Blog Betty (Thomas Friedman is a Great Man was an online novel)

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

The Supreme Court just gets more crooked

I hope you read Mike's "You've met Crooked Clarence, have you been introduced to Nasty Neil?" last night because Crooked Clarence is only one unethical piece of garbage on the Supreme Court. Crooked Clarence does need to step down. And we can't move forward on that until Senator Dianne Feinstein retires. That needs to happen immediately.

We've just seen that even Chief Justice Roberts does not plan to call for accountability. BLOOMBERG NEWS reports:

Chief Justice John Roberts has refused a request to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, leaving Democrats struggling for their next move over demands for a code of conduct for the Supreme Court.

The request followed a report that Justice Clarence Thomas took undisclosed luxury trips over two decades paid for by a Texas real estate developer who has donated millions to conservative causes.

“He respectfully declines the invitation,” Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin said to reporters at the Capitol Tuesday evening, holding up pieces of paper he said comprised Roberts’s response to the panel.

Durbin made the unusual request that Roberts appear or choose another justice to do so in his place on May 2, saying in a Thursday letter to the chief justice that a “decade-long failure” to act on a high-court code of ethics has fueled “a crisis of public confidence.”

Congressional Democrats are applying pressure on Roberts to act on an ethics code, threatening congressional action if he doesn’t. Still, Republicans who control the House and who can filibuster legislation in the Senate are showing no real interest. Supreme Court justices are the only federal judges not subjected to such a code.

We need all Democrats to be in the Senate right now -- especially those who serve on the Judiciary Committee. But we don't have that because Dianne Feinstein will not get her lazy ass to work. If she's unable to get to work, she needs to retire. Since she's refusing to retire, she must just be lazy. And she's holding the country hostage.

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

Wednesday, April 26, 2023. Threats again of attacks on US service members in Iraq, a US general uses a narrow time frame to try to claim victory (when it's probably weather related), Joe Biden declares he's running for re-election, and much more.

TASNIM NEWS AGENCY types:

Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, an Iraqi resistance group, has announced that it is prepared to expel American forces from Iraq if the United States decides to keep them in the country.

"If Washington insists on not withdrawing its military forces from Iraq, the resistance groups are at the peak of their readiness to expel them from this country's soil," said Kadhim al-Fartousi, the group's spokesperson, in an interview with Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.

You can check the timeline, it's today. It just seems like a rerun because it is. Over and over that threat is made. It's as old as the Iraq War.

Still on Iraq, IRAQI NEWS reports:

The Turkish Foreign Minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, confirmed that his country’s forces will not withdraw from northern Iraq and Syria at present, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.

In an interview, Cavusoglu said that the withdrawal from northern Iraq and northern Syria means the cessation of the Turkish military operations against terrorism and allowing terrorists to get closer to the borders, and this poses a threat to Turkey’s national security.

The Turkish Foreign Minister explained that the Turkish forces will leave a security vacuum if they withdrew from northern Syria, and that national security and border security are very important for Ankara.

A security vacuum? They're violating Iraq's national sovereignty by putting troops on the ground in Iraq and setting up military bases in Iraq. But they think they're the ones in the right? Weeks ago, they attacked a convoy in northern Iraq that included US military personnel. Why? Well as Cavusoglu makes clear later in his remarks, they don't trust the US. Interesting.

Monday, the US State Dept held a press briefing with Major General Matthew McFarlane ("the commanding general of the Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve") that's resulted in a lot of stenography but no reporting and certainly no analysis.

"If you walk away with one thing tonight, I want it to be the progress we have made, our partners have made, and the coalition in support of them, in the campaign against [. . .] ISIS," the general declared and like good stews in the secretarial pool, they all did just that.

He wanted people to know that ISIS holds "no territory." Terrorist groups rarely do. That's not their real motive. Disruption is their motive. The US government -- and lying generals -- still want to play like ISIS taking over Mosul was normal.

He then wanted to lie that ISIS "remains military defeated." What does that even mean, you liar? They're a terrorist organization. As such, they're active or they're inactive. You'd have to be a complete idiot not to grasp that.

There's been a reduction in activity!!!! And everyone ran with that.

He insisted, "Since the beginning of this year in Iraq -- so that's January 1st through the first week of April -- we've seen a -- recorded a 68 percent reduction in attacks when compared to the same period last year."

That's so impressive . . . if you believe any lie you're told.

Ramadan just concluded. Do you know what his narrow period saw with regards to Ramadan?

Fewer pilgrimages.

Why?

The flooding.

What marks the end of fasting (from sunrise to sunset) of Ramadan? Eid al-Fitr.

RUDAW reported on Saturday:

Compared to previous religious and national holidays, the number of tourists visiting the main attraction spots in Erbil province has dropped due to the most recent flash floods and cold weather, according to local authorities.

Heavy rainfall and floods over the past weekend caused serious damage to resorts at Erbil’s tourist attractions and brought traffic to a standstill. As Muslims in the Kurdistan Region celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the number of tourists was lower than expected.

"The number of tourists that have come was not what we predicted due to two key reasons; first, final examinations, second, most recent floods... However, we believe, from after [Eid al-Fitr] the number of tourists will go back to normal as the temperature degrees increase," Laween Jabar, owner of a resort in Soran told Rudaw’s Andam Jabbar.

Hey, here's an idea for the US government: The next time Iraq's hit by a bad sand storm and government offices have to close down, put Major General Matthew McFarlane back before the press the next day so he can claim victory again for a day where ISIS was inactive, take credit for that too.

The press may be that stupid -- or that whorish -- the rest of us aren't.

Yesterday, US President Joe Biden became the third candidate to declare that they were running for the Democratic Party's 2024 presidential nomination. Immediately, Marianne Williamson had comments. Ryan King (WASHINGTON EXAMINER) reports:

Bestselling author and self-help guru Marianne Williamson blasted President Joe Biden's 2024 launch video and warned he can't energize younger voters.

"I think that video was very out of touch, and that's what people are feeling," Williamson told the Hill's Rising. "I think an entire younger generation would stay home in droves in response to what that video is advancing as the administration's pitch to the American people."

