All purpose news and politics thread part VI: This Is Not The Time For Posing

[PaulBullion]

Well, let's get real for a minute.

As long as there is anything like a realistic scenario where Trump could have a stroke or a heart attack that could leave him incapacitated?

Why would Pence "Rule Out..." being able to use the mechanism designed for that very instance?

I do suspect that the reports about plans to murder Pence might also nudge him in a certain direction.

[worstblogever]

Trump went too far, and will be memory holed like Dubya was in no time. Be ready for the narrative that Obama was president between 2000-2020.

Oh, I'm sure that conservative retroactive historians will increase their efforts to try to convince folks the plague that happened in Trump's fourth year in office will somehow be blamed on Obama, whose plan to combat pandemics was thrown in the trash by said Trump.

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2015, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” posted a profile of Steve Southerland, whose career prior to joining Congress included working as a mortician and funeral home director, and felt he was qualified to serve in our government because he was “a grief expert”. Southerland was quoted as once saying his $174,000 Congressional salary was “not much money”, yet still managed to get drunk on the clock and go skinny-dipping in the Sea of Galilee with several Republicans on a trip to Israel back in 2012. He also was “shocked” and “insulted” by comments by President Obama at the 2014 National Prayer Breakfast after the president heralded the United States’ proud history of respecting the religious freedoms of others, for whatever reason. Southerland also drew criticism for hosting a “Men Only” fundraiser in March 2014, that on its flier advised to “tell the misses not to wait up”, and then tried defending it later by saying his primary opponent, Gwen Graham, probably had hosted lingerie parties and not invited men, so there was nothing wrong with it. Because that doesn’t sound misogynistic at all. Steve Southerland lost in the 2014 elections to Graham in the GOP Primary for his seat, and already announced he will not try to avenge that loss in the 2016 election cycle. His political career is seemingly over already.

On this date in 2016, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” posted a profile of Steve Katz, a former veterinarian, who was accused of illegally disposing of the remains of a German shepherd, and another time, attacking a Chihuahua in his care (because Katz was not a dog person, go figure) yet somehow managed to get elected to the New York Assembly in the Tea Party Wave in 2010. Despite of Katz being on the York Assembly’s Committee on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, and voting against a bill in 2012 that would have legalized medical marijuana… he was arrested while, you guessed it, in possession of marijuana. Katz decided against running for re-election in 2016.

[PaulBullion]

Derrick Evans, the suuuper-genius who filmed himself participating in a violent insurrection, has resigned from the West Virginia House of Delegates.

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/200...m_campaign=RSS

I really want to hear what his grandma has to say about this.

[worstblogever]

On this date in both 2017, 2018, 2019, as well as 2020, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day” published profiles of the man who looks like the answer to the question, “What if Beavis and Butt-Head were the same person?”, the U.S. House Representative from Florida’s 1st Congressional District Matt Gaetz. Gaetz schlepped his way onto the political scene back in the Tea Party Wave in 2010 (in spite of the fact that he was arrested for DUI only two years prior), where he was elected to three terms in the Florida state legislature through the benefit of not facing a primary challenger or general election opponent, EVER. He was, of course, following in the footsteps of his daddy, in the sort of political nepotism that seems to be the norm in the GOP far too often. And with his daddy’s help and a lot of campaign financing, Gaetz won a crowded GOP primary in a conservative-leaning district in 2016 over six other challengers, and coasted to victory over Democrat Steven Specht in the general election.

Gaetz’s own campaign site touted his fanatical defense of the 2nd Amendment, including fighting to maintain Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” Laws (even after the death of Trayvon Martin), his deranged obsession with abortion that sees him try to force women to undergo medically unnecessary ultrasounds before getting one and his desire to defund Planned Parenthood, his pride in supporting legislation that makes life harder for all illegal immigrants. His voting record backs all that up, and more, as it includes opposition to same-sex marriage, support for stricter Voter ID laws to combat the statistically non-existent problem of in-person voter fraud at the cost of disenfranchising tens of thousands of voters, and drug testing welfare recipients, which has been a failed conservative policy every time it’s implemented until judges throw the law off the books for being unconstitutional. From the point he announced his campaign, Gaetz was hyping Donald Trump as president, and ranting about immigrants and Muslim terrorists, which is the sort of rhetoric that plays in a district in the Florida panhandle that borders Alabama, sadly.

