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For Representative Scott Perry (R-PA), "righteous causes" are obviously more important than governing. One has to wonder what these folks in the Congress think that their constituents elected them to do. Surely some of them represent veterans or current members of the military, and when the emphasis is on righteous causes instead of proposing a bipartisan bill that will provide for the needs of members of the military and their families, it's unclear what their conception of their job is and whom they think they're helping.

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"Righteous" = "religious". They are the American Taliban.

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“Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views beyond the comprehension of the weak; and that it is doing God’s service when it is violating all his laws.”

- John Adams

Not that there are no responsible uses of power, but the will to subjugate is tyranny.

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J L Graham, this John Adams quote describes Charles Koch, his donor network and others of the morbidly wealthy class. They throw the public a few bones like funding a museum or supporting a university. Those actions, while commendable in principle, are not a replacement for a fair system that allows the most number of people to prosper.

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"morbidly wealthy" 😂

They used to be called robber barons. Glad we have an updated term!

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"Reaganomics" was a "U" turn back to the plutocratic "Gilded Age". if not feudalism, cloaked in a cloud of big lies. Those who would "rule the world" never give up.

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What a great quote, JL.

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Ultimately I think the seeming madness in current "GOP" rhetoric, and the roiling, dark, plutocratic undercurrents, is a product of narcissism run amok, pushing inconvenient "better angels" out of the nest, e.g. logical and evidence-based thinking, integrity, compassion, honor, justice, and "decency" for starters. A fanatical obsession with money, status, and power.

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JL, there is a single word in what you have just written that should not be there: what we are seeing is NOT "seeming" madness. It is madness pure and simple. It is part of a wider epidemic of certifiable mass madness.

Enough to send a fleet of ambulances to Congress...

It is high time to identify psychotic behavior for what it is. In this instance, the same kind of phenomenon as swept across Italy when Mussolini proclaimed himself Duce, when Hitler proclaimed the Third Reich, when Putin sent armies hollowed out by endemic corruption at the top of the officer corps to die invading Ukraine.

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gonna backfire on them big time!

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Black people have lived with tyranny in America since the beginning. It’s no way to live.

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Has always been so, it seems

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And it's an ongoing struggle in which justice ebbs and flows.

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Way past ready for a change

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"Absolute power corrupts absolutely."

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ABSOLUTELY

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They. Just. Don't. Care. They have made a farce out of governance. Their intention isn't to help people or advance our country's interest or security, whether here or abroad. Rather, it's to shove their malign, narrow, unpopular and misguided beliefs down our throats, damn the consequences. Tuberville has been carrying on this way for months in the Senate, delaying military promotions up to a new Marine Corps commandant. Now McCarthy has allowed the band of broken toys to disrupt defense funding, in their pursuit of an extreme right-wing cultural agenda across the spectrum; that's their only goal. And it is indefensible.

They have made a mockery of the Republican party and should be turned out in 2024.

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I'm at the point where there's nothing too bad that can happen to any of them. Just Make America Great Again with their permanent departures, however that happens.

As Oscar Wilde said, "Some spread joy wherever they go, some whenever they go."

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Good morning TC! You made my day.

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Their permanent departures is the best thing i have heard in long time. I personally would not care how it happens just long as they are gone. Good riddance to those despicable scumbags.

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I agree with both you and Oscar Wilde. One of the things I most resent is the way every bit of news about the actions of the extreme right (and I include speech as an action) activates my reaction that something bad enough to knock them out of power would be a welcome development. I don’t like the feeling of wishing something bad on someone, but they’ve earned it. Preferably something like a heart attack — we don’t need any martyrs

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There is surely a serious security flaw in our democratic infrastructure that enables a single $#@%&* to imperil the nation in this way.

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A tuberville and greene, good Heavens. Insanity...

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And asking for “open ended” decision on when the “document” trial begins?

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Great comment, i would like to see that sorry piece of crap Kevin McCarthy removed and thrown out of Congress. He is a wimp and a coward and a low life SOB. These fascists have made a mockery of Congress. And these insane and deluded people that vote them in office are just as bad as they are. My disgust and anger toward these scumbags is off the charts right now. I am totally fed up with their crazy clown show. Tuberville is the most ignorant clown of them all.

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As my sister recently said to me “...I don’t recognize anything about this country anymore.” It is very, very sad and concerning.

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I’m with her. It’s a dystopia I never would have imagined.

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I hear you. I have friends (US citizens)living in other countries who most likely will not return here to live. Not their original plan,either….

Have other acquaintances - a gay couple - who are seriously looking to move to Canada if anti-LBGTQ issues loom any larger…

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I know quite a few people that have moved to Canada, and all of them are really glad they did. It's not perfect there, they tell me it's a huge relief living there not having to be concerned about the direction the United States is headed. They are no longer concerned about the numerous school shootings when they send their children and grandchildren to school in Canada. Prescription medications are much cheaper in Canada. Also, the work environment is much better too.. I have my personal list of things i like about Canada very much too. If the United States becomes a Fascist, dictatorship, our basic freedoms will be a thing of the past, and i for one am not going to put up with that, they are not going to force their BS Christian Nationalism crap on me. They are not going to tell me what i can and can't do. I have taken the first step already by passing the Canadian citizenship test. There is still much more to do just in case those terrorist Fascist Rethuglicans rig and cheat and suppress voting to win elections in 2024. The Rethug fascists are greedy, corrupt, and evil to the core.

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Your sister is right, i was thinking the same thing. When i was young i often think about the way it used to be here in America. Those times seemed so much better than now. If someone had told me that Fascism is trying to take hold here back then, i would have laughed about it and told them they were nuts for even thinking about that kind of thing in America. Look what's happening now. If the Fascist GQP isn't dealt with, it really could happen now.

