Timothy Snyder on Russia and Ukraine, and can we say world and national politics…
“Objectivity does not mean treating an event as a coin flip between two public statements,” he said. “It demands thinking about the objects and the settings that readers require for understanding amidst uncertainty.” Thinking about the world of tfg and his neverending press, free publicity that kept him in the limelight. We need facts and context and history to make informed decisions, which we read every day in HCR, LFAA.
Every time I hear a news channel cover “candidate Trump”, I TURN IT OFF. We media consumers must show our disapproval by shutting down ANTI-DEMOCRATIC rhetoric when we come in contact with it. REFUSE TO TAKE IN THE LIE, AND TURN OFF THE MEDIA SOURCE. Sign out of your social media source on your phone before you get back to it. Disconnecting by signing out keeps the media source from remaining connected when you aren’t actually engaging. It’s the same for the TV - turn it and and the box off, and make sure it stays off for at least a half hour, so it can record that sign-off.
Disconnecting from media sources is not quitting; rather it is its own statement. Enjoy your summer, and don’t allow yourself to get mired in the hate. Good luck.
Tell the media why you are leaving. They all have contact forms online. Numbers talk (see CNN), and your added explanation - every day for a while - drives home the point that reporting the truth matters.
Sharon, I would like to add that it is not just Pence. The whole lot of them is rotten, untruthful and gutless, including Christie, who seems to have recently dug up his spine from somewhere under a pile of dirty clothes in his walk-in closet.
All of these same people were lavishing TFG in praise as he ran the country full speed towards a cliff. Pence sat back, mute and impotent, for over two years after TFG riled a mob to make him either break law and install a dictator, or be hanged. This week, he invoked a vague messianic purpose and finally said what we all witnessed: TFG sicced a mob to kill him and his family. Now that they're competitors, these pawns suddenly see he's unfit. After TFG channels and coalesces the undercurrents of resentment, racism, xenophobia, misogyny and fascism, just like he did last time, he'll once again become the nominee. Then they'll all return to his side; feckless, fawning obedient lapdogs and reflexively, "support the Republican candidate", like the good pets they are.
My thoughts exactly. You describe them perfectly. I wonder how many more will throw their hat in the ring. I know one other wants to move into the White House. I am surprised he hasn't made his move. Pompeo is his name. His son is married to my friend's granddaughter. He may have running mate plans with tfg....
Do we know these actions you are suggesting do indeed work. If so I'm on board. Please anything to back this up with a link. I know I can get other aboard if I can prove to them that it substantially works. Thanks in advance! -saw-
First, it’s about my own peace of mind that I show my disapproval by disconnecting, but every social-media’s success model is measured in number of engagement hours. Social media companies have learned that stress and conflict increases engagement time. By breaking your engagement, you are retraining both your brain and your tiny corner of the internet that you want the truth.
Peace of mind is right JaneDough. I watch PBS Newshour and nothing else. I read trusted journalists. I enjoy a modicum of good mental health. There is his proof. Sheesh. Everyone is a lawyer today?
Steve, Move On, had a huge campaign after the trump town hall and asked us to write a comment to CNN stating our disapproval of the free publicity for trump and how he treated the interviewer. They provided a space where we could write an email.
I did that along with thousands of other people and it was all sent to CNN. It appears to have worked, as I see Licht has been put out. I think CNN got a lot of blow back for that debacle. But the damage was already done. The good news was after that E. Jean Carroll sued trump again for defamation. Hip hip, hooray for her.
Yes Chris Licht is out but I'm pretty sure the present head of CNN is a pretty strong right wing believer - dont recall his name, but read that in a couple places.
I follow a simple rule about lies and dangerous substances. I don't repeatedly read the warning labels (or relisten to rehashes of old lies) on products (or media outlets) that are a danger to my health and well-being. This being the only reasoning I need to never ingest from the cauldrons of Fox Media, Newsmax, ONAN, etc. I will take @sheila Strands advice and share this with my cable provider.
It’s the media’s job to cover him; not to give air to his lies. And if they’re only doing their jobs, great, but I’m not going in on the lie. I’d rather have no opinion than have a “hair-on-fire” reaction. Every time he speaks.
Whats more chilling is the fact that he hasnt been president for over two years and yet his face & voice are on almost every station every day! THATS chilling!
Irenie, As one who has come to believe that objectivity is not satisfied by two opposing people offering competing opinions, leaving the viewer to split the difference, but instead means sifting the truth from the propaganda, including the little fibs and fantasies as well as the Big Lie of the people in power, I very much appreciate you amplifying Timothy Snyder’s call for critical scrutiny.
I often hear ‘both sides are extreme, both sides do it’! First of all what is it?
Relating to false equivalence, the so called extremists on the left demand support for our less fortunate fellow citizens like : preventive health care; a living wage; affordable housing; clean air and clean drinking water!
While the extremists in the right victimize whatever group suits their red meat base. First it was black skin people, then immigrants, now members of the PRIDE community! They fight against clean energy bills, against healthcare for the less fortunate and affordable housing! They support raw vulture capitalism even though nothing has ‘trickled down’ to them!
Sorry, both sides don’t do it! The right wing owns the hate mongering of talk radio which has been lying to the base for decades!
Exactly, Louis! The "liberal" media are so cowed by the mere suggestion (from the right wing) that they are biased that they have bent over backwards to prove their innocence. Conversely, Faux and other extreme right-wing mouthpieces, not only are shamelessly biased, but have no issues in blatantly lying, even when behind the scenes they discuss their discomfort with their malfeasance and contempt for the very people they lionize, all for the cash that comes their way from our resident oligarchs. When do you ever hear a right-wing commentator deliver a scoop, then say "this information was released by (fill in the blank) but has not yet been confirmed by our network"?
You are dead right!! Extremest on the left are seen as socialists. But as Truman said essentially all social progress, as you mentioned, is seen as socialism by Republicans who see any progress as socialism. And equating socialism with Venezuela and Russia and as everyone knows has been horrible.
I too am tired of this both sides are extreme. There is only one party of death and that is the R party. As an aside, I read an interesting article on Huffpost about Keystone Kev praising Willa Cather as a new statue of her has arrived from Nebraska to the hall of statues in the Capitol Building. It is clear that Kevin doesn't know a damn thing about Cather, but the article did make me smile a lot.
I was glad to see the inclusion of Snyder's views. I have read his whole article and posted it and it is well worth reading. One of his points is that the Russians are always lying, so there is no both sides.
In 1992 soon after the demise of USSR, I was part of a team looking at a possible US - Russian joint venture to build commercial aircraft. I was the tech person for aluminum rolling, we had other tech and business folks. I think the team had 17 members including Boeing and NASA and translators.
We didn't meet a single Russian I would trust to do business with, very different than Japan, China, and Europe.
Kind of like doing business with Trump.
Nothing went forward especially with the Russian mob taking over the Russian aluminum industry.
NPR did a good job on that in its Up First segment. Both assertions were stated, but the analysis of which might be telling the truth favored Ukraine, for Snyder’s reasons and for the military difficultly Ukraine would have had to accomplish an attack on a Russian held dam.
If someone had not highlighted that pertinent "closer", it would have been the only thing I felt needed to be said today....and repeated...with respect to so many issues facing us today. Thanks. Hopefully, journalism and "communications" curriculums, across the country, are thinking about how to wrestle with the ideals of truth and justice in a deeper and more complex way for future students. Failing to address the shocking assaults we have all witnessed, especially during these last 8 (long) years , these "schools" will be forced to acknowledge that they are merely training students as advertising agents for their future handlers' prejudices.
Getting past the self interest of popular writers and major powers' PR agencies has is a serious challenge when leaders happily dance on the verge of terminal nuclear war. Snyder's early work is a major gift, but his buying into "we=good, they=bad" war glorification is letting us down. Y'all help me remember who said, "We historians remind people of things they'd rather forget!" War veterans bring essential knowledge to this proxy war: Matthew Hoh, Iraq war veteran and former State Department officer in Afghanistan brings an essential history of this war at https://matthewhoh.substack.com/p/a-war-long-wanted
Another source that isn't just telling people what they wish were true is a blog by Yves Smith, who I first heard excoriating the banks that illegally booted people out of their homes in the 2008 financial crisis. nakedcapitalism.com, "Fearless commentary on finance, economics, politics and power" is hardly anti-capitalist. Instead it offers daily access to the thinking of insiders in finance, manufacturing, etc. For a brisk review of what Big Media are doing, the broadly quoted "Caitlin Johnstone: 15 Reasons Why Media Don’t Do Journalism" rings true to this former photojournalist. Edward R. Murrow earned the trust of our nation. His signoff words were famously, "Good night and good luck!"
So disheartening to know how much we lose to defense spending - sending our money down a rat hole. It's a travesty. I regularly write to my representatives telling them of my opposition to this waste, and always get back a form email explaining the need for this immoral spending. This of course goes along with our government's propaganda about how glorious it is to "serve" and how honored are those who died for us. All the while there not having been a "necessary" war since WWII. "Where have all the flowers gone?"
"In other news, CNN has parted ways with Chris Licht, its chief executive officer and chair, who had sought to move the network to what he considered the center of American politics. He had done so by highlighting “both sides” of today’s political arguments, firing leading journalists he thought too far on the left and centering Trump in a town hall that became the former president’s triumphant reentry to the political stage as he lied and bullied the interviewer. Some pundits have taken Licht’s fall as a sign that there is no longer a powerful center in American politics, but my own guess is the opposite: that most of us want news based in reality rather than media giving platforms to people who are openly lying."
It seems that "both sides are…" is a coward's way of not taking sides and, thus, avoiding the wrath exhibited by followers of those sides, especially those who proudly and loudly declare their carrying (not merely ownership) of weapons. The willingness of those to court catastrophe by taunting others with terror and to blithely advocate, witness, and even cause death and devastation easily cowers so many others into hoping that they can stave off the monster by offering the sacrifices of some 'goat' -- appeasement of evil -- a slope made slippery by blood. Despite history, both read and remembered….
We should all be getting college credits by taking classes from two of America’s finest educators. This is a remarkable time in our nation’s history. We have been through so much together. We are still standing. All of us, regardless of affiliation are tired of being hammered on and at odds with each other. We are one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. That’s where I am hanging my hat.
I consider you in that source group by both training and life circumstances. There are so many associate professors with this primal substack that the field is really large and well fleshed. You bring in an additional psychological component that pushes the envelope into further disciplines. I call it the basic mental health class.
Annie Great! There was a place in Maine with marvelous popovers but, sadly, it burned down. A pop to far? I used to fish for cod and halibut in Maine. Greatly unexciting. You’d put a 2 pound sinker on the get the line down 70 feet. When you tugged the line and nothing moved, you either had a 25 pound fish—or a tire.
Careful what you wish for Keith. You will be tasked to speak. I will launch and row. You will trap and cook. I will eat said lobster. Then I will raise one to our class of 23 as you soak in the applause richly befitting your compelling and endearing words. I’m not familiar with Maine but have always wanted to go. Where is our venue? Can we have Fern arrange the musicians? Will we call it Sand Stock or Rock Stock?
Pat When I first sailed to Maine, we stopped at Burnt Coat Cove to pick up lobsters at 29 cents/lb. (1947) Later I was a sailing (and rowing) instructor. I’m ready—just have to get flotations on my walker.
Before WW II I had lobster pots in Edgartown Harbor. Always caught enough for Sunday dinner.
Mobility not a problem I have a sure footed saddle horse that is a good swimmer. Amphibious will take you through skree slopes and flooding rivers. A large Morgan we affectionately call Brownie as he aims to please as well. Astride Amphibious I feel much younger.
Pat The last time I rode was in the Chilean cordilleras in 1968. Fortunately I had a wooden Spanish stirrup. When the horse fell on a mountain path, I was able to extract my leg before hitting the ground. The huasos (Chilean cowboys) thought this was hilarious. It got me several free rounds of pisco sours.
