Political Randomness

For discussion of religion and politics

Moderators: LawBeefaroni, $iljanus

Post Reply
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Devin Nunes, fresh from suing a fake Twitter cow and his fake Twitter mom, has announced that he is sending eight criminal referrals to AG Barr. The targets have not yet been announced, but apparently they are figures he thinks tried to "derail" the Mueller investigation by spreading lies about Trump-Russia collusion.

It's thought that he is targeting leakers who spoke to the press, so the whole stunt is probably a move to intimidate Mueller team members and other DOJ types who might leak or otherwise push back against a Barr cover-up of the Mueller findings.

Meanwhile, he is also suing a news organization for character defamation, and his lawyers appear to be no smarter than he is:



This, of course, is the origin of today's trending #YachtCocaineProstitutes hashtag.
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Max Peck
Posts: 13682
Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2005 8:09 pm
Location: Down the Rabbit-Hole

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Max Peck »

Julian Assange: Wikileaks co-founder arrested in London
Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Mr Assange took refuge in the embassy seven years ago to avoid extradition to Sweden over a sexual assault case that has since been dropped.

The Met Police said he was arrested for failing to surrender to the court.

Ecuador's president Lenin Moreno said it withdrew Mr Assange's asylum after his repeated violations of international conventions.

But Wikileaks tweeted that Ecuador had acted illegally in terminating Mr Assange's political asylum "in violation of international law".

Home Secretary Sajid Javid tweeted: "I can confirm Julian Assange is now in police custody and rightly facing justice in the UK.
:pop:
"What? What? What?" -- The 14th Doctor

It's not enough to be a good player... you also have to play well. -- Siegbert Tarrasch
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Max Peck wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 7:21 am Julian Assange: Wikileaks co-founder arrested in London
Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy in London.

Mr Assange took refuge in the embassy seven years ago to avoid extradition to Sweden over a sexual assault case that has since been dropped.

The Met Police said he was arrested for failing to surrender to the court.

Ecuador's president Lenin Moreno said it withdrew Mr Assange's asylum after his repeated violations of international conventions.

But Wikileaks tweeted that Ecuador had acted illegally in terminating Mr Assange's political asylum "in violation of international law".

Home Secretary Sajid Javid tweeted: "I can confirm Julian Assange is now in police custody and rightly facing justice in the UK.
:pop:


This is part of Mueller's counterintelligence investigation?
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
pr0ner
Posts: 17424
Joined: Mon Dec 06, 2004 3:00 pm
Location: Northern Virginia, VA
Contact:

Re: Political Randomness

Post by pr0ner »

Popehat has this to say. I may be seeing him down the street from my office soon!

Hodor.
User avatar
Max Peck
Posts: 13682
Joined: Fri Aug 05, 2005 8:09 pm
Location: Down the Rabbit-Hole

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Max Peck »

Luckily Trump loves Wikileaks, so Assange should receive a hero's welcome if he's brought back to the USA.

Assuming Wikileaks doesn't do something rash, like release Trump's tax returns or anything like that. :coffee:
"What? What? What?" -- The 14th Doctor

It's not enough to be a good player... you also have to play well. -- Siegbert Tarrasch
User avatar
Paingod
Posts: 13132
Joined: Wed Aug 25, 2010 8:58 am

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Paingod »

Can we give him a bath before he comes back here, or some deodorant?
Black Lives Matter

2021-01-20: The first good night's sleep I had in 4 years.
User avatar
pr0ner
Posts: 17424
Joined: Mon Dec 06, 2004 3:00 pm
Location: Northern Virginia, VA
Contact:

Re: Political Randomness

Post by pr0ner »

Assange has been charged. One count of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion for agreeing to break a password to a classified U.S. government computer. This is dating back to the 2010 Chelsea Manning stuff.
Hodor.
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Isgrimnur »

Which is likely just the tip of the iceberg so that we can lay hands on him.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
Defiant
Posts: 21045
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:09 pm
Location: Tongue in cheek

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Defiant »

I've been looking forward to this day for years. Wikileaks didn't properly vet the information they published, nor did they censor any of the private information, so you had peoples social security numbers and other private data published, you had rape survivors have their medical records put up, you had gay people outed in Saudi Arabia and women doxxed in Turkey, putting all their lives at risk, etc.

