Flotsam and Jetsam - Once More, With Conviction

Of course we're still looking at the conviction of Donald Trump in New York, for 34 felonies based on his accountants picking what Alvin Bragg decided was the wrong item from a pull down menu to label his regular monthly payments to Michael Cohen. First, a trio from Althouse, "You now have a Republican leading candidate who’s a felon, who’s going to be debriefed on national security issues knowing how loose-lipped he is." "Said Michael Cohen, on MSNBC, quoted in "Michael Cohen Worries Trump Will Spill Secrets in Prison 'for a Bag of Tuna'" (Daily Beast)," "What should Trump's lawyers do now?" — asks Alan Dershowitz... ("5. Dershowitz says "No, we don't" to Biden's statement that we all need to subordinate ourselves to the decision produced in the legal process. The legal system, Dershowitz informs us, is "deeply flawed." And: "This case was rigged."), and "This was never about justice — this is about plastering 'convicted felon' all over the airwaves. The only thing that Donald Trump is guilty of is being in the courtroom of a political sham trial." "Said J.D. Vance, quoted in "Trump’s Conviction Binds the G.O.P. Even Closer to Him/Prominent Republicans, including congressional leaders, ex-rivals and potential running mates, basked in the energy, and fund-raising, of an outraged base" (NYT)." From PM, Alex Soros urges Democrats to call Trump 'a convicted felon at every opportunity' "Repetition is the key to a successful message." And he'll pay them to do it. Paul Bedard at WaEx hears ‘Trump’s real crime was leading Joe Biden in the polls.’ At the NY Intelligencer, Trump Was Convicted — But Prosecutors Contorted the Law. PJM's Vicky Taft hears Dershowitz: Trump's Appeals Chances Are Screwed And He Should Fire His Attorneys. Byron York, cited at Hat Hair, Just So We're All Clear Here, Bragg 'Pushed' His Team to 'Find a Workable Theory'.  David O'Donnell@brecko "In the simplest terms they concocted a triple hurdle multiple choice long jump prosecution contorting the law to target one man, a prosecution that had never been used before and will likely never be used again, which is not how our justice system is supposed to work." From Flopping Aces, ‘Intentional Misfeasance’ Makes Show Trial Conviction Ripe For Reversal, Legal Experts Say. At the Politics Brief, FEC Commissioner Blasts Trump Conviction, Debunks Claim He Violated Election Law, which was why he wasn't permitted to testify to that. Jason Cohen at Da Caller reports Mike Johnson Urges Supreme Court To ‘Step In’ After ‘Dangerous’ Trump Verdict.  Sundance at CTH hosts Tucker Carlson and Donald Trump Jr Discuss New York Guilty Verdict and Potential Assassination Efforts by FBI. Jon Levine at NYPo, House Dem wants Gov. Hochul to pardon Trump ‘for the good of the country’. At WJ,  Ivanka Breaks Her Silence, Posts Emotional 4-Word Response to Trump's Guilty Verdict. I Love You Dad.!

From Twitchy, President Joe Biden Says It's 'Dangerous' to Call Donald Trump's Trial 'Rigged'. 
 David Leatherwood @brokebackUSA "Translation: IT’S RIGGED." It's true, he lies about everything. Also at Twitchy, New Report Shows Biden Should Direct His 'Nobody's Above the Law' Lecture to Somebody Closer to Home.  Alex Thompson@AlexThomp "Exclusive: Hunter Biden has quietly been in a messy civil case for unpaid alimony to his ex-wife Kathleen Buhle, per court docs. In 2021, the court determined he owed Buhle $1.7+ million. By April 2023, her team said he owed her $2.9 million." PM, Biden 'not at all worried' that he could be prosecuted after leaving office. "Not at all. I didn't do anything wrong," Biden said. Like that matters. NewsMax, DeSantis: Trump Won't Lose Voting Rights in Florida

NewsBusters, Morning Joe: Bragg Team Didn't 'Relish' Victory, Normal Sentence Is Probation, But . . . Atop Da Hill Jonathan Turley writes Bragg’s thrill kill in Manhattan could prove short-lived on appeal. On his blog Turley writes of The Ghost of John Adams: How the Trump Trial Harkens Back to a Dark Period of American Law.  At Da Fed Tristan Justice reports House Republicans Call Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg To Testify Over Trump Conviction. Make him dodge a subpoena. 

At WaEx, tRepublicans vow lawfare revenge after Trump’s guilty verdict. CA Skeet at PJUM says simply it's Time To Fight Dirty. Hat Hair's KT hears This Means War: GOP Senators Sent Message to Biden, No More Cooperation on Legislation or Nominations. At Woke Spy, “Release The Names” – Report Into Congress Settlements Resurfaces. "The story from CNN focuses on a report released by the Office of Compliance, effectively revealing that, from 1997 to 2017, Congress paid out more than $17 million in settlements. There have been over 268 settlements across the 20-year period, all of which came from taxpayers’ money through a special fund within the U.S. Treasury. This was made possible by the passing of the Congressional Accountability Act in 1995." And prosecute every Democrat on the list. 

Da Fetched,   CNN Reporter Warns Democrats Trump’s Guilty Verdict Will Backfire: ‘Even Non-MAGA Will Vote Trump Now. At WaEx, Even Never Trumpers now support former president following conviction and Sealed lips: Vulnerable Senate Democrats dodge Trump’s guilty verdict. Nick Arama at RedState notes the First Post-Verdict Poll Is Out - Watch Dems Tear Their Hair Out Over This. At NYPo, Trump wins over independents in deep blue NY, trails Biden by mere single digits in historic flip. Hat Hair's Jazz Shaw sees Yes, GOP Fundraising Broke Records After Trump Conviction.  

From Breitbart, Jason Aldean Slams Trump Verdict: ‘If There was Ever a Time to Speak Up, IT’S NOW! ‘ and Former NFL Player Brian Urlacher Pledges to Vote for Donald Trump, Calls Verdict ‘Fake Charges’. Hat Hair's KT, NAB Rescinds Prestigious Award to Robert De Niro after Anti-Trump Freak-Out. "NAB describes itself as "proudly non-partisan", so when De Niro participated in a Biden-Harris campaign event in front of the Manhattan courthouse where Trump's hush money trial was wrapping up, the association rescinded the honor." Twitchy, The Untouchable: Broadcasters Association Strips Robert De Niro of Award After Unhinged Trump Rant. Andy Ngo catches Antifa in some typical hypocrisy.  Andy Ngô @MrAndyNgo "Abolish prisons, right Antifa?" 

WaEx, Jack Smith’s team tries for another Trump gag order after getting shot down. "Smith’s request would bar Trump from making statements about the law enforcement officers who searched his Mar-a-Lago home . . ."

Misty Severt at JTN reports  DC attorney discipline board recommends Giuliani be disbarred over 2020 election. They will, of course. Remember, the DC Bar didn't even disbar the DOJ lawyer who lied on the FISA requests to get the warrants for Carter Page. 

