When Johnson lifted his head out of sewaerage in which the Repubs now are mired, I thought, well perhaps there is shred of decency. Alas, that was just a momentary peek at the world where most of us reside, one of decency and integrity.
His excoriation of the trial and its processes was disgraceful. And say it like it is: he conceded his real power as Speaker to a conman, who would willingly take us down, as a democracy, as a society.
Imagine, the Speaker of the House, a sycophant to trump, of all people. Disgusting.
My new nickname is Mike "Goebbels" Johnson since Goebbels was Hitlers propaganda minister. He would spin lies about what Hitler was doing to convince people that they should like the suffering they were experiencing because they were tough, that they should believe that Hitler cared about them and that they should believe Germany was doing well when it wasn't. I also want to point out that Hitler's doctor might take most of the credit for doing him in. While it is attributed to suicide, his doctor was treating him for depression with some powerful drugs including toxins like cyanide. Not clear how that was supposed to help depression, but it helped Hitler to not be able to function for periods and hide in his Polish enclave. Someone responded to my asking whether Trump would do what Hitler did if he gets into office by executing the people on his hit list. She said, she thought yes, and that his wives had said he had "Mein Kampf" by his bedside. I think we can see the path Trump is trying to follow, so I am deciding on which nicknames to give which Republicans that help him with his modern day anti Immigrants, vs. anti Jews rhetoric and agenda of deporting and destroying. Hitler also enslaved a lot of people. I recommend looking at Hitler's life to see what we might be facing. That includes spying on the people. That would then fall to Mike "Goebbels" Johnson to implement and run. Hitler had horrible mental deterioration, and Trump is deteriorating too. That did not make Hitler nicer. I doubt it will Trump.
And, to your point Linda, did anyone else see the blue suits with red ties that most all of Trumps surrogates wore outside the courthouse yesterday?
Hmmmmm? Reminiscent perhaps of Hitler’s ‘Brown shirts’ of yesteryear? Maybe that is a stretch in relating their similar attire to the ‘Brown shirts’, it does, however, demonstrate this group’s ‘allegiance’ to their ‘ leader’….
None of this is a stretch except to imagine where things are headed with Totalitarian Trump as our leader. This BBC series Rise & Fall of the Nazis pretty much lays out what Hitler did. I had someone tell me that Trump's wives claim that he had Mein Kampf by his bedside table. We can assume he was getting ideas from it. Putin too. Putin is basically a Hitler wannabe, and Trump is following in both of their footsteps. You not only had the Brown Shirts, the SA (Sturmabteilung) which was a paramilitary group, but his personal guard the SS (Schutzstaffel) was also wore uniforms. Theirs were black and designed by Hugo Boss. In fact, on those red ties it might be appropriate for these men to wear the skull that is the SS insignia. It is scary times if you can understand what it might be like to live in a totalitarian regime. I have family who have when German was divided so was my family. Everyone has their stories.
I did see that photo and it made me gag. All this adoration of a thug. This is so ugly and seeing the contrast between those twerps and the Allard video was stunning.
Jon, there are many at this point who have ceded their power to Trump. They have moved from being “enablers” at the first impeachment to puppets of Trump and the likes of Viktor Orban.
They not only have no shred of decency, but they demonstrate regularly that they have no backbone and no sense of their own power but rather have embraced Trumpism and the most extreme right, lying to themselves and gaslighting the system and “we the people.”
I joined the Zoom call fundraiser for Colin Allred last night and it was, as Robert said, phenomenal. I've lived in Texas most of my adult life and have, except for the brief glory days of Ann Richards, never been proud of my state government or felt that I had a political and moral home here ... The Big Freeze of 2021 when Ted Cruz, Allred's opponent, took the opportunity to abandon his constituency (30 million of us, almost all of whom were without heat, electricity, and often water for days in the freezing cold) to jet off to Cancun for a vacay -- was the nadir of Cruz's pathetic excuse for a Senatorship. In all the years (mostly since 2016 to be honest) that I've tried to call Cruz to express my opinion on an issue or ask for his vote on something, etc. I have NEVER, not once, reached anything including VM that would accept messages. He's worthless. I'm not a praying person, but I'm praying as hard as I can now to any and all real or imaginary deities and forces to give us people like Mr. Allred in public service. Highly recommend joining these kinds of meet-the-candidate events whenever possible; they're an incredible mood-lifter and hope-bringer. Thanks, Robert, for setting this up and going way out of your way to try to help us all save democracy.
