Displaying 121 To 150 Of 1,008 Comments Marijuana Legalization Is A Bust! It appears to me that people like Sessions and McConnell (and republicans in general) are anti-democracy for the USA. It puzzles me how forty percent of the people can control a “democratic” government. » Posted By TOCB On October 25, 2019 @ 5:52 am Impeachment Is Happening…But This Wasn’t The Plan Yep. He already put a mob boss hit on the whistleblower and whoever talked to him/her. Now he demands to meet his “accuser”. “In addition,” he added, “I want to meet not only my accuser, who presented SECOND & THIRD HAND INFORMATION, but also the person who illegally gave this information, which was largely incorrect, to the ‘Whistleblower.’ Was this person SPYING on the U.S. President? Big Consequences!” First, the stable genius and his advisors are still trying to push the debunked Biden story, still trying to investigate Hillary Clinton’s emails, and promoting that the whistleblower illegally blew the whistle and the people the whistleblower talked to, leaked what a corrupt president did, to an intelligence agent (not the press). I suppose the stable genius doesn’t really understand what a leak actually is. Hey stable genius, when someone reports a crime to the authorities, that is not a leak. Dumbass!!! And btw, trump’s own call notes that he approved the release of, corroborates the “third party information” in the whistleblower’s report. So it could be fourth party, fifth party of one hundred party information. The thing is, according to trump, the information givene by the whistleblower is true. » Posted By TOCB On September 29, 2019 @ 8:53 pm That would be a dream come true. To get rid of trump AND Pence. However, that puts Pelosi in line for POTUS, and although she is a stellar legislator, I don’t think she has what it takes to be POTUS. If it is only for a few months though, that wouldn’t be too bad. » Posted By TOCB On September 27, 2019 @ 4:08 am Most of us are disgusted with trump and republicans. However, justice will be served eventually. » Posted By TOCB On September 25, 2019 @ 1:20 pm The sole power of impeaching a president rest with the House of Representatives. It does not require any input from the court. If the president refuses to release information that may or may not help his/her case, he/she is free to do so, and the House can take his/her actions under consideration in their vote to impeach. » Posted By TOCB On September 25, 2019 @ 1:12 pm I have been following and involved in politics since I was knee high to a duck. I was forced to be concerned about politics as a black person who grew up in the rural south during Jim Crow. I was always concerned with what the leaders in the government were willing to do for common people and people who did not have a seat at the table. I could outline the evolution of the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, but I suspect most people in this forum already know about that evolution. From my perspective, since the late 60’s the Democratic Party has been the party of those who did not have a seat at the table. Just as in the years prior to the #MeToo Movement when men were allowed to get away with sexual abuse and harassment, both major political parties have, for a long time, being able to get away with “dancing with the person who brung them”, so to speak. What I mean by that is that politicians acted like politicians in that they would prioritize the things that people who helped them get elected and re-elected, wanted. If a segment of the population had issues they wanted addressed, but that segment of the population did not vote or participate in the election process, even if a politician wanted to help them, they had to first worry about getting elected. The Democrats in Congress as well as presidents I have followed by the past 50 years, were very concerned about what people call progressive issues today. The problem has been that progressive people have not consistently voted in numbers that would get a politician elected and re-elected, especially at the state and federal levels. If and when that changes, politicians will change their priorities, regardless of political affiliation. » Posted By TOCB On September 25, 2019 @ 7:07 am Like most crooks, trump is his own worst enemy. Had he not attempted to bribe Ukraine into giving him dirt on Joe Biden, he probably would not have been impeached. But since it got away with it once, why not try it again by using the power of the presidency? Of course, that is illogical, but that is trump’s logic. » Posted By TOCB On September 24, 2019 @ 4:58 pm At last count there were 189 Democrats in favor of impeachment. About 50 of those came on board within the past 24 hours. One thing Pelosi is very good at. Counting. She probably won’t take a vote on articles of impeachment until she has 218 votes. I don’t suspect that will be very long. Of course, I supported impeachment months ago, so I am pleased to see Pelosi get there, for whatever reason. IF Senate republicans remove trump from