Seeing how GOP is about to drive off a cliff reminds me of a favorite Charles Addams cartoon

Seeing how GOP is about to drive off a cliff reminds me of a favorite Charles Addams cartoon

By Hal Brown

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Posting now on Mastodon - see right column there 

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My Version

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When I was too young to appreciate the writing in The New Yorker, which my parents subscribed to, I looked forward to each issue for the cartoons. My favorite cartoonist was Charles Addams which no doubt showed something about my personality. In fact, that when I read McCarthy's Race For Speaker Risks Upending House On Day One in HUFFPOST this morning the above cartoon came to mind.

It was one of the two Addams cartoons which I liked the best. This is the other one:

I suppose this says something about my developing personality and my somewhat morbid sense of humor. I also like the cartoons in The Hanging Book:

Click above to enlarge - I misplaced or loaned out my copy of this book and writing this story prompted my to order the last used copy they had on Amazon.

If you stumbled on this blog because you're a Charles Addams fan and haven't already watched the streaming Netflix show Wednesday I highly recommend it. It has two Golden Globe nominations and features the Christina Ricci  in a supporting role. She played the original Wednesday in the original Addams Family TV show.

But I digress...

Back to what I think the cartoon represents. The car which is about to careen off the cliff is occupied by all Republicans but you have to wonder who is driving it. I'd have to choose between Marjorie Taylor Greene and Donald Trump depending on whether we are thinking only about Congress or the GOP as a party.

Who then is this driver?

He sees the approaching semi and is aware that the Republicans who are chasing and about to overtake him, and is smart enough to take advantage of the opportunity that fate afforded him.

The Democrat's leader, President Biden, lacks the ruthlessness gene and is not a malignant narcissist, anything but, so he wouldn't even dream of sticking his arm out the window and making the universal "it's safe to pass me" gesture which he knows would result in real life in the kind of movie scene where a car speeds off a cliff and bursts into flames.

The other way to interpret the cartoon is to say the man waving driver of the car to pass and die engulfed in flames is Donald Trump and he's being chased by any and all Republicans that don't bow down to him.

The rising star of the GOP will be Jim Jordan

 The rising star of the GOP will be Jim Jordan

by Hal Brown

Archives on Right >

Why I was banned from Daily Kos

Click above toe enlarge image.

Above are the three other House committee chairs who are likely to lead investigations into Democrats. The chairs for other committees haven't been selected yet. Is there a rising star among those three? I didn't recognize a single face and unless you're from their district I bet you didn't either.

Read the entire HUFFPOST article below: \/

This is the excerpt related to what to expect from Jim Jordan's committee:

The Judiciary Committee handles oversight of the Departments of Justice and Homeland Security and issues such as crime, immigration and protection of civil liberties. It’s typically one of the most partisan committees on Capitol Hill, yet Jordan’s combative style stands out even there. The committee would be the place where any effort would begin to impeach a member of the Biden administration, as some Republicans have been proposing for Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.

Jordan’s inquiries to the administration in recent months make clear the committee will investigate the FBI’s execution of a search warrant at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence. He has also advocated for a wide-ranging look at the Biden administration’s immigration policies and the origins of COVID-19.

“All those things need to be investigated just so you have the truth,” Jordan told conservative activists last summer at a conference. “Plus that will frame up the 2024 race when I hope and I think President Trump is going to run again and we need to make sure that he wins.”

The House of Representatives has its share of unhinged grenade throwers and media hogs. Some are better known than others, but all of them are members of the Freedom Caucus, also known as the 'MAGA Squad', which incudes Paul Gosar, Marjoie Taylor Greene, Matt Gaetz, Madison Cawthorn, Louie Gohmert, Mo Brooks, Andy Biggs, Scott Perry, and  Lauren Boebert. Per the HUFFPOST article none of them seem positioned to chair any of the high profile committees, or any other committees for that matter. Obviously they will all have a chance to make their bones to the base by bloviating and bullying whenever they get a chance in whichever committees they are on.

All of them will have committee assignments, even Marjorie Taylor Greene who lost all of them under Democratic leadership. Look for the Republicans to seek revenge by doing the same thing to some or all of the members of The Squad.

Back to Jim Jordan.

I have no doubt he will make sure that he spends the next two years making the news as often as possible. The 58 year old two time NCAA wrestling champion and winner of the Medal of Freedom Award would never challenge his pal Trump for the presidency. I think his ambition is to build his brand for a future run for the presidency by spending the next two years, and should the Republican's keep control of the House, as long as he can remaining the chair of the Judiciary Committee.

Jordan's main GOP competition for the media spotlight over the next two years will be Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, and anyone else who stands a chance of winning the Republican primary. 

He is in the enviable position of never having to do anything to piss off Trump or DeSantis unless you count getting more screen time and lead headlines. 

Trump is the master of angry screaming and facial expressions.

Jordan rivals him because he has the angry yelling and finger pointing down pat too. He will beat Trump who only does it to a camera and rally audience because Jordan will be able use it against witnesses in order to try to intimidate them. 

All Jordan has to do is prove himself to the MAGAs is to be the biggest baddest thorn in President Biden's and the Democrats ass.  It won't matter that objective observers will look at his investigations and conclude that there's no there there because it will be all about the show.

Worst case Senate and House go Gop. but assume it is just the House.

Worst case Senate and House go GOP, but let's assume it is just the House. Here's what I think we should expect.

By Hal Brown

If the new House Speaker, who (hate to remind you) would be next in line for the presidency after Vice President Harris, is Kevin McCarthy as seems likely, can't control his caucus expect two years of gridlock as far as legislation and a revenge chaos clown show.

There will be a clamor among the Trumpainiacs like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Matt Goetz to impeach Biden. They may have lost gun-totting Lauren Boebert who was armed and demented. (MSNBC has yet to call the election.)

Greene and Boebert, two classy women... remember this: 

Most of the lunacy won't be on the floor of the House  itself. It will occur in committee hearing rooms where we will see, unless Kevin McCarthy can control the maniacs, efforts to impeach President Biden, Vice President Harris, and Secretary of Homeland SecurityAlejandro Mayorkas. The only cabinet secretary to ever be impeached was under President Ulysses S. Grant. This was William W. Belknap. He was impeached on March 2, 1876, for his role in the trader post scandal.

Of course there will be a major committee  investigation into Hunter Biden although even Trump pretty much gave up trying to demonize him since attacks against him didn't turn out to be a rally crowd pleaser, and they will cheer him for just about anyone he attacks.. 

In a day or two when the final results are in, unless the Democrats hold onto control of the house in which case expect a plethora of lawsuits from losing Republicans all or most of which would be denied in court. It is possible a judge could stay the results of a crucial election for short period of time.

I wouldn't be surprised if Democrats boycott all of these revenge impeachments hearings. The results will all be predetermined and nothing but a chance for the GOP loonies to showboat for Fox News which I doubt would bother giving them extensive live coverage if only because the only breaks for advertisers are during recesses. That is unless the chair decides to cut a deal with Fox and break for commercials every 10 minutes. 

Once the House impeaches, as we all have learned, the determination as to whether or not to remove someone from office goes to the Senate for trial. Since a supermajority would be needed for conviction even if the GOP had a majority of a few votes there's no way any of these people would be convicted so I can't see the Democrats presenting an extensive defense, or even a defense at all.

If they did put together a defense team composed only of members of The Squad I thought this would stick it to the Republicans. While having AOC in the hallowed hall addressing them would really burn their butts, but she's isn't an attorney. The Squad member who is a lawyer is Rashida Tlaib who ironically went to Thomas Cooley School of Law, which is the same law school Michael Cohen went to.

No matter who controls the Senate, if the GOP controls the House and it becomes useless for working on a legislative agenda this would provide plenty of time for Democrats to muster their resources to assure that all of them get reelected. 

They can focus on constituent services, fund raising, planning strategy for the next election, and in districts where they might face major opposition making sure voters understand why they should be reelected.

A few representatives from safe districts where another Democrat would easily win if they didn't run and who would make good presidential, vice presidential, governor, or Senate candidates down the road could also work to elevate their national profiles.

The Democrats have a deep bench of such candidates  but some have negatives that might make a national run difficult, in part because Trump demonized them.  Anyone on the January 6th Committee would probably be ruled out. Others who weren't on the J6 Committee. There are lots to chose from. Katie Porter comes to mind as a standout. She could turn out to be a formidable candidate for national office.

The Humpty Dumpty Trumpty Republican Party

 The Humpty Dumpty Trumpty Republican Party, 

with due credit to Mother Goose and Lewis Carroll

by Hal Brown

Click above enlarge image

Read all of Chapter Six here.

More of the above excerpt:

And only one for birthday presents, you know. There's glory for you!'

'I don't know what you mean by "glory",' Alice said.

Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. 'Of course you don't — till I tell you. I meant "there's a nice knock-down argument for you!"'

'But "glory" doesn't mean "a nice knock-down argument",' Alice objected.

'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.'

'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.'

'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master — that's all.'

If you don't recall the final demise for Humpty, here it is:

'I shouldn't know you again if we did meet,' Humpty Dumpty replied in a discontented tone, giving her one of his fingers to shake: 'you're so exactly like other people.'

'The face is what one goes by, generally,' Alice remarked in a thoughtful tone.

'That's just what I complain of,' said Humpty Dumpty. 'Your face is the same as everybody has — the two eyes, so —' (marking their places in the air with his thumb) 'nose in the middle, mouth under. It's always the same. Now if you had the two eyes on the same side of the nose, for instance — or the mouth at the top — that would be some help.'

'It wouldn't look nice,' Alice objected. But Humpty Dumpty only shut his eyes, and said 'Wait till you've tried.'

Alice waited a minute to see if he would speak again, but, as he never opened his eyes or took any further notice of her, she said 'Good-bye!' once more, and, getting no answer to this, she quietly walked away: but she couldn't help saying to herself, as she went, 'of all the unsatisfactory —' (she repeated this aloud, as it was a great comfort to have such a long word to say) 'of all the unsatisfactory people I ever met —' She never finished the sentence, for at this moment a heavy crash shook the forest from end to end.

Indeed the crash shook the forest from end to end. Democracy and truth loving Americans can only hope for such a story tale ending to befall (pun intended) Trump and his MAGA Republicans including all the Tweedledees and TweedleDums who like, in "Thorough the Looking Glass," never contradict each other, even when one of them, according to the rhyme, "agrees to have a battle". Rather, they complement each other's words.

Look closely, it does say MAGA on their caps.

Of course we have quite a few of these:

Don't get me going on who the Queen of Hearts would be. Hint: He screams a lot.

I'm not the first to compare the United States under Trump and his cult to being something even Lewis Carroll might have had trouble believing could happen in real life in his own England or the fledgling democracy across the ocean which had fought a civil war during his lifetime and was becoming one of the world's greatest democracies when he died in 1898. (He wrote Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in 1865) and its sequel Through the Looking-Glass in1871.)

I haven't given up on Elon Musk. Comic 6 is here.