The unabashed corruption of Trump and family from the beginning, from the Kushner financing of the property in New York to the trade marks that Ivanka gained from China alone would be the most corrupt dealings of those employed in the service of the citizens of the US. Remember that Kushner removed the White House logs when this was happening only later to be restored by General Kelly. Hunter Biden if he is guilty of anything was a private citizen. The hypocrisy could not be more acute. Thanks Robert!
Re: Jennifer Rubin's article about the emergence of strong Democrat voices: While I absolutely agree with her praise of Representatives Ocasio-Cortez, Goldman and Raskin, I was surprised that she didn't include Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida. There was a link in her article to another piece which was enthusiastic about him, but she didn't mention him herself.
Frost, 26 years old, was brilliant in his questioning of witnesses. This included his skillfully making the point that it was the Trump administration (not Biden's) that asked Twitter to remove negative posts about the president. Frost did this though simple questioning that got the witness to tell of this by first asking her to quote the "offending" tweet, thereby getting into the congressional record that Chrissy Tiegen tweeted that Trump was a "p**sy-a*sed b**ch. (apologies if I ddn't get the asterisks right!) We've talked a lot in this community about Dem. messaging needing to improve. Well, here's another of our younger generation who seems to a good way to do that when exposing lies.
One of the more egregious actions of Trump has been successfully corrupting reality. Petty grudges, malicious gossip and unfiltered tall tales flood our bandwidths, obscuring sleights of hand and audacious lawlessness in plain sight.
The revenge hearings are clearly built with the same house of cards corrupting reality. In contrast to hit and run sound bites, these hearings force a decorum and process that allows Democrats to shatter the conspiratorial hogwash and hoist the Republicans on their own petards.
The Democratic bench is indeed deep, bright, articulate and commanding. Real reality ultimately prevails in the end.
Credit for the concept of "corrupting reality" belongs to Carlos Lozada from his opinion piece, "When the Authorities Put Trump Under a Microscope" in Sunday 2/12/2023 NYT.
They're invaders from Mars! But fear not, after ten days wrecking the planet, they'll die from the microbes. (Just saw the George Pal 1953 original that scared me as a kid last night, and it still stands the test of time, 40 years after I last saw it)
The first film that made an impression on me was "Them". Huge ants - size caused by exposure to radiation. I can still hear their chirping many decades later.
But then there was the Amazing Colossal Man (1957) and the 50 Foot Woman (1958). Huge angry humans stomping across the US - all caused by radiation. I always wondered how their skimpy clothing grew with them.
I laughed out loud. If you liked those, and haven't seen "Matinee," I strongly strongly advise you to put it on your list. It's a "love letter" to all those movies.
You're most welcome! I was actually looking for a Victorian illustrator who did a series of drawings with people seeing the moon via balloon (which I didn't find right off) when I remembered Poe wrote this story.
I frequently don't manage to set my comments down where I intend to... hope this time it works.
Today's installment of reality-based information reveals to me the ineptitude of our species. For all our technological advances, including AI, we botch using them intelligently again and again. The failure of the human mind to comprehend the physical world goes unobserved by us in our world of arrogance and selfishness. Individuals like Steven Hawking and Tesla can shine their focused intelligence on our physical world. But the median of our collective society brings us down to the commission of mundane error everywhere. We can't see the simplest solutions to our problems nor how we create our worst conundrums. The knowledge in the universe that could elevate the human race above hunger and suffering somehow eludes the smartest of us. Despite being able to split the atom, some leaders among us aren't ruling out UFOs.
The fun part is watching good old fashioned talent at oration like the Romans showed turn the tables on those stupid, ignorant, arrogant MAGA leaders of 2023 America, who have no talents at all.
In the final analysis, it's the grass roots efforts that hold the power because it is rooted in our hearts, not our brains, which are too flawed -- notwithstanding advancements in science and technology.
What powers the universe is the stuff of humanity--- that Shakespeare understand so well.
The Democrats couldn’t have designed a better hearing than this revenge hearing to expose the idiocy and lack of substance of the Republican Party. Some MAGA stalwarts might buy the kool-aid the Republicans on this committee is attempting to sell, but anyone with half a brain can see they’re flailing. And they did this to themselves!
