Month: January 2021

Trump supporters continue to plot violence as second impeachment trial approaches

Posted on by Laura Clawson

Thousands of National Guard troops will remain in Washington, D.C., through the second impeachment trial of Donald Trump thanks to continuing threats of violence against lawmakers. The number of troops has already dropped and will continue to drop from a high of around 25,000 to below 20,000 now. It is slated to drop to 5,000 in February.

In addition to the threat of armed protesters returning during the impeachment trial, law enforcement agencies are looking into threats that were “Mainly posted online and in chat groups” and “have included plots to attack members of Congress during travel to and from the Capitol complex during the trial,” the Associated Press reported based on information from an unnamed official who “had been briefed on the matter.”

These threats are not hard to imagine. Indeed, one of the alleged Capitol attackers already faces charges for threats against Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and for saying it’s “huntin[g] season” with respect to the officer who fatally shot rioter Ashli Babbitt as she tried to climb through a broken window to get to where lawmakers were evacuating the House chamber.

House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has been flailing in his response to the Capitol attack, but even he has been very clear about the threat to members of Congress, telling his caucus not to attack any of their colleagues by name because “it's putting people in jeopardy.” 

Saying he had reached out personally to some Republicans—we can guess which offenders those might have been—McCarthy emphasized, “Do not raise another member's name on a television, whether they have a different position or not. Let's respect one another and you probably won't understand what you're doing, and I'm just warning you right now—don't do it.”

The insurrection Donald Trump incited isn’t going to go away all at once. The threats continue, and they’re not just threats to individual members of Congress—they’re threats of continuing attacks on our democracy.

Gaetz traveling to Wyoming to take aim at Cheney amid uproar over her Trump impeachment vote

Posted on by Paul Steinhauser
One of former President Trump’s top supporters in the House of Representatives is targeting one of Trump’s biggest House GOP critics. Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida is heading to House Republican Conference Chair Liz Cheney’s home state of Wyoming on Thursday, where he’ll hold an event outside the state capitol in Cheyenne.

Rand Paul Slams Impeachment ‘Farce’ That ‘Should Be Dismissed’

Posted on by John Hanson

On Sunday, Senator Rand Paul said in an op-ed that the impeachment process against former President Donald Trump was a “farce” and called for it to be dismissed.  

Paul wrote in his op-ed “Boycott Sham Impeachment” for The Hill, “The Constitution says two things about impeachment — it is a tool to remove the office holder, and it must be presided over by the chief justice of the Supreme Court.”

RELATED: Meghan McCain Unleashes On Biden, Fauci, And Amazon Over Hypocrisy – ‘I Was Lied To’

Sen. Paul: Trump Not To Blame For Capitol Violence

“If Justice Roberts is not presiding over this, then it is not impeachment,” Paul wrote. “This charade will be nothing more than bitter partisanship and political theater.”

According to Politico, sources in both parties “close to the impeachment trial negotiations,” claimed that Chief Justice Roberts didn’t want a role in the trial and a spokesperson for Supreme Court judge declined to comment to Politico on the matter.

Paul also said a politician merely telling a crowd to “fight to take back your country” doesn’t mean he or she provoked violence, as many have accused Trump of doing in his speech preceding the Capitol Hill attack.

“If we are to blame politicians for the most violent acts of their craziest supporters, then many of my colleagues would face some pretty harsh charges themselves,” Paul said.

Paul Revisits Bernie Supporter Shooting Republican Congressmen

The senator continued, “I’ve been shot at, assaulted and harassed by supporters of the left, including some who directly said the words of politicians moved them to this violence.”

Sen. Paul then brought up the 2017 incident in which a reported Bernie Sanders supporter shot at him and other Republicans on a baseball field while practicing for the annual congressional baseball game.

Paul wrote, “I was there at the ball field when a deranged Bernie Sanders supporter almost killed Steve Scalise and seriously wounded several others.”

“At the time, Democrats were arguing that the GOP plan for health care was ‘you get sick, then they let you die’ Paul said.

“Is it any wonder an insane left-wing gunman took that rhetoric to heart and concluded: ‘If the GOP is going to let me die then maybe I’ll just kill them first?”

