I’m not watching this nonsense, but here’s the CSPAN YouTube livestream if anyone’s interested:
Last clip I saw, Graham was meeping apologies at Kavanaugh for his daughters’ having to witness yesterday’s spectacle. Boo-to-the-fucking-hoo. At least Kavanaugh still has his complete complement of children, unlike the man whose hand he refused to shake yesterday.
Also, Senator Leahy may have scored some points in questioning Kavanaugh about emails Republicans jacked from Democrats during the Bush administration. I’d forgotten all about that.
LEAHY: "I'm concerned because there is evidence that Mr. Miranda provided you with materials that were stolen from me. And that would contradict your prior testimony… there is no reason [those emails] can't be made public." pic.twitter.com/lqMkJun42i
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 5, 2018
What it mainly demonstrates is that the Republicans are hiding documents that could be damaging to the nominee. We know that, but it doesn’t hurt to underscore it, and Leahy did so in somewhat dramatic, if lugubrious, fashion.
Anyway, my hope is that the Democrats continue to grill the bastard and that when it comes time to vote, they walk out as a group, citing the Republican stonewalling on releasing the records as the reason. It won’t prevent Kavanaugh from being seated — nothing but a Republican with a conscience can, and as we know, those creatures are extinct. But it’ll put a big fat fucking asterisk by Kavanaugh’s name, and it’ll make me feel better.
Belafon
I’m hoping h ewill be asked why his massive credit card debt was suddenly paid off, and why his reasoning sounds just like Manaforts.
NotMax
Granted, seeing the spineless slithering to lick boots is not a pleasant sight.
Certified Mutant Enemy
I initially read that as CPAIN….
satby
What about the woman sitting behind him yesterday flashing the white power sign? Has there been any follow up on that in the media at all?
patrick II
Cruz apologized for the same thing yesterday. Maybe if they want to fix that they should get a different father.
I am wondering how much Kavanaugh was concerned about Chelsea Clinton when he made up that list of sexually embarrassing questions during the Clinton interrogation.
Ladyraxterinok
Is release of Woodward book meant to divert from info coming out from Kavenaugh hearing? Book appears to confirm rumors about Trump and WH. But specifics about concealment of documents and his opinions, treatment of grieving father, etc, are easily lost in m$m coverage of a book by one of their own.
Betty Cracker
@patrick II: Excellent point. Someone should make the son of a bitch read that into the record.
JPL
OT From the Washington Post
He’s going after google, just like the boss wanted.
Major Major Major Major
@Certified Mutant Enemy: worst rapper ever.
@JPL: That sounds more like a “Trump’s minions pretending to do something until Trump forgets he asked” meeting to me.
Mary G
I want to watch, but I can’t. I am writing postcards to everyone who might be swayed, and have to get them in the mail today.
hueyplong
It is almost as though these GOPers got texts last night saying “Not servile enough.”
And for some reason they feel compelled to ask “How low?” as Trump pleasures himself at the spectacle.
Steeplejack
Trump’s latest signing.
Leto
@satby: Wasn’t Condoleezza Rice sitting behind him yesterday? Over his left shoulder (right shoulder for TV viewers). I saw a brief clip of his hearing and I could’ve sworn that was her. Idk about the WP signs though…
satby
Before Rice was sitting there this chick was.
Kind of hard to have your hand fall that way accidentally.
West of the Rockies
That asterisk may make you feel better. And it is my fervent hope that it makes Kavanaugh and his enablers feel worse, diminished, and like imposters. Oh, I know such feelings would be buried under layers of privilege and underserved self-esteem, but it would be there like a phantom itch, a faint odor. May it be so.
Omnes Omnibus
@satby: According to the ADL, she was born in Mexico and her grandparents were Holocaust survivors. They doubt she was throwing white supremacy signs.
Brachiator
I also will take a pass.
@Ladyraxterinok:
Doubt it. It’s not like there’s a lot of information coming out of these hearings.
germy
@satby: She was sitting quietly. Then she got a text message. After she read the text, she smirked and made the “OK” sign, and held it for 15 minutes. While she did this, her eyes kept darting sideways to see herself on a monitor.
My theory is she got a text from Stephen Miller or someone like him to say “You’re on tee-vee! Troll the libs, they’re sad!”
