One correction: "sent masked men to grab migrants off the street" should be "sent masked men to grab people off the street." ICE is largely indiscriminate and many U.S. citizens have been grabbed.
As always, you are spot on, Steven. As always, you have defined the most pressing problem with great skill and nuance. We don’t need a proverbial club brought down on our heads to know that Trump wants to stop free and fair elections in the interest of his fascist goal to stay in power. What we do need is to know how this could take place…and so understanding the link between the Tulsi Gabbard appearance in Georgia as a false narrative that will link China to the 2020 election results is very important. Thank you for describing this strategy clearly and forthrightly.
How we can stop it is still an open question. I would hate for this move to succeed in checkmating our right…not privilege…to vote. Until each and every American understands that voting is our Constitutional right, I fear this ugly fairy story told by tin foil hat gargoyles will succeed. What we do next as citizens is important. Who ever thought that voting could become a form of protest?
Dem AG’s a being proactive as are heads of state elections. They are ‘wargaming’ potential scenarios and responses.
At the same time, about 30 states (including DC) are being sued for not providing their voter rolls. Our GOP Secretary of State was notified yesterday KY is being sued. He said he will “not voluntarily commit a data breach” of Kentuckians’ private information without a court order. The 11 states in red on the map have handed over their voter info. The rest have not or provided publicly available voter info.
Right on, Steven. Here's a small but important bright light: Thune announced on Thursday that the votes aren't there to kill the Senate filibuster and without that, the bill is in limbo/dead. The Imbecile doesn't seem to understand that Republicans would be hit as hard as Democrats if they got rid of vote-by-mail. And since there are more Dems and they are way more committed to showing up, Trump will still lose. And the Georgia Secretary of State's suit against the DOJ was greenlit on Thursday. The facts of that case acknowledge the FBI's finding that the 2020 election was the freest and fairest election in our history. No foreign interference, no immigrants running roughshod over the polls, no fake ballots. Like so many of his initiatives, they are clunky, ill planned, if at all, and designed to grab headlines, juice his base and in the end, do little to nothing. I think the regime's efforts to rig the elections will suffer the same fate. I kind of relish his terror of losing power and exposure from the Epstein Files. I hope that fear keeps him tortured and sleepless. I hope that his efforts to squirrel the election will go down in flames. Even though the feckless "leaders" of the Dem caucuses cannot seem to rouse themselves into any showable defiance or plan of action for the election threats ahead, the grass roots are organizing: helping people get their needed IDs, signing up to poll watch, driving people to the polls; lawyers have filings at the ready; and the courts know an affront to the law when they are handed the proof. It may end up being like the Bush vs. Gore debacle, where the Supreme Court has to decide. I'm confident in the integrity of state and local elections. Trump's people will do their evil thing, but we will thwart them at every turn. The will of The People will not be denied. The vote will be overwhelming, unchallengeable. We will win and win big. As you say, there are more of us than there are of them.
Here's hoping, but let's be honest: how "free and fair" can elections be when there are no limits on campaign contributions by the mega-wealthy and big corporations?
When Bannon and Cleta Mitchell are leading the parade it leads to failure. They are mostly for ‘theories’ that generate $$ for them & getting around the WH gatekeepers to whisper in DJT’s ear.
I started wondering if Democrats take back the house and the senate that they could refuse to swear them in. Mike Johnson delayed the swearing in of a Democratic representative last year for weeks. Democrats and Republicans who still believe in democracy need a plan B. I put nothing past these people.
That's a relevant and possible worry. Mike Johnson is a toady and will do whatever Trump tells him to do. On the other hand, denying the will of the people derived from their votes in a free and fair election would cause a maelstrom of opposition. No longer smiling masses, angry protesters would fill the streets for miles. But like Steven says, we must be vigilant now. Get involved with voter registration. Volunteer to poll watch or work with vote counters. Drive people to the polls who have no transportation. And if need be, organize large groups of sentinels, standing guard against ICE, creating a human barrier to thwart the thugs, making sure voters can cast their franchise.
Of course it is wise to prepare for unexpected obstacles. However, the advantage is with is Dems if they win a majority - Dems would choose the Speaker. No other business can be conducted without a Speaker. Later the members are sworn in and after that the rules and other business of the new Congress.
