Pretty simple but accurate distillation of the paradox of the MAGA movement here
What Chris Hayes is talking about at the 7min mark is exactly what I was referring to earlier about companies like Suffolk and BNSF (and global mining companies) leaving a trail of environmental disasters in their wake and having the taxpayers foot the bill. Not always monetarily either, in this case the contamination from the derailment will likely render that town unlivable for decades.
Another dangerous evangelical idiot who doesn’t give a fuck about the real world implications of his words.
Read pompous egocentric twat who wants to run for President and needs the crazies.
I always wonder what these guys who wish to privilege Biblical/historical claims think of aboriginal land claims…except I don’t really.
Possibly the most odious legacy of the Trump presidency is how these nutcases have been catapulted front and centre in US political life , and for that matter to the Supreme Court.
There’s been some polling recently on Christian Nationalism which had some eye-watering findings:
The Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), “a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to conducting independent research at the intersection of religion, culture, and public policy,” and the Brookings Institution surveyed over 6000 Americans, asking them their thoughts on these five critical statements:
“The U.S. government should declare America a Christian nation.”
“U.S. laws should be based on Christian values.”
“If the U.S. moves away from our Christian foundations, we will not have a country anymore.”
“Being Christian is an important part of being truly American.”
“God has called Christians to exercise dominion over all areas of American society.”
“Researchers found that more than half of Republicans believe the country should be a strictly Christian nation, either adhering to the ideals of Christian nationalism (21%) or sympathizing with those views (33%),” NPR says, reporting on PRRI’s survey.
But overall, just 29% of Americans hold Christian nationalist beliefs."
Just … that’s almost one in three !
I moved to America in 96 and I dont see much change here. Bush gets credit in some circles for the careful way he tried to position his wars as not being against Islam per se. But yet he and his people continually positioned their actions as being justified as being what god wanted. It was fucking insane. I couldnt believe either what I was hearing or the complete lack of shock of others to hearing it. To portray any war in that way is astonishing. To do so in the middle east…
There were a few slip-ups referring to it as a ‘crusade’ against terrorism…
Precisely. Given how well crafted their racist dog whistles were, when they can say something while technically saying something else, I always felt that was what he was doing over the war. Which is why I reject the praise he gets for being clear it was not a war on Islam.
There’s probably very little doubt that Blair felt he was doing God’s work too. His mantra was ‘it’s the right thing to do’ (nudge nudge , wink wink) … although , coming to think about it , it was used to justify just about any , and all of his policies. It’s still the same thing though with both these men , and others like Pompeo now , the same religious certainty that allows these type of people to embark upon the most madcap of endeavours with barely a pause for thought.
Info on the Georgia Special Grand Jury has now been released. It is mostly still under wraps, but what we now know is that they concluded there is no evidence of the electoral issues Trump’s case was built on. It is also clear that while we dont yet know who, it has recommended criminal charges be brought both for the actions being investigated and for perjury.
Trump, in his usual stupidity, has responded claiming it vindicates him.
Please let one of them be Lindsey Graham. 
The head of the special grand jury has been speaking out it. She is making everyone nervous that she’s goign to cause problems, but the two things she has said were that 1) there are lot of people who are going to be indicted, and 2) that when asked if Trump was trouble that it “was not rocket science” to imagine who was in shit 
Guaranteed this is the weirdest shit I am going to see today…
Whole thing is weird.
There should be clear guidelines about giving interviews. i.e. not allowed to do it.
And further back in the process, there should be a better vetting process to have more substantial people involved in the grand jury.
never underestimate how smart Trump is. all he needed to do, was to manipulate ONE juror to gum up the whole works. it’s gonna be a train wreck and he’ll walk scot-free again.
I think people are reading far too much into the significance of what she had to say. (Just like Trump’s lawyers are trying to make a big deal of it.)
This jury isn’t the one who’s going to make the decision to indict , and nothing she had to say could possibly influence their deliberations.
Stay cool everybody , the whole thing is proceeding nicely. 