It seems to be impossible to get off these horrible hysterical political contribution mailing lists. I even wonder if some are russian spam operations. Ngpvan is the worst. They will not remove you from their list, presumably because their profit is in selling your name. You can only unsubscribe individually (that works, but it IS work). They resell to every (democratic?) candidate in the country. In the last election cycle i made the mistake of contributing to several candidates in different states, and this is the punishment. As a result i have contributed nothing so far. I am investigating a Swing Left initiative called Blueprint, that will advise and consolidate your contributions into an anonymous fund. Any other suggestions welcome!
If the Republicans wish to return to yesteryear, how about remembering those days when few were allowed to own or carry guns. Let’s erase the damage the NRA has done in the past 30 years.
Yes, I too received that "Pelosi email" on 4/12/22 and am quite unhappy with that email and others that are sent from the DCCC. All the DCCC emails make me feel like they are hysterically screaming at me. "Donate! Or we're doomed!" I unsubscribed from the list, which did direct me to DCCC.org and I was also asked why I am unsubscribing. I left my comment with my sentiments on this situation similar to what you have mentioned Robert. Perhaps if half a gazillion others would do the same, the DCCC might get the message? Now I am on to Tweet to @DCCC with the same complaint. This is ongoing proof that Democrats are not getting their messaging right. They need to quickly get that turned around, if we are to maintain the House and Senate.
Robert Hubbell does not pose a rhetorical question. The upcoming election will present a definitive and dramatic choice between a strengthened democracy vs. a dangerous slide to autocracy. The Republican Party has made this an existential choice, and everyone must heed Robert's imprecations to find an active, local role to play in defeating those who wish to reduce and ultimately eliminate our freedoms.
Apr 14, 2022·edited Apr 14, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
This is my intuition which I hope, really hope, is wrong. There will be a mighty fight in November. Many of us will hustle up voters, make our contributions, scream on every forum we have time for.
But while I am surrounded by like minded people, when we spend time together, the conversations are almost never about politics. Even the war crimes of Russia are breezed over. People have become numb - that "fire hose" has drowned them. I might bring up the Kushner corruption issue and get complete agreement. And then it's back to talk of incredible grandchildren or how to pay for the child care when school gets out or how to find a car to buy because there are none available that aren't way over priced or Wordle...
I fear that it is human nature to ignore the peril. Talk of the Supreme Court and their anti Federal Government decisions - without hearing arguments or facts! - just causes people to snooze. Not because they don't care. But because they can't handle it. Steve Bannons tactic of "flooding the zone with shit" is working.
I fear that the only way America can find it's way back to the dreams of the founders is the path of it getting worse and worse. There is a new "silent majority" that is overwhelmed with daily life and just surviving child rearing and working around the clock. "Wait a second, this is my boss..it will only take a minute." It may take personal impacts or an outrage that breaks through the numbness. I don't know what that will be.
I fear that we don't have enough angry, motivated voters who will show up. I fear that "we" are not frightened enough. I hope I am wrong. I want to be wrong. It happens all the time. But this time, I want to be supremely wrong. Maybe I will be pleasantly shocked when a sleeping silent majority rejects the madness of Abbott, DeSantis, et al.
And now, I must pen another vehement note to our Senators about expanding the Supreme Court.
Apr 14, 2022·edited Apr 14, 2022Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
A small point to consider for those unacquainted with how managers of “investment funds” such as this one of Jerod Kushner are compensated. We already know, according to the N.Y. Times reporting that this deal provides for a 1.25% asset management fee. For reference that compares with a more typical 1.0 % asset management fee such as Menuchin is receiving on the similar Saudi investment in his new fund. We can expect that the deal also provides for what is referred to as a carry on top of that on returns in excess of some agreed target return. We have no details on that but can assume it provides for significant additional upside for Kushner. Now let's see 1.25% times $2 billion is... Oh my! ... $25 million and that is an annual fee. Though Kushner may have to share that with whoever ultimately “helps” him manage these investments one can assume he will get a healthy chunk of that. Not bad for someone with zero experience managing an investment fund and no demonstrated talent for doing that or frankly much else.