Who Presides over the Proceedings to Elect a New Speaker?
— Summary
Article 1, Section 2, of the Constitution sets a term of office of two years for all Members of the House. One House ends at the conclusion of each two-year Congress, and the newly elected Representatives must constitute a new House at the beginning of the next Congress. Consequently, the House must choose its Speaker and officers and adopt the chamber's rules of procedure every two years.
The Constitution mandates that Congress convene at noon on January 3, unless the preceding Congress by law designated a different day.
The House follows a well-established first-day routine. The proceedings include
• a call to order by the Clerk of the House;
• a prayer led by the Chaplain and the Pledge of Allegiance led by the Clerk;
• a quorum call ordered by the Clerk;
• the election of the Speaker, ordered by the Clerk and conducted with the assistance of tellers;
• remarks by the Speaker-elect, followed by his or her swearing-in by the dean …
• the oath of office for the newly elected and reelected Members, administered by the Speaker
Congress following a general election. — Congress.gov | Library of Congress
Unfortunately , I harbor the same concern as Mike Johnson is so obviously attached to Trump. And Mike refused to certify before. Your question prompted me to
If the Dems take the House, Johnson has no power. The Congressional session expires the end of 2026 & with it Johnson’s speakership. There is no Speaker, when they reconvene on January 3, 2027. No business can be conducted until they choose a new Speaker. After that the new House members are sworn in.
In 2021, Pelosi was Speaker when Congress was to “certify” the electoral count. Behind the scenes Johnson used his skills as constitutional attorney to construct plans for sabotaging the certification process. (He’s been called the “architect”) We know he & his cohorts failed. That led to Congress passing a reform act with a section specifying the VP’s role is to count electoral votes. It is administrative with no authority over the electoral votes. Johnson is a sneaky worm & he lost that war.
Yes to all. And on a related note - now that Netflix has stepped back from the Warner Bros. Discovery deal that leaves Paramount. And I am deeply worried we will see CNN compromised just as Paramount has done with CBS.
I can feel my blood pressure rise at each attempt from this regime to subvert elections. I am so grateful for the work of Marc Elias and others to fight back for us in the courts.
It is unbearable that we have to live here now. I am beyond sad and frustrated . One decent ruling by this Supreme Court does not do it for me. I will be at the No Kings March on 3/28/26.
It is impossible . Thank You Steven .. your piece says it all in a nut shell. lost in america
Know what my big fear is? Democrats will wallop the Republicans in November, take back the House *and* the Senate -- and then in January get down to tweaking this and that and never addressing how and why things got this bad. Because it didn't happen overnight, and it didn't start with Trump.
Pinpointing when it *did* start is a challenge. I like to point to presidential election of Ronald Reagan, but that didn't come out of nowhere either: the resurgence of the increasingly anti-democratic Republican Party began with the backlash to the civil rights advances of the 1960s, when the white Southern Democrats started flooding into what had once been "the party of Lincoln," followed by the January 1973 SCOTUS decision in Roe v. Wade. Post-Reagan, democracy continued to yield ground to economic power; notable milestones include the 1999 repeal of key provisions of the Glass-Steagall Act and of course the Citizens United decision in 2010.
Why did it get this bad? In a nutshell: for decades, too many elected Democrats weren't paying attention to what was happening or listening to those who were. Interestingly enough, we're approaching the 100th anniversary of the 1929 stock market crash and the depression that followed. Two distinct roads diverged out after that catastrophe: in the U.S., the New Deal of the FDR administration; and in Germany, Hitler's Third Reich. With the Republican Party as discredited as I hope it's going to be, I don't think the U.S. will take the latter road. Will the Democrats muster the vision and courage to improve on the achievements of the New Deal and the decades that followed? That remains to be seen.
At the Constitutional Convention in 1787 Ben Franklin was asked by Elizabeth Willing Powell,”what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”
The 81 years since old Franklin responded,” a republic if we can keep it”
Earlier he warned that he feared that unless the constitution was well administered it would end in despotism as other forms of government had before it, “when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic government.”
That sounds a lot like the maga voters who said the US needed “a strongman” or a dictator. It does ignore a big problem the Pres has: The self-interest of politicians/candidates and states who don’t want to face the consequences of terms expiring.
