The votes are in. All that is left is the counting. I don’t expect the results to be in before I go to sleep. The control of the senate is at stake. If the Republicans win, Mitch McConnell will be able to control legislation and prevent the Democrats from moving forward with their agenda. If the Democrats win both senate seats, the Democrats will have control of the executive and legislative branches. The last time this occurred was in 2009-2010, when the Democrats were able pass the Affordable Care Act. If the Democrats gain control of both chambers of congress, expect Republicans to stonewall and file lawsuits to prevent the Democrat’s legislation from moving forward. The Republicans will do everything in their power to take as many issues as possible to the Supreme Court where the conservatives maintain a 6-3 edge.
I continue to be dismayed at the audacity of President Trump’s call Saturday to the Georgia Secretary of State in which the President asked him to find 11,700 votes. What is even more disgusting are the people who are not complaining about the President making the call, but are complaining that the tape was leaked to the press.
Tomorrow, January 6, 2021 Congress is scheduled to confirm the 2020 presidential election. Normally, this is nothing more than a formality as all elections have been certified by their states and the electoral votes have all been cast in according to the laws of the states. Tomorrow’s confirmation will anything but a formality, as Republicans from both chambers of congress are expected to challenge the elections in 6 swing states. Based on the congressional rules, it could take more than 12 hours for the confirmation to occur. Once all votes are in and the debates have concluded, Vice President Pence will announce that Joseph Biden will be the 46th President of the United States. VP Pence will then lose all future support from Trump’s supporters. Don’t be surprised if VP Pence is villified on social media between now and January 20.
As reported by Heather Cox Richardson, President Trump has rallied his supporters to go to Washington, D.C., to protest on Wednesday, January 6. The leader of the far-right Proud Boys, Enrique Tarrio, arrived in Washington, D.C., where he was promptly arrested for destruction of property during his last visit to the city when he burned a Black Lives Matter banner protestors pulled down from the historic Asbury United Methodist Church. After his arrest, law enforcement officers found he was carrying two high-capacity firearms magazines. Tomorrow will be everything but a formality.
The New York Times reported today American intelligence agencies formally named Russia as the “likely” source of the broad hacking of the U.S.government and primate companies. and declared that the operation was “ongoing” nearly a month after it was discovered. The statement also underscored the degree to which American intelligence agencies are playing catch-up, after being alerted in mid-December by private security firms to the broadest and deepest penetration of American computer networks in modern times. The intelligence agencies have concluded with a high degree of confidence that Russia was responsible for the hacking, according to people briefed on the analysis.
Stay safe, social distance, wear your mask and wash your hands thoroughly and regularly.
Quote of the Day: Senator John C. Danforth (R-MO), “Trump’s false claim that the election was stolen is a highly destructive attack on our constitutional government. It is the opposite of conservative; it is radical….” Senator John Danforth, Republican from Missouri