The Blockade Tightens
A number of American corporations announced they're suspending campaign donations to the 147 Republicans objectors to last week's electoral process in Congress. In addition, there have been calls for the resignation of Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Missouri Senator Josh Hawley.
Dang! Who knew sedition and insurrection don't pay?
A growing number of major companies are halting political donations made to some Republican lawmakers after last week’s insurrection on the U.S. Capitol by pro-Trump rioters that left five dead, including a Capitol Police officer.
Some companies, like Google and Facebook, are halting all political spending.
Other companies, including Airbnb, FedEx and Ford Motor Company, have issued statements condemning the deadly attack and to say they are reevaluating political spending.
Comments
Oh no's, more censorship.
Oh no's, more censorship. Sorry, but ya know...
Your name
Your name is perfect for a post about censorship. Every time I hear the name Tipper, the first word that comes to mind is censored or censorship. Almost like Tipper is just another word for censorship.
It's funny, but the second Al Gore announced I wondered
how many votes that was going to cost him, followed by wondering how many more his running the Clinton White House's "downsize and privatize the government project" would cost him and realized that I personally knew dozens or more.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
wit
ok, I see what you did there, finally, it took a minute as in many. My algorithm determines my behavior. (the folks here are very serious, doncha think?)
"Sedition and insurrection"? For *obeying* the law?
Are you seriously suggesting rejection of Title 3 of the United States Code? The procedures followed by Congress on January 6 - INCLUDING the opportunity to challenge "irregular" returns - is explicitly set forth therein.
Title 3 is based on the Electoral Count Act, which was passed in 1887 to prevent the recurrence of the messy 1876 election (the next two Presidential elections, in 1880 and 1884, were narrowly decided, adding further to the urgency). Both are extremely detailed and include numerous provisions at every stage of the process.
There is explicit provision for challenging any vote or votes from any state if there is any reason to suspect irregularities in the voting process; but the challenges must be made in writing and signed by both a sitting Senator and a sitting Representative, and the House and Senate are to confer separately over whether the challenge is valid. (There is no official penalty for "frivolous" challenges except peer disapproval.)
Politicians who take unpopular positions *do* leave themselves open to retaliation by corporate donors (cutting off funds), the mass media (ridicule for "frivolous" challenges), and voters (primarying and/or voting out of office at the next election). But to demand their resignation for following the law is a very, very dangerous move indeed.
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
"Minor " point
In 1876 it was illegal for a corporation to contribute to a political campaign.
On to Biden since 1973
Distraction, goalpost-moving, irrelevant
especially since the owners of corporations could and did buy politicians wholesale. But that is an entirely separate issue and should be discussed separately.
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
I think you missed my point
I was being sarcastic, but also I was pointing out how little effect a law that is not enforced has. U.S.Grant (president in 1875 - in 76 it was was ironically Hayes)was asked why he did not prosecute congressmen for taking bribes. Grant (a Republican) said that if he did it would weaken the Republican Party so badly it would risk restarting the civil war. Sound like something you've heard?
On to Biden since 1973
THANK you for clearing this up
I’m betting that most of the people in congress who are saying that those congress members must be kicked out knows the rules too so why are they saying it? Cori Bush has been tweeting about this for 2 days as have others. Is it to keep people riled up? I think they are hoping for a mini civil war to break out. Keeps everyone distracted from ......?
There were problems with running a campaign of Joy while committing a genocide? Who could have guessed?
Harris is unburdened of speaking going forward.
I think that Cori Bush...
is using Section 3 of the 14th to expel...
That's a gross ABuse.
That's what we have entirely too much of.
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
Abuse?
Abuse? How so? All it takes is a 2/3rds vote of both houses to forgive them.
What if the demands are for frivolous
claims of irregularities and implicit/tacit support of seditious riots at the capitol?
That the law permits these challenges doesn’t mean such challenges can or should go without response—including calls for resignations/expulsions in the case of frivolous challenges or challenges rooted in fomenting unrest and violence against congress.
