Marc Thiessen, SFB bootlicker, takes aim at Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez in his WaPo opinion piece today.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is an economic illiterate — and that’s a danger to America
The left complains that conservatives are “obsessing” over Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Well, there is a reason for that: Ocasio-Cortez is driving the agenda of today’s Democratic Party — and her economic illiteracy is dangerous.
Case in point: Last week, Ocasio-Cortez celebrated the tanking of a deal negotiated by her fellow Democrats in which Amazon promised to build a new headquarters in Long Island City, New York, right next to her congressional district. Amazon’s departure cost the city between 25,000 and 40,000 new jobs. Forget the tech workers whom Amazon would have employed. Gone are all the unionized construction jobs to build the headquarters, as well as thousands of jobs created by all the small businesses — restaurants, bodegas, dry cleaners and food carts — that were preparing to open or expand to serve Amazon employees. They are devastated by Amazon’s withdrawal.
Ocasio-Cortez was not disturbed at all. “We were subsidizing those jobs,” she said. “Frankly, if we were willing to give away $3 billion for this deal, we could invest those $3 billion in our district, ourselves, if we wanted to. We could hire out more teachers. We can fix our subways. We can put a lot of people to work for that amount of money if we wanted to.”
[It continued.]
Pogo says:
Says the trump bootlicker who apparently has no problem with a $399B deficit increase to pay for a tax cut that disproportionately benefits the wealthy since SFB took office, representing a debt to GDP increase of from 3.1 to 4.0%. Which, btw, Marc, affects all of America, not just Queens. Talk about your economic illiteracy? You personify it.
That said I can’t imagine why she was opposed to Amazon locating in Queens. The DC area will benefit from that decision. But she is not the leader of the Dem party.
So what do you say?
“I can’t imagine why she was opposed to Amazon locating in Queens”
pogo, I can’t imagine why amazon wanted to be in queens in the first place.
surely they had read that atlantic article back in 2017 headlined
Climate Change Will Bring Major Flooding to New York Every 5 Years
And that’s only counting the floods caused by hurricanes and tropical storms.
not to mention just the idea of being there let alone having to deal with a lotta soggy boxes.
and pogo, as a fellow member at the bar (take your pick as to which bar) you’ll be pleased to read david brooks today in nytimes:
that subtitle above reads in full:
The U.S. legal system is withstanding the Trump onslaught.
rep adam Schiff in wapo this morning:
[…]
To my Republican colleagues: When the president attacked the independence of the Justice Department by intervening in a case in which he is implicated, you did not speak out. When he attacked the press as the enemy of the people, you again were silent. When he targeted the judiciary, labeling judges and decisions he didn’t like as illegitimate, we heard not a word. And now he comes for Congress, the first branch of government, seeking to strip it of its greatest power, that of the purse.
Many of you have acknowledged your deep misgivings about the president in quiet conversations over the past two years. You have bemoaned his lack of decency, character and integrity. You have deplored his fundamental inability to tell the truth. But for reasons that are all too easy to comprehend, you have chosen to keep your misgivings and your rising alarm private.
That must end. The time for silent disagreement is over. You must speak out.
This will require courage. The president is popular among your base, which revels in his vindictive and personal attacks on members of his own party, even giants such as the late senator John McCain. Speaking up risks a primary challenge or accusations of disloyalty. But such acts of independence are the most profound demonstrations of loyalty to country.
Special counsel Robert S. Mueller III may soon conclude his investigation and report. Depending on what is in that report and what we find in our own investigations, our nation may face an even greater challenge. While I am alarmed at what we have already seen and found of the president’s conduct and that of his campaign, I continue to reserve judgment about what consequences should flow from our eventual findings. I ask you to do the same.
If we cannot rise to the defense of our democracy now, in the face of a plainly unconstitutional aggrandizement of presidential power, what hope can we have that we will do so with the far greater decisions that could be yet to come?
Although these times pose unprecedented challenges, we have been through worse. The divisions during the Vietnam War and the civil rights movement were just as grave and far more deadly. The Depression and World War II were far more consequential. And nothing can compare to the searing experience of the Civil War.
