"Sphincter Politicians on Parade”

[indy]

George Santos has been criminally charged by the DOJ, but the charges are currently under seal.

www.cnn.com/2023/05/09/politics/george-santos-charged-justice-department/index.html

[goldenvalley]

Here are some of the charges against George Santos (or whatever his name is).  They are not surprising, as we know the campaign was just a great grifting tool and then there are other things as well.

The bulk of the indictment focuses on allegations that Mr. Santos directed an unnamed political consultant to solicit fraudulent political contributions to a company that he falsely claimed was a political fund. Prosecutors say that Mr. Santos used the money for personal expenses, including buying designer clothing and making credit card payments.

The indictment also accuses Mr. Santos of fraudulently claiming unemployment benefits made available during the coronavirus pandemic. Federal prosecutors say that Mr. Santos received more than $24,000 in unemployment payments while he was actually working for a Florida-based investment firm that paid him $120,000 a year.

And prosecutors say that Mr. Santos knowingly made false statements on financial disclosure forms in 2020 and 2022 in order to mislead the House of Representatives and the public about his financial condition. In the indictment, they accuse Mr. Santos of falsely inflating his salary in 2020 and 2022, failing to disclose some income and lying about the amounts in his checking and savings accounts.

The guy is now in custody.  Wonder what bail will be set at? And....bear in mind this was said before the content of the charges was public.

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who has made no move to penalize or marginalize Representative George Santos even in the face of mounting allegations of misconduct and lies by the first-term New York Republican, has signaled that Mr. Santos will be allowed to continue to serve in Congress even after being indicted on federal charges.

“I’ll look at the charges,” Mr. McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday, before an indictment charging Mr. Santos with wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and lying to Congress was unsealed. “If a person is indicted, they’re not on committees. They have the right to vote, but they have to go to trial.”

Mr. McCarthy said his calculation could change if Mr. Santos were found guilty.

[andydp]

House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, who has made no move to penalize or marginalize Representative George Santos even in the face of mounting allegations of misconduct and lies by the first-term New York Republican, has signaled that Mr. Santos will be allowed to continue to serve in Congress even after being indicted on federal charges.

“I’ll look at the charges,” Mr. McCarthy told reporters on Tuesday, before an indictment charging Mr. Santos with wire fraud, money laundering, theft of public funds and lying to Congress was unsealed. “If a person is indicted, they’re not on committees. They have the right to vote, but they have to go to trial.”

Mr. McCarthy said his calculation could change if Mr. Santos were found guilty.

I wonder if he would say the same thing if it was AOC.  (We all know the answer but its good for a laugh)

[LFC]

If you didn't think George Santos could get any more ridiculous (but of course you all knew better)...

Newly released audio shows Rep. George Santos (R-NY) asking a documentarian for money to appear in a documentary project about him. Filmmaker Blake Zeff tweeted that his team “eventually ditched the project when it was clear” Santos wanted “lots” of money to appear in the film. In the audio, which was reportedly recorded during conversations between Zeff and Santos in January and February, Santos can be heard asking what the project will mean for him “monetarily.” “Look, I don’t have a number in my head,” Santos says in the clip aired on MSNBC’s The Beat with Ari Melber on Thursday night. “Like, the fact that I’m having these conversations, these are conversations I never in a million years thought I would be having. But when in Rome, you know, let’s have the conversations.” “I don’t know if grifting for interviews was a common practice in Rome,” Melber said after airing the clip. Zeff later appeared on the show to say that while he was not saying Santos’ request for money was unlawful, it was “not common” as a journalist to hear politicians asking to be paid to appear in interviews. The audio comes after Santos this week pleaded not guilty to 13 federal charges, including fraud, lying about his personal finances, and misusing campaign money.

[LFC]

Ugh. Just ... ugh.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican of Georgia, on Tuesday was the highest bidder among House Republicans for a cherry "chapstick" used by Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy. Greene, who promotes herself as a culture warrior and fiscal conservative, made the winning bid for the lip balm after McCarthy sweetened the deal by promising to attend a donor dinner, according to reports.