Well, setting all of his xenophobia and conservative extremism aside, we actually took notice of Matt Gaetz because of what we can only summarize as a “total dick move” that he pulled on the morning of September 25th, 2016. The sports world was shocked and saddened to learn of the tragic death of young Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez at that time… and for whatever reason, Matt Gaetz decided to politicize it for all that it was worth like an opportunistic douchebag, and turn it into a criticism of those who were kneeling during the national anthem to protest police violence.

”To all who will kneel during the anthem today - just remember how Jose Fernandez risked his life just for the chance to stand for it.”

The criticism for exploiting a tragedy for political gain was fast, and sharp, but not enough to overcome the sheer amount of money Gaetz dumped into his Congressional run and the partisan lean of the district.

CSGOPOTD was not wrong to train our eyes on this little weasel. On February 16th, 2017, he introduced modest legislation to… oh… y’know, just abolish the entire Environmental Protection Agency. Gaetz didn’t even flinch about what a disgrace this attempt was, planning to attend all his town halls, albeit his idea to curtail dissent at them? Have militia groups loyal to him show up to provide a sense of “security”.

If you were wondering how “in deep” with the hard right Matt Gaetz has become, look no further than House Resolution 477, a bill that Matt Gaetz sponsored that was written by one of his top aides, who went on Reddit to ask a sub-forum dedicated to Donald Trump and white nationalism, that often has open discussions of Neo-Nazi ideals, Islamophobia and white supremacy. THAT is where the Congressman’s ideas are coming from, and surprise, the bill itself was written to investigate former FBI Director James Comey and… yup, Hilary Clinton.

And, when it comes to legislation he doesn’t write, Gaetz frequently is opposed to any sort of governance, voting against Disaster Relief for Hurricane Harvey (even though his Florida district itself is almost certainly going to need hurricane relief at some point), and in December of 2017, Rep. Gaetz became the sole member of Congress to vote against an anti-human trafficking bill, because he’s apparently okay with the practice of slavery and sex slavery.

It’s curious to see that as his first year in office was coming to a close, Matt Gaetz has been desperately flailing about trying to protect Donald Trump from Special Counsel Robert Mueller at every opportunity. Whether it’s going on Fox News to say, "If Bob Mueller were any more biased, we'd have to give him credentials for the mainstream media,"or meeting with Trump and then telling the media that the Mueller investigation is “infected with bias” (remember, Mueller is a life-long Republican), Gaetz seems determined to handcuff himself to Trump to his own peril. This included his January of 2018 attacks upon FBI agents Peter Strzok and Lisa Page, and when there were texts between the two not being immediately made public, Gaetz claimed it was “the biggest coincidence since the immaculate conception”. When asked on CNN to explain what the hell that actually means, Gaetz was unable to explain how the situation applied to the origin story of Jesus Christ, because of course he couldn’t, he’s a moron.

Gaetz hasn’t dialed back his racist diatribes since we began keeping an eye on him, claiming that Haiti is “disgusting” with “everywhere you look in Haiti, it’s sheet metal and garbage” in an interview with Chris Hayes on MSNBC. He invited Chuck Johnson, an alt-right conspiracy theorist and Holocaust Denier to Donald Trump’s first State of the Union address, and Gaetz himself has gotten in the habit of spreading conspiracy theories, himself. In October of 2018, Gaetz was claiming that women and children in Honduras were being paid by George Soros to join a caravan of migrants leaving that country for the United States. Which, was exactly the sort of rhetoric which enraged MAGA-Bomber Cesar Sayoc and Neo-Nazi synagogue shooter Robert Bowers within days of him aiding the spread of that conspiracy theory. Only a few weeks later, only the day after the 2018 election, Gaetz was leading the 2018 equivalent of the Brooks Brothers riot outside of the Broward County Board of Elections, spreading conspiracy theories about Democrats attempting to steal the election from Republican candidates.

