Monthly Archives: May 2024

crime news

More on conviction …

Fascinating, yes, how some folks are reacting to the New York jury ‘s unanimous decision to convict the former POTUS for illegally paying hush money to an adult film actress regarding a tryst the two of them had before he sought the presidency.

One reaction came to me in the form of a question, followed by a commentary. It reads: At any rate, I was wondering if Trump wins in November, will you accept that outcome? On an interesting note, it seems the sham conviction is giving Trump quite the boost.

Well …

OK, my first reaction is to not engage anyone who calls the verdict a “sham.” It was nothing of the sort. Jurors reached their decision in accordance with the rule of law. Donald Trump was convicted on all 34 felony counts and faces a possible prison sentence. He has the right to appeal, which he said he will do.

Would I accept a Trump victory in November? I’ll just say: Yes, I would if it comes cleanly and without any hint of “rigging.” I accept Trump’s 2016 victory. He achieved it according to the rules laid out in the Constitution. He garnered fewer popular votes than Hillary Clinton but won enough Electoral College votes to take the oath of office.

This particular critic of High Plains Blogger, though, tosses aside any notion of dialogue with me if he insists that the verdict is a “sham.”

Get a grip, dude.

crime news

Run, felon, run!

Two dates are staring the next Republican Party presidential nominee in his orange-hued face.

July 11, 2024 is the first date. New York District Juan Merchan has set that date as the start of a sentencing hearing for the former POTUS, who on Thursday was convicted on all 34 felony counts related to the hush money payment he made to an adult film actress.

Then it gets even hairier for the former Philanderer in Chief. On July 15, 2024, Republicans are likely to nominate the felon as their party’s next presidential candidate.

It has come down to this. Republicans now are relying on a man convicted of 34 felony counts to carry their party banner in the next election against an incumbent who defeated him four years ago. The defeated GOP nominee never had the good grace to accept defeat and to pledge cooperation with the new president … which Barack Obama did in 2016 when the ex-Liar in Chief won the election.

Do we live in a topsy-turvy world … or what?

I suggest we all hang on with both hands, because the ride is going to get seriously wild.

legal news

Alito’s wife is the boss?

Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has acknowledged that he flies an upside-down Old Glory at his home. It’s an international symbol of distress.

Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t mind one little bit about the flag. However, and this is important: Alito sits on the nation’s highest court that might have to decide whether POTUS No. 45 is immune from prosecution or whether he broke the law by pilfering classified documents away from the White House.

What we have here is a perception problem.

Alito said he and his wife co-own the house they share and that he cannot dictate to her whether she can fly the flag in that manner. He said he told her to take it down, but she refused. Really?

Why in the name of good husbandship doesn’t he just take the damn thing down himself? I guess the rules in the Alito household prohibit such ballsy behavior.

To be fair, I have to hand it to Justice Alito at least for recognizing there could be a perception problem, given that he asked his wife to remove the flag. What astounds me to no end, though, is why he didn’t act on it in a more, um forceful manner.

As for Mrs. Alito, she is making a political statement that has a direct impact on how her husband might be asked to do his job.

Chief Justice John Roberts has refused to meet with congressional Democrats to discuss the matter. Alito says he won’t recuse himself from any future action involving POTUS No. 45.

And as a friend of mine said in a social media meme earlier today, it’s more than a little weird that a man who cannot control what his wife does in his house feels compelled to dictate to millions of women how they must handle reproductive rights.

We live in a bizarre political environment.

crime news, legal news

Verdict is in: guilty!

Before we dance too far into the weeds of what Donald Trump’s conviction on all 34 felony counts of illegal campaign funding, I want to share a quick thought or two.

I accept the jury’s verdict. Second of all, the 45th POTUS — as predicted — called the trial a sham, a farce and said the fight is “far from over.”

Third, and this is most critical, the seven men and five women who today delivered their decision were all approved by the prosecutors and by Trump’s legal team. They were vetted carefully in accordance with New York state law,

For the 45th POTUS to suggest the trial was rigged against him means he doesn’t accept what I have just laid out … which is that his legal team approved the jurors right along with the prosecution.

