6/30/2023

334 Responses to “Weekend Open Thread”

1. Good morning!

   Dana (560c99) — 6/30/2023 @ 7:11 am

   
   

2. Need a good conspiracy theory to start your day? Here’s a fun one.

   https://www.kyivpost.com/post/18868

   Probably too good to be true.

   Appalled (1a7085) — 6/30/2023 @ 7:41 am

   
   

3. RIP Oscar-winning actor Alan Arkin (89):

   ………….
   In his first significant role in a feature, Arkin received a rare best actor Oscar nomination for work in a comedy when he played a Russian sailor whose submarine is marooned off the coast of a New England fishing village in Norman Jewison’s The Russians Are Coming! The Russians Are Coming (1966).

   Two years later, he moved audiences and earned another Oscar nom for portraying the lonely deaf mute John Singer in the poignant The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1968), Robert Ellis Miller’s adaptation of the Carson McCullers novel that was filmed in Selma, Alabama.

   For playing the foul-mouthed, heroin-snorting grandfather Edwin Hoover in the road movie Little Miss Sunshine (2006), Arkin was rewarded with an Oscar that those in Hollywood recognized was long overdue. (At age 72, he was among the oldest to win the supporting actor trophy.)
   ………….
   Arkin then received a fourth Academy Award nom for his work as a jaded movie producer who makes a bogus film to save the hostages in Iran — and got bonus points for his line, “Argo F— Yourself” — in the best picture winner Argo (2012).
   …………
   Arkin, though, was able to shed his silly side in films like the psychological thriller Wait Until Dark (1967), when he played an evil thug menacing poor Audrey Hepburn, and Catch-22, in which he starred as a pilot struggling to maintain a grip on his sanity in Nichols’ adaptation of Catch-22 (1970).
   …………

   Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 7:51 am

   
   

4. First News Item-The Swiss Only Care About The Swiss:

   Watch the 1981 Oscar-nominated Swiss film The Boat is Full, which chronicles how Switzerland literally walled up train tunnels to prevent Jewish refugees fleeing the Nazi regime, condemning them to death in the concentration camps.

   The Swiss collaboration with the Nazis is well documented, using the guise of neutrality which ends up enabling oppressive regimes. It is ironic that the country that hosts many international organizations that support those fleeing oppression does nothing to break that oppression.

   Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 8:10 am

   
   

5. FINALLY, the Supreme Court has done its job ans upheld the 1st Amendment. I hope Masterpiece and others can sue for damages due to the harm inflicted upon them by malicious private and government individuals.

   NJRob (98da76) — 6/30/2023 @ 8:20 am

   
   

6. Second News Item-Finally:

   U.S. Considers ATACMS Long-Range Missiles to Bolster Ukraine’s Fight
   ………….
   The Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, has a range of about 190 miles, enough for Ukrainian forces to strike Russian targets far behind the front lines. President Biden hasn’t signed off on the transfer, in part out of concern among U.S. officials that Ukraine could use it to strike Russian territory and escalate the conflict into a wider war.

   ……….. Officials in the U.S. and Europe have seen signs, however, that previously reluctant quarters of the U.S. government, namely the White House, have come to see an urgent need to bolster Ukraine’s fight in the coming weeks.
   ………….
   A senior Ukrainian defense official told The Wall Street Journal that Kyiv had received positive signs in recent weeks that the U.S. had come around on the ATACMS system. Ukrainian officials have argued that the system is needed, in part, to strike into Crimea, the peninsula occupied by Russia that Russian forces are using as a base to launch Iranian-made drones, according to public statements by the U.S. and its European allies.
   …………
   ATACMS rockets, which are fired from the Himars launcher, would enable Ukrainian forces to hit Russian nodes for logistics, command and control well behind front lines. The precision-guided missiles can hit GPS-located targets identified by intelligence with pinpoint accuracy, impeding Russia’s ability to put its rear-echelon operations out of Ukrainian reach.

   The long-distance range of the missiles would likely force Russia to withdraw supplies and command posts to more than 200 miles from the front, making it more difficult to supply battle troops.
   ………….

   Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 8:43 am

   
   

7. AOC: “70% of Harvard’s legacy applicants are white … ”
   Given that non-Hispanic whites constitute about 60% of the U.S. population, that’s not as wildly disproportionate as she’s implying.

   To hear the rage-freakout from the left, you’d think that SCOTUS had ruled it acceptable to exclude black students systematically on the basis of race. People are calling the decision “racist” and claiming that the Court ruling says: “Black Americans do not count under the law.” It’s preposterous — and not just because the main beneficiaries will be Asian.

   A person might argue that “a racially diverse student body is so important to education that we must treat people differently according to race,” or that “black students in general have had an educational disadvantage up to the time of applying for college, so we need to remedy the injustice at that point – and sustain different admissions standards by race for generations.” (The Bakke decision was 45 years ago.) Then let’s have a discussion.

   But most of the left-wing response to the decision is basically: “If you believe in treating people equally regardless of race, you’re a racist.” Most people on the left aren’t reflecting on the condescension behind their assumption that the bar must be (permanently) kept lower for “people of color,” or else they have no chance at all.

   Radegunda (6ddc2f) — 6/30/2023 @ 9:24 am

   
   

8. Egalitarianism is dividing by zero. That’s why both sides can twist the “equal protection” pretzel into whatever shape suits them.

   BTW, this comment is non-egalitarian. It’s only for people who know what you get when you divide by zero.

   nk (2be170) — 6/30/2023 @ 10:04 am

   
   

9. It’s only for people who know what you get when you divide by zero.

   All the answers at once.

   Kevin M (2d6744) — 6/30/2023 @ 10:29 am

   
   

10. AOC: “70% of Harvard’s legacy applicants are white … ”

    What percentage of white admits are legacy or donor applicants?

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 6/30/2023 @ 10:31 am

    
    

11. What percentage of white admits are legacy or donor applicants?

    It’s been reported that roughly 35% of slots in the freshman class are reserved for legacies at Harvard. Harvard has almost 2000 students in each freshman class, so if the 35% figure is correct then we’re looking at 700 legacies on average each year.

    JVW (1ad43e) — 6/30/2023 @ 11:19 am

    
    

12. RIP Oscar-winning actor Alan Arkin (89):

    I really enjoyed him in Grosse Point Blank, playing the psychiatrist to John Cusack’s professional hitman character. He played the droll, deadpan comedy really well in that movie. Here’s a really good compilation of his scenes.

    JVW (1ad43e) — 6/30/2023 @ 12:06 pm

    
    

13. Cross-Posted From Final Day of Court Term Open Thread:

    The Supreme Court agreed on Friday to consider whether the government may forbid people subject to domestic violence orders from having guns, setting the stage for a major test of its ruling last year vastly expanding people’s right to arm themselves in public.

    More

    While the particular circumstances of this case don’t involve a sympathetic defendant, the constitutional principles are important. This is good news.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 1:03 pm

    
    

14. Sad!

    A satellite communications system serving the Russian military was knocked offline by a cyberattack late Wednesday and remained mostly down on Thursday, in an incident reminiscent of an attack on a similar system used by Ukraine at the start of the war between the countries.
    ……….
    (Dozor-Teleport, the satellite system’s operator) did not release a statement on what had gone wrong. At least two groups claimed responsibility for the attack, one describing itself as a hacktivist organization and the other as part of the Wagner Group, the mercenaries who mutinied last week and marched most of the way to Moscow. The hackers claimed to have sent malicious software to the satellite terminals, setting off a scramble among security experts to obtain a terminal for testing.
    …………
    “It’s doubtful this is crippling, unless there happened to be customers for whom this is their only connectivity option,” said Brian Weeden, a director at Secure World Foundation, a Washington think tank focused on space issues.
    …………

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 1:11 pm

    
    

15. No lookalikes – this is nonsense – but it is clear that Putin thinks that there are things he does not know.

    The split with Prigozhin is real, although at what point Putin realized that is another question. He couldn’t reach him on the phone and neither could the Belorussian president but the Belorussian president found a clever way around that. Prigozhin had posted a video of himself with some Russian and he called that Russian.

    There were a number of double agents or leaks. Prigozhin’s plans to take the Russian defense minister hostage on a scheduled visit to Rostov-on-Don were found out and he found out that they had been found out.

    Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 6/30/2023 @ 2:19 pm

    
    

16. From last weekend’s open thread:

    https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/27/us/politics/irs-official-justice-dept-hunter-biden.html

    While Mr. Weiss had the authority to pursue leads that led to jurisdictions other than his own in Delaware, the department’s practices dictated that he secure the approval and cooperation of the U.S. attorneys in those districts before proceeding.

    Merrick Garland may have avoided perjury but what he said was very tricky. David Weiss’s legal authority is one thing – his staying within DOJ rules is another.

    Here is more:

    https://www.wsj.com/articles/merrick-garlands-cheap-talk-hunter-biden-fbi-investigation-irs-whistleblower-felony-charges-tax-470b46ac

    As Sol Wisenberg, a former associate and deputy independent counsel, explained on Twitter, to file elsewhere Mr. Weiss would “need some kind of letter from Garland (or an [associate attorney general]) naming Weiss as a special or poo-bah counsel authorized to file charges in the relevant district.” He emphasizes that “Garland cannot give that authority verbally,” there needs to be a “written delegation.”

    So where is it? It is simply nonsensical for Mr. Garland to claim Mr. Weiss has unlimited authority—to go outside the rules that govern every U.S. attorney—without showing such a writ of power. And note that the plea deal Mr. Weiss negotiated with Hunter’s team—specifying just two misdemeanor tax charges—was filed in . . . Delaware.

    The department needs to answer other questions. Mr. Garland insists Mr. Weiss never asked for “special counsel” authority, but did he ask for something else—like “special attorney” status? Is it possible the request never made it to Mr. Garland but was blocked by those below him? Even if there is a document providing special powers, what’s the date? Was Mr. Weiss initially overruled and given the authority only after whistleblowers went to Washington, or after the statute of limitations for charges kicked in?

    The evidence is stacking up that the Weiss probe was rigged to fail. It’s no longer enough for Mr. Garland to mouth reassurances. Let’s see some evidence.

    Rigged to fail or to come as close as they plausibly could to letting Hunter Biden off.

    Other questions: Why did Weiss wait until October 7, 2022 to tell his investigators that he did not have full authority to bring charges?

    Why did the prosecutors in DC and California turn down the cases – why really? – and how much of an effort was made to get them to taake over the cases?

    If Hunter Biden had to be prosecuted in DC or in California, why were charges brought in Delaware? Because his attorneys did not object, since that had the effect if immunizing him against any further tax charges?

    BTW, the NYT confirmed only for California )although that’s the big one)

    A similar request to prosecutors in the Central District of California, which includes Los Angeles, was also rejected, Mr. Shapley testified. A second former I.R.S. official, who has not been identified, told House Republicans the same story. That episode was confirmed independently to The New York Times by a person with knowledge of the situation.

    Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 6/30/2023 @ 2:30 pm

    
    

17. You can’t read Twitter any more without creating an account?

    Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 6/30/2023 @ 2:33 pm

    
    

18. Donald Trump had Operation Warp Speed

    Joe Biden has:

    Operation Impulse Power

    This is what I mean:

    https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/26/health/covid-vaccines-nextgen.html

    Efforts to develop the next generation of Covid vaccines are running up against bureaucratic hassles and regulatory uncertainty, scientists say, obstacles that could make it harder to curb the spread of the coronavirus and arm the United States against future pandemics.

    The Biden administration, after months of delay, has now addressed at least a shortfall in funding, hurrying to issue the first major grants from a $5 billion program to expedite a new class of more potent and durable inoculations.

    But the program is facing the blunt reality that vaccine development, after being shifted into high gear early in the pandemic, has returned to its slower and more customary pace….

    Sammy Finkelman (d007a3) — 6/30/2023 @ 2:37 pm

    
    

19. https://www.wsj.com/podcasts/opinion-potomac-watch/was-the-hunter-biden-investigation-handled-improperly/291dfe09-dd24-49cc-b6e0-3dda54af5196

    Kimberley A. Strassel: This seems to be the crux of the matter to me of the big claims that they are making, that in every single scenario, the regular steps were not taken because of the names attached to the two people, and they give some other examples of this. They note that, for instance, prosecutors wanted to take Hunter Biden’s name off of documents including search warrants. For instance, because they didn’t want anyone to know who it was they were trying to search. They gave another example in the wake of that WhatsApp message. They wanted to pursue that search warrant, but one excuse that DOJ prosecutors were giving back to them, they claim, for not pursuing them was the possibility that Hunter had simply been lying about his father’s presence there. And so Mr. Shapley said, so then we said, “Well, okay, then let’s get the location data for the messages and if they’re co-located, then we’ll know whether or not the president was really there with Hunter at the time that this was sent.” So essentially saying, let’s see where the president’s phone was, and they were blocked from doing that as well too, even though the second whistleblower said that that would normally be exactly what they would do if they were trying to follow up in a situation like this. Bill, there’s a couple of other things I don’t know. I know you’ve been through the transcripts too about not being allowed to question family members. Did you get the impression reading this that do you agree that the kind of big point here was that they are making the allegation that all of this was handled in a way to essentially protect the president and his son to a degree?

    William McGurn: Yes. It looked like every instance he brought up, what happened is DOJ didn’t want to know. Lesley Wolf, the Assistant US Attorney that Kate mentioned, she also told them they couldn’t bring up dad or the big guy when they interviewed Hunter’s business associates. And in addition to that search warrant of the premises, there was another search warrant that they planned to execute on a storage facility, I think in Northern Virginia where Hunter had put a lot of his papers and documents and they say that Lesley Wolf called up Hunter’s defense attorneys and basically ruined their chance at a surprise search. I don’t know whether that’s true or not, but all these things, one of the things is these are very specific claims rather than a broad claim, Joe was on take or something. These are very specific claims and there are witnesses and you can get to the truth or falsity of them relatively easily. And so I think the answer is going to be, Republicans are going to put them under oath, under the same penalties that the whistleblowers have if they tell false statements, which is a perjury charge.

    Kimberley A. Strassel: Yeah, this is going to be really fascinating. I agree. We’re going to take a break. When we come back, we’re going to talk a little bit more about this question of David Weiss and his freedom to do this. And also, we’re going to look a lot more closely at what these documents revealed about Hunter’s taxes in certain years, when we come back.

    Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 6/30/2023 @ 2:42 pm

    
    

20. There may be a superceding indictment of Donald Trump both in New Jersey (especially of the Miami judge harms the case) and in Miami. They may add documents counts so perhaps the Iran document may be included after all.

    Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 6/30/2023 @ 2:44 pm

    
    

21. A suggestion for the Democrats. That “donkey” symbol is obsolete. “Santa Claus” would be closer to the truth.

    The jury is still out on the symbol for the GOP, although the elephant (in the middle of the room) might be accurate.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 6/30/2023 @ 3:52 pm

    
    

22. vaccine development, after being shifted into high gear early in the pandemic, has returned to its slower and more customary pace….

    The bureaucracy will not be denied. They are adamant about testing 21st century vaccines with 19th century methods, all the time thinking “Avoid all blame.”

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 6/30/2023 @ 3:56 pm

    
    

23. Trump Civil Litigation Watch:

    Trump sues E. Jean Carroll for defamation over CNN comments, says that rape ‘clearly was not committed’

    
    ………
    Carroll’s “actions of wantonly and falsely accusing [Trump] on multiple occasions of committing rape constitute defamation per se, as [Carroll] accused Trump of rape, which clearly was not committed, according to the jury verdict[.]”
    ……….
    “Due to [Carroll’s] repeated falsehoods and defamatory statements” made against Trump, he “has been the subject of significant harm to his reputation, which, in turn, has yielded an inordinate amount of damages sustained as a result,” says the counterclaim, filed Tuesday.

    Trump says that Carroll “made these false statements with actual malice and ill will with an intent to significantly and spitefully harm and attack [Trump’s] reputation, as these false statements were clearly contrary to the jury verdict in [the case] whereby [Trump] was found not liable for rape by the jury.”
    ……….
    ……….(Carroll) attorney Robbie Kaplan said in the statement. “Four out of the five statements in Trump’s so-called counterclaim were made outside of New York’s one-year statute of limitations. The other statement similarly will not withstand a motion to dismiss. Trump’s filing is thus nothing more than his latest effort to delay accountability for what a jury has already found to be his defamation of E. Jean Carroll. But whether he likes it or not, that accountability is coming very soon.”
    ………..

    I don’t see how the counterclaim gets past a dismissal under NY’s Anti-SLAPP law.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 3:58 pm

    
    

24. This is why I hate Trump’s use of Deep State, Establishment, etc., because he and his associates all reside in the same swamp.

    A top Donald Trump campaign adviser — who apparently was shown classified documents by the former president — has a top post at a lobbying firm serving Chinese entities that potentially pose a national security threat and help Beijing commit human rights abuses.

    Susie Wiles works on Trump’s 2024 campaign and is co-chair of Mercury Public Affairs, which has taken millions of dollars in recent years from Chinese companies such as Yealink, Hikvision and Alibaba.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 6/30/2023 @ 4:34 pm

    
    

25. Susie Wiles works on Trump’s 2024 campaign and is co-chair of Mercury Public Affairs, which has taken millions of dollars in recent years from Chinese companies such as Yealink, Hikvision and Alibaba.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 6/30/2023 @ 4:34 pm

    That’s okay, because she’s with Trump. 😉

    norcal (8b5267) — 6/30/2023 @ 4:39 pm

    
    

26. And our fentanyl will now be made by Harvard-trained chemists at Wuhan. Ivanka’s trademarks are the gift that keeps on giving.

    nk (8c1a05) — 6/30/2023 @ 5:11 pm

    
    

27. The jury is still out on the symbol for the GOP, although the elephant (in the middle of the room) might be accurate.

    Good one!

    JVW (1ad43e) — 6/30/2023 @ 5:27 pm

    
    

28. Trump Civil Litigation Watch II:

    A federal judge has rejected former President Donald Trump’s attempt to have E. Jean Carroll’s first defamation lawsuit against him dismissed.
    ………..
    Specifically, (U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan) found that Trump’s argument that presidential immunity was “non-waivable” and that he had already waived the defense by failing to include it in his initial answer to Carroll’s complaint.

    In rejecting Trump’s argument that “absolute presidential immunity is grounded in the separation of powers doctrine” and therefore implicated jurisdictional issues, Kaplan wrote that “‘separation of powers’ is not a magic phrase that automatically transforms any issue it touches” into an obstacle for a court asserting jurisdiction.

    Kaplan called another aspect of Trump’s legal argument about the separation of powers as “[lacking] logical coherence and is plainly frivolous.”
    ………….
    “Even assuming that the president’s decision publicly to deny an accusation of personal wrongdoing comes within the outer perimeter of his official duties, it does not follow that the president’s own personal attacks on his or her accuser equally fall within that boundary,” Kaplan wrote. “Mr. Trump does not identify any connection between the allegedly defamatory content of his statements – that Ms. Carroll fabricated her sexual assault accusation and did so for financial and personal gain – to any official responsibility of the president. Nor can the Court think of any possible connection.”
    ………….
    “[T]hose additional delays would further prejudice Ms. Carroll unfairly,” the judge wrote. “She now is 79 years old and, as just mentioned, has been litigating this case for more than three and a half years. There is no basis to risk prolonging the resolution of this litigation further by permitting Mr. Trump to raise his absolute immunity defense now at the eleventh hour when he could have done so years ago.”
    …………
    “Mr. Trump’s argument amounts to suggesting that any time an individual comes forward with an accusation of wrongdoing against a public official, that person thereby consents to the official stating anything he or she wishes in response, no matter how calumnious,” Kaplan writes. “As Ms. Carroll aptly states, ‘[w]hen a survivor of sexual assault makes the choice to speak up, that choice does not constitute consent to whatever defamatory lies their abuser may unleash in response.’”
    ………….
    The case is set to go to trial on Jan. 15, 2024.
    ##########

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 5:48 pm

    
    

29. Link to Judge Kaplan’s dismissal of Trump’s motion.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 6/30/2023 @ 5:51 pm

    
    

30. Rode my mtn bike up the hill in early afternoon. It was 72 on the road at my house and 3-4 miles later and some elevation gain over the fog layer it was a dry 108 road temperature

    steveg (10ef87) — 6/30/2023 @ 6:16 pm

    
    

31. steveg (10ef87) — 6/30/2023 @ 6:16 pm

    I share your preference for seeking a more comfortable temperature.

