Life of Wry

I tell ya. It’s enough to make ya cry. And today, it did.

It’s nice to cry not because I’m so frustrated and blindingly angry and Just.So.Overwhelmed by the daily assaults of the [last] [so-called] president. Now, I’m just so grateful for the current president, and for NORMALCY. Just your government at work, doing things like responding to governors of states hit by snow and freezing temperatures, frozen power plants, burst water pipes, loss of power and suffering citizens…. responding with the aid requested. So simple: the state’s in trouble; they need help. President responds, like a decent guy. No punishing a state in need because they voted for the other guy. No withholding aid because you’re a vengeful and petulant man-child.

Biden granted state-of-emergency status to Texas, even though Gov Abbott found a way to blame democrats for their (Texas’s) inept preparation for this kind of disaster. Abbott blamed (cuz ya gotta blame somebody) frozen windmills (which represent only13% of Texas’s power, and, by the way, are working fine in other states and countries) and the green new deal for his state’s failures. Where have I heard this story before?

No matter. Biden’s helping: sending generators, money, assistance, all manner of support. For the people, no matter their political affiliation. Because that’s the way that works.

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Okay, much better than that:

I watched today as Perseverance landed on Mars.

And this is the part where I started to cry:

Biden, of course, is not responsible for today’s success, but I feel like I’m ready to start celebrating the good things that happen in this country, and the people that make them happen. And these rows of NASA scientists made me think of my dad, just a little, and my grandpa and uncle(s) and other scientists who are smart and contribute to our knowledge base… and Peter, and Peter’s friends who are the future scientists. And I was just all happy for science and discovery and the craziness of the precision of landing a rover on a distant planet, and for all the things we will learn. Holy cow, happy.

Low key day on the home front, super pleasant.

I did attend a town hall–his first, he said, since becoming a Senator–with Alex Padilla and was mighty impressed. I have to say: very hopeful about his leadership.

Beyond that, no pics from today, so decided to go back into the 2020 archive to find a photo from this day a year ago.

Jim and I had been visiting Peter in La Jolla, in what turned out to be our last visit after four wonderful years of trips to La Jolla. That was a bit of a gulp. As was tradition, Jim flew home on Sunday night.. I stayed over that night, had breakfast with Peter the following morning, then drove north to spend a few days in Palos Verdes, Redondo, Long Beach, etc. This, then, was also the last time I was in the homeland. Wow. Been a long, weird year.

Anyway.. wanted to chose a few photos that were NOT used in last year’s blog and came up with these… one from the Esplanade at sunset.. man.. I can feel the air and smell that ocean.

Look at all those seagulls…

And I must have gone out to eat dinner with Betsy.. and wow, does that vodka martini, extra extra dry, up, w/ three olives look good. Cheers, mom!

It was a funny little day…

Started with a trip to Howard Shempp’s office (well… after my Tuesday morning walk with Vickeroo) to replace a crown that’d come off last night when I was working on a chewy, sticky hunka licorice. A crown coming off is, apparently no big deal, but nobody told me that (well.. Jim did). I was a wreck.. all freaked out and wanting to burrow deep under the covers and wake up with my crown back in place. The mere idea that I had an exposed weirdo tooth with dried concrete all over it gave me the creeps. Also, it’s extremely disconcerting to be having your way with a wonderful hunk of smooth, rich licorice only to hit a rock of solid gold (but having no idea what it actually was).

Anyway… by this morning, I’d settled down and the whole appointment with Howard was a scant 20-minutes long, including the numbing part… so truly no big deal. Hardly a story. (But I told it anyway… I’m such a ninny.)

Between meetings this afternoon, had a nice conversation with this fellow:

(That crazy covid hair!) And look at his weather!

This also happened… (yesterday, actually.. but got a good look at it today):

Jim provided Ruben’s crew with a plan and a string line in order that they locate the poles exactly for the future installation of our artisan metal panels (as it were). Eventually, the panels will be attached to those poles and Jim will finish them off in some attractive way. They’ve been ordered, are in production, and will be ready in about a month or two. Slowly, slowly it’s coming together..

