And what will happen? Will justice ever come to Trump? Will it ever come to the corruption of this Republican Party? I think it's doubtful. Every single time that a Trump corruption event has been uncovered, we think aha! this is what will do him in. But it never does and it likely never will. Look at the recent decision by the DOJ to protect Trump over rape denial. That's Merrick Garland's DOJ, not Bill Barr's. There is a very strong faction within this country that protects a sick malignant narcissist at all costs over justice. It's not just Trump who wanted to be king, it's a lot of folks that would rather live under a dictator because they know they can't win a fair election in a democracy. I know Garland said he will investigate these allegations and that's good. However, I hate to be Debbie Downer but don't hold your breath on anything ever happening. Democracy is dying folks. This is how it happens. It won't be the army in the streets with machine guns on every corner. Nope, democracy dies slowly with most people more concerned about the traffic getting to the mall. Happy Monday!
"Look at the recent decision by the DOJ to protect Trump over rape denial."
The DOJ is defending Trump from libel charges; he's still on the hook for the rape denial. I don't know for sure if his lawyers are using the libel case to delay the DNA evidence Trump has been ordered to provide, that would prove who was lying (spoiler: it's him).
But there are lots of reasons to expect developments, because there are literally hundreds of things dogging Trump. Democracy has been dying since the day it was born, and is never more vibrant than when in crisis. Nobody goes to the mall anymore, btw.
Not to speak for Lou, but it is sick that the DOJ is doing anything at all on behalf of Trump in the rape case. There is no way Trump's denial and slander of Jean Carroll fell under the umbrella of performing his presidential duties, and so he is not immune from liability. Imagine the outrage if Clinton's DOJ had defended him in any aspect of the Paula Jones case. THAT's how far we've come.
I think Garland is bending over backward to follow the law to a t; he’s the anti Barr, a Boy Scout, above reproach; non partisan. I’m counting on him to do the right thing and waiting to see how he does.
I believe the issue being contested by Carroll's lawyers is whether Trump was acting within the course and scope of his presidential duties when he decided to make his remarks. I merely offered my opinion that a president is not doing the country's work when he addresses a 30 year old rape allegation in the manner he did. Federal employees can be immune from tort claims (like defamation), but only if they are acting within their official duties. For the Garland DoJ to use this case to establish boundaries for the presidency seems short sighted.
They're not protecting trump, they're protecting the Office of the President. It's a narrow distinction and a distasteful distinction as well, in this case. I think they're hoping they fail, first because what trump said was definitely not related to "the performance of his official duties", and second because the precedent set in the Clinton administration is the President has to answer to civil suits.
"Look at the recent decision by the DOJ to protect Trump over rape denial. That's Merrick Garland's DOJ, not Bill Barr's."
Justice Matters' Glenn Kirchner explains that there is legal precedent for not pursing the E. Jean Carroll defamation case (https://youtu.be/9osDO0V2Aik?t=152), but he goes on to say that Garland's DOJ had discretionary powers and chose not to pursue the case based on a precedent. Kirchner doesn't say in which court the precedent was set, which is too bad, as I would have liked to know.
I keep imagining what the republicans would’ve done if all of this was committed during a democratic administration. The R’s would be able to create more outrage, more noise and raise the roof higher than the Dems. They seem to have that edge.
Because the media follow their lead.beltway journalists and pundits give them the megaphone and parrot their talking points while approaching Dems with cynical disdain (when they aren’t ignoring them).
Donald Trump has spent his life obsessed with getting revenge against those who he feels have wronged him. From his own brother outward, Trump has been a nonstop ball of aggrieved anger. He doesn't care about politics or anything larger than what's inside the thin skin that surrounds an overblown ego. It doesn't even matter to him whether he's been insulted or not - it's his own perception that a mortal insult has occurred that matters to him. Nixon was desperate to cover up a crime that had already blown up in his face. Donald Trump only cares about his myopic view of the world.
And of course the repubs will stonewall every attempt to discover the facts of the corruption, and thwart any investigations to improve future oversight procedures, ignore subpoenas and on and on. Imagine say, an airline industry that refuses to investigate accidents, won't cooperate with air safety organizations, is run by narcissistic despots, spies on it's employees, shuts the door when the FAA visits, won't spend a penny it isn't forced to spend on flight crew training, treats the unions like mortal enemies and cares only for the "bottom line". Well hey, welcome aboard!
