The Era of rivalry, Biden vs. Trump and their respective parties

Why do leading Republicans -- Trump, DeSantis -- act like complete jerks?

CNN reports, "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Tuesday asked his state’s Supreme Court to green-light an investigation of “any and all wrongdoing in Florida with respect to Covid-19 vaccines,” his latest move to cast doubt on the vaccines’ effectiveness and amplify fears about side effects.

"In the petition filed with the Florida Supreme Court, the Republican governor requests the empaneling of a grand jury to investigate a broad group of entities associated with the development, distribution and promotion of the vaccines, including pharmaceutical manufacturers and their executive officers, as well as medical associations.

"DeSantis also said Tuesday he was launching a public health integrity committee – a panel that would counter the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which DeSantis said “is not serving a useful function; it’s really serving to advance narratives rather than do evidence-based medicine.” The panel would assess guidance and actions from federal agencies, such as the National Institutes of Health, US Food and Drug Administration, and the CDC."

The Covid-19 vaccines have kept more than 18.5 million people in the US out of the hospital and saved more than 3.2 million lives, a new study says – and that estimate is most likely a conservative one, the researchers say. The research comes from the Commonwealth Fund and Yale School of Public Health. Their study, published Tuesday, found that without Covid-19 vaccines, the nation would have had 3.8 times more hospitalizations and 4.1 times more deaths than it did between December 2020 and November 2022. https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/13/health/covid-19-vaccines-study/index.html

 

If you had been paying attention to this thread instead of focusing in on one sentence, then writing a meaningless reply, you would know Republicans are the problem.

All we hear about is what they are going to investigate when they take over the House. They don't even know who the Speaker is going to be.

 

Nope... pretty much nailed if I do say so myself...

""Those are our nations problems... you seem to forget the Democrats had 2 months to solve our nations problems.. didn't happen... now the Republicans have to waste their time cleaning up the mess the Democrats have made.. ""

 

When the Republicans take over the House on Jan. 3, are they going to be able to govern?

They don't even know who their speaker is going to be.

CNN reports, "Republican leader Kevin McCarthy is far from assured of winning sufficient support in his party to become House speaker next month. But even before the vote, his authority is already weakening by the day – in a way that could make him a speaker who is in office but not in power.

"The tiny GOP House majority that takes over in January, after a disappointing midterm performance, would mean a fragile governing mandate for any party at any point in American history. And the ideological struggle being waged by pro-Donald Trump extremists inside the party would have made even a more comfortable majority volatile.

"But the compromises that McCarthy is facing in his increasingly bitter campaign for the speakership threaten to leave him as a tool of the most radical members of his conference and could diminish his capacity to hold the job."

 

Who cares...
the fact they can get on world TV and expose the corrupt Democrats and corrupt Biden administration to the American people by withholding exculpatory evidence and leak out select damaging evidence is all that is needed... I'm shickled titless that they will be able to subpoena witnesses, and then watch the circus come alive when the subpoenas start getting ignored by those summonsed. A select committee to "find the truth" would be nice with selected witness favorable to their case only the ones shown on live TV... no cross examination. And what would be a hoot is when the House speaker hand picks the members of the investigative committees... looking for the very crimes that the DOJ should have already looked into.. the best part, Adam Schiff ain't gonna be on any committee and running his lying mouth....
ah , the court of public opinion, ain't it great, no messy court rooms, lawyers, judges, jury, questions, answers....... rules just made up on the fly by the speaker..

 

It appears that the Republican Party is moving on and leaving Trump behind. This according to a prominent Republican governor.

CNN reports, "New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu makes one thing clear: His vision for the future of the Republican Party does not include former President Donald Trump.

"In the latest episode of “Being…”, the GOP governor told CNN’s Dana Bash, “He’s done his time. He’s done his service. We’re moving on.”

"Taking it a step further, Sununu – who just won a fourth two-year term in the Granite State by 15 percentage points – said it’s “un-American” to “be a country where the best opportunity for our future leadership is the leadership of yesterday.”

