Disinformation is eroding trust in public institutions and threatening democracies around the world. We're working with our @ObamaFoundation Scholars and leaders to combat these forces, break through barriers, and meet their communities where they are. pic.twitter.com/rQuWvZg1uU
“The essence of this place, what put Silicon Valley on the map, is a spirit of innovation.
That’s what led to the globally integrated internet, and all its remarkable applications. What we’ve now learned is the product has some design flaws. There are some bugs in the software. We don’t have to just leave it like that. Through the same spirit of innovation. We can make it better.
So I want to make some general suggestions for what that work might look like.
But before I do, let me offer a few stipulations so we don’t get bogged down in some well-worn, not always productive arguments.”
“People like Putin and Steve Bannon, for that matter, understand it’s not necessary for people to believe this information in order to weaken democratic institutions. You just have to flood a country’s public square with enough raw sewage. You just have to raise enough questions, spread enough dirt, plant enough conspiracy theorizing that citizens no longer know what to believe.
Once they lose trust in their leaders, in mainstream media, in political institutions, in each other, in the possibility of truth, the game’s won. And as Putin discovered leading up to the 2016 election, our own social media platforms are well designed to support such a mission, such a project.
Russians could study and manipulate patterns in the engagement ranking system on a Facebook or YouTube. And as a result, Russian state sponsored trolls could almost guarantee that whatever disinformation they put out there would reach millions of Americans. And that the more inflammatory the story, the quicker it spread.”
MAJOR BREAKING: Donald Trump has been slapped with civil contempt by a NY judge and will be fined $10,000 a day until he turns over documents. — I hope the AG will be able to collect. Not in ruble, though.
Vice President Kamala Harris Speaks to NASA Astronaut Mark Vande Hei
NASA
Vice President Kamala Harris recently spoke to astronaut Mark Vande Hei after he returned home from spending 355 days in space — the longest single spaceflight for a NASA astronaut.
“Later today, I’ll be back in Washington where I’ll continue fighting for Georgians.
I’m focused on:
capping the price of insulin and prescription drugs
holding greedy corporations accountable
bbringing jobs to our state
lowering the costs of essential goods”
Pence Refusing to Get in Secret Service Car on Jan. 6 ‘Chilling’: Raskin
BY THOMAS KIKA
Former Vice President Mike Pence’s refusal to get into a Secret Service vehicle during the January 6 Capitol riot is being called “chilling” as the House select committee prepares to reveal its findings sometime before the end of the year.
After being taken to an undisclosed portion of the Capitol during the riot, Pence’s Secret Service agents, whom Raskin suspected were reporting directly to Trump’s security detail, asked him to enter an armored limousine. The intent, some have theorized, was to drive Pence away from the building, preventing him from certifying the election results, after he had signaled his unwillingness to go against his duties and keep Trump in power.
“[Pence] uttered what I think are the six most chilling words of this entire thing I’ve seen so far:
‘I’m not getting in that car,'” Raskin said.
“He knew exactly what this inside coup they had planned for was going to do.”
“This was not a coup directed at the president,” the congressman said. “It was a coup directed by the president against the vice president and against the Congress.”
Statement by President Joe Biden on Keeping our Promise to Veterans Suffering from Toxic Environmental Exposures
APRIL 25, 2022
America’s veterans are the best of us. I’ve always believed that we have a sacred obligation to equip all those we send into harm’s way and to care for them and their families when they come home. That’s especially true for veterans suffering the visible and invisible wounds of war, whether they were injured in combat or breathed in toxic smoke from burn pits on base. We can and must do more to address the harms that come from hazardous exposures, which have gone unaddressed for far too long.
We learned a horrible lesson after Vietnam, when the harmful effects of exposure to Agent Orange sometimes took years to manifest, and too many veterans were left unable to access the care they needed. I refuse to repeat that mistake when it comes to the veterans of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In my State of the Union address, I announced that we would propose expanding disability and health benefits to veterans suffering from nine rare respiratory cancers. Today, the Department of Veterans Affairs is delivering on that promise and upholding that sacred obligation to the women and men who have worn the uniform of our country. This new action is guided by science and driven by a desire to ensure that our nation’s veterans receive timely access to the benefits and services they deserve.
