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Come on, media. you have one job. start doing it.

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You are here: Home / Politics / Judge McAfee in GA Case – No Need To Panic

Judge McAfee in GA Case – No Need To Panic

by WaterGirl|  March 13, 202410:56 am| 139 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads, Politics, Trump Indictments

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I’m sure we’ll be hearing more from the legal eagles soon, as to whether this is a big deal. While we wait.

This is NOT the Fani Willis disqualification motion ruling.

It is an order quashing certain counts in the indictment because they lack specificity to put the defendants on notice so they can prepare an adequate defense. https://t.co/aKnhiUikYq

— Katie Phang (@KatiePhang) March 13, 2024

.

The charges dismissed from the indictment include counts 2, 5, 6, 23, 28, and 38. They relate to alleged efforts by Trump and others to solicit violations of oaths of office from state officials like Brad Raffensperger and former GA House Speaker David Ralston. pic.twitter.com/IdU4cO3Aex

— Anna Bower (@AnnaBower) March 13, 2024

.

New: As we await a decision from Judge McAfee on whether to disqualify Fani Willis, he has issued an order dismissing some charges in the indictment against Trump and others–but denies efforts to dismiss certain “overt acts” included in the indictment.https://t.co/jbV4sO7oVJ

— Anna Bower (@AnnaBower) March 13, 2024

.

BREAKING: in somewhat of an indication that Judge McAfee will NOT disqualify Willis, he’s refusing to throw out key elements of the RICO charge although he is tossing a few of the later counts against a few of the defendants for lack of specificity (1/x) pic.twitter.com/Vr84iedqOp

— Norm Eisen (norm.eisen on Threads) (@NormEisen) March 13, 2024

h/t Omnes on this last one.

Update with further details at 2 pn:

Some nuance missing from reporting on the impact of today’s ruling on Trump’s call to Brad Raffensperger:

For now, the criminal count related to the infamous call for soliciting a violation of Raffensperger’s oath of office is out.

The related overt act, however, survives. pic.twitter.com/lmgwTVrWaX

— Adam Klasfeld (@KlasfeldReports) March 13, 2024

.

Update at 4:27 pm

Judge nixes some of Georgia’s charges against Trump and his allies − but that won’t necessarily derail the case.

Is the judge saying there is not enough evidence to proceed with this case?

No. He’s saying that the state has not sufficiently explained how the evidence relates to an oath. For example, we know Rudy Giuliani went to the Georgia General Assembly with John Eastman and provided false information in order to encourage these state officials to overturn the election. The theory is that violated both the federal and state constitutions.

But a prosecutor could make that claim in a number of different ways. Did they violate the Georgia Constitution’s right to vote; did they violate the equal protection clause in the U.S. Constitution? Is it the right to vote that is spelled out in Georgia’s state Constitution? Or is there some other provision of federal or state law they violated? It’s just not clear.

Could this delay the trial against Trump and his allies in Georgia?

Maybe. We will have to see. Willis can bring a new, more detailed indictment that is more in line with the state oath. I think if Willis brings another indictment on these charges, there probably won’t be a delay.

If she appeals this decision, rather than just seeking a new indictment, that might slow things down a little.

Open thread.

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Reader Interactions

139Comments

  1. 1.

    topclimber

    March 13, 2024 at 11:08 am

    But I want to be the first to panic!

  2. 2.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 11:09 am

    @topclimber: I’m sure there will be plenty of competition for that! :-)

  3. 3.

    pat

    March 13, 2024 at 11:11 am

    Just got here.  I think I’ll go back to Hope and Inspiration.  Sigh.

  4. 4.

    Raoul Paste

    March 13, 2024 at 11:12 am

    If the judge  is looking for things that are specific and overt, maybe he will apply the same standard to the innuendo surrounding  the Fanny Willis dismissal effort.  We will see

  5. 5.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 13, 2024 at 11:15 am

    Stop freaking out about the dismissal of some of the Georgia case against Trump today. Those charges can be re-indicted with a presentation to a grand jury.  The judge did the Georgia DA’s office a favor in flagging what he believes is a legal flaw before the trial.

  6. 6.

    lowtechcyclist

    March 13, 2024 at 11:17 am

    If he thought he might be disqualifying Willis imminently, I can hardly see his wasting time on this, since the entire case might go away at that point.

  7. 7.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 11:25 am

    @pat: Something for everyone. :-)

  8. 8.

    Another Scott

    March 13, 2024 at 11:26 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: But, but, it’s a day ending in “y” so we have to freak out.  It’s the rules!!

    (What happened to actually letting stuff happen before freaking out???!)

    Thanks.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  9. 9.

    cain

    March 13, 2024 at 11:26 am

    @lowtechcyclist:

    I think the Georgia case is still on and there won’t be a miscarriage of justice. It’s gonna be lit.

  10. 10.

    Chief Oshkosh

    March 13, 2024 at 11:27 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Exactly my take on it. MacAfee has done Willis (and possibly the nation) a great favor by pruning away some of the weaker aspects of the prosecution’s case. He’s taken six chews toys away from the defense.

