(click on images to enlarge)
(Ted Littleford, @tedlittleford)
(Rob Rogers, Tinyview.com)
(Steve Breen, Creators.com)
(Drew Sheneman, The Star-Ledger, Newark, NJ)
(Matt Wuerker, Politico)
(Nick Anderson, Reform Austin News, TX)
(Robert Ariail, Spartanburg Herald-Journal, SC)
(Adam Zyglis, The Buffalo News)
(John Deering, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
(Jeremy Nguyen, The New Yorker)
As former MAGAt Republican Rep. George Santos slinks off shivving his former colleagues before he lands in the clink, Michelle Goldberg has an apt analysis of The Man and The Movement (via Hullabaloo):
"...Should the blessed day ever arrive when Donald Trump is sent to federal prison, only one of his acolytes has earned the right to share his cell: George Santos, who on Friday became the sixth person in history to be expelled from the House of Representatives, more than seven months after he was first charged with crimes including fraud and money laundering. (He’s pleaded not guilty.) A clout-chasing con man obsessed with celebrity, driven into politics not by ideology but by vanity and the promise of proximity to rich marks, Santos is a pure product of Trump’s Republican Party. “At nearly every opportunity, he placed his desire for private gain above his duty to uphold the Constitution, federal law and ethical principles,” said a House Ethics Committee report about Santos released last month. He’s a true child of the MAGA movement.
"That movement is multifaceted, and different politicians represent different strains: There’s the dour, conspiracy-poisoned suburban grievance of Marjorie Taylor Greene, the gun-loving rural evangelicalism of Lauren Boebert, the overt white nationalism of Paul Gosar and the frat boy sleaze of Matt Gaetz. But no one embodies Trump’s fame-obsessed sociopathic emptiness like Santos. He’s heir to Trump’s sybaritic nihilism, high-kitsch absurdity and impregnable brazenness..."
A "true child of the MAGA movement" indeed.
Note on your calendars. --
Save the date: Judge Arthur Engoron has set closing arguments in Trump's civil fraud trial for Jan. 11, 2024 at 10am.
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) December 1, 2023
This must be more bad news for Biden, cont'd. --
Thanks, Joe. pic.twitter.com/6RAdJbMzZy
— Jeff (Gutenberg Parenthesis) Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) December 1, 2023
The US economy is pretty much beating the entire world, but for some reason Americans are exhibiting the same doomy sentiment as everyone else. Actually bizarre pic.twitter.com/8zXOf85iU5
— Will Stancil (@whstancil) December 1, 2023
The punishment should fit the crime --
So if George Santos can be expelled from Congress for fraud, identity theft, and campaign finance violations...
— Tristan Snell (@TristanSnell) December 1, 2023
What is the punishment for members of Congress who were co-conspirators in an insurrection against the United States of America?
And when will we ever see it?
Putin's demonization of LGBTQ Russians deepens. --
An unbelievably draconian step even by Russia’s standards.
— max seddon (@maxseddon) November 30, 2023
Russia’s Supreme Court has ruled the global gay rights movement to be an “extremist organisation” on a legal par with al-Qaeda and Isis, outlawing any display of support for LGBT+ rights. https://t.co/bTsBba3PY6
What's that Musk-smell? Arrogance and megalomania. --
Ah yes, the insufferable arrogance and megalomania of a tech bro. Only I can save you because I’m smarter and better than everyone else. pic.twitter.com/NFVwmAD3hD
— Ron Filipkowski (@RonFilipkowski) December 2, 2023
Tutti frutti and this. --
Wop bop a loo bop a lop bom bom pic.twitter.com/jySdb4HX9S
— Dana Houle (@DanaHoule) December 2, 2023
Rep. Marjorie Traitor Greene, math genius and .....
How many years? pic.twitter.com/n20u5O9ThL
— Mueller, She Wrote (@MuellerSheWrote) December 2, 2023
.... Rep. Lauren "Hand Job" Boebert, raging lunatic. --
President Biden openly laughs at the ridiculousness of Lauren Boebert, then throws shade at her. More of this please. (Video: MeidasTouch) pic.twitter.com/PCZYp3TSfr
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) December 2, 2023
Words of wisdom from Master Strategist Putin --
Day 647 of my 3 day war. I’ve had 325,000 casualties but will increase size of army by 170,000 which is in fact a reduction showing I want peace & Ukraine wants war.
