DL Open Thread: Friday, June 14, 2024

How Thomas Is Like Trump:  So Corrupt That Yet More Corruption Hardly Registers:

Justice Clarence Thomas never disclosed three trips aboard the private jet of the Texas billionaire Harlan Crow, according to documents obtained by the Senate Judiciary Committee released on Thursday.

The documents, obtained by Democrats on the panel, list three visits that have not previously been reported: one to a city in Montana, near Glacier National Park, in 2017; another to his hometown, Savannah, Ga., in March 2019; and another to Northern California in 2021.

The revelation underlined the extent to which Justice Thomas has relied on the generosity of his friends over the years and the consistency with which he declined to report those ties.

Justice Thomas has said that he had been advised he did not need to disclose gifts of personal hospitality from friends who did not have cases before the Supreme Court.

“Counterfeit Titanium”?  You in the mood to fly today?:

Some recently manufactured Boeing and Airbus jets have components made from titanium that was sold using fake documentation verifying the material’s authenticity, according to a supplier for the plane makers, raising concerns about the structural integrity of those airliners.

The falsified documents are being investigated by Spirit AeroSystems, which supplies fuselages for Boeing and wings for Airbus, as well as the Federal Aviation Administration. The investigation comes after a parts supplier found small holes in the material from corrosion.

Just wondering where counterfeit titanium falls on the Ol’ Stability Meter:  Sturdier than an aluminum cooking tin?  Less sturdy than a trash can lid?  Oh, and if it’s counterfeit titanium, just what is it made of? Spray-painted cardboard? Bon Voyage.

Guess Who’s Behind The Rethug Push For Raw Milk:

A conservative advocacy group headed by scam artist Charlie Kirk is pushing Americans to drink raw milk at a time when a widespread flu outbreak makes this potentially fatal. This is just one of several moves by right-wing groups and media pundits since the Food and Drug Administration cautioned against drinking raw milk following the rapid spread of H5N1 bird flu among dairy cattle.

The group, Turning Point USA, is promoting T-shirts that display a “got raw milk?” logo. It is well-established by the FDA that there are absolutely no health benefits from drinking raw milk instead of pasteurized milk. Raw milk was dangerous even before the rapidly spreading flu and is known to spread multiple diseases, including tuberculosis.

Since the first grocery store milk tested positive for the flu in April, H5N1 has spread widely through the commercial milk supply, but pasteurization appears to make the milk safe to drink. Raw milk remains one of the few vectors, outside of working with infected cows or poultry, that can spread the disease to humans.

So naturally, Republicans are suddenly huge fans of drinking raw milk, even if they never gave a thought to it before. Raw milk is being promoted by right-wing media, and the FDA’s warning against drinking raw milk during the flu outbreak is being called a conspiracy between the government and “big milk.”

So, whither Delaware’s version of this Rethug fever dream?  Sponsored by Sen. Jubilation T. Buckson, the bill passed a (one hopes) largely-unsuspecting Senate.  Senators Hansen, Lockman, Mantzavinos, Townsend and Walsh voted no.  Memo to the House:  This bill is dangerous, and it’s been reported out of committee.   Kill it dead.

Delaware Rethugs Really Don’t Want People To Vote.  On a straight party line vote, the House Rethugs defeated a constitutional amendment ‘to eliminate the limitations on when an individual may vote absentee and authorizes the General Assembly to enact general laws providing the circumstances, rules, and procedures for absentee voting in this State.’  Totally understandable.  Democracy is their enemy. While D Rep. Minor Brown is listed on the roll call as having voted no, that was a procedural necessity.  She had voted yes.  By switching the vote to ‘no’ it enables her to bring the bill back up for reconsideration since she ultimately voted on the ‘prevailing side’.  The bill had already passed the Senate.

What do you want to talk about?