Latest Catchup on American Chaos...

Summarizing what is wrong with this country...

Marjorie Taylor Greene fashions herself a Christian White Nationalist, no doubt for votes and attention, but there is really a movement, as CNN describes it: "An 'imposter Christianity' is threatening American democracy."

. . .

And more..."White Christian Nationalism ‘Is a Fundamental Threat to Democracy’"

. . .

Former Koch executive, Marc Short, testifies before a grand jury investigating the Jan. 6 attack. Short was close to Chas. Koch and has shilled for the fossil fuels industry. There is hope...

"that the U.S. Department of Justice peels this onion all the way to its corrupt core – the unbridled Koch money machine — something that the January 6 House Select Committee has yet to do."

. . .  

The climate crisis could not be pointed out more vividly than in this headline: "Anglers asked to fish out two reservoirs before they dry up."

 . . .

In another Chas. Koch move, "This nation is scorching in a heat wave and wildfires, yet it's returning to planet-baking coal."

. . .

Mark Finchem just won his primary for Arizona's Sec. of State, which will include control over election certification. READ: "Trump-Backed Conspiracy Theorist Vies to Take Over Arizona Elections." He is a Trump lackey and listening to him talk, you would guess he was a lunatic. "He has said he won’t concede if he loses."

. . . 

And further confirmation of Republican plans nationwide to "steal" elections: 

"'This is how Republicans are planning to steal elections': GOP officials refuse to certify primaries."

The RNC's New Plan To STEAL Elections...

. . .

This is beyond frightening...Can you image the damage that will be done to this country and its democracy if Republicans are able to rewrite the Constitution? READ: "Trump-tied conservatives are 15 states away from an unprecedented rewrite of the Constitution."

. . .

I live in Phoenix and it can get very hot, although we have tempered that over the years with 'It's a dry heat.' Well, climate change has now thrust a period of humidity into the state of Arizona that is, to say the least, uncomfortable. Don't let anyone tell you they have learned to live with it, but in 25 years we have learned to tolerate the heat. That is, however, not so easy for the homeless. Now help is here: "A day with America’s only dedicated heat team in the US’s hottest city."

. . .

Agreed, media headlines, especially the Internet, are supposed to be grabbers, and often way overreacting to the issue. Well, this just posted from NPR certainly fits that premise, except it is not overreacting. Number one, it is from a very credible National Public Radio; second, based on the Putins, Donald Trumps and the U.S. Republican Congress, it sounds very feasible. READ: "Why the U.N. chief says we are 'one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation'"

'Humanity is one miscalculation away from nuclear annihilation'- UN Chief |Nuclear Non-Proliferation...

. . .

First it was Lake Meade, then Lake Powell, the two biggest reservoirs in the country located in the Southwest. Now, "Utah's Great Salt Lake is vanishing amid the megadrought gripping the southwestern United States." The shift in size is from 3,301 square miles down to where it now only holds one-quarter of the volume of water it used to. READ: "Megadrought at Utah's Great Salt Lake Seen From Space in Shocking Images."

. . .

The headline says it best: "The world is ablaze and the oil industry just posted record profits. It’s us or them."

At the age of 90, one has a very different perspective on the above. It's not hopeless, it's really a contentment.

Joe Biden Administration Accomplishments

 

People are still making up their minds before going to the polls next Tuesday. Over 20 million Americans have already voted and the U.S. Elections Project reports that more Democrats than Republicans have voted early. With a turnout of 154.8 million (66.8% 18+) in 2020, and with expectations higher for the 2022 midterms, there should be an onslaught on Nov. 8. Michael Moore says it will be a blue tsunami. It should be, based on the accomplishments of the Biden

administration from Matt Robison of RawStory.

You also must credit certain Democrat congressional members for their support of the President's agenda; and then there are others like Sen. Krysten Sinema of Arizona and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia that fought Biden all the way. However, the Biden administration hasn't done a good job of communicating their record achievements, an effort I hope to rectify here to the best of my ability. So, just before that surge to the polls, here are the real facts on Joe Biden.

Let's start with jobs: The greatest single year of job creation in American history, more than 6 million in 2021, a decrease of 16 million receiving unemployment benefits, and the biggest drop in the unemployment rate in history. Including manufacturing jobs, the biggest yearly increase in US manufacturing jobs in nearly 30 years. Democrats’ new incentives for key industries have already led to announcements of thousands of new manufacturing jobs.

The covid pandemic:  Biden executed the most successful American 

vaccination program in history – from under 1 percent of adults fully vaccinated to over 75 percent, with over 500 million shots administered – and from less than half of schools open to almost all of them.

Budget: Jerome Powell has been in a year-long effort to lower the inflation with some success. And, there is the Inflation Reduction Act which reduces the deficit by $300 billion.

For Safety: The President passed the biggest anti-violence measure in decades, including the Gun Safety bill and strengthening the Violence Against Women Act.

Protecting America and our allies: No country has been more active in the support of Ukraine and its fight against the Russians. Biden also kept the NATO alliance together in support of Ukraine following the Russian invasion, brought in two new countries and took out the world’s number one terrorist, Ayman al-Zawahri.