  11. 11.

    FastEdD

    March 13, 2024 at 11:27 am

    Saw the headline elsewhere and I groaned. Now it makes more sense-if you were going to throw out the prosecutor or dismiss the whole case, you wouldn’t refine the case to just the strongest charges and let it continue. I’m not an attorney but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night. And my brother is one.

  12. 12.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 11:29 am

    Per Lisa Rubin, legal analyst on MSNBC, only three of the dropped charges pertain to TIFG, don’t effect any of the RICO charges against him. She also suggested Fani Willis will strongly challenge McAfee re the dropped charges.

  13. 13.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 11:29 am

    Can’t get to exposing the heart of the artichoke without peeling away some leaves first.

  14. 14.

    RaflW

    March 13, 2024 at 11:31 am

    @FastEdD: You only get lawyer credit for that Holiday Inn stay if there were also hookers and blow.

  15. 15.

    RaflW

    March 13, 2024 at 11:32 am

    @Jackie: It sounded to me like McAfee said the state could refile the charges if the specificity is corrected/improved. If Willis can, I bet she will.

  16. 16.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 11:32 am

    @FastEdD

    Your brother is a Holiday Inn?

    (couldn’t resist)

  17. 17.

    Quinerly

    March 13, 2024 at 11:33 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    💚

  18. 18.

    Geminid

    March 13, 2024 at 11:34 am

    @lowtechcyclist: I think the case survives Willis being dismissed, with a new prosecutor. I think Judge McAfees decision here does not indicate his decision as to whether he’ll remove Willis, one way or the other.

    One question: if Willis is removed, can someone in her office prosecute the case, or will they bring in an outsider? My Atlanta friend thought it has to be an outsider but he wasn’t sure.

  19. 19.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 11:39 am

    @Geminid: I honestly don’t think McAfee will remove Willis.

    If he does, it will be reassigned to a different DA – who unfortunately could be TIFG friendly and drop all charges.

  20. 20.

    SiubhanDuinne

    March 13, 2024 at 11:46 am

    Thanks, WG, OO, and others, for talking me off the ledge. Some people on MSNBC were saying that the Trump campaign was celebrating and claiming it as a huge win, so I got a little angsty.

  21. 21.

    UncleEbeneezer

    March 13, 2024 at 11:47 am

    Thanks Garland…

    Seriously though, setbacks like these, that could potentially undermine your case are a great example of why it’s wise to make sure every I is dotted and T crossed before you bring charges.  I’m not saying that Willis rushed things here, but in general, rushing to indict (as so many commenters and tv pundits demand of our DOJ, DA’s etc.) makes these risks greater and more likely to occur.

  22. 22.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 11:48 am

    @Jackie:

    I thought if Willis were disqualified, the decision over who to take the case would go to some state board.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2024/03/13/fani-willis-disqualification-impact-trump-georgia-case/

  23. 23.

    JPL

    March 13, 2024 at 11:52 am

    @eclare: And it would languish there for an eternity.

  24. 24.

    Matt McIrvin

    March 13, 2024 at 11:57 am

    This seems like it’s not really a big issue–when you’re prosecuting a case like this, my impression is you like to bring a lot of charges on the understanding that you’re not going to get a conviction on all of them. The judge just threw out a few of them on technical grounds that would probably have led to them not flying in a trial.

  25. 25.

    Skippy-san

    March 13, 2024 at 11:58 am

    @RaflW: Varsity Snark.

  26. 26.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 11:59 am

    @JPL:

    Yep.  The WaPo article mentioned that she had been removed from prosecuting one of the fake electors because she hosted a fundraiser for his opponent in the Lt Gov’s race.  After twenty months, there is still no prosecutor assigned.

    Between that, the speech at the church, the relationship with Wade, and six charges being thrown out because there wasn’t enough detail, I am not impressed.  In fact, I’m pretty pissed.

  27. 27.

    hitchhiker

    March 13, 2024 at 12:01 pm

    I still can’t see any grounds for dismissing Willis under GA law. This entire fiasco has been an elaborate exercise in working the refs (the public) while hoping for a big weather event that delays the game.

    The judge is scrupulous, as judges must be if we want any of the justice system to function, but he’s not stupid. He knows exactly what’s going on here.

  28. 28.

    JPL

    March 13, 2024 at 12:09 pm

    @eclare: She is careless, but I also think the judge is overly cautious.   It’s not unusual to give a fundraiser for a friend and at the time, she might not have planned to charge.   Burt Jones is now the Lt. Gov.

    In defense of Fani, she has a great win/loss record.   If this goes to court, there is a strong possibility that she’ll win.

  29. 29.

    Anonymous At Work

    March 13, 2024 at 12:13 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Agreed.  Dismissed WITHOUT PREJUDICE, so they can be refiled.  And the RECORDED phone call, asking GA SoS Rafflesburger to “find more votes” to “be a hero” should be easy to persuade a Grand Jury, with some more detail.

  30. 30.

    bbleh

    March 13, 2024 at 12:15 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: @Chief Oshkosh: @Anonymous At Work: THANK you.  Not even a legal sparrow, but I had exactly the same thought.  And ditto Norm Eisen’s post.

