Friday, July 8, 2022. The term "lame duck" attaches itself to Joe Biden, more billions to Ukraine while Americans suffer, Moqtada attacks the LGBTQ community in Iraq, and much more.
Is it stick a fork in his ass time for Joe Biden yet? Today, not one but two columns run with the headline that the president of the United States is a "lame duck" and this before the mid-terms.
Hundreds of Democratic candidates on federal ballots this November
have tethered themselves to President Joe Biden’s political fortunes.
The Democrats’ chances of keeping a majority in the U.S. House and
Senate have been as weak as he is.
According to new polls, Biden has now become a first-term lame duck.
Since he will not be the party’s standard-bearer in 2024, Democratic
Congressional candidates can focus on winning in 2020 even if it means
straying from Biden’s policies.
1. New polls
The President’s current job approval rating is down to 38.4%, from 55.8% on Inauguration Day.
A bracing new Harvard-Harris Poll
finds that registered voters have now written Biden off, with 60%
having “doubts about his fitness for office,” 64% saying he is “showing
he is too old to be president,” and 71% concluding he “should not run
for a second term.”
2. Getting worse
Things are likely to get worse as the midterm elections approach. Of
course, every consumer purchase brings new evidence of inflation. Within
a few weeks, we may be in a recession, too. The U.S. economy shrank by 1.6% in the first quarter of 2022. The Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank is projecting
another drop, of 2.1%, when second quarter estimates come out on July
28. When the economy declines for two quarters in a row, a recession has
begun, according to the common rule of thumb.
Registered voters see inflation as the “most important issue facing
the country today,” and only 28% approve of Biden’s job performance at
handling inflation, according to the Harvard-Harris poll.
These findings should not come as a surprise. Instead of tackling
inflation, Biden has spent months trying to blame a certain someone for
it.
All your life you wanted to be president and now, at 79, you are. And you can't handle the job and the whole world is watching with increasing disappointment. Now Joe can really relate to Hunter. Failure runs in the family.
Asked about rising anger at his
inaction, President Joe Biden dismissed the critics: "I'm the only
president they got," he snapped.
Joe might want to reflect on the
vibrant history of American democracy: If leaders don't lead, the people
will, even if that means getting a new president.
It's a serious
handicap for an elected leader to be considered a lame duck. Far worse,
though, for the "leader" to be considered just plain lame.
He has
tumbled into both ditches of lameness and lame duck. He set himself up
for lame duckism in the 2020 race by promising voters that he would
merely be "a bridge, not... anything else." He portrayed himself as a
trusted, bipartisan inside player, an interim senior statesman who would
calmly pilot the ship of state from Trump's bombast to wherever,
whatever and whomever was next. Now, just a year and a half into his
presidency, the duckism syndrome has kicked in, and he's scrambling to
insist that he's still the president and making plans to run again in
2024. But that only highlights Biden's chief flaw: his inherent
lameness.
He's playing president rather than being one. Take his
embarrassingly meek response to the Supreme Court's six partisan
extremists who just nullified the fundamental freedom of all women in
America to control their own bodies. Biden called the court's dictate
"terrible," but what did he do? His first "action" was to send out a
fundraising mailing asking for $15 donations to reelect Democrats. Then
he flew off on a four-day trip to Europe. Roundly condemned for being
AWOL, he belatedly held a press conference in Spain, calling the Court's
attack on women "destabilizing." Gosh, Joe -- so harsh! Then he called
on Congress to do something.
But wait -- aren't you the president?
Who will defend Joe on Twitter? Maybe crazy and trashy Bette Midler. Oh, wait, she showed her ass and she's really not a voice right now. How we will all miss her pro-Joe Tweets like the one about she's fine with higher gas prices and how mothers should just nurse and stop focusing on the lack of formula. Crazy, trashy Bette.
