How Low Can We Go?
John Conyers has resigned. That was good. Not for the Democratic party but for the nation. Representative Conyers isn't the only one, however. Our government is rife with people for whom the evidence is overwhelming that they have either been sexual harassers or sexual predators. That includes President Trump, Senator Franken, and Representative Blake Farenhold. Being honest, perversion and disgusting behavior doesn't have a preference for political party. There have been enough democratic and republican pigs to fill two complete sties, and possibly two complete prisons. I am therefore starting this blog with the unequivocal statement that if there are credible allegations and credible proof, the person who is being charged should at least be suspended from their position until an investigation into the allegations is performed on a non-partisan basis.
That said, there has been a qualitative difference between the reactions by republlcans to allegations against them and the reactions by the democrats who have had allegations made against them. In the case of Al Franken, there was an immediate admission and apology offered. This is not to pardon his behavior, but it at least demonstrates some recognition of his guilt and an attempt to assuage his guilt. It does not make him any less guilty, but it does make a difference. In the case of John Conyers, it led to the immediate condemnation by his own party and enough pressure to force his resignation. Might it have been too little too late? Possibly. But action was taken and his stain has been removed from the House of Representatives. A democratic member from Nevada is now under the same pressure to resign from his democratic colleagues.
Compare this to the republican response to allegations, often more serious and numerous than those brought against the democrats. The response has always been to deny and deflect. Smear the accuser and swear in the face of either their own words or damning evidence that they are innocent and their accusers are liars or whores or democratic plants. Blake Farenhold just denies his transgressions. President Trump, even in the shadow of an Entertainment Tonight video {which he first apologized for and now is arguing it's authenticity}, fifteen accusers that had extremely credible allegations which demonstrated a pattern of assaultive behavior, and an on-going lawsuit against him, continues to deny everything and attack the women who have accused him as unworthy of his advances.
And then we come to the lowest of the low. Judge Roy Moore, a man who was removed from his position on the Alabama courts for defying federal court orders, indicated that he believed that Muslims had no right to serve in Congress, and that this was a Christian nation with rights that only extended to his co-religionists, is running for a Senate seat from the state of Alabama. During the campaign, nine women came forth separately claiming that Moore, when he was a 30 something year old district attorney in Alabama had been involved with them, either in a forced or unforced manner while each of them were still in their teens. This was punctuated by a credible allegation of sexual assault of a woman who was fourteen at the time. That action alone would classify Judge Moore as a pedophile. These women's accounts were bolstered by written documentation that included Moore's signature, corroborating testimony of others who were knowledgeable of the events at the times they occurred, and even the explanation that Moore had been expelled from a local mall at that time because of his lascivious behavior toward women.
At first, I thought the republican party had grown a backbone. The RNC pulled funding and personnel out of Alabama. Members of Congress distanced themselves from Moore and there was a republican push for expulsion should Moore win the election. It appeared that it was a bridge too far that Moore had crossed.
But that all changed in the last week. The new mantra of the republican party is that they would rather encourage their people to vote for a pedophile rather than a democrat. It made no difference how morally repugnant the senator would be, if he voted for tax breaks for corporations and the rich, he would be welcomed with open arms. First, President Trump, then many Senators and Congressmen, and finally the Senate Majority Leader threw at least tacit support behind Judge Moore. The RNC then followed suit and put money and personnel back into Alabama to work for the upcoming chief pedophile of the senate.
There was a time that the Republican Party prided itself on being the party of family values and morality. They argued that the democrats didn't care about families or the moral state of their elected officials. But that has flipped 180 degrees. It is now the democrats who are forcing those who violate accepted moral codes to either step down or be publicly humiliated and isolated. It is the republican party that keeps finding a deeper and deeper cellar. They have left family values in their rear view windows for the sake of the almighty dollar. They are telling Americans loud and clear.....Give us your vote and you can run for office no matter how repulsive you are. Let's face it, only in 2016 America could a pedophile be favored to win an election against a person with an impeccable public record who prosecuted and won the biggest case against the KuKluxKlan in Alabama history.
Sadly, Jones' prosecution of the KKK probably works against him in Bammy.
'tis a sad commentary in this day and age.
One big difference between the two sides. The democrats are admitting cause there is credible evidence or admissions of guilt, and they are ignoring credible evidence of the same types with which they lay their accusations against the republicans.
The Republicans are asking for credible evidence and for the evidence that contradicts the alleged evidence be given equal weight. Plainly that is unacceptable to those whose blinders are so big they can't see past their own tunnel visioned bias.
Conyers leaving is good, so he resigned, he was on the radio with a statement today that he wasn't seeking re-election and was retiring. So, his resignation is pointless, he wasn't coming back anyway.... Nice dog and pony show for the media. Political grandstanding at it's finest.
Even more Pseudo-intellectual rubbish......
