Today the Texas House voted to impeach Texas attorney general Ken Paxton on 20 counts of corruption and bribery, removing him from office temporarily while the Senate prepares to try him.
The vibe is the crazies will win and the country will lose. Biden handled this Republican terrorist time bomb masterfully. Yes he had to give up things that aren't fair. But he gained the high ground. Whatever bad happens will be squarely on the GOP shoulders in the minds of the majority of voters. But will the economic fallout here and around the world overwhelm whatever narrative advantage Democrats have achieved?
One thing is beyond dispute: the insurrectionists failed on Jan. 6, but their champions in Congress may be poised to deliver economic chaos that Trump wants in hopes it will somehow save him.
Michael, Because I mostly agree with your comment, I write simply to underscore two points. First, along with Biden, his highly experienced and formidable Counselor and chief negotiator in the debt ceiling talks Steve Ricchetti deserves immeasurable credit. Second, in my view, this is the moment to prevail upon establishment Democrats and Republicans to give their votes to the compromise agreement to ensure it advances, absent toxic amendments, through the House and the Senate.
Barbara Jo, I agree with you. Jo Biden (along with Steve Richetti) is the negotiator we need to make progress with the country. We need to get out (after all, as HCR says so often, we’re the majority), win back the house with a good majority and produce a good majority in the Senate so that Biden can truly cement his legacy as another FDR.
It’s not easy, but, if you quit, they win. If we get enough democrats in the state house and senate, we will be able to pass legislation that calls for an independent body drawing the maps. We might even get it in the constitution.
This is the time to get the Rs in the House in swing districts to do the right thing and please it's all Ds. The phrase establishment Ds helped death star to win in 2016. I realize that Ds fall along a continuum, but let's not split them because the far left has much to atone for in that election. I want all Ds to recognize what Biden has accomplished and drive that home.
Yes, of course this is an easy solution! However, will House Speaker McCarthy face down the threat to ride out of town having thrown gasoline on the blaze of Maga mania?
The whole world is watching. But I prefer the spring flowers ...
Barbara: our appeal to support the President must be to ALL DEMOCRATS including all progressives! This is a litmus test of democratic political cohesion as well as Party loyalty! If some of the Democratic Members refuse to support the President, I suggest that they be opposed in primaries in safe CDs. This vote to approve the settlement is what being a member of a political party is all about!. Let’s reinforce that sensible view.
His staff have indicated 14th A is off the table. Whether true or not, it was foolish for them to even say this during negotiations.
Biden should use emergency powers. Let the Repubs try to stop it after the fact. That's what Repubs do. It is harder to stop something already in motion than to prevent action before it starts.
Why is it even a question whether it will pass the House? Genuine question.
Let’s assume 40 Democrats rise in revolt against Biden, with whom, to be clear, I am not terribly pleased at the moment). That leaves 173 votes for.
My understanding of the Republicans in the House is that there is a core group of a dozen or so nihilists who will vote against McCarthy’s “giveaways” for the clicks and microphones. That leaves [checks notes] 211 wandering at large. This would mean that McCarthy would have to marshal just 45 members of his caucus to reach the magic number of 218.
Are we to assume that McCarthy might not be able to get 1/5 of his caucus to support him? I know he is not exactly McConnellian in his control of his gang, but this seems ridiculous to me.
Seat apportionment is even closer in the Senate. My understanding is that a simple majority only is necessary there as well. I won’t go all number-y on you here, but it looks to me like a certain pass.
Now the Republicans could choose now to send McCarthy packing, I suppose. Or it could be held up procedurally in a fit of petulance in either House.
But I just don’t see it not passing at the moment. Am I missing something?
Michael, Biden didn't handle this terrorist bomb masterfully. He wasted months saying he would not negotiate, when he should have invoked the Constitution, then he gave away important things like the auditors for the IRS to audit the tax returns of the wealthy and corporate America, something that would have brought in trillions of dollars in unpaid taxes and fines over the next decade. He gave up other things too, like Medicaid for the disabled unable to work or unemployable because of their disability. And probably for nothing. Those same crazies you mentioned will demand more cuts and still not vote for the bill. Instead of gaining the high ground, President Biden has given mc carthy and his gang of MAGAts a sort of win, at least that's the way they'll see it. I will still support and vote for Biden, but I am greatly disappointed.
Fay I feel your frustration. But the deal is not done yet, and IMO the way Biden has given McCarthy enough rope to hang himself, without actually committing to any of the carrots he's extended to the radical Republicans, has been a joy to watch
I think Katie Porter masterfully explained the debt ceiling in terms of personal credit card debt and an arbitrary spending limit. These "freedom" caucus nitwits have always been about destruction and performing for the Fox cameras. I would not give them one inch. If the situation were reversed, they would not compromise in any way. Stop trying to work with them. Giving them an inch will result in them trying to take miles. These people are Confederate traitors.
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also did a masterful job of eviscertating the MAGA Republicans regarding the national debt - it was a debt run up during the Trump administration. This is simply the case of paying for past debts incurred. We need to deal with the fact that we are literally at war and that the enemies of our democracy are inside the gate and some are holding positions of power and influence. It's a cancer that simply must be excised.
