Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

The way to stop violence is to stop manufacturing the hatred that fuels it.

Many life forms that would benefit from greater intelligence, sadly, do not have it.

We’re watching the self-immolation of the leading world power on a level unprecedented in human history.

Donald Trump found guilty as fuck – May 30, 2024!

Boeing: repeatedly making the case for high speed rail.

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

They spent the last eight months firing professionals and replacing them with ideologues.

Dear Washington Post, you are the darkness now.

Republicans: The threats are dire, but my tickets are non-refundable!

Republicans cannot even be trusted with their own money.

Welcome to day five of every-bit-as-bad-as-you-thought-it-would-be.

In my day, never was longer.

A norm that restrains only one side really is not a norm – it is a trap.

The arc of history bends toward the same old fuckery.

“woke” is the new caravan.

75% of people clapping liked the show!

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

GOP baffled that ‘we don’t care if you die’ is not a winning slogan.

Museums are not America’s attic for its racist shit.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

“Loving your country does not mean lying about its history.”

These days, even the boring Republicans are nuts.

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

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Open Thread: Social Microblogging

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Open Thread: Social Microblogging

Back when BlueSky was still invite-only, Major Major was kind enough to offer me one… so I felt it was only polite to set up my own marker (feed?) there. And now that it’s open to all, a whole bunch of you have been kind enough to follow me there. I do appreciate your vote(s) of confidence!

Thing is, though: There’s only so many hours, and I’m not a fast reader. The main reason I held out against forms of social media that were not this blog for so long was the fear that I could either blog here, or post on Twitter / BlueSky / wherever. And I’ve been the Carla Tortelli at this virtual watering hole for too long to break my streak now. Which means I’ve only got the bandwidth, at least while I’m still working on my skill set, to repost & quote-post more dedicated posters’ work on BlueSky (and to kilroy the occasional comment on twitter). Sorry I can’t offer you more, but at least I’m still here, okay?

And if you look at my BlueSky feed, you’ll get an idea of how I’ve been putting posts together all these years. Since I can’t handle a proper ‘My Feed’ setup, I just click on a carefully curated roster of favorite posters, one by one, and collect embed snippets like virtual index cards; some (small) portion of those embeds will end up bricolaged into posts. On BlueSky, that means I’ll dump half a dozen retweets / quote tweets from a particular individual, before moving on to my next victim target. Not ideal for you readers, I guess — but maybe you’ll find some new posters you’ll enjoy following.

So, final question: Should I start putting up links on my BlueSky feed, when I add a post over here? I have no idea if this is even *permitted*, much less how the BlueSky admin protocols would handle it. And while I’d be happy to give y’all a heads-up over there, I absolutely do not want to overload either WordPress, or our own precious sandbox walled garden…

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In other news…

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I made this fabulous mac and cheese:

In other news…I used Ina Garten’s recipe, skipping the sliced tomatoes on top because I don’t have any to spare. You can’t go wrong with Ina.

***

Larry Hogan is running for Maryland’s open U.S. Senate seat. According to HuffPo, two Dems are vying for a shot: Rep. David Trone and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks. I don’t know anything about either of them, but the article says Trone owns Total Wine, so that’s a plus in my book. If there’s ever a zombie apocalypse, I plan to hole up in a Total Wine until it blows over.

***

In investment news, the S&P crossed 5,000 for the first time ever, according to WaPo.

The booming S&P 500 is a boon to millions of Americans who invest in the index through their retirement accounts. Investors in 2022 had about $11.4 trillion in investments passively indexed to either the S&P 500 or in funds that use the index as a benchmark, according to S&P Global.

The market rally began in earnest in the final months of 2023, as a spate of positive economic news convinced investors that recession wasn’t in the offing. Inflation has come down to 1.7 percent, according to the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, while the economy has generated new jobs at a healthy pace and consumers have kept up their spending.

Bidenomics, baybee!

***

It got somewhat obscured in the ballyhoo about the Fed Soc Trump-affiliated special counselor’s inexcusable political hit job, but Biden’s press event last night contained the harshest criticism of Netanyahu’s Gaza campaign to date (WaPo):

The “conduct of the response in Gaza Strip has been over the top,” Biden said. “I’m pushing very hard now to deal with this hostage cease-fire. I’ve been working tirelessly on this deal … because I think if we can get the delay, the initial delay — I think we would be able to extend that so that we could increase the prospect that this fighting in Gaza changes.”

