After what seemed like a very quiet week last week, indictment-wise and corrupt-Supreme-Court-wise, we are starting to see some movement again.
Alvin Bragg makes a list, and Donald Trump checks it twice.
Note one of the DA’s felony theories is that each false business record (presumably after the first one) was to further and cover up the prior ones. Ie two misdemeanor false business records can render the second a felony.
That has always been my favored theory. Very solid. https://t.co/80qDiW7Xm1— Andrew Weissmann 🌻 (@AWeissmann_) May 17, 2023
And the Senate Judiciary holds a hearing on the 2011 Clarence Thomas ethics complaints that were essentially ignored after they were raised in 2012.
Thanks, LordAvebury, for the links to the videos.
I can’t stop laughing at this. (below)
fixed it 4 ya Zoe pic.twitter.com/t35bz0hCux
— Useful Idiot (@FictionalClown) May 17, 2023
Great Lincoln Project ad.
Update: BethanyAnne shared the link to the Onion.
Clarence Thomas Promises To Adopt Code Of Ethics For The Right Price (The Onion)
WASHINGTON—Telling critics in Congress that if they wanted serious reform they simply needed to make it worth his while, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas promised Friday he would adopt a code of ethics for the right price. “After hearing out the Senate Judiciary Committee’s concerns, I admit to seeing the wisdom in developing some kind of ethical framework for the Supreme Court, so long as Papa gets some sugar,” the senior associate justice said in a prepared statement, emphasizing that he would be willing to submit to a code of conduct that included ignoring special interests and disclosing private trips if there was some serious coinage thrown his way.
“It’s reasonable to believe justices serving on the highest court in the land should hold themselves to the highest ethical standards, if only so citizens can have faith in their decision-making process. And if that means so much to lawmakers, they should take whatever donors are giving me every year and double it. Also, in order for me to adhere to some sense of values, Ginni needs to wet her beak.” Thomas suggested he might also support term limits for justices if he was guaranteed a yearly all-expenses-paid trip to the Maldives in retirement.
Open thread.
oatler
Heavy-handed, obvious…perfect.
Ruckus
The wheels of justice grind slowly.
But they do often grind.
The wheels of justice grind quietly.
Until they don’t.
That squeak we are hearing.
Is the wheels grinding.
And producing the truth.
Wyatt Salamanca
Also too, good for CNN’s Sara Sidner for holding lawyer Jim Trusty’s feet to the fire about Trumpy’s incriminating statements regarding those classified documents he stole
https://www.mediaite.com/news/whos-lying-here-cnns-sara-sidner-confronts-trump-lawyer-over-bombshell-admissions-at-town-hall/
https://www.mediaite.com/news/im-not-making-a-speech-sir-cnns-sara-sidner-gets-into-it-with-trump-lawyer-over-new-hard-evidence-of-crime-in-docs-probe/
Ken
I first read the title as meaning Trump brag-confessed to all of Bragg’s charges during the CNN interview. Which may be the case….
LordAvebury
Takeaways from yesterday’s Judiciary meeting:
BethanyAnne
The Onion, as always, provides.
Mike in NC
Newspaper reporting that Putin has signed legislation to fast-track Russian citizenship for any foreigners willing to go fight in Ukraine. The floodgates will open any minute now!
WaterGirl
@LordAvebury: Thank you!
I added those to the post up top.
WaterGirl
@BethanyAnne: I hadn’t seen that. – it’s definitely one of the best articles from The Onion, ever. “Ginni needs to wet her beak.” hahahahaha
Topped, of course, by the one where the very-not-gay conservative guy is wondering why these guys keep sucking his dick.
MattF
About Thomas’ corruption. It’s worth noting, IMO, that the current Supreme Court has narrowed the current definition of corruption to the point that anything less than a very specific quid pro quo, e.g., a tape recorded ‘I’ll give you $xxxx if you do yyyyy’, is not considered corrupt. So, Thomas could have been getting advice on the subject from his pals on the Court. Note that this could be fixed with legislation, but somehow legislators haven’t gotten around to it.
BethanyAnne
@WaterGirl: I loved that one. They also have a current slideshow on why Florida parents oppose letting kids see Disney movies with gay characters. Some real gems in there
ETA: “There is only one film worth watching, and that’s Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. Every subsequent film is a bastardization of Lang’s filmmaking prowess, his pure cinema. If I wanted to let my daughter go to school to watch drivel, I’d just throw on something by Bergman and call it a day.”