I appreciate this comment so much. Allred is, I hope, the voice of the future, and the guys in the red and blue suits are that of the past. Let's vote them all out and vote intelligence, heart, and service to others back in. The MAGA guys want us to be afraid of them and I'm not going to give them the satisfaction. But I am going to look for meet-the-candidate events because mood lifters are going to be so important going forward. Now back to writing postcards for Field Team Six.
I'd like to write postcards for Allred, but didn't see that on his website as an option. Do you know if there's a process to do that? And, I'm completely in agreement with your hopes for a future that really could be better than anything we can currently imagine. Right now? I'd love to never hear DJT's voice again, see his face, or read about him. Such a truly terrible human being, and I say that as I continue to try to find something redeeming; I guess this is one of those really annoying lessons in how to do Compassion 101: Find the worst possible exemplar and make him/her/them the recipient of your compassion and kindness. [speaking to my inner self, actually ... :)]
MANY good points in this issue of the newsletter. The most egregious of the "surrogates" was pointed out, but will msm even discuss this? [rhetorical question, of course they won't.]
"Worst of all, Speaker Michael Johnson is second in line of presidential succession—effectively entangling the executive branch in the assault on the judiciary as well."
Sadly, the executive branch has been entangled in the assault on the judiciary ever since the Quadefendant occupied [sic] the White House. Johnson's salvo is further evidence of an ongoing infestation of MAGAts in the branch.
On another topic Robert touched on, Michael Cohen seemed to bolster the prosecution's case yesterday. It will all come down to closing arguments, I think, but as long as the prosecution uses Cohen's testimony to frame the case in support of the ample evidence provided by other witnesses and documents, rather than the other way around, it seems like the verdict should come quickly and correctly. His testimony tells a story that the evidence proves. It also provides some important perspective. For instance, I was surprised to learn that his recording of the Quadefendant's comments about paying cash for a story to be quashed wasn't to use it against him, but to prove to David Pecker that the money would be paid. I'd previously seen it as a personal insurance policy for Cohen, but it wasn't that at all.
Speaking about opposing vulnerabilities, here is a thought. Of course one can try and allay fears engendered by the recent polling by splitting hairs and relying on the "margin of error" explanation, but we all know that these polls are too close and we have to do something about it. Nate Cohen of the NYT suggests that the need for change is an important consideration in explaining why the polls are as close as they are. In other words there are people who say, I don't like either of them, so I'll simply vote for the one out of office- I want change. How about the Dems say- Ok, you want change- Here's the Change you'll get. And list 100 " Is this the Change You Want" horrific things Trump has said he will do. Between all of his rantings and the 2025 vision, 100 scary changes won't be hard to come up with. It's clear the " Biden is a Good President" argument is not having traction with the larger electorate. We have to lay out, as you suggest, the opposing vulnerabilities and we have to start now.
Exactly. I need that. As a subset (!) I’ve been looking for a compilation of the things he did that Biden undid- haven’t found one yet and don’t know enough to create one.
I agree 100%! Messaging strategist Rachel Bitecofer in Hit 'Em Where It Hurts says it best - lead with the frightening negatives about MAGA extremism. All the positivity in the world isn't enough to overcome the boldface lies being slung by Trump and cronies. Bonus: We will be telling the truth.
I must be missing something because to date I have not seen a viable defense presented by Trump in the Stormy Danials case. Where are the pictures of Trump asleep in the court room and where are the ads showing leading Republicans like Johnson supporting a person who cheated on his wife, paid off a pornstar and then created a massive cover up while committing election fraud? . How does Johnson reconcile his moral Christian beliefs which he conveniently uses to justify his decisions when presented with the facts in this case? Michael Cohen is no saint but he is a walking example of how an insecure person can get caught up in the Trump extravagant chaos and is willing to do anything to remain in his good gracious. Johnson is heading down the same path.
Re Johnson and his "moral Christian" beliefs, if you haven't already read it, I recommend Tim Alberta's "The Kingdom, the Power and the Glory". He makes an excellent case that it's clearly not about morality, it's about power - pure and simple - and therefore, it's not Christianity at all. Sobering but optimistic.
yes--Johnson is after power -- and it has nothing to do with Christianity, except to use Christianity as a smokescreen and coverup. Yes--see Tim Alberta's book!