I just don't understand why your column is not front page in every remaining newspaper in this country! Your interpretation and explanations of the Republicans' actions to take over this country are clear and incisive. Every citizen, not just Democrats, should be outraged and terrified. Why is it not the leading story on every newscast! What can one ordinary person do to stop this horrendous onslaught of Republican greed from continuing? The 'Me Too' and the 'Black Lives Matter' movements were so empowering to see, with so many good people rising up to publicly proclaim that evil must be stopped. Why are there no marches now? Where are the student uprisings? Why is the citizenry so apathetic? Yes, we lost John Lewis, and we lost John McCain, but surely there are some heroes out there who will stand up for democracy. Aren't there? Democracy must not end with a whimper...
The entire saga is shocking and to the degree that an enemies list was acted upon it definitely is Worse than Watergate, but can we please come up with another descriptor?
Watergate was 50+ years ago and will mean little or nothing for generations of Americans who were not yet born when it concluded. It might as well be “Worse than Teapot Dome.” Those readers are going to skip right over those headlines.
I have to disagree about John Mitchell not being involved in the plotting of the Watergate break-in. From the Washington Post:
“Even before assuming formal control of the Nixon campaign, according to testimony in the Watergate hearings, Mitchell had serenely listened in his Justice Department office to a proposal by G. Gordon Liddy to use prostitutes and electronic listening devices to get information from Democratic officials.
Although Mitchell, according to testimony, turned down that proposal, he eventually approved giving Liddy and his coconspirators $250,000 for another project: the break-in and bugging of the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate Office Building in Washington.”
I don’t disagree that Trump was worse than Nixon. When it came time for Nixon to go he didn’t try to stage a coup — although by then his own party had turned against him. Unlike Trump Nixon was not an idiot and had a lot of good policies.
So, what will happen? Nothing. We can gripe all we want, talk about how unfair and horrible the last 4 years were under Trump, but not a single person will pay the price legally. In fact the Republicans still have all the power even though Democrats have the Congress and Presidency. McConnell is still in charge in the Senate. I am a Democrat and I believe strongly in Democratic principals, however, once again the weak back bone of those in Congress will be our undoing. It is so frustrating for the majority of the American people.
The rules and norms that existed when Trump came into the White House were adequate for a decent, morally centered person who knew and respected the office. Trump ran the country in the same corrupt, mini-mafia manner that he ran the Trump Organization, but he couldn't have done so without the cooperation of Congressional Republicans. Jackie Chalmes is right - Trump is a symptom (and accelerator) of the rot, but he didn't cause it.
There is no principle but power. Uncle Pat saw the tide coming, and his machinations set the platform for Ailes, Atwater, all of the poll taxing by other means. Atwater trained Rick Wilson and a whole new generation of Know-nothings.
The answer is officially outnumber. That means register. Record. Outorganize, outlegislate. It doesn't happen overnight, or cleanly. What they will understand is defeat.
"Trump enemies targeted by his out-of-control DOJ."
Not "out-of-control DOJ". That so much of the DOJ was in his control is the problem. It is one of the first steps to tyranny.
Trump took a leaf out of this communist China playbook:
"The Supreme People’s Court will “resolutely resist the influence of mistaken Western concepts and ways of thinking.” Mr. Zhou specifically singled out judicial independence and separation of powers as “Western” concepts around which the court had drawn a thick line." https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-CJB-26055
Watching the Republican Party hand over to FG its ethics, morals, congressional powers and prerogatives has been nothing but breathtaking. Concurrently McConnell has brought the government to a halt. I fear the latest egregious abuses of power will be another major threat to democracy the Rs will gloss over, excuse, allow, WELCOME??? Another support beam of democracy rotting from its core. Our 2 party system is truly on life support. At least Merrick Garland says DOJ will pursue the local seditioners tampering w/our elections and suppressing the vote and I’m praying he’ll have some success rooting out some of this garbage that pollutes the body politic. We’re living in a split screen reality; Biden trying to bring back together one America and the other side ripping it apart.
The two-party system of government is on life support because is so institutionally weak.