Tragically, maga heads cannot process well reasoned, logical arguments regarding the debt ceiling! They want every day to be Jan6 while President Biden is in Office!
The Democrats have failed miserably to deliver an effective message that condemns the Republicans and expose them for what they are - exploiters of the vast majority of Americans. The Republicans have been masters at using wedge issues (abortion, immigration, women and gay rights, etc.) to divide and conquer. Thomas Frank in his book, "What's the Matter with Kansas?" addresses these issues. We simply can no longer afford to "go high when they go low." Let's expose them for what they really are. If we don't, we lose.
The very first thing that Democrats need to recognize is why people are voting against their own best social and economic interests. Then the attacks in the media need to be aimed at what it is costing them in terms of benefits and services, that the two are not mutually exclusive. It's a propaganda war that the Democrats have conceded to the Republicans. It's time to fight back with fire, particularly given the slight opening with the problems that Fox News (sic) has encountered.
But...They are really cutting off their nose to spite their face. How are they so unable to see that these policies are damaging to all, them included. When the environment you live in becomes polluted (water and air) and when there is no money for FEMA to come to the rescue, when banks are unregulated,what kind of place will this be? Even animals know not to shit where they eat. These people are just plain stupid, and yet they are in a position, wielding power, to screw us all. The ones who are the WORST are the Republicans who know all this very well...as I have written earlier.
We cannot emphasize the necessity for the new IRS auditors enough. Some of those tax returns are thousands of pages long. Can you even count the number of shape shifting name changing Leonard Leo shell corporations through which billions of dollars have been funneled ?
Insurrectionist fist bumper and insurrection Bambi Josh Hawley is a chief champion of the GOP apocalypse now agenda - and has been groomed/touted a Commander in Chief material. He is also part of Leonard Leo's Teneo group seeking to do for racist right wing religious extremist culture wars what the Federalist Society did for court capture. With well over $1.6 billion to work with. Scratch any antidemocratic initiative and find a connection to one of Leo's network of shell corporations promoting clerical fascism. The culture war issues are center stage but deregulation and inequitable taxes are the primary goal.
Thank you, have heard no one, save Greg Olear mention the 1.6 billion “gift” to Leonard Leo. It is a bombshell in my eyes. Funding in perpetuity for hate and hypocrisy.
Scary. And disappointing to see (in the ProPublica report) that David Brooks was a speaker at a Teneo event. I thought he was a reasonable more or less conservative (in the legitimate sense of the word, hard to retrieve these days), but now it seems that "more or less" should apply to "reasonable" rather than "conservative". Emphasis on "less".
Apparently what Teneo is doing, under the tutelage of LL, is legal -- infiltrating the courts and different sectors of the economy and society. It is vile in that it is done in secrecy (nondisclosure of who is putting up the dough). Liberals/progressives should be doing the same. Somehow this notion of infiltrating the "levers" of society never made it into anything I ever studied in school or have read about in history. Maybe I just didn't read or study the right things. On the other hand, the existence of reports like the ProPublica, with its aura of surprise at these developments, leads one to believe that it's a recent phenomenon, at least as recent as the metastasis of the Federalist Society.
Oh yeah, no to David Brooks. I have always found him to want to try to be a balanced journalist but he’s just not. He’s like the rest of the R party where they dangle the carrot in front of your face, then they snatch it away.
If Biden can get Republicans to agree by negotiation to raise debt limit, he will be telling the watching world that he is in control of America and not the extremists. In other words, Republicans were manipulated into willingly releasing their “hostage” rather than forcing Biden “steal their hostage”. This perception is very important. I’m sure Biden will invoke the Constitution if there is no other choice though but it will definitely cost America by reducing our strength and reliability to other countries.
per HCR: "McCarthy continues to appeal to the extremists by attacking Biden, saying inaccurately that the president “wasted time and refused to negotiate for months” when, in fact, it was the Republicans who could not agree on what to bring to the table until April 26." - wondering if you actually read HCR or are just here to disrupt...
I'm not sure if this comment was directed at me, or John Kelly. But I assure you I avidly read every day, and am subscribed to Dr, Richardson's column. In my response to Michael Bales. I was referring to my disappointment with the President and the Democrats. I consider McCarthy to be a slimy little worm who will do and say anything to stay in 'power'. I have a strong love and belief in the Constitution, and much as I admire President Biden, I believe he should have stuck to his word and not negotiated on the unconstitutional 'debt ceiling'. I do not think I have to agree with everything my heroes say and write, anymore than I think I am always right.
The negotiating that is happening is over the budget. It has to happen one way or the other, regardless. It remains the MAGAS who say they will not vote to lift the debt ceiling unless they get what they want in the budget. Unless Biden and the Dems have a majority in both Houses, some negotiation will be necessary to get a budget passed. Biden is finessing this as only he can because of # 1, his good will to humanity, and #2 he paid attention to how to get things done all these years in politics.
Well done. A lot of folks here (and elsewhere) still have not grasped this critical distinction between budget and debt ceiling. We keep going in circles because of that. Your last sentence captures our current situation perfectly. And still people argue without an understanding of what the discussion is really about.