So, there you have it. We have a convicted felon running for president of the United States.

Well done, jurors.

crime news

Accepting the outcome

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Believe it or not, but I am working hard at this moment to accept whatever decision the New York trial jury reaches in the trial to determine whether the former POTUS is guilty of campaign fraud.

It is my inherent belief in the American system of jurisprudence that drives me toward that end.

The former Liar in Chief is on trial for campaign fraud related to the $130,000 payment he made to adult film actress Stephanie Clifford — aka Stormy Daniels — to keep her quiet about the tumble the two of them allegedly took prior to his running for president in 2016.

POTUS No. 45 denies the event occurred, but he paid her the dough anyway. Go figure … eh?

The jury could convict the former Philanderer in Chief on all 34 counts. It could acquit him on all of them. It could convict on some of them, acquit on others. It could get hung up on the “reasonable doubt” issue and produce a mistrial.

I am just a mere spectator. None of us has been in the courtroom. We haven’t heard the evidence. We haven’t witnessed the former POTUS nodding off. We haven’t heard the judge scold the defense counsel for misbehavior.

I am left, therefore, to rely on the system that selected these 12 men and women. They were vetted thoroughly by prosecutors and defense counsel.

The court system is in many aspects our last avenue to learning the truth in high-profile and unprecedented cases such as this one.

You know what I want to occur. For those who don’t yet understand where I come down on this, I’ll just say it up front: I want a conviction. Then again, that’s must me, sitting in the peanut gallery … right along with the rest of the nation.

Whatever the jury decides, I’ll just have to accept it.

media news

Media are supposed to be at odds with government

As followers of this blog know, I enjoyed a modestly successful career as a print journalist, which I pursued with great joy and dedication.

Never once during my nearly 37 years on the job did I ever consider myself anyone’s “enemy.” Certainly not the readers I served while working for newspapers in Oregon and Texas.

The climate today is vastly different than the one I entered in the 1970s. I came out of college intent on changing the world, a la journalists who had done their parts toward that end. I didn’t want to change it to fit my own description of what the world should resemble.

My intent was to report on issues I saw developing and seek remedies to bring changes to flaws I recognized and identified. I don’t believe that’s a nefarious motive.

I just watched a 90-minute documentary on Dan Rather, the former TV news anchor who, in his words, always sought the truth and tried to tell it the best he could. One of the principals quoted in the Netflix piece alluded to the natural tension between government and those who report on it via the media.

The tension was natural, and it was precisely as the nation’s founders intended. Media representatives are assigned the task of rooting out wrongdoing, of reporting on what government is doing well, of telling the human stories that affect every community … and of offering commentary that provides leadership and guidance to a community that seeks it.

I want to take a moment to express my pride in the craft I still pursue and of those who are pursuing full time to this very day. They are facing some ferocious headwinds from those who seek to run our government and therefore set policy on our behalf.

Those of us who know about those forces resisting our best efforts understand fully the need for journalists to keep moving forward. Are we perfect? Do we get it right every single time?

Hell no! We are human beings! We do, though, answer to what I believe is a high calling.

legal news

SCOTUS justice blames wife for the flag

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Associate US Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito has fallen back on the “blame my wife” defense in a case involving an upside-down flag flying at his home.

Alito has refused to recuse himself from any cases involving the former POTUS’s legal troubles involving his loyalty to the Constitution and to the nation.

He has been flying an upside-down flag at his home. The upside-down flag, of course, is the international symbol of a nation in distress.

According to The Hill: “I had nothing whatsoever to do with the flying of that flag. I was not even aware of the upside-down flag until it was called to my attention. As soon as I saw it, I asked my wife to take it down, but for several days, she refused,” Alito wrote, noting that they own their home “jointly” and that she has a “legal right to use the property as she sees fit.” 

Alito is now perceived as a justice who cannot remain impartial regarding cases involving the ex-POTUS. As they about perception, it’s the same thing as reality.

Alito rejects calls to recuse himself from Jan. 6 cases over upside-down flag issue (thehill.com)

The man shouldn’t be deciding these cases. Justice Alito has laid his bias out there for the whole world to see.

