The Political Thread

Just calling someone potato head sounds disparaging.

“Hey, Potato Head!”

“Hey, Mr. Potato Head!”

To my ear, the latter seems more respectful with the honorific.

This past Sunday, was the 56th Anniversary of ‘Bloody Sunday’ = The Selma March was for Civil Rights/Voting Rights—It is called ‘Bloody Sunday’ for the Marchers (Heroes) were brutally attacked by the Police, etc. (Similar to some events today)

Prior to this march, I already at a very early age had witnessed HATE like I had never seen before in a Southern State; which caused me to march in my first Protest Rally in which I got the Crap Kicked out of me by Police = Out Of Control Police (It would not be the last time sadly…)

One would THINK & HOPE that today (2021), that things would be way better for Minorities in our country???

Sadly, they are not better, largely due to the GOP politicians, The Majority of GOP Voters, The GOP Racists, The Right-Wing Media, The GOP Extremists, Donald, The WHITE Domestic Racist Terrorist’s Groups etc. etc. etc.

As we speak, there are over 250 Voter Suppression Type Bills being pushed thru in over 35 States by the GOP Politicians & GOP Political Groups.

It looks like, feels, like that Jim Crow Type of Laws/Rules are making a comeback—Plus there is so much more.

That is why, Tequila and myself have Officially Re-Named the GOP to:

The Party of HATE or POH.

Here is the ‘so much more’ from the POH:

--Not ONE POH Senate Member, voted for the Relief Bill –even though it would do so much for the Americans in need plus cut child poverty by at least 45% (just to mention ONE of so many good benefits in Bill) = They do NOT give a shit = JUST HATE (POH). You all should read what the Relief Bill covers = so much good. They the POH are really Stupid because one group that will Largely benefit from this Bill are White Rural Folks= THEIR VOTIBG BASE!!! Also, the Republican Voters in Polls have 65% approval of Bill & Independent Voters71% approval.

--The POH will do anything to BLOCK/STOP the Min. Wage Raise. How folks live off $8.00/hour (Starving/Slave like Wages) is beyond understanding. Some GOP Politicians want to even DO WAY with the Min. Wage, so that Employers could pay as little as $3.00/hour or less. I recently posted in the Do Me Misc. Thread a very good article about Demark paying a min. wage of over $20.00/hour and how we could do it to. THE HATE BY THE POH!!!

--They, the POH and their Media, continues to push & support the ULTIMATE LIE that the 2020 Election was Stolen. This Rhetoric by them and their Media Outlets helped INCITE the Insurrection. And they DO NOT CARE how this impacts our citizens or country. JUST HATE (POH).

--The Vast, Vast, Vast Majority of the POH and their Media LIED, gave out incorrect information, recommended dangerous type treatments and made Wearing Masks a MASSIVE Political Issue, etc. etc. etc. Because of this & more, America being only 4.5% of the world; had nearly 25% of the WORLD’S Covid Deaths!!! The NYT along with Medical Scientists have stated that at least 150,000 have died (IF NOT WAY MORE) from Covid that didn’t have to die if this Pandemic had been handled properly with the FACTS, etc. etc. etc.

--Even today, there are many members of the POH along with their Media that Support QAnon, Proud Boys, other All White Terrorist Groups and some even stating these are nice people. POH.

--About 80% of what the Vast Majority of the POH says are LIES, or Partial Truths, Half Facts or in some cases Dirty LIES. Because of their HATE – they do not give a Crap about however these lies, etc. Will impact their audience (The Hate).

--We are just about the ONLY Industrial Country that DOES NOT have National Family Leave and National Child Care—The POH will NEVER, EVER allow this to happen = THE HATE!!!

--The POH has tried for years to CUT as many Programs for the poor, needy, etc. including Food Stamps. A family of four can qualify for $650/month. Now, PLEASE do the MATH as to how that breaks down to an Individual Daily basis. Shame on US—but the POH shows no shame & knows no shame.

--The POH Passed a Tax Cut Bill where 81% of the Tax Savings went to the TOP 1%--as for the poor, well…(POH)

--They had tried for nearly Ten Years to WIPE AWAY Obama Care, but finally were not successful. Had they been successful they HAD NO REPLACEMENT PLAN ready and WORSE well over 50 million Americans would have lost their Medical Coverage, because of per-existing conditions (of which nearly 100 Million Americans have such conditions INCLUDING most reading this) = POH.

--THE POH scream for More POLICE and for more Support of Police even though at LEAST 20% of our National Law Enforcement are Rogue Police (out-of-control) and it could be much more. THE POH will never acknowledge such, instead blaming all on THUGS, BLACKS, etc. I guess they do not watch the Videos showing Police Harassing, Beating, Kicking, Shooting, Killing, etc. unarmed Blacks, etc.

--The POH do everything they can to Block any/all Green Renewable Projects; anything that will battle Global Warning; any protections for Nature, etc. etc. etc. Instead, regardless of the damages to America, our Citizens and Nature they just continue with ‘Drill Baby Drill’ and the vast majority of them do not even believe in the Science of GW. Even with a MAJOR INCREASE in Deadly Devastating Extreme Climate Events and rising temps; the POH just LIES –Once in Hundred Year Storms, etc. Somebody PLEASE needs to tell these POH Nutcases that if theses Extreme Climate events occur EVERY YEAR or so = They are NO LONGER Once in 100-year Storms.

--How many POH Politicians have come out publicly to state: That HATE EVENTS directed at Asians, Blacks, Hispanics, Gays, Lesbians, Trans Genders, etc. etc. etc. ARE WRONG, DISGUSTING & MUST STOP??? No, you do NOT need a calculator to answer this simple question = Your Fingers & Toes will do.

