DL Open Thread: Thursday, January 5, 2022
McCarthy Gives Away Everything. Will It Net Him The Speakership?:
During late-hour negotiations Wednesday, Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) made fresh concessions to a group of 20 lawmakers in hopes of ending their blockade of his speakership ahead of votes Thursday, according to four people familiar with the talks who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations.
The Post’s Marianna Sotomayor, Paul Kane and Jacqueline Alemany report that in a stunning reversal, McCarthy offered to lower from five to one the threshold of members required to sponsor a resolution to force a vote to oust the speaker — a change the California Republican had previously said he would not accept.
McCarthy also expressed a willingness to tap more members of the conservative Freedom Caucus to the House Rules Committee, which debates legislation before it’s moved to the floor.
And he relented on allowing floor votes to institute term limits on members and to enact specific border policy legislation.
It remained unclear early Thursday whether the concessions could move the holdouts. But some moderates have grown irate at the moves.
Of course, they’re ‘moderates’, so they’ll likely swallow hard, vote for McCarthy, and hail it as compromise. Or, the whole thing could blow up. Bringing my popcorn, my blanket, and my alcohol (you must watch this) to view the proceedings. If, that is, there are any proceedings today.
“Build That Damn Bridge”. Build it they will. Thanks to the infrastructure bill almost universally reviled by congressional Rethuglicans:
COVINGTON, Kentucky (AP) — President Joe Biden visited a dilapidated bridge connecting Ohio and Kentucky to talk up the virtues of bipartisanship with Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday while at the same time blasting House Republicans for an “embarrassing” scene of disarray that has kept the chamber from organizing itself.
The Democratic president’s trip to the Brent Spence Bridge, which is getting a federal facelift, came as Washington is gripped by the GOP’s inability to unify behind a candidate for House speaker. Biden, as he left the White House, said the chaos was “not a good look” for the country. The election of a speaker is required before House members can be sworn in for the new congressional session.
The NFL Is Violence Writ Large:
Hamlin’s accident was grievous and rare. Still, it was a reminder of the punishing ecosystem of football, one that’s unlike any other sport. Violence is such a central organizing factor that except under the most ghastly circumstances, it goes mostly unnoticed. In football, players are helped off the field with damaged knees, bruised skulls and injured shoulders with some regularity. But if they can manage a thumbs up or a wave to the fans, everything is deemed fine. The game will pause for a commercial break and then resume, as if nothing has happened. As if it’s not a big deal that a human being had to be carried away on a stretcher in the middle of a sporting event. As if every football game doesn’t tempt fate in a way that basketball or soccer or hockey doesn’t.
Football isn’t so much wrapped in poetry as it is patriotism, not the small town county fair version, but big city capitalism. Football benefits from the lucrative economics of machismo. It markets and sells live action, super hero violence. Fans of professional football like to call players warriors and gladiators and equate that with bravery and toughness while forgetting that warriors all too often are gravely wounded and gladiators often fought to the death.
Another Hinky Development Project, This One In New Castle Area. Live in a flood plain? Why, that’s your personal choice, according to the developer’s lawyer:
A scenic Delaware River view could also mean increased flood risks.
The developers said they used DNREC’s sea level rise projections to simulate whether the Flats at Riveredge would be safe from 50 and 100-year “worst-case scenarios” that could impact the country’s lowest-lying state. In both projections, the development was not impacted by sea level rise. (What did you expect the developers’ findings to say?)
However, Phillip Cane with the Delaware Emergency Management Agency (DEMA) said a majority of the property falls within a hazardous flood area.
“DEMA does not encourage any development in areas within or directly adjacent to 100-year flood plains since water knows no bounds or flood lines,” Cane wrote in a letter from state agencies about the project.
Developers are confident residents will still be interested in the development, despite historical problems in the region.
“It’s a personal choice where you want to live,” Tucker said. “Folks can make a choice whether they want to live next to the refinery, the way we see it. But don’t let perfect kill the good.”
Hey, we’re already gonna have the Underwater City At Ft. DuPont. What’s one more, more or less?
What do you want to talk about?
We should all make sure we appreciate the rare camera work we are seeing in these House sessions.
Normally House rules permit only a single camera aimed at the podium. Newt Gingrich was notorious for impassioned televised speeches which viewers never knew were delivered to an empty House.
But at the moment there are no House rules, so…. CSPAN camera crews are taking full advantage to pan over the House and zoom in for reaction shots. And, because of the requirements for the leadership vote, every member must be present.
Another issue for Flats at Riveredge, which I didn’t see mentioned in the story, is that you can’t get there easily.
There’s no existing connection to the historic New Castle area, and creating one would require an easement through another industrial park. So, the only access is from Route 9 at Cherry Lane (next to the Memorial Bridge entrance), and driving a mile or so to the proposed site. Retail prospects there would seem to be limited. Unless you’re living there, just not a convenient place to shop.
