Congress Moves From Comedy to Tragedy

The careening clown car of the House Republican majority has finally put Kevin McCarthy behind the wheel as Speaker, so the comedy ends, and the tragedy begins. Politico’s Jesús Rodríguez likens Rep. McCarthy’s positon to various Shakespearian princes, but it’s really really closer to Marlowe or Goethe; not Hamlet or Macbeth but Faustus. Mr. McCarthy has clearly made a secret pact with the Devil.

The 55-page House Rules Package is evil enough, but it turns out there’s a secret 3-page addendum that the GOP majority passed, sight unseen. Was it written it blood? Probably. It lists McCarthy’s specific concessions to the MAGA Freedom Caucus terrorists who spent a week blocking his speakership.

What’s in the secret addendum? No GOP rep will even concede that it exists; that’s the first rule of far-right fight club.

If Kevin McCarthy won’t live up to its unspecified terms, the Feedom Caucus cabal won’t steal his soul, but they’ll call a snap vote and remove him as Speaker. For Mr. McCarthy, that will be Hell enough.

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House Speaker Votes Continue

Several trolls in the so-called House Freedom Caucus have paralyzed the U.S. House of Representatives all week, blocking election of a presiding Speaker. The umpteenth round of voting will occur tonight, January 6th at 10 PM EST.

Update:

After 14 ballots, the House again failed to elect a Speaker. On this date two years ago, terrorists failed to disrupt Congress. Today, the terrorists inside the House did just that.

The House began voting for the 15th time at 11:50 PM.

New:

Early on Saturday, Kevin McCarthy was elected to the Office of Speaker of the House, or what’s left of it.

More:

“The ‘spoiler caucus’ is creating chaos,” David Winston, Roll Call

“The Chaos Caucus Is Now In Charge,” Michelle Cottle, New York Times

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Image (based on paraphrase of UT football coach Darrell Royal) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht,NotionsCapital.com

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GOP State Politicos Push Quack COVID Cures

Republican state lawmakers in Colorado, Florida, Idaho, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Mississippi, Indiana, Virginia, and West Virginia have proposed legislation that allows quack doctors to prescribe ivermectin and hydroxychloroquine to prevent and treat Covid-19 which, despite pronouncements on Fox News and right-wing podcasts, they do not do. North Dakota and Tennessee have already passed such laws, even though:

” … those treatments have not proven effective at preventing or treating Covid and infectious disease experts see the bills as examples of right-wing lawmakers politicizing medicine – a trend that is increasing as the pandemic wears on in America in to its third year amid an increasingly fraught political atmosphere.

And so it goes with the latest suspect Covid-19 treatment that has become about more than just a drug, but rather about whether to trust established public health organizations or doctors who stray from their guidelines, and podcast and cable news hosts.”

— “Concern as Republicans push to make dubious Covid cure prescriptions easier,” Eric Berger, The Guardian

More:

“Republicans Are Changing State Medical Board Rules So It’s Easier For Doctors To Prescribe Hydroxychloroquine And Ivermectin,” Kadia Goba, BuzzFeed News

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Gaetz Ex-Girlfriend Talks to Federal Grand Jury

The ex-girlfiend of Florida Man and well-known congressional sleazebag Matt Gaetz (R, FL-1) testified to a federal grand jury investigating him on underage sex-trafficking and other charges. The young woman has been in talks for months with prosecutors about an immunity deal, NBC reports, hoping to avoid prosecution for obstruction of justice in return for testifying as to whether Gaetz paid a 17-year-old female for sex and violated a federal law prohibiting people for paying for prostitutes overseas. This testimony is seen as a sign that the grand jury is moving closer to indicting Trump idolator Gaetz.

More:

“Matt Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend testifies to grand jury in sex trafficking probe,” Marc Caputo, NBC News

Update:

“Matt Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend granted immunity before testifying in sex trafficking probe,” Michael Kaplan, CBS News

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Image (based on Gaetz podcast logo) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

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Sex-Scandalized Matt Gaetz to Meet with Women at Trump Resort

Scandal-plagued Matt Gaetz will emerge from hiding this weekend to address the Save America Summit, a gathering of Trump’s diehard female supporters, held at Trump National Doral Miami, probably because the ex-president needs the money. The event is produced by Women for America First, the ladies whose post-election bus tour and January 6th Save America Rally culminated in the mob assault on the U.S. Capitol, deaths, and hundreds of arrests.

