21 thoughts on “Friday Open Thread”

1. On Christian Nationalism. Sarah Posner at TPM.

   The conventional Christian right does not want a parallel society or a divorce. They believe they are restoring, and will run, the Christian nation God intended America to be — from the inside. They will do that, in their view, through faith (evangelizing others and bringing them to salvation through Jesus Christ); through spiritual warfare (using prayer to battle satanic enemies of Christian America); and through politics and the law (governing and lawmaking from a “biblical worldview” after eviscerating church-state separation). Changes in the evangelical world, particularly the emphasis in the growing charismatic movement on prophecy, signs and wonders, spiritual warfare, the prosperity gospel, and Trumpism, has intensified the prominence of the supernatural in their politics, giving their Christian nationalism its own unmistakable brand.

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   1. "The conventional Christian right" is incorrect and shoulld be "The revanchist Christian right"

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2. Dave Williams is front page above the fold this morning; but not for good reasons. Matt Soper didn’t exactly cover himself in glory either, with his fawning defense of Williams https://www.denverpost.com/2024/04/12/colorado-republican-party-dave-williams-controversy-infighting/

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   1. I read a funny post somewhere saying the CO GOP's "big tent" is turning into more like a day pack. Camping humor.

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   2. Sooper is struggling to understand he's the out group. His decision to suck up is evidence that he's been broken. He will serve now as eunuch servant an example to the others who could have the bonafidees to potentially cause trouble for the troublemakers like Let's Go Brandon Williams 

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      1. Soper is an idiot. Always has been.

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3. WaPo's Jennifer Rubin once again reminds us why complacency isn't an option.

   Republican denial: They think tyrants won’t come after them

   Industry titans consistently — be it in 1930s Europe or in present-day Hungary or in Gen. Augusto Pinochet’s Chile or in Jair Bolsonaro’s Brazil — imagine they can cut deals with autocrats or that persecution of disfavored groups will have no impact on the business environment. The economic and political upheaval an autocrat brings never fails to surprise those who insisted they could control him.

   Chase's Billionaire CEO Jamie Dimon's sanguine attitude towards Trump is just one example

   Dimon also gave Trump credit for his policy record.

   “Take a step back, be honest. He was kind of right about NATO, kind of right on immigration. He grew the economy quite well. Trade tax reform worked. He was right about some of China.”

   “He wasn’t wrong about some of these critical issues, and that’s why they voted for him,” Dimon said.

   Asked which candidate would be better for his business, Dimon said, “I have to be prepared for both. I will be prepared for both. We will deal with both.”

    

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   1. Jamie Dimon would be prosecuted for criminal fraud in sane nations, but the US long ago stopped going after the Boeskys and Milkens of the business world, except in rare cases of complete felony stupidity (Bankman-Fried).  Trump wasn't right about NATO or immigration and trump wasn't responsible for the growing economy, though he was responsible for unnecessary tax cuts that helped balloon the deficit and debt.  Dimon has a billionaire's brain, largely unable to see things outside his purview.  Wealth inequality continued to skyrocket under trump, and as any good student of history knows, wealth inequality is a great societal destabilizer.  

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4. Trump stands to get 36 million extra shares of Trump Media & Technology Group

   Donald Trump is poised to make a huge profit from his latest venture, even as outside investors lose their shirts.

   Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.

   Turns out the IPO arrangement anticipated a huge drop in share prices, down as low as $12.50 per share, but still award the 50% bump in shares (he already holds 79 million shares). 

   The con was set up from the start.

   https://images.app.goo.gl/FwhZ4HLgPGPDhT3r6

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   1. Some Trump stock investors have already lost half their money

      One common way to value stocks is to measure their price-to-sales ratio. Even if Trump Media’s share price crashed to just over $1, it would still have a much steeper price-to-sales ratio than Meta, Pinterest, Snap, Reddit or even Rumble, according to Renaissance Capital’s Matthew Kennedy.

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      1. Yup, retail stock buyers (i.e. the little guys) have lost an estimated $1.1 billion so far on DJT.  The question is, will Trump try to wiggle out of the 6 month freeze preventing him from selling?  Also, after the 6 month lock up ends, will there be any market for the shares?  It would take forever to sell off his 110 million shares.  So he'd be better off wallpapering his bathroom with the stock certificates.

         "We know there's currently about 30 or 40 million tradable shares," says Matthew Kennedy, a senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, a provider of IPO-focused exchange-traded funds and pre-IPO institutional research. "To my knowledge, there's no way to know how many Robinhood, Schwab, etc. accounts own the stock. [But] I suspect it's a lot of retail ownership."

         Total trading volumes on the first day came to 32 million shares. If that's the scale of the mom-and-pop investors who piled into the stock, their losses to date will come to more than $1.1 billion.

         Only penny-stock boiler room traders will want to touch it.  

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         1. There are single-location Waffles Houses with more revenue than Truth. It will (appropriately) be delisted or a penny stock before November. So. Much. Winning. 

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5. The dreaded mean girl reporter who hurt Davie's fee-fees Sandra Fish just tweeted that Sonnenberg made the CD4 primary ballot by petition. That makes 5 official candidates and there are still 3 who could qualify.

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6. Always worth sharing — Tom the Dancing Bug's latest:

   

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7. That’s a damn fine DPO article today about the “Colorado GOP Meltdown”. My cup runneth over.

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8. So, has You-Know-Who submitted a doctor's note to the judge yet saying that his bone spurs have been acting up and he can't go to trial on Monday?

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   1. #CadetBoneSpurs (begrudgingly) reporting for duty!!! 

      This just in: 

      JUST IN: Judge Merchan REJECTS Donald Trump's attempts to *indefinitely* adjourn his first criminal trial, after Trump complains about "prejudicial pretrial publicity."

      The Court rules that Trump can conduct "a thorough, thoughtful and effective voir dire" as the "proper remedy" to his concerns.  

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      1. "Trump complains about 'prejudicial pretrial publicity.'"

         Trump takes a shit in the swimming pool and then complains about the polluted water.

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         1. Further:
             

            “Defendant appears to take the position that his situation and this case are unique and that the pre-trial publicity will never subside.  However, this view does not align with reality.  In just the past 12 months, Defendant has very publicly been involved in a multitude of criminal and civil cases across several states in both federal and state jurisdictions.  In this County alone, Defendant has had two civil trials, one in State Court and the other in Federal Court.  In those two matters, he was personally responsible for generating much, if not most, of the surrounding publicity with his public statements, which were often made just a few steps outside the courtroom where the proceedings were being conducted, and with his unrelenting media posts attacking those he perceived to be responsible for his plight.  The situation Defendant finds himself in now is not new to him and at least in part, of his own doing.”

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9. Update: the Glasser vs SOS lawsuit re: Trisha Calvarese CD4 eligibility.
   The suit was initiated by a self-professed Democrat, Jim Glasser, who won't reveal who's paying the legal freight.

   Here's the 800lb hint:  The two lawyers representing Glasser include John Zakhem and Andrew Nickel…

   HUGE SURPRISE – both are hard core right-wing/GOP operatives.

   John S Zakhem (age 56) gained infamy by representing the Trump campaign in the Coomer vs Trump Campaign et al defamation suit. Zakhem also represents the CO GOP House Causcus and other right-wing efforts.

   Andrew Nickel is younger. During CU law school, he interned with Neil Gorsuch. He also represents the GOP in a number of ways, as well as the Independence Institute think-tank.

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10. If you’re a witness in Fat Donnie’s trial that starts Monday it may be wise to stay away from windows that aren’t at floor-level – and stairs – this weekend. The last time Fat Donnie was scheduled to appear in court where he and his lawyers couldn’t delay any longer, Ivana was found at the bottom of the stairs…and he received a temporary reprieve. 

    

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