As a Democrat, I'm focussing less on the Republican candidates and more on dangers to Biden and Harris. The most dangerous is the group called "no labels" which is funded by right wingers with very deep pockets. Some people might be fooled into thinking this is a genuine alternative to both parties, but it will only leach votes away from Biden.
The other problem is Robert Kennedy, Jr. His name recognition is bringing him some support, but unlike his father, he's radically anti-science and modern medicine. The race is going to be tough enough as it is and a Trump, DeSantis, or most of the current candidates, will work to undo all the good things that Biden has managed to do.
Mina, I see NO path for a Republican to win the presidency for the near future. The electoral numbers tell us that Biden will win again with more than 300 Electoral Votes.
Dems have a stronghold on the West Coast, New England /Northeast, and the Mountain West states CO and NM. Two other major factors are our mid-west firewall of MN, WI, MI and PA. Secondly, GA and AZ are seriously trending Dem, with five straight US Senate wins AND Biden wins in 2020. THIS gives us the 300+ EV votes necessary! Plus, let's remember the Kansas victory to turn back women's reproductive freedoms AND the Alaska statewide US House victory in 2022!
With the rabid anti-woman agenda of the Right, and the progressive nature of GENs Y, Z and A, we have an excited and well organized youth movement to drive turnout to greater numbers.
An aside; Robt Kennedy Jr is a a flake, like all the other COVID "deniers."
RFK,Jr is indeed a flake. Recently, he claimed that he talks to dead people. He says that prescription drugs are the cause of gun violence. And on and on.
But there are a lot - A LOT - of flaky people who eat up the anti-vax nonsense and other fantasies that he promotes. It doesn't take a majority to spoil an election.
If this Kennedy and one or two others run ultimately as "independents", history may repeat itself and we could end up with a GQP President. Remember that the election is not about a majority of the popular vote. It's the manipulation of the Electoral College.
Please again read over my post, regarding specifically the Electoral College. Since Kansas defeated an anti-choice referenda in 2022 by 59-41, the Left Coast will do EVEN better in 2024 races.
I want you to be right with every word you wrote. Thanks for the optimism.
But color me anxious and afraid of the electorate. I don't believe in polls. I don't trust "firewall" states. I think trending in our direction is great but hardly worth putting money on.
There are dark evil forces of huge money that do not want Biden to win and they will continue to fund all manner of mischief (No Labels, etc.). Harlan Crow and Company believe they are running this country. And if the election gets to the Supreme Court again, guess what happens.
But I also love and welcome your optimism. I hang on to your reference to the younger vote - that's where we need to work very hard to get massive turnout.
A "firewall" could be seen in this spring's VITAL state WI Supreme Court race, to determine the ideological balance of the court. This had national attention, and lingering implications ...
The female Democratic judge won this election by nearly 56-44%, giving the left-of-center a 4-3 edge of justices. This, again, in the firewall state of Wisconsin.
So, you may simply remind your crazy conservative relatives to finish their Wisconsin cheese, and try to be grateful.
What was it Barnum said: "No one ever went broke overestimating the ignorance of the American public". Yep. I hope your optimism carries, but I'll heed Barnum's words and work to get the Dems to vote.
Despite both Georgia AND Arizona being in conservative governance in 2020, Biden won BOTH states, AND the AZ Governorship AND the statewide Senate races in GA AND AZ. My question for all ,is this:
Will these states see a DROP in turnout of left-of-center young voters, or an INCREASE in 2024 ....?
I had so much over-enthusiasm with the evidence, that I OVERUSED the capital keys
The West Coast is a lock, for the three states' large Electoral College tallies. In 2022, we lost a few CA congressional races for untold reasons, other than the off year theory. But THIS Presidential contest will pull every woman who is 18 and older to the polls to punish the rise of misogyny. Some vast majority on the left coast (70%+/-?) demand woman have reproductive freedom.
You know, Frederick, you are so over-the-top optimist that I am starting to wonder why. If we've learned anything in the last 200 some odd years it is that nothing can be counted on until it actually happens. You are working very hard to convince us that certain things WILL happen, no question, and that we have no reason to worry. Why? I hope it all works out the way you predict, but I've been there before, and I read a lot of history. I'd like to learn exactly what the foundation of your reasoning is - not just rattling off statistics but a close examination of the dynamics behind them. I don't trust statistics, and for good reason. I studied graduate statistics, and I have had a lot of experience demonstrating how statistics can fail reason. Keep on with your optimism but I'd prefer to see us placing a strong focus on strategies for ensuring these things happen.
Annie, I appreciate your skepticism, because I feel al lot of people do not follow politics as closely as I do. Nor are most people as involved as I am with their state and their local Democratic party. I guess I could call myself a "geek" or an "insider."
I've been involved in electoral politics since 1976 and my first Presidential campaign, that of Sen. Fred Harris (D-OK). This is simply a passion of mine. For the past 40 years, I have followed the leading newsletters, commentaries and commentators. I graduated with a BA in Poly Sci.
I do not know about statistics. This is not statistics in my mind, for my past 40+ years. This is simply following the evidence that I find.
During last summer (2022), I called into my state Public Radio show about the upcoming 2022 election, and told the "experts" that this election would be about women's rights and democracy, and NOT about the Biden economy, which these experts stated. Talking heads said Dems were in trouble, with the economy. These experts were wrong; I was correct.
I KNEW we would win the GA and AZ and PA 2022 Senate races because 1) I simply kew the efforts on the ground, and, 2) based on 2020 results, where we won all three states, 3) I saw the polls.
I knew the organizational efforts, because I speak with these people. I've lived in Maricopa County, AZ., and Pittsburgh is my native city. I know some of the local organizers in both states. They know me. I have made GOTV calls to voters in both states. So, AZ, PA, and GA are in varying degrees strongly leaning Democratic. They are changing rapidly with a more liberal, diverse and progressive population!
Lastly, I simply KNOW the misogynistic conservative movement has no future.
Don’t forget Senator Jon Tester the only real farmer in Congress, a Democrat in a totally Republican state. And think of the Democratic senator from Ohio, Sherrod Brown, also up for election in a very Republican state. If you don’t know what you can do, you can turn to the Turnabout Project or Indivisible (online). There’s a lot you can do from home, though getting together with likeminded enthusiasts is always cheering.
It is for those reasons alone, that Robert, Jr. Will not be a threat to Joe. The infrastructure bill enhances the industries he professes to despise. As a Kennedy, he appears to be the black sheep of the family.
Cornel West and Robert Kennedy Jr pose huge risks to Biden. Look what Jill Stein did to Hillary in Michigan and Wisconsin--got just enough votes to let Trump get the electors.
those 1 & 2%'ers could be deadly to Biden. Just as Progressives staying home because Biden's too centrist would be.
RCV. A dedicated and analytical friend strongly suggests a turn to Ranked Choice Voting as a way to reinstate ethics and principles into the huge bidding game of US politics in which we the people are largely outbid.
I am a proponent of Ranked Choice Voting. But it's been a hard sell, even here in Massachusetts. It's not complicated, but it's a change that a lot of voters have resisted. Even my town Dem committee chair does not like it; I haven't been able to convince him that it's a good idea. And he can't explain his resistance: he just doesn't like it. One of the reasons for it is that it eliminates runoff elections which, for small towns, can be a sizeable financial burden. But it's still difficult to convince the average voter.
WHY is Cornel West a "huge risk" to Biden, as you state? I know the work of this brother, and I strongly disagree that he will undermine this progressive movement
Let’s say many—like yourself—like the work of this brother, and Progressive voters who believe Biden is too centrist vote for Cornel West. Colonel West cannot win—all he can do is siphon votes from Biden—either by voting for West, or by staying home.
Oh my, I am surprised that Prof West is planning to run in the primaries, and shocked were he to try an independent run. Because he would be irreparably be harming his illustrious career
I am not at all distracted by flys or fleas, however noble their buzz. Pres Biden organized the entire Western world against Putin, brought the country through the pandemic, infused cash into every nook and hollar.
Bobby Jr did way too many drugs in his lifetime, he has effectively fried his brain. If not for the name Kennedy, no one would be paying any attention to him
I haven't heard anything about him being a druggie. If you know anything on that, please say so!
I do know that his father and uncle were assassinated, and his mother was not good at being a mother, plus she had way too many children to give any the special attention some might have needed after the death of their father--and I suspect RFK jr. could have used a lot.
It's certainly true that no-one would pay attention were it not for the name.
These people with no political experience who think they can just go and be president! Even Lincoln, who had but one term in Congress before becoming president, had a very steep learning curve, and wasn't all that good in the beginning, but he had a damn good cabinet, he lacked hubris (unlike RFK Jr. and Cornel West, who's also said he's running), had a huge font of knowledge, and was exceptionally intelligent. (Lincoln should have fired McClellan long before he did, among other things.)
Got curious and looked up a basic bio of RFK, Jr. I find it interesting that he uses those initials rather than clearly differentiating himself from his uncle, President John Fitsgerald Kennedy, whose son, John Fitsgerald Kennedy Jr, was a promising young politician at the time of his death. Though those of us who follow politics know that the current Kennedy, Jr, is the son of the late Robert Francis Kennedy, I know of a number of people with less awareness of history who think he is the son of the late President Kennedy.
I also learned that he lost not only his father as a child, but a number of other close relatives within a relatively short period of time, including cousins close to his age. It must have been a traumatic period for him. I can't imagine how it impacted him, but can't help thinking that it must have had a hand in making him what he is today. He seems emotionally stunted somehow. I don't know enough about him to make that a blanket statement, but there is an awful lot about his behavior and his sense of things that brings to mind people I've known who are much the same way. The Kennedy family, despite its outward appearance of closeness, according to some who were involved, had complex (to be kind) relationships going back generations. The current Kennedy in the spotlight appears to just be part of that tradition, probably complicated further by what had to difficult experiences as a child and young person.
Mina, I'd be fascinated to learn more about the 'no labels' group if you'd share it. Vote splitting is an old but effective playbook; I think that's valuable information for this group of folks. Thx
“The New Republic reported in 2023 that No Labels has received major funding (along with nearly two dozen new donors) from Harlan Crow, a leading donor to Republican and conservative causes.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Labels
Thank you!! That is a treasure trove of info that I wasn't able to find myself. Is it possible that this group is trying to replace the Republican Party? Michael Bloomberg is pictured in one article. I'll bet he still wants to be president. There is a helluva lot of money and smarts in there that could be focussed on taking power!!
Also reported in the article, interestingly enough:
"No Labels’ CEO, Nancy Jacobson, was a fundraiser for both Bill and Hillary Clinton, while her husband, corporate consultant Mark Penn, was a top Clinton campaign advisor. The group is cochaired by lobbyist and former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), as well as former governor of Maryland Larry Hogan (R). Manchin and Collins are “honorary cochairs.”
No Labels also sponsors the Problem Solvers Caucus in the House of Representatives — an influential group of lawmakers from both parties that pushes supposedly bipartisan policy solutions in Congress.
In the first two years of President Joe Biden’s first term, No Labels played a key role in helping gut the Democratic Party’s legislative agenda."
Yes. I'd like to see a national ad campaign delineating the funding sources for 'No Labels' and a clear explanation of what the inevitable result will be.
Pseudo RFK is a spoiler from the git go. Comments on another substack indicate that he is regarded as a better Dem., but only for a few idealistic morons. He will likely be able to shave a tad off Biden’s numbers, which can be catastrophic considering the widespread voter suppression laws repubs have passed. Mina is spot on, money is trying every trick.
“Journalism 101: If someone says it’s raining and another person says it’s dry, it’s not your job to quote them both. Your job is to look out the effing window and find out which is true.”
But,.....Riddle me this: If Donald Trump shoots Chris Christie in the middle of Fifth Avenue while the late afternoon gloaming Manhattan mist sets in, AND witnesses can only say that "The fat guy shot the fat guy", who to believe?!.🤣
I heard some interesting polling numbers tonight: While Republicans as a whole think an indictment on any of the serious charges being investigated *should* bar Trump from holding office as President, a staggering 46% of likely primary voting Republicans do not. Given how many candidates are in the field, that means that, at this time, Trump is likely to get the party nomination. That also means that activists in the Republican Party are almost diametrically opposed to the majority of its members. Should Trump or any of his wannabes not get the nomination, the possibility exists of a more moderate Republican candidate victory. The problem with that is that politics today operates along strict party lines, and even a moderate will be beholden to more rabid members of their party. We see the truth of that in McCarthy's situation in the House. Campaign finance reform, anyone? Going once, going twice...
