And then, related to the Supreme Court, we see that Justice Alito was flying an upside down American flag at this house for several days around January 17th, to be precise, both after the insurrection on the sixth and while the Supreme Court was still considering whether to hear an election-related case. Was he showing support for "Stop …
And then, related to the Supreme Court, we see that Justice Alito was flying an upside down American flag at this house for several days around January 17th, to be precise, both after the insurrection on the sixth and while the Supreme Court was still considering whether to hear an election-related case. Was he showing support for "Stop the Steal"? One wonders. Expect more flak to come about from this. Have we EVER had such a blatantly corrupt Supreme Court??? Jeez . . .
I’m glad you brought up Alito and the upside down flag. I saw this, too. He blames his wife. Abhorrent man and a disgrace to the Supreme Court and our democracy.
For all the progressives back in 2000 who had to "follow my conscience" and vote for Ralph Nader, Samuel Alito was the prize you got for your "efforts," just like Trump was the prize for 50,000 Berners who had to "follow my conscience" despite Bernie asking them to please not write him in, in Wisconsin and Michigan and Pennsylvania - the margin by which Hillary Clinton lost those states and the electoral college. And now we've got another class of over-educated, under-intelligent "progressive" dunderheads who can't bring themselves to vote for "Genocide Joe." These people are as dumb as we were in 1968 when we didn't vote for Humphrey and gave the country Nixon, four more years of Vietnam and the majority of casualties, the Southern Strategy HCR writes about here, and the basic turn to the right that led to Reagan, Bush I, Bush II and Trump.
EXACTLY TCinLA! Who is more destructive, fervent MAGAs or the 'follow my conscience' purists who are looking for a perfect world that will never exist. Both are equally misguided social jihadis.
My LIKE button doesn't work this morning, but i LIKE what TcinLA and 100 said. To prevail, we have to be unified. In my case, this election is LIKE a full time job.
We have the capacity to sweep. Just need to get everyone registered and then GOTV. I volunteer with FT 6. Register Democrats - save the world.
My like button not working too, glad it’s not just me. Probably an update that screwed things up. Happens a lot. My Gmail is almost a joke since last update on laptop. Lord, progress is so fraught with regression.
I've been perusing chronologically for an hour. My "likes" show up substantially after I have hit the button, almost all of them on threads where I have made a subsequent comment. There were reports of this yesterday as well.
Daniel Solomon "My LIKE button doesn't work this morning,"
I thought I had the same problem. Clicking on the LIKE icon made no change. However, when I refreshed the page, the icon had turned red which (I think) means my LIKE was accepted.
BTW, I suspect if you click on the icon twice it will cancel the "Like."
I am trying to"Like" 100Panthers and TC in LAs takes but my Like button is not working. To me, the"follow my conscience" purists are the most maddening as they know the results of their so-called"purity" but go ahead and vote against what will help to save our country.
For some reason my Like button is working fine. I just can't find that Love button, on my phone.
Those purity voters on the left that helped Nixon, Reagan, etc. get elected echo the religious purity voters on the right that support Trump regardless of the chaos he brings.
Vote Your Conscience perverts strategic and ethical public participation. Vote Your Conscience turns voting into an individual exercise in personal expression. In fact, voting is a strategic exercise in uniting to take power. Conscience is what reminds us to use our personal power for the general welfare.
In response to all the no’s , I’m voting my conscience for RFKJR as I did for the Green Party candidate last time.He understands me and what I want for our country now.I don’t care if you think he is a long shot, he is charismatic.
By putting yourself above the general welfare and charisma over clear thinking - you are voting your gut rather than your head. Conscience means making our most vulnerable neighbors, fragile planet, and endangered democracy your priority. And voting for the candidate with the best record and best chance. In this case, that is Joe Biden.
My clear thinking tells me RFKJr will do more to cleanup our environment, restore honest government, and fix the chronic disease problem our young Americans have. Many other pluses too. Biden has a good record up to a point where he can’t go against the big corporations who fund his campaign. He is at the end of his life now and his record doesn’t change that situation.Bobby addresses the issues, he doesn’t insult like Trump and Biden do.He is the only one who can unite the country for democracy to prevail again.
Leadership requires more than a hope and a dream. What is his actual plan and team for implementaion? Congress must be there to support the plan. This is an organizational factor your opinion has not addressed
RFKjr hasnt a snowballs chance in hell of winning. You are essentially voting for tfg if you squander your one precious vote on a guy who is trading on his name.
Yes I understand that you and many others at this chatsite think my vote for RFKJR is a wasted vote for Trump.It’s not though, because I am thrilled with his stands on the issues to help regular Americans and give us back control of our government.And because I believe he will win. I suspect you don’t believe in President Biden this way or feel the enthusiasm for him I have for RFKJR.If you had more confidence in the DNC’s pick , maybe you wouldn’t be so upset about the RFKJR candidacy and talk about the issues instead of your despair of him.!!
I have great enthusiasm for President Biden. He is a man of character who has done much to help ordinary Americans. The economy is booming. Unemployment is at a record low, our alliances are strong and infrastructure projects around the country are fulfilling his promise to begin this much needed work. He leads the Party that believes in climate change, values diversity and respects science.
My despair is of voters like you who would waste their vote on a man like RFJ,Jr.
I am happy with some of the things President Biden has done.Getting the chips and science bill passed was fantastic.His stance with the unions is great too. But the debt is out of control under both him and Trump. His handling of the Ukraine war, a proxy war for Russia is disappointing and the immigration crisis is still out of control.Inflation is much better but still above the target 2 percent rate. And let’s face it, he is at the end of his life so I’m certain his stamina has faded.RFKJR is more pro- environment than President Biden. He also has a plan to stop the chronic disease problem we now have in America.And most importantly , RFKJR is beholden to Niether party.As he puts it-“ a servant only to my conscience, to my creator, and you”
Kennedy is so dangerous. Let’s see the latest on him. He got a brain worm from eating raw pork. Who does that? He only drinks raw milk, and Shanahan has been photographed with raw milk advocates during a time when we are poised on the edge of another pandemic, spread by what? Raw milk, that’s what. He hasn’t learned from experience, even when that experience caused him cognitive impairment (his words, from his divorce filing). I’m sorry, but this is idiocy.
Facts matter, science matters, and my conscience tells me never to vote for a candidate so steeped in disinformation no matter how charismatic he might seem to some people. I don’t find him charismatic; I think he’s a nut job. As TC points out above, enough people like John and their consciences will give us another four years of Trump, likely at the cost of our democracy. How do they square that with their purity tests and consciences?
He got the worm from eating under cooked meat. That was in 2010. It has come to light now from the NYTIMES who are an instrument of the DNC. His brain is working fine.You are freaking out over The threat of Trump being re-elected.Bobby is polling better against Trump than President Biden is.And how about you tell me what facts RFKJR says doesn’t matter? I’ve said enough for today, don’t want Ally on my case!
Go away, you embarrassing little mayfly. You are the perfect demonstration that a Left Fuckwit is as dangerous as a Right Fuckwit. In fact, you're both the same: so fucking stupid that you enjoy publicly celebrating your complete ignorance.
When I first read one of your long comments that demonstrated your large vocabulary and in depth thinking here I was intimidated. Now , with this comment you demonstrate that you truly are no smarter or better than I am.
You have the right of course to vote for whomever you wish - that is democracy at work. I will disagree with your choice which is my right. As an independent who has historically voted for candidates of both parties (but since 2016 no longer), my singular goal is to save American Democracy. Any vote that distracts from that goal is a counterproductive vote for autocracy. I agree with the Kennedy family, unanimous in opposing RFK's candidacy, he should channel his ego and work for democracy.
RFKJR does stand for Democracy. He explains that democracy is rooted in free speech. I think President Biden failed to consider our democracy when he censored RFKJR. As far as his relatives that say he is dangerous, I think they may come around to supporting RFKJR if he continues to gain support and ballot access. Maybe not Kerry, but maybe Rory.By dangerous she said it meant to Biden’s re-election. Not to our country.
I predict they will not come around. They know the stakes. Me too. "She said it meant to Biden's re-election. Not my country." One and the same this election, one and the same.
John, what exactly do you believe RFKJR can accomplish as a President “with no supportive political base” to pass legislation? Do you think MAGA will adopt his agenda? What Dem Congressmen will fall in line with the RFKJR movement
Practicality and Pragmatism should inform your conscientious vote
Hi Dave, Do you agree that Republicans fell in line with Trump or were ostracized like Mitt and Liz? They were intimidated by Trump. Well I don’t think RFKJR will do anything like that, but once he gets elected by the majority of Americans he will gain the respect and understanding from politicians on both sides of the isle.One of his greatest strengths is working with people that don’t agree with him. So says his wife, and she had to be talked into supporting his run.
