Investigate the Investigators!

I’ve heard my sources say the nasty guy and his minions – especially Attorney General William Barr – are trying to investigate the investigators. I’ve been puzzled about how they would go about doing that. Then indicted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu provided an example. Reporter Noga Tarnopolsky tweeted a thread about what is going on. After being indicted Netanyahu spoke. He attacked the justice system. He attacked the press. He called for an uprising of the people, railing against what he calls trumped up charges. He said the public has already lost faith in the police and the justice system. He railed that he got the worst press coverage of anyone in the history of Israel. He vowed he won’t let lies win in his country. He said investigators weren’t seeking the truth they were seeking him. “There is one thing that must happen: the Investigators must be investigated!” Only accountability will restore public faith in the justice system.

Any of this sound familiar? Perhaps coming from a certain big mouth on this side of the Atlantic?

Obviously (and it was obvious to many long before now), Netanyahu is an authoritarian.

Just to dispel any doubts: Since the investigators charged Netanyahu with a crime, he – like authoritarians everywhere – concludes that it is the investigators that must be corrupt and we had better expose that corruption before the country (meaning himself) is harmed.



Dawn Onley of Our Prism on Daily Kos asks an important question. The most loyal demographic of the Democratic Party is black women. So why are the first two primaries in lily white Iowa and New Hampshire? The order of primary states matters because momentum matters. Why should Kamela Harris have to wait a month after the first big two to get to states (Nevada and South Carolina) where a higher concentration of voters look like her?

Presidential candidate Julián Castro adds:

We’re right to call Republicans out when they suppress the votes of African-Americans or Latinos, but we’ve also got to recognize that this 50-year-old process was created during a time when minority voices had zero power in the party.

A couple years ago North Korean leader Kim Kong Un wanted meetings with the nasty guy because such appearances would promote the idea that Kim was a legitimate world leader. Those meetings were supposed to be about nuclear disarmament and they have been so much not going well that Kim is frustrated. In response to a hopeful tweet from the nasty guy North Korean official Kim Kye Gwan replied:

We are no longer interested in such talks that bring nothing to us. As we have got nothing in return, we will no longer gift the U.S. president with something he can boast of, but get compensation for the successes that President Trump is proud of as his administrative achievement.

We’ve gone from Kim needing the nasty guy to give him legitimacy to Kim not needing and not wanting the nasty guy.



Journalist Heather Bryant tweeted a thread in which she notes that news organizations are considering editor’s notes for greater transparency. Bryant proposes a few. Here are a couple of them.

To go with a story about labor, unions, and workforce discrimination:

Editor's Note: This company is currently resisting or outright fighting unionization efforts of staff that would help them in regard to these issues.

To go with a story about sexual assault and whether the allegations will ruin the man’s life:

Editor's Note: This media company has known and/or covered up for one or more men who have discriminated, harassed or assaulted women who work or wanted to work here.

Bill in Portland, Maine includes in his weekday post Cheers and Jeers on Daily Kos has a By the Numbers feature. In today’s numbers:

Number of times Pete Buttigieg’s Rhodes scholarship has been mentioned in U.S. publications this year, according to HuffPost: 596

Number of times Cory Booker's Rhodes scholarship has been mentioned: 79