Hell has officially (sort of) frozen over. I (sort of) agree with Paul Gosar

Congressman Steve Cohen doesn't though.

From Congressman Cohen's press release -

Congressman Cohen Disagrees with Colleague’s Description of the United States as a “Banana Republic”

During a Committee on Natural Resources mark up of elements of major infrastructure legislation today, Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) asked his fellow Committee member, Congressman Paul Gosar (AZ-04), to retract his verbal description of the United States as a “banana republic.” Congressman Gosar declined the polite and civil request and insisted “we might be even worse.”

In his remarks, Congressman Cohen said in part:

“If you would call back your referring to our country as a ‘banana republic,’ I’d appreciate it… ‘Banana republic’ is over the top. We’re not a banana republic. That has more to do with how you elect your leaders and not with legislation. There’s an old saying in Tennessee: ‘You don’t talk about rope in a house where a man’s been hung.’ I would just hope that you’d take back your reference to our country as a banana republic.”

He wasn't talking about Gosar's characterization (Gosar hadn't yet gone there), but loyal Trumpkin Mike Pompeo disagrees, too,  From The Hill -

Pompeo says US not a 'banana republic' amid fallout from attack on Capitol

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo used his personal Twitter account on Thursday to criticize journalists and politicians for likening the U.S. to a "banana republic" following the violent attacks that occurred on the Capitol building Wednesday.

The push back from Pompeo came amid the fallout from an attack on the U.S. Capitol by a mob of President Trump's supporters Wednesday, in which five people, including a Capitol Police officer, were killed.

Even Gosar doesn't really believe the U.S. is a banana republic.  From December 7, 2020 -

 While I don't believe that the U.S. is a banana republic, Gosar is sort of correct - as far as Arizona, home of the fraudit, is concerned.

When the losing side of an election claims that loss is evidence of a fraudulent election and holds democracy itself as a hostage until they get their way definitely seems "banana-ish".

Arizona makes the national news again. And again, it's not in a good way.

 At least it's not for the fraudit this time.

From The Hill -

Arizona father threatens to zip tie principal after son told to quarantine

An Arizona father threatened his son's elementary school principal with a citizen's arrest while wielding zip ties after he received news that his child would be required to quarantine after coming in contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19.

Vail Unified School District officials told a local NBC News station that the man, who was not named, arrived at Mesquite Elementary School on Thursday morning along with his child and two other men to protest the quarantine policy.

The story from KVOA, the "local NBC News station" referenced in The Hill's story -

Police on-scene at Vail elementary school after group threatens to zip-tie principal over COVID-19 protocols

A conflict over the COVID-19 quarantine policy at a Vail Unified School District elementary school has been resolved shortly after protesters threatened to make a citizen's arrest on the principal Thursday morning.

According to VUSD officials, a student at Mesquite Elementary School was asked to quarantine after he reportedly was in close contact with an individual who tested positive for COVID-19.

VUSD said this decision was made per state policy, citing that when a school in Arizona experiences a positive case of COVID-19, it is required to report the case to its county health department - in Vail's case, Pima County Health Department. Then, the county decides which individuals need to quarantine in order to prevent a potential outbreak in the community.

AP picked it up, too -

1 arrest after clash over Arizona school’s COVID mandates

The father of an Arizona elementary school student was arrested after he and two other men showed up to the campus with zip ties, threatening to make a “citizen’s arrest” on the school principal over a COVID-19 quarantine, school officials said Friday.

Diane Vargo, principal of Mesquite Elementary School in Tucson, said the parent came to her office Thursday with his son in tow. The father was upset the child would have to isolate and miss a school field trip because of possible exposure to someone with COVID-19. She said two other men also “barged in.”

So far, I haven't found the arrested man's name, but I fully expect Dougie has it and will pardon the man, if it gets that far.  Dougie may just make a call and have Markie force/influence the Pima County Attorney's Office to drop the case.

1. Wear a damn mask.

2. Get vaccinated. 

3. Don't commit or even threaten violence.

Yeah, but did they get it on (hidden) camera?

