Send in the Clowns!

Every circus needs clowns, isn’t that correct?

Now I am not inviting the ghost of Emmett Kelly or the spirit of Ronald MacDonald to visit the House floor, but that sorry bunch of House Republicans showed us this week that they do not understand how to govern. If one looks at the bills submitted this first week alone, one would get an idea that their platform is more social engineering than real policy. Their plan remains to help the rich get richer and to let the middle class fend for itself, and to forget the poor. I saw a lot of bobbing and weaving, ducking and covering, posturing and mumbling happening, but no legislative initiatives for the people they were elected to serve.

You can find here a recent summary of all bills introduced so far in this first week of the new Congress here:

Oh, sure, they passed a bill providing criminal charges for any provider who allows an aborted fetus that was alive, to die, but that is already the law. Of course, they knew it as the “Born Alive Act”.

They introduced another bill that banned insurance coverage or state Medicaid payments for abortions. The ban on Medicaid coverage had been in effect for a long time. It even already prohibited states from using their own money for this purpose in specific circumstances. Services vary from state to state.

According to the Kaiser Family Foundation:

It depends on where you live. Because federal law only allows the use of federal funds for abortion in cases of rape, incest, or life endangerment of the pregnant person, in most states, Medicaid coverage for abortion is limited to these circumstances.  Many of these states have banned abortion and it may be difficult to locate a provider to obtain an abortion even in cases of rape and incest. 

Maryland law allows for some Medicaid funding, but it is income based.

Yet, a third banned the Federal Government from prohibiting the use of gas stoves. (This was apparently based on rumors after Governors in New York and California mentioned phasing out the use of gas stoves in coming decades.) The uproar, that this is happening now, fanned by Fox News, of course, was untrue. Some states were planning a gradual phase-out by partially disallowing new hookups in future years. (I have never understood why an earthquake-prone state such as California allowed home use of gas lines.) President Biden even denied that his administration was even considering this at a press opportunity recently.

We can see some of the upcoming administrative changes in the rules rescinding some powers of the former bi-partisan Ethics review committee that would make referrals to the House Ethics Committee. The January 6^th committee referred several members of the current House leadership (McCarthy and Jim Jordan were two who ignored the committee subpoenas) to the full Ethics Committee of the previous Congress, but this leadership will probably ignore those referrals.

There is now talk from McCarthy and others that they are out for revenge. After first saying that he would allow Democrats to select their committee members, McCarthy now says he will strip the Select House Committee on Intelligence of two long-term members,. Both Congressmen from California who served on the impeachment committees for the former president, Adam Schiff, and Eric Swalwell, were mentioned. And, in payback for the Democrats taking committee assignments away from Marjorie Taylor Greene for her offensive behavior, he plans to remove Congresswoman Ilhan Omar from her committee seat on the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Does anyone know if these steps result from promises McCarthy made in his play for the post of Speaker? No, we, the general public, do not know and probably won’t get to know just how much of his authority was bartered away in his power quest. So, who is actually running this session of Congress? Is it Matt Gaetz who is now roostering his way onto the airways? Or perhaps Marjorie Taylor Greene, who went from opposing McCarthy to being a huge booster for his speakership? What role was she promised, aside from a return to having committee assignments? Will Qanon advocates now be running the place? Does anyone know just what the new rules for Congress are? As I noted earlier, only one week in, and already it is a three-ring circus.

There are bills, of course, to reduce taxes and defund the FBI and IRS. Republicans claim that both Federal agencies are out to get ordinary Americans. Erroneously they state that the additional employees at the IRS are going after the average Joe and will audit his taxes when what the employees are needed for is to upgrade the departments, deal with the backlog of returns, answer the phones, and yes, go after the top 1% who evade taxes year after year because the IRS doesn’t have enough staff to chase them down. They accuse the Department of Justice of weaponizing the FBI such as in its actions at Mar-a-Lago, and will try to defund certain aspects of that agency. Some members promise to target specific employees and negate their salaries.

Now, we all know that most of these wild schemes will go nowhere in a Democratic Senate and that a lot of rhetoric is being tossed around for the Republican base. Even so, all of this further serves to divide Americans and make finding common ground more difficult. The New York Times carried a recent discussion between two of its conservative columnists today, (David Brooks and Bret Stephens), where they discussed why they cannot support this current Republican Party. It provides some very good perspectives on how America got to this point. They point to the actions of Newt Gingrich, CPAC members, and Pat Buchanan as some people who started the demise of the party as they once knew it.

Bret says: What’s different this time is that populist feelings were never harnessed to pragmatic policies. As you say, it’s just populism in the service of nihilism.

As Brooks puts it: “then the congressional Republicans began to oppose almost every positive federal good, even George W. Bush’s compassionate conservatism. Trump brought the three horsemen of the apocalypse — immorality, dishonesty, and bigotry.”

While both saw some good in the populist movement, they both also decried the Republican move toward authoritarianism and could not support that.

Of course, the Santos problem will not go away, it just gets murkier and murkier. The public does not know if anything he said is true. Generally, no one is sure of his name, his job, his education, or even his address. The campaign finance report he submitted where he loaned himself $700,000 is thought to have major errors in the required reporting, which is against the law. Some have questioned whether it was money laundering or came from a donor PAC to shield major Republican donors who had maxed out their party contributions. That, also, could be illegal. Hopefully, someone somewhere is investigating these issues. I don’t see how he might bully his way through these messes and stay for his full two-year term. Time will tell. McCarthy will not consider kicking him out unless he is criminally charged; he needs his vote to stay in his position.

The debt ceiling is a topic for another night.

I guess I can’t leave without mentioning the Biden classified documents issues. I think it is a shame that this happened. Biden claims that the document removal was an error by his staff when his materials were being packed up or stored, at either his home or former office, so I'm pretty sure that's probably what happened. These concerns are not parallel at all to the incident of the Mar-a-Lago documents. DJT refused for months and months to turn over a significant number of vital and classified documents, while Biden’s papers were few and were turned over to the Archives when found. They were not important enough to even have been missed by the department. I do not believe that this issue is a major concern or threatens national security as many of the papers are several years old or date from the Obama administration. Consequently, I do not believe that this issue needed a special prosecutor, even if the man chosen is upright and impartial. AG Garland probably thought that since there was a special prosecutor for DJT, he could not avoid one for Biden. I disagree, but he probably did this to reduce Republican criticism. These two cases are as different as apples and elephants. As always, the proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say; I know Democrats do not want SP Hur to turn into Ken Starr, which is what they fear unless his powers are limited somehow.

