On the record; fodder for attack ads in 2024 House campaigns

 All but four GOP House members voted for their version of debt limit legislation they are sending to the Senate. The four, including Ken Buck of Colorado, claimed the legislation did not go far enough to reduce spending or the deficit.  I could not find evidence of what they would cut further, but in any case, the GOP's very slim majority in the House in the House is in jeopardy, and this bill they just approved could provide fodder for attack ads by Democratic opponents in 2024. 

The general message is that there are more things important than the needs of veterans, feeding the poor, reducing the debt burden of students who had to borrow money to pay tuition, and funding federal law enforcement and the justice system. Those items are facing a significant reduction in spending from current levels in the hidden implications of the board discretionary spending cut plan that was part of Kenvin McCarthy's plan.

. It is clear where the GOP stands, and it is not for law and order, regardless of their decrying an increase in crime.  They are not putting their money where their mouth is.   What was more important to the GOP caucus was keeping the tax burden on the rich and crippling the IRS' ability to collect taxes legitimately owed..  Damn, the environment; stop giving credit to alternative energy like wind, solar, and battery power and the jobs they create in manufacturing, 

 Taking appropriations back to the level the GOP wants would cut 9% in discretionary spending compared to this year’s spending. Particularly dire in these spending cuts would be the ability to enforce federal laws from the TSA, food inspectors, border patrol, the justice system, and more, an estimated $10 billion cut.  Per one group following the impact of the cuts, The Third Way, "Based on letters to the House Appropriations Committee from federal agencies and our own calculations to fill in the blanks, we lay out what these cuts would mean for federal safety programs, including law enforcement, the administration of justice, public health, and other forms of public safety.^4,,,, The Republican budget’s effect on sworn law enforcement could result in the loss of 28,500 officers that are employed by the federal government. These devastating budget cuts would gut up to $10 billion from federal law enforcement funding."  The Republican Debt Limit Plan Will Devastate Public Safety – Third Way

Whatever their reasons, the House members' votes and their priorities are on the record, and voters can hold them individually accountable in 2024, even if their platform is DOA on arrival in the Senate and White House. Their constituents will know where they stood in 2023 in black and white print in the Congressional Record.  As the old saying goes, all politics are local, and in swing districts, where GOP incumbents are already in jeopardy with unpopular positions on abortion and gun safety, opposition research on a district-by-district basis should give Democrats ammo in crafting negative advertising.  

These four House Republicans voted against the GOP debt limit bill | The Hill

What's in the GOP bill to lift debt limit, cut spending | AP News

Biden just did it: he put democracy on the ballot in 2024

 Biden just did it: For better communication, what do you call authoritarianism in a few words? Biden just did it. update 4/25/2023 Joe Biden confirms 2024 re-election bid in video announcement - Bing video    He put democracy on the ballot as an implied contrast with the dark, anti-democratic Trump. He defined what democracy is in terms of personal freedoms and then showed how he was protecting them now and in the future.  It is a context into which so many issues fit, women's choice, voter suppression, a priority of the middle-class well-being, of student debt, Ukraine, and more.

The next Biden task should be to link the issue of personal freedoms to the economy and economic well-being of those who benefit from personal freedoms.  The two easiest, of course, are women's rights to control their reproductive schedules and health in the abortion issue. Women cannot go to work if they are always"barefoot and pregnant" and earn the money they need to help maintain their family's standard of living.   It is particularly difficult when women earn less than men for the same work and doubly difficult if racism interjects the ability to earn equal pay.  Equal rights have serious economic implications. Voter suppression speaks to the loss of political power, which cripples the rights of access for those who need public policies to give them a leg up.  Student debt is the millstone around my flock of grandkids' necks setting back for years their ability to be able to have the freedom and independence to support their families.   Preservation of democracy is what Ukraine is all about, theirs and ours. It is in a way a far lower-cost proxy war than what full confrontation with Russia would cost us in the Baltics and Poland as we protect our own national security interests.  Yes, gas prices are high, but a stitch in time saves nine. 

From my April 21, 2023 posting: So what is this "democracy" for which so many died? What is "freedom" we claim to want and protect? The American style of democracy means that those who are not the majority still have rights that give them hope they can eventually be the majority, too. Diversity is the real enemy of wannabe tyrants, especially if those in the minority still have rights, the rule of law still rules,  and the ability to be heard remains in place. That is good news for the US. Those who are in the minority still have rights since the rule of laws protecting them is upheld by the judicial system.  It also bodes ill for a vocal minority that supports policies that are wildly unpopular but is attempting to force the majority to accept them, such as extreme anti-abortion laws and ignoring gun safety measures. 

