I know this may be beating a dead horse, but.....Biden needs to report on Russian interference ASAP! We are the victims of the Russian war on the USA. Putin admits he did it and demands quid pro quo from Trump. As far as I'm concerned the admission is dispositive and is actionalble and constitutes an emergency.
In 2023, U.S. Citizens and Russian Intelligence Officers Charged with Conspiring to Use U.S. Citizens as Illegal Agents of the Russian Government. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/us-citizens-and-russian-intelligence-officers-charged-conspiring-use-us-citizens-illegal “Today’s announcement paints a harrowing picture of Russian government actions and the lengths to which the FSB will go to interfere with our elections, sow discord in our nation and ultimately recruit U.S citizens to their efforts,” said Acting Assistant Director Kurt Ronnow of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division. “All Americans should be deeply concerned by the tactics employed by the FSB and remain vigilant to any attempt to undermine our democracy. The FBI remains committed to confronting this egregious behavior and ultimately disrupting our adversaries and those who act on their behalf.”
On Sept. 4, 60 days before the election, An indictment charging Russian nationals Kostiantyn Kalashnikov, 31, also known as Kostya, and Elena Afanasyeva, 27, also known as Lena, with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and conspiracy to commit money laundering was unsealed today in the Southern District of New York. Kalashnikov and Afanasyeva are at large.
“The Justice Department has charged two employees of RT, a Russian state-controlled media outlet, in a $10 million scheme to create and distribute content to U.S. audiences with hidden Russian government messaging,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department will not tolerate attempts by an authoritarian regime to exploit our country’s free exchange of ideas in order to covertly further its own propaganda efforts, and our investigation into this matter remains ongoing.”
Threats to election workers, propaganda about violence, burning of ballots. Bomb threats.
Daniel, I agree with you, even though it does seem hopeless. The suppressed Mueller Report and failed impeachments have taken the wind out of Justice's sails. The system is broken.
The Steele dossier's referenced pee-tape likely exists, but not w/ just liquid, also w/ solid waste. And, it probably did not land on a bed, alone. Butt . . . upon, even ingested into, a game-show host, like a dog, as Agent Orange likes to say.
And that "may" be the sordid tale of how America became a client state of Russia.
I have been saying the same for a while, Daniel. There is a lot of public-facing evidence. Including news stories in MSM about musk paying a .million each for votes for trump under a thin legal ruse. And putin calling bomb threats in to Democratic voter strongholds. Plus a lot more. Re extremevoter suppression: https://gregpalast.com
Daniel I’m rereading The Road to Unfreedom and I cannot believe the similarities to all that occurred in Russia. What I’m really afraid of right now is that Russia is going to help Trump to generate a crisis similar to the bombs that were planted by FSB in 1999 to cement Trump and allow him to declare martial law and maybe persecute his enemies who he will blame. Perhaps these drones over NJ are something after all? What will January 21 look like?
I came to read this piece agreeing with rising California Senator Adam Schiff’s point about pardons (i.e.: no need to give them to Trump’s enemies). But after reading it, I’ve changed my mind. The “that ship has sailed” phrase convinced me. Certainly, a bare plurality blew right past this concern when it voted Trump back into office. It obviously doesn’t know or — worse — care about the rule of law and the way it has been twisted to benefit Trump and his minions and disadvantage everyone else. To leave Trump the ability to prosecute true patriots would be a much larger stain on Biden and his legacy than preempting the abuse of the law Trump so proudly proclaims as his aim. I also agree that Biden should take the secrecy protections off every Trump associated investigatory reports held by DoJ and the FBI so the public can know the true whirlwind they have engendered by re-electing Trump to the White House. Frankly, that and the preemptive pardons are true patriotic acts and Biden as a last act should hesitate no longer to implement them.
Adam Schiff is a prime example of the trope that with enemies like this,you don't need friends.
When he sees a TV camera he stops what he is doing and runs towards it.
Schiff shares responsiblity for the 2022 Republican congressional win.
