"shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. " tfg team focuses on "insurrection" claiming he hasn't been found guilty of..they have convenient amnesia with the remaining part of the sentence...if saying outloud to pardon all these insurrectionists isn't "given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof" then I do not know what is.
Evil flourishes when ... Sup Ct judges take funds from and then vote for people who want to buy a result. Trump can pay Ginny to assure Thomas vote. And nobody can do anything about it. And Gorsuch et al owe their jobs to him. Malignant despots flourish when they own the Federalist Soc which owns the judges. And when laws against accepting foreign emoluments are not enforced. It's not just one person. It's a movement by those in power to destroy democracy which faces no real opposition.
Sadly, the Emoluments Clause has no enforcement clause or laws to enforce it. A president is supposed to ask Congress for approval of exceptions which has happened with previous presidents. The only option other than legislation is impeachment. We know how that would have turned out. Plus the House was aware that between the court battles for documentation and stonewalling of agencies under DJT’s control would suck more energy out of legislating and lead nowhere.
Just Security describes the problem and has proposed legislation …
I shudder when I think that it has been 3 years since I was traumatized by the events I saw on tv, the lack of respect for our Capitol Building, the determination to subvert the peaceful transition of power, as provided in the Constitution, by violent means, the chants of ing Mike Pence because he wouldn't go along with the big lie. Because the guy who legitimately lost the 2020 election couldn't accept that he ha lost. He ha been propped up his entire life by his corrupt father and by others, and his megalomania and narcissism won't let him accept that 1 person wins an election and 1 person loses. That is how our elections work. He thought nothing about inciting others to use violence so that he could retain power. I was just watching CNN while eating breakfast. They showed clips of a number of GOP members condemning the January 6 violence immediately after the attack; but then weeks later, out of feat of losing Trump's loyalty, which loyalty only goes in 1 direction, they changed their stories. They, like he, put their own politics careers over the Constitution and over the will of the people and over our Democracy. Some analysts say that January 6 was just a rehearsal, that those who attempted the insurrection and the coup learned from a few of the mistakes they made, and a few of the safeguards that were in place, that January 6, 2021 was the dress rehearsal for what will be attempted if 45 wins the 2024 election. They will know how to get around the guardrails; and, in fact, the moderates in the GOP who were the guardrails, have dropped out of political life, because it has become so toxic. Our Experiment in Democracy, established on July 4, 1776 is really in peril if 45 gets elected again. WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN !!! We can't let 1 deranged person destroy our democracy republic and make it into a dictatorship, with himself as the dictator, pardoning insurrectionists along the way. We have to have faith that the judicial system will work, that Jack Smith will be able to apply the law equally to all people, that the Supreme Court that 45 loaded with his buddies won't cave for political reasons also, and hand 45 victories where there are ow. We have to have faith that justice will rule. We have to have faith that we will return to be that shining star on the hill. God Bless America 🇺🇸
What terrifies me most is not the fervor of the GOP, but rather the passive, indifferent attitude of Democrats who remain alarmingly oblivious to the imminent threat of a dictatorship emerging in our nation.
"And yet, few expect the Supreme Court’s right-wing majority, so profoundly lacking in credibility, to follow Section 3’s clear mandate, any more than they expect Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself, given his wife’s alleged involvement in the coup plot. How, then, do the justices get out of doing what the Constitution says they must?"
We have about 11 months to do right by our country - let's not let it go down in flames, because that's exactly what will happen if that person wins. VOTE get others to VOTE canvass for VOTERS. Take some time if you can and travel the country or at least your neighborhood getting people to understand the gravity of that person - VOTE VOTE VOTE
Thank you for reiterating the actual events of that fateful day in January. How Trump can continue to lie about the outcome of the 2020 election as well as his role in the carnage of Jan 6 is a reflection of the respect that the American justice system has bestowed upon the Presidency of your country as well as those who have served as POTUS. After 3 years, this petulant man-child is still walking freely, allowed to run for a second term and has publicly stated that he will become a dictator on day 1 of his new presidency should he win. If any other person seeking the highest office of the land were promoting Trump’s ideology, they would have been “cut off at the knees. Alas in the current scenario, the wheels of justice and the decay that has inundated the GOP appear incapable of keeping TFG at bay. Yes, today is the sad anniversary of the day that Trump decided he wasn’t playing according to the rules, taking with him a crowd that has evolved into a cult.