Thank you lamestreet media billionaires conglomerates for no definitions and analysis of the current situation. Lamestreet media leaves us pretty much with no clear understanding.
If you read Fay's own letter she distributes, you will find the same sentiment there. Fay knows what she writes about, and I for one totally support her. I think your use of the word "disruptive" is in itself disruptive; this colony of HCR followers gets along rather well. We do not push each other around, we share our views with no blades drawn. Have a nice day.
Thank you Ed; we should be focusung on the "fissures" in the Texas impeachment Vote which took Paxton off the field immediately. I understand the vote was bipartisan: '121 to impeach Paxton & only 23 against. ProPaxton forces say: "this means war" in the next GOP primary per the NYT after battle report.
By a 6 to 1 margin. Texans don't want to sink aboard the Paxton ship after taking a torpedo midship.
And the support from Raffie the Mayor of Cancun must have a big dog in the fight to so quickly come to Paxton's support. I have absolutely no respect for these blatant disregarders of us, the the people who elect them, and the privileges they acquire through their own machinations. They are dirty b-tards in my book. We have a barnyard term for the lowest of the low, but I won't release that crudity here on a Sunday morning.
Emotionally, I am with you. Emotionally, I didn't want the President to negotiate at all. It's a stupid law.
Practically speaking, I think Biden is a lot smarter than any of the Republicans and certainly more experienced than me and the millions of my fellow arm chair politicians.
Let's remember that anything agreed to now can be reversed in January 2025. Let's keep our eyes on the prize. A Blue Tsunami. Then we can dump this arcane law and get to work fixing the Supreme Court.
It is a hostage situation. Biden held steady jn light of Obama’s quick fold, giving away the store when negotiations had not begun. The people who know better on the Republican side are a disgrace beyond words. Profiles in cowardice and greed. What a craven lot collecting salary on our dime and availing themselves of best healthcare. Just fisgusting.
Those of us who opposed negotiations and wanted Biden to point out that the ceiling is a myth paid too little attention to the reality that If he had done that, Republicans just have refused to talk about the budget. Joe was smarter than we were. Again.
If that is the case, why bother with farce, it only prolongs the pain. I still think (opinion) he should have invoked the Constitution in February (or when ever the mewling infants first threatened the 'debt ceiling') If it went to court, so what? We had time then. Now? Who knows?
I wanted him to try the 14th Amendment route, but increasingly it looked very risky. If he hadn't finally agreed to negotiate, he would have lost support in many quarters. The cuts will be restored IF the Democrat take control of Congress in 2024.
I think I agree, but I wasn't a fly on the walls of the room where the negotiations took place, or where the president and his team discussed their strategy. I'm not sure why they thought it was a good idea to negotiate at all. Might it have been more effective to just pay the bills and use the 14th amendment to justify it? Would the toddlers in the House have taken them to court? Would the SCOTUS have supported the country going into default? What looks like is happening is that as long as this all takes, just gives the Repubs more time to lie to the MAGAs about it. I'm not sure it's a good idea to try to negotiate with bullies. There's usually not a good outcome with that.
Insurrectionist fist bumper and insurrection Bambi Josh Hawley is a chief champion of the GOP apocalypse now agenda - and has been groomed/touted a Commander in Chief material. He is also part of Leonard Leo's Teneo group seeking to do for racist right wing religious extremist culture wars what the Federalist Society did for court capture. With well over $1.6 billion to work with. Scratch any antidemocratic initiative and find a connection to one of Leo's network of shell corporations promoting clerical fascism.
Really good point! The Republican House is mostly made up of chess pieces and we are only now realizing what is behind the curtain. I would like to see the Citizens United and Hobby Lobby influences deleted, and watch the fabric start to unravel. I would then donate my empty soda bottles to MTG's campaign, though I would cut my voting arm off before voting for the likes of her. Dark Money is the bane of our democratic republican existence.
Biden appears to have negotiated in good faith on the budget. He doesn’t have a majority in the House, so it appears that some negotiation would be necessary. But now can the Republicans get enough Dems to vote for this regressive piece of work when we all know the MAGATS never had any intention of voting for anything McCarthy could negotiate. They tried to blow up our government/constitution violently. They sure as heck won’t vote to keep it going. I’ll be shocked if the House has the votes.
This is far from a done deal. At least all House Dems have signed the petition.
My nightmare is that Boebert and Gaetz call for a "motion to vacate" to strip MCcarthy of his Speakership for not refusing anything less than the bill passed in the House on the debt ceiling. They do this as soon as the House comes back into session. Everything stops until there is a new Speaker. The X-day passes and we move into default.
If McCarthy holds his seat through a vacate vote with ANY entirely pragmatic Democratic support ( to get through the debt ceiling vote) he will be politically dead and there will be a rotating series of challenges by the ultra-right wing. The House will cease to function as a legislative body. No continuing resolution on the budget will be passed and there will eventually be a government shutdown.
I doubt MTG would do that to Kevin. I have seen how she looks at him! I think if the truth were know they are a couple! Gut feeling! Now Boebert.... is another thing! I have never seen her give Kevin that look!
So, I've been reading a bit of Thom Hartmann, who also has a substack. He is looking deeply into the causes and corruption that precede oligarchy and fascism. What is happening now is exactly the blueprint. Texas and Florida are up to their ears, especially.
