#but they also admitted that this cb has been tough and lots of challenges

[ncisfranchise-source]

The producers of NCIS are looking back at Mark Harmon’s exit from the CBS series.

Executive producer Charles Floyd Johnson told The Hollywood Reporter that he believed that Harmon’s 2021 departure would be a “death knell” for the procedural after he starred as Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs nearly two decades.

“Coming in at 6:30 a.m., five days a week, and being the major character that was the linchpin — that’s pretty tough, and he did it for 18 seasons,” he said of Harmon, 72. “He had just gotten to the place where he was getting close to turning 70, and he wanted to spend time with [wife] Pam [Dawber] and his kids."

He continued: “So he was leading up to it. It started probably [with him dropping hints] around the 15th or 16th season. But he was so loyal to that crew and so supportive of the show. He was very proud of it, and he stayed on longer than he even intended.”

Director James Whitmore Jr. recalled wondering how the show would move forward without Harmon, telling the outlet, “When Harmon was talking about leaving, and there was this chance that he might not come back, I said, ‘How are they going to replace this dude?’ And they brought in the one guy that could do it, which was Gary Cole.”

Johnson admits the show “hit gold” when Cole joined NCIS in season 19 to play Special Agent Alden Park.

“There were a lot of names bandied about,” he recalled. “When everybody finally decided we’d make an offer to Gary Cole, we didn’t pitch it to him as, ‘He was going to become the new Gibbs.’ We pitched it to him that he was going to come in and wasn’t sure he was going to stay with the team, so that he didn’t have to feel like he was stepping into the shoes of someone who had been there for 18 seasons.”

Executive producer Mark Horowitz reflected on how the introduction of Cole’s character changed the dynamic of the show, explaining, “When Gibbs was in charge, he was the leader, and everybody was pretty much under him. When the Gary Cole character came in, it loosened up a little bit and allowed McGee (Sean Murray) to become a senior agent, and they have a little bit more authority. So it gave room for other possibilities.”

Back in August 2022, Harmon addressed saying goodbye to the procedural in the fourth episode of season 19 when his character Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs decided to stay in Alaska indefinitely after solving a case.

"What has always drawn me here is the character I play and to keep it fresh and to keep it challenging," Harmon said in a special featurette on the show's season 19 DVD release, per Entertainment Tonight. "Plot-wise, this character has taken the path that it did. I thought it was honest and OK with."

Harmon — who starred on the series since its premiere in 2003 — also shared that he believed that his beloved character is "not retired," adding, "The character is living in Alaska as far as I know."

Following the episode, executive producer Steve Binder opened up about Harmon's exit for the long-running series.

"As an executive producer and dear friend, Mark continues to be an integral part of the fabric of the show. Our north star has always been staying true to our characters, and that truth has always guided the stories we tell and where those characters go," he told PEOPLE in a statement. "So regarding the future of Gibbs, as long-time fans of the show may have noticed over the years…never count Leroy Jethro Gibbs out."

"Mark's always been part of the show, Mark's always going to be part of the show," CBS Entertainment President Kelly Kahl told Deadline in September 2021. "In terms of his on-air appearances, we're just going to have to see how it plays out going forward."

[lycanhood]

10 Favorite Episodes of Supergirl

@icantchooseitforyou is doing this challenge so here are mine:

1.) Falling 1x16 -RedK!Kara is incredible! The episode that inspired so many amazing fanfics and of course revealed a deeper darker side to our girl that we had never seen before and have rarely seen since. I think, Red K is something the writers could/should bring back to play with some more, because it just makes for fantastic emotional stories.

2.) Human For A Day 1x07 -This episode showcases the very best of Kara Zor-el. Heroes are so often defined by how they save the say when they don’t have their abilities and this episode demonstrates it beautifully. This is probably the episode that made me fall in love with Kara as a hero. Must see.

3.) Exodus 2x15 -Aaaaah!! Exodus is so fucking good! I just love it. To me, this episode is Supergirl at it’s absolute best. It’s Kara investigating and fighting to help those who can’t help themselves. Especially aliens or refugees, which ties in so beautifully with her character and origin story. It’s got Alex (and Sanvers) kicking ass! It’s emotional, the stakes are high, very little cringey romantic plot to bog it down. Perfection! Must see.

4.) Midvale 3x06 -It’s just fucking cute okay. It’s adorable and that’s enough for me. But also, the Danvers sister relationship is/was once/and should always be the emotional heart of the show. And this episode takes us back and shows us how that bond formed, what it grew from, and why they are the way they are. It was much needed and just a joy to watch. Especially after the heartache of losing Maggie. Must see.

5.) Damage 3x05 -Not gonna lie, this is the Supercorp shipper popping out. But honestly this is just a good solid episode for a show that has a lot of lack-luster filler episodes. Anytime Kara actually does some investigative reporting I’m overjoyed. Got to see her and Sam team up, which I wish this season had had more of. Lena and her darker impulses get to shine here. And of course there is the Supercorp screentime which sustains me. Aside from Sanvers breakup, I’ve got nothing but love for Damage.

6.) World’s Finest 1x18 -This episode is like the equivalent of a sweet and pure kitten video at the end of a long tough day. It’s just fun and adorable and so pure! The friendship between Barry & Kara is so natural and good-natured. The chemistry between Melissa & Grant is spot on. This is everything superhero team-ups should be about. Must see.

7.) Pilot 1x01 -It’s cheesy and I have to admit I wasn’t sold on the show based on this episode alone. However, looking back on it, CBS did the best with what they had and this episode does what a Pilot is supposed to. It introduces us to Kara in all her good-hearted glory. She’s sweet and unsure and looking to embrace her own power. It gives us the Danvers sister relationship, one which Kara is driven and inspired by. This episode was just a glimpse of what’s was to come, but it was a glimpse full of hope. Must see.

8.) Luthors 2x12  -This is just good television. Katie McGrath & Branda Strong just play so well off each other, they are always fun to watch. This episode let’s us learn more about Lena and the rest of the Luthor family (which will become increasingly important as the show moves forward). This is an important episode for Supercorp of course because it’s Kara’s first big test of her faith and friendship in Lena, after Medusa. It’s intriguing, exciting, and an appropriate use of flashbacks. Gotta love it.

9.) Supergirl Lives 2x08 -Again this is just what a good episode of Supergirl looks like. This is Kara actually acting like a reporter, and fighting against oppression/slavery/injustice not just on Earth but anywhere it may take her in the universe. This is also probably the last episode in which I got to enjoy Mon-El as a character at all. This is Supergirl the show and the hero doing what she does best. I wish there were more episode like this one.

10.) The Adventures of Supergirl 2x01 -The first episode on The CW, the arrival of Mon-El, the absence of Cat Grant, and in many ways the beginning of the end for the Supergirl that could have been. All true, but also the introduction of Tyler Hoechlin’s Superman and Katie MGrath’s Lena Luthor. And this episode introduces both characters spectacularly. Chemistry is incredible all around. Kara & Clark’s differences are highlighted just as much as their similarities, both of which are integral to their complex relationship. Lena and Kara begin their long road to friendship to enemies (to maybe something more). The Luthor & a Super dynamic ramps up the entire shows tension moving forward. Two great additions and an excellent season premiere. Must see.

[amyadamsnews]

Amy Adams on equal pay, family life and her grittiest role to date

In a corner of the genteel lounge of Los Angeles’s iconic Chateau Marmont, Amy Adams is launching into the opening lines of the Abba classic The Winner Takes It All – and it’s pitch-perfect. With other Hollywood actors, this tuneful showcase of talent, five minutes into an interview, might come across as showing off.

But the star of American Hustle, Nocturnal Animals and Arrival – a five-time Academy Award nominee and the recipient of two Golden Globes – seems atypically unstarry. Our conversation has simply prompted a demo of one of her great passions: karaoke. 

Fresh-faced and freckled, today, the 43-year-old is dressed casually in jeans and a peach blouse, her red hair pulled into a loose ponytail. In spite of her success on the big screen, you might not recognise her if she strolled past you on the street.

She’s one of the most in-demand actors in Hollywood, skilled at switching between roles – from wide-eyed and vulnerable in Junebug, which launched her leading-lady career, through tough-talking and trashy in The Fighter, to religious fanatic in The Master and – most memorably – sexy, seductive con artist in American Hustle.

Amy’s latest part looks set to make her more immediately familiar, however. Next month, she stars in HBO’s hotly anticipated new mini-series Sharp Objects, an adaptation of the novel by Gillian Flynn, author of the bestselling thriller Gone Girl. ‘I’ve been attracted to Gillian’s work for years, because she creates these incredible, flawed females,’ she says.

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée (who also directed last year’s critically acclaimed TV hit Big Little Lies), Sharp Objects is set in small-town Missouri, where restraint, manners and strong cocktails mask brutal violence and deep dysfunction.

Amy plays what is easily her darkest, most damaged character to date: Camille Preaker, the acerbic, alcoholic, self-harming protagonist. Recently released from a psychiatric unit, Camille, a reporter, is dispatched to Wind Gap, the town in which she grew up, to investigate the murder of two pre-teen girls. 

It quickly becomes clear that the intense pain that affects her also infests the other women in her family – her uptight, neurotic mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson) and her manipulative younger half-sister, Amma (star-in-the-making Eliza Scanlen).

As is becoming increasingly common among Hollywood’s leading ladies, Amy was also an executive producer on the series. It was she who suggested French-Canadian director Vallée. ‘There’s something about the way he tells women’s pain: he circles around it, yet gets to the heart of it,’ she says.

‘He’s not afraid to approach the violence in a way that’s also very emotional.’ For his part, Vallée praises Amy’s bravery in taking on bleak themes. ‘It was scary material, and she was so courageous to tackle this, to be so naked – literally and metaphorically,’ he says.

To help her dig into the darkness, Gillian Flynn recommended she read A Bright Red Scream. ‘It’s first-person accounts by people who self-harm,’ explains Amy, who had to wear prosthetic scars from the neck down during filming. She admits it wasn’t easy to leave Camille behind at the end of each day. ‘I’ve trained myself not to bring a character home, but there were times – whether from living in her head space or just exhaustion – when I suffered insomnia.’

The role also required her to research the psychological condition Munchausen syndrome by proxy, which causes a parent to harm their son or daughter to create the illusion that the child is ill. ‘I did a lot of reading about that too,’ says Amy. ‘It’s so against every parental instinct I have, so I just can’t imagine it. Our daughter [seven-year-old Aviana] has been hurt twice in a way that required trips to the hospital and that’s not something I’d ever want to revisit – it was traumatising.’

