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

[worstblogever]

It is refreshing to see so many on this forum ready to confront folks who like to constantly attempt sowing disinformation.

We've learned the lesson of how just ignoring it from 5-6 years ago can only lead to disaster.

[worstblogever]

On this date in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, as well as 2020, “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day posted profiles of Brandon Smith, a Kentucky State Senator who has distinguished himself by being such a fan of the coal lobby (having worked for them once himself) that he has introduced legislation that attempted to nullify federal environmental laws like the Clean Water Act. Perhaps we shouldn't trust Smith with his opinions on the environment, because he is also a climate change denier who once argued against the phenomenon in the Kentucky legislature because, as he put it, "We all agree the temperature on Mars is the same as it is here. Nobody will dispute that. Yet there are no coal mines on Mars." As it turned out, anyone with a lick of sense would dispute that, because it's ridiculous. How could Smith have said something so completely stupid? Well, not for nothing, but he does apparently have a drinking problem, as he was arrested for DUI in January of 2015 (conveniently right after his last election to a four year term). And after initially trying to get his DUI charge thrown out because of an 1891 Kentucky statute that said members of the General Assembly are "privileged from arrest" during a legislative session (because you'll always seem sympathetic when you try and convince the public you're above the law), Smith was eventually found not guilty on the technicality that he refused to submit to a breathalyzer. He’s still voting like he’s drunk, though, with votes for bills to try and require women get a medically unnecessary ultrasound prior to getting an abortion, a TRAP law to close all the abortion clinics in his state (unconstitutionally), as well as one of those transphobic bathroom bills.

Brandon Smith has continued to implausibly remain in office, in spite of his arrest record, and the sheer audacity he has to pretend he’s above the law. Also, in 2018, he voted to cut the cost of living increases for teachers by 33%, but yet, he was re-elected in coal country with 73% of the vote. He then immediately tried to usurp the title of Majority Floor Leader of the Kentucky State Senate from colleague Damon Thayer. At least he failed, but still, take note that this wanker his some high ambitions.

In the past several years, Brandon Smith has been on a hypocritical anti-choice tirade. He voted for both a fetal heartbeat bill that would effectively ban abortion in Kentucky at 6 weeks (before many women even realize they’re pregnant), a bill to require doctors to attempt “life-saving measures” and to attempt to resuscitate an aborted fetus (even though by definition, any fetus that is aborted cannot survive outside the womb) and a bill to create regulations for “abortions that result in premature birth” (which don’t exist). The hypocrisy about his “pro-life” agenda comes when you realize that Smith no-showed a vote to guarantee employment protections for pregnant women, so they can’t get fired for having a baby in the first place. The same pregnancies he’s refusing to allow women to be able to terminate if they choose.

These sorts of logical failings, like still trying to pass anti-democratic restrictions on what it takes to register to vote that tend to convince us that Brandon Smith might still be drinking.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

There is an element on the left that never accepted Biden. The Bernie or bust, Krystal Ball crowd. I saw more than one post on social media saying Biden was the exact same as Trump. I gather these are some of the people in the Portland riot.

On Day 1, Biden fired Peter Robb off the NLRB, a major left-wing move of a kind unimaginable from the 90s Dem. Party.

But sure, dude's the same as Trump.

Bernie Sanders gets to be Chairman of the Senate Budget Commitee, when was the last time the Left got their hands on something "that f--king valuable" (to paraphrase Joe Pesci from CASINO).

We all know that this is something entirely in continuity with Donald Trump's Presidency, great friend of the Left and all.

---


Look...challenging and pushing Biden and holding him accountable from the Left, that's something everyone should do, but we can do that without poisoning the discourse and claiming he's like Trump. Biden will in the course of his Presidency on matters of Foreign Policy, and also Domestic Policy, push stuff that's more centrist and more middle-of-the-lane and make concessions and compromises...that kind of thing is stuff that even actual left-wing governments do once they come to power and Biden's a non-ideological Democrat who's been a centrist but who's now moved center-left, and he ran on a center-left platform and won.

[Tendrin]

On Day 1, Biden fired Peter Robb off the NLRB, a major left-wing move of a kind unimaginable from the 90s Dem. Party.

But sure, dude's the same as Trump.

Bernie Sanders gets to be Chairman of the Senate Budget Commitee, when was the last time the Left got their hands on something "that f--king valuable" (to paraphrase Joe Pesci from CASINO).

We all know that this is something entirely in continuity with Donald Trump's Presidency, great friend of the Left and all.

---


Look...challenging and pushing Biden and holding him accountable from the Left, that's something everyone should do, but we can do that without poisoning the discourse and claiming he's like Trump. Biden will in the course of his Presidency on matters of Foreign Policy, and also Domestic Policy, push stuff that's more centrist and more middle-of-the-lane and make concessions and compromises...that kind of thing is stuff that even actual left-wing governments do once they come to power and Biden's a non-ideological Democrat who's been a centrist but who's now moved center-left, and he ran on a center-left platform and won.