Complacency and compliance is not an option. We know Trump is a criminal who violates the Constitution and seems to know no limitations in the damage he can do. He and his incompetent and evil acolytes must be shown the exit.
Thanks Steven: Jeez, If Trump and his MAGA crowd, Russell Vought, JD Vance, Stephen Miller , Peter Thiel and others get to control the election and win, you will never have to vote again. The courts have got to get on this 17 page document and deal with it. The justice system seems so slow , so many circuits so little time. I have a feeling he will be attacking Iran in a few days. He may try to use that to suspend or nationalize the election. He has no intention of ever leaving the White House. He has amassed one of the largest personal ICE gestapo forces in the history of the US for his personal protection along with this mild form of ethnic cleansing.
The courts can’t do anything over a draft document. They can squish the lawsuits DOJ is filing against states demanding their voter rolls. About 30 states so far. “Only” 11 complied so there are other states not being sued yet.
Georgia First, a voter rights group, filed an amicus brief supporting the Fulton County emergency petition re: seizure of 2020 ballots. The judge in the GA case has ordered mediation! 🙃 Constitutional issues go to mediation?
Democracy Docket got a copy of the 17 pager and published it. It is dated April of 2025. If you’re a glutton for punishment you can scroll through it.
(In the article just click where is says to scroll down & the document will open. Apologies for the huge URL.)
Exactly, Steven. The despicable behavior of terror used on American people should be looked on, by all, as a travesty. When leaders cheer it on, what does this say about justice and who has it? The real question is what is the ultimate end goal? They have enough money. If they bomb everything, what's left?
One correction: "sent masked men to grab migrants off the street" should be "sent masked men to grab people off the street." ICE is largely indiscriminate and many U.S. citizens have been grabbed.
As always, you are spot on, Steven. As always, you have defined the most pressing problem with great skill and nuance. We don’t need a proverbial club brought down on our heads to know that Trump wants to stop free and fair elections in the interest of his fascist goal to stay in power. What we do need is to know how this could take place…and so understanding the link between the Tulsi Gabbard appearance in Georgia as a false narrative that will link China to the 2020 election results is very important. Thank you for describing this strategy clearly and forthrightly.
How we can stop it is still an open question. I would hate for this move to succeed in checkmating our right…not privilege…to vote. Until each and every American understands that voting is our Constitutional right, I fear this ugly fairy story told by tin foil hat gargoyles will succeed. What we do next as citizens is important. Who ever thought that voting could become a form of protest?
Dem AG’s a being proactive as are heads of state elections. They are ‘wargaming’ potential scenarios and responses.
At the same time, about 30 states (including DC) are being sued for not providing their voter rolls. Our GOP Secretary of State was notified yesterday KY is being sued. He said he will “not voluntarily commit a data breach” of Kentuckians’ private information without a court order. The 11 states in red on the map have handed over their voter info. The rest have not or provided publicly available voter info.
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/tracker-justice-department-requests-voter-information
Right on, Steven. Here's a small but important bright light: Thune announced on Thursday that the votes aren't there to kill the Senate filibuster and without that, the bill is in limbo/dead. The Imbecile doesn't seem to understand that Republicans would be hit as hard as Democrats if they got rid of vote-by-mail. And since there are more Dems and they are way more committed to showing up, Trump will still lose. And the Georgia Secretary of State's suit against the DOJ was greenlit on Thursday. The facts of that case acknowledge the FBI's finding that the 2020 election was the freest and fairest election in our history. No foreign interference, no immigrants running roughshod over the polls, no fake ballots. Like so many of his initiatives, they are clunky, ill planned, if at all, and designed to grab headlines, juice his base and in the end, do little to nothing. I think the regime's efforts to rig the elections will suffer the same fate. I kind of relish his terror of losing power and exposure from the Epstein Files. I hope that fear keeps him tortured and sleepless. I hope that his efforts to squirrel the election will go down in flames. Even though the feckless "leaders" of the Dem caucuses cannot seem to rouse themselves into any showable defiance or plan of action for the election threats ahead, the grass roots are organizing: helping people get their needed IDs, signing up to poll watch, driving people to the polls; lawyers have filings at the ready; and the courts know an affront to the law when they are handed the proof. It may end up being like the Bush vs. Gore debacle, where the Supreme Court has to decide. I'm confident in the integrity of state and local elections. Trump's people will do their evil thing, but we will thwart them at every turn. The will of The People will not be denied. The vote will be overwhelming, unchallengeable. We will win and win big. As you say, there are more of us than there are of them.
