Alito flew a MAGA flag while adjudicating a 2020 election case. Ginni Thomas helped organize the attempt to the overthrow of the 2020 election in a violent attack on the Capitol. If the chief justice were not in on it, or merely possessed a spine, he would bar both Thomas and Alito from the immunity case. Why are we not in the streets demanding it ourselves?
Alito flew a MAGA flag while adjudicating a 2020 election case. Ginni Thomas helped organize the attempt to the overthrow of the 2020 election in a violent attack on the Capitol. If the chief justice were not in on it, or merely possessed a spine, he would bar both Thomas and Alito from the immunity case. Why are we not in the streets demanding it ourselves?
Got my boots ready to put on…tho’ being in a very rural area not “much action” to be had on the ground. I *shake fists at the sky* frequently, but clearly not very effective overall! Do what I can, when I can, to support democracy for us all.
The Constitution assumed good will and a code of honor in men and women. Sadly that view turns out to have been extremely naive, with disastrous results.
Bruce, it is assumed that you would not take a gun to a shopping mall and shoot as many people as possible or take an assault weapon to a school and kill as many children as you have rounds in the gun.
Honor among thieves is nonexistent and many of our elected officials seem to regard that as a way to become very wealthy and part of the 1%. Until we remove the ability for politician wealth creation we will always find some trying to gain the almighty dollar.
The Founders could not have imagined the staggering amount of wealth used to influence our elections. The Constitution was written before railroads or telegraphs were invented. Now misinformation can spread faster than wild fire. I'm writing from Colorado. When I post this people from all over the country can read it instantly. Our laws have not kept up with our technology.
As we have been learning from the Manhattan "hush money" -- falsification of records -- campaign finance violations case, there is little if any honor among the wealthy who aspire to power.
Seems to me this has been the perennial struggle. It's in the declaration vs the constitution. Aspiration vs the protection of property. Wealth vs equality. We read Heather. We know the theme that runs through all her work is this struggle, whether it's native Americans or slaves or women or Asians or Hispanics. Always the same struggle
Hearing MTG "recognised" as "the gentlelady" is nothing short of grotesque. (She'd just been mocking AOC's false eyelashes, turning her Roman profile to the camera to show off her long, peroxided hair). To start with, it was never a word - what's the matter with "gentlewoman"? No, don't answer that, life's too short.
Good question, Jennifer. Would POTUS together with the Democratic senate have the authority to add justices to balance the court? That could result in a lot of big changes.
Gary:Right on. The Robert's court is tainted, a disgrace. It is corrupted and politicized. It is the clearest example of how tfg has progressed in destroying our democracy and Mitchell, as Speaker of the senate has facilitated it. Can Biden, if reelected, repair it? It is very disappointing that Roberts is willing to accept this situation. It puts his own reputation into question. We are a corrupt country but it is more subtle than in most other countries. Elected or appointed public figures can accept speaker's fees from political organizations. They can form charitable organizations which can accept bllnd donations. Their wives can do the same. We are in real trouble as cynicism has become realism.
We have created an imperfect democracy complete with imperfect registers. Shameful and disappointing to not have a method to rid the dangerous and corrupt. I don’t raise the flag anywhere. Any flag. I realize that people want to self identify on various causes and it makes them feel empowered. When I lived in Europe, you could always identify an American from a distance as Americans often had a flag on their clothing or backpack.
Bill, I'm no flag-waver, to be sure, but my wife and I firmly believe that each of us who find MAGA's use of the flag to support their un-American cause abominable should attempt to reclaim its true meaning and purpose by flying it.
Trump has taken our patriotism, the Christian faith, and even some of our relationships and turned us against each other. He made it ok to be an asshole out loud.
THAT is "supporting the troops." Shilling for candidates who think of the military as their personal toy and would send them needlessly into harm's way is NOT supporting the troops.
When I hitch-hiked around Europe in 1970 a lot of Americans wore a Canadian flag on their coat or their backpack, but their accent gave them away as soon as they spoke. As a Canadian, I felt sad for them.
Because there is no law against it and nothing in the Constitution foreseeing the present Court's behavior or providing us any remedy whatever. As far as I know, anyway.
Congress was given the authority over the court. It seems now if they try to exert any control, the CONservatives will start a lawsuit challenging that authority and the tilted court will just rule that the oversight is unconstitutional. Exactly how they planned it. Kind of like they are now attacking the federal agencies saying that only Congress can make rules and cannot delegate their authority. Congress is the law making body and can delegate authority because Congress has the authority. The stupid "originalists and textualists" are not trying to save America.
So what is the difference between Impunity and immunity?
immunity /ĭ-myoo͞′nĭ-tē/
noun
from certain generally applicable requirements of law or from certain liabilities, granted to special groups of people to facilitate the performance of their public functions.
In 1805 the House impeached Samuel Chase but the Senate acquitted him. So, apparently they cannot be removed from office because the Senate will never impeach them.
And apparently, the DOJ doesn't have the power to find them guilty of a crime either.
I despair that there might still be illusions that Supreme Court Justices give even a flicker of a care about what voters or the media think of them, or of what they do and do not do. They do not. This has has been proven more than a few times. Who can force them to recuse themselves, Alito and Thomas? Moral imperatives and public outrage seem to have little place with these men. Can the Kegan, Sotomeyer, and Jackson apply any effective pressure on the grounds of clear and simple moral principle? Can they make a noise about it? Might we appeal to them on our behalf?
The three liberal (ethical) justices won't make a peep. Because they live in a world of fantasy. They think if they don't stand up to the conservative (insurrectionist) justices, they will be able to maintain a relationship of give and take - one of finding balance, fairness and justice. They think they will "need" them in future cases. Harmony may have been practical back in the day. But now Alito and Thomas are chuckling over cocktails along with Leonard Leo and Harland Crow.
This feels like an alien invasion. The Federalist Empire has executed a long, well planned invasion and takeover of The Supreme Court. The Coup is in progress.
Kagan, Sotomayor and Jackson should stand together and publicly demand that Roberts act like a Chief Justice. Demand that he require Alito and Thomas to recuse themselves from any case involving the attempted coup or involving Donald Trump. If they won't recuse, he should demand they resign. If they don't resign, Roberts should make a formal demand of Congress that the two corrupt Insurrectionist justices be impeached. To do less than this is to join the coup.
Message to anyone who didn't vote for Hillary and isn't planning to vote for Joe Biden - this is what you get. An enemy of democracy within. A dictatorship in the making.
Roberts - Jane Roberts, the wife of Chief Justice John Roberts, made more than $10 million in commissions over an eight-year stretch where she matched top lawyers with elite law firms—including some that had cases before the Supreme Court—
Gorsuch - Law firm head bought Gorsuch-owned property. The Supreme Court justice did not report the identity of the purchaser, whose firm has had numerous cases before the court --
Kavanaugh - In 2016, Kavanaugh reported in a financial disclosure owing between $60,004 and $200,000 in credit card and loan debt. But when he was nominated to the Supreme Court that debt had gone.--
Bill, you said exactly what I was thinking. Unfortunately, with the crazy MAGA bunch in the House, I doubt anything that will rid us of these low life creeps can occur. Think of all those from Congress who have attended the Trump trial and acted as his mouthpiece. Speaker Johnson isn't going to do anything to let go of power.
I feel your pain, Patrice. But I for one will not "go gently into this good night." We may not get anywhere, but raising a ruckus will do me a world of good.
On May 17th I wrote a comment on the situation with the Supreme Court Justices. Approximately 35 people "liked" my comment. So, I am trying here to report back. I'm not sure anyone will see this but it's worth a try.
Thank you very much, Betsy, for your good letter to the Supreme Court Justices. I spent time over the weekend writing to each Supreme Court Justice, individually by ground mail, hand digned. Nine letters including Justice Alito and Justice Thomas. Each letter is a little different, but they were all basically the same. Here is one directly to Alito to give you the idea. Not so different from yours, Betsy!.
Subject: Justice Alito’s and Justice Thomas’s conflict of interest
Dear Justice Alito,
Thank you for your dedicated service to the Supreme Court and to our country.
This letter is written to respectfully request that you as a Justices of the Supreme Court, like all American citizens, recuse yourself from decisions having an obvious conflict of interest. It is shocking and disheartening to understand that Supreme Court Justices do not automatically recuse themselves when there is an issue in which they might have even a whisper of an interest in the decision-making process. It is also remarkable that business continues uninterrupted when Justices with known conflicts of interest do not recuse themselves. This creates an appearance that communicates that conflicts of interest do not matter and can be ignored, that voting in one’s own interests is normal and acceptable. It is not to me.