Supporting our veterans is a critical part of the Unity Agenda I proposed for our nation. No matter where we live or who we voted for in the last election, we all agree that we should serve our veterans as well as they have served us. My Administration will continue to do everything in its power to support our nation’s veterans, and I urge Congress to pass bipartisan legislation to comprehensively address toxic exposures and further deliver the vital benefits our veterans have earned. I will sign it immediately.
Watched Episode Two from PBO’s ‘Our Great National Parks’ yesterday,
with someone who did research in Cero Castillo and farther south in Chacabuco. She said you can go from steppe to rainforest to almost mediterranean parkland, surrounded by ‘raw mountains’, glaciers, huge ice fields.
All here captured by the camera. Never seen animal footage like that, very hard to to film.
Stunning and amazing.
"A local Republican Party leader in North Carolina threatened to get a county elections director fired or have her pay cut unless she helped him gain illegal access to voting equipment."https://t.co/ucxgOvEPFL
Patrick Gannon, spokesman for the state board of elections, said in a statement that the board reported the threats against Huff to state, federal and local law enforcement and would continue to report “any attempts to interfere with state or federal elections or harass or intimidate election officials.”
The richest guy on the 2021 Forbes 400 owns the Washington Post. Number 2 now owns Twitter. Number 3 owns Facebook. Numbers 5 and 6 started Google. Numbers 4 and 9 started Microsoft. Number 10 owns Bloomberg. Free speech? You decide.
A handful of billionaires now have unprecedented control over banking, the food we eat, the health care we can access and, now, the information we receive.
What Elon Musk is doing is what plutocrats have been doing: using money to buy power and power to protect their money, taking control of media to rig the discourse and hedge against resentment, and branding themselves the solution to the very problem they are.
— Anand Giridharadas @ The.Ink (@AnandWrites) April 25, 2022
With their victory last season, the Tampa Bay Lightning joined rare company: One of only eight teams over the last century to win two Stanley Cups in a row. It was great to welcome the back-to-back champions to the White House today. pic.twitter.com/bLcsEn0ulu
This is why it unequivocally does NOT fucking matter that CRT isn’t actually being taught in K-12 in VA or anywhere else in America. The propaganda works b/c these people have already been stewing over emancipation, Reconstruction, school integration & the CRA/VRA for 156 years.
President Biden did not grant clemency to any of his friends — and he did not rely on the recommendations of allies to benefit people with wealth and connections. https://t.co/BlKQg8HPx2
As we’ve been reporting, defence ministers from Nato and European Union countries have been meeting today at the United States’ airbase in Ramstein, south-west Germany, to discuss providing more support to Ukraine.
A major policy shift was announced by the German government, which has authorised the supply of about 50 Gepard Flakpanzer anti-aircraft tanks.
Held in storage for the past decade, they will get technical upgrades before being shipped to Ukraine.
Germany has long had a policy of not shipping heavy weaponry to conflict zones, but its government has come under increasing pressure to provide more help to Kyiv.
Making the announcement, the country’s defence minister, Christine Lambrecht, said Germany would “look into all possibilities how we can further support Ukraine in its courageous and important fight for freedom and for peace”.
Yes. I discuss this as the root of the so-called “anti-CRT” movement in my March 8th discussion with Hillary Clinton on her podcast. Begins at 1:04:00. https://t.co/PvCkFOhFY9https://t.co/vxBIPL6y35
New Disclosures Of Evidence Expose Role Of GOP Legislators In January 6 Planning
Rachel Maddow looks at what new things we’ve learned from evidence contained in a court filing by the January 6th Committee and by CNN’s reporting on text messages sent to Trump chief-of-staff Mark Meadows
about the role of Republican members of Congress in the planning and execution of the attack on the Capitol.
