Last Day Of Goodbyes For Rosalynn

Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter was laid to rest in Plains, Georgia, today. "In his eulogy, Pastor Tony Lowden noted Mrs. Carter’s famous competitive streak," The Washington Post reports. "He joked, to laughter from the church, that she would say of heaven: 'Jimmy tried to beat me here. I got here first. I've won the prize. Tell him I beat him, and I’m waiting on him.'" We cats PURR.

Best Funeral Moment Ever

"I last interviewed President and Mrs. Carter together in July 2021. I asked them how they thought President Biden was doing early in his term. Mrs. Carter said simply, it's a great relief to have him in office." (Judy Woodruff said this in her Rosalynn eulogy today with Moose & Squirrel sitting right in front of her! We cats PURR.)

Sensory Overload

By Baxter

Like so many other traditions at the White House, the idea of giving each year's Christmas decorations a theme was Jacqueline Kennedy's. "Magic, Wonder and Joy" is the theme for 2023 — celebrating the holiday through the eyes of small humans. Hundreds of volunteers worked their asses off this weekend, putting up trees, hanging ornaments, stringing lights, and, we assume, trying not to snack off a huge Executive-Mansion-shaped gingerbread house. Whew!

To be honest, from the photos we've reviewed, it all seems overdone. (Sorry, Jill.) But at least there are no blood-red "Handmaid's Tale" trees that caused such a stir in 2018 and which Moose & Squirrel was forced to lamely defend. And no very un-First-Ladylike comments like "Who gives a fuck about Christmas?" Thank heaven for small favors.

So for this post, we're going with a photo of Willow the White House cat instead. But Team Biden deserves kudos for their tasteful display in honor of Rosalynn Carter. "Her ground-floor portrait is draped in black and has two amaryllis arrangements, a candle and a note of condolence in front of it," The Washington Post reports.

We also hear that Moose & Squirrel will attend Mrs. Carter's tribute at The Carter Center in Atlanta tomorrow — along with Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, the Bidens, and Vice President Harris and Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff. In that company, she will be the least-important person there. We cats HISS and PURR at the same time.

Rosalynn Carter, Age 23

 

We'd never seen this photo before, but it is adorable. We cats PURR.

One Of Our Political Parties Is Not Serious

By Sniffles

Republicans have spent the last few days screaming about a nonexistent terror attack at the US-Canada border (it was a couple in their 50s, speeding in their very expensive Bentley), while one of their faves, George Santos, is threatening to out fellow Congressmen who, he says, drink too much and sleep with lobbyists. Republicans have also decided they really, really don't like Taylor Swift.

Meanwhile, the Biden Administration has been working hard on a ceasefire and exchange of hostages and prisoners between Israel and Hamas. With help from the Qatari and Egyptian governments, the US brokered an agreement that resulted in 24 hostages coming out of Gaza yesterday, with more being released right now. (It teetered a bit in uncertainty, but a call from Dark Brandon got things moving again.) Trucks of food, water and other supplies are entering Gaza.

Good job, Team Biden. As a tweep we follow said, "Biden is the reason any part of Gaza still stands. Biden is behind the humanitarian pause and the hostage/prisoner exchanges. Biden has been the one cautioning Israel to go slow, minimize civilian deaths, follow international law."

There really is only one choice next year. Vote for Biden-Harris and other Democrats. That will make us cats PURR.

Republicans Hope For The Worst

By Hubie and Bertie

We cats have been in Canada for almost a week — but even so, we received a number of messages from friends about whether we were at the border crossing that closed today due to a flaming car crash.

The answer is nope to everyone — but scratchy kisses for worrying about us. Niagara Falls is very far west of our usual St-Bernard-de-Lacolle crossing, which connects Interstate 87 in eastern New York to Quebec's Route 15. Still and all, the freaky accident at Niagara Falls makes one wonder: What was that all about?

Turns out the FBI has declared it a non-terrorist event. But that didn't stop Republicans and MAGAts from leaping to conclusions. In fact, they seemed to want it to be a terrorist attack, so they could accuse the Biden Administration of fucking up. Sorry, guys.

