Today began with a breathless story from the tabloid paper the New York Post alleging that, according to Trump’s lawyer Rudy Giuliani, Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, had dropped off three laptops for repair in 2019 and had never picked them up again, and that the FBI subpoenaed the hard drives, but before turning them over the repairman had made a copy of the material on them, and he gave it to Giuliani, and it had incriminating material on it….
That Amy Coney Barrett has gone along with this sham confirmation theater instead of denouncing it and withdrawing her name from consideration proves she doesn't have the integrity to be a member of the Supreme Court.
Congratulations to Heather Cox Richardson, to Senator Kamala Harris, and to Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, for their invaluable contributions to this Supreme Court appointment process!
I feel some despair and confusion seeing the inevitable confirmation of Barrett to the Supreme Court. Does this mean that in the remaining months of 45's term even if he loses the election that he will be able to continue to dismantle our democracy and otherwise wreak havoc on this country? And if the Democrats do not flip the Senate, even if Biden is elected, he will not be effective as President or be able to repair the damage caused by 45.
I feel so exhausted from all that has gone on these past 4 years in addition to being a health care provider during this pandemic.
Thank you, Heather, for your insights and for making it possible to hold onto my sanity during these dark days. I am afraid some days that it may not be enough for me, though. But I hope enough Americans are motivated and inspired enough to act to improve our future.
The Republican Party wants to take us back to the plantation and the company town.
Method; tie up the legislative branch and pack the court. Then complain bitterly about "do-nothing congressional Democrats" and "activist liberal judges".
Sheldon Whitehorse's presentation was excellent; a vivid, detailed illustration of what Republicans have been working on more or less for the last forty years.
I am becoming more convinced that it is always about the money. “Follow the money” almost always seems to explain the inexplicable with this bunch. I would wager that even this ridiculous and obviously fake story about laptops traces back to money - likely what trump has to lose should he lose the election. ACB’s sham of a confirmation also boils down to money, as so well explained in today’s letter. “The love of money is the root of all evil” has never been more clearly on display and the whole world is watching in horror and fear as we self destruct. I fear for the future that my children and grandchildren will face if he somehow gets another term. I truly believe that we will not survive as a nation if forced to endure another 4 years of what will surely be even worse abuses by this crime family and their cohorts. I now often find myself thinking that, if the unthinkable happens, then it will be time to look for another country. But then, where to go? And, given covid, where can anyone currently in this country go with most borders closed to us? And then, if by some miracle one could go to a new place, to be the “foreigner”, having to learn new laws, customs, and even possibly language, then what - watch the beloved country collapse from afar? But this guarantees no safety because the destruction of the US will create a black hole in the geopolitical landscape that will pull all others it into the chaos created as it collapses. Not only do I fear for our country, I fear for the world. The stakes couldn’t be higher. As Joe Biden recently said, “its go time”.
Thank you, Dr. Richardson! Through your daily attention to the efforts of dismantling the New Deal, American politics of my lifetime finally make sense to me—how emotional issues are used to obscure motives and make deals, as well as bait to lure people to vote for those who would legislate and rule against the common good. We need a “common good society” that is as attractive and effective to law students as the Federalist Society.
Thank you Heather for today's roadmap. I'm waiting for Trumps dog whistle to finally wear out as he has used it daily for almost 4 years. Why do Republicans fall for it everytime. My mostly deaf old Beagle knows enough to not fall for it. I feel that Barrett or whatever ringer they could come up with was predetermined atleast 4 years ago, most certainly longer than that the GOP could seal our fate through the Judicial System. As the full Judicial System will now be corrupted and used as a literal hammer to control the Country, I honestly don't see a path to Democracy any longer, certainly not in my lifetime. I had lunch recently with a woman from Germany who said it baffles her that a Country this powerful could lose control this quickly as citizens stood by and watched. She added, she has seen this before. As soon as travel restrictions change, she will be returning to Germany to live after living in the US for over 50 years.
The FBI has said that were ordered not to interview any possible witnesses in the Brett Kavanaugh sexual allegations during his confirmation, but there is now proof he lied during these hearings. Can he be impeached immediately, after the election?
If people are not able to decide or understand what are their true interests and let themselves be "programmed" otherwise by snake-oil salesmen, then they either don't vote or vote for people who will not truely support their real interests. Little surprise in that!