 Top Moments of Joe Biden's Presidency...

For diversity and equality: Democrats made lynching a federal hate crime, made Juneteenth a federal holiday and Biden appointed more Black women to the US Court of Appeals in one year than any president in history.

Confronting poverty: The Democrats' child tax credit created the largest-ever one-year decrease in childhood poverty in U.S. history, around 3 million kids were affected. Households saying they didn’t have enough to eat dropped by a third.

Healthcare: Democrats’ new tax credits resulted in a record 14.5 million Americans signing up through the ACA, including 5.8 million new people getting coverage. They forced drug companies to negotiate prices for the elderly and capped costs at $2,000 per year. This will save elders thousands annually.

Support the police: Democrats passed 4 bills supporting both police and 

crime victims. During Biden's administration he has had to contend with Republicans, especially Donald Trump, advocating violence.

For Veterans: Democrats allocated funds for hundreds of thousands sickened by burn pits in the Afghanistan and Iraq wars.

Climate Change: The Inflation Reduction Act includes the largest investment in history to address global warming. Biden rejoined the Paris Climate Accords and the EPA established strong new fuel economy standards.

Roads, bridges, energy: the bipartisan infrastructure bill will finally fix America’s infrastructure. In 2022 alone, repairs are starting on 65,000 miles of roads and 1,500 bridges, with thousands of jobs created.

As you can see, there is something for everyone. Joe Biden may be softspoken and laid back but he acts with the forceful action this country needs to move back into its place in the world as a leader. We need Biden and supporting Democrats to get the job done after the damage the Republican Party has wreaked on America, led by Donald Trump. We need Joe Biden as president to protect our democracy.

  

YOUR DIGEST NEWS OF THE WEEK

Five of the world's biggest environmental problems...

With the facts from the article below, would you think anyone could deny the potential disaster to the planet that is expected? Yes, and I have experienced many of these ostrich types who blame it on greed by the scientific community to obtain research grants...

"Air pollution and climate change: Problem: Overloading of the atmosphere and of ocean waters with carbon. Atmospheric CO2 absorbs and re-emits infrared-wavelength radiation, leading to warmer. air, soils, and ocean surface waters - which is good: The planet would be frozen solid without this."   READ MORE...

Trump supporters believe these 10 utterly fake ‘facts’ about impeachment...

Pathetic Trump supporter

It is true that Donald Trump's supporters are under-educated and suffer from a number of psychotic problems but after the recent revelations in the Ukrainegate controversy, where T-rum actually admitted to pressuring Pres. Zelensky to dig up dirt against his 2020 opponent Joe Biden in return for over $400 million in aid to Ukraine. Here are some more of the fake "facts"...

• That Trump was concerned over corruption in Ukraine.
• That the $450+ million was given to Ukraine on time, not held by Trump.
• Ukraine meddled in the 2016 election.

There's more and you can read it all here.

Congressional deal could fund gun violence research for first time since 1990s...

It has been twenty years since the NRA was able to pressure Congress to pass the Dickey Amendment rule striking $2.6 million from the Centers for Disease (CDC) control budget, in effect eliminating their ability to collect and analyze gun violence statistics. Since then we have had an explosion in gun violence, much of which can be attributed to Wayne LaPierre and his NRA minions. 

Why would the NRA want to stop documenting gun violence if they didn't prove that guns are responsible for the increased bloodshed by innocent citizens? Here is a comment from Mark Rosenberg who was heading the CDC’s research on firearm violence in the 1990s when Congress abruptly cut off funding for the work...

“This is a deal of historic proportions. It ends the horrendous position we’re in, where we don’t even know what works.”

Here's another fact...

"While gun violence is one of the country’s leading causes of death, it receives little research funding. As many people die because of gun violence, for example, as of sepsis infection, yet funding for gun research is less than 1 percent of that for sepsis."   READ MORE...

Here's a concept from former President, Barack Obama: Women are better leaders than men...

I can hear all the bubbas out there, mostly Donald Trump supporters, who would disagree with this, if not only just because they a bubba, but also because to support T-rump, you must consider women simply a commodity for men's pleasure. Well, they aren't and here's Obama's reasoning...

"I'm absolutely confident that for two years if every nation on earth was run by women, you would see a significant improvement across the board on just about everything... living standards and outcomes."

I agree and would add, a definite improvement in the demeanor of the world. But I'm not sure just yet who that woman might be. It might even be a Republican and that is really blasphemous for me to say. If I had to take a shot at the current Democratic candidates, it would be Amy Klobuchar, primarily for her level headedness. In another comment, is the ex-President taking a shot at Congress?...

"If you look at the world and look at the problems it's usually old people, usually old men, not getting out of the way."   READ MORE...

There are 91 companies that paid no federal taxes in 2018...

They're supposed to be the finest but nearly 100 companies in the Fortune 500 the first year following passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed by Donald Trump, which was signed into law in December 2017. "The new tax law lowered the statutory corporate tax rate to 21%, but the companies in the report paid an average rate of 11.3%."
had an effective federal tax rate of 0% or less in 2018, according to a new report. This is a study covering

This resulted in federal government bringing in about $74 billion less in corporate taxes than if all the companies had paid the statutory rate. Amazon made this statement...