WaterGirl
@Mike in NC: Both people who respond to Putin’s call will be fighting to be first!
Scout211
@Wyatt Salamanca: Thank you for those links. It’s good to know that some of the reporters on CNN are still doing good work despite their new boss.
It seems to me that most of Trump’s lawyers, now a cast of thousands, really embarrass themselves and the profession when they do interviews and become part of the Trump propaganda network of spokespeople. I get that they are trying to defend their client in the court of public opinion but when journalists do the research, they look and sound like actors who play lawyers on TV.
Breaking the presidential records act and stealing classified documents doesn’t rise to the level of criminal behavior, Mr. Trusty? Are you sure about that?
craigie
Thank Dog for The Onion.
West of the Rockies
It seems to me that the timing of the anticipated Trump criminal hearings is crucial.
I hope it all blows up in a way that ruins Trump, DeSantis, Republican fortune, and lifts the Democratic Party in ’24 and beyond.
Not sure entirely when that would be… first the indictments drop, but the negative impact seems to evaporate in a few weeks. Then comes the lonnnng delay before trial. Has the verdict in the E. Jean Carroll case negatively affected Trump and Republicans? I don’t think the results are yet crystal clear.
Hopefully, future cases are more ruinous.
Brachiator
It’s a side issue, but on one of the PBS News Hour segments, David Brooks “full disclosure” admitted that he knew Clarence Thomas’ sugar daddy, had been friends with him for years and thought he was a nice guy. He didn’t say whether they hung out at Applebee’s.
But I wonder how many other reporters and pundits are buddies with the super rich.
Scout211
Christiane Amanpour criticized the Trump CNN rally in her speech to the Columbia School of Journalism. And apparently many people working at CNN are unhappy.
This article is now on the front page of CNN.com. Will she be called on the carpet for her speech or will Oliver Darcy be called on the carpet again for being too emotional in his “Reliable Sources” reporting?
rikyrah
Senator Whitehouse..
clap clap clap clap
Jeffro
Is that an Onion article too? Has to be.
Kristine
@West of the Rockies:
If the Hillary Clinton email escapade is any indication, the ideal time to drop the load would be a week or so before the 2024 election. Given the increased use of mail-in ballots, I would maybe stretch that to a month prior, but idk the percentages of voters who vote by mail/vote early vs in-person on election day.
JPL
@BethanyAnne: That was perfect!
Virginia
I have come to believe that we need to start throwing out the “Harlan Crow” paid for line about justices and congressmen all the time. The R’s use “Soros funded” as a slur. Why not Crow funded as a retort?
We at least, have proof that Crow has his own Supreme and all this Soros stuff is just horseshit.
Let’s fight back.
mrmoshpotato
@WaterGirl:
patrick II
@MattF:
I didn’t realize at the time the McDonnell decision was in the Republican judge’s own self-interest. Technically, any of them that were making gains on the side (which means most of them) should have recused themselves, but then that is another ethical guideline they ignore.
Roger Moore
@WaterGirl:
It will take a lot of work to top “Bush: ‘Our Long National Nightmare Of Peace And Prosperity Is Finally Over’” and “Black Guy Asks Nation For Change“. And of course, “‘No Way To Prevent This,’ Says Only Nation Where This Regularly Happens” is a tragic classic, especially given its endless repetition.
CaseyL
@Mike in NC: Putin doesn’t realize the RWNJs in the US who think he’s the best thing since Orban are…how to put this… extremely unlikely to put themselves in a position where they’re not the only ones with guns.
Chris Johnson
@Jeffro: I’m sure it’s not. I’ve always gone on about Putin, but since losing Ukraine, Putin is forced to go mask-off more and more.
I really look forward to confirmation of so many things that guy’s been doing. In particular, I don’t think Fox dropped Tucker Carlson like a hot rock just because he’s an asshole.
I think history will reveal that WWIII was fought on Twitter, and we’ve been living it for the past ten years or so, and still are. Things are just implausibly out of joint, and I think that’s because we’re at war. America wouldn’t suck NEARLY as bad as it sucks, if it was left to its own clueless devices. We’ve been getting sabotaged for years, as hard as Putin could manage.
China’s not even in the same league, because we’re economically interdependent, so they stand to gain money from us. Russia has never had that luxury, hence their war.
Betty
Looks like Roberts has been well aware of the concerns about Thomas and has used his position more than once to shut down any serious inquiry.
