Perseverance Porn

Hey, Google has monetized Cody. Not to be an influencer mind you, that would be so CB/Beta Basic.

Good deeds never go unpunished.

Not to be mistaken for a Cartnoon despite the time and tag.

Remember, I am sponsored by a Patron like Mozart (or Salieri) so my Art is on public display because of benevolence and magnaminity. No, I really mean it, I am rarely constrained and then with a frown but you know, I go all Banksey every once in a while because better to apologize than ask permission.

My point is that is if you feel charitable this holiday season we accept content, other contributions unnecessary. I urge you instead to consider the welfare of others, and yourself.

Oh, and “Bah. Humbug.” Not only would I tape a banana to a wall, I would eat it.

I’m a Nutmegger after all.

The Breakfast Club (Where The Wind Blows)

Welcome to The Breakfast Club! We’re a disorganized group of rebel lefties who hang out and chat if and when we’re not too hungover we’ve been bailed out we’re not too exhausted from last night’s (CENSORED) the caffeine kicks in. Join us every weekday morning at 9am (ET) and weekend morning at 10:00am (ET) (or whenever we get around to it) to talk about current news and our boring lives and to make fun of LaEscapee! If we are ever running late, it’s PhilJD’s fault.

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This Day in History

Britain’s King Edward steps down; Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy declare war on the United States; UNICEF organization launches; ‘Magnum PI’ makes television debut

Breakfast Tunes

Marie “Roxette” Fredriksson 30 May 1958 – 9 December 2019

Something to Think about over Coffee Prozac

Democracy relies on free speech. Yes, say anything you want, but it relies even more on the speech being truthful. It is the truth, after all, that sets us free.

John F. Kerry

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Proposed Articles of Impeachment

First of all, only the 2. I am very afraid that the cowardly Institutional Democrats are simply conceeding defeat, cravenly content with a mere symbolic token of resistance to the criminal treason of this regime. Were there Justice not only the Unindicted Co-conspirator Bottomless Pinocchio and his stooge Pence, but his henchmen Mukasey, Barr, Pompeo, and Perry, as well as the rest of his Organizaton of Republican Racketeers need indeterminate reservations at the United States Penitentiary Florence Administrative Maximum Facility and by that I mean life in solitary without parole and I hope and pray it’s a long, long, long one because I’m not sure there’s enough time between now and the Heat Death of the Universe (about 14 Billion years give or take) for sufficient punishment.

I don’t mention repentence because they never will. They’re shameless and should be locked up for the safety of others and our nation.

Secondly, the text is lifted from WaPo’s annotated. I could duplicate the links but it’s a lot of work so I’m not going to because I’m lazy.

Resolved, That Donald J. Trump, President of the United States, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors and that the following articles of impeachment be exhibited to the United States Senate:

Articles of impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives of the United States of America in the name of itself and of the people of the United States of America, against Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America, in maintenance and support of its impeachment against him for high crimes and misdemeanors.

Article I: Abuse of Power

The Constitution provides that the House of Representatives “shall have the sole Power of Impeachment” and that the President “shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” In his conduct of the office of President of the United States — and in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, Donald J. Trump has abused the powers of the Presidency, in that:

Using the powers of his high office, President Trump solicited the interference of a foreign government, Ukraine, in the 2020 United States Presidential election. He did so through a scheme or course of conduct that included soliciting the Government of Ukraine to publicly announce investigations that would benefit his reelection, harm the election prospects of a political opponent, and influence the 2020 United States Presidential election to his advantage. President Trump also sought to pressure the Government of Ukraine to take these steps by conditioning official United States Government acts of significant value to Ukraine on its public announcement of the investigations. President Trump engaged in this scheme or course of conduct for corrupt purposes in pursuit of personal political benefit. In so doing, President Trump used the powers of the Presidency in a manner that compromised the national security of the United States and undermined the integrity of the United States democratic process. He thus ignored and injured the interests of the Nation.

