TygrBright
TygrBright's JournalWhy I Want [Redacted] to Finish a Full Term Through 2020
Here's why; it's simple.
There is NO, repeat NO established Constitutional or legal method for bypassing the line of succession established by the Constitution itself, and the Presidential Succession Act which was last amended in 1947. Read up on it, it's all very interesting. But the point is, there is a line of succession, it's written into law, and there is no way to bypass it.
So, if >>Redacted<< gets his ass impeached prior to January of 2021, here's what happens:
Pence becomes President. Pence scares me even more than >>Redacted<< because Pence KNOWS what he wants: The Rapture, and he KNOWS how to make it happen.
Okay, let's say we find Pence's hand up the Matryushka dolly too, and he's out. Here's what happens:
Paul Ryan becomes President. You want that? Srsly? Because I don't. OK, let's say he's out for some reason, probably involving orange jumpsuits. Then what happens?
Orrin Hatch becomes President. Are you cool with that? You don't know Orrin very well, do you? Alrighty, let's say he croaks before being sworn in. Could happen, he's a mean old cuss. Who's next?
Rex Tillerson becomes President. Fer realz. And may anything divine that happens to have a sense of mercy protect us. Let's say Rex decides he just wouldn't have enough time to spend with his family, and he passes. Who do we get?
Steve Mnuchin. No comment.
And then we'd get James "Mad Dog" Mattis. Or (in definitely descending order) JeffyBeau Sessions, or Ryan Zinke.
Now, if ANY of these individuals succeeded >>Redacted<< they would have the option of nominating a Veeper of their own, just as Ford nominated.... anyone remember? Anyone?
Nelson Rockefeller, that red-hot flaming radical leftist socialist liberal.
Well, by today's GOP standards, anyway.
Any odds on whether one of these pricks would nominate someone who's already on the Administrative staff? Ivanka? Bannon? Priebus?
Or even one of the nutjobs from the HFC?
Or someone else Uncle Vladdy suggests?
So, I don't see ANY good paths, post->>Redacted<<-removal.
I want his bloated cheesy posterior glued to that chair behind the Resolute desk for FOUR WHOLE YEARS, suffering humiliations galore.
While Americans vote out GOP state legislatures, and turn as many Gooberships as possible over to Democrats.
While Senate Democrats form a solid bloc devoted to preventing as much damage as possible.
While the GOP eats itself in a bloody, messy, terrifying spectacle.
While America elects a Democratic House Majority in 2018, with the mandate of fixing campaign financing, fixing electoral gerrymandering, and fixing voter suppression.
While the Democratic Party listens to voters and comes up with a strategy to unify behind a strong candidate for the 2020 election.
So, no.
I'm not in favor of impeachment and removal.
And that's why.
informatively,
Bright
Dear JeffyBeau: Where's the rest of it?
Our distinguished Attorney General and laid-off Keebler Elf, The Hon. Jefferson Beauregard Sessions, hereinafter "JeffyBeau," for brevity, Got Real Tough on America's cities today.
It's all about Enforcing the LAW, doncha know.
To make Americans SAFE.
From Terrible, Horrible, Awful, Violent People.
And to be sure that America's Cities know it's their JOB to keep people safe, JeffyBeau sez this:
"Y'all ENFORCE the laws, and y'all COOPERATE with Federal Law Enforcement to keep folks safe, or NO MORE DOJ GRANT SUGAR FOR YOU!"
Oh, wait.
Just a minute, that's not *precisely* what he said.
Let's say, he made a good START on saying that.
But it was way, way more limited.
He didn't include a few things.
Like, um... racially or religiously motivated hate crimes covered by Federal statutes.
Or, um... violations of the Federal Violence Against Women Act.
Or, hmmmm, lessee... not even various RICO-related crimes that involve violence tied to organized crime and gangs.
So apparently, the only kind of Terrible, Horrible, Awful, Violent People JeffyBeau is concerned about are the Bad Hombres that commit a teeny-tiny minority of violent crimes in America's Cities.
But that teeny-tiny minority is enough to cut off their DOJ Grant largesse. And maybe even claw back previous crime-fighting money from the DOJ.
JeffyBeau, honey, do y'all mind a little friendly advice?