Now ex congressman Sean Mahoney of NY, was the leader of the DCCC, at the most crucial state of the campaign, he and Schiff ran off to Paris junkateering (at whose expense I wonder). Result NY lost four Democratic congressional seats and flipped the House to Republicans.
Now he was elected as a Senator from California, and I fully expect him cave to Trump
Yes! Absolutely Biden should pardon all of Trumps perceived enemies and he doesn't even need to announce it to the public. Those that are pardoned can just keep it in their pocket until the Trump "weaponization of the DOJ" begins and use it if necessary.
Listening to all the folks, most of whom I admire, talking about not worrying about retribution because they did nothing wrong is naive at best. I'm with the "peanut gallery" (Shout out to Jimmy Carter who had to divest himself from his 'peanut farm' to avoid a conflict of interest when he ran for president!!!! That's funny isn't it, when now it's open season on grift & graft & bribery.). I'm with the peanut gallery who believes that once 12:01 January 20, 2025 comes there will be no American rule of law. It will be "trump law"! Whatever he says goes! We keep hearing that his over-reach will get tied up in the courts? Really! We're believing that still? I hardly think trump or his ass-kissing sycophants will worry about some judge somewhere that says, "NO!" They'll just steam roll over anyone that dares to defy him, especially when he has a "pantywaste" (resurrecting that old term, hasn't been used for a long time!) Congress with all the backbone of an overcooked noodle!
I'm personally concerned for 2 important reasons, my family, friends & #2 my kitty. I post negative comments about trump & his bevvy of merry criminals so we all know that the best way to silence a critic is by threats to family & if he/they go after my family who also has kitties what will happen to them? I don't care about myself, I have cancer & while it's under control at this minute I'm 76 so if they throw my ass in jail I'm sure it won't be for a long time but my family, they are young & have a lot of years left & thinking about them saddens me. My granddaughter is 18, a freshman in a good college, what will happen to her opportunities if Gramma is considered an enemy within?
I don't know what will happen but it 'ain't gonna'be good
Although there are other than legal means to make someone's life miserable when you have power, money, and connections, Biden should try to use his pardon power to protect those from the erratic whims of Trump's retribution and his loyal opportunists.
President Biden should create a pardon list of thousands from the obvious like Hillary down to Jimmy Kimell’s cat if necessary. However, he should not make it public. Just keep it in his sock drawer. Let Trump wonder who’s vulnerable to his fake prosecutions. Trump has made popular the term “unprecedented.” We need to think and behave in those terms.
A person that is known to take vengeance on his enemies states he is going to do so should be believed. Jack Smith needs and deserves protection for doing his job. Blanket pardons are not
unusual and are necessary when a real threat is known to exists. When Trump promises to go after his political enemies he needs to be believed as it is his history shows. Trump will go after Biden because he is not going to pardon himself because Biden expects the history of presidents being left alone will prevail. Trump likes to do things nobody on the inside of the political class has ever done. It is going to be a show made to entertain.
Would it be any protection for President Biden to issue a blanket pardon for any and all of us who have called Trump a fascist pig, a lying snake, a moron, a traitor, a crook, a serial criminal, a fake and a fraud, etc., etc., or who have otherwise demeaned and insulted that Obese Orange Menace? Will a dicktator be stopped by such a formality once he has total power? I worry a lot about this. I'm too old to leave the country.
There seems to be a cloud of melencoloany spreading across the nation. I suppose that would be "normal" under the current situation. It feels like a combination of denial and dread. I think everyone is trying to remain sane by telling themselves that he really can't get done what he thinks he can. I also think the shock wave of the events that will unfold will have a dramatic affect upon this melencoloany. I don't think he can get done what he thinks he can either, but I also think he can do a lot of damage in the process. The question is, I suppose, how far will he be able to go before he starts to push against powers that he shouldn't have pushed against. I have no idea, but I know that from a businessman's perspective, if he starts trucks rolling and pulling people out of their houses, the impact on the economy is going to be disastrous. How long do you think that song is going to play? This nation is a lot stronger than any of us probably realizes right now. We've been through a lot recently, but we always seem to bend and not break.