Tripling down generally tend to work against your point and only serves to highlight your own biases..... (that's why no true intelligent liberal attempts it)
NM, there is virtual proof that Moore has lied about knowing these women, and the woman with the high school yearbook in particular (she is the one who accused Moore of sexually molesting her as a 16 year old) .
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These two handwriting samples, produced by two separate women, indicate clearly that Moore knew them BOTH. The handwriting is the same.
He has clearly LIED about knowing a woman who says he molested her when she was 16. It is no longer tenable to claim the allegations are unfounded.
Nm...are you Kidding? The evidence against both Trump and Moore is strong enough to hold up in a criminal proceeding if the statute of limitations hadn'the run out. Your party has proven to have the moral fiber of a snake in the grass.
And I submit, you know nothing about legal procedures, much less criminal procedures.
The allegation is enough to charge yes, (forget the Statute of Limitations for now) is it enough to convict, hardly.
They need a LOT more, not just some statements in support. Those are legally hearsay and are inadmissable. (would poison the jury if admitted and allowed)
The contradicting statements? would be completely admissible, like the mall manager unequivocally stating that Moore was never booted from the mall at any time? Call's the witness's (the mall security guard that claimed he was) character into question. (and hence his credibility)
There is a ton of rumor and innuendo, that some have sworn to. None of it is admissible in a court of law....
Strong enough to hold up in a criminal proceeding? that's funny to any real trial attorney.
As far as moral fiber?
Your a liberal, so I assume you haven't the experience with such to call into question anyone else's...
Never underestimate how low the Dems can go. Meet the guy Conyers has endorsed to take his place. His son 27yo John Conyers III.
“My dad is a f***ing player and reckless as hell! He just got at this doods wife super low-key,” the congressman’s son tweeted.
Knowing how dumb the people are that live in Conyers district his son will probably win.
....... and the people in Alabama? .......electing a pedophile?.......aren't you engaging in a little bit of the pot calling the kettle black?
I have no doubt that Moore would do a better job of representing my views in congress than Conyers III would.
You don't like to answer questions. Moore is a pedophile. Do you honestly think that he represents anyone in congress other than other pedophiles? The man should be in prison. It has nothing to do with his politics, it has to do with assaulting a 14 year old. I don't know if you have any daughters. I do. If it were my kid, the man would be running for offices sans cajones.
Please name the indicted and convicted "pedophile" from Alabama.
It's enough crap from the right. The only reason Moore isn't in prison now is that the statute of limitations has run out. Anyone with an IQ above 25 understands that. Just admit that a person's criminal actions don't count as long as they vote as a trumpbot.
Funny that the rightists demand Conyers and Franken resign but dont demand the same of Trump and Moore. Quite the opposite actually, the GOP has suddenly decided to send a few hundred million to support Moore. That's pretty damn hypocritical.
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Saw a poll this morning...73% of democrats think a democrat accused of sexual misconduct should resign. Republicans? Just 53%. So much for the party of Christians and "high moral standards". Sickening.
All you have to do is read the level of personal vitriol and defensiveness we see from the far right when they respond to allegations against people on their side of the aisle. All allegations against democrats are "substantiated" because most of them were admitted to. The allegations against republicans are lies because the person{s} accused say they didn't do it. I don't remember them having the same response when Bill Clinton and Gary Hart lied about their extramarital hijinx. It seems that the only evidence that is relevant to them are those pieces that help prove their side of the argument. Countermanding evidence is immediately discredited and either lies, plants, or contradicting that which those on the right "know" is true. Fifteen accusers in the case of Trump and nine in the case of Moore don't seem to have any weight with these people.
The truth is you can't argue with a rock, and if you're Donald Trump or Roy Moore, you could open up on a crowd on 5th Avenue in New York City with an AK-47 and those same supporters would come flying to their rescue screaming that they were framed.
Two words (per line, lol):
"In the case of Al Franken, there was an immediate admission and apology offered."
I didn't see one "Admission" coming from him. Not One.
If Democrats want to become martyrs for something ..... as Al Franken ACTUALLY Said:
" I also think it gave some people the false impression that I was admitting to doing things that in fact I haven't done. Some of the allegations against me are simply not true. Others, I remember very differently."
"I know there's been a very different picture of me painted over the last few weeks, but I know who I really am."
........who really cares !
Let them do the harakiri thing. After all, Democrats seem to be ordering their members to commit suicide for even perceived infractions.
Typical KNEEJERK Liberal thinking.
"Innocent until PROVEN Guilty" is the name of the game over on the other side of the fence, as it should be.
How Low Can We Go?
Lol!
When I first saw this headline on the front page I thought it was meta. ..and not about politicians!
I see Farentold is not running for re-election, though he should go. Hastings, the record holder for the largest settlement disclosed so far, of our tax dollars at $220K. The whole list should be disclosed and every one of them should be gone. The law should be repealed and let these assholes pay for their own settlements.