[H] Hundreds of tradable steam game gifts, removed game gifts, steam keys, more [W] TF2 Keys, Paypal
https://steamcommunity.com/tradeoffenew/?partner=128394910&token=KJaXP3jg Most non-removed games I'd be happy to trade for store price in csgo keys at paypal value, so a collector can just have the gift. I have no attachment to 99% of this stuff, anymore. Most gifts are certainly less than store price, as well. Do NOT waste my time by offering other games or other gifts. Anything priced in cash is the PAYPAL PRICE ONLY Removed Games and DLCs [*] AERENA Master Edition (brazil) -- $3 [*] Alan Wake Bundle -- $5 [*] Age of Booty -- $20 [*] Age of Empires Online - Summer Sale Bundle DLC Unlock [*] Batman Arkham City -- $50 [*] ALL ARKHAM CITY DLC (individual gifts) -- $100 [*] Batman Arkham Complete -- $100 [*] Bayonetta Deluxe Edition -- $150 [*] Batman™: Arkham Origins (preorder which contains deathstroke DLC sub) -- $10 [*] Ben 10 Game Generator 5D -- $300 [*] Brawlhalla - BCX 2016 Pack -- $150 [*] Brink Prima Official Strategy Guide -- $15 [*] CID The Dummy --- $100 [*] DC Universe Online - Amazon Fury Part I [*] DC Universe Online - Halls of Power Part I [*] DC Universe Online Power Bundle [*] DC Universe Online Ultimate Edition Bundle [*] DC Universe Online: Home Turf [*] DC Universe Online: Origin Crisis [*] Dead Island Epidemic [*] Dead Island Epidemic DIE Contagion Pack Gift [*] Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Explosion Pack DLC [*] Disney Infinity 2.0 -- $130 [*] Disney Infinity 3.0 (Crystal Buzz Lightyear) -- $100 [*] Disney Infinity 3.0 (Darth Maul) -- $100 [*] Disney Infinity 3.0- Rise Against the Empire Playset [*] Dragon Age: Origins - Ultimate - Prima Official Strategy Guide [*] Dungeonland Gift [*] Final Fantasy XI -- $650 [*] Funcom Complete Pack (Lego Minifigures + Secret World + Age of Conan DLC) https://steamdb.info/sub/35919/apps/ -- $500 [*] Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - First Assault Online -- $20 [*] Greenlight Submission Subscription -- $200 [*] Gotham City Imposters -- $110 [*] Gun Monkey -- [*] H1Z1: Just Survive - Atlas Cosmetic Skin Pack [*] H1Z1: Just Survive - Manitoba Cosmetic Skin Pack [*] H1Z1: Just Survive - Whiptail Cosmetic Skin Pack [*] Instinct -- $100 [*] IVAN vs NAZI ZOMBIES -- $60 [*] Landmark - Trailblazer Buddy Gift [*] LEGO Minifigures Online -- $600 [*] Marvel Heroes 2015 - Venom Pack [*] Marvel Heroes 2016 - Marvel's Captain America: Civil War Starter Pack [*] Mortal Kombat Kollection [*] Music Creator 6 + Z3TA+2 Bundle [*] Nebula Online (RU) [*] Nebula Online Soundtrack Edition [*] Nosgoth -- $50 [*] Oath of Genesis -- $100 [*] Pinball FX2 - Paranormal Table [*] Ravaged [*] Rambo The Video Game: Baker Team [*] RIPD: The Game (ROW) Gift [*] Rocket League® - NBA Flag Pack [*] Saints Row: The Third Prima Official Strategy Guide [*] Star Trek [*] Starvoid [*] Team Fortress 2 - Quakecon Bundle [*] Team Fortress 2 - Winter Sale 2012 [*] Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan [*] The Dead Linger Gift [*] The Mixed Pack https://steamdb.info/sub/77497/apps/ [*] The Political Machine 2012 [*] The Slaughtering Ground [*] TOME: Starter Pack Gift [*] Transformers: War for Cybertron [*] Tree of Savior (English Ver.) 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The Quest for Gravity (vivamedia) [*] Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Ultimate Edition [*] Chaos on Deponia [*] Cities XL Platinum [*] Counter-Strike + Day of Defeat Deathmatch + ricochet + Condition Zero (Unknown package 41) [*] Crusader Kings II: Iberian Portraits [*] Cthulhu Saves the World [*] Cubemen [*] Cubicle Quest (ru) [*] Dead Bits [*] Dad Bits Collector's Edition [*] Deadlight [*] Death Rally [*] DG2: Defense Grid 2 Special Edition [*] Defense Grid: Containment Bundle [*] Defy Gravity Extended [*] Despair [*] Deus Ex Collection [*] Devil May Cry 3 and 4 Bundle [*] Devil May Cry 3 and 4 Bundle (RU) [*] Developer Alliance Bundle [*] Dino D-Day [*] Disgaea 2 PC / 魔界戦記ディスガイア2 PC [*] Disgaea PC / 魔界戦記ディスガイア PC [*] Disgaea PC: Digital Dood Edition [*] Disney Mega Pack [*] DmC Devil May Cry: Costume Pack [*] Don't Starve + Don't Starve Together gift [*] Dota 2 Unknown package 16979 [*] Down To One [*] DRAGON BALL XENOVERSE 2 (China) [*] DRAGON QUEST HEROES™ Slime Edition (RU) [*] Duke Nukem Forever Collection [*] Dungeon Defenders Halloween Costume Pack [*] Dynamite Jack [*] Eaten Alive [*] Ender's Game [*] Endless Legend™ - Classic Edition [*] Evolve [*] Evolve PC Monster Race [*] Evolve Preorder (l4d included) [*] Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel [*] FEAR: Ultimate Shooter Edition [*] First Assault - Recruit Early Access Pack [*] Tree of Savior (English Ver.) 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Founder's Server : Exclusive Access 3 [*] Friday the 13th: The Game Pre-Purchase (ru) [*] Galactic Civilizations I and II Pack [*] Game of Thrones [*] Ghostbusters™ [*] Goodbye Deponia Pre-Purchase [*] Gothic 3 Forsaken Gods EE [*] Gothic II (NA) [*] Gratuitous Space Battles [*] Gratuitous Space Battles - Complete Pack [*] Greed Corp [*] Greyfox RPG [*] Guardians of Middle-earth [*] Hive With Pillbug, Ladybug, Mosquito DLC Gift [*] Holiday Sale 2011 Gift: APOX [*] Holiday Sale 2011 Gift: Dogfighter [*] Holiday Sale 2011 Gift: Valve Complete Pack [*] How to Survive - Storm Warning Edition (RU) [*] Hydrophobia: Prophecy [*] Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth1 [*] Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth2 [*] Introversion Complete Pack [*] Izetta: The Last Witch: Beginning of the War [*] Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress: Frightened Corpse [*] KanColle: Hello, Commander! [*] Killing Floor Gift (LAM) [*] Lead and Gold: Gangs of the Wild West [*] Left 4 Dead [*] Lilly and Sasha: Curse of the Immortals [*] Lost Planet® 2 [*] Mahjong Pretty Girls Battle [*] Make America Great Again: The Trump Presidency [*] Making