Dave, I don’t know how widespread his support really is.He is getting on the ballot in difficult states like Texas where he obtained over 200 thousand signatures.Doesn’t that point to a lot of support?I have been helping out with petition signatures here in Maine. The people I’ve met are volunteers like me and very enthusiastic about him.I’m an average hard working American. I’m not a scholar but I do pay attention.And RFKJR has got me excited for the first time about really getting our country back on track for us , not the corporations.I believe he was meant to do this.
John, if you aren’t aware of how widespread his support might be, you may want to use “percentage of support from likely voters” and compare that with Trump’s. It will tell you immediately that RFKJR is a pipedream
You still haven’t explained policies you believe he could implement to get us back on some different track
What track is he on? Certainly not a scientific one. Are you an anti- vaccer?
Hi Dave, I’m glad you are respectful in your objections because I got some nasty insults from TCinLA.The policy of stopping corporate capture of our federal agencies is at the top of my list.He has successfully sued many government agencies , so he understands how they are set up and how he can unravel the tangled web of corporate control.He says he will make the drug companies report findings on vaccine risks and remove title 230 immunity protection from internet platforms to name some other policies.What do you mean when you claim he isn’t science based?Are you familiar with Doctor Peter McCullough?He and many others have raised safety concerns about the Covid vaccines.Biden has censored those who publicly criticized his vaccine policy.
Can you articulate RFK Jr how RFK Jr “understands” you and what it is that you “want” for the country? I ask this sincerely as I have not heard or read what he is proposing. And on one level I understand charisma but how does that translate to governing - particularly with no political party that supports his policies - which I have not seen articulated.
Frankly even if a third party candidate would be elected I do not see Rs and Ds getting together or crossing their party lines to govern under an administration that has no support. And who will he get to join his administration?
My concern for any third party candidate goes back to the structure of our government and ultimately our voting process. We are not unfortunately a parliamentarian system where third parties can actually affect government policy. We are a winner takes all system which effectively means (as history has shown) that one of the two candidates from the major parties will prevail.
No one who truly supports Bernie Sanders could ever claim to also support tffg. If you think their policies are the same then you’re not paying attention. And unlike the majority of us who followed Bernie’s lead and ended up voting for Hillary, the 2016 election was lost by the millions who chose not to vote at all. Hillary made no attempt to appeal to Bernie’s supporters. We got the orange clown because people were so disgusted that they chose to stay home. Vilifying independent voters for not towing the establishment line clearly didn’t work in 2016 so maybe you all should find a better way to appeal to them now. My children are fiercely independent and certainly not “ridin with Biden” but they can see that this election is nothing like 2016. Democracy over fascism is in play and they will vote to save democracy every time. Maybe work a little harder on being independent voters into the Democratic Party instead of recycling contempt for their actually having a conscience and disagreeing with the coronation that was being pushed by the DNC in 2016.
I've been independent since 1996 except for supporting Bernie (before and after the Convention) by also campaigning and voting for Hillary as Bernie encouraged. I believe we brought in a lot of other independents, people who had never registered, and former Republicans.. The DNC and Debbie Wasserman Schultz alienated a number of the new people we were able to get registered and voting in the primaries which hurt our chances, but I don't believe as much as just being so over confident that they thought they could enough electoral votes, no matter how many popular votes we could expect to win by.
It seemed a combination of ignoring too many outside their chosen group, and overconfidence that reduced what could have and should have been a higher turnout. To me, turnout of educated voters is critical, as explained to me by the people we worked with that had been part of Willie Valasquez (who considered it more important to get more voters registered and voting, no matter who they voted for).
It made so much sense to me as I recalled how ancestors had first gained the majority in the House as the "Opposition" Coalition/Caucus designated by "O" in the 34th Congress, as they worked with all others opposed to slavery despite other differences.
I have no doubt Trump will never win a popular vote, but my old party's treachery and Gerrymandering has made the Electoral College the poison pill in Representative Democracy. (I left in 1996 as did Elizabeth Warren.)
My like button doesn't work either. My son was a Bernie fans and, despite Bernie's endorsement of Biden seem to waffle on support of Trump. I'll keep working on him, but frustrating to see how things may go badly if not for persistent effort. Trump is coming to Minnesota to talk. Can't imagine he can win here, but should not take anything for granted.
I thought it was just me, but it started glitching yesterday. Obviously, Substack doesn't have the greatest programmers or customer support.
Typical greedy organization. It would be interesting to see how much money they take in off of HCR, Joyce Vance, Thom Hartmann & Robert Reich not to mention the hundreds of others that post for $$$$ on Substack
They take 10 percent, which we all agree with. So far as "greedy organizations" are concerned, Substack is pretty low on that list, since they have created a space for the people you mention (and people like me) to write what we do. Try doing that on X.
You need to rethink your alleged "progressive" views.
If you want to be able to "unlock" all your messages and such at Linked-In, it costs more than a subscript to HCR or to me. With a lot less actual content.
This comment section is as close to social media as I come so I have no idea about the cost of any of this.
I do have a Linked-in account that I used quite a bit when I first signed up, but nothing in the past 5 years or so. And I never paid for the premium addition.
Well, as I said, for those of us who publish a page, Substack has an admin fee and makes sure all our payments are sent to us via Stripe. It's a percentage not out of line with other hosting sites for the same support. It would be impossible to operate otherwise.
I've never gotten a premium account at Linked-In or any of the others. I do pay for subscriptions at other sites here on Substack where I like what the person is doing and want to support them, participate in the community, etc. HRC here is one of the few publishers who allows free subbers to comment, which is why the "mayflies" show up. Most publishers (like me) have commentary limited to paid subscribers, which gives a reason to be a paid subber, and keeps the trolls and Trumpers out (they're all cheapskates, don't want to pay for the opportunity to troll.
My like button seems intermittent, but sometimes just delayed 10 to 20 seconds. It may be multiple attempts during the delay end up with an even number of attempts, each pair of which cancels the odd like press with an even numbered toggle. I could hope that even substack is having trouble keeping up with massively more traffic than other systems.
I live in WI and serve as an election official. There is no way to know how many people wrote in Bernie’s name in the general election. He was not an official write in candidate, so those write-ins would not have been tallied.
What we DO know is that voter ID went into effect just before that election. At the time that law was passed by our gerrymandered state house, a whopping 23% of registered voters did not have proper ID to vote in 2016. Many were turned away at the polls. In addition, youth turnout was very low that year.
Leading up to 2020, huge effort was made here to educate others about what was needed to register and vote and huge effort was made to educate and register young voters. Young voters have seen very little positive governmental change in their young lives. Rather than judging them, let’s engage with them…..encourage them.
People do not sit out elections because they are apathetic or lazy. They sit out because nothing in their personal experience indicates their vote matters. Or because they have experienced real harm at the hands of people who represent the government. Overcoming this will require dialogue and education about the history of voting over time.
Rather than dumping on potential dem voters, I intend to continue working on voter registration, voter dialogue, and support of our early vote opportunities. These are all non partisan activities. But I will also hone my personal message about the many good things Biden has accomplished and the very real dangers posed by ‘the former guy’ for those times I am able to engage in persuasion with people who might not otherwise vote. For example, if I am in a quiet shop, I might ask the young person who sells me my cat food if she is a voter, and go from there.
I too am an election official in Wisconsin, and as I open dropped off and early ballots, I try to not watch who is being voted for. My mixed suburban city does lean left, but I agree there were few write in votes that counted, because a candidate who wants write in votes has to basically register as a candidate! Mickey Mouse always seems to get a few, none of which obviously count.
Some of the ‘third party’ candidates have good ideas and making them heard is important. Of course government is largely ‘bought’ (including of course some members of the SC), and some are beholden to those donors and lobbyists. Until we are able to bring third party issues to the table, elections will be precarious. Bernie knew this, bless him. Calling out the ‘rot’ is easy, making progress in a diverse nation and world is hard work. Biden seems to know this. He has made mistakes that dog him (incarceration, etc.), but the man has learned a few things and by my count, remembers.
And while I’m at it, shame on those who hang onto dt’s coattails for the sake of power, and make a show of being his megaphones!
But you cannot bring “third parties to the table” in the US. There is no chair for third parties. The US is a “winner takes all” system. We do not “do” coalitions. I wish HCR would do a post on “why” and “how” the founders decided to ditch a Parliamentarian form of government in favor of one that means the Head of State and the Head of government is one and the same and how that has devolved (IMO) into the election of a king.
Rather than just bash the “follow my conscience” types, why not work to change the system to something like ranked choice voting. That would allow people to ‘vote their conscience” without being spoilers. Interestingly, those on the left seem at least as opposed to this reform as those on the right. Maine adopted it after the hard right LaPage won when two other candidates split the vote. It also enabled Murkowski (a moderate) to retain her seat. Change the system to allow people to vote their conscience without becoming spoilers.
