What Republicans do

[Eric the Green]

This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

[Odin]

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

George McGovern is rolling in his grave.

[Eric the Green]

(02-03-2017, 01:27 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

Your broad brush has been improperly maintained and cleaned and now it reeks.

Give the partisan, vile stereotypes a rest man!

What Republicans actually do is not a "stereotype." It's what they do. And what they do, is vile; as this obviously-vile action more than proves. It's time now to RAMP UP the opposition to them to as high a fever pitch as possible.

Mr. X, I am opposed to what Republicans do. Not because they are "Republicans." But because of what they always DO. These are not your grandfather's Republicans. It is what today's Republicans do. Learn it, get used to it.

My Grandfather Meece was a staunch Republican from Indiana. He would be rolling in his grave too.

And if you think Republicans don't control South Dakota's government, I've got some land on the Moon to sell you. And after that, some land on Titan.

And DINOs (Democrats in Name Only) beware too; the people are coming fer ya.

[Marypoza]

(02-03-2017, 03:20 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 01:27 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

Your broad brush has been improperly maintained and cleaned and now it reeks.

Give the partisan, vile stereotypes a rest man!

What Republicans actually do is not a "stereotype." It's what they do. And what they do, is vile; as this obviously-vile action more than proves. It's time now to RAMP UP the opposition to them to as high a fever pitch as possible.

Mr. X, I am opposed to what Republicans do. Not because they are "Republicans." But because of what they always DO. These are not your grandfather's Republicans. It is what today's Republicans do. Learn it, get used to it.

My Grandfather Meece was a staunch Republican from Indiana. He would be rolling in his grave too.

And if you think Republicans don't control South Dakota's government, I've got some land on the Moon to sell you. And after that, some land on Titan.

And DINOs (Democrats in Name Only) beware too; the people are coming fer ya.

-- Eric Nooooooooo!! Experts say Titan has enough oil on it to feed our oil jones for the next 50,000 yrs. Hang onto it, you'll be rich

[pbrower2a]

(02-03-2017, 03:20 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 01:27 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

Your broad brush has been improperly maintained and cleaned and now it reeks.

Give the partisan, vile stereotypes a rest man!

What Republicans actually do is not a "stereotype." It's what they do. And what they do, is vile; as this obviously-vile action more than proves. It's time now to RAMP UP the opposition to them to as high a fever pitch as possible.

Mr. X, I am opposed to what Republicans do. Not because they are "Republicans." But because of what they always DO. These are not your grandfather's Republicans. It is what today's Republicans do. Learn it, get used to it.

My Grandfather Meece was a staunch Republican from Indiana. He would be rolling in his grave too.

It will be the downfall of the Gingrich-McConnell-Trump GOP.

Only two ways succeed in overpowering ethics -- brute force and piecemeal efforts. Political figures who use brute force kill such democracy as there is. South Dakota Republicans might have been wiser to lie low, see how the law works, and then perhaps work at the law from the edges.

Corruption is unpopular in America... and especially unpopular in rural areas. Corruption means higher taxes and poor services, contrary to the conception of limited government.

[Eric the Green]

(02-03-2017, 03:29 PM)Marypoza Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 03:20 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 01:27 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

Your broad brush has been improperly maintained and cleaned and now it reeks.

Give the partisan, vile stereotypes a rest man!

What Republicans actually do is not a "stereotype." It's what they do. And what they do, is vile; as this obviously-vile action more than proves. It's time now to RAMP UP the opposition to them to as high a fever pitch as possible.

Mr. X, I am opposed to what Republicans do. Not because they are "Republicans." But because of what they always DO. These are not your grandfather's Republicans. It is what today's Republicans do. Learn it, get used to it.

My Grandfather Meece was a staunch Republican from Indiana. He would be rolling in his grave too.

And if you think Republicans don't control South Dakota's government, I've got some land on the Moon to sell you. And after that, some land on Titan.

And DINOs (Democrats in Name Only) beware too; the people are coming fer ya.

-- Eric Nooooooooo!! Experts say Titan has enough oil on it to feed our oil jones for the next 50,000 yrs. Hang onto it, you'll be rich

Mr. X wants to buy it from me, apparently. But I guess you're right; he couldn't afford it.

[Eric the Green]

(02-03-2017, 03:31 PM)pbrower2a Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 03:20 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 01:27 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

Your broad brush has been improperly maintained and cleaned and now it reeks.

Give the partisan, vile stereotypes a rest man!

What Republicans actually do is not a "stereotype." It's what they do. And what they do, is vile; as this obviously-vile action more than proves. It's time now to RAMP UP the opposition to them to as high a fever pitch as possible.

Mr. X, I am opposed to what Republicans do. Not because they are "Republicans." But because of what they always DO. These are not your grandfather's Republicans. It is what today's Republicans do. Learn it, get used to it.

