The 2020 elections and other stuff

Ask any Democrat what is the most important thing that must be accomplished in the elections in November of 2020.  I believe that without exception, the top priority is to defeat Donald Trump and reclaim the White House

I agree with that prioritization of goals.  The question is, what must the next priority be?  Some will say to retain control of the House.  Others will say that it is more important to recapture the majority in the Senate.  I say there are more than 100 reasons that the 2nd highest priority next November is preventing Mitch McConnell from retaining his position as Senate Majority Leader.

There are more than 100 pieces of legislation passed by the House that McConnell is blocking.  The Senate rules apparently allow him to do this.  Now the "Kings of Whataboutism" will point what retired Senator Harry Reid did while he was the Majority Leader.  

Mitch McConnell blocked a presidential nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court from being considered in the Senate.  He used the pretzel logic that it was his responsibility to ensure the people had a voice in the choice, in the 2016 presidential election.  Now he is saying that the same logic will NOT apply if a vacancy on the court comes up in 2020.  

The purpose of the Congress is to pass legislation and exercise oversight of the Executive Branch.  Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell are working to deny the House the opportunity to do its job.

Whether it is the defeat of McConnell next November; or if he wins reelection, preventing his party from being in the majority, we must prevent more of what he's been doing since 2016.

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Speaking of #MoscowMitch...

That's the hashtag that came into use after he blocked election security bills from coming to a vote in the Senate.  He called them "partisan."  There is no partisanship in protecting the integrity of our elections.  He described his reasons for opposing that legislation this way.  "My opposition to nationalizing election authorities that properly belong with the states is not news to anybody who's followed my career or knows anything about Congress."

Sorry #MoscowMitch but in fact, protecting everything within this nation's borders from attacks by foreign nations is the responsibility of the federal government.  That includes cyberattacks on our national elections.

The only reason any legislator would be opposed to protecting the integrity of our elections is because he or she thinks themselves and their party would benefit from that interference.  In essence, protecting election integrity is dangerous to the reelection hopes of #MoscowMitch and #DishonestDon.

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I've mentioned Colin Powell's "rules" before.  They can be read in full here.  One of those rules and another quote from General Powell come up frequently in my work helping clients with tax issues.  First the rule, then the quote.

Check Small Things. Followers live in the world of small things.  Find ways to get visibility into that world.

"Bad news isn't wine.  It doesn't improve with age."

They both came up yesterday.  First with a client who had received a notice from the IRS.  The client had given the tax document to their preparer but it had not been entered into the software.  The client owed more money.  But the IRS notice didn't examine the impact that the increased Alternative Minimum Tax amount in the prior year would have on the following year.  As a result I was able to amend the following year's return to generate a refund of almost 20% of the new balance owing from the tax notice.  Since our extended warranty will reimburse the client for the preparer's error, the client is actually making money when all is said and done.

The other situation was giving bad news to a client.  I didn't wait to deliver it, because waiting would only make the situation worse.

That General Powell is one smart guy.

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July 4th, 2019

What should be the non-partisan celebration of the 243rd anniversary of our nation's Declaration of Independence from a distant monarchy, has been turned into a campaign rally by Donald J. Trump.

Donald Trump paints himself as a patriot.  There are two quotes that I think describe his "brand" of patriotism quite well:

Oscar Wilde:  "Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious"
Mark Twain:  "Patriot:  The person who can holler the loudest without knowing what he is hollering about."

Funds from National Parks admission fees have been diverted to pay for this so-called "Salute to America".  Far too many military personnel have been diverted from their primary duties to deliver military equipment to Washington, D.C.  To put on a show to stroke the ego of the aforementioned #LiarInChief.  I'd like to reexamine a few lines from that original Declaration of Independence in light of the events of the last couple of years.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Perhaps an updated version would read:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all people are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.  Without regard to their race, national origin, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation, religion or lack thereof."

"The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.  He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.  He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them."

Perhaps an updated version would read:

"The history of the present Occupant of the Oval Office is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.  He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.  He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them."

He is flouting the Emoluments Clause of our Constitution.  By forcing high ranking military personnel into taking part in today's event in D.C., he may be causing them to violate the Hatch Act and Department of Defense regulations.  The military is prohibited from taking part in partisan political activity.  He is attempting to usurp the Power of the Purse that is granted to Congress in that same Constitution, by trying to divert funds from the Defense budget to his "wall."  He claims to have the most transparent administration in history but attempts to obfuscate any attempt by the House of Representatives to exercise oversight of his actions.  

Just to clarify, I am not advocating we declare our independence from Donald Trump, nor am I advocating anything except using the laws of our nation to effect change.  We can and must win at the ballot box in November of 2020.  We just work to increase the Democratic majority in the House and seek to wrest control of the Senate.  That is of critical import because it is the only way to stop Senator Mitch McConnell from turning that august institution into a graveyard for any meaningful legislation.

Those are things we can do.  Things we must do.

A collection of #Hashtag photos

After Ivanka Trump attempted to insert herself into a conversation between world leaders at the most recent G-20 summit, the hashtag #unwantedIvanka began trending.  Here are some of my favorite photos from that hashtag: