1) funny #pos_tefanik has a new lie about Amtrak. Albeit another lie of ommission. When they reopened the lie was: "one day after I called Amtrak, they restarted that line" implying her conversation changed everything.. Though no one from Amtrak said anything about restarting because of #pos_tefanik. To be clear though, they said nothing about anyone... democrat or republican.. though all noted they were happy to have the service back.
And let’s point out there are a few politicians who COULD take Amtrak.. the line runs right by #pos_tefanik pretend home in Schuylerville.. I believe when she is grandstanding in Plattsburgh (where the train has a stop) she flew there in her private jet. She definitely did NOT take the train there to the press conference.
Now she isn’t saying when the last time she talked to Amtrak, but one can guess her ‘phone calls’ this time are going unheeded.
2) Taking your car over a train because it is faster, ignores a couple of things. One if you have a sensible car (that gets more than 15 mpg).. and gas at Adirondack prices $4 a gallon it is cheaper
I truly wonder if it was always this way and we just didn't know it or if people just had more integrity in the past? I remember a day when people said that they gave their word and that meant something. There was an internal moral monitoring. Do they justify it to themselves now or do they really have no ethics and not care? Both?
Please send this piece about the Supreme Court as an editorial to National Newspapers. So we’ll said and needs to be read by as many Americans as possible. Thank you!!!
I used to take Amtrak down to DC regularly. I loved the idea of being able to relax on the train and not having to worry about the traffic once I hit Baltimore. The only downside was getting back on the train at 3 am to head home. As it now it only goes to Albany, I guess I won't be riding it anytime soon. Also, the Amish around me used to regularly ride the train north. I guess they are also out.
I totally understand Canada National decision and as we look around the US we see so many train accidents. Some of those accidents possibly due to lack of maintenance on the rails?
It is disingenuous to bring up the attacks on Thomas and Alito without pointing out that trips paid by others are not uncommon with Supreme Court Justices. It is obvious the two are being attacked because of their conservative originalist view of the constitution. Open Secrets started tracking Supreme Court disclosure data in 2004, in an article on their site from 2019, they reported the Supremes had taken 1,306 trips paid by others. In 2018 Ruth Bader Ginsburg took the most trips with 14. From the article:
"Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg disclosed taking more trips than any other justice in 2018, totaling 14. She visited Tel Aviv, Israel where she was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the Genesis Prize Foundation. Shortly following the award ceremony, she disclosed being provided transportation, food and lodging as a tourist and guest of billionaire Israeli businessman Morris Kahn.
Kahn has had business before the Supreme Court before. The high court handed Kahn’s company Amdocs Limited a win in November 2017 when it declined to take up a patent-related case."
During the period justice Breyer had the most trips. In the case of Alito, the Alaska trip was taken in 2008 and the court case involving the hedge fund came up in 2014. The corporate listings for the fund did not make the connection to his friend that paid for the trip. The court ruled 7-1 against his friend's hedge fund with Alito voting with the majority. It cost the fund 2.4 billion dollars. So, it would seem there was in fact no conflict. It is also interesting that Open Secrets doesn't have a link to the data. the article does link disclosures for the justices for the 2018 year. Open Secrets didn't even see any connection between the 08 trip and the 2014 case in their 2019 article.
As to the 6-3 court case you mention, I don't think you read the dissent. The 3 agreed on one point, "Here is the case before us in a nutshell: A group of plaintiffs sued various state officials under state law. The defendants raised both state-law and federal-law defenses. In the interlocutory judgment below, the State Supreme Court rejected both defenses and remanded for further proceedings. We granted review to consider the defendants’ federal defense. But then, in subsequent proceedings, the state court revisited defendants’ alternative state-law defense and held that it was meritorious. As a result, the court finally adjudicated the whole case in the defendants’ favor, dismissing the plaintiffs’ claims with prejudice. This is a straightforward case of mootness. The federal defense no longer makes any difference to this case—"
The part II which was Thomas alone. It deals with the state vs legislature and the powers of the legislature. The point I am making is their dissent had nothing to do with agreeing nor disagreeing with the outcome of the state case.
I was not aware that others had taken lavish vacation courtesy of lobbyists. The context of the trip is important and perhaps more importantly whether it was disclosed.
I think disclosed is the key word. I can understand billionaires run out of things to buy. You can only cruise on one super yacht at a time. How many get to own their own SC justice, tho?