[numberthirty]

Derrick Evans, the suuuper-genius who filmed himself participating in a violent insurrection, has resigned from the West Virginia House of Delegates.

https://www.dailykos.com/stories/200...m_campaign=RSS

I really want to hear what his grandma has to say about this.

Yep. That one got a mention...

BREAKING: WV Delegate Derrick Evans announces resignation from House of Delegates

Good riddance.

I love how he takes full responsibility for his actions when just a day ago he said he was there as an independent media observer. Because you know Cnn cameramen and reporters were live streaming on facebook about how they were in the capital.

Bizzounce!

He didn't even make it to get sworn in basically. There was talk he was gonna get booted right there had he not resigned.

[worstblogever]

Here are just some of the ways Matt Gaetz has been the highest level of s***lord imaginable from the past few years:

• May 2nd, 2018: Matt Gaetz is one of 18 Republicans who sign on to a letter asking to nominate Donald Trump for a Nobel Prize for meeting with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.
• January 22nd, 2019: Gaetz votes against HR 676, which would prevent Donald Trump from doing the unthinkable and walking away from our allies in NATO to appease the Russians.
• January 23rd, 2019: Rep. Gaetz voted against HR 648, because he was gleefully enjoying the longest government shutdown in history.
• January 27th, 2019: Matt Gaetz can’t be arsed to vote against HJR 30, which was meant to express disapproval of Donald Trump not acting against Russian Federation for attack Gaetz our democracy.
• February 26th, 2019: Rep. Gaetz decides to get on Twitter and threaten Michael Cohen a day before he is set to testify before Congress regarding Donald Trump’s corruption including his scheme to commit campaign finance fraud by paying off women he had affairs with before their stories could be published in the tabloids. On Twitter, Gaetz wrote, “Hey @MichaelCohen212 — Do your wife & father-in-law know about your girlfriends? Maybe tonight would be a good time for that chat. I wonder if she’ll remain faithful when you’re in prison. She’s about to learn a lot.”
• May 17th, 2019: Gaetz votes against The Equality Act, which would have prevented discrimination towards Americans based on their gender identity or sexual orientation. https://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/116-2019/h217
  He justified his vote by saying it would only allow Donald Trump to declare himself “the first female president” and liberals wouldn’t like that. No, really.
• October 23rd, 2019: Rep. Gaetz leads 41 Republicans who, while staring down the possibility of Donald Trump being impeached, stage a ridiculous publicity stunt in response by crashing a classified impeachment inquiry hearing for a “protest”. After a few hours of them occupying an empty room and ordering and eating pizza, they abandon their delusions and wander out.
• December 3rd, 2019: Matt Gaetz is one of 71 Republicans who vote against House Resolution 546, which stated disapproval of any attempt to readmit the Russian federation back into the G7 and make it the G8.
• December 3rd, 2019: Rep. Gaetz is quoted as saying that the president that really deserves impeaching is Barack Obama, who has been out of office for almost three full years, because of supposed “wiretapping” he did. The intelligence community already had to confirm Obama never did such a thing (when Trump accused him of “wire tapps” on Twitter).
• December 3rd, 2019: Rep. Gaetz makes a vague threat against Georgia Governor and fellow Republican Matt Kemp because he might not pick the Trump administration’s favored candidate for Senate to replace Sen. Johnny Isakson until a special election can be conducted.
• December 12th, 2019: After spending weeks trying to spread Russian propaganda about Joe and Hunter Biden, Gaetz begins attacking Hunter Biden about rumored substance abuse issues he might have, which led Democratic Congressman Hank Johnson to respond by reminding everyone that Matt Gaetz has been arrested for DUI, so maybe the pot is calling the kettle black.
• December 19th, 2019: Matt Gaetz votes against the impeachment of Donald Trump.
• January 13th, 2020: Rep. Gaetz decides to take a shot at a former Republican colleague from the Florida state legislature for daring to meet with the Reverend Al Sharpton, and said colleague, Chris Latvala responds in kind that as a member of the Florida state legislature, Gaetz started an inappropriate game that awarded state legislators “points” for having sex with interns, lobbyists, and other married legislators.
• February 5th, 2020: Matt Gaetz calls for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to be marked with an ethics complaint and for her to be charged with a crime for tearing up a copy of Donald Trump’s State of the Union Speech (it wasn’t a crime, obviously).
• March 4th, 2020: Matt Gaetz mocks mask guidelines being advised by health experts by turning up to vote on a Coronavirus stimulus bill while wearing a gas mask. Five days later, on March 9th, he announced he was going into self-quarantine after being exposed to the virus by a fellow guest at CPAC.
• May 15th, 2020: Gaetz votes against the HEROES Act, to further support the healthcare industry and citizens affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
• June 14th, 2020: Rep. Gaetz decides to start a Twitter feud with actor Ron Perlman, and gets his ass handed to him in a battle of wits, because Gaetz doesn’t have any.
• June 18th, 2020: Only days removed from getting savaged on Twitter, Matt Gaetz decides to be a s***heel and respond to discussions of “Black Lives Matter” in the House and the death of George Floyd by going “All Lives Matter”. He was called out by Democratic Rep. Cedric Richmond for mocking the pain of African Americans, and that’s when Gaetz revealed his ace in the hole… he claimed he had a “non-white son”, a 19 year old Cuban "son" named Nestor who… was living in his Florida home, but there was no paperwork to indicate Gaetz ever adopted him. The next night, Gaetz dragged Nestor onto Tucker Carlson where he whined about “discrimination against whites”. So… just weird. And racist. Which if you included the word “drunk” would summarize Gaetz.
• July 21st, 2020: Gaetz teams up with Jim Jordan to start a public feud with fellow Republican Liz Cheney because in their mind, she does not support Donald Trump enough.

