Another Thursday, another pile of good news. Despite what you may have heard elsewhere, things are not getting any better for the Trump crime syndicate, the amazing assortment of Democratic presidential contenders does not portend doom in 2020, and most of America is not even aware of the vicious pie-fighting taking pace on DKos and Twitter.
The MSM is pushing and will continue to push news and opinion meant to discourage and divide us. Ask yourself which political party is most favored by the billionaires that own our major news outlets and you will realize that anti-progressive bias in the media is carefully and deliberately designed to maintain the power of that party. The good news in all this is that the increasingly frantic efforts to discredit us means that they are terrified of us. They better be.
One purpose of the GNR is to act as an antidote to the malarkey the MSM keeps spewing. As you are about to see, the good guys are slowly winning. As one of today’s items proves, even the Great Blue Wave of 2018 is still happening.
A programming note before we get started: due to various physical and mental stresses I need to take a little break from doing the Roundup. It would be a big help if someone could step up and fill in for two weeks. If you’ve been wondering whether you could do a regular Roundup, this might be a golden opportunity to find out. That’s how I got started, and I’ve never regretted it.
Also, as a reminder, we are working very hard to keep the Great Dkos Pie Fight of 2019 from polluting this space. Many of us have our preferred candidates, and some of us really don’t like some of the other candidates. I would ask that everyone remember that every single Democratic candidate is better than Trump and that we leave it at that. If anyone has trouble resisting the urge to yell about this or that candidate, here’s a tweet that you can use that should get your message across. Just don’t do it here.
And with that out of the way, let’s get on with today's good news.
MUELLER REPORT SAID TO BE COMING NEXT WEEK
Yesterday there were reports from many sources, led by this WaPo story, that the long-awaited conclusion to the Mueller investigation may be just days away.
Justice Department officials are preparing for the end of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s nearly two-year investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and believe a confidential report could be issued in coming days, according to people familiar with the discussions.
The special counsel’s investigation has consumed Washington since it began in May 2017, and it increasingly appears to be nearing its end, which would send fresh shock waves through the political system. Mueller could deliver his report to Attorney General William P. Barr next week, according to a person familiar with the matter who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive deliberations.✂️
The special counsel’s office, which used to have 17 lawyers, is down to 12 now, and some of those attorneys have recently been in touch with their old bosses about returning to work, according to people familiar with the discussions. All but four of the remaining 12 lawyers are detailed from other Justice Department offices.
One would think that everyone would be happy that Mueller is apparently finally going to issue the report so many have been impatiently waiting for. But some things never change, and the Debbie Downers and Gloomy Guses are all over Twitter and elsewhere warning us Mueller is being forced to end his investigation early, or that the report will be hidden away from the public. And that means that every Republican gets away with everything, Trump becomes president for life, and we should all plan on reporting to the camps next month.
As with most predictions of doom and gloom, this one depends on a selective view of reality which ignores some pretty important facts. To begin with, there are several good reasons why the final report will not be suppressed.
On Wednesday evening, Neal Katyal, a former acting solicitor general during Barack Obama’s presidency, published a series of tweets that made the strongest case yet for why the Mueller report will eventually become public.
Two decades ago, as a Justice Department lawyer under Bill Clinton, Katyal helped write the regulations that guided future special counsel investigations. Those rules — which now dictate what Mueller and his team can and can’t do — envisioned two possible reports to emerge from a special counsel’s investigation. The first is a confidential report, sent to the attorney general at the probe’s conclusion, outlining why the special counsel chose to prosecute or not. And then there is a second possible report, from the attorney general to Congress, that explains why the DOJ chose to act or not on the special counsel’s findings.
That second report is the crucial one from a public’s-right-to-know perspective. In it, the attorney general — likely soon to be William Barr, Trump’s nominee to replace Jeff Sessions — must tell Congress why the special counsel’s probe ended and any examples of the attorney general overruling the counsel’s recommendations. Imagine if Mueller recommended prosecuting Trump for obstruction of justice, and Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker or future A.G. Barr chose not to do so — Whitaker or Barr would have to explain that decision to Congress. That explanation could be a few sentences long; it could be a book-length report like Ken Starr’s in the final years of Clinton’s presidency.
That second report, Katyal says, was meant to ensure “Congressional and public confidence in the integrity of the process.” In other words, a check on the attorney general if he or she tries to suppress or dismiss the conclusions and recommendations of the special counsel.
There’s more—check out the article.
It’s also important to remember that Mueller is not the only one investigating the acts of the Trump crime family. As the WaPo article says,
The end of the special counsel’s probe would not mean the end of criminal investigations connected to the president. Federal prosecutors in New York, for instance, are exploring whether corrupt payments were made in connection with Trump’s inaugural committee funding.
If Mueller does close up shop, government lawyers on his team would likely return to their original posts, but would be able to continue to work on the prosecution of cases initiated by the special counsel’s office.
That was the case for two special counsel lawyers, Brandon Van Grack and Scott Meisler, who have left the office formally but are still working on cases begun by Mueller.
