Two comments on your welcome coverage of events in Brazil. First, there is ample evidence of communications between Bolsonaro's sons, the Trump boys (jr. and Eric), Steve Bannon and Jason Miller, at least in the lead-up to the election. There is also sufficient home-grown misinformation and absurdity among die-hard bolsonaristas, many among them retired military and police, to have hatched this in-vain and banal rampage on their own. For an exceptionally clear analysis, I recommend you listen to yesterday's interview with Brazilian sociologist Bernardo Sorj on Buz Eisenberg's podcast Afternoon Buz WHPM 101.5 https://whmp.com/podcasts/shows/the-afternoon-buzz/
Second, an important postscript lesson should run from Brasil to the US. Silence from Bolsonaro and the military and complicity among active on-duty police notwithstanding, the immediate and broad-based repudiation of the simultaneous acts of terror on the three branches of government by public officials, the press, media influencers and civil society speak volumes. Within a day, as part of damage assessment and control, Lula and the National Association of Governors convened a meeting in a quickly restored room in the Presidential palace where all 27 governors, including the stand-in for Brasilia's suspended governor, joined Lula, cabinet members (Justice and Institutional Oversight), the President of the Supreme Court Rosa Weber, the National Prosecutor, the head of the National Association of Mayors and congressional leaders who momentarily set aside their striking political difference in an unambiguous show of solidarity for democracy and in recognition of Lula's presidency. In a moving symbolic afterward, the entire group -arms linked- were led by Lula and Justice Weber across the plaza to witness the especially vehement destruction to the Supreme Court and pledge their support for the rule of law. The alacrity with which the Ministry of Justice is responding reinforces Lula's promise that perpetrators at every level will be brought to justice and that this will never occur again.
In assessing this telling difference in response tone and time in Brazil and the US, we mustn't lose sight of the fact that Brazilians are largely united in support of democratic norms having experienced the hard facts of decades of military dictatorship while we Americans are mired in a dysfunctional and dangerous divide between those who are entranced by an amplified autocratic vision and those of us near traumatized by the threat of it.
Things are moving swiftly here. As reported by Folha de São Paulo, 100 firms associated with agro business in Mato Grosso do Sul and Santa Catarina States that financed the bus loads of insurrectionists to Brasilia have had their assets frozen pending investigation. — money held in anticipation of fines, to pay for damages and upkeep of 1200 detainees. And Bolsonaro, who’s approval rating has fallen from 40-20 points since the event, says he will return to Brazil “sooner than planned”, at urging of his sons who says it’s best to return of his own free will rather than under extradition and to “rebuild the opposition before the current government destroys it”.
My head is spinning! Qevin’s quest to be king will end badly for him, I believe. His over-inflated ego gets in the way of him getting anything done. Biden should be able to reign over their cockamamie schemes to once again, give their bosses ( Kochs, Mercersi, Leo, etc.) another raise. Certainly hope he is able to veto the crap out of just about everything they do so that some of the R’s come to the Dems, begging for help.
I too, am very frustrated with Garland, especially when you see how quickly Lula’s security guards were able to bring Bolsonaro’s supporters to a screeching halt. They arrested at least 1000 people. Bolsonaro has been hiding out in Orlando for 2 months. He knew this would happen because Bannon set everything up. Bolsonaro must be kicked out of the US as soon as his “abdominal pains” go away. Garland must stop Bannon in his tracks....NOW! I mean, how many times does it take for this criminal to commit acts of violence before he’s thrown into the slammer?
The insane reactions to life-saving vaccines are beyond any reason or logic. I simply cannot wrap my head around the illogical bloviating on this subject. It’s like Nietzsche said “In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs, it is the rule.”
I understand that Steve Bannon is appealing his conviction & remains out of prison while this is being processed, but meanwhile he is creating havoc. I think that the world (especially Brasil) would benefit if he were behind bars serving his sentence for his contempt for our laws. Trump corruptly pardoned him once. Time for him to pay the piper.
I have to say that the news of the celebratory moron Diamond, a Trumpscum who publickly celebrated ignorance and mendacity, would have me putting a nice bottle of champagne on ice with which to celebrate her decision to Make America Great Again by permanently departing, if i still had nice bottles of champagne available to put on ice and still drank them.