[worstblogever]

• July 22nd, 2020: Rep. Gaetz is caught in an ethics scandal because he illegally used taxpayer funds to pay a known (fellow) white nationalist to write his speeches for him. When the story is reported by Politico, Gaetz attacks the media outlet for reporting what he calls “a simple clerical error”.
• December 4th, 2020: Rep. Gaetz ignores edicts under effect in New Jersey to not hold large indoor gatherings, and turns up as the “headliner” of a meeting of the New York GOP in Jersey City to hold a “gala fundraiser” with a few hundred people. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy reminds everyone Gaetz is the same ***hole who has mocked masks throughout the pandemic, including wearing a gas mask during a Congressional hearing.
• December 10th, 2020: Gaetz signs his name to an amicus brief to the Supreme Court, begging them to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The same election that he won re-election in.
• January 6th, 2021: Matt Gaetz not only cheerleads for fascist the Trump supporters who literally storm the U.S. Capitol Building, he not only votes against certifying the electoral college results showing he has no shame over what his rhetoric has wrought, but he gaslights the American people by taking to the floor of the House to give a speech where he asks everyone to disbelieve the entire day’s events and lies and claims the raid on the Capitol was actually carried out by Antifa.

We know that Florida’s 1st District has a +22 Republican lean, so we regret to inform Matt Gaetz held onto his seat in 2020, getting 65% of the vote. He is still currently making false claims and spreading conspiracy theories of supposed election fraud that cost Donald Trump the presidential election because he’s firmly wedged up Mango Mussolini’s ass. The only question is if the electorate is going to be fed up with Trump’s racism and criminality and move back towards GOP candidates in the 2022 mid-terms who are not, y’know, white nationalists. Because unless someone knocks off Gaetz in a primary, he could be around for a while to be nothing more than a bigoted troll in the House, rather than a functional legislator.
We’re going to have to continue our new tradition of ending profiles of seditious, traitorous Republicans who egged on a coup attempt by encouraging whoever wishes to try out new swear words and clever insults directed at them in the comments. Hopefully it will be cathartic towards the anger they deserve for violating their oath of office.

[numberthirty]

Man...

The whole bit with Candace Owens' take on Trump getting eighty-sixed is a doozy.

While I guess I can see that there are folks that believe that their freedom of expression is a part of their First Amendment Rights?

It pretty clearly says that it only protects you from government trying to undercut said right. And not even to the degree that your freedom of expression is protected from whatever. There is no recourse for private entities doing so in that right.

[PaulBullion]

Yep. That one got a mention...

