THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS WHILE CLEANSING THE DOORS OF PERCEPTION

It’s all coming to a head this week with local and state elections in California, but a major Prime Time event begins at 4 p.m. PST on Thursday, June 9, as the House committee investigating the January 6, 2021 riot in D.C. kicks off its eagerly anticipated televised public hearings. “The committee will present previously unseen material documenting January 6th, receive witness testimony, preview additional hearings, and provide the American people a summary of its findings about the coordinated, multi-step effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election and prevent the transfer of power,” the panel said. Additional information about witnesses will be released in coming days prior to the hearing, which is expected to zero in on former president Trump’s role in the violence in the Capitol for the purpose of disrupting the official counting of votes before a joint session of Congress. The House committee argued it has “a good-faith basis for concluding that [Trump] and members of his Campaign engaged in a criminal conspiracy to defraud the United States,” as stated in a civil court filing in March. Panel chairman, Mississippi Representative Bennie Thompson said the hearings will include testimony from witnesses not heard from previously, and with over a thousand interviews conducted, we can expect to be engrossed well beyond the committee’s televised run. 

A teaser-prevue of sorts has been making the rounds on MSNBC, CNN and other news outlets in the person of Denver Riggleman, a former Republican House member from Virginia, who was hired by the J-6 committee for his investigative expertise, acquired when he worked in the intelligence community with the NSA, and on USAF Special Projects. He remains close-mouthed regarding the methods and procedures, but he was in charge of arranging funding, and hiring investigative teams who then developed analyses of their findings, derived from interviews, texts, and emails which link all three branches of government. The results so far (Riggleman says another year would be needed to wade through all 20-million lines of data gleaned), point to “a damnable coup attempt, a Holy War, verging on a fantasy novel” and reaching into the highest echelons of the Trump administration…“stunning that some individuals are in such high places of power.” His initial “bemusement turned into horror” as he delved into the textual evidence, pushing him to step away from his computer to calm his dumbfounded outrage at the revelations from the largest data investigation in Congressional history. 

Interestingly, he credits Trump’s Chief of Staff, Mark Meadows with providing “a road map for structuring the investigation” from material that he turned over to the House committee. He even goes so far to say, “Meadows is the MVP for the committee, and the committee should consider paying him for his contribution.” Surprising words in light of Meadows’ continuing refusal to cooperate further in the inquiry, and after noncompliance with a subpoena to appear for testimony. A recommendation to the Justice Department to prosecute him for his refusal, was declined, along with that of former White House social media director, Mark Scavino, for his noncooperation, and contempt of Congress after being subpoenaed. Committee chair Thompson and Vice Chair Liz Cheney called the DOJ’s decision “puzzling, and hoping for more clarity” in a released statement. Yet, the DOJ, earlier on the same day, made the decision to arrest Trump’s White House trade advisor, Peter Navarro, for contempt of Congress after denying the committee’s demands. Navarro has been loose-lipped in interviews and as seen in excerpts from his upcoming book, ‘Taking Back Trump’s America: Why We Lost The White House, and Why We’ll Take It Back,’ so good luck in court defending yourself, Peter. As George Orwell wrote in his personal diary, “At age 50, every man has the face he deserves,” and Navarro’s, at 72, is still a work in progress. 

Newsman Anderson Cooper, quizzed Riggleman on Trump’s complicity in the events of January 6, who only said that the committee was looking into whether the Prez was propelled along in the current, led by the nose, but a willing participant; or, a willing participant with situational awareness; or, part of the command-and-control of the rioters. Riggleman goes on to say that texts between Meadows (Chief of Staff to the U.S. President), Ginni Thomas (wife of a Supreme Court Justice), and Connie Hair (Chief of Staff to Congressman Gohmert and friend of Ginni) were particularly alarming. Attorney and political activist, George Conway (husband of Kellyanne) says, “This was a multi-faceted conspiracy to do whatever it took to stop the counting of electoral votes on January 6. And that has to be a crime. If that’s not a crime, nothing is under these statutes.” Reality says it was several crimes: fraud, forgery, assault, attempted extortion, sedition and treason. Luckily for us, VP Pence refused to get into that ‘rescue’ vehicle, sparing us (as rumor has it) the seating of Senator Charles Grassley before the assembled Congress in order to refuse recognition of the Electoral College votes. See George Orwell quote above, Chuckie. 

So, lay in a good supply of popcorn, peanuts, and Cracker Jacks for the upcoming extravaganza. And, maybe a box of Jujubes, some M&Ms, Junior Mints, Milk Duds, Raisinets, and Twizzlers. Save the champagne for later…the best is yet to come…fingers crossed!

Despite the ongoing accusations and recriminations following the Uvalde, Texas school massacre, a bipartisan Senate committee led by Connecticut’s Chris Murphy has met several times in an effort to work out a deal on gun reform. Disappointingly, Murphy says any new legislation will not include an assault weapons ban or ‘comprehensive’ background checks, but hopes to show the country that progress is being made to reverse the status quo. Republican Pat Toomey says the group must “be realistic” in the face of so much opposition within his party, but hopes at least half his Republican colleagues will support a potential deal. Across the aisle, House Minority Whip, Steve Scalise says he will not support legislation on red flag laws, calling them “unconstitutional” and a non-solution to the broad debate on curbing gun violence. Ted Cruz seems to have provided a catch-phrase for his party in the post-Uvalde atmosphere – “Guns? It’s the DOORS, stupid!” Several of his followers, including the former president, have picked up on his claim that our schools have too many doors! And, too many unguarded doors, needing protection by armed AR-15 marksmen, at that! Jimmy Kimmel is suggesting that we put our unneeded, unused, or unnecessary doors in a pile on Cruz’s lawn. If the collection grows big enough, maybe the senator will so confused he’ll never find his way out of his yard…one problem solved!

Cruz appears to have a god-complex, or a god-in-waiting-complex, but it’s more fitting to crown him as Goozma, the Slime God from Total Calamity Mod Wiki games. The Roman god, Janus, guardian of doors, gates and transitions, would be more to his liking, and fittingly, as a two-faced god, that almost works; but, alas Cruz has lost, or never had, the forward-looking face and is left with his backward gaze, glorifying a past which never was, while destroying a future for the youngest among us. Ibid. – George Orwell, Teddy!

“If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, Infinite.”, wrote English artist/poet William Blake in ‘The Marriage of Heaven and Hell,’ wherein he argues that both good and evil are equally valuable in the world. Hmm…not sure that justifies our having a president who burns or flushes legal documents, uses burner phones, hires disreputable employees, harasses adversaries, bullies women, and runs a crime syndicate to overthrow the government. Time to go to the videotape and watch Pixar’s “Monsters, Inc.” – great monsters in fantastic door escapades! A good cleanse before facing reality in Thursday’s House committee video revelations!