This first one is blunt and all-too accurate.
The second one is cynical and will reinforce my disappointment in humanity.
The third one is horrible and supports the disappointment I have…and also needs some explanation.
That’s by Michael Ramirez, far-right flaming nutjob and actually talented cartoonist, who is cheering the Supreme Court in the Chevron v. NRDC case, in a decision called Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo. He thinks it was a good thing, because he’s insane. Loper Bright chopped off the whole idea of an informed government that listened to the evidence and paid attention to experts.
The Supreme Court fundamentally altered the way that our federal government functions on Friday, transferring an almost unimaginable amount of power from the executive branch to the federal judiciary. By a 6–3 vote, the conservative supermajority overruled Chevron v. NRDC, wiping out four decades of precedent that required unelected judges to defer to the expert judgment of federal agencies. The ruling is extraordinary in every way—a massive aggrandizement of judicial power based solely on the majority’s own irritation with existing limits on its authority. After Friday, virtually every decision an agency makes will be subject to a free-floating veto by federal judges with zero expertise or accountability to the people. All at once, SCOTUS has undermined Congress’ ability to enact effective legislation capable of addressing evolving problems and sabotaged the executive branch’s ability to apply those laws to the facts on the ground. It is one of the most far-reaching and disruptive rulings in the history of the court.
This corrupt court is just that bad. I always thought that the Roger Taney court was the gold standard for a bad court that led the USA into self-destruction, thanks to the Dred Scott decision, but the Roberts court is giving ol’ Roger a run for the money…although at least John Roberts hasn’t denied the humanity of a large chunk of the citizenry, yet. You know he’d love to.
As if to illustrate the point that government should pay heed to scientific input, the Court also ruled against the EPA last week, and their opinion made multiple errors of scientific fact.
Justice Gorsuch’s opinion refers five times to “nitrous oxide” (aka laughing gas) rather than the entirely different chemical compound — smog-causing “nitrogen oxides” — actually at issue in the case.
But OK, the Supreme Court will never again be troubled by basic chemistry. Some people think this is a good thing, and they’re the same people who think it’s great that Donald Trump is above the law (who is already trying to use the Supreme Court decision to overturn his 34-count conviction in New York).
While that is a bad idea, it could be worse.
Not all Federal judges are right wingnuts like John Roberts, Alito, Gorsuch, etc..
It is at least theoretically possible that some of those Federal judges actually are capable of considering facts and evidence and making something resembling an informed decision.
I can see a congress in the future passing a law limiting the courts’s ability to review the results of congressional legislation.
Tell that to Aileen Cannon. Or Clarence Thomas. Or Samuel Alito.
Do you not read the opinion of the court? It really easy to find. If you disagree, than you disagree with the governed rule of law set fourth by the constitution. Which if you do is fine, but it makes every political comment you have made for the past little while hard to grasp. Do you believe in the constitution or not? If you do, please read the court opinions
Oh look. It’s a fucking fascist.
#1 Remove the filibuster custom of needing 60+ votes in congress (it requires the Democrats to respond to an existential threat with flexibility so …uncertain).
#2 Make use of any moment Republicans are absent in the House to play hell using the temporary majority. They are enemies, not colleagues. Keep them off balance.
#3 If Dems regain a majority in the House before the election due to deaths or prolonged disease- make sure your alleged president is ready to name 3 more judges for SCOTUS and have the appointments rushed through.
If Biden refuses to do it because it would be rude, it is time for the old man to step down.
Paying attention to experts is something the tory government openly ridiculed as being bad.
Or as Göbbels said “we will liberate the people from the tyranny of the intellect”.
It will take time to get rid of the American infestation of fascists but the British one ends in two days from now.
@birgerjohansson #6:
The British infestation of fascists will not end on Thursday. The losing Tory party will lurch rightwards in response to tis catastrophic loss, just as it did after 1997. It will elect someone like Kemi Badenoch as leader and face five years of factional infighting. They’ll likely end up splitting into two parties after Badenoch fails to get anywhere in the next general election, with one group getting into bed with Reform either as a merger or as the target of a takeover soon afterwards; that process will determine who gets to keep the name Conservative.
We will hopefully get an old-style wet one-nation Tory party out of the other half, one which will be a home for what I would call normal right-wingers, but inevitably I think there’ll still be a further-right Farageist populist party that isn’t ready to implode like the BNP did. After all, UKIP didn’t implode once Brexit turned out to be a disastrous implemetation of a flawed idea: it just changed its name to Reform UK and tried again, still blaming everything on immigrants and Tory politicians tasked with doing the impossible or the (to them) unpalateable.
Fascism is self limiting because it doesn’t work.
It can take a lot of time to get rid of it though.
The last major outbreak was in the mid-20th century with the Nazis and the Italian fascists of Mussolini.
By the time they were finished, Europe was in ruins and 50 million people were dead.
I hope this isn’t what we have to look forward to but who knows? The future doesn’t look all that great right now.
