American Politics Thread V: We're Just Biden Our Time ...

[Great Algerstonia]

You'll be surprised- there was Axis activity outside of Europe. Ignoring the Japanese invading East Asia, did you know that the Germans secretly set up a weather station in a Canadian island that wasn't discovered until the 1980s?

No. But the amount of World War 2 trivia I DON'T know would fill in the Pacific.

Yeah, the Japanese in China, that's a fair point.

yup! There was Axis activity in atleast 5/7 continents. The weather station in Canada, the various campaigns of Europe, the Mediterranean Front in North Africa and the Allied invasion of Italian Ethiopia, the Greater East-Asia Co Prosperity Sphere activity in eastern China, Indochina, sliver of eastern India, and Indonesia, and the attempted invasion of Oceania Papua (if you consider Papua to be part of Oceania).

[The Derpy Democratic Republic Of Herp]

You'll be surprised- there was Axis activity outside of Europe. Ignoring the Japanese invading East Asia, did you know that the Germans secretly set up a weather station in a Canadian island that wasn't discovered until the 1980s?

No. But the amount of World War 2 trivia I DON'T know would fill in the Pacific.

Yeah, the Japanese in China, that's a fair point.

Yeah uh, China was a major ally for the Allys and blead a lot to fight against fascism.

[Great Algerstonia]

No. But the amount of World War 2 trivia I DON'T know would fill in the Pacific.

Yeah, the Japanese in China, that's a fair point.

Yeah uh, China was a major ally for the Allys and blead a lot to fight against fascism.

A lot of atrocities were committed against the Chinese by the Japanese. The Japanese were among the darkest times for China. The warlords, Kuomintang, and CCP didn't unite for nothing.

[Kowani]

Cyberattack forces the shutdown of a pipeline that carries almost half of the East Coast’s fuel supply

A major US fuel pipeline has been shut down after a ransomware attack on Friday, in an incident that underscores the vulnerabilities in America’s critical infrastructure.

The Colonial Pipeline — the country’s largest conduit for refined products, transporting almost half of the fuel consumed on the East Coast — remained closed on Saturday after its operator said it had fallen “victim to a cyber security attack”.

It said that the attack involved the use of ransomware — whereby hackers seize control of a victim’s computer systems or data by installing illicit software, and only release the assets once payment is made.

“In response, we proactively took certain systems offline to contain the threat, which has temporarily halted all pipeline operations, and affected some of our IT systems,” the Colonial Pipeline Company said.

The attack on the line, which spans more than 5,500 miles from Pasadena, Texas to Linden, New Jersey and New York Harbor, comes amid growing concerns about cyber security vulnerabilities in America’s critical infrastructure after last year’s SolarWinds attack. In that incident, Russian hackers gained access to the US commerce and Treasury departments, among other government agencies.

The number of ransomware attacks has exploded in recent years as criminals have used cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin to receive extortion payouts without being tracked, and have increasingly rented out their expertise to others.

While such attacks have tended to target corporate IT systems, experts warn that instances targeting operational technology (OT) — the computerised systems used to control operations — are becoming more prevalent.

“US energy infrastructure is increasingly subject to damaging cyber attacks from Russian, Chinese and other hackers, so upgrading the security of American energy systems must be central to both Biden’s infrastructure goals and political messaging,” said Paul Bledsoe, an energy expert with the Progressive Policy Institute in Washington.

It is unclear whether the attackers are criminal groups — who tend to deploy ransomware for commercial gain — or state-backed hackers.

Colonial did not say how long the suspension of operations would last, or provide further details about the nature of the attack. A spokesperson on Saturday afternoon declined to comment further.

The company said it had contracted a third-party cyber security firm to investigate the incident, and contacted law enforcement and federal agencies. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the US energy department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The pipeline system transports more than 2.5m barrels of fuel a day — more than the UK’s entire daily consumption — feeding markets such as Atlanta, Washington and New York with gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and home heating oil refined on the Gulf coast. Much of the network was shut down in 2017 after tropical storm Harvey. Part of the conduit was also taken offline in 2016 after a leak was discovered.

Gasoline and diesel futures edged slightly higher on Friday. Analysts said there was potential for greater volatility when trading restarted on Sunday night if the pipeline was not quickly brought back online.

“For now, with a limited time shutdown, this shouldn’t be much of an issue and shouldn’t impact prices,” said Patrick de Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, a data provider.