--THE POH by their Actions/Statements OR Lack of Such = Incite the Racism to continued to grow in America (surging) along with Hate Events. The refuse to say anything, because the Racists, etc. are their BASE. POH.

--Many of the POH have claimed that School Mass Shootings were STAGED and the Wounded/Dead Students were Actors. They again DO NOT CARE how this impacts our Citizens, Country or the Families of the DEAD. Their BELIEFS have had Citizens harassed/threaten bodily harm to the Victim’s Dead Families stating that it was all staged. Thanks, POH.

--Any thoughts, Actions, Bills that try to bring Much NEEDED Common Sense, Smart Adjustments to our Gun Laws are met with DO NOT THREAD ON ME type Crap by the POH.

--AND the Right-Wing Media Outlets, should never have the word ‘News’ in their names for so little of what they state is News—The rest is LIES, Partial Facts, HUGE LIES, Half-Truths, MORE LIES, Conspiracy Theories with no basis or evidence of such, DIRTY LIES, Fake News, Misinformation, etc. etc. etc. and they should be know as :

HATE TALKERS and/or FEAR TALKERS.

SUMMARY: AGAIN, please keep in mine NOT ONE, NOT ONE, NOT ONE POH Senator voted FOR the Relief Bill. This is not about politics, instead this is just PURE HATE.

--THERE IS SO MUCH MORE NEGATIVITY & HATE REGARDS TO THE POH—BUT NOT ENOUGH SPACE/TIME TO DOCUMENT ALL.

INSTEAD, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, TAKE SOME TIME AND READ:

--03-08-21: www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/22274429/republicans-anti-democracy-13-charts?wpisrc=nl_todayworld
The Republican revolt against democracy, explained in 13 charts

The Trump years revealed a dark truth: The Republican Party is no longer committed to democracy. These charts tell the story.

By Zack Beauchamp@zackbeauchampzack@vox.com Mar 1, 2021, 7:30am EST
Graphics by Tim Williams

The Republican Party is the biggest threat to American democracy today. It is a radical, obstructionist faction that has become hostile to the most basic democratic norm: that the other side should get to wield power when it wins elections.

A few years ago, these statements may have sounded like partisan Democratic hyperbole. But in the wake of the January 6 attack on the Capitol and Trump’s acquittal in the Senate on the charge of inciting it, they seem more a plain description of where we’re at as a country.

But how deep does the GOP’s problem with democracy run, really? How did things get so bad? And is it likely to get worse?

Below are 13 charts that illustrate the depth of the problem and how we got here. The story they tell is sobering: At every level, from the elite down to rank-and-file voters, the party is permeated with anti-democratic political attitudes and agendas. And the prospects for rescuing the Republican Party, at least in the short term, look grim indeed.

--03-08-21 SICKENING & EVIL TRYING TO BRING JIM CROW TYPE LAWS BACK = THE DEEP, DEEP, DEEP HATRED: slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/hr1-republicans-voting-rights-fight.html
Unpacking the Fight Over H.R. 1, the Massive Voting Rights Bill

Repairing the United States’ elections system has now become an existential challenge for Democrats. The Republican Party is increasingly devoted to choking off ballot access for those who don’t support them:

As the Brennan Center for Justice notes, red-state legislatures are passing vote suppression measures dressed up as “ballot security” rules at a clip that has outpaced the same time period in 2020.

Yes, some states are passing measures to increase access to the ballot, but measures that would make it harder to register, vote early, vote by mail, or produce voter ID are now being pressed in “the most significant wave of such restrictions since the Jim Crow era,” as Michael Waldman of the Brennan Center told ABC news.

For example, Georgia House Bill 531, which passed in the Georgia General Assembly last week, would add a voter ID requirement for absentee ballots, limit the number and locations of early voting drop-off boxes, and reduce early voting days during the weekends prior to an election—including allowing just one Sunday to vote early.

Georgia allowed no-excuse absentee voting without an ID and widespread in-person early voting even before COVID-19. These reforms were not responses to the pandemic, nor were they intended to be temporary. They are only being rolled back now because a Democrat won the state, and Republicans realize they need to change the rules to prevent it from happening again.

The Georgia bill also provides that individuals can be charged with a misdemeanor if they hand out food or drinks to voters standing in line on election days, even as it ensures that more voters will be forced to wait in longer lines to cast a ballot.

Immiserating nonwhite voters, who are disproportionately forced to wait for hours in Georgia, is very much the game plan. As the lawyer for Arizona’s Republican Party conceded last week in oral arguments at the biggest voting rights challenge at the Supreme Court this term, the party is interested in limiting access to the ballot in swing states because otherwise, the GOP is at “a competitive disadvantage relative to Democrats.”

--03-09-21 POH and/or the POL (Party of LIES)???: us.yahoo.com/huffpost/nicolle-wallace-gop-terrifies-095509151.html
MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace Reveals What Now ‘Terrifies’ Her About The GOP

MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace on Monday told “Late Show” host Stephen Colbert what really scares her about the Republican Party following its capitulation to former President Donald Trump.

Wallace, who served as White House communications director under former President George W. Bush, described herself as a “self-loathing former Republican.” She lamented how the GOP today isn’t even trying to spin events and is now just built on a foundation of B.S.

“They are so far from the truth that you can no longer have a conversation with them about how to solve anything because they don’t agree on what the problems are, and that terrifies me,” the “Deadline: White House” anchor said.

--03-09-21 A VERY GOOD READ: us.yahoo.com/news/democrats-start-sending-monthly-checks-101145864.html
Democrats are about to start sending monthly checks for most U.S. children. Why are Republicans so quiet?

