Today a grand jury in Washington, D.C, indicted former president Donald J. Trump for conspiring to defraud the United States, conspiring to disenfranchise voters, and conspiring and attempting to obstruct an official proceeding. The charges stemmed from Trump’s attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election. A grand jury is made up of 23 ordinary citizens who weigh evidence of criminal activity and produce an indictment if 12 or more of them vote in favor.
We’ve been living through this horror for years now, But reading through the indictment point by point, in such order and detail, is chilling and stupefying. It is one of the worst offenses against this country and democracy in our history.
“In one memorable December exchange, a senior campaign advisor wrote in an email, “When our research and campaign legal team can’t back up any of the claims made by our Elite Strike Force Legal Team, you can see why we’re 0–32 on our cases. I’ll obviously hustle to help on all fronts, but it’s tough to own any of this when it’s all just conspiracy sh*t beamed down from the mothership.”
This smacks of the same candid observations expressed by Tucker Carlson in an email that came out in the recent Dominion law suit, in which he admitted he didn’t believe for an instant the tripe he was pumping out daily regarding the “stolen election”.
How, oh HOW to grasp the multitude of these Trump diehards by the scruff of their thick necks and shove their noses into the mountain of evidence that absolutely shrieks the reality that these dimwits have been HAD? Is there no way? This is incredible!
It’s not about knowing the truth - they all do. It’s about desperately holding onto the lie, and using force to convince the rest of us that the truth no longer matters when the bully is in charge.
In my opinion it is more than holding onto a lie. It's holding onto a dream of a past that in reality never existed. The supremacy of White Protestant fundamentalists being the only true Americans, the inferiority of others no matter what made them "different", the literal whitewashing of history to fit a narrative that supported these dreams held up as being factual...it goes on and on. Some people can't give up the dream. It's why they take such offense at the concept of being woke. Who wants to wake up when there's a guy in the White House telling you it's not necessary? Confronting the past, becoming self aware, figuring out how to learn what you don't know, and being strong enough to do all of these things is more than some folks can bear. It's easier to follow the guy in the red hat.
Well said. A lot of the stomping around is about not being on the top of the heap merely by being white and male, earning a place over others without any merits other than gender and skin color and in some instances Protestant and Anglo-Saxon. If these people truly understood the message of Jesus, they would understand that being woke is what they should be, not behaving like Pharisees and loudly praying in the Temple and being money changers.
I just started Egan's book on the KKK. Horror, family was in Evansville around that time. Horror, but not disbelief that Indiana was a center due to it's susceptibility to the white supremacy post Civil War dreams. And the parallels to the last few years are strong
I don’t believe that they all know the truth. Lots of his supporters, have never seen any real news about the election because they have been convinced over the years by a false narrative that only their sources have the facts. Many of those same people are heavily armed and prepared to defend the lies.
In some cases, like my cousin who I was fairly close to growing up, their entire circle of friends believes the crazy (tea partiers). She'd have to be brave enough to to leave that in order to face the reality of what's going on. So she stays firmly inside the bubble. It's horrifying and sad.
Remember who it was who said he loved the uneducated. And honest to Pete if his minions aren't doing their best (worst) to make sure future generations of (at least southern) Americans stay that way. See, Florida Education standards re: personal benefits of slavery to enslaved persons. And a little more on that particular terrible and ridiculous set of standards: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/column-story-behind-florida-school-001851595.html.
JaneDough56: "convincing the rest of us..." This phrase displays such a lack of respect for their fellow Americans....using us....lying to us.....to dominate.....to get personal power....there is no place in the governance of the United States of America for such persons....such manipulators...such shallow, self-seeking abusers of positions and following "t" who regularly displays such complete lack of character!!! He has zero respect for honesty.....he relishes in lying to those who follow him......although he greatly appreciates and benefits personally from their financial generousity. He has seen he can do anything past, present or future and his supporters would follow him to hell......so sad!!!!
LeMoine, I copied that quote and filed it to use if I ever am foolish enough to get into a discussion with a tffg supporter again. Even though I KNOW it's like talking to a stone wall. I do think a lot of them know they have been had, as you say, but that's too humiliating to admit, even to themselves.
"if I ever am foolish enough to get into a discussion with a tffg supporter again. Even though I KNOW it's like talking to a stone wall"
Alexandra, I guess that I feel it is like talking to someone who is profoundly religious AND has decided that you or I are "going to hell" AND has decided to help "save" you or I from eternal damnation (but not really, because, they really don't mind us going to hell).
Now, when someone is in the mindset, 1) they believe that what they are thinking emanates not from themselves, but, God, 2) they believe that their actions are supported not by their own judgment apparatus but by God's judgement, 3) since it is not THEM condemning you, but God, and they are just streaming not judging, i.e., they are RIGHT.
Now, when someone is in that mind frame, there is no point to try to explain the reasons why you (or I) are not or may not got to Hell, not the least of which nobody has ever been to such a place and returned to provide evidence of its existence.
Trump supporters remind me so much of my times in East Texas when confronted by someone absolutely certain about God's judgement.
They believe so profoundly in Trump, one would think Jesus returned and tapped them on the shoulder. Part of this is that evangelicals DO think Trump is like Jesus, but, part of it is just training to believe the White Man at the front of the church who is handing out judgement in those old "going to hail" sermons. Trump is that White Man of "authority".
So, I don't try to talk to them. When someone is convinced I am going to hell, I just tell them: "Well, I guess I will see you there". That is the only sentence I have ever tried on one of them that at least stops the conversation pretty quick without otherwise offending them. Because, for some of them, it dawns on them that, hey, ANYONE can judge. It's easy.
I told this story here before, but since we are on the subject of hell and the story makes me smile if I am having a bad day I will repeat it. When we lived in Knoxville my office was in downtown and we live south so I would take the Alcoa Hwy home in the evening. In a wooded section someone had but up a small but very neatly painted sign that said "Hell Is HOT" complete with flames painted at the bottom. It was up for several months when a second sign appeared below it which read "So was your Wife".
“…Hell, not the least of which nobody has ever been to such a place and returned to provide evidence of its existence.” I fully agree, Mike! Nor have they seen God, hence they portray him as a WHITE MAN, a representation created in their OWN image.
I do suspect (actually, fear) that if tfg held the presidency again, our lives would be a living hell!
That is a great comeback, Mike. I don't think I've ever talked to anyone who would have said to my face that I'm going to hell. When I lived in North Carolina I sat next to a lot of people on planes who tried to convert me during the flight, but it was much gentler than that. tffg's supporters, on the other hand, have been threatening, vicious and malicious.
I can't recall being told I was going to hell but I did inform the little neighbor girls that they were headed there because they weren't Catholic. The nuns had said so.
I find this whole cult thing so very sad. I was involved in a gentle cult briefly - when I questioned things, I was told those thoughts were from the devil. When I could clearly see how peoples minds were being so amazingly manipulated and how strong the peer pressure was, I knew I had to leave. I tried to stay because I did believe in a lot that they were doing, and I really cared about so many of the members, but something inside of me kept screaming, so there was no way I could. It was an extremely painful experience! I went to a reprogrammer briefly who shared that people rarely enter cults to try and get someone out because of the real danger of being sucked in. It was all extremely eye opening. I see so much of that with what is happening today. I can feel the mindset and heartset of some of these people, and I can't help but empathize - amidst being frustrated, angry, and somewhat frightened with it all. I participated in a few interventions, and for those that have really invested themselves in the cult views, it is extremely rough to get them to look anywhere else - especially if the cult has given them an identity, the sense that they have secrets that others don't, a sense of belonging for the first time. Those are the people that sadden me. I know how hard it can be to pull out of that - on all levels, physical, mental, even soul. It can be incredibly excruciating, and it takes time - and they have to be kept from that cult. It's a matter of reprogramming. Anyway - getting a lot of these people to come back to what we call reality will certainly not happen easily if at all. The universe would have to intervene somehow. It saddens me. I see them as wounded - as having had something precious taken from them - and there is nothing I can do.
Mike S., I always tell them "If I'm going to hell, then I am probably going to the same place YOU are, because spending eternity with you would truly be a nightmare!". Basically the tl;dr version of your comeback. :D
I think the cult-powered anti-evidence shields tend to fend off any individual confrontation, but I wonder if they are powerful enough to keep Trump's entire base free of reality. By playing the world's most aggrieved victim card again and again and again, I am wondering if "The Strong Man" is not looking increasingly pathetic, even to some of his flock?
JL, from my view, the answer is either "no" or "not yet". I have a friend who posted on Facebook that he hung his "Democrat triggering device" out front with a photo of his freshly painted house flying an American flag. I shared the photo of the front of my house flying both the US and inclusive Pride flags and commented that, as a proud American, it didn't trigger me. Several of his friends didn't even acknowledge what I had said...
Of course they didn't acknowledge because the US flag belongs to them and not the rest of us. Plus you have that pride flag. Of course, it's OK for them to fly the stars and bars, the flag of insurrectionists.
Authoritarians love theater which obfuscates their true agendas; pageantry, show-of-force parades, public executions, bread and circuses with more circus than bread. They claim to own patriotism with showy gestures, such as Trump molesting the flag. Their brand of "patriotism" is unquestioning acceptance of the legitimacy of their own agenda; so much flag waving that we might be distracted from the malicious self-servingness of threatening to default on the nation's financial obligations, "shut down" needed and orderly government services, or block staffing of essential military positions attempting to extort partisan capitulation. Look at how the Constitution describes a "militia" contrasted with their gangs of goons with guns. The beating heart of a nation is its people.
The many that I know do not believe that they have been "had." Their commitment to their cause has gotten even stronger in response to the perceived threats against it.
Joanne, there are different levels of insanity, no doubt. I don't know any of the true believers in person, but I've certainly gotten vicious screeds from them by email and DM. Religious fanatics, almost all of them.
Alexandra--So true. Sorry you've received the vicious screeds--as have I. Unfortunately, I live in Las Vegas (possibly the country's stronghold of highly educated, obscenely wealthy right-wingers, whose now-deceased exalted leader, Republican financier, Sheldon Adelson and his physician wife contributed exorbitantly to TFG's presidential campaigns), where his voters see him as their economic tool. PS: When I moved to LV from San Francisco Bay Area, I felt as if I'd walked through the looking glass.
Joanne, UGH. I'm from the Bay Area, too and I feel your pain. The wealthy are another class of tffg supporters. They know full well he's a liar and a con but as long as their portfolios are benefitting, f--- the rest of us.