Biden, who has been resistant to speak in detail about the suffering in Gaza, also spoke in the most visceral terms yet about the desperation in the enclave.

“I’ve been pushing really hard to get humanitarian assistance into Gaza. A lot of innocent people are starving. A lot of innocent people are in trouble and they’re dying and it’s got to stop,” Biden said.

The comments mark a stunning turnaround for Biden, who has an emotional attachment to Israel and has largely refused to criticize the country even as anger grows among left-leaning parts of the Democratic base over the war in Gaza and its enormous civilian toll.

Good. It’s a complicated problem, but expressing concern about the loss of lives and compounding misery of innocent people matters. The famously empathetic president knows better than most how much.

Open thread!

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It Was a Crime at the Time but the Laws Have Changed

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A couple of quick points and something fun at the end:

  • Some of you made excuses for Brian Higgins (former D-NY-26) who quit to run a non-profit effective this month when I mentioned it in an earlier post.  The only reason that Mayorkas wasn’t impeached in the house is because Rep Al Green (D-TX-9) left his fucking hospital bed to vote no.  Steve Scalise was absent getting treatment for his cancer and he’s back, so it may well be that Higgins’ ill-timed retirement will lead to another vote where Mayorkas is impeached.  Also, the special election to replace George Santos in NY-3 is Tuesday.  Dems might get a pickup there.  Having Higgins around would make Johnson’s job even tougher.  But we won’t because Higgins chose his selfish needs over the party, something that might have been OK once upon a time, but not when democracy is literally in the balance.
  • Someone was upset that I titled yesterday’s post “Getting Old and Out of Touch” because it could have been misinterpreted as a comment on the Special Prosecutor’s report that questioned Biden’s memory.  The special prosecutor was a Republican, because of course he was.  He had to shit on Biden in his report while basically saying there’s no crime here.  This one is on Merrick Garland, and I’ll outsource the rest of the commentary on him to Paul Campos at LGM.  Suffice it to say that he’s not a wartime consigliere — and I’m not saying that Biden should have appointed the Democratic analogue to Bill Barr.  I’m just asking for an AG who would have appointed a (gasp!) fair-minded Democrat to that post, a Democrat who would have said Biden should have done better without the “and he’s senile” part of the report.  Again, Democrats choosing Republicans as special prosecutors and for national security positions (“Butter Emails” Comey) was always dumb, but it’s dangerous when democracy is in the balance.
  • In general, it’s hard for political junkies like us to imagine what motivates marginally motivated voters, but I really think Biden is playing with fire with Israel and the border.   AOC’s 90 second floor speech pretty much sums up the Israel argument, and I’ve said my piece on the border a couple of times.  In my view, we’re risking de-motivating younger, Arab (especially important in Michigan) and hispanic marginal voters by adopting Republican talking points on the border and not tying aid to Israel to humanitarian goals.  And we need those voters.

I know that’s plenty but here’s something less serious:  The Hawaii Supreme Court quoted Slim Charles of “The Wire” in a ruling on gun laws, when he said “the thing about the old days, they the old days.”   That quote is applicable in a lot of contexts.

 

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Friday Afternoon Open Thread

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The person or persons who run the Biden-Harris HQ social media accounts are good:

 

Post by @bidenharrishq
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For what it’s worth, I think mockery like this is probably as effective a way as any to respond to the bad-faith bullshit from the Trumpist right. I haven’t watched Biden’s entire speech from last night, but I saw a brief clip where he ethered Doocy the Younger, and I approve of that too.

I think those of y’all who believe the Hur report will soon blow over (or would just go away if we refuse to talk about it) are whistling past the graveyard. I hope you’re right! But I don’t think you are.

I’m not an expert on much, but I do understand how long-term messaging campaigns work. Earned media that reinforces a preexisting narrative is worth its weight in gold, and boy did Fed Soc Trump-appointee Hur deliver a fucking motherlode yesterday.

But the good news is that Trump is old too, and he also happens to be a one-man crime spree and crazier than a sprayed roach. In order to not drive myself nuts, I choose to believe that matters and voters will appreciate the difference next November.

Open thread!

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Smart Play by Jack Smith

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DC Indictment News

There has been speculation about whether Jack Smith would take this ridiculous ruling from Cannon to the 11th circuit, and whether he would try to have her removed from this case.  This move from Jack Smith seems like a smart first step, basically telling Cannon that she fucked up and she has one chance to fix it before Jack Smith goes to the 11th Circuit.

