Look below for comment about the campaign in Florida to get petitions for a ballot initiative to overturn the draconian law passed by DeSantis and his rubber stamp legislature. We could use the help to let folks know they can help in FL even if they don’t live there. And it’s time sensitive. Would appreciate the help as I know you have done for other activism initiatives.
Hello fellow Democrats. You might not like my opinion on this but I feel I need to write about it anyway. We can disagree and still be loyal to the party and what it stands for. Anyway, here goes.
I believe that Donald Trump is a Dead Man Walking. With all the new Republicans coming online, many with anti-Trump leaning, I see an increasing chance that Trump will not even get the nomination. Even if he does, I agree that he cannot win the general. Although a lot of people believe the media hype that Trump should be feared. I don't see it that way. Therefore, we may have an opening to turn the Democratic Party into a younger, more central leaning, and more appealing party to those between the ages of 18 and 60.
Although I love Joe Biden and what he has accomplished in his first two and 1/2 years , I can't forecast many more victories with the House in it's current status. Is this an opportunity to bring fresh leaders to the forefront and lay out a solid program for the future with new leadership and fresh ideas. We may not even be running against Trump but if we are, we can certainly lay out a program for the middle class that is appealing to us democrats and middle class republicans. And with some new taxes for those making over 400,000 dollars it can be revenue neutral.
Why am I for new leadership? Because I am 82 years old and I have learned first hand how quickly age can catch up with you. Three years ago I was playing golf two times a week and having no signs of cognitive troubles. Today I need a cane or walker whenever I leave my apartment. Unfortunately, I am not alone. I live in a retirement home complex of some 300 homes. Minimum age to come in is 65 . I was 78. My wife and I have many friends between 78 and 90. Over the last 5 years, we have seen a physical and cognitive decline in almost every one. My wife is having worse problems than I have making me a primary care giver. I can see the signs in Joe Biden even though his current staff say he is fine. "Say it ain't so Joe" but age is coming fast.
Wouldn't it be great if the outcome of 2024 is a party with new, younger leadership, new ideas, and a platform the builds off of Joe Biden's successes. A party with promise for 8 years or more. Who can provide that leadership? There are many if they will come forward and not be afraid of stepping on Joe Biden's shadow. I leave you with one example- Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut.
HELP NEEDED NOW! Women in Florida are fighting back against the 6 week ban on abortion just passed by DeSantis by creating a ballot initiative for 2024, making abortion more accessible again. Voices in FL do not want other people making decisions about their bodies. Health care is being compromised in other states by the influx of women from other states who cannot get help in their own locations. Registered voters are signing petitions and hoping to get enough signatures by this fall. There is also a $5M fee to file the petitions which needs to happen fast - by the end of this month of May, just days from now. If you would like to support the sisters in Florida by making a donation, your generosity will be greatly appreciated. The amounts can be whatever you can afford. You do not have to be a resident there to donate. This effort is being advocated by the League of Women Voters and the ACLU of FL. To donate go to https://Floridiansprotectingfreedom.com/d.
I sent the following message to President Biden via the White House website. I'm sure it's late, and probably won't get any attention, but I feel better having sent it.
Dear President Biden,
I was initially encouraged by your strong stand regarding the debt ceiling, but have become increasingly alarmed at recent developments that suggest a weakening of your position. Kevin McCarthy has shown that he cannot be trusted, nor can he be counted on to act in good faith. The debt ceiling is a relic of bygone days, and has been effectively superseded by later laws and the budget and appropriation process.
If McCarthy and the Republicans are unwilling to accept a debt ceiling increase with the only condition being that the budget and appropriations process will address future spending, I believe you should take unilateral action by invoking the 14th Amendment. If you haven't done so, I strongly suggest that you read Robert Hockett's treatise in Forbes on May 11.
While there is a risk that such a move could become mired in legal battles, it would require Republicans to take action to stop it that is clearly not in their best interest. It would also likely work its way to the Supreme Court, where it could be resolved once and for all. Despite the current leanings of the Court, I seriously doubt that the Supremes would want to be the ones to nudge the global economy off the fiscal cliff, especially with the speciousness of the debt ceiling in funding our government. The legal arguments around retiring the debt limit are strong, and with the best legal minds available to you, I have confidence in a favorable outcome.
Just needed to go somewhere about feeling sick about the debt ceiling. Just really tired of living like this. I am a clinical mental health therapist who had a reunion with other therapists from an agency we all used to work at and we all talked about the compounding trauma we have all been through since 2016. I have to believe that 60%+ of Americans feel the same.