I'll bet that many, if not most, of those rich right-wingers don't actually live in Vegas but have lovely homes in California. They go through elaborate schemes to pretend Nevada residency to get out of CA taxes. Same situation, Incline Village, Nevada, at Lake Tahoe
Alexandra, with all the evidence which has come forth about Trump's immoral and illegal actions, I had hopes that those "stone walls" would crumble and allow the truth to permeate. Trump's hold on his followers is as solid as that stone wall. They know the kind of person he is and yet they will never waver in their support and defense of him. That says more about them than him.
So many of the red-hat waving masses will be encouraged by him to commit dangerous acts and that is so scary to me. I don't think the majority know "they have been had." So sad and unbelievable.
During his presidency, I tweaked a quote and shared it with my friends who understood how infantile and selfish he was. " Democracy used to mean that anyone could grow up to be president. Now it means that anyone who HASN'T grown up can be president."
It's also a cognitive bias thing -- call it a combination of cognitive dissonance, "The Emperor's New Clothes effect" + "sunk cost effect." Somewhere in their teeny little minds they suspect they are wrong, but it's much too humiliating to admit to that, and could require courage they don't have. So they double down as a matter of their own psychological survival.
I still don’t understand how Fox News personalities can knowingly lie to their audience and get away with it under protections of “freedom of speech.” There has got to be legal accountability for misleading millions of people, which led to a violent insurrection.
This needs to be the next debate our country focuses on: how to preserve free speech rights without allowing or encouraging dangerous but profitable lies that corrupt the future of those very rights.
I feel the same way, Cathy. It's so hard to understand. I live in SW Florida and am surrounded by people who only get their news from Fox or Newsmax. They are not all religious nor are they all wealthy. They are simply brainwashed. But I do wonder how those newscasters can sleep at night when they know full well that they are lying!
I was just reading the other day that Bill Kristol (strange bedfellows these days! :D ) is joining an effort to have the FCC deny the Fox affiliate in Philadelphia their broadcasting license, based on "character issues".
I don't know a lot of detail about it, but if it succeeds, maybe it can turn into a nationwide effort to bring back something like the Fairness Doctrine that could also apply to cable.
Here's on thought on how to stop platforms from spreading lies: (I come at this from my 20 years as a newspaper reporter from 1985 to 2003) Congress could restore and expand The Fairness Doctrine and the FCC laws that used to govern the use of the radio and television broadcasting airwaves. These rules precluded more than one broadcasting entity owning more than one platform (newspapers, radio station, TV station) in the same geographical market in the days when TV and radio were licensed. Those laws were never extended to other media platforms as new technologies developed (i.e. cable, satellite, social media). And so, even the traditional broadcasters were allowed to buy up all the media and become monopolies, with unfettered rights to do as they pleased, without any of the responsibilities of ensuring -- as newspapers and broadcasters had -- to print what could be verified as the truth, and not willingly print or disseminate lies. The laws governing libel and slander still exist, but have been ignored and given no teeth when it comes to FOX and social media platforms. That is why, finally, the lies became so egregious that Dominion finally had a strong enough case against Fox. We shall see if the other defamation suits prevail against them.
A return of the Fairness Act might help, though there is such lust for absolute power and so much “what aboutism” that there may be no cure except the law.
My anger at Despicable Don is superseded by the deep dismay I feel at the fact that this has happened to us, to our Country, and to our Countrymen and Countrywomen.
Now I know what Colonel Kurtz felt-----"The horror, the horror"
Yes! I'd say he even mocked the symbols of his true believers' religion. That photo op with the Bible in front of that church was appalling sacrilege — even to this non-believer.
Helsinki and that March to the church will always stand out as the most disgusting, telling acts of his presidency (lower case intended.) He told the nation who he was yet those seeking power, trailed by those brainwashed by lies and lacking education allowed him to flourish. May the bloom finally be off the rose and thorns be gathered up and trashed. August 1 is a day to remember.
Oh, I didn't suppose for a minute that it belonged to her!! But there's bound to be numbers of them in the White House - any place where people have to take an oath - and she was one jump ahead of him. Remember when he held it up, then checked to see which way was up, and one of the reporters said, "Is it yours?" and oddly enough he told the truth: "No, but it's a Bible". The whole thing was so screamingly reality-show. I mean, why did he go down there, if not for a photo op? He didn't go into the church, which was shut anyway. In fact he didn't even stand in front of the church, he was photographed next door, outside the office of the church, in front of a sign saying "St John's Church".
I have been thinking of 45 as the “Anti-christ” of our Democracy. Your comment is so apt, because it might produce an epiphanic breakthrough for a few more of his evangelical supporters who still don’t get it.
I am an artist who makes and sells beadwoven jewelry. I was at an art fair over the weekend and one of my customers commissioned a bracelet. We were on the phone last night talking; she had the TV on in the background. When they announced the indictment, Yvonne suddenly just stopped talking. It took her a good two minutes before she could just let me know that she was OK but needed time to process what had just been announced. Her comment? “Stupifying. Gobsmacking. Maybe we can hand off a democracy to our grands.” This woman is a retired VP of Sales of a Fortune 500 company, mother of 4, grandmother of 6. Large and in charge at 82. And nearly overwhelmed with fear about our future.
I got off the phone and just sat. In my lifetime, we indicted a former President of the United States for attempting to prevent the peaceful transfer of power. &@!#%!
Let’s hope we find a way to further repair the guardrails. They are pretty badly battered and there are plenty of Americans who want to damage them further. On our watch. Lots to do for the 2024 election!
In a document of non-stop horror, this is one of the most horrific events of all. They intended to use the Insurrection Act (a law that allows the military to be deployed against U.S. civilians) if citizens rose up to protest the overthrow of our own government.
"On the afternoon of January 3, Co-Conspirator 4 spoke with a Deputy White House Counsel. The previous month, the Deputy White House Counsel had informed the Defendant that "there is no world, there is no option in which you do not leave the White House [o]n
January 20th.
Now, the same Deputy White House Counsel tried to dissuade Co-Conspirator 4
from assuming the role of Acting Attorney General. The Deputy White House Counsel reiterated to Co-Conspirator 4 that there had not been outcome-determinative fraud in the election and that if the Defendant remained in office nonetheless, there would be riots in every major city in the United States.
Co-Conspirator 4 responded, Well,[Deputy White House Counsel], that's why there's an Insurrection Act."
The second most grievous crime against this country was an entire political party’s decision to put up and shut up in order to save their own hides, consciously becoming enthusiastic mouthpieces for a criminal president and the bit actors who did his bidding. These man and women, whose salaries and lifetime benefits, i help pay, who have been elected to defend and support our constitution and our democratic institutions, are and forever will remain in my view the
Alexandra Sokoloff: Your response is a true, concise, and full reaction to the horror inflicted upon our Nation by this angry, twisted Mob boss, Trump.
I am thinking of my grandfather on my Dad's side this evening. I never got to meet him, but he was deeply beloved by everyone in my Dad's family. He was a colonel in World War II in Africa, a JAG, who gave up promotion to General and a prosecutorial spot in the Nuremburg trials because he preferred to start his own practice and spend more time with his beloved wife and children. It was expected that each year, he would travel to D.C. for business. I hear tell somewhere there is a photo of my Aunt Susie sitting at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, courtesy of a "tour" given in the President's absence from one of Grandpa's associates from "back when." (Obviously, this would never happen now.) My Ancestry-obsessed Mom found his obit in the LA Times recently; it listed him as an Assistant US Attorney General. My Dad tells of him as warm and loving, but very, very methodical and meticulous. Dad recalls him eating even a sandwich with a fork and knife, and being able to do so while playing with a baby... and getting not one tiny spot on his starched white dress shirt. Every button buttoned, nary a thread out of place.
People like Jack Smith and Merrick Garland strike me as these sorts of men: blessed holdovers from a time of all business and no drama. Idealists when it comes to the importance of the law, staunchly by-the-book when it comes to its application. Not political "stars," but total professionals one and all. Unflinching, but unhurried. Months ago, when people were gettin' grumpy and giving up hope DOJ would ever reach the arm of the law out to grab tfg, I just kept my mouth shut and sat tight. I thought to myself, "Oh, y'all just wait. These guys are a bunch of Grandpa Collmans. They'll get there when they get there, not a day earlier than fully prepared, and not a day later than fully effective." It appears, to my relief and satisfaction, that my choice to retain faith in the processes of our institutions to deliver - when run by true civil servants - is being vindicated. (Yay!)
We have so little patience in this world today, and so much anxiety. It is now time for the judge and jury to mete out the next step of justice to these traitors. Not being on that jury, I will be devoting my democracy-saving energy not to gloating over deserved downfalls, but to positively spreading the gospel of good governance that we are lucky to be seeing demonstrated for us again by the Biden Administration. We don't just need accountability to heal, we also need our aspiration back as a nation.
It *can* feel overwhelming. All we can really be is a drop in the bucket. But 80 million drops makes a flood! (Or at least, like, enough to wash the dirty dishes.)
"I thought to myself, "Oh, y'all just wait. These guys are a bunch of Grandpa Collmans. They'll get there when they get there, not a day earlier than fully prepared, and not a day later than fully effective." It appears, to my relief and satisfaction, that my choice to retain faith in the processes of our institutions to deliver - when run by true civil servants - is being vindicated. (Yay!)"
YES!! Thank you for this superb example. And congrats on having such a wonderful grandfather to honor and emulate.
We always look for your comments here, Wil. Thanks for writing this wonderful post. We don’t have that Grampa Collman experience to help ground us through these Narrows but we kept cupping our hands around the flame, thinking and talking about the legions of dedicated, law-abiding people who must be working around the clock behind the scenes and in the White House to overcome horrific damages and build us back. Their work becomes more and more evident every day. We do “need our aspiration back as a nation.” Let’s make it happen.
I had to fight the anxiety I felt every time I read columns opining that "Merrick Garland isn't doing the job!".
Thank God I was already reading Heather's blog, and then found Joyce Vance's and Teri Kanefield's as well, which has kept me from spinning out of orbit.
I hold Jack Smith up there with the Gregory Peck version of Atticus Finch: intelligent, honest, thorough, honorable, and DECENT.
“…to positively spreading the gospel of good governance “ That is a brilliant way of putting it. May I borrow the phrase for an op-ed piece I have been thinking of writing? Yes, brilliant!
It's a quandary because so much is happening fast these days that is in need of urgent attention and rectification, but yes, we don't want to see sloppy brain surgery, and I so admire public service personnel who take their duties very seriously. Many worthwhile things require constant and sustained attention and management (perseverance furthers) including grass-roots social movements. We are being massively oversold on immature instant gratification.
Oddly I see taking the long, strategic view as "conservative" in a way that contrasts starkly with the way the word is used in politics. I consider the scientific method "conservative" in the former sense, and well integrated with imagination and an adventuring spirit, it is a powerhouse of discovery and beneficial innovation.