Hey, Marianne, what voice in your head told you that? I don't know that I'd be calling anyone else out of touch if I were the candidate whose support evaporated the moment Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared he was also running for the nomination. Disclosure -- and I'm not doing this every day -- I know all three. I know Joe, I know Marianne, I know Robert. If you talk crazy, I'll call you out. I'm not afraid to smack you around. Marianne got off easy in 2019 and got off rough. Easy in that, she was part of a group of women running so we focused on that and, except for psychotic cult member Tulsi Gabbard, the women all got along. Rough in that, when she called for everyone to send positive energy to defeat something (COVID, I don't remember), I thought about whether or not I wanted to write a piece on how positive thinking can be a form of prayer before deciding, "No, I really don't feel like writing something I don't believe in just because she's made a fool of herself."

With a smaller field, Marianne will have even more opportunities to make a fool out of herself. She'll also have more opportunities to shine.

But that would require Marianne learning to speak for Marianne. RFK Jr. will face his own obstacles. But he's speaking for himself. His remarks are authentic to who he is.

Marianne? "I think an entire younger generation . . ."

Are you a younger generation, Marianne? Why don't you speak for yourself or are you not able to? You've got Peter Daou handling your campaign but are you listening to him? You're not making statements that appeal to people. If you want to be a critic, go for it. We can use more. But if you're a candidate, you need to learn to craft those soundbytes better. This one is so bad, it's laughable.

Joe was actually the reason I was going to cover the campaigns today.

Some people just can't turn the offense meter off. I don't like Donald Trump but go back and you will see that when I thought he was being misunderstood over a remark -- willfully or not -- I would weigh in. I did not cover his Tweets. I felt the media was obsessed with his Tweets and ignoring his harmful policies.

But Joe Biden made comments about children. And the offense industry got butt hurt over his comments: "Our nation's children are all our children."

This is nothing controversial but when you're one of those Jonathan Turleys paid to create outrage every fifteen minutes . . .

Joe grew up in a different time when the neighborhood children were everyone's children. The adults watched out for all of them. Equally true, only the most rabid would disagree with Hillary Clinton that it takes a village. Joe's remark was not about stripping anyone of their rights as parents. They were noting that children are our resources, our most treasured resources.

There are many things going on to take actual offense over. As I've said in other election cycles, if we're going to be this stupid, it's going to be a long election cycle.

To drop back to Gen Z Marianne Williamson, I think this is a strategy that will appeal to many. Here's Joe's announcement.

Why do you need to vote for Joe again? The ad makes the argument that there are too many crazies out there (no, Marianne, he doesn't mean you) who are destroying our way of life and our democracy. They think they can overturn established law. They think they can destroy women's reproductive rights -- first with abortion and now with pills. They think they can deny trans care to adults -- or, for that matter, to children whose parents have made the decision that trans care is needed. They think they can attack LGBTQ+ members. They think they can tell us what we can read. They think they can tell us -- grown adults -- how to dress -- don't dress in the opposite gender or they'll arrest you.

And you think, on that last one, that I'm talking about drag queens and kings? I am but I'm talking about more than that as well.

Daniel Villarreal (LGBTQ NATION) reports:

The head of the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) has issued a memorandum telling all employees to dress “in a manner consistent with their biological gender.” The revised dress code would not only force transgender people to present in a way that feels inauthentic, it could also be used to punish cisgender people who wear gender-neutral clothing.

The memo, which experts say violates federal free speech and non-discrimination protections, is just the latest move by Texas Republicans to erase trans identities from the state.

The April 13 memorandum, signed by Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller (R), was entitled “Texas Department of Agriculture Dress Code and Grooming Policy.”

Miller’s two-page memo said that in order to “reflect the culture, dignity, and professionalism of the TDA… All employees are expected to comply with this dress code in a manner consistent with their biological gender.” The memo effectively revises the department’s former dress code, which didn’t mention “biological gender,” The Texas Observer noted.

The new dress code requires employees to wear “traditional business wear, including Western business attire.” This includes button-down shirts for men and skirts or pants for women. The code applies to all work settings that don’t require uniforms or protective gear for agricultural fieldwork.

Ladies, they don't just want to control our reproductive rights, they also want to control what we wear. This is the American Taliban.

If Marianne can't grasp that, she has no business running for office.

Joe's a known quantity. He can't change his brand. He can't pretend to be something he's not. So what he can he do? He can present himself as a voice of sanity who is going to stand with Americans and tell the bullies to back off.

That's what the campaign's going to run on and it's a smart move.

I believe former Senator Claire McCaskill was on Andrea Mitchell's show just yesterday talking about how the "Republican Party is worshiping at the alter of extremism." She is correct.

Now for those who believe I'm trying to steer people away from Marianne to Robert, let's do Robert.

Robert, the American people want to stand behind you. They'll accept your stands on vaccines.

They will not accept you standing with crazy.

There's a reason I'm not endorsing RFK Jr.

I thought I would. Then I saw him too tight with someone.

Tucker?

Mother Tucker was media, I could care less.

But Robert, if you're going to stand with a registered sex offender, a convicted pedophile, you're going to watch your own campaign burn down into flames.

You cannot survive that.

I'm sure some of the wack jobs are lying and telling you that you can.

These same pieces of trash insisted that Scott Ritter -- the registered sex offender and convicted pedophile -- was not going to hurt their DC rally for 'peace.'

But what happened there?

Even the crazies had to back down and disinvite Scott Ritter.

The media's not really paying attention to you, Robert, because they think "anti-vax" is going to take you out. It's not. It's who you are and it's not a surprise to anyone supporting you.

You're standing shoulder-to-shoulder with a registered sex offender?

Robert, that's not a dream of Camelot.

Basic rule of politics, don't stand next to a child molester for a photo op.

You're going to need to stop associating with crazies or you're going to hand your current lead over to Marianne. I'm not joking on this. Scott Ritter is going to run off support and if the media picks up on this relationship and runs with it, it could kill your campaign in a matter of weeks. That's your warning.