As a doctor I know told me three years ago this month when the first news of the virus started coming out, a pandemic is Evolution's IQ test - are you intelligent enough to take this information and modify you behavior in such a way as to maximize your likelihood of survival? It's pass/fail. Recent news is that vaccination rates now track with political affiliation, with a majority of Democrats being vaccinated and a majority of Republicans being unvaccinated, and that death rates since the introduction of the vaccines have also tracked with political affiliation, with the greatest number of deaths being among Republicans in red states. See? Evolution is right, and with the reintroduction of Darwinian evolution - survival of the fittest - we should see more Homo Sapiens and fewer Homo Saps. In fact, there is an argument made that the November election results were affected by the increased die-off of the old white boomer Republicans too stupid to get vaccinated.
Jan 10, 2023·edited Jan 10, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
As I read the bit from Today’s Edition extrapolating from the 14th Amendment an interpretation that would grant the Presidency “the authority to continue to pay pre-existing debt even if Congress does not ‘raise the debt ceiling,’” admittedly, I feel a combination of relief and uneasiness. Allow me to explain.
I imagine as one delegitimates the Legislative branch one simultaneously strengthens the Executive. Because the Executive presently is Joe Biden, he’s not going to take advantage of that, he’s not going to abuse it. I imagine, instead, he’ll likely regretfully issue a few executive orders as permitted and warranted.
However, if the table is set so that people don’t think the Legislative branch can work—that the Legislature already is broken—and we get a corrupt president, one who’s not hesitant to do all kinds of things, then we really are entering a kind of democratic breakdown situation. Hence, when I think about the long game of what could transpire in the radical-right House over the next 2 years, that’s partly what I worry about.
The big difference between Biden and Trump regarding classified information is you kinda expect Trump to act and behave the way he did and break the law and you expect Biden to be a straight shooter and obey the law and know he made an honest mistake regardless of what Republicans say. What is frustrating to me is there are a lot of investigations of Trump in Georgia, New York, DC and California and people like Bannon, Eastman Giuliani and Meadows are still walking around and making all kinds of noise. What has to happen is these folks need to be indicted and the domestic terrorists in the House must testify which will take the focus away from the bogus “ investigations “ and focus on real indictments. It’s the only way to shut these folks up.
This is the first newsletter from you where I was too exhausted to go on after three paragraphs. Really. I just finished a morning meditation on breathing, made a cup of tea and sat down again to read. I just can't do it. I can't follow the trail of evil. "End IRS funding", wrap up existing Social Security (I already paid for mine), stop funding Ukraine. I don't know where to put my brain but I think it is in a garden catalogue.
Regarding Garland……if his justice department had moved more quickly, not on a Trump indictment but on investigations and indictments of those in congress who worked to support the insurrection and the fraudulent electors, we might not be in this situation. Many of them would have either been convicted, removed from office, or exposed to their constituents as criminals.
Two things are needed to raise or remove the debt ceiling:
1. 218 votes in the House. I think those votes are probably there -- there must be at least 5 Republican representatives who do not want to throw the financial system into freefall. The harder part...
2. An opportunity for those 218 people to vote. Normally a measure can come to the floor of the House only with approval of the Rules Committee, controlled by the Speaker. But there are other, more difficult routes--e.g. a discharge petition, signed by at least 218 members.
What we can do is confront Republican members in their districts when the measure comes up, demanding that they lift the debt ceiling for the sake of the national economy.
It is perhaps presumptuous to disagree with the properly respected Ms. Applebaum, but she is wrong on one critical point - "after all, the American version already did". The American version has not failed and, as you, TC, Barbara Jo, Marlene and a number of other commenters have noted, until and unless the defeated former president and his immediate cohort of supporters and enablers are indicted, convicted and imprisoned, it will not have failed, the success of the insurrection will only have been postponed.
