Hawley Humiliated, Bannon Convicted, and Clark Hit With Ethics Charge

     Ted Cruz is one of the most laughable yet dangerous human beings in the United States of America. He ate a booger, left his constituents and his dog "Snowflake" behind when he flew to Mexico during a deadly snowstorm before blaming his daughters, campaigned for the man who insulted his wife, boosted sales for children's books about race while trying to use them to discredit Ketanji Brown Jackson, accidentally liked a porn tweet, and much more. 

     So, when Ted Cruz calls the video of Senator Josh Hawley running "gotcha politics" but something that he sees as "somewhat humorous," you know that's embarrassing. The January 6th Committee deserves major props for this one. There was no relevant reason to play a clip of a lawmaker running from the January 6th mob; the running was justified and every lawmaker did it. However, the juxtaposition of Josh Hawley inciting the mob that day with a fist pump and him later that day running for his life like a bitch was humorous on a human level and was just the right balance between being petty and vengeful as well as sparking a serious conversation on politicians not facing the consequences their followers do. The January 6th Committee room was filled with laughter when the video was played, national news and comedians called him out on it, and even papers in his home state called him out on it. Michael Fanone, while saying he could see why some saw the video as humorous, called Hawley a "bitch." If only the January 6th Committee had footage of Ron Johnson using his walker to get to an elevator that day; the senator from my home state who said it "wasn't an armed insurrection" and that he "would have been worried if it were BLM" probably ran and deserves the same treatment.

     Within the same 24 hours, another victory for democracy was scored with the conviction of Steve Bannon on two counts of contempt of Congress after a trial that lasted less than a week in its entirety and after just three hours of jury deliberation. Too many people don't know how dangerous Steve Bannon is; it goes well beyond January 6th. He is a leading voice for fascism, something he is proud of, not only in the United States but in Europe and elsewhere in the world, as well. He seems confident in his ability to appeal his case; I doubt he'll succeed. In the meantime, he is due to be sentenced on October 21st-- fittingly, the same day at least five violent Capitol riot felons are due to be sentenced. He faces a minimum of one month in jail and a maximum of up to two years behind bars and up to $100,000 or $200,000 in fines, depending on whether the two counts will be sentenced consecutively or concurrently. This is a victory bigger than Steve Bannon: it is the first conviction for contempt of Congress in 40 years, and it reaffirms that Congress has the authority to issue subpoenas that are enforceable by law.

     Finally, within the same 24 hours, Jeffrey B. Clarke was hit with ethics charges for being a minor environmental lawyer at the DOJ willing to take a job he was unqualified for-- acting attorney general-- to send out the letter casting doubt on the results of the 2020 election to help Trump pull off his coup, something even his conservative superiors would rather resign than do. The threat of ethics charge is not one Mr. Clarke should take lightly. Rudy Giuliani faced ethics charges in both New York and the District of Columbia and was permanently barred from practicing law as a result. He could technically take the bar exam in another state, but it is liberal states that are home to the big money corporate and similar cases that provide the most value to a lawyer like Mr. Giuliani or Mr. Clarke, while conservative states tend to have lawyers with deeper roots in the community or familial ties to existing attorneys, neither of which either man has. Considering the record of the bar in D.C. as it relates to attorneys abusing their powers to subvert democracy, it appears Mr. Clarke is likely to meet Giuliani's fate and lose the ability to practice law in a McDonald's bathroom, nonetheless for the federal government.

     All told, democracy had a good 24 hours. While the threats American democracy faces can seem insurmountable, victories like this give me the strength to keep fighting, and they should make others feel the same.