“However, if for some reason the pipeline can’t be started in the next day or two, we could see prices drift higher. A bit early to tell, but right now leaning on this not being a price event or supply disruption.”

Analysts said fuel supplies in the north-east were less at risk in case of a prolonged shutdown as they could be supplemented by imports. But coastal states from Georgia up to the Delaware-Maryland-Virginia Peninsula were at greater risk of disruption.

“One clear worry has to do with news flow,” said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis at Opis, a division of IHS Markit. “A cyber attack on the country’s most vital pipeline will be a headline story through Monday. It could promote a spike in consumer purchases of gasoline in the areas served by the line.”

Joe Biden has proposed a $2tn package to reboot America’s ailing infrastructure, but the plan makes no mention of pipeline infrastructure — a flashpoint for protests by environmental activists.

Ben Sasse, a republican senator from Nebraska, who sits on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence said the Colonial attack made clear that the infrastructure package should prioritise “critical sectors” such as fossil fuel transportation “rather than progressive wishlists masquerading as infrastructure”.

“This is a play that will be run again, and we’re not adequately prepared,” he said.

[Postauthoritarian America]

Here's how Texas Republicans were able to shove through their bill restricting the rights of non-Republicans to vote

The Texas Senate on [Jan. 12, 2021] approved a fundamental alteration of its rules, ending the minority party’s ability to block legislation it unanimously opposes in the Republican-controlled upper chamber.

In a 18-13 vote, lawmakers voted to lower the threshold of support that legislation needs to make it onto the Senate floor. In past sessions, the Senate required a three-fifths supermajority, or 19 votes, to bring legislation to the floor. But after the defeat of Sen. Pete Flores, R-Pleasanton, reduced the number of Republicans from 19 to 18, lawmakers lowered the threshold to 18 members — a move Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick had been pushing for.

Passage of the rule required a simple majority — or 16 members. State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, tweeted that the resolution passed on a party-line vote.

Had the rule not been changed Democrats would have been able to stop the Texas voter suppression bill cold in the state Senate.

Oh but we have to keep the filibuster in the US Senate because...why again?

Fuck that. Democrats need to start playing by the same rules Republicans play by: do anything to get the job done. It helps when you actually have a majority of the electorate on your side.

[San Lumen]

Here's how Texas Republicans were able to shove through their bill restricting the rights of non-Republicans to vote

The Texas Senate on [Jan. 12, 2021] approved a fundamental alteration of its rules, ending the minority party’s ability to block legislation it unanimously opposes in the Republican-controlled upper chamber.

In a 18-13 vote, lawmakers voted to lower the threshold of support that legislation needs to make it onto the Senate floor. In past sessions, the Senate required a three-fifths supermajority, or 19 votes, to bring legislation to the floor. But after the defeat of Sen. Pete Flores, R-Pleasanton, reduced the number of Republicans from 19 to 18, lawmakers lowered the threshold to 18 members — a move Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick had been pushing for.

Passage of the rule required a simple majority — or 16 members. State Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, tweeted that the resolution passed on a party-line vote.

Had the rule not been changed Democrats would have been able to stop the Texas voter suppression bill cold in the state Senate.

Oh but we have to keep the filibuster in the US Senate because...why again?

Fuck that. Democrats need to start playing by the same rules Republicans play by: do anything to get the job done. It helps when you actually have a majority of the electorate on your side.

Once again Republicans make it abundantly clear they don't believe in free and fair elections or democracy and believe only they have a right to govern.

[Kowani]

Trump advisor Jason Miller claims Trump will begin his rallies once more

Donald Trump isn’t running for office in 2022, but his Make America Great Again rallies are making a comeback, according to a top aide.

Senior adviser Jason Miller said Friday that Mr. Trump plans to restart his signature assemblies “as soon as late spring or early summer” as part of an effort to elect Republican candidates in the midterm election.

And not just any Republicans. Mr. Trump “has already begun to vet and endorse candidates for 2022, with an eye toward electing not just Republican candidates, but America First Republican candidates,” Mr. Miller told Axios. He confirmed the statement Saturday to the Washington Times after tweeting “yes they are” in response to a Mic headline: “Brace yourself: Trump’s MAGA rallies are coming back.”