Robert, you have noted a number of times that there is a pro-Putin (or is it Putemkin?) wing of the Republican Party. But the whole party is following Putin’s lead, and will reap the same “reward.” Why are the Russians performing so abysmally in Ukraine? Largely, because corruption and cronyism have undermined the Russian military and intelligence services, and Putin is living in a hermetically-sealed bubble as part and parcel of that. And Republicans are doing the same. They are sealing themselves off from the reality that most Americans believe that a woman should have control of her own body, that we need fewer guns out there—and need to keep themselves out of the hands of the crazies—, that climate change is real and threatening, and that the Supreme Court must not be captive to one party. Right now it may look like they are riding high, but that was true of Russia on February 24th. So we need to expose Republicans as the corrupt, authoritarian and all too often bigoted charlatans they are. We need to be like the Ukrainians, and to fight just as hard for our nation as they are for theirs.
Excellent point about the panicky money requests from Democratic fundraisers! They are an insult to our intelligence and terribly counterproductive in that they actually reinforce the Republican narrative about the likely results of the 2022 midterm elections.
Last night I heard on CNN that two Russian owned radio stations are located in the United States, one in Washington D C. They are broadcasting Russian propaganda. Americans are spreading Russian propaganda. A representative from the FCC said that they can’t do anything about it because of the right of free speech. But we can do something! These two Sputnik radio stations are owned by Russians. Our government can seize them because they are Russian owned like the mansions and yachts. To me having Russian owned radio stations spewing Russian propaganda in the US by American broadcasters is treason. They should be seized and shut down!
Robert I agree Dems need to make more noise about Supreme Ct, Kishner, etc etc but how? We read, @listen to podcasts. write postcards, talk, register voters thru the.LWV. But these tactics aren’t loud enough. I feel like I am living in an echo chamber which is getting smaller and smaller. Any suggestions?
You are so right, Robert. We do have to decide what America we want to live in. I want to live in an America where these far right politicians are thrown out of office for good!
I agree that we must expand the Supreme Court to rectify the mistakes of allowing the confirmations of zJustice Kavannaugh and Justice Amy Coney Barrett. The Republicans had no right to appoint either one of them. Those should have been Democrat appointments. Also, Justice Thomas should be impeached.
Morning! I copied the first story of your newsletter and sent it to both of my Senators. Good advice for them! Thank you for the information and encouragement!
More on the Supreme Court from Heather Cox Richardson's substack today: "On April 6, five Supreme Court justices agreed to reinstate a Trump-era rule that limits the ability of states to block projects that pollute their rivers and streams. The court did so under the so-called “shadow docket,” a form of decision previously used to address emergencies, in which the court makes a decision without arguments or written explanations. Last week, Chief Justice John Roberts indicated just how far off the rails the current Supreme Court has slid when he joined the dissent against the majority’s decision out of concern for the use of this shadow docket as a way to hand down unbriefed and unexplained decisions."
Thank you to fellow readers who have called out those "panic-inducing Democratic fundraising emails." In addition to the e-mails, I receive nearly daily texts purporting to be from "Joe," "Kamala," "Jill," or "Doug" and asking me to "chip in $10" to meet the next purported (and always imminent) fundraising deadline. I wonder if people on the DNC (which I believe is the source of these texts) have ever considered how it demeans politics, politicians, and voters to engage in this nonstop begging under the absurd pretext that "Joe" and "Kamala" are our pals, not our elected leaders.
Last night I found the first indication of the ridiculously gerrymandered map that DeSantis proposed. My hair caught on fire. Not only does it now have 20-8 Republican seats, it slices Charlie Crist's current district and moves the bulk of it southward, going from +1 Republican (which is competitive and voted solidly blue, electing Crist) to Republican +14. Here is a useful interactive map. You can choose between "old map" and "proposed map" then hover over each district to see how it changes. It is unbelievable and Marc Elias has already said he is going to challenge it in court. https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/redistricting-2022-maps/florida/P000C0094/
After I finished reading todays Edition I thought about the various Republican initiated activities in Florida, Texas, Mississippi and Wisconsin to name a few states that were designed to engage a Trump fueled base and to gather media attention. Add to that the way the Supreme Court is making decisions that vastly impact our lives and it feels like nothing meaningful is being done about it. There is no Democratic answer back to any of these activities or a counterpoint activity to contrast and compare what is happening. I never read about voters in Florida or Texas pushing back and calling out their Governors behaviors as well as the Republican state legislators who support these laws. When does the Democratic Party across the board both nationally and locally stand up to be heard. Patriots in Ukraine are standing up and being heard and we need to do the same.
