Steve Thomas

How come the people who win elections never complain about voter fraud? Steve Thomas

Thank you David and Larry. Steve Thomas

The Oath Keepers are using the 'we were just kidding' white privilege defense by Amanda Marcotte, Salon October 24, 2022. https://www.rawstory.com/oath-keepers-trial-2658495238/ “When faced with text messages showing the plan was to force Congress to invalidate President Joe Biden's electoral win, defense attorneys argue it was just "macho" talk, reports Brandi Buchman of Daily Kos, who has been watching the trial daily.” “They said the thing and did the thing, so it seems like the prosecution would have an open-and-shut case, right? But there's a good reason the defense thinks an "it was just talk" argument will work. Conservative white people generally get a generous benefit of the doubt when it comes to determining whether they really mean the terrible things they say. Like Donald Trump dismissing it as "locker room talk" when he was caught bragging about sexual assault, the presumption of innocence for conservative white people is so robust it's often extended even in the face of overwhelming evidence.” “ To get an idea of how deeply ingrained this white conservative presumption of innocence is, check out a recent, lengthy article for Esquire about the plot to kidnap and murder Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. In it, journalist Chris Heath recasts the accused conspirators as a bunch of goobers who didn't mean any real harm. While repeatedly admitting that the FBI had a large number of text messages and testimony to establish that these men were plotting a serious crime, Heath keeps circling around to the idea that, in the end, they were just fooling.” This is interesting. I saw an interview with some of the spectators at the trial of the Michigan Governor kidnap plotters. The spectators framed the issue as a First Amendment issue. To paraphrase, the spectators said that, “This is America, and in America, you can say whatever you want. They didn’t actually do anything. They just talked about it. The fact that they were thwarted is irrelevant.” To plot a crime is not a crime. Interesting. Steve Thomas

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'He's not man enough': Nancy Pelosi taunts Trump over subpoena appearance by Tom Boggioni October 23, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/trump-house-subpoena/ “Asked about the chances that Donald Trump will appear before the committee after it issued a subpoena on Friday, she laughed at the prospect. "I don't think he is man enough to show up," she replied. "I don't think that his lawyers will want him to show up, because he has to testify under oath. But I don't think he is man enough. We will see if he is man enough to show up and the public can make their judgment."” Ooooooohhh, and coming from a woman no less. If his orange hair catches on fire, will we ever know? Steve Thomas

One of the more bizarre things I've read recently: Mutiny in Putin's ranks? Conscripts drafted into Ukraine war 'threaten to topple Russian regime over spluttering invasion' https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11343917/Conscripts-drafted-Ukraine-war-threaten-topple-Russian-regime-failing-invasion.html "He ridiculed an army-issued foreign guitar when they are not supplied with adequate weapons. 'They give us an [imported] guitar,' he said to cheers from fellow conscripts. 'Are we going to shoot a guitar on the battlefield?'" "He mocked a policy in his region - the Tuva republic in Siberia - to gift a ram to each family of those mobilised. 'You give our families, children, a manky ram [sheep], and some groceries,' he said, adding disparagingly: 'What is this?'" A sheep and a guitar? Steve Thomas

Sandy Hook families seek steep punitive damages after $1 billion Alex Jones verdict 2022/10/22 https://nordot.app/956363038872272896?c=592622757532812385 “The Connecticut jury found Jones and Infowars parent company Free Speech Systems LLC should also pay punitive damages, which are set to be determined by a judge after several days of hearings next month. In their filing Friday, the families offered various methods of calculating punitive damages in similar cases. They said that by one metric, they could be entitled to $2.75 trillion based on the number of article impressions Infowars' false stories garnered.” Mama Mia. That's a big a meatball. Steve Thomas

Subpoena from January 6th Committee to Donald Trump: https://www.cnn.com/2022/10/21/politics/read-january-6-committee-subpoena-trump/index.html Steve Thomas

