Note to Tillis & Cornyn: “Examination of one’s own self—how very unpleasant it was. The list of despicable acts was unbelievably vile.” “Everything Flows,” by Vasily Grossman On the sudden examination of conscience and sense of guilt over their moral weakness by so many who had bowed down to Stalin.

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 15h ago

It's funny that Jeanine Pirro brought a box of evidence to WH to persuade Trump. He wants her to consciously *throw out* exculpatory facts and *knowingly* prosecute innocent people. So facts can't persuade him by definition. Me and @barbmcquade.bsky.social on this: newrepublic.com/article/2139...

“Ignorance itself is a plummet o’er me.” “The Merry Wives of Windsor”

Bradley P. Moss@bradmossesq.bsky.social · 7h ago

Oh no, not Alabama. How will we live without Alabama?

"The conventional wisdom today is that Biden’s bet [on the IRA] was a bust....Every part of that story, however, is at best incomplete and at worst simply wrong. The law did, in fact, deliver votes for Democrats. And key components of it are still on the books." – @leahstokes.bsky.social

Bidenomics Was More Successful Than People Think

Conventional wisdom holds that Joe Biden’s bet on climate investment was a bust. The data suggest otherwise.

theatlantic.com

"There remain serious unresolved questions about potential criminal violations of the laws prohibiting political interference in the tax system that may have occurred in the development of the sweetheart deal..." taxlawcenter.org/blog/stateme...

Statement on Acting Attorney General Blanche's announcement on audit immunity and the anti-weaponization fund

Policy Director Brandon DeBot offers a statement in response to the announcement from Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche regarding the anti-weaponization fund and immunity from tax audits for the pr...

taxlawcenter.org

There are a striking number of parallels between 2006 and 2026, though I’m especially interested in the GOP’s scandal-plagued members. Tom DeLay, Duke Cunningham, Bob Ney, and Mark Foley have been replaced by Max Miller, Cory Mills, Chuck Edwards, and Tony Gonzales. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

As Republican scandals grow, the parallels between 2006 and 2026 become unavoidable

Twenty years later, Tom DeLay, Duke Cunningham, Bob Ney and Mark Foley have been replaced by Max Miller, Cory Mills, Chuck Edwards and Tony Gonzales.

ms.now

Today on The Daily Blast, @gregsargent.bsky.social talks to @sawyerhackett.bsky.social about why Trump’s standing with Texas independents is “absolutely shocking,” and how numbers like these could open up other red states for Democrats. podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t... youtu.be/oaIZxw-2cJc

The Daily Blast: Trump Hit by Fox Poll Shocker that Undercuts His Latest Midterm Tirade

YouTube video by The DSR Network

youtu.be

“MAGA’s real position: Mass deportations must be carried out even if they hurt the economy. Mullin must ‘put deportations first’—that is, he must put them before economic concerns. The goal is not primarily an economic one: It’s about ethnically purging the country.”

Greg Sargent@gregsargent.bsky.social · 2d ago

Don't miss this vile story: MAGA is raging at DHS chief Markwayne Mullin for admitting migrant farmworkers can beneft our economy. This means his devotion to ethnic cleansing is in doubt. He must be excommunicated! I wrote about the collapse of MAGA mythology here: newrepublic.com/article/2138...

“A really efficient totalitarian state would be one in which the all-powerful executive of political bosses and their army of managers control a population of slaves who do not have to be coerced, because they love their servitude.” Aldous Huxley

Joyce White Vance@joycewhitevance.bsky.social · 2d ago

Todd Blanche's last-minute promise won over Senators Cornyn & Tillis, but shouldn't have. The "deal" leaves Trump's tax immunity intact. It confirms what the Senators should have already known about Blanche's lack of fitness to be AG. My analysis: open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...

NEWS: For nearly 20 years, Epstein moved over $1B through the major banks. The banks looked away. Sen. Wyden’s 3-year probe exposes it all. But most damning? How Trump and the GOP tried to bury it.

Follow the Money: How Wall Street Bankrolled Epstein, and How the Trump Administration and CBS are Blocking The Truth

For nearly two decades, Jeffrey Epstein moved more than a billion dollars through some of the biggest banks in America. He withdrew millions in unexplained

meidasnews.com

Legacy media vs pro-democracy media. Subscribe to Democracy Docket today. demdock.com/4w6emld

Is Todd Blanche’s nomination back on track after he allegedly “rescinded” the $1.8 billion slush fund & limited the tax immunity provision in the “settlement agreement” in Trump’s collusion w/the IRS & Treasury Dept.? There's no enforceability to what Blanche has done: youtu.be/Em09xu3UGxQ?...

🚨AG Blanche SCRAMBLES and Pulls LAST MINUTE STUNT To SAVE His NOMINATION!!

YouTube video by Katie Phang

youtu.be

Todd Blanche’s written assurance that the $1.8 billion slush fund won’t go forward is garbage. It won’t go forward today. What about tomorrow once Blanche is confirmed as AG? Tillis and Cornyn, agreeing to advance Blanche, are pathetic.

Time will tell whether Jeanine Pirro’s tenure as US Attorney in DC is poised to end, but in the meantime, it’s worth appreciating her recent record: Pirro’s losing streak in big cases sure is embarrassing. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Jeanine Pirro’s reversal in Reflecting Pool case adds to her embarrassing losing streak

The former Fox News host has lost so many important cases, with such regularity, that it’s been challenging to keep up.

ms.now

“This case was flagrantly illegal from the start and they’re clearly trying to find a political way out of it that gets the attorney general confirmed without giving up their legal rights to actually enforce this illegal settlement.”