  31. 31.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 12:17 pm

    @JPL:

    That’s good to know.

  32. 32.

    Frankensteinbeck

    March 13, 2024 at 12:20 pm

    @hitchhiker:

    I still can’t see any grounds for dismissing Willis under GA law.

    During Obama’s Presidency, people here were saying that he had to be squeaky clean, perfect to the point of superhuman.  This case is really driving that point home to me.  If a black woman does it, the absolute worst possible interpretation becomes the default.  Who paid for a date must constitute a bribe!

  33. 33.

    FastEdD

    March 13, 2024 at 12:22 pm

    !!!

    Hookers and blow are only at a regular Holiday Inn, not the Express. They are included with free Breakfast. And my brother has just as many bedbugs.

    OTOH, the GA case is on TV. McAfee appears to ask good questions, for an R. To my untrained eye, he isn’t a “throw the book at ‘em” type of guy, but so far he isn’t an Aileen Cannon. Throwing half the book at ‘em in a strong case works just as well.

  34. 34.

    Sister Golden Bear

    March 13, 2024 at 12:25 pm

    But, but… panic now and avoid the rush! /s

  35. 35.

    Delk

    March 13, 2024 at 12:35 pm

    I picked the wrong day to get my head shaved.

  36. 36.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 12:36 pm

    @Sister Golden Bear

    And always, always bring a towel.
    ;)

  37. 37.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 12:39 pm

    @Delk

    “Head? Wednesday is hump day.”
    – Quasimodo
    .

  38. 38.

    Uncle Cosmo

    March 13, 2024 at 12:39 pm

    @Jackie: Here’s a handy guide for those concerned about the proper uses of affect and effect:

    • Ask yourself if you want a verb or a noun.
    • If you want a verb, you almost always want “affect“; the verb “effect” is rare outside of bureaucratic documents
    • If you want a noun, you almost always want “effect“; the noun “affect” is rarely appropriate outside of psychological writing

    Yinz are encouraged to print this out on a business-card-size slip of paper and carry it with you always. (You’re quite welcome! ;^D)

  39. 39.

    Mr. Bemused Senior

    March 13, 2024 at 12:40 pm

    @NotMax: also guns and money

    [a mixed reference for this thread]

  40. 40.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 12:49 pm

    @Mr. Bemused Senior

    Beeblebrox the Two-Headed Thompson Gunner.
    ;)

  41. 41.

    hitchhiker

    March 13, 2024 at 12:53 pm

    Am I the only one who hangs out exclusively at BJ on days when terrible news might be imminent? I find that I can take it a lot better when I hear it first from you, far from the gloaters and the teeth-gnashers and the stupid.

    And when it turns out to have been a false alarm, all the better because you’re the best celebrators anywhere.

    I really, really don’t want Willis to get removed from her case. Really really really.

  42. 42.

    Baud

    March 13, 2024 at 12:54 pm

    Via Reddit, Elise Stefanik.

  43. 43.

    Baud

    March 13, 2024 at 12:55 pm

    @hitchhiker:

    I’m here anyway, but I understand. The rest of the Internet space is designed to bring us down.

  44. 44.

    Villago Delenda Est

    March 13, 2024 at 12:56 pm

    @Mr. Bemused Senior: ​
     Excitable boys all over the place!

  45. 45.

    Uncle Cosmo

    March 13, 2024 at 12:56 pm

    “No reason for yinz to panic,”
    The Judge he tersely ruled:
    “There are 6 counts that I’ll toss out,
    But all the rest are still cool.”

    Outside the Media Bubble
    The MAGAt horde did growl:
    Convictions are approaching
    And Trumpolini will howl! Hey!

    Just for fun…;^D

  46. 46.

    Jeffro

    March 13, 2024 at 12:58 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo:  I had an amazing 7th-grade English teacher who somehow taught all of us goofy middle schoolers to keep ‘affect’ and ‘effect’ straight and it has stuck all of these years.

    It wasn’t with this guide, though.   =)

  47. 47.

    Mr. Bemused Senior

    March 13, 2024 at 12:58 pm

    We can kvetch about John Stewart but this one is good
    [h/t TPM, forgive the Twitter link]

  48. 48.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 1:05 pm

    Shift of topic, but still attorney-related:

    In response to the RNC’s announcement of self-described “conspiracy theorist” Christina Bobb as new in-house senior counsel, DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd released the following statement: 

    “Christina Bobb is a self-described ‘conspiracy theorist’ who will fit right in with the far-right extremists and election deniers who make up the new MAGA senior leadership at the RNC. Bobb has made a name for herself with Trump by attempting to undermine the will of voters in the 2020 election – it has never been more clear that our democracy is on the ballot this November.”

    New RNC senior counsel Christina Bobb is an election denier and self-described “conspiracy theorist” who has a record of going on QAnon-supporting shows.

    https://democrats.org/news/dnc-statement-on-new-rnc-in-house-conspiracy-theorist-and-senior-counsel-christina-bobb/

    If the name Bobb rings a bell, but can’t remember why, she’s TIFG’s attorney who signed the legal documents at MAL stating ALL documents removed from the White House have been returned to the National Archives.