"Unprompted, Sununu brought up Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as a stronger potential candidate than Trump in the 2024 Republican presidential primary."

Unfortunately for the GOP, the educationally challenged rural voters that dominate the party at the grassroots level are hanging on to Trump. No one knows why, and they are not talking.

CNN adds, "According to a new CNN poll, DeSantis’ favorability among Republicans and Republican-leaning independent voters overall outpaces Trump: 74% view DeSantis favorably while 63% have a favorable view of Trump.

Trump's major announcement today? The former President unveiled a “limited edition collection” of NFT trading cards featuring cartoon-like images of himself depicted as a superhero. This follows his announcement that our Constitution should be terminated, which was preceded by his dining with a white supremacist and an antisemitic.

Maybe that's why farmers and rural shopkeepers like him.

 

CNN reports, "Mortgage rates fell once again this week, dipping for the fifth straight week.

"The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.31% in the week ending December 15, down from 6.33% the week before, according to Freddie Mac. A year ago, the 30-year fixed rate was 3.12%.

"Mortgage rates have risen throughout most of 2022, spurred by the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented campaign of harsh interest rate hikes to tame soaring inflation. But mortgage rates have tumbled in the last several weeks, following data that showed inflation may have finally reached its peak.

"Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index, cooled considerably in November and was at its lowest level in nearly a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ closely watched index, released on Tuesday."

Unfortunately, as was widely expected, the Federal Reserve announced a 0.50 percentage point interest rate hike Thursday, further increasing the costs of credit cards, auto financing and variable-rate loans.

The stock market crashed.

The fed chairman, Jerome Powell, wants to add a million more jobless in 2023 to cool inflation.

There are times I wonder which side Powell is on. Millions of Americans, including me, lost millions of dollars today.

 

I have been following politics for over a half century. Never in my wildest dreams did I ever envision a part of the American government causing severe damage to our economy. The actions taken by the Fed yesterday and its announcement that it will do it again and again caused the stock market to crash.

Moreover, the Fed's actions combined with the expert naysayers promising a recession may cause Americans to talk themselves into a recession by hoarding their money, killing the robust spending that is driving our economy now. After all, Americans lost millions in their investment accounts yesterday and again today, and that is directly related to what the Fed did and is saying.

CNN reports, "The good vibes on Wall Street are fading fast: the US slide tumbled yet again on Friday as investors come to grips with a souring economy."

Question: Is a "souring economy" a bad thing? The Fed and CNN seem to think so. See what I mean!

CNN continued, "Is the Fed to blame? Sentiment on Wall Street can change on a dime, and this week is evidence of that: The Dow has tumbled about 1,050 points just since the Federal Reserve’s dour policy update at 2 p.m. ET Wednesday.

"Stocks had been riding high this month on weaker-than-expected inflation and a number of stronger-than-expected reports on the broad economy and the job market. Investors were hopeful that the Federal Reserve could slow its historic pace of rate hikes and inflation could right itself sometime next year without tipping the economy into a recession.

"That excitement continued right up until Fed Chair Jerome Powell crashed Wall Street’s party Wednesday with some tough news: Economists at the Fed believe US gross domestic product, the broadest measure of America’s economy, will barely grow next year.

"And they predict the US unemployment rate will rise to 4.6% by the end of 2023, which means roughly 1.6 million more Americans will be out of work."

According to Powell, throwing 1.6 million Americans out of work is a good thing.

It will reduce inflation.

This is nuts!

 

Fake News. Dems lost by 3 million votes and 9 seats.

AFTER MAXING OUT OUR CREDIT CARDS FOR MONTHS, SOMETHING HAD TO GIVE: Retail sales fell 0.6% in November as consumers feel the pressure from inflation.

Negative reading for 3 of the last 5 months.

​

Real wages have fallen for 20 straight months.

The last rolling 3 months are 0.1% growth so they must be predicting one hell of a December.

'Fed surveys from the New York and Philadelphia regions showed contraction in manufacturing activity in December.'

