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He then said “Some people said I should have done it. Would have been very easy to do it. But I thought it would be a terrible precedent for our country.” Philip Bump responds: This is nonsense. Trump’s administration did attempt to effect legal retribution against his opponents, including Clinton. It wasn’t that he didn’t try, it was that it wasn’t “very easy” to do. Trump came into office railing against the intelligence community and the FBI because of the investigation into Russian interference that was publicly reported soon after he won the 2016 election. He fired FBI Director James B. Comey in an explicit effort to kneecap that probe, resulting in the appointment of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. Mueller ultimately determined that there were links between Trump’s campaign and Russian actors, and that the campaign embraced Russia’s assistance, but that there was no coordination that violated the law.

Fifty years ago, science-fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin popularized physics’ most enigmatic feline.

The post How Schrödinger’s Cat Got Famous appeared first on Nautilus.

I’m curious as to whether readers have any moral absolutes — actions they believe are never acceptable, or actions they believe must always be taken.

I’ll name two of mine: rape and torture are never justifiable as far as I’m concerned.

Do you have any moral absolutes? If so, what are they?

(Be polite in comments when discussing other people’s moral absolutes.)

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Activists suing the Biden administration over Gaza policy are demanding the judge recuse himself over the sponsored trip.

The post A Federal Judge Visited Israel on a Junket Designed to Sway Public Opinion. Now He’s Hearing a Gaza Case. appeared first on The Intercept.

This is really getting terrifying: Julie Adams, a member of the Fulton County election board, filed her lawsuit on May 22 with the help of lawyers from America First Policy Institute, a pro-Trump think tank. The lawsuit seeks access to voting records that Adams says she was denied by Fulton County’s election director, Nadine Williams, and also seeks the court’s ruling on whether Adams’ duty to certify election results is up to her discretion.  Adams’ lawsuit specifically requests that the judge “clarify” that her “duties are, in fact, discretionary, not ministerial.” This MAGA flunky wants the “discretion” to overturn the election results. […] The Adams lawsuit is an attempt to pave the way for Republican election officials to deny election results en masse — a fundamental part of Trump’s strategy of baselessly questioning election results and making claims of widespread voter fraud. According to Axios, the Republican National Committee has been staffing up lawyers, legal observers, and poll watchers to “gather string for lawsuits challenging the results of the Nov.

WE ARE THE SPIDERS OF THIS HOUSE

SHOUTING OUR MANIFESTO

AS BEST WE CAN WITHOUT VOCAL CORDS

BUT ONLY YOUR CATS CAN HEAR US

THEY ARE LAZY, OVERFED

WE LAUGH IN THEIR WHISKERED FACES

AS WE BUMP UGLIES BENEATH THE LOVESEAT

Let’s hope not. It never works out very well Tomorrow marks the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landing at Normandy France, where approximately 160,000 Allied troops successfully pulled off the largest invasion by sea in history. From that point on America was in charge of allied forces and it was the beginning of the end of the war. When you travel to that battlefield and visit other WWII memorials and cemeteries in Europe you will see what great care is taken to ensure the memories of those sacrifices are honored with daily maintenance and respect. This is likely to be the last big D-Day celebration featuring WWII veterans who are almost all centenarians at this point. Some are travelling to the ceremonies and will be honored by all the dignitaries in attendance which will include President Joe Biden, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and King Charles II of Britain among others. Russian President Vladimir Putin was not invited due to the invasion of Ukraine which is somewhat ironic since back in 1944 the Soviet Union was one of the allied countries fighting Germany.

As the two feel each other out, The Doctor offers Rogue a mini "masterclass" in proper brooding in this Doctor Who sneak preview.

Shocking anyone that's paid any attention to the onslaught, The New York Times has just been handed the Pulitzer Prize for its Gaza reporting. As Alan MacLeod demonstrates, the Times has consistently delivered biased, inaccurate reporting on Palestine, and deserves a mountain of criticism, not an award.

The post Despite Dishonest Reporting New York Times Nabs Pulitzer for Gaza Coverage appeared first on MintPress News.

Doctor Who showrunner Russell T. Davies and star Carole Ann Ford shared their thoughts on the passing of William Russell (Ian Chesterton).

Restanding Conservative candidate for Lincoln Karl McCartney has previously been criticised for the same trick

When Trump shows you who he is…. Steve Benen examines Donald Trump’s recent campaign rhetoric about imprisoning political opponents: Last year, as his legal crises intensified, Donald Trump grew explicit about his intentions to retaliate against his perceived foes with politically motivated criminal cases. In September 2023, for example, the former president suggested he’d have “no choice” but to prosecute his political opponents in a possible second term. The Republican added soon after that when prosecutors took steps to hold him accountable for his crimes, “what they’ve done is they’ve released the genie out of the box.” (I assume he meant “bottle.”) This came on the heels of Trump vowing to appoint a “real” special prosecutor to go after President Joe Biden and his family. That’s all Trump means by “Great Again.” Be cruel and criminal enough that no one will dare cross him. That’s it. Sell ’em snake oil. Deliver retribution. Commit more crimes as president for his own sick pleasure and for MAGA’s entertainment.

When you exclude precious metals that offer "no real economic benefit to the UK" the figures look much different

In this column, Kristen Mulrooney writes letters to famous mothers from literature, TV, and film whom she finds herself relating to on a different level now that she’s a mom herself.

Dear Virgin Mary,

First let me just say, you may not consider yourself a pop culture icon, but we have to put your story in historical context: if you were born two thousand years later, you’d probably be the star of your own reality TV show, have 362 million followers on Instagram, and people would post pictures of you at the Met Gala with the caption “Mother is mothering.” Undeniable fact: you’re an icon.

Stop the handwringing A friend asked yesterday if we have a chance this election. Well, considering we (local Democrats) have over three dozen candidates on our fall ballot, we have a lot of chances, I said. What he meant, of course, was the race atop the ballot featuring Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Buck the f#&k up! Voters want to support winners. Maybe start acting like winners? Do Republicans doubt themselves like this? Hell, no. They declare themselves winners before all the votes are counted. They try to litigate (or intimidate) wins when they’ve clearly lost. They are acting like 2024 winners even now, after a string of high-profile, post-2016 losses and with a presidential candidate just convicted of 34 felonies, three more cases pending, and more charges on the way. Ed Kilgore rolls his eyes at New York magazine: One of the most notable aspects of the 2024 presidential contest has been how often voices have been raised in the left-of-center commentariat calling on Democrats to abort Joe Biden’s reelection campaign before it’s too late.