Welcome 🌻 to Friday’s Roundup of Good News!
Happy groundhog day! Of course, today is February 2, so today is Groundhog Day officially (you can watch Phil here).
But it can feel like that for other reasons.
For example, it appears that, barring a major health event, 2024 will feature the same two candidates as we had in 2020. And, despite not having been president during the last 3+ years, we hear about the former defeated guy every damned day.
So we may feel as if we’re stuck in a Bill Murray movie. We may be tired of this battle — this is my 338th GNR! — but this is the battle we are in. This is our fight. We don’t always get to choose our battles.
And it is important, not just for our country, but for the entire world. Most people know I’m an expat. Well, people come up to me and beg me to make sure we re-elect Biden and that we stop tRump and Putin.
And, even if we feel stuck doing the same old thing, we need to realize we have made real progress. President Biden has done a tremendous job. Our economy is the envy of the world. The US is respected again. We got people vaccinated. We are working on the climate problem. Life expectancy is creeping back up, unemployment is down, income inequality is down, too.
We beat tRump and his minions before. We can do it again. We will do it again. We even already know how to do it! So let’s do it.
Come on in and see what the good guys are doing, and have a couple laughs at those who spent too much time FA and are now FO.
Regular Scheduled Programming
No one here is naïve; we are aware of the many who are fighting to destroy our country. Some of us expected it: the cheating, the lying, the chaos, and yes, even the attempts to cling to power despite the clear will of the people. But we are here to read the efforts and the positive results of those (including us and our fellow gnus) who are working so hard to save our country from those very bad people. We are furious with them for what they are doing and we are letting them know. Remember:
💙 There are more of us than there are of them.
💛 They are terrified when we organize. THERE IS LOTS OF EVIDENCE THAT THEY ARE TERRIFIED!
💔 They want us to be demoralized. The best way to keep up your spirits is to fight. So, take the time to recharge your batteries, but find ways to contribute to the well-being of our country and our world.
🗽 Biden as President! 🗽
Biden, Harris and their administration have been hard at work. Here are the last week’s posts at the White House briefing room.
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Political Event with United Auto Workers Members | Warren, MI
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Readout from the White House and USDA’s Discussion on Advancing Equity and Opportunity in Agriculture
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Press Gaggle by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby En Route Detroit, MI
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: President Biden Announces Key Nominees
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Background Press Call On Upcoming Measures to Address Actions That Undermine Peace, Security, and Stability in the West Bank
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden On Confirming 175 Federal Judges
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at the National Prayer Breakfast
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Readout of President Biden’s Call with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Statement from National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on Action to Promote Peace, Security, and Stability in the West Bank
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Message to the Congress on Imposing Certain Sanctions on Persons Undermining Peace, Security, and Stability in the West Bank
- Thursday, February 1, 2024: Executive Order on Imposing Certain Sanctions on Persons Undermining Peace, Security, and Stability in the West Bank
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with European Commission Executive Vice Presidents Margrethe Vestager and Valdis Dombrovskis
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Statement from National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on John Podesta
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Secretary of State for Defence Grant Shapps of the United Kingdom
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: FACT SHEET: One Year After Train Derailment, Biden-Harris Administration Continues to Support People in East Palestine, Ohio and Nearby Communities and Hold Norfolk Southern Accountable
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Readout of Vice President Harris’s Meeting with Prime Minister Rowley of Trinidad and Tobago
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Former U.S. Senator Jean Carnahan
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: A Proclamation on American Heart Month, 2024
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: A Proclamation on National Black History Month, 2024
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: A Proclamation on National Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month, 2024
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves New York Disaster Declaration
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Declaración del Presidente Joe Biden ante el Fallecimiento de Chita Rivera
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024:Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Chita Rivera
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Readout of U.S.-EU Trade and Technology Council Fifth Ministerial Meeting
- Wednesday, January 31, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Campaign Reception | Miami, FL
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Remarks and Q&A by National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan on the Future of U.S.-China Relations
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves West Virginia Disaster Declaration
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Approves Maine Disaster Declaration
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by First Lady Jill Biden at a White House Film Screening of No Ordinary Campaign
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Readout of the Quad STEM Fellows Event at the White House
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: October 2023 Visitor Logs Records Posted
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Campaign Reception | Jupiter, FL