A few words of congratulations for the new and returning legislators who took their seats in Maryland last week. I wish them an interesting and productive session. Our new governor and his administration take office this week. Governor-elect Wes Moore has chosen a diverse cabinet and staff and has an ambitious agenda. I hope that they all succeed in these new roles and with their new ideas. I thank Governor Hogan for his eight years of service; I shall not miss him.

“Til next week-Peace!

Kevin’s Really Bad Terrible Week!

 

Did you watch the spectacle in the US House this week? Did you see our democracy at its’ lowest as power plays weighed in over principles? What picture did this send to the world?

I watched a man vying for one of the most powerful positions in Washington so tied up with the idea that only he should have this post that he surrendered the governance of our country to a group of about twenty renegade elected officials. He appeared to give in time after time to concessions demanded by members of his own party. These concessions were not about policies as much as they were about power. He even agreed to allow the body to demand a vote on vacating his position should a single member request it. He supposedly gave in and allotted several positions on the rules committee-the committee that governs what issues can reach the floor to the recalcitrant factions' members.

I think that he should have realized that these members were not with him early on and that for the betterment of the institution, he should have bowed out and found someone who could be acceptable to the members. Once he started giving in to this and that, he weakened his position and lost respect. His party also showed itself to be in chaos since it could not come up with a consensus candidate. The press quoted McCarthy as saying at one point he earned this position after faithfully standing as minority leader for several years. But it should not have been about him; he was passed over previously when his party could not agree on him for the leadership role.

Most conservatives consider him a fund-raiser, not an ideologue. Many of his members had far-right policies, but he did not, even though he was conservative. He vacillated on his comments about DJT and the MAGA World staging the January sixth coup attempt, initially condemning, then eventually reneging on those comments. He famously went to Mar-a-Lago two weeks after January sixth, where he was photographed with the disgraced former president. He was not strong enough to stand up for what he knew was right. DJT was active on the phone that night trying to drum up support for McCarthy. I think that this was probably being done more to make himself seem relevant considering ever-decreasing poll numbers, rather than fervor for McCarthy.

Commentators have variously described members of this opposition group as ultra-conservatives or obstructionists who don’t believe in government but are nihilists who want to tear the place down. Most of them voted to not certify the election of 2020 in the aftermath of the January 6^th insurrection. Matt Gaetz, a Congressman from Florida, previously was accused of questionable personal behavior, Paul Gosar was reprimanded for videos threatening Congressional representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Representatives Bobert and Harris were faulted for trying to bring firearms onto the House floor and Marjorie Taylor-Greene lost her committee assignments for behavior considered unacceptable in the House in the previous Congress and for her Q-Anon, anti-Semitic and white supremacists affiliations. Gosar is now threatening to release information about Greene and supposed sexual improprieties since she changed her support and voted for McCarthy.

Gaetz basked in the role of troublemaker, first casting his vote for others, then for the former president, and then finally voting ‘present’ to keep his never-Kevin credentials intact. Bobert also voted present, as did a few others. Gaetz was supposedly demanding a seat on the Armed Services Committee and the Rules Committee, but one never knows what really happened.

These are just a few of those in this group; Greene, however, is now supporting McCarthy because she won some promises from him, some say in her quest to impeach President Biden. But, since McCarthy has now agreed to remove the magnetometers from the entrances to the House floor, perhaps Bobert and Harris can again feel safe and carry their firearms onto the floor of the House. Of course, many of their associates may no longer feel safe, but whatever!

The Republican Representatives eventually elected Kevin McCarthy on the 15^th ballot, as voting took over four days before he reached the threshold of about 216 or so votes. The spectacle and the obvious ‘horse-trading’ going on were visible to all since the C-SPAN cameras were not controlled by leadership, since no leadership had yet been appointed. The newly elected representatives, some of whom brought their families to Washington to see their swearing-in, could not be sworn in. Baby bottles and strollers occupied the House floor, along with spouses and parents who would spend days waiting for a Speaker to be chosen. Some visitors had to return home because of other responsibilities. One Congressman complained that the men’s room had no changing tables for babies. What an eye-opening fact! There was no Congressional action since no Congress had been formed.

Meanwhile, on vote after vote, the Democrats consistently voted for Hakeem Jeffries, who received 212 votes, the totality of their caucus. Hakeem and his leadership team of Pete Aguilar of California and Katherine Clark of Massachusetts kept their caucus present and together on vote after vote.

Once McCarthy was finally selected, after midnight on Friday evening, Jeffries stood up to give his welcoming speech. As said by Heather Cox Richardson, it was a barn burner ! He reiterated Democratic principles and vowed to keep those front and center. He said he would cooperate where he could, but would not concede on core beliefs. Below are some comments from his speech:
“As Democrats,” he said, “we do believe in a country for everyone…. We believe in a country with liberty and justice for all, equal protection under the law, free and fair elections, and yes, we believe in a country with the peaceful transfer of power.
“We believe that in America our diversity is a strength—it is not a weakness—an economic strength, a competitive strength, a cultural strength…. We are a gorgeous mosaic of people from throughout the world. As John Lewis would sometimes remind us on this floor, we may have come over on different ships but we’re all in the same boat now. We are white. We are Black. We are Latino. We are Asian. We are Native American.
“We are Christian. We are Jewish. We are Muslim. We are Hindu. We are religious. We are secular. We are gay. We are straight. We are young. We are older. We are women. We are men. We are citizens. We are dreamers.
“Out of many, we are one. That’s what makes America a great country, and no matter what kind of haters are trying to divide us, we’re not going to let anyone take that away from us, not now, not ever. This is the United States of America….
“So on this first day, let us commit to the American dream, a dream that promises that if you work hard and play by the rules, you should be able to provide a comfortable living for yourself and for your family, educate your children, purchase a home, and one day retire with grace and dignity.”
In this moment of transition, he said, the American people want to know what direction the Congress will choose. The Democrats offer their hand to Republicans to find common ground, Jeffries said, but “we will never compromise our principles. House Democrats will always put American values over autocracy…benevolence over bigotry, the Constitution over the cult, democracy over demagogues, economic opportunity over extremism, freedom over fascism, governing over gaslighting, hopefulness over hatred, inclusion over isolation, justice over judicial overreach, knowledge over kangaroo courts, liberty over limitation, maturity over Mar-a-Lago, normalcy over negativity, opportunity over obstruction, people over politics, quality of life issues over QAnon, reason over racism, substance over slander, triumph over tyranny, understanding over ugliness, voting rights over voter suppression, working families over the well-connected, xenial over xenophobia, ‘yes, we can’ over ‘you can’t do it,’ and zealous representation over zero-sum confrontation. We will always do the right thing by the American people.”