Ted Cruz, Kari Lake, Jason Chaffetz and numerous other Republicans immediately took to Twitter to declare it Joe Biden's failure to secure the border. Now that it's clearly not, we assume they will not even try to walk it back. As one of our favorite tweeps put it:

"It is so disgusting how, as long as a Democrat is in the White House, Republicans ache for the absolute worst things to befall the nation: economic recession, terrorist attacks, border invasions, stock market crashes, wars, skyrocketing prices — you name it, they’re cheering for it. Gross." We cats agree, and we HISS.

JFK 60

 

Seems like only yesterday we were marking the 50th anniversary of losing our 35th President. Here's 44 paying his respects. We cats PURR.

Cat Fights! GOP vs. GOP

By Miss Kubelik

If you watch cable TV news, you've been steeped in gloom-and-doom-for-Democrats coverage that focuses mainly on polls. We cats aren't sure what these polls are, or if they're surveying the right people, and/or asking them the right questions. We only know that the talking heads love to stoke Democratic hand-wringing with them.

Thanks, but no thanks.

Ever since Benedict Donald won the fluke election of 2016, he's been losing. Has anyone noticed that? Democrats won in 2018, won in 2020, staved off a "red wave" in 2022, and have won numerous special and state-level elections across the country, thanks to Dobbs. Democrats have also turned out a bunch of "Moms for Liberty" and other fascists at the county and school-board levels. In short, people seem to understand when their rights are being threatened.

But the gloom-and-doom continues. Joe Biden is too old, they say, and Trump is leading in key states, and nobody likes Kamala Harris. Even though we keep ruling at the ballot box — including just two weeks ago. Democrats cleaned up in Virginia, re-elected a Governor in deep-red Kentucky, and made a respectable showing in Mississippi. And Ohioans voted overwhelmingly for choice.

Tonight, we're happy to say the success continues, with news that the Democratic Party nearly doubled Republican fundraising in October: $13.1 million to $7.1 million. How can this possibly be, if things are as dire as the punditheads insist?

We'll tell you how. Aside from the facts that Democrats have accomplishments to point to and a winning message, it's kind of hard to see how Republicans can raise any money when they're engaged in fratricide. Every time we turn around, the GOP is consumed with infighting — with Ron DeSantis's PAC being just the latest example.

We Democrats have our own internal scraps, as the media will gleefully remind you. But they're nothing compared to what Republicans are doing to each other. Eyes on the prize, everyone. We cats PURR.

Happy 81st, Dark Brandon

Unlike a certain Former Guy, DB knows how to poke fun at himself. Happy birthday, sir! We cats PURR.

The Case For Rosalynn

 

"She attended Cabinet meetings and was only the second First Lady to testify before Congress...She took a professional approach to the role, exemplified by the fact that she was the first Presidential spouse to carry a briefcase to the office on a daily basis."

—Kate Anderson Brower, First Women

When The Walk-Down-Pennsylvania-Avenue Tradition Began

 

It's not the most important thing to remember about Rosalynn Carter, but we really liked her Inauguration Day coat (in Carter green) — and, of course, the fabulous boots! We cats PURR.

Brilliant.

By Zamboni

We cats don't get anti-Semitism. So much of what we admire and enjoy is thanks to Jewish people that we have no idea why anyone would not like them. George Gershwin? Rhapsodic. Carl Reiner? "Coast-to-Coast Big Mouth" alone would put him in the TV Hall of Fame. Jonas Salk? A genius who saved countless lives. Sacha Baron Cohen? Sexy in real life. Leonard Cohen — please. We love Cohens.

Which means that since October 7, world events have been very difficult to watch. And talk about. So we haven't talked about them much, at least not in the blogosphere.

Which brings us to a confession: We've been frankly shocked at the lack of global sympathy for Israel after the October 7 attacks. Do we not have enough information about what happened on that awful day?

Hamas's massacre of Israelis last month was horrific and disturbing. Although we haven't seen the videos shown to journalists and other selected audiences, we know that it was the stuff of nightmares. (We agree with Alfred Hitchcock that the most terrifying thing is that which you don't see — so thanks, but no thanks, on viewing whatever footage is available.) And despite Israel's hammering of Gaza, we don't see how a ceasefire would be the solution, since there already was one that Hamas violated on the day of the attacks. As Hillary Clinton and others have pointed out, another ceasefire would just allow Hamas to regroup, and would do nothing to get the hostages back.