Congratulations to Lydia and Jon being recognized for their hard work. I remember Chris Jansing moving up to NBC, too. It’s nice to see local folks rewarded.
Canadian National should tell Elise Stefanik to pound sand. It’ll be nice when her career trajectory goes in the opposite direction and she’s doing whatever former reps to Congress do. Dreams of Veephood dashed. 😢
This is from Louise Penny's newsletter. She's a Canadian, lives in Quebec:
And furthermore . . .
In the larger world, beyond the borders of Muggins and my little life, there were some upsetting things nationally, including the horrificand ongoing forest fires and subsequent chocking smoke. Those photos were frightening. The reality much worse. This is a warning if there ever was one.
There was also the astonishing decision by Bell Media to lay off 13-hundred people. A wildfire of its own that resulted in the razing ofradio stations across Canada, the layingoff ofsenior journalists, the gutting of CTV National News, and in an almost inconceivable move, the sudden closure of CTV's London Bureau. Effectively ending international reporting for Canada's most-watched news programme.
That decision resulted in the Chief International Correspondent, Paul Workman, losing his job. This is a journalist who has been on the front line of reporting for decades, often risking his life. Indeed, he was on his way home from reporting on the war in Ukraine when he got the news. Not personally told, mind, but he heard it in a mass announcement.
It's enough to make you weep.
At a time when truth and facts are diverging, when evidence is ignored and "facts" are distorted then weaponized, we need journalists with courage, with the ability to interpret and give context. Who have experience not just as reporters, but as people. Life experience. We need Canadians to tell our stories.
OK, I'll stop the rant there (though only in this letter to you…it's still going on in my head. Actually, if I ever do write a memoir am thinking it might be called, "And furthermore…")
1) funny #pos_tefanik has a new lie about Amtrak. Albeit another lie of ommission. When they reopened the lie was: "one day after I called Amtrak, they restarted that line" implying her conversation changed everything.. Though no one from Amtrak said anything about restarting because of #pos_tefanik. To be clear though, they said nothing about anyone... democrat or republican.. though all noted they were happy to have the service back.
And let’s point out there are a few politicians who COULD take Amtrak.. the line runs right by #pos_tefanik pretend home in Schuylerville.. I believe when she is grandstanding in Plattsburgh (where the train has a stop) she flew there in her private jet. She definitely did NOT take the train there to the press conference.
Now she isn’t saying when the last time she talked to Amtrak, but one can guess her ‘phone calls’ this time are going unheeded.
2) Taking your car over a train because it is faster, ignores a couple of things. One if you have a sensible car (that gets more than 15 mpg).. and gas at Adirondack prices $4 a gallon it is cheaper
Amtrak $194, (https://www.amtrak.com/tickets/departure.html), and in a car getting 30 mpg (mind you I get 40) at $4 a gallon is $72.
Second, if you are going to the Adirondack.. most places have NO public transportation, i.e. you need a car.
I truly wonder if it was always this way and we just didn't know it or if people just had more integrity in the past? I remember a day when people said that they gave their word and that meant something. There was an internal moral monitoring. Do they justify it to themselves now or do they really have no ethics and not care? Both?
It’s a great question!
So proud of the training and hard work of your star journalist and power couple! You should be proud! Love your posts!
They have done well. Many other Post-Star alumni have also done well.
I’m IBM we had a similar rule regarding gifts and appearances of impropriety. Apparently the women on the Supreme Court still hold true.
Please send this piece about the Supreme Court as an editorial to National Newspapers. So we’ll said and needs to be read by as many Americans as possible. Thank you!!!
I used to take Amtrak down to DC regularly. I loved the idea of being able to relax on the train and not having to worry about the traffic once I hit Baltimore. The only downside was getting back on the train at 3 am to head home. As it now it only goes to Albany, I guess I won't be riding it anytime soon. Also, the Amish around me used to regularly ride the train north. I guess they are also out.
I totally understand Canada National decision and as we look around the US we see so many train accidents. Some of those accidents possibly due to lack of maintenance on the rails?
It is disingenuous to bring up the attacks on Thomas and Alito without pointing out that trips paid by others are not uncommon with Supreme Court Justices. It is obvious the two are being attacked because of their conservative originalist view of the constitution. Open Secrets started tracking Supreme Court disclosure data in 2004, in an article on their site from 2019, they reported the Supremes had taken 1,306 trips paid by others. In 2018 Ruth Bader Ginsburg took the most trips with 14. From the article:
"Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg disclosed taking more trips than any other justice in 2018, totaling 14. She visited Tel Aviv, Israel where she was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the Genesis Prize Foundation. Shortly following the award ceremony, she disclosed being provided transportation, food and lodging as a tourist and guest of billionaire Israeli businessman Morris Kahn.
