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

Nothing from the forum's Republicans!

They know their party is wrong, but they want to choose our next President.

They can't talk, but they want to choose our Senators, representatives, and governors.

They think threatening our national defense is a good strategy for the upcoming elections.

 

Despite the fact that it has only about 20 members, the ultra-conservative wing of the Republican Party known as the Freedom Caucus controls the House. As expected, the House with its amendments restricting travel expenses for health reasons, restricting transgender health care, and restricting racial diversity passed the defense bill.

The House version has zero chance of passage in the Democratically controlled Senate.

Ultra-conservative Republicans will not work in a bipartisan mode. It is their way or the highway, and, if our national security is threatened, so be it.

On the Senate side, Republican Senator Tuberville is doing his part by holding the military's chain of command hostage over abortion travel expenses.

CNN reports, "The House voted Friday to pass a sweeping defense policy bill following contentious debate over the adoption of controversial amendments.

"The addition of amendments pushed by conservative hardliners related to abortion policy and transgender health care access as well as targeting diversity and inclusion programs infuriated Democrats and led to push back from some moderate Republicans – and will now set up a clash with the Democratic-controlled Senate.

"The bill, known as the National Defense Authorization Act, sets the policy agenda and authorizes funding for the Department of Defense and is considered critical, must-pass legislation.

"The move to allow the contentious amendment votes marked a major concession by GOP leaders to conservatives hardliners – and may be a preview of legislative fights to come, including the high-stakes effort to fund the government.

"The fight to pass the defense bill out of the House showed once again the power of conservative hardliners in the narrow GOP majority, and conservatives cheered the bill’s passage."

The bill is going nowhere beyond the legislative junk heap. This is why they are cheering? This is a winning strategy for the 2024 elections?

Or is the Freedom Caucus along with the party's leader -- Donald Trump -- out to destroy what was once known as the Republican Party?

 

More good news for Americans.

NBC reports, "There's still a long way to go — but U.S. consumers are starting to feel better about the economy.

"The University of Michigan's monthly Consumer Sentiment Index hit 72.6 for July — the highest reading since September 2021.

"The sentiment measure has now climbed eight of the past 11 months.

"In an interview in advance of Friday's release, index director Joanne Hsu said the tracker remains closely tied to inflation. With price increases slowing from their June 2022 highs, it makes sense that a rebound in sentiment is occurring, she said.

"But inflation isn't the only consideration: The strong labor market is also helping bolster sentiment, Hsu said. At 3.6%, unemployment is at historic lows. The so-called Misery Index, which adds the unemployment rate to the inflation rate, is now approaching pre-pandemic levels."

 

Within the Republican ranks in the House, moderate Republicans have a huge majority over the ultra-conservative Republicans who are responsible for the restrictive, unrelated amendments to the defense bill meant to fund our military.

The defense bill passed, 219 to 210.

What does that mean exactly?

It means the so-called moderate wing of the Republican Party went right along with the ultra-conservative amendments!

Draw your own conclusions.

Forum Republicans continue their silence.

 

Hersh Exposes The Real 'Quid Pro Quo' That Changed Erdogan's Mind About Sweden

'All of this European political & economic double dealing was done openly and in plain sight...'

'Biden promised that a 11-13 billion line of credit would be extended to Turkey by the International Monetary Fund.'

'"Reporters were told, according to the New York Times, that Biden called Erdogan while flying to Europe on Sunday. Biden’s coup, the Times reported, would enable him to say that Putin got "exactly what he did not want: an expanded, more direct NATO alliance." There was no mention of bribery.'

 

Fake News. We're a Free People, we have no reservation. It was the Democrat Party that was the party of the Plantation.

Your broad-brushed smear of half the electorate reflects only on you. As for the Constitution, yes, it does give impeachment power to the Congress for Bribery, and Biden is the most openly bribed office holder to ever be in the office.

As for his lawless administration, well, it turns out the Constitution has a solution for that as well.

To hold unelected officials accountable, it's called "The Appointments Clause."