 From The Daily Beast -

Project Veritas Headquarters Destroyed in Ida Floods

Hurricane Ida’s Northeast floods and tornadoes showed the visual reality of climate change, including at the headquarters of the “truth-seeking” organization Project Veritas. Photos from the group’s Mamaroneck, New York, base show tables flipped over, chairs stacked on top of one another, and multiple copies of leader James O’Keefe’s 2018 book American Pravda: My Fight for Truth in the Era of Fake News scattered on the floor. Its mascot, an alpaca named “Retracto,” was soaked.

The setback comes amid a damaging year for Project Veritas, which runs undercover stings in an effort to catch journalists or liberal figures saying embarrassing things. Twitter banned both Project Veritas and O‘Keefe in April for operating fake accounts. O’Keefe later sued Twitter.

When you're not willing to tell the truth, intimidate those that are

Turns out that GQP members of Congress *love* it when tech companies are subpoenaed...by GQP members of Congress.

Picture coming soon to a BOLO near you...

From Yahoo! -

McCarthy threatens companies that share GOP lawmakers' private data with Capitol riot panel

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy took aim at members of Democratic leadership on Tuesday, saying they are coercing telecommunications companies into assisting in their investigation of the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol.

The California Republican accused members of the Democratic-led House Select Committee on Jan. 6 of pursuing a "surveillance state" and threatened any companies who accede to possible subpoenas for access to the communications of Republican lawmakers.

A story published Monday reported that the Jan 6 committee asked telecommunications companies to preserve records from several Republican lawmakers involved in the “Stop the Steal” rally ahead of the Capitol riot.

These lawmakers include Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Jim Jordan of Ohio, Andy Biggs of Arizona, Paul Gosar of Arizona, Mo Brooks of Alabama, Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina, Matt Gaetz of Florida, Louie Gohmert of Texas, Jody Hice of Georgia, and Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, according to CNN.

It's not just him, either.

From BusinessInsider -

Marjorie Taylor Greene threatened to 'shut down' telecoms companies if they hand over Republicans' phone records to the January 6 commission

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene claimed on Tuesday that any telecommunications company that complies with a request to hand over Republicans' messages to the January 6 commission would be "shut down."

The House committee is investigating the circumstances surrounding the Capitol riot.

Serious question: Are threats issued to protect criminals criminal acts in and of themselves? 

Hate crimes up; reporting agencies down

Trump infamously said that if there were fewer Covid tests, there'd be fewer cases of Covid.

Turn out it doesn't work that way for Covid, or for other things.

Ignoring the truth doesn't change it.

From NPR -

Hate Crimes Reach The Highest Level In More Than A Decade

There were 7,759 reported hate crimes in the U.S. last year — the most in 12 years, the FBI reported this week. But some experts and advocacy groups say the true number is probably even higher.

The number of recorded bias incidents reported by the FBI was the highest since 2008, when 7,783 hate crimes were reported to the agency, federal data shows.

From the website of the FBI -

In 2020, 81 of 125 law enforcement agencies in AZ reported hate crime data.

In 2019, 92 of 125 LE agencies did so.

Yet, there was an increase in hate crimes reported.

In 2019, there were 209 reported, or 2.2717 per reporting agency -

In 2020, there were 282 reported, or 3.4815 per agency -

That's a 65% increase per reporting agency.

Not a good thing.

Dear Mitch: The American occupation of Afghanistan was *never* about terrorism

Turns out the Mitchster has the same relationship with the truth that most folks have with Covid.

And, unlike most of his base, he's been vaccinated (though they don't need a vaccine to be anti-truth).

From Politico - 

McConnell: ‘Why we went’ to Afghanistan has been lost

Amid the ongoing efforts to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan, "why we went there in the first place" has been lost, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Sunday morning.

"We went there to prevent the Taliban from having a regime that would allow terrorists to reconstitute themselves and hit us here at home. It's been a total success," McConnell told host Chris Wallace on "Fox News Sunday."

Nope, whether the sacrifice of the American military, and American treasury, in Afghanistan was about oil, or contracts to the defense industrial complex, or even the most basic emotion of fear, the occupation of Afghanistan was always about one thing, 

Money.

What goes around, comes around3. Unfortunately.

From the San Angelo (TX) Standard-Times -

‘He loved his family’: Caleb Wallace in last hours of life with COVID-19, pregnant wife says

Five-year-old Brooke Wallace in San Angelo knows her daddy is very sick. On a sweltering afternoon, she sat under the shade of an oak tree beside her two younger sisters — Aubrey and Kate — swinging on a backyard play-set until it was time to call their father.

