Journalist Carl Bernstein yesterday tweeted that John Thune is among 21 Republican Senators who privately condemn Trump but say little if anything publicly to challenge their unhinged party dictator:
The legendary journalist named and shamed 21 GOP senators on Twitter who he said have been privately condemning Trump, while keeping quiet publicly. He wrote: “The 21 GOP Senators who have privately expressed their disdain for Trump are: Portman, Alexander, Sasse, Blunt, Collins, Murkowski, Cornyn, Thune, Romney, Braun, Young, Tim Scott, Rick Scott, Rubio, Grassley, Burr, Toomey, McSally, Moran, Roberts, Shelby.” Bernstein added: “With few exceptions, their craven public silence has helped enable Trump’s most grievous conduct” [Jamie Ross, “Bernstein Names 21 GOP Senators Who He Says Privately Express ‘Extreme Contempt’ for Trump,” Daily Beast, 2020.11.23].
I’m not sure what’s more craven: the fact that Thune makes this list of cowardly backroom chatterers but won’t say to Donald’s face, stop wrecking our democracy, or that the even more cowardly Mike Rounds didn’t make this list.
Meanwhile, Representative Dusty Johnson retweets a portion of Trump’s endless thumb-scream fest declaring that “we will prevail!” but “Nevertheless” recommending that the GSA “do what needs to be done with regard to the initial protocols” for the Biden transition. So signaled by his Dear Leader’s absolutely not a concession, Johnson milquetoastilates, “In the days after the election, I supported the President’s right to make his case to the courts. These efforts have not been successful, and it’s time for the administration to begin the transition process.”
Our man Dusty says he supported egregiously deceitful, illegitimate court actions. he supported baseless claims of election fraud. He supported an effort to undermine a national election. Johnson endorsed that fascist effort, but now that the fascists are failing miserably, he meekly expresses his support for the fascist’s dodge-call for the GSA to start “initial protocols” in a vital process for American stability that should have begun two weeks ago.
And for that meager whimper back toward the rule of law, Dusty Johnson gets flamed by thousands of Trump-bots. The deep dipsitckery among the Trump-Twitterbots is mind-boggling and taxing. The 6K-plus replies posted so far on Twitter include a torrent of name-calling, cursing, and calls for a 2022 primary or a sooner resignation to remove Johnson from office for betraying Donald Trump. The less vulgar call Johnson un-American, RINO, spineless, and weak-minded. Several tell Johnson he has ended his political career, a comment that reflects knee-jerk projection done from afar, with no knowledge of South Dakota politics and the inability of the hard-right fringe to beat establishment GOP candidates in statewide South Dakota primaries and the inability of the South Dakota Democratic Party to beat any Republican incumbent for statewide office since 1996.
I spent more time than I ought responding to a handful of those Trumpbots, noting that Dusty Johnson is a smart, practical, and hard-to-beat politician (Dusty has never lost a statewide election). I have to balance that this morning by reminding my Congressman that his acutely triangulatory fealty to the worst occupant of the White House ever (Johnson responds to one Twitter critic by saying, “…the President announced today the GSA should begin the transition activities. The President’s stance and Dusty’s stance on this issue are the same“) falls far short of the courage it takes to stand up to a powerful, destructive liar.
Don’t let the Trump-bots get you down, Dusty. Let me get you down. Feel the prick of conscience for enabling such a menace in the White House. Free yourself, your party, and the nation by affirming the facts that the Trumpbots must hear from every Republican leader: the election was free, fair, and secure; Trump lost; his lawsuits against the voters are false and reprehensible; and Joe Biden is the next rightful President of the United States.
It’s follow the leader. Republicans tend toward mindless acceptance of authoritarian misrule. Democrats are much more discerning, and willing to voice displeasure with “leadership.”
Journalists and wishy-washy Dems like Chris Coons need to stop letting would-be coup enablers like Thune have it both ways. “He can’t say so in public, but in private he’s really concerned.” Wow. Great. What politicians say in public is what counts. There aren’t any brownie points for “privately thinking” the right thing, and people need to make them take responsibility for what they’re actually doing, not let them off the hook with a few consequence-free pretty words.
Johnson is full of capo crap. drumpf has never once offered an iota of proof to support any of his farfetched conspiracy theories, and Johnson, like all other wingnuts, knows this. drumpf is the king of frivolous lawsuits and Dusty is full of it.