Kahn has had business before the Supreme Court before. The high court handed Kahn’s company Amdocs Limited a win in November 2017 when it declined to take up a patent-related case."
During the period justice Breyer had the most trips. In the case of Alito, the Alaska trip was taken in 2008 and the court case involving the hedge fund came up in 2014. The corporate listings for the fund did not make the connection to his friend that paid for the trip. The court ruled 7-1 against his friend's hedge fund with Alito voting with the majority. It cost the fund 2.4 billion dollars. So, it would seem there was in fact no conflict. It is also interesting that Open Secrets doesn't have a link to the data. the article does link disclosures for the justices for the 2018 year. Open Secrets didn't even see any connection between the 08 trip and the 2014 case in their 2019 article.
As to the 6-3 court case you mention, I don't think you read the dissent. The 3 agreed on one point, "Here is the case before us in a nutshell: A group of plaintiffs sued various state officials under state law. The defendants raised both state-law and federal-law defenses. In the interlocutory judgment below, the State Supreme Court rejected both defenses and remanded for further proceedings. We granted review to consider the defendants’ federal defense. But then, in subsequent proceedings, the state court revisited defendants’ alternative state-law defense and held that it was meritorious. As a result, the court finally adjudicated the whole case in the defendants’ favor, dismissing the plaintiffs’ claims with prejudice. This is a straightforward case of mootness. The federal defense no longer makes any difference to this case—"
The part II which was Thomas alone. It deals with the state vs legislature and the powers of the legislature. The point I am making is their dissent had nothing to do with agreeing nor disagreeing with the outcome of the state case.
I was not aware that others had taken lavish vacation courtesy of lobbyists. The context of the trip is important and perhaps more importantly whether it was disclosed.
I think disclosed is the key word. I can understand billionaires run out of things to buy. You can only cruise on one super yacht at a time. How many get to own their own SC justice, tho?
Said the man who supports trump and StefaniQ.....
How's that Patriot thing going these days?
I'll never forget the names I was called by your group or the persons threats directed at myself and some friends.
Were you in DC on 1/6 like your friends Mr. Collins?
Congratulations to Lydia and Jon being recognized for their hard work. I remember Chris Jansing moving up to NBC, too. It’s nice to see local folks rewarded.
Canadian National should tell Elise Stefanik to pound sand. It’ll be nice when her career trajectory goes in the opposite direction and she’s doing whatever former reps to Congress do. Dreams of Veephood dashed. 😢
Justices Thomas and Alito are doing ghastly things by their ethics. They should have a rule about Ethical principles.
Agreed
Americans
Love there cars!!
I do not believe that there should be such a thing as lifetime appointments.
This SCOTUS is corrupted and we need to change the system.
This is from Louise Penny's newsletter. She's a Canadian, lives in Quebec:
And furthermore . . .
In the larger world, beyond the borders of Muggins and my little life, there were some upsetting things nationally, including the horrificand ongoing forest fires and subsequent chocking smoke. Those photos were frightening. The reality much worse. This is a warning if there ever was one.
There was also the astonishing decision by Bell Media to lay off 13-hundred people. A wildfire of its own that resulted in the razing ofradio stations across Canada, the layingoff ofsenior journalists, the gutting of CTV National News, and in an almost inconceivable move, the sudden closure of CTV's London Bureau. Effectively ending international reporting for Canada's most-watched news programme.
That decision resulted in the Chief International Correspondent, Paul Workman, losing his job. This is a journalist who has been on the front line of reporting for decades, often risking his life. Indeed, he was on his way home from reporting on the war in Ukraine when he got the news. Not personally told, mind, but he heard it in a mass announcement.
It's enough to make you weep.
At a time when truth and facts are diverging, when evidence is ignored and "facts" are distorted then weaponized, we need journalists with courage, with the ability to interpret and give context. Who have experience not just as reporters, but as people. Life experience. We need Canadians to tell our stories.
OK, I'll stop the rant there (though only in this letter to you…it's still going on in my head. Actually, if I ever do write a memoir am thinking it might be called, "And furthermore…")