So we were left with this conundrum: Is the lack of sympathy really all about Netanyahu? We could get behind that — we loathe him with the heat of a thousand suns. We pine daily for Israel to get rid of him, and yet we're not sure how they could do that. So we cling to polls that show that three-quarters of Israelis want him gone. Please, folks, don't let him prolong the war just to stay in power.

But, hey! Is there a potential breakthrough tonight? We're hearing news of a tentative Israel-Hamas deal to pause the war for five days to free some of the hostages — brokered by the US. This is obviously why President Biden refused to go into details with braying journalists during his post-China-summit presser. As he pointed out in a thoughtful op-ed in The Washington Post, "The United States is the essential nation." And clearly the essential dude is leading us now.

Just as we don't get anti-Semitism, we cats will never understand why people doubt Dark Brandon. He always delivers. And he'll keep doing so as long as we have his back. So get ready for 2024, folks — we, and the world, just might be okay if we put in the work. We cats PURR.

(IMAGE: Carl Reiner and Mary Tyler Moore in "Coast-to-Coast Big Mouth," The Dick Van Dyke Show, 1965)

Remarkable Rosalynn

By Baxter

Today we all received the news that former First Lady Rosalynn Carter has entered home hospice care. Since her husband, the former President, entered hospice six months ago and is still with us (and recently celebrated his 99th birthday), our first thought was whether Mrs. Carter would go the distance as well. But you never know. Typical hospice patients die within a week of entering the program.

So as we wait for any updates — and think warm, furry thoughts — we cats would like to say a few things about Mrs. Carter.

First, to all the TV talking heads out there — whether you're too young or an older idiot who should know better — please pronounce Mrs. Carter's first name correctly. It's ROSE-a-lynn. Thank you.

Second, Rosalynn Carter is not only a former First Lady but also one of the world's great humanitarians. 

For more than 40 years now, she and President Carter have tirelessly worked on the priorities of The Carter Center: waging peace, fighting disease and building hope. They have empowered people to improve their own lives, and have constantly sought to find solutions to problems that have most people throwing up their hands in defeat. They've eradicated a bunch of awful diseases that none of you have heard about — and trust us, you don't want the gory details. The Carters have saved literally millions of lives.

And of course they've monitored 115 elections in 40 countries, and promoted democracy and peace around the world.

And here's the other thing we want to say about Rosalynn Carter. She's a hell of a politician, and an intrepid campaigner. In 1976, she criss-crossed the country on Jimmy's behalf, staying in people's homes, canvassing, holding town halls, and doing the kind of bone-tiring retail politics that make people faint now. The Nancy Reagan model of staying glued to her husband's side and listening adoringly to every speech was not for her. More political spouses should follow her example.

Today, people would call Rosalynn a badass. The term didn't exist back in the '70s, but that's what she is. Bet she'd be proud to claim it. We cats salute her, and we PURR.

(IMAGE: Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter conduct Carter Center election monitoring in Nepal in 2008.)

UPDATE, November 19: Mrs. Carter died in Plains, Georgia, this afternoon at 2:10 pm. The world is a less-lovely place today.

Who Knew Atlantic City Could Be Lavish?

By Sniffles

Somebody please break it to Elise "Elsie" Stefanik that her 2022 golden boy George Santos won't be running for re-election next year. George's announcement came hard on the heels of the House Ethics Committee's 56-page report on his nefarious doings — using campaign money for "lavish" trips to Atlantic City (whut?), Botox treatments, and porn, among other things. Are these the family values that the Republican Party used to champion? What a difference a Trump makes.

One guess is that Santos's announcement was meant to buy off enough GOP votes to forestall a two-thirds vote to expel him immediately. Since we love hanging the Santos albatross around New York Republicans' necks, we're rooting for George.

But after that — what's next? Will Santos write a tell-all book, and rat out all the closeted gays on the Christian right? Or maybe a children's book? Will he get a Speakers Bureau or Newsmax commentator gig? Start a phony foundation to support "diversity" in the GOP, and pay himself $1 million? Join the faculty at Liberty University? Or serve as Ambassador to Brazil in the second Trump Administration?

(We threw that last one in for laughs.)

No predictions here, unless it's book-writing: Like Hitler, he'll probably have to do it from jail. We cats PURR.