And yet his minions...including the republican party...still support him and donate their hard earned money to prop up his con and pretend they are doing their patriotic duty. What will it take to open their eyes and take their fingers out of their ears?
Like the Confederates, they cannot be persuaded or reasoned with--Trump is their Lost Cause. They can only be steamrolled by Lady Justice, and Mr. Smith is at the wheel.
"Like the Confederates..." could be written "As Confederates..." Note that majority of The Orange Criminal Clown's electoral votes came from former Confederate states. Wonder if Trump will be reducing the number of White Supremacy dinner guests given that his new judge is Jamaican.
RE "What will it take to open their eyes and take their fingers out of their ears?": Their eyes are wide open and their ears are unblocked. They live in a different world than we do, and since they consider us threats to their existence, they believe that they and their leader are true patriots.
It is a very sad state of affairs. Somewhere along the line, his minions didn't learn how to thinking critically. They have always been here but with the orange king of chaos, they have been emboldened to reveal themselves.
The schools have not fallen down on the job. They've been squeezed with "reforms" and "no child left behind" and "charter schools" to the point that the US educational system is a shadow of its former self.
Teachers are leaving in droves because parents who think they know more than the teachers are "driving the bus". school systems are requiring that they teach to a test so they can be supposedly ranked higher, and because of LOW pay. Teachers have to continually get more education on their own dime, give more free hours to students, in some cases buy their own teaching aids and for what, no respect and helicopter parents telling them how to teach!
“What dies one say?” you ask. I share your frustration to reach such unthinking supporters. I guess the first question to pose would be “keep us safe from what, exactly. “ And not in a snarky manner, but to find out the basis of their fears and their beliefs about the kind of person they see as a savior. I don’t know that most of his supporters can articulate what those are. But Fox channel seems to know enough to fully exploit a third of the countries citizens.
Joanne, what’s worse is that they believe that “the left” or “the libs” have adopted the tactics of a mob family—a clear case of projection. I recently ran into a person who was convinced that the reason that Devon Archer rebuffed the rumors about Hunter Biden bribes is that he was threatened—not that they weren’t true.
And, apparently, even Ronna McDaniel, a member of the Romney family, had signed on to the fake elector strategy. Her grandfather would be spinning in his grave.
I haven’t heard that one! It’s funny. And yet, I wash my horse’s face every day, even if he isn’t a donkey 😂 but I probably am wasting both time and soap.
After a brilliant summary concerning the indictment by The United States of America v. Donald J. Trump, defendant, HCR ended today's Letter with Nancy Pelosi. The former House Speaker's decision to create the select committee to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection after a bipartisan bill to set up an outside commission was filibustered by Senate Republicans was pivotal in leading to this indictment.
Here's to 'Nancy Pelosi'!
The United States of America v. Donald J. Trump, defendant
A new day for the USA.
‘The Justice Department unveiled an indictment on Tuesday charging former President Donald J. Trump with four criminal counts. They relate to Mr. Trump’s attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which culminated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a mob of his supporters.’
'1 count: Conspiracy to defraud the United States
The charge against Mr. Trump details the various methods he and co-conspirators used to try to overturn the results of the 2020 election.'
'2 counts: Related to efforts to obstruct the vote certification proceedings
Mr. Trump faces two charges involving the vote certification proceedings at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021: one of obstructing that process and one of conspiring to do so.'
'1 count: Conspiracy to violate civil rights
Related to Mr. Trump’s attempts to reverse election results in states with close elections in 2020.'(NYTimes)
Jack Smith, special prosecutor:
“The attack on our nation’s Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy. As described in the indictment, it was fueled by lies – lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the U.S. government: the nation’s process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election.”
Trump campaign:
“This is nothing more than the latest corrupt chapter in the continued pathetic attempt by the Biden Crime Family and their weaponized Department of Justice to interfere with the 2024 Presidential Election, in which President Trump is the undisputed frontrunner, and leading by substantial margins.”
I wish I could be a lark singing through this night because that is how absolutely happy I am that the lying, cruel, negligent, lethal, schmuck of a former president has been criminally indicted by the United States of America.
Re: “the Biden Crime Family.” Has anyone else noticed how quiet those clacking Trump children have become? One might even think they’d been warned to — as Archie Bunker would say — stifle it.
Thank you, Colette, most particularly for your approval of my use of 'language'. I very rarely use words that cut as knives, but, with this one, what he has done to us is deserving of the darkest words.
Thank you, Fern, for the perfect term; TFG is truly both “foolish” and “contemptible “.
My favorite term for his enablers is “remora fish”; they swim with the shark, cleaning up his messes and hope that he doesn’t eat them in the most cruel manner when they don’t swim closely enough (past services/subjugations won’t decrease the cruelty).
True confession: I put my head on the pillow before 10 p.m. after watching Jack Smith's measured announcement and slept through the night for the first time in a very long time. I didn't even wake up to see what HCR might have to say, because somehow I felt that the center had held. Her summary, of course, captures the best of the day's events, I had missed Pelosi's remarks, but I loved watching Jack Smith's facial composure, which inspires confidence that he did his work meticulously.
Yes I agree. Starting with the Speaker of the house. Republicans from the house and senate. Several of them help organize and planned this insurrection. They must be accountable.
I think that Kevin McCarthy is personally responsible for the “rehabilitation” of Trump. That trip down to Mar a Lago after January 6, complete with photo op, is what allowed Trump to be relevant to republicans again. Remember what many of them said about him right after January 6? And look at the toadies now.
You must mean the outfit who declared that the Jan 6th insurrectionists were 'ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse'. Sometimes there really is a conspiracy.
... remember those fox news criminals who published tapes of the Jan 6th insurrectionists, calling those illegitimate people in the Capitol 'tourists'?
... and it should not stop with those accessories either. tfg must appear in court tomorrow and then be arraigned, leave his passport to the DOJ and be disallowed to do any more rallies, where he would spew and repeat more lies and utter more threats to people who finally show him that he is not above the law.
Simply the best, as always. HCR pulls it all together with her powerful, eloquent distillation of the facts behind the indictment. I so appreciate how she references the 23 people on the grand jury right at the beginning of this Letter. That is such an important element in this story. Jack Smith did not indict, he made the arguments, he laid our the evidence. Then a grand jury of 23 people, 23 peers, 23 ordinary Americans, indicted the former president.
I was joking with my Dad earlier... Can you imagine getting a jury summons, not really having a good excuse, so you trudge along down to the courthouse, admiring the architecture as you try to find your way through the lobby, hoping the case is something easy like shoplifting so you can get outta there after a few days and won't have that many emails to catch up on... only to find you have been cast in the pivotal role in CHEETO VS. DEMOCRACY: CRIME OF THE CENTURY: GRAND FINALE!!!?
Thank you for conveying the information you have on the indictment. I have, so far, gotten to page 12 of the indictment. Jack Smith explains the charges and why they are being made in a way that is easy to follow and understand. I hope many will read it.
The fact that Ronna McDaniel is involved shows how amoral the Republican Party has become. They have no love for democracy, only lust for power. From Lincoln to Trump--It is heartbreaking.
Buried in the weeds of the indictment and the story behind it, of the greatest threat to the beautiful compact the Founders made with their fellow Americans then, and down through the generations, is the abysmal fact that Ronna McDaniel, the niece of the last sane and civil Republican nominee for President, may have been involved in this sordid sedition.
Ronna McD and RFK Jr. are doing more to make me question the notions of evolution and natural selection than the evangelical homeschoolers I grew up with ever did.
I live in a small town in Michigan, can remember when Romney was Governor and the after effects of Ike was leading a surge in the Middle Class. Government seemed so clear back then
Lanna and Daniel, thanks for bringing up traitorous McDaniel, who oversaw the Republican censure of truth tellers Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. There's a special place in hell....
And lest we forget Jim Jordan, Tommy Tuberville, James Comer, Gosar, etc, who still support, defend and work against our American democracy! Lock them all up!
The indictment writing from Smith is simple, powerful, and easy to understand. Just like the indictment he issued for the other case. He has a great way with words., and I consider both documents bulletproof.
CRIME PAYS: that is the proposition we are looking at, both in the USA and Russia, not to forget a host of minor players in various corners of the world. And to this point it has worked. The question now is will the house come crashing down or will he become President and pardon himself and will his buddy then survive this war in the Ukraine (scratch my back and I scratch yours). Interesting that Pravda means Truth (remember that valuable source of long ago USSR news?). And now we have Truth Social. I feel as though I have entered some alternative reality and keep thinking it just cannot go on. Yet it does.
We are watching an attempt to destroy our way of government as occasioned by Mr. Trump. This attempt to destroy the US government has been building since the 1970s. Many saw this growing in real-time and tried to warn others. Now, these long consequences of power for power's sake are here, and it is just like the long consequences of climate change and life destruction for money and power. These are also here and we are living through the consequences now. I wish us luck and hard work getting through this intact. We will need it.
Well, we did once have McCain-Feingold, which the Supreme Court threw out. IWe might have a chance if we threw out the Republican majority. Unlikely, I know, but let's be clear about where the problem lies.
A SUGGESTION in light of today’s indictments, ESPECIALLY ‘ conspiracy against the right to vote and to have one’s vote counted.” ….located on page 2 of the 45 page Indictment, the third conspiracy charge against Trump was the citation of a major violation of federal law…..the constitutional right to vote (The Right to Vote 1512 U.S.C. 241. )
It is the particular conspiracy charge that makes me most angry ….my blood boil…that hideous President AND these horrible people were seriously messing with MY RIGHT TO VOTE and attempting TO TAKE AWAY MY VOTE for Biden AND if re-elected would take away our democracy.
I know it’s terribly important that everyone in the US ‘truly get it’ what’s at stake IN THIS NEXT ELECTION….and while I don’t think billboards and bumper stickers are the ‘be all or end all’ political advertising….I’m very seriously thinking of going online and ordering some bumper stickers that say “The Right to Vote 1512 U.S.C. 241….”
Also, I think that some billboards might want to express the same sentiment….perhaps with additional discussion of what was attempted….we need a national discussion on this …RIGHT NOW.
Today's indictment of trump for J6 appears to be spurring people to action based on righteous rage, in contrast to the previous indictments of trump, and even the J6 hearings last year, in which we were spectators. Robert Hubbell quotes Tom Nichols that we "must speak up and speak out," and, "we must be willing to speak this truth not only to power but to our fellow citizens."
Heather herself in today's video chat on Facebook ended by encouraging us to speak up that we are the patriots upholding the institutions of our liberal democracy, the foundation for self-determination. She said she's going to start wearing an American flag pin. We each can become so conversant in what liberal democracy means, and fly our flag.