The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality.
Dante Alighieri
I heard a comment on a weekend news program that pretty much describes Thune and his ilk. Something like this: These people were always cowards. It just took a bully to expose them. There is video of Johnny (Merick Garland) saying that the people should decide, before he pushed thru Barrett. There is video of Johnny (impeachment) saying, “Let the people decide.” Well, the people have decided and little Johnny is sitting in the closet, sucking his thumb, afraid of a tweet. Twisting in the wind. I’ve run out of printable adjectives to describe this coward!
believing Dusty would be about believing the tooth fairy will leave you a quater.Dusty Thune and Rounds take their marching orders and stay in line vote the party line.
Gutless cowards all! To wait until now to chastise a future convict who “conned America” will be the Repub’s legacy. I’m sure there is an orange jump-suit that will make his orange hair look good as they close the cell doors!
Well, gosh, “Under god, the people rule.” Right. So, when crab-ridden, weasel-worshipping–apparently the majority in SoDak–“people” vote for invertebrates, the rest of us must accept that “under god, the people rule.”
Except, of course, when the crab-ridden, weasel-worshipping people vote to allow folks to enjoy the pleasures of a simple hour-long period of enhanced awareness, or, for that matter, to minister to themselves with an herb that confers beneficial therapy to folks with a wide range of adverse medical conditions.
Sheriff Thom and Superintendent Miller probably have historical precedents, but I’ll spell it out for you. These two avid “Christians” are allowing themselves to be used by a maniacal “Christian” named Kristi, and advised by a hapless tool of an Attorney General who has problems of his own (and probably also the promise of a gubernatorial pardon for whatever harm comes to him as a result of having run over a citizen with his car).
Now if there were actually a “god,” something interesting might happen.
There is no god, Bob, it is an illusion, just like the “hour-long period of enhanced awareness” I’ve seen you drool through.
You are righter-than-right, however, that these fellows are doing this lawsuit under marching orders from the top of the dog pile. Mr. Ravnsborg, I am sure, is too incompetent and too preoccupied to concern himself with cooking up this particular scheme.
Let people believe what they want to believe, and let people get high if they prefer to do that. Cannabis can be a very beautiful thing, with some people it enhances creativity, others it gives them a moment of peace and meditation in this chaotic world we live in. I get silly myself. :)
Minnesotans congratulate SD, we never thought you would get it done before us. High five!
On a more serious note, I wonder how much money you SD taxpayers will have to dish out for Thom and Miller’s lawsuit.
Mind boggling to say the least that someone in the 1960’s would grudgingly offer up his future and body toward a country’s goal of “stopping Communism” in SE Asia and come home to a country called USA who in 50 years or so would be subjected to “MAGA” by a f#$%%^! tyrant claiming patriotism and followed by a vote to give the average Joe a brief respite from the BS being thrown at him from politicians like Noem funding with my tax dollars a lawsuit from taxpayer funded law enforcement officers of the highest standing!! Never having smoked the stuff, I voted for it, and will fight these blood-suckin’ parasites in their quest. So wrong.
b
Like 9/11, my wife and I will never forget where we were and what we were doing when they stopped the counting in 2020.
I was not aware we had an election on 9/11 for anyone to remember they stopped counting for.
One thing I can assure you is the body counting will not end soon and not in anyone’s favor if/when it does, we all are losers thanks to right wing nut job incompetence.
I don’t know what Dale is muttering about, MFI. He seems to be out of it. MAGA suppporters are in Post Traumatic denial, I don’t think they can help it. Parler does that to thejm.
John Dale, you really really, and I mean really need to step outside and enjoy life more. It is going to be okay.
You can find some recent comments I wrote about and to John Thune here:
http://dakotawarcollege.com/us-senator-john-thunes-weekly-column-were-in-this-together/
No sane, rational, honest person could have seen the PA hearing today without believing that there are serious problems with this election.
mike from iowa – your ability to slander and besmirch notwithstanding ,second only to maybe jerry, I’m surprised at your inability to see what I wrote explicitly was the similarity between 9/11 and what happened on 11/4. So, I’ll expound. They were existential threats to the continuity of the republic, which is why the military is involved. My advice to everyone, whether driving, carving turkey, or threatening the continuity of the republic is this ..
BE VERY CAREFUL.
