That went out with Moscow Mitch, trump, and maga. All they want is to gain and detain all the power for themselves and set up a dictatorship of the republican oligarchs, by the republican oligarchs, and for the republican oligarchs, a group of which the republican politicians are a part. Notice I do not say just "republicans." That's because the average republican follower is beneath their notice once they get what they want. They have always just been pawns to the so-called leadership and, once their usefulness is gone, they will just be lumped in with the rest of us.
paulaik - but i wonder, are there democrat billionaires? or is that not possible? if there are one or two, do they spend any of their money on progressive causes like early childhood education, or voting rights enforcement, or any kind of decent healthcare?
my opinion is that oligarchs are apolitical, that their only ideology is money/power. they pull the puppet strings of politicians to create policy which furthers their bottom lines, at the expense of the rest of us. my guess is they pull the democratic strings as much as the republican strings (see AIPAC, pharma, oil, financial services, insurance,)
They're not "apolitical." If you were paying attention you would know that the majority of politicians sucking up billionaire donations are Repugs, now the party of fascism, in order to further their right-wing agenda. If you haven't read about Project 2025, you should. Yes, there are too many centrist Democrats but not all Dems are flushing democracy for campaign donations. And, the Repubs ARE drowning in billionaire funding- particularly oil and gas, and NRA bribery. You also might want to pay attention to all of the unethical "gifts," that Thomas and Alito have received from their billionaire "friends." The liberal justices are not accepting bribes to my knowledge. Sick of this both-sides-are-the-same crap, because while I'm acutely aware of the Menendez and Cuellar Dems, and their unethical behavior, they're not backing a criminal mob boss for potus, and they're not shredding this country's democracy to pieces. They'll also most likely be held accountable for their crimes, unlike the Repug/fascist party.
Yeap false equivalencies must be avoided. Dipshit Ted Cruise asked a reporter (while he was deflecting) if there was any voter fraud in 2020. She said there was not. He said that she was WRONG! she then sited in Georgia there were only 7 cases which obviously wasnt enough to change the election. Teds whole point is to tell a partial truth and misrepresented to deflect from the fact that he voted to protest the 2020 election results even though he knew there was no substantive fraud. Her question was would he abide by this yeara election. After about 10-15min he never answered the question and she said that to his face, multiple times.
H. B., I agree that President Biden won in 2020. I also agree that both he and Hillary Clinton won the popular vote. What concerns me is how the republicans will fix the electoral college because that is what gets the presidency. I have signed so many petitions to have the electoral college abolished and just use the popular vote, but I have been told repeatedly that because republicans cannot win any other way, the electoral college is here to stay. It is a shame that the majority of Americans vote for one candidate but the other candidate gets it because of that. As proven in 2016 and in 2020, the majority of Americans did NOT want the orange stain in the White House!!
H.B., you are right about the popular vote in both 16 and 20. Any fraud found, and it was a miniscule amount, was nearly 100% of the time for Trump. I suspect, though that no one was actually held accountable because, well, they were just ignorant people who just . . . .
Unfortunately, Ted Cruz is a fool. He supposedly got a good education, then got bought out by the right-wing crowd who needed a hack they could program and push around nearly at will, someone with no moral compass, no sense of responsibility to the people he is supposed to be representing. He is a narcissistic white wannabee. I just hope the people of Texas will wake up and stop voting for him, a guy who truly has no respect for them and proves it over and over. The problem is getting people to notice.
There's an outstanding Senate candidate, Colin Allred (D), running for Cruz's seat. I "met" him on a Zoom sponsored by Robert. Allred says Cruz actually has little support in Texas, is not liked. If you can send money or do calling for Allred, please do.
Let's not forget that with untraceable cryptocurrency, our politicians are probably taking in millions from our foreign adversaries. Why else would MTG be such a staunch defender of a butcher like Vlad the Impaler Putin? He is quite possibly the richest man in the world, and can spend billions on our elections without giving it a second thought. And Clarence Thomas- we haven't even seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to dark bribery money
Paulahik, I honestly believe they don't care anymore about hiding what they are doing. Now, they are in your face with it and laughing!! They are deplorable, evil clowns who do not belong in our government!!
A great documentary about Trump, "Active Measures," (available on Amazon), documents Putin being the richest man in the world because he controls the international Russian mob that runs drugs, prostitution, murder-for-hire, gambling, sex trafficking, etc., around the globe. The Russian mob, says the documentary, is Putin's Treasury Department. Their resources are unlimited.
Hi Dave, thank you for liking this post. Have you watched Active Measures? It's great. I'm hoping the word spreads, and more people watch it to get informed. It's chilling and factual. Lets you draw your own (frightening) conclusions.
Not just one mob boss. Trump isn't smart enough to pull this thing off by himself. Follow the trillions of dollars of tax shelters for the oligarchs - the cream that funded a better, more equitable America, has been skimmed away. The Pawns are helping them.
MAGAs use Soros as an antisemitic dog whistle. Anytime they talk about GS and the globalists doing something they are trying to blame jews for whatever evils they lie about. Is Soros good? Bad? Dont know. Are MaGA racist as f*** yes.
I will accept that. I see why the right hates him. He supports education around the world and also democracy in the former eastern block. Besides I do know Viktor Orban uses him as his "enemy" abroad to rally his propagandized population. Soros lived through WW2 and the holocaust that would leave a mark. Which explains his penchant for philanthropy. What gets stuck in my craw is that billionaires are allowed to accumulate so much in the first place. For Soros it was hedge funds. What I tell people is that billionaires always are stepping on somebody to make their billions (otherwise they wouldnt be billionaires) and they have no right (just like Andrew Carnegie) to determine where their money goes since it is ill begotten. The people who should have gotten it whether by wage theft, layoffs, wage suppresion, company foreclosures etc should be able to have a say in where their money and our government goes. Not just the people who have the most power/wealth.
Maureen, and Republicans blame Soros for just about anything they can think of. For them, he is the booggy man who does the good works they make sure their donors never do.
Because, as an organizer of democratic movements in Eastern Europe, Soros drew the wrath of Putin, & whatever & whomever Putin hates becomes the object of GOP ire.
From the party that was the most vocal in their hatred of the USSR/Russia with a saying, "Better dead than Red," it's interesting how they completely flipped a 180 and now identify themselves as Reds. Could it be that trump normalized being a Russian mole for them, as well?
In 2020, on the eve of the election, the conservative Catholic site The Church Militant posted a photo of George Soros and Kamala Harris nest to each other. "Prepare for War" read the caption underneath. Writing during the First WW Oswald Spengler noted in his Decline of the West that Jews were hated in Germany as much as Blacks were hated in the US. In 2006 Kevin Phillips warned us in American Theocracy that Christian Confederates would gain control of the Republican Party. Justice Alito, just like his wife, is a "good faith" Confederate. Trump is their Anti-Lincoln. They use Jesus as a fig leaf.
"They use Jesus as a fig lead" - That is a very appropriate analogy. "Virtuous" Mike Johnson defending all the unvirtuous things that Trump and the Republicans do. "Hey you wouldnt hit a guy with Jesus would you?"
Paul, here’s the thing—Prof. Reich isn’t talking just about how the wealthy contribute to various causes
and pull the levers of power. Republican politicians
and their wealthy benefactors have gone much farther than that.
The GOP is corrupt. I don’t know how you feel about Donald Trump, but he’s not simply unqualified to be the President, he’s spent his entire life criminally defrauding people. Trump is also profoundly mentally aberrant and intellectually incapable of making rational decisions about many things.
In addition, he’s a malignant narcissist. What’s important about his narcissism is that it makes him delusional and unable to take in new information, unless it’s about HIM. I’m not just saying these things because I don’t like him, I’m saying these things because over the years many people who’ve dealt with him have recounted specific instances of his behavior that fit the traits of a narcissist perfectly. Furthermore, he knows nothing about how our government works, and doesn’t care.
Ambassador Bolton, a longtime republican recently remarked that Trump doesn’t understand the concept of alliances with other countries. Worse, thousands of people died from Covid that shouldn’t have died because of Trump’s poor judgment and predatory nature.
But knowing all of these things about Donald Trump doesn’t deter republican party leadership from elevating him as their standard-bearer for the position as the most powerful person in the world.
To me that’s all I need as proof of their corruption.
Over the years we’ve seen corrupt politicians come and go from our federal government, and they are often enabled by other politicians, but this is hundreds of times worse than anything we’ve seen in my lifetime, and I was born in the 1950s.
The extent of the corruption extends to the GOP
appointed Justices on the Supreme Court, something that as a litigation attorney I never
thought I would see. The republican Federal
Election Commission members also went along
with the corruption by refusing to vote for an investigation of obvious campaign finance
violations.
The next republican president—whomever it is-will further corrupt our government and try to turn it into a fascist dictatorship with a cabal of wealthy oligarchs operating a shadow government just like the Russian government. The party of Citizens United, actually partnered with Vladimir Putin. They learned old KGB techniques for disinformation and hired their own operatives to flood social media platforms with disinfo. In fact Trump did collude with
Russia to get elected. It’s laid out in Mueller’s report
that AG Barr deliberately misled us about.
Trump uses the threat of violence and actual violence to intimidate Americans as a whole and certain people specifically. He recently warned of “bedlam in the country” if he’s disqualified from the ballot. These are school-yard bullying tactics combined with a typical mafia “protection” racket.
IN THE WEEKS BEFORE THE 2020 ELECTION, Trump operative and confidant Roger Stone can be heard on an audio recording telling Trump security agent Sal Greco: “Either [Congressman Eric] Swalwell or [Congressman Jerry] Nadler has to die before the election. They need to get the message. Let’s go find Swalwell and get this over with. I’m just not putting up with this shit anymore.” Fortunately Eric Swawell and Jerry Nadler are still alive, but the conversation between Roger Stone and Sal Greco should terrify us. Contemplating carrying out the murder of two members of Congress for political gain is a horrific crime, one we usually associate with third world countries that don’t operate under the Rule of Law.
If you think oligarchs are apolitical, think again. What
this republican behavior I’ve described is about, is money. I won’t go into that now- I don’t have time.
But if you or anyone else wants to know why I think what I think, let me know. I’m happy to tell you.
Susan, you are right about the oligarchs and their addiction to money and that everything they do is for money and power. Unfortunately, Trump pardoned most of the crazy dangerous guys who helped him get elected in 2016. It is too bad there is not a way to charge Roger Stone for his threat. Threats by someone in power are credible and should not be acceptable within the "free speech" part of the 1st Amendment. And Trump should never have been able to pardon anyone involved with him in perpetrating his crimes against the American people, but alas, no one seems to be able to hold any of those guys accountable. They cheat on taxes, lie about everything, pump up a guy they know is unqualified, steal when they can get away with it, buy candidates, and so much more, yet somehow we don't have effective mechanisms to stop them, or we have them but are afraid to use them with guys who are so rich and powerful. Well, we had better find ways to stop them if we are to retain any semblence of our democracy.
I see no purpose of the presidential pardon power and every reason to dump it. There are no oversight on it as in who can and can't be pardoned. That means a president can do whatever he wants and then just pardon himself. It invites criminality. Get rid of it.
Paula, It does not specifically say that a presidenet can pardon himself, but no one should ever be able to pardon himself as Trump wants to do. He should also not be able to pardon people who were involved with that president's law-breaking as most of Trump's pardons were: Flynn, stone, Manifort,, etc. For our Republican friends, the Senate needs to make that inability to pardon oneself and anyone involved with improprieties related to that official in law, carefully stated so it won't be misunderstood.
Ruth, I’m confident that If enough democrats are voted into Congress so that Dems are the majority in both the House & Senate, legislation will be passed that ensures we are never in this bleak situation again. It’s not for lack of trying that we don’t have it now. The problem with getting legislation passed that would have prevented this fix we’re in is, there were always enough republicans to vote against it
so it didn’t pass. I’m talking about things like comprehensive gun control, voting rights and ethical standards with serious penalties for Supreme Court Justices.
The number one thing that’s a “must pass” is campaign finance reform, because after the Citizens
United decision, campaign contributions turned
into bribes. I’m not saying there weren’t any wealthy
people “buying” senators & reps, giving them hefty
campaign donations in exchange favors, I am saying
we’ve never before seen bribery on such a grand scale as we see today.
We’ve also never before seen so much Russian money and Russian interference in our elections.For the record, Russia is unlikely to be satisfied with what they’ve been able to get from one four-year term with Trump as President and the classified info he provided them. I have a feeling they’re going to expect a much larger return on their investment.
Republicans and Russian operatives will probably
keep ramping up the nastiness and general mayhem
as we close in on the November election. What’s different now is, we know what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. They no longer have that edge over us.
Susan, thanks for the optimism. I need it when I learn of thugs like Alito get to decide important issues for the people of this nation when he is a jerk with no moral compass, but pretends to be so holy. It is hard, too, when Democrats seem to ignore what is going on and people get bullied into voting for people who are doing exactly opposite of the image they are projecting or our media is projecting for them. It is so great to know there are people out here like you who do still have hope that we can turn things around. I am hopeful, just a bit tarnished when the major media constantly play Trump's pathetic voice ranting about something or against someone when he is interested only in himself and what he can get and how he can keep from having to do any real work to get it. Yes, and claiming he doesn't see color (a cue that he cares deeply about color), and claims Biden was trying to have him assassinated. The man is nuts, yet our media keep running him as though he is normal and a treasure of some kind. I hope Judge Merchan continues to be fair when he instructs the jury and that they realize Trump is actually guilty of cooking books for stealing an election. We'll see.
