Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

Accused of treason; bitches about the ratings. I am in awe.

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

He really is that stupid.

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

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

They’re not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

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

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

The revolution will be supervised.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

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

The words do not have to be perfect.

White supremacy is terrorism.

The party of Reagan has become the party of Putin.

Battle won, war still ongoing.

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

Happy indictment week to all who celebrate!

The willow is too close to the house.

You cannot shame the shameless.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

You are here: Home / Jan 6: Insurrection / Wednesday Evening Open Thread: Jack Smith Has Subpoenaed Jared & Ivanka

Wednesday Evening Open Thread: Jack Smith Has Subpoenaed Jared & Ivanka

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When sorrows come, they come not single spies, but in battalions…

And all such sorrows could not come to a more deserving recipient!

Reader Interactions

93Comments

  1. 1.

    lowtechcyclist

    Good to see the Uncanny Valley Couple being called to testify. They’ll look even better in orange jumpsuits.

  2. 2.

    Baud

    Old CV: Garland wimped out appointingnJack Smith.

    New CV: Jack Smith’s tough actions are proving what a wimp Garland was before.

  5. 5.

    PsiFighter37

    I’ll believe any of this special prosecutor/counsel bullshit comes to anything once people start getting charged. Any Democrat who pulled half the shit that has gone on would have been charged years ago.

  9. 9.

    Ohio Mom

    Needless to say, I am thrilled those two are being supoenaed, I like imagining the moment both of their blood pressure shot up, but aren’t they going to “I don’t remember” everything? (IANAL)

  22. 22.

    eclare

    I like to think that this is at least causing some nausea and lost sleep for JarVanka.  I know seeing him face to face would have that effect on me!

  27. 27.

    gene108

    Meh…I’m with PsiFighter37…

    Wake me up when indictments come rolling in.

    Odds are Jared and Ivanka will invoke “executive privilege” to avoid testifying and other crap to delay appearing before the grand jury.

    Time’s running out. Even if someone’s indicted today, the trial won’t start till this summer or fall. Unless the defendant enters a guilty plea, a jury or bench trial will probably start in 2024. If a defendant is running for elected office, I have no idea how a judge would handle whatever motions the defendant’s attorneys file to kick the can down the road.

    The endgame for any defendant is to hold out and hope a Republican wins the White House, and pardons them. Trump would definitely pardon himself and his co-conspirators. He did it with Manafort, Flynn, and Bannon.

  30. 30.

    PsiFighter37

    @Omnes Omnibus: I’ve been around long enough on Balloon Juice that you should know that I would be ecstatic beyond belief to see consequences come to the fascists from the Trump White House. But at this point, none of those fascists have actually been held to account, in the way of being sentenced to hard time and not being handed a pardon. The fact that the festering human shitwad known as Steve Bannon is still out there basically instigating insurrection every day is proof of that.

    There is more than enough to put Trump and his loony band of clown-car assholes on trial, convict them, and throw away the key for a long time. The fact that it has not happened yet speaks to the timidity of career tightwads who do not recognize the existential threat to American democracy. That includes Merrick fucking Garland, and until there is further proof, Jack Smith.

  33. 33.

    PsiFighter37

    @Omnes Omnibus: I say this based on my observation of what has gone on over the past 7+ years. What Trump has gotten away with has been a pattern of criminal behavior that basically went unnoticed his entire career. The man (along with his dirtbag father and the rest of his related scum, save for maybe Mary Trump) is a con man of the highest order and who has played everyone for a fiddle. I’m even more livid because I voted for Alvin Bragg as Manhattan DA, and one of his first actions was to drop the most serious case against Trump. For all ridiculous spending in the primary, Talia Farhadian Weinstein, despite being a hedge fund manager’s wife, would have never done that.

