Just as much of congress was complicit in Trumps coup attempt I believe much of SCOTUS will attempt to aid Trump believing it will aid larger goals. (Theocracy, Corporatocracy and the like. Different justices might have different goals.)
Agreed GG. Much of the Congress and in my opinion, the department of Justice and possibly Biden for not firing Garland. Also the main stream media news departments . They will look like the dog that finally caught the car bumper. Besides being a narcissist, Trump has dementia already. Trump has always been a compulsive liar and hasn't got a clue on how to make things better for the average American. Trump's supporters are just too stupid to notice or they want Armageddon?
Biden should have fired Garland. Also, more should have been done to address this issue of the Supreme Court, now we all have to wait and pray that "maybe" the Democrats will do something next time.
1. It's still not too late to file charges against the low hanging fruit -- Navarro, Bannon, Flynn, Scott Perry, Gym Jordan, Giuliani, Paul Gosar, etc. How about Ginny Thomas? None are immune.
2. The immunity defense does not work in civil cases.
The snarky thought that pops up is that this is a signal for the current POTUS to order a drone strike on Mar-A-Lago — perhaps on the pretext that there is a HAMAS leader there?-with the full assurance that there will be no legal accountability……..
Biden has strong moral grounding that would prevent him from doing away with anyone. However, were he to do such a thing, SCOTUS would turn on a dime! Precedent, as we've seen, means nothing to the Trump Six, unless it's to be used for their own ends.
Yes, force. It's too bad that the institution created to embody the greatest moral grounding is in a silk-lined gutter. Even a general strike, if such could be mounted, would be unlikely to move them -or the Putin wing of congress - to take appropriate actions.
"Precedent" so out the window! With these people who raised their right hands, and swore on the Bible, etc. Ari Melber's show today detailed actual precedent for timely SCOTUS action.
The GOP is the one's pushing the issue. With Putin pushing over in the Ukraine threatening a nuclear war, and the GOP pushing here, threatening a dictatorship, we might as well end the human experiment in my opinion rather than prolong it into years of suffering from thugs who seek power and fame and fortune. But be my guest and keep on having babies, I'm old and checking out soon.
What will the electorate do? Are we spineless in the face of such blatant disregard of our Constitution by what is now a Fascist supreme court like Hitler’s willing judges. I wonder given what Thom points out we are seeing and have seen. When do we the majority of people reach the point of the Brits and force the wanna be dictators to enact the checks that they have nullified through their bought and paid-for corrupted judges?
The electorate and the states can ignore the Supreme court. Like Andrew Jackson said, Justice Marshall has ruled, now let him enforce his ruling.
SCOTUS has lost any moral authority that it had when it doesn't force Justices with conflicts to recuse, when it makes it's own laws, and disregards precedent, when it's justices are paid guns for hire, and as corrupt as the man to whom they will bestow immunity from all crimes and misdemeanors.
Whatever they say goes. We fought a civil war to support rule of law. SCOTUS speaks for the Constitution and opinions have the force of law.
I think they'll tweak the DC opinion, remand back with instructions. Immunity in this fact pattern may be as much a matter of fact -- a jury question -- as a legal concept.
I'm on several websites where we speak about this in detail, and I don't want to give Trump advice but traditionally, a court would compare the job title and duties with his conduct. The terms "course and scope" of his the office of the presidency are applied. Generally, the scope of employment is the range of activities and conducts that an employee is reasonably expected to perform.
Also stuff like "frolic and detour," would be applied. All of this would be determined before trial and the facts reduced to writing as jury instructions. Every fact will be broken down as we used to say in the Army, "by the numbers."
The system of appointing judges to lifetime appointments has passed it's past due date. It's time to start electing them the way we do in each state. And give them a term of 4 years. There is no accountability in this court.
I don’t see how there will be a decision until as late as possible as they are as much a part of the Bannon effect-delay, distract, hit the electorate with a firehouse of sh!t that keeps them SPINNING!
Every time there is a shooting or domestic terrorism, this Report has an answer to the question "How did things get like this?".
The best part of Jack Smith's quote: "unique national importance". I guess The Sick Six SHOWED him and all Americans just WHO is in charge here! I suspected we were way down their list of important things---somewhere down at the bottom with human rights for females and LGBTQ+ folks.
Wonder who got a new toy or a bundle of cash for this bullshit.
Thing is, they don't even have the "excuse" that they might lose their jobs to a primary. They are selected zealots to start with. Do Alito and Kavanaugh go in the confessional and whisper, we hate women, women are dirty sluts, and the priest sentences them to finger a few rosaries, but never mind repentance, just come back next week?
The Supreme Court just agreed to delay the trial , probably till after the election. They decided to give the ‘middle finger’
once again to the people and Democracy.
If there is no legal means to stop this grandiose, narcissistic behavior by the court , it’s time to create a way . This court run by the ‘ Republican’ bought and paid for group of “ In- Justices’ has become an absolute sham and disaster . Disaster for Democracy and of course , that’s the plan.
I don’t for one minute think that the Harlan Crowes and the Heritage foundations lackeys gave all the money and perks to these Criminal Justices so they’d vote for Democracy. No need . We’re watching this plan that was a long time in the making come to fruition.
Republicans that aren’t willing to embrace this extent of corruption have left Congress.
This despicable process that these Republican in-Justices have embraced has been spelled out for them and they’ve agreed to thwart Democracy all for corrupt power.
We Democrats have been late to the awakening of this total corruption . Now we know and should leave no stone unturned in our efforts to oppose them . They are rancid. Racist . Putrid in their deception .
I agree with you, though I don't think the Democrats have been "late" to awaken to this, I think they stupidly thought it would all go away. At some point you have to fight the bully, this "if they go low, we go high" BS is so out of touch with the situation at this point. IMHO
At every turn, the Republicans lie and cheat: Oh, no, the Justice Dept. doesn't drop anything "hot" near to election day: except Hillary Clinton's emails. God forbid a Supe. Justice should even be considered in an election year! Oh, wait; emergency Barrett! Personally, I think Joe Biden should deploy maximum non-personnel support to Ukraine, and tell the Repubs, go ahead sue me!
Garland enabled all of it also! I also think that GOP owns the Democratic party going back to the 1980s. I heard that George Soros is buying about 200 radio stations? It will be too little too late. The maga is who we need to reach, they will not tune in to those stations. Almost like it's planned that way. The response is always too little too late. That is how Trump threw red meat at his base. He would do a little and claim to do a lot.
Sure smells like POOP (Putin's Obnoxious Orange Puppet) is well on its way back to the White House.
I don't believe in miracles and right now that lack of superstition has proven unfortunate for sleep, planning for the future, or investing useful effort into just about anything that necessarily rests on the foundation of a stable society.
I'm sure I'm not alone. That's the troubling part.
Perversely, the GOP-inflicted rot within our institutions only serves to "prove" their obnoxious claims that our government is having a "crisis of legitimacy". The only crisis we as a nation - no, world - are experiencing is a Putin-stroking GOP and a GOP-enabling Putin.
Both the GOP and Putin must be dealt with - must be absolutely broken simultaneously and immediately. Our legislatures, our courts, and our chicken shit greedy private for-profit "news" corporations (what a horribly catastrophic mechanism for conveying current events) have turned the blood of our democracy septic by hopping aboard Putin's GOP.
The busiest intersection of our time is Sycophancy & Cowardice. And the corrupt majority of SCOTUS have taken it upon themselves to be the sole director's of traffic. Bad news for everything that finds life favorable.
John, I don't think it's just Putin that we we are up against. I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist but George Bush Senior was around when JFK was assassinated and when Nixon normalized relations within communist China and when Reagan tore down the wall. Russia and China are now capitalist dictatorships and so are almost all the third world Nations on the planet. I think there is a group of rich on the planet that want to have total control over the peasants and the environment. I don't think it's just Putin.
This is like reliving the election of 2000, but times 10. That decision cost the lives of 5000 American soldiers and over 100,000 civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan. How much will this cost us?!!
This time it won't be combatants of other nations killing Americans, it will be our own citizens turning on other citizens.