 It seems unbelievable we need to make the case for democracy in order to contrast it with the anti-democracy alternatives.  However, in every generation, the case for democracy needs to be dusted off and rephrased because so many have forgotten how it benefits them. Even with its failures to live up to the idealism of our founders, we can still strive for this more perfect union so long as small d democracy survives.

My own case for democracy is based on the reason for the American Revolution and the ability to be free to pursue life and happiness in a country treated with consideration and fairness even those they oppose. This is the way to live in a stable, tranquil society with the hope staying alive the future can be better. So long as that hope lives, so will democracy. 

The best slogan so far is to position this current war of words and media as democracy versus anti-democracy in the context of "democracy is on the ballot". In the 2022 midterms, it appears democracy was on the ballot, and its support had gained traction. Voters got the memo. It was almost as much a  factor as abortion in offsetting the economic distress people were feeling that contributed to the surprise showing of GOP failures. . https://news.syr.edu/blog/2022/12/01/democracy-was-on-the-ballot-candidates-matter-and-other-lessons-from-the-midterm-elections/ 

So far 2024 is boiling down to two old white men battling it out

So far, 2024 is boiling down to two old white men battling it out. The question before the voters should not be who is older in years but who is younger in heart and mind. The age difference is only three years.  They both are old.  It is the politics of yesterday versus the politics of today and tomorrow, not the politics of who looks or sounds older.  The winner should be the younger at heart and in mind.  It should be, but could it be? 

With .ageism on the ballot and in the minds of the voters, one would think that Trump holds the advantage. Why Joe Biden's Age Is a Problem, but Donald Trump's Isn't (newsweek.com) The question before the voters should not be who is older in years, but who is younger in their heads and policies,  being in step with those issues popular with the majority and who concentrates building a  more prosperous future with the support of infrastructure and manufacturing.  It is the politics of yesterday versus the politics of today and tomorrow, not the politics of who looks or sounds older.  It should be and will be the winner, the younger at heart.One, the incumbent, looks old, walks old, and talks in weaker tones,  and the other, only three years younger, exudes energy and, with coiffed hair, good makeup, booming podium delivery, and a still good golf swing. He makes you forget he is as old as he is. With both likely on the ballot, there appear to be no strong challengers, just more wishful thinkers, wishful wannabes,  and wishful voters hoping for younger candidates.  The irony is that the one who looks older, Joe Biden, thinks young about the now and the future, and the vigorous one, Donald Trump thinks the country should return to some undefined time in the past. His constant message is the present and future are something to be feared so fear it fully and keep it from happening again as long as you can. 

If not either Trump or Biden, then who? So far, both have control of their political parties. The choice will be between two in November, not between many and the lack of enthusiasm is going to be cured only by candidate messaging. The choice will be a stark one.  Biden's strong suit is his support of popular issues. particularly on abortion and gun safety, and above all, the personal and ethical flaws of his likely opponent, Trump himself. Trump's strength lies in his ability to tap fear and loathing of the status quo lurking in the heart of those who sense they have drawn the short cultural and racial straw.   The constant drumbeat of crime rates rising is not only drawing on fear and paranoia, hyped and exaggerated, but it is what the GOP has always used as a fall-back winning issue when the appeal of other issue positions fails. Crime to the right means something different than it does to the rest of the country.  Crime means murder and property theft to them. To the rest of the country, particularly the use of weapons of war to slaughter innocents are the crimes they fear more. 

 Biden has no challengers; Trump has a bunch, with DeSantis in the hunt holding on to 30% of the GOP voters polled. Even then, DeSantis is losing strength, not gaining it as he grasps at straws to steal voters from Trump, showing his personality flaws and lack of judgment, trying to be the unTrump, while trying to outflank Trump on the right wing.  He seems not even able to make inroads into the Trumpists in his own party, as the Florida delegation to Congress chooses the other Floridian, the snowbird from Queens, as their enduring candidate.  The looming possible criminal procedures and civil lawsuits are simply brushed off as dirty politics as usual as his devoted fans bond with him emotionally and ignore his lies and any facts to the contrary.  They support the most extreme abortion bans of 50 years ago that less than a third of the public polled support, they place the removal of student debt relief in their budget proposals, and hope that the baby boomers do not notice that their health care and retirement abilities are constantly being threatened by cut back to give relief to the very wealthy.  They do not care if a planet in crisis will cripple the lives of the future; it is only now that counts, so use up the resources while you can, and sneer at promoting new, lasting resources now.