I agree with you KEM, except on McCarthy, he is not now , and never has been a moderate. He is a "little boy, look at me" he has never been anything but. I don't think he has ever written a worthy piece of legislation. And, if you'll recall, during the January attack on the Capitol he was a scared little boy, begging Daddy to call of the big, bad, bullies attacking him. As soon as the attack ended, there he was, lining up with the other traitors trying to nullify the election. Then as soon as possible he went to Mar-a-lago to kiss up the his hero and promised to be a good boy.
I don't think he is a moderate at all. McCarthy, somewhat like Pence, is a wind vane, pointing whichever direction he is blown. My point is that it doesn't matter--when things are closely divided, one must make concessions to others with differing views to maintain power, and maintaining power, rather than governing seems to be the goal. There is usually less harm when radicals (whether left or right) must lean towards the center.
Thank you for your clarification. I do agree that in the end run, we are forced to make concessions. I really regret the cuts to IRS that will end the hiring of auditors, stupid thinking on the MAGA side, we could have gained billions of dollars that the wealthy tax cheats have stolen.
An excellent case in point--the cuts to the IRS amount to $2B in the first year, more in the second and following years, to a total of $20B over the ten year period. Could we have used that $20B to increase tax revenues? Yes, but I'll take the remaining $60B and put it to good use--it's $60B more than was dedicated before. A wise mentor told me early in my professional career, "It is not important that the world move on your time schedule, simply in your direction." I still love and live that as much as I can.
KEM--Please don't make it sound like the current funding for the IRS is being cut by $20B which is the Republican view of a "win"--What was cut by $20B was a quarter of the $80 billion ADDED in the Infrastruture bill, so $60B of additioanl funding was preserved by Biden in the negotiation.
The link below on the impact of the debt ceiling bill from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center explains the best and worst case scenarios and how much leeway Biden worked into this. Namely it being Biden's choice on what the reduced additional funding can get spent on. The article notes how it would be really hard to spend even the $60B add in quickly in the 3 years that are covered under the deal with McCarthy. The basic idea is how long it takes the government to spend money to modernize IT systems and hire and train new auditors and lawyers capable of dealing the 1%. And by keeping the agreement vague and only for 3 years not a lot of current damage can be done that can't be undone under a Democratic Congress.
"At least for the time being, the IRS still retains most of the IRA funding boost. Rather than accelerating spending or slowing investments, the IRS could stay the course and cautiously test out approaches that could improve the efficiency and fairness of tax administration and then provide Congress with the evidence to evaluate the agency’s spending needs. If Congress were to act on that evidence, the Biden-McCarthy deal could yield a good outcome for the IRS and the vast majority of taxpayers."
I would not be surprised if it turned out that the figure written into the bill was deliberately inflated because the Biden admin knew the Republicans would be looking for a way to cut it. In other words, they built something into the bill they could give up in order to make a compromise and still keep essential functions protected. In which case, knowing the GOP puppet masters' fixation on taxes, they might also have planted a large number for the IRS into the bill to take the focus away from other provisions that might be harder to protect. That's all speculation, but given the way Biden handled the debt ceiling negotiations, it looks like he has a deeper appreciation for how legislation and deal making work than he's been given credit for.
A more detailed explanation, and yes, I have seen the variations that are possible. Please note that I did write “$60B more than was dedicated before” which indicates that I am not writing about current funding.
Reaganomics argued that collecting less revenue would produce more revenue. Republicans still make this claim, when not screaming about the deficit (except when in power).
Indeed. Its importance is amplified if you know that he was a Black attorney working his whole life on Civil Rights and school desegregation cases. His record of wins was remarkable--but not perfect, of course. I guess that's the difference between me and Bernie--he lets his vision of perfect get in the way of good. But I believe in progress...I don't disagree with John Lewis, "We want our freedom now!" I just believe there are many valid ways to run a race--all those who are running the same direction as I am are welcome!
Which is exactly what the patrons of Republican Leadership don't want; so they conspire to convince the Red Hats that the IRS is there to steal from them. Ironically HCR has discussed how the IRS was foreshadowed by a Republican sponsored federal tax to pay for the Civil War. Bush kicked his war expenses down the road.
Ms. Reid, could there be a clearer sign that the deficit or the debt ceiling doesn't truly matter to the R's?? The R's are all about retaining power and the debt and debt ceiling are are merely tools for them.
The R's owe their fealty, not to their constituents, but to the big money donors who do most of their funding--the same big money donors who are also the most interested in avoiding audits and probably the biggest tax cheats as well.
Agreed. Which is why I've been urging invoking the Constitution, Article 6, Section 1 and Amendment 14, Section 4, to remove this stupid, unconstitutional tool, the "debt ceiling" from the hands of these misfits.
McCarthy is California's version of a "good, ol boy." Great to bowl and have a beer with; lots of fun at Spring Break. He just wants to be liked by everybody. Legislating has never been his priority
I respectfully disagree for the following reasons: first, we have not seen the criminal charges and we have no idea now of the severity of the alleged criminality. Second, the formal nomination process is months away and even a percentage of that 46% of MAGA supporters may have a very different allegiance to TFG. Third, the Jack Smith charges will be supplemented by the Georgia indictments in July. Fourth, the cumulative effect of four or even five different criminal proceedings of him all going forward in different newsworthy proceedings at relatively the same time may seriously erode the percentage of Republican support for him by May or June of 2024 and thereafter. I’m not saying that he will withdraw as a candidate, quite to the contrary he will continue even if he loses the nomination. What do you think will be the reaction by the established Republican base of elected somebodies when Trump destroys their Party??
If Trump gets the nomination despite multiple indictments pending and a conviction/sentencing looming, going into the Fall, one would think that Biden is in pretty good shape. Most interesting question, Who wants to sign on to be the VP on such a ticket? Guessing its MTG or Kari Lake, LOL and we thought the GOP hit rock bottom with Sarah Palin!
I wonder how much the Republican National Party will have to pay Trump not to run as an independent if/when he loses the nomination. Would such a payment be legal?
It wouldn't come from the Republican Party--it would come from a mega donor like Koch through a series of dark money "issue" oriented PACs to one ultimately controlled by Trump--a "justice for indicted former presidents" PAC.
I do not say this as a joke, I have wondered if there is a billionaire considering paying to have him "removed"? My theory is that The Indicted One has the nomination wrapped up, the numbers suggest that. He'll go up against Biden. The ultra wealthy won't like a Biden second term, especially if Dems have the House and Senate.
Pay him? They could, but I think that his desire for fame outweighs his need for money, after all, he only has to ask his base to send in their hard earned dollars and they do! He isn't going away.
No wonder he's terrified to go to jail, I've always been suspicious of Epstein's death.
(I know I sound like a conspiracy tinfoil head.)
Personally, I don't want him removed as I think it would make him a martyr. I keep praying that those "hamberders" do their work. Some photos of him lately, he really looks awful. If he had a MI, would anyone be surprised?
No joke and I agree, I'm sure that a lot of wealthy backers have considered finding a way to rid themselves of Trump, and you're probably right that Trump is too stupid and vain to let himself be quietly paid off like he does his prostitutes. Even to save his own life.
For several years now I've had a pleasant vision of poor Donald, sitting late at night in a lawn chair beside the grave at the 1st tee wearing only a bathrobe, surrounded by empty cheeseburger wrappers and prescription bottles, weeping soggily and muttering, "I never treated you like you deserved..." Morning finds him cold, the EMTs laconically winch him onto a truck, and that's the last we see of the Orange Menace.
All valid points. This polling is the picture at this time. Since the cases are more or less known at this point, and the responses were still "oh, never mind all that," we don't know how much change might actually occur. And I think the reaction depends on how many other gains or losses are made.
I am having a lovely vision of Chris Christie out bullying Trump for the nomination. After all the "base" loves those tough talkers. Trump declares as an Independent (stays in the race hoping to use that status as a legal weapon) and he splinters the GQP vote.
Bill I agree entirely. He refuses to commit to support the winner of the primary and therefore he anticipates that the Republican establishment will unite against him in favor of ?? (Your guess?). Thus, he runs as an Indy and figures his base stays loyal to him and he wins in a three way split? Of course, this fanciful scenario ignores the impact of 4 or 5 simultaneous criminal trials.
One, I think by then it would be a new House, possibly without a Republican majority. Second, McCarthy, or his successor, would probably have an even harder time keeping his side together against united Democrats than he did with the debt-ceiling hostage crisis. Especially after a lot of indictments, I think there's be a fairly decent chance that a few Republicans would vote across the aisle.
A slightly more interesting case would be if the Presidency goes to the new House, the new House is still barely Republican, but the Republicans never choose a Speaker. Effectively, we would have no House and no President for an indefinite time.
💙VOTE BLUE💙 1) down with Citizens United, 2) Fair Share taxation, 3) Popular Vote gets the ticket /Electoral Out , 4) MAGA /Deniers/the Complicit-voted OUT and Banished , 5) Ukraine accepted into NATO
Great closing point. But we have to get to a point where that’s possible and it seems to me that a lot of people are beholden to the Harlan Crows of this world. I don’t see campaign finance reform happening.
With perhaps equal blindness, I find it difficult to foresee anything that’s ahead for America at the moment. Today’s newsletter is reflective of a phenomenon that may be just getting underway. Professor Cox Richardson had any number of stories that in monts past could have been the subject of a newsletter coupled with some historical analogy to give us insight into circular patterns in American history.
Instead the force of events is such that she was reduced to simply cataloguing them succinctly. I’ve been thinking about this for some time now. It’s getting very hard to see any pattern because too many important events are happening, or are about to happen, at once. At this point who among us can foresee the the random but important outcomes that will occur *because* these events will intersect and bear fruit we can’t yet see.
I hear and read about all these candidates judiciously “picking lanes” to run in and who that will attract or repel. This, at a time when a former President is about to be indicted for crimes of deep gravity while at the same time running for the Presidency again. This alone is going to generate a massive tsunami of emotion and action. We have no idea what will happen. Will their be violence? Will Trump resort to some extreme action to try to mobilize his base? Are we certain he even has a base anymore? What will be the effects of the tensions that will build as would-be Presidents attack Trump more and more fiercely? Will they get washed overboard or will they generate some desperate rearguard action within the Republican Party to try to establish even a shred of relevancy?
Sometime major is going to happen as the indictments collide with Presidential ambitions at a time of complete disarray in the GOP. And it will be entirely unforeseen. And it will spawn a whole other set of results. The base, however much of it remains, is going to be roiled. The market will possibly feel giant tremors.
And this is *only* the antics in the Republican race. What about the food fight in the House? Will it have substantial impacts, such as confusing and fracturing people who hate Democrats even more than they are already?
And there’s a war going on. The dam attack may have huge implications which (pardon the pun) may bring America to a crossroads.
All the while we fret about Robert Kennedy and the No Labels party ruining the Democrat’s chances, Mother Nature is tuning her violin in the background. The Northeast is plunged into an eerie midday darkness from massive fires in Canada (sorry for that). She is going to be heard from again and again and we might not be worrying much about the Iowa caucus when the next disaster comes.
My point is that we are not getting a moment to stop and think about context and intersections of the events driving us. History has sped up and now is not a time to sweat the small stuff. If anything, we can be grateful for relative calm and sanity in the Democratic world. Imagine being Nikki Haley and being forced to describe yourself as a “badass woman” to try to get a shred of attention.
Very sensible. I run and go to my grandchildren’s sporting events. But still the prognostications of media’s wise old men and young whippersnappers reach me, and I am dumbfounded. Nine years ago, they couldn’t have been more certain or more pompous in poking holes in DJT’s candidacy.
