Buzzfeed reports that the right-wing social media platform Parler offered Trump a stake in the company if he would post exclusively with them:
âTalks between members of Trumpâs campaign and Parler about Trumpâs potential involvement began last summer, and were revisited in November by the Trump Organization after Trump lost the 2020 election….Documents seen by BuzzFeed News show that Parler offered the Trump Organization a 40% stake in the company.â
Parler was focused on building a social network that would serve as an alternative to Facebook and Twitter by taking a much more lax approach to content moderation. By late 2020, it had become a go-to online gathering place for hate groups, conspiracy theorists, and believers in the QAnon mass delusion. It also had attracted prominent Republicans, including Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Devin Nunes.
The deal was never finalized, and the discussion was derailed when Parler was deplatformed after the Jan. 6 coup attempt.
Still, some legal experts say Trump could have legal trouble. Scott Amey, general counsel at the Project on Government Oversight, said it warranted an immediate criminal investigation:
âA companyâs mere act of offering a stake for the presidentâs participation looks unethical and deserves further scrutiny….If the offer included anything of value…that would almost certainly be illegal, and he should be held accountable.â
Trump âaccountableâ? Never happening. Enjoy the Super Bowl, if that’s your thing. On to cartoons.
âWhen someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time.â – Maya Angelou
Are you wondering about why Merrick Garland hasnât been confirmed as Attorney General? Itâs because Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) had refused to hold a confirmation hearing for Judge Garland. He blamed the Senate’s second Trump impeachment trial that starts next week.
Graham had the power to keep the Garland hearing off the calendar because he remained chair of the Senateâs Judiciary Committee until the new Senate organizing resolution was passed last Wednesday. While he ran the committee, Graham denied a request from the incoming committee chairman Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) to hold hearings for Garland starting on Monday, February 8. The impeachment trial starts on the 9th.
Graham insisted that the Senate’s plan to begin Trump’s impeachment trial on Tuesday meant that there would not be enough time to hold Garland’s hearing. Graham said to Durbin:
“Your request is highly unusual….the Senate is about to conduct its first ever impeachment trial of a former president, and only its fourth trial of a president, incumbent or not…But you want us to rush through Judge Garland’s hearing on February 8….An impeachment is no small thing. It requires the Senate’s complete focus,”
Of course, Graham isnât clean on this. The new AG will be responsible for overseeing any prosecutions that come out of the attempt to overturn the election, and the Senate Judiciary Committee includes three Republican Senators involved in that attempt. Graham was accused by Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger of asking Raffensperger to alter the stateâs vote count back in November. Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) both challenged the counting of Electoral Votes.
Marcy Wheeler reports that one of the last things Graham did before turning over the reins was to send a letter to Trumpâs Acting AG Monty Wilkinson urging him not to stop work on two investigations:
âWe have two properly predicated, ongoing investigations Democrats would rather go away: Special Counsel John Durhamâs investigation of the Crossfire Hurricane investigation and the investigation by the Delaware U.S. Attorneyâs Office into Hunter Biden….I…respectfully request that you refrain from interfering in any way with either investigation while the Senate processes the nomination of Judge Merrick Garland to the position of Attorney General….â
Graham raises this even though there hasnât been a peep about these investigations from the Biden Administration. Instead, this may only be relevant because Hunter Biden has a book deal. Itâs apparently about his problems with addiction, and comes out in April.
Itâs hard to see this as anything except more of an effort by Trumpy Republicans to continue the conspiracy theories Trump waved around in the weeks leading up to the presidential election. In spite of bipartisan support for Garland, Grahamâs delaying tactics mean that the DOJ may not have a confirmed Attorney General until late February or early March. Garland is a centrist, the kind of AG you would expect Republicans would welcome as a Democratic nominee. Instead, Republican Senators have sought to prevent or delay his appointments many times.
We all remember how they wouldnât consider Obama’s nomination of Garland to the Supreme Court because it was 11 months before a newly elected administration would take office.
Few remember that, in September, 1995 when Joe Biden chaired the Judiciary Committee, Garland was nominated to the US Circuit Court of Appeals. But then-minority leader Bob Dole (R-KS) filibustered the nomination. No vote was taken.
