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babylonsister
babylonsister's Journal
babylonsister's Journal
June 2, 2023
Posted on Wed, May 31st, 2023 by Jason Easley
Judge Says The Government Must Answer By Friday Who Paid For George Santos’s Bail
A federal court has imposed a Friday deadline on the DOJ to answer media requests for the release of information about who bailed out George Santos.
The press has filed a request to unseal the documents with the court:
The answer to the question of who posted bail for Rep. Santos could be both very interesting and telling. If somebody within the Republican Party posted bail for Santos that would indicate that they are planning on doing nothing to get rid of the indicted congressman because they value his vote more than they value the House.
George Santos is currently facing 13 federal charges, including seven charges of wire fraud, three charges of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of making false statements to the House of Representatives.
As soon as Kevin McCarthy linked himself, and by extension the Republican Party to Santos, this sort of situation was bound to happen.
If a high-profile donor bailed out Santos that would raise more questions than answers. How deep does the George Santos corruption run within the Republican Party? The nation could get its first insight into an answer on Friday.
Judge Says The Government Must Answer By Friday Who Paid For George Santos's Bail
https://www.politicususa.com/2023/05/31/george-santos-bail.htmlPosted on Wed, May 31st, 2023 by Jason Easley
Judge Says The Government Must Answer By Friday Who Paid For George Santos’s Bail
A federal court has imposed a Friday deadline on the DOJ to answer media requests for the release of information about who bailed out George Santos.
The press has filed a request to unseal the documents with the court:
NEW: New York federal court sets Friday deadline for Justice Dept and defense attorneys to respond to media request to unseal details about who provided Rep. George Santos's (R-NY) bail in federal criminal case earlier this monthhttps://t.co/4BUHtaGdfv
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) May 31, 2023
— Scott MacFarlane (@MacFarlaneNews) May 31, 2023
The answer to the question of who posted bail for Rep. Santos could be both very interesting and telling. If somebody within the Republican Party posted bail for Santos that would indicate that they are planning on doing nothing to get rid of the indicted congressman because they value his vote more than they value the House.
George Santos is currently facing 13 federal charges, including seven charges of wire fraud, three charges of money laundering, one count of theft of public funds, and two counts of making false statements to the House of Representatives.
As soon as Kevin McCarthy linked himself, and by extension the Republican Party to Santos, this sort of situation was bound to happen.
If a high-profile donor bailed out Santos that would raise more questions than answers. How deep does the George Santos corruption run within the Republican Party? The nation could get its first insight into an answer on Friday.
June 2, 2023
Trump Is The Most Hated Brand In The United States
womp womp 
https://www.politicususa.com/2023/06/01/trump-brand-most-hated.html
Posted on Thu, Jun 1st, 2023 by Jason Easley
Trump Is The Most Hated Brand In The United States
Donald Trump’s company is the most hated brand in America. Think of the company that you despise dealing with, and then realize that they are more popular than Trump.
According to the 2023 Axios Harris Poll Reputation Rankings, the Trump Organization is the most hated brand in the US. Second, is bankrupt crypto currency FTX, followed by Fox Corporation, Twitter, and Meta.
Four of these five brands have one thing in common. They either cater to or have affiliated themselves with Republicans and the far right.
This news comes as no surprise to those who have been following the Trump Organization’s tumultuous history. From allegations of fraud and tax evasion to a string of bankruptcies, the Trump Organization has long been associated with controversy and scandal, but the main reason for the hatred of the brand is Donald Trump himself.
snip//
The broader message is that anybody who climbs into bed with the Republican Party is also getting Trump. As he and his family are fond of saying Trump is the Republican Party, and the idea of the party nominating the head of the most hated brand in America and still being confused as to why they continue to lose elections is the most logic defying in American politics.
June 2, 2023
Another Boss fell on stage...
Joe is not the lone ranger; leave them alone!! I'd say they're both in great shape and bounced back fast. 
https://twitter.com/i/status/1662786669521534978
June 1, 2023
Deal Cheat Sheet
Published by digby on May 31, 2023
Here’s a useful quick primer on who won and who lost in this debt ceiling hostage crisis:
Don’t say it out loud until the debt ceiling is raised and we can breathe again, but the fact is that the Republicans got rolled. Shhhhh. They’re busy passing around internet memes about how Chik-fil-a is woke and don’t realize that Kevin just put on a very sad little kabuki dance.
digby: Deal Cheat Sheet
https://digbysblog.net/2023/05/31/deal-cheat-sheet/Deal Cheat Sheet
Published by digby on May 31, 2023
Here’s a useful quick primer on who won and who lost in this debt ceiling hostage crisis:
Don’t say it out loud until the debt ceiling is raised and we can breathe again, but the fact is that the Republicans got rolled. Shhhhh. They’re busy passing around internet memes about how Chik-fil-a is woke and don’t realize that Kevin just put on a very sad little kabuki dance.
