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You are here: Home / Elections 2024 / You Won’t Have George Santos to Kick Around Any More

You Won’t Have George Santos to Kick Around Any More

by | 165 Comments

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Good riddance:

Republican Rep. George Santos announced he will not seek reelection to the House next year, following the Ethics Committee’s release of a long-awaited report on Thursday, which concluded that there is “substantial evidence” that the New York congressman used campaign funds for personal purposes.

The committee said it uncovered additional “uncharged and unlawful conduct” by Santos that go beyond the criminal allegations already pending against him, and would immediately refer the allegations to the Justice Department for further investigation.

Santos engaged in “knowing and willful violations” with regard to financial disclosure statements filed with the House, according to the panel, and “knowingly caused his campaign committee to file false or incomplete reports with the Federal Election Commission.”

Has there ever been a congressional rep who flamed out faster? And will NY Dems fuck this up again?

Reader Interactions

165Comments

  1. 1.

    RepubAnon

    Pity. The Republicans will now run someone whose campaign theme will be “not as obviously corrupt as George Santos.”

  2. 2.

    Quicksand

    So unless the House kicks him out (not holding my breath) I guess we still have him to kick around for the next year and seven weeks, roughly.

  4. 4.

    Jeffro

    The key takeaways re: Santos

    Republicans are shameless thieves, liars, and con men
    Republicans refuse to police their own membership in any way

    (that’s it, that’s all I got)

    Also, here’s one for the Pitchbot: The GOP’s Winning Abortion Strategy Got Lost Because…Well…It Lost

    can’t. make. this. shit. up.

    Republicans have finally found it: a successful model of how to navigate the politics of abortion after Dobbs while still winning elections. They just haven’t noticed their success because it comes well-camouflaged as failure.

    The lesson comes from Virginia. In last week’s elections, Republicans were trying to hold their majority in the House of Delegates and gain one in the state Senate. They fell short on both goals. Cue Republican laments and Democratic exultation. The Republican governor, Glenn Youngkin, now has a black eye — and so does his strategy on abortion.

    Under that strategy, Republican candidates endorsed a ban on abortion after the 15th week of pregnancy, with exceptions for rape, incest and threats to the mother’s life. The theory was that this position would look more reasonable to centrist voters than a more comprehensive ban would. One flaw in the theory, or at least the execution, was that Democrats were more willing to talk about abortion than Republicans were — and they said Republicans wanted to ban abortion, period.

    Got it, Republicans?  Even though you lost with Smilin’ Glenn trying his best to sell/”message” his ass off/lie about what the GOP really wants re: abortion, you should keep at it, because reasons

    The wrap-up?

    The Virginia results are being misinterpreted, in part, because Ohio passed a referendum to protect legal abortion at the same time — and because that result followed several other victories for legal abortion in referendums. But Ohio itself offers evidence that a lot of voters who support legal abortion in an up-or-down vote will also support candidates who disagree with them about it. Its Republican governor signed a law banning most abortions before getting reelected handily last year.

    The question that has worried pro-life Republican politicians is whether they can survive and even prosper while continuing to favor limits on abortion. Their defeat in Virginia, oddly enough, is a promising sign.

  5. 5.

    MattF

    @Quicksand: WaPo article says chair of ethics committee will move to expel Santos from House after T-day vacation:

    Guest [ethics committee chair] will file a motion to expel Santos Friday morning, according to a person familiar with the plans who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. The House can consider the motion upon its return from its holiday break on Nov. 28.

  7. 7.

    trollhattan

    Dude has more than a year to keep cashing in and also interview for his post-congressional gigs.

    I’d love to read a few editions of his C.V. “By jove, he invented the battle tank!”

  9. 9.

    evodevo

    @Jeffro:  OMG…this is…REAL?  It’s like with The Onion…the right wing is so egregious nowadays you can’t even parody it…

  10. 10.

    Alison Rose

    I think it’s a good decision, and besides, he wouldn’t have time to serve another term in Congress while also manning the Europa Clipper mission to Jupiter.

  13. 13.

    Chris

    Has there ever been a congressional rep who flamed out faster?

    Well, there was a President who flamed out faster.  Died in 30 days, in fact.

    And will NY Dems fuck this up again?

    “Have you ever attended a meeting of the New York legislature?  They speak very fast and very loud, and nobody listens to anybody else, with the result that nothing ever gets done.”

