From the GREAT STATE OF MAINE…
Presidents' Day Quiz
Normally our annual quiz is a hodgepodge of POTUS trivia. But in light of recent events, this year’s is a little more, let’s say, focused. Good luck.
1. “There’s no reason why on the street today a citizen should be carrying loaded weapons” was said by which president?
A) Wilson B) Hoover C) Reagan
2. Which president resigned as a Life Member of the NRA after Wayne LaPierre shot his big mouth off by calling federal law-enforcement agents “jack-booted thugs”?
A) Clinton B) Bush Sr. C) Kennedy
3. Who was president when NRA head Karl Frederick said in 1938: “I do not believe in the general promiscuous toting of guns. I think it should be sharply restricted and only under licenses.”
A) Jefferson B) Taft C) FDR
4. Which president wrote: [T]he NRA has been able to mislead many gullible people into believing that our weapons are going to be taken away from us, and that homeowners will be deprived of the right to protect ourselves and our families. There are no real threats to our "right to bear arms," as guaranteed by the US Constitution.
A) Carter B) Ford C) Obama
5. Which president rescinded a previous president’s order that, according to AP, would have kept 75,000 people with mental disorders from being able to purchase a firearm?
A) Bush Jr. B) Trump C) Nixon
6. Which president signed a gun control bill into law, but blamed the gun lobby for watering it down, saying: “The key to effective crime control remains, in my judgment, effective gun control. And those of us who are really concerned about crime just must, somehow, someday, make our voices felt. … We have been through a great deal of anguish these last few months and these last few years, too much anguish to forget so quickly.”
A) Truman B) LBJ C) Clinton
7. Which president called guns “an abomination” and also called for licensing of all hunting rifles and a ban on handguns---but only after he’d left office?
A) Nixon B) Eisenhower C) T. Roosevelt
8. Who called on Congress to restore the ban on military-style assault weapons and enforce a 10-round limit for magazines because the combination of assault weapons and high-capacity clips “has one purpose: to pump out as many bullets as possible, as quickly as possible…using bullets often designed to inflict maximum damage”? (Republicans ignored his call to action.)
A) Clinton B) Carter C) Obama
Answers to the questions are C, B, C, A, B, B, A, C. The answer to getting Republicans to stop sacrificing our kids on the alter of the gun industry, as usual, escapes me.
Cheers and Jeers starts below the fold...
Cheers and Jeers for Monday, February 19, 2018
Note: If nominated, I will run. If elected I will serve. I mean, what the hell? How could I possibly be any worse than what we’ve got now?
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By the Numbers:
11 days!!!
Days 'til the primary election in Illinois’ 3rd district that could boot out DINO Dan Lipinski and replace him with progressive Marie Newman: 39
Days 'til Bockfest Cincinnati: 11
Number of presidents born before the U.S. became a country: 8
Number of presidents who fought in the Civil War, all for the Union: 7
Rank of Barack Obama and Donald Trump among best presidents of the last 65 years (12 total---Eisenhower through Trump), according to a new survey by the Ipsos and the UVA Center for Politics: #3, #10
Number of presidents who worked as a janitor: 2 (Garfield, Lyndon Johnson)
Ticket sales for the opening weekend of Black Panther: $192 million
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Puppy Pic of the Day: “Coming up next on the Watching Paint Dry Channel…”
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CHEERS to Lord Dampnut’s Waterloo. Robert Mueller’s multi-count criminal indictment against a merry band of bad Russian election meddlers instantly insulated him from hearing the words “You’re fired.” At the same time, Trump is acting like the investigation’s over and he’s gotten off scot-free. Well, let’s check in and see how things are looking this morning as he confidently struts across his Teflon Bridge crossing the Russiagate River…
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Coming soon: the thrilling conclusion! (Hint: wear sturdy galoshes.)
CHEERS to The Adventures of…Reverse Fix-It Guy! Whenever Donald Trump finds himself facing a major scandal---like, say, proof that he cheated on his wife with a porn star who is about to talk talk talk talk talk---he presses the red button on his desk not marked “Diet Coke.” In a flash, mild-mannered attorney Michael Cohen slides down his Cohen pole and becomes…Reverse Fix-It Guy! Yes, there’s no problem too big or too small that Reverse Fix-It Guy can’t make even worse…
Cohen, who spent years leading the legal team at the Trump Organization, has in the past described himself as the president’s “fix-it guy.”
