Good morning Gnusies! Since it is the day before Thanksgiving I would like to tell you all about what I am thankful for. Of course there is the usual, we are all fine, I have a wonderful husband, children and grandchildren, I am blessed to have a good job, I have my amazing Lucy and Ella dog people, a roof over our heads and enough food to celebrate the holiday. But, I am also thankful for all of you, this group and this site. As we have all discussed here, most of us were pretty distraught in 2016. You already know that story of my experience so I won’t rehash it, the boat we found ourselves on pretty much has the same story and the same reasons we found ourselves in “the good place”. I am thankful to Goodie for forging through the profound feeling of doom and starting this group. I am thankful I stumbled upon it and found a place to smile again. This group has grown to include so many amazing writers and participants over that time and I am thankful for that. I am also thankful for the other groups I discovered through the comments here, The Village and PWPeeps are among my fav’s. Lifesavers they are. So enjoy however you celebrate tomorrow and know I am thankful for all of you.
Even though it is the day before Thanksgiving, the giving does not stop for the mango maniac in the Oval Office, oh I white lied there, apparently he does not come downstairs anymore.
And now on with the show, here comes Jerry…..
The Democratic chair of the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday issued a direct challenge to President Donald Trump: put up or shut up.
In a letter (pdf) addressed to Trump, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) told the president that he and his legal team are welcome to participate in public impeachment hearings in the Judiciary Committee—which will begin on Wednesday, December 4. Nadler informed Trump that the preident has until 6pm Sunday December 1 to decide whether or not to take part in the hearings.
"The President has a choice to make," Nadler said in a statement, "he can take this opportunity to be represented in the impeachment hearings, or he can stop complaining about the process."
If you have some time, a little background on Rep. Nadler:
The Return of Jerry Nadler
A sound bite:
For two months, Representative Jerry Nadler has been the Maytag repairman of the House impeachment inquiry: idled and isolated as his colleague Adam Schiff has presided over a parade of witnesses in public and private hearings before the Intelligence Committee.
If Schiff is a cool television presence, a slim 59-year-old triathlete who speaks in modulated, extemporaneous sound bites, Nadler, 72, is a hotter, blunter personality. His default mode is a wised-up Big Apple belligerence, and he speaks in a nasal New York accent that summons memories of George Costanza. He is a classic legislative debater: Once, while arguing with a conservative Democratic colleague in the New York State Assembly about whether Jewish religious tradition condones the death penalty, he rattled off memorized passages from the Talmud to defend his liberal viewpoint. His biography page on the Judiciary Committee’s website features glowing testimonials from the likes of former President Bill Clinton; Representative John Lewis of Georgia, the civil-rights icon; and the former head of NARAL Pro-Choice America Kate Michelman.
You really should not mess with a New Yawker. I am one so I can say it.
There has been a lot of, OMG there is waning support for impeachment, Dem’s are digging their own graves, blah, blah, horse shart. Personally, I do not care about the polls, it is the right thing to do, consequences be damned. Yet here is this:
New polls show a slight increase in support for impeachment
The first public hearings in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump seem to have done little to sway opinion about whether the president ought to be impeached, according to the findings of two new polls.
Public opinion around impeachment has largely stabilized over the last month, but national polls by Morning Consult/Politico and SSRS/CNN show that a slight dip in support for impeachment that registered in surveys taken ahead of the hearings has been reversed. Support is once again consistent with the levels seen shortly after the announcement of the impeachment inquiry — pollsters in both new surveys found that 50 percent of respondents support both impeaching Trump and removing him from office.
The Morning Consult results represent a slight increase in impeachment support from its November 15-17 poll, which saw 47 percent of voters saying they thought Trump ought to be impeached and removed. It is worth noting, however, that the increase falls within the poll’s margin of error of +/- 2 percentage points.
The big take is women abhor him, I mean really they want his orange arse out of the goll dang freaking White House, now would be nice.
Let us move on to what else and who else is going down with this maladministration and how our Dem’s are still moving the needle.
‘Giuliani better be prepared to take the fall’: Ex-prosecutor breaks down Trump throwing Rudy under the bus
President Donald Trump on Tuesday fingered Rudy Giuliani — his own attorney — as the fall guy for his Ukraine scandal.
MSNBC anchor Ari Melber interviewed former federal prosecutor Glenn Kischner shortly after the breaking news,” Kirschner said.
