We live in a society filled with politicians who make a range of really questionable decisions on a somewhat regular basis. We all watch career public servants act foolishly.
@PunchbowlNews In fact, it’s our job to document them and put their behavior in the larger context of clownery in our political system. We see so much stupid behavior that it takes a lot to surprise us.
@PunchbowlNews But this week, irrationality and silliness have reached new heights. It’s been the week for politicians to engage in a stunning level of self immolation.
Welcome to “The Week of Self-Inflicted Wounds."
@PunchbowlNews → @NYGovCuomo - In the middle of a scandal that threatens his political future, called a Democratic state legislator to yell and threaten him. The legislator promptly spoke to the press, and Cuomo had another headache on his hands.
→ Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said on Wisconsin radio that the armed insurrection at the Capitol was, in fact, not armed. Police recovered guns and other weapons. There are videos of people with bats. Five people died that day, and more afterward.
Johnson made this claim after being escorted around the Capitol Jan. 6 by heavily armed police officers. What happened on Jan. 6 was the definition of an armed insurrection.
→ Texas Gov. Greg Abbott blamed the disaster in his state on the Green New Deal. The Green New Deal has never passed Congress. The proposal itself has only been around for a couple of years.
→ Former Texas Gov. Rick Perry -- a former secretary of Energy -- suggested Texans don’t mind freezing for a few days to keep their freedom. Do we need to even put this in context?
→ And then there’s Sen. Ted Cruz, who somehow thought it wise to decamp to the Ritz-Carlton in Cancun while Texas was in a state of emergency.
Clowning by public officials -- CPO, that’s a technical term, by the way -- is getting more attention than it has in years.
Joe Biden takes up a lot less oxygen and media attention than Donald Trump did. So crazy episodes by politicians not named Trump or Biden get more airtime than they might’ve otherwise.
Now, these people aren’t dumb.They were all elected by large populations in big states. Some are, in fact, extremely smart. But, man, is this behavior something.
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Here’s a challenge: Make the argument that Donald Trump had nothing to do with the riot at the Capitol after the first few days of the impeachment trial.
@PunchbowlNews It’s damn tough.
The Democratic impeachment managers did something Wednesday that desperately needed to be done: They laid out in a thorough, comprehensive and digestible manner what Trump said and did in the months and days leading up to the bloody Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.
@PunchbowlNews They covered all aspects of Trump’s shocking behavior -- his provocative tweets, TV interviews and speeches claiming the election was being stolen; his months-long campaign to undermine the American public’s faith in the election results;
A newsy ☀️ @PunchbowlNews laying out our reporting from the Capitol on the Democrats strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats
Strengths: House Ds clearly have the better arguments. All the jurors lived through the Jan. 6 attack. The American public saw it.
@PunchbowlNews They saw Trump claiming for months that the election was stolen from him and his supporters. They saw the president of the United States suggest that his supporters should go to the Capitol.
Then they saw those protestors smash their way into the Capitol. The Democrats’ claim is all pretty clear cut. We also saw on Tuesday that the former president’s defense team is … lackluster to say the least. So Rep. Jamie Raskin’s (D-Md.) squad has the advantage here.
We spoke for a bit last night with Steve Ricchetti, counselor to President Biden, and one of the most powerful people in the White House
He laid out in detail what Biden sees as must haves in his agenda and the future
@PunchbowlNews —> Must haves in Covid relief: “The checks and the direct assistance, you know the the additional $1,400 in the checks is vitally important and was really certainly at the top of the list for us in terms of what we think is important and was a campaign commitment."
Richetti on UI: "The extension of … unemployment insurance is really, really … important.”
→ 10 Rs wrote a letter to @JoeBiden proposing a pared back Covid relief bill. Ds spent all day dismissing it as half baked and as evidence Rs were not serious.
@JoeBiden@SenatorCollins@AOC@SpeakerPelosi → As Biden huddles with Collins and Co., Democrats have to figure out how to pass a budget and assemble a Covid-relief package. They have to thread the needle between the two poles in their caucus: @SenSanders and @Sen_JoeManchin.
The politics of the r letter, as we laid out in @PunchbowlNews special edition this am
→ The Senate GOP letter comes as Democratic leaders on the hill # are preparing to move forward this week on Biden’s $1.9 trillion Covid relief package -- with or without Republican support.
Red state Democrat Sen. Jon Tester (Mont.) said this on CNN’s Inside Politics Sunday morning: “I don't think $1.9 trillion, even though it is a boatload of money, is too much money. I think now is not the time to starve the economy.”
→ It shows the political scramble around Covid relief now that Biden is in the Oval Office. Many of these GOP senators are in the Senate Sweet 16™ group. But this proposal is Republican only.
We can’t speak for every R or D in the Sweet 16™, but we can say this without a doubt: There’s frustration on the R side that @JoeBiden, @SenSchumer (N.Y.) & Ds appear headed toward taking a one-party approach to Covid relief