I’d love to be paid for stupidity and arrant certitude.
How thrilling to be visiting the west coast (I live on the East) and in addition to dipping my toes into the Pacific for the first time in my 61 years, I can be one of the first commenters. Back home I never stay up late enough to see Heather’s letter til next morning .
I’m just as glad my own governor, Slippery Sununu, has decided not to run this time after all. But I don’t trust him a bit, never have. Having just said in February that he’s vote for Trump should he be the 2024 nominee, now he’s got all sorts of things to say about why the party must move away from him. It’s clear that in his travels around the country seeking favor and advice from potential donors instead of governing our state , he’s decided the next move is to build his brand as the Reasonable Republican. He even has the gall to say this week that every time a Republican opens their mouth about abortion restrictions, it makes another Independent vote for a Democrat. He who signed NH’s first modern abortion restrictions into law! Don’t fall for it !
I join my friend Ally in welcoming your toes to the Pacific Ocean, Beth! On our side of the fruited plain, we get to look out over the ocean at sunset as well!
I appreciate your commentary on Sununu, as from what little I have seen of him, he rubs me the wrong way as well. His father had the gift of being obnoxious from the jump, but the son seems more slickly slippery.
Brrrrrr and brrrrrrrr. Swim Elk river from the bridge over 101 through Sweet’s and Knapp’s and McKenzie’s then turn north and follow the river to its mouth at Cape Blanco which lies between Sixes river and Elk river. You will be at the farthest reach of the Left Coast. Therein dip your toes sparingly. Brrrrr. We always said you can see China from there, but that is for the Chechakos.
Dang it, you guys! You are making me even more homesick. I've actually been having dreams about when I took my kids camping on the coast, and doing those very things (well, not swimming- that is very very cold water for sure). My favorite spot was Oswald West beach, because cars couldn't get down, and all the campers ended up like an extended family. sigh. Want home.
Wow. Heather, since you wrote this letter, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell had Trump’s just-resigned lawyer (for the documents case) on his show tonight. Almost the full second half of the show. Holy-moly: What a contentious and intense confrontation between two very smart people. Listening, we get a window into some of the defense’s arguments sure to be raised at trial. Trump’s lawyers are going to muddy the waters in court big time and try to confuse the jury every which way. I learned a whole lot and recommend viewing this toe-to-toe highly. I trust Jack Smith’s prosecutors will be replaying the interview, too. Very enlightening.
WHY is a former lawyer out chatting about a case in which he is no longer involved? This guy sounds a bit like the 'I declassified the documents by thinking about it' defense that no one will make to a judge. LOL saying 'lawyer drafted and swore to an affidavit but text in it cannot be taken literally because it was taken from another case and modified'...is a loser.
Every somewhat viable defense has already been presented to Jack Smith and AG and been rejected. But Trump's lawyers don't know the traps DOJ has of facts that contradict Trump's defenses.
I watched this show intently this evening. All I can say is WOW! O’Donnell handled this lawyer quite well.
I especially liked the part about the “Classified” document found in Frumpy’s desk during the search of his office. That one fact threw the scenario the attorney was throwing out about “not having time to go through the boxes to separate personal files from the files needing to be returned.
That claim by the attorney will not hold water to begin with. Frumpy had a full year to “go through the boxes”, plus, IF he had set up, and took part in, a transition team, he wouldn’t have to go through the boxes to begin with. He would have had only his “stuff” packed up and all the other sent back to the Archives.
I personally think that O’Donnell was extremely well prepared for that interview. He gave the attorney time to “plead” Frumpy’s case, but rebutted everything that was said with facts that couldn’t be rebutted by the attorney.
Something else the attorney made himself look foolish was about the “Classified” document in the desk. He continually tried to say “it doesn’t matter the marking, we don’t know d hat the document was.” “Because it was marked Classified doesn’t mean it is a document of National Security, or something that may not have been personal writings of Frumpy.”
Seriously, are you kidding me? A document marked, stamped, “CLASSIFIED” is just that, “CLASSIFIED”. It doesn’t make any difference if Donald Duck wrote it. It’s still “CLASSIFIED” and shouldn’t have been in Frumpy’s desk drawer, separated from all the other “Classified, Top Secret, Secret” documents they found in his office. Which by the way, had been delegated from all his other “personal documents”.
..a significantly growing trend is noted , as with his chorus too.
Do we dare to say the lesson is learned ...beginning to see the many deer in the headlight’s syndrome...the many flake’s false flags for what they’re worth?
Caution is still suggested, be humble , but determined...
I listened to the interview while driving. Last night, Lawrence had the 3 negotiators of the debt ceiling bill on. It was strikingly good! Tonight’s interview was equally as strong and brilliant. I loved it when Lawrence interrupted him to drive a point across. Parlatore certainly held his own but it was a sharp exchange and I loved it.
Interesting way to give the prosecution tips on what (false and/or misleading) info and tactics the defense is going to use and the strategies they plan to employ. Maybe...
Perhaps he is an "ex-lawyer" for Trump because he couldn't handle the insanity and abuse? And now...
I will say it again. A person can't spend 50+ years abusing, bullying, humiliating, firing, and cheating thousands of people without a karmic effect. When the worm turns on this toad of a human, it will be an avalanche of retribution and angry "tell all" articles and books.
All it will take for this to happen will be a few more leading figures to come right out and say it. Trump is a brutal crook. Then the piling on will grow and grow...
Firehose of events, certainly. It seems to me that sometimes the "news" seems like flashcards. The picture is there so briefly that unless one digs, there is not time to see the extended implications of events that have extended consequences. There is still some excellent journalism out there, but most does not go very deep. Not every story can be in great detail, but government of the people, by the people, for the people requires an adequately informed public.
Thank you as always for your sanity, Heather. This plethora of GOP candidates does not bode well for a cessation of infighting. That killed the Dems several times in my lifetime, and I am guessing that the shoe is now on another foot.
Also, after you posted tonight’s letter, let it be noted that a story broke that Trump has been notified that he is a “target” of the Special Counsel for indictment. This story has been now confirmed by multiple news sources, including the NYT.
Thank you for all the cogent summaries, and today especially for giving a wider circulation to Prof. Snyder's comments on the role of responsible journalists in describing more fully the context and history when reporting that "both sides" have taken a position.
Yes, I am very happy Prof Snyder is lecturing journalists about how they must report more broadly and not try to engage with the Russians. There is no “two sides”, plain and simple.
Shame on Nicky Haley (real name: Nimarata Nikki Randhawa Haley) for her horrible comments. Saying gender confusion / issues is why teenage girl suicides are so high. No. Girls have anxiety because their rights, bodies and freedoms are being usurped, anxiety because the planet is dying, anxiety because of gun violence and racism ++.
AQI in NYC was Hazardous yesterday (336!) but at 187 this morning it is merely “unhealthy”. I’ll be able to breathe a little easier today. Yeah, right. 🙄
Heather, how you manage to complete this blog sometimes seems like a miracle! And I appreciate all the time and work you put into it. I never imagined the GOP would go into such fits of madness. I remember where Jared was the week before Trump to office. Jared was visiting his father in prison for fraud. And now, he and his wife have 'disappeared. I would say that the GOP campaign is based on ramping up fear. Of separation.. And meanwhile, the forests are burning. And gun sale in America are making huge profits.. It feels like it's people who've become the weapons of mass destruction.
Thank you for this very informative piece, Dr, Richardson. If Trump is indicted and convicted before November 2024, it will be a whole new game for the GOP. If Trump is still in limbo, a large number of opponents will push him into the lead. Whatever happens Democrats need to rally behind our very competent, and very successful President Biden, and do everything in our power to get out the vote.
I hope the journalists listen to Snyder and publish only the truth. Putin is in the same class as Trump, perennial liars. They lie so instinctively, they believe their own lies are the truth.
Timothy Snyder on Russia and Ukraine, and can we say world and national politics…
“Objectivity does not mean treating an event as a coin flip between two public statements,” he said. “It demands thinking about the objects and the settings that readers require for understanding amidst uncertainty.” Thinking about the world of tfg and his neverending press, free publicity that kept him in the limelight. We need facts and context and history to make informed decisions, which we read every day in HCR, LFAA.
Every time I hear a news channel cover “candidate Trump”, I TURN IT OFF. We media consumers must show our disapproval by shutting down ANTI-DEMOCRATIC rhetoric when we come in contact with it. REFUSE TO TAKE IN THE LIE, AND TURN OFF THE MEDIA SOURCE. Sign out of your social media source on your phone before you get back to it. Disconnecting by signing out keeps the media source from remaining connected when you aren’t actually engaging. It’s the same for the TV - turn it and and the box off, and make sure it stays off for at least a half hour, so it can record that sign-off.
Disconnecting from media sources is not quitting; rather it is its own statement. Enjoy your summer, and don’t allow yourself to get mired in the hate. Good luck.
Tell the media why you are leaving. They all have contact forms online. Numbers talk (see CNN), and your added explanation - every day for a while - drives home the point that reporting the truth matters.
I listened to Pense yesterday until I could not handle his lies....I turned him off and got busy on something important.
Sharon, I would like to add that it is not just Pence. The whole lot of them is rotten, untruthful and gutless, including Christie, who seems to have recently dug up his spine from somewhere under a pile of dirty clothes in his walk-in closet.
All of these same people were lavishing TFG in praise as he ran the country full speed towards a cliff. Pence sat back, mute and impotent, for over two years after TFG riled a mob to make him either break law and install a dictator, or be hanged. This week, he invoked a vague messianic purpose and finally said what we all witnessed: TFG sicced a mob to kill him and his family. Now that they're competitors, these pawns suddenly see he's unfit. After TFG channels and coalesces the undercurrents of resentment, racism, xenophobia, misogyny and fascism, just like he did last time, he'll once again become the nominee. Then they'll all return to his side; feckless, fawning obedient lapdogs and reflexively, "support the Republican candidate", like the good pets they are.
My thoughts exactly. You describe them perfectly. I wonder how many more will throw their hat in the ring. I know one other wants to move into the White House. I am surprised he hasn't made his move. Pompeo is his name. His son is married to my friend's granddaughter. He may have running mate plans with tfg....
Do we know these actions you are suggesting do indeed work. If so I'm on board. Please anything to back this up with a link. I know I can get other aboard if I can prove to them that it substantially works. Thanks in advance! -saw-
First, it’s about my own peace of mind that I show my disapproval by disconnecting, but every social-media’s success model is measured in number of engagement hours. Social media companies have learned that stress and conflict increases engagement time. By breaking your engagement, you are retraining both your brain and your tiny corner of the internet that you want the truth.
Peace of mind is right JaneDough. I watch PBS Newshour and nothing else. I read trusted journalists. I enjoy a modicum of good mental health. There is his proof. Sheesh. Everyone is a lawyer today?
Steve, Move On, had a huge campaign after the trump town hall and asked us to write a comment to CNN stating our disapproval of the free publicity for trump and how he treated the interviewer. They provided a space where we could write an email.
I did that along with thousands of other people and it was all sent to CNN. It appears to have worked, as I see Licht has been put out. I think CNN got a lot of blow back for that debacle. But the damage was already done. The good news was after that E. Jean Carroll sued trump again for defamation. Hip hip, hooray for her.
Yes Chris Licht is out but I'm pretty sure the present head of CNN is a pretty strong right wing believer - dont recall his name, but read that in a couple places.
I follow a simple rule about lies and dangerous substances. I don't repeatedly read the warning labels (or relisten to rehashes of old lies) on products (or media outlets) that are a danger to my health and well-being. This being the only reasoning I need to never ingest from the cauldrons of Fox Media, Newsmax, ONAN, etc. I will take @sheila Strands advice and share this with my cable provider.
I wish I could like this post a million times.
Trump is a candidate. That’s news. Do you want media that pretend he’s not? That would be chilling.
It’s the media’s job to cover him; not to give air to his lies. And if they’re only doing their jobs, great, but I’m not going in on the lie. I’d rather have no opinion than have a “hair-on-fire” reaction. Every time he speaks.