Paul Bedard reports Backstabbing rages in plots to replace Biden. TND, Sesame Street disavows Elmo appearance at Biden campaign event. 

Anxious is anxious about going Inside Hunter Biden's secret legal battle. He spent a lot of money on hookers and coke. The rest he wasted. John Sexton at Hat Hair, Hunter Biden is Broke and His 'Secret' Civil Case Isn't Going Well. "It seems to me Hunter would be better off if Joe just went to bat for his son, put up some money to defend him and even showing up for the trial. Hell, Joe should take out a mortgage on his house. No one would blame him and he'd probably gain a lot of sympathy with his supporters who love the image of Joe as the doting dad. I guess I don't see the downside to just admitting this is a problem and embracing it. It's really too late to do anything else anyway. The trial starts Monday and at that point not talking about it will seem odd." From Da Caller, Hunter Biden’s Latest Legal Allegation Could Be ‘Very Bad’ For American Journalism, Analysts Say "Aaron Terr, Director of Public Advocacy for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), told the Daily Caller that if the revenge porn allegations were to succeed, “that would be a very bad ruling for a free press.”"

WUWT cited Da Caller, Dems Who Back Biden’s Crackdown on Fossil Fuels Suddenly Worried About High Gas Prices. Also, Joe Biden’s Dangerous Natural Gas Game. 

Hank Berrien at Da Wire, Trump Winning New York Independents, Closing Gap In Super-Blue State To Single Digits: Poll. Sundance at CTH is suspicious about President Trump and Elon Musk Collaborating Again? Sarah Arnold at TownHall says Wait Until You Hear Bill Maher's Crazy Theory About Trump and the 2024 Election, "suggesting the 2024 front-runner is quietly devising plans to take over the government." Isn't that what Presidents do?

ET reports Ohio Senate Passes Bills to Put Biden on Ballot, Ban Foreign Money in State Ballot Issues. Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, is expected to sign both measures, but the DNC still plans to hold a virtual convention to nominate Biden in Ohio. I would have let it go. 

Jazz Shaw, Huh. People in Kansas Don't Have a 'Fundamental Right to Vote'. Restoration of Americe remembers, 100% VOTER TURNOUT IN WISCONSIN NURSING HOMES ISN’T NORMAL. WILL IT HAPPEN AGAIN IN 2024? This fall, they'll probably double down and go for 200%, 

WokeSpy has the video, NYU Students List Their Majors – And It Makes “Underwater Basket Weaving” Look Like a Real Major by Comparison. 

From the Free Bacon, The Dean of UCLA Medical School Says It Does Not Discriminate Based on Race. His Own Research Center Runs a Minorities-Only Fellowship. The ‘iDIVERSE’ program bars white and Asian researchers from applying.

From Hat Hair, (NSFW) Bill Maher Provides College Kiddies With Helpful Lesson in Exactly What They're Supporting.

Kids, if you want to change the world and not just tie up Monday morning traffic, this is the apartheid that desperately needs your attention: The #GenderApartheid. pic.twitter.com/0Ajep3JUnN

— Bill Maher (@billmaher) June 1, 2024

The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad up at The Other McCain.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Trump Loses Bigly in New York

Stacy McCain on the most recent injustice in New York, The ‘Law & Order: SVU’ Plot Line and the Wicked Travesty of ‘Justice’ in New York

I watch CNN (so you don’t have to) and they were practically peeing their pants in excitement Friday over the jury’s verdict in the ridiculous defamation suit against Trump. It’s not an exaggeration to say that I was enraged by this, and perhaps for personal reasons, considering my own experience with bogus lawsuits (“Sue Me Again, You Evil Liar”).

Here’s the thing: In 2019, E. Jean Carroll, a former sex-advice columnist, made a literally incredible accusation against Trump, which no reasonable person could possibly believe. This was all about selling a book (What Do We Need Men For?: A Modest Proposal), and the story was completely implausible: Carroll claims that in 1995 or 1996, she just happened to bump into Trump while he was walking into the Bergdorf Goodman department store on Fifth Avenue. This chance encounter eventually led to him sexually assaulting her in a dressing room, she said. To which any reasonable person would reply, “Are you kidding me?”

World-famous real estate mogul just happens to be out doing some shopping — by himself, walking down Fifth Avenue, he decides to pop into Bergdorf Goodman — when he randomly encounters a sex-advice columnist, asks her advice on his gift purchases, then takes her into a dressing room and rapes her. Did I mention (because it certainly seems relevant to me) that, at the time of this alleged incident, E. Jean Carroll was 53 years old? What adjective should I use here? Mere words cannot express the extremity of my doubt toward the claim that Trump, whose three wives were all models and younger than him, would be accosting this woman, who was three years his senior. And that he would have done this while out shopping at Bergdorf Goodman!

After Carroll went public with this preposterous claim — which, I repeat, was part of the promotion for her 2019 book — it was pointed out that this tale of being raped in a Bergdorf Goodman’s dressing room was suspiciously similar to the plot of a 2012 episode of Law & Order: SVU.

To me, that was the definitive proof that Carroll was lying. First, there was the implausible scenario of her just happening to bump into Trump who, despite his wealth and notoriety, was allegedly strolling down Fifth Avenue when he headed into this department store to do some shopping. Right, and Al Pacino sodomized me in the bargain basement at Filene’s — you get my drift here? But then there was the problematic fact (which I hesitate to point out for fear of offending Women of a Certain Age™) that at the time of this alleged encounter, E. Jean Carroll was long past her prime. She had been a cheerleader and beauty pageant contestant in her youth, but at age 53? To quote our President: “C’mon, man.”

Althouse reads the NYT, "Jury Orders Trump to Pay [E. Jean] Carroll $83.3 Million for Years of Defamation."  Da Caller, Jury Rules Trump Must Pay $83,000,000 In Damages For Defaming E. Jean Carroll. Susie Moore at RedState, Jury Awards E. Jean Carroll $83.3 Million in 2nd Defamation Case Against Donald Trump (Updated) and Judge Threatens Trump Lawyer With Jail Time During Trial. Breitbart has a Report the the Dress E. Jean Carroll Claims She Wore During Alleged Trump Assault Did Not Exist at the Time, but the facts don't matter when it comes to getting Trump. Stephanie Gutman at Title TK, Is the 25-year-old rape charge a new pension system for women of a certain age? "I'm thinking about E Jean Carroll's prosecutions of Donald Trump and the sixty mostly middle-aged women who came out of the woodwork to accuse Bill Cosby of sex crimes." 