More specifically, I respectfully request that you, Justice Alito and Justice Thomas, recuse yourselves from all decisions concerning former president Trump, or decisions concerning the insurrection of January 6, 2021. If you refuse, then I have further respectfully requested of other Justices that they refuse to proceed until you, with vested interests in a decision, recuse yourself. If you were to continue to refuse, then I respectfully requested that your opinions be ignored and your votes on that issue not be counted.
It can be decided and announced before beginning that any Justices, and you should be named, who have a known vested interest in a decision, if you both dishonorably refuse to remove yourselves from these proceedings, that your opinions and votes will be disregarded. Is this not a sound approach to a distorted thing?
All my adult life I have worked for not-for-profit educational organizations, the boards of which follow this procedure of recusing themselves ethically, responsibly, and automatically whenever a decision concerns something in which they are involved or a family member of theirs is involved, or in which it is known that they have dealings with people connected to the decision who have curried favor with a board member or do business with the board member.
Am I to believe that these accepted practices on a level so small as my tiny not-for-profits hold to these ethical and automatic procedures, but Supreme Court Justices do not have to? Leadership is influential, Justice Alito, and ethical behavior helps the whole world to be a better place and gives our children adults to aspire to imitate and admire. Being a teacher and feeling deep concern that our children are often given grownups to consider who have little or no moral compass, I offer this plea on their behalf as well as mine.
Thank you for your consideration in doing the right and moral thing and for helping honorable Justices to do the right thing as well.
Thank you, Patrice, for sharing this very eloquent letter, and thank you even more for sending it to these two Justices. Thank you also for your suggestion to the other seven about how not to proceed until Alito and Thomas mend their ways.
Barbara, I intended to post the following yesterday but the Alito news got me sidetracked. But at least here's something we can do about Aileen Cannon.
Readers Scott and John over on Jessica Craven's ChopWood/CarryWater posted this link for citizens (that's us!) to send a complaint about Aileen Cannon.
Another reader, Colleen McGloughlin, posted this YouTube link from Glenn Kirschner. She tells us, "The second half [of the video] walks you through the steps of filling out the form. He doesn’t tell you what to write, but he points you to helpful articles." I have not yet watched the 20+ minute video, but plan to do so today.
For the sake of completeness, here's the link from the United States Courts on FAQs: Filing a Judicial Conduct or Disability Complaint Against a Federal Judge:
"I *shake fists at the sky* frequently, but clearly not very effective overall! Do what I can, when I can, to support democracy for us all."
*Shaking fists at the sky* certainly has its place. It's all the rest you do which helps save democracy for us all. Effectively.
It's said that the scene in the 1976 movie Network, in which a man exhorts everyone to stick their head out the window and yell "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore", inspired Howard Jarvis to amp up his anti-taxation activism. He founded an association and to get Proposition 13 on the California ballot he and his wife collected tens of thousands of signatures. The rest is history. (Among other things this gave us 'trickle down economics and brought Evangelicals (who were afraid their white supremacy Christian Academies would be taxed) into the antiabortion movement.
"Take the TCJA. In 2017, no Hill Democrats voted for the bill and in 2018 many campaigned against it as a give-away to corporations and the wealthy. TPC concluded almost everyone got a tax cut, though high-income households and corporations benefited the most.
But that was then. Those tax cuts are due to expire at the end of 2025. The federal budget deficit this year is $1.6 trillion. TPC estimates that extending the law’s individual tax cuts would add another $3.5 trillion to the debt over the next 10 years."
- Tax Policy Center review of
“The Power To Destroy: How the Anti-Tax Movement Hijacked America.”
More from the Tax Policy Center book review:
"The book’s title pretty much says it all: “The Power To Destroy: How the Anti-Tax Movement Hijacked America.” Graetz argues that anti-tax conservatives not only lowered taxes, especially for high-income households and corporations, but they changed government and politics in profound ways. And that, he says, was their ultimate goal...In Graetz’s telling, many Prop 13 supporters had more than property taxes in mind. Much of its support came from opponents of immigration and school integration. Key backing came from evangelical Christians, who objected to IRS efforts to deny tax exemptions to segregated private schools.
The mash-up of culture and economics became a centerpiece of the anti-tax agenda. Many backers, including Newt Gingrich, Grover Norquist, and Rush Limbaugh, and now Donald Trump successfully made taxes part of a broader anti-government narrative."
I called my reps yesterday and I suggest that others call,call and call again.Flood the Congressional switchboard or whatever it’s called today.This action by a SCROTUS judge is a blatant in your face middle finger to all Americans and the rule of law and should not be tolerated.
Same here in Indiana! And nearly 81 years old to boot. The young ones appear to not give a damn. So sad! I have seen all the complaints of Biden being old...but I see the younger ones in the House and Senate being totally stupid. The USA don't need those people to retain our democracy!
Field Team 6 I got an email from them yesterday to call. Help get out the folks who rarely vote. They're never asked, never talked to as if they're important. This year more than ever
Alito is truly a despicable man. Runs to Fox “News” to say his wife did it. Like a little kid tattling on his sibling! Thomas and Ginni, well, they are gawwwd awful people but they really are a match made in hell. I think Biden will wait to expand the Court until he’s elected. My prayers would be answered if we take both the House and Senate. Then Congress can get ERA and VRA back on the table and codify Wade, too, forever and a lifetime! As far as Roberts is concerned, Carol Boyd is right. He has been playing us for years. His court should be called the Injustice 6.
More incentive. From Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Alito's origin story:
"Mr. President, I rise this evening, now for the 22nd time, to keep unmasking the far-right scheme to capture and control our Supreme Court. This scheme is funded by creepy rightwing billionaires who stay out of the limelight and let others— namely, Leonard Leo and his crew—operate their scheme. How are they benefiting from the scheme? It is hard to track which rightwing billionaires are involved— and that is by design—but thanks to intrepid reporting from ProPublica and others, we are learning more all the time. And every day it becomes harder for the billionaire-friendly Justices and their political allies to pretend, with a straight face, that all is kosher at the Court.
I have previously described the noxious cocktail of this court capture scheme: creepy rightwing billionaires, phony front groups, amenable Justices, large sums of money, and secrecy. I don’t know whether they take that shaken or stirred, but those seem to be the common ingredients. To chill that Court-capture cocktail, we can add one more ingredient: Alaskan glacier ice. But I will get back to that later.
First, let’s review the origin story of Justice Samuel Alito. It begins with the bipartisan Senate rejection of Judge Robert Bork, which infuriated Bork’s far-right backers. On the Court were Justices Souter and Stevens— both Republican appointees—but they wouldn’t help the billionaires, so the angry chant went out from the far right: No more Souters. No more Stevenses. Then President George W. Bush got an appointment and nominated his friend and trusted White House counsel, Harriet Miers. A Republican President nominates a personal friend and rock-ribbed conservative Republican— a woman to replace Sandra Day O’Connor. And the attack on her comes from the right."
The far-right billionaires won’t have it. And their operative—the aforementioned Leonard Leo—oversaw the project of taking her down. And in her place came the ever-so-reliably billionaire-friendly Sam Alito. This switch—Miers for Alito—gave Leo immense cred with the billionaires, who have since made him a very rich man and helped him launch his armada of front groups, of which this array is just a selection.
Since I have lived through much of this, I am still surprised that I had not put all the pieces together. And I have paid attention. It’s like the iceberg, only a small portion is visible. Republicans are expert at the subsurface machinations. Investigative reporters, where are you. Woodward and Bernstein surely weren’t the only ones. They may have been the only ones who had editors and owners with the balls to do the right thing for the country…
I watched the Alito confirmation and was horrified that a “sane” Republican senator from PA (as I remember though I cannot remember his name) was pushing the nomination of this person all of whose pre-SCOTUS nomination work had been anti-abortion. Now the whole world is seeing this little man in our high court.
I didn't watch, but I knew W/Dickie would do the worst possible thing. Yet both of those cretins are enjoying life as elder statesmen while we suffer from their very deliberate actions of insanity. They are guilty of so much, as is Kevin McCarthy. Just out of sight at the moment.
I’m not certain. Would recognize him if I saw him, but not by name. Too much political junk mucking up the head. Shall take a look. Spector looks too cheerful. I remember this senator as rather gaunt and unsmiling. Somewhere there is film of the hearing that would tell us.
I admired Senator Whitehouse for being vigilant and a advocate for the American people. He has been working non stop on the violations and the fraudulent behavior on the Supreme Court for years.
Whitehouse is a treasure and so is his staff! They never have stopped digging up dirt on Leonard Leo and his wealthy ilk. Leo established 40 shell companies all in the name of “Christian charities”, under 501 3 (c)’s. This gives them all tax-free status. They all launder money from each other. One of those companies is owned by Ginni Thomas (shocker, right?🙄). Leo is attached to the Russian Orthodox Church which is attached to Russian oligarchs. I also recommend people follow @mudpuppy_16 on “X”.
