Dem
51
GOP
49
No, that headline is not a typo. Democrats have a Green New Deal. Republicans would never have that, at least not under that name. And certainly, far-right Republicans like Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ) would not have such a program, since they are in denial that climate change is real. Heck, Gosar might even be in denial that Plessy v. Ferguson was overturned. After all, it's only been 70 years since Brown v. Board of Education.
Nope, the green in this case is money. At the moment, Trump sycophants are falling all over themselves to demonstrate fealty to the Dear Leader, and Gosar has come up with a... distinctive angle. He has just filed a bill where it's hard to decide what is more ridiculous: The name of the legislation, or its content. It's called the "Treasury Reserve Unveiling Memorable Portrait Act" (in other words, the TRUMP Act), and it calls for the federal reserve to begin printing $500 bills with Trump's portrait on them.
We honestly don't know if Gosar is an ignoramus when it comes to civics, or if he knows the facts but he just doesn't care. He does know enough to know that federal law forbids the issuance of currency that bears the likeness of living people; his bill would waive that restriction. However, it is also the case that the $500 bill is not in circulation, and hasn't been for close to 100 years. It is also the case that large-denomination U.S. currency existed to make it easier to transfer large amounts of money between banks (or between businesses), a functionality that is irrelevant in the digital age. And finally, it is the case that the larger the bill, the greater the chances of counterfeiting. There is a reason that $100 bills have many, many more anti-fraud measures built into them than $1 bills.
Obviously, Gosar's proposal isn't going to become law; it's not even going to come up for a vote. Still, the Representative got what he wanted, which is a bunch of headlines speaking to his adoration of Trump. Maybe Gosar thinks he's in the hunt to be VP. Or maybe he's angling for a seat in the Cabinet. Or perhaps he just wants to be a presidential favorite in the next House, in the event that The Donald is returned to the White House. We don't know.
Similarly, House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-KY), House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-OH) and House Ways and Means Chair Jason Smith (R-MO) also want to be in good with Trump. So yesterday, they sent a letter to AG Merrick Garland asking him to file criminal charges against First Son Hunter Biden and First Brother James Biden for making false statements to Congress during their respective closed-door hearings earlier this year.
You never know what Garland might do in the name of "fairness," but we think it is exceedingly unlikely that anything will come of this request. Beyond the fact that this is obviously partisan grandstanding, both Bidens knew full well they were walking into the lion's den, and into a potential trap. Recall how insistent Hunter was, in particular, that his session be recorded. It is implausible that either of them would have committed perjury, knowing that was exactly what Jordan, et al. were hoping for.
Anyhow, get ready for an absolutely endless stream of this sort of nonsense in the next several months. First, because many Republican members of Congress are jockeying for position in Trump's orbit. Second, because many Republican members of Congress want their voters to remember how Trumpy their representative or senator is. Third, because there are likely to be a lot of not-good-for-Trump headlines this summer, and anything that suggests that the Bidens are corrupt/evil/criminal/whatever helps to drown those headlines out. (Z)