#Kamala Harris Political Gear

[noisycowboyglitter]

The Rise of "Comma La": Kamala Harris' Unconventional 2024 Campaign Strategy

Comma La Kamala Harris: A Symbol of Leadership and Inspiration

Kamala Harris, often referred to with affection and admiration as "Comma La," has become a beacon of hope, leadership, and inspiration for millions. As the first female Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris has broken countless barriers and has been a trailblazer for women, people of color, and countless individuals striving for equality and justice.

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Kamala Harris's journey to the Vice Presidency is nothing short of extraordinary. Born to immigrant parents, she has always been deeply rooted in the values of hard work, determination, and public service. Her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, an Indian-American cancer researcher, and her father, Donald Harris, a Jamaican-American economist, instilled in her a strong sense of identity and purpose. This diverse heritage has shaped her worldview, making her a relatable and powerful figure in contemporary politics.

"Comma La" is not just a nickname; it represents her approachable and personable nature. Kamala Harris has a unique ability to connect with people from all walks of life, whether through her speeches, town hall meetings, or social media interactions. Her charismatic presence and genuine concern for the well-being of the American people have endeared her to many. She embodies the idea that leadership should be accessible and empathetic, breaking away from the often distant and aloof image of political figures.

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Her tenure as Vice President has been marked by significant achievements and relentless advocacy for critical issues. Kamala Harris has been a vocal proponent of criminal justice reform, environmental sustainability, and healthcare accessibility. Her leadership in these areas is a testament to her commitment to creating a more equitable and just society. She has championed policies that address systemic inequalities, working tirelessly to ensure that marginalized communities have a voice in the political process.

Kamala Harris's influence extends beyond her political accomplishments. She serves as a role model for young girls and women worldwide, proving that with perseverance and dedication, one can achieve the highest echelons of power. Her story is a testament to the American dream, showcasing that regardless of one's background, it is possible to make a significant impact.

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The phrase "Comma La" has also become synonymous with her ability to bring people together. In an era of divisive politics, Kamala Harris has consistently advocated for unity and collaboration. She understands that progress is made through collective efforts and that bridging divides is essential for the nation's growth. Her inclusive approach to governance has garnered respect and admiration from individuals across the political spectrum.

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In conclusion, Kamala Harris, affectionately known as "Comma La," is a symbol of resilience, leadership, and hope. Her journey from being the daughter of immigrants to the Vice President of the United States is an inspiration to all. Through her dedication to public service and unwavering commitment to justice, Kamala Harris continues to pave the way for future generations. She embodies the ideals of equality, empathy, and progress, making her a remarkable and influential figure in American politics.

[biblicalhorror]

Here's my thing. If you have lost all faith in the democratic party and do not want to vote for their candidate, I get it. I really do. But you have to have some kind of plan. Not voting at all isn't going to make any kind of statement to the people in power. It's not an effective boycott because it's not disrupting anything. It's not making your voice heard, like voting uncommitted was in the primary.

Do you live in a blue state? Great! Which 3rd party candidate are you organizing for? Jill Stein? Cornell West? Claudia De La Cruz? Pick one and start organizing for them. If you can get at least 5% of the country (which means about 807,000 of your fellow like-minded leftists in blue areas) on board with one specific candidate, that candidate receives a boost in federal campaign funding in the next election cycle. Choose someone who is willing to use their platform in the next 10 years to promote ranked-choice voting on the federal level so that we don't keep having this same discussion every fucking election cycle.

Speaking of which, voting in your local and state elections is key to getting those initiatives on the ballot in the first place! Do your research on local candidates. Go to town hall meetings. Volunteer at a phone bank. Start getting people into positions of power who are willing to fight to get your long-term goals met.

I truly do empathize with people who cannot bring themselves to vote for someone who has been complicit in genocide and feel as though their vote does nothing for democrats anyway. But guys, we have to stop being so short-sighted and defeatist about this. Abstaining completely from the electoral system does nothing to bring attention to the situation in Gaza and the West Bank. If you can't vote for Kamala, figure out who you WILL vote for, and start getting other people on board. Because voting third-party also does nothing if they get 0.3% of the vote nationally. We need to start being smart about using the momentum that leftist politics have gained in the younger population in recent years.

[reasonandempathy]

Walz has served as Minnesota’s governor since 2019 after 12 years in the House of Representatives and now chairs the Democratic Governors Association. He has built a reputation as a folksy politician who can get things done, as Minnesota has adopted a number of progressive laws during his tenure. According to a poll conducted earlier this year, Walz enjoys an approval rating of 55% among Minnesotans. Since Minnesota Democrats achieved a legislative trifecta in the 2022 elections, Walz and his allies have used their power to push a slate of progressive policies. The governor has signed bills protecting abortion access, expanding background checks for prospective gun owners and legalizing recreational marijuana. “Right now, Minnesota is showing the country you don’t win elections to bank political capital,” Walz said last year. “You win elections to burn political capital and improve lives.” That philosophy has endeared him to progressives, who threw their support behind him as the veepstakes kicked into high gear over the past two weeks. They reshared clips of Walz lovingly mocking his daughter’s vegetarianism and tinkering with his car to paint him as the dad that America needs right now.

This is fucking awesome! Honestly, sincerely good news and a very promising pick for the potential Harris Administration. An aggressive, unabashed, popular, populist left-winger with a track record of enacting real, substantive help for people is capital-G Great.

What has he done, specifically?

Abortion rights

In a 1995 ruling, the Minnesota Supreme Court upheld abortion rights in Minnesota. In January 2023, Walz signed the PRO Act (Protect Reproductive Options Act) into law, making abortion a "fundamental right," as well as access to contraception, fertility treatments, sterilization and other reproductive health care.

The law made Minnesota the first state to codify abortion rights in the aftermath of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 ruling in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, which nullified Roe. v. Wade after nearly 50 years of precedent. In April 2023, Walz signed the Reproductive Freedom Defense Act into law, shielding women and providers from any legal action originating from the patient's state.

Pro-LGBTQIA+ legislation

In March 2023, Walz signed an executive order to protect the right of residents to have access to gender-affirming health care. Weeks later, he signed the "Trans Refuge" bill, banning the enforcement of arrest warrants, extradition requests and out-of-state subpoenas for those who traveled to Minnesota for care.