These are words I can applaud; I believe you should do so as well. I think being a minority leader for the next two years will be an unenviable position, especially since the opposition seems to have no thoughts of making America better. McCarthy gave an acceptance speech, as well. In contrast to Jeffries, his was not uplifting. Especially since his party promised to interfere with investigations, threatened to defund the FBI and IRS, and promised investigations about the COVID virus and of civil servants such as Dr. Fauci. His party promised investigations of President Biden’s son Hunter, who has no governmental role, and impeachments of the President (for no particular reason, I guess) and his Homeland Security Secretary over immigration. They promise an investigation over the withdrawal from Afghanistan even though the date had been set and contracted by Biden’s predecessor.

There were few mentions in McCarthy’s speech about what Congress might do to strengthen our country, and make our citizens healthier and our children better educated. He said nothing about resolving our differences as a genuine leader should do; he spoke only to the party base. There were questions about continued funding for Ukraine; indeed, many Republicans supported Putin previously, along with other autocrats such as Orban of Hungary. He thanked the former president for his support.

McCarthy is a leader in name only, a hollow man who stands for nothing and can count on no one. The minority factions have silenced the two hundred members who stood with him over multiple ballots. Where is the discipline of a strong caucus? Over the next two years, I don't think there will be much substance from the House, but I hope we can keep our narrow majority in the Senate and forestall the worst of what the House may send over as bills. I am thankful that the lame-duck Congress passed the budget. When raising the debt ceiling next comes due, I worry about what might happen. We shall see,

There is now a fight to choose a new Republican Party leader even though Ronna Romney McDaniel has given in to the MAGA faction time after time, there is a MAGA challenger for her office.

As this is being written, supporters of former Brazilian leader Bolsonaro, who was defeated in a recent election, stormed the government buildings in Brazil’s capital. Hundreds have been arrested, and officials dispersed many others. Bolsonaro, an autocrat, was also favored by the former president and was said to have been advised by Steve Bannon and others to not accept the results of the election which he lost on a run-off. He is now in Florida, supposedly for a visit.

‘Til next week-Peace!

Greetings for 2023!

Have you made your New Year's resolutions yet?

Numbers guru Harry Enten, speaking on CNN this week, noted that about 40% of Americans will make resolutions for a new year; about 18% will keep them in an ongoing manner. Changing the year brings to mind a time for renewal, a restarting, bringing up a clean slate. Unfortunately, there are still many issues that remain from the old year that require addressing. There are also resolutions that I would love to see some people in public life make for themselves. Certainly, I would like to see a resolution where truth-tellers are rewarded by society for doing the hard things.

The January 6^th Committee has released its report and included transcripts of interviews from many witnesses who gave testimony not presented in the televised hearings. These ranged from the former president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, a former presidential advisor, who according to staff, demonstrated a remarkable lack of memory for events at the White House, to other associates who claimed the fifth to avoid giving testimony. Some of these reticent speakers included Roger Stone, Michael Flynn, John Eastman, Roger Clark, and former Secret Service agent, and later presidential aide, Tony Ornato. Ornato's testimony was contradicted, according to committee records by multiple White House staff, including Cassidy Hutchinson. Ornato did not validate the testimony from others about early warnings of potential armed members of the crowd. Ornato, who also appeared to have a selective recall, did not remember the discussions about the reported altercation in the presidential motorcade, despite testimony from others to the contrary. Before his last testimony, he retired from the Secret Service.

The transcripts also described the pressure levied against many staffers as they prepared to give testimony before the committee. Some attorneys counseled the personnel to say 'I don't recall' or 'I can't remember' when questioned about events that might put the administration in a bad light. Cassidy Hutchinson and others mentioned calls from their former bosses to remain loyal to the team. Hutchinson had a lawyer from the MAGA team who told her that DJT was reading the transcripts and would know who was loyal. The attorney, who has since stepped down from his current law firm, claims that he did nothing illegal in his advice to her. These actions certainly sound like witness intimidation and intentional obfuscation to me.

To me, some of the saddest remarks also came as 26-year-old Cassidy Hutchinson reported that she, who was out of work after the administration turned over, scrambled around trying to find an attorney on her own and was quoted a retainer of $130,000 by one firm. She tried to borrow money from her friends and relatives unsuccessfully because she dreaded being represented by the MAGA world. In her testimony, the attorney who presented himself to her never said who was paying him, and hinted that being loyal would help her find a job. When she finally felt he was preventing her from being truthful and she started looking for another attorney, the job offers disappeared. She is currently being represented by an attorney who is offering his services without a fee. Isn't it somehow wrong that testimony before a committee can place the person trying to do their civic duty in financial jeopardy?

Some Republicans chastised the January 6th Committee for using TV producers to create the videos and scripts used during the Hearings. These were not the staid hearings where House members pontificate for four of their allotted five minutes and then ask a self-serving question that does not illuminate the topic at hand. No, they tightly scripted these hearings, with each committee member having a discrete responsibility; the Committee Chair Bennie Thompson opened and closed meetings and the Vice-chair Liz Cheney, a Republican, also had opening and closing remarks. Each session had a specific focus and particular representatives that covered this topic. They all presented their remarks by reading from teleprompters, and members had practice sessions on how to use the technology. In short, it was a must-see, made for TV viewing, and not at all boring. TV audiences during the first evening were over 20 million, with more streaming viewers. The testimony and videos were presented so that the average viewer could easily understand the topics and the testimony. By design, most of the witnesses were Republicans. One of the major exceptions was the two Black election workers, a mother and daughter, from Georgia, possibly slandered by Robert Giuliani, who claimed they were using a thumb drive to change election results. They described the subsequent harassment that drove them from their homes and required FBI protection.

Robert Draper and Luke Broadwater did in-depth reporting about these details in an article in the New York Times Magazine. They report that despite all the egos involved; the committee managed to pull together, work through issues and end up with a report that most could agree with completely. Decisions, such as sending subpoenas or referrals to the Justice Department, were made unanimously.