Johnson and other White Nationalist may be after power more than any semblance of a kind and loving Christianity, but we have to recognize that the Power and the Glory are intimately intertwined in Evangelical Christianity, in conservative Catholicism, in community church get-rich Christianity, and in other forms of Christiianity that encourage a belief that 1) I am doing God's work when I seek power for myself; 2) I am always and irrevocably right because God is with me, in me and around everyone I talk to and care about; 3) thus, those who oppose me are sinners, evil, and worthy of punishment, pain, and suffering in this life and the next; 4) as I gain in power I manifest God's goodness and righteousness, because He has blessed me and guided me to a way of life that gives me material wealth AND power and absolute confirmation that I am following the way, the truth, and the life to which God guided me. A person for whom reason and humility are virtues can admit being wrong. Not a true believer. Even a "normal" politician can be embarrassed by being caught out in a lie or by attacking the very government he or she is a part of. Not a person who does no wrong. Listen to Trump. He was PRESIDENT of the United States for four very long years. Why does this country need saving again? Does he run on his record? No. He doesn't need to. Trump is no Christian, of any stripe, but his massive arrogance, absolute self-aggrandizement, and enormous egotism is a perfect mirror of the conservative Catholic movement, the white nationalists, and evangelical Christians, who are not the same necessarily and don't even like each other much, but are caught in an unholy alliance. We must not ignore the American Catholic bishops, the People of Praise (member, Amy Coney Barrett), and other predominantly Catholic rightwing groups who will be advising/ordering/telling people to vote, maybe not FOR Trump, but AGAINST their co-religionist Joseph Biden, in order to preserve abortion, battle homosexuality, and defeat change in America. Johnson, Barrett, and millions of others do not adhere to your Sermon on the Mount Christianity, folks, but, to be sure, in their minds it carries the absolute and infallible right, even responsibility to tell everyone else what they should do, how they should live, and whom they should love. "Christian" righteousness is a powerful force.
I know that if you, Robert, know that there is a legal clause about asking surrogates to go around the gag order, the judge and the prosecution know this, too. I’m surprised, so far, that no other writers on my radar have brought this up yet. Today will be an interesting day as we all get more interpretation and feedback.
Lawrence O'Donnell briefly noted this thing with Trump's surrogates being his mouthpiece is in violation to the gag order on his show last night. I hope something is done about this.It is ridiculous that the Speaker of the House and other Congressional members are threatening the judges daughter to the press and are making inflammatory statements about our judicial system as words given to them by TFG. He really cannot be silenced.
Polls, even much closer to election dates, have been misguided and very wrong. Hillary's 2016 optimistic polls were obviously off because pollsters couldn't accurately include Trump's base. The polls in 2022 midterms predicted a big RED wave that didn't happen.
Today's polls and polls of polls are off for a wide variety of reasons. Probably, most probably because pollsters simply can't get a representative group of participants to answer
Telephone polls.
In the world of real voters and electoral participants, Joe Biden had been an outstanding president a decent human being and admirable role model for America. Trump has been the opposite on every leadership metric.
Joe Biden has six months to continue improving the economy, beat back the fascist right wing in Israel, get good grades for the decline in illegal immigration.
Go Joe. You're going to win by more in 2024 than you did in 2020. The GOP will collapse and start to reconstruct itself as a reasonable co-governing party.
Well whatever it is, heavy drugs so he will stfu or the beginnings of dementia, it is not a good look. The press not reporting on this is no surprise though they are doing the American people no favors. Last night Lawrence O'Donnell on his show on MSNBC said Trump's slack-jawed, mouth half open demeanor looked like for all to see a"trial at a nursing home."NOT a presidential look imho.
There were ten polls on the Maryland U.S. Senate Democratic Primary released this year. David Trone led in seven of them, most by double digits. Angela Alsobrooks led in three, never by more than five points. The final polls aggregate showed Trone up 2.4 pts.
I have been following Maryland's Senate race through TV ads. Interesting to note that David Trone seemed to be the only Democrat who was running. Then in the last month or so Alsobrooks "pops up" in ads. As soon as I saw she was endorsed by Jamie Raskin, I was all in for her. Glad she won. I'm hoping she'll do well against Hogan.
Good evening Robert. Thank you for laying it down better than my rattled brain can even comprehend. I don't remember if it was you or someone else that told us that Anne Applebaum was starting a Sustack last week or so, but I read her post tonight about her visit to Northwestern where the NW president engaged the students protesting and struck a deal that seems to satisfy those standing up for the Palestinians, and the intersts of the university. It worked so well that the MAGA congress wants to pillory him as well as others in testifying to them. Her piece was well put together and pointed out what is going on very well. Worth checking out.