    The RNC is now the TNC.

  49. 49.

    TBone

    March 13, 2024 at 1:06 pm

    RIP Paul Nelson 🎶 (March 10)

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DKCzw6Dyndk

    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PYq-gcMyA5o

  50. 50.

    TBone

    March 13, 2024 at 1:09 pm

    @Jackie: perfect fit for Make Attorneys Get Attorneys.

  51. 51.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 1:09 pm

    @Jackie
    The RNC is now the TNC.

    Well, with his ponderous string of bankruptcies….

  52. 52.

    TBone

    March 13, 2024 at 1:11 pm

    @NotMax: 😊

  53. 53.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 1:12 pm

    @Baud: I hope Dark Brandon issues a quick thank you to Stefanik’s bragging announcement with the pertinent background info added for her constituents’ education. 😝

  54. 54.

    Salty Sam .

    March 13, 2024 at 1:20 pm

    @Another Scott:   (What happened to actually letting stuff happen before freaking out???!)

    As in Ted Lasso’s “Diamond Dogs” dictum: “Find out before you freak out”…

  55. 55.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 1:24 pm

    @Jackie:

    I bet he or the White House will, Joe has been pretty quick to point out districts that receive money even though the reps voted against it.

    Better yet, go there in person and highlight it.

  56. 56.

    Frankensteinbeck

    March 13, 2024 at 1:24 pm

    @Jackie:

    The RNC is now the TNC.

    Does anyone know if it’s normal for the nominee to appoint the RNC staff in election years?  It wouldn’t surprise me.  The abnormality would be how Trump’s picks intend to use it as a piggy bank for Trump’s personal financial woes.

  57. 57.

    UncleEbeneezer

    March 13, 2024 at 1:27 pm

    @hitchhiker: This is definitely a better space than say LG&M but even the doom & gloom/panic here is way too much for me on days of big, really bad news.  Those days I get completely off the internet. It helps.

  58. 58.

    trollhattan

    March 13, 2024 at 1:28 pm

    @Jackie:

    Bobb job robs mob

    —NY Post, probably.

  59. 59.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 1:29 pm

    @Salty Sam .

    Did someone say lasso?
    :)

  60. 60.

    Eyeroller

    March 13, 2024 at 1:33 pm

    @Mr. Bemused Senior: Well, he sure didn’t bothsides that.  Here’s to hoping he continues in that vein.

  61. 61.

    Ruckus

    March 13, 2024 at 1:34 pm

    @Mr. Bemused Senior:

    Thank you for that.

    Rethuglicans are – OK I’m not going to play their game, although if I were at least I’d be speaking without having my head stuffed up my exhaust orifice. Because that is the only position they can be in and be this full of shit.

  62. 62.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 1:35 pm

    Are DJT Jr and Eric two of the five others involved in the scheme?🤔

    A Montana man pleaded guilty Tuesday to two felony charges connected to an effort to create a giant sheep hybrid for captive hunting, the Justice Department announced.

    Arthur “Jack” Schubarth, 80, owns and operates Sun River Enterprises LLC, also known as Schubarth Ranch, according to the Justice Department. The press release describes the ranch as being engaged in purchasing, selling and breeding of “alternative livestock,” which can include mountain sheep and mountain goats — with the primary market of captive hunting operations.

    Schubarth was accused of conspiring with at least five others to create a larger hybrid species of sheep between 2013 and 2021 in an effort to get higher prices from shooting preserves, the press release states. He was charged with conspiring to violate the Lacey Act and then violating the act.

    The Lacey Act is meant to combat the illegal trafficking of wildlife, fish and plants, according to the Department of Agriculture.

    https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/4529016-man-pleads-guilty-giant-sheep-hybrids-captive-hunting/

  63. 63.

    trollhattan

    March 13, 2024 at 1:38 pm

    @Jackie:two felony charges connected to an effort to create a giant sheep hybrid for captive hunting

    I’m setting aside time just to savor that phrase.

  64. 64.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 1:43 pm

    @Jackie

    Breeding Fiorina’s demon sheep? Shear madness.
    ;)

  65. 65.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 1:45 pm

    @Delk: I am totally lost.

  66. 66.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 1:46 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck: I think the candidate has some authority, if not all. It’s NOT SOP to appoint family members – at least until now. Trump neophyte-ism is the new MAGA norm.

    I wonder if the usual mega GQP donors will rebel. Or hold their noses and donate anyway.

  67. 67.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 1:47 pm

    @hitchhiker:  Quite sure you are not the only one!

  68. 68.

    Paul in KY

    March 13, 2024 at 1:50 pm

    @trollhattan: Only thing better would have been if the animal was carnivorous and had ate one of them.

  69. 69.

    Steeplejack

    March 13, 2024 at 1:50 pm

    @trollhattan:

    Sheepnado! Coming soon on Syfi.