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Press Gaggle by Principal Deputy Press Secretary Olivia Dalton and NSC Coordinator John Kirby En Route West Palm Beach, FL
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Readout of the U.S.-PRC Bilateral Counternarcotics Working Group Inaugural Meeting
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani of Qatar
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Remarks by President Biden Before Marine One Departure
- Tuesday, January 30, 2024: Remarks by Vice President Harris at a Campaign Reception | Los Gatos, CA
- Monday, January 29, 2024: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby
- Monday, January 29, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Sullivan’s Meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg
- Monday, January 29, 2024: FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Announces Innovation Engines Awards, Catalyzing More Than $530 Million to Boost Economic Growth and Innovation in Communities Across America
- Monday, January 29, 2024: Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Announces Key AI Actions Following President Biden’s Landmark Executive Order
- Monday, January 29, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on the 15th Anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
- Monday, January 29, 2024: FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Announces New Actions to Advance Pay Equity on the 15th Anniversary of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act
- Sunday, January 28, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Political Event | West Columbia, SC
- Sunday, January 28, 2024: Statement from NSC Spokesperson Adrienne Watson on the U.S.-PRC Counternarcotics Working Group
- Sunday, January 28, 2024: Background Press Call on the Counternarcotics Working Group Trip to Beijing
- Sunday, January 28, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Political Event | Columbia, SC
- Sunday, January 28, 2024: Remarks by President Biden at a Political Event at South Carolina’s First in the Nation Dinner | Columbia, SC
- Sunday, January 28, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on Attack on U.S. Service Members in Northeastern Jordan Near the Syria Border
- Saturday, January 27, 2024: Remarks by Vice President Harris on Uplifting Small Businesses and Supporting Entrepreneurship | Las Vegas, NV
- Saturday, January 27, 2024: WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: Leaders Praise Biden-Harris Administration Pause on Pending Decisions of Liquefied Natural Gas Exports
- Saturday, January 27, 2024: Background Press Call on APNSA Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi of the People’s Republic of China
- Saturday, January 27, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meeting with Chinese Communist Party Politburo Member, Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi
- Saturday, January 27, 2024: Statement from Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on the Visit of Chancellor Scholz of Germany to the White House
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Readout of President Biden’s Call with President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi of Egypt
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Readout of President Biden’s Call with Amir Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani of Qatar
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, NSC Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby, and National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden On the Bipartisan Senate Border Security Negotiations
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Bills Signed: S. 3222, S. 3250
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Readout from White House Convening of County Association Presidents and Executive Directors
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Readout from Communities in Action: Building a Better Rhode Island and Connecticut
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on December PCE Report
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on International Holocaust Remembrance Day
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Statement from President Joe Biden on Decision to Pause Pending Approvals of Liquefied Natural Gas Exports
- Friday, January 26, 2024: FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Announces Temporary Pause on Pending Approvals of Liquefied Natural Gas Exports
- Friday, January 26, 2024: Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Meetings with the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand Srettha Thavisin and Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara
👎 Out with the Bad, In with the Good 👍
tRump’s lawsuit against the Steele Dossier dismissed by a London court Bethany Dawson, Politico
The U.S. former president had been attempting to sue Orbis Business Intelligence, founded by ex-Secret Intelligence Service agent Christopher Steele, on data protection grounds. The firm prepared the research dossier containing unsubstantiated allegations about Trump’s personal conduct, leading to a political storm just before he was inaugurated in 2017.
But on Thursday, High Court judge Karen Steyn rejected the case put forward by Trump’s lawyers.
The ruling says while the court did not “consider or determine the accuracy or inaccuracy of the memoranda,” the former U.S. president and current Republican front-runner’s damages claim fell outside of a six-year period of “limitations.”
Largest US solar storage project goes online Ryan Kennedy PV
Terra-Gen and Mortenson have announced the activation of the Edwards & Sanborn Solar + Energy Storage project, the largest solar-plus-storage project in the United States. Mortenson served as engineering, procurement, and construction contractor for the project. ✂️
California’s grid is expected to receive enough electricity to power the equivalent of about 238,000 homes from the project. This leads to an estimated 320,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions abated annually. ✂️
Edwards & Sanborn is partially located on the Edwards Air Force Base in Kern County, California, a hub for many of the largest solar projects in the United Staes. It represents the largest public-private collaboration in US Department of Defense history. Since 2020, more than 1,000 craftworkers contributed to the project, and it was executed with more than a million hours of injury-free labor.