What gets me is that Shawn Tucker meme about ‘choosing’ where to live.
As if anybody w/o means would choose to live by an oil refinery, a composting plant, or Croda. Does he think that people in Minquadale ‘choose’ to live by the garbage dump when they could just as well live in Greenville?
I don’t know the man personally, but, were I in charge, I’d REQUIRE him to live by the dump.
Don’t let the perfect kill the good? Fine. Howzabout we let it kill the mediocre and substandard instead?
Major injuries in the NFL are welcomed. injuries drive attention which drives interest, which drives viewership, which drives ratings, which drives income. Consider concussions and CTE. viewership (on major tv networks) and attendance have remained steady and streaming viewing has increased every year since the movie concussion came out (2015). They did a lot of talking about stuff but nothing will or can change. They only way to prevent traumatic injuries is to go to a full no tackle flag football league and they know they cant do that because no one wants to see that.
“a full no tackle flag football league”
That would be “soccer.” And you’re right, nobody wants to see that.
Apparently 26 million nobodies in the U.S. watched the World Cup final.
Little-known local-ish footnote to the McCarthy story.
WaPo congressional reporter Paul Kane is a UD grad who got his start in journalism as a freelancer for the News Journal’s long-gone and once beloved Crossroads sections.
I feel like 90% of Delaware Online is Sports and Crossroads. Now though it’s just one thing.
To wit… massive General Assembly pregame show drops tomorrow. Big bunker special, &c.
The Senate leadership, Townsend and Tizzy, discuss their 2023 agenda and the obstacles to realizing it.
Legislative session begins next week. Have any News Journal reporters contacted the state Senate to report on it?
No, they have not. Maybe Tizzy should just hang out at Wegman’s or a high school football game.
Wait. There is a Wegman’s in Delaware? Tell me more.
Smash that “like” button. 😹
I wonder what its like to work there
Football would be the only high school sport DO/TNJ covers. Otherwise, it’s a bunch of lists ordered by Gannett to generate clicks.
The only thing missing from the NJ’s year-end coverage was a list of the staff’s 50 favorite lists.
I don’t agree that injuries are “welcomed” by NFL fans. Except maybe a minor tweak in the shoulder of the opposing quarterback from which he’ll recover right after the final whistle!
From Rachel Sawicki at DPM
https://www.delawarepublic.org/delaware-headlines/2023-01-04/wilmington-2022-crime-report-police-chief-robert-tracy-closes-out-career-with-lowest-number-of-murders-in-15-years
John James, a Black congressman from Michigan, delivered a lengthy speech on behalf of McCarthy.
Coincidence that this happened on the same day that Debbie Stabenow announced she wouldn’t run for reelection for Senate in Michigan?
Not a chance.
Vote #7 is in the books. No change in the number of votes against McCarthy. Gaetz voted for Trump instead of Donalds.
New name enters the fray: Kevin Hern of Oklahoma. Not nominated, but receiving votes this round. You know him from his sponsorship of the “Protecting Life From Chemical Abortions” Act.
McCarthy no doubt thinking it’s OK if this goes on for 100 votes, because even if he goes 1-99, he would still be the winner.
He keeps on making concessions, but he may be holding on to the ultimate game changer: the keys to the Speaker’s restroom.
Believe McCarthy (a.k.a Old Reliable) just failed on his 8th attempt to be the speaker. This game is nowhere near being over. Am I worried? Nope, but McCarthy has already given away the store by allowing a single MAGGAT to shut down the house, that’s a recipe for disaster if ever there was one.
I wonder if a Dem went up to mccarthy and said that if he agreed to call to impeach Justices Thomas and Barrett and allow biden to appoint new ones the dems would throw in for him if he would agreea
I like it.
Popcorn shortages reported in major cities across the country:)
Speaking of…
https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/2023/01/05/asbury-park-press-editor-phil-freedman-delaware-online/69780938007/
This Matt Rosendale of Montana wins today’s ‘Get Off My Lawn’ Award.
In what seems on its face to be a “WTF?!” move, PA Gov-elect Josh Shapiro nominates a Republican for Secretary of State job. This is the guy who will oversee the 2024 Presidential election among others in PA.
The guy reportedly is a straight arrow with respect to elections and may actually be a good choice. The nomination is subject to approval by the Republican state Senate, which will have to struggle to find ways to deny confirmation.
Yeah, to be fair, it’s Al Schmidt from Philly, who earned buttloads of praise for how he fended off attacks from the right after that election. He did a terrific job and seems like a good guy, and further earned my respect by testifying for the 1-6 Committee too.
Number 9
Number 9
Number 9
Decline.
Cue up the Beatles! Number 9!
Going for #10 now. The Shaming of McCarthy is such a great show.
AYFKM? Ballot # 10? With no chance of anything changing?
McCarthy is a pathetic bleeping loser. Pull the plug, buddy.
I’m having popcorn and wine for dinner tonight.