The Biden/Dem economy really sucks.

 

More problems for Trump. This is what happens when a man thinks he is above the law or steeped tradition.

In this case, it is tradition. Starting with Jimmy Carter every President up through Barack Obama voluntarily disseminated their tax returns for every year they were in office.

That ended with Trump.

Perhaps that is because the Russian dictator, Vladimir Putin, helped Trump get elected in 2016 and there is a financial connection between the two.

Now that may change.

The Post reports, "Today, the House Ways and Means Committee is meeting to decide whether to publicly release six years of former president Donald Trump’s federal tax returns that it obtained after a lengthy court battle. The move by the Democratic-led panel could be the latest headache this week for Trump after the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol voted unanimously Monday to refer four criminal charges against him to the Justice Department."

 

The Post also reported, "Meanwhile, Democratic and Republican negotiators early Tuesday unveiled a roughly $1.7 trillion deal to fund the U.S. government through most of 2023, setting up a late-hour scramble on Capitol Hill to approve the sprawling package and avert a potential shutdown on Friday.

"In a sign of Republican support for the omnibus spending legislation, several Republicans joined the Democrats in the majority on a procedural vote about the bill. The procedural vote passed 70-25.

"Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) supports the legislation even though the leaders of Republicans in the House are urging party members to oppose it."

Please note, the House is still controlled by Democrats, and the omnibus bill is expected to pass this week.

 

Little wonder as to why the forum's Republicans are staying quiet about the worst President this country has ever had, the President they voted for.

In addition to being impeached twice and having been criminally referred by Congress on four charges, what is Trump hiding in his tax returns?

Maybe we will find out.

CNN reports, "It will take time for lawmakers and the public to digest the trove of documents relating to former President Donald Trump’s tax returns released Tuesday night by the House Ways and Means Committee.

"Trump repeatedly defied convention and refused to release his tax returns both as a presidential candidate and as a sitting president.

"The committee, which is responsible for IRS oversight and writing tax policy, had long sought and finally obtained just a few weeks ago Trump’s tax returns for 2015 through 2020. Its stated aim was to review “how the IRS enforces the federal tax laws and ensures compliance by a president.”

"Here are some of the top initial takeaways from the committee’s report.

"The Ways and Means Committee assert that the IRS presidential audit program was “dormant” during Trump’s term.

Note: The IRS is a part of the executive branch of government.

"Trump paid a combined $1.1 million in federal income taxes in 2018 and 2019, a stark contrast to the $750 he paid in 2017 and $0 in 2020.

"The Ways and Means Committee said it intends to release Trump's actual tax returns.

"The release could come in a matter of days. First, Neal said, sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers and account numbers must be redacted."

 

A few days ago I wrote, "Thursday's report from the Commerce Department showed that prices rose 6% in October from a year earlier. That was the smallest increase since November 2021 and was down from a 6.3% year-over-year rise in September. Gas prices nationwide have plunged to their lowest level since February.

"The economy added 263,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate stayed 3.7%, still near a 53-year low, the Labor Department said Friday.

"The Biden economy is on fire, full employment, job growth, robust spending, and now an easing of inflation combined with lower gas prices. What's not to like?"

Now ABC reports, "Shrugging off rampant inflation and rising interest rates, the U.S. economy grew at an unexpectedly strong 3.2% annual pace from July through September, the government reported Thursday in a healthy upgrade from its earlier estimate of third-quarter growth.

"The rise in gross domestic product — the economy's output in goods and services — marked a return to growth after consecutive drops in the January-March and April-June periods.

"Driving the third-quarter growth were strong exports and healthy consumer spending."

Despite all the positive signs of our powerful economy, there are still pessimists amongst us predicting a recession, most lean Republican. They prefer our economy failing while President Biden is in office.

 

McCarthy and House Republicans aside, this is our government should work, not daily controversies, but solid progress, the hallmark of the Biden administration.

NBC reports, "The Senate voted Thursday to pass a $1.7 trillion government funding bill, sending it to the House to avoid a holiday shutdown.