Chickenhawk

By Hubie and Bertie

If you happened to catch the near-throwdown in a recent Senate hearing — you know, the one that made committee chair Bernie Sanders shout "You're a United States Senator!" — here is a photo of Oklahoma Republican Markwayne Mullin that was taken on January 6, 2021, and which has now gone viral.

Mullin may have tried to seem tough going up against Teamsters President Sean O'Brien yesterday, but as you can see, on January 6 he was crouching in fear of the Trump-unleashed MAGA rioters who were storming the doors. He definitely had reason to worry about what the mob would do. But they're the same MAGAts whose pockets he's fleecing with fundraising appeals today. 

Yep — he's wasted no time trying to rake in a few bucks for his cringeworthy attempt to "fight" O'Brien. (In addition to crouching, he's been known to stand on boxes so he can appear taller during debates. A Mullin version of Ron DeSantis's shoe lifts, one imagines.)

Odds are that this picture would never have become widely known had Mullin not thrown such a hissy fit yesterday. Nobody knows who the hell he is, even with the ridiculous name of "Markwayne," and no Republican nominee is ever going to pick a running mate from Oklahoma. So what ladders is he hoping to climb? Why make such a scene? Sure, maybe he's raising some money, but is that worth becoming a figure of ridicule? Somebody ask Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who's having a similarly bad week. We cats PURR.

McCarthy Wants A Piece Of Burchett, Mullin Wants A Piece Of O'Brien, And None Of Them Are As Funny As "Seinfeld"

Fisticuffs almost broke out in both the House and the Senate today, thanks to Republicans. (Journalists, take note — this is a GOP thing, not a Congressional one.) Cat fights can often amuse, but when there are so many pressing problems to deal with, they wear a little thin. Please, America, vote the Republican clowns out next year. We cats HISS.

Is This How The Republican Party Self-Destructs?

By Miss Kubelik

"Ronna Romney" said on the Sunday shows today that the GOP that she chairs will support Benedict Donald as their 2024 nominee, even if a jury convicts him of a crime. There have been suggestions that a conviction (or two, or whatever) would send Trump's poll numbers into the toilet — and the Republicans to sure defeat next year.

But do you think the party will be able to dethrone their convicted criminal in favor of someone else, like Nikki Haley or Rhonda Santis or even, resurrected from the dead by a desperate party establishment, Mike Pence? Guess again: The delegate selection process has been — you've heard this term before — rigged in favor of Trump.

Over the past several years, many state GOPs have changed their primary rules to add more winner-take-all contests and to require candidates to earn higher percentages of the vote to get any delegates at all. It's another crucial aspect of the Trumpification of the Republican Party — but because it involves the eye-glazing, Inside Baseball minutiae of delegate selection and not sexy poll results and fundraising hauls, lazy journalists tend to pass it by.

Trump himself has called state party chairs to harangue them about these rule changes, because they tend to favor front-runners (like him). Recent examples include California, which this summer trashed its more-equitable, delegate-selection-by-Congressional-district system, and Massachusetts, which just switched to winner-take-all.

As the Associated Press reports, "Election experts say it appears few other [Republican] campaigns have been able to match Trump's years-long work. 'They've been asleep at the switch,' election lawyer Benjamin Ginsberg said." So the die is cast. It's difficult to imagine any of those ultra-MAGA delegates being willing to budge on Donald, even (or perhaps especially) if he's being hauled off to the hoosegow.

What might that conviction be? Well, Judge Cannon seems to be dragging her feet on the classified documents case, but think J6 in Washington, DC (March 4), and the RICO trial in Georgia (TBD, but moving forward). Here's a master calendar for handy reference.

With all this, and the reality that many primary states have sore-loser laws — meaning candidates who come up short can't turn around and access the ballot as, say, independents — the GOP is stuck. We live for the day that they self-immolate, in the hope that MAGA splinters off into irrelevancy and that maybe, somehow, a more reasonable party can eventually rise from the ashes. Because our democracy requires a healthy two-party system, that would make us cats PURR.

(IMAGE: Mike Peters)

Forbes Shows The Way

By Zamboni

Once again, The New York Times fails.

It's not just that their style guide is stick-up-the-butt and sniffy. Whoever writes their headlines (and yes, we know reporters don't) have taken soft-pedaling to a new art.

