The Best Words – Impeachment Edition

SCROTUS's unusual and sometimes pathological use of language is one of the hallmarks of this person. It's a combination of simpleton language; bullying language (which to his mind is powerful language); and outright pathological language, both in the horrible ways that he talks to people and the neurologically-impaired traits of his language.

I'm a speech and language geek, and I've touched on TЯUMP's language frequently on these pages. Sometimes from a linguistic perspective, sometimes from a speech pathology perspective, and sometimes from a rhetoric perspective. I've also talked about his speech and how his articulation is also intermittently impaired (a definite neurological sign).

I revisit this topic with new data points. Today we focus mostly on the dangerous use of his language, his bellicose, bullying, and this weekend, outright militant rhetoric.

Shortly after the revelations of the whistleblower complaint, he began besmirching this patriot. While still at the United Nations, while the information was still evolving, he likened the whistleblower and "the person who gave him the information" as traitors, and mob-like, menacingly said, “I want to know who’s the person who gave the whistle-blower the information because that’s close to a spy. You know what we used to do in the old days when we were smart with spies and treason, right? We used to handle it a little differently than we do now.”

Ah! The good ol' days when spies were executed!

This weekend, Twitler continued the same theme, raging about treason against the whistleblower as well as House Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff (D-CA). Mein Drumpf ramped it up, thumbs working furiously on a bunch o' tweets, saying, "Like every American, I deserve to meet my accuser, especially when this accuser, the so-called “Whistleblower,” represented a perfect conversation with a foreign leader in a totally inaccurate and fraudulent way. Then Schiff made up what I actually said by lying to Congress......"

"His lies were made in perhaps the most blatant and sinister manner ever seen in the great Chamber. He wrote down and read terrible things, then said it was from the mouth of the President of the United States. I want Schiff questioned at the highest level for Fraud & Treason....."

"....In addition, I want to meet not only my accuser, who presented SECOND & THIRD HAND INFORMATION, but also the person who illegally gave this information, which was largely incorrect, to the “Whistleblower.” Was this person SPYING on the U.S. President? Big Consequences!"

Tweets are below:

....In addition, I want to meet not only my accuser, who presented SECOND & THIRD HAND INFORMATION, but also the person who illegally gave this information, which was largely incorrect, to the “Whistleblower.” Was this person SPYING on the U.S. President? Big Consequences!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 29, 2019

Will someone please remind him that though the whistleblower set things in motion -- which is the very definition of whistleblower – SCROTUS himself handed over the information. Uh, Mr. Clown, Sir? You're right that your conversation was "perfect." YOU and YOU ALONE provided Congress and the People the transcript that "perfectly" illustrates your abuse of power!

And dare we expect him to understand that "facing your accuser" is a guarantee to the accused in criminal court, not during an investigation? If all goes well, that day will come, mister. That day will come.


This dangerous rhetoric puts the whistleblower in real danger. The individual's attorney has voiced his concerns to Acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire.

There is already a $50,000 "bounty" offered by some conservative activists for the identity of this whistleblower. This of course erodes the important protections that whistleblowers are guaranteed under federal law. Not to mention that this type of language and action chills anyone else who would step up. The whistleblower has reportedly been placed under federal protection. It's extremely important to keep the whistleblower's identity anonymous.

The Rabid Yam's racist, anti-Semitic, and misogynistic rhetoric raised its ugly head in one tweet over the weekend, when he expressed his displeasure about the more than 200 Democratic Members of Congress supporting an impeachment inquiry, by neatly singling out Jewish and women of color lawmakers. Disgusting language and not at all surprising.

Can you imagine if these Do Nothing Democrat Savages, people like Nadler, Schiff, AOC Plus 3, and many more, had a Republican Party who would have done to Obama what the Do Nothings are doing to me. Oh well, maybe next time!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 28, 2019

But it was last evening when SCROTUS really ramped things up. He alluded to civil war. Here is a man in the highest office in the land threatening civil war if the Congress does not cease its Constitutional duty. One Harvard law professor has asserted that this statement alone is an impeachable offense.

....If the Democrats are successful in removing the President from office (which they will never be), it will cause a Civil War like fracture in this Nation from which our Country will never heal.” Pastor Robert Jeffress, @FoxNews

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 30, 2019

And one type of language he is very good at. Mob Boss talk. I talked about Don Scrotolone in these pages, too. The phone call to President Zelensky illustrated his mastery again. This was plain as day in the phone call's rough transcript. Let the Daily Show with Trevor Noah illustrate this for you.






His rants boil down to a few talking points. Let's play Whistleblower Bingo at his Chopper Talks, in his tweets, and whenever he gets in front of a camera. These points will not vary much; they will just get louder.

• Second-hand information
• Phony witch hunt
• But Hunter Biden!
• Perfect phone call
• No pressure
• Treason/spies

His language becomes more unhinged the more he gets backed into a corner. He turns on his detractors, reducing them to "animals" and "scum" as he did last week referencing members of the press at the same UN breakfast where he called for the assassination of the whistleblower. A couple breaths later he made bizarre claims like, “I just said I’m the most presidential except for possibly Abe Lincoln when he wore the hat — that was tough to beat. Honest Abe, when he wore that hat, that was tough to beat. But I can’t do that, that hat wouldn’t work for me. Yeah, I have better hair than him.”

You just can't make this stuff up!


As for language disorders, he still has trouble thinking of words and phrases. Remember when he talked about the oranges of the Mueller investigation? You could see the wee wheels turning in his head, but those neurons could simply not deliver origins to his mouth.

Something similar happened in his press conference at the United Nations last week. He was addressing the whistle-blower complaint, and he wanted to run through a talking point, that the whistleblower got his information second-hand. You can see him struggle for the phrase "first-hand" in his remarks below (video starts at his struggle).




And the strange tweet about Liddle' Adam Schiff. This is just bizarro, folks.

To show you how dishonest the LameStream Media is, I used the word Liddle’, not Liddle, in discribing Corrupt Congressman Liddle’ Adam Schiff. Low ratings @CNN purposely took the hyphen out and said I spelled the word little wrong. A small but never ending situation with CNN!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 27, 2019

Compare that to the elegant and concise writing of the whistleblower. The New York Times looks closely at it. Worth the read.


