Politics-What's on your mind?

[BullDog]

In less than 24 hours Trump will be out of office and Biden & Harris will be sworn in. I hear he is leaving town quite early so by the time I wake up tomorrow morning he will be gone, gone, gone!

I am nervous about tomorrow but also very hopeful and looking forward to it. I was so relieved there were not any big attacks on our state capitols over the weekend, so hopefully, the insurgents realize they are well-prepared for now. I just hope everyone is kept safe. It's also a bummer there can't be big crowds to celebrate but the important thing is that our country will be led by honorable, competent people as of noon eastern tomorrow.

I am really looking forward to seeing Kamala Harris sworn in by Justice Sotomayor using Thurgood Marhsall's bible. That will be amazing.

We did it. We saved our democracy using democratic means. Our country is in tatters and those of us still standing are lucky to have survived. I mourn the loss of all who have lost their lives unnecessarily to COVID-19 due to Trump's inhumanity and incompetence and anyone else who is no longer with us. I think the biggest lesson of all is to never take anything for granted and that the fight for justice and our rights will never end.

Tomorrow starts a new age. There is much work to be done. Thank goodness we will be in experienced and competence hands. God Bless America.

[Vincent]

https://www.democracynow.org/

[homoe]

~~
just think only about 20 hours left of 45!!

[Bèsame*]

[homoe]

Originally Posted by Bèsame*

.........

[GeorgiaMa'am]

"[Trump] leaves office with an approval rating of 34%, a record low for a departing president."

Source: BBC

[GeorgiaMa'am]

Parler.com needs to find a new web hosting service, and get back on the internet. Twitter users who get themselves booted off need to find a new platform.

I know, I know, what people use these services to say is often reprehensible. They spread lies. They are rumor mills for the right wing and Donald T***p.

But many right-wingers believe that their First Amendment right to freedom of speech is being threatened. And do you know what? They're right - in a way. In reality, these people violated the Terms of Service - parler.com with Amazon Web Services, and individual users with Twitter (although I'm not really sure about Twitter - is it against Twitter's TOS to lie? to foment discord? To spout conspiracy theories? to have an unpopular opinion? I doubt it.) The TOS are within the purview of the owners of Amazon and Twitter, though. Just as with newspapers, it's the publisher who has freedom of speech. But when someone is censored from a popular web-based platform, I'm sure to the individual it feels like their freedom of speech has been trampled on.

Now of course, illegal activities should not be tolerated on any web-based platform, nothing from inciting an insurrection of the U.S. government, to child pornography. But unless there's a law preventing it, Marjorie Taylor Greene, and even T***p, should be able to talk about QAnon and voter fraud all they want. Unfortunately there will always be suckers and stupid people who believe them. But please may there always be good people who are willing to stand up and prove them wrong.

Freedom of speech in a democratic society is important. Suppression of speech is what dictators and communist governments do. Even wackos need to express themselves. By allowing them to do so, we help ensure that all voices can be heard - no matter what the current popular opinion is. (I feel kind of stupid even writing this last paragraph. You don't need a Civics lesson from me.)

* * *

To hear an interesting podcast that led me to write about this, check out some dissenting voices on 'What Kind of Message is That?' How Republicans See the Attack on the Capitol from The Daily podcast by the New York Times. It's short, only about 20 minutes.

[Vincent]

Originally Posted by homoe

~~
just think only about 20 hours left of 45!!

https://www.democracynow.org/

[C0LLETTE]

Today's Globe and Mail Editorial:

Canada is not the United States – and amen to that – but no country on Earth has more of a stake in the Great Republic’s success. Our relationship is not that of a competitor who wins when America fails, but rather a partner who can’t get ahead if the other guy keeps falling down on the job, or a neighbour who can’t get a night’s sleep because the people next door won’t stop smashing dishes and setting fires on the lawn.

As comedian Robin Williams once put it, Canada is like someone living above a meth lab – a description the Donald Trump era transformed from joke to geography lesson.

