“Although we have now heard evidence from Trump’s attorney general William Barr, campaign manager Bill Stepien, White House lawyers, and even his own daughter, testifying under oath, that the 2020 election wasn’t stolen—and that such claims were at least in part a way to cheat small donors out o…
“Although we have now heard evidence from Trump’s attorney general William Barr, campaign manager Bill Stepien, White House lawyers, and even his own daughter, testifying under oath, that the 2020 election wasn’t stolen—and that such claims were at least in part a way to cheat small donors out of $250 million—insisting on the Big Lie has become a requirement for Republican candidates. Yesterday, Amy Gardner and Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post laid out how more than 100 of the Republicans who have won primaries have signed on to the Big Lie, including eight candidates for the U.S. Senate, eighty-six House candidates, five candidates for governor, four for state attorney general, and one for secretary of state.”
Most who have come clean, up to and including Bill Barr, have done so to save their own skin. In Bill Barr's case, he wants to sanitize his badly stained reputation. Take what they offer, but don't forget what contribution they've made to this disaster.
Pam, thanks for this - it's perfect. We can't allow ourselves to forget that, without enablement by Barr and every other complicit Republican, TFG could never have done the amount of damage that has weakened our democracy.
Consider, Barr is surpassed as a grifter only by dopey don! His distortion of the Mueller Report reduced the years of investigation to a 30 second sound byte played over and over again! He was sending trump written advise before he was appointed AG, apparently auditioning for the job!
Too late bubba Billy, people died and dozens injured on Jan 6 while you watched from the sidelines!
I totally agree. I never trusted him, and his dismissal of Mueller's investigation cemented that dislike/distrust. Anything that he does now to clean up his image won't fool me.
Correct Louis - Barr is an evil man. What he did with the Mueller report should "live in infamy." Think about what might have been, had that report received its just due from him. We might have gotten Trump impeached right then, and maybe even indicted, which he fully deserved.
I never could stand him. His sanctimonious piety never fooled me. No truly pious person would have sullied himself by serving TFG. He was glad to serve as TFG's beard in order to climb the steps to the White House later.
Nor did I, Sharon. I live in Indiana and he is not popular here. I can't imagine how he could be liked even by voting Republicans should he run in 2024. But I do think they will kiss and make up if it come to that.
Correction: It was Marcial Maciel, founder of the Legionnaires of Christ who was convicted of child sex abuse. However, Opus Dei, a rival conservative Catholic organization (cult), covered up sex abuse of its members until a prominent Wash. D.C. priest leader, McCloskey, was caught and convicted. I don't know if Opus Dei founder Escriva was an abuser or not. He died in 1975.
This is why the committee started with Bannon knowing he would refuse to testify and now he will go to trial soon. The rest of them decided they didn't want to go to prison for contempt. It would be better to cooperate. They will perhaps not go to prison, but their slate will be covered forever with mire from the bottom of the swamp.
Sadly Michele, those whitewashing will have permanent stains and will be future fodder for Republican office holders. Until the Fox stranglehold on the voice of republicanism is dismantled we won’t see their rank and file voters start to recover from the cultism grip. Also much has yet to become common knowledge of the Reagan years putting together the dog and pony show that led directly into the Trump phenomenon. An entire new addition of the bedside book of bastards is now possible.
Interesting— going with Bannon first. I was disappointed with his trial date being so far out. Now I think maybe it will be effective to have it closer to the election. July, isn’t it? J6 committee will have had its public hearings, and Bannon’s trial will keep at least some public attention on the coup attempt.
On January 7th they were all asking to get on the 'pardon list'. John Eastman wasn't approved for the list, that's why he testified although he took the 5th on most questions.
I disagree. Respectfully. The short/selective memory span of the American people will come to the rescue, and Pence will still be around, perhaps even trying a presidential run. Pence is near the top of my destestometer list - he lies through his teeth almost as often as Trump. And justifies what he does or doesn't do with his hyper-religiosity. The shining example of hypocrisy.
But the thing about Pence - we often wonder just how low these Republican snakes will go, and for many of them we have not yet seen the bottom (Loudermilk the latest example), but we did see Pence's limit. To many, even on the left, that makes him a hero. Man is that a low bar or what?
James, I'm hoping that the January 6 hearings will help to change the "memory" thing. No, there will be no reaction from the rethuglican base, but even disgusted Democrats will be more viscerally affected. I knew that Loudermilk was lying from the beginning, but the surveillance tapes have made me even more convinced that all of them need to go, and it looks as though the "tourist" with the camera is ready to spill what he knows. I'm praying that Garland will take care of that - it looks as though he's ready to, and he's held his cards close to the vest until now.