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The evening concluded with a neighborhood drama: the two-hour disappearance of neighbor Mary. Between Terri to the south, her sister-in-law Karen, Mary’s friend Linda, Mary’s daughter Maria in Arizona, the police department, the mailman and a kindly woman who found her lost on Mace Blvd, all is now well. Bottom line: Mary should not drive. She should definitely not drive at night… even if it’s just to fetch a nice bottle of wine to share with Terri and Karen over dinner.

From down the street a couple days ago .. this cool spirally plant:

And then these two shots from the North Davis ditch just a couple hours ago… to the west:

And to the north..

If my math is right, this is the 26th Valentine’s Day Jim and I have spent together. As I said to Peter earlier tonight in a conversation about relationships: relationships get deeper and deeper as you learn more about your honey pie.. and especially the things in life that really light them up.

To wit… Sees candy and licorice for me, a book on music and mayhem in the 60s for Jim. See how easy that is?

~~

Also in the Valentines category: our IndivisibleYolo action item this week was to send a valentine to our member of congress — we call that our MoC. We were theming our valentine messages on the various legislative priorities identified in Indivisible’s “A Practical Guide for Fixing our Democracy,” an activist action plan for Biden’s first 100 days in office…. H.R. 1; H.R. 4; H.R. 51 (campaign finance reform, voting rights, DC Statehood) … things like that there.

Here’s mine:

(Thank you left-over Christmas wrapping paper and glue sticks.)

Here’re a whole bunch of them on the window of John Garamendi’s downtown field office:

And here’s who put them there:

I can’t tell you what it was like to see these people in person! Since March of last year, it’s been all online Zoom meetings…

I am one of those who watched the impeachment trial from beginning to end. It ended just a little while ago. I had to take a long, long walk to get out of my head (I didn’t). These last three months since the election have been a bit overwhelming.. I’ve tried to capture the experience of it, but, face it, volumes will be written, it will have incalculable impact… so, far be it from me to try and play writer/historian/documentarian here. Well out of my wheelhouse, well beyond my ability.

Let’s just say I feel dirty. Dirty and overpowered by powers beyond my (and everyone I know’s) control. We’ve all been living in an up is down, down is up house of horrors since trump came on the scene. Helpless to process, and feeling victimized by the daily assaults. (And as I write that, I have to immediately amend, because I realize I’m in a privileged strata–white, educated, monied. Life under the trump regime is a wholly different experience for black and brown people, those who are struggling. I grieve doubly for them.) But the helplessness for me is about understanding right and wrong, caring about the whole of society, and truly (naively) believing that right, truth, and justice will (must) ultimately prevail, and yet in our country, in our politics, it’s not about humanity and people, it’s about power, money and greed. And honest to god, you can watch this stuff and know what is just and honorable, and then watch as the opposite happens. There is no place in a civil society–no place in a democracy–for the trumps and Ted Cruzes, Rand Pauls, Lindsey Grahams and Mitch McConnells. I don’t know why they’re in government. They have lost their souls, and care not a wit about the people.

And yet I will say that while the entire trump presidency has been one shocking and demoralizing head smack after another and so dispiriting every single day, I do think it’s possible that a majority of people get it. (I mean, we won the presidency by a sizable margin). That is, I think a majority of people accept that he’s a sack of puss, devoid of decency and morality. His approval numbers are down, at least. He faces significant legal challenges. His personal wealth is shrinking. (We can hope.) While he avoided convictions in Mueller (Russia meddling to win an election), impeachment #1 (Ukraine interference to win an election), impeachment #2 (inciting an insurrection because he was bummed he lost an election)–and every single other legal action brought against him over his miserably corrupt life–those two impeachments and his chronic abuse of power will define his soulless ONE term presidency. His sickening legacy will also include: his tragic handling of the pandemic; his indecency with regard to racial justice and his courting of white supremacist groups; his amoral handling of immigration, especially child separation; his I-don’t-even-know-the-final-number lies told in office; the probably irreparable damage done to the environment; our tarnished, oft-mocked standing in the world; his misogyny, xenophobia, general ignorance, supreme arrogance, and rank lack of humanity. I don’t really have the energy to compile a comprehensive list.. but those are a few that come to mind. His indisputable legacy is that he is now and will forever be the worst, most disgusting, most unfit president in our history. Well done, freak.