In the meantime, Biden looks to the future, reshaping American manufacturing to meet present and future needs using whatever policy he can use and whatever legislation he can get through Congress. He wants those who have power after him not to have to deal with political violence and the division of a country hyped into tribal hatred. He understands that women must be in the workplace to keep the middle class in some measure of comfort and their children should not be mired in student debt as they try to develop skills needed for the future. He understands that guns should be kept out of the hands of those who want death by cop or try to carry out their murderous fantasies on children.  He sees diversity as an asset and the demographics will keep on marching forward, regardless of all of the racism and disdain for what the old white men of the GOP pass for values that are those of decades past. 

NBC News poll: Nearly 70% of GOP voters stand behind Trump amid indictment and investigations

For better communication, what do you call authoritarianism in a few words?

 

https://mufticforumblog.blogspot.com/2023/04/biden-just-did-it-he-put-democracy-on.html

I prefer to call those aspiring to be anti-democracy rulers as wannabe tyrants. Tyrants were the name our founders gave to kings and Turkish potentates. There is nothing wrong with those tags. They may be an appropriate description of  power hungry politician. The political messaging problem is that it assumes a level of sophistication and understanding of what defines those analogies or even the ability to comprehend the meaning of the term"liberal democracy". Those brands are subsets of the proven winning phrase that embraces all of these words:  "democracy is on the ballot". It  did get significant traction in the 2022 midterms.New Polling Shows Democracy Mattered In The 2022 Midterms | HuffPost Latest News     Democracy-Related Ballot Measures in 2022 – and A Look Ahead – State Democracy Research Initiative – UW–Madison (wisc.edu)

Branding with short punches is a time-honored political tool. After the 2022 midterms. the right wing and their mouthpieces have invented the brand "anti-woke" and stuck the "woke" on those who support the individual rights implications of our democracy, as if "woke" was a dirty word. It is yet to be seen if this catches on in all but the MAGA types, but it does serve as a shorthand for words spoken in the public that otherwise might be considered inflammatory and politically incorrect. 

  There are some so devoted to loyalty to a leader like Trump that are questioning whether democracy should be continued since it stands in the way of his winning.  Trump is making it no secret he wanted to scrap the Constitution in the wake of his loss in 2020.  It may cheer the MAGA heart, but the blowback when he uttered such words caused him to take back his words. Trump insists he doesn’t want to ‘terminate’ Constitution | The Hill It was more than a Freudian slip.. Trump may lie about much, but his vision and keeping promises are consistently proposed and instituted whenever he can get away with them in practice. We at minimum know what he wished. In short, whatever you call it, they, the Trump followers, lust for an authoritarian to lead them.  The word democracy still has a good ring, but there are those who think absolute control by the majority is democracy.  Dictatorship by those who represent minority views over the majority is also not democracy. . Or at least it still is true with the American brand of democracy that it contains the protection of the rights of those who are not in the majority or do not have the power to rule. Not only were these protections written into the amendments to the Constitution, but the keys to power were also divided among three branches, each with some power over the other. That only works so long as each branch is not controlled by the power of one dictator who manages to put his loyalists in charge.  These are the blessings of liberty our founders hoped would flow to future generations.  These are the freedoms our brand of democracy provides that used to be died for by Americans on the battlefields of world wars.   Whatever has happened to us?

. So what is this "democracy" for which so many died? What is "freedom" we claim to want and protect? The American style of democracy means that those who are not the majority still have rights that give them hope they can eventually be the majority, too. Diversity is the real enemy of wannabe tyrants, especially if those in the minority still have rights, the rule of law still rules,  and the ability to be heard remains in place. That is good news for the US. Those who are in the minority still have rights since the rule of laws protecting them is upheld by the judicial system.  It also bodes ill for a vocal minority that supports policies that are wildly unpopular but are attempting to force the majority to accept them, such as extreme anti-abortion laws and ignoring gun safety measures. 

 It seems unbelievable we need to make the case for democracy in order to contrast it with the anti-democracy alternatives.  However, in every generation, the case for democracy needs to be dusted off and rephrased because so many have forgotten how it benefits them. Even with its failures to live up to the idealism of our founders, we can still strive for this more perfect union so long as small d democracy survives.

My own case for democracy is based on the reason for the American Revolution and the ability to be free to pursue life and happiness in a country treated with consideration and fairness even those they oppose. This is the way to live in a stable, tranquil society with the hope staying alive the future can be better. So long as that hope lives, so will democracy. 

