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shadowkat1. How do we overthrow a dictatorship?
Apparently by hiring a bunch of extremely smart constitutional law attorneys and judges who can give the dictatorship just enough rope to hang itself, while at the same time protecting the rest of us. It's highly more productive than how they overthrew the Nazi's in WWII, which didn't exactly end well for anyone - it resulted in an extremely high cost of human life - which we can all agree that we do not want to repeat at any point. [Note the Star Wars approach - we do not want. Star Trek yes, Star Wars no.]
I'm following a bunch of constitutional and immigration attorneys of FB, and they are amusing me to no end, also keeping my spirits up.
My favorite is Ann P. Mitchell - whose an attorney based out in California, and is quite logical. Also, she was at one point asking people for a humane way to get rid of katydids from her garden, which further endeared her to me.
Per Mitchell:
"Remember last week, when the judge ordered Kilmar Abrego-Garcia released, and I said "So, if he is released from detention in Tennessee, ICE will almost certainly be waiting for him as he walks out the door... Then there will be a legal scuffle as to whether ICE can actually deport him when there is a pending trial in the human smuggling case. Of course, as both agencies attempting to keep control of this human football are federal agencies, it's likely that they can get the human smuggling charges dropped (and, again, I believe they are likely made up anyway) so that ICE can send Abrego Garcia to... who knows, anywhere *but* El Salvador."
Remember that?
So, this just in: while Kilmar Abrego-Garcia is still in the Tennessee jail, the DOJ filed a motion asking the court to stay (pause/block) the order releasing him, because DHS is likely to deport him before the DOJ can try him on the (I believe made-up) charges for which he is being held in Tennessee.
Said the judge, in her order: "The Government emphasizes that absent a stay, it will incur the irreparable injury of Abrego possibly facing deportation from the United States pursuant to the immigration detainer lodged against him by DHS. If deported, the Government argues, the Department of Justice will be deprived of the opportunity to pursue its criminal charges against Abrego. At bottom, the Government asks the Court to save it from itself because it may suffer irreparable harm completely of its own making. This contravenes basic legal understanding of what constitutes irreparable harm for this analysis.""
That's the long one, here's the gist: A federal judge in Tennessee just denied the government’s request to keep Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia locked up while it appeals his release. Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. upheld the magistrate’s order to free Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador last month, while he awaits trial on human smuggling charges (fake charges cooked up by the Trump administration).
FB is finally paying me back for joining it back in 2008 to follow political issues and social justice. Who knew?
2. So, the Mayoral Primary race resulted in an upset, of sorts?
"This was supposed to be former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s fifth act, his triumphant return to New York politics after a long stint in the wilderness. Instead, New York City delivered an electoral shocker by choosing a socialist Muslim immigrant as its Democratic mayoral candidate, immediately making Zohran Mamdani the front-runner in this heavily Democratic city.
And it wasn’t even close. With 93 percent of the precincts reporting as of this morning, Mamdani leads Cuomo by over seven percentage points."
It was 44% to 38% this morning.
I'm not surprised, Cuomo was running on a "FIX THE CITY" and "Fix Crime" docket, when 85% of NYC residents are mainly concerned about rents, air quality, child care, education, and ICE. Also there's a heavy anti-Israel sentiment in the city. (Not anti-semitic, so much as anti-Zionist, and Cuomo has been pro-Israel, also he's backed by billionaires - and most of the city hates the billionaires.)
What's worrisome is the Republican Candidate. It's exactly the same one as last time, but still worrisome.
Mother : you've survived Republican mayor's in the past -
Me: You don't know who it is - it's not someone like Bloomberg or Guiliani, this guy is insane.
It's this asshole: Curtis Sliwa[a] (born March 26, 1954) is an American activist, radio talk show host, and founder and chief executive officer of the Guardian Angels, a nonprofit crime prevention organization. Sliwa was the Republican nominee for the 2021 New York City mayoral election, which he lost to Brooklyn borough president and Democrat Eric Adams.