This is a mixed war, but rather than a war between individuals and a nation, it will be a war of the government against it's own citizens, using paramilitary forces, Germany 1933-45 comes to mind.
I spend a lot of time on bases, thanks to my Korean War Vet spouse. The on-base TV runs MSNBC as well as FOX. I think it hangs by a thread who the commanding officer is. Many women are serving, and they aren't nobodies. Look at the retired officers horrified at Trump. I agree: not necessarily!
I've said it, in two sentences. Such brevity is uncommon for me.
Let me spell it out even more. Trump will launch a war of citizen vs citizen, just like the Brownshirts in Germany, and use the military to round up the "vermin poisoning the blood of the nation" and deport them, or hold them as "criminals" to use as slave labor.
Nothing is a given. Just saying don't look to the military to save our bacon. Just look around the world. Who is the bludgeon of last resort to be used against he people, and often the first?
The military.
The military follows orders, it is that simple.
Who comprises the majority of the ranks , southerrn and rural white boys.,
Who comprises the majority of it's l;eadership, officers trained in the Acadamy's and where has Dominionism made inroads? The Acadamy's
The treason brothers Generals Michael and Charles Flynn are not aberrations.
Does Trump really need to use the military when he's got all the police departments at his disposal with military equipment to fight a bunch of pot smoking flour loving pansy hippies?
Well, that won't be me! Did your bullying spell-check convert "flower?" We already have to strangle A.I. Anyway, your worry about local cops is justified. As a retired Public Defender, I know something about the mentality. One of my cases, long after exit from 'Nam," I had audio of the cops chasing a suspect through a neighborhood identifying him as a "gook." Not only are the stereotypes profound, but so is the arrogant assumption that they can write anything in their report, testify in front of a jury and whatever is going to be bought hook, line sinker. Scary.
If Trump survives his legal gauntlet and wins the election — way beyond Seal Team 6 assassinations, defenestration, and plane bombs a la Putin — He may turn Blue cities into an American Gaza (post Oct 7, 2023) F16s included. See below, the animated movie "Fritz the Cat's" bombing of Harlem.
Supreme Court History Replay: The same folks who made Bush President now tip the scales for Trump. This infographic shows how John Roberts, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Ted Cruz, Joel Kaplan, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alioto helped stop the vote recount in Florida to get Bush Jr. elected. Surprised by their decision to tilt the scales for Trump?
Take a look at "Mitch McConnell's Legacy: Illustrated Edition" to understand how MAGA Justices on the Supreme Court are doing their part in helping re-elect Trump.
I am watching Ari Melber (recorded) he is discussing the move by SCOTUS to hear the case of Trumps immunity. They didn't have to, they could have refused it (the shadow docket), but they took it and set an April date for hearing, the result is that even if they rule that he is not immune, the trial won't happen until at least October, too late for the election.
The court has acted with light speed, when it comes to cases important to the right wing, be it corporate or political. Bush v Gore is just one example. They took it up one day,and they ruled for Bush the next.
Ari had James Carville on, and Carville said that he can and has predicted the Supreme Court 100% of the time, When it comes to individual rights they rule against, when it comes to corporations they rule for.
The only reason the pundits and media hang on to each case, is clicks and ads.
Any liberal or progressive can predict the rulings of SCOTUS. it will be right wing.
“The substantive argument Trump makes—that presidents are entitled to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for anything they do in office and more specifically, for trying to steal an election—has to be a loser. As we’ve discussed before, if it’s not, our claim to be a democracy is no longer viable. Presidents would be forever above the law.”
“either presidents can commit crimes to stay in office or they can’t.”
“The right path forward is for the Supreme Court to do its job and decide this appeal promptly. Unfortunately, they don’t seem inclined to do so.”
“they've given him a huge win on the clock, unless they decide the case as soon as it’s argued.”
“Donald Trump will end American democracy if he’s reelected. He will corrupt our country for his own benefit. He has not made a secret of it. The only question is whether enough of our fellow citizens will be aware of what the 2024 election means for the future and care enough when we go to the polls to prevent Trump from returning to power. The small steps that we take during the next few months will pay big dividends.”