My Grandfather Meece was a staunch Republican from Indiana. He would be rolling in his grave too.

It will be the downfall of the Gingrich-McConnell-Trump GOP.

Only two ways succeed in overpowering ethics -- brute force and piecemeal efforts. Political figures who use brute force kill such democracy as there is. South Dakota Republicans might have been wiser to lie low, see how the law works, and then perhaps work at the law from the edges.

Corruption is unpopular in America... and especially unpopular in rural areas. Corruption means higher taxes and poor services, contrary to the conception of limited government.

If the people and the Democrats stand up against this Gingrich-McConnell-Trump GOP, they could profit greatly. There could even be a new populist prairie fire: this time a REAL populism.

[Eric the Green]

This is What Republicans Do

House Republicans Just Voted To Allow Dumping Of Coal Waste In Rivers
ByJohn Harper Posted on February 1, 2017
http://occupydemocrats.com/2017/02/01/ho...te-rivers/

America’s streams and rivers have come a long way over the past 50 years. For one, they no longer catch fire, like Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River once did. For seconds, they are no longer open repositories for coal mining waste … until today. Our Republican-strangled Congress just voted to reverse one of President Barack Obama’s key environmental regulations Wednesday, repealing a rule that was designed to keep coal mining waste out of streams and waterways.


AP Politics ✔ @AP_Politics
BREAKING: GOP-controlled House passes measure to scuttle Obama regulation protecting streams from coal mining debris.
1:58 PM - 1 Feb 2017

Republicans started spouting voodoo economics Monday, when they set out to undo the most basic of environmental regulations in favor of profit-hungry coal companies. “The Stream Protection Rule is the latest in a series of overreaching and misguided Obama-era regulations that have targeted America’s coal industry,” West Virginia Republican Shelley Moore Capito told the Senate. “If this rule were allowed to stay in place, it would add to the economic devastation for people in coal communities.

For whatever reason the GOP thought it would be just grand to keep America’s streams and rivers looking like this:



Coal mining waste, in the form of iron hydroxide precipitate (orange) in a Missouri stream receiving acid drainage from surface coal mining. Image by Wikimedia Commons.

This image, taken downstream from a coal mining operation in Missouri, shows what water looks like when coal waste is introduced. President Obama fought Republicans in Congress for over a year to add a simple regulation that required coal mining companies to build a buffer 30 yards around any nearby waterways. Pretty basic.

Common sense environmental protection was too much work for the poor souls in the coal industry, though. According to Republicans who opposed Obama’s regulation, asking mining corporations to take basic care of the water their miners have to drink is apparently too much of a burden.

Obama eventually implemented the regulation through the Office of Surface Mining, a step toward turning the nation’s orange water a shimmering blue-green. Bah humbug, say Republicans in Congress. Their diarrhea-colored slurry is here to stay. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) himself, one of the longest anti-EPA regulation hawks, has basically admitted he made up the “Obama War On Coal” and that those jobs just aren’t coming back. So if the regulations aren’t bringing jobs back, what could possibly be the reason for repealing this regulation except to save corporations a couple bucks?

While the nation is caught fuming over racist and bigoted moves by the White House, Republican representatives are using the shadows to again muddy the nation’s water with absolutely unnecessary waste. It’s times like this when Democrats — and really anyone who would prefer streams and rivers not look like poop — must rise to the occasion and call out this legislative, well, crap.

[Eric the Green]

Thanks to Republicans, we don't have equal access to the internet. Big companies can gobble up all the bandwidth.

FCC rescinds claim that AT&T and Verizon violated net neutrality
Republican Ajit Pai halts Wheeler's net neutrality investigation of zero-rating.

JON BRODKIN - 2/3/2017, 12:44 PM
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2017...eutrality/

The Federal Communications Commission's new Republican leadership has rescinded a determination that AT&T and Verizon Wireless violated net neutrality rules with paid data cap exemptions. The FCC also rescinded several other Wheeler-era reports and actions.

The FCC released its report on the data cap exemptions (aka "zero-rating") in the final days of Democrat Tom Wheeler's chairmanship. Because new Chairman Ajit Pai opposed the investigation, the FCC has now formally closed the proceeding.

The FCC issued an order that "sets aside and rescinds" the Wheeler-era report on zero-rating. All "guidance, determinations, and conclusions" from that report are rescinded, and it will have no legal bearing on FCC proceedings going forward, the order said.

AT&T and Verizon allow their own video services (DirecTV and Go90, respectively) to stream on their mobile networks without counting against customers' data caps, while charging other video providers for the same data cap exemptions. The FCC under Wheeler determined that AT&T and Verizon unreasonably interfered with online video providers' ability to compete against the carriers' video services, as we've previously reported. If Democrats had maintained control of the FCC, the commission could have tried to punish the carriers and force them to stop the offending behavior.