Previous to our Glorious Constitutional Liberal Democracy, 'monarchs and royal governors would appoint unqualified loyalists to government positions. That abuse was significant enough that it was one of the grievances enumerated in the Declaration of Independence.'

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their substance.​

'The Appointments Clause generally requires unelected federal officials with significant power to be nominated by the president and confirmed by the Senate, and the president must be able to fire these officials at will. Only these “Officers of the United States,” not just any government employee, can make important decisions that affect the public. And because officers are both hired and fired by elected representatives, the people can hold officers accountable by holding their elected representatives accountable for officers’ actions. '

It's Time To Make The Appointments Clause Great Again!

 

Huh!

I love it when Republicans prove my point.

You avoided every issue in my reports, and tried to change the subject. It's what Republicans do.

That's because those issues are extremely damning to the Republican Party.

 

Well, Joe Biden is a hateful divisive idiot who can't keep his mouth off little girls.

Of course. That violates US Law, the Hyde Amendment. The Senator has agreed to drop the hold if the Senate holds a vote on changing the law, but, he's not going to let Bribed Joe with the child sucking mouth, violate US law with a regulation.

Obey the law, or
Change the law.

 

IT’S ONLY “CULTURE WAR” WHEN REPUBLICANS RESIST: Republicans didn’t “insert” culture war into Defense bill; Democrats did.

Republicans are 'not pushing to make radical changes to the way the military runs based on some social agenda; rather, they are trying to put a stop to radical changes the Biden Administration has been making without Congressional approval, or for that matter any approval of the American people, who have made clear in polling that they oppose most of the things Biden is doing.'

'The big issues are these:

• changes the Biden Administration has made to abortion policies,
• transgender surgeries and treatments for servicemembers and their families, and
• a restriction on the types of flags that may be flown at military bases.'

'Republicans are not trying to restrict anything that has been common practice in the military for decades; in fact, they are trying to reign in Biden’s radical Leftward shift in military policies that break longstanding practice. It’s not like the US military was recruiting people by giving them the incentive to chop off healthy body parts in the past or promising to provide Drag Queen Story Hours for all the children of soldiers.'

 

A third party calling itself No Labels released a policy manual called Common Sense. An interesting choice of words.

Is it common sense for a Democrat to run for President on the No Labels ticket, causing the defeat of our Democratic President, resulting in a victory for the criminally indicted candidate, Donald Trump?

That is what Senator Joe Manchin is thinking of doing. He has already teamed up with a Republican. That would not be a surprise for those who know Manchin, a Democrat who often does the bidding for Republicans, and who has an annoying habit of infuriating the Democratic President.

ABC reports, "No Labels, the third-party bipartisan group that is considering launching a "unity" campaign in the 2024 presidential race, on Monday will host a major event to discuss its platform -- and will be joined by two notable politicians from across the aisle.

"Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., a Republican, will speak at the group's "Common Sense town hall" at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire.

"Manchin and Huntsman foreshadow what a potential No Labels ticket could look like next year (and Manchin has conspicuously not closed the door to running for president).

"Over the weekend, No Labels released a policy manual called Common Sense which serves as the party's platform and draws direct contrasts with President Joe Biden.

"The booklet was released in hopes that the ideas will help popularize a centrist third-party White House run."

Thereby splitting the Democratic vote if two Democrats are in the running.

Would our country survive another Donald Trump Presidency?

 

What are Republicans doing? Why are they messing with our national security?

I don't expect an answer from the forum's Republicans. They rarely discuss what their party is doing.

Despite the fact that it has only about 20 members, the ultra-conservative wing of the Republican Party known as the Freedom Caucus controls the House. As expected, the House with its amendments restricting travel expenses for health reasons, restricting transgender health care, and restricting racial diversity passed the defense bill.

The House version has zero chance of passage in the Senate, causing a delay in the funding of our military.

On the Senate side, Republican Senator Tuberville is doing his part by holding the military's chain of command hostage over abortion travel expenses.

Another Republican Senator is damaging our relations with other countries, friend and foe alike. "Secretary of State Antony Blinken is urging the Senate to confirm more than 60 State Department nominees who have been blocked by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., while he seeks information from the administration on the origins of Covid-19.