office, I think Pence would be a better president than trump, but that is not saying very much. My biggest objection to Pence is he is likely to pardon trump. » Posted By TOCB On September 24, 2019 @ 4:53 pm The Fiction That Is the Constitutional “System of Checks and Balances”…. Imagine if they were to write a document closely comparable to our Constitution of 1787: Incomplete, and poorly thought through; avoiding the most serious issues. I’m sure that Britain, if they ever do it, would endeavor to be thorough, with clear definitions and with examples throughout. And, clear assignments of responsibility and duty. I respectfully disagree that the Constitution was poorly thought through. It was written by people who lived in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. It is IMHO, a brilliant document. Have we lived up to it and have we been diligent in maintaining it? NO! Ben Franklin said they gave us a republic, IF we could keep it. It is up to us to keep it, while constantly moving toward a more perfect union. » Posted By TOCB On September 21, 2019 @ 2:08 pm Neither the hallowed phrase “separation of powers” itself nor “checks and balances” appears in the text of the U.S. Constitution. Nor does the word “oversight.” Nor does the word “coequal.” The Constitution is a document that barely defines the scope of the judicial branch at all and so deficiently defines the powers of Congress, the presidency, the states and the federal government that we have spent the better part of two and a half centuries fighting about it. Today that fight places the future of our democracy center stage. The fundamental problem is that those vaunted “checks and balances” depend on the cooperation of the branches and the acceptance of the fundamental principal that an overly mighty branch is accountable to the other branches. This point conflicts with the point below: He also noted that these powers cannot be entirely separated. He wrote in Federalist No. 48 that the separation of powers as envisioned by the Constitution “does not require that the legislative, executive, and judiciary departments should be wholly unconnected with each other.” In other words, the separation of powers by its very nature involves, for instance, granting some powers to Congress over the executive branch and vice versa. Although the phrases, “separation of powers” and “checks and balances” are not specifically mentioned in the Constitution, the concepts are supported by various provisions of the Constitution. Article I enumerates the authority of the legislative branch of the federal government, Article II enumerates the authority of the executive branch, while Article III enumerates the authority of the judicial branch. “Separation of powers” and “checks and balances” are incorporated in these “Articles”. The word “privacy” is not mentioned in the Constitution, nor is the phrase “separation of church and state”. However, these concepts are embedded in the provisions of the Constitution. The framers of the Constitution were wise in many ways, and they constructed the Constitution to be a living document, rather than a document that was intended to remain stuck in the eighteenth century. They gave the document room for change, i.e., Amendments, as well as interpretations, i.e., the Supreme Court. The document plainly codified some laws and it serves as the basis for all other laws, as all laws must conform to the concepts embedded in the Constitution. Today, we are challenged as to how important the Constitution is to the rule of law and our democracy. Trump, republicans and Democrats are currently putting a severe stress test of the Constitution, democracy and the rule of law, and indeed we must decide in November 2020, or even better before then, if these three shall endure. THIS is a very urgent and critical matter. Trump is dismantling the Constitution, democracy and the rule of law, while republicans are defending and supporting trump, and Democrats as standing by doing nothing but debating and playing politics. Houston, we have a problem!!! » Posted By TOCB On September 21, 2019 @ 1:57 pm Lewandowski Admits To Lying, Stonewalls And Delays Neither members of the military or any other organization are obligated to obey an unlawful order. Trump has suspended the rule of law for himself and those who are loyal to him, and the republican party is supportive of that. HOWEVER, as my grandmother use to say, “every dog has a day, and a bird dog has a whole season.” If and when trump leaves office, he and his cohorts will be subject to be held accountable for every law they violated, IF we have a Justice Department and a Congress worth their salt. Lewandowski is obeying trump’s unlawful orders. That might come back to bite him. https://www.thebalancecareers.com/military-orders-3332819 Lawful Orders These articles require the obedience of LAWFUL orders. Not only should an unlawful order not be obeyed, obeying such an order can result in criminal prosecution. Military courts have long held that military members are