...and let's not forget Rep. Mikie Sherrill knows her stuff regarding security. I remember when Rachel Maddow spoke w/ her initally. (Rachel was also onto the fake electors early on as well.)
Yes, I heard both when the "tours" and "electors" were discussed, and the alarm bells went off immediately. When Mikie Sherrill's reports appeared to be DOA, I just couldn't fathom it, and believed, as did many, that Merrick Garland was either sleeping or terrified of being accused of partisanship. However, it appears that these two issues were being investigated, and hopefully will be sources of possible indictments. Sherrill could be a valuable resource for the DOJ. You probably saw her with Rachel the other night, when she said she'd seen five (I think) tour groups. It would be wonderful if Lying Loudermilk had lots of company when he faces charges, and is joined by the Georgia and other states' fake elector contingents when they face the music. I hope the Sergeant at Arms of the Capitol Police is vigorously questioned about his response regarding Loudermilk. You probably heard Sherrill relate early on that if any tour groups got permission, they must be conducted by a legislator or an aide, had to register with their names and other identification, etc., so should be easily identified and questioned. From what I've heard, the Loudermilk tour photographer has been contacted by authorities, so it would be surprising if Loudermilk provided his name, since he claims not to know the group. Heads need to roll.
I don't dispute any of what you say but any time Barr is even suggested for a position in government his complicity in the insurrection will come up in the press. The only way he avoids that is if the next couple of Presidents are Republican in which case we'll have bigger problems than a reconstructed Bill Barr.
Exactly -- betrayed. Also disappointed and disillusioned. But being disillusioned is good in this case as it knocks back into reality, namely, that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Checks and balances needed. Even then corruption can find a way in -- see Republicans in our country.
Any party can be corrupted by its own members. Civilization happens when civilians behave responsibly and are content with their fair share. But life isn't perfect.
Actually, although the hearings reveal infuriating backstories, most of it was information that was already out there, but not fleshed out. The presentations have been so thorough that I'd be surprised if they didn't encourage lackadaisical voters to come out, and energize those of us who are worn down by the last 6 years. Additionally, Garland is showing his hand more, so his intentions are much more encouraging. I'm hoping for accountability, finally.
Yes. If he had any integrity at all, after testifying to the truth, he would resign from that campaign, which is clearly running on lies he knows to be lies!😡
I spent 10 minutes googling that question last night. Got lots of announcements of his legitimate excuse to duck out of testifying, one fake birth report, and NO birth announcement.
I blame them all for not speaking up when it was happening. And, how did Trump manage to run for president to start out with. Are there no qualifications? Is there no one that oversees candidates. Any of the candidates. There are so many things he was that should have disqualified him and many that are sitting in the Senate and House currently.
During the 2016 presidential campaign, Judy Woodruff on PBS Newshour, interviewing Mitch McConnell, asked him point blank whether he (McC.) thought Trump was qualified to be president. McC's answer was, in effect, "the American people will decide that". Next time you fly somewhere, think about the possibility of the passengers choosing who will be the pilot.
Sadly, James, that appears to be the case.
“Although we have now heard evidence from Trump’s attorney general William Barr, campaign manager Bill Stepien, White House lawyers, and even his own daughter, testifying under oath, that the 2020 election wasn’t stolen—and that such claims were at least in part a way to cheat small donors out of $250 million—insisting on the Big Lie has become a requirement for Republican candidates. Yesterday, Amy Gardner and Isaac Arnsdorf of the Washington Post laid out how more than 100 of the Republicans who have won primaries have signed on to the Big Lie, including eight candidates for the U.S. Senate, eighty-six House candidates, five candidates for governor, four for state attorney general, and one for secretary of state.”
And Stepien who testified is continuing to fuel the big lie by working for candidates who promote it, ie Harriet Hageman running against Liz Cheney.
Most who have come clean, up to and including Bill Barr, have done so to save their own skin. In Bill Barr's case, he wants to sanitize his badly stained reputation. Take what they offer, but don't forget what contribution they've made to this disaster.
This editorial cartoon says it all. https://www.arcamax.com/politics/editorialcartoons/johndeering/s-2688909?ezine=641&r=1o02Y-FWsha8xj0XX1jhwk7P14GQEhC5-pAo3eJq8WVDOjMwNTI2MDc0MTpKOjIxMjA4NzI6TDo2NDE6UjozMjUyNzQ6UzoyNjg4OTA5OlY6NDg
Pam, thanks for this - it's perfect. We can't allow ourselves to forget that, without enablement by Barr and every other complicit Republican, TFG could never have done the amount of damage that has weakened our democracy.