The election results are real and honest. There is no justiciable evidence to the contrary. Joe Biden is the winner and the legitimate next President of the United States. Thune, Rounds, and Johnson are all cowering before a man who does not deserve anyone’s respect. If Republicans would rise up and speak in one voice against Trump’s lies and abuses, they could put him out of their misery for good and relegate him to the fringes of some bumbling third party.
My dear Mr. Dale, didn’t “they” (I would prefer the more inclusive “we”) stop the count when we got to the last ballot? Are you saying there are ballots that have been left uncounted? Or have you done a Billy Pilgrim and time shifted back to 2000?
And while on the topic of never forgetting, almost ten times the number of Americans have died from the Corona virus as the 9/11 attacks. Which did you and your party demand swift action to guarantee it “never again” happen?
Cory, I would take issue with one element of your point: President-elect Biden is NOT officially the next president until the electoral college ballots are cast and counted. That potentially undermining, un-democratic, anarchistic step in our election process is potentially more than a procedural rubber stamp.
In the meantime, drumpf pardoned Flynn for lying twice to government officials under oath.
Munchkin is trying to hide covid aid from Biden so he can’t use it to help average Americans recover from pandemic. Around 450 billion bucks is what I heard.
mike, is Munchkin sending that money to SD; that would seem the most effective way to avoid it going to help average Americans.
O, nothing like making a mess more difficult for the clean up crews.
https://thehill.com/policy/finance/527575-mnuchin-puts-455b-in-covid-19-relief-funds-beyond-successors-reach
Wishy washy. I doubt it. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-china-coons-idUSKBN2802DB
Cory is it really necessary to provide grdz a venue to call people “drooling” and give Dale a soapbox for whatever it is he espouses? Tiresome.
Nov 20
@steve_vladeck
And even if Trump somehow convinces *one* state legislature to defy the will of its people, that *still* wouldn’t be enough; he’d need at least *three* different state legislatures to do it.
The election is over. Anyone who still pretends otherwise is simply denying reality.
Reiterating: “Joe Biden is the winner and the legitimate next President of the United States. Thune, Rounds, and Johnson are all cowering before a man who does not deserve anyone’s respect.”
Happy Thanksgiving, Ms. leslie. Thank the devil’s spawn: Trump is gone, Mr. Biden will be the next president. Step outside and enjoy the nice weather, stop being such a grump, and quitcherbitchin.`
This is what Thune has been up to:
Decades ago, a wealthy group of corporate interests and right-wing ideologues hatched a plan to influence #US courts in systematic fashion. Under
@realDonaldTrump
and @senatemajlr Mitch McConnell, their plan succeeded spectacularly, writes
@SenWhitehouse
…in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau case this year: a watchdog group found that a handful of identity-laundering organizations had funneled more than $68 million to fund 11 amicus briefs, which naturally all argued for weakening the CFPB, a nettlesome adversary of corporate special interests.
Over the course of Chief Justice John Roberts’s tenure, the Court has delivered 80 partisan 5-4 decisions that benefit identifiable Republican donor interests.
…those financing the court capture operation will spare few resources to defend it. But the more light we can shine on their creature, the less able it will be to operate in the shadows. https://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/dark-money-federalist-society-captured-us-courts-by-sheldon-whitehouse-2020-11
Unfortunately it may take generations, but surely the future progeny of thune, rounds, johnson, and noem will rebuke and disown their infamy and cowardice as have the progeny of Generals Harney and Custer and other moral failures.
Marlboro Barbie’s whoseyerdaddy drumpf defended Putin’s
cyber hack of government agencies, again, and ,again, blamed China even though intel clearly decided it was Russia.
https://www.rawstory.com/trump-putin/
Once again, Marlboro Barbie lets down his constituents and his country, the one oath all pols take to protect, out of fear of drumpf, the twice impeached lying piece of marfa magats like MB chose not to have the guts to remove from office.
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/05/27/republicans-to-block-january-6-commission-491162
from above link….
Senate Minority Whip John Thune of South Dakota said in an interview that his party is not willing to provide the 10 votes needed to start debate on the bill: “At the moment, no.”
“The House-passed version won’t have 10,” Thune said.
The expected blockade will cloud the atmosphere in Washington. Republicans have not blocked any of Democrats’ bills on the Senate floor before Thursday.
Any magat that casts votes for Northern Mississippi’s congressional failures club, should be stricken from voter rolls for gross stoopidity.and being masochistic.