The FCC also examined T-Mobile's zero-rating but determined that it isn't anti-net neutrality because T-Mobile offers data cap exemptions to third parties free of charge and "provides little streaming video programming of its own," giving it less incentive to disadvantage video companies that need to use the T-Mobile network.

The net neutrality rules passed under Wheeler don't ban data cap exemptions, but the FCC evaluates zero-rating on a case-by-case basis to determine whether specific implementations harm consumers or competitors.

Pai opposed Wheeler's zero-rating investigation, saying that free data offerings are "popular among consumers precisely because they allow more access to online music, videos, and other content free of charge." He has also vowed to overturn the FCC's net neutrality rules and hasn't committed to enforcing them while they remain in place.

"While this is just a first step, these companies, and others, can now safely invest in and introduce highly popular products and services without fear of commission intervention based on newly invented legal theories," Republican FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly said today.

Separately, the FCC today also rescinded a set of recommendations for boosting broadband infrastructure that was issued in Wheeler's final days. Among other things, the FCC also rescinded a notice of inquiry in a proceeding on 5G wireless network and device security; rescinded a white paper on cybersecurity risk reduction; revoked the designation of nine companies as Lifeline broadband providers; and rescinded a report on modernization of the E-rate program.

Mignon Clyburn, the commission's only remaining Democrat, called today's actions a "take out the trash day" and "Friday news dump."

"Today, multiple bureaus retract—without a shred of explanation—several items released under the previous administration that focus on competition, consumer protection, cybersecurity and other issues core to the FCC’s mission," Clyburn said.

Clyburn pointed out that Pai was previously critical of the FCC "for not providing sufficient reasoning behind its decisions."

“My office requested more than the allotted two days to review the dozen items released today. We were rebuffed," Clyburn said. "Then, we simply asked to have the bureaus comply with the reasoned decision-making requirements of the APA [Administrative Procedure Act]. No deal. It is disappointing to see this chairman engage in the same actions for which he criticized the prior chairman."

Pai issued a statement of his own, saying the FCC's previous leadership "released a series of controversial orders and reports" during "the waning days" of the Obama administration.

"In some cases, commissioners were given no advance notice whatsoever of these midnight regulations," Pai said. "In other cases, they were issued over the objection of two of the four commissioners. And in all cases, their release ran contrary to the wishes expressed by the leadership of our congressional oversight committees. These last-minute actions, which did not enjoy the support of the majority of commissioners at the time they were taken, should not bind us going forward. Accordingly, they are being revoked.”

Yesterday, Pai announced a new initiative to publicly release the text of rulemakings before they are voted on, something he unsuccessfully pushed Wheeler to do.

FURTHER READING
Tom Wheeler accuses AT&T and Verizon of violating net neutrality
The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau sent letters to AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile USA notifying the carriers "that the Bureau has closed this inquiry. Any conclusions, preliminary or otherwise, expressed during the course of the inquiry will have no legal or other meaning or effect going forward." The FCC's Wireline Competition Bureau also sent a letter to Comcast closing an inquiry into the company's Stream TV cable service, which does not count against data caps.

[Classic-Xer]

(02-03-2017, 03:20 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 01:27 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 12:54 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: This is what Republicans do. They uphold corruption. They do everything wrong. They need to be stopped; period.

From my email:

America just witnessed a sitting U.S. Governor overturn the results of a free and fair election.
South Dakota's governor and legislature brazenly repealed the Anti-Corruption Act voters passed just 3 months ago. It's unconscionable. South Dakotans are outraged. So is America.
The fight in South Dakota isn't over.
We're going to fight tooth and nail for the rest of this legislative session to hold politicians accountable and fight to get every provision of the Anti-Corruption Act put back in place, because that is what South Dakotans deserve.
Thanks to your support, we were able to wage an incredibly tough campaign:

South Dakota politicians weren't expecting the hundreds of phone calls, thousands of emails, scrutiny from national media, or angry protesters filling the Capitol. Our campaign was effective. It rattled them so much, they're scrambling to appease angry voters. They just introduced ten new "replacement" bills – but most are riddled with lobbyist-friendly loopholes, and there's absolutely no guarantee politicians will even bring them to a vote.
It's not good enough.
They want us to go away. That's not happening. We're gearing up for the political fight of our lives during the next 6 weeks, as we work together to restore every single provision of the Anti-Corruption Act. We proved that comprehensive anti-corruption reform is incredibly popular among conservatives, independents and progressives. We also learned how far establishment politicians are willing to go to protect the corrupt status quo.
Don't forget, when the people pass laws that upend business as usual, the establishment will always fight back. But they can't stop a movement. We're in this fight for the long haul – state by state, city by city, until we have a government that truly represents the people.
This is only the beginning of our national fight. We're already gearing up for a massive push across the country in 2018 and beyond. Together, with your help, we're building a movement so powerful that no political establishment can stand in our way.
Thank you for being a part of that movement.