If the "programmed" people continue to vote for the same mediocre politicians who are uniquely feathering their own nests, then what can you say? They must find some satisfaction, wallowing in their ignorance, poverty, anger and hate. No news there!
The Supreme Court has over the last 60 years, with the exception of a few periods under Presidents Roosevelte, Eisenhower and Johnson mentioned by Heather, done the job that the politicians should have been doing for the people. Thank goodness for that!
The forced inactivity of our overly partisan politics and our non-representative politicians has has severely damaged the country and the people. The elected have often sat on their hands rather than raising them in constructive votes pushing measures to promote the welfare of the people and even prevented consideration of such changes that would hurt their private interests. The SCOTUS has acted for the people!
Politicians must now do their jobs. If the law doesn't help the people, change it. If the constitution stops you doing it, change it. If the method of changing the constitution is too archaic, change it. Then the Supreme Court can be put back in its place and judges will no longer have to guide society in their stead...nor will it be able to favor one part of society over another. That would seem normal to me.
They do not care if the Barrett nomination causes them to lose the Presidency. With Barrett on the court, they control the country. It's like bombing New York, Los Angeles, Portland, Detroit and Chicago to smithereens all at once.
It would seem that the copying of someone’s laptop hard drive would be illegal, wouldn’t it? I mean, the FBI had to subpoena them, so how does a schmuck like Giuliani wind up with them? The supplier of the supposed hard drive copies sites the Seth Rich conspiracy, so this is a case of conspiracy leap-frogging another conspiracy.
What in the world happened to Giuliani? He has fallen SO FAR from being the perceived beacon of NYC during 9-11. A back room lackey for Trump, sniffing out obviously false conclusions. At this point, it doesn’t even matter what’s on the hard drives. It doesn’t even matter WHOSE hard drives they are. All Trump is focused on is the hurried lies he can whip up to damage Biden’s character.
His base will take the baton and run with it, even if it’s not on the racetrack or their mad dash points them away from the finish line. The only point is to whip up clouds of confusion here in the last days of the election.
The only problem there is: we have become wise the tactic. We have seen this trick before.
As far as the Barrett nomination, yeah, they’re going to force a square peg into a round hole and really no longer care to justify anything about it. Republicans have completely given up even pretending to be civil or democratic.
And of course the Donald made a big point in Idaho about this article in "a well respected New York newspaper" that they had proof Joe Biden was involved in "crooked deals with Boorisma".
It is so interesting to note that the Mango Moron's speeches contain absolutely no mention of his plans for the future if he is re-elected, the Coronavirus and its impact on minorities, etc; they are just bombastic accusations against everyone who opposes him, snide remarks about the Democrats' ties with radical Socialists and Communists, wild falacious claims about the Second Amendment and gun rights and appeals to the suburban housewives to like him.
I sincerely hope that the SCOTUS continues to support the principle that no man is above the law and allows Cyrus Vance's subpoenas to proceed. (Even an "originalist" like Scalia or Barrett should uphold this.)
Rudy Giuliani is like somebody’s really crazy uncle. Joe acknowledges that his son has had drug problems but again, the Repubs will cling onto anything that they think is dirty. That is what they do but why should tabloids or news agencies allow that crap to be aired? Why even have crazy Rudy on at all? Oh that’s right...he is a distraction for his boss who has miraculously arisen from the dead Covid disease!
Barrett is about exciting as a seagull in heat. We got absolutely nothing from her while she proudly held up her equally blank legal pad. She will get confirmed unless a few senators on that committee kick the bucket. Wishful thinking, but that is unlikely to happen. Ugh!
Thank you HCR. Just yesterday, my kindly neighbor said, “She seems like a really intelligent, good person.” After my jaw dropped, I explained why I disagreed. Or, at the very least, say it doesn’t matter. He had no idea. There are likely a lot of uneducated kindly people out there in TV-land who are watching the hearing and thinking the same thing? (Yes, it’s a failure of our education system to teach civics and basic history in secondary school.) Once I started listing all the laws that will be overturned or chipped away at, my “average citizen working class Joe” neighbor was shocked. He doesn’t want to lose Obamacare. He doesn’t want to see voting rights or gay marriage rolled back. So, I don’t think Dems are making the best use of the hearing. I feel the noose tightening around my neck. Back to writing Vote Forward letters for Biden/Harris. 19 Days. ❤️🤍💙
That Amy Coney Barrett has gone along with this sham confirmation theater instead of denouncing it and withdrawing her name from consideration proves she doesn't have the integrity to be a member of the Supreme Court.
