Build Back Something

Senate Democrats apparently outsmarted Mitch McConnell and agreed on an "Inflation Reduction Act" that includes $369 billion in clean energy investments. While Senator Brian Schatz calls it the "biggest climate action in human history", it's been criticized as a "climate suicide pact" by Brett Hartl with the Center for Biological Diversity for requiring new oil and gas leasing in the Gulf of Mexico and in Alaska.

It’s self-defeating to handcuff renewable energy development to massive new oil and gas extraction. The new leasing required in this bill will fan the flames of the climate disasters torching our country, and it’s a slap in the face to the communities fighting to protect themselves from filthy fossil fuels.

We can’t let the renewable energy transition be held hostage by fossil fuel companies. The Manchin bill is a devil’s bargain that ignores science and locks us into at least a decade of new oil and gas extraction. There’s a way forward that doesn’t spew more greenhouse gas pollution into the air and harm frontline communities, and it means eliminating these giveaways to the fossil-fuel industry.

This legislation may be a mixed bag and it's already greatly scaled back from initial proposals. Is there the political will to do more? Anthony DiMaggio has conducted polls of people who have experienced extreme weather events.

[M]y survey findings should provide environmental activists some encouragement. They suggest that the public is increasingly waking up to the severity of the threat at hand. People's real-life experiences with extreme weather are acting as a catalyst driving support for reducing carbon dioxide emissions, and will likely fuel rising support for action in the future as the climate crisis worsens.

Writing about record high temperatures in England, George Monbiot wonders if we can "reach the social tipping point before we hit the environmental tipping point" given that we know what really needs to be done.

Let’s stop lying to ourselves and others by pretending that small measures deliver major change. Let’s abandon the timidity and tokenism. Let’s stop bringing buckets of water when only fire engines will do.

Update (August 1):  While proponents claim IRA will reduce emissions to 40 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 (estimated to be a 20 percent reduction in the absence of this bill), it seems the oil industry views the bill as a mixed bag as well. For example, they are all for the new oil and gas leasing, but concerned about the electric vehicle subsidies and the 15 percent minimum corporate tax. Perhaps this is what political compromise is all about. It's only the future of civilization at stake.

Update (August 2):  Julia Kane, Emily Pontecorvo, and Zoya Teirstein quote Adam Orford that IRA is an "overall positive", but

experts are concerned that the permitting legislation Democrats promised to pass in a few months could make it easier for companies to get fossil fuel infrastructure approved more quickly.

And, of course, it only takes one Democrat to torpedo the whole thing--even Manchin might not be above wrecking his own bill. 

Jake Johnson quotes Lauren Pagel.

The world is on fire and Congress is attacking it with a squirt gun while giving Senator Manchin and fossil fuel executives more matches by fast-tracking oil and gas drilling and hydrogen boondoggles. Drilling for oil and gas is no solution to the climate crisis.

Noah Berlatsky acknowledges a number of shortcomings in the bill. 

However, climate advocates in general see these concessions as a small price to pay for what is in other respects easily the most substantial effort to fight global warming in US history.

Update (August 4):  Food and Water Watch criticizes Manchin's "side deal".

Creating new wind and solar tax credits while giving fossil fuel polluters a green light is the ultimate devil’s bargain. Lawmakers must speak up strongly and swiftly against this massive rollback of public health and environmental protections that will fast track fossil fuel projects.

But who knows, maybe Senator Sinema will decide the rich need to keep their tax loophole and vote down the whole thing. (A short time later) Looks like Sinema got enough changes to vote in favor.

Update (August 7):  The Inflation Reduction Act passed the Senate 50 to 50 with Vice President Harris casting the tie-breaker vote.

Update (August 9):  Majority Leader Chuck Schumer was determined to get a bill passed.

I told my caucus all along, including the most pro-environmental people, that we’re going to have to swallow some bad stuff to get good stuff.

Update (August 12):  The Inflation Reduction Act passed the House of Representatives 220 to 207. Robert Hunziker notes the urgency of our situation.

The entire planet is reeling from global warming. America’s modest couple hundred billion climate plan is a drop in the world’s bucket.

Update (August 15):  The more I read about this law, the more problems it seems to have. Incentives for carbon capture account for one-sixth to one-fifth of projected emissions reductions. Prices per ton go up for both carbon capture with storage as well as capture for use in enhanced oil recovery (though up not as much). Storage would also require the construction of thousands of miles of pipeline.

In addition, it's possible many electric vehicles will be ineligible for incentives.

[IRA] requires that new electric vehicles meet stringent sourcing requirements for critical materials, the components of the battery, and final assembly to qualify for the tax credits. While some automakers, like Tesla and GM, have well-developed domestic supply chains, no electric vehicle manufacturer currently meets all the bill’s requirements.

Update (August 16):  As President Biden signs the bill into law, I'm glad that activists such as Lisa Frank are tempering celebration with a dose of reality.

[This law is] a start to, not the culmination of, our work to reduce global warming pollution and ensure clean air, clean water, and the preservation of open spaces.

And Representative Rashida Tlaib promises to work against the noxious "side deal" which requires a separate vote.

[H]andshake deals made by others in closed rooms do not dictate how I vote, and we sure as hell don't owe Joe Manchin anything now.

He and his fossil fuel donors already got far too much in the IRA.

Update (August 18):  Carl Pope offers three steps to follow up on IRA.

Recapture fugitive methane, amounting to more than a billion tons of carbon dioxide a year.

Leapfrog over 100 gigawatts of unneeded, polluting gas power plants. Replace coal-burning plants with more solar and wind instead.

Electrify cars and trucks, and make electric vehicles a cleaner and more reliable option in every zip code.

Update (September 9):  Progressives in Congress are pushing back against the Manchin "side deal". The plan is to include it in the continuing resolution that keeps the government funded past the end of the fiscal year.

Update (September 27):  Senator Manchin's "side deal" has been removed from the continuing resolution.

Update (October 6):  Liane Schalatek gives an overview of the IRA. And Basav Sen notes that the "side deal" isn't quite dead.

Increasing Risk of Collapse

A report from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction points out a growing probability of civilizational collapse.

Despite progress, risk creation is outstripping risk reduction. Disasters, economic loss and the underlying vulnerabilities that drive risk, such as poverty and inequality, are increasing just as ecosystems and biospheres are at risk of collapse.

Nafeez Ahmed highlights the significance.