History: The Calm & the Storm [*] Max Payne 3 Rockstar Pass [*] Mega Man Legacy Collection / ロックマン クラシックス コレク ション [*] Men of War™ [*] Men of War: Assault Squad - Game of the Year Edition [*] Monaco: What's Yours Is Mine [*] Morphopolis [*] Munin [*] NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 4 [*] NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 4 (LAM) [*] NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM Bundle (EU) [*] New kind of adventure [*] NiGHTS Into Dreams [*] Orange: LETTER 01 [*] Out There Somewhere [*] Painkiller Hell & Damnation (RU) [*] PARTICLE MACE - Soundtrack [*] PAYDAY 2: A Merry Payday Christmas Soundtrack [*] Penumbra Collectors Pack [*] PewDiePie: Legend of the Brofist [*] Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds - Kemomimi Costume DLC [*] Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds - Kurisu Makise + Level 99 Pack [*] POSTAL 2 (HK / Taiwan) [*] ProtoGalaxy [*] Puzzle Indie [*] Real Horror Stories Ultimate Edition [*] Red Orchestra 2: Heroes of Stalingrad with Rising Storm [*] ReLIFE: Kaizaki Arata (27), Unemployed [*] Renegade Ops [*] Renegade Ops - Coldstrike Campaign [*] Risen 2: Dark Waters [*] Risk of Rain 2 ROW [*] Robotex [*] Rochard [*] Rome: Total War™ - Collection [*] RPG Maker VX Ace - High Fantasy Main Party Pack I [*] RPG Maker VX Ace - Inspirational Vol. 1 [*] RPG Maker VX Ace - The Adventurer's Journey [*] RPG Maker VX Ace - Zombie Survival Graphic Pack [*] Sanctum: Collection [*] Star Saviors [*] Scooby Doo! & Looney Tunes Cartoon Universe: Adventure [*] Serious Sam 3 BFE Deluxe [*] Serious Sam Classic Second Encounter Gift [*] Serious Sam Complete Pack (October 2012) [*] Shadowgrounds [*] Shelter 2_Pre order [*] Shower With Your Dad Simulator 2015: Do You Still Shower With Your Dad [*] Sinister City [*] Sleeping Dogs: Dragon Master Pack [*] SNOW [*] Soul Gambler [*] Space Empires IV Deluxe [*] Space Farmers 2-Pack Gift [*] Fractured Space Space Forerunner Fleet Pack Gift [*]Space Pirates and Zombies (SPAZ) [*] SpaceChem [*] SpaceChem: 63 Corvi [*] Specialist Early Access Pack [*] Starbound (china) [*] Squishy the Suicidal Pig [*] Syberia [*] Takedown: Red Sabre [*] Talisman: Digital Edition [*] The Adventures of Super Mario Bros. 3: Sneaking Lying Cheating Giant Ninja Koopas [*] The Deletion [*] The Guild II Collection [*] The Hat Man: Shadow Ward [*] The Howler [*] The Political Machine 2016 [*] The Ship - 2 Pack Gift [*] The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition [*] The Walking Dead: 400 Days [*] Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light [*] Tons of Tomb Raider DLC [*] Tomb Raider: Anniversary [*] Tomb Raider: Legend [*] Tomb Raider: Underworld [*] Total War: Shogun 2 - Fall of the Samurai – The Tsu Faction Pack [*] Trine 2: Complete Story Gift [*] TRON RUN/r Ultimate Edition - Gift Base Game [*] TRON RUN/r: Deluxe Edition [*] TrumPiñata [*] UFO: Extraterrestrials Gold [*] Uncrowded [*] Valkyria Chronicles™ [*] Velvet Assassin [*] War of the Roses: House of Lancaster Armor Set [*] Wargame Franchise Pack (European Escalation and Airland Battle) [*] Waveform [*] Waveform Eris DLC [*] Why So Evil + Why So Evil 2: Dystopia + Brilliant Bob [*] Why So Evil 2: Dystopia + Why So Evil + Brilliant Bob [*] Woodle Tree Adventures [*] Yamada-kun and the Seven Witches: I've Turned Into Her! [*] Yooka-Laylee [*] Yooka-Laylee Digital Deluxe Edition [*] Ys I & II Chronicles+ Steam Keys 2064: Read Only Memories 7 Grand Steps A Virus Named Tom AI War: Fleet Command Ballistick Beat Hazard Ultra Chroma Squad Dangerous High School Girls in Trouble Double Fine Adventure Documentary Dusty Revenge: Co-Op Edition Ellipsis Girls Like Robots GRAV (Early Access) Guacamelee! Gold Edition Guacamelee Super Turbo Championship Edition Guns of Icarus Online Hand of Fate Hot Tin Roof: The Cat That Wore A Fedora Deluxe Human Resource Machine Invisible, Inc. JumpJet Rex Luna's Wandering Stars Mini Metro Monster Loves You Mushroom 11 Ninja Pizza Girl No Time to Explain Nuclear Throne Overgrowth Steam key Potatoman Seeks the Troof Q.U.B.E: Director's Cut Retro Game Crunch Rituals Robot Roller-Derby Disco Dodgeball Rocket Birds: Hardboiled Chicken ROCKETSROCKETSROCKETS Secrets of Raetikon shutshimi Song of the Deep Spirits Sproggiwood Streamline Early Access Super Galaxy Squadron EX Super Hexagon Super Meat Boy The Swapper System Shock Pack Team Indie Thirty Flights of Loving TIMEframe VVVVVV Waking Mars World of Goo ABZU Husk Okhlos Project Highrise Steamworld Heist LIMBO PAYDAY 2 - E3 2016 Mask Pack PAYDAY 2 - The Golden Grin Casino Heist DLC Dead Space Steam Key Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box Steam Key Crysis 2 Maximum Edition Steam Key Trine 2: Complete Story Steam Key Mark of the Ninja Gunmetal Arcadia Zero (Steam, Humble Monthly) Eets Munchies Steam Key Dead Island: Game of the Year Edition Saints Row 2 Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 - Uprising Steam Key The Lord of the Rings: War in the North Mirror's Edge Steam Key
thank you! this helps... seriously! it gives me some hope and feedback that i'm not completely nuts (if i'm asking the question, i'm probably safe... probably :), plus there's the off and odd chances that run wild sometimes. i'm enjoying writing today, so please forgive me my liberties as i start to tell a story. some of it you inspired! i'm not done with it, but i enjoy it, and the act of writing is the ends and the means; this story is coming into existence because i am enjoying my play... ├◉─◇───◇──◇─◯◦─
you end up at this year's oddlyreal conference/festival thingy, which just announced its 10,000th physically present (at least cranially) biological entity, ”a new record” the announcement continues in a somehow perceptibly excited low and relaxed androgynous voice. despite yourself, you are grudgingly impressed with the oddly tasteful decor and some subdued, relaxing minor key japanese string thing... the word kuto or koto flashes in your head as remembrance. usually these conference/shindig things are visually loud enough for chinese new year and audibly worse than the morning after the taco and chili competition endemic at a government-in-exile rally in a certain ex-president's last remaining casino.