Leaked Text Reveals Marjorie Taylor Greene Wanted Trump To
Declare Martial Law And “Go After” Biden
Here is the text as obtained by CNN:
“In our private chat with only Members,
several are saying the only way to save our Republic is for Trump to call for Marshall law.
I don’t know on those things. I just wanted you to tell him. They stole this election. We all know. They will destroy our country next. Please tell him to declassify as much as possible so we can go after Biden and anyone else!”
Twitter bans climate change propaganda ads as deniers target platforms
The social media company says ads can’t contradict “scientific consensus” on the environmental crisis
* In Arizona on Friday, a local judge rejected an effort to disqualify Republican Reps. Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs from the ballot stemming from their Jan. 6 efforts to overturn the election.
(Steve Benen)
“NEW: Hundreds of text messages between members of the Oath Keepers militia group show coordination with the Proud Boys leaders in the days leading up to Jan. 6, per exhibits just released in Stewart Rhodes case filing.”
Robin Roberts Says She Almost Passed on Interviewing Barack Obama Over Fears She’d Be ‘Outed’
“It was kind of like a scene out of Moonstruck: ‘Snap out of it; Robin, what are you thinking? It’s not about you. This man is going to impact countless lives,'” Robin Roberts said”
“Fortunately for Roberts, she quickly realized she couldn’t pass on the opportunity.”
Cristi on DeSantis:
Whatever happened to less taxes, less government, more freedom from GOP?
The GOP embrace of authoritarianism,
and how Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is a prime example of this,
are discussed by Democratic candidate for governor of Florida, Rep. Charlie Crist and Joy Reid.
“A future of abundant, equitable speech terrifies people like Elon Musk.”
Anand Giridharadas (The.Ink) speaking to Joy Reid.
Joy Reid:
“What does it mean for Elon Musk to PRIVATELY OWN the town square?”
Anand Giridharas:
“Those people a hundred years ago did not own portals into a billion people’s minds in real time.
The nature of the technology is now such that
if now you are Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg or others,
it is not just owning a newspaper and owning the railroad, this and that.
It is specifically this particular kind of straw
into the
live consciousness
of a very large chunk of humanity at all times.
There’s studies that have shown that this power can be used to tilt elections
if someone would want to use it that way.
And so what you’re seeing right now and I called it ‘Winners Take All’ for a reason.
This is a winners take all playbook.
First you try to make money, that’s the kind of foundational overriding goal.
But if you just do that, you’re going to have regulatory pressure,
you’re going to have people mad at you at a certain point.
You’re going to have all kinds of problems.
And so what you do is you take the spoils of that money making,
and you buy political influence in Washington.
You fund super pacs,
you fund things like the Federalist Society,
different approaches that you know well.
And then you start investing in rigging the discourse.
It’s not enough to just rig law and policy.
You want to rig the Discourse,
you want to make sure you control the terms on which people can talk back at you.”
Giridharas:
“I’m curious what are the safeguards preventing the world’s richest man?
I’m sure there are some, I’d love to hear what they are.
But this is truly the winners take all world, where as you said,
not just one form of power but every form of power
is used to purchase the next…”
“Democracy itself is suffering.”
Anand Giridharadas, author “Winners Take All, The Elite Charade of Changing the World.”
Joy Reid:
“Musk has a long history of literally threatening to sue bloggers who say things he doesn’t like about him or post things about Tesla: ‘It’s free speech sure, but don’t say anything about me or I will sue you’.”
Americans today cannot fathom how terrified parents and children once were of polio. This day 1955, field trials of a vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk began at a Virginia elementary school. A year later, it was declared effective; childhood immunizations quickly became routine pic.twitter.com/HsK1YUPaM7
The use of iron lungs is largely obsolete in modern medicine, as more modern breathing therapies have been developed, and due to the eradication of polio in most of the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_lung
Thx jer44…the thought of young ones who always want to move, move, move, being restrained with just their heads sticking out, the long hours, how they cried, helpless without the touch of loved ones.
How many tapes have to be made public proving that Republicans knew that Trump was responsible for inciting violence to overthrow the Government for DOJ to Indict this moronic threat to our Democracy?