At about 5:15 p.m. that Thursday, Aug. 19, 2021, Jessica Wallace gathered all three children together, and the four took a short walk to a relative's house next door. She strolled hand-in-hand with Kate, who is one year old, while Aubrey, age 3, toddled ahead of her mother to keep pace with Brooke.

[snip]

"Show me the science that masks work," Caleb wrote on the City of San Angelo's official Facebook in December 2020. "Show me the evidence that school closures work. Show me the evidence that lock-downs work."

In 2020, Caleb appeared in video interviews with local media outlets denouncing mask policies and school closures at San Angelo ISD.  As late as April 2021, he penned a letter demanding the school district rescind all its COVID-19 protocols, claiming that science didn't support their need.

Let me be clear - I don't wish death on *anyone*, but my sympathies here are with Wallace's wife and children, and the healthcare workers striving to keep him alive.  Their efforts will almost certainly be unsuccessful, but that doesn't stop them from trying.

Update on 8/28 -

Mr. Wallace has died. :(

End update. 

Unfortunately, deaths among the unvaccinated is not a Texas-only thing.

From the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services -

As Adult ICU Patients Hit Record Highs for the Pandemic, New Report Shows Unvaccinated People Are More Than 15 Times More Likely to Die From COVID-19 Compared to Vaccinated People

Aug 27, 2021

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services yesterday released new data in the weekly respiratory surveillance report showing that unvaccinated people were 15.4 times, or 1,540 percent, more likely to die from COVID-19 during the four-week period ending Aug. 21, 2021. This comes as the state hit a pandemic high on Aug. 26 with 912 adults in the ICU with COVID-19. The number of COVID-19 patients on ventilators also reached a record high at 574.

This week’s respiratory surveillance report is the first to provide age-adjusted death rate data for COVID-19. Adjusting for age is a way to make fairer comparisons between vaccinated and unvaccinated people because the vaccinated population is older than the unvaccinated population and older people are more likely to die from COVID-19. Data is preliminary and is subject to change as additional cases and deaths are reported.

The report mentioned in the quote is here.

State committees update

 No new federal committees to report on for AZ, but there was one relevant filing with the IRS.  As it's for a state race, it will be included here.

From the website of the Arizona Secretary of State - 

Glassman is a perennial candidate who hasn't won a general election since 2007 (Tucson City Council) or a primary since 2010 (Democratic, US Senate).  He's run for many offices since, usually losing in the Republican primary.

One person has formed a committee with the IRS to run for governor (but no state-level committee as yet).  From the website of the IRS -

Rivas is a full-on Trumpkin.

Apparently, trying to score political points on the backs of dead folks isn't an effective strategy

From Politico -

Florida starts turning on DeSantis

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has been untouchable for the past year as he commanded the Republican culture wars to become heir apparent to Donald Trump. The latest coronavirus surge is starting to change that.

Covid infection rates continue to climb as the state faces shortages of health care staff, morgue space and even oxygen for patients. About 16,000 people are hospitalized. Child infection rates have shot up. School districts — even in Republican strongholds — have rebelled against DeSantis’ anti-mask mandates. And cruise lines are resisting DeSantis’ vaccine passport ban. Even his recent poll numbers are slipping.

Florida's Covid numbers, from Johns Hopkins U -

I have a suggestion for a new tourism slogan for Florida -

Go to Florida and die.

1. Wear a damn mask.

2. Get vaccinated. 

SD AG kills someone and gets fined for it; it must be nice to be politically connected.

Of course, if he was a Pearce, he wouldn't even have gotten that much.

From The Hill -

South Dakota attorney general fined in pedestrian's death

South Dakota Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg (R) on Thursday was fined for a car crash last year that led to the death of a man.

A South Dakota judge fined the attorney general $500 for each of the two misdemeanor charges he pleaded guilty to and ordered him to pay court costs, according to The Associated Press.

Sean Pearce, son of the infamous Russell Pearce and a senior deputy of then-Sheriff Joe Arpaio, a Russell Pearce political ally, took a defensive driving class, was fined $714, and suspended for a week after killing someone with his county-issued vehicle.  Details here.

Churchill wrote “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it"; he could have be writing about certain Americans

Turns out that leathers and colors are as effective against Covid as are guns.