    You think I’m joking…

    norcal (8b5267) — 6/30/2023 @ 6:24 pm

    
    

32. More good news for 2024! Not content with enraging pro-choice women with abortion ruling and blacksnative americans and latinx with their affirmitive action ruling so they will crawl on hands and knees if they have to to get to the polls to vote out republicans. Now they have decided thats not enough lets enrage gays and young people with student loans so they will vote out republicans too! Which americans do they plan to enrage next?

    asset (c2eed7) — 6/30/2023 @ 8:20 pm

    
    

33. We will see if net taxpayers realize they must show up to vote or not

    steveg (10ef87) — 6/30/2023 @ 9:56 pm

    
    

34. For those who follow Ukraine and their defense against Russian imperialism on Twitter, Mr. Mylovanov is one of the better ones, and his assessment of Trump’s 24-hour peace deal is a good example.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 6/30/2023 @ 10:26 pm

    
    

35. Interesting to watch France burn yet again with a combination of their own antifa and youths of unknown origin.

    They took Heath Ledger’s Joker’s goals to heart. “Some just want to watch the world burn.”

    NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/1/2023 @ 5:51 am

    
    

36. Not that Trump’s speaking at a Klanned Karenhood event will affect his support from his devotee base, but the rest of the electorate may not look kindly.
    A summary from the ADL noted their use of a Hitler quote in their newsletters, and there are “links between numerous Moms for Liberty chapters and extremist groups like the Proud Boys, Three Percenters, sovereign citizen groups, QAnon conspiracist, Christian nationalists, and in one case, with the founder of the AK-47-worshiping Rod of Iron Ministries church in Pennsylvania.”

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:43 am

    
    

37. ‘Is Anyone Else’s Pornhub Not Working?’ Virginia Democrat Riled Up After Anti-Porn Law Gets Entire State Blocked by Site

    The President Pro tempore of the Senate of Virginia, State Sen. L. Louise Lucas (D-Portsmouth), called out Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin after an age-verification law lead to Pornhub blocking access for everyone in the state.

    The law requires pornography websites operating in the state to work more aggressively to find out whether a visitor is 18 or older to gain access to the site. One of the approved methods of verification includes requiring users to upload copies government-issued identification.

    A bipartisan coalition of Republican and Democrat state senators, including Lucas, voted in March to pass the bill through the General Assembly. Youngkin signed the bill into law in May and it goes into effect on Saturday.

    In response, Pornhub decided to block access to the website in the entire state on Thursday, arguing the new law puts user privacy at risk and is not effective at preventing minors from accessing adult content.

    “While safety and compliance are at the forefront of our mission, giving your ID card every time you want to visit an adult platform is not the most effective solution for protecting our users, and in fact, will put children and your privacy at risk,” a message posted to Pornhub on Thursday reads to Virginia citizens. “Until a real solution is offered, we have made the difficult decision to completely disable access to our website in Virginia.”

    nk (0aeb45) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:56 am

    
    

38. Paul, I think MFL is a pretty awful group but my reading of their use of the Hitler quote was not in support of an idea of Hitler’s but rather calling their saying their enemies were doing what Hitler did. Resorting to calling your enemies “basically Hitler” is never a great look but it’s not on the same level as using a Hitler quote in a positive light.

    Nate (1f1d55) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:59 am

    
    

39. Nate, they initially quoted Hitler without explanation or attribution. The proper response should’ve been an apology and probably a sacking, not an explanation to provide “context”.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 8:12 am

    
    

40. Paul,

    Do you ever put the effort in to call groups on the left names? Or is that only reserved for groups on the right?

    NJRob (b4dfd1) — 7/1/2023 @ 8:32 am

    
    

41. https://www.dailywire.com/news/bidens-feds-cut-through-razor-wire-placed-by-texas-authorities-to-let-illegals-into-u-s

    Biden is aiding and abetting the invasion of the United States of America. That is treason.

    NJRob (b4dfd1) — 7/1/2023 @ 8:36 am

    
    

42. Do you ever put the effort in to call groups on the left names? Or is that only reserved for groups on the right?

    Yes, and no, to answer your question. Lately, the bigger problem is the hardline Trumpist right-wing, IMO.
    Why do you not have a problem with Moms For Liberty?

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 8:59 am

    
    

43. It’s unclear whether Jack Smith followed this line of inquiry, but Trump made similar entreaties to AZ Gov. Ducey as he did with Raffensperger, which shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone.

    In a phone call in late 2020, President Donald Trump tried to pressure Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey (R) to overturn the state’s presidential election results, saying that if enough fraudulent votes could be found it would overcome Trump’s narrow loss in Arizona, according to three people familiar with the call.

    Trump also repeatedly asked Vice President Mike Pence to call Ducey and prod him to find the evidence to substantiate Trump’s claims of fraud, according to two of these people. Pence called Ducey several times to discuss the election, they said, though he did not follow Trump’s directions to pressure the governor.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:07 am

    
    

44. They aren’t violent. They have a right to protest. Other than that, they aren’t worthy of being on my radar.

    I am not retired and still need to earn my living.

    NJRob (b4dfd1) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:09 am

    
    

45. Biden is aiding and abetting the invasion of the United States of America. That is treason.

    NJRob (b4dfd1) — 7/1/2023 @ 8:36 am

    No, it’s not.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:16 am

    
    

46. Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 6/30/2023 @ 10:26 pm

    Unfortunately Musk has blocked non-subscribers from accessing Twitter, so we cannot see your links.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:20 am

    
    

47. (Moms For Liberty) initially quoted Hitler without explanation or attribution.

    Moms for Liberty did attribute the quote to Adolf Hitler, it was below the quote.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:25 am

    
    

48. I am not retired and still need to earn my living.

    Mrs. Montagu would be surprised to know that I’m retired, but good to know your “standard”.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:32 am

    
    

49. Unfortunately Musk has blocked non-subscribers from accessing Twitter, so we cannot see your links.

    I advise joining, at the very least for accessing the links. The place can be a cesspool or informative, depending on who you follow, and never click on “For You”, because that’s where Musk’s algorithm cesspool resides.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 9:34 am

    
    

50. Russian Media Watch:
    

    …………
    During the first post-mutiny broadcast of Sunday Evening With Vladimir Solovyov, propagandists focused on praising Putin’s infinite wisdom for ending the revolt in a speedy manner. The head of RT, Margarita Simonyan, asserted: “There is nothing more frightening in the world than civil war.” This outlook unwittingly highlighted frequent discussions on Russian state media hoping for a civil war in other countries—namely the United States.

    Simonyan expressed her relief at the quick resolution of the ordeal and added: “There are many discussions right now: how can this be? They opened a criminal case and then let them go! [Prigozhin] left for Belarus. This is a mockery of legal norms! Let me remind you that legal provisions are not like Christ’s commandments or the law of Moses. Legal norms are written by people to protect the order and stability in a country. There can be extraordinary, critical circumstances when legal norms stop to function… then these legal norms are set aside. They were written without accounting for the possibility of this kind of a situation.”

    Simonyan surmised: “It was a choice between the terrible and the horrendous… There is nothing more frightening than civil strife, which is incomparably more significant than a violation of some legal norms.” Setting aside his daily demands for nuclear strikes and executions, Solovyov pompously added: “On this day, we found out a lot about our own country. We turned out to be much wiser than anyone might have thought… Yesterday, our leadership demonstrated strength and wisdom. Most importantly, it demonstrated strength without a bloodlust.”

    ………. (State Duma member Andrey Gurulyov, retired deputy Commander of the 58th Combined Arms Army of the Southern Military District) said: “I am firmly convinced that during wartime, traitors have to be destroyed! Today, no matter who says what, whatever fairy tales they are telling, a bullet to the forehead is the sole salvation for Prigozhin and [Dmitry] Utkin. They know me! They know that I stand behind my every word. There is no other option!” (Utkin is alleged to be the co-founder of the Wagner group.)

    ………. Gurulyov expressed his outrage that it was fomented and carried out without being detected beforehand and prevented. He said, “I totally don’t understand why it even happened, where are those agencies that should have known about this in advance? It should have been prevented, it should have been stopped when it was underway!”
    ……….
    ………. Gurulyov reiterated: “Treason cannot be forgiven under any circumstances! It simply can’t be forgiven, regardless of any past achievements! I will repeat it once again: the only way out for these friends is to kill themselves before [a] bullet finds them! There are no other options for traitors.”

    ………….(Lieutenant-General Evgeny Buzhinsky) stressed: “Someone has to be held accountable for the deaths of pilots who have perished.”

    Instead of showcasing the strength and wisdom of Putin’s regime, Solovyov and his fellow propagandists highlighted its fatal shortcomings and the discontent that is brewing not only within their ranks, but in society at large. ………

    Sad!

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 7/1/2023 @ 11:01 am

    
    

51. Another Open Window:

    ……….
    Kristina Baikova, 28, an executive at Loko-Bank, is just the latest mysterious casualty involving Russia’s top business people.

    Ms Baikova allegedly fell from her 11th floor apartment on the Khodynsky Boulevard in the early hours of last Friday. She died instantly at the scene.

    The bank executive was with a 34-year-old friend, thought to be named Andrei, at the time of the incident after inviting him over to her home for drink.
    …………

    Rip Murdock (5a15dc) — 7/1/2023 @ 11:07 am

    
    

52. Sad!

    ……….
    In a hearing Tuesday, (U.S.) District Judge Alvin Hellerstein was skeptical of Trump’s argument that the (Alvin Bragg’s New York criminal case) should be tried in federal court because the alleged violations – reimbursements Trump made to his former personal attorney Michael Cohen – occurred during his presidency.

    “The act for which the president has been indicted does not relate to anything under color of his office,” Hellerstein said.
    ………..
    “Cohen was hired as a private matter to take care of a private matter,” the judge said. “The fact that it was a president who made that private hiring does not change the facts or the legal principle to be derived from the facts,” he added.
    ……….
    “Writing personal checks, even if he did it in the Oval Office, is not an official act,” prosecutor Matthew Colangelo said Tuesday.
    ………..
    Trump attorney Todd Blanche argued Tuesday that the alleged business records were truthful because they were so-called “retainer” or “legal payments” to Cohen.

    But when Hellerstein pushed Blanche on whether there was a retainer agreement in place, Blanche confirmed there was no agreement but claimed the invoices from Cohen to Trump detail the agreement enough.
    …………
    Other than the reimbursements to Cohen related to the Daniels settlement, there’s no documentation of any legal services provided by Cohen as special counsel to the president, Hellerstein said. “There’s no proof of what he did.”
    …………

    Trump’s motion to transfer the case to federal court.

    Rip Murdock (102247) — 7/1/2023 @ 11:31 am

    
    

53. High-end Russian apartment buildings catering to the business and political elite must put a pretty high premium on ground-floor units.

    JVW (c535be) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:09 pm

    
    

54. Rip,

    Yes it is.
    https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/article-4/

    NJRob (944af5) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:27 pm

    
    

55. nk (0aeb45) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:56 am

    There may be other similar services that are available.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:34 pm

    
    

56. Why do you not have a problem with Moms For Liberty?

    Would you ban their speech? Should government pressure Twitter, Facebook and Snapchat to block them?

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:36 pm

    
    

57. ‘Ultimate Authority’

    ………..
    David Weiss, the U.S. attorney for the District of Delaware, previously told House Judiciary chairman Jim Jordan on June 7 that he was in charge of “deciding where, when and whether to file charges” against the younger Biden.

    “I stand by what I wrote,” Weiss said in a letter he sent Friday in response to Jordan’s June 22 request for information about the investigation.

    “At the outset, I would like to reaffirm the contents of the June 7 letter drafted by my office and reiterate that I am not at liberty to provide the materials you seek,” Weiss said.
    ………….
    “The Department of Justice did not retaliate against ‘an Internal Revenue Service Criminal Supervisory Special Agent and whistleblower, as well as his entire investigative team… for making protected disclosures to Congress,’” Weiss wrote in response to Jordan’s letter.

    Weiss went on to further explain what he means when he says he was “granted ultimate authority” by attorney general Merrick Garland “consistent with federal law, the Principles of Federal Prosecution, and Departmental regulations.”

    “As the US Attorney for the District of Delaware, my charging authority is geographically limited to my home district,” Weiss says. “If venue for a case lies elsewhere, common Departmental practice is to contact the United States Attorney’s Office for the district in question and determine whether it wants to partner on the case. If not, I may request Special Attorney status from the Attorney General pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 515.”

    “Here, I have been assured that, if necessary after the above process, I would be granted § 515 Authority in the District of Columbia, the Central District of California, or any other district where charges could be brought in this matter,” he added.
    …………

    Related:

    House Republicans are demanding more than a dozen federal officials, including the U.S. attorney in charge of the investigation into Hunter Biden, appear before multiple congressional committees for transcribed interviews regarding allegations of politicization and misconduct at their agencies throughout the years-long probe into the president’s son.
    …………
    From the Justice Department, the committees are requesting transcribed interviews with:

    U.S. Attorney for Delaware David Weiss, who led the Justice Department’s investigation into Hunter Biden;
    Assistant U.S. Attorney Lesley Wolf, who allegedly blocked lines of questioning in the investigation related to President Biden;
    U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Matthew Graves, who allegedly blocked Weiss from charging Hunter Biden in his district;
    Jack Morgan and Mark Daly of the DOJ’s Tax Division;
    U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California E. Martin Estrada;
    Acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Tax Division Stuart Goldberg;
    Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon Hanson in Delaware; and
    Assistant U.S. attorney Shawn Weede.

    From the FBI, the committees are calling for:

    Tom Sobocinski, the special agent in charge of the FBI’s Baltimore Field Office; and
    FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge Ryeshia Holley ……….

    From the IRS the committees are requesting

    Michael Batdorf, a director within the IRS’ Criminal Investigation division; and
    Special Agent in Charge of the Washington D.C. Field Office Darrell J. Waldon of the IRS Criminal Investigation Division………

    From the U.S. Secret Service, the committees are calling on any Secret Service employees who received the alleged Dec. 7, 2020 “tip-off” from the FBI. ………
    ………….
    Jordan and the House Judiciary Committee will take the lead on the Justice Department and FBI portion of the investigation; with Comer and the House Oversight Committee taking lead on the Secret Service and Smith at the House Ways and Means Committee taking the lead on the IRS.
    ……………

    Some formatting changes.

    The definition of a fishing expedition.

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:40 pm

    
    

58. Yes it is.
    https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/article-4/

    NJRob (944af5) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:27 pm

    The Treason Clause is in Article III, Sec. 3, not Article IV. Fail!

    Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:45 pm

    
    

59. The definition of a fishing expedition.

    Not unlike the subpoena and subsequent release of Trump’s tax returns, which led nowhere.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 1:31 pm

    
    

60. The definition of a fishing expedition.

    I guess you missed the Watergate hearings then. They fished, and they caught a few, like Alexander Butterflied.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 1:32 pm

    
    

61. Rip,

    The requirement to defend the nation from invasion was in the clause I cited.

    Fail!

    NJRob (6dfef9) — 7/1/2023 @ 2:49 pm

    
    

62. Rip,

    The requirement to defend the nation from invasion was in the clause I cited.

    Fail!

    NJRob (6dfef9) — 7/1/2023 @ 2:49 pm

    Section 4 of Article IV has nothing to do with “defending the nation from invasion.”

    The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.

    In Luther v. Borden (1849) the Supreme Court ruled that it was a political question left to Congress and the Executive branches to decided that it

    rested with Congress to determine the means proper to fulfill the guarantee of protection to the states against domestic violence. Chief Justice Taney declared that Congress might have placed it in the power of a court to decide when the contingency had happened that required the Federal Government to interfere, but that instead Congress had by the act of February 28, 1795, authorized the President to call out the militia in case of insurrection against the government of any state. It followed, said Taney, that the President “must, of necessity, decide which is the government, and which party is unlawfully arrayed against it, before he can perform the duty imposed upon him by the act of Congress,” which determination was not subject to review by the courts.

    Source

    Section 4 applies to a military invasion of the states (which was a real threat in the early years of the Republic), not immigrants entering a state by crossing the border. There is no evidence that the Founders considered illegal immigration as an invasion; for one thing it wasn’t illegal to do so at the time. Article III, Section 3, is the only constitutional definition of treason.

    Constitutional wishful thinking.

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 3:53 pm

    
    

63. Nothing in Section 4, Article IV says “military” — you may read that into it, but it isn’t there. Stick to the text.

    And nobdy cares what CJ Taney said. Lincoln sure didn’t.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 4:10 pm

    
    

64. There is no evidence that the Founders considered illegal immigration as an invasion

    There is no evidence they considered a division of tanks to be an invasion either.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 4:11 pm

    
    

65. III, 3 defines treason as engaging in warfare against the United States, or supporting the aims of those that do, giving them aid and comfort. Either would do.

    Biden, by enabling a mass movement of foreign persons into the border states is engaging in a form of warfare against them.

    It might not be treason. But it also might be. Your certainty is misplaced.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 4:15 pm

    
    

66. Would you ban their speech? Should government pressure Twitter, Facebook and Snapchat to block them?

    I didn’t and wouldn’t suggest any of that, Kevin. The point is that Trump didn’t have to speak at their event.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/1/2023 @ 4:16 pm

    
    

67. St. Alsem College (NH) Poll

    A new poll conducted by the Saint Anselm College Survey Center (SACSC) at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics (NHIOP) finds President Joe Biden as the early choice for 68% of Democratic Primary voters, with neither of his current challengers garnering significant support. Former President Donald Trump is consolidating support in the face of several candidates diluting his opposition, and is the preference of a strong plurality of 47% of Republican Primary voters.
    ………….
    With this survey’s shift from testing potential candidates in March to testing announced candidates, Biden has consolidated 68% support among Democratic Primary voters. Recent entrant Robert Kennedy, Jr. has ridden a wave of publicity to 9% support, while repeat candidate Marianne Williamson picks up 8%.

    Former President Donald Trump is looking to repeat his successful 2016 pathway to victory of scattering opposition among several opponents. As new entrants have emerged since our last survey in March, Trump has gained 5 points of support and now sits just shy of a majority with 47%. Meanwhile, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has seen his support erode 10 points to 19%. Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is now in third place in the state followed by former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley, and South Carolina Governor Tim Scott.

    “As of now, Biden would prevail in a rematch with Trump in New Hampshire. 49% of respondents would vote for Biden, while 40% would vote for Trump” (New Hampshire Institute of Politics Executive Director Neil Levesque stated).
    …………

    Full results available as a download at link.

    Related:

    RFK Jr. has a big primary problem: Democrats like Joe Biden
    ………….
    Kennedy declared his candidacy in mid-April, joining author Marianne Williamson as a Democratic presidential challenger. He immediately started registering in the polls, hitting 19% in a Fox News survey after his campaign announcement. Since then, he’s stayed close to that 19%. He hasn’t, however, gone above that figure in the polling average.

