lostnfound
lostnfound's JournalJennifer Palmieri, please refine your message.
Chuck Todd, Mr. false equivalence, threw a question at you related to the fact that Republicans wanted Bill Clinton to be impeached at one point during his presidency... you replied saying that “yeah, but Bill Clinton wasn’t a threat to the democracy”. That part was a good, quick, sharp and true answer.
BUT... you then launched into the Democrats need to do this, need to do that, and democrats need to be a check on the presidency...I do not think that is the correct approach.
Rather -
yeah, but Bill Clinton wasn’t a threat to the democracy...
and *not only democrats recognize the threat* — scores of leading right wing thinkers are saying it too — even very conservative thinkers like David Frum and Max Boot and Bill Kristol are warning the country that he is unfit and a threat to democracy...
It’s not only Trump though — the entire GOP Congress is looking the other way — here’s evidence of serious crimes including money laundering and possible treason...but the GOP is willing to enable trump, to be sycophants, tearing down the reputations of people like Mueller.
If there’s any patriotism left on the other side, then they will do the hard thing and the right thing. Republicans can’t leave it up to the other party to clean up this mess.
Fascinating
Several thoughts.
God damn WSJ... now we always have to second guess the reason for an article and the truth of it.
in a world where Trump admires Xi, what protection does the Uighur filmmaker have in Virginia?
Choice of words...where the Israeli government has created a system of checkpoints and biometric surveillance to keep tabs on Palestinians.”Keep tabs on” is a friendly thing you do with your young children. “Monitor” is what you do for the sake of security or danger. What a brilliant editor to use such diction.
Fascinating.
Pass-Thru Income explanation
Those as such a useful explanation of types of pass-thru income. By the way, it mentions that Georgia Pacific — owned by the Koch Brothers —is a rare example of a very large business that operates as a pass-through entity.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/12/20/us/politics/small-business-tax-cut-pass-throughs.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=story-heading&module=b-lede-package-region®ion=top-news&WT.nav=top-news
Worse than the low rates for capital gains, how about 0% tax for earnings on dynasties?
This is fascinating. We all have heard about the estate tax exemption increasing to $11 Million per person. But according to Mother Jones, it also includes a step up in basis.
A WHOLE LOT OF INCOME FOR WEALTHY PEOPLE WILL NEVER BE TAXED.
So if you have SO much money that you can buy millions in Apple stock (or whatever) and keep it until the next generation inherits it, they are never going to have to pay tax on that gain either. Even when they sell it, never any tax on the gain that occurred before your death.
http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2017/12/six-things-you-might-not-know-about-the-republican-tax-bill/
The estate tax exemption was raised to $11 million per person or $22 million per couple. You probably knew that. But there’s more.
First, that exemption amount is now indexed to inflation. When it comes to things like the minimum wage, Republicans flatly refuse to consider inflation indexing. But for millionaires and their heirs? Why of course we have to index.
Second, the bill provides a truly massive and inexplicable gift to heirs of the rich. Suppose you inherit some Apple stock that’s increased in value from $1 million to $30 million. Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign tax plan would have exempted the first $22 million, but then you’d have to pay capital gains taxes on the remaining $8 million. In other words, you had to pay taxes on something. Not anymore, though. Not only has the estate tax been eliminated for estates under $22 million, but the Republican bill keeps the current “step-up” law, which means assets are automatically revalued upon death and no capital gains taxes are due. If dad sells off his holdings himself, he has to pay capital gains on the profit. But if he dies and you sell it, you’re free and clear. Even the biggest proponents of killing the estate tax never imagined a gift this brazen.
So who wanted this, anyway? You don’t have to ask, do you? This has been an obsession of the ultra-wealthy for decades. They have long loathed the fact that they can’t control their fortunes even in death, and they loathe it even more that the federal government will get a cut of their hard-earned riches. With this tax bill, they have almost reached their goal of eliminating not just the estate tax, but taxes of any kind on their accumulated wealth.
Did Chris van Hollen just say that 48% of stock owned by foreign investors? So $ goes abroad?
On Laurence O’Donnell. So middle class loses out big time, and wealthy investors abroad get the benefit?
What did wealthy Democratic donors feel about Franken?
Who has been annoyed at Franken?
Telecoms?
Franken Calls for Big Tech Algorithms to Be More Transparent
Franken “delivered a speech to the group in which he compared the power of the big tech platforms to that of internet-service providers, or ISP’s, to "pick and choose which content reaches consumers and which doesn’t." Franken supported a rule change designed to deny the ISP’s such control. "Facebook, Google and Amazon, like ISP’s, should be neutral in their treatment of the flow of lawful information and commerce on their platforms," he said.”
