US Politics Thread 2016-2020

[Catfish]

As far as i heard the US cancelled the Iran nuclear deal, so they are free to do as they please. Until the next TLAM strike ..

[Rockstar]

Whatever happened to Britain, France and Germany accusing Iran of breaking the deal with them and the big 3 taking steps to reimpose sanctions? How's that going? Or did Merkel consider things like that hate speech?

[Mr Quatro]

Guess what happens on December 14th this year?


December 14, 2020 Total Solar Eclipse

December 14, 2020: Electors Vote in Their States
Monday after the second Wednesday in December of presidential election years is set as the date on which the electors meet and vote.

In 2020, the meeting is on December 14

Nov. 4-Dec. 14, 2020: Counting popular votes and filing Certificates of Ascertainment


https://www.kiro7.com/news/trending/...GRYUKSO6SG5FM/

States began counting and certifying voting results on Nov. 4, 2020. Counting and certifying are done per the laws of the state and regulations.

When that count is finished, the governor of the state must prepare reports of the vote totals called Certificates of Ascertainment of the vote.

According to federal law, the certificates must be completed “as soon as practicable.”

Certificates of Ascertainment include a list of names of the electors who were chosen by the voters, along with the votes received in the popular election results.

Also included is a list of the losing candidates for elector and the number of votes they received.

Seven copies are made and each must carry the seal of the state. One copy is forwarded to the Archivist of the United States. The six duplicates go to the state’s electors by the day they meet to vote – Dec. 14.

But wait it's not over December 8th is also a very important date

Dec. 8, 2020: The “Safe Harbor” deadline

Federal law (3 U.S.C. §5) addresses a situation that is intended to bring to a close any dispute over electoral votes. It’s something known as the Safe Harbor deadline.

States have until Dec. 8 to resolve any disputes and certify their voting results to send the electors to the Electoral College to vote. If they do not do that by Dec. 8, results could be deemed inconclusive and that could result in electors not being counted.

The statute says that:

If election results are contested in any state, and

if the state has enacted procedures to settle controversies over electors and electoral votes, and

if these procedures have been applied, and

if the results have been determined six days before the electors' meetings, then these results are considered to be conclusive, and will apply in the counting of the electoral votes.

Six days before the electors' meetings is Dec. 8, this year.

Bet you thought it was over, uh? Not yet

Dec. 14, 2020: Electors vote in their states

Again, federal law sets a deadline for electors to meet in their states and vote for president and vice president.

The Monday after the second Wednesday in December – Dec. 14 this year – is the date the electors will meet.

They meet at the places selected by their state’s legislature.

Voting on paper ballots, they cast one vote for president and a separate vote for vice president.

The votes are counted and then the electors sign six certificates that include a list of the electoral votes for president, and a separate list of electoral votes for the vice president. These are the Certificates of the Vote.

The Certificates of the Vote are paired with the Certificates of Ascertainment, sealed and certified.

The certificates are sent by registered mail to:

The president of the Senate (the vice president of the United States)
The secretary of the state in the state in which the electors met (he or she gets two copies)
The archivist of the United States (he or she gets two copies)
The judge of the U.S. district court in the district where the electors met

Dec. 23, 2020: Certificates must be delivered to the designated officials

The certificates have to reach the officers named above by the fourth Wednesday in December – Dec. 23 this year.

If not before this it's going be by now that the cat is out of the bag on who voted for what, but wait it's still not over.

Jan. 6, 2021: Joint Session of Congress to count electoral votes and declare the results

On Jan. 6, the House and the Senate meet in a joint session at 1 p.m. to count votes and declare the results.

The vice president, serving as president of the Senate, presides over the event. In this case, Vice President Mike Pence will open the certificates and presents them to four “tellers,” two from each chamber.

Tellers are charged with reading out and then making a list of the results contained in the certificates.

When the tellers have finished counting the votes, they report the results to the vice president.

Whichever ticket receives a majority of 270 or more electoral votes “shall be deemed a sufficient declaration of the persons, if any, elected President and Vice President.”

Wait it's still not over

Joint Session Challenges to Electoral Votes

Members of either chamber can object to the votes in the certificates. The objections must be made in writing by at least one member of both the House and the Senate.

If both a House and Senate member objects, the joint session goes into recess, separates and debates the question. They have two hours to do so.

They then vote separately in their own chambers and resume the joint session to announce the results. Both houses must approve the objection in order to keep votes from being counted.

There may not be an inauguration on January 20th if the declared winner (in this case Joe Biden) doesn't have the necessary 270 electoral votes of which his count is 309 electoral votes meaning 40 votes less would put him below 270 at 269 and trigger an automatic vote by the states in the House/Senate and by law that would mean one vote per state which is at this moment (and even with a new congress) means the red states win with a majority of votes in both the house and the Senate.

To heck with the fat lady ... Never give up

[Onkel Neal]

Well, have they found any unusual fraud? I know, not likely to hear about it on CNN if they did, but still, if there were tens of thousands of invalid votes, it shouldn't be difficult to prove. What's the deal?

