Dominion Voting Systems announced yesterday that they are suing Rudy Giuliani for a cool $1.3 billion for defamation.  Defamation is putting it lightly, since he spewed pure bullshit and fantastical conspiracy theories blaming the company for Trump’s loss at the polls.  The funny thing, though, is that three hours after being sued, Rudy suddenly came to his senses and announced on his radio show on WABC that “As far as this election is concerned, it’s over.” and, “Biden’s the president, she’s the vice president.”

Later, in a formal statement he complained that Dominion was trying to “intimidate” him with the large demand, and threatened discovery in his counter suit.  I’m sure they’re quaking in their boots.

Written by Nick Carraway:

I’ve always been envious of people that lack shame. Josh Hawley is apparently taking the fourth door when it comes to defending yourself when you’ve participated in a failed coup. The first three defenses are ones each of us would do in a normal situation. You can just stay quiet and hope it goes away. You can apologize and hope it goes away. You can also resign and slink away in shame.

Mr. Hawley has chosen a fourth way. Attack. He has launched a counter ethics complaint against the seven Democrats that are asking for his removal from the Senate. Apparently, you shouldn’t expel people for failed coups. It was just a minor disagreement over who should be in charge after all.

I’m not sure what it takes to be this bullheaded. Maybe you could call it courage. Maybe you could call it stupidity. Maybe you could call it stubbornness. Maybe his conscience is just three sizes too small. As some football coach once said, the best defense is a good offense.

Nick

Well, CNN decided to track corporate donors to federal candidates so you can know where to spend your money.

Click right here.

Look, I’d just as soon see all of the corporate donors stop it and give their money to charity instead of buying congress.  This looks like a pretty good start.

Thanks to Phyllis for the heads up.

Must read: Yesterday, Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post listed 50 things that are better since Biden took office. The list is great, so I encourage you to read it all, but here are a few highlights:

• You can ignore Twitter
• The White House briefing room is not an Orwellian nightmare of lies
• We have not heard a word from presidential children
• You feel calmer after hearing the president
• The president is able to articulate policy details, coherently even
• Fauci, not the president, briefs on the science of covid-19 and efficacy of vaccines
• The president will talk more to our allies than to Russian President Vladimir Putin

Enjoy the list.

I’m a private pilot.  As a private pilot, before you fly anywhere, anytime, you have to plan your flight even if you’re flying out of your own airport.  When you’re planning your flight, one of the things you look for are TFRs or Temporary Flight Restrictions.  TFRs are generally a 30 mile circle that follows presidents and vice presidents around wherever they go.  TFRs are also established around large events like the Super Bowl.  Also, there is a permanent TFR or ADIZ (Air Defense Identification Zone).  Within that is the FRZ (Flight Restriction Zone).  It should go without saying that if you fly into these areas, you will get a friendly visit from a USAF F-16.  If you ignore warnings and get closer to the center you seriously risk getting shot down.

Why am I talking about this?  Well, West Palm Beach, the home of Mar a Lago, has been surrounded by a presidential TFR for 4 years.  Private aircraft couldn’t get close.  Now that Trump is not president, no TFR.  SO, someone is paying a local banner advertising pilot to troll Trump by circling West Palm Beach with several different banners like: TRUMP WORST PRESIDENT EVER and TRUMP YOU PATHETIC LOSER.  Here’s a video from Twitter:

pic.twitter.com/bX11gSDIms

— Daniel Uhlfelder (@DWUhlfelderLaw) January 25, 2021

The entertainment value is priceless.

I am opposed to the silent filibuster.

I support a real filibuster.

I support a filibuster where Senators must stand there and speak.  I’ll even loosen the rules – they can go to the bathroom, grab a bite to eat, and even sleep at night — just so long they have someone covering for them.  You can ask your fellow filibuster supporters in the senate to cover for you up to 24 hours, but every 24 hours, you have to show up and remind us all how we got to this sheet show.

Sadly, if you’re the only one filibustering you gotta eat while talking and even talk in your sleep and look like an idiot (example: Ted Cruz). Sorry, there’s just no way around it. When you’re on your own, you’re on your own.

I think the filibuster should play constantly on CSpan and at least a continuous hour of it has to play on the nightly news channels. Let people see their senate at work.

Look, this is democracy, so if you have a good idea, you should be able to talk people into it and, by God, I wanna give you a chance to do it. If this bill will add a zero at the end of everybody’s paycheck and is a sure cure to droopy booby syndrome, you ought to have a chance to sell that idea to Americans, who will then get behind your cause. If your idea is so dumb that you have to read children’s books you’ve obviously never read before because you don’t have anything better to say, then the American people have a never-ending ability to point and laugh and they’ll use it.

Before you say my idea is too goofy, think about it.  That’s the way it used to be and everything ain’t getting better just because we changed it.   Look, the last filibuster was in 1964 when Senator Robert Byrd led a 14 hour filibuster against the Civil Right Act. It passed both houses on congress anyway.  The good part is that Robert Byrd and Strom Thurman get to spend history as jackasses.

Keep the filibuster, just open it up so Americans can hear into that back smoked filled room where Mitch McConnell does whatever too-creepy-to-even-think-about thing he does.