Marianne? She doesn't suffer fools who harm what needs to be done. Just the Scott Ritter relationship may be enough for some RFK Jr. supporters to go elsewhere. If so, if Marianne will listen to Peter Daou, she can run a solid campaign.

That's Marianne talking about issues which is what she needs to do if her campaign's going to have any real chance.

Can we talk about John Stauber for a moment. The hate merchant felt the need to reTweet Sean Ono Lennon. Hmm. He loves Sean but he hates Cher.

I'm sorry who actually did something with their life? Right, that would be Cher. Sean Ono Lennon is a 47-year-old man child who never learned self-grooming and he's the definition of a nepo-baby. How many hits did he have? Zero. Cher, by contrast, charted 63 songs in the US. Sean's had zero gold albums and zero platinum albums in the US. Cher? 8 gold albums and 6 platinum (and multi-platinum) albums. Sean has had two albums make it on to BILLBOARD's Top 200 albums (both made it to 153) while Cher's carried 44 albums onto BILLBOARD's Top 200. Both also pursued acting careers. I don't know if you'd consider the episode of BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER or the episode of the original MELROSE PLACE Sean's 'acting high.' But Cher carried three variety series. She made films with Robert Altman, Susan Sarandon, Michelle Pfeiffer, Jack Nicholson, Mike Nichols, Meryl Streep, Winona Ryder, Christina Ricci, Liam Neeson, Norman Jewison, Nicholas Cage, Olympia Dukakis, Sandy Dennis, Karen Black, Kathy Bates, Lily Tomlin, Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Chazz Palminteri, Stanley Tucci, William Friedkin, Peter Yates, Anne Heche, Rita Wilson, Sam Elliott, Laura Dern and Eric Stoltz -- among others. She's been nominated for two BAFTA awards, she's been nominated for six Golden Globes (and won three), won Best Actress at The Cannes Film Festival and been nominated for two Academy Awards (winning Best Actress for MOONSTRUCK). Oh, and she's performed on Broadway.

Cher worked for what she has. Sean? Nepo-baby who will be handed billions when Yoko passes away. He's wasted his life. If that seems harsh, let's compare him to his half-brother Julian. Julian has a million selling album in the US to his credit and a gold one. In all, he took 3 albums onto BILLBOARD's top 200. And he charted six songs in the US. Unlike Sean, Julian didn't grow up with a silver spoon in his mouth. Even so, he leaves behind a musical history. Sean was handed everything -- he even had sleep overs with Michael Jackson -- but now, at the age of 47, he has nothing to show for it.

Naturally, that's who John Stauber elects to celebrate. Why? Because they both hold the same vapid opinion.

I'll celebrate the people who work and not the idle rich who've had everything handed to them and gone on to do nothing with their lives. John Stauber will just go on being pathetic. It's the only card he has left to play. And when -- and if -- Sean ever does anything with his lazy life, I might care what he thinks about Tucker Carlson but right now he's just a spoiled brat who has wasted his life.

Harry Belafonte has passed away. Activist, actor, singer, friend to the world. His life mattered and he gave so much. While fools and liars like Tucker Carlson cheered on the Iraq War, Harry called it out. We'll wind down with this from David Bacon:

HARRY BELAFONTE, PRESENTE!

Harry Belafonte was a true people's hero. He opposed war and racism, and was a friend of revolutionary movements in Cuba and Venezuela. He was a radical activist, in the tradition of Paul Robeson, in whose footsteps he said he walked. In these photographs he came to Oakland on April 15, 2003, for a march and rally against the war in Afghanistan right after it started. He was unafraid to oppose U.S. wars and intervention, a true man of peace.

Harry Belafonte, presente!

Photos © by David Bacon
To see the full set of photos, click here.

WHEN WE SPOKE OUT AGAINST WAR -
Unearthing the history of protest against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
Photographs © by David Bacon
https://www.flickr.com/photos/56646659@N05/52759801492/in/album-72177720306862427/

The following sites updated:

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Crooked Clarence caught lying again

Are any of us surprised that Crooked Clarence is a liar? Shouldn't be. Zoe Tillman (BLOOMBERG NEWS) reports:

Justice Clarence Thomas said he was advised he didn’t have to disclose private jet flights and luxury vacations paid for by billionaire Harlan Crow because, although a close friend, Crow “did not have business before the court.”

But in at least one case, Crow did.

[. . .]

In January 2005, though, the court declined to hear an appeal from an architecture firm that wanted more than $25 million from Trammell Crow Residential Co. for allegedly misusing copyrighted building designs. When the court issued a one-sentence order denying the petition, there were no noted recusals — indicating that Thomas participated — and no noted dissents.

The Crow family had a non-controlling interest in the company at the time, according to a statement to Bloomberg from Harlan Crow’s office. Thomas had already reported a 1997 private flight and high-dollar gifts from Crow, both documented in a December 2004 report from the Los Angeles Times. The justice had described Crow and his wife Kathy as “personal friends.”

Trammell Crow Residential was founded in 1977, part of the real estate empire created by Harlan Crow’s father, Trammell Crow. During the time when the architecture firm’s case was making its way through the courts in the early 2000s, Crow Holdings, a privately owned development and investment firm that manages the Crow family’s capital, held less than a 50% stake in Trammell Crow Residential, and wasn’t involved in its operations, Harlan Crow’s office told Bloomberg.

Crooked Clarence can't tell the truth and we're letting him rule on others? That's outrageous. He's crooked and corrupt. He needs to be off the bench. I'm hearing rumors that Harlan's not Clarence's only sugar daddy. How much embarrassment is the country going to have to endure? He is dragging down the reputation of the Court with each day he remains on the bench. They do get, the powers that be, don't they, that they benefit from us having some semblance of faith in the system, right? They do grasp that Crooked Clarence is destroying whatever faith we had left in the Court. Today, on NPR, they were saying that Senator Ed Markey is calling for Crooked Clarence to resign. In addition, he and Senator Elizabeth Warren were said to be calling for the Court to expand from 9 members to 13.

I will gladly support expanding the Court.

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

Tuesday, April 25, 2023. Ding! Dong! The Wicket Witch is dead. Tucker's gone where the goblins go, below . . .