Great cartoons, but be careful your phone will blow up with unwanted notifications.
Well done.
Consider, Barr is surpassed as a grifter only by dopey don! His distortion of the Mueller Report reduced the years of investigation to a 30 second sound byte played over and over again! He was sending trump written advise before he was appointed AG, apparently auditioning for the job!
Too late bubba Billy, people died and dozens injured on Jan 6 while you watched from the sidelines!
I totally agree. I never trusted him, and his dismissal of Mueller's investigation cemented that dislike/distrust. Anything that he does now to clean up his image won't fool me.
Amen! He's such a snake... and once a snake, always a snake 🐍
Correct Louis - Barr is an evil man. What he did with the Mueller report should "live in infamy." Think about what might have been, had that report received its just due from him. We might have gotten Trump impeached right then, and maybe even indicted, which he fully deserved.
Pence should have spoke up to begin with. He always appeared like the Elf on the Shelf when he was being filmed. He was complicit!
I never could stand him. His sanctimonious piety never fooled me. No truly pious person would have sullied himself by serving TFG. He was glad to serve as TFG's beard in order to climb the steps to the White House later.
In his book he revealed that God disclosed to him that he should be president.
Oh my, I haven't read his book and really don't care too!
Nor did I, Sharon. I live in Indiana and he is not popular here. I can't imagine how he could be liked even by voting Republicans should he run in 2024. But I do think they will kiss and make up if it come to that.
You are probably right. These people scare me to death!
Correction: It was Marcial Maciel, founder of the Legionnaires of Christ who was convicted of child sex abuse. However, Opus Dei, a rival conservative Catholic organization (cult), covered up sex abuse of its members until a prominent Wash. D.C. priest leader, McCloskey, was caught and convicted. I don't know if Opus Dei founder Escriva was an abuser or not. He died in 1975.
My head is exploding! We both know that "God" isn't speaking to him.
I agree!
This is why the committee started with Bannon knowing he would refuse to testify and now he will go to trial soon. The rest of them decided they didn't want to go to prison for contempt. It would be better to cooperate. They will perhaps not go to prison, but their slate will be covered forever with mire from the bottom of the swamp.
Sadly Michele, those whitewashing will have permanent stains and will be future fodder for Republican office holders. Until the Fox stranglehold on the voice of republicanism is dismantled we won’t see their rank and file voters start to recover from the cultism grip. Also much has yet to become common knowledge of the Reagan years putting together the dog and pony show that led directly into the Trump phenomenon. An entire new addition of the bedside book of bastards is now possible.
I bet anything that Bannon wrote the "1776" document mapping out insurrection ("read carefully") given to the proud boys....
Interesting— going with Bannon first. I was disappointed with his trial date being so far out. Now I think maybe it will be effective to have it closer to the election. July, isn’t it? J6 committee will have had its public hearings, and Bannon’s trial will keep at least some public attention on the coup attempt.
BTW, still waiting for those rebuttals tfg wants.
And the only people who won't be repulsed by this person will be the TFG's base.
On January 7th they were all asking to get on the 'pardon list'. John Eastman wasn't approved for the list, that's why he testified although he took the 5th on most questions.
It will be as difficult for Barr to sanitize his reputation as it would be to clean a used piece of toilet paper.
I disagree. Respectfully. The short/selective memory span of the American people will come to the rescue, and Pence will still be around, perhaps even trying a presidential run. Pence is near the top of my destestometer list - he lies through his teeth almost as often as Trump. And justifies what he does or doesn't do with his hyper-religiosity. The shining example of hypocrisy.
But the thing about Pence - we often wonder just how low these Republican snakes will go, and for many of them we have not yet seen the bottom (Loudermilk the latest example), but we did see Pence's limit. To many, even on the left, that makes him a hero. Man is that a low bar or what?
James, I'm hoping that the January 6 hearings will help to change the "memory" thing. No, there will be no reaction from the rethuglican base, but even disgusted Democrats will be more viscerally affected. I knew that Loudermilk was lying from the beginning, but the surveillance tapes have made me even more convinced that all of them need to go, and it looks as though the "tourist" with the camera is ready to spill what he knows. I'm praying that Garland will take care of that - it looks as though he's ready to, and he's held his cards close to the vest until now.
...and let's not forget Rep. Mikie Sherrill knows her stuff regarding security. I remember when Rachel Maddow spoke w/ her initally. (Rachel was also onto the fake electors early on as well.)
