Time For A Democratic Majority In The House...

[Crackpot]

Yeah I saw that I had written most of that out over an hour ago but I got destracted by work. By the time I hit send you had put your post in. I figured I’d still add it as support.

[Guinevere]

Appreciated, CP. Lets do it!

[Crackpot]

One thing I wonder is if Michigan Republicans have learned not to be openly hostile to thier voters. All three of the ballot proposals had been though before with large public support in some form or another and the legislature ignored overruled and undermined them. Particularly the voter registration (that passed better than 2:1) had been voted on approved and legislatively torpedoed using political chicanery leaving the only option being constitutional amendment. The bipartisan districting also met a similar fate. They spent more time and effort harassing legal medical marijuana dispensaries than going after the illegal operations. Now they gotabout as bad a spanking as possible in a state as gerrymandered as ours

I wish I could say that I’m hopeful that lessons were learned.

[Crackpot]

Michigan’s 8th district just went blue

[RayThom]

Yesterday may not have seen a "Blue Wave" but, as expected, the US House went to the Dems.

It's never too soon to start working on 2020 goals. Making Lord Dampnut a one-term president should be a priority. Plus, just look at all the Senate seats that are up for grabs in two years.

It's up to the Dems to figure out how much success they want.

[Lord Jim]

I'm listening to Trump's press conference...

He's openly attempting to blackmail the new Democratic majority in the House by saying that if they are conducting investigations of him and his administration that he will hold public policy hostage and refuse to work with them on anything...

[Sue U]

He's openly attempting to blackmail the new Democratic majority in the House by saying that if they are conducting investigations of him and his administration that he will hold public policy hostage and refuse to work with them on anything...

Go ahead, you whiny petulant yam; let's see how that works out for you. Subpoenas are being written already.

Oh, and who's that at the door? Knock-knock, motherfucker, it's Bobby Mueller!

[Guinevere]

I'm listening to Trump's press conference...

He's openly attempting to blackmail the new Democratic majority in the House by saying that if they are conducting investigations of him and his administration that he will hold public policy hostage and refuse to work with them on anything...

That's not blackmail, but it is (attempted) intimidation. It's also contrary to his obligations to support and uphold the Constitution.

Once again, its Mueller Time!

[Joe Guy]

I don't know if this has been posted before. It's about a year old...

[Guinevere]

I'm listening to Trump's press conference...

He's openly attempting to blackmail the new Democratic majority in the House by saying that if they are conducting investigations of him and his administration that he will hold public policy hostage and refuse to work with them on anything...

That's not blackmail, but it is (attempted) intimidation. It's also contrary to his obligations to support and uphold the Constitution.

Once again, its Mueller Time!

It's attempted bribery. 18 USC 201 states:

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/201

(a) For the purpose of this section—
(1) the term “public official” means Member of Congress, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner, either before or after such official has qualified, or an officer or employee or person acting for or on behalf of the United States, or any department, agency or branch of Government thereof, including the District of Columbia, in any official function, under or by authority of any such department, agency, or branch of Government, or a juror;

(2) the term “person who has been selected to be a public official” means any person who has been nominated or appointed to be a public official, or has been officially informed that such person will be so nominated or appointed; and

(3) the term “official act” means any decision or action on any question, matter, cause, suit, proceeding or controversy, which may at any time be pending, or which may by law be brought before any public official, in such official’s official capacity, or in such official’s place of trust or profit.

(b) Whoever—
(1) directly or indirectly, corruptly gives, offers or promises anything of value to any public official or person who has been selected to be a public official, or offers or promises any public official or any person who has been selected to be a public official to give anything of value to any other person or entity, with intent—
(A) to influence any official act; or

(B) to influence such public official or person who has been selected to be a public official to commit or aid in committing, or collude in, or allow, any fraud, or make opportunity for the commission of any fraud, on the United States; or

(C) to induce such public official or such person who has been selected to be a public official to do or omit to do any act in violation of the lawful duty of such official or person;

(2) being a public official or person selected to be a public official, directly or indirectly, corruptly demands, seeks, receives, accepts, or agrees to receive or accept anything of value personally or for any other person or entity, in return for:
(A) being influenced in the performance of any official act;

(B) being influenced to commit or aid in committing, or to collude in, or allow, any fraud, or make opportunity for the commission of any fraud, on the United States; or

(C) being induced to do or omit to do any act in violation of the official duty of such official or person;

(3) directly or indirectly, corruptly gives, offers, or promises anything of value to any person, or offers or promises such person to give anything of value to any other person or entity, with intent to influence the testimony under oath or affirmation of such first-mentioned person as a witness upon a trial, hearing, or other proceeding, before any court, any committee of either House or both Houses of Congress, or any agency, commission, or officer authorized by the laws of the United States to hear evidence or take testimony, or with intent to influence such person to absent himself therefrom;

(4) directly or indirectly, corruptly demands, seeks, receives, accepts, or agrees to receive or accept anything of value personally or for any other person or entity in return for being influenced in testimony under oath or affirmation as a witness upon any such trial, hearing, or other proceeding, or in return for absenting himself therefrom;
shall be fined under this title or not more than three times the monetary equivalent of the thing of value, whichever is greater, or imprisoned for not more than fifteen years, or both, and may be disqualified from holding any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States.