Rest assured, you can count on me, Liddle' Sister Resister, to keep tabs on speech and language issues!


And finally, a couple non-related things.....

As we watch the impeachment unfold, the world turns. Witness checks and balances babeeee!

While we were all a-flutter about impeachment stuff happening, our federal judges were at work, doing what the Judicial Branch does best: Acting as a Check and a Balance!

Nick Anderson

On Friday, two important cases pulled the brakes on the Mango Mussolini's immigrations locomotive.

First, a federal judge blocked SCROTUS's plan to override the Flores Agreement, a rule that protects immigrant children in detention.

A second federal judge stopped his fast-track deportation plan, which would have expanded the policy of allowing deportation without the use of immigration courts. Just before midnight on Friday, an injunction was handed down, forcing the administration to adhere to existing policy.


And finally, because they are brilliant and funny, here is the cast of SNL this past Saturday night.

The Genius of Impeachment: What the Heck Happens Next?

We are witnessing history, Resisters! And this time it isn't a question of what the definition of "is" is.

Some of my readers have dim memories of the two of our country's three presidential impeachment proceedings that happened in our lifetime; some of our lifetimes don't even include those memories. I've been asked: just what exactly happens in an impeachment? Gather round the Constitution, kids, let's have a look!


First a quick glance back. The United States Congress has undertaken three previous impeachment proceedings against U.S. Presidents. Two presidential impeachments occurred. What we remember about Nixon's "impeachment" was just a threat of impeachment. He resigned before he could be impeached. The other two were Andrew Johnson in 1868 and Bill Clinton in 1998. Both were acquitted.

President Andrew Johnson's case occurred during a similarly turbulent time in our history. The Civil War had just ended, and Johnson was at odds with Congress in protecting newly freed slaves. His impeachment surrounded his repeated vetos of bills that were written to protect freemen. He was acquitted not so much because the Senate agreed with his policies but that they wanted to preserve the separation of powers and the President's power of the veto.

President Bill Clinton was impeached for lying under oath. Specifically, he lied about a sexual relationship he had with an intern. He, too, was acquitted by the Senate in February, 1999.

As for the aborted Nixon impeachment, the House began a formal impeachment inquiry in February, 1974, a year after Senate investigation into Watergate had begun. In July, 1974, the House Judiciary Committee forwarded three articles of impeachment to the full House of Representatives. They were for obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and contempt of Congress. A couple other articles were being debated, and more evidence emerged, including the "Smoking Gun Tape" which was proof of his complicity in the Watergate cover-up. Days after the Smoking Gun Tape transcript was made public, Nixon resigned.


What's all this? Inquiry? Articles? Acquittal? What's impeachment all about, anyway?

Impeachment is the government equivalent of the indictment phase of a criminal charge. Article One of the United States Constitution gives Congress the power to bring charges against any sitting Federal officer, including the President.

The framers of our government were forward-thinking. They knew they had a gem for the first President, but as Ben Franklin noted, "Nobody knows what sort may come afterwards." And so, they crafted language into the Constitution that allowed for the removal of a bad apple.

Here is what the Article One of the United States Constitution states about impeachment:

The House of Representatives ... shall have the sole Power of Impeachment.
— Article I, Section 2, Clause 5 

The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside: And no Person shall be convicted without the Concurrence of two-thirds of the Members present. 

Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the United States; but the Party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, according to Law.
—Article I, Section 3, Clauses 6 and 7 

[The President] ... shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.
—Article II, Section 2 

The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.
—Article II, Section 4

There's a lot that isn't stated in the Constitution, for example, how "high crimes and misdemeanors" are defined. This nebulous language makes plain that an offense does not need to be an outright criminal offense for impeachment to proceed. Alexander Hamilton in Federalist 65 said this when defining what offenses can be grounds for impeachment: "the misconduct of public men, or in other words from the abuse or violation of some public trust." Offenses such as these are "political, as they relate chiefly to injuries done immediately to the society itself." Basically, as then-House Minority Leader Gerald Ford commented in 1970, "An impeachable offense is whatever a majority of the House of Representatives considers it to be at a given moment in history."

And there's no cookbook in the Constitution for the actual impeachment process, but Congress has adopted rules, and here is what happens:

Step one: Impeachment inquiry (this is where we are now). One or more House Committees gathers evidence, issues subpoenas, and brings witnesses to testify. In our case, several committees are conducting investigations, as they have been doing for months. The House Intelligence Committee seems to be taking lead on the Ukraine scandal.

Step two: If evidence is sufficient, the Committee drafts articles of impeachment outlining the offenses and sends them to the full House for a vote. Each offense (abuse of power, obstruction of justice, bribery, for example) has its own article of impeachment. House Members vote on each article. If a simple majority votes to impeach, then the President is considered impeached, similar to a criminal indictment. If there is not a majority vote to impeach, then nothing happens. The President* is not impeached, and he stays in office, and we go on.

If the House votes to impeach, then the articles of impeachment go to the Senate for trial. To compare to a criminal trial: there are House attorneys that play the role of prosecutors. The President* will have defense lawyers, and the Senate acts as the jury. Presiding over the trial is the Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. In our case, this is Chief Justice John Roberts. The ground rules of the proceedings, again not defined by the Constitution, are decided upon and passed in a resolution prior to the trial.

After evidence is presented and defended, then the Senate votes. In order for the President to be convicted and removed from office, a 66% super-majority must vote to convict. In our case, that's the tricky part. Republicans control the Senate, and they may very well vote to acquit. If the President* is acquitted, then he remains in office. But the IMPEACHED stamp remains on his permanent record.

Right now, more than half the members of the House, one Independent and 233 Democrats, support an impeachment investigation. There are 12 Democrat holdouts. Eleven of those represent Trumpish districts. Once the investigations are complete and articles of impeachment are drafted, expect the number voting in favor of impeachment to go up.