“So I think the message that is being sent is that Rudy Giuliani better be prepared to take the fall,” Kirschner said.
If you click the link you can watch the videos, Doofus the wanna be dictator really make the bus runeth over the ghoul.
But Rudy has more problems than the “King”
The latest news about SDNY’s investigation into Rudy Giuliani, explained
The investigation into Rudy Giuliani and his associates by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) is heating up, according to a set of new reports — and new details suggest prosecutors are looking into matters near the heart of the Ukraine scandal.
The new reports cite subpoenas sent out to various associates of President Trump’s personal attorney by SDNY. The subpoenas reveal that prosecutors are looking into Giuliani’s business and finances, that they’re exploring his contacts with former top Ukrainian officials, and that they’re investigating a host of potential crimes.
I know a lot of this has been hashed out but it this is a good roundup of the scary eyed mans many crimes, okay alleged crimes...haha.
Oversight panel sues William Barr, Wilbur Ross over 2020 census documents
The House Oversight and Reform Committee filed a lawsuit Tuesday against Attorney General William Barr and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to enforce the panel’s subpoenas seeking information about the Trump administration’s failed efforts to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census.
“I am filing this enforcement action today because the Trump Administration’s brazen obstruction of Congress must not stand,” said Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), the chairwoman of the Oversight Committee. “President Trump and his aides are not above the law.”
Some good developments for our side:
Judge halts Trump's insurance mandate for immigrants
U.S. District Court Judge Michael Simon issued an order on Tuesday to stop the State Department from enforcing a policy that officials unveiled in late October under a mandate from President Donald Trump, and which could drastically curtail the ability of people to legally migrate to the United States.
Simon noted that the requirement that immigrants buy unsubsidized insurance — meaning they couldn't get financial assistance through Obamacare — barred poor people from entering the country, which he said clearly infringed on the law
"The proclamation is anticipated to affect approximately 60 percent of all immigrant visa applicants," the judge wrote. "The president offers no national security or foreign relations justification for this sweeping change in immigration law."
Simon agreed with plaintiffs, including U.S. citizens and their overseas family members as well as the non-profit Latino Network, that the rule violated the Constitution's separation of powers. His decision applies nationwide.
Will it be appealed? 3,2,1.
Senate Democrats release robust federal privacy bill to regulate tech company business practices
Senate Democrats introduced sweeping data privacy protections Tuesday in an effort led by Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) to federally regulate tech company business practices.
The bill would establish new privacy rights for all Americans while still allowing states to pass their own regulations. It’s an ambitious proposal likely to face an uphill battle with Republican opposition, a Congress distracted by the impeachment inquiry, and an upcoming election year.
Still, the bill represents a significant step forward in the effort to enact federal privacy protections and reveals the position Democrats will take as they begin negotiations. Lawmakers have been in touch-and-go discussions on federal privacy legislation for nearly two years in the wake of Facebook’s Cambridge Analytica scandal and a series of smaller incidents that exposed the power Big Tech wields.
“We need to create a culture in which everybody within these organizations understands that consumers deserve to have privacy rights, they need to be protected from harmful and deceptive practices and there will be a consequence if they break those laws,” Cantwell said Tuesday in an interview with GeekWire.
The things we can accomplish when we GOTV and win in 2020 will be amazing!
All right let us have a few sharts and giggles before we move on:
I get it, there does have to be due diligence because if this type of monitoring is stopped OUR President in 2021 could be at risk, but come on ya’ll.
Lockdowns at the White House and Capitol on Tuesday over a potential airspace violation may have been because of a flock of birds, officials say.
A spokesperson for the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) told NBC News that the object causing the lockdown could have been "a flock of birds or a weather balloon."
Bahahaha! Sorry.
DNC Leader Rips Tucker Carlson During Fox Interview: ‘Why The Hell Does He Still Have A Job Here?’
During an appearance on Fox News, Democratic National Committee Vice Chair Michael Blake torched the network on Tuesday for keeping Tucker Carlson on the air despite his racist comments, which include falsely claiming that white supremacy is a “hoax.”
Blake let loose when Fox News’ “America’s Newsroom” host Bill Hemmer asked for his opinion on Carlson’s prediction that Michelle Obama will join the 2020 presidential race.
“Well, she’s not running, but the core question is: Why the hell does Tucker Carlson still have a job here in the first place?” the DNC vice chair asked. “The reality is this is someone who said white supremacy is a hoax, and why does Fox allow him to still be here in the first place?”