    This puts Kennedy more than 40 points behind Biden in national Democratic primary surveys. The president is averaging in the mid-60s nationally, and there is zero sign his support is weakening.

    ………. Biden’s approval rating among Democrats in a Quinnipiac University poll released last week was 84%. Just 16% either disapproved (13%) or didn’t hold a view (3%).There is no precedent – at least since World War II – of an incumbent president losing a contested state primary while polling above 70% nationally within his party.
    …………

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 5:06 pm

    
    

68. @63-65:

    Good luck making that argument in court, or during an impeachment. It’s entering MTG and Andy Biggs territory.

    Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/1/2023 @ 5:10 pm

    
    

69. No Labels Is Chasing A Fantasy
    ………….
    Given the dissatisfaction with the broader political environment, and with the 2024 Democratic and Republican front-runners specifically, the political group No Labels has come up with a solution. It has laid out plans for what it calls an “independent unity ticket,” which it hypothesizes could collect 286 electoral votes, winning states ranging from reliably red Utah to deep-blue Hawaii.1 The group, which lobbies for political centrism and bipartisanship, argues such a ticket could win by turning out and garnering support from the sizable share of voters who say the country is on the wrong track, identify as independent and are open to supporting what No Labels describes as a “moderate independent” contender. ………

    ………… (T)he group’s belief that it could mount a victorious campaign rests on several misconceptions about contemporary politics. First and foremost, the share of the electorate made up by independent moderates isn’t large enough to win a presidential election. Secondly, despite distaste for Biden and Trump, each remains well-liked by his party, reducing the potential draw of a No Labels candidate. Meanwhile, the group’s aim of markedly increasing turnout over 2020’s record-high mark will require the difficult task of getting even more low-propensity voters to turn out. Lastly, finding a candidate who could maximize No Labels’s appeal won’t be easy because there’s nobody named “moderate independent” who embodies the varied preferences held by voters disenchanted by the idea of another Biden-Trump matchup.
    …………..
    ………….. Most critically, most moderates and self-identified independents tend to identify with or lean toward one of the major parties. Let’s look at Gallup’s data on party ID. Although around 2 in 5 Americans said they were independent in 2022, it turns out about 4 in 5 of those self-identified independents actually leaned Democratic or Republican. As a result, only around 1 in 10 Americans identified as truly independent, a figure replicated in other surveys.
    …………..
    ………….. Biden and Trump are relatively well-liked by members of their own party, even independents who lean that way, making it far from guaranteed that No Labels can draw support from more partisan voters.

    Overall, around 4 in 5 Democrats and Republicans had favorable views of Biden and Trump, respectively.3 And there’s a good chance that partisanship will help encourage some of those who hold unfavorable views to back the candidate anyway.
    …………
    ………… (I)t’s probably safe to look somewhat askance at promises of even higher turnout than in the 2020 presidential election. That year, 67 percent of the voting-eligible population turned out, according to the U.S. Elections Project — the highest turnout of any voting-eligible population in a national election since 1900.

    ……….. Additionally, one of the other problems for No Labels is that independent voters — whether we’re talking those who lean or those who don’t — are less likely to vote than more partisan voters. …….. it’s worth noting that true independents are the least likely to vote, in part because they are less likely to be politically engaged. ……..
    ………..
    The moment No Labels has a ticket, it will have to deal with the pros and cons that those candidates bring to the table. For instance, a recent YouGov/The Economist survey found Manchin underwater among Americans, with 26 percent holding a favorable opinion and 37 percent an unfavorable one. And a Data for Progress survey released in June found Hogan attracting 6 percent in a matchup against Biden and Trump. ………. And when it comes to appealing to typical nonvoters, are Hogan or Manchin going to spark outsized turnout among a group that’s disproportionately young and nonwhite?
    …………
    …………(T)he overwhelming likelihood is that a Democrat or Republican will take the oath of office on Jan. 20, 2025, and that a No Labels-backed candidacy will not have carried a single state in the 2024 election.
    #########

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 5:33 pm

    
    

70. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 4:10 pm

    As far as I know Luther v. Borden hasn’t been overruled, despite what Lincoln thought of Taney.

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 5:52 pm

    
    

71. https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2023-2024/billengrossed/House/pdf/2023-HEBH-4474.pdf

    Another reminder how the left believes in nothing but power. They want to create a felony for freedom of speech. In their world “misgendering” someone is worthy of punishment like it is in England.

    NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/1/2023 @ 6:57 pm

    
    

72. My Sentiments Exactly:

    Chris Christie ‘wouldn’t vote’ if Donald Trump becomes GOP nominee

    GOP presidential candidate Chris Christie offered a sharp personal attack on former President Donald Trump and his family, blasting his one-time ally as a bad person and comparing Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner to Hunter Biden, in an exclusive sitdown with The Post.

    Kushner netted billions of dollars in investment from Saudi Arabia just weeks after leaving the White House — drawing comparisons from Christie to the disgraced first son.

    “I think that clearly trading on the influence of a member of your family is the one area where it seems like there are some similarities,” former NJ Gov. Christie said.
    ………..
    When asked if he thought Trump was a good person, Christie told The Post “no.” When asked if he would want his son to grow up to be like Trump, Christie said “no.”
    ………..
    Other GOP contenders have treated the former president gingerly, but Christie has gone for the jugular, blasting Trump as a “lonely self-consumed, self-serving, mirror hog” in his campaign launch where he also savaged “the grift” of the Trump family.
    ………..
    If Trump emerged as the 2024 nominee, Christie said he would not support him — or anyone.

    “I probably just wouldn’t vote,” he said.
    ……….
    The former governor sought to chart a more moderate course on several hot-button GOP issues than some of the conservative fire-breathers in the race.

    He said he opposed laws that would outlaw gender reassignment surgery for minors and that while he believed Hunter Biden was “undercharged,” he would not promise to appoint an Attorney General who would empower a Special Counsel to probe further.He has pledged to keep the much-maligned FBI Director Christopher Wray on the job.
    …………
    ………… Election fraud? “Nonexistent in 2020.”
    #########

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 6:59 pm

    
    

73. @41 these are potential democratic voters. we don’t want them to get cut on the razor wire.

    asset (e6d084) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:28 pm

    
    

74. @71 whats wrong with power? its what rules the world.

    asset (e6d084) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:30 pm

    
    

75. @69 What they need is not dogma ;but a charismatic candidate. I like tulsi gabbard ;but probably for veep. Who has got the charisma?

    asset (e6d084) — 7/1/2023 @ 7:35 pm

    
    

76. The point is that Trump didn’t have to speak at their event.

    You expected decency? Why now?

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 10:05 pm

    
    

77. @41 these are potential democratic voters. we don’t want them to get cut on the razor wire.

    And, adhering to their cause, gives them aid and comfort.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 10:06 pm

    
    

78. Good luck making that argument in court, or during an impeachment. It’s entering MTG and Andy Biggs territory.

    1) Illegal entry is a violation of federal and Texas state law.

    2) 18 USC 2383:

    Whoever incites, sets on foot, assists, or engages in any rebellion or insurrection against the authority of the United States or the laws thereof, or gives aid or comfort thereto, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and shall be incapable of holding any office under the United States.

    Maybe not “treason” exactly, but certainly insurrection, both against the United states, Texas and the laws of both.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 10:10 pm

    
    

79. @njrob@71 The law you are linking is about the penalties for assaulting or battering a person, not just misgendering them. It does say that if you assault or batter someone for being transgender that it qualifies as a hate-crime.

    Nic (230f8b) — 7/1/2023 @ 11:24 pm

    
    

80. What do you think the word intimidate means to a leftist?

    It specifically adds crimes for things that aren’t assaulting and battering.

    NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/2/2023 @ 6:28 am

    
    

81. Maybe not “treason” exactly, but certainly insurrection, both against the United states, Texas and the laws of both.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 10:10 pm

    LOL!

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 8:09 am

    
    

82. The NYT has a piece on Hunter’s abandoned daughter, probably because they couldn’t hold out any longer.

    There is a 4-year-old girl in rural Arkansas who is learning to ride a camouflage-patterned four-wheeler alongside her cousins. Some days, she wears a bow in her hair, and on other days, she threads her long blond ponytail through the back of a baseball cap. When she is old enough, she will learn to hunt, just like her mother did when she was young.

    The girl is aware that her father is Hunter Biden and that her paternal grandfather is the president of the United States. She speaks about both of them often, but she has not met them.

    The funny part is that his daughter not only gets monthly child support, but also a number of her dad’s paint-by-numbers works of “art”. Hunter’s baby mama is the daughter of a “rural gun maker” and her lawyer represented the Trump campaign, so we can guess her politics.
    BTW, it’s a lie for Joe Biden and/or his people to claim he has six grandkids. Like it or not, the facts say seven.
    Also, Hunter comes out as a complete schmuck in this tale, abdicating responsibility at every turn until forced into litigation. I’ll never vote for him, nor his enfeebled dad.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/2/2023 @ 8:21 am

    
    

83. Stupid short term thinkers… they needed to look at that progeny the same way the Kennedy Shrivers viewed Arnold and the offspring. And put egg in the face of the Juanita Broaddricks and Tara Reades of the world.

    urbanleftbehind (099a0c) — 7/2/2023 @ 8:31 am

    
    

84. 73 sshhh! But the ‘zolanos will be probably be slow-bake future Rs on a Marielito time frame (too long, 36-40 years, nearly 9 election cycles).

    urbanleftbehind (099a0c) — 7/2/2023 @ 8:33 am

    
    

85. Asset,

    We are governed by laws. The Constitution first and foremost.

    NJRob (fd5d62) — 7/2/2023 @ 9:19 am

    
    

86. Maybe not “treason” exactly, but certainly insurrection, both against the United states, Texas and the laws of both.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/1/2023 @ 10:10 pm

    “Insurrection” can be defined as:

    the act or an instance of revolting esp. violently against civil or political authority or against an established government

    which doesn’t fit your argument. Nothing in Biden’s immigration policy fits that definition. In fact, the Supreme Court just this term acknowledged that the government has right to set enforcement priorities since Congress hasn’t provided the necessary funding to enforce immigration laws to the letter.

    And if the illegal immigration situation at the border is an “invasion”, then Congress needs to authorize the US military to use deadly force against border crossers.

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 9:25 am

    
    

87. The first written customer complaint was over 37 centuries ago. Some things don’t change.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/2/2023 @ 9:30 am

    
    

88. https://www.francetvinfo.fr/faits-divers/adolescent-tue-par-un-policier-a-nanterre/val-de-marne-le-domicile-du-maire-de-lhay-les-roses-vandalise-son-epouse-hospitalisee_5925635.html

    If this is accurate, France has entered a new phase of terrorism and horror. Trying to burn down Paris’s mayor’s home and causing his family to flee.

    NJRob (fd5d62) — 7/2/2023 @ 9:46 am

    
    

89. Not Ready for Prime Time:

    Republican presidential candidate Francis Suarez was caught unaware Tuesday morning by a radio interviewer’s question about alleged human rights abuses in China.

    When the Miami mayor was asked if his campaign would mention the Chinese minority, Suarez responded by asking, “What’s a Uyghur?”
    ………..

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 9:58 am

    
    

90. Win or Lose, Chris Christie Is Running the Best Campaign Against Trump
    ………..
    ……….. Consider just a few of Christie’s recent greatest hits.

    When Trump mocked Christie’s weight, Christie, appearing on Fox News’ “MediaBuzz,” responded, “Oh what, like he’s some Adonis?” When asked about Trump diverting campaign money to pay for his legal expenses, Christie called him “the cheapest S.O.B. I’ve ever met in my life.” And regarding the GOP’s performances in 2018, 2020, and 2022, Christie called the former president a “three-time loser.” For better or worse, when it comes to throwing elbows, at least, he kind of sounds like…Trump.
    ………..
    ………..(A)fter Ron DeSantis tried to dodge a question about Jan. 6 by saying he wasn’t in Washington at the time, Christie mocked him, saying, “Did he have a TV? Was he alive that day? Did he see what was going on? I mean, that’s one of the most ridiculous answers I’ve heard in this race so far.” ………..
    ………..
    ………… I wouldn’t be surprised if (unlike many of his GOP competitors) Christie’s trajectory is still on the rise. There are a couple of reasons for this.

    First, Christie is the only contender who actually realizes the 2024 election is about one question and one question only: Trump or not Trump.

    …….. (T)he 2024 GOP primary is not about who has the best 10-point policy plan or who is the most anti-woke. It’s simply about whether or not Republicans want Trump again.
    ……….
    ………. He’s the only non-Trump candidate who is not only tough, but also funny and entertaining.

    Perhaps it’s a commentary on our culture, but this is vitally important. In fact, I would say that Trump’s entertainment value is a wildly underrated political attribute.
    ………..
    It might not be enough to sway Republican primary voters, but that’s on their collective conscience. Christie can’t control how voters will respond to his message. What he can control is how he delivers it.

    And on that count, he’s hitting it out of the park.
    ########

    Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 10:09 am

    
    

91. the act or an instance of revolting esp. violently against civil or political authority or against an established government

    You deny that waves of illegal immigrants are acting against civil or political authority? Amazing.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 10:45 am

    
    

92. When the Miami mayor was asked if his campaign would mention the Chinese minority, Suarez responded by asking, “What’s a Uyghur?”

    He’s just acting out and seeking attention.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 10:47 am

    
    

93. The NYT has a piece on Hunter’s abandoned daughter, probably because they couldn’t hold out any longer.
    ….
    The girl is aware that her father is Hunter Biden and that her paternal grandfather is the president of the United States. She speaks about both of them often, but she has not met them.

    It’s a very personal family matter and nobody’s business but the Bidens’.

    nk (f592e8) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:06 am

    
    

94. It speaks to character, nk.

    Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:35 am

    
    

95. BTW, it’s a lie for Joe Biden and/or his people to claim he has six grandkids. Like it or not, the facts say seven.
    Also, Hunter comes out as a complete schmuck in this tale, abdicating responsibility at every turn until forced into litigation. I’ll never vote for him, nor his enfeebled dad.

    I’m sick and tired of hearing that Joe Biden is a “good man” and a “loving patriarch” and all of that. This sort of thing goes to show what a true horses’s rear-end he is. I once respected him for not exploiting the horrible death of his first wife and young daughter in a tragic car crash, but then I learned that he had been peddling a completely false narrative about the driver of the other vehicle being drunk at the time — cynically impugning the character of a guy who according to his daughters was haunted by that crash for the rest of his life, all to garner even more sympathy for an awful event. And I know it must be hard to lose your other son to cancer, but that gives Joe Biden no permission to lie about the circumstances, again for political reasons. And of course you have his history of baloney, balderdash, and bunkum, his general creepiness with women and girls, and his tetchy grouchiness and general oafishness.

    Joe Biden is a real jerk.

    JVW (1ad43e) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:37 am

    
    

96. It’s a very personal family matter and nobody’s business but the Bidens’.

    I would be inclined to agree with that were it not for Team Biden’s incessant efforts to portray the President as a good family man and decent human being, which I just asserted he is not.

    JVW (1ad43e) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:39 am

    
    

97. @NJRob@80 Intimidate has a specific legal definition. Legally speaking it doesn’t mean “makes me feel bad.”

    Nic (230f8b) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:41 am

    
    

98. It’s a very personal family matter and nobody’s business but the Bidens’.

    Except that Biden has politically portrayed himself as all about family yet doesn’t even recognize the existence of his bastard grandchild. The hypocrisy seems pretty obvious to me.
    I do wish Ms. Roberts and daughter all the best, but her family also went the political route by whom they chose for legal counsel.
    Also, I’m not thrilled that grown sons and daughters of prominent political figures have become fair game in politics, but Hunter made a conscious choice to exploit his family’s name in exchange for big paychecks. On one side, I’m sympathetic about his drug addition, but on the other side he’s a grown man who made those choices.

    Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:46 am

    
    

99. Also, I’m not thrilled that grown sons and daughters of prominent political figures have become fair game in politics, but Hunter made a conscious choice to exploit his family’s name in exchange for big paychecks. On one side, I’m sympathetic about his drug addition, but on the other side he’s a grown man who made those choices.

    Well said. I feel the same way.

    I also objected when the Obamas would use Sasha and Malia for political purposes — Michelle while crusading about school lunches mentioned that she had had to get on the girls about eating junk food, and she was happy to discuss with the public how she and her husband had to keep on them to study hard and do their homework — yet when political opponents would ask a legitimate question such as “If the Obamas are so supportive of public school education, why have they chose to send both of their daughters to tony private schools?” that was considered to be “dragging the girls” into the political wars.

    JVW (1ad43e) — 7/2/2023 @ 11:51 am

    
    

100. Why I’m not concerned about Hunter Biden’s deal:

     The deal requires him to remain sober for the next couple of years, or he faces the felony gun charge. He will be unable to do that. Even in the face of known adverse results, an addict will always pick up unless they have a complete change of mental attitude. Which, given dad’s co-dependent coddling, he’s not come close to having.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 12:27 pm

     
     

101. @99: Meanwhile W did his best not to involve his daughters in political nonsense, yet the left had no problem attacking them when they had brushes with the law typical of young adults.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 12:31 pm

     
     

102. You deny that waves of illegal immigrants are acting against civil or political authority? Amazing.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 10:45 am

     Every crime is an insurrection, since they are acts “against civil or political authority” based on that standard.

     Illegal immigrants crossing the border are not equivalent to a violent action against the government (aka “insurrection”), unlike the participants in January 6th.

     Beyond blaming Biden for illegal migration, and since claim it’s a violent act against the government, what would you propose to stop it?

     I look at what the law says, what the Supreme Court has said, etc. and form an opinion. I don’t engage in Constitutional fantasies.

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 12:46 pm

     
     

103. If the Obamas are so supportive of public school education, why have they chose to send both of their daughters to tony private schools?

     I’m sure the Secret Service also had something to do with that.

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 12:49 pm

     
     

104. The public high school I graduated from was 1/8 mile from the Obama’s Chicago residence. Of course they were K-12 University of Chicago Lab Schoolers.

     urbanleftbehind (40111d) — 7/2/2023 @ 12:56 pm

     
     

105. Vying for VP:

     GOP House Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) called for unity behind former President Donald Trump’s 2024 campaign after Siena College polling on Wednesday revealed Trump dominating the GOP primary in New York with majority support.

     According to the poll, 61 percent of New York State registered Republican voters support Trump. Just 34 percent say they support someone else. Five percent are undecided.
     ……….
     “President Trump continues to dominate the Republican primary polls nationally, and the same is true right here in New York State, according to the latest Siena Poll, showing Trump winning by over 50 percent,” she added. “I hear from voters across the state that we need President Trump back in the White House to save America from the disastrous policies of Joe Biden.”

     The poll also reveals Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis earns just 31 percent support, 30 points behind Trump, while former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley and former Vice President Mike Pence follow with just nine percent each.
     …………

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 1:05 pm

     
     

106. Quinnipiac University Pennsylvania Poll 6/28/23

     In a state considered key to presidential elections, former President Donald Trump is leading a crowded field of candidates seeking the GOP nomination, receiving 49 percent support among registered Republican voters in Pennsylvania, followed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis receiving 25 percent support (in the most recent Quinnipiac University poll). Former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and former Vice President Mike Pence each receive 5 percent support. Former United Nations Ambassador and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and South Carolina Senator Tim Scott each receive 4 percent support. All other listed candidates receive 1 percent or less support.

     Among registered Democratic voters in Pennsylvania, President Joe Biden receives 71 percent support, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental lawyer and anti-vaccine activist, receives 17 percent support, and Marianne Williamson, an author, receives 5 percent support.

     In a hypothetical 2024 general election matchup between Biden and Trump, the race is a virtual dead heat among all registered voters with 47 percent supporting Trump and 46 percent supporting Biden.