In 1997, Clinton renominated Garland, and the Judiciary Committee, then led by Orrin Hatch (R-UT), recommended confirmation, and the Senate, then led by majority leader Bob Dole, confirmed him to the Appeals Court. But, Mitch McConnell was one of 23 “no” votes against Garland.
What is it with Republicans and Merrick Garland?
Time to forget about politics. Here in Connecticut, we’re still digging out from about 18″ of snow that is finally starting to melt. Itâs Saturday, and we need to make it to tomorrow, when America will huddle in front of our TVs and worship a bowl of guacamole: Brady, or Mahomes?
To help you get through until then, letâs start by brewing up a cup of Panama Hacienda La Esmeralda Gesha coffee ($56.00/8 ounces), from the brewers at Chicago’s Big Shoulders Coffee. It is said to be sweet-tart with a very full, syrupy mouthfeel, and a flavor-saturated finish resonates on and on. YMMV.
Now, settle back in a chair by a window and watch Mumford & Sons play their cover of the Nine Inch Nails tune, âHurtâ, performed live at the 2019 Rock Werchter Festival. This song was covered most notably by Johnny Cash just before his death:
Marcus Mumford’s voice can heal just about anything. Itâs needed in this time of global grief.
Last light on Mt. St. John, MT â 2021 photo by vincentledvina
Tuesday was the deadline for Trumpâs brand-new legal team to present their briefs to the Senate for the impeachment trial that is due to start next Monday. The House impeachment managers have delivered their trial brief to the Senate.
And Trumpâs lawyers filed their answer, arguing his incitement was protected by the First Amendment, that the House moved too quickly to impeach, and although he was impeached while still President, the Senate canât constitutionally try him now that heâs out of office.
As we head into next weekâs impeachment circus, there are parallels between the attempted Trump coup in DC and the military coup that just took place in Myanmar. First, an update: Troops there are patrolling the streets and a night-time curfew is in force. A one-year state of emergency was declared with Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in control. Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, the civilian leader of the government, along with several other leaders of her National League for Democracy party (NLD) were arrested in a series of raids. Later, the military announced that 24 ministers and deputies had been removed, and 11 replacements had been named, including in finance, health, and the interior and foreign affairs.
Itâs unclear what will happen next.
But, check out the similarities between what has happened there, compared to what happened here three weeks ago in Washington:
The military coup follows weeks of tensions between the armed forces and the government following parliamentary elections lost by the army-backed opposition party.
The opposition had demanded a re-run of the election, raising allegations of widespread fraud that were not confirmed by Myanmarâs electoral commission.
The coup occurred on the week that the first session of Parliament since the election was due to start. That session would have certified the election result by seating the next government.
What differentiates Myanmar from the Jan. 6 coup in America is that in Myanmar, there was an âarmy-backed opposition.â When the opposition lost the election, the military claimed fraud, demanded a do-over, and then intervened before the new Parliament could legitimize the results.
Apparently in Myanmar, there has been an ongoing power struggle between the head of the military and Aung San Suu Kyi. The two have rarely met since 2015, often only at public events. Suu Kyiâs party wasnât simply a victim in this coup. Last November, her government barred huge numbers of Myanmarâs ethnic minorities, who typically support their own political parties, from participating in national elections. Her party then won in a landslide.
And last year, Suu Kyi attempted to push through constitutional amendments that would have gradually shrunk the militaryâs share of Parliament from 25% to 5%. It failed, but this may have been what turned the military against her.
One lesson to take from Myanmar as we head into next weekâs impeachment trial is that Trumpâs coup may have failed because he didnât have the support of the US military.
All of our institutions matter, they need to be strong. While they can be bureaucratic, inefficient, and boring, they always matter. Trump tried to use the courts to overturn the election, and failed. He tried to use the state-level electoral vote certification process to overturn the election, and failed. He tried to use his base to invade the US Capitol to block the certification of the Electoral College Vote on Jan. 6, and it failed.
Trump couldnât use the US military to overturn the election despite a significant number of military supporting him, and believing that the election was rigged. Thatâs because the US military has never been a political tool, and it wasnât going to change that by being a tool for Trump.