"When someone else is given basic rights, others don't lose theirs," Walz said. "We aren't cutting a pie here. We're giving basic rights to every single Minnesotan."

Paid family, medical and sick leave

In May 2023, Walz signed a law creating a state-run program to provide paid family and medical leave for Minnesota workers, funded by a 0.7% payroll tax on employers, by 2026.

Legalization of recreational marijuana

In May 2023, Minnesota became the 23rd state in the nation to legalize recreational cannabis use. Three months later, people 21 and older could start to possess certain amounts of marijuana at home and on their person, in addition to legally growing up to eight plants at a time.

Restoration of voting rights for former felons

In March 2023, Walz signed a bill that restored the right to vote to more than 50,000 convicted felons who had already served their time.

Universal school meals

Amid the increase in food insecurity for many Minnesotans during the pandemic, and the subsequent strain on the state's food shelves that remains to this day, Walz signed a bill in March 2023 that ensures all K-12 students in the state have access to free breakfast and lunch on school days.

Do you know what makes this even better?

Fuck 'Em. I know negative partisanship is important and can help motivate right-wingers to vote, but they're going to vote anyway. And him being afraid of Walz is just a sign that he's a good pick, in policy and politics.

[qqueenofhades]

Not that anything's a for sure bet but my read on the general situation re: Harris-Walz is that there's going to be a lot less headwind to fight for Harris specifically as opposed to Clinton because the amazing right wing media hasn't had twenty years for poison to seep into the layperson's thoughts about Clinton's "worthiness"

Well, that and the fact that the MAGA crowd are just really, really bad strategic planners (especially since a solid 75% of their strategy is "lol we'll just cheat and win it that way, we don't need anything else.") They howled for 3.5 years about how Biden was too old to serve and should step down, and then when he did, they had zero plan how to run against Kamala and Trump is now practically begging Biden to magically get back into the race and save him. They ran an anti-Shapiro influence campaign by encouraging the antisemitic online left and planning to exploit the issue among Democrats divided on Israel/Gaza, then furiously melted down when Walz was picked and had no plan to deal with him either. Fascism is a helluva drug, kiddos. Don't try it at home.

The reason Harris has been able to rocket so high is simple, which is that she's channeling Obama 08 energy in more ways than one. Obama also came onto the national political scene four years before (with his speech at the 2004 DNC) and four years later, he was the party's nominee. It didn't even matter that he was a skinny brown guy named Barack Hussein Obama, because people were so tired of the chaos and war and incompetence of Bush Jr that they latched onto a simple message of hope and change and the historical nature of his candidacy felt like an optimistic risk worth taking. Why couldn't it be time for the first African American president? Yes, of course, there was incredible vitriol and we are still dealing with that backlash in some ways now, but still.

As I have said before, Trump is technically not the incumbent, but the last 8 years have been dominated by his hatred, chaos, division, rage, and treason in a way even Bush could never quite manage, and when people get to that point, there's a lot of coiled-up energy that has at last come bursting out. We needed Biden's old-moderate-white-man cred to defeat Trump as the sitting president in 2020, when most of his worst scandals hadn't even happened yet, but this is not 2020 (or 2016) and the dynamic is different. We are now on offense and playing to win, people have readily and eagerly embraced the absolute god tier karma that would come from a black female prosecutor finally ending the Orange Menace's reign of terror once and for all, and the Republicans are spitting smoke and spinning gears running frantically through their usual tired old stupid cliche attacks. GAY TRANS EVIL BIRTHERISM SWIFTBOAT FOREIGN FAR LEFT COMMIE LIBERAL HEATHEN!! they scream desperately, trying to find something that sticks. Except this time, no matter how hard the corporate media tries to help them out, nobody is listening. Nobody is buying it. We know exactly what BS they're trying and we're just shrugging and going "Yeah, no. Weird."

It absolutely helps that Kamala is not dragging the ball and chain of 20 years of Republican smear attacks, yes. But there are a lot of reasons why the GOP is imploding before our eyes and it's probably now more statistically likely that there is a blue tsunami than it is that Trump wins. I still cannot, CANNOT, believe it has been barely three fucking weeks. If this is a dream don't want to wake up, etc. Let me goddamn stay in this timeline just a little longer. And if we do the work, we can in fact make it that way, and Yeah. Yeah.

[ngdrb]

Former Trump official warns ex-president is gearing up to claim 'rigged' election again

Donald Trump and his allies are preparing to make claims of election and voter fraud if he loses in November - according to election experts and a number of old-school Republicans.

Mesa, Arizona Mayor John Giles, a Republican who has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, said that if Trump loses, he and his associates “will throw everything at the wall and see what sticks,” according to The Guardian. 

“They’ll claim everything went wrong if they lose. I’d be surprised if Trump doesn’t try to incite insurrection if he loses the election,” the mayor said.

Both Trump and his allies are pushing the same lies as they did in 2020 about voting machines and drop boxes, but they’re now also attacking prosecutors on the state and federal levels who have charged the former president for trying to overturn the election. They have claimed that the charges against Trump amount to “election interference” and “lawfare” in attempts to paint the former president’s legal woes as political prosecution.

David Becker at the Center for Election Innovation and Research told The Guardian that  “A lot of false claims are masquerading as efforts to change policy to improve election integrity when in actuality they’re just designed to sow distrust in our system if Trump loses.”

“This is all designed to manufacture claims that if Trump loses, the election was stolen and to sow discord, chaos, and potential violence,” he added.

The right-wing organization Turning Point USA claims to be spending tens of millions on getting out the vote for Trump in important battleground states, also hosting several large rallies where false allegations that the 2020 election was rigged are still being shared.

Both in 2016 and 2020, Trump was unclear if he would accept the election results. Similarly, at the presidential debate with President Joe Biden on June 27, he said that he would accept the results if the election is “fair and legal.” That response came after he was asked three times about accepting the results and shortly afterward he yet again claimed that American elections are fraudulent.

In April, Trump hosted House Speaker Mike Johnson at Mar-a-Lago for an event prompting the lower chamber to pass legislation making it illegal for noncitizens to vote – something that was already outlawed and in the past has happened on a very small scale. 