     Republicans (89 – 7 percent) and independents (51 – 37 percent) support Trump, while Democrats (94 – 4 percent) support Biden.
     ………….
     Voters give President Biden a negative 39 – 57 percent job approval rating, with 4 percent not offering an opinion.
     ………….
     Sixty percent of voters think the federal criminal charges involving Trump and his handling of classified documents after leaving the White House are either very serious (45 percent) or somewhat serious (15 percent), while close to 4 in 10 voters (37 percent) think they are either not too serious (14 percent) or not serious at all (23 percent).
     …………..

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/2/2023 @ 1:25 pm

     
     

107. I’m sure the Secret Service also had something to do with that.

     Amy Carter attended public schools in Washington DC. Granted, those were earlier post-9/11 days, but could it really have been harder to monitor the Obama girls’ safety at, for example, the Benjamin Banneker Academy High School (how awesome would it have been to have the children of the first black President attend a school named for Benjamin Banneker?) than it was protecting Malia at Harvard or Sasha at the University of Michigan and USC?

     And just think of the incongruity of having heavily armed Secret Service officers at a Quaker school.

     JVW (1ad43e) — 7/2/2023 @ 1:35 pm

     
     

108. Jersey Boy Takes On Florida Man
     …………
     Trump has boasted that he’s so far ahead of his Republican rivals that he might not bother to show up for the first debate in August, hosted by Fox News in Milwaukee.

     “I think that he’ll show up at the debates because his ego won’t permit him not to,” Christie said. “He can’t have a big TV show that he’s not on.” He smiled, adding: “He’s on Truth Social going bonkers, and no one’s paying attention? He won’t deal well with that.”

     I warned that Trump is an asymmetrical fighter, so it’s hard to know how to go at him. Clinton tried to rise above him, and Marco Rubio imitated his crude style.

     “You just brought up two of the most unskilled politicians I’ve ever met,” Christie said, noting about Trump: “I don’t think he’s ever gone up against somebody who knows how to do what he does. He’s never run against somebody from New Jersey who understands what the New York thing is and what he’s all about. For people like me, who’ve grown up here and lived my whole life in this atmosphere, he’s just one of a lot of people I know who have that personality. He knows I know what his game is.”

     He said he isn’t running to get back at Trump for giving him a horrible case of Covid. ……..
     ………
     ……… He thinks DeSantis has already lost the authenticity contest: “If you say to Tucker Carlson that Ukraine is a territorial dispute and then a few days later you go to Piers Morgan and you call Putin a war criminal, well, it’s one or the other.”
     ……….
     “(Trump is) scared,” Christie said. “Look, a guy like him, the last place you ever want to be in life is in jail because you give up all control, and he’s a complete control freak.” Trump is playing checkers, not chess, Christie said, just scrambling to make that next jump.
     ………….

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/2/2023 @ 1:38 pm

     
     

109. The DeSantis Trouble With Women: They Don’t Like Him

     ……….
     A Civiqs survey reveals that 63% of women disapprove of the Florida Governor, a potentially bad sign for his presidential run. Just 27% approve of him.

     DeSantis is above water with Republican women, with 67% approval against 17% disapproval. But every other group of women voters is negative on the Sunshine State Republican, with 60% of female independent voters and 93% of Democratic women against him.
     ………..
     The bad feelings remain constant among women voters regardless of education, as 62% of those without a college education, 63% of college graduates and 66% of those with postgraduate credentials are all down on DeSantis.

     The trend holds true regardless of race as well.
     ………..
     This isn’t the first poll to suggest DeSantis has a problem with women voters, with some surveys even suggesting Republican women would prefer a different nominee.
     ………..

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 1:48 pm

     
     

110. Abortion bans like the one DeSantis signed in Florida are unpopular with many women.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 2:30 pm

     
     

111. In a hypothetical 2024 general election matchup between Biden and Trump, the race is a virtual dead heat among all registered voters with 47 percent RELUCTANTLY supporting Trump and 46 percent RELUCTANTLY supporting Biden.

     FIFY.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 2:34 pm

     
     

112. https://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/nb/alex-christy/2023/07/01/mystal-smears-thomas-mutilated-version-black-justice

     Joy Reid, the eponymous host of MSNBC’s The ReidOut, welcomed The Nation’s justice correspondent Elie Mystal onto her Friday show to recap the week’s Supreme Court decisions and naturally, incendiary hot takes soon followed including that Justice Clarence Thomas is a “mutilated version of a black justice” who is his wife’s puppet.

     When discussing the downfall of affirmative action, a confused Reid recalled, “[Thomas] cites Plessy a lot. I thought Plessy was like verboten, like nobody wants to talk about Plessy v. Ferguson.”

     This type of virulent racism is mainstreamed into leftist thought every single day.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/2/2023 @ 4:17 pm

     
     

113. He’s never run against somebody from New Jersey who understands what the New York thing is and what he’s all about.

     Heh! The light at the end of the tunnel is New Jersey? Okay, then!

     nk (f592e8) — 7/2/2023 @ 4:23 pm

     
     

114. Are people so desperate for someone, anyone, to call out Trump that they forget that Christie did run in 2016, that he was on the stage with Trump in the debates, and all he did was manoeuver to become Trump’s favorite girl? Kissing in public included?

     nk (f592e8) — 7/2/2023 @ 4:30 pm

     
     

115. Anyone else think Putin is throwing some cash at French anarchists (excuse me, I meant to say anti fascists)
     To me it would seem like a good investment as a million dollars can buy a lot of fireworks, fertilizer and diesel fuel.

     steveg (545e33) — 7/2/2023 @ 4:50 pm

     
     

116. This type of virulent racism is mainstreamed into leftist thought every single day.

     John Paul Stevens quoted Cruikshank in his dissent in Heller. Cruikshank makes <Plessy look like a walk in the park, as it legitimatized lynching.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 5:16 pm

     
     

117. Fox News Poll 6/28/23

     ……….
     Last month, Trump had the support of 53% of GOP primary voters. Now, he’s at 56%. And his closest competitor, Ron DeSantis, trails at 22%.
     ………….
     Trump’s lead over DeSantis has expanded from 15 percentage points in February to 34 points today.

     The rest of the Republican field lingers in low single digits: Vivek Ramaswamy at 5%; Mike Pence and Tim Scott at 4% each; Nikki Haley at 3%; and Chris Christie, Larry Elder and Asa Hutchinson at 1% apiece.
     …………
     Another example of Trump’s strength is only 13% of GOP primary voters say they would never vote for him, narrowly giving him the best standing among top Republican candidates. That’s down from 18% in October 2015, the last time the question was asked, and a total reversal from the early days of the 2016 primaries, when 59% said they would never vote for him (June 2015).
     ………….
     For GOP primary voters, winning in 2024 is the priority: 70% feel it’s extremely important to support a candidate who can defeat President Biden, while 55% say the same about sharing a candidate’s views on issues.

     Either way, candidate preference is the same. Those saying electability is extremely important back Trump (57%) over DeSantis (24%), as do those prioritizing issues: Trump (63%) over DeSantis (24%).

     What will Trump supporters do if he fails to win the nomination? Most say they’ll vote for whoever the GOP nominee is (80%), with only 6% saying they wouldn’t vote at all.
     ………..
     Biden continues to lead by a wide margin among Democratic primary voters. He receives 64% support, up from 62% in May. Robert Kennedy, Jr. gets 17% and Marianne Williamson 10%. Biden also gets a low never-vote-for number (10%). More than twice as many feel that way about Kennedy (26%).
     ………….

     Top line and cross tabs.

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 5:22 pm

     
     

118. Are people so desperate for someone, anyone, to call out Trump that they forget that Christie did run in 2016, that he was on the stage with Trump in the debates, and all he did was manoeuver to become Trump’s favorite girl? Kissing in public included?

     nk (f592e8) — 7/2/2023 @ 4:30 pm

     You can say the same about Darling Nikki.

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/2/2023 @ 5:27 pm

     
     

119. Are people so desperate for someone, anyone, to call out Trump that they forget that Christie did run in 2016…….

     Since Christie is the only candidate to do so (even at 3% his polling is 3x higher than Hutchinson), the answer is yes, unless you think no one should be calling Trump out.

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/2/2023 @ 5:33 pm

     
     

120. Just picking up the phone when a pollster calls makes a person a more likely “King Stork” than “King Log”.

     nk (f592e8) — 7/2/2023 @ 5:35 pm

     
     

121. I do say the same thing about Darjeeling Nikki. In fact, I say the same thing about every Republican running for any office. Christie was just the subject of the moment. They all have the Trump taint. Everyone of them.

     nk (f592e8) — 7/2/2023 @ 5:41 pm

     
     

122. he was on the stage with Trump in the debates, and all he did was manoeuver to become Trump’s favorite girl?

     I doubt they forget that, since Christie cops to it first thing.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 6:06 pm

     
     

123. This type of virulent racism is mainstreamed into leftist thought every single day.

     I’ve said it before: Elie Mystal is Al Sharpton with a Harvard Law degree.

     JVW (1ad43e) — 7/2/2023 @ 7:35 pm

     
     

124. When discussing the downfall of affirmative action, a confused Reid recalled, “[Thomas] cites Plessy a lot. I thought Plessy was like verboten, like nobody wants to talk about Plessy v. Ferguson.”

     She is confused. Justice Thomas cited Justice Harlan’s dissent in Plessy vs Ferguson:

     He cited a dissent from Justice John Harlan, who opposed the court’s decision in Plessy v. Ferguson, which had declared that segregation could be legal if accommodations were “separate but equal” until the ruling was overturned in Brown v. Board of Education. Thomas noted that Harlan said the Constitution is colorblind, and all citizens have equal civil rights under the law.

     DRJ (fd3827) — 7/2/2023 @ 8:18 pm

     
     

125. @85 the lone ranger and tonto are surrounded by hostile indians. The lone ranger turns to tonto and says “were in trouble now! Tonto. Tonto replys what you mean “we” white man. Rosa parks thought differently and so do many of “us!” As Malcolm X said “by any means necessary!” Lexington green was not governed by laws. This is what gives my side the edge.

     asset (0542d3) — 7/3/2023 @ 12:08 am

     
     

126. Asset, I thought guys mellowed as they got older. How are you the exception?

     norcal (8b5267) — 7/3/2023 @ 12:16 am

     
     

127. @126 I have mellowed and a lot. Especially after I realized the world will get along just fine when I am gone.

     asset (0542d3) — 7/3/2023 @ 12:32 am

     
     

128. Here are some “real” patriotic songs that won’t be played on the 4th of july. Ohio, alabama, rockin in the free world, we can be together, why can’t we be friends, save the country and the ties they are a changing. Maybe born in the usa as the rednecks don’t understand the lyrics.

     asset (0542d3) — 7/3/2023 @ 12:41 am

     
     

129. Ms. Amelina put her writing career on hold to document Russian war crimes, but she fell victim to a Putin war crime in Kramatorsk, the one where he blew up a pizzeria. There were vatniks at Instapundit trying to claim that it was a legitimate military target, despite the fact that the lives of four children were snuffed out.

     Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/3/2023 @ 5:47 am

     
     

130. @57

     The definition of a fishing expedition.

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/1/2023 @ 12:40 pm

     I don’t think so buddy.

     https://hotair.com/jazz-shaw/2023/07/03/david-weiss-explanation-of-hunter-biden-investigation-confirms-what-we-knew-n562168

     But in the letter, he then turned around and confirmed nearly everything the whistleblowers said.
     …
     Let’s first review the main complaints raised by the whistleblowers. They have said that the potential charges against Hunter Biden, including multiple felonies, were allowed to languish for years until many of them were past the statute of limitations. Among the remaining charges, cases needed to be pursued outside of Delaware, in both Washington and California, but Weiss was either unwilling or unable to bring them.

     Read the whole thing.

     This was an influence-peddling and money-laundering operation. And quite a blatant one.

     The question remains, does anyone in DC have the honor and integrity to investigate this in good faith?

     Its unfortunate, that it’s taking Republicans in Congress to push this.

     whembly (5f7596) — 7/3/2023 @ 6:47 am

     
     

131. Mel Brooks had a scene in Blazing Saddles of Hunter Biden and the Republicans in Congress. Hunter is the one in the cowboy hat.

     nk (272eae) — 7/3/2023 @ 7:13 am

     
     

132. Heh! On further thought, make that “and the Republicans in Congress“.

     nk (272eae) — 7/3/2023 @ 7:31 am

     
     

133. Lexington green was not governed by laws. This is what gives my side the edge.

     Yeah. Stalin, Mao, Pol Pot and the like are your heritage. Be proud.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/3/2023 @ 9:41 am

     
     

134. Especially after I realized the world will get along just fine when I am gone.

     What did you think before then?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/3/2023 @ 9:42 am

     
     

135. 22. Kevin M (2d6744) — 6/30/2023 @ 3:56 pm

     They are adamant about testing 21st century vaccines with 19th century methods, all the time thinking “Avoid all blame.”

     Not 19th or early 20th century methods – use if insulin after its discovery was quick – or mid-20th century methods, like the polio vaccines – and they did make mistakes – but late 20th century methods.

     They practically make it impossible for personalized medicine, They demand approval for diagnostic tests. The only thing not needing approval is new types of surgery. There’s good and there’s bad with that.

     Sammy Finkelman (0653a4) — 7/3/2023 @ 10:09 am

     
     

136. whembly (5f7596) — 7/3/2023 @ 6:47 am

     The question remains, does anyone in DC have the honor and integrity to investigate this in good faith?

     Maybe James Comer, although he has to deal with members of his committee majority who are not too interested in good faith.

     he institution and possible backlash, gives some advantage to those who are interested in the truth and no more.

     Sammy Finkelman (0653a4) — 7/3/2023 @ 10:13 am

     
     

137. The question remains, does anyone in DC have the honor and integrity to investigate this in good faith?

     Maybe James Comer, although he has to deal with members of his committee majority who are not too interested in good faith.

     LOL! If anything there should be a joint House-Senate Select Committee investigation.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 12:58 pm

     
     

138. Comer is the one who has made wild accusations of multi-million dollar transfers to the President while at the same time acknowledging he doesn’t have proof.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 1:03 pm

     
     

139. Comer is the one who has made wild accusations of multi-million dollar transfers to the President while at the same time acknowledging he doesn’t have proof.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 1:03 pm

     Case in point.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 1:05 pm

     
     

140. That Was Then, This Is Now:

     ……..
     “We could very well have a sitting president under felony indictment and ultimately a criminal trial,” Trump said during a November 5, 2016, campaign rally in Reno, Nevada, reviewed by CNN’s KFile. “It would grind government to a halt.”

     Just days earlier, on October 28, then-FBI director James Comey publicly announced they had reopened the investigation into (Hillary) Clinton’s handling of classified information related to her use of a private email server during her tenure as secretary of state.
     ……..
     At another rally on November 3, 2016, in Concord, North Carolina, Trump made similar comments.

     “If she were to win, it would create an unprecedented Constitutional crisis that would cripple the operations of our government,” he said. “She is likely to be under investigation for many years, and also it will probably end up – in my opinion – in a criminal trial. I mean, you take a look. Who knows? But it certainly looks that way.”
     ……….
     “She has no right to be running, you know that,” Trump said. “No right.”
     ……….

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 1:13 pm

     
     

141. Comer is the one who has made wild accusations of multi-million dollar transfers to the President while at the same time acknowledging he doesn’t have proof.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 1:03 pm

     The fact that he acknowledged he didn’t have proof is an indication he’s is interested in the truth.

     he had evidence – the FBI report. But it is all, very unlikely hearsay. Zlochevsky may have indeed claimed it/

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/3/2023 @ 2:44 pm

     
     

142. The fact that he acknowledged he didn’t have proof is an indication he’s is interested in the truth.

     Comedy gold! If he was interested in the truth he would make his wild, unsupported accusations without evidence.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 4:14 pm

     
     

143. Correction:

     Comedy gold! If he was interested in the truth he would wouldn’t make his wild, unsupported accusations without evidence.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 4:14 pm

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 4:16 pm

     
     

144. Now protests over affirmitive action for rich white people. Legacy admissions. Look what happened to aunt becky without them.

     asset (14ba77) — 7/3/2023 @ 4:41 pm

     
     

145. You deny that waves of illegal immigrants are acting against civil or political authority? Amazing.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 10:45 am

     Perhaps you would be more comfortable with the DeSantis border plan:

     Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday said he supported using “deadly force” against migrants coming into the United States who were suspected of bringing in drugs.

     He said drug cartels cut through “massive beams” in the border wall and have “backpacks” that they use to bring in drugs.
     ……….
     It’s not clear exactly how officers would be able to tell exactly who was a drug smuggler and who was not.
     ……….
     DeSantis, who’s trailing Trump in national polls by wide margins, is promising to send Navy and Coast Guard resources to block fentanyl-related Chinese precursor chemicals from reaching Mexican ports, “if the Mexican government drags its feet” in assisting. The U.S. has never taken this action before.

     He insists he’ll work with Panama to “close” the Darien Gap — a lawless stretch of jungle where migrants from Central America make the dangerous trek to the U.S.
     ………
     ……….He plans to end birthright citizenship — the policy under which children of undocumented immigrants who are born in the U.S. automatically become U.S. citizens.
     ……….

     He also advocates closing the “Flores loophole, however, that is a federal court decree (Flores v. Reno). Congress can overturn the decree, but has in fact codified parts of it into law.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 6:07 pm

     
     

146. Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/3/2023 @ 6:07 pm

     As long as there is a strong black market for drugs in the U.S., the cartels will find a way to get drugs here.

     Of course, any politician who mentions complete legalization of drugs will crash and burn, because Americans don’t understand economics, and seemed to have learned no lessons from Prohibition.

     The more the War on Drugs is waged, the higher the black market price. The higher the price, the more ruthless the cartels will be, and the more corrupt the Mexican government will become. And, as a bonus, users will have to commit more crime to get the money to pay for the drugs.

     It’s one of those counterintuitive things. Saying “get tough on the drug trade” is ridiculous.

     norcal (8b5267) — 7/3/2023 @ 6:37 pm

     
     

147. As long as there is a strong black market for drugs in the U.S., the cartels will find a way to get drugs here.

     What the “shoot first, don’t ask any questions” DeSantis plan fails to realize is that most illegal drugs are smuggled through US ports and airports.

     CRS analysis of (US Customs and Border Protection Office of Field Operations (OFO))drug seizure data from FY2014 to FY2018 indicate that across those five years, about 65% of seized illicit drugs, by weight, were seized at land ports of entry at the border, about 28% of seized drugs were seized at airports of entry, and about 5% were seized at sea ports of entry. CRS analysis of these data also indicate that nearly 97% of drugs were seized during inbound inspections across those years. .

     Source

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/3/2023 @ 7:40 pm

     
     

148. https://www.dailywire.com/news/inflation-causes-fourth-of-july-cookout-items-to-hit-record-high-report

     Average per-person spending on Fourth of July food items rose to $93.34 in 2023 amid persistent inflation, new from a National Retail Federation (NRF) survey found.

     The figure is the highest ever recorded by the NRF since the survey began in 2003, marking a $9.22 increase since last year when the individual cost averaged out to $84.12. The survey, conducted from June 1st to June 7th, fielded responses from 8,225 consumers.

     While the average per-person cost of Fourth of July food items was just $68.16 in 2014, the sum has grown every year except 2019. The report comes as Americans continue to struggle with inflation, which hit a 40 year high in 2022.

     Have a blessed Independence Day free from government interference.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:38 am

     
     

149. Next time were to traveling or thru Tennessee, we’re definitely going to the biggest gas station in the whole world.
     Happy 4th, y’all. Our county may be all about snakes and sparklers, but we’re going to a Joe Dirt style whizbang.

     Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:48 am

     
     

150. Happy 4th, to all of you.

     (I will be celebrating it by watching the local parade, which seems about the right size to me, and has a very high participation level. They begin with my favorite part, a children’s parade, allowing proud moms to show off their children, dressed appropriately.)

     Jim Miller (7b1395) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:26 am

     
     

151. Ehh, Buccees is an inverted Meijer in terms of the gas sales:food+clothes retail sales ratio. It would be cool if you ran into Sydney Sweeney at that fireworks show.

     urbanleftbehind (099a0c) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:29 am

     
     

152. Damn you Robert Crimo for spooking half the towns in my county from doing anything today.

     urbanleftbehind (099a0c) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:30 am

     
     

153. Have a blessed Independence Day free from government interference.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:38 am

     Sadly, the Federal government has already interfered in my celebration by banning cherry bombs, M-80s, and other fireworks.🧨😉

     Rip Murdock (3aaf7e) — 7/4/2023 @ 10:13 am

     
     

154. As long as there is a strong black market for drugs in the U.S., the cartels will find a way to get drugs here.

     After a long and arduous fight, federal authorities put an end to mass distribution of high-grade Oxycontin, only to see production Oxy replaced by fentanyl-laced counterfeits that are far more dangerous.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 10:30 am

     
     

155. banning cherry bombs, M-80s, and other fireworks.

     Well, those are really just bombs. There are plenty of really dangerous fireworks you can still get.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 10:33 am

     
     

156. Judge blocks U.S. officials from tech contacts in First Amendment case

     A federal judge on Tuesday blocked key Biden administration agencies and officials from meeting and communicating with social media companies, in an extraordinary injunction in an ongoing case that could have profound effects on the First Amendment.

     The injunction came in response to a lawsuit brought by Republican attorneys general in Louisiana and Missouri, who allege that government officials went too far in their efforts to encourage social media companies to address posts that they worried could contribute to vaccine hesitancy during the pandemic or upend elections. The Trump-appointed judge’s move could upend years of efforts to enhance coordination between the government and social media companies.

     The injunction was a victory for the state attorneys general, who have accused the Biden administration of enabling a “sprawling federal ‘Censorship Enterprise’” to encourage tech giants to remove politically unfavorable viewpoints and speakers, and for conservatives who’ve accused the government of suppressing their speech. In their filings, the attorneys general alleged the actions amount to “the most egregious violations of the First Amendment in the history of the United States of America.”

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 10:35 am

     
     

157. You deny that waves of illegal immigrants are acting against civil or political authority? Amazing.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/2/2023 @ 10:45 am

     I’m interested in your thoughts about DeSantis’s border plan.

     Also, since you apparently consider the illegal immigration at the border to be a national security threat, would you favor Congress allowing the military to use lethal force against them?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:22 am

     
     

158. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 10:35 am

     I would like to see a trial on the merits.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:24 am

     
     

159. So the government got the government to order the government not to talk to techies? Only in America.

     nk (f269d2) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:44 am

     
     

160. Please explain how illegal immigration at this scale is not a national security threat?

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:50 am

     
     

161. Please explain how illegal immigration at this scale is not a national security threat?

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:50 am

     I don’t think it’s threatening the survival of nation, at best it’s a serious problem for the southwest border region.

     Since you think it is a national security threat, would you favor Congress allowing the military to use lethal force against border crossers?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:55 am

     
     

162. I don’t think it’s threatening the survival of nation, at best it’s a serious problem for the southwest border region.

     Which includes whole states, which are being invaded. A human wave doesn’t really need guns.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:48 pm

     
     

163. I’m interested in your thoughts about DeSantis’s border plan.

     DeSantis is trying to out-demagogue Trump. I’ve never been a DeSantis fan. On a scale of 1 to 10, he’s a 3. Still, a 3 is better than a 1.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:50 pm

     
     

164. So, I just found out that the progressive cabal that has taken over my state has not only eliminated cash bail (leading to criminals arrested with 5 previous charges pending, and released again), but they’ve eliminated qualified immunity for police, prosecutors and judges.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:53 pm

     
     

165. DeSantis is trying to out-demagogue Trump. I’ve never been a DeSantis fan. On a scale of 1 to 10, he’s a 3. Still, a 3 is better than a 1.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:50 pm

     Aside from your personal opinion about DeSantis, are there any aspects of his plan you like? Also, since this is a national security issue, do you favor impeaching Biden over it?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:55 pm

     
     

166. Which includes whole states, which are being invaded. A human wave doesn’t really need guns.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:48 pm

     Again, what policies would you like to see implemented to counter this “national security” threat?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:57 pm

     
     

167. You don’t use military force against a needle in a haystack, but you sure can use a magnet developed by the military if they’ve got one.

     The smuggling routes are owned by cartels. Human smugglers, drug smugglers are 100% cartel owned and operated subsidiaries that work together to overwhelm and confuse border security by making them look for a needle in a pile of needles. We don’t use military force to solve the problem at the border because we value human life and honor the lives of the human shields. Because I feel like we don’t know how to stop interconnected Chinese and Mexican players and their smuggling routes without kinetically welding the needles into molten form doesn’t mean it is not a national security threat and doesn’t mean the military can not be useful. When we use the word military, I tend to think explosions and some selective things can go boom and I would sleep just fine, but the DoD does cyber warfare well, it tracks shipments well, the Treasury is great at taking other peoples money, so sending in a Marine Expeditionary Unit is the military force of the very last resort.

     Side note: I think the Israeli dilemma in West Bank and Gaza shows how force would be portrayed in any US intervention into Mexico. There will always be dead babies and wailing mothers at every scene….

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:59 pm

     
     

168. Rip

     Do you live in the SW border region?

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:03 pm

     
     

169. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 10:35 am

     In light of the SC decision in US v. Texas last month, I wonder how Missouri and Louisiana met their Article III standing threshold.

     Gorsuch agreed that Texas and Louisiana lack standing. But in his view, the fatal flaw in the states’ lawsuit is that they would not benefit from a ruling in their favor.

     My guess is that the injunction will be overturned based on lack of standing.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:13 pm

     
     

170. Rip

     Do you live in the SW border region?

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:03 pm

     Yes.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:16 pm

     
     

171. We don’t use military force to solve the problem at the border because we value human life and honor the lives of the human shields. …………When we use the word military, I tend to think explosions and some selective things can go boom and I would sleep just fine, but the DoD does cyber warfare well, it tracks shipments well, the Treasury is great at taking other peoples money, so sending in a Marine Expeditionary Unit is the military force of the very last resort.

     Side note: I think the Israeli dilemma in West Bank and Gaza shows how force would be portrayed in any US intervention into Mexico. There will always be dead babies and wailing mothers at every scene….

     As you noted, DOD and Treasury are all ready doing those things; and Israel has decided that the pictures of dead bodies are worth it (or they just ban journalists).

     It’s become an article of faith among Republicans to use military force against the cartels, both on the campaign trail and among influential members of Congress.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:31 pm

     
     

172. steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:59 pm

     Do you think the cartels would retaliate by conducting bombings and assassinations in United States, much as they do in Mexico?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:34 pm

     
     

173. I don’t think that Border Patrol agents should be shot at with impunity. I think it should be made very clear to Mexico that if our people take fire or even rocks from across the border, we reserve the right to defend ourselves. Doesn’t have to be every time, but am fine with telling Mexico that they can solve this themselves by simply enforcing their laws against the most difficult of their criminals. It is easy to put Tio Julio in prison for carry a rifle outside, tough to enforce it against the cartels. If DeSantis were to become President, laid the legal framework out and some cartel people died, I would not lose sleep, but would be aware that we might be out on slippery ledge where we have stepped away from normal diplomacy

     Hernandez v. Mesa doesn’t authorize force, but realizes that deadly force occurs during border incidents, incidents the majority of the court sees as matters of national security and a Presidential concern.
     Justice Samuel Alito, who wrote the opinion, said the deadly incident is a matter of national security, which is under the purview of Congress or the president. Those branches alone, he said, possess the power “to authorize the award of damages for injuries inflicted outside our borders.”
     “A crossborder shooting affects the interests of two countries and, as happened here, may lead to disagreement. It is not for this Court to arbitrate between the United States and Mexico, which both have legitimate and important interests at stake and have sought to reconcile those interests through diplomacy,” Alito said.

     This was the Mexican take on the incident during which there was some rock throwing.
     Hernandez Guereca was a secondary student in Juarez.
     “The young man was not armed,” said Sergio Belmonte, Ciudad Juarez spokesman. “He did not have the physical size to threaten anyone. The aggression (by the U.S. agent) is evident.” Belmonte said Hernandez was shot in the head.
     “My people have spoken to his family. His dad says he was a straight-A student. His secondary school even sent him on an academic trip because of his good grades,” Mayor Jose Reyes Ferriz said.

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:46 pm

     
     

174. Happy Birthday to actress Eva Marie Saint (99). Oldest living Academy Award winner (Best Supporting Actress in 1951 for On the Waterfront, her screen debut) and one of the last remaining stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood. She was married to her husband for 56 years before his passing.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:52 pm

     
     

175. steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:46 pm

     If you really want to dissuade rock throwing or shootings across the border, Congress should authorize the Border Patrol and National Guard to not only return fire, but conduct hot pursuits into Mexican territory.

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:56 pm

     
     

176. Of course we are talking about a problem much bigger than rock throwing, it is how to stop the human and drug trafficking across the border. Which is why the Republicans are all in on sending troops into Mexico.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:59 pm

     
     

177. Which is why the Republicans are all in on sending troops into Mexico.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:59 pm

     Of course we did that once before, and not to successfully.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 2:07 pm

     
     

178. Rip

     I wrote that last post before I read your recent post: do I believe the cartels would assassinate and bomb much as they do in Mexico?
     Yes

     Sometimes it is better to get on with a fight rather than slipping it again. I think cartels are very corrosive. They thrive on corruption, they create/operate black markets, they normalize under the table transactions. One of the reasons prisons in CA rehabilitate so few is the influence of the cartels within the system all the way down to the juvenile level. People need to see that the cartels are not all powerful, they bleed, and they are not accepted. If local agencies do not have the will of the local politicians and can’t do it, people will opt for the feds and eventually that will need to be be large scale paramilitary because the cartels are not going to back down.
     Or we can give up and adopt the clearly broken Mexican system

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 2:08 pm

     
     

179. Since we have tried everything that we can do on our own territory, I guess occupying the Mexican side of the border is the only option.

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/4/2023 @ 2:23 pm

     
     

180. Again, what policies would you like to see implemented to counter this “national security” threat?

     In a vacuum? Nearly every problem Los Angeles has (other than its politicians) would be solved by sending all the illegals back to Mexico since “overcrowding” is the root cause of congested roads, sky-high rents and rampant homelessness. Of course, this would create other problems, such as civil conflict.

     How about” “We’re full up. Until we can sort out those we have, no new entrants. None, not for any reason.”

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 2:41 pm

     
     

181. The problem — and why they keep coming — is that our resolve is weak and our exceptions many.

     In the end, we need to have a formal treaty with Mexico (and possibly other Central American countries) that formalizes entry to the US, makes Mexico responsible for controlling it, and provides US citizens with reciprocal rights in Mexico, such as free movement, owning property and equality before the law.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 2:46 pm

     
     

182. One of the problems that Mexico has with cartels is that members of their leadership are floating on drug money. So, a question:

     Let’s say the the US military is called upon to smash the cartels with brute force, as we did with ISIS. Would they win, or would the cartel’s corruption spread to our leadership as well? Has it already?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 2:54 pm

     
     

183. Among the lessons learned via watching the Israeli’s is “Hot pursuits are not a great idea.” Your link to the punitive expeditions illustrates that as well. But quick question since you brought it up
     Was the US right to pursue Pancho Villa? I think so. The US had an obligation in its contract with citizens to do so. The fact that we didn’t execute the punitive expeditions well and get favorable results does not mean we should not have tried.
     I do not think anyone serious actually wants to occupy the Mexican side of the border for longer than an hour or two but diplomacy has failed to get a result since, well, Pancho Villa and here we are.

     The Israeli’s use a unit called Musta’ribeen for undercover military work in Palestinian areas. We probably have DEA, ATF agents doing similar work minus the kidnappings. Mexico can avoid all of this by simply enforcing their own laws. They love to enforce firearms laws on regular citizens, but let the cartels roam around armed in trucks with a .50 mounted in the bed. There are plenty of captured russian and iranian made 4-5km stand off anti vehicle munitions ATGM’s in Ukraine that eventually will make their way to people with cash and cartels definitely have cash.

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:00 pm

     
     

184. As for DeSantis’s plan … it’s palpable nonsense. The only thing about birthright citizenship that needs addressing is birthright tourism — fly into LAX, have a baby at UCLA, and then fly home. Birthright citizenship should be reserved to those intending to immigrate and become US residents. That they do so illegally does not reflect a lack of that intent.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:00 pm

     
     

185. The main problem with creating a buffer zone in Mexico (besides the terrible press) is that it solves nothing. You then have to deal with those encroaching on your border zone. So you need a bigger buffer. Etc.

     The best plan is to regulate movement across the border by treaty, with shared responsibility, reciprocal rights and tax agreements.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:07 pm

     
     

186. I’ve asked this before about states and standing: If the Constitution is a contract among states for Union, why don’t states have standing to insist it be followed?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:09 pm

     
     

187. Argument against punitive expeditions by US Military
     https://mwi.usma.edu/half-measures-just-dont-work-case-bringing-back-punitive-expedition/

     Given that rogue states are often dominated by authoritarian parties or individuals, a sharp divide exists between the regime and the populace, and this divide heavily influences how we conceptualize the enemy. In these instances, the populace is largely viewed as the victim and the enemy is narrowly identified as the regime’s leadership and its security apparatus. Under such conditions, punishing the regime without compounding the suffering of the already victimized populace can prove exceptionally difficult, and, when large segments of society and its requisite infrastructure are ethically off limits, there is little room left to punish. Strategists must also carefully assess whether a punitive expedition will galvanize an already divided society, strengthening the regime’s popularity by bringing the people and the party together under shared hardship and a common enemy

     Argument for punitive expeditions
     https://mwi.usma.edu/bringing-back-punitive-expedition/

     As John Lewis Gaddis points out, connecting the means to the ends is difficult but vital. This ability must be in the military strategist’s intellectual toolkit. Including a punitive expedition into the proposed range of military responses to an enemy action can satisfy the need to act relatively swiftly and can assist in crafting a policy end within the ability of the applied means to achieve. A punitive expedition does not close the door on other options. A punitive expedition as a response option is also not a substitute for a strategy. But it can fit well into the conditions around which policy and strategy are developed and refined as conditions change—and strategists know conditions will change.

     The narrative accompanying action must also be considered as a part of both the government policy and the supporting strategy. Playing well in Peoria is important, but a consideration of how the narrative plays in Paktia province and Paris must also be incorporated into both thinking and action. As Lt. Gen. Eric Wesley suggested during the 2019 Association of the US Army convention, whoever wins the narrative of the first battle may well win the war.

     The purpose of the punitive expedition is to act with violence and return to home station. The linkage to policy is straightforward as execution of these types of expeditions will serve to demonstrate that the United States will reach out and take action to destroy a foe who threatens vital national interests and American lives. In ungoverned spaces, a punitive expedition is measured, focused, and not open-ended. A punitive expedition must act in coordination with diplomatic and informational efforts, each reinforcing the other. Indeed strategists and planners must bear in mind the political object irrespective of the development of use-of-force options.

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:19 pm

     
     

188. https://news.yahoo.com/arizona-attorney-general-kris-mayes-140030478.html

     Leftist Arizona Attorney General declares on the anniversary of our nation’s birth that she will ignore the law and the Constitution and continue to illegally discriminate against those exercising their constitutional rights… and she damns the Supreme Court in the process.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:27 pm

     
     

189. I was being too flippant by saying “I do not think anyone serious actually wants to occupy the Mexican side of the border for longer than an hour or two” when clearly it could be days and even weeks.
     I think we should be and probably are on the Mexican side of the border all day every day. We are reaching a point where we need to apply more and different leverage because what we are doing now has not yielded good enough results

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:31 pm

     
     

190. @189 Wasn’t this tried at columbus new mexico in 1916? Lt didn’t end well. You could ask gen. pershing about that.

     asset (54b9e4) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:37 pm

     
     

191. @188 GOOD! Az getting better all the time! Thanks latinx birthrate! Over 100 latinx kids turn 18 everyday in az and they have voter ID’s. If you ad dreamers its 130 a day.

     asset (54b9e4) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:40 pm

     
     

192. @164 seems AOC is more popular in your state then conservatives. She is the future conservatives are the past

     asset (54b9e4) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:45 pm

     
     

193. Our leadership is floating on all types of money and I am certain we have people who are beholden to cartels. The main saving grace is that people in craven “leadership” are not limited to one, two or three streams of revenue and if they are shrewd, will avoid cartel money

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 4:02 pm

     
     

194. Pershing is still dead, so no

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 4:03 pm

     
     

195. My only qualm about this ruling is whether US counterintelligence is hindered against foreign bad actors.

     Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/4/2023 @ 4:07 pm

     
     

196. Mr. Theiner has a thread on the Ukrainian counteroffensive. The lack of airpower means they have to attrite using other tactics.

     Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/4/2023 @ 4:30 pm

     
     

197. I think it was supposed to stop the establishment of a state religion, and from denying free exercise to the heretics who criticized it’s state support

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:14 pm

     
     

198. Paul,
     Mr. Theiner seems correct in his assessment of need to bait Russians heavy equipment forward. One question that remained was how much is Ukraine losing in return. Even noting all the new equipment and recently trained brigades still due to arrive on the battlefield, I have questions that only action will show the answer to

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:21 pm

     
     

199. We are reaching a point where we need to apply more and different leverage because what we are doing now has not yielded good enough results

     We saw the quality of people, all 376 of them, who are doing “what we are doing now” at the Uvalde school shooting.

     nk (567aa1) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:21 pm

     
     

200. They found cocaine in the West Wing. Of the White house. How are you going to curb the insatiable hunger this country has for recreational drugs? With so many people claiming it as a normal thing and an inalienable right?

     nk (567aa1) — 7/4/2023 @ 5:53 pm

     
     

201. The Mexican response has been that America is responsible for the cartels because of its demand for drugs. I considered that to be decidedly unhelpful. Helpful would have been to agree we both have a problem and we need to help each other. I think it boils down to the billions of dollars the drug trade brings into Mexico.

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:16 pm

     
     

202. We get video of Hunter smoking crack and driving 172MPH on the road to Las Vegas, then we find out it was probably his cocaine in the WH Library

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:19 pm

     
     

203. I’ve asked this before about states and standing: If the Constitution is a contract among states for Union, why don’t states have standing to insist it be followed?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:09 pm

     Unlike a contract between parties that allows one or the other to terminate the contract, there is nothing in the Constitution that allows a state to terminate their participation. Once a state agrees to join, they must stay in.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:21 pm

     
     

204. seems AOC is more popular in your state then conservatives. She is the future conservatives are the past

     That’s what your side said in 1933, too.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:30 pm

     
     

205. My only qualm about this ruling is whether US counterintelligence is hindered against foreign bad actors

     They have their own ways of manipulating opinion on the Internet.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:31 pm

     
     

206. Even noting all the new equipment

     Which is that? We promise stuff, but we are really not very good at delivering it.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:32 pm

     
     

207. How are you going to curb the insatiable hunger this country has for recreational drugs?

     We cannot even keep drugs out of prisons. That should give one pause.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:33 pm

     
     

208. Unlike a contract between parties that allows one or the other to terminate the contract, there is nothing in the Constitution that allows a state to terminate their participation. Once a state agrees to join, they must stay in.