We don’t have a choice…speaking up is what patriots do when their freedom is imperiled……my right to vote and yours were ALREADY imperiled by Trump when he didn’t like the honest 2020 election result…..
We must act…I’m suggesting a doable ‘action’….those bumper stickers are cheap and easily acquired…I’d welcome OTHER suggestions too!
“The Right to Vote 1512 U.S.C. 241….” is an intriguing conversation starter. That’s the objective, and the medium can be anything: billboard, bumper sticker, T-shirt, pin…folks have different preferences.
And I’d love that statement to preface just about everything Trump related that occurs in this next year plus…BECAUSE that’s what this next election is all about as the very conservative Judge Luttig made clear today….
Interesting comment, Ellie. I have flown my flag (in accordance with flag protocol) daily since September 11, 2001 (I believe that I am on my 30th flag, or thereabouts). My wife and our housemate have objected to this since the RepubliQans began their assault on our country; my reply is that the National Colors are MY flag as well, and they will not take that from me. I have a second standard on the other side of the garage (faces the street) where I fly a number of different flags; Ukrainian mostly these days (on my 3rd flag there) but in May I fly the COPS flag (May is Law Enforcement Memorial Month) and in the summer (June-September) I fly the Inclusive Pride Flag.
A Facebook friend, and former LEO colleague posted about hanging his "new Democrat Triggering Device" on the front of his house (photo of a US Flag). I commented to him that I did not find the flag triggering, and (encouragingly) several of his other friends did as well.
Here’s an update from the inimitable Jessica Craven:
“Anat Schenker-Osorio’s Research Collaborative sent out the following messaging guidance on the new indictments. I thought it was important to quote it in full—very helpful stuff!
With the news that the former MAGA president has been indicted by a Grand Jury of Americans for his criminal conspiracy to overthrow the will of the people, we wanted to share updated guidance. In addition to the message below, we also want to keep in mind the following overarching principles for determining how we convey to voters what has happened, who is responsible and how to proceed:
Push this beyond one actor: the MAGA Republicans that supported, schemed, and covered up for him are still in power today and must be held accountable.
Connect MAGA response to the larger criminal conspiracy - from Congress, to the Courts, to states - of deliberately spreading lies, breaking laws, and fomenting corruption in order to grab and hold onto power.
Focus on outcome arguments about how this endangers our country instead of process framings about hypocrisy or “rule of law.”
Emphasize the role everyday Americans have played and must continue to play to push for accountability. ‘We the people’ weighed the evidence and decided to indict and now we must demand that all those involved face the consequences.
Activate public defiance and use this and other indictments to remind voters that we can and will stand up to and defeat this fascist faction.“
Thanks Ellie….I sort of checked on your source and many years ago was involved a bit with Celinda Lake and one of the other groups your source uses…and I worked in a field where the national PR guys would contact me weekly with the ‘party line’ ….so I understand such ‘programming’…in fact some of my family has done it as well….
My response to those indictments especially the ‘voting Rights’ was strictly personal…I am outraged that these individuals had the accumulated gall to attempt to remove the most sacred right we have as Americans….
I COULD go on at length relative to the extent of the other indictments…their impact, the range of horrific players involved…but I chose not too initially because in my view (and it turns out Jamie Raskin’s) this is so seminal it deserves its own place space and solutions….
I really like the idea of using the federal designation of the Right to Vote 1512U.S.C. 241….ON T Shirts, bumper stickers billboards, coffee cups …WHERE EVER….
THIS RIGHT TO VOTE IS totally seminal..without it you have nothing….and folks really need to get a handle on that!
You can contact Jessica Craven directly through her Chop Wood, Carry Water blog. She is an earnest, hard-working grassroots organizer who makes it simple for others of us to follow suit to make our voices heard in the name of democracy. A connection by her with pollster Celinda Lake is not jumping out at me.
Joan Leslie: So true. Dems need to take some of the money they waste on large, 4 color mailers that go directly into the recycle bin, and use it for billboards and other effective means of conveying democratic policies and needs.
I love watching him. Notice how his facial expressions never belie his words. No demagoguery. I'm sure the grand jurors saw that, too. It's such a sharp contrast from Ken Starr's relentless pursuit of Bill Clinton, which I think led me to underestimate the seriousness of the conduct at hand.
Jacks dignity is is very deep garnered on the world stage when he took a Head of State war criminal down at The Hague. I tlhink I might be able to count the total number of similar accomplishments on one hand. ✋ Did that----next.
Recall those early media photos of Jack in the purple rimmed Judicial Robes he wore at The Hague? Reportedly, Jack is has the same dignified demeanor in Court no matter how grave the crimes, a very 'special' Prosecutor.
"Dignity" is not synonymous with "accomplishments." Jack might have been dignified far before his many accomplishments. The fact that Jack's dignity is unassailable neither diminishes yours nor your opportunities to develop some!
Every member of Congress who refused to vote to certify the vote, Republicans all, were co-conspirators as well, whether willing or duped. There is also the issue of those legislators, Republicans all, who gave capital “tours” to insurrectionists just prior to Jan. 6th.
And let us not forget the efforts of Washington gad-about Ginnie Thomas doing all she could to promote the Big Lie.
Did they all really believe they could pull it off?
I am reminded of something said once long ago” the veneer of democracy is very thin”. There are many people in Congress who should be taken to court by Jack Smith.
Just speaking from my own limited personal experience, but I've never met a Tanya I'd want to mess with. The Emilys and Jennifers and Chloes and even the Kimberlys all do their share of messing. The Tanyas never do.
It was Nancy Pelosi who impaneled a Select Committee of the House to investigate January 6, after Senate Republicans filibustered the creation of a non-partisan Congressional Committee to investigate January 6. Then she kept the miscreants like Jim Jordan off the Select Committee. Thank you Nancy. Without the awesome work of the Select Committee I fear the Biden-Garland DOJ would never have prosecuted Trump. Thank you Nancy. --
We’ve been living through this horror for years now, But reading through the indictment point by point, in such order and detail, is chilling and stupefying. It is one of the worst offenses against this country and democracy in our history.
“In one memorable December exchange, a senior campaign advisor wrote in an email, “When our research and campaign legal team can’t back up any of the claims made by our Elite Strike Force Legal Team, you can see why we’re 0–32 on our cases. I’ll obviously hustle to help on all fronts, but it’s tough to own any of this when it’s all just conspiracy sh*t beamed down from the mothership.”
This smacks of the same candid observations expressed by Tucker Carlson in an email that came out in the recent Dominion law suit, in which he admitted he didn’t believe for an instant the tripe he was pumping out daily regarding the “stolen election”.
How, oh HOW to grasp the multitude of these Trump diehards by the scruff of their thick necks and shove their noses into the mountain of evidence that absolutely shrieks the reality that these dimwits have been HAD? Is there no way? This is incredible!
It’s not about knowing the truth - they all do. It’s about desperately holding onto the lie, and using force to convince the rest of us that the truth no longer matters when the bully is in charge.
In my opinion it is more than holding onto a lie. It's holding onto a dream of a past that in reality never existed. The supremacy of White Protestant fundamentalists being the only true Americans, the inferiority of others no matter what made them "different", the literal whitewashing of history to fit a narrative that supported these dreams held up as being factual...it goes on and on. Some people can't give up the dream. It's why they take such offense at the concept of being woke. Who wants to wake up when there's a guy in the White House telling you it's not necessary? Confronting the past, becoming self aware, figuring out how to learn what you don't know, and being strong enough to do all of these things is more than some folks can bear. It's easier to follow the guy in the red hat.
Well said. A lot of the stomping around is about not being on the top of the heap merely by being white and male, earning a place over others without any merits other than gender and skin color and in some instances Protestant and Anglo-Saxon. If these people truly understood the message of Jesus, they would understand that being woke is what they should be, not behaving like Pharisees and loudly praying in the Temple and being money changers.
MAGAs and Republicans and anyone who supports Trump haven’t asked WWJD in a long, long time.
LOL
Well said. Thank you.
I just started Egan's book on the KKK. Horror, family was in Evansville around that time. Horror, but not disbelief that Indiana was a center due to it's susceptibility to the white supremacy post Civil War dreams. And the parallels to the last few years are strong
Yes, and well said. Thank you.
That’s for Kamila Novicki. It’s not getting to her, for some reason. Trying again.
Thank you, Virginia. I read your comment(s) and appreciate your response(s).
Exactly!
They desperately want to exist inside their "Peggy Sue Got Married" fantasy of American life.
So well written!
I don’t believe that they all know the truth. Lots of his supporters, have never seen any real news about the election because they have been convinced over the years by a false narrative that only their sources have the facts. Many of those same people are heavily armed and prepared to defend the lies.
Sadly.
In some cases, like my cousin who I was fairly close to growing up, their entire circle of friends believes the crazy (tea partiers). She'd have to be brave enough to to leave that in order to face the reality of what's going on. So she stays firmly inside the bubble. It's horrifying and sad.
If that is the hillside where they wish to be unalive so be it !!!
The politicians and top folks know they are telling lies. The masses are poorly educated and brain washed; they believe.
They’re in love with the strength of one man overcoming a “corrupt bureaucracy “.
Remember who it was who said he loved the uneducated. And honest to Pete if his minions aren't doing their best (worst) to make sure future generations of (at least southern) Americans stay that way. See, Florida Education standards re: personal benefits of slavery to enslaved persons. And a little more on that particular terrible and ridiculous set of standards: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/column-story-behind-florida-school-001851595.html.
JaneDough56: "convincing the rest of us..." This phrase displays such a lack of respect for their fellow Americans....using us....lying to us.....to dominate.....to get personal power....there is no place in the governance of the United States of America for such persons....such manipulators...such shallow, self-seeking abusers of positions and following "t" who regularly displays such complete lack of character!!! He has zero respect for honesty.....he relishes in lying to those who follow him......although he greatly appreciates and benefits personally from their financial generousity. He has seen he can do anything past, present or future and his supporters would follow him to hell......so sad!!!!
And yet, so true. It truly takes an evil person to constantly lie to their followers faces and expect them to surrender to that lie. It is true hate.
LeMoine, I copied that quote and filed it to use if I ever am foolish enough to get into a discussion with a tffg supporter again. Even though I KNOW it's like talking to a stone wall. I do think a lot of them know they have been had, as you say, but that's too humiliating to admit, even to themselves.
"if I ever am foolish enough to get into a discussion with a tffg supporter again. Even though I KNOW it's like talking to a stone wall"
Alexandra, I guess that I feel it is like talking to someone who is profoundly religious AND has decided that you or I are "going to hell" AND has decided to help "save" you or I from eternal damnation (but not really, because, they really don't mind us going to hell).
