He makes vengeance feel like a party

I wrote yesterday that House Republicans are advancing a bill to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Today Walter Einenkel of Daily Kos reported there is at least one House Republican who will vote against impeachment when it comes to the floor. That guy is Rep. Ken Buck. He told Chris Jansing of MSNBC, “This is not a high crime or misdemeanor. It’s not an impeachable offense. This is a policy difference.” And, “If we go down this path of impeachment with a Cabinet official, we are opening a door, as Republicans, that we don’t want to open.” So there is one vote against in a House where Republicans have very few votes to spare. David J. Bier, in a thread now on Threadreader, explains the many things that are wrong with the Mayorkas articles of impeachment. It’s not very long, so reading the whole thing is worthwhile. Here’s his summary:

So we've got citations to overturned court cases. We've got actions that Mayorkas never took. We've got demands that he detain people unconstitutionally. They want him to block legal entries, so more people cross illegally. They had 3 years to pull this together! Mayorkas has made many mistakes, but it is nothing like the slew of illegal, unconstitutional, and immoral actions taken during the 4 years of the Trump admin, which resulted in the total destruction of the immigration system. This case is a joke.

Joan McCarter of Kos reported – amazingly – the House passed a bipartisan (357-70) tax bill to expand the child tax credit. It could lift as many as a half million kids out of poverty. But the bill is getting a cool reception in the Senate. The official line is all about follow regular order, do the committee thing, and all the rest. Joseph Zeballos-Roig reported the unofficial line:

GOP Sen. Grassley tells me he’s concerned passing Wyden-Smith tax bill might aid Biden’s re-election: “I think passing a tax bill that makes the president look good mailing out checks before the election, means he could be reelected and then we won’t extend the 2017 tax cuts”

McCarter wrote, “In other words, he’s more interested in helping Donald Trump than poor kids.” Also, Biden won’t be sending out checks. The money comes as a refund to taxes. In a pundit roundup for Kos Greg Dworkin quoted Jamie Dupree of “Regular Order” on Substack. My summary: This is a strange situation where Republicans are in charge of the House, yet need votes of Democrats to get things done. The bill mentioned above is the fifth time a bill has been approved under “suspension of the rules.” That requires a supermajority, definitely needing Democrats’ votes, meaning a bipartisan bill. Speaker Johnson is doing it this way because the bill would normally go through the House Rules Committee and there are too many Freedom Caucus members there. So Johnson is going around them. The House Republicans have a majority, but not a functioning majority, said Josh Huder, a Congressional expert at Georgetown University. Down in the comments exlrrp posted a meme by David Hogg of March for Our Lives. Beside a photo of Taylor Swift, Hogg says, “If you have a meltdown over Taylor Swift not endorsing your sh*tty policies you are a snowflake.” So let’s turn to Taylor Swift. Charles Jay of the Kos community wrote that Fox News is pushing that the Super Bowl has been rigged to give Swift, somehow a Pentagon psyops asset, a big platform to endorse Biden. She gets that platform because she is dating Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs, who will be playing in that big game. Colin Cowherd, a Fox Sports pundit, cited a New York Times report that showed during the Ravens-Chiefs playoff game that ran for 3.5 hours Swift was onscreen for 32 seconds, and 17 of those seconds was a promo for the Grammy Awards.

“There’s a lot of really weird, lonely, insecure men out there,” Cowherd said. “The fact that a pop star—the world’s biggest pop star—is dating a star tight end who had one of his greatest games ever, and the network puts them on the air briefly, then it bothers you, what does that say about your life?”

They don’t get upset with male celebrities attending games.

“But a talented and beautiful woman is on the air—one who would never pay attention to lonely men—and it bothers them.”

Back in 2016 these same men were calling Swift an “Aryan goddess.” They were projecting their white supremacist hopes on to her. Their opinion of her changed when she decided she could not stay quiet and neutral in politics. She endorsed the opponent of Marsha Blackburn. Then she denounced white supremacy. In 2020 she endorsed Biden/Harris.

And now the woman who was once the alt-right’s “Aryan goddess” is viewed by some of the same people as being under Satan’s influence as the conspiracy theories spread that the Super Bowl has been rigged so Swift can have a big stage to endorse Biden.

That got me wondering. Why would she need the Superbowl for a stage? Her concerts are a pretty big draw and her millions of fans pay close attention to her on social media. Bill in Portland, Maine, in a Cheers and Jeers column for Kos included a tweet by Morning Joe with a link to a Rolling Stone article, “Trump Allies Pledge 'Holy War' Against Taylor Swift.” To which Late Night with Seth Meyers responded, “You guys couldn’t even overthrow Biden on January 6th and you think you can take down TAYLOR?” Kerry Eleveld of Kos discussed the effect of the nasty guy’s trials during a campaign. If the trials proceed and he’s convicted before the election ... that may or may not help Biden. The nasty guy is notoriously good at manipulating political liabilities. But turn it around. What if all the trials are delayed, which he is working hard to make happen, until after the election?

