Recap of this week in the revolution: Epstein files vote imminent. Democrats snatch defeat from the jaws of victory (again) while Noem profits off of taxpayer ad spending. Trump regime pardons are abuse of power. What really happened in Portland?
The good...
Image by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay.
After the Democrats gave up on the American people and gave the Republicans everything they wanted while receiving nothing substantial in return, the government shutdown has ended, and the House of Representatives will now return to work after a 7-week fully-paid and completely unjustifiable vacation. Which means they finally had to swear in Arizona Representative Adelita Grijalva. And that means that she was able to add the 218th signature to a discharge petition to force a vote on the release of the Epstein files.
Next week, the House of Representatives will vote on whether or not they will require the Department of Justice to release all documents related to Jeffrey Epstein. Currently, it looks like the vote is quite likely to pass, as the Republican party is decidedly split over the issue and most Democrats likely to vote yes.
The bad...
After voting 14 times to reject the Republican continuing resolution to fund the government on the grounds that they would not consider a bill unless the Republican party was willing to extend tax credits for the Affordable care Act for 20+ million Americans to prevent their insurance premiums from doubling or tripling in 2026, several Democrats gave up and agreed to reopen the government without any such extension. This just 5 days after the election showed overwhelming support for the Democratic Party while it held the lines against the Trump regime.
The new continuing resolution proposes holding a vote on extending the ACA tax credits at some point in the future (likely after the open enrollment period has closed and Americans are stuck with their new premium increases). Why anyone would agree to just the idea of holding a vote on a purely partisan issue when Republicans have a majority of representation in both the House and Senate is beyond comprehension.
I am unwilling to accept a vague promise of a vote at some indeterminate time, on some undefined measure that extends the healthcare tax credits.
Senator Richard Blumenthal, D CT
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay.
Homeland Security has spent more than $200 million of taxpayer funds to film a television ad featuring Cosplay Barbie Kristi Noem at Mount Rushmore. The law requires the government to engage in a competitive bidding process that is intended to prevent corrupt politicians from awarding government contracts exclusively to their own businesses or their cronies.
But Noem's Homeland Security department bypassed that law on the frequently-disproven claim that immigration constitutes a "national emergency" and awarded the contract so that one of the beneficiaries was a consulting firm with personal and business ties to Noem. Then they hid that information from public records about the contract by listing a phantom company that was formed just days before the deal was finished.
Whether or not there is a national emergency that forgoes the need for competitive bidding, the law is very clear in forbidding conflicts of interest in government contracts.
The ugly...
Image by Mohamed Hassan from Pixabay.
Donny 2-Dolls has been using his powers to grant clemency to benefit his own supporters, donors, and fellow felons. From insurrectionists to fraudsters to money launderers, the only requirement for a Trump pardon appears to be offering him loyalty or financial gain.
Meanwhile, the established procedure for requesting a presidential pardon has been mostly ignored. Those who are following established Justice Department rules in their requests for pardons are ignored, while those who end up with a pardon usually never even went through the established process. After pardoning Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, Trump admitted that he didn't even know him, and only pardoned him because "a lot of people asked me to."
The pardons not only erase the criminal record of the recipients. They also erase any judgments of restitution. Estimates are that the pardons issued over the past 10 months have erased more than $1.3 billion in restitution owed to victims of the crimes being pardoned.
Keeping you informed...
Image by Spicypepper999 from Wikimedia Commons. Licensed under the Creative Commons CCO 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication license.
The Trump regime has claimed that deploying National Guard troops to Portland was necessary because ICE facilities were facing "coordinated assault by violent groups," leaving the city "war-ravaged" and in desperate need of government assistance.
Evidence shows that in the months leading up to the deployment of the troops to Portland, protesters did clash with counter-protesters, and the police were called in to disperse the crowds. But police were well-equipped to handle the clashes that took place and rarely even made any arrests. No evidence could be found indicating any type of coordinated assault. In fact, after reviewing the case, a federal judge has blocked the deployment of the National Guard to Portland temporarily, until proof can be provided that there is an active rebellion or risk of rebellion against the government or government officials.
Further investigations seem to indicate that most of the violence experienced in Portland came from excessive use of force by police officers. Similarly, masked federal officers have repeatedly been seen using brutality against people who clearly posed no threats to them. In addition, the incidences of violence were notably declining prior to the deployment of the National Guard.
The trial testimony produced no credible evidence of any significant damage to the ICE facility in the months before the President’s callout and no credible evidence that ICE was unable to execute immigration laws.
Federal District Judge Karin Immergut
Sounds of the revolution...
Black Contractors News Podcast BCNP [Link]
John D. Cundle [Link]
On the lighter side...