Now, when someone is in the mindset, 1) they believe that what they are thinking emanates not from themselves, but, God, 2) they believe that their actions are supported not by their own judgment apparatus but by God's judgement, 3) since it is not THEM condemning you, but God, and they are just streaming not judging, i.e., they are RIGHT.
Now, when someone is in that mind frame, there is no point to try to explain the reasons why you (or I) are not or may not got to Hell, not the least of which nobody has ever been to such a place and returned to provide evidence of its existence.
Trump supporters remind me so much of my times in East Texas when confronted by someone absolutely certain about God's judgement.
They believe so profoundly in Trump, one would think Jesus returned and tapped them on the shoulder. Part of this is that evangelicals DO think Trump is like Jesus, but, part of it is just training to believe the White Man at the front of the church who is handing out judgement in those old "going to hail" sermons. Trump is that White Man of "authority".
So, I don't try to talk to them. When someone is convinced I am going to hell, I just tell them: "Well, I guess I will see you there". That is the only sentence I have ever tried on one of them that at least stops the conversation pretty quick without otherwise offending them. Because, for some of them, it dawns on them that, hey, ANYONE can judge. It's easy.
I told this story here before, but since we are on the subject of hell and the story makes me smile if I am having a bad day I will repeat it. When we lived in Knoxville my office was in downtown and we live south so I would take the Alcoa Hwy home in the evening. In a wooded section someone had but up a small but very neatly painted sign that said "Hell Is HOT" complete with flames painted at the bottom. It was up for several months when a second sign appeared below it which read "So was your Wife".
Both signs were gone the next day.
LOL. The best laugh of the day, maybe the year.
🤣🤣🤣
“…Hell, not the least of which nobody has ever been to such a place and returned to provide evidence of its existence.” I fully agree, Mike! Nor have they seen God, hence they portray him as a WHITE MAN, a representation created in their OWN image.
I do suspect (actually, fear) that if tfg held the presidency again, our lives would be a living hell!
If we think the death star's first term was bad, any second term would hell on steroids.
That is a great comeback, Mike. I don't think I've ever talked to anyone who would have said to my face that I'm going to hell. When I lived in North Carolina I sat next to a lot of people on planes who tried to convert me during the flight, but it was much gentler than that. tffg's supporters, on the other hand, have been threatening, vicious and malicious.
I can't recall being told I was going to hell but I did inform the little neighbor girls that they were headed there because they weren't Catholic. The nuns had said so.
I find this whole cult thing so very sad. I was involved in a gentle cult briefly - when I questioned things, I was told those thoughts were from the devil. When I could clearly see how peoples minds were being so amazingly manipulated and how strong the peer pressure was, I knew I had to leave. I tried to stay because I did believe in a lot that they were doing, and I really cared about so many of the members, but something inside of me kept screaming, so there was no way I could. It was an extremely painful experience! I went to a reprogrammer briefly who shared that people rarely enter cults to try and get someone out because of the real danger of being sucked in. It was all extremely eye opening. I see so much of that with what is happening today. I can feel the mindset and heartset of some of these people, and I can't help but empathize - amidst being frustrated, angry, and somewhat frightened with it all. I participated in a few interventions, and for those that have really invested themselves in the cult views, it is extremely rough to get them to look anywhere else - especially if the cult has given them an identity, the sense that they have secrets that others don't, a sense of belonging for the first time. Those are the people that sadden me. I know how hard it can be to pull out of that - on all levels, physical, mental, even soul. It can be incredibly excruciating, and it takes time - and they have to be kept from that cult. It's a matter of reprogramming. Anyway - getting a lot of these people to come back to what we call reality will certainly not happen easily if at all. The universe would have to intervene somehow. It saddens me. I see them as wounded - as having had something precious taken from them - and there is nothing I can do.
Mike S., I always tell them "If I'm going to hell, then I am probably going to the same place YOU are, because spending eternity with you would truly be a nightmare!". Basically the tl;dr version of your comeback. :D
I think the cult-powered anti-evidence shields tend to fend off any individual confrontation, but I wonder if they are powerful enough to keep Trump's entire base free of reality. By playing the world's most aggrieved victim card again and again and again, I am wondering if "The Strong Man" is not looking increasingly pathetic, even to some of his flock?
I think that one very important thing that is happening a sudden rise in strong, decisive resistance to Republican lies and malfeasance.
Absolutely.
JL, from my view, the answer is either "no" or "not yet". I have a friend who posted on Facebook that he hung his "Democrat triggering device" out front with a photo of his freshly painted house flying an American flag. I shared the photo of the front of my house flying both the US and inclusive Pride flags and commented that, as a proud American, it didn't trigger me. Several of his friends didn't even acknowledge what I had said...
Of course they didn't acknowledge because the US flag belongs to them and not the rest of us. Plus you have that pride flag. Of course, it's OK for them to fly the stars and bars, the flag of insurrectionists.
Authoritarians love theater which obfuscates their true agendas; pageantry, show-of-force parades, public executions, bread and circuses with more circus than bread. They claim to own patriotism with showy gestures, such as Trump molesting the flag. Their brand of "patriotism" is unquestioning acceptance of the legitimacy of their own agenda; so much flag waving that we might be distracted from the malicious self-servingness of threatening to default on the nation's financial obligations, "shut down" needed and orderly government services, or block staffing of essential military positions attempting to extort partisan capitulation. Look at how the Constitution describes a "militia" contrasted with their gangs of goons with guns. The beating heart of a nation is its people.
The many that I know do not believe that they have been "had." Their commitment to their cause has gotten even stronger in response to the perceived threats against it.
Joanne, there are different levels of insanity, no doubt. I don't know any of the true believers in person, but I've certainly gotten vicious screeds from them by email and DM. Religious fanatics, almost all of them.
Alexandra--So true. Sorry you've received the vicious screeds--as have I. Unfortunately, I live in Las Vegas (possibly the country's stronghold of highly educated, obscenely wealthy right-wingers, whose now-deceased exalted leader, Republican financier, Sheldon Adelson and his physician wife contributed exorbitantly to TFG's presidential campaigns), where his voters see him as their economic tool. PS: When I moved to LV from San Francisco Bay Area, I felt as if I'd walked through the looking glass.
Joanne, UGH. I'm from the Bay Area, too and I feel your pain. The wealthy are another class of tffg supporters. They know full well he's a liar and a con but as long as their portfolios are benefitting, f--- the rest of us.
I moved from SF to LV in 2012.
I am pissed that the fake electors won't be prosecuted because there is no law on the books in regards to their crimes.
I'll bet that many, if not most, of those rich right-wingers don't actually live in Vegas but have lovely homes in California. They go through elaborate schemes to pretend Nevada residency to get out of CA taxes. Same situation, Incline Village, Nevada, at Lake Tahoe
Alexandra, with all the evidence which has come forth about Trump's immoral and illegal actions, I had hopes that those "stone walls" would crumble and allow the truth to permeate. Trump's hold on his followers is as solid as that stone wall. They know the kind of person he is and yet they will never waver in their support and defense of him. That says more about them than him.
So many of the red-hat waving masses will be encouraged by him to commit dangerous acts and that is so scary to me. I don't think the majority know "they have been had." So sad and unbelievable.
During his presidency, I tweaked a quote and shared it with my friends who understood how infantile and selfish he was. " Democracy used to mean that anyone could grow up to be president. Now it means that anyone who HASN'T grown up can be president."
It's also a cognitive bias thing -- call it a combination of cognitive dissonance, "The Emperor's New Clothes effect" + "sunk cost effect." Somewhere in their teeny little minds they suspect they are wrong, but it's much too humiliating to admit to that, and could require courage they don't have. So they double down as a matter of their own psychological survival.
“That’s too humiliating to admit.” So honest . Who wants to be told “You’re a hitlerized idiot.”
I still don’t understand how Fox News personalities can knowingly lie to their audience and get away with it under protections of “freedom of speech.” There has got to be legal accountability for misleading millions of people, which led to a violent insurrection.
This needs to be the next debate our country focuses on: how to preserve free speech rights without allowing or encouraging dangerous but profitable lies that corrupt the future of those very rights.
I feel the same way, Cathy. It's so hard to understand. I live in SW Florida and am surrounded by people who only get their news from Fox or Newsmax. They are not all religious nor are they all wealthy. They are simply brainwashed. But I do wonder how those newscasters can sleep at night when they know full well that they are lying!
I suspect Carol their elevated bank balances rock them to sleep very peacefully.
Sad but true!
I was just reading the other day that Bill Kristol (strange bedfellows these days! :D ) is joining an effort to have the FCC deny the Fox affiliate in Philadelphia their broadcasting license, based on "character issues".
I don't know a lot of detail about it, but if it succeeds, maybe it can turn into a nationwide effort to bring back something like the Fairness Doctrine that could also apply to cable.
Like I've said before, a girl can dream. :)
Here's on thought on how to stop platforms from spreading lies: (I come at this from my 20 years as a newspaper reporter from 1985 to 2003) Congress could restore and expand The Fairness Doctrine and the FCC laws that used to govern the use of the radio and television broadcasting airwaves. These rules precluded more than one broadcasting entity owning more than one platform (newspapers, radio station, TV station) in the same geographical market in the days when TV and radio were licensed. Those laws were never extended to other media platforms as new technologies developed (i.e. cable, satellite, social media). And so, even the traditional broadcasters were allowed to buy up all the media and become monopolies, with unfettered rights to do as they pleased, without any of the responsibilities of ensuring -- as newspapers and broadcasters had -- to print what could be verified as the truth, and not willingly print or disseminate lies. The laws governing libel and slander still exist, but have been ignored and given no teeth when it comes to FOX and social media platforms. That is why, finally, the lies became so egregious that Dominion finally had a strong enough case against Fox. We shall see if the other defamation suits prevail against them.
A return of the Fairness Act might help, though there is such lust for absolute power and so much “what aboutism” that there may be no cure except the law.
Market share. Pandering to the base.
Chilling and stupefying indeed, Alexandra!
My anger at Despicable Don is superseded by the deep dismay I feel at the fact that this has happened to us, to our Country, and to our Countrymen and Countrywomen.
Now I know what Colonel Kurtz felt-----"The horror, the horror"
Perfect quote, Daniel. It is.
Thanks, my friend
I have thought about that quote many times over the last 8 years.
And the creature mocked and defiled the most sacred places of the Republic. He treated them as his television stage setting.
Yes! I'd say he even mocked the symbols of his true believers' religion. That photo op with the Bible in front of that church was appalling sacrilege — even to this non-believer.
His daughter had put that Bible in her handbag and gave it to him on the way there. It was all unbelievably fake.