    There have been too many disappointments over the years to expect that anything will actually happen. At this point, it is going to come down to things like a) will Democrats surge in turnout again in April and win the Wisconsin Supreme Court seat to guarantee no fuckery around their EVs; b) will Brad Raffensperger not fall in line and overturn Fulton County’s votes; and c) will Democrats overall not be caught asleep at the switch again, especially if a ratfucker like Marian Williamson decides to run and play the tune to pro-Russian lefties about how bad the Democratic Party is.

    We’re walking a thin fucking wire here, and what has happened in recent times doesn’t give me a lot of confidence.

  36. 36.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @PsiFighter37:

    There is more than enough to put Trump and his loony band of clown-car assholes on trial, convict them

    you have a lot more confidence in our national jury pool than I do

  40. 40.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @cain:

    It’s been snowing off and on all day here on the coast in Brookings. Nothing is sticking but vehicles are decorated!

  41. 41.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @PsiFighter37:  Well, like I said, I am sure your cynicism comes from a place of love.  I am not going to argue with you because I am pretty sure that would be pointless.  I will note that both you and I know jackshit about the actual admissible evidence that the DOJ has at this point, but I at least have some idea of what’s involved in the process.

  42. 42.

    RSA

    @WaterGirl:  try two Vs, no space between

    This was the “theme” of a recent NYT crossword puzzle, with names relevant to Black History Month, e.g. VV. E. B. Du Bois.  Tricky.

  43. 43.

    sdhays

    @PsiFighter37: The fact that the festering human shitwad known as Steve Bannon is still out there basically instigating insurrection every day is proof of that.

    Bannon was convicted while Trump was still Preznit and got pardoned. They have to nail him on something else to send him back. Manafort actually did some time before his pardon.

    I want a conviction, or clear corruption on the part of jurors causing a hung jury. Building that kind of case takes time.

  46. 46.

    Randal Sexton

    I am pretty skeptical that the Orange Grabster will ever be held to account.  Every time I hear some legal pundit saying some investigation is working hard to ‘cross every t, dot every i’ I end up thinking that really they are desperately searching for some un-dottable i, or some un-crossable t that will allow them to then avoid crossing that Rubicon.   I mean I am still hopeful, but kinda doubtful it will ever happen.  There were some SNL skits to that point, I think when the Raffensberger tapes came out their comments were ” Ok, NOW can we throw him in jail ?” .

    I hope it happens, but oh my — Im sure some un-dottable t’s and un-crossable i’s will come along.

  47. 47.

    BruceFromOhio

    @Baud: I despise everything about this, and despair at the discourse. Then I look at the clock, and I think, tick tock motherfuckers.

    It would be fun to see DOJ ask for everyone’s passports. Just Jared has some friends with really, really deep pockets.​

    ETA: Just what exactly is on Jared’s laptop, anyway?​

  48. 48.

    James E Powell

    @PsiFighter37:

    Any Democrat who pulled half the shit that has gone on would have been charged years ago.

    Not just that, but the FTFNYT would be on fire with screaming headlines and front page stories. The cable shows would follow along with hysterics.

  49. 49.

    John Revolta

    These two parasites already testified before the Jan. 6 committee and Ivanka in particular apparently stonewalled them pretty good. This is unlikely to give us any new information but I dunno, maybe it’ll mess up their day. Let’s hope.

  50. 50.

    geg6

    @sdhays:

    He got four months for contempt of Congress.  The sentence is on hold for appeal.  I’d like to see him get popped for something else, but for now I’d settle for him having to serve the four months.

  51. 51.

    bbleh

    I do wonder how much of this is Jack “You Can’t Pronounce The Original Klingon” Smith really expecting to get testimony from Javanka — and likewise Pence and Meadows — and how much just making lots of people sweat, especially those from whom he IS getting testimony and/or thinks he can flip.

    (Which is not to say I disapprove of him making their lives miserable…)

  54. 54.

    James E Powell

    @PsiFighter37:

    While I think it would be great if everyone in the Trump corruption & insurrection circus were charged, convicted, and sentenced to clean latrines in the FEMA Re-education camps, I don’t count on it. What I do hope for is more damage to the Republican brand.