MattF
@patrick II: I suppose, perhaps, it occurred to the judges who didn’t recuse that the remaining judges, who might recuse, would be inconveniently stricter on possible ethical issues…
Roger Moore
@Betty:
Roberts is just as sleazy as Thomas or Kavanaugh; he’s just better putting up a respectable facade. His wife is doing even better than Ginny Thomas at grifting. More importantly, he’s 100% political operative and 0% impartial jurist, but the media is willing to act as if those percentages are reversed.
WaterGirl
@patrick II:
Yes, I have had that thought a dozen times, myself. That was actually a pretty smart move, making sure that even if you do get caught in the future, they have made corruption nearly impossible to prove.
*unless you’re Trump and announce your crimes and your intention in public, then they don’t have to work too hard to prove intent.
WaterGirl
@Roger Moore : Yes, definitely in good company with those articles.
You have given me an idea; I think I’ll put up a Best of the Onion thread sometime the week and let folks like to their favorites. That might be a good “in case of emergency, break glass” thread to have in the sidebar when everything gets to be goo much.
Roger Moore
@WaterGirl:
I don’t know how useful an Onion headlines thread would be. Yes, it’s humor, but a lot of it is very dark humor that wouldn’t necessarily help people who are looking for something to cheer them up when things look bad.
Omnes Omnibus
@Roger Moore: I don’t know. Isn’t that exactly when dark humor works?
Ghost of Joe Liebling’s Dog
@Scout211:
It seems to me that “in the end” and “gradually” are doing a regrettably large amount of work. McCarthy did a tremendous amount of damage before “gradually” and “in the end” worked their magic on the newsies of that time.
I mean, yay, I’m glad to see her take, but the country needs a bit more from the Professional Journalist™ class than they managed back then.
rikyrah
@Roger Moore:
No lie told
Ruckus
@Brachiator:
Well if you are looking to make bank the easy way, you’ll want to find the guys with the most money that they made from little effort and crappy products, because those guys know how to turn shit into shinola.
Miss Bianca
@Omnes Omnibus: Case in point: I remember finding the humor in Dr Strangelove too cringe-y to be really enjoyable when I first encountered it as a college student. (Ah, the relatively halcyon days of the Reagan Administration. There I was thinking that a Republican administration couldn’t possibly get more wrong-headed and corrupt. Oh, sweet summer child!)
Between 2016 and 2020, Dr Strangelove was by way of being a comfort watch for me. (Trump being so existentially awful that nuclear annihilation was starting to seem downright quaint as a contrast.)
Ruckus
@Jeffro:
vlad has a really difficult time convincing his already citizens to die for one of two reasons, for him or for money that they will never see. So he has to find new ones that don’t already know that he has never figured out how to part with the money that he promised them, and doesn’t give even one shit if they live or die.
Ruckus
@Omnes Omnibus:
It is for me. Really dark humor you have to think about and that can take your mind off of the dark crap in your own life. Also it often shows you that life is often a series of dark humor jokes, interlaced with moments of something else.
...now I try to be amused
@Roger Moore:
That was one of the two most prescient Onion headlines. The other one was:
“After Obama Victory, Shrieking White-Hot Sphere Of Pure Rage Early GOP Front-Runner For 2016”
Other favorites of mine:
“Black Man Given Nation’s Worst Job” (November 2008)
“Clinton Deploys Vowels to Bosnia”
“Area Man Has Fries With That”
R-Jud
@…now I try to be amused: I think my favorite headline would be “Supreme Court Rules Supreme Court Rules”. But this is my favorite article: “Idiom Shortage Leaves Nation All Sewed Up in Horse Pies”.
gene108
@Wyatt Salamanca:
She tried holding Trusty’s feet to the fire, but he rolled over her. She wasn’t up on all the right wing conspiracies, talking points, and misinformation Trusty shot out like a firehose. She did a poor job.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@gene108:
Most normal people aren’t up on them. That’s a big reason why Hunter Biden’s laptop BS has failed to have much of an effect. It’s like they’re speaking another language
gene108
@BethanyAnne:
@WaterGirl:
@Roger Moore:
Just ran across this The Onion article and it seems very believable, Conservatives Claim Hitler’s Nazi Allegiance Greatly Exaggerated
BethanyAnne
@gene108: laughs and shakes head. Damn.
MazeDancer
Disney just announced they are pulling the plug on a 1 Billion $$$ investment in FL. Because of Tiny D.
Included 2000 jobs paying average of 120K each.
Can’t wait for the GOP debates highlighting that.
