Tag: Congress

Republicans Have Gone Too Far.

by inmanb17cedcb09, posted in Bi+/LGBTQ Issues, Current Events, Social Issues

July 3, 2022
   Republicans have gone too far. This fact is plain as day.
   Look at what they’re doing. I mean take a good, hard look. They are taking away female reproductive rights from millions of women, are pushing anti-LGBTQ laws in numerous states (which will increase the number of LGBTQ suicides, especially among LGBTQ youth), have gutted the EPA’s ability to properly regulate power plant pollution (which will in turn worsen Human Caused Climate Change), and are literally undermining American democracy by promoting Trump’s lies about the 2020 election and pushing new voter laws that make it more difficult for millions of Americans to vote (especially those who are likely to vote for Democrats).
   Think about what I’ve just said. It’s all true. Republicans are literally doing this. And what’s even scarier is that they are not done. Despite the fact that the majority of Americans support same gender marriage (recent polls show support at over 70%), there is a serious risk that Republicans are going to try overturn the Obergefell vs Hodges ruling to allow Republican states to ban same gender marriage. This would create a situation where some states would ban same gender marriage while others would support it. First and foremost, consenting adults should be able to marry other consenting adults whatever their gender. Banning same gender marriage is morally and ethically wrong. In addition, having same gender marriage banned in some the states would create all sorts of confusion in terms of taxes, insurance coverage, hospital stays/medical decisions (as to who is considered family), and more.
   Look at what is happening in terms of abortion rights with Roe vs Wade being overturned. We are quickly heading towards a situation where abortion will be banned (or severely limited) in roughly half the states while allowed in the other half. Many of the bans won’t even allow an early abortion in cases of rape. Think about this last part. A woman who has been brutally raped isn’t even allowed to have a morning after pill just in case. And these abortion bans in Republican states will particularly hit minorities and the poor very hard because many will not have the time and resources to travel to a state where abortion is legal. And what’s even scarier is that despite the fact that polls show that most Americans are in favor of a woman’s right to choose, there is a very strong chance that Republicans will ban abortion nationwide if they gain enough control over both Chambers of Congress and the White House.
   Republicans have gone too far. They are trying to legislate their own personal beliefs (that are often coming from their personal religious beliefs) upon the entire population even when the majority of that population disagrees with them. Think about that. For example, conservative Republicans’ hatred of women’s reproductive rights and LGBTQ rights are prime examples because they see these things as sinful. In other words, socially conservative Republicans are essentially trying to pass laws based on the their own personal religious beliefs that affect the entire population. This is made even more disturbing when you consider that most Americans disagree with conservatives on these issues. Some Republicans even want to restrict access to contraceptives! Think about that one.
   The brutal reality is that we can’t afford Republican control over governments these days (local, state, or federal) because they are going too far as they try to legislate things (many of which come from their personal religious beliefs) upon the entire population even when the majority disagrees with them. They are literally attacking the rights of millions upon millions of people (such as with anti-LGBTQ laws and abortion bans) that will increase the suffering of many and will lead to a significantly increased number of tragic, unnecessary deaths (like from suicide of LGBTQ youth).
   People need to speak up and stand against what Republicans are trying to do right now. And even more importantly, people need to vote! Vote in overwhelming numbers against Republicans because we can’t afford Republican control over governments these days.

Majority of DC Republicans Continue Opposing a Congressional Investigation of the Jan 6th Events