And, god, I feel like I’ve written this before .. like, a million times over the last six years.

But man.. the injustice in the lack of justice served today. It’s numbing.

Hopefully, the end of this impeachment trial is a last gasp and brings most of this chapter to an end. Unfortunately, an acquittal emboldens him and his domestic violence extremist pals. But hopefully a majority of the rest of us are sick and tired of him and won’t pay him no nevermind, and also hopefully he’ll be distracted by so many legal and financial troubles he won’t have time to be in our faces day and night, and his Twitter’s still gratefully gone, and with any luck his congressional die-hards and hangers-on will pay big time for their desperate, weak sycophancy. And, most importantly, he’s not president. That is the best, best, best thing ever.

Here are some of the things that stood out for me today, no order, just random thoughts:

• If there is no accountability, the past will become our future.

• Raskin: History has found us. We may not be remembered, but the action we take will be, and will affect our children and their children. 

• Liz Cheney a couple weeks ago: He summoned the mob, assembled the mob, and, when violence erupted, he didn’t stop it. Raskin repeated this about a thousand times during the trial. Giving credit where credit is due.

• Raskin on the hypocrisy of inciting an insurrection, then saying “be peaceful”: He robbed a bank. And on the way out, shouted, “respect private property.” He did not respect private property. 

• When Joe Neguse said this today, it made me cry: “I’ve decided to stick with love because hate is too great a burden to bear.” — MLK. (What do I do with my hate for trump?)

• trump actually said to Kevin McCarthy, who tried to get him to call off the insurgents, “Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.” (That was the huge, breaking news of yesterday and ended up in evidence today, instead of calling in as a witness the congresswoman who shared details of the call.)

• This was a three-Jamie day: Jamie Raskin (Lead House Impeachment Manager), Jaime Herrera-Beutler (the congresswoman who released the Kevin McCarthy phone conversation) and Jamie Gengel (the reporter who broke the above story).

• Raskin was great the entire trial.. he implored the Senators: Is this the America we want to bequeath to our children? This is the greatest betrayal in the history of our country.. is that okay?

• Best argument: But for. Ask yourselves: but for trump, would any of this have happened?

• And, oh, that McConnell. After indicating he was going to vote to acquit, implicitly signaling to other Senators that this was the direction they ought to go, he voted to acquit… but as soon as the vote was over, he made a 20-minute speech that essentially supported every single argument the House Impeachment Managers made, agreeing that trump deserved to be convicted. Imagine if he’d delivered that speech before the vote, or let his conference know that he agreed with the case the managers laid out. He could have brought 10 more folks over the line if he’d given that speech earlier.

• McConnell voted to acquit on a procedural technicality, a jurisdictional matter (it should be noted that the vast majority of legal scholars don’t agree with this): trump is out of office, not president anymore, therefore cannot be removed from office, which is what impeachment is.. he said. However, says everyone else: he committed the crime while in office. He was impeached by the House while in office. He could have been tried before the inauguration by the Senate–there was time–but McConnell chose to delay it til after trump left office. There should have been NO JANUARY EXCEPTION. But there was. In the end, McConnell cares more about winning back his majority leadership position…so voted with majority. But wanted history to reflect he hates trump. Having it both ways.