"During GOP conference today," Politico's Olivia Beavers reports, "House Rs did about a 15-min fundraising auction for chapstick used by Speaker McCarthy. The winner: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), whose winning bid was $100,000, her Spox confirms to me."

"Others bid on it as well, but MTG ultimately won: And as bidding went on, McCarthy would sweeten the deal, throwing in agreeing to attend a dinner with donors/supporters for whoever wins, Spox confirmed," Beavers adds, citing Greene's spokesperson. "The chapstick specifically was a Rep. Aaron Bean campaign chapstick."

[pnwguy]

May 24, 2023 16:23:50 GMT LFC said:

Ugh. Just ... ugh.

U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Republican of Georgia, on Tuesday was the highest bidder among House Republicans for a cherry "chapstick" used by Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy. Greene, who promotes herself as a culture warrior and fiscal conservative, made the winning bid for the lip balm after McCarthy sweetened the deal by promising to attend a donor dinner, according to reports.

"During GOP conference today," Politico's Olivia Beavers reports, "House Rs did about a 15-min fundraising auction for chapstick used by Speaker McCarthy. The winner: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), whose winning bid was $100,000, her Spox confirms to me."

"Others bid on it as well, but MTG ultimately won: And as bidding went on, McCarthy would sweeten the deal, throwing in agreeing to attend a dinner with donors/supporters for whoever wins, Spox confirmed," Beavers adds, citing Greene's spokesperson. "The chapstick specifically was a Rep. Aaron Bean campaign chapstick."

"Kevin left the balance of the chapstick around my anus during the Speaker election, so I thought I should just get the rest of it"

[andydp]

As good a place as any.

Texas G.O.P. Leaders Clash Over Accusations of Corruption and Drunkenness

The barely concealed disdain brewing for months among top Republicans in Texas burst into public view this week when the attorney general, Ken Paxton, who is under indictment, accused the speaker of the Texas House of performing his duties while drunk and called for the speaker’s resignation.


The move on Tuesday sent a shock through Austin. Then, less than an hour later, word came that Mr. Paxton might have had a personal motive for attacking the speaker, Dade Phelan: A House committee had subpoenaed records from Mr. Paxton’s office, as part of an inquiry into the attorney general’s request for $3.3 million in state money to settle corruption allegations brought against him by his own former high-ranking aides.



www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/texas-g-o-p-leaders-clash-over-accusations-of-corruption-and-drunkenness/ar-AA1bDJrA?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=611b936431644bddb854228da110ae75&ei=41

[LFC]

Paxton belongs in prison.

[goldenvalley]

I guess DeSantis's announcement didn't go so well yesterday hence putting him into the Sphincter thread.  I never heard of Twitter Spaces and see no reason to look into it. I think Trump is the candidate for the Republicans, no one else comes close to his ability to appeal to angry people.  

[pnwguy]

May 25, 2023 16:44:58 GMT goldenvalley said:

I guess DeSantis's announcement didn't go so well yesterday hence putting him into the Sphincter thread.  I never heard of Twitter Spaces and see no reason to look into it. I think Trump is the candidate for the Republicans, no one else comes close to his ability to appeal to angry people.  

Angry and misinformed people.  Last week's Firing Line with The Bulwark founder (and former conservative talk radio host) Charlie Sykes, put things in clear language.

[LFC]

Bimboebert again.

I Love This So Much

Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) put out a video claiming she refused to cast a vote on the debt ceiling package last week as a “protest” – but here’s video of her racing up the steps of Capitol the night of the vote and being told by a CNN producer that the vote had already closed:

[goldenvalley]

George Santos or whatever his name is, is the photo next to the definition of chutzpah.

[goldenvalley]

So Gaetz is going after their guy Durham:

[LFC]

Jun 22, 2023 2:42:37 GMT goldenvalley said:

So Gaetz is going after their guy Durham:

My IQ dropped 10 points just listening to the first 60 seconds. I couldn't take any more than that. Gaetz is the ultimate combination of smug and stupid.

