A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things.
A Bad Day For Racists
The ex-president had a full meltdown over the removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Virginia on Wednesday.
- That statue was a “work of art,” Trump fumed in a statement through his Save America PAC, in which he complained that the general who fought to keep Black people in chains “should be remembered as perhaps the greatest unifying force after the war was over.”
- Trump also tried to argue that Lee would’ve been victorious in Afghanistan and “what an embarrassment we are suffering because we don’t have the genius of a Robert E. Lee!”
- Fox News host Laura Ingraham was similarly indignant because “Of course, he fought for the Confederacy, he owned slaves,” BUT “he also played an indispensable role in post-war Reconstruction that was just instrumental in reuniting the country.”
Laura Ingraham: "Robert E. Lee is a towering figure in American history. Of course, he fought for the Confederacy and owned slaves, BUT…" pic.twitter.com/BDorgEHs4o
— Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) September 9, 2021
Anyway, check out Lee’s torso seceding from the rest of his body:
It is beyond me why they are melting down the Robert E Lee statue into a series of ornate public restrooms
— Edward Ongweso Jr (@bigblackjacobin) September 9, 2021
Manchin’s Laundry List Of Demands For Infrastructure
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and his staff have been hopping between Senate committee chairs for weeks to negotiate over the sweeping $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation plan for “soft” infrastructure, CNN reports.
- Manchin’s concerns reportedly lay in the plan’s ambitious expansions in health care, education, child care and taxes.
- The West Virginia Democrat has been meeting regularly with committee chairs that are central to crafting the legislation, including Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) and Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR).
- Manchin wants to shrink the child tax credit, limit eligibility for universal pre-K and free community college, and lower funding for home-care services, according to CNN.
- Meanwhile, five House committees will begin drafting the sprawling reconciliation bill today.
Schumer Shoots Down Manchin’s Demand For A ‘Pause’
Plans to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill and the expansive $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill together are moving “full speed ahead” despite Sen. Joe Manchin’s (D-WV) push to hold off on the latter and complaints about the budget’s price tag, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said yesterday.
- Schumer wasn’t caught off guard by Manchin’s op-ed that called for the “strategic pause,” according to CNN. The two Democrats had reportedly been discussing the plan regularly throughout August.
- The Senate Democratic leader’s comment came after Biden and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) similarly brushed off the West Virginia Democrat’s demand.
DOJ Is Preparing To Sue Texas
The Justice Department plans to sue the Lone Star State over its extreme six-week abortion ban sometime this week, according to the Wall Street Journal and Politico.
- The DOJ will argue that the ban illegally conflicts with federal interests, the two outlets report.
- The suit could reportedly come as soon as today, but the timing may be pushed back.
The FBI Releases New Video Footage Of The Suspected Jan. 6 Pipe Bomber
The FBI put out new information on the person who is believed to have planted pipe bombs near the Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee headquarters the day before the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection.
- The info dump included new surveillance footage of the suspect in the areas near the offices. The FBI released a virtual map of the suspect’s route with the footage:
- The FBI has collected more than 300 tips and held more than 800 interviews in the agency’s manhunt for the bomber since the insurrection, according to Steven M. D’Antuono, the assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office.
The Jan. 6 Lawyer Who Ghosted His Clients Is Back
John Pierce, a lawyer who represents 17 Jan. 6 insurrectionists and who mysteriously disappeared in late August, showed up at one of his clients’ hearings on Tuesday amid reports that he had been hospitalized for COVID-19.
- Pierce, who refused to get the COVID-19 vaccine, wouldn’t say what he was hospitalized for, only telling the judge in the hearing that he was “hanging in there.”
- Pierce told NPR that the morning he was admitted to the hospital, where he stayed for 12 days, was “extremely chaotic.”
- At least three of the lawyer’s clients have dumped him since his hospitalization, according to NPR.
Harris And Obama Lend A Hand To Newsom In His Recall Fight
The vice president traveled to her home state yesterday to rally for California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) ahead of the recall election next Tuesday:
.@VP Kamala Harris: "We are here today to say we fight for Gavin Newsom. We fight for our country. We fight for the values we hold dear. We fight for working people. We fight for organized labor. We fight for Dreamers. We fight for women. We fight for voting rights." pic.twitter.com/MxesROOAhc
— The Hill (@thehill) September 8, 2021
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris rallied for California Governor Gavin Newsom in San Leandro, saying the upcoming election to recall the Democratic leader is not just about the state but also 'about who we are as a nation' https://t.co/S2kbMU9QgQ pic.twitter.com/efAhgUBLuk
— Reuters (@Reuters) September 8, 2021
- Former President Barack Obama also released a 30-second ad urging Californians to vote against recall:
Listen to @BarackObama — California has a big choice to make on September 14th.
Your vote could be the difference.
Vote NO on the Republican Recall.
There’s too much on the line to sit this one out. pic.twitter.com/U3cKDcRaVY
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 8, 2021
- Newsom’s recruited several other key powerplayers to stump for him, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and mostly recently, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY):
California: do not mess with this recall.
We need folks to TURN IN THEIR BALLOTS. Vote NO and drop it in the mail tomorrow.
Don’t sleep on this. It takes 5 mins but it’s urgent. We have so much work to do already and a nightmare fuel recall election is the last thing we need. https://t.co/XouDdNbltI
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) September 9, 2021
DeSantis Has No Clue How Masks Became Politicized
Gov. Ron DeSantis: "I don't know why the masks have politics around it." pic.twitter.com/sLrvxdxVJh
— The Recount (@therecount) September 8, 2021
Yeah it’s a real mystery:
He’s literally selling anti-mask merch https://t.co/VwGOBIrjar pic.twitter.com/r19V9zo49F
— Parker Molloy (@ParkerMolloy) September 8, 2021
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Also, more steam.
The Donald is bent out of shape as one of his heroes is consigned to the dustbin of history.
By the way, if General Lee had handled the war in Afghanistan in the same way he handled the Civil War, we would, to be fair, have had a good number of tactical victories (the Seven Days Battles, Chancellorsville) but lost the big ones in a much more spectacular fashion (Gettysburg, Vicksburg, Atlanta).
Donald is never really bent out of shape unless someone has their hands in the till, and as far as Donald is concerned the entire planet is his personal till. That and failing to be the center of attention at all times are about the only things that trouble him.
Can’t lose what you never had.
Last night this disgusted me and now I try to be amused.