Congratulations to Heather Cox Richardson, to Senator Kamala Harris, and to Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, for their invaluable contributions to this Supreme Court appointment process!
I feel some despair and confusion seeing the inevitable confirmation of Barrett to the Supreme Court. Does this mean that in the remaining months of 45's term even if he loses the election that he will be able to continue to dismantle our democracy and otherwise wreak havoc on this country? And if the Democrats do not flip the Senate, even if Biden is elected, he will not be effective as President or be able to repair the damage caused by 45.
I feel so exhausted from all that has gone on these past 4 years in addition to being a health care provider during this pandemic.
Thank you, Heather, for your insights and for making it possible to hold onto my sanity during these dark days. I am afraid some days that it may not be enough for me, though. But I hope enough Americans are motivated and inspired enough to act to improve our future.
The Republican Party wants to take us back to the plantation and the company town.
Method; tie up the legislative branch and pack the court. Then complain bitterly about "do-nothing congressional Democrats" and "activist liberal judges".
Sheldon Whitehorse's presentation was excellent; a vivid, detailed illustration of what Republicans have been working on more or less for the last forty years.
I am becoming more convinced that it is always about the money. “Follow the money” almost always seems to explain the inexplicable with this bunch. I would wager that even this ridiculous and obviously fake story about laptops traces back to money - likely what trump has to lose should he lose the election. ACB’s sham of a confirmation also boils down to money, as so well explained in today’s letter. “The love of money is the root of all evil” has never been more clearly on display and the whole world is watching in horror and fear as we self destruct. I fear for the future that my children and grandchildren will face if he somehow gets another term. I truly believe that we will not survive as a nation if forced to endure another 4 years of what will surely be even worse abuses by this crime family and their cohorts. I now often find myself thinking that, if the unthinkable happens, then it will be time to look for another country. But then, where to go? And, given covid, where can anyone currently in this country go with most borders closed to us? And then, if by some miracle one could go to a new place, to be the “foreigner”, having to learn new laws, customs, and even possibly language, then what - watch the beloved country collapse from afar? But this guarantees no safety because the destruction of the US will create a black hole in the geopolitical landscape that will pull all others it into the chaos created as it collapses. Not only do I fear for our country, I fear for the world. The stakes couldn’t be higher. As Joe Biden recently said, “its go time”.
Thank you once again, Dr. R. I missed the silver lining in this letter. Can anybody find it for me?
Thank you, Dr. Richardson! Through your daily attention to the efforts of dismantling the New Deal, American politics of my lifetime finally make sense to me—how emotional issues are used to obscure motives and make deals, as well as bait to lure people to vote for those who would legislate and rule against the common good. We need a “common good society” that is as attractive and effective to law students as the Federalist Society.
Thank you Heather for today's roadmap. I'm waiting for Trumps dog whistle to finally wear out as he has used it daily for almost 4 years. Why do Republicans fall for it everytime. My mostly deaf old Beagle knows enough to not fall for it. I feel that Barrett or whatever ringer they could come up with was predetermined atleast 4 years ago, most certainly longer than that the GOP could seal our fate through the Judicial System. As the full Judicial System will now be corrupted and used as a literal hammer to control the Country, I honestly don't see a path to Democracy any longer, certainly not in my lifetime. I had lunch recently with a woman from Germany who said it baffles her that a Country this powerful could lose control this quickly as citizens stood by and watched. She added, she has seen this before. As soon as travel restrictions change, she will be returning to Germany to live after living in the US for over 50 years.
The FBI has said that were ordered not to interview any possible witnesses in the Brett Kavanaugh sexual allegations during his confirmation, but there is now proof he lied during these hearings. Can he be impeached immediately, after the election?
Relaying a Facebook reader’s find written by our new hero, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse:
https://harvardjol.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/17/2020/05/Sen.-Whitehouse_Dark-Money.pdf
He also wrote a book with a section devoted to the courts: Captured: The Corporate Infiltration of American Democracy.
"When you find hypocrisy in the daylight, look for power in the shadows.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjcXVKg43qY&fbclid=IwAR2W2s50ZYuVJ9cEbei9h6GyXEw92EjVt_9RWjdzM4sRoqmcldfTfyV3Q2w
If people are not able to decide or understand what are their true interests and let themselves be "programmed" otherwise by snake-oil salesmen, then they either don't vote or vote for people who will not truely support their real interests. Little surprise in that!