There is more work to be done in this investigation. Some committee members wished that there had been enough time to focus on the militia movement and white supremacist groups. There is some talk that the Senate may take up this area of investigation. The committee was time limited as the creation linked it to this Congressional term. If the Democrats had kept control of the House, then possibly, the investigations could have continued. With the Republicans taking over and threatening to investigate the committee itself, there is no chance.

Sure wish I could compel the Republicans to govern rather than just posture. Wouldn't that be a great resolution for them? To resolve to have a Congress that works for the people?

In my opinion, these last two years have created some major legislation that works for all Americans. President Biden tried to compromise and find unity but was stonewalled in many attempts. Still, he had several significant legislative achievements. According to the New York Times, these were: "a major bipartisan infrastructure deal, a technology bill, a veterans' health bill, a gun safety bill, and a package of new investments in climate and health care."

The electoral count act reform was part of the Omnibus Bill that had just passed. The legislators should have abolished the Electoral College, but that battle will not be easy. Small states like their over-rated power. I wish that voting rights reform and better gun control legislation had passed. I do not expect that either of these will be addressed again until Democrats can control the House, the Senate, and the White House. Doing so is difficult.

CNN also recounted several executive orders that Biden has signed, many of which reversed policies put in place by his predecessor. 

"In his first hours after he was inaugurated, Biden halted funding for the construction of Trump's border wall, reversed his travel ban targeting largely Muslim countries, and embraced progressive policies on the environment and diversity that Trump spent four years blocking. Biden also reversed several of Trump's attempts to withdraw from international agreements, beginning the process of rejoining the Paris climate accord and halting the United States' departure from the World Health Organization. And he imposed a mask mandate in federal buildings, a symbolic break with Trump's handling of the pandemic."

President Biden also should be commended for his handling of the war in Ukraine. His warnings to the Russians, although ignored, gave notice to the world of the Russian intent. He pulled together nations in the UN, the European Union, and NATO to present a unified force against the Russian invasion, impose sanctions, and send arms and other support to keep Ukraine strong.

I hope that Americans, as a country, continue in this resolve supporting aid and weapons as necessary to Ukraine. Perhaps a resolution to stand against tyranny and authoritarianism would be good for us all.

Our recent election showed that Americans still believe protecting democracy is important.

As we get ready to see the swearing-in of the new Congress, controversy ranges over the lies and misrepresented resume of a newly elected Republican Congressman from New York City. Apparently, little that he claimed in his bio is actually true. He did not graduate from the college claimed nor did he work for Goldman Sachs; he did not attend a named HS; he is not Jewish, but is Catholic, despite claiming to have had Jewish relatives who perished in the Holocaust. His campaign received hundreds of thousands of dollars in personal loans, despite a vague employment history. Despite these lies, he will be seated because Kevin McCarthy needs every vote he can find. There are still rumors that he does not have enough votes to get a majority and alternates may yet pop up. We shall see.

Maybe a resolution for the next Speaker could be to use Nancy Pelosi as a guide on how to run the House. Her successes have been legion over the many years she served. She kept her caucus in step most of the time; Kevin could learn from this and might not have to give in to the crazies on his side of the aisle so often. If he is not elected, who knows what the leadership might be like?

I did not have time to look at DJT's tax return info; that can wait for another day as we have already waited years for them, and there is no urgency.

“Til next week-Peace!

Holiday Spirits

The ghosts of Christmas Past were roaming the Capitol this past week. Rumors persisted that the House Republicans did not want to pass the massive 1.7 trillion dollar omnibus spending bill and wished to let the government run out of money or pass only short-term funding instead. They wanted to let this Congress expire and start anew when they were in charge of the House and could have better luck killing measures they did not support. There have been other Christmases where they succeeded with this maneuver, but not this year.

Since 1976 in the modern budget era, there have been 21 times when Congress did not enact a budget, or lift the debt ceiling because of disagreements, and shut the Federal government down. The most recent holiday shutdown occurred in 2018 as Congress would not fund the border wall wanted by then-President Trump, so he shut down the government for 35 days furloughing almost half a million federal employees for the longest ever shut-down. (This pause was for about one-quarter of the federal workforce as portions of the budget were passed previously.) Congress was then, as it is now, in a lame-duck session. The new Congress would usher in a Democratically controlled House after massive wins in the mid-terms for Democrats that year.

In 1995 there was also a Christmas shut-down where Democratic President Clinton and Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich could not get a consensus on domestic spending and other issues, so Gingrich refused to pass a budget. That shutdown lasted for 21 days. When President Obama was in office in 2013, there was a 16-day shut-down at the beginning of the fiscal year over issues with the Affordable Care Act with a divided Congress. (Most times when furloughs happened of any length, the employees retroactively were paid, although it sometimes took a while.)

So, we can all be thankful that this year, despite protestations from the right, the Senate passed the appropriations bill and extended the debt ceiling with a bipartisan vote. It is important to note that electoral count certification was strengthened, so schemes such as the former president tried can no longer have any effect. Since the Democrats and Nancy Pelosi are still in charge of the House side, the House agreed and also passed these necessary measures with bipartisan support. Federal employees can then enjoy their holidays without worrying about losing a paycheck. So, we too, as members of the general voting public, can applaud our Congress for actually stepping forward and getting this important job done. We can now relax a bit and be confident that our country will continue to function as it should. But as we head into a divided Congress in the new year, such unanimity will be a rare thing if Kevin McCarthy is to be believed. But, then, he still hasn’t nailed down the job as speaker, so who knows who will be in charge? Sadly, it could be someone worse.

One major portion of the spending bill was military spending, up ten percent this year. A portion of the spending was to support the efforts in Ukraine militarily and financially for infrastructure. Not only has the country been fighting a war with exchanges of warfare, but they have also targeted the civilian infrastructure as the Russians continue to use missiles and armed drones to damage or destroy power plants, apartment buildings, and hospitals. Many civilians who have remained in the cities and towns were tolerating the loss of services, but now as the country heads into winter, families face continued losses of heat and safe water. Commercial enterprises have been diminished, and people have lost jobs or left them to fight in the war, so families are living with minimal resources.