June 1, 2023
FBI Director Agrees to Show Comer Confidential Biden Doc: Report
Based on anything involving Giuliani? 
https://www.thedailybeast.com/fbi-director-christopher-wray-agrees-to-show-james-comer-the-biden-doc-hes-after?ref=home
FBI Director Agrees to Show Comer Confidential Biden Doc: Report
DOCUMENT DILEMMA
Chris Hippensteel
Breaking News Intern
Updated May. 31, 2023 7:50PM ET /
Published May. 31, 2023 7:29PM ET
Facing looming contempt of Congress proceedings, FBI Director Christopher Wray has offered to show House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-KY) a document—behind closed doors—that Comer believes exposes nefarious dealings by Joe Biden during his days as vice president. The document is reportedly from a collection that Rudy Giuliani gave to the Department of Justice in 2020, according to CNN reporter Zachary Cohen, and contains unverified information from confidential sources. Since Republicans seized power in the House, Comer has led a crusade to expose what he alleges to be misconduct by President Biden and his family—but has so far come up empty. After threatening Wray with contempt of Congress, Comer now says that Wray’s offer to show him the document in the FBI headquarters won’t suffice. “If the FBI fails to hand over the FD-1023 form as required by the subpoena, the House Oversight Committee will begin contempt of Congress proceedings,” Comer said, according to CNN.
May 31, 2023
Trump’s Turnberry Golf Course Banned by British Open: Report
BLACKLISTED
Erik Uebelacker
Breaking News Intern
Published May. 31, 2023 11:42AM ET
Trump's Turnberry Golf Course Banned by British Open: Report
https://www.thedailybeast.com/donald-trumps-turnberry-golf-course-banned-by-british-open-report?ref=homeTrump’s Turnberry Golf Course Banned by British Open: Report
BLACKLISTED
Erik Uebelacker
Breaking News Intern
Published May. 31, 2023 11:42AM ET
Donald Trump said this month that “everybody wants to see the Open Championship” played at his Turnberry gold resort in Scotland—everybody but the Open organizers themselves, apparently. According to The Telegraph, Trump was told after the 2021 Capitol riot that he was unlikely to get another Open held at one of his courses for the foreseeable future. A source at R&A, the golf body that organizes the Open Championship, also known as the British Open, told the publication that they haven’t budged on that decision. “We have no plans to stage any of our championships there in the foreseeable future and will not return until we are convinced that the focus will be on the championship, the players and the course itself.” Another source said Trump would “have to sell” the course “before anything changes.”
May 31, 2023
Frilly dresses and white supremacy: welcome to the weird, frightening world of ‘trad wives’
Sian Norris
No longer a far-right subculture, the movement’s anti-feminist tenets are now inserting themselves into mainstream western politics
Wed 31 May 2023 09.00 EDT
Last modified on Wed 31 May 2023 10.02 EDT
snip//
Welcome to the weird and frightening world of trad wives, where women spurn modern, egalitarian values to dedicate their lives to the service of their husbands. My research into this far-right subculture began during the writing of my book on the far right and reproductive rights. I was curious to learn how the movement, determined to reduce women to reproductive vessels to aid white male supremacy, recruited women to its cause. The answer was a toxic combination of anti-feminism, white supremacy, normalised abuse and a desire to return to an imagined past.
Trad wives can be traced back to the Red Pill Women forum that was set up in 2013. According to research from Julia Ebner in 2020, 30,000 women identified as Red Pill Women or trad wives. As with most far-right trends, most of them appear to be in the US, but due to the networked nature of the modern far right, trends that start stateside don’t remain there. Interviews I conducted revealed that the British far right encourages its women to be trad, with women attending nationalist conferences such as the annual Patriotic Alternative conference, and making a name for themselves on the far-right infosphere.
The subculture shares aesthetics and values across the Atlantic. Long, floral dresses are the norm, idealising a mythic past of feminine modesty. Women should be covered up, as their bodies are just for their husbands. A woman’s role is to stay at home, serving her spouse domestically and sexually, while her partner goes to work to support her. Men should “discipline” women.
Unsurprisingly, they are anti-feminist, with the far right recruiting women to the trad lifestyle by claiming feminism has failed to make them happy. While not a trad wife herself, “alt-right” influencer Lauren Southern shot to fame by claiming feminism taught women “to work 9–5 and drink wine every night until their ovaries dry up”.