Well let Joan Walsh (THE NATION) get the first words in:

I hate to find happiness in the misfortune of others… oh, screw that. The news that Fox fired racist misognyist authoritarian Tucker Carlson, its top-rated host, makes me very happy indeed. I know they’ll replace him with someone comparably monstrous. But Carlson is a uniquely awful monster, and his departure is good news for truth, democracy—and women.

The immediate reaction to the news: This must be another shoe falling in the wake of the network’s massive $787 million settlement of the lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems. Pretrial discovery featured a ton of incriminating, embarrassing texts from Tucker, which swung wildly between trashing Donald Trump—“I hate him passionately”—and trying to get Fox colleagues fired for telling the truth about Trump’s stolen-election lies. The Washington Post reported that his texts included harsh criticism of Fox management. Probably in his favor, at least to Rupert Murdoch, were texts showing that he was worried about the fall in the company’s stock price after it declared Biden the legitimate election winner and (occasionally) debunked Trump lies.

Yes, that Mother Tucker is gone. At LGBTQ NATION, Daniel Villarreal reminds you of what a bigot and general piece of filth Tucker is. Julia Conley (COMMON DREAMS) rounds up some quotes. At FAIR, Ari Paul notes:

The discovery process of the Dominion case revealed numerous texts from Carlson—whose entire persona at Fox News rests on the wave of the Make America Great Again movement—showing his intense dislike of Donald Trump (New York Times, 3/8/23). “What [Trump is] good at is destroying things” was among one of the key texts, but everyone’s favorite, of course, is Carlson saying of Trump, “I hate him passionately.”

No, Carlson’s on-air racism (Independent, 4/13/21; ADL, 4/22/21), transphobia (New York Post, 12/28/22), xenophobia (Washington Post, 12/15/18), admiration for authoritarians (FAIR.org, 8/3/21, 10/20/21) and flirtations with antisemitism (Daily Beast, 10/11/22, 12/23/22) were never the problem for Fox News. If the Washington Post’s report that the Dominion texts were definitive is true, it’s poetic justice: The texts exposed Carlson for who he is, a pompous, rich media elitist who gives not one single damn about MAGA voters and hates their king, only cynically using Trump’s political popularity for his own media grift. That lifting of the veil, the end of the conceit for a corporation whose entire modus operandi is disguising its ruling-class politics to sell faux populism to its viewers, is a major outcome of the Dominion settlement.

Ava and I covered it last night in "TV: The media circus" and we'd covered it before. Which is why I laugh at Brian Selter using a ton of words to say nothing at VANITY FAIR. Say nothing, because he knows nothing. It wasn't a difficult decision for Rupert Murdoch. They were paying Tucker a ton of money and he wasn't delivering. It became our story because no one wanted to do the work on FOX NATION -- a streamer in serious trouble. Tucker was supposed to boost it and he didn't. B-b-b-but he gets good ratings! He's not paid for what he did, he's paid for what he will do. And the ratings weren't that great when they got better ratings -- and better demographics -- for less money -- see THE FIVE which has a real return on the dollars FOX "NEWS" invests into the program. Tucker is a crater. They keep throwing money down there. Yes, he was number one but advertisers didn't want him. And he wasn't the future. While no one was paying attention, FOX "NEWS" was trying to branch out into streaming and convinced this would be a huge success. People who pay for streamers weren't impressed with Tucker. His content was only streamed if it was Roseanne Barr. Otherwise, they ignored him and they loathed him. Some people thought he was cruel and mean, yes. But he even lost the right wingers many of whom referred to him as a "vicious queen" and a "closet case" which makes me laugh to this day to think that he preached so much homophobia but to some on the right that was just an indicator that he himself was gay.

Those surveys -- and I'm sure the press can get them -- probably without paying for them -- I paid for them -- made clear that FOX "NEWS" had to rethink because it's not the 20th century anymore and they're being left behind.

Due to advertising, Tucker didn't generate a return on the investment. It was a business decision. If you can't grasp it, he was KNOTS LANDING. KNOTS LANDING ran for years and when it got the axe it was a still a top-rated program. But it was now to expensive to make. People were being paid too much to continue the show. Tucker Carlson was paid a huge amount of money but he couldn't deliver on it. He couldn't bring in big money in advertising and his ratings that seemed so huge didn't justify the amount of money being spent.

Has no one noticed how the audience for THE FIVE has grown? I feel like I'm pitching the show here, and I'm not. But FOX "NEWS" invests far less money in that show. It turns a better profit and they're hopeful that shows like that -- built around groups of people -- are the future for FOX "NEWS."

As for Tucker? He's "a sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot."

Some videos on his departure (and that of Don Lemon).

Not a comedy video but Glenn Greenwald went on Megyn Kelly's show as they wept over Tucker. I'd post but Megyn's been 'freshened up' again and looks even less like a human being while the left side of Glenneth's face continues to dip like he had a stroke or, more likely, bad botox. First the bad hair dye out of a box to save a few pennies and now Glenneth's going to third-rate dermatologists for cheap botox?

And then there's Max Blumenthal. It's just like when MSNBC fired Phil Donahue!!!!

Except . . . it's not. Phil was fired as the US was moving to war on Iraq. And, more importantly, idiot, Tucker Carlson cheerleaded the Iraq War. I guess you were too busy inspecting your newly sprouted hairs to grasp that, Junior. I really don't have time for idiots, Max, try growing the hell up. It takes a lot of nerve, with the Iraqi blood on Tucker's hands, to compare him to Phil Donahue -- that's so insulting to Phil.

People are dead in Iraq because of Tucker Carlson. That's the reality you and Glenneth and Aaron will never cop to. You pretend you're honest, but you're not. You're honest about A but dishonest about B and then turn around and whine about others without ever grasping how much you are part of the problem.