I want to thank Robert and Jill for Friday's meeting here in DC- it was inspiring to listen to both of you, and to see the turnout and commitment of so many of us in person, which I know is echoed and amplified around the country. Thank you for your commitment, service, and insights. These are tough times, but we keep proving that we are tougher and together we will prevail. thank you and onward!
So you are aware, if not already, President Biden held a Press Conference earlier today (Sunday) while in Hiroshima, Japan. In it, he began by addressing the debt limit negotiations, followed by other critical matters. The president took press questions following his comments.
Following is link where press conference begins at around the 57 minute, 15 second mark:
Thanks for posting this. I am disappointed that his position against negotiating a debt ceiling increase has weakened, but I am encouraged that he's holding firm on some things. I sincerely hope he has a contingency plan, because I trust McCarthy about as much as I trust TFG. To me, the contingency plan should be unilateral action, via the 14th Amendment, with him announcing its invocation as the only way to save the global economy due to the utter failure of Congress to meet its Constitutional obligations. He should look straight into the camera and challenge the Republicans with, "I will not allow the global economy to suffer due to your unwillingness to act in good faith. Sue me!"
Concerning debt negotiations: the purpose of any negotiation is to resolve an actual or potential dispute. Compromise or “settlement” may - but not necessarily - be a means of resolving the dispute or potential dispute. However, if any party to the negotiations realizes that its interests are not being served or likely to be served by further participation in the negotiation process, that party can exercise the power it possesses to take the action necessary to serve its interests. Thus the party with the power to act always has the advantage over the party which only wants to prevent the contemplated action. Bottom line: if Biden is prepared to act lawfully without House approval, he can (and in my opinion should) do so without regret or fear of political reprisals.
To wit, it is a hardened memory for me that Jill Stein’s Green Party took an equivalent number of votes as Hillary Clinton differentiated 5 key states for the electoral win. Let’s also remember that Donald Trump has never won the popular vote in any national election and, along with his MAGA surrogates in the House IS the greatest threat to our democracy and the global community’s efforts to push back against authoritarian rule.
I would welcome all thoughts and any actionable measures readers might offer. Are you listening Jessica Craven?
And none of them are outlawing those treatments, as are red states in the US. The European medical agencies urge caution. Do you think parents and children struggling with gender identity are acting recklessly? I suggest speaking with a few parents of kids who are trans if you think they are
I think the European medical agencies are being very sensible. Which it's clear some institutions in the US aren't doing.
I once emailed Jennifer Finney Boylan in support of her being who she is, and I got a very nice note back from her.
But I suspect that true trans is quite rare, and I do think social contagion is a common phenomenon generally, and that is likely responsible for *some* cases. I may have been aware of one or two cases in the first 50 years of my life. I suspect that the kinds of developmental mistake it would take to make someone trans are rare indeed. But I'm aware of three or four cases now just via one friend of mine.
And it's obvious to me that at least a few institutions in the US that shoiuld know better are acting outrageously. Did you read Emily Yoffe's article? She is a superb journalist.
I don't know who you think I am. I get the feeling you're making assumptions about me. I come from a left wing family. My great uncle, Philip Hornbein, was de facto head of the Colorado Democratic Party for most of the first half of the last century. He gave the speech advocating an end to prohibition at the '32 convention.
His sister, my maternal grandmother, was probably the first female Coloradan to get a PhD (in 1915). My maternal aunt, also a PhD, worked with Bob Butler, cofounder of the National Institute on Aging, to get old folks homes to quit interfering with the sex lives of unmarried residents.
My sister is a Democratic activist in northern Virginia. I learned environmental science at UC Berkeley from John Holdren, who later became Pres O's Science Advisor.
Both parents were professors who were driven by the desire to make the world a better place.
You and HCR have given me a lot of comfort on our Democracy (I started capitalizing that word during the 45 admin. At this point, preserving our Democracy is my most important issue. I gave five times as much money towards that end generally, including to Biden, in the last presidential election, as I'd done in any previous election, and I gave my biggest single donation ever to the WiscDems--at least double anything previous--who I think I found out about from you.
I've been concerned about overpopulation since I was 9, in the early '60s, and immigration since the mid-90s, when I came to realize it was fueling the US population explosion. As I've said, just as the GOP is in denial on global warming I think most of the left is in denial about immigration and environmental sustainability.
As a little kid, I'd heard how Nixon had tarred Rep. Helen Gahagan Douglass when they'd run for Senate in 1950.