Well said. I refer to him as "one trick pony". There are a couple other semi-regular posters who are on the same tired horse regarding events in the Middle East.
This dysfunction is built into the two-party system. It works when both parties have a passion for making the system work, and are willing to compromise. But you ultimately cannot square freedom with slavery, as OUR two parties represent, and as soon as the game gets overbalanced, the losing party has no incentive to compromise, or (for that matter) to do anything other than kneecap the other party. They are now playing an entirely different "game."
More specifically, as evidenced in these comments, it takes the hard work of compromise away from the politicians, and lays it on the voters, who are utterly unequipped for that task. I SHOULD be able to vote for Bernie, or Jill Stein, and the politicians who are elected should be able to use that vote count as a guideline for where the safety rails are. But the two party system conceals all that information, not only from the political parties, but from the voters. We are forced to make a binary choice between undesirable A and undesirable B, and are STUCK with that choice for two, or four, or six, or eight years, or for the lifetime of a justice.
The two-party system is pretty much designed to fail and come to civil war in the long run.
A lot of the fury in these comments -- and I have plenty of my own -- is built around the hopelessness of the system itself.
Thomas you have articulated very well some of the roadblocks that the “winner takes all” system imposes upon our country. This is what we got when the founders rejected a parliamentarian form of government which allows for third parties to participate in the government. We would be a much better country if third parties were robust instead in name only. We would gain a diversity of ideas that could be articulated and impact government policies if we dumped the “winner takes all” system. This (IMO) could allow a more balanced and inclusive government. Few people again IMO) recognize how much of an outlier the US is with both the “winner takes all” system and the Electoral College.
Hmm. I'm sure Heather has covered this at some point, but I don't recall (or know) the details.
I looked up "parliamentary democracy," and it seems to be quite different from what the US has. In particular, the ruling party (or coalition) in parliament also determines the Prime Minister (President).
But the subject of political parties was not (I think) addressed by the founders at all. In fact, prior to the American Civil War, it was extremely difficult to organize parties, given the slowness of transportation and communication. The South had the Democratic Party which supported slavery throughout the South, but the Northern states were a hodge-podge of parties, like the Free Soilers and Whigs. It wasn't until the time of Lincoln that these coalesced into the Republican Party.
I don't think the two-party system we have is anything other than tradition. There are certain duties in Congress that would necessarily fall to a single individual, but the rules of House and Senate could be changed to select these roles from multiple parties or coalitions. Like the MAGA rules for the House right now, that allow the Speaker to be thrown out by Marjorie Boeberti Boo on a whim.
We still have "third parties," like the Green Party. I think the issue has less to do with any constitutional issues, and a lot more to do with the organizational rules for campaign financing, which is a stacked deck that makes any third-party candidate into a sideshow.
I recommend “Parlimentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy” by Maxwell Stearns who teaches Constitutional Law & Economics at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. He agrees that the Founders never intended a two-party system but that is where we are now and it contributes to our dysfunctional government.
The 2000 election hinged on Florida and hanging chads.
After 8 years of the "Cheney administration", "hope and change" denied Hillary Clinton the nomination, and Democrats regained control of Congress two years later. The change was less than stellar, but people still had hope.
By 2016, after Republicans had blocked Merrick Garland's appointment to the SCOTUS, Democratic superdelegates were all in for Hillary from the get go, but momentum favored Bernie Sanders. Why not place some blame there?
Hillary was status quo, as were the likes of Jeb Bush. Voters were still hungry for change, and Trump's messaging struck a chord. What a sad commentary on the state of American politics at the highest level.
Perhaps, Biden should have followed LBJ and stepped aside as a "transitional" candidate. One thing is for sure, if Trump survives the Republican convention, this election will be a watershed event in America's history.
Isn't it ironic that Liz Cheney has been ostracized while Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio kiss the ring?
Maybe we should be placing more emphasis on neutralizing people like Matt Gaetz, Loren Bobert, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tom Cotton, and Jim Jordan, et al.
There have been numerous attempts to educate people like you as to why a "step aside" will not work, and why anyone who "stepped in" would have to develop things from the bottom up, since they would not inherit the support system. What part of all the things the Biden Administration has done - lowest unemployment in 55 years, major investments in infrastructure and government operation, getting rid of "junk fees," policing corporate M&A, managing the pandemic successfully, serious efforts to mitigate climate change, etc. - do you dislike?
What's not to like when the government subsidizes health insurance companies to deny care. In states that expanded Medicaid, most doctors won't treat due to low reimbursement rates. In states not expanding Medicaid, the uninsured be damned. The homeless population increases, while tax cuts for the wealthiest not only remain in place over time, they are periodically expanded. These are but the most glaring shortcoming that go unaddressed, while both sides of the political duopoly are hell bent on convincing the peasants that if only "our" party had control, everything would be alright. Sadly, we get the government we deserve.
The best definition of stupid by a social psychologist; ..when someone does harm to someone and harms themselves that stupid. This is regardless of one's intelligence or sucesss.
But let's look, too, Ginni, at another quote of Heather's here.
She's quoting William F. Buckley Jr. when, in 1955, he was setting up the National Review, anxious to combat the New Deal and a larger, post-WWII role of national government which, he felt “violated [the] businessman’s side of the story.”
Many whites have hated how the federal government lent its weight to many good, needed new laws and government agencies. regarding civil rights, just as corporate America from the 1971 Powell memo on so hated how schools lent their weight to the humane improvements Americans had otherwise also been experiencing (at least from the Justin Morrill public college land grant legislation of 1862 to that Powell memo of 1971).
Alito and others on the corrupt Clarence court hate the America which -- to use Buckley's term -- violates their sense of the feudal aristocracy they see themselves leading. They want the one percent to rule all. So even now they're entertaining at that corrupt court how to kill the Chevron precedent, by which so many federal agencies function. So many people's rights they yet want to kill, just as they have killed the rights of so many women regarding their own bodies, their own health care, their own families.
Alito a disgrace, Ginni? Yes, but one part of a long, sordid history.
Leonard Leo - and the conservative court majority he crafted with Charles Koch money, Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Coney Barrett - personally benefitted from the liberalization of American society which paved their way to fully participate and government protections for their right to do so. And now they are bent on pulling up the ladder behind them.
Sandra Day OConnor had the decency to speak openly of being an affirmative action appointment to the Supreme Court.
RBG is my all time favorite Justice. Until she passed away, she kept the uber right justices in line. But Sandra Day O'Connor was also an incredible justice. She stood up for women too.
To think that the theocrat and patriarchy love Amy Comely-Barrett replaced RBG boggles the mind.
Yes, Ginni. I think Alito blaming his wife is the bigger story here because it goes to character, not just a single incident or single issue. Real men don't throw their spouses under the bus. Pathetic, but instructive.
His wife, being a woman, couldn't help herself, Jeff.
Remember, that's Alito's philosophy -- that states may control women's choices, because Alito and his fellow arrogant on the Clarence court believe women can't at all be trusted themselves.
Also, remember the text he wrote in killing Roe -- that women may all too easily be witches, as one of his feudal male heroes argued, when that medieval hero was for killing women outright.
Ah. Yes I found a propublica article about that. Nasty jurist who created two hundred years of misogyny against women in our legal system, including the concept that wives cannot be raped by their husband because wives agreed to all sex when they married, and the notion of blaming women who are raped for being"tempting" by what they wore or not sufficiently fighting, or even worse, not being of good enough character to care what happened to them.
The record, clear, Barbara -- not just on Alito always arrogating himself and his medieval views.
He, like Clarence, also takes bribes from the rich (though with faint-hearted efforts to do it in secret). Both voted for Citizens United back in 2010, giving American government to the rich.
Might Chief Justice John Roberts exercise some spine and insist these most eminently corrupt resign their life-long sinecures?
Sorry, Barbara, Roberts joined the 5-4 majority for Citizens United, legalizing the corruption of government -- it's fine for the corporations and the billionaires to do the corrupting.
I haven't seen the source of the original Buckley quote, but when I saw your post, I thought I had read Dr. Richardson's reference to it wrong. She actually posted, "the violated businessman's side of the story." If the latter is what Buckley originally wrote, it gives a sense of the outrage felt by those businessmen whose rights to conspire and connive to exploit the general public were violated by the imposition of even the most limited of regulations. This is straight out of the discredited Hayek hymnal.
A friend referred me to Professor Richardson's post in 2016 and I've been reading and commenting ever since. I live in a town, county, and state where Trump lovers abound. Someone told me if people around here knew about my hatred of Trump, that they would come and hang me! Yep. Hang me.
If it wasn't for HCR's words, and the comments of like-minded people, I think I would have had a nervous breakdown trying to understand how people could support such a vile, unhinged, immoral man and think that he is worthy of being the president of our United States.