Here is what history has shown us:  Failure of democracy begins with the subversion of civil rights and human rights,  refusing to abide by or respect the rule of law, and being loyal to a person instead. In the long term, unchallenged dictators who have gained control of all means of governing and thought/speech control get there by destroying their opposition and continuing in power by keeping up the oppression of those who oppose them. The rights of the minority are helped by a government that has divided the three elements of political power, executive, legislative, and judicial, into power centers with checks on each other, making it hard for wannabe dictators to take over total control of all three branches. There is a misconception that democracy means total control by the majority, or worse, the minority controls the majority. So long as the opposition still has protections under the laws, real democracy happens. It is why when those who want total power in Russia, Turkey, and Hungary begin by replacing those in the governing power centers with their appointees or rig elections to get their choices elected. Without the checks and balances and protection of those who may be in the opposition to the wannabe tyrant, it is easy. It is also easier when there is an overwhelming percentage of citizens of the same or related cultural, religious, economic, ethnic, and racial backgrounds, as was the case in Russia, Turkey, and Hungary in recent times and in Germany in the 1930s... To make their assent to total power even easier once their control of the three branches is consolidated, tyrants then proceed to wipe out the remaining challengers by imprisoning on trumped-up charges, cheating in election processes, and causing mysterious deaths by poison or "accidental" fall from high-rise balconies. Control over the media is also essential to a tyrant's climb to power. Once in control of the major media organs, they continue to power consolidation by oppressing or not reporting all the news that happens and just reporting what makes the wannabe tyrant look good. What is going on below the surface is covered iup by lies. and suppression of "bad news". This process is insidious and may take years and happens while those in the populace minority are asleep at the wheel or a majority are in cahoots offering moral support thinking it is "no skin off our backs" what the tyrant is doing and think the wannabe tyrant channels their own thoughts. That works until the wannabe tyrant goes too far... By the time the disillusioned supporters wake up, it is too late; they have no peaceful way to regain power other than violence and taking to the streets. Where this who process goes off the rail for the wannabe tyrant is where there are large, organized oppositions based upon economic self-interest or racial, cultural, and ethnic identification. . No wonder those who aspire to be powerful are anti-woke... They often think wrongly they have killed off any hopes of those who oppose them. Once the masses have taken enough of oppression, their hope lies in a revolution, violent, bloody, or orange and peaceful that results in either the death or exile of the dictator. It is painful and deadly. It destroys economies, kills many,  and it takes decades to recover. In other instances, dictators who surround themselves with loyalists and control what their citizens hear lose a sense of reality, launch military excursions to divert attention from the discontent, and lose wars, their lives, or their power. The state-sponsored power grab favoring loyalists leads to unchallenged corruption until it is so obvious it inspires an orange or violent revolt.  This is what has happened time and time again;. History repeats itself, and fools and the ignorant are the repeaters. 

MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: Indictments not just about Trump but the future of our democratic system (update 4/2/23)

How Do Democracies Turn Into Dictatorships? - Renew Democracy Initiative (rdi.org)

On the Surface, Hungary Is a Democracy. But What Lies Underneath? - The New York Times (nytimes.com)  "For years, Mr. Orban was satisfied with infringing judicial independence through a series of incremental measures. But in early December, he set up a parallel court system in one fell swoop."

In case, FOX viewers, you missed this: the Dominium settlement affirms FOX lied to you

 https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/fox-dominion-reach-787m-settlement-220400496.html

Did FOX admit they lied about Dominium's voting systems contributing to  Trump's defeat in 2020?  In effect, they did, but it was not in a sound bite or an apology to their listeners.  Instead, they acknowledged the judge's ruling to move the case to trial because it was "crystal clear" FOX had lied. The trial would have decided on the amount of settlement and rehashing of what was discovered in the pre-trial process. The depositions of sworn testimony made public as part of the civil defamation case leadup to trial were damning, with testimony from those who knew that behind the scenes, FOX evening personalities knew that it was a lie, but still promoted it as truth to their viewers.  This was only the first case to end of others suing FOX for defamation of their company's voting systems are still pending.  This is not only an enormous defamation settlement against a media entity (3/4 of a billion dollars), its significance is that on the public record for history, a  trusted media source lied about the 2020 election was stolen and that their followers swallowed it hook line and sinker and motivated the  Jan.6 rioters.   For details of the depositions that were made public: MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: No kidding. The real fear facing FOX: loss of audience trust updated 3/11/23

"We acknowledge the Court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false," the Fox statement said.

Fox News and Dominion reach $787.5 million settlement in defam…

www.nbcnews.com/media/fox-news-settles-dominion-defamation-lawsuit-rc

Why zealots think they rule the roost on guns and abortion. They don't rule mine.

I am getting less and less tolerant of zealots. They leave no room for compromise nor do they care their views are held by a minority that are resented and opposed by the majority of Americans. They think they rule the roost, but they don't rule mine, or most others, either.. 