If the "programmed" people continue to vote for the same mediocre politicians who are uniquely feathering their own nests, then what can you say? They must find some satisfaction, wallowing in their ignorance, poverty, anger and hate. No news there!
The Supreme Court has over the last 60 years, with the exception of a few periods under Presidents Roosevelte, Eisenhower and Johnson mentioned by Heather, done the job that the politicians should have been doing for the people. Thank goodness for that!
The forced inactivity of our overly partisan politics and our non-representative politicians has has severely damaged the country and the people. The elected have often sat on their hands rather than raising them in constructive votes pushing measures to promote the welfare of the people and even prevented consideration of such changes that would hurt their private interests. The SCOTUS has acted for the people!
Politicians must now do their jobs. If the law doesn't help the people, change it. If the constitution stops you doing it, change it. If the method of changing the constitution is too archaic, change it. Then the Supreme Court can be put back in its place and judges will no longer have to guide society in their stead...nor will it be able to favor one part of society over another. That would seem normal to me.
They do not care if the Barrett nomination causes them to lose the Presidency. With Barrett on the court, they control the country. It's like bombing New York, Los Angeles, Portland, Detroit and Chicago to smithereens all at once.
It would seem that the copying of someone’s laptop hard drive would be illegal, wouldn’t it? I mean, the FBI had to subpoena them, so how does a schmuck like Giuliani wind up with them? The supplier of the supposed hard drive copies sites the Seth Rich conspiracy, so this is a case of conspiracy leap-frogging another conspiracy.
What in the world happened to Giuliani? He has fallen SO FAR from being the perceived beacon of NYC during 9-11. A back room lackey for Trump, sniffing out obviously false conclusions. At this point, it doesn’t even matter what’s on the hard drives. It doesn’t even matter WHOSE hard drives they are. All Trump is focused on is the hurried lies he can whip up to damage Biden’s character.
His base will take the baton and run with it, even if it’s not on the racetrack or their mad dash points them away from the finish line. The only point is to whip up clouds of confusion here in the last days of the election.
The only problem there is: we have become wise the tactic. We have seen this trick before.
As far as the Barrett nomination, yeah, they’re going to force a square peg into a round hole and really no longer care to justify anything about it. Republicans have completely given up even pretending to be civil or democratic.
And of course the Donald made a big point in Idaho about this article in "a well respected New York newspaper" that they had proof Joe Biden was involved in "crooked deals with Boorisma".
It is so interesting to note that the Mango Moron's speeches contain absolutely no mention of his plans for the future if he is re-elected, the Coronavirus and its impact on minorities, etc; they are just bombastic accusations against everyone who opposes him, snide remarks about the Democrats' ties with radical Socialists and Communists, wild falacious claims about the Second Amendment and gun rights and appeals to the suburban housewives to like him.
I sincerely hope that the SCOTUS continues to support the principle that no man is above the law and allows Cyrus Vance's subpoenas to proceed. (Even an "originalist" like Scalia or Barrett should uphold this.)
Rudy Giuliani is like somebody’s really crazy uncle. Joe acknowledges that his son has had drug problems but again, the Repubs will cling onto anything that they think is dirty. That is what they do but why should tabloids or news agencies allow that crap to be aired? Why even have crazy Rudy on at all? Oh that’s right...he is a distraction for his boss who has miraculously arisen from the dead Covid disease!
Barrett is about exciting as a seagull in heat. We got absolutely nothing from her while she proudly held up her equally blank legal pad. She will get confirmed unless a few senators on that committee kick the bucket. Wishful thinking, but that is unlikely to happen. Ugh!
Thank you HCR. Just yesterday, my kindly neighbor said, “She seems like a really intelligent, good person.” After my jaw dropped, I explained why I disagreed. Or, at the very least, say it doesn’t matter. He had no idea. There are likely a lot of uneducated kindly people out there in TV-land who are watching the hearing and thinking the same thing? (Yes, it’s a failure of our education system to teach civics and basic history in secondary school.) Once I started listing all the laws that will be overturned or chipped away at, my “average citizen working class Joe” neighbor was shocked. He doesn’t want to lose Obamacare. He doesn’t want to see voting rights or gay marriage rolled back. So, I don’t think Dems are making the best use of the hearing. I feel the noose tightening around my neck. Back to writing Vote Forward letters for Biden/Harris. 19 Days. ❤️🤍💙