Well, well, well, the press is finally noticing. Will the NYT follow up on their revelation or just move on to the next shinny object. Heard yesterday on a Bill Maher show from before Mother’s Day that someone from the NYT was quoted as saying that it wasn’t their job to save democracy. (Joe Kahn). I thought most conceded that a free press was the bedrock of our democracy. A free press that I assume would report the truth, not just a tit for tat on what they see as a normal horse race. I have been mortified that Dems seem to ignore all the ads that write themselves coming from Repubs. The MSM does too, save a few that have limited readership and substacks that have even more limited readership. Of course, there is always Rupert’s crew of cretins who are most assuredly under reported as actors in the republican evil deeds, and have been since Ronnie imported Rupert for that very purpose. With social media aiding and abetting the Republican traitors, who will speak for the legitimate, elected officials who are doing the jobs they were elected to do. Democrats have accomplished much, despite the steady stream of vitriol from a party that is engaged in nonstop obstruction and Trojan Horse activities unprecedented in our time. FDR faced such, and it was Japan that shut the mouths of traitors. MSM had to report that. I hope it doesn’t take another such catastrophe to make them realize that it is indeed the job of a free press to save our democracy, now more than ever. I vote for news rooms that are not money-making enterprises. I doubt that Walter ever was concerned about ratings. NYT should dig into their archives and follow what HST said. “I don’t give the Republicans hell. I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.” Try that MSM. The truth would sink the Republican traitors if you would focus on that (Project 2025 maybe). Fox surely won’t…. And you are cowards if you don’t.
Added blurb at 7am. Joe Kahn did say in the interview with Ben Smith of Semafor, reported by Margaret Sullivan podcast, May 10, 2024, that the NYT made coverage decisions based on public opinion polls. Well, that just made my blood boil. They, and other MSM editors, conduct polls (which are suspect under the best circumstances) and then make publishing decisions based on what they did. What a vicious cycle. One that screws the citizens of every stripe. Lordy, is there any hope. Keep it up journalists, report on your profession.
They left the room when you started this retort…Jeri.
Ha , all joking aside , ‘they’ don’t even read this. Why ? Because what they’re doing is working…
THE ONLY WAY TO STOP IT IS A BLUE TSUNAMI, 1st act of President Biden in Jan ‘25 would be to ‘CLEAN THE HOUSE ‘.
Hopes are Dems take control House, Senate, WH and codify the laws blantantly usurped .Theres an army working for
Is there not sufficient evidence how the insurrection and all those having fingers in that pudding plan ends? Is it not The Russian Federation (TRF) draped in red,white,and blue? What’s the percentage of the players in TRF that sail unfettered ie not fearing a fall out a window …assuredly ‘loyalty’ is their only ‘mouthedpiece’…(spelling intentional) .
I’ve heard enough reporting the inner group of TRF oligarchs are unscathed, and smirk at ‘the sanctions’. Does anyone know who those are…or OURS ?
I envision them ALL snickering …smoking fat cigars , sipping on an aged bourbon neat , at The Good Old Boys Club…no women allowed (nor ever will be) waited on by white coated blackies…
Every effort since the civil war has been to win this war that never ended ..so ‘they’ came in the (unguarded) back door …it’s May 18,2024 , not even 6 months left to finalized ‘IT’.
If you need another reason to vote the blue tsunami consider that Abbot in Texas just pardoned the convicted killer, serving a 25 year sentence, of a peaceful protestor.
I am so gobsmacked by this I can hardly focus on anything else.
It’s another power move to prove ‘they can’…and in fact ‘are doing’…but like the turtle said…😉 (stay the course ..there’s some interesting Republicans such as The Lincoln Project/Adam/Liz for headliners but …who are on the boot too…and could likely be in a new, revised, and worthy party 🙌
I have a meme from my FB and T years that has an image that you describe. Fat cats in charge, laughing at us “lessers.” The states (Texas the expert) have planned well. Passed laws, changed personnel and a myriad dirty tricks to assure that they control the election results. They must have read Stalin’s comment along the lines of - it matters not how many vote, it matters only who counts the votes. Take nothing for granted…
It used to be a great place to live, Rove and W changed all that. They “woke” up an army of haters. Some surprised me, some didn’t. The number was astonishing.
I’m on The Good Ship Principle , with you , bro …have been since first drill getting under our desks the Russian bombed/are coming and it’s time to KYAGB! ‘Kiss your a** goodbye’ …
His pronouncement that the press was our enemy really gave him a “get out of jail free card” for every ignorant utterance. They should, at that very moment, have blasted him (and Fox) with the truth, all day every day. Kellyanne and her alternative facts would have been buried in the bullshittery that they have buried us in. First thing that authoritarians do is muzzle the press or take them over. Ours have screwed themselves and us…
Thank you. Boiling blood can give my rage wings. Unbelievable that he could be so stupid. Maybe he needs to Google Ben Bradley. Doubt that his inane take on his job would change one iota. He is wrapped in protective bubble wrap so that he won’t realize the damage is he doing to us all. Sounds like a MAGAt…
I am surprised that I don't hear more of the famous Joseph Pulitzer quote. He wrote (warned?) in the North American Review in May 1904: Our Republic and its press will rise and fall together. An able, disinterested, public-spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and courage to do it, can preserve that public virtue without which popular government is a sham and a mockery. A cynical, mercenary, demagogic press will produce in time a people as base as itself. The power to mold the future of the republic will be in the hands of the journalists of future generations..
He really understood that critical relationship. Thank you. These days the color green has blinded them. Wonder if Pulitzer was alluding to Hearst and his slime journalism. It didn’t take a century for Ronnie and Rupert to come and do Hearst one better. Maybe before my NYT subscription runs out, I’ll do a letter to the editor and remind them of their sacred duty. Lot of good it’ll do, but been spinning my wheels for decades now.
GOTV, offer to drive people to the polls, become a poll worker, write postcards and/or letters (many orgs have campaigns you can join), write letters to the editor, etc., etc.
Call your Senators and demand that Alito recuse himself from the January cases. Post this piece all over your social media. Letter to the editor. Talk to friends, inform them and ask them to do the same. I called my senators yesterday and also talked about it at a party last night
I am not currently in the USA, but am going to be joining a couple of marches for Democracy here in Germany both a German protest against the AfD right-wing party before the EU elections, and the Democrats Abroad march for democracy in July. I agree that people in the USA should be organizing protests not just asking for Alito and Thomas to recuse themselves, but to be impeached. I would put this on the top rung of things to protest. They have totally compromised the third branch of government.
Demonstrate regularly in front of the SC building. Demonstrate relentlessly as Israelis did when Netanyahu tried to disembowel the judiciary (they were successful in stopping the plan.)
Same thought. Why are we not in the streets???? My answer is that we've all accepted the reality that this is not a government for the people and by the people. They simply will not listen to us. These justices have absolute power and they answer to the almighty dollar bill. Noting else. Democracy in action, aka Democracy inaction. I'd join a protest, even though I'm 99% sure it would not have the desired outcome. 1% is still worth it.
I knew that when we got no common sense legislation out of Sandy Hook that the cause was lost. The debacle of law enforcement conduct at Uvalde (which went against EVERY SINGLE PRINCIPLE TAUGHT in active shooter response) wasn't enough either. I can only think that it is what the ubiquitous "they" want.
I wonder about the left and its inability to support rallies anymore like in the 60s and 70s. Those were diverse people with causes bigger than either desires for fun or fear of violence. Nobody seems to be energized to thwart either the media or the extremists. Even during war in their own country, Ukrainians rally for their interests. Internationally, there seems to be actions only regarding right-wing issues or the Jewish/Palestinian issue.
Justice Alito (a contradiction of terms) didn't come out of nowhere. Here's Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse on Alito's origin story:
"Mr. President, I rise this evening, now for the 22nd time, to keep unmasking the far-right scheme to capture and control our Supreme Court. This scheme is funded by creepy rightwing billionaires who stay out of the limelight and let others— namely, Leonard Leo and his crew—operate their scheme. How are they benefiting from the scheme? It is hard to track which rightwing billionaires are involved— and that is by design—but thanks to intrepid reporting from ProPublica and others, we are learning more all the time. And every day it becomes harder for the billionaire-friendly Justices and their political allies to pretend, with a straight face, that all is kosher at the Court.
I have previously described the noxious cocktail of this court capture scheme: creepy rightwing billionaires, phony front groups, amenable Justices, large sums of money, and secrecy. I don’t know whether they take that shaken or stirred, but those seem to be the common ingredients. To chill that Court-capture cocktail, we can add one more ingredient: Alaskan glacier ice. But I will get back to that later.