— Darth Putin (@DarthPutinKGB) December 2, 2023
I remain a master strategist.
Wow, both hairy and scary. --
Good day, m'lady.
— pourmecoffee (@pourmecoffee) November 30, 2023
"Vintage Men’s Hairstyles:" https://t.co/u8CAVQtDKN pic.twitter.com/4WZQUd6iPW
As evidence of his determination to settle old scores and his cluelessness, the Malignant Loser has promised to end the Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") if he's elected, despite the program being widely popular 13 years after its roll-out. The problem he has with that is, 1) he has no, and will never have, an alternative to propose, and 2) the Affordable Care act is popular with 60% of the population. From Politico:
"Roughly three-in-five Americans like the 2010 health care law, even more than when Trump and Republicans in Congress came to the brink of wiping it out. And some of the Affordable Care Act’s better-known provisions — like protections for preexisting health conditions — engender even greater support.
When Trump said last week he’d try again to repeal the law if he wins next year’s presidential election, he did more than pick at an electoral scab that party strategists hoped had healed by now. He threatened to bring back to life a potent electoral issue that contributed significantly to the GOP’s wipeout in the 2018 midterms and on which public opinion has only moved away from Republicans since." (our emphasis)
The Malignant Loser can't shake his envy and hatred of President Obama (even imagining he defeated Obama in 2016 instead of Secretary Clinton), who famously mocked him at the White House Correspondent's dinner in 2011 while the Malignant Loser sat stone faced while everyone around him laughed. More from the Politico article:
"Republican voters are far less interested than Democrats in hearing the candidates talk about the health care law, according to new polling data released Friday by KFF, formerly known as the Kaiser Family Foundation. Only 32 percent of self-identified Republican voters think it’s very important for candidates to talk about the future of the Affordable Care Act, the poll shows, compared to 70 percent of Democrats.
So not only is Trump crosswise with the overall electorate over his renewed repeal push — he’s also injected an issue into the campaign for which there’s no groundswell of support among Republicans." (our emphasis)
The Malignant Loser is confident in his ability to convince his gullible, angry cult to vote against their basic interests. But on proposing to ditch the Affordable Care Act, along with his anti-reproductive choice history with Roe v. Wade, some of them may see it as a bridge too far for them.
(photo: the Very Stable Genius)
Two significant rulings yesterday on the Malignant Loser's attempts to claim presidential immunity for his actions leading up to the January 6 insurrection:
"...President Trump moved in the district court to dismiss the claims against him, including on grounds of a President’s official-act immunity from damages liability. The district court largely rejected his claim of immunity, and President Trump now appeals. The sole issue before us is whether President Trump has demonstrated an entitlement to official-act immunity for his actions leading up to and on January 6 as alleged in the complaints.
"We answer no, at least at this stage of the proceedings. When a first-term President opts to seek a second term, his campaign to win re-election is not an official presidential act.The Office of the Presidency as an institution is agnostic about who will occupy it next. And campaigning to gain that office is not an official act of the office. So, when a sitting President running for a second term attends a private fundraiser for his re-election effort, hires (or fires) his campaign staff, cuts a political ad supporting his candidacy, or speaks at a campaign rally funded and organized by his re-election campaign committee, he is not carrying out the official duties of the presidency. He is acting as office-seeker, not office-holder—no less than are the persons running against him when they take precisely the same actions in their competing campaigns to obtain precisely the same office..." -- page 4 of D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan's ruling yesterday on whether the Malignant Loser had immunity from civil suits filed by injured police officers and Members of Congress for his insurrectionist remarks leading up to the January 6 Capitol sacking. The two other judges on the three- judge panel concurred in the ruling but had additional comments.
