Grifters and con artists. What you writing about, Mommy?
My oldest asked me that.
In
his initial filing for bankruptcy to attempt to delay the collection of
the massive defamation judgment obtained by Georgia election workers
Ruby Freeman and Shay Moss, Rudy Giuliani was forced to admit that the
Trump campaign owed him $2 million in unpaid legal fees. Now he is
begging a court not to collect that money since it will make it look
like he is suing Trump right before the election.
The
bankruptcy court recently dismissed his case as being fraudulently
filed in an attempt to simply delay collection of the judgment. So now
the case is back in court with the plaintiffs attempting to seize Rudy's
assets without delay. Rudy filed a motion today regarding his most
substantial assets - one of which are the legal fees he accrued trying
to overturn the 2020 election for Trump. Trump never paid him a single
dollar for his work.
[. . .]
Finally,
he asks that the court delay enforcement of the $2 million owed by
Trump until the day after the election. He says that should be done
because there will be a "media frenzy" if Trump is forced to pay Rudy
the money he has owed him for three years, and it will make it look like
Rudy is suing Trump right before the election for stiffing him.
Of
course he wants to delay it. Trump's mountain of debt could collapse
at any moment and Rudy doesn't want that pinned on him. Everything
about Trump is a lie including his supposedly great wealth. You know
Ike Turner -- a con artist who abused women just like Trump -- used to
explain how you manipulated the bank. And he'd talk about how you could
ride high for years. But one stumble and everyone panics and starts
calling in the debts and that's when you're bankrupt.
In
other news, I guess conversion camp only accomplishes so much. Doesn't
appear to have left Speaker of the House Mike Johnson with a functional
brain. Charles R. Davis (Salon) reports:
House Speaker Mike Johnson is
a man of faith — a “Bible-believing Christian,” as he puts it, who by
his own account does his best to reflect the fact that God is love, not
hate. “If you truly believe in the Bible’s commands,” the Louisiana Republican told Fox News last
year, “and you seek to follow those, it’s impossible to be a hateful
person because the greatest command in the Bible is that you love God
with everything you had, and you love your neighbor as well.”
But Johnson is also a loyal ally of Donald Trump, a man who has repeatedly made false, outlandish and blatantly offensive claims in
pursuit of political power, and has spent the last nine years blaming
people born elsewhere for almost every problem facing America. But
Johnson is far more than a modest disciple of a 78-year-old demagogue
who hawks his own sacrilegious version of
Christianity's sacred text, nor is he just another Republican who
swallows his unease over the racist invective in order to get lower
corporate taxes.
Speaking to Politico while on the campaign trail in Texas, Johnson this week reiterated a false GOP talking point he has echoed many times before.
“We
know that states are not requesting proof of citizenship … so there's
going to be thousands upon thousands of noncitizens voting,” he claimed.
“If you have enough noncitizens participating in some of these swing
areas, you can change the outcome of the election in the majority.”
He
made much the same fanciful claim in July, when the House passed
legislation requiring states to ask for proof of citizenship from anyone
filling out a voter registration form. To be clear, it's already a
felony for any noncitizen to vote, but voting-rights advocates believe
that requiring a passport or a birth certificate — documents many
citizens do not possess — amounts to voter suppression.
At
the risk of tiresome repetition, these claims that thousands of
noncitizens are voting are simply not true. Don’t take the liberal
media’s word for it: Consider the audits of voter rolls conducted by
Republican politicians.
As
a religious person, I don't get it. He apparently has no real faith,
that's the only answer. Everything he does is motivated by hate.
That's not love. That's not representative of Jesus' love.
If
we are tested on this earth, we are tested to show love and
forgiveness. I don't see anything in Mike's attitude or remarks that
speak to that or that show any appreciation for Jesus dying for our
sins. All he offers is hate.
This is C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"
Wednesday, October 9, 2024. Donald Trump's dowry to Vladimir Putin, his damaging lies and so much more.
Some
days you just aren't in the mood for the nonsense lies. That's me this
morning after seeing way too many e-mails to the public account from
idiots and liars who insist that Donald Trump is the answer to free
speech. It's as though Glynneth Greenwald, Matt Taibbi and Elon Musk
had their sock puppets astroturf the public e-mail account.
But since the liars have bothered me, let's be really clear on something.
Elon Musk, Greenwal, Taibbi and Robert Kennedy Jr are not for free speech. They say they are, but they're not.
If
you're for free speech, you don't, as Elon did, donate to Ron DeSantis
who's currently going after TV stations that air commercials about
Florida's proposed amendment on abortion. And most importantly, you
don't believe in book banning. Moms For Bigotry backed Ron, was
supported by Ron, was appointed to offices by Ron.
That's not free speech.