  15. 15.

    Percysowner

     

    @Chris:“Have you ever attended a meeting of the New York legislature?

    They speak very fast and very loud, and nobody listens to anybody else, with the result that nothing ever gets done.”

    1776 one of my favorite plays.

  18. 18.

    Brachiator

    Republican Rep. George Santos announced he will not seek reelection to the House next year, following the Ethics Committee’s release of a long-awaited report on Thursday, which concluded that there is “substantial evidence” that the New York congressman used campaign funds for personal purposes.

    Santos could become an anchor on Fox News. I’m pretty sure he’s claimed to have won two Pulitzer Prizes, so he has the background experience.

    Or he could become an investment banker, what with all that financial experience handling campaign funds.

  19. 19.

    David 🌈 ☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch

    House Ethics Committee report reveals Santos had a business that received $50,000 from donors that was solicited for political purposes, but the money was transferred to his personal account and spent on Only Fans, Hermes, and Sephora.

    [Narrator: conversion, wire fraud, mail fraud, tax evasion are felonies].

  20. 20.

    dmsilev

    @Jeffro: It takes a …special breed of pundit to look at the results of the recent election and conclude “yes, the GOP absolutely has a winning strategy on the question of abortion.”. The ageless phrase “just keep on fucking that chicken” comes to mind.

  25. 25.

    Alison Rose

    @Chief Oshkosh: Here’s a little tidbit to help you decide:

    In 2006, Ponnuru wrote The Party of Death: The Democrats, the Media, the Courts, and the Disregard for Human Life.[18] The volume is Ponnuru’s unique and argumentive exposition on such right-to-life issues as abortion and euthanasia, concentrating on the circumstances of the United States Democratic Party’s shift from anti-abortion to abortion rights. Peggy Noonan celebrated the book as “the most significant statement of the need to protect human life in America since Ronald Reagan’s Abortion and the Conscience of a Nation“.

    A Peggy Noonan endorsement is all you really need to know.

  27. 27.

    brendancalling

    @Jeffro: I’d like to play poker with Ramesh. Dude is overdosing on copium. And Ramesh here is supposed to be an intellectual. A smart guy. Someone who thinks a lot.

    What a dope.

  29. 29.

    Baud

    IIRC Ponnuru at one point lamented the racism of the GOP after Trump was elected.  I guess he got better, by which I mean worse.

  30. 30.

    West of the Rockies

    His announcement was absolutely pissy and full of denial and gaslighting.  Good, bloody riddance.   He has such a disagreeable aura.

  33. 33.

    randy khan

    @Jeffro:

    That is really, really, stupid.  The problem with the Republican strategy was that nobody believed they were telling the truth about adopting a 15-week ban because it was obvious they were lying.

    All the malarkey about light blue districts and swing districts is unimportant because it’s just handwaving to obscure the basic fact – Democrats gained 5 seats (maybe 6) in the House of Delegates, which means that there was an obvious red to blue swing in the voting from 2021.  And, since it was an off-off year, with just General Assembly candidates at the top of the ballot, it should have favored Republicans, so the loss is doubly obvious.

  38. 38.

    hells littlest angel

    Has there ever been a congressional rep who flamed out faster?

     

    Katie Hill, although she didn’t really do anything wrong.

  40. 40.

    Geminid

    Maybe George Santos will end up sharing a federal prison cell with Sam Bankman-Fried. That could actually be the basis of a good sitcom, kind of like The Odd Couple.

  44. 44.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Chief Oshkosh: Ponnuru is a piece of shit.  He and Avik Roy both think they’ll be “one of the good ones (don’t kill us!)” come The Revolution.  Pieces of shit.  Always with the propaganda for Teh Fash.

  46. 46.

    Snarki, child of Loki

    “Republican Rep. George Santos announced he will not seek reelection to the House next year”

     

    And everyone thinks he’s telling the truth?1??

  47. 47.

    Laertes

    Whole bunch of people voted against expelling him and said it was because the ethics committee hadn’t finished their work. I’m real curious to see what they do with the new expulsion attempt.

  48. 48.

    Laertes

    @Snarki, child of Loki: Good question, and no. Obviously, his word is worth nothing. His vow, today, not to run again is meaningless.

