(A couple days late ...)

#Politics Republican #Virginia governor Youngkin guts proposed law to protect contraception in the commonwealth.

https://www.pilotonline.com/2024/04/10/birth-control-access-bill-gutted-by-gov-youngkin-hampton-roads-delegate-says/

#Politics So much winning! From #CNN: #NewYork appellate judge once again tosses #Trump attempt to delay next week's election interference trial where evidence will be introduced that he paid off women to have sex with him.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/10/politics/trump-lawyers-appeal-hush-money-case/index.html

#Politics From #CNN: House #MAGA Republicans kill #FISA reauthorization bill after #Trump tells them on social media to vote no because, "THEY SPIED ON MY CAMPAIGN!!!"

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/10/politics/trump-fisa-speaker-johnson-house-republicans/index.html

#Politics From #NYTimes: #Arizona Republicans thwart attempts by state Democrats to repeal 1864 #Abortion ban.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/10/us/abortion-ban-arizona-democrats-repeal.html

#Politics From #AZCentral: #Arizona Republicans are scrambling to choose a side (or avoid accountability) now that 1864 #Abortion law has been imposed by the state's supreme court.

https://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/laurieroberts/2024/04/09/arizona-abortion-ruling-republican-freedom-caucus-praise/73267597007/

#Politics From #AZCentral: Two of the four #Arizona judges who imposed a Civil War-era #Abortion law on the state are up for statewide election in November.

https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2024/04/09/arizona-supreme-court-justices-clint-bolick-kathryn-h-king-up-for-reelection/73264249007/

#Politics From #NBCNews ... I think the Republicans delayed delivering the Mayorkas impeachment articles until next week because they want a stunt to distract mainstream media from covering the #Trump New York election interference trial scheduled to start on Monday. Outside of #FoxNews and similar ilk, mainstream media will focus on Trump anyway, but the GOP needs something to distract its base from the evidence that Trump paid off women to cover up his affairs.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/congress/republicans-delay-dhs-secretary-mayorkas-impeachment-trial-week-rcna147090

#Politics From #CNN: House delays sending Mayorkas impeachment articles to the Senate for a week, thinking this will somehow force the Senate into holding a public trial instead of dismissing the charges. 🤷

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/09/politics/mayorkas-impeachment-articles-house-senate/index.html

#Politics Breaking from #NYTimes: Appellate judge denies #Trump attempt to delay hush money trial scheduled to start on Monday April 15.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/09/nyregion/trump-hush-money-trial-judge.html

#Politics Today's "This Modern World" by Tom Tomorrow, posted on #DailyKos ... Tom takes multiple shots at the #NYTimes.

https://www.dailykos.com/blog/Tom%20Tomorrow/

#Politics From #NYTimes Special Counsel Jack Smith asked #SCOTUS today to reject #Trump claim he's immune from prosecution. The case will be heard on April 25.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/08/us/supreme-court-trump-immunity-jan-6.html

#Politics "Liberal actors are functionally illiterate."

I'm waiting for a ballgame to begin, which is why I'm listening to this livestream, but good lord it's easy to see how people addicted to this garbage get poisoned by it.

#Politics "Trans actors should be banned from playing trans people because acting means playing something you're not."

Good lord, this talk show host is an a**hole.

"We're taught that white people are evil but black people are not."

#Politics "We live in a culture that denies the difference between men and women." 🙄

#Politics This Alabama radio station talk show host is now calling IVF "a grave evil," says it's "purchasing children."

#Politics And then there was the evening with a Trumper relative who claimed that "electric vehicles are a scam," that "there's plenty of oil and coal," and "government shouldn't pass laws choosing one side over the other, the market should decide."

I learned long ago not to take the bait.

#Politics Just came back from ten days in California, meaning I was exposed to #Trump conspiracy theories while I travelled.

I overheard a Trumper claim that #California had passed an "exit tax." He claimed that, to move out of California, one must pay a tax.

Turns out there *is* such a tax, but it only applies to individuals who make $30 million+/year. Even so, you pay only 0.4% on the amount *over* $30 million.

If you make $50 million, your tax would be $80,000.

https://www.luxuryrealestate.com/blog/2024/02/13/21239-understanding-ca-exit-tax

#Politics Listening to a livestream feed from an Alabama radio station. They claim that African-Americans will vote en masse for #Trump in November because "Democrats are about to ban menthol cigarettes."

(Which would be a pretty neat trick with Republicans in the House majority.)

Turns out the truth is that nation's oldest group representing Black physicians just sued the FDA because the agency had *not* banned menthol cigarettes.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/04/02/health/menthol-tobacco-fda-lawsuit/index.html

#Politics From #WaPo:

Special counsel Jack Smith rebukes judge Aileen Cannon in #Trump classified document case, saying he'll appeal to a higher court if she rules that Trump can reclassify secret documents as his personal property.

https://wapo.st/4ajppg8

#Politics #Abortion From #Arizona Mirror: Reproductive rights ballot initiative has gathered enough signatures to qualify for the November ballot, pending signature review.

https://azmirror.com/2024/04/02/backers-of-ballot-measure-to-guarantee-abortion-rights-say-theyve-collected-500000-signatures/