But
Matt and Glennie and Junior have been allowed to define free speech as
they see it without any real pushback -- and that basically boils down
to, I don't believe in vaccines!!!!!
Now you
can go sell that lie on FOX "NEWS." But in the real world, when you're
calling for book bans you're not for free speech and stop pretending
that you are. When others are calling for book bans and you can't say a
word about it, then you aren't for free speech.
As for Donald? His threats against the press, his threats against comedians -- His threats against the world.
I don't have time to waste on stupidity.
But
looking at some of those e-mails from deeply deluded and disturbed
people, I thought it at least called for a clarification that book
banning is not free speech and that none of your self-appointed
fright-wing Free Speech 'defenders' has pushed back on book bans.
Donald's 'free speech' beliefs are that he can lie repeatedly and try to pass those lies off as free speech.
Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday said she thinks
former President Donald Trump has no empathy for others as he continues
to spread misinformation about the federal response in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
“It’s profound, and it is the height of irresponsibility and
frankly callousness. … Lives are literally at stake right now,” Harris
said during an interview on ABC’s “The View.” “I mean we’re talking
about real human beings and their lives and they’re losing everything,
everything.”
She added, “The idea that somebody would be playing
political games for the sake of himself – but this is so consistent
about Donald Trump.”
“He puts himself before the needs of others. I fear that he
really lacks empathy on a very basic level to care about the suffering
of other people and then understand the role of a leader is not to beat
people down, it’s to lift people up especially in a time of crisis,” she
added.
Following Hurricane Helene, and with Hurricane Milton
barreling toward Florida, Trump has repeatedly falsely claimed, without
evidence, that the White House is diverting disaster relief aid to
unrelated migrant programs. While FEMA does manage grants for housing
and helping migrants, that is a separate account and unrelated to the
disaster relief funds.
Trump has also repeatedly criticized the Biden
administration’s response to Helene, including falsely saying that the
president wasn’t picking up the calls and that there is an
anti-Republican bias in how President Joe Biden and Harris are
responding to the crisis.
Democratic
Party presidential candidate Kamala Harris was on THE VIEW yesterday
addressing a number of topics. Here's the clip of her discussing the
government's response to Hurricane Helene.
Harris described
personal stories she heard from those affected by Hurricane Helene and
its aftermath after traveling to Georgia and North Carolina.
"People
are losing their home with no hope of ever being able to reconstruct or
return, and the idea that somebody would be playing political games for
the sake of himself -- but this is so consistent about Donald Trump,"
she said. "He puts himself before the needs of others. I fear that he
really lacks empathy on a very basic level to care about suffering of
other people and understand the role of a leader is not to beat people
down, it's to lift people up."
Harris'
sit-down on "The View" marked her first live interview since becoming
the Democratic nominee. She is ramping up her media appearances this
week with now just one month until Election Day.
Kamala
has one of the hardest jobs in the world right now. She's got to put
forward ideas -- as any presidential candidate would be expected to do
-- but she also has to spend a significant amount of her campaign time
each day refuting some of Donald Trump's lies. Some. Not all. The
media -- even when they're trying to -- is unable to refute all of
Donald Trump's lies because the lies never end.
Former President Donald Trump’s deadly lies about the federal
response to Hurricane Helene — and soon, inevitably, Hurricane Milton —
depend on the impermeability of the right-wing information bubble.
President Joe Biden has directed
an ongoing federal and state response to the swath of death and
destruction Hurricane Helene left on the southeastern United States, an
effort which includes tens of thousands of personnel helping victims
across several states.
Trump’s Helene response has been characterized by conspiracy theories and grievance-mongering for political gain.
The Biden administration won plaudits
from GOP elected officials across the region, but Trump falsely claimed
the federal government abandoned the public. Americans affected by the
storm can access a robust program of federal assistance, but he falsely
claims they could only get $750 in aid. The White House stressed there’s plenty of FEMA funds to respond to both Helene and Milton — and Republicans are reportedly the ones blocking additional funding — but Trump falsely claims Vice President Kamala Harris blew “all her FEMA money” housing immigrants.
The former president, through these deranged fabrications, is trying
to win votes in the coming election. He is summoning an alternate
reality in which Biden and Harris are blithely unconcerned with the
fates of millions of victims because many of those victims are
Republicans and they instead prioritize immigrants. And he is doing so
despite his own record as president of allegedly withholding disaster aid for political reasons.
The only reason this strategy is remotely plausible is that the
right-wing media ecosystem is willing to play along with it. The news
sources Republicans rely on, from MAGA influencers to Fox stars, have bolstered Trump’s lies at every turn. The result is that right-wing audiences are bombarded with falsehoods from within an echo chamber.
The MAGA media ecosystem responds in this same fashion to every news
event because its function isn’t to report on what is happening.