This word I heard recently, zealots, describes the advocates of the most extreme second amendment and anti-abortion views. Here is Bing's simple definition: 

1. a person who is fanatical and uncompromising in pursuit of their religious, political, or other ideals.

   SIMILAR:

   fanatic

   enthusiast

   extremist

   radical

   Young Turk

   diehard

   

Most people see hot-button cultural issues in various shades of gray, nuanced and not viewed in black-and-white absolutist terms.  Americans’ views of abortion, 1995-2022 | Pew Research Center    Key facts about Americans and guns | Pew Research Center   They believe some restrictions are fine and so are some exceptions. I fall into the same category as "most people " ..  The devil in the details is what restrictions or exceptions seem OK to me and reasonable or unreasonable to almost everyone else. "Almost everyone else 's" views also vary depending on geographic location.  "It's okay to have hunting rifles and handguns to protect me and my home, but it is hard to see so many kids in such a short time killed by weapons of war and large ammo clips. " "It's okay to exempt cases from abortion bans rape, incest, the life of the mother, but I have mixed feelings about other reasons".  The extremists dig in their heels; "Don't touch my assault rifles.," the most fanatic cry. "It is my right to own them. So what if they can kill kids in such a short time. My rights are what is important".  Theor diversion strategy becomes to blame something else like mental health. The zealots who cry this are the same that oppose both more funding for mental health services and red flag laws or any other attempt to keep weapons or war off the shelves and out of the hands of potential murderers and suicide by cop.  Unless the link is made between the identification of a person who is considered by some process by those who know them and their social media postings well and the gun seller, the mental health risk identification/red flag is useless to keep those too dangerous from buying weapons.  Even then, if the potential killer has not come to the attention of a mental health professional, a close family member, is a loner or just too young, or is noticed by law enforcement or educators, they can slip through the red flag cracks. Mental health services as part of red flag laws will still be very helpful...but ineffective without that formal link.  Open carry just compounds the issue: who knows in a public space if the guy sporting a semi-automatic handgun or a mass killing weapon who walks into the door is a customer or a killer with mental issues these days.  Do you duck and run, call 911, or just hope he is just flaunting his second amendment rights? (Colorado is an open carry state and that was my reaction when a customer walked across a Macdonald's parking lot to enter the building with what looked to me like a John Wayne six-shooter in a holster, tied to the thigh ready for a quick draw. .He had a young son in tow, though, which made me think he was flaunting his second amendment rights. I laughed at my reaction then, but given recent events, I am more inclined to duck and run first.)

(Update 4/11/23 We now know what kind of rifle the Louisville bank killer used. AR 15. The police response was in three minutes, and two of them were shot. We now know how many can be killed in three minutes by an AR 15 ..six and many more injured. )

For those who think that the right to bear arms cannot be infringed, per the exact wording of the second amendment may have to change the interpretation of that supreme court call in Heller and before that in Milller. ..but right now that is the precedent that is the one that counts: Note: per the Cornell Law School: Like most rights, the Second Amendment right is not unlimited. It is not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose: For example, concealed weapons prohibitions have been upheld under the Amendment or state analogues. The Court’s opinion should not be taken to cast doubt on longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms. Miller’s holding that the sorts of weapons protected are those “in common use at the time” finds support in the historical tradition of prohibiting the carrying of dangerous and unusual weapons. Pp. 54–56. (My comment: this leaves the door open to ban AR 15s which are dangerous and unusual;. Heller made it clear they were only ruling on hand guns).

https://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/07-290.ZS.html

The 9 States That Have Banned Assault-Style Weapons (msn.com)

Updated 4/21/23 

The Tennessee zealots dominating their state legislature threw out fellow members who protested the majority's attempt to legislate protection of the ability for ordinary citizens to own weapons of war. 'Update: Even after the shooter was known to be unstable, and red flag laws could have prevented his actions, the GOP dominated supper majority in their legislature called red flag laws dead on arrival. Tennessee House Republicans: Red Flag Laws a 'Non-Starter' - Tennessee Star News flash. The Heller Supreme Court decision extended the right to individuals to bear arms, not just to members of a well-regulated militia,  per the words of the 2nd amendment. Heller was about a handgun case. Whether the same view extends to assault weapons, we do not know because it has yet to be before the Court.  Heller also ok'd some restrictions to the 2nd Amendment; it was no blank license or no absolute right. It has taken time and school shootings, some affecting my own family, to side with those advocating banning the sale of semi-automatic assault weapons.  Uvalde and Nashville were the last straws.

The most extreme view of abortion is that life begins at conception so any interference after this is murder and those who help with abortion are also murderers or at least they deserve jail time. It follows this line of thinking that abortion pills, contraception pills, and procedural abortions should be criminalized and against the law and enforced by the government. 

