UK To Trump: Stay Away

There are reports that UK has apparently withdrawn the welcome mat extended earlier by minority Prime Minister Theresa May for a fall visit by demagogue and con man Donald "Rump" Trump. Queen Elizabeth's opening address to Parliament, where she notes visits by foreign heads of state in the coming year, failed to mention Rump. Rump had hoped that he would be afforded a ride in the Queen's gilded carriage down The Mall, along with other ceremonial fluff. The threat of massive protests in London following Rump's attack on London Mayor Sadiq Khan after the recent terrorist attack on London Bridge apparently also worried Rump, who prefers adoring, selective audiences like the one he had in authoritarian Saudi Arabia.

Rump's open admiration for the sinister and divisive leader of the UK's right-wing independence party, Nigel "Person of Interest" Farage, may have also played into the decision. Or, perhaps it simply came down to distaste on the part of the royal family to rub shoulders with a vulgar, narcissistic, p*ssy-grabbing con man who is under investigation in his own country for his ties to Russia and potential criminal law violations. Whatever the reason, Rump won't be getting that ride in the gilded carriage anytime soon.

BONUS:

When you leave someone off the guest list. pic.twitter.com/2r6ThxnjeH

— Schooley (@Rschooley) June 21, 2017

Why We Must Avoid Recriminations About Last Night's Special Election Results

We're going to try to avoid the welter of "hot takes" today about the results of last night's special elections in Georgia's 6th and South Carolina's 5th Congressional Districts. What we do want to stress is that going forward, recriminations about "woulda, coulda, shoulda" do progressives no good whatsoever. We'll go with 538's analysis of the actual performance in all the special elections held since dimbulb Donald "Rump" Trump was "elected":

...[I]n terms of the implications for midterm elections in 2018, it’s much less clear that Republicans had a good night. For election forecasting purposes, the margins matter: that Ossoff and Parnell came fairly close to beating their opponents yields a different interpretation than if they’d been blown out. And South Carolina is an important data point, just as Georgia was, even if it received a fraction of as much media attention. The earlier special elections in Kansas’s 4th Congressional District and in Montana’s at-large district provide useful information about the political environment also. 

Democrats have gone 0-for-4 in these races. From an emotional standpoint, the outcomes have been disheartening for Democrats. From an analytical standpoint, however, they’ve ranged between “not bad” and “pretty great” for Democrats as compared with their results from the 2012, 2014 and 2016 elections — consistent with the sorts of results Democrats would expect if they were on track to compete for the House next year. (our emphasis)

Or to put it in cold numbers (click on chart to enlarge):

(Screenshot - 538) 

Those are significant swings in districts that range from deep red to dark pink.  Republicans are whistling past the graveyard if they think their hold on the House is safer in 2018 as a result of these elections; and Democrats would be foolish if they interpret these losses as meaning they shouldn't actively compete in such districts in 2018. As the down- spiral of the Rump regime continues, as Republicans continue to push their toxic agenda, those swings should will get larger and more widespread across the country. We just have to continue to stick together and #resist.

BONUS: Looking at the Georgia race in the context of the past 16 years shows why Dems need to fight:

#GA06 margins thru history:
'02: R+59
'04: R unopposed
'06: R+45
'08: R+37
'10: R unopposed
'12: R+29
'14: R+33
'16: R+23
'17: R+<5#resist

— Tim Kempf (@Timbo_16_Slice) June 21, 2017

BONUS II:  One takeaway is that Republicans come out and vote for Republicans no matter what. See Charles Pierce, Steve M., and Tengrain.

Mid-Week Dreaming Song

North Carolina-based indie folk artist Iron and Wine (the stage and recording name for Sam Ervin Beam) has an eclectic background as a mult-instrumentalist singer/songwriter and a visual artist, having been a professor of film and cinematography at the University of Miami. With seven albums to his credit, Iron and Wine has also provided music for such movies as Garden State and Twilight. His eighth album, "Beast Epic," is due out in August, and a track from that album is the wistful and melodic "Call It Dreaming," our song for today. Enjoy.

