U.S. Politics

[Rick Plant]

Because of President Biden's plans and strong leadership, the United States leads all the major advanced economies in GDP. 

[Rick Plant]

'Cowards': Mitch McConnell and Kevin McCarthy called out for caving to Trump



Republican leaders in Congress received harsh criticism on MSNBC on Thursday after new reporting shows how livid they were with former President Donald Trump — before they decided to support him post-coup.

The analysis came after a bombshell report by The New York Times.
https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/21/us/politics/trump-mitch-mcconnell-kevin-mccarthy.html

"In the days after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol building, the two top Republicans in Congress, Representative Kevin McCarthy and Senator Mitch McConnell, told associates they believed President Trump was responsible for inciting the deadly riot and vowed to drive him from politics," the newspaper reported. "But within weeks both men backed off an all-out fight with Mr. Trump because they feared retribution from him and his political movement. Their drive to act faded fast as it became clear it would mean difficult votes that would put them at odds with most of their colleagues."

For analysis, MSNBC anchor Ari Melber interviewed attorney Elie Mystal, justice correspondent at The Nation magazine.

Mystal said, "in the words of the great Walter Sobchak, 'No, Donny, these men are cowards.' We've always known they were cowards, we've always known they were craven and would debase themselves for Donald Trump, but I think what this reporting shows, that we need to start thinking about with a little bit more intentionality in the media, is that who are these people afraid of? Because at the end of the day, they're not afraid of Donald Trump, they're afraid of his violent beast. They're afraid of the very people who attacked them on Jan. 6."

"We have to stop acting like the Republican base is some kind of fringe, lunatic side show. No, this is mainstream Republican politics. Mainstream Republicans are the people who attacked the nation and will continue to attack the nation until we, as an intelligent society, do something about it," Mystal said.

Watch:

[Rick Plant]

Legal expert: Existence of more tapes creates ‘powerful incentive’ for Republicans to cooperate



The dynamics into investigations into the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol and Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election may have shifted on Thursday after House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) was caught telling a "flat out lie."

MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow played an audio recording of McCarthy talking to Rep. Liz Cheney (R-CA). The recording proved McCarthy lied about denying saying he was going to ask for Trump to resign following Jan. 6.

Former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance explained the psychological impact of the recording.

"They're all scared that there are tapes now. Family, members of Congress, party officials. They're going over every conversation they had in their minds, thinking thru whether someone might have taped them. It's a powerful incentive for people to decide to cooperate with prosecutors," she explained.

And apparently, there is a lot more tape from the period after the attack on the Capitol.

MSNBC
@MSNBC
We have a lot more on tape from this period ... it is sensitive, it is delicate, and we have it all on tape," New York Times reporter Jonathan Martin says. "It's going to tell a very different story about this period than the story that many people are trying to tell right now."

Watch: https://twitter.com/i/status/1517323112068624390

[Rick Plant]

This has always been the MAGA money making scam that Criminal Donald used for years. They say or do something controversial which outrages the public, the public call them out on it, and then they play the victim whining to their gullible base that "Liberals" are attacking and trying to cancel their "freedom of speech". After that, they set up a fundraiser for their suckers to shower them with campaign cash. It's called the MAGA scam and they are nothing but vile right wing trolls and fraudsters.

Trump's 'MAGA Goon Squad' is 'grasping at straws' as they scramble for campaign cash



Appearing on the Daily Beast's "The New Normal," Roger Sollenberger -- who has been investigating the campaign finance woes of Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL) -- explained that fundraising for the three has become more difficult as they scramble to ramp up the outrage that normally shakes loose cash from supporters of Donald Trump.

Last week Sollenberger reported that Taylor Greene is spending enormous amounts of cash on fundraising which has created the illusion that she is taking record sums, but now it is catching up with her.

Added to that, he notes, the far-right House lawmakers -- including Rep Lauren Boebert (R-CO) -- are falling on hard times getting the kind of attention that generated donations.

Labeling them the "MAGA Goon Squad," Sollenberger pointed out to the "New Normal" hosts, that the four GOP lawmakers as a group spent "$275,000 more than they took in in the first quarter of 2022."

Focusing on Greene -- who is facing being bumped off the ballot due to her ties to the Jan 6th insurrection -- he explained, "... this has been a pattern of her fundraising for a long time. Her numbers are kind of a sleight of hand in that way. People really see how much money she’s bringing in, but they don’t see that she spends a whole lot to get there. And this quarter gave the lie to that. She switched over to this like direct mail campaign and stopped doing so much digital stuff. And then just kind of ate it pretty hard.”