• At the beginning of this final day, Raskin indicated, to everyone’s surprise, they were going to call witnesses. This caused a huge flap and tied the hearing in knots for about two hours. In the end, they decided to simply read Jaime Herrera-Beutler’s testimony into the record. Because… there were never going to be enough votes to convict — because no matter the high crime, Senators were going to hide behind the jurisdictional excuse. They could call 5000 witnesses and make the case iron-clad, but Senate reps would never vote on the merits. It was going to hinge on a technical matter of law.

• Therefore, they let him off and released him, again, from any accountability. They were totally cowardly. Afraid to upset their master. Afraid to be primaried. All about holding onto their jobs. They couldn’t summon the courage or summon the morality to do what they knew was right. This was trump over country (not even party over country). A vote of infamy. May they all rot in hell. Coulda severed the ties… but now he owns them. He’ll be continuing to call shots from M-A-L.

• The result was insulting, as have been all the times that he’s skipped off unscathed. Egregious dereliction of responsibility. This was textbook impeachment-level high crime. But .. nada.

• Other big winners of the day: Ted Cruz and Lindsay Graham.  Josh Hawley, Tom Cotton… they actually do love trump and will stay in his corner. They’ll be joined by Marjorie Taylor Green, the republican’s new darling. They’ll all double down on trump, Qanon, DVEs. I’m planning to ignore them all.

• Michael van der veen is an asshole and deserves an Academy Award.

• By his dual action, I think McConnell gave his conference a script for later, an exit ramp. In acquitting today, they did what they needed to do for trump and his base. But later, when people are ready to hear it, in time for midterm elections, if needed, they can condemn his actions, just like McConnell did. They’ll get to play it both ways.

• And of course, trump is off and running. Happy, acquitted, emboldened. Already claiming a massive victory, claiming he prevailed in the biggest witch hunt in history. Plotting his comeback and next moves.

• But here’s what’s good: the impeachment thing is now behind us. We don’t have to deal with all the speculation over whether he’ll be impeached (he was), how that’ll work (they figured all that out and fit it in without too much impact on Biden’s new gig), will the Senate do the right thing and convict (no). It’s over. Biden’s president, we have the Senate, we have the House and we can just move on. We can let the courts and justice dept take it from here and ignore his ugliness to our hearts’ content. The impeachment is another item checked off the stress list. It wasn’t exactly top of my stress list, but it’s been something that felt huge and unresolved and in the news a lot and now it won’t be. From the start, and right through this last trial, he’s evaded justice and accountability. It makes me sick, it really does. But he’s over (even as he thinks he’s relevant and the center of the universe, he isn’t. Just a sick, hideously obnoxious man-child that we can now, finally, really ignore. I can truly say trump has been an enormous source of anger and dis-ease for about six years now (right? six years?!). But, hey, he lost the election in spectacular fashion and that’s fantastic.

Even as I’ve been gripped by the latest impeachment hearing (the events leading up to it yet another assault on our country–just the latest in a looonnnngggg string of injustices perpetrated by this stupid, immoral, corrupt, thankfully-ex-president), I’ve gotten out a few times for some outside dining and walks on budding spring mornings.

Spring’s come to Second Street, right in front of Mishka’s where drinking coffee outside’s starting to get really pleasant again:

Every day I can, I head over to Cloud Forest for their Valley Veggie sandwich and, depending on the temperature, coffee or a smoothie. Best deck in town, imho. The squirrels are getting so aggressive!

This guy is within inches of my tennis shoe! He thinks I’m going to be a messy eater…

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Unrelated, Jim made cookies:

Now, before you pass judgment, I’ll just say, JIM BAKED COOKIES! Then I’ll say, these are somewhat unusual: they comprise only three ingredients — eggs, peanut butter and sugar (and a dash of vanilla). He found them on Facebook, posted by a cousin who is a cookie-eater. He had sugar left over so poured it over the whole batch before it went into the oven (uh.. maybe that was kinda weird).

I’m eating one now. It tastes like baked peanut butter with sugar. Nothing really not to like.. just a tiny bit odd.. but I’m going back for another.

