Authoritarianism: Feb 5–Feb 11 Changes
This really should be #resist’s anthem. Not only is it delightfully subversive, flipping the finger at the whole structure of property rights, but Guthrie loathed Trump senior. Lady Gaga dropping this into the Superbowl Halftime is nothing short of sheer genius.
- Superbowl half time as one of the sneakiest underhanded political digs as I’ve seen. Kudos to Lady Gaga.
2. Honest to God I cannot make this shit up.
But for the moment, Mr. Bannon remains the president’s dominant adviser, despite Mr. Trump’s anger that he was not fully briefed on details of the executive order he signed giving his chief strategist a seat on the National Security Council, a greater source of frustration to the president than the fallout from the travel ban.
3. Not really a lineup I would have ever expected, but it’s good to see:
And again, TeenVogue:
4. The con that is Conway…
And in a better write up from Cosmo itself (It’s strange days when Cosmo and TeenVogue do better investigative journalism than NY Times and WaPo)
5. And *45’s attention to the country he’s running is unwavering. Let’s see…
Um, or maybe he’s just pitching fits left and right. Figures.
6. And pay attention to this tweet. *45 is setting it up that if we have another terrorist attack, he’ll pile it all on the judiciary.
7. FCC being rapidly shredded by ex-Verizon lawyer. Note that there was no Senate vote on his nomination to head this, because he was already on the FCC committee.
8. Full on descent into paranoia. Click through for the 30 second batshit crazy if you dare.
9. That’s an eye opener.
10. Finally. No news yet (5:30pm PST) on DeVos…weird.
Only Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) has announced plans to support Sessions. As of Monday, no Democrat has announced support for DeVos, Rep. Tom Price (R-Ga.), nominated to lead Health and Human Services, or Steven T. Mnuchin, nominated as treasury secretary. They all are scheduled for up-or-down votes in the coming days.
Near-unanimous opposition to a first-term president’s Cabinet picks is rare and hasn’t happened in recent history. But it comes amid a growing furor among progressive groups calling on Democratic lawmakers to oppose all of Trump’s nominees and policies. A CNN poll released on Sunday showed that just 59 percent of Democrats approve of their party’s leaders, a sign that die-hard partisans want lawmakers to serve as a more aggressive check on Trump.
Hm, looks like her vote is for noon Feb 7 ET. This suggests to me that the GOP is strong arming R’s who decided to vote against her.
11. O.o the corruption is so blatant.
12. The kleptocracy lays it out:
13. Bitch needs to go. Whole damn deck needs clearing.
During Monday’s morning meeting, Conway, multiple sources said, shrugged off the concerns from thousands of people jamming phone lines critical of Trump’s Cabinet nominees, explaining that she’s more worried about her own “RPI” or “Real Person Impact” meter.
“She basically said the people jamming up the phones don’t matter to this White House,” the communications director continued. “That this administration just cares about what matters to ‘real people.’”
We’ll show this regime real people.
And they hated hated the SNL impression with the hilarious sendup of Spicer. GOOD.
14. New York flips 45 the bird. I’m simply astonished to see entire states acting against prez. Maybe I shouldn’t be, maybe the red state defiance of Obama should have prepped me but this…
The move comes as the Republican president has moved to limit federal funds to sanctuary cities and threatened to defund California as a whole, as it heads towards becoming a sanctuary state. Sanctuary jurisdictions put barriers between local officials and federal authorities who may seek to deport undocumented immigrants.
15. Awful, but also not surprising, given studies such as Jane Elliot’s Blue-Eyes Brown-Eyes experiment, the Milgram experiment and the Stanford Prison Experiment. Even so I’d like to see these people prosecuted.
16. This is very bad.
The White House comment line is shut down. New signatures aren’t being counted on petitions posted on the White House’s website. Federal agencies are not allowed to respond to requests.
Americans aren’t just failing to get their voices heard. The administration, too, is failing to provide information to them.
Transcripts, executive orders and news releases aren’t being posted online. Social media accounts, including Flickr, Pinterest and Tumblr, are no longer in use. Sending information to the Federal Register, the daily journal of the U.S. government, is delayed.