RELATED: Joy Behar Comes Unglued – Says Trump ‘Made It His Business For Four Years To Rape This Country’

‘This So-Called Impeachment Is A Farce’

Libertarian-leaning Republican Paul then ended his op-ed by denouncing the Trump impeachment as a “farce” that should be stopped.

Paul wrote, “I am more than willing to work with Democrats to find common ground on protecting civil liberties or ending some of our many foreign military interventions, but no unity or common ground will be found while Democrats continue to fight the last election.”

“This so-called impeachment is a farce and should be dismissed before it is even allowed to begin,” Paul ended.

The impeachment trial is scheduled to begin the week of February 8. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said earlier in January that he hasn’t made a decision yet on whether to vote to convict Trump.

The post Rand Paul Slams Impeachment ‘Farce’ That ‘Should Be Dismissed’ appeared first on The Political Insider.

Portman’s exit signals uncertainty for Senate GOP

Posted on (Updated by By Burgess Everett

Ohio Republican Rob Portman will not seek a third Senate term in 2022, a blow to both Republicans’ hopes of taking back the Senate and the chamber’s dwindling number of centrists.

The two-term senator is one of the most effective legislators in the Senate, using his relationships gleaned from a long career in Washington to find compromise. But he cited legislative paralysis in the Senate as a major factor in his decision to retire at the end of next year.

"It has gotten harder and harder to break through the partisan gridlock and make progress on substantive policy, and that has contributed to my decision," he said in a statement.

Portman joins Sens. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.) in retirement next year in key swing states. Democrats currently hold a narrow majority in an evenly split Senate due to Vice President Kamala Harris’s tie-breaking vote.

Portman easily won reelection in 2016 alongside former President Donald Trump, but could not be a more different politician. A low-key GOP operator, Portman was never fully comfortable defending Trump’s bombastic political attacks. Portman said in an interview in November he was planning on running in 2022. But the GOP is now undergoing a major reckoning after Trump's attacks on the election inspired an attack on the Capitol by his supporters.

Particularly now that he is unbound from having to run in a GOP primary, Portman is a key vote to watch in the coming weeks as the Senate prepares for Trump’s second impeachment trial. Portman voted to acquit Trump last year but criticized his behavior pressuring Ukraine to investigate political rivals as “not appropriate.”

The mild-mannered GOP senator is a key part of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's caucus. He attends McConnell's leadership meetings and is one of the party's best fundraisers. He's also a social moderate and was one of the first Republicans to endorse gay marriage.

"Both the Republican conference and the institution as a whole will be worse off when Rob departs," McConnell said in a statement.

His decision to retire will also focus Republican retention efforts on ensuring GOP Sens. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Roy Blunt of Missouri run for reelection. Johnson and Grassley, 87, are undecided and Blunt said he's doing all the things he needs to do to run.

Portman said he announced his decision to allow state Republicans time to prepare campaigns to succeed him in what will be a brutal Senate race. And an open GOP primary to succeed him will be key to the Republican Party’s directions after Trump’s defeat. Trump is popular in Ohio, but it is still a swing state in Senate races. Progressive Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) won reelection in 2018 fairly easily.

The Republican primary could quickly become crowded and nasty, especially as the party works to rebuild itself and figure out the path forward in the wake of Trump's defeat. A number of Republicans could be in the mix. Rep. Jim Jordan, a close Trump ally, has previously been eyed as a potential statewide candidate.

Several Republicans also pointed to former Ohio treasurer Josh Mandel as a potential candidate. Mandel lost to Brown in 2012, and dropped out of the 2018 race against him because of family health issues, but still has $4.3 million left over in his campaign account. J.D. Vance, the author of the book Hillbilly Elegy, considered running for Senate in 2018 and is a potential contender next year. Rep. Steve Stivers, who ran his party's House campaign committee in 2018, is considering a run, according to a source familiar with his plans.

Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, a Republican, in a statement thanked Portman and said he would talk with his family, the outgoing senator and Gov. Mike DeWine "before discussing the future." Several Republicans also mentioned former Rep. Pat Tiberi (R-Ohio) as a contender given his fundraising prowess and campaign war chest.

Other statewide officials could be in the mix, including Secretary of State Frank LaRose. Jon Keeling, a spokesperson for LaRose, in a statement touted the success of the 2020 election in Ohio and noted that the filing deadline is a year away, saying LaRose's "focus right now is on finding ways to improve upon Ohio’s success so we can continue to thrive as a national model long into the future."