I'd exercise the kingly powers the Supreme Court bestowed upon me — immunity for official acts — and declare a state of emergency.
Then, on day one of my new monarchy:
1. Pardon EVERYONE on Trump's enemies list, including every journalist and news outlet who has ever criticized him, every Democrat, independent, and "never-Trumper" Republican in America who voted against him, and all undocumented immigrants everywhere. (Basically, pardon half of the country.)
2. Decree the First Amendment null and void. Shut down Fox "News" and other right-wing fake news organizations that constantly lie to the American people as their primary business plan.
3. Arrest, jail, and deport, or publicly hang on the steps of the Capitol (my wet dream) the actual "enemies within," including Trump, his entire family, his traitorous cabinet nominees, Elon Musk, Rupert Murdock, everyone at Fox "News," every puss-filled perpetrator of filthy lies wherever they happen to fester and rot, be it on TV, radio, or the internet, and every local, state, and federal groveling Republican politician across the nation dumb enough to support Trump.
4. Declare that Trump and the Republicans, with Russia's help, stole the 2024 election, refuse to leave the White House, and incite a mob of angry Democrats to surround the Capitol on January 6th and prevent the certification of votes. (What's good for the goose is good for the gander.)
5. Oh yeah, strip billionaires and any other greedy bastard worth over, say, 50 million of their wealth and power and deport them, too.
Alas, I am not Biden. (Aren't you lucky!😁)
He's one of those gutless wonders who actually believes in democratic principles and the rule of law, unlike his orange predecessor and successor. How quaint.
To date Biden has pardoned 39 people and commuted the sentences for 1,500.
I do not believe he will issue pre pardon's for Trumps enemies, anymore than he could have removed pot from Schedule 1, or why he appointed Merrick Garland and why he has not directed the DOJ to investigate Russian interference.
I have no grounds to accuse Biden of bad faith motives, but can't say the same for his cabinet and especially advisors. Ukraine will fall to Putin, because of the influence of Jake Sullivan who has countenanced Biden not to provide Ukraine the weapons that they needed to take the war to Putin.
Presidents are not demigods, though some like Trump surely think they are, they are not omniscient and rely on their staff, especially advisors like national security advisor and economic advisor.
There really is little or no difference between the inner and outer circles of a royal court and the Executive.
I didn't mind the pardoning of Hunter Biden, because he had already been through the prosecutorial wringer and found guilty; the problem was with the Republican party, who just wanted to parlay a fairly routine prosecution into full-blown Biden Crime Family scandal, and that merited a pardon.
What I don't like is pardoning people, absent of any crime, because of Trump's threats. What do we mean when we say we should not obey in advance? Why should anyone, in effect, just plead guilty to avoid a trial, and always have that conviction on their record?
Just because the pardon power has been abused before doesn't justify abusing it now. In fact, there needs to be some restrictions on the pardon power, because it's turning into a means of granting legal immunity to one's political allies, and therefore a superhighway to unlimited corruption. Surely we don't want that.
No, Jeffrey, we don’t want any of that. But how do we put the toothpaste back in the tube? Trump’s ascension and reascension — with significant public support — suggests that the old rules no longer apply. Having one side still attempt to use and respect them while that her wantonly violates them without sanction (at least from the electorate) is a useless virtue display. Real people, real patriots get hurt. It’s no longer a fair fight. Even the Supreme Court is indicating it won’t uphold the old rules.
I know this may be beating a dead horse, but.....Biden needs to report on Russian interference ASAP! We are the victims of the Russian war on the USA. Putin admits he did it and demands quid pro quo from Trump. As far as I'm concerned the admission is dispositive and is actionalble and constitutes an emergency.
In 2023, U.S. Citizens and Russian Intelligence Officers Charged with Conspiring to Use U.S. Citizens as Illegal Agents of the Russian Government. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/us-citizens-and-russian-intelligence-officers-charged-conspiring-use-us-citizens-illegal “Today’s announcement paints a harrowing picture of Russian government actions and the lengths to which the FSB will go to interfere with our elections, sow discord in our nation and ultimately recruit U.S citizens to their efforts,” said Acting Assistant Director Kurt Ronnow of the FBI’s Counterintelligence Division. “All Americans should be deeply concerned by the tactics employed by the FSB and remain vigilant to any attempt to undermine our democracy. The FBI remains committed to confronting this egregious behavior and ultimately disrupting our adversaries and those who act on their behalf.”
On Sept. 4, 60 days before the election, An indictment charging Russian nationals Kostiantyn Kalashnikov, 31, also known as Kostya, and Elena Afanasyeva, 27, also known as Lena, with conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and conspiracy to commit money laundering was unsealed today in the Southern District of New York. Kalashnikov and Afanasyeva are at large.
“The Justice Department has charged two employees of RT, a Russian state-controlled media outlet, in a $10 million scheme to create and distribute content to U.S. audiences with hidden Russian government messaging,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “The Justice Department will not tolerate attempts by an authoritarian regime to exploit our country’s free exchange of ideas in order to covertly further its own propaganda efforts, and our investigation into this matter remains ongoing.”
Threats to election workers, propaganda about violence, burning of ballots. Bomb threats.
Daniel, I agree with you, even though it does seem hopeless. The suppressed Mueller Report and failed impeachments have taken the wind out of Justice's sails. The system is broken.
Biden should release the fully un-redacted Mueller Report before he leaves office.
SCOTUS crowned Biden king....for a month.
WARNING. Disgusting theory ahead.
The Steele dossier's referenced pee-tape likely exists, but not w/ just liquid, also w/ solid waste. And, it probably did not land on a bed, alone. Butt . . . upon, even ingested into, a game-show host, like a dog, as Agent Orange likes to say.
And that "may" be the sordid tale of how America became a client state of Russia.
This catastrophic failure will never be a dead horse - until it is firmly dealt with. Thanks Daniel for staying on point with situation #1.
I have been saying the same for a while, Daniel. There is a lot of public-facing evidence. Including news stories in MSM about musk paying a .million each for votes for trump under a thin legal ruse. And putin calling bomb threats in to Democratic voter strongholds. Plus a lot more. Re extremevoter suppression: https://gregpalast.com
Daniel I’m rereading The Road to Unfreedom and I cannot believe the similarities to all that occurred in Russia. What I’m really afraid of right now is that Russia is going to help Trump to generate a crisis similar to the bombs that were planted by FSB in 1999 to cement Trump and allow him to declare martial law and maybe persecute his enemies who he will blame. Perhaps these drones over NJ are something after all? What will January 21 look like?
I came to read this piece agreeing with rising California Senator Adam Schiff’s point about pardons (i.e.: no need to give them to Trump’s enemies). But after reading it, I’ve changed my mind. The “that ship has sailed” phrase convinced me. Certainly, a bare plurality blew right past this concern when it voted Trump back into office. It obviously doesn’t know or — worse — care about the rule of law and the way it has been twisted to benefit Trump and his minions and disadvantage everyone else. To leave Trump the ability to prosecute true patriots would be a much larger stain on Biden and his legacy than preempting the abuse of the law Trump so proudly proclaims as his aim. I also agree that Biden should take the secrecy protections off every Trump associated investigatory reports held by DoJ and the FBI so the public can know the true whirlwind they have engendered by re-electing Trump to the White House. Frankly, that and the preemptive pardons are true patriotic acts and Biden as a last act should hesitate no longer to implement them.
Adam Schiff is a prime example of the trope that with enemies like this,you don't need friends.
When he sees a TV camera he stops what he is doing and runs towards it.
Schiff shares responsiblity for the 2022 Republican congressional win.
Now ex congressman Sean Mahoney of NY, was the leader of the DCCC, at the most crucial state of the campaign, he and Schiff ran off to Paris junkateering (at whose expense I wonder). Result NY lost four Democratic congressional seats and flipped the House to Republicans.
Now he was elected as a Senator from California, and I fully expect him cave to Trump
And Schiff campaign propped up Republican Steve Garvey so he would not have to run against Katie Porter in for the California Senate race.