Happily, both Amy’s disposition – upbeat, energetic and quick to laugh – and her family life would appear to be a far cry from Camille’s. She and her husband, Darren Le Gallo, met in 2001, at an acting class in Los Angeles, and today live in the city’s glamorous Hollywood Hills. She describes their life as ‘quiet’, save for the odd karaoke night out, or in – the family’s portable karaoke machine even accompanies them on holiday.

When Amy travels for work, her husband and daughter generally go with her. ‘If I’m on my own, I engage in not-great behaviours, like hotel-room eating – sitting in bed every night with a bag of crisps and salsa and a beer,’ she admits.

The middle child of seven, Amy was born on a military base in Vicenza, Italy, where her father was stationed at the time. Her parents were Mormons and, although their adherence to the faith was ‘more cultural’ than overtly religious, ‘church played an important part in our social interactions’, she has said. ‘It instilled in me a value system I still hold true.’ 

The family eventually settled in Castle Rock, Colorado, when Amy was eight, where her father, having left the army, began singing professionally in nightclubs and restaurants. The rest of her family was more sport-orientated. ‘I was surrounded by these incredibly coordinated siblings who excelled at everything, whereas I just liked to read in my room,’ she laughs. 

Her parents divorced when she was 11, and left Mormonism. Her mother, Kathryn, a former gymnast, was also, for a while, an amateur bodybuilder. ‘We have a good relationship, but my mom is tough and always challenged me to push myself,’ says Amy. ‘I wasn’t allowed to be afraid of things, even though I’m naturally very risk-averse. For instance, if a guy pulled up on a motorcycle, I’d be like [adopts goody-goody voice], “Don’t you understand that those are just coffins on wheels?”’

When her mother would take her to her gymnastics class, she goes on, ‘She would say: “We’re not leaving until you do this really tricky move.” That taught me to do things I was afraid of, because the sense of pride in having done something difficult was always worth it.’ It’s a skill that appears to have served her well in her career.

‘I had a kind of autonomy from childhood on,’ she continues. ‘There were so many of us that I knew my parents weren’t going to be funding my life, meaning my choices were my own and I wasn’t worried about what they thought of them.’

She gave up gymnastics, focused instead on dance and trained at a local ballet school. At 18, however, she decided she wasn’t good enough and switched her focus to musical theatre. She worked in dinner theatre for a few years before scoring a chance to audition for Drop Dead Gorgeous, the 1999 beauty-pageant comedy starring Kirstie Alley and Kirsten Dunst, in which Amy played a promiscuous cheerleader.

With Alley’s encouragement, at 24, Amy moved to Los Angeles, where her first few years attempting to break into the industry weren’t easy. ‘I auditioned a lot, but couldn’t figure out why it wasn’t working,’ she has said. ‘The problem was a lack of confidence and self-esteem,’ she tells me today. 

In 2004, she was cast as the lead in the CBS series Dr Vegas, alongside Rob Lowe, but the show was dropped after just a few episodes. At that point, she considered quitting the industry.

‘I began thinking I should do something that was more secure,’ she says. ‘I wasn’t willing to be as unhappy as I was in danger of becoming and I didn’t like what it was turning me into.’

Then her fortunes began to turn around. In 2005, she was cast as the lead, Ashley, in the indie comedy Junebug. Her portrayal of the garrulous pregnant woman won her the Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival, and two years later, scored her the part of Giselle, the optimistic princess, in Enchanted.

Achieving success at 31, rather than 21, has its advantages, she now believes. ‘At least I was able to enjoy my 20s before anyone was paying me too much attention,’ she sighs, nostalgically. ‘No Instagram, no Twitter, no Facebook – thank God! I had a bad habit of taking photos on disposable cameras that didn’t belong to me. I have no idea how many complete strangers’ cameras I mooned into back then!’ she laughs.

Since the downfall of Harvey Weinstein and the rise of the #MeToo movement, are there incidents from early in her career that she feels she wouldn’t be OK with now?

‘Yes, and I wasn’t OK with it back then either,’ she says. ‘I had to audition in a bikini. I didn’t get the role, because the character would be filmed wearing one and I don’t look good in swimwear.’

I scoff at this claim. ��I really don’t,’ she insists. ‘And that’s OK – that’s not why I was put on this earth. But I don’t know a single woman, working in any industry, who doesn’t have a story like that, about feeling vulnerable.’

I wonder whether, beneath her sanguine exterior, some of the self-esteem issues she mentioned earlier still lurk. Despite being petite, Amy is surprisingly self-deprecating about her body.

‘I always look pregnant in photos,’ she claims with a laugh. ‘I wear loose dresses because I have a paunch. It’s not a big paunch, but it’s there!’ And she’s less than comfortable being snapped on the red carpet. ‘I understand it’s part of the job, but it’s not my favourite place,’ she has said.

‘I love fashion, but having to be somebody who promotes that industry has always been a tricky one for me, because of the way it affects women’s sense of self,’ she says. ‘I’ve lectured several designers about their sizing. If a dress in my size is five inches too small for me, what’s happening?’

Even before the #MeToo and Time’s Up movements began, Amy was catapulted into the centre of rows about sexism within the industry. When thousands of email accounts at Sony were hacked in 2014, the revelations about American Hustle focused mainly on the fact that Amy and her co-star Jennifer Lawrence were paid less than their male counterparts, Bradley Cooper and Christian Bale.

At the time, she chose not to comment. ‘Everyone wanted me to talk about how I felt about it, but I want to fight for people outside our industry, so to come out and look ungrateful about what I’m paid as an actress just didn’t feel right,’ she says today. 

‘I do believe in equal pay, but let’s start with our teachers. Let’s get waiters paid the minimum wage. That’s what’s great about what’s happening with Time’s Up – we’re starting to have bigger conversations than just about what’s happening in Hollywood.’

Other emails were also leaked, alleging that the film’s director, David O Russell, was so tough on Amy that Bale stepped in to address the problem. ‘He was hard on me, that’s for sure. It was a lot,’ Amy later said, and she has admitted in interviews that she cried ‘most days’ during the making of the film. ‘I remember saying to my husband, “If I can’t figure this out, I can’t work any more. I’ll just have to do something else. I don’t want to be that person, not for my daughter,”’ she has said.

When she talks about coping during the making of Sharp Objects, it’s clear that she was determined for it to be a very different experience. ‘I’m now able to think, “OK, I know what’s going on here. I just need to go to work, do my job, then come home, make dinner and do something grounding.”’

She was recently reunited with Bale for the upcoming biopic Backseat, about former US vice-president Dick Cheney. She whips out her phone to show me an image of her in character as his wife, Lynne, alongside Bale, who played Cheney, and both are virtually unrecognisable thanks to extensive prosthetics.

The lengthy process of transformation renewed her respect for her co-star. ‘I had to wear the prosthetics for only two weeks, but Christian was coming in at 2am every day to have his applied before the day’s filming started. His work ethic is just incredible.’ 

Amy is keen to do more producing, too. ‘There’s lots in pencil on the calendar, but I don’t talk about anything until it’s in pen,’ she says. Risk-averse to the end. And with that, she gives me her top karaoke-bar tips and slips back to her quiet life in the hills.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/amy-adams-equal-pay-family-life-grittiest-role-date/#comments

[patriotsnet]

How To Get Rid Of Republicans

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/how-to-get-rid-of-republicans/

How To Get Rid Of Republicans

Opinion: Almost Half Of Republicans Admit Theyre Ready To Ditch Democracy

Getting Rid of the GOP RINOs

Almost half of Republicans are now saying the quiet part out loud: Theyd prefer to ditch this whole democracy thing.

So finds CBS News-YouGov polling conducted in mid-May. The survey asked Republicans a series of questions about the required level of fealty to former president Donald Trump, their views of the 2020 election and priorities for the party going forward.

The results were bleak.

Two-thirds said it was important for Republicans to be loyal to Donald Trump now. The same share said they did not believe President Biden was the legitimate winner of the 2020 election. recent assertion that I dont think anybody is questioning the legitimacy of the presidential election.)

But the most troubling results came from a question about the partys best strategy for winning in 2022 and 2024. If you were consulting for the party, respondents were asked, would you focus on developing a message and popular policies and ideas to win over more voters? Or would you prioritize changes to the voting rules in states and districts?

A whopping 47 percent chose the latter option. In other words, nearly half of those who still identify as Republicans appear to have given up on a key premise of democracy: that you earn the right to govern by proposing ideas that appeal to a majority of the public. Theyd prefer to short-circuit that process and,instead, make it harder for their opponents to vote.

So much for party of ideas, as the GOP once called itself.

Read more:

Trump Tells Republicans To Get Rid Of Rinos

Former President Donald Trump delivered a fiery speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Sunday. The speech will be seen by many as the first step towards a 2024 comeback, especially given his bold call to action.

Trump called on GOP voters to remove renegade legislators who threaten to split the party.

President Trump vows vengeance on those who betrayed him.

David J Harris Jr

President Trump might have lost the election, but he still enjoys record levels of support among Republican voters and more people turned out to back him than any other GOP candidate in history. On Sunday, he warned the party that RINO lawmakers are threatening to spread division in a party that, at the grassroots level, is united.

The only division is between a handful of Washington, DC, establishment political hacks, Trump said, after naming 17 turncoats who opposed his presidency or voted with the Democrats to impeach him.

Trump ended on an upbeat note, promising to support strong, tough, and smart Republican candidates who can create an effective and united political machine to take on the Democrats.

Thousands Of Voting Rights Advocates Are Rallying Across The Country Saturday To Call For Sweeping Protections Against A Further Erosion Of The Voting Rights Act Of 1965

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Thousands of voting rights advocates rallied across the country Saturday to call for sweeping federal laws that would wipe out voting restrictions advancing in some Republican-controlled states that could make it harder to cast a ballot.

Many activists view the fight over voting rules as the civil rights issue of the era. But frustrations have mounted for months because two expansive election bills have stalled in the U.S. Senate, which is split evenly between Democrats and Republicans and the measures lack the votes to overcome a GOP blockade.

The rallies, which were held in dozens of cities, were intended to increase pressure on Democrats to rewrite procedural rules that would allow Democrats to muscle the legislation through without Republican votes. But they were also aimed at coaxing President Joe Biden to become a more forceful advocate on the issue.

You said the night you won that Black America had your back, and that you were going to have Black Americans backs, the Rev. Al Sharpton, who helped organize the national demonstrations, said at a rally in Washington Well, Mr. President, theyre stabbing us in the back.