Her husband is outraged by the accusation, of course. “We didn’t even know about that gesture!” And then someone found a photo of him posing with some gun guys, and they’re all making the sign.
zmulls
“Republican with a conscience…”
…heh….good one…
Omnes Omnibus
@Ladyraxterinok: Book releases are planned long in advance.
Leto
I expect Cheryl or Adam to chime in/post about this:
Salisbury poisonings: police name two Russian suspects
CPS says there is enough evidence to charge Alexander Petrov and Ruslan Boshirov over Wiltshire novichok poisonings
They basically tracked their every move from the time they left the plane, until the time they departed back to Russia.
NotMax
FYI.
TenguPhule
Or a well timed car accident.
/Just saying
Shell
This isnt ‘Bring Your Daughters To Work’ day. Why are they even there?
Shell
Didnt a BJer, I think greg, post about finding a newborn kitten. Did he have any follow-up on the little thing?
germy
@Shell:
It’s part of the sales job. They’re trying to sell him to us as a wonderful family man with a beautiful family. So normal in every way!
satby
@Shell: I was wondering that myself! Updates please geg?
Kay
Guffaw.
People who widen their eyes like he does are, imo, often lying.
Shakti
What, if anything, can we as citizens do to stop this? Seriously…
My senator is Rubio, who is fucking stupid and not up for reelection this midterm so I can’t even vote him out. I don’t know what’s going on with Bill Nelson who is tied in polls with our creepy ass governor, Rick Scott.
In the Democratic primary on the 28th in Florida, I voted even though the roads near my polling place were flooded out.
But the midterms are in November, and this is now and Schumer is a feckless piece of crap (let’s let Trump confirm lower level judges!), and also not my rep. McConnell is straight evil and also not my rep. Feh. This won’t stop (and even then, knowing Pelosi) unless both Houses flip. A failed impeachment will do nothing.
Anything to give me a reason to do anything beyond voting or calling my reps?
GOTV and Election Protection are actually more dangerous for me than they used to be in the past (y’all know why.) I have stories from doing the Census… :/
Betty Cracker
@Leto & @NotMax: If our president wasn’t a Russian stooge, maybe he’d get together with the UK and EU and freeze accounts and seize real estate belonging to anyone affiliated with Putin. That would really put a hurting on the Putin regime because people in the circle of oligarchs that helps keep the whole repressive sham afloat like to travel abroad and educate (and sometimes birth) their children in the West. But Trump is a Russian stooge, so that won’t happen.
germy
@NotMax:
Jesus! Somebody warn the Trivago guy…
Yutsano
@germy: Where did you get all that juicy info?
Kay
@Shakti:
Nothing, IMO, but all the Democrats should object constantly and march out en masse after questioning because it sucks.
It’s awful. No way to sugar coat it.
However, the polls look very good for Democrats and we have some really good candidates and some weird (and positive) upsets are happening in these races. It’s a good midterm. For us. The governors alone could be a very positive force.
TenguPhule
@satby: It died.
Mandalay
@NotMax:
If you want to see Lindsey Graham licking boots check out this tweet of his from last week, but have a bucket ready to catch your puke.
Lindsey Graham is now beyond insults. He’s just completely lost the plot.
Roger Moore
@Omnes Omnibus:
Being the descendant of Holocaust survivors hasn’t stopped Stephen Miller from being racist AF.
hueyplong
Sorry to say it was posted that the kitty didn’t make it
Omnes Omnibus
@Roger Moore: That is true. I was just passing along the ADL take.
NotMax
@Betty Cracker
But then who would cough up the cash to buy all those overpriced apartments? //
Kay
Our local base is QUITE fired up. I get emails :)
I love “would be a time to do some canvassing”. It’s such a polite and measured reaction! :)
MIGHT be time to saunter on over and grab that fire extinguisher, in a very calm fashion so as not to alarm anyone.
TenguPhule
@Mandalay:
Challenge accepted.
Leto
@Betty Cracker: Widen that circle. Seems like too many R’s are up to their blowholes in the shchi too.
Here’s some more issues Dems can run on (they have, but keep it front and center): Teacher pay drops 5% in last decade – despite better qualified staff New report shows teacher pay is declining, even as more educators have master’s degrees and doctorates
Roger Moore
@Omnes Omnibus:
The ADL does some good work, but they have a deep bias against admitting that Jewish people can be just as prejudiced as anyone else.