Mueller's One-Two Punch (UPDATED)

Anxiety in the White (Supremacist) House is growing as Special Counsel Robert Mueller continues to assemble a "dream team" of veteran prosecutors and investigators. Some of the anxiety is visible in the slimy campaign to discredit the team, notably by odious charlatan Newt "Poot" Gingrich, who recently disparaged them as "bad people" (i.e., Democrats). Two of the team, in particular, are causing worry among the Trumpists. One, Andrew Weissmann, former head of the Justice Department's criminal fraud section of Enron case fame, is a dogged prosecutor known for flipping witnesses in a criminal case to catch higher-ups. Before his successful work on the Enron case, Weissmann was a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn assigned to organized crime cases, including the one that brought down the head of the Genovese crime family. The second, Michael Dreeben, former Deputy Solicitor General and expert in criminal law, has been the Justice Department's key official in prosecuting criminal justice cases. According to Duke University School of Law professor Walter Dellinger, “Michael is the most brilliant and most knowledgeable federal criminal lawyer in America — period.” Both are evidence of the seriousness with which Mueller is approaching the expanding Russiagate probe to include potential criminal violations.

With top law firms refusing to defend sociopath and Putin loyalist Donald "Rump" Trump, and given the second-rate legal team of Sekulow and Kasowitz drafted by Rump, it's no wonder that nerves are frayed in the White (Supremacist) House.

UPDATE:  Make that a one- two- three punch --

Special Counsel Robert Mueller just signed up another recruit to help with his ongoing investigation into alleged Russian influence in the 2016 presidential election. 

Next on-board the investigative juggernaut–which now includes a total of 13 attorneys and counting–is Elizabeth Prelogar, an assistant with the solicitor general’s office who is apparently fluent in the Russian language.

 Otlichno!

Today's Cartoon Threefer - "Caution: Will Be Toxic To Your Health"

(click on images to enlarge)


(Tom Toles, Washington Post)


(Mike Luckovich, Atlanta Journal-Constitution)


(Stuart Carlson, Hearst Papers)

Make Or Break Time On TrumpCare

We're going to keep pushing this, because it's literally a matter of life or death to millions of fellow Americans. Democrats need 3 Republican votes to stop this heinous piece of sociopathic right- wing upward- income- redistribution disguised as health insurance reform when it comes up for a vote before the July 4 recess.

It's obvious why Republicans are so afraid of having their proposals (it's apparently not even a bill yet) aired in front of the American people:

In 2009, Democrats had an easy answer to what the Affordable Care Act was meant to do: They wanted to cover more people and cut costs. They could give that answer because it was a basically popular position, and because it’s what their bill actually did, or at least tried to do. 

In 2017, Republicans have a similarly easy answer for their bill: They want to cover fewer people and use the savings to fund tax cuts for the wealthy. That is what their legislation does. But they can’t give that answer because it’s a horribly unpopular position. 

That is why they are trying to write a bill in secret and pass it before the public has a chance to mobilize against it. That’s why, when asked to describe the bill’s provisions, Republicans offer baldfaced lies or word salad. (our emphasis)

If you thought the House TrumpCare bill savaged Medicaid, the proposals coming out of the Senate are even more devastating.

Tellingly, Senate Republicans have refused to meet with patient advocacy groups like the American Diabetes Association, American Hospital Association, American Medical Association, American Cancer Society, March of Dimes, American Heart Association and AARP.

The weirdest thing to me about the GOP bill isn't the timing or the secrecy. It's that no major org in health care thinks it's a good idea.

— Dan Diamond (@ddiamond) June 19, 2017

As we've said before, this is our chance to make these r*fuckers see what democracy looks like. Here's your TrumpCare tool kit, courtesy of the Center for American Progress to help you make your opinion known (politely but firmly) to Republican Senators (click on link in the tweet):

The toolkit can:
- help you write a letter to the editor
- sends a fax to your senator
- leave Voicemail/callhttps://t.co/mYTkAgC2ni

— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) June 17, 2017

Thanks in advance!