From NBC News -

Weeks after Sturgis motorcycle rally, first COVID-19 death reported as cases accelerate in Midwest

A Minnesota man who rumbled into South Dakota last month with thousands of other bikers for the annual Sturgis motorcycle rally was reported dead Wednesday of COVID-19.

The man, in his 60s with underlying conditions, was hospitalized and in the intensive care unit after returning from Sturgis, the Minnesota Department of Health confirmed in an email to NBC News. The death, initially reported by The Washington Post, is the first traced to the 10-day event that attracted more than 400,000 people and has revved up the coronavirus crisis across the region.

Oh, wait - that's from 2020.

From NBC News, in 2021 -

South Dakota Covid cases quintuple after Sturgis motorcycle rally

Two weeks after the annual motorcycle rally in Sturgis, South Dakota, reported Covid infections in the state have risen nearly sixfold.

South Dakota counted 3,819 new cases in the past two weeks, including seven deaths, up from 644 cases in the 14 days preceding it. That makes it the state with the largest percent increase in Covid cases in the past two weeks.

Two things are apparent from this:

1) Betcha most of them voted for Cheeto.

2) Bikers aren't any smarter than they were last year.

South Dakota's Covid numbers, from Johns Hopkins U -

1. Wear a damn mask.

2. Get vaccinated. 

Even gun nuts fear Covid.

From NBC News -

NRA cancels annual meeting in Texas due to Covid

The National Rifle Association announced Tuesday it was canceling its annual meeting in Houston due to Covid-19, as the recent surge of the delta variant threatens to overwhelm hospitals throughout Texas.

"Due to concern over the safety of our NRA family and community, we regret to inform you that we have decided to cancel the 2021 Annual Meeting & Exhibits," the group said in a statement. "The NRA’s top priority is ensuring the health and well-being of our members, staff, sponsors, and supporters."

Even in their statement, they profess no concern for the "health and well-being" of the general public.

Of course, when they're not running from Covid, they're busy decrying it as a conspiracy to take away gun rights.

From the NRA-ILA -

Nothing is more important than protecting ourselves and our families -- especially during these times of uncertainty. Yet, some anti-gun lawmakers are exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to deny you and your loved ones your fundamental right to self-defense and your Second Amendment rights. 

These anti-gun and anti-self defense extremists deem gun stores "non-essential," they shut down issuance of firearm permits, and, in some locations, they have created extreme delays for background checks required for firearm transfers. Some jurisdictions have even put added restrictions on firearm transfers, making it all but impossible for many law-abiding Americans to exercise their Second Amendment rights.

1. Wear a damn mask.

2. Get vaccinated. 

An attempt by Cyber Ninjas to blame getting Covid on all the bamboo they were exposed to coming in 3...2...1...

Damn, I'm cynical today. :)

Information on the bamboo reference is here.

Full ‘audit’ report delayed after Cyber Ninjas head, others get COVID-19

The team that has worked since April reviewing the 2020 general election in Maricopa County submitted a partial draft report to the Arizona Senate on Monday, but the full report will be delayed because several members of the team — including Cyber Ninjas head Doug Logan — have tested positive for COVID-19.

Senate President Karen Fann, R-Prescott, announced that Logan and two other members of the five-person audit team have COVID “and are quite sick.” One of the three — not Logan — is hospitalized with pneumonia, Fann told the Arizona Mirror. 

Just a guess: Logan et. al. aren't vaccinated.

1. Wear a damn mask.

2. Get vaccinated.

In a shot across Ducey's bow, the Biden administration looks to protect students, staff, and teachers

From Politico -

States can’t block federal funds for districts that mandate masks, Education secretary says

Public schools who want to institute mask mandate rules can't be denied federal funds, even if their state governments try to pressure them out of mask mandates, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said.

The Florida state government threatened to withhold funds for schools in Broward and Alachua counties if they imposed mandatory mask rules. But the Biden administration has proposed using federal funds to make up the difference, with Cardona specifying Sunday that the schools "do not have to get the green light for [their] governor to use these funds."

While the Politico article cited only the Florida example, Cardona's statement may have been directed at Governor Doug Ducey of Arizona.

