Andy1

Ever hear of the Log Cabin Republicans? Unfortunately, they are finding that their party is rejecting them. https://www.vice.com/en/article/dy7zek/texas-log-cabin-republicans-booth-banned

Yes Manchin is not liked. He is trying his best to steer the party towards moderation (which is would be a better course for them to follow). I don’t know what’s up with Sinema. The sane dems know that if Manchin isn’t holding office and doing his thing, a Trumper will take his place. While neither are stars of the party faithful, there is no where near the hatred and anger towards them as there is towards the dissenters in the Rep party. There are now many, many good solid republicans who have supported the party all their lives who are banished into no man’s land because they disagree with Trump. The dems are also not glorifying assault weapons in political ads. Guns in politics is a horrible combination that is not going to help our democracy.

What I don’t understand is how anyone who speaks a word against Trump is immediately labeled a rino. Any deviation from total support of Trump is not allowed. If you are a public official, you can then expect piles of death threats from Trump supporters. This pattern has been repeated over and over with anyone who dares speak against the orange guy. Now there is a R candidate airing an ad busting into a house to kill rinos. Where does the insanity end? The glorification of guns and violence in political advertising is part of the problem. Some nut job is going to follow the hint. Within the dem party, people speak out against Biden all the time, but they are not ostracized from the party.

Never count on young voters showing up for mid-term elections. They are not reliable. Opposition R party has the motivated voters.

Interesting ruling. I wonder how long it will be before people freak out that their tax dollars are funding Muslim schools somewhere. I could see the same people celebrating this ruling screaming in the future about their tax dollars funding the teaching of Sharia law in Muslim schools. I’m not sure how I feel about this ruling but I generally prefer that church and state stay separate. It’s best for both institutions.

These words are from Mike Florio at PFT and struck me as being appropriate for this day. “Yes, today is a day meant for all fathers to be appreciated. It also should be a day when all fathers recommit to their obligations and responsibilities. To realize that everything we say and do creates an example that could be emulated by anyone who witnesses it. To take a little bit of pride in who we are while also resolving to constantly strive to become better versions of ourselves.” Like McDermott asks players to commit to being the best versions of themselves, we should strive to do so for our children.

If Hillary Clinton can respect the investigative powers of congress and testify for 8 hours at the Benghazi hearings, there is no legitimate reason why Trump administration officials refuse to testify on this matter.

We need to hear testimony from the leadership of all relevant law enforcement agencies to really understand the failure that day.

It was amazing the the Capital police had such restraint and didn’t use their firearms other than in the tragic death of that woman. There could have been many more casualties than there were. Use of their firearms certainly could have been justified.

The opinion of “no firearms present that day” is a complete assumption. There may have been plenty of concealed firearms present. No one was searched and there were plenty of packs on people. I’m still wondering what the zip tie handcuffs were for.

Have people forgotten about this guy and his buddies? They were on a mission. Clearly they had a different purpose to be there than the crazy rioters.

Regarding the lack of security - one thing we do know is the Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller sent a memo on January 4th specifically prohibiting certain actions by the DC National Guard in response to the demonstrations on January 5-6, 2021. Prohibited actions included using weapons, ammo, batons, helmets or body armor. He prohibited interaction with the protestors, did not allow the sharing of equipment with other agencies, did not allow intelligence, surveillance or reconnaissance activities or incident awareness or assessment, banned the use of helicopters, prohibited searches, seizures or arrests. All of the above were specifically prohibited unless specifically authorized by the Acting Secretary of Defense. There were many facets to the lack of security that day. Why were demonstrators allowed to carry their weapons at the protest where Trump was speaking? Protestors are normally not even allowed to carry small wood sticks for signs yet that day, they carried all sorts of clubs, bats, hockey sticks, spears, flag poles, etc. that were used as weapons against the Capital police. Perhaps we will hear more of this in the future hearings.

I think the proposed legislation took a good approach to this issue. It focused on preventing people who shouldn’t have weapons from getting them. I’d be fine with raising the age to 21, but enhance background checks is the right direction. I suspect that people on both sides won’t be happy, but that’s a good sign. While it won’t stop all mass killing events, if it stops just a few, it will be worth it. Bans on assault weapons won’t work. I would support expanded government buy back programs to get unwanted guns out of peoples homes and off the street.

After all the court cases in front of judges appointed by Trump and other republicans, none found credible evidence of a stolen election. His closest advisors told him he lost. Any rational, sane, patriotic President would stop there and concede but his fragile psyche cannot accept defeat. He alone decided to go ahead with Jan 6th, breaking the sacred American tradition of a peaceful transition of power. While it is not a story some want to believe, those are facts.

Why would peaceful protesters need bear spray, tear gas, steel clubs, zip tie handcuffs? Just wondering. That’s not what I would normally pack when I go to see DC.

There were plenty of backpacks that were never searched and handguns may have been concealed. The mob went in and left without checks by law enforcement. So I don’t think we can assume that they weren’t armed. They chose to use tear gas, bear spray, steel clubs and other weapons. Reportedly, they had members outside of DC ready to bring in firearms if needed. DC also has severe laws regarding firearms that may have affected their decisions.

The J 6th mob was a mix of peaceful protesters, rioters and organized paramilitary Proud Boys and others groups. Those paramilitary traitors were on a mission to stop the certification of the election. They were prepared to take hostages or do worse if needed to accomplish a coup. They weren’t there to hear Trump speak. They were at the Capital before the mob got there. Proud Boys were socializing with Trump associates before J 6th. That ugly day was way more than just a bunch of random protesters who got out of control.

The reason is simple. They are a bunch of cowardly bullies who are happy to beat and injure defenseless unarmed people but won’t fight when the odds are against them. A bunch of loser cowards, every one.

It was interesting to hear the Trump Election Defense Fund never existed. It was just another scam to suck money from his supporters. He sucked $250 million in small donations from his people with the lie. At this point, they should just give him their bank account numbers and passwords to show their support.

Another example of why the FBI considers white nationalists/white supremicists the number one terror threat in the country. If these idiots were Muslims, there would be an enormous freak out.

Personally, I think there should be an age limit for running for President or Senator. No one over the age of 70 should be allowed to run. Both Biden and Trump are experiencing mental decline from age and too many Senators stay on the job for life.

Apparently multiple R congressmen requested Presidential pardons for their actions after the election. Sounds like an admission of guilt.

Coverup. Interesting how some police behave when they are not the ones issuing orders to comply.

The issue of assault weapons is about to change in a bad way. The army is about to replace their standard rifle the M4 (similar to AR15) with the XM5. The new XM5 will use a significantly heavier and more powerful bullet, able to blow through body armor and light armored vehicles, buildings, etc. In other words- even more deadlier than the typical assault weapons now favored by mass killers. The XM5 will be available in the USA for purchase by mass killers in the future.

If this is true, they need a PR campaign to push the message. They would be a very powerful voice who should be supported by the Back the Blue audience. At this point, I don’t hear any position voiced by law enforcement.