“Amazon pays all the taxes we are required to pay in the U.S. and every country where we operate, including paying $2.6 billion in corporate tax and reporting $3.4 billion in tax expense over the last three years.”

Here are some of the biggest companies no taxes: IBM; CenturyLink; DowDuPont; Eli Lilly; Goodyear Tire & Rubber; FedEx; Delta Airlines; General Motors; Starbucks; McKesson and a host of others.   READ MORE...

The Atlantic has "The Remedy for Mitch McConnell"...

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has said to the "No News" network...

“Everything I do during this, [the impeachment Senate trial] I’m coordinating with White House counsel. There will be no difference between the president’s position and our position as to how to handle this to the extent that we can.”

There's more of this crap...

“We have no choice but to take [the impeachment trial] up, but we will be working through this process, hopefully in a fairly short period of time, in total coordination with the White House counsel’s office and the people who are representing the president in the well of the Senate.”

Then we have the looney Lindsey Graham saying...

“This thing will come to the Senate, and it will die quickly, and I will do everything I can to make it die quickly,” he said. “I am trying to give a pretty clear signal I have made up my mind. I’m not trying to pretend to be a fair juror here.”

The Atlantic says...

The two senators appear to need a brief remedial course on their constitutional obligations. Article I, Section 3, Clause 6 of the Constitution declares that 'the Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments.' And when the Senate is sitting 'for that Purpose, [senators] shall be on Oath or Affirmation.'”

What the hell do Republicans, especially these two lowlife Senators, care about the Constitution, or any laws they are governed by? Nothing!   READ MORE...

Trump writes deranged 6-page letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi...

Trump's unhinged letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi is full of his usual lies that have proven false repeatedly. Trump says whistleblower made false report completely contrary to phone call with Zelensky...

Whistleblower's report "has been proven highly accurate. In fact, the rough transcript released by Trump himself showed that the whistleblower's three primary allegations about the call were correct or very close to correct."

Other false claims by the Oval Office lunatic...

• No evidence the whistleblower has disappeared
• That there was no quid-pro-quo confirmed by Ambassador Sondland
• Trump's comment to Zelensky about doing "us" a favor could only be interpreted by this narcissist as referring to himself
• Trump statement "More due process was afforded to those accused in the Salem Witch Trials," is, well, hilarious.   READ MORE...

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao as corrupt as hubby Moscow Mitch...

Keep it in the family is a term Elaine Chou has adhered to repeatedly since being appointed Transportation Secretary by Donald Trump. It seems that she has decided that Kentucky, Moscow Mitch's home territory as Senator, is where she wants to spend the Transportation Department's budget. The latest her part in delivering a "$67 million federal contract to her husband Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s home state of Kentucky."

"Kyle Herrig, president of the anti-corruption group Accountable.US, said the contract—the largest of its kind delivered to Kentucky during the three years President Donald Trump has been in office—is just the latest example of Chao’s behavior that warrants a serious look."

Herrig has more...

“The unending stream of stories that detail the depth of Secretary Elaine Chao’s improper use of taxpayer dollars to boost her husband Mitch McConnell’s political career is alarming. This type of political corruption is a threat to our democracy and destroys Americans’ faith in government.”

Moscow Mitch has tough competition coming up in 2020 against opponent Amy McGrath, and many are wondering " if Chao is funneling federal projects to Kentucky to help her husband. Kentucky Democrats deputy executive director Marisa McNee told Politico that "in northern Kentucky is a willingness to walk away from that Republican label that we haven’t seen in a long time.” We can only hope that plays out to a defeat of Moscow Mitch in 2020.

Fox News Napolitano buries Donald Trump...again...

Fox's Napolitano roasts Trump

In a recent Washington times editorial, legal analyst Andrew Napolitano, from the normally no-news Fox network chides Donald Trump, “no person is beneath the laws’ protections. No person is above the laws’ requirements. And the laws apply equally to all people.” Napolitano continues...

"Attorney General Bill Barr used these claims as justification to “brush aside” the findings of special counsel Robert Mueller, 'who found enough evidence to charge President Donald Trump with obstruction of justice after Mr. Trump repeatedly attempted to interfere with Mr. Mueller’s investigation by ordering subordinates to lie to FBI investigators or to falsify government documents that investigators sought.'”

One might assume here that AG Barr should also be impeached and thrown in jail for his obstruction of justice. Can't help quoting because Napolitano's comments are so damning...

“High crimes and misdemeanors is a basis for impeachment, the constitutional remedy for presidential behavior that subverts our democratic institutions. In Mr. Trump’s case, we have undisputed evidence that he abused his power by inviting a foreign government to interfere in the 2020 presidential election and then compounded this by directing subordinates to refrain from giving congressionally commanded evidence of his behavior.”

Looks like the sane people at Fox News, Trump's former bastion of support, also including Chris Wallace, are getting smart

Moscow Mitch's Senate legislative graveyard reveals latest "stack" of ignored House bills...