Just sayin' here... You are the folksy lawyer-type and all, and I'm merely one of those Democrat Lefty Libtard Obstructionist Observers, but all the same, here's how it 'pears to me:
Remember the grounds on which various Federal Court Judges enjoined against enforcement of the Muslim Ban 1.0 and the New Improved Muslim Ban 2.0?
That they picked on a particular class of people? Denying due process based on factors that could just possibly be construed as discriminatory?
Well, JeffyBeau darlin'... I can pretty much GUARANTEE you that right now, even as I'm typing this, there are some mighty slick, well-funded attorneys, on retainer for some of America's biggest cities, putting together a helluva case to show how, if DOJ is going to say it's okay to pull out the sugar for them not co-operating with ICE, y'all better be ready to put the same kind of muscle behind cooperation with Federal enforcement of ALL KINDS of violent crime related to Federal Statutes.
Including, like, the far more common kinds, like, you know: Violence against women. Hate Crimes. Stuff like that.
Of course, to prove you're serious about all that, the DOJ better show a proportional enthusiasm for getting local law enforcement cooperation in pursuing THOSE nasty, bad, violent criminals.
Of which, there are a WHOLE LOT MORE.
Numerically speaking, as it were. And proportionally, too.
So, JeffyBeau, when do we get the rest of it?
I'm waiting.... ::taps foot::
::looks at watch::
Waiting...
impatiently,
Bright
If You Can't Be a Good Example, You May Be an Awful Warning...
What a delicious, delightful, de-lovely day it has been (with thanks to Cole Porter)!
Watching >>Redacted<< and Paul Ryan simultaneously flopsplaining the AHCA fail from opposite ends of Pennsylvania Avenue was a much-appreciated moment of fulfilling schadenfreude for so many of us, and surely there will be many, many more.
In fact, if these three contributions to the Great AHCA Autopsy have any validity (and I suspect they have considerable) the hits will just keep on coming:
Republicans Land a Punch on Health Care, to Their Own Face - NYT
Inside the GOP's Health Care Debacle - Politico
9 Strategic Mistakes President >>Redacted<< and Republicans Made on Health Care - Time.com
All three articles offer some interesting and unique analysis, but they also have one strong analytical point in common, which is simply that for all the bill's manifold flaws, and for all the current Administration's bumbling ineptitude, and for all Ryan's unpopularity and weaselly manipulations, the thing that really saved Americans from losing their health insurance and access to care was the House Freedom Caucus:
"Since the Tea Party wave of 2010 that swept House Republicans into power, a raucous, intransigent and loosely aligned group of lawmakers — most from heavily Republican districts — have usually ended up landing a punch to their own party’s face." - Jennifer Steinhauer, NYT
"But by and large, Trump's first attempt to corral the Republican-controlled Congress—and particularly the Freedom Caucus, a rambunctious, ideologically charged collection of GOP legislators who have long refused to fall in line behind the party's leadership—failed miserably." - Tim Alberta, Politico
"Freedom Caucus members were goaded on... The Freedom Caucus had notched one victory. It was time for another. And another. And another. But they were not officially signing on as supporters, and every shift rightward made it more difficult for lawmakers from swing districts or from moderate ideological backgrounds to acquiesce." Philip Elliot, Time.com
Paul Ryan's flopsplaination this afternoon contained a rare moment of honesty:
"Ryan said he was aware of the problem during a 10-minute session with reporters where he accepted blame for the failure. He repeatedly said his caucus was used to functioning as "an opposition party" looking to move into a governing one. “We weren’t just quite there today. We will get there,” Ryan said." - Time.com
Give the devil his due- as Speaker, it's a Party Leader's privilege to give the diagnosis and use the royal "we" in copping to the flaws that accompany it. But I'm betting that he was looking at HFC members when he delivered that line. Or if not looking at them, silently making a bitter roll call.
Of course, it's easy enough to look at the banner carriers of Conservative Ideological Purity as only half of the GOP's problem. At some point during the wild ride, I carried away a journalist's observation that "Ryan's only got two problems: Republican moderates and the Freedom Caucus."