Geesus phuckin Keerist. Now I really do detest that SOB. I adore and trust Katie Porter. I wouldn't trust Schiff any further than I can throw him
Yes! Absolutely Biden should pardon all of Trumps perceived enemies and he doesn't even need to announce it to the public. Those that are pardoned can just keep it in their pocket until the Trump "weaponization of the DOJ" begins and use it if necessary.
Trump will just rescind any pardons (that Biden has made) to people he doesn't like, and his SC will back him. Wanna bet?
Listening to all the folks, most of whom I admire, talking about not worrying about retribution because they did nothing wrong is naive at best. I'm with the "peanut gallery" (Shout out to Jimmy Carter who had to divest himself from his 'peanut farm' to avoid a conflict of interest when he ran for president!!!! That's funny isn't it, when now it's open season on grift & graft & bribery.). I'm with the peanut gallery who believes that once 12:01 January 20, 2025 comes there will be no American rule of law. It will be "trump law"! Whatever he says goes! We keep hearing that his over-reach will get tied up in the courts? Really! We're believing that still? I hardly think trump or his ass-kissing sycophants will worry about some judge somewhere that says, "NO!" They'll just steam roll over anyone that dares to defy him, especially when he has a "pantywaste" (resurrecting that old term, hasn't been used for a long time!) Congress with all the backbone of an overcooked noodle!
I'm personally concerned for 2 important reasons, my family, friends & #2 my kitty. I post negative comments about trump & his bevvy of merry criminals so we all know that the best way to silence a critic is by threats to family & if he/they go after my family who also has kitties what will happen to them? I don't care about myself, I have cancer & while it's under control at this minute I'm 76 so if they throw my ass in jail I'm sure it won't be for a long time but my family, they are young & have a lot of years left & thinking about them saddens me. My granddaughter is 18, a freshman in a good college, what will happen to her opportunities if Gramma is considered an enemy within?
I don't know what will happen but it 'ain't gonna'be good
Biden's pardons are :
- Captain America's shield
- Batman's gauntlets
- Superman's bod
They are strictly prophylactic in purpose.
They are meant to ward off Trumphilis, a kind of legal syphilis
Although there are other than legal means to make someone's life miserable when you have power, money, and connections, Biden should try to use his pardon power to protect those from the erratic whims of Trump's retribution and his loyal opportunists.
President Biden should create a pardon list of thousands from the obvious like Hillary down to Jimmy Kimell’s cat if necessary. However, he should not make it public. Just keep it in his sock drawer. Let Trump wonder who’s vulnerable to his fake prosecutions. Trump has made popular the term “unprecedented.” We need to think and behave in those terms.
Absolutely. Let’s move on from the term banana republic. It doesn’t mean anything anymore and doesn’t reflect the horrific situation we are in
A person that is known to take vengeance on his enemies states he is going to do so should be believed. Jack Smith needs and deserves protection for doing his job. Blanket pardons are not
unusual and are necessary when a real threat is known to exists. When Trump promises to go after his political enemies he needs to be believed as it is his history shows. Trump will go after Biden because he is not going to pardon himself because Biden expects the history of presidents being left alone will prevail. Trump likes to do things nobody on the inside of the political class has ever done. It is going to be a show made to entertain.
Would it be any protection for President Biden to issue a blanket pardon for any and all of us who have called Trump a fascist pig, a lying snake, a moron, a traitor, a crook, a serial criminal, a fake and a fraud, etc., etc., or who have otherwise demeaned and insulted that Obese Orange Menace? Will a dicktator be stopped by such a formality once he has total power? I worry a lot about this. I'm too old to leave the country.