And all that is not to mention state investigations underway in New York and elsewhere.
Even if the worst fears of the pessimists are true and Mueller is getting shut down early, this is far from the end of the Trump syndicate’s legal problems.
SUPREME COURT ISSUES MAJOR CIVIL FORFEITURE DECISION
In a unanimous decision, The US Supreme Court yesterday issued a landmark ruling which will significantly reduce the use of excessive civil forfeiture by stae and local law enforcement.
In a decision that may curb the rise of financial penalties and property seizures in the U.S. criminal justice system, the Supreme Court on Wednesday for the first time ruled that the U.S. Constitution’s ban on “excess fines” applies to states as well as the federal government.
The nine justices ruled unanimously in favor of an Indiana man named Tyson Timbs who argued that police violated his rights by seizing his $42,000 Land Rover vehicle after he was convicted as a heroin dealer.✂️
Timbs argued that his vehicle’s seizure constituted an excessive fine because he had dealt drugs only twice, was convicted of only one drug-dealing offense and the maximum fine for the offense was $10,000, much less than the vehicle’s value.
This decision should severely curtail the ability of law enforcement to profit from what is essentially theft of private property.
Perhaps one of the best aspects of this ruling is that the court’s decision (full text here) was written by none other than the Notorious RBG.
HOUSTON POLICE TO END ALMOST ALL USE OF NO-KNOCK SEARCH WARRANTS
Three weeks ago, five Houston police officers were injured and two suspects killed during a drug raid involving a no-knock search warrant. It was later discovered that the warrant was issued based on false information from one of the officers, and it appears that the suspects may very well have been innocent of the crime being alleged and that they were attemtpting to defend their home when the door was broken in without warning.
In the wake of this scandal, Houston Police Chief Art Acavedo announced on Monday that his department would end virtually all use of no-knock warrants, saying that such raids have no value.
The Houston Police Department will end its use of controversial no-knock warrants in most situations, Chief Art Acevedo said during a contentious town hall meeting three weeks after a deadly Pecan Park drug raid that left two people dead and five officers injured.
"The no-knock warrants are going to go away like leaded gasoline in this city," Acevedo told the crowd of activists, reformers and concerned community members gathered at Talento Bilingüe de Houston.
After the event - organized by the Greater Houston Coalition for Justice - Acevedo said any situation in which a no-knock raid would be required would have to receive a special exemption from his office.
"I'm 99.9 percent sure we won't be using them," he said. "If for some reason there would be a specific case, that would come from my office."
DEMOCRAT WINS SPECIAL ELECTION FOR VIRGINIA HOUSE OF DELEGATES
The Blue Wave just keeps going on and on. In a special election for Virginia’s House District 86, Democrat Ibraheem Samirah defeated two challengers despite scurrilous charges of anti-Semitism made against him.
Samirah defeated Republican challenger Gregg Nelson and independent challenger Connie Haines Hutchinson by claiming nearly 60 percent of the vote in Tuesday's special election.
"I don't want to think of myself as the future by myself because there's a lot of people that want to be involved in this, but I'm glad to be part of the stepping stones for that," Samirah said as he addressed supporters.
Samirah, a 27-year-old dentist, said he is focused on addressing transportation, protecting health care and Medicaid expansion, pushing for universal full-day kindergarten and justice for all Virginians. He outraised his opponents in the Democratic district, pulling in $97,919 compared to Nelson's $20,369 and Hutchinson's $2,851, according to Virginia Public Access Project.✂️
On Feb. 7, the conservative website Big League Politics published the now-deleted posts from the first-generation American and second-generation Palestinian. The post stated that sending money to Israel is “worse” than sending money to the Ku Klux Klan and that former Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon would burn in hell after Sharon died.
The article calls Samirah’s statements “anti-Semitic,” but if that’s true then my opinion that donations to the Republican party are like donations to Nazis and that pro-Trump evangelical leaders should burn in hell are anti-Christian.
The best news about Samirah’s victory is that even charges of anti-Semitism made against a second-generation Palestinian were not enough to overcome the stench of Trump that any Republican candidate carries with them.
A GROUP OF YOUNG PEOPLE IS SUING TO FORCE ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE, AND YOU CAN HELP
A group of kids and young adults is suing the US government because of its inaction on climate change. Now, these young plaintiffs are asking for your help.
The Juliana v. US youth plaintiffs need your help. To support their lawsuit against the federal government for causing climate change, these young climate warriors need Americans under the age of 25 to sign a legal brief that will be submitted with the Court.
What if you're older?
Ages 25 and under will appear on the Young People’s Brief. If you’re older, please sign on to stay informed about our campaign, and share with the young people in your life! Parents may sign on behalf of their young children.
To learn more and sign on, visit joinjuliana.org, and you can follow (and propagate) the hashtags #JoinJuliana #youthvgov.
This seems like a good place for this.