    I’m hoping it won’t matter. A vow to not run again isn’t sufficient anyway. He ought to resign immediately, and if he doesn’t, the house ought to expel him. Kind of looks like they actually might. I’d take an even-money bet on it.

  49. 49.

    Parfigliano

    Bill Janklow.  Rep from SD was in office barely over a year.  Resigned because he killed a guy in auto accident.  Convicted of manslaughter.

  50. 50.

    leeleeFL

    Romesh Ponnuru: Still full of crap and proud of it!    The man is shamelessly trying to sell BS by the truckload.

  51. 51.

    Chetan Murthy

    @Parfigliano: Yeah boyeee, Janklow’s mistake was not being the attorney general of the state: Ravnsborg won’t even do jail time.  He just pled guilty to misdemeanor traffic charges

  52. 52.

    Delk

    He’s gone after the thanksgiving break. Raskin has changed his vote and so did a lot of the others.

  53. 53.

    trollhattan

    @Geminid: Yeah, they can start up a prison volleyball team and raise money “for the kids” i.e., to pilfer for themselves. I see a movie adaptation with Brad Pitt and John Cina.

  54. 54.

    Ken

    @Alison Rose: he wouldn’t have time to serve another term in Congress while also manning the Europa Clipper mission to Jupiter.

    But to serve on that, wouldn’t he have to be compressed to be smaller than a microchip and —

    Oh. Never mind.

  55. 55.

    smith

    @Chetan Murthy: He and Avik Roy both think they’ll be “one of the good ones (don’t kill us!)” come The Revolution.

    They won’t kill them. I’m pretty sure the camps will have special wings for the Good Ones, and I expect Stephen Miller will fit in quite comfortably there as well.

  56. 56.

    CaseyL

    @Laertes: Yes, they wanted the case against him to be part of the Congressional record.

    Their other stated concern – that the GOP would use an expulsion of Santos as permission to expel any and all Democrats – only sounds reasonable until you realize the GOP could and would vote to expel all Democrats any time they have the votes, for any reason or none at all.

  57. 57.

    Geminid

    @Laertes: My guess us that all or almost all the Democrats will vote for expulsion next time around. Republicans will have to decide whether or not to sacrifice his vote, and see him replaced by a Democrat as soon as the special election can be held. I don’t think a Republican can win it.

    Republican Representatives in New York’s swing districts seem to really want Santos gone, probably because they think he hurts their chances next year.

    One unknown: does Santos have dirt on other Republicans including Rep. Stefanik?

  58. 58.

    sdhays

    @Geminid: LOL. SBF could explain to Santos how to apply “Bayesian” statistics to understand Shakespeare and Santos could regale SBF with tales of how he invented Bayesian statistics.

  60. 60.

    Old School

    A jury has found David DePape guilty on two counts in the violent attack on Paul Pelosi, the husband of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, last year in the couple’s San Francisco home.

    DePape was convicted in federal court of one count of assault on the immediate family member of a federal official, and a second count of attempted kidnapping of a federal official. He could face a maximum sentence of 30 years and 20 years on the charges, respectively.

  62. 62.

    WaterGirl

    @randy khan: Even if they were telling the truth, let’s say a woman was raped or a 16 year-old was raped and impregnated by her father, these traumatized females have to, what?  Go before some tribunal and have to tell their horrible stories to a bunch of strangers who get to decide if she’s a witch or not if she’s telling the truth?

    Fuck that shit.

  64. 64.

    Chetan Murthy

    @WaterGirl: And the same as true for women who are at risk of death or injury from a pregnancy gone wrong: IIRC in Tennessee doctors actually demanded the legislature clarify the rules for when they’re allowed to provide reproductive care to women in such situations, because at the moment it’s all up in the air and doctors have no idea whether by providing care to save a woman’s life they might end up in prison.

    ETA: to be sure, that ambiguity is a feature not a bug in the eyes of the damn gestation slavers.

  66. 66.

    Chief Oshkosh

    Thank you all for the education on Ponnuru. Sounds like it’s GREAT that he wrote that piece. It’ll encourage the other lumpaloons to continue with their very cunning plan.

  70. 70.

    Gretchen

    @Chetan Murthy: exactly. They don’t want to include « health of the woman » exceptions because they explicitly say that people will use that « excuse » to game the system, since women and doctors are just champing at the bit to do late abortions for funsies. Not to mention that the anatomy scan that detects severe problems doesn’t happen until 20 weeks. They don’t know enough about pregnancy to regulate it, so stay out of my doctor’s office!