I'm looking at idiotic Tweets (including Jimmy Dore's) and I'm just not in the mood to write something new, Ava and I already covered it:

Mildly amused is how Tucker Carlson always came across -- mildly amused and slightly off. The boy with the bowl cut grew up to be the man with no clue. After failing on CNN's THE SPIN ROOM, he got a job on CNN's CROSSFIRE where he degraded the nation's intelligence and when Jon Stewart pointed out what a mockery of news the garbage was, the Mother Tucker was out of a job. He tried to spin it, insisting that he had resigned from CROSSFIRE in April of 2004 -- guess he just forgot his resignation as, week after week, he continued to do the show until January of 2005. TUCKER CARLSON UNFILTERED lasted a year at PBS. Onto MSNBC at a time when it was already featuring garbage like Michael Savage and had plenty of room in the toilet for Tucker. TUCKER lasted a little less than 3 years on MSNBC.

Not being a journalist, talk show host Tucker took time to do what many did in recent years, take a spin around the floor on DANCING WITH THE STARS. That he was the first celebrity eliminated should have told him something about how beloved he wasn't.

When Melissa Gates gave then-husband Bill the ultimatum, all the hate merchants were kicked off MSNBC and Tucker landed eventually at FOX "NEWS." He was a panelist, kind of the 21st century version of Kitty Carlisle Hart. By toadying and creating many mini-'controversies' passed off as news, Mother Tucker eventually worked himself up to a weekend co-host on FOX & FRIENDS Finally, he was ready, he thought, once again for prime time. TUCKER CARLSON TONIGHT debuted in 2016 and got cancelled last week.

Tucker is homeless yet again.

It's greatly upset his friends -- racists and transphobes like the Great Glenneth Greenwald:

One reason there's so much hatred among left-liberal media types toward Tucker is petty jealously: that goes without saying. They always hate most those who succeed in journalism. But he's also hated by that crowd because he holds up a mirror to the failures of their heroes.

The mirror Tucker held up was to his own ass. Is that what Glenneth found interesting?

Glenneth and Tara wanted you to know that Tucker hosted plenty of lefties. Tucker brought on lefties who played his game or served up the red meat his deluded audience wolfed down. The same way Bill O'Reilly had done a decade prior with, for example, Susara Taylor. Mother Tucker didn't invent anything, he was just the new Bill O'Reilly.

And now he's fired.

And Glenneth tries to spin this as a good thing:

A major irony is that Tucker's separation from Fox may be the best thing that could happen to him in terms of his influence and impact. The sector of media growing most explosively are independent platforms. Joe Rogan is vastly more influential than every MSNBC and CNN host.

Yeah, but Joe Rogan has charisma. Tucker doesn't. Tucker is not Joe Rogan who makes people laugh intentionally. Tucker is an uptight prig. That's not going to play well in 'new media.' It didn't play well for Bill O'Reilly when he tried to survive being fired from FOX "NEWS." And Tucker already failed as a podcaster.

And there are the internals. As the ones -- and only ones -- who have reported the realities about FOX "NEWS" finances, we can tell you he was not worth his salary. His podcast for FOX was a failure and then came FOX NATION and TUCKER CARLSON TODAY.

And since some of them are whining about AOC, let's include this section too:

FOX "NEWS" has to do more than tighten its belt. There are no friends on Wall Street willing to bail it out -- NEWS MAX and other similar outlets can continue even if FOX "NEWS" falters. And they're sinking in debt. Tucker Carlson became an ugly face for the network -- an admitted liar (in texts, he not only admitted to hating Donald, he also admitted that despite making 'stolen election' claims on air, he didn't actually believe them). This is a problem because AOC rightly noted the FTC when she was on Jen Psaki's talk show over the weekend.

Glenneth and others didn't understand what AOC was talking about because they're not real smart. Oh, censorship! - they cried.

No.

She mentioned the FTC which handles issues like fraud and consumer protection. Viewers are consumers. A TV host telling them that an election was stolen when the host admits privately that he didn't believe it was stolen? That's fraud. And eliminating that type of fraud is why the FTC exists. This had nothing to do with The First Amendment.

I would think even the idiots on Twitter could grasp that. Not the FCC, the FTC. Remember, that's what did in Pat Boone -- the sanctimonious liar who sold a pimple 'cure' that wasn't. The FTC came down on his ass. And it could have come down on FOX "NEWS" because, as the texts revealed, this wasn't an opinion that Tucker held, he was just lying to viewers. That's fraud, it's not a free speech issue. Again, FTC, not FCC.

Let's wind down with this from IAVA:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
April 21, 2023
CONTACT: press@iava.org

Washington, DC- Following is a statement from the CEO of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Allison Jaslow, on the current proposal to address the need to raise the debt limit and cut spending before the House of Representatives:

“Earlier this week, in a speech at the New York Stock Exchange, America was assured that our veterans would be taken care of as Washington politicians prepared to address the upcoming need to raise our country’s debt ceiling. Then veterans saw what was in their proposal and whether the words spoken on a stage also translated to the words on the pages of the bill that was unveiled on Capitol Hill.”

“There are zero guarantees that veterans care is protected in the bill that will soon be before the House of Representatives to raise the debt limit in exchange for spending cuts. And worse, it specifically targets unspent COVID aid that news reports indicate is currently planned to be spent to support veterans’ medical care.”

“This is unacceptable. The Limit, Save Grow Act of 2023 should explicitly protect benefits and care for veterans. As this debate continues, America needs to also know that veterans and their families get support from programs like SNAP and Medicaid, so efforts to target those areas of the federal budget could also have an adverse effect on members of our community.”

“Politicians can say they support our veterans, troops, and their families until they’re blue in the face, but what matters is what happens when they take action. Thankfully, the action to introduce a bill is only one step in the process. The next step is a vote. IAVA urges any member that is thinking of supporting the Limit, Save and Grow Act of 2023 to ask for a written guarantee that veterans will be protected. We should prioritize the needs of our nation’s veterans as spending cuts are considered in this plan. No Congressmember should give their blessing to the bill otherwise.”

IAVA is the voice for the post-9/11 veteran generation. With over 425,000 veterans and allies nationwide, IAVA is the leader in non-partisan veteran advocacy and public awareness. We drive historic impacts for veterans and IAVA’s programs are second to none. Any veteran or family member in need can reach out to IAVA’s Quick Reaction Force at quickreactionforce.org or 855-91RAPID (855-917-2743) to be connected promptly with a veteran care manager who will assist. IAVA’s The Vote Hub is a free tool to register to vote and find polling information. IAVA’s membership is always growing. Join the movement at iava.org/membership.