 Yesterday, a Federal judge in Amarillo ruled in favor of taking off the nationwide market an abortion pill as a dangerous pharmaceutical, yet approved as safe by the FDA 23 years ago. Over half of the abortions in the US are by the pill.  It has been in use in the US since then with a track record of safety. Ignoring that, the judge inferred that the danger was to the product resulting from the union of a sperm and egg at conception. https://www.axios.com/2023/04/08/abortion-pill-us-supreme-court ." So what if the mothers die, but the "born baby" lives for the lack of a  procedure she needs to save her life." That is the subject of a case in court now: a lawsuit brought by six Texas women victims of the new absolutist Texas law.  Sadly, sometimes both the unborn baby and the mother die for lack of medical attention.

 Those who put the life of the unborn above the life of the mother is a judgment call based on religious convictions.  People are entitled to their religious beliefs, converting more to follow them and advocating for their righteousness, . Who enforces it is the question. Using government powers to force others to bow to that belief is the issue on my table.  It appears to me that those holding the most extreme view, that even an unviable fetus at conception is already a person,  have failed to convert the majority of the population to their position. Gallup poll: Most identify as pro-choice, want abortion to stay legal (usatoday.com)  Failing to win the battle from the pulpit, they want government on their behalf to force others to comply with their convictions. What is clear: no one is advocating for government to force someone to have an abortion. The zealots want to government to keep all women from ever having one. 

Here is where I roost: I fall into the category of approving the "viability" limit as did Roe v Wade and I come down on the side of protecting the health of mothers first, and I  firmly oppose having the government force women to give birth to dead fetuses or pregnancies caused by rape or incest. (Rape is a crime; the person raped is a victim of crime; incest has impacts on genetics. Just some FYI's for those unconcerned about the immorality of such acts). I notice that the most anti-abortion zealots are men who never will be in a position to have an abortion themelves. Polls find over half of those opposing abortions are older men. https://www.businessinsider.com/abortion-roe-v-wade-poll-men-women-2022-7  It's hard to speculate why that is: It could be that it is about power and control over women by those who just come from an older time where men believed it was better when they dominated society, workforce, and homes. I am sure what the younger generation would call them would be " the old boomer idiots."     A Gallop poll found that just 33% of women identified as "pro-life".    'Pro-Choice' or 'Pro-Life' Demographic Table (gallup.com)

 Obviously, the Amarillo-located federal judge supported the most extreme interpretation and proceeded to call the denial of abortion pills for reasons not based on science or legal precedence,  but instead on the religious belief held by zealots that life begins at conception so therefore must be protected as like a live baby. The ideological prejudice of the  Amarillo judge was revealed when he used the term to describe the "fetus" as an "unborn baby". The same judge has expressed interest in banning birth control. A Trump judge just fired the first shot against birth control, in Deanda v. Becerra. - Vox   Immediately after last week's ruling, another federal judge in Oregon ruled the opposite, and the FDA prepared to sue as well.  If the Amarillo'sjudge's ruling is upheld, this would result in a ban on the most widely used and safest abortion meth nationwide even in states, nearly half of them, where abortion is legal or mostly legal.  Given the anti-choice credentials of the Trump-era appointees to the Supreme Court of hardcore anti-abortion in spite of their denials in hearings, these warring Federal bench interpretations will land in the Supreme Court, and the outcome is more or less preordained. The Zealots will win unless Congress passes laws protecting a woman's right to choose. 

 What is hard to grasp is the Court's Dobbs ruling that ended Roe v Wade, ruled against federal pro-choice laws, and left it up to the states. Now, the zealots want the Court to overrule states who have pro-choice protections for women on their books and constitution, denying women the method by which one-half of abortions are performed in the US? The political fallout determined the GOP losses in 2020 and 2022 and the fallout continues into 2023 in Wisconsin. 

The jaw-dropping events in Tennessee this last week with the expulsion or attempted expulsion of fellow lawmakers for demonstrating on behalf of gun safety laws, the chamber that broke rules revealed the majority party's zealotry in three issue areas, not just the utmost extreme views on second amendment gun rights (thou shalt not ban anything),  but also outright racism, and subverts democracy with supporting dictatorship of the majority instead of democracy, which protects rights of the minority views. The zealot-driven absolute majority legislators attempted to suppress any opposition by removing them from their body for the reason the three broke their decorum rules. The Tennessee Three have both the eloquence and the spotlight to turn these kinds of zealotry into a national and international shaming of the state and eventually a revolt by the offended majority at the ballot box.  MUFTIC FORUM BLOG: The Significance of the Tennessee Three: a national political catalyst