We are living in precarious times, and we need all the balance we can get. Thanks to HCR and all the commenters here for keeping me sane and hopeful that RIGHT will prevail.
Thank you for the welcome, Pam. I stumbled upon LFAA through a casual reference to it on another website comment section, possibly Slate. When I googled the site i was amazed at Dr, Richardson’s ability to summarize current events and provide relevant historical context for them I trained as a historian myself, and know how hard it is to do it well..
Like you, l found the comment section an oasis. Yes, it’s an echo chamber, but one populated by intelligent, articulate, courteous, and friendly observers. And they are often, like me, Of A Certain Age 😁
Unlike you l live in an overwhelmingly blue state, but one in which national politics takes a back seat to local matters.
I utterly detest Mr. Trump, who has proven himself to be the antithesis of all that is good, decent, and honorable. There is no truth in him.
I am somewhat sympathetic to certain Trump supporters, misguided though they be. They’re not wrong about being betrayed, though they place blame in the wrong places. I have no time for the cynical or evil ones, and you can’t fix the stupid ones. We might be able to make some progress with the ignorant but well-meaning ones, but only if we don’t get too full of ourselves.
I remain optimistic about our country, but only if we return and remain faithful to our founding principles.
Yes, Ginni. To me Alito blaming his wife is the bigger story because it goes to character, not just a specific incident. Real men don't throw their spouses under the bus. Pathetic but sadly revealing.
Spot On! We get who we vote for. When we elect a President we are electing everyone he or she hires to serve the Executive Branch team, we also must assume we are electing Scotus justices. It seems to me many Americans slept through history and civics clssses.
Considering whether we've ever had "such a blatantly corrupt Supreme Court," let's look also at the larger, systematized corruption by the many new, far-right foundations that came about and allied with each other in the wake of the 1971 Powell memo.
They knew they wanted to put the U.S.'s commercial classes on steroids. They had no problem aligning with the worst dictators of the world as they offshored the tens of millions of American working-class jobs. But before they could do that, they knew they'd have to silence, dehumanize American schools -- to set higher ed to neutered silos and to replace humanities in all K-12 with standardized testing, where all schools would then on only teach to the test.
I saw this morning a video of Scott Galloway (on happiness), where he noted how American higher ed just totally lost its script -- and how due to that America became a country of castes.
A "blatantly corrupt Supreme Court"? Yes, Bruce -- never before anything like this. But it's part of a larger corruption where the billionaires rule a neutered, social media channeled, polarized, hate-filled serfdom.
Alito? Some are sicker than others. I wish President Biden could expand the Court by two seats to undo the packing done by Trump and Senator McConnell. The Court should have a one vote (not three) majority appointed by G.O.P. Presidents.
I’ve been singing that chorus for some years. Since the number of seats is set by Congress (the last time was 1869), it can be done…if we get a majority.
Bruce, are you surrounded by Donald TUMP fanatics in your part of Georgia like i am? The county i live in borders Maggot Traitor Greene's district, big trucks, shooting guns at night, trying to block county roads and much more mayhem here. I am sick of living in Georgia...
Yes, pretty much solid red here. The representative here is none other than Andrew Clyde, the one who provided AKA-15 lapel pins for House members. He was also the one who showed incredible "bravery" on Jan. 6th when he was seen scared out of his wits and cowering behind walls and barricades when rioters were trying to break into the House chamber. In '20, this area went about 73% for T***p, I believe. Hardly any Democrats ever run for anything here. Even though our burg here of almost 50,000 people is something like 30% Hispanic/Latino, that presence hasn't translated into any real gain of Democratic voters. I keep hoping for a change, but nothing yet. I purposely keep a low profile here, never responding to social media posts that might give away my identity as I don't want to receive threats—and I know they happen because others I know have had to endure harassment. Going on to a site like the local version of NextDoor really shows what you're dealing with. Just yesterday someone posted a picture made here of a cloud formation that looked (in a stretch) like T***p with a heart over his head and folks were waxing rhapsodic over what it meant. There were a few detractors, but I won't go there. My favorite last week was a bunch of people going off on how clouds are being seeded with steroids and one person swore that it was a plot to turn us all into transsexuals. Uh-huh. I am not making this up. So yes . . . I'm surrounded by zealots. Sadly, I'm stuck here and because of my severely restricted income, I cannot afford to relocate. There are times I REALLY question why I didn't stay in The Netherlands when I had the chance!
I might add a few other things that happened to us, before the 2020 election, i had a BIDEN/HARRIS sign in my yard and me and my family were harassed, cursed at, and had our tires slashed. We had to buy 2 new tires as the scummy TUMP terrorists slashed them on the side walls of the tires, and a side wall puncture cannot be repaired.
One day, when my grown, eldest granddaughter was at my house, the Fascist terrorists drove by my house and were yelling and cursing at us, my granddaughter responded by yelling as loud as she could to them, GO TO HELL!!!! That effectively stopped the harassment...
My eldest granddaughter is fiery red haired gal and doesn't take any crap off of anyone!
I saw this outrage. Alito and Thomas need to be removed, or 2 additional justices added to negate their incompetence, malfeasance, and corruption.
I don’t understand the mental acrobatics that allow a black man to so thoroughly undermine his own interests, rights, and human dignity by supporting a racist party that considers him a lesser human being. There are several right now.
Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe an upside down American flag signals a specific distress.
According to the U.S. Flag Code, flying the American flag upside down is only meant to be done "as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property." (Taken from a google search)
It seems to me we need to ask the person doing the flying what they thought was the meaning. Imagine for a moment that you were in your fort being attacked and finding yourself in a dire situation. You didn’t have a cellphone or radio but you could signal over a distance that you needed help by flying the flag upside down. It might be your last hope of communication.
In one way, as we portray our existential concerns for democracy, we are indeed flying our flag upside down. We are worried about survival of our nation/fort.
Just like I seem to find Trump’s group flying a proper American flag while flagrantly disrespecting everything America stands for is confusing. As January 6th has shown us. It seems to me that many symbols are being misrepresented.
In my fantasy world we all recapture the American flag as our proud symbol as we go vote for Biden. If nothing else it might confuse some Trump supporters. To take our country toward democracy we may need our flag back. IMO. And hopefully not need to fly it upside down.
Justice Alito was flying an upside down American flag at this house? Appears to be true and if so, if we did not already know, he has no judicial integrity.
And then, related to the Supreme Court, we see that Justice Alito was flying an upside down American flag at this house for several days around January 17th, to be precise, both after the insurrection on the sixth and while the Supreme Court was still considering whether to hear an election-related case. Was he showing support for "Stop the Steal"? One wonders. Expect more flak to come about from this. Have we EVER had such a blatantly corrupt Supreme Court??? Jeez . . .
I’m glad you brought up Alito and the upside down flag. I saw this, too. He blames his wife. Abhorrent man and a disgrace to the Supreme Court and our democracy.
For all the progressives back in 2000 who had to "follow my conscience" and vote for Ralph Nader, Samuel Alito was the prize you got for your "efforts," just like Trump was the prize for 50,000 Berners who had to "follow my conscience" despite Bernie asking them to please not write him in, in Wisconsin and Michigan and Pennsylvania - the margin by which Hillary Clinton lost those states and the electoral college. And now we've got another class of over-educated, under-intelligent "progressive" dunderheads who can't bring themselves to vote for "Genocide Joe." These people are as dumb as we were in 1968 when we didn't vote for Humphrey and gave the country Nixon, four more years of Vietnam and the majority of casualties, the Southern Strategy HCR writes about here, and the basic turn to the right that led to Reagan, Bush I, Bush II and Trump.
EXACTLY TCinLA! Who is more destructive, fervent MAGAs or the 'follow my conscience' purists who are looking for a perfect world that will never exist. Both are equally misguided social jihadis.
My LIKE button doesn't work this morning, but i LIKE what TcinLA and 100 said. To prevail, we have to be unified. In my case, this election is LIKE a full time job.
We have the capacity to sweep. Just need to get everyone registered and then GOTV. I volunteer with FT 6. Register Democrats - save the world.
https://www.fieldteam6.org/
.
Ditto, my "Like" button isn't working.
My like button not working too, glad it’s not just me. Probably an update that screwed things up. Happens a lot. My Gmail is almost a joke since last update on laptop. Lord, progress is so fraught with regression.
Same here. My LIKE button isn't working
I've been perusing chronologically for an hour. My "likes" show up substantially after I have hit the button, almost all of them on threads where I have made a subsequent comment. There were reports of this yesterday as well.
Mine either. Must be something with the software?
Daniel Solomon "My LIKE button doesn't work this morning,"
I thought I had the same problem. Clicking on the LIKE icon made no change. However, when I refreshed the page, the icon had turned red which (I think) means my LIKE was accepted.
BTW, I suspect if you click on the icon twice it will cancel the "Like."