President Biden is expected to sign his $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan this week, sending $1,400 checks to millions of Americans and unleashing billions of dollars for schools, COVID-19 vaccinations, struggling farmers, the transportation sector, and others beneficiaries.

The package also "includes a plan to temporarily raise the child tax credit that could end up permanently changing the way the country deals with child poverty," The Associated Press reports. Most parents will get monthly payments of up to $300 for each child 5 and under and $250 for children 6 to 17.

"The child benefit has the makings of a policy revolution," The New York Times reports. "

It is essentially a guaranteed income for families with children," aiding "more than 93 percent of children" in the U.S. A recent study found it will reduce child poverty by 45 percent, and more among Black families. Democrats intend to make the one-year benefit permanent.

"Opposition has been surprisingly muted," the Times reports. No Republicans will vote for the bill, but Biden is about to sign "the greatest expansion of the welfare state since LBJ," Politico's Playbook said Monday. "How did Democrats win this fight over welfare while barely firing a shot?"

Briefly, "the twin crises of disease and recession boosted support for government intervention well beyond what has been tolerated for decades," Politico said. "Donald Trump and the GOP's own support for the last two bills depolarized the fight over this one," Republicans have been "distracted by internal divisions," and "the conservative media was distracted by juicier fare than tax policy," like Dr. Seuss and antifa.

Some conservatives warn the child credit will "bust budgets and weaken incentives to work or marry," the Times notes.

"But a child allowance differs from traditional aid in ways that appeal to some on the right. Libertarians like that it frees parents to use the money as they choose," while "proponents of higher birthrates say a child allowance could help arrest a decline in fertility" and "social conservatives note that it benefits stay-at-home parents."

Also, unlike the racially tinged welfare fights of the 1980s and '90s, many of the beneficiaries here are rural white voters. "Republicans can't count on running a backlash campaign," Samual Hammond, a child allowance proponent at the center-right Niskanen Center, tells the Times. "

They crossed the Rubicon in terms of cash payments. People love the stimulus checks," and "people on the right are curious about the child benefit — not committed, but movable."

--03-08-21: us.yahoo.com/news/former-neo-nazi-says-fox-105042242.html
Former neo-Nazi says Fox News radicalizes people by saying the same stuff he used to say

A former neo-Nazi was interviewed by CNN's Pamela Brown Saturday about domestic extremism in the US.

Frank Meeink said Fox News has radicalized Americans by saying the same stuff he used to say.

Fox News has been accused in the past of using language that echoes white supremacists.

A former neo-Nazi told CNN that Fox News radicalizes people by saying the same things he used to say.

Frank Meeink was interviewed by CNN's Pamela Brown during a segment Saturday about domestic extremism in the US. Mediaite posted a video of the segment, during which Brown played a clip of Christopher Wray, the director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

"January 6 was not an isolated event. The problem of domestic terrorism has been metastasizing across the country for a long time now and is not going away anytime soon," Wray said. "At the FBI, we've been sounding the alarm on it for a number of years now."

Brown also noted that law enforcement has warned that some of the same people present on January 6 have also expressed wanting to "blow up the Capitol" when President Joe Biden first addresses Congress. She asked Meeink what is driving this extremism.

"It's fear and narcissism and that fake patriotism that's just nationalism wrapped up again with worshipping an idol," Meeink said, adding that "Fox News has completely radicalized so many Americans."

He continued: "We have to know that a lot of our fellow Americans, fellow children of God, have been radicalized by a network of news that, as a former radical, I can tell you, from watching Fox News all day, I can show you where they're saying radical stuff that I used to say."

"Where I would say 'Jews,' they say 'big media,'" Meeink said. "They swapped out a couple of words here and there, but it's still just radicalization. So that's where we have to look. It's Fox News."

When he was 16, Meeink was one of the most well-known skinheads in the country, according to NPR.

After going to prison, Meeink abandoned his white supremacist beliefs and began lecturing against racism. He published a book about his story in 2010 titled "Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead." He has also testified before Congress about extremism.

Critics in the past have accused Fox News of using language similar to white supremacists. A writer for one of the network's most popular shows, "Tucker Carlson Tonight," was fired last year after it was discovered he had made racist and sexist posts online. The network and the show's host, Tucker Carlson, condemned the remarks, calling them "horrific" and saying they had no connection to the show.

--03-09-21 IT STARTS = WELCOME BACK JIM CROW –MORE SADLY TO COME: us.yahoo.com/news/iowa-dems-ponder-strategies-amid-164326604.html
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds on Monday signed into law a Republican-backed bill that makes it harder to vote early, potentially eroding a key aspect of Democratic campaigns.

Republicans in the House and Senate quickly approved the changes over the opposition of all Democratic legislators.

Republicans said the rules are needed to guard against voting fraud, though they noted Iowa has no history of election irregularities and that November’s election saw record turnout with no hint of problems in the state.

--03-09-21: us.yahoo.com/news/wed-had-guns-guarantee-killed-171611909.html
'If we'd had guns I guarantee we would have killed 100 politicians': Accused Oath Keeper threatened to murder lawmakers in Capitol, court documents say

Thomas Caldwell, who participated in the January 6 insurrection, threatened to kill lawmakers.

In messages prosecutors obtained, the accused Oath Keeper said to "hang the traitors."

Lawyers are fighting over whether Caldwell should be released from jail ahead of trial.

Thomas Caldwell, a participant in the January 6 riot at the Capitol, bragged about storming the building and told acquaintances he would have killed politicians if he could, according to new court filings reviewed by Insider.

The filings come in an argument from prosecutors to keep Caldwell in jail ahead of a criminal trial. He was arrested on several charges related to his participation in the insurrection.

