This morning, former president Trump told a Newsmax host that he was “financially supporting” some of the rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, in an attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Calling it “disgraceful” that they are being prosecuted, he said that If reelected, he would look “very favorably at full pardons” for them and would apologize to them.
If one of the over-educated, under-intelligent, otherwise unemployable Twitter twits of the Washington Press Corpse asks him why he's "being so partisan," Biden can quote Harry Truman: "I tell the truth about them and they think it's hell."
the bullies don't know what to do when the nice buy comes up and punches their face in front of their fans.
That @#$%#$#@!! Gingrich is more responsible than any other Republican including Nixon for turning the party into the Kooky Kollection of Klucks who were ready for Trump. You can take the boy out of the trailer park (he really was raised n one) but you can't take the trailer park out of the boy. What a worthless piece of shit he has been since the day he was born. Just like Trump.
While I believe a process of pardon is necessary for correcting errors and changing understandings of justice, it seems to be that pardons on the whim of presidents and governors is a remnant of imperial power in our democratic republican system, which lacks prudent checks and balances and which can (now obviously) be used to undermine just rule of law as well as to improve it. The pardon of Nixon was such an abuse of power, and Trump's abuses are as corrupt as hell.
“Power must never be trusted without a check.” – John Adams
I suspect that this is only one of several ways we are inclined to conflate a president with a king.
President Biden in Philadelphia spoke of his/our fight for the soul of America.
On January 21, 2022, with the heart of an historian rather than the glibness of a daily political analyst, I wrote that the then-dismal political prospects of President Biden and the Democratic Congress could change with startling speed. I wrote more with an attaboy attitude than a deep conviction.
I related to Jon Meacham’s magnificent THE SOUL OF AMERICA, He wrote about America’s stutter step pattern of ups, downs, and ups over two-and-one-half centuries. The trend line has been up.
At present President Biden is deservedly up, Manchin/Sinema have permitted some Democratic legislative triumphs, gas prices have plummeted, and MAGAISTS have a ‘soul’ that is being filleted.
I am an American who has experienced such downs as Pearl Harbor, Watergate, the 1970s Rust Belt, Vietnam, 9/11, Iraq, and Covid. I have also experienced Brown v. Board of Education, Medicare, the end of the Cold War, and the Pelosi/Pence completion of the constitutional election of President Biden on the day of the Capitol Hill insurrection.
I am thankful that America’s ‘soul pendulum’ recently has swing in a positive and, for many, surprising direction. I am heartened without being complacent.
The battle for the soul of America is a never ending struggle.
So, Joe Biden speaks. More than once, even. I hope he speaks like he's personally running for office this November. I'd like to hear that he's speaking like a candidate for office, 2-3 times/week until November and the election. His words, empowered by the office he holds, are in fact the most powerful tools in his arsenal to influence Americans toward voting out lies and liars, voting for the constitution and those who agree to swear their allegiance to it. If we achieve that, we'll have that more generous majority in the Senate and we'll preserve the majority in the House and the next two years of this administration will be more fruitful than the last, which were remarkable by many measures. This president will stand tall amongst his peers, even though he was dealt a weak hand in 2020.
What's roaring off to one side is a paper tiger, less and less convincing as the days and weeks progress, sinking deeper and deeper into the very swamp he claimed to drain. I want to watch as the last orange hair atop his orange tan-in-a-can head sinks below the water. When his voice has been smothered, it'll be interesting to see who slinks back into the Congress, hoping they won't be noticed as they attempt to rehabilitate their names and reputations.
Thursday evening, President Biden delivered a forceful speech brilliantly defending the continuation of American democracy. Still, when he said he would not stand by and watch as elections were stolen nor watch as people’s voting rights were taken, I was perplexed by what he meant, seeing these rights, as we speak, are being taken.
Nationwide, GOP controlled state legislatures unilaterally are undermining our elections, passing provisions making it difficult for voters to be able to cast their ballots and have those ballots counted. Moreover, county election officials (largely black) are being removed from their offices and replaced with state and local personnel who don’t believe in free and fair elections.
Simultaneously, this past January, two Senate Democrats (Manchin and Sinema) refused, without support from Republicans, to pass legislation (the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act) that would have ensured that all eligible votes were cast, counted correctly, and certified without interference and without their being diluted either through partisan gerrymandering or through using false allegations of fraud as a pretext not to include all the ballots in the certified results.
Presuming we agree that democracy is not static but a dynamic process, it then follows, at least in my view, that words alone are insufficient unless we engage now in the necessary actions to protect our democracy.