Moscow Mitch

Senate leader Mitch McConnell has vowed to stonewall anything that is proposed by the Democratic House. In another area, Moscow Mitch is pushing through conservative federal judges faster than they can be seated. This is blatant cronyism at its worst and just another partisan act he will have answer for in 2020. Here's the latest on the "stack"...

"The stack, a symbolic replication of legislation McConnell refuses to bring to a vote, was reportedly the brainchild of Senator Debbie Stabenow. According to her office, it includes more than 300 bills about voter registration, background checks for firearm sales, domestic violence, climate change, minimum wage increases and other issues."

Here's McConnell's comment...

"Back in September, McConnell promised to be a "grim reaper" to any and all progressive legislation. But, as multiple Senators pointed out Wednesday, more than 275 of these "dead" bills cleared the House with bipartisan support."

You did get that these bills the lowlife is sitting on passed the House with bipartisan support? If I were given the opportunity to dream up the retribution that is deserved by Moscow Mitch--and his wife as well for her corruption feeding McConnell's district monied projects--I would gladly take on the project while reacquainting myself with all the recent torture tools available. Mongrel Mitch has proven that he cares nothing for this country, only himself. 
READ MORE...

Nancy Pelosi won't commit to sending articles of impeachment to Senate...

Moscow Mitch is fuming because Speaker Pelosi is giving back the kind of strategy McConnell has continually used against Democrats: Stonewalling. She is holding on to the Articles of Impeachment which were passed on Wednesday, not passing them on to the Senate for a vote, apparently to force the Senate head to agree to a fair trial. You wonder if anything "fair" is possible where Republicans are in involved but you have to agree, it's definitely appropriate.

Moscow Mitch needs it shoved in his face with the kind of class Democrats practice compared to the crude and abusive way the Republicans have approached impeachment. Here's Pelosi's Thursday morning comment...

"I don't think they [the Founding Fathers] suspected that we could have a rogue president and a rogue leader in the Senate at the same time."

Some conservatives say they see no reason to hold up the Articles, but in the same breath "argue there is no benefit in delaying something they don't want to spend time on anyway." This illustrates the mentality of a GOP that are in complete denial of their Constitutional responsibility, backing Donald Trump no matter what, and focusing solely on maintaining power. And then the poor soul Lindsey Graham has the audacity to say this...

"We cannot have a system where the House impeaches the president, tells the Senate how to conduct the trial, holds the articles of impeachment over the president's head at a time of their choosing to unleash them."

 Apparently, the South Carolina Senator just forgot about the Republican buffoons of the House impeachment inquiry, guys like Devin Nunes, Jim Jordan and Matt Gaetz. Maybe Graham is getting too old to serve in Congress.

IS HILLARY CLINTON PROGRESSIVE ENOUGH FOR 2016?

The Hill blog has uncovered several emails that find considerable unrest among Progressives over Hillary Clinton's 2016 bid. These are influential voices that represent left-leaning liberals that feel they are not being heard. Activists, strategists and journalists, The Hill says the group includes prominent Democrats, Sierra Club officials, journalists who work for The Huffington Post and The Nation magazine, senior union representatives, leaders at the Progressive Change Campaign Committee and the president of NARAL. The frustration says she is, "too much of a hawk, too cozy with Wall Street, hasn’t spoken out enough on climate change, and will be subject to personal questions and criticisms, members of the group stated in the emails." The piece says she has ducked issues like the Keystone Pipeline and I would add to that gun control. When you look at Elizabeth Warren on all these issues, the Progressives find agreement.

Biden depends on unity to beat Trump's "divider in chief"

Joe Biden-Unity in 2020

It's not enough that Democrats are angry with Donald Trump's election and the direction he has taken the country in. There also has to be an influx of Republicans who have made a left turn and feel the same way. In a former blog I quoted a reliable source that said 20% of Trump's 2016 voters have soured on him. I closed the post saying, 'Hold that thought.' Joe Biden avoids the anger for Trump approach with an appeal for unity in America. Will it win in 2020?

Joe Biden doesn't believe anger will win in 2020, even when T-rump used " it to win over the Republican base in 2016, saying he gladly carries the 'mantle of anger.'" He's been mad ever since and just look at what shape he has put the country in. A good economy does not excuse the Oval Office lunatic's white nationalism, bigotry, blatant racism and women's abuse, to name only a few. I did a post yesterday that explains it: "Less than half of Trump supporters like him."

Rebecca Traister, author of the book "Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women's Anger," retorted, "Biden is 'deeply wrong' that 'Anger at injustice has catalyzed transformative change; 'unity' has not.'" Another voice...this a writer from Rolling Stone, Jamil Smith added, "Women, people of color, and other Democratic constituencies aren't angry like Trump and his followers. They've been pissed off in a whole different way. "She doesn't explain how.

Biden also mentions reaching across the aisle as an approach to unifying Congress, something that many Democrats have criticized. With people like Senate head, Mitch McConnell, sitting on the other side of the aisle, I can understand the reluctance of the Dems. And then there's Barack Obama, to back or not to back. To begin with, the former president hasn't offered and second is whether this would help or hurt Biden.