     That’s a non sequitur.

     Suing in federal court to require the constitution be followed is a bit different than secession. It’s the civil way to deal with disputes.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:37 pm

     
     

209. If the Constitution is a contract among states for Union, why don’t states have standing to insist it be followed?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 3:09 pm

     If the Constitution is a contract, what provision allows a state to compel specific performance?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:44 pm

     
     

210. Only a Trump-appointed judge would not have kicked these wingnuts out of his courtroom.

     What’s next? A lawsuit by the street gangs to keep the neighborhood watch from talking to the police?

     nk (567aa1) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:44 pm

     
     

211. If the Constitution is a contract, what provision allows a state to compel specific performance?

     What provision says they can’t. There’s a judiciary for handling disputes. Is it impossible to conceive that a state might dispute an action of the federal government? Not everything is non-justiciable.

     Suppose, for example, Congress passed a tax directly on border states, to cynically provide funding for immigrants. How would anyone sue to prevent this tax from being assessed even though Congress does not have that power?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:51 pm

     
     

212. Only a Trump-appointed judge would not have kicked these wingnuts out of his courtroom.

     Why are they wingnuts? OK, maybe they are but the first amendment actually protects wingnuts. They argue that the government is censoring speech by proxy. The judge saw enough evidence to say “maybe they are” and issued a TRO pending a hearing. Are you actually claiming that individuals do not have standing to pre3vent their speech from being censored by government action, even if it’s indirect?

     I will point out that 3 Supreme Court justices are Trump-appointed. You need to put down the Blue pills.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:55 pm

     
     

213. What’s next? A lawsuit by the street gangs to keep the neighborhood watch from talking to the police?

     If the neighborhood watch is asking the police to arrest people on the BASIS of what their graffiti said, then yes.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:57 pm

     
     

214. Article III limits the judicial power to cases and controversies, which require someone to suffer a harm by someone’s unlawful conduct. There is no authority to sue to compel specific performance by the government.

     Texas and Louisiana couldn’t demonstrate that harm in their recent immigration lawsuit, and Texas hasn’t been able to demonstrate harm in other cases, such as the election lawsuit against Pennsylvania in 2020 and in its challenges to Obamacare

     Last month’s immigration case has a good description of what states need to meet standing requirements.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:00 pm

     
     

215. What provision says they can’t.

     So you would have courts assume authority that is not based on the Constitution?

     Rip Murdock (744892) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:05 pm

     
     

216. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 6:55 pm

     A Trump appointed judge also said there was enough evidence to ban Mifepristone.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:08 pm

     
     

217. Here’s one of those headlines you home never to see in your local paper:

     Second Judicial District Judge Emeterio Rudolfo ruled Monday that Enrique Padilla, 19, will remain in jail while he faces murder and other charges in connection with the shooting death of Michael Tenorio, 52, at the Century Rio movie theater on June 25.

     It’s news that he was not released on his own recognizance. All he did was murder someone in a movie theater because “he was in my seat.” With a gun that was illegally carried, and had been modified to fire continuously. He had started a fight by dumping popcorn on the victim’s wife, and then claimed self defense when he emptied the clip into a crowded theater, killing the husband.

     https://www.abqjournal.com/news/theater-shooting-suspect-to-stay-jailed/article_f27a5614-19ec-11ee-8627-ab08c41310e2.html

     But he was a Latinx, so asset will take his side. Never mind that the victim was also Hispanic.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:10 pm

     
     

218. *hope

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:10 pm

     
     

219. A Trump appointed judge also said there was enough evidence to ban Mifepristone.

     I guess that damns them all then. This even stretches to get to “guilt by association.” The rules don’t allow me to say what I actually think of this argument.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:12 pm

     
     

220. So you would have courts assume authority that is not based on the Constitution?

     It’s implicit in the contract. As much as “judicial review” anyway.

     And, again, you seem to rely a lot of “guilt by association” and other fallacies. That the TX vs PA suit was nonsense does not mean that all suits are nonsense. I presume you know that, but you write the words anyway.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:15 pm

     
     

221. I’m empathetic to Hunter. People like me will now automatically assume the SS is running interference for him, we’ll believe the Fire department before we do the SS, and if there is cocaine found in the WH we will immediately figure it was Hunter already violating conditions of his plea deal and of course the SS is lying about it for him.
     Someday I hope to be a better person

     steveg (a24ff1) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:16 pm

     
     

222. As a matter of fact, I do think that Trump’s Supreme Court appointees are second-raters. All three of them together would not make one Scalia.

     But the District Court appointees are even less than that. Blue slip specials with the right politics, the right connections to local Republican organizations, and the right contributions to Republican campaigns.

     nk (2cd901) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:20 pm

     
     

223. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:15 pm

     It was just another example of a state lacking standing because Texas couldn’t demonstrate a particularized injury.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:21 pm

     
     

224. If the Constitution is a contract, what provision allows a state to compel specific performance?

     It’s not compelling performance that is usually the issue (although complete inaction in the face of an invasion is pretty raw), but preventing actions that are prohibited.

     As it stands in the immigration situation the real problem is that there is no functioning immigration law. None. It is all the ruler’s whim now.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:26 pm

     
     

225. It was just another example of a state lacking standing because Texas couldn’t demonstrate a particularized injury.

     Are you asserting that TX cannot demonstrate an injury with lightly-fettered immigration contrary to law?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:27 pm

     
     

226. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:15 pm

     Not sure what you mean by “guilt by association.” States, like everyone else who died in federal court, need to demonstrate a particularized injury to themselves.

     Thems are the rules, whether you like them or not. Everything else is constitutional fantasy camp.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:27 pm

     
     

227. But the District Court appointees are even less than that. Blue slip specials with the right politics, the right connections to local Republican organizations, and the right contributions to Republican campaigns.

     NOW you have standards? The list of hacks is extensive.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:31 pm

     
     

228. Are you asserting that TX cannot demonstrate an injury with lightly-fettered immigration contrary to law?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:27 pm

     The Supreme Court, voting 8-1 last month, seemed to think so.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:31 pm

     
     

229. Not sure what you mean by “guilt by association.”

     Obviously.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:32 pm

     
     

230. The Supreme Court, voting 8-1 last month, seemed to think so.

     And you agree?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:33 pm

     
     

231. I repeat: As it stands in the immigration situation the real problem is that there is no functioning immigration law. None. It is all the ruler’s whim now.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:33 pm

     
     

232. So, when people quote “The Rule of Law”, on immigration I roll my eyes.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:34 pm

     
     

233. @157

     I’m interested in your thoughts about DeSantis’s border plan.

     Also, since you apparently consider the illegal immigration at the border to be a national security threat, would you favor Congress allowing the military to use lethal force against them?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 11:22 am

     So long as there’s clear Rules of Engagement, I’m okay with this.

     Illegal immigration and smuggling is happening at the border because there’s no real deterrence. Often times, the Border Control just sit back and watch their surveillance cameras on obvious smugglers doing nothing due to assets being pulled to handle the illegal immigrant surge.

     whembly (5f7596) — 7/5/2023 @ 7:23 am

     
     

234. @165

     Aside from your personal opinion about DeSantis, are there any aspects of his plan you like? Also, since this is a national security issue, do you favor impeaching Biden over it?

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 12:55 pm

     He should absolutely be impeached.

     It’s way beyond a “policy disagreement” and well into “derelection of duty to uphold the law”.

     whembly (5f7596) — 7/5/2023 @ 7:25 am

     
     

235. @176

     Of course we are talking about a problem much bigger than rock throwing, it is how to stop the human and drug trafficking across the border. Which is why the Republicans are all in on sending troops into Mexico.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/4/2023 @ 1:59 pm

     I’m against “sending troops into Mexico” to “take care of the cartel problem”.

     That’s a full scale invasion, and lets face it, it won’t work. We don’t have the stomach to conquer Mexico, because that’s what it would take to stop it via the “send the troops in”. We would have to institute something similar to the Marshall Plan like we did to Japan post-WW2.

     But, we sure af need to be more aggressive with the Mexican government, more intelligence operations, build the f’n wall, pass domestic laws to discourage illegal immigration and actually ENFORCE the laws on the books.

     whembly (5f7596) — 7/5/2023 @ 7:31 am

     
     

236. Given the news about cocaine being found, now Hunter and Jill have something in common: They both blew a little dope in the White House. Ba-dum…dum.

     Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:29 am

     
     

237. He the “f” did that get into the whitehouse?

     Tour folks has to leave their belonging in designated area AND you have to go through security that has trained dogs.

     whembly (5f7596) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:34 am

     
     

238. The Supreme Court, voting 8-1 last month, seemed to think so.

     And you agree?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/4/2023 @ 7:33 pm

     As I agree with the Supreme Court’s approach to standing, yes. A generalized impact is not justiciable. Congress could change the rules on standing if it wished, but has failed to do so.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:50 am

     
     

239. Tour folks has to leave their belonging in designated area AND you have to go through security that has trained dogs.

     I’d be betting on the VP, assuming they ever let her into the WH.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:52 am

     
     

240. As I agree with the Supreme Court’s approach to standing, yes. A generalized impact is not justiciable

     And yet states often sue corporations for things that have a generalized impact, such as claiming that tobacco products, or oxycodone, caused their health costs to rise. But they cannot sue the federal government saying that unfettered immigration caused the same thing.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:57 am

     
     

241. Culd I see the hands of those who thing that the Rule of Law prevails wrt immigration?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:58 am

     
     

242. I wish I could spell.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:59 am

     
     

243. Lacking The Courage of Their Convictions:

     ………
     By a vote of 219 to 208, the House referred two articles of impeachment against Mr. Biden — one for abuse of power and one for dereliction of duty — to the Homeland Security and Judiciary Committees. Speaker Kevin McCarthy engineered the move, which allowed the impeachment articles to advance without officially endorsing them. He sought with the referral to defuse pressure from right-wing lawmakers to immediately begin the process of removing Mr. Biden from office, despite a lack of evidence of any wrongdoing.

     Representative Lauren Boebert, Republican of Colorado, prompted the action by pushing this week to force a vote on a resolution that accuses Mr. Biden of orchestrating an “invasion” of the United States through lax immigration policies…….
     ………
     It was the latest display of Mr. McCarthy’s weak hold on his fractious rank and file, and the lengths to which he is going to appease hard-right lawmakers who were enraged that he cut a deal with President Biden to suspend the debt limit and have since demanded more control over the agenda and what bills reach the House floor.
     ………
     Ms. Boebert exulted over the vote, arguing that Mr. Biden had “knowingly” violated federal immigration laws and should be removed.

     “For the first time in 24 years,” (Boebert) said, “a House Republican-led majority is moving forward with impeachment proceedings against a current president.”
     ………
     Representative Stephanie Bice, Republican of Oklahoma and a prominent centrist, also voted for the resolution but warned, “We can’t make impulsive decisions because we’re angry.”
     ………
     Impeachment of Mr. Biden appears to be an unpopular prospect, and Mr. McCarthy has long been aware of the threat such a move could pose to his fragile majority. He has also warned his conference that spurious impeachment charges would have no chance of seeing a conviction in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
     ………

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:06 am

     
     

244. And yet states often sue corporations for things that have a generalized impact, such as claiming that tobacco products, or oxycodone, caused their health costs to rise. But they cannot sue the federal government saying that unfettered immigration caused the same thing.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 8:57 am

     The states that sue corporations in federal court need to prove impacts on their governments (such as higher Medicaid costs).

     Personally I don’t think states should be able to file lawsuits against private corporations.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:11 am

     
     

245. Here’s the WaPo description of where the cocaine was found:

     White House staffers are authorized to give guests tours of the West Wing, which often occur at night or on weekends. Guests are required to go through security screening before entering the White House complex and then asked to leave their phones in small boxes just before entering the West Wing. Officials said the substance was found near these boxes.

     I’d have been worried, on seeing white powder, that it was anthrax.

     Jim Miller (f2956e) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:11 am

     
     

246. The Wild Bunch needs impeachment so they can to to their districts and say they’ve been effective, even though they haven’t brought home any bacon or served any constituent needs.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:14 am

     
     

247. The states that sue corporations in federal court need to prove impacts on their governments (such as higher Medicaid costs).

     You just repeat half of what I said, as if I hadn’t said it, and ignore the other half.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:16 am

     
     

248. The states that sue corporations in federal court need to prove impacts on their governments (such as higher Medicaid costs).

     You just repeat half of what I said, as if I hadn’t said it, and ignore the other half.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:16 am

     Your comment said:

     And yet states often sue corporations for things that have a generalized impact, such as claiming that tobacco products, or oxycodone, caused their health costs to rise.

     I replied saying they needed to prove impacts on their governments, which is a specific impact.

     I ignored the rest of your comment because we have already discussed it.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:20 am

     
     

249. I think that states should be able to sue anyone for any tort they’ve experienced. I don’t think they should be able to sue for wrongs done their citizens if private class-action suits are possible.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:21 am

     
     

250. @248: *Sigh*

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:21 am

     
     

251. The Wild Bunch needs impeachment so they can to to their districts and say they’ve been effective, even though they haven’t brought home any bacon or served any constituent needs.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:14 am

     If someone believes that the illegal immigration crisis is a an “invasion” under Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution, impeachment is the only answer (since the states cannot compel enforcement).

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:58 am

     
     

252. Putin’s personal security measures are, uh, a little isolating.

     President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia is said to work out of identically constructed offices at multiple residences so that photographs don’t reveal his location.

     His assistants undergo such a rigorous selection process that a former bodyguard once called them “a caste of chosen people.”

     And more than three years after the pandemic’s beginning, the Kremlin has continued to enforce a “clean zone” around the president, requiring many who come near him to quarantine for days.
     […]
     A defector last year from the agency, known as the F.S.O. by its Russian initials, described a sprawling organization that includes a Biological Safety Center that inspects the president’s food.

     Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 7/5/2023 @ 10:22 am

     
     

253. Putin is also clear not to punish people he purges too much – trying to be more like Khrushchev than Stalin – so that people will not be too afraid of him. Now this applies to people in his entourage who may have friends he left in positions

     Sammy Finkelman (d007a3) — 7/5/2023 @ 1:04 pm

     
     

254. https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-edit-congress-bill-migrants-labor-economy-biden-house-senate-reagan-20230705-5l4v6adk5ff7xkbtb2eqvajsx4-story.html

     About a 100 years ago, Congress’ passage of the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 and the Immigration Act of 1924 established restrictive standards specifically limiting immigration from certain countries and regions in the midst of a nationwide racist panic over the moral unfitness of southern Europeans, the nefarious intentions of Jews, the inherent criminality of Slavs. This followed decades of discrimination towards Asians, culminating in the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Asiatic Barred Zone Act of 1917 — conveniently following Chinese immigrants’ use for much of the backbreaking labor needed to build the railroads out West.

     Yet even in the midst of this period of immigration policy driven by transparently bigoted views, legislators recognized that it was pointless and untenable to have populations of immigrants here permanently banned from participating in civic and political life. In 1929, they approved the registry system, which allowed all immigrants who had been living in the country since a certain cutoff date without incident to transition to formal residency and then citizenship. [otherwise known as amnesty. This was granted periodically]

     on September 17, 2022.
     New US citizens attend the Naturalization Ceremony at Ellis Island for Citizenship Day with US Attorney General Merrick Garland in New York, on September 17, 2022. (ALEX KENT/AFP via Getty Images)
     Now, the descendants of those people tarred as lazy, diseased and fundamentally incompatible with “American” values are themselves in the decision-making role, sitting in the halls of Congress as representatives of a new generation of Americans. Yet many seem content to, at best, abdicate their responsibility to legislate around this country’s continued need for immigrants, and at worst parrot the same discredited pablum that was once said about their own forebears.

     The current registry cutoff date remains 1972, set so in 1986 by a Republican Senate and President Ronald Reagan, as part of a law that brought some 3 million undocumented immigrants out of status limbo. Six years earlier, Reagan and challenger George H.W. Bush used their debate stage to tussle over who would be more welcoming to unauthorized immigrants.

     That would be unthinkable now, a time at which GOP candidates are instead fighting over who can be more sadistic. We hear from candidates and policymakers up and down the ballot that immigrants are dangerous, idle and untrustworthy, against all available evidence and in contravention to the actual interests of a country that’s attempting to counteract falling birthrates, develop high-tech industries and maintain its position as both an economic and cultural leader.

     Enough. Too much damage has already been done, and it only compounds as the rhetoric hardens and more and more time goes on without our leaders addressing any of the immigration system’s many shortcomings. Students trained in our world-class universities are leaving while others choose to skip the U.S. and study elsewhere altogether.

     Industries from agriculture to construction to software to medicine are facing steep labor shortages practically by design. Millions of people who have had U.S. citizen kids, formed businesses, nonprofits and congregations and risen as pillars of communities in neighborhoods spanning the entire United States remain at risk of effective exile at a moment’s notice. Overtaxed and outdated immigration applications and court processes have put thousands of would-be humanitarian migrants in a procedural purgatory, leaving them to states and cities like ours to deal with.

     Congress must act to modernize the immigration system and bring millions out of the shadows, reshaping immigration categories, creating new humanitarian programs and removing roadblocks to regularization like counterproductive entry bans. And if it doesn’t, President Biden should use his extensive executive powers to act unilaterally.

     Biden must make more ample use of humanitarian parole, [Congress I think specifically forbade that around 1996] tweaking adjudication rules at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, revamping the immigration court system under the Justice Department, and generally taking a wide-ranging view of his power. This status quo can’t hold.
     [And why not? It’s hard to see how anything else can happen. It’s not like running out of other people’s money. -SF]

     https://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/ny-oped-a-better-way-to-handle-migrants-20230629-clsavesmbnct5nesnmf65vjoai-story.html

     The current migration “crisis” in the United States is not a crisis of people arriving at the border or people occupying shelters in New York City. In fact, it is not a crisis caused by migrants at all. It is a crisis of imagination, a crisis of administrative logic, and a crisis of compassion. If anything, the current “crisis” is one of poor planning rather than of migration…

     …This crisis narrative gets us nowhere, either practically or politically. It ignores how the “crisis” is one of our own making — and how with a few strokes of a pen, the Biden administration could go a long way toward solving it.

     As xenophobic anti-immigrant sentiment has risen in scope and ferocity over the last quarter century,[sic – really 50 years] most pathways for safe, orderly and legal migration to the United States have narrowed or closed. Even visas for “highly skilled” migrants, such as software engineers or nurses, have been reduced. For someone without an advanced degree or significant financial resources, legal pathways for migration have all but disappeared.

     One of very few doors left slightly ajar is asylum. It is unsurprising that given the disappearance of all the other points of entry, the one labeled asylum would be the go-to for those who have compelling, well founded, and easily documented grounds for claiming protection — as well as for those who don’t.

     The problem is not the migrants who, after fleeing all manner of life-threatening catastrophes, knock at the door. The problem is the door itself.

     The current asylum framework, crafted in the wake of WWII, is terribly matched to the harrowing dangers (climate crisis) [climate crisis!!?] and forms of persecution (often perpetrated by organized crime and not just by governments) that forcibly displace so many people today. Worse still, the closure of the other doors means that people who are dismissed as “economic migrants” trying to feed their families are obliged to explain their situations as involving persecution rather than poverty. [and sometimes, with good lawyers, they can]

     Desperate to follow the law, people dutifully file asylum claims. [except some can’t manage it] The result is an asylum system that is overwhelmed. The problem is not too many asylum seekers but the absence of alternatives for people seeking safety and security. The logical solution is to open more doors…

     Sammy Finkelman (d007a3) — 7/5/2023 @ 1:24 pm

     
     

255. As enforcement gets tougher, things like this happen:

     https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/16/world/europe/greece-migrant-boat-disaster.html

     …Nearly a decade after its peak, and after it sparked populist uprisings that reshaped politics in several countries, Europe’s migration crisis has not gone away. The pandemic years may have muted it for a time, but an inexhaustible number of people are still willing to risk everything and board rickety boats in the hope of reaching Europe and a better life.