War in Ukraine has severely weakened Putin Julian Barnes, New York Times
The war in Ukraine has “quietly corroded” the power of President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, the C.I.A. director, William J. Burns, wrote in an essay published on Tuesday.
While Mr. Putin’s grip on power was unlikely to soon weaken, Mr. Burns wrote in Foreign Affairs, disaffection had “gnawed away at the Russian leadership and the Russian people,” allowing the C.I.A. to recruit more spies.
The agency has made a series of videos aimed at recruiting Russian officials. The most recent, released last week, encourages Russians to securely provide information to the C.I.A. using a secure browser on the dark web. The latest video makes an appeal to their anger over corruption in the Russian government.
I nearly linked to the Foreign Affairs article instead of the NYT, but it was pretty wordy.
💣 Republicans: Party of Crimes and Chaos 💣
Those who can’t read the Xweet: NEW: Those 10 Oregon republicans who WALKED OUT for 6 weeks last year to BLOCK bills on abortion, trans rights, and gun reform ARE NOT ELIGIBLE to run for reelection: per Oregon Supreme Court.
More information: these lawmakers have been doing these walkouts for several years now, totally gumming up the works and the will of the majority.
tRump is burning through campaign cash Steven Shepard and Jessica Piper Politico
Trump’s joint fundraising committee, the primary fundraising vehicle for his presidential campaign, brought in a whopping $75 million in the second half of the year. The former president’s strength continues to be with small-dollar donors, who accounted for more than one third of that total.
But Trump’s campaign and his affiliated groups are burning through cash at an even faster rate than he can fundraise. Across five connected groups, Trump spent more than he raised in 2023. And that spending is driven in large part by his legal woes. Two of his political committees spent a combined $50 million on legal expenses in 2023 — his biggest single expense category, with more spent on legal than advertising, payroll or other typical campaign expenditures.
MAGA Inc., a super PAC supporting Trump’s campaign, had to refund tens of millions of dollars to his leadership PAC to help cover those legal expenses, underscoring how legal challenges draw from money that could have been used to boost Trump as a candidate (although the group was still able to spend nearly $44 million on independent expenditures in 2023).
And it’s not just tRump, but the RNC: part of Xweet: The Republican National Committee's year-end filing reveals it had its worst fundraising year since 2013 in absolute dollars and its worst since 1993 in inflation-adjusted figures. It raised $87.2M, spent $93.5M, and had just $8M on hand and $1.8m in debt.
GOP expecting a bloodbath in November
What does this guy — or Russia — have on them?
Wonder why Walter Nauta is working for tRump? Sexual misconduct Roger Sollenberger The Daily Beast, exclusive, sorry
Trump, of course, is notorious for exploiting people around him who have been compromised in one form or another.
Sarah Matthews, Trump’s former White House deputy press secretary who resigned in protest of the Jan. 6 attack, told The Daily Beast that Trump wasn’t above using the kind of leverage he would have had over Nauta. ✂️
In Nauta’s case, Matthews identified “two kinds of blackmail for loyalty, at least.”
“There are these allegations, about his character and family life, but there’s also the money,” she said.
In the roughly 29 months since he was hired, Nauta has been paid more than $360,000 from Trump’s political committees, according to Federal Election Commission data. (Following Trump’s candidacy declaration in November 2022, Nauta was transferred from the Save America payroll to the 2024 campaign.) Trump has also covered expenses for Nauta’s lawyer, Stanley Woodward, who has received Save America payments as well as cash from Trump’s legal defense fund. Woodward, who represents other Trumpworld figures, would not confirm whether any of the defense fund payments were specifically for his representation of Nauta.
The article discusses other compromised people who worked for or who kowtowed to tRump. Explains many in the GOP these days, as does the money, and the terrorization.
In case you missed it, this guy, Colin Cowherd — from Fox Sports — has a great rant about the crazies attacking Taylor Swift.