Lee Drutman of Vox speaks of the Joe Biden “epiphany” theory "that Republicans will have an epiphany about the power of bipartisanship once Trump is gone and start working with Democrats again." Drutman says no way, and I wholeheartedly agree, at least as long as the ogre of the Senate is still around. Drutman argues...

"The problem with Biden’s theory is that Republicans’ hostility to Democrats did not begin with Donald Trump (see, the Obama administration). 

Today, as in 2012, the partisan hostility is highly transferable. It is based neither in opposition to one president nor loyalty to another. It is based in the underlying zero-sum electoral logic that defines the American two-party system and the winner-take-all elections that make the two-party system possible."

Not said, but certainly not forgotten, is racist Mitch McConnell's hatred of President Barack Obama, with his vow that he would make Obama a one-term president if it was the last thing he ever did. He didn't, which shows what a lowlife this jerk is, and the fact that he may not be as powerful as he thinks he is, perhaps just a fat blowhard. Biden talks about Trump's divisiveness while we regularly see the maniac's favorability improve, still holding on to his loyalists.

In one case in Pennsylvania, Joe Biden jumps back and forth between his unity issue and the put-down of Donald Trump. This state is important to Biden in 2020, where Trump barely won in 2016; part of the "blue wall" of Democratic industrial states. The former V.P. is headquartered in Philadelphia and in rallies continued to call Trump the 'divider in chief.' Biden spent time on the issues, including climate change and health care, making comparisons with Obama.

If there is anything this country needs it is unity, something we haven't seen for years, back through many presidents. We need it on the local level, between states, and most of all in Washington. The U.S. Congress is in a complete state of diversity, inconsistency, division, discord, strife, disarray, hostility, almost all-out warfare. There aren't enough antonyms of unity to show the disunion of that body of outright incompetent morons. Maybe Joe has the right idea.
 

Will the US Senate fix the Washington mess?

I did a post on Wednesday of last week, “How to fix a broken U.S. Government,” which emphasized the importance of negotiating, a lost art from the days of Sam Rayburn and Lyndon Johnson.  During those periods, an old hand at the job, and Johnson and Rayburn were not only well-entrenched but also well respected, could talk to his or her fellow legislators and somehow come to a reconciliation that was favorable for both side.  This mastery of politics has been gone for, let me see, at least as far back to when George W. Bush became president.

Mitch McConnell

So far the GOP hasn’t recovered from an election they thought they would win, and Sen. McConnell has never retreated from his statement to make Obama a one-term President, which obviously failed.  Joe Palermo said following the 2012 election, “McConnell now promises the next best thing: Continue to abuse the filibuster as no Senate minority in American history has and gum up the works while demanding total capitulation on Obama's part before any bill can escape the clutches of his icy, deadening hand.”  In Washington things never seem to change.



So with McConnell as the Senate Minority Leader, how is it that Ira Shapiro thinks this dysfunctional body can fix Washington?  He says the consensus is already formed and that politics under president Obama’s second term will continue to be polarized.  But he wants a “rejuvenated” Senate to be the nation’s mediator.  Somehow I can’t see Harry Reid, Senate Majority Leader and Mitch McConnell coming together on any major issues, except maybe gun control.  Reid has refused to back Obama on the assault weapons ban.

Democrats do have control of the Senate and won 25 out of 33 elections in 2012, which Shapiro reads as a reaction to GOP extremism and obstructionism.  The question is whether this trend can continue with momentum leading through the 2014 elections where the incumbent President’s party traditionally loses seats in Congress.  Palermo’s article was over three months ago but now Shapiro says the country is in need of responsible adult leadership, something sorely lacking in both houses of Congress. 

Harry Reid

Shapiro the optimist thinks, “The Senate is the only realistic partner to the president in seeking constructive solutions to the nation's challenges on guns, climate change and immigration.”  I hope he is right because, aside from the economy and jobs, these are the three most important issues facing the United States.  And in continued optimism he believes the majority of the Senate is serious about facing the challenges of the country.  On the other hand we are just four days away from the $1.2 trillion in budget cuts that many say will paralyze the U.S.

Lyndon Johnson, along with Mike Mansfield, Everett Dirksen and Howard Baker are cited in Shapiro’s article illustrating a quality of leadership lost on today’s Senate.  Although Harry Reid and Mitch McConnell didn’t create the current political barricades in the Senate, it has certainly flourished under their watch.  Will they eventually retire having failed to accomplish the demands facing Congress today, or will they emerge finally as leaders who figure out that it is necessary to negotiate, not constantly call checkmate?  The ball is clearly in their court.

Corporate stampede to dump ALEC – Do your part today

Unfortunately it took the death of Trayvon Martin in Florida at the hands of George Zimmerman to convince at least some of the corporate world just how despicable the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is.  When the National Rifle Assn. (NRA) brought the “stand your ground” law to the them, it was originally passed in 2005 in Florida, later being passed by 20-something other states.  The law’s efficacy is being questioned nationwide.

This is all the result of the dedicated reporting of the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) on ALEC’s activities in an expose that finally put this reprehensible organization in the spotlight, drawing attention to its lobbying efforts on the state level that favor big business at the expense of the consumer.  The very consumer that supports these large corporations that also support ALEC.  Well the tide has turned and they are dropping like flies.