First, let’s review the origin story of Justice Samuel Alito. It begins with the bipartisan Senate rejection of Judge Robert Bork, which infuriated Bork’s far-right backers. On the Court were Justices Souter and Stevens— both Republican appointees—but they wouldn’t help the billionaires, so the angry chant went out from the far right: No more Souters. No more Stevenses. Then President George W. Bush got an appointment and nominated his friend and trusted White House counsel, Harriet Miers. A Republican President nominates a personal friend and rock-ribbed conservative Republican— a woman to replace Sandra Day O’Connor. And the attack on her comes from the right.
The far-right billionaires won’t have it. And their operative—the aforementioned Leonard Leo—oversaw the project of taking her down. And in her place came the ever-so-reliably billionaire-friendly Sam Alito. This switch—Miers for Alito—gave Leo immense cred with the billionaires, who have since made him a very rich man and helped him launch his armada of front groups, of which this array is just a selection."
Bravo, Kathy! Thank you for your forthrightness in allegiance to maintaining our Democratic form of government, not the proposed Dictatorship of the imminent Republican presidential candidate, tRump, and his Project 2025 orches”traitors.”
Hahaha, you're right, and if their opinion mattered to me I'd let it stop me. As an animal rights activist and vegan I'm pretty used to being called worse - by the left and the right. People care about justice until it interferes with their "personal preferences" aka taste buds, or whatever other lame excuse. "Oh, but that's different, it's food." No it's not. It's violence, slavery, torture, mutilation, and murder. The way it tastes doesn't change those facts. So ask me if I care what Fox says. Let's do this.
Sarah, how do you feel about the AL & FL laws prohibiting the manufacturing of "meat"? I understand they start with "meat starter" and use amino acids and other stuff (technical chemistry term) to grow the meat.
I know it's not vegan, but someday the process may get to that point.
If there is any doubt that democracy now holds on by a thread, the events unfolding before us should shatter that doubt. If Trump regains power, he will end democracy here, pull us out of NATO and democracies around the world will begin to crumble. This November's election is the most important election in the history of the world. We are at war here with white Protestant nationalism, also known as the KKK or MAGA.
You can't tell me Alito wasn't aware of the meaning of the upside down flag but his wife was. How could he not have seen it when it was up anywhere from 2 - 5 days? If the House was under Dem control, we could impeach him.
I hope people take to the streets on this one. It's more than the wives! These two shysters will never recuse. There has to be a way to force them out. Could the Senate conduct a vote of no confidence?
Im not opposed to people marching in the streets, especially in front of the Supreme Court (you can’t get too close, because the Justices don’t want the First Amendment on their doorstep), but the Chief Justice does not have the power to keep other justices from sitting on a case.
It strikes me that the protests getting coverage are about Gaza, with young people taking an obtuse moral stage against... Something... Outrageous. While SCOTUS, the purported backbone of or democracy, one of the three branches to keep the other two in check, quietly bends the branch upon which or noose is hung.
It is one of the great failures of the upcoming generation. And it is impossible to get through regarding the true danger. Would that we could harness that energy…
Alito flew a MAGA flag while adjudicating a 2020 election case. Ginni Thomas helped organize the attempt to the overthrow of the 2020 election in a violent attack on the Capitol. If the chief justice were not in on it, or merely possessed a spine, he would bar both Thomas and Alito from the immunity case. Why are we not in the streets demanding it ourselves?
Let’s go.
Got my boots ready to put on…tho’ being in a very rural area not “much action” to be had on the ground. I *shake fists at the sky* frequently, but clearly not very effective overall! Do what I can, when I can, to support democracy for us all.
Can someone explain why the Supreme Court justices act like they are above the law?
They accept bribes. They cheat on their taxes. The accept innumerable favors from the wealthy oligarchs in exchange for favorable decisions.
And we're supposed to believe that a code of ethics which they wrote, will keep them in line.
For a body that is obviously above the law, why are they deciding if Trump is?
The Constitution assumed good will and a code of honor in men and women. Sadly that view turns out to have been extremely naive, with disastrous results.
We have been running the country for over 200 years on the honor system, but that requires that our politicians have some honor. There's the rub.....
Bruce, it is assumed that you would not take a gun to a shopping mall and shoot as many people as possible or take an assault weapon to a school and kill as many children as you have rounds in the gun.
Yet, here we are.
Honor among thieves is nonexistent and many of our elected officials seem to regard that as a way to become very wealthy and part of the 1%. Until we remove the ability for politician wealth creation we will always find some trying to gain the almighty dollar.
The founders "assumed" just like the "norms" of a presidency "assumed" that anyone who reached that office would be honorable!
We know better now - have learned better for many years.
The Founders could not have imagined the staggering amount of wealth used to influence our elections. The Constitution was written before railroads or telegraphs were invented. Now misinformation can spread faster than wild fire. I'm writing from Colorado. When I post this people from all over the country can read it instantly. Our laws have not kept up with our technology.
As we have been learning from the Manhattan "hush money" -- falsification of records -- campaign finance violations case, there is little if any honor among the wealthy who aspire to power.
Seems to me this has been the perennial struggle. It's in the declaration vs the constitution. Aspiration vs the protection of property. Wealth vs equality. We read Heather. We know the theme that runs through all her work is this struggle, whether it's native Americans or slaves or women or Asians or Hispanics. Always the same struggle
. It's just our turn now.
We are of one mind Jen; many here, you, our dear professor and myself.
So much for assuming that "gentlemen" would always be honorable.
Hearing MTG "recognised" as "the gentlelady" is nothing short of grotesque. (She'd just been mocking AOC's false eyelashes, turning her Roman profile to the camera to show off her long, peroxided hair). To start with, it was never a word - what's the matter with "gentlewoman"? No, don't answer that, life's too short.
Add two avowed insurrectionists - and three others who turn from the reality of their misdeeds. Code must become rule of law
That is the strong view of the Founders.
Women, of any race, were not considered as anything re: the Constitution.
Gary:
Why is the sky blue? Short answer: because it is.
The short answer to your question is *because they can*. And it's shameful.
Can the POTUS step in and do anything?
Good question, Jennifer. Would POTUS together with the Democratic senate have the authority to add justices to balance the court? That could result in a lot of big changes.
No. That’s a question Trump would ask.
Because John Roberts has no … um … assertiveness.
No, I suspect, he also has enriched himself.
At least his wife has. She has an agency that places attorneys in firms likely to go before the Court.
Yeah, why not? Everyone else is.
John Roberts has planned and probably worked for decades to remake this country. He's no friend of democracy.
No guts to stand up. Maybe he agrees with them. The ethics they provided were worthless.
I think he actually agrees with them more than he values democracy and ethics.
Gary:Right on. The Robert's court is tainted, a disgrace. It is corrupted and politicized. It is the clearest example of how tfg has progressed in destroying our democracy and Mitchell, as Speaker of the senate has facilitated it. Can Biden, if reelected, repair it? It is very disappointing that Roberts is willing to accept this situation. It puts his own reputation into question. We are a corrupt country but it is more subtle than in most other countries. Elected or appointed public figures can accept speaker's fees from political organizations. They can form charitable organizations which can accept bllnd donations. Their wives can do the same. We are in real trouble as cynicism has become realism.
We have created an imperfect democracy complete with imperfect registers. Shameful and disappointing to not have a method to rid the dangerous and corrupt. I don’t raise the flag anywhere. Any flag. I realize that people want to self identify on various causes and it makes them feel empowered. When I lived in Europe, you could always identify an American from a distance as Americans often had a flag on their clothing or backpack.
Bill, I'm no flag-waver, to be sure, but my wife and I firmly believe that each of us who find MAGA's use of the flag to support their un-American cause abominable should attempt to reclaim its true meaning and purpose by flying it.
It's our flag, too.
Trump has taken our patriotism, the Christian faith, and even some of our relationships and turned us against each other. He made it ok to be an asshole out loud.
The American Flag flies proudly (and correctly) in front of my house.
I have flown the flag for a great many years and now am appalled that it has been repurposed.
Way back when during the Iraq War, we adopted a soldier through Soldiers Angel's.
Chris (our soldier) was in charge of about 100 young boys as he called them.
We sent him a box every month with little things we thought he and his boys would like.
Around OctoberI of that year I went to every store and business near where we lived asking for donations.
We sent 10 boxes filled with Christmas stuff that was either donated or we bought via cash donations.
We got an email from Chris few days after Christmas telling us how much he and his boys loved all the stuff we sent.
He told us that he was going to be sending us a package as soon as we could.
Chris and my husband developed a friendship and would send emails to each other.
About six months later, we got a package from Chris.
Inside was a picture of him.
Chris sent us an American flag with a certificate (letter) that said.
USMC takes pleasure in presenting this National Ensign Letter of Authenticity to Jeff and Beth Cobb.
The flag was flown over the Combat Logistics Battalion 8 Compound Aboard Camp Al Fallujah, Iraq During Operation Iraqi Freedom 06-08.2
On this 1st day of January in the year of our Lord 2008.