Aren't we bothered by the fact that the White House had that call to begin with? Everyone's slamming Debra Messing or laughing at her. I've tried to avoid the topic here but what Debra said on the call doesn't bother me or make me want to write several paragraphs about her. What bothers me is that the Democratic Party is worried about Joe's sinking ship and they want to deploy celebrities with talking points. That bothers me.
And it bothers me because I do think you're a whore if you misuse your fan base. But it bothers me as well because the government's hiding behind others and trying to get others to prop Joe up.
How senile is he? They have to give him 'vitamin' shots before he goes out in public and he gets a little nasty and mean when he's coming down from it. Are they that scared of Kamala? The White House is a mess and Joe should be stepping down. He certainly shouldn't run again -- he turns 80 in November. He couldn't handle campaigning last time and they hid him in the basement. Not only will that not work again, attempts to hide him should have every opponent pointing out that this just demonstrates that he is not physically (or mentally) fit for the job.
Is this the record in modern history for a consensus building that a sitting president has become a lame duck?
In the mid-terms, eyes are all over the place. One area of interest is the state of Georgia. Ann Garrison (COUNTERPUNCH) provides an overview at the start of an interview:
The US Senate could flip Republican in November, if retired football
star Herschel Walker defeats incumbent Senator Raphael Warnock. Walker
was in the lead until recent revelations that he has several
unacknowledged children, despite railing against fathers who don’t
fulfill their parental responsibilities.
Warnock is now holding a 10 percent lead four months ahead of the
election. However, now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned, Georgia is
about to enact a bill banning abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, and
it will no doubt become a contentious issue in this race, with Warnock
backing womens’ right to choose and Walker backing states’ right to
choose.
With the Senate majority and now the possibility of somehow restoring
abortion rights at stake, the race is attracting national attention and
record-breaking amounts of money. With the Senate majority and now the
possibility of somehow restoring abortion rights at stake, the race is
attracting national attention and record-breaking amounts of money.
I spoke with Ethiopian American activist Tsehai Alemayehu about how he thinks his community will vote this time.
***
Ann Garrison: Tsehai, can you tell us about the Ethiopian
American community’s relationship to the Democratic Party and to Joe
Biden and Senator Raphael Warnock in particular?
Tsehai Alemayehu: The Ethiopian and Eritrean American community here
in Georgia, like most immigrants everywhere, have traditionally
supported the Democratic Party. I have personally been a Democrat for
all the many years I’ve lived in this country and have always voted
Democratic. And during the 2020 election, we organized our communities
to support the Biden campaign and to support the Senatorial campaigns of
Reverend Warnock and Jon Ossoff as well. So we thought, given our work,
and given the results that we delivered to the Democratic Party, that
we would have great supporting relationships going forward.
Unfortunately, once this gentleman got into office, when trouble started
in Ethiopia and we sought support for our issues, they turned their
backs on us. So we haven’t had much of a relationship with Senator
Warnock or President Biden since the 2020 election, not since they took
office.
And in fairness, because we are a small Georgia group here, our
relationship with Joe Biden would have been through our elected
representatives rather than directly with the White House. We don’t have
lobbyists. We only use our voices and the voices of our representatives
to speak with the White House. And of course, like I said, the main
actors, Senator Warnock and Senator Ossoff, whom we contributed to
electing into office, were not willing to speak on our behalf with the
Biden administration.
AG: Did you attempt to meet with Senator Ossoff and Senator Warnock?
TA: Yes, we did. We spent many, many, many months trying to meet with
Senator Ossoff and Senator Warnock. We have spoken many times with
their staffers, first in Washington, actually, in the case of Ossoff,
only with his staffers in Washington and the local office. In the case
of Senator Warnock, we have spoken to his Senatorial staff, as well as
with his campaign staff. We have also met with Senator Warnock himself
on two different occasions.
AG: And what happened in Ethiopia after the election that made you seek their help?