There's a great documentary called Active Measures that tells the story of how Putin identified Trump as a mark when his Atlantic City Casino went bankrupt (in the 80s? 90s?) Trump was a perfect mark because he was bankrupt, in trouble, and known to be morally opportunistic (i.e., no moral compass). The Putinists have been working with him for decades. Russians play a long game. I think we are, horrifying as it is, seeing that long game come to fruition now. Every single MAGA position, from shutting down Congress over and over, to voting to jettison Ukraine, to riling up the antisemitism question over Netanyahu, to purchasing Alito and Thomas with money and power promises, is designed fo fulfill the wettest of Putin's wet dreams.
Susan - i agree with you completely. Your analysis of drumpf is complete and accurate, although I think he is merely a useful idiot for the oligarchs. On the other hand, hitler was thought to be the same by the German ruling class.
When I say that the oligarchs are apolitical I mean that they will support any policy that furthers their goals of amassing ever more wealth. if a democrat gives them what they want (say for example less regulation of pharma or the oil industry) then they will "support" that democrat for as long as he/she performs. i don't really think the rich talk about democracy at Davos. they network and conspire to rig the world's financial/tax systems in their favor. that's what I mean about apolitical. I was born in 1951. so, your age. I could never have imagined what we're going through now with the repugnants and fascists. in our lifetime, we saw the rise of a vibrant middle class. I was born and raised in california; i was a freshman in high school when raygun was elected. i saw as he attempted to destroy public education because students were thinking critically. it didn't work in at first in california, but he succeeded at the national level. We truly have seen the rise and fall of the american dream, in our lifetime. I'm reading a book called "Ours was a shining future" by david Leonhardt. You might like it. Our library has it.
One last thing - I honestly don't know if I have hope anymore for this democratic experiment.
Too many things conspire against it, from wilful ignorance ( i call it stupidity) to the glorificaiton of the self at the expense of others, to a planet that is probably toast, to madmen with nukes. are we just a pox on mother earth? perhaps there is a maximum number of people that can successfully live democratically. capitalism is an immoral economic system. we thrive at others' expense. capitalism will help to end democracy. on the other hand, not sure that worker collectives can succeed. anyway, I enjoyed your post. thanks!
I’m sorry Paul! When you said oligarchs are apolitical
I thought you meant they stayed out of politics. But that’s not what you meant. You’re absolutely right in saying they will support any policy that enhances
their wealth.
As for capitalism, it absolutely, positively requires
regulations in order for it to work for everyone. I
don’t see any reason to give up on it yet. I agree there are days when this country seems to be suffering from an epidemic of narcissism, but we have to keep in mind that republicans embarked on
a comprehensive brainwashing of America at least
2 to 3 decades ago and they’ve never stopped.
But just like republicans who actually created a plan to get to where they are today, we can create a plan to reverse engineer it. That is what I firmly believe.
I appreciate your ability to see from the past to the present with a critical eye. My parents died before they could have seen how shitty things have become and compared it (both were good math so I dont think it would have been hard for them to see). I in my short 49 years I have seen climate change first hand from summers where we didnt need airconditioning to extreme heat and forest fires that made all of Long Island and NYC look like an apocllyptic hellscape. We are in deep doodoo. This is not out of humanities capacity to fix. That and my 2 daughters means I have to have hope. We live in a world of information overload and everything is meant to scare you. I believe that the majority of people here in the US will make the right choice. Even if that is only 54million people or whatever it is and I believe is stronger than our opponents. Science can do a lot more than these mentally deficient Republicans have been using it for (ie war and death). You want to see a renaissance? Wait to when normal people have a say in policy again. It will make the space race look like some small thing we did back in the 60s.
Bill, you’re absolutely right. When I was growing up
in Phoenix, I remember community leaders making
decisions about having enough water to support a
much larger population and the necessity of controlling population growth instead of letting
builders create as many subdivisions as they possibly could as fast as they could in the desert.
They made good decisions for the benefit of all, and we don’t see that anymore. Republicans today would fight the Phoenix leaders who deliberately slowed growth. They would scream bloody murder about being prevented from reaping the profits from building those subdivisions. Frankly, the “how dare you prevent me from profiting” attitude has become so common that it’s more or less accepted these days.
It’s not ok to continue profiting from killing the planet. Republicans using blatant disinformation, manipulative techniques and lies, convinced voters to ignore the warnings about climate change. Every one of the “bought”politicians are willing to look their constituents in the eyes and lie to them about climate change. I honestly don’t know how they can sleep at night.
As you said, we CAN fix it. Although President Biden
understands the issues and the immediate need to
mitigate climate change, he has to fight republicans
every step of the way. I’ve said this before—it’s as if
republicans are suicidal. I simply can’t understand that level of self involvement to the exclusion of all
else, but I see it and I know it has spread like a pandemic.
My fear is that too many Americans in general have become so complacent, so sure their lives will
always be the same way they always have been, that they’re unwilling to even entertain the notion that the world— their world— is going to start falling apart in their lifetime.
Like Jaime said in one of his comments, America was
the envy of the world as the first nation to create a prosperous middle-class. But everything that created the world’s first prosperous middle-class has been slowly chipped away by the “profits at any cost” gang and now we’re going backwards. Income inequality is out of control. It can be fixed if we have enough votes in Congress to pass legislation that will head us in the right direction.
WooHoo!! Excellent, Bill! Your words made me more determined to keep fighting!! Democracy does have a chance when mature adults are at the wheel! Vote Blue, America!!
Trump is a Malignant Narcissist for sure. He doesnt need to be diagnosed personally to be called such. You may be familiar already wirh Bandy Lee who brought this to light based on Trumps behaviour. Just like pyschopaths can be diagnosed externally so can Trump. Both are a great danger to those around them and should be called out when seen. I find it interesting that Bandy Lee was ousted from Yale by Alan Dershowitz after she said he had a shared diagnosis with trump. Here is the goldwater rule.
“However, it is unethical for a psychiatrist to offer a professional opinion unless he or she has conducted an examination and has been granted proper authorization for such a statement.”
This might as well be the malignant narcissist protection rule. No one would argue against the diagnosis of a socio or pyschopath who hurt people. Somehow a narc has a chance of getting political power and then they are absolved of this judgement? Bullshit.
Susan - 2nd reply and question, as you are an attorney. Doesn't an attorney have the legal and ethical obligation to address illegal/unethical actions in the judiciary? So why wasn't the first thing out of the gov't attorney at oral arguments for immunity trial - "Why aren't you recusing yourselves from this hearing?" "Why are you making a mockery of the law?"
You can probably think of some things you'd have liked to say.
Better yet, why aren't the 3 liberal justices saying anything? When decorum goes too far it becomes enabling complicity
Well, technically you’re right Paul, but as with any
situation where you are dealing with great power
run amuck, a better strategy is to lie low until you can sort out what’s what, as well as what remedies are available to you. That’s assuming you’re not
dealing with an immediate life or death situation.
Here’s an illustration of what I mean: We watched the very recent show on TV about Benjamin Franklin
when he went to France to ask for their help in
defeating the British. Eventually John Adams, who would be America’s 2nd President joined Franklin in France for the same purpose. Franklin dealt with the situation by befriending France’s most influential and powerful people. (I do realize many aspects of this story may have been exaggerated for the sake of
entertainment.) When John Adams arrived in
France, his instinct was to be more direct with the French. It turned out that the French didn’t like Mr. Adams direct manner.
Long story short—you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. There’s no question that Justices Alito and Thomas are behaving unethically. But if you’re arguing a case to them it’s not a good idea to
pick a fight, especially from your client’s point of
view, because they can rule on your case in a way that’s less than ideal if they don’t like you. Yes, that would be petty and beneath the dignity Justices
are supposed to have, but it happens.
As far as the liberal Justices are concerned, they
could have and probably did disagree with the
conservative majority, but to the outside world
disagreement is expressed in dissenting opinions
that are formally written & usually published along with the majority opinion.
It’s the Chief Justice’s job to make sure the other
Justices properly disclose gifts on the correct
disclosure forms and recuse from participating
in cases where it would be an unethical conflict
of interest situation if the do participate, but Chief Justice Roberts doesn’t seem inclined to do that.
The only remedy available when Supreme Court Justices don’t behave ethically is impeachment.
To impeach and remove a Justice someone has
to work up the case for trial and you must have the proper number of Senators voting to remove the Justice.
Susan firs of all, thank you for this thoughtful and constructive comment. The big problem we have with SCOTU is that libertarian billionaires have used a lot of honey and have caught the flies now serving as justices. When money and religion become entangled with politics the rule of law is jeopardized.
The lib justices are saying things, Paul, but you have to dig for them because media doesn’t hang on their words — and they all have the maturity and respect for their positions to behave themselves verbally.
There’s media coverage of Alito & Thomas because of their brazen disregard for the rule of law they swore to uphold.
There are Democrat billionaires. They're the ones republicans love to hate: Warren Buffet, George Soros, Tom Steyer, to name a few. I'm not going to disagree about the rich man's ideology is money and power, but there are a few who aren't completely like that. I've had the chance to see it up close. One of my best friends is a part of a billionaire family in Canada. They're progressives and are philanthropists. My friend is great and actually hates hanging around rich people. She finds them disgusting and boring, for the most part. Her father and brother are pretty much the same. Still, although I believe they try their best to balance it all out, I have to wonder what her father had to do during the climb upwards.
Anand Ghiradhadas wrote Winners take all. The elite charade of changing the world. Philanthropy is a way that billionaires appear altruistic. No matter how altruistic or generous the one thing they will never give up is their power/money. The amount of evils that they do to earn and maintsin their power far outweighs what is "given" back. Usually by a factor of 100 to 1000.
Here is a Tolstoy quote "I sit on a man's back choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am sorry for him and wish to lighten his load by all means possible… except by getting off his back."
Oligarchs — someone correct me — are interested in exploiting an uneducated populace. As soon as students read their sociology and political economy, they understand the weakness of capitalism and vote accordingly.
I can’t correct you Stan. Trump, and the rich and powerful who support him, have been and currently are manipulating voters to support politicians who fancy themselves as oligarchs. Every parent of school age kids now wonders if their kids’ teachers know what they’re doing because right wing fanatics
are telling them people with degrees in education
don’t know what they’re doing. So they send them to private schools to be taught by people who may or may not have ANY appropriate qualifications, with curriculum that has no oversight, that indoctrinate their children, separate them by race and/or religion and eventually “dumb them down” to the point that as adults, they will be easy to exploit. And it’s working.
Billionaires like Jamie Dimon (Democrat) vote for oligarchy and themselves first. The way to see who stands for what is by representatives votes. When hedge fund tax breaks were going to be repealed the vote was 49-51 loss. I estimate real numbers is 45 dem senators will vote against oligarchy. 0 Republicans. Congress wise they are pretty united. I've seen a drop out of about 8 out of 213 Dems in any vote that didnt need unity. So about 96% of dems in congress and 93% in the senate will vote for anti oligarch measures. On the republican side the one thing they can all agree on is tax cuts for the rich. So when you say that both sides take billionaire money, the Dems vote 6% senate for oligarchs and congress 4%. As opposed to republicans that vote 100% in both house and senate for the oligarchs. Go by voting records to determine a representatives allegiance.
Bill gates is a Gospel of Wealth guy. Read andrew carnegie gospel of wealth (its short and available online). Gates has stated he plans to give all his money to charity before he dies (like andrew carneigie). I calculated the rate of philanthropic expenditure to income and the income is going up by billions more than he is outlaying. He just cant give up the power.
I hear what you are saying. The issue is this, If I agree with a billiomaires policies. They are able to outsize affect changes for those policies right? What about the folks that do not agree? There voices do not get heard because of the billionaires influence. I once did a calculation based on how much Elon Musk did NOT pay in taxes compared to someone paying 25% tax rate. I took that money and then divided by median income in the US. With just that difference (and not the wealth difference). He made 80,000 peoples income per year. Which allows him to have 80k ("votes") of outsized influence in politics. Being Republican or Liberal does not nullify that giant issue. No billionaire should have any more influence on an election than their one vote.
Jamie, Since Bill Gates is regularly vilified by the right, chances are he’s a good guy. I do know he’s
very involved with making life better for large populations around the world in terms of fighting disease and famine and although a lot of people don’t realize it, fighting disease in far-flung areas
of the world means we here in the U.S. are less likely
Gates gives a lot to good causes, international causes, health, etc. Personally, he is a moral cretin. He's not very political, more social. I wouldn't trust him personally as far as I could spit.
Gates issues an annual letter.The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation letter.The list of companies they have shares in are,or were, given .The last letter I looked at they had given $6.8 billion to charities they fund. That money is the dividends from the companies.The charity will go on forever as long as those companies exist,or the board select other companies to buy as the world changes.
The charity had a large shareholding in Caterpillar,one of those companies that creates a lot of employment.Earthmovers will always be needed.