My parents were both trained economists. During the 1960 election, I had this friend Ralphie, whose maternal grandfather was a cofounder of Nordstrom's, the only one of which at that time was in Seattle. Ralphie's mother was interior decorator to Seattle's elite, which included John Ehrlichman, later a close aide to Nixon. So, the only thing surprising about the political arguments we'd get into was the fact that we were having these arguments in second grade.
One day my mother was driving, with the two of us in the car. "You know Ralphie, you really shouldn't vote for Nixon," I told him, "Because he called that lady in California something like an economist."
My mother didn't laugh much, but she sure laughed when she told that story. She got such a kick out of it!
Discussions of abortion and birth control, here and elsewhere, have focused primarily on principles and rights. Fine, as far as it goes.
Ruth Marcus recently wrote a very powerful and affecting WaPo column that described the inhumanity of anti-abortion laws by focusing on the legally required delivery of Milo, a baby who had no lungs and kidney function, thus no chance of surviving outside the womb, and thus who unconscionably was made to suffer after birth:
“For one family, Florida abortion law made a devastating loss into ‘torture’” (Ruth Marcus, WaPo, 5/19/2023).
If you can get behind the paywall and emotionally deal with Marcus’s column, you definitely should read it. I believe it will deepen your understanding and appreciation of what’s at stake in the “abortion wars”.
Look below for comment about the campaign in Florida to get petitions for a ballot initiative to overturn the draconian law passed by DeSantis and his rubber stamp legislature. We could use the help to let folks know they can help in FL even if they don’t live there. And it’s time sensitive. Would appreciate the help as I know you have done for other activism initiatives.
Hello fellow Democrats. You might not like my opinion on this but I feel I need to write about it anyway. We can disagree and still be loyal to the party and what it stands for. Anyway, here goes.
I believe that Donald Trump is a Dead Man Walking. With all the new Republicans coming online, many with anti-Trump leaning, I see an increasing chance that Trump will not even get the nomination. Even if he does, I agree that he cannot win the general. Although a lot of people believe the media hype that Trump should be feared. I don't see it that way. Therefore, we may have an opening to turn the Democratic Party into a younger, more central leaning, and more appealing party to those between the ages of 18 and 60.
Although I love Joe Biden and what he has accomplished in his first two and 1/2 years , I can't forecast many more victories with the House in it's current status. Is this an opportunity to bring fresh leaders to the forefront and lay out a solid program for the future with new leadership and fresh ideas. We may not even be running against Trump but if we are, we can certainly lay out a program for the middle class that is appealing to us democrats and middle class republicans. And with some new taxes for those making over 400,000 dollars it can be revenue neutral.
Why am I for new leadership? Because I am 82 years old and I have learned first hand how quickly age can catch up with you. Three years ago I was playing golf two times a week and having no signs of cognitive troubles. Today I need a cane or walker whenever I leave my apartment. Unfortunately, I am not alone. I live in a retirement home complex of some 300 homes. Minimum age to come in is 65 . I was 78. My wife and I have many friends between 78 and 90. Over the last 5 years, we have seen a physical and cognitive decline in almost every one. My wife is having worse problems than I have making me a primary care giver. I can see the signs in Joe Biden even though his current staff say he is fine. "Say it ain't so Joe" but age is coming fast.
Wouldn't it be great if the outcome of 2024 is a party with new, younger leadership, new ideas, and a platform the builds off of Joe Biden's successes. A party with promise for 8 years or more. Who can provide that leadership? There are many if they will come forward and not be afraid of stepping on Joe Biden's shadow. I leave you with one example- Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut.
HELP NEEDED NOW! Women in Florida are fighting back against the 6 week ban on abortion just passed by DeSantis by creating a ballot initiative for 2024, making abortion more accessible again. Voices in FL do not want other people making decisions about their bodies. Health care is being compromised in other states by the influx of women from other states who cannot get help in their own locations. Registered voters are signing petitions and hoping to get enough signatures by this fall. There is also a $5M fee to file the petitions which needs to happen fast - by the end of this month of May, just days from now. If you would like to support the sisters in Florida by making a donation, your generosity will be greatly appreciated. The amounts can be whatever you can afford. You do not have to be a resident there to donate. This effort is being advocated by the League of Women Voters and the ACLU of FL. To donate go to https://Floridiansprotectingfreedom.com/d.
