Where is .........

Where is the check from Mexico to pay for the wall?

Where is the infrastructure bill that would modernize the country and create many high paying jobs?

Where is the better and cheaper healthcare?

Where are the great renegotiated trade deals?

Where is the lower budget deficits?

Where are the tax cuts that will mainly benefit the people as opposed to the one percent?

Where is the winning we would all be sick and tired of?

Where are the bodies of the Korean War Veterans you said their parents (who would all be over a hundred by now) were asking for?

If anyone believed any of this would happen through the efforts of the KKK endorsed candidate and popular vote loser who lies so much he can pass a lie detector test, you were sadly mistaken.

Real Time with Bill Maher from 6/29/18

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjcLULxPe8A

Shields and Brooks from 6/29/18

https://www.pbs.org/video/shields-brooks-1530306951/

Editorial Poster courtesy of US Democratic Socialists

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Breen

Editorial Poster courtesy of Sam Jon Deep

Editorial Poster courtesy of Proud Snowflakes

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Patrick Chappatte

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Pat Bagley

Editorial Poster courtesy of The Other 98%

Editorial Poster

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Miguel Ramirez

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Gary Varvel

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Ed Hall

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Donkey Hotley

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of David Fitzsimmons

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of David Wayne Fitzsimmons

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Clay Bennett

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Chip Bok

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Benjamin Slyngstad

Must read article from Ron Klain

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-red-hen-affair-wont-move-many-voters-heres-what-will/2018/06/28/036c0c3e-7a28-11e8-aeee-4d04c8ac6158_story.html?utm_term=.19c711d0c058

Idea of the Week: Term limits for Judges

This is not an original idea but with the Republican shenanigans, led by Obstructionist in Chief and Traitor Mitch McConnell, with the court picks over the last two years, Democrats should consider when they get back in power, adopting laws that pick judges on term limits. Those already appointed may need to get grandfathered in and maybe the first judges are appointed for 20 years and then after ten years, ten so the ones appointed for life are turned over. This along with expanding the size of the courts to remedy the excesses of the minority should go along the way to correct the abuses of the entity formerly known as the Party of Lincoln.

Documentary of the Week (a little different this week)

https://app.curiositystream.com/

Books of the Week Today (Two are repeats)

John K. Delaney The Right Answer: How We Can Unify our Divided Nation

David Faris It's Time to Fight Dirty

Robert Kuttner Can Democracy Survive Global Capitalism?

Some Interesting Third Party Commentary to Read today

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-red-hen-affair-wont-move-many-voters-heres-what-will/2018/06/28/036c0c3e-7a28-11e8-aeee-4d04c8ac6158_story.html?utm_term=.19c711d0c058

https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/ywe88j/the-neutron-option-democrats-could-use-to-retake-the-supreme-court?utm_source=vicefbus

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/29/upshot/one-county-thrives-the-next-one-over-struggles-economists-take-note-.html

https://www.thirdway.org/report/clean-energy-standards-how-more-states-can-become-climate-leaders

http://prospect.org/article/if-you-think-week-was-bad-just-wait-till-next-week

http://prospect.org/article/what-happens-if-trumpified-supremes-overturn-roe-and-obergefell

https://www.thenation.com/article/right-abandoned-civility-long-time-ago/

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/06/ode-to-the-local-newspaper/564107/

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2018/06/anthony-kennedy-the-trump-court-and-minority-rule.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/an-explosion-is-coming/2018/06/29/c3301b66-7ba2-11e8-93cc-6d3beccdd7a3_story.html?utm_term=.242149fed036

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/29/opinion/a-better-reason-to-delay-kennedys-replacement.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region

https://www.cnn.com/2018/06/29/politics/democrats-future-joe-crowley/index.html

https://www.vox.com/2018/5/1/17258866/democratic-party-republicans-trump-election

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/trump-is-trying-to-destabilize-the-european-union/2018/06/28/729cb066-7b10-11e8-aeee-4d04c8ac6158_story.html?utm_term=.89d304e3ae90

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Sack

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Benson

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Rob Rogers

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Phil Hands

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Pat Bagley

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Mike Luckovich

Editorial Poster courtesy of Middle American Democrat

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Marc Murphy

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Joe Heller

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Jimmy Marguiles

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Jimmy Marguiles

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Dave Granlund

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Benjamin Singstad

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Adam Zyglis

The latest from Robert Reich: Do not Give Up.

https://www.facebook.com/RBReich/videos/2013237855355467/

Decency, Competence, and FIGHTING to move our country forward.

Earlier Posts have advocated the Democrats taking a platform of Decency, Competence, and Fighting to move our country forward. 