  71. 71.

    Shana

    With all the stories of cops who retire rather than face the music when they’ve done something awful, and school administrators doing the same, do all the charges against Santos just disappear once he’s out of office? Not the federal felonies obviously, but the other stuff  (assuming there is other stuff)?

  72. 72.

    Jeffro

    Ah, I see “is this real?” and “who is this Ponnuru POS?” have been covered pretty well…LOL…

    Be-YOND parody, fer sure!

  74. 74.

    Jeffro

    @dmsilev: The ageless phrase “just keep on fucking that chicken” comes to mind.

    See, this is why you can’t get one of those TV pundit gigs…you’d wear out the bleeper, and they’d still have 57 minutes of airtime to kill.  =)

  75. 75.

    Sure Lurkalot

    @randy khan:

    Democrats gained 5 seats (maybe 6) in the House of Delegates, which means that there was an obvious red to blue swing in the voting from 2021.  And, since it was an off-off year, with just General Assembly candidates at the top of the ballot, it should have favored Republicans, so the loss is doubly obvious.

    Not so, says Susan Glasser (aka Mrs. Peter Baker) last week in the New Yorker (before the close races were determined):

    …for the predictive power of off-year elections, it’s best to remember that the big victory in Virginia amounted to Democrats narrowly holding onto the state Senate—they actually lost a seat—and gaining the state House with a net pickup of three seats, in a state that Biden won against Trump in 2020 by more than ten points. If Democrats had received nineteen hundred fewer votes in a single Virginia Senate district and eight hundred fewer in a single Virginia House district, they wouldn’t have won full control of either chamber. That’s hardly the reassurance that the Party craves looking ahead to 2024.

    Won, but not by enough, so YOU ACTUALLY LOST, LIBTARDS.

  76. 76.

    scav

    Personally, I’m going to continue to kick Santos around irregardless of his actively suckling off the governmental teat.  I regret not knowing enough about him beforehand to kick around him long ere he clamped onto said paycheck.  Furthermore, I a) intend to not only kick around him, but sometimes aim dead center, and b) sometimes aspire to go pro.

  77. 77.

    eclare

    @Chetan Murthy:

    Originally the TN legislation did not allow any exceptions, not even to save the mother’s life, so the local DA could charge a felony for any abortion.  The dr could raise “to save the mother’s life” reasoning after he/she was charged, but he/she would still have that charge on their record, and if I were a dr in TN, I would not trust a jury of my “peers” to find me not guilty under any circumstance.

    The law was later amended to allow for abortions in the case of an ectopic pregnancy and one other exception, which I can’t remember.  I am shocked any ob/gyn’s still practice in this medieval state.  I expect in a couple of years, they won’t.

    And the state legislature is so gerrymandered there is no hope of voting these women hating fascists out.

  79. 79.

    Ken

    @Shana: It might depend on whether there’s a deal in the works, trading his resignation for a reduction of charges. Sadly (or not), a vote to expel him would presumably nullify any plans for such a deal.

    In that case Santos will have to rely on the “TFG defense” — that, as a former President and current candidate for God-Emperor of Dune, any prosecution would be politically motivated.

  81. 81.

    smith

    Good grief — an appellate judge in NY just temporarily lifted the gag order that Engoron had placed on TFG and his lawyers forbidding them to attack his staff. So now it’s open season on the judge’s principal law clerk. Coming the day that Paul Pelosi’s attacker was found guilty, this to me is both alarming and distasteful. What other defendant would be given this much leeway, especially given the multitude of vicious flying monkeys at TFG’s beck and call?

  82. 82.

    CaseyL

    @WaterGirl:

    That’s very kind of you :)

    I wasn’t sure I’d be available.  But it seems as though I will, so I’ll email you a request for the Zoom link.

  83. 83.

    Gretchen

    @eclare: OB/GYNs are flooding out of these states. They did a survey and half of them are leaving or considering leaving. They’re also having a harder time filling residency positions, since they can’t get comprehensive training there. OB units are closing, maternal/fetal medicine specialists are fleeing, and maternal mortality is going up in those states. So pro-life.

  85. 85.