The picture, flag and certificate are on our wall.
Every day I see them multiple times a day and it makes me feel good that we supported our troops in our small way.
THAT is "supporting the troops." Shilling for candidates who think of the military as their personal toy and would send them needlessly into harm's way is NOT supporting the troops.
Beth Cobb, 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Yes. Bragging rights. That’s why, living in Europe, I came to see US as “the bad teenagers on the block.”
Yep. The Australians were as bad as the Americans. At least in the bar I worked in in Florence, Italy.
When I hitch-hiked around Europe in 1970 a lot of Americans wore a Canadian flag on their coat or their backpack, but their accent gave them away as soon as they spoke. As a Canadian, I felt sad for them.
I once took a republican woman to bed with me but I made sure to wear a prophylactic.
So true. I know exactly who in the neighborhood votes maga by the flag they fly.
Gary- it is the CONservative members that act that way. the liberals recuse themselves.
Because like Elizabeth Warren said 'The system is rigged'.
And apparently are above the law.
Because there is no law against it and nothing in the Constitution foreseeing the present Court's behavior or providing us any remedy whatever. As far as I know, anyway.
Congress was given the authority over the court. It seems now if they try to exert any control, the CONservatives will start a lawsuit challenging that authority and the tilted court will just rule that the oversight is unconstitutional. Exactly how they planned it. Kind of like they are now attacking the federal agencies saying that only Congress can make rules and cannot delegate their authority. Congress is the law making body and can delegate authority because Congress has the authority. The stupid "originalists and textualists" are not trying to save America.
The Senate needs to take action. Enough of the "we won't be successful so why try?" crap.
Public awareness that both parties are not the same.
Totally. Awareness is the point, not passing any meaningful legislation on the topic.
You do not have a current majority that will support any change. Too many "collegial" dems who don't want to upset their "Republican friends..."
Then they need to be voted out. They have a job to do
im·pu·ni·ty
/imˈpyo͞onədē/
noun
exemption from punishment or freedom from the injurious consequences of an action.
Yeah, that's what I'm talking' about. Thank you.
So what is the difference between Impunity and immunity?
immunity /ĭ-myoo͞′nĭ-tē/
noun
from certain generally applicable requirements of law or from certain liabilities, granted to special groups of people to facilitate the performance of their public functions.
"diplomatic immunity; judicial immunity."
Well, clearly they ARE above the law, since no consequences attend their actions. :-(
For some reason I can’t get “like” symbol to take…
It seems it is now fixed for me. It was hit and miss the last couple of days.
Are they above the law? Who or what is the final arbiter when the Court or a member of the Court misbehaves?
In 1805 the House impeached Samuel Chase but the Senate acquitted him. So, apparently they cannot be removed from office because the Senate will never impeach them.
And apparently, the DOJ doesn't have the power to find them guilty of a crime either.
So they are above the law as far as I can tell.
You hit the nail on the head!!
I despair that there might still be illusions that Supreme Court Justices give even a flicker of a care about what voters or the media think of them, or of what they do and do not do. They do not. This has has been proven more than a few times. Who can force them to recuse themselves, Alito and Thomas? Moral imperatives and public outrage seem to have little place with these men. Can the Kegan, Sotomeyer, and Jackson apply any effective pressure on the grounds of clear and simple moral principle? Can they make a noise about it? Might we appeal to them on our behalf?
The three liberal (ethical) justices won't make a peep. Because they live in a world of fantasy. They think if they don't stand up to the conservative (insurrectionist) justices, they will be able to maintain a relationship of give and take - one of finding balance, fairness and justice. They think they will "need" them in future cases. Harmony may have been practical back in the day. But now Alito and Thomas are chuckling over cocktails along with Leonard Leo and Harland Crow.
This feels like an alien invasion. The Federalist Empire has executed a long, well planned invasion and takeover of The Supreme Court. The Coup is in progress.
Kagan, Sotomayor and Jackson should stand together and publicly demand that Roberts act like a Chief Justice. Demand that he require Alito and Thomas to recuse themselves from any case involving the attempted coup or involving Donald Trump. If they won't recuse, he should demand they resign. If they don't resign, Roberts should make a formal demand of Congress that the two corrupt Insurrectionist justices be impeached. To do less than this is to join the coup.
Message to anyone who didn't vote for Hillary and isn't planning to vote for Joe Biden - this is what you get. An enemy of democracy within. A dictatorship in the making.
Roberts - Jane Roberts, the wife of Chief Justice John Roberts, made more than $10 million in commissions over an eight-year stretch where she matched top lawyers with elite law firms—including some that had cases before the Supreme Court—
Gorsuch - Law firm head bought Gorsuch-owned property. The Supreme Court justice did not report the identity of the purchaser, whose firm has had numerous cases before the court --
Kavanaugh - In 2016, Kavanaugh reported in a financial disclosure owing between $60,004 and $200,000 in credit card and loan debt. But when he was nominated to the Supreme Court that debt had gone.--
You see the problem here.
I see the problem. I also see that corruption and abuses are embedded in the system. The public doesn't care. The media doesn't care.
Accountability and morality in the Supreme Court have gone missing.
Where are the likes of Ida Tarbell when we need her most?
Bill, you said exactly what I was thinking. Unfortunately, with the crazy MAGA bunch in the House, I doubt anything that will rid us of these low life creeps can occur. Think of all those from Congress who have attended the Trump trial and acted as his mouthpiece. Speaker Johnson isn't going to do anything to let go of power.
It feels like an alien invasion because it is an alien invasion! Aliens from within.
I feel your pain, Patrice. But I for one will not "go gently into this good night." We may not get anywhere, but raising a ruckus will do me a world of good.
Yep, Lynell, let’s keep makin’ “good trouble”!!!!
Thanks for that John Lewis reminder; how could I forget?!
While I have no illusions that the Justices will ever read my letter, I sent each of them the following:
As we await your decisions on this term's cases, decisions that will
determine the health of our democracy as well as the health of many of our
citizens, it seems like an opportune moment to leave legal matters behind
temporarily and to reflect instead on ethics, the moral principles that
govern our behavior.
As a teacher for more than 50 years, the institutions at which I taught,
ranging from K-12 public and private schools to public and private
colleges and universities, all expected their faculty members to take a
brief refresher course on ethics every so often and then to pass a test.
One constantly recurring question had to do with accepting gifts. At my
last institution before I retired, we were reminded that we were not
allowed to accept any remuneration with a value greater than $50.00.
Another reminder about our ethical obligations to our students and our
schools concerned honesty. As role models, we were expected, like
Caesar's wife, to be above suspicion. When we were hired, we were also
expected to be clear about our educational philosophy and our preferred
teaching methods. If we claimed to value engaging students in class
discussion over our lecturing to them, we were expected to exhibit this
behavior in our classroom.
In much the same way, when prospective Justices are interviewed in the
Senate, they are often asked about their legal philosophy. Frequently,
the question of stare decicis is raised. When the candidate affirms their
belief in the importance of relying on precedent, the American people
expect Justices to exhibit that behavior in their decision-making.
Many Americans these days see many members of the current Supreme Court
as not exemplifying these ethical principles. We see Justices accepting
gifts in disturbingly greater amounts than the $50.00 to which, ethically,
I was limited. We see Justices who claimed in their hiring hearings to be
guided by precedent making surprising reversals after they were confirmed
that ignored past decisions and that have now taken long-held rights from
Americans.
If I point out these surprising and disturbing trends, it is in the hope
that you will refresh your commitment to the ethical values we expect of
our Supreme Court Justices and that you will move forward with your
decision-making in that spirit. We, the American people, are watching and
expecting no less of you.
This is great. Certainly not too much to ask of Supreme Court justices, even lower court judges Even members of Congress.
👍👏
While I am not under any illusions that the Justices will ever read my letter, I sent each of them the following:
As we await your decisions on this term's cases, decisions that will
determine the health of our democracy as well as the health of many of our
citizens, it seems like an opportune moment to leave legal matters behind
temporarily and to reflect instead on ethics, the moral principles that
govern our behavior.
As a teacher for more than 50 years, the institutions at which I taught,
ranging from K-12 public and private schools to public and private
colleges and universities, all expected their faculty members to take a
brief refresher course on ethics every so often and then to pass a test.
One constantly recurring question had to do with accepting gifts. At my
last institution before I retired, we were reminded that we were not
allowed to accept any remuneration with a value greater than $50.00.
Another reminder about our ethical obligations to our students and our
schools concerned honesty. As role models, we were expected, like
Caesar's wife, to be above suspicion. When we were hired, we were also
expected to be clear about our educational philosophy and our preferred
teaching methods. If we claimed to value engaging students in class
discussion over our lecturing to them, we were expected to exhibit this
behavior in our classroom.
