10.9.22: The State of "Meet The Press" and Other World Notes

It's been a while since we've written and it's due to our reevaluation of the relevance today's (in the general sense) "Meet The Press." One of those reasons, and why we decided to write today, is because of the moderator, which is no more a moderator than just another host anymore. And frankly, when it comes down to that, Mr. Todd isn't the best one out there.

That's not necessarily saying that Mr. Todd shoulders all the responsibility for "Meet The Press'" declining, but most. He's been 'too comfortable' in the chair and it shows in his questioning or lack thereof. There are barely any follow-up questions, very little challenge or push back, no serious attempt to hold a politicians proverbial feet to the fire. And when he does challenge a person's answer, he seems to give them an out. We mention being 'too comfortable' because all this seems to come unconsciously.

This leads us to one main point we wanted to make specifically today, which is on today's "Meet The Press" you saw the individual who should be in the chair, Kristen Welker. Ms. Welker has been a long-term Washington correspondent, has moderated debates, and it's clear that she has been mentored by the best, Andrea Mitchell. 

Ms. Welker's nervousness today showed through with a couple of interruptions but that was because she was challenging her interviews and not letting them just 'walk away' from a tough question. Even in her Q&A with The New York Times' Maggie Habermann, she managed to challenge her on the perception that she is 'too cozy' with the former president. 

"Meet The Press" would benefit greatly by having Ms. Welker take over as moderator.

Additionally, we would scrap the big set for something more intimate that provides the atmosphere more of 'politicians are going to have to answer for themselves instead of I'm going to a TV production.' Maybe bringing back the old, old format where you have say one 'liberal' journalist and one 'conservative' journalist ask questions of politicians on the left and the right. Then there is the need for an actual moderator. 

We say these things because we truly love "Meet The Press" and will indeed hold it to a higher standard than the rest, because we ask political viewers and information seekers deserve it. If there is any doubt as to our commitment to the program, we have over 600 columns that would say different.

Which leads us to say that this will be the last column for a while... maybe forever. There is only so much shouting at the rain that one can do. And because of what we said above, the program doesn't intellectually provoke in a serious manner anymore, truth be told.

But before we go, there are some things we'd like to put down unequivocally for the record.

On Russia:
Putin, not Russia, is an existential threat not to the 'world order' but the world. Hard stop. As we've seen from recent reports, the war is going badly for Mr. Putin and the Ukrainians aren't backing down. In fact they are taking back their land with counteroffensives. With the blowing up of the Kerch Strait Bridge connecting Russia to Crimea, Ukraine is turning the tide of a war that for them has been going on for 8 years. The United States and Europe and NATO should give no quarter to Mr. Putin and keep up the financial and military support to Ukraine at 100 percent. If Mr. Putin is allowed to succeed, he will not stop with Ukraine. If Ukraine wins the war, Russia eventually wins as well. The loser is Putin's regime. 

The danger is that if Mr. Putin can't have it, he'll make sure no one can. What we mean by that is that if Mr. Putin can not win in Ukraine, it's not out of the question for him to do the following: Instead of a tactical nuclear strike, Mr. Putin could exist Ukraine after destroying parts of Zeporizhzhia nuclear power plant, endangering all of Europe, and in true Putin style, since it wasn't a 'nuclear strike' per se, he'll blame the Ukrainians. 

For all of Europe to prosper and be safer, Mr. Putin has to go.

On The U.S. Midterms and the Near Political Future:
Republicans will take control of the House of Representatives, however, it depends how motivated American women are to vote since having a Constitutional right to privacy taken aware from them. It seems counterintuitive to go with conventional wisdom in these uncoventional times. Outside of that aforementioned variable, we don't see anything to change that.

However, the Senate is a different story and we believe that at the end of the day, the Democrats will hold their majority and perhaps increase it. As we see, the candidacy of Hershel Walker in Georgia is a symptom of the larger problem in the Republican party, which is character, truthfulness, integrity and qualification no longer factor, as long as the candidate, as Yamiche Alcindor put it, a 'means to their political end.'