____________________
"...Defendant contends that the Constitution grants him “absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions performed within the ‘outer perimeter’ of his official responsibility”while he served as President of the United States, so long as he was not both impeached and convicted for those actions. Immunity Motion at 8, 11–13 (formatting modified). The Constitution’s text, structure, and history do not support that contention. No court—or any other branch of government—has ever accepted it. And this court will not so hold. Whatever immunities a sitting President may enjoy, the United States has only one Chief Executive at a time, and that position does not confer a lifelong “get-out-of-jail-free” pass. Former Presidents enjoy no special conditions on their federal criminal liability. Defendant may be subject to federal investigation, indictment, prosecution, conviction, and punishment for any criminal acts undertaken while in office..." -- page 6 of U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan's ruling yesterday denying the Malignant Loser's claim of immunity in the January 6 insurrection prosecution.
The rulings, by two separate courts, bolster the government's position that the Malignant Loser is not above the law, should further appeals be made.
Time to head back to Hawaii for some small barrel surfing with champion surfer "John John" Florence and some of his buddies, with weather forecasts by KITV and music overlaid.
(click on images to enlarge)
(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
(Adam Zyglis, The Buffalo News)
(John Deering, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)
(Guy Parsons, politicalcartoons.com)
(Jeff Danziger, The Rutland Herald, VT)
(Clay Bennett, Chattanooga Times Free Press)
(Dave Whamond, caglecartoons.com)
(Nick Anderson, Reform Austin News, TX)
(Pat Bagley, The Salt Lake Tribune)
(Ellis Rosen, @EllisRosen)
Trump's civil liability for January 6 affirmed --
Donald Trump can be held civilly liable for the actions of the mob that attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, an appeals court ruled in a long-awaited decision that could clear the way for lawsuits seeking financial damages from the former president. https://t.co/4vCfZCfo4A
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) December 1, 2023
This must be more bad news for Biden --
🚨Narrative violation alert🚨
— Mike Konczal (@mtkonczal) November 30, 2023
Six-month core PCE inflation rate, the measure I and others watch closely, is officially lower this month than when President Biden first took office.
Because inflation, tied to the pandemic and supply chains, was already increasing in late 2020. pic.twitter.com/eI5wiNaSy5
Taking out the trash --
Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) expelled from Congress on bipartisan vote following scathing ethics report https://t.co/d7jWbIHs72
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) December 1, 2023
A thing you want in a press conference is a good visual backdrop and this garbage truck behind George Santos is one of the best I've seen https://t.co/UVTtK0HzAd
— Aaron Fritschner (@Fritschner) November 30, 2023
MAGAt Rep. Scott Perry's (Sedition-PA) deep involvement in plan to thwart democracy --
NEWS: A newly unsealed court filing reveals Scott Perry's private exchanges with Jeff Clark, his outreach to top Trump campaign and White House officials and more in the frenetic weeks between the 2020 election and Jan. 6.https://t.co/FC9g1MFeXG pic.twitter.com/6WohaHjUQJ
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) November 29, 2023
The Bootsie-Newsom Great Debate turns into a shit show --
Newsom: Ron has literally the worst mental health system in America. Forgive me outside of Mississippi and Texas..
— Acyn (@Acyn) December 1, 2023
DeSantis: *hold up feces map* pic.twitter.com/mVmAHY5LsX
Republicans - they may not have any ideas, they may not be able to lead, they may not be able to govern, they may not be serious humans but they are always ready with a shit show for the cameras
— RiotWomenn (@riotwomennn) December 1, 2023
What's that Musk-y smell? The Cybertruck ("Firebird" was already taken) rollout has begun! --
If the Tesla Cybertruck has this much trouble getting up this tiny little hill, it's going to be toast in half of San Francisco. Sound on to hear it struggle. Can't imagine anyone actually taking this off road.pic.twitter.com/MX59oHIUPu
— Adam Pavlacka (@gamescan) November 11, 2023
Musk fans: https://t.co/cYFXxVvtgt pic.twitter.com/kSJHsdalUr
— Eliot Higgins (@EliotHiggins) November 28, 2023
De- funding Putin's Russia --
⚡️ US official: Washington aims to halve Russia's energy profits by 2030.
