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Teri Kanefield Profile picture
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6 Jan, 8 tweets, 4 min read
This is also Merrick Garland's argument and approach: Fight authoritarianism with rule of law, not more authoritarianism.

Save democracy with more democracy, not less.

h/t @TWLadyGrey

1/
From @magi_jay's essay ⤵️

Some of Garland's critics see rule of law and commitment to the slow, grinding proceduralism of democracy as weakness.

Some can conceive of no possible motive other than corruption. "Garland must be bought off! Nobody can be so weak."

2/
It is also the approach of @BarackObama which makes sense because, as @magi_jay points out, this is the approach of the Democratic Party.

Obama says the cure to an ailing democracy is more democracy (by which he means civic engagement).

3/
Sometimes I think there's a strong appeal to authoritarianism. Things happen fast! No need to compromise!

More optimistic: people who (maybe without realizing it) want the Democrats to abandon democracy don't understand how democracy works.


4/
"Merrick Garland is too weak for the job" and "Democrats are too weak" strike me as a variation of "Democrats need to fight like Republicans."

I got so tired of hearing that, I recorded a video addressing it. (There is a transcript on my blog).


5/
I have a sneaking suspicion that people who drop comments like this haven't actually read the article I'm quoting.

Tsk, tsk, tsk.

6/
I think what helps is understanding that the threat of right-wing extremism will not go away. The battle to keep a democracy is constant. We're fighting the exact same enemies that MLK, Jr., Susan B. Anthony and others fought.

7/
The mistake is thinking that there is a solution that will make the threat of right-wing extremism go away once and for all.

If you think this course you feel irritated with the Democrats for not doing that Thing that will solve the problem.


8/

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More from @Teri_Kanefield

Teri Kanefield Profile picture
6 Jan
Here's why I think the answer is yes:

In its docs, the J6 committee said they're coordinating with other agencies to avoid duplication of effort.

We know they're coordinating with GA, which confirms (1).

In the exec. privilege docs, we see they have access to that evidence.
Randall also answered the question, so I'll drop his answer here:
I hesitate to speculate about the motives for some of the attacks, but I have noticed that some accounts achieved fame by attacking Trump. There is something appealing about attacking and being the "opposition" party and going after those in power.
Read 5 tweets
Teri Kanefield Profile picture
5 Jan
"The actions we have taken thus far will not be our last."

"We are committed to holding all perpetrators accountable . . ."

"We build investigations by laying a foundation. We resolve more straightforward first because they provide the evidentiary foundation for later crimes."
"All investigations are guided by the same norms, even when (and especially when) the circumstances we face are not normal."

In other words, rule of law is more important now.

(Who else has been saying these things? 🤔)
Now he's talking about the threats that members of Congress received. Shocking.

"These threats are permeating so many parts of our life we risk them becoming routine if we don't stop them."

"Dangerous for people's safety and deeply dangerous for our democracy."
Read 5 tweets
Teri Kanefield Profile picture
3 Jan
Both, and more.

This happens to be what I wrote about this week on my blog.

What is the point of all of these (losing) lawsuits and challenges?

My conclusion: It's not so much about delay as it is about undermining the legitimacy of government.

1/
It seems to me that these filings serve multiple purposes for Trump, including:

They keep his base fired up, they help with fundraising, and they show that he’s a “fighter.”

They help seed right-wing talking points.

2/
The "fighter" mentality:

When Nixon resigned, people like Manafort and Stone were frustrated and angry. They wanted Nixon to keep fighting.

They thought he was driven from office by a biased liberal media.

Well, now they have their own media.

3/
Read 9 tweets
Teri Kanefield Profile picture
2 Jan
This is precisely the confusion people have.

Yes, this was reported from an anonymous source in the press. Anonymous sources reported in the press is not admissible evidence in court.

(Talking about the reporting that Trump watched the coverage of the insurrection on T.V.)

1/
To bring charges (or convict) prosecutors need evidence that is admissible in court.

Of course, the committee is not a law enforcement body and can't bring charges, but they've said they are coordinating with other agencies to avoid duplication of effort.

Anyway . . .

2/
People see reporting in the newspaper and say, "See there is evidence! Why haven't these people been charged yet!"

Or, "ho, hum, I read about that in the newspaper, so I know he's guilty, so what the heck is taking so long?"

3/
Read 13 tweets
Teri Kanefield Profile picture
1 Jan
The full DOJ statement is here: justice.gov/usao-dc/one-ye…

It's worth reading.

Also, no, Garland is not going to do what Comey did in 2016 and talk about ongoing investigations.
"The Department of Justice’s resolve to hold accountable those who committed crimes on Jan. 6, 2021, has not, and will not, wane."
justice.gov/usao-dc/one-ye…

It's what Garland has been saying since last March.

It's the most you'll get because the DOJ is run by rule-of-law people.
And people got so used to Trump telling the DOJ what to do, that they think Biden should do the same.

A pillar of democracy is prosecutorial independence.

Read 4 tweets
Teri Kanefield Profile picture
30 Dec 21
It seems to me that these filings serve multiple purposes for Trump:

🔹They keep his base fired up
🔹They help with fundraising
🔹They show that he's a "fighter"
🔹They help seed right-wing talking points
I'm arguing against the Twitter Talking Point that these are primarily delay tactics.

These cases are going very quickly and are not holding up the committee.

People said the same thing about the election lawsuits, which delayed nothing.

The truth is much more nuanced.

If everyone shouts "DELAY TACTICS" each time Trump files something in court, people miss much of what's happening.

The election lawsuits did not create any delays, but they served their purposes.
Read 18 tweets

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