My button isn't workiing either - and I agree with you
Ditto on "like" button.
I am trying to"Like" 100Panthers and TC in LAs takes but my Like button is not working. To me, the"follow my conscience" purists are the most maddening as they know the results of their so-called"purity" but go ahead and vote against what will help to save our country.
For some reason my Like button is working fine. I just can't find that Love button, on my phone.
Those purity voters on the left that helped Nixon, Reagan, etc. get elected echo the religious purity voters on the right that support Trump regardless of the chaos he brings.
What no mention of Jill Stein?
Vote Your Conscience perverts strategic and ethical public participation. Vote Your Conscience turns voting into an individual exercise in personal expression. In fact, voting is a strategic exercise in uniting to take power. Conscience is what reminds us to use our personal power for the general welfare.
Once I saw Jill Stein in Moscow at dinner with General Mike, I knew that she was Red instead of Green.
In response to all the no’s , I’m voting my conscience for RFKJR as I did for the Green Party candidate last time.He understands me and what I want for our country now.I don’t care if you think he is a long shot, he is charismatic.
By putting yourself above the general welfare and charisma over clear thinking - you are voting your gut rather than your head. Conscience means making our most vulnerable neighbors, fragile planet, and endangered democracy your priority. And voting for the candidate with the best record and best chance. In this case, that is Joe Biden.
Like
yep - democracy trumps ego
Exactly
Like (button intermittent)
My clear thinking tells me RFKJr will do more to cleanup our environment, restore honest government, and fix the chronic disease problem our young Americans have. Many other pluses too. Biden has a good record up to a point where he can’t go against the big corporations who fund his campaign. He is at the end of his life now and his record doesn’t change that situation.Bobby addresses the issues, he doesn’t insult like Trump and Biden do.He is the only one who can unite the country for democracy to prevail again.
Leadership requires more than a hope and a dream. What is his actual plan and team for implementaion? Congress must be there to support the plan. This is an organizational factor your opinion has not addressed
RFKjr hasnt a snowballs chance in hell of winning. You are essentially voting for tfg if you squander your one precious vote on a guy who is trading on his name.
He WILL NOT be elected, so you are wasting your vote and helping Trump. Makes no sense.
Yes I understand that you and many others at this chatsite think my vote for RFKJR is a wasted vote for Trump.It’s not though, because I am thrilled with his stands on the issues to help regular Americans and give us back control of our government.And because I believe he will win. I suspect you don’t believe in President Biden this way or feel the enthusiasm for him I have for RFKJR.If you had more confidence in the DNC’s pick , maybe you wouldn’t be so upset about the RFKJR candidacy and talk about the issues instead of your despair of him.!!
I have great enthusiasm for President Biden. He is a man of character who has done much to help ordinary Americans. The economy is booming. Unemployment is at a record low, our alliances are strong and infrastructure projects around the country are fulfilling his promise to begin this much needed work. He leads the Party that believes in climate change, values diversity and respects science.
My despair is of voters like you who would waste their vote on a man like RFJ,Jr.
I am happy with some of the things President Biden has done.Getting the chips and science bill passed was fantastic.His stance with the unions is great too. But the debt is out of control under both him and Trump. His handling of the Ukraine war, a proxy war for Russia is disappointing and the immigration crisis is still out of control.Inflation is much better but still above the target 2 percent rate. And let’s face it, he is at the end of his life so I’m certain his stamina has faded.RFKJR is more pro- environment than President Biden. He also has a plan to stop the chronic disease problem we now have in America.And most importantly , RFKJR is beholden to Niether party.As he puts it-“ a servant only to my conscience, to my creator, and you”
Kennedy is so dangerous. Let’s see the latest on him. He got a brain worm from eating raw pork. Who does that? He only drinks raw milk, and Shanahan has been photographed with raw milk advocates during a time when we are poised on the edge of another pandemic, spread by what? Raw milk, that’s what. He hasn’t learned from experience, even when that experience caused him cognitive impairment (his words, from his divorce filing). I’m sorry, but this is idiocy.
Facts matter, science matters, and my conscience tells me never to vote for a candidate so steeped in disinformation no matter how charismatic he might seem to some people. I don’t find him charismatic; I think he’s a nut job. As TC points out above, enough people like John and their consciences will give us another four years of Trump, likely at the cost of our democracy. How do they square that with their purity tests and consciences?
Agreed!
He got the worm from eating under cooked meat. That was in 2010. It has come to light now from the NYTIMES who are an instrument of the DNC. His brain is working fine.You are freaking out over The threat of Trump being re-elected.Bobby is polling better against Trump than President Biden is.And how about you tell me what facts RFKJR says doesn’t matter? I’ve said enough for today, don’t want Ally on my case!
Go away, you embarrassing little mayfly. You are the perfect demonstration that a Left Fuckwit is as dangerous as a Right Fuckwit. In fact, you're both the same: so fucking stupid that you enjoy publicly celebrating your complete ignorance.
Ha, ha, ha, ha !!! TC, I love you.🤩
When I first read one of your long comments that demonstrated your large vocabulary and in depth thinking here I was intimidated. Now , with this comment you demonstrate that you truly are no smarter or better than I am.
You have the right of course to vote for whomever you wish - that is democracy at work. I will disagree with your choice which is my right. As an independent who has historically voted for candidates of both parties (but since 2016 no longer), my singular goal is to save American Democracy. Any vote that distracts from that goal is a counterproductive vote for autocracy. I agree with the Kennedy family, unanimous in opposing RFK's candidacy, he should channel his ego and work for democracy.
RFKJR does stand for Democracy. He explains that democracy is rooted in free speech. I think President Biden failed to consider our democracy when he censored RFKJR. As far as his relatives that say he is dangerous, I think they may come around to supporting RFKJR if he continues to gain support and ballot access. Maybe not Kerry, but maybe Rory.By dangerous she said it meant to Biden’s re-election. Not to our country.
I predict they will not come around. They know the stakes. Me too. "She said it meant to Biden's re-election. Not my country." One and the same this election, one and the same.
John, what exactly do you believe RFKJR can accomplish as a President “with no supportive political base” to pass legislation? Do you think MAGA will adopt his agenda? What Dem Congressmen will fall in line with the RFKJR movement
Practicality and Pragmatism should inform your conscientious vote
I wonder if Jaime Ruskin would cooperate with RFKJR
No, he would not, since Congressman Raskin has a brain, unlike you, you drooling moron.
Raskin
Hi Dave, Do you agree that Republicans fell in line with Trump or were ostracized like Mitt and Liz? They were intimidated by Trump. Well I don’t think RFKJR will do anything like that, but once he gets elected by the majority of Americans he will gain the respect and understanding from politicians on both sides of the isle.One of his greatest strengths is working with people that don’t agree with him. So says his wife, and she had to be talked into supporting his run.
John, you failed to tell me what RFKJR might accomplish. Your conjecture that he might gain widespread support has no foundation. Its a pipedream
Dave, I don’t know how widespread his support really is.He is getting on the ballot in difficult states like Texas where he obtained over 200 thousand signatures.Doesn’t that point to a lot of support?I have been helping out with petition signatures here in Maine. The people I’ve met are volunteers like me and very enthusiastic about him.I’m an average hard working American. I’m not a scholar but I do pay attention.And RFKJR has got me excited for the first time about really getting our country back on track for us , not the corporations.I believe he was meant to do this.
John, if you aren’t aware of how widespread his support might be, you may want to use “percentage of support from likely voters” and compare that with Trump’s. It will tell you immediately that RFKJR is a pipedream
You still haven’t explained policies you believe he could implement to get us back on some different track
What track is he on? Certainly not a scientific one. Are you an anti- vaccer?
Hi Dave, I’m glad you are respectful in your objections because I got some nasty insults from TCinLA.The policy of stopping corporate capture of our federal agencies is at the top of my list.He has successfully sued many government agencies , so he understands how they are set up and how he can unravel the tangled web of corporate control.He says he will make the drug companies report findings on vaccine risks and remove title 230 immunity protection from internet platforms to name some other policies.What do you mean when you claim he isn’t science based?Are you familiar with Doctor Peter McCullough?He and many others have raised safety concerns about the Covid vaccines.Biden has censored those who publicly criticized his vaccine policy.
As charismatic as a wormy apple.
Can you articulate RFK Jr how RFK Jr “understands” you and what it is that you “want” for the country? I ask this sincerely as I have not heard or read what he is proposing. And on one level I understand charisma but how does that translate to governing - particularly with no political party that supports his policies - which I have not seen articulated.
Frankly even if a third party candidate would be elected I do not see Rs and Ds getting together or crossing their party lines to govern under an administration that has no support. And who will he get to join his administration?
My concern for any third party candidate goes back to the structure of our government and ultimately our voting process. We are not unfortunately a parliamentarian system where third parties can actually affect government policy. We are a winner takes all system which effectively means (as history has shown) that one of the two candidates from the major parties will prevail.