If Abraham Lincoln, the father of the Republican Party, could be hopeful that our bonds of affection would be strained but not broken by a war that pitted brother against brother, surely America can come together once more. But as long as we must endure the present trial, history compels us to speak, and act, our conscience, Republicans and Democrats alike.
Trump confidant Roger Stone threatened the judge presiding over his case and… it didn’t go over well with the judge.
Once again the only voter fraud is by the greedy old perverts, not Dems, not Mexicans, not Guatemalans and not Canadians.
NC defies all odds and gets it right for a change. The as yet unanswered question is who will be arrested for this incident of election fraud.
Pogo – odds are no republican will be arrested.
BB, I have a sneaking suspicion you are correct. It’s a shame, isn’t it?
It be snowing in Gold Canyon AZ.
Seriously.
Pogo,
AOC is defiantly not the leader of the dem. Party, but villianizing Nancy Pelosi has proven to be a failure to the point of being counter productive for republicans. Obviously they require a new target and AOC is the perfect choice.
Like you I am puzzled as to why she would not the Amazon jobs and resulting economic development in or near her own district,but that is another discussion entirely.
AOC is a compelling person but she is a freshman legislator with barely two months of service, if republicans want to obsess over her so much the better.They would be better served however to save their fire for the likes of Adam Schiff, Jerry Nadler and company. These people want answers and unlike AOC, they are in a position to get them.
politicususa: Analysis: Today’s Mueller Memo on Manafort Crimes May Prove Collusion
[…]
today Mueller will file with a federal court a document which may reveal a great deal of information about the alleged collusion. Mueller’s sentencing memorandum for Paul Manafort is due to a federal judge in DC District Court before midnight today.
[…]
In the sentencing memorandum prosecutors will outline in detail all facts they believe the federal judge should take into account before his sentencing (which is now set for March 13.)
This means Mueller will disclose what he knows about Manafort’s criminal business schemes, his contacts with key Russians after he was arrested and the lies he told to prosecutors and a grand jury after he agreed to cooperate with the Mueller investigation.
In filings like these, prosecutors write a detailed account of all of the defendant’s crimes and misbehavior. Up to now, the details of Manafort’s cooperation have been guarded by prosecutors, since his interviews are a major part of Mueller’s investigation into Russian influence in the 2016 election.
Today’s memo will outline the evidence Mueller has with respect to the two charges Manafort pleaded guilty to in September:
At the time of his plea, he also admitted to a many other money laundering and foreign lobbying crimes that took place in connection with his work for Ukrainian politicians and other foreign clients.
According to Manafort his co-conspirators were:
[…]
Friday’s sentencing memo will give more details about why they think he should spend the rest of his life in jail.
In the past, Mueller’s sentencing memos have revealed devastating new information which has been detrimental to the president. We can expect today’s memorandum to do the same thing.
Today could be a very bad day for Donald Trump as Mueller files with the court a public document setting forth the evidence he has proving that Trump’s campaign manager colluded with Russia during the 2016 campaign in a conspiracy against the United States.
I suspect an Ancestry.com exploration of AOC’s roots might find her to be the gr-grandniece of a politician from Vermont.
patd, let’s hope the musings about the Mueller memo to the Court is correct. I’d love for something to shut Suckabee the fuck up.
AOC makes a valid point when critical of Amazon’s tax-avoidance and potential “corporate subsidy” by tax-payers, which is irrelevant, now, but a good-faith negotiation with them would have been a “better look” for her and the Dems than “job-killer”. It will bite Dems in the ass, come election time. Her rationalization behind her efforts display an ignorance of economic realities despite her degree in Economics from Where-ever U.
She worked on Bernie’s 2016 campaign, Flatus, but to her credit, is withholding from endorsing him for his 2020 bid.
To be more clear regarding said “ignorance”, she claims the $3 billion in tax-breaks for Amazon could be put to “better use” elsewhere, but it’s $3 billion that doesn’t exist- it’s POTENTIAL avoidance of $3 billion, in the future. Like, “what the ****”, AOC?
