39 Comments
May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

We created this RELATIONSHIP MAP that makes it easier to track the money, relationships and groups involved in the Supreme Court corruption. The map is online which makes it easier to update as new scandals are exposed. Sad. Clicking on a person or relationship reveals more details.

https://thedemlabs.org/2023/05/01/supreme-court-corruption-follow-the-money-relationship-map/

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That's fantastic, Deepak! Excellent work! I will share.

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Thank you. Glad you liked it.

Check out this new relationship map about Matthew Kacsmaryk, the Trump appointed judge who banned abortion pills.

https://embed.kumu.io/915c05ad5eb9572b7a66b52789ee20ad

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Deepak, this is awesome! I clicked onto every face and category to learn something new. Can’t say it didn’t make me sick but for it to be so interactive, that was wonderful. Thanks and I plan on sharing!

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According to Article III, Section 2 of the Constitution is this: "In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and those in which a state shall be party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, WITH SUCH EXCEPTIONS, AND UNDER SUCH REGULATIONS AS THE CONGRESS SHALL MAKE."

Am I wrong to assume that Section 2 gives Congress the right to regulate the SCOTUS? If that's the case then Congress should have the authority to issue a code of ethics among other things.

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You are not wrong, except that these people ignore clauses they don't like all the time. It's nuts.

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Great show Greg and Stephanie! Your post here Greg lays out what should have long since it’s inception been obvious!

Coming from a family of high powered attorneys who’ve always professed “ the law is no good”, I’m not surprised that the highest court in this country is littered with corruption! The vestments they wear, are simply cover for the evil that lurks behind their quasi-veiled greed and contempt for humanity!!

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Thanks, Patrick.

As Alex says on the show, the robes create the impression that these are high priests, if not deities. But they are fallible humans. Very fallible, in some cases...

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May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

In my humble opinion, this is the time for Democrats to strike. Biden and his Senate allies need to declare that the Court will be expanded when there are 52 Democratic votes in the Senate and the filibuster can be killed. They also need to declare that the well documented doctrine of checks and balances requires that they impose a code of ethics on the Supreme Court that is at least as strict as the code of ethics for other federal employees (if not more so). And they need to declare that there will be term limits on justices of 18 years, retroactively including all current members of the Court. (Which would allow us to bid farewell to Thomas, Alito and Roberts) Oh sure, Moscow Mitch and Leonard Leo will have total meltdowns, but f'k them. They overreached and built the most corrupt, out of touch group of 6 right wing religious nutcakes since Torquemada staffed the Spanish Inquisition (that no one expected).

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May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

PETER, good comments and i mostly agree.

However I am not a fan of MORE IS BETTER.

so today iam going on a diet of bread and water.

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Expand or die, methinks.

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Greg you said "expand or die, methinks.'

Bill Ayers said,

"if the logic of capitalism is "expand or die" then either it has to die or the world has to die."

I dont mean to be petty but I dont agree with the semantics of Expand or die. It reminds me of Colonialism and Manifest Destiny.

About 15000 years ago mankind was hunting, eating, fornicating and sleeping.

And if one lived to 40 that was a miracle.

Population expansion got roaring once man discovered fire and eating each other and other animal meat.

Reminds me of one of my favorite actresses in Quest for Fire. And of course a book I read 55 years ago, The Naked Ape by Desmond Morris. And I'd like to thank Alfred Korsybski for guiding me along many years ago.

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I quite agree. I think this is a hugely important and popular issue...AND, it would force the GOP to oppose it, and figure out reasons why they are in favor of Clarence Thomas and his ethics bullshit.

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Given their behavior in today's hearing, it looks like the Republicans are all in for corrupt Clarence and his corrupt pals. That should be something that the Dems can use as a hammer to bash the GOP. Potential line "It's not a high tech lynching to question Thomas' ties to a GOP billionaire donor" or "It's not a high tech lynching to ask about Ginni's ties to the insurrection".

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May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

Great writing as always Greg. I had to laugh at AITA, ok what’s that mean? I look it up and 🤣 it reminds me of Bugs Bunny looking into the camera and declaring “Ain’t I a little stinker”? We need to seriously consider expanding the court now because I believe the GOP would do it in a heartbeat if they regained control of the levers of political power. Also picked up Ben Sheehan’s book OMGWTF Does the Constitution Actually Say? It breaks down the Constitution in easy to understand terms with humor. I’m interested to see what comes out of the senate hearing today @ 10am. The courts have only themselves to blame for the public not respecting their powers that they abuse!

