Democrats Now Want Ground Rules On Presidential Impeachment

Where was Evan Davis (D) during the unhinged impeachments of Donald Trump? He worked for the Democrats who were looking to impeach Nixon. But, now, with a potential impeachment of Biden (really, I’m not sure the House GOP has the cajones, and there are too many squishes who might vote against even having an investigation), Davis wants to argue that rules need to be set

We need to set ground rules for presidential impeachments

Constitutional scholar Garrett Epps has called presidential impeachment “the atomic bomb of domestic politics.” It should not become a conventional weapon of political polarization.

We’re on the verge of that, however, if we as a nation don’t set a floor under the grounds for presidential impeachment.

Doing so requires public discussion of the impeachable offense of “high crimes and misdemeanors,” contained in the U.S. Constitution. What is it? What does it cover?

As a task force leader in the U.S. House Judiciary Committee’s inquiry into the impeachment of former President Nixon, I saw this question wrestled with first-hand. After detailed study, we concluded that “[b]ecause impeachment of a President is a grave step for the nation, it is to be predicated only upon conduct seriously incompatible with either the constitutional form and principles of our government or the proper performance of constitutional duties of the presidential office.” What does that then preclude?

You know what it precludes? “The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” That’s it. It should be serious, but, as usual, Democrats blew that out the window during the Trump years, and tried to get there during the Bush43 years. We warned you wackos that if you wanted to play games with Trump it could blowback on you

First, it requires that a president be impeached only for offenses committed while serving as president. There can be no violation of the constitutional duties of the presidential office until one becomes president. Moreover, the weight of historical precedent is key in fixing the scope of impeachable offenses: The four presidential impeachments and 15 judicial impeachments have all been for conduct while in office.

Actually, it doesn’t. Nothing in the passage from Article II Section 4 makes that claim. What if we found out the president killed someone before he/she took office? Can they not be impeached? Damned right they can. But, see

Yet there is talk on Capitol Hill of impeaching President Biden for actions taken either while vice president or in the four years between his terms as vice president and then president. As shown, the Constitution does not envision a president being put out of office for something that took place before he was elected to the office. Similarly, American voters should not be disenfranchised based on actions taken by an individual before being elected president. There are other legal remedies for such actions.

And there it is: Democrats want to exclude the crimes by Biden before he was President. Nope. That’s not going to fly.

One claimed ground for impeaching Biden, for instance, is that as vice president he conditioned aid to Ukraine on the firing of a corrupt prosecutor to help a Ukrainian company on whose board his son served. Putting aside the problem of basing presidential impeachment on conduct as vice president and the factual implausibility and speculative nature of this claim, the alleged conduct is not a crime or the abusive solicitation of a personal benefit in return for official action.

Influence peddling and extortion, especially using The People’s money, is a crime. Mr. Davis could go to jail for extortion. Why not Joe Biden?

Good News: China Suckers Biden Admin Into Restarting Climate Talks

China has to love this: it sidetracks the Biden admin, along with other Warmists leaders, from noticing China’s human rights abuses, the cause of COVID19, China wanting Taiwan, and many other serious, real world issues. But, lots of Warmist news outlets are squeeing in cult, such as the NY Times (paywalled), Washington Post, NBC News, and

The US and China will restart climate talks – why that’s a huge deal

US president Joe Biden and China’s president Xi Jinping today agreed to renew climate talks, ending months of silence due to geopolitical tensions. Here’s why that’s a major breakthrough.

The US and China stopped talking about climate change in August after US representative Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) visited Taiwan. There has also been a lot of strain between the two countries over trade and security issues.

Biden and Xi met for more than three hours today ahead of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia. At the conclusion of their meeting, they announced that the two countries would, as Biden said, make an effort to “manage our differences.”

After the meeting, the White House released a statement:

President Biden underscored that the United States and China must work together to address transnational challenges – such as climate change, global macroeconomic stability including debt relief, health security, and global food security – because that is what the international community expects. The two leaders agreed to empower key senior officials to maintain communication and deepen constructive efforts on these and other issues.

How cute. Meanwhile, China is building new coal fired power plants willy nilly, and dumping crummy solar panels and wind turbines at below market prices around the world. Just playing Joe and the other Warmists as suckers. While Biden is downgrading our military, trying to force them to use EVs as fighting vehicles, China is heavily upgrading their military.

What Are The Democrats Three Main Economy/Inflation Plans Now That They Kept The Senate?