  70. 70.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 1:54 pm

    @Paul in KY

    Coming soon to EweTube….
    //

  71. 71.

    The Thin Black Duke

    March 13, 2024 at 1:56 pm

    @WaterGirl: Hi. Did you get my note? I don’t want to bigfoot anybody.

  72. 72.

    Delk

    March 13, 2024 at 1:57 pm

    @WaterGirl: it means I cannot run around with my hair on fire. Plus, I voted on my way to the barbershop.

  73. 73.

    Matt McIrvin

    March 13, 2024 at 1:59 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo: I like using the exceptional cases of “affect” and “effect” though.

    It reminds me of something that happened while my daughter was doing her history homework yesterday, and came across a problem asking her to “name one cause of Joseph McCarthy’s appeal to blue-collar workers”. She protested that she didn’t know how to psychoanalyze McCarthy.

    We went back and forth, getting increasingly confused, until finally she realized that she was misreading “McCarthy’s appeal” in the question to refer to McCarthy’s own message, rather than to the phenomenon of people finding him appealing. That was probably because she’d been studying rhetoric in AP Language class, where the first sense of the word was more common.

  74. 74.

    TBone

    March 13, 2024 at 2:01 pm

    @Salty Sam . the Finding Out stage is still in its infancy.  I love her goofy smile while I listen to this.

    🎶 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uaqoQr-aCtQ

  75. 75.

    Salty Sam

    March 13, 2024 at 2:03 pm

    @NotMax: Coming soon to EweTube….

    Normally, I mentally lambaste you for your puns.  This one deserves a golf-clap at least.

  76. 76.

    scav

    March 13, 2024 at 2:03 pm

    “alternative livestock”?! Giant Sheep for personal hunting?!

    that’s alternative lifestyles, surely.

  77. 77.

    Uncle Cosmo

    March 13, 2024 at 2:03 pm

    @Jeffro: I had an amazing 7th-grade English teacher who somehow taught all of us goofy middle schoolers to keep ‘affect’ and ‘effect’ straight and it has stuck all of these years.

    It wasn’t with this guide, though. =)

    Good on ya. “This guide” occurred to me after decades in the bureaucracy where I saw and used “effect” as a verb way more than I cared for. It’s not perfect but it’ll get folks to correct usage ~90% of the time, which is way better than 50-50.

    FTR Same philosophy as Dover Publications’ ~100-page volumes of Essential [insert language here] Grammar: Set out simple rules that are good 90% of the time and ignore the exceptions, they’ll know you’re a Yank anyway & whether they cut you some slack or turn up their noses is their problem, not yours.

    (And on that note – I had an amazing 8th-grade French teacher who taught me an accent good enough to convince un Québécois a few years later that I was an exchange student from France. 8^O Let’s all treasure the teachers who made a difference in our lives!)

  78. 78.

    Jackie

    March 13, 2024 at 2:07 pm

    I think I might have give Ken Buck a 👍🏻! 😁

    Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) accused Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) of trying to “rig” elections by leaving Congress months earlier than he had planned.

    In a live “special announcement” on Wednesday, Boebert explained why she would not be running in the special election to temporarily fill Buck’s seat after he declared yesterday that his previously announced retirement would start this month.

    “So, the Uniparty is trying to do everything that they can to stop my candidacy, to rig the election in Colorado, and, you know, this is breaking news as of yesterday,” Boebert said. “The establishment concocted a swampy backroom deal to try to rig an election, an election that I’m winning by 25 points, forcing an unnecessary special election. When? The same day as the primary election in Colorado.”

    Boebert worried that it would “confuse” voters to hold a special election and a primary on the same day.

    “We already have this extremely razor-thin majority, and now Ken Buck has said that he’s resigning next week on March 22nd, and the 4th District will go three months without a voice in Washington, D.C. I believe that Colorado’s 4th District deserves better,” she continued.

    Boebert said she would not “imperil the already very slim House Republican majority by resigning my current seat” in the 3rd District to run in the 4th District’s special election.

    “And I am the only Trump-endorsed America First candidate in this race, and I will win the 4th District’s primary election on June 25th and, of course, the general election on November 5th,” she opined.

    https://www.rawstory.com/lauren-boebert-ken-buck/

    She natters on, but I cut her mic.

    As for her leading the primary polls by 25 pts?? Last I read she was in forth place out of five candidates. She sounds very trumpian with 4 pinochles.

  79. 79.

    Captain C

    March 13, 2024 at 2:08 pm

    @scav:

    “alternative livestock”?! Giant Sheep for personal hunting?!

    that’s alternative lifestyles, surely.

    Are we sure they’re there for the hunting?

  80. 80.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 2:08 pm

    I added an update up top, for anyone who is interested.

  81. 81.

    Frankensteinbeck

    March 13, 2024 at 2:10 pm

    @Jackie:

    It’s NOT SOP to appoint family members

    Right.  So the difference from normal isn’t Trump taking over, it’s what he’s doing to the RNC now that he’s in charge.  I’m sure his intent is to funnel all the money into his legal fines.  It still won’t be nearly enough.

    I wonder if the usual mega GQP donors will rebel.

