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marmar
marmar's Journal
marmar's Journal
April 20, 2024
(Michigan Advance) After the United Auto Workers (UAW) won big contracts last year resulting from its stand-up strike against the Detroit Three — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis — President Shawn Fain vowed that the union would take that momentum into organizing foreign auto companies in the U.S. On Friday night, the UAW scored its first victory with Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, Tenn., voting to join the UAW, the the National Labor Relations Board confirmed.
That marks the first time that southern autoworkers outside of the Detroit Three have won an organizing drive. According to the union, the vote was 73% in favor and 27% against.
“This election is big,” said Kelcey Smith, a worker in the paint department at Volkswagen. “People in high places told us good things can’t happen here in Chattanooga. They told us this isn’t the time to stand up, this isn’t the place. But we did stand up and we won. This is the time; this is the place. Southern workers are ready to stand up and win a better life.”
President Joe Biden, who walked a Michigan picket line in September in support of the UAW strike against the Detroit Three, sent out his congratulation Friday night for the “historic vote.” .....................(more)
https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/20/following-the-uaws-wins-against-the-detroit-three-tenn-volkswagen-workers-vote-to-join-the-union/
Following the UAW's wins against the Detroit Three, Tenn. Volkswagen workers vote to join the union
(Michigan Advance) After the United Auto Workers (UAW) won big contracts last year resulting from its stand-up strike against the Detroit Three — Ford, General Motors and Stellantis — President Shawn Fain vowed that the union would take that momentum into organizing foreign auto companies in the U.S. On Friday night, the UAW scored its first victory with Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga, Tenn., voting to join the UAW, the the National Labor Relations Board confirmed.
That marks the first time that southern autoworkers outside of the Detroit Three have won an organizing drive. According to the union, the vote was 73% in favor and 27% against.
“This election is big,” said Kelcey Smith, a worker in the paint department at Volkswagen. “People in high places told us good things can’t happen here in Chattanooga. They told us this isn’t the time to stand up, this isn’t the place. But we did stand up and we won. This is the time; this is the place. Southern workers are ready to stand up and win a better life.”
President Joe Biden, who walked a Michigan picket line in September in support of the UAW strike against the Detroit Three, sent out his congratulation Friday night for the “historic vote.” .....................(more)
https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/20/following-the-uaws-wins-against-the-detroit-three-tenn-volkswagen-workers-vote-to-join-the-union/
April 19, 2024
Biden's FTC is fighting corporate greed after D.C. looked away for decades | Opinion
Jen McKernan
Guest columnist
(Detroit Free Press) One of the things I find most frustrating about making the economy better for working people is how easy it is to point fingers, and how hard it is to find solutions. It’s especially easy with something like the economy, because the economy is complicated, and complicated things are hard to wrangle.
....(snip)....
One of the things I find most frustrating about making the economy better for working people is how easy it is to point fingers, and how hard it is to find solutions. It’s especially easy with something like the economy, because the economy is complicated, and complicated things are hard to wrangle.
....(snip)....
It's hard to sell voters on the benefits of corporate greed. So instead, the Reagan Administration just stopped enforcing the law, repackaging it as "deregulation" and "smaller government." You can read about it in a 1980 memo called "Throttling Back on Antitrust: A Practical Proposal for Deregulation."
The practical proposal for deregulation, thought up by two professors at the University of Chicago and sent to an economist on Reagan’s transition team, was basically to remind Reagan that laws are only as good as the people who enforce them. So, Reagan appointed a bunch of people who wouldn’t enforce the antitrust laws, or the laws that limit corporate mergers and monopolies. .............(more)
https://www.freep.com/story/opinion/contributors/2024/04/19/bidens-ftc-corporate-greed-reagan-monopolies-deregulation/73372258007/
Biden's FTC is fighting corporate greed after D.C. looked away for decades
Biden's FTC is fighting corporate greed after D.C. looked away for decades | Opinion
Jen McKernan
Guest columnist
(Detroit Free Press) One of the things I find most frustrating about making the economy better for working people is how easy it is to point fingers, and how hard it is to find solutions. It’s especially easy with something like the economy, because the economy is complicated, and complicated things are hard to wrangle.
....(snip)....
One of the things I find most frustrating about making the economy better for working people is how easy it is to point fingers, and how hard it is to find solutions. It’s especially easy with something like the economy, because the economy is complicated, and complicated things are hard to wrangle.
