Dispatches From the Culture Wars

Whitaker Thinks All Judges Must Have ‘Biblical View of Justice’

November 9, 2018 By Ed Brayton

The more that comes out about new Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker, the worse and worse he looks. The Washington Post reports that during a Senate primary debate in 2014, he was asked what criteria he would use to reject Obama’s judicial nominees. He said that all judges must have a “Biblical view of justice.” (more…) Read more

Michigan’s New Governor May Release Those Jailed for Marijuana Crimes

November 9, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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Election night was almost uniformly positive here in Michigan. Democrats swept all the statewide offices and all three proposals passed, including the legalization of recreational marijuana. Our new governor, Gretchen Whitmer, says she will use her clemency powers to free people in jail on low-level marijuana charges. (more…) Read more

Ken Starr Goes All Pollyanna Over Threat to Mueller Investigation

November 9, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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Ken Starr, the special counsel who investigated Bill Clinton, went on CNN and said that he didn’t think new Acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker would do anything to threaten the Mueller investigation because that would lead Mueller to resign and set off a “firestorm” of controversy. One has to wonder what planet he’s been living on. (more…) Read more

Trump Violating Law by Rejecting Asylum Applications

November 9, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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It’s been clear from the start that Trump was going to try to prevent those Central American refugees in the caravan from applying for asylum, but it hasn’t been clear how exactly they plan to do that. Now we know. By “funneling” them to get them to apply for asylum in Mexico instead of the United States. (more…) Read more

Katyal and Conway: Whitaker Appointment is Unconstitutional

November 9, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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Neil Katyal, former Solicitor General, and George Conway, husband of Baghdad Kellyanne Conway, argue in a New York Times op-ed column that Trump’s appointment of Matt Whitaker as Acting Attorney General is unconstitutional even as a temporary appointment because that position is a “principal officer” answerable only to the president and thus requires Senate confirmation. (more…) Read more

Graham’s Sale of His Soul to Trump is Now Complete

November 9, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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During the campaign and for the first year or so of Trump’s administration, Lindsey Graham was one of his loudest critics, often criticizing him in unusually strong terms. But in 2018, he sold his soul to Trump and that sale is now complete with the firing of Jeff Sessions. Let’s set the wayback machine: (more…) Read more

How Do We Systematize Humanist Charitable Giving?

November 8, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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My good friend Dale McGowan, who has inspired me and taught me so much about humanism (and is also the manager of the Nonbelievers Portal here at Patheos), did Facebook Live event last night discussing his most recent article in The Humanist about how we build a culture of charitable giving in the humanist community that works as well as the one churches have long had. (more…) Read more

Whitaker is Even Worse Than You Probably Think

November 8, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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It’s become evident now that Trump kind of outsmarted us by quietly naming Matthew Whitaker to be Jeff Sessions’ chief of staff, a position that didn’t require Senate confirmation and therefore flew under the radar. Whitaker is just another Trump sycophant who defended everything he did and floated bizarre conspiracy theories to defend him in the media before he was placed in a position to take over from Sessions after the midterms. Like this absurd defense of Donald Trump, Jr’s… Read more

Time to Stone a Bunch of Christian Right ‘Prophets’

November 8, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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While anyone living in the actual reality on this planet was predicting for weeks now that the Democrats would take control of the House and the Republicans would retain control of the Senate, Trump said it was going to be a “red wave” for Republicans. And some of his loopier sycophants went even further than that, promising a “red tsunami” because God wanted it, or something. (more…) Read more

Trump Bans Acosta from White House

November 8, 2018 By Ed Brayton

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In yet another public show of his thin-skinned fascist impulses, Donald Trump has banned CNN’s Jim Acosta from covering the White House after throwing a tantrum at him during a press conference. And the excuse they’re using for it is both flatly contradicted by the video and astonishingly hypocritical. (more…) Read more