Helsinki and that March to the church will always stand out as the most disgusting, telling acts of his presidency (lower case intended.) He told the nation who he was yet those seeking power, trailed by those brainwashed by lies and lacking education allowed him to flourish. May the bloom finally be off the rose and thorns be gathered up and trashed. August 1 is a day to remember.
I echo that, fervently. (Bloom? I thought that was dye.)
And what rock is his plastic daughter hiding under?
She converted to Judaism. Hearing that she handed it to him made me think.....what?!
It really was/is just a prop to them.
You would think the Evangelicals would be offended.
Until you remember it is just a prop for most of them as well.
Oh, I didn't suppose for a minute that it belonged to her!! But there's bound to be numbers of them in the White House - any place where people have to take an oath - and she was one jump ahead of him. Remember when he held it up, then checked to see which way was up, and one of the reporters said, "Is it yours?" and oddly enough he told the truth: "No, but it's a Bible". The whole thing was so screamingly reality-show. I mean, why did he go down there, if not for a photo op? He didn't go into the church, which was shut anyway. In fact he didn't even stand in front of the church, he was photographed next door, outside the office of the church, in front of a sign saying "St John's Church".
Propaganda of the clumsiest kind.
I have been thinking of 45 as the “Anti-christ” of our Democracy. Your comment is so apt, because it might produce an epiphanic breakthrough for a few more of his evangelical supporters who still don’t get it.
Yes, tfg is campaigning as a martyr, "I did this for you." What BS.
“No you didn’t; I’m not the one who crimed.”
Two likes and a !
I am an artist who makes and sells beadwoven jewelry. I was at an art fair over the weekend and one of my customers commissioned a bracelet. We were on the phone last night talking; she had the TV on in the background. When they announced the indictment, Yvonne suddenly just stopped talking. It took her a good two minutes before she could just let me know that she was OK but needed time to process what had just been announced. Her comment? “Stupifying. Gobsmacking. Maybe we can hand off a democracy to our grands.” This woman is a retired VP of Sales of a Fortune 500 company, mother of 4, grandmother of 6. Large and in charge at 82. And nearly overwhelmed with fear about our future.
I got off the phone and just sat. In my lifetime, we indicted a former President of the United States for attempting to prevent the peaceful transfer of power. &@!#%!
Let’s hope we find a way to further repair the guardrails. They are pretty badly battered and there are plenty of Americans who want to damage them further. On our watch. Lots to do for the 2024 election!
In a document of non-stop horror, this is one of the most horrific events of all. They intended to use the Insurrection Act (a law that allows the military to be deployed against U.S. civilians) if citizens rose up to protest the overthrow of our own government.
"On the afternoon of January 3, Co-Conspirator 4 spoke with a Deputy White House Counsel. The previous month, the Deputy White House Counsel had informed the Defendant that "there is no world, there is no option in which you do not leave the White House [o]n
January 20th.
Now, the same Deputy White House Counsel tried to dissuade Co-Conspirator 4
from assuming the role of Acting Attorney General. The Deputy White House Counsel reiterated to Co-Conspirator 4 that there had not been outcome-determinative fraud in the election and that if the Defendant remained in office nonetheless, there would be riots in every major city in the United States.
Co-Conspirator 4 responded, Well,[Deputy White House Counsel], that's why there's an Insurrection Act."
Chilling
It seems a unique plot against the procedural heart of the republic.
The second most grievous crime against this country was an entire political party’s decision to put up and shut up in order to save their own hides, consciously becoming enthusiastic mouthpieces for a criminal president and the bit actors who did his bidding. These man and women, whose salaries and lifetime benefits, i help pay, who have been elected to defend and support our constitution and our democratic institutions, are and forever will remain in my view the
Correction offered: The indictment summarizes THE WORST offense against our country and our democracy in our history.
I know what you're saying Rusty, but the atrocity of legal slavery and everything related to it has to come first.
It is a personal attack on each and every voter.
Alexandra Sokoloff: Your response is a true, concise, and full reaction to the horror inflicted upon our Nation by this angry, twisted Mob boss, Trump.
I am thinking of my grandfather on my Dad's side this evening. I never got to meet him, but he was deeply beloved by everyone in my Dad's family. He was a colonel in World War II in Africa, a JAG, who gave up promotion to General and a prosecutorial spot in the Nuremburg trials because he preferred to start his own practice and spend more time with his beloved wife and children. It was expected that each year, he would travel to D.C. for business. I hear tell somewhere there is a photo of my Aunt Susie sitting at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office, courtesy of a "tour" given in the President's absence from one of Grandpa's associates from "back when." (Obviously, this would never happen now.) My Ancestry-obsessed Mom found his obit in the LA Times recently; it listed him as an Assistant US Attorney General. My Dad tells of him as warm and loving, but very, very methodical and meticulous. Dad recalls him eating even a sandwich with a fork and knife, and being able to do so while playing with a baby... and getting not one tiny spot on his starched white dress shirt. Every button buttoned, nary a thread out of place.
People like Jack Smith and Merrick Garland strike me as these sorts of men: blessed holdovers from a time of all business and no drama. Idealists when it comes to the importance of the law, staunchly by-the-book when it comes to its application. Not political "stars," but total professionals one and all. Unflinching, but unhurried. Months ago, when people were gettin' grumpy and giving up hope DOJ would ever reach the arm of the law out to grab tfg, I just kept my mouth shut and sat tight. I thought to myself, "Oh, y'all just wait. These guys are a bunch of Grandpa Collmans. They'll get there when they get there, not a day earlier than fully prepared, and not a day later than fully effective." It appears, to my relief and satisfaction, that my choice to retain faith in the processes of our institutions to deliver - when run by true civil servants - is being vindicated. (Yay!)
We have so little patience in this world today, and so much anxiety. It is now time for the judge and jury to mete out the next step of justice to these traitors. Not being on that jury, I will be devoting my democracy-saving energy not to gloating over deserved downfalls, but to positively spreading the gospel of good governance that we are lucky to be seeing demonstrated for us again by the Biden Administration. We don't just need accountability to heal, we also need our aspiration back as a nation.
A republic, if we can keep it.
I don't know what you do for a living, Will, but I sincerely hope you have a career in administration somewhere.
I do not currently occupy that line of work, but I will choose to take this as a compliment!
You absolutely should. The level of maturity and grace in your comment says a lot about you and how you treat others.
Beautifully expressed. Thank you for the story about your grandfather, and for your eloquence Yes, “a Republic if we can keep it.”
The IF WE CAN KEEP IT PART is what challenges me and right now we best figure out some ‘ways’ to do that!
It *can* feel overwhelming. All we can really be is a drop in the bucket. But 80 million drops makes a flood! (Or at least, like, enough to wash the dirty dishes.)
Will, from Cal - And the very dirty laundry
Will, from Cal...."....a drop in the bucket.....but 80 million drops makes a flood!"
Hope for washing a lot of dirty dishes!!!''
Hope is a great ideal to hold onto and to act out at the voting booth!!!
"I thought to myself, "Oh, y'all just wait. These guys are a bunch of Grandpa Collmans. They'll get there when they get there, not a day earlier than fully prepared, and not a day later than fully effective." It appears, to my relief and satisfaction, that my choice to retain faith in the processes of our institutions to deliver - when run by true civil servants - is being vindicated. (Yay!)"
YES!! Thank you for this superb example. And congrats on having such a wonderful grandfather to honor and emulate.
Thank-you, Will
We always look for your comments here, Wil. Thanks for writing this wonderful post. We don’t have that Grampa Collman experience to help ground us through these Narrows but we kept cupping our hands around the flame, thinking and talking about the legions of dedicated, law-abiding people who must be working around the clock behind the scenes and in the White House to overcome horrific damages and build us back. Their work becomes more and more evident every day. We do “need our aspiration back as a nation.” Let’s make it happen.
I love this comment!
I had to fight the anxiety I felt every time I read columns opining that "Merrick Garland isn't doing the job!".
Thank God I was already reading Heather's blog, and then found Joyce Vance's and Teri Kanefield's as well, which has kept me from spinning out of orbit.
I hold Jack Smith up there with the Gregory Peck version of Atticus Finch: intelligent, honest, thorough, honorable, and DECENT.
Well said, Will. I shall be positively spreading the gospel of good governance myself. Working hard to keep our Republic as well.
“…to positively spreading the gospel of good governance “ That is a brilliant way of putting it. May I borrow the phrase for an op-ed piece I have been thinking of writing? Yes, brilliant!
Oh, absolutely! Thanks, Debra.
Always look forward to your comments, stories and opinions, Will!
It's a quandary because so much is happening fast these days that is in need of urgent attention and rectification, but yes, we don't want to see sloppy brain surgery, and I so admire public service personnel who take their duties very seriously. Many worthwhile things require constant and sustained attention and management (perseverance furthers) including grass-roots social movements. We are being massively oversold on immature instant gratification.
Oddly I see taking the long, strategic view as "conservative" in a way that contrasts starkly with the way the word is used in politics. I consider the scientific method "conservative" in the former sense, and well integrated with imagination and an adventuring spirit, it is a powerhouse of discovery and beneficial innovation.
'The grand jury indicted Trump for “conspiracy to defraud the United States"'
There it is.
And yet his minions...including the republican party...still support him and donate their hard earned money to prop up his con and pretend they are doing their patriotic duty. What will it take to open their eyes and take their fingers out of their ears?
Like the Confederates, they cannot be persuaded or reasoned with--Trump is their Lost Cause. They can only be steamrolled by Lady Justice, and Mr. Smith is at the wheel.
"Like the Confederates..." could be written "As Confederates..." Note that majority of The Orange Criminal Clown's electoral votes came from former Confederate states. Wonder if Trump will be reducing the number of White Supremacy dinner guests given that his new judge is Jamaican.
So be it
RE "What will it take to open their eyes and take their fingers out of their ears?": Their eyes are wide open and their ears are unblocked. They live in a different world than we do, and since they consider us threats to their existence, they believe that they and their leader are true patriots.
It is a very sad state of affairs. Somewhere along the line, his minions didn't learn how to thinking critically. They have always been here but with the orange king of chaos, they have been emboldened to reveal themselves.
And what a shock I have had, over and over…
Public schools have a role to teach critical thinking. I think they have fallen down on the job. Witness the teachers leaving in droves.
The schools have not fallen down on the job. They've been squeezed with "reforms" and "no child left behind" and "charter schools" to the point that the US educational system is a shadow of its former self.
Teachers are leaving in droves because parents who think they know more than the teachers are "driving the bus". school systems are requiring that they teach to a test so they can be supposedly ranked higher, and because of LOW pay. Teachers have to continually get more education on their own dime, give more free hours to students, in some cases buy their own teaching aids and for what, no respect and helicopter parents telling them how to teach!