Iran schoolgirl dies after being beaten by security forces, teachers' union says by Agence France-Presse https://www.rawstory.com/iran-schoolgirl-dies-after-being-beaten-by-security-forces-teachers-union-says/ “A coalition of human rights groups, including Amnesty International, said on Monday that the security forces’ crackdown on the Amini protests has killed at least 23 identified children.” It’s pretty bad when you have to start killing off your own children. Steve Thomas

Please don't feed the you know what. Steve Thomas

Arizona [ ]Candidate Arrested For Allegedly Masturbating In Truck Near Preschool https://www.12news.com/article/news/crime/gop-candidate-maricopa-college-board-arrested-charge-of-public-sexual-indecency-randy-kaufman/75-add261c3-7948-4503-ab42-7351c5c283cd PHOENIX — “Randy Kaufman, a [ ] candidate for the Maricopa County Community College Governing Board, suspended his campaign Tuesday after media reports of his arrest Oct. 4 on a charge of public sexual indecency. Kaufman was seen masturbating in his pickup truck in the parking lot of the community college district's Rio Salado Lifelong Learning Center in Surprise, according to a police report by the Maricopa County Community College Police. 12News has learned that Kaufman could face a possible felony charge because of his proximity to a childcare center. In a statement to 12News, Kaufman said Tuesday he was suspending his campaign for the governing board due to a "personal legal matter." "I am sincerely grateful for the supporters and friends I have gathered throughout the campaign," Kaufman said. "I will never stop fighting to protect the United States Constitution and the values that make America the greatest country in the world."” Yup. Gotta protect them thar values. Steve Thomas

Editorial: Not to be outdone by his fellow culture warriors, Ashcroft takes on librarians St. Louis Post Dispatch https://nordot.app/955401789613932544?c=592622757532812385 “Given the ever-more extreme race to the right by Missouri’s Republican leaders lately, it was perhaps only a matter of time before one of them suggested the government should start dictating what books public libraries can and cannot carry. That’s the essence of a proposed new rule by Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft. The stated purpose, of course, is to protect vulnerable children from that most threatening of societal scourges: librarians. “ “Ashcroft doesn’t offer a single example of inappropriate material to justify forcing librarians around Missouri to file their book-selection policies with the Politburo, er, state. But his statement comes close to acknowledging what culture war nonsense it all is by declaring that he wants children “to be ‘children’ a little longer than a pervasive culture may often dictate.” Forget getting shot at school like Parkland or Uvalde. The greatest threat to children in today’s society is books. Steve Thomas

Donald Trump and the wider Republican Party seem to be promoting entertainers for public office. Dr. Oz was a TV doctor. No political experience. Herschel Walker - a football player. No political experience Kari Lake - a TV news anchor. No political experience. J.D. Vance - author. No political experience. What happens if these people get elected and actually have to govern? Are we going to have a national variety show? Straw Hats? Barbershop Quartets? Steve Thomas

Larry, On more than one occasion, I have been struck by the fact that LHO and Marina latched on to this particular profession when they got back from Russia. The Gregorys, George DeMoherenschildt, George Bouhe... I think this is very telling, but I don't know why. Steve Thomas

Marjorie Taylor Greene serves notice to Kevin McCarthy that he needs to hand her 'a lot of power' by Tom Boggioni 08/17/22 https://www.rawstory.com/marjorie-taylor-greene-kevin-mccarthy-2658460886/ "[Marjorie] Taylor Greene told [Robert] Draper (of the New York Times) in what he called, "a flat, unemotional voice," that, “I think that to be the best speaker of the House and to please the base, he’s going to give me a lot of power and a lot of leeway.” She then added, "And if he doesn’t, they’re going to be very unhappy about it. I think that’s the best way to read that. And that’s not in any way a threat at all. I just think that’s reality.”" Oh goody. We get to have Marjorie Taylor Greene running our lives. If the Republicans do get control of the House, you can expect a battle royale over who's running things. Steve Thomas

Lawrence Tribe said that Donald Trump didn't have a very good day yesterday. Trump had a double header, and lost 18-0. The J6 Committee voted 9-0 to subpoena him and the Supreme Court voted 9-0 against him in the Mar-A-Lago documents case. Not a good day. Steve Thomas