There is no distinction between ‘extremist’ MAGA and MAGA. MAGA is the mainstream Republican position. 74 million people voted for Trump in 2020. Being silently complicit may appear less extreme, but it’s no less harmful. Let’s call mainstream Republicanism what it is: extremism.
Biden is refusing to be pushed into a corner by Republicans and rightly calls for defense of democracy. In another display of what is routinely GOP projection, Kevin Mccarthy demanded an apology from Biden for slandering millions of Americans. It is the GOP that name-calls, none more shamelessly than TFG. And, the reality is that, at the very least, TFG'S followers are authoritarians opposed to democracy. Good for Biden!
The facts and choices become better delineated by the day. Will America chose democracy and finally slay the former Confederacy? Throughout history Confederates have gotten 'a pass', from insisting on slavery in the Constitution, through Reconstruction and Jim Crow to now financial support and a promise of pardons for convicted Insurrectionists. I don't think this way of thinking and acting can be put behind us without sending MAGA leadership and enablers to jail for lengthy terms of incarceration?
I couldn't find Biden's speech live on PBS or the networks. I managed to dig it up on YouTube so I got to listen to the whole presentation and skip the editing and "analysis" (root word; anal,) of the "experts". Link below.
I think Biden is tying to isolate TFG and his Mega Mob and give sensible Republicans, (I've got to assume there are some,) and conservative independents a place to go.
Every day I still ask myself, HOW is it possible that tfg has any supporters, given the known facts about his narcissism, greed, immaturity, self-serving nature and complete lack of moral compass, and his own self-incriminating statements over the years? It completely amazes me regularly and is also frightening how many still believe him to have been a "decent president" [gag] and a viable candidate for another term - it's mindboggling and nauseating.
So thankful for the many voices of reason in Dr Heather's Substack community. Y'all give me hope for the preservation of democracy in this country.
“Our democracy is imperfect, Biden said, but “history and common sense tell us that opportunity, liberty, and justice for all are most likely to come to pass in a democracy.” President Biden’s emphasis on our country as a Democracy is a callout to the MAGAs who are intent on destroying it. And he was bold in distinguishing the difference between MAGAS and traditional repubs. I felt represented tonight and reassured that our country is going in the right direction with leadership and commitment. Night and day between a TFG presidency that was all about power and no substance and President Biden who can list all he and Dems have accomplished as they continue to work for the country and all the people.
Take note that many of those leading the insurrection against the USA are Ivy League graduates. Harvard and Yale are close to the top represented. And yet Republicans claim they are defending the nation against elites.
As an Ivy League grad myself, I am disgusted that my alma mater has not taken action to call out those grads who have lied and violated the standards and values that were expected of us. "Veritas", Harvard's motto is "truth". No Harvard degree should stand when "truth" is violated by the degree holder. This would include many MAGA Republicans.
I’ll start with the quote that most caught my attention during last night’s stirring speech by President Biden: “... a shot at lives of prosperity and consequence.” That summed up for me what makes life worth living. The “prosperity” part less than the “consequence” part. I was lucky enough to start from the most humble beginnings to grow into adulthood in the sixties, to have a career of public service in New York City and to help thousands of students realize their dreams. That is the whole ball of wax for me. Thank you, Heather. Thank you, Substack Forum and thank you President Biden. We’ve got this!
Thank you TC for saying exactly what I was thinking. Newt and Rush were the instigators of the tRump maggots. So glad to to see that he might be held to account. Rush is gone ( with his tRump medal around his neck) but Newt needs to esplain Lucy. It’s been a long day. Thank you Heather for your excellent letters.
Trump tells Newsmax host that "he was “financially supporting” some of the rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021…" Really? Since when… I cannot understand why anyone would continue to believe anything Trump said, especially if it involves him ponying up his own money to pay someone else's expenses. It's the same lie that Trump reflexively tells anyone who cares to listen; and, needless to say, the Newsmax host is not being paid to question Trump's veracity. I do have to marvel at the unending stupidity of these people who hear the same lies told to them over and over and over, and accept them at face value. But what does that say about our fellow countrymen who suck up this nonsense as if it were gospel… Nothing good, I would venture to say. Hillary Clinton got herself in trouble by calling these people a basket of deplorable's, but I am suggesting that there has to be something behind this willful ignorance that Trump supporters indulge themselves. We have a third of our countrymen who seem to be able to focus on nothing other than their self pitying, and unending grievances, about which they undoubtedly bear most of the blame for whatever ails them. Joe Biden was right when he said that these people cannot be allowed to control our national destiny.
You go Joe. Barack Obama called Joe Biden America's happy warrior and right now nobody is more effective or necessary in the battle to safeguard the soul of America. Without the peaceful transfer of power, without the rule of law placing nobody above the law, the United States is just another casualty on the list of failed democracies.
