U.S. preoccupation With Oil - A Misplaced Priority

 

"Jim Crow" Is Back!

Political Cartoon is by Clay Jones at claytoonz.substack.com.
 

ABC/Wapo Poll Shows Support For Israel Is Eroding Significantly

 

The chart above reflects the results of the ABC News / Washington Post Poll -- done between April 24th and 28th of a nationwide sample of 2,560 adults, with a 2 point margin of error.

Supreme Court Rules The Color Of Congress Should Be White

Political Cartoon is by Nick Anderson at Rawstory.com.
 

The Reason Trump & Republicans Don't Want Congress To Vote On The War

From former Labor Secretary Robert Reich:

The U.S. Constitution (Article I, Section 8) gives Congress the power “To declare War,” and the War Powers Resolution of 1973 — enacted over Nixon’s veto — mandates that troops be withdrawn within 60 days unless Congress extends the deadline or declares war. 

On Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed that Trump doesn’t need Congress’s approval to continue the war past the 60-day mark because the ceasefire agreement with Iran has effectively stopped the clock. (Trump echoed Hegseth’s claim today in a letter to Congress.)

That’s bullshit, of course. But the interesting question is why — when Republicans have majorities in both chambers of Congress — Trump doesn’t want such a vote. Why not just let Republicans vote in favor of continuing his war, and be done with it?

It’s possible, of course, that Trump is worried that some Republican members might vote against the war — joining with all or almost all Democrats in voting against its continuation. Even a close vote could force a debate and pressure Trump to set the conditions and timeline for a withdrawal.

But there’s an easier and more straightforward reason. 

Trump’s war is so unpopular that Republican members of Congress don’t want to have to go on record as voting in favor of it. With midterm elections in six months, they know their votes in favor of Trump’s war could be held over their heads — especially if the war drags on, or if gas prices continue to rise because Iran is blocking the Strait of Hormuz, or both. 

They’ve let the White House know that forcing them to vote on the war will hurt their chances of maintaining control of Congress. 

So congressional Republicans are choosing the coward’s way out: agree with Hegseth and Trump that there’s no need for such a vote because the ceasefire has tolled the clock. Or claim, even more absurdly (as has Speaker of the House Mike Johnson) that there’s no “war” to begin with, and hence no reason for such a vote. 

Republicans in Congress are not brave people. To the contrary, they may be the most cowardly group ever to claim to represent the American people. 

Racism Doesn't Exist (Says The Supreme Court)

Political Cartoon is by Paul Fell at paulfell.substack.com.
 

The Moral, Intellectual, And Emotional Collapse Of The Republican Party

 

Voters Still Don't Like The GOP's "Big Beautiful Bill"

 

The chart above are from the Navigator Poll -- done between April 23rd and 27th of a nationwide sample of 1,000 registered voters, with a 3.1 point margin of error.

Republicans Would Rather Lie Than Solve The Affordability Problem

The following is part of an article by Paul Krugman (Nobel Prize-winning economist): 

Republicans have an affordability problem. During the 2024 campaign Donald Trump promised to reduce prices beginning on “Day One,” and promised specifically that he would cut energy prices in half. He has instead presided over rising inflation — the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure is running almost a percentage point higher than it was when he took office — and his Iran debacle has caused a spike in gasoline and diesel prices:

A normal political party would respond to this problem by trying to solve it. OK, some blame-shifting — attributing rising prices to forces beyond the president’s control or insisting that current problems were caused by the previous administration’s policies — would also be par for the course.

But MAGA is trying to deal with its affordability crisis simply by denying reality. Over the past few days multiple prominent Republicans have gone on TV to insist that gas prices are falling. On Thursday Sen. Tim Scott said that “gas prices continue to come down,” while House Majority Leader Steve Scalise declared that gas is much cheaper than it was “two years ago,” when, he claimed, it was $6 a gallon. The average price then was actually $3.66.

And Pete Hegseth, the Defense secretary, told Congress that gas prices in California were $8 a gallon on the eve of the Iran war; the average was actually $4.64.

What’s striking about these efforts to create an alternate reality isn’t merely the fact that politicians are lying. It’s the fact that they’re lying about a subject in which the truth is more or less literally in everyone’s face every day. Lies about, say, immigrant crime are difficult for ordinary Americans to check. But gas prices are displayed on giant signs all around America — and drivers face a reality check on fuel costs every time they fill their tanks.

Why, then, do Republicans believe that these lies will work for them politically?

The answer, of course, is that they’re aimed at an audience of one. Voters know that gas prices are way up and that inflation is elevated, but Donald Trump, swaddled in his Mar-a-Lago bubble, doesn’t. Trump says that we have no inflation. He recently insisted that inflation was 5 percent at the end of Biden’s term and took credit for falling inflation before he took office. So Republicans determined to say whatever he wants to hear — which means everyone still in the party — feel obliged to praise his inflation record, the facts be damned.

And for those worried that this kind of behavior, where keeping the Leader happy is far more important than respecting the truth, will lead to policy mistakes, I have three words for you: Strait of Hormuz.

GOP's "Big Beautiful Bill" Is Causing Millions To Lose Their Health Insurance

The following is part of an article by Reed Abelson and Margot Sanger-Katz in The New York Times:

Millions of Americans appear to be dropping Obamacare coverage in the months since Congress failed to extend the generous subsidies that had become a defining feature of the Affordable Care Act.

Initial sign-ups had already fallen by about 1.2 million people. But insurance companies, state officials and industry analysts are reporting that many more have lost Obamacare coverage now that people are facing long-term higher costs. The federal government has yet to report current enrollment data.

Many insurers and analysts are estimating overall declines of about 20 percent, dropping to around 19 million from the 24 million who were covered under the A.C.A. last year. Other indications suggest there could be even larger potential losses by the end of the year, a deep retrenchment for Obamacare coverage and a reversal of significant gains in the last several years.

The rising cost of health care has shown up as a top concern among Americans in several public opinion polls. Premiums are rising for Americans who get insurance through work, too, as health care costs have been increasing nationwide. Out-of-pocket costs are growing too, as plans with high deductibles have become popular. . . .

One analysis, by Wakely Consulting Group, a firm with access to detailed insurance industry data, estimates that coverage in the marketplaces will drop by as much as 26 percent this year compared with last year’s average enrollment. . . .

The insurers and state officials said early retirees with middle-class incomes, who faced the largest increases in premiums, appeared to be among the hardest hit. In some markets, the cost of insurance for this group rose by $1,000 a month or more.

Supreme Court Decision Guts Voting Rights Act - Hurts Minority Representation

 

U.S. Public Overwhelmingly Opposes Partisan Gerrymandering

The chart above reflects the results of the Economist / YouGov Poll -- done between April 24th and 27th of a nationwide sample of 1,836 adults (including 1,647 registered voters). The margin of error is 3.2 points for adults and 3.0 points for registered voters.

 

Carrying Their King

 Political Cartoon is by Michael deAdder in the Halifax Herald.

Voters Think There's A Lot Of Corruption In The U.S. Congress

The chart above reflects the results of the Economist / YouGov Poll -- done between April 24th and 27th of a nationwide sample of 1,647 registered voters, with a 3 point margin of error.