Something something Tara Reade.

In other LOL news, though....

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...?ocid=msedgntp

Arizona Republican Reps. Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs reportedly asked former President Donald Trump for pardons relating to their involvement in the events leading up to the Jan. 6 terrorist attack on the Capitol. He turned them down.

On Tuesday, CNN reported that the two Arizonans were among a number of GOP lawmakers who sought clemency in Trump's final days in connection to the rally in front of the White House that flowed into the deadly riot. The former president, who still faces an impeachment trial in the Senate for his own role in the insurrection, reportedly declined to grant the requests after a lengthy meeting with legal advisers over the weekend.

Thinking that parler hack has these two sweating bullets.

[worstblogever]

In other LOL news, though....

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/polit...?ocid=msedgntp

Thinking that parler hack has these two sweating bullets.

I know a lot of folks from their districts who are beyond excited that they're at risk of being expelled from the House for their actions. The GOP won't primary them, even though they're loons, the districts are gerrymandered to keep them in place... and they just could not handle a country that didn't have a white nationalist agenda, so they wanted to stage a coup...

Just... so, so much good will be done if they're shown the door. And Cruz and Hawley and Brooks. All five have zero interest in legislating. They're empty shells taking up seats where some good could be done if the person in them had any concern for anything but just clawing their way to more (white) power.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

Something something Tara Reade.

That Tara Reade stuff was examined quite thoroughly in this Salon article by Amanda Marcotte:
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/31/a-w...-what-we-know/


The fact is many of the people who covered the Weinstein scandal and so on sought to find corroborating evidence on the same level as those and found nothing of a similar nature with Reade, her case didn't meet the most basic journalistic standards of credibility unlike other #MeToo stuff.

So basically, there's no compelling reason to think that Joe did any of that.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

In more important news.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/21/polit...ump/index.html

Newly sworn in President Joe Biden and his advisers are inheriting no coronavirus vaccine distribution plan to speak of from the Trump administration, sources tell CNN, posing a significant challenge for the new White House.

The Biden administration has promised to try to turn the Covid-19 pandemic around and drastically speed up the pace of vaccinating Americans against the virus. But in the immediate hours following Biden being sworn into office on Wednesday, sources with direct knowledge of the new administration's Covid-related work told CNN one of the biggest shocks that the Biden team had to digest during the transition period was what they saw as a complete lack of a vaccine distribution strategy under former President Donald Trump, even weeks after multiple vaccines were approved for use in the United States.

"There is nothing for us to rework. We are going to have to build everything from scratch," one source said.

Another source described the moment that it became clear the Biden administration would have to essentially start from "square one" because there simply was no plan as: "Wow, just further affirmation of complete incompetence."

The incoming White House now faces intense pressure to make good on the promises that Biden made during the campaign and the transition phase to drastically turn things around on the pandemic and conduct himself entirely differently from Trump when it comes to the virus and vaccine distribution.

Prior to Inauguration Day, some of Biden's Covid-19 advisers had wanted to be careful not to be overly critical in public of the Trump administration's handling of the virus and vaccine, given that the Biden transition team was already having a hard time getting critical information and cooperation from the outgoing administration, the source said.

Now that the transition of power has taken place, the Biden administration is hoping that they can quickly start to get a clearer picture of where things actually stand with vaccine distribution and administration across the country, going through something of a "fact-checking" exercise on what exactly the Trump administration had and had not done, they added.

CNN has previously reported that the Biden team's most urgent concerns on Covid-19 include potential vaccine supply problems, coordination between federal and local governments, as well as funding, staffing and other resource needs for local governments. That is in addition to the emerging Covid variants, which the new White House -- in consultation with scientists and experts -- is watching warily.

Biden has made clear that slowing down the spread of Covid-19 and getting 100 million vaccine shots into Americans' arms in his first 100 days in office are of utmost priority -- goals that will shape whether Biden's first years in office are ultimately deemed successful.

Within hours of being sworn into office, Biden signed an executive order requiring masks on all federal property, a part of his campaign promise to push for a federal mask mandate during his first 100 days in office.

"This is going to be the first of many engagements we're going to have in here," Biden said in his first appearance in the Oval Office as president. "I thought with the state of the nation today there's no time to waste. Get to work immediately."

On Biden's first full day in office on Thursday, the White House is focusing on Covid-19 by rolling out a national strategy for getting the pandemic under control including numerous executive actions related to vaccination and testing.

Criticizing the "lack of cooperation" from the Trump administration as an "impediment" for the new administration, White House Covid coordinator Jeff Zients told reporters on Wednesday that he was still confident that the administration can meet its 100 million vaccine shots in 100 days target.

"For almost a year now, Americans could not look to the federal government for any strategy, let alone a comprehensive approach to respond to Covid," Zients said. "And we've seen the tragic costs of that failure. As President Biden steps into office today ... that'll change tomorrow."