[This report] is the first time that the United Nations has clearly underscored the impending risk of "total societal collapse" if the human system continues to cross the planetary boundaries critical to maintaining a safe operating space for the earth system.

Yet, despite this urgent warning, not only has it fallen on deaf ears, the UN itself appears to have diluted its own findings. Like the fictional film Don’t Look Up, we are more concerned with celebrity gossip and political scandals, seemingly unable – or unwilling – to confront the most important challenge that now faces us as a species.

Either way, these UN documents show that recognising the risk of collapse is not about doom-mongering, but about understanding risks so we can make better choices and avoid worst-case outcomes. As the report acknowledges, there is still much that can be done. But the time for action is not after 2030. It’s now.

Update (August 1):  A paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences finds a lack of investigation into the potential impacts of famine, extreme weather, war and disease due to climate change.

Prudent risk management requires consideration of bad-to-worst-case scenarios. Yet, for climate change, such potential futures are poorly understood. Could anthropogenic climate change result in worldwide societal collapse or even eventual human extinction? At present, this is a dangerously underexplored topic. Yet there are ample reasons to suspect that climate change could result in a global catastrophe. Analyzing the mechanisms for these extreme consequences could help galvanize action, improve resilience, and inform policy, including emergency responses.

Villainy

In just one of a series of despicable decisions, the Supreme Court gutted the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate carbon emissions.

The court ruled that EPA regulations aimed at reducing carbon emissions under a specific provision of the 1970 Clean Air Act are not permissible because Congress did not specifically authorize the EPA to regulate carbon emissions.

According to the court, the EPA’s regulation of power plant emissions amounts to a large enough new regulatory proposal targeting a large enough segment of the economy to require specific congressional authorization.

Justice Elena Kagan wrote the dissent. 

Today, the court strips the EPA of the power Congress gave it to respond to the most pressing environmental challenge of our time. The Court appoints itself— instead of Congress or the expert agency— the decision-maker on climate policy. I cannot think of many things more frightening.

Robert Rohde notes the greater implication. 

The immediate issue is the limits of the EPA's ability to regulate greenhouse gases. The broader issue is the ability of federal agencies to regulate anything at all.

Update (July 4):  Thom Hartmann notes the worst may be yet to come in a Fall case before the Court.

[The Independent State Legislature Doctrine]—the basis of John Eastman and [Dear Leader's] effort to get states to submit multiple slates of electors—asserts that a plain reading of Article II and the 12th Amendment of the Constitution says that each state's legislature has final say in which candidate gets their states' Electoral College vote, governors and the will of the voters be damned.

Republicans point out that the Constitution says that it's up to the states—"in such Manner as the Legislature thereof may direct"—to decide which presidential candidate gets their Electoral College votes.

But the Electoral Count Act requires a governor's sign-off, and half [of the battleground] states have Democratic governors. Which has precedence, the Constitution or the Act?

Confronting Horror

Chauncey DeVega argues Dear Leader is the culmination of a decades long conservative backlash.

As part of that long-term assault, most or all the historic victories of the civil rights movement, the women's rights movement, the gay rights movement, the labor and environmental movements and other struggles for human dignity and a more just society are being rolled back. If this project succeeds, America's already threadbare social safety net will be virtually eliminated. White Christian fascists and corporate plutocrats will forge a ruling coalition with near-total dominion over American life and society. The separation of church and state, along with the guarantee of free speech and most of the Bill of Rights, will disappear.

He quotes Wajahat Ali.

If you believe that there is a "team normal" in the modern GOP, then you'll also probably believe that fewer doors and arming teachers will reduce mass gun shootings, banning books will save your child from being transgender, and climate change is a hoax created by China.

Either way, you're not acknowledging that the GOP is now a weaponized cult that no longer produces "rational" Republicans, but instead caters to the festering, fevered paranoid swamp of dangerous conspiracy theories and white supremacist ideologies. This persistent right-wing disinformation has now radicalized its base, in which many members believe violence is necessary to "take back" their country. The reality is that Team Normal and Team Crazy both play for the GOP, wear the same uniforms, and, for now, worship the golden calf known as [Fuckface].

Political problems go far deeper than one person.

In reality, [Dear Leader] — as a man, a symbol and a political leader — and everything he embodies is the product of our society, driven by extreme social inequality, consumerism and greed, unfulfilled dreams, widespread alienation and loneliness, anti-intellectualism, racism and white supremacy, the cult of the spectacle, our fetish for violence and a range of related antisocial and anti-human values and tendencies.

DeVega also quotes Chris Hedges on how traditional politics has failed.

The ruling parties were already in lockstep for decades on the major issues, including: war, trade deals, austerity, the militarization of police, prisons, government surveillance and assaults on civil liberties. They worked in tandem to pervert and destroy democratic institutions on behalf of the rich and corporations.

I appreciate efforts to reduce polarization. It is important to understand how the currect system has pushed so many people toward authoritarianism. We need to build greater understanding of "both sides". The question is whether those entangled in creating the situation are in a position to lead us out of it. 

The Whole World Should Be Watching

The U.S. House Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the United States Capitol started a series of hearings to make the case for a conspiracy to hold on to power. Dear Leader was called out for his lies about the election and for inspiring right wing extremists to try to stop Congress from certifying the election.

I'm hoping some accountability can come out of this. A report from the Brookings Institution argues that Fuckface definitely had criminal intent. Noah Bookbinder and Norman Eisen:

We already have a clear foundation for demonstrating [von Clownstick's] corrupt intent: his long-established pattern of crying "fraud" to undermine results he didn't like.

[His] claims of fraud were not in response to reports or evidence. They were not in response to a genuine concern about our democracy. Before the first ballot was even cast, [his] team was prepared to mount a baseless offensive that supported the conclusion they wanted to reach.

Update (June 10):  Marita Vlachou lists ten key moments from the hearing.

Then Attorney General William Barr told [Orangeman] his claims the election was stolen were "bullshit".

[Daughter] told the committee she was "affected" by Barr’s comments.

[His] campaign staff told the former president he had lost the election.

[Son-in-law] dismissed White House counsel Pat Cipollone’s threats to resign as "whining".

[Manbaby] cheered supporters wanting to hang Mike Pence.

The committee released never-before-seen brutal video of violence at the U.S. Capitol.

Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn shed tears while watching videos of the riots.

Proud Boy said membership "tripled probably" following [Fuckface] comment in presidential debate.

Officer Edwards described "the carnage" and "absolute war zone" outside the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

Capitol rioters said they were invited by [Dear Leader].