"The vote was 68-29 on sweeping legislation that would keep the government funded through next fall and overhaul election laws in an attempt to prevent another Jan. 6. It came after votes on a potpourri of amendments, including landmark workplace protections for pregnant and breastfeeding employees.

"The bill also includes nearly $45 billion in aid to Ukraine after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at a joint meeting of Congress that U.S. support is “crucial” in helping it fend off Russian aggression. The package includes $9 billion for weapons and more than $15 billion in economic and humanitarian aid.

"The bill now heads to the House, which has one more day to pass it before a government shutdown at midnight Friday. After it passes the House, the legislation goes to President Joe Biden, who will sign it into law."

This President gets things done.

During the previous administration, the government was shut down twice.

 

ABC reports, "A measure of inflation closely watched by the Federal Reserve slowed last month, another sign that a long surge in consumer prices seems to be easing.

"Friday's report from the Commerce Department showed that prices rose 5.5% in November from a year earlier, down from a revised 6.1% increase in October and the smallest gain since October 2021. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core inflation was up 4.7% over the previous year. That was also the smallest increase since October 2021.

"Higher prices and borrowing costs may be taking a toll on American consumers. Their spending rose just 0.1% from October to November and didn’t rise at all after adjusting for higher prices.

"Americans' after-tax income, however, rose 0.3% in November even after accounting for inflation."

Republicans will be disappointed. They want the successful Biden economy to fail and slip into a recession. You don't have to believe me. That is what they are saying.

 

I hope everyone had a nice Christmas.

Here is an interesting take on the 2022 election. It was much closer than people think, but it was a historic victory for the Democrats, thanks to Donald Trump.

CNN reports, "A lot of people have tried to draw lessons from the 2022 elections, which ended earlier this month. Whether it be Democrats’ historically strong performance for a party in power during a midterm or the lack of Senate incumbents losing, the takes have been aplenty.

"But perhaps the most important lesson as we head into the 2024 cycle hasn’t gotten enough oxygen: the closeness of the 2022 midterms. Indeed, an examination of the data reveals that 2022 was a historically close election in a historically divided era.

"Let’s start with seat counts in governorships and in the House and Senate. Post-election, neither party dominates. Republicans have maintained the thinnest majority of governorships (52%) and House seats (51%). Democrats will control the Senate with a bare majority (51% of the seats).

"What is unusual is to have all three be so closely divided. This is the first time since the popular election of senators (1914) when neither party will hold more than 52% of governorships, House seats or Senate seats."

 

Biden doesn't have a party he's just a poor figure head of a party that largely defines itself by but being the other party

 

There is definitely something wrong with today's Republicans.

The former Republican President led a coup against our government on Jan. 6, 2021, while President.

The former Republican President lost reelection by seven million votes and stole classified documents on his way out the door.

Many Republicans in key elections in November were election deniers, and most of them lost, costing the GOP a majority in the Senate and barely eking out a majority in the House, a virtual victory for the Democrats in the mid-term elections.

Three days after a judge rejected Kari Lake’s election challenge in the Arizona race for governor, a judge in Maricopa County has ordered her to compensate her opponent, Katie Hobbs.

GOP Rep.-elect George Santos is facing growing condemnation for fabricating sections of his resume – including his past work experience, education, and claiming he was Jewish. He is Catholic. Claims by Santos that his grandparents “survived the Holocaust” as Ukrainian Jewish refugees were also false.

“I never claimed to be Jewish,” Santos told the New York Post on Monday. “I said I was Jew-ish.”

It is unlikely House Republican leadership will do anything about Santos. That same Republican leadership blames Nancy Pelosi for the attack on our capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

What do grassroots Republicans think about all this? No one knows. They never talk about their own party as this thread shows.

As Americans, they can't even explain why they are Republican!

 

More bad news for Trump. There has been a lot of that lately. It is what happens to a person who ignores our laws.

CNN reports, "The House Ways and Means Committee will release former President Donald Trump’s tax returns Friday morning, a source familiar confirmed to CNN.