More than a thousand people turned out in sweltering heat on the National Mall on Saturday, the 58th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have Dream speech.

Recommended Reading: Did Trump Call Republicans Stupid In 1998

Homosexuals Do Not Deserve Equal Rights

This comes from their religious beliefs, which form the basis for a lot of policy. Republicans believe that homosexuality is a choice and, as such, gay people should not be acknowledged in the same way as other groups. Therefore, according to a Republican, homosexuals should not be allowed to marry, nor should they be allowed to adopt children.

House Gop Leader Says He Backs Ousting Cheney From No 3 Job

WASHINGTON Top House Republican Kevin McCarthy on Sunday publicly endorsed Rep. Elise Stefanik for the post of No. 3 leader, cementing party support of the Donald Trump loyalist over Rep. Liz Cheney, an outspoken critic of the former president for promoting discredited claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

House Republicans could vote as early as Wednesday to remove Cheney, the highest-ranking woman in the Republican leadership and daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, and replace her with Stefanik, whose ascension has received Trumps backing.

Asked in an interview on Fox News Channels Sunday Morning Futures whether he supported Stefanik, R-N.Y., for the job of Republican Conference chair, McCarthy responded: Yes, I do.

We want to be united in moving forward, and I think that is what will take place, he said in response to a question about whether he had the votes to oust Cheney, R-Wyo.

McCarthy said the leadership post must focus on a message day in and day out on what he said were the problems of the Biden administration.

You May Like: Why Did Democrats And Republicans Switch

American Democracy Is At Risk From Trump And The Republicans What Can Be Done

The Capitol attack was a warning: US democracy is at risk. To fix the system before the 2022 midterms, two steps have to be enacted

Academics rarely agree about the big issues, and generally hesitate to enter the political fray by signing collective public statements. Yet a few days ago, more than 100 leading scholars of democracy endorsed a remarkable Statement of Concern, which I also signed, warning about grave threats to American democracy and the deterioration of US elections.

We urge members of Congress to do whatever is necessary including suspending the filibuster in order to pass national voting and election administration standards that both guarantee the vote to all Americans equally, and prevent state legislatures from manipulating the rules in order to manufacture the result they want. Our democracy is fundamentally at stake. History will judge what we do at this moment.

Why the alarm? Is this warranted?

On 14 December 2020, after courts litigated challenges and all 50 states certified the count, the electoral college formally declared the defeat of Donald Trump. Most assumed that the peaceful and orderly transition in power would follow, following historical traditions for over 200 years. Instead, the world was shocked to witness the violent Capitol insurrection on 6 January, triggering five deaths, 140 people injured and more than 400 arrests.

What is to be done?

The Ridiculous Reasons Some Republicans Want To Get Rid Of Liz Cheney

No one is in a hotter seat in today’s Republican Party than Liz Cheney.

The Wyoming Republican, who is the third-ranking member of House Republican leadership, was not-so-subtly called out by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy earlier this week at a GOP retreat in Orlando, Florida.

“There’s a responsibility, if you’re gonna be in leadership, leaders eat last,” McCarthy said. “And when leaders try to go out, and not work as one team, it creates difficulties.” When asked whether Cheney was still a “good fit” for the leadership team, McCarthy responded, “That’s a question for the conference,” Punchbowl News’ Jake Sherman reported Tuesday.

Hours later, former President Donald Trump sounded off on Cheney. Here’s some of what the 45th president had to say:

“Liz Cheney is polling sooo low in Wyoming, and has sooo little support, even from the Wyoming Republican Party, that she is looking for a way out of her Congressional race. Based on all polling, there is no way she can win. She’ll either be yet another lobbyist or maybe embarrass her family by running for President, in order to save face.”

What, you might ask, has Cheney done to deserve such opprobrium? Well, let’s take a closer look.

Video: What Liz Cheney has figured out about Donald Trump

1. She condemned Trump for inciting a riot at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Whoa boy! Pretty radical! And not at all conservative!

Except, wait.

Read Also: How Many Seats Do Republicans Have In The Senate

These Are The 10 Republicans Who Voted To Impeach Trump

The Republican fault lines go in every direction: between the grassroots and the establishment, between big donors and aspiring presidential candidates, between House leaders and Senate leaders.

Republican pollster Frank Luntz says he has seen intraparty battles before, “but this one is so deep and so polarizing and people are so passionate about it I don’t know how you heal it. I don’t know how you bring these people together.”

The biggest internal division right now, says Luntz, is between Republicans who voted for impeachment and voters who opposed it. He found in research this week that 43% of Trump voters say they would definitely vote against any lawmaker who supports impeachment.

“That makes it impossible for Republicans to put together a majority by 2022, and in fact, that’s a direct threat to the existence of the Republican Party overall,” Luntz said.

Republicans Wonder How And If They Can Pull The Party Back Together

How Republicans Will Get Rid of Robert Mueller

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President Trump speaks to supporters on Jan. 6 before pro-Trump extremists launched a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump’s role in encouraging the siege over false claims of election fraud has hardened divisions in the Republican Party.hide caption

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President Trump speaks to supporters on Jan. 6 before pro-Trump extremists launched a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump’s role in encouraging the siege over false claims of election fraud has hardened divisions in the Republican Party.

In a matter of hours on Jan. 6, the Republican Party went from shrugging off its loss of the White House to a party in crisis.

It was becoming clear just before the violent insurrection at the Capitol that the party had lost two Senate runoff elections in Georgia, making President Trump the first president since Herbert Hoover whose party lost the White House, the House and the Senate in one term. And plenty of Republicans blamed Trump for the Democrats’ success in Georgia.

Trump’s own defeat means the GOP has failed to get a majority of votes in seven of the last eight presidential elections.

Now, Trump leaves office as the only president to be impeached twice, and the House vote against Trump over the Capitol insurrection marked the most bipartisan impeachment in U.S. history.

Don’t Miss: How Did Republicans Gain Control Of Southern Governments

Republicans Need To Get Rid Of Mike Lindell

Clueless Mike Lindell caused President Donald John Trump to LOSE Minnesota in a landslide, not win.For the future of the Republican Party, he needs to be ditched. Plus, his own character is quite poor…

Religion And The Belief In God Is Vital To A Strong Nation

Republicans are generally accepting only of the Judeo-Christian belief system. For most Republicans, religion is absolutely vital in their political beliefs and the two cannot be separated. Therefore, separation of church and state is not that important to them. In fact, they believe that much of what is wrong has been caused by too much secularism.

Those are the four basic Republican tenets: small government, local control, the power of free markets, and Christian authority. Below are other things they believe that derive from those four ideas.

Recommended Reading: Why Do Republicans Really Want To Repeal Obamacare

Biden Is An Elusive Target

Republicans have had little success demonizing Biden with independent voters because so many people feel they know him, analysts said.

The president has been a fixture in American politics for more than a half-century. A senator from Delaware for more than three decades, Biden participated in many high-profile hearings and congressional debates. He served eight years as vice president to President Barack Obama.

After winning the Democratic nomination for president last year, Biden;racked up more than 80 million votes to unseat Trump despite Trump and his Republican allies lobbing constant allegations of malfeasance against Biden and his son;Hunter, as well as attacks on Biden’s fitness to hold office.;

Some of those attacks have continued into the Biden presidency;but;to little avail.

An average of polls compiled by Real Clear Politics gives Biden an average job approval rating of 54.2%.

The underlying data in those polls shows a common theme: Republicans tend not to like Biden, and Democrats support him strongly, including those who backed more liberal candidates such as Bernie Sanders in last year’s primaries.;

Americans have a generally positive view of the president who casts himself as the product of a working-class environment in Scranton, Pennsylvania, a practical politician willing to work with Republicans on legislation to help Americans.

What Do Republicans Believe In

Do all Republicans believe the same things? Of course not. Rarely do members of a single political group agree on all issues. Even among Republicans, there are differences of opinion. As a group, they do not agree on every issue.

Some folks vote Republican because of fiscal concerns. Often, that trumps concerns they may have about social issues. Others are less interested in the fiscal position of the party. They vote they way they do because of religion. They believe Republicans are the party of morality. Some simply want less government. They believe only Republicans can solve the problem of big government. Republicans spend less . They lower taxes: some people vote for that alone.

However, the Republican Party does stand for certain things. So I’m answering with regard to the party as a whole. Call it a platform. Call them core beliefs. The vast majority of Republicans adhere to certain ideas.

So what do Republicans believe? Here are their basic tenets:

Also Check: What Year Did The Democrats And Republicans Switch

‘he’s On His Own’: Some Republicans Begin To Flee From Trump

NEW YORK President Donald Trump’s steadfast grip on Republicans in Washington is beginning to crumble, leaving him more politically isolated than at any other point in his turbulent administration.

After riling up a crowd that later staged a violent siege of the U.S. Capitol, Trump appears to have lost some of his strongest allies, including South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham. Two Cabinet members and at least a half dozen aides have resigned. A handful of congressional Republicans are openly considering whether to join a renewed push for impeachment.

One GOP senator who has split with Trump in the past called on him to resign and questioned whether she would stay in the party.

I want him out, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told The Anchorage Daily News. “He has caused enough damage.

The insurrection on the heels of a bruising election loss in Georgia accomplished what other low points in Trump’s presidency did not: force Republicans to fundamentally reassess their relationship with a leader who has long abandoned tradition and decorum. The result could reshape the party, threatening the influence that Trump craves while creating a divide between those in Washington and activists in swaths of the country where the president is especially popular.

President-elect Joe Biden isn’t putting his weight behind the effort yet, suggesting there’s not enough time between now and his Jan. 20 inauguration to pursue impeachment or any other constitutional remedy.