Michigan GOP in chaos Steve Benen MSNBC
Who’s the current chair of the Michigan Republican Party? It might seem like a rather straightforward question, but answering it is proving to be quite tricky.
A few weeks ago, state GOP officials voted to oust Kristina Karamo as the head of the state party. Karamo said she didn’t recognize the legitimacy of that vote and insisted that she remained the chair of the Michigan Republican Party. Eventually, Republican National Committee lawyers were brought in and determined that Karamo was “properly removed” from her post.
The RNC did not, however, officially recognize the apparent new chair — former Rep. Pete Hoekstra — and as The Detroit Free Press
reported over the weekend, Karamo isn’t accepting the RNC’s findings, either.
The Arizona GOP head was also forced to resign, as was the Florida GOP head. And the Oklahoma GOP is also in disarray.
🚚 💙 Democrats Deliver 💙 🚚
President Biden takes on big pharma and overpriced drugs. Today, Medicare sends out its list White House Briefing Room
After decades of opposition, President Biden enacted a law that finally takes on Big Pharma and gives Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices. President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act will save millions of seniors money on some of the costliest prescription drugs on the market –and today, Medicare will send initial offers to manufacturers of the first ten drugs selected for drug price negotiation to help bring down the price of these prescription drugs. This is the first time ever that Medicare is not accepting the drug prices the pharmaceutical companies set.
The drug price negotiation program is a prime example of the ways the Administration is working to lower costs for American families. In 2022, nine million seniors on Medicare were prescribed the ten drugs selected for the first round of drug price negotiation. These individuals spent an estimated $3.4 billion in out-of-pocket costs in 2022 alone for these drugs, which are used to treat some of the most common conditions like blood clots, arthritis, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and more. Some seniors spent nearly $6,500 out-of-pocket for a single one of these drugs – while Big Pharma continued to make record profits, ripping off American taxpayers and the seniors their drugs aim to treat.
Lots more in that press release, but my GNRs already run long.
Those who bet expect President Biden to win the popular vote:
And this is why they are scared of young people and Taylor Swift:
💜 Unity? 💜
EU agrees on 54 billion USD package aid to Ukraine By Charlotte Van Campenhout, Andrew Gray and Sabine Siebold, Reuters
BRUSSELS, Feb 1 (Reuters) - European Union leaders unanimously agreed on Thursday to extend 50 billion euros ($54 billion) in new aid to Ukraine, sending a message to the United States split on whether to keep backing Kyiv in its fight against Russia's invasion.
The agreement overcomes weeks of resistance from Hungary and comes amid
uncertainty over the future of U.S. aid. Kyiv
relies heavily on Western support as the war, the biggest conflict in Europe since World War Two, nears its third year. ✂️
Ukraine's dollar bonds gained on the news and Kyiv said it expected to receive the first tranche of 4.5 billion euros from the EU in March from a total of 50 billion euros to come from the bloc's shared budget through 2027.
"The message is clear: Russia can't count on any fatigue from the Europeans in their support to Ukraine," said French President Emmanuel Macron.
By paying off Orban, they got him to stop blocking the deal. Also, I think this bodes well for Sweden’s admission into NATO.
House passes expansion of child tax credit Kevin Freking, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House accomplished something unusual Wednesday in passing with broad, bipartisan support a roughly $79 billion tax cut package that would enhance the child tax credit for millions of lower-income families and boost three tax breaks for businesses, a combination that gives lawmakers on both sides of the political aisle coveted policy wins.
Prospects for the measure becoming law are uncertain with the Senate still having to take it up, but for a House that has struggled to get bills of consequence over the finish line, the tax legislation could represent a rare breakthrough. The bill passed by a vote of 357-70.
There have been positive noises in the Senate on this as well, so I’m hopeful.
Progress made in US-China relations Fareed Zakaria Washington Post
For all the focus on the many geopolitical crises around the world, the one that is potentially most dangerous has actually been trending in a positive direction. Ian Bremmer, founder of Eurasia Group, told me: “The biggest upside surprise of recent months has got to be the stabilization of U.S.-China relations.”
U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan’s meeting with China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, for
private talks this week is one more sign of a thaw in relations that in 2021 had both sides yelling at each other in Anchorage.