As for the near 300 Republican election-denying candidates, they have no idea the fire that they are playing with, and nor do the American people writ large, we think. These midterm elections will decide the people in charge of counting the votes in the 2024 presidential election. You can see such a scenario playing out in which the former president runs again and claims election fraud again if he doesn't win. If, and this is a big if, in just one of those states in which an election-denying secretary of state (think Arizona) changes the outcome, hence changing the winner and it all goes through. Democracy in the United States would be shattered. 

But here's what they don't get. If it's allowed to stand and the U.S. is no longer called a democracy, the markets will tank because faith in the U.S. dollar will be destroyed. The strength of the dollar is based on the success of the democracy, whether is tacts left or right. All of our current international alliances would all of sudden be up in the air with countries asking, "If you don't believe in your democratic country, why would you believe in ours?" Isolation of this sort will only cause U.S. economic and innovative decline. 

If you think inflation is bad now, if the above happens, it's going to get a whole lot worse, not only going to affect the U.S. but through global economy. These individuals haven't an utter clue of the fire they are playing with. 

The Gun:
We're all for gun ownership, but unless the United States collectively decides to take truly transformative regulatory legislative steps, they will truly be the tool of our own ruination. Our entire collective attitude toward guns, from all sides, make them a literal and existential threat to the country. The literal threat of being killed by one, and the existential threat of someone taking away your firearm. Both cause people to act irrationally and with less common sense. 

You can't rail against crime and if advocate for absolutely no gun regulation. If you want less crime, there must be less guns. The more guns, the more crime. All the rhetoric in the world is not going to change that fact.

A country awash in guns and no shared set of facts due to social media is a recipe for disaster. And if we're going to go down this road, let's at least do it right and bring along plenty of alcohol. We jest, but it speaks to a larger truth, doesn't it.

Well, we could go on and on and on and on, but we'll sign off here. I loved doing this column and I really hope that someone enjoyed it as well. We may be back, maybe not but either way we'll always be watching "Meet The Press."

Thank you thank you thank you! Be safe.

Panel: Maggie Habermann, The New York Times, Yamiche Alcindor, NBC News; Jen Psaki, NBC Analyst; Brendan Buck, Republican Strategist

8.21.22. August Burn and the Mid-Term Churn

We'll admit right at the top that this probably won't be a lengthy column because frankly in the heat of the August summer burn, we're a little too crispy to discuss the mid-term churn. Today's program was 'ok' (purposely lower case), but it was one of those times where "Meet The Press" is bogged down in its 'the beltway is the country' mode, mostly talking about the mid-term elections. 

The problem with discussing the mid-terms is that said discussion is based on polls, which will certainly change and the uncertainty of speculation. If you have read this column before, you know that we try to stay away from that as much as possible.

With that said and because we're feeling a touch of summer burn out, we'll quickly touch on three topics from today's program that earned our attention.

First, Mr. Todd pointed out to Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), head of the DCCC, about the Democratic party putting money behind attack ads on moderate Republicans so that the Democrat in the race will face someone extremely right-wing. 

As we've said before this is a dangerous strategy and as Mr. Todd was right to call out the hypocracy of the Democrat party that calls for Republicans to be more moderate and then gets involved in the Republican primary. Mr. Malony didn't have a good answer for this in terms of putting country over party.

Secondly, the Secretary of Education Miguel Cardoza is correct when he says there is a lack of respect for the profession. What he didn't include that while there is this lack of respect, teachers are also used as a political football, which damages them in further. Lack of respect means lack in pay, hence shortages of properly trained professionals. Plus in states like Florida, who wants to be a teacher when if you accidentally say something that's not OK with the state, you're fired. No one wants that hanging over her head.

And in terms of loan forgiveness for college students, we say that to qualify for loan forgiveness, you have to give back with some kind, any kind, of service.

Lastly, and most importantly, forty million people in the United States rely on the Colorado Basin and River for their water and starting in 2023 because of decades of drought, there will be drastic reductions in distibutions. The United States has to rethink and modernize its entire fresh water distribution system if we are going to continue to have food grown in Arizona and California.

Mark our words, in the next century the greatest fight for any natural resource will be for fresh water. 

 

Panel: Ali Vitali, NBC News; Symone Sanders-Townsend, MSNBC; Mark Caputo, NBC News; Brendan Buck, Republican Strategist

8.14.22: All The Dumb Questions the Former President Makes Us Ask...

Let's get right to the point: The Department of Justice and the Attorney General Merrick Garland need to get national security experts, The Joint Chiefs and leaders of both parties in a secure room to review the documents and have them explained to them so that it's unequivocal as to what the former president was storing at his home.

Then those same individuals need to figure out how to tell the American people without compromising national security. And when we say individuals, we're talking serious people, not bomb-throwers. And though Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD) is not one of the latter, he is not a leader as he oviscated on his answers with regard to the former president having not only having classified, but classified/special compartmentized information, the most sensitive to national security, in his possession in the first place.

The 'pending' question of whether the president can declassify the documents or not is immaterial because even if they're not classified, they do not belong to him. They belong to the United States government. That aside, and for the sake of argument, if the documents are classified/SCI the president can not simply say they are declassified and that's it. It can not be done be decree, but first with review from several intelligence agencies to make certain that sources and methods can not be revealed.

But these are the dumb questions that the former president makes us ask because of the double standard that Republican politicians have assisted in creating, because of a shrinking yet increasingly violent supporter base.

A lawyer for the former president signed a written affirmation that there were no more classified documents at the Palm Beach residence and that turned out to be false. If it's anyone else, anyone, there are three words in your future: Search. Warrant. Lawyer. So by that measure, the Department of Justice and specifically the Attorney General did the right thing.

Senator Rounds did say that there are a lot of questions to be answered, in his signature Dakota gentlemanly tone, and we'd agree with that. We think we're just a bit more patient, but on heels of this discussion, he stated unequivocally that South Dakota is ready for Mr. Trump to annouce another run. As scary a prospect that it is, it's a matter of when, not if. However, his point is taken that inflation is still high and the people of his state and around the country are dissatisfied with that, no doubt. 

The Cook Political Report's Amy Walter had an interesting take in terms of which party has motivation going into the midterms explaining that the Republican base is already motivated and the events of this past week aren't going to make it any more so. She also said that the events of the week put Trump on the midterm ballot motivating Democrats more who are gaining in the generic polling against Republicans. As it looks the Republicans will take the House, but the Senate, which Republicans really want is as of right now, unrealistic. Eugene Robinson buttressed the explanation, saying that it only reminds everyone of the chaos that the Trump years wrought on the country and people don't want to return to that. The choice becomes starker. 

And yes, Congresswoman Liz Cheney (R-WY) is going to lose her seat in Wyoming, but as Andrea Mitchell pointed out, the state has one congressperson, which is like a senator to them, and if the state's congressperson doesn't have support of leadership then the return on investment for the state is less. 

However, as we've said before, Ms. Cheney isn't done in politics, and as Matthew Continetti predicted, if she loses her congressional seat you'll see her next on a debate stage opposite Mr. Trump.

We so hope he's right.

Panel: Betsy Woodruff Swann, Politico; Amy Walter, Cook Political Report; Eugene Robinson, The Washington Post; Matthew Continetti, American Enterprise Institute; Michael Beschloss, Presidential Historian

8.7.22: In Consideration of the Midterms, Good Week for the President But a Huge Week for Democrats

Well, we guess it is that time to talk about the mid-term elections. If you noticed, we try and hold off on commenting about all the hypotheticals the pundits throw out there because most of them end up poor conjecture. 

Case in point: Kansas' referendum vote on a state constitutional amendment to ban abortions in the state. That measure was shot down 59 percent to 41 percent with double the normal turnout you see for an off-year election. Republican state legislators were as shocked as the rest of the country by the result. However, one has to agree with Democratic strategist Cornell Belcher when he explained that suburban women who may be against abortion but do not like Republican overreach in legislating women's bodies. With that, as Punchbowl New's Anna Palmer described, the culture wars have shifted i favor of the Democrats, at least on this issue.

Of course the economy is top of mind for everyone, but will women's health autonomy also be on the ballot? Considering that over half of registered voters are women, it will be a certainty.

Will it be enough for Democrats to maintain a majority in the House, we'll have to wait and see. However, Representative Nancy Mace (R-SC), bless her heart, spoke on moderation on both sides on the aisle to come to an agreement on abortion, but the fact remains that her party will not and can not negotiate in good faith. Any compromise will have dire political consequences for Republicans from the evangelical rightwing of the party. She spoke about her objection to the idea of women not being allowed to travel out of state to receive an abortion, but her state of South Carolina wants such a restriction, the constitutionality of which strongly comes into question.

Another factor in determining the mid-term outcomes will be President Joe Biden's approval rating, or will it be? What ever factor you think it will have on November, it will be less than that. Trump hovers over the midterms even more than the president and they have both have an equally poor approval rating, which renders their influence a moot point. As the panel agreed, candidates on the trail from both parties aren't embracing either man. 

It was a big week for President Joe Biden as it was a huge week for the Democratic party behind him. Rights for women's reproductive freedom, which the Democratic party espouses won a big victory. Under the president's leadership, the CIA took Al Qaeda's mastermind of 9/11 - Ayman Al-Zawahiri, with a missile that didn't explode but had shredding blades mounted to the front that cut him to pieces on a balcony while no one else in the house was injured... by the way. The Democrats made jerks out of Senate Republicans in a two-for. First, the Veterans' PACT Act passed in which Republicans first voted against it only to vote for it four days later after being shamed. Since Senators Manchin (D-WV) and Schumer (D-NY) outmaneuvered Mitch McConnell, the Democrats are going to pass a reconciliation bill with the biggest investment in climate in U.S. history, not to mention it will also lower Medicare prescription drugs prices and overall energy costs. Something in there for the young, old and in the middle. 

And lastly, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) with praise from both sides of the aisle didn't cancel her trip to Taiwan and rightly stuck it in Xi and China's face. As Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) explained in his support of the trip, China should not be able to dictate where U.S. leaders choose to travel and who to visit. Xi is so thin-skinned that he thought it necessary to fire off military hardware, a temper tantrum on a national scale. But what that means back home is that Democrats are projecting strength internationally.

It was a good week for the president but more importantly, considering the midterms, this was a huge week for Democrats.

Panel: Anna Palmer, Punchbowl News; Susan Page, USA Today; Cornell Belcher, Democratic Strategist; Pat McCrory, fmr. Governor of North Carolina (R)

 One more thing...

You gotta love this, like an icing dagger decorating Donald Trump's moldy cake...

7.31.22: A Rare Astronomical Event This Week Shocked Washington

In case you missed it this week, there was a rare astronomical event on Wednesday so we wanted to share a photo of the phenomenon. 

Yes, a rare sighting of a blue moon. Coincidentally, or not, or dumb luck or it was the same thing. It's all so hazy and shocking, but the Democrats in the Senate out maneuvered their Republican colleagues, specifically Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) who was blindsided by the Manchin-Schumer reconcilliation budget bill. It also forced Republicans into upcoming votes, in which a 'no' vote is politically unpopular forcing them to come on board with Democratic priorities. And you have to give credit to Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) for not walking away and negotiating in quiet to avoid media drama, as he explained.

A total eclipse, a Cubs World Series win, a Blue Moon. They exist but are seen so rarely that afterward you can't believe it actually happened. 

Senator Kirstyn Sinema (D-AZ) has yet to come out in support of the bill, but as NBC's Kristen Welker mentioned, there will be tremendous pressure on her to get on board. With perhaps a minor concession, the bill is there and it has the votes. What the bill does is give Medicare the ability to negotiate prescription drug prices, establish a base 15 percent tax for corporations with $1 billion or over in value, and with an all-of-the-above energy approach it allocates $349 billion investment in climate mitigating energy strategies. The largest investment in climate in U.S. history, which served as the last proverbial groin shot that Republicans could take.

So, they took out their anger and humiliation on Democ... No wait, they took it out on U.S. veterans. Yes, really.

As satirist and veterans advocate Jon Stewart explained, the Senate passed the same PACT Act bill in June, 84-12, and after a one sentence change that had no effect on the bill, Repubican senators voted it down. Mr. Stewart didn't get into the speculation of why Republicans now voted no, but it's obvious that since they know they got played. The PACT Act provides care to veterans who have contracted various diseases from burn pits overseas. It cannot be understated the significance of this as burn pits operated 27/7 during combat operations with soldiers continually breathing in toxins. Lead by Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA), Republicans in the Senate torpedoed the bill and did fist bumps when they accomplished their goal.

Here's the most-widely and succinct summation from Mr. Stewart this week. He and a group of veterans travelled to Capitol Hill for a celebratory press conference, which then became this:

Lastly, we're sad to hear about the catastrophic flooding and heart-breaking death toll in Kentucky. Governor Andy Beshear (D) gave a grim assessment of the status on the ground saying that it is unclear how many people are still missing, that there are 26 deaths with more surely to be confirmed, and the situation is complicated by the fact that it's still raining there and communication is difficult. 

To the president's credit, he cut through redtape to make sure the state had enough additional personnel on the ground, as the Gov. Beshear explained. (An example of how Joe Biden operates, he gets it done but doesn't scream it from the rooftops that he did it.)  

Though the location of this blog's homebase is nowhere near Kentucky, but we say that the state should get all the support it needs and then some, despite one its Senators, Rand Paul, voting against disaster relief for other states that he simply doesn't like [think: New York and Hurricane Sandy]. This tragic event in Kentucky is a clear example of why we needed the infrastructure bill and now this budget package from Senators Manchin and Schumer.

Panel: Kristen Welker, NBC News; Adrienne Elrod, Democratic Strategist; Carlos Carbello, fmr. Congressman (R-FL); Jonathan Lemire, Politco

7.24.22: Sure Seems Like A Melt Down... The Climate Change of Everything

 It sure seems like a melt down if you ask us. Whether it's climate, Donald Trump's prospects or confidence in all branches of government, the heat is rising and all of the above are melting. 

It was a good choice to schedule an interview to an update on what are prophetic thoughts from former vice-president Al Gore, the man who stepped aside for the sake of our democracy and then went on to warn us about the catastrophic effects of climate change. The graphic below from today's program shows a list of recent climate announcements that truly tells the story.   

In terms of the Colorado River, Lake Mead is at such a low level, ships and skeletal remains from the 1940's are being recovered and in 5 years if the water level keeps receding at pace, there will not be enough gallons of water per month required for the Hoover Dam to generate enough power to the states it services.

Vice President Gore has been warning us about the effects of melting glaciers for 30 years and we're still seeing state-size chunks of Greenland and Antarctica break way, affecting ocean currents and warming the water causing more catastrophic storms. Mr. Gore also explained that we do have the tools to get to net-zero carbon admissions but not the political will to get there many due to the economic effects. Those economic effects are those that impact the bottom line of the oil companies who then stick it to the average consumer [sic: voter] who is stretch thin as it is. But the tools are there: instituting a carbon emissions tax, automobile companies transitioning their entire fleets to either hybrid or full-electric, along with more off-shore wind, and solar of course. 

However, there are a few notions we'd like to throw out there that time did not permit them to cover. First, the United States should completely rethink its nuclear energy program. Nuclear energy has zero carbon emissions and is very safe, but there is the risk of accident. However, instead of pipelines, make waterlines to transport ocean water inland for rod cooling to more stable earth where a reactor is at less risk of structural damage. Also invest more into the research and development of cold fusion.

Also, many people don't know that when a crypto-currency sets up shop in your state or country, they become to biggest consumer of energy in every case due to the amount it takes to run and cool the vast number of servers that create algorithms and nothing else. The state of Texas had to shutdown a cryptocurrency operation in its state due to the strain it was putting on the Texas's electric grid, causing brown outs in residential neighborhoods. 

The former vice president mentioned something that we've talked about in this column previously, which is that we essentially have a minority government, especially when it comes to legislation on climate. But it's this 'minority government' that has Americans disapproving in Congress, the President and the Supreme Court by overwhelming margins.

A minority of politicians fueled by huge contributions block what the majority of Americans want and the direction they want to go.

Fortunately, the minority of what have been the overly loud voices of insanity are having their collective bubble burst by a thousand cuts from the January 6th Committee. Mr. Trump and his allies are melting under the intense heat of the committee and the DOJ. This week the Murdoch properties The Wall Street Journal and The New York Post, as the panel discussed, walked away from the former president explicitly saying he is "unfit to hold office again." Real question there is whether Fox News will follow.

Steve Bannon went into his contempt of Congress trial all bluster and bravado claiming he would get 'medieval,' but after 3 hours of deliberation the jury found him guilty on both counts and he never took the stand in his own defense; sending him away with his head up his ass and facing jail time.

Lastly, there's the economy. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen made some news as she teased that we'll probably see negative GDP growth for a second quarter, which would normally mean we're in a recession, but Secretary Yellen said that we wouldn't be. Our advice when it comes to statements from Sec. Yellen is that we take the wait-and-see approach... Her batting average isn't great. That said, as many economists had been saying the economy had over-heated and now, pardon the expression again, some of it has to melt off. 

It's not just the meteorologic climate that's changing, it's the climate change of everything.

Aren't you looking forward to August?

Panel: Yamiche Alcindor, NBC News; Stephen Hayes, The Dispatch; Maria Teresa Kumar, Voto Latino; Jake Sherman, Punchbowl News

 

7.10.22: Forecast for the Majority: Hotter and More Exhausting

Maryland Governor Larry Hogan (R) mentioned the 'exhausted majority' in America and for as much talk about nervous Democrats thinking Joe Biden can't hack it, he really didn't provide an explanation to what that means. He used the phrase to confirm that seventy percent of Americans think we're on the wrong track as a country.

Before we go there, the Biden Administration has acted too slowly on the economy without a doubt, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen didn't see this inflation coming didn't help. But this is reflective of the Administration, not the president himself, which is fair game. It was good to hear Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo says that the president is carefully looking at rolling back the Trump tariffs, which she conceded would help with the cost of everyday goods. This should have been served up yesterday and should be on the front burner.

And let's face it, the president is going to Saudi Arabia because we need to up the supply of crude oil, which has increased but not nearly enough, and that the secretary confirmed. It's the real politik and the necessity to compartmentalize as president. Where we or should we say the oil companies dropped the ball was during the pandemic they scaled back refining and took facilities off line and used the revenue to pay shareholders (we knew you'd love that last bit). Hence, there is a shortage of gasoline and going into talks with the Saudis the Administration loses a little leverage because the Saudis need US refining capabilities; we're the best in the world at it. 

Secretary Raimondo explained that the administration needs to consider the impact on American workers if the tariffs are lowered, which is prudent and warranted. However, we'd advise to consider much faster.

We mention all this first because the U.S. economy comparatively to other countries is quite strong so that aside what is this exhausted majority that Governor Hogan is talking about. Well, one thing is for sure, he's not talking about his party and the extreme right wingers running it. The majority of Americans are center left or right, but for the past 30 years Republicans have only won the popular vote for president once. The minority is blocking what the majority wants and the Supreme Court is pushing the minority agenda in lieu of legislation. Why else do we have more guns than people and that in half the states the fetus has more rights than the woman that carries it? 

America spent four years in existential dread called the Trump presidency followed by criminal activity on the way out the door followed by feckless Republicans only interested in power, not service, as The Atlantic's Mark Leibovich talked about and wrote in his book. 

So not only does the threat to democracy continue in this country, thanks Republicans, people are paying more out of pocket, Putin and his regime are a bunch of fuckos, and no one can seem to agree on anything.

This is what you get in July... So yeah, we're exhausted and now it's freakin' hot.  And as long as the minority, abetted by the Supreme Court, keeps forcing its agenda onto the majority and because of unequal representation in the Senate, it's only going to get hotter and more exhausting.

This exhaustion leads us to ask the most American of questions that all Americans can appreciate and come together around. When does football season start?

Panel: Hallie Jackson, NBC News; Daniella Gibbs-Leger, Center for American Progress; Mark Leibovich, The Atlantic; Rich Lowry, National Review

6.26.22: No More Complaining About Left-wing Activist Judges When You Have the Ultimate Closers

In successive days, over 150 years of precedent law was reversed by the United States Supreme Court. On June 23, the Court threw out a 109 year-old law in New York restricting individuals from carrying guns in public, and of course on the 24th reversed 49 years of precendent with the overturning of Roe vs. Wade, sending abortion rights back to the states.

Whether you agree with the decisions or not, the one thing you can confirm is that these are activist justices on the court and they're wielding their power that with a super majority can move unchecked. 

The other certainty is that both decisions were political, which is illustrated by the these two decisions themselves. In the New York case, no court touched it for over 100 years and the Supreme Court overturned it ruling that the state didn't have the right to make its own law. However, in the Roe case, they ruled the exact opposite and that states should decide.

Where do we go from here? Well, swallow hard because we have to live with it. Or until Democrats can focus and win back state houses and keep their majorities in Congress, which is another way of saying that we just have to live with it.

What we're left with in the Roe v Wade decision is that womens' rights are not equal depending on what state you live in. Andrea Mitchell of NBC made a good point in the Roe dealt with privacy and not equal protection, which women across the country clearly now do not have.  However, only when enough pain and suffering occurs to enough people would a case on equal protection under the law be brought. 

Now that Republicans have won on abortion, their statements really have become laughable in justifying a woman's right to bodily autonomy, starting with Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson (R) who said on today's program that it's not the debate right now about no exceptions for rape or incest only that he believes with the abortion ban his state is saving lives. However, this is where the ideology's callousness and cruelty come into play because it has nothing to do with real world circumstances. Judge Samuel Alito stated the it is not the responsbility of the court to recognize the social impact of its decisions. Obviously... but really?

And The Wall Street Journal's Peggy Noonan, God love her posed a next step for Republicans after their win that even everyone on the panel audibly laughed at when she explained the Republicans now have to change their image and become the 'party of women' and build the support systems for them. What a credibility grenade that was. Republicans certainly will solidify their image as the party of women when abortion procedures are banned in over half the country (we're looking at 26 potential states). Hardly.

With the current state of the economy with inflation and high gas prices, those will be the determining factors in November which only favors Republicans and if they win control of the house, make no mistake they will introduce a bill on a nation-wide ban.

If Republicans have the majority in the House they will also thrwart the findings of the January 6th Select Committee seeking to discredit them while actively obstructing the Justice Department investigation of the coup plot. This will leave the door open for the individual who said to the Attorney General and Deputy Attorney General of the United States, to just say the election was corrupt and leave the rest to me and the Republicans, to run again.

No matter, if a Republican candidate wins in 2024, it will not be with the popular vote, a trend that has now been established. The majority of the country doesn't have proportionate representation in the Senate, which ensures that the minority stays in control and with the backing of an extreme right Supreme Court there's no reason to see this trending losing momentum anytime soon.

And make no mistake, womens' healthcare rights are the end of the line for the Supreme Court. Take Justice Clarence Thomas, of whom it's now fair to say is corrupted because of his wife's political actions, at his word when he says that a revisiting of other privacy rights should be done. 

Even a 3-dollar fortune teller can predict that rights for LGBTQ Americans will be the next target for the right to put in front of their judicial enablers. 

No more complaining from right-wing pundits about left-wing activist judges, they have the ultimate closers.

Panel: Peggy Noonan, The Wall Street Journal; Kimberly Atkins Stohr, The Boston Globe; Andrea Mitchell, NBC News; Garrett Haake, NBC News

6.19.22: Hanging On by a Horse-Haired Thread

In the 4th century B.C., the king Dionysius would let his loyal soldier Damocles sit on the throne so that he could experience what it was like to be king. However, to illustrate more clearly the responsibility, the fear, the pending danger, Dionysius hung a sword over his thrown by a single horse hair. Precariously hanging over the throne by a single hair, ready to fall at anytime, Damocles could no longer take the pressure and stopped taking to the seat.

We mention this little bit of ancient history because it seems like that is where we are now, a metaphoric sword hanging over our country, by a single horse-hair thread. The sense of impending danger and dread.

President Biden said in an interview with the Associated Press that he knows the American people are "really, really down." Americans are down because what they witnessed this week during the Select Committee's January 6th hearings this week and that in fact our democracy was hanging by a thread. Despite knowing the fact that he lost and that the plan for the vice president to dispute the electoral count was illegal, the former president persisted in perpetuating that there was election fraud.

Not only that, but we also learned of the utter callousness (and that's being generous) the fmr. president had for his vice president's well-being and life. It's understandable that committee member Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) wouldn't give away any details, especially when pressed by Mr. Todd on why Mike Pence didn't trust his secret service detail; he's not at liberty to say. 

What we do know:

John Eastman knowingly attempted to commit a crime against the Constitution of the United States.

The fmr. president, knowing he lost the election, perpetrated a fraud against the people of the United States by lying about the election results to raise $250 million dollars for a non-existent defense fund, in which the monies went to the fmr. president's personal interests.

There was a tremendous pressure campaign, lead by the president, for Mike Pence to ignore the Constitution by not certifying the vote on January 6th. So much pressure that when Mr. Pence upheld the Constitution, his life and the lives of his family members were put in jeopardy.

The president broke his oath to the Constitution of the United States and abandoned his duty as president on that day.

If that wasn't enough to make the thin threads more taut, there's the economy, which this, that and the other thing that President Biden points to, two things are clear. One, the signs of a coming recession are ominous and the Biden Administration totally dropped the ball and is now playing catch-up.

Former Treasury Secretary Larry Sommers said that while nothing can be forecast with complete certainty, the indicators that he's seen are leading him to believe that a recession is coming.

Demand is way outpacing supply for energy which has been disrupted by war and oil companies cutting back on refining during the pandemic. The supply chain disruptions continue and are exascerbated by high fuel costs have made everything more expense. Not enough micro-chip manufactures, the list goes on. But the bottom line is the Biden Administration reacted too slowly and now the Fed is going to do what it can, but really it just has to run its course.

Mr. Sommers suggested three potential initiatives that could lessen the pain in the short term, while providing a plan for the longer-term. He suggested repealing some of the Trump era tax cuts, reduce the price of prescription drugs and take an 'all of the above' approach to energy in the short term and transition to clean energy.

Here's the rub. Repealing any part of a tax cut is a non-starter for Republicans. They'll message it as a tax hike and that message will get through. The 'all of the above' approach on energy gets a lot of support but any introduction of clean energy initiatives is another none starter. And lastly, we simply don't understand how Congress can't get the price of prescription drugs down. It's such a political winner for everyone, you'd think it's a no-brainer. Alas, to paraphrase Warren Zevon, big pharma brings lawyers, drugs, and money.

All this, on top of coming out of a mindbending, two-year pandemic where over 1 million Americans died then right into a catastrophic war in Europe and it's no wonder we're all hanging on by a horse-haired thread.

Panel: Betsy Woodruff Swann, Politico; Peter Alexander, NBC News; Brendan Buck, Republican Advisor and Strategist; Maria Teresa Kumar, Voto Latino