EZSmirkzz
What we are witnessing YA, outside the conspiracy of theorist hereafter known as anyone not tie dyed in the wool of Trump, Is a long sitting United States Senator accusing a potential Supreme Court Justice of perjury in a previous confirmation hearing. Full stop. Forget the partisan politics and forget the ideology. This is a full stop assertion.
I’m so old I can remember comparing Nixon and Harding administration’s corruption. Forget Iran-Contra or Ollie North in uniform perjuring himself in Congress. We are talking about an individual that will umpire and interpret the fundamental law of the United States, and Grassly is actively blocking access to information that would clear the nominee of that assertion of perjury. Think about it. Grassly will not release the documents that would clear Kavanaugh’s name and reputation with the public or the committee. In doing so, he is impugning the honor and dignity of not only every Republican on the committee, but the Senate of the United States, and the honor and dignity of the United States as a nation of laws, and honest men and women.
We are witnessing the fall of the Republic, at the hands of the very people who most vocally espouse its’ greatness, and are the most insistent about others being obeisant to the idolatry of their patriotism.
Betty Cracker
Oof!
EZSmirkzz
Pie that MFs
TenguPhule
@EZSmirkzz:
That horse left the barn around Nixon. Only the head was sent back.
Steeplejack
@Shell:
Geg6 (female) obtained a newborn-kitty kit somewhere and got the kitten eating, pooping and peeing successfully. That was the last I heard.
TenguPhule
@Betty Cracker: Nice work around the Senate rules which prevent them from directly insulting another Senator.
Mandalay
@Shakti:
I am starting to fear the worst for Nelson; he’s a competent senator who doesn’t seem to possess the necessary lack of decency for campaigning these days. It’s Mr. Rogers vs. the spawn of satan.
TenguPhule
@Steeplejack: Geg6 posted yesterday that it didn’t make it. Sorry.
TenguPhule
Trump suggests that protesting should be illegal
You’d think with all of the bananas popping out of DC, somebody would start putting two and two together.
oldgold
if Leahy had a little more left of his fastball, this might have been much more effective.
Watching Leahy and Grassley trying to interact was damn painful. In no other line of work do you allow individuals of this age to run things.
TenguPhule
From the hearing. He’s a fucking shithole.
Kay
@EZSmirkzz:
It IS kind of wild now that you point it out. I may have been naive but I assumed I would oppose K. ideologically but I never dreamed he’d be this dirty. There are real ethical issues with this guy. To put him up in this environment is a little crazy.
They can’t seem to find a Trump appointee who is honest. I’m not even asking for “qualified”- just find one who doesn’t lie constantly and have this sleazy trail ‘o deceit.
Leto
Apparently we can add public school teacher to ever growing list of immigrant jobs (i.e. jobs real ‘Muricans don’t want to do):
The job Americans won’t take: Arizona looks to Philippines to fill teacher shortage
This reminds me so much of the TCNs (third country nationals) who I would supervise on military bases overseas (middle east countries). They’re basically sending all of their money home to support families, while living transient lives here. Glad to see we’re utilizing that economic model here.
Martin
Leahy’s suggestion here is a bit more damning than just some embarrassing emails. If we read his suggestion correctly, the emails would confirm that Kavanaugh was knowingly in receipt of stolen material. That’s more than embarrassing, that’s a crime.
TenguPhule
The fix is in. I don’t think there’s going to be a peaceful resolution after all.
Brachiator
@Leto:
I guess all those coal mining jobs Trump brought back is responsible for the shortage of teachers. Who knew?
TenguPhule
@Kay:
Haven’t even gotten to him lying about not being involved in the Bush Torture policy yet.
Major Major Major Major
@TenguPhule:
You phrase this as though it’s a recent development in your thinking.
TenguPhule
This is a fucking farce.
EZSmirkzz
@Kay: We are at the mercy of the honor of the Republican Senators sitting on the committee, See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse–
God save the Republic.
Kay
@Martin:
I think it’s a big deal for an ordinary lawyer, let alone that particular lawyer. I can’t imagine it ending with the question, but we’re in TrumpWorld now where the rules don’t apply to Trumpsters so who knows.
satby
@TenguPhule: Oh, too bad.
Spanky
@TenguPhule: Do try and contain your glee.
TenguPhule
@Major Major Major Major: I had hopes that the Mueller investigation would serve as the last line of defense for the Republic’s rule of law.
Rule of law is about to be bumped off for good.
trollhattan
@germy:
Classic, just classic.