[indy]

Obviously since he didn't uncover the conspiracy he is part of it.

[goldenvalley]

Jun 22, 2023 15:53:01 GMT indy said:

Obviously since he didn't uncover the conspiracy he is part of it.

That's the beauty of being a conspiracy theorist.  Anything that disproves or fails to show evidence of a conspiracy is further proof of the conspiracy..."it's bigger than we first thought!"

[LFC]

Large Marge just admitted that quoting her was "attacking her character." Gee, Pumpkin. If you don't want to be associated with such vile, fascist batshittery, maybe try keeping that huge yap shut.

[goldenvalley]

Apparently this happened a couple of weeks ago but MTG has been booted out of the Freedom Caucus.  

A majority of the House Freedom Caucus voted to remove GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia just before the current congressional recess on June 23, according to Republican Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, though her ultimate fate in the group remains unclear.

“A vote was taken to remove Marjorie Taylor Greene from the House Freedom Caucus – for some of the things she’s done,” Harris told reporters Thursday. According to Harris, Greene can no longer attend weekly meetings as they are reserved for members. This would be the first time a member has been ejected from the caucus. Politico first reported the vote.

I suspect this doesn't matter to her...she wouldn't have backed McCarthy for Speaker or voted for the debt ceiling bill if it did. She's probably making enough on her merchandising and gets invited to run her mouth at all the right winger events she has time to attend. Will it hurt her re-election prospects?  

[LFC]

Now we finally know who owns George Santos.

The Daily Beast reports:

After The Daily Beast reported that a bumper crop of new maximum donors to Rep. George Santos (R-NY) appeared to have links to indicted Chinese right-wing financier Guo Wengui, new evidence suggests those ties are even stronger than anyone could have guessed.

On Monday, the Hark Herald Press, an independent investigative outlet that scrutinizes Chinese political operations, reported that, according to its research, almost all of these new donors are connected to a group that Guo created with right-wing agitator and ally Steve Bannon, called the New Federal State of China (NFSC).

[andydp]

Jul 18, 2023 13:39:59 GMT LFC said:

Now we finally know who owns George Santos.

The Daily Beast reports:

Once again proving the dictum:

"The GOP where every accusation is an admission of guilt."

[indy]

Almost certainly more indictments coming for Santos too.

[goldenvalley]

This guy Guo Wengui has quite the network.  I'm wondering if it reaches one of the Trump boys. Seems like they might have something going on besides the Trump Organization, or they would if they were smart enough to realize that the Trump Org may "go through some things" in the near future.

[goldenvalley]

Tuberville of Alabama:

Tuberville’s office says his primary residence is an Auburn house that records show is owned by his wife and son. But campaign finance reports and his signature on property documents indicate that his home is actually a $3 million, 4,000-square-foot beach house he has lived in for nearly two decades in Santa Rosa Beach, Fla., located in the Florida Panhandle about 90 miles south of Dothan.

He was registered to vote in a different state.

In 2018, he voted in Florida in the midterm elections, according to the Birmingham News, but he registered to vote in Alabama on March 28, 2019, a week before announcing his Senate bid. For his voter registration address, he listed as his residence a property, appraised at about $300,000, located in Auburn.

Local media accounts in 2020 said that Tuberville owns this home with his wife. But property records show it is owned by Tuberville’s son, who has the same first name but a different middle name, along with the senator’s wife. The home was purchased in 2017, when the son, generally known as Tucker, was in the process of obtaining an Alabama real estate license...

I doubt that the Republican Party in either state is concerned about where he really lives, but maybe Alabama voters care?

[indy]

Aug 11, 2023 16:03:43 GMT goldenvalley said:

I doubt that the Republican Party in either state is concerned about where he really lives, but maybe Alabama voters care?

As if. They could find out he was living in the Kremlin and not give a crap.

[jackd]

Maybe some enterprising Alabama prosecutor could charge him with voter fraud; or the Democrats could challenge his candidacy. Either would be fun.