Whats more chilling is the fact that he hasnt been president for over two years and yet his face & voice are on almost every station every day! THATS chilling!
Irenie, As one who has come to believe that objectivity is not satisfied by two opposing people offering competing opinions, leaving the viewer to split the difference, but instead means sifting the truth from the propaganda, including the little fibs and fantasies as well as the Big Lie of the people in power, I very much appreciate you amplifying Timothy Snyder’s call for critical scrutiny.
Context absolutely (and human history is a form of it). Context can make all the difference in the world. Hucksters try to distract us from it.
....ahhhh, that pesky need to think...
Well said.
The frequency of false equivalencies by some reporters trying not to appear bias gives extremists a rationale to maintain their erroneous views.
I often hear ‘both sides are extreme, both sides do it’! First of all what is it?
Relating to false equivalence, the so called extremists on the left demand support for our less fortunate fellow citizens like : preventive health care; a living wage; affordable housing; clean air and clean drinking water!
While the extremists in the right victimize whatever group suits their red meat base. First it was black skin people, then immigrants, now members of the PRIDE community! They fight against clean energy bills, against healthcare for the less fortunate and affordable housing! They support raw vulture capitalism even though nothing has ‘trickled down’ to them!
Sorry, both sides don’t do it! The right wing owns the hate mongering of talk radio which has been lying to the base for decades!
Exactly, Louis! The "liberal" media are so cowed by the mere suggestion (from the right wing) that they are biased that they have bent over backwards to prove their innocence. Conversely, Faux and other extreme right-wing mouthpieces, not only are shamelessly biased, but have no issues in blatantly lying, even when behind the scenes they discuss their discomfort with their malfeasance and contempt for the very people they lionize, all for the cash that comes their way from our resident oligarchs. When do you ever hear a right-wing commentator deliver a scoop, then say "this information was released by (fill in the blank) but has not yet been confirmed by our network"?
You are dead right!! Extremest on the left are seen as socialists. But as Truman said essentially all social progress, as you mentioned, is seen as socialism by Republicans who see any progress as socialism. And equating socialism with Venezuela and Russia and as everyone knows has been horrible.
I too am tired of this both sides are extreme. There is only one party of death and that is the R party. As an aside, I read an interesting article on Huffpost about Keystone Kev praising Willa Cather as a new statue of her has arrived from Nebraska to the hall of statues in the Capitol Building. It is clear that Kevin doesn't know a damn thing about Cather, but the article did make me smile a lot.
Here here, Louis!
EXACTLY!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWEBisftHio
The NYT committed many “false equivalencies” during the Clinton-Trump campaign, their “weaknesses” were not equivalent, and it hurt Clinton!
I mostly have not read that paper since- I need to tell them why!
Intent of the message, as well as context and credibility of the profferers certainly matters in any form of equivalency doesn't it?
I was glad to see the inclusion of Snyder's views. I have read his whole article and posted it and it is well worth reading. One of his points is that the Russians are always lying, so there is no both sides.
In 1992 soon after the demise of USSR, I was part of a team looking at a possible US - Russian joint venture to build commercial aircraft. I was the tech person for aluminum rolling, we had other tech and business folks. I think the team had 17 members including Boeing and NASA and translators.
We didn't meet a single Russian I would trust to do business with, very different than Japan, China, and Europe.
Kind of like doing business with Trump.
Nothing went forward especially with the Russian mob taking over the Russian aluminum industry.
Thank you for this insight. Yes, just like doing business with death star.
Always good to have reports from been there, done that. Thank you!
NPR did a good job on that in its Up First segment. Both assertions were stated, but the analysis of which might be telling the truth favored Ukraine, for Snyder’s reasons and for the military difficultly Ukraine would have had to accomplish an attack on a Russian held dam.
If someone had not highlighted that pertinent "closer", it would have been the only thing I felt needed to be said today....and repeated...with respect to so many issues facing us today. Thanks. Hopefully, journalism and "communications" curriculums, across the country, are thinking about how to wrestle with the ideals of truth and justice in a deeper and more complex way for future students. Failing to address the shocking assaults we have all witnessed, especially during these last 8 (long) years , these "schools" will be forced to acknowledge that they are merely training students as advertising agents for their future handlers' prejudices.
Spot on reasoning and to be clear, about time.
Getting past the self interest of popular writers and major powers' PR agencies has is a serious challenge when leaders happily dance on the verge of terminal nuclear war. Snyder's early work is a major gift, but his buying into "we=good, they=bad" war glorification is letting us down. Y'all help me remember who said, "We historians remind people of things they'd rather forget!" War veterans bring essential knowledge to this proxy war: Matthew Hoh, Iraq war veteran and former State Department officer in Afghanistan brings an essential history of this war at https://matthewhoh.substack.com/p/a-war-long-wanted
Another source that isn't just telling people what they wish were true is a blog by Yves Smith, who I first heard excoriating the banks that illegally booted people out of their homes in the 2008 financial crisis. nakedcapitalism.com, "Fearless commentary on finance, economics, politics and power" is hardly anti-capitalist. Instead it offers daily access to the thinking of insiders in finance, manufacturing, etc. For a brisk review of what Big Media are doing, the broadly quoted "Caitlin Johnstone: 15 Reasons Why Media Don’t Do Journalism" rings true to this former photojournalist. Edward R. Murrow earned the trust of our nation. His signoff words were famously, "Good night and good luck!"
Agreed, and another good read is Popular Information by Judd Legum.
Just read him and he is on Musk's black list. The focus of the article today is military spending....it will not make you happy.
I did — and you’re right, but I sure don’t know how to change the dynamics of funding the military, LOL
I read Judd everyday.
A friend asked me for a list of trustworthy analysis. Thanks for this addition! - Jerry
So disheartening to know how much we lose to defense spending - sending our money down a rat hole. It's a travesty. I regularly write to my representatives telling them of my opposition to this waste, and always get back a form email explaining the need for this immoral spending. This of course goes along with our government's propaganda about how glorious it is to "serve" and how honored are those who died for us. All the while there not having been a "necessary" war since WWII. "Where have all the flowers gone?"
What is LFAA?
letters from an American
Thank you!!!
"In other news, CNN has parted ways with Chris Licht, its chief executive officer and chair, who had sought to move the network to what he considered the center of American politics. He had done so by highlighting “both sides” of today’s political arguments, firing leading journalists he thought too far on the left and centering Trump in a town hall that became the former president’s triumphant reentry to the political stage as he lied and bullied the interviewer. Some pundits have taken Licht’s fall as a sign that there is no longer a powerful center in American politics, but my own guess is the opposite: that most of us want news based in reality rather than media giving platforms to people who are openly lying."
It seems that "both sides are…" is a coward's way of not taking sides and, thus, avoiding the wrath exhibited by followers of those sides, especially those who proudly and loudly declare their carrying (not merely ownership) of weapons. The willingness of those to court catastrophe by taunting others with terror and to blithely advocate, witness, and even cause death and devastation easily cowers so many others into hoping that they can stave off the monster by offering the sacrifices of some 'goat' -- appeasement of evil -- a slope made slippery by blood. Despite history, both read and remembered….
A Heather Cox Richardson piece that gives the final word to Timothy Snyder! What more could anyone ask for!
We should all be getting college credits by taking classes from two of America’s finest educators. This is a remarkable time in our nation’s history. We have been through so much together. We are still standing. All of us, regardless of affiliation are tired of being hammered on and at odds with each other. We are one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. That’s where I am hanging my hat.
I agree. I feel like I am auditing several graduate level history/politics courses by reading various Substack authors.
I consider you in that source group by both training and life circumstances. There are so many associate professors with this primal substack that the field is really large and well fleshed. You bring in an additional psychological component that pushes the envelope into further disciplines. I call it the basic mental health class.
Thank you for your kind words. I do have a window of experience and expertise in a very narrow window that most folks cannot see out of.
Indeed Pat; I would not even try to say that better.
And the price is right. I love it.
Thank You, Pat!
Pat And graduation will be held in Maine with lobster and row boats.
Add kayaks- I'm in.
Annie Great! There was a place in Maine with marvelous popovers but, sadly, it burned down. A pop to far? I used to fish for cod and halibut in Maine. Greatly unexciting. You’d put a 2 pound sinker on the get the line down 70 feet. When you tugged the line and nothing moved, you either had a 25 pound fish—or a tire.
Kayaks absolutely!
Careful what you wish for Keith. You will be tasked to speak. I will launch and row. You will trap and cook. I will eat said lobster. Then I will raise one to our class of 23 as you soak in the applause richly befitting your compelling and endearing words. I’m not familiar with Maine but have always wanted to go. Where is our venue? Can we have Fern arrange the musicians? Will we call it Sand Stock or Rock Stock?
Pat When I first sailed to Maine, we stopped at Burnt Coat Cove to pick up lobsters at 29 cents/lb. (1947) Later I was a sailing (and rowing) instructor. I’m ready—just have to get flotations on my walker.
Before WW II I had lobster pots in Edgartown Harbor. Always caught enough for Sunday dinner.
Ready to meet Heather on the hill.
Mobility not a problem I have a sure footed saddle horse that is a good swimmer. Amphibious will take you through skree slopes and flooding rivers. A large Morgan we affectionately call Brownie as he aims to please as well. Astride Amphibious I feel much younger.
Pat The last time I rode was in the Chilean cordilleras in 1968. Fortunately I had a wooden Spanish stirrup. When the horse fell on a mountain path, I was able to extract my leg before hitting the ground. The huasos (Chilean cowboys) thought this was hilarious. It got me several free rounds of pisco sours.
As a Democrat, I'm focussing less on the Republican candidates and more on dangers to Biden and Harris. The most dangerous is the group called "no labels" which is funded by right wingers with very deep pockets. Some people might be fooled into thinking this is a genuine alternative to both parties, but it will only leach votes away from Biden.
The other problem is Robert Kennedy, Jr. His name recognition is bringing him some support, but unlike his father, he's radically anti-science and modern medicine. The race is going to be tough enough as it is and a Trump, DeSantis, or most of the current candidates, will work to undo all the good things that Biden has managed to do.
Mina, I see NO path for a Republican to win the presidency for the near future. The electoral numbers tell us that Biden will win again with more than 300 Electoral Votes.
Dems have a stronghold on the West Coast, New England /Northeast, and the Mountain West states CO and NM. Two other major factors are our mid-west firewall of MN, WI, MI and PA. Secondly, GA and AZ are seriously trending Dem, with five straight US Senate wins AND Biden wins in 2020. THIS gives us the 300+ EV votes necessary! Plus, let's remember the Kansas victory to turn back women's reproductive freedoms AND the Alaska statewide US House victory in 2022!
With the rabid anti-woman agenda of the Right, and the progressive nature of GENs Y, Z and A, we have an excited and well organized youth movement to drive turnout to greater numbers.
An aside; Robt Kennedy Jr is a a flake, like all the other COVID "deniers."
RFK,Jr is indeed a flake. Recently, he claimed that he talks to dead people. He says that prescription drugs are the cause of gun violence. And on and on.
But there are a lot - A LOT - of flaky people who eat up the anti-vax nonsense and other fantasies that he promotes. It doesn't take a majority to spoil an election.
If this Kennedy and one or two others run ultimately as "independents", history may repeat itself and we could end up with a GQP President. Remember that the election is not about a majority of the popular vote. It's the manipulation of the Electoral College.
Please again read over my post, regarding specifically the Electoral College. Since Kansas defeated an anti-choice referenda in 2022 by 59-41, the Left Coast will do EVEN better in 2024 races.
I want you to be right with every word you wrote. Thanks for the optimism.
But color me anxious and afraid of the electorate. I don't believe in polls. I don't trust "firewall" states. I think trending in our direction is great but hardly worth putting money on.
There are dark evil forces of huge money that do not want Biden to win and they will continue to fund all manner of mischief (No Labels, etc.). Harlan Crow and Company believe they are running this country. And if the election gets to the Supreme Court again, guess what happens.
But I also love and welcome your optimism. I hang on to your reference to the younger vote - that's where we need to work very hard to get massive turnout.
A "firewall" could be seen in this spring's VITAL state WI Supreme Court race, to determine the ideological balance of the court. This had national attention, and lingering implications ...
The female Democratic judge won this election by nearly 56-44%, giving the left-of-center a 4-3 edge of justices. This, again, in the firewall state of Wisconsin.
So, you may simply remind your crazy conservative relatives to finish their Wisconsin cheese, and try to be grateful.
What was it Barnum said: "No one ever went broke overestimating the ignorance of the American public". Yep. I hope your optimism carries, but I'll heed Barnum's words and work to get the Dems to vote.
After the lessons of the 2016 candidates, may we never again discount one as too "flaky" to win a race.
You speak my fears
Yes Bill. Dark and Evil forces continue. I hope, but like you I’m anxious and afraid. Time to be active on the part of truth etc
You don’t live in Texas, but it’s not just Texas. The dirty tricks are everywhere. A fraudulent election is the Repub plan
Despite both Georgia AND Arizona being in conservative governance in 2020, Biden won BOTH states, AND the AZ Governorship AND the statewide Senate races in GA AND AZ. My question for all ,is this:
Will these states see a DROP in turnout of left-of-center young voters, or an INCREASE in 2024 ....?
I had so much over-enthusiasm with the evidence, that I OVERUSED the capital keys
🤣
It's the only way they can win.
There are more anti-vaxxers on the West Coast, especially in California, than you might imagine.
The West Coast is a lock, for the three states' large Electoral College tallies. In 2022, we lost a few CA congressional races for untold reasons, other than the off year theory. But THIS Presidential contest will pull every woman who is 18 and older to the polls to punish the rise of misogyny. Some vast majority on the left coast (70%+/-?) demand woman have reproductive freedom.
You know, Frederick, you are so over-the-top optimist that I am starting to wonder why. If we've learned anything in the last 200 some odd years it is that nothing can be counted on until it actually happens. You are working very hard to convince us that certain things WILL happen, no question, and that we have no reason to worry. Why? I hope it all works out the way you predict, but I've been there before, and I read a lot of history. I'd like to learn exactly what the foundation of your reasoning is - not just rattling off statistics but a close examination of the dynamics behind them. I don't trust statistics, and for good reason. I studied graduate statistics, and I have had a lot of experience demonstrating how statistics can fail reason. Keep on with your optimism but I'd prefer to see us placing a strong focus on strategies for ensuring these things happen.
Annie, I appreciate your skepticism, because I feel al lot of people do not follow politics as closely as I do. Nor are most people as involved as I am with their state and their local Democratic party. I guess I could call myself a "geek" or an "insider."
I've been involved in electoral politics since 1976 and my first Presidential campaign, that of Sen. Fred Harris (D-OK). This is simply a passion of mine. For the past 40 years, I have followed the leading newsletters, commentaries and commentators. I graduated with a BA in Poly Sci.
I do not know about statistics. This is not statistics in my mind, for my past 40+ years. This is simply following the evidence that I find.
During last summer (2022), I called into my state Public Radio show about the upcoming 2022 election, and told the "experts" that this election would be about women's rights and democracy, and NOT about the Biden economy, which these experts stated. Talking heads said Dems were in trouble, with the economy. These experts were wrong; I was correct.
I KNEW we would win the GA and AZ and PA 2022 Senate races because 1) I simply kew the efforts on the ground, and, 2) based on 2020 results, where we won all three states, 3) I saw the polls.
I knew the organizational efforts, because I speak with these people. I've lived in Maricopa County, AZ., and Pittsburgh is my native city. I know some of the local organizers in both states. They know me. I have made GOTV calls to voters in both states. So, AZ, PA, and GA are in varying degrees strongly leaning Democratic. They are changing rapidly with a more liberal, diverse and progressive population!
Lastly, I simply KNOW the misogynistic conservative movement has no future.
Yes, sadly.
Let’s not get overconfident with the fact that Biden is going to win. We thought Hillary was going to win and she didn’t.
We must stay vigilant and VOTE and get other people to vote. And contribute to candidates that need our help to fight against mega republican donors.
Don’t forget Senator Jon Tester the only real farmer in Congress, a Democrat in a totally Republican state. And think of the Democratic senator from Ohio, Sherrod Brown, also up for election in a very Republican state. If you don’t know what you can do, you can turn to the Turnabout Project or Indivisible (online). There’s a lot you can do from home, though getting together with likeminded enthusiasts is always cheering.
More 🧡🧡for you, Virginia.
Don’t know what I wrote to get the accolade, but thank you. It’s been quite a two days with more to come.
Read about No Labels and then try to support your otherwise well-reasoned approach.
It is for those reasons alone, that Robert, Jr. Will not be a threat to Joe. The infrastructure bill enhances the industries he professes to despise. As a Kennedy, he appears to be the black sheep of the family.
Cornel West and Robert Kennedy Jr pose huge risks to Biden. Look what Jill Stein did to Hillary in Michigan and Wisconsin--got just enough votes to let Trump get the electors.
those 1 & 2%'ers could be deadly to Biden. Just as Progressives staying home because Biden's too centrist would be.
No one can match Biden's wisdom and experience nor gather such excellent persons who are serving with him.
I agree entirely. But Biden must first be re-elected. Dividing the Dems is a serious threat to that
RCV. A dedicated and analytical friend strongly suggests a turn to Ranked Choice Voting as a way to reinstate ethics and principles into the huge bidding game of US politics in which we the people are largely outbid.
I am a proponent of Ranked Choice Voting. But it's been a hard sell, even here in Massachusetts. It's not complicated, but it's a change that a lot of voters have resisted. Even my town Dem committee chair does not like it; I haven't been able to convince him that it's a good idea. And he can't explain his resistance: he just doesn't like it. One of the reasons for it is that it eliminates runoff elections which, for small towns, can be a sizeable financial burden. But it's still difficult to convince the average voter.
I'm sorry to see the ultimately self defeating attitude dominate, that there is no escape from the corrupt two party lock on public policy.
WHY is Cornel West a "huge risk" to Biden, as you state? I know the work of this brother, and I strongly disagree that he will undermine this progressive movement
Let’s say many—like yourself—like the work of this brother, and Progressive voters who believe Biden is too centrist vote for Cornel West. Colonel West cannot win—all he can do is siphon votes from Biden—either by voting for West, or by staying home.
It’s an egotistical, selfish move.
Oh my, I am surprised that Prof West is planning to run in the primaries, and shocked were he to try an independent run. Because he would be irreparably be harming his illustrious career
I am not at all distracted by flys or fleas, however noble their buzz. Pres Biden organized the entire Western world against Putin, brought the country through the pandemic, infused cash into every nook and hollar.
None of which has anything to Biden’s need for every single vote in key states.
Wacko is what comes to my mind. He's unmoored.
Bobby Jr did way too many drugs in his lifetime, he has effectively fried his brain. If not for the name Kennedy, no one would be paying any attention to him
I haven't heard anything about him being a druggie. If you know anything on that, please say so!
I do know that his father and uncle were assassinated, and his mother was not good at being a mother, plus she had way too many children to give any the special attention some might have needed after the death of their father--and I suspect RFK jr. could have used a lot.
It's certainly true that no-one would pay attention were it not for the name.
He speaks freely of heroin use/addiction
Thanks for that info.
These people with no political experience who think they can just go and be president! Even Lincoln, who had but one term in Congress before becoming president, had a very steep learning curve, and wasn't all that good in the beginning, but he had a damn good cabinet, he lacked hubris (unlike RFK Jr. and Cornel West, who's also said he's running), had a huge font of knowledge, and was exceptionally intelligent. (Lincoln should have fired McClellan long before he did, among other things.)
Got curious and looked up a basic bio of RFK, Jr. I find it interesting that he uses those initials rather than clearly differentiating himself from his uncle, President John Fitsgerald Kennedy, whose son, John Fitsgerald Kennedy Jr, was a promising young politician at the time of his death. Though those of us who follow politics know that the current Kennedy, Jr, is the son of the late Robert Francis Kennedy, I know of a number of people with less awareness of history who think he is the son of the late President Kennedy.
I also learned that he lost not only his father as a child, but a number of other close relatives within a relatively short period of time, including cousins close to his age. It must have been a traumatic period for him. I can't imagine how it impacted him, but can't help thinking that it must have had a hand in making him what he is today. He seems emotionally stunted somehow. I don't know enough about him to make that a blanket statement, but there is an awful lot about his behavior and his sense of things that brings to mind people I've known who are much the same way. The Kennedy family, despite its outward appearance of closeness, according to some who were involved, had complex (to be kind) relationships going back generations. The current Kennedy in the spotlight appears to just be part of that tradition, probably complicated further by what had to difficult experiences as a child and young person.
Mina, I'd be fascinated to learn more about the 'no labels' group if you'd share it. Vote splitting is an old but effective playbook; I think that's valuable information for this group of folks. Thx
https://jacobin.com/2023/04/no-labels-ballot-line-dark-money-corporate-billionaires-centrism-third-party-2024
https://www.commondreams.org/news/no-labels-funded-by-billionaires
“The New Republic reported in 2023 that No Labels has received major funding (along with nearly two dozen new donors) from Harlan Crow, a leading donor to Republican and conservative causes.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Labels
Thank you!! That is a treasure trove of info that I wasn't able to find myself. Is it possible that this group is trying to replace the Republican Party? Michael Bloomberg is pictured in one article. I'll bet he still wants to be president. There is a helluva lot of money and smarts in there that could be focussed on taking power!!
Dems should have been nicer to Bloomberg. He could have been our anti-Rupert
Sorry ... focused
What I don’t know is mind boggling. This is good. Thank you.
Well said.
OH!
Thank you for this, Suzanne
😡
And huge donor to SCOTUS’s Clarence Thomas.
Also reported in the article, interestingly enough:
"No Labels’ CEO, Nancy Jacobson, was a fundraiser for both Bill and Hillary Clinton, while her husband, corporate consultant Mark Penn, was a top Clinton campaign advisor. The group is cochaired by lobbyist and former Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT), as well as former governor of Maryland Larry Hogan (R). Manchin and Collins are “honorary cochairs.”
No Labels also sponsors the Problem Solvers Caucus in the House of Representatives — an influential group of lawmakers from both parties that pushes supposedly bipartisan policy solutions in Congress.
In the first two years of President Joe Biden’s first term, No Labels played a key role in helping gut the Democratic Party’s legislative agenda."
Yes, a stalking horse for the GOP.
Yes. I'd like to see a national ad campaign delineating the funding sources for 'No Labels' and a clear explanation of what the inevitable result will be.
Judd Legum with Popular Information would do a great job with this (maybe already has).
Pseudo RFK is a spoiler from the git go. Comments on another substack indicate that he is regarded as a better Dem., but only for a few idealistic morons. He will likely be able to shave a tad off Biden’s numbers, which can be catastrophic considering the widespread voter suppression laws repubs have passed. Mina is spot on, money is trying every trick.
Don't forget Cornel West is now running
I don't know if you heard Cornell West raving to Amy Goodman yesterday, but he's another distraction. Even when I agree with him, I can't listen.
Appreciate the “no labels” reference. New to me.
“Journalism 101: If someone says it’s raining and another person says it’s dry, it’s not your job to quote them both. Your job is to look out the effing window and find out which is true.”
Right you are, John.
But,.....Riddle me this: If Donald Trump shoots Chris Christie in the middle of Fifth Avenue while the late afternoon gloaming Manhattan mist sets in, AND witnesses can only say that "The fat guy shot the fat guy", who to believe?!.🤣
Trick question. Doesn’t matter, he still won’t lose any votes.
LOL, so rare these days
🤣🤣🤣
Hear, hear!!!
I don't know where this quote came from, but YES!
Good question. Thought I’d looked everywhere, but finally found this attribution to Jonathan Foster:
https://eufactcheck.eu/blogpost/blog-advice-for-journalism-students-look-out-the-fcking-window-and-find-out-the-truth/
This is the best thing I've seen today Stealing.....