Military-to-military talks have resumed. Treasury Secretary
Janet L. Yellen and Commerce Secretary
Gina Raimondo have both had constructive trips to China. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command
noted earlier this month that since the Biden-Xi summit in November, Chinese military planes seem to have stopped their dangerous maneuvers. Over the prior two years, since the fall of 2021, there had been
nearly 300 such incidents against U.S. aircraft and those of U.S. allies and partners. And the Taiwanese elections, while going against China’s hopes, were handled maturely by both sides.
This is all to the good. The mistrust, miscommunication and lack of contact that characterized the relationship for the first two years of the Biden administration was dangerous. This rivalry could easily spiral into an unconstrained arms race in everything from artificial intelligence to space weapons, splinter the global economy, and descend into the first great power war since 1945.
📥 Actions You Can Take 📤
Tax-exempt organization complaint referrals. 13909. You can fill this out for the NRA and lots of other organizations. How about if some of us white folk go into some of the MAGA churches and video record what they’re saying?
Voting rights. This may be the biggest issue threatening our democracy right now. Besides contacting your representatives at the state and federal level to do the right thing (depending on who they are), you can support and contact these organizations:
ACLU — American Civil Liberties Union
Democracy Docket — founded by Marc Elias, so important in fighting the challenges after the last election.
Fair Fight — founded by Stacey Abrams
🌱Grass roots. Biden and Harris can do the top-down stuff, but we have to support from the bottom. I don’t know how to deprogram 75 million people, but some things have been written about, such as deep canvassing, and lots of people are talking about this. If you know someone (who did not storm the Capitol), then see if you can be pleasant. Instead of trying to reason with them (logic is obviously not their strong point) distract them with something else. We need to remove the sources of lies and to take down the temperature. If we get more of the Rs to wear masks and to get vaccinated and to vote for Ds, the country will be a better place. We need to coax some of them out of the rabbit holes and diffuse the anger and the crazy.
🏃 Run for something. If you want to run for something, but have no idea what to do, these people will help you. They also like money and volunteers to help those people who are running, so even if you’re not in a position to stand for office, you can help. Note: they are especially planning to target the 57 Rs in local governments who participated in the insurrection.
👎 Defund the seditionists. Defund the seditionists. This is a list with companies that sometimes have donated to the seditionists. The list is long. You will recognize many of the corporations, and you probably have a relationship with some — either you are a customer, a shareholder, or maybe even an employee. Contact them and compliment or complain, but let them know you are watching. Forward it to others.
🔎 Want to check out what’s going on with campaign contributions? Check out this diary. 👀
🐍 Schadenfreude 😈
Ohio man sentenced to 18 years in prison for firebombing a church that planned to host drag show events DOJ Press release
An Ohio man was sentenced yesterday to 216 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for attempting to burn down a church because of its support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Aimenn D. Penny, 20, of Alliance, Ohio, was arrested and charged last year with one count of violating the Church Arson Prevention Act, one count of using fire to commit a federal felony, one count of malicious use of explosive materials, and one count of possessing a destructive device. On Oct. 23, 2023, Penny pleaded guilty to the church arson hate crime and using fire and explosives to commit a felony.
According to court documents, on March 25, 2023, Penny made Molotov cocktails and drove to the Community Church of Chesterland (CCC), in Chesterland. Angered by the church’s plan to host two drag events the following weekend, Penny threw two Molotov cocktails at the church, hoping to burn it to the ground. Through Penny’s guilty plea, he admitted to using force through fire and explosives, intending to obstruct CCC congregants in their enjoyment and expression of their religious beliefs.
Elon Musk $56 billion compensation package voided by Delaware court Dan Mangan, Lora Kodolny CNBC News
A Delaware judge on Tuesday voided the $56 billion pay package of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, ruling that the company’s board of directors failed to prove “that the compensation plan was fair” or show much evidence that they had even negotiated with him.
Tesla’s share price slid about 3% in after-hours trading Tuesday following news of the decision in the lawsuit filed by Richard Tornetta, a shareholder in the electric automaker.
Chancery Court Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick told the parties in the lawsuit to confer on what would be a final order directing Musk to return the compensation he has received under the plan.