On Friday, a national research watchdog group condemned the administration for removing thousands of documents relevant to enforcement of the Animal Welfare Act and the Horse Protection Act from the Department of Agriculture’s website. The removed documents included reports on fines, official warnings, inspection reports and annual reports.
“This is clearly a calculated move to protect from public scrutiny criminal entities who regularly break federal laws, endangering human health,” said Michael A. Budkie, the executive director of Stop Animal Exploitation Now, an Ohio-based nonprofit that monitors U.S. research facilities for animal cruelty.
17. It’s almost worth the occasional Bieber article to follow what Teen Vogue covers (that many MSM don’t…)
Finishing construction on the Dakota Access Pipeline
Stopping the reduction of harmful methane emissions into the environment.
Repealing the “Stream Protection Rule.”
Repealing a transparency rule for oil companies.
Denying that climate change exists.
18. So let’s see, first he pissed off women, then scientists, and now teachers.
This is still an unprecedented rebuke of a nominee, with others such as Sessions possibly also facing fights.
19. Good.
“The activism we’re seeing in the streets and at airports and women’s marches is robust,” said Gara LaMarche, the president of Democracy Alliance, an influential network of liberal activist groups.
“We’re seeing it spring up at town halls and in places none of us anticipated,” he continued. “It is very encouraging to see that kind of activism from the grassroots. These are ordinary people rising up. … The real question is whether it can be sustained or aligned with the appropriate channels to make real political change.”
The flashpoint for many liberals was the Jan. 21 Women’s March on Washington, which attracted hundreds of thousands of protesters in the capital and at least 3 million nationwide the day after Trump was sworn in.
Since then, liberals have descended on major U.S. airports by the thousands to protest Trump’s temporary ban on refugees and immigrants. On Monday, hundreds more are expected to gather on Capitol Hill to protest Trump’s selection of Betsy DeVos to lead the Department of Education.
Now those protests are targeting Republicans at home.
20. Disapproval hits 54%
21. That’s some grade A footstomping, there.
22. You can’t DO that. If you don’t know what the law is…
23. Sure. Joking. Suuuuuuuuuure.
According to White House pool transcripts of a meeting with representatives from the National Sheriff’s Association, Rockwall County’s Sheriff Harold Eavenson complained about a state senator “getting in the way” of an unnamed objective, to which Trump responded: “Want to give his name? We’ll destroy his career.” The sheriff then declined the offer, which was extended in front of reporters in the Roosevelt Room and Oval Office. According to The Dallas Morning News, Eavenson is in line to become president of the National Sheriff’s Association.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2017/02/07/trump-offers-to-destroy-texas-senator.html
Note. Guess what that state senator is trying to do? Stop civil asset forfeiture.
24. Ivanka Antoinette and hubby. However, I have to say this move is very Chinese, and the slap to Tillerson’s face is priceless. OTOH if it avoids war with China…
I’m still going to make it a life’s goal to see that NONE of 45’s offspring have political careers. I may not be able to stop their gaudy, bloated corporate thieving, but the political?
OMG I so want all of them in jail.
25. In the annals of sheer stupidity, I think Stein’s working on it. I need me some good tart Scottish ragging…ooh “You witless fucking cocksplat!”
Hint, darlin’. Every single Democrat senator voted against DeVos. EVERY SINGLE ONE. Plus two Republicans crossed lines. You do know that R’s have the majority in the Senate now, right? You do know this?
26. #NoBanNoWall
Also, you need to know that the hundreds of rabbis protesting here comprised about 10% of total US rabbis.
27. But of course we’re not supposed to be letting any more immigrants in, right? Right?
(yes, this is Borowitz Report, satire, but I think this is more true than ppl realize…)
28. Like anyone’s wealthy enough to fund this many protesters. Sheesh.
29. Here’s what’ sin store for the Gorsuch vote.
30. Speaking of what money will buy, because god knows she has NO other qualifications AT ALL
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/betsy-devos-senate-contributions_us_589a12d1e4b040613139a5a4?