And I thought to myself, "Is there a middle ground between GOPpies who can be reasonably identified as "moderates" (mostly pragmatists from swing districts, I suspect, rather than true ideological moderates,) and the Freedom Caucus? And if so, how big is it?"
Either not big enough, or not assertive enough, to pull the outliers from the middle and the far right back into the fold when the chips are down and the politics really matter. Given something better to work with in terms of policy (these three and many more articles have pointed out that the bill itself offered woefully inadequate policy foundations for the scope and impact to which it aspired) the occupants of such a theoretical middle ground might have been able to pull in enough support. But when politics is all they got, the GOP apparently has no remaining center of gravity.
Hopefully that is the key difference we can rely upon, when the GOP has finally gnawed itself into oblivion and the Democrats are given another chance at Legislative control in either House. We have our own ideological purists whose lessons learned from painful time in the wilderness may well be very similar to the Tea Party-inspired HFC.
When that happens, it will be incumbent on the Democrats in our middle ground between the moderate centrists and whatever we're calling our ideological banner carriers (be it "far left" or "real progressive" or any other form of True Scotsman) to exercise our Party's clear superiority in crafting solid policy to underpin politically fraught legislation. And then to act as a strong center of gravity to bring in enough support.
It will help enormously if Democratic voters study the Awful Warning provided so vividly these past eighteen days.
thoughtfully,
Bright
Watching [Redacted] and Ryan simultaneously flopsplaining AHCA: Priceless.
Short summary:
>>Redacted<<: "Democrats' fault. What AHCA? TAX REFORM! BIGLY YUGE TAX REFORM!!!"
Ryan: "Governing is HARD."
That is all.
deliriously,
Bright
Quick Checklist of [Redacted] and his Administration's YUGE Accomplishments So Far!
Stuff He PROMISED TO DO:
Suspend the TPP: DONE! (Needs more coverage. Big celebration. Parties. Fake media trying to downplay this INCREDIBLY MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENT!)
Build a Wall: IN PROGRESS-ISH (Taking bids. Lots of bids. Specs already done, though: Gotta look nice on our side and be hard to climb and something else, can't remember, but, you know... it'll be tremendous.)
Make Mexico Pay for Wall: Not so much
Repeal Obamacare: Not so much
Ban Muslims: IN PROGRESS-ISH (We did TWO Muslim bans. So-called "Judiciary Branch" obstructing. Bad.)
Protect Medicaid, Medicare, Social Security: Not so much (Budget things. Complicated. Don't worry, you'll love not having these when you see the YUGE tax cuts you'll get.)
Make NATO Allies Pay Their Share: Not so much
Implement Amazing Total ISIS-Defeating Plan in 30 Days: Not so much
Take No Salary: IN PROGRESS-ISH (Bookkeeping, you know? So, yeah, have to take the checks, but will totally donate "profits" at the end of the year. To, um... someone.)
Appoint Special Prosecutor to Investigate Hillary: Just don't say those words. Don't. Just... don't.
Massive Infrastructure Investment: Not so much
Renegotiate the Terrible, Horrible Iran Deal: Not so much
A whole lot more: Not so much
Stuff Presidents Sorta Have To Do Because It's the JOB:
Appoint a Cabinet: Almost there! Almost!
Appoint 500 or so Other Senior Officials: Not so much
Ensure That No Possible Credible Appearance of Conflicts of Interest can Undermine Credibility: Not so much
Articulate a Coherent Foreign Policy: Not so much unless "America First!" counts as a "foreign policy."
Develop a Budget that Identifies Administration's Priorities for Congress: Done!
Engage Foreign Leaders on a Basis of Mutual Respect: ummm... let's take a "partial" on this
Build a Strong, Effective, Collegial Staff: ditto on the... well... Not so much
Build Credible, Trustworthy Lines of Communication With the Media and the American People: Twitter counts, right? Right? It does! It SHOULD! You NEVER see Fake News on TWITTER!
Build an Effective Relationship With Legislative and Judiciary Branches: Take a "partial" on this, too?
Stuff He Didn't PROMISE TO DO:
Lie About Intell Services of America's Closest Ally: DONE!
Get Embroiled in Major Criminal Investigation Involving Foreign Election Meddling: DONE!