Winnow the "chaff" then tighten the circle of loyalists and yes men and a few women. Lie and confound, and control the media. Make a public example of your religion, the only religion. Soon the vestiges of democracy are gone and the power lies in authoritarianism. The needs of the people are ignored for the sake of riches and power in the hands of a few. Then comes the crushing of all dissent.
Now I understand why Republicans who speak against the behavior and lies of the party are dismissed and made redundant. Liz Cheney is an example.
Thank you, Hope, I also read Thom Hartman. He is describing the Fascist playbook and we must pay attention. They know the outcome they want and they are actively working to get there.
I was very hesitant about making a deal. I saw a story that claimed Democrats were worried that Biden was being rolled. But with Qevin on board—and assuming that very few Democrats defect—any blame from now on will fall on the Republicans. And so the party’s death spiral tightens.
It is crazy insane! To be a fascist, one can have no empathy for others. It's all about how much money they can get and how much power they can wield on the people they will take from. How anyone can vote this evil in is blind to what's right in their face. MAGA supporters are angry, stupid people who have no idea what they're wishing for. I'm hoping they never get their wish.
Michael, The saddest part is that intelligent, well read , and curious thinkers are being caught up in this insanity by even putting up with it.
We have power not to read about it, not to look at the media outlets, and not to clam up our very own arteries by responding to it.These very sick animals live on attention. Let’s suffocate them. IGNORE them. Take their oxygen away.
Then we work very hard “underground and silently” to get the TRUTh out .
Who all will know that Biden handled the republicans and took the high ground. Our lamestreet media billionaire conglomerate are a H U G E part of the problem. Nothing is certain with all the lies and liars knowing they can get away with domestic terrorism. 50 years of no accountability and look where we are>
Republicans caused this. Democrats are being the adults in the room. Again. And again and again.
Stop whining. Pull up our collective socks and re-elect Biden, take back the House, and increase the margin in the Senate.
If the good people of Santos’ districted had sussed him out and elected a democrat, McCarthy’s bill would not have passed. If just one of those new red districts in NY or Florida had gone blue, McCarthy’s bill would have failed. If just a 547 voters in Colorado had voted for Democrat Adam Frisch, McCarthy’s bill would have failed. If there had been just one more sane normal Republican vote, McCarthy’s bill would have failed.
Once that bill passed, it took away much of the leverage the democrats might have had.
So, what do you want Biden to do? He is not dealing with normal sane people. He is dealing with people who want him and the Dems to fail and they see defaulting as a way to make that happen. The Unfreedom caucus is on record as saying that. As is the twice impeached, sex assaulter, criminal defendant, insurrectionist, former guy.
The alternative stealth bill that would “only require 5 sane Republican votes” isn’t going to happen. There aren’t those votes to be had.
Invoking the 14th amendment to pay the bills will be tied up in court, undermining the credibility of the USA. Would you lend money to the government under those circumstances?
Stop complaining about Biden. There is no young, handsome, charismatic, articulate, electable White Knight waiting in the wings to ride to the rescue. Biden cares about this country and it’s citizens.
The vibe is the crazies will win and the country will lose. Biden handled this Republican terrorist time bomb masterfully. Yes he had to give up things that aren't fair. But he gained the high ground. Whatever bad happens will be squarely on the GOP shoulders in the minds of the majority of voters. But will the economic fallout here and around the world overwhelm whatever narrative advantage Democrats have achieved?
One thing is beyond dispute: the insurrectionists failed on Jan. 6, but their champions in Congress may be poised to deliver economic chaos that Trump wants in hopes it will somehow save him.
It's all so insane.
Michael, Because I mostly agree with your comment, I write simply to underscore two points. First, along with Biden, his highly experienced and formidable Counselor and chief negotiator in the debt ceiling talks Steve Ricchetti deserves immeasurable credit. Second, in my view, this is the moment to prevail upon establishment Democrats and Republicans to give their votes to the compromise agreement to ensure it advances, absent toxic amendments, through the House and the Senate.
Barbara Jo, I agree with you. Jo Biden (along with Steve Richetti) is the negotiator we need to make progress with the country. We need to get out (after all, as HCR says so often, we’re the majority), win back the house with a good majority and produce a good majority in the Senate so that Biden can truly cement his legacy as another FDR.
But how do we win with the gerrymandering, such as we have in TX? And with so many Republicans determined to display hate and destroy our democracy?!
There is no fast fix. We Dems have been alseep at the wheel while the republicans played the long game. Making progress one step at a time.
So we must just keep voting blue, every time. Winning every single race we can.
Stack the courts, including the Supremes, and play hardball. Like the now trumpers are doing.
It’s not easy, but, if you quit, they win. If we get enough democrats in the state house and senate, we will be able to pass legislation that calls for an independent body drawing the maps. We might even get it in the constitution.
👍👍👍
Biden deserves props for choosing such an excellent chief negotiator. We are lucky to have this president in these crazy times.
Ricchetti certainly deserves props for his superb skills.