    We need the normies to stop thinking of them as the law & order party that loves Jesus & the troops and to see them for the thieving scumbags they really are.

    We need the political press to stop covering for them with this ‘we care about the debt & deficit’ & we have better plans bullshit they’ve been spewing since before Obama.

    I know I know I know. I’m dreaming. But I hope my fellow Democrats & all who vote with us are looking less at investigations and more at voting in the next election. These elections are all that matters.

  57. 57.

    persistentillusion

    @bbleh: You can’t pronounce the original Klingon – funniest thing I have seen in DAYS.  Actual snort laugh; well done, word-smith.

  58. 58.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @John Revolta: presumably the DoJ has a lot more information to frame their questions at this point. I can’t remember who I heard today say they thought the 1/6 Committee handled them with kid gloves, “invitations” rather than subpoenas, and I think they had their lawyers with them? Pretty sure they’ll go into the grand jury alone.

    What that will mean, if anything, I don’t know. Because to get back on my hobbyhorse, all the crossed t’s and dotted i’s and fancy lawyerin’ in the world mean dick-all if one juror manages to successfully hide their metaphorical MAGA hat, or even Romney/Ryan t-shirt, during jury selection.

  59. 59.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    OT:

    Do you guys think Biden should visit East Palestine, Ohio?

    I know Buttigieg is coming tomorrow, but I live about 15-20 mi north of East Palestine and the local media (not Sinclair btw) is making Trump look good after he visited today

  60. 60.

    Aussie Sheila

    @James E Powell: This exactly. I hold out little hope that the crim in chief will ever get to serve a day in prison, but the ‘brand damage’ to the republicans could be significant over the next year.

    Thats not nothing, and if it assists in the 2024 elections it will be worth it.

  61. 61.

    Steeplejack

    @btom89:

    Not quite.

    The facility [in Palo Alto] will serve as the company’s engineering headquarters while the corporate headquarters remains in Austin.

  62. 62.

    Aussie Sheila

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): No. He should release the date Dewine  didn’t ask for FEMA assistance, and, get surrogates to explain about trump admin deregulation, then levy big fines wherever possible against the rail company.

    Why should Biden follow that crim anywhere?

  63. 63.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @cain:

    There’s little wind here at the home. Temp is currently 34 but nothing is falling at the moment. It’s so cold even the sea lions are quiet. I had to cover our strawberry plants with plastic to try and save them from the cold over the next couple of days.

  64. 64.

    Mr. Bemused Senior

    @James E Powell:

    What I do hope for is more damage to the Republican brand.

    This!

    Although I’d like to see some convictions too. But for the country, that’s more important.

  66. 66.

    StringOnAStick

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): No.  The same media that is praising tRump will do the opposite to Biden. Transportation Secretary Buddegieg is fast on his feet with reporters and the proper level of cabinet member to go. Send the head of the federal EPA too and make sure both harp on how tRump removed the safety rules for hazardous cargo.  I’ve read that isn’t the cause of this derailment, but it’s a damned good time to get very loud and pushy about the need for these rules to prevent future accidents.

  67. 67.

    Sure Lurkalot

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Not a Sinclair station doesn’t mean too much in Ohio, does it? If a reporter made trump look like a leader by bringing bottles of water and ordering Big Macs, I don’t think affiliation matters. I’m truly sorry about Ohio. Like Iowa, it showed some promise which as far as I can tell is foreclosed for the next 2 decades.

  68. 68.

    Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

    @Aussie Sheila:

    Because of low info voters, mainly, and the media. My mother remarked today that she thinks Biden should’ve visited EP and my father expressed concerns about optics earlier in the week.

  69. 69.

    kalakal

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): No, if he does the framing will be “desperate Biden shamed into action by Trump”.