Now ,shall we have a look at the greed and envy that destroy most people.
A 100 year history of caterpillar is 1 share bought 100 years ago at a cost of ?.I don't, know,I just couldn't be bothered to dig too deep..Shall we say $40 for 1 share.Adjusting for splits you now have ~7,000 shares @ ~ $350 each so $2.45 million .
Charlie Munger was asked how do you get rich Charlie. Answer, we are sane,everybody else isn't,they are insane
Expand on that Charlie .We think and spend money.Everybody else would rather die than think,and they would rather kill themselves than spend any money.
Generation after generation destroying themselves through their own greed and envy How much do you plan to spend on Caterpillar shares on Monday.,or how much money do you plan to give to the Gates foundation to claim a tax deduction ?
He has the right to spend money however he likes He has the right to vote for whoever he likes.Sam Walton died,Bill Gates became the richest man in the world.On a split adjusted basis basis 1 Microsoft share bought in 1992 is now 280 shares.The rich get richer,I get richer,all I have to do is spend money in the right places.
People will always choose greed and envy over thinking and spending.The "rich" people are to blame for the choices they made throughout their life
You are a real hoot dude. You blame everyone for not knowing how they should have invested in back when they could have. A real hindsite is 20/20 and the implied poor people are poor because it was their fault for not investing. You sound like Putin talking about 200 years ago how how Russian ancestrial right to land makes it his wiae providence to have invaded country x y and z. Keep blaming the poor for not being rich instead of the rich who have changed the government to benefit near solely themselves and have profited from the tax breaks and stepped up basis work arounds THEY put in place more than they have any stock increase.
Oligarchs may be apolitical, but they are not above seizing a political movement (MAGA extremists) and using it relentlessly and viciously to nail down their objectives of consolidating and expanding their own wealth and power. Even if they have to pay each MAGA extremist (congresspeople? journalists? pundits and poll-takers?) a few million dollars each to secure their voices, it's cheap at the price.
Christina - You are exactly right. And the price, I think, reflects the return on "investment" or 'cost of doing" business. the returns are obviously often astronomical. I like your use of the words relentlessly and viciously. so apt.
The Gates Foundation did a lot of very good philanthropical work with their donations. The ex-Mrs. Bezos is also using a large amount of her money for very good causes. Just 2 examples of many.
Yes. MacKensie is different. She has been filtering nonprofits and giving out funds but not actively speaking out for equality. And her gifting is usually the beginning of the year. Still her method has potential.
You've made up an alternative reality,people do that.
Reality is the only way to get rich is to make other people rich.Poor people hoard money,rich people spend money.
Wealth and money are completely different,they always have been,they always will be.
To get rich give money to people that know how to allocate it ( what to spend it on).The industry of self deception/ delusion is the biggest industry in the world.
Buffett allocates money well,he gets richer,you get richer.The entry fee into that world is the price of a BRK share,"A or B.The entry fee into any company is the price of a share or shares.They will all work to make you richer.The most obvious thing in the world is the rich get richer,I get richer.
Somebody put up Buffett a while back.The entry fee into that company in ~ 1965 was $14.He allocated that money to buying shares in Geico,Amex ,Coca cola etc..That one share is now worth ~ $600K.All people are going to do is demand they should not have to pay the entry fee.I should just have to hold my hand out and demand Buffett fills it with money.If he doesn't then he is greedy.Their greed is they refuse to pay the entry fee,they always refuse to see their own greed and failings.
The entry entry fee into WaL mart all those years ago was $16.50.Today is the same as ~ 1971. They refuse to pay the entry fee today just as they refused to pay the entry fee then.Sam Walton worked for the financial security of his family,and your family.His cost was the original supermarket,fixtures,fittings,produce and goods etc Sell them at a low profit margin and people will go there to buy those cheap goods.Economies of scale mean they can operate on low profit margins.250 million customers per week at a net profit margin of $1 per customer is $250 million.Never underestimate how many people will deny that 25 X 1 is 25.Every four weeks that is $1 billion in net profit. Never underestimate how many people will deny that 4 X 2.5 is 10.
There are 13 4 week periods in a year. So 13 X 4 is 52,never underestimate etc.
The next bit of difficult maths is 13 X 1 is 13.Never underestimate etc.Put it all together and $1 billion X 13 is $13 billion of net profit and paying out wages,rent,mortgages,cost of goods,energy bills etc,etc.
The huge amount of wealth and employment created because Sam borrowed money to to open a shop and sell goods at cost plus ~ 2.6% net profit margin.
As obvious and easy as that is never underestimate how many people will deny that and put all their energy into self deception/ delusion.
That entry fee of $16.50 a share has now grown to around 6200 shares @ $65 each Multiply it for yourself then decide shall I see reality or continue with self deception/ delusion.
Every rich person does the same,help people to improve their lives and make them wealthier.They all did,they all leave a fortune to charities and donate to charities all of their lives.
Greedy people just hold their hands out,refuse to spend money and demand the govt should take money off somebody else and give it to me.They demand they should never have to pay for anything.
Google any company or rich person and they all contribute billions to charities.They will always help the needy.They will always not help the I refuse to pay the entry fee crowd.Most people can afford to pay the entry fee,they never will.
They demand freedom of speech and refuse the freedom to think and see reality.
Have a good night and day when you wake up tomorrow ( your time,today my time).
Them make the most important decision of your life.Do I continue in the world of self deception/ delusion,or do I try to see reality.
I have found the opposite to be true in most instances, my friend not included. People with a lot of money are the cheapest people I've ever seen. They're the ones that will try to get something for nothing. Poor people will just pay the listed price for a good or service. Well off people expect discounts just because they think they deserve it because they're special.
You are deceiving people. Ive been at the same company for 19 years. After merging 3 times to become a monoploy now all the company does is outsource our work, lay people off, raise the price of service (claiming inflation) and the do $60 billion in stock buy backs removing all the gains the company made by giving the shareholders $60 billion. Their share % increases due to less stock avaiable they sell the difference to get back to their origianal share percent and that $60 billion in stock is now worth what is was before the buy back. Already reich shareholders are now $60 billion richer and the company and the employees are screwed. The only people with their hands out in this country are the billionaires. For every $100 earned they get $99 and we share $1. Yeah $1 shared amoungst $310 million people. While 0.1% of house holds have more wealth than 50% of all the other households.
If that is aimed at me you are involved in the world's largest industry.Self deception/delusion.
If we examine the facts then you claim 1% of the population earn 99% of the income.Nonsense.
Govt stats are the USA has 133.35 million full time employees.Call that 133 million.
Govt stats are the average US wage is just under $60K per year.
So 133 X 60 is 7,980.Never underestimate how many people will deny that every day of their lives..Put the zeros on the end of that and you end up with $7,980,000,,000,000.Big numbers are difficult, that's $7.89 trillion for mine.Work out what you think the average tax rate is on that.
Now we will round that to $8 trillion divided by the number of full time workers,what is your estimate of the answer?
If that is 1% of income then 100% of income is 8 X 1 = 8.What is your estimate for 8 X 1? The large number above has 2 zeros added to it to multiply it by 100.So 8 X 1 = 8. 800 X 1 is 800.What is your estimate?.
So total income in the USA is $800 trillion.1% of that goes to the workers ( $8 trillion ) and $892 trillion goes to 1 % of the population.
I wouldn't be joining in with the world's largest industry,self deception/ delusion..I'd be doing some simple maths Once you can understand how to multiply and divide numbers everything is easy..
I'd be leaving the complicated stuff to people trained and qualified in that complicated stuff.Surprisingly it is amazing how much they get wrong.They want to believe that everything is complicated and only they have the answer.
The bottom 60% of americans are in that 1% of entire GDP income category. You want to point out every little fau pah like the troll you are go right ahead. Gaslighting is gaslighting whether you distract people with bloviating verbiage (like Trump) or with tangential numbers to prove...not the point being discussed. Its still gas lighting. Shove your calculator up your ass. I was an engineering student. Not some rube.
And that is called a fat finger mistake,obviously 800 - 8 is 792,not 892.
Some amazing mistakes have been attributed to fat finger One digit wrong,or 1 decimal point wrong and bingo
Imagine how difficult it is working in yen or Korean won ( one) when an endless string of zeros needs to be added to numbers.One zero too much or too little and the world ends The difficulty of correcting it is a nightmare.
It has been proven otherwise. This nation had its greatest improvement in standard of living at all economic levels in the era from FDR-LBJ by investing in the people with social programs, strengthening of unions, & our most progressive income taxes ever, to become the undisputed #1 in the world in most measures of prosperity and well-being. Since Reagan's trickle-down economics, corporatization of our economy, & remaining the only advanced country in the world without universal healthcare while paying twice as much, we have seen country after country surpass us in prosperity & well-being, although we have experienced an economic resurgence under Biden, who has invested more in the public good than any president since Johnson.
I believe you Everybody was watching 300 inch TV screens The internet was much faster.Jet travel to far flung destinations was ridiculously cheap,everybody had 42 weeks holiday every year Food and everything was dirt cheap,everybody earned $1 million per year.
Cars were amazing back then so much better than today.To put the icing on the cake rose tinted glasses looking backwards were free on every corner of every street..
Everybody lived to be 200 years old,there were no diseases.
Diseases were caused by vaccines Nobody had polio,nobody had measles,nobody had whooping cough.Vaccines were made by the rich people to kill the poor people off.Wouldn't it be great to live back in the those days when everything was great Looking forward to the 2nd world war to be young and fast enough to dodge bullets Wonderful days.
Paula, the sad thing is that the Trumpers and Trumpettes have no idea just how worthless they are to Trump and Kump beyond their votes for them. Those oligarchs see them as chattel to be used and abused once they get into power. Another sad thing is that many of them will bend to the will of the guys and it will nearly all be guys because that is who wants to rule and obeying them is what they Trumpers and Trumpettes have been carefully groomed throughout their lives to do. So, on their behalf and ours, we need to keep Trump and Kump out of office. Oh by the way, today in a ridiculous speech in South Bronx, Trump claimed he didn't care about color and they, his listeners shouldn't either. What! Trump cares about color all the time and basks in his white privilege as do his handlers. I sure hope the listeners didn't buy the BS because it wasn't worth anything except to the dung beetles in the area.
The Democrats need to break the sound barrier and put up very pointed billboards in strategic places that point out what is really going on and how Dems differ. The Repugnicans have a much better ground game and at this rate, they will win on all levels. Why are we not in the streets over what's happening? We are fighting for other countries and that's fine but we aren't fighting for our own country and our lives.
I have the horrible distinction of being "represented" in Congress by a MAGA extremist, Eli Crane, and two days ago I was invited to a telecall, which I joined with my nose held and bile rising in my gorge. I listened to small-town Arizona reactionaries call in to ask their questions (did you know "Ukraine is the most corrupt country on the face of the earth and why are we sending our 'treasure' there?"). But: I agree with paulahik: "republicans" are the enemy to these extremists. The callers, and Crane, spoke at length about Speaker Johnson being their enemy. They spoke at length about Republicans being their enemy. All Republicans except for the MAGA 11 are enemies, corrupt, and hell-bent on destroying our country. They barely mentioned Pres. Biden, he's so far outside their scope. These people are living in their own echo chamber and are very happy there. They re-interpret every fact or action that comes their way in their own serverely distorted yet perversely consistent way. I am a communicator by trade: but I have no idea how to reach these people. They're like cancers in our system, living in their own thick plastic impermeable bubbles. I think our law courts may have once been the only way to affect them, but now that seems to be at an end. Even if the New York jury convicts Trump, the Supreme Court dismantles our democracy piece by piece daily now. I've taken to calling random good-guy congresspeople, one a day, to beg them to help force Alito and Thomas to recuse themselves. Dunno what else to do.
Oh, I know, I know. That Ukraine is corrupt is what their echo chamber tells them, and they fall for it, hook line & sinker. Ukraine is of course probably one of the least corrupt countries. They elected Zelensky; he's the Ukrainian equivalent of our Jon Stewart.
Thank you for saying that. I've been trying to describe the minion supporter of Trump. Easily manipulated. PAWN. Disposable, but a useful idiot in getting them elected. I keep thinking they're going to be sorry when no one saves them from getting thrown out into the street. Do street people wave Trump flags? I'm curious. Can they be stopped before they make it difficult for the majority of Americans. That's to be seen.
Let's be specific; fascism is a vague term. The Republican Party has become a White Supremacist Party, radically different from what it was until recently. It is also a Christian Nationalist Party. Furthermore, it is a Libertarian, anti-democratic party.
Fay, the reason for the Constitution is the Declaration. To deny a connection between the two is to deny the 14th Amendment, and to embrace the Confederacy.
How Much Favorable Rulings can you afford ??? The Supreme Court is inhabited by Lawyers. Lawyers run on Money how much favorable (toYou ) can you pay for , Vacations, Forgiveness of loans ; speaking engagements accepted as Payment In Kind…
It disappeared along with "rule of law" when Bill Clinton boarded Loretta Lynch's plane and Hilary skated a few days later. Since then the US Justice system has continued a rapid downward spiral. There's nothing left. Not even a facade.