This is the time to get the Rs in the House in swing districts to do the right thing and please it's all Ds. The phrase establishment Ds helped death star to win in 2016. I realize that Ds fall along a continuum, but let's not split them because the far left has much to atone for in that election. I want all Ds to recognize what Biden has accomplished and drive that home.
Absolutely agree! Dems show courage! Support President Biden!
Yes, of course this is an easy solution! However, will House Speaker McCarthy face down the threat to ride out of town having thrown gasoline on the blaze of Maga mania?
The whole world is watching. But I prefer the spring flowers ...
I feel like we should be sending fiddles to McCarthy. Nero come to mind strongly right now.
Barbara: our appeal to support the President must be to ALL DEMOCRATS including all progressives! This is a litmus test of democratic political cohesion as well as Party loyalty! If some of the Democratic Members refuse to support the President, I suggest that they be opposed in primaries in safe CDs. This vote to approve the settlement is what being a member of a political party is all about!. Let’s reinforce that sensible view.
Absolutely, Ira! “One for all and all for one” must be Dems slogan.
Sounds disturbingly like "Where we go one, we go all", but more grammatically correct. /s
Thank you Lani: this is really important !
I wonder if Biden is still considering using Section 4 of the 14th Amendment? And if not, why not? And what about Presidential emergency powers?
His staff have indicated 14th A is off the table. Whether true or not, it was foolish for them to even say this during negotiations.
Biden should use emergency powers. Let the Repubs try to stop it after the fact. That's what Repubs do. It is harder to stop something already in motion than to prevent action before it starts.
I totally agree. Biden is still stuck in the 80s, when Republicans were not inclined to burn it all down to win.
We do not have the luxury of anything like balanced negotiations. Loooooong past time for us to stop negotiating with terrorists.
Just do it. We Dems are always on our heels, backing up from the bullies. We need to punch them in the mouth.
"absent toxic amendments".... doesn't look like it, but we'll have to see more detail
Why is it even a question whether it will pass the House? Genuine question.
Let’s assume 40 Democrats rise in revolt against Biden, with whom, to be clear, I am not terribly pleased at the moment). That leaves 173 votes for.
My understanding of the Republicans in the House is that there is a core group of a dozen or so nihilists who will vote against McCarthy’s “giveaways” for the clicks and microphones. That leaves [checks notes] 211 wandering at large. This would mean that McCarthy would have to marshal just 45 members of his caucus to reach the magic number of 218.
Are we to assume that McCarthy might not be able to get 1/5 of his caucus to support him? I know he is not exactly McConnellian in his control of his gang, but this seems ridiculous to me.
Seat apportionment is even closer in the Senate. My understanding is that a simple majority only is necessary there as well. I won’t go all number-y on you here, but it looks to me like a certain pass.
Now the Republicans could choose now to send McCarthy packing, I suppose. Or it could be held up procedurally in a fit of petulance in either House.
But I just don’t see it not passing at the moment. Am I missing something?
Michael, Biden didn't handle this terrorist bomb masterfully. He wasted months saying he would not negotiate, when he should have invoked the Constitution, then he gave away important things like the auditors for the IRS to audit the tax returns of the wealthy and corporate America, something that would have brought in trillions of dollars in unpaid taxes and fines over the next decade. He gave up other things too, like Medicaid for the disabled unable to work or unemployable because of their disability. And probably for nothing. Those same crazies you mentioned will demand more cuts and still not vote for the bill. Instead of gaining the high ground, President Biden has given mc carthy and his gang of MAGAts a sort of win, at least that's the way they'll see it. I will still support and vote for Biden, but I am greatly disappointed.
Fay I feel your frustration. But the deal is not done yet, and IMO the way Biden has given McCarthy enough rope to hang himself, without actually committing to any of the carrots he's extended to the radical Republicans, has been a joy to watch
I think Katie Porter masterfully explained the debt ceiling in terms of personal credit card debt and an arbitrary spending limit. These "freedom" caucus nitwits have always been about destruction and performing for the Fox cameras. I would not give them one inch. If the situation were reversed, they would not compromise in any way. Stop trying to work with them. Giving them an inch will result in them trying to take miles. These people are Confederate traitors.
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez also did a masterful job of eviscertating the MAGA Republicans regarding the national debt - it was a debt run up during the Trump administration. This is simply the case of paying for past debts incurred. We need to deal with the fact that we are literally at war and that the enemies of our democracy are inside the gate and some are holding positions of power and influence. It's a cancer that simply must be excised.
Tragically, maga heads cannot process well reasoned, logical arguments regarding the debt ceiling! They want every day to be Jan6 while President Biden is in Office!
The Democrats have failed miserably to deliver an effective message that condemns the Republicans and expose them for what they are - exploiters of the vast majority of Americans. The Republicans have been masters at using wedge issues (abortion, immigration, women and gay rights, etc.) to divide and conquer. Thomas Frank in his book, "What's the Matter with Kansas?" addresses these issues. We simply can no longer afford to "go high when they go low." Let's expose them for what they really are. If we don't, we lose.
HOW???
Yes how, repubs have used cheating to the extreme to make elections a joke in some places, the places most likely to count.
