[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

'Hundreds of National Guard troops nap inside the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center as the House debates on an article of impeachment against President Trump.⁠'

https://twitter.com/...380418680877056

Better be light sleepers....

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 13 January 2021 - 06:55 PM

[Aptorian]

Man that comment section. I wish there was a punch people over the internet function.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

'A retired U.S. Navy SEAL is facing questions from the FBI after boasting in a Facebook video about "breaching the Capitol" [...]

[...] reserve SEAL special warfare operator, in a car on his return home from Washington, telling his Facebook followers that he was "proud" of the assault on the U.S. Capitol building[...]

Clad in the attire of his Ohio-based firearms training business, ATG Worldwide, also known as Advanced Training Group Worldwide, the former elite U.S. Navy frogman recounts the damage rioters inflicted, implying that he both witnessed the events and participated in them himself.

"There are stories to tell from generations upon generations, um, that hopefully, uh ... that hopefully it pans out to be a positive revolution," he boasts. "HOOYAH!"

[...] Newbold, who served 24 years in the U.S. Navy and has said online that he trains civilians and police in tactical shooting, said he wanted to make lawmakers "think twice about what they're doing" and to be left "shaking in their shoes."'

https://abcnews.go.c...PqRDpqmAgaEfTbs

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 13 January 2021 - 07:17 PM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

'Olympic Gold Medalist Who Wore Team Jacket to Capitol Riot Is Arrested

Federal authorities have tracked down and arrested another handful of accused Capitol rioters, including an Olympic gold medalist, a former Peace Corps member, a Texas florist and a man who wore a sweatshirt with the phrase "Camp Auschwitz" on it as he stormed the Capitol.

Klete Keller, a two-time Olympic gold medal swimmer, was charged on Wednesday with knowingly entering or remaining in a restricted building, disorderly conduct in the Capitol building, and impeding law enforcement.

[...] A video [...] showed the bearded 38-year-old standing in the middle of a group of rioters pushing back against cops who were trying to usher them out [...] Keller can be seen in his U.S. Olympic team jacket—which had "USA" printed on the back and an Olympic patch on the front.

[...] was identified after the riot by media outlets like SwimSwam.'

https://www.thedaily...l-riot?ref=home

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 13 January 2021 - 09:42 PM

[Tiste Simeon]

Impeached again! Have it.

I know theoretically it doesn't mean that much but it's another blow to the ego. And I know they're just trying to save their own skins at the last minute but good to see at least some Republicans not goose stepping in line like the rest.

[Malankazooie]

The political contingent in Colorado are livid. Colorado was a front runner for Space Command and rolled out the red carpet for the preliminary visits when locations were being proposed. The governor is calling for this decision by Trump to be looked into and will call for Biden to reverse it if there are blatant politically motivated reasons discovered. I mean, it's Trump....so, yeah, I'm sure all manner of corruption will be uncovered in how the decision was made. I doubt it changes anything though.

[HoosierDaddy]

Huntsville has NASA history so it isn't like Qatar hosting the World Cup, lol.

[TheRetiredBridgeburner]

Tiste Simeon, on 13 January 2021 - 09:48 PM, said:

Impeached again! Have it.

I know theoretically it doesn't mean that much but it's another blow to the ego. And I know they're just trying to save their own skins at the last minute but good to see at least some Republicans not goose stepping in line like the rest.

I suppose it means something if he loses the Senate trial and is prevented from standing for office again. And I honestly think they had to do something - just hand-waiving away the attack on the Capitol without any consequence for him would have been mad.

[Macros]

The problem here is they will scapegoat him and all the other slime will ooze through the cracks

[Tiste Simeon]

Oh definitely. That's why McConnell had changed his tune...

[amphibian]

My thinking is that McConnell knows the 2/3rds vote will not happen, but a "never hold elected office" vote - which only requires 50 votes - can happen (giving GOP leaders control of the party back again) and this trial will be chewing up most of the time available for Biden + Democratic Congress to get their agenda through until summer 2021.

