With Nothing Left To Lose, The GOP Says the Quiet Parts Out Loud
Talk about pearls before swine. In response to the compelling, righteous impeachment case brought by Rep. Jamie Raskin, most of an unholy GOP didn't just acquit; doubling down, they've lashed out at those few members with a spine, re-embraced the Insurrectionist-In-Chief, and in a final revelatory capper, blasted Sen. Pat Toomey for voting to convict with, "We didn't send him there to do the right thing." Because God knows we don't want anyone with...whaddya call them? Oh yeah, morals.

A tearful Raskin talks to managers and staff after acquittal. Getty Image. Front Image MSNBC/Getty
Talk about pearls before swine. In response to the compelling, righteous case to impeach brought by Rep. Jamie Raskin, most of an unholy GOP didn't just vote to acquit; since then, they've doubled down, re-pledging themselves to their cowardice, their fear-mongering, their moral and intellectual bankruptcy. Some of the mayhem: Wisconsin's dumb-as-a-rock Ron Johnson argues, "This didn't seem like an armed insurrection to me," never mind the weapons, tasers, explosives, bats, shields, crutches, nooses, brain injuries and deaths; multiple states are lashing out at the seven who scrambled in the dark to find remnants of a spine - Wyoming's GOP censured Liz Cheney, Utah censured Mitt Romney, Maine will likely censure Susan Collins; and the faithful return to the Insurrectionist-In-Chief. A new Morning Consult/Politico poll finds Trump's popularity has rebounded - oh America of the short memory - as almost 60% of GOP voters say he should play a "major role" going forward, up 18 points since it dipped after his attempted violent takeover of the government; it also finds two and three times more GOP voters blame Joe Biden or Democrats for the riot than the guy who incited it because Orwell still haunts us: "The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears."
Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, conservative Sen. Pat Toomey wasn't just condemned "in the strongest terms" by Republican leaders after he voted to convict. One county chair, David Ball, went on the radio to rip him a new one and say the quiet parts aloud: "We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him there to 'do the right thing' - eyebrows raised in derision - or whatever he said he was doing. We sent him there to represent us." In stirring contrast, there's the inestimable lead impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin, "the moral center of the trial." Of those Republicans who voted to acquit in the face of his "mountain of un-refuted evidence," he said, "There's no reasoning with people (acting) like members of a religious cult." Nonetheless, he said, Trump was "found guilty in the court of public opinion and in the court of history." Though speaking to the Washington Post, he derided the "explosive and deranged" tactics of Trump lawyers who "couldn't get a summer internship with My Cousin Vinny," during the trial, Raskin repeatedly, determinedly focused on the core issues at stake, aware history was watching. "This impeachment trial is not about Donald Trump. We all know who he is and what he is," he said. "This is about all of us and what kind of country we want for our children and grandchildren. What we do in this room will be our legacy."
Actual quote from a PA GOP official, explaining why Sen. Toomey should be censured: "We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him there to 'do the right thing' or whatever"
pic.twitter.com/p0sA960GEp-- Jan Wolfe (@JanNWolfe) February 16, 2021
Hero. New York Times photo
The 43 cowards.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |

A tearful Raskin talks to managers and staff after acquittal. Getty Image. Front Image MSNBC/Getty
Talk about pearls before swine. In response to the compelling, righteous case to impeach brought by Rep. Jamie Raskin, most of an unholy GOP didn't just vote to acquit; since then, they've doubled down, re-pledging themselves to their cowardice, their fear-mongering, their moral and intellectual bankruptcy. Some of the mayhem: Wisconsin's dumb-as-a-rock Ron Johnson argues, "This didn't seem like an armed insurrection to me," never mind the weapons, tasers, explosives, bats, shields, crutches, nooses, brain injuries and deaths; multiple states are lashing out at the seven who scrambled in the dark to find remnants of a spine - Wyoming's GOP censured Liz Cheney, Utah censured Mitt Romney, Maine will likely censure Susan Collins; and the faithful return to the Insurrectionist-In-Chief. A new Morning Consult/Politico poll finds Trump's popularity has rebounded - oh America of the short memory - as almost 60% of GOP voters say he should play a "major role" going forward, up 18 points since it dipped after his attempted violent takeover of the government; it also finds two and three times more GOP voters blame Joe Biden or Democrats for the riot than the guy who incited it because Orwell still haunts us: "The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears."
Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, conservative Sen. Pat Toomey wasn't just condemned "in the strongest terms" by Republican leaders after he voted to convict. One county chair, David Ball, went on the radio to rip him a new one and say the quiet parts aloud: "We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him there to 'do the right thing' - eyebrows raised in derision - or whatever he said he was doing. We sent him there to represent us." In stirring contrast, there's the inestimable lead impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin, "the moral center of the trial." Of those Republicans who voted to acquit in the face of his "mountain of un-refuted evidence," he said, "There's no reasoning with people (acting) like members of a religious cult." Nonetheless, he said, Trump was "found guilty in the court of public opinion and in the court of history." Though speaking to the Washington Post, he derided the "explosive and deranged" tactics of Trump lawyers who "couldn't get a summer internship with My Cousin Vinny," during the trial, Raskin repeatedly, determinedly focused on the core issues at stake, aware history was watching. "This impeachment trial is not about Donald Trump. We all know who he is and what he is," he said. "This is about all of us and what kind of country we want for our children and grandchildren. What we do in this room will be our legacy."
Actual quote from a PA GOP official, explaining why Sen. Toomey should be censured: "We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him there to 'do the right thing' or whatever"
pic.twitter.com/p0sA960GEp-- Jan Wolfe (@JanNWolfe) February 16, 2021
Hero. New York Times photo
The 43 cowards.

A tearful Raskin talks to managers and staff after acquittal. Getty Image. Front Image MSNBC/Getty
Talk about pearls before swine. In response to the compelling, righteous case to impeach brought by Rep. Jamie Raskin, most of an unholy GOP didn't just vote to acquit; since then, they've doubled down, re-pledging themselves to their cowardice, their fear-mongering, their moral and intellectual bankruptcy. Some of the mayhem: Wisconsin's dumb-as-a-rock Ron Johnson argues, "This didn't seem like an armed insurrection to me," never mind the weapons, tasers, explosives, bats, shields, crutches, nooses, brain injuries and deaths; multiple states are lashing out at the seven who scrambled in the dark to find remnants of a spine - Wyoming's GOP censured Liz Cheney, Utah censured Mitt Romney, Maine will likely censure Susan Collins; and the faithful return to the Insurrectionist-In-Chief. A new Morning Consult/Politico poll finds Trump's popularity has rebounded - oh America of the short memory - as almost 60% of GOP voters say he should play a "major role" going forward, up 18 points since it dipped after his attempted violent takeover of the government; it also finds two and three times more GOP voters blame Joe Biden or Democrats for the riot than the guy who incited it because Orwell still haunts us: "The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears."
Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, conservative Sen. Pat Toomey wasn't just condemned "in the strongest terms" by Republican leaders after he voted to convict. One county chair, David Ball, went on the radio to rip him a new one and say the quiet parts aloud: "We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him there to 'do the right thing' - eyebrows raised in derision - or whatever he said he was doing. We sent him there to represent us." In stirring contrast, there's the inestimable lead impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin, "the moral center of the trial." Of those Republicans who voted to acquit in the face of his "mountain of un-refuted evidence," he said, "There's no reasoning with people (acting) like members of a religious cult." Nonetheless, he said, Trump was "found guilty in the court of public opinion and in the court of history." Though speaking to the Washington Post, he derided the "explosive and deranged" tactics of Trump lawyers who "couldn't get a summer internship with My Cousin Vinny," during the trial, Raskin repeatedly, determinedly focused on the core issues at stake, aware history was watching. "This impeachment trial is not about Donald Trump. We all know who he is and what he is," he said. "This is about all of us and what kind of country we want for our children and grandchildren. What we do in this room will be our legacy."
Actual quote from a PA GOP official, explaining why Sen. Toomey should be censured: "We did not send him there to vote his conscience. We did not send him there to 'do the right thing' or whatever"
pic.twitter.com/p0sA960GEp-- Jan Wolfe (@JanNWolfe) February 16, 2021
Hero. New York Times photo
The 43 cowards.