The very first thing that Democrats need to recognize is why people are voting against their own best social and economic interests. Then the attacks in the media need to be aimed at what it is costing them in terms of benefits and services, that the two are not mutually exclusive. It's a propaganda war that the Democrats have conceded to the Republicans. It's time to fight back with fire, particularly given the slight opening with the problems that Fox News (sic) has encountered.
EXACTLY my question, Mr. Baum: HOW???
So if McCarthy gets voted out from his leadership position, what happens? No vote until Republicans can decide in a new leader?
Scary scenario because they are so stupid
Just burning the barn down, like they promised
But...They are really cutting off their nose to spite their face. How are they so unable to see that these policies are damaging to all, them included. When the environment you live in becomes polluted (water and air) and when there is no money for FEMA to come to the rescue, when banks are unregulated,what kind of place will this be? Even animals know not to shit where they eat. These people are just plain stupid, and yet they are in a position, wielding power, to screw us all. The ones who are the WORST are the Republicans who know all this very well...as I have written earlier.
We cannot emphasize the necessity for the new IRS auditors enough. Some of those tax returns are thousands of pages long. Can you even count the number of shape shifting name changing Leonard Leo shell corporations through which billions of dollars have been funneled ?
Insurrectionist fist bumper and insurrection Bambi Josh Hawley is a chief champion of the GOP apocalypse now agenda - and has been groomed/touted a Commander in Chief material. He is also part of Leonard Leo's Teneo group seeking to do for racist right wing religious extremist culture wars what the Federalist Society did for court capture. With well over $1.6 billion to work with. Scratch any antidemocratic initiative and find a connection to one of Leo's network of shell corporations promoting clerical fascism. The culture war issues are center stage but deregulation and inequitable taxes are the primary goal.
https://www.c-span.org/video/?527699-1/irs-commissioner-testifies-agency-accountability-oversight#
https://www.propublica.org/article/leonard-leo-teneo-videos-documents
Thank you for the link. Leo Leo is diabolical at heart, a characteristic found in all too many of those who emit so called religious fervor!
Leonard Leo is not diabolical -- he is methodical and effective. That's what makes him so dangerous to our society.
Well then, he is both, in my opinion.
Thank you, have heard no one, save Greg Olear mention the 1.6 billion “gift” to Leonard Leo. It is a bombshell in my eyes. Funding in perpetuity for hate and hypocrisy.
Oh good, my first smile of the am, calling Hawley Bambi.
Scary. And disappointing to see (in the ProPublica report) that David Brooks was a speaker at a Teneo event. I thought he was a reasonable more or less conservative (in the legitimate sense of the word, hard to retrieve these days), but now it seems that "more or less" should apply to "reasonable" rather than "conservative". Emphasis on "less".
Apparently what Teneo is doing, under the tutelage of LL, is legal -- infiltrating the courts and different sectors of the economy and society. It is vile in that it is done in secrecy (nondisclosure of who is putting up the dough). Liberals/progressives should be doing the same. Somehow this notion of infiltrating the "levers" of society never made it into anything I ever studied in school or have read about in history. Maybe I just didn't read or study the right things. On the other hand, the existence of reports like the ProPublica, with its aura of surprise at these developments, leads one to believe that it's a recent phenomenon, at least as recent as the metastasis of the Federalist Society.
Oh yeah, no to David Brooks. I have always found him to want to try to be a balanced journalist but he’s just not. He’s like the rest of the R party where they dangle the carrot in front of your face, then they snatch it away.
Yeah, but....Biden just gave away what is probably a large portion of the resources the IRS needs to improve its service and audit capabilities.
It didn't have to happen. The Dems could've raised the debt ceiling during the lame duck session.
He did not “give away” anything. He merely lowered the price tag like a Spring sale...for the time being. He played Qevin like a fiddle.
If Biden can get Republicans to agree by negotiation to raise debt limit, he will be telling the watching world that he is in control of America and not the extremists. In other words, Republicans were manipulated into willingly releasing their “hostage” rather than forcing Biden “steal their hostage”. This perception is very important. I’m sure Biden will invoke the Constitution if there is no other choice though but it will definitely cost America by reducing our strength and reliability to other countries.
My hope is about as empty as my purse, but I dream on
per HCR: "McCarthy continues to appeal to the extremists by attacking Biden, saying inaccurately that the president “wasted time and refused to negotiate for months” when, in fact, it was the Republicans who could not agree on what to bring to the table until April 26." - wondering if you actually read HCR or are just here to disrupt...
I'm not sure if this comment was directed at me, or John Kelly. But I assure you I avidly read every day, and am subscribed to Dr, Richardson's column. In my response to Michael Bales. I was referring to my disappointment with the President and the Democrats. I consider McCarthy to be a slimy little worm who will do and say anything to stay in 'power'. I have a strong love and belief in the Constitution, and much as I admire President Biden, I believe he should have stuck to his word and not negotiated on the unconstitutional 'debt ceiling'. I do not think I have to agree with everything my heroes say and write, anymore than I think I am always right.
The negotiating that is happening is over the budget. It has to happen one way or the other, regardless. It remains the MAGAS who say they will not vote to lift the debt ceiling unless they get what they want in the budget. Unless Biden and the Dems have a majority in both Houses, some negotiation will be necessary to get a budget passed. Biden is finessing this as only he can because of # 1, his good will to humanity, and #2 he paid attention to how to get things done all these years in politics.