There will only be silence from Republicans. They like to think their party wins elections by weakening our national security.

 

Pay attention!

The Post reports, "The federal judge presiding over Donald Trump’s trial for allegedly mishandling classified documents is scheduled to meet with prosecutors and the former president’s attorneys for the first time Tuesday afternoon in a Fort Pierce, Fla., courtroom.

"The public hearing is expected to focus on administrative procedures required in a case that relies on classified government materials as evidence. It could also provide insight into whether U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon will push to resolve the trial before or after the 2024 presidential election.

"Prosecutors and Trump’s defense attorneys have sharply differed on when the trial should take place, and in an order Monday, Cannon said the two sides should come to the next day’s hearing prepared to discuss the potential timing."

This will be interesting. At issue is whether Trump will be able to push the trial date past the 2024 November elections.

 

Sixty-one percent of Iowa adults say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 35% say the procedure should be illegal in most or all cases.

More than two-thirds of Iowa women, 70%, say abortion should be legal in most or all cases. Democrats also are broadly in favor, with 87% favoring legal abortion.

Governor Kim Reynolds signed the bill Friday.

"Joseph Seidlin, a district court judge in Polk County, said that the new ban would be suspended while the larger legal case against it moved forward. He said in his ruling that the plaintiffs who filed a lawsuit against the ban, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers, were likely to succeed on the merits of their case," the Times.

Republicans favor government control of a woman's body if she is pregnant. Americans are not buying it.

Recently, Republican White House hopefuls courted evangelicals at a faith conference where economic concerns shared the stage with social issues that dominate the evangelical agenda.

Many political speakers at the Faith and Freedom Coalition emphasized jobs, debt, and deficits.

Wonderful idea -- an evangelical President. Republicans are banking on it.

 

It is interesting that Republicans want to win the Presidency and Congress in the 2024 elections, but they refuse to discuss the issues. Like the issues that are presented here.

Ironically, Trump's followers will ensure a Democratic victory in November because the Republican Party can't escape the past. Trump won't let them.

CNN reports, "Former President Donald Trump said in a social media post he’s been informed by special counsel Jack Smith that he is a target of the criminal investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election, a sign he may soon be charged by the special counsel.

“Deranged Jack Smith, the prosecutor with Joe Biden’s DOJ, sent a letter (again, it was Sunday night!) stating that I am a TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury investigation, and giving me a very short 4 days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an Arrest and Indictment,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

"Trump’s attorneys, including Todd Blanche, received the target letter from Smith’s team Sunday informing them that their client could face charges in the investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election, two sources familiar with what happened tell CNN.

"A target letter from federal prosecutors to Trump makes clear that prosecutors are focused on the former president’s actions in the investigation into overturning the 2020 election.

CNN also reported, "US District Judge Aileen Cannon signaled she is likely to push back the start of a trial in the Mar-a-Lago classified documents case beyond the mid-December date proposed by federal prosecutors – but appeared deeply skeptical of arguments from Donald Trump’s lawyers that he couldn’t get a fair trial while running for president.

"During the hearing in Fort Pierce, Florida, Cannon told the prosecutors that their timeline was “compressed” and said that cases like this take more time.

"Cannon did not decide on a trial date but said she plans to “promptly” issue an order on the matter."

In other words, sometime in the future, the judge will pick a trial date that can be changed at any time.

 

Further proof that Republicans are not very bright!

CNN reports, "State prosecutors in Michigan announced criminal charges Tuesday against the 16 Republicans who served as fake electors in 2020, a watershed moment in the still-ongoing federal and state investigations into the 2020 election aftermath.

"Some of the GOP electors in Michigan were local activists who were recruited to serve as “fake electors,” all while inaccurately believing there was still a chance that then-President Donald Trump might secure a second consecutive term. Others were well-connected GOP operatives. The group of 16 fake electors includes current and former state GOP officials, a Republican National Committee member, a sitting mayor, a school board member and Trump supporters who were the plaintiffs in a frivolous lawsuit that tried to overturn the 2020 results."