“Today, Liz Cheney said in an interview on the Today Show that Trump will never leave office if he's elected president again and that Republicans need to “do whatever it takes to make sure that Donald Trump is defeated in 2024," including potentially voting for Biden.”
Trump's power arises from the theocratic impules of the people and the theocrats of the Abrahamic religions Trump is, to them, just a tool, one which they think they can use to achieve hegemonic dominance.
There were industrialists and financiers in the 1930's who had the same belief,in a former corporal and street corner post card artist.
Trump already has dementia and looks very unhealthy. He won't live long but may appoint his son who has said that China being the world reserve currency is not a bad idea, Americans need to learn to balance their budget. Just paraphrasing that. Google raw story and type in Donald Trump Jr. Steve Bannon show, China World reserve currency and it will come up.
Letting an insane man have a nuclear arsenal is insane in itself. I don't see any of the Republicans being able to get him out of office, even if he is crawling on the floor in diapers and drooling?
Another excellent article Thom. It's amazing how you can keep track of all of the evil the greedy do. Biden should have had Trump prosecuted and all of his appointees replaced by now! And all his accomplices in the Congress and States also.
Looking to ascertain the process needed to accomplish an actual expansion of the SCOTUS--fact, not opinion here, please. Some have suggested Biden could do it. This may be more conversational than comprehensive, but I don't know. If it is up to Biden,
Biden alone, my worries would deepen. Biden has demonstrated such a paucity of fight-back throughout this fascist coup that I find worrying about his age much less important than his worrying about his true agency.
Well said Gerald, especially this line: " Biden has demonstrated such a paucity of fight-back throughout this fascist coup that I find worrying about his age much less important than his worrying about his true agency."
To answer the question " Yes the Supreme court will enable the coup.
The court has a "shadow docket", it uses all of the time, when it agrees with the lower court, it sends the case back to the lower court, or not hears it at all.
The fact that the court has taken up the Trump case, and set April as the hearing date is all the evidence we need that it is going to rule in favor of Trump.
The Court abhors Trump, but he is a useful tool for the Talibanization of America, There are seven Catholics on the court, at least five, maybe six, are radical traditionalist Catholics, misogynistic, homophobic, theocratic traditionalists.
We are friggin doomed, unless states and people grow a spine, and do what Alabama has done, and what Andrew Jackson did, ignore the court, after all they don't have the ability to enforce their rulings.
The court uses states rights as an excuse, just as did the planters for slavery. Then the blue states should ignore, totally ignore, any ruling by the Supreme Court with which they disagree, red states do and will. Texas has all but formally seceded from the Union, the federal government should shut down all federal installations and offices and/or roll the tanks from Ft Hood and deploy the 82nd Airborne into Austin and arrest Abbot and his treasonous crew.
Just as much of congress was complicit in Trumps coup attempt I believe much of SCOTUS will attempt to aid Trump believing it will aid larger goals. (Theocracy, Corporatocracy and the like. Different justices might have different goals.)
Agreed GG. Much of the Congress and in my opinion, the department of Justice and possibly Biden for not firing Garland. Also the main stream media news departments . They will look like the dog that finally caught the car bumper. Besides being a narcissist, Trump has dementia already. Trump has always been a compulsive liar and hasn't got a clue on how to make things better for the average American. Trump's supporters are just too stupid to notice or they want Armageddon?
Biden should have fired Garland. Also, more should have been done to address this issue of the Supreme Court, now we all have to wait and pray that "maybe" the Democrats will do something next time.
1. It's still not too late to file charges against the low hanging fruit -- Navarro, Bannon, Flynn, Scott Perry, Gym Jordan, Giuliani, Paul Gosar, etc. How about Ginny Thomas? None are immune.
2. The immunity defense does not work in civil cases.
The snarky thought that pops up is that this is a signal for the current POTUS to order a drone strike on Mar-A-Lago — perhaps on the pretext that there is a HAMAS leader there?-with the full assurance that there will be no legal accountability……..