Also, Heather Digby Parton considers the seven-part plan to overturn the election refered to by Representative Liz Cheney and outlined by CNN:

[The former guy] engaged in a massive effort to spread false and fraudulent information to the American public claiming the 2020 election was stolen from him. 

[He] corruptly planned to replace the acting attorney general, so that the Department of Justice would support his fake election claims. 

[He] corruptly pressured Vice President Pence to refuse to count certified electoral votes in violation of the U.S. Constitution and the law. 

[He] corruptly pressured state election officials, and state legislators, to change election results. 

[His] legal team and other associates instructed Republicans in multiple states to create false electoral slates and transmit those slates to Congress and the National Archives. 

[He] summoned and assembled a violent mob in Washington and directed them to march on the U.S. Capitol. 

As the violence was underway, [Fuckface] ignored multiple pleas for assistance and failed to take immediate action to stop the violence and instruct his supporters to leave the Capitol.

Parton expects a flood of damning detail to come. 

[Dear Leader] staged a coup attempt, and Republican officials have known this from the beginning. But after a brief moment of common sense and decency, they reverted to type and excused it, defended it and even endorsed it.

As Cheney said, "There will come a day when [this asshole] is gone, but your dishonor will remain."

Update (June 11):  Jeff Sharlet doubts the hearings can correct a massive divide.

[T]o my ear the tone of the first hearing was elegiac. A lament, an expression of longing, a wish that it had been and will be otherwise, threaded with the knowledge that it likely will not. There's little chance the hearings will result in even some small justice, much less bind the nation back into the functioning democracy that in truth it never has quite been.

[F]or all of its precision and sorrow, the hearing could only measure the smallness of the question left to it to answer: What happened on Jan. 6, 2021? What is happening now meanwhile, with American fascism strangling backroads like knotweed or kudzu ... the hearing could not speak to.

At one point Cheney noted that the insurrection raged before a painting of George Washington "voluntarily relinquishing power". A "noble act," she insisted. I could almost hear [Dear Leader] in front of his TV in Mar-a-Lago, sneering at the first president: "What a loser." George Washington, Liz Cheney, all of us watching and listening to the hearings as if the illness [Fuckface] made fully manifest — the many-colored [flags of] hate flying in the night breeze [everywhere] — might still somehow be quarantined to that one terrible day in January.

Update (June 14):  Ryan Grenoble lists seven key moments from the second hearing. 

Senior staffers said [Dear Leader] rejected their advice and listened to a drunk Rudy Giuliani instead.

Former Fox News political editor: [von Clownstick] claimed victory based on a "red mirage".

William Barr: Claims about defective voting machines were "complete nonsense".

Bill Stepien: [Manbaby] ran a "structurally and fiscally deficient" reelection campaign.

[The former guy's] mind was "made up" on mail-in ballots, regardless of the evidence, Stepien said.

Investigators said the "Big Lie" was a big windfall for [Fuckface].

The Justice Department looked into Giuliani and [Orangeman's] fraud allegations in swing states and found nothing.

Update (June 15):  Paul Street quotes Laurence Tribe on Merrick Garland's difficult decision over accountability.

Many people are telling [Garland] it would cause deep unrest, violent reaction, maybe even civil war for the popular former president to be indicted. What he’ll have to do is ask whether the costs to the country in terms of having this repeat itself and in terms of having us absolutely go down the tubes as a democracy, whether those outcomes outweigh the undoubted complicated costs of indicting a former president.

Street responds:

Does Tribe think "violent unrest" and "even civil war" is any less likely if Garland takes the cowardly path?

The negative historian lesson – likely to be avoided in mainstream US media-politics culture because of the doctrinal American Exceptionalist belief that "it can’t happen here" – is Adolph Hitler getting off lightly and continuing on as a major political actor seeking to Make Germany Great Again after the failed Beer Hall Putsch of 1924.

Update (June 16):  In a third hearing, evidence was presented that John Eastman pressured Vice President Mike Pence multiple times to implement a plan to overturn the Electoral College vote. The pressure continued even after Congress resumed the certification process. 

Once the riot at the Capitol ended, Eastman again emailed [Pence counsel Greg] Jacob to say the vice president should refuse to certify the election and send it back to the states.

Fuckface also poured it on, calling Pence in the morning of January 6 and refering to him as a pussy. Dear Leader blasted Pence in a tweet as the insurrection was taking place with an informant testifying that the Proud Boys "would have killed Mike Pence if given the chance".

Lindsay Beyerstein notes an email exchange during the attack:

"And thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege," Jacob wrote to Eastman from the secure location.

Eastman shot back that the siege was happening "because you and your boss did not do what was necessary."

There you have it in Eastman's own words: the mob stormed the Capitol because Pence refused to play his assigned role in the coup.

Eventually, Eastman decided he needed protection from his actions.

There's likely a long list of pardon requests, including from members of Congress.

Lydia O'Connor lists ten key moments from the third hearing.

Eastman told [von Clownstick] their plan was illegal, a Pence aide said.

Eastman knew the other legislative branches would dismantle their scheme.

Eastman reportedly shrugged off the possibility of inciting a riot.

Eastman asked for a pardon after the attack.

Despite [the former guy's] claims otherwise, Pence allegedly told him "many times" he disagreed with him.

Weeks before the riot, Pence thought he didn’t have the power to overturn the vote, his aide said.

[Fuckface] snapped at Pence in the heat of their Jan. 6 disagreement, according to [his daughter].

The mob got dangerously close to Pence.

The crowd surged when [Dear Leader] tweeted his anger at Pence.

A Pence adviser said he believes [Manbaby] remains a threat to democracy.

Update (June 17):  Heather Digby Parton theorizes there was more to the planned coup.

[T]estimony strongly suggests that [Eastman and Fuckface] were well prepared for, perhaps even anticipating, violence as a result of their actions.

[It suggests] a plan to invoke the [Insurrection Act] after Pence overturned the election, inciting expected street protests from the people whose votes had just been discarded and whose democracy had just been incinerated. This would have given [Dear Leader] the excuse he needed to solidify his coup with a classic military intervention.

Update (June 19):  Glenn Kirschner argues Dear Leader should be charged with treason.

[There are] five data points that I think demonstrate [Fuckface] levied war against the United States--that's the very definition of treason: whoever owing allegiance to the United States, levies war against them, the United States, is guilty of treason.

He recruited the Proud Boys and others, "stand back and stand by", await before their orders.