— The Kyiv Independent (@KyivIndependent) December 1, 2023
The U.S. seeks to cut Russia's oil and gas revenue by half by the end of the decade, the Financial Times reported on Dec. 1, citing U.S. assistant state secretary Geoffrey Pyatt.https://t.co/LKQi4Sn8mB
R.I.P. The Pogues' Shane MacGowan --
Of all the songs by Shane MacGowan and The Pogues that deserve a mention today - it’s Sally MacLennane for me.
— Dan Moffat (@Dan_Moffat1998) November 30, 2023
Another icon of Irish music gone leaving a legacy of hits behind. pic.twitter.com/JYv9WOdMhH
Wish we were there (Happy Friday!) --
The Lauterbrunnen Valley in Switzerland with Vertical rock faces and 72 waterfalls
— Science girl (@gunsnrosesgirl3) December 1, 2023
📹 Tom Durrer
pic.twitter.com/kFd27oHBiV
News outlets are reporting that the chairman of the Florida Republican Party is being investigated for sexual battery. The ironically named Christian Ziegler has been accused of sexual battery in October by a woman known to him and his wife, Bridget Ziegler, a founder of the right-wing book-banning group, the misnomered "Moms for Liberty." Politico has the details:
"The Sarasota Police Department is investigating Florida Republican Party Chair Christian Ziegler, whose wife co-founded the conservative parents group Moms for Liberty, following allegations of sexual assault.
According to a heavily redacted police report obtained by POLITICO through a public records request, the alleged incident took place on Oct. 2 at a home in Sarasota and the victim filed a complaint two days later. The documents omit details about the victim’s statement to authorities but include the words 'rape' and 'sexually battered.'”
The Florida Trident, the news platform for the open government watchdog Florida Center for Government Accountability, was first to report on the news." (our emphasis)
The story gets more lurid as it goes on, indicating that the Zieglers (surprise!) weren't the paragons of Christian values that they pretend to be:
"The Trident article quotes anonymous sources who say the Zieglers were in a consensual three-way sexual relationship with the victim but that Bridget Ziegler wasn’t there when the alleged sexual assault happened. POLITICO was not immediately able to substantiate the claims." (our emphasis)
It's rich that the moral mom crusader against sexual content in library books is a allegedly a bisexual swinger. One comes to expect those large skeletons in hypocritical MAGAt closets. She's probably upset that she wasn't with her hubby for his tryst.
Ziegler's close ally, Gov. Ron "Bootsie" DeSantis, is already distancing himself, and has called for Ziegler to step down from the chairmanship. Moms for Liberty was a bit more loyal to wife Bridget, asking people to reserve judgement. No thanks.
BONUS: Lordy, there are tapes of the trysts.
(photo: The twosome of a threesome. Florida's Voice)
Chicago- born blues/ R&B/ soul singer Lou Rawls, born on this day in 1933, was a lot more than a gifted performer. He was also known for his charity work, notably the Lou Rawls Parade of Stars Telethon, which raised over $250 million for the United Negro College Fund over 26 years, until his death in 2006.
"Love Is A Hurtin' Thing" was his first hit in 1966 (#1 on the R&B charts), and what we're listening to today.
A train explosion inside Russia's longest tunnel, a major transportation link to China, is being called an act of sabotage by Russian authorities. Ukrainian security services said that explosives had been detonated in the tunnel because Russia had been getting war materials by that rail route from China. From Reuters' report:
"Investigators have concluded that a train that caught fire in Russia's longest tunnel on Wednesday was blown up in a 'terrorist act' by unidentified individuals, the Kommersant newspaper reported on Friday.
A Ukrainian source told Reuters on Thursday that the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) had detonated explosives in the rail tunnel in Siberia because Russia had been using the route for military supplies. [snip]
Preliminary findings suggested that explosives had been placed beneath the train, Kommersant cited a source as saying. There were no casualties. [snip]
Such an attack, more than 4,000 km (2,500 miles) from Ukraine, illustrates Kyiv's readiness to conduct sabotage deep inside Russia." (our emphasis)
That's a big feat and demonstrates how serious and committed Ukraine is to taking the war deep inside enemy territory, and in a highly efficient way to disrupt supplies headed for the front. The more these acts succeed, the more the Russian population may question the war effort and the Putin regime.