"Democrats have better candidates up and down the ballot..."
Here in North Carolina, the GOP has captured a slim supermajority by gerrymandering and other "cheats." By supermajority, I refer to the ability to override the current Democratic Governor Roy Cooper's veto power. The North Carolina GOP is fielding a slate of MAGA Trump extremists, and their agenda priorities aim to remove freedoms, and to establish RULE over the population, not representation in government.
Much of the GOP rhetoric is couched in "Christian nationalism" language. We have less than six months to determine if the voters of North Carolina will stand up for "LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL" or follow false prophets and Pied Pipers.
The Democratic candidates are far more qualified and superior to their GOP opponents.
Under former four-term governor Jim Hunt, a Democrat, North Carolina was a leading progressive state with great education emphasis. Watch this state, and if you can, support GOTV efforts to turn North Carolina BLUE once again.
"[H]e was sleeping through the direct and cross-examination of his main accuser in a criminal trial that could land him in jail."
Yet he's fluently lucid outside the courthouse and at his rallies. Something smells fishy. Short-term medication to keep their client from exploding, perhaps??
If we step back from the horrors of this trial and the horrors of Gaza, we may be reminded that most people are not paying that much attention to either. As enormously important as they are, they lack something.
People's votes are usually motivated by issues that affect them personally. The attack on women's reproductive rights - the resulting attack on their healthcare - that is personal. It's personal for the women who should always have complete control over their family size. It's personal when they are turned away at a hospital ER. It's personal when you watch a family member suffer because of laws passed by a minority. Dobbs was the tipping point. Every time this issue has been on the ballot, reproductive rights won. And now we have Republicans pushing for a Federal Registry of pregnant women???
And for those who think just a little bit, the fact that women's health is under attack BECAUSE of Supreme Court justices nominated by Trump - that will be a huge voter motivation. Especially in those states where abortion rights are on the ballot.
I don't mean to poo poo the trials or the international chaos. But folks tend to get motivated when their own lives and the lives of their loved ones are under attack.
Then there is the threat of Project 2025. Dictatorship? Prison camps for millions? Firing experienced government workers en masse? Eliminating environmental protections?
People tend to vote when it gets personal. JMO, I could be wrong.
Add to that the creepy graduation speech by Harrison Butker, who was overcome with emotions when talking about the real vocation of women – being a homemaker and breeding. And he was not booed off the stage. It was a catholic college, so the kids were sufficiently groomed and brainwashed.
If MAGA wins in November there will be more of that. Up to the moment of course, when commencement speakers won't have to address women anymore, because there won't be too many left graduating. The Taliban are watching in awe.
I am in agreement with your assessment, Bill. Unfortunately, there are not many people who could be defined as altruistic. "What's in it for me" seems to be the dominant theme.
"If we step back from the horrors of this trial and the horrors of Gaza, we may be reminded that most people are not paying that much attention to either." I think that's spot on. I just saw a poll that showed a very surprising number (can't recall any specifics) that couldn't name a single thing Biden has done -- no legislation, no nothing. It is said that most folks don't really focus on the election till after Labor Day, which is still 3-1/2 months away.
When Johnson lifted his head out of sewaerage in which the Repubs now are mired, I thought, well perhaps there is shred of decency. Alas, that was just a momentary peek at the world where most of us reside, one of decency and integrity.
His excoriation of the trial and its processes was disgraceful. And say it like it is: he conceded his real power as Speaker to a conman, who would willingly take us down, as a democracy, as a society.
Imagine, the Speaker of the House, a sycophant to trump, of all people. Disgusting.