The group True the Vote sent out a fundraising request in March pointing to their attempts to put together “arguments for litigation” as well as other measures to take aim at what they claim will be “chaos” around the election because of “illegal voter registrations.”

Both election experts and Republican stalwarts have told The Guardian that Trump and his allies are preparing to claim that November’s election has been rigged if the former president loses the election.

Former Republican Michigan Representative Dave Trott told the paper that “Trump continues to encourage his supporters like Charlie Kirk of Turning Point USA to question the integrity of our elections.”

“He has no evidence or basis for claiming fraud and is only perpetuating these lies so he has a plan B to disrupt democracy in the event he loses,” he added.

Former Republican Pennsylvania Representative Charlie Dent told The Guardian that he believes Trump will claim fraud again if he loses in November.

“I expect he will do the same thing in 2024,” he said. “If he loses he will raise Cain in state capitals and he will descend on state capitals with his allies to make the case for fraud.”

The Independent is the world’s most free-thinking news brand, providing global news, commentary, and analysis for the independently minded. We have grown a huge, global readership of independently-minded individuals, who value our trusted voice and commitment to positive change. Our mission, making change happen, has never been as important as it is today.

[simply-ivanka]

Trump Gears Up for Change on Wokeness With Education Overhaul

The president-elect has laid out big changes for America’s classrooms, including expanding school choice—and shutting down the Department of Ed

By Matt Barnum and Douglas Belkin -- Wall Street Journal

President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to remake education in the U.S., pledging to exert more control over funding and classroom lessons, to curb what he views as left-leaning tendencies at universities and even to dismantle the Department of Education.

If his White House delivers on those promises, more families could get money to send kids to private school. Schools would face pressure to limit accommodations for transgender students and to end some initiatives aimed at addressing racial disparities.

The goals are at once ambitious and controversial.

“There are a lot of very smart people who are very excited to get into positions where we can actually start making change happen,” said Tiffany Justice, a Trump ally and the co-founder of the conservative parents group Moms for Liberty.

Eliminating the Department of Education

Trump has promised to close the Education Department and has criticized U.S. school spending. 

In his first term, he proposed merging the education and labor departments, but Congress didn’t proceed. It isn’t clear whether lawmakers would go for the idea in a second term, nor how the department’s functions—such as protecting students’ civil rights, providing funding for students with disabilities and distributing student loans—would be handled if it were closed. 

Some Republicans have been reluctant to eliminate the department or cut federal funding that flows to schools in their constituencies. An Associated Press poll last year found that nearly two-thirds of Americans said the federal government spends too little on education.

“I don’t think you’ll see enormous cuts because that’s super unpopular,” said Michael Petrilli, president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, a conservative education think tank.

Trump will have to fill the education secretary role for now. Cabinet positions often go to prominent politicians and political allies.

Presidents sometimes look to state education chiefs. High-profile leaders in Republican states include Oklahoma’s Ryan Walters, who has fought culture-war battles in schools; Louisiana’s Cade Brumley, who has supported private-school choice and tougher school disciplinary measures; and Florida’s Manny Diaz Jr., who has overseen many conservative policy changes.

In an interview, Walters said he is focused on implementing Trump’s agenda in Oklahoma. Through a spokesperson, Brumley said “my focus is on continuing the historic educational progress we are making in Louisiana.” Diaz, through a spokesperson, said if asked to serve, “Of course you listen.” Justice of Moms for Liberty said that she would be open to the position, though hasn’t spoken to the Trump team about it.

A Trump transition spokeswoman didn’t comment on specific candidates.

Waging war on ‘woke’

Trump has said he would use the power of the purse to limit left-wing ideology in schools and universities.

Although a president can’t immediately cut off money to any school, he could use various laws to pressure schools to address antisemitism on campus, disband programs that focus on nonwhite student groups or reduce accommodations for transgender students.

Trump has said that he believes that Title IX, which bars sex discrimination in education, should prevent transgender girls from playing on female sports teams. This would be a stark reversal from the Biden administration, which has interpreted Title IX to prohibit discrimination based on gender identity.

During the campaign, Trump attacked Kamala Harris for being too supportive of transgender rights, an issue that resonated with some voters.

Trump has also indicated that he would use civil-rights law to challenge critical race theory, a term used by conservatives to describe some efforts to teach about racism and racial disparities. This could include targeting university diversity, equity and inclusion offices, legal analysts have said.

“On issues that I worry about…this is at the top,” said Rachel Perera, a fellow at the Brookings Institution, a center-left think tank.

Another tool Trump has at his disposal is the accreditation system, which gives universities access to federal money. He has called it a “secret weapon.”

Colleges and universities need to meet standards set by independent accreditors to be eligible for federal funds.

Trump could weaken the influence of accreditors—which he considers too left-leaning—by reassigning some of their responsibilities to the Education Department, said Judith Eaton, past president of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. Alternatively, the administration could replace current accreditors with ones more closely aligned with Trump’s vision, she added.

Members of Trump’s inner circle “regard the higher-ed cartel as fundamentally out of order,” said Frederick Hess, director of education policy studies at the right-leaning American Enterprise Institute.

‘Universal school choice’

Trump wants “universal school choice for every American family,” according to his platform. That likely means providing a public subsidy for private-school tuition or other educational expenses outside the public school system.

Trump has indicated he would support the Educational Choice for Children Act, already proposed in Congress. The law would provide $10 billion in federal tax credits to go toward private-school tuition, home schooling or other educational costs.

Backers say the bill would provide money for up to two million children, and help parents direct and customize their children’s education. School-choice critics say that these programs drain resources from public schools.

Prior efforts by Republican presidents to subsidize private schools—including those supported by Ronald Reagan, and Trump in his first term—have failed to garner congressional support. And while many Republican-controlled state legislatures have adopted such programs in recent years, voters in Colorado, Kentucky and Nebraska rejected school-choice ballot measures on Nov. 5.

Some Republicans “are not fully on board yet,” said Jim Blew, who served as an education official during Trump’s first term. “I think they will be in the new administration.”

[ezrasf]

A false claim that Vice President Kamala Harris was involved in a June 2011 hit-and-run incident that left a 13-year-old girl paralyzed was created by a Russian troll farm, according to a report released Tuesday by Microsoft.

...