Remember that post about Trump trying to claim credit for vaccine distribution...yep, dude screwed the pooch, scratch that, raped the pooch on that front.

[TheDarman]

That Tara Reade stuff was examined quite thoroughly in this Salon article by Amanda Marcotte:
https://www.salon.com/2020/03/31/a-w...-what-we-know/


The fact is many of the people who covered the Weinstein scandal and so on sought to find corroborating evidence on the same level as those and found nothing of a similar nature with Reade, her case didn't meet the most basic journalistic standards of credibility unlike other #MeToo stuff.

So basically, there's no compelling reason to think that Joe did any of that.

At the end of the day, it came down to what you thought of the character of the man. The evidence was unsubstantiated and it fell to a he-said/she-said.

On one hand, you had Tara Reade, who had a history of ripping off other employers for money.

On the other, you had Biden, who had no history of sexual impropriety or history of cheating on his wife, Jill (whom he had been married to for over 15 years at the time of the alleged assault).

That said, there were a number of reasons not to believe her story. One was the statement that Biden had said, "C'mon man..." which wasn't a common refrain for him back in the day. Another was the fact that she had prior accused him of inappropriate behavior that "wasn't sexual" before upping the ante when it was clear that attacks for how he got close to people wasn't going to derail his campaign.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

At the end of the day, it came down to what you thought of the character of the man. The evidence was unsubstantiated and it fell to a he-said/she-said.

On one hand, you had Tara Reade, who had a history of ripping off other employers for money.

On the other, you had Biden, who had no history of sexual impropriety or history of cheating on his wife, Jill (whom he had been married to for over 15 years at the time of the alleged assault).

The thing about the #MeToo movement that people don't level is that many of the high profile accusations were of people who had great deal of corroborating evidence that basic investigation drummed up. It wasn't "he said/she said" so much as "she said, her friends also said that she said this around that time, others in and around on and off record confirm what she said" and patterns of behavior fit with documentary record.

In the case of Biden, the entire thing lacked credibility for the simple reason that he was known for Amtraking out of DC every night back to Wilmington after work and never had a home in DC until he became VP. That simply doesn't fit the profile, remotely, of a dude interested in keeping a mistress.

[TheDarman]

The thing about the #MeToo movement that people don't level is that many of the high profile accusations were of people who had great deal of corroborating evidence that basic investigation drummed up. It wasn't "he said/she said" so much as "she said, her friends also said that she said this around that time, others in and around on and off record confirm what she said" and patterns of behavior fit with documentary record.

In the case of Biden, the entire thing lacked credibility for the simple reason that he was known for Amtraking out of DC every night back to Wilmington after work and never had a home in DC until he became VP. That simply doesn't fit the profile, remotely, of a dude interested in keeping a mistress.

The worst part is that stories are like this are why things regarding sexual assault stories need to be as thoroughly vetted. It's devastatingly sad to me, given how many folks I know who have gone through similar traumas, but know they won't be believed without the copious amounts of corroborating evidence needed to prevent looking like a Tara Reade.

[MajorHoy]

. . .
Donald Trump May Be Gone, But Democrats Are Still Trying To Get His Tax Returns

Controlling the Senate could give Democrats new power to obtain Trump’s tax information — if they want to. At this point, I don't half care anymore.

I still want to see them. Trump was a plague, and everything about him needs to be exposed. The longer the myth of the 'business genius' survives, the longer people will listen to this idiot. Not all can be persuaded, but enough can. And I hate the idea that someone can just run out the clock like that

If showing Trump's tax returns might help discourage any still-Trump-followers and further show how he (Trump) used and misled them for all these years, it's worth it.

[Revolutionary_Jack]

If showing Trump's tax returns might help discourage any still-Trump-followers and further show how he (Trump) used and misled them for all these years, it's worth it.

I want the Tax Returns revealed for all to see.

[Kirby101]

In more important news.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/01/21/polit...ump/index.html



Remember that post about Trump trying to claim credit for vaccine distribution...yep, dude screwed the pooch, scratch that, raped the pooch on that front.

Operation Warp Speed was a complete and utter failure. Pfizer was manufacturing vaccines last May. They had all the time they needed to make a plan to get vaccines into arms. Instead the plan was dump what we have at the State borders and let them figure it out.

[Joker]

If

Just shut up, man. We all know you don't like Biden, and... we. don't. care. You're just shitposting and you look stupid doing it.

I'm putting you on ignore because you clearly aren't going to offer anything worth reading for, at least a while. I suggest everyone else do the same. That way you can have your tantrums quietly in the corner and not disturb the adults.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

If showing Trump's tax returns might help discourage any still-Trump-followers and further show how he (Trump) used and misled them for all these years, it's worth it.

Do you really think hardcore Trumpanzees would believe their leader used them? I’m highly skeptical of that.