Why Musk may regret purchase of Twitter when reality of content moderation hits
Ben Collins, senior reporter covering disinformation, extremism, and the internet for NBC News,
talks with Rachel Maddow about Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter and where reality undermines his stated goal
of making Twitter a platform for “free speech.”
U.S. Rallies Dozens Of Nations In Support Of Ukraine Against Russian Invasion
Rachel Maddow reports on a meeting convened by U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and U.S. Secretary
of Defense Lloyd Austin with dozens of countries in attendance to discuss further military support for Ukraine against the invasion by Russia, and notes that the previous administration would likely not have been able
to rally such an assembly.
—–40 countries including more not on the list are committed to supporting Ukraine. Bringing them together is an incredible achievement by the Biden Administration.
DATE: Wednesday, April 27, 2022
TIME: 10:00 AM
LOCATION: Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 226
PRESIDING: Chair Durbin
Panel I
Nancy G. Abudu
to be United States Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit
Julianna Michelle Childs
to be United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit
Panel II
Nusrat Jahan Choudhury
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York
Ana Isabel de Alba
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of California
Natasha C. Merle
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York
Pictured my grandmother in Vienna Austria circa 1922. She was the only member of her family to make it out alive, losing her parents and 12 siblings. She told me to speak loud and fight hard against anti semitism as silence will fester and embolden hate. #HolocaustRemembranceDaypic.twitter.com/d6JkChmmhu
Sweden and Finland agree to submit Nato applications, say reports
Two countries could apply for membership simultaneously as soon as mid-May, according to reports
President Biden Names Seventeenth Round of Judicial Nominees
APRIL 27, 2022
(excerpts)
“The President is announcing five new federal judicial nominees, all of whom are extraordinarily qualified, experienced, and devoted to the rule of law and our Constitution.”
“These choices also continue to fulfill the President’s promise to ensure that the nation’s courts reflect the diversity that is one of our greatest assets as a country — both in terms of personal and professional backgrounds.”
“This is President Biden’s seventeenth round of nominees for federal judicial positions and his fifth slate of nominations in 2022, bringing the number of announced federal judicial nominees to 95.”
The Obama Diary 
Good Afternoon TODVille.
Hi NW and all.
Howdy NCLB! 😘
Good evening, all!
“The essence of this place, what put Silicon Valley on the map, is a spirit of innovation.
That’s what led to the globally integrated internet, and all its remarkable applications. What we’ve now learned is the product has some design flaws. There are some bugs in the software. We don’t have to just leave it like that. Through the same spirit of innovation. We can make it better.
So I want to make some general suggestions for what that work might look like.
But before I do, let me offer a few stipulations so we don’t get bogged down in some well-worn, not always productive arguments.”
More President Obama on Disinformation:
(https://techpolicy.press/transcript-barack-obama-speech-on-technology-and-democracy/
PBO:
“People like Putin and Steve Bannon, for that matter, understand it’s not necessary for people to believe this information in order to weaken democratic institutions. You just have to flood a country’s public square with enough raw sewage. You just have to raise enough questions, spread enough dirt, plant enough conspiracy theorizing that citizens no longer know what to believe.
Once they lose trust in their leaders, in mainstream media, in political institutions, in each other, in the possibility of truth, the game’s won. And as Putin discovered leading up to the 2016 election, our own social media platforms are well designed to support such a mission, such a project.
Russians could study and manipulate patterns in the engagement ranking system on a Facebook or YouTube. And as a result, Russian state sponsored trolls could almost guarantee that whatever disinformation they put out there would reach millions of Americans. And that the more inflammatory the story, the quicker it spread.”
” You just have to flood a country’s public square with enough raw sewage.”
I was surprised that PBO called the worst offenders of disinformation by name. Unconstrained!
Isn’t that part great!
MAJOR BREAKING: Donald Trump has been slapped with civil contempt by a NY judge and will be fined $10,000 a day until he turns over documents. — I hope the AG will be able to collect. Not in ruble, though.
