Month: April 2023

Legislature in Tennessee, Birthplace of the Klan, Expels Two Black Lawmakers

Pensito Editors

From left: Reps. Justine Jones, Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson
From left: Reps. Justine Jones, Justin Pearson and Gloria Johnson

CNN: “In an extraordinary, emotionally charged session marked by tense exchanges and punctuated by boos and chants from onlookers, Tennessee’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives voted to expel two Black lawmakers – but failed to oust a third [white] representative – a week after the three Democrats led a gun reform protest in the chamber.

“The crowd in the gallery erupted in boos and chants following both expulsions and loud cheers when the vote count turned up just short in the bid to oust Rep. Gloria Johnson. The session lasted seven hours.

“The vote over rules violations for Jones split along party lines 72-25, while the vote in Pearson’s case was 69-26. Johnson’s vote was 65-30. Expulsion from the House requires a two-thirds majority of the total membership.”

Pro-Publica: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas Has Enjoyed Unreported Luxury Vacations Paid for by Wealthy GOP Donor

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Clarence Thomas Harlan Crow Pro-Publica
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas

Pro-Publica: “In late June 2019, right after the U.S. Supreme Court released its final opinion of the term, Justice Clarence Thomas boarded a large private jet headed to Indonesia. He and his wife were going on vacation: nine days of island-hopping in a volcanic archipelago on a superyacht staffed by a coterie of attendants and a private chef.

“If Thomas had chartered the plane and the 162-foot yacht himself, the total cost of the trip could have exceeded $500,000. Fortunately for him, that wasn’t necessary: He was on vacation with real estate magnate and Republican megadonor Harlan Crow, who owned the jet — and the yacht, too.

“For more than two decades, Thomas has accepted luxury trips virtually every year from the Dallas businessman without disclosing them, documents and interviews show. A public servant who has a salary of $285,000, he has vacationed on Crow’s superyacht around the globe. He flies on Crow’s Bombardier Global 5000 jet. He has gone with Crow to the Bohemian Grove, the exclusive California all-male retreat, and to Crow’s sprawling ranch in East Texas. And Thomas typically spends about a week every summer at Crow’s private resort in the Adirondacks.

“The extent and frequency of Crow’s apparent gifts to Thomas have no known precedent in the modern history of the U.S. Supreme Court.”

Ex-Democratic Assemblymember’s Defection to GOP Triggers Political Earthquake in North Carolina

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Traitorous NC Assemblymember Tricia_Cotham
Traitor: NC Assemblymember Tricia Ann Cotham (R) Email: Tricia.Cotham@ncleg.gov

 

Rep. Jeff Jackson, D-NC, on Reddit: “This morning there was a political earthquake in North Carolina. A legislator in the state House announced she was switching parties from Democrat to Republican. I want to make sure you understand how dramatic the impact of this one switch will be.

Rep. Jeff Jackson D-NC
Rep. Jeff Jackson D-NC

“Until today, Democrats had enough votes to sustain [Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s] veto – but only by a margin of one vote in the NC House. With this switch, Republicans now have a supermajority in both chambers, which means they have the votes to override any veto – which effectively just gave them full control of state government for the first time since 2017.

“I can’t overstate the policy consequences of this single switch. While we don’t know how she will vote on any given bill, dozens of bills that were essentially dead – from elections law changes to reproductive freedom to LGBTQ rights to education policy – may have just sprung back to life. And the state budget – which controls education funding – can now be passed entirely on the basis of Republican votes.

“In short, the decision by this legislator to suddenly switch parties will have consequences for millions of people.”

A Metaphor for the GOP in the Era of Trump

Buck Banks

“Tuesday was the perfect metaphor for the Republican Party in the Trump era. The former President and current frontrunner for the GOP nomination was arrested, fingerprinted, and arraigned like a common criminal. He endured the ignominy with false bravado and the full support of his party and its media apparatus. Later that night, Trump’s party lost yet another winnable election.”

— Dan Pfeiffer

We Have the All-Time Oldest Congress

Buck Banks

59

Five Thirty-Eight: Congress today is older than it’s ever been. Across all senators and representatives, the median age of the 118th Congress is 59 years old. The median senator is 65 years old, a record high; the median representative is about 58, for the fourth Congress in a row.1 Congress has notably aged since 2001: From 1919 to 1999, the median senator never eclipsed 60 years old and the median representative never surpassed 55.

Keeping Track of the Trump Investigations

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mediumjessebravo.com
In case you’ve lost track, The Bulwark collects Donald Trump’s other legal problems in one place:

  • First, there is the investigation by the Department of Justice into the classified documents found at Mar-a-Lago.
  • Second, there is DOJ’s investigation of the effort to stymie the transfer of power following the 2020 election, including the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
  • Third is the investigation — led by Fani Willis, the district attorney for Fulton County, Georgia — into election fraud in that state, arising from Trump’s having asked the Georgia secretary of state to “find” enough votes to hand him an Electoral College win there.
  • Fourth is the set of investigations (some criminal, some civil) into Trump’s various corporate enterprises. The attorney general of New York state, Letitia James, and the district attorney of Manhattan, Alvin Bragg, have each been leading probes.

    • Trump Turned Down Offer of Low-Key Arraignment

    Buck Banks

    He wanted a perp walk, he wanted daylight hours. He wants to get out of the vehicle and walk up the stairs. This is a nightmare for Secret Service, but they can only strongly suggest — not order — that Trump enter through the secure tunnels. Trump wants to greet the crowd. This should be a surprise to no one — especially not his detail.

    — A law enforcement official tells Rolling Stone that Donald Trump “was offered a chance to surrender quietly and be arraigned over Zoom. Instead, Trump opted for a midday, high-profile booking at the Manhattan courthouse.”