Stressing the need for continued support for his country, President Zelensky came in person to Washington to meet with President Biden and speak to a joint meeting of Congress. The trip out of his country and his return were extraordinarily risky, as they had to be conducted in total secrecy to ensure his safety. A bipartisan group of senators and House leaders escorted Zelensky onto the House floor before his speech. Mostly, his remarks were graciously received, and many lines received warm applause and standing ovations. However, some Republican members, mostly from the House, boycotted the speech, as others who attended, sat on their hands, so to speak, or perused their phones in postures of studied boredom.

Zelensky, who seldom gives major speeches in English, read his remarks in accented, but understandable, English. He reminded the American audience of major battles in their country’s history when it was fighting the British during the revolution or during pivotal battles in World War ll when their troops were victorious. While thanking the Americans for all they have done for his country, he again asked for more weapons and armaments. He wants planes and missiles which might not be supplied. America is concerned that too many offensive weapons could widen the war and take it into Russia, which could then vastly expand the conflict. He continued, noting that Putin attacked his country without provocation; his people have died from war crimes, but the citizens remaining have not capitulated. He asserted that money given to support his country was not a bad loan but was an investment, critical to the survival of this beleaguered nation. He told the assembly that Ukraine was alive and kicking and that their support would speed up his victory.

The timing of his visit was critical. The funding and spending bills had not yet been passed; Republicans in the House were less supportive of continued aid and weapons support. Yet, he stressed this lifeline was not only for Ukraine, if Putin was not stopped in Ukraine, other areas in Europe would also be vulnerable as well. At the end of his speech, he presented to Speaker Nancy Pelosi and VP Kamala Harris, serving as President of the Senate, a flag that flew over a battlefield in Ukraine that day and was signed by all the members of the battalion in service there. As I write, little has changed. I hope that his brave countrymen and women can survive this winter and defeat the Russians with our continued financial and moral support.

Finally, also in the news this week, was the report from the January 6th Committee. There were few surprises in the release; they faulted the former president as expected. Instead of three areas for DOJ criminal referrals, there were four. According to the Washington Post, the referrals were for:

“Members of the committee urged federal prosecutors to charge Trump with four crimes: inciting or assisting an insurrection, obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress, conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to make a false statement.”

“The panel also referred conservative lawyer John Eastman and “certain other Trump associates" to the Justice Department. Eastman has been cited as the legal architect for Trump’s effort to overturn the 2020 election.”

They referred four Republican Congressmen who did not respond to the committee subpoenas to the House Ethics committee. According to CBS News,  “Those four members are House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Rep. Andy Biggs, Rep. Jim Jordan and Rep. Scott Perry, all close allies of Trump.”

Once the final report was issued, it comprised over 800 pages plus several appendices. As always happens, the devil is in the details. Concerns about the security of the Capitol, faulty interagency communications about right-wing militias, the lack of faith in some secret service testimony, the staff with poor memories, or those who took the fifth in their depositions were all mentioned as issues to be further investigated. All the depositions are being shared with the Department of Justice. Many expect the new Special Counsel, Jack Smith, to take an intense look at the information as he receives it. Many have voiced concerns about MAGA-supplied attorneys to White House staff testifying. Cassidy Hutchinson reported being told to have a faulty memory for activities in the Oval Office that she overheard or took part in. She testified they promised her a good job if she testified properly. Eventually, she got another attorney, one not supplied by the former White House, and corrected some of her earlier remarks. I wonder how many of the former White House employees had the same situation. It also appears that few were as brave as Ms. Hutchinson.

Issues relating to the classified documents at Mar-a-Lago and about the calls to the Georgia election officials remain. The house committee released some of the former Presidents’ tax returns this week. The records received by the House Finance Committee seemed to indicate that very little in taxes were paid by the former president or his wife, even though they had earnings; several offset losses were carried across many years that made it difficult to clarify the legality of the losses. The tax returns provided by the IRS included no supporting documentation for deductions claimed to the committee. Some said that there were over 400 allied businesses associated with the finances in the returns. Surprisingly, the committee also learned that the IRS did not audit the presidents’ returns annually as required by law. The returns of Presidents Biden and Obama were duly audited by the IRS while they were in office. Did this man corrupt every governmental department? I assume someday we will learn the truth. There must be some reason he lied about his taxes for years and spent thousands in legal fees trying to keep even these few years from being released. The saga continues.

A few words about the extraordinary weather the US has experienced this week. It is related to global climate change. As I understand it, the arctic is warming and air currents change. When that happens, things such as the polar vortex (usually content to stay far north) that drove these extreme temperatures dropped lower to the continental states and blasted heavy snows and severe frigid temperatures across much of the country. Records for snowfall, high winds, and low temperatures were set across the country. Maybe now people might believe that global climate change is a thing and modify behaviors. We don’t have much time left to fix this, folks!

Just a word – COVID hasn’t left and cases are rising – stay safe out there!

Happy New Year!

“Til next week-Peace!

This Congress Winds Down–then what?

As I write tonight, we await the report from the January 6^th House Committee on the Insurrection.

News reports indicate the committee will make three referrals to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for criminal charges against the former president (DJT) as it releases its final report. The criminal charges will be for:

obstructing an official proceeding,

conspiracy to defraud the government and

inciting or assisting an insurrection. (Conviction would preclude ever holding any elected office.)

Of course, since Congress can only refer, but not inflict any penalties for offenses, the DOJ will have to look at the evidence and decide. The committee will release to everyone copies of the documentation collection on Wednesday. Since there are more than one million pieces of evidence to date, I guess we will have to rely on the experts in the press to do the deep dives into these documents to learn from them.

It is also said that of the five Republican Congressmen who were subpoenaed to appear before the committee but refused to do so, they will refer four to the Ethics Committee of the House. Some expect the attorney John Eastman, who advised DJT on several schemes, will also receive a referral. In civil court proceedings where Eastman tried to claim attorney-client privilege to protest the release of his emails with the former president and others, a California judge (David Carter) called the actions of both Eastman and DJT criminal.

The report will have eight chapters echoing the public hearings and the issues they investigated and reportedly will define the extent of the former president’s involvement in the Stop the Steal movements that led to the insurrection. His tweets inviting followers to come to the Capitol on January sixth–“it will be wild,” he said. (January 6^th was the date defined by the Constitution to count the legal ballots from the various state electors in a joint session of Congress chaired by the Vice-President of the country.) The Republicans, under DJT loyalist, Rep. Jim Jordan, will prepare their counter report addressing the claims of lax security and poor intelligence that failed the Capitol defensive position. His remarks faulted Speaker Pelosi for this ‘lapse’ in judgment.

