7 Things: AL reps angry about budget deal; Ivey wants execution dates; and more …

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December 16, 2022

7. What’s up dox? Media not happy with Musk ban

Well, Elon Musk has had enough. The CEO of both Tesla and Twitter is now banning “journalists,” such Keith Olbermann, for linking to websites that track the location of Musk jet after an alleged stalker believed he was following a car with his son in it. Musk says the ban will be for seven days for doxxing.
CNN’s reporting on this is as honest as you would expect, the headline states, “Elon Musk’s Twitter bans CNN, NYT, WaPo journalists without explanation.” But Musk has tweeted exactly what this is about, “They posted my exact real-time location, basically assassination coordinates, in (obvious) direct violation of Twitter terms of service.” Musk warned that he would ban accounts that track the location of people in real time, he changed Twitter’s policy, and explicitly stated, “Same doxxing rules apply to ‘journalists’ as to everyone else.”

6. Trump branded NFTs. Trump. Branded. NFTs.

There was a promise of a huge announcement Thursday from Trump world, and there was, actually there were two. The first announcement was a cartoonishly-bad digital playing card, which seems like an NFT. The digital assets cost $99 and they are selling. NFTs are not having a good year, expect the media to track the price of these very closely. Trump allies are baffled, his enemies are amused.
But these digital cards are more than NFTs, they are also sweepstakes. If you buy one NFT you are entered into a drawing to get a one-on-one meeting with Trump at Mar-a-Lago but if you buy 45 or more you get an invite to a dinner in Florida – 69 people have bought 45 or more. Nice.

5. Trump aims to rein in America’s speech police

Trump’s more serious proposal of the day was a direct shot at the “censorship cartel.” His plan is to unleash a series of executive orders that would go after government agencies (and its employees), universities, and tech companies who have acted as the speech police in recent years.
One approach would see him seek to “ban federal money from being used to label domestic speech as ‘mis-’ or ‘dis-information,’” this could impact universities with federal subsidies and student loans.

4. Enough of the wokeness

“Go woke and go broke,” may be a derisive slogan used to mock companies that put wokeness over common sense, but it also seems to work with the U.S. military which is seeing a total failure to recruit and retain service members as well. U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Saks) nails it when he says, “Wokeness does not win wars.” Reps. Rogers and Jerry Carl (R-Mobile) are speaking out and demanding that the military junk the left’s social agenda and focus on the mission.
At a hearing, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin testified, “Any notion that they’re woke (U.S. service members) or our military is woke, you know, I take issue with because it’s just not true.” But the congressmen contend this is not true and cite a Heritage Foundation study that shows material from West Point that have titles like, “Understanding Whiteness and White Rage” and “White Power at West Point.” Maybe our military needs more Eggnog Riots and less wokeness.

3. We should have a month to kill murderers until they are dead

The issue with the state’s execution process is under review, but the real issue, according to Attorney General Steve Marshall and Gov. Kay Ivey, is the last-second appeal process that attempts to run out the clock on the death warrant.
But Ivey wants them dead, they are gonna be dead. She wants the Alabama Supreme Court to allow the warrants to be valid on multiple days. This is part of the review process underway, according to Ivey, “part of that review has led to us to ask and send a letter to the Supreme Court of Alabama asking for a change in the dates on the time for executions to give us more time.”

2. McConnell seems hellbent on making a budget deal

Incoming Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) is incensed that the Republicans in the U.S. Senate are eagerly seeking a new year-long budget deal before the new House takes over. McCarthy is not the only one, U.S. Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) wants Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to pump the brakes on a long-term deal.
A smaller deal seems very unlikely, Alabama’s senior U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Tuscaloosa) is in the middle of the deal-making, the year-long deal is likely to get approved and passed after a one-week budget deal passed.

1. Alabama U.S. House Republicans not happy about a one-week budget deal

Calling a continuing resolution to fund the government for a week while a longer deal is hammered out, “a surrender to Democrats,” U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enterprise) expressed his anger and the opposition of his fellow House members.
Moore believes this bill is greasing the skids for the larger $1.7 trillion bill working its way through Congress. He rightly believes that this issue should be handled by a new Congress which will be seated next month but Democrats and establishment Republicans know the GOP-led House will trim that bill significantly.