A Perfect Choice for AG
One of the subscribers of my blog told me today the choice of Gaetz may have been a perfect setup. We all know that Trump was not happy when Gaetz was the last one to cave allowing Kevin McCarthy to win the speaker position on the 15th ballot in January 2023.
The theory is that Trump and his MAGA friends in the House saw Gaetz as someone they could not trust after the McCarthy vote. Trump knew that Gaetz would not get approved by the Senate. By offering the AG job to Gaetz with the condition that he resign from the House immediately, Gaetz is no longer in the House and Florida Governor DeSantis can appoint a Trump/MAGA supporter into Gaetz’s vacant position. When Gaetz does not get approved by the senate, Gaetz will be without a position of power and will be left groveling for support, which will not come.
One can only hope.
The Guardian is Firing X
Today I received an email from The Guardian. Here are excerpts from the email.
We wanted to let readers know that we are no longer posting from any official Guardian editorial accounts on the social media site X (formerly Twitter). We think that the benefits of being on X are now outweighed by the negatives and that resources could be better used promoting our content elsewhere.
This is something we have been considering for a while given the often disturbing content promoted or found on the platform, including far-right conspiracy theories and racism. The US presidential election campaign served only to underline what we have considered for a long time: that X is a toxic media platform and that its owner, Elon Musk, has been able to use its influence to shape political discourse…
Social media can be an important tool for news organizations and help us to reach new audiences but, at this point, X now plays a diminished role in promoting our work. Our journalism is available and open to all on our website and we would prefer people to come to theguardian.com and support our work there. You can also enjoy our journalism on the Guardian app and discover new pieces via our brilliant set of regular newsletters.
Thankfully, we can do this because our business model doesn’t rely on viral content tailored to the whims of the social media giants’ algorithms – instead we’re funded directly by readers like you.
The Guardian gets my Orchid of the Day
If the Senate is Trump’s Guardrail, We are in Trouble.
Trump is sending an early message to the Senate about what he expects from them, or they end up like Nikki Haley or Mike Pompeo who are out of Trump’s orbit. Trump is telling senators to give him their loyalty if they want to hold on to power.
Per Joyce Vance’s Civil Discourse, unless something changes, Senate Republicans are unlikely to stand up to Donald Trump as the Constitution obligates them to do. They will have to choose whether to do the right thing or be complicit in Trump’s malfeasance. No serious president would suggest that a TV pundit with no experience running a major executive branch agency could run the Department of Defense. But Donald Trump has. This is exactly why the Founding Fathers gave the Senate the responsibility for advice and consent. If they abdicate, they can never again claim to be constitutionalists.
How bad is it going to be? Perhaps there will be a few brave senators who will take a stand on a nomination or two. But no one stays opposed to Trump and sticks around for long. The new Republican Senate leader, South Dakotan John Thune, voted to acquit Trump following the second impeachment trial, but said, “My vote to acquit should not be viewed as exoneration … What former President Trump did to undermine faith in our election system and disrupt the peaceful transfer of power is inexcusable.”
The Senate needs to heed the advice of one of their own when they were using their power of advice and consent to hamper the appointments of Obama. In April of 2014, midway through President Obama’s second term, Republican Senator Orrin Hatch wrote in The Hill, “The Senate’s constitutional role of ‘advice and consent’ is an essential check on the president’s constitutional power to appoint executive and judicial branch officials.” This is my Quote of the Day
No Guardrails!!!!!!!!!!
There is a Reason they Call Them Free Throws
With one second to go in the Piston’s game with the Bucks the score was tied, and Piston Ron Holland II was awarded two free throws. He needed to only make one for the Pistons to secure a victory in regulation. Holland missed them both and the Pistons went on to lose in overtime. This was a game they should have won, since they also blew an 18-point second half lead.
In our 20 years of teaching basketball to fourth through eighth graders for ten Saturdays in Jan through March, Coach Clifton and I emphasized the importance of making free throws. We constantly told the kids there is a reason they call them free throws. It is the only time a player has ten seconds to shoot without anyone guarding him/her. The distance of the free throw is the same whether a sixth grader or an NBA player. Making free throws is all about proper form and repetition. If you work hard enough, you should make over 80% of your free throws. Steph Curry, Steve Nash, and Mark Price all finished their long NBA careers making over 90% of their free throws.
In last night’s game Ron Holland made one of three free throws. The two he missed could have won the game. Free throws matter.
Onion of the Day-Ford Motor Company
Per the Detroit News, Ford Motor Co. will pay the second-largest civil penalty in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s history after the Dearborn automaker failed to comply with federal recall requirements, according to a new release from the agency.
The three-year consent order agreed to by Ford and the NHTSA includes a civil penalty of up to $165 million, which is exceeded only by the Takata air bag consent order in the regulatory agency’s 54-year history. An investigation that began in 2021 found the company didn’t recall vehicles with defective rearview cameras in a timely manner or provide accurate and complete recall information as required by the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act.
The recall affected more than 600,000 vehicles and included various models including certain 2020 model year Escape, Explorer, F-150, Mustang and Transit vehicles. When the vehicle is in reverse, the camera could display a blank or distorted image. An initial recall took place in September 2020 and was later expanded. There were no fatalities or injuries reported in connection with the issue.
As a person who has only owned one non-Ford vehicle in over 50 years, this is very disappointing. Fortunately, my two current Ford models were not part of this recall for which Ford is paying the second largest penalty in U.S History. As a consumer, I am not expecting perfection in my automobiles. I know that they are complicated vehicles in which all manners of things can go wrong. However, I do expect my car company to fix issues once they have been notified of a systemic problem. Trust is earned and trust can be lost. Ford Motor Company deserves my Onion of the Day
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Quote of the Day: , “The Senate’s constitutional role of ‘advice and consent’ is an essential check on the president’s constitutional power to appoint executive and judicial branch officials.” Senator Orrin Hatch
Second Quote of the Day: Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican of Alaska, said Mr. Gaetz is “not a serious candidate” and compared him to the disgraced fabulist who was expelled from the House last year, saying, “If I wanted to make a joke, maybe I would say now I’m waiting for George Santos to be named.”
Orchid of the Day: The Guardian for telling X to stick it. See above story.
Onion of the Day: Ford Motor Company, see above story.
Question of the Day: Will other media companies follow the lead of The Guardian and no longer use X.
Video of the Day: What Leah hears when I tell her about my round of golf.