Ultimately, the committee will disband as the new Congress starts in January with the Republicans in the majority. Minority Leader McCarthy spent most of the time during the Committees’ existence trying to discredit it and its findings. Of course, he tried to undermine it from the beginning, by choosing Republican members such as Jordan, who were loyal to the former president.

Meanwhile, the Republicans are giving McCarthy a hard time as he tries to find enough votes to become Speaker. So far, some say that he does not yet have enough votes to win on the first ballot. Some on the right demand that to get their vote, he invoke a rule that would allow him to be replaced on a simple majority vote; so far he has resisted that, but is jockeying around committee assignments. The outspoken Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose outrageous behavior during this current Congress caused her to lose all committee assignments on a party-line vote, is demanding a seat on the powerful House Oversight committee where she plans to draw up impeachment articles against President Biden. We expect Congressman Jordan to chair the Judicial Committee. Could they find two less competent people? Probably they could! Former Speaker Boehner was so disgusted by the posturing of many on the right when he was in charge that he quit, paving the way for Paul Ryan to become Speaker.

Boehner was on Capitol Hill this week giving positive remarks at the unveiling of a portrait for current Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is stepping down from her leadership position, but remaining in Congress. It was good to see some camaraderie between the two former rival leaders, who showed that civility can still be possible when there is mutual respect. Many expect this next term will be her last for Pelosi, as the attack on her husband was traumatic to her and her family. Stepping into the role of Minority Leader will be Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York, who is a generation younger than the 82-year-old Pelosi, and will be the first African American to serve in that position.

The new Congress will have 222 Republican members and 213 Democrats in the House. while the Senate will have 51 Democrats and 49 Republicans. (Senator Sinemas' defection to Independent status, notwithstanding!). The majority (one more than half) is 218, so McCarthy will have to control all of his caucus consistently to get much of anything done and can afford few defectors on any legislation or resolutions. Already a conservative group of five Congressmen stated they will not vote for McCarthy unless he meets their demands, so he will have a tough job, should he win. Some have called the minority leader spineless for his flip-flopping to get votes or to stay in the good graces of the MAGA crowd and DJT. He is not known for his legislative prowess, or vote counting, but has been a good fundraiser for Republicans who echo the MAGA crowd.

Currently, the country is awaiting the end of the lame-duck session of Congress and authorization of the spending bill, that will allow the government to borrow and spend, currently, the spending is on a one-week extension which was approved on a party-line vote. McCarthy does not want a full authorization as he says his party should have the opportunity to make changes or demands in the next session. The Democrats want the funding to cover the next fiscal year, which ends on September 30, 2023. Of course, there is also the Omnibus Spending bill into which everything but the kitchen sink is tossed, in a last-minute attempt to fund all the favorites for each party and keep the government and the military running. Republicans, always running on a “starve the government platform”, want to stall and do a redo once they are in charge and the Democrats are trying to protect their favorite programs.

Roll Call reports that a joint committee has come to a basic agreement and is now working on compromises to get an appropriations bill ready for a vote by December 23^rd before they adjourn for the holidays.

Meanwhile, the House finance committee, controlled by Democrats for a few more days, now has the tax returns from the former president after he lost conclusively after years of appeals in a final argument before the Supreme Court. We expect the committee to make some or perhaps most of these documents public this week. Don’t you wonder what he fought so hard to keep private with all of his claims that he was under constant audits? To whom does he owe money? With whom has he done shady deals? What if he isn’t as rich as he claims to be? An inquiring public wants to know! Now that the Manhattan jury convicted the Trump Company of tax fraud and other charges, who knows what charges will follow?

The DOJ special prosecutor is already busy, winning courts battles over the classified documents (more of which were found in a storage area outside Mar-a-Lago), the Special Master is dismissed, so that delay is over now, and more White House insiders are being called in for testimony before the grand jury. Oh, and now more of the emails from former White House chief of Staff Mark Meadows have been released, letting us see just how many Republican Congressmen were in contact with Meadows about plans on and about January 6^th- and who asked for pardons afterward. No wonder he did not want to testify!

Meanwhile, DJT has a new scheme or as Alicia Menendez on MSNBC put it-he has a new grift, selling NFT playing cards. (Non-Fungible Tokens-you own a picture image with a number on it that you receive digitally!)

 “So folks, for only 99 dollars each, you too can own a digital image of your favorite president in one or all of these art cards picturing him as an astronaut, or Superman, or sports figure!”

He also offered prizes, such as dinner with him or other special objects. (Gee, maybe you too can dine with white supremacists or get your own copy of a classified document!)

The Post article also includes a link to the Lincoln Project spoof of this project. According to reports, he sold 45,000 of these right away, netting a cool $4.5 million!

As the saying goes, grifters gotta grift!

Well, it is the holiday season, and one gift I would love to see is these schemers who plotted Jan 6th and their hangers on-get their day in court. I have faith that the American jurors will see the light and convict. Of the nearly 1000 who were arrested from the insurrection activities at the Capitol or afterward, almost half have so far either pleaded guilty or been convicted by a jury.

My other wish is for peace in Ukraine. That poor country has suffered so much at the hands of a megalomaniacal Russian.

Best wishes for the holidays to all readers!

“Til next week-Peace!

What Does Warnock’s’ Win Mean?

After several long and hard-fought campaigns and five elections in two years, Senator Raphael Warnock is now finally a full-fledged Senator for a term of six years. To refresh memories, first, he had to win the Democratic primary in 2020, then he had to win in the general election. However, he failed to get over 50% of the vote in that race, which forced him into a run-off election. On January 5, 2021, he won that election to fill the remaining two years left after the previous Senator resigned because of ill health. So, now in 2022, Warnock was running for his first try for a full six-year Senate seat from Georgia. His win will make the Senate 51-49 - Democrat/Republican and give the Democrats the upper hand in committees and the agenda.

The former president selected a University of Georgia football star and Georgia native, (Herschel Walker) who once played for his football team, and later the Dallas Cowboys. He was a handsome candidate who still looked like the athletic football player he once was. With MAGA support, he won the Republican primary, despite rumbling from other Republican candidates that there were some skeletons in his closet. Once on the campaign trail, where he often went off script, he soon showed that many of his claims were fabrications or exaggerations. He said he graduated from the University of Georgia; he did not. He said he had been an FBI agent and worked in law enforcement; nope. He said he was a major employer in the state; he had six employees. He said he lived in Georgia; his primary home was in Texas, according to tax records.