Those of us who have watched for years as Republican lies have proliferated can celebrate the strength, knowledge and dedication of the Democrats on this committee who are so skillfully countering the Republicans nonsense.
Wonderful summary - I learned so much! One typo- in the final sentence in the paragraph below the quote from the Washington Post about the research findings concealed by the Trump team, I think you mean “ leaker” rather than “ leader.”
Robert, you could have titled today's letter "Airborne Idiot Tests". Jeez. But silly me. I guess in politics today, if you don't use every news item as a weapon, you are a wuss. I for one, am willing to wait for experts to give us a report.
The following is off today's topics. But it is part of a greater conversation at this letter and others we follow.
Last night I did something completely uncharacteristic. I watched the Super Bowl Game. Fortunately, it was carried by Fox (be patient with me). That meant I could watch in glorious 4K HDR via an antenna. We are cord cutters. No cable. And I am not going to pay YouTube $65/month.
I wanted to get a sampling, a taste of the current popular culture which I admit to having worked very hard to insulate myself from. I don't know what turns me off more: the music or the ads. Just my taste, not a condemnation. But I wanted to learn and feel what most of America experiences. I am all set now.
Two things were stunning to me.
The first was the ad called "He Gets Us". Now Jesus has an ad budget. It's true. Of course, he has help from bigots like the owner of Hobby Lobby. The ad says that "he" loves us - all of us. Surprise, even a lib is loved! It truly is a brave new world when the Son of God buys multi-million dollar ads on TV. I guess there must be plenty of money for kids who need food, healthcare and education. Why not use the cash to spread the word?
The second was the shot of Rupert Murdoch and Elon Musk sitting together chatting it up as the game proceeded. If you had ANY questions about the future of Twitter, they have been answered.
But wait. An honorable mention needs to go to Sarah McLachlan for mocking her work with saving animals in a beer commercial.
I have disconnected the antenna. I know America now.
My question: at what point does this become commercial and/or political effort that should be taxable? A number of Churches, particularly the Catholics and Southern Baptists, have crossed this line in violation of their tax-exempt status — so far, with impunity.
All property owned by "churches" should be taxed. Especially those owned by the con men operating "mega churches". Unless, the owners swear an oath of poverty and donate all those conned dollars to feeding the poor and helping the homeless.
No more fancy cars. No more mansions. No more vacations on yachts.
Clearly, Green thinks he has done plenty for the planet by signing away his ownership (because he "chooses God") of his Hobby Lobby company to a trust fund...thus he saves untold millions in taxes and looks like a good guy. Pfft.
There have been Jesus ads on HGTV for a while. One uses immigrants and how Jesus was like them. And Jesus is us. I haven't paid attention to who underwrites these commercials but found them intriguing.
I'm not a lawyer, but I don't see why it would be necessary to prove that Trump knew he lost the election to establish a "guilty mind." He knew that he was organizing and inciting a mob, including many who were armed, to break into the Capital, violently attack and perhaps kill the leaders of Congress, and change the count of the Electoral vote by force. Those are all crimes, and he knew that.
If I break into my neighbor's house and kill her because I believe that she is a witch who is making my children ill by magic, I am guilty whether or not I sincerely believed that she was a witch.
It depends on the particular statute that he is accused of violating. If the statute requires intent, Trump can vitiate that intent by saying, "I thought I was protecting America from an illegal coup by Democrats." I am not saying that is a successful defense, but it will muddy the waters. Showing that his own experts told him he lost will make it more difficult for him to rebut evidence of scienter.
BTW, scienter doesn't usually require that you know that what you were doing was a crime; rather, it requires that you intended to achieve the prohibited object of the crime. (Most of the time.) Espionage / defense secrets is an exception; it requires that your knew your continued possession was unlawful.
There is a lot to talk about here. I support the outcome, but am very worried about amending the Constitution without following the rules for amending the Constitution. If we do that for the electoral college, can R dominated states to it for something else?
The unabashed corruption of Trump and family from the beginning, from the Kushner financing of the property in New York to the trade marks that Ivanka gained from China alone would be the most corrupt dealings of those employed in the service of the citizens of the US. Remember that Kushner removed the White House logs when this was happening only later to be restored by General Kelly. Hunter Biden if he is guilty of anything was a private citizen. The hypocrisy could not be more acute. Thanks Robert!