Ken
@gene108: The problem with parody nowadays is that reality keeps topping it. Check out the reporting on the UK’s “National Conservatism” conference, or as some are abbreviating it, “Nat-C”. As recently as 2020, the Tories reprimanded one of their MPs for attending the event; this year, Tory MPs and cabinet ministers (including Suella Braverman) are making speeches.
BethanyAnne
I saw a music video a couple of days ago. No clue if it’s been linked here before or not. It’s by Ren, and it’s the song “Hi Ren”. Came out maybe … 5 months ago? It’s 10 minutes, and heavy. Very intense, and NSFW for cursing. And I find it ultimately inspiring.
“Hi Ren”
Some small notes: “She sells seashells” refers to a song of Ren’s that went a little viral in 2020. Ren was accurately diagnosed in 2016 with Lyme disease. Unfortunately, it looks like he actually got it in 2008. Years of misdiagnosis, wrong medications and brain damage which includes psychosis happened in that meantime. He did the video in one take. Not the first take, this was #4. But the entire thing was shot with multiple cameras in that one take so it could be edited later. I cried. Your mileage, as always, will vary. Still. It’s art worth experiencing.
MattF
OT. As noted here, ChatGPT now has an IOS app. I installed it on my iPad, and it seems to work. There’s an App Store link at the end of the article. Installation asks for your DOB and phone#, you get sent a six digit code text to the phone#.
zhena gogolia
@gene108: “Pictures of Celine Dion!”
Baud
@MattF: Hopefully, they’ll have a Balloon Juice plug in soon so I won’t have to put in so much work here.
zhena gogolia
@Baud: We’ll identify your AI posts immediately!
zhena gogolia
I just saw a clip of Zelenskyy responding to TFG. He pointed out that the war had already started when TFG was president, and he didn’t do anything to stop it.
JWR
@Roger Moore:
During Roberts’ confirmation hearings, I saw an image I’ll never forget. It was by one of the photographers sitting on the floor right in front of him. He was looking up at his interrogators, hands clasped before him and he had the look of a poor, innocent little Fox promising to never, ever eat the little baby lamb. I’ve tried finding it, but no such luck. It was creepy as all Hell, because he was almost in (faux) tears.
WaterGirl
@MazeDancer: Wow. Good for Disney. Is there a link for that?
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: I would like to see that clip, please.
trollhattan
@MazeDancer: As much as I’d like the coda: “And taking them instead to California” I’ll forego that for “And instead expanding Disneyland France.” Take that, ya meatball gobbler.
zhena gogolia
@WaterGirl: I don’t know how to get them when they’re on that sort of pop-up “shorts” thing on YouTube. I’ll try to find it.
Does this work? https://www.youtube.com/shorts/TDp7085Ui60
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@zhena gogolia:
Good for Zelenskyy
Scout211
Oh my. This made laugh:
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Names Dennis Kucinich as Campaign Manager
Scout211
@WaterGirl:
Is this it? It’s a YouTube version
Zelenskyy responding to Trump
ETA: already posted above.
Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
@Scout211:
From the release:
I don’t think that was meant as a compliment by the WaPo, assuming it’s a true. I remember he claimed he saw a UFO
Maxim
@Scout211: Not the Onion! But should be.
Josie
@Scout211:
I clicked through just to make sure it wasn’t a joke. Clown show, indeed.
Ken
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):
The full quote may have been something like “If this is the future of American politics, the nation is certainly doomed.”
Geminid
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): I expect it was some op-ed writer that called Kucinich the future of American politics. He still had a small, loyal following then.
RaflW
@Brachiator: “I wonder how many other reporters and pundits are buddies with the super rich”
Isn’t one of the main points of the Aspen Ideas Festival, the World Econ Forum in Davos, etc is that its a place for the rich to inculcate their connections and ‘values’ to the plebeian writerly class?
NotMax
@Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)
Amazing, innit, that along with the ubiquitous spread of cell phone cameras things such as UFOs and Bigfoot have – poof – vanished.
strange visitor (from another planet)
@NotMax: never underestimate the power of the chameleon circuit.
Low Key Swagger
Been busy and may have missed a discussion regarding Feinstein. I don’t mind saying out loud that it is time for her to go. Helluva career, we owe her, but now she has become a liability.
Also too, hate it for Floridians but I’m glad Disney did this publicly.
Baud
@Low Key Swagger: What news about Feinstein, other than she’s back?
WaterGirl
@Scout211: thank you!
WaterGirl
@zhena gogolia: thank you!
