Wednesday’s Forum
Steven L. Taylor
·
Wednesday, June 28, 2023
·
44 comments
About Steven L. Taylor
Steven L. Taylor is a Professor of Political Science and a College of Arts and Sciences Dean. His main areas of expertise include parties, elections, and the institutional design of democracies. His most recent book is the co-authored
A Different Democracy: American Government in a 31-Country Perspective. He earned his Ph.D. from the University of Texas and his BA from the University of California, Irvine. He has been blogging since 2003 (originally at the now defunct Poliblog).
Follow Steven on
Twitter
The headline of the day- Cleveland mom charged with murder after baby is left home alone for 10 days and dies
The Florida headline of the day- Homeowner fired 30 shots when pool cleaner arrived after hours, sheriff says
An article in the NYTimes today (no subscription needed) speculates on whether another Russian General assisted Prigozhin. Regardless of whether it’s true, I have to wonder if the US Military sources leaking this info are trying to sow dissension between the Russian generals fighting in Ukraine and Putin, and perhaps other non-Ukraine based generals. And is it any less effective even if it’s made up? Putin has to be wondering about this very thing.
@Bill Jempty: I read that one. He won’t be charged because of Florida’s Stand Your Ground law. Which only reinforces my belief that the less time I spend in that state the better.
I wonder how Jared handles this?
http://www.rawstory.com/ivanka-trump-2661978066/
@MarkedMan: You know Putin’s food tasters are working overtime.
@CSK: I wonder what was their first clue?
@CSK: That is so, so gross. JFC.
@Jen:
Yes, it’s beyond revolting. I don’t know how anyone could be in the same room with him.
@Jen: @CSK: Way way beyond gross, but perfectly in line for a guy who brags about “gabbing them by the p***y.
@OzarkHillbilly:
Here’s the cherry on the sundae: Trump is suing E. Jean Carroll for defamation because he claims he was exonerated of raping her.
@Bill Jempty:
I bet he’ll have trouble hiring another pool cleaning company or any property service firm in the future.
Scary thing is that the local LEO’s don’t believe the shooter can be charged due to stand-my-ground. FL is a good state to avoid.
A follow-up to the migrants to Martha’s Vineyard story. Not turning out as Ron the Groomer expected.
@Sleeping Dog:
What a nice story. Thanks.
@CSK: @CSK: The trumpers will no doubt say this is fake news, despite there being actual recordings of him saying much the same thing on Howard Stern’s show.
@Sleeping Dog: Ron the Groomer neither knows nor cares anything about those people. He succeeded in getting his name in the papers and scored some points with the MAGA for performative cruelty to immigrants, and that is all he cares about.
@CSK:
Jared is kept in a cage at the side of the bed while Donnie and Ivanka…you know…
@MarkedMan:
Yes. And when Trump and Ivanka were interviewed by Wendy Williams, and Williams asked them what they had in common, Ivanka replied “real estate and golf” and Trump replied “I’d like to say sex.”
@Daryl: Nah…he is sitting with his legs crossed in a club chair at the foot of the bed, smoking an impossibly slim Capri 120 cigarette, intently watching in absolute silence while a single bead of sweat rolls down from his temple.
Too much?
Rick Wilson does a wellness check on Trump:
http://www.rawstory.com/rick-wilson-trolls-trump/
@Thomm:
I just threw up in my mouth.
@MarkedMan: Apropos of my comment above about the motives behind leaking US suspicion of a Russian general’s involvement in the rebellion, Josh Marshall has a piece at TPM commenting in on much the same thing in more depth.
@MarkedMan: I don’t think U.S. intelligence agencies need to do anything at all to feed Putin’s paranoia.
@gVOR10: my speculation is that they are trying to direct it
Trump says the plans he was waving around at Bedminster weren’t war plans about Iraq; they were plans for building a new golf course.
That’s why he said he could no longer declassify them, I guess.