We must resist the temptation to compare this case to previous impeachment proceedings. This case must be taken on its own merits. It's tempting to compare to the most similar case, that of Richard Nixon. But even then there are stark differences. For one, Nixon actually felt shame, and he considered the public's esteem of the Office of President when he decided to resign. There is no comparison to the sociopath that we now confront.

There is a lot of speculation about what may or may not happen. We must take one step at a time and wait for the evidence. No matter the final outcome, this is proceeding as it must. The House has the serious duty to defend the Constitution. I'm confident that the evidence will be overwhelming and the Senate will have no choice but to convict. But if not, we deal with those outcomes then. As I said in a comment on my previous post, let's be optimistic. We have no way of knowing what will happen. Let's hold on to the more positive outcome. There is no cost for Hope. Hang on to it.

"The genius of impeachment lay in the fact that it could punish the man without punishing the office." – Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.

Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees the others.

"Courage is the first of human qualities because it is the quality which guarantees the others." – Aristotle

Things are happening fast n' furious in Washington, and Little Sister Resister is keeping her pulse on it. Count on LSR to digest the full banquet of news for you.


When last I wrote, Speaker Pelosi had just announced the commencement of an Impeachment Inquiry after a brave whistleblower came forward with credible allegations of wrongdoing by the President* of the United States.

The next morning, on Wednesday, September 25, an unredacted summary of TRUMP's phone call to Ukraine President Zelensky was released by the Whitewash House. It wasn't the word-for-word transcript; it was a summary. In it, there was damning evidence of abuse of power.

Here is the phone call summary. And here is PBS's annotation. My first thought, as PBS notes, is that the time stamp indicates a 30-minute conversation. The memo is awfully short for 30 minutes, even accounting for translation. The next thought I had was, wow! It's both surprising and not at all surprising that the Moron-in-Chief actually thought that this summary would exonerate him. Instead, he handed the People a silver platter piled with High Crimes and Misdemeanors.

Dave Whamond

The next morning, Thursday September 26, the whistleblower complaint was released to the public. It's quite the read! Here it is if you haven't read it yet. I was still in bed on Thursday morning when it came in, and I took my time tasting every word. The New York Times has annotated it here.

The whistleblower complaint corroborates the rough transcript released by the Whitewash House.

It's evident that a lot of people are implicated in the scandal, not the least of which is Rudy Giuliani, TЯUMP's personal lawyer, and Bill Barr, TЯUMP's personal lawyer Attorney General of the United States. Today saw the first casualty of those implicated in the complaint, Kurt Volker, U.S. envoy to Ukraine, has left his position. Volker has already been called to give a deposition, as has four other State Department officials. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has been subpoenaed, too.

The whistleblower complaint not only illustrates Don the Con's corruption and abuse of power, it also outlines a coordinated cover-up, implemented by several people in the administration, including placing the transcript of the phone call on a super-secret server. This is evidence of consciousness of guilt.

About the same time that the whistleblower letter was released to we the people, we had our first de facto impeachment hearing, when acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire testified to Chairman Adam Schiff (D-CA) and the House Intelligence Committee about the letter and how it was handled. Poorly. It was handled poorly. Acting DNI Maguire received the letter and took this complaint implicating criminal activity by the President* of the United States directly to.... the President* of the United States.

His defense, in part, is that he received the letter on his second day on the job; he was "still using Garmin to get to work." The Late Show with Stephen Colbert's response:




But in the same testimony, Maguire affirmed that the whistleblower acted in good faith and did the right thing.

SCROTUS has been deflated and small (in his presser while still at the UN; he could barely muster energy for his usual "the incredible wall.....I won the electoral college....but Hillary's emails...witch hunt...no collus...ZZzzz"). Of course, he tried lying and deflecting during the 48-minute-long statement. And he was typically neurologically impaired. He couldn't think of the phrase "first-hand" at the very beginning of his weird treatment of the whistleblower scandal at 2:40. He lied throughout his remarks, so much so that MSNBC cut away, calling out his lies. See his rambling speech here. He threw Pence under the bus at 17:24 and #PresidentPelosi started trending on Twitter. *sigh* wouldn't that be just dreamy?

On Twitter, he's angry. It's the usual yelling for the most part, but there was one especially bizarro tweet today. It's hard to discribe how much is wrong' with this tweet.

To show you how dishonest the LameStream Media is, I used the word Liddle’, not Liddle, in discribing Corrupt Congressman Liddle’ Adam Schiff. Low ratings @CNN purposely took the hyphen out and said I spelled the word little wrong. A small but never ending situation with CNN!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 27, 2019

Journalists will start digging up all kinds of stuff. Here's an early one: A photo of Jared Kushner and President Zalenksy together. First published by Laura Rozen (click tweet to see photo):

Had noted the other night that on Ukrainegate, Kushner and Ivanka suddenly seem to be invisible. But I was wrong. Not invisible.

— Laura Rozen (@lrozen) September 26, 2019

It has been reported that the super-secret server has been used to store transcripts of calls with Putie and MBS as well. Hmmmmm.....

Late today, it became known that NRA president Wayne LaPierre has pledged money to help King Twit dig out of this mess. Or, as some analysts see it, pledged money that creates a whole new world of corrupt acts, including perhaps an outright pay-for-play scheme.

And quite alarmingly, at a going-away UN breakfast for career U.S. diplomatic workers (traditionally some of the hardest-working, patriotic, and non-partisan government employees there are), Benedict Donald basically called for the execution of the whistleblower and "the person who gave the whistleblower the information," calling their actions "lies and treason." Hear the audio taken by an attendee: Los Angeles Times. Disgusting behavior -- the very behavior that whistleblower laws are made to protect against. Talk about sending a chill throughout the intelligence community or anyone else who would be put in the position to speak out...

Our whistleblower is a courageous American hero and patriot! No one knows who the person is, and though there will be attempts to find his or her identity, we shouldn't find out. This person's safety is at stake. I envision a day 20-30 years from now, when we finally learn the identity, like we did when we learned that Mark Felt was Watergate's Deep Throat.

