NATIONAL CHOCOLATE-COVERED RAISIN DAY UPDATES
Arguably The Only Way Adults Should Eat Raisins, IMHO!
-The death toll from the terrorist attack on a music venue outside of Moscow jumped to 133, and crowds are gathering around the site to mourn. Russian authorities claim they have arrested 11 people in connection with the attack, and a cell associating itself with ISIS is claiming responsibility for the attack - going so far as to release a video it claims was taken by the terrorists during the attack (per CNN). American and European intelligence sources report they had credible reports of increased activity by ISIS, and put its forces on alert for such an attack.
-But the Western intelligence reports and apparent admission from ISIS itself has not stopped Vladimir Putin from trying to blame the incident on Ukraine. Indeed, one report hours after the attack claimed a van with Ukrainian license plates was seen near the building - though that report was made moments before the first claim of responsibility came from ISIS, and Russian propaganda outlets and MAGA allies in the United States are starting to circulate the Putin spin in an apparent attempt to continue to block aid to Ukraine and increase attacks on the country.
-In recent days, in fact, Russian missiles and drones have increased their attacks on Ukraine, unleashing what has been described as the most intense and destructive missions targeting electric and infrastructure in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy noted much of the country was out of electricity for several days as a result of the attacks, which continue as MAGA GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Jay-EE-Zuz!, LA) continues to drag his feet on bringing the Senate-passed aid bill to the floor for a vote most observers agree would easily pass.
-But that delay may be coming to an end thanks to Johnson's increasingly tenuous hold on the gavel. After allowing a Government spending bill to pass that will keep the government open through November, MAGA Leader Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (Z-Q-R, GA) called a motion to vacate - the same procedure that led to the ouster of Johnson's predecessor, Kevin McCarthy (remember him?). Later that day, a GOP Rep from WI announced his resignation in April - timed in such a way that the seat will remain vacant until the next Congress is voted in, meaning Johnson now may only have a one-seat majority. As a result, reports this morning are claiming Democrats would only vote to allow Johnson to stay in power for now if the Ukraine aid package was brought to the floor.
-And yes, if outgoing Rep. Ken Buck (R-CO) is to be believed, there may be at least three other Republicans who may be leaving in the weeks and months to come - which, if true, could mean a transfer of power in mid-Congress to the Democrats and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries. That would be why Democrats may be OK with supporting Johnson in the short-term with Ukraine aid as the price.
-SLAVA UKRAINI!!
-Meanwhile, Ex-President Trump (R-apist) LXXXVIII is preparing to head to court tomorrow without the $454M+ he needs to prevent NY Attorney General Tish James from starting to seize Trump properties, at least according to Trump failson Eric "Eric" Trump on Fox Bid-Ness with Maria Bartiromo this morning. "Every single person when I came to them saying can I get a half billion dollar bond. Maria, they were laughing. They were laughing!"
-So are we, Eric! So ... are ... we!
-Anyway, it seems Trump and his brood are continuing to not find any backer to front the cash for him. Even the "deal" announced on Friday of a "buyer" for Trump's garbage Truth Social media site is not likely to help - first, it's essentially an announcement that you could buy stock in Truth Social to raise the money - keep the snickering to a minimum, please! - second, the sale won't occur until September, third there is no guarantee the sale would generate enough money for Trump, and fourth in a lovely bit of schadenfreude, the company that brokered the deal itself lost around $450M in value on Friday, which is a sign as to what investors think of the whole thing.
-Let's laugh at Eric some more!
-With some reports that a golf course in upstate NY has already been marked for seizure, other reports claiming James may have the ability to go after Trump properties anywhere in the country (hey, Mar-a-Lago!) or even overseas (that Trump golf club in Scotland sure do look purty!), and continued pressures on the legal front (action likely this week in the NY case involving payoffs to Stormy Daniels and the return of Fani Willis in Fulton County looking for a trial date for that case), it is clear that the world may not be heeding GOP pollster Frank Luntz who is warning us - WARNING us, he tells ya! - that taking Trump property will so enrage and inflame the electorate it will drive uncommitted voters into a pity vote for Trump come November.
-Putting aside the chronic polling issues of the Trump era - particularly the consistency of Democratic voting overperforming their polling and Republican voting vastly underperforming theirs - we should know relatively quickly if Luntz has a point, again in the short-term. The Economist publishes an average of national polls every week for those into horse race political reporting, and this week's average shows President Biden now ahead of Trump 45%-44% in a preponderance of polls for the first time since September (just before the HAMAS attacks). Other metrics, including the number of small donors and the fact that Trump reportedly has enough of a cash crunch he cannot produce his beloved rallies at the level he would like to (not to mention noticeably plunging attendance at the rallies that do occur), do indicate some problems for Trump that sympathy could patch up. IF it happens ...