It seems to be impossible to get off these horrible hysterical political contribution mailing lists. I even wonder if some are russian spam operations. Ngpvan is the worst. They will not remove you from their list, presumably because their profit is in selling your name. You can only unsubscribe individually (that works, but it IS work). They resell to every (democratic?) candidate in the country. In the last election cycle i made the mistake of contributing to several candidates in different states, and this is the punishment. As a result i have contributed nothing so far. I am investigating a Swing Left initiative called Blueprint, that will advise and consolidate your contributions into an anonymous fund. Any other suggestions welcome!
If the Republicans wish to return to yesteryear, how about remembering those days when few were allowed to own or carry guns. Let’s erase the damage the NRA has done in the past 30 years.
Yes, I too received that "Pelosi email" on 4/12/22 and am quite unhappy with that email and others that are sent from the DCCC. All the DCCC emails make me feel like they are hysterically screaming at me. "Donate! Or we're doomed!" I unsubscribed from the list, which did direct me to DCCC.org and I was also asked why I am unsubscribing. I left my comment with my sentiments on this situation similar to what you have mentioned Robert. Perhaps if half a gazillion others would do the same, the DCCC might get the message? Now I am on to Tweet to @DCCC with the same complaint. This is ongoing proof that Democrats are not getting their messaging right. They need to quickly get that turned around, if we are to maintain the House and Senate.
Robert Hubbell does not pose a rhetorical question. The upcoming election will present a definitive and dramatic choice between a strengthened democracy vs. a dangerous slide to autocracy. The Republican Party has made this an existential choice, and everyone must heed Robert's imprecations to find an active, local role to play in defeating those who wish to reduce and ultimately eliminate our freedoms.
This is my intuition which I hope, really hope, is wrong. There will be a mighty fight in November. Many of us will hustle up voters, make our contributions, scream on every forum we have time for.
But while I am surrounded by like minded people, when we spend time together, the conversations are almost never about politics. Even the war crimes of Russia are breezed over. People have become numb - that "fire hose" has drowned them. I might bring up the Kushner corruption issue and get complete agreement. And then it's back to talk of incredible grandchildren or how to pay for the child care when school gets out or how to find a car to buy because there are none available that aren't way over priced or Wordle...
I fear that it is human nature to ignore the peril. Talk of the Supreme Court and their anti Federal Government decisions - without hearing arguments or facts! - just causes people to snooze. Not because they don't care. But because they can't handle it. Steve Bannons tactic of "flooding the zone with shit" is working.
I fear that the only way America can find it's way back to the dreams of the founders is the path of it getting worse and worse. There is a new "silent majority" that is overwhelmed with daily life and just surviving child rearing and working around the clock. "Wait a second, this is my boss..it will only take a minute." It may take personal impacts or an outrage that breaks through the numbness. I don't know what that will be.
I fear that we don't have enough angry, motivated voters who will show up. I fear that "we" are not frightened enough. I hope I am wrong. I want to be wrong. It happens all the time. But this time, I want to be supremely wrong. Maybe I will be pleasantly shocked when a sleeping silent majority rejects the madness of Abbott, DeSantis, et al.
And now, I must pen another vehement note to our Senators about expanding the Supreme Court.
A small point to consider for those unacquainted with how managers of “investment funds” such as this one of Jerod Kushner are compensated. We already know, according to the N.Y. Times reporting that this deal provides for a 1.25% asset management fee. For reference that compares with a more typical 1.0 % asset management fee such as Menuchin is receiving on the similar Saudi investment in his new fund. We can expect that the deal also provides for what is referred to as a carry on top of that on returns in excess of some agreed target return. We have no details on that but can assume it provides for significant additional upside for Kushner. Now let's see 1.25% times $2 billion is... Oh my! ... $25 million and that is an annual fee. Though Kushner may have to share that with whoever ultimately “helps” him manage these investments one can assume he will get a healthy chunk of that. Not bad for someone with zero experience managing an investment fund and no demonstrated talent for doing that or frankly much else.
Nice work if you can find it.