Your broad brush has been improperly maintained and cleaned and now it reeks.

Give the partisan, vile stereotypes a rest man!

What Republicans actually do is not a "stereotype." It's what they do. And what they do, is vile; as this obviously-vile action more than proves. It's time now to RAMP UP the opposition to them to as high a fever pitch as possible.

Mr. X, I am opposed to what Republicans do. Not because they are "Republicans." But because of what they always DO. These are not your grandfather's Republicans. It is what today's Republicans do. Learn it, get used to it.

My Grandfather Meece was a staunch Republican from Indiana. He would be rolling in his grave too.

And if you think Republicans don't control South Dakota's government, I've got some land on the Moon to sell you. And after that, some land on Titan.

And DINOs (Democrats in Name Only) beware too; the people are coming fer ya.

What Eric does is not a "stereotype" either.

[Eric the Green]

More of what Republicans DO. They allow corruption to ruin our economy.

Trump Moves to Roll Back Obama-Era Financial Regulations
By BEN PROTESS and JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS FEB. 3, 2017
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/03/busin...tions.html

President Trump on Friday moved to roll back the Obama administration’s legacy on financial regulation, announcing a series of steps to revisit the rules enacted after the 2008 financial crisis while taking policy advice from the Wall Street titans he had demonized during his campaign.

After a White House meeting with the executives, Mr. Trump signed a directive calling for his administration to identify potential changes to provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act, crafted by the Obama administration and passed by Congress in response to the 2008 meltdown. A second directive he signed is expected to temporarily halt and eventually overhaul an Obama-era Labor Department rule that requires brokers to act in a client’s best interest, rather than seek the highest profits for themselves, when providing retirement advice.

Taken together, the actions constitute a broad effort to loosen regulations on banks and other major financial companies, put into motion by a president who campaigned as a champion of working Americans and a critic of Wall Street elites. On Friday, Mr. Trump said his actions were intended to help both Wall Street and workers as his administration eases constraints on banks and enables them to lend to companies, which could then hire more workers.

“We expect to be cutting a lot out of Dodd-Frank because frankly, I have so many people, friends of mine that had nice businesses, they can’t borrow money,” Mr. Trump said in the State Dining Room during his meeting with business leaders. “They just can’t get any money because the banks just won’t let them borrow it because of the rules and regulations in Dodd-Frank.”

Fiduciary Rule Is Now in Question. What’s Next for Investors. FEB. 3, 2017

Dodd-Frank’s Bankruptcy Provision Could Be a Trump Target FEB. 2, 2017

Republicans’ Paths to Unraveling the Dodd-Frank Act JAN. 30, 2017

Trump Vows to Dismantle Dodd-Frank ‘Disaster’ JAN. 30, 2017

RECENT COMMENTS:
"Trump Moves to Roll Back Obama-Era Financial Regulations"Of course he does. This is the Republican playbook: Move in, wreck everything,...

The executive order impacting Dodd-Frank is vague in its wording and broad in its reach; it never mentions the Dodd-Frank law, instead laying out “core principles” for regulating the financial system, including empowering American investors and enhancing the competitiveness of American companies. But it amounts to a broad grant of authority to the Treasury Department to find ways of restructuring major provisions of Dodd-Frank, directing the secretary to conduct a sweeping review of existing laws and make sure they align with the administration’s goals.

Mr. Trump’s action on the fiduciary rule will have a more immediate impact. His memorandum directs the Department of Labor to delay for at least 180 days implementing the parts of the regulation that are not yet in effect, and to review whether it may “adversely affect” investors’ ability to access financial advice. Ultimately, he authorized the labor department to rescind or revise the rule.

As he announced his goals on financial deregulation, Mr. Trump sat beside Stephen A. Schwarzman, the chief executive of the private equity giant the Blackstone Group and the chairman of his business council, who said the panel would “advise the government on the areas where we could do things a lot better in our country, for all Americans.”

The president had praise for Jamie Dimon, whose bank, JPMorgan Chase, was often a target of regulatory actions by the Obama administration.

“There’s nobody better to tell me about Dodd-Frank than Jamie, so you’re going to tell me about it,” Mr. Trump said.

The meeting underscored the degree to which the architects of Mr. Trump’s economic strategy are now some of the people he denounced in his campaign, which ended with a commercial that described “a global power structure that is responsible for the economic decisions that have robbed our working class, stripped our country of its wealth and put that money into the pockets of a handful of large corporations.”