Trump-cultists & MAGAts have turned those ideas into impossible to achieve aspirational goals for another century. This is what USAens get for thinking "It can't happen here". It's already a done deal. This is precisely what the 2A is for. Use it while you still can.
After reading about Alito's flag-flying practices yesterday, I wrote a letter to Chief Justice Roberts, suggesting that he call for the retirement of both Alito and Thomas. I cited the toothless Code of Conduct the Justices passed last year, and suggested that Roberts could fix the Court's imbalance by allowing President Biden the opportunity to appoint two replacements. I doubt that it will see the light of day, but if anyone is interested, here's the letter. If anyone is so inclined, they can feel free to copy and paste it and send it under their own signature.
I'm a retired Judge and, unfortunately, I doubt that your letter or mine will have any effect, but I followed your suggestion. The more letters Roberts receives, the more impetus for change. I would, however, omit the line about allowing Biden to appoint two more justices - that will carry negative weight as far as Roberts is concerned.
Attorneys and judges in the house, please correct me if I am wrong. Is it not the case that each Supreme Court justice serves so long as s/he is conducting herself or himself within the definition of "good behavior," rather than for life? Is this not the language of the Constitution, wherein any justice, or judge, who commits high crimes and/or misdemeanors is subject to impeachment? Is giving aid and/or comfort to an insurrection, such as January 6, a high crime or misdemeanor?
In my opinion, the only enforcement of the "good behavior" clause or "high crimes and misdemeanors" is through impeachment as John says, and, as he also says, the likelihood of this Congress acting is next to nil..
As a citizen I’m totally disappointed in the undeserved politicalization of The Supreme Court.
The Drafters of the Constitution Did Not Have wife’s that Worked outside the Home so Spousal paths to legal bribery were not considered at the ERA of our country’s development.
Today With Educated and Capable Spouses of Supreme court Justices it’s has opened up new paths for Lobbyists ( No Formal Registration of Supreme Court for Supreme Court corrupters )
I suggest Doubling the pay of Supreme Court justices and prohibiting spouses from participating in politics other than voting…
The other idea is to register all Supreme Court lobbyists with no hidden funds…
A cascade of laws to reintroduce Integrity into the whore house of Today .
Thank you Judge Goldhammer, for your comments and your service. I used the Biden comment in anticipation of such a response by the Chief Justice's mail opener. I figured that addressing it might keep the rest of the letter from being discredited, much like a prosecutor exposes flaws in prosecution witnesses to blunt the defense's attacks. Does that make sense?
Thank you. I would have never believed this would happen in my lifetime. All around us is disruption. My mantra is to keep kindness. Our children and grandchildren are learning from corruption and greed. These are not qualities employers find beneficial. We should have easier ways to fire them. Every public office should pass ethical standards.
Thank you Bob Morgan, I appreciate what you did, a letter that should be read, and acknowledged by Robert’s and to do something about the other 5 to even tell them to resign but he nor they will do and that the Constitution written by our forefathers includes Voting Rights, No partisan gerrymandering, and everything that matters at a time when we are faced with unprecedented rulings by SCOTUS especially overturning Roe in 2022 and other rulings. I read a lot, I’m sure you do as well as those here about the far right judges now have the final word on everything including I read they have hidden dockets (scary?) to what extent?
Remember the first Impeachment of Trump/Roberts presided, he could have said we must have rule of law but didn’t. No witnesses were there bc of the former guy. Collins passed him a note, what did it say?
No one knows but my guess $. I read Alito doesn’t care about facts. Corruption in that court & Republicans don’t care bc they are corrupt bc of their Supreme leader Trump is as well. Trump sells our Country out (while in ofc I believe bc of many trips to Mir-A-largo to meet with his enabler (Russia) while in ofc. to our adversaries most recently the documents of national security secrets & bc he’s running for ofc again, he receives national security information.
Fl stops the final voting for Al Gore, Justice Kennedy appointed Bush as President, Trump told Kennedy to resign in comes Trump appointee.
Every Supreme Court Justice is responsible to oversee a group of District Courts. Clarence Thomas was assigned to oversee the Southern District of Florida-Cannon.
I won’t boggle your mind with articles I have found, but I forward any and all to those who will listen in the Democratic Party.
My findings Fox video Ingram (sp?) & Cruz, she said we pay for what we want SCOTUS to do. Detox Fox - a good read by honorable Dan Rather Substack. I also read Cruz tells SCOTUS what to say. Continuing my research Cruz got bribery of officials okayed by Kavanaugh and I believe gerrymandering (sorry trying to remember).
I also read Roberts is against voting rights.
It’s late but the courts make a big mistake with appeal when it comes to Trump. So after a decision is made in the court cases he can appeal? So it seems apparent all roads lead to SCOTUS. Criminal justice reform amongst other issues that we all care about. We have to fight like Hell to win the House & Senate and of course re-elect Biden. With everything said Thank you for your Leadership sending that letter to Robert’s. Stay safe everyone reading this, we are the resistance fighters for Truth, Justice and the American way against corruption tyranny and facism. I urge everyone to subscribe to Seth Abramson, Malcolm Nance both experts of Truth & Facts and of course Scott Dworkin substack. Thank you & God Bless everyone & your families.
Attorneys and judges in the house, please correct me if I am wrong. Is it not the case that each Supreme Court justice serves so long as s/he is conducting herself or himself within the definition of "good behavior," rather than for life? Is this not the language of the Constitution, wherein any justice, or judge, who commits high crimes and/or misdemeanors is subject to impeachment? Is giving aid and/or comfort to an insurrection, such as January 6, a high crime or misdemeanor?
Yes, giving aid or comfort to an insurrection DEFINITELY qualifies as a high crime. Good luck convicting Alito of this in an impeachment hearing, though. It will take charges being brought by the House, then 2/3 of the senate to convict. Unless things go remarkably wrong for the GOP in 2024, that’s simply never going to happen. Today, it’s an impossiblity, because the Mike Johnson House would NEVER even investigate it, much less impeach Alito over his craven disrespect for the Flag, The Constitution, and the American people.
Sorry, I disagree (without being disagreeable, I hope). I think it's time to shrink the court. Eliminate 2 seats and retire their occupants on a first-in, first-out basis. Buh-bye, Clarence & Sammy.
Enact terms limits designed to age out those two as the first ones required to leave and you may be able to accomplish the same goal without shrinking the court!
The Republican backed Supreme Court is like a burrito without sour cream. The term "Supreme" Just doesn't fit any more. Once the Hymen is broken the innocence it stood for can never be restored. The highest court in the land has been tarnished in the eyes of the people, and we owe it all to Trump's three stooges.
I am absolutely furious! We have to give Democrats control over the House and Senate and they must pass legislation setting term limits for Supreme Court justices! If I were African American I would be livid!
In Robert Reichs wealth and inequality class. You can see that Wealth has been used to segregate schools between the have and have nots. A wealthy school district with high taxes pushes out minorities who cant afford to live there. Conversely the wealthy can afford private school which also is unobtainable for those with low income. The low income towns get less funding and the students who go there get a poor education leading to a lack of upward mobility. I dont know if the Supreme corrupt has ruled on the city boundary disputes that enforce this discrimination. I would imagine if they have their judgement would be for wealthy white christians (with 3 dissenting opinions). This return to segregation (in this case economically) is just as important as Brown vs the Board.
Yes, this is precisely what is going on with the move to defund public schools and give vouchers/promote home schooling. It's an attempt at resegregation.
Expecting families with 2 needed incomes to home school is a joke. That whole vouchers thing is pure and simple giving money to the rich who already have their kids in private school a bonus (reminds me of the private jet write off). The rest who cant afford it get to suffer with an even more underfunded public school systems.
This is THE reason to vote for Biden. If Trump gets in and Thomas or Aleto step down, it is guaranteed that Trump will appoint someone in their 30s, another sycophant, that will continue this corrupt and offensive SCOTUS for the next 50 years! It is not a joke that The Fascist Party of America and their Fuhrer want to turn America into GILLEAD!
The supreme court is made up of a bunch of crooks. They have been given a lifetime appointment to a Job without oversight rules or ethics requirement.
Candidates for the Supreme Court only have to lie their way through the Nomination and Approval process and then they are home Free. Their Rulings as Supreme Court Justices control the The Entire Country’s sets of Laws.
There is No Appealing a SC Ruling.
The Originators of Our System of Government were overly optimistic about Human Nature. As The current Era has Demonstrated Supreme Court Given absolute Power without Rules of behavior has opened a Giant Loophole for :
Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely.
I DREAD another DRED SCOTT decision.
The Clowns Are Returning The USA to Pre Civil War Law .
Slavery is Legal Once Again The Divine Rights Of Kings is Next Up in the Bull Pen of Pending Court Cases…
With everything else going on in the news it's hard to stay focused. Thank you thank you thank you Professor Reich for shining a light on this decision and bringing it to our attention. I will post it on my social media and hopefully people will share it and their friends will share it and so on to get the word out!!!
Time for the blue states to gerrymander the hell out of our states and make sure no republican can ever be elected ever again. Sometimes we have to meet the enemy on the low road in order to keep them from sneaking underneath us.
The problem isn't the blue states. I live in a red state. We need to find a way to make gerrymandering go away regardless of state. If we don't we're going to see more dysfuntion in Congress (more MTG's) and create more division in the nation. The SCOTUS has unleashed this division with multiple rulings, starting with Citizens United.
The choice is clear impeachment or expand the court to thirtieth to equal federal districts. Biden’s fake commission did nothing another example of democrats failing to
Pull the trigger. I know what the MAGA would have done.
WTF happened to Equal Justice under the law and Equality For All?
That went out with Moscow Mitch, trump, and maga. All they want is to gain and detain all the power for themselves and set up a dictatorship of the republican oligarchs, by the republican oligarchs, and for the republican oligarchs, a group of which the republican politicians are a part. Notice I do not say just "republicans." That's because the average republican follower is beneath their notice once they get what they want. They have always just been pawns to the so-called leadership and, once their usefulness is gone, they will just be lumped in with the rest of us.
paulaik - but i wonder, are there democrat billionaires? or is that not possible? if there are one or two, do they spend any of their money on progressive causes like early childhood education, or voting rights enforcement, or any kind of decent healthcare?
my opinion is that oligarchs are apolitical, that their only ideology is money/power. they pull the puppet strings of politicians to create policy which furthers their bottom lines, at the expense of the rest of us. my guess is they pull the democratic strings as much as the republican strings (see AIPAC, pharma, oil, financial services, insurance,)
They're not "apolitical." If you were paying attention you would know that the majority of politicians sucking up billionaire donations are Repugs, now the party of fascism, in order to further their right-wing agenda. If you haven't read about Project 2025, you should. Yes, there are too many centrist Democrats but not all Dems are flushing democracy for campaign donations. And, the Repubs ARE drowning in billionaire funding- particularly oil and gas, and NRA bribery. You also might want to pay attention to all of the unethical "gifts," that Thomas and Alito have received from their billionaire "friends." The liberal justices are not accepting bribes to my knowledge. Sick of this both-sides-are-the-same crap, because while I'm acutely aware of the Menendez and Cuellar Dems, and their unethical behavior, they're not backing a criminal mob boss for potus, and they're not shredding this country's democracy to pieces. They'll also most likely be held accountable for their crimes, unlike the Repug/fascist party.
Yeap false equivalencies must be avoided. Dipshit Ted Cruise asked a reporter (while he was deflecting) if there was any voter fraud in 2020. She said there was not. He said that she was WRONG! she then sited in Georgia there were only 7 cases which obviously wasnt enough to change the election. Teds whole point is to tell a partial truth and misrepresented to deflect from the fact that he voted to protest the 2020 election results even though he knew there was no substantive fraud. Her question was would he abide by this yeara election. After about 10-15min he never answered the question and she said that to his face, multiple times.
Actual facts:
Trump lost the popular vote to Hillary in 2016 by 2.9 mil.
Trump lost the 2020 popular vote by 7 mil and the general election to Biden.
There is not enough evidence of voter fraud to change those statistics.
Almost none, actually.
He's going to lose 2024, too.
This anti-Trump 2024 election t-shirt is a must have 👇
libtees-2.creator-spring.com/listing/byedon24
H. B., I agree that President Biden won in 2020. I also agree that both he and Hillary Clinton won the popular vote. What concerns me is how the republicans will fix the electoral college because that is what gets the presidency. I have signed so many petitions to have the electoral college abolished and just use the popular vote, but I have been told repeatedly that because republicans cannot win any other way, the electoral college is here to stay. It is a shame that the majority of Americans vote for one candidate but the other candidate gets it because of that. As proven in 2016 and in 2020, the majority of Americans did NOT want the orange stain in the White House!!
H.B., you are right about the popular vote in both 16 and 20. Any fraud found, and it was a miniscule amount, was nearly 100% of the time for Trump. I suspect, though that no one was actually held accountable because, well, they were just ignorant people who just . . . .
H.B. Sadly, the popular vote doesn't count for shit in this country...
Unfortunately, Ted Cruz is a fool. He supposedly got a good education, then got bought out by the right-wing crowd who needed a hack they could program and push around nearly at will, someone with no moral compass, no sense of responsibility to the people he is supposed to be representing. He is a narcissistic white wannabee. I just hope the people of Texas will wake up and stop voting for him, a guy who truly has no respect for them and proves it over and over. The problem is getting people to notice.