My new nickname is Mike "Goebbels" Johnson since Goebbels was Hitlers propaganda minister. He would spin lies about what Hitler was doing to convince people that they should like the suffering they were experiencing because they were tough, that they should believe that Hitler cared about them and that they should believe Germany was doing well when it wasn't. I also want to point out that Hitler's doctor might take most of the credit for doing him in. While it is attributed to suicide, his doctor was treating him for depression with some powerful drugs including toxins like cyanide. Not clear how that was supposed to help depression, but it helped Hitler to not be able to function for periods and hide in his Polish enclave. Someone responded to my asking whether Trump would do what Hitler did if he gets into office by executing the people on his hit list. She said, she thought yes, and that his wives had said he had "Mein Kampf" by his bedside. I think we can see the path Trump is trying to follow, so I am deciding on which nicknames to give which Republicans that help him with his modern day anti Immigrants, vs. anti Jews rhetoric and agenda of deporting and destroying. Hitler also enslaved a lot of people. I recommend looking at Hitler's life to see what we might be facing. That includes spying on the people. That would then fall to Mike "Goebbels" Johnson to implement and run. Hitler had horrible mental deterioration, and Trump is deteriorating too. That did not make Hitler nicer. I doubt it will Trump.
And, to your point Linda, did anyone else see the blue suits with red ties that most all of Trumps surrogates wore outside the courthouse yesterday?
Hmmmmm? Reminiscent perhaps of Hitler’s ‘Brown shirts’ of yesteryear? Maybe that is a stretch in relating their similar attire to the ‘Brown shirts’, it does, however, demonstrate this group’s ‘allegiance’ to their ‘ leader’….
Scary times indeed….
Yes, that certainly had SNL quality. Their marching orders and speaking notes came with the matching suits and ties. True clones of their leader.
All I saw was a group of little boys who want to know the secret password and secret handshake to get in the big boys' club.
Surely there are real citizens who could vote for better representation and knock these little boys off their teeny tiny soapboxes.
None of this is a stretch except to imagine where things are headed with Totalitarian Trump as our leader. This BBC series Rise & Fall of the Nazis pretty much lays out what Hitler did. I had someone tell me that Trump's wives claim that he had Mein Kampf by his bedside table. We can assume he was getting ideas from it. Putin too. Putin is basically a Hitler wannabe, and Trump is following in both of their footsteps. You not only had the Brown Shirts, the SA (Sturmabteilung) which was a paramilitary group, but his personal guard the SS (Schutzstaffel) was also wore uniforms. Theirs were black and designed by Hugo Boss. In fact, on those red ties it might be appropriate for these men to wear the skull that is the SS insignia. It is scary times if you can understand what it might be like to live in a totalitarian regime. I have family who have when German was divided so was my family. Everyone has their stories.
Indeed. And lousy fashion. Ties are supposed to end at the belt buckle, not at the ankles.
I did see that photo and it made me gag. All this adoration of a thug. This is so ugly and seeing the contrast between those twerps and the Allard video was stunning.
Here is more about Trump's mental deterioration, as well as RFK Jr's substantial mental handicaps
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCV2hZc76R0
Jon, there are many at this point who have ceded their power to Trump. They have moved from being “enablers” at the first impeachment to puppets of Trump and the likes of Viktor Orban.
They not only have no shred of decency, but they demonstrate regularly that they have no backbone and no sense of their own power but rather have embraced Trumpism and the most extreme right, lying to themselves and gaslighting the system and “we the people.”
It is beyond belief. Smarmy little weasel. Just smarmy little weasels all of them.
I joined the Zoom call fundraiser for Colin Allred last night and it was, as Robert said, phenomenal. I've lived in Texas most of my adult life and have, except for the brief glory days of Ann Richards, never been proud of my state government or felt that I had a political and moral home here ... The Big Freeze of 2021 when Ted Cruz, Allred's opponent, took the opportunity to abandon his constituency (30 million of us, almost all of whom were without heat, electricity, and often water for days in the freezing cold) to jet off to Cancun for a vacay -- was the nadir of Cruz's pathetic excuse for a Senatorship. In all the years (mostly since 2016 to be honest) that I've tried to call Cruz to express my opinion on an issue or ask for his vote on something, etc. I have NEVER, not once, reached anything including VM that would accept messages. He's worthless. I'm not a praying person, but I'm praying as hard as I can now to any and all real or imaginary deities and forces to give us people like Mr. Allred in public service. Highly recommend joining these kinds of meet-the-candidate events whenever possible; they're an incredible mood-lifter and hope-bringer. Thanks, Robert, for setting this up and going way out of your way to try to help us all save democracy.
I appreciate this comment so much. Allred is, I hope, the voice of the future, and the guys in the red and blue suits are that of the past. Let's vote them all out and vote intelligence, heart, and service to others back in. The MAGA guys want us to be afraid of them and I'm not going to give them the satisfaction. But I am going to look for meet-the-candidate events because mood lifters are going to be so important going forward. Now back to writing postcards for Field Team Six.