A thought to savor. Lately trump has been claiming that his brag about having still classified Iran war docs was simply bravado and that he waved random papers. Again, trump is confusing political defenses with legal ones. To assert that as a legal defense he’d need to testify to it under oath and be subject to cross examination. Tee hee 🙂
@gVOR10: @MarkedMan: According to Cheryl Rofer at LGM General Surovikin and others have been taken to Lefortivo Prison.
@Bill Jempty: That story raises a lot of questions about the law and psychology. But the root question has to be, what the hell is wrong with these people?
@Sleeping Dog:
I believe that “they were just random papers” has been superseded by “they were secret golf course plans.”
Drawn up by Mark Milley, the legendary golf course designer.
@MarkedMan: Shouldn’t he be able to be prosecuted for this on the basis that he CAN’T “stand his ground?” The guy discharged his weapon 30 times. If his opponent hadn’t been the pool boy, he’d be dead.
@Just nutha ignint cracker:
That raises an interesting question. If someone opens fire on you and sites, stand-my-ground, can you return fire and claim the same?
@CSK: I know some people on here disparage this theory, but I think it is more likely than not that the reason Trump was so reluctant to hand over the documents was because some of them were missing and he knew it. This Iranian invasion plan could be one such document. At first I assumed that since it wasn’t in the group the feds made public, it was in the group that had been turned over (Trump wasn’t charged for them and so they never made it into the indictment). But reporting on the NYTime’s daily podcast indicated that this has been quietly rejected. In other words, they still don’t have the document. Which makes me wonder if this is one that Trump knew had gone missing? (“Missing” here, includes the possibility that he was the one responsible.)
@MarkedMan:
I think the fact that Trump is unusually agitated over these docs is a good indication that he’s either lost them or given them to some bad actor.
By the way, now he’s saying that it was bravado that made him wave the papers around. That’s three excuses in one day and it’s only a little after 2 p.m.
Greg Abbot (Idiot-TX) is tweeting that states which cannot balance their budgets shouldn’t get bailed out.
https://twitter.com/GregAbbott_TX/status/1673875552388743168
THIS IS THE MOST AWESOMEST THING I HAVE HEARD IN A LONG TIME!!!
I suggest we make these people happy and Blue States can run their own economies, and Red States can run their own economies, and funding from DC will be based on what you contribute to DC.
I’d love to see how my taxes would change if deep blue CT got equitable treatment; we are generally ranked near the bottom of return on our contributions to Uncle Sam.
States like LA and MS and AR would be bankrupt inside of 6 months.
RIP Lowell Weicker.
Is he the last major politician to have been routinely referred to as a “liberal Republican”? I’m pretty sure of it.
@Daryl:
I’m feeling, less than charitable today, I hope their stupid power grid fails right before a series of hurricanes hit them. I hope the rich Texans suffer the most. Lots of Yachts destroyed. Screw him.
@MarkedMan: @CSK: Back when Aileen Cannon was appointing a Special Master Trump’s people were asking the government to list the documents. It smelled like Trump was on a fishing expedition because he had no idea what he had.
@MarkedMan:
Latest reports are General Surovikin is under arrest.
Also, reports are French DGSE in central Africa are second only to Ukrainian General Staff in list of people at risk from collapse due to laughing fits.
@CSK:
“And here are the bunkers…no, not that sort of bunker…and there are the tank traps. Wait, what, you want sand traps?”
When you tee off with a 155mm, everything’s a hole-in-one. 🙂
Trump’x doc trial may be postponed till the spring of 2024.
@Sleeping Dog: Depends on relative skin tones, I expect.
@Sleeping Dog: No. Property rights and all that.
@Gustopher: And ftr, black people don’t have property rights, and what property rights the do have? Are trumped by white peoples property rights.
@Sleeping Dog: “If someone opens fire on you and sites, stand-my-ground, can you return fire and claim the same?”
If you’re a white male, then yes. Otherwise…