Make Buttloads of Cash on Name-related Patents and Business Deals: DONE!
Golf a Shitload: IN PROGRESS
Advertise Golf Courses: IN PROGRESS
Go ahead and add your own contribtutions to the list of YUGE ACCOMPLISHMENTS!
proudly,
Bright
Humpday Clusterf**k Roundup: March 22 "AHCA" Edition
Today's Clusterf**k Highlight"Obamacare Repeal/Replace" aka "Affordable Health Care Annihilation" or AHCA
The story so far:
A signature campaign promise, there was SO much support for this among GOPpies in general and Trumpettes in particular that the policy geniuses (genii?) at the White House put it number two (how shatteringly appropriate!) on their "to do" list, right after kicking out the Muslims. Seemed like an easy gimme, with majorities in both houses and six years' work behind the scenes to craft the perfect solution.
So far behind the scenes that, when the time came, no one could find the draft to dust off and send over, so they can run it against the checklist of promises like "you can keep your doctor," "everyone will be covered," "Prescription drugs will be way cheaper," "no more mandate," "no Medicaid for all the undeserving people," "lower cost," and "reduce the deficit," and then add a few tax breaks for the big donors. Before holding the grand unveiling of the Perfect Solution to the Apocalyptic Disaster of Obamacare to universal hosannas and sending back to Congress to pass in a unanimous party-line vote.
Which meant they had to cobble something together from scratch, pulling together all the expert resources on health care, insurance, medicaid, healthcare economics, technology, budget management, state-by-state Obamacare implementation status, and so on and on and on. Fortunately when you have control of the Executive Branch which supplies leadership to all the various departments and functions of government, you can do that in jiggety time. Assuming you've filled all the leadership appointments with people who thoroughly understand and are ready to work with, motivate, and inspire cooperation from their departments.
Oops. So, here we go: Toss the ball to Ryan.
Got it, sir. No problem.
Someone here must remember where we stored all that careful work we were doing for the last six years on a better alternative to the civilization-destroying Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, aka "ACA", aka "Obamacare." Anybody? Darryl, did you check the closet in your scheduler's office? No?
Dayum. Well, we all know what's wrong with the hellmaw that is Obamacare, and we have this list of campaign promises, we can pull an all-nighter or two and crash out something, right? Someone get Tom Price on speed dial, and Trey, you order the pizza.
Okay, everyone, here we are, ready to craft the perfect replacement for the Nightmare that is the ACA, and here's the list: Has to drop the mandate, we can't force people to participate in the risk pool, right? UnAmerican, that. And it has to be cheaper for the people who DO participate. Somehow. And they have to be able to stick with their doctors... and it has to cost less... and...
Close that door, kick out the press. We'll get back to you.
Sure we can get this done in the first hundred days, no problem, Your Orangitude. Got the interns in there typing now.
SPICEY! Get over here. Haul out the props table. Here's the deal-- we did it, and it's SMALLER!
No, not "the biggest", that's a BAD thing here. Smaller, right? Get it?
Everybody loves it. Promise. His Orangitude's hardly gonna be able to walk for all the roses they're gonna throw. Seriously.
But we gotta get it through FAST, before too many town halls happen. Fast, you hear?
Steve? You got something HELPFUL to add?
Yeah, I know we all complained bitterly about how Obama rushed everything through in a mere four months, this is NOT HELPFUL, Steve, shut up and sit down.
At least we have a stack of paper.
It's got a GREAT name, it's got "America" in the name. THEIR bill didn't have "America" in the name.
F**k the CBO, they're a bunch of liberal shills, we all know that.
No, Frank, you may NOT mention who nominated Keith Hall, sit down and shut up.
How many of the campaign promises does it keep... A couple... well, one at least... The TAX CREDITS! Look at the TAX CREDITS! This is miles better than the rending maelstrom of horror that is Obamacare.
And if you weenie Freedom Caucus snowflakes can't handle a few town halls, just lock yourselves in your offices until the vote. Turn off the phones. Whaddaya mean, Alex Jones knows your "secret number?"
We have ONE HUNDRED PERCENT CONFIDENCE that this bill will pass. Tomorrow.