Send Ryan Back To Wisconsin in 2018

Democrat Randy Bryce is running to defeat soulless Squeaker of the House Paul "Lyin'" Ryan in Wisconsin's 1st District in 2018. Bryce, an ironworker, is running in a traditionally Rethuglican district, although it voted for President Obama in 2008 and has elected Dems (e.g., Les Aspin) in the past. What makes the district more competitive in 2018 is the toxic, social Darwinist Trumpcare bill which slashes health care resources in order to pay for a huge tax cut for the top 2%. The latest bill passed by Lyin's House has the support of only 21% of the public. It would strip $880 billion dollars from Medicaid, and leave it up to the states to determine essential coverage and coverage for pre-existing conditions, among other outrages. Defending the amoral bill, Lyin' characteristically said, "everybody doesn't get what they want." Well, except for Lyin's donors.

Bryce's own mother is dependent on the medications and services under the Affordable Care Act, and his campaign has produced a moving ad explaining why Lyin' has to be defeated.



We urge you to contribute to Randy's campaign here. Let's get a good guy in, and a bad one out.

Who's Your Daddy?

For your amusement (or consternation), here's an actual photo of Viktor Knavs, Melania Trump's father, deplaning recently at Andrews Air Force Base with wife Amalija. Hmmm. Melania, call your shrink.

(photo: Getty Images)

We Blinked, So We Missed It

It seems the homophobic National Organization for Marriage (NOM) came to our hometown and had a yuuuge rally this weekend.  How did that go unnoticed?

Oh:

Update: I was able to count every attendee. There are 47 including babies. pic.twitter.com/a8bXeCIHz6

— Beth Ethier (@missdeutsch) June 17, 2017

47.  Sad!

By way of contrast, several hundred thousand participated in Washington's Pride Parade on June 11, with many, many more thousands marching in towns and cities across the country.

Maybe we'll live to see the day when an NOM rally consists of one old guy, his placard and a bullhorn.

(h/t Mock Paper Scissors)

Today's Tomorrow Cartoon: Faint Praise Indeed

 (click on image to enlarge)

The Twitter-Twit-In-Chief's Question Answered

The question, from four years ago:

Do you think Putin will be going to The Miss Universe Pageant in November in Moscow - if so, will he become my new best friend?

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 19, 2013

The answer: Yes, he will, and you'll even commit crimes to protect that friendship.

TrumpCare And Georgia's Special Election

With Senate Republicans poised to bring their American- killing TrumpCare bill to the floor for a vote before July 4, it should be all hands on deck for everyone with a conscience and a sense of moral obligation to our fellow Americans. Two forces have the potential to shape the outcome:  your activism and the special election in Georgia's 6th Congressional District tomorrow, June 20.

There's the "TrumpCare toolkit" provided via Center for American Progress that makes it easier than ever to contact relevant Senators (click on link in the tweet):

The toolkit can:
- help you write a letter to the editor
- sends a fax to your senator
- leave Voicemail/callhttps://t.co/mYTkAgC2ni

— igorvolsky (@igorvolsky) June 17, 2017

The stakes, of course, will be life and death for some people if this soulless bill -- which would be cobbled together with the House's mean- spirited TrumpCare version in conference -- proceeds. If we get just 3 Republican Senators to vote against this travesty, it will fail. So, now is the time to stop it, and if we do, we'll also be delivering a blow to Republican efforts to provide tax cuts to the rich while gutting Medicaid.