True, that's like giving equal credit to scientific fact and Intelligent Design.
My J school advisor is rolling in his grave laughing. Thanks for that, John.
🤣
I heard some interesting polling numbers tonight: While Republicans as a whole think an indictment on any of the serious charges being investigated *should* bar Trump from holding office as President, a staggering 46% of likely primary voting Republicans do not. Given how many candidates are in the field, that means that, at this time, Trump is likely to get the party nomination. That also means that activists in the Republican Party are almost diametrically opposed to the majority of its members. Should Trump or any of his wannabes not get the nomination, the possibility exists of a more moderate Republican candidate victory. The problem with that is that politics today operates along strict party lines, and even a moderate will be beholden to more rabid members of their party. We see the truth of that in McCarthy's situation in the House. Campaign finance reform, anyone? Going once, going twice...
I agree with you KEM, except on McCarthy, he is not now , and never has been a moderate. He is a "little boy, look at me" he has never been anything but. I don't think he has ever written a worthy piece of legislation. And, if you'll recall, during the January attack on the Capitol he was a scared little boy, begging Daddy to call of the big, bad, bullies attacking him. As soon as the attack ended, there he was, lining up with the other traitors trying to nullify the election. Then as soon as possible he went to Mar-a-lago to kiss up the his hero and promised to be a good boy.
I don't think he is a moderate at all. McCarthy, somewhat like Pence, is a wind vane, pointing whichever direction he is blown. My point is that it doesn't matter--when things are closely divided, one must make concessions to others with differing views to maintain power, and maintaining power, rather than governing seems to be the goal. There is usually less harm when radicals (whether left or right) must lean towards the center.
Thank you for your clarification. I do agree that in the end run, we are forced to make concessions. I really regret the cuts to IRS that will end the hiring of auditors, stupid thinking on the MAGA side, we could have gained billions of dollars that the wealthy tax cheats have stolen.
An excellent case in point--the cuts to the IRS amount to $2B in the first year, more in the second and following years, to a total of $20B over the ten year period. Could we have used that $20B to increase tax revenues? Yes, but I'll take the remaining $60B and put it to good use--it's $60B more than was dedicated before. A wise mentor told me early in my professional career, "It is not important that the world move on your time schedule, simply in your direction." I still love and live that as much as I can.
KEM--Please don't make it sound like the current funding for the IRS is being cut by $20B which is the Republican view of a "win"--What was cut by $20B was a quarter of the $80 billion ADDED in the Infrastruture bill, so $60B of additioanl funding was preserved by Biden in the negotiation.
The link below on the impact of the debt ceiling bill from the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center explains the best and worst case scenarios and how much leeway Biden worked into this. Namely it being Biden's choice on what the reduced additional funding can get spent on. The article notes how it would be really hard to spend even the $60B add in quickly in the 3 years that are covered under the deal with McCarthy. The basic idea is how long it takes the government to spend money to modernize IT systems and hire and train new auditors and lawyers capable of dealing the 1%. And by keeping the agreement vague and only for 3 years not a lot of current damage can be done that can't be undone under a Democratic Congress.
"At least for the time being, the IRS still retains most of the IRA funding boost. Rather than accelerating spending or slowing investments, the IRS could stay the course and cautiously test out approaches that could improve the efficiency and fairness of tax administration and then provide Congress with the evidence to evaluate the agency’s spending needs. If Congress were to act on that evidence, the Biden-McCarthy deal could yield a good outcome for the IRS and the vast majority of taxpayers."
https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/what-debt-ceiling-agreement-means-irs
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_Policy_Center#:~:text=The%20Urban%2DBrookings%20Tax%20Policy,issues%2C%20and%20to%20communicate%20its
I would not be surprised if it turned out that the figure written into the bill was deliberately inflated because the Biden admin knew the Republicans would be looking for a way to cut it. In other words, they built something into the bill they could give up in order to make a compromise and still keep essential functions protected. In which case, knowing the GOP puppet masters' fixation on taxes, they might also have planted a large number for the IRS into the bill to take the focus away from other provisions that might be harder to protect. That's all speculation, but given the way Biden handled the debt ceiling negotiations, it looks like he has a deeper appreciation for how legislation and deal making work than he's been given credit for.
A more detailed explanation, and yes, I have seen the variations that are possible. Please note that I did write “$60B more than was dedicated before” which indicates that I am not writing about current funding.
Thank You for this clarity George!
Can’t thanknyou enough for this
Reaganomics argued that collecting less revenue would produce more revenue. Republicans still make this claim, when not screaming about the deficit (except when in power).
Fantastic advice
Indeed. Its importance is amplified if you know that he was a Black attorney working his whole life on Civil Rights and school desegregation cases. His record of wins was remarkable--but not perfect, of course. I guess that's the difference between me and Bernie--he lets his vision of perfect get in the way of good. But I believe in progress...I don't disagree with John Lewis, "We want our freedom now!" I just believe there are many valid ways to run a race--all those who are running the same direction as I am are welcome!
Love this
Which is exactly what the patrons of Republican Leadership don't want; so they conspire to convince the Red Hats that the IRS is there to steal from them. Ironically HCR has discussed how the IRS was foreshadowed by a Republican sponsored federal tax to pay for the Civil War. Bush kicked his war expenses down the road.
Ms. Reid, could there be a clearer sign that the deficit or the debt ceiling doesn't truly matter to the R's?? The R's are all about retaining power and the debt and debt ceiling are are merely tools for them.
The R's owe their fealty, not to their constituents, but to the big money donors who do most of their funding--the same big money donors who are also the most interested in avoiding audits and probably the biggest tax cheats as well.
Agreed. Which is why I've been urging invoking the Constitution, Article 6, Section 1 and Amendment 14, Section 4, to remove this stupid, unconstitutional tool, the "debt ceiling" from the hands of these misfits.
McCarthy is California's version of a "good, ol boy." Great to bowl and have a beer with; lots of fun at Spring Break. He just wants to be liked by everybody. Legislating has never been his priority
McCarthy "is a fool who struts and frets his hour upon the stage, a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying NOTHING."
Shakespeare always said it best
Shakespeare, along with Newton, Einstein and Picasso, to name only a few, was a pure genius.
And he is hardly alone....
“Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are,” I don't need to remind you who said this, to whom, and when.
Right you are, may they rot in hell together
What a pig of a man. A vainglorious bully. Delusional.
Kevin McCarthy is "Tom W" in the show Succession.
I respectfully disagree for the following reasons: first, we have not seen the criminal charges and we have no idea now of the severity of the alleged criminality. Second, the formal nomination process is months away and even a percentage of that 46% of MAGA supporters may have a very different allegiance to TFG. Third, the Jack Smith charges will be supplemented by the Georgia indictments in July. Fourth, the cumulative effect of four or even five different criminal proceedings of him all going forward in different newsworthy proceedings at relatively the same time may seriously erode the percentage of Republican support for him by May or June of 2024 and thereafter. I’m not saying that he will withdraw as a candidate, quite to the contrary he will continue even if he loses the nomination. What do you think will be the reaction by the established Republican base of elected somebodies when Trump destroys their Party??
If Trump gets the nomination despite multiple indictments pending and a conviction/sentencing looming, going into the Fall, one would think that Biden is in pretty good shape. Most interesting question, Who wants to sign on to be the VP on such a ticket? Guessing its MTG or Kari Lake, LOL and we thought the GOP hit rock bottom with Sarah Palin!
Jeeze , my apology up front but I think Pence is stupid enough to do it again and expect a better result.
Ewwww.
Then we thought it was with tfg...."and the beat goes on"....
I wonder how much the Republican National Party will have to pay Trump not to run as an independent if/when he loses the nomination. Would such a payment be legal?
It wouldn't come from the Republican Party--it would come from a mega donor like Koch through a series of dark money "issue" oriented PACs to one ultimately controlled by Trump--a "justice for indicted former presidents" PAC.
I do not say this as a joke, I have wondered if there is a billionaire considering paying to have him "removed"? My theory is that The Indicted One has the nomination wrapped up, the numbers suggest that. He'll go up against Biden. The ultra wealthy won't like a Biden second term, especially if Dems have the House and Senate.
Pay him? They could, but I think that his desire for fame outweighs his need for money, after all, he only has to ask his base to send in their hard earned dollars and they do! He isn't going away.
No wonder he's terrified to go to jail, I've always been suspicious of Epstein's death.
(I know I sound like a conspiracy tinfoil head.)
Personally, I don't want him removed as I think it would make him a martyr. I keep praying that those "hamberders" do their work. Some photos of him lately, he really looks awful. If he had a MI, would anyone be surprised?
No joke and I agree, I'm sure that a lot of wealthy backers have considered finding a way to rid themselves of Trump, and you're probably right that Trump is too stupid and vain to let himself be quietly paid off like he does his prostitutes. Even to save his own life.
For several years now I've had a pleasant vision of poor Donald, sitting late at night in a lawn chair beside the grave at the 1st tee wearing only a bathrobe, surrounded by empty cheeseburger wrappers and prescription bottles, weeping soggily and muttering, "I never treated you like you deserved..." Morning finds him cold, the EMTs laconically winch him onto a truck, and that's the last we see of the Orange Menace.
Sorry, but I have a nasty mind sometimes.
Don't we all have our evil twins?
All valid points. This polling is the picture at this time. Since the cases are more or less known at this point, and the responses were still "oh, never mind all that," we don't know how much change might actually occur. And I think the reaction depends on how many other gains or losses are made.
He already has, in my humble opinion. The dregs of the cult all that’s left. But with one hell of a bank account
I apologize for the typos as I hurried it along too quickly.
Those 3 dots next to reply can let you edit on most devices. It has saved my bacon a few times!
Thanks
Good points, Ira.
I am having a lovely vision of Chris Christie out bullying Trump for the nomination. After all the "base" loves those tough talkers. Trump declares as an Independent (stays in the race hoping to use that status as a legal weapon) and he splinters the GQP vote.
Bill I agree entirely. He refuses to commit to support the winner of the primary and therefore he anticipates that the Republican establishment will unite against him in favor of ?? (Your guess?). Thus, he runs as an Indy and figures his base stays loyal to him and he wins in a three way split? Of course, this fanciful scenario ignores the impact of 4 or 5 simultaneous criminal trials.
And when nobody has the Electoral college, it goes to the House that gives it to The Indicted One. That is a scenario I don't want to see.
One, I think by then it would be a new House, possibly without a Republican majority. Second, McCarthy, or his successor, would probably have an even harder time keeping his side together against united Democrats than he did with the debt-ceiling hostage crisis. Especially after a lot of indictments, I think there's be a fairly decent chance that a few Republicans would vote across the aisle.
A slightly more interesting case would be if the Presidency goes to the new House, the new House is still barely Republican, but the Republicans never choose a Speaker. Effectively, we would have no House and no President for an indefinite time.
Can he run while in house arrest or prison?
💙VOTE BLUE💙 1) down with Citizens United, 2) Fair Share taxation, 3) Popular Vote gets the ticket /Electoral Out , 4) MAGA /Deniers/the Complicit-voted OUT and Banished , 5) Ukraine accepted into NATO
WE.CAN.DO.THIS.
Great closing point. But we have to get to a point where that’s possible and it seems to me that a lot of people are beholden to the Harlan Crows of this world. I don’t see campaign finance reform happening.
With perhaps equal blindness, I find it difficult to foresee anything that’s ahead for America at the moment. Today’s newsletter is reflective of a phenomenon that may be just getting underway. Professor Cox Richardson had any number of stories that in monts past could have been the subject of a newsletter coupled with some historical analogy to give us insight into circular patterns in American history.
Instead the force of events is such that she was reduced to simply cataloguing them succinctly. I’ve been thinking about this for some time now. It’s getting very hard to see any pattern because too many important events are happening, or are about to happen, at once. At this point who among us can foresee the the random but important outcomes that will occur *because* these events will intersect and bear fruit we can’t yet see.