Charisma doesn't equal intelligence or ability to lead well. Hollywood types should be confined to the movie industry fantasyland.
Thanks for the news from Earth IV you ilitterate moron.
No one who truly supports Bernie Sanders could ever claim to also support tffg. If you think their policies are the same then you’re not paying attention. And unlike the majority of us who followed Bernie’s lead and ended up voting for Hillary, the 2016 election was lost by the millions who chose not to vote at all. Hillary made no attempt to appeal to Bernie’s supporters. We got the orange clown because people were so disgusted that they chose to stay home. Vilifying independent voters for not towing the establishment line clearly didn’t work in 2016 so maybe you all should find a better way to appeal to them now. My children are fiercely independent and certainly not “ridin with Biden” but they can see that this election is nothing like 2016. Democracy over fascism is in play and they will vote to save democracy every time. Maybe work a little harder on being independent voters into the Democratic Party instead of recycling contempt for their actually having a conscience and disagreeing with the coronation that was being pushed by the DNC in 2016.
I've been independent since 1996 except for supporting Bernie (before and after the Convention) by also campaigning and voting for Hillary as Bernie encouraged. I believe we brought in a lot of other independents, people who had never registered, and former Republicans.. The DNC and Debbie Wasserman Schultz alienated a number of the new people we were able to get registered and voting in the primaries which hurt our chances, but I don't believe as much as just being so over confident that they thought they could enough electoral votes, no matter how many popular votes we could expect to win by.
It seemed a combination of ignoring too many outside their chosen group, and overconfidence that reduced what could have and should have been a higher turnout. To me, turnout of educated voters is critical, as explained to me by the people we worked with that had been part of Willie Valasquez (who considered it more important to get more voters registered and voting, no matter who they voted for).
It made so much sense to me as I recalled how ancestors had first gained the majority in the House as the "Opposition" Coalition/Caucus designated by "O" in the 34th Congress, as they worked with all others opposed to slavery despite other differences.
I have no doubt Trump will never win a popular vote, but my old party's treachery and Gerrymandering has made the Electoral College the poison pill in Representative Democracy. (I left in 1996 as did Elizabeth Warren.)
My like button doesn't work either. My son was a Bernie fans and, despite Bernie's endorsement of Biden seem to waffle on support of Trump. I'll keep working on him, but frustrating to see how things may go badly if not for persistent effort. Trump is coming to Minnesota to talk. Can't imagine he can win here, but should not take anything for granted.
I thought it was just me, but it started glitching yesterday. Obviously, Substack doesn't have the greatest programmers or customer support.
Typical greedy organization. It would be interesting to see how much money they take in off of HCR, Joyce Vance, Thom Hartmann & Robert Reich not to mention the hundreds of others that post for $$$$ on Substack
They take 10 percent, which we all agree with. So far as "greedy organizations" are concerned, Substack is pretty low on that list, since they have created a space for the people you mention (and people like me) to write what we do. Try doing that on X.
You need to rethink your alleged "progressive" views.
So what does Facebook, Tic-Tok, You-tube, Lnked-in et.al. charge? I have no idea.
There are so many other ones that I am unaware of. What if HCR left Substack?
I think Borowitz recently left the New Yorker and is on Substack. I have been too cheap to sign up for his space though.
If you want to be able to "unlock" all your messages and such at Linked-In, it costs more than a subscript to HCR or to me. With a lot less actual content.
This comment section is as close to social media as I come so I have no idea about the cost of any of this.
I do have a Linked-in account that I used quite a bit when I first signed up, but nothing in the past 5 years or so. And I never paid for the premium addition.
Well, as I said, for those of us who publish a page, Substack has an admin fee and makes sure all our payments are sent to us via Stripe. It's a percentage not out of line with other hosting sites for the same support. It would be impossible to operate otherwise.
I've never gotten a premium account at Linked-In or any of the others. I do pay for subscriptions at other sites here on Substack where I like what the person is doing and want to support them, participate in the community, etc. HRC here is one of the few publishers who allows free subbers to comment, which is why the "mayflies" show up. Most publishers (like me) have commentary limited to paid subscribers, which gives a reason to be a paid subber, and keeps the trolls and Trumpers out (they're all cheapskates, don't want to pay for the opportunity to troll.
I" Like you Gary Loft and what you are saying. It is all about the $$.
My like button seems intermittent, but sometimes just delayed 10 to 20 seconds. It may be multiple attempts during the delay end up with an even number of attempts, each pair of which cancels the odd like press with an even numbered toggle. I could hope that even substack is having trouble keeping up with massively more traffic than other systems.
I live in WI and serve as an election official. There is no way to know how many people wrote in Bernie’s name in the general election. He was not an official write in candidate, so those write-ins would not have been tallied.
What we DO know is that voter ID went into effect just before that election. At the time that law was passed by our gerrymandered state house, a whopping 23% of registered voters did not have proper ID to vote in 2016. Many were turned away at the polls. In addition, youth turnout was very low that year.
Leading up to 2020, huge effort was made here to educate others about what was needed to register and vote and huge effort was made to educate and register young voters. Young voters have seen very little positive governmental change in their young lives. Rather than judging them, let’s engage with them…..encourage them.
People do not sit out elections because they are apathetic or lazy. They sit out because nothing in their personal experience indicates their vote matters. Or because they have experienced real harm at the hands of people who represent the government. Overcoming this will require dialogue and education about the history of voting over time.
Rather than dumping on potential dem voters, I intend to continue working on voter registration, voter dialogue, and support of our early vote opportunities. These are all non partisan activities. But I will also hone my personal message about the many good things Biden has accomplished and the very real dangers posed by ‘the former guy’ for those times I am able to engage in persuasion with people who might not otherwise vote. For example, if I am in a quiet shop, I might ask the young person who sells me my cat food if she is a voter, and go from there.
I too am an election official in Wisconsin, and as I open dropped off and early ballots, I try to not watch who is being voted for. My mixed suburban city does lean left, but I agree there were few write in votes that counted, because a candidate who wants write in votes has to basically register as a candidate! Mickey Mouse always seems to get a few, none of which obviously count.
Some of the ‘third party’ candidates have good ideas and making them heard is important. Of course government is largely ‘bought’ (including of course some members of the SC), and some are beholden to those donors and lobbyists. Until we are able to bring third party issues to the table, elections will be precarious. Bernie knew this, bless him. Calling out the ‘rot’ is easy, making progress in a diverse nation and world is hard work. Biden seems to know this. He has made mistakes that dog him (incarceration, etc.), but the man has learned a few things and by my count, remembers.
And while I’m at it, shame on those who hang onto dt’s coattails for the sake of power, and make a show of being his megaphones!
But you cannot bring “third parties to the table” in the US. There is no chair for third parties. The US is a “winner takes all” system. We do not “do” coalitions. I wish HCR would do a post on “why” and “how” the founders decided to ditch a Parliamentarian form of government in favor of one that means the Head of State and the Head of government is one and the same and how that has devolved (IMO) into the election of a king.
Rather than just bash the “follow my conscience” types, why not work to change the system to something like ranked choice voting. That would allow people to ‘vote their conscience” without being spoilers. Interestingly, those on the left seem at least as opposed to this reform as those on the right. Maine adopted it after the hard right LaPage won when two other candidates split the vote. It also enabled Murkowski (a moderate) to retain her seat. Change the system to allow people to vote their conscience without becoming spoilers.
TC, let's not forget the Powell Memo which clearly took the long view in getting some of our foundations shifted to build and sustain MAGA.
Yes indeed!
TC, the substack wouldn’t let me like you, so I’m writing that I like what you wrote. WTF.
My LIKE button is finicky today as well.
It's a system-wide glitch. If you hit "refresh" after clicking the "like" it will show up.
(Dave, John Daigle does his best to be a rabblerousing fan boy of the junior Kennedy scion. You'll talk no sense into him.)
Well said. I refer to him as "one trick pony". There are a couple other semi-regular posters who are on the same tired horse regarding events in the Middle East.
He's lucky he hasn't shown up at TAFM, where he would be zapped into his component electrons with his first appearance.
❤️ Like
Like
TCinLA, yes, but....
This dysfunction is built into the two-party system. It works when both parties have a passion for making the system work, and are willing to compromise. But you ultimately cannot square freedom with slavery, as OUR two parties represent, and as soon as the game gets overbalanced, the losing party has no incentive to compromise, or (for that matter) to do anything other than kneecap the other party. They are now playing an entirely different "game."
More specifically, as evidenced in these comments, it takes the hard work of compromise away from the politicians, and lays it on the voters, who are utterly unequipped for that task. I SHOULD be able to vote for Bernie, or Jill Stein, and the politicians who are elected should be able to use that vote count as a guideline for where the safety rails are. But the two party system conceals all that information, not only from the political parties, but from the voters. We are forced to make a binary choice between undesirable A and undesirable B, and are STUCK with that choice for two, or four, or six, or eight years, or for the lifetime of a justice.