At the time of writing this, the GOP has 217 wins for the House, and just need one more for control, and they’re leading in 4, with a few others being close. Be thankful, because the Democrats plans are as bad now as they were prior to the election

Now that Americans elected Democrats to keep the Senate, here are their 3 major plans to fix the economy and fight inflation

The House is still too close to call, and in the event of a Republican takeover, a blue Senate will have limited power. They would be able to confirm Biden’s judicial and executive branch nominees but not pass significant new legislation on partisan lines. Still, Democrats have heralded the victory as voters’ rejection of far-right extremism, and their desire to see abortion rights and fair elections safeguarded.

Those may be the big takeaways, but Democrats locking down the Senate — and likely only conceding a slim majority to Republicans in the House — also indicate that voters favor Democrats’ plan to rein in a tumultuous economy.

I seriously doubt that. Every poll stated that Americans trusted Republicans more than Democrats. The results were surely about many other things. When Independents and squishy Democrats say Democrats are doing a poor job, well, sure, let’s do the same

Supporting Biden’s spending, such as the IRA and a restored Child Tax Credit

Republicans on the campaign trail blamed Biden’s spending for the country’s inflation problems, arguing that the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan has been one of the major instigators. Experts say that if it was, the impact wasn’t significant. Still, the GOP similarly united against Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act.

But public favor for the legislation was solid out of the gate, with a Reuters/Ipsos poll from August showing broad support for individual measures of the Inflation Reduction Act, even if Americans were divided on the package as a whole.

Yeah, the ones that give them money directly. Mostly, voters say it won’t make a difference on inflation or reducing the cost of energy, clothes, food.

Tackling corporate profits as an inflation-fighting measure

Several of the Democrats who achieved close wins slammed corporations for enjoying record profits over the last few years without easing the burden for consumers amid record inflation.

So, class warfare. It won’t make a damned bit of difference, and could drive up prices and reduce jobs, but, it’ll whip the moonbats up for 2024.

Making healthcare more affordable by expanding Medicare and lowering drug costs

Democrats spent the back half of their midterms pitching themselves as strongholds for entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security, and framing Republicans as a threat.

So, more government. Which won’t actually reduce costs. Wasn’t Obamacare supposed to do that? And hasn’t? This is a plan to continue driving prices up, or, at least, keeping them high. Notice there is nothing in their plan about increasing affordable energy. Of course, they’ll get nothing done, because the House controls the purse strings. If the GOP is wise (always an iffy proposition) they’ll focus on the economy, energy, crime, and the border. Don’t try and pass abortion stuff. No impeachment stuff. Minimize investigations into Biden. That plays to the base, and ends up being a lot of inside baseball.

Lots Of Young People Took Long Fossil Fueled Flights To COP27 Or Something

They just want to save the world, you know

COP27: Without Greta, activists make waves at climate summit

Young people are a more powerful force than ever in the UN climate summit, the UN’s youngest climate advisor tells BBC News in Egypt.

“Young people are definitely shaping outcomes here at COP27,” Sophia Kianni says.

Swedish campaigner Greta Thunberg has skipped the Sharm el-Sheikh meeting, calling it a forum for “greenwashing”.

But young people from countries at high risk from climate change say they are “calling it out” from inside.

In an address on Tuesday, climate activist Vanessa Nakate from Uganda will tell governments to wash their “oil-stained” hands.

Speaking to G20 nations, she will tell ministers that they must end the “moral and economic madness” of funding fossil fuels and prioritising short-term politics.

Does no one in the media see the irony of Ms. Nakate, along with all the others, taking fossil fueled trips to complain about the use of fossil fuels? Did it even cross the minds of the reporters? Or, are they just altogether bought in on the climate cult?

Ayisha Siddiqa, 23, travelled from Pakistan to speak at the Youth Pavilion. It’s the first time young people have had a dedicated space like this, where last week activists held a formal meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

It’s one of the most buzzing areas of COP27, with activists jostling to find space to sit and chat on the floor, and Ayisha tells me she’s proud of the space.

“This is for the youth, organized by us. Unlike government and business areas, there’s no corporate branding everywhere,” she says.

So what are their degrees in? Anything? How about their business experience? Do they have a clue as to the way the world works?

Imran and his colleague Sohanur Rahmen explain they got grants for travel and hotels, but they cannot afford to eat at the conference.

Delegates faced costs of about $4,000 a week for accommodation, as well as the costs of travel and visas.

Activists say future climate summits must include special funds and accommodation for young people from civil society.