Instead, right-wing pundits offer a scapegoat — immigrants, Jews,
journalists, teachers, trans people, Democrats, anti-Trump Republicans —
in order to hold their audience’s attention, make money, and support
the GOP’s core agenda of tax cuts for rich people and abortion bans.
This incentive structure is universally toxic. But when it collides
with issues like disaster relief, the consequences can turn deadly.
Before, during, and after a hurricane, people on the ground need
credible information about what to do, what help is available, and how
to get it. Right now, the sources many victims depend on for news are
lying to them.
Hurricane misinformation is plaguing the response to Helene. Local media outlets, federal and state officials, and emergency responders
all are desperately trying to swat down rumors and falsehoods — some
promoted by the former president. Republican officials in affected areas
are begging the people pushing “conspiracy theory junk” to stop lying and pitch in instead.
On THE VIEW, she spoke of other things, such as Medicare, as well.
Labor unions and consumer advocates were among those applauding Tuesday after U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris announced her proposal for home healthcare coverage under Medicare—a broadly popular idea, according to polls, that supporters said would be a "game-changer" for millions of families.
On the ABC
talk show "The View," Harris spoke about the "sandwich
generation"—middle-aged Americans who find themselves caring for aging
parents while they're also raising their own children.
"There are
so many people in our country who are right in the middle," said the
Democratic presidential nominee. "And it's just, almost, impossible to
do it all, especially if they work. We're finding that so many are then
having to leave their job, which means losing a source of income, not to
mention the emotional stress. And so what I am proposing is that
basically what we will do is allow Medicare to cover in-home
healthcare."
Medicare currently only covers in-home healthcare for short periods
of time, such as in cases of a patient recovering from surgery. But the
number of aging Americans who need need prolonged healthcare at home is expected to explode in the coming years as members of the baby boomer generation reach their 80s.
Medicaid
covers home care for low-income people who are elderly or have
disabilities, but waiting lists are long and beneficiaries are required
to max out their savings before qualifying.
Covering at-home
healthcare for Medicare's 67 million beneficiaries would "provide
much-needed relief and financial support" to about 37 million people who
currently provide unpaid eldercare to their family members, said former Labor Secretary Robert Reich.
Lisa Gilbert, co-president of consumer advocacy watchdog Public Citizen,
said that "home health expansion through Medicare is a smart and
desperately needed place to start" on the road to expanding and
improving Medicare.
"This important expansion would finally allow
Medicare to cover crucial services where many beneficiaries would
prefer to receive them—in the safety and comfort of their homes," said
Gilbert. "Such an expansion would lay the groundwork for even further
improvements and expansions to Medicare including hearing, dental, and
vision services. A low out-of-pocket cap on medical expenses would
ensure seniors can afford to get the care they need, and by reining in Medicare Advantage overpayments, we could fund many of these priorities."
Service
Employees International Union (SEIU) president April Verrett said the
plan offers the latest contrast between Harris and Republican
presidential nominee Donald Trump, who aims to repeal the Affordable Care Act and has said he has "concepts of a plan" to replace the law.
"Along
with her proposals to invest in childcare, in paid leave, and to make
Medicaid investments in home care, as well as lower costs for working
families and raising wages for care workers, Kamala Harris is showing
that she's been listening to working families," said Verrett. "In this
presidential election, we have the choice between a candidate who has a
plan for working families and one who has only offered 'concepts of a
plan,' including gutting the Affordable Care Act and the nonsensical idea of paying for childcare through tariffs, which would actually raise prices."
"Care
workers rallied to elect President [Joe] Biden and Vice President
Harris, and this administration has demonstrated again and again that
they stand with us," added Verrett. "Now we need to finish the job with
Kamala Harris as president, making home care accessible to all and
delivering the historic investment in care that our nation desperately
needs."
The vice president said Medicare negotiations over drug
prices, which were begun under the Biden administration over the
objections of Republicans and which she supports expanding, would pay
for the new Medicare benefit.
"Part of what I also
intend to do is allow Medicare to continue to negotiate drug prices
against these big pharmaceutical companies, which means we are going to
save Medicare the money, because we're not going to be paying these high
prices, and that those resources are best then put in a way that helps a
family," said Harris.
Gilbert expressed hope that the new
benefit, which would need to be approved by Congress, would be just one
step toward expanding Medicare coverage to all Americans.
"We
must continue to expand the availability of Medicare by lowering the
qualifying age," she said, "so we can finally build a healthcare system
that ensures that every American can get the care they need when they
need it without going bankrupt."
Convicted
Felon Donald Trump is in the news cycle for healthcare as well. At the
height of the pandemic, when Americans needed test kits to determine if
they had COVID and these test kits were in short supply, Donald sent
them to Russia for his buddy Vladimir Putin, as Mike put it, "
Donald gives it away to Vlad."
