Confirmation Hearings - Secretary of State: Rex Tillerson

[tanaqui]

Nomination Hearing - Rex Wayne Tillerson

When: Wednesday 11 January from 9:15am

( Committee Members, what the committee should be concerned about and calling script )

Please use the comments to suggest more reasons why the committee should reject the nomination and to suggest amendments to the calling script.

Confirmation Hearings - Secretary of Education: Betsy DeVos

[tanaqui]

Nomination of Betsy DeVos to serve as Secretary of Education

When: UPDATED: now Tuesday 17 January from 5:00pm Wednesday 11 January from 10:00am

( Committee Members, what the committee should be concerned about and calling script )

Please use the comments to suggest more reasons why the committee should reject the nomination and to suggest amendments to the calling script.

Action: Fandom Charity Auction - Fight Back Fic

[tanaqui]

As a little light relief in between Confirmation Hearings posts (because, good grief, Trump really did mostly pick the Worst People Possible, and researching exactly how awful they are is depressing), here's news of another fandom charity auction. This one will run on a monthly basis, and authors will offer fics in return for donations to charities and organizations serving marginalized people worldwide, at a rate of 100 words per $1 donated:

https://fightbackfic.tumblr.com/
Full rules at: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1713svQT0pmL8HxvGowP6dDdxGjixSZkVdHBQM4TWD9Q/edit

The mod is asking authors, who choose the charity, to

focus on wide-reaching immediate-help things like, here’s getting healthcare to women in West Texas, here’s Lambda Legal, here’s a justice project that pays for lawyers for indigent clients, here’s my local food bank.

Strategy Reading: Pence the lesser of two evils

[tassosss]

via siderea  by way of dewline 
reposted with permission


This article by Jonathan Crowe, Opposition in the Age of Gish Gallops proposes a strategy for the Medium Game. In summary, he observes:

• Yes, actually, from a world-annihilation standpoint, Pence as president is a superior choice to Trump.

• There is no way to get rid of Trump procedurally without the Republicans in Congress helping.

• It's going to suck to be a Republican in Congress under Trump, for reasons he explains.

• Republicans in Congress will stick with Trump not out of loyalty but fear of reprisal.

• If the Republicans in Congress lose their fear of Trump's reprisal, or fear something else more, they will gladly throw Trump under the bus in a heartbeat.

• Trump will no doubt be eminently impeachable, should they ever be minded to do so.

• Therefore it should be the Left's focus to foment strife between Trump and the Republican Congress.
I'm not doing his argument justice. Go check it out. Strongly recommended.