 

This is just not Trump's day!

This is what happens to a man who thinks our laws don't apply to him. His followers remain silently ashamed of their choice. There isn't anything they can say as their chosen one loses another case, sixty cases and counting. Trump is setting records for jurisprudence frustration.

ABC reports, "The Supreme Court of Georgia denied former President Donald Trump's request to quash the work of Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis and the findings of a special grand jury she empaneled to review evidence in her probe of alleged misconduct in the wake of the 2020 presidential election.

"Willis officially launched the probe in February 2021, sparked in part by the now-infamous Jan. 2, 2021, phone call Trump made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in which Trump pleaded with Raffensperger to "find 11,780 votes," the exact number Trump needed to win Georgia.

"Attorneys for Trump last week asked the court to step in and remove Willis from the probe and invalidate the work of the special grand jury. They took issue with Willis' authority to investigate the matter and cited Trump's bid for the presidency in 2024 as part of their argument.

"All the justices of the state's Supreme Court agreed that Trump had not met a standard that would merit such an intervention, concluding that he failed to meet the "extremely rare circumstances" that would be necessary."

That Supreme Court is conservative ... very conservative. Trump can't even win over conservatives.

 

I need to give the forum's Republicans some credit.

On a day like today where Trump's many legal problems were front and center from Florida to D.C. to Michigan, Republican politicians spent the day trying to explain away Trump's legal difficulties.

They sounded ridiculous. One said that he didn't know if encouraging Americans to attack the capitol was a crime. He used those words. I know because I replayed the statement over and over again to make sure I heard it right. He was Pence's chief of staff.

DeSantis was particularly stupid, as he kept changing the subject and refused to deal with Trump's federal crimes and today's events. He said no one is above the law. Then he said Trump should not be tried before the election. They he said he would pardon Trump if Trump was convicted and he was elected President.

So, I understand Republican silence on the issues. Theoretically, Republican politicians are the experts. If the forum's Republicans used the statements made by Republican politicians, they would be laughed off the forum.

That's a problem when you're talking about the Republican Party's leader and the leading Republican for the Presidency.

 

Trump announced his candidacy unusually early -- November 2022 -- a phenomenal two years ahead of time. Did Trump announce his candidacy early because he knew he had broken our nation's laws and would be facing multiple indictments?

"President Trump famously declared during his 2016 campaign that he loved the “poorly educated” because voters with lower levels of schooling delivered an overwhelming share of votes to him," the conservative Washington Times.

Trump said on social media Tuesday that he received a target letter from Smith on Sunday, a signal that charges in the case could be coming soon.

Trump knows who he is talking to -- his adoring base. His base, for reasons unknown to them, is infatuated with him. They get news about Trump primarily from Trump. Most have never heard of special counsel Jack Smith. They know nothing about Trump's role in the Jan.6 ransacking of our capitol, and they don't know what "fake electors" are. They are clueless about the FBI search of Trump's home and the discovery of stolen classified documents. They have never heard the incriminating audio tape of Trump talking to writers about a classified document.

Why? Trump's admirers do not get their news from responsible news sources. They get their news from Trump.

This is the reason for their silence when it comes to Trump. They cannot talk intelligently about something they know nothing about, and, they avoid this thread. They don't know, and they don't want to know. Ignorance is bliss.

So, Trump is able to talk to his followers on Fox because he is aware they don't know any better.

Trump said this about the third criminal indictment in his future, "They’re in a rush because they want to interfere. It’s interference with the election — it’s election interference. Never been done like this in the history of our country, and it is a disgrace what’s happening to our country — whether it is the borders or the elections or kinds of things like this, where the DOJ has become a weapon for the Democrats."

Adding, "An absolute weapon."

To those aware of the truth, Trump's statement is complete nonsense, and he always avoids any mention of what he is accused of doing.

Trump never, ever claims he is innocent of the specific charges against him.

But Trump isn't talking to Americans who are fully aware of the circumstances. Trump is talking to those who are unaware, his admiring base.