The advertisement included an image of the chief executive of Goldman Sachs, which has become a virtual feeder for top Trump administration officials. Steven Mnuchin, his nominee for Treasury secretary, is a former Goldman Sachs trader and a hedge fund manager. Gary Cohn, the chairman of his national economic council, was Goldman’s No. 2 executive, and Stephen K. Bannon, Mr. Trump’s chief strategist, is a former Goldman banker.

The president’s actions came just hours after congressional Republicans voted to repeal an unrelated Dodd-Frank rule, a sign that Mr. Trump will have the support he needs on Capitol Hill to upend a law he has called “a disaster,” and promised to do “a big number” to reshape.

While the president cannot unwind Dodd-Frank with the stroke of a pen, his orders set the tone for the regulatory agencies enforcing the rules, including the Securities and Exchange Commission. And the orders, which Democrats and consumer groups immediately denounced as gifts to the Wall Street companies that ignited the 2008 crisis, could portend even more executive actions that direct the regulators to halt financial regulation.

The actions are the latest sign that Mr. Trump, despite striking a populist tone during the campaign, is working to accommodate Wall Street and other corporations.

“The administration apparently plans to turn over financial regulation to Wall Street titan Goldman Sachs, and make it easier for them and other big banks like Wells Fargo to steal from their customers and destabilize the economy,” said Lisa Donner, executive director of Americans for Financial Reform, an advocacy group that supports Dodd-Frank. “That betrays the promises Trump made to stand up to Wall Street, and it will have dire consequences if he’s successful.”

The president’s deference to the visiting executives — he also heaped praise on Laurence D. Fink, the head of the investment firm BlackRock, for managing money for the Trumps and earning “great returns” — sharply contrasts with his predecessor. President Barack Obama once remarked that “I did not run for office to be helping out a bunch of fat cat bankers on Wall Street.”

President Obama signed the Dodd-Frank financial reform law on July 21, 2010. Credit Doug Mills/The New York Times
Following the new president’s lead, congressional Republicans on Friday started chipping away at Dodd-Frank, one of Mr. Obama’s signature achievements. The Republicans used an unusual parliamentary procedure to repeal a rule that stems from the law with only a majority of votes rather than the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster.

The Senate voted 52 to 47 to void the rule, which requires oil companies to publicly disclose payments they make to governments when developing resources around the world. The rule, which Dodd-Frank assigned to the Securities and Exchange Commission to enforce, was tangential to Dodd-Frank’s mission of reforming Wall Street, but lawmakers included it anyway with the hope of exposing bribes and corruption.

Some of the largest American oil companies objected to the S.E.C. rule, including Exxon Mobil, arguing that it put them at a competitive disadvantage with foreign companies. Rex W. Tillerson, Mr. Trump’s secretary of state, personally lobbied against it when he was the top executive of Exxon Mobil, according to public accounts.

“Big Oil might have won the battle today, but I’m not done fighting the war against entrenched corruption that harms the American people’s interests and leaves the world’s poor trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty while their leaders prosper,” said Senator Benjamin L. Cardin of Maryland, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, who along with former Senator Richard Lugar, a Republican, sponsored the amendment in Dodd-Frank requiring the S.E.C. to write the oil disclosure rule.

Friday’s Senate vote, which came after the House voted to repeal the rule, was the congressional Republicans’ opening salvo on Dodd-Frank. As long as President Obama was in power, Republicans had limited ability to attack Dodd-Frank, which was enacted in 2010. In 2014, they managed to gut a financial derivatives rule as part of broader spending bill, but other tweaks have been relatively modest.

Now emboldened, House Republicans are also moving legislation to “repeal and replace” Dodd-Frank, though they would need 60 votes to accomplish that. And they are considering potential ways to use the budget process to defund some aspects of the law, all of which comes on top of the president’s executive actions.

Wall Street is expected to lobby Mr. Trump’s financial regulators, at the S.E.C. and elsewhere, to modify rules and enforce them lightly. This effort could drag on for years.

President Trump, however, wasted no time declaring war on Dodd-Frank. After calling the law “a disaster” on Monday, the president on Friday signed the directive instructing the Treasury Department and financial regulators to construct plans to revise Dodd-Frank. An order like that could empower the regulators to tweak the rules.

But there is a limit to what the regulators can do. Dodd-Frank is still the law, and it requires the regulators to enforce hundreds of Dodd-Frank rules. Under administrative law, the regulators must also formally propose any new rules and seek public comment.

The Trump administration may have an easier time voiding the Obama-era Labor Department rule requiring brokers to act in a client’s best interest when providing retirement advice. That rule is not explicitly part of Dodd-Frank.

“President Trump’s action will make it harder for American savers to keep more of what they earn,” Senator Sherrod Brown, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee, said in a statement. “Families who are struggling to save and invest for a secure retirement now have to worry that financial institutions aren’t putting their customers’ interest first.”

