A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things.
Foxes In The Hen House
By rule, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) can reject Kevin McCarthy’s picks for the Jan. 6 committee. Her dilemma, such as it is: Should GOP members who enabled and supported the subversion of the election sit on the committee investigating the subversion?
- The picks:
Jim Banks (IN), ranking member: voted to overturn the 2020 election
Jim Jordan (OH), professional saboteur: voted to overturn the 2020 election
Troy Nehls (TX), freshman: voted to overturn the 2020 election
Rodney Davis (IL)
Kelly Armstrong (ND)
- All five members voted against impeaching Trump for Jan. 6.
- How bad will it get? Banks is already torching the whole premise of the Jan. 6 committee and demanding that it investigate … the 2020 George Floyd protests:
My statement on being appointed by @GOPLeader to serve as the Republican ranking member on the Select Committee to investigate Jan. 6: pic.twitter.com/dSJNF56EA9
— Jim Banks (@RepJimBanks) July 19, 2021
- Note Banks’ reference to the Biden administration, as if Biden were in office on Jan. 6.
Trump ‘Regrets’ His Handling Of BLM Protests
“I think if I had it to do again, I would have brought in the military immediately,” Trump told Carol D. Leonnig and Philip Rucker.
Never Forget
You might quibble with his 8-month sentence, but the judge in the first felony sentencing of a Jan. 6 insurrectionist understood the stakes:
- “It means that it will be harder today than it was seven months ago for the United States and our diplomats to convince other nations to pursue democracy.”
- “It means that it will be harder for all of us to convince our children and our grandchildren that democracy stands as the immutable foundation of this nation.”
- “It means that we are now all fearful about the next attack in a way that we never were.”
- “It makes us question whether our democracy is less secure than what we previously believed just seven months ago.”
Flynn Judge Threatened
A New York man has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for making threats to U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan of Washington, D.C., who presided over the trial of former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn.
- The voicemail left for Sullivan: “We are trained military people. We will be on rooftops. You will not be safe. A hot piece of lead will cut through your skull. We’ll start cutting down your staff. This is not a threat. This is a promise.”
- Until the sentencing hearing, Sullivan had not been identified publicly as the target of the threat.
Major Complication In A Big Case
A FBI agent involved in busting the kidnapping plot against Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) has been arrested on state domestic violence charges.
- The criminal case against the alleged Whitmer plotters is still pending.
- “It’s the last thing you want for a major case like this,” Andrew Arena, former special agent in charge of the FBI’s Detroit office, told the Detroit News. “Any time you give the defense any ammunition it’s not good.”
Texas Democratic Legislator In Hiding With Leg Amputation
Great piece from the Texas Tribune on the Houston lawmaker recovering from a serious illness who can’t flee the state as part of the Democratic effort to block the GOP’s new voting restrictions bill.
Slap On The Wrist For MTG
Twitter suspends Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s account for 12 hours for disseminating COVID misinformation.
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‘Conservative Porn Star’ Expelled After First Day Of TPUSA Student Event–Josh Kovensky
Trump DOJ Declined To Prosecute Wilbur Ross
Wilbur Ross did mislead Congress about his attempt to add a citizenship question to the 2020 census, the Commerce Department inspector general found, before referring the case to the Trump Justice Department, which declined to pursue it.
Rip McIntosh Resigns
The Turning Point USA adviser whose racist newsletter we exposed in a joint project with The Informant has resigned as a trustee of the Buffalo Bill Center of the West.
Channel Conflict On Fox News
The network whose on-air personalities rail against the COVID vaccine while it implements a vaccine passport program internally may be shifting its public tone:
Fox, amid significant scrutiny, made a noticeable shift today regarding vaccines. Some of its hosts were more vocal than normal in encouraging viewers to get a shot. That said, Tucker Carlson, Fox’s most-watched host, continued with his normal anti-vaccine rhetoric. https://t.co/hXlAvbNRrE
— Oliver Darcy (@oliverdarcy) July 20, 2021
Or it may be struggling with cognitive dissonance:
Before this clip, Hannity criticized a university for mandating vaccines.
After this clip, Hannity interviewed a young woman who lost feeling in her legs for a month in 2019 after getting a different type of vaccine. https://t.co/cczyquYJm8
— Jan Wolfe (@JanNWolfe) July 20, 2021
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