If SCOTUS rules that Trump has presidential immunity, then Biden can do just that Docliz.
if SCOTUS rules that Trump has immunity for whatever he did while in office, then Biden can do whatever he wants as well. It is a two edged sword.
If Trump can use the office to create a dictatorship, then Biden can as well.
I don't like the idea of dictatorship, but would rather live under a secular dictatorship than a theocratic dictatorship.
Biden has strong moral grounding that would prevent him from doing away with anyone. However, were he to do such a thing, SCOTUS would turn on a dime! Precedent, as we've seen, means nothing to the Trump Six, unless it's to be used for their own ends.
Correct on both accounts Judith.
Moral grounding gives way to force and dictatorship.
The Weimar Republic was morally grounded too.
Yes, force. It's too bad that the institution created to embody the greatest moral grounding is in a silk-lined gutter. Even a general strike, if such could be mounted, would be unlikely to move them -or the Putin wing of congress - to take appropriate actions.
"Precedent" so out the window! With these people who raised their right hands, and swore on the Bible, etc. Ari Melber's show today detailed actual precedent for timely SCOTUS action.
How about if we avoid dictatorships completely. Wouldn't that be a better idea?
The GOP is the one's pushing the issue. With Putin pushing over in the Ukraine threatening a nuclear war, and the GOP pushing here, threatening a dictatorship, we might as well end the human experiment in my opinion rather than prolong it into years of suffering from thugs who seek power and fame and fortune. But be my guest and keep on having babies, I'm old and checking out soon.
What will the electorate do? Are we spineless in the face of such blatant disregard of our Constitution by what is now a Fascist supreme court like Hitler’s willing judges. I wonder given what Thom points out we are seeing and have seen. When do we the majority of people reach the point of the Brits and force the wanna be dictators to enact the checks that they have nullified through their bought and paid-for corrupted judges?
The electorate and the states can ignore the Supreme court. Like Andrew Jackson said, Justice Marshall has ruled, now let him enforce his ruling.
SCOTUS has lost any moral authority that it had when it doesn't force Justices with conflicts to recuse, when it makes it's own laws, and disregards precedent, when it's justices are paid guns for hire, and as corrupt as the man to whom they will bestow immunity from all crimes and misdemeanors.
I don't think so.....
You don't think so about what, Daniel?
The electorate and states CAN ignore SCOTUS, but I doubt that they will (except the Red states which have)
You don't think that SCOTUS will bestow immunity on Trump?
I do, that is why they took the case, otherwise all they had to do is let the lower court ruling stand.
Whatever they say goes. We fought a civil war to support rule of law. SCOTUS speaks for the Constitution and opinions have the force of law.
I think they'll tweak the DC opinion, remand back with instructions. Immunity in this fact pattern may be as much a matter of fact -- a jury question -- as a legal concept.
I'm on several websites where we speak about this in detail, and I don't want to give Trump advice but traditionally, a court would compare the job title and duties with his conduct. The terms "course and scope" of his the office of the presidency are applied. Generally, the scope of employment is the range of activities and conducts that an employee is reasonably expected to perform.
Also stuff like "frolic and detour," would be applied. All of this would be determined before trial and the facts reduced to writing as jury instructions. Every fact will be broken down as we used to say in the Army, "by the numbers."
https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/frolic_and_detour
Guerilla tactics like attacking bar licenses may be effective.
Clarence Thomas was admitted to the Missouri bar in 1974 and became an Assistant Attorney General of the State of Missouri the same year. https://ballotpedia.org/Watchdog_group_POE_calls_for_disbarment_of_Clarence_Thomas
The system of appointing judges to lifetime appointments has passed it's past due date. It's time to start electing them the way we do in each state. And give them a term of 4 years. There is no accountability in this court.
I don’t see how there will be a decision until as late as possible as they are as much a part of the Bannon effect-delay, distract, hit the electorate with a firehouse of sh!t that keeps them SPINNING!
Every time there is a shooting or domestic terrorism, this Report has an answer to the question "How did things get like this?".