Researchers at Microsoft said a newer Kremlin-aligned group, Storm-1679, also published videos aimed at discrediting Harris, including one that depicted a fake New York City billboard with false claims about Harris' policies.  Russia continues to use cyber groups to "amplify their messages through media websites and social channels geared to spread divisive political content, staged videos, and AI-enhanced propaganda," Microsoft said. The campaigns follow a pattern of targeting the Democratic candidate within 90 days of a presidential election, according to Microsoft's observations from three consecutive elections.

Buckle up, I have a feeling they are just getting started.

[mariacallous]

The U.S. presidential election is less than 50 days away, and this week served up some grim reminders of how high the stakes are—and how intent Washington’s adversaries are on swaying or disrupting the vote. 

New details have emerged of cyberattacks and election interference efforts by China, Russia, and Iran, with U.S. officials and technology executives sounding the alarm about the countries’ intent to sow chaos in the weeks leading up to Election Day on Nov. 5. 

Russian cyber groups have pivoted in the last two months to attacking the campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris, according to a new report Microsoft released Tuesday. The groups have spread several fake videos, including one purportedly showing a Harris supporter attacking an attendee at a rally for former President Donald Trump, another (through a fake San Francisco news site) that falsely claimed Harris was involved in a hit-and-run incident, and a third showing a fake billboard in New York City listing false claims about Harris’s policies. 

“As we inch closer to the election, we should expect Russian actors to continue to use cyber proxies and hacktivist groups to amplify their messages through media websites and social channels geared to spread divisive political content, staged videos, and AI-enhanced propaganda,” Microsoft wrote. 

President Joe Biden’s administration has stepped up its efforts to combat Russia’s disinformation and influence operations, imposing a series of sanctions earlier this month on state-run media outlets including Russia Today (RT) for acting on behalf of the Kremlin to “undermine confidence in the United States’ election processes and institutions.” RT has also developed cyber capabilities with direct ties to Russian intelligence services and is involved in a crowdfunding effort to procure military equipment for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters last week while announcing additional sanctions on the network. 

“We urge every ally, every partner to start by treating RT’s activities as they do other intelligence activities by Russia within their borders,” Blinken said. Tech companies Meta and Google responded to the sanctions by restricting RT content and accounts from their social media platforms this week. 

On Wednesday, FBI Director Christopher Wray announced that the agency had successfully hit back against another formidable cyber adversary: China. FBI teams took down a botnet—a network of compromised computers controlled by hackers who were “working at the direction of the Chinese government,” Wray told an audience at the Aspen Cyber Summit in Washington. Wray said the hackers allegedly took over hundreds of thousands of internet-connected devices, including cameras and storage devices—half of which were in the United States—to conduct espionage and disrupt critical systems. “We think the bad guys finally realized it was the FBI and our partners that they were up against, and with that realization they essentially burned down their new infrastructure and abandoned their botnet,” he added.

The U.S. government takedown of the botnet, allegedly run by a hacking group called Flax Typhoon, is the second such offensive cyber operation against China in less than a year. It follows a December 2023 operation against another group known as Volt Typhoon. Officials expect it won’t be the last. 

“We’d like to see more of these and more frequently,” a senior administration official said of the takedown, speaking to reporters on Wednesday evening following Wray’s announcement. “What we’ve really been discussing here from the White House is what can be done to accelerate and do these regularly, so that we make it riskier, costlier, and harder for China to conduct their large-scale cyber operations.” 

And then there’s Washington’s third—and increasingly brazen—cyber adversary. On Wednesday, three U.S. agencies issued a joint statement on Iran’s efforts to target Trump’s 2024 campaign. Iranian hackers who breached the Trump campaign in recent months sent “stolen, non-public” material from the campaign via email to individuals associated with Biden’s reelection campaign before he dropped out and was replaced by Harris, according to the statement by the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). “There is currently no information indicating those recipients replied,” the agencies added.

Iran has stepped up its efforts to interfere in the 2024 race amid an escalating proxy conflict with key U.S. ally Israel and has targeted the Trump campaign in particular in what experts see as retaliation for his administration’s 2020 assassination of Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani. 

Despite some key public victories this week, the consensus in the cyberdefense community is that the battle is only just beginning—and is only likely to get more intense as Election Day draws closer, with the United States facing three highly capable adversaries who, if not directly working together, share similar goals. 

“Arguably, the 2024 election cycle is facing the most complex threat landscape yet,” Cait Conley, a senior advisor for CISA, said at the Politico AI and Tech Summit this week. “We do see a growing and diverse array of foreign actors who are trying to influence our American democratic process. … Regardless of the actor, their objectives are the same—they want to undermine the American people’s confidence in our democratic institutions, and they want to sow partisan discord.”

Senior industry leaders visiting Washington this week echoed that sentiment. “We know that there is a presidential race between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, but this has also become an election of Iran versus Trump and Russia versus Harris,” Microsoft’s president, Brad Smith, told the Senate Intelligence Committee in a hearing about election threats on Wednesday. “And it is an election where Russia, Iran, and China are united with a common interest in discrediting democracy in the eyes of our own voters and even more so in the eyes of the world.”

[roguekhajiit]

Conspiracy theory time.

Please note: Not now, nor have I ever been, a hard-core kool-aid drinking conspiracy theorist. I engage in these topics for fun only.

This is one that I have been formulating in my head for the past couple of months. Be warned, it's long.

Trump is staging his own assassination attempts to earn sympathy votes.

PART ONE

Thomas Matthew Crooks was allowed to walk around a Trump rally carrying a gun. He didn't make any attempts to be covert. He was allowed to access the roof of a building that was conveniently left unsecured with a direct line of sight of the former president.

Following the shots, Trump is allowed to stand up and raise his fist in the air, with the American flag conveniently waving behind him for a photo op.

Now, this could have been halfway believable. The photo op is suspicious by itself. But then we have the maga politicians who didn't waste any time taking to social media to lay the blame on democrats and liberals. Your candidate was just shot (supposedly), we didn't even know the shooter's identity yet, and they were already in full gear with the blame game.

Then, in the days following this attempt, every wanna-be private investigator on the internet was digging up his voting and spending history in order to shift the blame onto democrats and liberals. I mean, it couldn't have possibly been an ex Maga cultist who finally took the blindfolds off. He HAD to be a democrat.

Of course, they found some obscure donation on ActBlue that may or may not have been his. And that was all she wrote, folks. He was a bonafide, hard-core, liberal. There's no possibility that someone can switch parties. You just can't do that in American politics. It's not allowed. In fact, it might as well be illegal.

Then, there is Trump's ear situation. He says the bullet hit his ear. He even had that obnoxiously oversized bandage on his ear for a couple of days. But then it was gone. No scar to prove the bullet ever hit him.

Some say that he's a billionaire, and he can afford the best surgery money can buy. But hold up there for a second. If he's a billionaire, why does he need to raise money to pay his court fees? Why does Granny need to withdraw money from her life savings so Trump can pay his attorneys? Shouldn't he just be able to write a check?

Even if he wasn't actually in debt up to his toupee, he's 78. Cosmetic surgery on a 78 year old ear isn't going to be perfect, and it sure as hell would need extra time to heal. Sorry, folks, Trump just doesn't have super healing powers.

PART TWO

Ryan Wesley Routh is a 58 year old ex-con, ex-Trump voter living in Hawaii working as a handyman and bringing in a $3k a month salary.

On September 15th, just 5 days after Trump's disastrous debate against Kamala Harris, Routh is arrested for allegedly attempting to assassinate the former president. He was spotted apparently pointing a rifle through some bushes at Trump's Florida golf course. It was originally estimated that he was 300 to 500 yards away from his target. After being fired upon, he fled in a black Nissan, which a witness was conveniently there to take a picture of, and drove 50 miles before he was pulled over and detained without incident.

At the scene, they found a gopro, two backpacks full of ceramic tiles (what for?) and his rifle.

After the incident, different details were revealed, and many were contradictory.

The incident was immediately classified as an attempted assassination. Reports stated shots were fired, but it wasn't immediately clear if he fired any shots. Later, they would say he didn't even have TFG in his line of sight. Yet, he was reportedly 300 to 500 yards away.

The Sheriff praised the secret service, saying they did everything they were supposed to do. Yet they didn't do a perimeter check of the golf course before TFG started golfing? Just weeks after the previous assassination attempt and subsequent increase in his security details? Shouldn't a perimeter check be included as part of the SOP for protecting a former president?

It is also reported that he made multiple flights between Hawaii and Florida in order to scope out places Trump was known to frequent. On a $3k a month salary.

Now, we get to the blame game. Of course, as with Crooks, maga was quick to label Routh as a democrat. Conveniently enough, they were also apparently able to find donations from him on ActBlue. But not so fast. He voted for Trump in 2016. Isn't it possible that someone can hold bipartisan views? Nope, according to MAGA, if you have a Harris/Walz bumper sticker, you're a terrorist.

PART THREE

Now, just five days after Trump said,

“I’m going to go there in the next two weeks. I’m going to Springfield. You may never see me again, but that’s OK. Got to do what I got to do. ‘Whatever happened to Trump?’ ‘Well, he never got out of Springfield.’"

The government and media are releasing the contents of a letter they claim was written by Routh to the World:

“This was an assassination attempt on Donald Trump but I failed you. I tried my best and gave it all the gumption I could muster. It is up to you now to finish the job; and I will offer $150,000 to whomever can complete the job.”

There are a lot of questions that surround this. Firstly, why release this? This puts a bounty on TFG. Secondly, the person who had the box claimed to hold it for several months, never looking inside. Not once? Thirdly, this means he would have written this months in advance well before Crooks ever fired his first shot. It also means he never planned to succeed. That would make this less of an attempted assassination and more of a suicide mission.

But when we look at Trump's statement 5 days ago, which seemingly predicts his own death, it starts to look like this letter was released intentionally. There was another letter that was found in his possession, but they aren't including it as evidence, nor are they making its contents known. Just the one that puts a $150k bounty on his head. Whose gonna pay? Surely not the guy sitting in jail who was only earning $3k a month.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Parker Molloy at The Present Age:

Last week, the Harris-Walz campaign released a video featuring Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, in a casual conversation at Aretha's Jazz Cafe in Detroit. The video, a slickly produced 10-minute conversation designed to showcase the ticket's chemistry and relatability, sparked predictable right-wing outrage. The only question was what portion of the video the right was going to act outraged about. At the top of the conversation, Walz admitted to enjoying "white guy tacos," explaining they consisted of "pretty much ground beef and cheese." When Harris playfully asked about adding flavor, Walz quipped, "Black pepper is the top of the spice level in Minnesota." This self-deprecating joke about Midwestern culinary blandness quickly became fodder for right-wing outrage, with conservative commentators accusing Walz of "anti-white racism" and self-flagellation. What was meant to be a lighthearted moment of campaign humanization instead became the latest battleground in America's culture wars.

The right’s flaming hot take.

The conservative response to Walz's taco comment was swift and, unsurprisingly, spicy. Ben Shapiro of The Daily Wire tweeted, "See, folks, it's funny that white people hate spices! Not racist at all! Just funny!" He went on to argue that Europeans' historical involvement in the spice trade proved their love for seasoning. Shapiro's colleague, Matt Walsh, took it a step further, describing the exchange as "blatant anti-white racism." He posed a hypothetical: "Imagine if Donald Trump said that a 'black guy taco' was made with fried chicken and watermelon. Nuclear meltdown." This false equivalence ignores the long history of racist stereotypes associated with those foods, as well as the fact that Walz was poking fun of himself and making a lighthearted joke at the expense of a group he was a part of, not smearing an outside group. Even Senator Ted Cruz felt compelled to weigh in, bizarrely tweeting, "Hispanics are not tacos." This non-sequitur seemed to miss the point entirely, as neither Harris nor Walz had made any claims about Hispanic cuisine or identity. The outrage machine kicked into high gear when Mike Cernovich, known for promoting conspiracy theories, accused Walz of lying about his spice tolerance. Cernovich dug up a 2016 recipe for Walz's award-winning "Turkey Taco Tot Hotdish," which included mild green chilies and chili powder. This "gotcha" moment conveniently ignored the fact that hotdish, a Midwestern staple, is hardly known for its heat. Fox & Friends co-host Will Cain questioned Harris's taco expertise, while New York Post columnist Miranda Devine went so far as to describe Walz as "the Uncle Tom of white rural males." The hyperbole reached a fever pitch, with conservatives painting Walz's self-deprecating humor as a betrayal of his race and region. This overwrought reaction reveals more about the right's hair-trigger outrage reflex than it does about Walz's culinary preferences. It demonstrates how easily a moment of levity can be twisted into a culture war talking point, and how desperate some commentators are to find evidence of "anti-white racism" in the most innocent of exchanges.