Bahahaha! Sorry again.
‘Please help this moron’: Trump brutally mocked as his ‘addled brain’ forgets the meaning of centennial
When President Donald Trump signed the bill authorizing issue of the women’s suffrage centennial coin, he registered his surprise that the centennial celebration wasn’t done “a long time ago,” and took credit for being the president who thought to do it
Good gracious, he is an idiot.
I may be going out on a ledge here, not sure why I feel somewhat guilty about posting this over the dumpster fires same experience. Perhaps because I am a woman too? But really she is no better that her “husband”:
Melania Trump loudly booed at opioid awareness youth summit
Melania Trump was loudly booed on Tuesday, as she addressed an event in Baltimore as part of White House attempts to fight America’s opioid abuse epidemic.
On Tuesday, the first lady attended the B’More Youth Summit on Opioid Awareness at University of Maryland Baltimore College.
The host seemed to issue a precautionary appeal for civility, telling the audience they were “young people but also ladies and gentlemen”.
Nonetheless, a mixture of cheers and boos greeted Trump as she walked onstage. Boos could also be heard as she began to speak, though they quietened down.
In reality the article I read earlier and now cannot find, she was super booed!
Take heart the mighty GNR peeps, random good news links for your pleasure!
Maryland: three men exonerated after serving 36 years for murder of teenager
Meet the man who fills his home with senior and special needs pets
Inside the restaurant serving up second chances for ex-prisoners
'Lobsters and octopuses are back': the Kenyan women leading a reef revival
Prisons with art programs release people back into the world who are more stable, and far less likely to return. Why don’t the programs exist everywhere?
Contract for the Web: Internet Inventor Tim Berners-Lee Unveils Global Plan to Battle 'Digital Dystopia'
This one is a little...weird?
Plan to save an endangered frog in Puerto Rico involves barking at it to make it pee
Quick spoiler alert for anyone watching Watchmen and are not caught up. But this is hysterical.
It sure seems like Watchmen turned Donald Trump’s father into one of its racist villains
Watchmen’s sixth episode, “This Extraordinary Being,” unleashed a barrage of twists and turns that turned the episode and the world of Watchmen inside out. But amid the hypno-gun hanging of Judd Crawford, the reveal of Hooded Justice’s secret identity, and Angela Abar experiencing her grandfather Will’s memories, there might have been one blistering reference subtly woven into the episode: a possible nod to Fred Trump, the father of sitting president Donald Trump.
Last night I posted a dairy about a response to my many inquiry’s to my Rep. Elise Stefanik. She rarely answers but hoo boy did she go full on tRump in one of her rare responses to me. I understand it was a standard response to all her constituents concerned about her behavior at the hearings and I also understand it is a canned response from other congresscritters whose constituents have “asked” for explanations of their loyalty to the idiot in chief. Number one she did not answer most of my questions but here is the letter. I wish it to be spread far and wide.
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November 25, 2019
Dear Ms. Johnson,
Thank you for contacting me regarding the impeachment proceedings against President Donald Trump. It is an honor to serve the people of New York’s 21st Congressional District. I appreciate your thoughts on this matter.
As you may know, Article I, Section 2 of the Constitution grants the House of Representatives the sole power to impeach high office holders including Supreme Court Justices and the President. This process begins in the House of Representatives, which traditionally votes on a resolution to begin impeachment proceedings. These resolutions have historically been bipartisan and have allowed both the majority and minority party to call witnesses and have access to materials. After holding fact finding hearings, the committee of jurisdiction, historically the Judiciary Committee, can draft articles of impeachment which are then sent to the full House of Representatives for a vote. The Senate must then hold a trial and vote, requiring a two-thirds supermajority in order to convict and remove the official from office. Since the founding of the United States, only one Supreme Court Justice and two Presidents have been impeached and none were convicted in the Senate.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has broken with these historical precedents in favor of a partisan process that is simply aimed at overturning the results of the 2016 election. House Resolution 660, introduced by Congressman James McGovern, drew bipartisan opposition when it passed the House of Representatives on October 31, 2019. I voted no on Pelosi’s partisan impeachment resolution because it further empowers Chairman Adam Schiff and severely limits members of Congress’ ability to participate and ask questions of the witnesses. Further, Chairman Schiff has repeatedly blocked member’s legitimate points of inquiry as well as numerous additional fact witnesses. Adam Schiff continues to abuse his position of power in these unprecedented and unfair impeachment hearings and depositions. The American people deserve transparency, yet from the beginning, Adam Schiff has denied them that.