There Arent Real Forces Within The Gop Leading Change

There is some appetite for change within the GOP. In those 2024 polls, at least a third of Republicans either were supporting a GOP presidential candidate other than Trump or were undecided.;

In YouGov Blues polling, only about 40 percent of Republicans identified themselves as Trump Republicans. A recent survey from Fabrizio, Lee and Associates, a GOP-leaning firm that worked on Trumps presidential campaigns, found that about 40 percent of Republican voters didnt want Trump to continue to be a leader in the party. Those numbers dont necessarily mean that those voters want the GOP to change drastically. But there is a substantial number of Trump-skeptical/ready-to-move-on-from-Trump Republican voters. But that sentiment isnt really showing up in the Republican Partys actions during the last three months basically everything GOP officials in states and in Washington are doing lines up with the Trumpian approach. So what gives?;

related:Why The Recent Violence Against Asian Americans May Solidify Their Support Of Democrats Read more. »

It is hard to see Republicans changing course, even if a meaningful minority of voters in the party wants changes, without some elite institutions and powerful people in the party pushing a new vision. And its hard to see real anti-Trumpism forces emerging in the GOP right now.;

Also Check: How Many Registered Democrats And Republicans Are There

[thesportssoundoff]

“Short Notice PPVs are always wacky” The UFC 222 Preview

Joey

February whateverdaythisis

UFC 221 and UFC 222 sort of drink from the same bath water if we're being honest. The difference is that UFC 221 was an example of the worst of the worst case scenario short of cancelling a show. UFC 222 is the rarest example of doing the absolute best case scenario with the worst case scenario as the loss of a big time title fight somehow gave us a deeper card overall. UFC 222 has a very poor main event---but it's got a "star" and having a star is winning half the battle. The co-main event is a fantastic fight between two of the top 5 featherweights in the world with a title fight in the balance with a FRESH title challenger emerging for Max Holloway. You have big dudes Andrei Arlovski and Stefan Struve who add some size for those of us folks who like to see big dudes do big thangs. The rest of this card has a very distinct prospect feel as you have a heaping of good fights BUT a very clear direction where the fights that matter outside of those three are prospect building fights. For instance Sean O'Malley is the THIRD fight on the card, challenging a capable veteran test in Andre Soukhamthath in what should be a damn good fight. The top FS1 fight on the card is a fight designed entirely to get Mackenzie Dern over, drawing Ashley Yoder in a prospect tester fight. The one elite prospect at 135 lbs, Ketlen Vieira gets a massive step up in former title challenger Cat Zingano as well. Even Fight Pass has that kind of fight on it as prospect Jordan Johnson draws a HW dropping down to 205 in Adam Milstead. This isn't a great card but it is a card worthy of being on PPV, even if the main event isn't.

Fights: 12

Debuts: 3 (Yanit Kunitskaya, Mackenzie Dern, Alexander Hernandez)

Fight Changes/Injury Cancellations: 2 (Bobby Green OUT, Alexander Hernandez IN vs Beneil Dariush/Max Holloway OUT, Brian Ortega IN vs Frankie Edgar)

Headliners (fighters who have either main evented or co-main evented shows in the UFC): 8 (Frankie Edgar, Brian Ortega, Stefan Struve, Andrei Arlovski, John Dodson, Cyborg Santos, Bryan Caraway, Beneil Dariush)

Fighters On Losing Streaks in the UFC:  4 (Cat Zingano, Hector Lombard, Mike Pyle, Ashley Yoder)

Fighters On Winning Streaks in the UFC:  7 (Cyborg, Frankie Edgar, Brian Ortega, Bryan Caraway, Ketlen Vieira, Jordan Johnson, Cody Stamman)

Main Card Record Since Jan 1st 2016 (in the UFC): 18-11 Cyborg- 4-0 Yana Kunitskaya- 0-0 Frankie Edgar- 2-1 Brian Ortega- 4-0 Andre Soukhamtath- 1-2 Sean O'Malley- 1-0 Andrei Arlovski- 1-5 Stefan Struve- 2-1 Cat Zingano- 0-2 Ketlen Vieira- 3-0

Too High Up-  CB Dollaway vs Hector Lombard

A lot of people would point to Struve vs Arlovski and I can hear you out there. The problem with that argument though is that Struve/Arlovski on a card with two featherweight fights (one male, one female) and two bantamweight fights (one male, one female); you kind of need two big guys to entice people who only like big dudes. As stated before, there ARE fans who object to the lighter weight classes almost on principle and that in turn you probably could use a big boi fight for some much needed card variety. Instead I'll turn to Lombard vs Dollaway where both guys are in rough shape in their respective careers. Lombard is the ultimate example of the busted signing and since the start of 2015, he's 0-4-1 with 3 stoppage losses in the last 4 fights. On the other end of the coin, you have C.B Dollaway who is 2-3 in his last five fights and the last time he won at middleweight was in 2014 vs Francis Carmont. The last time Dollaway beat a dude coming off a win? The same year in March of 2014. Long story short, this fight being on the FS1 prelims just doesn't seem right.

Too Low- Bryan Caraway vs Cody Stamman

I know it's sort of done in by the fact that 7 of the 9 fights on the FS1 slate are at 155 lbs or lower BUT Stamman vs Caraway is a really intriguing fight. Since getting into the  UFC, Stamman showcased his wrestling en route to a big decision win over Terrion Ware and then followed that up by upsetting Tom Duquesnoy in a fight where dude pretty much did everything he wanted to do vs the more athletic Duquesnoy. Cody Stamman's overall game is about physicality and toughness complemented by some orthodox striking and top heavy wrestling and at this point, he's due a step up relative to divisional relevance. As such, this Caraway fight is a PERFECT clash between a good prospect and a good veteran----but it's basically buried as NOT EVEN THE FIGHT PASS HEADLINER. I disapprove.

Stat Monitor for 2018: Debuting Fighters (Current number: 4-8):  Yana Kunitskaya, Mackenzie Dern and Alex Hernandez

Short Notice Fighters (Current number: 4-2): Brian Ortega, Alex Hernandez

Second Fight (Current number: 7-9): Sean O'Malley

Cage Corrosion (Current number: 5-5):  Adam Milstead, Bryan Caraway, Mike Pyle, Cat Zingano

Undefeated Fighters (Current number: 6-8): Kelten Vieira, Sean O'Malley, Jordan Johnson, Brian Ortega, Mackenzie Dern

Twelve Precarious Ponderings

1- So why should we care about this main event? What necessarily is the appeal or the allure of this fight? I know there's a sizable segment of the audience that's gonna want to see this title fight but I gotta admit that this is the first title fight in a long time where there's really nothing I care about. I'm not one of those folks who thinks dudes are right to walk out before a main event they don't give a shit about and I find it pretty unfortunate that I'm on the fence about even watching this main event. It's just hard to see anything about this fight that I feel any sort of general emotion about.

2- Is it fair to say that Yana Kunitskaya is the worst UFC title challenger since Chris Cariaso back in 2014?

3- I know a lot of people think that Cyborg stepped up to save this show but it seems obvious to me she's just trying to fight her way through her contract as quickly as possible. Works out best for both parties!

4- Frankie Edgar vs Brian Ortega is going to test how many MMA fans actually follow prospects vs the ones who pretend to follow prospects. I've seen a few knuckledraggers do the whole "The Answer is gonna derail the hype train!" bit and I've seen enough "Ortega will get exposed!" talk to the point I'm left wondering when MMA fans stop considering a dude to be a prospect. Brian Ortega is not a prospect. He is 27 years old with wins over Clay Guida, Renato Moicano, Thiago Tavares and Cub Swanson without spending more than five seconds thinking about his resume. He has showcased every skill necessary to ensure that there isn't one significant area in his game that is such a glaring unproven untested area as to put a cap on his ceiling as a pro fighter. We've seen him tested and we've seen him face adversity. Ortega isn't a prospect! What he is is a young PROVEN in his prime 145er facing another proven 145 lber. The idea that Ortega is some prospect who will eventually get exposed is flawed because if that's the case, it would've happened by now. You're no longer a prospect if you're seven years into your MMA career, have had six fights in the UFC and have main evented an event. As much as people want Brian Ortega to NOT be a thing, he is a thing and will continue to be a thing no matter what happens between Edgar and Ortega.

5- NOW if you wanna talk a hype train in some danger; Andre Soukhamtath vs Sean O'Malley. Let's briefly point out why this is the right idea; O'Malley is fighting in a division where everybody is pretty good. This isn't a 155 or a 170 where there's a sizable underbelly of fluff that exists to sort of allow certain fighters a chance to eat up on the mediocres. A lot of those dudes have either retired or been cut, leaving a really thick division with a lot of fighters who can all beat one another. Soukhamthath is probably at the very bottom of that totem pole; a guy who looks good in spurts but can be outworked and hurt. Stylistically he's a bit what O'Malley wants; a guy who will come forward at him in a straight line, not exactly give you a ton of craft and ultimately can be taken down or hit at will. NOW for why it might be a bad idea; Andre Soukhamtath has three UFC fights but in those three fights he's lost two split decisions (Albert Morales and Alejandro Perez) and iced Luke Saunders in a fight he was losing up until that point. He has dropped all three opponents he's faced so you know he hits hard. O'Malley CAN be hit, giving us an imminent sense of danger right off the jump. Soukhamtath also works at such a slow pace that he's probably not going to tire out compared to O'Malley who was sucking wind in a frenetic second round before finding a big energy jump in the third. This is, in many ways, a sneaky tough fight for a flawed prospect.

6- Andrei Arlovski staved off retirement by upsetting Junior Albini in a showcase fight for the diaper wearing Brazilian in November and his reward is a more appeasing stylistic matchup with Stefan Struve. The weird thing about Arlovski's fights these days is that he's not entirely faded to the point where you'd say he's done (he gave Overeem some tense moments against the fence, had spurts of success vs Josh Barnett and almost finished Marcin Tybura) but those glimpses are becoming less and less frequent. The same could be said for Stefan Struve who battled back from a broken jaw and some serious heart related issues to resume his MMA career to modest success. Struve had success vs Alexander Volkov but couldn't keep it up and in what has become a Struve habit; faded when the pressure got too hot and he couldn't get the fight to the ground. I guess my question is whether this is less a test about who has more to offer the heavyweight division but rather which guy has the most left?

7- So what's going to be our fight that gets cancelled the week of? Bonus points if you with "the day of" and get it right!

8-Fun debate to be had; is the UFC rooting for Ketlen Vieira to win so they have a new 135 super contender OR are they hoping for Cat Zingano to win knowing that Cat coming off a win probably makes for the most appealing 145 lb title fight Cyborg can have outside of a Nunes/Cybrog clash?

9- John Dodson has never lost two fights in a row BUT it feels like his career is heading in a pretty precarious place now. He's 3-3 in his last 6 with just one finish in those six fights. His calling card was "the smiling guy who moves really fast and hits really hard" but that loses its luster when you stop putting people out with frequent regularity. Now he's just the smiling guy who moves really fast and loses split decisions. Dodson vs Pedro Munhoz is the perfect fight for both guys as Munhoz needs a really legitimate win and Dodson could really use a dynamic performance to get his career sorted out. Both guys have something to offer the other which creates for, on paper at least, a really compelling clash with high stakes involved.