Good riddance to bad rubbish.
User avatar
Jaymann
Posts: 19318
Joined: Mon Oct 25, 2004 7:13 pm
Location: California

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Jaymann »

Isgrimnur wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 9:32 am Which is likely just the tip of the iceberg so that we can lay hands on him.
Not in the Paladin sense I hope.
Jaymann
]==(:::::::::::::>
Black Lives Matter
User avatar
El Guapo
Posts: 41245
Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 4:01 pm
Location: Boston

Re: Political Randomness

Post by El Guapo »

Defiant wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:23 am I've been looking forward to this day for years. Wikileaks didn't properly vet the information they published, nor did they censor any of the private information, so you had peoples social security numbers and other private data published, you had rape survivors have their medical records put up, you had gay people outed in Saudi Arabia and women doxxed in Turkey, putting all their lives at risk, etc.

Good riddance to bad rubbish.
Plus the whole, you know, acting as a de facto agent of Russian intelligence.
Black Lives Matter.
User avatar
GreenGoo
Posts: 42239
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:46 pm
Location: Ottawa, ON

Re: Political Randomness

Post by GreenGoo »

El Guapo wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:36 am
Plus the whole, you know, acting as a de facto agent of Russian intelligence.
I'm sure Assange is both shocked and awed to find out that without asylum the Brits are extraditing to America, as per his claims from the start. He's been in that embassy for 7 years, and was pursued long before that. At what point did you think he became a Russian agent? From the start? As I mentioned when Holman brought up Ellsberg, there were plenty of notable Americans who supported wikileaks at first. Hell, Snowden is sitting in Russia in no small part due to American government action, not because he was a Russian agent.

I'm not defending Assange in the least. I just want to remind people of timelines, actions (Defiant has identified issues he personally had with wikileaks from the start) that occurred and when they occurred. The idea that Assange is being arrested for his "russian agent" actions during the 2016 campaign is absurd, particularly because he was locked in an embassy with spotty internet access at the time.

The truth is the American government immediately started a smear campaign the moment he was on their radar, and whatever kind of scumbag Assange was or is, I can't abide that kind of power being used in that way. Smearing isn't justice. It's justifying. It's what you do to your enemies so no one cares when put your finger on the scale.
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Assange is specifically being charged with attempts to hack a U.S. government computer in 2010, although you have to wonder if this will be used to put pressure on him towards in other investigations.

As for when Wikileaks went bad, there's a story there, but I don't know the dates. It's said that at some point (and this was after the general public had begun to hear about WL) Assange aggressively took over the organization and ousted the original founding partners, at which point he took it in its current pro-Putin direction.
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Pyperkub
Posts: 23583
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:07 pm
Location: NC- that's Northern California

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Pyperkub »

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 12:18 pm
El Guapo wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:36 am
Plus the whole, you know, acting as a de facto agent of Russian intelligence.
I'm sure Assange is both shocked and awed to find out that without asylum the Brits are extraditing to America, as per his claims from the start. He's been in that embassy for 7 years, and was pursued long before that. At what point did you think he became a Russian agent? From the start? As I mentioned when Holman brought up Ellsberg, there were plenty of notable Americans who supported wikileaks at first. Hell, Snowden is sitting in Russia in no small part due to American government action, not because he was a Russian agent.

I'm not defending Assange in the least. I just want to remind people of timelines, actions (Defiant has identified issues he personally had with wikileaks from the start) that occurred and when they occurred. The idea that Assange is being arrested for his "russian agent" actions during the 2016 campaign is absurd, particularly because he was locked in an embassy with spotty internet access at the time.