It seems kind of significant that Benedict Donald would use Nazi language and imagery in a speech (and social media post) this weekend. Goebbels, Hitler and the rest of the gang never shied from calling Jews and other people they deemed undesirable as "vermin," so Trump repeating that term got a lot of folks' attention. Let's also pause to note that the genocide in Rwanda back in 1994 was ginned up by radio-show hosts that called the minority Tutsis "cockroaches." Comparing people to harmful or disliked animals or insects is never not destructive.

So what did the Times, with its large Jewish readership in New York, do? They covered the story with a headline saying that Trump had taken his Veterans Day speech "in a different direction." Good God.

After many screams of outrage, they half-assedly "fixed" it with "Trump Promises to 'Root Out' the Left." Hmmm, better, but not great.

Forbes got it right: "Trump Compares Political Foes to 'Vermin' on Veterans Day — Echoing Nazi Propaganda."

We don't believe that with his sky-high negatives, Benedict Donald will see the inside of the Oval Office again. But we do worry when journalists appear to do his PR work for him. We cats HISS.

GOP Shipwreck

By Baxter

Today is the anniversary of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald in 1975. Which means it would be very appropriate to comment on current political disasters. After all, the legend lives on, right?

Let's contemplate the future of the Republican Party. Popular elections are going against them. With a week to go before the government shuts down, their Preacher of the House is not in Washington — he's in France instead, giving a speech to the right-wing "World Freedom Initiative." The House is voting on stupid things like reducing Pete Buttigieg's and Karine Jean-Pierre's salary to 1$. So dumb.

These are not serious people. They have already admitted that they don't have enough "evidence" to impeach Joe Biden on, but trust them to come up with some more ridiculous nonsense to throw sand in the gears. Because the extreme MAGA Republicans don't believe in government. Not as long as, in any way, it benefits citizens who don't look or sound like them.

In short, they're racist pigs. And that's the story behind most of the electoral news we're seeing these days. If you see people pushing back against the popular vote on stuff like women's reproductive rights or trans rights, just know that that's uncomfortable white people, disrespecting democracy. We cats HISS.

Manchin Gives Us Our Marching Orders

By Sniffles

Hearing the news today about Joe Manchin reminded us a little bit of how we felt after Dobbs. As in, well, okay, that's out of the way. A great weight has been lifted.

That's because we're good Democrats — and for years, we've been declining to slam a member of the team. It's just not very productive. Same with Kyrsten Sinema in Arizona, who became an Independent but still caucuses with us. And with a Senate majority as slim as ours is, we took a pass on carping and left the cat-herding to Chuck Schumer.

So yes, Joe Manchin was a jerk, but on Capitol Hill, he was our jerk — and will stay that way until he leaves office. Still, it's a relief to know that the DSCC won't have to pour a ton of money into trying to keep him, which was going to be tough anyway. Manchin may have hinted at a run for President today, but he must have known he was toast against Jim Justice — current Republican Governor, millionaire, and owner of The Greenbrier (plus one very ugly English bulldog).

Is the seat gone, then? Probably, but maybe not, if we can find an interesting candidate. Why shouldn't Democrats stop trying to appeal to West Virginia Trumpster types, and instead try to find a pro-choice badass who respects bodily autonomy? Somebody who could run as a rural Democrat who's not going to take advantage of folks the way moneybags Justice does? Surely that person is out there somewhere.

Meanwhile, there's no time to waste — we have a tighter Senate map and great Democrats to support. If you're thinking of donating some dollars tonight, consider Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Jon Tester of Montana, and Ruben Gallego of Arizona. If you're looking to flip a seat, there's Colin Allred in Texas and Gloria Johnson in Tennessee. We cats PURR.

Nice Work

By Hubie and Bertie

The hapless Republicans are holding another stupid and pointless primary debate in Miami tonight (Benedict Donald is skipping it). But Team Biden isn't letting a nifty opportunity pass by. They're putting up Dark Brandon signs all around the Adrienne Arsht Center as a reminder that the GOP — stuck with Trump and their wildly unpopular belief in forced birth — is in deep, deep electoral doo-doo. We cats PURR.

Oh, What A Night

By Miss Kubelik

We cats had to search long and hard to find bad news for Democrats last night. Here are our takes on election results from around the country.