[...] Beyond that, it feeds into a narrative of conservative victimhood. By framing every joke, product change, or casting decision as an assault on traditional values, right-wing media can position conservatives as an embattled minority fighting against a hostile "woke" culture. This persecution complex is a powerful motivator for political action and donations. The constant stream of faux controversies creates a boy-who-cried-wolf effect. When everything is outrageous, nothing is. This makes it easier to dismiss genuine concerns and criticisms as just another example of "cancel culture" or "political correctness run amok." The "white guy tacos" incident is a perfect example of this in action. A harmless joke about food becomes, in the hands of right-wing commentators, evidence of a grand conspiracy against white identity. It's a tempest in a taco shell that reveals the true ingredients of conservative media's secret sauce: a dash of fear, a pinch of resentment, and a heaping helping of manufactured outrage.

Right-wing crybabies offended over everything, “white guy tacos” edition: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) admitted to loving “white guy tacos”, and the right-wing media apparatus had a hissy fit over it.

[lawbyrhys]

Trump's Legal Complaint Against Harris is Total NONSENSE: Lawyer Breaks Down the Bullshit

In case you haven't heard, Donald Trump filed a legal complaint against Kamala Harris and the Democratic Party, alleging they broke federal election law when Harris received a $91.5M cut from the Biden campaign she was apart of.

Let's break down and dispute the complaint.

"Kamala Harris is seeking to perpetrate a $91.5 million dollar heist of Joe Biden’s leftover campaign cash — a brazen money grab that would constitute the single largest excessive contribution and biggest violation in the history of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended." - an excerpt of Tuesday's filings

As per the FEC, "The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended ("the Act") bans foreign nationals from making contributions either directly or through any person in connection with election to any political office. 2 U.S.C. S441e." Additionally, the law prohibits contributions to a candidate from being used for “personal use” by any person, and originally focused on creating limits for campaign spending on communication media, adding additional penalties to the criminal code for election law violations, and imposing disclosure requirements for federal political campaigns.

The filing continues with Trump claiming that the democratic pair, "flagrantly violating the Act by making and receiving an excessive contribution of nearly one hundred million dollars, and for filing fraudulent forms with the Commission purporting to repurpose one candidate’s principal campaign committee for the use of another candidate."

While Trump's counsel urge the FEC to enjoin the transfer, urging for a fine or potential criminal referral to the DOJ if the transfer is found to be unlawful, the Harris campaign has an entirely different view; a view based in legal fact. The Harris campaign views the complaint as nothing more than "a spurious legal effort to throw sand in their gears," continuing on to inform that the Biden-Harris committees have always been authorized by use for either party. The presumtive Democratic nominee's campaign raised $100M in donations in just 36 hours, releasing a statement to declare their standing that Trump's complaint is nothing more than “baseless legal claims – like the ones they’ve made for years to try to suppress votes and steal elections – will only distract them.”

I think the frivalous nature of the complaint speaks for itself, but I will state the obvious here. Does it sound like there's any foreign nationals involved here? Neither Joe Biden nor Kamala Harris are foreign nationals. Furthermore, Harris is not using any of these funds for "personal use," but rather for political campaign expenses. As Harris' name is on all the filed statements with Biden, and therefore has a legal claim to those funds, where other Democrats would not.

Addressing the disclosure requirements for federal political campaigns, I got an email to my inbox yesterday afternoon about "the truth." Enclosed with information discussing how "July is an FEC fundraising deadline month," and the campaign fully intends to abide by the above stipulations: "At the end of the month, we will be required to report how much money we've raised and how many donations we've received." I'm sure any of you who have donated to her campaign as I have, or simply signed up for her emails, received this message, too.

There's a reason Trump and his counsel did not take this complaint any further into a lawsuit; they have no standing to do so. It appears their main goal now is to do anything and everything they can to try and derail Harris' momentum, regardless of their claims' validity and legal merit.

[noisycowboyglitter]

Navigating the "Comma La" Phenomenon: Kamala Harris' 2024 Campaign

This design concept cleverly plays on the name of Vice President Kamala Harris, creating a memorable and visually striking representation of her identity and political role. The phrase "Comma La" serves as a witty deconstruction of her first name, emphasizing her uniqueness in American politics and creating an instant connection with viewers.

Buy now:19.95$

The design likely features the text "Comma La" prominently displayed, with a stylized comma taking center stage. This comma could be creatively integrated into the overall design, perhaps forming part of Harris's silhouette or merging with other graphic elements. The "La" might be presented in a different font or color to create visual contrast and reinforce the wordplay.

Beneath or alongside this playful element, "Kamala Harris" would be presented in a more formal, authoritative typeface, befitting her position as Vice President of the United States. This juxtaposition of the lighthearted "Comma La" with the official "Kamala Harris" creates an interesting visual and conceptual contrast, highlighting both her approachability and her gravitas.

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The visual representation of Kamala Harris herself is likely to be a key component of the design. This could take several forms:

A realistic portrait showcasing her familiar smile and confident demeanor

A stylized silhouette emphasizing her iconic hairstyle and facial features

An artistic interpretation using bold colors and abstract shapes to capture her essence

Color schemes for this design might include:

The traditional red, white, and blue of American politics

Purple tones, which Harris has worn on significant occasions and which symbolize the blending of red and blue states

Gold or yellow accents to convey optimism and leadership

Additional elements could be incorporated to provide context and reinforce Harris's role:

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The Vice Presidential Seal or other official insignia

Subtle background patterns featuring stars, stripes, or other patriotic motifs

Text highlighting key aspects of her background or policy positions

The overall layout would aim to balance these various elements, creating a cohesive design that is both eye-catching and meaningful. The "Comma La" concept serves as an anchor, drawing the viewer in and inviting them to engage more deeply with the imagery and messaging.