So I would strongly prefer a "trial in the morning, legislative agenda in the afternoon and evening" approach because then we're getting some things done legislatively while also holding Trump accountable.

[Malankazooie]

There's a lot of work to be done by Biden's administration. Obviously pandemic and getting the vaccine out. It will be greatly damaging to recovery if all attention is put into impeachment to start his term. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. There is so much damage to reverse by Trump. They have to split the impeachment work up with work that needs to be tackled right away. We've been in a holding pattern, accepting Trump doing fuck all as it relates to any benefit to the country, looking towards that Jan. 20 date. Lets get Biden to work.

[Macros]

Given how quickly the reps chucked the first impeachment out without even bothering to hear witnesses this should be a real fast job no?

No?

What do you mean one rule for one and one for another??

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

At least some of the rioters who have been arrested... have been let out on bail. Despite the high risk they'll engage in similar activities over the next week.

Hopefully they're being constantly tracked, and police are ready to arrest them if they try to go back to DC....

'He has to surrender his passport, observe travel restrictions and adhere to a curfew of 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.'

The 'travel restrictions' are not elaborated---can he go to his state's capital?

https://www.baltimor...5r5i-story.html

[Edit:

Now they know they're going to prison (unless Trump pardons them before the inauguration), they might feel they have nothing to lose but their lives... though on second thought Neo-Nazi prison gangs might appeal to them.]

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 14 January 2021 - 05:07 PM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Case in point:
'Macias and LaMotta drove up from Virginia, in a Hummer displaying the insignia of the QAnon conspiracy movement, with handguns, an AR-15-style rifle, 160 rounds of ammunition, and a samurai sword, to allegedly interfere in the vote counting process in Philadelphia'

'The judge declined to revoke their bail due to their attendance at last week's pro-Trump rally that led to a deadly attack on the Capitol building.'

Police didn't stop them from breaking the conditions of their release on bail to travel to DC and participate in the riot. Now the judge is letting them out again....

https://www.inquirer...s-20210114.html

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 14 January 2021 - 06:32 PM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

'Texas Pastor Tells Followers to Get "Locked and Loaded" Ahead of Inauguration

[...] at KingdomLife Church [...] said he had received a message from “prophetic voices” that informed him Trump would remain president. “We have an executive order—not from Congress or D.C., but from the desk of the CEO of heaven, the boss of the planet,” Burden said. “He said from his desk in heaven, this is my will; Trump will be in office for eight years.” The pastor’s bio on the church website says he enjoys “staying active in civil government.”'

https://www.thedaily...f=home?ref=home

[Malankazooie]

huh, who knew serving in the government (federal, state, local) would pass logging as the most dangerous job in America.

Be aware this weekend, and the days and weeks ahead. If you see something, say something. Even you see someone who looks like they are serving in an official law enforcement capacity. These fuckers like to play chameleon / official personnel.

From what I understand, Sunday is Q Day or some such dumbshit, because Jan. 17 (1/17), and Q being the 17th letter of the alphabet. And the call has been sent out to go at all levels.

Stay safe and support one another. And again, report anything suspicious.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

'Far right ready to "fight and kill in Trump's name": Experts

Unprecedented cooperation between far-right groups is a cause for concern as the US prepares for further political violence.

[...] Fringe groups, including white nationalists, militias and conspiracy theorists, have been unified by the desire to keep President Donald Trump in office and perceived censorship following Trump's suspension across social media platforms and the de-hosting of right-wing Twitter replacement Parler.

These groups are gathering online, planning armed demonstrations in all 50 state capitals. "They're sharing tactics and lists of targets, they say they're ready to fight and kill in Trump's name. And there's every reason to take them at their word," [...]

Amid increased scrutiny, far-right groups are increasingly moving to encrypted messaging apps to air their views and plan[...]

Hayden said he has seen "ratcheted up rhetoric" in the wake of the Capitol riot.

Neo-Nazi groups and members of the far-right are employing rhetoric similar to that of armed groups like al-Qaeda or ISIL (ISIS), "talking about how [they] should be comfortable leaving their bodies behind"[...]