Re: Concluding thoughts. One additional Dem deserves credit for her questioning acumen: Stacey Plaskett of the USVI.
yes; agreed. I mentioned Stacey in last week's newsletter. there are others, as well.
✅
From Denialad: donbialostosky.substack.com
The point I’m going to make is deja vu,
But a Post headline calls me to renew
Comparison of MAGA agitprop
Still going after poor Hunter’s laptop
With Kushner’s cashing in family connection
To garner an enormous cash injection
To his new firm from his pal MBS—
Two billion dollars of Saudi largesse—
After he was White House liaison,
Who with his father-in-law chose to fawn
On the Crown Prince and helped cover his ass
When he was outed as snake-in-the-grass
Who ordered Kashoggi’s dismemberment—
A pre-return on his big investment!
And Trump of course got something for the gift,
Not missing any chance for further grift:
He got the Saudis to fatten his purses
By bringing their tourneys to his golf courses.
He’d really boasted that “I saved his ass”
By letting the Kashoggi report pass
And paying MBS a full state visit—
Not hard to add up this two and two, is it?
And there’s a new Trump Hotel in the works
In Oman on the list of other perks.
BTW, his son Eric’s a player
In this deal with his dad’s Saudi defrayer.
Let’s see, then, Oversight, what have we here?
Father and son-in-law and son in clear
Use of Trump’s public role to rake in cash,
And you are wasting your time to rehash
A son’s efforts to use his father’s name
To try and make a buck in the big game
Of businesses in China and Ukraine.
You so far have not ever ascertained
That father Biden lent a helping hand
When he was Barack’s second-in-command
To link him to his son’s failed enterprises,
Despite repeated loud public surmises
And a whole impeachment that revealed
Only how Trump used power to appeal
To Zelensky to make the Biden case
And failed to. All he did was to debase
His office and reveal how he abused it,
Just as in the Saudi case he used it
For nothing more than his personal gain.
Could someone out there help me to explain
How MAGA committees keep chasing after
Will-o’-the-wisps to make Biden a grafter
While turning a blind eye on public crimes
And corruption committed many times
By their party’s ostensible leader,
Who’s boasted about being a tax cheater
And helped his kids rake bucks in from their name
And power from their parts in his big game?
Should it take this many verses to show
What anyone with half a brain must know?
I sense the new seeds of
a story in need of
a Hamilton- styling
of drama beguiling
the audience craving
new heroes for saving
what's left in the path
of the Trump aftermath
Who will tell us this tale
Of new hope and travail
Who's our bard come anew
Mr. B, is it you?
Re: Jennifer Rubin's article about the emergence of strong Democrat voices: While I absolutely agree with her praise of Representatives Ocasio-Cortez, Goldman and Raskin, I was surprised that she didn't include Rep. Maxwell Frost of Florida. There was a link in her article to another piece which was enthusiastic about him, but she didn't mention him herself.
Frost, 26 years old, was brilliant in his questioning of witnesses. This included his skillfully making the point that it was the Trump administration (not Biden's) that asked Twitter to remove negative posts about the president. Frost did this though simple questioning that got the witness to tell of this by first asking her to quote the "offending" tweet, thereby getting into the congressional record that Chrissy Tiegen tweeted that Trump was a "p**sy-a*sed b**ch. (apologies if I ddn't get the asterisks right!) We've talked a lot in this community about Dem. messaging needing to improve. Well, here's another of our younger generation who seems to a good way to do that when exposing lies.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/02/10/maxwell-frost-house-gop-hearings-twitter/
I agree!!! And this makes me even more committed to post cards and calls for as many elections as I can handle so we can elect even more! Blessings,
One of the more egregious actions of Trump has been successfully corrupting reality. Petty grudges, malicious gossip and unfiltered tall tales flood our bandwidths, obscuring sleights of hand and audacious lawlessness in plain sight.
The revenge hearings are clearly built with the same house of cards corrupting reality. In contrast to hit and run sound bites, these hearings force a decorum and process that allows Democrats to shatter the conspiratorial hogwash and hoist the Republicans on their own petards.
The Democratic bench is indeed deep, bright, articulate and commanding. Real reality ultimately prevails in the end.
Credit for the concept of "corrupting reality" belongs to Carlos Lozada from his opinion piece, "When the Authorities Put Trump Under a Microscope" in Sunday 2/12/2023 NYT.