There seems to be a cloud of melencoloany spreading across the nation. I suppose that would be "normal" under the current situation. It feels like a combination of denial and dread. I think everyone is trying to remain sane by telling themselves that he really can't get done what he thinks he can. I also think the shock wave of the events that will unfold will have a dramatic affect upon this melencoloany. I don't think he can get done what he thinks he can either, but I also think he can do a lot of damage in the process. The question is, I suppose, how far will he be able to go before he starts to push against powers that he shouldn't have pushed against. I have no idea, but I know that from a businessman's perspective, if he starts trucks rolling and pulling people out of their houses, the impact on the economy is going to be disastrous. How long do you think that song is going to play? This nation is a lot stronger than any of us probably realizes right now. We've been through a lot recently, but we always seem to bend and not break.
If I was Biden...
I'd exercise the kingly powers the Supreme Court bestowed upon me — immunity for official acts — and declare a state of emergency.
Then, on day one of my new monarchy:
1. Pardon EVERYONE on Trump's enemies list, including every journalist and news outlet who has ever criticized him, every Democrat, independent, and "never-Trumper" Republican in America who voted against him, and all undocumented immigrants everywhere. (Basically, pardon half of the country.)
2. Decree the First Amendment null and void. Shut down Fox "News" and other right-wing fake news organizations that constantly lie to the American people as their primary business plan.
3. Arrest, jail, and deport, or publicly hang on the steps of the Capitol (my wet dream) the actual "enemies within," including Trump, his entire family, his traitorous cabinet nominees, Elon Musk, Rupert Murdock, everyone at Fox "News," every puss-filled perpetrator of filthy lies wherever they happen to fester and rot, be it on TV, radio, or the internet, and every local, state, and federal groveling Republican politician across the nation dumb enough to support Trump.
4. Declare that Trump and the Republicans, with Russia's help, stole the 2024 election, refuse to leave the White House, and incite a mob of angry Democrats to surround the Capitol on January 6th and prevent the certification of votes. (What's good for the goose is good for the gander.)
5. Oh yeah, strip billionaires and any other greedy bastard worth over, say, 50 million of their wealth and power and deport them, too.
Alas, I am not Biden. (Aren't you lucky!😁)
He's one of those gutless wonders who actually believes in democratic principles and the rule of law, unlike his orange predecessor and successor. How quaint.
Good ideas, but just as autocratic, and likely to get out of hand, as Trump's.
No shit!
Is irony dead?😟
The other side… God how I hate autocorrect.
I agree absolutely!
To date Biden has pardoned 39 people and commuted the sentences for 1,500.
I do not believe he will issue pre pardon's for Trumps enemies, anymore than he could have removed pot from Schedule 1, or why he appointed Merrick Garland and why he has not directed the DOJ to investigate Russian interference.
I have no grounds to accuse Biden of bad faith motives, but can't say the same for his cabinet and especially advisors. Ukraine will fall to Putin, because of the influence of Jake Sullivan who has countenanced Biden not to provide Ukraine the weapons that they needed to take the war to Putin.
Presidents are not demigods, though some like Trump surely think they are, they are not omniscient and rely on their staff, especially advisors like national security advisor and economic advisor.
There really is little or no difference between the inner and outer circles of a royal court and the Executive.
I didn't mind the pardoning of Hunter Biden, because he had already been through the prosecutorial wringer and found guilty; the problem was with the Republican party, who just wanted to parlay a fairly routine prosecution into full-blown Biden Crime Family scandal, and that merited a pardon.
What I don't like is pardoning people, absent of any crime, because of Trump's threats. What do we mean when we say we should not obey in advance? Why should anyone, in effect, just plead guilty to avoid a trial, and always have that conviction on their record?
Just because the pardon power has been abused before doesn't justify abusing it now. In fact, there needs to be some restrictions on the pardon power, because it's turning into a means of granting legal immunity to one's political allies, and therefore a superhighway to unlimited corruption. Surely we don't want that.
No, Jeffrey, we don’t want any of that. But how do we put the toothpaste back in the tube? Trump’s ascension and reascension — with significant public support — suggests that the old rules no longer apply. Having one side still attempt to use and respect them while that her wantonly violates them without sanction (at least from the electorate) is a useless virtue display. Real people, real patriots get hurt. It’s no longer a fair fight. Even the Supreme Court is indicating it won’t uphold the old rules.