31. Godwin’s law has been dead a while, hasn’t it?
Just to be clear, I’m not suggesting that President Trump is going to turn the United States into a genocidal dictatorship. But we should understand that eventually, there will be some kind of terrorist attack on U.S. soil — perhaps one that fails, or one that succeeds in killing a few Americans, or more than a few. While we have been remarkably safe from terrorism since September 11 — fewer than 100 of us killed by jihadi terrorists over those 15 years — such attacks do happen from time to time. And when the first one of Trump’s presidency occurs, he will probably move quickly to take advantage of it. In fact, I’d be surprised if Stephen Bannon and Stephen Miller aren’t already working on a plan for what to do when they get the chance.
Whereas I think that Bannon’s going to work on suppressing or thwarting intelligence collection to succesfully counter such an attack in order to have it happen. He can’t have put himself on the NSC for nothin’.
32. Speaking of what you can buy
33. Really just amazing. I have a link up there somewhere, but images tell so much more:
34. Looks like military ain’t too impressed with the trash-talkin’ *45…
35. I have to agree here.
Trump’s Hold on His Base Is Grievance: People continue to marvel how a city-bred, godless libertine who was born to great wealth could become and remain the political avatar of small town and rural voters of middling means. The answer is simple. Despite all their differences, Trump meets his voters in a common perception (real or not) of being shunned, ignored and disrespected by ‘elites’. In short, his politics and his connection with his core voters is based on grievance. This is a profound and enduring connection. This part of his constituency likely amounts to only 25% or 30% of the electorate at most. But it is a powerful anchor on the right. His ability to emerge undamaged from an almost endless series of outrages and ridiculousnesses is based on this connection. To paraphrase McLuhan, with Trump, the medium is the message and Trump is the medium.
Trump’s Hold on His Base Is Grievance: People continue to marvel how a city-bred, godless libertine who was born to great wealth could become and remain the political avatar of small town and rural voters of middling means. The answer is simple. Despite all their differences, Trump meets his voters in a common perception (real or not) of being shunned, ignored and disrespected by ‘elites’. In short, his politics and his connection with his core voters is based on grievance. This is a profound and enduring connection. This part of his constituency likely amounts to only 25% or 30% of the electorate at most. But it is a powerful anchor on the right. His ability to emerge undamaged from an almost endless series of outrages and ridiculousnesses is based on this connection. To paraphrase McLuhan, with Trump, the medium is the message and Trump is the medium.
But I do have one word to say here: “Projection.”
(addendum)
36. Whoa.
37. Seems that Dear Leader’s proposal has blowback with legs.
A new Quinnipiac poll finds — as other polls have — that majorities oppose all of President Trump’s recent immigration moves. Americans oppose the ban on travel from select Muslim-majority nations by 51–46; they oppose the ban on refugees from all nations by 60–37; and they oppose the ban on Syrian refugees in particular by 70–26.
But here’s perhaps the most striking data point of all: There has been a 12 point net swing against the general idea of the travel ban in the last month.
Quinnipiac polled on a version of question in early January, before the details of the proposal were known. The question was asked this way: “Do you support or oppose suspending immigration from ‘terror prone’ regions, even if it means turning away refugees from those regions?” Quinnipiac found that Americans supported this by 48–42.
Quinnipiac asked this same question this time, and now finds those numbers are reversed, with Americans opposing it by 50–44.
38. What a whiney little bitch. Own your own shit.
But it does look like a circular firing squad is ginning up.
39. Speaking of whiney bitches, another one stopped Senator Warren from reading this letter out loud in the senate.
ARE YOU SHITTING ME, THEY ARE LETTING MERKELY READ THE FUCKING LETTER SO THE SENATE IS TELLING WOMEN TO FUCKING SHUT UP.
OK, so the Senate appears to be in an uproar o.O I have never in my life seen this…
I didn’t have any fucking popcorn this night.