Those comments don’t even come close to the issues of domestic violence, claims that he paid for former girlfriends to have abortions, even though he ran on an anti-choice ticket and the revelation about several children he previously had not acknowledged. He never adequately addressed the abortion claims, nor the claims about children or his residences. These behaviors were behind him, according to the accounts in his book. He wrote a book about his illness, recovery and religious conversion that he said made him a new man. (Well, at least he was better than Dr. Oz; he seemed to know where his houses were, although, like Dr. Oz, wasn’t always certain where he really lived.)

Then there was the concern that he had little understanding of the issues. Some claimed that he was tackled too many times as a player and had signs of traumatic brain injury and just made-up stuff because he did not remember. He even said on the campaign trail he was not so smart. But then one day he went way off script and started discussing the difference between werewolves and vampires! (These comments made for great ads from his opponent.)

Although the former president was advised to not come to Georgia and campaign for Walker, many others did. Republican Senators and congressmen came to Georgia and went on the campaign trail with Walker. They emphasized his vote would be a faithful Republican vote and that he would stand with Mitch McConnell and help keep the Senate in play with a 50/50 split. In the general election, Walker trailed Republican Governor Kemp by approximately 200,000 votes in the General election, leading pundits to assume there was a lot of ticket-splitting or lost voters then, that they hoped to avoid in the run-off, by bringing Republican voters back home.

Now I’d like to compare the two candidates here for a bit. Senator Raphael Warnock is also a son of Georgia. He is one of twelve children and grew up in Savannah with a father who was also a preacher on the weekends but held another job to care for his family. Warnock graduated from Morehouse College in Georgia, where he was a member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, and Union Theological Seminary in New York, where he received a Master of Divinity degree and finally a Doctorate in Philosophy in 2006. For several years, he was the head pastor at the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, the church home for Dr. Martin Luther King.

In his campaign, he tried to emphasize positive themes and spoke of what he had done for Georgia; how he worked across the aisle with Senator Cruz on a vital highway and with Senator Rubio on issues for maternal health. (Despite that, Cruz campaigned with Walker.) He ran as a candidate for All Georgians. In the general election, he fell just shy of the necessary 50% of the vote required in Georgia. (Many believe that officials put this requirement in place to ensure that black candidates could not win in close races across the south.) He won 49.4% of the vote and Walker won 48.5% of the vote with a third-party candidate winning about 2% of the total votes.

In the Run-off Warnock prevailed–finally coming in victoriously with 51,4% of the vote to his opponent’s 48.6% total. He gave a gracious and grand acceptance speech where his rhetoric soared to the oratorical spheres common to the clergy. In his speech, Warnock spoke of his mother who had once picked other peoples’ cotton but who today could pick her son for Senator. Speaking of the racial history of his state, even recently still troubled, he praised Georgians for coming out to vote, standing in long lines, and through bad weather to cast their votes. He won with black voters, independents, and a diverse group of supporters. Democrats are concentrated in Georgia’s urban centers but live throughout the state. Maps of voters show most counties skewed red, while the cities were blue. Blacks account for only one-third of the voters in the state, so both candidates had to reach out to all voters. Metro areas in Georgia are becoming increasingly diverse and young and hold most of the AAPI and Hispanic voters in the state.

Why was the race so close? One candidate was so clearly qualified; the other is so obviously unqualified. Was Walker another of DJT’s jokes on the country? Republicans chose Walker because the MAGA folks wanted him and they thought it would be more of a contest between two Black candidates. However, they did Walker no favors and could ultimately only point to choosing him because he would support their side in the Senate. Although they refrained from saying so, their candidate was almost a figurehead who would ultimately be without free choice.

Caroline Randall Williams, (a poet and writer in residence at Vanderbilt University) writing in the Atlantic about the contest, called Herschel Walker an American tragedy. Consider her remarks seriously. I have and with her, I condemn the Republican Party for its cynical misuse of an American life. I have copied a few of her comments below, but read the entire article if you can.

“Commodity. Chattel. Contraband. Capital. What is a Black body in the South? What is a Black southern man, carted out to work a white-owned field?.....It’s impossible today to talk about Black men and white agendas without talking about Herschel Walker, the Republican candidate for Senate in the runoff election in Georgia. …..Walker’s candidacy is a fundamental assault by the Republican Party on the dignity of Black Americans. How dare they so cynically use this buffoon as a shield for their obvious failings to meet the needs and expectations of Black voters? They hold him up and say, “See, our voters don’t mind his race. We’re not a racist party. We have Black people on our side too.” Parading Walker at rallies like some kind of blue-ribbon livestock does not mean you have Black people on your side. What it means is that you are promoting a charlatan—a man morally and intellectually bereft enough, blithely egomaniacal enough, to sing and dance on the world stage against his own best interest. Is he in on the joke? Does he know they picked him to save money on boot black and burnt cork, this man who made his name by bringing the master glory on the master’s field, who got comfortable eating from the master’s table?

I’ll ask again: What does it mean to be a Black man in the South, working a white-owned field?.....I don’t particularly care that Herschel Walker doesn’t seem to know he’s being used. I care that America let it get this far, that this country has been wildly careless with Black bodies, Black stories, Black truths. I care that I’m watching the news every day with the foot of bigotry on my back and the noose of regression tightening around my throat.

Whoever wins today, Walker’s candidacy is an American tragedy.”

‘Til next week, Peace!

Oath Keepers Convicted of Seditious Conspiracy; DJT Disavows Constitution

A Washington DC jury convicted the Oath Keepers’ leader, Elmer Stuart Rhodes, and one associate of seditious conspiracy. The jury also convicted three other associates of interfering with an official proceeding (the certifying of the election from the state electors). Rhodes, a veteran, and attorney, formed the Oath Keepers in 2009, after the election of Barack Obama as President. He claimed he expected Obama to seize legally held weapons and the nation would need militias to fight back.

He organized his militia forces to come to the city to be a force against the Antifa forces he expected to find in control of the city. According to the report in the New York Times, he also believed the Chinese were in control of the incoming Biden administration and that Antifa would overrun the White House and kidnap the sitting president. It seems that he was becoming a victim of his own propaganda and that of other right-wing extremists. There were no organized forces of Antifa in DC that week; in fact, a facet of the so-called Antifa is the lack of organization. (Antifa is an abbreviation for ‘anti-fascists’.) Antifa was involved in demonstrations in Portland, probably some BLM protests and other protests against extremist groups.