(c) Whoever—
(1) otherwise than as provided by law for the proper discharge of official duty—
(A) directly or indirectly gives, offers, or promises anything of value to any public official, former public official, or person selected to be a public official, for or because of any official act performed or to be performed by such public official, former public official, or person selected to be a public official; or

(B) being a public official, former public official, or person selected to be a public official, otherwise than as provided by law for the proper discharge of official duty, directly or indirectly demands, seeks, receives, accepts, or agrees to receive or accept anything of value personally for or because of any official act performed or to be performed by such official or person;

(2) directly or indirectly, gives, offers, or promises anything of value to any person, for or because of the testimony under oath or affirmation given or to be given by such person as a witness upon a trial, hearing, or other proceeding, before any court, any committee of either House or both Houses of Congress, or any agency, commission, or officer authorized by the laws of the United States to hear evidence or take testimony, or for or because of such person’s absence therefrom;

(3) directly or indirectly, demands, seeks, receives, accepts, or agrees to receive or accept anything of value personally for or because of the testimony under oath or affirmation given or to be given by such person as a witness upon any such trial, hearing, or other proceeding, or for or because of such person’s absence therefrom;
shall be fined under this title or imprisoned for not more than two years, or both.

(d) Paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (b) and paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (c) shall not be construed to prohibit the payment or receipt of witness fees provided by law, or the payment, by the party upon whose behalf a witness is called and receipt by a witness, of the reasonable cost of travel and subsistence incurred and the reasonable value of time lost in attendance at any such trial, hearing, or proceeding, or in the case of expert witnesses, a reasonable fee for time spent in the preparation of such opinion, and in appearing and testifying.

(e) The offenses and penalties prescribed in this section are separate from and in addition to those prescribed in sections 1503, 1504, and 1505 of this title.

(Added Pub. L. 87–849, § 1(a), Oct. 23, 1962, 76 Stat. 1119; amended Pub. L. 91–405, title II, § 204(d)(1), Sept. 22, 1970, 84 Stat. 853; Pub. L. 99–646, § 46(a)–(l), Nov. 10, 1986, 100 Stat. 3601–3604; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, §§ 330011(b), 330016(2)(D), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2144, 2148.)

[BoSoxGal]

Jon Tester pulled it out!!!!! Yay!!!!!!

He’s good for the people of Montana and veterans all over the country, so I’m grateful he’s sticking around.

[Scooter]

I hope he lifted a big middle finger to the Pumpkin-in-Chief when he gave his victory speech.

[Scooter]

[Scooter]

[BoSoxGal]

Winning the House is not a consolation prize. It's the prize. ~ Mark Sumner Daily KOS

There was a lot about Tuesday night worth smiling over. A lot. Kris Kobach lost big in Kansas as Democrats took over not just the governor mansion, but a House seat. Scott Walker went down in Wisconsin to a school teacher who ran on a platform of improving education and expanding health care. Bruce Rauner’s reign in Illinois ended so definitely that networks made the call the moment the polls officially closed. These guys were Republican stars, ambitious guys who definitely felt that Donald Trump is just keeping that chair warm for them. And they’re out.

And it wasn’t just Kobach and Walker, Kansas and Wisconsin have been the go-to examples for Republicans, the test beds of their efforts to destroy labor, trash environmental rules, reward the wealthy, and surrender government services in the name of jobs, jobs, jobs. Both of those efforts are now in abject retreat. If America’s states are the laboratories of democracy, Kansas and Wisconsin have demonstrated that all the conservative mix produces is an explosion. Boom. In fact, Republicans blew up Kansas so well that the blowback from that effort is likely to still be echoing for several elections to come.

There were big state legislative wins in Maine, New York, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Minnesota, Colorado and elsewhere that, together with the gubernatorial flips, mean that Democrats will likely have a chance to address some of the structural issues that have meant that a 5 percent vote advantage from Democrats wasn’t even enough to draw even.

But … there’s no getting around it, the Midterm elections brought record turnout that was—not enough. Or rather, it brought numbers from Democrats that in red states were met by an equal enthusiasm from Republicans. If enthusiasm is the word. It’s impossible to have a real “wave” election unless the other side is caught napping, and Fox News, Donald Trump, and a host of right-wing radio hosts have been screaming in red ears every minute since November 2016, making sure that didn’t happen.

Still, Democrats took the House. They took the House. That’s not a consolation prize. That’s an enormous brake on Republican plans to race America down the failed Kansas path. That’s an end to Republican schemes to destroy Social Security for profit, or the nine hundred and ninety-ninth effort to repeal the besieged ACA. No one has to be a hero in the Senate to stop the next vote. Because Democrats have the House.

And that’s just the start.

Democratic control of the House means that Devin Nunes moves to an impotent tooth-gnashing position while Adam Schiff gains the power to subpoena the documents that Democrats wanted to see during the first aborted “investigation” that Republicans terminated so they could hand Donald Trump a free “no collusion” report. It means they can call the over thirty witnesses who were on their list who Republicans refused to call. It means that the era of writing heartfelt, but essentially useless letters demanding access information are over. They’ll just … demand access.

Sure, Trump is already threatening to use the Senate to investigate the House. But, though the even more Trump dependent Republican Senate may be ready to engage in a little Capitol Hill Civil War reenactment, that effort is unlikely to be effective. Instead, Republicans in the Senate are likely to find that they have to devote their time to another less-than-glamorous battlefront: Investigating Hillary Clinton.

Republicans in the House started no less than three investigations into Clinton-related incidents last year. It’s safe to say that those waste of times are over. No matter how the survivors of the House fire for Republicans fume, the Uranium One club and the Hillary’s Emails Are the Worst consortium have had their last meeting. Hopefully, forever. If Trump wants to continue the pointless support for his Lock ‘er Up chant—which, really, don’t require any anchor in reality—Republicans in the Senate will have to take up that charge. It’s likely the Senate will do just that, stepping in to play back up to failed Nunes/Gowdy/Meadows efforts in the House. That’s a service that up and coming Reeks like Josh Hawley will be happy to provide for Trump. But Republican senators who are facing elections in blue or purple states in 2020 are going to be much less happy about how they spent the last two years asking people “now, about that server...”

On the House side, it’s not just that Adam Schiff can execute a stack of subpoenas that have surely been drafted for weeks. It’s that Oversight can now return to the job of Oversight, rather than greasing the rails for corruption. It’s not just Don Jr. who can expect to spend more time appearing before Congress, Ryan Zinke and Kirstjen Nielsen and Andrew Wheeler can all expect to appear behind name tags to regularly explain WTF they’ve been up to to people who won’t take “doing thy master’s bidding” as an answer.

Would it be better to have it all? Of course it would. Does the failure to capture the big offices in Florida and the loss of Senate seats represent a harsh reminder that the structure of our government means that even a demonstrable madman is a threat to our democracy, so long as that madman can keep his lever-pulling hoard enraged. Republicans are going to turn the Senate into a processing system for conservative judicial appointees so efficient they may need to hire some robots from Jeff Bezos just to move nominees among bins. That is not good. But ...

Everything else on Tuesday night was icing. The House was the cake. Take a slice. It’s still good.

Also, Kris Kobach lost. Sorry, I just wanted to write that again.

[Econoline]

• PUTIN LOSES CONTROL OF THE HOUSE
  
  By Andy Borowitz | November 6, 2018
  
  MOSCOW (The Borowitz Report)—Calling it “the biggest disappointment of my political career,” Vladimir Putin conceded late Tuesday night that he had lost control of the United States House of Representatives.
  
  Putin made his concession speech from the Kremlin, where he congratulated the Democrats for waging a “tough fight.”
  
  “Maybe if Facebook and Twitter hadn’t banned so many of my fake accounts, the results would have been different,” Putin said. “But I don’t want to make excuses—I threw everything I had at these races, and I lost.”
  
  Putin did, however, have harsh words for Donald Trump, who opted for a fear-mongering closing argument about immigration despite the Russian President’s objections.
  
  “I warned him that that would kill us in the suburbs, and he ignored me,” Putin said. “I hope this teaches him never to disobey my orders again.”

[Joe Guy]

I heard on the radio that Trump is going to place Putin in charge of the Mueller investigation. He said, "Putin really impressed me with his handling of the Miss Universe contest - which I own by the way - and he has very tremendous experience with investigations and could help me out bigly. That I can tell you."

[Sue U]

And it looks like the absentee ballots have given Andy Kim the win in NJ-3, edging out Tom MacArthur (R-Fuckyourhealthcare) by about 2500 votes. So NJ goes very blue in its congressional delegation (11 of 12 reps and both Senators).

[Big RR]

Gee and after all the ads tying him to a person advocating an islamic jihad against the US and terrorist cop killers, he is still elected. It gives me hope for people's intelligence.

[RayThom]