Experts paint grim portrait of a second Trump presidency: 'Authoritarian autocrat on steroids' By Travis Gettys October 10, 2022 https://www.rawstory.com/second-trump-presidency/ “ “You’d be looking at states — Democratic states — which would be taking over Republican arguments about states’ rights and applying them in a different way to try to limit the reach of the federal government,” said Timothy Snyder, a historian at Yale University. “And then you’d also be seeing something which I think has already started to happen as a result of the overturning of Roe v. Wade: You’re going to see people moving. It might be a peaceful process at first. But I think you’re going to see populations sorting themselves out according to where people feel safe and at home, which will mean red states becoming more red and blue states becoming more blue. And that makes some kind of secession or breakup scenario in the medium term more likely.” “ I said a while back that what the Supreme Court did with abortion rights is going to drive this country into a civil war. Steve Thomas

Business partner of fake heiress who met Trump at Mar-a-Lago is SHOT in 'targeted attack': Ukrainian, 44, was 'assassinated' outside upscale hotel in Quebec after three people opened fire and sped off in black SUV Valeriy Tarasenko, 44, was shot outside of a hotel in Estérel, Quebec, on Friday He was left with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries and the attack is said to have been targeted Three people opened fire against three others in the parking lot, before leaving in a black SUV Tarasenko had ties to Inna Yashchyshyn, who reportedly posed as a fake heiress to the Rothschild fortune to infiltrate Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home By Alyssa Guzman and Alex Oliveira For Dailymail.Com, 8 October 2022 https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11294321/Ukrainian-man-shot-dead-outside-Qu-bec-hotel-ties-heiress-infiltrated-Mar-Lago.html “A Ukrainian man, who had ties to a fake 'heiress' who infiltrated Mar-A-Lago, was shot outside a Québec hotel. Valeriy Tarasenko, 44, was shot outside of the upscale Estérel Resort hotel, in Estérel, Quebec, around 1pm on Friday. He was not a guest of the hotel, which is near the lake and offers various glamorous guest packages starting as low as $120 US dollars. Tarasenko, a businessman, was romantically involved with Inna Yashchyshyn, 33, who reportedly posed as a fake heiress to the Rothschild fortune to infiltrate Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home.” hmmmmmmmm... tying up loose ends are we? Steve Thomas

"We're supposed to believe all the stories that Herschel Walker's kids are saying about Herschel Walker? They never even met Herschel Walker!" https://twitter.com/TheDailyShow/status/1578141093664653312 Steve Thomas

The Ukrainian postal service announced that it would issue stamps commemorating the blast, saying in a statement that the images would draw on classic film posters to highlight the bridge’s “sacred significance” to Moscow. Steve Thomas