Day #3 of the impeachment trial. The good guys wrapped. They were impressive. Proud to be on this team and will never understand the other. I don’t mean I’ll never understand republicans… I will just never understand those kinds of republicans; whatever they are. Their political futures above all else. The people, the country, this experiment in democracy.. all losers.

So… like yesterday… just some thoughts, not so orderly.. some are notes I made while watching.. so it’s truly random down there.. whatever comes out.. and some reflections on the day’s proceedings:

• I think the world of Jamie Raskin. Glad to line up behind good people.

• Joaquin Castro’s testimony about how we are now mocked all over the world was chilling. Embarrassing to be an American. Horrifying, really.

• We define ourselves by how we respond to this. If we don’t respond with a conviction, the world is right and our enemies are right. The world totally knows we are sh*t under trump. We have no legs to stand on if we don’t send a strong message back to the world. We forfeit our credibility, the power of our message of democracy. We must show the world that Jan 6 was not the real America. But, in fact, I think it is. Under current leadership, we are a sham. And by leadership… I mean those who stand in the way of our doing the right thing. Senate republicans. This is on you.

• They were there because the president told them to be there. “We were just following orders.” “Your boss told us to be here.” “He said, ‘I need my digital soldiers to show up,’ and we did.”

• The insurrectionists (some) are being held accountable. Many have been arrested, will face convictions, may go to prison. So should trump. Won’t they feel betrayed if they are held to account and he gets off scot free?

• Managers made a great case that this was his essential M.O., his state of mind, not aberrant behavior. He’s been courting violence from the get go. Of course he’ll never condemned the attack, nor the attackers.. this time or any time. “You’re very special. We love you.” (Even if you damage property, scream obscenities as you seek to find and kill my Vice-President, hurt and even kill police officers. If you do it in my name, I love you.)

• DVEs: Domestic Violent Extremists. Get used to them.. they’ll be around a long time. Not only will be trump be emboldened by the acquittal that is sure to come, so will his DVEs. They have a shared false narrative of a stolen election. There is now no political solution to that will give them their election or re-seat their leader; violent action is necessary. They took the building before, they can take it again. What will stop them (besides a few of them getting caught?). Maybe more violence next time — guns, bombs. No little POS stun guns… the real deal from now on.

• “We await the president’s orders.” “We await instruction.” “We are here because he invited us.” (In case you thought maybe he didn’t incite them.)

• This dropped my jaw today: Manager DeGette, in her presentation, shared a past tweet from somebody-Griffin, the head of “Cowboys for trump.” Griffin’s tweet said, “The only good democrat is a dead democrat,” which trump had then retweeted. He thanked Griffin! Griffin said, “The president of the US has my back.” Little shocks me about trump. But that did.

• I thought DeGette’s testimony was devastating as she walked people through how dangerous these groups are and how they believed they were acting on behalf of trump, at his invitation.

• The money it costs to defend against these potential and future attacks is astounding and sickening. We’d better get used to it. It will become the cost of government. And it’s not just the cost to defend against DVEs…state and national Capitols have become fortresses. Accessibility to the public will surely be lost.

• It wasn’t just monster trump who did this… he was trump our Commander-in-Chief. He agitated, assembled and activated this mob. He made them believe the big lie and that our current President and his administration are illegitimate. That will not turn out well. This is what our supposed president did.

• They revel in the violence. The insurrection has been a boon for their recruitment efforts. Our country.

• I cried a few times today.. out of sadness, shock, fear, frustration. One story that really got me: the black officer who, when he’d finally gotten to safety, after hours trying to hold a line, he could finally cry. He’d been pummeled, screamed at, called n-. He hung in, did his job, but was deeply traumatized.

• This should have been the end of his platform, but instead, an acquittal will encourage him. His actions will not be condemned, there will be no accountability, we will not have reconciliation.

• A case can be easily made that we are worse off now. In 2017, Charlottesville was unfathomable. Today an insurrection is excused. Today, Charlottesville seems quaint. He told us who he was. Now he’s brought the entire republican party down to his level. This is our future.

• This latest tragedy? It’s all because trump could not accept defeat. He knew there was a chance he’d be a one-term pres. He couldn’t take that. Started last spring with his no-lose strategy. He’d either win outright or, if he “lost,” it’d be fraudulent. His true north star was never America First: it’s always been trump first, no matter the cost. This will be an acceptable way to respond to losing in the future. As Ted Lieu said, “I’m not afraid of trump running again; I’m afraid of him running and losing.”

• His incitement is not free speech. Violent insurrection is not a protected form of speech. His lawyers will make a brazen free speech argument, but it shouldn’t hold up. It wouldn’t in a real court. This can’t be a constitutionally protected way to respond to losing an election. In real life, NOBODY can incite a riot and get away with it under the free speech laws. A president esp can’t get away with it. They’ve got an added oath to uphold: to protect and defend the constitution. A regular joe can say vile, racist things and he will be protected under the first amendment. A president can’t because of his oath of office; that’d be impeachable. This president (ex) can do anything he wants. The republican Senate will protect him.

• Liz Cheney said trump’s inciting of an insurrection was the greatest betrayal of an oath to upholding the constitution in the history of our country. Yes.

• Scalia said: “You can’t ride with the cops and root for the robbers.”

• Voltaire said: “Anyone who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities.”

• I’ve never read, but should, Common Sense by Thomas Paine. Raskin said the Senators should be guided by some. They HAVE to vote on the facts and make a decision, and the decision is clear: common sense tells them so.

• There will be massive consequences for doing nothing.

• They subpoenaed trump. He didn’t come, of course. This is what he would have been asked: Why didn’t you tell then to stop? Why did you wait to send help? Why didn’t you condemn the violence?

• Bottom line: He said to come. They came. They said they were doing this for him. He didn’t stop them.

• You think his followers don’t follow his words? Of course they do. So do Senators! Look at them.. they cling to him for their very life.

• If the Senators don’t convict, democracy is damaged, and probably irreparably. They won’t though. They’ve sold democracy down the river, in favor of their own political futures. So this trial was really all about history, to seal trump’s legacy. But, damn, democracy will be sacrificed. The future of the US. This is an overwhelming case.. if defied.. we’re doomed. trump has not been chastened by anything. He is a monster.

• Do you know what his approval rating among repubs is? 80%. Astonishing. And 66% of reps still think Biden’s election was illegitimate. I mean, what do you do with that?

• At the conclusion of the Impeachment Managers’ presentation, our impartial republican jurors — Lindsey, Ted and Teapartier Mike Lee — slipped into a side-conference room to talk with trump’s attorneys about strategy. In case you thought they took oaths of impartiality.

• How can this many Senators go against facts, reason, the constitution, decency? It is s h o c k i n g. They owe people facts. They owe our country, the Capitol police, the world.. the decency of a conviction.

• When they acquit him, he’ll be totally unleashed. So, too, will his people. Without account, the bar is lowered further. Not just for a future president. Watch out.

• He’s running the republican party for the foreseeable future. From Mar-a-Lago. They could have squished him like a bug. Now he’s their cross to bear for the rest of their political careers, for an entire political generation.

• Do I care? Not really… not if it means they remain a divided party and therefore won’t get in the way of our agenda and progress on stuff I really care about. Except that he remains a political factor. He stays in the headlines. The pathetic trump party, fact-free and full of white supremacists is a real drag. Polarization remains.

The injustice of the inevitable acquittal in this impeachment trial just takes my breath away. Honestly. It can just leave a person so deeply weary and sad. So sad for the profound awfulness of people — their hypocrisy; their thirst for power that they shouldn’t have and can’t be trusted with; their unnecessary, unfounded fears that blind them. So sad for a country we share, which could be so much better if we could just agree on facts, be kind to one another, be decent. Oh my god.. these people.