OK, so Musk has lost much more money than tRump has in the past week. Way to go!
Rick Wilson of the Lincoln Project against Mike Flynn (not all like the LP, but the LP is better than Mike Flynn)
You probably know this, but Schadenfreude is still delicious when repeated: tRump PAC money going to lawyers Maggie Habermann Shane Goldmacher New York Times
Donald J. Trump piled up legal expenses in 2023 as he was indicted four times, spending approximately $50 million in donor money on legal bills and investigation-related expenses last year, according to two people briefed on the figure.
It is a staggering sum. His lone remaining rival in the 2024 Republican primary, Nikki Haley, raised roughly the same amount of money across all her committees in the last year as Mr. Trump’s political accounts spent paying the bills stemming from his various legal defenses, including lawyers for witnesses.
Weisselberg lied! Perjury. Which could be bad for him:
You may have heard about the planned civil war...
Note more arrived since then, so it’s certainly more than 19 vehicles, but nothing like what they expected. But others are discovering the sad truth, with the scales coming off this poor woman’s eyes:
📣 Let’s Honor Truth ☀️️
This week we’re honoring the honest judges — and I know not all are honest, eg Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh — who are dealing with the maga craziness at all levels, from J6 insurrectionists to tRump. Here are quotes from a column by Jennifer Rubin Washington Post, gift article so I’m taking more than usual
A distinguishing characteristic of MAGA Republicans is their contempt for the rule of law. Not to be bound by election results, the Constitution or court processes, four-time-indicted former president Donald Trump sets the tone. He declares himself immune from prosecution. He defies judicial gag orders, throws temper tantrums in court and tosses around “executive privilege” like confetti. Thankfully, judges have begun responding to MAGA lawlessness and attempts to nullify federal law.
U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth, for example, in an otherwise routine sentencing memo for Jan. 6, 2021, participant James Little, castigated election deniers and Jan. 6 apologists. “The Court is accustomed to defendants who refuse to accept that they did anything wrong,” he wrote. “But in my thirty-seven years on the bench, I cannot recall a time when such meritless justifications of criminal activity have gone mainstream.”
Although Lamberth did not specify MAGA adherents, he condemned “distortions and outright falsehoods [that] seep into the public consciousness.” He continued: “I have been shocked to watch some public figures try to rewrite history, claiming rioters behaved ‘in an orderly fashion’ like ordinary tourists, or martyrizing convicted January 6 defendants as ‘political prisoners’ or even, incredibly, ‘hostages.’” (The latter came from the lips of MAGA flunkies, including Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, a contender for vice president on Trump’s ticket.) Lamberth added that though such claims are “preposterous,” he fears that “such destructive, misguided rhetoric could presage further danger to our country.” ✂️
Likewise, in sentencing former Trump economic adviser Peter Navarro for contempt of Congress, U.S. District Judge Amit P. Mehta admonished: “I know you think it’s a political hatchet job. … [The House Jan. 6 committee] had a job to do, and you made it harder.” He called out Navarro’s attempt to play the victim as nothing but “chutzpah.” He lectured the defendant: “You are not a victim. You are not the object of a political prosecution. These are circumstances of your own making.” And he scolded Navarro that executive privilege was neither “magic dust to avoid a duty” nor “a get-out-of-jail-free card.” Every word of this would be equally applicable to Trump and his legion of enablers.
These rebukes serve as a long-overdue declaration from the judicial branch that piling lie upon lie won’t fly in the justice system. Facts matter in courts; miscreants cannot escape responsibility for lawbreaking. These judges refuse to let MAGA’s widespread contempt for courts and the Constitution be normalized; they remind ordinary Americans that Trump and his minions are not above the law.
🌹 Let’s Celebrate Love ❤️
Bride, after canceling wedding, donates her reception to special needs families. Andy Corbley Good News Network
In the true definition of a worst-case scenario, an unnamed California bride-to-be is reported to have called off her entire non-refundable wedding reception worth $15,000, after learning something about her fiance.
But Fox News details that she took the disaster and turned it on its head, donating the reception party complete with dinner, dessert, drinks, DJ, dancing, and photo booth to a non-profit called Parents Helping Parents which provides community support to parents with children who have special needs.