Because we share a continent, a language and the world’s longest undefended border, open to the migration of ideas and culture, our floor and their ceiling aren’t thick enough to keep what goes wrong there, there. As such, we can’t live our best life up here until the family downstairs starts talking seriously about turning their lives around, and gets into rehab.

That’s why Jan. 20, 2021, is a good day for Canada. The swearing-in of President Joe Biden is the first step in America’s 12-step program.

[GeorgiaMa'am]

I'm afraid that Jimmy Carter is probably seriously declining in his health. He's 96 years old, after all. But not only that, he didn't attend the inauguration ceremony today. I also noticed that he recently did not attend another gathering where all of the other former presidents were in attendance (although I can't remember what that event was). In both cases, he did make statements that were read aloud at the events.

Whatever anyone may think of President Carter's failures and successes as Governor of Georgia and President of the United States, he is a good man. I believe he has been a force for good in the world. I hope he is well and that he will continue to be with us for a long time.

[~ocean]

I love the way he thinks ~ our President " Biden tells appointees 'I will fire you on the spot' for showing disrespect to colleagues " so many people were bullied by that psychopath. ~ they will find their way back !

[Kätzchen]

Nancy Pelosi invoked Dinah Washington today during her press conference. That makes my heart happy to know that a larger body of voters chose sanity and voted for a Biden-Harris administration.

I also like how she said that lawmakers who had ties to Jan 6th will be prosecuted for their roles in the violent insurrection.



Also, I loved the beautiful coats Dr. Jill Biden and Vice President wore on inauguration day. So beautiful, the colors they wore.

[Kätzchen]

Does it make anybody else mad to know that the Supreme court put the kibosh on the lower courts to not do anything about TP's penchant (behavioral issues) for benefitting from his organization and how he's made a f*ck ton of money off his golfing episodes, and other ripping-off-the-tax-payers at any expense, type of b.s., right in plain sight?

All I'm gonna say is I will be *SO* upset if they let this white collar con-man, sex perp, criminal off the hook.

Please, please, convict this former president.

While we're at it, I know it's wishful thinking (sort of), could be also make sure it went down in history that law makers in the Senate did the right thing and held this horrid person accountable?

Please. For the sake of our future, please please let the 'hands of justice' prevail.

[BullDog]

Rand Paul forced a vote in the Senate today declaring the impeachment trial for Trump was unconstitutional. It failed but only by a 55-45 vote. So only 5 Republican senators voted it was constitutional to hold an impeachment trial for Trump after he incited a violent insurrection to overturn the election and our government, where his own vice president and others were at risk of being executed.

This isn't the final vote - the trial hasn't started yet but we can see where it's headed.

I never thought there would be enough Republicans to convict but this is truly abysmal.


The 5 Republicans who voted that it was constitutional to hold the trial were:

Susan Collins (Maine)
Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)
Mitt Romney (Utah)
Ben Sasse (Nebraska)
Pat Toomey (Pennsylvania)

[homoe]

Originally Posted by BullDog

Rand Paul forced a vote in the Senate today declaring the impeachment trial for Trump was unconstitutional. It failed but only by a 55-45 vote. So only 5 Republican senators voted it was constitutional to hold an impeachment trial for Trump after he incited a violent insurrection to overturn the election and our government, where his own vice president and others were at risk of being executed.

This isn't the final vote - the trial hasn't started yet but we can see where it's headed.

I never thought there would be enough Republicans to convict but this is truly abysmal.


The 5 Republicans who voted that it was constitutional to hold the trial were:

Susan Collins (Maine)
Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)
Mitt Romney (Utah)
Ben Sasse (Nebraska)
Pat Toomey (Pennsylvania)

I guess Collins realized at some point Trump didn't learn his lesson after all!

But still, in my opinion, she's a little too late!

[homoe]

Originally Posted by homoe

I guess Collins realized at some point Trump didn't learn his lesson after all!

But still, in my opinion, she's a little too late!

From the lips of Susan Collins around Feb 2020 on her vote NOT to impeach..