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Sounds like the "journalists" from the hill could use some time in a federal prison cell. Why does the left hate democracy so much?

The U.S. government has less than three weeks to raise its debt limit before it will need to take “extraordinary measures” to sustain federal operations, Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen said Friday.

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In a letter to members of Congress, Yellen said the government is beginning to run out of money to finance its debt obligations, reflecting one of the challenges facing the incoming Trump administration.

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Yellen’s letter stated that “extraordinary measures” are expected to be needed starting between Jan. 14 and Jan. 23, which is actually somewhat later than originally anticipated. Those measures would probably give Congress several months to act before hitting the borrowing limit.

“I respectfully urge Congress to act to protect the full faith and credit of the United States,” Yellen wrote.
Congress tells the Treasury Department how much it can borrow, a limit known as the “debt ceiling.” Failing to lift the debt limit could have catastrophic consequences for the global economy, as the U.S. government has never before defaulted on its debt obligations.

President-elect Donald Trump tried to get congressional Republicans to suspend the debt limit for two years — or abolish it altogether — in negotiations over funding the government this month. That effort failed, however, and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) approved legislation to fund the government without changes to the debt limit.

President Joe Biden and former House speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-California) agreed to suspend the debt limit for two years in a bipartisan deal in the spring of 2023.
Johnson could face a difficult time retaining his speakership while lifting the debt ceiling. If GOP leaders try to approve an increase without Democratic support, they would have the narrowest of margins in the House to do so without defections among their right flank. But cutting a deal with Democrats to lift or suspend the debt limit could infuriate the right, whose support Johnson needs to remain speaker.

Remembering When Joe Manchin Lost It On Janet Yellen Over Electric Vehicle Policy

Kamala’s Campaign Is Still Aggressively Shaking Down Supporters For Cash​

Even after her loss on Nov. 5, Vice President Kamala Harris’ election campaign is still hounding donors for money.

Harris’ campaign has bombarded supporters with fundraising messages following her election day defeat, with the most recent being sent out Sunday night, according to emails obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation. Each email claims, using slightly different language, that the “Harris Fight Fund” is collecting donations to fund legal efforts and recount initiatives to help Democrats in close congressional races.

“First and foremost, we want to acknowledge the fear, confusion and sadness many of you are feeling at this moment,” one of Harris’ post-election emails reads. “As you read this, there are U.S. Senate and House races that are either too close to call, or within the margin of recounts or certain legal challenges. Can you please rush a contribution to the Harris Fight Fund program today?”

After clicking the donation link contained in the emails, prospective donors are sent to the ActBlue page for the Harris Victory Fund. The first $41,300 in donations from an individual to the Harris Victory Fund are sent to the Democratic National Committee (DNC), according to the fine print of the donation page. Only the next $3,100 in donations from a given individual are deposited into “Harris for President’s Recount Account.” The next $510,000 in donations from an individual donor are earmarked to be disbursed equally among the Democratic Parties in all 50 states and D.C., with any excess funds going to the DNC.

Party committees, like the DNC, can launch recount efforts in support of their candidates, however, are by no means required to spend funds to do so, according to the Federal Election Commission.

The Harris campaign had raised nearly $1 billion as of Oct. 16, however, is now at least $20 million in debt, two sources familiar told Politico. It is unclear if the campaign will be able to use funds deposited into “Harris for President’s Recount Account” to pay off debts.

Sen. Bob Casey speaks with members of the media after arriving to vote on Election Day. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Harris isn’t the only losing candidate seeking to rake in cash from supporters.

Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. Bob Casey’s campaign sent a message to potential donors on Nov. 9 asking for cash to “ensure that every last vote in this PA Senate race is counted,” according to an email obtained by the DCNF. The Associated Press, however, called the race for Republican challenger Dave McCormick days earlier on Nov. 7.

After suffering defeat on Nov. 5, the Harris campaign sent an email to supporters the following night asking for more money.

“The outcome of this election is not what we wanted,” the email reads. “I will never give up the fight for a future where every American can pursue their dreams. Where the women of America have the freedom to make decisions about their own bodies. The fight to protect our students and our streets from gun violence. The fight for our democracy.”

Harris’ email ends with an appeal to give Democrats the money to elect candidates “down the ticket to hold the Trump administration accountable.”

The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.

I was trying to figure out how they could make a movie that will be out shortly.

I think I have put it together. I'll keep my theory quiet. Anybody else have any theories?

Hated the A's and Yankees but The Straw was the man

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i figured it was time for a new thread.