America isnât Myanmar. In many less developed countries the military has an important political role. Weâre in an entirely different situation, at least for the present, and hopefully, forever.
The fight for American democracy cannot be left to election officials, judges, or corporations like Twitter. It must first be fought by the Republican Party, many of whom still say the presidential election was a fraud, and who still refuse to acknowledge Biden as president. They have to reject their Sedition Caucus. Then Democrats and Republicans together can reset the terms of the political battle in America.
Democracy is a contest of ideas; it isnât simply a propaganda war. It must start from a shared reality, one that Trump and his followers fail to see.
â…Trump’s five impeachment defense attorneys have left a little more than a week before his trial is set to begin, according to people familiar with the case, amid a disagreement over his legal strategy.â
CNN said that Trump wanted the attorneys to argue there had been massive election fraud and that the presidential election was stolen from him, rather than focus on the legality of convicting a president after he’s left office. Also, the attorneys had not been paid any advance fees and their letter of intent was never signed.
Isnât it predictable that Trump will refuse to employ the only semi-sound legal strategy available to him? He has a valid defense to say he had no intention to foment sedition, and besides, the Senate has no jurisdiction, since heâs a private citizen.
But instead, he wants to employ, with zero evidence, the âelection was stolenâ defense.
The House impeachment article charges Trump with âincitement of insurrectionâ in the invasion of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 by a pro-Trump mob. Letâs hope that Trump tries to represent himself. Itâs possible that an incompetent defense that doesnât address the charge may be sufficient to allow 17 Republicans to vote to convict him.
OTOH, Trump may not know the law, but he knows this jury.
What went down at the Capitol was an insurrection, not a cotillion. So letâs watch those Republican sycophants listen to him spout more bullshit that heâs completely and obviously unable to prove.
The election was stolen strategy forces Trump to make an argument that the insurrection was âjustifiedâ, however nothing in the 2020 election justifies insurrection. But, he would just love that platform. One more chance to put himself in front of the cameras, and play to his base. One more chance for them to declare Trump a victim.
But what would he say when being sworn in? Heâs asked to swear to tell the truth, whole truth and nothing but the truth. Opinions differ.
There’s no reason he has to be represented by a lawyer. Impeachment is a political process, not a legal one. However, it is likely that ethics rules would cover the actions of a lawyer representing Trump at the impeachment trial. As non-lawyer, Trump would not be so constrained.
Testifying on his own behalf may be the best chance that enough Senate Republicans could be shamed into convicting him. Let him face 100 Senators with the argument that he actually won by millions of vapor votes.
Eventually, when there is a roll call vote, the choice is either to vote “Guilty” or “Not Guilty”. But the two real choices facing Republican Senators are âDo I show minimal integrity, or utter debasement?â Weâll see if once again, theyâll choose the latter.
Trump knows itâs likely that there are 45 Senate votes in the bag to acquit. He just wants to continue the Big Lie propaganda war. Trumpâs already using the stolen election and attempted coup as a Creation Mythfor his political movement.
But the facts of the case are well known to everyone. We were all eyewitnesses. And the Senate will vote according to some combination of conscience and political necessity, regardless of evidence or arguments.
If conviction of the one count of Impeachment doesnât happen, letâs at least look forward to a criminal indictment of Trump on seditious activity. It could happen as the DOJ learns more about the coordination by the coup leaders, and their connection to Trump.
Time to wake up America! Once again we will take a roll call vote that shows how craven the Republican Party has become.
To help you wake up, Wrongo returns to a live performance by the Killers doing their anthem âWhen You Were Youngâ performed live at the Royal Albert Hall in London, just over a decade ago. Wrongo has said before that British crowds are the best. It makes the Killersâ Live at The Royal Albert Hall an all-time favorite live rock performance.
The crowd knows the music, the band is energized throughout. See the entire concert if you have time. They picked the venue specifically for the DVD, then made tickets available through various chapters of their fan clubs. Everybody in that crowd is a die-hard fan.
Here is âWhen You Were Youngâ:
Make sure to catch the “Song Exploder” episode on Netflix that delves into the making of the song.
Trump left office with numerous lawsuits against both him and his administration still pending. That was part of a run-out-the-clock strategy to avoid accountability while president.