On the Democratic side, there are several potential candidates, including Rep. Tim Ryan, who has long considered statewide bids but declined in the past to run, and Nan Whaley, the mayor of Dayton. David Pepper, the former state party chair, is also a potential contender. The race against DeWine had been the focus of Democrats in Ohio for 2022, but the Senate seat being open could cause some reconsideration.

Ryan got out the gate quickly with a fundraising email about Portman's decision, calling Ohio the "center of the political map in 2022" and soliciting feedback on the news. Nina Turner, an ally of progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), said she will stick to her plans to run for a vacant House seat.

Despite announcing his retirement, Portman will be plenty busy his last two years, as the top Republican on the Senate Homeland Security Committee as well as a member in a bipartisan coalition working on the next coronavirus relief bill.

“Over the next two years, I look forward to being able to focus all my energy on legislation and the challenges our country faces rather than on fundraising and campaigning,” Portman said. He predicted he would have won reelection but said he decided against spending another six years in the Senate — and Washington.

And Portman has now served at nearly every level of government. He served in the House, as former President George W. Bush’s budget director and trade representative and two terms in the Senate. He was also discussed as a potential presidential candidate in the past.

Brown, who has served with Portman in the chamber for the past decade, thanked him for his public service in a statement.

“Rob and I have worked together on issues that matter to Ohioans, from protecting the health of Lake Erie, to better enforcing our trade laws, to helping Ohioans who are struggling with addiction," Brown said. "We’ve not always agreed with one another, but we’ve always been able to put our differences aside to do what’s best for our state."

Posted in Uncategorized

Maxine Waters Claims Trump Will ‘Take Over Legislatures, Little Towns And Cities’ If Not Convicted

Posted on by John Hanson

Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters claimed Sunday that former President Donald Trump would attempt “to take over legislatures, little towns and cities” if he is not convicted for insurrection.

Waters made her comments on MSNBC’s “The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart.”

RELATED: Biden Accuser Tara Reade Reemerges To Say It Was ‘Unspeakably Hard To Watch The Man Who Assaulted Me’ Be Inaugurated

Waters Claims Trump ‘Paid’ The ‘Organizers Of The Insurrection’

Waters said, “I do believe he sent all of these domestic terrorists to the Capitol to take over the Capitol, and that includes not only the Proud Boys but the Oath Keepers, the QAnon, and white supremacists.”

“These people have been aligned with him” Waters insisted.

Waters then accused Trump of paying the “organizers of the insurrection.”

“One of the things I hope that will be looked at as we take this impeachment to the Senate is the fact that in his campaign for re-election, he was paying the very organizers of the insurrection that took place,” said Waters.

After the violence at the Capitol in early January, Waters also claimed that President Trump was “capable” of “starting a civil war.”

Waters Demands Trump Conviction

“The names are right there” she continued. “The amount of money that he paid to them, it is shown in the last report,” the Democrat said. “More of it is going to show up in the next report that they have to do.”

“I think it is very clear” Waters said. “We cannot afford to allow this president to leave here without being impeached and, you know, absolutely convicted.”

She further explained why she believes the Senate must impeach Trump, claiming that Trump would use taxpayer money to organize his supporters.

Waters continued, “We cannot allow him to leave and have all of the resources of the taxpayers to have not only money to hire staff, but to hire security, and money to organize with, because he will continue.”

RELATED: Joy Behar Comes Unglued – Says Trump ‘Made It His Business For Four Years To Rape This Country’

Then Waters made her wild claim about Trump somehow being so influential over parts of the U.S. population that he will be able to control small towns and local governments.

“He now knows, he has a population” Waters said adding that “he’s going to expand that.”

“He will be attempting to take over legislatures, little towns and cities and he doesn’t give a darn about the Constitution and so our democracy is at stake,” Waters claimed.

“We must convict him, and we must take away his power” she finished.

If President Trump were convicted by the Senate and barred from holding political office, it would do nothing to stop him from organizing or politicking as a private citizen.

The post Maxine Waters Claims Trump Will ‘Take Over Legislatures, Little Towns And Cities’ If Not Convicted appeared first on The Political Insider.