Kentucky — Andy Beshear's victory is such a repudiation of Mitch McConnell. Cameron was his guy (a former Mitch legal counsel). He was the candidate who was going to prove that Mitch wasn't a racist, that Republicans are best for Black people (at least, for those with a lot of ambitions and white wives). And Beshear even flipped Letcher County in Appalachia, a county Benedict Donald won in 2020 by almost 60 points.

Virginia — How delicious that Glenn Youngkin doubled down on an abortion ban right before Election Day. It just reminded Virginia voters of their buyers' remorse from 2021: Back then, they didn't think Glenn would do all the crap on the Republican agenda, and when he did, they said, "OMG, we made a mistake! He's making Transvaginal Bob McDonnell look reasonable!" So now, Youngkin joins Ron DeSantis in the Idiots In Silly Vests Doing Badly Club. What's gonna happen to all that Youngkin swag that the Republican elites were stockpiling for 2024?

(Special shout-out to all the Biden-Harris-endorsed Democratic candidates who won — and not just in NoVa, where all those federal employees live. Seems like an embrace from POTUS and VPOTUS is worth something after all.)

Ohio — Have Republicans in red states figured out that they might need abortions too? Not only did Buckeye State voters enshrine reproductive rights in the state constitution last night, but 18 counties that voted for Benedict Donald in 2020 joined them. "I don't like the idea of old white men telling me what I should be able to do," one Republican woman in Springfield, Ohio, told The Washington Post. "They've never been in that position." You got that right, sister. GOP Governor Mike DeWine and his forced-birth cronies will no doubt attempt to end-run the voters' will. At this point, we kind of hope he tries.

Mississippi — Tate Reeves may have won, but he won ugly. At least nine Hinds County polling places — home to the state capital, Jackson (nearly 83 percent Black) — ran out of ballots with thousands still in line to vote. A circuit judge refused to keep polls open until 9 pm. This is just out-and-out voter suppression, and it's the only way Republicans know they can win.

But even though Brandon Presley lost, he pushed Reeves hard — harder than any Republican has probably experienced in that godforsaken state. He made Medicaid expansion and access to healthcare a real issue. He convinced Black voters to embrace a moderate white Democrat. And most important, he made national Republicans spend money in Mississippi.

New Jersey — Whut? Yes! Although the Garden State wasn't at the top of any talking head's nattering list, Republicans were eviscerated in Trenton last night as well. "They had a pretty friendly map," reports the New Jersey Monitor, "yet the GOP couldn't gain one seat in the legislature. Instead, Democrats gained five in the Assembly and held onto their 25-15 majority in the Senate." The big shocker was a Democratic Assembly win in deep-red Ocean County. The Republicans thought they could ride hatred of gays and trans kids to victory, and they were deeply wrong. We cats PURR.

Jenifer Lewis: "Get Your Ass Out And Vote"

Twitter is not the real world, but we're seeing encouraging reports from the field (like Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, and even Mississippi) about high turnout today. We cats voted early in New York, so we've been able to spend today surfing around for fun stuff. This says it all. We cats PURR.

Trump In Court Today

What's that old saying about a picture being worth a thousand words? Still true. We cats PURR.

(IMAGE: Bill Bramhall, New York Daily News)

"Every New York Times Poll Feels Like This"

 

(Of course, it would be better if the left side said "Everyone gets a kitten," but you can't have everything. We cats PURR.)

Two Days Away!

By Zamboni

Lots of pushback on today's New York Times/Siena poll that showed Benedict Donald winning in key states in 2024. Here's one take on it from a favorite political prognosticator:

"This poll is so laughably unrealistic, you can safely dismiss it even without diving into the specific methodology. But those who have dived in have quickly figured out that the poll dramatically under-samples key voting groups, and appears to massively over-sample people who didn’t even vote in 2020. The poll also claims that Trump is outperforming with younger voters — a demographic that overwhelmingly despises him."

So maybe it's good that our Sunday Times didn't get delivered today. Guess we didn't miss anything!

What we want to be sure not to miss, however, are some key races that are taking place this Tuesday, not 12 months from now. 

Importantly, Virginia. The political media always set Virginia up as a bellwether for next year's national mood, which sometimes applies and sometimes doesn't. For example, Republican Glenn Youngkin won the Governorship in 2021, but it didn't portend a massive red wave in the 2022 midterms. In 2019, however, the anti-Trump vote that turned out presaged 2020's, when Joe Biden racked up a seven-million-vote margin.