I'd like to write postcards for Allred, but didn't see that on his website as an option. Do you know if there's a process to do that? And, I'm completely in agreement with your hopes for a future that really could be better than anything we can currently imagine. Right now? I'd love to never hear DJT's voice again, see his face, or read about him. Such a truly terrible human being, and I say that as I continue to try to find something redeeming; I guess this is one of those really annoying lessons in how to do Compassion 101: Find the worst possible exemplar and make him/her/them the recipient of your compassion and kindness. [speaking to my inner self, actually ... :)]
Regarding the surrogates: this is where you ask "Have you no shame??!" And realize with a heavy stone in your gut that the clear answer is "NO".
MANY good points in this issue of the newsletter. The most egregious of the "surrogates" was pointed out, but will msm even discuss this? [rhetorical question, of course they won't.]
"Worst of all, Speaker Michael Johnson is second in line of presidential succession—effectively entangling the executive branch in the assault on the judiciary as well."
Second in line of presidential succession is specially worrisome in these precarious times.
Accidents happen.
My thought, too, David.
Sadly, the executive branch has been entangled in the assault on the judiciary ever since the Quadefendant occupied [sic] the White House. Johnson's salvo is further evidence of an ongoing infestation of MAGAts in the branch.
On another topic Robert touched on, Michael Cohen seemed to bolster the prosecution's case yesterday. It will all come down to closing arguments, I think, but as long as the prosecution uses Cohen's testimony to frame the case in support of the ample evidence provided by other witnesses and documents, rather than the other way around, it seems like the verdict should come quickly and correctly. His testimony tells a story that the evidence proves. It also provides some important perspective. For instance, I was surprised to learn that his recording of the Quadefendant's comments about paying cash for a story to be quashed wasn't to use it against him, but to prove to David Pecker that the money would be paid. I'd previously seen it as a personal insurance policy for Cohen, but it wasn't that at all.
"[D]irecting others to make public statements about known or reasonably foreseeable witness . . . or any juror in this criminal proceeding."
CLANK!!
And dimwitted Tuberville is so flippin' clueless as to actually say it--not merely 'out loud'--but cripes, 'on camera' as it were. Geez!
Too many football contacts with his head
😆
Speaking about opposing vulnerabilities, here is a thought. Of course one can try and allay fears engendered by the recent polling by splitting hairs and relying on the "margin of error" explanation, but we all know that these polls are too close and we have to do something about it. Nate Cohen of the NYT suggests that the need for change is an important consideration in explaining why the polls are as close as they are. In other words there are people who say, I don't like either of them, so I'll simply vote for the one out of office- I want change. How about the Dems say- Ok, you want change- Here's the Change you'll get. And list 100 " Is this the Change You Want" horrific things Trump has said he will do. Between all of his rantings and the 2025 vision, 100 scary changes won't be hard to come up with. It's clear the " Biden is a Good President" argument is not having traction with the larger electorate. We have to lay out, as you suggest, the opposing vulnerabilities and we have to start now.
Exactly. I need that. As a subset (!) I’ve been looking for a compilation of the things he did that Biden undid- haven’t found one yet and don’t know enough to create one.
I agree 100%! Messaging strategist Rachel Bitecofer in Hit 'Em Where It Hurts says it best - lead with the frightening negatives about MAGA extremism. All the positivity in the world isn't enough to overcome the boldface lies being slung by Trump and cronies. Bonus: We will be telling the truth.
Excellent idea!! Let’s go for this tactic!! Beginning the list now!!
I agree with the Red Queen in "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland":
"First a trial, then off with his head!" :-)
I must be missing something because to date I have not seen a viable defense presented by Trump in the Stormy Danials case. Where are the pictures of Trump asleep in the court room and where are the ads showing leading Republicans like Johnson supporting a person who cheated on his wife, paid off a pornstar and then created a massive cover up while committing election fraud? . How does Johnson reconcile his moral Christian beliefs which he conveniently uses to justify his decisions when presented with the facts in this case? Michael Cohen is no saint but he is a walking example of how an insecure person can get caught up in the Trump extravagant chaos and is willing to do anything to remain in his good gracious. Johnson is heading down the same path.
Re Johnson and his "moral Christian" beliefs, if you haven't already read it, I recommend Tim Alberta's "The Kingdom, the Power and the Glory". He makes an excellent case that it's clearly not about morality, it's about power - pure and simple - and therefore, it's not Christianity at all. Sobering but optimistic.
yes--Johnson is after power -- and it has nothing to do with Christianity, except to use Christianity as a smokescreen and coverup. Yes--see Tim Alberta's book!
Johnson and other White Nationalist may be after power more than any semblance of a kind and loving Christianity, but we have to recognize that the Power and the Glory are intimately intertwined in Evangelical Christianity, in conservative Catholicism, in community church get-rich Christianity, and in other forms of Christiianity that encourage a belief that 1) I am doing God's work when I seek power for myself; 2) I am always and irrevocably right because God is with me, in me and around everyone I talk to and care about; 3) thus, those who oppose me are sinners, evil, and worthy of punishment, pain, and suffering in this life and the next; 4) as I gain in power I manifest God's goodness and righteousness, because He has blessed me and guided me to a way of life that gives me material wealth AND power and absolute confirmation that I am following the way, the truth, and the life to which God guided me. A person for whom reason and humility are virtues can admit being wrong. Not a true believer. Even a "normal" politician can be embarrassed by being caught out in a lie or by attacking the very government he or she is a part of. Not a person who does no wrong. Listen to Trump. He was PRESIDENT of the United States for four very long years. Why does this country need saving again? Does he run on his record? No. He doesn't need to. Trump is no Christian, of any stripe, but his massive arrogance, absolute self-aggrandizement, and enormous egotism is a perfect mirror of the conservative Catholic movement, the white nationalists, and evangelical Christians, who are not the same necessarily and don't even like each other much, but are caught in an unholy alliance. We must not ignore the American Catholic bishops, the People of Praise (member, Amy Coney Barrett), and other predominantly Catholic rightwing groups who will be advising/ordering/telling people to vote, maybe not FOR Trump, but AGAINST their co-religionist Joseph Biden, in order to preserve abortion, battle homosexuality, and defeat change in America. Johnson, Barrett, and millions of others do not adhere to your Sermon on the Mount Christianity, folks, but, to be sure, in their minds it carries the absolute and infallible right, even responsibility to tell everyone else what they should do, how they should live, and whom they should love. "Christian" righteousness is a powerful force.
I exuberantly second this recommendation!
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/dec/02/kingdom-power-glory-review-tim-alberta-trump-evangelical
JUst a reminder to all....especially his minions - everything trump touches dies. The guy is pure evil.
I know that if you, Robert, know that there is a legal clause about asking surrogates to go around the gag order, the judge and the prosecution know this, too. I’m surprised, so far, that no other writers on my radar have brought this up yet. Today will be an interesting day as we all get more interpretation and feedback.
Lawrence O'Donnell briefly noted this thing with Trump's surrogates being his mouthpiece is in violation to the gag order on his show last night. I hope something is done about this.It is ridiculous that the Speaker of the House and other Congressional members are threatening the judges daughter to the press and are making inflammatory statements about our judicial system as words given to them by TFG. He really cannot be silenced.
I often watch Lawrence the next morning if I’m worried I’ll become too upset to sleep. Thank you for letting me know he pointed this out.
Polls, even much closer to election dates, have been misguided and very wrong. Hillary's 2016 optimistic polls were obviously off because pollsters couldn't accurately include Trump's base. The polls in 2022 midterms predicted a big RED wave that didn't happen.
Today's polls and polls of polls are off for a wide variety of reasons. Probably, most probably because pollsters simply can't get a representative group of participants to answer
Telephone polls.
In the world of real voters and electoral participants, Joe Biden had been an outstanding president a decent human being and admirable role model for America. Trump has been the opposite on every leadership metric.
Joe Biden has six months to continue improving the economy, beat back the fascist right wing in Israel, get good grades for the decline in illegal immigration.
Go Joe. You're going to win by more in 2024 than you did in 2020. The GOP will collapse and start to reconstruct itself as a reasonable co-governing party.
I can't help but wonder if ge isn;t being heavily tranquillized in order to keep his mouth shut.
Well whatever it is, heavy drugs so he will stfu or the beginnings of dementia, it is not a good look. The press not reporting on this is no surprise though they are doing the American people no favors. Last night Lawrence O'Donnell on his show on MSNBC said Trump's slack-jawed, mouth half open demeanor looked like for all to see a"trial at a nursing home."NOT a presidential look imho.
