another Scott: Thank you!  How did you find that?  Literally asking, not rhetorical!

      I googled, I went to the CSPAN channel on YouTube. Nothing.

      Reply
    161. 161.

      Scout211

      January 6, 2023 at 9:33 pm

      @WaterGirl:  I think this is the C-Span link

      Reply
    162. 162.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 9:34 pm

      @Scout211: Yeah, I had found that one, but it’s not video that you can play.  Scott’s works, though!

      Reply
    163. 163.

      Scout211

      January 6, 2023 at 9:35 pm

      @WaterGirl: It says it starts at 9:55.

      Reply
    164. 164.

      WaterGirl

      January 6, 2023 at 9:36 pm

      @Scout211: Yes, I know that, too.  :-)  But all week there would be a play button even if the event hadn’t officially started yet.

      Reply
    165. 165.

      lowtechcyclist

      January 6, 2023 at 9:39 pm

      MTG:

      Playing identity politics is not the Republican way. It’s not the American way.

      It most certainly IS the Republican way.  All that CRT and grooming stuff, those anti-trans and “don’t say gay” bills?  And describing Latin American refugees seeking asylum here as an invasion? Those are most certainly “identity politics.” So get off your motherfucking high horse.

      As for whether it’s the American way, that’s one thing the two parties are fighting over. You obviously believe it is, and we Dems believe it damn well shouldn’t be.

      Reply
    166. 166.

      Another Scott

      January 6, 2023 at 9:40 pm

      @WaterGirl: In Chrome on Winders, I just opened a new tab and entered “youtube.com” then it automagically converted to a search of that site and I continued typing “cspan”.

      The first link under “Latest from C-Span” is that link.

      HTH!

      [eta:] I’ve got a Google 1 subscription which includes YouTube/YouTubeMusic stuff, so that might be a difference.  Dunno.

      Cheers,
      Scott.

      Reply
    167. 167.

      Scout211

      January 6, 2023 at 9:40 pm

      The new Rules have been posted  (analysis).

      Here  is the document with the new rules.

      Reply
    168. 168.

      Jackie

      January 6, 2023 at 9:53 pm

      @karen marie: Yup! PT is great for late ET breaking news. And live sports-ball!

      Reply
    169. 169.

      gene108

      January 6, 2023 at 9:59 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      Is a balanced budget actually bad as a concept?

      Yes.

      The Federal government’s ability to borrow is what allows for economic stimulus during economic downturns to prop up the economy.

      Reply
    170. 170.

      Another Scott

      January 6, 2023 at 10:03 pm

      @Scout211: It’s laughable that they think the Senate is going to accept anything that comes over the wall subject to those rules.

      “3/5 majority for any tax rate increases” – they’re afraid of tax increases and are trying to make them illegal so that they don’t actually have to do their jobs to fund the government.

      Saying House Resolution 1096 no longer applies – that gave collective bargaining rights to employees of the House.

      And so forth.  They’re trying to break things and not be held accountable for the breakage.

      Here’s hoping that there is some drama tonight, but I’m not expecting it.  Even the GQP “moderates” are monsters.

      Grr…,
      Scott.

      Reply
    171. 171.

      satby

      January 6, 2023 at 10:17 pm

      @PaulB: He can’t derail a thread if he reads about it somewhere else.

      Reply
    172. 172.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      January 6, 2023 at 10:31 pm

      @satby:

      That is not why I ask questions in threads. It’s something I’m working on

      Reply
    173. 173.

      karen marie

      January 6, 2023 at 10:44 pm

      @WaterGirl:   Yeah, I just go to the CSPAN youtube channel and then choose “live.”  Works every time!

      Reply
    174. 174.

      WaterGirl

      January 7, 2023 at 12:26 am

      @karen marie: I did exactly that this morning and it worked.  When I did exactly that tonight for the 14th vote, it didn’t come up.

      sigh.

      Reply

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