accountable for their actions even while following orders. » Posted By TOCB On September 19, 2019 @ 2:24 pm What’s Not To Like About Donald Trump? Trump is not a president, but he plays one on tv. I still put the blame for that on the electorate. For whatever reason(s), trump was “elected” president, MAYBE. From my perspective that says more about the electorate than it says about trump. Charlatans and demagogues are a dime a dozen, but there is something seriously wrong with an electorate that would make one the leader of a free nation. To me, the American electorate is far scarier than trump is. » Posted By TOCB On September 19, 2019 @ 2:06 pm The MSM’s Whitewashing of Biden’s Racist Views Won’t End Well I am an MSNBC junkie. I agree that the prime time line-up is good, but I also like Joy, Ari and Ali & Stephanie. I also agree that Warren is going to be a great president. » Posted By TOCB On September 14, 2019 @ 5:39 am I don’t think Biden is a racist, but he is an old white male who was indoctrinated about race/ethnicity during Jim Crow and a time when white males had all power. He is not a bad person, but he is not a good choice for president in the 21st century. I am not convinced that most older black voters support Biden that much. Jim Clyburn might support him and that might be why he polls so well in SC, but I don’t think he polls that well with older blacks in other parts of the country. Although the main stream media is saying that Warren lacks black support, she is viewed very highly among black women, which is a key Democratic demographic. » Posted By TOCB On September 14, 2019 @ 5:31 am UK’s Economy On The Brink As Parliament Scuffles Respectfully, I disagree that a person’s vote cannot be influenced by others. The primary purpose of campaign ads is an attempt to influence voters. Debates at all levels, some more than others, are designed to influence voters. As an open-minded person, I want to believe that if presented with facts that inform me differently than my current understanding of an issue, I would change my opinion and even my vote on an issue or a candidate. I also accept that people being people, some people will attempt to influence voters by using intentionally false and misleading data/information. It would be nice if we could depend on the press and people in positions of power and influence to disseminate data/information with integrity. However, I recognize that is OFTEN not the case. I take voting very seriously and I consider it my responsibility to be as informed as possible on issues and candidates. Therefore, I do a lot of research related to a candidate’s history in choosing who to vote for. Because people naturally have varying preferences, sometimes they will disagree based on those preferences. That is expected and it is completely normal and acceptable. To that end, we just have to hope that most of our preferences align with values that reflects a civilized and compassionate society. » Posted By TOCB On September 21, 2019 @ 8:08 am Many of the main GOP issues back then, opposing the USSR, reducing deficits, etc. are the opposite of what the party supports today. This is the myth so-called small government conservatives promote. During the cold war ALL Americans opposed the USSR, and there were no budget deficits to speak of. In fact deficits did not become a permanent fixture of our federal budget until the Reagan administration, when he initially cut taxes too much and later had to adjust them upward, but rather than taxing and spending as republicans accused Democrats of doing, republicans borrowed and spent. The level of spending never decline, but rather what was spent on changed, i.e., the old choices between guns and butter, with Democrats preferring butter and republicans preferring guns, or as Eisenhower called it, the military industrial complex. » Posted By TOCB On September 9, 2019 @ 8:08 am The United States of America was founded on racism. Slaves who were treated worse than animals, built this country with free labor. There were always a small number of white people who opposed treating humans the way slaves were treated in the USA, but most white people in the USA have traditionally been racists. Although Abe Lincoln’s biological father was supposedly a mulatto slave, Lincoln did not believe the descendants of his biological father (other than himself) would or should ever be equal to white people. Although it is true that the party of Lincoln did more to bring about racial justice for black people before 1964, most of the people in the party before 1964 were also racists. After 1964, the two major political pretty much organized around one party making efforts to somewhat right the wrongs of prior centuries (and even that was a struggle) and the other party making efforts to continue past injustices. Racial injustice is something this country has never dealt with by having a goal of righting past wrongs. Until we do that, it will always be an impediment to our country being united. » Posted By TOCB On September 9, 2019 @ 