Uncategorized

Sanity prevails in SE Texas

Here’s a glimmer of good political news for those who care about such things: Sanity won the day Tuesday in a highly contentious race for a Texas House of Representatives seat in the Golden Triangle region.

State Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, fended off a challenge by a MAGA candidate, David Covey, and won the Republican Party nomination. OK, this isn’t just a House seat that was at stake.

Phelan happens to be speaker of the Texas House. He wields tremendous power and authority over the legislative flow in the chamber. He had drawn the ire of Attorney General Ken Paxton and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who endorsed Covey. So had the 45th POTUS.

Phelan had the temerity to let the will of the House prevail during Paxton’s impeachment and trial in the Senate.

Consequently, Covey entered the race at Paxton’s insistence and proceeded to launch a terribly negative, smear-laden campaign against Phelan.

Here’s the question of the day: Will the sanity prevail in January 2025 when House members choose the speaker? That’s far from a done deal, as the MAGA-dominated House well could oust Phelan in favor of someone more to the liking of the far-right-wingers who occupy so many House seats.

I’m glad Phelan survived this challenge. It’s not so much that I am a fan of Phelan. I just am glad to see Paxton, Patrick and POTUS 45 come up short in this latest Republican Party rebellion.

Joe Biden, national news

Yes, he will ‘leave’

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Robert DeNiro kinda got ahead of himself today when he launched into a highly emotional rant about the presumed Republican Party presidential nominee.

The two-time Oscar-winning actor said that POTUS No. 45 “will never leave” if he’s elected president in 2024. He said it repeatedly.

Oops. Yeah, he will leave.

Here’s the deal that DeNiro has declined to acknowledge. POTUS 45 is 77 years of age, just a bit younger than President Joe Biden. No human being is immortal. No one! We all meet the same fate, which is that none of us gets out of here alive.

Sooner or later, the former Liar in Chief is going to croak. He’ll be gone. We won’t have this old man to kick around any longer. Eventually, it’ll happen. Eventually!

Do I wish that moment will arrive sooner rather than later? Hah! As my dear Mom used to say: I’ll give you three guesses … and the first two don’t count.

local news

How to enact moratorium

The city I call home has emerged near the top of an astonishing list of communities.

Princeton, Texas, is among the fastest-growing cities in all of America that have populations greater than 20,000 residents.

The Census Bureau released the figures recently. Princeton logged a population of 17,027 after the 2020 Census was taken, which nearly triple the size of the city in 2010. In 2023, though, the city grew by another 11,000 residents, pegging its population at an estimated 28,017.

Collin County’s growth has been equally staggering, standing at more than 1.2 million residents, according to Census Bureau estimates.

I look around my neighborhood and notice more lots being developed, with housing units being framed and utility lines being connected. I cannot estimate how many I see in my ‘hood; I’ll just suggest that there are possibly hundreds more units under construction.

Which brings me to my point. Mayor Brianna Chacon is tossing the idea around about enacting a single-family and apartment construction moratorium. I don’t know the particulars of what Chacon envisions, but I want to endorse — in principle — what she might want to do.

I have thought a little bit about the courage it has taken for Chacon to pitch this idea. She is a Realtor when she isn’t helping shape municipal policy, which suggests to me she is willing to take an income reduction if it results in a new public policy.

Chacon’s reason for favoring a stoppage in this construction is clearly defined: We don’t have the infrastructure to handle the flood of new residents. Our streets need repair; we have water needs that need improvement; we will need more first responders on the job.

Chacon said a while ago that Princeton has grown too rapidly, that it needs to play catch-up with the infrastructure it must provide the new residents who are coming here.

I cannot disagree with that. Oh, we also have that mammoth apartment complex on US 380 that has been stalled. It is partially built and only God knows when work will resume on it. My suggestion would be for the city to pull the plug on that boondoggle, knock it down and turn the site into more green space. But that’s just me.

I like living in a city that is attractive for others who want to live here. However, enough is enough … or so it seems, as Princeton continues to lead the way in urban growth.