…and sorry to be foreboding, but from my observation, that’s what the new crop of post-millenial Progressives and once-and-future Bernie supporters do: make grand policy positions based on naive misunderstandings.
Pogo,
The Mueller investigation seems to be winding down. Does that mean an end to any indictments?
jace,
that mueller filing today might be just the thing for tomorrow’s thread. hopefully there will be a brief summary; but if not, the link to the file will be sufficient to get the juices flowing. with maybe a catchy title like “gotcha” .
they have until midnight to file so you guys on the west coast may be the first to see and link it.
Jace,
Bink,
Love it!!?
Patd,
Will keep an eye out.
nytimes:
New York Prosecutors Expected to Charge Manafort, Guarding Against Trump Pardon
The Manhattan district attorney’s office is preparing state criminal charges against Paul J. Manafort, President Trump’s former campaign chairman, in an effort to ensure he will still face prison time even if the president pardons him for his federal crimes, according to several people with knowledge of the matter.
Mr. Manafort is scheduled to be sentenced next month for convictions in two federal cases brought by Special Counsel Robert S. Mueller III. He faces up to 25 years in prison for tax and bank fraud and additional time for conspiracy counts in a related case. It could effectively be a life sentence for Mr. Manafort, who turns 70 in April.
The president has broad power to issue pardons for federal crimes, but no such authority in state cases. And while there has been no clear indication that Mr. Trump intends to pardon Mr. Manafort, the president has spoken repeatedly of his pardon power and defended his former campaign chairman on a number of occasions, calling him a “brave man.”
Mr. Vance’s office first began investigating Mr. Manafort in 2017 in connection with loans he received from two banks. Those loans were also the subject of some of the counts in the federal indictment that led to his conviction last year. But the state prosecutors deferred their inquiry in order not to interfere with Mr. Mueller’s case.
They resumed their investigation in recent months, and a state grand jury began hearing evidence in the case, several people with knowledge of the matter said. The panel is expected to wrap up its work in the coming weeks, several of the people said, and prosecutors likely will ask the grand jurors to vote on charges shortly thereafter.
Mr. Vance’s office is expected to seek charges whether or not the president pardons Mr. Manafort. The plan was first reported by Bloomberg.
Any charges brought by Mr. Vance’s office would likely be challenged on double jeopardy grounds. New York state law includes stronger protections than those provided by the United States Constitution, and Mr. Manafort’s defense team is likely to challenge state charges. But prosecutors in Mr. Vance’s office have expressed confidence that they would prevail, people with knowledge of the matter said.
Jason Maloni, a spokesman for Mr. Manafort, said his legal team had no comment.
I think she is an economist along the lines of Richard Wolff
And while the 3 billion in abated taxes only exists on paper — a reminder to all this is how SFB got his start in NYC
She is right the money could be given to someone else who pays higher wages and is less than a shit employer.
Why should taxpayers subsidize a company with should a poor employment history and oh by the way they dona’t need the subsidy –they are already pretty tax free.
Oh boy! In what was either a moment of frustration or delirium I jumped the shark and made a donation to one of the 2020 presidential candidates this morning. What the Hell was I thinking? My email inbox will never be the same again.
Renee, Ruh roh.
Bob Kraft’s been charged with soliciting prostitution.
Jace
If you don’t mind — who did you donate to?
“Why should taxpayers subsidize a company with should a poor employment history“
It’s warehouse and administrative work- beats digging ditches.
KGC,
Kamala Harris.
https://www.politico.com/story/2019/02/22/planned-parenthood-funding-trump-1164038
Looks like the courts will be busy yet again.
john bob kraft looking for new meat ? What’s wrong with Boston’s sex slaves ?
With DC getting hotter by the minute, will trump defect in Viet Nam ? IF Mueller is going to open up within the week, and trump knows the date through his spy whitaker, simultaneous defection might be what he actually has in mind.
NYTimes story on the Kraft bust had this about the women involved:
[…]
The charges against Mr. Kraft, 77, were part of a broad investigation into prostitution and human trafficking in day spas and massage parlors in Florida. The police said that the parlors were used for prostitution, and that many of the women involved were considered to be victims.