10- Does a finish get Jordan Johnson any sort of attention at 205 lbs?

11- Beneil Dariush has one of MMA's low key elite resumes at 155 lbs with Edson Barboza, Michael Johnson, Evan Dunham, James Vick, Tony Martin and Rashid Magomedov all on the resume. He just lacks the chin (and the requisite consistent pop in his hands) to really be considered among the tops in his division.  I also think he probably earned the win over Dunham in hindsight.

12- Wonder if  Mackenzie Dern gets the strawweight division out of this prolonged funk it's been in.

Must Wins

1- Frankie Edgar

At 36 years old, Edgar really really needs this one. A loss to Brian Ortega and you almost have to close the book on Frankie Edgar ever getting the 145 lb crown. Edgar is a hall of famer but at some point he's going to wake up and fight like a 36 year old who is heavily reliant on timing, explosion and quickness. Ortega is a really big dude for 145 lbs in build and bulk. He's more reminiscent of former Edgar rival Benson Henderson than any opponent that Edgar has faced recently at 145 lbs. He's massive, deceptively slick, a frequent powerful kicker and blessed with a wide array and assortment of submission tricks that Edgar will need to be mindful of. This is a toss up fight for me but for Edgar, if he doesn't win, you're left realizing that the bar has been set at 145 lbs and he's no longer in the necessary class to compete with the elite.

2- Sean O'Malley

The first name out of Dana White's mouth when he talks about star building is Sean O'Malley. I'm not as on board. O'Malley is a really fun fighter who has good fights and does have a bit of that star power vibe in the package.  The problem is that conversely, I feel like O'Malley flaws are a lot tougher to get away with at 135 than it would be at 185 and up. Soukhamthath is basically bottom of the barrel and he's still pretty damn good. This is an unforgiving division to be learning on the fly but O'Malley's gotta do it.

3- Mackenzie Dern

The UFC Is trying to jolt some life into their WMMA rankings and so Dern who is in that "good enough to beat 99% of the regional chicks but still too raw to make serious noise soon" is being tasked with...well...making serious noise soon. Dern's striking looked better but is a ways away---but her ground game is absolutely the key to her success going forward. Dern's job is going to be to beat up the sort of women who make up the "nameless faceless opponent" rankings at 115 and 125 lbs. Let's just hope the UFC learns to take it slow.

Five Can't Miss Fights

1- Brian Ortega vs Frankie Edgar

2- Andre Soukhamtath vs Sean O'Malley

3- Pedro Munhoz vs John Dodson

4- Andrei Arlovski vs  Stefan Struve (even if it's bad, it'll still be fun enough to laugh at)

5- Cat Zingano vs Ketlen Vieira

[auburnfamilynews]

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Take a look at my preseason thoughts on the league and how Auburn’s SEC schedule looks for the upcoming season.

Happy GAMEDAY everyone! Now that we’ve gone through the rosters, the non-conference schedule and other basketball nuggets, it’s time to look at the SEC Schedule and offer some predictions for this year. I can’t wait to look back on these predictions in March and see how wrong I was about this season. I went game by game picking all the games and this is how I “think” it will turn out this season. I’ve listed everyone’s KenPom rankings as well and Auburn will begin at #22 in the KenPom rankings.

Florida 15-3

Kentucky 15-3

LSU 13-5

Auburn 12-6

Tennessee 10-8

Mississippi State 10-8

Alabama 9-9

Missouri 9-9

Arkansas 8-10

Ole Miss 8-10

Georgia 7-11

Texas A&M 4-14

South Carolina 3-15

Vanderbilt 3-15

Saturday January 4th

3:30PM, SEC Network

at Mississippi State Bulldogs

Last Year’s Record: 23-11 (10-8)

KenPom Ranking: 53

Preseason Media Prediction: 7th

My Projection: 6th

Leading Returning Scorers: Tyson Carter (10.4 PPG), Reggie Perry (9.7 PPG), Nick Weatherspoon (9.6 PPG)

The Bulldogs lost their top 2 scorers in Quinndary Weatherspoon and Lamar Peters and will play without Nick Weatherspoon for the first 10 games of the season. This is now Reggie Perry’s team as he was named Preseason 1st Team All-SEC a few weeks ago. They have great size at every position on the floor and in the game in Starkville last season, they took advantage of it. This will be a good challenge for Auburn getting out of the gate in SEC play.

Wednesday January 8th

8PM, SEC Network

Vanderbilt Commodores

Last Year’s Record: 9-23 (0-18)

KenPom Ranking: 148

Preseason Media Prediction: 14th

My Projection: 14th

Leading Returning Scorers: Saben Lee (12.7 PPG), Aaron Nesmith (11 PPG)

It’s a whole new era on the West End of Nashville. Jerry Stackhouse will make his SEC Coaching Debut in the Jungle. There’s nowhere to go but up for the Commodores after the team posted the first winless season by a team in the SEC in over 60 years. Darius Garland played just 5 games before an injury sidelined him and he went on to become the 5th pick in the NBA Draft. The Dores never recovered from losing their starting PG last year.

I think you'll see improvement from Vandy this year as the team had a solid recruiting class including the son of NBA Hall of Famer Scottie Pippen, Scotty Pippen Jr. Nesmith was named to the 2nd Team All-SEC squad.

Saturday January 11th

5PM ESPN/ESPN2

Georgia Bulldogs

Last Year’s Record: 11-21 (2-16)

KenPom Ranking: 55

Preseason Media Prediction: 9th

My Projection: 11th

Leading Returning Scorers: Rayshaun Hammonds (12.1 PPG), Tyree Crump (9.1 PPG), Jordan Harris (7.8 PPG)

Nicolas Claxton went to the NBA or else I think this team would be a Top 4 or 5 preseason pick. The player to watch for Georgia though is Anthony Edwards, and this will be your only chance to see him play in Auburn. Ranked #3 in Rivals Top 150, Edwards, an Atlanta native, elected to stay home for at least a year as he looks likely to jump to the NBA after the season. Fellow freshmen Sahvir Wheeler and Jaywkon Walton also look to make a big impact in their 1st year in Athens. Tom Crean’s squad looks likely to take a step forward after a 13th place finish in the league last season.

Wednesday January 15th

8PM, ESPN2/ESPNU

at Alabama Crimson Tide

Last Year’s Record: 18-16 (8-10)

KenPom Ranking: 70

Preseason Media Prediction: 6th

My Projection: 7th

Leading Returning Scorers: Kira Lewis Jr. (13.5 PPG), John Petty (10.2 PPG), Herb Jones (6.4 PPG)

Whether you want to believe it or not, Alabama made an outstanding hire getting Nate Oats from Buffalo. Oats has won everywhere he’s gone and quite frankly, the recruiting battles between Oats and Bruce Pearl will be ones to watch. The biggest wins for Oats was convincing Kira Lewis, John Petty and others to remain in Tuscaloosa. In addition to Lewis at the point, they added James “Beetle” Bolden, a grad transfer from West Virginia to the backcourt who has shot 40% from 3-point range in his career.

Last year, Auburn swept Alabama. The 2nd loss was a crippling blow to the Tide’s NCAA Tournament hopes. I’ve seen Alabama predicted to finish higher than Auburn by several people and this team, on paper, looks like a NCAA Tournament team. It’s gonna be difficult to sweep Alabama this year but at this point, we’ll have a good idea of where each team stands.

Saturday January 18th

12:30PM, CBS

at Florida Gators

Last Year’s Record: 20-16 (9-9)

KenPom Ranking: 12

Preseason Media Prediction: 2nd

My Projection: 1st

Leading Returning Scorers: Noah Locke (9.4 PPG), Keyontae Johnson (8.1 PPG), Andrew Nembhard (8 PPG)

I think Florida will win the SEC this year and the addition of grad transfer Kerry Blackshear from Virginia Tech is a big reason why. Combine that with the additions of highly rated freshmen guards Scottie Lewis and Tre Mann, along with Andrew Nembhard and several others returning to Gainesville and you’ve got the makings of a potential Final Four squad this year.

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

Kerry Blackshear

Auburn hasn’t won in Gainesville since 1996 and until beating the Gators twice last season, hadn’t won against Florida since 2009. This will be one of the most difficult games of the year for Auburn.

Wednesday January 22th

6PM, ESPN2/ESPNU

South Carolina Gamecocks

Last Year’s Record: 16-16 (11-7)

KenPom Ranking: 69

Preseason Media Prediction: 10th

My Projection: 13th

Leading Returning Scorers: AJ Lawson (13.4 PPG), Keyshawn Bryant (9 PPG), Maik Kotsar (6.7 PPG)

Remarkably, South Carolina was 16-16 overall last year and finished tied with Auburn for 4th in the SEC. The non-conference schedule was brutal last season for them is a big reason why but they surprised some folks in league play, as is typical of Frank Martin teams. Chris Silva is now playing for the Miami Heat which means he won’t be able to torment Auburn this season. Last season in 2 games against the Tigers, Silva scored 59 points and grabbed 25 rebounds.

This game is also not in Columbia which has been a house of horrors for Auburn the past 2 years. This team will e primarily led by a group of sophomores this year led by Lawson who elected to stay in Columbia for at least another season. With Silva gone, all eyes will be on Lawson if the Gamecocks hope to finish better than 16-16 this year.

Tuesday January 28th

8PM, ESPN/ESPNU

at Ole Miss Rebels

Last Year’s Record: 20-13 (10-8)

KenPom Ranking: 60

Preseason Media Prediction: 8th

My Projection: 10th

Leading Returning Scorers: Breein Tyree (17.9 PPG), Devontae Shuler (10.3 PPG), Blake HInson (8.3 PPG)

Terence Davis is gone but Breein Tyree and Devontae Shuler return to Kermit Davis’s 2nd Ole Miss squad that made a surprising run to the NCAA Tournament last season. A team that was picked to finish last in the league last year, finished 7th in the league but were blown out by Oklahoma in the Round of 64.

Kermit also had Auburn’s number last year sweeping the season series and executing a game plan of slowing the game down, and making tough shots late in the shot clock in both meetings.

Saturday February 1st

5 OR 7PM, ESPN

Kentucky Wildcats

Last Year’s Record: 30-7 (15-3)

KenPom Ranking: 2

Preseason Media Prediction: 1st

My Projection: 2nd

Leading Returning Scorers: Ashton Hagans (7.7 PPG), Immanuel Quickley (5.2 PPG), Nick Richards (4 PPG)

P.J. Washington, Tyler Herro, Reid Travis, Keldon Johnson and others are gone but Ashton Hagans and E.J. Montgomery are back for Year 2 in Lexington. After admitting that they didn’t take Auburn seriously in the Elite 8, Coach Cal will have his kids ready for this one.

