Trump, the GOP, and a pair of political wishes for 2024

No matter how you view it, politically, 2023 was grim.

Most days brought head-shaking news from the GOP. 

From in-House GOP bickering to the House expulsion of George Santos to lining up a fact-free impeachment of the Democratic president to, stunningly, presenting as their BEST CHOICE to run for president in 2024, an ethically-bereft, twice-impeached insurrectionist facing 91 felony charges in four different courts, who has promised, if elected, to obtain the apparently Confederate-inspired goal of "retribution."

Amazingly (and, truly, terrifyingly so), 2024 doesn't look as though it might be any better.

But our country needs it.

That said, here are my two political wishes for the new year.

First off (and less important than my second wish), I hope the House GOP gets it together. 

They took fifteen votes to elect a Speaker and then ousted him. GOP members physically and verbally assaulted one another. They scrutinized Biden's bank records attempting to prove that a documented loan repayment from his brother and car payments from his son are really evidence of impeachable offenses. And they continued to bend over backwards to appease the demagogue that is the head of the GOP: twice-impeached, four-time-indicted, former president Donald J. Trump.

And it's been done to the detriment of legislating--neglecting pressing needs such as gun control and immigration to pass an historically few number of bills.

I understand that GOP functionality is an enormous ask, though. Hopefully, there will arise a few (or at least one or two?) principled GOP lawmakers to take a stand for what's right. 

The country needs it.

But, sadly, I wouldn't count on it.

My far more fervent wish, and an even bigger ask, I'm afraid, pertains to the upcoming trials of the GOP presidential frontrunner.

Although my hope is that justice will be served, my wish is much more than that.

Juries of my fellow citizens--and their court officers--will hear evidence to determine Trump's guilt or innocence.

Obviously, they'll have to put aside preconceived biases to reach just verdicts.

But it won't be that easy. 

They'll also have to navigate their fear for the physical safety of themselves and their families if they decide to render a guilty verdict--something even U.S. Senators couldn't overcome during Trump's second impeachment, despite recognizing his guilt.

The same fear and threats of violence likely experienced by the District Attorney of Fulton County, GA, or the Washington insurrection trial judge, or the DA's office in New York, or the four Colorado Supreme Court members that found Trump should be removed from the primary ballot (notably, those Colorado Justices voting in favor of Trump WEREN'T threatened by Biden supporters).

So, my wish is that the juries will be able to render fair judgements. And that the threats made by the gullible, evil minions of Trump's army will not be able to thwart such decisions. And that those brave souls serving the country in the U.S. Courts will remain safe.

Our country needs it.

God bless America.

The GOP is a Mess

Well, it's official.

The GOP is a mess.

"Clean-up on the GOP aisle!"

As the House GOP FINALLY passed a Continuing Resolution to fund the government until January/February and headed off to their Thanksgiving break (thanks to support from, I'm guessing, disgusted and disbelieving Democrats), it's time to see where, exactly, the "Grand Old Party" now stands.

And it ain't pretty.

Regarding the House of Representatives, where the GOP holds a majority, some have called their current tenure a "clown car," while others have offered a challenge on the floor to "explain to me one material, meaningful, significant thing the Republican majority has done." 

And these comments, amazingly (and tellingly) are from their own members!

Seemingly forever bogged down in the morass of Speaker drama, it took 15 votes (and numerous back-door dealings) for long-time favored candidate Kevin McCarthy to earn enough votes to take the gavel, only to have it wrenched away from him--the first time that ever happened in the history of Congress-- just nine months later. And, for three weeks--as wars around the world raged and domestic issues such as inflation consumed the minds of the voting public--the GOP floundered, trotting out Speaker candidate after candidate--Jordan, Emmer, Scalise--who weren't able to secure enough votes despite having received their own caucus's recommendation.

Let that sink in.

GOP members met, debated, and, after careful consideration, voted to advance their recommended choices for Speaker. And, then, time after time, decided, "Eh, maybe not."

And it's only gotten worse since then.

It turns out (as highlighted in an article by the Huffington Post), this Republican-led House has passed only 21 bills this session--the fewest this deep into a session in more than 90 years--that include world-changing imperatives such as minting a commemorative coin and naming government offices after people. And then, FINALLY passing a resolution to continue to fund the government.

And, believe it or not, the mess has STILL gotten worse.

On Tuesday, GOP Rep. Tim Burchett, was "sucker punched" in the kidney by former Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

Fighting for you!

Coincidentally(?), Burchett was one of the House GOP who voted to oust McCarthy from the Speakership. 

In his own defense, however, McCarthy--who, as Speaker, had been second in succession to become US President--proclaimed, "If I kidney punched someone, they would be on the ground."

And, later in the day, a Senate hearing included panel member Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin (yes, that's his name) challenging a witness to a fight right there in the chamber.

In Mullin's defense, he later said, "This isn't anything new. Andrew Jackson challenged nine people to a duel when he was President (my note: Jackson served from 1829-1837), and he also knocked one guy out at a White House dinner. There's been canings before in the Senate, too. Maybe we should bring some of that back."

The caning Mullin refers to took place in 1856, when a pro-slavery Representative attacked (and bloodied) an abolitionist one. 

If this isn't a mess, then I don't know what is.

Well, come to think of it, it IS even worse.

The GOP-led House is spending much of their "effort," not on important issues, but on trying to pin impeachment on anyone in Biden's administration (that of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas was already voted down). The current "investigation" into Biden's own "misdoings" has yielded a $200,000 check to Biden from his brother for a "loan repayment" (notably, when Biden wasn't in office). If the GOP actually cared about facts, though, um, they'd note that the same subpoenaed bank records list a $200,000 check Biden loaned to his brother six weeks earlier.

Interestingly enough, the head of that "investigative" committee, Representative Jim Comer, apparently loaned his own brother some $200,000. When Comer was questioned about it, he called Democratic Representative Jared Moskowitz a "liar" and, for some reason, a "Smurf."

Say hi to the new GOP! 

So, that's where the GOP is.

Of course, their presumptive nominee to run for President in 2024 is a twice-impeached, four-time-indicted-facing-91-felony-charges, sexual-assaulting, defaming, fraudulent businessman from Florida.

So, um, yeah, that's a mess.

And there doesn't seem to be one GOP member in their own house/House that is capable of cleaning it up.