If one of the over-educated, under-intelligent, otherwise unemployable Twitter twits of the Washington Press Corpse asks him why he's "being so partisan," Biden can quote Harry Truman: "I tell the truth about them and they think it's hell."
the bullies don't know what to do when the nice buy comes up and punches their face in front of their fans.
That @#$%#$#@!! Gingrich is more responsible than any other Republican including Nixon for turning the party into the Kooky Kollection of Klucks who were ready for Trump. You can take the boy out of the trailer park (he really was raised n one) but you can't take the trailer park out of the boy. What a worthless piece of shit he has been since the day he was born. Just like Trump.
While I believe a process of pardon is necessary for correcting errors and changing understandings of justice, it seems to be that pardons on the whim of presidents and governors is a remnant of imperial power in our democratic republican system, which lacks prudent checks and balances and which can (now obviously) be used to undermine just rule of law as well as to improve it. The pardon of Nixon was such an abuse of power, and Trump's abuses are as corrupt as hell.
“Power must never be trusted without a check.” – John Adams
I suspect that this is only one of several ways we are inclined to conflate a president with a king.
President Biden in Philadelphia spoke of his/our fight for the soul of America.
On January 21, 2022, with the heart of an historian rather than the glibness of a daily political analyst, I wrote that the then-dismal political prospects of President Biden and the Democratic Congress could change with startling speed. I wrote more with an attaboy attitude than a deep conviction.
I related to Jon Meacham’s magnificent THE SOUL OF AMERICA, He wrote about America’s stutter step pattern of ups, downs, and ups over two-and-one-half centuries. The trend line has been up.
At present President Biden is deservedly up, Manchin/Sinema have permitted some Democratic legislative triumphs, gas prices have plummeted, and MAGAISTS have a ‘soul’ that is being filleted.
I am an American who has experienced such downs as Pearl Harbor, Watergate, the 1970s Rust Belt, Vietnam, 9/11, Iraq, and Covid. I have also experienced Brown v. Board of Education, Medicare, the end of the Cold War, and the Pelosi/Pence completion of the constitutional election of President Biden on the day of the Capitol Hill insurrection.
I am thankful that America’s ‘soul pendulum’ recently has swing in a positive and, for many, surprising direction. I am heartened without being complacent.
The battle for the soul of America is a never ending struggle.
LET’S MAKE AMERICA EXCEPTIONAL AGAIN.
So, Joe Biden speaks. More than once, even. I hope he speaks like he's personally running for office this November. I'd like to hear that he's speaking like a candidate for office, 2-3 times/week until November and the election. His words, empowered by the office he holds, are in fact the most powerful tools in his arsenal to influence Americans toward voting out lies and liars, voting for the constitution and those who agree to swear their allegiance to it. If we achieve that, we'll have that more generous majority in the Senate and we'll preserve the majority in the House and the next two years of this administration will be more fruitful than the last, which were remarkable by many measures. This president will stand tall amongst his peers, even though he was dealt a weak hand in 2020.
What's roaring off to one side is a paper tiger, less and less convincing as the days and weeks progress, sinking deeper and deeper into the very swamp he claimed to drain. I want to watch as the last orange hair atop his orange tan-in-a-can head sinks below the water. When his voice has been smothered, it'll be interesting to see who slinks back into the Congress, hoping they won't be noticed as they attempt to rehabilitate their names and reputations.
Thursday evening, President Biden delivered a forceful speech brilliantly defending the continuation of American democracy. Still, when he said he would not stand by and watch as elections were stolen nor watch as people’s voting rights were taken, I was perplexed by what he meant, seeing these rights, as we speak, are being taken.
Nationwide, GOP controlled state legislatures unilaterally are undermining our elections, passing provisions making it difficult for voters to be able to cast their ballots and have those ballots counted. Moreover, county election officials (largely black) are being removed from their offices and replaced with state and local personnel who don’t believe in free and fair elections.
Simultaneously, this past January, two Senate Democrats (Manchin and Sinema) refused, without support from Republicans, to pass legislation (the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act) that would have ensured that all eligible votes were cast, counted correctly, and certified without interference and without their being diluted either through partisan gerrymandering or through using false allegations of fraud as a pretext not to include all the ballots in the certified results.
Presuming we agree that democracy is not static but a dynamic process, it then follows, at least in my view, that words alone are insufficient unless we engage now in the necessary actions to protect our democracy.
“Extremist MAGA Republicans”
There is no distinction between ‘extremist’ MAGA and MAGA. MAGA is the mainstream Republican position. 74 million people voted for Trump in 2020. Being silently complicit may appear less extreme, but it’s no less harmful. Let’s call mainstream Republicanism what it is: extremism.