    Buttigieg can do a perfectly good job, the message to be hammered home re the pro Trump spin is that Dewine rejected aid and Trump removed safety legislation

  72. 72.

    HumboldtBlue

    Speaking of Biden, this made me think of Joe. My father suffered from a stutter as a boy, and it had profound effects on him. He’s extraordinarily erudite and well-lettered, that a game of Scrabble is a huge mountain to climb.

    REAL COURAGE Watford’s Ken Sema scored a brace in the Hornets’ 3-2 win over West Brom Monday, lifting the Championship side back into the playoff spots. The Swedish midfielder stutters, but still conducts interviews when requested. A brave example 

  74. 74.

    eclare

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

    No.  There is no upside at all, he will not get credit for anything he says or does.  And as someone else mentioned, it would probably lead to TFG tweeting “see?  I got him to visit” which is a horrible look.

    Pete can handle this like the pro that he is.

  76. 76.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @PJ:

    Thanks! That’s good to know, I’m just growing shit…lol! Seeing an inch of snow on them made me nervous so I covered them up after it melted. My garden boxes are 2/3rds of the way rebuilt so the area looks like a war zone of sorts.

    It looks like I’ll have to wait until next week to finish it up.

  83. 83.

    eclare

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

    Prob had something to do with his planning to visit a war zone?  Maybe because DeWine didn’t want him there?  Because a sitting pres visiting a town of 5,000 would be a logistical nightmare?

    Lots of reasons.  I am not going to second guess.

  86. 86.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): ​
      What would his visit accomplish? What would his visit hinder as far as clean up efforts? Do you think that if Biden thought that being there would benefit the clean up effort or help the people that he wouldn’t go? Do you think Trump is going out of any altruistic motives? Why are you letting the GOP friendly press get you riled up? Why am I bothering when you merely found a new thing about which to fret? Why didn’t I stop typing after the last question?

  87. 87.

    NotMax

    @Baud

    Here, have some of mine.

    w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w w
    W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W W
    :)

  89. 89.

    Burnspbesq

    @PsiFighter37:

    I’ll believe any of this special prosecutor/counsel bullshit comes to anything once people start getting charged. Any Democrat who pulled half the shit that has gone on would have been charged years ago.

    Bullshit, and you know it’s bullshit. Do you want ragegasms, or do you want convictions?

  90. 90.

    David 🌈☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch

    @Burnspbesq: ​
     C’mon. There is a double standard. Comey had no problem breaking DOJ rules to announce an investigation of Clinton 10 days before the election while simultaneously planting a false story in the Times saying Dump’s campaign had no contact with Russia.

    The feds had no compunction about launching a fruitless investigation of the Clinton Foundation but refused to investigate the target rich fraud at Trump’s fake charity and his business, leaving that to Letitia James.

  91. 91.

    Chris Johnson

    @David 🌈☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch:

    This is why.

    It’s not just a matter of naughty orangespawn. It’s not just a matter of corruption or politicians being greedy and wanting to line their pockets.

    All this is part of the real WWIII, which was waged on Twitter and in the NYT, by Russia, on the USA. They got their guy into the White House, and run him to this day. They’ve got lots of other people more easy to control, because their guy in the White House was a wrecking ball, never intended to get that far.

    The investigation doesn’t have to merely uncover corrupt politicians, it has to usefully support efforts to uncover a war of sedition that got as far as invading the Capitol. That’s a more direct attack on the seat of government than 9/11, and other things (like the antivax stuff) have killed more Americans than 9/11. And those people are still there, and the ones that matter are not as dumb as TFG.

    It’s complicated and there’s a lot to unpack.

  92. 92.

    UncleEbeneezer

    I see all the cynics have ruined yet another thread on this topic with their constant pessimism.  Do us all a favor and take that shit over to LG&M and let us have some real conversations about exciting and unprecedented legal happenings here.  Nobody cares that “you’ll believe it when you see it.”  There’s nothing interesting about these two years of endless declarations of despair.

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