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“Tuberville is the most ignorant clown of them all.” With all due respect, John, it is a close contest.

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It’s possible clowns like Scott Perry, a retired brigadier general, is representing the people that put him in office. People in Central PA generally vote R because they always have. They don’t know anything about who they’re voting for other than that the candidate is an R...good enough and the D candidate put up against Perry in 2020 was a joke. These things coupled with PA’s stupid party line primary system fosters

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This summation pretty much applies to all the R states.

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In that case, it might be worth while for a Democrat to pose as a Republican next election. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Join the clown car. Have a laugh on the traitors.

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Some R’s are pretending to be Dems, from some recent party-switching.

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Agreed! In PA, if you want to participate in the primaries, you have to be registered as an R or D. As an independent you have no voice in who ends up on the November ballot. Doesn’t seem quite right to me.

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Christine, in Florida you can change your affiliation R,D,I to be able to vote in the primary. Can you change it in PA?

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You can but as an R you can only vote in the R primary and Ds only can vote for Ds...

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This quality of candidate.

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I said in an earlier thread:

These MAGA Republicans always have a bad excuse. I just retired from the USAF. In my experience with them, they fall for the the lies (see Big Lie, 6 JAN, Trump lies) and false patriotism that Republicans & GOP misinformation outlets lie to them about. It's delusional...and you can't reason with Delusion. They can't critically think & refuse to read/listen to credible news sources so they're in a MAGA loop that they refuse to get out of.

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Righteous causes are non negotiable, hasn’t the church always said so. Pragmatism used to hold sway, no more. Combine the power/greed/righteous causes and they see no downside.

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"This year’s budget is $886 billion as the U.S. modernizes the military to compete with new threats such as the rise of China, and it provides a 5.2% increase in pay for military personnel." So will their constituents only see it provides for a 5.2% increase in pay?

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Does any of you know which elected officials are on China's payroll? It seems to me that, barring raw stupidity, a good portion of the republican party is playing chinese checkers.

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Well certainly McConnell. His wife’s family’s shipping business has been bringing all sorts of stuff to our shores.

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I had to look up Chinese Checkers: Complexity: "requires no counting or spelling; even young children can play."[4]

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ah, but still, no cheating. I dimly recall playing that game long ago. Then there is the Japanese game of Go. Deceptively simple in appearance; very hard to fully master.

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So the Japanese game doesn't appear to make the Chinese Checkers "easy to manipulate parameters... is that right?

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Scott Perry is in my district and “righteousness” is definitely his agenda! It is disgusting.

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Thanks for the report from there. Disgusting, indeed.

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Scott Perry should be in jail for his roles in the treasonous failed insurrection of 2020/21. DOJ is allowing these criminals power over us all by not acting with appropriate speed.

Congresspersons who actively engaged in the attempted coup -- Perry etc -- need to be shut down and kicked out of office. Instead, they are sanctimoniously imposing their bigotry on every aspect of our lives.

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Scott Perry is a zealot. Unfortunately, his brand appeals to some voters in PA.District 10, (formerly District 4) so he retains his seat in the US House of Representatives. Perry likes to drape himself in the cloak of patriotism and "godliness" but the fact is he is neither a patriot nor a person of God. He is a fanatical weasel hell bent on creating our country in his own image, and he is not above attacking democratic norms or national security to do it. He serves the interests of those constituents whose belief systems align with his and the rest be damned. Literally in Perry's mind.

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Yes, Kamila, you are so right. I, too, live in District 10. We just can't seem to defeat him, as the ignorant masses always vote the party line.

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Hello, Richard. My condolences for living in PA. District 10. I live in PA.District 16, represented ( I use the term loosely) by the odious Mike Kelly who is cut from the same cloth as Scott Perry. They're the dynamic duo of false conspiracy theories, fake electors, and a failed insurrection. In my opinion, those who continue to support them do so partly because they're low information voters but also because they're fans. They like what Perry and Kelly are selling. Facts mean nothing and fear and hate mongering mean everything. Ultimately, Perry and Kelly won't succeed but they are willing to burn it all down while trying.

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Thanks, Kamili, My condolences also to you for having Kelly as the so-called rep. in District 16. The folks in our two districts obviously must burn up the airways of Fox radio and TV. I this a precursor to what George Orwell wrote in his great book "1984." Let's hope to hell not. Have a good day!

BTW, I didn't think that Jesus preached hate.

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Thank you, Richard. Some folks in our districts support Perry and Kelly but there are others who do not. They are kindred spirits and I'm happy we've connected here.

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They probably plan to trumpet that Democrats opposing their bill are anti- military.

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Joan: We here in Michigan's 1st District have another excellent Democratic candidate to oust oil man U.S. Rep.Jack Bergman! Callie Barr could beat him! Her husband is a vet, great campaign video of their story:

https://youtu.be/F0sKsOPptko

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wow! great story, great video!

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Yes, it would be good to know who bought them.

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They are White Christian Crusaders, the Constitution be damned.

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I flagged that reference to “righteous causes” also. So often people who believe they are tasked by God to do things are unable to see any other way but theirs. It does not matter to these people what the majority of their constituents think—their beliefs must triumph for God. Interestingly, my definition of a leader is “someone who takes people where they need to go.” Unfortunately, these people are taking things in the wrong direction.

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That's it in a nutshell (pun intended): "One has to wonder what these folks in the Congress think their constituents elected them to do." Period.......

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It’s not so much “what their constituents elected them to do”, as “What their big money donors EXPECT them to do.” Blow up the government. It helps business to get away with not only murder, but destroying the planet.

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Agree!

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