The best part of Jack Smith's quote: "unique national importance". I guess The Sick Six SHOWED him and all Americans just WHO is in charge here! I suspected we were way down their list of important things---somewhere down at the bottom with human rights for females and LGBTQ+ folks.
Wonder who got a new toy or a bundle of cash for this bullshit.
They're so full of hate they probably didn't even need to get paid for that one?
Could be, Bob. Just telling us and Jack we can sit and spin another 7 weeks while they send their love to those psychopaths Trump and Putin.
See what I said above. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, DOJ can file dozens of cases against henchmen, aiders and abettors.
Thing is, they don't even have the "excuse" that they might lose their jobs to a primary. They are selected zealots to start with. Do Alito and Kavanaugh go in the confessional and whisper, we hate women, women are dirty sluts, and the priest sentences them to finger a few rosaries, but never mind repentance, just come back next week?
THAT'S how it works for them. If it doesn't work for us, oh well---we will get our "Equal Justice Under Law" when we get to heaven.
The Supreme Court just agreed to delay the trial , probably till after the election. They decided to give the ‘middle finger’
once again to the people and Democracy.
If there is no legal means to stop this grandiose, narcissistic behavior by the court , it’s time to create a way . This court run by the ‘ Republican’ bought and paid for group of “ In- Justices’ has become an absolute sham and disaster . Disaster for Democracy and of course , that’s the plan.
I don’t for one minute think that the Harlan Crowes and the Heritage foundations lackeys gave all the money and perks to these Criminal Justices so they’d vote for Democracy. No need . We’re watching this plan that was a long time in the making come to fruition.
Republicans that aren’t willing to embrace this extent of corruption have left Congress.
This despicable process that these Republican in-Justices have embraced has been spelled out for them and they’ve agreed to thwart Democracy all for corrupt power.
We Democrats have been late to the awakening of this total corruption . Now we know and should leave no stone unturned in our efforts to oppose them . They are rancid. Racist . Putrid in their deception .
I agree with you, though I don't think the Democrats have been "late" to awaken to this, I think they stupidly thought it would all go away. At some point you have to fight the bully, this "if they go low, we go high" BS is so out of touch with the situation at this point. IMHO
At every turn, the Republicans lie and cheat: Oh, no, the Justice Dept. doesn't drop anything "hot" near to election day: except Hillary Clinton's emails. God forbid a Supe. Justice should even be considered in an election year! Oh, wait; emergency Barrett! Personally, I think Joe Biden should deploy maximum non-personnel support to Ukraine, and tell the Repubs, go ahead sue me!
Garland enabled all of it also! I also think that GOP owns the Democratic party going back to the 1980s. I heard that George Soros is buying about 200 radio stations? It will be too little too late. The maga is who we need to reach, they will not tune in to those stations. Almost like it's planned that way. The response is always too little too late. That is how Trump threw red meat at his base. He would do a little and claim to do a lot.
Sure smells like POOP (Putin's Obnoxious Orange Puppet) is well on its way back to the White House.
I don't believe in miracles and right now that lack of superstition has proven unfortunate for sleep, planning for the future, or investing useful effort into just about anything that necessarily rests on the foundation of a stable society.
I'm sure I'm not alone. That's the troubling part.
Perversely, the GOP-inflicted rot within our institutions only serves to "prove" their obnoxious claims that our government is having a "crisis of legitimacy". The only crisis we as a nation - no, world - are experiencing is a Putin-stroking GOP and a GOP-enabling Putin.
Both the GOP and Putin must be dealt with - must be absolutely broken simultaneously and immediately. Our legislatures, our courts, and our chicken shit greedy private for-profit "news" corporations (what a horribly catastrophic mechanism for conveying current events) have turned the blood of our democracy septic by hopping aboard Putin's GOP.
The busiest intersection of our time is Sycophancy & Cowardice. And the corrupt majority of SCOTUS have taken it upon themselves to be the sole director's of traffic. Bad news for everything that finds life favorable.
John, I don't think it's just Putin that we we are up against. I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist but George Bush Senior was around when JFK was assassinated and when Nixon normalized relations within communist China and when Reagan tore down the wall. Russia and China are now capitalist dictatorships and so are almost all the third world Nations on the planet. I think there is a group of rich on the planet that want to have total control over the peasants and the environment. I don't think it's just Putin.