"If we'd had guns I guarantee we would have killed 100 politicians," Caldwell wrote, according to messages prosecutors obtained. "They ran off and were spirited away through their underground tunnels like the rats they were."

Prosecutors said Caldwell is a member of the Oath Keepers, an extremist militia, and organized an attack on Congress with them as then-President Donald Trump urged lawmakers not to certify the 2020 presidential election results in favor of now-President Joe Biden, who was duly elected.
:
*** Since 2006 to the end of 2018 over 444, 000 Americans have died due to GUNS.

***I watched on a Right-Wing Media Outlet a POH Member stating he wanted his wife to have extended high-capacity clips for her 9mm (16 bullets –15 in Clip—1 in chamber) in case of a home invasion where she missed the culprit with her first clip she could reload another clip.

MY THOUGHTS: If she cannot hit the Culprit with 16-shots; maybe she should NOT have a gun (POOR  Neighbors).

***Again, on RW Media, I watched a POH state the reason he needs High Capacity Clips (Holds from 30 to 100 Bullets) for his AR-15 Military Type Assault Weapon is because = (Wait For it, Wait For It, Wait For It )= “What if over 100 Criminals Invade my Home…?”

MY THOUGHTS: I agree (Hee, Hee, Hee) = Yes, just about everyday in the news there are Reports of Home Invasions by over 100 Criminals Plus…POH

***Wait For it, Wait For it, Wait For it = Someone, on this board MIGHT imply that the reason for these Gun deaths, etc. are because of BLACKS & that the Constitution gives us the right to have guns…etc.

“The Second Amendment of the United States Constitution reads: "A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

WORSE VIDEO SO FAR OF 2021:

us.yahoo.com/huffpost/subhakar-khadka-uber-san-francisco-154741445.html
Uber Passengers Pepper Spray, Cough On Driver In 'Appalling' Attack

An Uber driver in San Francisco filmed an unmasked passenger coughing on him, grabbing his cellphone and tearing off his face mask as she and two other passengers scream profanities at him.

The driver, Subhakar Khadka, said one of the women pepper-sprayed him as they left the vehicle, a San Francisco police spokesperson told HuffPost. Khadka told KPIX the passengers targeted him for being a South Asian immigrant and yelled racist slurs as he tried to get them to leave his car.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo Faces Sixth Sexual Misconduct Allegation: Report

--Johnny Cash: American Rebel
Doc. Channel

--Kareem: Minority of One
HBO

--Last Week Tonight; with John Oliver
HBO

--03-11-21 BEYOND DISGUSTING & VILE THE POH = ONLY SOME HAVE THE RIGHT TO VOTE:
Arizona Republican lawmakers join GOP efforts to target voting, with nearly two dozen restrictive voting measures

(CNN)Months after former President Donald Trump and his allies in Congress attempted to overturn Arizona's election results, Republicans in the state's legislature are trying to make it harder for some residents to vote, targeting different elements of the system with almost two dozen separate measures.

A handful of the bills -- including two that would impose new restrictions on Arizona's popular vote-by-mail system and one that would limit its narrow voting window -- have gained momentum and could pass.

They are part of a push by Republican-controlled legislatures in several states to advocate for strict new voting laws in response to Trump's false claims of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

There are more than 250 bills in circulation nationwide, according to the most recent tally by the Brennan Center, an unprecedented nationwide effort to roll back voter access.

The list of states includes Georgia and Texas, two other states with increasingly diverse electorates where Democrats have made recent gains, and Iowa, where Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a new law that makes it harder to vote early.

More on Voting Rights

Florida Senate panel advances election bill that would ban drop boxes
Georgia at center of voting rights fight after state Senate passes bill to restrict rights
Iowa governor signs controversial law shortening early, Election Day voting
Biden signs executive order expanding voting access
House passes bill that would counter GOP efforts to restrict voter access

Nearly two dozen bills that would restrict voting were introduced in Arizona this year, and several have advanced in recent weeks.

The latest came Wednesday, when a state House committee approved a bill that would turn the state's permanent early voting list into one that drops those who skip consecutive election cycles. The list, created with bipartisan support in 2007, now features 3.2 million people who use it to receive their ballots by mail for each election and has helped spur a shift that resulted in about 80% of the state's votes being cast by mail.

And on Monday, the state Senate approved a bill that would require voters to submit identification paperwork with their mailed-in ballots. Instead of the state's current system of matching signatures on ballot envelopes with voters' signatures on file, those voting by mail would need to provide affidavits with their date of birth and driver's license, state ID or tribal ID card number -- or would need to include their voter registration number and a copy of a utility bill.

The same forms of identification are already required for in-person votes in Arizona. That bill hasn't yet been scheduled for a House committee vote.

The Senate could also vote soon on a bill that would narrow Arizona's early voting window, starting it five days later and ending it early by requiring ballots to be postmarked by the Thursday before Election Day. Under current law, ballots just have to arrive at the post office on Election Day.

Those measures are part of a raft of new voting restrictions introduced at the start of this year's legislative session in Phoenix. Other proposals, including one that would allow the legislature to overturn election results, have not advanced -- but in statehouses, bills can sometimes be revived before legislatures adjourn for the year. In Arizona, the session will end by April 24.

Arizona has introduced 24 bills restricting voting rights since January.

Most of the legislation targets limits on absentee voting after roughly 80% of Arizonans voted by mail in the 2020 election.

Although not every bill will become law, several are likely to pass in the Republican-controlled state legislature. As of March 10, three of the Arizona House bills have passed and await a vote in the Senate. Five Senate bills have passed and have crossed over to the House.