The two-party system is pretty much designed to fail and come to civil war in the long run.
A lot of the fury in these comments -- and I have plenty of my own -- is built around the hopelessness of the system itself.
Thomas you have articulated very well some of the roadblocks that the “winner takes all” system imposes upon our country. This is what we got when the founders rejected a parliamentarian form of government which allows for third parties to participate in the government. We would be a much better country if third parties were robust instead in name only. We would gain a diversity of ideas that could be articulated and impact government policies if we dumped the “winner takes all” system. This (IMO) could allow a more balanced and inclusive government. Few people again IMO) recognize how much of an outlier the US is with both the “winner takes all” system and the Electoral College.
Hmm. I'm sure Heather has covered this at some point, but I don't recall (or know) the details.
I looked up "parliamentary democracy," and it seems to be quite different from what the US has. In particular, the ruling party (or coalition) in parliament also determines the Prime Minister (President).
But the subject of political parties was not (I think) addressed by the founders at all. In fact, prior to the American Civil War, it was extremely difficult to organize parties, given the slowness of transportation and communication. The South had the Democratic Party which supported slavery throughout the South, but the Northern states were a hodge-podge of parties, like the Free Soilers and Whigs. It wasn't until the time of Lincoln that these coalesced into the Republican Party.
I don't think the two-party system we have is anything other than tradition. There are certain duties in Congress that would necessarily fall to a single individual, but the rules of House and Senate could be changed to select these roles from multiple parties or coalitions. Like the MAGA rules for the House right now, that allow the Speaker to be thrown out by Marjorie Boeberti Boo on a whim.
We still have "third parties," like the Green Party. I think the issue has less to do with any constitutional issues, and a lot more to do with the organizational rules for campaign financing, which is a stacked deck that makes any third-party candidate into a sideshow.
I recommend “Parlimentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy” by Maxwell Stearns who teaches Constitutional Law & Economics at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. He agrees that the Founders never intended a two-party system but that is where we are now and it contributes to our dysfunctional government.
Let's not forget about those who do not vote.
The 2000 election hinged on Florida and hanging chads.
After 8 years of the "Cheney administration", "hope and change" denied Hillary Clinton the nomination, and Democrats regained control of Congress two years later. The change was less than stellar, but people still had hope.
By 2016, after Republicans had blocked Merrick Garland's appointment to the SCOTUS, Democratic superdelegates were all in for Hillary from the get go, but momentum favored Bernie Sanders. Why not place some blame there?
Hillary was status quo, as were the likes of Jeb Bush. Voters were still hungry for change, and Trump's messaging struck a chord. What a sad commentary on the state of American politics at the highest level.
Perhaps, Biden should have followed LBJ and stepped aside as a "transitional" candidate. One thing is for sure, if Trump survives the Republican convention, this election will be a watershed event in America's history.
Isn't it ironic that Liz Cheney has been ostracized while Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio kiss the ring?
Maybe we should be placing more emphasis on neutralizing people like Matt Gaetz, Loren Bobert, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tom Cotton, and Jim Jordan, et al.
#PrimaryProblem
There have been numerous attempts to educate people like you as to why a "step aside" will not work, and why anyone who "stepped in" would have to develop things from the bottom up, since they would not inherit the support system. What part of all the things the Biden Administration has done - lowest unemployment in 55 years, major investments in infrastructure and government operation, getting rid of "junk fees," policing corporate M&A, managing the pandemic successfully, serious efforts to mitigate climate change, etc. - do you dislike?
What's not to like when the government subsidizes health insurance companies to deny care. In states that expanded Medicaid, most doctors won't treat due to low reimbursement rates. In states not expanding Medicaid, the uninsured be damned. The homeless population increases, while tax cuts for the wealthiest not only remain in place over time, they are periodically expanded. These are but the most glaring shortcoming that go unaddressed, while both sides of the political duopoly are hell bent on convincing the peasants that if only "our" party had control, everything would be alright. Sadly, we get the government we deserve.
Can’t seem to like anymore but every word so true.
The best definition of stupid by a social psychologist; ..when someone does harm to someone and harms themselves that stupid. This is regardless of one's intelligence or sucesss.
Okaaay man. (That's what Dusty Baker said to me when I shouted at him to sweep the Dodgers.)
But let's look, too, Ginni, at another quote of Heather's here.
She's quoting William F. Buckley Jr. when, in 1955, he was setting up the National Review, anxious to combat the New Deal and a larger, post-WWII role of national government which, he felt “violated [the] businessman’s side of the story.”
Many whites have hated how the federal government lent its weight to many good, needed new laws and government agencies. regarding civil rights, just as corporate America from the 1971 Powell memo on so hated how schools lent their weight to the humane improvements Americans had otherwise also been experiencing (at least from the Justin Morrill public college land grant legislation of 1862 to that Powell memo of 1971).
Alito and others on the corrupt Clarence court hate the America which -- to use Buckley's term -- violates their sense of the feudal aristocracy they see themselves leading. They want the one percent to rule all. So even now they're entertaining at that corrupt court how to kill the Chevron precedent, by which so many federal agencies function. So many people's rights they yet want to kill, just as they have killed the rights of so many women regarding their own bodies, their own health care, their own families.
Alito a disgrace, Ginni? Yes, but one part of a long, sordid history.
Leonard Leo - and the conservative court majority he crafted with Charles Koch money, Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Coney Barrett - personally benefitted from the liberalization of American society which paved their way to fully participate and government protections for their right to do so. And now they are bent on pulling up the ladder behind them.
Sandra Day OConnor had the decency to speak openly of being an affirmative action appointment to the Supreme Court.
RBG is my all time favorite Justice. Until she passed away, she kept the uber right justices in line. But Sandra Day O'Connor was also an incredible justice. She stood up for women too.
To think that the theocrat and patriarchy love Amy Comely-Barrett replaced RBG boggles the mind.
Thar's the way I feel when I think of replacing Thurgood Marshall with that lack-wit Thomas.
Of course. The history and how we got here is important. But Alito is a dangerous part of today’s imminent threat.
Yes, Ginni. I think Alito blaming his wife is the bigger story here because it goes to character, not just a single incident or single issue. Real men don't throw their spouses under the bus. Pathetic, but instructive.
His wife, being a woman, couldn't help herself, Jeff.
Remember, that's Alito's philosophy -- that states may control women's choices, because Alito and his fellow arrogant on the Clarence court believe women can't at all be trusted themselves.
Also, remember the text he wrote in killing Roe -- that women may all too easily be witches, as one of his feudal male heroes argued, when that medieval hero was for killing women outright.
https://www.propublica.org/article/abortion-roe-wade-alito-scotus-hale
What? Women may be witches? Alito really wrote that?
In his text killing Roe, he quoted with approval a medieval English jurist who believed women become witches and need to be executed.
Ah. Yes I found a propublica article about that. Nasty jurist who created two hundred years of misogyny against women in our legal system, including the concept that wives cannot be raped by their husband because wives agreed to all sex when they married, and the notion of blaming women who are raped for being"tempting" by what they wore or not sufficiently fighting, or even worse, not being of good enough character to care what happened to them.
https://www.propublica.org/article/abortion-roe-wade-alito-scotus-hale
The record, clear, Barbara -- not just on Alito always arrogating himself and his medieval views.
He, like Clarence, also takes bribes from the rich (though with faint-hearted efforts to do it in secret). Both voted for Citizens United back in 2010, giving American government to the rich.
Might Chief Justice John Roberts exercise some spine and insist these most eminently corrupt resign their life-long sinecures?
Sorry, Barbara, Roberts joined the 5-4 majority for Citizens United, legalizing the corruption of government -- it's fine for the corporations and the billionaires to do the corrupting.
…don’t leave out Roberts, a wolf in black robe clothing
Agreed.
I haven't seen the source of the original Buckley quote, but when I saw your post, I thought I had read Dr. Richardson's reference to it wrong. She actually posted, "the violated businessman's side of the story." If the latter is what Buckley originally wrote, it gives a sense of the outrage felt by those businessmen whose rights to conspire and connive to exploit the general public were violated by the imposition of even the most limited of regulations. This is straight out of the discredited Hayek hymnal.
Our Professor Richardson has been writing about this for years….here is a link to an article she wrote in early 2016. It is informative and also includes the quote you referenced: https://www.salon.com/2016/03/06/this_is_how_the_gop_imploded_the_real_story_behind_the_conservative_crack_up_and_the_creation_of_donald_trump/
Thanks, Gary. I'm relatively new here. Enjoyed the article you linked.
James, welcome to the group!