“His endorsement lifts candidates above the pack and often clears the primary field,” Mr. Miller said. “The general election endorsement provides access to ‘Trump voters’ not normally accessible to Republicans.”

[San Lumen]

Trump advisor Jason Miller claims Trump will begin his rallies once more

Donald Trump isn’t running for office in 2022, but his Make America Great Again rallies are making a comeback, according to a top aide.

Senior adviser Jason Miller said Friday that Mr. Trump plans to restart his signature assemblies “as soon as late spring or early summer” as part of an effort to elect Republican candidates in the midterm election.

And not just any Republicans. Mr. Trump “has already begun to vet and endorse candidates for 2022, with an eye toward electing not just Republican candidates, but America First Republican candidates,” Mr. Miller told Axios. He confirmed the statement Saturday to the Washington Times after tweeting “yes they are” in response to a Mic headline: “Brace yourself: Trump’s MAGA rallies are coming back.”

“His endorsement lifts candidates above the pack and often clears the primary field,” Mr. Miller said. “The general election endorsement provides access to ‘Trump voters’ not normally accessible to Republicans.”

Maybe this will lead to another high turnout election and Democrats get off their butts to vote.

[The Derpy Democratic Republic Of Herp]

Not all of them, but the vast majority where at the very least sympathetic to the terrorists. They broke the doors down, stole shit, brought molotov and other IEDs to this ""protest"".

People died, these where terrorist and at the very least sympathetic to the cause of the terrorists.

Well if we've got to the point that you're labelling only some of the invaders as terrorists, then I guess I've made my point.

Just so we're clear, being a terrorist sympathiser is not itself a crime, OK? I think the standard is "giving aid and comfort" but saying-nice-things-about not being in that definition of "comfort". But still I'd rather this "sympathy" be handled as "committing a crime in company" as that would exclude invaders not actually in Pelosi's office, from involvement in crimes committed by those who were.

I know this is all very tiresome for you, as you just want to put a bad label on some bad people. But the label is taken, it's defined (badly) in law and you really shouldn't use such words loosely. Those bad people deserve a fair trial, and if convicted, a moderate punishment. We should always err on the side of leniency where a crime is political, because even a court cannot claim to be impartial.

Except that, it wasn't "some" it was most of them. Those who didn't steal shit or try to murder cops or plant ieds at political buildings, shouted threats to the then vice president Pence to hang him at a gallow they built.

Be lenient with those who tried to undo centuries of work and liberation from tyrants just to hand over the republic to a wannabe tyrant who only cares about himself?

No. Send them to prison for treason.

They are terrorists.

[Kowani]

Corruption cover-up, Scam PAC crackdown at the FEC

The Federal Election Commission is back in the spotlight after Republican commissioners voted to close an investigation into whether former President Donald Trump violated election law by making hush-money payments during the 2016 election.

Campaign finance watchdogs panned the decision — which went against the advice of the FEC’s top lawyer — saying it reaffirms the agency’s inability to enforce the law. The six-member FEC cannot have more than three members from the same political party, and it needs four affirmative votes to move forward with an investigation. Republican commissioners have often voted to close inquiries into alleged campaign finance violations.

Still, the FEC quietly found consensus on key issues at its Thursday meeting. The agency unanimously approved a series of legislative recommendations, calling on Congress to crack down on deceptive default recurring donations and so-called “scam PACs.” Republican commissioners shut down an investigation into Trump’s $130,000 hush-money payment to porn actress Stormy Daniels to keep her from publicly alleging an affair just before Election Day 2016.

Republican commissioners Sean Cooksey and Trey Trainor argued the case would be redundant and a waste of agency resources. The Republican commissioners said the FEC faces an extensive backlog of cases after being shut down for much of last year due to lack of quorum. They also noted that Trump’s personal attorney Michael Cohen was sentenced to prison for making the hush-money payment.

“Thus, we concluded that pursuing these matters further was not the best use of agency resources,” they said in a statement. “The Commission regularly dismisses matters where other government agencies have already adequately enforced and vindicated the Commission’s interests.”

Cohen responded Thursday, noting that while he was punished for his role in the hush-money scheme, Trump and his campaign have not suffered any consequences.

“The hush money payment was done at the direction of and for the benefit of Donald J. Trump,” Cohen said in a statement. “Like me, Trump should have been found guilty. How the FEC committee could rule any other way is confounding.”