    I’ve wondered about this before.  They do not want to pay Trump’s legal bills, which is exactly what they would be doing.  On the other hand, they really do not want the Republican presidential candidate going bankrupt.  Winning is everything to these people.  They’re stuck dragging this stinking legal corpse along if they want to win.  It’s a conundrum .

  82. 82.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 2:10 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    Hahaha…

  83. 83.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 2:11 pm

    @Jackie:

    Boebert said she would not “imperil the already very slim House Republican majority by resigning my current seat” in the 3rd District to run in the 4th District’s special election.

    Imperil is correct, but what she doesn’t want to imperil is her existing seat in the House.

    Kudos to Ken Buck if he actually timed this to screw over Boebert. She is one of the things that is making the current House intolerable.

  84. 84.

    StringOnAStick

    March 13, 2024 at 2:11 pm

    @Jackie: Nepotism used to be something nearly universally reviled, but the MAGATs think lining up Eric, Jr and Ivanka as the next step in the tRump dynasty is the most patriotic thing to do in order to “save the country”.

  85. 85.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 2:12 pm

    @The Thin Black Duke: I did not get your note.  But if it’s related to the draft I saw in the backroom – that I was excited to see – please put it up whenever you’re ready!

    off to read the note in case my guess is wrong.

  86. 86.

    Uncle Cosmo

    March 13, 2024 at 2:12 pm

    @Matt McIrvin: I like using the exceptional cases of “affect” and “effect” though.​

    Use them in good health, don’t conjugate them all in one place, usw/atd/ecc/etc, so long as they’re (their/there)** used properly.

    ** Folks should keep in mind that spell-check is no damn good when the incorrect usage is also a correctly-spelled word (to/too/two/twotwotwayne; there/their/they’re; hear/here; usw/atd/ecc/etc).

  87. 87.

    hueyplong

    March 13, 2024 at 2:12 pm

    @Jackie: The whole stuck pig routine seems counterintuitive for someone with a 25-point lead.  Seems like she’d just want to cruise to her apparently overwhelming victory and leave the whining to the other 365 days this year

    And this is a reminder that we see Ms Porter when she uses the omnipresent MAGA word “rig.”

  88. 88.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 2:13 pm

    @Matt McIrvin:

    I use affect as a noun quite a bit.  It’s hard to describe, but some people’s affect bothers me.  I can’t really explain it, but it’s there.  One example is Jimmy Fallon.  I don’t find him funny, but even if he were I wouldn’t watch him because his affect is off to me.  It’s something with his eyes and the way he speaks.

  89. 89.

    NotMax

    March 13, 2024 at 2:13 pm

    @Captain C

    Ancient punch line:

    “The sheep lies.” :)

    (Shall leave it to those unfamiliar to seek out the full, lengthier jest.)

  90. 90.

    japa21

    March 13, 2024 at 2:18 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck:  What is interesting about the big money donors backing the GOP is that, in a very real sense, they do better under Dem administrations.  Except for that tacky tax thingy.  That is all it is to them.

  91. 91.

    Uncle Cosmo

    March 13, 2024 at 2:18 pm

    @Captain C: Are we sure they’re there for the hunting?

    For God’s sake, Constable, the Kiwi said to the copper writing him up, I was only trying to help the poor animal over the fence… :^p

  92. 92.

    trollhattan

    March 13, 2024 at 2:18 pm

    @Jackie: She’s mad about a thing, even as the thing makes zero sense.

    Wait, I could just end it at she’s mad.

  93. 93.

    lowtechcyclist

    March 13, 2024 at 2:18 pm

    @NotMax: ​
     

    The RNC is now the TNC.

    Now what did Ta-Nehisi Coates do to deserve that? ;-)

  94. 94.

    Jeffro

    March 13, 2024 at 2:21 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo: Let’s all treasure the teachers who made a difference in our lives!

    Great reminder…thank you teachers!

    We couldn’t affect much of anything without you!  ;)

  95. 95.

    lowtechcyclist

    March 13, 2024 at 2:22 pm

    @NotMax: ​
     

    Coming soon to EweTube….

    Well played!

  96. 96.

    The Thin Black Duke

    March 13, 2024 at 2:22 pm

    @WaterGirl: Thanks. It’s hot Hollywood gossip but I like it.

  97. 97.

    Jeffro

    March 13, 2024 at 2:23 pm

    @Jackie: love ‘uniparty’ and ‘swampy’…it’s like Signaling For Dummies

  98. 98.

    Anoniminous

    March 13, 2024 at 2:24 pm

    Affect the Effect by an Action modifying the End result.

    Don’t see what’s so hard about it.

  99. 99.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 2:26 pm

    @The Thin Black Duke: I could go for some hot Hollywood gossip!

    It’s a stressful time.  Hot Hollywood gossip might be right up there with other medicinal items, such as dark chocolate and ice cream.

  100. 100.

    Salty Sam

    March 13, 2024 at 2:26 pm

    @eclare: It’s something with his eyes and the way he speaks.