The fighting is on again, for now, with the fate of the hostages and civilian population in the balance:
The seven-day pause in fighting between Israel and Hamas ended early Friday. Each side blamed the other. Israel said Hamas had “violated the operational pause and, in addition, fired toward Israeli territory,” while a Hamas official said talks to extend the pause were “thwarted by the Israelis” who had “refused” an offer to release elderly male hostages and the bodies of three Israeli hostages. The Washington Post could not immediately verify either claim. Several airstrikes were reported across Gaza on Friday morning; a Post photographer witnessed a strike 200 meters from a hospital in Khan Younis in the south. Sirens blared in Israeli communities near the Gaza border, the Israel Defense Forces said.
Meanwhile, there are reports that the Israeli government knew about Hamas' battle plan for October 7 a year ago, but dismissed the reports.
(Photo: rockets being fired this morning from Gaza into Israel / Jack Guez, AFP, Getty Images)
(click on images to enlarge)
(John Darkow, Columbia Missourian)
(Joe Heller, hellertoon.com)
(Ward Sutton, Counterpoint)
(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution; context here)
(Jimmy Margulies, jimmymargulies.com)
(Nick Anderson, Reform Austin News, TX)
(Monte Wolverton, caglecartoons.com)
(Matt Davies, Newsday)
(Ann Telnaes, Washington Post; context here)
(Drew Sheneman, The Star-Ledger, Newark, NJ)
(Jack Ohman, Tribune Content Agency)
(Dave Whamond, caglecartoons.com)
(Corey Pandolph, The New Yorker)
Is Henry Kissinger about to meet Old Scratch? --
200,000 souls in East Timor didn't get to live to be 100.
— Charles P. Pierce (@CharlesPPierce) November 30, 2023
Numberless Cambodians didn't, either.
You know what you get when a war criminal dies?
A dead war criminal.
There is going to be a massive amount of insufferable media coverage this week.https://t.co/IrrhQnIiw5
Henry Kissinger and the Khmer Rouge both killed so many Cambodians that it's great they're finally getting to spend some time together in the same place.
— John Fugelsang (@JohnFugelsang) November 30, 2023
If this guy is eulogizing you, then there is a pretty good chance that you're going to Hell. pic.twitter.com/3Pcn5I1TSS
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) November 30, 2023
The Malignant Loser caught in major violation of court order. --
BREAKING - Trump caught red-handed moving $40 MILLION from Trump Organization into personal bank account, in violation of NY court order forbidding him from moving money because of his rampant fraud.
— Tristan Snell (@TristanSnell) November 30, 2023
This is a MAJOR violation. Trump’s NY businesses will now be 100% liquidated.
Also, the Malignant Loser's attorneys are slowly throwing him under the bus. --
One of Trump's attorneys told the special counsel's team that, within days of DOJ issuing a subpoena for classified docs at Mar-a-Lago, she "very clearly" warned Trump that if he failed to fully comply — but then swore he did — "it's going to be a crime." https://t.co/ggaycGVOF7
— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) November 30, 2023
What's that Musk-y smell? Musk tells advertisers go f*ck yourselves! They respond. --
It’s over for Twitter and its bigoted owner pic.twitter.com/OSgc9WSa8D
— Seth Abramson (@SethAbramson) November 29, 2023
Vice President Harris dunks on loser Kevin "Qevin" McCarthy. --
Damn. Vice President Kamala Harris just reality checked Kevin McCarthy after he criticized President Biden’s negotiating skills, saying, "With all due respect, when anyone has had the experience McCarthy just had, I don’t think he’s a judge of negotiations." VP Harris is so good.
— Victor Shi (@Victorshi2020) November 30, 2023
The staggering losses of the Russian invaders since February 2022. --
"The secret of getting things done is to act!"
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) November 30, 2023
Dante Alighieri
The combat losses of the enemy from February 24, 2022 to November 30, 2023. pic.twitter.com/y4NPOfXHMy
Guys, try not to be so obvious. --
I'm up here.
— pourmecoffee (@pourmecoffee) November 30, 2023
"New research suggests African penguins may find their mates in crowded colonies by looking at their chest plumage" https://t.co/ooJCj8lQUR
