Big Picture American Politics

[Psy-Fi]

Supreme Court's overturning of 40-year Chevron ruling is a win for the Trump deregulatory agenda

[Lisnaholic]

One way to see the big picture in the US in recent years is to look at the Supreme Court and its apparent determination to dismantle American democracy. This, afaik, is the track record of SCOTUS:-

Protection of Voting Rights - gutted
Protection of Right to Abortion - gutted
Ruling on the basis of precedent - abandoned
Ruling on the basis of interpretation of existing texts - abandoned
Lying underoath to Congress to get yourself onto SCOTUS - now ok
Availability of Bump Stocks (so useful to maximise the death count of that mass shooting you keep meaning to do but never get round to) - promoted
Accepting Bribes when in Public Office - now ok, as long as you do the favour first, then pocket the bribe afterwards
Obstructing Justice - now ok
Presidential Immunity - near total immunity, giving the President the powers of a King. What could possibly go wrong with that?

[Guybrush]

One way to see the big picture in the US in recent years is to look at the Supreme Court and its apparent determination to dismantle American democracy. This, afaik, is the track record of SCOTUS:-

Protection of Voting Rights - gutted
Protection of Right to Abortion - gutted
Ruling on the basis of precedent - abandoned
Ruling on the basis of interpretation of existing texts - abandoned
Lying underoath to Congress to get yourself onto SCOTUS - now ok
Availability of Bump Stocks (so useful to maximise the death count of that mass shooting you keep meaning to do but never get round to) - promoted
Accepting Bribes when in Public Office - now ok, as long as you do the favour first, then pocket the bribe afterwards
Obstructing Justice - now ok
Presidential Immunity - near total immunity, giving the President the powers of a King. What could possibly go wrong with that?

From the outside, it looks completely ridiculous and like the US as a whole doesn't respect or work to uphold democracy or its ideals. It's a tragic development.

[Psy-Fi]

Supreme Court gives win to Trump, ruling he has immunity for some acts in election interference indictment


Trump seeks to overturn criminal conviction, citing Supreme Court immunity decision

[Guybrush]

Supreme Court gives win to Trump, ruling he has immunity for some acts in election interference indictment


Trump seeks to overturn criminal conviction, citing Supreme Court immunity decision

Yes. It seems like the US no longer believes in the rule of law. It's just bonkers and sad.

[Psy-Fi]

Still more news from the Supreme Court...


Supreme Court kicks gun cases back to lower courts for new look after Second Amendment ruling

[Psy-Fi]

Biden admin weighs working with the Taliban to combat ISIS-K

[Lisnaholic]

I agree with your opinion about the rulings that the current SCOTUS has been making, Guybrush:
 

From the outside, it looks completely ridiculous and like the US as a whole doesn't respect or work to uphold democracy or its ideals. It's a tragic development.

...and I left off my list another ruling, another overturning of long-established precedent: the Chevron doctrine has been reversed in what is yet another slow-burning power grab by which SCOTUS have increased their grip on everyday American life. Here's part of a PBS interview:

Host: The Chevron case is obscure, but has a huge impact. It's basically shorthand for a longstanding tradition that says, if there's an ambiguous statute, the courts defer to the agencies and their interpretation of how to read that statute because the thinking has always been that the agencies have the expertise. Today, the Supreme Court said, nope, that's no longer the case. How big a deal is this?

Guest#1: I think in the short term, it's a very, very big deal. I think that we're going to see an enormous number of challenges to government regulations in the environmental area in food safety, in the health care, health care administration. There will be many, many challenges.... in the short term, especially, it's going to create an enormous amount of instability.
.... I think we don't know how far reaching it's going to be in terms of unsettling established regulatory precedents in the clear air realm, in the preservation of clean water, a whole slew of environmental and health regulations.

Host: What is your own succinct appraisal of what this means for the average American, Lisnaholic ?

Guest#2: It means that from now on Americans will no longer be protected by the relevant experts who understand the nitty-gritty scientific details about air and water quality, medicines, safety issues in cars and in the workplace,etc. Instead a small group of corrupt right-wing nutjobs pushing a religious agenda will decide on your safety based on who has given them the biggest bribe.

Source:  https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/the-far-reaching-implications-of-the-supreme-courts-decision-curbing-regulatory-power

This is a slow-burner, imo, because it means that 40 year's worth of legal cases based on the Chevron doctrine, can now be re-litigated: protections that are taken for granted can be revoked or rewritten to favour those big-business donors to Clarence Thomas's Vacation Fund.

[Shhon]

[Psy-Fi]

Secret Service Director GRILLED To A Crisp!

[Shhon]

Biden admin weighs working with the Taliban to combat ISIS-K

I disagree with this graphic/meme but have you seen the new Taliban uniforms and the photos of them patrolling the streets?




these are recent, and I am not sure what to make of the look

[Shhon]

[Guybrush]

I disagree with this graphic/meme but have you seen the new Taliban uniforms and the photos of them patrolling the streets?




these are recent, and I am not sure what to make of the look

Looks warm.

And face coverings (if they're part of it), to me, is a way of denying responsibility / culpability by making their peeps hard to identify.. and signalling that they are likely to take advantage of this.

[Psy-Fi]

I disagree with this graphic/meme but have you seen the new Taliban uniforms and the photos of them patrolling the streets?




these are recent, and I am not sure what to make of the look

Looks to me like they're well outfitted with the American equipment that the Biden administration left behind.

[degrassi.knoll]

Yes. It seems like the US no longer believes in the rule of law. It's just bonkers and sad.

We are not a people represented by our government. The loudest and most boisterous mouth pieces are the minority.

It's a hopeless feeling for sure.