7:59 am Yep, it’s a demanding list but the candidate who can check most, if not all of these boxes is the candidate who has learned from 2016 and is more likely to win in 2020. Candidates who have to cross out any of these are, IMO, more likely to lose for some of the same reasons Hillary did (though I still agree with her that the Comey intrusion into the election just before it took place may have been what threw the election to Trump). Unfortunately, I believe your last paragraph sums up what is wrong with our electorate. That is, our tendency to place much too much responsibility for our democracy on one person, i.e., the candidate. I know you realize that we are not likely to ever have a perfect candidate. Our charge is to choose the best person from the available pool. Obama was not a perfect candidate, and he won. Trump was not a perfect candidate, and he won. Hillary was not a perfect candidate, and she lost. Approximately 130 million people were involved in choosing between Obama and McCain, Obama and Romney and Clinton and Trump. I could have found reasons not to vote for either of the five candidates in those elections. Collectively we made a choice each time. What troubles me about our ability to keep our democratic republic, or not, is if we collectively have the intellectual capacity to keep it. Today, we are teetering on the collapse of our democracy. The trump presidency looks more like a dictatorship than a democracy, and the checks and balances in our system have not proven to be capable of doing anything about it, so far. I am very reluctant to blame the trump presidency on one person, be it Hillary Clinton or even Donald Trump or Comey. IMHO, at the end of the day, it is the peoples’ responsibility to maintain the government we want and deserve. » Posted By TOCB On September 8, 2019 @ 9:18 am Hillary Clinton’s conduct in her campaign may have contributed to her own defeat? Of course Hillary likely made some mistakes. Who has not made mistakes? Hillary, as do most candidates, did the best she could based on her knowledge, experience and counsel with her team. Is Hillary the first or only candidate who was better for the office than her opponent, but was not chosen by the people? If the best candidate is not elected, is it the candidate’s fault? Candidates have ONE vote. Candidates do not elect themselves. You may say that I don’t place the blame for her losing on Hillary because I “idolize” her, but I don’t put the blame of ANY candidate for losing an election. That might make me different from 99.9% of Americans, but that is what I believe. » Posted By TOCB On September 5, 2019 @ 11:43 am I disagree with your premise, which is consistent that of most professional pundits, that Hillary’s “mistakes” resulted in trump’s presidency. Trump, in fact, made FAR MORE “mistakes” than Hillary made, yet he is president. The most critical mistakes were made by American voters IF they allowed misinformation by Russia or republicans to turn them against the person who was better qualified and prepared for the job. Or if they did not vote. Or if they cast a protest vote for someone who was not likely to win. Our government is not of, by and for Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump or any other politician. It is rather of, by and for the PEOPLE. If the PEOPLE don’t show up, or if they don’t show up in a manner that results in the best government for the PEOPLE, THEY are the ones who made the critical mistakes. IF this experiment in democracy is to work, the PEOPLE must take ownership of it, and stop blaming our short-comings on politicians who work for US. I agree with trump to an extent when he said the people are responsible for vetting government representatives, of course not the ones who are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate, but those who are elected by the people. If they don’t measure up to our job requirements, we should not hire them, and if they don’t perform the job as we require, we should fire them. The bottom line, is that the people, according to our system of elections, i.e., the electoral college, chose to hire trump rather than Hillary. That is something the people have to own and live with. » Posted By TOCB On September 5, 2019 @ 11:33 am Many Democrats had reasons other than Republican lies to see Hillary in a less positive light, going back to her campaign in 2008 and through 2016. But I don’t see it as productive to rehash any of that. In the end, it was Hillary or Trump in 2016 and I enthusiastically supported Hillary. I am more concerned with critiquing those who chose trump over Hillary or did not vote at all, than criticizing them. People who are old enough to vote make their own choices. We are all responsible for our choices as well. It is not about Hillary Clinton. It is about participating in the democratic process and choosing leaders who represent us in our democracy. I accept that there are racists and bigots in our society and I acknowledge that they have as much right to be here as you and I. Democracy