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.26.24 (Evening Edition) John Davidson at Da Fed  Gov. Abbott Is Right: Texas Has The Right To Defend Itself And Secure Its Border. American Greatness  Greg Abbott Defies Supreme Court, Will Continue Securing Border at State Level,  Da Tech Guy, It is well past time for the States to tell the Federal Government to pound sand, The Lid: HOMAN: Biden The First ‘President’ To Unsecure The Border… On Purpose, Volokh Conspiracy: Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Doubles Down On Dangerous Claim that Immigration is “Invasion” [Only a LOLbertarian could pen something this asinine. -WS]. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.26.24 (Afternoon Abbreviated Punditry Edition), Twitchy has WH Wants To Stop Gov. Abbott From Securing Border Because Biden “Cares About The People Of Texas”,

Ace, The Demented Tyrant Biden Gives Abbott a 24 Hour Deadline To Allow His Agents to Throw Open the Borders to Invaders; Abbott Says He's Not Budging "The deadline passed an hour ago. Abbott says he will not allow federal agents access to Texas land to cut the razorwire barriers and effectively merge the US with Mexico and points south." Abbott says that if Biden attempts to nationalize the Texas Guard, he will send non-Guard back-ups from Texas and other states to man the border. Douglas Murry at NYPo opines Biden’s border dereliction forced Gov. Abbott’s hand, and caused a national crisis. Libby Emmons at HE thinks What happens in Texas will decide the fate of the nation. From Breitbart, Vulnerable Democrat Jon Tester Calls for Border Security After Doing Nothing for Years and Dem Rep. Himes: ‘Uncontrolled Migration’ that Hurts Wages Is Only Issue GOP Has Against Biden. Virginia Kruta at Da Wire, ‘Texas Is Right’: RFK Jr. Stands With Greg Abbott In Battle To Secure The Border. But at Da Fed, Tristan Justice notices Mitch McConnell Is Mad Trump And GOP Voters Won’t Let Him Pass An Open Borders Amnesty Bill For Biden. Ace again, Biden Has Spent 20 BILLION CITIZEN TAXPAYER DOLLARS "Resettling" Illegal Aliens in the Past Two Years Alone "Cost a lot of money to move "refugees" into people's communities at midnight so they can't object to what "their" government is doing.  Fake asylum seekers, future (current?) Democrat voters. Here's $20 billion." Hat Hair's Beege Welborn notes Chicago Democrats saying 'Take My Sanctuary City...PLEASE!'. Da Caller reports that in NC, a Commissioner Blasts Superintendent For Plans To Replace Special Ed School With Migrant Facility. From TNP, Ken Paxton’s Texas Judge Has a Dog Called ‘Joe Biden’. Does it get lost easily and sniff little girls?

At NYPo, Jonathan Turley opines Kevin Morris dodges Hunter Biden questions as lawyer — despite ‘sugar brother’ being ‘everything’ . Mike Miller at RedState, Kevin Morris Threatens Jonathan Turley With Defamation Lawsuit, Turley Promptly Humiliates Him. |I will not issue a retraction despite the threats of Morris and Sullivan. I did, however, publish another column repeating my objections to Morris’s blurry representational claims." James Lynch at Da Caller reports Judge Presiding Over Hunter Biden’s Lawsuit Against Garrett Ziegler Donated To Biden Campaign. PJM's Mike Cantrell notes Hunter Biden's Daughter Comes to Gramps' Defense, Slams Fox News' Jesse Watters.

Beege Welborn thinks that In a Pathetic POTATUS Pander, WH Pulls LNG Football Just Before Winning Kick. Philip Pilkington@philippilk, "Europe were promised LNG by the US after cutting Russian buying. They were lied to. Electoral politics more important than a core ally. Biden pulls the LNG terminals even though Qatari LNG has to take the long route due to Red Sea attacks. Europe look like complete clowns." They fucked up, they trusted him. Matt Vespa at TownHall, So, That's Why Biden Wants Israel to Scale Down Its War in Gaza, the youth vote.

From Da Caller, Georgia State Senate Approves Committee To Investigate Fani Willis and ‘I’m Done’: Fulton County Resident Blasts Fani Willis For Prosecuting Trump. NYPo, Fani stands by her man: Atlanta DA cites ‘confidentiality,’ won’t give records on Trump case. At the Free Bacon, Amid Allegations That She Mismanaged Taxpayer Funds, Fani Willis Requests $600K for New Cars. She wants to ride to the trial in style. at NewsBusters, Will ‘Lawfare’ Take Trump Off the Ballot? "The biggest threat to the Constitution in 2024 is the “lawfare” being waged against Donald Trump — and the Supreme Court is as much its target as Trump is." Capt. Ed at Hat Hair comments "I don’t think Democrats are done running on Dobbs, and these #14A disqualifications are so novel that few if anyone think they will stand up. The only voters who will be motivated by a SCOTUS decision knocking down the DQs are those who are already hysterically motivated to vote anyway. Other than that, McCarthy’s spot on." Matt Taibbi worries Is the Electoral Fix Already In? "The 2024 presidential race increasingly looks like it will be decided by lawyers, not voters, as Democrats unveil plans for America's first lawfare election." Jim Watkins at Am Think wonders Is Biden Poison-Pilling Trump?. Aaron DeCorte at Da Fed, says The Biden Voters Who Got Us Into This Mess Get A Rare Do-Over In 2024. Insty, OH, IT’S JUST A BUNCH OF CONSPIRACY NUTS, IGNORE THEM: The Daily Caller put it best when : "“You don’t even need to look to the word ‘stolen’ — the election was rigged,” says just one of the many election watchers the Daily Caller interviewed who all came to the same conclusion.” This trailer is for the sharpest, calmest, and most intelligent discussion about the 2020 election I’ve seen. Click on the image below to see the trailer."

From Althouse, I thought it might be satire — Trump's request that the RNC not make him, right now, its "presumptive nominee." Breitbart, In Name of Party Unity Trump Advises RNC Not to Declare Him ‘Presumptive Nominee’. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.26.24 (Afternoon Abbreviated Punditry Edition),  Dana Loesch: DeSantis Is Out, Trump Wins NH Primary, and The Movement To Sway The GOP Primary. TNP, Trump Super PAC Hauls Whopping $46 Million.. 

TNP reports Montana U.S. Senate Candidate Tim Sheehy Is Hiding Past Support For ESG, Chinese Investments. Cockburn at Da Spec, sees Kari Lake razes the Arizona GOP. Capt. Ed, "Er, I’d say that the AZGOP has razed itself in this episode. Cockburn’s right that Lake hasn’t endeared herself to the party establishment and never should have attacked the late John McCain at all. With that said, though, if you try to buy off an anti-establishment candidate with offers of cash, you hardly have room to complain that your mark was smart enough to record the attempt. One doesn’t even need to be particularly sympathetic to Lake to allow that she may have a point about corruption in her party." PopSci, Election cybersecurity director was a victim of a ‘swatting’ attack in her home "CISA's Jen Easterly was the target of a dangerous, sometimes deadly harassment tactic last month." I'll bet this one gets solved. Hayden Ludwig at Am Great takes on The Left’s Ridiculous Disinformation on Tainted Zuck Bucks "If you can’t trust the corporate media-industrial complex, who can you trust?"