In searching for information early on J6 (I wasn't on Twitter at the time) I went to YouTube because I wasn't finding much on msm and landed on newly sworn in Rep Derrick Evans live feed go pro(?) feed, so I was "there" as he accessed the Capitol, I did see where initially they behaved (still trespassing) but then mob mentality started kicking in and I kept thinking "when are reinforcements?" Then I clicked on another site from his page (remember algorithms) and was on a feed from outside a chamber where they were breaking a window within a locked door and a girl climbed into the opening, was told to stop, she didn't and was shot, she died breaking and entering. Then another site loaded and showed what appeared to be a briefing of sorts (many people, cameras, a seated speaker behind a table) where the bearded speaker said(sic) we were invited to the WH where we were told there was a plan to fix the outcome of the election but if that didn't work out, that's where we come in, and I can't tell you what that is but it blew my mind it was so wild" ...I freaked and closed the feed without knowing who that was (not Tarrio or Rhodes) but I am traumatized, knowing there was a contingency plan made with the WH if the fake elector plot didn't work. I have never heard back from FBI but I gave permission for them to access, so maybe I wouldn't be notified, but it was the WH planning and plotting with militia. 💔
The Capitol building was closed to the public. It is a ‘tell’ that the militant groups and DJT planned to go to there. It is another ‘tell’ that DJT told them to go & he would join them. Then there are all the other indicators that this was not tourism but it was planned to be violent: the gallows on the lawn, the chants as they hunted for specific leaders, the Proud Boys (videoed) going in advance of the crowd to check out security. The video was made public at some point.
“… documentary filmmaker Nick Quested who stated that on the morning of the insurrection, while Trump was giving a speech, he trailed members of the Proud Boys as they did recon on the Capitol looking for weak spots, and then he joined them for tacos.”
Merrick Garland has the most responsibility for the condition of the country right now. He is either corrupted or impossibly weak. biden should replace him immediately.
Over 1200 arrests yet the man who caused it all is still free and possibly will remain so. Bolsonaro has been arrested. The president of Chile who tried the same thing when he lost the presidential election was arrested the day after. I thought the way justice works in this country is you arrest somebody first and then you have a trial. Trump should’ve been arrested immediately and kept in jail as being too dangerous to be out in the streets. Everyone has been a coward in the face of this man, and intimidation that led to fear and cowardice is what helped Hitler get where he got, and sadly is likely to help Trump change not just the politics and realities of this country, but of much of the world.
We must be seen. Yes, hope for the courts and justice system but show up to protest early and often--regardless of the legal ups and downs until Trump and MAGA diminish to obscurity.
Thank you for this article Steven. I just wish more people were not completely brainwashed by the Trump cult.
"shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. " tfg team focuses on "insurrection" claiming he hasn't been found guilty of..they have convenient amnesia with the remaining part of the sentence...if saying outloud to pardon all these insurrectionists isn't "given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof" then I do not know what is.
Evil flourishes when ... Sup Ct judges take funds from and then vote for people who want to buy a result. Trump can pay Ginny to assure Thomas vote. And nobody can do anything about it. And Gorsuch et al owe their jobs to him. Malignant despots flourish when they own the Federalist Soc which owns the judges. And when laws against accepting foreign emoluments are not enforced. It's not just one person. It's a movement by those in power to destroy democracy which faces no real opposition.
Sadly, the Emoluments Clause has no enforcement clause or laws to enforce it. A president is supposed to ask Congress for approval of exceptions which has happened with previous presidents. The only option other than legislation is impeachment. We know how that would have turned out. Plus the House was aware that between the court battles for documentation and stonewalling of agencies under DJT’s control would suck more energy out of legislating and lead nowhere.
Just Security describes the problem and has proposed legislation …
https://www.justsecurity.org/73148/good-governance-paper-no-15-enforcing-the-emoluments-clauses/
Succinctly written, Steven! The best news of the day is that Harry Dunn announced that he is running for Congress in Maryland. I’d love to see who would run against him because they’d lose. https://x.com/victorshi2020/status/1743245501384839361?s=46&t=0fqgIfW4gkZe58SfYjTotQ
I shudder when I think that it has been 3 years since I was traumatized by the events I saw on tv, the lack of respect for our Capitol Building, the determination to subvert the peaceful transition of power, as provided in the Constitution, by violent means, the chants of ing Mike Pence because he wouldn't go along with the big lie. Because the guy who legitimately lost the 2020 election couldn't accept that he ha lost. He ha been propped up his entire life by his corrupt father and by others, and his megalomania and narcissism won't let him accept that 1 person wins an election and 1 person loses. That is how our elections work. He thought nothing about inciting others to use violence so that he could retain power. I was just watching CNN while eating breakfast. They showed clips of a number of GOP members condemning the January 6 violence immediately after the attack; but then weeks later, out of feat of losing Trump's loyalty, which loyalty only goes in 1 direction, they changed their stories. They, like he, put their own politics careers over the Constitution and over the will of the people and over our Democracy. Some analysts say that January 6 was just a rehearsal, that those who attempted the insurrection and the coup learned from a few of the mistakes they made, and a few of the safeguards that were in place, that January 6, 2021 was the dress rehearsal for what will be attempted if 45 wins the 2024 election. They will know how to get around the guardrails; and, in fact, the moderates in the GOP who were the guardrails, have dropped out of political life, because it has become so toxic. Our Experiment in Democracy, established on July 4, 1776 is really in peril if 45 gets elected again. WE CAN'T LET THAT HAPPEN !!! We can't let 1 deranged person destroy our democracy republic and make it into a dictatorship, with himself as the dictator, pardoning insurrectionists along the way. We have to have faith that the judicial system will work, that Jack Smith will be able to apply the law equally to all people, that the Supreme Court that 45 loaded with his buddies won't cave for political reasons also, and hand 45 victories where there are ow. We have to have faith that justice will rule. We have to have faith that we will return to be that shining star on the hill. God Bless America 🇺🇸
What terrifies me most is not the fervor of the GOP, but rather the passive, indifferent attitude of Democrats who remain alarmingly oblivious to the imminent threat of a dictatorship emerging in our nation.