TA: In the first hours of November 3, 2020, which was election day in
the US, the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which had been
removed from power just a couple of years earlier, declared war and
attacked the Northern Command of the Ethiopian National Defense Force
(ENDF), who were stationed with in Tigray. And initially, the Ethiopian
government organized a response, and fairly quickly, the TPLF leadership
was chased out of the main urban centers. And it looked like the war
was quickly over. So in December, January, February, we had no reason to
worry about the issues across Ethiopia. And we had no reason to speak
with our representatives to develop policy in support of Ethiopia.
AG: And what happened then? Why did you then need the support of
the Biden administration and your representatives, your senators?
TA: So a number of things happened. On the warfront, the TPLF—with
the support of many of its sponsors, which, to our regret, include the
United States—were able to dislodge the Ethiopian National Defense Force
from Tigray. And when they crossed over into Amhara and Afar
territories, in town after town, they committed gross human rights
violations and war crimes. They engaged in public mass rape of men,
women and children, entirely designed to dehumanize, humiliate, and
break the fighting spirits of people.
We engaged our representatives, asking and expecting that they would
condemn these inhumane acts and persuade the Biden Administration to
condemn TPLF and use its influence to rein in that organization. We
spent months, first just trying to get audiences, and then to educate
staffers and legislators about what was going on in Ethiopia.
To the contrary, right about that time, the State Department was
engaged in pronouncements of its support for the TPLF. Going a step
further, the State Department issued daily threats against the
government of Ethiopia, the Amhara and Afar state governments, and even
the peoples of Amhara and Afar. The State Department was insisting that
the TPLF should have a free run of the house not only in Tigray, but
also in Amhara and Afar Regions. Neither the people of Afar and Amhara,
nor the ENDF, were supposed to defend themselves and their fellow
citizens from the TPLF.
And we were first confused as to why exactly this was happening, how
could pursuing this line of policy possibly advance the interest of the
United States. We were appealing to our Senators and Congressmen to
please listen to us to learn what exactly is going on. We tried to
educate these men in the recent history of Ethiopia believing that their
positions arose from ignorance. We spent nearly six months pursuing
this dead end strategy. But none of them were anxiously awaiting to hear
from us. Not our senators and not the White House.
It was as if the Biden administration had decided it would have the
final say as to how Ethiopia governs itself, and the US’s preferred
Ethiopian partner would be the TPLF. We tried to tell all within earshot
how dangerous that line of thinking is. But we were rebuffed at every
turn.
Biden’s effort to portray the war in Vietnam as a noble cause, “to
defend our nation and our values,” is a travesty. Vietnam was 8,000
miles from the United States. No Vietnamese was engaged in threatening
the United States, and most Americans had never heard of Vietnam before
the Kennedy administration began the US intervention in that country’s
civil war.
Nearly 60,000 Americans were killed in Vietnam,
compared to at least two million Vietnamese. Of the Americans, one third
were actual draftees, while many others were National Guard and Reserve
soldiers or “volunteers” who joined a specific military service rather
than be drafted and take their chances on what the Pentagon would choose
to do with them.
Biden chose to honor the four Vietnam veterans,
and through them, rehabilitate the war itself, only a few weeks after he
signed a massive spending bill bringing total US military and economic
aid to Ukraine to more than $60 billion. The United States and its NATO
allies are for all intents and purposes at war with Russia, in a
conflict whose escalation could well lead to direct combat between US
and Russian troops. This war will continue, according to Biden, “as long
as it takes.”
Under such conditions, the White House feels it
necessary to bury the collective memory of the Vietnam War, and
particularly the mass popular opposition to the innumerable crimes of
American imperialism which were exposed at that time. Instead, the
Vietnam War is being treated as one more example of the nobility and
heroism of America’s military operations overseas.
$60 billion dollars and counting for Joe's war of choice. Inflation is destroying the country and Joe's tossing sixty billion tax dollars into propping up the right-wing regime in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, in the other war Joe backed (and continues) . . .