Ace, DOJ Preparing Another "Sweetheart Deal" for an Approved Criminal; Merrick Garland Is Gearing Up to Let The Guy Who Leaked Trump's Taxes Off Lightly. "Merrick's Secret Police have a nice list and a naughty list. Illegally leaking Biden's opponent's confidential tax records gets you on the "nice" list. Oh, and he also leaked the records of 7,500 other Americans. And he's getting a sweetheart deal. But this is still America, right? James Lynch at Da Caller reports the FBI Hired Barely Literate Candidates, Urged Fat Applicant To Continue Process, Report Alleges. Dave Harsanyi at Da Signal, You Can’t Defend ‘Democracy’ and the Administrative State. TNP, City of Seattle Hands $10 MILLION to ANTIFA, BLM Rioters.

At Behind the Black, Major donor to Cornell pulls funding, demands firing of university president over DEI policies, also Harvard’s response to evidence of errors and fake data in papers poor and slow. From Da Mail, Law prof who bashed the DEI 'hive mind' sues Ohio Northern University, saying he was humiliated and sacked at sham hearing for 'not bending the knee to diversity'. College Fix reports Florida drops sociology from gen ed courses, bans DEI spending. Dan Greenfield at Front Page says Biden Puts the DEI in the Death Penalty "9/11 mastermind gets a plea deal while a racist supermarket shooter gets death." Also at Front Page, Dave Horowitz writes White Skin Privilege "A weapon of war." From Twitchy, 'I Don't Believe You': Race and Ethnicity Reporter for the WaPo Reports Conveniently Racist Story. Bill Otis at the Ringside, Race Obsession Goes from Repulsive to Idiotic "You can't make this up, and wouldn't want to."

mrcTV, Wisconsin Middle School Offers Porn to Middle-Schoolers. "According to five images posted by Libs of TikTok, the book looks like it came straight out of a PornHub library. One page encouraged readers to watch porn to “explore kinks and fantasies.” It even reminded teens to look up their favorite interviews with porn stars, find where they post their content, and pay to watch their porn. Again, this is being read by middle schoolers, generally aged 11-13." Breitbart notes how Bud Light Tries to Make a Big Comeback with Super Bowl Ad Campaign.

Much more at the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 01.26.24 (Evening Edition). Find it yourself. Linked at Pirate's Cove in the weekly Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup and links. The Wombat has FMJRA 2.0: F*** Snow up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.

Forget It Jake, It's Baltimore

 Hat Hair's Beege Welborn wonders Will the Sierra Club Apologize If the Lights Go Out in Baltimore?

I’m no math major (although I play one here at HotAir), and even I can see – without a whiteboard presentation – that (the numbers of incoming people + conversions to all-electric household/businesses + some unreliable. minimal generation renewable power sources) – shutting down functioning, reliable, megawatt fossil fuel plants ≠ enough power when you need it.

That’s where the problem is really going to bite the entire country in the asterisk. There are now all these regional power companies who handle the load shifts for multiple states, and bad decisions driven by the climate cult are beginning to be felt everywhere. It’s happening in New England, the Duke Energy case, also with the Tennessee Valley Authority last December…

In 2005, TVA generated 57 percent of its electricity from coal. Since 2012, TVA has retired six coal plants, which reduced the amount of energy produced by coal to about 14 percent. The utility says it could retire its entire coal fleet by 2035 – pending necessary approvals.

…and now it looks as if the regional manager – PJM – who handles wholesale electricity transmission for 13 states and D.C. is in a bit of a pickle, as well. My girl TurnMDRed sent me a really interesting heads-up about the situation. This was all brought about by the Sierra Club’s war on coal, the state of Maryland’s NetZero push, and the pressure of an already insane regulatory and punitive pricing market.

At the heart of this is the Brandon Shores, MD, coal-fired electric plant, owned by a TX power company called Talen. In the face of challenges over the plant’s coal furnaces, they entered into an agreement with the Sierra Club – I’m assuming out of self-preservation to avoid an expensive and drawn-out lawsuit – to transition or shutdown the Brandon Shores plant. In fact, the stated goal of the Sierra Club in all of these actions is to completely shut down coal-fired electrical plants and they have been pretty successful so far.
. . .
Talen also found out they got burned when a plant they had converted from coal to oil (H.A. Wagner Unit 3) was called upon much more frequently than anticipated, because they became the back-ups for a system relying on renewables. What happened was they bumped up against the artificial “capacity” limits for running on its “air permit.” If they had to shut down prematurely because of reaching those limits, then they started incurring significant penalties for not being able to run when called on.

I mean, this is some crazy stuff.

… Talen’s decision to retire H.A. Wagner has similar roots. The conversion of H.A. Wagner Unit 3 from coal to oil is nearly complete. H.A. Wagner, however, has been dispatched by PJM in 2023 much more often than anticipated. We now believe H.A. Wagner will reach the limits of its air permit, which only allows the plant to operate on oil to capacity factors under 15%, much more quickly than anticipated, putting Talen at risk of significant Capacity Performance penalties if H.A. Wagner is unable to run when called upon because of its permit limitations. The economic problem is compounded by the prices at which H.A. Wagner has been capped in the energy market when called. Accordingly, Talen intends to retire it as well, in June 2025.

Talen has said “To hell with them both,” and chosen to deactivate these last two without even bothering to try to convert the Brandon Shores plant. Yay, Sierra Club WINS!

Citizens lose, as PJM has nothing to replace them with.

Hopefully, this won't affect us down here in slower Maryland. Our power provider is not BGE, which is fed partially fed from Brandon Shores, but rather SMECO, the Southern Maryland Electric Co-op, but still, we share the same grid, and I fear the when push comes to shove, the state regulators will choose the Baltimorons over the rural hicks down south.

We need nuclear power, and we need it yesterday.

Flotsam and Jetsam - Taibbi Musk Divorce - Trans Mob Assaults Riley Gaines

Continuing on with saga of the Trump arrest, for which the next hearing is to be held in December! From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, Ilya Somin at Reason calls it A "Water Pistol Unnecessarily Preceding" a "Missile-Launching F-35 Attack": Thoughts on the New York Trump Indictment. Jonathan Turley, Plan B From Outer Manhattan: Why the Court Should Move the Trump Trial Out of Manhattan 

In this case, the court will likely deny the motion for a venue change, but it should grant it. It is hard to look at the totality of circumstances here and see anything but highly prejudicial media and political elements. No matter how you feel about Trump, you should have reservations about the fairness of a Manhattan trial.The problem is that, in an age of rage, reason is a stranger.

