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

[worstblogever]

Vance Boyd

Welcome to what is the 963rd profile here at “Crazy/Stupid Republican of the Day”, where we’ll be profiling Vance Boyd, a 56 year-old former bull rider, stuntman, and former mayor of Anson, Texas who ran for U.S. House of Representatives in Texas’ # District in 2020, looking to knock Congressman Jodey Arrington out of office in the GOP Primary for that seat. Boyd, who once did stuntwork on Walker, Texas Ranger, believed in zero restrictions on the Second Amendment and building Donald Trump’s stupid, useless f***ing border wall on the U.S./Mexico border. The potential blue collar guy approach to knocking off the incumbent was not his main angle on reaching office, it was to dig in hard on his personal belief in the Qanon conspiracy theory.

When NBC News and CNBC began reporting on Facebook’s efforts to remove Qanon related posts from their platform, Boyd responded to the Twitter article by saying in his own post, “Truth will not be tolerated”, and “you cannot cancel truth”, while dropping a Qanon hashtag.

Vance Boyd ended up getting 10.6% of the vote in his challenge of Arrington. It’s also likely he got his original Twitter account suspended, because it’s no longer available for view, since all his posts from his Qanon days are blocked and it’s now bizarrely in Russian… and he’s posting here instead (we reported a possible ban evasion to Twitter, just in case, like good Samaritans would).

[WestPhillyPunisher]

Republican Sen. Ron Johnson seriously says on Fox — against all the evidence from the FBI — that Speaker Pelosi was somehow responsible for the Capitol attack and might have impeached Trump to deflect blame.

Ron Johnson absurdly floats that Nancy Pelosi is somehow responsible for a MAGA mob descending on the Capitol for a deadly insurrection

Of course they will only go on Faux News to say this. If he went on any of the other Sunday morning shows he'd have a fight on his hands defending that. Maybe people have to start playing hardball and Nancy Pelosi should file a defamation lawsuit too.

I'm all for that, and more, but, I suspect Pelosi won't give Johnson's bullshit oxygen and will ignore the entire business.

====================

Lindsey Graham Says Trump Will Get ‘Blame’ For Capitol Riot, Dismisses Impeachment

The Republican senator said Trump will “get his share of blame in history” for the Jan. 6 insurrection, but stopped short of supporting his impeachment trial. Well, of course he did. Linds can't afford angering his master.

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Here’s Why Some Health Care Workers Don’t Want The COVID-19 Vaccine

Hesitant health care workers aren’t conspiracy theorists. Their reasons are complicated, and it doesn’t mean the vaccine is unsafe.

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Kevin McCarthy Pushed Liz Cheney To Apologize For Impeachment Vote: Reports

Cheney reportedly refused the request from McCarthy, the top Republican in the House. I hate having to give props to any politician named Cheney, but I'm glad she told McCarthy to get bent.

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Yellen: Biden Stimulus Plan Could Bring U.S. To Full Employment By Next Year

The treasury secretary’s prediction came as congressional Republicans continue to oppose the bill. No surprise there. A robust recovery under the Biden administration doesn't help the GQP one damn bit.

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Trump Trial Also A Referendum On Authoritarianism In America

A conviction would send a message that Republicans believe that elections and the rule of law are foundational, but so far, leaders prefer to avoid the issue. Yeah, Qpublicans want to preach "unity" while hoping the part they played in nearly destroying democracy in America will just go away.

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Rep. Ayanna Pressley Describes Image That Still Haunts Her From Capitol Siege

“We have been cleaning up after violent, white supremacist mobs for generations and it must end,” the Massachusetts lawmaker said.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

The martyrdom of Mike Pence

As vice-president, he abased himself and his office. In reward, Donald Trump sent a mob to kill him. Now, as another impeachment trial looms, he is cast out from Republican ranks. After reading that piece, I almost felt sorry for Pence and what he went through as Trump's sidekick. ALMOST.

[JackDaw]

The martyrdom of Mike Pence

As vice-president, he abased himself and his office. In reward, Donald Trump sent a mob to kill him. Now, as another impeachment trial looms, he is cast out from Republican ranks. After reading that piece, I almost felt sorry for Pence and what he went through as Trump's sidekick. ALMOST.

Guess being Trumps sidekick is up there with being Dracula’s girlfriend in the danger stakes...if you’re risk averse don’t apply for the role.

[worstblogever]

The martyrdom of Mike Pence

As vice-president, he abased himself and his office. In reward, Donald Trump sent a mob to kill him. Now, as another impeachment trial looms, he is cast out from Republican ranks. After reading that piece, I almost felt sorry for Pence and what he went through as Trump's sidekick. ALMOST.

So a guy who has lived his entire life seeking that gay people be treated like pariahs has become one himself?

Kind of poetic, really.

[DrNewGod]

I predict, in a years time, assuming that he hasn't been arrested by then, Trump would have gotten bored with the whole politics thing and dropped the Republicans like a hot potato even though some will still be crawling back to him, begging him to endorse them so that they can win the White Nationalist vote even though those people rarely vote.

If the Republican Party can't break free from their dependent relationship with Trump, Trump will drop them eventually and move on to his next shinny object.

I see your point but disagree. Aside from his narcissistic compulsions, as long as there are enough chumps to make grifting them worthwhile, he'll stay at it until silenced by illness, incarceration, or death.