He went on to elaborate that trying to raise cash using Jan 6 has lost its luster and the four are "grasping at straws" trying to find a fresh approach to ramp up new outrage.

"They raised so much money off of the controversy that they could stir on the heels of that tumultuous and explosive event that generated so much resentment from the far right and they tapped right into that and were able to stir up millions of dollars last year on the heels of the riot," he stated. "And so in the past few months they've been kind of grasping at straws, right? Greene hasn’t really been able to attract much controversial lightning. Gaetz is—you know, his own investigation, we haven’t heard much out of it recently, it’s ongoing clearly, but it’s just not in the news."

"The only person who’s been in the news is Cawthorn for his orgy and cocaine remarks, and he just got blasted for that stuff. So they haven’t really been able to turn the magic on. The sauce hasn’t been there for the past few months and it really shows in the money," he added.

Read more and listen to it here: https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-maga-goon-squad-dug-themselves-a-deep-hole-after-jan-6

[Rick Plant]

But wait....there's more!

'We Have a Lot More’: New York Times Reporters Tease Additional McCarthy Audio
"It is sensitive, it is delicate, and it is high-stakes."

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) didn’t have the best of days on Thursday, as his denial of a New York Times story about his comments after the Jan. 6 insurrection was proven false after audio of a phone conversation he had with colleagues was leaked.

And yet things might not be getting any better for McCarthy, if what the two Times reporters on that story told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow comes to pass.

Alexander Burns and Jonathan Martin appeared on Maddow’s primetime show to discuss their story—specifically, the phone call in which McCarthy told Republican leaders in Congress that he would tell then-President Donald Trump he should resign in light of the impending impeachment resolution.

“I would just say for the book-buying audience out there, for people who work in politics: This is only the start,” said Martin, whose co-bylined report Thursday is derived from the upcoming book This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and the Battle for America’s Future. “We have captured some of the most intimate and sensitive conversations in the extraordinary period following Jan. 6 on tape. And there is much more to come between now and when the book is out on May 3.”

Maddow then asked Burns about how McCarthy’s denial of the Times story now looks. “It really does appear to not be the truth for Mr. McCarthy,” the MSNBC host said.

“Well, that’s a pretty diplomatic way of putting it, Rachel. It was a totally bogus denial, as your audience just heard,” Burns replied. “And I think that what this moment captures, in addition to everything Jonathan just said, and what this tape in particular captures, is just the staggering gulf between what Republican leaders say about Donald Trump in public, and to his face, and what they will say about him in private.”

Maddow then said she wouldn’t be surprised if there were calls for McCarthy’s resignation.

“But of course, he answers to his caucus,” she acknowledged.

The MSNBC host then asked if the pair have on tape how McCarthy also called for some members of his party to have their social media accounts suspended, as Twitter and Facebook did with then-President Donald Trump.

“That is correct, and we have a lot more on tape from this period, which is at the highest levels of American politics,” Martin said. “It is sensitive, it is delicate, and it is high stakes. We have it all on tape, and it’s going to—I think—tell a very different story about this period than the story that many people are trying to tell right now.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/new-york-times-reporters-alexander-burns-and-jonathan-martin-say-they-have-a-lot-more-kevin-mccarthy-audio

[Rick Plant]

Marjorie Taylor Greene to testify under oath about Jan. 6

GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on Friday will become the first member of Congress to publicly testify under oath about the events surrounding the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

Monday night, a federal judge allowed a legal challenge by a group of Georgia voters to move forward as they seek to disqualify Greene from running for reelection, citing her alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol.

The voters argue a provision of the Constitution's 14th Amendment known as the "disqualification clause" prevents Greene from holding federal office.

Passed shortly after the Civil War, the Disqualification Clause bars any person from holding federal office who has previously taken an oath to protect the Constitution -- including a member of Congress -- who has "engaged in insurrection" against the United States or "given aid or comfort" to its "enemies."

An avid supporter of former President Donald Trump, Greene has denied any involvement in the attack and said she is appealing.

Judge Charles Beaudrot will preside over Friday's hearing and witnesses will also be called to testify.