by inmanb17cedcb09, posted in Current Events

7-1-21
   Well, the dangerous dark path that the Republican Party is going down appears to be continuing which is frankly scary for our democracy.
   Now let’s get one thing perfectly clear here: the 2020 election was free and fair. Donald Trump lost. There was no widespread fraud. Every single state, including those run by Republicans, certified the election because it was fair. They were Republican, Democrat, and Independent observers in all the ballot counting rooms. They were international observers from multiple countries monitoring the election as well. The FBI and even William Barr, Donald Trump’s Attorney General during that time, found no evidence of widespread fraud. Add to that how the Trump campaign lost over 60 court cases where they were making their baseless claims about the election, and it is abundantly clear that the election was free and fair.
   Yet Donald Trump and numerous other Republicans spread false allegations and flat out lies about the 2020 election. And we all saw, along with the entire world, how extremist Trump supporters stormed the United States Capitol Building on January 6th in an effort to try to stop Congress from certifying the election. The events that day were horrendous, cost human lives, and went against the very essence of our democratic values.
   It is clear that the United States Congress must investigate what happened on January 6th in order to understand what occurred, how it occurred, and why it occurred so that hopefully it will never happen again. A bipartisan 9/11 style Commission is clearly the preference, but Republicans disgracefully killed that idea. As a result, Speaker the House Nancy Pelosi was left with the options of doing nothing or putting together a select committee. She has decided to do the latter, and of course the Republicans are attacking this. They had their chance of a bipartisan Commission which is what most Americans wanted, but it is the Republicans who killed that possibility. So it is beyond hypocritical for them to attack the select committee. The select committee is better than nothing at all.
   The fact that the majority of Republicans in Congress continue to oppose investigating January 6th reveals how dark and dangerous a path the Republican Party is venturing down. In the history of this nation, we have never seen anything like what happened on January 6th. If you’d told people hypothetically 20 or 30 years ago that Americans might storm the US Capitol Building to try to prevent an election from being certified, the vast majority wouldn’t believe you. And if you then added that a political party would oppose Congress’s investigating the event, people would be dumbfounded in shock. Yet here we are. The majority of the Republican Party in DC is opposing any real Congressional investigation into one of the most important events in modern history. Only a handful of Republicans in Congress have shown any courage in wanting to get the bottom of the January 6th events. Republican Representative Liz Cheney is one of those few and has agreed to be a part of the select committee. While I may disagree with her on many policy issues, I have great respect for her courage in joining the committee. It’s sad and dangerous that so many other Republicans won’t show her bravery too. Instead, they seem to either actively support the terrible lies being spread by Trump and others or they choose to stay silent. But the thing is, there are times when partisan politics should be laid aside and doing what’s best for the country should take precedence. This is one of those times, and Liz Cheney is one of the few Republicans who is rising to the occasion. The vast majority of others are not. Instead, they are going along with Trump’s authoritarian tendencies and lies about the election.
   These are disturbingly scary times indeed.
   It reminds us how fragile democracy is and how we must stay vigilant and defend it because those who may try to undermine it, or even destroy it, can come from the outside or from within.
   In this case, they have come from within.

Republicans’ Killing A Bipartisan Congressional Jan 6th Commission Undermines US Democracy

by inmanb17cedcb09, posted in Current Events

5-18-21
   Well, the Republicans did it. They killed any hope that a bipartisan Congressional Commission will investigate the January 6th assault on the United States Capitol Building.
   Think about that. What happened on January 6th has never happened before in American history. We’ve never had an angry mob of American citizens storm the Capitol Building like that with the intent of interfering with a legitimate national election. What occurred on that day was of major significance, and as such, a bipartisan Congressional Commission is not only recommended, frankly, it’s essential to make it clear to the entire world that US Democracy will continue to stand and thrive into the future.
   But instead, Republicans killed any hopes of a Commission.
   The fact that the Republicans did this is beyond disturbing and sickening. It’s dangerous. There are times when issues arise which are so vitally important that partisan politics should be put aside. Frankly, it should be a no-brainer that a bipartisan Commission is entirely in order here.  And the proposed Commission would have been based on the 9/11 Commission with an equal number of Republicans and Democrats on it and both sides having subpoena power. Democrats also agreed to the Republican demand that the Commission wrap up by the end of 2021 so that it didn’t push into midterm elections.
   What is going on?
   In my opinion, it’s a symptom of the dangerous path the Republican Party has been going down of late. Most Republicans are bowing to Donald Trump’s whims and demands no matter how outrageous or incorrect those demands may be. Some may be doing this because they’re true believers while others may be doing it out of fear, fear that Donald Trump will speak out against them so that they may lose their future reelections, and many Republicans are especially worried about the midterm elections. They appear to be putting party loyalty and a tendency to blindly follow an authoritarian wannabe, Donald Trump, over standing up for American Democracy and the United States Constitution.
   It’s obvious why Trump doesn’t want a January 6th Commission. Trump’s outrageous rhetoric and lies about the election clearly instigated the mob who then stormed the US Capitol Building. So Trump is afraid that he’s going to be made to look bad by a Commission, and there are other Republicans who fear that as well because they were parroting Donald Trump’s lies too.
   But it’s also extremely troubling the way there are Republicans such as Mitch McConnell who, while they may have laid the blame on Trump immediately after the January 6th events, have since changed their tune so that they no longer appear to hold Trump responsible to any significant degree. Many Republicans started downplaying the assault with one even referring to the mob as “tourists.” Tourists?! Are you kidding me?! They literally assaulted the United States Capitol Building on live TV. The entire world saw it happen! Those were not tourists.
   This is so dangerous to our democracy. We have a major political party, the Republicans, that is bowing to the disturbing will of one person, Donald Trump, despite the fact that that person has been spreading outrageous rhetoric and flat out lies. Instead of learning about what happened in a bipartisan way for the good of country, the majority of the Republican Party want to sweep the Jan 6th assault under the rug because of Trump’s outrageous demands and the Republicans’ desire to try to gain more power in the midterm elections. This further undermines American democracy.
   People need to open their eyes about what is going on these days because our democratic values are under threat. Remember the Republican Senators and Representatives who voted against the January 6th Commission and vote them out of office when they come up for reelection. Speak out against them. Make your voices heard.
   Demand democracy!
   Democracy is precious and should not be taken for granted. We must all stay vigilant to ensure our democratic values survive and thrive into the future.
  