What is the Guardian Angels - it was a prive police force that invaded the subways in the 70s to allegedly make them safer (they didn't). He's a racist asshole.
I'm beginning to wonder about the Republicans - is there any sane and non-bigoted, non-racist, kind people left in that party? Or are they all racist greedy, nasty, idiotic assholes?
The city isn't dangerous. The suburbs and rural areas on the other hand...
Me: Most New Yorkers don't see crime as the problem -
Breaking Bad: Then they don't take the subways.
Me: I take them every day and have for years and don't see any crime.
Breaking Bad: Then you are very lucky.
Me: Have you seen any crime since you started taking them?
Breaking Bad: Well, no.
ME: You need to stop believing everything you see on the news - they love to exaggerate.
Breaking Bad: Ha Cumo lost.
Me: You must be happy.
Breaking Bad: I am. He's out. And he had to eat it. Hee Hee.
Me: You really didn't care who won, as long as he lost.
Breaking Bad: Pretty much.
Me: The Republican Candidate is scary.
Breaking Bad: Don't worry about it - it's Zohran. A Republican can't win New York any longer. It's a Democrat town.
3. Now, I know why the heat is zapping me.
If you are on any of these medications - the heat will affect you more than most.
Heat affects everyone, but did you know some medications cause patients to have a higher intolerance to heat?
Be sure to increase hydration and decrease full exposure to sun if your medication is on the list. [I have three on the list - it's my high blood pressure medication - it means I'm intolerant to head now. Lovely.]
4. BigBeautiful Ugly Bill - the Budget Bill that the Trump Administration wants passed by July 4.
Per Anne P. Mitchell:
"Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has struck down the clause in Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' that tried to hamstring the courts from holding defendants (read as "Trump and others in his administration") in contempt. (Ironic as Trump clearly holds the courts in contempt.)
Remember when I told you that clause would never have passed constitutional muster anyways? (That's also incorporated in my pinned post.) Meaning that *had* it passed, the courts would have struck it down faster than you can say "nice try". But it's good that they won't have to deal with those shenanigans, as they already have their plates full with holding the rule of law against the onslaught that is the Trump administration.
Parliamentarian MacDonough held that the clause, along with some others, including withholding the already-approved funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the larger cuts to SNAP, violate the Byrd Rule. You see, budget reconciliation bills, such as the Big Beautiful Bill, only need a simple majority to be passed, which is *why* the BBB was introduced as a budget reconciliation bill.
BUT, the Byrd Rule says that any budget reconciliation bill must deal with, and *only* deal with, you know... *the budget*. No policy items dressed up as budgetary items allowed! Sneaking policy into a budget reconciliation bill so that the policy only needs a simple majority to be passed and enacted, rather than a 60+ vote majority of the full senate, is a no no. And so the Parliamentarian has told the Republican senators "No, no."
Senate Parlimentarian's No List - 12 Things Struck from the Big Beautiful Bill per the Hill
Among the 12 items struck from the bill: "The Senate parliamentarian ruled against a provision championed by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) that would have sold off millions of acres of Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land in up to 11 states."
Utah needs to reign in its Senator.
"MacDonough blocked a provision that would deem offshore oil and gas projects as automatically compliant with the National Environmental Policy Act.
She also rejected a measure in the bill that required offshore oil and gas leases to be issued to successful bidders within 90 days after their sale."
"The bill originally contained language that sought to undo Biden administration rules meant to encourage electric vehicle use. The Senate parliamentarian rejected a provision that would force the General Services Administration, which handles the equipment used by government agencies, to sell all the eclectic vehicles used by the U.S. Postal Service. "
"The bill targeted several Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, including one that restricts air pollution emissions from passenger vehicles. MacDonough said late last week that Republicans could not include that measure in the “big, beautiful bill.”
Republicans also wanted to change the National Environmental Policy Act to allow project developers to fast-track environmental reviews or prevent judicial reviews if they paid a one-time fee, according to Politico. MacDonough ruled against the measure. "
MacDonough has ruled against a provision that would have essentially eliminated the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by placing a cap on its funding. The provision would have lowered the agency’s maximum funding to zero percent of the Federal Reserve’s operating expenses.
