Notices by Tony Stark (tonystark@democracy.town)

Democrats are passing bills, building the country up, and putting Americans to work with higher wages while Republicans are running around the halls of Congress with balloons.

Opinion: Biden is succeeding in building the economy from ‘bottom up, middle out’-
https://wapo.st/40Vus2a

Democrats didn’t remove any Republican house member from a committee for any reason other than the Republican promoting violence on social media after January 6 toward other sitting members and none of them ever recanted.

Anything on the GOP agenda about policing reform, taxes, healthcare, infrastructure, their sacred economy, etc?

McCarthy is a weak, juvenile, petty and hypocritical politician, who caves at any flinch from the hard-core right-wingers who own him. More pathetic political revenge from a Republican party that has no desire (or idea how) to govern or do anything for the American people.

The Republicans’ case against Ilhan Omar was wrong, but successful-
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/republicans-case-ilhan-omar-was-wrong-successful-rcna68980

In other words, Mrs. Roberts is helping to staff high profile corporate law firms with high profile lawyers who will be arguing in various federal courts - including the Supreme Court and in front of Chief Justice John Roberts - that the very rich corporations that they represent are *not* violating anti-trust laws and should be allowed to continue monopolization and restraint of trade.

And Chief Justice John Roberts would be more than happy to rule in favor of more unbridled corporate power and monopoly as we’ve seen repeatedly. The complete collapse and absence of ethics and basic rules and the elevation of glaring conflicts like this destroy court legitimacy.

This is what you get when Republicans get into higher office: neo-feudalism.

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/31/jane-roberts-legal-recruiting-work-agencies-cases-supreme-court-00080515

This will take a few minutes to read, but really explains the problem with this plan that Kevin McCarthy had to agree to put up for a vote in order to get into his position.

VAT is normal in other western democracies but in those other countries, there are also high income tax rates for wealthier individuals. In those countries, regressive VAT taxes are paired with with progressive income taxes. The GOP suggestion is to replace our not-progressive-enough income tax with a very regressive sales tax. Definitely a boon for the very wealthy and a burden for everyone else.

Those other countries also provide their citizens with free national healthcare, family leave, free childcare and more. Americans go bankrupt and die young while every other nation continues to see their citizens make economic gains and live longer.

The FairTax Act, GOP plan for 30 percent national sales tax, explained-
https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2023/1/26/23563563/fairtax-national-sales-tax-kevin-mccarthy

Lots of Republicans constantly claim there’s “nothing” anyone can do about gun violence. They are lying.

Here’s a list of what factually could be done and work. Every option here is a perfectly legitimate example of something that’s well-regulated.

To make progress on gun safety, we have to vote out Republicans.
To make progress on climate, we have to vote out Republicans.
To make progress on or even maintain a educational system now, we have to vote out Republicans.
To make progress on reproductive rights or even maintain a basic level of them apparently, we have to vote out Republicans.

Are we seeing a pattern yet?

Opinion 6 solutions to gun violence that could work-
https://wapo.st/3XP11wN

One of the most obvious facts regarding the GOP is that they have forgotten how to do anything constructive, apparently on purpose.

They excel at obstructionism, lying, misdirect, infighting, and electing clowns. Now they want to "investigate" a laundry list of fallacious "plots" and impeach all they think are their enemies. Clearly, they are not prepared to govern and electing a weakened McCarthy as Speaker confirms that point.

Republicans have zero interest in continuing to build on the Democrats’ work on infrastructure or anything else.

They are a fractured collection of individuals calling themselves a party that have no real policies or ideas of what can be done to move this country forward because their idea of making things better is regression. The Republican Party’s core message is white grievance and the rejection of the common good.

That won’t solve any modern problems.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/01/15/opinion/mccarthy-republicans-coming-apart.html?smid=url-share

@GreenFire @slightlysarcasticteacher Republicans are the anti-jobs party.

Here’s what #Democrats so as a contrast since you are one of the people who inspired me to talk about that more-

GEORGIA JOBS: Senator Reverend Warnock Secures Nearly $200 Million to Promote Georgia Small Business Growth and Entrepreneurship » Reverend Raphael Warnock-
https://www.warnock.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/georgia-jobs-senator-reverend-warnock-secures-nearly-200-million-to-promote-georgia-small-business-growth-and-entrepreneurship/

If you don't know this story, you should read up on it.

Meek Mill’s case is a prime example of a racially biased judicial system. That the "judicial" system can be wielded like a weapon and that the system is wielded against non-white people is something we as a nation need to expose and deal with. It's not okay. It's not right, and it shouldn't be excused or justified by anyone.

This was part of a series of pardons issued by outgoing Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf. It matters.

Meek Mill Pardoned By Pennsylvania Governor-
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/meek-mill-charges-pardoned-pennsylvania-governor-1234660671/

I really hate to have to even share yet another terrible Washington Post take but they make it so hard to ignore.

Investigations are what Biden wants. Biden showed the country what should have been done in this situation. He has legally complied in every way with National Archives by informing them of the documents and then returning them.

Trump lied about having documents, hid the documents that he knew he had, had his lawyers lie about giving all the documents back, ignored a subpoena from the FBI, and did everything he could to obstruct the investigation into the documents.

And all the while, never gave one excuse as to why he had and tried to keep top secret documents in the first place.

Certainly anyone mishandling sensitive information should have it looked into but in no way does that make it less possible to hold Trump accountable. One event doesn’t negate the other.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/01/12/biden-trump-classified-documents-politics/

@feditips 129 instances isn’t a lot and a couple of spots don’t look complete. Just saying.