Vince Flynn, a Minnesotan author who passed away several years ago, has a book, “Term Limits.”
synopsis:
In one bloody night, three of Washington’s most powerful politicians are executed with surgical precision. Their assassins then deliver a shocking ultimatum to the American government: set aside partisan politics and restore power to the people. No one, they warn, is out of their reach—not even the president.
fun fact, Vince was consulted for the Kiefer Sutherland show “24”
I’m still confused vis-a-vis federal cases vs. state cases. Does the immunity decision really mean fuck all to the New York STATE case? Ditto for the Georgia election interference STATE case. I can see how it applies to the Jan 6 and stolen docs cases, but aren’t the Rs the ones always screaming about STATES rights over federal jurisdiction?
Don’t get me started on how whipping up insurrectionists or stealing classified documents can possibly be considered “official duties”.
Rich Woods @ 7
Getting rid of Farage will require garlic, a crucifix, a stake and a mallet.
A fun tidbit – if a modest segment of Lib Dems vote tactically in ‘marginal’ tory districts they can bring down so many conservative MPs that the Lib Dems literally become the second largest party.
A Lib Dem formally ‘leader of the opposition’ !
I do not expect it to happen but the hatred of tory rule has made it a possibility in just the last five years (or subjectively a goddamn century).
Per the SMBC comic, I find the “nature does what nature does” (sub?) narrative weirdly comforting. Of course, keep up the good fight — but if we realize there’s no free will (and come on, we’re scientists here), best we can do is hold on as gravity wells fling us where they fling us. What’s the difference if you replace the word “justice” with “injustice”?
@10 drksky
SCOTUS was vewy, vewy sneaky. They ruled that evidence under the umbrella of immunity is not admissible. T****’s phone call to Georgia (I just want eleven thousand votes …) could be considered an “official act” and not be allowed in court. Of course, it is the smoking gun in that case, a clear abuse of executive authority. SCOTUS has really insulated the Prez from any prosecution.
But, only the Prez is immune. The Minions will go to jail in droves.
@3. ducksmcclucken :
Did you? What was your favourite bit then? Mine was Sotomayor’s scathing & spot on dissent.
What garbled bulldust is that? Governed rule of law? As opposed to the ungoverned which, oh yeah, immunity kinda gives the POTUS?
If rule of law means anything, everybody surely must be beneath it not one rule for some, one rule for others.
Why is presidential immunity needed now when every POTUS before him was fine without it? Some of those Presidents also being pretty damn awful dropkicks and horrid excuses for humans too. (Slave-owners, Indigenous genocidaires, Iraq war disaster criminals, Nixon, John Tylor, Van Buren, Warren Harding, etc .. see https://www.stonekettle.com/2010/02/things-that-chap-my-ass-about.html?m=1 ) But none of those as bad as Trump whio willgo down as all time worst. Maybe also last.
Which if you do is fine, but it makes every political comment you have made for the past little while hard to grasp. Do you believe in the constitution or not?
Do you? SCOTUS seems NOT to given its BS rulings, well, no actually no legitimate SCOTUS does but then Trump’s traitors and liars fraud of a SCOTUS is SCOTUS in name only currently. Hopefully soon to be ended.
Why? Because the Court opinions define what is law and Constitutional? No.
Hint : We the People and Consent of the governed.
^ Blockquote fail sorry but guess yáll know where it is. Could swear I’d fixed that but no.
Oh & ducksmcclucken see also again :
https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2024/07/01/are-you-ready-for-the-4th-of-july/comment-page-1/#comment-2226375
PPS. We the People. The people changed. The USA is not now whothey were when the US of A split form England’s Mad king George da Turd. That’s a good thing. They got better. They changed. Time the United States of America’s Constitution did too. The eponymous Napoleonic / War of Independence / War of 1815 sailing frigate is preserved as amuseum but we don’t fight with cannons now, we use aircraft carriers and submarines instead and its time your docum,ents and politico-legal systems equally evolved and got into the 21st century. Ideally, even ahead of that and into the 22nd or 23rd if we aim for a Star Trek type of future rather than the Mad Max one we seem to be racing towards right now..
ducksmcclucken: none of the Retrumplitarian Supreme Court’s recent “landmark” rulings have any foundation in any part of the Constitution. Nor do they have any foundation in physical reality. How do we know this? Because we HAVE read the Constitution, and those of us who haven’t (yet) read the rulings are listening to lots of people who have. So kindly stop pretending you’re the only one who “believes in the constitution,” and shove all that “originalist” horseypoop back where it came from.
As I said in the other thread, the ruling in question is such a bad ruling because it consigns significant constitutional checks on executive power to the dead letter office, besides being constitutionally baseless (‘made up out of nowhere’ is a recurring phrase in the air). Not that the ignorant fool at comment number 3 is bright enough to be aware just how obviously fallacious their argument is.
Re. @ 19 and @ 3
Fascists will fasch.
Here is a classic reggae song about dealing with them.
.https://youtube.com/watch?v=ZYG5J4s0D_s