In that case, anti-Trumpers would likely be livid at the thought of Trump successfully gaming the legal system once again and potentially avoiding being held to account indefinitely. Democrats' message could be something along the lines of: "Trump has gamed the legal system and evaded justice his whole life. Don't let him get away with it again. VOTE." It's exactly the type of scenario that could inspire a critical mass of voters to climb over broken glass to get to the polls and ensure Trump faces trial.

Dartagnan of the Kos community wrote that E. Jean Carroll is beginning to talk about what she might do with the $83 million awarded her in defamation trial against the nasty guy. The first requirement for it will be to create “something Donald Trump hates.” And that could be a “fund for the women who have been sexually assaulted by Donald Trump.” There is the issue of actually collecting the $83 million. There will be, of course, an appeal. Then the nasty guy has a lot of real estate that can be sold to pay the judgment. Eleveld reported the nasty guy’s campaign told megadonors the candidate may say things people don’t like. The campaign is unable to tell the candidate certain things should not be said. The campaign also said the nasty guy is poised to get the nomination and has the best chance to defeat Biden. Eleveld wrote:

In other words: Write checks if you want access, folks. Sure, Trump's a lunatic, but he's gonna win and you'll want to be able to get his ear. ... So the key question the Trump camp will need to address is: How does a campaign woo swing voters with a candidate whose top campaign aides are already apologizing for his behavior on the trail? Because Trump’s handlers are already failing at muzzling him.

Eleveld also reported on focus groups in battleground states of Georgia, Wisconsin, and Nevada. The groups were led by GBAO for Navigator Research. The people in the group are independents or close to that and don’t prioritize democracy. They’re also a group that know little of the nasty guy’s court cases and his push for autocracy.

The moderator informs them of Trump’s argument that every president should have immunity for "everything they do as president," unless they are impeached and convicted by Congress. "What do you think of that?" asks the moderator. “It's ridiculous," responded an independent Wisconsin woman who leans Republican. "So he's saying if he killed somebody, he'd be immune.” ... The takeaway from these focus groups is that Democrats shouldn't take for granted even basic knowledge about Trump's legal challenges and his autocratic impulses. Many voters still don't know the severity of Trump's wide-ranging criminal indictments, and they have no idea the vigor with which he is claiming to be above the law.

In a pundit roundup for Kos Chitown Kev quoted Jill Filipovic of The New Statesman:

This is perhaps Trump’s highest skill: he draws sharp lines around “us” and an abhorrent, dangerous and vermin-like other, and then brings the in-group into his cruelty with him. It’s not Trump targeting vulnerable groups; it’s Trump pulling us together to defend the collective us, protect the tribe. Anyone who has spent time on a middle-school campus knows that there are bully leaders who attract a group of bully followers, and then there are the mean jerks no one likes. Trump is the former, and DeSantis more the latter. ... Unlike Trump, DeSantis’s cruelty isn’t amusing. Even worse, there was little opportunity to join in. Trump voters want someone who directs them to action, even extreme chaos that teeters into violence, and who understands exactly what they mean when they say that the 6 January insurrection, which left several people dead and struck at the heart of American democracy, was “fun”. This desire for collective cruelty, and a sense that being in a group makes cruelty more entertaining and less the responsibility of any one individual, has roots in the darkest parts of humanity. ... But the core desire – to make vengeance a communal pastime – has not died out, especially among those who embrace autocracy, conservative religiosity and traditionalism. Trump embodies that desire for retribution as sport. Ron DeSantis hit all the right notes on the punitive vengeance part of the equation. But he failed to make it feel like a party.

The comments to a pundit roundup have a few good cartoons. One by Walt Handelsman shows a text bubble from the GOP House: “We must impeach secretary Mayorkas for not doing anything about the border crisis that we won’t do anything about!!” Matson posted one of a girl supporting a football to be kicked. The ball has the word “debate.” Behind her is a “Haley 2024” sign. She’s looking at a boy with long yellow hair and a longer red tie. The girl says, “It’s a basic competency test... I’ll hold the ball, and you come running up and kick it!” And one by MacLeod Cartoons: Above an elephant, “Republicans: We are the party of real men! We hate woke wimps! We are the tough guy’s party!” Above the same elephant, now with a scared expression. “Also Republicans: Oh n-n-no! It’s T-T-Taylor Swift!”