Congress is in recess for the next two weeks, but undoubtedly the committee chairs will stay on and work hard on this mess. The Iowa caucus is just four months away.

I leave you with the wise words of Dan Rather, who has been a voice of reason and calm throughout the last two and a half years.  He echos what I have strived to do throughout the months on this blog. Stay with me while we travel this road.



Here's the text if the link is broken for you:

Dan Rather

September 26 at 7:11 PM 

I am stunned. And I like to think I do not stun easily. 

I find myself at moments almost speechless - granted not a quality one associates with former or even current news anchors. 

This is a story unlike any I have ever seen. Its contours seem to entangle this administration like a giant squid around a submarine in an old science fiction film, tentacles prying apart what once seemed solid. With a spectacle like this, it's sometimes important to pause and try to take in as wide a picture as possible. There is so much we do not know, but what we know already is gravely striking. What the president, his lawyer, and others have already copped to would be enough to almost roll credits in a mob film. I apologize for the multiple cinematic allusions, but this story defies the imagination normally required for real life. 

For most of my life, my job was to try to make sense of events, big and small, in real time. Sort of like a play by play broadcaster relating to an audience what is transpiring, often ad libbing as new details emerge. 

I find myself wondering what it would be like to be in the midst of this story, either on the ground in Washington or in an anchor chair, tapping the incoming rivers of information from reporters, on Capitol Hill, at the White House, and at other perches necessary for covering this rapidly metastasizing narrative. 

What I return to, as I think back at other moments of crisis and uncertainty, is the need as a reporter and as a citizen to remain steady. Now steadiness should not be confused with apathy or detachment. We need to be engaged, with a steely determination to get to the bottom of what seems to be but the tip of a proverbial iceberg. There are many leads to follow, many new angles emerging. We cannot afford to lose grasp of the threads of the much bigger story arc. 

This is unprecedented. This is dangerous. But this is also necessary. We cannot panic in the face of what we confront, or get overwhelmed by details. We must breathe deep, take stock, see all for what it is, methodically and fairly uncover right from wrong, truth from fiction, and ultimately we must persevere, for the sake of our nation.

Stay tuned, Brother and Sister Resisters!

Impeachment!

I had an alternate title for this post when I started it this morning. Things have moved very quickly. The first title was:

Step right up, folks! See the dog and pony show!

In the aftermath of the Ukraine revelations, it was a typical TЯUMP Carnival.

Hurry, hurry, hurry! Step right up! We're gonna have an amazing show for you! We'll bring out the Orange-Faced Loon! Folks, the smallest orange man in history has the amazing ability to flip-flop like you wouldn't believe! The obfuscation will astound you! Watch his amazing monologue, going from staunch denials of wrong doing to "I did it and so what?" in a matter of hours! Watch as nary a single conservative lawmaker breaks a sweat! Watch in amazement as the anatomical wonder, the Human Anus, flips the discourse! See the master legitimize his own treasonous transgressions while hyperbolizing the totally imagined wrongdoings of his opponents!  Come on folks, you won't see a freak show like this in your lifetimes! Freedoms are going fast! Bring your friends and neighbors, folks! You won't want to miss The Two-Faced Idiot! See the Hitler-wannabe mesmerize a nation one-third full of racists! Watch as he paralyzes the entire Republican party! They won't remember that they swore to uphold the Constitution!

NY Daily News

Welcome to the next stop in the U.S.A. Carnival. Will the Ukraine scandal be the one where all the tents burn down?


I was feeling very depressed this morning when I started this post. I was hesitant to suggest that this is the beginning of the end. How many times have I written those words on this blog? So many times we've thought, this is it! I thought Speaker Pelosi would continue dragging her feet.

But things moved fast since the revelation that SCROTUS had had a whistle-blower complaint against him, and today's events unfolded even more quickly, culminating in the announcement this afternoon by Speaker Nancy Pelosi that a formal impeachment inquiry would begin.

Here is her announcement. As I am wont to do, I was moved to tears when she invoked the words of Benjamin Franklin.




Because one of my missions of this blog is to chronicle the goings-on in our tortured world, I give you here the facts of the horse and pony show in the last six days.

Last Wednesday September 18, the intrepid patriots at The Washington Post (you should subscribe to the WaPo. The journalists there are saving our Republic - again) reported that the TЯUMP-appointed Intelligence Community Inspector General had received a whistle blower complaint against 45. The IG deemed it an “urgent concern,” and "credible." All we knew at the beginning was that the complaint outlined promises made to a foreign government by the President*. No one knew which government or what promises, as the Department of Justice blocked the IG from bringing the whistleblower complaint to Congress, as the law requires.

Step right up folks! You'll see the rare Barr Bear! You've never seen anything like it! You'll watch in amazement as this bear trashes his reputation as a public servant! Watch in real time as his nose gets browner and browner! You won't believe your eyes!

As the investigative reporters uncovered more, the Trumpettes attempted to do damage control, in the only way those clowns know how. Messily.

It had been known that Rudy Giuliani, the PseudoPresident's personal lawyer, had been openly talking to the Ukrainians and had had a Kiev trip planned and canceled. On Thursday, when confronted by Chris Cuomo, he first denied, then contradicted himself within seconds, admitting he was involved in asking the Ukrainians to investigate Joe Biden and Hunter Biden.

Step right up and see the Bat-Faced Lawyer with instant contradictions! He can dig a hole too deep to climb out of within seconds! Watch as the hole mysteriously fills up with crap the faster he digs! 

Finally, on Friday, the Wall Street Journal broke the story that the incident in question was a July 25 phone call to the Ukranian president, but we didn't know what the promises were or if there was quid pro quo. Soon enough we learned that 45 had asked Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to conduct an investigation into his opposing 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden and Joe's son Hunter Biden's business dealings in Ukraine. Trumpo the Clown had asked for that investigation and and held over Zelensky's head some $200 million of aid that had been already been approved by Congress.

(Side note: The Ukraine already conducted an investigation into Hunter Biden and his Ukraine business dealings a few years ago. Nothing untoward was found. Repreat: the Bidens did nothing wrong.)