Breitbart has a Poll: Plurality of Americans Says Donald Trump Can’t ‘Get Fair Trial in New York’. Front Page has a Video FLASHBACK: Corrupt Soros-Backed Manhattan DA Says #1 Issue Is to Convict Trump. Show me the man . . . Matt Vespa at Town Hall asks Would It Shock You to Know the Charges Trump Faces Are Rarely Pursued by DAs?. Sundance at CTH is not the first to note how Awkward it is, Manhattan Judge in Trump Case Donated to Joe Biden and Democrat Causes to Remove Trump. At PJM, Matt Margolis hopes Alvin Bragg Might Be in Serious Trouble Following Trump Indictment, why? A New York jury wouldn't convict him. Madeline Leesman at Town Hall points out how Bragg Handed Career Criminal a ‘Sweetheart Deal’ Days Before Trump Arraignment. From the Other McCain, Stacy notes NY Prosecutor: ‘We Know Incarceration Doesn’t Really Solve Any Problems’.  CNS News looks at DA Bragg’s Website: ‘Our Office is a Safe Place for Undocumented Immigrants…’ Ace, FEC Commissioner to Soros Prosecutor Bragg: We Already Looked at Trump's Payment to Stormy Daniels. It Violated no Election Laws or Reporting Laws.

This is why Alvin Bragg refuses to say what crime he's claiming Trump conspired to "further:" He knows there is no crime at all. He thinks that the judge is so biased against Trump he'll let this case proceed without ever having to specify what law he's claiming Trump violated. And who knows -- he just might be right about that.

Obviously you can't defend yourself if the prosecutor won't even tell you what crime you're supposed to have committed. And that's the whole point.

And The Regime further proclaims its illegitimacy, and its intolerable tyranny.

From the Bookworm Room Bragg’s Lawfare Tears Apart A Thousand Years of Anglo-American Jurisprudence. And that's the point. 

The redoubtable Julie Kelly at Am Great sees The Gathering Storm "Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s flop was merely the unsatisfying appetizer for the feast on Donald Trump that is about to come." Dan Chaitin at Da Wire reports Fulton DA Responds To Trump Attacks "Willis, who is black, said the “comment does not concern me at all.” “It’s ridiculous in nature, but I support his right to be protected by the First Amendment and say what he likes,” she added."

Ace, Biden Junta Releases Report on His Bloody Afghanistan Bungling The Day Before Most of DC Goes On Vacation; NSC Spokesliar Claims It's Not About "Accountability," But Also, It's All Trump's Fault. At Grabien, CBS’s Ed O’Keefe on Afghanistan Report: ‘This 12-Page Doc. Is a Whitewash’ :: Grabien News, ‘The word “mistake” appears once.’ Sarah Hoyt at Insty, TOO RIGHT! IF TRUMP HADN’T STOLEN BIDEN’S BRAIN AND REPLACED IT WITH TAPIOCA, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN FINE: Biden: Afghanistan Withdrawal Mess Was Totally Trump’s Fault. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, Weasel Zippers, Biden Admin Blames Trump For Botched Afghanistan Withdrawal, Kamala Harris Animatedly Delivers A Word Salad On America’s “Ambition And Aspiration”, and WH Spox Says Biden Is “Proud” Of The Failed Withdrawal From Afghanistan

Fox, House Oversight Committee subpoenas banks, Biden family associates in probe of finances, 

"The Republican-led House Oversight Committee has subpoenaed several major banks for financial records belonging to Biden family associates." 

At ET, US Agency Advances New Rule Targeting Portable Gas-Powered Generators. At Da Caller, Biden Set To Further Crack Down On Gas-Powered Cars And Trucks. Steve Greenhut at Am Spec, Julie Su Keeps Failing Up, and Biden Doesn’t Care. "She faces a tough Senate confirmation vote to head the Department of Labor. What does her selection say about the Biden administration’s competence?"

Althouse notes What a difference an arraignment makes. PJM's Lincoln Brown, Trump's Bump Includes 'Non-Black' Minorities Breaking From Biden. At Da Wire, Trump Super-PAC Makes $3 Million Ad Buy Attacking Ron DeSantis. On the Summit, U.S. NEWSVideo: ABC News Blurs Out Trump Donation Number, "Election interference."

Ace, DeSantis' Stalker and Serial Accuser Rebekah Jones: Ron DeSantis Kidnapped My Child! "Another broken AWFL lunatic who needs to be put in a fucking sanitarium. Regarding her charges, Dave Strom at Hat Hair, Miami Herald isn't fit to be fish wrapper. Don Surber, DeSantis wants to bring back the 1950s? Cool. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, Red-state Dems to clueless Newsom: Who invited you? "But, like a California cabernet left out on a humid afternoon, the Newsom brand may not travel all that well. Montgomery is a long way from Sacramento, and Newsom’s political machine has only been tested in friendly territory, where his party enjoys a supermajority. Many Democrats will be glad to spend his money, but it’s far less clear that they’ll want his advice or his obsessive focus on the culture-war contrasts between Democratic and Republican states."

The Free Bacon's Matthew Continetti wonders What's the Matter With Wisconsin? From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, The Geller Reports on  Election Bribery in Wisconsin: Far Left Organization Paid VOTERS UP TO $250 to Flip Wisconsin Supreme Court, The Federalist After Mail-In Midterm Mess, Gov. Lombardo Backs Bill To Restore Integrity To Nevada’s Election System. Also at da Fed Shawn Fleetwood reports DeKalb County Officials Skirted Georgia Law To Acquire Funds From Left-Wing Dark Money Elections Group. From ET, Nonprofits Backed by Swiss Billionaire Steer Funds Into Democrat Causes. The best elections money can buy. At Summit, a Video: Legislator Switches To GOP, Says Democrats “Villainize Anyone Who Has Free Thought” “I will not be controlled by anyone.” From Town Hall, the great VDH worries about Our French Revolution. "We are in a Jacobin Revolution of the sort that in 1793-94 nearly destroyed France. And things are getting scary. The Democratic Party vanished sometime in 2020. Hard-left ideologues absorbed it. They were bent on radically altering, or hijacking, existing institutions to force radical, equality-of-result agendas that otherwise do not earn majority support."

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23,  WUWT ‘Evoke eminent domain’: JP Morgan CEO Says Gov’t Should Seize Private Property to Build Wind & Solar Farms: ‘The window for action to avert…climate change is closing’. Land ownership isn't really the problem, local, state and federal governments own plenty of land on which to build wind and solar. The point is the the seizing. At Ace's THE MORNING RANT: “Saving Democracy” By Prohibiting Legislative Involvement in Lawmaking. 