In much the same way, when prospective Justices are interviewed in the
Senate, they are often asked about their legal philosophy. Frequently,
the question of stare decicis is raised. When the candidate affirms their
belief in the importance of relying on precedent, the American people
expect Justices to exhibit that behavior in their decision-making.
Many Americans these days see many members of the current Supreme Court
as not exemplifying these ethical principles. We see Justices accepting
gifts in disturbingly greater amounts than the $50.00 to which, ethically,
I was limited. We see Justices who claimed in their hiring hearings to be
guided by precedent making surprising reversals after they were confirmed
that ignored past decisions and that have now taken long-held rights from
Americans.
If I point out these surprising and disturbing trends, it is in the hope
that you will refresh your commitment to the ethical values we expect of
our Supreme Court Justices and that you will move forward with your
decision-making in that spirit. We, the American people, are watching and
expecting no less of you.
On May 17th I wrote a comment on the situation with the Supreme Court Justices. Approximately 35 people "liked" my comment. So, I am trying here to report back. I'm not sure anyone will see this but it's worth a try.
Thank you very much, Betsy, for your good letter to the Supreme Court Justices. I spent time over the weekend writing to each Supreme Court Justice, individually by ground mail, hand digned. Nine letters including Justice Alito and Justice Thomas. Each letter is a little different, but they were all basically the same. Here is one directly to Alito to give you the idea. Not so different from yours, Betsy!.
Patrice O’Neill Maynard
83 May Hill Road, Stop 80
Ghent, NY 12075
518-929-5189 (cell)
518-672-4376 (home)
patricemaynard@gmail.com
May 18, 2024
Justice Alito
Supreme Court of the United States
1 First Street, NE
Washington, DC 20543.
Subject: Justice Alito’s and Justice Thomas’s conflict of interest
Dear Justice Alito,
Thank you for your dedicated service to the Supreme Court and to our country.
This letter is written to respectfully request that you as a Justices of the Supreme Court, like all American citizens, recuse yourself from decisions having an obvious conflict of interest. It is shocking and disheartening to understand that Supreme Court Justices do not automatically recuse themselves when there is an issue in which they might have even a whisper of an interest in the decision-making process. It is also remarkable that business continues uninterrupted when Justices with known conflicts of interest do not recuse themselves. This creates an appearance that communicates that conflicts of interest do not matter and can be ignored, that voting in one’s own interests is normal and acceptable. It is not to me.
More specifically, I respectfully request that you, Justice Alito and Justice Thomas, recuse yourselves from all decisions concerning former president Trump, or decisions concerning the insurrection of January 6, 2021. If you refuse, then I have further respectfully requested of other Justices that they refuse to proceed until you, with vested interests in a decision, recuse yourself. If you were to continue to refuse, then I respectfully requested that your opinions be ignored and your votes on that issue not be counted.
It can be decided and announced before beginning that any Justices, and you should be named, who have a known vested interest in a decision, if you both dishonorably refuse to remove yourselves from these proceedings, that your opinions and votes will be disregarded. Is this not a sound approach to a distorted thing?
All my adult life I have worked for not-for-profit educational organizations, the boards of which follow this procedure of recusing themselves ethically, responsibly, and automatically whenever a decision concerns something in which they are involved or a family member of theirs is involved, or in which it is known that they have dealings with people connected to the decision who have curried favor with a board member or do business with the board member.
Am I to believe that these accepted practices on a level so small as my tiny not-for-profits hold to these ethical and automatic procedures, but Supreme Court Justices do not have to? Leadership is influential, Justice Alito, and ethical behavior helps the whole world to be a better place and gives our children adults to aspire to imitate and admire. Being a teacher and feeling deep concern that our children are often given grownups to consider who have little or no moral compass, I offer this plea on their behalf as well as mine.
Thank you for your consideration in doing the right and moral thing and for helping honorable Justices to do the right thing as well.
Patrice O’Neill Maynard
Thank you, Patrice, for sharing this very eloquent letter, and thank you even more for sending it to these two Justices. Thank you also for your suggestion to the other seven about how not to proceed until Alito and Thomas mend their ways.
Barbara, I intended to post the following yesterday but the Alito news got me sidetracked. But at least here's something we can do about Aileen Cannon.
Readers Scott and John over on Jessica Craven's ChopWood/CarryWater posted this link for citizens (that's us!) to send a complaint about Aileen Cannon.
https://www.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/ao310.pdf
Another reader, Colleen McGloughlin, posted this YouTube link from Glenn Kirschner. She tells us, "The second half [of the video] walks you through the steps of filling out the form. He doesn’t tell you what to write, but he points you to helpful articles." I have not yet watched the 20+ minute video, but plan to do so today.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=0MXVfiTa3KM
For the sake of completeness, here's the link from the United States Courts on FAQs: Filing a Judicial Conduct or Disability Complaint Against a Federal Judge:
https://www.uscourts.gov/judges-judgeships/judicial-conduct-disability/faqs-filing-judicial-conduct-or-disability-complaint#faq-Where-do-I-file-my-complaint
Thank you! Let’s all do this…
Morning, Lynell. Thanks for all of this info.
I am beyond disgusted with the conduct of several SCROTUS judges.
Agree completely, Ally; disgusted is the perfect word for it.
Thank you for the links. Very helpful.
You're very welcome, Dagmar.
"I *shake fists at the sky* frequently, but clearly not very effective overall! Do what I can, when I can, to support democracy for us all."
*Shaking fists at the sky* certainly has its place. It's all the rest you do which helps save democracy for us all. Effectively.
It's said that the scene in the 1976 movie Network, in which a man exhorts everyone to stick their head out the window and yell "I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take this anymore", inspired Howard Jarvis to amp up his anti-taxation activism. He founded an association and to get Proposition 13 on the California ballot he and his wife collected tens of thousands of signatures. The rest is history. (Among other things this gave us 'trickle down economics and brought Evangelicals (who were afraid their white supremacy Christian Academies would be taxed) into the antiabortion movement.
"Take the TCJA. In 2017, no Hill Democrats voted for the bill and in 2018 many campaigned against it as a give-away to corporations and the wealthy. TPC concluded almost everyone got a tax cut, though high-income households and corporations benefited the most.
But that was then. Those tax cuts are due to expire at the end of 2025. The federal budget deficit this year is $1.6 trillion. TPC estimates that extending the law’s individual tax cuts would add another $3.5 trillion to the debt over the next 10 years."
- Tax Policy Center review of
“The Power To Destroy: How the Anti-Tax Movement Hijacked America.”
More from the Tax Policy Center book review:
"The book’s title pretty much says it all: “The Power To Destroy: How the Anti-Tax Movement Hijacked America.” Graetz argues that anti-tax conservatives not only lowered taxes, especially for high-income households and corporations, but they changed government and politics in profound ways. And that, he says, was their ultimate goal...In Graetz’s telling, many Prop 13 supporters had more than property taxes in mind. Much of its support came from opponents of immigration and school integration. Key backing came from evangelical Christians, who objected to IRS efforts to deny tax exemptions to segregated private schools.
The mash-up of culture and economics became a centerpiece of the anti-tax agenda. Many backers, including Newt Gingrich, Grover Norquist, and Rush Limbaugh, and now Donald Trump successfully made taxes part of a broader anti-government narrative."
https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/taxvox/how-anti-tax-movement-changed-politics-and-government
Glad you mentioned the greedy traitors, they have sullied our discourse and interfered in our functioning for decades. For their personal gain.
I called my reps yesterday and I suggest that others call,call and call again.Flood the Congressional switchboard or whatever it’s called today.This action by a SCROTUS judge is a blatant in your face middle finger to all Americans and the rule of law and should not be tolerated.
I'm rolling with you, Barbara
Same here in Indiana! And nearly 81 years old to boot. The young ones appear to not give a damn. So sad! I have seen all the complaints of Biden being old...but I see the younger ones in the House and Senate being totally stupid. The USA don't need those people to retain our democracy!
Field Team 6 I got an email from them yesterday to call. Help get out the folks who rarely vote. They're never asked, never talked to as if they're important. This year more than ever
Rural areas need special attention. Thank you.
Alito is truly a despicable man. Runs to Fox “News” to say his wife did it. Like a little kid tattling on his sibling! Thomas and Ginni, well, they are gawwwd awful people but they really are a match made in hell. I think Biden will wait to expand the Court until he’s elected. My prayers would be answered if we take both the House and Senate. Then Congress can get ERA and VRA back on the table and codify Wade, too, forever and a lifetime! As far as Roberts is concerned, Carol Boyd is right. He has been playing us for years. His court should be called the Injustice 6.
