Random Thoughts (Political Edition)

[CraigB]

This is going to be a dumb couple years. Great...

 

[GRtak]

February 06, 1858
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January 06 2023
View attachment 3568139

Here is a video of the incident.

 

[Momentum57]

WaPo opinion Dana Milbank (no paywall)

Essentially, McCarthy placated the crazies in his caucus by giving up every tool he (or anybody) had to maintain order in the House.

They are going to spin this as good for America

 

[GRtak]

 

[jack_christie]

Hakeem Jeffries' A to Z:

'Constitution over cult': Hakeem Jeffries' 'masterpiece' A to Z speech goes viral

In the early minutes of Saturday morning Republicans elected Kevin McCarthy Speaker of the House on the fifteenth try. Minutes earlier a fistfight nearly erupted as one GOP Member had to be physically restrained from attacking Matt Gaetz.After five days of wheeling and dealing behind closed...

www.rawstory.com

 

[GRtak]

Bolsonaro lays low in Florida as Brazil cracks down on riots by his supporters

Brazilian authorities arrested over 1,500 people following Sunday's assault on top government buildings by supporters of ex-President Jair Bolsonaro, who's taken temporary residence in the U.S.

www.npr.org

 

[GRtak]

Raskin Statement Opposing McCarthy's Rules Package

raskin.house.gov

 

[GRtak]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/12/missouri-women-dress-code-arms-house/

Next they will want ankles covered.

 

[Blind_Io]

Not really, pool water is a pretty shit conductor. Sealing the high voltage connections against water isn't difficult either - I certainly wouldn't say it's a sign of good build quality.

 

[GRtak]

George Santos introduced himself as "Anthony Devolder" in this creepy video from 2019 | Boing Boing

After all that we know (and don’t know) about shapeshifter George Santos, it’s really creepy to watch him introduce himself as “Anthony Devolder” in front of a New York crow…

boingboing.net

 

[CraigB]

Not really, pool water is a pretty shit conductor. Sealing the high voltage connections against water isn't difficult either - I certainly wouldn't say it's a sign of good build quality.

Wrong thread?

 

[GRtak]

Failed Republican candidate arrested in shootings targeting Democratic politicians' homes

Albuquerque police on Monday arrested the man they say is the “mastermind” behind a recent string of shootings targeting Democratic lawmakers’ homes. The suspect, Solomon Pena, is a Republican who unsuccessfully ran for office in November, has made repeated claims that the election was rigged...

www.abqjournal.com

 

[GRtak]

Marjorie Taylor Greene and Paul Gosar get committee assignments | CNN Politics

Republican Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia and Paul Gosar of Arizona have been given committee assignments for the new Congress, after being booted from their committees by Democrats and some Republicans for their incendiary remarks, sources told CNN.

www.cnn.com

 

[Blind_Io]

Matt Gaetz got one as well I think, and George Santos was assigned to two committees despite being caught lying his way into office.

 

[DanRoM]

Now this comes as a surprise.

Jacinda Ardern: New Zealand PM to step down next month

An emotional Jacinda Ardern says she no longer has "enough in the tank" after nearly six years as leader.

www.bbc.com

 

[eizbaer]

Now this comes as a surprise.

a surprise for sure, but looking into the the details or listening to her accompanying speech, very much on brand and fitting to her particular type of politics. a rather unusual politician for sure. a lot of our bunch could learn a lot from that... but they probably won't*

* much rather, they'll spin this as a purely tactical move to ensure her party re-election blablablabla, because they just can't fathom that anyone would ever vacate their office on those grounds.

 

[GRtak]

How the Arizona Attorney General Created a Secretive, Illegal Surveillance Program to Sweep up Millions of Our Financial Records | ACLU

New records obtained by the ACLU shed light on the scope of a mass surveillance program keeping tabs on Americans’ financial data.

www.aclu.org

 

[GRtak]

Violent threats directed at Milan school board, right-wing activist reads porn during meeting ⋆ Michigan Advance

Threats of rape and selections from a pornographic website were some of the features at a meeting last week of a school board in Southeast Michigan. Milan Area Schools, which serves students in both Washtenaw and Monroe counties, has not been immune from the ongoing battle from right-wing...

michiganadvance.com

McElvany, whose child graduated from the district in June, has been speaking out at Milan school board meetings since last summer and again addressed the board on Jan. 12, when she launched into three minutes of sexually explicit dialogue she said came from books at Milan High School.


As she spoke, an acquaintance held up various books while McElvany read aloud passages depicting sexual acts.


When her three minutes were up, she then held up a piece of paper and shouted, “All the stuff I read right here was from Penthouse,” before pointing to the books and saying, “And these books are from your school. How is that OK?”


But to many observers it was not at all clear what she had been reading and they came away with the impression that most, if not all, of what she quoted was from Penthouse, a magazine and website that has adult pornographic content.


McElvany told the Michigan Advance her intent was to compare passages from books in the school’s library with those found in Penthouse.


“Actually, if you watch the video, the parts I read from Penthouse were extremely mild compared to what I read from the books,” she said. “They should be ashamed that they couldn’t even tell the difference between that book and the books from their school library.”

The need for constructive hobbies is huge. Stay classy Michigan...

 

[GRtak]

https://www.npr.org/2023/01/19/1150051376/supreme-court-dobbs-leak-marshal

I still think it was a Justice.

 

[GRtak]

Former top FBI official Charles McGonigal arrested over ties to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska

A former top FBI official in New York has been arrested over his ties to a Russian oligarch, law enforcement sources told ABC News Monday.

abcnews.go.com