WATKINS GLEN SPEEDWAY ENTERS PARTNERSHIP TO BUILD 50-MEGAWATT SOLAR ENERGY CENTER
The Watkins Glen, NY International Speedway, a major road course, is donating land to help build a large solar power generating center next to the racetrack.
Watkins Glen International and a subsidiary of NextEra Energy Resources, LLC announced plans for a 50-megawatt solar energy center to be built at the racetrack.
When the project is done, The Glen will house the largest solar field located at a racetrack in the United States, according to a news release.
The project will provide the region with an opportunity to diversify its energy resources with clean, renewable energy that is free of water, waste and emissions, the news release said.
It will also help New York state achieve its renewable energy goals.
SUSTAINABLE LUMBER IS BEING INCREASINGLY USED TO CONSTRUCT LARGE BUILDINGS
Technological advances are allowing wood to make a comeback as a construction material for office buildings and even high-rises.
More than a century after steel and concrete became the standard for building high-rise buildings, the humble tree is making a comeback.
Sidewalk Labs LLC, a unit of Google parent Alphabet Inc., is planning to use timber to construct all of its buildings for a mixed-use community along Toronto’s eastern waterfront. Meanwhile, Oregon became the first U.S. state to amended its building code to permit taller buildings made from timber.
The material can “contribute to people’s wellness, are beautiful, easy to assemble, and strong enough support to build dozens of stories," said Karim Khalifa, director of buildings innovation at Sidewalk Labs. “And unlike concrete and steel, which are very carbon intensive to produce, using timber in buildings takes carbon out of the atmosphere."
The new wood material, which has seen widespread use in Europe since its development 20 years ago, is beginning to gain favor in the US, including in a new building project in Austin.
The five-story 901 E. 6th St. office building is located near Interstate Highway 35 and East Sixth Street. According to its developers, it's the first building in Austin to use cross laminated timber, or CLT.
"Some people compare it to plywood on steroids," explained Ulrich Dangel, Associate Professor of Architecture at the University of Texas at Austin. "It's really a building kit that you can pre-fabricate off site."✂️
For 901 E. 6th, architect Bart Whatley said they used steel columns to support the open concept structure, but used CLT for other parts of the building. "The building codes in the U.S. have been updated recently to permit more use of mass timber," he said.
In Austin, the city allows timber to be used in construction, but you have to meet certain fire resistance requirements.
For the new office building, Whatley said, "It achieves a one-hour fire resistant rating."
GERMANY INTRODUCES WORLD’S FIRST HYDROGEN-POWERED TRAIN
MARYLAND GOVERNOR HINTS AT PRIMARY CHALLENGE TO TRUMP
Maryland’s Governor Larry Hogan indicated yesterday that he is thinking about mounting a challenge to Trump in the 2020 Republican primary.
Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan on Wednesday did not rule out mounting a 2020 Republican primary challenge against President Donald Trump, further stoking speculation in a CBS interview about his plans for next year’s presidential race.
While he cautioned that he was sworn in for his second term as governor just a month ago, Hogan didn’t deny that he is being courted for a GOP primary run by critics of the president.
“I would say I’m being approached from a lot of different people, and I guess the best way to put it is I haven’t thrown them out of my office,” he told CBS News’ Ed O’Keefe in an interview that aired Wednesday morning.
He also predicted that more Republicans could primary Trump depending on what special counsel Robert Mueller reveals after the conclusion of the Russia investigation.
John Kasich is also thinking about running against his party’s leader, and former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld has gone as far as forming an exploratory committee in preparation for a run. Whatever one thinks of the chances of anyone beating Trump in the primary, nothing says “party in disarray” like up to three challengers to a sitting President.
BETO O’ROURKE HONORED AS “EL PASOAN OF THE YEAR”
Yes, spellcheck, “El Pasoan” is a word.
In the wake of his amazing campaign for Senate, and as everyone waits to find out what’s next for Beto, his hometown has honored him as El Pasoan of the Year for 2018.
Former Texas Congressman Beto O'Rourke Tuesday was honored with the 2018 El Pasoan of the Year Award.
Speaking before a packed crowd at the Centennial Banquet Conference Center on Fort Bliss, O'Rourke said he was humbled to receive the award and that much of his past work was inspired by fellow El Pasoan Ruben Garcia, who was also honored today with the 2018 Community Spirit Award for his work with the Annunciation House.✂️
As the 2018 winner, a $5,000 donation was given to the charity of O'Rourke's choice by El Paso Inc.
Not only did he select Ruben Garcia's Annunciation House for that honor but an additional $20,000 check was also presented to Annunciation House by the Paso del Norte Health Foundation.
Annunciation House is an organization that helps immigrants and other vulnerable people living on and near the Mexican border.
And with that, I’m going to wrap up today’s Roundup. I’ll be back here in two weeks, and probably in GNR comments between now and then. Until I get back, please feel free to make some good news of your own.
And thanks to everyone here for the opportunity to share good news, hope, and encouragement with you. The struggle is long and hard, and we all need time to recharge occasionally. But we won’t give up the fight.
Play us out, Bob.