President's Day 1 Executive Orders

Convicted US Capitol rioter turns down Trump pardon

One of the people who served jail time for taking part in the US Capitol riot four years ago has refused a pardon from President Donald Trump, saying: "We were wrong that day."

Pamela Hemphill, who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 60 days in prison, told the BBC that there should be no pardons for the riot on 6 January 2021.

"Accepting a pardon would only insult the Capitol police officers, rule of law and, of course, our nation," she said.

"I pleaded guilty because I was guilty, and accepting a pardon also would serve to contribute to their gaslighting and false narrative."

..

[Another] Republican US senator, James Lankford from Oklahoma, told CNN: "I think we need to continue to say we are a party of law and order."

He added: "I think if you attack a police officer, that's a very serious issue and they should pay a price for that."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvged988377o

(Jan 22, 2025 05:26 PM)confused2 Wrote: Convicted US Capitol rioter turns down Trump pardon

One of the people who served jail time for taking part in the US Capitol riot four years ago has refused a pardon from President Donald Trump, saying: "We were wrong that day."

Pamela Hemphill, who pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 60 days in prison, told the BBC that there should be no pardons for the riot on 6 January 2021.

"Accepting a pardon would only insult the Capitol police officers, rule of law and, of course, our nation," she said.

"I pleaded guilty because I was guilty, and accepting a pardon also would serve to contribute to their gaslighting and false narrative."

..

[Another] Republican US senator, James Lankford from Oklahoma, told CNN: "I think we need to continue to say we are a party of law and order."

He added: "I think if you attack a police officer, that's a very serious issue and they should pay a price for that."

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvged988377o

There are indeed two things to parse about Jan 6. The conventional laws that were broken, and the conception of the mobs participating in an insurrection or attempted coup. In the course of being motivated to absolve the latter, the former ensues as collateral outrage.

In Trump's mind, he could be comparing the first to the street demonstrations of 2020 in which occasional accompanying rioters damaged property, looted, set fire to vehicles, threw objects at police, etc. And the perception (misperception?) that many of the latter were allowed to get away with such sans prosecution. Due to the horde of opinion pieces in the legacy media excusing the behavior and anger as justifiable (in the context of structural racism, a history of hegemonic oppression, etc).

At any rate, a kind of "But what about _X_" excuse, as if a past unofficial "fact" or contested "non-fact" can be something akin to a legal precedent that allows slash warrants a putatively related action to be executed. Or just everyday "tit for tat" rearing its head in the Oval Office.

Another possibility (albeit remote?) is that Trump might be feeling a sense of guilt that he could have stated something (despite denials otherwise) in a way that prodded some of the gatherers to do what they did on that day. And this pervasive pardon thereby being equivalent to a covert apology.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) acts to eliminate DEI

US Department of Defense statement on securing the southern border.

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US Coast Guard joining in.

(The USCG is part of the Dept of Transportation)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated today that all future US foreign partnerships and alliances must meet at least one of three conditions:

1. Does it make America safer?

2. Does it make America stronger?

3. Does it make America more prosperous?

As serious as this shit sounds, I hope it also means the return of great comedy. Make America Laugh Again. Lots of material there and I suspect more on the way.

The President just signed an executive order to declassify and release the JFK, RFK and MLK files that have been kept secret until now.

I expect that the reason that the CIA originally wanted the JFK files kept secret is because the files reveal Kremlin sources and intelligence methods that they used to explore Soviet complicity in the assassination. But that was 60 years ago, so there's little chance that anyone would be endangered by releasing it now.

(Jan 23, 2025 11:19 PM)Yazata Wrote: The President just signed an executive order to declassify and release the JFK, RFK and MLK files that have been kept secret until now.

I expect that the reason that the CIA originally wanted the JFK files kept secret is because the files reveal Kremlin sources and intelligence methods that they used to explore Soviet complicity in the assassination. But that was 60 years ago, so there's little chance that anyone would be endangered by releasing it now.

Yeah, hard to believe that the individuals referred to below could still be alive. Are they Ashkenazi Jews like Kirk Douglas or George Burns, or related to Bob Hope's family or Clint Eastwood's, or just immortals like Christopher George's character? What gives with such precaution or extreme longevity optimism?
- - - - - - - - - - - -

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/23/polit...index.html

EXCERPTS: Many of the files related to the JFK assassination have already been disclosed, including a tranche of 13,000 documents released during the Biden administration. Many of the documents have been redacted, however.

[...] Despite previous pledges from presidents, including Trump, to release those records, the CIA, Pentagon and State Department still have documents they’ve refused to release. The justification for those documents remaining classified largely stems from efforts to protect the identities of confidential sources who are still alive, or might be alive, and protecting methods.

When Trump was president, he agreed at the time not to release the full tranche of records related to Kennedy’s assassination at the request of national security agencies. But Trump on the 2024 campaign trail said he would release the remaining documents.

Federal judge blocks Trump's racist unconstitutional executive order

“I’ve been on the bench for over four decades. I can’t remember another case where the question presented was as clear as this one is,” U.S. District Judge John Coughenour told a Justice Department attorney. “This is a blatantly unconstitutional order.”

Thursday’s decision prevents the Trump administration from taking steps to implement the executive order for 14 days. In the meantime, the parties will submit further arguments about the merits of Trump’s order. Coughenour scheduled a hearing on Feb. 6 to decide whether to block it long term as the case proceeds.

Coughenour, 84, a Ronald Reagan appointee, was nominated to the federal bench in 1981...

https://apnews.com/article/birthright-ci...c0d6cd8a1c

Oww! My head hurts! I gotta sit down!

I just agreed with Chuck Schumer (a man I detest as much as MR hates Trump).

https://x.com/SenSchumer/status/1882555171596804472

After the President declassified the JFK files, Schumer wrote:

"Now do UFOs"

And I agree...