In that case, censure is appropriate
but NOT expulsion!
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
A Senator supporting a coup
is best punished by censure—an act which results in no consequences other than words in the congressional record, i.e. non punishment?
These people literally—not figuratively or indirectly—helped incite a coup attempt. And you think they need not face any real consequences?
That’s...interesting.
Oh DO stop screaming and cowering in terror
(which is what you are doing whether you are conscious of it or not).
Challenging of electoral votes IS LEGAL, IS PERMITTED, and FOLLOWS AN EXPLICITLY STATED PROCEDURE.
That there happened to be an intrusion of dumbass yahoos during the process IS IRRELEVANT.
If anything, the intrusion backfired because challenges that were previously considered were not made, and no challenge was upheld.
You might be able to make a case for "frivolous challenges", in which case Congressional censure is an appropriate response.
But if you demand the resignation or expulsion of Congressthings on the mere ACCUSATION of "wrong behavior", there are other names for that. Ugly names. Purge. Putsch. Pogrom.
And what you will have left is a government of the worst, by the worst, for the worst.
STOP. AND. THINK.
There is no justice. There can be no peace.
Pogrom? Are you fkn kidding me?
Kicking a senator out for participation in the incitement of a coup attempt is the same as rounding up and murdering my grandparents’ relatives for their ethnicity?
I’m just gonna disengage here, because what I want to write in response is not very polite.
Well, calling for expulsion is also legal, permitted, and
follows an explicitly stated procedure.
There's a detailed process involved for each House of Congress. It starts with a member bringing a resolution forward with their complaint(s). Then it goes to an investigative committee. And so on.
If you want to defend the republicans who helped perpetuate the lies that led to the violence, based on 'they are allowed to!' then fine, but in that case so are the ones you are freaking out about. They also have every right to bring forward their complaints and push for disciplinary action. They may very well lose (almost certainly will), but just like the vote challengers, they are not breaking any rules by trying.
In case I am misunderstood I'm with Maven
Maybe those questioning the vote are doing so to support a sedition, but that is a criminal charge and therefore must be proven, not just assumed.
But there is also a more critical point: The Democrats (in this case) are essentially elevating the Business Roundtable to a politburo. Not only are they saying that an assumably legitimate claim is grounds for expulsion but if it cannot be enforced then a community of boodlers (an archaic term meaning people who pay bribes) shall be the final arbiters.
The only law an honest person should fear is the law of unintended consequences. We have allowed corporate bribery to run rampant for 40 years, now we're going to cheer selective withdrawal of those bribes? Bad idea.
On to Biden since 1973
Suspending funding right AFTER an election
doesn't mean shit. In fact it's SOP. The corporate string pullers always pull back a year or so at this time to evaluate the success of their largess. K Street will be back in force well before the midterms.
Facebook, Twitter, Google and several dozen other corporations don't fund the Republicans in any event since they have had the Democrats in their pockets since the Obama years. It has been quite an incestuous relationship. BTW, the Dems could not have pulled off this election w/o the massive amount of assistance they got from the support and manipulation by social media.
"The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country." - Edward Bernays
Of course: it’s their part of the kabuki
more than Kabuki
"You've got two years to convince me to bribe you again."
On to Biden since 1973
Hawley-Gabbard 2024!
resurrected Reform Party perhaps?
Can't see Tulsi ever teaming up with a rabid dominionisst.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
What the heck
is a dominionist? How do you tell a rabid one from a generic one?
Sounds like a Canadian thing...
Thinks the country should be run according to god's laws.
Rabid one's also blame all of society's ills on the liberalizing doctrinal errancy of some long dead mainline religionista.
be well and have a good one
That, in its essence, is fascism--ownership of government by an individual, by a group, or by any other controlling private power. -- Franklin D. Roosevelt --
Slight quibble
I would edit that to say: "Thinks the country should be run according to their version of god's laws."
Not that the original isn't bad enough...