The whole week, Democrats were getting restless, murmuring louder and louder, talking about impeachment. The Republicans? Crickets.


Meanwhile, during the last six days SCROTUS lashed out against the whistleblower, typically saying it was a "political hack job," even though he doesn't know the identity of the whistleblower. He talked in circles all week, first staying that "it doesn't matter" what they talked about - it was a "perfect conversation," to they did "talk about corruption," to finally admitting that he asked for the investigation, saying more-or-less, Ok yeah I asked about corruption regarding Biden and Biden's son but so what. He has openly said yes, he threatened withholding aid, first saying that he should withhold aid to a country who won't investigate corruption (ie, Hunter Biden), and then saying he was withholding aid because he wanted "other countries" to chip in as well.

Folks, come and watch the Whirling Dervish! Master of the spin! Hold on to your hats! You will not know which way is up when the Whirlwind has finished spinning!

In the end, it's perfectly clear. Benedict Donald admitted that indeed, he talked to the Ukraine president about investigating the Bidens. And indeed, he used the hundreds of millions of dollars as pressure to do so.

There we have it. The United States President* asked a foreign power to interfere in our 2020 election to his benefit.

Speaker Pelosi had no choice but to finally pull the trigger on impeachment proceedings, making the announcement today.

What's next?

Expect a maelstrom of WITCH HUNT tweets, which has already begun. Today, Ms. Pelosi's 6-minute announcement was at 2pm PDT. Twitler tweeted WITCH HUNT or HARASSMENT at 2:08pm, 2:14pm, 2:17pm, and 3:22pm.

Before Speaker Pelosi's announcement, the Snake-oil Salesman-in-Chief announced tomorrow's release of the unclassified, unredacted transcript of the conversation. That is, a transcript of a conversation. We wouldn't know if it is a true transcript or if there were other conversations as well. What Congress needs is the actual whistleblower complaint. They've set a deadline of Thursday for receiving the complaint.

Also, today: Let's give credit to the Senate and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), who fast-tracked the Senate vote asking for the whistleblower report. Today's vote was 100-0. For once, Senate Republicans did the right thing. They appear to be taking these allegations seriously. Time will tell if they truly will keep their motivations and actions pure to protect the country and the Constitution.

Folks, step right up for the most shocking of all. Enter the Mystery Tent and perhaps witness the miracle of Senate Republicans putting country over party. Will it happen? Step this way and be ready for the shock of your life!

There is a deadline Thursday for Congress to be supplied with the whistleblower complaint as prescribed by law. This week the whistleblower may testify to Congress.

All the investigations regarding Russia, obstruction of justice, business dealings, etc, which have already been set into motion will continue. There will be a new sense of urgency, and new investigations will commence into this latest scandal.

Joe Biden's candidacy may have a hit. The right will use this as a weapon against him, even though there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by Joe Biden or Hunter Biden.

Or it may have a boost. Any attention is good attention when it comes to politics.


What our lawmakers do next will be pivotal in our nation's story. In the meantime, please call your House Representatives, as well as your Senators, and tell them what you think about impeachment. Use Resistbot to send a fax right from your text or Messenger. Resistbot will also help you place a phone call.

As usual, our best news summaries come from late night. Here's Seth Meyers to tell y'all about it, as of yesterday.




And Stephen Colbert brilliantly outlines today's events.




And, lastly, because he captures my current mood, indeed my mood for the last 1,049 days, a Randy Rainbow song from a year ago.

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Elections belong to the people.

“Elections belong to the people.” – Abraham Lincoln

***Happy National Voter Registration Day!***

We the People all suffer when any of our citizens are denied the right to vote. The most at risk are the young, the poor, and people of color. We white people, particularly city folk in prosperous areas, largely have not had to fear that our vote will not be able to be cast, or will not be counted. We must be the allies to help ensure fair voting from sea to shining sea. That is why I have decided that my personal mission in advance of the 2020 election will be helping to get out the vote, and specifically helping to ensure voter rights for disenfranchised citizens. We are witnessing the continuation of voter suppression, especially of black voters, that has been part of America's fabric since the very beginning.

The History

Black people have been denied the right to vote from the beginning. Slaves weren't citizens and therefore couldn't vote. When freedom came and the 14th Amendment was passed in 1868, many states still barred black men from voting (black women, like white women, were barred from voting for many more years). A few years later, the 15th Amendment was passed. It read, "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."

The 15th Amendment did NOT prevent States from preventing black men from voting, however. Do you know where the term grandfather clause came from? Some southern states passed laws that included a clause that stated that if a man's grandfather had been a slave, then he doesn't have a right to vote. Grandfather clauses were struck down in 1915, and in 1920, black women finally won the right to vote when the 19th Amendment was passed. Those laws, however, did not stop poll taxes, literacy tests, and the southern white man's friend, intimidation – including lynchings – from preventing black citizens from voting.

This went on for decades until the brave civil rights fighters of the 1960s took to the streets and the lunch counters and the courtrooms and forced the passing of the 24th Amendment, outlawing poll taxes, and the Voter Rights Act of 1965.

Those were powerful, progressive years, but these strong laws have not prevented voter suppression since then. It's back in a big way, though it never really left.


The Now

Black voter suppression is making a resurgence, in codified and non-codified ways.

Since 2010, more states have enacted more strict voting laws, making it harder for people to vote.

Many other communities have put barriers in front of people, especially poor people and people of color, on their way to the polls. In the South especially, tactics to disenfranchise black voters are commonplace:

• Making polling places distant and inaccessible

• Changing or eliminating polling places

• Reducing the hours that polling places are open

• Requiring voter ID or proof-of-citizenship. According to the ACLU, while 1 in 10 Americans do not possess government-issued ID, 1 in 4 African Americans don't, and 15% of people earning less than $35,000 a year do not possess government-issued ID.

• Purging people from the polls 

• Felon disinfranchisement

• Complex and inaccessible information

• Intimidation

But it was Georgia that brought it home to me, caused me great concern, and spurred me to action. Voter suppression was front and center during the 2018 election, when black voters were systematically denied the right to vote in Georgia. The gubernatorial race between Stacey Abrams (D), hoping to be the first black female governor of Georgia (and indeed the first in the nation), and incumbent Brian Kemp (R), old white man and TЯUMP supporter, was pivotal. Voter suppression was pervasive, blatant, and shameful!