Shortly after Trumpâs presidency ended, so too did the two lawsuits claiming he used the Oval Office to enrich himself, violating the Constitutionâs Emoluments Clause barring federal officeholders from accepting certain gifts and payments while in office.
Some legal actions, like efforts to obtain his tax returns, are continuing, but experts say that while he was in office, Trump’s run out the clock strategy worked. Before Trump took office, it was rare for presidents to petition the Supreme Court for an emergency stay of a lower court ruling. Those stays had the effect of allowing a federal policy to go forward while a legal challenge plays out. Trump treated these requests as a standard litigation tactic. From the Hill: (emphasis by Wrongo)
âThe combined administrations of former Presidents GW Bush and Obama made just eight such requests over 16 years, with only four requests being granted.
In Trumpâs first three years in office, his Justice Department asked for 29 emergency stays. In response, the court granted relief 17 times. A number of stays were still in effect when Trumpâs term ended Jan. 20, meaning a final ruling is unlikely to ever be reached in the underlying cases…â
Exactly as envisioned by The Founders. On to cartoons.
View of Torrance, CA from Palos Verdes, CA – January 2021 photo by Gary W. Stuart. A perfect reason to live in Palos Verdes, where Wrongo and Ms. Right lived for 10 years: Views of ocean and mountains on a rare crystal clear LA winter day. The San Gabriel Mountains in the background are ~35 miles away.
Weâve had a few bitter cold days on the snow-covered fields of Wrong. Friday morning, it was 6° with a 20+mph wind, making it a tough walk for the dog.
The emotional temperature is also icy in DC.  There is a growing rupture between Republicans who insist that the deadly Capitol riot was not the work of Trump supporters, and who insist on carrying concealed weapons onto the floor of the House, and Democrats who say they are afraid they’ll be harmed by those very same Republicans.
Since Republicans refuse to hold their colleagues accountable, some House Democrats have started refusing to work with some of their GOP counterparts, specifically those who favored the election sedition and who refuse to wear masks.
Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) is moving her office away from the office of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA). Greene and her staff are berating and harassing the Congresswoman and her staff because they wear masks. Bush said:
“I’m moving my office away from hers for my team’s safety,”
Three weeks after the attack on the Capitol, and two weeks after the disgraced president was impeached for the second time, the GOP is wallowing in a debate over impeachment, trutherism, and… Jewish space lasers?
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI), sums up THE issue of 2021:
There were plenty of jokes made about the space lasers, but one thing that isnât a joke is the palpable fear by Democrats who have to deal with this lunacy every day. We learned that the new acting head of the Capitol Police wants a wall around the Capitol:
“Vast improvements to the physical security infrastructure must be made to include permanent fencing”
The acting head of the Capitol Police has no faith that we can satisfactorily explain to Republican-Americans that Biden was fairly elected. That his victory was reasonably large. That Trump and most of his enablers lied continually about the outcome of the election.
She thinks the only option is to put fences and razor wire around the Capitol to discourage people whose minds have been poisoned, from attacking it again. And our government may well follow her recommendation. We canât harden a free society. Whatever you fence off will be âsafeâ while other places are open to attack. As Jonathan Last says,
âThe fences and razor wire at the Capitol are the physical manifestation of the Republican lie. Every time you see them, remember Kevin McCarthy and Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley and Jim Jordan and Matt Gaetz and…the hundreds of elected Republicans across the country who created this lie.â
The tragedy of Trump is that words and deeds, no matter how reckless or disconnected from the truth, carry no political consequences.
Organizer Bree Newsome translated Republicans’ current attitude:
âSorry we tried to assassinate you & overthrow the election. We didnât expect it to fail & create this awkwardness between us. Let’s move forward & get back to normal with us blocking any legislation you introduce while we continue to feed a racist terrorist movement. Love, GOPâ
We live in disturbing times, but we must find ways to let go of the anger and fear, at least for a few moments on a Saturday. Outdoor activities are not recommended when the wind chill is below zero, so pick up that long read that youâve been putting off, settle into a comfy chair and get going!
To help get you started, brew up a vente cup of Dafis Abafita Natural Ethiopia ($21.50/12 oz.) from Topeka Kansasâ PT Coffee Roasting Co. The roaster says you can taste mulberry, cocoa nib, tangerine zest, and agave syrup in the cup. Sounds like that cup is doing a lot of work!