The significance of the Tennessee Three: a national political catalyst

Daily Briefing: Two of the 'Tennessee Three' Democrats expelled (msn.com)

The events yesterday were a national political catalyst; they were so raw and so in-your-face obvious and covered live on TV. Tennessee gerrymandered ultra-dominating GOP  State House representatives unintendedly linked multiple hot-button liberal political issues and ripped the curtain back to reveal their ugly nakedness of a southern white heritage. They also gave a gift to the Democratic party agenda, Tennessee Three,..a two-word messaging shorthand for boosting a Democrats' list of hot-button issues at stake in 2024.  When those words are invoked in the future, due to the association of a bundling of issues, voters will be reminded in a few words of  1) gun control, and specifically a ban on semi-automatic weapons,  2) civil rights in the face of overt and obvious racism 3) saving democracy from autocratic, undemocratic behavior and subversion.  The only major issue not highlighted by the GOP Tennessee state representatives was abortion. For suburban women, it means the ability of any woman of childbearing age to control their futures and,  even in some cases, to live to be mothers to the children they birthed.  This Tennessee GOP House action supporting the most radical versions of protecting 2nd amendment rights and expelling critics is just another nail in the coffin of the suburban women's vote.

Tying the Tennessee Three to three issues, racism, guns, and democracy at every opportunity, will add the the potency as a political tool for Democrats. It is a short hand for cluster of more than one negative issue. The connection in this case is that the GOP state legislators were responsible for all three actions.  It is a bit like Democrats referring to January 6  that is more than just the riot that day..In the minds of many people, and prosecutors of the Stormy Daniels payoff saga is part of Trump's  attempt to get elected in 2016 and the Dominion defamation suit against FOX for promoting theories their machines were rigged.   includes the lies leading up to that date about the election being stolen. They are connected because lie told by Trump et al motivated the militia leaders and their followers to commit violence in the name of saving democracy, when what they were doing was subverting and damaging democracy.

.  They also gave a megaphone to a new generation of potentially powerful leaders to carry the message, raising them from the back bench to the national and international stage. The cameras are now on two young black men in their late 20s,  eloquent orators,  who were victims of the most obvious example of racism, being treated differently from the white woman for the same "rule-breaking" behavior.  It was not just a reaction to the injustices done to civil rights that originally motivated them to rise up with "rule-breaking"  disobedience, but they were motivated by a  recent Nashville school shooting by the perp using AK-47s and a desire to control weapons of war that affected white, brown and black of kids and young adults alike. (Pictures of the demonstrators that so riled up the GOP representatives appeared to be made up of mostly white young people and women). Young voters and students like those in that crowd are the new generation now beginning to rise to power. The GOP's state legislature furthered the GOP's political nightmare of more energized angry suburban women watching kids like theirs being slaughtered and voting for Democrats. While the two Black representatives were removed,  the white woman state legislator who kept her seat by one vote had the powerful voice of a teacher, and she shared with the nation her outrage at school gun violence. That same outrage is also frightening to this new generation since they were and are targets. She herself is a survivor of a school shooting.

From a recent Muftic Forum Blog posting:  Age and generation will play a much bigger part in shaping politics than racial identification. What is coming down the pike is far more  "liberal".Younger voters are poised to upend American politics (brookings.edu)  The glue holding us together in our recent history is the peace of stability in governance, and liberty to pursue happiness. When it comes to supporting the kind of "liberal" democracy we have now, the future of democracy as we have known it depends on the generations now coming of age. They are far more "liberal" politically than those in power now, and democracy will be in their hands. This "liberalism" stretches across all racial and ethnic groups.  The change feared by white nationalists is they will be replaced by brown and black people. What they should fear is that they will be replaced by a younger generation.    In the meantime, we are in a noisy, raucous, potentially dangerous, and violent place in transition.  A significant part of our country, a minority still, is looking toward autocracy..  They should be careful what they wish.  Autocracy is what the founders of our country revolted against for a reason.  Protecting democracy and containing autocracy (brookings.edu)

Why semi-automatic rifles like those used in the Nashville shooting can cause so much damage - ABC News (go.com)

Why GOP leaders use ugly anti-semitism to explain away Trump's indictment.

 From my Facebook posting today: GOP political leaders in America have a very effective propaganda weapon: set up bogeymen, demonize them, and then paint any public policy issue they oppose or think they can use to make political hay with the same distasteful brush. They did that with Fauci, who is blamed for spreading COVID with his vaccine and pro-science remarks. Now they are using ugly anti-semitism to push their agenda: It is one of the oldest tricks in the political trade to shorthand a political position by painting someone with the evil of another in order to get support to counter bad news without sounding like something really bad, stupid, or off the wall.