     Also clear is that in the intervening years, Europe has hardened its stance, and its borders. Just days before a Greek election, there is no move by the leading party to soften Greece’s tough measures against migrants, which have lowered arrivals by 90 percent since 2015.

     The boats are rickety because they have prevented people from boarding safe boats. Many many opeople will have to die before this stops, or rather the numbers go down further. Going down by 90% is not enough for them.

     https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/01/world/europe/greece-migrant-ship.html

     From air and by sea, using radar, telephone and radio, officials watched and listened for 13 hours as the migrant ship Adriana lost power, then drifted aimlessly off the coast of Greece in a slowly unfolding humanitarian disaster.

     As terrified passengers telephoned for help, humanitarian workers assured them that a rescue team was coming. European border officials, watching aerial footage, prepared to witness what was certain to be a heroic operation.

     Yet the Adriana capsized and sank in the presence of a single Greek Coast Guard ship last month, killing more than 600 migrants in a maritime tragedy that was shocking even for the world’s deadliest migrant route.

     Satellite imagery, sealed court documents, more than 20 interviews with survivors and officials, and a flurry of radio signals transmitted in the final hours suggest that the scale of death was preventable.

     Dozens of officials and coast guard crews monitored the ship, yet the Greek government treated the situation like a law enforcement operation, not a rescue. Rather than send a navy hospital ship or rescue specialists, the authorities sent a team that included four masked, armed men from a coast guard special operations unit.

     The Greek authorities have repeatedly said that the Adriana was sailing to Italy, and that the migrants did not want to be rescued. But satellite imagery and tracking data obtained by The New York Times show definitively that the Adriana was drifting in a loop for its last six and a half hours. And in sworn testimony, survivors described passengers on the ship’s upper decks calling for help and even trying to jump aboard a commercial tanker that had stopped to provide drinking water.

     Greece didn’t want to get stuck with the, Thy may have even have caused the capsizing by trying to tow the boat (avoiding taking people off the ship, which would have legal consequences.)

     The NYT gives a sort of humanitarian motive for acting the way they did:

     …The sinking of the Adriana is an extreme example of a longtime standoff in the Mediterranean. Ruthless smugglers in North Africa cram people onto shoddy vessels, and passengers hope that, if things go wrong, they will be taken to safety. But European coast guards often postpone rescues out of fear that helping will embolden smugglers to send more people on ever-flimsier ships. And as European politics have swung to the right, each new arriving ship is a potential political flashpoint….

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 1:37 pm

     
     

256. White House cocaine culprit unlikely to be found: Law enforcement official
     ……….
     The small amount of cocaine was found in a cubby area for storing electronics within the West Exec basement entryway into the West Wing, where many people have authorized access, including staff or visitors coming in for West Wing tours.

     Asked what the chances were of finding the culprit, the official said that “it’s gonna be very difficult for us to do that because of where it was.”

     “Even if there were surveillance cameras, unless you were waving it around, it may not have been caught” by the cameras, added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity given that it’s an ongoing investigation. “It’s a bit of a thoroughfare. People walk by there all the time.”
     ……….

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 1:47 pm

     
     

257. Jim

     On anthrax, there has been a vaccination for this since 2016, but it is not available to the general public. My guess is Biden has been vaccinated

     Novichok? Very Russian, but excellent for misdirecting blame toward Putin

     steveg (7b44ac) — 7/5/2023 @ 1:48 pm

     
     

258. Hi Sammy

     Putin gave himself a birthday present:
     “the celebrated investigative journalist, Anna Politkovskaya fell suddenly ill and lost consciousness after drinking a cup of tea while flying to the Russian city of Beslan during the school siege there. She survived, but was shot dead two years later, on Putin’s birthday.”

     steveg (7b44ac) — 7/5/2023 @ 1:55 pm

     
     

259. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/origins-immigration-border-crisis-asylum-biden

     or maybe this for free link:

     https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/origins-immigration-border-crisis-asylum-biden?check_logged_in=1&utm_medium=promo_email&utm_source=lo_flows&utm_campaign=registered_user_welcome&utm_term=email_1&utm_content=20230705

     ….At the core of the crisis, from the borderlands to the American interior, is the U.S. asylum system. It was created nearly half a century ago to assess foreigners’ claims of persecution case by case. Over the past decade, [as word spread] however, the asylum system has become something else: for lack of other legal avenues, it has turned into the main channel for mass immigration across the southwest border, a function it was never designed to serve. By the end of 2022, almost 800,000 asylum cases were awaiting adjudication in the immigration courts, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a data research center; these were part of huge backlogs of all kinds of immigration cases now swamping the courts. The average asylum claim took more than four years to decide. Yet in fiscal 2022 the courts nationwide granted asylum in only 22,311 cases; a larger number of the cases decided last year, more than 26,000, were denied.

     [On NPR I heard a woman who was possibly the author, say the highest rate of approval was in new York where it is about one third]

     Since there have been no clear-cut procedures for deporting asylum seekers whose claims are rejected, many of those people and their families—along with tens of thousands of asylum seekers denied in previous years—have quietly joined the millions of undocumented immigrants already in the country.

     [She said judges, when denying claims, often avoid actually issuing orders of deportation (so they leave the courtroom without being arrested)]

     Immigration courts face a backlog of nearly 800,000 asylum claims.
     The asylum system is failing at every step of the way. It has failed to provide orderly pathways for migrants at the border. It does not provide timely protection for people escaping from truly threatening situations in their home countries; [nor are many truly threatening situations covered, especially personal ones – it is limited to dangers coming from specific causes but does not have to be truly dangerous at all, if so, and now includes their countries having certain laws] nor does it give timely denials to migrants who are fleeing poverty and cannot meet the exacting legal definition of persecution. And now, as New York, Chicago, and other cities struggle with the rising costs of supporting the newcomers, they confront another failure: the system prevents asylum seekers from going to work to contribute to the U.S. economy. Most migrants are eager to support themselves and their families, [they don’t expect anything else] and they are arriving at a time when American employers face critical labor shortages in many industries in which immigrants have historically thrived: farm and dairy work, food processing, landscaping, construction, nursing, home health care, childcare. But because of statutory restrictions and bureaucratic backlogs, asylum seekers must now wait a year or more to receive legal work permits.

     In place of Title 42, in May the Biden administration launched an ambitious new strategy for managing the border. The goal is to short-circuit irregular migration by offering new lawful pathways to people before they reach the United States and imposing punitive consequences for those who fail to follow them. Under a new rule, migrants will not be eligible for asylum unless they either use a government mobile app to make an appointment to present themselves at an official land port of entry or can show that they have already been denied asylum in a third country they passed through on their way to the United States. Known as a transit ban, the latter measure is similar to one attempted by U.S. President Donald Trump, and in practice will shut down access to asylum across much of the southwest border. Most unauthorized crossers will be detained and swiftly deported to their home countries. In early May, Biden also ordered 1,500 additional active-duty troops to the border.

     Despite these tough measures, Biden’s approach has won little support. Republican lawmakers have accused the president of intentionally opening the border to gang lords, fentanyl traffickers, and Chinese spies and claim that the administration’s strategy will only encourage more illegal migration. For their part, immigrant rights groups and Democrats in Washington have assailed the new measures as a breach of fundamental legal rights and American moral values. Almost completely lost in this debate, however, is the underlying broken asylum system. After years of stalemate in Washington on immigration reform, the asylum bureaucracy has become its own de facto immigration system. It no longer serves people escaping danger that it was designed to protect; nor does it bring any order to the challenges of securing the border and integrating newcomers into the U.S. economy.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:01 pm

     
     

260. To be consistent with international refugee law, Congress has written the statute to leave a very wide opening at the border for people coming in desperation. Migrants can ask for asylum at any point along the border, “whether or not at a designated port of arrival” and regardless of whether they have any legal entry documents. But from that point on, asylum seekers pass into a very small chute: they must show in court that they fit the strict parameters of the U.S. persecution standard in lengthy proceedings based on complicated, constantly evolving laws.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:05 pm

     
     

261. Ukrainian intelligence is said to say that Putin has ordered the murder of Yevgeny Prigozhin — but he is no hurry about it.

     They were actually trying to take over the Wagner Group or supplant it before the mutiny or whatever it was. There were other militias set uo, one of them was run by Gazprom. Now the Wagner Group’s offices have been taken over by others, while in Syria and Africa, people closer to Putin are trying to run the group

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:09 pm

     
     

262. One thing that went on with Medicaid is that states are paying HMOa for people who have other insurance. Medicaid used too be fee for service, so if someone was getting health care from other places they didn’t use it.

     Theiretically there are clawbacks, and people can indeed be sued. The amount sued for is trmendous – $15,000 a year in New York State – but the settlement amount is small.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:13 pm

     
     

263. If someone believes that the illegal immigration crisis is a an “invasion” under Article IV, Section 4 of the Constitution, impeachment is the only answer (since the states cannot compel enforcement).

     They can vote in Trump, thinking he will root out the illegals with the Army and send them all packing.

     More sanely, they can vote for another GOP candidate to beat Biden, then attempt to solve the immigration problem more holistically.

     But the best way to get Biden out of office comes in November 2024. If you believe it’s an invasion, and you put that in front of all other things, then you vote for whoever is running for the GOP.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:20 pm

     
     

264. DeSantis is causing problems for business in Florida (not so much for migrants who are sometimes moving to other states like North Carolina)

     https://www.wsj.com/articles/migrant-workers-flee-florida-as-new-immigration-law-takes-effect-94796abf

     In 2019 there were an estimated 772,000 undocumented immigrants living in Florida, according to the Migration Policy Institute. Since then, there has been a massive influx of immigrants into the country, and last year Florida’s population grew more than any other state, according to census data….Blanket advice, such as telling clients to avoid hiring noncitizens altogether, isn’t an option since that could constitute discrimination on the basis of race or national origin.

     Why should anyone think they could avoid problems by not hiring non-citizens, which the Florida law does not forbid, and the 1964 Civil Rights Act forbids avoiding?

     Romeo Lucas worked at a plant nursery in Miami’s agricultural district for a decade, but recently moved to North Carolina. He said he was worried that he could become separated from his children. He said the move was also prompted by his wife’s diabetes and her ability to access healthcare without worries about it jeopardizing the family.

     “It was a very difficult decision, but we didn’t want to live in fear, so we moved up north,” said Lucas, who would be directly affected by the new law.

     Mahendra Raolji, who runs Jalaram Produce, a large farming and packaging facility, said more than half his workers have gone. His wife and business partner, Prafula Raolji, worried about enforcement of the law. “I pray it won’t happen. Because then who is going to work?” she said….

     ….In downtown Miami, construction cranes are ubiquitous, rising above the fast-growing skyline. At site after site, the story was the same. Workers have fled. Many others are waiting to see what happens.

     Outside one construction site, a worker said that he had lost about half his crew. They went to Indiana, he said, where jobs are paying $38 an hour instead of $25, and where they won’t have to look over their shoulders.

     Among the projects is the 1.4 million square foot mixed-use building called Block 55, being built by Coastal Construction. Murphy said there was already a labor shortage before the exodus.

     “While we fully support documentation of the immigrant workforce, the new law is aggravating an already trying situation,” he said.

     Now why do they say they support documentation? They don’t, or at least when they say that they mean they want Congress to authorize it.

     https://abcnews.go.com/US/undocumented-workers-face-uncertainty-immigration-law-takes-effect/story?id=100452861

     Florida’s SB1718, one of the nation’s strictest immigration laws, took effect on July 1. Individuals who knowingly transport undocumented immigrants into the state may now face felony charges. Florida has also invalidated out-of-state driver’s licenses that are given to undocumented immigrants.

     Hospitals and medical providers that accept Medicaid will now be required to ask people for their immigration status. These and other features of the law have caused mass confusion and fear throughout Florida, not only for immigrants but also for Floridians.

     “We’ve been getting a lot of emails from Floridians who are trying to interpret the law for their own safety and for the safety of their loved ones. We’ve had folks contact us because their partner is undocumented,” said Democratic Rep. Anna Eskamani, who represents Florida’s 42nd House district. “We’ve gotten a lot of these questions that are really unique and situationally specific but intersect with confusion about this policy. Are they going to be able to drive to work anymore?”

     Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican who is a 2024 presidential hopeful, said the law increases penalties for human smuggling. When the governor signed the bill into law, state senator Blaise Ingoglia said it gives the state “the most ambitious anti-illegal immigration laws in the country.”

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:25 pm

     
     

265. Greg Kelly said (in another context) that Governor DeSantis has a cartoonish view of MAGA people.

     DeSantis know that nobody in the Republican Party dares to argue in favor of not enforcing the law – but when it comes time to vote, I don’t think people affected will be happy. (they may be a minority, but people who want all laws enforced to the hilt are also a minority

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:28 pm

     
     

266. 263. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:20 pm

     They can vote in Trump, thinking he will root out the illegals with the Army and send them all packing.

     DeSantis is out-Trumping Trump.

     His sole advantage is that nobody in the Republican Party is willing to argue against his policy.

     He is actually scaring people without work permits into leaving Florida for places like Indiana and North Carolina.

     Whether Florida will actually be a better place after that is another story.

     The Republican stand amounts to saying that all immigration is bad — and if you followed the logic you would apply that to births also.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:34 pm

     
     

267. Some Republicans in Congress are very eager to blame the cocaine found (hidden) in the White House on Hunter Biden, even though he wasn’t there, and by all accounts, he finally kicked his drug addiction a few years ago. I don’t know why people want to act so stupid.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:37 pm

     
     

268. 235. whembly (5f7596) — 7/5/2023 @ 7:31 am

     We don’t have the stomach to conquer Mexico, because that’s what it would take to stop it via the “send the troops in”. We would have to institute something similar to the Marshall Plan like we did to Japan post-WW2.

     Its basically parts of northern Mexico, which is not controlled by the Mexican government.

     https://www.utrgv.edu/human-trafficking/blog/northern-mexico/gulfcartel/index.htm

     The United States could probably force the Mexican government to join in an operaton like it forced Pakistan in 2001.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/5/2023 @ 2:44 pm

     
     

269. like it forced Pakistan in 2001.

     That worked out really well-NOT!

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/5/2023 @ 3:01 pm

     
     

270. Trump posted what he said was Obama’s address, prosecutors say. An armed man was soon arrested there

     WASHINGTON (AP) — Former President Donald Trump posted on his social media platform what he claimed was the home address of former President Barack Obama on the same day that a man with guns in his van was arrested near the property, federal prosecutors said Wednesday in revealing new details about the case.

     Taylor Taranto, 37, who prosecutors say participated in the Jan. 6, 2021 riot at the U.S. Capitol, kept two firearms and hundreds of rounds of ammunition inside a van he had driven cross-country and had been living in, according to a Justice Department motion that seeks to keep him behind bars.

     On the day of his June 29 arrest, prosecutors said, Taranto reposted a Truth Social post from Trump containing what Trump claimed was Obama’s home address. In a post on Telegram, Taranto wrote: “We got these losers surrounded! See you in hell, Podesta’s and Obama’s.” That’s a reference to John Podesta, the former chair of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 Democratic presidential campaign. GITMO, GITMO, po-pitmo
     Banana, fana, fo-fitmo
     Fi, fie, mo-mitmo
     Trump!

     nk (90028a) — 7/5/2023 @ 4:42 pm

     
     

271. The supreme court in its never ending attempt to prevent republicans from ever getting elected to office again has angered The 80% of voters who oppose a ban on abortion. Not satisfied with that has angered blacks, native americans and latinx with affirmative action decision. Gays on discrimination and young voters over student loans. Who are they planning to enrage next to hate republicans?

     asset (8c8f34) — 7/5/2023 @ 4:45 pm

     
     

272. Damn them on student loans! It’s so unfair that people who took $200K loans for their art history majors are going to have to pay it back! Nobody warned hem!

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 4:53 pm

     
     

273. Every time the voters got a say on affirmative action, they voted it down. Every time.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 4:53 pm

     
     

274. Sammy,

     Your open borders obsession is well known. Your desire to attack those who are trying to save America from invasion is disheartening to say the least.

     Should Israel be forced to accept anyone who wants to go there?

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/5/2023 @ 5:47 pm

     
     

275. Majority of voters agree with the Supreme Court on the illegality of affirmative action, the duty to pay what you owe and the right to not be enslaved by someone with whom you disagree.

     Asset keep on keeping on.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/5/2023 @ 5:50 pm

     
     

276. As a matter of pure principle, Harvard has the same right to pick and choose its students as the website designer has to pick and choose her clients. As a matter of Fourteenth Amendment law, too. It was the taking of government money that got it into trouble under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.

     The legacy lawsuit that has just been filed could be its watershed moment. Will the traditionalists inside Harvard prevail or will the wokes?

     If Harvard eschews government money, it can have both its legacies and its affirmative actions as a matter of law. As a practical matter, it will not have all that many affirmative actions because not many will be able to afford it, but most legacies likely will.

     Whichever, Harvard was and will remain the architect of its predicament.

     nk (c97eec) — 7/5/2023 @ 7:08 pm

     
     

277. Conservatives: Term limits good! Get rid of pelosi, clyburn, hoyer, schumer, fienstein ect. Any of you here think they would be replaced by moderate corporate democrats or more squad members. Before AOC maybe after AOC NO! Clinton/Biden corporate wing of the party has been discredited. Their are budding AOC’s just waiting to take over like jessica cisneros in texas.

     asset (8c8f34) — 7/5/2023 @ 7:39 pm

     
     

278. Article from 2030:

     AOC, MTG, Boebert: Where are they now?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 10:42 pm

     
     

279. @278 mtg and boebert trailor park. AOC veep getting ready to run for president as minorities will be the majority. Ask any 13 year old latinx girl as they all want to be AOC! That was to easy of a softball.

     asset (0ef808) — 7/5/2023 @ 11:23 pm

     
     

280. Ask any 13 year old latinx girl as they all want to be AOC!

     Last I checked, 13 year olds don’t vote. Meanwhile the squad is chasing that girl’s parents into Trump’s arms.

     You do realize that if and when AOC does take over your party, she’ll be the corporate Dem? In fact, according to the far left she already is.

     lurker (cd7cd4) — 7/6/2023 @ 2:19 am

     
     

281. AOC has bad economic ideas….which is sad since she has a degree in economics. Before she should consider a national run, AOC should demonstrate some executive competence…as a governor or at minimum as a cabinet secretary. The color of her skin, her heritage, or her gender tell us nothing about what type of leader she will be or the strength of her ideas. This is the opposite side of the Trump coin: liberal personality worship. If the message is utopian income and wealth redistribution, then we know all of that just shrinks the pie and discourages innovation, risk taking, and industriousness. It’s not about selling real solutions. It’s selling a fraud. We should know better.

     AJ_Liberty (47a43e) — 7/6/2023 @ 7:35 am

     
     

282. AOC es vendida.

     Translation I’m going with in this case would be American equivalent politician heckle “sell out”

     We will see if the left thinks she can move to national office when the teachers unions and their rank and file true believers start teaching their students about her all the time, making them read her book, by working her into every discussion etc.

     steveg (b999ec) — 7/6/2023 @ 9:06 am

     
     

283. Article from 2030:

     AOC, MTG, Boebert: Where are they now?