LOL, how cute. Someone else needs to pay for their climate cult activism.

The media is making a big deal of her. She took a fossil fueled trip all the way from Stanford. Who payed? It’s more fun scrolling through her twitter feed, seeing just how many clothes she brought, and how many times she changed them in just a few days. Like so many other of the youths, they’re turning it into an Instagram/TikTok event. Gotta get those selfies and videos, eh?

Good News: Diesel Supply Down To 25 Days

Well, enough of you decided to vote for the abortion party and got fooled by the “we’ll lose our democracy!!!!!” schtick, and, y’all just need to suck it up and deal with the escalating prices. Good job, idiots

The US has just 25 days of diesel supply — the lowest since 2008. Here’s why that’s more alarming than a dwindling ‘oil piggy bank’

The U.S. is facing a diesel crunch just as demand is surging ahead of winter — with only 25 days of supply left, according to the Energy Information Administration.

National Economic Council Director Brian Deese told Bloomberg TV that diesel inventories are “unacceptably low” and “all options are on the table” to bolster supply and reduce prices.

However, even as the stockpiles are being drained, the Biden administration seems to be left with very few sustainable options for long-term relief.

Unlike gas and jet fuel, demand for diesel recovered at a much faster pace from the pandemic. Diesel is used for transporting goods as well as powering construction, farming and military vehicles and equipment. (snip)

The market usually moves into “contango” — the opposite of backwardation, where demand is lower and suppliers build up inventory with the expectation of higher future prices — in the summer. However, strong domestic and international demand, shrinking domestic refining capacity and sanctions on Russian petroleum imports have kept the diesel market tight throughout the year.

So, what can be done?

If diesel inventory continues to run down without the government intervening, the impact on transportation costs for goods could drive inflation up even further.

Deese adds that the Fed has some tools to bolster diesel supply, like the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve, which houses one million barrels of diesel in case of a disruption in supplies.

So, digging into emergency reserves?

Experts have also pointed out that the current 25.8 days worth of diesel only represents what’s in storage — and doesn’t factor in the amount of distillate fuel being produced in the U.S. or imported here. Which means the country isn’t guaranteed to run out of diesel within a month.

But The Washington Post reports that diesel demand is so high, that if a million barrels of diesel were delivered from the Northeast reserves, they would be depleted in less than six hours.

It’s a little late, but, the government could authorize more refineries to be built. That would help. But, they idiot lefties have been destroying refining capacity for decades.

Climate Cultists Smash Tablets At Top Of Mt. Sinai

For those who do not know, there is a sort of official Mount Sinai. At the base is Saint Catherine’s Monastery, and then a long, high trail that leads to the summit, where there is a chapel and a mosque. Pilgrims make the long, arduous trek in the pre-dawn hours, wanting to be there as the sun rises. If you like Expedition Unknown, watch the episodes on Moses. And here we have supposed religious folks joining a cult

Activists smash tablets atop ‘Mount Sinai’ to launch faith-based climate push

An initiative to mobilize faith leaders worldwide to push governments to do more about climate change kicked off Sunday morning with an Israeli environmental activist smashing mock tablets of stone atop an Egyptian peak believed by many to be Mount Sinai, to symbolize the world’s failure to protect the planet.

The idea was hatched in the run up to the United Nations COP27 climate conference taking place in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, by solar energy entrepreneur Yosef Abramowitz and David Miron Wapner, who chairs the Jerusalem-based Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development.

The Sinai Climate Partnership, symbolically launched at the ceremony, brings together the Interfaith Center for Sustainable Development, the Elijah Interfaith Institute, the Peace Department, the United Nations Faith for Earth Initiative, Abramowitz’s Gigawatt Global, and the Israeli environmental advocacy organization, Adam Teva V’Din.

After sunrise, Abramowitz and Wapner gathered at the summit together with Nigel Savage, the founder and former director of the US Jewish environmental organization Hazon, and his successor Jakir Manela, to read sections the Holy Land Declaration on Climate Change signed in 2011 by the multifaith Council of Religious Leaders of the Holy Land. Two teens from the US, there as part of Christian Climate Observers, joined the ceremony as well.

After the group read from a new draft list of “Ten Principles for Climate Repentance,” formulated by dozens of multifaith leaders meeting in London over the past few days, Abramowitz smashed two tablets on the ground.

You know, just like Moses gave us God’s 10 Commandments. This is beyond nuts, especially as we dip into the climate repentance stuff, which is very silly, if you go read it. Using this spot is insane.