Mike Licht

These are just a few ways in which voters in Georgia were denied their right to vote in 2018:

• Hundreds of thousands of voters were purged from the polls in the months before the November, 2018 election. Only a fraction of these were legitimate cancellations. Purges were made for people to didn't vote in the previous few elections, or who failed the "exact match" policy -- voter registration addresses had to have exact matches to driver license or social security information. Not a single dash or period could be different. 

• A busload of black Georgia voters who were on their way to vote on the first day of early voting was turned around.

• A racist robocall that impersonated Oprah Winfrey was used by a white supremacist group in the days before the election. 

• Kemp made an unsubstantiated allegation days before the election that there was hacking by Democrats.

• Voting machines were not working properly. Touch-screens chose Kemp when the voter touched Abrams's name. 

• There was a lack of voting machines, while hundreds of voting machines were locked away in government storerooms. The shortage of voting machines created long lines in many polling places, causing some voters to give up and leave, as Georgia does not have a law guaranteeing paid time off for voting. 

• In some areas, voters were refused provisional ballots. 

• Hundreds of polling places were closed throughout Georgia since 2012, causing voters to have to travel farther and spend more time to exercise their right. This especially impacts poor, rural citizens' rights.

Voter suppression tactics do not only target black citizens, but also Native Americans and Latinx folks across the nation. We must fight for the right of every single eligible citizen to vote. How can we do this?


The Future

Help me in my mission, please! This is an urgent issue that needs many minds to solve.

Act locally. First, register to vote yourself. Consult the League of Women Voters's Vote411 or the government site vote.gov for voter registration information. Reach out to others and encourage them to register and to vote. Talk to your neighbors with kids approaching 18 and encourage them to get their kids to register. In California, the last day to register for the primary election is February 18, 2020. The primary election is on Tuesday, March 3, 2020.

Learn about the candidates and the issues. Your empowerment begins with voter registration, but does not end there. Read, learn, and be an informed voter.

Push your state and local elections officials to implement fairer voting procedures:

• Allow early voting and vote-by-mail.

• Reform voter registration methods - allow automatic and election-day registration.

• End gerrymandering.

• Make Election Day a national holiday (call your Members of Congress!).

And please, please help me in supporting the organizations below, which are helping to enfranchise traditionally disenfranchised voters. Will you pledge $5 to one of these organizations?

Fair Fight 2020 – Stacey Abrams is leading the charge to empower voters in 10 battleground states.

Spread the Vote helps people acquire IDs in order to facilitate their right to vote.

NAACP – The NAACP has been fighting for black rights, including voting rights, for 110 years. Help them help others!

League of Women Voters – They are dedicated to voter rights. Period. This almost-100-year-old nonpartisan organization has been at the forefront of empowering voters since the Suffrage movement. Find your local office of the League of Woman Voters and volunteer or donate.

The ACLU fights many fights for justice and freedom, one of which is voter rights. They've filed lawsuits against Brian Kemp and work tirelessly for all of our freedoms. Idea: donate directly to ACLU chapters in areas that are most at risk for voter suppression. See a (slightly outdated, but still useful) list of those vulnerable communities here.

The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law "is a nonpartisan law and policy institute that works to reform, revitalize – and when necessary, defend – our country's systems of democracy and justice." They advocate for American democracy in all areas, including voter rights. BCJ is a great resource for learning.

Common Cause helps defend many areas of our democracy, including ensuring voter rights and ending gerrymandering. They've got plenty of volunteering opportunities and action plans if you want to act rather than donate.

There are also many action plans suggested by Let America Vote. Look them over and take action!



“We do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” --Thomas Jefferson


Thanks for reading!




Sources for further reading:

The Atlantic - overview
Nonprofit Quarterly - Georgia
Atlanta Journal-Constitution - Closed polling places in GA
Progressive.org - overview
The Guardian - Georgia
The Atlantic - solutions 
Dissent Magazine - solutions
Atlanta Journal-Constitution - Voting machine shortage
American Progress - overview, including intimidation tactics

Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.

"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is not to stop questioning." -- Albert Einstein


Imagine, if you will, a couple in love. They had a heady start, rebelling against their parents and running away together. They were giddy with delight and optimism. The pair have done great things together. They have weathered storms together. They fought good fights together; they've set out to change the world together. Neighbors have admired them; people want to be near them. They've snuggled tenderly, they've disagreed fiercely, but they've always taken care of each other, and their many children. They've been able to show many faces to each other, sometimes disagreed so much that they were nearly torn apart, but they always were able to reconcile and keep moving forward in love and hope.

Ms. Liberty and Ms. Justice did this for 240 years! What a long, loving relationship!

Mirco Ilic

Then suddenly, there was a toxic relationship. Now, the citizenry of the United States of America is in a noxious relationship with the President* of the United States. We need help to navigate this.

The Toxicity

We are living with the Abuser-in-Chief. He displays classic emotional abuse traits. He's a narcissist, and everything is about him. He lies, he gaslights. He throws a match on some gasoline and then suddenly arrives with a fire extinguisher. He bullies and name-calls. He is vindictive. He mocks you in public, then laughs it off saying, "it was just a joke." He insults your appearance and your accomplishments. He asserts that he has a right to your body with or without your consent. He threatens violence against those who disagree with him. He engages in illicit relationships with others.

His relationship with us is the same as with just about everyone in his circle. Some wake up and leave sooner than others. He has courted and alienated many. The New York Times has an interactive list of 55 top-level administration officials who have gone through the revolving door. He's had these types of relationships throughout his life – in public and in private; in business and in politics.

It is suspected that his relationship with his current wife Melania is much the same. Not much is known, but a student of body language can observe a lot. We have plenty of examples of public behavior that shows there is trouble underneath the shiny gold-leaf veneer.

• He tries to hold her hand and she nearly always snatches it away. 