Biden is refusing to be pushed into a corner by Republicans and rightly calls for defense of democracy. In another display of what is routinely GOP projection, Kevin Mccarthy demanded an apology from Biden for slandering millions of Americans. It is the GOP that name-calls, none more shamelessly than TFG. And, the reality is that, at the very least, TFG'S followers are authoritarians opposed to democracy. Good for Biden!
The facts and choices become better delineated by the day. Will America chose democracy and finally slay the former Confederacy? Throughout history Confederates have gotten 'a pass', from insisting on slavery in the Constitution, through Reconstruction and Jim Crow to now financial support and a promise of pardons for convicted Insurrectionists. I don't think this way of thinking and acting can be put behind us without sending MAGA leadership and enablers to jail for lengthy terms of incarceration?
I couldn't find Biden's speech live on PBS or the networks. I managed to dig it up on YouTube so I got to listen to the whole presentation and skip the editing and "analysis" (root word; anal,) of the "experts". Link below.
I think Biden is tying to isolate TFG and his Mega Mob and give sensible Republicans, (I've got to assume there are some,) and conservative independents a place to go.
Let's hope he succeeded.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wygovCnX8Uw
Every day I still ask myself, HOW is it possible that tfg has any supporters, given the known facts about his narcissism, greed, immaturity, self-serving nature and complete lack of moral compass, and his own self-incriminating statements over the years? It completely amazes me regularly and is also frightening how many still believe him to have been a "decent president" [gag] and a viable candidate for another term - it's mindboggling and nauseating.
So thankful for the many voices of reason in Dr Heather's Substack community. Y'all give me hope for the preservation of democracy in this country.
“Our democracy is imperfect, Biden said, but “history and common sense tell us that opportunity, liberty, and justice for all are most likely to come to pass in a democracy.” President Biden’s emphasis on our country as a Democracy is a callout to the MAGAs who are intent on destroying it. And he was bold in distinguishing the difference between MAGAS and traditional repubs. I felt represented tonight and reassured that our country is going in the right direction with leadership and commitment. Night and day between a TFG presidency that was all about power and no substance and President Biden who can list all he and Dems have accomplished as they continue to work for the country and all the people.
Take note that many of those leading the insurrection against the USA are Ivy League graduates. Harvard and Yale are close to the top represented. And yet Republicans claim they are defending the nation against elites.
As an Ivy League grad myself, I am disgusted that my alma mater has not taken action to call out those grads who have lied and violated the standards and values that were expected of us. "Veritas", Harvard's motto is "truth". No Harvard degree should stand when "truth" is violated by the degree holder. This would include many MAGA Republicans.
I’ll start with the quote that most caught my attention during last night’s stirring speech by President Biden: “... a shot at lives of prosperity and consequence.” That summed up for me what makes life worth living. The “prosperity” part less than the “consequence” part. I was lucky enough to start from the most humble beginnings to grow into adulthood in the sixties, to have a career of public service in New York City and to help thousands of students realize their dreams. That is the whole ball of wax for me. Thank you, Heather. Thank you, Substack Forum and thank you President Biden. We’ve got this!
Thank you TC for saying exactly what I was thinking. Newt and Rush were the instigators of the tRump maggots. So glad to to see that he might be held to account. Rush is gone ( with his tRump medal around his neck) but Newt needs to esplain Lucy. It’s been a long day. Thank you Heather for your excellent letters.
Trump tells Newsmax host that "he was “financially supporting” some of the rioters who attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021…" Really? Since when… I cannot understand why anyone would continue to believe anything Trump said, especially if it involves him ponying up his own money to pay someone else's expenses. It's the same lie that Trump reflexively tells anyone who cares to listen; and, needless to say, the Newsmax host is not being paid to question Trump's veracity. I do have to marvel at the unending stupidity of these people who hear the same lies told to them over and over and over, and accept them at face value. But what does that say about our fellow countrymen who suck up this nonsense as if it were gospel… Nothing good, I would venture to say. Hillary Clinton got herself in trouble by calling these people a basket of deplorable's, but I am suggesting that there has to be something behind this willful ignorance that Trump supporters indulge themselves. We have a third of our countrymen who seem to be able to focus on nothing other than their self pitying, and unending grievances, about which they undoubtedly bear most of the blame for whatever ails them. Joe Biden was right when he said that these people cannot be allowed to control our national destiny.
You go Joe. Barack Obama called Joe Biden America's happy warrior and right now nobody is more effective or necessary in the battle to safeguard the soul of America. Without the peaceful transfer of power, without the rule of law placing nobody above the law, the United States is just another casualty on the list of failed democracies.