Because no one would DARE vote against it, and risk the wrath of a President with a massive 37% approval rating.
And access to all of Uncle Vladdy's kompromat files.
Happy Humpday Clusterf**k, everyone!
speculatively,
Bright
My 2017 Letter to 1967 Me
Dear Bright,
Memorial Day is just a couple of months away. Young men are being drafted and sent to Southeast Asia to die as cannon fodder for a foreign policy you believe is stupid, counterproductive, and cruel. You're going to join a small-town Memorial Day parade, wearing raggy clothes and carrying a big black flag, as your own way of protesting against the spit-and-polish my-country-right-or-wrong jingoism that supports the deaths of those young Americans.
I wish I could tell you that you spark a movement, or even just that you will make people think, that the Adults in Charge look at you and say to themselves "If we are losing the support of our youth, the future and conscience of our nation, we must be doing this wrong."
I can't. They won't.
They will call your parents. Who will tell them politely that the First Amendment is an important thing here in America. You'd never admit it to them, of course. But you know your parents aren't Adults in Charge, they're Real Grownups. They don't really belong in that small town, either. (Don't worry, you'll all get out. Hang in there.)
This, and a good many more things- things you'll see on television, read in the news, hear from others, and experience personally- will convince you that pretty much all adults are Adults in Charge- comfortable hypocrites who will callously let others suffer and die rather than make any changes to Business As Usual. That they can't be trusted. That as age accumulates, so does denial, selfishness and cowardice.
Here's some of the things they'll say that will make you snort with angry contempt:
"You're not seeing the larger, longer view."
"Change takes time."
"Compromise is a good thing."
"Half a loaf is a good start."
"Anger and extremism will defeat your own ends."
Because right now, in the coming decade or so, you will know, from your vantage point secure on the moral high ground, that you are correct, and that the fight for justice, human rights, an earth that will support life, a sustainable economy for everyone- is the fight. No delays or compromises can or should be tolerated. And anyone who says otherwise has sold out. Been co-opted. Become Part of the Problem.
You're not alone, and over the next ten years, this commitment, energy and conviction from you and thousands of other young people will power some amazing and historic accomplishments.
And then the backlash will come. Won't tell you too much about it. You're going to study history, so you'll recognize how it works. That won't make it any less painful and discouraging. It'll be hard to see past the reverse tide, as the same Adults in Charge who ignored you on Memorial Day push back, undo, and mobilize comfortable indifference and self-interest behind the inertia of Business as Usual.
But here's the thing, Young Me: In spite of that rollback, a lot of important changes will not be undone. They won't be the big, complete, dramatic changes you want, the ones you're fighting for. They'll be smaller things. Incremental things. Compromises. They wouldn't have happened without your energy, and even though they weren't enough for you and they paled beside the dazzling possibilities of the great leaps of progress you want- they endured.
And here's the other thing: Even though a lot of the young people around you right now will get absorbed in their own lives and their personal aspirations for success and security, and some will get lost in their own dramas and excesses, some won't.
Some will keep that youthful passion for justice, human rights, an earth that will support life, a sustainable economy for everyone. And hard experiences, self-discipline, and the assumption of responsibility and integrity will temper them into leaders of principle. Not Adults in Charge, but Real Grownups. They'll learn to listen to the fear behind the anger, and reach out effectively to those who disagree with them.
They'll learn the power and value of delaying a grand leap to secure an unspectacular step forward. They'll learn the difficult and important craft of compromise without sacrificing integrity. They'll grasp the powerful secret: The more credit you assign to others for the slow and difficult steps, the surer you make the achievement of the objective.
Try to be one of them, 1967 Me.
Try really hard.
lovingly,
2017 Bright
The Perez/Ellison DNC Leadership Team- Prospects?
It's already starting.
The attempts to drive a spoke between the newly-elected DNC Chair and his promptly-selected deputy. Wikileaks has revived the tired old Perez/Podesta Doing-the-Dirty-on-Sanders email kerfuffle. Various more-in-sorrow-than-anger voices are raised from those identifying themselves as "true Progressives" lamenting the demise of all hope for the future of the Party. Predicting everything from a Wall Street takeover of the Party (really? Why would they? Don't they have everything they've ever wanted and more in the DicktaterTot's Administration already?) to an "elitist" coup that will leave the Party solidly in the hands of a feeble and malign "establishment."