--03-10-21: slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/republicans-covid-vaccines-undocumented-immigrants-lies.html
The GOP’s Foolish Campaign Against Vaccinating Undocumented Immigrants
It’s not just immoral. It’s self-destructive.

--03-10-21 THE POH ARE GOING TO FIGHT LIKE IT IS WAR AGAINST MUCH NEED SMART/COMMON SENSE GUN MANDATES: us.yahoo.com/news/may-breaking-point-colorado-gun-132006768.html
"There may be a breaking point": Colorado gun debate sparks sharp words from GOP lawmakers.

--03-10-21 THE POH LIES & ARE HYPERCRITICAL: slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/03/donald-trump-requests-mail-in-ballot-florida-palm-beach-municipal-election.html
Donald Trump (Unironically) Requests a Mail-In Ballot Ahead of Palm Beach Municipal Election.

--03-10-21 THIS IS HOW THE POH MEDIA ACTS: www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/ny-times-lashes-out-at-tucker-carlson-for-calculated-and-cruel-attack-on-reporter-taylor-lorenz/ar-BB1esz7b?li=BBnbfcL
NY Times Lashes Out at Tucker Carlson for 'Calculated and Cruel' Attack on Reporter Taylor Lorenz

The New York Times responded Wednesday to Tucker Carlson one day after the Fox News host targeted reporter Taylor Lorenz during his primetime show.

"In a now familiar move, Tucker Carlson opened his show last night by attacking a journalist," said a statement from the paper's communications team. "It was a calculated and cruel tactic, which he regularly deploys to unleash a wave of harassment and vitriol at his intended target."

The statement, posted to Twitter, went on, "Taylor Lorenz is a talented New York Times journalist doing timely and essential reporting. Journalists should be able to do their jobs without facing harassment."

Reps for Fox News did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Also read: Tucker Carlson Guest Worried Humanity Might Go Extinct From Smoking Weed (Video)

On the Tuesday episode of "Tucker Carlson Tonight," the host repeatedly slammed Lorenz by name as he ripped into a social-media post in honor of International Women's Day.

"The most powerful people claiming to be powerless," he said, going on to call Lorenz someone "at the very top of journalism's repulsive little food chain." He called her younger and "less talented" than New York Times reporters used to be.

Lorenz, who covers tech and internet culture for the paper, wrote Tuesday that her followers could honor International Women's Day by considering "Supporting women enduring online harassment." "It's not an exaggeration to say that the harassment and smear campaign I've had to endure over the past year has destroyed my life," she said. "No one should have to go through this."

She went on to detail "the scope of attacks" against her, which she called "unimaginable."

Carlson ridicules Lorenz's account of online harassment, "You'd think Taylor Lorenz would be grateful for the remarkable luck that she's had," the host said. "You thought female Uyghurs had it bad — you haven't talked to Taylor Lorenz."

Lorenz did not reply to Carlson's much beyond noting that producers for the Fox News show changed her Twitter profile photo in the mock-up of her tweet displayed on screen. She retweeted journalistic peers who decried Carlson's on-air attack and later retweeted the Times statement.

MUST READ:
***--03-08-21: www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/what-is-the-filibuster-definition-senate-history-and-why-it-may-change/ar-BB1emyfV?li=BBnb7Kz
What Is the Filibuster? Definition, Senate History and Why it May Change. AND –03-08-21: www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/what-is-a-filibuster-heres-how-the-senate-uses-it-to-block-bills-from-becoming-laws/vi-BB1emXJo
What is a filibuster? Here's how the Senate uses it to block bills from becoming laws.

--03-10-21 BRAVO—DO AWAY WITH IT: www.huffpost.com/entry/filibuster-senate-democrats-biden_n_60480954c5b65bed87d6d373?ncid=newsltushpmgnews
Democrats Are Rapidly Evolving On The Filibuster
Key holdouts on nixing the 60-vote threshold include Biden and Sen. Joe Manchin. But the party is definitely warming to an idea that is gaining momentum.

--03-11-21 BIG BRAVO FOR SPEAKING THE TRUTH: www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/former-defense-secretary-miller-blames-trumps-speech-for-jan-6-insurrection/ar-BB1euxc9?li=BBnb7Kz
Former Defense secretary Miller blames Trump's speech for Jan. 6 insurrection

Donald Trump’s acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller blamed the former president's speech for inciting the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection in an interview with VICE.

Former acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller's comments are among the sharpest criticism Donald Trump has received from those inside his administration for his actions on Jan. 6.

“Would anybody have marched on the Capitol, and overrun the Capitol, without the president’s speech? I think it’s pretty much definitive that wouldn’t have happened,” Miller said in an interview with VICE on Showtime.

--03-11-21 BRAVO I HOPE THEY INDICT HIM: us.yahoo.com/huffpost/john-dean-trump-matter-of-days-094145978.html
John Dean Warns Trump That Prosecutors Are Closing In: 'Only A Matter Of Days'

John Dean, the White House counsel to President Richard M. Nixon who was once dubbed the “master manipulator” of the Watergate scandal, says he knows legal trouble and former President Donald Trump is in it deep.

Dean shared a report on former Trump personal attorney Michael Cohen, who has been meeting with the Manhattan district attorney’s office, which is investigating Trump for potential fraud, including tax fraud. It was Cohen’s seventh meeting with the DA’s office.

--03-10-21 BIG BRAVO: www.latimes.com/politics/story/2021-03-09/covid-19-relief-bill-lower-obamacare-premiums?utm_id=25081&sfmc_id=3384599
Obamacare premiums go down under the COVID relief bill. Here’s who will benefit.