Democratic commissioners voted to pursue the matter, but the commission fell short of the four votes needed to continue the investigation. The FEC’s Democrats noted that the FEC general counsel found that there was “reason to believe” that Trump’s campaign violated campaign finance law. The FEC’s staffers said Trump’s campaign failed to disclose the payment, which violated campaign contribution limits.

“To conclude that a payment, made 13 days before Election Day to hush up a suddenly newsworthy 10-year-old story, was not campaign-related, without so much as conducting an investigation, defies reality,” Democratic commissioners Shana Broussard and Ellen Weintraub said in a statement. “But putting that aside, Cohen testified under oath that he made the payment for the principal purpose of influencing the election.”

Common Cause, the group that filed the FEC complaint against Trump, said the Justice Department should step in after Republican commissioners closed the investigation.

“Today’s announcement that the FEC will not be holding Trump accountable for his campaign finance violations is just the latest display of dysfunction at the FEC,” Common Cause lawyer Paul S. Ryan said in a statement Thursday.

The FEC unanimously approved 14 legislative recommendations to Congress during their open meeting Thursday, including measures to take on pre-checked recurring donation boxes and “scam PACs.”

The commission said Congress should ban campaigns from using pre-checked boxes on fundraising pages that sign donors up to make monthly recurring donations. The recommendation comes after the New York Times revealed that Trump’s 2020 campaign used these pre-checked recurring donation boxes to rake in donations from unwitting supporters. Trump’s committees had to refund $122 million to donors, compared to just $21 million for President Joe Biden’s campaign, which did not use the same tactics to lure donors into making recurring contributions.

“The Commission’s experience strongly suggests that many contributors are unaware of the ‘pre-checked’ boxes and are surprised by the already completed transactions appearing on account statements,” FEC staffers wrote in the agency’s recommendation.

Top GOP party committees, the National Republican Congressional Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee, continue to use these default recurring donation boxes, as does the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

“It’s almost like theft,” commissioner Weintraub told the New York Times Thursday. “I don’t want to see donors tricked.”

Congress has mostly ignored the FEC’s recommendations in previous years. But Senate Rules Committee Chair Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) said Thursday she would introduce a bill to ban pre-checked recurring donations. The FEC’s legislative recommendations also call on Congress to change election law to stop PACs from defrauding donors. Scam PACs, known as committees that send donations to their own operatives while spending relatively little on actual political activity, are more popular than ever. Some of these groups use Trump’s name and campaign slogans to raise money.

The commission urged Congress to prohibit PAC operators from enriching themselves by using false claims in fundraising solicitations, and to give the FEC jurisdiction to investigate complaints of fraud from donors. It added that Congress should change the law to “define the fundraising practices of political committees that Congress finds to be fraudulent and to prohibit the use of those fraudulent fundraising practices.” The FEC has sent similar recommendations to Congress before, but they didn’t explicitly mention scam PACs.

The FEC explored measures to expose potential scam PACs during an open meeting last month. FEC staffers recommended adding new data categories to the agency’s website showing what percentage of a committee’s spending goes to supporting candidates and the proportion of spending going to each vendor.

[San Lumen]

https://www.vpap.org/visuals/visual/det ... onvention/

VPAP has the schedule for how the votes will counted and released in the Virginia GOP conventionThey're going to bring all the ballots to Richmond, and begin counting on 1 PM Sunday. First they'll do it for the AG race, then the LG race, then the Gubernatorial race. They'll be finished with all three races by Tuesday, unless they get ahead of schedule.

[San Lumen]

https://apnews.com/article/bo-dog-dies- ... 2c1da394e4

Former President Barack Obama’s dog Bo died Saturday after a battle with cancer.

[Indiana Controlled Florida]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

[The Rich Port]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

Not as much as Trump sucks on McDonald's hash browns.

Geddit?

[Indiana Controlled Florida]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

Not as much as Trump sucks on McDonald's hash browns.

Geddit?

Did I say Trump is amazing? No.

[North Washington Republic]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

I voted for Biden, and overall, I’m satisfied with my vote. He is spending a lot of money very quickly, which will lead to inflation, but the biggest disagreement that I have with him is his decision to withdraw from Afghanistan when his generals are telling him not to.

[San Lumen]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

Im rather satisfied with the job he's been doing.

[Seangoli]

Friendly reminder that the European Far-Right started a world war.