She also ruled against several other measures that fell under the control of the Senate Banking Committee, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and the Senate Armed Services Committee. One would have cut $1.4 billion in federal costs by lowering the Federal Reserve staff pay.
MacDonough also rejected measures that proposed cutting more than $1 billion in costs by slashing the Office of Financial Research funding and getting rid of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. "
And.."Last week, MacDonough ruled against a measure that prevented immigrants who are not yet citizens or lawful permanent residents from participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
She also rejected another SNAP-related provision that required states to pay a percentage of food assistance under SNAP depending on their individual error rates in delivering food aid. The provision required states to pay between 5 percent and 15 percent of food benefits in 2028, depending on their error rate. Nearly every state has had SNAP error rates of 6 percent or higher."
So the Bill went back to the House marked up. It's in committee again.
Off to watch my soap. I'm trying to get my living room lower than 80 degrees and failing. I'm not sure if I need another A/C or if I need to get a new one. The one in the bedroom - is keeping the bedroom at whatever temperature I set it. So I may require two. But I'd rather not.
Oh well, the heat wave is breaking tomorrow. NYC is not set up for blistering heat. It's used to milder temperatures - it's like London in that respect.
Apparently by hiring a bunch of extremely smart constitutional law attorneys and judges who can give the dictatorship just enough rope to hang itself, while at the same time protecting the rest of us. It's highly more productive than how they overthrew the Nazi's in WWII, which didn't exactly end well for anyone - it resulted in an extremely high cost of human life - which we can all agree that we do not want to repeat at any point. [Note the Star Wars approach - we do not want. Star Trek yes, Star Wars no.]
I'm following a bunch of constitutional and immigration attorneys of FB, and they are amusing me to no end, also keeping my spirits up.
My favorite is Ann P. Mitchell - whose an attorney based out in California, and is quite logical. Also, she was at one point asking people for a humane way to get rid of katydids from her garden, which further endeared her to me.
Per Mitchell:
"Remember last week, when the judge ordered Kilmar Abrego-Garcia released, and I said "So, if he is released from detention in Tennessee, ICE will almost certainly be waiting for him as he walks out the door... Then there will be a legal scuffle as to whether ICE can actually deport him when there is a pending trial in the human smuggling case. Of course, as both agencies attempting to keep control of this human football are federal agencies, it's likely that they can get the human smuggling charges dropped (and, again, I believe they are likely made up anyway) so that ICE can send Abrego Garcia to... who knows, anywhere *but* El Salvador."
Remember that?
So, this just in: while Kilmar Abrego-Garcia is still in the Tennessee jail, the DOJ filed a motion asking the court to stay (pause/block) the order releasing him, because DHS is likely to deport him before the DOJ can try him on the (I believe made-up) charges for which he is being held in Tennessee.
Said the judge, in her order: "The Government emphasizes that absent a stay, it will incur the irreparable injury of Abrego possibly facing deportation from the United States pursuant to the immigration detainer lodged against him by DHS. If deported, the Government argues, the Department of Justice will be deprived of the opportunity to pursue its criminal charges against Abrego. At bottom, the Government asks the Court to save it from itself because it may suffer irreparable harm completely of its own making. This contravenes basic legal understanding of what constitutes irreparable harm for this analysis.""
That's the long one, here's the gist: A federal judge in Tennessee just denied the government’s request to keep Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia locked up while it appeals his release. Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. upheld the magistrate’s order to free Abrego Garcia, who was mistakenly deported to El Salvador last month, while he awaits trial on human smuggling charges (fake charges cooked up by the Trump administration).
FB is finally paying me back for joining it back in 2008 to follow political issues and social justice. Who knew?
2. So, the Mayoral Primary race resulted in an upset, of sorts?
"This was supposed to be former Governor Andrew Cuomo’s fifth act, his triumphant return to New York politics after a long stint in the wilderness. Instead, New York City delivered an electoral shocker by choosing a socialist Muslim immigrant as its Democratic mayoral candidate, immediately making Zohran Mamdani the front-runner in this heavily Democratic city.