They're invaders from Mars! But fear not, after ten days wrecking the planet, they'll die from the microbes. (Just saw the George Pal 1953 original that scared me as a kid last night, and it still stands the test of time, 40 years after I last saw it)
The first film that made an impression on me was "Them". Huge ants - size caused by exposure to radiation. I can still hear their chirping many decades later.
But then there was the Amazing Colossal Man (1957) and the 50 Foot Woman (1958). Huge angry humans stomping across the US - all caused by radiation. I always wondered how their skimpy clothing grew with them.
I laughed out loud. If you liked those, and haven't seen "Matinee," I strongly strongly advise you to put it on your list. It's a "love letter" to all those movies.
https://americanliterature.com/author/edgar-allan-poe/short-story/a-voyage-to-the-moon
Thanks. I'd never seen that story before.
You're most welcome! I was actually looking for a Victorian illustrator who did a series of drawings with people seeing the moon via balloon (which I didn't find right off) when I remembered Poe wrote this story.
I frequently don't manage to set my comments down where I intend to... hope this time it works.
The great ones always do.
Today's installment of reality-based information reveals to me the ineptitude of our species. For all our technological advances, including AI, we botch using them intelligently again and again. The failure of the human mind to comprehend the physical world goes unobserved by us in our world of arrogance and selfishness. Individuals like Steven Hawking and Tesla can shine their focused intelligence on our physical world. But the median of our collective society brings us down to the commission of mundane error everywhere. We can't see the simplest solutions to our problems nor how we create our worst conundrums. The knowledge in the universe that could elevate the human race above hunger and suffering somehow eludes the smartest of us. Despite being able to split the atom, some leaders among us aren't ruling out UFOs.
The fun part is watching good old fashioned talent at oration like the Romans showed turn the tables on those stupid, ignorant, arrogant MAGA leaders of 2023 America, who have no talents at all.
In the final analysis, it's the grass roots efforts that hold the power because it is rooted in our hearts, not our brains, which are too flawed -- notwithstanding advancements in science and technology.
What powers the universe is the stuff of humanity--- that Shakespeare understand so well.
H. sapiens. Big brains. Don't know how to use 'em.
Yes, an unused big brain is just another cause of a pain in the neck.
Agreed. Radical conservatives have for more than two centuries been a boat anchor on our country.
The question now is whether Jack Smith will give us a national Valentine present. Time's a wasting.
The Democrats couldn’t have designed a better hearing than this revenge hearing to expose the idiocy and lack of substance of the Republican Party. Some MAGA stalwarts might buy the kool-aid the Republicans on this committee is attempting to sell, but anyone with half a brain can see they’re flailing. And they did this to themselves!
Those of us who have watched for years as Republican lies have proliferated can celebrate the strength, knowledge and dedication of the Democrats on this committee who are so skillfully countering the Republicans nonsense.
Thank you, Robert, once again for your intrepid support of The States Project Giving Circles.
For folks looking for one, here is the Tending to Democracy Giving Circle:
https://www.grapevine.org/giving-circle/1XQhnyD/Tending-to-Democracy
Have a wonderful time in Alaska--bon voyage!
Wonderful summary - I learned so much! One typo- in the final sentence in the paragraph below the quote from the Washington Post about the research findings concealed by the Trump team, I think you mean “ leaker” rather than “ leader.”
Robert, you could have titled today's letter "Airborne Idiot Tests". Jeez. But silly me. I guess in politics today, if you don't use every news item as a weapon, you are a wuss. I for one, am willing to wait for experts to give us a report.
The following is off today's topics. But it is part of a greater conversation at this letter and others we follow.
Last night I did something completely uncharacteristic. I watched the Super Bowl Game. Fortunately, it was carried by Fox (be patient with me). That meant I could watch in glorious 4K HDR via an antenna. We are cord cutters. No cable. And I am not going to pay YouTube $65/month.
I wanted to get a sampling, a taste of the current popular culture which I admit to having worked very hard to insulate myself from. I don't know what turns me off more: the music or the ads. Just my taste, not a condemnation. But I wanted to learn and feel what most of America experiences. I am all set now.
Two things were stunning to me.