You've identified much of the work to be done this year.
Does anyone expect SCOTUS to protect democracy and uphold the Constitution? I don't.
"And yet, few expect the Supreme Court’s right-wing majority, so profoundly lacking in credibility, to follow Section 3’s clear mandate, any more than they expect Justice Clarence Thomas to recuse himself, given his wife’s alleged involvement in the coup plot. How, then, do the justices get out of doing what the Constitution says they must?"
I hope there isn't a paywall blocking this article. https://wapo.st/41NmTv4
Thank you for this, Steven. It’s so hard to think about the band of traitors that facilitated that day of infamy. They are still among us...
So many that day...so many others supporting what they did.
We have about 11 months to do right by our country - let's not let it go down in flames, because that's exactly what will happen if that person wins. VOTE get others to VOTE canvass for VOTERS. Take some time if you can and travel the country or at least your neighborhood getting people to understand the gravity of that person - VOTE VOTE VOTE
Right on.
Thank you for reiterating the actual events of that fateful day in January. How Trump can continue to lie about the outcome of the 2020 election as well as his role in the carnage of Jan 6 is a reflection of the respect that the American justice system has bestowed upon the Presidency of your country as well as those who have served as POTUS. After 3 years, this petulant man-child is still walking freely, allowed to run for a second term and has publicly stated that he will become a dictator on day 1 of his new presidency should he win. If any other person seeking the highest office of the land were promoting Trump’s ideology, they would have been “cut off at the knees. Alas in the current scenario, the wheels of justice and the decay that has inundated the GOP appear incapable of keeping TFG at bay. Yes, today is the sad anniversary of the day that Trump decided he wasn’t playing according to the rules, taking with him a crowd that has evolved into a cult.
In searching for information early on J6 (I wasn't on Twitter at the time) I went to YouTube because I wasn't finding much on msm and landed on newly sworn in Rep Derrick Evans live feed go pro(?) feed, so I was "there" as he accessed the Capitol, I did see where initially they behaved (still trespassing) but then mob mentality started kicking in and I kept thinking "when are reinforcements?" Then I clicked on another site from his page (remember algorithms) and was on a feed from outside a chamber where they were breaking a window within a locked door and a girl climbed into the opening, was told to stop, she didn't and was shot, she died breaking and entering. Then another site loaded and showed what appeared to be a briefing of sorts (many people, cameras, a seated speaker behind a table) where the bearded speaker said(sic) we were invited to the WH where we were told there was a plan to fix the outcome of the election but if that didn't work out, that's where we come in, and I can't tell you what that is but it blew my mind it was so wild" ...I freaked and closed the feed without knowing who that was (not Tarrio or Rhodes) but I am traumatized, knowing there was a contingency plan made with the WH if the fake elector plot didn't work. I have never heard back from FBI but I gave permission for them to access, so maybe I wouldn't be notified, but it was the WH planning and plotting with militia. 💔
The Capitol building was closed to the public. It is a ‘tell’ that the militant groups and DJT planned to go to there. It is another ‘tell’ that DJT told them to go & he would join them. Then there are all the other indicators that this was not tourism but it was planned to be violent: the gallows on the lawn, the chants as they hunted for specific leaders, the Proud Boys (videoed) going in advance of the crowd to check out security. The video was made public at some point.
“… documentary filmmaker Nick Quested who stated that on the morning of the insurrection, while Trump was giving a speech, he trailed members of the Proud Boys as they did recon on the Capitol looking for weak spots, and then he joined them for tacos.”
https://www.salon.com/2022/06/09/proud-boys-did-recon-on-weak-points-of-capitol-during-speech-on-jan-6-then-went-for-tacos/
There was another video of militia with Roger Stone that morning, one asked"so today's the day" and Roger replied "we'll see" and we did.
Merrick Garland has the most responsibility for the condition of the country right now. He is either corrupted or impossibly weak. biden should replace him immediately.
Over 1200 arrests yet the man who caused it all is still free and possibly will remain so. Bolsonaro has been arrested. The president of Chile who tried the same thing when he lost the presidential election was arrested the day after. I thought the way justice works in this country is you arrest somebody first and then you have a trial. Trump should’ve been arrested immediately and kept in jail as being too dangerous to be out in the streets. Everyone has been a coward in the face of this man, and intimidation that led to fear and cowardice is what helped Hitler get where he got, and sadly is likely to help Trump change not just the politics and realities of this country, but of much of the world.
We must be seen. Yes, hope for the courts and justice system but show up to protest early and often--regardless of the legal ups and downs until Trump and MAGA diminish to obscurity.
Just ugh.