Flotsam and Jetsam - Jordan Out, More Evidence of Biden Bribery

Via Hat Hair, BREAKING: Jordan Loses Secret Ballot, No Longer GOP Nominee for Speaker; UPDATE: Only 86 Ayes. I think tempers are getting short. Jake Sherman@JakeSherman, "JORDAN LOST — Jim Jordan lost a secret ballot. He’s no longer the speaker designate for the House GOP."  And this is just weird, Salem News Channel @WatchSalemNews, "BREAKING Matt Gaetz and the eight who voted to oust McCarthy offer to censure or remove themselves from conference to get holdouts to vote for Jim Jordan as speaker." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair asks  "Could that work? I’m skeptical. The fact that Gaetz is attempting to negotiate an outcome is likely going to make the dissent more firm, especially for those who don’t want to reward the Freedom Caucus for the coup against McCarthy." Stephen Kruiser at PJM, My Endorsement for Speaker: Whoever Can Get Nancy Mace to Shut Up. Next up?

In Republican Presidential candidate race AP claims Mike Pence faces a cash shortage and questions about how much longer his 2024 campaign can survive. Good. Via the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 10.19.23, EBL has My Response To Nikki Haley 2024. 

Mediaite reports Gavin Newsom — Who Insists He is NOT Running for President — Announces He’s ‘On His Way’ to Israel ‘Offering California’s Support’

Capt. Ed wonders Will Gutless Wonders Never Cease: Over 400 (?) Anonymous Congressional Staffers Demand Cease-Fire from Bosses. No, they will never cease. Ben Whedon at JTN reports Amid indictment, 70% of New Jerseyans want Sen. Menendez to resign, "Just 16% of New Jerseyans say Menendez should serve out the remainder of his term, which ends in January 2025." Capt Ed. "That is one ugly poll result. On the plus side for Democrats, the FDU data shows no erosion of standing from Menendez’ scandal, likely because Democrats reacted quickly to distance themselves from him. One other reason is that NJ voters are pretty cynical — or realistic — about their politicians; only 9% believe they’re not at all corrupt, and 59% think they are somewhat or very corrupt." I'm going with realistic.

Ace, James Comer: We Have Found a $200,000 Direct Payment From James Biden to Joe Biden; James Biden Had Just Received a Payment From a Bankrupt Company Seeking Government Help.  The check for $200,000 was labeled a "loan repayment." "Comer believes this a false characterization, and wants proof that Biden loaned him this sum." From Twitchy, House Oversight Found an Answer to Biden's Question 'Where's the Money?' (Here's a Pic of the Check) "Democrats and much of the media will say this is evidence of nothing because the check was from Biden's brother and doesn't say "bribes for political favors" in the memo section."

In 2018, James Biden received $600,000 in loans from, Americore—a financially distressed and failing rural hospital operator.

According to bankruptcy court documents, James Biden received these loans “based upon representations that his last name, ‘Biden,’ could ‘open doors’ and that he could obtain a large investment from the Middle East based on his political connections.”

On March 1, 2018, Americore wired a $200,000 loan into James and Sara Biden’s personal bank account – not their business bank account.

And then on the very same day, James Biden wrote a $200,000 check from this same personal bank account to Joe Biden.

James Biden wrote this check to Joe Biden as a “loan repayment.” Americore—a distressed company—loaned money to James Biden who then sent it to Joe Biden.

Even if this was a personal loan repayment, it’s still troubling that Joe Biden’s ability to be paid back by his brother depended on the success of his family’s shady financial dealings.

PJM's Vicky Taft details how President Biden Gaslights Americans in Oval Office Address on Ukraine, Israel. Ace, Biden Announces Great Deal Where We Send $100 Million to The Fucking Gazans But Get Zero of Our Hostages Back. "The Bee. I thought this was just a joke. It's not. This happened. . . Biden really struck a deal to send Hamas $100 million and get zero hostages out." Also, Lee Smith: How Did Our Trillion-Dollar Society of Incompetents Called Our "Intelligence Community" Miss the Attack on Israel? "How did the Deep State miss the attack on Israel? Did it have something to do with, oh yeah, the fact that the Biden Administration has a known Iranian spy with top secret clearances working for the Pentagon?"" At NYPo, Top Iranian Pentagon aide keeps security clearance despite ‘spying for Tehran’ accusation. "Ariane Tabatabai appeared to be a willing recruit in the covert influence operation run by Tehran’s Foreign Ministry, according to a trove of leaked files revealed last month by Semafor." Nick Arama at RedState, Biden Lets Loose on Bibi and Jim Jordan as WH Walks Back His Bad Remark About Gaza Invasion. Margaret Brennan@margbrennan "At a fundraiser, President Biden tells attendees that "the Saudis wanted to recognize Israel" and Hamas may have attacked because "they knew I was about to sit down with the Saudis." "This comment Is nonsense on at least a couple of levels. First, the evidence indicates that the attack was in the planning for a long time, so it wasn't precipitated by any recent event from Biden. Second, Biden had nothing to do with bringing the Saudis and Israel closer. That was all the peace efforts of former President Donald Trump. Biden seems to be trying to take credit for that achievement. If anything, Biden worsened the situation, by angering the Saudis with his words against Prince Mohammed bin Salman and fighting over oil."

Ace's MORNING RANT: “Expectation Smashing” Retail Sales Are Trailing Actual Inflation. "Inflation is still out of control and consumers are getting squeezed by their decreasing purchasing power. Meanwhile, the regime media is trying hard to spin this economic crisis, but unlike political propaganda, the media is unable to convince consumers that inflation is not a problem, because their empty bank accounts tell them otherwise. “Retail sales smash expectations in September with US consumer slowdown nowhere in sight” [Yahoo – 10/17/2023]"

At Althouse, "Mitt Romney Admits He Didn’t Know Anything About Burisma During Trump’s Ukraine Impeachment." "Writes the Unsinkable Mollie Hemingway (at The Federalist)(relying on the new book "Romney: A Reckoning")."

PJM's Cathy Salgado recounts how a January 6 Prisoner Passes 1,000 Days Jailed Without Trial, Shares Horror Stories of DC ‘Gulag’. At that point he is clearly a political prisoner.

Hat Hair's KT reports a Threatening Voicemail Message Left for GOP Lawmaker's Wife: 'We Are Now Antifa.' But Merrick Garland won't get to the bottom of that because Antifa is "just an idea."

Stacy McCain wonders Why Is KiwiFarms.net ‘Harassment,’ But What Taylor Lorenz Does Is ‘Journalism’? Is it journalism? Trash Radio@TrashRadio_ "It's worth noting that if anyone from the Kiwi Farms did to anyone what Taylor Lorenz did to @libsoftiktok and her family - the site would've been shut down overnight and seized by the feds."

NCLA, U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Landmark NCLA Case Against Government Social Media Censorship. Politico worries Supreme Court to decide if Biden admin illegally bullied social media into censoring content  but notes "The justices blocked an order preventing the White House from contacting social media companies about allegedly misleading posts involving Covid-19 and the 2020 election." Capt. Ed worries; "Read the order and dissent at this link. Needless to say, this does not bode well for the plaintiffs in Missouri v Biden, and the fact that only three justices object to the stay on the injunction leads me to be very pessimistic on the outcome of the full review by the court. It looks like the other six are focusing more on the harms to government in an order restraining them from censorship than the harms of the clear violations of the First Amendment on Americans." Atop Da Summit, Elon Musk Comments On Man IMPRISONED For Posting Hillary Clinton Memes On Twitter, "“What prison sentences were given out to those who suppressed the Hunter Biden laptop information?”"

CJ considers The Politics of Disdain; "Elites and institutions originated our polarized political climate, and the dynamic is not likely to change anytime soon." Hat Hair's Dave Strom is happy the BBC Takes 7 Journalists Off the Air for Pro-Hamas Social Media Posts (Is that all?) and John Sexton seems to like  UPenn Donors Demand Ouster of School President Over 'Palestine Writes' Festival. Dave Strom also observes Leftists Tearing Down Hostage Flyers Everywhere. At Campus Reform WATCH: 'Why should I condemn anything?' – Students for Justice in Palestine president refuses to condemn Hamas. Hat Hair's KT is amused when Hollywood Agent to Top Stars Apologizes for Labeling Israel's Response to Hamas as Genocide, Maha Dakhil. “I made a mistake with a repost in my Instagram story, which used hurtful language. Like so many of us, I have been reeling with heartbreak. I pride myself on being on the side of humanity and peace,” Dakhil told Variety in a statement. “I’m so grateful to Jewish friends and colleagues who pointed out the implications and further educated me. I immediately took the repost down. I’m sorry for the pain I have caused.”

Insty, WORKS FOR ME: Ruy Teixeira: Time to Throw the Intersectional Left Under the Bus! "“Similarly a recent Public Agenda Hidden Common Ground survey found 91 percent agreement with the statement: ‘All people deserve an equal opportunity to succeed, no matter their race or ethnicity.’ This is what people deeply believe in: equal opportunity not, unlike the intersectional left, equal outcomes." It’s pretty much always a mistake to listen to the “academics and activists.” At best they’re mostly idiots, at worst — and far too frequently — they’re basically monsters." Also, HEY WERE USING YOU ALL ALONG: On Israel, Progressive Jews Feel Abandoned by Their Left-Wing Allies. and THE TOXIC INDUSTRY OF HIGHER EDUCATION: We law students aren’t surprised campuses are so pro-Hamas. "Those outside academia should know these students are likely shocked that wider society is not applauding their actions. They don’t see these statements as particularly heterodox — in fact, the opposite."

Shawn Fleetwood at Da Fed thinks The Pentagon Would Rather Fund Troops’ Abortions Than Their Overseas Living Expenses. I doubt it's really the Pentagon, I suspect the White House. 

John Sexton wonders what it takes to get arrested in San Francisco, Homeless Sex-Offender Camped Across From School With Sign Offering 'Free Fentanyl' to beginners.

Linked at the Daley Gator in WEEKEND OP-EDS, NEWS, POLITICS. The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Pre-Halloween Treats up on time and under budget.