It was announced late last Thursday that Coca Cola and Pepsico had dumped ALEC, then on Friday Kraft and Intuit decided to bail.  No doubt more are on the way and this list will need to be updated regularly today.  But there were holdouts, some you deal with every day, and you should know who they are (below), and I will show you later how you can add your voice to the referendum.

Wal-Mart refused to withdraw its support of ALEC claiming, "Our membership in any organization does not affirm our agreement with each policy created by the broader group."  Not good enough and you should let the retailer know by your future shopping habits.

According to Reuters, due to “political risk,” Pfizer, Reynolds American, Altria/Philip Morris and non-board ALEC member Procter & Gamble refuse to leave ALEC.  Customers of these companies should decide whether they want to leave them.

Exxon Mobil and British alcohol firm Diageo (makers of Smirnoff products and Johnnie Walker whisky) declined to comment.



Pfizer drugs



Pfizer, the world largest drug manufacturer, said, "We don't agree with every ALEC position, but we participate in ALEC's healthcare forums because state legislators that are the members in ALEC, they make decisions that impact our business and the country's business every day."  Not added is the fact that state lawmakers pass the laws dictated by ALEC, unfavorable to drug users.

Reynolds (Camel cigarettes) said ALEC provides "a valuable forum for sharing of ideas and fostering better understanding of a broad range of both legislative and business issues."  In other words, we let them do our dirty work.

Others who weren’t talking when this was posted are Bayer, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, AT&T, State Farm, plus others.

Now this may all change during the day, adding more dropouts, and you can check the progress of this issue by going to CMD’s site, ALEC Exposed.  And in case you aren’t mad enough yet to participate, here are a few priority items on ALEC’s agenda:

• Suppress voting by students, the poor and ethnic minorities through restrictive Voter ID laws.

• Push climate change denial and restrict protections for our environment.

• Undermine public schools by using tax dollars to subsidize for-profit schools.

• Limit consumers' rights and the basic right of workers to organize.

• And privatize and ration Medicare and Social Security, as well as other government services.

Get the scoop on ALEC below from a U.S. Representative:

So now that you are mad enough, here are some sites to visit where you can learn more about the antics of ALEC.  First check out the ALEC Corporations that are involved in this conspiracy and you will see a wide array of the U.S. corporate world.  It’s alphabetized for easy reference.  Next, find your state lawmakers that do just what ALEC mandates and tell them to stop this practice and start representing the people or you will vote them out of office.

Now that you are fully armed with information, you are ready to take action on your own.  Go to CMD’s Dump ALEC site and you can send your own letter to corporate America that says you are sick and tired of these underhanded methods to undermine your rights as a consumer and a customer.  You’ll feel better and it will help CMD in its fight to oust ALEC.  Do it today!

GOP Congress masterful at blocking anything Obama

The GOP stonewall

The Republican merry band of stonewalling bunglers started out the new year with their same tactics of saying no to anything President Obama presents.  On January 18, the GOP Congress voted to block Obama’s request for $1.2 trillion in additional borrowing authority, indicating the same Republican reaction to “anything Barack Obama” would continue throughout 2012.  Oh, that’s right, it’s an election year. 

Tea Party flake, Jeff Flake, Arizona Republican representative, said, “Until we have a plan to deal with our fiscal crisis, we should not raise the debt ceiling any further.”  In other words, push the problem to as close to the November election as possible, and, by the way, I’m running for Senator.  He also voted against the temporary payroll tax extension back in December 2011, the bill to extend payroll tax deductions and unemployment compensation.

Following is a list of bills, appointments, etc. that this gang of obstructionists has stalled or stopped in their tracks:

• GOP blocks vote on Richard Cordray to head consumer bureau (later appointed)
• Republicans Block Congressional Health Care Disclosure
• GOP leadership blocks congressional insider-trading ban
• Senate GOP blocks Democrat disaster aid 
• GOP attempts to block EPA’s climate change rules
• Republicans block Tax on Companies that ship jobs overseas
• GOP blocks Political Ad disclosure bill
• Republicans block The Small Business Jobs Act (later passed)
• GOP blocks The DREAM Act

• Republicans block repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (later passed)

And there are more that you can see here.

All of which brings us to President Obama’s proposed budget that he says is a "blueprint for how we can rebuild an economy where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded." 

At the same time there is the end of February deadline to pass an extension for the payroll tax cut and unemployment compensation which is sure to heat up the rhetoric since Obama wants to cover the cost with a “surtax on income over $1 million and eliminating some corporate tax subsidies, like those going to oil and gas companies.”  Republicans want to cover it partially by “extending the current pay freeze on federal workers and requiring wealthier seniors to pay higher Medicare premiums,” according to CNN.

If we run into the same GOP barricade that we did in December, the result is that 160 million American families would pay an additional $1,000 in taxes per year.  The package will cost an estimated $160 billion and that is where the President wants millionaires to step up to the plate and pay their fair share.  New chief of staff Jack Lew would not predict passage but recounted the “ugly fight” this past December over the payroll tax, something we need to avoid this go around.