It is important to remember that the Republican opposition since the Clinton Administration, has never fought fair, using any parliamentary maneuver to stifle progressive legislation in the Congress, uttering any falsehood that the uninformed would believe, and making false promises to the people that would never actually help them. Over the years, individuals like Newt Gingrich and Mitch McConnell are personifications of this obstructionist (some think traitorous) approach. 

Democrats, while remaining decent and civil, can no longer just take the high road, thinking the people will see through the conservative propaganda. The people, in significant enough numbers, have demonstrated time and again that, despite the improvement of their conditions under Democratic Presidencies and Congresses, they continually fall for the false promises of Republican Presidential candidates. Enough people thought Richard Nixon would bring the country out of the Vietnam Quagmire (that he was conspiring to stall peace talks was not revealed until years later) that they gave him the Presidency over civil rights and social justice icon Hubert Humphrey. Despite hard facts, people inexplicably bought the Reagan program. Enough people fell for the Bush and, despite the Obama rescue of the country from the Great Recession,  Trump programs that they eked out electoral college victories. Even though the facts and history were on their side, Democrats cannot take the people for granted and have to work at convincing them that their ideas are the ones that will move the country forward.  

Democrats need to get out in front, frame the debate, come out with a forward-looking program, and scratch, claw and fight for every vote because Republicans are going to present this race with the false narrative that they are the protectors of borders (more illegal immigration under them than Obama), the Supreme Court (which they stole one of the seats from Obama and the clock is ticking on Roe V Wade ad the Clean Water and Air Act), and stewards of the economy (Obama's economy which their policies are in the process of messing up). I would much prefer civility and an honest debate but the opposition does not and we have to recognize that. It is time to fight because the country is on a track that will lead us on a downward spiral we can not pull ourselves out of if we do not. 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/this-must-be-another-bork-moment/2018/06/28/f9aba454-7aed-11e8-80be-6d32e182a3bc_story.html?utm_term=.6fca4b0f5668

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/wp/2018/06/28/republicans-are-lying-about-roe-v-wade-trumps-nominee-will-do-the-same/?utm_term=.c5b6b055d024

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/6/28/17511084/senate-republicans-merrick-garland-supreme-court-anthony-kennedy

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2018/06/28/jim-jordan-reveals-just-how-nutty-republicans-have-become/?utm_term=.21c5800d4a65

More proof that the Republican Party is dead.

https://www.vox.com/2018/6/28/17506880/steve-king-twitter-racism-congress-republicans

The latest on Senate Races courtesy of VOX

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/5/2/17303554/senate-elections-2018-midterms-democrats-beto-orourke-kyrsten-sinema-dean-heller-jacky-rosen

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/4/30/17285240/senate-elections-2018-midterms-trump-approval-rating-by-state

Video clip courtesy of Vice on our crumbling infrastructure

https://www.facebook.com/vicenews/videos/1072454922914457/UzpfSTM1MjU4NzE5ODE4MTE0MzoxNTI1Mzk4OTkwODk5OTUy/

Video courtesy of Occupy Democrats on the Presidents lack of reaction to the shooting of journalists today in Maryland.

https://www.facebook.com/OccupyDemocrats/videos/2166313586795017/

Editorial Poster courtesy of The Left

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Benson

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Rob Rogers

Editorial Poster courtesy of Occupy Democrats

Editorial Poster courtesy of Occupy Democrats

Editorial Poster courtesy of Occupy Democrats

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Mike Luckovich

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Kevin Kalluagher

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Jimmy Marguiles

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Darren Bell

Editorial Poster courtesy of American Reformers

Editorial Poster courtesy of the AFL-CIO

THIS HAPPENED BECAUSE WE DID NOT VOTE

Do you like the current events that inspired the drawing of the two editorial cartoons in this posting?

In the likelihood that you do not. Do you know how these cartoons came to be drawn?

They came to be drawn because not all of us exercised our power to vote in November 2016. Either because some felt Secretary Clinton was a sure winner and their vote did not matter or because she was not Bernie and she was not worthy to vote for or because people who voted for President Obama thought the ultimate Birther would look out for them or because the Comey letter ten days before the election made others feel that she was a walking impeachment waiting to happen, lack of voter turnout or protest votes for Jill Stein led to the Electoral College Victory of the candidate endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan.

This popular vote loser, allied with the obstructionist in chief (and a traitor for not going along with revealing Russian Meddling in the election) of the United States Senate Mitch McConnell changed the rules regarding Supreme Court Justice confirmation and Neil Gorsuch, instead of Merrick Garland, became an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court. Because voters in 2016 snubbed their nose at Clinton or just did not bother to show up, unions, women, customers, small businesses, voters in gerrymandered districts, and immigrants all had their causes set back with recent 5 to 4 Supreme Court Decisions. With today’s retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy, the KKK endorsed candidate/popular vote loser and the obstructionist in chief will have an opportunity to seat a more conservative advocate on the Supreme Court, jeopardizing precedents like Roe vs. Wade and the Clean Water Act.