Here's hoping, but let's be honest: how "free and fair" can elections be when there are no limits on campaign contributions by the mega-wealthy and big corporations?
When Bannon and Cleta Mitchell are leading the parade it leads to failure. They are mostly for ‘theories’ that generate $$ for them & getting around the WH gatekeepers to whisper in DJT’s ear.
I started wondering if Democrats take back the house and the senate that they could refuse to swear them in. Mike Johnson delayed the swearing in of a Democratic representative last year for weeks. Democrats and Republicans who still believe in democracy need a plan B. I put nothing past these people.
That's a relevant and possible worry. Mike Johnson is a toady and will do whatever Trump tells him to do. On the other hand, denying the will of the people derived from their votes in a free and fair election would cause a maelstrom of opposition. No longer smiling masses, angry protesters would fill the streets for miles. But like Steven says, we must be vigilant now. Get involved with voter registration. Volunteer to poll watch or work with vote counters. Drive people to the polls who have no transportation. And if need be, organize large groups of sentinels, standing guard against ICE, creating a human barrier to thwart the thugs, making sure voters can cast their franchise.
Of course it is wise to prepare for unexpected obstacles. However, the advantage is with is Dems if they win a majority - Dems would choose the Speaker. No other business can be conducted without a Speaker. Later the members are sworn in and after that the rules and other business of the new Congress.
Who Presides over the Proceedings to Elect a New Speaker?
— Summary
Article 1, Section 2, of the Constitution sets a term of office of two years for all Members of the House. One House ends at the conclusion of each two-year Congress, and the newly elected Representatives must constitute a new House at the beginning of the next Congress. Consequently, the House must choose its Speaker and officers and adopt the chamber's rules of procedure every two years.
The Constitution mandates that Congress convene at noon on January 3, unless the preceding Congress by law designated a different day.
The House follows a well-established first-day routine. The proceedings include
• a call to order by the Clerk of the House;
• a prayer led by the Chaplain and the Pledge of Allegiance led by the Clerk;
• a quorum call ordered by the Clerk;
• the election of the Speaker, ordered by the Clerk and conducted with the assistance of tellers;
• remarks by the Speaker-elect, followed by his or her swearing-in by the dean …
• the oath of office for the newly elected and reelected Members, administered by the Speaker
Congress following a general election. — Congress.gov | Library of Congress
Hi, FVera
Unfortunately , I harbor the same concern as Mike Johnson is so obviously attached to Trump. And Mike refused to certify before. Your question prompted me to
Google and there are slightly different views.
Instead of writing more, I’ll provide the links.
Thank you for asking this.
https://protectdemocracy.org/work/election-certification-explained/
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/policy-solutions/election-certification#:~:text=State%20courts%20have%20affirmed%20that%20certification%20is,to%20intervene%20and%20complete%20the%20certification%20process
If the Dems take the House, Johnson has no power. The Congressional session expires the end of 2026 & with it Johnson’s speakership. There is no Speaker, when they reconvene on January 3, 2027. No business can be conducted until they choose a new Speaker. After that the new House members are sworn in.
In 2021, Pelosi was Speaker when Congress was to “certify” the electoral count. Behind the scenes Johnson used his skills as constitutional attorney to construct plans for sabotaging the certification process. (He’s been called the “architect”) We know he & his cohorts failed. That led to Congress passing a reform act with a section specifying the VP’s role is to count electoral votes. It is administrative with no authority over the electoral votes. Johnson is a sneaky worm & he lost that war.
❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
Yes to all. And on a related note - now that Netflix has stepped back from the Warner Bros. Discovery deal that leaves Paramount. And I am deeply worried we will see CNN compromised just as Paramount has done with CBS.
I can feel my blood pressure rise at each attempt from this regime to subvert elections. I am so grateful for the work of Marc Elias and others to fight back for us in the courts.
Holding up “Signs of Fascism” again this Saturday in Eagle River, Wisconsin! RED AMERICA is stepping up.
It is unbearable that we have to live here now. I am beyond sad and frustrated . One decent ruling by this Supreme Court does not do it for me. I will be at the No Kings March on 3/28/26.