This past Saturday in his weekly presidential address, Obama urged Congress to "stop this middle-class tax hike from happening, period."  He also said "No drama. No delay.  And no ideological side issues that have nothing to do with this tax cut. Now is not the time for self-inflicted wounds to our recovery. Now is the time for common-sense action. And this tax cut is common sense."  Naturally Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, did his number to make the Dems the bad guys.

GOP House Speaker John Boehner wants to vote this week on a Republican plan to extend “…the payroll tax cut -- but not unemployment benefits or a delay of cuts in fees to doctors who treat Medicare patients,” as reported in USA Today.  The White House is wary and press secretary Jay Carney says there is still time to negotiate a settlement.  Not sure there are many Americans that would agree with Carney.

People throughout this country have become weary over the shenanigans of the GOP Congress, including some Democrats, and their lowest approval rating ever supports this.  It’s like they just don’t get it, and until this self-serving clan of taxpayer moochers decides that they do work for us, there will be no change.

We all have a chance to do something about this in November and it will be interesting to see just how concerned voters really are.  Or will it be business as usual?

Should We Cancel Thanksgiving This Year? NO but...

 

Starting with the corruptive enigma that almost brought down this country, Donald Trump has decided to run for President again.

I, and millions more can't be thankful for that.

I am not thankful for the amount of animal abuse and cruelty that is going on in the U,S, and in the world. In this country an estimated 115 million animals in science labs are killed every year for chemical, drug, food, and cosmetics research. Every 60 seconds, one animal suffers abuse; Every year, more than 10 million animals die from abuse in the US alone; There are over 10,000 puppy mills in the United States.

Millions are definitely not thankful for this. And I do not see how anyone could abuse an innocent animal; it takes a sick human being to do something like this.

Next, the idiot Elon Musk, a leader in electric vehicles, recently bought Twitter and is slowly but surely dismantling one of the best social medias the world has known.

Again, myself and millions can't be thankful for that.

A number of viruses, infections, new variants and most recently a deadly fungus threaten the U.S. population. How did it start and then spread so fast?

Once more, millions recognize that beginning with the pandemic and continuing with the current onslaught of calamities must, to some degree, be blamed on anti-vaxxers that we certainly can't be thankful for.

A recent blue tsunami in the November election is something to be thankful for, but the GOP although barely winning the House, does open the door to idiocies like the Hunter Biden investigation being planned by Jim Jordan.

Certainly nothing to be thankful for on either side of the aisle.

And then there are Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert, the shallow and brainless Bobbsey twins that barely tip the meter of double-digit IQs.

If you really searched high and low, there is absolutely no way to be thankful for these two idiots. 

Look at gun violence. With two recent incidents of mass shootings at the Univ. of Virginia and another at LGBTQ Club, Club Q, eight are dead along with multiple injuries. There have been 39,005 gun violence deaths so far this year and 34,706 injuries from gun violence.

No one should be thankful for the National Rifle Assn. and its head, Wayne LaPierre, as well as the minions that serve him. Also, those gun nuts out there who have blocked responsible gun legislation.

Perhaps the most pressing problem the world has ever had, climate change is drying up lakes that are critical for reservoirs in the U.S. and causing weather calamities that are changing lives around the world. Although the Republicans take the lead in the denial of this issue. the Democrats have also dragged their feet. WHO estimates that half of the world’s population will be living in water-stressed areas by 2025.

How could anyone possibly be thankful for this.

The U. S. has a Supreme Court that has moved so far to the right there are calls for impeachment for at least two judges, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito. In the court's recent decision to in effect repeal the abortion act, Roe v. Wade, millions of women have been compromised, and they are mad as hell. They showed their anger in the recent election by turning back the expected red tide.

Yes, there are millions who are not thankful that the right to control their own bodies has been taken away from them.

Democracy is slowly dying, made possible by the autocratic government of Donald Trump's administration in the White House, supported vigorously by the Republican Party. 

Who could want their rights taken away from them and end up living like basketball star Brittney Griner has been forced to do? But this is the way they do it in a fascist government.

And the last entry leads to the question of whether Americans could live without their right to vote. If Republicans have their way vote will be restricted for some constituents; as an example, the black vote.

I am not thankful for the many laws the GOP has managed to pass and the new drawing of voting districts just to favor the right.

There are more I know but this is enough for now. 

Back to my original question, NO we shouldn't cancel Thanksgiving. What we must do is be thankful that we still have the right to fight tyranny and make it a 2023 resolution to try and mend the fences that have been erected by both the Republicans and Democrats, and return to the use of the two words negotiate and compromise. Without them, we are a lost nation. 

 

Newt Gingrich: Just another has-been running off at the mouth

Newt Gingrich with his skeletons

Here is a recent quote from Newt Gingrich, a politician that should have been relegated to just cutting the yard a long time ago, re. Barack Obama's legacy...

"His legacy is like one of those dolls that, as the air comes out of it, shrinks and shrinks and shrinks. He's in this desperate frenzy."

Politico describes Gingrich's personal life as, "...a hot mess." As an example, "In April 1980, Newt filed for divorce while his wife, Jackie, was in the hospital fighting uterine cancer. "As far as politics goes, Politico says he is, "...The man who poisoned Washington." Further...