Steeplejack
@germy:
Hold on a minute! If he goes, maybe we get the cute Aussie woman back. Just sayin’.
HeleninEire
“At least Kavanaugh has the complete complement of children…” @Betty at top.
Oh SNAP, girl. To the nth degree.
TenguPhule
Breaking at Wapo. ISIS in Iraq is gonna have a field day with this.
Kay
@EZSmirkzz:
Trump’s tanking in polling though and there’s real erosion among even the people who voted for him. Everyone is pointing to the numbers with white men as some kind of backstop but Republicans traditionally have an advantage with white men. Trump’s has to be higher than what they always get.
Once it starts to slide like that it’s hard to stop. He hasn’t hit bottom. Obama went low but there was always a really resilient floor where it screeched to a halt. Trump might not have a solid floor. It’s still dropping. That has to concern them.
All of the unpredictableness of Trump’s win also operates in the other direction. It could genuinely collapse and they wouldn’t see it coming any more than they saw the win coming.
Litlebritdifrnt
Totally OT bt could one of the Front Pagers post this because it is way cool. Two Lancaster University (yay!) students win the Dyson award for a small spinning turbine that could revolutionize the way wind energy is captured and used.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/sep/05/groundbreaking-spinning-wind-turbine-wins-uk-dyson-award
JPL
Roll Call is saying that Duncan Hunter used campaign funds on five woman. Kinda hard to blame that on your wife.
https://twitter.com/MEPFuller/status/1037400973415776257
Leto
@Brachiator:
This is just a sample from my upcoming country/spoken word poetry album, “Leaves of MAGA”. Ironically sold in your local hipster coffee house.
trollhattan
@germy:
Evidently the stuff has a shelf life of years, which is just frickin’ great considering it’s effectively clear and odorless (as recently packaged and delivered).
Kay
@EZSmirkzz:
And that’s WITH a good economy and full employment. In the 30’s. Is that a first? I don’t think I’ve seen that in my adult life.
He better be praying the economy doesn’t hit a bump. He’s really unpopular even when it’s good. It stutters and he hits 20’s.
JaneE
Yesterday what little Kavanaugh said sounded just like what you would want a judge to be. Rule of law and all that. Today we get a little more specific and he sounds just like a weasel, doing his damnedest to avoid answering questions and taking up a long time to do it – if the questioner is a Democrat. Not surprising, but I hope anyone capable of being swayed is watching and seeing what a dodgy character the GOP wants on the SC.
rikyrah
@Omnes Omnibus:
One name:
Clarence Thomas
Slave catchers come in all boxes.
Stephen Miller’s family escaped the Holocaust, and he’s the architect of Make America White Again
West of the Rockies
@germy:
Yes, but let’s NOT warn the Baddabook-Baddaboom guy.
Kay
@Litlebritdifrnt:
We have so many people working in the wind turbine industry – if that is in fact what it is called :)
It just occurred to me the other day that this has become a bona fide job category in this area now- we have a lot of the turbines in like a 300 mile radius. It’s so funny how it sneaks up on you- becomes normal.
TenguPhule
@JPL: Every accusation was a confession.
Kay
@JaneE:
The refusal of judges to answer questions is particularly grating to me because they ASK so many questions in their work, and people are compelled to answer. It bothers me that they don’t feel this applies to them. Arrogant.
Answer the question. That’s what they would direct some poor soul who was in front of them to do. Should apply to them too.
the Conster
@satby:
yes – the white men in media are all denying it’s a white power sign, including Chris Broseph Hayes.
trollhattan
@JPL:
If he’s not careful Hunter will become Donny’s new favorite politician. Birds of a feather.
TenguPhule
@Kay:
Sadly, the Trump implosion of 2019 will be blamed on the Democrats by Trump’s supporters.
He has successfully inoculated them from reality.
Emma
@TenguPhule: Who cares what they think? If we can manage to pull off a majority coalition, they will have to come along. They aren’t to be considered in our plans.
The Moar You Know
@TenguPhule: So is marijuana, let’s tell Jeff Sessions it can’t be banned either.
What an utter crock of shit this guy is proving to be.
EZSmirkzz
@Kay: Well that’s political, not existential. Republics don’t fall because of economies, they fall because the rot eats away the structure until the facade falls. Republics rot because the people grow complacent and the elected start pursuing personal instead of public interests. All of that is now playing out in a public display by the committee. It can’t be covered with the blanket of ideology or partisanship. The structure of the United States is either rotted or it is not. The ball is in the GOP’s court.