A rift appears to have developed between Elon Musk and Twitter file lead reporter Matt Taibbi over Substack, which Taibbi uses for long form articles, and which Twitter appears to regard as a competitor. Forbes, cited by Hat Hair,  Taibbi leaves Twitter, Musk unfollows over Substack Notes rift. Capt. Ed, "Wow — that went south quickly. Apparently, the new Substack Notes feature is seen as a competing platform by Musk to Twitter. Or at least that’s the explanation, although I can’t figure out *why*. This is very short-sighted on Musk’s part, especially given Taibbi’s defense of him." Sundance worries the "Deep State" got to Elon, Elon Musk’s Twitter Platform Blocks Substack Content from Distribution, Matt Taibbi Departs Twitter Leaving Access to Investigative Files Behind. C'mon guys, you were a great team, don't break it up now! At Racket,Matt Orfalea and Matt Taibbi MSNBC Mentions Hamilton 68 Over 100 Times, After MSNBC's Mehdi Hasan pointed out two (perhaps three) errors in the Twitter Files. PJM's Cathy Salgado notes Twitter Code Included ‘Government Requested’ Intervention Tool “When needed, the government can intervene with the Twitter algorithm.” At Public, the Attack of the Censorship Karens! "Plus: Trans Witches Are Witches :: They Really Want You to Eat Bugs :: That Which Doesn't Kill Trump"

ET reports 40 Undercover Informants and Agents Monitoring the Proud Boys on Jan. 6, Court Papers Allege, including some inciting the crowd.

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, at Am Great, Nice Deb reports Tennessee House Republicans Vote to Oust Two of the Three Dems Who Joined Gun-Control Mob at State Capitol and Twitchy, Obama Lecturing TN Republicans About “Silencing Those They Disagree With” Goes Badly Wrong, Jordan Boyd at Da Fed, Democrats Who Called For Innocent Republicans To Be Fired Post-J6 Complain Their Party Faces Consequences For Inciting Tennessee Insurrection, Mike LaChance at LI, Biden and Obama Suddenly Concerned About Democratic ‘Norms’ After Ouster of Tennessee Lawmakers. At Breitbart, ‘Let Us In!’ – Watch: Troopers Block Protesters at TN State Capitol Ahead of Vote to Expel Dems and Victory Girls Tennessee State Rep. Survives Expulsion, Cites Racism. Paul Mirengoff at Ringside, Tennessee House expels two members who led protests on the chamber's floor. We warned them they wouldn't like the new rules they were writing.

Dave Strom is pissed George Floyd riots rewritten as "2020 fires,"  "Well my local NBC station has figured out how to describe the destruction during those times. And it isn’t riot. In fact, nobody did anything at all. What happened was an event that had nothing to do with human agency: it was “the fires.” They just sort of happened."

Nathan Pinkoski at Compact explains How the Deep State Took Down Nixon.

Stacy McCain explains for the umpteenth time that Crazy People Are Dangerous: Teen Psycho Tranny Arrested After Planning Mass Murder at Colorado Middle School. At Da Wire, Transgender Suspect With Communist Manifesto Arrested For Planning Shootings At Schools, Churches: Police. ET is still asking Where’s the Manifesto? Insty, When they don’t want us to know things, it’s because they’re worried about what we might think, or do, if we knew them.

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, at Am Great, Nice Deb reports  Swimmer Riley Gaines Ambushed, Assaulted, and Held Hostage By Trans Mob After Speech at San Francisco State University. Ace, Swimmer Riley Gaines Assaulted, Imprisoned, Ransomed by Leftist Trans Extremist Terrorists Encouraged by The Regime. Breitbart, Swimming Star Riley Gaines Assaulted by Transgender Mob at San Francisco State U: ‘F**king Transphobic B*tch.’ At Outkick, Riley Gaines Assaulted During College Speech: VIDEO – OutKick. Ace, Kyle Shideler: Excuse-Making for, and Even Justifications for, Trans Extremist Violence Will, of Course, Lead to More Trans-Extremist Violence "They know that, of course. They're counting on it. Minnesota's Lt. Governor just wore a shirt with the image of a combat knife above the legend "Protect Trans Kids." As the Victory Girls note Trans Violence Is Acceptable To The Left. Matt Margolis at PJM, WATCH: Pro-Trans Activists Attempted Four Insurrections Last Week.

Da Wire, New Biden Education Rules Prohibit Blanket Bans On Males In Girls Sports. Althouse, "The proposed rule helps clarify that these blanket bans on transgender athletes are in violation of Title IX and is a really positive development." ""When it comes to the hard cases, this is saying that trans kids can be discriminated against." Said Scott Skinner-Thompson, a University of Colorado lawprof, quoted in "Biden administration says schools may bar trans athletes from competitive teams/Proposed regulation would disallow blanket bans on trans athletes on the books in 20 states." First Street, Once again, Joe Biden thinks that girls can be boys and boys can be girls. Tom Jackson at Hat Hair VIP, Florida will fight DOE's trans-athlete meddling 'tooth and nail.' From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, Shark Tank, DeSantis Hits Speed Bump In Transgender Medicaid Fight.  Breitbart, Supreme Court Will Not Block 12-Year-Old ‘Transgender Girl’ from Participating in Girls’ Sports in West Virginia. Dan Chaitin at WaEx, Idaho School Board Member Slams Governor In Profane Tweet Over Transgender Law. From Da Fed, Jeff Goldstein thinks The Rapidly Expanding Transgender Cult Is The Product Of Cultural Marxism.  At City Journal, Colin Wright and Brian Anderson are Affirming the Binary

I call this the “intersex trap,” and it's the tendency of a lot of arguments that gender activists are making to try to steer all these arguments about transgenderism into the weeds, into complex discussions about various intersex conditions.

Take males in female sports, for instance. You have someone like Lia Thomas, who's unambiguously male, is fully intact, is male in every sense of the word of what a male is. Now, you get a lot of people who would try to say that Lia Thomas should be able to compete as a female, and then they would point to other athletes like Caster Semenya, who has an intersex condition, and they'll point to all these other intersex conditions, these intersex athletes.

It's a red herring. They're trying to distract you away from making the easy calls on Lia Thomas, saying that Lia Thomas is unambiguously male, by just bringing up someone like Caster Semenya, getting you to mumble and stumble your way through making assessments on really complex case studies of intersex conditions.

From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, at OutKick, Caitlyn Jenner Torches Nike For Dylan Mulvaney Collab and Louder With Crowder, Tim Pool compares Dylan Mulvaney to Elsa eating feces and he makes a good point,  Becky Noble at Red State sees Budweiser Distributor Cancels Clydesdales as Beer Drinkers Cancel Bud Light over Dylan Mulvaney. 

Behind the Black, Pushback: Missouri school libraries sue to keep porno on their shelves; Missouri lawmakers zero out library budget. 