That's ALJAZEERA reporting on the human trafficking in Iraq. Remember when THE NEW YORK TIMES used to insist it didn't take place in Iraq and that none of its correspondents were with prostitutes -- but the Go-Go Boys were with prostitutes. OFF OUR BACKS may be no more but at least they went out swinging with an issue detailing exactly what was going on in Iraq.
Parliamentary Legal Committee announced Friday that there is a
parliamentary movement to legislate a law prohibiting homosexuality in
Iraq.
A
member of the committee, Representative Aref Al-Hamami, told the Iraqi
News Agency (INA): "It was agreed within the parliament to collect
signatures after returning to session to legislate a law prohibiting
homosexuality in Iraq."
He
added that "legislation of such a law will be reinforced by legal
provisions that prevent homosexuality and the perversions associated
with it."
The leader of the Sadrist movement, Muqtada al-Sadr, had earlier proposed that there be a special day against homosexuality .
Two US State Dept friends tried to justify the US government relationship with Moqtada over the long holiday weekend leading up to the 4th. The bribe (US tax dollars) were given to Moqtada last summer because 'we needed him to get as many people to vote as possible.' And the partnership with him was about ensuring that Nouri al-Maliki didn't get the post of prime minister again. And this was all an effort to improve Iraq as best the US could.
Well, first off, failure. Nouri may end up the prime minister. If he doesn't, he'll still be the one having the say in who is selected. Second off, don't know why US taxpayers have to fork over their money to a man (Moqtada) responsible for the deaths of US children -- the government sent our children over there and now they're bribing the murderer of our children with our own money?
Third, Moqtada is an incompetent. He is a failure at everything -- including his cult which is why he got less votes in 2020 then in 2016. He's a failure.
Fourth, as I said when idiots on the left got caught up in the hysteria (engineered by the US State Dept with the press -- and that was confirmed, it didn't need to be, I recognized it months ago and called it out here) and started their Moqtada worshipping, I pointed out the reality of Moqtada, of his violence against the LGBTQ community in Iraq.
And now Moqtada reveals himself yet again. This is who the press -- on orders from the State Dept -- rushed to crown a "kingmaker."
Iraq’s Coordination Framework, a pro-Iran Shia alliance, faces
disagreements among its ranks on who should be the next prime minister,
as a large faction seems keen on avoiding a confrontation with populist
leader Moqtada al-Sadr.
Local media reporst indicate that there are five figures vying for
the post. However, Iraqi experts believe that competition is virtually
limited to the leader of the State of Law coalition, former prime
minister and vice-president, Nuri al-Maliki and the former minister of
labour and social affairs, Muhammad Shiaa al-Sudani.
Those experts say that an agreement could be reached soon on Sudani’s
nomination to avoid a consequent political confrontation with the
leader of the Sadrist movement, Moqtada Al-Sadr, who strongly opposes
the return of Maliki to the premiership. Sadr could also use the street
again to topple the government and call for new elections.
Observers believe that the nomination of former Prime Minister Haider
al-Abadi, as well as the current Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, was
merely a manoeuvre aimed at indirectly blocking Maliki’s bid.
The leaders of the Coordination Framework intend to hold wide
discussions on a list of candidates before agreeing on a personality
that meets their requirements.
Their agreement is almost certain to end the ongoing political crisis that has followed last October’s parliamentary elections.
Let's wind down with this from the Green Party of Michigan:
THE OFFICIAL GREEN PARTY OF MICHIGAN NEWSLETTER!
Welcome
to EARTHFLOWER, the official newsletter of the Green Party of Michigan!
Look for this informative newsletter on the first day of each month!
Volume Three
July 1, 2022
As
the midterms approach, attacks on the Green Party by the Democrats have
increased considerably, per usual. Any attempt by the Greens to extend
political choices to voters is met with organized resistance or in many cases, downright hostility.
Democrats
told us; the 2020 election was the most important election in our
nation's history. They told us, "Wasting our vote by voting Green" was
not an option. They told us, the ONLY way to restore democracy and fix
our country was to vote Trump out.