Vice President Harris is criticizing Donald Trump following new
reporting by the journalist Bob Woodward that the former president
secretly shared COVID-19 test machines with Russia’s Vladimir Putin at a
moment in 2020 when tests were out of reach for most Americans.
The revelation, first reported by CNN and The Washington Post on Tuesday, is detailed in a forthcoming book called War by the famed Watergate journalist, about Trump’s record on the international stage, as well as President Biden’s.
According
to the book, Trump sent the secret shipment of testing equipment to the
Russian leader at the height of the pandemic in 2020, even as the U.S.
and other nations were facing crippling shortages of testing kits.
Imagine, for just a moment, if Kamala Harris’s supporters were prone to
the sort of political idolatry that characterizes Donald Trump’s
devotees. It’s a thought experiment suited to an election for which the
word historic feels inadequate to capture either Harris’s
political ascent or the sheer number of unprecedented events that led to
it. There is the aberration of Trump, the twice-impeached, feloniously convicted,
rape-adjudicated former president—a bitter old racist returned for a
third time to usher in the white supremacist autocracy that his
attempted coup failed to. In any election, President Joe Biden’s age and
enfeeblement since taking office would have been an issue of concern,
but under the threat of Trumpism, Biden’s disastrous debate
performance jettisoned the false narrative that he alone was a bulwark
for democracy. Harris—elected in 2020 as the first woman, first Black,
and first South Asian vice president because her résumé of legislative
and prosecutorial public service made her uniquely suited for the
job—should have been recognized as a better candidate than both of those
men from the start. And yet, as Biden’s post-debate numbers waned and
Trump’s bandaged ear crystallized his MAGA martyrdom, but her unpopularity became a tired echo of 2016’s but her emails.
The commentariat, which began sowing doubts about Harris’s viability
nearly as soon as she assumed the vice presidency, even floated other
names for consideration as Biden’s exit became increasingly probable.
Minyon Moore, chair of the Democratic National Convention, said she
watched with “fascination” as the media spun a tale she always knew was
divorced from reality. “The rules dictated a lot. What they did not understand was the rules,’’
Moore told me. “First of all, she campaigned for two years with Joe
Biden. She raised money for Joe Biden. She took no shortcuts. What they
were trying to do was put in place a process that did not exist…. Those
4,000 delegates literally voted for Joe Biden—but they also voted for
his ticket. And she was a part of that ticket.”
When Biden, a record-breaking 107 days before the election,
finally left the race and endorsed Harris, the act unexpectedly
unleashed an outpouring of enthusiasm and joy, emotions rarely
associated with politics in recent years. The mood shift not only proved
Harris’s naysayers wrong but also revealed how Biden’s frailty and
Trump’s darkness had drained the party to sepia tones. Harris’s run,
quite unexpectedly, infused it with color and light again. If the left
had the same sanctification tendencies as the Trumpian right, the
improbable events leading to Harris’s nomination
might have been cast as divine intervention—Jesus taking the wheel,
only to hand the keys to Harris, so she might steer America away from
Trumpism and back onto a righteous road.
But the Democratic Party
is not a cult of personality, a fact proved by Biden’s withdrawal.
Harris’s run produced a jubilance incomparable to anything seen since at
least Barack Obama’s first run, and it may even have eclipsed that.
Within hours of becoming the presumptive nominee, Harris was buoyed by
organizers who had begun laying the groundwork for her run years before.
A Zoom organized by Win With Black Women drew
44,000 participants, an unprecedented number that required the site’s
engineers to increase capacity. The call ultimately raised $1.5 million
in just three hours. At least a dozen other calls followed—South Asian
Women for Harris, Win With Black Men, White Women: Answer the Call—each
enlisting volunteers and strategizing for a Harris win. In
mid-September, Voto Latino reported
a 200 percent surge in its voter registrations since the day Harris
replaced Biden. A senior analyst at TargetSmart, a data research firm, reported
that registrations are up more than 85 percent among Black voters
overall and a staggering 98 percent among Black women. Potential youth
voters increased most impressively. In 13 states, registrations have
gone up nearly 176 percent and 150 percent among 18- to 29-year-old
Black and Hispanic women, respectively. Taylor Swift’s much-anticipated
endorsement of Harris, which came moments after Harris thrashed Trump in
the debate, drove
“a 400 or 500 percent increase” in people going to vote.gov to
register, according to a TargetSmart analyst. What’s more, young
Democrats are 14 percent more enthusiastic
about voting than their Republican counterparts. While party killjoys
such as David Axelrod suggested Democrats were feeling “irrational
exuberance,” and James Carville chastised their “giddy elation,”
organizers were getting down to work and galvanizing people to get
Harris elected. Those on the ground, doing the real heavy lifting,
helped consolidate support for Harris, building a campaign powered not
from the top down, but from the grassroots up.