Some thoughts that stand out, after watching every minute (except when my laptop’s battery power went poof and I missed Joaquin Castro’s final point, which I hear was stunning: trump was sanguine about leaving them all for dead, so resistant was he in not acting to send reinforcements to the Capitol police, or to call off the dogs):

• Failed coup. Not for lack of trying.
• There is no justification for acquittal. None. But acquitted he will be.
• Acquittal is a green light for him and his violent supporters forever.
• He failed to honor his oath to protect and defend. He didn’t come to the defense of the legislators for HOURS, their staff, law enforcement. On purpose. He was okay to let them die.
• It could have been so so much worse. They very nearly got to the congress. Where would we all be if they’d actually killed Nancy? Or Pence? Or anybody? It wasn’t enough that law enforcement folks died and were injured. Should matter, but doesn’t. What a bunch of assholes those republican Senators are.
• He didn’t speak forcefully against what happened as it was playing out. He did nothing. Nothing. He hasn’t denounced the violence on that day still.
• Fun little facts came out today: He DID have a hand in setting it up… changed the date on the permit from Jan 22 to Jan 6; changed the route on the permit to allow them to march away from the Ellipse and to the Capitol. He wanted the Capitol breached. He knew there would be violence. He wanted it. On that day. He orchestrated the whole thing and welcomed the violence.
• The rioters were taking their cues from him.. have all along. He’s blatantly encouraged them. He’s spent months fomenting this. Could not be clearer. Evidence all over those security camera tapes and cell phone footage. He was not an innocent bystander.
• But for donald trump. None of this would have happened.
• He condoned his supporters’ effort to force a Biden/Harris campaign bus off the road, and then retweeted a video of it, adding a rowdy war song as a sound track and the caption, “I love Texas.” Old news. I’d just forgotten it’d happened. Evidence he had long encouraged and condoned this sh*t and groomed them for this moment.
• “Destroy the GOP” .. that’s a huge part of what this is all about. How, I have to wonder, is the GOP okay with this? Okay by me if they remain two dug-in factions on that side of the aisle, dividing their people. But jeez. What a bunch of idiots.
• I understand it’s not a real trial. Realize it’s political. Still. I can’t figure out how impeachment trials can ever work.. with compromised jurors who have such political conflicts of interest. This case is so obvious. The 2020 case was so obvious. How will these monsters ever live with themselves. History will be so unkind to them. Their children will be so disgusted. Jeez, and all for their political careers. How sick are they.
• Also? You’re with him 100%, 100% of time, or under the bus with you. Even Mike Pence. How spectacularly tragic was that? Better watch your back Lindsey, Ted, Kevin, Devin, Matt, Jim. You are disgusting and deserve whatever you’ll ever get from your master (which is nothing).
• Oh, and they fear black&brown people. At its core? This is all about white rage, white grievance. He’s their vehicle. That white mob will be forever excused. But BLM? Can you just imagine? What a profoundly unfair world we live in. It hurts so so much.

I meant to comment last night, I’ve been so enormously impressed by the impeachment managers. I’d heard Jamie Raskin talk about the suicide of his son Tommy before, and was so deeply moved by the fact of it, but also his humanity in describing it, processing it, carrying on in the way he has. Jamie Raskin is a lovely human being. The other impeachment managers have also been very impressive, particularly Joe Neguse and Stacey Plasket. Their case, their videos and other visuals…so well presented, so methodical, thorough, tight. It’s an insult that the senators don’t seem to be budging from their resolve to stick with Trump no matter what.. such an insult to our country, to democracy, and such an insult to history. May they all be remembered in the worst possible way.