More incentive. From Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Alito's origin story:
"Mr. President, I rise this evening, now for the 22nd time, to keep unmasking the far-right scheme to capture and control our Supreme Court. This scheme is funded by creepy rightwing billionaires who stay out of the limelight and let others— namely, Leonard Leo and his crew—operate their scheme. How are they benefiting from the scheme? It is hard to track which rightwing billionaires are involved— and that is by design—but thanks to intrepid reporting from ProPublica and others, we are learning more all the time. And every day it becomes harder for the billionaire-friendly Justices and their political allies to pretend, with a straight face, that all is kosher at the Court.
I have previously described the noxious cocktail of this court capture scheme: creepy rightwing billionaires, phony front groups, amenable Justices, large sums of money, and secrecy. I don’t know whether they take that shaken or stirred, but those seem to be the common ingredients. To chill that Court-capture cocktail, we can add one more ingredient: Alaskan glacier ice. But I will get back to that later.
First, let’s review the origin story of Justice Samuel Alito. It begins with the bipartisan Senate rejection of Judge Robert Bork, which infuriated Bork’s far-right backers. On the Court were Justices Souter and Stevens— both Republican appointees—but they wouldn’t help the billionaires, so the angry chant went out from the far right: No more Souters. No more Stevenses. Then President George W. Bush got an appointment and nominated his friend and trusted White House counsel, Harriet Miers. A Republican President nominates a personal friend and rock-ribbed conservative Republican— a woman to replace Sandra Day O’Connor. And the attack on her comes from the right."
The far-right billionaires won’t have it. And their operative—the aforementioned Leonard Leo—oversaw the project of taking her down. And in her place came the ever-so-reliably billionaire-friendly Sam Alito. This switch—Miers for Alito—gave Leo immense cred with the billionaires, who have since made him a very rich man and helped him launch his armada of front groups, of which this array is just a selection.
https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/speeches/the-scheme-22-justice-alito-and-the-polluter-page/
https://www.propublica.org/article/we-dont-talk-about-leonard-podcast
Since I have lived through much of this, I am still surprised that I had not put all the pieces together. And I have paid attention. It’s like the iceberg, only a small portion is visible. Republicans are expert at the subsurface machinations. Investigative reporters, where are you. Woodward and Bernstein surely weren’t the only ones. They may have been the only ones who had editors and owners with the balls to do the right thing for the country…
I watched the Alito confirmation and was horrified that a “sane” Republican senator from PA (as I remember though I cannot remember his name) was pushing the nomination of this person all of whose pre-SCOTUS nomination work had been anti-abortion. Now the whole world is seeing this little man in our high court.
I didn't watch, but I knew W/Dickie would do the worst possible thing. Yet both of those cretins are enjoying life as elder statesmen while we suffer from their very deliberate actions of insanity. They are guilty of so much, as is Kevin McCarthy. Just out of sight at the moment.
Virginia,
Was that "sane" Republican senator from the Keystone State the one bullet theoretician, Arlen Spector?!?
I’m not certain. Would recognize him if I saw him, but not by name. Too much political junk mucking up the head. Shall take a look. Spector looks too cheerful. I remember this senator as rather gaunt and unsmiling. Somewhere there is film of the hearing that would tell us.
Yes! Senator Whitehouse must not grown weary in telling the truth but grow louder!
Thank you for this report, lin• A "noxious cocktail" indeed.
I admired Senator Whitehouse for being vigilant and a advocate for the American people. He has been working non stop on the violations and the fraudulent behavior on the Supreme Court for years.
Whitehouse is a treasure and so is his staff! They never have stopped digging up dirt on Leonard Leo and his wealthy ilk. Leo established 40 shell companies all in the name of “Christian charities”, under 501 3 (c)’s. This gives them all tax-free status. They all launder money from each other. One of those companies is owned by Ginni Thomas (shocker, right?🙄). Leo is attached to the Russian Orthodox Church which is attached to Russian oligarchs. I also recommend people follow @mudpuppy_16 on “X”.
We need a Sheldon Whitehouse in every state in the “Union”!
I want to know more. Is there a book on this?
Two books might help:
The Road to Unfreedom and Tyranny by Timothy Snyder.
I suspect much of the undercover manipulations by the right is the result of assertion of Fascist schemes to develop control by denying reality.
Borrowing
Well, well, well, the press is finally noticing. Will the NYT follow up on their revelation or just move on to the next shinny object. Heard yesterday on a Bill Maher show from before Mother’s Day that someone from the NYT was quoted as saying that it wasn’t their job to save democracy. (Joe Kahn). I thought most conceded that a free press was the bedrock of our democracy. A free press that I assume would report the truth, not just a tit for tat on what they see as a normal horse race. I have been mortified that Dems seem to ignore all the ads that write themselves coming from Repubs. The MSM does too, save a few that have limited readership and substacks that have even more limited readership. Of course, there is always Rupert’s crew of cretins who are most assuredly under reported as actors in the republican evil deeds, and have been since Ronnie imported Rupert for that very purpose. With social media aiding and abetting the Republican traitors, who will speak for the legitimate, elected officials who are doing the jobs they were elected to do. Democrats have accomplished much, despite the steady stream of vitriol from a party that is engaged in nonstop obstruction and Trojan Horse activities unprecedented in our time. FDR faced such, and it was Japan that shut the mouths of traitors. MSM had to report that. I hope it doesn’t take another such catastrophe to make them realize that it is indeed the job of a free press to save our democracy, now more than ever. I vote for news rooms that are not money-making enterprises. I doubt that Walter ever was concerned about ratings. NYT should dig into their archives and follow what HST said. “I don’t give the Republicans hell. I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.” Try that MSM. The truth would sink the Republican traitors if you would focus on that (Project 2025 maybe). Fox surely won’t…. And you are cowards if you don’t.
Added blurb at 7am. Joe Kahn did say in the interview with Ben Smith of Semafor, reported by Margaret Sullivan podcast, May 10, 2024, that the NYT made coverage decisions based on public opinion polls. Well, that just made my blood boil. They, and other MSM editors, conduct polls (which are suspect under the best circumstances) and then make publishing decisions based on what they did. What a vicious cycle. One that screws the citizens of every stripe. Lordy, is there any hope. Keep it up journalists, report on your profession.
They left the room when you started this retort…Jeri.
Ha , all joking aside , ‘they’ don’t even read this. Why ? Because what they’re doing is working…
THE ONLY WAY TO STOP IT IS A BLUE TSUNAMI, 1st act of President Biden in Jan ‘25 would be to ‘CLEAN THE HOUSE ‘.
Hopes are Dems take control House, Senate, WH and codify the laws blantantly usurped .Theres an army working for
Is there not sufficient evidence how the insurrection and all those having fingers in that pudding plan ends? Is it not The Russian Federation (TRF) draped in red,white,and blue? What’s the percentage of the players in TRF that sail unfettered ie not fearing a fall out a window …assuredly ‘loyalty’ is their only ‘mouthedpiece’…(spelling intentional) .
I’ve heard enough reporting the inner group of TRF oligarchs are unscathed, and smirk at ‘the sanctions’. Does anyone know who those are…or OURS ?
I envision them ALL snickering …smoking fat cigars , sipping on an aged bourbon neat , at The Good Old Boys Club…no women allowed (nor ever will be) waited on by white coated blackies…
Every effort since the civil war has been to win this war that never ended ..so ‘they’ came in the (unguarded) back door …it’s May 18,2024 , not even 6 months left to finalized ‘IT’.
💙VOTE THE BLUE TSUNAMI💙
If you need another reason to vote the blue tsunami consider that Abbot in Texas just pardoned the convicted killer, serving a 25 year sentence, of a peaceful protestor.
I am so gobsmacked by this I can hardly focus on anything else.
It’s another power move to prove ‘they can’…and in fact ‘are doing’…but like the turtle said…😉 (stay the course ..there’s some interesting Republicans such as The Lincoln Project/Adam/Liz for headliners but …who are on the boot too…and could likely be in a new, revised, and worthy party 🙌
Boat!!! *
So am I, talked to a man who had known Abbott for a long time. He said deep down he’s ok. I begged to differ…
I have a meme from my FB and T years that has an image that you describe. Fat cats in charge, laughing at us “lessers.” The states (Texas the expert) have planned well. Passed laws, changed personnel and a myriad dirty tricks to assure that they control the election results. They must have read Stalin’s comment along the lines of - it matters not how many vote, it matters only who counts the votes. Take nothing for granted…
Well said, Jeri. I feel for you, living in Texas.
It used to be a great place to live, Rove and W changed all that. They “woke” up an army of haters. Some surprised me, some didn’t. The number was astonishing.
I’m on The Good Ship Principle , with you , bro …have been since first drill getting under our desks the Russian bombed/are coming and it’s time to KYAGB! ‘Kiss your a** goodbye’ …
Sincerest thanks to all aboard🫶
And tfg HATES the “fake news.” Do these news org think by currying MAGAts’ favor they will survive his dictatorial plans?