I'll not rehash the whole Social Security and Medicare conversation because it was well covered and commented on yesterday, but the House Republican Caucus has now teed up the ball for the Democrats who, if they chose to do so, could take advantage of a long, straight fairway lined by a huge crowd of Americans who would cheer their drive to stabilize the Trust Funds, institutionalize the benefit and COLA structure, and remove this topic from the political conversation for at least the next 10 years or until a revanchist Republican administration was voted into power. This is a remarkable Mulligan in politics and one hopes that, between Messrs. Jeffries, Schumer and Biden and with the support of the rightly esteemed former Speaker, they won't whiff this time.
This morning I broke a rule and decided to see what Hugh Hewitt (a Washington Post GOP "journalist" who is close enough to MAGA that I generally don't read what he has to say) had to say about McCarthy. He was against the group led by our new Speaker's antagonists and was praising McCarthy for all that he will accomplish now that he has outwitted Gaetz & Group and become victorious. To read Hewitt, there are deniers and there are deniers. Once again, I am proved to be baffled by the nuances on the side of those who publicly sought to overturn our government. Yesterday I asked someone who listens to Fox in order to translate their thinking to me (I confess I need a translator) tried to answer my question, "what liberties are they (like my sister) saying the country will lose with the Biden side," and the answer (which I can't articulate) is, I am told, "too complicated" for words. Given what I view as the ignorance and stupidity of that crowd, I believe that it is, indeed, too complicated for words. (Excuse my show of disgust.)
Terrific letter as always. A question: if one house member can require a no confidence vote on McCarthy, could that be a democrat? And if so could democrats find 5 moderate republicans to vote McCarthy out if and when moderate republicans are truly shamed by what the far right is up to?
Robert: as an astute observer of the political scene, you have developed a real talent in your ability to suss out the hidden aspects of proposed Republican legislation. That will be quite a gift to those of us who have been loyal readers of this newsletter. Keep up the good work.
I don't understand. Didn't Bannon get time for resisting a subpoena? Did he ever go to jail? Or is he stalling with endless appeals? He should be arrested for excessive smugness alone. Bannon and the whole top MAGA team are dangerous to the entire world.
Two comments on your welcome coverage of events in Brazil. First, there is ample evidence of communications between Bolsonaro's sons, the Trump boys (jr. and Eric), Steve Bannon and Jason Miller, at least in the lead-up to the election. There is also sufficient home-grown misinformation and absurdity among die-hard bolsonaristas, many among them retired military and police, to have hatched this in-vain and banal rampage on their own. For an exceptionally clear analysis, I recommend you listen to yesterday's interview with Brazilian sociologist Bernardo Sorj on Buz Eisenberg's podcast Afternoon Buz WHPM 101.5 https://whmp.com/podcasts/shows/the-afternoon-buzz/
Second, an important postscript lesson should run from Brasil to the US. Silence from Bolsonaro and the military and complicity among active on-duty police notwithstanding, the immediate and broad-based repudiation of the simultaneous acts of terror on the three branches of government by public officials, the press, media influencers and civil society speak volumes. Within a day, as part of damage assessment and control, Lula and the National Association of Governors convened a meeting in a quickly restored room in the Presidential palace where all 27 governors, including the stand-in for Brasilia's suspended governor, joined Lula, cabinet members (Justice and Institutional Oversight), the President of the Supreme Court Rosa Weber, the National Prosecutor, the head of the National Association of Mayors and congressional leaders who momentarily set aside their striking political difference in an unambiguous show of solidarity for democracy and in recognition of Lula's presidency. In a moving symbolic afterward, the entire group -arms linked- were led by Lula and Justice Weber across the plaza to witness the especially vehement destruction to the Supreme Court and pledge their support for the rule of law. The alacrity with which the Ministry of Justice is responding reinforces Lula's promise that perpetrators at every level will be brought to justice and that this will never occur again.
In assessing this telling difference in response tone and time in Brazil and the US, we mustn't lose sight of the fact that Brazilians are largely united in support of democratic norms having experienced the hard facts of decades of military dictatorship while we Americans are mired in a dysfunctional and dangerous divide between those who are entranced by an amplified autocratic vision and those of us near traumatized by the threat of it.