This is like reliving the election of 2000, but times 10. That decision cost the lives of 5000 American soldiers and over 100,000 civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan. How much will this cost us?!!
This time it won't be combatants of other nations killing Americans, it will be our own citizens turning on other citizens.
This is a mixed war, but rather than a war between individuals and a nation, it will be a war of the government against it's own citizens, using paramilitary forces, Germany 1933-45 comes to mind.
You assume the military will go with the Trumplicans. Not necessarily!
I spend a lot of time on bases, thanks to my Korean War Vet spouse. The on-base TV runs MSNBC as well as FOX. I think it hangs by a thread who the commanding officer is. Many women are serving, and they aren't nobodies. Look at the retired officers horrified at Trump. I agree: not necessarily!
What exactly are you trying to say?
I've said it, in two sentences. Such brevity is uncommon for me.
Let me spell it out even more. Trump will launch a war of citizen vs citizen, just like the Brownshirts in Germany, and use the military to round up the "vermin poisoning the blood of the nation" and deport them, or hold them as "criminals" to use as slave labor.
Is that clear enough?
Good job William brevity seems to be your friend.
I agree with Linda Z above, that "use the military" is not a given. Just chiming in.
Nothing is a given. Just saying don't look to the military to save our bacon. Just look around the world. Who is the bludgeon of last resort to be used against he people, and often the first?
The military.
The military follows orders, it is that simple.
Who comprises the majority of the ranks , southerrn and rural white boys.,
Who comprises the majority of it's l;eadership, officers trained in the Acadamy's and where has Dominionism made inroads? The Acadamy's
The treason brothers Generals Michael and Charles Flynn are not aberrations.
Does Trump really need to use the military when he's got all the police departments at his disposal with military equipment to fight a bunch of pot smoking flour loving pansy hippies?
Well, that won't be me! Did your bullying spell-check convert "flower?" We already have to strangle A.I. Anyway, your worry about local cops is justified. As a retired Public Defender, I know something about the mentality. One of my cases, long after exit from 'Nam," I had audio of the cops chasing a suspect through a neighborhood identifying him as a "gook." Not only are the stereotypes profound, but so is the arrogant assumption that they can write anything in their report, testify in front of a jury and whatever is going to be bought hook, line sinker. Scary.
If Trump survives his legal gauntlet and wins the election — way beyond Seal Team 6 assassinations, defenestration, and plane bombs a la Putin — He may turn Blue cities into an American Gaza (post Oct 7, 2023) F16s included. See below, the animated movie "Fritz the Cat's" bombing of Harlem.
https://youtu.be/s0RP6w5Aoy0?si=NzTCRhWYCyrH_FsA
Cambodian Pol Pot didn't like the educated city folk either, or those with glasses to read with.
🎯
Supreme Court History Replay: The same folks who made Bush President now tip the scales for Trump. This infographic shows how John Roberts, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Ted Cruz, Joel Kaplan, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alioto helped stop the vote recount in Florida to get Bush Jr. elected. Surprised by their decision to tilt the scales for Trump?
https://thedemlabs.org/2024/02/28/maga-supreme-court-justices-tip-the-scales-for-trump/
Take a look at "Mitch McConnell's Legacy: Illustrated Edition" to understand how MAGA Justices on the Supreme Court are doing their part in helping re-elect Trump.
https://thedemlabs.org/2024/02/29/mitch-mcconnells-legacy-illustrated-edition/
And there sits the corporate media, especially the "liberal" NYT, WAPO and MSNBC,like the three monkeys.
I am watching Ari Melber (recorded) he is discussing the move by SCOTUS to hear the case of Trumps immunity. They didn't have to, they could have refused it (the shadow docket), but they took it and set an April date for hearing, the result is that even if they rule that he is not immune, the trial won't happen until at least October, too late for the election.
The court has acted with light speed, when it comes to cases important to the right wing, be it corporate or political. Bush v Gore is just one example. They took it up one day,and they ruled for Bush the next.