[Note: There will be so much written, so many books, so many documentaries about these times, about this impeachment #2, about the hell we are living through in real time. I don’t have to write a full account here, that’s silly. But I watched day one of what will be a short Senate trial where Senators/jurors will consider the ex-president’s guilt in abusing his presidential power, inciting a riot on our Capitol, etc, etc. The result’s preordained. They won’t get enough republican Senators to vote to convict so this is an exercise in futility, as they say, but a process the House had to go through because: history, constitution, truth, justice. I watched every minute of today’s proceedings. My blood’s in a full, roiling boil; I’m sick to my stomach, heartbroken; I’m disillusioned and disgusted. Below are just some random comments, most out of context; I’m just noting some thoughts.]

We know Trump incited his supporters to charge the Capitol. We know he’s been laying the groundwork for years, but especially since last spring when he introduced the idea that the only way he could lose was if the election were rigged. And double especially since November when he did, in fact, lose the election, yet claimed he’d won in landslide (still does) and accused dems of stealing the election from him. Zero question in the world he is entirely responsible for the insurrection. And if you’re not sure about that, or think he’s entitled to free speech and can say whatever he wants, how would you have reacted if it were Obama who’d said those things and inspired thousands to come to Washington on the day the electoral vote was to be certified, specifically to protest the outcome of the election, and what if it were Obama who’d riled them up, made them even madder about the result, told them the election had been stolen from them, told them to fight, and to let congress know how they felt, and to reclaim what was “rightly theirs?” That’s okay speech? His right to say whatever in defense of himself, against all facts, court cases.. against the will of 8 million more voters? His right to incite a riot?

The questions I would ask the so-called jurors (the republicans of which, I understand, didn’t watch the video, doodled and/or looked down, and otherwise tried not to pay attention — I’m looking at you Rand Paul and Marco Rubio… Paul who refused to wear a mask in the chamber) (these guys have no business in public office, serving the people of this country) … anyway, the questions I’d ask:

1. A police officer was killed; two police officers took their lives; hundreds of police officers were injured (today we heard about lost fingers and gouged out eyes). A protester was shot. Others died. This is not enough to convict? We know he incited the riot. As somebody asked: does anybody think this would have happened had he NOT incited them to charge the Capitol on this particular day?
2. What if it had been Obama who delivered that January 6 speech?
3. What if the majority of protesters had been black?
4. What if it were a secret vote? Would you vote to convict? Are you really just voting to spare Trump because you are worried about his retribution, his base, your next election?
5. Do you really think Trump was a great president, an inspiring leader? Worthy of the office? Worthy of running again?

The “jury” is rigged in favor of the vindictive, threatening ex-president. Their bad lawyering — and wow, it was pathetic (I was texting back and forth with Sally during much of it.. we were stunned by the rambling ineptitudes of these 3rd string, ill-prepared lawyers) — matters not a wit. Even if trump’s mad as hell that his defense team sucks.. doesn’t matter. Outcome’s baked.

For the life of me, can’t figure out what these guys are doing in public service. They are corrupt and cowardly to the core. What a charade.

Those spineless republicans could have ditched him as soon as he lost, an albatross removed, a chance to get back to regain some dignity and some semblance of conservative values and policies. I mean, wtf… why would they stick with him, allow him to continue to control their every public move? Do they not understand an acquitted trump is an empowered trump? This just pours gas on his fire.. he’ll be even more insufferable, more dangerous, stronger than ever, and with a greater stranglehold on them (until he’s convicted in some other court or chokes on a hamburger). Why would they want that? How thin and stupid to need his base.

I’ll be watching tomorrow.. the trial really starts then and will go on for just a few days. Then we’ll be past it, but those poor repubs.. they’ll never be past trump or his mealy, loudmouthed children. Their party will just continue to become increasingly irrelevant and sick, as true conservative peel off. They’ll lose the demographic game anyway. I don’t really care. Hoping the dems can keep our party unified and work for the greater good, realize the greater good is worth working together for. Racial justice, economic justice, healthcare, climate, environment.. here we come.

As nice pic from this morning’s pre-impeachment trial walk!