Matt Gaetz at a women’s event boggles the mind, as he is under investigation by the Justice Department for transporting a 17-year-old woman across state lines for purposes of sex. Mr. Gaetz is also known for showing nude photos of his sexual conquests to colleagues on the floor of Congress and back when he was a Florida legislator. Matt Gaetz was the only “no” vote on the 2017 human trafficking bill, and opposed a Florida bill outlawing “revenge porn.” He’s making Donald Trump’s Access Hollywood escapade look like a women’s rights rally.

More:

“Amid federal probe, Matt Gaetz will speak to conservative women’s group at Trump golf course,” Jaclyn Peiser, Washington Post

“Gaetz Will Speak At Trump Doral For Summit Hosted By Jan. 6 Rally Planners,” Matt Shuham, TalkingPointsMemo

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Matt Gaetz Youth Outreach

Last week saw reports that Congressman Matt Gaetz (R, FL-1) is being investigated by the Department of Justice for transporting a 17-year-old woman across state lines for purposes of sex, and conveniently paying for it by cellphone. There are receipts. No doubt Mr. Gaetz will justify his actions as a triumph of Free Market Capitalism. Luke Ball, the Gaetz communication director, resigned on Friday.

Here’s a list of fellow Republicans defending Matt Gaetz:

1.
2.
3.

You get the idea. Matt Gaetz is a well-known creep, even among fellow Trumpian bottom feeders, known for showing nude photos of his sexual conquests on the floor of Congress. One of his videos depicted a nude young lady with a hula hoop. There are reports he participated in similar acts when he was a member of Florida’s legislature,

Fact: Matt Gaetz was the only “no” vote on the 2017 human trafficking bill.

More:

“Matt Gaetz Is Said to Face Justice Dept. Inquiry Over Sex With an Underage Girl,” Michael S. Schmidt, Katie Benner and Nicholas Fandos, New York Times

“‘A 10ft pole is not long enough’: Matt Gaetz isolated in sex-trafficking scandal,” The Guardian

“Republicans Have Been Waiting for a Matt Gaetz Scandal to Break,” Matt Fuller and Sam Brodey, Daily Beast

“The Matt Gaetz Sex Scandal Has It All!” Ryan Bort, Rolling Stone

“Matt Gaetz Is Maybe Even More of a Creep Than We Knew,” Vivian Kane, The Mary Sue

“8 Wild Things You May Have Forgotten About the Florida Man Ensnared in Congress’s Latest Sex Scandal,” Daniella Byck, Washingtonian

Updates:

“Gaetz Desperately Fought to Keep Sharing ‘Revenge Porn’ Legal, Says Ex-Colleague,” Jamie Ross, Daily Beast

“Katie Hill: Matt Gaetz backed me but he must quit if nude-photo reports are true,” Martin Pengelly, The Guardian

“Stelter: After elevating Gaetz, Fox News barely covering scandal,” CNN

“John Oliver calls Matt Gaetz ‘the one white man on Earth that Tucker Carlson won’t defend’ during ‘Last Week Tonight’ segment,” Sarah K. Burris, Raw Story, via Orlando Weekly

“Rep. Matt Gaetz Fundraises Off Teen Sex-Trafficking Probe,” Sam Brodey, Daily Beast

“Trump and his allies abandon Gaetz,” Gabby Orr, Meridith McGraw, and Sam Stein, Politico

“Republicans Seem to Have Lost Matt Gaetz’s Number,”  Reic Lutz, Vanity Fair

“Women’s Group Taps ‘Fearless Leader’ Matt Gaetz to Headline Upcoming Event,” Blake Montgomery, Daily Beast

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Charles Koch: Horrified By His Own Creation

“To the extent that the Tea Party is a centralized movement, it is so because it has been mobilized by the groups Americans for Prosperity and Freedom Works, both of which are Koch-financed. As it happens, these groups were formerly a single organization, called Citizens for a Sound Economy, which was founded in 1984 by, you guessed it, the Koch Brothers.

The Tea Party, from the very beginning, was designed for disruption, and it was a pet project of the Koch brothers (they actually created the first national website for the movement). Charles Koch says he’s interested only in advancing ‘free-market, small-government ideals,’ but what he’s done is manufacture a faux-populist movement that has whipped the conservative base into an anti-government frenzy.”

— “Charles Koch’s Frankenstein problem: He created the Tea Party monster — and now he’s horrified with the results,” Sean Illing, Salon

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Image (“Be Careful What You Wish For, after l’atelier de Disney”) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht, NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

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