patrick.net

https://www.coffeeandcovid.com/p/burning-monday-april-22-2024-c-and

The New York Post ran a story yesterday headlined, “MTG lashes out after Ukraine aid bill passes, demands Speaker Mike Johnson’s resignation: ‘Complete betrayal’.”

This weekend, Speaker Mike Johnson delivered a Masterclass on how to burn a budding political career to the ground in only 72 hours. The word “rage” barely describes how the Republican base feels about Johnson’s U-turn on Ukraine aid, which was approved on Saturday in the House with 100% democrat support, and will be approved tomorrow in the democrat-controlled Senate. Then it will be signed into law ten seconds later by a very lifelike, rubber-coated, Joe Biden animatronic robot with the extra mumbling package.

Yesterday, irate Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), vowed on Fox News Sunday that “Mike Johnson’s speakership is over.” She is correct. Absent a miracle, sooner or later, Johnson is finished. Democrats might help Johnson cling on to the Speakership for a while pursuant to some hideous backroom political scheme, which will only make Johnson look even more corrupt. But the Johnson clock is ticking.

Inexplicably, President Trump has failed to mention Speaker Johnson at all in his most recent Truth Social posts, even ones about Ukraine aid. Instead, he’s complained only about the U.S. having to shoulder the whole burden — and oddly recently remarked that “everyone agrees … Ukrainian survival is … important to us”...

Prior to this post, Trump has consistently and opposed Ukraine aid, and usually in capital letters. It’s a mystery what turned Trump around. Could it have had something to do with Britain’s Foreign Secretary David Cameron’s personal visit to Mar-a-Lago last week? After all, Trump’s most popular book is titled “The Art of the Deal.” Now, I’m sure it didn’t probably happen this way, but the timing is highly suggestive, and it’s still a fun thought experiment: what could Cameron have possibly offered Trump to get him (and Speaker Johnson by proxy) on board for more Ukraine support?

Like wretched fentanyl junkies swaying incoherently on the streets of Philadelphia, America sways in the grip of a Ukraine addiction. Or more accurately, America’s security state sways incoherently under its Ukraine addiction. Over the weekend, watching the unfolding drama in the House of Representatives, foreign commenters observed that Ukraine appears to be the Biden Administration’s most important political issue.

Ukraine, which first burst onto the national scene after Trump requested an investigation and got impeached for his trouble, does seem to be driving everything else right now.

Patrick says

The word “rage” barely describes how the Republican base feels about Johnson’s U-turn on Ukraine aid

So what? There is only One True Political Party: The Uniparty.

The base? Uniparty doesn't care. And why the fuck should they?

As for MTG, she's nuts if she believes all the Kool-Aide about how 'the conference' is 'enraged'. Same conference that just showed it's colors when over 100 them voted for this shit. And on the Senate side, where's the filibuster? Pols like JD Vance blah, blah, blah on TV...so where is his filibuster?

And Trump is a fool if he actually bought the bullshit about this being a loan. A loan w/o interest, 'pay whenever/if ever you want' terms, and is totally forgivable via EO.

So is Trump a fool or was he in on the bullshit too?

Uniparty