Now put on your Bluetooth headphones and listen to âBorn in the Right Countryâ by the group River Whyless, from the mean streets of Asheville, NC. This song is a powerful and elegantly drawn statement about racism in America. Itâs a must-watch:
Sample lyric:
I’ll tell you baby a secret
Manufactured truth is easy to sell
When you own the factory
And you own the hearts of the clientele
For a few weeks, Mitch McConnell has continued to control the Senate, even after the Democrats should have taken control. Because of the Senateâs arcane rules, he wasnât prepared to give up power unless Chuck Schumer and his new majority promised to retain the filibuster.
Yes, you heard that right. Absent a power sharing agreement known as an organizing resolution that Wrongo wrote about here, McConnell stayed in charge. Schumer and McConnell needed to agree on a new set of rules, which are passed at the start of each new Senate term, to govern how the Senate operates.
The organizing resolution determines everything from committee assignments and staff budgets, to who gets the best office space.
McConnellâs calculation was simple. Not only was preserving the filibuster, something that Republicans could use to control the Democratsâ agenda, it was something that they could unify behind. It was also something that divided Democrats, many of whom want to see it discarded immediately in order to advance their legislative agenda.
But on Monday, McConnell said he was ready to move forward, because Senators Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) and Joe Manchin (D-WVA) signaled informally that they wouldnât vote to end the filibuster. That assures McConnell that it will remain in place, at least for the time being.
Governing in the Senate will take 60 votes to move forward, potentially assuring gridlock on much of the Democratâs agenda. Itâs another example of how the filibuster rules all without even being officially invoked.
The longest filibuster ever held in the US Senate was 60 days in 1964 to prevent the passage of the Civil Rights Act. The House ended the use of a filibuster in 1842. The filibuster was created when there were just 26 states in the Union. Itâs a tool of obstruction. It doesnât encourage debate, it doesnât allow for more voices to be heard.
âGOP senators can have a voice in the outcome if they engage in good faith. But they have to realize that âcompromiseâ doesnât mean âRepublicans win and Democrats lose.â Not anymore.â
Both Pelosi and Schumer know damn well who McConnell is at this point. They know that winning votes in the 2022 Congressional races will be directly connected to beating Covid through better public health policy and vaccinations. More from Robinson:
âA better way to seek unity is to vigorously pursue policies that have broad public support â and that begin to clean up the shambles the Biden administration inherits. Democrats may have slim majorities, but they have been given a mandate to lead.â
There is an alternative that the Democrats may choose to use, a Congressional process known as budget reconciliation, which blocks Republicans from filibustering, while allowing Democrats to pass bills with a simple majority. According to Sen. Bernie Sanders, (I-VT):
“I think the budget resolution will be up next week,”
Reconciliation starts with passing a budget resolution for the coming fiscal year. In that budget resolution, they need to include special budget directives or instructions:
âTo start the reconciliation process, the House and Senate must agree on a budget resolution that includes âreconciliation directivesâ for specified committees. Under the Congressional Budget Act, the House and Senate are supposed to adopt a budget resolution each year to establish an overall budget plan and set guidelines for action on spending and revenue.â
It can then go directly to the Senate floor without a committee markup under a provision of the 1974 law that created the modern budget process.
Democrats would be following a precedent laid down in early 2017 when Republicans who controlled the Senate, House and White House attempted to repeal the 2010 Affordable Care Act. At that time, the Senate Budget chairman, Michael B. Enzi, (R-WY), wrote a fiscal 2017 skinny budget resolution including reconciliation instructions with the goal of repealing the law.
Instead of the Senate marking up the budget, it was discharged from the committee and went straight to the floor where the Senate adopted it.
The Biden relief package may be whittled down, possibly broken into a few pieces. But it must pass, even if it takes budget reconciliation to do it.
The Democrats have inherited a broken country. There are huge expectations resting on them, while the 2022 midterms arenât looking favorable at this point. That means they have to accomplish a lot, while the GOP only has to sit on its hands.
Democrats have to rise to the urgency of the moment by passing legislation no matter what it takes.