is “hard work”, as Bush 43 said. My admiration for Hillary has much less to do with the piece I wrote than my concern for our democracy. The same things that were done to Hillary can be done to anyone. We agree that no candidate is perfect. Hillary CERTAINLY made some mistakes. The fact that those mistakes resulted in a trump presidency should not, IMHO, be borne solely by Hillary Clinton. » Posted By TOCB On September 5, 2019 @ 6:17 am Other than trump supporters idolizing him, where do you get the notion that anyone is idolizing Warren, Clinton or anyone else? Hillary Clinton is/was a real person. What she and the country experienced in her not becoming president is real. If we don’t honestly examine WHY the most unqualified and unprepared person possible became president over someone with her qualifications and preparedness, we do a disservice to our democracy. IMHO. You obviously disagree and I am ok with that and I cannot do anything about that. » Posted By TOCB On September 5, 2019 @ 6:05 am I see no evidence of ANYONE idolizing Hillary Clinton. On the contrary, most of her most ardent acolytes acquiesce to those who berate her because that is the popular thing to do. » Posted By TOCB On September 5, 2019 @ 5:59 am “You mentioned the issues of her choosing not to campaign in swing states (while Dem organizers on the ground desperately begged her to come out because they saw the Trump wave building). And her frank words to coal miners that she would support policies that ended their current jobs but wanted to train them for new green jobs. Then you suggest that none of that had to do with voters supporting or opposing her and that view baffles me.” My basic premise, that admittedly most people disagree with, is that candidates don’t lose elections, but rather voters do. I take that position because from my perspective candidates present their cases when they essentially apply for a job. Voters are the employers and it is their job to hire the best employee. Are you suggesting that the people in Wisconsin who had voted for Democrats for president for the past thirty years did not know who Hillary Clinton was and what she stood for, as opposed to who trump was and what he stood for? If that was the case, those voters screwed up. They selected the wrong employee. I don’t know why Hillary did not go to Wisconsin. I do not attempt to make excuses for her. We know that candidates generally attempt to direct their resources in the most cost effective manner. Maybe Hillary miscalculated the allocation of her resources related to which states to visit. Having said that, I STILL believe the primary responsibility for selecting leaders rest with the voters. Hillary is just one person who has to experience the trump presidency, but she is far less affected by his and the republicans racist, bigoted, misogynist policies than the average American is. I was a strong supporter of Hillary. You were apparently less strong but you may have held your nose and voted for her over a person like trump. Others, for whatever reason, chose trump or they chose not to vote at all. My concern is that we as an electorate must do a better job in selecting our leaders, rather than place the responsibility on politicians to convince us they are the best person for the job. They ALL think they are the best person for the job. At the end of the day, it is not the politician who suffers when the electorate makes the wrong choice. It is the electorate who suffers. Hillary is done with running for public office, but it is far more important that the electorate learns “What Happened” than it is for Hillary to learn that. The only value, if any, in a discussion about what happened is to prevent it from happening again, regardless of who the candidate is. With all due respect, it is not about idolizing anyone. I admire Hillary. I do not idolize her or anyone else. » Posted By TOCB On September 5, 2019 @ 5:49 am I know my position is not a popular one, but I think the American people can learn a lot by examining “what happened” so to speak, related to the 2016 presidential election. Were we actually influenced by Russia’s misinformation campaign? Were we fooled into thinking that the email scandal was a legitimate issue? Even though the majority of us voted for a woman, did the fact that a woman could be president hurt Hillary in PA, WI and MI, IF she actually lost in those states? Even today, Democrats promote a negative attitude toward Clinton. Why? NONE of the lies republicans promoted about her for over 25 years proved to be true. No, not ONE! Why do DEMOCRATS continue to disrespect this woman? » Posted By TOCB On September 3, 2019 @ 7:50 am The email scandal and investigation was a farce. There was no law against using a private server. It was only a policy. In fact, the sever Hilary used, was the same one her former president husband used. Hillary, like every other employed of the federal government had the authority to destroy personal emails, and she turned over emails that she and her attorneys deemed