There's an outstanding Senate candidate, Colin Allred (D), running for Cruz's seat. I "met" him on a Zoom sponsored by Robert. Allred says Cruz actually has little support in Texas, is not liked. If you can send money or do calling for Allred, please do.
They noticed and they like him. Like Trump, he speaks for them.
Let's not forget that with untraceable cryptocurrency, our politicians are probably taking in millions from our foreign adversaries. Why else would MTG be such a staunch defender of a butcher like Vlad the Impaler Putin? He is quite possibly the richest man in the world, and can spend billions on our elections without giving it a second thought. And Clarence Thomas- we haven't even seen the tip of the iceberg when it comes to dark bribery money
And now trump is just flat out asking for bribes from the oil industry. Not even trying to keep it quiet.
Paulahik, I honestly believe they don't care anymore about hiding what they are doing. Now, they are in your face with it and laughing!! They are deplorable, evil clowns who do not belong in our government!!
This is an encouraging sign.
A great documentary about Trump, "Active Measures," (available on Amazon), documents Putin being the richest man in the world because he controls the international Russian mob that runs drugs, prostitution, murder-for-hire, gambling, sex trafficking, etc., around the globe. The Russian mob, says the documentary, is Putin's Treasury Department. Their resources are unlimited.
Hi Dave, thank you for liking this post. Have you watched Active Measures? It's great. I'm hoping the word spreads, and more people watch it to get informed. It's chilling and factual. Lets you draw your own (frightening) conclusions.
You also don't see Democrats crying foul with Menendez and Cuellar. No, instead they ask them to resign.
Not just one mob boss. Trump isn't smart enough to pull this thing off by himself. Follow the trillions of dollars of tax shelters for the oligarchs - the cream that funded a better, more equitable America, has been skimmed away. The Pawns are helping them.
George Soros is a Dem billionaire who contributes to all kinds of good causes. The MAGATS HATE him.
MAGAs use Soros as an antisemitic dog whistle. Anytime they talk about GS and the globalists doing something they are trying to blame jews for whatever evils they lie about. Is Soros good? Bad? Dont know. Are MaGA racist as f*** yes.
Maybe you should look him up. He's done a lot of good worldwide.
I will accept that. I see why the right hates him. He supports education around the world and also democracy in the former eastern block. Besides I do know Viktor Orban uses him as his "enemy" abroad to rally his propagandized population. Soros lived through WW2 and the holocaust that would leave a mark. Which explains his penchant for philanthropy. What gets stuck in my craw is that billionaires are allowed to accumulate so much in the first place. For Soros it was hedge funds. What I tell people is that billionaires always are stepping on somebody to make their billions (otherwise they wouldnt be billionaires) and they have no right (just like Andrew Carnegie) to determine where their money goes since it is ill begotten. The people who should have gotten it whether by wage theft, layoffs, wage suppresion, company foreclosures etc should be able to have a say in where their money and our government goes. Not just the people who have the most power/wealth.
Like what?
Soros is practically the Antichrist to them (no irony intended).
Maureen, and Republicans blame Soros for just about anything they can think of. For them, he is the booggy man who does the good works they make sure their donors never do.
Because, as an organizer of democratic movements in Eastern Europe, Soros drew the wrath of Putin, & whatever & whomever Putin hates becomes the object of GOP ire.
From the party that was the most vocal in their hatred of the USSR/Russia with a saying, "Better dead than Red," it's interesting how they completely flipped a 180 and now identify themselves as Reds. Could it be that trump normalized being a Russian mole for them, as well?
Putin, Orban, and conservative Christians.
In 2020, on the eve of the election, the conservative Catholic site The Church Militant posted a photo of George Soros and Kamala Harris nest to each other. "Prepare for War" read the caption underneath. Writing during the First WW Oswald Spengler noted in his Decline of the West that Jews were hated in Germany as much as Blacks were hated in the US. In 2006 Kevin Phillips warned us in American Theocracy that Christian Confederates would gain control of the Republican Party. Justice Alito, just like his wife, is a "good faith" Confederate. Trump is their Anti-Lincoln. They use Jesus as a fig leaf.
"They use Jesus as a fig lead" - That is a very appropriate analogy. "Virtuous" Mike Johnson defending all the unvirtuous things that Trump and the Republicans do. "Hey you wouldnt hit a guy with Jesus would you?"
Maureen - thanks, I couldn't remember his name.
Paul, here’s the thing—Prof. Reich isn’t talking just about how the wealthy contribute to various causes
and pull the levers of power. Republican politicians
and their wealthy benefactors have gone much farther than that.
The GOP is corrupt. I don’t know how you feel about Donald Trump, but he’s not simply unqualified to be the President, he’s spent his entire life criminally defrauding people. Trump is also profoundly mentally aberrant and intellectually incapable of making rational decisions about many things.
In addition, he’s a malignant narcissist. What’s important about his narcissism is that it makes him delusional and unable to take in new information, unless it’s about HIM. I’m not just saying these things because I don’t like him, I’m saying these things because over the years many people who’ve dealt with him have recounted specific instances of his behavior that fit the traits of a narcissist perfectly. Furthermore, he knows nothing about how our government works, and doesn’t care.
Ambassador Bolton, a longtime republican recently remarked that Trump doesn’t understand the concept of alliances with other countries. Worse, thousands of people died from Covid that shouldn’t have died because of Trump’s poor judgment and predatory nature.
But knowing all of these things about Donald Trump doesn’t deter republican party leadership from elevating him as their standard-bearer for the position as the most powerful person in the world.
To me that’s all I need as proof of their corruption.
Over the years we’ve seen corrupt politicians come and go from our federal government, and they are often enabled by other politicians, but this is hundreds of times worse than anything we’ve seen in my lifetime, and I was born in the 1950s.
The extent of the corruption extends to the GOP
appointed Justices on the Supreme Court, something that as a litigation attorney I never
thought I would see. The republican Federal
Election Commission members also went along
with the corruption by refusing to vote for an investigation of obvious campaign finance
violations.
The next republican president—whomever it is-will further corrupt our government and try to turn it into a fascist dictatorship with a cabal of wealthy oligarchs operating a shadow government just like the Russian government. The party of Citizens United, actually partnered with Vladimir Putin. They learned old KGB techniques for disinformation and hired their own operatives to flood social media platforms with disinfo. In fact Trump did collude with
Russia to get elected. It’s laid out in Mueller’s report
that AG Barr deliberately misled us about.
Trump uses the threat of violence and actual violence to intimidate Americans as a whole and certain people specifically. He recently warned of “bedlam in the country” if he’s disqualified from the ballot. These are school-yard bullying tactics combined with a typical mafia “protection” racket.
IN THE WEEKS BEFORE THE 2020 ELECTION, Trump operative and confidant Roger Stone can be heard on an audio recording telling Trump security agent Sal Greco: “Either [Congressman Eric] Swalwell or [Congressman Jerry] Nadler has to die before the election. They need to get the message. Let’s go find Swalwell and get this over with. I’m just not putting up with this shit anymore.” Fortunately Eric Swawell and Jerry Nadler are still alive, but the conversation between Roger Stone and Sal Greco should terrify us. Contemplating carrying out the murder of two members of Congress for political gain is a horrific crime, one we usually associate with third world countries that don’t operate under the Rule of Law.
If you think oligarchs are apolitical, think again. What
this republican behavior I’ve described is about, is money. I won’t go into that now- I don’t have time.
But if you or anyone else wants to know why I think what I think, let me know. I’m happy to tell you.
Susan, you are right about the oligarchs and their addiction to money and that everything they do is for money and power. Unfortunately, Trump pardoned most of the crazy dangerous guys who helped him get elected in 2016. It is too bad there is not a way to charge Roger Stone for his threat. Threats by someone in power are credible and should not be acceptable within the "free speech" part of the 1st Amendment. And Trump should never have been able to pardon anyone involved with him in perpetrating his crimes against the American people, but alas, no one seems to be able to hold any of those guys accountable. They cheat on taxes, lie about everything, pump up a guy they know is unqualified, steal when they can get away with it, buy candidates, and so much more, yet somehow we don't have effective mechanisms to stop them, or we have them but are afraid to use them with guys who are so rich and powerful. Well, we had better find ways to stop them if we are to retain any semblence of our democracy.
I see no purpose of the presidential pardon power and every reason to dump it. There are no oversight on it as in who can and can't be pardoned. That means a president can do whatever he wants and then just pardon himself. It invites criminality. Get rid of it.
Paula, It does not specifically say that a presidenet can pardon himself, but no one should ever be able to pardon himself as Trump wants to do. He should also not be able to pardon people who were involved with that president's law-breaking as most of Trump's pardons were: Flynn, stone, Manifort,, etc. For our Republican friends, the Senate needs to make that inability to pardon oneself and anyone involved with improprieties related to that official in law, carefully stated so it won't be misunderstood.
Ruth, I’m confident that If enough democrats are voted into Congress so that Dems are the majority in both the House & Senate, legislation will be passed that ensures we are never in this bleak situation again. It’s not for lack of trying that we don’t have it now. The problem with getting legislation passed that would have prevented this fix we’re in is, there were always enough republicans to vote against it
so it didn’t pass. I’m talking about things like comprehensive gun control, voting rights and ethical standards with serious penalties for Supreme Court Justices.
The number one thing that’s a “must pass” is campaign finance reform, because after the Citizens
United decision, campaign contributions turned
into bribes. I’m not saying there weren’t any wealthy
people “buying” senators & reps, giving them hefty
campaign donations in exchange favors, I am saying
we’ve never before seen bribery on such a grand scale as we see today.
We’ve also never before seen so much Russian money and Russian interference in our elections.For the record, Russia is unlikely to be satisfied with what they’ve been able to get from one four-year term with Trump as President and the classified info he provided them. I have a feeling they’re going to expect a much larger return on their investment.
Republicans and Russian operatives will probably
keep ramping up the nastiness and general mayhem
as we close in on the November election. What’s different now is, we know what they’re doing and why they’re doing it. They no longer have that edge over us.
Susan, thanks for the optimism. I need it when I learn of thugs like Alito get to decide important issues for the people of this nation when he is a jerk with no moral compass, but pretends to be so holy. It is hard, too, when Democrats seem to ignore what is going on and people get bullied into voting for people who are doing exactly opposite of the image they are projecting or our media is projecting for them. It is so great to know there are people out here like you who do still have hope that we can turn things around. I am hopeful, just a bit tarnished when the major media constantly play Trump's pathetic voice ranting about something or against someone when he is interested only in himself and what he can get and how he can keep from having to do any real work to get it. Yes, and claiming he doesn't see color (a cue that he cares deeply about color), and claims Biden was trying to have him assassinated. The man is nuts, yet our media keep running him as though he is normal and a treasure of some kind. I hope Judge Merchan continues to be fair when he instructs the jury and that they realize Trump is actually guilty of cooking books for stealing an election. We'll see.
There's a great documentary called Active Measures that tells the story of how Putin identified Trump as a mark when his Atlantic City Casino went bankrupt (in the 80s? 90s?) Trump was a perfect mark because he was bankrupt, in trouble, and known to be morally opportunistic (i.e., no moral compass). The Putinists have been working with him for decades. Russians play a long game. I think we are, horrifying as it is, seeing that long game come to fruition now. Every single MAGA position, from shutting down Congress over and over, to voting to jettison Ukraine, to riling up the antisemitism question over Netanyahu, to purchasing Alito and Thomas with money and power promises, is designed fo fulfill the wettest of Putin's wet dreams.
Exactly!
Susan - i agree with you completely. Your analysis of drumpf is complete and accurate, although I think he is merely a useful idiot for the oligarchs. On the other hand, hitler was thought to be the same by the German ruling class.
When I say that the oligarchs are apolitical I mean that they will support any policy that furthers their goals of amassing ever more wealth. if a democrat gives them what they want (say for example less regulation of pharma or the oil industry) then they will "support" that democrat for as long as he/she performs. i don't really think the rich talk about democracy at Davos. they network and conspire to rig the world's financial/tax systems in their favor. that's what I mean about apolitical. I was born in 1951. so, your age. I could never have imagined what we're going through now with the repugnants and fascists. in our lifetime, we saw the rise of a vibrant middle class. I was born and raised in california; i was a freshman in high school when raygun was elected. i saw as he attempted to destroy public education because students were thinking critically. it didn't work in at first in california, but he succeeded at the national level. We truly have seen the rise and fall of the american dream, in our lifetime. I'm reading a book called "Ours was a shining future" by david Leonhardt. You might like it. Our library has it.
One last thing - I honestly don't know if I have hope anymore for this democratic experiment.
Too many things conspire against it, from wilful ignorance ( i call it stupidity) to the glorificaiton of the self at the expense of others, to a planet that is probably toast, to madmen with nukes. are we just a pox on mother earth? perhaps there is a maximum number of people that can successfully live democratically. capitalism is an immoral economic system. we thrive at others' expense. capitalism will help to end democracy. on the other hand, not sure that worker collectives can succeed. anyway, I enjoyed your post. thanks!