He set the date for the Capitol attack: "come to DC January 6th, will be wild".

He deployed them, and he gave the order: "go to the Capitol, fight like hell or you won't have a country anymore", go stop the certification. He used the word "steal", which is helpful because it helps expose his corrupt intent.

He then sat in the White House dining room for three hours, watching the attack with people streaming in begging him to call off his attack dogs and he wouldn't.

And we know they asked him to send reinforcements to the Capitol to defend the people who were under attack and he refused. Mike Pence finally had to give the order to send reinforcements, an order he may not have been authorized to give. And now we know [the former guy] also sided with the supporters, saying maybe Mike Pence should be hanged.

As Judge J. Michael Luttig testified:

A stake was driven through the heart of American democracy on January 6, 2021, and our democracy today is on a knife’s edge.

America was at war on that fateful day, but not against a foreign power. She was at war against herself. We Americans were at war with each other – over our democracy.

Almost two years after that fateful day … [Dear Leader] and his allies and supporters are a clear and present danger to American democracy. (emphasis added)

That’s not because of what happened on January 6. It is because to this very day the former president and his allies and supporters pledge that in the presidential election of 2024, if the former president or his anointed successor as the Republican party presidential candidate were to lose that election, they would attempt to overturn that 2024 election in the same way that they attempted to overturn the 2020 election, but succeed in 2024 where they failed in 2020.

Update (June 20):  In an interview with Isaac Chotiner, Barbara McQuade discusses prosecutorial discretion.

Some of the things they need to think about are: What precedent does this set? Will we become a country where every new President files charges against their predecessor? That’s not good for the country. What kind of distraction is this in a world where we need to pay attention to things like climate change, and a pandemic, and hostile foreign adversaries? If we are spending the next couple of years on this case, is it really in the best interest of the country? Could it result in civil unrest or even civil war? All of those questions need to be answered.

On the other hand, to not hold him accountable, to not file charges, might be even worse because one of the reasons we punish people criminally is to deter them and others from doing it again in the future. And, if you don’t hold them accountable, will people just keep trying to do this?

Fear of Republican retaliation is an enormous disservice to the rule of law. It seems that either choice points to a bleak outcome.

Update (June 21):  Here's how the lies of our disgusting piece-of-shit Crybaby impacted two Georgia election workers, Ruby Freeman and her daughter Wandrea “Shaye” Moss:

Do you know how it feels to have the president of the United States target you?

[T]here was just a lot of horrible things. A lot of threats, wishing death upon me, telling me that I’ll be in jail with my mother and saying things like, "Be glad it’s 2020 and not 1920."

I stayed away from my home for approximately two months. It was horrible. I felt homeless. I felt, you know, I can’t believe this person has caused this much damage to me and my family.

By casting doubt on outcomes and intimidating anyone involved with the election process, future winners will be determined by violence. Amanda Marcotte:

"We cannot let America become a nation of conspiracy theories and thug violence," Cheney declared. But that's exactly the path the country is on. [Dear Leader] hasn't faced any legal penalities for his crimes. Worse, most of GOP has rallied to [his] side, ready to make the state-by-state strategy of falsifying votes and sending fake electors work next time around. ... If more isn't done to protect elections on the state level, the next time [Fuckface] attempts a coup, it's likely to succeed.

Sara Boboltz and Lydia O'Connor list seven key moments from the fourth hearing. 

[Dear Leader's] lawyers pressured Republican officials in swing states to overturn the election results but provided no proof of fraud.

A mother-daughter duo of Georgia election workers described how their lives were affected by [the asshole's] targeted attacks.

[Fuckface] supporters flooded other officials with messages telling them to say [he] won a second term ― or else.

[The sore loser] said [Arizona Speaker Rusty] Bowers agreed the election was rigged. Bowers said that’s not true.

[Manbaby] allies, including Representative Andy Biggs, pressured Bowers to decertify Arizona’s slate of electors.

Senator Ron Johnson allegedly tried to give Vice President Mike Pence a fake slate of pro-[fascist] electors.

[Von Clownstick] and his team allegedly solicited help from the RNC to push its "alternate" elector scheme.

And I'll add one more: 

Rudy Giuliani [amitted to Bowers he] had "lots of theories" about voter fraud "but no evidence".

Update (June 22):  Heather Digby Parton recounts how violent rhetoric has long been part of Republican's "legitimate political discourse".

The threat of political violence is now an everyday feature of right-wing political activism.

[Dear Leader] didn't create this phenomenon. ... But that doesn't absolve him of responsibility for the atmosphere he amplified during his time in office. He not only publicly modeled the bullying and authoritarian style of the mob boss, but he also encouraged his followers to use threats and intimidation to force political acquiescence over democratic means. Of course, they would resort to violence. That's the whole point.

Update (June 23):  Jeffrey Clark, the lower level Department of Justice official who wanted DOJ to push election lies in a letter to battleground states even though his professional responsibilities had nothing to do with elections, held inappropriate meetings with Dear Leader who sought to name the unqualified Clark as acting Attorney General. Fuckface had to back off this plan when the entire department leadership threatened to resign. Up till then, nearly daily calls took place to pressure DOJ to pursue baseless election fraud claims.

Amanda Marcotte argues prosecution "is the best shot we have to keep the DOJ from becoming a wholly corrupt institution serving the whims of a dictatorial president".

There is no decision that [Merrick] Garland and the DOJ can make that is "apolitical". Refusing to arrest [the former guy] in the face of overwhelming evidence of his guilt is political behavior, as it's far more about appeasing Republican partisans than it is following the law. Since every move he's going to make is going to be refracted through politics, Garland needs to worry less about "looking" political, and start fulfilling his promise to go where the evidence leads. Garland takes the reputation of the DOJ very seriously. If he wants his legacy to be the preservation of that reputation, he must charge [Fuckface] for his various crimes. Failure to do so is an invitation for [him] to come back to the White House, where he will immediately turn the Justice Department into a MAGA clown show.

The January 6 Committee also released testimony that several members of Congress asked for pardons: Scott Perry (who previously denied doing so), Matt Gaetz, Mo Brooks, Andy Biggs, Louie Gohmert, and Marjorie Taylor Greene.

Update (June 24):  Heather Digby Parton has more to say about the famous draft letter.

This letter also recommended that the Georgia General Assembly convene a special session to approve a new slate of electors. It indicated that a set of fake [von Clownstick] electors had already been transmitted to the U.S. Capitol.