as pertaining to government business. If using a private server was such a bad thing, others who had done the same thing would have gone through the same thing Hillary went through. So would those in the trump administration who have done that and worse. It was comparable to jaywalking. Should Hillary have used a private server? Probably not if she thought she would run for president again. She should have known that the press and her political opponents would use anything they could use in order to demonize her. Should it have been investigated as a possible crime? Not no, but HELL NO! At best, it should have been reviewed and strict adherence to the policy of using a government server should have been emphasized. End of story. The point I was attempting to convey is the so-called binary choice that those who voted for trump made, as well as the protest vote and the choice to not vote at all put us in the place where we are today. It wasn’t because Hillary used a private server, or that she didn’t go to Wisconsin or that she told people in West Virginia and Kentucky that she would put coal companies out of business. Hillary Clinton is not and never was a perfect person, but she did not lose the election in 2016. American voters lost the election because they chose the wrong person. Could Hillary have run a better campaign? Well, she ran a better campaign than trump ran, and he is POTUS. » Posted By TOCB On September 2, 2019 @ 6:29 pm Why a Biden Nomination is Likely to Elect a Republican President in 2024 A lot of people balk at a Second Constitutional Convention, but the trump presidency coupled with a corrupt republican party have highlighted some weaknesses in the checks and balances on the government as well as some antiquated/racist laws like the Electoral College. Another thing that is sorely lacking is an awareness by Americans as to how the government is SUPPOSED to work according to the Constitution. Trump thinks he has powers as president that is more like a dictator. I think he really thinks he has these powers, and a stacked Supreme Court is not helping. Immigrants seeking asylum at the southern border is a national security emergency that allows the president to confiscate funds appropriated by Congress for other programs and divert them to a stupid wall? Even with a weak Congress, this should be a clear violation of the authority of the POSTUS, but the court says it is ok? REALLY??? » Posted By TOCB On August 27, 2019 @ 6:51 am Let’s watch the “polls” when people actually start voting. » Posted By TOCB On August 25, 2019 @ 6:28 am I think IF these polls are accurate, it is more the result of the media promoting the idea of a safe white male to defeat trump, than people supporting the candidate they agree with. Remember, the corporate media is STILL controlled by old white males. I support people voting for who they think best represents their interest. That is why I don’t have a problem with bigots voting for republicans. However, I DO NOT support Democrats appealing to bigots for their votes. YES, call me a purist, but I would rather lose an election than to appeal to trump voters, ALL OF WHOM were at least tolerant of bigotry in casting their votes in 2016. » Posted By TOCB On August 25, 2019 @ 6:27 am Yes, things done in cyberspace can cause people to die. REALITY CHECK! I am not that critical of misinformation campaigns conducted by Russians, as republicans have been doing that for decades, and it is the responsibility of consumers of information to discern the value of it. What I take issue with and I think is tantamount to an act of war is a country interfering in our democratic process by purging voter registration rolls of changing ballots or other things that directly affect the outcome of our elections, and that is what Russia did in 2016, and I am not convinced that republican operatives did not assist them in that endeavor. Russia is a sovereign nation and has the right to respond in any way they see fit to threats to their national security, as does any nation. A more civil way of resolving disputes is by using diplomatic tools. At some point humans will evolve to this level of sophisticated civility. » Posted By TOCB On August 25, 2019 @ 6:18 amComments Posted By TOCB
Military members failing to obey lawful orders issued by their superiors risk serious consequences. Article 90 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) outlines the crime of willful disobedience by a military member a superior commissioned officer. Article 91 covers willful disobedience of a superior Noncommissioned or Warrant Officer. Article 92 conveys what constitutes the crime of disobedience of any lawful order (the disobedience does not have to be “willful” under this article).
Are you willing to examine this, too, and if not, why?
At this point of time, I don’t see the value of criticizing fellow Dems for not viewing Hillary Clinton as highly as one may feel about her.
(I forgot to put this in quotes initially)
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