I agree 200%
There were ten polls on the Maryland U.S. Senate Democratic Primary released this year. David Trone led in seven of them, most by double digits. Angela Alsobrooks led in three, never by more than five points. The final polls aggregate showed Trone up 2.4 pts.
Last night, Alsobrooks won by 12.1 pts.
Just sayin'
I have been following Maryland's Senate race through TV ads. Interesting to note that David Trone seemed to be the only Democrat who was running. Then in the last month or so Alsobrooks "pops up" in ads. As soon as I saw she was endorsed by Jamie Raskin, I was all in for her. Glad she won. I'm hoping she'll do well against Hogan.
Good evening Robert. Thank you for laying it down better than my rattled brain can even comprehend. I don't remember if it was you or someone else that told us that Anne Applebaum was starting a Sustack last week or so, but I read her post tonight about her visit to Northwestern where the NW president engaged the students protesting and struck a deal that seems to satisfy those standing up for the Palestinians, and the intersts of the university. It worked so well that the MAGA congress wants to pillory him as well as others in testifying to them. Her piece was well put together and pointed out what is going on very well. Worth checking out.
What's your altitude tonight? Got internet?
Back in LA. Good internet, but no view of the stars!
BUMMER!!
"Democrats have better candidates up and down the ballot..."
Here in North Carolina, the GOP has captured a slim supermajority by gerrymandering and other "cheats." By supermajority, I refer to the ability to override the current Democratic Governor Roy Cooper's veto power. The North Carolina GOP is fielding a slate of MAGA Trump extremists, and their agenda priorities aim to remove freedoms, and to establish RULE over the population, not representation in government.
Much of the GOP rhetoric is couched in "Christian nationalism" language. We have less than six months to determine if the voters of North Carolina will stand up for "LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL" or follow false prophets and Pied Pipers.
The Democratic candidates are far more qualified and superior to their GOP opponents.
Under former four-term governor Jim Hunt, a Democrat, North Carolina was a leading progressive state with great education emphasis. Watch this state, and if you can, support GOTV efforts to turn North Carolina BLUE once again.
"[H]e was sleeping through the direct and cross-examination of his main accuser in a criminal trial that could land him in jail."
Yet he's fluently lucid outside the courthouse and at his rallies. Something smells fishy. Short-term medication to keep their client from exploding, perhaps??
Or using drugs to pump him up for his rallies.
If we step back from the horrors of this trial and the horrors of Gaza, we may be reminded that most people are not paying that much attention to either. As enormously important as they are, they lack something.
People's votes are usually motivated by issues that affect them personally. The attack on women's reproductive rights - the resulting attack on their healthcare - that is personal. It's personal for the women who should always have complete control over their family size. It's personal when they are turned away at a hospital ER. It's personal when you watch a family member suffer because of laws passed by a minority. Dobbs was the tipping point. Every time this issue has been on the ballot, reproductive rights won. And now we have Republicans pushing for a Federal Registry of pregnant women???
And for those who think just a little bit, the fact that women's health is under attack BECAUSE of Supreme Court justices nominated by Trump - that will be a huge voter motivation. Especially in those states where abortion rights are on the ballot.
I don't mean to poo poo the trials or the international chaos. But folks tend to get motivated when their own lives and the lives of their loved ones are under attack.
Then there is the threat of Project 2025. Dictatorship? Prison camps for millions? Firing experienced government workers en masse? Eliminating environmental protections?
People tend to vote when it gets personal. JMO, I could be wrong.
Add to that the creepy graduation speech by Harrison Butker, who was overcome with emotions when talking about the real vocation of women – being a homemaker and breeding. And he was not booed off the stage. It was a catholic college, so the kids were sufficiently groomed and brainwashed.
If MAGA wins in November there will be more of that. Up to the moment of course, when commencement speakers won't have to address women anymore, because there won't be too many left graduating. The Taliban are watching in awe.
https://www.today.com/news/harrison-butker-speech-benedictine-college-rcna152297
I am in agreement with your assessment, Bill. Unfortunately, there are not many people who could be defined as altruistic. "What's in it for me" seems to be the dominant theme.
"If we step back from the horrors of this trial and the horrors of Gaza, we may be reminded that most people are not paying that much attention to either." I think that's spot on. I just saw a poll that showed a very surprising number (can't recall any specifics) that couldn't name a single thing Biden has done -- no legislation, no nothing. It is said that most folks don't really focus on the election till after Labor Day, which is still 3-1/2 months away.