President Trump engaged in this scheme or course of conduct through the following means:

  1. President Trump — acting both directly and through his agents within and outside the United States Government — corruptly solicited the Government of Ukraine to publicly announce investigations into:
    1. a political opponent, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.; and
    2. a discredited theory promoted by Russia alleging that Ukraine — rather than Russia — interfered in the 2016 United States Presidential election.
  2. With the same corrupt motives, President Trump — acting both directly and through his agents within and outside the United States Government, conditioned two official acts on the public announcements that he had requested —
    1. the release of $391 million of United States taxpayer funds that Congress had appropriated on a bipartisan basis for the purpose of providing vital military and security assistance to Ukraine to oppose Russian aggression and which President Trump had ordered suspended; and
    2. a head of state meeting at the White House, which the President of Ukraine sought to demonstrate continued United States support for the Government of Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.
  3. Faced with the public revelation of his actions, President Trump ultimately released the military and security assistance to the Government of Ukraine, but has persisted in openly and corruptly urging and soliciting Ukraine to undertake investigations for his personal political benefit.

These actions were consistent with President Trump’s previous invitations of foreign interference in United States elections.

In all of this, President Trump abused the powers of the Presidency by ignoring and injuring national security and other vital national interests to obtain an improper personal political benefit. He has also betrayed the Nation by abusing his high office to enlist a foreign power in corrupting democratic elections.

Wherefore President Trump, by such conduct, has demonstrated that he will remain a threat to national security and the Constitution if allowed to remain in office, and has acted in a manner grossly incompatible with self-governance and the rule of law. President Trump thus warrants impeachment and trial, removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.

Article II: Obstruction of Congress

The Constitution provides that the House of Representatives “shall have the sole Power of Impeachment” and that the President “shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” In his conduct of the office of President of the United States — and in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed Donald J. Trump has directed the unprecedented, categorical, and indiscriminate defiance of subpoenas issued by the House of Representatives pursuant to its “sole Power of Impeachment”. President Trump has abused the powers of the Presidency in a manner offensive to, and subversive of, the Constitution, in that:

The House of Representatives has engaged in an impeachment inquiry focused on President Trump’s corrupt solicitation of the Government of Ukraine to interfere in the 2020 United States Presidential election. As part of this impeachment inquiry, the Committees undertaking the investigation served subpoenas seeking documents and testimony deemed vital to the inquiry from various Executive Branch agencies and offices, and current and former officials.

In response, without lawful cause or excuse, President Trump directed Executive Branch agencies, offices, and officials not to comply with those subpoenas, President Trump thus interposed the powers of the Presidency against the lawful subpoenas of the House of Representatives, and assumed to himself functions and judgments necessary to the exercise of the “sole Power of Impeachment” vested by the Constitution in the House of Representatives.

President Trump abused the powers of his high office 2 through the following means:

  1. Directing the White House to defy a lawful subpoena by withholding the production of documents sought therein by the Committees.
  2. Directing other Executive Branch agencies and offices to defy lawful subpoenas and withhold the production of documents and records from the Committees — in response to which the Department of State, Office of Management and Budget, Department of Energy, and Department of Defense refused to produce a single document or record.
  3. Directing current and former Executive Branch officials not to cooperate with the Committees — in response to which nine Administration officials defied subpoenas for testimony, namely John Michael “Mick” Mulvaney, Robert B. Blair, John A. Eisenberg, Michael Ellis, Preston Wells Griffith, Russell T. Vought, Michael Duffey, Brian McCormack, and T. Ulrich Brechbuhl. These actions were consistent with President Trump’s previous efforts to undermine United States Government investigations into foreign interference in United States elections.

Through these actions, President Trump sought to arrogate to himself the right to determine the propriety, scope, and nature of an impeachment inquiry into his own conduct, as well as the unilateral prerogative to deny any and all information to the House of Representatives in the exercise of its “sole Power of Impeachment”. In the history of the Republic, no President has ever ordered the complete defiance of an impeachment inquiry or sought to obstruct and impede so comprehensively the ability of the House of Representatives to investigate “high Crimes and Misdemeanors”. This abuse of office served to cover up the President’s own repeated misconduct and to seize and control the power of impeachment — and thus to nullify a vital constitutional safeguard vested solely in the House of Representatives.