"The highly anticipated release comes after the panel last week asserted that the IRS failed to properly audit the former president’s taxes while he was in office."

Note: The IRS is a part of the executive branch.

CNN continued, "The committee released a report that detailed six years’ worth of the former president’s tax returns, including his claims of massive annual losses that significantly reduced his tax burden.

"Chairman Richard Neal and fellow Democrats have said that the records they obtained showed that the presidential audit program failed to work as intended. Neal, a Massachusetts Democrat, charged that the complete required audit of Trump’s taxes “did not occur,” as his returns were only subjected to the mandatory audit once, in 2019, after Democrats inquired.

"The audit program was important to Democrats because it was the justification they used to obtain the returns in the first place – but the Democratic pursuit was also tied in part to long-held suspicions about Trump’s taxes after he bucked the norm and refused to release his returns as a candidate and while in office."

We may soon find out what Trump was hiding, such as paying less taxes than a high school teacher while in office.

 

No response from the educationally challenged Republicans to the report above. That was pretty much expected.

Jill Filipovic writes, "What happens when Rep.-elect George Santos of New York goes to Washington, DC, in January will be a real test of today’s Republican Party. Does honesty and integrity matter at all? Or is GOP leadership so power-hungry that it will allow a serial fabulist to remain in office despite deceiving the public – and the voters who elected him – about key aspects of his biography?

"While running for office, Santos, who was elected in a district in New York had either lied or been strangely cagey about everything from where he lived to which college he graduated from to where he worked to what his religious background was.

"Santos has admitted that the media outlets were mostly right, and he did indeed fudge his resume and much of his biography. Except he’s still being less than forthcoming, claiming in a WABC interview that “a lot of people overstate in their resumes, or twist a little bit.”

"What makes a person lie so often and so brazenly? What makes someone whose resume is largely false put themselves in the public eye and under a media microscope by running for office? How is it possible that when this person finally gets caught, they don’t slink away in shame, but rather lash out defiantly and simply refuse to face any consequences?

Note: That is the Trumpian way, now widely used by Republicans like Kari Lake, Doctor Oz, and countless other losers.

Filipovic continued, "There is no doubt that Santos deceived voters in his district. Republican Party leaders could certainly pressure Santos not to take office. They could publicly denounce him, and say that their party stands for honesty and will not stand for brazenly lying to constituents.

"It’s a sad reflection of today’s GOP, though, that it is unlikely they will do anything, and so far, party leaders have largely stayed silent.

Filipovic concluded, "Santos is exactly who you don’t want in office. He is a man who seemingly has no problem lying for self-aggrandizement and personal gain; a man who, even when caught, demonstrates little remorse or accountability."

It is expected that Republicans will remain silent. A response would require an educational background far beyond their capabilities.

 

This Republican is unreal.

ABC reports, "Federal prosecutors have started looking into public filings by congressman-elect George Santos amid questions about the source of his wealth, sources familiar with the matter told ABC News.

"In 2020 when he first ran for Congress, Santos listed no assets and a salary of $55,000 in his personal financial disclosure report filed as a House candidate.

"But his 2022 personal financial disclosure report filed as a candidate subsequently showed his fortunes had drastically changed: He owned assets valued between $2.6 million and $11.25 million, including an apartment in Rio de Janeiro, a checking account and a savings account.
According to the 2022 disclosure, he reported earning millions between January 2021 through December 2022 from his New York-based company, Devolder Organization.

"Santos did not identify any clients of Devolder on his disclosure form and the company does not appear to have a public presence, such as a website. His campaign website previously called it his "family firm," where he oversaw $80 million in client assets as the managing principal.

"According to his campaign disclosure filed with the Federal Election Commission, Santos reported loaning his congressional campaign $705,000 between 2020 and 2022, including $500,000 in March 2022 and a last-minute injection of $125,000 in the final weeks of the 2022 election cycle.

