Congressional Chaos

First, I know - it's been a while since I've written here, right? 

That is because the virus that I mentioned previously at the end of August turned into a secondary bacterial bronchitis, and I ended up completing two rounds of antibiotics, making it a combined total of six weeks of being sick.  I still worked and walked/played with the Zigster, but I didn't feel like doing much of anything else. I did cut way back on smoking, but it appeared this thing got a hold of me and would NOT let go.

By the way, it was NOT COVID - I was tested several times.  It also was NOT the flu.  The best guess I heard thrown around at one point was HMPV (Human Metapneumonovirus), but we don't have the testing for that locally).  

It wasn't that I was that sick, it hit Mark harder - just me for longer, probably because of the smoking. 

I'm trying to quit entirely now, so wish me luck!  

So back to baseline, doing well, all is well :)

Anyway to the point of my post - I remember talking to a blogging friend in the UK (Cherie, whom I've mentioned here before) about 10 years ago about how petty politicians were becoming, and she likened them to children on the playground.  I agreed wholeheartedly, and now, just let me say the same, adding a few exclamation points, and maybe we're in need of holy water to douse them all with? ;) 

Because when a minority opinion in this country (even within their own party) begins to rule the majority through fear, intimidation, bullying, and threats   -  Houston, we have a problem  -  a much bigger problem than most people realize.

As for McCarthy, we Democrats obviously never really wanted him in the first place.  He supported Trump and the "stop the steal" nonsense, then didn't, then did again, and no one could keep up with his wishy-washiness.   He seemed to do whatever Trump-style Republicans bullied him to do.

Then he claimed falsely that it was Democrats who wanted the shutdown, though those eight Trump Republicans made clear that was their goal from the beginning.  

What do they want?

Well, they say it's about not wanting to raise the debt ceiling and military spending (which has traditionally received bipartisan support).

Trump Republicans/Freedom Caucus members want an immediate end to diversity training, access to abortions, and medical care for transgendered military personnel - but their main issue with military spending is they want all aid to the Ukraine stopped immediately - not just curtailed, but stopped entirely.

But even all of that is convenient excuse - because as admitted by Trump on his Truth Social platform (with his "Hold the line" posts, etc.), the main reason they want a shutdown is so that the DOJ and other federal government organizations will stop the investigation and prosecution of Trump, which ain't gonna happen (see below reasons)  - but other people who depend on the government for aid or their jobs WILL suffer. 

And the reason that's not going to happen is although civil trials may stop with a shutdown, criminal trials would still proceed (state government funding would contribute), just much more slowly, and it would take a very long federal shutdown PLUS state government shutdowns to even put a noticeable dent in criminal proceedings.

Also, whatever the house decides on a budget plan, the Senate must approve it, then the President - but the Senate has a Democrat majority, and of course, President Biden is also a Democrat.

So this is  mostly for show and retaliation by Trump - Trump wants to take the American government financially hostage, just to punish everyone involved in prosecuting him - and we know this is the main reason because Trump has said so on his Truth Social platform, including directing those eight Republicans to "hold the line."

(But he didn't try to overthrow democracy or anything, which is what these prosecutions are about, and this isn't more proof of that or anything, right? ;) 

How selfish are you when you want to shut down the federal government that many Americans depend on for their livelihood to punish people for prosecuting you for crimes there's clearly enough evidence for?

So in the end, those 8 Republicans voted to oust McCarthy, combined with all Democrats, which led to his ousting.

This is after even when they appeared to agree to a bipartisan deal behind closed doors a couple of times, those eight Republicans voted against the plans later, just to be shits.

Though Trump Republicans are cheering on this ousting, they seem very short-sighted (in general, actually) - because they had a difficult time getting any speaker at all the first time, it took several votes to get McCarthy in.

At this point, no one is a frontrunner, and if Matt Gaetz or any of the seven other Trumpists want the job, good luck - because no one else is going to vote for them, including most non-Trump Republicans.

In fact, several news outlets are reporting direct quotes from notable Republicans about how "sick of Matt Gaetz" they all are.

Now, I don't like to make fun of people's appearance because they usually can't help it, but especially after plastic surgery, can I just say that doesn't Matt Gaetz look a bit like Jack Nicholson in The Shining?

As IF anyone needed the shining to know Gaetz was evil and what he will do next lol.

As for McCarthy, he rarely smiles - he looks a bit like the "before Viagra" guys on erectile dysfunction commercials, and has certainly behaved like it lol. 

(I can't take credit for that last joke, I heard a comedian say it, but it's true lol.)

Regardless, as I said, the Erratic 8 are also never going to get the type of budget cuts they want to the Ukraine or to the DOJ and FBI, etc. because whatever budget plan they approved would still have to go through the Democrat-majority Senate and then be signed by President Biden, also a Democrat - and that ain't ever gonna happen lol. 

Plus most rational Republicans won't agree to the Trump Republicans agenda,  because most are NOT pro Putin and support aid to the Ukraine, as well as they are big fans of law enforcement in general and Republicans actually comprise the majority of positions within the DOJ and FBI. 

Thus, good luck, Republicans - I'm not sure you realize what you've done to yourselves, you've essentially shot yourselves in the foot - Because although I'm not a McCarthy fan, he was your best shot for getting anything done in the house at all.

I wish that Trump Republicans would just go ahead and create their own little (cult) minority party and leave the rest of us the hell alone, but that ain't gonna happen anytime soon - oh, but Trump will fall at some point, make no mistake.  

Though he received a gag order on the civil trial in New York, yesterday, people in my neck of the woods are wondering where the gag order is for the DOJ's trial and the Georgia trial.

I've wondered the same, but my best guess is, they're letting him run his mouth on social media, not only because they want to appear to be granting him as much freedom of speech as they can,  but the actual intent may be that he inadvertently confesses or outright orders a "hit" on someone, which he's danced around up until now, but his words are becoming increasingly threatening and damning, the more desperate he gets, as well as they just get added to the pile of evidence, so Jack and Fani are like "Keep them coming" lol. 

My concern with doing that, though, is that they wait to long for the gag order and someone gets hurt. 

Let us all hope that doesn't happen :(