I hear and read about all these candidates judiciously “picking lanes” to run in and who that will attract or repel. This, at a time when a former President is about to be indicted for crimes of deep gravity while at the same time running for the Presidency again. This alone is going to generate a massive tsunami of emotion and action. We have no idea what will happen. Will their be violence? Will Trump resort to some extreme action to try to mobilize his base? Are we certain he even has a base anymore? What will be the effects of the tensions that will build as would-be Presidents attack Trump more and more fiercely? Will they get washed overboard or will they generate some desperate rearguard action within the Republican Party to try to establish even a shred of relevancy?
Sometime major is going to happen as the indictments collide with Presidential ambitions at a time of complete disarray in the GOP. And it will be entirely unforeseen. And it will spawn a whole other set of results. The base, however much of it remains, is going to be roiled. The market will possibly feel giant tremors.
And this is *only* the antics in the Republican race. What about the food fight in the House? Will it have substantial impacts, such as confusing and fracturing people who hate Democrats even more than they are already?
And there’s a war going on. The dam attack may have huge implications which (pardon the pun) may bring America to a crossroads.
All the while we fret about Robert Kennedy and the No Labels party ruining the Democrat’s chances, Mother Nature is tuning her violin in the background. The Northeast is plunged into an eerie midday darkness from massive fires in Canada (sorry for that). She is going to be heard from again and again and we might not be worrying much about the Iowa caucus when the next disaster comes.
My point is that we are not getting a moment to stop and think about context and intersections of the events driving us. History has sped up and now is not a time to sweat the small stuff. If anything, we can be grateful for relative calm and sanity in the Democratic world. Imagine being Nikki Haley and being forced to describe yourself as a “badass woman” to try to get a shred of attention.
We live in interesting times indeed. Hold on.
Yes, Eric O'Donnell, and I understand now how "Living in interesting times" is a curse.
I find myself retreating from the fray; reading Harry Potter fan fiction and hanging new drapes over my windows.
Very sensible. I run and go to my grandchildren’s sporting events. But still the prognostications of media’s wise old men and young whippersnappers reach me, and I am dumbfounded. Nine years ago, they couldn’t have been more certain or more pompous in poking holes in DJT’s candidacy.
I’d love to be paid for stupidity and arrant certitude.
How thrilling to be visiting the west coast (I live on the East) and in addition to dipping my toes into the Pacific for the first time in my 61 years, I can be one of the first commenters. Back home I never stay up late enough to see Heather’s letter til next morning .
I’m just as glad my own governor, Slippery Sununu, has decided not to run this time after all. But I don’t trust him a bit, never have. Having just said in February that he’s vote for Trump should he be the 2024 nominee, now he’s got all sorts of things to say about why the party must move away from him. It’s clear that in his travels around the country seeking favor and advice from potential donors instead of governing our state , he’s decided the next move is to build his brand as the Reasonable Republican. He even has the gall to say this week that every time a Republican opens their mouth about abortion restrictions, it makes another Independent vote for a Democrat. He who signed NH’s first modern abortion restrictions into law! Don’t fall for it !
I join my friend Ally in welcoming your toes to the Pacific Ocean, Beth! On our side of the fruited plain, we get to look out over the ocean at sunset as well!
I appreciate your commentary on Sununu, as from what little I have seen of him, he rubs me the wrong way as well. His father had the gift of being obnoxious from the jump, but the son seems more slickly slippery.
Welcome to the Left Coast!! My toes love the Pacific Ocean!
Brrrrrr and brrrrrrrr. Swim Elk river from the bridge over 101 through Sweet’s and Knapp’s and McKenzie’s then turn north and follow the river to its mouth at Cape Blanco which lies between Sixes river and Elk river. You will be at the farthest reach of the Left Coast. Therein dip your toes sparingly. Brrrrr. We always said you can see China from there, but that is for the Chechakos.
Dang it, you guys! You are making me even more homesick. I've actually been having dreams about when I took my kids camping on the coast, and doing those very things (well, not swimming- that is very very cold water for sure). My favorite spot was Oswald West beach, because cars couldn't get down, and all the campers ended up like an extended family. sigh. Want home.
It’s still there Annie, every single day, whether we are or not.
He is a snake, albeit a smart one
Totally agree with Timothy Snyder! I've noticed that news networks are giving Russia too much air/excuse time!
Wow. Heather, since you wrote this letter, MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell had Trump’s just-resigned lawyer (for the documents case) on his show tonight. Almost the full second half of the show. Holy-moly: What a contentious and intense confrontation between two very smart people. Listening, we get a window into some of the defense’s arguments sure to be raised at trial. Trump’s lawyers are going to muddy the waters in court big time and try to confuse the jury every which way. I learned a whole lot and recommend viewing this toe-to-toe highly. I trust Jack Smith’s prosecutors will be replaying the interview, too. Very enlightening.
Here's Lawrence O’Donnell's challenge-interview of trump's ex-attorney Timothy Parlatore:
https://www.msnbc.com/the-last-word/watch/lawrence-asks-ex-trump-lawyer-why-a-classified-doc-was-in-trump-s-desk-181003333809?cid=sm_npd_ms_tw_lw
His name is "parlatore"?? Italian for "talker".
Fits perfectly, don’t you think, Anna-Louise?
It's another of those Dickensian character names typifying the person :) He should have a mute colleague called Silenzio. Or Dummer.
😄
How about Cretino? 😂
Silenzio or Dumero!
Cazzo?
You talkin' to me? :)
WHY is a former lawyer out chatting about a case in which he is no longer involved? This guy sounds a bit like the 'I declassified the documents by thinking about it' defense that no one will make to a judge. LOL saying 'lawyer drafted and swore to an affidavit but text in it cannot be taken literally because it was taken from another case and modified'...is a loser.
Every somewhat viable defense has already been presented to Jack Smith and AG and been rejected. But Trump's lawyers don't know the traps DOJ has of facts that contradict Trump's defenses.
Thank you Ellie
Thanks, Ellie!!
I watched this show intently this evening. All I can say is WOW! O’Donnell handled this lawyer quite well.
I especially liked the part about the “Classified” document found in Frumpy’s desk during the search of his office. That one fact threw the scenario the attorney was throwing out about “not having time to go through the boxes to separate personal files from the files needing to be returned.
That claim by the attorney will not hold water to begin with. Frumpy had a full year to “go through the boxes”, plus, IF he had set up, and took part in, a transition team, he wouldn’t have to go through the boxes to begin with. He would have had only his “stuff” packed up and all the other sent back to the Archives.
I personally think that O’Donnell was extremely well prepared for that interview. He gave the attorney time to “plead” Frumpy’s case, but rebutted everything that was said with facts that couldn’t be rebutted by the attorney.
Something else the attorney made himself look foolish was about the “Classified” document in the desk. He continually tried to say “it doesn’t matter the marking, we don’t know d hat the document was.” “Because it was marked Classified doesn’t mean it is a document of National Security, or something that may not have been personal writings of Frumpy.”
Seriously, are you kidding me? A document marked, stamped, “CLASSIFIED” is just that, “CLASSIFIED”. It doesn’t make any difference if Donald Duck wrote it. It’s still “CLASSIFIED” and shouldn’t have been in Frumpy’s desk drawer, separated from all the other “Classified, Top Secret, Secret” documents they found in his office. Which by the way, had been delegated from all his other “personal documents”.
Lawrence is the best .
I trust Jack Smith will not be amused by Trump tomfoolery
..a significantly growing trend is noted , as with his chorus too.
Do we dare to say the lesson is learned ...beginning to see the many deer in the headlight’s syndrome...the many flake’s false flags for what they’re worth?
Caution is still suggested, be humble , but determined...
💙VOTE💙
Let’s hope so!
I listened to the interview while driving. Last night, Lawrence had the 3 negotiators of the debt ceiling bill on. It was strikingly good! Tonight’s interview was equally as strong and brilliant. I loved it when Lawrence interrupted him to drive a point across. Parlatore certainly held his own but it was a sharp exchange and I loved it.
Interesting way to give the prosecution tips on what (false and/or misleading) info and tactics the defense is going to use and the strategies they plan to employ. Maybe...
Perhaps he is an "ex-lawyer" for Trump because he couldn't handle the insanity and abuse? And now...
I will say it again. A person can't spend 50+ years abusing, bullying, humiliating, firing, and cheating thousands of people without a karmic effect. When the worm turns on this toad of a human, it will be an avalanche of retribution and angry "tell all" articles and books.
All it will take for this to happen will be a few more leading figures to come right out and say it. Trump is a brutal crook. Then the piling on will grow and grow...
I'm here for it!
That was my thought!
Trump has never gone to jail, after an entire adult lifetime of crime, for a reason.
Money buys good lawyers.
I watched the showdown between Lawrence O’Donnell and TFG’s former lawyer. Tfg has a collection of former
lawyers. This one smiled and shook his head and denied. Why is he “defending” a client who is upfront guilty? Rhetorical question. Monday TFG current lawyers met with DOJ. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/amp/politics/trump-lawyers-meet-with-justice-department-officials-as-charging-decision-nears-in-mar-a-lago-case
Thank you for another thoughtful account of the current firehose of news.
Firehose of events, certainly. It seems to me that sometimes the "news" seems like flashcards. The picture is there so briefly that unless one digs, there is not time to see the extended implications of events that have extended consequences. There is still some excellent journalism out there, but most does not go very deep. Not every story can be in great detail, but government of the people, by the people, for the people requires an adequately informed public.
Thank you as always for your sanity, Heather. This plethora of GOP candidates does not bode well for a cessation of infighting. That killed the Dems several times in my lifetime, and I am guessing that the shoe is now on another foot.
🤞🏻 🍀
Also, after you posted tonight’s letter, let it be noted that a story broke that Trump has been notified that he is a “target” of the Special Counsel for indictment. This story has been now confirmed by multiple news sources, including the NYT.
Thank you for all the cogent summaries, and today especially for giving a wider circulation to Prof. Snyder's comments on the role of responsible journalists in describing more fully the context and history when reporting that "both sides" have taken a position.
Yes, I am very happy Prof Snyder is lecturing journalists about how they must report more broadly and not try to engage with the Russians. There is no “two sides”, plain and simple.
“...There are good people on both sides...” no there are not!
There are not two sides to a LIE. Both Sides is a lie, in and of itself.
My last read for the day. TY HCR.
What a roster of losers.
Shame on Nicky Haley (real name: Nimarata Nikki Randhawa Haley) for her horrible comments. Saying gender confusion / issues is why teenage girl suicides are so high. No. Girls have anxiety because their rights, bodies and freedoms are being usurped, anxiety because the planet is dying, anxiety because of gun violence and racism ++.
Lets hope we all can breathe easier tomorrow.
AQI in NYC was Hazardous yesterday (336!) but at 187 this morning it is merely “unhealthy”. I’ll be able to breathe a little easier today. Yeah, right. 🙄
Again....the stinking fish of political opportunism....truth is what she says it is.
Heather, how you manage to complete this blog sometimes seems like a miracle! And I appreciate all the time and work you put into it. I never imagined the GOP would go into such fits of madness. I remember where Jared was the week before Trump to office. Jared was visiting his father in prison for fraud. And now, he and his wife have 'disappeared. I would say that the GOP campaign is based on ramping up fear. Of separation.. And meanwhile, the forests are burning. And gun sale in America are making huge profits.. It feels like it's people who've become the weapons of mass destruction.
Bye bye Lichtspittle. Now all we have to do is get rid of Zaslav.
Oh. That Zaslav.
https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/david-zaslav-cnn-chris-licht-warner-discovery-1235634424/,
Thank you for this very informative piece, Dr, Richardson. If Trump is indicted and convicted before November 2024, it will be a whole new game for the GOP. If Trump is still in limbo, a large number of opponents will push him into the lead. Whatever happens Democrats need to rally behind our very competent, and very successful President Biden, and do everything in our power to get out the vote.
I hope the journalists listen to Snyder and publish only the truth. Putin is in the same class as Trump, perennial liars. They lie so instinctively, they believe their own lies are the truth.