"His seemingly sudden wealth, along with other discrepancies in his biography that were first reported by The New York Times, drew the attention of congressional Democrats and others in the media.

"Santos has admitted to fabricating parts of his background, including his education and employment history, and also exaggerating his Jewish ancestry. But he's insisted in interviews that he's "not a criminal."

But no one has accused him of being a "criminal." He seems sensitive about the subject. Many wonder why.

Republican leadership has remained totally silent about Santos, much like their silence about Trump and the Jan. 6 insurrection.

McCarthy needs Santos' vote to become Speaker.

 

They got him. I have long suspected that the problems law enforcement was having to catch the killer was that he was not local. He was a stranger to Moscow. The suspicion was true. The suspect was from Pennsylvania.

ABC reports, "A 28-year-old graduate student was arrested Friday morning in Pennsylvania's Pocono Mountains in connection with the November murders of four University of Idaho students, police said, but many details of the case still remain a mystery.

"The suspect, Bryan Kohberger, is a graduate student at Washington State University, located less than 10 miles away from the University of Idaho, Moscow Police Chief James Fry said at a Friday news conference.

"Law enforcement sources told ABC News that police identified Kohberger as a suspect, at least in part, by using DNA technology, and police then tracked the grad student to Pennsylvania through his car.




"Police did not disclose a motive or what led them to their suspect. The probable cause affidavit, which details the reasons for Kohberger's arrest, is sealed and cannot be released until he returns to Idaho, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson said.

"Kohberger received his undergraduate degree from DeSales University in Pennsylvania in 2020 and completed graduate studies at DeSales in June 2022, according to the university.

"Washington State University identifies Kohberger as a Ph.D. student in its department of criminal justice and criminology.

"Kohberger was arrested on four counts of first-degree murder and burglary."

 

Republican-led Alabama joined predominately Republican-led states in allowing people to carry a concealed handgun without a state permit, which also eliminated the need for a background check.

As the Republican intelligence challenged rural voters, mostly farmers and rural shopkeepers, buy guns without any checks to protect themselves from other farmers and rural shopkeepers the NRA is loving it. Business is good.

ABC reports, "Alabama on Jan. 1 will become the latest state to allow people to carry a concealed handgun without a state permit that requires a background check.

"The new state law ends the requirement for a person to get a permit to legally carry a concealed handgun in public.

"The National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action, which lobbied for the Alabama legislation, said in April that 25 states now allow permitless carry."

As mass murders have become a pandemic in the United States -- Uvalde, Texas, Buffalo, New York, Colorado Springs (twice in past 2 years, Boulder, Colorado, Sacramento, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, El Paso, Texas, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Santa Fe, Texas, Parkland, Florida, Plano, Texas, Dallas, Texas, Orlando, Florida (50 dead), Paradise, Nevada (Las Vegas 61 dead), Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting (28 dead), and hundreds more -- it just goes to prove there is no end to abject stupidity.

To illustrate that stupidity, we have the solemn words of comfort from Rep. Shane Stringer, the legislation’s sponsor. “It’s going to be a big step to help the average law-abiding citizen to keep them from having to go through the hoops of getting a permit to carry their weapons. It's not going change who can and cannot carry a gun. People that are prohibited now are still prohibited.”

Stringer noted the law only impacts the permit requirement.

This dumbass doesn't even know his law removes the need for a background check.

But the rural voters of Alabama will believe every word. After all, they voted for him.

As long as people continue to be stupid when it comes to guns, Americans are going to die.

 

What do they have on this guy? DNA found in the Moscow apartment that could have been left there any time and his white car that was seen in Moscow. That's it, and the suspect is waiving extradition. He wants to get to Idaho soonest to tell his story. That's not the actions of a guilty man.

 

ABC reports, "One person is dead and nine are injured following a shooting on New Year's Eve in Mobile, Alabama.

"The shooting happened around 11:14 p.m. local time on the 200 block of Dauphin Street, according to the Mobile Police Department.

"When officers arrived, police found a deceased 24-year-old male. Nine other people suffered gunshot wounds, according to police.