In all of this, President Trump has acted in a manner contrary to his trust as President and subversive of constitutional government, to the great prejudice of the cause of law and justice, and to the manifest injury of the people of the United States.

Wherefore, President Trump, by such conduct, has demonstrated that he will remain a threat to the Constitution if allowed to remain in office, and has acted in a manner grossly incompatible with self-governance and the rule of law, President Trump thus warrants impeachment and trial, removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.

Not a catalog. Barely a digest of the most recent developments (only been 139 days since the July 25th phone call to Zelensky).

Should things proceed as I foresee, after consigning Republicans and Republicanism to the ash heap of History, we need to police our own. Democrats are cowards.

Pondering the Pundits

Pondering the Pundits” is an Open Thread. It is a selection of editorials and opinions from> around the news medium and the internet blogs. The intent is to provide a forum for your reactions and opinions, not just to the opinions presented, but to what ever you find important.

Thanks to ek hornbeck, click on the link and you can access all the past “Pondering the Pundits”.

Follow us on Twitter @StarsHollowGzt

Jesse Wegman: With Trump, All Roads Lead to Moscow

Monday’s congressional hearing and the inspector general’s report tell a similar story.

When it comes to Donald Trump and Russia, everything is connected.

That’s the most important lesson from the two big events that played out Monday on Capitol Hill — the House Judiciary Committee’s hearings on President Trump’s impeachment and the release of the report on the origins of the F.B.I.’s investigation into ties between the Trump campaign and the Russian government.

One of these involved the 2016 election. The other involves the 2020 election. Both tell versions of the same story: Mr. Trump depends on, and welcomes, Russian interference to help him win the presidency. That was bad enough when he did it in 2016, openly calling for Russia to hack into his opponent’s emails — which Russians tried to do that same day. But he was only a candidate then. Now that Mr. Trump is president, he is wielding the immense powers of his office to achieve the same end. [..]

These are serious and in some cases alarming missteps and would be a concern in any case, let alone in one targeting people closely associated with a presidential campaign. But don’t be lulled into thinking Republicans care about surveillance overreach — just as they don’t care about Hillary Clinton’s emails or Joe Biden’s son. They’re simply casting about for anything that will protect their president from the scrutiny that he has invited upon himself since long before he was elected.

Amanda Marcotte: Impeachment: Republicans have no defense for Trump — just tribal hatred of Democrats

During the “opening arguments” hearing, Republicans stick to conspiracy theories and claims that Trump is a victim

Republicans have nothing: That is the only reasonable conclusion one can draw after Monday’s impeachment hearing before the House Judiciary Committee. It’s clear that Donald Trump is guilty of running an extortion scheme against Ukraine in order to gin up false accusations against his potential 2020 rival, former Vice President Joe Biden. The evidence, which has been laid out in a series of hearings and in a 300-page document released last week, is voluminous and crystal-clear.

There is no substantive defense of Trump in the face of this overwhelming evidence. Instead, Republicans are betting that Trump’s base voters hate Democrats so much that they will keep on supporting Trump, no matter what crimes he commits, in order to stick it to the Democrats. It’s not necessarily a bad bet. [..]

For this reason alone, I’m beginning to be glad that Democrats want to wind this up quickly. The Republican lies are exhausting — arguably they’re meant to be exhausting to people of good faith, because exhausted voters often stop voting altogether. Limiting the amount of air time handed over to Republicans to spin their lies is starting to feel like a mercy.

William Saletan: It’s Not About Corruption. It’s About Revenge.

The GOP’s new explanation of why Trump extorted Ukraine.

Why did President Donald Trump—against the wishes of his State Department, his Defense Department, and his congressional allies—withhold military aid and a White House meeting from Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine? For weeks, Republicans said the reason was corruption. Trump cared deeply about fighting corruption, they explained, and he blocked the aid until he was sure that Zelensky would clean up Ukraine.

Unfortunately, that explanation doesn’t fit any of the facts. So Republicans have developed an alternative theory: Trump blocked the meeting and the aid because he thought Ukraine was out to get him. He did it for revenge.

The revenge theory starts with a May 23 meeting at the White House. A delegation of Trump appointees and a Republican senator, Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, had just returned from Ukraine. They told Trump that Zelensky, who had just been inaugurated, was launching an unprecedented campaign against corruption. If Trump had cared about corruption, the delegation’s report would have moved him. It didn’t. He fixated instead on the idea that Ukraine was out to get him.

Robert Reich: Trump is the natural consequence of our anti-democracy decade

The president knows how the system works: the rich give money and get what they want in return. His defeat is imperative

We’re coming to the end of what might be called the anti-democracy decade. It began on 21 January 2010 with the supreme court’s shameful decision in Citizens United vs Federal Election Commission, opening the floodgates to big money in politics with the absurd claim that the first amendment protects corporate speech.

t ends with Donald Trump in the White House, filling his administration with corporate shills and inviting foreign powers to interfere in American elections. [..]

t doesn’t have to be this way. Even if Citizens United isn’t reversed by the supreme court or defanged by a constitutional amendment, a principled Congress and decent president could still rescue our democracy.

House Democrats have begun with their For the People Act, the first legislation they introduced when they gained a majority. It expands voting rights, limits partisan gerrymandering, strengthens ethics rules and limits the influence of private donor money by providing $6 of public financing for every $1 of small donations, up to $200, raised by participating candidates.

On the other hand, a second Trump term could make the anti-democracy decade a mere prelude to the wholesale destruction of American democracy.

Paul Krugman: Donald Trump Is Bad for the Jews

There are things more important than your tax rate.

On Saturday Donald Trump gave a speech to the Israeli American Council in which he asserted that many in his audience were “not nice people at all,” but that “you have to vote for me” because Democrats would raise their taxes.

Was he peddling an anti-Semitic stereotype, portraying Jews as money-grubbing types who care only about their wealth? Of course he was. You might possibly make excuses for his remarks if they were an isolated instance, but in fact Trump has done this sort of thing many times, for example asserting in 2015 that Jews weren’t supporting him because he wasn’t accepting their money and “you want to control your politicians.”

Well, it’s not news that Trump’s bigotry isn’t restricted to blacks and immigrants. What is interesting, however, is that this particular anti-Semitic cliché — that Jews are greedy, and that their political behavior is especially driven by their financial interests — is empirically dead wrong. In fact, American Jews are much more liberal than you might expect given their economic situation. [..]

But it takes, well, chutzpah, a truly striking level of contempt for your audience, to foment hatred-laced identity politics, then turn to members of minority groups and say, in effect, “Ignore the bigotry and look at the taxes you’re saving!”

And some of the audience deserves that contempt. As I said, people are pretty much the same whatever their background. There are wealthy Jews who are sufficiently shortsighted, ignorant or arrogant enough to imagine that they can continue to prosper under a white nationalist government.

But most of my ethnic group, I believe, understands that Trump is bad for the Jews, whatever tax bracket we happen to be in.

Late Night Reaction

Stephen

Seth

Cartnoon

Not bragging, but 2 Channels each (2 UHF) of 4 Networks and 3 VHF Independents and bunch of other UHF that came and went (big fan of LIW when the wind was fair).

The Breakfast Club (Wisdom)

Welcome to The Breakfast Club! We’re a disorganized group of rebel lefties who hang out and chat if and when we’re not too hungover we’ve been bailed out we’re not too exhausted from last night’s (CENSORED) the caffeine kicks in. Join us every weekday morning at 9am (ET) and weekend morning at 10:00am (ET) (or whenever we get around to it) to talk about current news and our boring lives and to make fun of LaEscapee! If we are ever running late, it’s PhilJD’s fault.

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This Day in History

Martin Luther King, Junior accepts Nobel Peace Prize; Women get the right to vote in Wyoming Territory; America’s first domestic passenger jet flight takes off; Soul singer Otis Redding, General Augusto Pinochet die.

Breakfast Tunes

Something to Think about over Coffee Prozac

I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing.

Socrates

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For the Record: Day 7

Judiciary Committee Evidentiary Hearing

Unindicted Co-Conspirator Bottomless Pinocchio had Tuesday availble to present any exculpatory testimony.

Evidently there is none.

It’s very simple really, the act of soliciting personal benefit from a Foreign National using the resources of the United States is Constitutional Bribery. He’s admitted doing it srveral times on Video Tape, in writing, and we have the testimony of many Officials including the Chief of Staff.

So Crime by definition of same, Admission of Guilt…

What are we talking about again?

Oh, the Treasonous Republicans and their Bigoted Racist Misogynous Voters, with the complicity of Cowardly Institutional Democrats, are going to let him get away with it.

But I won’t. Ask Cosby.

The Breakfast Club (Fluency)

Welcome to The Breakfast Club! We’re a disorganized group of rebel lefties who hang out and chat if and when we’re not too hungover we’ve been bailed out we’re not too exhausted from last night’s (CENSORED) the caffeine kicks in. Join us every weekday morning at 9am (ET) and weekend morning at 10:00am (ET) (or whenever we get around to it) to talk about current news and our boring lives and to make fun of LaEscapee! If we are ever running late, it’s PhilJD’s fault.

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This Day in History

Britain’s Prince Charles and Princess Diana announce they are separating; The Charge of the Light Brigade – is published in Britain; Solidarity union leader Lech Walesa is elected president in Poland; Actor Kirk Douglas is born.

Breakfast Tunes

Something to Think about over Coffee Prozac

We need a president who’s fluent in at least one language.

Buck Henry

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September 30, 1985

I was going to title this Pig Vomit and then I feared you’d think I was talking about Hillary with whom I have many policy differences but I’m sure (because I know people who know, you know) she’s just as much fun to hang out with as Bill and waaay smarter (though he’s no mental midget).

No, Pig Vomit is John Hayes.

Anyway I remember the whole sorry turn as if it were yesterday. There was a Hurricane raging that took out our Cherry Tree which was precariously rooted next to a retaining wall. Mid-afternoon, as was my custom at the time, I tuned into the last few minutes of Imus who hadn’t at that point so thoroughly tarnished his reputation that I did not appreciate the rare Reverend Billy Sol Hargis bit.

I don’t care if it rains or freezes
‘Long as I got my plastic Jesus
Riding on the dashboard of my car.

I can go 10,000 miles an hour
‘Long as I got the Almighty Power
Riding on the dashboard of my car.

Good clean fun, but behind the scenes Don was a BillO level asshole and basically owned WNBC, 50,000 Watts of Clear Channel from Miami to Maine. Howard constantly called him out on it with a sub plot of people ate in the Studio so it stank of Elderberry and Old Man.

I don’t think NBC ever understood Howard, I don’t know that I do today. As far as I’m concerned Gary Dell’Abate has no talent except for public embarrassment. Robin is all around great and much funnier than people give her credit for. Howard is frequently painful and wrongheaded, but a talented interviewer (although he has a questionable sense of humor).

It was… spectacular.

A 90 minute On Air meltdown followed by silence.

WNBC got sold to WFAN (Sports) and I listened to them for a while (c’mon- Mets!), Don was still ruling the roost but (because he’s really a shameless copycat for the most part) was all up in the Rush Biz. I don’t follow Howard anymore either because he’s gone too blue and gross for my taste and pretends a Libertarian streak to cover for his basic perversion.

However, if you can work past that, he recently chatted with Hillary and, she’s great.

Santa! Free Your Elf Slaves!

Mean Girls

The Roadie

QVC

Empire

More Hip Hop

Cheeseheads

Benifer

Liberty Medical Catheter Collection

Cinderella

Body Shaming

Oh, news.

I’ll remind you “Bless your heart,” is Southern Speak for requesting you perform an act of extreme flexibility.

Weekend Cartnoon

The New New Year’s/St. Pat’s

Not that John should be throwing stones. One word- Scousers.

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