From Jim Small of the AZ Mirror - 

Ducey: Schools won’t get COVID aid money if they require masks

A day after a judge ruled that a new state law barring Arizona public and charter schools from requiring mask use can’t be enforced until late September, Gov. Doug Ducey on Tuesday said school districts considering enacting temporary mask mandates won’t receive some federal COVID-19 relief money unless they call off those plans.

And those who have already enacted mask mandates seemingly won’t be able to claim pandemic aid payments they were expecting.

Ducey's press release about his apparently forbidden act is here.

From Twitter, Congressman Greg Stanton's response -

It's almost as if Ducey plans to ascend to the Republican nomination for president on dead bodies and criminality.

Who does he think he is, Trump?

US withdraws from Afghanistan; Afghanistan becomes a mess; enablers/war hawks worldwide blame Biden.

If the critics think that being there is such a good idea, maybe they should pick up a rifle and go stand a post there.

Of course, that would violate their ideal of others risking their lives and even dying so that the war hawks can be seen as tough.

From AP - 

GOP hits Biden despite divides over Afghanistan withdrawal

When President Joe Biden announced he would stick to his

 

predecessor’s plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Afghanistan,

 

Republican reaction was mixed and largely muted. Foreign

 

policy had become so contentious that the party’s own leaders

 

had no single position on the end of the nation’s longest war.

But the fall of the Afghan government and the Taliban’s swift

 

return to power have, at least for now, reunited Republicans

 

in criticism of Biden. Longtime opponents of a withdrawal

 

argued Monday that the president should have seen the

 

disaster coming. Even those who cheered his decision to

 

pull out troops turned to slamming him for doing it badly.

Of course, some Republicans worked to cement their statuses as "Taliban Heroes" -

From USA Today -

These 16 Republicans voted against speeding up visas for Afghans fleeing the Taliban

Some of the Republican House members who this week excoriated President Joe Biden's strategy to pull U.S. troops out of Afghanistan and evacuate Afghan civilians voted last month against legislation to speed up the visa application process for Afghan citizens.

The House overwhelmingly passed a bill to make it easier for Afghans who assisted the American military to relocate to the U.S. The Averting Loss of Life and Injury by Expediting SIVs Act (ALLIES) Act was approved by a 407-16 vote on July 22. The 16 "no" votes were all from Republicans.

[snip]

These Republican House members voted against the bill: 

• Rep. Andy Biggs of Arizona 
• Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado
• Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama
• Rep. Scott DesJarlais of Tennessee
• Rep. Jeff Duncan of South Carolina
• Rep. Bob Good of Virginia
• Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona
• Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia
• Rep. Kevin Hern of Oklahoma 
• Rep. Jody Hice of Georgia 
• Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky
• Rep. Barry Moore of Alabama
• Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania
• Rep. Bill Posey of Florida
• Rep. Matt Rosendale of Montana
• Rep. Chip Roy of Texas 

Of course, in their defense, it's no surprise that the GOP identifies with the Taliban.

From CNN NEWS18 (a website from India) -

Not Just Women, Taliban Also Hates Schools, Colleges and Higher Education. Here's Proof

Taliban has been trying to portray a cleaner image in the international diaspora, attempting to wash its hands off the militant group’s infamous last regime. While the discussion largely seems to be about women’s safety and rights, experts have also pointed out the possible detrimental effects on education.

According to a working paper by Centre for the Study of Armed Groups named ‘Taliban attitudes and policies towards education’, published in February this year, since 2009, Taliban policy has been formally against attacks on education and the closure of schools. The current policy emphasises keeping schools open and maintaining access to education – unless there is a compelling reason to close them.

One could replace "Taliban" in that headline with "GOP" and it would be just as true.

The criticism of Biden isn't limited to American war hawks.

Also from AP -

‘Imbecilic’: Ex-UK leader Tony Blair slams Afghan withdrawal

Tony Blair, the British prime minister who deployed troops to 

Afghanistan 20 years ago after the 9/11 attacks, says the U.S. 

decision to withdraw from the country has “every Jihadist group 

round the world cheering.”

In a lengthy essay posted on his website late Saturday, the former 

Labour Party leader said the sudden and chaotic pullout that 

allowed the Taliban to reclaim power risked undermining everything 

that had been achieved in Afghanistan over the past two decades,

including advances in living standards and the education of girls.

Blair has his own issues where Afghanistan is concerned.