So
here we are. Trump is gone. What have we gained? Single-Payer
healthcare? No. A Green New Deal? No. An end to corporate subsidies? No.
An end to corporate tax cuts? No. A cut in pentagon spending? No. A
de-militarization of police? No.
Campaign
finance reform? No. More affordable housing? No. A ban on fracking? No.
Student loan forgiveness? No. An end to homelessness? No. Codification
of Roe vs. Wade? No. An end to the filibuster? No.
Now, they are trying to get voters to remove their names from Green Party ballot petitions in North Carolina and, even funding GOP ads, they say, to create more favorable match-ups against the Republicans? Is this what saving democracy looks like?
So,
what is the incentive to "vote Blue in 2022?" There isn't one. Although
the Democrats have a majority, they resign to playing victim, while
Republicans continue to shove their capitalist, authoritarian agenda
down our throats. Now they are using fear of a republican majority
bringing what's already happening under their watch.
So, what can we do? Organize! Register now if you haven't already and let's get started!
Green Party of the United States Annual National Meeting!
Just a friendly reminder!
Registration STILL OPEN The 2022 Green Party Annual National Meeting (ANM) will be held virtually. We hope you will join us from July 22-24.
All
ANM Participants MUST REGISTER to receive instructions on how to
convene with us online. Please register by Friday, July 15th.
If you have any registration questions, email office@gp.org.
Candidate Spotlight!
Green Party of Michigan Candidate for Governor, Kevin Hogan!
Kevin
Hogan (Green Party) is running for election for Governor of Michigan.
He declared candidacy for the general election scheduled on November 8,
2022. The primary will occur on August 2, 2022.
His running mate is Army veteran and Macomb Greens Local Contact Person Destiny Clayton.
Kevin
is a retired published research biochemist and retired substitute
teacher. Along with running mate, Destiny Clayton, leading their
platform is protecting water as a basic human right, equality for women
and protecting reproductive rights; and protecting the rights of our
LGBTQIA community.
"I'm looking to get people back to (unionized) work with a much better standard of living $18 per hour."
Follow him on Twitter!
And don't miss this opportunity to be the change by volunteering for
this campaign! Contact Green Party of Michigan Elections Coordinator Sherry Wells to sign up today!
(Baraga/Iron/Marquette/Dickinson counties) Monthly meeting: of each month Co-Chair Contact Person(s): Wade Roberts Website: None Social media: Pending
The U.P. North Country Greens are back in action! Co-Chair/Contact Person Wade Roberts who
is also running for election to the Michigan State Senate to represent
District 38, joins a group which has grown to 15 members. The UPNC
Greens have a lot of work to do as the midterms approach.
We
are a grassroots organization! Your voice matters!I So, if you are a
Michigan resident, frustrated with the status quo, living in
Baraga/Iron/Marquette or Dickinson Counties, be sure to give Wade a shout and let him know you're ready to get involved!
(Manistee/Mason/Wexford counties) Monthly meeting: Fourth Sunday of each month Contact person: Tabbi Krause Website: None Social media: [Facebook]
It's
official! The CLaM Greens are up and running! Co-Chair/Contact Person,
Tabbi Krause announced a couple of weeks ago. If you happen to live in
Manistee, Mason or Wexford counties, contact Tabbi and join the group at
their next meeting/event!
The
fight to protect and preserve Michigan's natural resources will be a
central focal point in CLaM Green activities. But they need your help.
This fight requires YOUR involvement as this issue is vital to our
survival. Contact Tabbi to join the movement!
The
Muskegon Greens are reorganizing! With the midterm elections quickly
approaching, they are focused on growing and getting stronger as an
organization to fight the duopoly and bring a better political choice to
the west central lakeshore communities!
Already
having gained three new members since the last edition of this
newsletter, the Muskegon Greens will begin their yearly membership drive
this month! It's time to become the change you are looking for!