TenguPhule
@Emma:
They won’t. They will dig in and repeat what they did in 2009, fight every measure to help the economy and the people tooth and nail. And there will be lots of outside pressure to try to compromise. Whether our party leaders remember what happened last time and have learned remains to be seen.
Major Major Major Major
@the Conster: Here is my convenient summary of what the “OK” hand sign means, from yesterday.
Leto
@Kay: I figured the precedent was set when AG Sessions essentially did this during his AG confirmation hearing. Just ran out the clock while doing circular talking points, never answering the question. You’re correct in that it’s infuriating as hell.
TenguPhule
@EZSmirkzz:
Economic collapse is the earthquake which tests the foundations.
Roger Moore
@Kay:
I want to believe this, but I’ll remain skeptical until it happens. If you look at the 538 polling average, Trump was below his current mark for most of the second half of 2017, and his nadir was about 2 points lower than he is currently. It may be that we’ve hit some kind of break point and his popularity is going to keep declining to previously unseen depths, but it sure isn’t obvious from the numbers.
That said, the recent drop in his numbers is real and potentially important. It looks as if he’s been dragging the party down with him, because 538’s chances for a Democratic takeover of the House have gone up at the same time as Trump’s numbers have been going down. If he drops to something close to his previous low and takes the party down with him, the Democrats are very likely to retake the House- and we all know what that’s going to mean in terms of investigating his wrongdoing.
HeleninEire
@rikyrah: Yup. And a Thank you to you. I am embarrassed to say that when you first used it, I did not know the definition of “slave catcher.” Now I do.
geg6
@Shell:
That was me. Despite taking care of her over the weekend and her drinking from a bottle, peeing and pooping, she didn’t make it. We didn’t even have time to take her to a vet. I’m guessing she had something wrong with her and that is probably why she was abandoned. It was sad, but I’m glad we could at least make her comfortable for her last few days and hours. Poor sweet little kitty.
Kay
I feel like Dems are going in a different direction than I thought they would. They’re portraying him as a partisan hack rather than a principled, but wrong, ideologue.
It’s interesting. Hey, they know more about him than we do so maybe that’s the vulnerability. That he was a GOP operative more than a judge. It seems like a worthwhile line of attack because it gets past the “well, of course he’s far Right!” and into “dishonorable” territory.
geg6
@satby:
See #96 below.
geg6
@geg6:
Hah! I meant “above” not “below”.
geg6
It’s not feckless if there’s nothing he can do to stop it.
Can people just stop with this shit? Democrats can’t stop this or any other judicial nomination. They might be able to slow it down by a day or two, but it’s going to happen unless two Republicans decide differently.
Kay
@Roger Moore:
I can’t tell anything from Trump supporters here. There were a lot of them. You never hear a peep out of them these days. Even the crazily anti-immigrant guy who wrote weekly letters to the editor has gone silent.
TenguPhule
@Kay:
Because that’s what he is. He may get in, but not wearing any masks. He will be buck naked and everyone is going to know exactly what he looks like.
Aleta
@geg6: It’s good to know she had your touch and warmth and that she felt a response to her needs. Thank you.
catclub
@Litlebritdifrnt: after i learned that power from wind turbines goes as some large power of the collection radius,
it means the gigantic wind turbines are the way to go. Not sure where the little ones they show will fit in.
Omnes Omnibus
@geg6: Thank you.
rikyrah
@JPL:
FIVE?
FIVE?
BWA HA AH HA HA HA HA
Kay
@Leto:
I wonder sometimes about the Trump/Sessions fight. What if that’s bullshit and Trump wants him in there because he’s corrupt but also wants to pretend there’s “tough oversight”?
They’re not that smart, are they? I just am wary of things that appear to be planted in the NYTimes.
catclub
@geg6: Yep, Collins, Murkowski, Flake and Corker are the reasons this guy gets in the SC
Emma
@TenguPhule: “They will have to come along” speaks to be inevitability of a majority taking over. They will kick and scream and fling poo but the law will be the law.
zhena gogolia
@geg6:
Thank you for trying. I’m sorry she didn’t make it.