Robert, you have noted a number of times that there is a pro-Putin (or is it Putemkin?) wing of the Republican Party. But the whole party is following Putin’s lead, and will reap the same “reward.” Why are the Russians performing so abysmally in Ukraine? Largely, because corruption and cronyism have undermined the Russian military and intelligence services, and Putin is living in a hermetically-sealed bubble as part and parcel of that. And Republicans are doing the same. They are sealing themselves off from the reality that most Americans believe that a woman should have control of her own body, that we need fewer guns out there—and need to keep themselves out of the hands of the crazies—, that climate change is real and threatening, and that the Supreme Court must not be captive to one party. Right now it may look like they are riding high, but that was true of Russia on February 24th. So we need to expose Republicans as the corrupt, authoritarian and all too often bigoted charlatans they are. We need to be like the Ukrainians, and to fight just as hard for our nation as they are for theirs.
Oh, and What about Jared?
Excellent point about the panicky money requests from Democratic fundraisers! They are an insult to our intelligence and terribly counterproductive in that they actually reinforce the Republican narrative about the likely results of the 2022 midterm elections.
Last night I heard on CNN that two Russian owned radio stations are located in the United States, one in Washington D C. They are broadcasting Russian propaganda. Americans are spreading Russian propaganda. A representative from the FCC said that they can’t do anything about it because of the right of free speech. But we can do something! These two Sputnik radio stations are owned by Russians. Our government can seize them because they are Russian owned like the mansions and yachts. To me having Russian owned radio stations spewing Russian propaganda in the US by American broadcasters is treason. They should be seized and shut down!
Robert I agree Dems need to make more noise about Supreme Ct, Kishner, etc etc but how? We read, @listen to podcasts. write postcards, talk, register voters thru the.LWV. But these tactics aren’t loud enough. I feel like I am living in an echo chamber which is getting smaller and smaller. Any suggestions?
You are so right, Robert. We do have to decide what America we want to live in. I want to live in an America where these far right politicians are thrown out of office for good!
I agree that we must expand the Supreme Court to rectify the mistakes of allowing the confirmations of zJustice Kavannaugh and Justice Amy Coney Barrett. The Republicans had no right to appoint either one of them. Those should have been Democrat appointments. Also, Justice Thomas should be impeached.
Morning! I copied the first story of your newsletter and sent it to both of my Senators. Good advice for them! Thank you for the information and encouragement!
More on the Supreme Court from Heather Cox Richardson's substack today: "On April 6, five Supreme Court justices agreed to reinstate a Trump-era rule that limits the ability of states to block projects that pollute their rivers and streams. The court did so under the so-called “shadow docket,” a form of decision previously used to address emergencies, in which the court makes a decision without arguments or written explanations. Last week, Chief Justice John Roberts indicated just how far off the rails the current Supreme Court has slid when he joined the dissent against the majority’s decision out of concern for the use of this shadow docket as a way to hand down unbriefed and unexplained decisions."
Thank you to fellow readers who have called out those "panic-inducing Democratic fundraising emails." In addition to the e-mails, I receive nearly daily texts purporting to be from "Joe," "Kamala," "Jill," or "Doug" and asking me to "chip in $10" to meet the next purported (and always imminent) fundraising deadline. I wonder if people on the DNC (which I believe is the source of these texts) have ever considered how it demeans politics, politicians, and voters to engage in this nonstop begging under the absurd pretext that "Joe" and "Kamala" are our pals, not our elected leaders.
Last night I found the first indication of the ridiculously gerrymandered map that DeSantis proposed. My hair caught on fire. Not only does it now have 20-8 Republican seats, it slices Charlie Crist's current district and moves the bulk of it southward, going from +1 Republican (which is competitive and voted solidly blue, electing Crist) to Republican +14. Here is a useful interactive map. You can choose between "old map" and "proposed map" then hover over each district to see how it changes. It is unbelievable and Marc Elias has already said he is going to challenge it in court. https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/redistricting-2022-maps/florida/P000C0094/
After I finished reading todays Edition I thought about the various Republican initiated activities in Florida, Texas, Mississippi and Wisconsin to name a few states that were designed to engage a Trump fueled base and to gather media attention. Add to that the way the Supreme Court is making decisions that vastly impact our lives and it feels like nothing meaningful is being done about it. There is no Democratic answer back to any of these activities or a counterpoint activity to contrast and compare what is happening. I never read about voters in Florida or Texas pushing back and calling out their Governors behaviors as well as the Republican state legislators who support these laws. When does the Democratic Party across the board both nationally and locally stand up to be heard. Patriots in Ukraine are standing up and being heard and we need to do the same.