The investigation involved multiple law enforcement agencies, and resulted in raids and arrests connected to nearly a dozen businesses in the region. At least one person, Lanyun Ma, 49, was charged with human trafficking. More than two dozen men, ranging in age from 34 to 81, have been arrested; hundreds have been charged, the police said.
[…]
Mr. Bompartito, who moved to South Florida from Philadelphia seven months ago, said that around the time of the strange bomb scare, he saw young women leave the massage parlor around lunchtime every day and walk around the mall, without talking to anyone or eating anything. He had worked next door to a day spa in Philadelphia that had been raided by the police and sensed something was wrong here, too.
“They looked malnourished,” he said of the women from Orchids of Asia. “One I even offered a slice of pizza to. She wouldn’t even say hi, wouldn’t even say thank you. Just kept her head down.”
the hill:
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) predicted on Friday that a “handful” of Republicans will back a resolution to block President Trump‘s emergency declaration to construct the U.S.-Mexico border wall.
Pogo… yeah… Kraft is being charged with a misdemeanor… just like for Elliot Spitzer… it’s an embarrassment.
As for Amazon in Long Island City, as I mentioned my sister lives there. The jobs Amazon would have created would be higher salaried ones. The residents were afraid of rents rising beyond their means and the gentrification of their neighborhoods. Not saying it’s right or wrong…. just giving you the perspective of someone who actually lives there.
Jace – I create special email addresses for the purpose of getting all the trash. Hotmail, live.com, yahoo, AOL, gmail, and others have free email addresses. The last time, about five or six years ago, I did a rough count of all the email addresses I have. About one hundred, possibly more counting the ones I do not have a record for.
RR, I figured that was what was behind the opposition. My kid was lobbying to live in Queens not far from LIC but the transportation between there and his school made it a bad choice, so we nixed it. Rents there were in the $2500 and up (quickly) to $6000 range for a 2 bedroom although there were some 1 BRs that were in the $2000 – $3000 range although they go well above that to $6000 plus. I think a fair amount of gentrification has already gotten to that area, but like all of NYC I suppose that depends on the block.
Regarding the Rule issued by Trumpco re: P/P funding – typically assholian – trying to solidify his base.
Does it beat digging ditches — I say it depends who is in a union.
As for being the state that elected Devin Nunes — he is nothing compared to some of the others including Ronald Raygun and Pete Wilson — and that whole bunch of clods that just got defeated in Southern Cal.
As near as I can tell — they didn’t cheat to win.
Amazon salaries for the Queen’s ;location $16-35 most of the employees couldn’t afford to live there based on the rents Pogo stated
Considering how Trump is such an upstanding family man and devoted husband, that Patriots White House visit is gonna be super awkward when Trump has to meet Robert Kraft. I doubt that Trump wants Melania to think that he’d actually hang out with someone like Robert Kraft who has a shady moral character.
I did some research this afternoon mostly on Al Jolson and his movie, the Jazz Singer. He sang two songs in it—the one in black face that has white folks, especially, up in arms, and the other, the Kol Nidre. Here is the latter.
Many thanks yo all keeping the trail alive in my absence.
May I indulge in a bit of reverse racism here? My experience in this adventure has been that Hispanic people are hard-working, honest, trustworthy, flexible and reliable. The only assholes I have encountered have been white people with Trump bumper stickers, none of whom I chose to hire.
rac·ism
Dictionary result for racism
/ˈrāˌsizəm/
noun
prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior.
Nope, you’re good.
Unskilled laborers rarely get to set their own terms, KGC- i’ve yet to find the job that pays good wages with benefits for fucking around all day. If you know of any available positions like that, please forward.
(Any job in food-service is 10x worse. Be kind to your cooks and servers, their job fucking sucks. Pardon my language.)
Farm work is terrible. Roofing is possibly the worst job one could get. Factory work eats your soul. Walking around an air-conditioned warehouse putting stuff in boxes? Please.
new thread