Vice President Kamala Harris Speaks to NASA Astronaut Mark Vande Hei
NASA
Vice President Kamala Harris recently spoke to astronaut Mark Vande Hei after he returned home from spending 355 days in space — the longest single spaceflight for a NASA astronaut.
Heads up Georgia!
Praying!
Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock:
“Later today, I’ll be back in Washington where I’ll continue fighting for Georgians.
I’m focused on:
capping the price of insulin and prescription drugs
holding greedy corporations accountable
bbringing jobs to our state
lowering the costs of essential goods”
Pence Refusing to Get in Secret Service Car on Jan. 6 ‘Chilling’: Raskin
BY THOMAS KIKA
Former Vice President Mike Pence’s refusal to get into a Secret Service vehicle during the January 6 Capitol riot is being called “chilling” as the House select committee prepares to reveal its findings sometime before the end of the year.
After being taken to an undisclosed portion of the Capitol during the riot, Pence’s Secret Service agents, whom Raskin suspected were reporting directly to Trump’s security detail, asked him to enter an armored limousine. The intent, some have theorized, was to drive Pence away from the building, preventing him from certifying the election results, after he had signaled his unwillingness to go against his duties and keep Trump in power.
“[Pence] uttered what I think are the six most chilling words of this entire thing I’ve seen so far:
‘I’m not getting in that car,'” Raskin said.
“He knew exactly what this inside coup they had planned for was going to do.”
“This was not a coup directed at the president,” the congressman said. “It was a coup directed by the president against the vice president and against the Congress.”
(https://www.newsweek.com/pence-refusing-get-secret-service-car-jan-6-chilling-raskin-1700341?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter)
Good afternoon, TOD. Thank you, NW. We appreciate you.
you too, tnmtgirl1.
Statement by President Joe Biden on Keeping our Promise to Veterans Suffering from Toxic Environmental Exposures
APRIL 25, 2022
America’s veterans are the best of us. I’ve always believed that we have a sacred obligation to equip all those we send into harm’s way and to care for them and their families when they come home. That’s especially true for veterans suffering the visible and invisible wounds of war, whether they were injured in combat or breathed in toxic smoke from burn pits on base. We can and must do more to address the harms that come from hazardous exposures, which have gone unaddressed for far too long.
We learned a horrible lesson after Vietnam, when the harmful effects of exposure to Agent Orange sometimes took years to manifest, and too many veterans were left unable to access the care they needed. I refuse to repeat that mistake when it comes to the veterans of our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In my State of the Union address, I announced that we would propose expanding disability and health benefits to veterans suffering from nine rare respiratory cancers. Today, the Department of Veterans Affairs is delivering on that promise and upholding that sacred obligation to the women and men who have worn the uniform of our country. This new action is guided by science and driven by a desire to ensure that our nation’s veterans receive timely access to the benefits and services they deserve.
Supporting our veterans is a critical part of the Unity Agenda I proposed for our nation. No matter where we live or who we voted for in the last election, we all agree that we should serve our veterans as well as they have served us. My Administration will continue to do everything in its power to support our nation’s veterans, and I urge Congress to pass bipartisan legislation to comprehensively address toxic exposures and further deliver the vital benefits our veterans have earned. I will sign it immediately.
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/25/statement-by-president-joe-biden-on-keeping-our-promise-to-veterans-suffering-from-toxic-environmental-exposures/)
Mistreatment of Military Families in Privatized Housing
Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations
April 26, 2022 10:00AM
Location: SD-342, Dirksen Senate Office Building
Member Statements
Chair Jon Ossoff D (GA)
Ranking Member Ron Johnson R (WI)
LIVE NOW:
Readout of President Biden’s Call with President Macron of France
APRIL 25, 2022
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/25/readout-of-president-bidens-call-with-president-macron-of-france-2/)
I so much appreciate your posting that! Was wondering about it! Thanks, as usual.
‘Rich guy voter fraud’:
Meadows was registered to vote in three states at once.