With the oil company disclosure rule, Republicans started smaller, using an obscure law to undo it.

Under the Congressional Review Act of 1996, Congress has at least 60 days to introduce legislation disapproving major new regulations — and can ultimately repeal these regulations with only 51 Senate votes, rather than the normal 60 needed to overcome a filibuster.

The Congressional Review Act offers Republicans a narrow window to act on a dozen or so Dodd-Frank rules that were recently completed. Republicans may target a financial derivatives rule adopted last year by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, a Consumer Financial Protection Bureau rule for prepaid debit cards and a rule approved by banking regulators that imposed capital requirements for banks that trade derivatives.

Until now, this tactic has led to a repeal measure being signed into law only once, in 2001, when Republicans and President George W. Bush wiped out workplace safety regulations adopted near the end of President Bill Clinton’s administration.

The Congressional Research Service has determined that rules sent to Congress on or after June 13 of last year are vulnerable to repeal under the Congressional Review Act. The S.E.C. rule just missed that cutoff; it became final on June 27, making it fair game for Republicans to repeal, over the objections of antipoverty groups like Oxfam and the One Campaign, co-founded by Bono, the lead singer of U2.

“If President Trump is serious about his promise to ‘drain the swamp’ and protect American security, he will veto this dangerous bill immediately,” Isabel Munilla, an Oxfam official, said in a statement.

The president is expected to sign the bill.

[Eric the Green]

(02-03-2017, 04:28 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: What Eric does is not a "stereotype" either.

And what you do is support corruption and pollution

[Classic-Xer]

(02-03-2017, 04:30 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:28 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: What Eric does is not a "stereotype" either.

And what you do is support corruption and pollution

Actually, I don't support either one. I didn't support the life long public servant/politician who some how or anther became a multi-millionaire like you. I voted for the financially independent billionaire who promised to drain the swamp. Of coarse, he will need a super majority to fully accomplish that task. How long do you think it's going to be before your side finds it's being sued to death? How many so-called Greens like yourself voted for Hilary in California?

[Eric the Green]

(02-03-2017, 05:13 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:30 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:28 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: What Eric does is not a "stereotype" either.

And what you do is support corruption and pollution

Actually, I don't support either one. I didn't support the life long public servant/politician who some how or anther became a multi-millionaire like you. I voted for the financially independent billionaire who promised to drain the swamp. Of coarse, he will need a super majority to fully accomplish that task. How long do you think it's going to be before your side finds it's being sued to death? How many so-called Greens like yourself voted for Hilary in California?

Trump and Republicans support pollution, and he and Republicans support corruption. You supported these guys; you support what they are doing, including how Trump has filled the "swamp" with ravenous alligators.

[Eric the Green]

What Republicans do, and Democrats consent to. Why wasn't this filibustered?

Senate Votes To Kill Dodd Frank Anti-Corruption Rule
The rule was aimed at curbing corruption at big oil, gas and mining companies.

By Lisa Lambert and Sarah N. Lynch
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/sena...5bimcgnwmi

WASHINGTON, Feb 3 (Reuters) - The Republican-led Congress killed a controversial U.S. securities disclosure rule early on Friday aimed at curbing corruption at big oil, gas and mining companies.

In a 52 to 47 vote, the Senate approved a resolution already passed by the House of Representatives that wipes from the books a rule requiring companies such as Exxon Mobil and Chevron Corp to publicly state the taxes and other fees they pay to foreign governments.

Republican President Donald Trump is expected to sign it shortly.

Exxon and other major energy corporations have fought for years to prevent the rule, required by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law, from seeing the light of day.

After a series of legal battles, the Securities and Exchange Commission in June 2016 completed the regulation, which supporters say can help expose questionable financial ties U.S. companies may have with foreign governments.

Democrats in the Senate had raised concerns during debate late on Wednesday that Exxon’s chief executive during those legal fights was Rex Tillerson, recently confirmed as Secretary of State, the country’s top diplomatic post.

Tillerson, who has done extensive business in Russia, had raised Democrats’ hackles at his confirmation hearing by saying he did not know Exxon had lobbied against U.S. sanctions on Russia.

“It should be lost on no one that in less than 48 hours, the Republican-controlled Senate has confirmed the former head of ExxonMobil to serve as our Secretary of State, and repealed a key anti-corruption rule that ExxonMobil and the American Petroleum Institute have erroneously fought for years,” said Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland, the senior Democrat on the foreign relations committee.

Cardin had written the Dodd-Frank section on the payments with former Senator Richard Lugar, a Republican. (Editing by Bernadette Baum)


AND THERE'S MORE:

Breaking News from Newsmax.com

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday that will direct the Treasury secretary to review the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial overhaul enacted in response to the 2008 financial crisis, a law Trump has called a “disaster.” In another early step at scaling back regulations on financial services, Trump also signed a presidential memorandum to delay implementing an Obama-era rule that requires commission-based advisers on retirement accounts to put their clients’ best interests first.