....(snip)....
It's hard to sell voters on the benefits of corporate greed. So instead, the Reagan Administration just stopped enforcing the law, repackaging it as "deregulation" and "smaller government." You can read about it in a 1980 memo called "Throttling Back on Antitrust: A Practical Proposal for Deregulation."
The practical proposal for deregulation, thought up by two professors at the University of Chicago and sent to an economist on Reagan’s transition team, was basically to remind Reagan that laws are only as good as the people who enforce them. So, Reagan appointed a bunch of people who wouldn’t enforce the antitrust laws, or the laws that limit corporate mergers and monopolies. .............(more)
https://www.freep.com/story/opinion/contributors/2024/04/19/bidens-ftc-corporate-greed-reagan-monopolies-deregulation/73372258007/
April 19, 2024
(Slate) On Wednesday, the Supreme Court handed down Muldrow v. St. Louis, an important civil rights victory for employees who face discriminatory job transfers. Mark Joseph Stern and Dahlia Lithwick discuss the case in Saturday’s Slate Plus episode of Amicus. Below is a preview of their conversation, which has been edited and condensed for clarity. To listen to the full episode on Saturday, join Slate Plus.
Dahlia Lithwick: We had some good news this week, a little bright moment in the form of a Title VII case that could have gone horrifically awry but didn’t. Mark, can you tell us about it?
Mark Joseph Stern: This case is about Jatonya Muldrow, who was a police officer in St. Louis. For years, she worked an exciting job investigating public corruption and human trafficking. She oversaw the gang unit and she worked with the FBI—it was a very active job. Then, suddenly, it all ended when a new commander came who didn’t think she could handle the “very dangerous” work of her post. So he transferred her to a job where she had the same pay and rank but mostly just supervised neighborhood patrol officers.
Muldrow filed suit under Title VII, arguing she was discriminated against on the basis of sex. But she lost at the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which didn’t think the transfer was discriminatory. The court said a transfer doesn’t violate Title VII unless it imposes a “substantial harm” on the worker, and it didn’t see any such harm here. So, with the assistance of Brian Wolfman and students at the Georgetown Law Appellate Clinic, Muldrow took this case to the Supreme Court. She argued that employees should be able to raise a Title VII claim whenever they’re transferred because of a protected trait even if they can’t prove some kind of serious harm.
....(snip)....
It seemed as though the reason a lot of civil rights groups were terrified is because this case was a double-edged sword of either saying “No, transfers are totally benign” or “Yes, they’re discriminatory, and therefore all efforts at diversity are unlawful.” It comes out that neither of those things is true. It looks like DEI training lives to fight another day, and this is a narrow opinion with the right result. Kagan threaded the needle.
Right. And that fear wasn’t hypothetical. There’s a case in the 10th Circuit where a correctional officer opposed DEI training on the grounds that it created a “hostile work environment” because it involved talk about race. There’s a case in the 8th Circuit where a father-son duo said DEI trainings violated their religious beliefs. There’s this theory developing that just to talk about race or sex—to say, for instance, “We’re working to create more pathways to promotion for people from underrepresented backgrounds”—is illegal. That it’s all a Title VII violation. And the court rejected that approach. .............(more)
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/04/supreme-court-elena-kagan-tactical-victory-civil-rights-plaintiffs.html
Elena Kagan Headed Off Disaster While Delivering a Victory for Civil Rights
(Slate) On Wednesday, the Supreme Court handed down Muldrow v. St. Louis, an important civil rights victory for employees who face discriminatory job transfers. Mark Joseph Stern and Dahlia Lithwick discuss the case in Saturday’s Slate Plus episode of Amicus. Below is a preview of their conversation, which has been edited and condensed for clarity. To listen to the full episode on Saturday, join Slate Plus.
Dahlia Lithwick: We had some good news this week, a little bright moment in the form of a Title VII case that could have gone horrifically awry but didn’t. Mark, can you tell us about it?
Mark Joseph Stern: This case is about Jatonya Muldrow, who was a police officer in St. Louis. For years, she worked an exciting job investigating public corruption and human trafficking. She oversaw the gang unit and she worked with the FBI—it was a very active job. Then, suddenly, it all ended when a new commander came who didn’t think she could handle the “very dangerous” work of her post. So he transferred her to a job where she had the same pay and rank but mostly just supervised neighborhood patrol officers.
Muldrow filed suit under Title VII, arguing she was discriminated against on the basis of sex. But she lost at the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which didn’t think the transfer was discriminatory. The court said a transfer doesn’t violate Title VII unless it imposes a “substantial harm” on the worker, and it didn’t see any such harm here. So, with the assistance of Brian Wolfman and students at the Georgetown Law Appellate Clinic, Muldrow took this case to the Supreme Court. She argued that employees should be able to raise a Title VII claim whenever they’re transferred because of a protected trait even if they can’t prove some kind of serious harm.
....(snip)....
It seemed as though the reason a lot of civil rights groups were terrified is because this case was a double-edged sword of either saying “No, transfers are totally benign” or “Yes, they’re discriminatory, and therefore all efforts at diversity are unlawful.” It comes out that neither of those things is true. It looks like DEI training lives to fight another day, and this is a narrow opinion with the right result. Kagan threaded the needle.
Right. And that fear wasn’t hypothetical. There’s a case in the 10th Circuit where a correctional officer opposed DEI training on the grounds that it created a “hostile work environment” because it involved talk about race. There’s a case in the 8th Circuit where a father-son duo said DEI trainings violated their religious beliefs. There’s this theory developing that just to talk about race or sex—to say, for instance, “We’re working to create more pathways to promotion for people from underrepresented backgrounds”—is illegal. That it’s all a Title VII violation. And the court rejected that approach. .............(more)
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2024/04/supreme-court-elena-kagan-tactical-victory-civil-rights-plaintiffs.html
April 19, 2024
Donald Trump turns the GOP into a protection racket — and demands Republican candidates pay up
To "be seen favorably," the Trump campaign threatens, Republicans must give 5 percent — or more — to the boss
By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 19, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)
(Salon) For someone who frequently proclaims his innocence, Donald Trump sure loves to act like a two-bit gangster. The perpetual defendant should be focused on staying out of prison and running for president as the first of his four criminal trials kicks off. Instead, he is still focused on his lifelong obsession with making money while avoiding honest work. And the latest marks for this elderly grifter are other Republican candidates running in state or local races.
"The Trump campaign is asking for down-ballot candidates who use his name, image and likeness in fundraising appeals to give at least 5 percent," Politico reported late Wednesday. The campaign's, uh, "outreach" took a nice shop you got there, shame if something would happen to it tone. "Any split that is higher than 5% will be seen favorably by the RNC and President Trump’s campaign and is routinely reported to the highest levels of leadership within both organizations," read the letter sent to Republican fundraisers this week.
....(snip)....
It's been long established that Trump sees his supporters, first and foremost, as open wallets to pick. But his interest in separating fools from their money has escalated in recent months, as his legal fees and court judgments are mounting. Despite routinely declaring himself to be a "billionaire," Trump has done everything in his power to avoid paying what he owes. Instead, he's resorting to tricks of all sorts, including his longstanding favorite: Swindle some schmuck into paying it for him.
....(snip)....
Now, they're shaking down people running for state legislatures and comptroller offices, with the implication that saying no means Trump will publicly put that candidate on blast, derailing their career. Not that anyone should feel pity for these Republicans. They're copycats using Trump's most basic grift: Slapping his name all over your fundraising appeals, with the implicit promise to MAGA followers that sending them money will make liberals cry. Still, it is especially churlish of Trump to begrudge the little guys a piece of his hustle. Republicans had to give away whatever dignity they had left by praising Trump publicly, so of course they want a little payola in return. .....................(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/19/donald-turns-the-into-a-protection-racket--and-demands-candidates-pay-up/
Donald Trump turns the GOP into a protection racket -- and demands Republican candidates pay up
Donald Trump turns the GOP into a protection racket — and demands Republican candidates pay up
To "be seen favorably," the Trump campaign threatens, Republicans must give 5 percent — or more — to the boss
By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 19, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)
(Salon) For someone who frequently proclaims his innocence, Donald Trump sure loves to act like a two-bit gangster. The perpetual defendant should be focused on staying out of prison and running for president as the first of his four criminal trials kicks off. Instead, he is still focused on his lifelong obsession with making money while avoiding honest work. And the latest marks for this elderly grifter are other Republican candidates running in state or local races.
