Last Friday, in the wake of Joe Biden's miserable debate performance, Axios ran this blind quote:
Annie, Ashley and Anthony create a protective bubble around POTUS. He's staffed so closely that he's lost all independence. POTUS relies on staff to nudge him with reminders of who he's meeting, including former staffers and advisers who Biden should easily remember without a reminder from Annie.
Goodness. Who are these people?
Anthony is Anthony Bernal, a longtime aide to Jill Biden. The New York Post says he is Joe Biden's "Rasputin," complete with this picture to make sure you get the point:
Ashley is Ashley Williams, a Biden staffer so obscure she doesn't have a Wikipedia page. Even I have a Wikipedia page.
And Annie is Annie Tomasini, another longtime member of Biden world who was recently promoted to become one of his deputy chiefs of staff.
This seems like an unlikely trio to be running the White House, but not so unlikely that they've escaped the notice of James Comer, the room temperature IQ congressman who spent years trying to impeach Biden. He has subpoenaed all three in yet another effort to weaponize the House Oversight Committee:
Our research indicates that these are the three people that have been pulling the strings for quite some time in the White House. These are the three people that have been trying to cover up the fact that Joe Biden hasn’t been mentally or physically able to perform the job of president.... These three people, their names keep popping up as the gatekeepers, in addition to Hunter Biden.
"Our research" is apparently Comer's name for "an anonymous quote in Axios."
These guys just can't quit. Ever since Newt Gingrich radicalized Congress, Republicans have used oversight committees as brass knuckles to bludgeon Democratic presidents. They did it to Bill Clinton. They did it to Obama. They did it to Hillary Clinton. And they're doing it to Biden.
And why not? Going after Clinton probably gave us George Bush. Going after Hillary probably got us Donald Trump. Going after Biden has a good prospect of giving us Trump yet again. Gingrich may have been a vicious SOB, but that doesn't mean his politics of personal destruction don't work.
"Going after Biden has a good prospect of giving us Trump yet again."
Yes! Trump leading by a few points has essentially nothing to do with Biden! We know this, but polls show 80% of the country can't figure this out.
Imagine reading a quote that starts with "Going after BIDEN..." and concluding that the person you're quoting things that Trump's lead over Biden has nothing to do with Biden. That's weapon's grade missing-the-point.
Comer would call the phone number on the toilet stall door if it said it was from Q, with information about the Biden cabal.
In the late 20th Century Gingrich advocated Total War between the parties. No bipartisanship, no compromises, no apologies, list of disparaging words to use when talking about Democrats, disregard decades old norms. Do whatever it takes to acquire power.
And the Democrats didn't do squat in return.
They had faith in the American people, which may possibly have been misplaced.
"may possibly"
You win understatement of the year.
"In the late 20th Century Gingrich advocated Total War between the parties. No bipartisanship, no compromises, no apologies, . . ."
And no governance. Who was the last Republican president to leave the country better than he found it? The last Republican Congress? They come in, screw up the country, and when the Dems replace them complain because they aren't cleaning up the mess fast enough.
My memories of the Gingrich era, from the beginning, make these accusations of "lawfare" against DAs and juries, doing their jobs prosecuting a criminal, particularly rich.
The oversight committee, when the House is GOP-controlled, should be seen as an arm of the Trump campaign. It's not about ethics but about winning and it doesn't matter if there's no there there; what does matter is the optics.
So WTF do the Dems worsen those optics; why is Biden so closely staffed it creates suspicions; why does Jill appear more powerhungry than caring; and most of all what is Hunter doing in the Oval Office, squandering a potent argument against Trump: that felons shouldn't be there.
You must be from one of the Murdoch shitsheets to ask such an idiotic question. I imagine the last US president who tried to run the executive branch without being "closely staffed" was ... well actually I don't think there were any.
It was a reference to Kevin's quote from Axios: "He's staffed so closely that he's lost all independence." As for Murdoch shitsheets, it's about optics for them. And this is one.
That's like every fringing president in the last 100 years or more!
Did you pause and think for just a minute before typing?
Global warming has rendered this insult less effective, especially in post-hurricane Houston. How about '"the Trump golf card IQ congressman"?
Just change to Celsius.
That's funny. But *room* temperature hasn't changed because of global wariming. If anything, it's gotten *lower* because we crank up the AC!
"And why not? ... (fill in the blank) may have been a vicious SOB, but that doesn't mean his politics of personal destruction don't work."
And why not abuse Fentanyl? It may have a vicious long-term effect, but that doesn't mean a practice of personal destruction don't work in the short term.
Except self-destruction only harms and potentially destroys yourself, your family, and your community, whereas the politics of personal destruction harms and potentially destroys civilization. So, there's that.
Comer has a room temperature IQ? Don't flatter him!
Lower income whites don't vote for Trump - and Republicans in general - because of the campaigns of character assassination against particular Democratic politicians (or for economic reason either). They do it because Trump and Republicans are the champions of White Christian Supremacy. The things that Trump and Comer throw out are basically excuses for this tribal allegiance. Most people still will not admit to being racist.
It should be obvious what has been going on for over 50 years, but apparently a lot of reporters and pundits believe what Republicans say about their motivations.
re ashley williams
right wing sites love getting down into the third/fourth tier players where there's very little public information on them
they become empty vessels to be filled with all manner of wingnuttia accusations and no one will defend them or correct the record because they're such minor players
that's also the root of all the 'deep state' shit; you can ascribe anything at all to nameless 'others'
but if you want it to sound just a little more plausible, you give them the name of a minor player
because that name actually exists in google, the claimant seems to be 'in the know' with access to damaging non-public information
room termperature IQ? more like walk-in refrigerator IQ.