Itâs a smart idea for the Democrats to take their time getting to the impeachment trial. Despite what America saw on Jan. 6, what we know about actions on that day and any advance planning by the rioters or their enablers remains extremely murky.
Itâs seems clearer now that the sedition at the US Capitol was part of the larger attempt to undermine and undo the results of the 2020 presidential election, but was it an organized effort?
If it was, whatâs Trumpâs part in it? How about others who were and are, working to ensure minority rule in America: Did they also have a role in the riot?
âSelf-styled militia members from Virginia, Ohio and other states made plans to storm the U.S. Capitol days in advance of the Jan. 6 attack, and then communicated in real time as they breached the building on opposite sides and talked about hunting for lawmakers, according to court documents filed Tuesday.â
Wrongo was particularly interested in this from the article: (brackets and emphasis by Wrongo)
âIn charging papers, the FBI said that during the Capitol riot, Caldwell [Thomas Edward Caldwell, a leader of the Oath Keepers extremist group] received Facebook messages from unspecified senders updating him on the location of lawmakers. When he posted a one-word message, âInside,â he received exhortations and directions describing tunnels, doors and hallways, the FBI said.â
This is chilling: Some messages said:
âTom, all legislators are down in the Tunnels 3 floors down,â and âGo through back house chamber doors facing N left down hallway down steps.â Another message read: âAll members are in the tunnels under capital seal them in. Turn on gas…â
Not clear to Wrongo what âturn on gasâ means in this context. But, itâs hard to imagine “turn on gas” coming from anyone already in the tunnels. OTOH, the other messages to the Oath Keeper leader, detailing where lawmakers were, came either from a member of Congress, or from staff to a member of Congress.
We should also understand that to the FBI, “unspecified” doesnât mean “unknown”. With all the domestic communication that NSA gathers, we are certain to learn who sent these messages.
It will take further investigating to develop a detailed timeline annotated with the messages from/between members of the administration, members of Congress and the coup plotters. There are two possible outcomes they were likely driving toward:
Hostages held in exchange for the Joint Session voting either to adjourn without a decision on the Electoral Votes, or voting to make Trump president again.
They kill many, enabling Trump to invoke the Insurrection Act, which he uses then to remain in power indefinitely.
Would either have worked? Thankfully for our democracy, Trump & Co. were seemingly unable even to plan a one-car funeral.
Time to wake up America! There is nothing to be gained by fast-tracking the impeachment trial. Thereâs information that still needs to be gathered. We should wait and see what the FBI unearths.
To help you wake up, listen to the Etta James song âI’d Rather Go Blindâ. It was first recorded by Etta James in 1967, and itâs played here live by Joe Bonamassa and Beth Hart in Amsterdam in 2103:
As you watch this, for a few minutes, there is no pandemic, there was no coup riot. Youâre transcending the red/blue divide. You feel happy.
âOf more than 140 charged so far, a review of military records, social media accounts, court documents and news reports indicate at least 27 of those charged, or nearly 20%, have served or are currently serving in the U.S. military.â
Putting that number in perspective, only about 7% of American adults are military veterans.
A senior defense official told NPR subsequent to Jan. 6 that last year, there were 68 notifications of investigations by the FBI of former and current military members pertaining to domestic extremism.
According to a 2019 survey conducted by the Military Times and Syracuse University, one third of troops said they personally witnessed examples of white nationalism or ideological-driven racism within the ranks, including:
â…swastikas being drawn on service membersâ cars, tattoos affiliated with white supremacist groups, stickers supporting the Ku Klux Klan and Nazi-style salutes between individuals.â
This means the top brass largely tolerates this behavior. And it isnât new, weâve known for years that the US military officer corps leans Republican, and its younger, more recent veterans, even more so.
The demographics of the military has changed since we started the all-volunteer military in 1973. It skews southern, western and rural, all conservative-leaning parts of America. One study at the National Interest shows that over the last generation, the percentage of officers that identify themselves as politically independent has gone from a plurality (46%) to a minority (27%). The percentage that identify themselves as Republican has nearly doubled (from 33% to 64%).