Low Key Swagger
@Baud: Skimmed an article on the bird site (not good at linking) that basically says her condition was way worse than just shingles. It should be an easy find.
Low Key Swagger
https://twitter.com/davidaxelrod/status/1659252396806262784 Hope this works.
Baud
@Low Key Swagger:
That was already talked about. It may well be bad, but she’s not a liability until she starts voting the wrong way. We’re hopefully stuck with her until Jan 2025.
No One You Know
@Roger Moore: Speaking for myself, that’s not what I come here for. It’s the comments that help show other ways to see it. Randy Rainbow has the lighter side pretty much nailed!
Low Key Swagger
@Baud: Apologies for missing the thread about it. I’ll just say I half-agree with you, but being a Senator is a job, and if one doesn’t have the stamina for it, it’s probably time to retire. My.02
StringOnAStick
@Low Key Swagger: What Baud is referring to is the R’s have already said they will not allow us to replace her on that committee if she resigns, so either she stays and keeps voting for judges, or she goes and zero new judges get confirmed until the new Senate is seated after the 2024 elections.
JML
@Low Key Swagger: I agree she should have retired before this session of Congress when she could have been replaced and the next senator seated on the committee. But the GOP will block anyone else from joining Judiciary and the media is too stupid and useless to keep this from being anything other than a “pox upon both their houses” partisan news story, so this is what it is, and we can’t make her quit short of expulsion, which is never going to happen.
prostratedragon
@BethanyAnne: Thanks! It is very good and very moving.
Fair Economist
@Virginia:
As always, Republican accusations are confessions.
Geminid
@Baud: In the short term, Democrats will wring as many judicial appointments out of their commitee majority, but I don’t think Feistein will make it to 2023, at least not as a Senator. She’s in decline, and at some point she’ll probably have to step down. Then we’ll have to work with an even commitee, like we did in the last Congress. That may not be ideal, but it’s not terrible.
In the meantime, people with political axes to grind will make the most of the situation. A Politico article describing how Rep. Pelosi’s oldest daughter is acting as caretaker for Feinstein has brought out the knives. Now some people are calling for Feinstein’s and Pelosi’s resignations.
The younger Pelosi has known Feinstein for decades; the families were close neighbors. But now the relationship is described as a plot by Rep. Pelosi to help her friend Adam Schiff’s Senate race. The “reasoning” is that that Governor Newsome would appoint Rep. Lee in Feinstein’s place, giving Lee an advantage in the race. Actually, a Lee appointment would probably hurt Rep. Porter more, because she and Lee are both running in the “progressive” lane.
There are a lot of grudges towards the Democratic leadership, and the Feinstein situation is bringing the grudgeholders out. I know that many people have genuine concern about Feinstein’s evident need to retire, but there are others who for weeks have been using this issue to disparage and undermine the Democratic party and its leadership.
Low Key Swagger
@JML: Consider me caught up. I missed that and of course it changes everything. Thank you and String on a Stick for the explanation.
Not Baud tho.
Gravenstone
@Mike in NC: Seems like someone is desperate for cannon fodder…
rikyrah
@StringOnAStick:
THIS THIS
A THOUSAND TIMES THIS.
I don’t care if they have to wheel her in for every vote until January 2025…
WE NEED THOSE JUDGES.
PERIOD.
RaflW
@StringOnAStick: I read the whole article earlier this afternoon (we still have a sub to the FTFNYT as my partner just will not hear of cancelling, and I’m not gonna fight on that).
This is how they end the article. Should be in about the 4th graf, because this is as much about Republicans shattering norms as it is about DiFI’s hold on the office, but it’s the FTFNYT so it’s not the placement.
Geminid
@rikyrah: Yes, it’s pretty clear that Democrats really need Senator Feinstein’s vote in the judiciary Committee. That’s why I think that some of the people griping about the need for a resignation do not want the Biden administration to succeed. They are using Feinstein’s situation as an opportunity to undermine confidence in the party generally. I’ve watched these soreheads on Twitter, and it’s very clear to me that they have an unstated agenda that is hostile to the Democratic Party as it is currently constituted.
Jackie
@rikyrah: If the Rethugs can keep Santos, we can keep DiFi. We just have to hope she can hang on until Jan ‘25 – which given her health declining rapidly…
Geminid
@Geminid: Correction: That should have read, “but I don’t think Feinstein will make it to 2025…” not 2023.
BethanyAnne
@prostratedragon: I’m glad you liked it :)
Sparkedcat
@Scout211: I am still laughing.