This is the kind of nonsense that happens when you replace a political party with a clown show. Let’s unpack this a bit: 1. FISA is a bill that was created in the aftermath of 9/11 to allow our intelligence agencies to better monitor communications from bad guys even if they are communicating on new communication networks and/or with US nationals. It was in place through the Trump administration.

The presumptive @GOP nominee for President is desperate for $464M (and counting) which he cannot personally access. That fact alone makes him a massive national security risk; any foreign adversary seeking to buy a President knows the price.

https://twitter.com/KlasfeldReports/status/1769730440380748067

We already lack clarity on what security was provided for the $91M bond he posted in response to the E. Jean Carroll case. That is already a plenty BFD. A guy who wants your trust and wants to be President should disclose his liabilities. nytimes.com/2024/03/08/nyr…

OK so let’s talk about the TikTok vote today. Because the amount of woefully misinformed calls and social media outreach over the last two days PROVES that we had a problem. Thread: 1. 1st, we DID NOT BAN” TikTok today. We voted to require Bytedance to sell TikTok if TikTok is going to continue to operate in the US. Bytedance is heavily influenced by the Chinese Communist Party, and does not share how they use your data, or how they promote content you see.

This clip in Politico this morning is a good reminder that for at least a generation, Washington has never really worked when the @GOP was in charge. Let's review, shall we? 1. First, just look at who they pick for Speaker of the House - 2nd in line to the Presidency. The current guy is supported by hate groups and white nationalists. splcenter.org/hatewatch/2023…

I'm proud of @GovPritzker for doing this. And cannot believe the inhumanity of @GregAbbott_TX that he made this necessary. There is no religious or moral framework I am aware of that curses the stranger in need. But that is exactly what Abbott would have us do. Thread:

https://twitter.com/MaryAnnAhernNBC/status/1745878012355018980

1. First, understand that the migrants being sent to IL and elsewhere are not "illegal". They have come here seeking asylum, have had their applications reviewed and are awaiting adjudication. During that period, they are free to travel around the country.

On this fourth anniversary of January 6th, let's have a brief discussion about the Constitution, architecture and what we collectively have to do to make sure 1/6 never happens again. Thread: 1. First, the Constitution. We talk about 3 co-equal branches, but the legislative branch was arguably the most important in our founders vision. Article 1 is the longest section of the Constitution. It's the only one directly elected by the people.

Anyone up for a nerdy #energytwitter thread on the Inflation Reduction Act, tax equity markets and international bank capital requirements? Because like Dylan, I'm about to spit hot fire. Thread: 1. So the Inflation Reduction Act - the biggest climate bill ever passed by any government ever is largely a tax incentive bill. Incentives vary by tech but the basic structure is that if you invest $100 in a qualifying project, you'll get some percentage back in lower taxes.

This week @RepMikeLevin and I introduced the Clean Electricity Transmission Acceleration Act (CETAA) to debottleneck clean energy deployment and fundamentally re-think US energy policy with 74 (!) original cosponsors. Here's why we're so excited about it. Thread: 1. First, here's a good explainer on the bill. utilitydive.com/news/house-tra…

Back by popular demand: the best books I read in 2023. All in some way inspired by the idea that our country's greatness is in our constant striving for perfection. We aren't perfect, but our greatest days of past and future were those where we pushed a little closer. Thread: 1. American Nations, Colin Woodard. The various groups who emigrated to North America prior to 1776, what they thought of each other, their uneasy alliances and how much of today’s politics emanates from those foundational, unresolved debates.

I was just evacuated from the @dccc office after the building was surrounded by protestors who had blocked all modes of ingress and egress. Grateful to Capitol Police for getting all members and staff out safely. To the protestors: PLEASE don’t do something irresponsible /1 You have the Constitutional right to peaceably assemble and protest. But blocking all entries to a building with multiple members of Congress in it, protected by Capitol Police officers who have lived through January 6 is putting you and other innocent people at risk. /2

It's hard to explain how dysfunctional the @HouseGOP is, and the degree to which their own internal divisions are superseding every normal function of government. But I'm going to try with a short story about this week in the house. Thread: 1. First: We operate on a 9/30 fiscal year but the (McCarthy) led house couldn't agree on how to fund prior to. They tried to just say "cut everything by 30%". That didn't pass. So they said "let's just fund at current levels for 45 days". That cost McCarthy his job.