Blanche’s Documents Addressing Trump I.R.S. Deal Leave Loopholes

Critics say the written assurances are a political solution to a political problem, rather than a legally binding document.

nytimes.com

So, they’re good with the protection of a convicted child sex trafficker and the coverup of pedophiles? Nothing else to see here. Move along.

Deborah Lynn@mrsdeborahlynn.bsky.social · 2d ago

www.cnn.com/2026/08/02/p... Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Thom Tillis of North Carolina said in a joint statement Monday morning they were “pleased” with Blanche’s order and they “look forward to voting to advance his nomination out of the Senate Judiciary Committee soon.”

The least surprising news of the day. The headline could have been written days in advance.

Mike Nellis@mikenellis.bsky.social · 3d ago

Cornyn and Tillis folding on Blanche is the most predictable thing ever. They are cowards. The minute Blanche is confirmed, there’s nothing stopping him from reneging on this weaponization fund deal they’ve made. Vote for Democrats if you want a Congress that might actually stand up to this fascist.

“And we beat the Knicks in four straight,” say the Spurs.

Aaron Rupar@atrupar.com · 3d ago

Trump: “My REAL Polling Numbers, not those made up by the Fake News Media, are the best they have ever been”

Fine print shows Blanche tried to ‘sneak through’ overnight ‘scam’ to shield Trump: report www.rawstory.com/trump-immuni...

Fine print shows Blanche tried to ‘sneak through’ overnight ‘scam’ to shield Trump: report

Amid his bid for confirmation, Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a notice Sunday night declaring that the Justice Department had rescinded its controversial “anti-weaponization fund” designe...

rawstory.com

“His prosecution of political opponents [and] his attacks on our elections did nothing to tarnish his image within the GOP. He refused to sign a document stating that Trump's weaponization slush fund was legally null and void that his ascendancy to AG was stopped.” For now.

Marc Elias@marcelias.bsky.social · 4d ago

MY LATEST: This was the week that Todd Blanche's blind loyalty to Donald Trump finally caught up with him. His prosecution of political opponents wasn't enough to cost him the confidence of Senate Republicans. newsletters.democracydocket.com/todd-blanche...

Every law student in America should be required to read this as a cautionary tale. Every lawyer at Paul Weiss should be required to read this to understand what they have become. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/02/u...

How a Top Law Firm Went From Standing Up to Trump to Bending the Knee

Paul Weiss was a progressive stalwart for decades and led the legal resistance against President Trump in his first term. Then it surrendered without a fight. This is the inside story of its transform...

nytimes.com

PODCAST: Todd Blanche went from Wall Street lawyer to Trump crony. And now, he’s about to lose his dream job as attorney general. I explain what makes Blanche so dangerous and how he torpedoed his Senate confirmation to protect Trump’s slush fund. youtu.be/X-NBQW2yi7I?...

Todd Blanche Is About to Lose His Dream Job. This Is Why.

YouTube video by Democracy Docket

youtu.be

“Give me to know how this foul rout began, who set it on, and he that is approv'd in this offence…” “Othello” #ShakespeareSunday

Opinion | There Are So Many Reasons to Reject Todd Blanche. Here’s Another One.

Don’t forget this key reason the Senate should reject him.

nytimes.com

The poll and the pool: Trump is under water in both.

Trump’s Polling Numbers Hit a New Low. Don’t Expect Him to Change Course.

Barely a third of Americans approve of Mr. Trump’s handling of the job, putting him at historic depths for a second-term president at this stage of his tenure.

nytimes.com

Iago to Blanche: “You shall mark many a duteous and knee-crooking knave that (doting on his own obsequious bondage) wears out his time much like his master’s ass for naught but provender, and when he’s old, cashiered.”

Trump Threatens to Withdraw Blanche as Attorney General, Dealing Blow to Nomination

nytimes.com

As disgraceful as you might think Paul Weiss is, it's much worse. A must read. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/02/u...

How a Top Law Firm Went From Standing Up to Trump to Bending the Knee

Paul Weiss was a progressive stalwart for decades and led the legal resistance against President Trump in his first term. Then it surrendered without a fight. This is the inside story of its transform...

nytimes.com

I spent a good portion of today and tonight writing about how a guy like Todd Blanche got so far in Trump's orbit and the shameful prosecution of David Hearn. Both of these pieces will be sent to Democracy Docket members. Help support this work: demdock.com/4w6emld

The Working Class Is Fleeing Trump www.nytimes.com/2026/08/01/o...

Opinion | The Working Class Is Fleeing Trump

Democrats have an anger problem. Republicans have a Trump problem.

nytimes.com

Are we any closer to the final act of this remake of “Don Giovanni” (“Donald John”) when justice finally catches up to the unrepentant criminal and he is dragged into hell?

When this abysmal and degenerate Trump presidency comes to an end, one of the first orders of business should be to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Marc Elias.

Marc Elias@marcelias.bsky.social · 5d ago

This is what the legacy media doesn't cover. Luckily, I built Democracy Docket to fill this gap. Help support independent, pro-democracy media by subscribing to Democracy Docket now. demdock.com/4w6emld

“It has nothing convincing to say about time, memory, history, war, or about the relationship between one warrior’s glorious return and the lives of his family, adversaries, comrades, friends and neighbors. It lacks psychological, emotional, political and ethical depth. The writing is abysmal.”

Emily Wilson’s Pan of ‘The Odyssey’ Ignites a Debate Among Classicists and Commenters

Wilson, whose 2017 translation of Homer’s Greek classic influenced the director Christopher Nolan, panned his screenplay for the movie version in an essay for The London Review of Books.

nytimes.com