    It’s the way he laughs at his own jokes.  Back when I watched SNL (somewhat regularly), I would turn it off whenever he was in a sketch- he could never keep from breaking character.  My youngest son is an improv/sketch comic- he once said “Who does Jimmy Fallon think he is, Carol Burnet?!? He hasn’t earned the chops!…”

    And don’t get me started on his ruffling Trumps hair in order to normalize the malignant bastard.

  101. 101.

    eclare

    March 13, 2024 at 2:28 pm

    @Salty Sam:

    I’m glad I’m not the only one to notice!  To me Kimmel and Colbert are so much sharper.

  102. 102.

    Dangerman

    March 13, 2024 at 2:40 pm

    Aaron Rodgers for VP? Ok, now they are just dicking with us, right? Dude couldn’t handle hosting Jeopardy; now he’s VP material?

    Fuck him, RFKJ, and all anti-vaxxers and associated Luddite’s (Amish get a pass; did Rodgers convert to Amish while I wasn’t watching?).

  103. 103.

    Another Scott

    March 13, 2024 at 2:47 pm

    @Anoniminous: She’s the object of my effection.

    Cause and affectation.

    Easy, peasy.

    ;-)

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  104. 104.

    Frankensteinbeck

    March 13, 2024 at 2:48 pm

    @japa21:

    Except for that tacky tax thingy.  That is all it is to them.

    Democrats don’t think their wealth makes them gods.  Democrats want to make them obey regulations.  Democrats want the workers to not be slaves.  The wealthy have stated clearly that they consider grinding the working class under their boot a sacred right.  Just like with the poorer GOP there is a big, fat “You’re not the boss of me!” involved.

  105. 105.

    Paul in KY

    March 13, 2024 at 2:49 pm

    @NotMax: You goat me there!

  106. 106.

    TBone

    March 13, 2024 at 2:51 pm

    @NotMax: my best sheep quote:

    “Hey Wolfie! Ain’tcha even gonna eat me?”

  107. 107.

    Paul in KY

    March 13, 2024 at 2:51 pm

    @Captain C: Sheep that big screws you.

  108. 108.

    JWR

    March 13, 2024 at 2:52 pm

    @Salty Sam:

    he could never keep from breaking character.

    At last! Another who feels as I do about Jimmy Fallon, and for the same reason. All power to him and his fans, but I just don’t “get” his schtick.

  109. 109.

    Matt McIrvin

    March 13, 2024 at 2:55 pm

    @Frankensteinbeck: Conservatives believe that liberals’ fondness of government regulations comes not from a desire to prevent harm and promote fairness, but from a tinpot tyrant’s desire to control people as an end in itself.

    I’m sure there are examples of bureaucrats who behave that way for that reason–or who take out frustrations on the people they have power over. But I really don’t think it’s the reason Democratic politicians and activists propose regulations. And I suspect there’s some projection in the assumption.

  110. 110.

    Shalimar

    March 13, 2024 at 2:55 pm

    @Jackie: Christina Bobb also shows every sign so far of being as incompetent as Alina Habba.  Trump is not promoting the best people.

  111. 111.

    Matt McIrvin

    March 13, 2024 at 2:58 pm

    @Salty Sam: During the SAG-AFTRA/WGA strikes, a bunch of late-night talk-show hosts got together to do an ad-supported podcast called “Strike Force Five” basically to provide their staffs with strike pay. It was Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers and John Oliver. It was fun, but listening to it, I rapidly got the sense that a lot of the banter revolved around the other hosts considering Jimmy Fallon kind of dim.

  112. 112.

    Shalimar

    March 13, 2024 at 2:58 pm

    @eclare: I don’t find Jimmy Fallon funny at all, but his musical skits are an exception.  I have no idea how much of the writing is him, but they show a deep appreciation of music beyond just the parody lyrics.

  113. 113.

    Philbert

    March 13, 2024 at 3:02 pm

    @Jeffro: Yeah teachers!  Except a few..  My Freshman HS English teacher taught us the Seven Rules of Propaganda, a worthy lesson.

  114. 114.

    Matt McIrvin

    March 13, 2024 at 3:03 pm

    @Shalimar: It’s true–Fallon is actually a brilliant musical parodist, specializing in precise imitation of style. He’s better at that than being a talk-show host. There isn’t a niche for too many of those, though.

  115. 115.

    Kayla Rudbek

    March 13, 2024 at 3:22 pm

    @Captain C: I was going to say that it sounded like John Scalzi’s The Android’s Dream…

  116. 116.

    Hoppie

    March 13, 2024 at 3:29 pm

    @Jackie: Never could get the hang of that game.

  117. 117.

    geg6

    March 13, 2024 at 3:36 pm

    @Matt McIrvin:

    HAHAHAHA!  I subscribed to that podcast too and came away with the same impression.  He was their village idiot.

  118. 118.

    Steve in the ATL

    March 13, 2024 at 3:56 pm

    @JPL:
     

    In defense of Fani, she has a great win/loss record.

    Every prosecutor has a great record. They don’t proceed unless they are almost certain of victory.