Mid-Terms Post Mortem: Did Democrats “Democracy Is On The Ballot” Work?

There are many reasons to be considered for what has been a blown election for Republicans. Trump for one. Democrats pushing abortion, which plays to many women, without mentioning they want abortion up to birth. Lindsay Graham and a few other Republicans saying they want to pass a national abortion ban did not help. We can dive into all sorts of notions, but, what about

Biden’s Democracy Argument Worked

In the last two weeks of the election cycle, as the news seemed to be getting worse and worse for Democrats hoping to avoid a historic midterm election shellacking, party leaders opted to go all in on one particular theme—that democracy itself was on the ballot. Here, voters had a historic choice to make: Vote to save the republic, or squander it. Across the aisle, the GOP had marshaled an army of candidates behind election denialism and a vision of an illiberal United States. In his final campaign speech, President Joe Biden told the crowd assembled at Bowie State University in Maryland that the country was at “an inflection point.”

“We know in our bones that our democracy is at risk, and we know that this is your moment to defend it, preserve or protect it, choose it,” he said.

It was a tall order. And let’s face it, it was a little bit belated. As we’ve chronicled on these pages, Democrats haven’t always spent the past two years as democracy’s most ardent defenders. Too many senators preferred to keep the filibuster rather than get rid of it to pass the laws necessary to confront a well-organized and well-funded effort among Republicans to curb voting rights across the country. Even the Biden administration seemed dismissive at one point, referring to voting rights as just one more niche issue among many.

Obviously, this is from a far left organization, in this case, The New Republic. But, do they have a point? I think they might. Democrats, from Biden to Democrats running for office to their mouthpieces to their pet Credentialed Media, all pushed this notion, and all pushed it the same way. How much did this play into the the distribution of votes? Did they flip a lot of Independents, who were more scared of “losing their democracy” than crushing inflation, food prices, clothing prices, and a bad economy? Of growing crime? Of wackjobs teaching their kids? And so much more? Did it drive a lot of squishy Democrats who might have flipped, or just stayed home, out to vote Democrat? Did it get the muddle headed youngsters who do not usually show up to show up?

It surely not the only reason, but, it certainly has a ring of truth. I can see Democrats poll testing it, and, seeing that it had an effect, all running with it. Because they did all run with it, did they not?

In truth, you wouldn’t be thought entirely daft if you fretted that Democrats were, at the very least, talking over the heads of the electorate. Polls ahead of the midterms consistently showed that matters such as the January 6 attacks weren’t foremost on people’s minds; democracy defense seemed like a bad bet. But the exit polls told a different story. Per Axios: “National polling showed abortion and democracy turned out to be big issues with voters. Coverage in the run-up to midterms had focused heavily on pocketbook issues.” In other words, the Democrats’ plan worked, and the media whiffed badly in their read of the electorate’s mood.

Republicans never saw it coming, and why should they have? We saw all the polls on what Americans care about. That the nation was on the wrong track. That people were upset over inflation, the economy, and crime. It didn’t need to move the needle a lot, just enough to blunt the GOP on those battleground seats in the House, Senate, and even governor races. Add it with other things, and you might not even get a red puddle. At best, Walker beats Warnock, and it’s 50-50. The GOP may not even take the House. There are 11 seats that are possible for winning 6, as the GOP has 212 wins as of this time. And they blew it on 7 races they should have held.

Give Dems credit: they’re the party of Big, authoritarian government (which we witnessed during COVID, with Joe and his vaccine mandates, with Dems telling parents to piss off, with the EV push, and so much more), anathema to democracy, to freedom, and they convinced people that the party of freedom is bad.

NY Times Is Here To Tell You How To Save Money On Your Biden Inflated Power Bills

This is what it’s come down to: the Times and so many other Credentialed Media outlets telling you how to maybe save money, rather than castigating the Government to stop being part of the problem, namely, policies that cause energy prices to go higher (paywalled Times article here)

How to Save on High Heating Bills This Winter

The cost of heating a home is expected to spike this winter as higher prices for natural gas and heating oil combine with a forecast for slightly colder weather than last winter.

But financial help is often available for paying bills as well for updating heating systems to more efficient models. There are also steps to take to conserve energy.

The average cost of heating a home is estimated to rise almost 18% from last winter, to $1,208, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association. The group coordinates state policy for federal grants that help low-income families pay heating and cooling bills.