“It makes me feel grateful for the resilience and kindness of people—that this bride could do something so generous and thoughtful in the face of her own sadness is inspiring,” said Maria Daane, executive director of Parents Helping Parents (PHP).
📎Odds & Ends 📎
Some info on Groundhog Day Marc Scolforo NBC Philadelphia
It's part of a tradition rooted in European agricultural life, marking the midpoint between the shortest day of the year on the winter solstice and the spring equinox. It's also a time of year that figures in the Celtic calendar and the Christian holiday of Candlemas.
And in eastern and central Pennsylvania, where people of German descent have been watching the groundhog's annual emergence from hibernation for centuries, there's a tradition of groundhog clubs and celebrations that are independent of Phil.
Some dismiss the Punxsutawney event as an unworthy rival to their own festivities, which they say forecast more accurate weather predictions. There have been weather-predicting groundhogs in at least 28 U.S. states and Canadian provinces, and less formal celebrations far and wide.
One thing it's not: serious business.
Dogs are wonderful! If you can’t see the Xweet, it shows a man who fell into a frozen lake and how a dog takes him what he needs to rescue him:
🐰 Joke: A priest, a pastor, and a rabbit entered a clinic to donate blood. The nurse asked the rabbit: "What's your blood type?" "I'm probably a Type O", said the rabbit.
☀️ In 2023, China installed more solar panels than the US has in total Cristen Hemingway Jaynes EcoWatch
Last year, China installed more new solar capacity than the total amount ever installed in any other country, Bloomberg reported.
“China’s solar sector is set to break records in the coming years. When installed capacity crosses the 500 gigawatts (GW) mark by the end of 2023, it will have taken 13 years to reach that milestone. That total, however, will be doubled to 1 terawatt (TW) in just three additional years,” Rystad Energy said.
According to China’s National Energy Administration (NEA), the country increased its solar capacity by 216.9 GW last year, eclipsing its record of 87.4 GW from the previous year, reported Bloomberg. That’s more than the U.S. total of 175.2 GW, estimates by BloombergNEF said.
😄 Especially for those who do postcards: Writing by hand helps your brain! Andy Corbley Good News Network
In an ever more digital world, pen and paper are increasingly getting replaced with screens and keyboards in classrooms. Now, a new study has investigated neural networks in the brain during hand and typewriting and showed that connectivity between different brain regions is more elaborate when letters are formed by hand.
This improved brain connectivity, which is crucial to memory building and information encoding, may indicate that writing by hand supports learning.
As digital devices progressively replace pen and paper, taking notes by hand is becoming increasingly uncommon in schools and universities. Using a keyboard is recommended because it’s often faster than writing by hand. However, the latter has been found to improve spelling accuracy and memory recall, if for no other reason than that pen and paper is cut off from the security of autocorrect features.
🐦 I do a lot of other writing. A recent offering: the Crow Nickels (chronicles), a trilogy about crows who want to save birdkind from extinction: Hunters of the Feather, Scavengers of Mind and Familiars of the Flock (They’re really good! They’re really cheap! Buy and review or rate positively! And Hunters is also available on Audible!) Other stories, based on Jane Austen novels — such as The Meryton Murders — and others based on history and Greek mythology, such as Jocasta: The Mother-Wife of Oedipus, can be found here. All titles are available through Kindle Unlimited, but I only get paid if you turn the pages.
💙 What You Can Do to Rescue Democracy 💙
It turns out that participation in democracy is not just an every-four-years event but requires active participation, like, whenever you can find time.
Current projects:
Look in the comments for Progressive Muse’s report on Postcards to Voters
And some other ideas:
You can relax and recharge.
You can join protests and freeway blog.
You can help register new voters.
You can smile.
You can say something nice to friend or a stranger.
You can get out the vote for special elections.
You can reach out to upset Republicans. We need to win some back.
You can share your ideas below.
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💙 “Our history has been a constant struggle between the American ideal that we all are created equal and the harsh ugly reality that racism, nativism, fear, demonization have long torn us apart. The battle is perennial, and victory is never assured.” 💙
President Joseph R. Biden
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TRUTH MATTERS. LOVE MATTERS.