And, of course, they’re white. One meme I encountered on Telegram during my research summed up a good trad wife as being “knowledgable about her European roots” and who “loves her family, race and culture”. Leading the tribe is far-right influencer Ayla Stewart, who shot to social media fame when her notorious “white baby challenge” went viral after she declared: “As a mother of six, I challenge families to have as many white babies as I have contributed.”
more...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/may/31/white-supremacy-trad-wives-far-right-feminist-politics
Frilly dresses and white supremacy: welcome to the weird, frightening world of 'trad wives'
Frilly dresses and white supremacy: welcome to the weird, frightening world of ‘trad wives’
Sian Norris
No longer a far-right subculture, the movement’s anti-feminist tenets are now inserting themselves into mainstream western politics
Wed 31 May 2023 09.00 EDT
Last modified on Wed 31 May 2023 10.02 EDT
snip//
Welcome to the weird and frightening world of trad wives, where women spurn modern, egalitarian values to dedicate their lives to the service of their husbands. My research into this far-right subculture began during the writing of my book on the far right and reproductive rights. I was curious to learn how the movement, determined to reduce women to reproductive vessels to aid white male supremacy, recruited women to its cause. The answer was a toxic combination of anti-feminism, white supremacy, normalised abuse and a desire to return to an imagined past.
Trad wives can be traced back to the Red Pill Women forum that was set up in 2013. According to research from Julia Ebner in 2020, 30,000 women identified as Red Pill Women or trad wives. As with most far-right trends, most of them appear to be in the US, but due to the networked nature of the modern far right, trends that start stateside don’t remain there. Interviews I conducted revealed that the British far right encourages its women to be trad, with women attending nationalist conferences such as the annual Patriotic Alternative conference, and making a name for themselves on the far-right infosphere.
The subculture shares aesthetics and values across the Atlantic. Long, floral dresses are the norm, idealising a mythic past of feminine modesty. Women should be covered up, as their bodies are just for their husbands. A woman’s role is to stay at home, serving her spouse domestically and sexually, while her partner goes to work to support her. Men should “discipline” women.
Unsurprisingly, they are anti-feminist, with the far right recruiting women to the trad lifestyle by claiming feminism has failed to make them happy. While not a trad wife herself, “alt-right” influencer Lauren Southern shot to fame by claiming feminism taught women “to work 9–5 and drink wine every night until their ovaries dry up”.
And, of course, they’re white. One meme I encountered on Telegram during my research summed up a good trad wife as being “knowledgable about her European roots” and who “loves her family, race and culture”. Leading the tribe is far-right influencer Ayla Stewart, who shot to social media fame when her notorious “white baby challenge” went viral after she declared: “As a mother of six, I challenge families to have as many white babies as I have contributed.”
more...
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/may/31/white-supremacy-trad-wives-far-right-feminist-politics
May 31, 2023
Billionaire Sackler Family To Get Immunity In $6 Billion Opioid Settlement
The family will receive full protection from civil legal claims under the deal, which was approved by a federal appeals court.
Nick Visser
May 30, 2023, 11:22 PM EDT
The billionaire family that owns Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, will receive immunity from all current and future civil claims over the company’s role in the opioid crisis as part of a deal approved by a federal appeals court on Tuesday.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit cleared the way for a settlement that would see the Sackler family pay up to $6 billion from its massive fortune derived from the painkiller business. Purdue Pharma has faced years of criticism that it helped fuel the opioid crisis in America, aggressively marketing OxyContin while misleading the public about the highly addictive pills.
snip//
Under the plan, Purdue will be dissolved and restructured into a new entity known as Knoa Pharma. The company will be overseen by a public board and will manufacture medications for addiction treatment, as well as OxyContin, with the profits used to fund programs that prevent and treat addiction itself. Those profits could total in the hundreds of millions of dollars over time.
About $750 million from the settlement will go to families and individuals affected by the opioid crisis. Payments are expected to range from about $3,500 to $48,000.
more...
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/purdue-pharma-sackler-family-immunity-deal_n_6476911be4b045ce248577d2
Billionaire Sackler Family To Get Immunity In $6 Billion Opioid Settlement
Billionaire Sackler Family To Get Immunity In $6 Billion Opioid Settlement
The family will receive full protection from civil legal claims under the deal, which was approved by a federal appeals court.