As a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, I have read the underlying evidence and questioned the witnesses that House Democrats have brought before the committee. I do not believe they have demonstrated impeachable offences and for that reason, I am against the impeachment of President Trump. The facts of the matter have been in the public domain since President Trump released the contents of his phone call with President Zelensky. We know that President Trump met with President Zelensky and that the Ukrainian government received the lethal aid that they need to counter Russian aggression without any conditions. We also know that the corruption concerns raised by President Trump had also been raised by the Obama Administration years prior. Fighting corruption with our allies is very much in the national interest and should be pursued in a bipartisan fashion. Please be assured that I will continue working with my colleagues to ensure that important constitutional processes are carried out in accordance with the principles of our nation’s founding documents.
Thank you again for sharing your views and opinions with me. I am committed to serving you to the best of my abilities. I appreciate you taking the time to contact my office and I welcome the opportunity to speak with you about any issues impacting our district.
As part of my commitment to transparency, I post my votes on my Facebook page which you can find here. I also encourage you to subscribe to my weekly e-newsletter to keep up to date on my efforts representing New York’s 21st District here.
Please feel free to contact any of my offices in the future if you seek assistance. Thank you for reaching out to me.
It is a privilege to serve you and your family.
Sincerely,
Elise M. Stefanik
Member of Congress
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It is a privilege to serve me and my family...grrrr. Elect Tedra 2020!!!!!!
As always from Indivisible:
Your 5 weekly to-dos
- Sign up to make some calls connecting voters to senators to demand a complete and fair impeachment trial. We’ve said this already, but we’re halfway to our goal of calling one million constituents of the 13 senators who really need to hear from them (senators who are vulnerable because they’re up for reelection next year and folks who are retiring and worrying a lot about their legacies). We're asking you to call voters in those states and ask them to turn up the pressure on their elected officials. It’s a simple four-part process:
- You call a progressive voter in a key state with one of these 13 Republicans. These folks are your friends -- they attended the Women’s March and/or fight for progressive causes.
- You explain how they have power now. You’ll remind them why the continued fight for impeachment is so important -- and why they have particular power in this moment.
- You ask them to use their power. Then, you’ll ask them to call their senator and make their voices heard on why we’re demanding courage in this moment.
- You push a button and connect them to their senator’s office. The call tool will allow you to automatically patch them through to the senator’s DC office.
- Register or find a Trump is Not Above the Law Impeachment Eve event now. The night before the House of Representatives takes an historic vote to impeach Trump, as representatives finalize their positions and senators look on, we'll head to every congressional office and public square to declare that Nobody Is Above the Law. There are more than 315 events on the map as of now with more being added every day. Take a look to find (or host) one near you.
- Tell the House to lower prescription drug prices by improving H.R. 3. Sky-high prescription drug prices are an urgent crisis for millions of Americans, and it’s time for Congress to protect people from Big Pharma’s greed. H.R. 3, which will likely get a vote in the House in mid-December, is a good start, but it can still be expanded to make sure it benefits as many people as possible. Call your Member of Congress and tell them to improve H.R. 3 using our call script above!
- Register for the National Activist Call on Dec 5 at 8 PM ET. We're going to cover the latest updates on the impeachment inquiry in the House, share the latest updates on our presidential engagement process, and recap the work we did in 2019!
- Watch (or re-watch) our candidate interviews. Last week and today, Leah and Ezra launched a series of live interviews with the Democratic presidential candidates centered around the Indivisible movement as we continue our work to defeat Trump. If you missed them, head to our YouTube page to catch up! So far, we’ve talked to Senator Booker, Senator Warren, Tom Steyer, Mayor Buttigieg and Secretary Castro, and we have more invitations out.
GOTV!
I am not big into the AMA’s and I did hear Green Day was going to perform but I did not know it would turn to this, 25 years since they released Dookie! I had the amazing experience of seeing them in Albany and I was so close to the stage.
Oh Basket Case...complete performance at this link:
Watch Green Day perform live at the AMA's
I hope you do not go through this:
I wish all of you the warmest wishes for Thanksgiving. Love to all of you and your family and friends.
Now off to prepare for the family gathering.
Peace!