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New content at THIRD:

The following sites updated:

Monday, April 24, 2023

Tara Reade is nuts and DiFi needs to say goodbye

Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Witch, Please" went up Saturday night.

Tara Reade is a Larouche nut. We knew she was a little off. But the fact that she's a LaRouche nut means I no longer believe her about Joe Biden. Crazy people can get assaulted. But I no longer believe she was assaulted by Joe Biden. I had no problem believing her when she came forward. When she turned right-wing, I still supported her. I believe Bill Clinton raped Juanita Broaddrick, for example. But this Lyndo Larouche thing is the bridge too far. She's pimping Diane Sare and she's on her own.

The racism in the Larouche movement is well known and it is historical. I do not play on this.

Anything of support I said for Tara in the past is now retracted.

I do not believe a word she says.

And let's not forget that this 'assault victim' will be on stage at Diana Sare's event with convicted pedophile (and registered sex offender) Scott Ritter.

By the way, Tara Reade's weeping over Tucker Carlson getting fired by FOX "NEWS." Guess she doesn't care about the victim of his harassment either. Again, I no longer believe a word she says. She's not to be trusted.

And, by the way, if you missed it, WE BELIEVE TARA READE doesn't believe her either. They stopped Tweeting months ago when she started reTweeting Scott Ritter. Even the group made up o her supporters had to walk away when Tara started associating with a registered sex offender.

Meanwhile, Eric Ting (SF GATE) notes:

California Sen. Dianne Feinstein is not well.

If she were, she would not have missed more than 70% of the votes taken in the Senate this year thanks to a shingles diagnosis that continues to keep her out of Washington. That prolonged absence — which is actively preventing the Democrats from advancing President Joe Biden’s judicial nominees — has prompted heightened calls for her resignation.

Calls for the 89-year-old senator to step aside are nothing new, as there have been several major reports questioning her mental acuity, and congressional reporters have personally witnessed memory lapses that raise serious concerns about her ability to continue to serve.

What is new, however, is that for the first time, those calls are coming from within Congress, with Bay Area Rep. Ro Khanna becoming the first member of either chamber to call for Feinstein’s resignation. But you can count on one hand the number of Democratic members of the House of Representatives who have joined him, and there have been zero members of the Senate.

“I don’t want to speculate on what others are thinking,” Khanna told SFGATE in an email when asked why he believes that is. “But dozens of members have reached out to me expressing support for what I did.”

Instead, we see several members of Congress — as well as members of the political media — making arguments for why calls for her resignation are unwarranted. To this point, those individuals have made three identifiable arguments: 1) calls for her to resign are sexist, 2) the motives of Khanna and those calling for her ouster are somehow insidious, 3) Feinstein has had a long and storied career and deserves to go out on her own terms.

None of the three arguments are persuasive. Khanna only said publicly what many people in politics say privately: Feinstein, who is not seeking re-election in 2024, simply isn’t up to the task anymore. Pretending otherwise makes a mockery of the political system and further erodes institutional trust. If there is a cogent argument for why Feinstein should remain in office, I have yet to hear it.

She needs to step down. For the good of the country, she needs to step down.

"Iraq snapshot" (THE COMMON ILLS):

Monday, April 24, 2023. Crooked Clarence Thomas remains on the bench, THE PROGRESSIVE comes out strong against the attacks on the trans community, the Glenneth Greenwalds are upset that AOC said in an interview that FOX "NEWS" might need to face some response for inciting a mob but they don't care that the Republican-controlled Montana legislature has actually silenced a trans member.

Let's start with Crooked Clarence Thomas, the man who is pissing all over the image of the Supreme Court as we speak. This is from Jeffrey St. Clair (COUNTERPUNCH):

+ We now know that in addition to lavishing Clarence and Ginni Thomas was luxury trips around the world, Harlan Crow also secretly bought property from Thomas, including the house his mother continues to live in, and Thomas failed to disclose the financial transactions in violation of federal law.

+ Thomas isn’t being bribed to make decisions; he’s being rewarded for the fact that he’d make these decisions without being bribed. So would Alito. Yes, they’re corrupt. But their retro judicial views were always clear & the senate approved their elevation to the high court anyway.

+ Harlan Crow is a billionaire with a bulging stock portfolio and vast real estate holdings. Almost everything that comes before the court will have an impact him.

+ Does Crow collect child porn to demonstrate how much he abhors pedophiles?

+ When Ginni Thomas worked for the Heritage Foundation, Justice Thomas checked the box “none” on his financial disclosure form for his wife’s income. She’d actually been paid more than $686,000. When the deception was disclosed, Thomas said it was “due to a misunderstanding of the filing instructions.”

+ This seems like a fairly minor blunder to me, except for the fatal fact that Thomas considers himself a “textualist”, where the precise meaning (in 1789) of every word can be a matter of life and death. So petard prepare to be hoisted…

+ Thomas isn’t the only recipient of Crow’s largesse. The coffers of rightwing lawmakers Texas have been infused with at least $19 million from the Dallas-based real estate tycoon.

+ Cory Doctorow: “The reason the rich pour money into campaigns to stoke divisions among working people isn’t because they get off on hatred. The hatred is a tactic. The cruelty is a tactic. The strategic goal is wealth and power.”

Julia Conley (COMMON DREAMS) reminds:

Calls for impeachment proceedings against U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas intensified Thursday amid new reporting that revealed several specific conflicts of interest related to the justice's financial ties to right-wing real estate magnate and Republican donor Harlan Crow.

Following a bombshell report by ProPublica earlier this month regarding trips Thomas took on Crow's private jet, his superyacht, and to his properties in New York and Texas which had not been included in financial disclosures as required by federal law, the conservative justice brushed off criticism by saying he benefited only from "personal hospitality from close personal friends" and that Crow "did not have business before the court."

While also denying any ethics breaches, Crow, who has donated at least $13 million to Republican politicians, acknowledged in an interview with TheDallas Morning News that "every single relationship... has some kind of reciprocity."