My "native Floridian" mother said that she's "over Trump" now that they have DeSantis, who is only trying to "keep us safe."
What does one say? I studied at the feet of Cornel West...
“What dies one say?” you ask. I share your frustration to reach such unthinking supporters. I guess the first question to pose would be “keep us safe from what, exactly. “ And not in a snarky manner, but to find out the basis of their fears and their beliefs about the kind of person they see as a savior. I don’t know that most of his supporters can articulate what those are. But Fox channel seems to know enough to fully exploit a third of the countries citizens.
They feel that their right to be a controller and racist is God-given.
Yes--Exactly.
Joanne, what’s worse is that they believe that “the left” or “the libs” have adopted the tactics of a mob family—a clear case of projection. I recently ran into a person who was convinced that the reason that Devon Archer rebuffed the rumors about Hunter Biden bribes is that he was threatened—not that they weren’t true.
Mary--So true!
Joanne...you are correct. Wishful thinking on my part.
Rolyac--I wish I were wrong . . .
And, apparently, even Ronna McDaniel, a member of the Romney family, had signed on to the fake elector strategy. Her grandfather would be spinning in his grave.
I had the same thought. As a liberal, I find myself missing the the sturdy Republicans of yore…..who knew??!!
Exactly. We benefit from a strong opposition. But it should also be honest and more patriotic than partisan.
Ronna McDaniel - unindicted co-conspirator #6 ?
Sometimes, I ponder the same thoughts…and then a great Italian saying, from popular wisdom, pops into my head…
”Lavar la faccia all’asino è un guasto di tempo e di sapone”…😂🤣 knowledge can cure ignorance but the antidote to stupid????…still working on it !
I haven’t heard that one! It’s funny. And yet, I wash my horse’s face every day, even if he isn’t a donkey 😂 but I probably am wasting both time and soap.
After a brilliant summary concerning the indictment by The United States of America v. Donald J. Trump, defendant, HCR ended today's Letter with Nancy Pelosi. The former House Speaker's decision to create the select committee to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection after a bipartisan bill to set up an outside commission was filibustered by Senate Republicans was pivotal in leading to this indictment.
Here's to 'Nancy Pelosi'!
The United States of America v. Donald J. Trump, defendant
A new day for the USA.
‘The Justice Department unveiled an indictment on Tuesday charging former President Donald J. Trump with four criminal counts. They relate to Mr. Trump’s attempts to overturn the results of the 2020 election, which culminated in the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol by a mob of his supporters.’
'1 count: Conspiracy to defraud the United States
The charge against Mr. Trump details the various methods he and co-conspirators used to try to overturn the results of the 2020 election.'
'2 counts: Related to efforts to obstruct the vote certification proceedings
Mr. Trump faces two charges involving the vote certification proceedings at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021: one of obstructing that process and one of conspiring to do so.'
'1 count: Conspiracy to violate civil rights
Related to Mr. Trump’s attempts to reverse election results in states with close elections in 2020.'(NYTimes)
Jack Smith, special prosecutor:
“The attack on our nation’s Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, was an unprecedented assault on the seat of American democracy. As described in the indictment, it was fueled by lies – lies by the defendant targeted at obstructing a bedrock function of the U.S. government: the nation’s process of collecting, counting and certifying the results of the presidential election.”
Trump campaign:
“This is nothing more than the latest corrupt chapter in the continued pathetic attempt by the Biden Crime Family and their weaponized Department of Justice to interfere with the 2024 Presidential Election, in which President Trump is the undisputed frontrunner, and leading by substantial margins.”
I wish I could be a lark singing through this night because that is how absolutely happy I am that the lying, cruel, negligent, lethal, schmuck of a former president has been criminally indicted by the United States of America.
Re: “the Biden Crime Family.” Has anyone else noticed how quiet those clacking Trump children have become? One might even think they’d been warned to — as Archie Bunker would say — stifle it.
the silence is deafening, isn't it?
Thank you, Fern. "Schmuck" , that is the best name for this worthless blob of flesh that I have heard in a very long time!
Thank you, Colette, most particularly for your approval of my use of 'language'. I very rarely use words that cut as knives, but, with this one, what he has done to us is deserving of the darkest words.
Could Putz be a corollary to schmuck?
Good try, Dave. 'Putz' is workable as a description of his soft, balloon shaped body. How about, 'Putzie'?
😂
Thank you, Fern, for the perfect term; TFG is truly both “foolish” and “contemptible “.
My favorite term for his enablers is “remora fish”; they swim with the shark, cleaning up his messes and hope that he doesn’t eat them in the most cruel manner when they don’t swim closely enough (past services/subjugations won’t decrease the cruelty).
Very amusing, Mary. Thank you. I bet he has 'remora fish' for dessert with ice cream. That's the way he likes them.
And ketchup.
'Remora fish' with ice cream and ketchup, a trump delicacy!
From Wikipedia “The Remora, sometimes called sucker fish. . .”
True confession: I put my head on the pillow before 10 p.m. after watching Jack Smith's measured announcement and slept through the night for the first time in a very long time. I didn't even wake up to see what HCR might have to say, because somehow I felt that the center had held. Her summary, of course, captures the best of the day's events, I had missed Pelosi's remarks, but I loved watching Jack Smith's facial composure, which inspires confidence that he did his work meticulously.
Jack Smith is now fabulous to look at!
I concur.
A great reminder about Pelosi's decision, and a perfect summary in your final paragraph, Fern. Thank you!
Thank you, efh. It was with the lark and Jack Smith that I took flight singing.
Fern-- Joining you in your song! 🎶 Oh Skylark . . . my heart {and hope!} is flying on your wings . . .🎶
Thank you Heather. It should not stop with the six co-conspirators. The indictments should also involve all who acted as accessories after the fact.
Yes I agree. Starting with the Speaker of the house. Republicans from the house and senate. Several of them help organize and planned this insurrection. They must be accountable.
I think that Kevin McCarthy is personally responsible for the “rehabilitation” of Trump. That trip down to Mar a Lago after January 6, complete with photo op, is what allowed Trump to be relevant to republicans again. Remember what many of them said about him right after January 6? And look at the toadies now.
Like x 1,000
You must mean the outfit who declared that the Jan 6th insurrectionists were 'ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse'. Sometimes there really is a conspiracy.
... remember those fox news criminals who published tapes of the Jan 6th insurrectionists, calling those illegitimate people in the Capitol 'tourists'?
... and it should not stop with those accessories either. tfg must appear in court tomorrow and then be arraigned, leave his passport to the DOJ and be disallowed to do any more rallies, where he would spew and repeat more lies and utter more threats to people who finally show him that he is not above the law.
Simply the best, as always. HCR pulls it all together with her powerful, eloquent distillation of the facts behind the indictment. I so appreciate how she references the 23 people on the grand jury right at the beginning of this Letter. That is such an important element in this story. Jack Smith did not indict, he made the arguments, he laid our the evidence. Then a grand jury of 23 people, 23 peers, 23 ordinary Americans, indicted the former president.
I was joking with my Dad earlier... Can you imagine getting a jury summons, not really having a good excuse, so you trudge along down to the courthouse, admiring the architecture as you try to find your way through the lobby, hoping the case is something easy like shoplifting so you can get outta there after a few days and won't have that many emails to catch up on... only to find you have been cast in the pivotal role in CHEETO VS. DEMOCRACY: CRIME OF THE CENTURY: GRAND FINALE!!!?
Oy!
Oh Will, you have such a way with words. It’s always a pleasure to see your name.
D'awww, thanks Betsy. The trick is to use as many of them as possible!
😂🤣 Marvelous!! I love this!!
Will, from Cal: And Vey!
Yes, that was so strikingly clear. 23 ordinary Americans.
They are extraordinary today.
Thank you for conveying the information you have on the indictment. I have, so far, gotten to page 12 of the indictment. Jack Smith explains the charges and why they are being made in a way that is easy to follow and understand. I hope many will read it.
The fact that Ronna McDaniel is involved shows how amoral the Republican Party has become. They have no love for democracy, only lust for power. From Lincoln to Trump--It is heartbreaking.
Buried in the weeds of the indictment and the story behind it, of the greatest threat to the beautiful compact the Founders made with their fellow Americans then, and down through the generations, is the abysmal fact that Ronna McDaniel, the niece of the last sane and civil Republican nominee for President, may have been involved in this sordid sedition.
I am stunned
Having grown up in Michigan, I think that George and Lenora Romney would be appalled by Mitt and Ronna's beliefs and actions.
Ronna McD and RFK Jr. are doing more to make me question the notions of evolution and natural selection than the evangelical homeschoolers I grew up with ever did.
I have to say that this is really strange. I grew up in small town MI too.
I live in a small town in Michigan, can remember when Romney was Governor and the after effects of Ike was leading a surge in the Middle Class. Government seemed so clear back then
Yes.
Liked George, agree
Don’t think I can be stunned anymore, but the cretins keep digging. Ronna is as evil as any, deliberately and with malace
Lanna and Daniel, thanks for bringing up traitorous McDaniel, who oversaw the Republican censure of truth tellers Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. There's a special place in hell....
And lest we forget Jim Jordan, Tommy Tuberville, James Comer, Gosar, etc, who still support, defend and work against our American democracy! Lock them all up!
HeeHawley, Jordan, Boebert ... the list is almost endless.
Where even demons fear to tread.
I misread this as " Where even donors fear to tread." That works too.
LOL! I'm stealing this immediately! Your accidental brilliance is our gain!
Hah... Glad to be of service 😍
I think Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne would approve!
"Vice strides in, where donors fear to tread . . .
but donors still will pay the price
when democracy is dead.
When T won, we saw how evil begins . . .
So let's stand up as patriots
and wear our pins! "
The indictment writing from Smith is simple, powerful, and easy to understand. Just like the indictment he issued for the other case. He has a great way with words., and I consider both documents bulletproof.
Hope you are correct. The fact that so many people conspire to destroy our democracy is truly chilling.
CRIME PAYS: that is the proposition we are looking at, both in the USA and Russia, not to forget a host of minor players in various corners of the world. And to this point it has worked. The question now is will the house come crashing down or will he become President and pardon himself and will his buddy then survive this war in the Ukraine (scratch my back and I scratch yours). Interesting that Pravda means Truth (remember that valuable source of long ago USSR news?). And now we have Truth Social. I feel as though I have entered some alternative reality and keep thinking it just cannot go on. Yet it does.
I remember Stephen; "Pravda" then 'Pravda Social' now. Hang in there the Final chapter is ahead. Professor Joyce Vance: "We're in this Together".
There is no news on Фокс, nor truth on Правда Социальная.
Nicely done!
I can't claim originality; in the Soviet Union, folks used to say "There's no news in Izvestia, and no truth in Pravda."