I’m sorry Paul! When you said oligarchs are apolitical
I thought you meant they stayed out of politics. But that’s not what you meant. You’re absolutely right in saying they will support any policy that enhances
their wealth.
As for capitalism, it absolutely, positively requires
regulations in order for it to work for everyone. I
don’t see any reason to give up on it yet. I agree there are days when this country seems to be suffering from an epidemic of narcissism, but we have to keep in mind that republicans embarked on
a comprehensive brainwashing of America at least
2 to 3 decades ago and they’ve never stopped.
But just like republicans who actually created a plan to get to where they are today, we can create a plan to reverse engineer it. That is what I firmly believe.
I appreciate your ability to see from the past to the present with a critical eye. My parents died before they could have seen how shitty things have become and compared it (both were good math so I dont think it would have been hard for them to see). I in my short 49 years I have seen climate change first hand from summers where we didnt need airconditioning to extreme heat and forest fires that made all of Long Island and NYC look like an apocllyptic hellscape. We are in deep doodoo. This is not out of humanities capacity to fix. That and my 2 daughters means I have to have hope. We live in a world of information overload and everything is meant to scare you. I believe that the majority of people here in the US will make the right choice. Even if that is only 54million people or whatever it is and I believe is stronger than our opponents. Science can do a lot more than these mentally deficient Republicans have been using it for (ie war and death). You want to see a renaissance? Wait to when normal people have a say in policy again. It will make the space race look like some small thing we did back in the 60s.
Bill, you’re absolutely right. When I was growing up
in Phoenix, I remember community leaders making
decisions about having enough water to support a
much larger population and the necessity of controlling population growth instead of letting
builders create as many subdivisions as they possibly could as fast as they could in the desert.
They made good decisions for the benefit of all, and we don’t see that anymore. Republicans today would fight the Phoenix leaders who deliberately slowed growth. They would scream bloody murder about being prevented from reaping the profits from building those subdivisions. Frankly, the “how dare you prevent me from profiting” attitude has become so common that it’s more or less accepted these days.
It’s not ok to continue profiting from killing the planet. Republicans using blatant disinformation, manipulative techniques and lies, convinced voters to ignore the warnings about climate change. Every one of the “bought”politicians are willing to look their constituents in the eyes and lie to them about climate change. I honestly don’t know how they can sleep at night.
As you said, we CAN fix it. Although President Biden
understands the issues and the immediate need to
mitigate climate change, he has to fight republicans
every step of the way. I’ve said this before—it’s as if
republicans are suicidal. I simply can’t understand that level of self involvement to the exclusion of all
else, but I see it and I know it has spread like a pandemic.
My fear is that too many Americans in general have become so complacent, so sure their lives will
always be the same way they always have been, that they’re unwilling to even entertain the notion that the world— their world— is going to start falling apart in their lifetime.
Like Jaime said in one of his comments, America was
the envy of the world as the first nation to create a prosperous middle-class. But everything that created the world’s first prosperous middle-class has been slowly chipped away by the “profits at any cost” gang and now we’re going backwards. Income inequality is out of control. It can be fixed if we have enough votes in Congress to pass legislation that will head us in the right direction.
In the 2020 national popular vote, Biden received 81.2 million votes and Trump received 74.2 million votes.
WooHoo!! Excellent, Bill! Your words made me more determined to keep fighting!! Democracy does have a chance when mature adults are at the wheel! Vote Blue, America!!
Trump is a Malignant Narcissist for sure. He doesnt need to be diagnosed personally to be called such. You may be familiar already wirh Bandy Lee who brought this to light based on Trumps behaviour. Just like pyschopaths can be diagnosed externally so can Trump. Both are a great danger to those around them and should be called out when seen. I find it interesting that Bandy Lee was ousted from Yale by Alan Dershowitz after she said he had a shared diagnosis with trump. Here is the goldwater rule.
“However, it is unethical for a psychiatrist to offer a professional opinion unless he or she has conducted an examination and has been granted proper authorization for such a statement.”
This might as well be the malignant narcissist protection rule. No one would argue against the diagnosis of a socio or pyschopath who hurt people. Somehow a narc has a chance of getting political power and then they are absolved of this judgement? Bullshit.
Susan - 2nd reply and question, as you are an attorney. Doesn't an attorney have the legal and ethical obligation to address illegal/unethical actions in the judiciary? So why wasn't the first thing out of the gov't attorney at oral arguments for immunity trial - "Why aren't you recusing yourselves from this hearing?" "Why are you making a mockery of the law?"
You can probably think of some things you'd have liked to say.
Better yet, why aren't the 3 liberal justices saying anything? When decorum goes too far it becomes enabling complicity
Well, technically you’re right Paul, but as with any
situation where you are dealing with great power
run amuck, a better strategy is to lie low until you can sort out what’s what, as well as what remedies are available to you. That’s assuming you’re not
dealing with an immediate life or death situation.
Here’s an illustration of what I mean: We watched the very recent show on TV about Benjamin Franklin
when he went to France to ask for their help in
defeating the British. Eventually John Adams, who would be America’s 2nd President joined Franklin in France for the same purpose. Franklin dealt with the situation by befriending France’s most influential and powerful people. (I do realize many aspects of this story may have been exaggerated for the sake of
entertainment.) When John Adams arrived in
France, his instinct was to be more direct with the French. It turned out that the French didn’t like Mr. Adams direct manner.
Long story short—you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar. There’s no question that Justices Alito and Thomas are behaving unethically. But if you’re arguing a case to them it’s not a good idea to
pick a fight, especially from your client’s point of
view, because they can rule on your case in a way that’s less than ideal if they don’t like you. Yes, that would be petty and beneath the dignity Justices
are supposed to have, but it happens.
As far as the liberal Justices are concerned, they
could have and probably did disagree with the
conservative majority, but to the outside world
disagreement is expressed in dissenting opinions
that are formally written & usually published along with the majority opinion.
It’s the Chief Justice’s job to make sure the other
Justices properly disclose gifts on the correct
disclosure forms and recuse from participating
in cases where it would be an unethical conflict
of interest situation if the do participate, but Chief Justice Roberts doesn’t seem inclined to do that.
The only remedy available when Supreme Court Justices don’t behave ethically is impeachment.
To impeach and remove a Justice someone has
to work up the case for trial and you must have the proper number of Senators voting to remove the Justice.
Susan firs of all, thank you for this thoughtful and constructive comment. The big problem we have with SCOTU is that libertarian billionaires have used a lot of honey and have caught the flies now serving as justices. When money and religion become entangled with politics the rule of law is jeopardized.
The lib justices are saying things, Paul, but you have to dig for them because media doesn’t hang on their words — and they all have the maturity and respect for their positions to behave themselves verbally.
There’s media coverage of Alito & Thomas because of their brazen disregard for the rule of law they swore to uphold.
Yes, it always comes back to what the media covers. They ignore anything that they think will not be helpful to their careers.
Well said, Susan!!
Great Rant!
Excellent post that everyone should read, Susan! You know very well what you're talking about!
There are Democrat billionaires. They're the ones republicans love to hate: Warren Buffet, George Soros, Tom Steyer, to name a few. I'm not going to disagree about the rich man's ideology is money and power, but there are a few who aren't completely like that. I've had the chance to see it up close. One of my best friends is a part of a billionaire family in Canada. They're progressives and are philanthropists. My friend is great and actually hates hanging around rich people. She finds them disgusting and boring, for the most part. Her father and brother are pretty much the same. Still, although I believe they try their best to balance it all out, I have to wonder what her father had to do during the climb upwards.
Anand Ghiradhadas wrote Winners take all. The elite charade of changing the world. Philanthropy is a way that billionaires appear altruistic. No matter how altruistic or generous the one thing they will never give up is their power/money. The amount of evils that they do to earn and maintsin their power far outweighs what is "given" back. Usually by a factor of 100 to 1000.
Here is a Tolstoy quote "I sit on a man's back choking him and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am sorry for him and wish to lighten his load by all means possible… except by getting off his back."
Tolstoy was one of them, and he hated himself for it. He saved many lives by organizing food relief during a famine.
To be fair, paulahik, I hold Repub billionaires in contempt, don’t you? At least insofar as influencing elections goes.
Absolutely.
Oligarchs — someone correct me — are interested in exploiting an uneducated populace. As soon as students read their sociology and political economy, they understand the weakness of capitalism and vote accordingly.
I can’t correct you Stan. Trump, and the rich and powerful who support him, have been and currently are manipulating voters to support politicians who fancy themselves as oligarchs. Every parent of school age kids now wonders if their kids’ teachers know what they’re doing because right wing fanatics
are telling them people with degrees in education
don’t know what they’re doing. So they send them to private schools to be taught by people who may or may not have ANY appropriate qualifications, with curriculum that has no oversight, that indoctrinate their children, separate them by race and/or religion and eventually “dumb them down” to the point that as adults, they will be easy to exploit. And it’s working.
Billionaires like Jamie Dimon (Democrat) vote for oligarchy and themselves first. The way to see who stands for what is by representatives votes. When hedge fund tax breaks were going to be repealed the vote was 49-51 loss. I estimate real numbers is 45 dem senators will vote against oligarchy. 0 Republicans. Congress wise they are pretty united. I've seen a drop out of about 8 out of 213 Dems in any vote that didnt need unity. So about 96% of dems in congress and 93% in the senate will vote for anti oligarch measures. On the republican side the one thing they can all agree on is tax cuts for the rich. So when you say that both sides take billionaire money, the Dems vote 6% senate for oligarchs and congress 4%. As opposed to republicans that vote 100% in both house and senate for the oligarchs. Go by voting records to determine a representatives allegiance.
The most famous Dem billionaire is George Soros, frequently demonized by the Right. Bill Gates is difficult to classify.
Bill gates is a Gospel of Wealth guy. Read andrew carnegie gospel of wealth (its short and available online). Gates has stated he plans to give all his money to charity before he dies (like andrew carneigie). I calculated the rate of philanthropic expenditure to income and the income is going up by billions more than he is outlaying. He just cant give up the power.
Not all billionaires are alike. If you lump them all in one group you will become victim to a self-fulfilling prophesy.
I hear what you are saying. The issue is this, If I agree with a billiomaires policies. They are able to outsize affect changes for those policies right? What about the folks that do not agree? There voices do not get heard because of the billionaires influence. I once did a calculation based on how much Elon Musk did NOT pay in taxes compared to someone paying 25% tax rate. I took that money and then divided by median income in the US. With just that difference (and not the wealth difference). He made 80,000 peoples income per year. Which allows him to have 80k ("votes") of outsized influence in politics. Being Republican or Liberal does not nullify that giant issue. No billionaire should have any more influence on an election than their one vote.
I, too, have difficulty pinpointing where Gates stands, but he is 1 of the 2 billionaires most vilified by the right (the other being Soros).
Gates and Soros are vilified because they are wealthy, powerful, and liberal. Fascists perceive them as a threat.
Jamie, Since Bill Gates is regularly vilified by the right, chances are he’s a good guy. I do know he’s
very involved with making life better for large populations around the world in terms of fighting disease and famine and although a lot of people don’t realize it, fighting disease in far-flung areas
of the world means we here in the U.S. are less likely
to be victims of it.
Gates gives a lot to good causes, international causes, health, etc. Personally, he is a moral cretin. He's not very political, more social. I wouldn't trust him personally as far as I could spit.
What difference does it make?
Gates issues an annual letter.The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation letter.The list of companies they have shares in are,or were, given .The last letter I looked at they had given $6.8 billion to charities they fund. That money is the dividends from the companies.The charity will go on forever as long as those companies exist,or the board select other companies to buy as the world changes.
The charity had a large shareholding in Caterpillar,one of those companies that creates a lot of employment.Earthmovers will always be needed.
Now ,shall we have a look at the greed and envy that destroy most people.
A 100 year history of caterpillar is 1 share bought 100 years ago at a cost of ?.I don't, know,I just couldn't be bothered to dig too deep..Shall we say $40 for 1 share.Adjusting for splits you now have ~7,000 shares @ ~ $350 each so $2.45 million .
Charlie Munger was asked how do you get rich Charlie. Answer, we are sane,everybody else isn't,they are insane
Expand on that Charlie .We think and spend money.Everybody else would rather die than think,and they would rather kill themselves than spend any money.
Generation after generation destroying themselves through their own greed and envy How much do you plan to spend on Caterpillar shares on Monday.,or how much money do you plan to give to the Gates foundation to claim a tax deduction ?
He has the right to spend money however he likes He has the right to vote for whoever he likes.Sam Walton died,Bill Gates became the richest man in the world.On a split adjusted basis basis 1 Microsoft share bought in 1992 is now 280 shares.The rich get richer,I get richer,all I have to do is spend money in the right places.
People will always choose greed and envy over thinking and spending.The "rich" people are to blame for the choices they made throughout their life
You are a real hoot dude. You blame everyone for not knowing how they should have invested in back when they could have. A real hindsite is 20/20 and the implied poor people are poor because it was their fault for not investing. You sound like Putin talking about 200 years ago how how Russian ancestrial right to land makes it his wiae providence to have invaded country x y and z. Keep blaming the poor for not being rich instead of the rich who have changed the government to benefit near solely themselves and have profited from the tax breaks and stepped up basis work arounds THEY put in place more than they have any stock increase.
