senate

Chris Knight's avatar

Having mused upon it, now a week since the election, I think that there were three things involving President Donald Trump that impacted voting not going his way…

First, there is Trump’s behavior. Since being inaugurated for his second term he hasn’t been acting as presidential as he did during his first. He’s been too determined to put his name on as much as he can this time around. Trump 1.0 wasn’t like that. Trump 2.0 is acting more like a pharaoh of old. Perhaps he’s fearful of the mortality that he is facing as much as any of us do. Truly great men are simply good men, they are content to let history judge them and let the chips fall where they may. Trump in the past couple of years has not been doing that. That more than anything else of the man himself might be what brought about ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

There is both jubilation and lamentation abounding tonight following Congress’s approval of President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill”.  Personally, I have some mixed feelings about it.  I’m not going to let the shrill hysteria coming from some quarters persuade me that it’s an entirely bad thing though.

I think the thing I’ve heard most from those opposing the budget is that it’s going to starve “millions” of people.  And that it’s going to deprive many others of necessary medication.

Well, let’s see what someone who has in times past been on government assistance for food, and medicine, and has worked in the public sector as a mental health professional, has to say about the “One Big Beautiful Bill”.  You ready for this?  Because you may not be expecting what I’m about to speak about it.

Okay, here we go…

The public food assistance is horribly abused.  A lot of people ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

As I write this it’s 1:35 a.m. and it’s all over but the cryin’.  Sometime in the next eighteen hours will likely come the final vote on Impeachment 2020 and the end of this mess.  Donald John Trump will remain President of the United States for another year and quite possibly more than that.

I’ve never doubted the outcome.  Trump had this in the bag on a party-line vote alone.  But I never thought that the final days of this fiasco would be such a bewildering demonstration of both brilliance and ignorance.  This impeachment will be studied for generations to come about how not to impeach, as well as how to effectively counter one.

So, admitting that I only took time to watch the trial proceedings itself during the past few days, here are some sundry musings…

1.  “Abuse of power” and “obstruction of Congress” are not impeachable offenses.  I ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

Longtime readers of this blog know that I don’t play the partisan game.  And I haven’t bought into the “conservative/liberal” mentality for a very long time.  Regardless of affiliation, we should expect all of our elected officials to put the Constitution and liberty of the American people ahead of their political agendas.

Richard Burr, North Carolina, Senate, Senator, ObamaCare
Senator Richard Burr
(North Carolina): Part
of the problem in D.C.

That being said, North Carolina’s Senator Richard Burr is now shown be a bitter disappointment.  Burr is choosing capitulation over leadership, and what is easy over what is right.

From the article at The Hill…

Blocking a government funding bill over ObamaCare is “the dumbest
idea I’ve ever heard,” Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.) said Thursday.

Burr
argued stopping ObamaCare’s funding is not going to be achievable as
long as President Obama is in the White House, and that Republicans
risked taking the blame if they

...
Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

A short while ago the members of the United States Senate voted 70 to 24 to pass the “Marketplace Fairness Act”: AKA “Internet sales taxes”.

The Senate has approved collecting taxes on goods sold on the Internet.  We’ll examine that in just a sec.

(“Marketplace Fairness Act”?  God, I hate how these people try to govern by emotion instead of intelligence…)

Anyone who voted for this bill should be removed from office at the earliest possible legal opportunity.  For one thing, it is insanity for government to be levying more taxes upon us at a time when you and I and most other Americans are being obligated to tighten our belts.  How much more do our supposed “representatives” believe we can take?

But what is most on my mind tonight is how this bill is a flagrant violation of the Constitution of the United States.

According to Article One, ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

Somebody educate me: how do people like Dianne Feinstein get elected to anything whatsoever? Feinstein shouldn’t be trusted with city sanitation manager, much less United States Senator.

Having failed in her bid to ban “assault weapons” (there is no such thing, incidentally) Demented Dianne has now decided that violent video games must be controlled and regulated by act of Congress.

From the article at VentureBeat…

Speaking to an audience of 500 people in her hometown of San Francisco, U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said that game publishers need to make voluntary actions to avoid glorifying guns and violence following the Newtown elementary school massacre in December.

She noted that Congress would take action if the industry didn’t do something, according to the Associated Press.

“If Sandy Hook doesn’t [make game publishers change] … then maybe we have to proceed, but that is in the future,” said Feinstein.

She went

...
Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

As I intimated in my previous post, I arrived way late to witness the tempest surrounding Todd Akin at the apparent zenith of its wrath. But now that friends have caught me up to speed on it…

Let’s ignore for the moment that what Akin said is not an isolated incident. That in fact ridiculous, nonsensical and downright ignorant statements seem to be a chronic malady of those in high office (how Sheila Jackson Lee is still in Congress, I haven’t a clue). It’s not even the worst thing I’ve come across said by a politician about rape: the all-time record holder for that has to be Clayton Williams who once remarked that if rape is “inevitable, just relax and enjoy it.”

Now that I know what the Akin situation is about, what is most on my mind about it is that this is why the popular election of senators ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

So it’s coming out that a bunch of Republicans, including senators Orrin Hatch and Mitch McConnell, are expressing concern about President Obama making recess appointments when the Senate was not in session. Former U.S. Attorney General Ed Meese is saying that Obama is committing “a breathtaking violation of the separation of powers.”

Oh please…

The Justice Department headed by Eric Holder is defending the appointments as legal. Y’know, just like the Justice Department under President George W. Bush defended his firing of the United States attorneys as being legal. Just like John Yoo went out of his way to argue why his boss Bush should be given powers of a dictator in everything but name. Just like Samuel Alito sought to increase the power of the President by means of redefining so-called “signing statements”.

But now the shoe is on the other foot. It’s a Democrat in ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

When the hell do the people of this country once again get representatives who know what “un-constitutional” means enough to not come up with bullsh-t like this?

The Huffington Post was the first place where I found the “Super Congress” referenced. So in case (like me until late last night) you didn’t know what the politicians in Washington are now up to: there is a proposal to create a 12-member body comprised of six members from both the House and the Senate… and composed of six members from both major political parties. This “Super Congress” would be capable of over-riding the normal legislative process, all in the name of fixing the United States’ monstrous debt problem.

Click here and here to read what others have been arguing about how anti-Constitution and insane this scheme is.

But here is what disturbs me most about this proposal…

THE “SUPER CONGRESS” WOULD ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

That’s it. I’ve had it. Throw the whole sorry lot of ’em out. ALL of them. Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of war. Show them no quarter.

And whoever among our legislators were so irresponsible in voting for this, should have the word “STOOPID” branded into their foreheads so that the rest of humanity will know to steer clear of them forevermore amen.

Call it “The Law With No Name” (sounds like Mr. Smith Goes To Washington directed by Sergio Leone). Nancy Pelosi has brought the House of Representatives back into session for an emergency vote on a bill that, well nobody has any idea what the hell is in this thing. And the Senators who approved it didn’t even bother to give it a proper name. It’s officially listed as “The ______Act of___”.

And if you ask me, this bill is a ________ pile of bull____....

Read more