    Gretchen

    @WaterGirl: Yes! You ask these people if they’ve ever known someone go through an entire pregnancy and then say at the last minute, week 39, nah, I changed my mind, I’m bored with this whole thing? Do you know a doctor who would say that’s fine, let’s kill it? They’ll just swear up and down that some people are evil and it really happens!

  86. 86.

    Gretchen

    @eclare: Yes, I meant to specify that that half surveyed was in Idaho. People are having to drive to Oregon to get normal prenatal care.

  87. 87.

    Geminid

    @Ken: Santos is facing much heavier penalties than losing his House seat. It’s a bargaining chip, but a small one.

    Senator Menendez is in the same boat. He’ll have to resign his seat if and when he pleads guilty, but the real incentive will be avoiding more prison time than he would get if he goes to trial and loses.

  89. 89.

    piratedan

    @Gretchen: you treat 50%+ of your residents like chattel and lo and behold, the free market responds accordingly.  Per usual, its the poor who suffer, just as the good book says that they should.

    While I support the basic tenets of the New Testament: Tolerance, Forgiveness, Charity… it sure seems like these asshats skimmed over those parts….

  90. 90.

    Soprano2

    @smith: I keep saying they’re like Gaius Balthazar in Battlestar Galactica. These people exist, and they always think somehow they’ll be special.

  91. 91.

    gvg

    @randy khan: Even if they were telling the truth, 15 weeks is not an acceptable compromise. It’s still terrible.

    Personally, I don’t want any restrictions except medical ethics because I don’t trust these anti science loons anywhere near my body, or any other female either. 15 weeks was a bad joke to women. Sure, they are lying, but that was my second reaction, not the first.

  92. 92.

    gvg

    @West of the Rockies: Also they don’t actually like him. They need his vote, but I don’t think he pleases them any more than us. He won by seeming sort of middlish in a normally democratic stronghold, by getting some dem votes. The minute he isn’t in office they will forget him.

  94. 94.

    Alison Rose

    @Alison Rose: Also, this is referring to the other “targets” on DePape’s list:

    Among them, he said on the witness stand, were Gavin Newsom, the Democratic governor of California; the actor Tom Hanks; Hunter Biden, the son of the president; and George Soros, the hedge fund billionaire.

    Look. Because of the dude’s twisted political views, at least Newsom, Biden, and Soros aren’t exactly surprising to be in his line of sight. But Tom Hanks???? Come on, bro, anyone who hurts one hair on Tom Hanks’ head would be hated by literally the entire nation and beyond.

  96. 96.

    Hoodie

    @Sure Lurkalot: You have to understand that Glasser, Baker and the like operate as if “Republican” is a default setting for “American.”   Democrats are exotic.

  98. 98.

    Jackie

    @scav: At least Santos won’t get a government pension for life!

    *Except for the free three squares, a bunk and roof over his head while in prison.

  99. 99.

    ETtheLibrarian

    @RepubAnon: And such a low bar that is isn’t it.

    I like how they waited until it almost didn’t matter (and notice there’s no booting him out now though they still should and might still do though not holding my breath) but still glad he won’t be there next year regardless.

  102. 102.

    Kay

    I just hope the NY Democrats can manage a house race. I have my doubts. One would think with BOTH congressional leaders from NY we could pull this one out, but who knows.

  104. 104.

    Jinchi

    Republican Rep. George Santos announced he will not seek reelection to the House next year

    Anthony Devolder will file papers for the Democratic nomination tomorrow.

  105. 105.

    Geminid

    @gvg: Long Island Republicans may not have expected Santos to win. There was an unexpected dropoff in Democratic votes across New York that year, and a surge in Republican votes. This reminded me of the Virginia election the year before.

    So why would Republicans run such a flawed candidate in the New York CD, in 2020 and 2022? They had good reason to believe his resume was false. I think it was because Santos was a conduit for illegal campaign donations. That scheme blew up when Santos won unexpectedly and finally caught the attention of journalists and prosecutors.

  106. 106.

    trollhattan

    @Jackie:

    “You get three hots and a cot.”
    “Really?”
    “No, lunch is a boloney sandwich.”
    “Is there anyone else here I can talk to?”
    .

  109. 109.

    Jinchi

    @Alison Rose: But Tom Hanks????

    Tom Hanks became a target of the rightwing when he caught Covid and publicly supported the government’s efforts to combat it.

  111. 111.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    Have the last minute changes in the laddered CR been discussed here? Kos has an article about how the Rs planned to have military funding, border security, etc,  in the first half (up in January) and social funding in the second half (up in February). They could then plead there was no money left. The leverage was on their side. But what was voted on had items mixed into both, but military and border funding in the February half. According to Kos, Mike Johnson, along with other Rs, was shocked when he realized what they’d just passed.

  118. 118.

    WaterGirl

    Popping in to say that we only need $750 more to complete the $5,000 angel match.  Matching donations up to $100.  

    The match thread is just one post over, if anyone’s interested..

  119. 119.

    Ruckus

    @Gretchen:

    They don’t know enough about pregnancy to regulate it, so stay out of my doctor’s office!

    As long as your doctor is being 100% a doctor, and not Dr. (does this rather personal exam) FeelGood, then they should stay the hell out and mind their own damn business. And Dr FeelGood should be strung up by his …………

  121. 121.

    smith

    Alert the FTFNYT! Another indication of the failure of Bidenomics:

    The United States economy is growing faster than the Chinese economy, something that hasn’t been true since 1980.  China’s economy hasn’t recovered from mass shutdowns during the Covid pandemic, and their growth has stagnated.

    Since re-opening the economy in 2021 under President Biden, the United States has experienced 34 straight months of job growth, 22 months of unemployment under 4%, the best unemployment rate in 50 years, and 4.9% GDP growth in the third quarter of this year.

  127. 127.

    wjca

    @hells littlest angel: The only viable career options left for Santos are greeter at Home Depot or Vice President of the United States.

    He has the requisite criminal mentality down pat.  And he might be pathetic (non-threatening) enough that TIFG would embrace him for VP.

  129. 129.

    Frankensteinbeck

    @Jeffro:

    a lot of voters who support legal abortion in an up-or-down vote will also support candidates who disagree with them

    I’ve been saying this for a long time.  Republicans vote for candidates who hold much more extreme positions than they do personally, because their priority is voting for an asshole who will stick it to the libs.

    Abortion is proving to be too big a hurdle to jump for many Republican women, and a powerful motivator for a lot more Democrat-leaning occasional voters.

  130. 130.

    Scout211

    Supreme Court declines Florida’s request to enforce anti-drag show law

    WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday rejected Florida’s bid to enforce a state law that targets drag show performances that, challengers say, imposes unlawful restrictions on free speech.

    The court, divided 6-3, with three conservatives dissenting, turned away an emergency request from Florida officials after lower courts blocked the law statewide. The majority did not explain its reasoning.
    . . .
    A district court judge blocked the law under the First Amendment in part because it was too vaguely written, with key terms such as “lewd conduct” not defined. The Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals left that ruling in place.

    The legal challenge was brought by an Orlando bar and restaurant called Hamburger Mary’s, which hosts what it calls family friendly drag shows.

  131. 131.

    karen marie

    @smith:  The concept is hilarious, the article not so much.  A lot of hot air, very little information.  That “very little information” was presented in a confused way that makes it impossible to make out what went on with the spending bill.

    There’s a reason I don’t read Kos.

  132. 132.

    Pink Tie

    @Old School: with the kidney-elbowing, smurf talk, and “stand your butt up” antics, I kind of miss him! At least he was hot and liked to party in women’s undergarments! And of course totally ineffectual, which is what you want from a GOP congressman.

  134. 134.

    Scout211

    Evidence of a two-tiered judicial system, with Trump always getting the benefits that no other defendants get, ever.  Link

    A New York appeals court on Thursday temporarily blocked a gag order in former President Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial that barred him from complaining about the judge’s law clerk.
    The Appellate Division judge ordered the stay after Trump’s attorneys appealed the gag order Judge Arthur Engoron had put in place as being “unconstitutional.”

    The stay will remain in place until a full panel of appeals court judges considers the case.

  138. 138.

    wjca

    @catclub: Wait, the red words are ‘Suffer the children….’

    When that particular translation was done, “suffer” meant “allow”.  And since allowing children to hear what Jesus actually said would be “woke”, it’s bad, too.

  139. 139.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    Look, George Santos will never serve a day in prison. The US Government owes him too much for the work he did on behalf of the free world both as a member of the French Foreign Legion and a secret agent for this United States. It will be years before his deeds of valor are unclassified.