The Blog continues.

It is a dog whistle to anti-semites.

One of the oldest tropes in the world led to the rise of Hitler and the ovens.. anti-Semitism directed at Jewish bankers. Why did DeSantis call the New York DA, a Soros DA? This trope is in play again in the GOP reaction to Trump's indictment by the NY DA. Remember history? The ones the Nazis said were causing Germany's economic pain pre-world war II were Jewish bankers (not the worldwide depression or the debt allies put on Germany for starting WWI). It played well in a country like Germany with a tradition of anti-Semitism and looking for something to blame for their troubles other than starting World War I. Now we are hearing from GOP leaders that the reason Trump was indicted in New York was that the DA received campaign contributions from George Soros, a Jewish International banker who contributes to liberal causes and reformists. That explains everything to some supporters who are already anti-Semites and are looking for a way to exonerate Trump.

Is Trump himself anti-semitic?. Who knows?. There is good evidence that Trump himself believes anti-Semites are his constituents. and they were among the "fine people" he praised in the Charleston neo-Nazi march. https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2022/12/07/electoral-logic-behind-trumps-antisemitism-00072661 That then explains to Trump's followers why innocent Trump gets accused of crimes. Semites did it. Anyone tagging the NY DA as a Soros DA risks sounding like a 1930s Nazi, just as DeSantis and large numbers in the GOP did.

Why DeSantis and many other GOP leaders would join in the anti-semitic tactic is risky, given the huge number of Jewish residents in Florida, but perhaps they also do not believe either DeSantis or Trump are anti-semites themselves. It makes sense to the Trump followers among them that the more who support Trump of any ilk, the better for the cause they support. Whatever works.

Nonetheless, ignoring the NY DA indictment of Trump still sounds right to some on the right regardless of any known facts, forgetting earlier in a federal indictment Trump in a similar case was named as Individual One. They were also ignoring the reasons that 23 citizens in the Grand Jury deduced their judgment from sworn testimony and evidence that there was probable cause to believe a crime (s) had been committed and it was appropriate to have a jury trial so Trump could defend himself. In the American justice system, a person accused of a crime is innocent until proven guilty. Trump is not exempt from following the law and every citizen like him should have his day in court. Just having Trump go through the process supports the American judicial system whether he is found guilty or not. It is a lesson for any other politicians in the future that they, too, risk this if they try to grab power and scoff at the law in doing it. It sets in history an important precedent that protects democracy for the future from wannabe autocrats.

Update 4/3/23: I did get a protest on a private facebook page from someone who objected to calling US nazis, Nazis, by way of blunting any comparisons I made. Note above: those spouting anti semitic messages to nazis looked like they were 1930's nazis. Here is the exchange and my response:

(HIs objection to the 1930's comment) There's no such thing as nazis. Nazis were National socialists in germany. These are what's called larpers. And they definitely aren't conservative.

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  Felicia Muftic

  Trying to define what and who someone is by their formal name is very deceptive. What they do and how they act is better. When the current crop in the US even hoists and wear the same or similar swastika flag, it becomes an indication of how they view themselves. Right: terrorists and neo-nazis and what they do, act, and out are not conservative. We agree., However, conservatives are complicit if they do not act or speak out or consider them their constituent whose votes they need in the next election.

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  Felicia Muftic

   https://www.washingtonpost.com/.../charlottesville-videos/

  

  WASHINGTONPOST.COM

  Deconstructing the symbols and slogans spotted in Charlottesville

  Deconstructing the symbols and slogans spotted in Charlottesville

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  Felicia Muftic

  From the Wapo article: the National Socialist Movement traces its roots to the American Nazi Party, which was founded in 1959. The National Socialist Movement is the largest active neo-Nazi organization in America, openly reveres Adolf Hitler, and its members often protest in Nazi uniforms complete with swastika armbands.

The indictment and attack on the rule of law were enough to motivate the former governor of Arkansas to jump into the 2024 primary and oppose Trump. Maybe it is not too much to ask him to speak out against anti-semitism while he is at it. https://www.forbes.com/sites/marisadellatto/2023/04/02/ex-arkansas-gov-asa-hutchinson-running-for-president-in-2024

https://news.yahoo.com/trump-desantis-and-other...

https://www.msn.com/.../ron-desantis-responds.../ar-AA18RsmC

https://thehill.com/.../3915008-republicans-at-odds-over.../

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The Antisemitism Lurking Behind George Soros Conspiracy Theories

A caricature of George Soros as a tentacled monster has appeared o