Steven, imo even very rich geeks are hard to classify because they’re apolitical by nature.
Oligarchs may be apolitical, but they are not above seizing a political movement (MAGA extremists) and using it relentlessly and viciously to nail down their objectives of consolidating and expanding their own wealth and power. Even if they have to pay each MAGA extremist (congresspeople? journalists? pundits and poll-takers?) a few million dollars each to secure their voices, it's cheap at the price.
Christina - You are exactly right. And the price, I think, reflects the return on "investment" or 'cost of doing" business. the returns are obviously often astronomical. I like your use of the words relentlessly and viciously. so apt.
They only care about politics insofar as it can make them wealthier.
The Gates Foundation did a lot of very good philanthropical work with their donations. The ex-Mrs. Bezos is also using a large amount of her money for very good causes. Just 2 examples of many.
Melinda French Gates and Pivotal Ventures.
Also Bezos'divorced wife, what's her name? MacKenzie Philips?
Yes. MacKensie is different. She has been filtering nonprofits and giving out funds but not actively speaking out for equality. And her gifting is usually the beginning of the year. Still her method has potential.
You've made up an alternative reality,people do that.
Reality is the only way to get rich is to make other people rich.Poor people hoard money,rich people spend money.
Wealth and money are completely different,they always have been,they always will be.
To get rich give money to people that know how to allocate it ( what to spend it on).The industry of self deception/ delusion is the biggest industry in the world.
Buffett allocates money well,he gets richer,you get richer.The entry fee into that world is the price of a BRK share,"A or B.The entry fee into any company is the price of a share or shares.They will all work to make you richer.The most obvious thing in the world is the rich get richer,I get richer.
Somebody put up Buffett a while back.The entry fee into that company in ~ 1965 was $14.He allocated that money to buying shares in Geico,Amex ,Coca cola etc..That one share is now worth ~ $600K.All people are going to do is demand they should not have to pay the entry fee.I should just have to hold my hand out and demand Buffett fills it with money.If he doesn't then he is greedy.Their greed is they refuse to pay the entry fee,they always refuse to see their own greed and failings.
The entry entry fee into WaL mart all those years ago was $16.50.Today is the same as ~ 1971. They refuse to pay the entry fee today just as they refused to pay the entry fee then.Sam Walton worked for the financial security of his family,and your family.His cost was the original supermarket,fixtures,fittings,produce and goods etc Sell them at a low profit margin and people will go there to buy those cheap goods.Economies of scale mean they can operate on low profit margins.250 million customers per week at a net profit margin of $1 per customer is $250 million.Never underestimate how many people will deny that 25 X 1 is 25.Every four weeks that is $1 billion in net profit. Never underestimate how many people will deny that 4 X 2.5 is 10.
There are 13 4 week periods in a year. So 13 X 4 is 52,never underestimate etc.
The next bit of difficult maths is 13 X 1 is 13.Never underestimate etc.Put it all together and $1 billion X 13 is $13 billion of net profit and paying out wages,rent,mortgages,cost of goods,energy bills etc,etc.
The huge amount of wealth and employment created because Sam borrowed money to to open a shop and sell goods at cost plus ~ 2.6% net profit margin.
As obvious and easy as that is never underestimate how many people will deny that and put all their energy into self deception/ delusion.
That entry fee of $16.50 a share has now grown to around 6200 shares @ $65 each Multiply it for yourself then decide shall I see reality or continue with self deception/ delusion.
Every rich person does the same,help people to improve their lives and make them wealthier.They all did,they all leave a fortune to charities and donate to charities all of their lives.
Greedy people just hold their hands out,refuse to spend money and demand the govt should take money off somebody else and give it to me.They demand they should never have to pay for anything.
Google any company or rich person and they all contribute billions to charities.They will always help the needy.They will always not help the I refuse to pay the entry fee crowd.Most people can afford to pay the entry fee,they never will.
They demand freedom of speech and refuse the freedom to think and see reality.
Have a good night and day when you wake up tomorrow ( your time,today my time).
Them make the most important decision of your life.Do I continue in the world of self deception/ delusion,or do I try to see reality.
I have found the opposite to be true in most instances, my friend not included. People with a lot of money are the cheapest people I've ever seen. They're the ones that will try to get something for nothing. Poor people will just pay the listed price for a good or service. Well off people expect discounts just because they think they deserve it because they're special.
You are deceiving people. Ive been at the same company for 19 years. After merging 3 times to become a monoploy now all the company does is outsource our work, lay people off, raise the price of service (claiming inflation) and the do $60 billion in stock buy backs removing all the gains the company made by giving the shareholders $60 billion. Their share % increases due to less stock avaiable they sell the difference to get back to their origianal share percent and that $60 billion in stock is now worth what is was before the buy back. Already reich shareholders are now $60 billion richer and the company and the employees are screwed. The only people with their hands out in this country are the billionaires. For every $100 earned they get $99 and we share $1. Yeah $1 shared amoungst $310 million people. While 0.1% of house holds have more wealth than 50% of all the other households.
Amazing,your company has merged 3 times so that proves 250 x 1 isn't 250.
I'm out.
If that is aimed at me you are involved in the world's largest industry.Self deception/delusion.
If we examine the facts then you claim 1% of the population earn 99% of the income.Nonsense.
Govt stats are the USA has 133.35 million full time employees.Call that 133 million.
Govt stats are the average US wage is just under $60K per year.
So 133 X 60 is 7,980.Never underestimate how many people will deny that every day of their lives..Put the zeros on the end of that and you end up with $7,980,000,,000,000.Big numbers are difficult, that's $7.89 trillion for mine.Work out what you think the average tax rate is on that.
Now we will round that to $8 trillion divided by the number of full time workers,what is your estimate of the answer?
If that is 1% of income then 100% of income is 8 X 1 = 8.What is your estimate for 8 X 1? The large number above has 2 zeros added to it to multiply it by 100.So 8 X 1 = 8. 800 X 1 is 800.What is your estimate?.
So total income in the USA is $800 trillion.1% of that goes to the workers ( $8 trillion ) and $892 trillion goes to 1 % of the population.
I wouldn't be joining in with the world's largest industry,self deception/ delusion..I'd be doing some simple maths Once you can understand how to multiply and divide numbers everything is easy..
I'd be leaving the complicated stuff to people trained and qualified in that complicated stuff.Surprisingly it is amazing how much they get wrong.They want to believe that everything is complicated and only they have the answer.
The bottom 60% of americans are in that 1% of entire GDP income category. You want to point out every little fau pah like the troll you are go right ahead. Gaslighting is gaslighting whether you distract people with bloviating verbiage (like Trump) or with tangential numbers to prove...not the point being discussed. Its still gas lighting. Shove your calculator up your ass. I was an engineering student. Not some rube.
And that is called a fat finger mistake,obviously 800 - 8 is 792,not 892.
Some amazing mistakes have been attributed to fat finger One digit wrong,or 1 decimal point wrong and bingo
Imagine how difficult it is working in yen or Korean won ( one) when an endless string of zeros needs to be added to numbers.One zero too much or too little and the world ends The difficulty of correcting it is a nightmare.
It has been proven otherwise. This nation had its greatest improvement in standard of living at all economic levels in the era from FDR-LBJ by investing in the people with social programs, strengthening of unions, & our most progressive income taxes ever, to become the undisputed #1 in the world in most measures of prosperity and well-being. Since Reagan's trickle-down economics, corporatization of our economy, & remaining the only advanced country in the world without universal healthcare while paying twice as much, we have seen country after country surpass us in prosperity & well-being, although we have experienced an economic resurgence under Biden, who has invested more in the public good than any president since Johnson.
I believe you Everybody was watching 300 inch TV screens The internet was much faster.Jet travel to far flung destinations was ridiculously cheap,everybody had 42 weeks holiday every year Food and everything was dirt cheap,everybody earned $1 million per year.
Cars were amazing back then so much better than today.To put the icing on the cake rose tinted glasses looking backwards were free on every corner of every street..
Everybody lived to be 200 years old,there were no diseases.
Diseases were caused by vaccines Nobody had polio,nobody had measles,nobody had whooping cough.Vaccines were made by the rich people to kill the poor people off.Wouldn't it be great to live back in the those days when everything was great Looking forward to the 2nd world war to be young and fast enough to dodge bullets Wonderful days.
We basically had no diseases
Agree completely, Paul.
Paula, the sad thing is that the Trumpers and Trumpettes have no idea just how worthless they are to Trump and Kump beyond their votes for them. Those oligarchs see them as chattel to be used and abused once they get into power. Another sad thing is that many of them will bend to the will of the guys and it will nearly all be guys because that is who wants to rule and obeying them is what they Trumpers and Trumpettes have been carefully groomed throughout their lives to do. So, on their behalf and ours, we need to keep Trump and Kump out of office. Oh by the way, today in a ridiculous speech in South Bronx, Trump claimed he didn't care about color and they, his listeners shouldn't either. What! Trump cares about color all the time and basks in his white privilege as do his handlers. I sure hope the listeners didn't buy the BS because it wasn't worth anything except to the dung beetles in the area.
Of course they bought it. Anyone who goes to his speeches and rallies are all magas and will eat up anything he flings at them like the chimp he is.
I just thank God President Biden has stacked the courts with AMERICAN PUBLIC DEFENDERS! He is the hero we need, not the one we deserve
The Democrats need to break the sound barrier and put up very pointed billboards in strategic places that point out what is really going on and how Dems differ. The Repugnicans have a much better ground game and at this rate, they will win on all levels. Why are we not in the streets over what's happening? We are fighting for other countries and that's fine but we aren't fighting for our own country and our lives.
YAY! Paula!!!
I have the horrible distinction of being "represented" in Congress by a MAGA extremist, Eli Crane, and two days ago I was invited to a telecall, which I joined with my nose held and bile rising in my gorge. I listened to small-town Arizona reactionaries call in to ask their questions (did you know "Ukraine is the most corrupt country on the face of the earth and why are we sending our 'treasure' there?"). But: I agree with paulahik: "republicans" are the enemy to these extremists. The callers, and Crane, spoke at length about Speaker Johnson being their enemy. They spoke at length about Republicans being their enemy. All Republicans except for the MAGA 11 are enemies, corrupt, and hell-bent on destroying our country. They barely mentioned Pres. Biden, he's so far outside their scope. These people are living in their own echo chamber and are very happy there. They re-interpret every fact or action that comes their way in their own serverely distorted yet perversely consistent way. I am a communicator by trade: but I have no idea how to reach these people. They're like cancers in our system, living in their own thick plastic impermeable bubbles. I think our law courts may have once been the only way to affect them, but now that seems to be at an end. Even if the New York jury convicts Trump, the Supreme Court dismantles our democracy piece by piece daily now. I've taken to calling random good-guy congresspeople, one a day, to beg them to help force Alito and Thomas to recuse themselves. Dunno what else to do.
Ukraine is the most corrupt country? Uh, no. That distinction is a tie between Russia and the good ol' USofA.
Oh, I know, I know. That Ukraine is corrupt is what their echo chamber tells them, and they fall for it, hook line & sinker. Ukraine is of course probably one of the least corrupt countries. They elected Zelensky; he's the Ukrainian equivalent of our Jon Stewart.
No shit?
Thank you for saying that. I've been trying to describe the minion supporter of Trump. Easily manipulated. PAWN. Disposable, but a useful idiot in getting them elected. I keep thinking they're going to be sorry when no one saves them from getting thrown out into the street. Do street people wave Trump flags? I'm curious. Can they be stopped before they make it difficult for the majority of Americans. That's to be seen.
Truth
Next the Supreme Court Will Rule No Limits on Corporations to dabble in our government ; Wait a Minute They Have Already Done That…
The power to make others live in the limited mentality way they do, overruled all sense, reason and lawfulness.
Dawn
that's a knee slapper
It went down the tube when the Republican Party decided to change to the fascist party of America.
Let's be specific; fascism is a vague term. The Republican Party has become a White Supremacist Party, radically different from what it was until recently. It is also a Christian Nationalist Party. Furthermore, it is a Libertarian, anti-democratic party.
That's from the Declaration of Independence, not the Constitution. While we all dutifully and lovingly repeat the phrase it is not the law.
Fay, the reason for the Constitution is the Declaration. To deny a connection between the two is to deny the 14th Amendment, and to embrace the Confederacy.
How Much Favorable Rulings can you afford ??? The Supreme Court is inhabited by Lawyers. Lawyers run on Money how much favorable (toYou ) can you pay for , Vacations, Forgiveness of loans ; speaking engagements accepted as Payment In Kind…
It disappeared along with "rule of law" when Bill Clinton boarded Loretta Lynch's plane and Hilary skated a few days later. Since then the US Justice system has continued a rapid downward spiral. There's nothing left. Not even a facade.
Hahaha!
Just a tv advertisement
Republicans.
A meaningless and frivolous point for those who REALLY UNDERSTAND
what is in the "best interest" of a truly GREAT ameriKKKa...
Trump-cultists & MAGAts have turned those ideas into impossible to achieve aspirational goals for another century. This is what USAens get for thinking "It can't happen here". It's already a done deal. This is precisely what the 2A is for. Use it while you still can.