in a word, elegant. in another two: oddly (you sense a theme here) relaxed. like you imagine miami in the '80s, during sunset over the ocean... minus the grime and old people driving on the median. you hear some obvious digitally created lo-fi sounds. 8-bit? looking in the distance, you see a sign with an arrow pointing down and to the left: ”arcade”. mystery solved! your stomach involuntarily receives a flutter of excitement and anticipation; underneath the larger letters reads ”5 tokens $1, 11 tokens $2, 42 tokens $5”. a long, straight haired androgynous couple, one dyed black and the other bleached white lets out a simultaneous laugh in the distance; you hear ”ski-ball!” as the pair run underneath the sign and disappear. this might actually be fun!
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you checked in with only one minor incident: your reserved room wasn't ready yet. before you could say that you didn't mind waiting (an excuse for the arcade... not that you needed one) the concierge asks if you will accept a complimentarily room upgrade to one with a deluxe balcony, japanese bath, and view of the night sky over the ocean (really the gulf) facing west. you thank your lucky stars that that light pollution law passed a few years ago. everyone thought it was too odd and unimportant to pass at the time, and nobody thought it would pass, but it did... without riders, without debate, unanimous. first the house, then the senate an hour later, and the president shocked everyone by signing it at the stroke of midnight on the winter solstice. now you can see your lucky stars... from within a city, of all things. energy use went down because of it, and so did pollution. unexpectedly, cities became quieter at night, and there were less therapy visits for generalized anxiety disorder. book and app sales about astronomy and astrology were trending, and in general, people seem more chill, more relaxed, more focused. it was not uncommon to see your neighbor on a lawn chair on their roof watching the sun set after work.
this night sky was gorgeous! how did so many generations give it up? and for what? crappy 7/11 and motel-6 neon lowglow? lame. the evening sky over the gulf is even more spectacular than you remember, and you pause in your unpacking and settling into your room to watch for a few minutes more.
the keynote speach is listed as a costume formal: tux, gown, dress uniform, and/or come-as-you-are, shoes optional event: another oddly satisfying and kind of exciting contradiction. so the choice is yours: do you pick the expertly tailored black and white tux you had taken in a bit last week? or a below-the-knee black and white gown your partner insisted you pack... just in case. it would be an an oddity for you to wear a gown to anything, you laugh. oddity. this place must be infectious! what the heck, gown it is! luckily its easy to put on and more far more androgynous than expected. it's very nearly like wearing a lightweigh black and grey kilt, like at the highland games. you look over your balcony and see a contingent in formal black-and-white star-trek looking body suit type unforms pause and bow to a group in what appears to be tuxedo labcoats with tails. looking in the mirror, you don't look half bad!
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you have a few good drinks in you, or was that a good few? the air is pleasantly neutral, sometimes just a bit warm, at others a slight chill. the ocean makes the air noticably humid with a slght salt tang, but it's the perfect temperature for it. the slight breeze feels good on your legs, and the white, nearly glowing sand covering the outdoor conference room's floor is pleasing between your toes. your shoes are probably gone with the glass from the previous manhattan... you didn't like those shoes anyway. good riddance!
the keynote was actually pretty good! a little bit dull as you knew all the stuff the keynote speaker was talking about, and she seemed a tiny bit bored herself, like she's given the pitch eleventy-one times already... come to think of it, as she's a founder and cto of a company doing the kind of thing this conference is about, you realize she probably has. her wild perple hair... you've seen it before. the next sip of your drink brings back the memory of its namesake city, and an elevator.
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you were on your way up to the 58th floor for an interview†, and (yes, the memory is clear now) this nervous seemingly little girl with purple hair and an actual physical portfolio case (black and leather looking and nearly as large as her) rode the lift with you, although you notice she's not as young as she appears: she's just short. you notice that the only other floor selected is 103. and you notice that she is staring at you now, probably because (you realize belatedly) you've been staring at her for at least a dozen floors.
"interview? your first big one?" she asks.
"um... somthing like that," you manage to mumble
"it's dangerous to go alone! take this." as she is saying this (sounds familiar), she's expertly juggling her purse, the comically oversized portfolio case, and something aroud by her left hand. (you feel she just quoted something important, but can't place it)
as the bell for your floor dings and the doors open, she tucks something warm and maybe metal? into your hand and says "quick! put it in your pocket for luck! look at it later or you'll be late. give it back to me someday!"
you nearly fumble putting the whatever-it-is into your pocket as the lift doors are closing. the last you see is a smile as you hear a fading "don't panic!"