Shepard Forman, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Things are moving swiftly here. As reported by Folha de São Paulo, 100 firms associated with agro business in Mato Grosso do Sul and Santa Catarina States that financed the bus loads of insurrectionists to Brasilia have had their assets frozen pending investigation. — money held in anticipation of fines, to pay for damages and upkeep of 1200 detainees. And Bolsonaro, who’s approval rating has fallen from 40-20 points since the event, says he will return to Brazil “sooner than planned”, at urging of his sons who says it’s best to return of his own free will rather than under extradition and to “rebuild the opposition before the current government destroys it”.
Sent from my iPhone
On Jan 10, 2023, at 4:29 PM, Shep <shepardforman@gmail.com> wrote:
My head is spinning! Qevin’s quest to be king will end badly for him, I believe. His over-inflated ego gets in the way of him getting anything done. Biden should be able to reign over their cockamamie schemes to once again, give their bosses ( Kochs, Mercersi, Leo, etc.) another raise. Certainly hope he is able to veto the crap out of just about everything they do so that some of the R’s come to the Dems, begging for help.
I too, am very frustrated with Garland, especially when you see how quickly Lula’s security guards were able to bring Bolsonaro’s supporters to a screeching halt. They arrested at least 1000 people. Bolsonaro has been hiding out in Orlando for 2 months. He knew this would happen because Bannon set everything up. Bolsonaro must be kicked out of the US as soon as his “abdominal pains” go away. Garland must stop Bannon in his tracks....NOW! I mean, how many times does it take for this criminal to commit acts of violence before he’s thrown into the slammer?
The insane reactions to life-saving vaccines are beyond any reason or logic. I simply cannot wrap my head around the illogical bloviating on this subject. It’s like Nietzsche said “In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations, and epochs, it is the rule.”
I understand that Steve Bannon is appealing his conviction & remains out of prison while this is being processed, but meanwhile he is creating havoc. I think that the world (especially Brasil) would benefit if he were behind bars serving his sentence for his contempt for our laws. Trump corruptly pardoned him once. Time for him to pay the piper.
I have to say that the news of the celebratory moron Diamond, a Trumpscum who publickly celebrated ignorance and mendacity, would have me putting a nice bottle of champagne on ice with which to celebrate her decision to Make America Great Again by permanently departing, if i still had nice bottles of champagne available to put on ice and still drank them.
As a doctor I know told me three years ago this month when the first news of the virus started coming out, a pandemic is Evolution's IQ test - are you intelligent enough to take this information and modify you behavior in such a way as to maximize your likelihood of survival? It's pass/fail. Recent news is that vaccination rates now track with political affiliation, with a majority of Democrats being vaccinated and a majority of Republicans being unvaccinated, and that death rates since the introduction of the vaccines have also tracked with political affiliation, with the greatest number of deaths being among Republicans in red states. See? Evolution is right, and with the reintroduction of Darwinian evolution - survival of the fittest - we should see more Homo Sapiens and fewer Homo Saps. In fact, there is an argument made that the November election results were affected by the increased die-off of the old white boomer Republicans too stupid to get vaccinated.
Fewer Republican morons. I like that outcome.
As I read the bit from Today’s Edition extrapolating from the 14th Amendment an interpretation that would grant the Presidency “the authority to continue to pay pre-existing debt even if Congress does not ‘raise the debt ceiling,’” admittedly, I feel a combination of relief and uneasiness. Allow me to explain.
I imagine as one delegitimates the Legislative branch one simultaneously strengthens the Executive. Because the Executive presently is Joe Biden, he’s not going to take advantage of that, he’s not going to abuse it. I imagine, instead, he’ll likely regretfully issue a few executive orders as permitted and warranted.
However, if the table is set so that people don’t think the Legislative branch can work—that the Legislature already is broken—and we get a corrupt president, one who’s not hesitant to do all kinds of things, then we really are entering a kind of democratic breakdown situation. Hence, when I think about the long game of what could transpire in the radical-right House over the next 2 years, that’s partly what I worry about.