At NYPo, SUNY Albany protesters march, dance and destroy Bible to shut down conservative speaker Ian Haworth. Straight Arrow News, Students attempt to shut down free speech event at SUNY campus: Media Miss. From The College Fix, a Fired DEI whistleblower details attacks she faced for defending Jews, different religions. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 04.07.23, Behind The Black sees Pushback: University president forced out because she fired professor for including Muhammad images in classwork. ET names the Worst Universities for Free Speech Identified by Academic Freedom Group. Insty, TO BE FAIR, IT WRECKS EVERYTHING IT TOUCHES: "Scholars say DEI is having a potentially disastrous impact on the hard sciences. Related: At MIT debate, DEI defenders concede diversity policies can make ‘things worse.’"

Flotsam and Jetsam - Week Ends with No Arrest, Maybe Never

Stormy Daniels

Well, the week elapsed, and still no Trump arrest. Matt Margolis at PJM, New Evidence Further Devastates Case Against Trump. "A letter written by porn star Stormy Daniels, which was shared by former President Donald Trump on his Truth Social account on Thursday, has further undermined the case against him by Soros-funded Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg. The letter, dated 2018, refutes any claims of an affair between the two." At The Conservative Brief, Donald Trump Shares Letter From Stormy Daniels in 2018 Denying Affair. Which would pretty much make the payment to her a blackmail response. Jonathan Turley, Manifest Destiny: Alvin Bragg Searches for His Criminal Kailasa. Just read it to figure it out. Capt. Ed at Hat Hair, "I’d guess that Bragg right now is gaming out how to extricate himself from this situation while losing as litte (sic) ‘face’ as possible. Best of luck." Bob Spencer at Front Page, Leftists Enraged at CNN’s Van Jones for Telling Alvin Bragg to Back Off of Trump, “Van Jones is a sentient corn on the cob.” All of which leads Matt Margolis to conclude It’s Looking Like Trump Won’t Be Indicted. From the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 03.24.23 EBL questions Did Trump Escape Them Again?

Apparently Trump said some intemperate things about Bragg on Truth Social. At Breitbart, Donald Trump: ‘Soros Backed Animal’ Alvin Bragg Knows I’m ‘100% Innocent. From Fox, Package with suspicious powder delivered to Manhattan DA's office amid Trump probe: 'Alvin, I'll kill you' "Police say package with suspicious white powder delivered to building housing Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's office on Friday, amid Trump investigation." John Sexton at Hat Hair, Someone sent Alvin Bragg a death threat in an envelope with white powder. Sundance at CTH, Mysterious, Non Hazardous, White Powder Found in Mailroom of Building Where Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Has Office. That's not nice, illegal even, but one has to consider the possibility of a false flag, to make him look good. Dan Greenfield at FP, Did New Yorkers Die, So a DA Could Target Trump? "DA Bragg claimed he didn’t have enough resources to prosecute criminals." Dan Chaitin at Da Wire, Manhattan DA Responds To Demands From House Republicans Investigating Trump Case, "Dubeck said Bragg’s team “will not allow a Congressional investigation to impede the exercise of New York’s sovereign police power,” but noted his office “will always treat a fellow government entity with due respect.” To that end, Dubeck added, Bragg’s team has requested a “meet and confer to understand whether the Committee has any legitimate legislative purpose in the requested materials that could be accommodated without impeding those sovereign interests.”"

Herr Professor Jacobsen at LI thinks Alvin Bragg Is Trump’s Legal Sideshow, The Main Ring Is The Mar-a-Lago Classified Documents Case. "IF there is proof Trump instructed his lawyers to lie to the feds, something that remains to be seen but appears to be the claim, then the theory of criminal liability is simple, not likely to allow Trump to portray himself as a victim, and the Special Counsel cannot be played unlike the hapless Alvin Bragg." I think it's pretty much dead after classified documents started showing up all over Biden's residences and workplaces. ABC pleased to report Meadows, other top Trump aides ordered to testify in Jan. 6 probe as judge rejects claims of executive privilege "Trump's attorneys had challenged the subpoenas by asserting executive privilege." NewsMax, Meadows, Trump Aides Ordered to Testify in Jan. 6 Probe. Expect appeal to next level.

From Ace, Biden's Approval Falls to the Thirties. But He Has a Secret Weapon "He's now down at close to the lowest level of his ill-gotten "presidency."" Kamala, they dislike her even more. At NYPo, ‘Better than people’: Biden hugs baby as WH scrambles to clean up latest gaffe “keep guns out of the hands of domestic political advisers.” Good idea. Greg Price@greg_price11 "Poilievre: "Pierre Poilievre, leader of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition" Biden: "Loyal opposition?" Poilievre: "We believe that opposition is an act of loyalty in our system." Biden: "We do too unfortunately" At Town Hall commentary, cited at Hat Hair, President Biden chooses ESG and the big boys over the little guys 

Insty, OLD AND BUSTED: No One Is Coming for Your Gas Stove Anytime Soon. —The New York Times, January 21st. The new hotness coldness: New York nears deal to ban gas stoves in new homes. 
—Politico, Thursday. At Da Wire, Biden Administration Unveils New Restrictions On Air Conditioners Despite Backlash Over Gas Stove Restrictions. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 03.24.23 Am Great  see a Biden EPA Administrator Demands Funding for Hundreds of New Bureaucrats and Kathleen Brush at Am Think thinks Biden is Preparing Americans To Lose the Second Cold War.

Actress Tara Reid wants everyone to
stop confusing her with Tara Reade

Rusty  Weiss at the PI, Biden’s Sexual Assault Accuser Tara Reade Will Testify Before Congress, Says MAGA Rep Matt Gaetz. At the Wombat's In The Mailbox: 03.24.23 Da Tech Guy calls it A Godsend for the Democrats "But now Democrats are scared to death of Biden running for re-election and need an excuse, ANY excuse to nudge old Joe out of the race before the primaries. . .  Watch the media closely. How they react to this story when it happens will tell you if the decision to dump old joe has been made." John Sexton, Biden doesn't see Harris as 'somebody who takes anything off of his plate'. From  NYPo, Biden irked by Kamala Harris not ‘rising to occasion’ or taking ‘anything off his plate’

Charlotte Hazard and John Solomon at JTN, Effort to squash Biden family stories long predated Hunter laptop, newly released emails reveal "Aide to VP Biden in 2015 bragged she got reporter to admit she would "only use" negative information on Hunter Biden "if her editors hold a gun to her head." Jerry Dunleavy at WaEs, Hunter Biden laptop repairman’s lawsuit against Adam Schiff tossed by federal judge. Aww, too bad.

At AEI Ruy Teixeira sees Warning Signs for Trump in Iowa, Elections and Demography. Geoff Hunt at Am Think wonders  When Will Stubborn Trump Loyalists Face Inconvenient Truths? It's true he didn't drain the swamp; the alligators fight back. At RCP, Trump Campaign: DeSantis Staff Need Not Apply. A warning shot? Insty, NOTE TO THE DONALDS, SR. AND JR.: You have to beat DeSantis in the primary if you want the nomination. But you can’t attack him like you did Jeb, or for that matter Hillary. You have to show why you’re better, not just try to tear him down. He’s been a very successful governor, and his instincts on Covid were better than yours (or mine). The slash-and-burn stuff just makes you look desperate. At WaEx, Paul Bedard worries Has Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis peaked already? KT at Hat Hair reports DeSantis denies claims he witnessed forced feedings at Guantanamo Bay. I've seen this story bubbling at WaPoo, and I just don't care if he had a hand in force feeding Gitmoans. At Da Fed, Shawn Fleetwood claims Before Worrying About 2024, Conservatives Should Focus On Making Republican States As Red As They Can Be.

