Sham Elections and Shameless Lies
Sham Elections and Shameless Lies
Plus, PA swing voters aren't rushing back to the GOP.
Recently at The Bulwark:
CHARLIE SYKES: The Humiliation of Kevin McCarthy.
JVL: The Culture War > Kitchen-Table Policies đ
SONNY BUNCH: âThe Northmanâ Review and Netflix: The Least-Essential Streaming Service.
THE SECRET POD: Kevin McCarthy Is Everywhere, All at Once.
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WILL SALETAN: Sham Elections and Shameless Lies.
Every day, we learn more about politicians who conspired to overturn the 2020 U.S. presidential election. Meanwhile, in Ukraine, Russia is planning phony referenda to fabricate a mandate for its occupation. Both stories are dismaying, but the contrast between them raises a useful question: Do people who claim that American elections are riggedâthat the presidency was stolen from Donald Trump, or that voting laws must be tightened because Democrats cheatâalso protest when elections overseas really are rigged? Or do they look the other way?
The answer, in many cases, is that when Vladimir Putin and his allies engineer fake plebiscites, Trumpists who claim to stand for âelection integrityââincluding Trump himselfâsay nothing, do nothing, or defend the bogus referenda. Theyâre fine with fraudulent elections. They just donât like American elections.
MIKE DUNFORD: This Isnât the Right Way to Get Marjorie Taylor Greene Out of Congress.
[I]f I were the judge in this case, Iâd be very skeptical of the theory. A state administrative law tribunal is an ill-equipped and inappropriate venue for determining whether someone engaged in insurrection against the United Statesâjust as it was, ten years ago, for determining whether someone was born in the United States or Kenya. Being asked to disqualify someone who is 20 years old from appearing on the presidential ballot is one thing. Age is relatively simple to determine, birth certificates and other evidence are widely available, and there is an objective standard to apply. Determining whether someone has committed a serious federal crime is not so simple. Thatâs one of the reasons we place those decisions in the hands of a jury, rather than any one person.
Greene has not been charged, indicted, or convicted of insurrection. Nor has the House of Representatives, which has the sole power under the Constitution to decide the qualifications of its own members, decided that Greene is disqualified because she is an insurrectionist. In the face of this, asking a single judge to decide that Greene is disqualified, and to then refer that decision to a partisan elected official to remove her name from the ballot, flies in the face of due process norms.
It is understandable that many do not want Greene to continue to soil the halls of Congress. But this hearing is not the way to fix that problem.
McCarthy thought he was rid of Trump after Jan 6, but he didnât have the backbone to stand up to him. And Mitch is just as guilty. Plus: JD Vanceâs post-constitutionalism, and calling DeSantisâ Disney vengeance campaign for what it is: âSocialism.â Tim Miller joins Charlie Sykes on the weekend podcast.
Arc Digitalâs Nicholas Grossman joins the group to consider the mask mandate, the corruption of presidential relatives, and James Carvilleâs advice about âweird Republicans.â
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DANIEL LELCHUCK: A Defense of Art for Artâs Sake.
In this slim but powerful volume, critic Jed Perl, a longtime writer for the New Republic before that magazineâs implosion, provides a moving and passionate defense of the arts in and for themselves. He notes that the question of the intrinsic value of art is one he never expected to need to address. For him, it is a given. For others, it has become a questionable hypothesis.
The bookâs six thematically connected chapters can stand alone as individual essays, and they blend Perlâs deep cultural expertise with autobiographical stories that illustrate the power of art to fundamentally change a personâs life. As a professional cellist, I approached the book with great interest, but also some anxiety: Wondering about the future of Beethoven and Schoenberg in a TikTok- and Twitter-dominated world keeps me awake at night. Perlâs book offers reassurance that great art has a justification and a future regardless of the apps people use to access itâand regardless of social mediaâs ability to shorten and damage our attention spans. The two words of the bookâs title are poles that Perlâs arguments move between. A core question that comes up repeatedlyââwhatâs the point?ââspeaks to the first pole, of authority. Whatâs the point of a Vermeer painting or a Mozart piano concerto if it doesnât concretely improve society? The assumption underwriting this kind of question is that the work of art does not exist on its own authority, and so needs to borrow it from elsewhere.
RICH THAU and MATT STEFFEE: Pennsylvania Swing Voters Arenât Rushing Back to Republicans.
The conventional wisdom is that 2022 is shaping up to be a wave election for Republicans. But only one of our respondents personified this view.
David, 40, from Phoenixville, explained, âBiden has done a horrible job. Crime is up everywhere. . . . Itâs all the Democrat-run cities. Inflation is at a 40-year high. I donât see any solutions coming out. I think maybe we need to have Republicans controlling the House and the Senate to provide good checks and balances for Biden.â
The other 12 didnât view the midterms as a referendum on Democrats. Instead, they were focused on the qualities of the individual candidates, rather than punishing or embracing one party over the other.
Bridget, 60, from Trevose, remarked, âNot as a protest would I just pull straight Republican [while voting] . . . Iâd have to know that I wanted that person, not because they were [of] that party.â
đ¨OVERTIME đ¨
Walter Olson begs to differ⌠on my item yesterday about the MDGov race, read his thoughts.
When the far right shows you who they are⌠Believe them.
News from back home⌠An Ohio judge bizarrely employs an armed constable. Hereâs why.
America Talks! Sign up for the national week of conversation and help discuss Americaâs problems and your solutions. Best of all? Meet some new people with different backgrounds. Hereâs some highlights from last yearâs.
From the party that was against picking âwinners and losersâ and âcancel cultureâ comes⌠The new Florida law going after Disney.
Putin is not looking good. This is probably not a good thing.
J.D. Vanceâs allies come for Josh Mandel⌠And it is brutal (because itâs true.)
Build the w⌠Oh wait, weâre probably going to prison for being grifters?
If you want⌠You can buy RBGâs stuff. For charity.
Tennesseeâs homeless criminalization bill⌠Is nasty stuff. Rep. Antonio Parkinson responds.
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