Still and all, we don't want to give the awful cable news talking heads any GOP victories to rub in our furry faces. So, let's all pitch in and throw some dollars Virginia Democrats' way.

Delegate Danica Roem (above) is running for State Senate. If you'd like to donate to her campaign, click here. Click here to give to Virginia House Democrats, and here to donate to Virginia Senate Dems.

As for our 2023 wild-card race — one in a deep-red state that shows tantalizing possibilities — we're picking Brandon Presley, who's running for Governor of Mississippi. Incumbent Republican Tate Reeves is corrupt and unpopular. And, of course, Presley is related to Mississippi's most famous native son. So we've decided to say "Let's Go, Brandon" (for real) to the tune of a few bucks. You can do the same here.

And heck, if you feel like contributing to Biden-Harris one year out, we won't stop you. Click here. We cats PURR.

15 Years Ago

There's been a lot of commentary about how the Trumpiness of today's politics traces back to white resentment of Barack Obama's presidency. We won't argue. But take a moment to relive the feeling on Election Night 2008 — and think about where we go from here. We cats PURR.

No Mom Privileges

 

By Baxter

Ivanka Trump wanted to "pause" her testimony in the New York civil fraud case next week – because the trial is taking place "in the middle of a school week," and that presumably would be a hardship for her.

Ivanka was told to take a hike.

There is nothing more satisfying to us cats than seeing Trumpsters either called to testify for Trump's crimes or given sentences that they deserve for following Trump's orders. In Ivanka's case, her appeal was rejected, and she was ordered to appear next week. In the other cases, well, consider today's sentencing of Federico Klein, a former Trumpy State Department official who has been hauled off to the hoosegow for 70 months for his participation in the January 6 insurrection. That's almost six years, kids. Let the sentences commence.

Ivanka's pleas — that she was a mom who had "school week" responsibilities — didn't fly. What, she doesn't have nannies, and sitters, and multiple staff? Surely she's not tethered to her kittens the way a Momma cat is. (Besides, she just attended a Kardashian event without such domestic encumbrances.)

Ivanka is an entitled piece of offal. We look forward to her testimony next week, because — as we all know — the Trumps have already lost. The question is by how much. We cats PURR.

English Lesson

 

By Sniffles

Here is Representative Jamie Raskin's response to Liar, Cheat and Fraud George Santos, who sent this egregious note to every member who voted against expelling him from Congress.

In addition to his spelling and grammar corrections, Raskin added:

"I appreciate your note and only wish someone had proofread it first.

"Meantime, you should apologize to the people of New York for all of your lies and deceit. I know you must have thought you could get away with it all in the party of Trump, but the truth is resilient.

"P.S. It's not shameful to resign."

We cats are climbing up into Congressman Raskin's lap and making biscuits. And PURRING like crazy.

No Censure, No Expulsion

By Hubie and Bertie

We cats are no fans of Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), but we have always subscribed to Nancy Pelosi's concept of a diverse Democratic caucus that can disagree with one another and still get important stuff done. (Check out these successes from before Republicans narrowly won the House in 2022 if you doubt that approach.)

In spite of Tlaib's awfulness these last few weeks, it's not really heartbreaking to see a resolution to censure her go down in flames tonight. Why? Because Marjorie Taylor Greene introduced it. Still, 23 Republicans joined Democrats to table the resolution.

A quick look at Twitter reveals that Trumpsters are big mad about this, and any time they're upset — and MTG suffers an embarrassing defeat — we feel pretty good. It also makes you wonder if the media will focus as relentlessly on GOP divisions over events in the Middle East as they have over Democratic ones. Hmmm... as the saying goes, we'll wait.

Also tonight, New York Republicans have failed to convince the House to expel serial liar and fraud George Santos from their midst. The vote was 213 to 179, with 31 Democrats voting "no." If GOP members thought they were going to easily extricate themselves from the Santos drama, they were very much mistaken. They'll try again, they say — but in the meantime, we Democrats get to hang Lyin' George around their necks, keep Elise "Elsie" Stefanik on the hot seat about him, and beat him in a landslide in 2024. No complaints there! We cats PURR.