  119. 119.

    rekoob

    March 13, 2024 at 4:14 pm

    @Shalimar: @Matt McIrvin: It seems to me that Questlove’s contributions are fundamental and add to Fallon’s talent.

  120. 120.

    WaterGirl

    March 13, 2024 at 4:15 pm

    @Steve in the ATL: This seems kind of early for you.  Are you somewhere boring?

  121. 121.

    Steve in the ATL

    March 13, 2024 at 4:41 pm

    @WaterGirl: wrapping up my time in Mississippi and Alabama, which is good prep for Kentucky and Louisiana.

    Clearly, God hates me.

  122. 122.

    zhena gogolia

    March 13, 2024 at 4:43 pm

    @Matt McIrvin: I love the Barry Gibb Talk Show.

  123. 123.

    zhena gogolia

    March 13, 2024 at 4:44 pm

    @Dangerman:

    Dude couldn’t handle hosting Jeopardy; now he’s VP material?

    Haha, that was my thought exactly.

  124. 124.

    Jeffro

    March 13, 2024 at 4:51 pm

    @Dangerman:Aaron Rodgers for VP? Ok, now they are just dicking with us, right? Dude couldn’t handle hosting Jeopardy; now he’s VP material?

    at the risk of sounding like a broken record…this is exactly why we need an amendment that raises the requirements for running for POTUS, VP, and Congress.

    “I’M FAMOUS!  And America is basically ‘Idiocracy’, so here’s my NAME RECOGNITION!!  Now HAND ME AN IMPORTANT POSITION OF POWER IN GOVERNMENT!!!”

    (see also, Senator Tuberville and so very very many others)

    Let famous/rich schmucks spend a couple years slogging it out in state government before they toss their blessed name in a hat and have an impact on the nation as a whole.

  125. 125.

    Jeffro

    March 13, 2024 at 4:54 pm

    @Philbert: I just Googled that and it reads like the Fox News playbook!  LOL

    (thanks btw)

  126. 126.

    catclub

    March 13, 2024 at 4:57 pm

    @Another Scott: Amy and Amiability.

  127. 127.

    catclub

    March 13, 2024 at 5:02 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo: If you want a verb, you almost always want “affect“;

    Isn’t affect something of a synonym for ‘attitude’?  “Her stilted affect put me off.”

  128. 128.

    catclub

    March 13, 2024 at 5:04 pm

    @lowtechcyclist: I always thought that was his parents sideways attempt to name him ‘Tennessee’

  129. 129.

    Ruckus

    March 13, 2024 at 5:16 pm

    @JWR:

    If you take him for under 2 minutes with at least 20 years inbetween takes he’s not that bad. I mean no, he’s not that good either but he’s not as bad as all that – with the proper recovery time – that’s 20 years.

  130. 130.

    Manyakitty

    March 13, 2024 at 5:38 pm

    @trollhattan: that reminds me of the episode of King of the Hill where Hank and Bobby went to that hunting lodge with tame, penned deer. The Hills had enough dignity to leave. These losers probably want to breed sheep with short legs so they’re easier to catch.

  131. 131.

    wjca

    March 13, 2024 at 8:51 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:  Some people on MSNBC were saying that the Trump campaign was celebrating and claiming it as a huge win, so I got a little angsty.

    Given how loose (or nonexistent) their grip on reality is, them claiming it’s a win is cause to assume it’s really a loss.

  132. 132.

    wjca

    March 13, 2024 at 9:03 pm

    @Jackie: an effort to create a giant sheep hybrid for captive hunting

    I thought they used dogs for hunting kidnap victims.  Why breed sheep for it?

    Asking for a friend….

  133. 133.

    Skippy-san

    March 13, 2024 at 9:07 pm

    Charles Pierce is still concerned about the politics of this:

     

    https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a60189981/fulton-county-three-trump-charges-dismissed/

  134. 134.

    wjca

    March 13, 2024 at 9:43 pm

    @Dangerman: all anti-vaxxers and associated Luddite’s (Amish get a pass

    The Amish, unlike the anti-vaxxers, don’t try to insist that the rest of us conform to their views.

  135. 135.

    wjca

    March 13, 2024 at 9:46 pm

    @Shalimar: Trump is not promoting the best people.

    Of course he is.  He just has very different criteria for “best” than those of us who live in the real world.

  136. 136.

    The Lodger

    March 13, 2024 at 10:54 pm

    @trollhattan: Sounds like a plot point from an upcoming John Scalzi novel. Do Cowboys Dream of Giant Sheep?

  137. 137.

    The Lodger

    March 13, 2024 at 11:35 pm

    @Kayla Rudbek: Or what you remembered.  Also The Giant &%$^*ing Sheep Preservation Society.

  138. 138.

    Paul in KY

    March 14, 2024 at 10:40 am

    @Shalimar: I like his delivery when he’s skewering the dips in GQP & nutwads like Rodgers, etc.

  139. 139.

    Paul in KY

    March 14, 2024 at 10:42 am

    @Steve in the ATL: You come on up here, you fancypants lawyer type! Hyow Hyow, we’uns will roll out the non-antifreeze good stuff fer you!

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