A friend referred me to Professor Richardson's post in 2016 and I've been reading and commenting ever since. I live in a town, county, and state where Trump lovers abound. Someone told me if people around here knew about my hatred of Trump, that they would come and hang me! Yep. Hang me.
If it wasn't for HCR's words, and the comments of like-minded people, I think I would have had a nervous breakdown trying to understand how people could support such a vile, unhinged, immoral man and think that he is worthy of being the president of our United States.
We are living in precarious times, and we need all the balance we can get. Thanks to HCR and all the commenters here for keeping me sane and hopeful that RIGHT will prevail.
Thank you for the welcome, Pam. I stumbled upon LFAA through a casual reference to it on another website comment section, possibly Slate. When I googled the site i was amazed at Dr, Richardson’s ability to summarize current events and provide relevant historical context for them I trained as a historian myself, and know how hard it is to do it well..
Like you, l found the comment section an oasis. Yes, it’s an echo chamber, but one populated by intelligent, articulate, courteous, and friendly observers. And they are often, like me, Of A Certain Age 😁
Unlike you l live in an overwhelmingly blue state, but one in which national politics takes a back seat to local matters.
I utterly detest Mr. Trump, who has proven himself to be the antithesis of all that is good, decent, and honorable. There is no truth in him.
I am somewhat sympathetic to certain Trump supporters, misguided though they be. They’re not wrong about being betrayed, though they place blame in the wrong places. I have no time for the cynical or evil ones, and you can’t fix the stupid ones. We might be able to make some progress with the ignorant but well-meaning ones, but only if we don’t get too full of ourselves.
I remain optimistic about our country, but only if we return and remain faithful to our founding principles.
Wonderful words and thoughts!
That's an excellent pre-Letters From an American article, Gary!
Thanks for the link.
Using their hated of all things DEI, Republicans can justify ending public education and even democracy.
Isn't that what wives are for? - to shield their men and take the blame for anything that goes wrong.
Please inform my wife, Laurie. She never does that and stands "tall" on her own. Poor me...whiiiiine! 😇🤮
Good for her.
"Stepford Wives," Laurie.
Well, Ginni Thomas clearly doesn't fit that mold, Laurie (which I know was sarcasm.) Cheers!
So says Harrison Butker, the guy who kicks a ball for a living.
Or Aaron Rogers, who throws one. (I'm not suggesting he's misogynistic, but I bet he and Butker share many opinions nonetheless.)
And Gold Bar Bob is doing the same. Perhaps her recent disclosure of breast cancer will make a jury more sympathetic
Such a sad truth!
Khaled Hosseini Quote: Like a compass needle that points north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman.
Interesting quote.
Ginni, let's say wife did. Reports are that the flag flew for days. HOW many times did Alito walk past that flag and say anything?
Good point.
Yes, Ginni. To me Alito blaming his wife is the bigger story because it goes to character, not just a specific incident. Real men don't throw their spouses under the bus. Pathetic but sadly revealing.
Spot On! We get who we vote for. When we elect a President we are electing everyone he or she hires to serve the Executive Branch team, we also must assume we are electing Scotus justices. It seems to me many Americans slept through history and civics clssses.
Don’t know but this one is awful—turning back rather than advancing rights
I wonder if Ginni and Clarence did the same at their house?
Can we expand context a bit here, Bruce?
Considering whether we've ever had "such a blatantly corrupt Supreme Court," let's look also at the larger, systematized corruption by the many new, far-right foundations that came about and allied with each other in the wake of the 1971 Powell memo.
They knew they wanted to put the U.S.'s commercial classes on steroids. They had no problem aligning with the worst dictators of the world as they offshored the tens of millions of American working-class jobs. But before they could do that, they knew they'd have to silence, dehumanize American schools -- to set higher ed to neutered silos and to replace humanities in all K-12 with standardized testing, where all schools would then on only teach to the test.
I saw this morning a video of Scott Galloway (on happiness), where he noted how American higher ed just totally lost its script -- and how due to that America became a country of castes.
A "blatantly corrupt Supreme Court"? Yes, Bruce -- never before anything like this. But it's part of a larger corruption where the billionaires rule a neutered, social media channeled, polarized, hate-filled serfdom.
Spot on, Phil. Only one symptom of the systemic disease.
An excellent analysis, Phil!
Alito? Some are sicker than others. I wish President Biden could expand the Court by two seats to undo the packing done by Trump and Senator McConnell. The Court should have a one vote (not three) majority appointed by G.O.P. Presidents.
4 seats would make more sense - 1 for each of the Federal Courts of Appeal - there are 13, so it makes sense there would be that many SC justices.
I’ve been singing that chorus for some years. Since the number of seats is set by Congress (the last time was 1869), it can be done…if we get a majority.
Wonky LIKE button. What’s going on? Anyone know?
No one seems to know. Similar problems yesterday.
Exactly the point I was going to make, Cathy. As I understand it, SCOTUS seats kept track with Courts of Appeals until the latter expanded to 13.
I do not know that system. What you say, however, makes sense. Unfortunately, the timing would provide for some negative optix.
The optic of delaying Obama's selection, but rushing Trump's RBG replacement were not stellar, either.
💯
Bruce, are you surrounded by Donald TUMP fanatics in your part of Georgia like i am? The county i live in borders Maggot Traitor Greene's district, big trucks, shooting guns at night, trying to block county roads and much more mayhem here. I am sick of living in Georgia...
Yes, pretty much solid red here. The representative here is none other than Andrew Clyde, the one who provided AKA-15 lapel pins for House members. He was also the one who showed incredible "bravery" on Jan. 6th when he was seen scared out of his wits and cowering behind walls and barricades when rioters were trying to break into the House chamber. In '20, this area went about 73% for T***p, I believe. Hardly any Democrats ever run for anything here. Even though our burg here of almost 50,000 people is something like 30% Hispanic/Latino, that presence hasn't translated into any real gain of Democratic voters. I keep hoping for a change, but nothing yet. I purposely keep a low profile here, never responding to social media posts that might give away my identity as I don't want to receive threats—and I know they happen because others I know have had to endure harassment. Going on to a site like the local version of NextDoor really shows what you're dealing with. Just yesterday someone posted a picture made here of a cloud formation that looked (in a stretch) like T***p with a heart over his head and folks were waxing rhapsodic over what it meant. There were a few detractors, but I won't go there. My favorite last week was a bunch of people going off on how clouds are being seeded with steroids and one person swore that it was a plot to turn us all into transsexuals. Uh-huh. I am not making this up. So yes . . . I'm surrounded by zealots. Sadly, I'm stuck here and because of my severely restricted income, I cannot afford to relocate. There are times I REALLY question why I didn't stay in The Netherlands when I had the chance!
Good sharing from where you are. The cloud seeding story is one for Sat Night Live or Seth Myers…
My family lives in her district.
I might add a few other things that happened to us, before the 2020 election, i had a BIDEN/HARRIS sign in my yard and me and my family were harassed, cursed at, and had our tires slashed. We had to buy 2 new tires as the scummy TUMP terrorists slashed them on the side walls of the tires, and a side wall puncture cannot be repaired.
One day, when my grown, eldest granddaughter was at my house, the Fascist terrorists drove by my house and were yelling and cursing at us, my granddaughter responded by yelling as loud as she could to them, GO TO HELL!!!! That effectively stopped the harassment...
My eldest granddaughter is fiery red haired gal and doesn't take any crap off of anyone!
I saw this outrage. Alito and Thomas need to be removed, or 2 additional justices added to negate their incompetence, malfeasance, and corruption.
I don’t understand the mental acrobatics that allow a black man to so thoroughly undermine his own interests, rights, and human dignity by supporting a racist party that considers him a lesser human being. There are several right now.
Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe an upside down American flag signals a specific distress.
According to the U.S. Flag Code, flying the American flag upside down is only meant to be done "as a signal of dire distress in instances of extreme danger to life or property." (Taken from a google search)
It seems to me we need to ask the person doing the flying what they thought was the meaning. Imagine for a moment that you were in your fort being attacked and finding yourself in a dire situation. You didn’t have a cellphone or radio but you could signal over a distance that you needed help by flying the flag upside down. It might be your last hope of communication.
In one way, as we portray our existential concerns for democracy, we are indeed flying our flag upside down. We are worried about survival of our nation/fort.
Just like I seem to find Trump’s group flying a proper American flag while flagrantly disrespecting everything America stands for is confusing. As January 6th has shown us. It seems to me that many symbols are being misrepresented.
In my fantasy world we all recapture the American flag as our proud symbol as we go vote for Biden. If nothing else it might confuse some Trump supporters. To take our country toward democracy we may need our flag back. IMO. And hopefully not need to fly it upside down.
Justice Alito was flying an upside down American flag at this house? Appears to be true and if so, if we did not already know, he has no judicial integrity.
More flak, I can dream, but tomorrow will have another horrid example