Here Is The House GOP’s Hit List If Republicans Retake Congress "If Republicans win back control of Congress in November, buckle up for many, many investigations." By Jonathan Nicholson Oct 4, 2022 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/gop-probe-hearing-targets-congress_n_633c8c52e4b02816452e9e87 The “Biden campaign” “Big Tech” “Bad actors” at the FBI “Legacy media” Merrick Garland Anthony Fauci Companies that complied with information requests from the Jan. 6 committee The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Hunter Biden The origin of the coronavirus COVID school closures Treatment of school closure protesters Afghanistan exit Jan. 6 committee spending Weapon sales to Ukraine Border security Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas Education Secretary Miguel Cardona “Politicization” of the DOJ Inflation Energy "While this list is extensive, it may be too conservative. In the current Congress that began last year, House Republicans have filed 56 “resolutions of inquiry,” formal congressional resolutions asking specific parts of the administration to hand over documents and communications on matters of interest, potentially for later investigations." Unaccompanied alien children Operations of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Enforcement and removal operations; DHS’s Disinformation Governance Board; Online censorship of political speech; The Oct. 4, 2021, memorandum issued by the attorney general entitled “Partnership Among Federal, State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial Law Enforcement to Address Threats Against School Administrators, Board Members, Teachers, and Staff”; Immigration enforcement and border security; The Biden family’s international business schemes and related information; The COVID-19 vaccine; Recovery rebates under section 6428B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; The 2023-2028 five-year program for offshore oil and gas leasing; Compliance with the obligations of the Mineral Leasing Act; Impact of illegal immigration on Federal or tribal lands; Mineral withdrawal within the Superior National Forest; Actions of the Department of the Interior’s Departmental Ethics Office; Establishment of the Emergency Intake Site in Erie, Pennsylvania, at the Pennsylvania International Academy, to house the influx of unaccompanied migrant children; The calculation of certain expenditure limitations applicable to Federal funding of the Medicaid program in Puerto Rico; Plans to draw down and sell products from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and plans to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve; Communications and directives with the Federal Trade Commission; The reinterpretation of sections 36B(c)(2)(c)(i)(II) and 5000A(e)(1)(B) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, commonly known as the “fix to the family glitch”; COVID-19 funding; Misinformation and the preservation of free speech; Plans to exploit the energy crisis to pursue a radical climate agenda; Oversight of the Wuhan Institute of Virology laboratory by the director of the National Institutes of Health; Actions taken by the Secretary of Health and Human Services related to the COVID-19 pandemic response; Impact of the OECD Pillar One agreement on the United States Treasury; Activities of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration relating to broadband service; Plans to declare a “climate emergency” in order to invoke emergency authorities to impose regulations on industrial activity, or the supply and delivery of energy or electric power, in the United States; Communication between the executive branch and the American Federation of Teachers regarding reopening schools and supporting safe, in-person learning; The executive branch’s recommendations for a long-term, consensus approach to reduce the supply and availability of illicitly manufactured fentanyl-related substances in the United States; Communications by staff of the White House regarding the implications of revoking the public health orders commonly referred to as “title 42”; The Community Navigator Pilot Program; Actions by the Small Business Administration to address fraud related to certain COVID-19 programs of the Administration; The assistance the Small Business Administration provides based on certain economic conditions; Ending the acceptance of applications and requests for COVID-19 economic injury disaster loans and advances; The designation of the Small Business Administration as a voter registration agency; The role of the Small Business Administration in determining taxes for small businesses concerns; The decision to destroy approximately 30,000,000 paper information returns around the time of March 2021, and any other memorandum related to the decision to destroy those information returns; The negotiation of prices for prescription drugs under the Medicare prescription drug program; The recall of infant formula manufactured by Abbott Laboratories and potential impacts on the infant formula supply chain; Unemployment insurance fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic; The Department of Education’s cost estimates for the secretary’s waivers related to public service loan forgiveness and income-driven repayment; The legal authority to forgive federal student loan debt; The role of the Treasury Department in the Paycheck Protection Program of the Small Business Administration; The raid on the former president; Plans to protect baseload bulk power system generation and transmission to maintain bulk power system reliability; Ivermectin; Ray Epps; Resolution Copper Mine; Wait times for veterans to receive primary care, mental health care and specialty care appointments at medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and The projected inflationary impact of the implementation of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Build Back Better Act, and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act in conjunction with the Build Back Better Act. With all this investigating, I wonder if any legislating will actually get done. Steve Thomas

- Dana Loesch, former spokeswoman for the NRA - “I don’t care if Herschel Walker paid to abort endangered baby eagles. I want control of the Senate.” https://twitter.com/patriottakes/status/1577442950044426240 I guess that just about says it all. Steve Thomas

Over and above the Classified Documents that were spirited away to Mar-a-Lago, there were other Government Records. So tell me, what ever happened to the White House call logs for the day of January 6th? Who took those? Steve Thomas

Doug, The other day, someone (and I'm sorry, I did not take note who it was), raised the spectre, as I have, of 1917 repeating itself. You give 300,000 dispirited men guns, and send them into a war they don't want to to be in, and what do you think is going to happen? They are going to turn around and bring those guns home with them. Putin is sowing the seeds of his own demise. Steve Thomas

- Donald Trump - "The radical Democrats believe in abortion and really right from the moment of birth, and even after birth. You can't let this happen," the former president said." I'm still scratching my head over that one. Steve Thomas