[Marypoza]

(02-04-2017, 12:37 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: What Republicans do, and Democrats consent to. Why wasn't this filibustered?

Senate Votes To Kill Dodd Frank Anti-Corruption Rule
The rule was aimed at curbing corruption at big oil, gas and mining companies.

By Lisa Lambert and Sarah N. Lynch
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/sena...5bimcgnwmi

WASHINGTON, Feb 3 (Reuters) - The Republican-led Congress killed a controversial U.S. securities disclosure rule early on Friday aimed at curbing corruption at big oil, gas and mining companies.

In a 52 to 47 vote, the Senate approved a resolution already passed by the House of Representatives that wipes from the books a rule requiring companies such as Exxon Mobil and Chevron Corp to publicly state the taxes and other fees they pay to foreign governments.

Republican President Donald Trump is expected to sign it shortly.

Exxon and other major energy corporations have fought for years to prevent the rule, required by the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law, from seeing the light of day.

After a series of legal battles, the Securities and Exchange Commission in June 2016 completed the regulation, which supporters say can help expose questionable financial ties U.S. companies may have with foreign governments.

Democrats in the Senate had raised concerns during debate late on Wednesday that Exxon’s chief executive during those legal fights was Rex Tillerson, recently confirmed as Secretary of State, the country’s top diplomatic post.

Tillerson, who has done extensive business in Russia, had raised Democrats’ hackles at his confirmation hearing by saying he did not know Exxon had lobbied against U.S. sanctions on Russia.

“It should be lost on no one that in less than 48 hours, the Republican-controlled Senate has confirmed the former head of ExxonMobil to serve as our Secretary of State, and repealed a key anti-corruption rule that ExxonMobil and the American Petroleum Institute have erroneously fought for years,” said Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland, the senior Democrat on the foreign relations committee.

Cardin had written the Dodd-Frank section on the payments with former Senator Richard Lugar, a Republican. (Editing by Bernadette Baum)


AND THERE'S MORE:

Breaking News from Newsmax.com

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday that will direct the Treasury secretary to review the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial overhaul enacted in response to the 2008 financial crisis, a law Trump has called a “disaster.” In another early step at scaling back regulations on financial services, Trump also signed a presidential memorandum to delay implementing an Obama-era rule that requires commission-based advisers on retirement accounts to put their clients’ best interests first.

-- l thought you didn't do right wing sites (Newsmax) Eric

[Eric the Green]

They report the news well, as you can see. I don't delve into their right-wing propaganda.

[pbrower2a]

(02-03-2017, 05:13 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:30 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:28 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: What Eric does is not a "stereotype" either.

And what you do is support corruption and pollution

Actually, I don't support either one. I didn't support the life long public servant/politician who some how or anther became a multi-millionaire like you. I voted for the financially independent billionaire who promised to drain the swamp. Of coarse, he will need a super majority to fully accomplish that task. How long do you think it's going to be before your side finds it's being sued to death? How many so-called Greens like yourself voted for Hilary in California?

Donald Trump did not run on a platform of ravaging the environment or promoting financial corruption. Neither did he say that he would gut public education. But he has quickly aligned with people who act as if no human suffering is in excess so long as they get what they want.  We should have gotten a hint that he was bad news with his calls for violence, his ugly bigotry, and his "grab (women) by their pu$$ies".

The most rapacious plutocrats are not our benefactors; they are our exploiters. Military contractors should not be setting foreign policy; oil companies should not be setting energy policy; financial hustlers should not be allowed to determine how America does finance; mining companies should not be setting environmental policy. Donald Trump's policies are akin to letting pornographers determine the sexual mores of us all.

Four years from now we will be asking ourselves how we could have done to ourselves so much harm by electing Donald Trump, who offered vague promises of prosperity so long as we do not ask how we were to get it and who would reap the benefits. He has shown himself a cruel man, and I expect no trace of human decency in his economic policies. 

When we get through this mess we will need to make major political changes, shoring up the Constitution against corporate power and ruthless operatives -- and lengthening the norm of education so that American adults can be less gullible when a demagogue, Left or Right, offers vague promises of safety and plenty so long as we do not ask any troublesome questions.

[Marypoza]

(02-07-2017, 03:04 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-04-2017, 08:19 PM)pbrower2a Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 05:13 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:30 PM)Eric the Green Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:28 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote: What Eric does is not a "stereotype" either.

And what you do is support corruption and pollution

Actually, I don't support either one. I didn't support the life long public servant/politician who some how or anther became a multi-millionaire like you. I voted for the financially independent billionaire who promised to drain the swamp. Of coarse, he will need a super majority to fully accomplish that task. How long do you think it's going to be before your side finds it's being sued to death? How many so-called Greens like yourself voted for Hilary in California?