The estimated seasonal bill for natural gas, which about half of Americans use to heat their homes, is $900, up 25% from last winter, according to the most recent data from the federal Energy Information Administration. Natural gas has become pricier because of factors such as greater demand for cooling during this year’s scorching summer (natural gas powers plants that produce electricity to run air conditioners) and surging exports, the administration said.

The seasonal bill for heating oil, which is common in New England, is estimated to be $2,694, up about 45% from last winter.

It’s due to Wuhan Flu and to the policies of Joe Biden and his Democratic Party comrades, who keep doing things that create problems, both before and after COVID. The U.S. really doesn’t get much from Russia, we have our own supplies.

Help with heating bills is available for low-income families. The Biden administration is distributing $4.5 billion for the federal Low Income Home-Energy Assistance Program, which provides grants to states to help residents pay their energy bills. But, Wolfe said, overall funding is lower than last year, under a pandemic relief program, and more federal money may be needed.

Well, that only helps folks making around $20K or less. What about the rest of us?

Consumers can take steps now to prepare for the winter and conserve energy. “It’s November; there’s still time to get ready,” Wolfe said. Heating contractors are typically less busy right now, he said, before temperatures plummet.

The most widely recommended step: Schedule a professional checkup of your heating system. A tuneup is advisable because dirty components reduce airflow, blunting performance and possibly damaging the system, according to ASHRAE, a professional association of heating and cooling professionals. A tuneup typically costs $200 or more, but some utilities cover the cost.

So, spend money to save a little

If your home has a lot of windows, particularly older ones, you may be losing energy through the glass. One easy fix, he said, is to stick clear plastic Bubble Wrap — the kind used to ship packages — over the windowpanes. (Spray the glass with water first so the wrap sticks.) It won’t look great, he conceded, but it will save you money.

Really? This is their idea? Bubble wrap? I feel like it’s the 1930s or something

You could consider replacing an old heating system with a more efficient model. The costs range from $4,000 to $7,000 for a gas furnace and from $5,500 to $40,000 or more for some heat pump systems, according to estimates provided by contractors in western and central New York state.

They seriously wrote $40,000. Is this with your $20K solar panels and $56K EV?

Meanwhile, here’s CNET on the perfect setting for your winter thermostat

According to the US Department of Energy, it’s best to keep your thermostat at 68 F for most of the day during the winter season. For maximum efficiency, you should also designate eight hours per day during which you turn the temperature down by between 7 and 10 degrees. By following this routine, you may again be able to reduce your yearly energy costs by up to 10%.

Who’s up for keeping your casa at 58-61?

Brandon Flies In To COP27, Yammers About Forcing Other People To Make Progress

How’s this work again? A fossil fueled helicopter flight to the airport, then a FFd jumbo jet, followed by a backup jumbo jet, along with FFd fighter jets, then a large number of low MPG fossil fueled vehicles. Then back to the airport, and he headed of to Cambodia

Biden touts U.S. climate progress at COP27, unveils new methane plan

President Biden announced a set of small new actions by his administration to address climate change in a speech at the United Nations Climate Change Conference on Friday. The new measures include pledging more than $200 million in funding for climate change resilience and adaptation in developing countries, and a new plan to reduce emissions of methane — an especially potent greenhouse gas — from oil and gas infrastructure.

“The climate crisis is about human security, economic security, environmental security, national security and the very life of the planet,” Biden said in a speech at the conference, known as COP27 and held this year in the resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. “So today, I’d like to share with you how the United States is meeting the climate crisis with urgency and with determination to ensure a cleaner, safer, healthier planet for all of us.”

Most of what Biden went on to share was a recapitulation of actions the administration has already taken, including significant investments in reducing U.S. greenhouse gas emissions through subsidies for clean energy sources, such as wind and solar power and electric vehicles, included in the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act. These programs are projected to help cut U.S. emissions by 40% from 2005 levels by the end of this decade.

Of course, the elites like Biden aren’t doing their “fair share”. It’s just the peasants who are being forced.

As has often been the case at recent climate change conferences, the actions of Biden’s climate-science-denying predecessor, former President Donald Trump, cast a shadow on the proceedings. Biden was interrupted by applause when he noted that his administration had “immediately rejoined the Paris [climate] agreement” upon taking office. Referring in an apparent ad lib to his predecessor’s decision to withdraw the U.S. from the climate pact, Biden said, “I apologize we ever pulled out of the agreement.”

Oh, look, Trump Derangement Syndrome. Remember, the media doesn’t take sides.

The hell?

Oh, look, Pelosi took a separate fossil fueled flight.