“My job is done here. Have a nice day, ma’am.”
---Reverse Fix-It Guy
A lawyer for [Stephanie] Clifford [aka Stormy Daniels] says Cohen violated their nondisclosure agreement and that she’s preparing to tell the story in full. “Everything is off now and Stormy is going to tell her story,” said Gina Rodriguez, an attorney for Clifford.
Clifford’s accusations bring unwanted scrutiny to the Trumps' private life, and could also have legal ramifications. … Republicans are worried that the White House’s stumbling response to that controversy will further erode their standing with women ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.
Join us next week as Michael Cohen deals with a roach problem in the Lincoln Bedroom with a box of TNT on the The Adventures of…Reverse Fix-It Guy!
JEERS to really bad ideas from really good presidents. On February 19, 1942, President Roosevelt signed the order that would lead to the "relocation" (read: forced detention) of Japanese Americans and Japanese nationals living here. How do we know it was a really, really bad decision? Because nutcase Michelle Malkin thinks it was a really, really good decision. Case closed.
JEERS to progress at the speed of tortoise. After a number of scandals involving spousal abuse and other assorted embarrassing instances of White House staffers coming up short on their security clearances (a minimum of 130 so far!), chief-of-staff John Kelly says he’s going to try something totally radical. It’s a new approach that hasn’t been used since, oh, before January 20, 2017, and he’s very excited to try it for the first time. It’s a revolutionary process called vetting. Golly, I hope he doesn’t break a nail.
JEERS to the Apostrolypse. To help solve the mystery of how, exactly, one spells today's holiday, I performed my annual ritual of consulting the blizzard of ads appearing in The Portland (Maine) Press Herald to get some clarity. This year's batch:
Kincaid Factory Outlet: President’s Day
Lee Auto Mall: Presidents Day
Shifman Mattresses: Presidents’ Day
JCPenney: Presidents’ Day (Last year it was President's Day, and the year before that it was Presidents Day)
Sleep Number: Presidents Day
Kohl’s: Presidents’ Day
Bedderrest: Presidents Day
Macy’s: Presidents’ Day
Official Betsy DeVos apostrophe placement.
Mattress Firm: President’s Day
Big Lots: Presidents’ Day
Frank Galos Chevrolet: Presidents’ Day (Last year it was Presidents Day)
The Portland Press Herald’s special Sunday automotive section: Presidents Day
Rowe Ford-Lincoln-Hyundai: President’s Day
LaZBoy: Presidents Day
Hub Furniture: Presidents' Day
Dell: Presidents Day
We trust this clears up any confusion for at least another year.
ZOOM ZOOM to little girls and boys in their internal-combustion toys. The 60th Daytona 500 happened yesterday. The event features professionals (including winner Austin Dillon) expending a lot of fuel to go 'round and 'round in circles but not actually get anywhere, while occasionally bumping into walls, catching fire and watching their wheels fly off, and if innocent bystanders get scraped up, well, that's rugged individualism, so no refunds. They shoulda called it the GOP 2018.
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Ten years ago in C&J: February 19, 2008
CHEERS to hasty departures. After only 49 years of iron-fisted rule, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro is cutting and running. His brother, Raul, will officially get the keys to the presidential 1955 Chevy. Oh, and a word to the tenants of the Happy Havana Retirement Home: if you find yourself playing shuffleboard with a sickly old bearded man in a Spandex track suit...let him win.
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And just one more…
Due to the Presidents' Day holiday, And Just One More has the day off. In its place, please enjoy a brief moment with Calvin Coolidge (right) and a teenage Chuck Grassley in the congressional fitness room:
Feel the burn.
Have a tolerable Monday. Floor's open...What are you cheering and jeering about today?
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Today's Shameless C&J Testimonial:
“I think it’s time for Bill in Portland Maine to just kind of find something else to do. Get a hobby, play golf, learn how to knit.”
---Matt Schlapp
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