It was supposed to defang the Freedom Caucus

When writing about the Tony Awards yesterday I missed a couple things. One of the award recipients said, “When your child tells you who they are, believe them.” And one of the short videos introducing a show or an actor featured a black woman saying something like this: I’ve just been to the doctor and tested negative for patience. Walter Einenkel of Daily Kos reported that the restaurant chain Cracker Barrel is being targeted by the MAGA crowd for a boycott. Yeah, the same Cracker barrel that was sued for discriminatory practices nearly 20 years ago and sold Duck Dynasty merch 10 years ago. Their travesty? A photo of the rocking chairs on a restaurant’s porch painted in rainbow colors. So the MAGA crowd will have to eat elsewhere. One tiny problem. Of the top ten fast food chains – McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Subway, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Chick-Fil-A, Pizza Hut, Panera, Wendy’s, and Burger King – all of them have some sort of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion statement. Wrote Einenkel:

The good news for bigots is that fast food is generally unhealthy and shouldn’t be eaten too frequently. The bad news is that if you plan on holding another insurrection or driving cross-country to support your suspected criminal former president, there are going to be a lot of places you cannot eat. Like, most of them. Better start looking at the 7-Eleven menu. Oh no!!!!!

They have a DEI statement too! I thought the debt limit bill was supposed to defang the far right House Freedom Caucus. I’m not surprised it didn’t. Wednesday last week Joan McCarter of Kos wrote that the HFC rebelled by defeating a “rule” vote, a procedural vote that lays out the terms of debate on a bill. And it’s a silly bill – one that would prevent the Biden administration from adding further regulations to gas stoves. The last time a rule vote failed was 21 years ago. Yeah, this is their payback for feeling betrayed by that debit limit bill McCarthy negotiated with Biden, the one that got more Democratic votes than Republican. Well, fine, if the Republican controlled House doesn’t want to do anything, the less trouble they can get into. Except there are some thing that must pass. Like the 2024 budget. And the Farm Bill that comes up every five years. And Ukraine will likely need more aid. In one attempt to appease them McCarthy said he’ll next turn to tax cuts – and we can be sure they won’t be tax custs for those who aren’t rich. It’s rather strange that the HFC can’t tell a consistent story why they voted no. Various members say different things. I won’t bother sorting through their blather. On Thursday McCarter reported the rebels held firm and on Wednesday night McCarthy adjourned the House until Monday. The rebels are saying McCarthy had promised them certain things. Steve Scalise, the Republican Majority Leader says he knows nothing about those promises. Feuding within the party ensued. Yesterday afternoon – the Monday the House was to return to business – McCarter posted again. The House will try to proceed with business that doesn’t need rule votes. Then McCarter explained what may be ahead. If those budget bills don’t get passed – and with 32 legislative days before they’re due on October 1 passage is higly unlikely – on January 1 there will be cuts to everything – including defense and veterans care, the areas Republicans most want to protect. And we could be back to where we were a month ago with the debt limit bill. McCarter reported on a couple rulings out of the Supreme Court. In the first, the Court told Alabama they had to redraw Congressional district maps to add a second black majority district. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaigh joined the liberals. That means they didn’t gut the last bit of the Voting Rights Act that Roberts has been shredding bit by bit since he got on the Court. The second case preserves the right of Medicaid beneficiaries to sue in federal court when they believe their rights are violated by state officials. This one was decided, amazingly, 7-2. It may be more consequential than the first. Can it be that the high level or criticism aimed at Roberts over the last few years is causing him to show restraint? Is he starting to worry about his legacy? Good to know the pressure campaign is working. We still need to reform the Court. Michael Harriot tweeted a thread about the top ten imaginary black people. Here are some of them. 10. Many white people say they have a black best friend. Why don’t black people say they have a white bestie? Perhaps all these white people have the same black friend, and it’s Clarence Thomas? 7. Blacks are accused of not caring about education. Could be because they’ve been denied equal education? 4. If blacks are the real racists where are all the black on white massacres or lynchings? 2. Police justify being brutal to prevent blacks from attacking them. But more cops are killed by whites than by blacks. 1. The charge is black people are so dumb. But Harriot wonders how white people know what is better for black people than 80% of black people. Biden tweeted a photo of a pride flag hanging from the south side of the White House. David Hayward tweeted a cartoon of Jesus and a rainbow sheep dancing, but are the only ones on the dance floor. Hayward added “Life is so much more fun when we let everyone on the dance floor.”