What this means is that the plot was not really operating on separate tracks as previously assumed. We now know that the Department of Justice plot was entwined with the John Eastman fake electors - Mike Pence plot. The coup was more organized than we knew.

Update (June 28):  A few days before January 6, 2021, Rudy Giuliani told Cassidy Hutchinson how excited he was about going to the Capitol on the 6th. 

It’s going to be great. The president’s going to be there. He’s going to look powerful.

Hutchinson asked her boss, Mark Meadows, about it.

There’s a lot going on. Things might get real, real bad on January 6.

As Dear Leader prepared to address his supporters, he became angry that the crowd size looked too small when people declined to be screened and have their weapons siezed.

I heard the president say something to the effect of, "I don’t fucking care that they have weapons. They’re not here to hurt me. Take the fucking mags [metal detectors] away. Let my people in. They can march to the Capitol from here."

After the rally, Fuckface insisted on going to the Capitol, and started an altercation with his own security.

The president said something to the effect of, "I’m the fucking president, take me up to the Capitol now."

Among several meltdowns, one occured after Bill Barr indicated there was no evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 election.

The valet had articulated that the president was extremely angry at the attorney general’s AP interview and had thrown his lunch against the wall, which was causing them to have to clean up, so I grabbed a towel and started wiping the ketchup off of the wall to help the valet out.

Hutchinson also testified that both Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows asked for presidential pardons.

Another former Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney, tweeted that he believes Hutchinson and said the biggest story is evidence of witness tampering.

A stunning 2 hours:

1)  [The former guy] knew the protesters had guns

2)  He assaulted his own security team

3)  There may be a line from Proud Boys to the White House

4)  Top aides asked for pardons

5)  The commission thinks they have evidence of witness tampering

David Laufman says today's hearing provides strong grounds to investigate von Clownstick on seditious conspiracy charges based on his "foreknowledge of violence and overt acts to join in".

Amanda Marcotte says Hutchinson's testimony paints a "vivid picture".

[T]he main takeaway is so wild it would be hard to believe if it were any other president. [His] vision for January 6 was that he would be a general in an ill-fitting suit, standing before Congress with an army of armed red hats behind him, telling the legislature to give him the White House or else.

We're dealing with a violent bully.

[Fuckface] frequently careens between an obvious longing to champion violence openly and a lawyer-induced awareness that such talk can create legal troubles. As Hutchinson's testimony demonstrated, that tension was in full effect on January 6 and in the days before and after. Her testimony indicates that Meadows, at least, seemed quite aware that all the hype around [that day] was about drawing a violent crowd to the Capitol ... [But] Meadows was too afraid to offend [Dear Leader] to even discuss asking [him] to pull his foot off the gas. She also testified repeatedly that [his] lawyers seemed quite aware that the intent here was to incite a fascist riot.

Ryan Grenoble lists nine key moments from the sixth hearing. 

Meadows thought things might get "real, real bad on January 6".

[Orangeman] knew the crowd was heavily armed.

"They’re not here to hurt me."

The House minority leader told [the loser] not to come to the Capitol on January 6.

[Manbaby] tried to grab the steering wheel of his limousine and assaulted a Secret Service agent.

[Crybaby] repeatedly threw his food at the wall.

Michael Flynn pleaded the Fifth instead of supporting the peaceful transfer of power.

"He thinks Mike [Pence] deserves it."

Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows both asked [Dear Leader] for pardons.

Update (July 5):  Gregg Barak says indictments (state and federal) will happen.

Recall that [Fuckface] had successfully defended himself from "incitement of insurrection" during his second impeachment trial, contending that his Ellipse speech was protected by the First Amendment and that he had no knowledge about the crowd's makeup, its intentions or its possible weaponry.

[His] defense was plausible, at least at that point, because after only four weeks of investigation the House impeachment managers' case against him was based on circumstantial rather than direct evidence. All of that changed with the testimony of Cassidy Hutchinson.

Update (July 7):  In an interview with Chauncey DeVega, Hugo Lowell says Hutchinson's testimony raises further questions that deserve answers.

[Dear Leader] knew that his supporters were armed. He knew they were likely to cause harm — just not to him. He knowingly sent them to the Capitol with the biggest incentive he could give, which is, "I'm going to be there with you".

Everything in [his] conduct on [January 6] was about sending his supporters to somehow make sure that certification didn't happen ... . If you put everything together, the picture you get is a president who should know he lost the election and trying to weaponize his supporters to forcefully stop the certification. That is the definition of a coup.

I'm fixated on the nexus of the militia groups, the White House and the Willard hotel figures. ... I want to know why the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys were being mentioned around the White House when Giuliani was there. I want to know why [Fuckface] directed [Mark] Meadows to talk to Roger Stone and Mike Flynn on the night of the 5th. I want to know why Meadows desired so desperately to go to the Willard.

Update (July 12):  It was after an hours long, unplanned, "unhinged" meeting with Team Crazy that Dear Leader issued his call to action in the wee hours of December 19, 2020.

Big protest in D.C. on January 6th. Be there, will be wild! 

This spurred a wave of organizing for that day. Marching to the Capitol was always in the plan, but was kept secret. A draft tweet that referred to marching to the Capitol wasn't sent.

POTUS is just going to call for it "unexpectedly".

He ad-libbed the comment about going with them.

Stephen Ayres, who recently pleaded guilty to disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, summed up his experience.

I felt like I had like horse blinders on. I was locked in the whole time. Take the blinders off, make sure you step back and see what’s going on before it’s too late.

Former Oath Keeper Jason Van Tatenhove explained that the organization wanted von Clownstick to invoke the Insurrection Act to give their violent goals "legitimacy".

I think we need to quit mincing words and just talk about truths and what it was going to be was an armed revolution.

And amazingly, after a previous warning about tampering, Representative Liz Cheney had to call out Fuckface by name indicating that he tried to contact a witness in the time since the last hearing.

That person declined to answer or respond to [the] call, and instead alerted their lawyer. Their lawyer alerted us. This Committee has supplied that information to the Department of Justice.

Amanda Marcotte acknowledges the delicate task of reaching out to followers.

The same tribalism and self-deception that led these two [witnesses] to extreme lengths is endemic in the world of Republican voters. ... Putting Ayers and Van Tatenhove at the center of the hearing today — and portraying them, ultimately, as [Dear Leader's] victims — sends a message to [his] voters: It's okay to walk away. It's okay to entertain doubts. There is a path out, as long as you find the courage to take the first steps.

