August 30, 2021

Laurence Tribe: If Garland doesn't prosecute Trump, the rule of law is "out the window"

*Long article, but here is a snip....

(Salon) As wrote in my Boston Globe op-ed, what I'm saying to Merrick Garland is: Wake up! You've got to do something to hold this man accountable. Now somebody could say, well, what about the presumption of innocence? How do you know he's guilty? All I can say in response is that we've heard with our own ears, and Donald Trump has never denied, that he said to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, "Just find me 11,780 votes." To me that is compelling proof that Trump was essentially trying to erase his legitimate loss by creating votes that were not his. That is stealing the election.

Moreover, it's an attempted coup when Trump twists the arm of his acting attorney general and tells him, "Just say that the presidential election was corrupt, and I'll take care of the rest with my friends in Congress." On its face, that is proof of corrupt intent beyond reasonable doubt. It is also proof of a plan to take over the country without legitimately winning. That's a crime.

So the question is: Why is it taking so long? One possible answer is that it's not easy to get a conviction of a president. What appears compelling to a layperson is going to be difficult in practice. It will also be difficult to put down the riots that the very announcement of an indictment may bring. There may be a great deal of worry about fomenting civil war to no good end, because we will not succeed in holding the president accountable.

In the end, all I can do is make the counter-argument that if you're worried about the consequences of going ahead with this evidence against Trump and perhaps not convicting him, then you had better start worrying about the consequences of not going ahead with this evidence — and telling presidents in the future, including this president, who undoubtedly is going to try to seize power again one way or another, that they can get away with this. If that is the message, then the rule of law has basically been thrown out the window.

Read More: https://www.salon.com/2021/08/30/laurence-tribe-if-garland-doesnt-prosecute-trump-the-rule-of-law-is-out-the-window/

August 16, 2021

Rachel Maddow Seriously Considers Leaving MSNBC

Whaaaat? I live to watch her 9:00 show!

(Daily Beast) Rachel Maddow has been MSNBC’s most high-profile on-air personality for more than a decade, long embodying the network’s liberal ethos and raking in an obsessive following for her nightly primetime broadcast.

But when MSNBC viewers tune in next year, she may not be there.

According to six people familiar with the situation, Maddow, 48, is seriously considering leaving the network when her contract ends early next year as negotiations drag on and the temptation to take her brand elsewhere or start her own lucrative media company has grown.

Insiders who spoke with The Daily Beast said while the star host has occasionally entertained other offers in the past, she has in recent months increasingly expressed openness to exiting when her deal ends, citing a desire to spend more time with her family and the toll of hosting a nightly program since 2008. Maddow seems unlikely to jump to a rival television news network. Instead, she has been intrigued by opportunities in the streaming and podcasting space, which would allow her more freedom, time for her personal life, and for other projects, people familiar with her thinking said.

The high-profile TV host has gotten aggressive in exploring her next career moves: In recent months, she left her longtime agents at Napoli Management Group, linking up with powerful talent agency Endeavor and its CEO Ari Emanuel and ​​president Mark Shapiro, who are representing her in contract negotiations with NBCUniversal.

Read more: https://www.thedailybeast.com/rachel-maddow-considers-leaving-msnbc?ref=wrap

August 11, 2021

Atlanta US attorney who quit amid Trump's attacks to speak to Senate Judiciary Committee

*I remember Rachel Maddow discussing this on her show - lots of questions about why he just walked away from his job like that....


(CNN)The Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday will interview Byung "BJay" Pak, the former US attorney in Atlanta who departed abruptly from the role amid then-President Donald Trump's attacks on Georgia's election results.

The circumstances of Pak's exit are among the lingering mysteries from that chaotic early January stretch of events. There are some indications that he was pushed out by the White House for his refusal to pursue the bogus voter fraud claims that Trump was pushing in Georgia as Congress' certification of the election approached. After Pak's surprise January 4 resignation, Trump replaced him with his US attorney in Savannah, bypassing the normal chain of succession.

Documents released by the House in an investigation of Trump's pressure on the Justice Department to substantiate his election fraud claims show Pak resigning after a key weekend in which Trump considered overhauling DOJ leadership because they hadn't found widespread fraud.

Pak is one of six former DOJ political appointees whom the Biden administration green-lighted to talk to the committee about Trump's election fraud push. He will be interviewed virtually and behind closed doors.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/08/11/politics/pak-trump-georgia-election-testimony/index.html

August 10, 2021

Broward School Board votes 8-1 to keep mask mandate! Take that Ron DeathSentence!

(Local10News) BROWARD COUNTY, Fla. – The Broward County School Board voted 8-1 in favor of keeping their mask requirement for students and staff members at the start of the upcoming 2021-22 school year.

Board member Lori Alhadeff was the dissenting vote in the special meeting held Tuesday.

“Wearing masks inside schools regardless of vaccine status is required to deal with the changing realities of virus transmission. It is a necessary precaution until children under 12 can receive a COVID-19 vaccination and more Americans 12 and older get vaccinated,” Broward Teachers Union President Anna Fusco said in a statement following the vote. “We continue to be concerned about this variant, but our No. 1 priority remains a safe in-person school year in schools that can stay open.

snip

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ ban of mask mandates has led to a major battle, with state officials now threatening to withhold the salaries of superintendents and school board members who defy the governor’s executive order.

That order also threatens to take away funding from school districts that force students to wear a mask.

Read more: https://www.local10.com/news/local/2021/08/10/broward-school-board-discusses-future-of-mask-mandates-at-its-schools/

August 5, 2021

Support For DeSantis Drops Amidst Pro-COVID Policy Push

*Yep. Just what Ron DeathSentence deserves! (Actually he deserves worse)

(TalkingPointsMemo) Floridians don’t seem wild about Gov. DeSantis’s pro-COVID policy agenda. A new poll out this morning shows DeSantis’s public support falling roughly ten points since May. The new poll is from St Pete Polls and shows DeSantis with 44% approval and 49% disapproval.

We can’t say with certainty that it’s an apples to apples comparison since the earlier poll was from a different pollster polling on behalf of the state Chamber of Commerce. It’s also the case that DeSantis’s public approval has tended to ebb and crest along with the vicissitudes of COVID, unsurprisingly. So it could bounce back. But it suggests voters have not been impressed by DeSantis’s performance during the recent surge of COVID infections and hospitalizations in the state.

Back in May the Florida Chamber of Commerce poll showed DeSantis with 55% and 40% disapproval. (Read More)
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/edblog/support-for-desantis-drops-amidst-pro-covid-policy-push