This design could be applied to a wide range of products, including:

Apparel: T-shirts, hoodies, caps

Accessories: Tote bags, pins, phone cases

Office supplies: Notebooks, pens, mousepads

Home decor: Posters, mugs, throw pillows

Beyond its aesthetic appeal, this design concept serves several purposes:

It creates a memorable, branded image for Kamala Harris that sets her apart from other politicians

It humanizes her, using wordplay to make her name more approachable and relatable

It celebrates her historic role as the first woman, first Black person, and first person of South Asian descent to hold the office of Vice President

It provides a versatile template that can be adapted for various campaign materials and merchandise

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The "Comma La – Kamala Harris" concept encapsulates a complex message in a concise, clever package. It speaks to Harris's uniqueness and her groundbreaking position in American politics. By turning her name into a catchy, visually interesting design element, it creates an instant connection with viewers and supporters.

This design would likely appeal to a broad range of individuals:

Supporters of the Biden-Harris administration

Women and people of color inspired by Harris's achievements

Young voters drawn to more creative and contemporary political messaging

Those who appreciate clever wordplay and design

Overall, the "Comma La – Kamala Harris" concept offers a fresh, engaging way to represent the Vice President, blending humor, respect, and political messaging into a single, powerful design.

[ask-sakky-bear]

I genuinely hope that ALL OF YOU already saying how you still won't vote for Harris this November get your shit together. I've already been seeing posts about how we should be voting for someone else, like Claudia de la Cruz (who i would have ultimately LOVED to have picked btw). I need all of you on the left tk be so fucking for real right now. This is not the election to try third party voting. We do not have the luxury of it. We could have done this any time before 2016. But ya'll SAW WHAT HAPPENED when you decided to try pushing people to vote third party that year and it is the reason we had Trump and this shift towards christofascism in the past 8 years since.

Is Kamala Harris my pick for the next president? No, absolutely fucking not. But this is actually bigger than her this year. I know that that the "lesser of two evils" rhetoric has been in play for decades. But there are extremists in the republican party in power who are actually planning to turn this country into an oligarchical, christofascist nightmare.

If Trump is in power again he will let the far right do whatever they want. This man does not give two shits about actually running this country, he just wants the ego boost and to play at being a political influencers for the clout.

Vote for whoever the fucking democratic nominee is and then get your ass in gear to start putting your preferred candidates into congressional power, where the actual country gets run.

Do NOT let us repeat 2016, or we might actually be cooked.

[for-the-ninth]

It happens like clockwork every election cycle.

Republican gets elected, people rage and foist all the blame onto third party voters or people who didn't vote. They post their hot takes about the brain dead red states who vote against their own interests and claim the only reason any of us are in this mess at all is because people won't "do the work," when their own definition of "the work" really just comes down to voting Democrat every four years, encouraging others to do the same, and resorting to shame when some of them inevitably don't.

These are often, though not always, folks who don't really know what The Work is. They aren't grounded in the struggle. They are comfortable enough that the only thing that really fazes them is someone like Trump getting elected. They aren't participating in community outreach or mutual aid networks. They are comfortable in many ways they probably take for granted, and the reason they want Dems in office is, in part, to protect that comfort.

What they don't realize, and often refuse to realize no matter how many activists of the present and past tell them, is that liberalism and electoral politics was never going to save us. Democrats have long been committed to the status quo. They cosplay as revolutionaries and leaders of the resistance whenever the next Republican dickhead gets voted in. They co-opt the movement despite having no real stake in it, because they are centrists with no genuine desire to propel the country in a radically progressive direction. And when folks too far left of center step up to the plate, like Bernie Sanders, the rest of the party refuses to put their weight behind them.

It's the same sorry set of excuses every time: oh, but we'll lose the swing voters! and we have to try to win over moderate Republicans! the nation isn't ready for someone so radical! When we all know that's bullshit. Anyone who's tired of crying over their grocery bill - and that's damn near everyone - is ready for radical change.

But sure, let's continue blaming people who didn't vote or voted third party for the result of one of many election cycles during which the Dems failed to provide us with a compelling progressive candidate with policies geared toward uplifting the working class and working poor.

By all means, let's continue doing the work of the imperialists for them, cause the more time we spend fighting each other over minor ideological differences (and yes, if your only beef with someone's ideology is that they didn't bother voting, that is a minor difference and not something worth seething over) the less time we'll spend organizing. The more isolated from each other we'll be. If we blame each other then we're less likely to blame them, for putting all of us in this hellscape.

And make no mistake - they know that. There's a reason Democratic politicians are so quick to disparage working class folks in southern states. If we blame them for just being sooooo willfully stupid and deplorable AND we blame everyone else for having the audacity not to vOTe bLue No MaTtRr wHo then there's no blame left to hurl at the Dems. They want so badly for us to believe that people like Obama, Harris, and Biden - who are all centrists, through and through - will save us if enough of us vote for them. And then when they do get voted in there's a million excuses for why they can't push any meaningful legislation through.

I hate watching so many of you buy right into it. Crucifying each other over not voting for the lesser of two evils like it isn't deeply fucked up that they're our only two options to begin with. Touting Harris like she's some sort of saint by comparison when she stood up on a national platform to say she wanted our military to be the most lethal in the world. Amidst calls for a ceasefire and an arms embargo, she said that shit with her whole chest, and y'all think Donald Trump is the only fascist? Get. A. Grip.

Electoral politics are not going to save us. Kamala Harris was never going to save us. We are the only people who can save us and we do that by building a grassroots movement grounded in class solidarity.

If you're still blaming people who voted third party or didn't vote at all, you're not ready for that movement. If you're still denigrating working class voters in red states for falling victim to the propaganda machine because you're Oh So Smart and that could never be you, you're not ready for the movement.

And if the only "work" you do is urging people to vote every 4 years and writing spicy posts after the fact about how you no longer give a shit about the people who "betrayed" you by not relying on electoral politics to save us - many of whom I can promise you are doing real, tangible work to benefit the people in their own communities - do me and everyone else a favor, and get grounded. Get rooted in the struggle. Stop spewing reactionary nonsense and put that energy into your community - including people who didn't fucking vote for Harris. Cause I can promise you, organizers and activists aren't checking anyone's voting record when they serve up meals at the soup kitchen or fund mutual aid requests for rent money. Folks who are "actually doing the work" don't have time for that petty shit.

