Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

At some point, the ability to learn is a factor of character, not IQ.

Dear legacy media: you are not here to influence outcomes and policies you find desirable.

Rupert, come get your orange boy, you petrified old dinosaur turd.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

The fundamental promise of conservatism all over the world is a return to an idealized past that never existed.

Incompetence, fear, or corruption? why not all three?

Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” was supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

Giving up is unforgivable.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

Shut up, hissy kitty!

If a good thing happens for a bad reason, it’s still a good thing.

Only Democrats have agency, apparently.

We know you aren’t a Democrat but since you seem confused let me help you.

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

Republicans: “Abortion is murder but you can take a bus to get one.” Easy peasy.

Their shamelessness is their super power.

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

If ‘weird’ was the finish line, they ran through the tape and kept running.

Democracy cannot function without a free press.

Anne Laurie is a fucking hero in so many ways. ~ Betty Cracker

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

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Balloon Juice Is the Little Engine That Could (Open Thread)

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WE DID IT!  

I took the thermometer down because we are at $30,000!  (As soon as the final angel adds theirs, and I left a little bit of room for Omnes.)

Balloon Juice peeps are the best.

We’ll be coming hot and heavy with the next fundraising very soon.  No rest for the wicked  weary !

To everyone who donated or encouraged others, thank you!

What else can we celebrate today?

Open thread.

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The Press Is Not Your Therapist

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The Press Are Not Your Therapist

Goddam right.  Some of these anonymous “senior” Dems need to go on the record or shut their fucking pieholes.  Also, what kind of weak-kneed fuck says shit like that?  We’re a long way from the election.  No matter your position on Biden being replaced by Harris, this just isn’t helping.

Not really related, but relevant, another panic has broken out over how the assassination attempt changes everything.  The DC press is very open to pimping this narrative because a big part of their job is basically a body watch.  Big media organizations pay big money that would be better spent elsewhere to make sure there’s someone around at all times in case some loon takes a shot at the President (or candidate for President).  So they’re incredibly invested, literally, in an assassination attempt being the biggest moment on earth.  Maybe they’re at least partially right (I doubt it),  but someone from the gun party being hit with a bullet from their object of worship is certainly not a no-brainer good thing for Republicans.

Finally, speaking of the gun party, I had no dog in the Jamal Bowman primary fight — I figure his district can figure out whether they want him around for another term on their own.   But if even 10% of  the almost $16 million spent by AIPAC and allied groups against him was available for Lauren Boebert’s opponent, it would help at least keep Boebert’s head down and her mouth shut, especially since she got caught speeding in May and then didn’t pay the ticket. 

I guess that’s a semi-random list, but that’s all I have on this gloomy Monday morning.

(The tweet is via Josh Marshall and the idea for the post title is from Atrios because it’s good.)

 

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Great News – Four Directions External Match for the next $13,000

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WE DID IT!  

I took the thermometer down because we are at $30,000!  (As soon as the final angel adds theirs.)

I just got a call from Four Directions to say that they found a match for the next $13,000 we raise!

We don’t need much more than $13,000 to get us to our $30,000 goal!

So even though we are midway through the existing angel match, everything resets, so everyone can take advantage of this.

So…  ($100 donation + $100 angel match = $200) + $200 external match = $400

Plus the $5,000 Angel Bonus when we get to $20,000.

So all donations right now are pretty close to 6x.

I know I don’t need to tell you all what’s at stake.  Let’s do this!

This can also be an open thread.

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Cannon Dismisses Classified Docs Case

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Via TPM:

Per the order, Cannon dismissed the case after finding that Special Counsel Jack Smith’s appointment violated the Constitution.

Cannon’s determination that Smith was unlawfully appointed effectively endorses a legal theory tested multiple times in previous cases and dismissed, rooted in the idea that the Attorney General cannot appoint and fund a special counsel absent authorization from Congress. That was seen as an absurd notion, and one contravened by decades of special counsel investigations under the current statute.

But it received a boost both after Cannon held a multi-day hearing on the question and after Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas supported the idea in a concurrence in the Trump immunity ruling. Cannon cited that concurrence throughout her order.

Jesus Fucking Christ!

Open thread.

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Monday Morning Open Thread: Trying to Be Serious During A *Silly* Silly Season

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My new mantra: “We have a good person in the Oval Office. Let’s keep it that way.”

 
Next up: The big conference, where the whole world is watching!

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Mean-Spirited Partisans Open Thread

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If you choose to go below the fold, don’t say you weren’t warned.

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War for Ukraine Day 872: Glide Bombs Aimed at Kharkiv

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Painting by NEIVANMADE. It has a white background an in the center are Soldiers in green doing air defense by firing at incoming Russian missiles in the upper right. The missiles are red and yellow. In the upper left, written in green, is the text: "SAVE THE BRAVEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD!" Below the Soldiers, also written in green, is "SUPPORT FOR KHARKIV"

(Image by NEIVANMADE)

Two quick housekeeping notes. First, Rosie is still doing fine. She has another week off before her next treatment.

Second, because it’s been a longer weekend than I think any of us were planning on, I’m going to keep tonight’s update as brief as possible.

As I’ve typed this post over the past hour (6:00 to 7:00 PM EDT) air raid alerts have gone up for Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kherson Oblasts. The on for Kharkiv Oblast that was up has come down. The alert maps do not show any inbound cruise missiles, but it may be an ugly morning in southern Ukraine.

Apparently, Odesa’s air defense intercepted inbound cruise missiles shortly after I hit publish:

As of 7:36 PM EDT the air raid alerts for southern Ukraine have dropped, but a new one has been posted for Kharkiv Oblast.

Russia attacked Kharkiv with glide bombs again about two or three hours ago:

Andrei Kozyrev, who was Russia’s Foreign Minister from 1990-1996 and in the Duma through 2000, has some well informed thoughts regarding the potential aftermath of last night’s shooting in Pennsylvania.

This is what state TV in Russia is telling viewers tonight: “Today Trump quite literally spilled blood for America. He is now highly likely to get back not only the Oval Office, but also control of all key state institutions: Congress, the Prosecutor’s office, the Supreme Court.”|

As Rahm Emanuel once proclaimed, but was terrible at actually executing, never let a crisis go to waste.

Either in the US or in Russia:

President Zelenskyy, however, has a bit more class:

I am appalled to learn about the shooting of former U.S. President Donald Trump at his rally in Pennsylvania.

Such violence has no justification and no place anywhere in the world. Never should violence prevail.

I am relieved to learn that Donald Trump is now safe and wish him a speedy recovery. My condolences go out to the close ones of this attack’s victim, a rally attendee.

I extend my wishes for strength to everyone who is horrified by this event. I wish America emerges stronger from this.

Here is President Zelenskyy’s address from earlier today. Video below, English transcript after the jump.

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