• He pats his leg as if calling a dog.

• He forgot he had a son with his wife.

• She lusts after other world leaders. Well, at least one.

If you look at photos from her younger days, you realize Melania was at ease. She was a happy woman at one time. Now, she rarely smiles. Dollars to donuts when the gig in the Whitewash House ends, she will be seeking happier trails.

Just like we hope for us.


The Damage

Like any toxic relationship, it takes a toll on our psyche. We experience distrust, depression, fear, and anxiety. We are losing sleep. We want to leave but we feel trapped. We suffer from the abuse. We know it could be better -- we've had so much better -- and we pine for the best that our last relationship gave us.

Our mental health is suffering. A specific anxiety disorder is plaguing us. All of us are feeling the ill effects, some more than others. For example, the physical health of Latinx folks seems to be especially affected. All of us are experiencing a toll on our psyche.


We need help.


The Relationship Principles

Once upon a time, I sought help in trying to save a relationship. I got counseling, I read books, and most powerfully, I became involved in a save-your-marriage message board. There, I learned more about myself than I ever thought I would, I made deep friendships, and I learned about relationships -- all kinds, not just romantic relationships -- and how to navigate them. I learned that sometimes the best way to "save" a relationship is to let it go.

Though I felt that mine was, it's true that not all relationships are worth saving, and in order to save our health, we must let go of the toxic ones. In our case, our deep love and respect for the United States and its ideals is worth working to keep. We must jettison the toxic part. The best and most obvious best way to do this is to VOTE on November 3, 2020. Until then, we must learn to cope.

First, we must accept the fact that 45 is unwell. We must give up the "what-ifs" and "if-onlys" that keep us stuck. He is fundamentally dysfunctional and is not going to magically get better. Things are only getting worse, so accepting this will go a long way to our self-care. This goes toward managing our expectations. We must not expect that miracles will happen with regard to this man. Expecting different behaviors and outcomes will only dash us upon the rocks again and again. We must accept the disordered situation as it is.

Part of this acceptance involves developing a healthy detachment. Detachment means removing yourself from outside drama; taking care of your own stuff, which includes taking care of your own emotions; self-loving; and accepting that you can not control another person’s actions or emotions. It becomes a great burden to take on the world’s pain as your own. Whether it’s in a personal relationship, or the woes of the nation, or the injustices against a minority group, taking on burdens can become unhealthy. If we take home all the pain of all the people, we won't be able to function. Detachment doesn't mean you don't care, or that you are giving up. It just means letting go of control, letting go of expectations, letting go of another's problems. Detachment helps you to better face the problems and work toward solutions.

And speaking of another's problems and emotions, it's important to remember that only we are responsible for own emotions, and we are not responsible for another's. Emotions are neither right nor wrong. They just are. But if you let negative emotions drive you, then they can become a problem. The better choice is to acknowledge your emotions, name them, examine what they are trying to tell you, thank them, and then say goodbye to them. Choose to hang on to love, hope, generosity, kindness, and happiness. If you need to, fake it. Studies show that acting happy can lead to real happiness. Do not carry others' reactions about you, your beliefs, your actions. Care deeply. Be authentic in your goodness. This is all any of us can do.

To go a bit further, it's important to "act, not react." If we react out of anger and fear, it can make things worse. So we calm ourselves, and we act. In our case, we can mobilize as voters and constituents. Act for the greater good by contacting your members of Congress about issues that are important to you, donate to or campaign for candidates that you believe in, work for enfranchising fellow citizens, vote. Do the small things that a good citizen does. Take care of the environment, buy from socially responsible businesses, speak out against injustice. But when the fire gets hot, keep your emotional reactions in check. Use negative emotions to point you toward change, whether within yourself or the change you want to see in the world. When another egregious thing happens, let those atrocities spur toward action, not wallowing in the quicksand of paralysis or the fire of anger.

Set goals. Short-term and long-term goals for your own growth and for the world. Pick one thing and do it well. Make an action plan so that your goals are attainable. Me? I have the goal of working toward empowering voters by registering them, fighting against voter suppression, and getting them to the polls.

Most importantly, engage in self-care. Michelle Obama: "We need to do a better job of putting ourselves higher on our own 'to do' list." Eat nutritious food, drink plenty of fluids, exercise, get good rest. Engage in activities that you enjoy and will take you away from the world's problems. Laugh often. Meditate. Get a massage. Start a new hobby. Seek counseling. Read inspirational stories, like Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl, the words of Zen masters (especially as they relate to activism!), or the speeches of inspirational leaders like Martin Luther King, Jr, or Bobby Kennedy.





And embrace one of the tried and true aphorisms of the relationship board: things take time. We must hone our patience, let the world turn and our representatives do their jobs, and in the end we will be relived of this pain. And then, perhaps, at some point in the future, it may be possible to forgive. Forgiveness is a lofty and worthy goal, for forgiveness is for the benefit of the forgiver, not the recipient of the absolution. It may seem impossible now to forgive this monster who is destroying what we hold dear, but by forgiving, we can release the pain and anger of the transgressions. It is freeing, but it's not easy. For me, forgiveness is a ways down the road.

The road I'm facing is 493 days long, until January 20, 2021.

Until then, let's hold on to hope.

"Hope is not blind optimism. It's not ignoring the enormity of the task ahead or the roadblocks that stand in our path. It's not sitting on the sidelines or shirking from a fight. Hope is that thing inside us that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us if we have the courage to reach for it, and to work for it, and to fight for it. Hope is the belief that destiny will not be written for us, but by us, by the men and women who are not content to settle for the world as it is, who have the courage to remake the world as it should be.” - Barack Obama


We may yet see the beautiful reunion of Liberty and Justice for all.





Thanks, Royce. Rest in Peace. 

Map is hard!

This is not normal.

Here is our PseudoPresident on Sunday morning, September 1, making a slight error when describing Hurricane Dorian, which was coming in slow and strong.

In addition to Florida - South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama, will most likely be hit (much) harder than anticipated. Looking like one of the largest hurricanes ever. Already category 5. BE CAREFUL! GOD BLESS EVERYONE!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 1, 2019

The trouble is, Alabama was never in Dorian's sights.