The American Far-Right, although surely salivating at the idea, has yet to achieve such an ambition.

Hitler only invaded Poland. That wasn't a world war, except those dopey Soviets were just going to let Hitler advance to their own border. Britain and France weren't going to let them make that mistake, so they started the misnamed "World War". Actually, Second Great European War would probably be more accurate. Anyway.

The US far-right is crazier than the (Western) European far-right, at this time. It's not a matter of how far to the right, it's a matter of how incoherent and pointless their platform is. USA USD USA!

World War II involved theaters not only in Europe, but also Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, the Americas (,Notably Hawaii, but also Alaska and Canada), andEastern Asia including Chinese-Japanese conflicts. While a large portion of this involved European across, local populations were mobilized in all of these. If that doesn't count as a World War, I don't know what would. The war encompassed far more than Europe and European interests.

[Stellar Colonies]

Twitter seems to be freaking out over this:

US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever (BBC)

U.S. birthrate falls to its lowest level in decades in wake of pandemic (Washington Post)

U.S. Birthrate Fell By 4% In 2020, Hitting Another Record Low (NPR)

[North Washington Republic]

Twitter seems to be freaking out over this:

US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever (BBC)

U.S. birthrate falls to its lowest level in decades in wake of pandemic (Washington Post)

U.S. Birthrate Fell By 4% In 2020, Hitting Another Record Low (NPR)

Right-wing Twitter may be freaking out about this. The rest of us are glad that America is contributing less to overpopulation.

I find it bizarre that the VAST majority of people flipping out about the U.S low birth rates have no children themselves.

[Major-Tom]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

I voted for Biden, and overall, I’m satisfied with my vote. He is spending a lot of money very quickly, which will lead to inflation, but the biggest disagreement that I have with him is his decision to withdraw from Afghanistan when his generals are telling him not to.

We've been there twenty years. Obama told himself he'd "stick it out" in Afghanistan on the advice of his generals, and look where that landed us. That brain trust is always going to advocate for their own interests, their primary interest being to remain on the ground in the Middle East. That interest, however, stands in contrast to the needs of the American populace.

Twitter seems to be freaking out over this:

US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever (BBC)

U.S. birthrate falls to its lowest level in decades in wake of pandemic (Washington Post)

U.S. Birthrate Fell By 4% In 2020, Hitting Another Record Low (NPR)

Right-wing Twitter may be freaking out about this. The rest of us are glad that America is contributing less to overpopulation.

I find it bizarre that the VAST majority of people flipping out about the U.S low birth rates have no children themselves.

Tough to get laid when you live on a diet of /Pol and Tucker Carlson Tonight.

[The Caleshan Valkyrie]

Biden sucks. Who agrees?

He’s doin’ fine, says I. Far better than the previous admin in even the few months he’s been in office. I don’t agree with everything he’s up to, but I’m fine with the vast majority of it.

[New haven america]

Twitter seems to be freaking out over this:

US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever (BBC)

U.S. birthrate falls to its lowest level in decades in wake of pandemic (Washington Post)

U.S. Birthrate Fell By 4% In 2020, Hitting Another Record Low (NPR)

Maybe because it's impossible buy a home and work a job to support yourself, your partner, and a child during prime child bearing age?

Just a thought.

[Washington Resistance Army]

Twitter seems to be freaking out over this:

US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever (BBC)

U.S. birthrate falls to its lowest level in decades in wake of pandemic (Washington Post)

U.S. Birthrate Fell By 4% In 2020, Hitting Another Record Low (NPR)

Right-wing Twitter may be freaking out about this. The rest of us are glad that America is contributing less to overpopulation.

I find it bizarre that the VAST majority of people flipping out about the U.S low birth rates have no children themselves.

Overpopulation isn't real. Overusage of resources and wasteful industries and lifestyles are much, much worse problems.

[Galloism]

Twitter seems to be freaking out over this:

US birth rate falls 4% to its lowest point ever (BBC)

U.S. birthrate falls to its lowest level in decades in wake of pandemic (Washington Post)

U.S. Birthrate Fell By 4% In 2020, Hitting Another Record Low (NPR)

Maybe because it's impossible buy a home and work a job to support yourself, your partner, and a child during prime child bearing age?

Just a thought.

Home prices in particular are a major obstacle. We really need to bring back the shotgun homes.