The three, or three plus system of government, is much stronger, more democratic, and gets more done, because the ruling party's power is limited by the fact that the other parties can combine to influence bills, and the ruling party must listen or its bills will be voted down. Bipartisanship is a must, not a choice, not a weapon of war, as in the U.S. Congress.
Why do you think Canada is so stable and well-run? It's because there is the ruling party plus two other major parties, and several smaller parties, holding enough seats in Parliament to be needed for the ruling party to get its bills passed. The ruling party must listen or fail.
There is no all-powerful Canadian Senate that can block all legislation put forward by the people's House. Canada's Senate is appointed, not elected. It's pretty much vestigial with no real power. It is only "the Chamber of sober second thought", but the people's Parliament can and does ignore the advice of its Senate. It's Senate cannot prevent the people's Parliament from enacting laws.
Canadians are ruled by the House of Commons (your House of Representatives); in other words by those men and women the commoners have chosen. Just as in Canada, the U.S. Senate is a hold-over from the British House of Lords, but to which the Founders gave much more power. Just one of the many mistakes made by the Founders which account for every evil in the present Dis-united States of America.
Re Calmes: It isn’t so much the biggest story of their career so much as the biggest story the establishment press failed and/or chose not to report. Indeed, said media were complicit by ignoring anf not covering the story.
I wonder how much of this Ms. Calmes has put in print and how much has been held for the book. I don't say that nastily or snarkily, yet. The question will be whether there are things she long since should have put in print.
And what will happen? Will justice ever come to Trump? Will it ever come to the corruption of this Republican Party? I think it's doubtful. Every single time that a Trump corruption event has been uncovered, we think aha! this is what will do him in. But it never does and it likely never will. Look at the recent decision by the DOJ to protect Trump over rape denial. That's Merrick Garland's DOJ, not Bill Barr's. There is a very strong faction within this country that protects a sick malignant narcissist at all costs over justice. It's not just Trump who wanted to be king, it's a lot of folks that would rather live under a dictator because they know they can't win a fair election in a democracy. I know Garland said he will investigate these allegations and that's good. However, I hate to be Debbie Downer but don't hold your breath on anything ever happening. Democracy is dying folks. This is how it happens. It won't be the army in the streets with machine guns on every corner. Nope, democracy dies slowly with most people more concerned about the traffic getting to the mall. Happy Monday!
I def share that frustration. it’s maddening
"Look at the recent decision by the DOJ to protect Trump over rape denial."
The DOJ is defending Trump from libel charges; he's still on the hook for the rape denial. I don't know for sure if his lawyers are using the libel case to delay the DNA evidence Trump has been ordered to provide, that would prove who was lying (spoiler: it's him).
But there are lots of reasons to expect developments, because there are literally hundreds of things dogging Trump. Democracy has been dying since the day it was born, and is never more vibrant than when in crisis. Nobody goes to the mall anymore, btw.
Not to speak for Lou, but it is sick that the DOJ is doing anything at all on behalf of Trump in the rape case. There is no way Trump's denial and slander of Jean Carroll fell under the umbrella of performing his presidential duties, and so he is not immune from liability. Imagine the outrage if Clinton's DOJ had defended him in any aspect of the Paula Jones case. THAT's how far we've come.
I think Garland is bending over backward to follow the law to a t; he’s the anti Barr, a Boy Scout, above reproach; non partisan. I’m counting on him to do the right thing and waiting to see how he does.
"There is no way Trump's denial and slander of Jean Carroll fell under the umbrella of performing his presidential duties"
Well, apparently case precedent actually says that defamation does fall under presidential duties.
Justice Matters' Glenn Kirchner explains (https://youtu.be/9osDO0V2Aik?t=152), and at https://youtu.be/IycoNAHptSY?t=29.
Kirchner doesn't say in which court the precedent was set, which is too bad, as I would have liked to know.
I believe the issue being contested by Carroll's lawyers is whether Trump was acting within the course and scope of his presidential duties when he decided to make his remarks. I merely offered my opinion that a president is not doing the country's work when he addresses a 30 year old rape allegation in the manner he did. Federal employees can be immune from tort claims (like defamation), but only if they are acting within their official duties. For the Garland DoJ to use this case to establish boundaries for the presidency seems short sighted.