Now, about the special election in Georgia's 6th District. Clearly, this is being touted as a referendum on the dolt in the White (Supremacist) House. But Democrat Jon Ossoff has used the TrumpCare bill as the tip of the spear in going after his Trump- supporting opponent. Rest assured, if Ossoff succeeds in winning this traditionally Republican suburban district (it went for Trump by 2 points), the nihilists in Congress will take note, because it endangers their skinny necks in 2018:

Ossoff's closing pitch all about GOP health care plan killing people. This is what Democrats will run on in 2018 ——> https://t.co/Syu0IhFPVe

— Jeff Stein (@JStein_Vox) June 18, 2017

The pitch:

When we’re out knocking on doors and talking to neighbors to get out the vote, let's remember why we’re doing this. pic.twitter.com/5Sf3dQ0yPD

— Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) June 7, 2017

Alternative Facts: Trump Lies About His Cuba Policy

In making his disingenuous Cuba policy announcement in Miami's Little Havana on Friday, pathological liar and demagogue Donald "Rump" Trump told an applauding crowd of diehard right-wing Cuban-Americans that he was "cancelling" President Obama's policy toward Cuba:

"Effective immediately, I am cancelling the previous administration's completely one-sided deal with Cuba."

According to fact checkers at the Associated Press, the truth is that little will change in the policy toward Cuba, leaving in place the most important policies initiated by President Obama. Moreover, Rump's selective changes could cripple many small businesses in Cuba:

"The policy risks harming independent business people by restoring a requirement for most American travelers to visit Cuba as part of tightly regulated tour groups. The Cuban government has traditionally steered those tour groups to state-run business, meaning the majority of American travelers to Cuba will probably no longer be able to patronize private restaurants, bed-and-breakfasts and taxi drivers."

Of course, none of that will matter to Rump's fanatic, reality-averse Cuban-American fans, who would have applauded him if he had kissed Raul Castro's butt in the middle of Fifth Avenue.

DHS Bid Out For Notorious Milwaukee Sheriff

The "alt-Right's" favorite African-American sheriff, David "Uncle Ruckus" Clarke of Milwaukee, claimed a few weeks ago that he'd been offered a senior position in the Department of Homeland Security, which the DHS subsequently declined to confirm. Now, the showboating wingnut reportedly has withdrawn his nomination from consideration, following accusations of plagiarism and running a third-world style jail in Milwaukee County, which has seen the death of several prisoners and a woman being chained down while giving birth. He's rarely on the job, running around the country speaking to right-wing groups and appearing on the Fux Channel. He's called members of Black Lives Matter "subhuman," and compared them to the KKK.

Clarke, whose poll numbers have been tanking given those scandals and his full-throated and fanatic support of neo-fascist demagogue Donald "Rump" Trump, has little chance of being reelected, with his approval ratings hovering around 30%. He's deceptively run as a nominal Democrat in the past, despite his extreme conservative positions and his support of Rethuglicans statewide and nationally. Fortunately, if he runs at all next year, he'll face strong challenges, including Earnell Lucas, a former police captain and currently Vice President of Major League Baseball. When he's defeated, it'll be good riddance to a very bad character.

(photo: "Uncle Ruckus" Clarke ridin' his horsey in the high chaparral of Milwaukee)

Across The Universe, Cont.

(click on image to enlarge)



From NASA/ ESA, June 12, 2017: A century ago, Albert Einstein published his famous theory of relativity. He proposed that all objects physically warp the fabric of space, with larger masses producing a more pronounced effect, and very massive objects (such as the Sun) causing light to travel along curved paths through space. Such an effect was first observed during the 1919 solar eclipse by English astronomer Arthur Eddington.

Researchers had to wait a century, however, to get a telescope powerful enough to detect this gravitational microlensing caused by a star outside the Solar System. Even around objects with very large masses, such as stars, this effect is very slight, making such detections extremely challenging for ground-based telescopes. It is, however, within the capabilities of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, which gathered the data comprising this Picture of the Week.

The bright star in the centre of the image is the nearby white dwarf Stein 2051B, only 17 light-years from Earth. The smaller star below is about 5000 light-years away. Astronomers observed Stein 2051B eight times within two years while the white dwarf travelled in front of of the distant background star. During the close alignment, the white dwarf’s gravity bent the light from the distant star, making it appear offset by about 2 milliarcseconds from its actual position. This deviation is so small that it is equivalent to observing an ant crawl across the surface of a 1€ coin from 2300 kilometres away.

Credit:  NASA, ESA, and K. Sahu (STScI)