And it wasn’t even close. With 93 percent of the precincts reporting as of this morning, Mamdani leads Cuomo by over seven percentage points."
It was 44% to 38% this morning.
I'm not surprised, Cuomo was running on a "FIX THE CITY" and "Fix Crime" docket, when 85% of NYC residents are mainly concerned about rents, air quality, child care, education, and ICE. Also there's a heavy anti-Israel sentiment in the city. (Not anti-semitic, so much as anti-Zionist, and Cuomo has been pro-Israel, also he's backed by billionaires - and most of the city hates the billionaires.)
What's worrisome is the Republican Candidate. It's exactly the same one as last time, but still worrisome.
Mother : you've survived Republican mayor's in the past -
Me: You don't know who it is - it's not someone like Bloomberg or Guiliani, this guy is insane.
It's this asshole: Curtis Sliwa[a] (born March 26, 1954) is an American activist, radio talk show host, and founder and chief executive officer of the Guardian Angels, a nonprofit crime prevention organization. Sliwa was the Republican nominee for the 2021 New York City mayoral election, which he lost to Brooklyn borough president and Democrat Eric Adams.
What is the Guardian Angels - it was a prive police force that invaded the subways in the 70s to allegedly make them safer (they didn't). He's a racist asshole.
I'm beginning to wonder about the Republicans - is there any sane and non-bigoted, non-racist, kind people left in that party? Or are they all racist greedy, nasty, idiotic assholes?
The city isn't dangerous. The suburbs and rural areas on the other hand...
Me: Most New Yorkers don't see crime as the problem -
Breaking Bad: Then they don't take the subways.
Me: I take them every day and have for years and don't see any crime.
Breaking Bad: Then you are very lucky.
Me: Have you seen any crime since you started taking them?
Breaking Bad: Well, no.
ME: You need to stop believing everything you see on the news - they love to exaggerate.
Breaking Bad: Ha Cumo lost.
Me: You must be happy.
Breaking Bad: I am. He's out. And he had to eat it. Hee Hee.
Me: You really didn't care who won, as long as he lost.
Breaking Bad: Pretty much.
Me: The Republican Candidate is scary.
Breaking Bad: Don't worry about it - it's Zohran. A Republican can't win New York any longer. It's a Democrat town.
3. Now, I know why the heat is zapping me.
If you are on any of these medications - the heat will affect you more than most.
Heat affects everyone, but did you know some medications cause patients to have a higher intolerance to heat?
Be sure to increase hydration and decrease full exposure to sun if your medication is on the list. [I have three on the list - it's my high blood pressure medication - it means I'm intolerant to head now. Lovely.]
4. Big
Per Anne P. Mitchell:
"Senate parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough has struck down the clause in Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' that tried to hamstring the courts from holding defendants (read as "Trump and others in his administration") in contempt. (Ironic as Trump clearly holds the courts in contempt.)
Remember when I told you that clause would never have passed constitutional muster anyways? (That's also incorporated in my pinned post.) Meaning that *had* it passed, the courts would have struck it down faster than you can say "nice try". But it's good that they won't have to deal with those shenanigans, as they already have their plates full with holding the rule of law against the onslaught that is the Trump administration.
Parliamentarian MacDonough held that the clause, along with some others, including withholding the already-approved funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and the larger cuts to SNAP, violate the Byrd Rule. You see, budget reconciliation bills, such as the Big Beautiful Bill, only need a simple majority to be passed, which is *why* the BBB was introduced as a budget reconciliation bill.
BUT, the Byrd Rule says that any budget reconciliation bill must deal with, and *only* deal with, you know... *the budget*. No policy items dressed up as budgetary items allowed! Sneaking policy into a budget reconciliation bill so that the policy only needs a simple majority to be passed and enacted, rather than a 60+ vote majority of the full senate, is a no no. And so the Parliamentarian has told the Republican senators "No, no."