Most [of his] voters, of course, will ignore the message. The ego bruising of admitting it was wrong to support him is more than most can take. But still, it's hard to imagine that some who harbor doubts won't feel a pang of recognition hearing these two men tell their story. [His] power runs only through his cult-like hold over his base. The more people who realize he's just using them and decide to walk away, the weaker he gets.

Al Jazeera lists five key moments from the seventh hearing. 

Cipollone confirms he rejected theory that Pence could overturn election.

Election deniers and other aides clashed at White House meeting.

[The former guy] set the date.

Committee attempts to draw link between far-right groups and [Fuckface].

[Manbaby] tried to contact committee witness.

Update (July 13):  Heather Digby Parton notes (via Andrew Weissman) that Dear Leader was at the "hub" of multiple "spokes" intended to keep him in power. She describes the results of that "unhinged" December 18 meeting.

[Fuckface] may have realized that the Sidney Powell and Rudy Giuliani spokes of his strategy were not going anywhere but [he] still had his fake electors and Mike Pence plot going and it was becoming clear that the 6th was where he would make his last stand. He needed the troops behind him for that so he put out the call.

He has only one degree of separation from militia groups through his old friend Roger Stone and his own government warned him repeatedly that there was a possibility of violence. At this point, it's hard to believe that wasn't exactly what [Dear Leader] wanted.

Barbara McQuade thinks there's a case for serious charges.

If you can make that connection that this was a planned attack, you could supersede that seditious conspiracy indictment to add [Fuckface] or [Roger Stone] or anyone else who was involved in the planning.

The other thing that is coming clear to me is there is a potential charge here against [von Clownstick] for manslaughter. Knowing that this crowd is armed, he has a duty as the president of the United States, as the commander-in-chief to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, to call off that mob and do everything he can to stop it. Instead, he sits idly by during those 187 minutes.

Update (July 14):  Brian Karem looks at the appeal--and the downfall--of a would-be dictator.

[Fuckface von Clownstick] led, encouraged and planned that insurrection, and loved watching it. ... He relished in it. It was theater for [him] — as his entire life has been. Taking a page from [Dear Leader's] playbook, the January 6 committee is using theater to expose his wretchedness.

[Manbaby] gives people permission to be as horrible as they want to be. The January 6 hearings are slowly backing him into a corner, connecting the dots and exposing his vicious, seditious activities for the anti-democratic crap they truly are.

Update (July 16):  Camila DeChalus lists five federal laws Fuckface could be charged with violating.

Conspiracy to defraud the government (knowingly agreed with others to attempt to obstruct Congress's election certification process by deceit or dishonesty)

Obstructing an official proceeding

Wire fraud (obtain money through false or fraudulent pretenses)

Witness tampering

Inciting a rebellion (knew in advance that violence would occur on January 6)

Update (July 21):  Testimony confirms that the former guy's desire to go to the Capitol raised serious security concerns.

[He] wanted to lead tens of thousands of people to the Capitol. I think that was enough grounds for us to be alarmed.

Sargent Mark Robinson was aware of the confrontation.

The only description I received was that the president was upset and adamant about going to the Capitol and there was a heated discussion about that.

While moving Vice President Pence to a secure location after the attack started, Secret Service agents began to fear for their lives.

There was a lot of yelling, a lot of very personal calls over the radio. It was disturbing. I don’t like talking about it, but there were calls to say goodbye to family members. The VP detail thought that this was going to get very ugly.

Dear Leader chose not to act to stop the violence for 187 minutes. He had to be pushed to make further comments the next day to reassure the country there would be an "orderly transition". And yet

I don’t want to say the election is over.

Representative Liz Cheney summed up:

You saw an American president faced with a stark, unmistakable choice between right and wrong. To ignore ongoing violence against law enforcement. To threaten our constitutional order. There is no way to excuse that behavior. It was indefensible.

Update (July 23):  The Wall Street Journal condemns the former guy.

[T]he facts ... are sobering. The most horrifying to date came Thursday in a hearing on [Dear Leader's] conduct as the riot raged and he sat watching TV, posting inflammatory tweets and refusing to send help.

[He] took an oath to defend the Constitution, and he had a duty as Commander in Chief to protect the Capitol from a mob attacking it in his name. He refused. He didn't call the military to send help. He didn't call Mr. Pence to check on the safety of his loyal VP. Instead he fed the mob's anger and let the riot play out.

There has been much debate over whether [his] rally speech on January 6, 2021, constituted "incitement". That’s somewhat of a red herring. What matters more — and has become crystal clear in recent days — is that [Fuckface] didn't lift a finger to stop the violence that followed. And he was the only person who could stop what was happening. He was the only one the crowd was listening to. It was incitement by silence.

But Lucian Truscott reminds us that very, very few Republicans had any problems with the guy until recently.

As Liz Cheney is at last admitting, they don't give a shit about [Manbaby] so long as they've got their tax cuts and their millions and billions and they can keep the minimum wage at $7.25 an hour and maintain their control over red-state governments. [Dear Leader] was just a hireling. He strayed off the reservation, and they grew tired of his gross lack of taste and slovenly appearance. So they're serving up a few schmucks with smug grins on their faces to tell us what a bad guy they suddenly discovered he is, after his usefulness to them came to an end.

It's a con job. Don't believe a word of it. They're just ridding themselves of a cancer they accidentally found growing on one of their legs so they can continue stomping on poor people and women and gay people and anybody they don't like and ensuring we stay in our place. They're Republicans. It's what they do.

Update (July 27):  The Washington Post reports that the Department of Justice is definitely investigating the actions of the former guy regarding the events of January 6, 2021. The New York Times has also obtained emails from organizers of the fake electors scheme in which they themselves constantly used the word "fake".

Update (October 15):  In possibly their last public appearance, the Select Committee voted unanimously to subpoena Dear Leader. I would think they actually have enough evidence to make a criminal referral. Heather Digby Parton sums it up.

The cumulative effect of all the January 6 hearings, culminating in Thursday's wrap-up of the central narrative, has made clear that [Fuckface von Clownstick] set up the coup before the election, was personally involved in the various attempts to execute it, understood that violence was possible on January 6, and incited the crowd to storm the Capitol and refused to take any action to stop them. Everything that happened came at his direction and was done in his name.

