The Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos are children, and destroying them could constitute murder. So this raises a number of issues. Keeping embryos frozen is an ongoing expense, borne by the partners of those in vitro fertilizations, presumably, and forever, presumably. Will their descendants have to continue to pay the “rent” forever? What if the original partners can no longer pay? Do the embryos become wards of the state - an embryo orphanage as it were?
“You’ll get tired of winning.” So said Trump a few years ago. What, besides being granted delays in his criminal cases, has he won? Most of his hand-picked congressional and gubernatorial candidates have lost, he lost the lawsuits against Trump University and the Trump Foundation, he lost the last presidential election, he lost the defamation lawsuit - twice - and now he’s lost the NYC fraud case. Maybe his supporters should get tired of losing?
Bless their hearts. After an exhaustive investigation into Hillary Clinton’s role in the Benghazi disaster came to naught, they still said, “What about Benghazi?” when debasing her record. Now that their two star witnesses for Biden’s corruption - one who flew the coop and one who was arrested for lying to the FBI - have been neutralized, Republicans will still talk about the “Biden crime family” without any evidence. Of course they will, because that’s who they are.
All this worry about Trump’s several trials not being completed before the election misses the big picture. Let’s say at least one will be done, ending in a conviction. Well, that will be appealed. By the time all appeals have been exhausted, Trump could be president. Assuming the conviction is upheld, then what? Drag him off to prison? That’ll never happen. SCOTUS will rule that he gets to finish his term. Only that term will be indefinite, because he’ll refuse to leave. Gotta beat him in Nov.!
Trump disparaged McCain”s service record and insulted a Gold Star family. He called soldiers who died defending our country losers. He says he’ll encourage Putin to attack any NATO country that does not fulfill its financial obligation to that alliance. And yet the majority of the military and veterans vote for him. What’s wrong with this picture? Trump saying these things is scary enough. But millions of Americans who apparently agree with him boggles my mind.
Could Biden have made a worse choice for Attorney General? Well, sure. But the choice he did make has only hurt him. Delaying the Jan. 6 investigation, delaying the retrieval of classified documents from Trump’s clutches, and now allowing a biased, inappropriate assessment of Biden’s capabilities by the right-wing Special Prosecutor in Biden’s classified documents case. Shades of Comey’s inappropriate assessment of Hillary Clinton in 2016 that helped doom her candidacy.
Remember when Republicans were outraged a few years ago when quarterback Kaepernick took a knee during the Star-Spangled Banner before the game? They were going to boycott the NFL! How did that work out? Now they are outraged again by Taylor Swift. Because the Super Bowl has been rigged so that she can endorse President Biden at half time, they say. So are they gonna boycott the Super Bowl? Be my guest.
I have my doubts that SCOTUS will take up this civil case, so Trump has only the Court of Appeals standing in the way of forcing him to pay E. Jean Carroll the 90 mil he owes her from the two lawsuits. But that will take an eternity. Hey, maybe Trump will not outlive Carroll, and Don Jr. will have to pay the verdicts from his inheritance.
#politics Despite the efforts of Republican legislatures across the country to rig the 2024 election in their favor - purging voter roles, eliminating polling places, banning drop boxes, etc., the Dems could still win. But wait, no, they can only win if they steal the election! Trump, Stefanik, and other Republican voices have already said, in effect, they would only recognize the winner if it was a Republican. Classic heads I win, tails, you lose.
It’s been three years of months of delays, appeals, etc. We’ve even gotten convictions, most recently of Peter Navarro today. But more appeals continue. As of yet, no White House/Trump insider has spent a single night in prison. Will it ever happen? I have my doubts. Meanwhile, scores of Trump’s foot soldiers are now in prison. Where’s the justice here?
#politics Tim Scott learned a lesson so many others have learned when dealing with Trump. Bend the knee and kiss Trump’s ring, and he’ll embarrass you for your obsequiousness, as happened to Scott last night during Trump’s victory speech in New Hampshire.
Trump and the MAGA crowd keep harping on Biden’s mental capacity while Trump (several times) confuses Biden with Obama and is confused about WWII. And he keeps bragging about how he “aced” the routine Medicare cognitive test, which asks one to remember five things and say then back. “People were amazed I could do that.” Well, not those who have taken that test, like I have. My doctor wasn’t amazed that I passed it. He would have been amazed if I didn’t!
#politics Disgraceful Haley interview yesterday. When asked what she thought about Trump’s legal problems, she replied that she wasn’t a lawyer, had not been following it, and we should withhold judgment until Trump has actually been convicted. Really? Trump has already been convicted - twice! And she hasn’t been following the cases? Give me a break.
The Cowboys did it to me again. But it was worse this year because of all the pre-season hype by football pundits. This will finally be the year after waiting three decades for them to return to their winning ways! But then the embarrassing loss to the Cardinals and the blow-out by the Niners. Here it goes again. But wait - the tease at the end of the season when they actually win their division! But yesterday, true to form, they lost a playoff game - at home! Last straw. I’m done with them.
Trump’s appeal of the lower court’s decision that he doesn’t have absolute immunity won’t fly, as the hearing showed. But the danger is that the appeals court could decide it doesn’t have jurisdiction because Judge Chutkan’s case has not been decided. If so, Trump could again raise the immunity thing after a conviction, starting the appeals process again and delaying a final judgment until after the election, which is his goal.
#politics 171 members of Congress are 2020-election deniers. And most if not all could be in Congress on Jan. 20, 2025 if Trump loses again. Something to think about. But then there will be a Democrat as Vice President certifying the vote, thank goodness. But, despite the changes made in the process, there could still be objections presented by these deniers which could enable the certification to be decided by state delegations in Congress. Currently, Republicans have the majority of these.
Why hasn’t anyone investigated the deal with the gallows constructed on Jan. 6 for the purpose of hanging Pence? It had to be planned - and built - before Trump’s speech and before anyone knew Pence was not going to do what Trump wanted him to do. When did his supporters get the word to do that? It meant bringing the appropriate lumber to the site and then putting it together. No way was that done on the spur of the moment!
Retired surgeon, now a novel writer (thrillers mostly) in North Carolina