Pressing Pause

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Pressing Pause

What To Do About Gas Prices

Catherine Rampell of The Washington Post argues neither major political party has a serious plan to deal with inflation overall or gas prices specifically. So the choice is between the two parties agendas. “So what do Republicans stand for?” she asks.

“Their national leaders won’t say, even when asked directly; their state-level rising stars are mostly focused on fighting with Mickey Mouse and drag queens. But if you look at GOP actions taken over the past several years, including when they had unified control of the federal government, you get a sense of what Republicans are likely to prioritize.

Mostly, Republicans seem to care about tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. They want to find ways to repeal Obamacare, or otherwise reduce access to health care by (for example) slashingMedicaid.

They care about installing judges who will roll back reproductive rights.

They care about supporting a president who used the powers of the state to further his own political and financial interests, rather than those of the American public he was sworn to serve.

They care about supporting a presidency whose few purported diplomatic achievements, in retrospect, look largely like an excuse to meet potential investors who might fund Trump aides’ new private equity endeavors.

They care about defending, at all costs, a president who cheered on the mob seeking to hang his own vice president.

And they care about undermining the integrity of our election system and overturning the will of the voters, if and when vote tallies don’t go their way.”

In other words, the remote possibility of slightly cheaper gas could come with very high costs to our democracy and the common good.

As Expected

Dana Milbank of The Washington Post is a hero. He tried Trump’s Twitter knock-off, Truth Social, so we don’t have to. His conclusion:

“Seems Trump’s social media venture is headed the way of Trump University, Trump’s Atlantic City casinos, Trump’s charities, Trump mattresses, Trump steaks, Trump clothing, Trump perfume, Trump lighting, Trump floor coverings, Trump eyewear, the Trump presidency and American democracy.”

Related.

Thank You Ginni Thomas

Calling the Court’s independence into question, Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, pressed Mark Meadows, Trump’s chief of staff, to overturn the 2020 election.

From The New York Times:

“In one message sent in the days after the election, she urged the chief of staff, Mark Meadows, to ‘release the Kraken and save us from the left taking America down,’ invoking a slogan popular on the right that refers to a web of conspiracy theories that Trump supporters believed would overturn the election.

In another, she wrote: ‘I can’t see Americans swallowing the obvious fraud. Just going with one more thing with no frickin consequences.’ She added: “We just cave to people wanting Biden to be anointed? Many of us can’t continue the GOP charade.’

Other texts end with “I hope this is true”. Here are two examples:

“Watermarked ballots in over 12 states have been part of a huge Trump & military white hat sting operation in 12 key battleground states. I hope this is true.”

“Biden crime family & ballot fraud co-conspirators (elected officials, bureaucrats, social media censorship mongers, fake stream media reporters, etc) are being arrested & detained for ballot fraud right now & over coming days, & will be living in barges off GITMO to face military tribunals for sedition. I hope this is true”.

I’ve struggled mightily to understand some of my fellow citizens growing number of conspiracies related to our national politics, among other things. Now, for the first time, thanks to Ginni, I may actually get it.

Whenever Tucker Carlson, Ginni Thomas, or your QAnon brain addled neighbor says, “This is true,” what they really mean is, “I hope this is true.”

I hope the Ginni Thomas’s of the world get the help they need.

Headlines To Ponder

  1. MacKenzie Scott Gives $436 Million to Habitat for Humanity.
  2. World No. 1 Ash Barty, 25, Announces Retirement from Tennis.
  3. Afghanistan’s last finance minister, now a D.C. Uber driver, ponders what went wrong. Semi-related, no prime minister of Pakistan — a country that has swung between democracy and dictatorship — has ever completed a full term in office (The Financial Times).

Tuesday Required Reading

  1. Girls flag rugby. Beautiful lead picture. Of course the red-head is kicking ass.
  2. UCLA reverses course and will pay the adjunct professor after all. HR clown show.
  3. How much do the best pro cyclists make? “. . . pocket-money compared to some of the world’s wealthiest sports.”
  4. Right on. My Covid guy gets the top job. Everyone has a Covid person or team that affirms their preconceived notions about all things ‘rona. Ashish Jha is mine.