The truth is the American government immediately started a smear campaign the moment he was on their radar, and whatever kind of scumbag Assange was or is, I can't abide that kind of power being used in that way. Smearing isn't justice. It's justifying. It's what you do to your enemies so no one cares when put your finger on the scale.
What's interesting is that he apparently has a cache of documents ready to release should something nefarious happen to him (whether this counts is unknown, AFAIK).
Black Lives definitely Matter Lorini!

Also: There are three ways to not tell the truth: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
User avatar
El Guapo
Posts: 41245
Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 4:01 pm
Location: Boston

Re: Political Randomness

Post by El Guapo »

GreenGoo wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 12:18 pm
El Guapo wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:36 am
Plus the whole, you know, acting as a de facto agent of Russian intelligence.
I'm sure Assange is both shocked and awed to find out that without asylum the Brits are extraditing to America, as per his claims from the start. He's been in that embassy for 7 years, and was pursued long before that. At what point did you think he became a Russian agent? From the start? As I mentioned when Holman brought up Ellsberg, there were plenty of notable Americans who supported wikileaks at first. Hell, Snowden is sitting in Russia in no small part due to American government action, not because he was a Russian agent.

I'm not defending Assange in the least. I just want to remind people of timelines, actions (Defiant has identified issues he personally had with wikileaks from the start) that occurred and when they occurred. The idea that Assange is being arrested for his "russian agent" actions during the 2016 campaign is absurd, particularly because he was locked in an embassy with spotty internet access at the time.

The truth is the American government immediately started a smear campaign the moment he was on their radar, and whatever kind of scumbag Assange was or is, I can't abide that kind of power being used in that way. Smearing isn't justice. It's justifying. It's what you do to your enemies so no one cares when put your finger on the scale.
He wasn't (as far as I am aware) working with Russian intelligence from the start, but he clearly was aligned with them for the 2016 election. What we've seen is that Wikileaks definitely wasn't some disinterested "information must be free" leaking whatever came to them, but were actively coordinating the obtaining from Russian intelligence and the releasing of the DNC e-mails in a way specifically to damage the Clinton campaign.

There are big questions about what exactly Assange knew about the source of the materials and when he knew it - whether he knew or should have known that this was coming through Russian intelligence. But there's ample reason to be suspicious.

And no, I'm not aware of any Russian ties to the Ellsberg initial Wikileaks dump. So yeah, he was basically an enemy of the American government before 2016, and that's not the source of the enmity between the U.S. Government and Assange. It seems plausible that that conflict may well have contributed to Assange's developing his connection with Russian intelligence (in an "enemy of my enemy" kind of way). And his work with Russian intelligence in 2016 is not why he's being arrested, but to some degree it's part of why Assange deserves what's coming to him (which is what Defiant was talking about).
Black Lives Matter.
User avatar
GreenGoo
Posts: 42239
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:46 pm
Location: Ottawa, ON

Re: Political Randomness

Post by GreenGoo »

Pyperkub wrote: Thu Apr 11, 2019 12:40 pm
What's interesting is that he apparently has a cache of documents ready to release should something nefarious happen to him (whether this counts is unknown, AFAIK).
I don't believe that's true, as I'm pretty sure he's just blowing smoke. And even if it were, who's going to care? Or rather, who's going to care and have the ability to do something about the "something happening to him"?

Shrug. He'll be put away for a long time and if he's lucky, will show up as a footnote somewhere.
User avatar
pr0ner
Posts: 17424
Joined: Mon Dec 06, 2004 3:00 pm
Location: Northern Virginia, VA
Contact:

Re: Political Randomness

Post by pr0ner »

Hodor.
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Speaking of drama...?

Assange's arrest was designed to make sure he didn't press a mysterious panic button he said would bring dire consequences for Ecuador.