[Tami]

New Democratic super PAC to target swing-district Republicans over vote to overturn election

A new Democratic super PAC is taking to the airwaves to target House Republicans in swing districts, including several who voted to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

The Sedition Caucus PAC is launching a TV series promo-style ad campaign next week to target a handful of Republicans in battleground districts, according to plans that were first shared with The Hill. Its first ad targets Rep. Mike Garcia (Calif.), and the group also has plans to run ads against Reps. Scott Perry (Pa.), Richard Hudson (N.C.) and Beth Van Duyne (Texas).

“Our priority is to ensure voters fire members of the Sedition Caucus at the polls in 2022. Republican seditionists and QAnon members of Congress who voted to overturn the results of the 2020 election cannot hide from their attempt to destroy our democracy. Mike Garcia and his fellow seditionists should be worried because we’re watching every vote they take and every statement they make,” said Joe Jacobson, the founder of the Sedition Caucus PAC.

[Tami]

German intelligence warns Capitol riot, Covid lockdown fuel right-wing extremism

MUNICH — While much of the liberal West watched the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol in horror, right-wing extremism and anti-Semitic ideas are gaining ground in certain corners of the globe.

German officials say the violence in Washington, together with coronavirus skepticism and anti-lockdown sentiment, has emboldened right-wing groups. The rising extremism has prompted the country's intelligence services to place a number of people under surveillance.

"The security services are wide awake and are monitoring all developments," Alina Vick, a spokeswoman for Germany's Interior Ministry, said at a news conference Jan. 25 in response to questions from NBC News.

According to provisional police figures released Thursday, the number of crimes committed by right-wing extremists jumped to its highest level in at least four years in 2020.

[Amadeus Arkham]

GOP registration drop after Capitol attack

[Kirby101]

GOP registration drop after Capitol attack

This could be bad. The more extreme registered GOP become, the more likely they will nominated more extremists like Taylor Green to office. And there are many places that the person with the R gets the vote no matter what, because "socialism" or guns or abortion. There are many independents who still only vote for Republicans.

[PwrdOn]

This could be bad. The more extreme registered GOP become, the more likely they will nominated more extremists like Taylor Green to office. And there are many places that the person with the R gets the vote no matter what, because "socialism" or guns or abortion. There are many independents who still only vote for Republicans.

The more Marjorie Taylor Greenes there are in office, the more quickly that people can finally rid themselves of this silly notion of trying to negotiate or compromise with the Republicans. If the Democrats were smart they'd be surreptitiously funding as many people like her for primary challenges in key swing districts as possible.

[Tami]

Breaking. Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama confirms that he will not seek re-election.

He is the fourth Republican senator to not seek another term in 2022.

Twitter Link

[Tami]

U.S. Rep. Ron Wright dies weeks after testing positive for coronavirus

WASHINGTON — U.S. Rep. Ron Wright, an Arlington Republican, has died.

His campaign staff announced the news Monday. Wright had lived for years with cancer and was diagnosed with COVID-19 in January. He was 67.

"His wife Susan was by his side and he is now in the presence of their Lord and Savior," the statement said. "Over the past few years, Congressman Wright had kept a rigorous work schedule on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives and at home in Texas’ Congressional District 6 while being treated for cancer. For the previous two weeks, Ron and Susan had been admitted to Baylor Hospital in Dallas after contracting COVID-19."

Wright was diagnosed with lung cancer in late 2018, per the Fort Worth Star-*******m. He was previously hospitalized in mid-September.

Wright was in his second term in the U.S. House, but he was no stranger to Congress or local politics. A fan of bow ties, Wright was a fixture in the Tarrant County political scene. In the late 1990s, Wright was a columnist for the Star-*******m. In 2000, he shifted to the political arena to serve as former U.S. Rep. Joe Barton’s district director and as an at-large member of the Arlington City Council through 2008. From 2004-08, Wright held the post of mayor pro tempore.

[WestPhillyPunisher]

The more Marjorie Taylor Greenes there are in office, the more quickly that people can finally rid themselves of this silly notion of trying to negotiate or compromise with the Republicans. If the Democrats were smart they'd be surreptitiously funding as many people like her for primary challenges in key swing districts as possible.

Shit, Democrats should stop negotiating with Qpublicans RIGHT NOW. Don't forget, a lot of the bastards who supported Trump's big lie about the election having been stolen from him are still in Congress, and they're all too ready to give Trump a get out of impeachment free card after the trial starts tomorrow. Holding your hand out to a rabid dog only results in getting bitten, lord knows Biden saw enough of that after eight years of watching Barack Obama being mauled by the assholes in the GQP.

[Kirby101]

The more Marjorie Taylor Greenes there are in office, the more quickly that people can finally rid themselves of this silly notion of trying to negotiate or compromise with the Republicans. If the Democrats were smart they'd be surreptitiously funding as many people like her for primary challenges in key swing districts as possible.

That would backfire. The the more extreme GOP primary voters would give them the nomination. Then all the people who just vote for the "R" and all the gerrymandered districts would vote them in. Do you want a GOP lead Congress controlled by Taylor Greene and Boebert?
Just remember , though Trump lost, the GOP gained in the House with these pro-Trump Q candidates.