We are watching an attempt to destroy our way of government as occasioned by Mr. Trump. This attempt to destroy the US government has been building since the 1970s. Many saw this growing in real-time and tried to warn others. Now, these long consequences of power for power's sake are here, and it is just like the long consequences of climate change and life destruction for money and power. These are also here and we are living through the consequences now. I wish us luck and hard work getting through this intact. We will need it.
Yes you will need it because getting money out of politics will be extremely difficult.
Well, we did once have McCain-Feingold, which the Supreme Court threw out. IWe might have a chance if we threw out the Republican majority. Unlikely, I know, but let's be clear about where the problem lies.
Teresa D. Hawkes: Exactly.
A SUGGESTION in light of today’s indictments, ESPECIALLY ‘ conspiracy against the right to vote and to have one’s vote counted.” ….located on page 2 of the 45 page Indictment, the third conspiracy charge against Trump was the citation of a major violation of federal law…..the constitutional right to vote (The Right to Vote 1512 U.S.C. 241. )
It is the particular conspiracy charge that makes me most angry ….my blood boil…that hideous President AND these horrible people were seriously messing with MY RIGHT TO VOTE and attempting TO TAKE AWAY MY VOTE for Biden AND if re-elected would take away our democracy.
I know it’s terribly important that everyone in the US ‘truly get it’ what’s at stake IN THIS NEXT ELECTION….and while I don’t think billboards and bumper stickers are the ‘be all or end all’ political advertising….I’m very seriously thinking of going online and ordering some bumper stickers that say “The Right to Vote 1512 U.S.C. 241….”
Also, I think that some billboards might want to express the same sentiment….perhaps with additional discussion of what was attempted….we need a national discussion on this …RIGHT NOW.
Today's indictment of trump for J6 appears to be spurring people to action based on righteous rage, in contrast to the previous indictments of trump, and even the J6 hearings last year, in which we were spectators. Robert Hubbell quotes Tom Nichols that we "must speak up and speak out," and, "we must be willing to speak this truth not only to power but to our fellow citizens."
https://open.substack.com/pub/roberthubbell/p/today-an-indictment-was-unsealed?r=6pp8t&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=email
https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2023/08/trump-indictment-charges-overturn-2020-election/674887/
Heather herself in today's video chat on Facebook ended by encouraging us to speak up that we are the patriots upholding the institutions of our liberal democracy, the foundation for self-determination. She said she's going to start wearing an American flag pin. We each can become so conversant in what liberal democracy means, and fly our flag.
https://fb.watch/m9OeKra8N2/
We don’t have a choice…speaking up is what patriots do when their freedom is imperiled……my right to vote and yours were ALREADY imperiled by Trump when he didn’t like the honest 2020 election result…..
We must act…I’m suggesting a doable ‘action’….those bumper stickers are cheap and easily acquired…I’d welcome OTHER suggestions too!
“The Right to Vote 1512 U.S.C. 241….” is an intriguing conversation starter. That’s the objective, and the medium can be anything: billboard, bumper sticker, T-shirt, pin…folks have different preferences.
exactly …..but I wouldn’t mind some very large billboards strategically placed in the purple states in ‘swing districts’….that said just that!
And I’d love that statement to preface just about everything Trump related that occurs in this next year plus…BECAUSE that’s what this next election is all about as the very conservative Judge Luttig made clear today….
“YOUR right to vote” might be a little less abstract
Barbara McQuade’s version:
“Count 4: Conspiracy to Deprive the Right to Vote“
https://www.threads.net/@barbmcquade/post/Cvb9WUeOWld/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
Agree!
EVERYONE'S right to Vote.
Even better!
I loved the ending to Heather’s talk last night. It truly angers me that the American flag, MY American flag, has been highjacked by the right.
Same here, Betsy. I refuse to let them usurp my flag.
Love that she will be wearing her flag pin. I will too.
Thanks Ellie! Just ordered 12 American flag pins on Amazon. We have a democracy to save!
Interesting comment, Ellie. I have flown my flag (in accordance with flag protocol) daily since September 11, 2001 (I believe that I am on my 30th flag, or thereabouts). My wife and our housemate have objected to this since the RepubliQans began their assault on our country; my reply is that the National Colors are MY flag as well, and they will not take that from me. I have a second standard on the other side of the garage (faces the street) where I fly a number of different flags; Ukrainian mostly these days (on my 3rd flag there) but in May I fly the COPS flag (May is Law Enforcement Memorial Month) and in the summer (June-September) I fly the Inclusive Pride Flag.
A Facebook friend, and former LEO colleague posted about hanging his "new Democrat Triggering Device" on the front of his house (photo of a US Flag). I commented to him that I did not find the flag triggering, and (encouragingly) several of his other friends did as well.
Ellie, super Link to the Tom Nichols' piece, " This is the [ 'the' italicized in the original ] Case".
Credit goes to Robert Hubbell's Substack.
Here’s an update from the inimitable Jessica Craven:
“Anat Schenker-Osorio’s Research Collaborative sent out the following messaging guidance on the new indictments. I thought it was important to quote it in full—very helpful stuff!
With the news that the former MAGA president has been indicted by a Grand Jury of Americans for his criminal conspiracy to overthrow the will of the people, we wanted to share updated guidance. In addition to the message below, we also want to keep in mind the following overarching principles for determining how we convey to voters what has happened, who is responsible and how to proceed:
Push this beyond one actor: the MAGA Republicans that supported, schemed, and covered up for him are still in power today and must be held accountable.
Connect MAGA response to the larger criminal conspiracy - from Congress, to the Courts, to states - of deliberately spreading lies, breaking laws, and fomenting corruption in order to grab and hold onto power.
Focus on outcome arguments about how this endangers our country instead of process framings about hypocrisy or “rule of law.”
Emphasize the role everyday Americans have played and must continue to play to push for accountability. ‘We the people’ weighed the evidence and decided to indict and now we must demand that all those involved face the consequences.
Activate public defiance and use this and other indictments to remind voters that we can and will stand up to and defeat this fascist faction.“
https://open.substack.com/pub/chopwoodcarrywaterdailyactions/p/chop-wood-carry-water-82-d50?r=6pp8t&utm_medium=ios&utm_campaign=post
Thanks Ellie….I sort of checked on your source and many years ago was involved a bit with Celinda Lake and one of the other groups your source uses…and I worked in a field where the national PR guys would contact me weekly with the ‘party line’ ….so I understand such ‘programming’…in fact some of my family has done it as well….
My response to those indictments especially the ‘voting Rights’ was strictly personal…I am outraged that these individuals had the accumulated gall to attempt to remove the most sacred right we have as Americans….
I COULD go on at length relative to the extent of the other indictments…their impact, the range of horrific players involved…but I chose not too initially because in my view (and it turns out Jamie Raskin’s) this is so seminal it deserves its own place space and solutions….
I really like the idea of using the federal designation of the Right to Vote 1512U.S.C. 241….ON T Shirts, bumper stickers billboards, coffee cups …WHERE EVER….
THIS RIGHT TO VOTE IS totally seminal..without it you have nothing….and folks really need to get a handle on that!
And I’m pretty sure Jack Smith would agree as well!
You can contact Jessica Craven directly through her Chop Wood, Carry Water blog. She is an earnest, hard-working grassroots organizer who makes it simple for others of us to follow suit to make our voices heard in the name of democracy. A connection by her with pollster Celinda Lake is not jumping out at me.
It was the Anat Schenker-Osorio’s Research Collaborative that uses a bunch of dem players…Celinda..I think perhaps Peter Hart….
Jessica was I think distributing the Research Collaboratives material and I always like sources so did a bit of exploring.
Joan Leslie: So true. Dems need to take some of the money they waste on large, 4 color mailers that go directly into the recycle bin, and use it for billboards and other effective means of conveying democratic policies and needs.
I really like strategically timed and placed billboards ….
If I could possess 1% of Jack Smith's dignity, I would be a much better man, and a much better American.
Same here.
Same here...
I love watching him. Notice how his facial expressions never belie his words. No demagoguery. I'm sure the grand jurors saw that, too. It's such a sharp contrast from Ken Starr's relentless pursuit of Bill Clinton, which I think led me to underestimate the seriousness of the conduct at hand.
What is stopping you from possessing any amount of dignity?
Jacks dignity is is very deep garnered on the world stage when he took a Head of State war criminal down at The Hague. I tlhink I might be able to count the total number of similar accomplishments on one hand. ✋ Did that----next.
Recall those early media photos of Jack in the purple rimmed Judicial Robes he wore at The Hague? Reportedly, Jack is has the same dignified demeanor in Court no matter how grave the crimes, a very 'special' Prosecutor.
"Dignity" is not synonymous with "accomplishments." Jack might have been dignified far before his many accomplishments. The fact that Jack's dignity is unassailable neither diminishes yours nor your opportunities to develop some!
Every member of Congress who refused to vote to certify the vote, Republicans all, were co-conspirators as well, whether willing or duped. There is also the issue of those legislators, Republicans all, who gave capital “tours” to insurrectionists just prior to Jan. 6th.
And let us not forget the efforts of Washington gad-about Ginnie Thomas doing all she could to promote the Big Lie.
Did they all really believe they could pull it off?
Some commentators postulate Ginnie Thomas is Co-Conspirator #6. That would 'thicken the plot', but Clarence would still not recuse himself! https://people.com/donald-trump-co-conspirators-jan-6-election-interference-7568572
They almost did
I am reminded of something said once long ago” the veneer of democracy is very thin”. There are many people in Congress who should be taken to court by Jack Smith.
“There are many people in Congress who should be taken to court by Jack Smith.“
Agreed. And they all wear little American flag lapel pins.
With a MAGA hat in the trunk of their car.
I just hope justice prevails. I have a good feeling about this Judge that president Obama appointed. I hope she overrules Trumps lawyers demends.
Judge Tanya S Chutkan was appointed by Obama & has been the DC based Sentencing Judge in several J6 Trials. Don't mess with Tanya.
I want to triple-heart this.
Just speaking from my own limited personal experience, but I've never met a Tanya I'd want to mess with. The Emilys and Jennifers and Chloes and even the Kimberlys all do their share of messing. The Tanyas never do.
This is great to hear.
Excellent summary! and so quickly just hours after the announcement. Thank you!!
Thanks brilliantly told May justice and democracy prevail
It was Nancy Pelosi who impaneled a Select Committee of the House to investigate January 6, after Senate Republicans filibustered the creation of a non-partisan Congressional Committee to investigate January 6. Then she kept the miscreants like Jim Jordan off the Select Committee. Thank you Nancy. Without the awesome work of the Select Committee I fear the Biden-Garland DOJ would never have prosecuted Trump. Thank you Nancy. --