Nick Visser
May 30, 2023, 11:22 PM EDT
The billionaire family that owns Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin, will receive immunity from all current and future civil claims over the company’s role in the opioid crisis as part of a deal approved by a federal appeals court on Tuesday.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit cleared the way for a settlement that would see the Sackler family pay up to $6 billion from its massive fortune derived from the painkiller business. Purdue Pharma has faced years of criticism that it helped fuel the opioid crisis in America, aggressively marketing OxyContin while misleading the public about the highly addictive pills.
snip//
Under the plan, Purdue will be dissolved and restructured into a new entity known as Knoa Pharma. The company will be overseen by a public board and will manufacture medications for addiction treatment, as well as OxyContin, with the profits used to fund programs that prevent and treat addiction itself. Those profits could total in the hundreds of millions of dollars over time.
About $750 million from the settlement will go to families and individuals affected by the opioid crisis. Payments are expected to range from about $3,500 to $48,000.
“There’ll never be enough justice to match the depths of pain and suffering the Sackler family caused,” Tong said in a statement. “But we recognized that we had pushed this as far as we could, and that it was necessary to get communities, victims and their families the resolution and billions of dollars funding desperately needed to save lives and fight the opioid epidemic.”
more...
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/purdue-pharma-sackler-family-immunity-deal_n_6476911be4b045ce248577d2
May 31, 2023
House Freedom Caucus neutered by debt ceiling deal
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 4:35:41p EDT
Joan McCarter
The deal President Joe Biden made with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy takes the debt ceiling off the table until Jan. 1, 2025, the remainder of Biden’s current term in the White House. No wonder the Freedom Caucus is so wound up about it! The debt ceiling is the best political hostage ever, even if some of those caucus members seem to question whether default or its consequences are actually real. The other thing the bill does, though you’re not seeing a lot of uproar from the Freedom Caucus maniacs about it yet, is make a potential government shutdown much more politically painful for Republicans. McCarthy might have just negotiated a lot of Republican potency away.
One of the key things the agreement does is disincentivize the other hostage-taking action that Republicans love: holding up funding in order to shut the government down. The deal has a trigger mechanism that ensures that if Republicans do try to shut the government down, they end up making cuts to the thing they love most, next to tax cuts for rich people—defense spending. A shutdown would also force automatic cuts to veterans’ health care, the other thing Republicans have insisted is most important to them since Democrats pointed out just how much they would have taken away from veterans with their original debt ceiling offer.
As structured, the deal mostly holds all discretionary funding “roughly flat,” the White House says, for the next two years. That includes all the stuff that’s subject to appropriations bills, as opposed to mandatory spending for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. It does increase funding for defense and veterans’ care, giving the White House what Biden asked for on defense spending in his 2024 budget proposal—$886 billion, up about 3% from 2023. So non-defense spending is held roughly flat for two years, and defense and veteran spending is increased.
With budget levels established for the next two fiscal years, the next job for Congress is appropriating that money. The agreement requires Congress to finish all 12 appropriation bills before the end of the calendar year. If Congress does not complete work on appropriations, it triggers an automatic stopgap funding measure with cuts of 1% across the board—including defense and veterans. Those cuts hold until the appropriations bills are passed.
Yes, the Freedom Caucus is probably still going to want to shut it all down, because that’s what they do, but the rest of the Republicans aren’t going to want to own those immediate cuts that will happen starting Jan. 1 if they don’t finish their work. That includes cuts to defense and to veterans’ care, which would be owned by the Republican majority. That’s a pretty effective hammer to wield against further hostage-taking shenanigans.
How much power, then, does the Republican House have coming out of this deal? McCarthy clearly is giving an awful lot away in terms of leverage. The power of the purse is pretty much the only thing the House has and he’s decided to share it with Biden. He won’t have the threat of a government shutdown to extract much of anything from Biden: It would cause his majority too much pain.
McCarthy might come out of this slightly stronger in his own conference, since the Freedom Caucus doesn’t seem to be able to unify against his leadership. There might be a challenge to his speakership, but it looks like it would fail if for no other reason than there is literally no one else who wants the job. So McCarthy might have consolidated some power with House Republicans by the end of this week, but he’ll have ceded a helluva lot more to Biden and the Senate.
House Freedom Caucus neutered by debt ceiling deal
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/5/30/2172251/-House-Freedom-Caucus-neutered-by-debt-ceiling-dealHouse Freedom Caucus neutered by debt ceiling deal
Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 4:35:41p EDT
Joan McCarter
The deal President Joe Biden made with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy takes the debt ceiling off the table until Jan. 1, 2025, the remainder of Biden’s current term in the White House. No wonder the Freedom Caucus is so wound up about it! The debt ceiling is the best political hostage ever, even if some of those caucus members seem to question whether default or its consequences are actually real. The other thing the bill does, though you’re not seeing a lot of uproar from the Freedom Caucus maniacs about it yet, is make a potential government shutdown much more politically painful for Republicans. McCarthy might have just negotiated a lot of Republican potency away.