--03-11-21 BRAVO—TUCKER IS HATE TALKER: www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/us-military-leaders-target-tucker-carlson-after-fox-news-host-called-pregnant-soldiers-a-mockery/vi-BB1euzry
U.S. military leaders target Tucker Carlson after Fox News host called pregnant soldiers 'a mockery'

--03-10-21 BRAVO: www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/biden-to-restrict-us-aid-to-central-american-governments-set-new-conditions-for-money/ar-BB1ernH4?li=BBnb7Kz
Biden to restrict U.S. aid to Central American governments, set new conditions for money

Weeks after earmarking $4 billion in U.S. aid for Central America, the Biden administration is fine-tuning its plans and sharply limiting how much money will go directly to the governments of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, a senior administration official told the Los Angeles Times.

Roberta Jacobson, Biden’s senior official for southwest border affairs and an expert on immigration, said in an interview that the $4 billion will be subject to strict — but untested — conditions on recipients, based on measures of anticorruption efforts and good governance.

The adjustments follow a push by some lawmakers to place limits on the U.S. aid and warnings from foreign policy experts concerned that in the rush to stem illegal immigration, President Biden would go down the same path he followed as vice president, when U.S. assistance, with few effective strings attached, ended up empowering corrupt regimes.

Biden plans to ensure that as little aid as possible goes to the notoriously corrupt central governments of the three countries until he is satisfied criteria are met, Jacobson said. Goalposts include transparent accounting and proof of good governance, such as fair elections and respect for human rights, she added.

The U.S. had long endorsed such goals in Central America, but they are difficult to quantify.

But the prospect of stricter accountability is panicking some of the Central American leaders who were hoping to remain on the receiving end of American assistance after four comfortable years under President Trump.

--03-10-21 BRAVO—SO DAMN TRUE: www.huffpost.com/entry/gop-priorities-meidastouch-ad_n_604877e1c5b65bed87d71ba8?ncid=newsltushpmgpolitics
Viral Attack Ad Exposes Stark Difference Between GOP, Democratic Priorities.

The progressive PAC MeidasTouch calls out GOP distraction tactics with its latest online ad.

The 86-second clip released on Twitter Tuesday breaks down a stark difference in current Republican and Democratic priorities.

It cuts footage of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy’s (R-Calif.) widely criticized and confusing reading of Dr. Seuss’s “Green Eggs and Ham” last week over video of Democrats working through the night to pass the COVID-19 relief bill.

The spot ends with a Dr. Seuss-style rhyme:

“The GOP can’t govern and so they distract, while Democrats work through the night and then act!”

--03-10-21 HUGE BRAVO—I AGREE: www.huffpost.com/entry/tim-ryan-dr-seuss-republicans_n_604810d0c5b672fce4e8f5cf?ncid=newsltushpmgnews
Rep. Tim Ryan Blows Up At GOP In Fiery House Floor Speech: ‘Stop Talking About Dr. Seuss’

The Ohio Democrat implored Republicans to stop with the culture war and “start working with us” to pass legislation to

Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) erupted Tuesday on the House floor, imploring his Republican colleagues to stop their obsession with stoking culture wars and shift focus to helping Democrats pass legislation to aid Americans struggling through the coronavirus pandemic.

“Stop talking about Dr. Seuss and start working with us on behalf of the American workers!” he shouted, referring to conservative outrage after the Dr. Seuss Foundation pulled six of its books that it deemed outdated and racially insensitive.

Republicans, Fox News and right-wing pundits have dedicated considerable time to beefing about it, blaming Democrats, “cancel culture” and the left for the foundation’s decision to remove its own products. Last week, in an apparent protest, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) made a five-minute video of himself reading “Green Eggs and Ham,” which was not one of the books removed.

The House moved Tuesday to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, legislation that would strengthen the rights of workers’ unions. It’s expected to pass in the Democratic-led House but faces a likely defeat in the Senate.

Ryan exploded at Republicans for opposing the measure, asking when they might do something to actually help workers.

“Heaven forbid we pass something that’s going to help the damn workers in the United States of America!” he yelled.

“Heaven forbid we tilt the balance that has been going in the wrong direction for 50 years. We talk about pensions, you complain. We talk about the minimum wage increase, you complain. We talk about giving them the right to organize, you complain. But if we were passing a tax cut here, you’d be getting in line to vote yes for it.”

--03-11-21 HUGE BRAVO; LOOKS LIKE MANY AMERICANS ARE WAKING UP TO RACISM—HOPING YOU ALL ARE WAKING UP TOO: www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-wake-up-call-bible-teacher-beth-moore-black-pastors-cut-ties-with-southern-baptists/ar-BB1euMhA?li=BBnbfcL
A 'wake-up call'? Bible teacher Beth Moore, Black pastors cut ties with Southern Baptists

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Popular Bible teacher Beth Moore may be the most high-profile Southern Baptist to publicly cut ties with the conservative evangelical denomination in the last year, but she is not the only one to go.

Some say a string of recent departures should serve as a wake-up call for the Nashville-based network of churches.

"Southern Baptists need to do some soul searching of why so many African-American leaders have left and now why their most prominent woman leader has left," said Ed Stetzer, a Southern Baptist pastor and executive director of the Wheaton College Billy Graham Center.

The Southern Baptist Convention goes to war with itself every few years and people tire of the infighting and public relations missteps, Stetzer said.

Southern Baptists are currently grappling with the influence of partisan politics and the treatment of women and people of color within the church. These major tension points contributed to Moore's decision to leave as well as those of Black pastors like the Rev. Joel A. Bowman Sr., who announced in December that he was cutting ties with the convention.

