This Week - October 14th, 2022
The January 6th Committee Returns
The January 6th Committee held its final (maybe) public hearing on Thursday.
Previous hearings focused on segments of this story. This hearing integrated all of the segments into one continuous narrative of Donald Trump’s plans to claim victory regardless of the vote, beginning months before election day, and his direction of multiple efforts to overturn the election afterwards.
The presentation was punctuated by Secret Service email and chatlog posts prior to January 6th detailing the rising tide of threats and plans for violence on the 6th, as well as real-time reports of armed protesters at the rally.
The Committee announced plans for criminal referrals for numerous individuals who took the 5th while testifying before the committee, and others who falsely testified under oath that there was no prior knowledge of threats or plans for violence on the 6th.
The dramatic finale was a unanimous roll call vote to subpoena Donald Trump to testify before the Committee. Not likely to happen, but it lays the whole sordid affair directly at his feet and offers him the opportunity to respond under oath.
If you were only going to listen to only one of the nine hearings, this would be the one. Available here.
Here are a few highlights from the opening statements of Bennie Thompson and Liz Cheney:
“When you look back at what has come out through this committee's work, the most striking fact is that all this evidence came almost entirely from Republicans…aides who’ve worked loyally for Trump for years, Republican state officials and legislators…Trump appointees and advisors…members of President Trump’s family and his own White House counsel.”
“The vast weight of evidence presented so far has shown us that the central cause of January 6th was one man, Donald Trump…He was personally and substantially involved in all of it…[He] had a premeditated plan to declare that the election was fraudulent and stolen, before election day, before he knew the election results.”
“President Donald Trump was…better informed about the absence of widespread election fraud than almost any other American…His own Justice Department appointees investigated the election fraud claims and told him point blank they were false.”
“But still he made the conscious choice to claim fraudulently that the election was stolen, to pressure state officials to change election results, to manufacture fake electoral slates, to attempt to corrupt our Department of Justice, to summon tens of thousands of supporters to Washington.”
Mar-A-Lago, DOJ and the Supremes
The legal maneuvering over the Mar-A-Lago documents continues. Trump’s latest ruse was to ask the Supreme Court to intervene in the matter. His request was rejected on Thursday without comment. Meanwhile, the 11th Circuit has accelerated its hearing on DOJ’s appeal of Judge Cannon’s interventions on Trump’s behalf. All filings need to be in by November 17th. Oral arguments to follow.
Is Trump still holding onto documents?
That would be crazy, right?
The Justice Department has notified Trump’s lawyers that it isn’t sure the government has retrieved all necessary documents following multiple efforts to recover them… Debra Steidel Wall, the acting Archivist of the United States, wrote in a Sept. 30 letter that her agency was still missing Trump administration records.
“While there is no easy way to establish absolute accountability, we do know that we do not have custody of everything we should.“
Election Home Stretch
It’s been a long slog leading up to the ’22 election. Soon it will be over…mercifully. Everyone is exhausted. Unfortunately, the ’24 election will begin on November 9th. And there will probably be hundreds of lawsuits from Republicans who refuse to accept the vote. Lord have mercy.
The Women’s Vote is the key.
Will the women turn out to vote? They were impressive in the Kansas special election. But I’m not seeing or hearing of any big groundswell for the general election. If women don’t turn out to protect their status as citizens, abortion is not the last of their rights they will lose. What I’m seeing in Iowa is not encouraging.
Subpoena this! – They all lied.
Just a little reminder of the dishonesty of the conservative Supremes when questioned about their position on Roe v Wade in their nomination hearings. The quotes make it concrete.
The perfect Texas abortion ad – watch to the end!!!
This ad hits hard and makes it real!
There is a rising tide of women’s rights globally.
The most visible example presently is the revolt of Iranian women after the death of a young woman at the hands of the “morality police” for the violation of showing a little too much hair in public.
It’s also noteworthy that Ireland, Mexico, and the latest, India, all countries that have long been very restrictive on the matter of abortion, have recently recognized that women have an inherent right to govern their own bodies.
Our Supreme Court, and the Republican party, are swimming against the global tide of support for women’s rights.
In almost every state election deniers are on the ballot.
“Out of 552 total Republican nominees running for office, we found 200 who fully denied the legitimacy of the 2020 election. These candidates either clearly stated that the election was stolen from Trump or took legal action to overturn the results, such as voting not to certify election results or joining lawsuits that sought to overturn the election.”
The parallels to 1930’s Germany are increasingly stark.
Some Positive political news.
My entry for best political ad ever!
Rob Sand, Iowa’s State Auditor gets it! We need more like him in public office – a lot more.
A Solution for what ails us – a National Service Corp
“It could be through military service or a new version of the Appalachian Volunteers, the Peace Corps or Civilian Conservation Corps. But everyone at some point would have to work together to make the United States a better place.”
Liz Cheney will not remain a Republican if Trump is the Candidate
“I'm going to do everything I can to make sure he is not the nominee. And if he is the nominee, I won't be a Republican"
Cheney also said she will campaign for Democrats to ensure that Republican candidates who promote election lies do not get elected.
Cheney has not made her current position on abortion known, but if she is going to maximize her opportunity, and truly serve the nation, she is going to need to publicly recognize and endorse women’s rights to autonomy and self-determination.
Social Media
Social Media Firms are “Monetizing Misery.”
14-year-old Molly viewed more than 16,000 pieces of content on Instagram – of which 2,100 were related to suicide, self-harm and depression – in the six months before she took her own life.
“It’s time to protect our innocent young people, instead of allowing platforms to prioritize their profits by monetizing their misery.” Ian Russell, Molly’s father.
Council for Responsible Social Media
A crosspartisan and bipartisan group of national leaders united to hold social media platforms to higher standards and advocate for fundamental changes to the social media platforms. Members include religious and business leaders, children’s health and national security experts, former members of Congress, and tech insiders.
Tidbits
Love is everywhere – underwater sweetness
This is comforting – a plant with a machete!
Perspective – Falcon launch across Hunter’s Moon
Here are some guys who know how to put together a good show!
Friday is dance day for Jessi. I know it’s Saturday morning, but this is too good not to pass on.
This is an interesting thread on Character Invention, a technique performers and executives use to overcome insecurity, step outside their comfort zone, and perform at the highest level. Beyonce’s stage persona is Sasha Fierce.