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Biden commutes 1,500 sentences and issues 39 pardons in biggest single-day act of clemency in history​

Joe Biden has issued the single largest act of clemency in modern history, commuting the sentences of roughly 1,500 people and issuing 39 presidential pardons, the White House says.

With just 40 days left in the White House, the president announced on Thursday that he is lessening the sentences of thousands of prisoners who were released and placed on home confinement for at least one year during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Biden, who faced backlash after pardoning his own son Hunter from his federal crimes earlier this month, also issued pardons for US citizens convicted of non-violent crimes such as drug offenses, who have shown “successful rehabilitation.”

The president said his administration will continue reviewing clemency petitions to “advance equal justice” and “provide meaningful second chances,” before President-elect Donald Trump is inaugurated on January 20, 2025.

“America was built on the promise of possibility and second chances,” Biden said in a statement released by the White House on Thursday.

He continued: “As president, I have the great privilege of extending mercy to people who have demonstrated remorse and rehabilitation, restoring opportunity for Americans to participate in daily life and contribute to their communities, and taking steps to remove sentencing disparities for non-violent offenders, especially those convicted of drug offenses.”

Presidents can issue pardons – removing a punishment after a court decision – and commutations – a reduction in punishment for a crime – as they see fit for federal convictions, but not for state crimes.

According to the White House, Thursday’s pardons include a nurse who led emergency response teams during natural disasters; a pilot who helps fellow church members who are in poor health; and an addiction counsellor who helps young people and dissuades them from joining gangs.

As infections surged at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic, one in five prisoners contracted the virus, according to a tally kept by the Associated Press. Some inmates were subsequently released and place on home confinement in a bid to curb the spread.

The incumbent president’s historic issuing of commutations and pardons dwarfs those granted on a single day by former President Barack Obama, with a combined total of 330, shortly before leaving office in 2017, which now marks the second largest single-day act of clemency.

It follows Biden issuing a broad pardon for his son Hunter Biden for “offenses against the United States which he has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 1, 2014 through December 1, 2024.”

In June, Hunter, 54, was convicted of three federal gun charges related to his purchase of a firearm in 2018. Three months later, he pleaded guilty to nine federal tax charges in September.

Biden claimed that his hand was forced as Hunter had been “selectively, and unfairly, prosecuted” by the Department of Justice. The president previously stated he would not get involved in his son’s criminal cases.

The Democrat had been facing mounting pressure from advocacy groups to pardon broad swaths of people, including those on federal death row, before the Trump administration takes over in January.

The Biden administration is also said to be mulling preemptive presidential pardons for Trump critics who may face retribution, particularly those who investigated the president-elect’s effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

Presidential attendance is a long held tradition, no?

The Democrats have called Trump a fascist, Nazi, tyrant, criminal, a threat to democracy. It seems it would be incumbent upon them to prevent such a person from taking the seat of President.

Seems hard to believe we have heard all we have for 1-2 years and expect that those that cried the most loudly to simply agree to let him take office peacefully.

That brings in all sorts of options. Does Kamala vote to seat him? Do they throw him in jail? Do crazy people see this win as a call to take another crack at Trump?

Or do we finally see a return to normalcy, move on from the name calling that was so profoundly rejected by voters, and seek commonality and put the hand of reconciliation out to conservatives?

Certainly, that is my hope.

My wife is 38+ weeks pregnant with child #1 and we are expecting the arrival any day. We have taken courses, read books on sleeping, etc., spent an outrageous amount of money on stroller, crib, etc. and are very excited.

I have been acutely aware of the controversy around vaccinations and an alleged link to autism, but because I had no kids, I never looked into it. From what I can tell, there have been no scientific studies that prove causation between the MMR vaccine (generally given at around 8 weeks) and autism. The anti-vaccination movement has been largely grassroots (parents of austistic kids who were supposedly healthy before the vaccine) and a Dr. Wakefield in the U.K. Hollywood types like Robert De Niro and Jenny McCarthy have also hopped on board.

Fast forward to today, a dear friend (well-educated, level-headed father of two) started pleading with me to not vaccinate. He went so far as to say that our friendship means far too much to him to allow me to make the mistake of vaccinating, and asked that I meet up with him to discuss. My friend believes that the vaccinations are a huge money-maker for "Big Pharma," who is in bed with the CDC. He is a great guy and friend, but his behavior seems almost cultish. We are both committed Christians, and he compared his pleading with me about vaccinations to sharing the Gospel of Christ with an atheist friend.

Obviously, we would not do anything that could increase the risk of our child having autism. With that said, my look at the data seems to indicate that the odds of vaccine-induced autism (or other complications) are less than the odds of contracting disease due to not vaccinating.

What say you, HROT?