// current tail. betwixt here and the footnotes seperator, there be unfinshed dragons. and that you heard the elevator version of that pitch waaay back, 5, maybe 6 years ago, before she was a notable cto giving a keynote address to a large and prestigious* ) vr gametech conference this one. ke back when there were 2 founders and a part time employee with a mohawk and studs in his head run in to someone at a conference in a little out of the way bar where it's just a bit quieter and you can hear yourself think
├◉─◇───◇─ footnotes ──◇─◯◦─
*
you feel the word 'pretentious' slip past your right eyeball and invade your frontal lobe. it breaks into the stream of your thoughts, despite your conscious and diligent efforts to be less cynical... aaannnnndddd theoretically happier, because you are sort of reading ”the tao of pooh”, based on the footnote of some really weird lady's post on reddit a handful of years ago, and this whole thing about being an uncarved block kind of made sense, but was frustratingly both seductively elusive and easy to be cynical about at the same time.
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†
you got the job! you were very nervous at first, but you felt the thing the purple haired girlprincesswoman gave you in the elevator. every time you started squirming‡ because of a question asked (c'mon, "where do you see this company in 5 years?" how the hell are you supposed to answer to that?), you got stabbed on the top of your thigh, right in the rectus femoris, by something in your pocket. this sensation was nearly like getting an injection, and you found it distracting enough you couldn't quite focus on the more inane questions (squirm - stab, repeat) and just said what was on your mind. apparently it, whatever 'it' was, was working, as the facial hair on the man bobbed slightly out of sync with his nods. the woman next to him was quiet and very tomboy-ish; if the peter pan played by maud adams on broadway had a kid with the tinkerbell from hook (1992 julia roberts, not the awful 2024 remake with a cg remade kardashian- glack) and they were raised climbing trees in pixi skorts decorated with pink skulls... but decided to put on an immaculately tailored gray zoot suit made just for her by the costume designers of the matrix... (1999, not the 2023 reboot)
anyway, the tomboy (maud, she introduced herself as later, and she said she liked her name and never changed it) seemed to enjoy your answers, and cut... ned? hagbard?... off in the middle of some convoluted thing he must have proudly dredged from the bowels of the earliest internet archives; rumores and tall tales of ''questions" steve jobs asked potential apple employees like jony ive to tourture them where the scars wouldn't show.
at a glace from maud, "hagbard, pollice verso, commodus? tick-tock! tick tock!"
hagbard locked eyes with you, straightened his posture, and the facial hair grinned a few milliseconds before he did. without looking away he extended his arm like a roman emperor, made a fist, and gave maud the thumbs up. he turned on his heel, his beard followed a tad later, and out the door he went.
"so.... would it sound weird if i asked about what you have in your pocket?" // better phrasing. possible lotr gollum reference.
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‡
it's a bad habit you have that is more common than you realized back when you were asked increasingly awkward questions by that guy... what was his name at the time? ted? ned? hagbard? he has changed it at least 3 times since you've been working there and got to known him a bit. at least he got rid of that ridiculous face eating victorian english thing he called mutton chops!
<< | < | > Author: Predaplant Book: Aquaman Arc: Breach Set: 54 “Great to finally meet you, Your Majesties.” the man in the suit said, nodding to Orin and Mera. “My name is Dr. Stephen Shin. I’m an expert on Atlantis; or, at least, an expert on surface perceptions of your fine nation. I’ll be interviewing you today.” “Nice to meet you, Dr. Shin.” Mera sat with her legs folded and her hands clasped lightly on her lap. Orin sat next to her. They were in plain wooden chairs that he was finding very uncomfortable. He had no idea how Mera was able to look so composed; he couldn’t stop fidgeting. “Likewise. I assume you’ve been very busy these past few months.” Shin smiled. “That would be correct. But for you two, there’s always time. Shall I start with my questions?” Nodding, Orin tried to force a smile. He had heard smiling helped people feel more relaxed. He had spent the last few weeks travelling, meeting with international delegates, and it had worked wonders for him. “Go ahead, Doctor.” Clearing his throat, Shin held his papers up to his eye level, peering through his bifocals. “You may have fully revealed yourself to the world recently, but a few years ago, Your Majesty, you showed yourself and your abilities to us as a member of the Justice League. Have you noticed any difference in treatment now that the world knows you’re a king, as opposed to when you were strictly considered a hero?” “There is a bit of a difference. People still do their best to treat me well, and people are still wary of how powerful I am. But it’s a different type of power.” Orin tapped his foot as he thought. “I’d say the biggest difference isn’t across time, but across space. In Atlantis, I’m the king. That’s what I’m known for. Here... people look at me, they see Aquaman, not King Orin. So getting past that impression is the hardest part for me when trying to be taken seriously.” He glanced down at his clothes before laughing. “Maybe I should be wearing a suit instead of these scales. That might command more respect.” ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ Orin tried to look nonchalant, the blond-haired white man in Tokyo thumbing through a tankōbon with somebody who looked an awful lot like him on the cover. He had started a world tour of sorts. His travels hadn’t started out that way. At first they were just a few visits to individual countries. However, it seemed whenever he got around to visiting a country there were three more invitations waiting for him back in Atlantis, so it got to the point where he simply wanted to do all of them in one fell swoop. And when he got to Japan, it only made sense that he should go and check out his manga. The temptation to see what the world thought of him was too alluring. He couldn’t read Japanese, but flipping through it it was obvious that the mangaka had taken some... creative liberties. When he reached the drum-playing octopus he had to back out. Sliding the tankōbon back on the shelf, he headed back to the entrance, sliding past a couple teens, whose mouths gaped open. “Aquaman...” he heard one of them whisper. He nodded in their direction as he exited the store. They followed, pulling out their phones and taking pictures. Orin waved his hand as he speed-walked away. “No pictures, please.” They kept following him. As he walked, a few people turned to stare at him. They recognized him. Blub. He took a deep breath as he headed for Tokyo Bay. Looking over his shoulder, there were now around a dozen people following him, and as the noise behind him grew louder he broke into a run. The bay was within sight, with only one street between him and the harbour. The light turned red just a second too late, the intersection in front of him filling up with cars. He was swarmed by more camera flashes and people reaching towards him with pen and paper, looking for autographs. There was nothing for him to do but give the crowd what they wanted. Two hours later he finally made it the last hundred metres to the Bay, slipping into the water softly. Hopefully wherever he headed next, he wouldn’t be as much of a celebrity. ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ Chuckling, Shin lowered his papers for a second. “Maybe. So Your Majesty Queen Mera...” “Just Mera is fine.” she broke in. “I personally don’t mind, for the purposes of this interview. Do you mind if he uses your name, Orin?” “Fine by me if you call me Orin, Dr. Shin.” Shin nodded, glancing down at his papers. “Alright then. Mera, this has been your first major exposure to the surface and surface life. Have you been experiencing culture shock?” Mera absentmindedly twirled her hair around her finger. “I don’t think culture shock’s quite the right word for it. Orin’s told me all about his life growing up, so I had a good idea of what the surface is like. And I don’t spend much time there anyways, since Orin’s much better suited to deal with our foreign relations considering his upbringing. From what I’ve seen, however, it seems like a very nice place, though it is very strange in some ways.” ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ Orin strolled down the boardwalk, holding Mera’s hand lightly in his. It had been a while since they’d had any real alone time that wasn’t taken up by the whale in the room of governing Atlantis. He had wanted to bring her to the surface for a while, and Atlantic City was as good a place as any. Whenever they wanted to leave, they had an easy path to the sea, and he had never been as a child. “So you’re telling me these casinos... people go there knowing that they’ll probably lose money?” “Yeah,” Orin nodded. “But there’s a chance they might win. So they’ll keep trying.” “People will do anything for a chance to win, huh?” she noted. Orin turned to face her, pushing her scarlet hair back over her shoulder. “Maybe that’s what we’ve been doing, too. Trying to stare down the rest of the world and win.” “We have a superhero, we can manage that.” Mera buried her face in his chest as she gave him a hug. “Thanks for the support.” Orin said, stroking her hair. “Now come on, let’s get some taffy.” Mera looked up at him from the hug. “Taffy? Some surface food, I presume.” “You got it. It’s good, you have to try it. Nothing like this in Atlantis, I can promise you that.” Orin had been counting the taffy stalls as they had been walking, and he had gotten up to almost fifty. Spotting one just ahead of them, he pointed as he said “Let’s go to that one.” As they approached, the man behind the counter smiled at them. “You want some taffy?” “We’ll take a bag.” Orin said. “What is this... taffy... exactly like?” Mera asked cautiously. The taffy maker smiled. “You’ve never had saltwater taffy before?” “No, this’ll be my first time.” He stared off into space. “Ah, if only I could experience having taffy for the first time again...” He turned back to Mera, a grin on his face. “You’re in for a treat.” Mera nodded. “Thank you very much.” Orin paid for the taffy, and they made their way to a nearby bench. Sitting down, with his arm around Mera’s shoulder, Orin opened the bag. Taking a piece, Mera popped it into her mouth, chewed slowly, and swallowed. Her face lit up. “This is really good!” “I’m really happy you like it. Here, take another.” Orin smiled as he unwrapped the taffy. ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ “Well, I’m very glad to hear you think that about us.” Shin turned back to face Orin. “Do you think Atlantis has anything to be afraid of from the surface? Or vice versa, of course.” “If we had to fear anything from the surface it would be surface weaponry, and surface heroes. Just knowing that we exist makes us a much easier target to hit.” Orin said. “After all, it seems like there’s a threat to civilization as we know it a couple times a month, so that in itself is a terrifying proposition for a nation to face for the first time, or at least be made newly aware of.” Mera squeezed Orin’s hand, the signal to let her take over. Looking over to her, she smiled at him. “As for the surface being afraid of us, I wouldn’t be too worried. We’re relatively small, and while many of us do have... powers, we will do our best to keep our citizens in line. Rest assured that we have no intentions of attacking the coastal nations of the world.” Shin smiled at her. “Thanks for the reassurance.” “The Justice League trusts me.” Orin said calmly. “If you trust them, then you can trust me.” ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ Having imagined England as an alternative magical world as a child, Orin was disappointed, to put it mildly, as he made his way through the streets to the rendezvous point. It just looked like the US, except the street was mirrored. And it was a lot more rainy. Head down, still hoping that he’d stumble across something out of one of the imported picture books he read as a kid, Orin turned into a small alcove and knocked on a plain, unassuming, dark blue door, paint faded from what seemed to be long years of neglect. The door opened, and Orin walked through, head still down. He found himself in a plain foyer that had a few hallways branching off of it. Using his powers to push the rain off of himself, he collected it into a ball and used the water to give the plants in the corner of the room a light shower before walking down the hallway with the gold carpeting. Fifth door on the right. Knock four times. Orin stood around in the hallway for a few seconds, tapping the shoes he had purchased the day before in Ottawa. Shoes didn’t keep long underwater; he’d gone through three or four pairs already since he had started his tour. Orin looked around the room. Three diplomats, there to greet him. They shook hands, gave him their names. Plus a hero in the corner, as always, this one dressed in a Tower Guard outfit. Nobody bothered to tell Orin the hero’s name; it was like he wasn’t there. It wasn’t actually that bad. They didn’t have too many questions for him, especially compared to some of the other NATO countries he had visited, and said they could use a similar contract to the one Atlantis had used with the US. Plus he didn’t have to worry about his words going through an interpreter, which was a nice bonus. After only an hour and a half he was ready to leave. It was short, as these meetings went. As he turned to go after shaking hands, one of them tapped on his shoulder. Stopping, he looked back at her. She was shorter than average, with green eyes and blonde hair that was tied back in a bun. Her name had been given as Stubbs. “Can we speak in private? It won’t be long.” “Alright, you know somewhere here that’s private?” Orin asked. She nodded. “Just through here.” Moving quickly, she pulled open the door to the hall. Orin followed and stuck his head around the corner to see her unlocking another door a couple doors down. He followed her as she pushed the door open to reveal a bare room with a couple chairs. Closing the door, she moved to lock it behind her. Orin grabbed her hand. “I’d rather not be locked in here with somebody I don’t trust, Stubbs.” Orin said quietly. “Please leave it unlocked, if you can’t leave it open.” She paused, and looked up at him for a second, casually leaning against the door. “OK” she replied. “So what is it you wanted to ask me?” he asked. “Must be pretty important if you need so much privacy.” She looked around the room, drawing a shaky breath and letting it out before responding. When she did, it was in a hesitant tone. “Have you heard about N.E.M.O.?” Orin scratched his head. “No? Should I have?” Stubbs smiled for a moment. “If you had I’d be surprised. But you should know about them and that’s why I’m telling you. They’re an organization that seeks to gain control over the oceans. I have a... family connection to them. I know they’re trying to destroy you and Atlantis as a whole.” He nodded, pushing past her to grab the door handle. “Thanks for letting me know. Hope you have a good day, any other hobby groups you want to let me know about?” “No, you don’t understand, they’re going to destroy Atlantis!” she repeated, placing her hand over his, struggling to prevent him from moving the handle. Orin sighed. “Listen, Stubbs, there are always going to be groups wanting to destroy you. You learn that, as a king. Almost none of them are going to be able to make any serious attempt. I’ve learned to let it go.” He opened the door. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d like to make it back to Atlantis for dinner.” ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ “That leads me to another question.” Shin pulled out a pen and scribbled down a few words on his paper. “Has the Justice League said anything to you about your reveal? After all, it has made a pretty big splash.” He sat in silence for a few moments. “Pardon the pun.” “Any conversations I’ve had with any other members of the Justice League are between us, Dr. Shin. That being said, it’s nice to be able to be more open. You might see me helping the League more often in the future; I know I haven’t been the best teammate.” Tapping his finger on the arm of his chair, Orin gazed at a fixed point in space. “Leading Atlantis has and will always come first, and I trust my teammates to handle crises.” ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ There was a quick knock on the door before Dolphin came rushing in on a cold current. Orin and Mera were eating dinner together, Orin having just returned from another surface visit. “We’ve got mail!!” She swooped down in front of her foster parents. “Got a few letters from your Templar friends, Mera. And something that is apparently top secret for you, Orin.” She squinted at a package she was carrying about the size of her fist, that had been stamped with a Top Secret stamp on five of the six sides. Tentatively, she placed it in front of him. “Thanks, Dolphin.” He stared at the box as it sat on the table. He hesitated to open it. The sixth side bore a different stamp. The Justice League one. “You gonna open that now?” Mera asked. Orin looked at the box for a few more seconds before answering. “I might leave it for a few days. Let it sit a bit, you know?” “You should probably open it now.” she said, showing him a letter she had received. It simply stated, in letters big enough for him to read it from across the table: TELL ORIN TO OPEN HIS JL BOX ASAP! “Alright, fine, I’m doing it!” Orin said as he dug his nail into the box, prying it open. Inside was a Justice League communicator and a note. Picking up the scrap of paper, Orin squinted at the tiny writing:
Hi Orin, We didn’t know if your communicator got lost or broken, since the originals weren’t pressure-tested, so here’s a new one that should work even down in Atlantis! We haven’t heard from you in a while and you’ve been on our minds recently so here’s a token of appreciation! Btw I rigged it so I get a notification if you broke the seal, so you should receive a call from me soon! All the best, Watchtower
(Then there were two lines below that were even tinier, each in their own handwriting:)
+ Wonder Woman And Wonder Girl!
The communicator buzzed. Staring warily at it, Orin pressed the button with one finger. “Hello? This is Watchtower calling Atlantis? Anyone there?” Clearing his throat, Orin responded. “Hi Watchtower! This is Aquaman speaking from Atlantis.” “Oh good, we were able to reach you! I was worried it would get intercepted somewhere along the line. So, how have you been doing?” Watchtower’s voice sounded out across the dining hall with just a hint of static. “We’re doing good! Yeah...” Orin looked across the table at Mera, staring at him as she slowly chewed her greens. “We’re eating dinner right now, though. Can we call you back later?” “Yeah, sure. Whatever works for you guys. I always forget about time zone differences. Just give me a shout when you’re available.” “Will do. Talk soon.” Orin turned the communicator over in his hand. “Alright, talk then!” The absence of the voice somehow made the hall seem that much emptier. “So... who was that?” Dolphin asked, grinning. ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ “I don’t think any of us fault you for your devotion to Atlantis, Orin. It is a truly incredible place.” Shin said as he flipped over his page. “One last question for the night. Would you say that you’ve met with any... complications with your arrival into the larger global marketplace?” Mera replied, her quiet voice resonating in the mostly empty room. “Things have been mostly smooth. We’ve been opening up in stages, and things have been running smoothly. The biggest complication has been sorting out the mess of requests for surface visits and trade that we’ve had since we’ve started opening up. Turns out when a whole world suddenly opens up, people want to see it.” ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ The first requests for visas to Atlantis had come in the day before, and Swatt was a bit swamped, to say the least. He was surprised he had found enough filing cabinets in all of Atlantis to keep things in order; he hadn’t bothered to count the requests, but there must have been at least a few hundred. And each one had to have a reason for visiting that had to be corroborated with some Atlantean contact, and they had to have a background check from their associated government... it had sounded good at the time, but he didn’t know that there would be so much work. Knocks sounded on the door to Swatt’s office. Fast, three times. Grumbling, Swatt got up and opened the door to find Tula waiting for him. “We’ve got a disturbance out at the trading point. Your assistance is needed as soon as possible.” “Is that supposed to mean now?” Swatt asked. “Yes” Tula replied. “Alright, I’m coming, I’m coming.” Swatt followed Tula, the door left open behind them. Blub the visas, they could wait until another day. It took a while to reach the outer limits of Atlantis, where the trading point was located. Swatt wished he was able to talk to Tula, but due to only being half-Atlantean he was marginally slower than her, and his breathing was strained just trying to keep up. A lot of the other Drift soldiers tended to look down on him. It happened, especially considering his origins and relative lack of skill, but Swatt had helped train Tula when she was just a kid coming up through the ranks, and he hoped that she still thought well of him. At least she remembered to go slowly. When Swatt finally surfaced and pulled himself over the edge of the sea platform that served as the hub, the problem wasn’t immediate. There was no man standing over a bomb, nor was there a boat full of rice that needed to be paid for, cash on delivery. As he clambered onto the platform, everything looked normal. That is, until Tula brought him over to a Black woman with two young children, standing together next to a speedboat at the edge of the platform. “I’ve been here an hour waiting for someone who can see to let us know if you guys can take us as immigrants yet. Couldn’t find anything saying for sure online so I just figured I’d come and see what you guys can do.” There was a hiss as Swatt removed his helmet. “We don’t have anything set up in stone yet, but we might be able to work with existing laws, set something up real quick. I’ll talk to the king, see what I can do.” She nodded, optimism tinging her voice. “Thank you. I don’t want a part in any country that’s gotten to the point that Lex Luthor might turn out as president.” She spat out Luthor’s name spitefully. Swatt pulled his helmet back on and dove into the ocean. A couple hours later, he returned. “Alright, I’ve drafted up this basic immigration law, nothing fancy but it’ll do, and I got the Queen to sign it. I’ve got somebody to bring up suits for you and your children. Had to guess at the sizes, but they should be close. Is it alright if you come to my office for some forms?” She nodded, a smile on her face. “Thank you so much for all of this, I never meant to cause so much trouble, I swear.” “We needed immigration law anyways, ma’am. Don’t worry too much about it.” Swatt looked at the setting sun across the waves. Another day gone. But at least he had gotten something done, helped somebody out. In the end, wasn’t that always the goal? ∿∿∿∿∿∿∿∿ “I’ll end it here then. Orin, Mera, I’m glad to have met you. Hopefully I can come visit your great civilization soon.” Shin stood up, holding his papers under his arm. “We’ll be happy to have you.” Orin said, stretching. After Shin left the room, Orin turned to Mera. “So, what’d you think?” “Easier than you were making it out to be.” She headed for the exit. “Come on, Mera, you’re telling me you weren’t nervous?” Orin followed after her. She punched his arm. “Don’t take it so seriously, I was just joking. Yes, I was nervous. But thank you, for taking the lead.” Rubbing his arm, Orin grinned. “Alright then, let’s head back to Atlantis. Can’t let the work pile up too much.” Mera smiled. “Lead the way.” NEXT TIME Orin and Garth have both been manipulated by N.E.M.O., despite their best efforts. Backed into a corner, they need to decide their next courses of action. Will they join together, or will rising tensions force them apart? Breach reaches its conclusion! Coming December 1 in Aquaman #38! << | < | >
[Lost in the Sauce] Trump admin hides Paycheck Protection program details; lawmakers benefit from loans
Welcome to Lost in the Sauce, keeping you caught up on political and legal news that often gets buried in distractions and theater… or a global health crisis. Title refers to: The Trump admin is blocking IGs from getting info on over $1 trillion in relief spending, including corporation bailouts. The admin is also withholding PPP info from Congress, meaning we don't know if Trump or his family took taxpayer money. Additionally, we learned that at least 4 members of Congress have benefited from PPP money, but aren't required to disclose it. Housekeeping:
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Coronavirus
Inspectors general warned Congress last week that the Trump administration is blocking scrutiny of more than $1 trillion in spending related to the Covid-19 pandemic. According to the previously undisclosed letter, Department of Treasury attorneys concluded that the administration is not required to provide the watchdogs with information about the beneficiaries of programs like the $500 billion in loans for corporations. Treasury Secretary Mnuchin refused to provide Congress with the names of recipients of the taxpayer-funded coronavirus business loans. After criticism, Mnuchin began to walk back his denial, saying he will talk to lawmakers on a bipartisan basis “to strike the appropriate balance for proper oversight” of PPP loans “and appropriate protection of small business information.” At least 4 lawmakers have benefited in some way from the Paycheck Protection program they helped create.Politico has been told there are almost certainly more -- but there are zero disclosure rules, even for members of Congress.
Republicans on the list include Rep. Roger Williams of Texas, a wealthy businessman who owns auto dealerships, body shops and car washes, and Rep. Vicky Hartzler of Missouri, whose family owns multiple farms and equipment suppliers across the Midwest. The Democrats count Rep. Susie Lee of Nevada, whose husband is CEO of a regional casino developer, and Rep. Debbie Mucarsel Powell of Florida, whose husband is a senior executive at a restaurant chain that has since returned the loan.
Mick Mulvaney dumped as much as $550,000 in stocks the same day Trump assured the public the US economy was 'doing fantastically' amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Mulvaney unloaded his holdings in three different mutual funds, each of which is primarily made up of US stocks. The next day, the value of the mutual funds tanked.
Cases rising in many states
Good summary: There was supposed to be a peak. But the stark turning point, when the number of daily COVID-19 cases in the U.S. finally crested and began descending sharply, never happened. Instead, America spent much of April on a disquieting plateau, with every day bringing about 30,000 new cases and about 2,000 new deaths. This pattern exists because different states have experienced the coronavirus pandemic in very different ways…The U.S. is dealing with a patchwork pandemic. As of Friday, coronavirus cases were significantly climbing in 16 states: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and Washington. Oklahoma is experiencing a massive increase in coronavirus cases just days before Trump’s planned rally in Tulsa. In Tulsa county itself, 1 in roughly 390 people have tested positive. Yet Trump plans on cramming 20,000 people in an event with voluntary face mask policy and no social distancing. Attendees must sign a waiver that absolves the president’s campaign of any liability from virus-related illnesses.
On Monday, Pence lied saying that Oklahoma has “flattened the curve.” As you can see at any of the resources immediately below, this is not even close to true. Over the past 14 days, the state has seen a 124% increase in cases and reports 65% of ICU beds are in use.
Tulsa World Editorial Board: This is the wrong time and Tulsa is the wrong place for the Trump rally. "We don't know why he chose Tulsa, but we can’t see any way that his visit will be good for the city...Again, Tulsa will be largely alone in dealing with what happens at a time when the city’s budget resources have already been stretched thin."