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Ashton Hagans

This year’s talented freshmen crew is led by Tyrese Maxey, the 10th ranked recruit in America. Kahlil Whitney (14th), Keion Brooks (29th), Johnny Juzang (34th), and Dontaie Allen (68th) make up the talented group of freshmen Coach Cal put together this year. Like last year, they also added a grad transfer, Nate Sestina, from Bucknell. He averaged 15.8 points and 8.5 rebounds a game for the Bisons.

Depending on how things are progressing in the season, this game has a primetime television slot and could very well be Auburn’s 1st Basketball College Gameday appearance.

Tuesday February 4th

6PM, SEC Network

at Arkansas Razorbacks

Last Year’s Record: 18-16 (8-10)

KenPom Ranking: 44

Preseason Media Prediction: 11th

My Projection: 9th

Leading Returning Scorers: Isaiah Joe (13.9 PPG), Mason Jones (13.6 PPG), Jalen Harris (7.6 PPG)

I think the Razorbacks are better than 11th and Eric Musselman is a big reason why. He is doing phenomenal work with the fanbase and is building a heckuva recruiting class for next season. In fact, Musselman and Pearl are battling for several guys in next year’s class inclduing Chris Moore and Jaylin Williams who spent their weekend on the Plains.

But as for this year’s team, they have to first and foremost replace Daniel Gafford. That won’t be an easy task but Isaiah Joe appears ready to be the next star in Fayetteville. Joe had a great freshmen season knocking down 113 3-pointers last season, 2nd in the SEC to Bryce Brown (of course).

Michael C. Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Isaiah Joe

Saturday February 8th

11AM, ESPN/ESPN2

LSU Tigers

Last Year’s Record: 28-7 (16-2)

KenPom Ranking: 38

Preseason Media Prediction: 3rd

My Projection: 3rd

Leading Returning Scorers: Skylar Mays (13.4 PPG), Javonte Smart (11.1 PPG), Emmitt Williams (7 PPG)

There was a lot of things going on in Baton Rouge towards the end of last season. Will Wade was suspended by the school the day before the regular season finale against Vanderbilt as part of the FBI Investigation and didn’t coach in the postseason. Wade was reinstated in the middle of April and remains on the Tigers sidelines. Wade has turned around the LSU program in short order since taking over in the Bayou and has a solid group returning this year.

However, last year’s SEC Regular Season Champs visit Auburn without Tremont Waters as he’ll now be Bryce Brown’s teammate on the Maine Red Claws in the G-League. LSU has however added Trendon Watford, a highly touted kid out of Birmingham who spurned Alabama to go to Baton Rouge.

Wednesday February 12th

6PM, ESPN2

Alabama Crimson Tide

Auburn has defeated the Tide by an average of 20 points over the past 3 meetings inside Auburn Arena.

Saturday February 15th

5PM, ESPN2

at Missouri Tigers

Last Year’s Record: 15-17 (5-13)

KenPom Ranking: 39

Preseason Media Prediction: 13th

My Projection: 8th

Leading Returning Scorers: Mark Smith (11.4 PPG), Jeremiah Tilmon (10.1 PPG), Javon Pickett (7.7 PPG)

No more Jordan Geist, no more Porters, it’s a new day in Columbia but here’s another team that I think will be better than their preseason prediction. Mark Smith and Jeremiah Tilmon return to bolster the Tigers frontcourt and they got several contributions from their freshmen last year.

Injuries really derailed Mizzou last year but as we’ve seen, there’s been one team picked very low by the media who ends being the surprise team. I think it could be Mizzou this year.

Wednesday February 19th

6PM, ESPN2/ESPNU

at Georgia Bulldogs

Auburn has won 4 straight against the Dawgs, the longest winning streak against Georgia since winning 12 in a row between 1976-1980.

Saturday February 22nd

11AM, CBS

Tennessee Volunteers

Last Year’s Record: 31-6 (15-3)

KenPom Ranking: 20

Preseason Media Prediction: 5th

My Projection: 5th

Leading Returning Scorers: Lamonte Turner (10.9 PPG), Jordan Bone (10.6 PPG), John Fulkerson (3.1 PPG)

Auburn plays 2 of their final 5 games against Tennessee this season with the first being in Auburn. There’s a lot of pieces off both teams that are no longer there and this will be a very interesting game from the sense of all the new pieces who look to make an impact.

Grant Williams, Admiral Schofield, and Jordan Bone have all departed Knoxville. This year, they will need Jordan Bowden and Lamonte Turner to take a step forward. They do bring in highly touted freshman Josiah James, the 14th ranked recruit who will be asked to be a big part of Rick Barnes team in his first season on Rocky Top. A lot of predictions have this team high but others have this team on the bubble. How these 3 develop will go a long way in determining if Tennessee will return to the Big Dance.

Tuesday February 25th

6PM, ESPN/ESPN2/SEC Network

Ole Miss Rebels

Breein Tyree is the SEC’s leading returning scorer from last season.

Saturday February 29th

2:45PM, CBS

at Kentucky Wildcats

Auburn has not won at Rupp Arena since 1988.

Wednesday March 4th

6PM, ESPN2/ESPNU

Texas A&M Aggies

Last Year’s Record: 14-18 (6-12)

KenPom Ranking: 58

Preseason Media Prediction: 12th

My Projection: 12th

Leading Returning Scorers: Savion Flagg (13.9 PPG), Wendell Mitchell (13 PPG), TJ Starks (12.3 PPG)

We’ve looked at every team except for the Aggies who will be the opponent for the final home game for Austin Wiley, Anfernee McLemore, Danjel Purifoy, Samir Doughty and J’Von McCormick. Buzz Williams takes over for Billy Kennedy in College Station and a change was sorely needed. Buzz was the primary target for the Aggies and they got their man. He did a terrific job at both Marquette and Virginia Tech, getting the Hokies a basket away from the Elite 8 last season, losing to Duke in heartbreaking fashion. This will be The Aggies will visit Auburn for the first time since handing the Tigers their only home loss of the 2017-2018 season.

The Aggies do return 5 of their top 6 scorers so perhaps this is another team that could surprise in Year 1 of the Buzz era.

Saturday March 7th

11AM, ESPN/ESPN2

at Tennessee Volunteers

These two schools meet in the season finale at 11AM, for the 2nd straight year, this time in Knoxville.

Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

Jordan Bowden

To close, it’s been 213 days since Auburn has played a Basketball Game but we’ve made it! The wait is over as Auburn takes the court tonight at 8PM against Georgia Southern. I’ll have a preview of tonight’s game out later today.

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What coaches actually assume after high gamers had been linked to school basketball’s scandal

On Friday, faculty basketball coaches throughout the nation had been captivated by Yahoo Sports activities’ revealing report that uncovered the truth of agent glad-handing and third-party recruitment that has greased the wheels of the game for many years. 

However though the small print of the report offered some shocking names and ranging financial funds for various actions or journeys, the actions depicted within the paperwork usually are not a shock to most within the trade. 

“As you understand, there’s leeches in every single place,” a coach from the Midwest stated. “This s— is only a internet of s—.”

A Pac-12 coach chimed in: “Each single time it is these leeches and these hangers-on who convey these youngsters down. And these youngsters are those who’re probably the most harmless. We’re holding faculty athletes persistently to a better customary than adults.”

CBS Sports activities spoke with seven lively head and assistant coaches all through Friday to get a way of how their fraternity has been rocked by the story in query. All got the choice to talk on the file. All declined, lots of them citing the truth that they have been requested to not publicly communicate on the story overtaking faculty basketball. 

“Everybody — everyone — is looking for out a) what the f– is occurring, b) who did what and c) what to do about it,” one coach stated.

And within the wake of Friday’s information occasions, plenty of coaches are clamming up or are hesitant to be essential primarily as a result of guys like Tony Bennett — whose status is pristine — have gamers or gamers’ members of the family named within the Yahoo Sports activities report. 

“There is no probability,” a coach from a top-25 program stated in reference to Bennett partaking in any form of dishonest. “None. None. None.” 

Malcolm Brogdon’s mom has already gone on the file to discredit the allegation. In doing so, she brings to mild the truth that simply because some gamers’ names are on a supposed expense report, it would not convict them or imply their applications are doomed for NCAA self-discipline. However the level is, plenty of coaches now don’t desire communicate out towards this challenge publicly for worry of it coming again to chunk them. Perhaps that they had a participant take a couple of conferences with brokers and had meals paid for. (If that’s the case, the coaches do not wish to be seen sooner or later as hypocrites, even when that they had no information of such habits.) 

“You take a look at Malcolm, the coaches did not set that up,” one Large 12 coach stated. “The coaches did not get Malcolm due to that. The massive distinction is if you happen to utilized Andy Miller within the recruiting course of to get [a player].”

You may simply make the argument that this can be a dumb rule within the first place, however it’s a rule nonetheless and it is one that would impression some coaches and applications going ahead. 

“I believe there are plenty of coaches, when this complete factor broke and the way everybody assumes that anyone talked about is responsible,” stated a coach whose faculty has been concerned with the FBI, “and also you hearken to very profitable head coaches that have gotten on their excessive horse about no matter statements they made individually, to now see that plenty of these things is popping out about their applications. Properly, what do you must say? What do you must say now? Folks had been too fast to hurry to judgment. I am not simply saying these coaches, however I believe a few of our administration and the best way everyone in society is. It is such as you’re responsible till confirmed harmless as a substitute of the opposite approach round.”

CBS Sports activities additionally reached out to former Indiana coach Tom Crean, who spoke on the file. And not using a group to educate, Crean has nobody to reply to. It is an necessary distinction between him and others who requested to not be named. 

“Any time one thing like this comes on the market’s a whole ‘wow’ issue to it, particularly whenever you’re seeing names and numbers,” Crean stated. “It is unhappy on many ranges and it is sickening on the core of it. It truly is. And on the identical time, whenever you’re concerned in it, so long as somebody like me has been or others are, you understand that’s not even probably near the one occasion the place this stuff might have or did occur. You’d like to say, ‘This can be a actually remoted scenario,’ however I believe anybody that is on this is aware of that it is not. You can be most likely be altering plenty of names and you might be altering on all completely different ranges. You can be placing one other identify right here, one other identify there.”

Crean’s phrases had been echoed by nearly each coach CBS Sports activities spoke to. As in: We’re solely seeing a small portion. 