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-08/franken-calls-for-big-tech-algorithms-to-be-more-transparent
Billionaires?
By Jason Easley on Thu, Jun 22nd, 2017 at 3:51 pm
Sen. Al Franken (D-MN) is calling the Republican health care bill what it really is. Franken described the bill as a thinly disguised tax cut for billionaires.
http://www.politicususa.com/2017/06/22/al-franken-republicans-wont-health-care-bill-thinly-disguised-tax-cut-billionaires.html
Franken Renews Push for Wealthiest Americans to Pay their Fair Share in Taxes
Today, U.S. Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) joined a group of his colleagues in reintroducing key tax fairness legislation—commonly known as the "Buffett Rule"—to require that America's top earners pay their fair share of taxes just like middle-class Minnesotans.
The Paying a Fair Share Act would ensure that millionaires and billionaires pay at least a 30 percent effective federal tax rate, which means they can't pay a lower rate than what middle-class Minnesotans pay. The legislation, often called the "Buffett Rule," was put forth after billionaire investor Warren Buffett realized that he paid a lower tax rate than his secretary.
Banks?
Says Congressional Attempt to Roll Back CFPB Arbitration Rule is Great News for Wall Street Billionaires, Bad News for Minnesota Families and the American Consumer
Climate deniers?
Knowledge of climate science plus mastery of storytelling is a rare combination.
https://thinkprogress.org/al-franken-strategy-for-trump-climate-deniers-fd9a6502f9cb/
Al’s “mastery of storytelling” makes him a great communicator on a lot of issues, by the way.
So, who has a lot of influence over leaders of our own party? Even more than voters..
One such person has done great things for Democratic causes, donating $1 M to Hillary’s campaign, and $100,000 to Kamala Harris (who I think is a great addition even though I’m disappointed with her over the Franken issue), clearly wants democrats to win but clearly does not appreciate those who talk about the billionaires. I was watching the interview when he said it, and was intrigued by how much bitterness or anger he displayed toward statements of economic class in the Democratic Party.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Cloobeck
Cloobeck wants to run for governor of Nevada. Great, I hope he succeeds. But if you want to look for why some Dems were willing to throw Al under the bus (while justifying it on the basis of larger strategic objectives or standing up for some ill-considered zero tolerance policy), don’t overlook the influence of a man who can afford to throw $1M at a presidential campaign. I have a feeling there might be a connection. He doesn’t have to whisper in the ears of every one of them, just one or two. Letting Al go might have been a popular move (with Cloobeck or other wealthy donors). How painful it is for congress members to raise campaign funds every day, versus getting the promise of major funds from one very wealthy and very motivated donor.
The guy seems sincere in his centrist patriotic fervor, but the outsized influence of a man like him can make certain words verboten from our elected leaders. (And yes, I know Warren also uses these words all the time. So what?)
How do we reprogram a cult with 30% in its spell, which billionaire media machines reinforce daily?
They are a cult, and the cultmakers’ organizational power is growing. Its biggest strength has been in the brainwashing mechanisms that have been set up to immerse people in right wing ideology, and program them like robots to interpret everything in the same ways. Breitbart on Sirius? Oh, yeah, that’s what we need. Pre-packaged and filtered content after net neutrality rules are reversed? Great. Expansion of Sinclair into more markets? Check. Witch hunts helpful in taking down or intimidating outspoken countervailing voices? Got them too.
This cult is led not by Jim Jones or even by Trump, but by voices coming over Fox News and Breitbart. Well funded voices, and their funding may become self sustaining if the Koch Brothers and Mercers and Adelsons get their wish to leave their massive estates tax free in the hands of ideological organizations. The mechanisms to defend the cult have been perfected, because cult members have been trained to reject all other sources of information, particularly major news media of NY Times and Washington Post.
It would be hard to overestimate the danger the country and its democracy is in. Authoritarianism and extremist ideologies are solidifying their position every day. The Resistance needs brave, loud voices in Congress and the Senate who can break through the spell. The Resistance needs methods to drive “paradigm shifts” en masse. The Resistance needs tools to stop the automatic funneling of our resources through the very channels that are holding us captive (I.e., cable bills that put FOX News on every TV in the country, for example; or oil and gas lobbyists that twist legislation and legislators to suit their needs).
Does anyone know how to reprogram a cult?
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