Update (December 19):  An Executive Summary of the Select Committee's final report has been released. There are four criminal referrals to the Department of Justice for Dear Leader:

Obstruction of an Official Proceeding (18 U.S.C. § 1512(c))

Conspiracy to Defraud the United States (18 U.S.C. § 371)

Conspiracy to Make a False Statement (18 U.S.C. §§ 371, 1001)

"Incite," "Assist" or "Aid and Comfort" an Insurrection (18 U.S.C. § 2383)

Other criminal referrals are in the report as well as referrals to the House Ethics Committee for Kevin McCarthy, Jim Jordan, Scott Perry, and Andy Biggs.

Amanda Marcotte says the committee is emphasizing the point that without accountability, "American democracy will remain in serious trouble".

There is no doubt that prosecuting [Fuckface] will be hard. Attorney General Merrick Garland has for months been reluctant to deal with [the former guy's] insurrection-related crimes. It's widely believed his main reason is fear that securing a conviction could be difficult. Republican voters on a jury might behave as Senate Republicans did during the impeachment and ignore the evidence and vote to acquit anyway.

It's not enough to hope the political system will fix this on its own. Yes, the 2022 midterms were a rebuke to [von Clownstick] and his fascist movement, with election deniers losing key races that [he] really needed in order to pull off his main strategy for stealing the White House in 2024. However, when fascists lose their path toward seizing power through faux-legalistic rationales, they often shift toward violence.

[A] standard Republican deflection is to claim [violent] rhetoric is simply hyperbole or jokes. As long as [Fuckface] remains unprosecuted for inciting the Capitol riot, this shaky argument has some public justification. The committee's point was clear: [Dear Leader] and other Republicans will continue to use such language, so long as they are confident that the DOJ is afraid to hold elected or high-level officials accountable.

Update (December 22):  The Select Committee has released the transcript of further testimony from Cassidy Hutchinson indicating that a lawyer provided for her by those connected to the former guy tried to manipulate her comments. As she tried to prepare to make her original testimony accurate, she recalled Stefan Passantino told her:

No, no, no. Look, we want to get you in, get you out. We're going to downplay your role. You were a secretary. You had an administrative role. Everyone's on the same page about this. It's extremely unfair that the committee is putting you in this position in the first place. You really have nothing to do with this. It's Mark's fault you're even involved in this. We're completely happy to be taking care of you now. We had no idea that you weren't being taken care of this last year. So we're really happy you reached back out to us. But, the less you remember, the better.

I don't want you to perjure yourself, but "I don't recall" isn't perjury. They don't know what you can and can't recall.

The full January 6 report has been released. 

 

Too Painful

I can't even read much beyond the headline.

19 Students, 2 Teachers Killed In Shooting At Texas Elementary School

I'm angry that we live in a country where one political party adamantly extols "gun rights" and doesn't give a fuck about children's lives.

Update (May 25):  Obviously we can't just get rid of the filibuster for trivial reasons. Heather Digby Parton notes President Biden's plea, "When in God's name do we do what we all know in our gut needs to be done?"

The question is rightfully asked of Republicans who consistently block all gun safety legislation and are prepared to use the courts to unleash a free-for-all of gun violence in the name of "freedom." If repeated massacres, even of tiny children, automatically evoke calls to put more guns in schools and on the streets I think we know the answer: Never.

Futility and the Onion: 

Update (May 29):  Jim Sleeper argues that gun violence is partly the result of commercial speech geared toward profit no matter the consequences.

Commercial speech is degrading our public and private lives, not malevolently or conspiratorially but for the most part mindlessly.

To renew [a] civic-republican ethos, we need first to face a hard truth that, in my experience, many Americans consider too close for comfort: Commercial speech, combined with social media, has deranged the public sphere by fragmenting, privatizing and alienating millions of us, and I don't mean only the shooters.

The accelerating danger of mass shootings and other forms of gun mayhem may not be inherent in capitalism as such, but in our long-internalized, individualistic drive to maximize personal profit and narrow self-interest, rather than reconciling what we do to "make a living" with its unintended consequences. The real danger lies in denying that a democratic polity must ultimately have sovereignty over an economy, and in pretending that wealth is anything more than a necessary support for a commonwealth.

Update (May 30):  From the New York Times:

Update (June 11):  Even the tiniest steps seem impossible.

Several House Republicans [said] that when it comes to federal law and firearms, the status quo is fine, regardless of the occasional high-profile mass shooting.

Update (June 23):  The Supreme Court has made it more difficult for states to pass gun control laws.

In a 6-to-3 ruling, with Republican-appointed justices in the majority and Democratic-appointed justices dissenting, the court determined that New York’s licensing requirement violates the Second Amendment’s guarantee of a "right to keep and bear arms".

Back in 2008, the court had said that the Second Amendment protects the right to own a gun, while allowing for certain restrictions on firearms use. With this new ruling, the court has effectively said the Second Amendment also protects the right to carry that gun in public, which means it will be more difficult to defend restrictions in court.

But, there turns out to be some small progress with "the most significant piece of anti-gun-violence legislation Congress has passed in three decades".  The Senate vote was 65 to 33.

The measure enhances background checks for people under 21, incentivizes states to adopt "red flag" laws, which help remove guns from the hands of people who have been deemed a danger to themselves or others, and prohibits romantic partners convicted of domestic violence who are not married to their victim from getting firearms.

It does not include broader restrictions sought by gun control advocates, however, such as bans on assault weapons, raising the minimum age to purchase semi-automatic rifles to 21, mandating safe storage rules at home, or requiring background checks on internet sales and at gun shows.

Rights Under Attack

If a leaked draft opinion holds up, the Supreme Court is planning to overturn Roe v. Wade.  Fifty years of precedent don't seem to matter--any decision supporting social progress could be rolled back. The arc that bends toward justice might take a few detours along the way.

Oh sure, Congress could pass a law legalizing abortion, but we couldn't possibly get rid of the filibuster just to protect women's rights.

Update (May 8):  John Stoehr suggests Republicans will regret the likely Court decision.

As long as Roe was law, rightwingers could work quietly outside the penetrating gaze of a majority of Americans who, in fact, favor women having rights and privileges on par with men.

Now that Roe is in jeopardy, rightwingers must face the penetrating gaze of the majority that’s no longer putting up their bullshit.

Rightwingers ... can’t tolerate disagreement. It literally hurts them. It causes pain. Disagreement raises the possibility of being wrong, and they can’t be wrong, because if they were, their enemies would be right, and that’s impossible. Rightwingers are always right.

Under the penetrating gaze of a majority of Americans who favor women having equal social status as men, the rightwinger’s black and white thinking is complicated in ways literally painful. They crack up.