"The Trump campaign is asking for down-ballot candidates who use his name, image and likeness in fundraising appeals to give at least 5 percent," Politico reported late Wednesday. The campaign's, uh, "outreach" took a nice shop you got there, shame if something would happen to it tone. "Any split that is higher than 5% will be seen favorably by the RNC and President Trump’s campaign and is routinely reported to the highest levels of leadership within both organizations," read the letter sent to Republican fundraisers this week.
....(snip)....
It's been long established that Trump sees his supporters, first and foremost, as open wallets to pick. But his interest in separating fools from their money has escalated in recent months, as his legal fees and court judgments are mounting. Despite routinely declaring himself to be a "billionaire," Trump has done everything in his power to avoid paying what he owes. Instead, he's resorting to tricks of all sorts, including his longstanding favorite: Swindle some schmuck into paying it for him.
....(snip)....
Now, they're shaking down people running for state legislatures and comptroller offices, with the implication that saying no means Trump will publicly put that candidate on blast, derailing their career. Not that anyone should feel pity for these Republicans. They're copycats using Trump's most basic grift: Slapping his name all over your fundraising appeals, with the implicit promise to MAGA followers that sending them money will make liberals cry. Still, it is especially churlish of Trump to begrudge the little guys a piece of his hustle. Republicans had to give away whatever dignity they had left by praising Trump publicly, so of course they want a little payola in return. .....................(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/19/donald-turns-the-into-a-protection-racket--and-demands-candidates-pay-up/
April 19, 2024
House Speaker Mike Johnson's, R-La., decision to hold a long-delayed vote on aid for Ukraine could cost him his job because some of his fellow Republicans would much prefer the government in Moscow to the one in Kyiv, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, said Thursday.
In February, the U.S. Senate passed a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine and Israel, but only this week did Johnson promise to hold a vote in the lower chamber, saying he intends to break the package up into separate bills. That comes as Ukraine's military is running out of ammunition and Russia is making territorial gains.
But Johnson's decision has thrown the Republican caucus into turmoil. The party's base has been suspicious of Ukraine ever since former President Donald Trump falsely accused its government of intervening in the 2016 election on behalf of Hillary Clinton. Now the more extreme MAGA wing, led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is in open revolt, threatening to do to Johnson what they did to his predecessor, former Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. ....................(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/18/rep-dan-crenshaw-some-want-to-win-so-badly-they-may-oust-speaker-johnson/?in_brief=true
GOP Rep. Dan Crenshaw: Some Republicans "want Russia to win so badly" they may oust Speaker Johnson
House Speaker Mike Johnson's, R-La., decision to hold a long-delayed vote on aid for Ukraine could cost him his job because some of his fellow Republicans would much prefer the government in Moscow to the one in Kyiv, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, said Thursday.
In February, the U.S. Senate passed a $95 billion aid package for Ukraine and Israel, but only this week did Johnson promise to hold a vote in the lower chamber, saying he intends to break the package up into separate bills. That comes as Ukraine's military is running out of ammunition and Russia is making territorial gains.
But Johnson's decision has thrown the Republican caucus into turmoil. The party's base has been suspicious of Ukraine ever since former President Donald Trump falsely accused its government of intervening in the 2016 election on behalf of Hillary Clinton. Now the more extreme MAGA wing, led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is in open revolt, threatening to do to Johnson what they did to his predecessor, former Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. ....................(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/18/rep-dan-crenshaw-some-want-to-win-so-badly-they-may-oust-speaker-johnson/?in_brief=true
April 18, 2024
(Detroit Metro Times) Detroit’s economic recovery from its 2014 bankruptcy has resulted in nearly $3 billion in real estate wealth, a boon to the city’s Black and Latino homeowners, according to a new study from the University of Michigan.
Released Tuesday by the University of Michigan Poverty Solutions, the report, titled “The Growth of Housing Wealth in Detroit and its Neighborhoods: 2014-2022,” found that the largely Black homeowners in Detroit amassed $2.8 billion in added home value between 2014 and 2022, an 80% increase.
Mayor Mike Duggan credited the gains to a number of city-run beautification and blight-fighting programs, as well as the Detroiters who stuck it out and invested in their communities. .....................(more)
https://www.metrotimes.com/news/property-values-soar-for-detroits-black-homeowners-study-shows-36034713
Property values soar for Detroit's Black homeowners, study shows
(Detroit Metro Times) Detroit’s economic recovery from its 2014 bankruptcy has resulted in nearly $3 billion in real estate wealth, a boon to the city’s Black and Latino homeowners, according to a new study from the University of Michigan.
Released Tuesday by the University of Michigan Poverty Solutions, the report, titled “The Growth of Housing Wealth in Detroit and its Neighborhoods: 2014-2022,” found that the largely Black homeowners in Detroit amassed $2.8 billion in added home value between 2014 and 2022, an 80% increase.
Mayor Mike Duggan credited the gains to a number of city-run beautification and blight-fighting programs, as well as the Detroiters who stuck it out and invested in their communities. .....................(more)
https://www.metrotimes.com/news/property-values-soar-for-detroits-black-homeowners-study-shows-36034713
April 18, 2024
Republicans in the state legislature can't seem to commit to a stance on abortion publicly
By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 18, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)
(Salon) Abortion is supposedly an act that is so evil it's tantamount to murder — yet it is somehow less wicked if someone takes a road trip before doing it. That appears to be the bizarre opinion of Kari Lake, failed gubernatorial candidate turned current Republican candidate for Senate from Arizona. At a Tuesday campaign event, Lake was dismissive towards people who are angry about a recent state supreme court ruling that resurrected a near-total abortion ban that was initially passed 55 years before women had the right to vote.
"Even if we have a restrictive law here," Lake tried to assure the concerned crowd, "you can go three hours that way, three hours that way, and you're going to be able to have an abortion."
The comment is confounding in multiple ways, and it's just the latest twist in Lake's ever-changing position on abortion. In 2022, she insisted that bringing back the 1864 law was a good idea because "life begins at conception." After the court's wildly unpopular decision, however, she discovered she could set aside her alleged deep moral qualms with abortion to denounce the ruling. Then again on Tuesday, she seemed to be fine with the ruling, not because of deep moral qualms but because she sees it as no big deal to make someone drive three hours to get an abortion.
....(snip)....
Rather than dealing honestly with the public, Republicans are scheming to find a way to trick voters into accidentally giving away their rights. On Monday, NBC News exposed a strategy document shared internally by party leaders, which offered ideas to bamboozle people about abortion measures on the ballot. The document suggested piling multiple, conflicting ballot measures onto voters, to confuse them about how to fill out the ballot to protect abortion rights. Should the will of the masses prevail and abortion is re-legalized, they suggested abusing the power of the health regulatory framework to make it more difficult and expensive for providers to offer abortion services. ............(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/18/you-can-go-three-hours-that-way-kari-lake-and-arizona-cant-decide-if-abortion-is-or-not/
"You can go three hours that way": Kari Lake and Arizona GOP can't decide if abortion is bad or not
"You can go three hours that way": Kari Lake and Arizona GOP can't decide if abortion is bad or notRepublicans in the state legislature can't seem to commit to a stance on abortion publicly
By AMANDA MARCOTTE
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 18, 2024 6:00AM (EDT)
(Salon) Abortion is supposedly an act that is so evil it's tantamount to murder — yet it is somehow less wicked if someone takes a road trip before doing it. That appears to be the bizarre opinion of Kari Lake, failed gubernatorial candidate turned current Republican candidate for Senate from Arizona. At a Tuesday campaign event, Lake was dismissive towards people who are angry about a recent state supreme court ruling that resurrected a near-total abortion ban that was initially passed 55 years before women had the right to vote.
"Even if we have a restrictive law here," Lake tried to assure the concerned crowd, "you can go three hours that way, three hours that way, and you're going to be able to have an abortion."
The comment is confounding in multiple ways, and it's just the latest twist in Lake's ever-changing position on abortion. In 2022, she insisted that bringing back the 1864 law was a good idea because "life begins at conception." After the court's wildly unpopular decision, however, she discovered she could set aside her alleged deep moral qualms with abortion to denounce the ruling. Then again on Tuesday, she seemed to be fine with the ruling, not because of deep moral qualms but because she sees it as no big deal to make someone drive three hours to get an abortion.
....(snip)....
Rather than dealing honestly with the public, Republicans are scheming to find a way to trick voters into accidentally giving away their rights. On Monday, NBC News exposed a strategy document shared internally by party leaders, which offered ideas to bamboozle people about abortion measures on the ballot. The document suggested piling multiple, conflicting ballot measures onto voters, to confuse them about how to fill out the ballot to protect abortion rights. Should the will of the masses prevail and abortion is re-legalized, they suggested abusing the power of the health regulatory framework to make it more difficult and expensive for providers to offer abortion services. ............(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/18/you-can-go-three-hours-that-way-kari-lake-and-arizona-cant-decide-if-abortion-is-or-not/
April 18, 2024
He's dropping little clues: The troubling message we are missing from Trump's MAGA rallies
Trump's revenge plot remains hidden in plain sight
By CHAUNCEY DEVEGA
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 18, 2024 5:31AM (EDT)
(Salon) During a rally last Saturday in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, the last such event before his criminal trial began on Monday in Manhattan, Donald Trump displayed his authoritarian and fascist behavior and beliefs to the extreme. He continued to preach his Big Lie about the 2020 election being “stolen” from him, claimed he is being “persecuted” and tried to intimidate the judges, prosecutors, and other members of law enforcement working to hold him accountable for his actions. Trump, a master propagandist, used the classic tactic of projection, accusing President Biden of being a “demented tyrant” and the real enemy of democracy who would destroy the country if re-elected.
“This election is a choice between the Biden-fascist state or the American republic," he told his MAGA crowd.
....(snip)....
Trump told his thousands of followers gathered before him that he wants the power to determine when presidential elections (and presumably other elections) take place. Trump is literally reading a page from the dictator’s playbook. At the end of his speech in Pennsylvania, Trump, channeling Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, reached a crescendo by threatening those Americans — a group he has previously targeted as “vermin” and “traitors” — who are poisoning the “blood” of the nation:
....(snip)....
The message of Trump’s “eclipse” video is rather obvious: he is a type of God and prophet or messiah on Earth, an Ozymandias figure of sorts, whose powers are greater than the sun and such fundamental forces as gravity and the movement of the stars and planets. As some of the country’s leading mental health professionals have repeatedly warned, Donald Trump appears to actually believe in such delusions and absurdities. Based on their behavior, the MAGA political cultists also appear to be believe that their Dear Leader has such superpowers.
Donald Trump wants to be worshipped; his followers want to worship him; this should terrify any reasonable and thinking person in the United States who values their freedom and safety, and that of their loved ones and other people they care about. ............(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/18/hes-dropping-little-clues-the-troubling-message-we-are-missing-from-maga-rallies/
He's dropping little clues: The troubling message we are missing from Trump's MAGA rallies
He's dropping little clues: The troubling message we are missing from Trump's MAGA rallies
Trump's revenge plot remains hidden in plain sight
By CHAUNCEY DEVEGA
Senior Writer
PUBLISHED APRIL 18, 2024 5:31AM (EDT)
(Salon) During a rally last Saturday in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, the last such event before his criminal trial began on Monday in Manhattan, Donald Trump displayed his authoritarian and fascist behavior and beliefs to the extreme. He continued to preach his Big Lie about the 2020 election being “stolen” from him, claimed he is being “persecuted” and tried to intimidate the judges, prosecutors, and other members of law enforcement working to hold him accountable for his actions. Trump, a master propagandist, used the classic tactic of projection, accusing President Biden of being a “demented tyrant” and the real enemy of democracy who would destroy the country if re-elected.
“This election is a choice between the Biden-fascist state or the American republic," he told his MAGA crowd.
....(snip)....
Trump told his thousands of followers gathered before him that he wants the power to determine when presidential elections (and presumably other elections) take place. Trump is literally reading a page from the dictator’s playbook. At the end of his speech in Pennsylvania, Trump, channeling Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, reached a crescendo by threatening those Americans — a group he has previously targeted as “vermin” and “traitors” — who are poisoning the “blood” of the nation:
Together we are taking on some of the most menacing forces and vicious opponents our people have ever seen. They are vicious and they are horrible. But no matter how hateful and corrupt the communists and criminals we’re fighting against may be, you must never forget this nation does not belong to them. This nation belongs to you. This is your home. This is your heritage. And our American liberty is your God-given right. Your God-given right.
From Harrisburg to Pittsburgh, from Easton to Bethlehem, and from Johnstown to Allentown, we stand on the shoulders of American legends, who poured out their blood, sweat and tears, for our rights and for our freedoms. And it’s been a very rough period of time. I’ll tell you what, for this country. It’s never had. I don’t think our country has ever been so low, but we’re going to change it. We’re going to get numbers like nobody’s ever seen. I think we’re going to swamp them. And this isn’t drain the swamp. This is we’re going to swamp them. We’re also going to drain the swamp. It’s a double swamp.
....(snip)....
The message of Trump’s “eclipse” video is rather obvious: he is a type of God and prophet or messiah on Earth, an Ozymandias figure of sorts, whose powers are greater than the sun and such fundamental forces as gravity and the movement of the stars and planets. As some of the country’s leading mental health professionals have repeatedly warned, Donald Trump appears to actually believe in such delusions and absurdities. Based on their behavior, the MAGA political cultists also appear to be believe that their Dear Leader has such superpowers.
Donald Trump wants to be worshipped; his followers want to worship him; this should terrify any reasonable and thinking person in the United States who values their freedom and safety, and that of their loved ones and other people they care about. ............(more)
https://www.salon.com/2024/04/18/hes-dropping-little-clues-the-troubling-message-we-are-missing-from-maga-rallies/
April 18, 2024
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A Florida man was arrested earlier this month after he allegedly pelted his roommate with pizza dough because he was making coughing sounds he didn't like.
Joseph Tresselt, 32, was charged with criminal mischief and simple battery after the incident that unfolded at a St. Petersburg apartment on April 11, according to an arrest affidavit from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
At around 7:20 p.m., Tresselt was making pizza. The arrest affidavit said that Tresselt said he "heard voices telling him how to make the pizza."
Tresselt's roommate started to make coughing sounds, which "irritated" him. ............(more)
https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/florida-man-arrested-after-allegedly-pelting-roommate-with-pizza-dough
Florida man arrested after allegedly pelting roommate with pizza dough
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - A Florida man was arrested earlier this month after he allegedly pelted his roommate with pizza dough because he was making coughing sounds he didn't like.
Joseph Tresselt, 32, was charged with criminal mischief and simple battery after the incident that unfolded at a St. Petersburg apartment on April 11, according to an arrest affidavit from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
At around 7:20 p.m., Tresselt was making pizza. The arrest affidavit said that Tresselt said he "heard voices telling him how to make the pizza."
Tresselt's roommate started to make coughing sounds, which "irritated" him. ............(more)
https://www.fox35orlando.com/news/florida-man-arrested-after-allegedly-pelting-roommate-with-pizza-dough
April 18, 2024
(Michigan Advance) A day after state House Democrats won two special elections to regain a majority, Republicans on Wednesday announced a plan “to grow local economies” that included rolling back regulations and reversing some key Democratic policies.
“The state is lacking a coordinated economic growth plan,” House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp.) said. “Unfortunately, after five years of [Gov. Gretchen] Whitmer, I don’t think that we are going to get that from her.”
The 30-minute news conference was held in the state Capitol and included Hall and several of his GOP colleagues. The Republican caucus, according to Hall, looks to introduce several bills as early as next week, although they are unlikely to gain traction in the Democratic-led chamber.
In 2022, Democrats won control of the state House and Senate simultaneously for the first time since 1984. The state’s executive branch offices are also headed by Democrats. In special elections held on Tuesday, state House Democratic candidates Peter Herzberg and Mai Xiong scored victories in two Southeast Michigan districts, which means Democrats will soon have a 56-54 majority again. ..................(more)
https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/17/house-gop-announce-plans-to-bring-back-right-to-work-snyder-era-economic-policies/
House GOP announce plans to bring back Right to Work, Snyder-era economic policies
(Michigan Advance) A day after state House Democrats won two special elections to regain a majority, Republicans on Wednesday announced a plan “to grow local economies” that included rolling back regulations and reversing some key Democratic policies.
“The state is lacking a coordinated economic growth plan,” House Minority Leader Matt Hall (R-Richland Twp.) said. “Unfortunately, after five years of [Gov. Gretchen] Whitmer, I don’t think that we are going to get that from her.”
The 30-minute news conference was held in the state Capitol and included Hall and several of his GOP colleagues. The Republican caucus, according to Hall, looks to introduce several bills as early as next week, although they are unlikely to gain traction in the Democratic-led chamber.
In 2022, Democrats won control of the state House and Senate simultaneously for the first time since 1984. The state’s executive branch offices are also headed by Democrats. In special elections held on Tuesday, state House Democratic candidates Peter Herzberg and Mai Xiong scored victories in two Southeast Michigan districts, which means Democrats will soon have a 56-54 majority again. ..................(more)
https://michiganadvance.com/2024/04/17/house-gop-announce-plans-to-bring-back-right-to-work-snyder-era-economic-policies/
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