February 26

RIGHT-WING REWRITES, EDITS AND REASSESSMENTS

Rhode Island Representative and ranking House Democrat on the Homeland Security Committee, Seth Magaziner, says he is deeply disturbed that House Speaker McCarthy has given sensitive security surveillance footage from the January 6 D.C. insurrection to Tucker Carlson of FoxNews…“because it was promised.” A group of news outlets have enlisted the help of attorney Charles Tobin to request of congressional leadership all closed-circuit camera footage recorded both inside and outside the Capitol on that day be given to them, saying, “The incredible public interest in understanding what transpired on January 6 crosses party lines.” McCarthy has previously said reviewing the tapes would “let everybody make their own judgement.” So what are we to think if a photoshopped Joe Biden and Jimmy Carter are exposed as they carry a banner bearing an ANTIFA message? Or if Hillary is seen with Nancy Pelosi ripping up Trump posters?

The approximately 41,000 hours of footage will allow Carlson’s team to reassemble it in such a way to allow him to continue questioning the significance of that event, as well as carrying on with attacks on the House Select Committee investigation and its conclusions. Senate Majority Leader Schumer slammed Mac’s decision, accusing him of “needlessly” exposing the Capitol to further security risks by giving information to those who are planning future attacks. Attorney Tobin cited a federal appeals court case that found the government cannot selectively exclude certain outlets from information which might otherwise be available to the public. His letter to congressional leaders McCarthy, Scalise, Jeffries, Schumer and McConnell claims, “Without full public access to the complete historical record, there is concern that an ideologically-based narrative of an already polarizing event will take hold in the public consciousness, with destabilizing risks to the legitimacy of Congress, the Capitol Police, and the various federal investigations and prosecutions of January 6 crimes.” Tobin also sent an expedited request under the Freedom of Information Act on behalf of ten news organizations, as well as The Associated Press and The New York Times.

Announcing a lawsuit against McCarthy because his pillows were evidently over-fluffed, perhaps left out in the rain, is Mike Lindell of MyPillow fame. He let Steve Bannon know of his plans, and of his anger at the House leader for daring to favor Tucker Carlson by bestowing such a gift, claiming he is “injured” that Fox was selected over him, as Mac curries favor with the propagandist, and now he wants his due! So, maybe for once we can agree with this goofball…for our own reasons? Let’s also roll our eyes around a few times – as even the GOP seems to be doing.

As if the toxic East Palestine, Ohio train derailment wasn’t bad enough, The Former Guy felt the need to show up at the site last week, and it proved to be toxic to the ego of Mr. Trump. After the visit he did his usual braggadocio of what a success it had been, as he handed out Trump-labeled bottles of water along with McDonald’s delicacies. On Truth Social he crowed that his visit was seen by 180 million viewers on both social and traditional media…“numbers off the charts!” Interesting to note that NO major stations carried his visit. Your major coverage is coming, however, Donny! He added, “The visit meant a lot for the people of East Palestine and the surrounding communities. The trip gave them hope and raised awareness needed to combat the incompetence of the Biden Administration.” He failed to mention that relaxation of rail regulations during his term likely led to the unfortunate accident. No word on the number of paper towel rolls he tossed to the assembled for use in sopping up the mess.

The former prez is by now realizing that the DOJ Special Counsel, Jack Smith, is heavily into pursuit of indicting him in a criminal case, especially after three of his attorneys have testified against him before a grand jury. Now it turns out that an aide of Trump’s brought a box of additional classified documents to Mar-a-Lago after being stored at a leased office elsewhere in Palm Beach. With headlines screaming about the discovery of classified material at M-a-L, who or what figured the coast was clear enough to bring another stash to the scene of the crime? Malice, extreme negligence, or stupidity? Smith will have to make that determination, but somebody squealed, and it indicates that DJT’s people are cooperating with DOJ, with him squarely in the viewfinder.

Compounding this issue is discovery that the documents were found on a laptop recovered from the aide, according to attorney Danny Cevallos, a giant problem for Trump because the information could be transferred easily to thumb drives to serve whatever purpose Traitor Trump had in mind. The aide, not an attorney, was working for Trump’s favored Save America PAC, and being a governmental outsider is a clear national security issue. The hard copy classified documents were distributed among miscellaneous papers, such as schedules, McDonald’s menus, ketchup packets and napkins, but it is noteworthy that they were scanned with a phone by the aide upon being instructed to do so, then transferred to the laptop. Special Counsel Smith now has the documents, the laptop and a thumb drive, plus testimony of the aide. Get your popcorn, peanuts and Cocolas, ready!