Assange claimed that he had some sort of "panic button" to use if he had to. The embassy made sure that the arrest was carried out in such a way as to keep Assange from accessing his room and this... button?

(Probably they're talking about a release of documents he could carry out from his phone or computer or something.)
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

No mention yet of this amazing moment yesterday?

In climate hearings, Rep. Thomas Massie thinks he has nailed John Kerry by declaring that he's not a real scientist.



The line of reasoning is really something. He seems to want to insist that Kerry is a fraud because he has a Bachelor of ARTS in Political SCIENCE. Like, how is that even possible??

Meanwhile Massie has continued to double down on Twitter.
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Look who's back!



Oh, Alabama, why?
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
hepcat
Posts: 51302
Joined: Wed Oct 13, 2004 3:02 pm
Location: Chicago, IL Home of the triple homicide!

Re: Political Randomness

Post by hepcat »

Ted Cruz put on his comedian hat and tried to make a joke about Disney donating to the restoration of Notre Dame.

...it did not go well.

Covfefe!
User avatar
Pyperkub
Posts: 23583
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:07 pm
Location: NC- that's Northern California

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Pyperkub »

Holman wrote: Wed Apr 17, 2019 10:31 am Look who's back!



Oh, Alabama, why?
He's an honest politician. By the definition of Heinlien:
Spoiler:
one who stays bought
Black Lives definitely Matter Lorini!

Also: There are three ways to not tell the truth: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
User avatar
GreenGoo
Posts: 42239
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 10:46 pm
Location: Ottawa, ON

Re: Political Randomness

Post by GreenGoo »

I don't find Cruz's joke offensive. Or funny. But what's the offensive part? Also, who did he offend?
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Interestingly, last I saw, Doug Jones was at like 45/45 approval/disapproval in Alabama.

That's without him being matched (again) against the very pedophile who made the reddest state send a Democrat to the senate in the first place.
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Defiant
Posts: 21045
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:09 pm
Location: Tongue in cheek

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Defiant »

Latest I can find has him at 40% approve, 35% disapprove, and his numbers are dropping a few points every quarter.
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Isgrimnur »

USA Today
Former Peruvian President Alan García shot himself in the head and died Wednesday moments after police arrived at his home to arrest him on corruption allegations in Latin America's largest graft probe.

President Martin Vizcarra announced the death on Twitter, saying that doctors in the capital city of Lima performed emergency surgery and tried three times to resuscitate Garcia.

It was a shocking end for a man who twice ruled Peru before becoming ensnared more recently in the corruption scandal involving the construction giant Odebrecht. The scandal has touched nearly every living former president.

When they arrived, police found García on the second floor of his home, a leafy mansion in the city's Miraflores district. He asked for a moment to call his lawyer, entered a bedroom and closed the door behind him, Interior Minister Carlos Morán said.

"Minutes later, the sound of gunfire was heard," Morán said. "Police forced their way into the room and found him."

Prosecutors suspect the former president received more than $100,000 from Odebrecht, disguised as a payment to speak at a conference in Brazil.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
Alefroth
Posts: 8486
Joined: Thu Oct 14, 2004 1:56 pm
Location: Bellingham WA

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Alefroth »

Sri Lanka bombings

A series of coordinated bombings at churches and hotels kills 290. Authorities received warning two weeks prior.
BBC wrote:The government has blamed a little-known local jihadist group, National Thowheed Jamath, although no-one has yet admitted carrying out the bombings.
User avatar
Pyperkub
Posts: 23583
Joined: Mon Dec 13, 2004 5:07 pm
Location: NC- that's Northern California

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Pyperkub »

I guess we're not the only country with incompetent people doing jobs they have no business doing:
A Japanese minister in charge of cybersecurity has provoked astonishment by admitting he has never used a computer in his professional life, and appearing confused by the concept of a USB drive.
Black Lives definitely Matter Lorini!