This thread proves it.

 

CNN reports, "Few citizens face the kind of perfect storm of legal threats engulfing Donald Trump. And given that he is a past and possibly future president running for a new term, the entire country could share in his historic ordeal.

"Strong indications Tuesday that Trump could soon be indicted in a third case – this one in special counsel Jack Smith’s probe into efforts to overturn the 2020 election – deepened the legal and political tension surrounding the 2024 election. Trump said that Smith sent him a letter on Sunday informing him he was a target of the investigation, a step that usually precedes charges. This development increased the possibility that Trump, who’s pleaded not guilty in two other criminal indictments, will be required to punctuate his time on the campaign trail with long days in court and shell out for expensive legal bills.

"The target letter cites three statutes that Trump could be charged with: pertaining to deprivation of rights; conspiracy to commit an offense against or defraud the United States; and tampering with a witness, according to multiple news outlets, including The Wall Street Journal. The Justice Department has been known in the investigation to be examining possible violations of the law around conspiracy and obstruction of the congressional proceeding on January 6, which is part of the witness tampering law."

“We have a man (our President), the only way he can get elected is to weaponize the Justice Department. If you say something about an election, they want to put you in jail for the rest of your life,” Trump said Tuesday.

Trump wants to be our next President!

 

I will be blunt. This is serious stuff, and Trump's fans are suckers. They are backing a loser. In terms of the popular vote, Trump hasn't won an election yet, and now he wants more money to pay for his legal fees. His backers remain silent, unable to explain their support for a loser.

CNN reports, "Donald Trump followed a predictable pattern this week.

"The former president announced Tuesday a new set of legal troubles, this time a letter from special counsel Jack Smith that said he is the target of a criminal investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election. By day’s end, he was asking his supporters for campaign donations to help him fend off what he called “another vicious act of Election Interference on behalf of the Deep State.”

"Recent disclosures with the Federal Election Commission underscore how much these criminal cases – and Trump’s fundraising around them – have boosted his campaign finances as he mounts a third White House bid.

"A CNN analysis of itemized donations – those larger than $200 – to Trump’s campaign shows his day-by-day contributions over the first six months of this year spiked following the indictment news. In the first half of March, for instance, Trump’s principal campaign committee reported taking in an average of less than $80,000 a day in itemized contributions."

As I said, Trump's fans are suckers for backing a three-time criminally indicted loser who has yet to win an election!

 

This is so cool. Our President pulled a fast one.

NBC reports, "President Joe Biden’s campaign is seizing on an unlikely surrogate to help drive his message of an economic comeback that crosses party lines: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.

"Biden’s campaign posted a video Tuesday that features the Georgia Republican’s own words at a recent conservative conference, outlining how Biden has pursued “the largest public investment in social infrastructure and environmental programs,” building on past efforts by Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson.

"Greene’s sarcastic tone is undermined by a cheery soundtrack, as she says Biden is addressing “education, medical care, urban problems and urban poverty." Biden’s accompanying tweet says: “I approve this message.”

 

RFK, Jr. is a Democrat running for President against our current President.

The old fool is being supported by Republicans!

The Hill reports, "A Fox News contributor suggested Thursday that Republicans might be making a mistake by inviting Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to a House hearing on “weaponization” of the federal government.

"Kennedy is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who filed paperwork in April to run for president as a Democrat. He is polling well behind President Biden and has most recently sparked backlash with offensive comments suggesting the coronavirus was engineered to avoid infecting Chinese and Jewish people.

"House Republicans invited Kennedy to testify before the Judiciary Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government on Thursday.

"Democrats are going to make him the focus of this hearing, and I think it’s entirely possible Republicans have outsmarted themselves on this one,” Byron York, a columnist at The Washington Examiner and contributor to Fox, said.

"York later said Republicans could be misreading support for Kennedy.

“I think some of the support you see for Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in the Democratic party is not Democrats who want to see him be president, but for Democrats who are sending a message: We want another candidate,” he added.

“So I think Republicans may have misread some of RFK’s support.”