One of the key things the agreement does is disincentivize the other hostage-taking action that Republicans love: holding up funding in order to shut the government down. The deal has a trigger mechanism that ensures that if Republicans do try to shut the government down, they end up making cuts to the thing they love most, next to tax cuts for rich people—defense spending. A shutdown would also force automatic cuts to veterans’ health care, the other thing Republicans have insisted is most important to them since Democrats pointed out just how much they would have taken away from veterans with their original debt ceiling offer.
As structured, the deal mostly holds all discretionary funding “roughly flat,” the White House says, for the next two years. That includes all the stuff that’s subject to appropriations bills, as opposed to mandatory spending for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. It does increase funding for defense and veterans’ care, giving the White House what Biden asked for on defense spending in his 2024 budget proposal—$886 billion, up about 3% from 2023. So non-defense spending is held roughly flat for two years, and defense and veteran spending is increased.
With budget levels established for the next two fiscal years, the next job for Congress is appropriating that money. The agreement requires Congress to finish all 12 appropriation bills before the end of the calendar year. If Congress does not complete work on appropriations, it triggers an automatic stopgap funding measure with cuts of 1% across the board—including defense and veterans. Those cuts hold until the appropriations bills are passed.
Yes, the Freedom Caucus is probably still going to want to shut it all down, because that’s what they do, but the rest of the Republicans aren’t going to want to own those immediate cuts that will happen starting Jan. 1 if they don’t finish their work. That includes cuts to defense and to veterans’ care, which would be owned by the Republican majority. That’s a pretty effective hammer to wield against further hostage-taking shenanigans.
How much power, then, does the Republican House have coming out of this deal? McCarthy clearly is giving an awful lot away in terms of leverage. The power of the purse is pretty much the only thing the House has and he’s decided to share it with Biden. He won’t have the threat of a government shutdown to extract much of anything from Biden: It would cause his majority too much pain.
McCarthy might come out of this slightly stronger in his own conference, since the Freedom Caucus doesn’t seem to be able to unify against his leadership. There might be a challenge to his speakership, but it looks like it would fail if for no other reason than there is literally no one else who wants the job. So McCarthy might have consolidated some power with House Republicans by the end of this week, but he’ll have ceded a helluva lot more to Biden and the Senate.
May 30, 2023
A representative for Griffin told The Daily Beast he has no additional comment on the situation.
A one-time Trump backer, Griffin has since moved on from the former president. In November, he referred to Trump as a “three-time loser” and expressed hope that he wouldn’t run for president in 2024.
more...
https://www.thedailybeast.com/billionaire-ken-griffin-new-dont-say-gay-law-is-too-far-even-for-me?ref=home?ref=home
Billionaire Ken Griffin: New 'Don't Say Gay' Law Is Too Far, Even for Me
Power Trip
Billionaire Ken Griffin: New ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Law Is Too Far, Even for Me
DeSantis Divergence
The Republican heavyweight still supports classroom restrictions for younger children in Florida.
Noah Kirsch
Wealth and Power Reporter
Updated May. 30, 2023 5:18PM ET / Published May. 30, 2023 1:29PM ET
Even for Republican billionaire Ken Griffin, Florida’s expanded “Don’t Say Gay” law is a bridge too far.
In a statement to The Harvard University student newspaper The Crimson, a spokesperson for the GOP megadonor said he opposes the new regulations, which bar teachers in all grades from delving into topics related to gender and sexual identity. Previously, the law only applied to teachers in third grade or below; Griffin endorsed those measures.
“Like the vast majority of Americans, Ken believes that discussions on gender identity and sexual orientation should be led by parents with their children at home, rather than by teachers in elementary schools,” the spokesperson wrote. “However, as a steadfast supporter of open discourse, academic freedom, and free speech, Ken disagrees with Florida’s recent rule extending the prohibition of classroom instruction on these topics through 12th grade.”
A representative for Griffin told The Daily Beast he has no additional comment on the situation.
A one-time Trump backer, Griffin has since moved on from the former president. In November, he referred to Trump as a “three-time loser” and expressed hope that he wouldn’t run for president in 2024.
more...
https://www.thedailybeast.com/billionaire-ken-griffin-new-dont-say-gay-law-is-too-far-even-for-me?ref=home?ref=home
Profile Information
Gender: FemaleHometown: NY
Home country: US
Current location: Florida
Member since: Mon Sep 6, 2004, 09:54 PM
Number of posts: 171,065