Kay
@Leto:
They do that here when they appoint a special prosecutor. The prosecutor picks the special prosecutor and they always whine that the special is just so tough but if you know them you’re like “yeah, Ryan is really scary- you betcha”
It’s an act. They pick a marshmallow. Deliberately.
joel hanes
@TenguPhule:
Ed at Gin And Tacos has the best piece I’ve seen yet about this ongoing atrocity :
http://www.ginandtacos.com/2018/09/04/post-hoc/
Omnes Omnibus
@Omnes Omnibus: Unnecessarily slagging Dems is a really bad habit. Right now, they are doing what they can with the tools available to them. Let’s give them a majority and see they do then.
HeleninEire
@geg6: Thank you.
debit
@geg6: As others have said, thank you for trying. You made her last hours safe and as comfortable as you could make them. Poor little kitty.
JPL
@trollhattan:
The San Diego paper said that the evangelicals overlook these indiscretions, because they just want to screw the rest of us. Okay it didn’t say that, it said they want results.
rikyrah
@geg6:
SO sorry. :( :(
rikyrah
@Kay:
90% of his public service work papers ARE BEING HIDDEN, KAY.
90%!!
JPL
@The Moar You Know: He also said they use it for AR-15’s for hunting.
Aleta
Swamp Chronicles: Where Will the Trump Investigations Go Next? by Adam Davidson at the NYer
Repatriated
The “partisan hack” angle seems an unlikely one, since the proceedings here are already a blatant partisan exercise of power. However, if it can be made to threaten the “moderate” creds of two GOP Senators (especially as by now “not-moderate” equals Trump and that brand has passed it’s sell-by date) it could succeed.
In any event, it enables and justifies similar partisan remediation when the Dems regain power.
geg6
@Roger Moore:
Completely anecdotal, but I can say that there have only been two Cheetolini fans that I have stayed in touch with since 2016 (all the rest are dead to me). And I can say that both are now voicing regret in their votes. Now, this may be because their wives/girlfriends are some of my best friends and they’ve been badgering them for two straight years (a divorce was really, truly threatened) and the men have finally admitted their sins.
But, although I am surrounded by them, I don’t interact intentionally with any other Trumpers. And the guy down the road who has had a Trump sign wired to his porch railings (when he had it in the yard, it was vandalized numerous times) hasn’t taken the sign down. Conversely, the idiot who lives on the entry corner of her cul-de-sac who put up a flagpole flying a Trump flag for the past two years has taken down the flag. He has been flying nothing since earlier this summer. We don’t talk to him, so not sure why he took it down.
rikyrah
@Kay:
I don’t even care about their ‘ fight’. Don’t believe it because the KKKeebler Elf WILL NEVER QUIT. He can only be fired.
JPL
@geg6: That is sad news, but at least she had a few days of love.
TenguPhule
@Emma:
The law is whatever the SC majority decides it is.
Steeplejack
@Major Major Major Major:
That was pretty useful. Thanks for that. I sent it to my brother instead of getting bogged down in a long discussion.
Fair Economist
@Kay: There are two reasons for the approach to Kavanaugh, I think. First is that labeling him an ideolougue will bring supporters in, while nobody gets excited about defending a hack. Second is that there seem to be actual criminal actions being hidden (stolen info, perjury, bribery) and that is the kind of stuff that could actually force Republicans to oppose him.
geg6
Can I just say how much I hate no edit button?
rikyrah
@geg6:
raising hand in agreement.
Mary G
God, you couldn’t make this stuff up. NY Mag:
Lapassionara
@Kay: I think there is a good chance that he lied in his previous confirmation hearing, when he was selected for the DC circuit. If the Dems ever get enough power to obtain all his records, they may be able to prove that he lied, which would subject him to impeachment.
Also, if someone else paid off his credit card bill, then he might have an ethical issue, like Abe Fortas did.
debit
@geg6: And thank you for this. I feel like I say it until I’m blue in the face but some new chucklehead will pop in and spout off that the dems just aren’t trying hard enough. I’ll say it again – we’re in an abusive relationship that we can’t get out of. The only thing that’s going to help us is if the abuser is (literally or figuratively) handcuffed or locked up. And even then, that’s only until the next election. After all the bruises are healed and the bank account is healthy again, some asshole will decide to let the abuser have another chance.
Roger Moore
@Kay:
That seems like it has two big advantages:
1) It’s true. He really is a partisan hack. So are the other Republican-appointed judges on the Supreme Court. The elaborate judicial philosophies they pretend to follow are just a cover for their obvious partisanship. It’s about damn time the Democrats pointed this out.