The time frame for the judge to render his decision on whether or not Greene should remain on the ballot is tight. Early voting for the Georgia primary begins May 2 and the primary itself is on May 17.

In an interview Tuesday with ABC News affiliate WTVC, Greene called the legal challenge a "scam."

"All I did was what I'm legally and allowed to do by the Constitution as a member of Congress, and that was I objected to Joe Biden's Electoral College votes from a few states," Greene said.

Greene also said she was a "victim" on Jan. 6.

Mike Rasbury, one of the voters challenging Greene's eligibility to run for reelection, said in a statement that Greene "took an oath of office to protect democracy from all enemies foreign and domestic ... However, she has flippantly ignored this oath and, based on her role in the January 6 insurrection, is disqualified under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution from holding any future public office."

Rasbury will be in the courtroom when Greene testifies.

Ron Fein, a lawyer representing the voters and legal director of Free Speech For People, told ABC News in an email that the Georgia "voters who filed this lawsuit have a right to have their challenge heard" and that he looks forward to questioning Greene under oath.

James Bopp, Greene's attorney, told ABC News Tuesday that the challenge to Greene is "absurd" and that it shouldn't be up to judges to decide who represents Georgia's 14th Congressional District.

Bopp also represents GOP Rep. Madison Cawthorn, who is facing a similar challenge against his reelection from a group of voters in North Carolina.

Cawthorn's lawsuit to dismiss the challenge to his reelection is set for oral arguments May 3 before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia.

Speaking on Fox News Monday night, Greene told host Tucker Carlson that Democrats are trying to keep her name off the ballot, maintaining she had nothing to do with the attack on the Capitol.

"I have to go to court on Friday and actually be questioned about something I've never been charged with and something I was completely against," Greene said.

The challenges against Greene and Cawthorn are part of a larger legal effort to prevent anyone allegedly involved in the events surrounding Jan. 6 -- or who supported it -- from running for reelection.

Similar challenges are being brought against GOP Reps. Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs of Arizona and theoretically could be brought against Trump if he decides to run for office again in 2024.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/marjorie-taylor-greene-testify-oath-jan/story?id=84219632

[Rick Plant]

Marjorie Taylor Greene testimony immediately starts out with dispute over her oath of office



At the start of her testimony, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) immediately clashed with an attorney representing Georgia voters who want her removed from the ballot over her alleged support for the Jan. 6 insurrection.

The Georgia Republican was called to testify at an evidentiary hearing Friday, and she repeatedly clashed with Andrew Celli, an attorney for Free Speech for People -- including the manner in which she took her seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.

"You were elected to Congress in November 2020, right?" Celli asked, and Greene agreed. "And you became a member of Congress on Jan. 3, 2021, is that correct?"

Greene agreed, and Celli asked whether she became a member of Congress by virtue of taking her oath of office -- and the lawmaker bristled.

"I became a member of Congress by being elected by the people of the 14th District," Greene said.

Celli pointed out that she was permitted to take her seat in the House of Representatives only after taking the oath of office, and Greene conceded that she had sworn the oath.

"That required that you would support and defend the Constitution of the United States, correct?" Celli said, and she agreed. "It required you to swear an oath that you would support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, correct? As part of the oath that you took, it said yet you would undertake that obligation to defend the Constitution against all enemies freely without any reservation or purpose of evasion. Do you recall that part?"

"I think so," Greene said.

Watch:

Lawyer busts Marjorie Taylor Greene for saying 'we can't allow a peaceful transition of power'



Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) tried to argue that she was being taken out of context when she was reminded that she once said that "we can't allow a peaceful transition of power" in the days leading up to the January 6th Capitol riots.

During a court hearing on Friday, attorney Andrew Celli asked Greene about statements she made about trying to stop President Joe Biden's election victory from being certified.

"You said in the video on your Facebook page that the peaceful transfer of power ought not be allowed to occur," Celli said.

"I don't recall," Greene replied.

"You said the peaceful transfer of power should not be allowed to occur because [Biden] did not win the 2020 election, correct?" he asked again

"I don't recall," Greene again replied.

Celli then played the court a video of Greene saying exactly that.

"This is an important time in our history," said Greene. "We cannot allow this to be let go. You cannot allow it to just transfer power peacefully, like Joe Biden wants, and allow him to become our president. He did not win this election. It is being stolen, and the evidence is there."

Greene objected that this was only a "partial statement" that she made and was being taken out of context.

Watch the video below.