Also: There are three ways to not tell the truth: lies, damned lies, and statistics.
User avatar
Holman
Posts: 28906
Joined: Sun Oct 24, 2004 8:00 pm
Location: Between the Schuylkill and the Wissahickon

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Holman »

Pyperkub wrote: Mon Apr 22, 2019 2:39 pm I guess we're not the only country with incompetent people doing jobs they have no business doing:
A Japanese minister in charge of cybersecurity has provoked astonishment by admitting he has never used a computer in his professional life, and appearing confused by the concept of a USB drive.
I hear it's fine. He hires only the Best People.
Much prefer my Nazis Nuremberged.
User avatar
Remus West
Posts: 33592
Joined: Mon May 09, 2005 5:39 pm
Location: Not in Westland

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Remus West »

His son is in charge of Japan's cyber. Which explains the explosion of Manga online.....
“As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.” - H.L. Mencken
User avatar
Isgrimnur
Posts: 82085
Joined: Sun Oct 15, 2006 12:29 am
Location: Chookity pok
Contact:

Political Randomness

Post by Isgrimnur »

LordMortis wrote: Thu Dec 13, 2018 3:18 pm Michigan just constitutionally passed running to what NJ is running away from. Your democratic leaders can say it's a will of the people thing all they want but when the empowered leaders are further empowered to draw "the will of the people" you literally end with empowered leaders choosing who their voters are.

Signed, a voter in one of the worst gerrrymandered states in the union which voted strongly to end that shit, a voter who is thankful so many crossed party lines to reject the lies of the empowered minority and their strong financial backing. It's gives hope.
BAM!
On Thursday, a panel of three federal judges in Michigan became the latest court to strike down a legislative map as an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander.

The map, drawn by the state’s GOP legislature, was challenged by Democratic voters and the League of Women Voters of Michigan. The ruling comes as the Supreme Court weighs two other partisan gerrymandering cases, from North Carolina and Maryland, that it heard earlier this year but has not yet decided.
...
The panel found that the voters’ rights under the Constitution’s First and 14th Amendment had been violated because districts were “intentionally drawn to ensure a particular partisan outcome in each district.”
...
The case featured evidence — including emails between the GOP staffers in charge of drawing the maps – that was notable for how explicitly the partisan intent was spelled out. In one email, a staffer bragged that a map was “a glorious way that makes it easier to cram ALL of the Dem garbage in Wayne, Washtenaw, Oakland, and Macomb counties into only four districts.”

Another staffer cheered that a map that the Michigan Republicans were drawing was “perfect” because “it’s giving the finger to [ S ]andy [L]evin,” referring to a Democratic U.S. House member in the state.
Last edited by Isgrimnur on Thu Apr 25, 2019 5:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.
It's almost as if people are the problem.
User avatar
LordMortis
Posts: 70100
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:26 pm

Re: Political Randomness

Post by LordMortis »

:horse:
User avatar
LordMortis
Posts: 70100
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:26 pm

Re: Political Randomness

Post by LordMortis »

Impeachment is a partisan idea and will tear this country apart.

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/ ... 575646002/
Lansing — Michigan’s Republican-led Senate appears to be putting the squeeze on Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel and is not ruling out the possibility of pursuing impeachment if she refuses to enforce state laws to which she objects.

A 2020 budget unveiled this week by the Senate GOP proposes a 10% “administrative reduction” for Nessel’s office and other language attempting to limit her discretion in lawsuits.