Huh?? What's that???
Superman retired.
I’m not seeing how this is missing.
After reading about Alito's flag-flying practices yesterday, I wrote a letter to Chief Justice Roberts, suggesting that he call for the retirement of both Alito and Thomas. I cited the toothless Code of Conduct the Justices passed last year, and suggested that Roberts could fix the Court's imbalance by allowing President Biden the opportunity to appoint two replacements. I doubt that it will see the light of day, but if anyone is interested, here's the letter. If anyone is so inclined, they can feel free to copy and paste it and send it under their own signature.
https://bobmorgan.substack.com/p/dear-chief-justice-roberts
I'm a retired Judge and, unfortunately, I doubt that your letter or mine will have any effect, but I followed your suggestion. The more letters Roberts receives, the more impetus for change. I would, however, omit the line about allowing Biden to appoint two more justices - that will carry negative weight as far as Roberts is concerned.
Attorneys and judges in the house, please correct me if I am wrong. Is it not the case that each Supreme Court justice serves so long as s/he is conducting herself or himself within the definition of "good behavior," rather than for life? Is this not the language of the Constitution, wherein any justice, or judge, who commits high crimes and/or misdemeanors is subject to impeachment? Is giving aid and/or comfort to an insurrection, such as January 6, a high crime or misdemeanor?
It would require impeachment and senate trial just as with a president. Deadlock.
In my opinion, the only enforcement of the "good behavior" clause or "high crimes and misdemeanors" is through impeachment as John says, and, as he also says, the likelihood of this Congress acting is next to nil..
As a citizen I’m totally disappointed in the undeserved politicalization of The Supreme Court.
The Drafters of the Constitution Did Not Have wife’s that Worked outside the Home so Spousal paths to legal bribery were not considered at the ERA of our country’s development.
Today With Educated and Capable Spouses of Supreme court Justices it’s has opened up new paths for Lobbyists ( No Formal Registration of Supreme Court for Supreme Court corrupters )
I suggest Doubling the pay of Supreme Court justices and prohibiting spouses from participating in politics other than voting…
The other idea is to register all Supreme Court lobbyists with no hidden funds…
A cascade of laws to reintroduce Integrity into the whore house of Today .
Unless we defeat Trump, none of these things will matter.
Tell the chief justice that his court will go down in history as the Roberts Racist Religious Court.
Thank you Judge Goldhammer, for your comments and your service. I used the Biden comment in anticipation of such a response by the Chief Justice's mail opener. I figured that addressing it might keep the rest of the letter from being discredited, much like a prosecutor exposes flaws in prosecution witnesses to blunt the defense's attacks. Does that make sense?
Thank you. I would have never believed this would happen in my lifetime. All around us is disruption. My mantra is to keep kindness. Our children and grandchildren are learning from corruption and greed. These are not qualities employers find beneficial. We should have easier ways to fire them. Every public office should pass ethical standards.
Unless you seek to be the CEO at which point any sociopathy is a benefit increasing one’s chances.
Thank you! It is a very well written letter.
Thanks, Donna! Maybe it'll get some attention here.
Well.and cogently.said, sir. Thank.you.
From a.90 year.old great grandmother who.weeps.for this troubled.nation. God Bless you.
Thanks, Lynn! We're in this together!
Love the letter. I will send one as well. Can’t believe what America is coming to.
I will Share it!
Why can we not sue for removal for Bad behavior'. Surely they are good candidates for their inappropriateness?
Exactly our sentiments!
Strong letter! I'll write, too.
Copied to my substack just now with the edit suggested by retired judge Alan Goldhammer. Thank you.
Thanks, Martha!
Thank you Bob Morgan, I appreciate what you did, a letter that should be read, and acknowledged by Robert’s and to do something about the other 5 to even tell them to resign but he nor they will do and that the Constitution written by our forefathers includes Voting Rights, No partisan gerrymandering, and everything that matters at a time when we are faced with unprecedented rulings by SCOTUS especially overturning Roe in 2022 and other rulings. I read a lot, I’m sure you do as well as those here about the far right judges now have the final word on everything including I read they have hidden dockets (scary?) to what extent?
Remember the first Impeachment of Trump/Roberts presided, he could have said we must have rule of law but didn’t. No witnesses were there bc of the former guy. Collins passed him a note, what did it say?
No one knows but my guess $. I read Alito doesn’t care about facts. Corruption in that court & Republicans don’t care bc they are corrupt bc of their Supreme leader Trump is as well. Trump sells our Country out (while in ofc I believe bc of many trips to Mir-A-largo to meet with his enabler (Russia) while in ofc. to our adversaries most recently the documents of national security secrets & bc he’s running for ofc again, he receives national security information.
Fl stops the final voting for Al Gore, Justice Kennedy appointed Bush as President, Trump told Kennedy to resign in comes Trump appointee.
Every Supreme Court Justice is responsible to oversee a group of District Courts. Clarence Thomas was assigned to oversee the Southern District of Florida-Cannon.
I won’t boggle your mind with articles I have found, but I forward any and all to those who will listen in the Democratic Party.
My findings Fox video Ingram (sp?) & Cruz, she said we pay for what we want SCOTUS to do. Detox Fox - a good read by honorable Dan Rather Substack. I also read Cruz tells SCOTUS what to say. Continuing my research Cruz got bribery of officials okayed by Kavanaugh and I believe gerrymandering (sorry trying to remember).
I also read Roberts is against voting rights.
It’s late but the courts make a big mistake with appeal when it comes to Trump. So after a decision is made in the court cases he can appeal? So it seems apparent all roads lead to SCOTUS. Criminal justice reform amongst other issues that we all care about. We have to fight like Hell to win the House & Senate and of course re-elect Biden. With everything said Thank you for your Leadership sending that letter to Robert’s. Stay safe everyone reading this, we are the resistance fighters for Truth, Justice and the American way against corruption tyranny and facism. I urge everyone to subscribe to Seth Abramson, Malcolm Nance both experts of Truth & Facts and of course Scott Dworkin substack. Thank you & God Bless everyone & your families.
It’s now or never. We must expand the court.
The predicate is to sweep. Register Democrats -- save the justice system.
https://www.fieldteam6.org/
Attorneys and judges in the house, please correct me if I am wrong. Is it not the case that each Supreme Court justice serves so long as s/he is conducting herself or himself within the definition of "good behavior," rather than for life? Is this not the language of the Constitution, wherein any justice, or judge, who commits high crimes and/or misdemeanors is subject to impeachment? Is giving aid and/or comfort to an insurrection, such as January 6, a high crime or misdemeanor?
Yes, giving aid or comfort to an insurrection DEFINITELY qualifies as a high crime. Good luck convicting Alito of this in an impeachment hearing, though. It will take charges being brought by the House, then 2/3 of the senate to convict. Unless things go remarkably wrong for the GOP in 2024, that’s simply never going to happen. Today, it’s an impossiblity, because the Mike Johnson House would NEVER even investigate it, much less impeach Alito over his craven disrespect for the Flag, The Constitution, and the American people.
But the Senate...
Right. Good behavior, https://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/educational-resources/about-educational-outreach/activity-resources/supreme-1#:~:text=Justices%20hold%20office%20during%20good%20behavior%2C%20typically%2C%20for%20life.
Sorry, I disagree (without being disagreeable, I hope). I think it's time to shrink the court. Eliminate 2 seats and retire their occupants on a first-in, first-out basis. Buh-bye, Clarence & Sammy.
I concur
That would work, too.
How about we drug test them, and make them retire at 65. Good enough for airline pilots...etc...
Enact terms limits designed to age out those two as the first ones required to leave and you may be able to accomplish the same goal without shrinking the court!
Seven justices still gives the Republicans a majority on SCOTUS.
I would favor a scheme that rotates justices in and out of SCOTUS on more of a lottery basis with all Appellate justices in the pool.
The Republican backed Supreme Court is like a burrito without sour cream. The term "Supreme" Just doesn't fit any more. Once the Hymen is broken the innocence it stood for can never be restored. The highest court in the land has been tarnished in the eyes of the people, and we owe it all to Trump's three stooges.
Everything you say is true except the part about “eyes of the people”. Remarkably, tens of millions of Americans absolutely love the Three Stooges😆
Ted--I cried when they were taken off the air because of the violence. But they're back, someone finally "Woke" up.
Well, I was referring to Trumps Three Stooges on the Supreme Court, but yeah, I love Moe, Curly, Larry (and even Shemp) 😎🤣🤣
Ted--Those were the days..
The Stooges Court rather than Supreme Court, that sums it unfortunately. It IS time to Undo the Damage.
Kali--Never enough time to do the job correctly but always enough time to do it over again.
It must be now, or they’ll hand 2024 to Donald J Trump.
Yup. A landslide won't matter to the 'court', this one is far worse than the vile bunch who brought us Bush v Gore
I am absolutely furious! We have to give Democrats control over the House and Senate and they must pass legislation setting term limits for Supreme Court justices! If I were African American I would be livid!
As a white citizen I am livid.
This is a quickening of the slow-motion coup d'etat.
Yes, racial equality in reverse. Back to the 1950's, or maybe 1850's. Just crazy.
The most upsetting political news I've read ever...and that includes Rowe vs Wade reversal...I'm depressed by the current state of the union.
This is no longer a union. Union suggests we're all banded together for the common good. We have not been that way since Ray-gun.
Reagan, and Rupert -spit- Murdoch
Don't be too quick to assume this court won't find a way to reconsider Brown vs. Board of Education.
The safer assumption is that they're licking their chops for the opportunity.
In Robert Reichs wealth and inequality class. You can see that Wealth has been used to segregate schools between the have and have nots. A wealthy school district with high taxes pushes out minorities who cant afford to live there. Conversely the wealthy can afford private school which also is unobtainable for those with low income. The low income towns get less funding and the students who go there get a poor education leading to a lack of upward mobility. I dont know if the Supreme corrupt has ruled on the city boundary disputes that enforce this discrimination. I would imagine if they have their judgement would be for wealthy white christians (with 3 dissenting opinions). This return to segregation (in this case economically) is just as important as Brown vs the Board.
Yes, this is precisely what is going on with the move to defund public schools and give vouchers/promote home schooling. It's an attempt at resegregation.
In the name of Jesus. Thomas Jefferson fancied himself of being an admirer of Jesus even though he was a cruel slave-driver.
Expecting families with 2 needed incomes to home school is a joke. That whole vouchers thing is pure and simple giving money to the rich who already have their kids in private school a bonus (reminds me of the private jet write off). The rest who cant afford it get to suffer with an even more underfunded public school systems.
They'll do 'Loving', of course Uncle Thomas will be exempt
This is sickening!
It sure is. 😡
COMPROMISED
The story of how the United States Supreme Court became MAGAT’s…
This is THE reason to vote for Biden. If Trump gets in and Thomas or Aleto step down, it is guaranteed that Trump will appoint someone in their 30s, another sycophant, that will continue this corrupt and offensive SCOTUS for the next 50 years! It is not a joke that The Fascist Party of America and their Fuhrer want to turn America into GILLEAD!
tRump wants to appoint Cannon to the Supreme Court.
The last thing we need is Supreme court justic Sycophant Aileen Cannon.
Matthew Kaszcymark is tanned, rested and ready!
I'm outraged ! This is sickening ! How can this be?
The supreme court is made up of a bunch of crooks. They have been given a lifetime appointment to a Job without oversight rules or ethics requirement.
Candidates for the Supreme Court only have to lie their way through the Nomination and Approval process and then they are home Free. Their Rulings as Supreme Court Justices control the The Entire Country’s sets of Laws.
There is No Appealing a SC Ruling.
The Originators of Our System of Government were overly optimistic about Human Nature. As The current Era has Demonstrated Supreme Court Given absolute Power without Rules of behavior has opened a Giant Loophole for :
Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely.
I DREAD another DRED SCOTT decision.
The Clowns Are Returning The USA to Pre Civil War Law .
Slavery is Legal Once Again The Divine Rights Of Kings is Next Up in the Bull Pen of Pending Court Cases…
We are Screwed ..,
So you're saying we need term limits for the supremes. I'd agree.
'Dobbs' is our Dred Scott
The court must be expanded and term-limited. This sh*t is getting ridiculous.
With everything else going on in the news it's hard to stay focused. Thank you thank you thank you Professor Reich for shining a light on this decision and bringing it to our attention. I will post it on my social media and hopefully people will share it and their friends will share it and so on to get the word out!!!
Time for the blue states to gerrymander the hell out of our states and make sure no republican can ever be elected ever again. Sometimes we have to meet the enemy on the low road in order to keep them from sneaking underneath us.
Time for the blue states to stop subsidizing the slave states...
The problem isn't the blue states. I live in a red state. We need to find a way to make gerrymandering go away regardless of state. If we don't we're going to see more dysfuntion in Congress (more MTG's) and create more division in the nation. The SCOTUS has unleashed this division with multiple rulings, starting with Citizens United.
I like the way you think, Paula!
The choice is clear impeachment or expand the court to thirtieth to equal federal districts. Biden’s fake commission did nothing another example of democrats failing to
Pull the trigger. I know what the MAGA would have done.