2) It’s probably a more effective tactic, which is why the Republicans have been hiding their partisanship behind talk of judicial philosophy in the first place. Americans genuinely believe the Supreme Court is supposed to be beyond partisan concerns. We’re OK with the idea that judges bring their existing preconceptions and beliefs with them, but we genuinely don’t want them to be just an extension of the party system.
TenguPhule
@debit:
I understand that death of one party or the other is the inevitable outcome of this if permanent separation is not possible.
TenguPhule
@JPL:
Anyone who uses AR-15s for hunting should not be allowed to fire a gun.
eclare
@geg6: Agree 1000%
Steeplejack
@geg6:
Thank you for all that you did.
Betty Cracker
@geg6:
Nice passive construction, you naughty thing! :)
My sister vandalized a Trump sign while walking her dog in the predawn darkness on The Day After (11/9/2016), then agonized for a week that she’d been caught on video and would be arrested! You’d find that hilarious if you knew her — she’s the last person on earth you’d expect to do such a thing. She didn’t even plan it, was just walking by, saw the sign and fucked it up in a rage. Made me proud!
The Moar You Know
@geg6: Elections have serious consequences and there are still those of the liberal persuasion STILL don’t take them seriously. I got three knuckleheads on my Facebook feed, true libs all (really, known ’em for decades) who are still talking about boycotting any candidates endorsed by the DNC, because “corporate Dems have ruined America and bought us to this pass”, which is about as willful a misrepresentation of their own actions and the consequences thereof as anyone could make.
Again, like with the people who voted for Trump, I don’t know what you do with these people. They’re a literal danger to society.
The Moar You Know
@geg6: I’m not a big fan of people. I am a big fan of animals, and anyone who does what you did for that poor kitten is wonderful in my book. Thank you.
Leto
@Kay: Trumpov doesn’t want Sessions there and he’s expressed that in pretty plain fashion (via Tweets). He believes AG Holder provided cover for Obama for numerous “scandals” and, as the wanna-be mob boss, thought Sessions would do the same for him regarding everything else he would want to do, including making the “Russia thing” disappear. The fact that Sessions recused himself and the investigation has continued (driving deeper into his financials) is what’s going to force Trumpov to replace him. Sessions had one job: make the Russia investigation go away. He’s failed his one job.
tobie
@The Moar You Know: I’m on an Amtrak in NY passing through Ocasio-Cortez’s hometown in Westchester and I keep in getting ads for Cynthia Nixon, who intones earnestly, Healthcare is a human right. Who in a leadership role in the party is disputing this? The constant creation of strawmen among Justice Dems is driving me crazy. Anyhoo…it’s a pleasure to see Leahy, Durbin and Whitehouse giving Kavanaugh hell, even if it won’t move votes.
Bex
@geg6: Thank mew.
trollhattan
@geg6:
His pole done got broke.
He should go see a doctor.
smintheus
@Omnes Omnibus: That’s definitely a White Power gesture; just try it, you can’t make that accidentally.
I had some undergrads making that gesture all over Rome on a study abroad course last winter, not accidentally. My university decided to pretend it was no big deal…which is one reason I’m not going to be taking their students overseas again.
Shakti
@geg6:
I expect the minority party to gum up the works as much as possible. Seriously if you can’t even do that, and keep screaming about existential doom, how I can I even bother to do more than the bare minimum?
Schumer’s deal
A sudden deal made by Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer on a set of judicial nominees has made Democratic activists livid.
With Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation hearing looming next week, Schumer reached an agreement late Tuesday with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to fast-track the confirmations of 15 Trump-nominated judicial picks. Seven federal district court judges were confirmed that day, and eight were put on the docket for confirmation next week.
A Senate Democratic aide says that the majority of the nominees greenlit as part of this deal were uncontroversial anyway — and emphasizes that Schumer’s efforts enable Democrats to hit the campaign trail, giving red-state Democrats a few extra days in their home states before coming back for Sen. John McCain’s memorial services this week.
But Democratic activists aren’t buying it — and many were concerned that this move showed weakness, especially going into the high-stakes Kavanaugh hearing.
“Mitch McConnell is in the middle of stealing the federal courts for conservatives, and Democrats continue to bring a butter knife to a gunfight,” said Brian Fallon, the head of activist group Demand Justice, which is leading opposition efforts against Kavanaugh, in a statement. “Democrats should be resisting Trump’s judge picks at every turn, not agreeing to fast-track them, as happened this week. It is hard to think of a more pathetic surrender heading into the Kavanaugh hearings.”