I recommend an uplifting podcast hosted by Dahlia Lithwick of Slate with E.Jean Carrol and her lawyer, Roberta Kaplan. Link below.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/amicus-with-dahlia-lithwick-law-justice-and-the-courts/id928790786?i=1000613722040
Jennifer Rubin--things look hopeful on the debt ceiling
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2023/05/21/biden-debt-ceiling-negotiation-strategy
I sent the following message to President Biden via the White House website. I'm sure it's late, and probably won't get any attention, but I feel better having sent it.
Dear President Biden,
I was initially encouraged by your strong stand regarding the debt ceiling, but have become increasingly alarmed at recent developments that suggest a weakening of your position. Kevin McCarthy has shown that he cannot be trusted, nor can he be counted on to act in good faith. The debt ceiling is a relic of bygone days, and has been effectively superseded by later laws and the budget and appropriation process.
If McCarthy and the Republicans are unwilling to accept a debt ceiling increase with the only condition being that the budget and appropriations process will address future spending, I believe you should take unilateral action by invoking the 14th Amendment. If you haven't done so, I strongly suggest that you read Robert Hockett's treatise in Forbes on May 11.
While there is a risk that such a move could become mired in legal battles, it would require Republicans to take action to stop it that is clearly not in their best interest. It would also likely work its way to the Supreme Court, where it could be resolved once and for all. Despite the current leanings of the Court, I seriously doubt that the Supremes would want to be the ones to nudge the global economy off the fiscal cliff, especially with the speciousness of the debt ceiling in funding our government. The legal arguments around retiring the debt limit are strong, and with the best legal minds available to you, I have confidence in a favorable outcome.
Respectfully,
Robert P. Morgan
Just needed to go somewhere about feeling sick about the debt ceiling. Just really tired of living like this. I am a clinical mental health therapist who had a reunion with other therapists from an agency we all used to work at and we all talked about the compounding trauma we have all been through since 2016. I have to believe that 60%+ of Americans feel the same.
I want to thank Robert and Jill for Friday's meeting here in DC- it was inspiring to listen to both of you, and to see the turnout and commitment of so many of us in person, which I know is echoed and amplified around the country. Thank you for your commitment, service, and insights. These are tough times, but we keep proving that we are tougher and together we will prevail. thank you and onward!
So you are aware, if not already, President Biden held a Press Conference earlier today (Sunday) while in Hiroshima, Japan. In it, he began by addressing the debt limit negotiations, followed by other critical matters. The president took press questions following his comments.
Following is link where press conference begins at around the 57 minute, 15 second mark:
https://www.youtube.com/live/M0MyCPvXL7Q?feature=share
Thanks for posting this. I am disappointed that his position against negotiating a debt ceiling increase has weakened, but I am encouraged that he's holding firm on some things. I sincerely hope he has a contingency plan, because I trust McCarthy about as much as I trust TFG. To me, the contingency plan should be unilateral action, via the 14th Amendment, with him announcing its invocation as the only way to save the global economy due to the utter failure of Congress to meet its Constitutional obligations. He should look straight into the camera and challenge the Republicans with, "I will not allow the global economy to suffer due to your unwillingness to act in good faith. Sue me!"
Concerning debt negotiations: the purpose of any negotiation is to resolve an actual or potential dispute. Compromise or “settlement” may - but not necessarily - be a means of resolving the dispute or potential dispute. However, if any party to the negotiations realizes that its interests are not being served or likely to be served by further participation in the negotiation process, that party can exercise the power it possesses to take the action necessary to serve its interests. Thus the party with the power to act always has the advantage over the party which only wants to prevent the contemplated action. Bottom line: if Biden is prepared to act lawfully without House approval, he can (and in my opinion should) do so without regret or fear of political reprisals.
When a complete buffoon like Donald Trump can get elected, nothing is too far-fetched! Lol
https://youtu.be/bcvoo64C6QM
Thank you.
What do Today’s Edition readers think and/or plan to do in regard to this third party effort? I, for one, agree with those who say it would be a disaster raising the unacceptable risk of re-electing DJT.”No Labels”Eyes Third Party Run in 2024. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/05/19/us/politics/no-labels-president-manchin.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
To wit, it is a hardened memory for me that Jill Stein’s Green Party took an equivalent number of votes as Hillary Clinton differentiated 5 key states for the electoral win. Let’s also remember that Donald Trump has never won the popular vote in any national election and, along with his MAGA surrogates in the House IS the greatest threat to our democracy and the global community’s efforts to push back against authoritarian rule.