Senate Parlimentarian's No List - 12 Things Struck from the Big Beautiful Bill per the Hill
Among the 12 items struck from the bill: "The Senate parliamentarian ruled against a provision championed by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) that would have sold off millions of acres of Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management land in up to 11 states."
Utah needs to reign in its Senator.
"MacDonough blocked a provision that would deem offshore oil and gas projects as automatically compliant with the National Environmental Policy Act.
She also rejected a measure in the bill that required offshore oil and gas leases to be issued to successful bidders within 90 days after their sale."
"The bill originally contained language that sought to undo Biden administration rules meant to encourage electric vehicle use. The Senate parliamentarian rejected a provision that would force the General Services Administration, which handles the equipment used by government agencies, to sell all the eclectic vehicles used by the U.S. Postal Service. "
"The bill targeted several Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulations, including one that restricts air pollution emissions from passenger vehicles. MacDonough said late last week that Republicans could not include that measure in the “big, beautiful bill.”
Republicans also wanted to change the National Environmental Policy Act to allow project developers to fast-track environmental reviews or prevent judicial reviews if they paid a one-time fee, according to Politico. MacDonough ruled against the measure. "
MacDonough has ruled against a provision that would have essentially eliminated the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by placing a cap on its funding. The provision would have lowered the agency’s maximum funding to zero percent of the Federal Reserve’s operating expenses.
She also ruled against several other measures that fell under the control of the Senate Banking Committee, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and the Senate Armed Services Committee. One would have cut $1.4 billion in federal costs by lowering the Federal Reserve staff pay.
MacDonough also rejected measures that proposed cutting more than $1 billion in costs by slashing the Office of Financial Research funding and getting rid of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. "
And.."Last week, MacDonough ruled against a measure that prevented immigrants who are not yet citizens or lawful permanent residents from participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
She also rejected another SNAP-related provision that required states to pay a percentage of food assistance under SNAP depending on their individual error rates in delivering food aid. The provision required states to pay between 5 percent and 15 percent of food benefits in 2028, depending on their error rate. Nearly every state has had SNAP error rates of 6 percent or higher."
So the Bill went back to the House marked up. It's in committee again.
Off to watch my soap. I'm trying to get my living room lower than 80 degrees and failing. I'm not sure if I need another A/C or if I need to get a new one. The one in the bedroom - is keeping the bedroom at whatever temperature I set it. So I may require two. But I'd rather not.
Oh well, the heat wave is breaking tomorrow. NYC is not set up for blistering heat. It's used to milder temperatures - it's like London in that respect.
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Date: 2025-06-26 03:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-26 08:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-26 05:52 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2025-06-26 06:24 pm (UTC)Yes, Cuomo is a Democrat running in the Democrat Mayoral Primary.
Curtis Sila was running unopposed in the Republican Mayoral Primary.
This was just the primaries for the Democrats and Republicans.
In the National Election - you can have "Independent Candidates".
Currently, Eric Adams (current Mayor) is plotting to run on the Independent platform for Mayor.
Cuomo according to the NY Post, has decided not to run in the fall on the Independent platform.
There could be other candidates running on other party platforms - we actually have more than two parties, regardless of what our media tells you. (I've voted Green Party in a Governor election once and was registered Green Party). Here's a list of the ones I know about off the top of my head: Green, Working Families, Conservative, Independent, Republican, Democrat, Progressive and so on. I think there a few more but I can't remember them.
The US tends to be mostly two parties though - it's rare that the other parties have viable candidates. And often don't have any candidates running on their platforms, or endorse the same candidate as either the Democrats or the Republicans do. Example? Working Family often has the same candidate listed as the Democrat ticket, and Conservative often has the same as the Republican ticket.
We don't know what will happen in the next six months. Anything can. But it's unlikely we'll have to worry about Cuomo or Silwa.
Also, it's ranked choice voting in this primary election - so an official count won't be delivered until July for the primaries, and they'll go by rank choice, since no one got over 50% of the vote.