The truth of that admission became clearer Thursday as The Guardian reported on findings in the judicial record, which showed Crow's ties to right-wing groups that have been involved in Supreme Court cases since Thomas was first confirmed to the bench in 1991.

The Texas billionaire was part of anti-taxation group Club for Growth's "founders committee," which helped direct its policymaking, in 2003 when the group filed an amicus brief challenging the McCain-Feingold Act, a campaign finance reform law.

Thomas wrote a blistering dissent when the court permitted the law to stand against the wishes of Club for Growth and other right-wing groups. As The Guardian reported, at this point Crow had already "showered Thomas with several lavish gifts" including "a 1997 flight from Washington to northern California on Crow's private jet to attend an all-male retreat at Bohemian Grove" and a $150,000 donation to create a wing dedicated to the justice at a library in Savannah, Georgia.

Crow also held seats on the boards of at least three right-wing organizations that have written amicus briefs in Supreme Court cases; is a longtime trustee of the conservative American Enterprise Institute, which has filed numerous supporting briefs; and is on the board of the Hoover Institution, which filed an amicus brief challenging student debt relief.

Thomas' involvement with Crow raises questions not only about whether the billionaire has "business before the court," said Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.). "Nowadays it's consorting with those... whose business is the court—who are deeply enmeshed in the efforts to capture and corrupt the court."

At NPR this morning, Domenico Montanaro writes:

Law enforcement is fond of saying "no one is above the law."

But the questions surrounding Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas' unreported luxury gifts from a conservative billionaire over two decades are shedding light – once again – on the imbalance that ethics watchdogs say exists when it comes to who is held accountable and who is not.

"There's definitely a double standard at play here," said Walter Shaub, a senior fellow at the nonpartisan Project on Government Oversight. "An executive branch employee or, for that matter, even a member of Congress who so flagrantly violated the financial disclosure law as Clarence Thomas had, would certainly face some sort of consequences for their actions."

Shaub is also a former head of the Office of Government Ethics, which oversees how executive branch employees comport themselves – that's everyone from Census and National Parks workers to military generals and even the president of the United States.

He argues that there's one standard for the high-profile and politically connected and another for the almost two million lower-level federal workers.

"The Department of Justice has shown a real unwillingness to hold the top officials in government to the same standard it holds lower-level officials to," Shaub said. "And if you think about it, that's government ethics standing on its head, because the higher up you go and the more power you have to do harm, the more you should be held accountable, because the stakes are so much greater.

You know who's not writing about Crooked Clarence? Bigot Jonathan Turley. He's writing less about transgender people because he's been warned to "knock it off" and that it's hurting the university. But that didn't mean he turned his attention to what he's supposed to write about. All his best efforts to defend Crooked Clarence failed because there is no defense of him so now he writes about anything else.

But watch him pretend to be the legal expert on the Court when he finds a topic about the Supreme Court which he wants to write about. Calling out Clarence would be too much. He's got a right-wing base now -- on the blog and on FOX "NEWS." That's why he couldn't weigh in on how ocrrupt FOX "NEWS" was -- even though Howie Kurtz fought to cover the story on FOX "NEWS." But not Jonathan. He's just a noted transphobe desperate to pull in as much coin as he can. He's destroyed his own image and things will not be easier for him, not should they be.

Last night, Trina wrote:

Meanwhile, Jonathan Turley, Mother Tucker Carlson, John Stauber, Glenn Greenwald and the other hate merchants going after transgender people are creating a very violent climate. Edward Helmore (Guardian) reports:

Rasheeda Williams, an Atlanta-based transgender woman who features in a forthcoming documentary that highlights the stories of four Black transgender sex workers in New York City and Georgia, was fatally shot this week, the film’s publicist said on Friday.

Williams, 35, who performed under the name Koko Da Doll, was killed on Tuesday evening at a shopping center in the south-west of the city. It was the third fatal shooting of a transgender woman in the city since the beginning of the year, Atlanta police said in a statement.

Alex Cooper (The Advocate) adds:

Koko, whose non-performance name was Rasheeda Williams, starred in the Sundance Film Festival documentary Kokomo City along with Daniella Carter, Liyah Mitchell and Dominique Silve. The film was the directorial debut of Grammy-nominated producer D. Smith. The documentary depicts the lives of several Black transgender sex workers who live in Atlanta and New York City. It has been lauded for its realistic depiction of the various ways the women navigate their identities and their work.

Atlanta Police found Koko with a gunshot wound around 11 p.m. Tuesday night at a shopping center. Authorities announced her dead at the scene.

[. . .]

Koko’s co-star Carter wrote on Instagram, "Never thought I'd lose you, but here I am, standing alone without you by my side. We're sisters for life, we promised, but now you're gone. I don't know what to do without you. I'm going crazy, I'm trying to hold on to keep strong, but it just doesn't feel right. I'm waiting here, my arms wide open, tears running down my face, ready for you to return even if it takes forever, my sister. I will truly miss you, sis."

I never, ever want to see the left welcome back John Stauber. He has fostered hate against the transgender community and that should never be forgotten. His past accomplishments aren't all that to begin with but by going after the most vulnerable in our society, he has roped himself off from the left forever.

Agreed. There is no defense for those people as they have cheered on attacks on transgender persons and made 'jokes' that were not jokes. People like John Stauber are truly beyond redemption at this point. They chose to side with a mob egged on by right-wing money. There's no defense for what they're doing. Dave Zirin (THE PROGRESSIVE) notes:

The April 16 issue of The New York Times included an article that would chill even the most cynical of leftists. Called “How a Campaign Against Transgender Rights Mobilized Conservatives,” it is about how Republican operatives, public relations hacks, and careerist message makers came to settle upon the demonization of transgender people as their culture war battle du jour.

Stymied by the waning opposition to gay marriage that exists even among Republicans, they ferreted about trying to figure out the next community to demonize. Eventually, they decided to target transgender people, regardless of the violence that has already been inflicted upon them.