Donald Trump did not run on a platform of ravaging the environment or promoting financial corruption. Neither did he say that he would gut public education. But he has quickly aligned with people who act as if no human suffering is in excess so long as they get what they want.  We should have gotten a hint that he was bad news with his calls for violence, his ugly bigotry, and his "grab (women) by their pu$$ies".

The most rapacious plutocrats are not our benefactors; they are our exploiters. Military contractors should not be setting foreign policy; oil companies should not be setting energy policy; financial hustlers should not be allowed to determine how America does finance; mining companies should not be setting environmental policy. Donald Trump's policies are akin to letting pornographers determine the sexual mores of us all.

Four years from now we will be asking ourselves how we could have done to ourselves so much harm by electing Donald Trump, who offered vague promises of prosperity so long as we do not ask how we were to get it and who would reap the benefits. He has shown himself a cruel man, and I expect no trace of human decency in his economic policies. 

When we get through this mess we will need to make major political changes, shoring up the Constitution against corporate power and ruthless operatives -- and lengthening the norm of education so that American adults can be less gullible when a demagogue, Left or Right, offers vague promises of safety and plenty so long as we do not ask any troublesome questions.

When Citizens United was decided I was initially quite happy to see it. However, since then, I have come to despise that outcome. Among other things it allowed unions to become unlimited political syndicates, it allowed false front "corporations" to bundle foreign money and as many on the Left continue to argue, it gave actual corporations status as people. Here's the deal about giving a corporation status as a person vis a vis US politics. You want to be considered a legitimate person? Then you need to be an actual US entity. How many corporations are US entities any more? Talk about bundling foreign money and allowing interests potentially inimical to the US to have a voice in electoral processes and lobbying.

Citizens United has turned out to be a disaster. It is exactly the sort of thing George Washington feared. He we are. Where is the George Washington of the 21st Century?

--- the DNC sabotaged his campaign last yr 

He's still raising hell in the Senate however

[Eric the Green]

(02-07-2017, 04:04 PM)Marypoza Wrote:

(02-07-2017, 03:04 PM)X_4AD_84 Wrote:

(02-04-2017, 08:19 PM)pbrower2a Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 05:13 PM)Classic-Xer Wrote:

(02-03-2017, 04:30 PM)Eric the Green Wrote: And what you do is support corruption and pollution

Actually, I don't support either one. I didn't support the life long public servant/politician who some how or anther became a multi-millionaire like you. I voted for the financially independent billionaire who promised to drain the swamp. Of coarse, he will need a super majority to fully accomplish that task. How long do you think it's going to be before your side finds it's being sued to death? How many so-called Greens like yourself voted for Hilary in California?

Donald Trump did not run on a platform of ravaging the environment or promoting financial corruption. Neither did he say that he would gut public education. But he has quickly aligned with people who act as if no human suffering is in excess so long as they get what they want.  We should have gotten a hint that he was bad news with his calls for violence, his ugly bigotry, and his "grab (women) by their pu$$ies".

The most rapacious plutocrats are not our benefactors; they are our exploiters. Military contractors should not be setting foreign policy; oil companies should not be setting energy policy; financial hustlers should not be allowed to determine how America does finance; mining companies should not be setting environmental policy. Donald Trump's policies are akin to letting pornographers determine the sexual mores of us all.

Four years from now we will be asking ourselves how we could have done to ourselves so much harm by electing Donald Trump, who offered vague promises of prosperity so long as we do not ask how we were to get it and who would reap the benefits. He has shown himself a cruel man, and I expect no trace of human decency in his economic policies. 

When we get through this mess we will need to make major political changes, shoring up the Constitution against corporate power and ruthless operatives -- and lengthening the norm of education so that American adults can be less gullible when a demagogue, Left or Right, offers vague promises of safety and plenty so long as we do not ask any troublesome questions.

When Citizens United was decided I was initially quite happy to see it. However, since then, I have come to despise that outcome. Among other things it allowed unions to become unlimited political syndicates, it allowed false front "corporations" to bundle foreign money and as many on the Left continue to argue, it gave actual corporations status as people. Here's the deal about giving a corporation status as a person vis a vis US politics. You want to be considered a legitimate person? Then you need to be an actual US entity. How many corporations are US entities any more? Talk about bundling foreign money and allowing interests potentially inimical to the US to have a voice in electoral processes and lobbying.

Citizens United has turned out to be a disaster. It is exactly the sort of thing George Washington feared. He we are. Where is the George Washington of the 21st Century?

--- the DNC sabotaged his campaign last yr 

Who keeps bringing it up, Mary? Hillary might also have been that leader. We'll never know.

Quote:He's still raising hell in the Senate however

He is our real leader.