--03-10-21 BRAVO: www.huffpost.com/entry/katie-porter-big-oil-exec_n_6048243fc5b6cf72d0929289
People Can’t Get Enough Of Rep. Katie Porter Bulldozing This Oil Exec
“Please don’t patronize me by telling me that the oil and gas industry doesn’t have any special tax provisions,” the California Democrat told the company chief.

--03-11-21 BRAVO-- PUT ALL THE POH RACIST FOLLOWERS IN JAIL IF CRIMES ARE COMMITTED: www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/man-who-brandished-assault-rifle-at-black-lives-matter-protest-emmanuel-quinones-sentenced/ar-BB1euq59?li=BBnbfcL
Man Who Brandished Assault Rifle At Black Lives Matter Protest, Emmanuel Quinones Sentenced

NORTH TEXAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Emmanuel Quinones, 25, was sentenced to three years for brandishing an assault rifle at a Black Lives Matter protest in Lubbock.


Emmanuel Quinones was indicted by a grand jury on Wednesday, facing federal charges after brandishing a rifle at a Lubbock protest back on May 30. (courtesy: Lubbock County Detention Center)

Quinones was charged via criminal complaint in early June and indicted a week later. He pleaded guilty to interstate threatening communications in September and was sentenced on Tuesday by U.S. District Judge James Wesley Hendrix.

“The Department of Justice stands firmly against anyone and everyone who seeks to instill terror and encourage violence,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Prerak Shah.

“This sentence sends a clear message that our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to apprehend and charge all violent instigators, while protecting those who want to lawfully exercise their constitutional rights.”

--03-10-21: us.yahoo.com/news/honduran-president-urged-drug-trafficker-103833782.html
Honduran president urged drug trafficker to 'shove' cocaine 'right up the noses of the gringos,' U.S. alleges

Federal prosecutors in New York said in court Tuesday that Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández plotted to ship cocaine to the U.S. with alleged drug trafficker Geovanny Fuentes Ramírez, arrested in Florida on trafficking and arms charges in March 2020. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jacob Gutwillig, in his opening statements in Fuentes Ramírez's trial, said an accountant overheard Hernández tell Fuentes Ramírez he wanted to to "shove the drugs right up the noses of the gringos.'"

"They plotted to send as much cocaine as possible to the United States," Gutwillig said. He dated the incident to 2013 or 2014, and said the accountant, who prosecutors are calling José Sánchez, will testify in the trial. A lawyer for Fuentes Ramírez responded that Sánchez isn't a credible witness and is testifying to obtain U.S. asylum. Hernández reiterated his claims of innocence on Monday, tweeting that the drug traffickers are implicating him for his anti-trafficking efforts and to obtain lighter sentences, The Associated Press reports.

Drug Enforcement Administration agent Brian Fairbanks, who arrested Fuentes Ramirez, testified Tuesday that he found Hernández's phone number and email address in Fuentes Ramírez's cellphone, and identified the Honduran president in a photo next to Fuentes Ramírez's son and brother.

Hernández was also accused of accepting more than $1 million in bribes from Mexican kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman during the trial that ended in the 2019 conviction of the president's brother Juan Antonio Hernández. A court filing last month suggests the U.S. is investigating Juan Orlando Hernández, though he has not yet been charged with any crime.

--03-10-21 SAD; NEEDS TO CHANGE: www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-03-10/america-s-tax-code-leaves-black-people-behind-dorothy-brown?srnd=premium
A Tax Code Optimized for White Wealth Leaves Black Americans Behind. Dorothy Brown has spent her career as a law professor documenting racism in a tax system that’s supposedly colorblind.

--03-10-21 SAD: www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-10/covid-pandemic-made-racial-income-inequality-much-worse?srnd=premium
The Legacy of the Lost Year Will Be Devastating Inequality. Covid amplified every structural bias that exists.

--03-12-21: us.cnn.com/2021/03/12/opinions/one-year-of-covid-19-pandemic-womens-history-month-schnall/index.html
Women have taken a staggering Covid hit. Now they offer the best hopes for the future.

--03-12-21 NOT JUST SAD; BUT AWFUL: www.nbcnews.com/news/latino/meatpacking-workers-feel-ignored-alone-vaccine-prioritization-rcna403
Meatpacking workers feel ignored, alone in vaccine prioritization.

"They don't care [about] us. They don’t care in the beginning of the pandemic, and they don’t care now," said a worker at a South Dakota plant.

--03-10-21 THIS MUST CHANGE: www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/bill-gates-and-warren-buffet-should-thank-american-taxpayers-for-their-profitable-farmland-investments/ar-BB1erROk?li=BBnb7Kz
Bill Gates and Warren Buffet should thank American taxpayers for their profitable farmland investments.

--03-10-21 DONALD HELPED BRING THIS ON—WE SHOULD BE BUILDING THE INFRASTRUCTURE IN AFRICA, NOT CHINA:
WHAT WAS DONALD’S SAYING ABOUT AFRICAN COUNTRIES _____________________???: www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/chinas-impending-geo-strategic-victory-in-post-pandemic-africa/ar-BB1erQHO?li=BBnbfcL
China's impending geo-strategic victory in post-pandemic Africa. Being Chinese in Africa was the worst possible stigma for much of 2020.

Africans vilified the Chinese, blaming them for the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, China was blaming Africans for the pandemic, too. Viral videos in March and April 2020 showed Chinese authorities forcibly evicting Africans from their homes in Guangzhou, China, for allegedly spreading COVID-19.

These actions sparked an uproar on the continent. On social media, there were calls for deporting Chinese residents in Africa. The Twitter hashtag #DeportRacistChinese trended throughout the continent.