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/5/2023 @ 10:42 pm

     Two of the three could become speaker within the next two years.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 9:16 am

     
     

284. Two of the three could become speaker within the next two years.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 9:16 am

     Or vice president.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 9:18 am

     
     

285. You do realize that if and when AOC does take over your party, she’ll be the corporate Dem?

     And the new Centrist Party will cheer.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 11:47 am

     
     

286. AOC has bad economic ideas….which is sad since she has a degree in economics.

     There are quite a few Marxist economics professors.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 11:47 am

     
     

287. Jim Miller (f2956e) — 7/5/2023 @ 9:11 am

     I’d have been worried, on seeing white powder, that it was anthrax.

     They were. That was what caused an evacuation of the White House.

     If they had been sure it was only illegal drugs, they just would have confiscated it, and logged it and turned it over to the FBI or whatever agency takes drugs confiscated on federal property, and we probably never would have heard about it.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d53c7) — 7/6/2023 @ 12:26 pm

     
     

288. The White House lied about where the cocaine was located. I’m shocked. This is my shocked face.

     NJRob (0259ed) — 7/6/2023 @ 12:35 pm

     
     

289. Investigators expect to be done with the investigation by Monday, according to two sources familiar with the investigation. The inquiry was previously expected to take a couple of weeks.

     In updating the location of where the cocaine was found, officials said that area was also heavily trafficked.

     The cocaine was found in an entrance area between the foyer and a lower-level lobby, the sources said. The entrance is near where some vehicles, like the vice president’s limo or SUV park. It is one floor below the main West Wing offices and the same floor as the Situation Room and a dining area.
     ………
     The sources maintain that the area is highly trafficked, keeping with Jean-Pierre’s characterization in yesterday’s briefing. The area is transited by VIPs, visitors, tourists, staff, military and facilities operations employees.

     “What I wanted to be very clear is that this is a heavily, heavily trafficked, heavily traveled, to be more accurate, area of the campus of the White House,” Jean-Pierre told reporters during Wednesday’s press conference. “It is where visitors to the West Wing come through.”

     Source

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 1:04 pm

     
     

290. It’s not a heavily trafficked area and more importantly, it’s not an area open to the public. But the media continues to run interference for the dictator in chief.

     NJRob (0259ed) — 7/6/2023 @ 1:17 pm

     
     

291. 283, funny you should mention that….

     https://www.thedailybeast.com/rep-marjorie-taylor-greene-booted-from-right-wing-house-freedom-caucus

     All is proceeding swimmingly for Grand Old Dame President MTG 2040

     urbanleftbehind (403093) — 7/6/2023 @ 2:00 pm

     
     

292. It’s not a heavily trafficked area ……

     And you know this how?

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 2:34 pm

     
     

293. They did say something about people who go there needing to pass a vetting, which doesn’t make sense for ordinary tourists. They also said something about how it could be people given a privately guided tour by White House staff.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 3:21 pm

     
     

294. They don’t really want to know, because they don’t know what feathers they will ruffle.

     nk (aa44a6) — 7/6/2023 @ 3:30 pm

     
     

295. In Mexico the cartels have a byword: silver or lead. They not only bribe people they kill. U.S. troops would tend to be immune from the latter (targeted assassinations) Bribery can be avoided by careful supervision.]

     El Salvador got rid of a lot of the gang terror by suspending civil liberties and mass arrests, sometimes of the wrong people.

     https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/may/16/how-two-colombians-were-ensnared-in-bukeles-gang-crackdown-in-el-salvador#:~:text=The%20Salvadorian%20government%20says%20it,caught%20up%20in%20the%20offensive.

     …After taking office in 2019, Bukele first tried brokering a pact with gangs, allegedly promising to block extraditions in exchange for law and order, but when the deal broke down he declared a state of emergency in March 2022 – and dropped diplomacy for brute force.

     Since then, the country has experienced a dramatic drop in violence.

     El Salvador has frequently ranked as the most murderous country in the world but on 11 May Bukele tweeted that it had not recorded a single homicide in a year.

     The Salvadorian government says it has jailed nearly 70,000 gang members – about 2% of the country’s population. But human rights groups say thousands of innocent people are being caught up in the offensive.

     [mostly males in the right age group]

     Outside the Ilopango prison where the two Colombians were held, Potes saw dozens of women asking for their children’s whereabouts, all saying they had nothing to do with the gangs…

     …Under the state of emergency, no trial or charges are required to detain someone. Disgruntled neighbours, unhappy partners or rival businessmen can easily take advantage of the breakdown of due process.

     “You no longer need to have any link with the gangs to be locked up in El Salvador. You simply need to be a young male,” said López.

     The pair say they saw countless other foreigners caught up in the crackdown, including Hondurans, Guatemalans and North Americans.

     As Bukele ramps up his attack on the gangs such tales are increasingly common. .

     This is also a campaign issue in Guatemala.

     https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/25/world/americas/guatemala-presidential-election.html

     In a field of more than 20 candidates, none were expected to secure a majority to win in the first round of voting, with observers predicting a runoff on Aug. 20 between the top two finishers.

     The electoral authority barred several top candidates who were viewed as threatening to the political and economic establishment. That move was seen as another assault on Guatemala’s fraying democracy. Under an increasingly authoritarian government, the judiciary has forced into exile dozens of prosecutors and judges focused on battling corruption.

     ….The race had narrowed in recent weeks to three leading candidates hewing to the conservative status quo: Sandra Torres, 67, a former first lady previously arrested on accusations of campaign finance violations; Zury Ríos, 55, the daughter of a dictator convicted of genocide against Indigenous Guatemalans; and Edmond Mulet, 72, a former diplomat facing scrutiny over his work arranging adoptions of Guatemalan children by Canadian families.

     Partial results made available Sunday night in Guatemala suggest the race may hold some surprises. With 25 percent of votes counted, Ms. Torres was in the lead with 15 percent. But Bernardo Arévalo, a centrist running on an anti-corruption platform, was in second with about 12 percent of the vote.

     Torres is for mass arrests. Arévalo was not expected to do so well, but gained after other candidates were knocked out.

     A top theme throughout the campaign season has been calls to emulate El Salvador’s crackdown on gangs and violent crime. The number of homicides in Guatemala — fueled in part by powerful gangs — rose nearly 6 percent in 2022 from the previous year, and there was also a sharp increase in the number of murder victims who showed signs of torture. Many Guatemalans cite fears of extortion and crime as reasons to emigrate.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 3:41 pm

     
     

296. It could be any one of say 1,000 people who brought cocaine into the White House and decided to abandon it (or retrieve it on the way out?)

     The Secret Service dogs, I read, sniff for explosives, not drugs.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 3:44 pm

     
     

297. Comer is from Kentucky and basically in he same political lane as Mitch McConnell.

     What he said on Newsmax doesn’t make too much sense.

     “We have six different policy decisions — four of which were made while Biden was president — that we can’t come to any other conclusion as to why these decisions were made other than the fact that this president is compromised,” Comer told “The Cats Roundtable.”

     So they have six decisions affecting China, (out of dozens) four made after Biden was president, that they cannot figure out make any sense.

     You could allege bribery maybe, except there’s no money, or appeasement, or bribery of appointees, but blackmail??

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 3:50 pm

     
     

298. Meta (Facebook) has stated up a competition to Twitter called Threads. Musk is arguing it copies it too much or something.

     Musk limited the number of Twitter messages that could be read by one account because he wants to prevent scraping (and in the process apparently cut off access to anyone who is not logged in)

     He particularly links it with Artificial Intelligence which he does not like

     You don’t need to be logged in to see this:

     https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1674942336583757825

     Elon Musk

     @elonmusk

     This will be unlocked shortly. Per my earlier post, drastic & immediate action was necessary due to EXTREME levels of data scraping.

     Almost every company doing AI, from startups to some of the biggest corporations on Earth, was scraping vast amounts of data.

     It is rather galling to have to bring large numbers of servers online on an emergency basis just to facilitate some AI startup’s outrageous valuation.

     8:45 PM · Jun 30, 2023

     What MMusk did particularly harmed meterologists.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 3:58 pm

     
     

299. Comer is from Kentucky and basically in he same political lane as Mitch McConnell.

     LOL! Comer is MAGA.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:00 pm

     
     

300. What (Comer) said on Newsmax doesn’t make too much sense.

     Shocking!

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:00 pm

     
     

301. You could allege bribery maybe, except there’s no money, or appeasement, or bribery of appointees, but blackmail??

     Or wishful thinking.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:01 pm

     
     

302. In polls, more people think Biden should not run than think Trump should not, but Trump has an overall greater unfavorable rating.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:06 pm

     
     

303. , Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:01 pm

     but blackmail??

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:01 pm

     Or wishful thinking.

     It;s the same stupid idea that was said about Trump.

     A corrupter is not going to blackmail someone about the corruption they caused.

     Comer is going along with members of his committee.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:10 pm

     
     

304. The concept is bad. It originates I think with the FBI.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:11 pm

     
     

305. Comer is going along with members of his committee.

     Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:10 pm

     Comer is the leader of the Republican members of his committee.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:30 pm

     
     

306. Watching Clear and Present Danger too many times:

     ………
     Former President Donald Trump, who has previously called for building a wall along the southern border and giving drug dealers the death penalty, has also proposed creating a naval blockade of Mexico to prevent drugs like illicit fentanyl from entering the U.S. His leading opponent in the 2024 GOP nomination race, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, promised last week to use “deadly force” against anyone caught smuggling drugs across the border.

     On Capitol Hill, Sens. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) and John Kennedy (R., La.) have both voiced support for military operations in Mexico. Sen. J.D. Vance (R., Ohio) said in a recent interview on NBC that cartels should be considered terrorist organizations, meriting a military response. And Reps. Dan Crenshaw (R., Texas) and Mike Waltz (R., Fla.) have sponsored a bill that would formally declare war on the cartels—meaning the military would be authorized to drop bombs on cartel targets.

     ……..In an NBC poll taken in late June, sending troops to the border to stop drugs was the single best-liked of 11 GOP proposals tested with Republican primary voters. And it was the only one that gained support from a majority of all registered voters.
     ……..
     Doris Meissner, who served as the top immigration official under the Clinton administration, said the Republican proposals are problematic because deploying the U.S. military on domestic soil to perform law-enforcement functions is illegal, and performing military operations in Mexico without the explicit cooperation of the Mexican government would be an act of war against a sovereign country.
     ……..
     DeSantis has for months advocated blockading legal ports of entry with Mexico, where nearly all the illicit fentanyl is thought to be smuggled in from Mexico. But in the first formal policy rollout of his campaign, DeSantis escalated that language, saying anyone caught at the border with drugs could be shot.
     ……..
     In 2019, Trump sent thousands of troops to the border to assist with a surge of asylum-seeking migrants—though the troops weren’t actually allowed to perform arrests and they didn’t cross into Mexico.
     ……..

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 4:40 pm

     
     

307. And you know this how?

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 2:34 pm

     Because it’s not open to the public. I do appreciate you being the stenographer for Karine Jean Pierre. Not as much as she appreciates it I’m sure.

     NJRob (c2fb50) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:02 pm

     
     

308. Peggy Noonan on the GOP candidates:

     Chris Christie could easily defeat Joe Biden. So could several of the GOP candidates now in the field. Donald Trump wouldn’t, for one big reason: His special superpower is that he is the only Republican who will unite and rally the Democratic base and drive independents away. He keeps the Biden coalition together.

     A sad thing is that many bright Trump supporters sense this, and the case against him, but can’t concede it and break from him…

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:18 pm

     
     

309. deploying the U.S. military on domestic soil to perform law-enforcement functions is illegal

     Maybe. And maybe it’s 6-3 not.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:20 pm

     
     

310. Christie couldn’t defeat a ham sandwich.

     NJRob (c2fb50) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:29 pm

     
     

311. I do appreciate you being the stenographer for Karine Jean Pierre. Not as much as she appreciates it I’m sure.

     NJRob (c2fb50) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:02 pm

     If you have a quote to the contrary, please post and link to it. Otherwise you’re just pulling it out of somewhere.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:34 pm

     
     

312. Maybe. And maybe it’s 6-3 not.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:20 pm

     More constitutional fantasy camp.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:43 pm

     
     

313. RIP producer Lawrence Turman (96). Produced The Graduate, The Great White Hope, The Thing, American History X, The Drowning Pool, Big Night, and The Mean Season.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:57 pm

     
     

314. Hey, Rip, I don’t advocate it either, but there is no telling what the Supreme Court may do when you scream “invasion” and “national emergency.” The Constitution does give the Executive rather awesome emergency powers, espcially when a state governor is asking for help.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 6:57 pm

     
     

315. Posse (No, Donald!) Comitatus has a lot of exceptions. Delta Force was used for drug interdiction before Chuck Norris became a Texas Ranger. Eisenhower used federal troops to desegregate Little Rock. The only absolute ban, for now, is the deployment of nuclear submarines.

     nk (a4bb80) — 7/6/2023 @ 7:02 pm

     
     

316. Kevin Williamson takes rather a good swipe at AOC:

     [O]nce you’ve had a look at the more intellectually serious sort of environmental advocate, you can make short work of the claims of an Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez or a Joe Biden that ripping up the energy, construction, transportation, and manufacturing industries—and then replacing these with new models produced by graduate students studying social work at Bryn Mawr College—is going to pay for itself.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 7:03 pm

     
     

317. Eisenhower used federal troops to desegregate Little Rock.

     The the point of fixing bayonets and walking the crowd back.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 7:05 pm

     
     

318. U.S. troops would tend to be immune from the latter (targeted assassinations) Bribery can be avoided by careful supervision.

     It would be as much fun as the British operation in Belfast.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 7:07 pm

     
     

319. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 6:57 pm

     Thanks for clarifying, I was afraid you were advocating governing by 6-3 (or 5-4) votes.

     Rip Murdock (5479b6) — 7/6/2023 @ 7:08 pm

     
     

320. If you have a quote to the contrary, please post and link to it. Otherwise you’re just pulling it out of somewhere.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/6/2023 @ 5:34 pm

     No, I’m stating a fact. It’s a non-public area. That’s not high traffic by definition. Everyone has to be cleared to be there. Your parroting the administration’s lies is you pushing propaganda.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/6/2023 @ 8:39 pm

     
     

321. https://boundingintocomics.com/2023/06/07/the-walt-disney-company-reportedly-shelved-anti-child-trafficking-film-sound-of-freedom-after-obtaining-rights-in-merger-with-fox/

     Angel Studios President Jordan Harmon recently detailed that The Walt Disney Company shelved the upcoming Sound of Freedom film after they obtained the rights in their merger with Fox. (snip) “Going back to that story, Fox was originally going to distribute it. Then Disney buys Fox and for whatever reason Disney shelves it.” (snip) “It’s very rare for a film to be shot four or five years ago and it doesn’t come out for four or five years,” he added. (snip) Why do you think The Walt Disney Company shelved this film after they obtained its rights?

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/6/2023 @ 8:48 pm

     
     

322. Christie couldn’t defeat a ham sandwich.

     He destroyed Rubio’s entire campaign in 2 minutes.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 11:26 pm

     
     

323. @280 we were discussing 2030 when the 13 year old latinx girl will be 20. Only half of generation z is of voting age and they vote the heaviest democrat. By the way supposedly their is a picture of the bag the cocaine was found in white house with the inscription “property of H. biden.” AOC corporate democrat? Tell that to to former congressman sean patrick maloney. The far left are purists I know I am one! Some out here in left field call bernie a sell out. Means nothing. 100,000 minorities turn voting age every month and nearly half that many republicans die each month Means something. 65/70% latinx vote democrat and nearly half of those who don’t are cuban americans.

     asset (5a7e88) — 7/7/2023 @ 12:06 am

     
     

324. Kevin,

     Destroying doesn’t mean he wins. He couldn’t beat Rubio head to head or anyone else that is nominally a republican. Maybe Hutchinson, but that’s not a viable option in any reality that exists.

     It’s just tilting at windmills.

     NJRob (eb56c3) — 7/7/2023 @ 5:49 am

     
     

325. Eisenhower used federal troops to desegregate Little Rock.

     Eisenhower used troops to enforce a federal court order (which the State of Arkansas was willfully blocking), not for ordinary law enforcement purposes.

     Rip Murdock (d2a2a8) — 7/7/2023 @ 9:12 am

     
     

326. Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/6/2023 @ 6:57 pm

     The Constitution does give the Executive rather awesome emergency powers, especially when a state governor is asking for help.

     It doesn’t, although a law may delegate more power to the president than otherwise under certain circumstances.

     The only place unenumerated emergency powers may exist is with the states, as we saw during Covid, and that’s authorized and limited by state laws and the state constitution.

     Sammy Finkelman (896511) — 7/7/2023 @ 10:18 am

     
     

327. Eisenhower used troops to enforce a federal court order (which the State of Arkansas was willfully blocking), not for ordinary law enforcement purposes.

     Now do sanctuary states.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/7/2023 @ 11:11 am

     
     

328. The Constitution does give the Executive rather awesome emergency powers, especially when a state governor is asking for help.

     The Constitution makes the President Commander-in-Chief. While Congress has attempted several times to restrict that power, no President has agreed.

     The Guarantee Clause states:

     The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and shall protect each of them against Invasion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic Violence.

     This allows the President to use troops unilaterally in cases of invasion, and with a request, in cases of civil disorder. There are additional situations where Congress has authorized the use of troops domestically irrespective of Posse Comitatus. The Insurrection Act and the Enforcement Acts are two examples.

     W attempted to amend the Insurrection Act after Katrina, to allow US troops to restore order after a natural disaster, despite the state’s governor objection. The amendment passed but was repealed a year later.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/7/2023 @ 11:35 am

     
     

329. Destroying doesn’t mean he wins.

     You are right, but I would like to see him destroy Trump on stage. Assuming that his cult would listen.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/7/2023 @ 11:37 am

     
     

330. “Now do sanctuary states.”

     State police are not obligated to enforce federal laws.

     Davethulhu (8a303d) — 7/7/2023 @ 5:39 pm

     
     

331. Re Marge being voted out of the HFC, I’m reading that Rep. Andy Harris said of the vote:

     “I think the way she referred to a fellow member was probably not the way we expect our members to refer to other fellow, especially female members,” the Maryland representative said.

     What the heck? Is he saying that if it had been members who were male nothing would’ve happened because men? Unbelievable.

     Dana (560c99) — 7/7/2023 @ 5:45 pm

     
     

332. What the heck? Is he saying that if it had been members who were male nothing would’ve happened because men? Unbelievable.

     Sugar and spice and everything nice.
     Toads and snails and puppy dog tails.

     This the Freedom Caucus, remember? They’re supposed to have those quaint, old-fashioned notions. That’s what they run on, that’s what gets them elected.

     And I also think that MTG is rude, crude, and tawdry, I could even say cheap, and not a lady you bring home to meet your parents, and I’m not even in the Freedom Caucus.

     nk (8d3cf1) — 7/7/2023 @ 5:57 pm

     
     

333. State police are not obligated to enforce federal laws.

     No, but federal police can. And state police who are actively working to thwart federal laws can be prosecuted for obstruction.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/7/2023 @ 6:13 pm

     
     

334. Eisenhower used troops to enforce a federal court order (which the State of Arkansas was willfully blocking), not for ordinary law enforcement purposes.

     Ike actually used the Enforcement Acts, passed in 1870-1, which allowed the use of troops to stop racial violence. They had been moribund for a number of years due to post-Reconstruction Supreme Court rulings that limited the 14th and 15th Amendments. But as those rules were overturned these limitations were removed, so long as state actors were involved.

     There is no doubt, however, that immigration laws can be enforced anywhere by the federal government (it is an enumerated power), and that troops can be used in some circumstances. Posse Comitatus is not as broad as some think.

     Kevin M (2d6744) — 7/7/2023 @ 6:27 pm