Seems like a smart move to me.

BJ attorneys, and others, what say you?

from ThreadReader

BREAKING: THREAD: Jack Smith has filed a motion for Judge Cannon to RECONSIDER her recent ruling that would unseal witness names & the substance of their testimony, putting them at significant risk of immediate threats and intimidation. 1/

Smith says that trump attached protected discovery information to court filings to shift the burden to the government to prove sealing is necessary & that Cannon wrongly decided witness safety/grand jury secrecy/integrity of the trial are not good enough reasons to seal. 2/

Smith says Cannon was WRONG in 2 respects & should reconsider. He then cites the 11th circuit, which has bench slapped Cannon before. 3/

“First, the 11th Circuit has held that the compelling-interest standard applied by the Court does NOT apply to “documents filed in connection with motions to compel discovery,” which instead may be sealed or redacted simply upon a showing of “good cause”. 4/

I think this citation is important because I think Jack Smith is saying “If I appeal this to the 11th circuit, they’re going to reverse your ruling if you don’t do it now” because Cannon applied the WRONG LEGAL STANDARD. Then he gives the 2nd reason she’s wrong. 5/

Smith says she needs to change her ruling to “prevent manifest injustice.” Cannon’s erroneous order would ID over two dozen people who would otherwise remain anonymous, or will face threats over their testimony. 6/

“Reconsideration is warranted to correct CLEAR ERROR & prevent MANIFEST INJUSTICE.” Basically, trump attached protected discovery (witness names) to a motion to compel so he could ask Cannon to unseal them. A sneaky way to get a list of witnesses against him out to the public. 7/

Some of the things the government wants to remain under seal: witness interviews, including a transcript of one witness that didn’t want to be recorded, citing the risks from “trump world”, plus information about obstruction and witness intimidation. 8/

Transcripts of interviews detailing the process of finding attorneys for two individuals. I imagine this has to do with trump allies getting lawyers for other trump allies or defendants. 9/

Expert testimony about the Mar a Lago search, including information about the location of trump’s son’s bedroom. 10/

Jack Smith was allowed to attach an exhibit of threats made online to witnesses – threats that are currently under federal criminal investigation. I don’t have the filing yet on court listener to link, but here’s PACER link. I’ll add it when I get it. END/

Link to the court filing.

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TGIFriday Morning Open Thread: Year of the Dragon

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The lunar Year of the (Wood) Dragon begins tonight (or has already begun, depending on your location). Per CNN [for entertainment purposes only]:

… Every year, a heavenly stem (one of five elements, which fall into the yin or yang category) is paired with an earthly branch (one of the 12 Chinese zodiac animals).

This year combines the heavenly stem “Jia” – which represents yang wood – and the earthly branch “Chen” which represents the Dragon. That makes 2024 the Year of the Wood Dragon…

Chow says industries with a strong wood presence – including culture, publishing and floristry – will be more likely to thrive than earth industries such as property development and mining.

Regardless of which heavenly stem the Dragon is paired with, the sacred creature is a very popular zodiac sign, especially in Asia.

“It’s believed that the Dragon represents strong and great leadership. A lot of people are looking to have Dragon babies this year,” says Chow…

“This year will also be significant because it’s the year when the world enters a new chapter from the eighth period to the ninth period of Xuan Kong flying star.”

She explains that there are nine Xuan Kong flying stars that affect the feng shui of the world. Each of them lords over us for two decades before passing the torch to the next star.

The year 2024 marks the beginning of the next 20-year reign under the ninth flying star.

“The number nine star represents feminine energy – so ladies are going to take over in a lot of the areas. It also represents technology, art and design as well as spirituality,” says Chow…

Guess that explains all the strong female energy at the Grammys, she said. I’m told that green and gold are excellent colors for honoring the Dragon, so y’all can get dual use out of those Mardi Gras party supplies this year. And red is always a lucky color for new beginnings. If you’ve got time to spare, the SCMP has a comprehensive collection of articles about Lunar New Year customs — including a list of lucky foods. (We’ve already got dekopons, which are just coming into season, in the house… and I may order takeout scallops for dinner this weekend… )
 
Speaking of strong and great leadership (remember: Sharing is caring!):

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