This isnât to equate Republicans with White supremacy, but the trend and recent events are the best reason to end our all-volunteer military. A military draft with NO exceptions would go a long way toward making military service more egalitarian and politically balanced. On to cartoons.
Lenticular clouds over the Presidential Range, Bretton Woods, NH – 2021 photo by Benjamin Williamson Photography. Thatâs Mt. Washington in the center.
Bidenâs inauguration was wonderful TV viewing. Wrongo has watched every inaugural from JFK to Biden, and this one was the most satisfying. Maybe because its virtual nature meant that we were able to see many small moments of joy and artistry. Or maybe, it was just because the VIP seats were at home. Sara Jacobs, (D-CA) is a new member of Congress. She posted on Instagram:
“Iâve been in Congress for three Wednesdays. The first, an insurrection, the second, an impeachment, and the third, an inauguration. Letâs hope next Wednesday is as inspiring as this one.â
Couldnât agree more. Bidenâs speech was a worthy effort, hitting the right tone, and many key points. He pushed back pretty hard on lies and disinformation and assault on our democracy and institutions.
The real stars of the inauguration were others. Amanda Gorman, the young Black poet, gave all of us hope that the kids are alright. Lady Gagaâs voice was/is stunning. Wrongo really enjoyed John Legend singing Nina Simoneâs arrangement of âFeeling Goodâ from 1965âs âRoar of the Grease Paint, Smell of the Crowdâ.
The Ant Clemons/Justin Timberlake âBetter Daysâ performance in and outside of the Stax museum in Memphis, TN was uplifting. Demi Lovato, who weâve featured in the past, did Bill Withersâ âLovely Dayâ as an upbeat Zoom performance with health care workers. The closing âFireworkâ by Katy Perry, led to this image of the First Couple:
What moved you on Wednesday?
Nielsen reported that the Biden inaugural had more viewers than Trumpâs in 2017. According to Nielsen, 39.87 million people watched the half-hour swearing-in ceremony over the nationâs six major TV-news outlets, compared with 38.35 million viewers for the 2017 event.
But back to reality: Itâs going to be game on next Monday, as the House will transmit Articles of Impeachment to the Senate. The Right-wing knives will be back out, as before. They will say that Biden really isnât interested in unity. Can Schumer get 17 Republican votes to convict Trump? Weâll see.
Convicting Trump will happen if the pro-democracy wing of the Republican Party is larger than we think. The other side is the Sedition Caucus, led by Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Josh Hawley (R-MO), but it contains many, many others.
Senate Republicans now have to deal with their Florida retiree. This is precisely why so many Republicans have jumped on the bandwagon for âunityâ. Theyâre saying: âPlease donât force us to make impossible choices!â Some Republican Senators are saying that their party cannot convict Trump and survive. They may be correct. If Mitch McConnell (R-KY), votes to convict Trump, there will be an effort to remove McConnell as Leader of the (now) Republican Minority.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) said this week that: (brackets by Wrongo)
â…any Republican-leader type who embraces [conviction] is doing a lot of damage to the Party….Thereâs no way to be a successful Republican Party without having President Trump working with all of us and all of us working with him…â
That says it all: Their arguments have nothing to do with Trumpâs guilt, innocence, or suitability for future office. They are solely political. Theyâre saying that it is impossible for the Republican Party to be a contender for power if they canât keep most of Trumpâs loyal followers inside the Party.
Impeachment or not, thereâs a fight coming in the Republican Party. As Jonathan Last says, itâs a fight between the Sedition Caucus, and those Republicans who try to pretend that the last four years never happened. Sadly, in any fight between true believers and those willing to face reality, the true believers usually have the edge.
It is in Americaâs best interest that the Sedition Caucus lose, whoever their opponents are.
But on this Saturday, we feel that a weight has been lifted from the backs of Americans. We have a window through which we perceive that something good may happen. So take a break. Sit back, and listen to Tim McGraw and Tyler Hubbard perform their song of unity, âUndividedâ, that we saw on Celebration America. Hereâs the studio version:
Lyrics:
I think it’s time to come together
You and I can make a change
Maybe we can make a difference
Make the world a better place
Look around and love somebody
We’ve been hateful long enough
Let the Good Lord reunite us
‘Til this country that we love’s
Undivided