  140. 140.

    Major Major Major Major

    I just keep thinking that I wish he were like 60% less of a sociopath because then he’d be hilarious. Every gay friend group has a George Santos, the Friend With Schemes (if you don’t know who the George Santos is in yours, it’s you).

  141. 141.

    wjca

    @Ken:  We can debate whether this is due to Johnson’s inexperience or incompetence. Or perhaps people will nominate other words beginning with “in-“.

    Ineptness seems too easy.

    But I suggest indifference — getting it right would have been at least adjacent to effective governing, and he’s just so not into that.

  142. 142.

    Citizen Alan

    @Villago Delenda Est: They have already reproduced, and their spawn, IIRC, has already won a prestigious award for student journalism at his elite college school newspaper. Presumably for an article that Baker and Glasser’s unpaid interns wrote for him.

  146. 146.

    Chief Oshkosh

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: According to Kos, Mike Johnson, along with other Rs, was shocked when he realized what they’d just passed.

     
    I don’t think it’s been discussed here. The post is overly-long, but it does a good job of explaining that it’s very likely Mike Johnson got rolled, big time. It’s absolutely fantastic. I can only guess that the Democrats haven’t been bragging about it because they want to appear pure. Or something. However, they certainly fucked up Mikey and the rest of the bozos.

    An interesting twist is that the unhinged rightwing for some reason thinks that there was a “traitor” among the staff of one of the Republicans, possibly even a Freedumb caucus member, who did the actual switcheroo. Seems unlikely, but starting such a rumor is exactly the sort of extra knife I’d hope a smart person would stick into an opponent. Now not only is there a rift between the old school and the wackos, the wackos themselves think that there is an enemy within the gates and they are hunting one another!

    Staff holiday parties are gonna be LIT!

    Excellent all around.

  149. 149.

    Scout211

    @Baud: We’ll find out soon enough.

    Yes.  The Senate passed the CR as it was written and no reporting so far describes it in any way other than the original laddered or two-tiered approach.  If it was changed, reporters are not aware of it.

    Once Biden signs it, the wording will be on the record.

  150. 150.

    Old School

    I’m not sure the military and Homeland Security were ever in the January group.

    Here’s The Hill on the proposal:

    Under Johnson’s proposal, the Jan. 19 date would be the deadline for government programs and agencies covered under regular appropriations bills related to agriculture, rural development and the Food and Drug Administration, along with energy and water development, military construction and Veterans Affairs and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development.

    Funding for the other agencies and programs would run out Feb. 2, indicating a possible partial government shutdown before a full government shutdown.

  152. 152.

    CaseyL

    Santos’ case is uncannily similar to Cawthorne’s, in that what really sank Cawthorne was sexual “misbehavior” (humping his male cousin), and I suspect what really sank Santos with Republicans wasn’t the corruption (which, honestly, is pretty penny ante in a political organization that routinely steals millions of dollars), but the fact that he’s married to a man.

  153. 153.

    piratedan

    @Scout211: There’s a pretty good reason why the reporters may not have known….

    first, they would have had to been aware of the “original” CR and it’s language and what was in rung 1 and in rung 2.  That would involve an attention to detail that is rarely observed in reporting on legislation.

    second, it would also mean that they would have to have sources inside Democratic House members staff, and we all know how likely that is.

  154. 154.

    Ken

    Oh dear. I do hope that — if there was indeed a switch in the CR text — the Republicans don’t start attacking one another, destroying the unity their party is known for.

  155. 155.

    Miss Bianca

    @Jeffro: Where DOES that deathless phrase “keep on fucking  that chicken ” come from, anyway? I would google it but I am a little afraid of just what the google snoopware is going to make of that and try to serve me in the way of “personalized ads based on your previous searches.”

  163. 163.

    Another Scott

    @Chief Oshkosh: I haven’t read the Kos piece.

    The idea doesn’t make much sense to me.

    CBO.gov has a 4 page .pdf summary dated November 13 it says it is based on language posted by the Rules committee on November 11.

    Here’s the draft bill posted by the Rules committee (32 page .pdf) posted on 11/11.

    The two batches are divided up by appropriations committee. Democrats don’t control the House committees.

    I don’t see how the Democrats could have somehow outsmarted the GQPers in this instance.

    FWIW.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

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