Well, that was inevitable.
The headline hype and social media augmentation breathlessly painting a "battle for the soul of the Democratic Party" and inflating speculation about primary rehashing and factional squabbles potentially bringing about Democratmaggedon have ricocheted through the media for days.
Instead, we end up with something that could, when the adrenaline dissipates and most of the media moves on to other topics, be regarded as a best-case scenario.
If (and I'm not denying it's a fairly chunky "if"
Tom and Keith can put aside the campaign rhetoric and work out a team strategy, we could have a hella powerful engine under the hood, finally. These are both experienced leaders, and their strengths complement each others' deficits and blind spots nicely.
Potentially, we have it all, now: Cool calculation and passionate drive. Populism and pragmatism. Insider knowledge and outsider inspiration.
Knowing Keith very slightly from back when I lived in the Twin Cities, I think that tonight, he might be feeling just a teeny-tiny smidgeon of relief. As a sitting Congresscritter, his plate was already full as it could hold. But his commitment to bringing youth, diversity, and progressive ideals into the process made him a great potential Chair. He's still needed, though, as an African American, a Muslim, and a solid progressive voice, in the House.
It must have been quite a quandary for him, when it looked close. Keith is not the kind of guy who can look himself in the mirror comfortably if he thinks he's not putting one hundred percent-plus into his commitments.
And I imagine Tom's a bit hopeful and relieved as well, with Keith's prompt and cordial acceptance of the Deputy role. Because Keith's got the street cred, the drive, and the lightning-rod quality that Tom has never worked into his own leadership style. And in his own way, Tom is a straight-up kinda guy, who doesn't pretend to be what he isn't.
If it weren't for one thing, I'd be dancing for joy at this outcome, and sending a "thank you" email to every single national committee member.
But the one thing is a big one:
There are some folks who are quite anxious for this partnership to fail, and who will be doing everything they can to bring that failure about.
Some of them are flat-out opponents from the GOP and the right, working under cover within our ranks to submarine any vestige of efficacy in the Party. They disguise themselves as centrist concern trolls, 'true Progressives' on the far Left, disgruntled primary survivors still certain that enough blame and shame will 'turn the Party in the right direction.' (Which, from their standpoint, is no direction at all, a never-ending circular firing squad.)
Some of them have nothing to do with the GOP or the right, and they're not under any kind of 'cover' at all. They sincerely believe that their perspective and ONLY their perspective is the right direction for the Party and if everyone else doesn't see it, the only thing to do is keep throwing sand in the gears and trying to stop the machine to MAKE EVERYONE LISTEN TO THEM because THEY HAVE THE ONLY ANSWER! History proves it! Nothing else has ever worked! Everything they disagree with- business as usual, the horrible results of the last election, everything that's gone wrong is ALL BECAUSE WE WON'T DO IT THEIR WAY! They're sincere. They want the Democrats to be good and strong and true and potent in behalf of the American People.
Bless their hearts.
They've always been with us. I've spent some time in those ranks, myself. We need them, because in fact, a lot of the things they push for are the things we do need to be doing.
Just, maybe, not as fast or as thoroughly or with as much disregard for other points of view and/or the pragmatic realities of politics in America as they would like.
And then, there's the opposite numbers: The ones who believe Money Buys Anything. The ones who really do have nothing but contempt for idealism and passion, other than as exploitable tools to be used and discarded. And the ones (yes, even we Democrats have a few of these) who believe All Change is Bad, and will do whatever it takes to throw sand in the gears and stop the machine to keep things from moving into scary new territory.
We have all of those.
And they're all of them quite vulnerable to manipulation-- by that first group of undercover fifth-columnists, and by the larger cadre of opinion, exhortation, analysis, and more from special interests, pundits, etcetera.
So it comes down to this: Are there enough of us who are determined to make the Democratic Party a true Big Tent for Americans from a broad spectrum of policy, issue, and ideological standpoints, to keep the bus on the road while the passengers work out compromises and disagreements and agendas from all our various perspectives?