“It is minuscule whenever you discuss meals and stuff like that, however whenever you begin speaking about hundreds of ?” one coach at a faculty in California stated. “They’re solely speaking about Andy Miller! You understand how many extra brokers are on the market and working in the identical approach? That is what’s humorous. They assume it is one company? Come on now.”

Miller and his firm (ASM) had been busted by the feds, however it’s nearly universally accepted that many different brokers and their places of work would have been simply as susceptible in the event that they had been raided. Loads coaches and their assistant are grateful that the FBI’s investigation — widespread because it purports to be — remains to be pretty slender within the macrocosm of school basketball. 

Crean has publicly and privately lamented through the years concerning the lack of consistency and talent for the NCAA to punish coaches and applications who navigate the murky waters. However even he admits that lording over a program to the purpose that no participant or a participant’s household ever a lot as will get a meal paid by an agent, runner or in any other case, is sort of not possible. 

“I am not naive sufficient to assume I coached all these years and nothing occurred — that might be fully silly,” Crean stated, then added, “Do plenty of issues have to alter? Sure they do. Are there going to be situations the place coaches had no thought one thing of these issues had been happening? Completely. Are there going to be situations the place coaches had been concerned behind the scenes, a pair layers eliminated? Completely.” 

Given the impression of the story, some are questioning if the bigger-name coaches are lengthy for his or her jobs. Friday’s information is barely the newest onslaught prior to now four-plus months of tough press for quite a few high-profile names.

“Guys like, and I am throwing this man’s identify in due to the deal he had yesterday, like Sean Miller and Tom Izzo: what number of extra bullets can they take?” one coach stated. “For me it is an attention-grabbing deal. You’ve some Corridor of Fame coaches clearly. It stretches all gamuts. It is Utah, it is Wichita State, it is Michigan State, it is Duke. It touches all gamuts with guys who’ve had nice success with their applications. To me, it turns into a deal now. What do establishments do? We have seen what USC did with (De’Anthony) Melton early. We have seen what Auburn did with their youngsters. Do establishments say, ‘ what, we’re too far into the season. We have got Miles Bridges and may make the Closing 4.'” 

As of late Friday, Michigan State had not determined whether or not or not Bridges would play this weekend. Kentucky coach John Calipari stated he anticipated star freshman Kevin Knox to play on Saturday. And Duke introduced that it vetted Wendell Carter’s scenario and deemed him not a threat for NCAA eligibility. He’ll play in Duke’s recreation Saturday towards Syracuse.  

However Carter’s scenario, like Brogdon’s, are why coaches have concern about how this story will form the notion of the game. Their feeling is that lots of people will select to not differentiate between the potential violations that the paperwork reveal. There’s a enormous distinction between a mum or dad or a prospect getting a meal picked up at P.F. Chang’s vs. having tens of hundreds of loaned to you, which purportedly is the case with former NC State participant Dennis Smith Jr.

“My preliminary response is, OK, hold on right here,” one other coach stated. “Simply because a child went out to dinner or no matter, that is completely completely different than getting $63,000. And grouping all of them collectively, it simply appears, not all of us learn each story all through. ‘Carolina’s in, Virginia’s in, all these dishonest bastards! So-and-so made an ATM withdrawal.’ Properly, wait a second. How are you aware that ATM withdrawal went to who? In case you can present the place $63,000 or $37,000 went, that is enormous. That large and that is clearly been happening.” 

The identical coach referenced a dialog he had with a former NBA coach who has heard current lottery decide acquired a six-figure cost to play faculty basketball. 

“I suppose I am doing a little bit little bit of selective morality,” that coach stated. “However there’s egregious ones after which there’s ones, like, I do not know the way you might hold your guys from going out to dinner with brokers.” 

To be clear, gamers are allowed to share meals with brokers. It solely turns into a violation if a participant has the agent pay for the meal or present something of financial or materials worth that falls underneath the NCAA’s definition of an impermissible profit. 

“The humorous factor about that is, the NCAA is at midnight,” that very same coach stated.

However the FBI is perhaps to an extent as properly. One coach who spoke to CBS Sports activities, whose program has been involved with the FBI, stated that the investigation has not been as buttoned-up or well-rounded as some would possibly imagine. 

“I sit up for the day once they’ll need to say they’ve moved on from us,” he stated. “I believe lots of people have a really large false impression about this investigation about how thorough these folks have been and are. That is the one factor I will say. Earlier than all this occurred, if ever I might have noticed something the place the FBI is concerned I might have been like, ‘Oh, that individual did it.’ I used to be a kind of folks. However going by way of it, I’ll endlessly, for the remainder of my life, I’ll wait till extra of the details come out. I’ll by no means rush to guage on anyone as a result of this complete factor.” 

The coach later stated: “I do not want anybody to undergo what we have gone by way of, as a result of it is taken years off our lives right here.”

Whereas faculty basketball undoubtedly has its warts, coaches usually are not pinning most of what got here on Friday on the gamers. Partly as a result of they perceive the youngsters they recruit, but in addition as a result of plenty of them had been as soon as recruits themselves.

“To me there’s two distinctive variations,” one veteran coach stated in laying out how brokers work the waters. “One is a coach speaking to an agent and saying, ‘Hey, I would like him to go to, give him 5 grand, I will get him again to you,’ all that form of stuff. And the opposite is that this the opposite stuff we’re seeing right here. It is completely different. … Most people thinks a coach is aware of every part. What number of mother and father know what their youngsters are doing each weekend?”

The children are those whose names have been put entrance and heart. Miles Bridges has turn out to be one of many faces of this scandal as a result of his mom might need taken $400 from Christian Dawkins, along with Dawkins marking down on an expense report spreadsheet that he paid $70.05 for Bridges’ mother and father’ meals at a spot referred to as Redwood Lodge.

And infrequently occasions, as this story is proving, gamers’ mother and father or representatives are sitting down with brokers properly earlier than these gamers both commit to a college or formally enroll at a college. Once more, there’s a large gulf between that and an agent luring a participant to a college, or to his personal firm for future enterprise, by loaning him tens of hundreds of . 

Some coaches imagine Friday’s information highlights a basic flaw with the NCAA’s rulebook. Talking on Bridges, one coach mused on how what Michigan State goes by way of at this second is a miserable commentary on the place consideration and blame typically will get wrongly assigned with tales like this.  

“If there was a $70 dinner and $400 [payment] it will be a basic case of what goes on on this enterprise,” he stated. “You prey on poor households, and we’ll say African-American households, and for what? As a result of their son can play and may make you a greenback. It could make you cash. It is disgusting. It is really disgusting. However nonetheless right here we’re. We sit, we fear, and we wait.”  

We might quickly learn how critical these particulars actually are, or what they imply to the NCAA, as a result of amid all of the noise this story has created, one factor is essential to remember: not one coach is related to any of the transactions depicted within the seized paperwork. And but the truth that so many coaches will not go on the file about this speaks to how spooked they nonetheless are. However plenty of questions nonetheless await solutions, and now right here comes the white scorching highlight of March.

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How To Get Rid Of Republicans

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/how-to-get-rid-of-republicans/

How To Get Rid Of Republicans

Opinion: Almost Half Of Republicans Admit Theyre Ready To Ditch Democracy

Getting Rid of the GOP RINOs

Almost half of Republicans are now saying the quiet part out loud: Theyd prefer to ditch this whole democracy thing.

So finds CBS News-YouGov polling conducted in mid-May. The survey asked Republicans a series of questions about the required level of fealty to former president Donald Trump, their views of the 2020 election and priorities for the party going forward.

The results were bleak.

Two-thirds said it was important for Republicans to be loyal to Donald Trump now. The same share said they did not believe President Biden was the legitimate winner of the 2020 election. recent assertion that I dont think anybody is questioning the legitimacy of the presidential election.)

But the most troubling results came from a question about the partys best strategy for winning in 2022 and 2024. If you were consulting for the party, respondents were asked, would you focus on developing a message and popular policies and ideas to win over more voters? Or would you prioritize changes to the voting rules in states and districts?

A whopping 47 percent chose the latter option. In other words, nearly half of those who still identify as Republicans appear to have given up on a key premise of democracy: that you earn the right to govern by proposing ideas that appeal to a majority of the public. Theyd prefer to short-circuit that process and,instead, make it harder for their opponents to vote.

So much for party of ideas, as the GOP once called itself.

Read more:

Trump Tells Republicans To Get Rid Of Rinos

Former President Donald Trump delivered a fiery speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference on Sunday. The speech will be seen by many as the first step towards a 2024 comeback, especially given his bold call to action.

Trump called on GOP voters to remove renegade legislators who threaten to split the party.

President Trump vows vengeance on those who betrayed him.

David J Harris Jr

President Trump might have lost the election, but he still enjoys record levels of support among Republican voters and more people turned out to back him than any other GOP candidate in history. On Sunday, he warned the party that RINO lawmakers are threatening to spread division in a party that, at the grassroots level, is united.

The only division is between a handful of Washington, DC, establishment political hacks, Trump said, after naming 17 turncoats who opposed his presidency or voted with the Democrats to impeach him.

Trump ended on an upbeat note, promising to support strong, tough, and smart Republican candidates who can create an effective and united political machine to take on the Democrats.

Thousands Of Voting Rights Advocates Are Rallying Across The Country Saturday To Call For Sweeping Protections Against A Further Erosion Of The Voting Rights Act Of 1965

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Thousands of voting rights advocates rallied across the country Saturday to call for sweeping federal laws that would wipe out voting restrictions advancing in some Republican-controlled states that could make it harder to cast a ballot.

Many activists view the fight over voting rules as the civil rights issue of the era. But frustrations have mounted for months because two expansive election bills have stalled in the U.S. Senate, which is split evenly between Democrats and Republicans and the measures lack the votes to overcome a GOP blockade.

The rallies, which were held in dozens of cities, were intended to increase pressure on Democrats to rewrite procedural rules that would allow Democrats to muscle the legislation through without Republican votes. But they were also aimed at coaxing President Joe Biden to become a more forceful advocate on the issue.

You said the night you won that Black America had your back, and that you were going to have Black Americans backs, the Rev. Al Sharpton, who helped organize the national demonstrations, said at a rally in Washington Well, Mr. President, theyre stabbing us in the back.

More than a thousand people turned out in sweltering heat on the National Mall on Saturday, the 58th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s I Have Dream speech.

Recommended Reading: Did Trump Call Republicans Stupid In 1998

Homosexuals Do Not Deserve Equal Rights

This comes from their religious beliefs, which form the basis for a lot of policy. Republicans believe that homosexuality is a choice and, as such, gay people should not be acknowledged in the same way as other groups. Therefore, according to a Republican, homosexuals should not be allowed to marry, nor should they be allowed to adopt children.

House Gop Leader Says He Backs Ousting Cheney From No 3 Job

WASHINGTON Top House Republican Kevin McCarthy on Sunday publicly endorsed Rep. Elise Stefanik for the post of No. 3 leader, cementing party support of the Donald Trump loyalist over Rep. Liz Cheney, an outspoken critic of the former president for promoting discredited claims that the 2020 election was stolen.

House Republicans could vote as early as Wednesday to remove Cheney, the highest-ranking woman in the Republican leadership and daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney, and replace her with Stefanik, whose ascension has received Trumps backing.

Asked in an interview on Fox News Channels Sunday Morning Futures whether he supported Stefanik, R-N.Y., for the job of Republican Conference chair, McCarthy responded: Yes, I do.

We want to be united in moving forward, and I think that is what will take place, he said in response to a question about whether he had the votes to oust Cheney, R-Wyo.

McCarthy said the leadership post must focus on a message day in and day out on what he said were the problems of the Biden administration.

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American Democracy Is At Risk From Trump And The Republicans What Can Be Done

The Capitol attack was a warning: US democracy is at risk. To fix the system before the 2022 midterms, two steps have to be enacted

Academics rarely agree about the big issues, and generally hesitate to enter the political fray by signing collective public statements. Yet a few days ago, more than 100 leading scholars of democracy endorsed a remarkable Statement of Concern, which I also signed, warning about grave threats to American democracy and the deterioration of US elections.

We urge members of Congress to do whatever is necessary including suspending the filibuster in order to pass national voting and election administration standards that both guarantee the vote to all Americans equally, and prevent state legislatures from manipulating the rules in order to manufacture the result they want. Our democracy is fundamentally at stake. History will judge what we do at this moment.

Why the alarm? Is this warranted?

On 14 December 2020, after courts litigated challenges and all 50 states certified the count, the electoral college formally declared the defeat of Donald Trump. Most assumed that the peaceful and orderly transition in power would follow, following historical traditions for over 200 years. Instead, the world was shocked to witness the violent Capitol insurrection on 6 January, triggering five deaths, 140 people injured and more than 400 arrests.

What is to be done?

The Ridiculous Reasons Some Republicans Want To Get Rid Of Liz Cheney

No one is in a hotter seat in today’s Republican Party than Liz Cheney.

The Wyoming Republican, who is the third-ranking member of House Republican leadership, was not-so-subtly called out by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy earlier this week at a GOP retreat in Orlando, Florida.

“There’s a responsibility, if you’re gonna be in leadership, leaders eat last,” McCarthy said. “And when leaders try to go out, and not work as one team, it creates difficulties.” When asked whether Cheney was still a “good fit” for the leadership team, McCarthy responded, “That’s a question for the conference,” Punchbowl News’ Jake Sherman reported Tuesday.

Hours later, former President Donald Trump sounded off on Cheney. Here’s some of what the 45th president had to say:

“Liz Cheney is polling sooo low in Wyoming, and has sooo little support, even from the Wyoming Republican Party, that she is looking for a way out of her Congressional race. Based on all polling, there is no way she can win. She’ll either be yet another lobbyist or maybe embarrass her family by running for President, in order to save face.”

What, you might ask, has Cheney done to deserve such opprobrium? Well, let’s take a closer look.

Video: What Liz Cheney has figured out about Donald Trump

1. She condemned Trump for inciting a riot at the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.

Whoa boy! Pretty radical! And not at all conservative!

Except, wait.

Read Also: How Many Seats Do Republicans Have In The Senate

These Are The 10 Republicans Who Voted To Impeach Trump

The Republican fault lines go in every direction: between the grassroots and the establishment, between big donors and aspiring presidential candidates, between House leaders and Senate leaders.

Republican pollster Frank Luntz says he has seen intraparty battles before, “but this one is so deep and so polarizing and people are so passionate about it I don’t know how you heal it. I don’t know how you bring these people together.”

The biggest internal division right now, says Luntz, is between Republicans who voted for impeachment and voters who opposed it. He found in research this week that 43% of Trump voters say they would definitely vote against any lawmaker who supports impeachment.

“That makes it impossible for Republicans to put together a majority by 2022, and in fact, that’s a direct threat to the existence of the Republican Party overall,” Luntz said.

Republicans Wonder How And If They Can Pull The Party Back Together

How Republicans Will Get Rid of Robert Mueller

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President Trump speaks to supporters on Jan. 6 before pro-Trump extremists launched a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump’s role in encouraging the siege over false claims of election fraud has hardened divisions in the Republican Party.hide caption

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President Trump speaks to supporters on Jan. 6 before pro-Trump extremists launched a violent attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump’s role in encouraging the siege over false claims of election fraud has hardened divisions in the Republican Party.

In a matter of hours on Jan. 6, the Republican Party went from shrugging off its loss of the White House to a party in crisis.

It was becoming clear just before the violent insurrection at the Capitol that the party had lost two Senate runoff elections in Georgia, making President Trump the first president since Herbert Hoover whose party lost the White House, the House and the Senate in one term. And plenty of Republicans blamed Trump for the Democrats’ success in Georgia.

Trump’s own defeat means the GOP has failed to get a majority of votes in seven of the last eight presidential elections.

Now, Trump leaves office as the only president to be impeached twice, and the House vote against Trump over the Capitol insurrection marked the most bipartisan impeachment in U.S. history.

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Republicans Need To Get Rid Of Mike Lindell

Clueless Mike Lindell caused President Donald John Trump to LOSE Minnesota in a landslide, not win.For the future of the Republican Party, he needs to be ditched. Plus, his own character is quite poor…

Religion And The Belief In God Is Vital To A Strong Nation

Republicans are generally accepting only of the Judeo-Christian belief system. For most Republicans, religion is absolutely vital in their political beliefs and the two cannot be separated. Therefore, separation of church and state is not that important to them. In fact, they believe that much of what is wrong has been caused by too much secularism.

Those are the four basic Republican tenets: small government, local control, the power of free markets, and Christian authority. Below are other things they believe that derive from those four ideas.

Recommended Reading: Why Do Republicans Really Want To Repeal Obamacare

Biden Is An Elusive Target

Republicans have had little success demonizing Biden with independent voters because so many people feel they know him, analysts said.

The president has been a fixture in American politics for more than a half-century. A senator from Delaware for more than three decades, Biden participated in many high-profile hearings and congressional debates. He served eight years as vice president to President Barack Obama.

After winning the Democratic nomination for president last year, Biden;racked up more than 80 million votes to unseat Trump despite Trump and his Republican allies lobbing constant allegations of malfeasance against Biden and his son;Hunter, as well as attacks on Biden’s fitness to hold office.;

Some of those attacks have continued into the Biden presidency;but;to little avail.

An average of polls compiled by Real Clear Politics gives Biden an average job approval rating of 54.2%.

The underlying data in those polls shows a common theme: Republicans tend not to like Biden, and Democrats support him strongly, including those who backed more liberal candidates such as Bernie Sanders in last year’s primaries.;

Americans have a generally positive view of the president who casts himself as the product of a working-class environment in Scranton, Pennsylvania, a practical politician willing to work with Republicans on legislation to help Americans.

What Do Republicans Believe In

Do all Republicans believe the same things? Of course not. Rarely do members of a single political group agree on all issues. Even among Republicans, there are differences of opinion. As a group, they do not agree on every issue.

Some folks vote Republican because of fiscal concerns. Often, that trumps concerns they may have about social issues. Others are less interested in the fiscal position of the party. They vote they way they do because of religion. They believe Republicans are the party of morality. Some simply want less government. They believe only Republicans can solve the problem of big government. Republicans spend less . They lower taxes: some people vote for that alone.

However, the Republican Party does stand for certain things. So I’m answering with regard to the party as a whole. Call it a platform. Call them core beliefs. The vast majority of Republicans adhere to certain ideas.

So what do Republicans believe? Here are their basic tenets:

Also Check: What Year Did The Democrats And Republicans Switch

‘he’s On His Own’: Some Republicans Begin To Flee From Trump

NEW YORK President Donald Trump’s steadfast grip on Republicans in Washington is beginning to crumble, leaving him more politically isolated than at any other point in his turbulent administration.

After riling up a crowd that later staged a violent siege of the U.S. Capitol, Trump appears to have lost some of his strongest allies, including South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham. Two Cabinet members and at least a half dozen aides have resigned. A handful of congressional Republicans are openly considering whether to join a renewed push for impeachment.

One GOP senator who has split with Trump in the past called on him to resign and questioned whether she would stay in the party.

I want him out, Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska told The Anchorage Daily News. “He has caused enough damage.

The insurrection on the heels of a bruising election loss in Georgia accomplished what other low points in Trump’s presidency did not: force Republicans to fundamentally reassess their relationship with a leader who has long abandoned tradition and decorum. The result could reshape the party, threatening the influence that Trump craves while creating a divide between those in Washington and activists in swaths of the country where the president is especially popular.

President-elect Joe Biden isn’t putting his weight behind the effort yet, suggesting there’s not enough time between now and his Jan. 20 inauguration to pursue impeachment or any other constitutional remedy.

There Arent Real Forces Within The Gop Leading Change

There is some appetite for change within the GOP. In those 2024 polls, at least a third of Republicans either were supporting a GOP presidential candidate other than Trump or were undecided.;

In YouGov Blues polling, only about 40 percent of Republicans identified themselves as Trump Republicans. A recent survey from Fabrizio, Lee and Associates, a GOP-leaning firm that worked on Trumps presidential campaigns, found that about 40 percent of Republican voters didnt want Trump to continue to be a leader in the party. Those numbers dont necessarily mean that those voters want the GOP to change drastically. But there is a substantial number of Trump-skeptical/ready-to-move-on-from-Trump Republican voters. But that sentiment isnt really showing up in the Republican Partys actions during the last three months basically everything GOP officials in states and in Washington are doing lines up with the Trumpian approach. So what gives?;

related:Why The Recent Violence Against Asian Americans May Solidify Their Support Of Democrats Read more. »

It is hard to see Republicans changing course, even if a meaningful minority of voters in the party wants changes, without some elite institutions and powerful people in the party pushing a new vision. And its hard to see real anti-Trumpism forces emerging in the GOP right now.;

Also Check: How Many Registered Democrats And Republicans Are There