Thanks for the readers' digest version, friend. This thread has been moving very fast since Trump's coup started.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

The Capitol Riot Was More Violent And Terrifying Than It First Looked

New videos and accounts of the siege have revealed an even darker picture.

**********

‘He’s Going To Be More Unleashed And Unhinged Than Ever’

A scholar of authoritarians discusses the MAGA insurrection and how the end of Trump’s presidency might be the beginning of a phase of extremist violence.

**********

Trump Was ‘Delighted’ His Supporters Stormed The Capitol, Says GOP Sen. Ben Sasse

The president has a “brokenness in his soul,” and is “addicted to division,” said the senator.

**********

Newspapers Nationwide Demand Removal Of ‘Deranged’ Donald Trump

Editorial boards across the country published blistering columns calling for the president’s immediate departure following the Capitol riot.

**********

Rifle-Toting Militia Men Rail Against Mitch McConnell In Kentucky, Hail D.C. Rioters

Protesters at the Kentucky Capitol demand that the democratic presidential election be overturned.

**********

FBI Looking At Whether Rioters With Zip Ties Planned To Take Hostages: Report

The zip-tie handcuffs were spotted on film and in photos among rioters who stormed the U.S. Capitol, suggesting chilling plans.

[worstblogever]

Trump's only hope of airing grievances will be to conduct interviews with Fox News, OANN, or Newsmax. That's it. That's the only avenue he has to communicate with his supporters now.

And they're probably wondering about the legal ramifications of airing an interview where he tries to incite violence as "new networks" or "new entertainment networks".

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Trump's only hope of airing grievances will be to conduct interviews with Fox News, OANN, or Newsmax. That's it. That's the only avenue he has to communicate with his supporters now.

And they're probably wondering about the legal ramifications of airing an interview where he tries to incite violence as "new networks" or "new entertainment networks".

I'm not sure OANN or Newsmax cares since they're fully in bed with Trump, but perhaps Faux News is having second thoughts about their association with the Donald after 1/6. They knew Trump crossed the line with his having instigated a near insurrection and fear the prospect of a Joe Biden led Justice Department coming down on them if they give him an audience to continue spewing his bullshit whining.

[Tami]

Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.)—the Republican who won the seat previously held by Justin Amash—tells Reason some House Republicans who voted to reject the election results knew they were lying about the election but worried about the safety of their families.

MEIJER: “My colleague told me that efforts to overturn the election were wrong, and that voting to certify was a constitutional duty. But my colleague feared for family members, and the danger the vote would put them in. ...my colleague voted to overturn.”

Amash's Successor Peter Meijer: Trump's Deceptions Are 'Rankly Unfit'

The rookie GOP congressman describes Capitol Hill chaos, says that some Republicans who knew better voted against election certification out of physical fear, and explains how serving in Iraq and Afghanistan made him want to "end the endless wars."

Rep. Meijer: I experienced the heinous assault on Capitol; now, time to face reality

My colleague told me that efforts to overturn the election were wrong, and that voting to certify was a constitutional duty. But my colleague feared for family members, and the danger the vote would put them in. Profoundly shaken, my colleague voted to overturn.

An angry mob succeeded in threatening at least one member of Congress from performing what that member understood was a constitutional responsibility.

Worse yet, while a dead woman’s blood dried mere feet from our chamber, other Republican colleagues doubled down, repeating lies of a stolen election, baselessly deflecting blame for the Capitol assault from Trump loyalists to Antifa, doing whatever they could to justify, equivocate, rationalize or otherwise avoid taking responsibility for the consequences of their actions.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.)—the Republican who won the seat previously held by Justin Amash—tells Reason some House Republicans who voted to reject the election results knew they were lying about the election but worried about the safety of their families.

MEIJER: “My colleague told me that efforts to overturn the election were wrong, and that voting to certify was a constitutional duty. But my colleague feared for family members, and the danger the vote would put them in. ...my colleague voted to overturn.”

Amash's Successor Peter Meijer: Trump's Deceptions Are 'Rankly Unfit'



Rep. Meijer: I experienced the heinous assault on Capitol; now, time to face reality

Well, those colleagues should get the hell out of politics if they’re motivated to stay more from rank cowardice than duty to the constitution.