[nokingsonlyfooles]

No Tagbacksies...

But I want to talk about this part:

Conservatives argue that Section 3 could apply to Vice President Kamala Harris, for example — it was used to block from office even those who donated small sums to individual Confederates. Couldn’t it be used against Harris, they say, because she raised money for those arrested in the unrest after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police in 2020?

I got sucked into info-dumping about needing to look at intent and results along with method yesterday, and this is why that's so freaking important. "No u" is not just for arguing with strangers on the internet, it's for political action.

The above is a threat, an attempt to make Democrats back down from invalidating Trump off the ballot. Specifically Democrats, because if they don't play nice with Republicans, Republicans won't play nice with them. (Ha-ha, sure wish I knew why Dems are always so willing to believe the GOP will play nice!) Will they actually back down because of this? I don't know. Will Republicans actually follow through on it whether they back down or not? I don't know that either!

But I do know that this is only a viable threat because we're looking at method over results and intent. If we oversimplify to the point that we're willing to accept doing violence to resist the government is wrong, no matter who or why or how much, this is a perfectly cromulent argument. The January 6 "rioters" did violence to resist the government and so did the BLM "rioters." Insurrectionists! We'll have to bar everyone associated from office! Wow, but that's a lot of people. Maybe we're all being a little overzealous about this "insurrection" thing, eh?

Okay, say it with me so you don't forget: Violence in support of a wannabe dictator does not equal violence in support of people who keep getting murdered by police. And if you've got room for a little extra credit: Property damage does not equal showing up with a scaffold and demanding to hang the Vice President.

I've mentioned the Machine that Dispenses Justice before.

It's a unicorn because it's not real. We can't build a legislative structure that coughs up justice every time without any human imperfection to guide, interfere with or mitigate it. The complex interplay between method, results and intent is only part of why.

Neoliberals (among others who buy their rhetoric) really want that that Justice Machine. The messiness and conditionality of real justice bothers them. Conservatives DGAF, but they're willing to pretend in order to get Democrats to shoot themselves in the foot. See above. Oh noes! The Justice Machine won't work every time if you add a piece that requires a human being to detect nuance! Violence is always wrong, isn't it? Maybe, if we just agree that the threat of violence was overblown in this case, we can leave this broken gear aside and get back to building the machine for real? (As soon as it's politically expedient, we're going after that Black woman, aren't we? Oh, yeah. Totally.)

While we're gearing up to blame voter apathy, poor white trash and privileged Progressives for whatever the election might bring, the folks in the Room Where It Happens are busy making deals that will bypass the voters altogether. Does the current Machine that Dispenses Justice (justice pending) say a man who wants to end democracy is allowed to run in a (theoretically) free and fair democratic election? I don't know yet, but your input will not be required for this aspect of our "democracy." Don't call us (or do, we have plenty of volunteers and form letters for dealing with you!), we'll call you when it's time to pick a candidate. NO! DON'T VOTE THIRD PARTY! ARE YOU MAD?!?

But with Republicans willing to forgive people who want to hang them for the sake of winning a few more elections, and Democrats elevating compromise above self-preservation, even if Biden wins, you might not get that peaceful transfer of power you want. You might not get that safety you want. We have yet to generate consequences that will take Trump (or another man like him) out of the game, although we swear up and down that the system we've built is meant to do that. The Machine that Dispenses Justice (justice pending) just can't process someone with that level of power and privilege. And that's not justice... or democracy. That's a fucking emergency, we are about to have a fucking election, but I don't hear any candidates willing to admit it yet.

So what are we fighting for?

I know you have an answer. You're a human being with a human brain; you can think when you want to. But, no matter what your answer is, are you sure that's what the folks on your ballot are fighting for too?

[beardedmrbean]

Gov. Maura Healey came face-to-face with climate protesters interrupting her Nantucket fundraiser over concerns the state is already off track to meeting looming emissions reduction goals. And the group of young activists behind recent high-profile disruptions at political events say they will continue to escalate — just like climate change.

“Big updates imminent. We are cranking up the heat. We are gearing up to use tactics that Establishment Nonprofits would never dream of touching,” Climate Defiance ominously teased yesterday on the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.

A protester from the self-described “brand-new, youth-led group using direct action to resist fossil fuels” shouted at Healey in a video the group shared.

“Massachusetts is building 10 new fossil fuel infrastructure projects right now. We need you to ban new fossil fuel infrastructure right now. Will you commit to that, yes or no?” he asked the Democratic governor. Climate Defiance is the same group behind the hecklers who interrupted Vice President Kamala Harris last week as she addressed a crowd at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School. 

Healey appeared calm, cool and collected, telling protesters at Saturday’s fundraiser “Let’s talk about that.”

When it comes to making progress on achieving the state’s looming decarbonization goals, however, the Healey administration and her campaign have been short on words lately.

A campaign official yesterday declined to comment for a State House News Service story on the fundraiser interruption. Last week, the Healey administration passed on a Boston Globe request for an interview on the state’s lackluster goal for reducing driving in the Bay State — which experts say is the fastest way to reduce transportation emissions that makeup 37 percent of the state’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

Achieving 2050 net zero goals — or even interim benchmarks at the decade’s end — will require a massive transition away from the status quo in transportation, heating and building design, a state climate roadmap declares.

“The first step in the transition is to ban new fossil fuels,” the Healey-heckler said. 

Healey has made climate action a centerpiece of her administration, building out a new dedicated workforce since taking office. She’s focused on the jobs and power in offshore wind development and noted in a post this month that 1 percent of the budget is now allocated to energy and the environment.

But climate activists allege hypocrisy by a government that trots out green climate goals while failing to bar fossil fuel infrastructure projects or sunset natural gas hookups in new construction. They continue to be a thorn in the side of the governor and her Democratic colleagues.

Disrupters with Extinction Rebellion in June dropped their drawers in the Senate Chamber to expose lawmakers to their message (which was scrawled across their bare bums): “Stop passing gas!” Members of the group were arrested a month earlier at a staged sit-in in the House Chamber.