Beijing sought to improve its pandemic-era image in Africa with “mask diplomacy,” an effort to supply the continent with vaccines, medical equipment and personnel – and it worked.

As a doctoral student in geography who has written extensively about Africa, I recognize this “mask diplomacy” by China as part of its broader incursion into Africa that arose from the United States’ global retreat.
China building Africa

China’s rising economic influence in Africa has been in the works for two decades.

In North Africa, China has spent US$11 billion since 2015 on the Trans-Maghreb highway – from the Western Sahara to Libya – that will connect 60 million of the region’s 100 million people.

In East Africa, China built a network of roads and a rail line linking Ethiopia and Djibouti that has facilitated trade.

In southern Africa, Namibia partnered with China and the African Development Bank in 2013 on a $300 billion port expansion. And Angola will be benefiting from a $4.5 billion Chinese-funded hydroelectric power plant.

Similar infrastructure projects are in the works in west and central Africa.

Some Western leaders have described Chinese financing mechanisms as debt traps, suggesting they saddle African countries with high debts while increasing China’s power in the region.

But China’s willingness to fund Africa’s infrastructure has been viewed favorably by African leaders – especially as U.S. trade with Africa has steadily declined for a decade.

“They say China has lent too much to Africa,” Rwandan President Paul Kagame said in 2018, “but another perspective of the issue is that those criticizing China on debt give too little, and Africa needs the funding to build capacity for development.”

In 2002, U.S.-Africa trade was nearly double China’s trade with the continent: $21 billion, compared to $12 billion. By 2008, U.S.-Africa trade had surged to $100 billion.

By 2019, however, it had dropped to $56 billion. Meanwhile, China-Africa trade rose from $102 billion to $192 billion within the same 11-year period. Today, no other single country comes close to matching China’s investments across Africa.

The Trump administration ignored Africa as China exerted its influence. Trump never set foot on the continent as president – the first U.S. president in 27 years to avoid Africa.

Already Africa’s largest economic partner, China was able to pivot quickly after the coronavirus hit to offer the region aid, attention and expertise.

The results were immediate.

Some African leaders who criticized China’s treatment of Africans in China during the early days of the pandemic have changed their tone. Nigeria’s president, Muhammadu Buhari, for example, recently proclaimed that he was “satisfied with the progress of” Nigeria’s relationship with China.

Additionally, Beijing is assuming powerful leadership positions within international institutions that play important roles in Africa.

Out of 15 United Nations agencies, China heads four of them, including the Food and Agriculture Organization, or FAO, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization. No country rivals China in this sense.

China is also establishing international organizations that compete with the functions of the Western-dominated U.N., including the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the China Development Bank. As of 2018, the China Development Bank had funded 500 projects in 43 different African countries worth $50 billion.

Beijing is also courting influence and favor in ways beyond lending.

China canceled $78 million in debt owed by Cameroon in 2019 – money borrowed for infrastructural development – allegedly in exchange for Cameroon’s support for its candidacy as director-general of the FAO. Cameroon, an influential central Africa country, stands out with its diversified economy and strong private sector.
The importance of a new US-Africa relationship

For the U.S., China’s surging influence in Africa has global implications. American companies are increasingly facing tough competition from state-backed Chinese corporations as they bid for contracts in Africa. If left unmatched, Chinese companies could increasingly outcompete U.S. companies.

The Biden administration has vowed to engage more with Africa, likely signaling a long-term U.S. strategy to counter China in Africa.

But China’s strategic vaccine distribution and PPE donations to African countries have built a lot of goodwill and embellished its reputation as a responsible global power acting to protect vulnerable populations in Africa – which the U.S. and Europe have largely overlooked during the pandemic.

The U.S. may be ready to recommit to Africa, but by the time it starts to reengage, it could be too late to outpace China.

--03-10-21 WE MUST DEAL WITH THESE DANGEROUS RACIST NUTCASE TERRORISTS FIRMLY AND BREAK THEM; IF NOT…:
us.yahoo.com/news/oath-keepers-founder-wanted-force-180247133.html
Oath Keepers founder wanted to use 'force and violence' in Capitol attack, U.S. alleges.

--03-11-21 YOU SAID WHAT: www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/chicago-teacher-found-guilty-of-pouring-liquid-nitrogen-on-student-during-science-experiment/ar-BB1euEp0?li=BBnbfcL
Chicago teacher found guilty of pouring liquid nitrogen on student during science experiment.

--03-11-21 IT NEVER ENDS: news.yahoo.com/texas-police-officer-charged-murder-164208335.html
Texas police officer charged with murder in shooting that sparked protests.

The percentage of Americans that are either white or white hispanics is 77%. This would mean that 8 out of 10 unmasked people would be expected to be white. It’s simple mathematics. The other two would normally be Hispanic (rather racial of you to assume they are Mexican) and the other person in the group would be black. You have to make exceptions for the occasional Asian, Indian, other. You would seem to be predisposed to estimate that it’s 9 out of 10. That could be a local population exception as well...

Mexican man continuously writes, reprints, does paste and copy of articles suggesting white people hate other races.

Hmm. Seems to be right in the same vein, doesn’t it? Obsession with racism makes it a reality you see every moment of every day. It’s a biodivergent universe. One that we can create within our own minds to be what we believe it is. It you stop looking for it every moment, perhaps it will normalize a bit. And you are not alone. There are many of you that have programmed yourselves to see little else. Our planet and our country have always had this diversity. You know why? Because diversity is good.

I would suggest that a small percentage of all races have this bigotry. I would suggest that Millions of time per day our races cross paths without incident, and with no negative feeling for each other. Because it does not make news, we ignore it. Those that can’t continue to plant the seeds of racism, and nature it so it can survive and grow.