Having been to a Congressional Town Hall today, and a Party Ward meeting last week, I think there's a distinct possibility there is.
And that this new leadership team, if we'll work with them and allow them to work with us, could be amazingly effective.
What think you, Democrats?
interestedly,
Bright
Just Back From Congressional Town Hall. The Dragon is Awake.
Back in the mists of time, I occasionally helped to organize Congressional Town Halls for the late, great Bruce Vento. So I knew the drill, I thought.
And knowing that a venue is generally selected based on the turnout for the previous Town Hall in that area, I figured it would be smart to arrive early, because there'd certainly be a bigger turnout this time. But, here in cobalt-blue Santa Fe, on a sunny but cold and windy Saturday morning, I estimated it wouldn't be that MUCH bigger. Ben Ray Lujan's popular here, he's more or less doing what a good Democrat should do at the moment, and the meeting was located right in our neighborhood.
Which, as I mentioned last week, is the smallest Ward in the County, and while not exactly inaccessible, it's off the beaten track. And there's another Town Hall scheduled for this afternoon in Rio Rancho (a formerly small town which has become a largish northern suburb of Albuquerque), at the High School auditorium, so I figured most people would be going there.
Rather than the community room of the South Side Boys and Girls Club, a few blocks from where we live.
We could have walked, but as previously mentioned, it's cold and windy this morning, and the Esposo and I are both at the tail end of URIs, so we decided to drive, and timed ourselves to get there 20 minutes early.
We could see from a block away that the Boys & Girls Club parking area was already full, the street parking was filling up, and a line was already forming outside the main entrance to the building. "Good thing we got here early" we told each other.
The parking area across from the Boys and Girls Club, which serves a small office building of businesses mostly not open on Saturday, was almost empty, so we decided to park there, pulling in behind two or three other cars that had the same idea. As we pulled into our spot, another car pulled up beside us. As we got out of our car, a woman got out of the car we'd pulled in next to. "Is it over there?" she asked, waving toward the Club building.
Guess she's not from around here, I thought. And sure enough, as we started walking toward the venue together, she mentioned she was from the other end of Santa Fe. We chatted as we circled the block to go around to the main entrance of the Club building.
A steady stream of people was joining us.
The library parking lot, across the street, was full. People were streaming toward the Club building from there, too.
By the time we reached the line, it was a good half-block long, and there were people in knots and groups up near the entrance.
We began to suspect they wouldn't have room for us all.
I know the Boys and Girls Club facility, the largest space they have would comfortably accommodate maybe 40-50 people in theater-style seating, and if they reeeeeeally squeezed, they could possibly get right up to the Fire Marshall's maximum of 80 for the space.
There were more than that in line as we joined it.
Everyone was cheerful, chatting, exchanging "have you heard about...?" and showing off their signs. As we stood in line some people began coming back from the building entrance. "They're full," they told us. "They can't let anyone else in, but they'll broadcast it out the window. And they say it's really important for everyone to at least get to the entrance and sign up at the sign-in sheets, so they'll get a bigger venue for the next one."
So we stayed in line.
So did everyone else.
More people were joining the line.
I caught sight of a guy with a Santa Fe New Mexican press ID on a lanyard, standing in the basketball court, taking a photo of the venue and the line.
The line moved slowly. A few people, having signed up, trickled back out. A few stayed, up by the windows and around the picnic tables, chatting.
We decided, given the cold and the wind, we'd sign in and trickle back out ourselves. They were saying the video would be posted on the Representative's website tomorrow or Monday, we could catch up with it there.
People were still arriving, when we finally reached the sign up table. There were stacks of filled-out sign-in sheets, one of the organizers was putting them in a folder. They had three clipboards going. I signed us up (the Esposo's handwriting is unreadable.)
We smiled and greeted a few neighbors, and began working our way back along the line, passing on the info about "stay in line and sign in, please" and the broadcast out the window.
No one said "aw, fergit it," and walked away from the line then and there.
More people were still working their way toward the venue, through the parking lot, along the street, in a steady stream. Some had signs. Some wore pussyhats.
By the time we got back to where we'd left our car, that parking lot was full. We'd been one of half a dozen or so cars when we left it. There were easily 20-25 cars there, and as we pulled out, someone else pulled into our spot.