The big difference between Biden and Trump regarding classified information is you kinda expect Trump to act and behave the way he did and break the law and you expect Biden to be a straight shooter and obey the law and know he made an honest mistake regardless of what Republicans say. What is frustrating to me is there are a lot of investigations of Trump in Georgia, New York, DC and California and people like Bannon, Eastman Giuliani and Meadows are still walking around and making all kinds of noise. What has to happen is these folks need to be indicted and the domestic terrorists in the House must testify which will take the focus away from the bogus “ investigations “ and focus on real indictments. It’s the only way to shut these folks up.
This is the first newsletter from you where I was too exhausted to go on after three paragraphs. Really. I just finished a morning meditation on breathing, made a cup of tea and sat down again to read. I just can't do it. I can't follow the trail of evil. "End IRS funding", wrap up existing Social Security (I already paid for mine), stop funding Ukraine. I don't know where to put my brain but I think it is in a garden catalogue.
Regarding Garland……if his justice department had moved more quickly, not on a Trump indictment but on investigations and indictments of those in congress who worked to support the insurrection and the fraudulent electors, we might not be in this situation. Many of them would have either been convicted, removed from office, or exposed to their constituents as criminals.
Two things are needed to raise or remove the debt ceiling:
1. 218 votes in the House. I think those votes are probably there -- there must be at least 5 Republican representatives who do not want to throw the financial system into freefall. The harder part...
2. An opportunity for those 218 people to vote. Normally a measure can come to the floor of the House only with approval of the Rules Committee, controlled by the Speaker. But there are other, more difficult routes--e.g. a discharge petition, signed by at least 218 members.
What we can do is confront Republican members in their districts when the measure comes up, demanding that they lift the debt ceiling for the sake of the national economy.
It is perhaps presumptuous to disagree with the properly respected Ms. Applebaum, but she is wrong on one critical point - "after all, the American version already did". The American version has not failed and, as you, TC, Barbara Jo, Marlene and a number of other commenters have noted, until and unless the defeated former president and his immediate cohort of supporters and enablers are indicted, convicted and imprisoned, it will not have failed, the success of the insurrection will only have been postponed.
I'll not rehash the whole Social Security and Medicare conversation because it was well covered and commented on yesterday, but the House Republican Caucus has now teed up the ball for the Democrats who, if they chose to do so, could take advantage of a long, straight fairway lined by a huge crowd of Americans who would cheer their drive to stabilize the Trust Funds, institutionalize the benefit and COLA structure, and remove this topic from the political conversation for at least the next 10 years or until a revanchist Republican administration was voted into power. This is a remarkable Mulligan in politics and one hopes that, between Messrs. Jeffries, Schumer and Biden and with the support of the rightly esteemed former Speaker, they won't whiff this time.
This morning I broke a rule and decided to see what Hugh Hewitt (a Washington Post GOP "journalist" who is close enough to MAGA that I generally don't read what he has to say) had to say about McCarthy. He was against the group led by our new Speaker's antagonists and was praising McCarthy for all that he will accomplish now that he has outwitted Gaetz & Group and become victorious. To read Hewitt, there are deniers and there are deniers. Once again, I am proved to be baffled by the nuances on the side of those who publicly sought to overturn our government. Yesterday I asked someone who listens to Fox in order to translate their thinking to me (I confess I need a translator) tried to answer my question, "what liberties are they (like my sister) saying the country will lose with the Biden side," and the answer (which I can't articulate) is, I am told, "too complicated" for words. Given what I view as the ignorance and stupidity of that crowd, I believe that it is, indeed, too complicated for words. (Excuse my show of disgust.)
Terrific letter as always. A question: if one house member can require a no confidence vote on McCarthy, could that be a democrat? And if so could democrats find 5 moderate republicans to vote McCarthy out if and when moderate republicans are truly shamed by what the far right is up to?
Robert: as an astute observer of the political scene, you have developed a real talent in your ability to suss out the hidden aspects of proposed Republican legislation. That will be quite a gift to those of us who have been loyal readers of this newsletter. Keep up the good work.
I don't understand. Didn't Bannon get time for resisting a subpoena? Did he ever go to jail? Or is he stalling with endless appeals? He should be arrested for excessive smugness alone. Bannon and the whole top MAGA team are dangerous to the entire world.