ABC reports, "Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has actually received more support from Republican rather than Democratic donors, among those who gave him the most money in the first months of his 2024 White House bid, according to an ABC News analysis of his most recent financial filing with the Federal Election Commission."

 

Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said Thursday if the 2024 presidential match-up is between President Biden and former President Trump, she would go with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), who so far has not launched a presidential bid.

“If it’s a match-up between Biden and Trump, I know exactly where I’d go. I would go with Joe Manchin,” Murkowski said in an interview with PBS’s Margaret Hoover.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has said many times that no one is above the law.

On Tuesday he said he hopes former President Trump doesn’t get charged in the Justice Department’s investigation into Trump’s efforts to stay in office after losing the 2020 presidential election.

You know, at times, politicians can be quite comical.

 

“We’re going to walk down to the Capitol, and we’re going to cheer on our brave senators and congressmen and women. You have to show strength, and you have to be strong.”
“When you catch somebody in a fraud, you are allowed to go by very different rules."
“We fight like hell and if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”
"Now it is up to Congress to confront this egregious assault on our democracy. And after this, we’re going to walk down, and I’ll be there with you. We are going to try and give them the kind of pride and boldness that they need to take back our country.”
***********************************************************************************************************Donald J. Trump, Jan. 6, 2021

NBC reports, "Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, both Ivy League-educated lawyers, edged ever so slightly Tuesday toward condemning former President Donald Trump's conduct on Jan. 6 — then quickly concluded, without seeing the evidence, that any charges against him are trumped up.

"Ramaswamy called Trump's actions that day an example of "bad judgment" after the former president revealed that special counsel Jack Smith's team had informed him that he is a "target" of their Jan. 6 criminal investigation.

"DeSantis said Trump should have moved "more forcefully" to stop the insurrection, but argued that to "try to criminalize that" was a mistake.

"Like most of the candidates running against Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, DeSantis and Ramaswamy played to the party's base — and aided Trump — by portraying the pending prosecution as a perversion of justice.

"So, as the chances of Trump being indicted for a third time this year grew to nearly 100 percent, there was no discernible movement within the former president's party against him."

Bottom line, the Republican Party is screwing itself. Trump's adoring fans will cost the GOP big time in the 2024 elections; Presidency, Senate, House, state governors, etc.

 

Meanwhile, their silence continues. They want Trump to be our next President, but they are incapable of discussing Trump. As to the intelligence behind all this silence, sorry, I plead the Fifth. Draw your own conclusions. Should they decide who our next President should be?

Anyway, the next trial date has been chosen. Which trial is that, you ask? Good question. CNN will explain.

"A federal judge ordered Friday that the trial in the classified documents case that special counsel Jack Smith brought against former President Donald Trump begin in May 2024.

"US District Judge Aileen Cannon said that the trial could begin as early as May 20. A pretrial hearing in the case will be held on May 14.

"If that timeline holds, then the trial would fall deep in the 2024 race for the White House, coming amid multiple GOP presidential primaries. It would be a rebuke to Trump and his legal team, who wanted to postpone the trial until after the general election takes place in November 2024."

It is extremely likely that, by May 20, Trump has already locked up the nomination. Trump effectively clinched his party's nomination at the end of May in 2016.

That's not the problem.

Trump is facing a state trial on civil fraud accusations in New York in October. Another trial on whether he defamed the writer E. Jean Carroll is set to open on Jan. 15 — the same day as the Iowa caucuses. On Jan. 29, a trial begins in yet another lawsuit, this one accusing Mr. Trump, his company and three of his children of using the family name to entice vulnerable people to invest in sham business opportunities.

In addition, Trump will be indicted any day now regarding his role in the Jan. 6 ransacking of our capitol and his fake electors scheme to deprive Americans of their vote in the November 2020 Presidential election. Also, Georgia is likely to indict him for his interference in that state's election in August.

So, the strangest defense argument in the history of jurisprudence is likely to take place in the months ahead.

Trump will argue he has committed so many crimes resulting in many trials, causing him to plead the classified docs trial should be delayed past the Presidential election in November -- meaning, of course, November 2024!