It also proposes funding cuts for the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s office to pay for the creation of a new independent redistricting commission voters approved last fall.
It's hard to both believe that the AG shouldn't act as if they are Judicial and choose what laws are legitimate and what laws aren't concurrent with my belief that the Michigan GOP and their political power grabbing machine is not a legitimate law making body who quite frankly need to have their entire fiscal existence, ties to various businesses put under the scope.
User avatar
Remus West
Posts: 33592
Joined: Mon May 09, 2005 5:39 pm
Location: Not in Westland

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Remus West »

I am regularly reminded of a documentary I saw many years ago called The Corporation which lays out how corporations demonstrate all of the personality traits of psychopaths. The fact that since I saw it we have given more and more rights to them is frightening really.
“As democracy is perfected, the office of president represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their heart's desire at last and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.” - H.L. Mencken
User avatar
Skinypupy
Posts: 20333
Joined: Tue Dec 07, 2004 10:12 am
Location: Utah

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Skinypupy »

I've spent most of this week in sales training. At the end of the week, we were assigned an "accountability partner" who we will meet with weekly to debrief on the specific activities we have been assigned. I was paired up with a guy from another region that I'd never met before.

Within the first 5 minutes of our conversation today, I found out that:

1. He was Mitt Romney's campaign manager for Nevada during his presidential run.
2. Before coming to work for us, he had spent the last 17 years working as a Republican strategist.
3. He is very angry that Romey has chosen to speak out against Trump. Says it "goes against everything he was elected to represent".

Yeah...this is gonna be fun. :grund:
When darkness veils the world, four Warriors of Light shall come.
User avatar
LawBeefaroni
Forum Moderator
Posts: 55316
Joined: Fri Oct 15, 2004 3:08 pm
Location: Urbs in Horto, outrageous taxes on everything

Re: Political Randomness

Post by LawBeefaroni »

Isgrimnur wrote: Thu Apr 25, 2019 5:39 pm
In one email, a staffer bragged that a map was “a glorious way that makes it easier to cram ALL of the Dem garbage in Wayne, Washtenaw, Oakland, and Macomb counties into only four districts.”

It's amazing how perspective changes things. Here, those counties would be well right of center. In fact, maybe because that's where I'm from, I guess I'm "Dem garbage" and I'm considered dangerously conservative amongst my neighbors.
" Hey OP, listen to my advice alright." -Tha General
"No scientific discovery is named after its original discoverer." -Stigler's Law of Eponymy, discovered by Robert K. Merton

MYT
User avatar
El Guapo
Posts: 41245
Joined: Sat Jul 09, 2005 4:01 pm
Location: Boston

Re: Political Randomness

Post by El Guapo »

LordMortis wrote: Fri Apr 26, 2019 12:16 pm Impeachment is a partisan idea and will tear this country apart.

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/news/ ... 575646002/
Lansing — Michigan’s Republican-led Senate appears to be putting the squeeze on Democratic Attorney General Dana Nessel and is not ruling out the possibility of pursuing impeachment if she refuses to enforce state laws to which she objects.

A 2020 budget unveiled this week by the Senate GOP proposes a 10% “administrative reduction” for Nessel’s office and other language attempting to limit her discretion in lawsuits.

It also proposes funding cuts for the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s office to pay for the creation of a new independent redistricting commission voters approved last fall.
It's hard to both believe that the AG shouldn't act as if they are Judicial and choose what laws are legitimate and what laws aren't concurrent with my belief that the Michigan GOP and their political power grabbing machine is not a legitimate law making body who quite frankly need to have their entire fiscal existence, ties to various businesses put under the scope.
I mean, the AG shouldn't, but there are a couple significant caveats. Any statute which is unconstitutional is, strictly speaking, not the law. Accordingly any statute that the AG concludes is unconstitutional they actually have a duty not to enforce. Though at the federal level the legislature usually has some kind of a remedy (like if the Justice Dept. refuses to defend a law on those grounds they can usually step in and hire someone to defend it).

The other thing is that the AG by definition has limited resources and has to make some judgment about which laws to devote a lot of resources towards enforcement, and which to devote a little. This gets a little more dodgy, but generally AGs are going to devote less resources to laws that they dislike than laws that they think are a good idea.
Black Lives Matter.
User avatar
Defiant
Posts: 21045
Joined: Tue Oct 12, 2004 11:09 pm
Location: Tongue in cheek

Re: Political Randomness

Post by Defiant »

Post Reply