The first was the ad called "He Gets Us". Now Jesus has an ad budget. It's true. Of course, he has help from bigots like the owner of Hobby Lobby. The ad says that "he" loves us - all of us. Surprise, even a lib is loved! It truly is a brave new world when the Son of God buys multi-million dollar ads on TV. I guess there must be plenty of money for kids who need food, healthcare and education. Why not use the cash to spread the word?
The second was the shot of Rupert Murdoch and Elon Musk sitting together chatting it up as the game proceeded. If you had ANY questions about the future of Twitter, they have been answered.
But wait. An honorable mention needs to go to Sarah McLachlan for mocking her work with saving animals in a beer commercial.
I have disconnected the antenna. I know America now.
The Super Bowl is a weird spectacle. At least you had the good sense not to comment on the half-time show--the third rail of American culture!
It's Hobby Lobby (ultra-conservative) money + other undisclosed donors: https://www.npr.org/2023/02/06/1154880673/jesus-commercial-super-bowl-billboard-he-gets-us-hobby-lobby-evangelical-billion
They are executing a billion-dollar ad campaign.
My question: at what point does this become commercial and/or political effort that should be taxable? A number of Churches, particularly the Catholics and Southern Baptists, have crossed this line in violation of their tax-exempt status — so far, with impunity.
All property owned by "churches" should be taxed. Especially those owned by the con men operating "mega churches". Unless, the owners swear an oath of poverty and donate all those conned dollars to feeding the poor and helping the homeless.
No more fancy cars. No more mansions. No more vacations on yachts.
Clearly, Green thinks he has done plenty for the planet by signing away his ownership (because he "chooses God") of his Hobby Lobby company to a trust fund...thus he saves untold millions in taxes and looks like a good guy. Pfft.
Comment on morning talk show today: Jesus ad is trying to rebrand Jesus for younger generation. 🙄😂😂
I was glad they showed Musk with Murdoch. Sure says it all. Two self-serving, corrupt, morally bankrupt SOBs.
Special on PBS on Sammy Davis Jr. kept pulling me away from the game. Amazing talent!
I did watch most of the second half. Love the KC team…great comeback.
There have been Jesus ads on HGTV for a while. One uses immigrants and how Jesus was like them. And Jesus is us. I haven't paid attention to who underwrites these commercials but found them intriguing.
I am skeptical of most religions. But I applaud any group that seeks a healthy planet and loving population.
I wish the many tolerant and loving Christians, Jews and Muslims were more vocal.
Pavlovitz speaks up. A few others. Too few.
I'm not a lawyer, but I don't see why it would be necessary to prove that Trump knew he lost the election to establish a "guilty mind." He knew that he was organizing and inciting a mob, including many who were armed, to break into the Capital, violently attack and perhaps kill the leaders of Congress, and change the count of the Electoral vote by force. Those are all crimes, and he knew that.
If I break into my neighbor's house and kill her because I believe that she is a witch who is making my children ill by magic, I am guilty whether or not I sincerely believed that she was a witch.
It depends on the particular statute that he is accused of violating. If the statute requires intent, Trump can vitiate that intent by saying, "I thought I was protecting America from an illegal coup by Democrats." I am not saying that is a successful defense, but it will muddy the waters. Showing that his own experts told him he lost will make it more difficult for him to rebut evidence of scienter.
BTW, scienter doesn't usually require that you know that what you were doing was a crime; rather, it requires that you intended to achieve the prohibited object of the crime. (Most of the time.) Espionage / defense secrets is an exception; it requires that your knew your continued possession was unlawful.
Re Marj Greene's "idea that sounds stupid when you say it out loud," when has sounding stupid ever stopped Marj?
Everything she says out loud sounds stupid.
Trump is a big, fat, malicious balloon hanging over all of us!
Changing the subject. Robert Reich on how to change (it is already started) the elctoral votes without changing the Constitution. VERY hopeful? https://robertreich.substack.com/p/how-do-we-get-democracy-back-into-c4d?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email#details
There is a lot to talk about here. I support the outcome, but am very worried about amending the Constitution without following the rules for amending the Constitution. If we do that for the electoral college, can R dominated states to it for something else?
Is that a similar reservation we should have about expanding the Extreme Court?
Could you please elaborate on what you think the downsides are of this concept? What might our R dominated states do using this concept?
Tnx, and enjoy Alaska!
I was thinking they could use the same/similar argument to give power to the state legislatures to choose electors.