Internetz. I luvz you:
And to cap it off
40. Damn. Just read this.
41. Um, whut? (Title is Trump’s USDA drops animal abuse reports, tries to blame Obama, at http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/trump-s-usda-drops-animal-abuse-reports-tries-to-blame-obama-872280131542)
42. o.O
43. 0.O
But snap:
Please don’t tell me I have to go into Nordstroms to help them out…
44. Unsurprised
45. Yep.
More are pouring out on this. Pics of Rosa Parks, of Leia Organa facing down Darth Vader…the memes keep coming.
46. Oh hey, maybe the stock market is becoming 45 proof. Crying stock is the new crying wolf.
47. Yep.
48. Yeah.
49. This, from CBS o.O (captions available)
50. HOLY CRAP YOU GUYS
51. Ugh.
Twitter is on fire, tho. Manchin (D-WV) is lone Dem voting for and the blowback looks pretty severe. Man, between the batshit twerp DeVos and the cocksplat racist Sessions, and attacks on ACA, disabled children are in for a rough ride.
I can’t send enough fucks GOP’s way. What a horrible, horrible, horrid, unfeeling, unchristian mindset.
52. Priceless. “Facist loofa-faced shit-gibbon.”
53. Worth the read.
54. Kansas might have its shit together more than I thought. But oh, Alabama…
55. Yeah, I would too.
I kinda wonder what that will show on demographics over the next ten years.
Passed in 2010, the ACA mandated healthcare plans to provide some preventive services, including birth control, at no extra cost. And a study last year in the journal Contraception found that the ACA’s requirements had a notable impact on lowering the out-of-pocket expenses for women for birth control.
A separate study of 30,000 privately insured women in the Midwest found that the ACA mandate resulted in cheaper birth control and produced a significant increase in the use of contraceptives, including a large increase in women choosing long-acting birth control methods such as IUDs and implants.
The rise in access and decrease in cost in birth control in the U.S. has also coincided with a relatively sharp decline in the nation’s teen birth rate, which was the lowest on record in 2015.
You’d think the fuckwit GOP shitheads would be overjoyed at the reduction in teen birth rates (oh, except for the white evangelical girls, those gals are supposed to go all quiverful or shit) but of course they’re going to kill especially this part because I dunno women. >.<
55. ATTN @OfficeGovEthics
How is this in the remotest way okay?
56. From the Young Turks (captioned) on undocumented immigrants.
57. Satire. Tasty, tasty satire. Interesting to see how the subversive takes off now.
58. Well, well, well. Interesting.
On Wednesday, a group led by Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, and Ben Cardin, D-Maryland, plan to introduce legislation that would impose strict new congressional oversight and veto power over the Trump administration if it decided to lift sanctions on Russia.
The Russia Review Act would require the White House to submit a report detailing why it was seeking to lift sanctions, setting into motion a 120-day review period where Congress could vote to disapprove of easing the penalties on the country, according to a summary of the measure provided to CNN.
59. Kleptocracy, grifter-in-chief and so much ethical bullshit
I still think they should tap Iggy Pop to play Conway on SNL.
60. Hoo boy.
61. I want to know, too.
62. Scary stuff.
Russia is not a longtime ally of the United States. It is governed by a ruthless dictator who poisons dissident journalists and, it cannot be forgotten, personally directed hacks of the 2016 election with the express intent of aiding the same clownfraud with whom he’s now engaging in sensitive diplomatic negotiations. While the President of the United States is busy tweeting attacks at department stores he doesn’t like, his lack of fitness for some of the most delicate aspects of his job is putting American interests in real danger, and he’s too dense to even begin to understand that.
63. Eep. Because he didn’t do his job? Or he did?
64. Interesting comment from a guy who went after Clinton’s money machine. At least he’s even handed.
65. Christ.
66. This is just depressingly scary. I don’t know whether to file it under Authoritarianism or Batshit Loofa-Faced Cray-Cray.
67. Some movement on the impeachment front is starting, but it’s early days. Believe it or not this is only week three of Cheeto-In-Chief.
68. Dammit.
69. Burn.
Corey Bennett
@coreybbennett
I see @Nordstrom and Congress have swapped roles: one checks the executive branch, the other is bought by rich people.