Immediately after the erroneous tweet, the National Weather Service acted to correct the mistake, so as not to cause concern and panic in the state of Alabama.

Alabama will NOT see any impacts from #Dorian. We repeat, no impacts from Hurricane #Dorian will be felt across Alabama. The system will remain too far east. #alwx

— NWS Birmingham (@NWSBirmingham) September 1, 2019

Any other President:

"I mistakenly referred to Alabama in an earlier tweet. The great state of Alabama will not be affected by Dorian. Now, let's get to the business of governing and supporting the states that WILL be affected."


The Toddler-in-Chief:

"The hurricane will hit Alabama! I said so! You better believe me! Say it! SAY IT! Alabama! ALABAMA! ALABAMAAAAAAA!"

After the National Weather Service's correction on Sunday morning, he doubled down on Sunday afternoon during a FEMA briefing (below). At about 04:30 he says:

The federal government stands ready to assist their readiness, response, and recovery operations. And, I will say, the states — and it may get a little piece of a great place: It’s called Alabama.  And Alabama could even be in for at least some very strong winds and something more than that, it could be.  This just came up, unfortunately.  It’s the size of — the storm that we’re talking about.  So, for Alabama, just please be careful also.The federal government stands ready to assist their readiness, response, and recovery operations.

At about 10:46 in the breifing, he tries again, grasping for some validation of his error.





Monday afternoon he tripled down and called out Jonathan Karl at ABC News specifically.

Such a phony hurricane report by lightweight reporter @jonkarl of @ABCWorldNews. I suggested yesterday at FEMA that, along with Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, even Alabama could possibly come into play, which WAS true. They made a big deal about this...

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 2, 2019

By Wednesday afternoon, he went Full Toddler and triple-dog-dared down. He trotted out a map from August 29 (an already outdated map by several days even when he had made his original erroneous Alabama tweet). On the map, he had used a Sharpie to crudely draw an additional area to the forecast cone, jutting out into Alabama.

.
.
.

...I'm sorry, what?




What the actual fuck. This is pathological.

We seem to have reached a new low. (How deep does this pit go, exactly??)


But the tantrum doesn't end there!

After Melania locked up the marker drawer, and the public picked up our collective jaw from the floor, he tweeted four more times.

On Wednesday night, he tweeted a spaghetti-line projection map from August 28, which included a couple outlier lines extending into extreme southeast Alabama. This map also showed a line going into Louisiana. Where the hell were his thoughts and prayers for New Orleans? Huh? Huh?

This was the originally projected path of the Hurricane in its early stages. As you can see, almost all models predicted it to go through Florida also hitting Georgia and Alabama. I accept the Fake News apologies! pic.twitter.com/0uCT0Qvyo6

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 4, 2019

And hour later, he tried again.

....Instead it turned North and went up the coast, where it continues now. In the one model through Florida, the Great State of Alabama would have been hit or grazed. In the path it took, no. Read my FULL FEMA statement. What I said was accurate! All Fake News in order to demean!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 5, 2019

The next morning, his face was turning red as he held his breath until we the people will believe him right now!

The Fake News Media was fixated on the fact that I properly said, at the beginnings of Hurricane Dorian, that in addition to Florida & other states, Alabama may also be grazed or hit. They went Crazy, hoping against hope that I made a mistake (which I didn’t). Check out maps.....

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 6, 2019

By that afternoon, he had dug up some early NOAA maps of wind-speed projections. These maps were from 2-3 days before his original erroneous tweet.

Just as I said, Alabama was originally projected to be hit. The Fake News denies it! pic.twitter.com/elJ7ROfm2p

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 5, 2019

Notice these maps show Alabama having a 5-10% chance of experiencing tropical-storm-force winds (greater than 39 mph) during Dorian.


What is that now? <LSR counts the tweets 'n such> ...I think he has nonupled down this week?

And so, here we are a week later, and finally someone bends. We don't know who bent, because the following memo is unsigned.

Here is statement from your National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released yesterday. "Attributible to a NOAA spokesperson." WTF does that mean? Just who authorized this statement?

Who sent out this comm? Why did they throw their comrades in Birmingham NWS under the bus?

Edit to add:
On Saturday evening, The Washington Post reported that on September 1, the day the original erroneous tweet was made, NOAA scientists were directed not to contradict any statements made by the president*. It's unconscionable that again we see politicalizing and undermining objective scientific data. This shakes the public trust in the most trustable agency. What other world does this happen in?


There are multiple problems with this entire fiasco, of course.

First, what can we expect from a toddler in a high-stakes situation? He refuses to admit mistakes. He can't be wrong. Facts do not matter to him. Advisors cannot sway him. Today it's the weather. Tomorrow, what will it be? Do we want this person involved in making war decisions? Do we want him to have the nuclear codes?

Second. This week the weather, the most neutral, factual, and verifiable of all, has been falsified, politicized, and weaponized. This, my friends, is a dictatorship in action.

Third, our country is at a standstill because of a weather forecast. It wasn't the hurricane that screeched our collective attention. This issue isn't just about weather, it's about the deeply flawed brain of a con man. This inane mistake escalated into lies upon lies upon justifications upon tortured rationalizations. It's completely insane. With one senseless stroke of a Sharpie, we have another glaring illustration of why this pathological person is not fit to govern.

Fourth, how about the real Dorian? Homes in the Carolinas are underwater with trees in their living rooms. Alabama got a wind gust, but in communities on the Outer Banks, people are kayaking down the streets. What about our friends in the Bahamas? It's truly a humanitarian disaster there. 70,000 people are left homeless. Many islands have been flattened. The death toll is expected to be catastrophic.

As Jennifer Rubin from The Washington Post said, "It’s not simply that he is wrong, but pathetically laughable." And this is enough to make us cry.

We are in a sad, sad state of affairs, folks. The pit reveals no bottom.


And now, so that we may breathe again, Twitter tee-hees to the rescue. We gotta laugh to keep from crying.

Kevin Siers