I’m still holding out the hope of hopes that we’ll get to see Former Guy hauled in away cuffs wearing a suit that matches his hair. Go NY🤞
They're not protecting trump, they're protecting the Office of the President. It's a narrow distinction and a distasteful distinction as well, in this case. I think they're hoping they fail, first because what trump said was definitely not related to "the performance of his official duties", and second because the precedent set in the Clinton administration is the President has to answer to civil suits.
Thanks for the clarification on the Trump case and the Mall comment was a metaphor.
"Look at the recent decision by the DOJ to protect Trump over rape denial. That's Merrick Garland's DOJ, not Bill Barr's."
Justice Matters' Glenn Kirchner explains that there is legal precedent for not pursing the E. Jean Carroll defamation case (https://youtu.be/9osDO0V2Aik?t=152), but he goes on to say that Garland's DOJ had discretionary powers and chose not to pursue the case based on a precedent. Kirchner doesn't say in which court the precedent was set, which is too bad, as I would have liked to know.
Kirchner speaks on this issue again at https://youtu.be/IycoNAHptSY?t=29
I keep imagining what the republicans would’ve done if all of this was committed during a democratic administration. The R’s would be able to create more outrage, more noise and raise the roof higher than the Dems. They seem to have that edge.
it’s hard to even imagine their response
Dems play by the rules, Rs don’t. Asymmetrical warfare for power.
Because the media follow their lead.beltway journalists and pundits give them the megaphone and parrot their talking points while approaching Dems with cynical disdain (when they aren’t ignoring them).
Donald Trump has spent his life obsessed with getting revenge against those who he feels have wronged him. From his own brother outward, Trump has been a nonstop ball of aggrieved anger. He doesn't care about politics or anything larger than what's inside the thin skin that surrounds an overblown ego. It doesn't even matter to him whether he's been insulted or not - it's his own perception that a mortal insult has occurred that matters to him. Nixon was desperate to cover up a crime that had already blown up in his face. Donald Trump only cares about his myopic view of the world.
Yes, he’s like Nixon in that way….except Trump had a corrupt DOJ
And of course the repubs will stonewall every attempt to discover the facts of the corruption, and thwart any investigations to improve future oversight procedures, ignore subpoenas and on and on. Imagine say, an airline industry that refuses to investigate accidents, won't cooperate with air safety organizations, is run by narcissistic despots, spies on it's employees, shuts the door when the FAA visits, won't spend a penny it isn't forced to spend on flight crew training, treats the unions like mortal enemies and cares only for the "bottom line". Well hey, welcome aboard!
I just don't understand why your column is not front page in every remaining newspaper in this country! Your interpretation and explanations of the Republicans' actions to take over this country are clear and incisive. Every citizen, not just Democrats, should be outraged and terrified. Why is it not the leading story on every newscast! What can one ordinary person do to stop this horrendous onslaught of Republican greed from continuing? The 'Me Too' and the 'Black Lives Matter' movements were so empowering to see, with so many good people rising up to publicly proclaim that evil must be stopped. Why are there no marches now? Where are the student uprisings? Why is the citizenry so apathetic? Yes, we lost John Lewis, and we lost John McCain, but surely there are some heroes out there who will stand up for democracy. Aren't there? Democracy must not end with a whimper...
thanks, I appreciate it
The entire saga is shocking and to the degree that an enemies list was acted upon it definitely is Worse than Watergate, but can we please come up with another descriptor?
Watergate was 50+ years ago and will mean little or nothing for generations of Americans who were not yet born when it concluded. It might as well be “Worse than Teapot Dome.” Those readers are going to skip right over those headlines.
I have to disagree about John Mitchell not being involved in the plotting of the Watergate break-in. From the Washington Post:
“Even before assuming formal control of the Nixon campaign, according to testimony in the Watergate hearings, Mitchell had serenely listened in his Justice Department office to a proposal by G. Gordon Liddy to use prostitutes and electronic listening devices to get information from Democratic officials.
Although Mitchell, according to testimony, turned down that proposal, he eventually approved giving Liddy and his coconspirators $250,000 for another project: the break-in and bugging of the Democratic National Committee headquarters in the Watergate Office Building in Washington.”
I don’t disagree that Trump was worse than Nixon. When it came time for Nixon to go he didn’t try to stage a coup — although by then his own party had turned against him. Unlike Trump Nixon was not an idiot and had a lot of good policies.
Good pt!
guess better analogy would be if Mitchell helped plot break-in and then DOJ attorneys defended Liddy in court
So, what will happen? Nothing. We can gripe all we want, talk about how unfair and horrible the last 4 years were under Trump, but not a single person will pay the price legally. In fact the Republicans still have all the power even though Democrats have the Congress and Presidency. McConnell is still in charge in the Senate. I am a Democrat and I believe strongly in Democratic principals, however, once again the weak back bone of those in Congress will be our undoing. It is so frustrating for the majority of the American people.
If Fox News, Hate Radio and the Moron Majority were around when Nixon was in the White House he would have gotten away with it.
The rules and norms that existed when Trump came into the White House were adequate for a decent, morally centered person who knew and respected the office. Trump ran the country in the same corrupt, mini-mafia manner that he ran the Trump Organization, but he couldn't have done so without the cooperation of Congressional Republicans. Jackie Chalmes is right - Trump is a symptom (and accelerator) of the rot, but he didn't cause it.
Dumbya, THE DICK and the rest of the Neocon gang weren't moral.
There is no principle but power. Uncle Pat saw the tide coming, and his machinations set the platform for Ailes, Atwater, all of the poll taxing by other means. Atwater trained Rick Wilson and a whole new generation of Know-nothings.
The answer is officially outnumber. That means register. Record. Outorganize, outlegislate. It doesn't happen overnight, or cleanly. What they will understand is defeat.
Also, thanks for Yola.
"Trump enemies targeted by his out-of-control DOJ."
Not "out-of-control DOJ". That so much of the DOJ was in his control is the problem. It is one of the first steps to tyranny.
Trump took a leaf out of this communist China playbook:
"The Supreme People’s Court will “resolutely resist the influence of mistaken Western concepts and ways of thinking.” Mr. Zhou specifically singled out judicial independence and separation of powers as “Western” concepts around which the court had drawn a thick line." https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-CJB-26055
Watching the Republican Party hand over to FG its ethics, morals, congressional powers and prerogatives has been nothing but breathtaking. Concurrently McConnell has brought the government to a halt. I fear the latest egregious abuses of power will be another major threat to democracy the Rs will gloss over, excuse, allow, WELCOME??? Another support beam of democracy rotting from its core. Our 2 party system is truly on life support. At least Merrick Garland says DOJ will pursue the local seditioners tampering w/our elections and suppressing the vote and I’m praying he’ll have some success rooting out some of this garbage that pollutes the body politic. We’re living in a split screen reality; Biden trying to bring back together one America and the other side ripping it apart.
good pt abt split screen America!
"Our 2 party system is truly on life support."
The two-party system of government is on life support because is so institutionally weak.
The three, or three plus system of government, is much stronger, more democratic, and gets more done, because the ruling party's power is limited by the fact that the other parties can combine to influence bills, and the ruling party must listen or its bills will be voted down. Bipartisanship is a must, not a choice, not a weapon of war, as in the U.S. Congress.
Why do you think Canada is so stable and well-run? It's because there is the ruling party plus two other major parties, and several smaller parties, holding enough seats in Parliament to be needed for the ruling party to get its bills passed. The ruling party must listen or fail.
There is no all-powerful Canadian Senate that can block all legislation put forward by the people's House. Canada's Senate is appointed, not elected. It's pretty much vestigial with no real power. It is only "the Chamber of sober second thought", but the people's Parliament can and does ignore the advice of its Senate. It's Senate cannot prevent the people's Parliament from enacting laws.
Canadians are ruled by the House of Commons (your House of Representatives); in other words by those men and women the commoners have chosen. Just as in Canada, the U.S. Senate is a hold-over from the British House of Lords, but to which the Founders gave much more power. Just one of the many mistakes made by the Founders which account for every evil in the present Dis-united States of America.
"He didn’t cause its crackup, he accelerated it."
Don Trump was a fascist kamikaze from Russia.
Re Calmes: It isn’t so much the biggest story of their career so much as the biggest story the establishment press failed and/or chose not to report. Indeed, said media were complicit by ignoring anf not covering the story.
I wonder how much of this Ms. Calmes has put in print and how much has been held for the book. I don't say that nastily or snarkily, yet. The question will be whether there are things she long since should have put in print.