"More than anyone else in the modern history of Congress, it’s Gingrich who observers credit for bringing the hyperpartisan, obstructionist approach to Washington that we associate with the capital to this day."

And all this time we blamed Karl Rove. But enough about Newt Gingrich who should put out to pasture like Arizona Senator, John McCain, both of which outlived their usefulness--if it was ever there to begin with--years ago. But Gingrich has the nerve to question President Obama's legacy when his own will read like an empty book. Apparently, the outdated Gingrich forgot....

• President Obama rescued an economy trashed by former President Geo. W. Bush
• He gave health insurance to millions who did not have it
• Obama has led the global push for climate change to save the environment
• Struck the landmark nuclear deal with Iran, slowing down the nuclear race
• President Obama passed the legalization of same-sex marriage

There's more but you get the idea...this is a man with a legacy. And what I don't really understand is why the media continues to give voice to completely outmoded politicians like Gingrich and McCain. But I guess we'd rather see another blast about the two of them than anything else from T-rump.

Senate lowlife at it again

McConnell-Pelosi

There will come a day when Senate head Mitch McConnell will do something that no one, Democrats or Republicans, can stomach. The Senate floor will open in a chasm that will devour this contemptible despot and the country will be rid of the worst politician it has ever experienced. McConnell is at it again, fully blocking everything House Speaker Nancy Pelosi brings to the floor. A health care package, proposals on gun safety, climate change and voting reforms.

“I’m not sure that anything we do is going to reach the floor of the Senate,” said House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth (D-Ky.). “That’s the reality.”

McConnell is up for reelection in 2020--he barely made it last time--and I hope the people of Kentucky have the guts to force him out. This man has single-handedly wreaked more havoc in the Senate than any other politician has in years. As a confirmed racist, McConnell hated Barack Obama and blocked all of the programs he proposed. Maybe we won't have to wait for 2020, perhaps that Senate floor chasm is in the making as we speak.

Francis...The People's Pope

For once we have a Pope that has become the  People's Pope of the world. For the first time all faiths look upon this man as a great religious leader because he speaks not just for the Catholics but all the human race, and animals as well, everywhere. I am not a Catholic, not even a Christian, but an Agnostic that literally hangs on every word Pope Francis says. I don't always agree with him, but I know what he is saying is sincere and from the heart. He will go down in history as a great leader but that is for later.

An MSNBC article lists Pope Francis as a different kind of Pope because of a broadened horizon where he stood up for equal pay for women, forgiveness for women who have received abortions, and couples that have been divorced or remarried. He's even been on the back of world leaders to do something about climate change before it is too late. While he he hasn't accepted same-sex marriage, one point I disagree with him on, he has at least tried to understand the problems of the LGBT community by working and talking with them. The Pope attended a luncheon for the homeless in New York, which is what we call getting down in the trenches.

He has tried to give those imprisoned hope and he has met with abuse victims of the Catholic Church. In other words, this man has managed to spread himself thin over the problems of the world but maintaining the importance of every issue. I am not a religious person but Pope Francis seems to bring out the best in me every time I hear him speak or read about his achievements.

Bernie Sanders Talks Obscene Wealth

In Iowa on Saturday Bernie Sanders talked about the obscene wealth in America. He was referring to billionaires like the KOCH Bros. that just keep taking but never really giving in return. Yes, I know about the KOCH family foundations but what they offer there is far smaller than what they suck out of this nation. And part of their philanthropy is no doubt to benefit their many conservative causes which lobby against issues like universal health care and climate change. KOCH industries is the top water polluter in the U.S. with three lobbying organizations that have a key influence on U.S. public policy, which accounts for a bought and paid for Republican Congress and some Democrats.

Here are the wealthiest in the U.S., but with distinct differences in character. There is Bill Gates, #1 at $79.4 billion followed by Warren Buffett #2 at $68.9 billion, then Oracle founder and former CEO, Larry Ellison, $54.5 billion. These three are followed by the dregs of billionaires, Charles and David Koch worth $41.6 billion each. And then comes the difference. Don't know much about Ellison but do know that Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have both pledged half of their fortunes to charity. And they have done it without attempting to take over the political reins of the United States and run it as a part of KOCH Industries. And that is what Bernie Sanders was talking about to large crowds this last Saturday in Iowa.

JOHN MCCAIN's TIME HAS PASSED

John McCain

He served the state of Arizona in the U.S. Senate well after being elected based on his Vietnam incarceration. Yes, there was a sympathy vote there which has arisen in many political articles over the years. Regardless, John McCain did good things for Arizona and the country. I had a great deal of respect for him as a GOP moderate and maverick who stood up for what was right, regardless of the party connection. But this is all history now. First there was his run for President against Barack Obama that was noteworthy...until he named Sarah Palin as his Vice President. Sheer stupidity based on choosing someone like Palin and dumber because it made the Republican Party look like a bunch of idiots. And then there were all the flip-flops first on immigration, on climate change, then on Bowe Bergdahl's prisoner exchange. All done for the sake of getting reelected. It's time to move on from John and hopefully in his next reelection we can send Jeff Flake packing.