These guys know their lives are in danger if they vote for this. I'm not saying they're brave, I'm saying that the calculation has been made that putting a crosshairs on yourself is the worse choice.

Former Gov. Rick Snyder faces 2 criminal charges in Flint water case (Detroit Free Press)

Michigan AG will make an announcement about the misdemeanor charges in a few hours, but it's a ceremonial gesture. The court filing lists an "offense date" of 25 April, 2014, which was when source water in Flint was switched from the Detroit River & Lake Huron to the Flint river, corroding Flint pipes & poisoning the population. The switch was done in response to Flint's economic depression following the industrial collapse... because impoverished people don't deserve clean water. Activists & Flint residents complained of health concerns almost immediately, and got lies and inaction for most of 2 years - including criminal levels of inaction from the EPA, which should have asserted control much sooner than it did. Most of the charges since 2016 have been minor, mostly guilty pleas with reduced sentences.

This latest round of investigations was taken up by the current AG after she dropped (in June 2019) an existing investigation inherited from her Republican predecessor, in favor of a more expansive one. The solicitor general's simultaneous claim was that the previous investigation was conducted basically with the aim of letting top officials off the hook.

A 2016 roundtable & a summary of the situation back then:

SafeAsMilk wrote:These guys know their lives are in danger if they vote for this. I'm not saying they're brave, I'm saying that the calculation has been made that putting a crosshairs on yourself is the worse choice.

While Democrats have had them for 4 years. 12 Years if you're Obama.

SafeAsMilk wrote:These guys know their lives are in danger if they vote for this. I'm not saying they're brave, I'm saying that the calculation has been made that putting a crosshairs on yourself is the worse choice.

How many republican politicians have been murdered in office?

Just wondering, because Kennedy brothers.

Also, new GOP motto:

Keith Olberman wrote:We don‘t negotiate with terrorists,
We just give them what they want.

You need to keep in mind, this is in the context of a situation where they've literally just been attacked, and the guy who incited the attack has been calling anyone even slightly pushing back against him a traitor. There are always dangers and threats for sure, but there's no doubt in my mind that a lot these people feel they are, in this moment, looking down the barrel of a gun. Again, not defending or calling anyone heroes.

That being said, I'm seeing rumblings about an unusual amount of tours being given at the capitol, with a worrying disregard for protocol. Whether they knew they were giving terrorists tours or not, this does not look good for them.

https://sherrill.house.gov/media/press- ... ty-capitol

They doubtless have CCTV cameras showing who was giving the tours, and to whom.

SafeAsMilk wrote:You need to keep in mind, this is in the context of a situation where they've literally just been attacked, and the guy who incited the attack has been calling anyone even slightly pushing back against him a traitor. There are always dangers and threats for sure, but there's no doubt in my mind that a lot these people feel they are, in this moment, looking down the barrel of a gun. Again, not defending or calling anyone heroes.

sorry, not buying it.
they haven‘t „just“ (as in „recently“) been attacked, it was a week ago. Security measures are in place.
They have the power to remove the guy threatening them, in fact he already is on the path out, just needs a push to stay out.
It’s not rocket science, it’s in their constitution.

They are constantly waving the constitution around like holy scripture...

oh wait, I get it: they don’t really know what is written in their holy scripture either
so...
it’s just logical they are not aware that they have the power to disarm the toddler who got hold of their gun.

I understand it being physically dangerous for anyone to vote for impeachment, and not just Republicans. I can empathize with not wanting to have death threats. However, the Democrats in Congress were a lot closer to looking down the barrel of a gun than any Republican voting for impeachment. The people inside the capitol with a noose and hand ties protesting that their president lost the election, were probably planning on physically harming Democrats.
In that sense Republicans not voting for impeachment due to safety concerns after what went down on January 6, are failures. That's no excuse.

https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/13 ... 0749633536
Send a conspiracy theorist to congress. What could go wrong?

The_Piper wrote:https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1349514160749633536
Send a conspiracy theorist to congress. […]

it’s really sad how the word „theory“ gets abused by calling them theorist.
I know ‚hypothesesist’ is a bit ugly, but it’s closer to the mark.

The_Piper wrote:https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1349514160749633536
Send a conspiracy theorist to congress. What could go wrong?

dingbat head.jpg

For future abuse of power, I assume.

What a moron.

Agi Hammerthief wrote:

The_Piper wrote:https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1349514160749633536
Send a conspiracy theorist to congress. […]

it’s really sad how the word „theory“ gets abused by calling them theorist.
I know ‚hypothesesist’ is a bit ugly, but it’s closer to the mark.

Masturbator-at-large.

The_Piper wrote:I understand it being physically dangerous for anyone to vote for impeachment, and not just Republicans. I can empathize with not wanting to have death threats. However, the Democrats in Congress were a lot closer to looking down the barrel of a gun than any Republican voting for impeachment. The people inside the capitol with a noose and hand ties protesting that their president lost the election, were probably planning on physically harming Democrats.

The gallows was built for Mike Pence.

In that sense Republicans not voting for impeachment due to safety concerns after what went down on January 6, are failures. That's no excuse.

No excuses were offered.