This is the second time in 16 years voters did not feel both major parties were not different. The first time, popular vote loser George W. Bush, with an assist from the hanging chads in Florida, a conservative block of the Supreme Court, and voters who decided to do a protest vote for consumer rights advocate Ralph Nader became President. How did that work out for the country? Just ask the surviving families of 9/11 or the soldiers from the wars in Afghanistan or Iraq or the people ruined by Bush-Republican Economic Policies in the Great Recession.

Now our country has a Chief Executive who exhibits strong Fascist-Authoritarian-Nativist tendencies supported by a Congress and court system that has no compunction about hollowing out social justice measures or basic civil rights. This is all because certain groups of voters rewarded Republican obstruction during two progressive administrations and put the poorly behaved bullies in power by not voting or wanting to be “pure” and not vote for a “compromise” choice.

It is important to realize that this can be remedied. It is important to remember that there are more people in this country that support a forward progressive agenda than a reactionary conservative one. We have the power to correct the misjudgments of the past and the excesses of the movement disguised as the Republican Party. Many have already realized this and have joined the movement to correct the imbalance affecting our country by volunteering or running for office with already positive results in elections over the last year and a half with 43 offices switching to the Democratic side of the ledger.

Much more work needs to be done in the coming elections (national, state, and local) and while there may still be some likely unfortunate rules handed down, we must never give up and lose sight that we have the power to bring the country back from the brink and make the United States that beacon of hope again.

THE BATTLE FOR THE SENATE WENT TO A NEW LEVEL TODAY.

DEMOCRATS NEED TO USE ALL CONCEIVABLE PARLIAMENTARY MEASURES AND UNITE TO THWART THE NEXT TRUMP SUPREME COURT PICK IF THAT PERSON IS OUT OF THE MAINSTREAM.



http://blogforarizona.net/this-happened-because-we-didnt-vote/



http://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/394450-jeffrey-toobin-predicts-abortion-will-be-illegal-in-20-states-soon

http://thehill.com/homenews/senate/394479-schumer-height-of-hypocrisy-to-vote-on-supreme-court-nominee-this-year

https://www.vox.com/2018/6/27/17511048/mitch-mcconnell-supreme-court-anthony-kennedy-retirement

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/06/the-future-of-civil-rights-in-the-supreme-court/563957/

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2018/06/kennedys-departure-could-reshape-the-environment/563930/

A Warning Sign or an Exceptional Candidate

The Fourth-Ranked Democrat in the House of Representatives Joe Crowley lost to very passionate and driven Democratic Socialist named Alexandra Ocasio Cortez.  Is this a warning sign that Democrats need to steer more to the left or the fruits of hard labor of an exceptional candidate that took advantage of a complacent incumbent who did not take the challenge seriously.  The people will notice when you are so arrogant that you "blow off" debates with your opponent. This district will probably remain in Democratic hands and leadership should not hit the panic button yet. This new candidate may inject some new progressive life in the party if her ideas do not alienate the mainstream.


https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-06-27/what-one-new-york-primary-says-about-democrats-and-the-2018-race?cmpid=socialflow-facebook-politics&utm_content=politics&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=socialflow-organic&utm_source=facebook

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election/u-s-democrats-take-stock-after-party-leaders-house-upset-idUSKBN1JN2J8?utm_campaign=trueAnthem%3A+Trending+Content&utm_content=5b34183004d301121fd861a9&utm_medium=trueAnthem&utm_source=facebook

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/27/opinion/-alexandra-ocasio-cortez-democrat-crowley.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region

Interesting editorial courtesy of Thomas Friedman

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/26/opinion/political-parties-climate.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=opinion-c-col-left-region&region=opinion-c-col-left-region&WT.nav=opinion-c-col-left-region

SURPRISE SURPRISE: NORTH KOREA APPEARS TO NOT BE DENUCLEARIZING

http://thehill.com/policy/international/394326-satellite-images-show-north-korea-upgrading-nuclear-research-facility

Interesting video on Unions and the American Labor Movement courtesy of Newsbroke/How People React

https://www.facebook.com/newsbroke/videos/204894956591479/UzpfSTM1MjU4NzE5ODE4MTE0MzoxNTIzNTY3NDcxMDgzMTA0/

Good article courtesy of The Atlantic on how Unions can come back from today's Supreme Court Ruling.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2018/06/janus-afscme-public-sector-unions/563879/

Editorial Poster courtesy of United Liberals and Moderates for America

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Sack

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Sack

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Breen

Editorial Cartoon courtesy of Steve Benson