Yes, I heard both when the "tours" and "electors" were discussed, and the alarm bells went off immediately. When Mikie Sherrill's reports appeared to be DOA, I just couldn't fathom it, and believed, as did many, that Merrick Garland was either sleeping or terrified of being accused of partisanship. However, it appears that these two issues were being investigated, and hopefully will be sources of possible indictments. Sherrill could be a valuable resource for the DOJ. You probably saw her with Rachel the other night, when she said she'd seen five (I think) tour groups. It would be wonderful if Lying Loudermilk had lots of company when he faces charges, and is joined by the Georgia and other states' fake elector contingents when they face the music. I hope the Sergeant at Arms of the Capitol Police is vigorously questioned about his response regarding Loudermilk. You probably heard Sherrill relate early on that if any tour groups got permission, they must be conducted by a legislator or an aide, had to register with their names and other identification, etc., so should be easily identified and questioned. From what I've heard, the Loudermilk tour photographer has been contacted by authorities, so it would be surprising if Loudermilk provided his name, since he claims not to know the group. Heads need to roll.
I don't dispute any of what you say but any time Barr is even suggested for a position in government his complicity in the insurrection will come up in the press. The only way he avoids that is if the next couple of Presidents are Republican in which case we'll have bigger problems than a reconstructed Bill Barr.
I repeat my post from a day or two ago:
Bill Barr: Trump detached from reality.
Bill Barr: will vote for Trump if he runs for president again.
Bill Barr: WTF.
Is Bill Barr detached from reality or what?
Thank you, Dave! That was a good laugh for me today! LOL. Oh so true!
Opus Dei needs a purge too.
As a Catholic, I agree. Opus Dei has been slimy from the beginning, their founder accused and found guilty of child sex abuse.
Thanks for your note. I'm not Catholic battering. Most of my friends are Catholic. Many of them feel betrayed by church admin
Exactly -- betrayed. Also disappointed and disillusioned. But being disillusioned is good in this case as it knocks back into reality, namely, that power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Checks and balances needed. Even then corruption can find a way in -- see Republicans in our country.
Any party can be corrupted by its own members. Civilization happens when civilians behave responsibly and are content with their fair share. But life isn't perfect.
There is much housecleaning necessary in many quarters, many of which use religion as a means to control and befoul.
Amen!
(Chuckle)
😉
Absolutely! I've been seething through these proceedings!
Actually, although the hearings reveal infuriating backstories, most of it was information that was already out there, but not fleshed out. The presentations have been so thorough that I'd be surprised if they didn't encourage lackadaisical voters to come out, and energize those of us who are worn down by the last 6 years. Additionally, Garland is showing his hand more, so his intentions are much more encouraging. I'm hoping for accountability, finally.
Yes. If he had any integrity at all, after testifying to the truth, he would resign from that campaign, which is clearly running on lies he knows to be lies!😡
Stand by my criticism of Septian the other day, just another lackey ‘unscrupulously chasing the Benjamin’s’ like a mercenary!
By the by, did Bill Stepien's wife have her baby yet?!🙀
I spent 10 minutes googling that question last night. Got lots of announcements of his legitimate excuse to duck out of testifying, one fake birth report, and NO birth announcement.
Oh, you're not suggesting that a Rethuglican would lie, are you?
I think they'd say it was a half truth.... 🥸
I should have anticipated that, but of course, that response would also be a bald-faced lie.
Surprise, surprise
Which goes to show that the gop are not about serving, only about power. The ones who are sitting by looking the other way are just as complicit.
And they've ignored the law and made up their own rules.
What title would you give those rules...
Macievelli?
Piracy? Where can I find that rulebook so I can subvert it?
"Ad Hoc". It will never be published, because they make it up as they go along.
I blame them all for not speaking up when it was happening. And, how did Trump manage to run for president to start out with. Are there no qualifications? Is there no one that oversees candidates. Any of the candidates. There are so many things he was that should have disqualified him and many that are sitting in the Senate and House currently.
During the 2016 presidential campaign, Judy Woodruff on PBS Newshour, interviewing Mitch McConnell, asked him point blank whether he (McC.) thought Trump was qualified to be president. McC's answer was, in effect, "the American people will decide that". Next time you fly somewhere, think about the possibility of the passengers choosing who will be the pilot.
Yikes!
That is a scary thought! Great answer!
Read about how Putin found Trump 20 years ago.
Timothy Snyder's book, The Road to Unfreedom, has an extensive discussion of this.
I am sure that is where the money came from. Look how many Russians purchased his properties!
Exactly!
Just remember, it’s the Primary! Now we can vote the worst of the worst OUT!!!🌊🌊🌊
We have not actually heard Stepian’s testimony. He was allowed to duck out because his wife had ‘gone into labor.’
Poor excuse. LOL
Still waiting to hear about the baby....