[...] maps of state capital buildings with "little marks" on encrypted apps as a way to "broadcast" to the types of people who would attend armed, pro-Trump rallies, that "they are ready for them".'

https://www.aljazeer...kMr-Moq7USorhO4

More on 'QAnon Shaman':

'[...] used a spear to fight Capitol Police during the attack[...]

Inside the Capitol, Chansley used his bullhorn, the filing states, to shout invectives, including repeating that they were there to "take out several United States congressmen."

Prosecutors argue that Chansley must be detained due to his past criminal record and belief in harmful conspiracies like QAnon, as well as his belief that he is an alien, which may indicate "serious risks that he will flee and obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice."

The threat posed by Chansley is not eliminated by his detention, prosecutors argued, as other right-wing extremists who participated in the riot remain at large. Right-wing extremists and conspiracy theorists continue to pose a threat across the country.'

https://www.usatoday...als/4174807001/

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 16 January 2021 - 12:15 AM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

'No, Trump can’t pardon himself or other insurrectionists. Impeachment would strip him of that power.

[...]

The most coherent constitutional understanding suggests that if the House votes to impeach Trump — even before the Senate begins its trial — he is then barred from issuing a pardon either for himself or those related to the impeachment charges.

[...] The Constitution makes clear that the president has the power to grant pardons, "except in cases of impeachment." Some scholars have long seen that clause as an anemic power, only preventing a president from pardoning someone from facing impeachment or undoing the penalties that result from a Senate conviction.

We and other legal scholars understand the clause to mean something different — that the president cannot pardon himself or others in matters directly associated with his own impeachment. Under this view, Trump could issue no pardon for himself or the insurrectionists for criminal charges related to the events of last week. Recently, other scholars, including Lawrence Friedman and Kim Wehle, have adopted this view, which we developed at length here https://www.theatlan...r-wrong/614083/ and here https://balkin.blogs...etation-of.html

The key point is this: Even though the pardon power for federal crimes is virtually unlimited, Congress may still vote to impeach and remove a president for abusing the pardon power. [...] If a president issues terrible pardons, impeachment and removal is the mechanism to hold that president accountable.

But how does this accountability mechanism function if a president issues a pardon designed to disable the impeachment process itself — either by a president pardoning himself or by pardoning others to prevent them from providing vital information to Congress for his own impeachment? As we and other legal scholars have argued, the exception explicitly mentioned in the Constitution — that the president has the power of pardon "except in cases of impeachment"— should be interpreted to preclude pardoning himself or others whose acts were directly connected to his own impeachment.

Congress's own interpretation of the pardon power may matter greatly, especially since the Supreme Court has never definitively decided the extent of the impeachment exception. Recent news reports indicate that members of Congress also understand impeachment to strip the president of his pardon power. [...]

This matters, too, for how courts ultimately decide the question. Courts have a history of deferring to Congress on matters they deem inherently political. That deference is especially prominent in matters of impeachment. The Constitution grants the House the "sole power" of impeachment. And the Court ruled in Nixon v United States, a case about a federal judge named Walter Nixon, that the Senate had the power to set its own rules in impeachment trials. That is, as long as the rules are in accordance with the Constitution's specific regulations, the courts would not micromanage the impeachment process. Given this precedent, the courts may see fit to give Congress leeway in this case.

[...] Even still, it is possible that Trump could try to pardon himself and his allies. Or he could even grant a blanket pardon to the insurrectionists who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6. In that case, it would be up to the courts to decide whether to honor those pardons or, consistent with Congress's will, to allow the criminal justice system to move forward in holding those responsible parties accountable for their crimes against the Constitution and the country.'

https://www.washingt...sbe86oh4Bbcc64I

IDK, doesn't seem like that argument would win over the originalist/textualist far right majority on the Supreme Court now....

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 16 January 2021 - 04:16 AM

[Tiste Simeon]

Be interesting to see how they define "terrible pardons" as well...