70. Oh please oh please oh please oh please… SNL YOU MUST DO THIS
71. Head over to this tweet thread and read…Lovely, lovely adjectives applied to the lovely, lovely Utahn congresscritter :-)
72. Holy crap, @GOP is going to launch the 2018 jihad all on its own.
yeah, you motherfuckers. See you then.
Probably the best response to them:
73. DAMN. And not a peep from the fucking MSM…
74. Started rounding ’em up. This is bad.
75. Pretty much, yeah.
76. Yeah, this is how it rolls.
77. Yes, oh please.
78. Yes, we have to keep this in mind. And #4 (see article) will be hard.
It also implies a simple takeaway for 2020: Democrats will lose if they run on the platform that Trump is horrible. To win, they need a bold vision for how to improve the lives of most Americans.
79. Because when I come across shit like this I just want to crucify the lot of them.
That underscores the cynicism of the Republican attack. GOP politicians such as House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) talk continually about a lack of competition on the Affordable Care Act exchanges as though that’s a structural flaw in Obamacare. They don’t admit that much of that lack of competition is their own handiwork.
One remarkable feature of this attack is that, even though it helped destroy some low-income insurers and harmed their customers, Republicans in Congress jostled with each other to take credit for it.
This is a fascinating read. The ruling may have come rather late for smaller insurers, but it could have effects from here on out.
80. Treason.
81. And this leaves me speechless. Where the fuck is Ivanka Antoinette? Hell, even Mrs. Pence? The absolute fuck?
I mean, that’s so amazingly stupid.
82. ACLU. It’s pretty impressive.
Three days after the election the ACLU went on the public relations offensive, with a full-page ad in The New York Times telling Trump, “We’ll see you in court.” On Inauguration Day, the ACLU filed Freedom of Information Act requests seeking documents that could expose conflicts of interest between President Trump and businessman Trump. More quietly, the ACLU has stepped up its efforts to persuade mayors and police chiefs to avoid taking on federal immigration duties, in an attempt to counter Trump’s efforts to ramp up deportations.
83. Oh burn.
84. Oh yes. …the decades long three weeks of his presidency.
85. Food for thought here.
Here is what we are supposed to do: rebut every single lie. Insist moreover that each lie is retracted — and journalists in press conferences should back up their colleagues with repeated follow-ups if Spicer tries to duck the plain truth. Do not allow them to move on to another question. Interviews with the president himself should not leave a lie alone; the interviewer should press and press and press until the lie is conceded. The press must not be afraid of even calling the president a liar to his face if he persists. This requires no particular courage. I think, in contrast, of those dissidents whose critical insistence on simple truth in plain language kept reality alive in the Kafkaesque world of totalitarianism. As the Polish dissident Adam Michnik once said: “In the life of every honorable man comes a difficult moment … when the simple statement that this is black and that is white requires paying a high price.” The price Michnik paid was years in prison. American journalists cannot risk a little access or a nasty tweet for the same essential civic duty?
86. Getting some traction, I hope…slowly…
87. Oh I like this.
88. Yes!
89. Idiot.
90. Ooh, damned if he does, damned if he doesn’t.
91. Chilling.
92. Oh good lord.
93. Useful app.
94. Ooh!
and
95. Judiciary. Formidable
96. Calling 45’s bluff. Wow.
97. This is unprecedented. But since 45 took the unpresidented step of appointing Flynn as National Security Advisor (a position entirely independent of any other entity’s approval), problems were inevitably going to surface. But wow.
A top deputy to National Security Adviser Michael Flynn was rejected for a critical security clearance, effectively ending his tenure on the National Security Council and escalating tensions between Flynn and the intelligence community.
The move came as Flynn’s already tense relationships with others in the Trump administration and the intelligence community were growing more fraught after reports that Flynn had breached diplomatic protocols in his conversations with the Russian ambassador to the United States.
Safe to say CIA is not happy with 45.
98. What a fucking chump.
99. This just amazes and heartens me.
100. Awesome.
101. After Chaffetz’s whingeing about paid protesters and such:
102. Priorities, priorities…
(Turns out it wasn’t an ICMB, though.)