The Save America PAC is The Don’s favorite, in particular because the actual name should be the Save Trump PAC, as we discover that more than ten million dollars of the sixteen million dollars spent on legal-related expenses went to the Former Guy’s legal bills in the two previous years according to filings. Some of the money was paid to lawyers representing witnesses in investigations related to Stop the Steal efforts, but about $10M went to law firms repping for Trump in a series of investigations and lawsuits…some related to Trump, Inc. So, who says Mr. T refuses to pay his attorneys? However, this poses the question about whether he can get away with this as a presidential candidate. “Payment by a PAC that exceeds the contribution limit are contributions to the candidate and are unlawful,” reports Jason Torchinsky, a campaign finance expert with Holtzman Vogel. For the current two-year political cycle, donation limits are set at $3,300.

Pomeranian Margie T. Greene yapped out her criticism of Joe Biden’s sneak visit into Ukraine recently, barking, “Put America First!!!” Calling Ukraine the 51st state, she has long denounced the billions in aid sent to that country in its battle against the Russian invasion. Referring to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as “the shadow president” when he appeared before Congress, she called the visit “absurd,” with many in the far-right wing of the GOP in agreement. Malcontent Marge, in her brazen self-pity, laments her “low” congressional salary and the fact that the job is “practically year-round. Becoming a member of Congress has made my life miserable.” Po’ li’l thang! Folks, do we know a better way to spend $174,000? You bet! Let’s work on it!

Speaking of complainers…we find cartoonist Scott Adams, along with his long-extant ‘Dilbert‘ comic strip, may have hit the wall with his extreme-right wing comments calling Black Americans a “hate group, and White people should get the hell away from them.” He is well-known for his ideologies and Trumpist conspiracy theories, but became upset after reading a Rasmussen poll that found a thin majority of Blacks agreed with the statement “It’s okay to be white.” On his YouTube show, the 65-year old Adams blamed Black Americans for not “focusing on education. I’m also really sick of seeing video after video of Blacks beating up on non-Black citizens.”

This outburst prompted many newspapers to cancel his comic strip, and if Adams‘ prediction rings true, he will be down to “zero distribution by Monday,” suggesting he had done irreparable harm to his career…“There’s no way you can come back from this.” Darrin Bell, ‘Candorville‘ cartoonist, the first Black artist to win the Pulitzer Prize for editorial cartooning, said, “His racism is not even unique among cartoonists,” and compared him to having views held in the Jim Crow era. Upon cancellation of the ‘Dilbert‘ TV show, Adams in 2020 claimed, “It’s the third job I lost for being White,” and in 2022, he tweeted his intent to “self-identify as a Black woman.”

Recently dropped by the San Francisco Chronicle, ‘Dilbert‘ had “stopped being hilarious, to being hurtful and mean,” according to editor-in-chief, Emilio Garcia-Ruiz. “Very few readers noticed when we killed it, and we only had a handful of complaints.” Looks like R.I.P. (Reprints In Podunk), ‘Dilbert‘!

Oops! Texas and a gun in the news again! The elementary school superintendent in a school district near Abilene has resigned because a third grader found his forgotten pistol in a school bathroom. Robby Stuteville’s three decade service in the district, two years as the super, came to an end with “a grave mistake,” as he pointed out. In an interview he admitted the permitted gun was left unattended for about fifteen minutes before being found. “There was never a danger other than the obvious,” Stuteville claimed. Adding, “Guns (are) a considerable danger,” and that the child had done well “to be on the lookout for any unusual placement of a weapon or anything out of place.” Anybody else think Robby is unclear on the concept? Approval to carry guns came about after the Uvalde school shooting to ensure protection of students, terming it a ‘reassessment.’ Time for a ‘re-reassessment!’

COVID-19 pandemic is over!?! So, hopeful travelers are jamming the phone lines and websites of the airlines and ticket agents to plan getaways, plaguing the air carriers with a growing, four-wheeled problem in the form of – wheelchairs! A dramatic increase in wheelchair requests and wheelchair assistance has arisen. Is it that more passengers with physical limitations are flying? Or is it crafty, deceitful passengers attempting to be among the first to board a flight? Short-staffed airlines are having difficulties at handling such an abundance of requests for those seeking perks, which can result in late departures, and a resultant reduced operating profit in some cases. As the industry becomes more aware of this problem, many of the trips are called ‘Jesus Flights’, as the limitations seem to be ‘healed’ during the flight, wheelchairs are cast aside, and the passenger skips down the steps to the tarmac into their vacation site. Air carriers are reducing the number of summer flights, meaning sold-out flights, and a wheelchair issue coming to prominence, so prepare for delays and discomfort – and whatever your travel plans, don’t get on a plane transporting Margie or Scott, for sure!