Be
on the lookout for an all out social media blitz culminating in a "Meet
the Greens" town hall on Tuesday, July 26, 2022 starting at 5:30 pm
eastern @ the Salty Pecker Brewing Company! "Come on out and have some eats with us while we talk organizing and direct action!" says Co-Chair/Contact Person, Darryl Gibson.
(Calhoun/Hillsdale/Jackson counties) Monthly meeting: Fourth Saturday of each month Co-Chair/Contact Person(s): Monika Schwab Website: Pending Social media: [Facebook]
Co-Chair/Contact
Monika Schwab has reported, the South Central Michigan Greens tabling
event at the Jackson County Fair, will be from August 7-13, 2022 @ booth
13! HOURS: Sunday Noon to 10 pm; Mon to Sat -- 10 AM to 10 PM in the
Gumper Bldg. Thurs & Fri. free admission for veterans with "proper
ID." All Green Party candidates for office are welcome and encouraged to
drop in.
Contact Monika for access to the booth and the fair to share the use of the tickets. Contact Monika to
keep up with projects with the Jackson County animal shelter, a webinar
and much more! Come join the South Central folks at their next meeting
or event!
(Benzie/Grand Travers/Leelanau Counties) Monthly meeting: Fourth Tuesday of each month Contact person(s): Tom Mair
Website: Pending Social media: Pending
The
recent overturning of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court has become a
focal point since their last meeting, per local Co-Chair/Contact Person
Tom Mair. The Democrats had at least two months to come up with a plan
for this eventuality. They also had the chance to codify it and never
did.
Now
they are using this important issue to fundraise for the upcoming
midterm elections. That is unacceptable. The Greens in Traverse Bay are
in talks with the local Planned Parenthood to
build a coalition to create a strong response to the ruling and fight
for women's reproductive rights which the Democrats failed to do. Wanna help? Here's your chance! Contact Tom and volunteer!
Our newsletter space is limited. No updates from the local in your area in this newsletter? Let us know and we'll get em' directly to you!
CAUCUS NEWS: The building blocks of the Green Party!
BLACK CAUCUS
*The
Juneteenth celebration in Lansing last month was quite a treat! A warm
celebration of freedom! Great speakers, great food, great fellowship and
a softball game to boot! "It's one of the best turnouts I've seen."
says Claretta Duckett-Freeman, a longtime housing activist/advocate and
Lansing resident.
*The caucus is turning its focus to the midterms, planning a candidate forum. Follow them on Facebook for the details!
LATINX CAUCUS
*The Latinx Caucus relaunch has been rescheduled for Saturday, July 16, 2022 from noon-2pm! That's just two weeks away! RSVP here!
WOMEN'S CAUCUS
*With
the recent ruling to overturn the landmark case of Roe v. Wade by the
Supreme Court of the United States, it is obvious that democracy and the
reproductive rights of women are under assault and cannot stand.
*The Women's Caucus will
be reconvening to organize and fight, starting with a membership drive
on Sunday, July 17, 2022 @ noon-1pm via Zoom. Want to join? Sign up now!
YOUNG ECOSOCIALISTS
*Calling
all 18-28 year olds! The Young EcoSocialists of the Green Party of
Michigan (YESGPMI) relaunched on May 28, 2022! Expect results from
officer elections by the end of the month. Follow us on Facebook for our
next meeting and agenda! And don't forget to register
LAVENDER CAUCUS
*We are looking for volunteers to help launch a Green Party of Michigan Lavender Caucus! [What is the Lavender Caucus?]
Green Party Question of the Day:
The U.S. Supreme Court has overturned the landmark case of Roe v. Wade. What is Roe v. Wade and why is it so important?
Carlos
Valdes (Genesee Valley Greens): "I will participate when you start
protesting Bidens war on Russia. A lot of people think risking nuclear
war with Russia is stupid especially when Ukrainian government is full
of Nazis."
Question: What do you think are the most pressing issues facing the people of Michigan? What should our organization be most focus on?
Do
you support Green causes? Do you vote Green but haven't become a member
yet? Just click the button below and help our Green movement grow!