The United States Badly Needs The COVID Relief Bill Passed

by inmanb17cedcb09, posted in Current Events

3-1-21
   People all around the country are hurting badly during this pandemic between health concerns, tragic deaths, and economic impacts.
   A great number of businesses are seriously hurting, and as a result, many people have found their hours being cut or their jobs lost completely. Even places that have been around for decades with devoted customers have had to shutter their doors permanently. Many people are on the precipice of potentially being kicked out of their apartments and homes. Millions of Americans are barely hanging on.
   But the thing is: this pandemic is still raging. People are still getting sick and too many are dying, so various restrictions are still needed to try to control spread of the disease and save lives.
   It’s a terrible dilemma. We have to balance fighting the virus while trying not to devastate the economy at the same time.
   This is why we really need Congress and the White House to pass the COVID relief bill as soon as possible. Everyone’s not going to get everything they want in the bill. This is a democracy in a time where partisan divides are often extreme and bitter. But we have to find ways to work together and get something passed to help people and businesses who are struggling economically as well as provide strategy and coordination in the effort to battle the devastating virus.
   Come on DC. Please get it done.

A Number Of Congressional Republicans Are Threatening US Democracy

by inmanb17cedcb09, posted in Current Events

1-2-21:
   In a few days, January 6th, Congress is due to certify the 2020 Presidential election. Normally, this is a simple formality, but this time, it has become much more complicated.
   There was no widespread fraud in this election. As with all elections, there were a few isolated problems here and there (which is normal), but nothing systematic or widespread and nothing that would change the outcome of the election. State government officials (both Democrat and Republican) have certified the election. There were Democratic, Republican, and Independent observers in all the ballot counting rooms.  There were even International Observers from multiple countries monitoring the election as well. The conclusion from all these people is that it was a free and fair election.
   Joe Biden won, and Donald Trump lost, fair and square.
   But dangerously and pathetically, Trump is making totally baseless accusations of fraud that he has no evidence for. He has lost lawsuit after lawsuit because he has no evidence.  It’s clear that his claims of fraud are completely false and self-serving, yet he continues spewing out this utter nonsense, apparently for his own twisted reasons.
   Trump will not steal this election as he is apparently trying to do. Joe Biden will be inaugurated January 20th.
   But it is extremely disturbing how numerous Congressional Republicans are going along with Trump’s disgusting, unAmerican behavior. Some are threatening to object to Congressional certification of the election despite the fact that the election was free and fair. This terrible, cowardly behavior is undermining our democracy.
   And you know what: History is going to treat the actions of Trump and those going along with him very, very harshly. And they will deserve the harsh treatment because they are going against (and even trying to overturn) the will of the American people who have already spoken by voting.
   Think about it. The actions of Trump and those going along with him are threatening the very foundation of our country, Democracy.
   We must never forget what is happening.
   We must never forget that elected officials are knowingly and willfully hurting our democratic way of life.
   We must remember who these individuals are and vote them out of office when they come up for reelection themselves.
   And we must all strive to do better in the future in upholding and defending our democracy.