You just distilled this entire discussion into its core elements. Well done!
Well done. A lot of folks here (and elsewhere) still have not grasped this critical distinction between budget and debt ceiling. We keep going in circles because of that. Your last sentence captures our current situation perfectly. And still people argue without an understanding of what the discussion is really about.
I can understand why folks are confused. So much misinformation and talking points abound in the media to intentionally mislead.
Thank you lamestreet media billionaires conglomerates for no definitions and analysis of the current situation. Lamestreet media leaves us pretty much with no clear understanding.
If you read Fay's own letter she distributes, you will find the same sentiment there. Fay knows what she writes about, and I for one totally support her. I think your use of the word "disruptive" is in itself disruptive; this colony of HCR followers gets along rather well. We do not push each other around, we share our views with no blades drawn. Have a nice day.
Thank you Ed; we should be focusung on the "fissures" in the Texas impeachment Vote which took Paxton off the field immediately. I understand the vote was bipartisan: '121 to impeach Paxton & only 23 against. ProPaxton forces say: "this means war" in the next GOP primary per the NYT after battle report.
By a 6 to 1 margin. Texans don't want to sink aboard the Paxton ship after taking a torpedo midship.
And the support from Raffie the Mayor of Cancun must have a big dog in the fight to so quickly come to Paxton's support. I have absolutely no respect for these blatant disregarders of us, the the people who elect them, and the privileges they acquire through their own machinations. They are dirty b-tards in my book. We have a barnyard term for the lowest of the low, but I won't release that crudity here on a Sunday morning.
Oh go ahead, we can take it! :)
I agree.
Emotionally, I am with you. Emotionally, I didn't want the President to negotiate at all. It's a stupid law.
Practically speaking, I think Biden is a lot smarter than any of the Republicans and certainly more experienced than me and the millions of my fellow arm chair politicians.
Let's remember that anything agreed to now can be reversed in January 2025. Let's keep our eyes on the prize. A Blue Tsunami. Then we can dump this arcane law and get to work fixing the Supreme Court.
YES!
It is a hostage situation. Biden held steady jn light of Obama’s quick fold, giving away the store when negotiations had not begun. The people who know better on the Republican side are a disgrace beyond words. Profiles in cowardice and greed. What a craven lot collecting salary on our dime and availing themselves of best healthcare. Just fisgusting.
Those of us who opposed negotiations and wanted Biden to point out that the ceiling is a myth paid too little attention to the reality that If he had done that, Republicans just have refused to talk about the budget. Joe was smarter than we were. Again.
Disappointed, but me thinks that he will undo the damage after the 2024 debacle for the repubs. Yes, I dream…
Maybe he gave them up knowing it would never pass?
If that is the case, why bother with farce, it only prolongs the pain. I still think (opinion) he should have invoked the Constitution in February (or when ever the mewling infants first threatened the 'debt ceiling') If it went to court, so what? We had time then. Now? Who knows?
I wanted him to try the 14th Amendment route, but increasingly it looked very risky. If he hadn't finally agreed to negotiate, he would have lost support in many quarters. The cuts will be restored IF the Democrat take control of Congress in 2024.
I think I agree, but I wasn't a fly on the walls of the room where the negotiations took place, or where the president and his team discussed their strategy. I'm not sure why they thought it was a good idea to negotiate at all. Might it have been more effective to just pay the bills and use the 14th amendment to justify it? Would the toddlers in the House have taken them to court? Would the SCOTUS have supported the country going into default? What looks like is happening is that as long as this all takes, just gives the Repubs more time to lie to the MAGAs about it. I'm not sure it's a good idea to try to negotiate with bullies. There's usually not a good outcome with that.
We know that there are many no votes no matter how a Democratic leader tries to sweeten the deal.
We don't have all the details yet, but it's beginning to look grim...
It is all so corrupt.
Insurrectionist fist bumper and insurrection Bambi Josh Hawley is a chief champion of the GOP apocalypse now agenda - and has been groomed/touted a Commander in Chief material. He is also part of Leonard Leo's Teneo group seeking to do for racist right wing religious extremist culture wars what the Federalist Society did for court capture. With well over $1.6 billion to work with. Scratch any antidemocratic initiative and find a connection to one of Leo's network of shell corporations promoting clerical fascism.
https://www.propublica.org/article/leonard-leo-teneo-videos-documents
Really good point! The Republican House is mostly made up of chess pieces and we are only now realizing what is behind the curtain. I would like to see the Citizens United and Hobby Lobby influences deleted, and watch the fabric start to unravel. I would then donate my empty soda bottles to MTG's campaign, though I would cut my voting arm off before voting for the likes of her. Dark Money is the bane of our democratic republican existence.
Hawley is the poster boy for the politician slobbering at the dark money trough! Follow the money in action!
Oh that’s graphic Louis, had me ROTF! 👏
Biden appears to have negotiated in good faith on the budget. He doesn’t have a majority in the House, so it appears that some negotiation would be necessary. But now can the Republicans get enough Dems to vote for this regressive piece of work when we all know the MAGATS never had any intention of voting for anything McCarthy could negotiate. They tried to blow up our government/constitution violently. They sure as heck won’t vote to keep it going. I’ll be shocked if the House has the votes.