His pronouncement that the press was our enemy really gave him a “get out of jail free card” for every ignorant utterance. They should, at that very moment, have blasted him (and Fox) with the truth, all day every day. Kellyanne and her alternative facts would have been buried in the bullshittery that they have buried us in. First thing that authoritarians do is muzzle the press or take them over. Ours have screwed themselves and us…
I just became a follower of you, Jeri. I've been so enraged about Joe Kahn that I can't express my take cogently - thank you for doing that so well.
Thank you. Boiling blood can give my rage wings. Unbelievable that he could be so stupid. Maybe he needs to Google Ben Bradley. Doubt that his inane take on his job would change one iota. He is wrapped in protective bubble wrap so that he won’t realize the damage is he doing to us all. Sounds like a MAGAt…
Great choice John!
Same here
I am surprised that I don't hear more of the famous Joseph Pulitzer quote. He wrote (warned?) in the North American Review in May 1904: Our Republic and its press will rise and fall together. An able, disinterested, public-spirited press, with trained intelligence to know the right and courage to do it, can preserve that public virtue without which popular government is a sham and a mockery. A cynical, mercenary, demagogic press will produce in time a people as base as itself. The power to mold the future of the republic will be in the hands of the journalists of future generations..
He really understood that critical relationship. Thank you. These days the color green has blinded them. Wonder if Pulitzer was alluding to Hearst and his slime journalism. It didn’t take a century for Ronnie and Rupert to come and do Hearst one better. Maybe before my NYT subscription runs out, I’ll do a letter to the editor and remind them of their sacred duty. Lot of good it’ll do, but been spinning my wheels for decades now.
So besides going into the streets is there something anything we the people can do?
GOTV, offer to drive people to the polls, become a poll worker, write postcards and/or letters (many orgs have campaigns you can join), write letters to the editor, etc., etc.
Call your Senators and demand that Alito recuse himself from the January cases. Post this piece all over your social media. Letter to the editor. Talk to friends, inform them and ask them to do the same. I called my senators yesterday and also talked about it at a party last night
I am not currently in the USA, but am going to be joining a couple of marches for Democracy here in Germany both a German protest against the AfD right-wing party before the EU elections, and the Democrats Abroad march for democracy in July. I agree that people in the USA should be organizing protests not just asking for Alito and Thomas to recuse themselves, but to be impeached. I would put this on the top rung of things to protest. They have totally compromised the third branch of government.
How about the Senate codifying an ethics LAW instead of this nonsense the SC cooked up for itself?
Demonstrate regularly in front of the SC building. Demonstrate relentlessly as Israelis did when Netanyahu tried to disembowel the judiciary (they were successful in stopping the plan.)
July 4 might be good, maybe Granger and some of that ilk will go back to Moscow….
Same thought. Why are we not in the streets???? My answer is that we've all accepted the reality that this is not a government for the people and by the people. They simply will not listen to us. These justices have absolute power and they answer to the almighty dollar bill. Noting else. Democracy in action, aka Democracy inaction. I'd join a protest, even though I'm 99% sure it would not have the desired outcome. 1% is still worth it.
I still scratch my head we did not start a revolution when 26 babies were gunned down in Newtown CT.
I knew that when we got no common sense legislation out of Sandy Hook that the cause was lost. The debacle of law enforcement conduct at Uvalde (which went against EVERY SINGLE PRINCIPLE TAUGHT in active shooter response) wasn't enough either. I can only think that it is what the ubiquitous "they" want.
I wonder about the left and its inability to support rallies anymore like in the 60s and 70s. Those were diverse people with causes bigger than either desires for fun or fear of violence. Nobody seems to be energized to thwart either the media or the extremists. Even during war in their own country, Ukrainians rally for their interests. Internationally, there seems to be actions only regarding right-wing issues or the Jewish/Palestinian issue.
Justice Alito (a contradiction of terms) didn't come out of nowhere. Here's Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse on Alito's origin story:
"Mr. President, I rise this evening, now for the 22nd time, to keep unmasking the far-right scheme to capture and control our Supreme Court. This scheme is funded by creepy rightwing billionaires who stay out of the limelight and let others— namely, Leonard Leo and his crew—operate their scheme. How are they benefiting from the scheme? It is hard to track which rightwing billionaires are involved— and that is by design—but thanks to intrepid reporting from ProPublica and others, we are learning more all the time. And every day it becomes harder for the billionaire-friendly Justices and their political allies to pretend, with a straight face, that all is kosher at the Court.
I have previously described the noxious cocktail of this court capture scheme: creepy rightwing billionaires, phony front groups, amenable Justices, large sums of money, and secrecy. I don’t know whether they take that shaken or stirred, but those seem to be the common ingredients. To chill that Court-capture cocktail, we can add one more ingredient: Alaskan glacier ice. But I will get back to that later.
First, let’s review the origin story of Justice Samuel Alito. It begins with the bipartisan Senate rejection of Judge Robert Bork, which infuriated Bork’s far-right backers. On the Court were Justices Souter and Stevens— both Republican appointees—but they wouldn’t help the billionaires, so the angry chant went out from the far right: No more Souters. No more Stevenses. Then President George W. Bush got an appointment and nominated his friend and trusted White House counsel, Harriet Miers. A Republican President nominates a personal friend and rock-ribbed conservative Republican— a woman to replace Sandra Day O’Connor. And the attack on her comes from the right.
The far-right billionaires won’t have it. And their operative—the aforementioned Leonard Leo—oversaw the project of taking her down. And in her place came the ever-so-reliably billionaire-friendly Sam Alito. This switch—Miers for Alito—gave Leo immense cred with the billionaires, who have since made him a very rich man and helped him launch his armada of front groups, of which this array is just a selection."
https://www.whitehouse.senate.gov/news/speeches/the-scheme-22-justice-alito-and-the-polluter-page/
https://www.propublica.org/article/we-dont-talk-about-leonard-podcast
We proudly fly a U.S. flag….next to our Biden/Harris yard sign. We also live in a MAGA Fl county.
Join us !
🇺🇸🏡🪧
I'm with you, but I am much safer in Eugene, OR than you are in Magaville, Florida.
Bravo, Kathy! Thank you for your forthrightness in allegiance to maintaining our Democratic form of government, not the proposed Dictatorship of the imminent Republican presidential candidate, tRump, and his Project 2025 orches”traitors.”
Roberts is one of them.
Take to the streets - that'll shake them up.
Fox News will call you socialists, they will call you subversive snd anti-democratic.
Hahaha, you're right, and if their opinion mattered to me I'd let it stop me. As an animal rights activist and vegan I'm pretty used to being called worse - by the left and the right. People care about justice until it interferes with their "personal preferences" aka taste buds, or whatever other lame excuse. "Oh, but that's different, it's food." No it's not. It's violence, slavery, torture, mutilation, and murder. The way it tastes doesn't change those facts. So ask me if I care what Fox says. Let's do this.
Sarah, how do you feel about the AL & FL laws prohibiting the manufacturing of "meat"? I understand they start with "meat starter" and use amino acids and other stuff (technical chemistry term) to grow the meat.
I know it's not vegan, but someday the process may get to that point.
Soylent Green?
If the chief justice was true to the law, he would have asked them to step down from the court.
If there is any doubt that democracy now holds on by a thread, the events unfolding before us should shatter that doubt. If Trump regains power, he will end democracy here, pull us out of NATO and democracies around the world will begin to crumble. This November's election is the most important election in the history of the world. We are at war here with white Protestant nationalism, also known as the KKK or MAGA.
You can't tell me Alito wasn't aware of the meaning of the upside down flag but his wife was. How could he not have seen it when it was up anywhere from 2 - 5 days? If the House was under Dem control, we could impeach him.
I hope people take to the streets on this one. It's more than the wives! These two shysters will never recuse. There has to be a way to force them out. Could the Senate conduct a vote of no confidence?
The stock market cycles and so does fascism. Read Timothy Snyder's ''On Tyranny'' for more information.
.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Snyder
Alito and Thomas should be barred from any consideration of Trump case. They’re corrupt.
Im not opposed to people marching in the streets, especially in front of the Supreme Court (you can’t get too close, because the Justices don’t want the First Amendment on their doorstep), but the Chief Justice does not have the power to keep other justices from sitting on a case.
It strikes me that the protests getting coverage are about Gaza, with young people taking an obtuse moral stage against... Something... Outrageous. While SCOTUS, the purported backbone of or democracy, one of the three branches to keep the other two in check, quietly bends the branch upon which or noose is hung.
It is one of the great failures of the upcoming generation. And it is impossible to get through regarding the true danger. Would that we could harness that energy…
The Chief Justice has no power to do anything about SCOTUS corruption beyond persuasion, and we know how well that works on MAGA adherents.