It was a rocky start for the right, with “bathroom bills” in North Carolina roundly defeated and mocked in 2016. This stoking of anti-trans animus proved more difficult than they had thought it would be. Then they finally found their “in,” and this is where they confirm what has been transparently clear for the last several years: it would be girls' sports.

The hate machine—dark money, billionaire Nazi fetishists, think tanks, news networks—of the far right found a foothold by focusing on transgender girls in sports and the “unfair advantages,” and even “threat,” that they posed to cisgender girls. In many states, there are no transgender girls on sports teams, or at least none that rightwing lawmakers can name. But that didn’t stop dozens of states from enacting bans, pressuring hesitant but craven rightwing governors to sign these bans while using their political pulpit to whip up a fury. They were joined in this effort by organizations formed by self-proclaimed “liberal feminists” willing to link arms with the far right for a frenzied common goal, whose very slogan is a negation of the existence of trans women: “keeping men out of women’s sports.” They abided by this alliance even when states like Kansas opened the door for “sex tests” to inspect the genitals of girls to ensure they were not trans.

Well, congrats to all the sports folks who fight to keep trans kids from playing sports. You’ve unleashed a hatred you can no longer control. The anti-trans sports laws, as the operatives crowed, played into issues of “parental control,” which has been weaponized legislatively against gender-affirming care for minors and increasingly adults as well. It is the same framework that was used against books by authors like Toni Morrison or Anne Frank appearing in public libraries because they made white parents uncomfortable. Lectures have been canceled. Books have been banned. Library systems may be closed. And it started with that narrow entry point: attacking trans kids in sports. (The focused fusillade against critical race theory stems from a different space—reaction to the massive multiracial protests in 2020, following the murder of George Floyd by police—but have become utterly intertwined in the agenda of the same legislators.)

People like Jonathan Turley and John Stauber were part of spreading the hate and there is no forgiveness because there is no taking back the hate that has been hurled at the transgender community or the fear that they have had to live under.

They've taken sides in a war and it was on the side of the corrupt and the crooked, not on the side of those in need. They can't come running back when it all explodes in their face and they have no where else to turn.

This was not a disagreement over a nominee. This was about basic human rights. They chose to back racists and bigots and that's who they should have to break bread with forever more.

Juliette Perez (MASSACHUSETTS DAILY COLLEGIAN) notes:

Recently, at least 11 states threatened to restrict drag shows, which is an extension of the slew of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation passed within the past few years. Tennessee is among the most notorious in enacting oppressive anti-drag legislation within the last few weeks, and for its anti-trans laws.

There have been laws which restrict gender expression for centuries. One of the first was enacted in 1863 in San Francisco, where people were prohibited from being in public places if they were wearing clothes that were “different” from their assigned sex. Other laws like this became common in the late 19th century.

In 2022 alone, 29 out of 315 anti-LGTBQ bills were passed into law, with hundreds of others being introduced in state legislatures. Restricting drag shows and gender expression takes it a frightening step further, and The Guardian describes it as nearing “draconian restrictions.”

Tennessee has adopted 14 anti-LGBTQ bills since 2015, more than any other state according to Human Rights Campaign. Last week, a bill was passed in Tennessee that restricts “adult cabaret performances” in public or in front of children. The bill also specifies that the “performances” cannot happen within 1,000 feet of schools, public parks or places of worship.

Critics of this bill in Tennessee say the language is ambiguous, making business owners and performers wary of the extreme range of responses people will have. Despite little constitutional clarity, the punishments are significant. In the first offense of violating this law, people will face misdemeanor charges with fines up to $2,500 and/or up to a year in jail. Further violations could result in felony charges resulting in up to six years in jail.

If you missed it, AOC made some comment on CNN about FOX "NEWS" -- about some of their actions inciting violence. This has Glenneth grabbing a pair of clean drawers as he soils himself in shock. FOX "NEWS" did incite. It's one thing for me to defend Mother Tucker Carlson expressing his opinion that the election was stolen from Donald. But when we find out that this wasn't his opinion, when we find out that he and others went on air with claims that they didn't even believe them and passed them off to an already angry mob?

That's a different animal.

AOC's plan will go nowhere. But it's amazing how quick the Glenneths are to GOOP onto this and to make it their whole world. While they ignore someone who has truly been silenced. Which proves they don't care about equality or fairness or a public square everyone can engage in. They just care about the right-wing. Julia Conley reports:

Montana state Rep. Zooey Zephyr said ahead of a scheduled legislative session in the state House on Friday that she is "ready to speak" on behalf her constituents, but Republican leaders have given no indication that they'll allow her to do so after silencing her this week in retaliation for comments she made about transgender rights.

State House Speaker Matt Regier (R-4) has refused to acknowledge Zephyr (D-100), the state's only transgender lawmaker, on Thursday when she tried to speak during a debate about a bill that would include binary definitions of "male" and "female" in the state code, and other legislation unrelated to the rights of transgender and nonbinary people.

The Republicans' refusal to allow Zephyr to speak on the House floor follows her comments made on Tuesday about a bill that would ban gender-affirming health care for transgender youths.

"If you are denying gender-affirming care and forcing a trans child to go through puberty, that is tantamount to torture, and this body should be ashamed," said Zephyr. "If you vote yes on this bill, I hope the next time you bow your heads in prayer, you see the blood on your hands."

Soon after, the right-wing Montana Freedom Caucus wrote a letter to the Legislature—posted on Twitter along with a message that misgendered Zephyr—calling for the lawmaker to be censured for using "inappropriate and uncalled-for language" during the debate, unless she issued a formal apology.

Zephyr has refused to do so, saying in a statement that the Republicans' goal is not securing an apology, but "silence as they take away the rights of queer and trans Montanans."

Winding down with snakes in Iraq.

AL MADA reports on the fifth most dangerous snake in the world which is also known as the Sayad Dakhil snake because of the number of people who've been bitten in that area. Six to seven people used to die a year from the snake bites before a vaccine was introduced about 18 months ago. The dangers of that one snake has resulted in the deaths of many snakes of different species in the area as a result of people fearing the saw-scaled viper.

Isaiah's THE WORLD TODAY JUST NUTS "Witch, Please" went up Saturday night. The following sites updated: