In Case You Missed It (v10)

In case you missed any of this week's posts, here's a recap for you.

In Sunday School,  I sat in on two classrooms with 2020 Dem presidential candidates, catching Andrew Yang and Mayor Pete, who was asked about policies, and polls, and, well, take a look.

About how his being gay impacts black voters and others, "What can you do about that, if anything?"  he said the biggest thing voters think about when trying to decide who to vote for is

How will my life be different if you're president vs. one of your competitors? That's the question we have got to answer. And when we have the best answer to that question, I think a lot of prejudices and a lot of those other considerations fall away, and it comes down to vision and results.

It was an interesting question, for sure, and I'm not sure there's a better answer. I'd like to think that there are fewer people who wouldn't consider voting for a gay man than there used to be. I mean, we've had a black president, for Pete's sake; now we've got The Apprentice. And as he once said, "what have you got to lose?"

I frequently encourage folks to listen to both sides of an argument, and in that spirit I dropped a Sunday School Extra Credit post, in which the pundits hosted some of the Republicans who were willing to chat. Here's House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy complaining to Margaret Brennan about secret depositions, transcripts and that vote the House took to formalize their impeachment inquiry:

You have members of Congress who just voted to justify what has already happened without ever reading one word of what's gone on.

My thoughts on that?

Brennan did not remind him that we have members of Congress who just voted against what has already happened without ever reading one word of what's gone on, and that the vote that was passed allows all of them to see what's gone on. And, of course, that Republican members of Congress are in the room listening to or participating in the depositions and it defies credulity that the Rs don't know exactly what's been said in those traditionally secret depositions.

Tuesday was Election Day, and that meant it was time to update my annual Election Eve post, which is full of rebuttals for not voting, and encouragement for doing so. This year, I was also thinking about New York's entry into early voting, and what the impact of that would be.

Hopefully, now that New York has added early voting, we'll see new voters participating, not just the same folks who vote every year. Overall, we're told, less than 2% of all registered voters cast their ballots early, but in my area, 20% of the early voters did not vote in 2018. Maybe there's hope after all?

There was some chatter in the Twitterverse about there not being a proclamation for Native American History Month this year; that turned out not to be true, but it did get me looking at Trump proclamations, and as with some of the ones he's issued in the past, it inspired me to drag out my Irony Board. 

This year, in addition to celebrating our Native American heritage, we are celebrating several other things, including National Veterans and Military Families Month, with a proclamation noting that

Each warrior who fights for our Nation, along with their families, has earned our eternal gratitude, and I ask that all Americans thank and support them.  Together, we remain committed to fostering a national community of support for these brave heroes and their families.

If you think about all the "fostering a national community of support" this particular president has done, you'll wonder, as I did, how he can put his signature on this with a straight face.

On Wednesday, I wondered about impeachment, mostly, but also about the election results from around the country, and from Trump country, and what they might mean in the larger picture.

Moving on to yesterday's election results: Virginia turned blue last night, for the first time in a generation. and the lady who flipped Trump off won a seat. Not because she flipped him off, mind you, but because her message resonated with voters and because she worked her fanny off. In Pennsylvania, Republicans lost in Delaware County where they've held seats since the Civil War; Democrats flipped several seats in Central Ohio, and may have narrowly won the Kentucky gubernatorial contest, although a re-canvass has been requested by the Republican incumbent Matt Bevin.

I was at the Update Desk again on Thursday, reviewing emails from the Dems. It's still about money, for the most part - no surprise there - and about both the November and December debates. They're all in for November, but December's going to be much harder for some.  Here's a taste of what one of them is talking about in campaign emails.

Andrew Yang: he's got his first ad on TV, he's worried about qualifying for the December debate; he offered a split donation to Virginia Dems and his campaign,  he's got new merch, including a new hat that will give $1 to the USO for every purchase, and we heard from his wife Evelyn for the first time.

And on Friday, instead of our usual 'good week/bad week' TGIF entry, I tossed out a Knock Knock post on all of the different ways the president's defenders are making fools of themselves on the impeachment stuff. It's really getting embarrassing. I have a suggestion for them, his defenders and, frankly, his accusers, too.

It's time to stop talking and start listening. Hear the evidence, read the evidence (and, can I ask, have you read the Mueller Report yet?), and listen to the official arguments when they are presented. 

And then, stop embarrassing yourselves, all of you.

I have no idea what next week will bring, but I know I'll be here trying to make sense of it. Join me?

Knock Knock. Who's There? Presidential Defenders

Presidential defenders who?

Presidential defenders who are making complete fools of themselves, that's who.

Take Senator Lindsey Graham (R-White House).  The senator, who also serves as acting Secretary of Defense for Impeachment, has suggested that the Trump Administration is so incompetent and hopeless that they couldn't possibly have pulled off a quid pro quo.

Seriously, the Administration's Ukraine policy, if you could even call it that, was incoherent and nobody was in charge, or everyone was in charge and what a mess and these people couldn't 'policy' their way out of a paper bag if their ability to avoid a Congressional subpoena depended on it, or something.

Yep - in this case, the whole is actually less than the sum of its parts, and because of that, no impeachable offense has occurred. So he's writing the whole thing off, Graham is; he's not interested in looking at actual transcripts of actual depositions or anything, he's just going to play golf with the president and let it go at that.

This is a new and interesting twist on the administration, which is the one we deserve (also according to Graham) and is also the political equivalent of the Keystone Cops. Or maybe of Wile E. Coyote, not sure.

As I said, this is only the latest in a string of 'defenses' the president, his advisers, family members, and scaredycat politicians who do what he says under fear of losing their jobs, have shared with us.

Other lines of defense may or may not include:

• It didn't happen, but if it did happen, it's OK because it's not a crime (a consistent theme with Trump and his minions). 
• And even if it IS a crime, he can't be investigated or charged with anything. But impeachment isn't about crimes, it's a political remedy. (Keep reading...) 
• And even if Congress has oversight responsibility expressly defined in the Constitution, it doesn't matter, because the economy. You know, the black unemployment rate, something that not a SINGLE Republican (and not more than probably a handful of Democrats) ever cared to mention before? Yeah, that's why none of this impeachment stuff matters.
• Impeachment is a sham, just like those phony emoluments.
• The president is not being allowed to face his accuser like he's entitled to in a court of law. I love this one, coming from folks who swore an oath to uphold the Constitution, but aren't embarrassed to pretend they don't know the difference between impeachment and a criminal proceeding. 
• They had depositions in secret (a common procedure, as these folks know) to hide what was going on from us (no, not really) and we had to STORM THE GATES to get in the room (because most of us aren't on the Committee handing the depositions) and the Democrats are acting like a bunch of Soviets.
• Well, now that this is PUBLIC we're going to refuse to participate because this is a PARTISAN WITCH HUNT and a HOAX!
• Read the transcript (which is what they call the document clearly noted THIS IS NOT A TRANSCRIPT) it was a beautiful call and nothing that's pretty can be evil, right?
• The president is the Commander in Chief of the country, (which, of course, he is absolutely NOT) and he can do what he wants, and he didn't do anything wrong.
• And even if something did happen, it wasn't Trump.  It was Giuliani. 
• No, wait it was Mulvaney.
• No wait, it was Sondland.
• No, wait, it was Vindman. He's a never-Trumper. He speaks UKRAINIAN!
• It was (fill in the blank).
• But Joe Biden... 
• But Hunter Biden... 
• But Biden the golden!
• But the whistleblower once worked for a Democrat. No wait he worked with Joe Biden. That  completely negates the fact that multiple have corroborated what the whistleblower said (and more).
• But the whistleblower's attorney's tweets!
• But even if the House comes up with articles of impeachment, Senate Republicans won't go along with it.

Just stop. 

Everyone says they want the facts, except when it comes to actually getting the facts. In the face of that, the Republicans are literally - not just Joe Biden literally, but literally throwing everything at this that they can get their hands on.  

It's time to stop talking and start listening. Hear the evidence, read the evidence (and, can I ask, have you read the Mueller Report yet?), and listen to the official arguments when they are presented. 

And then, stop embarrassing yourselves, all of you.

This is not about why someone's nickname is Masha, for Pete's sake.  This is not about political parties. It's not about who is the biggest loser, or the sorest loser.

It's about whether the president of the United States used his office to attack a US citizen who happens to be a political rival, or in any way abused his office for personal gain. That's what this is about.

No one should be afraid of the facts. 

The Update Desk: Who Loves Me, Baby? (9)

Time to update my social experiment with the top nine Dems running for the 2020 nomination.  As you know Beto O'Rourke dropped out last week, leaving me with one less bell to answer. This is the 9th update I've done since signing up for emails from the leading candidates; you can read the history of all this in last week's edition.

So -- let's get the numbers out of the way first: things have sort of levelled off with the gang, it seems. I got a total of 146 emails, with four candidates - Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Julian Castro and Kamala Harris - each sending 18. The rest of them weren't far behind: Amy Klobuchar (17), Pete Buttigieg (16), Elizabeth Warren (15), Bernie Sanders (14) and Andrew Yang (12).

There were a lot of emails around the end-of-October fundraising deadline, and how they did; there were emails about it being 100 days from the New Hampshire primary (we saw the same for Iowa) and November 3rd being 365 days from the 2020 vote.

Here's what else the candidates wanted me to know:

• Joe Biden: good polls showing him ahead of the other Dems (and Trump); Trump  joking about asking Ukraine for help beating Joe; attacks from Sanders and Warren (the latter suggested he was running "in the wrong primary") and being worried about how much money those two have, and that Trump raised $3M the day the impeachment vote was taken. 

• Cory Booker: the November debate, hosting a debate watch party, and the tightening of requirements for the one in December; finding unity as a party and country to win the election; the impeachment vote being a sad day for America; pictures from Iowa, and a message about what people really want. 

• Pete Buttigieg: lots of info from Iowa, the Liberty and Justice celebration, and the resonating message he's been sharing; a chance to win a trip to a Notre Dame football game; a message from a disabled supporter; his new ad, and the 'fishbowl' video. 

• Julian Castro: continuing to be the most desperate of the remaining candidates, the emails were very similar to last time. He did have two mentions about his new criminal justice plan and spending time with prisoners, but other that that and the debates, it's money money money. 

• Kamala Harris: a couple of emails from "Kamala's husband (Doug)" this time, don't remember seeing those before. Kamala is focused on Iowa Iowa Iowa and the upcoming debates (she's qualified for December); Tom Steyer's folks stole her data; Jeff Sessions is in the race in Alabama. and you can split a donation between Kamala and Doug Jones if you want, and there's some new fall merch. 

• Amy Klobuchar: Iowa, the November and December debates (she's qualified for both, one of ten for November and six, so far, for December); she reminded me of her record of winning, including in 2018 when she won more than 40 counties won by the president in 2016. 

• Bernie Sanders: AOC is all over the place - there was an email from her asking me to join her in endorsing him, one from him sharing her earlier email, and one letting me know that AOC and Sanders would be appearing together in Iowa. He's got some new merch, including a shirt bearing the picture of him being arrested back in the 60s. 

• Elizabeth Warren: I could get a phone call from one of the 'Queer Eye' guys for donating; several mentions of her Medicare for All plan; negative press from rich people; new merch, and a story from her 2012 campaign about a poor college student donating to her campaign each month. 

• Andrew Yang: he's got his first ad on TV, he's worried about qualifying for the December debate; he offered a split donation to Virginia Dems and his campaign,  he's got new merch, including a new hat that will give $1 to the USO for every purchase, and we heard from his wife Evelyn for the first time.

There weren't a lot of outstanding candidates for email of the week, but I'm choosing the one from Cory Booker about his friend and mentor, a guy named Frank. Here's an excerpt talking about time he and Frank spent doing tenants' rights work, which often involved gathering information from families living in less than optimal conditions.

Sometimes, the meetings would go on for hours. I would grow restless and impatient -- most folks were saying much of the same things, and I already had all the information I needed for our case.

But Frank never rushed anyone. He sat and he listened.

After one especially long meeting, I said something to Frank about how long it was. And without judgment or pride, he told me that the meetings were about more than just fixing the buildings. The meetings were about more than sharing information.

They were about making people feel seen and heard and understood. They were about giving people a platform and a place to know that they were not alone.

They were about healing.

The email goes on with Booker asking us to do more than just beating Donald Trump (that's the floor, not the ceiling, he says), he wants us to believe in an America

• where we come together to take on our biggest challenges -- from the epidemic of gun violence to the disease of addiction.
• that leads the world because we invest in people. In good jobs in every community. In a high quality public education for every child.
• that doesn’t shrink into isolation in the face of the world’s biggest challenges, but leads and unites the world’s great democracies to take it on.
• where you can turn on the news and see our leaders and feel pride and not shame.
• where we revive civic grace, where we extend a more courageous empathy to one another and where nobody gets left on the sidelines and nobody gets left behind.

Onward we go. 

Wondering on Wednesday (v189)

Where should we start the wondering tonight, I wonder..."

Let's start with the impeachment thing and get that out of the way:

• I wonder how successful "shooting the messenger" will be as a defense for the president? The whistleblower wasn't even there, the Rs used to say, and so not the report is not even credible. And then, it was the whistleblower was partisan, so completely not credible. 

• And now that there is credible evidence from people who were there, it's escalated to "the whistleblower used to work for Biden and therefore is a material witness" (to something that happened before Trump was elected and is not germane to whether Trump did or did not commit an impeachable offence)after taking office), but now, we need the whistleblower exposed IMMEDIATELY and WE NEED TESTIMONY! LOTS OF TESTIMONY! 

• Silly me -- the defense is not "shoot the messenger", it's DEFLECT!! DEFLECT!! DEFLECT!!  

• Honestly, if the Senate wants to waste everyone's time and not do the job we sent them there to do and go after Joe Biden and his son, that's fine, but that's the exact same argument they're using to suggest that the impeachment is the wrong thing to do -- and so, I wonder if we can get this impeachment thing out of the way first?

• Little Donny Trump has tweeted the identity of the alleged whistleblower, and allegedly so have Little Donny's Daddy's Russian friends. And he apparently denies any coordination with the White House on this -- as if he'd do anything like that, he suggested. He's his own man and all. But I have to wonder, do you think he told Daddy he was going to do that, or if it was a surprise? 

• And which one of them, I wonder, told Russia, "Hey, if you're reading Don Jr's tweets, there something there you could publish if you want..."

Moving on to yesterday's election results: Virginia turned blue last night, for the first time in a generation. and the lady who flipped Trump off won a seat. Not because she flipped him off, mind you, but because her message resonated with voters and because she worked her fanny off. In Pennsylvania, Republicans lost in Delaware County where they've held seats since the Civil War; Democrats flipped several seats in Central Ohio, and may have narrowly won the Kentucky gubernatorial contest, although a re-canvass has been requested by the Republican incumbent Matt Bevin.

So - does all of that, or any of it, have anything to do with what can be expected in 2020, I wonder? Does it have anything to do with impeachment/ With bad trade deals? Leaving the Paris Climate Accord? The Iran nuclear deal?

Or, does it really only mean that people at the state and local level are unhappy with what's going on where they live?

I wonder...

The Irony Board: I Hereby Proclaim

There are many things Donald Trump is without: ethics... compassion... empathy... kindness... humility... courtesy... and irony - don't forget irony.

We've long celebrated November as Native American Heritage Month, under President George W. Bush, President Obama and even president Trump.

This year, in addition to celebrating our Native American heritage, we are celebrating several other things, including National Veterans and Military Families Month, with a proclamation noting that

Each warrior who fights for our Nation, along with their families, has earned our eternal gratitude, and I ask that all Americans thank and support them.  Together, we remain committed to fostering a national community of support for these brave heroes and their families.

This president signed this proclamation? This president, the guy who mocked a Gold Star family for speaking out against him; who assaulted the life and memory of John McCain; who deports  immigrant veterans despite the promise of citizenship for their patriotic service or the immigrant families of our veterans and soldiers; and who most recently has turned his "eternal gratitude" on Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman? This is the guy who proclaims

I encourage all communities, all sectors of society, and all Americans to acknowledge and honor the service, sacrifices, and contributions of veterans and military families for what they have done and for what they do every day to support our great Nation.

I can't even.

We're also celebrating, for the first time, National American History and Founders Month, a time for us all to remember that

...the United States will always remain steadfast in our dedication to promoting liberty and justice over the evil forces of oppression and indignity.  This same truth fuels us in our efforts to confront the challenges that face our citizens here at home, including protecting precious religious liberties, securing our Nation’s borders, and combating the opioid crisis.

Unless, of course, you're a Muslim, a person legitimately seeking asylum, a thoroughly vetted refugee, LGBTQ, a person with Temporary Protected Status, a political opponent born in the US or a naturalized citizen, and so on.

But let's include the opioid crisis as an "evil force of oppression and indignity," while we try to strip health insurance away from millions...  Also,

This month, we acknowledge the tremendous strides we have made as a people and recognize that our democracy’s survival is dependent upon a well-informed electorate.  To ensure the success of our future generations, we pledge to continue to build a more educated citizenry. We heed the warning of President Ronald Reagan that “freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction.”

This is laughable, really, coming from a guy who lies in press conferences, lies in rallies, lies in Cabinet meetings, lies in tweets -- who lies about everything! All of his minions also lie, constantly, boldly, like clockwork, in lockstep with him, as if hearing themselves repeat something false will miraculously make it true. And knowing that if they are hearing themselves repeat something false, the president is hearing them, too, and that is good. For them. Not so much for us, but very good for them. And his supporters? Some of them believe the lies, all the lies, lie the lies right along with him, and call others liars for not agreeing with the lies. And no, 13,435 false and misleading statements do not a truth make... But,

To continue safeguarding our freedom, we must develop a deeper understanding of our American story.  Studying our country’s founding documents and exploring our unique history — both the achievements and challenges — is indispensable to the future success of our great Nation.  For more than two centuries, the American experiment in self-government has been the antithesis to tyranny, and our Constitution has secured the blessings of liberty.

This president doesn't give two hoots about the Constitution - it's just another thing about which he can uneducate the citizenry. His actions fly in the face of our founding documents, except the parts that serve his purpose-of-the-day, and he pretends the parts that don't serve him don't exist - you know, like the oversight stuff, or the Congress appropriates the money stuff, and more.

He proudly and officially compliments dictators, wishing that he had what they have -- an obedient press, subservient women, obscene military parades, and threatening people who don't agree with him. And he's got that last part, in spades.

Emoluments...government spending at Trump properties... promoting his children's personal financial interests... members of his administration doing the same...

As we sit today, he's obstructing Congress in an impeachment inquiry, he has his lawyers on a path of obstruction in ways the likes of which have never been seen before, even to the point of arguing that Trump could in fact kill someone in the middle of 5th Avenue and not even be investigated, much less indicted, while he's in office. (The president just loves that "the likes of which have never been seen before" stuff, so I thought I'd give it a whirl.)

Trump has got this American History and Founders stuff nailed, don't you think?

And the irony part? Yeah, well, that's going to have to wait for another day.

The Election Eve Post - 2019 Edition

It's that time again - the night before the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. That means it's Election Eve, and time for me to do my darndest to encourage you to vote.

Here in my neck of the woods, the focus is primarily on local races: all of the county positions are up for grabs, as are several city positions. Traditionally - since the 1980s - the county roles have gone to Republicans, often in uncontested races. This year, Democrats have a 30K advantage in voter registrations, hold five seats on the Legislature, and are contesting 10 of the 12 seats held by Republicans.

On the city side, where the Dems have their traditional power base, one of the most important choices we have to make is on redistricting. We've got a proposition offering us the chance to have a non-partisan commission of city residents handle the task in 2021, and I think it's a good idea.

People tend to pay more attention in even-year elections, and yet, these odd-year elections can directly influence a person's quality of life. Turnout is usually low - last time, it was 25% here, for Pete's sake. We should be ashamed of ourselves.

Hopefully, now that New York has added early voting, we'll see new voters participating, not just the same folks who vote every year. Overall, we're told, less than 2% of all registered voters cast their ballots early, but in my area, 20% of the early voters did not vote in 2018. Maybe there's hope after all?

I'm voting tomorrow, as I always do on Election Day. This is the most important thing, the most patriotic thing any of us can do as citizens -- to get our two cents out there on who gets to represent us.

As I do every year, I offer the following motivation, with the addition of the admonition at left. 

After some thought, “I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians.”(1) Actually, “The idea of an election is much more interesting to me than the election itself…the act of voting is in itself the defining moment.”(2) And why is it that “When the political columnists say ‘every thinking man’ they mean themselves, and when candidates appeal to ‘every intelligent voter’ they mean everyone who is going to vote for them”?(3) 

We know it’s true that “Bad officials are elected by good citizens who didn’t vote”(4), and that “A citizen of America will cross the ocean to fight for democracy, but won’t cross the street to vote in a national election.”(5) Do we still not realize, after all these years, that “lower voter participation is a silent threat to our democracy… it under-represents young people, the poor, the disabled, those with little education, minorities and you and me”? 6) 

After all, “the vote is the most powerful instrument ever devised for breaking down injustice and destroying the terrible walls which imprison men because they are different from other men” (7) and “to make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not just observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain.”(8) 

And complain we do, after every election, when the wrong guy wins. If only people who actually voted complained, it’d likely be a lot less noisy. 

Some folks may not vote because they don’t know how to pick the right person. There are a couple different schools of thought on that. On the one hand, some might think that “politics is the art of the possible”(9) while others may subscribe to the thinking that “politics is not the art of the possible, it consists in choosing between the disastrous and the unpalatable. And it is true that, the great thing about democracy is that it gives every voter the chance to do something stupid.”(10) 

Said another way, a “Vote (is) the instrument and symbol of a freeman’s power to make a fool of himself and a wreck of his country.” (11) But that’s OK – “personally, I believe that our American system works as long as you participate in it. You must vote and make your voice heard; otherwise you will be left out.” (12) 

It’s generally true that if you “ask a man which way he’s going to vote and he’ll  probably tell you. Ask him, however, why – and vagueness is all.”(13) But voting’s really easy; and “all voting is a sort of gaming, like checkers or backgammon, with a slight moral tinge to it, a playing with right and wrong.”(14) And just about everyone likes to play a game every now and then, right? 

The bottom line is, “voting is simply a way of determining which side is the stronger without putting it to the test of fighting;”(15) “voting is a civic sacrament;”(16) and “the future of this republic is in the hands of the American voter.”(17) If all of that seems like too much pressure, you have an out: “Vote for the man who promises least. He’ll be the least disappointing.”(18) 

Please, vote. It really does matter, this year and every year. 

If you need information on where to vote, or other assistance, visit Vote411.org or contact your local Board of Elections. 

(Thanks to these folks for their words of wisdom: 1 - Charles De Gaulle; 2 – Jeff Melvoin; 3 – Franklin P Adams; 4 and 13 – Andrew Lack; 5 - Bill Vaughan; 6 - Nancy Neuman; 7 - Lyndon B Johnson; 8 - Louis L’Amour; 9 – Otto Von Bismarck; 10 – Art Spander; 11 – Ambrose Bierce; 12 - Mari-Luci Jaramillo; 14 – Henry David Thoreau; 15 – H.L. Mencken; 16—Theodore Hesburgh; 17 – Dwight D. Eisenhower; 18 – Bernard Baruch) 

Sunday School Extra Credit: 11/3/19

In yesterday's Sunday School post, we spent time with Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Andrew Yang, consistent with my promise to pay attention to the Democratic presidential candidates when they're making the rounds.

In addition to the candidates, a few key Republicans were also making appearances in the classrooms - House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy on Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan; Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise on This Week with George Stephanopoulos, and White House Counselor Kellyanne Conway on CNN's State of the Union with Dana Bash. Let's tackle them in order.

Brennan asked about strategy in light of the "damaging detail" that's expected to be shown in testimony likely to be released this week, and she asked who the Rs would like to see testify. There were lots of words, there was lots of interruption, but here's the gist of it. He wants to call Adam Schiff. Brennan seemed a bit incredulous, but McCarthy stuck to his guns.

Yes, I would. Because he is the only person who knows who this whistleblower is. He refers to himself as a Ken Starr, Ken Starr testified. How many times did he meet with the whistleblower? What did he talk to the whistleblower about? Because when the whistleblower even went to the inspector general he never mentioned that he went with Adam Schiff.

Remember what we're talking about today Margaret, the removal of the president of the United States. This should not be taken lightly. We should have all the facts. The public deserves the facts not something that's leaked. We're three weeks since the very first hearing inside there, the deposition. We still do not have the transcripts. You have members of Congress who just voted to justify what has already happened without ever reading one word of what's gone on.

Brennan did not remind him that we have members of Congress who just voted against what has already happened without ever reading one word of what's gone on, and that the vote that was passed allows all of them to see what's gone on. And, of course, that Republican members of Congress are in the room listening to or participating in the depositions and it defies credulity that the Rs don't know exactly what's been said in those traditionally secret depositions.

Brennan also pointed out that the whistleblower's attorneys have offered to have their client answer written questions, under penalty of perjury, directly to Republicans on the Intelligence Committee without going through the Democrats. McCarthy's response?

Well, Margaret, I have never received that offer and I'm the lead Republican in the House.

When Brennan told him the offer was submitted to Devin Nunes, the ranking Republican on the committee, McCarthy's answer was priceless.

Well, when was it submitted to him? because Devin had not told me about that prior to today.

Brennan said it was submitted Saturday night (not reiterating that was when McCarthy was in New York City attending a UFC event with the president). 

Well, Devin's in California, so let's see how they submitted. 

Right -- he was in California, the same state you represent -- and you were gallivanting around in NYC with the president, the subject of an impeachment that will come to you for a vote. Good to know.  

McCarthy pretended that the 'transcript' of the call is more information than the whistleblower has - which is almost certainly untrue, unless McCarthy has seen the actual transcript, which is on the secure server because it was so frightening? Potentially damaging? Embarrassing?

In the end, McCarthy stood firm on the demand, instigated and pressed by the president, that the whistleblower must come forward in person and show their ever loving whistleblowing face. 

I think democracy is too precious to think that somebody who's not on a phone call, that cannot stand before the American public, and answer the questions, that somehow we would change the course of that? And we're one year away from today. What are they so afraid of? What do they have to hide? Why wouldn't they release one item? 

Apparently, focusing on the whistleblower, instead of on the first-hand testimony provided by people who were on the call is all the strategy Brennan was able to get.

Scalise also toed the party line.

It’s all about reversing the results of the 2016 election. There are no high crimes or misdemeanors.

Stephanopoulos played a video clip of Deputy SecState John Sullivan indicating that "soliciting investigations into a political opponent, I don't think that would be in accord with our values" and asked if Scalise agreed with that statement. He said that wasn't what happened on the call, and there was some back and forth about that, whether it was Crowdstrike or Burisma or Biden. George asked again, "it's just a very simple question, do you think it's appropriate for the president to ask the Ukrainians or the Chinese, which he's also done in public, to investigate his domestic political opponents?"

Well, first of all on that call he was not talking about the 2020 election or political opponents, he was talking about corruption relating to the 2016 elections.

We know that is not correct, because the summary of the call clearly mentions the Bidens. It's right there, on page 4.

So, again, we're supposed to believe what the Republicans call a transcript, except when it doesn't support their position.  Got it.  

Scalise also said he wanted the whistleblower to testify, because

There are many reports out there that the whistleblower actually worked for Joe Biden. That concerns a lot of people. There are also a lot of reports that Adam Schiff and his staff coached the whistleblower prior to the whistleblower report being released.

Ignore, we're basically being told, that the Intelligence Community Inspector General indicated that whatever prior relationship there was did not discount what he reported, and that what was reported presented an urgent risk.

Scalise also repeated the lie that Nixon and Clinton depositions were public. His comments only reinforce how afraid the Republicans are here.

Dare I move on to Conway? Sure, what the heck. Dana Bash announced the state of our union to be "in fighting mode." And right off the bat, we have Conway calling the summary memo of the phone call "the transcript" and right off the bat, I know we're going to have fun with this.

In the interest of time, I'm just going to highlight some of Conway's comments. These are in order, and are in response to different questions Bash asked.

We don't need Ukraine's help to beat Joe Biden, anymore than we needed help to help beat Hillary Clinton.

 Who needs Ukraine's help to beat Joe Biden?

I feel comfortable saying that he never mentioned 2020, quid pro quo, holding up aid, Joe Biden, his political rival.

And but for President Trump, there would be no kind of aid going to Ukraine right now. Under President Obama, he was like the MyPillow guy for Ukraine. He was sending pillows and blankets.

There's no evidence that Donald Trump did anything wrong. 

Why are we about to have public hearings trying to impeach a president rather than voting on the USMCA, reducing drug prices, improving health care for the 28 million...

No no no but you are saying poor Hunter Biden and Joe Biden did nothing wrong. But what did Donald Trump do wrong? 

They have the aid. They're using the aid. 

And they get to the process a bit.

I think - I think if you're going to do, respectfully, what Adam Schiff does, is just come out and cherry-pick the 10 seconds or 10 minutes of 10 hours worth of testimony the - the - we have no access to the full testimony because everything's been done in the dark in secret.

We cannot unscramble the egg, put the toothpaste back in the tube now...

And, back to substance, with this specific question: "Was - was there a time when military aid was held up because the president wanted Ukraine to look into the Bidens?"

I don't know. But I know they've got their aid... Here's what's absolutely, unimpeachably true. Ukraine has that aid. They have more aid than they had under the previous administration.

They are using the aid. The Ukrainian president said he had no idea aid was being held up. He felt no such pressure.  

On and on and on it went, almost like an "I know you are, but what am I?"  Conway herself frequently cherry-picked parts of what has been released that is allegedly helpful to the president, such as the Sondland text that there was no quid pro quo, not mentioning testimony that Trump dictated that message to him and told him to send it.

And, she said

So we have to...make sure people get the full picture. And we've all been deprived. CNN, the White House, we've all been deprived and denied... 

Sh said that public hearings are "too late" and added

What I'm telling you is, Ukraine has the aid. And if we're going to impeach a president over ...different people's - quote - "interpretations" who the last time I checked weren't elected to be the president of the United States and the commander in chief...

Nobody ever thought we'd release the transcript. Ladies and gentlemen, you can all see it. Go read it. Everybody has access to it. What we don't have access to, Dana, is what happened over the last five or six (weeks) (in)...secret.

...Because nothing in this conversation so far resonates to the country, especially in the 17 swing states, that would lead to a high crime or misdemeanor.  

Why don't they admit what this is all about? Stop pretending this is about Ukrainian aid, this is about red hats, red ties and rednecks.

I'm going to stop there, even though there was more, much more. 

Sunday School 11/3/19

I stuck my head into a couple of classrooms today - Mayor Pete Buttigieg on ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos, and Andrew Yang, who talked with Chuck Todd on NBC's Meet the Press. We'll take them in that order.

George started by asking about it being a two-way race between him and Senator Elizabeth Warren, as Buttigieg suggests it might be becoming. He said it's not that, yet, but he sees a lot of energy around his campaign, on the ground and in polling. That polling shows him rising to fourth, with support for Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders staying relatively flat. In general, George wondered what separates him from Warren.

I guess the biggest difference is I think we can deliver major, meaningful, bold change to move this country forward in a way that galvanizes an American majority instead of polarizing our country further.

He's running not just to beat Trump, Buttigieg said, but to be the president on the first day after Trump is out of office who has to bring the country back together.

...I’m offering a presidency where you can look at the White House and feel your blood pressure go down instead of up. We have got to find a way to come together and deliver bold solutions at the same time.

George noted that Warren seemed to suggest Buttigieg was pushing Republican talking points in opposing her on Medicare for All (M4A).  Mayor Pete said the insurance companies don't like his proposal, and

This my way or the highway idea, that either you're for kicking everybody off their private plans in four years or you're for business as usual, it's just not true... The difference is, the way I would do it, you get to keep your private plan if you want to. I trust you to make that decision.

He also said that M4A might be the end destination, but that Washington shouldn't be ordering people what to do. Under his plan, if people think M4A is right for them, they'll take it, and if it's not, they won't. He says his plan is "the boldest thing we will have done to American healthcare in half a century." And, his plan costs $1.5 trillion over 10 years, instead of $20 trillion or more, which is what Warren's plan will cost.

Asked if he can guarantee he won't raises taxes on the middle class, he said all of his plans are paid for, and he's not proposed any tax increases on the middle class. We can get a lot of money to pay for things from loopholes in the corporate tax system and from the wealthiest Americans, not by looking at the middle class to solve the problems.

He also said that not raising taxes on the middle class requires that he only makes promises he can keep; he also that his policies are either budget neutral or save money. And

...if Democrats don't get into the business of paying attention to the debt, nobody will. And for my generation, that's a real problem, because I think these financial time bombs could very well go off in my lifetime.

George asked about him not making headway with African-American voters.Buttigieg said said his message is about tearing down systemic racism "in all of its forms..."

The plan I have put forward, the Douglass Plan, is as ambitious as the Marshall Plan that rebuilt Europe, but this time right here at home. And it's for the purpose of tearing down systemic racism... We have got to look at all of society, where this might as well be two countries for so many Americans...

His plan covers everything from black entrepreneurship to home ownership to voting rights - the whole gamut. His responsibility, he said, was to go out and communicate the plan so everyone understands where he's coming from. As he has said before, the way to win over any voter is to deserve their vote.

About how his being gay impacts black voters and others, "What can you do about that, if anything?"  He said the biggest thing voters think about when trying to decide who to vote for is

How will my life be different if you're president vs. one of your competitors? That's the question we have got to answer. And when we have the best answer to that question, I think a lot of prejudices and a lot of those other considerations fall away, and it comes down to vision and results.

And, in response to Trump's new 'no more Mr. Nice Guy' ad, Mayor Pete said that the ad put "a tough guy coating on a weak individual" and that he's "ready to go toe-to-toe" with Trump.

Now, moving over to MTP and Andrew Yang, Chuck Todd asked him if he accepted the description a Politico writer gave about him, that  "Of his party's presidential contestants, he's the cheerful doomsayer." Yang described himself as a "hard-eyed realist about what's happening in our economy" and, he said, as we see stores and malls close (because of Amazon),

We have to create a new way forward and rewrite the rules of the 21st century economy to work for us. But that doesn't mean we have to be necessarily very gloomy as we deliver what, to me, is the most important message of our time. And it's the reason why our campaign is growing and growing while other candidates are dropping out.

On candidates who have said that we need to bring jobs back, and Yang basically saying that it's not going to happen, Todd wondered if we're going to have too many people and not enough work over the next several decades. Yang noted we're "in the midst of the greatest economic transformation in our country's history," and then described the benefit of his freedom dividend, saying

putting buying power into our hands will build a trickle up economy and allow us to create hundreds of thousands of jobs here in Iowa and across the country, because that money doesn't disappear. It goes into local businesses and daycare services and car repairs, little league sign ups. So this is the way we actually rejuvenate main street America, by putting the gains of the 21st century economy into our hands, where it can actually support what's happening in our families and communities every day.

Todd wondered if this would be "permanent entitlement of sorts?" Yang reminded him that Alaska has basically been doing this for almost 40 years, with their payments of the petroleum dividend,

And there, it decreases income inequality. It makes children and families stronger. It's wildly popular after almost 40 years. And so there's no reason to think it will not be wildly popular throughout the whole country. They pay for it with oil money in Alaska. But what I'm saying to the American people is that technology is the oil of the 21st century.

Moving to healthcare,Todd askedwhy, "if we haven't fully implemented Obamacare, should we rip it up and start over?" Yang said he was a fan of "themes" of Obamacare, but that "many Americans agree it didn't go far enough..." Todd mentioned the lack of Medicare expansion to all 50 states as an indicator of the incomplete implementation. Yang suggested there was a reason for that, saying

So we need to create a path forward for Americans to have access to care. I would not get rid of private insurance. And to me, the 'pay for' argument is misplaced because we're already spending 18% of GDP, almost four trillion dollars, in large part because the system is not designed to keep us strong and healthy. It's designed to make money for the private insurance companies and the device manufacturers and the drug companies.

Sadly, they didn't talk more about that, but instead moved to impeachment; Todd asked if what Trump did was "such an egregious act that he shouldn't be on the ballot in 2020?" Yang is for impeachment, he said,

But the fact is, when we're talking about Donald Trump, we are not presenting a new way forward and a positive vision for the country that Americans will get excited about. That's the only way we're going to win in 2020. And that's the only way we're going to start actually solving the problems that got him elected. Even when we're talking about impeaching Donald Trump, we're talking about Donald Trump, and we are losing.

Todd came back with the fact that Yang talks about Trump in his rallies, trying to appeal to former Trump supporters, it seems. Yang challenged that a bit.

Well, if you listen to my rally speech, Chuck, the vast majority of it is just about the challenges that Americans are experiencing every single day. These challenges preceded Donald Trump. They will still be with us after Donald Trump is out of office.

He said that if we don't solve the problems,

then we're just going to be trapped in this endless food fight. And the American people deserve much, much better.

Pivoting again, Todd moved to criticism of Yang for using Asian-American stereotypes to describe himself; the criticism is coming from other Asian-Americans.

I am very proud of my heritage and I'm very proud of being the first Asian American man to run for president as a Democrat. And I think Americans are smart enough and savvy enough to know a joke when they hear it. I think that dragging some of these myths into the light actually makes them less powerful and helps dispel them.

Continuing to stay away from anything having to do with Yang's policies, Todd asked about "some white supremacist started saying nice things about your candidacy" and wondered if Yang was bothered by this group being attracted to his candidacy.

Well, I've completely disavowed any sort of support from anyone who has those kinds of ideas. I mean, I'm the son of immigrants myself. But to me, we have to solve the real problems of this time. And attacking each other for poor word choice or things that are of marginal importance to the American people, unfortunately, takes our focus away from the real problems on the ground that got Donald Trump elected.

And here's how Todd closed the interview:

Andrew Yang, entrepreneur. Again, you have taken this Democratic primary and made a lot of people take you a lot more seriously than they had planned to...

He might as well have added

But dammit, I'm not one of them And we're not going to talk about things that you think are important, or your policies or anything, we're going to focus on the BS stuff that, as you point out, doesn't really matter all that much to anyone." 

Honestly, I wish he had said that - at least it would show he's aware of how badly he treats the candidates.

As usual, there was too much going on today for one recap. Keep an eye out for an Extra Credit post covering what some of the Rs were talking about.

See you around campus.

In Case You Missed It (v9)

Here's a recap of this week's posts, in case you were too busy to read 'em when they came out.

Our Sunday School classroom visit brought us another chat with Minnesota's Sen. Amy Klobuchar, who's running to be the Democratic presidential nominee. She spoke with Margaret Brennan on Face the Nation. One of the topics? Whether or not the whistleblower should talk with the impeachment investigators. She could go either way on that, but noted

That Ambassador Taylor testimony was devastating. It showed that this was not just one phone call, that this had been a plan for a long time, for the president to put the interests of America behind his own personal interests to get dirt on an opponent. It's a pattern. He does it for his business. He does it for his partisan interests. He does it every single day.

You will deserve Extra Credit for this one.  Because the president delivered some 8,000 words on the raid that led to the suicide of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, he got himself his own post. It would have been impossible for me to have commented on the the entire thing; it was hard enough to pull together this loose conglomeration of his truly bizarre comments, like this one about the Kurds.

They’re going to have to make their own decision. The Kurds have worked along incredibly with us, but in all fairness, it was much easier dealing with the Kurds after they went through three days of fighting, because that was a brutal three days... 

That's right:  the American president just bald-faced mocked the Kurds. You literally can't make this stuff up, nor can you make up the rest of his comments.

Our first Update of the week was a look at the outside income limits on New York's legislators, which have been quashed by the courts. Good government groups are looking for the Leg and the governor to try again in January. They reminded Albany leaders of  "too many instances of corruptions and conflicts of interest" stemming from legislators seeking personal gain related to their other jobs or jobs held by family members.

This is why the Commission concluded that restricting outside income “will eliminate both the perception of and any actual conflicts of interest” and “eliminates the possibility for the public to question whether the citizens of this State are being properly served.” 

Wondering on Wednesday took a look at issues that the NRA is facing, with excerpts from documents in a lawsuit the group is fighting with its former ad agency, and what that might mean for efforts to improve gun safety laws.

...with the messy lawsuits, and if things in this August Mother Jones article are still true, and we continue to see polling showing  the majority of Americans  - including Republicans - favor universal background checks, red flag laws, and more, I'm wondering how long politicians will continue to fear the NRA at election time, and if they stop being afraid, will we be able to get these very popular measures passed and signed into law?

Thursday's update was our weekly feature on the Democratic presidential candidates and their emails. Here's just a small part of a thing I made up, using (bolded) subject lines from one candidate's emails. 

I'm so vulnerably asking, I really am vulnerably asking.  It can't end like this. I don't say this lightly, but we could be on the verge of a TRAGIC mistake!!! This could be the end. It might be time to pack up. go home. it's dire.

Surprisingly, the candidate that sent me those emails is NOT the one who just dropped out of the race.

In Friday's Poll Watch, I took a look at new data from a Washington Post/ABC News poll, showing (among other things) that

49% of us (44% strongly) believe Trump should be impeached and removed from office, while 47% (37% strongly) think he shouldn't. This is reflective of results from an October WaPo/Schar School poll, where the same percentage believed he should be impeached and removed. For comparison, only 33% thought Bill Clinton should suffer the same fate. 

And, earlier today, we had a Quick Take on the candidate that did drop out of the Democratic race -- Beto O'Rourke.

He had issues getting traction in the 'moderate' lane of the race, running along with Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar in that space. Biden came in with an advantage there, and both Mayor Pete and Klobuchar had done much better in the debates, significantly overshadowing O'Rourke (and in some respects, overshadowing Biden as well). And it seems, his shift to the left may hurt him going forward.

Dive in -- comment freely -- and come back for more next week!

Quick Takes (v45): Beto Drops Out

Quick Takes

I confess, I was not surprised to hear that a candidate had dropped out of the Democratic presidential race - honestly, I though the first to go would be Julian Castro, based on the escalating level of desperation week over week in his emails to supporters. So I was a little surprised to hear it was the other Texan, Beto O'Rourke, who dropped out yesterday.

He struggled to maintain momentum after he entered the race, he struggled in the polls, he struggled in fundraising, and he struggled to maintain excitement even after moving far to the left on guns. His focus on that issue, including a proposal for a mandatory buyback of assault-style guns, which are now referred to as 'weapons of war,' ignited almost equal passion from the left - some folks like it, while other candidates suggested that was a sure way to lose the election - and the right, where it was suggested that was a sure way for them to win the election.

He had issues getting traction in the 'moderate' lane of the race, running along with Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar in that space. Biden came in with an advantage there, and both Mayor Pete and Klobuchar had done much better in the debates, significantly overshadowing O'Rourke (and in some respects, overshadowing Biden as well). And it seems, his shift to the left may hurt him going forward.

For a young politician who might be mentioned as a possible candidate in future elections, his leftward turn may have also damaged his ability to run for statewide office in Texas again, as it’s still a Republican-leaning state. 

Here are some excerpts from O'Rourke's email to supporters.

Our campaign has been about seeing clearly, speaking honestly and acting decisively in the best interests of America.

Though it is difficult to accept, it is clear to me now that this campaign does not have the means to move forward successfully. My service to the country will not be as a candidate or as the nominee. Acknowledging this now is in the best interests of those in the campaign; it is in the best interests of this party as we seek to unify around a nominee; and it is in the best interests of the country. 

I decided to run for President because I believed that I could help bring a divided country together in common cause to confront the greatest set of challenges we’ve ever faced. I also knew that the most fundamental of them is fear — the fear that Donald Trump wants us to feel about one another; the very real fear that too many in this country live under; and the fear we sometimes feel when it comes to doing the right thing, especially when it runs counter to what is politically convenient or popular.

I knew, and I still know, that we can reject and overcome these fears and choose to instead be defined by our ambitions and our ability to achieve them.

He talked about his policies on climate change, gun safety, "institutional, systemic racism," being among the first to reject PAC, corporate, and special interest money and help from lobbyists. And,

called out Donald Trump for his white supremacy and the violence that he’s encouraged against communities that don’t look like, pray like or love like the majority in this country...

He also highlighted voting rights and immigration in his email, referring to "the most ambitious" voter registration/voting rights plan, and of "rewriting this country's immigration laws in our own image," something that didn't come across - at all - in his outreach to potential voters like me. And, he said,

And at this moment of truth for our country, we laid bare the cost and consequence of Donald Trump: the rise in hate crimes, the terror attack in El Paso, the perversion of the Constitution, the diminished standing of the United States around the world. But we also made clear the common responsibility to confront him, to hold him accountable and ensure that he does not serve another term in office. Committing ourselves to this task not as Democrats or Republicans, but as Americans first before we are anything else. 

And he encouraged everyone to stay in the game and not walk away. 

Though today we are suspending this campaign, let us each continue our commitment to the country in whatever capacity we can. 

Let us continue to fearlessly champion the issues and causes that brought us together... 

We will work to ensure that the Democratic nominee is successful in defeating Donald Trump in 2020. I can tell you firsthand from having the chance to know the candidates, we will be well served by any one of them, and I’m going to be proud to support whoever that nominee is. 

And proud to call them President in January 2021, because they will win.

We must support them in the race against Donald Trump and support them in their administration afterwards, do all that we can to help them heal a wounded country and bring us together in meeting the greatest set of challenges we have ever known.

I’m confident I will see you down the road, and I look forward to that day. 

Thank you for making this campaign possible, and for continuing to believe that we can turn this moment of great peril into a moment of great promise for America and the world. 

With you always, and forever grateful.

Beto

Who will be next? And how long will it take? We're likely to see additional movement once the October fundraising reports come out.

Poll Watch: Trump, Congress, Impeachment, and Terrorist Takedowns

A new Washington Post-ABC News poll is out, and contrary to what the Tweeter in Chief believes, things are not all sunshine and lollipops out here in America.

First, the small print: the survey was taken 10/27 - 10/30, (before the vote to move forward with a formal impeachment inquiry) and included a random sample of 1003 adults, 65% of whom were reached by cell phone, with the remaining 35% answering landline calls. The error margin is +/- 3.5%.

Here are a few highlights:

• Trump's approval rating remains underwater at -20, (38% approve, 58% disapprove);
• By +26, (54% to 28%) people think his policies make us less respected around the world; adding insult to injury on that question, President Obama was at +6;
• And, by +36 (66% to 30%), people think he acts in an unpresidential way, and 58% of the 'unpresidential' respondents believe he acts in a 'way that is damaging' to the presidency as a whole.
• Like her predecessors Newt Gingrich (-20) and Paul Ryan (-13), Nancy Pelosi (-10) is underwater on her approval rating. In her previous stint as Speaker in 2007 (+18) she joined John Boehner (+13) as House Speakers above water on this.

We're so lucky, or something.

What else do we Americans think? Let's take a look.

• 49% of us (44% strongly) believe Trump should be impeached and removed from office, while 47% (37% strongly) think he shouldn't. This is reflective of results from an October WaPo/Schar School poll, where the same percentage believed he should be impeached and removed. For comparison, only 33% thought Bill Clinton should suffer the same fate. 

• A majority of us disapprove of both how the House and the president have handled the impeachment issue so far, but Trump is the big loser here, underwater by -24 compared to the House, at -7.

• A majority - 65% - think that hearings should be held in public; the survey misrepresents what's been happening so far, which have been depositions which historically have been held in private. 

• We're pretty well set in what we think of the motivations of Democrats and Republicans. 51% believe the former are  mainly interested in hurting the president, while 55% think the latter are mainly interested in helping him. We don't think the Ds are all that interested in upholding the Constitution (43%) but that's better than the Rs, at 36%. 

• And, no matter what people think about impeachment, by a net +20 (55% to 35%), we believe he did something wrong, with 47% thinking what he did was seriously wrong.

On the other hot topic of the day, the raid on Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, we get to review our opinions on that compared to similar questions asked about President Obama's raid on Osama bin Laden.

The first question was on how much credit the president deserves for "the killing of" al-Baghdadi - even though we know, of course, that he committed suicide. And no, I don't think that's splitting hairs, I think it's truthful and honest. Similarly, I don't think it's splitting hairs to differentiate between depositions and hearings, or between a transcript and a summary memorandum... but I digress.

Here are the survey results for both presidents on the 'credit' question.

Trump's raid was perceived as making us safer than Obama's (26% to 21%)  while Obama's raid was seen to make us a bit more at risk (19% to Trump's 16%).  But overall, in both cases, more than half of us thought it would not make much difference (54% for Trump, 58% for Obama). We'll have to wait and see what happens to know for sure.