“Some credit to the fall of Rome to not only the deprivation of the society and the loss of morals, but also to the rampant homosexual behavior that was condoned by the society" is remarkably not the stupidest thing Mike Johnson says in this article. cnn.com/2023/11/01/pol… The whole thing is disgustingly homophobic and intellectually vapid; this is a man who has opinions and doesn't even cherry pick facts that fit them - he cherry picks other opinions.

The New York Times deserves credit for these three paragraphs about @SpeakerJohnson . Religion is what politicians talk about when they don't want to talk about ethics and we must all insist that pols are not allowed to elide the latter with the former. Brief thread: 1. Source: "Johnson has put his faith at the center of his political career, and aligned himself with Christian nationalism." nytimes.com/2023/10/27/us/…

So apparently the @HouseGOP is going to bring a bill to the floor this week to modify the Natural Gas Act and remove the requirement that approval of LNG export terminals be in the national interest. This is a very, very bad idea. Let’s discuss: 1. First, as I noted 2 years ago, most of the recent volatility in natural gas prices has been because of our greater exports. This isn’t surprising - international markets are more volatile and an export terminal is just an arbitrage play.

https://twitter.com/seancasten/status/1450931410987069444

As we careen ever closer to a government shut down, it is worth reading this to understand that we do not have a D vs R problem; we have a House R vs House R problem - and more specifically, a Kevin McCarthy problem. americanprogress.org/article/house-… Some brief, recent history is in order. Recall that last June the @HouseGOP was threatening to default on our national debt unless the White House made concessions to their crazy fringe that they couldn't get through a normal democratic process.

Morning musing: climate change is fundamentally a problem of *energy* policy, not environmental policy. Prior to the passage of the IRA we never really framed that right - and even now, we still focus too much on the latter and too little on the former. Thread: 1. Of course climate change is an environmental problem; one need only look to Hawaii this week to see. But that's true only in the way that falling off a building is a health problem. It's the prior decisions that led to this predicament.

OK - so I want to respond to this question that popped up in my feed, which I think is asked in good faith. Why do we think that investments to reduce our fossil fuel use will be economically painful? Why do we think this is a tradeoff between the environment and economy?

https://twitter.com/aldohartman3/status/1684234898976956417

1. Suppose that a company was investing in a technology that increased workforce productivity and allowed it to generate the same revenue with fewer labor hours. Would we assume that lower labor = lower revenue or praise them for boosting labor productivity?

A few more thoughts on this tweet that I typed as I was walking off the House floor today, angry and wondering what has become of any semblance of decency among the Republican caucus:

https://twitter.com/seancasten/status/1679868721295409152

1. You know what I think of Kevin McCarthy. To recap, he is a shriveled husk of a intellectually-limited, emotionally-stunted boy who is incapable of leadership or patriotism who only got his job because no one else in his caucus had his combination of stupidity and ambition.

A few thoughts on what it means to say that the Constitution is a" living document", yesterday's Supreme Court decision and the importance of knowing our history. Thread: 1. A few months ago I hosted a discussion on the rise of the Constitutional Sheriff's movement, and the close links between right wing white nationalism, the Oath Keepers and the idea that Sheriffs are above the law. Check it out here. facebook.com/watch/live/?re…

MVP spokesperson says it will lower costs. Gas industry analyst points out (correctly) that the purpose of MVP is to sell gas at a higher price, thus raising prices in Appalachia. And EIA notes gas use will fall with rising renewables. This is US energy policy in a nutshell. Source for that article suggests that MVP utilization will be lower than forecast because of supply / demand constraints in gas delivery. I don't know enough about that to say whether right or wrong. herald-dispatch.com/news/economic-…

Because I sense this is going to be necessary, let’s have a thread about the Presidential Records Act. And to be clear, while Trump remains innocent until proven guilty, NOTHING in what he has been charged in the indictment is excused under the PRA. 1. So after the 2020 election, @Malinowski and I spent quite a bit of time focused on the PRA out of a concern that Trump might refuse to turn over documents where our adversaries had records of the ‘other end’ of those conversation and future administration would not.