As Vox’s Emily Stewart writes, a running tally by Bloomberg shows that McConnell has already confirmed 60 judges, including 33 district court judges, 26 appeals court judges, and Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. Earlier this year, the Trump administration was already far outpacing the number the Obama administration was able to confirm at the same point in his presidency.
And unlike the Supreme Court nomination — for which Democrats have very limited procedural levers to block Kavanaugh — there are options available for lawmakers to stymie some of the lower-court nominees, even if these tactics aren’t guaranteed to work.
He got nothing for it. But hey let’s ease Mitch McConnell’s long term damage so some senators have easier travel schedules. Schumer needs to step down from leadership because wtf he’ll roll over even with a Senate majority.
smintheus
@Shell: Kavanaugh brought his daughters as human shields. It didn’t work out; they were traumatized to witness their daddy’s young acolyte making White Power hand gestures on national TV.
debit
@Shakti: I am so sick of this shit. Some of those appointees were nominated by Obama. At least he got SOMETHING, other than a shiv in the back from the people who are supposed to support him. Jesus fucking christ.
J R in WV
@Brachiator:
Seriously, when I was a kid in school, 1955-68, many or most male teachers would work in the mines from the day school let out until the day it started back up. Of course, that was the boom time of coal mining, strong union contract, good benefits, high wages, high demand for workers. Now that’s a joke, really. No benefits, long hours at $25 odd an hour, but 72+ hours a week.
debit
@Shakti: And also, fuck you. Fuck all of you who would rather rip our side down than try to offer support or look beyond a fucking headline. Keep it up so we can all enjoy Trump’s second term.
J R in WV
@rikyrah:
Well, yeah, but now Miller thinks his family is actually white, right? So no big~!!~
Shakti
@debit:
And what, pray fucking tell, have you done?
Since 2016 or even before that?
I’m curious, since you don’t think “going through floodwaters to vote in a primary” is not support.
J R in WV
@Roger Moore:
Regarding Kavanaugh and the other Republican “judges” and “justices” recently appointed and your remarks, I agree about the naked partisanship!
They aren’t just Partisan hacks. They’re crooked and ignore all the judicial cannons. They don’t recuse themselves as needed: Clarance decided cases when his wife worked to support one side of that case. Kennedy decided cases when his son was involved with one side of the case.
This is just the publicly known and obvious corruption.
A prosecutor with subpoena power to look at these guys’ finances could put them all away in a year or so. Start with the District Judges and the Supremes, and threaten the Circuit Judges to either resign or face a really close shave from the special prosecutor’s task force, and watch to see how many resignations you get that week. That right there would flush a large majority of these monsters out of the judiciary, after seeing a few senior right-wing boys go up for the rest of their lives, with their assets seized.
I do not believe most democratically appointed judges and justices are that corrupt, because Democratic Presidents actually vet their appointments. Republican Presidents follow the Federalist Line and appoint sleazeballs who promise to follow the right-wing line on rich people and corporations always win, and Unions and poor but innocent of injured people always lose. Along with women, freedom, etc.
Of course, here in West Virgina, our entire State Supreme Court, all of them!, has either been impeached or suffered the humiliation of federal indictment, resignation under pressure, guilty pleas, or an upcoming trial date, so I’m a little uneasy about judges…
J R in WV
@Shakti:
In your whole long life, you’ve commented here under 75 times, ever. Don’t be trying to mess with debit, who has been here and supported this blog for years now. You are a troll of one flavor or the other, and have no business getting into debit’s face for any reason.
Like we believe you drove through a flood to vote in a primary — do they even have primaries in St Petersburg? And I don’t mean across the bay from Tampa,FL either! Screw you and the Russo-Republican horse you rode in here on!
debit
@Shakti: Well, since I’m not the one acting like a rat fucker, I don’t think I need to explain myself to you at all.
@J R in WV: Thank you, my love.
Geeno
@tobie: To be fair, Cuomo only says it when he’s being challenged from the left, otherwise he doesn’t say or do squat.
Shakti
@J R in WV:
@debit:
So “Russo-Republican horse” and “ratfucking” is “asking for what debit considers ‘support'”
Understood. Although if you can’t tell an angry infrequent commenter from a fifth column you might need to brush up on the real world.
Enjoy the pie!
debit
@Shakti: You as well!