NATIONAL STICKY BUN DAY UPDATES
This Post Brought To You (Not Really) by BETTER CALL SAUL
-Remember at the end of last week about the story of the FBI informant in the Hunter Biden (dumdumdum) case that was indicted by the FBI for perjury? Well HOO BOY, has THAT story blown up in the last 24 hours!!!
-You see, the indicted perjurer – an Israeli citizen named Alexander Smirnov – has told investigators that all the stuff he was spreading about Hunter and Joe Biden and alleged corruption in Ukraine and all sorts of other do-baddery that MAGAts like James Comer (HunteR!, KY) and Jim “Gym” Jordan (OtheR Way, OH) were trying to use to impeach Joe and successfully press for criminal charges against Hunter, was nothing more than … wait for it … RUSSIAN MISINFORMATION, much of it coming directly from Russian spies and “intelligence” sources!
-Now, to be fair, Smirnov has been labelled a liar by the FBI, but even as requests to hold him in custody failed to convince a Federal judge to do so (and that judge was appointed by you’ll-never-guessTRUMP), but the revelations have already lead Hunter’s attorneys to file no less than nine motions to dismiss any number of cases that Smirnov was the key witness for. Since Smirnov was also a star in the Comer/Jordan hearings, calls to call off any Biden impeachment hearing have begun (if likely not to be heeded). And it once again highlights just how darn many MAGAts out there seem to not only have connections with, but listen to Russian information as if they were actual facts or something.
-One person we know does that all the time is Dear Leader Ex-President Trump (R-apist) XCI, who again illustrated both how much he hearts Vladimir Putin and everything he does and plays the self-pity card for the benefit of his followers on an appearance with Laura Ingraham yesterday. There, when asked about his feelings for the $350M+ fine assessed by New York courts, Trump whined that in his view, trying to make Trump literally pay for his crimes were “a form of Navalny … a form of Fascism,” thus equating himself and his actual Fascist tendencies with the recently-deceased hero of actually fighting Fascism, Alexander Navalny. (This his-fines-are-Fascist! Projection is starting to be seen and heard in various right-wing news sites, so expect to hear more of this drivel in days to come.)
-All the Trump Sneakers that were “put on sale” have “sold.” The terms are in quotes because at this moment there is apparently only one pair of the things that physically exist at the moment – fine print for those who coughed up $399 for a pair needed to read the fine print to realize the shoes would not be delivered until July, if at all. And there may already be a problem in that the Trump sneakers have bright red soles on the shoes – and, as it turns out, red soles on the bottom of sneakers is actually a copywritten design feature of shoes from designer Christian Louboutin. And no, Louboutin is reportedly not pleased about it at all and is considering legal action because Trump needs more lawsuits against him in his life.
-Speaking of Trump (lack of) money, the not-at-all-Fascist New York Attorney General, Tish James, has vowed that if Trump does not come up with the cash required of the sentence, she is ready to begin seizing buildings owned by Trump to make him do so. The news was met with AN-GRR! by many MAGAts, a couple of which tried to act against the move by punishing New York State. So, NY, you don’t get to have any more visits from MAGAt start Scott Adams, whose ZIGGY ripoff strip DILBERT stopped being funny back when we all worked in cubicles. And that dynamic country music/ignorance tour headed by Jason Aldean and Kid Rock announced they will not bring their “You Can’t Cancel America” tour to New York … apparently missing the entire point of their own hype and tour name. Tickets can be refunded at point purchase.
-And as we were speaking of the House and the work they were doing on various impeachments, one bit of work they did NOT do heading into this long break is any kind of resolution to keep the government funded. The deadline for another extension is March 1, and with the House not scheduled to reconvene until late next week, Axios reports several GOP House members expect a shutdown, which would begin in part on March 1 and end with a total shutdown on March 8 if no resolution is passed.
-There are already rumblings that Mike Johnson’s (R-Jay-EE-Zuz!, LA) Speakership may be in jeopardy if he dares try to pass that resolution along with Dear Leader Trump’s demand to not fund Ukraine any time soon. In turn, there are still other rumblings that Johnson may be working to cut a deal with Democrats on both Ukraine aid and government funding in exchange for protecting his gavel from the Marjorie Taylor Greenes and Matt Gaetzes of MAGAtWorld, and even two or three chirps that there may be enough exiting Republicans who have had it enough to throw their support to Hakeem Jeffries. Pop that popcorn …
-In media news, THIS JUST IN: in a fascinating twist in the media ecosphere, Audacy – a radio conglomerate currently in Chapter 11 bankruptcy – will be exiting bankruptcy after a Texas judge approved the purchase of stock to allow an investment fund to control the company. And who controls that investment fund? None other than right-wing rich boogeyman extraordinaire George Soros! And it’s not the only media purchase Soros’ fund has made this year – the fund has also bailed out Vice Media and purchased a stake in POD SAVE AMERICA producer Crooked Media. For those who have been crying out for progressives to get some money behind some media to fight the Foxes and Newsmaxes and LindellTeeVees, watch that space!
-We close with the most recent episode of WHY ARE MAGATS MAD TODAY? The answer is probably not surprising, but the reason why may be. MAGAts are mad at the only living being that could rival Mega-Super-Giga-Star Taylor Swift – BEYONCE! What did she do? She dropped a country song on the world post-Super Bowl, part of an entire album of country music made in part as homage to Black country music, which as you can imagine is woefully underrepresented and undercelebrated. But celebrations are in order now, as Beyonce’s single “Texas Hold ‘Em” debuted at Number One on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart (and a second single, “16 Carriages,” debuted at number nine on the same chart). The song hit number one after an OK station first refused to play the song until overwhelming demand forced their hand. That should hold everyone off until the rumored Beyonce/Taylor Swift duet gets recorded and released …
-On this date in 1972, Richard Nixon became the first American President to visit the People’s Republic of China. On this date in 1981, SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE’s Charles Rocket dropped an F-bomb on the show without it getting caught by NBC. On this date in 1999, Steve Fossett became the first human to fly a balloon solo across the Pacific Ocean.
-Debuts on this date: The steam locomotive (1804), THE COMMUNIST MANIFESTO (1848), the Washington Monument (1885), THE NEW YORKER (1925), NASCAR (1948), LOST IN YONKERS (1991), REAL TIME WITH BILL MAHER (2003).
-Happy Birthday to Santa Anna, Andres Segovia, Tom Yawkey, W.H. Auden, Ann Sheridan, Robert Mugabe, Jack Ramsay, Sam Peckinpah, Erma Bombeck, Hubert de Givenchy, Bob Rafelson, Nina Simone, Rue McClanahan, Barbara Jordan, Richard Beymer, John Lewis, David Geffen, Alan Rickman, Anthony Daniels, Tricia Nixon Cox, Tyne Daly, Victor Sokolov, Jerry Harrison, Christine Ebersole, Kelsey Grammer, Alan Trammell, Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Steve Nieve, Steve Wynn, Chuck Palahniuk, David Foster Wallace, Ranking Roger, William Baldwin, Scott Kelly, Rhiannon Giddens, Kumail Nanjiani, Carlito, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jordan Peele, Braylon Edwards, Charlotte Church, Elliot Page, and Sophie Turner. (One of THOSE days!)
-Rest in Peace/Rest in Power to Anne Frank, Eric Liddell, Malcolm X, Tim Horton, Murray the K, Margot Fonteyn, Harvey Kurtzman, Clark Terry, Peter Tork, Stanley Donen, and Liesl Mueller.
-Evangelist Billy Graham left this mortal coil on this date. You decide if he Rests In Power or if he Feeds the Worms.