-If you are a progressive and have any kind of social media account, you do not have to be told what this weekend's Progressive Pha-REEK-Out! has been all about, because since early Friday morning, pretty much every Progressive online has been rending their garments and screaming into the void in frustration and rage over the announcement that failed and former Republican National Committee Chairperson Ronna (ROMNEY) McDaniel was signed by NBC News to be a political commentator for their various broadcast and digital outlets.
-Putting aside for the moment the entire question of why someone as uncharismatic and untelegenic and uninsightful and frankly uninteresting as a person as McDaniel would be of interest to any media outlet, or who in the Heck might actually respect anything she might have to say about any political topic (MAGAts hate her for not sucking up to Trump hard enough, regular Republicans pin the blame on her for losing Congress and State houses - not without reason - and Democrats note her close-to-direct-if-not-actual-direct involvement in the attempts to steal the 2020 election from President Biden), or even who outside of Andrea Mitchell and Kristin "Oh You Don't Think You Can Be Made To Miss Chuck Todd? HOLD MY WHITEBOARD!" Welker would even want to talk to her (and yes, that includes Uncle Mitt), the entire signing - at a reported $300,000 - is at best a theoretical flex/cover for NBC to have someone be able to say the Republicans lost if they lose in November with some, er, credibility?, at worst yet another attempt by a news organization to nod to the right-wing audience that seems to be the one chronic and dependable audience for cable news these days.
-Progressives of course have been demanding immediate boycotts, and that and reported pushback-WTF declarations from on-screen talent has led MSNBC to announce McDaniel won't be anywhere near that outlet, since McDaniel's first MEET THE PRESS appearance this morning (natch) had her declaring she is still going to vote for Trump, showing the humiliation kink that Never Trumpers who appear on MSNBC (Nicole Wallace, Michael Steele, Rachel Bitecofer, Stuart Stevens) do not have. So don't expect Ronna to be on Rachel or Lawrence or Jen Psaki anytime soon ...
-... we hope.
-No other update, other than to invite everyone to laugh at Eric one more time!
-On this date in 1953, Elvis Presley was inducted in the U.S. Army. On this date in 1984, five disparate teenagers reported to a high school library in suburban Chicago to serve a detention on a Saturday morning, at least according to the premise of THE BREAKFAST CLUB. On this date in 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound in Alaska, creating what was then the largest oil spill in world history. On this date in 1999, NATO conducted its first-ever offensive actions, bombing Serbian military positions in Kosovo. On this date in 2002, two actors of color won Oscars in the same year for the first time - Denzel Washington (for TRAINING DAY) and Halle Berry (for MONSTER'S BALL). On this date in 2016, Radovan Karadzic was convicted of war crimes while leader of Serbia. And on this date in 2020, the Tokyo Summer Olympics were postponed in response to the COVID-19 epidemic (it would go on without spectators in 2021).
-Notable debuts: the Brandenburg Concertos (1721), WUTHERING HEIGHTS (1939), CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF (1955), television sports replay (1962), Mick Jagger and Keith Richards performing in public for the first time (1962), the first 'teach-in' in opposition to the Viet Nam War (1965, at the University of Michigan).
-Happy Birthday to Harry Houdini, Roscoe "Fatty" Arbuckle, George Sisler, Thomas E. Dewey, Joseph Barbera, Dorothy Height, Gorgeous George, Norman Fell, Dario Fo, Steve McQueen, Carol Kaye, Mary Berry, David Suzuki, Bob Mackie, Jesus Alou, R. Lee Ermey, Curtis Hanson, Nick Lowe, Tommy Hilfiger, Louie Anderson, Donna Pescow, Irina Ratushinskaya, Steve Ballmer, Renaldo Nehemiah, Barry Horowitz, Kelly LeBrock, Nena, Star Jones, Patterson Hood, The Undertaker, Lara Flynn Boyle, Tig Notaro, Jim Parsons, Alyson Hannigan, Peyton Manning, Jessica Chastain, and Chris Bosh.
-Rest in Peace/Rest in Power to Queen Elizabeth I, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Jules Verne, John Millington Synge, Bernard Montgomery, Archbishop Oscar Romero, Sam Jaffe, Ray Goulding, Harold Melvin, Birdie Tebbetts, Hal Riney, Richard Widmark, Robert Culp, Garry Shandling, Johan Cruyff, Albert Uderzo, and Terrence McNally.
-Feed the Worms: mega-rich-douche Andrew Mellon and notorious outlaw Clyde Barrow entered Earth on this date.
-The Number One Album in the United States On This Date ... in 2024, ETERNAL SUNSHINE by Ariana Grande ... in 2014, the FROZEN Motion Picture Soundtrack ... in 2004, FEELS LIKE HOME by Norah Jones ... in 1994, SUPERUNKNOWN by Soundgarden ... in 1984, THRILLER by Michael Jackson ... and in 1974, THE WAY WE WERE by Barbara Streisand.