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Thanks, Christine. I try and throw in some slang and stuff, just for fun. Otherwise it's too awful to even think about...

Thanks for the book rec!

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Heartbreaking. Brought tears 😓 to my eyes. A travesty for all.

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Yes, travesty is the perfect word for it.

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There's behavior and then there's behaviour, and therein lies the rub. We need to be consistent in our spelling. But do we take the "u" out of "behaviour" or keep it in? If we can't come to a consensus on this hotbed issue, it is paramount that nothing less than a Congressional hearing be commenced forthwith. Either that or accede to the judgment of Solomon, whichever comes first.

There, fixed it!

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I guess in America, we eventually decided, in matters of British spelling, "Fuck 'u'."

LOL, sorry, couldn't resist.

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Term limits!!! Present SCOTUS is corrupt.

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Since 1991 that awful man has been there. Since I was a senior in high school.

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God, I’m so old!

(High school...😭?)

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Great post, Greg! And absolutely, we need to dilute the power of this insanely small group of people. Always a good remedy when poison has been accidentally drunk: dilute!!

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Thanks, Gwen. I like that analogy. Dilute the poison!

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May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

5 impeachments.

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founding
May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel! Matthew 23:24

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I had to look up the context for that one, which is spot-on:

23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.

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May 2, 2023Liked by Greg Olear

Alito went back to the 13th Century to bolster his bonkers argument in Dobbs. I’d recommend he and the rest of the black-robed grafters, but especially Thomas and Robert’s, look back another 1,300 years to the time Pompeia, Julius Caesar’s second wife, held a Vestal Virgin hen party that was infiltrated by Clodius, a cross-dressing dude who had the hots for the hostess. He got caught and was charged with sacrilege. At trial, as reported by no less than Cicero, Plutarch, Cassius Dio and Suetonius, when asked, Caesar said he knew nothing about the goings-on.

Per Plutarch in Caesar 9-10: Caesar divorced Pompeia at once, but when he was summoned to testify at the trial, he said he knew nothing about the matters with which Clodius was charged. His statement appeared strange, and the prosecutor therefore asked, "Why, then, didst thou divorce thy wife?" "Because," said Caesar, "I thought my wife ought not even to be under suspicion."

Maybe OUGHT NOT EVEN TO BE UNDER SUSPICION should be added just below the pediment of the building at 1 First Street NE.

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Thanks, John. I knew the expression about Caesar's wife but not the full story!

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I did expand and it was killng me. I felt like the Baron in Dune.

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Thomas needs to be impeached today. Right now!

Its the perfect case. He is a pimp for his "friends" who would be dictators in a moment should they find (create)

an opening.

And then there is Ginny and her boyfriend Leonard.

Both religious extremists bringing more pimps to the courts.

I fear expanion to the court would just add more crooks.

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Thanks for covering this shameful chapter in our country’s history. Public awareness is crucial. Is greed a flaw in human nature? Are we just not evolved enough to govern our own ethical conduct? Or is the current situation simply a product of trumpian corruption breeding more of the same, and the pendulum will eventually swing back? I enjoyed Lawrence O’Donnell’s piece the other night pointing out that Douglas Emhoff is an unsung hero for setting an impeccable example of ethics when his wife was elected Vice President, by quitting a lucrative job to avoid absolutely any possible appearance of impropriety. I may be naive, but I believe good and right will prevail, even with SCOTUS.

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Yes, me too. I really enjoy Lawrence’s way of reporting and connecting the dots. The fact that he was an insider in the Senate for many years, gives him a unique perspective of how things work there.

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Glad you liked it.

Check out this new relationship map about Matthew Kacsmaryk, the Trump appointed judge who banned abortion pills. I think there's a lot of information which overwhelms a lot of people. Hopefully putting it into an interactive, visual form helps.

https://embed.kumu.io/915c05ad5eb9572b7a66b52789ee20ad

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Thanks again, Deepak! My head is spinning. I kinda knew about the Publix heiress, just not the whole thing but is she in cahoots with Ginni Thomas? There has to be a connection somewhere. Kacsmaryk is as dirty as they come, according the info provided. Judges and lawyers everywhere should be demanding that the DOJ gets involved in these non-disclosures. All judges being considered must go through an absolutely thorough investigation before they are put on the bench. Again, the fact that ONE judge can make a decision for millions, is ludicrous!

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