At WaEx, New details revealed on when John Fetterman will be released from hospital, at least another week. Take your time, John. 

Natalia Mittelstadt at JTN reports the Arizona Supreme Court allows Lake to explore signature verification on 2022 early ballots "As many as 130,000 ballots with mismatched signatures were counted in the 2022 gubernatorial race, far above the 17,000-vote gap between GOP nominee Kari Lake and Gov. Katie Hobbs, claims Lake." Ace, Kari Lake's Election Fraud Lawsuit Can Go Forward, Says Arizona Supreme Court. "Kari Lake's lawsuit against Maricopa County, alleging that the Democrat-run county violated state law for verifying signatures, is allowed to go forward." Kari Lake@KariLake "They have built a House of Cards in Maricopa County. I’m not just going to knock it over. I’m going to burn it to the ground. " At PJM, J.C. Adams, Has Vote Fraud Gotten Easier After Ohio Quit ERIC? "If you care about voter fraud, we should care more about fixing ERIC than burning it down."

Based Politics reports Biden’s budget would hurt economy in 3 huge ways, analysis finds. Paul Bedard at WaEx, Nearly 9 in 10 whacked by economy, sparking Trump surge, Biden fail.

At Da Wire, Yellen Walks Back Implicit Support For Large Bank Account Holders, Prompts Investor Unease. From ET, Significant Number of Banks Will Fail Within 2 Years, Predicts CEO of Hedge Fund Giant and Fed Chair Powell on SVB Collapse: ‘Management Failed Badly,’ While Speed of Bank Run Surprised Regulators. Wayne Dupree at PI reports Public Confidence In Banks Plummets Since Failure Of Two Large Institutions. Well, duh.  At RCP, Santelli: We Don't Have A Banking Crisis, We Have A "Fed Crisis" And A "Rate-Hiking Crisis." Capt Ed elaborates 

It’s all of the above, and more. It’s a monetary crisis that has been fifteen years in the making, when the Fed rapidly expanded the monetary supply to deal with the anti-growth policies imposed by the Obama administration in response to the 2008 financial crisis. That set the stage for massive inflation, touched off by Biden’s overstimulus in the midst of a supply-chain crisis created by massive shutdowns in the pandemic. And the rate hikes have been necessitated mainly because Biden and his team are pursuing similar anti-growth policies which prevent a supply-side solution to inflation. This is a leadership crisis.

At Am Spec, Eric Grover contends  The Epic Failure of General Electric’s Board Shows What Went So Wrong With Silicon Valley Bank. "SVB’s recent high-profile failure underscores the importance of having a knowledgeable, engaged, and titanium-spined board." HE's Chris Talgo says Just say 'no' to Central Bank Digital Currency. "A programmable CBDC would be designed with fea­tures that could be used by government or its partners to limit users' commercial activities. And, perhaps most ominously, the "Biden administration has already stated that if a CBDC were created in the United States, it should be designed so that it promotes social and environmental causes the White House favors, including 'equity,' 'fi­nancial inclusion,' and battling 'climate change and pollution.'" At Am Think, Harry G. Hutchison wonders Did ‘Woke’ Banking Trigger America’s Banking Crisis? Not by itself, but it clearly contributed.

Lloyd Billingsley at Front Page, Jan 6: The Worst Attack on the Capitol Since the Civil War? "That’s what Biden claims. Is it true?" Of course not. At ET, Jan. 6 Defendant Accused of Stealing Pelosi’s Laptop Receives 3-year Prison Sentence. Hat Hair's Jazz Shaw calls The latest J6 conviction is really... something. A weird story.

"In the end, Riley Williams was convicted of interfering with law enforcement officers, resisting or impeding law enforcement officers, disorderly conduct, and, of course, “parading.” (They’ve charged everyone from the riot with parading.) And for that, the now-23-year-old Williams was sent to prison for three years. This is happening while actual rioters in California and Oregon who smash the windows out of stores and steal as much as $1,000 worth of retail merchandise are given probation if they are even pursued at all. It’s one hell of a justice system we’ve got going here, isn’t it?"

NYPo, Kevin McCarthy meets with mother of slain Capitol rioter Ashli Babbitt. From the redoubtable Julie Kelly at Am Great, sees Informants Everywhere "The shroud of secrecy surrounding the FBI’s foreknowledge and engagement in the events of January 6 is disintegrating, no matter how hard Beltway lifers try to keep it intact." Julio Rosas at Town Hall, Here's Why Ray Epps Is Now Targeting Tucker Carlson. Hat Hair's Dave Strom documents how the The FBI became a clown show, also, Two systems of justice in America?

Republican Rep. asks ATF if lying on their federal Background check is illegal.

ATF: “Yes. 15 years in jail if you do that.”

Republican Rep. Tiffany: “So why is Hunter Biden not in Prison?”

***All Hell Breaks Loose***

Gottem pic.twitter.com/aXYQW2GBXR

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) March 23, 2023

From the Babylon Bee, Putin Impressed With American System Of Prosecuting Political Opponents. Much more subtle than throwing opponents out of windows. Thomas Lifson at Am Think notes that the Likely next mayor of Chicago refuses to condemn looting during the 2020 riots, blames corporations.

OK, I don't quite know what to make of this, Josh Gerstein@joshgerstein. "JUST IN: Neither Biden nor Trump will assert privilege to block depositions of Trump & FBI Dir. Wray in suit brought by FBI agent Peter Strzok over his firing. BUT DOJ may still ask appeals court to stop depo of Trump. Doc: https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.209963/gov.uscourts.dcd.209963.108.0_7.pdf… Earlier: https://politico.com/news/2023/02/23/depositions-trump-wray-00084220"

And just for fun from Dave Strom: Afroman for the win!

So what’s hilarious about this? He is being sued by the officers who broke into his house with a search warrant–when he wasn’t there, but his wife was–for causing them emotional distress.

In the suit, the officers say Afroman’s music videos, social media posts and merchandise related to the raid amount to an invasion of privacy and misappropriation of their likenesses … and they say it’s causing them emotional distress, ridicule, humiliation, loss of reputation and embarrassment.

 Gonna skip the culture war; maybe tomorrow. 

The Wombat has Rule 5 Sunday: Sanna Marin and FMJRA 2.0: So Let It Be Written, So Let It Be Done up on time and under budget at The Other McCain.