Update (May 14):  Could Justice Thomas be any more politicaly tone-deaf?

You would never visit Supreme Court justices' houses when things didn't go our way. We didn't throw temper tantrums. It is incumbent on us to always act appropriately, and not to repay tit for tat.

But it's no problem to attack abortion clinics or murder providers.

Apparently, the leak of the draft opinion poses a grave threat.

I wonder how long we’re going to have these institutions at the rate we’re undermining them, and then I wonder when they’re gone or they are destabilized what we will have as a country. I don’t think the prospects are good if we continue to lose them.

Afterall, when has the Right ever undermined democracy? 

Update (June 24):  Overturning Roe v. Wade is now official.  Amanda Marcotte reacts:

It's fitting that the three judges appointed by a man who literally led a fascist coup would be the ones who allowed this to happen. The end of Roe isn't just a tragedy for human rights. It's the surest sign yet that American democracy is collapsing, and Republicans are securing the ability to force the majority of Americans that keep voting against them to live under minority rule.

Update (June 27):  Astoundingly, Associated Press reports that over 1 million voters across 43 states have switched their registration to Republican over the past year. Maybe the January 6 hearings will change some of that. And Heather Digby Parton suggests the Court decision may stir up some backlash.

Republicans have a problem on their hands with Roe overturned and they know it. All you have to do is watch them stumble and dissimulate on television trying to persuade people they aren't going to keep making life miserable for millions of women and their families.

But there's anger directed at Democrats as well.

It's infuriating that "defend Roe" has been a rallying cry for fundraising, but they've never seemed to take the courts seriously. To anyone paying attention, it's obvious that this was the Republican long game, and the Democrats were content to sit there with their heads in their asses, acting like the moment we're in would never come because of precedent or status quo or whatever.

Update (July 3):  Nolan Higdon and Mickey Huff argue that the Democratic Party has failed to exercise the power it had to protect abortion rights.

Leaders do not blame, they lead. Movers and shakers such as Lyndon Johnson, warts and all, knew that the art of politics necessitated deal-making to get things accomplished. Today's Democrats rely on the art of inaction and lecture voters on what they contend is possible, rather than working to make the purportedly impossible become reality. Their argument is always that if the public wants us to protect X (such as abortion rights), they need to elect more Democrats in November. How many more Novembers are we supposed to wait? Voting for the same milquetoast neoliberal centrists who made the collapse of Roe possible (or inevitable) will do nothing to change our current political reality. Indeed, that is the definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Women deserve better, as do all of us. The Democratic Party should recognize this, and change course dramatically.

Paul Rosenberg notes that voters under 35 overwhemingly support Democratic Party positions on issues such as abortion rights, climate change, and Medicare for All, but don't trust the party to fight for those policies. He quotes Fortesa Latifi:

To put it bluntly: Young voters think the United States's economic and political institutions aren't working for them and they don't trust the powers that be to correct the course. Seventy-one percent of respondents say they feel mostly pessimistic about the future and 90% said the country as a whole is "on the wrong track".

And adds:

Young voters overwhelmingly align with Democrats on a broad range of key agenda items, sometimes by a ratio of three to one or even more. But they are deeply pessimistic about their future — about raising a family, owning a home and being able to retire — because of what they perceive as a rigged system that neither party can be trusted to fix.

Rosenberg supports efforts to push President Biden into taking action.

This spring, the Congressional Progressive Caucus issued an "Executive Action Agenda" for the administration, developed "with input from the progressive grassroots movements who were key to delivering Democrats the majorities in both chambers and the White House." (Full list here.) It's precisely this combination — decisive executive action informed by grassroots movements in touch with younger voters' lived experience — that holds the key to realizing the potential for long-term Democratic dominance.

Very little can be done immediately to counter the overturn of Roe, and Democrats and progressives must be honest about that. But taking action on this broader range of issues can help secure a broader majority that can codify abortion rights and do much more, including expanding or reforming the Supreme Court so it no longer represents out-of-touch minority opinion, as it so often has throughout its history. There is an overwhelming untapped majority in favor of such a future. Is anyone in the White House listening?

Update (July 8):  President Biden has signed an executive order to help protect access to abortion. It's frustrating that more can't be done now, but John Stoehr says Biden should get credit for taking some action even if it doesn't seem like enough.

The Democrats should say that there’s a bill sitting in the Senate, already passed by the House, that turns Roe into a statute. The Democrats should say that nothing’s guaranteed, but with more Democrats in the Senate, they have a good chance of reforming the Senate rule (the filibuster) currently preventing Roe from being law.

Update (July 11):  Amanda Marcotte counters that Biden's weak response helps Republicans this Fall.

[T]here is simply no excuse for recoiling from the abortion rights fight and rejecting creative ideas that would draw coverage and attention to the issue. Failure to use abortion as a wedge issue is political malpractice on a stunning scale. We desperately need Democratic voters to turn out in huge numbers in 2022, to save not just Congress but state governments from being taken over by Republicans who fully intend to steal the 2024 election for Trump. But convincing those voters to turn out in the fall means putting up a fight now. Under Biden's leadership, Democrats are failing at their most basic task of persuading voters to turn out this November. Without that, democracy itself, not just legal abortion, is in serious danger.

Update (August 2):  In a hopeful sign for this fall, a larger than usual turnout for a primary election voted to preserve abortion rights in Kansas. 59 to 41 percent!

Update (August 3):  John Stoehr sees a reason to be more optimistic.

For those of us worried about the future of democracy, especially the will of a democratic people to take their destinies into their own hands, last night’s results are about as good as any of us can expect.

And Amanda Marcotte says this is a winning issue for Democrats.

[T]he main takeaway is this: Abortion is being banned despite a strong majority of Americans wanting to keep it legal. That makes the issue a leading indicator of how much democratic collapse this country has already endured. Radical right-wing Republicans manage to hang onto power despite the fact that Democrats — and especially Democratic policies — are way more popular. Even in situations, like this Kansas abortion fight, where Republicans are cheating as much as they can, voters will protect abortion rights. This is why Republicans are working so hard at making sure that voter opinions never matter in American politics again.

Update (August 5):  Marcotte notes that Indiana has already decided again bringing the question to voters.

Enacting abortion bans means keeping the voters as far away from weighing in as possible. This is why Republicans have embraced [Dear Leader's] war on democracy. They know they can't get away with policies like banning abortion if they have to answer to voters.