Ari had James Carville on, and Carville said that he can and has predicted the Supreme Court 100% of the time, When it comes to individual rights they rule against, when it comes to corporations they rule for.
The only reason the pundits and media hang on to each case, is clicks and ads.
Any liberal or progressive can predict the rulings of SCOTUS. it will be right wing.
Joyce Vance said:
“The substantive argument Trump makes—that presidents are entitled to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for anything they do in office and more specifically, for trying to steal an election—has to be a loser. As we’ve discussed before, if it’s not, our claim to be a democracy is no longer viable. Presidents would be forever above the law.”
“either presidents can commit crimes to stay in office or they can’t.”
“The right path forward is for the Supreme Court to do its job and decide this appeal promptly. Unfortunately, they don’t seem inclined to do so.”
“they've given him a huge win on the clock, unless they decide the case as soon as it’s argued.”
“Donald Trump will end American democracy if he’s reelected. He will corrupt our country for his own benefit. He has not made a secret of it. The only question is whether enough of our fellow citizens will be aware of what the 2024 election means for the future and care enough when we go to the polls to prevent Trump from returning to power. The small steps that we take during the next few months will pay big dividends.”
“Today, Liz Cheney said in an interview on the Today Show that Trump will never leave office if he's elected president again and that Republicans need to “do whatever it takes to make sure that Donald Trump is defeated in 2024," including potentially voting for Biden.”
https://open.substack.com/pub/joycevance/p/the-supreme-court-disappoints?r=24p296&utm_medium=ios
Trump's power arises from the theocratic impules of the people and the theocrats of the Abrahamic religions Trump is, to them, just a tool, one which they think they can use to achieve hegemonic dominance.
There were industrialists and financiers in the 1930's who had the same belief,in a former corporal and street corner post card artist.
Trump already has dementia and looks very unhealthy. He won't live long but may appoint his son who has said that China being the world reserve currency is not a bad idea, Americans need to learn to balance their budget. Just paraphrasing that. Google raw story and type in Donald Trump Jr. Steve Bannon show, China World reserve currency and it will come up.
Letting an insane man have a nuclear arsenal is insane in itself. I don't see any of the Republicans being able to get him out of office, even if he is crawling on the floor in diapers and drooling?
Another excellent article Thom. It's amazing how you can keep track of all of the evil the greedy do. Biden should have had Trump prosecuted and all of his appointees replaced by now! And all his accomplices in the Congress and States also.
Looking to ascertain the process needed to accomplish an actual expansion of the SCOTUS--fact, not opinion here, please. Some have suggested Biden could do it. This may be more conversational than comprehensive, but I don't know. If it is up to Biden,
Biden alone, my worries would deepen. Biden has demonstrated such a paucity of fight-back throughout this fascist coup that I find worrying about his age much less important than his worrying about his true agency.
Well said Gerald, especially this line: " Biden has demonstrated such a paucity of fight-back throughout this fascist coup that I find worrying about his age much less important than his worrying about his true agency."
To answer the question " Yes the Supreme court will enable the coup.
The court has a "shadow docket", it uses all of the time, when it agrees with the lower court, it sends the case back to the lower court, or not hears it at all.
The fact that the court has taken up the Trump case, and set April as the hearing date is all the evidence we need that it is going to rule in favor of Trump.
The Court abhors Trump, but he is a useful tool for the Talibanization of America, There are seven Catholics on the court, at least five, maybe six, are radical traditionalist Catholics, misogynistic, homophobic, theocratic traditionalists.
We are friggin doomed, unless states and people grow a spine, and do what Alabama has done, and what Andrew Jackson did, ignore the court, after all they don't have the ability to enforce their rulings.
The court uses states rights as an excuse, just as did the planters for slavery. Then the blue states should ignore, totally ignore, any ruling by the Supreme Court with which they disagree, red states do and will. Texas has all but formally seceded from the Union, the federal government should shut down all federal installations and offices and/or roll the tanks from Ft Hood and deploy the 82nd Airborne into Austin and arrest Abbot and his treasonous crew.