I write to you, my friends, on a beautiful, warm, sunny day.
Before I get to today’s news, let me thank ALL the new subscribers!
Wow. I’m just blown away! We blew past 20 like it was nothing — all word of mouth!!
(And we’re also up to three paying subscribers, which ain’t too shabby to be this new into things either.)
Honestly, I can’t even tell you what this means to me. I truly feel called to do this; to unite this country and help do whatever I can to heal its wounds.
I originally launched a defense/military news publication more than a year ago, partly to help heal our wounds. (See link below.)
But as time has passed, I’ve just felt I needed to be less indirect and more direct. I needed to be more focused on the politics that are dividing us, versus trying to reach upset and angry vets almost obliquely.
My Saturday post was pretty raw, vulnerable, and personal. And I decided I would be more open about my religious beliefs. I have a VERY complicated past with Christianity, which I will probably write about at some point, but I have decided I’m done allowing the far Right to own Christianity.
They don’t get to own it.
As I said on Saturday, I will no longer allow them to misuse and own Christian theology.
The thing that has floored me is I worried sharing some of that Christian theology would offend some of my earlier subscribers, who themselves are not hugely into the faith of Jesus (mostly because the loud and angry folks on the far Right have nearly destroyed the religion). I know these facts because a few of them are my actual friends. : )
But I was surprised to learn that they were not offended or driven away. I reached out to a few privately and they have told me that someone needs to do what I’m attempting to do. So, I will proceed in my current manner, while NOT making religion/faith a focus of the publication.
And with that, thank you for your patience. Let’s get to some political news…
As predicted in my Saturday post, dawn is already erasing the dark gloom of Saturday before Easter.
I was truly ecstatic to see this story today come across my timeline.
Local officials are poised to send expelled Tennessee lawmakers back to state House
Impending local meetings could pave the way for former Reps. Justin Jones of Nashville and Justin Pearson of Memphis to return to their posts in the Tennessee state legislature, at least temporarily.
The two former Democratic lawmakers, who were expelled by Republican colleagues after they staged a protest on the House floor calling for gun law reforms, say they want their seats back.
Jones and Pearson, both of whom are Black, were voted out of the Tennessee House on Thursday for their actions that took place in response to the deadly school shooting in Nashville.
If you read that story, it seems all-but-certain that Jones and Pearson will be re-seated in the state House.
Even better, as my friend and fellow Tennessean Andrea said, “Tennessee has become the sacrificial lamb, so to speak, to wake up the country.”
And wake up the country we have. Here are three examples, each larger than the previous one.
First, this Republican state representative, who previously was barely known, got himself almost 2 million views. (He’ll probably regret this angry outburst the rest of his life.)
Secondly, national media (with seriously talented) reporters are descending on Nashville, digging for buried bones in a packed graveyard that’s barely been walked in by reporters the past ten years, as newspapers and TV media have slashed state news budgets. (I mean, look at some of these big-name organizations already down there digging…)
Finally, those bones are already being easily dug up and the end result might be horrendous for more than just a few. You want an example, you say?
How about this… The House Speaker — who orchestrated the removal of Jones and Pearson? He allegedly might not even live in his district. (See below.)
If you read that thread, you’ll see that — as nearly 3 million have already seen — that there are some questions about his residency.
And this news has barely begun to get spread far and wide. National media will dive into this story like crazy.
The Tennessee legislature is going to curse the day they acted like drunken frat boys, who should have been back home by midnight, but stayed out past 4 am.
In other big news, more stories are coming out about right-wing Justice Clarence Thomas on the Supreme Court. His secret trips with a billionaire that he didn’t disclose are only the beginning.
The questions are growing, as you can see below, which I found with a simple google search.
I’m not sure where all of that ends up, but I do feel confident that bringing light to this situation is the first step.
Let’s end on one final point.
I want to end with this reality.
Republicans are in serious trouble with their position on abortion (nevermind the anchor that Trump is also providing).
Abortion used to be a 50/50 issue. Now, it’s Republican quicksand.
From the story:
Conservatives are finding out the hard way that abortion isn’t a 50-50 issue anymore.
Janet Protasiewicz’s 11-point blowout victory this week for a state Supreme Court seat in Wisconsin was just the latest example of voters who support abortion rights outnumbering — and outvoting — their opponents. There was little polling in Tuesday’s race, but in a 2022 midterm exit poll of the state, a combined 63 percent of Wisconsin voters said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while only 34 percent thought it should be illegal in all or most cases.
It’s truly amazing that the swing state of Wisconsin is 11 points in the positive toward Democrats at this time.
You’d think Republicans would fix a LOT of things. And fast.
But they’re in the middle of an all-out melee of radical MAGA folks, most of whom are relatively new to politics and not that well-informed in regards to historical, political trends and election tactics.
And the best thing about this anti-abortion nightmare for them is that the Republicans can’t really dig their way out of this abortion position trap easily.
Because the very thing that allowed them to become so extreme (ridiculous gerrymandered districts), now traps them into not being able to let up on these anti-abortion views.
Should any Republican relent to a more sane position, he or she will face a primary challenger and lose.
The anti-abortion movement has trapped Republicans, the same way Trump has.
As polls and post-election interviews with voters are showing, it’s one thing to have your own personal views on something. It’s quite another to try to control the rights of others.
The reality is that this “pro-life” issue that seemed so attractive and simple on paper for Republicans is proving a nightmare in real life.
They have caught the car, only to realize that the car is actually a tank, driven by cats, who are out hunting dogs.
Love and peace,
Stan R. Mitchell
And if you’d like more regular doses of optimism regarding our political situation, make sure you sign up for email notifications. It’s free to do so. 👊❤️🙏
P.S. I plan to have an optimistic and hopeful tone to every post. Even if we take some punches or get knocked down in the days and weeks to come, the “better angels of our nature” must stand back up and keep moving forward. Do not despair in these coming days. The light of dawn is emerging, and nothing can stop light (or truth).
P.P.S. If you enjoyed this post, I’ll bet you’d love the book below about President Obama.
There are many like us, Stan. Former die-hard Republicans, now outside the party because the fringe has taken over. Why then, is our government off the rails? How can the most extreme keep winning office and doing terrible things? I need to read this, though. I need to find a way to stay positive. We need to have lunch, or a beer, and chat extensively like we used to.
They can’t have my Jesus.
They can’t have my flag.
Thank you for being, as far as I can tell at this point, a Christian who is using their voice for the good.