I would welcome all thoughts and any actionable measures readers might offer. Are you listening Jessica Craven?
I intend to address No Labels again tonight.
France, Finland, and a major and well respected hospital in Sweden are all urging caution on blocking puberty in children with gender dysphoria.
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/frances-academy-of-medicine-urges-great-medical-caution-in-blocking-puberty/
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/fins-turn-against-puberty-blockers-for-gender-dysphoria/
https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/major-swedish-hospital-bans-puberty-blocking-for-gender-dysphoria/
And none of them are outlawing those treatments, as are red states in the US. The European medical agencies urge caution. Do you think parents and children struggling with gender identity are acting recklessly? I suggest speaking with a few parents of kids who are trans if you think they are
Thank you for pointing out the diff between what the European medical agencies are doing and what the red states are doing.
I think the European medical agencies are being very sensible. Which it's clear some institutions in the US aren't doing.
I once emailed Jennifer Finney Boylan in support of her being who she is, and I got a very nice note back from her.
But I suspect that true trans is quite rare, and I do think social contagion is a common phenomenon generally, and that is likely responsible for *some* cases. I may have been aware of one or two cases in the first 50 years of my life. I suspect that the kinds of developmental mistake it would take to make someone trans are rare indeed. But I'm aware of three or four cases now just via one friend of mine.
And it's obvious to me that at least a few institutions in the US that shoiuld know better are acting outrageously. Did you read Emily Yoffe's article? She is a superb journalist.
https://www.thefp.com/p/i-felt-bullied-mother-of-child-treated
I don't know who you think I am. I get the feeling you're making assumptions about me. I come from a left wing family. My great uncle, Philip Hornbein, was de facto head of the Colorado Democratic Party for most of the first half of the last century. He gave the speech advocating an end to prohibition at the '32 convention.
His sister, my maternal grandmother, was probably the first female Coloradan to get a PhD (in 1915). My maternal aunt, also a PhD, worked with Bob Butler, cofounder of the National Institute on Aging, to get old folks homes to quit interfering with the sex lives of unmarried residents.
My sister is a Democratic activist in northern Virginia. I learned environmental science at UC Berkeley from John Holdren, who later became Pres O's Science Advisor.
Both parents were professors who were driven by the desire to make the world a better place.
You and HCR have given me a lot of comfort on our Democracy (I started capitalizing that word during the 45 admin. At this point, preserving our Democracy is my most important issue. I gave five times as much money towards that end generally, including to Biden, in the last presidential election, as I'd done in any previous election, and I gave my biggest single donation ever to the WiscDems--at least double anything previous--who I think I found out about from you.
I've been concerned about overpopulation since I was 9, in the early '60s, and immigration since the mid-90s, when I came to realize it was fueling the US population explosion. As I've said, just as the GOP is in denial on global warming I think most of the left is in denial about immigration and environmental sustainability.
Robert, here's a little more background for you.
As a little kid, I'd heard how Nixon had tarred Rep. Helen Gahagan Douglass when they'd run for Senate in 1950.
My parents were both trained economists. During the 1960 election, I had this friend Ralphie, whose maternal grandfather was a cofounder of Nordstrom's, the only one of which at that time was in Seattle. Ralphie's mother was interior decorator to Seattle's elite, which included John Ehrlichman, later a close aide to Nixon. So, the only thing surprising about the political arguments we'd get into was the fact that we were having these arguments in second grade.
One day my mother was driving, with the two of us in the car. "You know Ralphie, you really shouldn't vote for Nixon," I told him, "Because he called that lady in California something like an economist."
My mother didn't laugh much, but she sure laughed when she told that story. She got such a kick out of it!
Discussions of abortion and birth control, here and elsewhere, have focused primarily on principles and rights. Fine, as far as it goes.
Ruth Marcus recently wrote a very powerful and affecting WaPo column that described the inhumanity of anti-abortion laws by focusing on the legally required delivery of Milo, a baby who had no lungs and kidney function, thus no chance of surviving outside the womb, and thus who unconscionably was made to suffer after birth:
“For one family, Florida abortion law made a devastating loss into ‘torture’” (Ruth Marcus, WaPo, 5/19/2023).
If you can get behind the paywall and emotionally deal with Marcus’s column, you definitely should read it. I believe it will deepen your understanding and appreciation of what’s at stake in the “abortion wars”.
Gifted article about Baby Milo and his 99-minute struggle to breathe without lungs. https://wapo.st/3WqAUMK
Thank you, Judith.