This isn't quite the same thing but wasn't it Scalise that was shot a couple of years ago? I don't recall that moving any needles regarding gun control for Republicans.

Agi Hammerthief wrote:

SafeAsMilk wrote:You need to keep in mind, this is in the context of a situation where they've literally just been attacked, and the guy who incited the attack has been calling anyone even slightly pushing back against him a traitor. There are always dangers and threats for sure, but there's no doubt in my mind that a lot these people feel they are, in this moment, looking down the barrel of a gun. Again, not defending or calling anyone heroes.

sorry, not buying it.

It doesn't really matter if you buy it. I guarantee their thinking is much more along the lines of what I've stated than your "Oh it's been a week, I'm safe now."

they haven‘t „just“ (as in „recently“) been attacked, it was a week ago. Security measures are in place.
They have the power to remove the guy threatening them, in fact he already is on the path out, just needs a push to stay out.
It’s not rocket science, it’s in their constitution.

Voting to impeach him has not removed him from office, in case you hadn't noticed.

They are constantly waving the constitution around like holy scripture...

oh wait, I get it: they don’t really know what is written in their holy scripture either
so...
it’s just logical they are not aware that they have the power to disarm the toddler who got hold of their gun.

They aren't afraid of Trump, they're afraid of his base. You know, the people who built a gallows outside and ran through the halls screaming "Where's Mike Pence?" Again, not defending anyone or calling anyone a hero, but if that doesn't make any sense to you then there's literally nothing anyone can say.

SafeAsMilk wrote:

The_Piper wrote:I understand it being physically dangerous for anyone to vote for impeachment, and not just Republicans. I can empathize with not wanting to have death threats. However, the Democrats in Congress were a lot closer to looking down the barrel of a gun than any Republican voting for impeachment. The people inside the capitol with a noose and hand ties protesting that their president lost the election, were probably planning on physically harming Democrats.

The gallows was built for Mike Pence.

In that sense Republicans not voting for impeachment due to safety concerns after what went down on January 6, are failures. That's no excuse.

No excuses were offered.

The rumor was that the noose was for Pence, but the zip ties were for who knows. I'm guessing they planned on harming Democrats like Pelosi and Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, etc. Wasn't that part of the same rumor?
Another rumor was that there were Republicans saying they supported impeachment but didn't vote for it due to fears of their and their families safety. That's the excuse I mean. It's a hypothetical excuse for the time being, offered by unnamed Republicans.

Agi Hammerthief wrote:

The_Piper wrote:https://twitter.com/mtgreenee/status/1349514160749633536
Send a conspiracy theorist to congress. […]

it’s really sad how the word „theory“ gets abused by calling them theorist.
I know ‚hypothesesist’ is a bit ugly, but it’s closer to the mark.

The phrase conspiracy theory fits fine in my opinion. Most people don't think of it in the sense of scientific theories and hypotheses. Theory in it's everyday use isn't constricted to science.

Alan C wrote:This isn't quite the same thing but wasn't it Scalise that was shot a couple of years ago? I don't recall that moving any needles regarding gun control for Republicans.

As I recall, it was an argument for more guns. Republicans, eh?

The_Piper wrote:

SafeAsMilk wrote:

The_Piper wrote:I understand it being physically dangerous for anyone to vote for impeachment, and not just Republicans. I can empathize with not wanting to have death threats. However, the Democrats in Congress were a lot closer to looking down the barrel of a gun than any Republican voting for impeachment. The people inside the capitol with a noose and hand ties protesting that their president lost the election, were probably planning on physically harming Democrats.

The gallows was built for Mike Pence.

In that sense Republicans not voting for impeachment due to safety concerns after what went down on January 6, are failures. That's no excuse.

No excuses were offered.

The rumor was that the noose was for Pence, but the zip ties were for who knows. I'm guessing they planned on harming Democrats like Pelosi and Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, etc. Wasn't that part of the same rumor?

I'm sure they would've been more than happy to get their hands on dems as well, Pelosi in particular was the target. AOC said she thought she was going to die. Republicans, finally, are starting to see what that feels like. And what's more, because they would be traitors according to these nuts, it would be no surprise to me if they feel they're particularly high on the target list.

Another rumor was that there were Republicans saying they supported impeachment but didn't vote for it due to fears of their and their families safety. That's the excuse I mean. It's a hypothetical excuse for the time being, offered by unnamed Republicans.

I don't understand why this "excuse" seems so outlandish to you. My position is fuck them, they made their bed now lie in it. But their buyer's remorse doesn't seem strange and mystifying to me.

Ahem...

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackbrewst ... ff2e712acb

Rep. Peter Meijer (R-Mich.), one of the 10 GOP members of Congress who voted to impeach President Donald Trump, said Thursday he believed his life might be in danger and he was planning to buy body armor to protect himself.

“Our expectation is that someone may try and kill us,” Meijer told MSNBC.

Meijer said he and other GOP members were making “preparations” to ensure their safety, including altering their routines and purchasing body armor, which is a reimbursable expense for members of Congress, according to the Capitol police.

“It’s sad that we have to get to that point,” Meijer went on.

Oh poor baby! Probably not a good idea to have stated this though, now they know not to aim for center mass.