(https://www.msnbc.com/all-in/watch/-rich-guy-voter-fraud-meadows-was-registered-to-vote-in-three-states-at-once-138367045832)
What the …?!!
heya pkayden!
yeh who knows how many more abodes our hero has.
Anti-trans bills: 153 in 34 states
Anti-abortion bills: 536 in 42 states
Anti – ‘CRT’ bills: 107 in 42 states
(ACLU, Guttamacher Inst)
Watched Episode Two from PBO’s ‘Our Great National Parks’ yesterday,
with someone who did research in Cero Castillo and farther south in Chacabuco. She said you can go from steppe to rainforest to almost mediterranean parkland, surrounded by ‘raw mountains’, glaciers, huge ice fields.
All here captured by the camera. Never seen animal footage like that, very hard to to film.
Stunning and amazing.
Episode 2: Chilean Patagonia.
The key point buried in that Reuters ‘exclusive’.
Patrick Gannon, spokesman for the state board of elections, said in a statement that the board reported the threats against Huff to state, federal and local law enforcement and would continue to report “any attempts to interfere with state or federal elections or harass or intimidate election officials.”
No one has been charged in the incident.
#gutlessgarland
Useless Garland.
you left the most insidious of all, murdock and pox news.
exactly. ultimate successful grifter.
Celebrating something “normal” for a change! Yay!
Indeed, Jacquelineoboomer!
How are you?
Shout out to everyone, in particular to NW, Dudette, bridgeriverpass, tnmtgirl1, AMK, and JER44!
What a world we live in. I feel the pain of the courageous Ukrainians. Slavia Ukraini!
And I rejoice with the French people who voted and who voted for Macron. Vive la France
I share those sentiments! Nice to see you, NCLB!
YAY Indeed!!! Thanks J’OB for posting this feel good experience. ☺
🙂
Australia election: Why is there compulsory voting?
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-australia-61186402
worth a watch.
What was the plan?😆😂🤣
A honorable decent man for president. How refreshing and relieving.
germans finally decided move their ass.
via beebs
As we’ve been reporting, defence ministers from Nato and European Union countries have been meeting today at the United States’ airbase in Ramstein, south-west Germany, to discuss providing more support to Ukraine.
A major policy shift was announced by the German government, which has authorised the supply of about 50 Gepard Flakpanzer anti-aircraft tanks.
Held in storage for the past decade, they will get technical upgrades before being shipped to Ukraine.
Germany has long had a policy of not shipping heavy weaponry to conflict zones, but its government has come under increasing pressure to provide more help to Kyiv.
Making the announcement, the country’s defence minister, Christine Lambrecht, said Germany would “look into all possibilities how we can further support Ukraine in its courageous and important fight for freedom and for peace”.
Finally.
So, ss has been a shithole all along. No wonder traitorous thug was able to turn them into traitors too.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-61232241
New Disclosures Of Evidence Expose Role Of GOP Legislators In January 6 Planning
Rachel Maddow looks at what new things we’ve learned from evidence contained in a court filing by the January 6th Committee and by CNN’s reporting on text messages sent to Trump chief-of-staff Mark Meadows
about the role of Republican members of Congress in the planning and execution of the attack on the Capitol.
ohhh myyy..
Be merciful Lord…
take care dear Madam Vice President.
Leaked Text Reveals Marjorie Taylor Greene Wanted Trump To
Declare Martial Law And “Go After” Biden
Here is the text as obtained by CNN:
“In our private chat with only Members,
several are saying the only way to save our Republic is for Trump to call for Marshall law.
I don’t know on those things. I just wanted you to tell him. They stole this election. We all know. They will destroy our country next. Please tell him to declassify as much as possible so we can go after Biden and anyone else!”
(https://www.politicususa.com/2022/04/25/leaked-text-reveals-marjorie-taylor-greene-wanted-trump-to-declare-martial-law-and-go-after-biden.html)
—–Perjury Greene pressing for ‘Marshall’ Law.
There needs to be consequences for these insurrectionists.
On Tyranny: Expanded Audio Edition:
Updated with Twenty New Lessons from Russia’s War on Ukraine
Book by Timothy D. Snyder
COMING SOON:
From 4 days ago:
Twitter bans climate change propaganda ads as deniers target platforms
The social media company says ads can’t contradict “scientific consensus” on the environmental crisis
By Naomi Nix
(https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/22/twitter-bans-climate-change-denial-ads/)
But Elon is fine with lying so we’ll see what he does about climate change deniers.
loving your comments…let’s go back to that, remembering all the back and forth, and the laughs on earlier websites.
Musk could go a ways to fixing climate with his $44 billion and still pay for his own gold statue.
He sure could if he had a conscience.
DOJ Called On To Open A Sedition Investigation Into Trump And His Staff
(https://www.politicususa.com/2022/04/25/doj-called-on-to-open-a-sedition-investigation-into-trump-and-his-staff.html)
* In Arizona on Friday, a local judge rejected an effort to disqualify Republican Reps. Paul Gosar and Andy Biggs from the ballot stemming from their Jan. 6 efforts to overturn the election.
(Steve Benen)
“When they know better” (President Obama)
Hugo Lowell, The Guardian:
“NEW: Hundreds of text messages between members of the Oath Keepers militia group show coordination with the Proud Boys leaders in the days leading up to Jan. 6, per exhibits just released in Stewart Rhodes case filing.”
Robin Roberts Says She Almost Passed on Interviewing Barack Obama Over Fears She’d Be ‘Outed’
“It was kind of like a scene out of Moonstruck: ‘Snap out of it; Robin, what are you thinking? It’s not about you. This man is going to impact countless lives,'” Robin Roberts said”
“Fortunately for Roberts, she quickly realized she couldn’t pass on the opportunity.”
Dory Jackson:
(https://people.com/tv/robin-roberts-feared-being-outed-interviewing-barack-obama-in-2012/)
Heh.
continuing on….
Cristi on DeSantis:
Whatever happened to less taxes, less government, more freedom from GOP?
The GOP embrace of authoritarianism,
and how Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is a prime example of this,
are discussed by Democratic candidate for governor of Florida, Rep. Charlie Crist and Joy Reid.
Here: (https://www.msnbc.com/the-reidout/watch/gop-embrace-of-authoritarianism-embodied-in-desantis-dem-candidate-for-florida-governor-charlie-crist-says-138612805722?fr=operanews
“A future of abundant, equitable speech terrifies people like Elon Musk.”
Anand Giridharadas (The.Ink) speaking to Joy Reid.
Joy Reid:
“What does it mean for Elon Musk to PRIVATELY OWN the town square?”
Anand Giridharas:
“Those people a hundred years ago did not own portals into a billion people’s minds in real time.
The nature of the technology is now such that
if now you are Elon Musk or Mark Zuckerberg or others,
it is not just owning a newspaper and owning the railroad, this and that.
It is specifically this particular kind of straw
into the
live consciousness
of a very large chunk of humanity at all times.
There’s studies that have shown that this power can be used to tilt elections
if someone would want to use it that way.
And so what you’re seeing right now and I called it ‘Winners Take All’ for a reason.
This is a winners take all playbook.
First you try to make money, that’s the kind of foundational overriding goal.
But if you just do that, you’re going to have regulatory pressure,
you’re going to have people mad at you at a certain point.
You’re going to have all kinds of problems.
And so what you do is you take the spoils of that money making,
and you buy political influence in Washington.
You fund super pacs,
you fund things like the Federalist Society,
different approaches that you know well.
And then you start investing in rigging the discourse.
It’s not enough to just rig law and policy.
You want to rig the Discourse,
you want to make sure you control the terms on which people can talk back at you.”
Giridharas:
“I’m curious what are the safeguards preventing the world’s richest man?
I’m sure there are some, I’d love to hear what they are.
But this is truly the winners take all world, where as you said,
not just one form of power but every form of power
is used to purchase the next…”
“Democracy itself is suffering.”
Anand Giridharadas, author “Winners Take All, The Elite Charade of Changing the World.”
Joy Reid:
“Musk has a long history of literally threatening to sue bloggers who say things he doesn’t like about him or post things about Tesla: ‘It’s free speech sure, but don’t say anything about me or I will sue you’.”
Great!! Love him.
terrifying images, what was going on here?
The use of iron lungs is largely obsolete in modern medicine, as more modern breathing therapies have been developed, and due to the eradication of polio in most of the world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_lung
Thx jer44…the thought of young ones who always want to move, move, move, being restrained with just their heads sticking out, the long hours, how they cried, helpless without the touch of loved ones.
#gutlessgarland : tapes? What tapes? I know nuthin. I know nuthin.
Here: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i051BD239Go)
Why Musk may regret purchase of Twitter when reality of content moderation hits
Ben Collins, senior reporter covering disinformation, extremism, and the internet for NBC News,
talks with Rachel Maddow about Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter and where reality undermines his stated goal
of making Twitter a platform for “free speech.”
Next crew launch coming up 🚀✨
Heard reported last night of a third mass grave in Mariupol, Ukraine.
And that Ukrainians dug those graves in return for food and water.
Only thing missing is they dug the graves, stood by them, were shot, and fell into them.
—-What is the maximum sentence for Putin?
U.S. Rallies Dozens Of Nations In Support Of Ukraine Against Russian Invasion
Rachel Maddow reports on a meeting convened by U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and U.S. Secretary
of Defense Lloyd Austin with dozens of countries in attendance to discuss further military support for Ukraine against the invasion by Russia, and notes that the previous administration would likely not have been able
to rally such an assembly.
—–40 countries including more not on the list are committed to supporting Ukraine. Bringing them together is an incredible achievement by the Biden Administration.
https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/04/20/2022/nominations
oops, link at the end applies to hearings for Abudu,Childs, Choudhury, Alba, Merle below.
Here: (https://www.judiciary.senate.gov/meetings/04/20/2022/nominations)
DATE: Wednesday, April 27, 2022
TIME: 10:00 AM
LOCATION: Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 226
PRESIDING: Chair Durbin
Panel I
Nancy G. Abudu
to be United States Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit
Julianna Michelle Childs
to be United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit
Panel II
Nusrat Jahan Choudhury
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York
Ana Isabel de Alba
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of California
Natasha C. Merle
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York
Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki and
White House COVID-19 Response Coordinator Dr. Ashish Jha
APRIL 26, 2022
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2022/04/26/press-briefing-by-press-secretary-jen-psaki-and-white-house-covid-19-response-coordinator-dr-ashish-jha/)
Happy Birthday Senator Cory Booker !!!
Sweet!
Biden, Obama, Clintons speak at funeral for Madeleine Albright, 1st female secretary of state
Albright was 84 when she died in March.
By Oren Oppenheim
(https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/biden-obama-clinton-funeral-madeleine-albright-1st-female/story?id=84325143)
Sweden and Finland agree to submit Nato applications, say reports
Two countries could apply for membership simultaneously as soon as mid-May, according to reports
(https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/apr/25/sweden-and-finland-agree-to-submit-nato-applications)
President Biden Names Seventeenth Round of Judicial Nominees
APRIL 27, 2022
(excerpts)
“The President is announcing five new federal judicial nominees, all of whom are extraordinarily qualified, experienced, and devoted to the rule of law and our Constitution.”
“These choices also continue to fulfill the President’s promise to ensure that the nation’s courts reflect the diversity that is one of our greatest assets as a country — both in terms of personal and professional backgrounds.”
“This is President Biden’s seventeenth round of nominees for federal judicial positions and his fifth slate of nominations in 2022, bringing the number of announced federal judicial nominees to 95.”
(https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/04/27/president-biden-names-seventeenth-round-of-judicial-nominees/)
LIVE NOW:
Yay Teachers!
New post.
https://obamadiary.wordpress.com/2022/04/27/national-parks-favorite-memories/