[eddie]

Well Trump fired the head of Homeland Security that oversees voting irregularities because he said they have found no voter fraud. And now Trump has put Guliani in charge of his legal team, that should be fun to watch,lol

[Buddahaid]

Trumps getting pretty far out on that branch and looking more foolish by the day.

[Rockstar]

I get a get kick outta this. For several years now there has been one accusation after another brought against the president. In fact that was pretty much the whole platform of the Democratic party this election.

Now its time for a barrage of accusation after accusation of voter fraud. Which I suspect is just as intentional as the collusion debacle. Its political head games, an attempt to burn the idea of fraud and a stolen presidency into the psyche of the mid-term voter.

That's my guess

[Skybird]

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-54982360

Head of CISA "terminated" by the little snapped boy in revenge.

People did not love the little boy this time, not sufficient at leats to get himn his new toys. And now they must be punsihed!

[Catfish]

re Rockstar I'd also find it amusing, but there are way too much people dying.

Trump screwed up so often that accusations are self-evident and necessary, not that he reacted to anything ever. Recent action is opening Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil and gas drilling leases (makes perfect sense since there is so "few" oil on the market), and he sells the leases to just of all: China.
He'd sell it to Russia, but you know ... they already have too much oil.

And "Voter fraud"? There is none. https://www.cisa.gov/rumorcontrol.
Trump better put up or shut up.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Buddahaid

Trumps getting pretty far out on that branch and looking more foolish by the day.

That's pretty much how I'm beginning to see it now

Originally Posted by Skybird

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-54982360

Head of CISA "terminated" by the little snapped boy in revenge.

People did not love the little boy this time, not sufficient at leats to get himn his new toys. And now they must be punsihed!

He should be careful, he might get up one morning and look at his reflection in the bathroom mirror and fire himself.

There is speculation in Washington DC that before Mr Trump leaves office in January, CIA director Gina Haspel and FBI director Christopher Wray could also be for the chopping block.

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by Jimbuna

He should be careful, he might get up one morning and look at his reflection in the bathroom mirror and fire himself.

He only fires people who ndo not beleive, do not tell and do not spread his lies, so you need to dubb the reflection in the mirror with something to contradict him to make him firing himself. Allah once was said to be the greatest deceiver, but he then lost the title to his American successor, it seems.

[Rockstar]

Originally Posted by Catfish

re Rockstar I'd also find it amusing, but there are way too much people dying.

Trump screwed up so often that accusations are self-evident and necessary, not that he reacted to anything ever. Recent action is opening Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil and gas drilling leases (makes perfect sense since there is so "few" oil on the market), and he sells the leases to just of all: China.
He'd sell it to Russia, but you know ... they already have too much oil.

And "Voter fraud"? There is none. https://www.cisa.gov/rumorcontrol.
Trump better put up or shut up.

The thing about drilling for oil is there needs to be a buyer for the product otherwise whats the point of drilling? U.S. oil exports to Germany have more than tripled in the past few years. We're having to open up 'area 1002' to help satisfy Germany's and other's appetite for the stuff. I suppose if you could convince everyone to walk to work we wouldn't have too. But we all know that's not going to happen. I know it sucks but unless a Thanos pandemic comes along and wipes out have the world's population we're going to to keep drilling for oil to meet demand AND we're gonna make money doing it. European refiners love that cheap U.S. crude.

Also, Like I said before we dont live in a dictatorship, contrary to the popular spoon fed beliefs, Trump doesn't have a magic wand or acts on a whim. Our illustrious congress in a bi-partisan vote pretty much gave Trump the green light to act when they lifted the decades old oil export ban. Everyone was for sale, big oil gave the environmentalist Democrats half-a-decade of tax credits for solar and wind projects, while their industry-friendly counterparts like Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) and most Republicans got an end to the prohibition on overseas crude sales. U.S. liquid production has risen by over 150 percent as net import dependence has fallen by over 60 percent. Thank you congress for lifting the ban!


As for voter fraud, you're right I dont for a moment think there was any fraud great enough to sway this election. The fraud controversy is on display for the simple minded nits who love the drama. Its probably going to be the only thing they'll remember when considering the next mid-term. Plus it makes them feel important because it gives them something to talk about they can understand and keeps them distracted. While the representatives THEY voted in lift the ban on oil exports and then shift the blame all on Trump. Its the in thing these days.

[Catfish]

Almost every fact check of what the Donald has said is false. If Trump is so dedicated to help his "friends" with oil, why does he sell the lease to China.
He just wants to destroy all that others built up before, scorched earth policy on his way out.

[Rockstar]

He just wants to destroy? Fact check this date December 20th 2017 congress approves legislation to open area 1002 to oil drilling.

Trump is selling leases to Chinese oil companies? Permits are not bestowed upon friends they are auctioned off and the highest bidder wins, money talks b.s. walks. Plus I hear most drillers aren't all that eager to touch the area with a ten foot barge pole yet anyway.

Who makes the laws that would allow a foreign company to operate in the U.S. EEZ and lands? I know most would say Trump because they've been trained too believe 'he's out to get everybody and destroy everything'

[mapuc]

It looks like desperate steps/measure in my opinion what Mr. Trump is saying and doing.

I guess it's not unusual when it comes to a defeated President approaching his last time in the White house, that a President takes these desperate steps.

Markus