This is far from a done deal. At least all House Dems have signed the petition.
My nightmare is that Boebert and Gaetz call for a "motion to vacate" to strip MCcarthy of his Speakership for not refusing anything less than the bill passed in the House on the debt ceiling. They do this as soon as the House comes back into session. Everything stops until there is a new Speaker. The X-day passes and we move into default.
If McCarthy holds his seat through a vacate vote with ANY entirely pragmatic Democratic support ( to get through the debt ceiling vote) he will be politically dead and there will be a rotating series of challenges by the ultra-right wing. The House will cease to function as a legislative body. No continuing resolution on the budget will be passed and there will eventually be a government shutdown.
I doubt MTG would do that to Kevin. I have seen how she looks at him! I think if the truth were know they are a couple! Gut feeling! Now Boebert.... is another thing! I have never seen her give Kevin that look!
So, I've been reading a bit of Thom Hartmann, who also has a substack. He is looking deeply into the causes and corruption that precede oligarchy and fascism. What is happening now is exactly the blueprint. Texas and Florida are up to their ears, especially.
Winnow the "chaff" then tighten the circle of loyalists and yes men and a few women. Lie and confound, and control the media. Make a public example of your religion, the only religion. Soon the vestiges of democracy are gone and the power lies in authoritarianism. The needs of the people are ignored for the sake of riches and power in the hands of a few. Then comes the crushing of all dissent.
Now I understand why Republicans who speak against the behavior and lies of the party are dismissed and made redundant. Liz Cheney is an example.
Thank you, Hope, I also read Thom Hartman. He is describing the Fascist playbook and we must pay attention. They know the outcome they want and they are actively working to get there.
I was very hesitant about making a deal. I saw a story that claimed Democrats were worried that Biden was being rolled. But with Qevin on board—and assuming that very few Democrats defect—any blame from now on will fall on the Republicans. And so the party’s death spiral tightens.
Totally.
It is crazy insane! To be a fascist, one can have no empathy for others. It's all about how much money they can get and how much power they can wield on the people they will take from. How anyone can vote this evil in is blind to what's right in their face. MAGA supporters are angry, stupid people who have no idea what they're wishing for. I'm hoping they never get their wish.
Michael, The saddest part is that intelligent, well read , and curious thinkers are being caught up in this insanity by even putting up with it.
We have power not to read about it, not to look at the media outlets, and not to clam up our very own arteries by responding to it.These very sick animals live on attention. Let’s suffocate them. IGNORE them. Take their oxygen away.
Then we work very hard “underground and silently” to get the TRUTh out .
Could not disagree more. Biden painted himself in a corner on this fiasco. Even the NYT pointed that out several weeks ago.
Who all will know that Biden handled the republicans and took the high ground. Our lamestreet media billionaire conglomerate are a H U G E part of the problem. Nothing is certain with all the lies and liars knowing they can get away with domestic terrorism. 50 years of no accountability and look where we are>
Republicans caused this. Democrats are being the adults in the room. Again. And again and again.
Stop whining. Pull up our collective socks and re-elect Biden, take back the House, and increase the margin in the Senate.
If the good people of Santos’ districted had sussed him out and elected a democrat, McCarthy’s bill would not have passed. If just one of those new red districts in NY or Florida had gone blue, McCarthy’s bill would have failed. If just a 547 voters in Colorado had voted for Democrat Adam Frisch, McCarthy’s bill would have failed. If there had been just one more sane normal Republican vote, McCarthy’s bill would have failed.
Once that bill passed, it took away much of the leverage the democrats might have had.
So, what do you want Biden to do? He is not dealing with normal sane people. He is dealing with people who want him and the Dems to fail and they see defaulting as a way to make that happen. The Unfreedom caucus is on record as saying that. As is the twice impeached, sex assaulter, criminal defendant, insurrectionist, former guy.
The alternative stealth bill that would “only require 5 sane Republican votes” isn’t going to happen. There aren’t those votes to be had.
Invoking the 14th amendment to pay the bills will be tied up in court, undermining the credibility of the USA. Would you lend money to the government under those circumstances?
Stop complaining about Biden. There is no young, handsome, charismatic, articulate, electable White Knight waiting in the wings to ride to the rescue. Biden cares about this country and it’s citizens.
Sky 777--Do listen to Tom Hanks' address at the Harvard Commencement ceremony. He deals with the White Knight mentality pretty well.
Just listened.
Best speech I have ever heard.
KEM, thank you for introducing us to this speech and providing a link!
Link please
His speech starts at about 6:20 into this video. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg9PbLvxlSY
Oh my word, thank you for sharing. That was humbling and beautiful. 💜💙💜
That's a wonderful speech. I watched it from start to finish. No stone unturned.
These are the diamonds I seek daily (laced by the ads I so detest but suffer through as someone has to pay the piper).
Thanks
Thank you, KEM!
Thanks for the link!
Tom Hanks is a national treasure and his words should provide encouragement to us all.
Thanks very much for the link, KEM.
Let me recommend that you all watch Tom Hanks' touching new film, "A Man Called Otto."