As we drove away from the venue, we could see cars circling, looking for parking. The line outside the door was even longer than when we'd arrived, even longer than when we'd walked past it, leaving. People were still converging on foot, along the sidewalks, making for the main entrance.
The Dragon is awake.
I do not think it will be dozing off again soon.
determinedly,
Bright
When the other shoe drops...
That's how someone on Twitter described the feeling on Capitol Hill this weekend: "Waiting for the other shoe to drop."
Most people have heard by now: On Friday, Comey held a tight, closed-door briefing session with members of the U.S. Senate Intelligence Committee. Staff not included. Afterwards, most of the Senators -by then on their way out of town for a long holiday weekend- declined comment.
But ranking Democrat Mark Warner said he had "a high level of confidence" the Committee would have access to the information needed to carry out their investigation.
Late last night, Reuters reported (quoting "five current and former government officials with direct knowledge of the situation," that the FBI is conducting three separate probes related to Russian activity:
- A cybersecurity-focused investigation into the pre-election hacking of the DNC, being conducted by the Bureau's Pittsburgh field office- this investigation has apparently progressed the furthest.
- An operation by the San Francisco field office focused on identifying "Guccifer 2"- the hackers who took credit for posting Clinton campaign manager John Podesta's emails.
- A Washington-based counterintelligence inquiry focusing on foreign communications intercepts and field informants- including (but not limited to) financial transactions conducted through middlemen and front companies, by Russian people and companies with links to >Redacted< associates.
Reuters was unable to obtain comment on this information from the White House, or further on-the-record information from the Bureau to confirm the extent and progress of the investigations.
Intelligence Committee staff, and staff of the Senate committee members, have also denied any knowledge related to Comey's Friday briefing.
>Redacted<, of course, went to Florida to attend a woozy sploogefest of word salad and press-bashing with the local supporters that share his nostalgic jones for campaign-level adulation and excitement. Also job-interview NSA candidates, golf, and schmooze Mar-a-Lago pals.
The White House sent out Reince Priebus for the Sunday morning barbecue rituals, but apart from an ominous response to a query on >Redacted<'s characterization of the press as "enemy of the American people" ("...certainly we would never condone violence" What would you condone, Reince? A little gentle state censorship? Government imposed 'truth standards'?) he merely repeated the same old talking points.
Oh, except for two things: "It never happened" has morphed into "it never happened that I know of" (contact between >Redacted< campaign personnel and Russian Intelligence) and the assertion that Pence WAS aware of the internal probe into Flynn's trustworthiness PRIOR to February 9th. Your turn under the bus, Mikey.
And that's where things stand, as of now.
I expect we'll start seeing more cracks sometime tomorrow. Watch for damage-control trial balloons, and perhaps a major distraction or two from >Redacted< himself, tomorrow or Tuesday.
Then, mid-week, the wheels will start to come off. Probably in slow motion. I don't think it will be a big dramatic explosion. More like a series of cracks, the rushing of water coming in, gathering slowly to a thunderous crescendo over the next few weeks. With a side of noisy, attention-deflecting distractions.
And I think that's deliberate.
For all the anticipatory glee about a really big blow to the clown krewe jammed into the front seat of the Executive Branch bus, no one who's really thought it through wants to see a big smash that would render one third of the mechanism of government (as opposed to policy and leadership) non-functional. There will be plenty of behind-the-scenes negotiations and bureaucratic bunfights about how to keep things running in the mean time.
They'll come up with compromises. We may end up with
President Pence. Or not. There may be some off-camera reshuffling, leverage applied, that will leave >Redacted< with a Potemkin Presidency, while a new team of Executive staff managers and Cabinet-level appointees keep cranking from behind the scenes.
And, although we may be able to rejoice in the departure of some of the more egregious neo-nazis and incompetent kleptocrats, the end result will be less than the apocalyptic, Wagnerian comeuppance many of us passionately desire to see visited upon >Redacted<.
Because it will have to be. And that will, in the long run, be a good thing.
We need every hour of every day of the next forty-eight months to rub GOP noses in the mess and pull together a viable clean-up crew.
speculatively,
Bright
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