It is impossible . Thank You Steven .. your piece says it all in a nut shell. lost in america
Know what my big fear is? Democrats will wallop the Republicans in November, take back the House *and* the Senate -- and then in January get down to tweaking this and that and never addressing how and why things got this bad. Because it didn't happen overnight, and it didn't start with Trump.
Pinpointing when it *did* start is a challenge. I like to point to presidential election of Ronald Reagan, but that didn't come out of nowhere either: the resurgence of the increasingly anti-democratic Republican Party began with the backlash to the civil rights advances of the 1960s, when the white Southern Democrats started flooding into what had once been "the party of Lincoln," followed by the January 1973 SCOTUS decision in Roe v. Wade. Post-Reagan, democracy continued to yield ground to economic power; notable milestones include the 1999 repeal of key provisions of the Glass-Steagall Act and of course the Citizens United decision in 2010.
Why did it get this bad? In a nutshell: for decades, too many elected Democrats weren't paying attention to what was happening or listening to those who were. Interestingly enough, we're approaching the 100th anniversary of the 1929 stock market crash and the depression that followed. Two distinct roads diverged out after that catastrophe: in the U.S., the New Deal of the FDR administration; and in Germany, Hitler's Third Reich. With the Republican Party as discredited as I hope it's going to be, I don't think the U.S. will take the latter road. Will the Democrats muster the vision and courage to improve on the achievements of the New Deal and the decades that followed? That remains to be seen.
At the Constitutional Convention in 1787 Ben Franklin was asked by Elizabeth Willing Powell,”what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?”
The 81 years since old Franklin responded,” a republic if we can keep it”
Earlier he warned that he feared that unless the constitution was well administered it would end in despotism as other forms of government had before it, “when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic government.”
That sounds a lot like the maga voters who said the US needed “a strongman” or a dictator. It does ignore a big problem the Pres has: The self-interest of politicians/candidates and states who don’t want to face the consequences of terms expiring.
Complacency and compliance is not an option. We know Trump is a criminal who violates the Constitution and seems to know no limitations in the damage he can do. He and his incompetent and evil acolytes must be shown the exit.
Excellent again Steven thank you
They are literally taking over everything.
Must be stopped
Thanks Steven: Jeez, If Trump and his MAGA crowd, Russell Vought, JD Vance, Stephen Miller , Peter Thiel and others get to control the election and win, you will never have to vote again. The courts have got to get on this 17 page document and deal with it. The justice system seems so slow , so many circuits so little time. I have a feeling he will be attacking Iran in a few days. He may try to use that to suspend or nationalize the election. He has no intention of ever leaving the White House. He has amassed one of the largest personal ICE gestapo forces in the history of the US for his personal protection along with this mild form of ethnic cleansing.
The courts can’t do anything over a draft document. They can squish the lawsuits DOJ is filing against states demanding their voter rolls. About 30 states so far. “Only” 11 complied so there are other states not being sued yet.
Georgia First, a voter rights group, filed an amicus brief supporting the Fulton County emergency petition re: seizure of 2020 ballots. The judge in the GA case has ordered mediation! 🙃 Constitutional issues go to mediation?
Democracy Docket got a copy of the 17 pager and published it. It is dated April of 2025. If you’re a glutton for punishment you can scroll through it.
(In the article just click where is says to scroll down & the document will open. Apologies for the huge URL.)
https://www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/exclusive-read-the-draft-executive-emergency-order-for-trump-to-take-control-of-elections/?utm_campaign=13200977-Free%20Newsletter%20Emails&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz--z6saMXazxXIS66gZ_kvtq46rDRlXKSKhawmfiO_GruwGDPWJYRXfeS_jAmVf0uFcmfWMkultuRUlK-43GyRGhxmgNEg&_hsmi=406151734&utm_content=406151734&utm_source=hs_email
Thanks Ann: No apology necessary. Thanks for the information.
Exactly, Steven. The despicable behavior of terror used on American people should be looked on, by all, as a travesty. When leaders cheer it on, what does this say about justice and who has it? The real question is what is the ultimate end goal? They have enough money. If they bomb everything, what's left?
250 Days to America’s 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Benjamin Franklin’s response to
No to complacency and compliance. Yes to courage and defying conventional wisdom.