Although he was not in the Capitol on January sixth, Rhodes was in the city and directed his militias to advance into the building in a military formation. The fatigue-clad forces, complete with body armor, are visible in separate columns on multiple TV feeds from that day. He further admitted banking weapons outside the city as he expected to have the President call for the military occupation of the city to keep his administration in power. He believed in the Stop the Steal movement over the “stolen election” and he wanted his guys to answer the expected call. With emails, other internet posts, and voice mails, he widely broadcast his ideas. He also claimed the police knew of his plans. All of his public protest and a detailed prosecution from the Department of Justice brought about this conviction.

To date, as reported by The Insider, 950 people were arrested for activities at the Capitol; 458 have pleaded guilty so far.

The US Code defines Seditious Conspiracy, Rebellion, and Treason as:

§    2384. Seditious conspiracy.

“If two or more persons in any State or Territory, or in any place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, conspire to overthrow, put down, or to destroy by force the Government of the United States, or to levy war against them, or to oppose by force the authority thereof, or by force to prevent, hinder, or delay the execution of any law of the United States, or by force to seize, take, or possess any property of the United States contrary to the authority thereof, they shall each be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.”

§    2383. Rebellion or insurrection.

“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.” 

§      2382. Misprision of treason.

“Whoever, owing allegiance to the United States and having knowledge of the commission of any treason against them, conceals and does not, as soon as may be, disclose and make known the same to the President or to some judge of the United States, or to the governor or to some judge or justice of a particular State, is guilty of misprision of treason and shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than seven years, or both.”

 

  As described by the Washington Post, white men are seldom charged with seditious conspiracy, and even less frequently, convicted. The Puerto Rican separatists who fired shots in the Capitol in the 1950s were convicted, as were some Muslim radicals in the 1990s. However, some white supremacists charged in Arkansas were acquitted, as were some right-wing militia members who were charged with plotting against the government in Michigan.

During the Second World War, one argument in favor of the Japanese internment camps was that they were as a “foreign ethnic group” more likely to rise against the government than were the many millions of descendants of Germans and Italians living here, who were believed to be better assimilated. Not surprisingly, the Hitler government, long before the war involved American troops, tried to enlist white Americans in its fascist movements. I should note here that minority troops, such as the African Americans, whether foot soldiers or Tuskeekee Airmen, fought fiercely in the war; the Japanese troops, used in the European theater, also were known for their bravery. One, a resident of Hawaii, Daniel Inouye, lost an arm and later became a US Congressman and then a Senator after Hawaii became a state. His unit, the 442^nd, was one of the most decorated units in the war.

In other news, the former president, after getting enormous pushback about his dinner with the two white supremacists/anti-semites mentioned last week, continues on.

The White House, in a powerful statement, said, according to Politico:

“I just want to make a few things clear: The Holocaust happened. Hitler was a demonic figure,” Biden said in a tweet. “And instead of giving it a platform, our political leaders should be calling out and rejecting antisemitism wherever it hides. Silence is complicity.’

Of course, the pushback from Republicans has been tepid at best, although Pence, McConnell, and Pompeo issued statements. Kevin McCarthy dithered, as usual, but then he is trying to keep his unruly caucus in line and not doing well. Two Congressmen died this week, one Republican and one Democrat. While those deaths are regrettable, they will not affect the power balance in the House. However, more deaths might cause changes.

Now, it seems, the former president is showing his true colors. In a rambling statement this week, he demanded that the Constitution be suspended so that the authorities could rightfully reinstate him as president.

According to Politico:

“On his own social media platform Saturday morning, Trump said falsely that there was widespread fraud in the 2020 election and argued that unprecedented measures were, therefore, called for to return him to office. “A Massive Fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution,” Trump posted.”

Reps. Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, both Republican members of the Jan 6^th Committee, called him out for not supporting the Constitution. Some have said that these remarks show he wants an autocracy or even a dictatorship. However, few Republicans would say that they would not support him if he truly becomes the nominee. Certainly, a nightmare scenario, to be sure!

The White House responded, according to Politico:

“The White House on Saturday responded to Donald Trump calling for the suspension of the Constitution to overturn the 2020 election, saying in a statement, “You cannot only love America when you win.”

“The Constitution brings the American people together—regardless of party—and elected leaders swear to uphold it,” White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said. “Attacking the Constitution and all it stands for is anathema to the soul of our nation, and should be universally condemned.”

Are these all attention-getting tactics to divert the public from realizing that many prosecutions are closing in on the MAGA world? In New York, the trial of tax fraud for his company is nearing an end. Even though he attempted to move his businesses out of New York, the courts said no. The House of Representatives now has six years of his tax returns; many are wondering what these documents hold. The 11^th Circuit Appeals Court has dismissed the Special Master in the Mar-a-Lago documents case and reprimanded the lower court judge who was hand-picked by DJT’s team. The courts also ordered his former Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows, to testify in the Georgia elections interference inquiry. The Special Counselor appointed to oversee the two major issues (Documents and the Insurrection) is already on the job and has filed against some of his attorneys’ motions. More White House staff, specifically his White House attorneys, have testified before the Federal grand jury. It certainly seems as if the real world, where most people live, is closing in on him and his rampant disregard for the Rule of Law. I so hope they convict him of every one of these transgressions so that the country can move onward and away from this seven-year nightmare.

A few quick words about the Arizona elections. Despite some counties claiming fraud and refusing to certify the results, the Republicans in charge have moved forward and certified the results. Despite Kelli Lake rushing off to Mar-a-Lago and threatening lawsuits, she lost. I briefly saw some protests at the hearings about the certifications; some of those people were deranged and babbling. Too much sun in Arizona this year?

Finally, the Georgia Senate run-off election is on Tuesday. Already 1.8 million voters showed up during the early voting period. There are 7 million registered voters in Georgia. In the November election, neither candidate Warnock nor Walker got over 50% of the vote, but they each came close with Warnock at 49,4% and Walker at 48.5%. (About 36,000 votes separated the two among the approximately 3.8 million primary votes cast.) I, along with most Democrats, am rooting for Senator Warnock, as Walker is clearly unqualified. We shall soon know. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

 

“Til next week-Peace!