Earlier in the day, Trump tweeted that he is a victim of double standards when it comes to perception of his decision to resume campaign rallies in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, declaring that attempts to “covid shame” his campaign “won’t work!”
Resources to track increases: There are many different sites with various methods of visualizing the spread of coronavirus. Here are some that may be particularly useful this summer… Topos COVID-19 compiler homepage and graphs of each state since re-opening. How we reopen Safely has stats on each state’s progress towards meeting benchmarks to reopen safely (hint: almost none have reached all the checkpoints). WaPo has a weekly national map of cases/deaths; the largest regional clusters are in the southeast. On Monday, Trump twice said that “if we stop testing right now, we’d have very few cases, if any,” (video). Aside from the fact that cases exist even if we don’t test for them, we cannot explain the rising number of cases by increased testing capacity: In at least 14 states, the positive case rate is increasing faster than the increase in the average number of tests.
Reminder: In March Trump told Fox News that he didn't want infected patients from a cruise ship to disembark because it would increase the number of reported cases in the US. "I like the numbers being where they are," Trump said at the time. "I don't need to have the numbers double because of one ship that wasn't our fault."
Fired scientist Rebekah Jones builds coronavirus dashboard to rival Florida’s… Her site shows thousands more people with the coronavirus, and hundreds of thousands fewer who have been tested, than the site run by the Florida Health Department.
Equipment and supplies
More studies prove wearing masks limits transmission and spread of coronavirus… One study from Britain found that routine face mask use by 50% or more of the population reduced COVID-19 spread to an R of less than 1.0. The R value measures the average number of people that one infected person will pass the disease on to. An R value above 1 can lead to exponential growth. The study found that if people wear masks whenever they are in public it is twice as effective at reducing the R value than if masks are only worn after symptoms appear. Meanwhile, Trump officials refuse to wear masks and Trump supporters copy his behavior… VP Mike Pence, leader of the coronavirus task force, published a tweet showing himself in a room full of Trump staffers, none wearing masks or practicing social distancing. Pence deleted the tweet shortly after criticism. A poll last week showed that 66% of likely-Biden-voters “always wear a mask,” while 83% of likely-Trump-voters “neverarely wear a mask.”
Trump’s opposition to face masks hasn’t stopped him from selling them to his supporters, though. The online Trump Store is selling $20 cotton American flag-themed face masks.
Yesterday, we learned that South Carolina Republican Rep. Tom Rice and family have tested positive for the coronavirus. Just two weeks ago, Rice was on the House floor and halls of the Capitol without wearing a mask.
Internal FEMA data show that the government’s supply of surgical gowns has not meaningfully increased since March… The slides show FEMA’s plan to ramp up supply into June and July hinges on the reusing of N95 masks and surgical gowns, increasing the risk of contamination. Those are supposed to be disposed of after one use. Nursing homes with urgent needs for personal protective equipment say they’re receiving defective equipment as part of Trump administration supply initiative. Officials say FEMA is sending them gowns that look more like large tarps -- with no holes for hands -- and surgical masks that are paper-thin. More than 1,300 Chinese medical-device companies that registered to sell PPE in the U.S. during the coronavirus pandemic used bogus registration data… These companies listed as their American representative a purported Delaware entity that uses a false address and nonworking phone number. Florida is sitting on more than 980,000 unused doses of hydroxychloroquine, but hospitals don’t want it… Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered a million doses of the drug to show support for Trump, but very few hospitals have requested it.
Native American communities struggle
The CARES Act money for Native American tribes, meant to assist people during the pandemic, came with restrictions that are impeding efforts to limit the transmission of the virus. For instance, the funds can only be used to cover expenses that are "incurred due to the public health emergency." On the Navajo Nation, the public health emergency is inherently related to some basic infrastructure problems. 30% of Navajo don’t have running water to wash their hands, but the money can’t be used to build water lines. Federal and state health agencies are refusing to give Native American tribes and organizations representing them access to data showing how the coronavirus is spreading around their lands, potentially widening health disparities and frustrating tribal leaders already ill-equipped to contain the pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has turned down tribal epidemiologists’ requests for data that it’s making freely available to states. A Hospital’s Secret Coronavirus Policy Separated Native American Mothers From Their Newborns… Pregnant Native American women were singled out for COVID-19 testing based on their race and ZIP code, clinicians say. While awaiting results, some mothers were separated from their newborns, depriving them of the immediate contact doctors recommend. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced that state officials would investigate the allegations.
Personnel & appointees
Former IG Steve Linick told Congress he was conducting five investigations into Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the State Department before he was fired. In addition to investigating Pompeo's potential misuse of taxpayer funds and reviewing his decision to expedite an $8 billion arms sale to Saudi Arabia, Linick’s office was conducting an audit of Special Immigrant Visas, a review of the International Women of Courage Award, and another review "involving individuals in the Office of the Protocol."
Pompeo confidant emerges as enforcer in fight over watchdog’s firing: Linick testified that Undersecretary of State for Management Brian Bulatao, a decades-old friend of Pompeo’s, “tried to bully [him]” out of investigating Pompeo.
Trump has empowered John McEntee, director of the Presidential Personnel Office, to make significant staffing changes inside top federal agencieswithout the consent — and, in at least one case, without even the knowledge — of the agency head. Many senior officials in Trump's government are sounding alarms about the loss of expertise and institutional knowledge. Trump’s nominee for under secretary of defense for policy, retired Army Brig. Gen. Anthony Tata, has a history of making Islamophobic and inflammatory remarksagainst prominent Democratic politicians, including falsely calling former President Barack Obama a Muslim. Amid racial justice marches, GOP advances Trump court pick hostile to civil rights.Cory Wilson, up for a lifetime seat on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, has denied that restrictive voting laws lead to voter suppression and called same-sex marriage “a pander to liberal interest groups.” Interior Secretary David Bernhardt has indefinitely extended the terms of the acting directors of the Bureau of Land Management and the National Park Service, sidestepping the typical Senate confirmation process for those posts and violating the Federal Vacancies Reform Act,
Courts and DOJ
The Supreme Court declined on Monday to take a closer look at qualified immunity, the legal doctrine that shields law enforcement and government officials from lawsuits over their conduct. Developed in recent decades by the high court, the qualified immunity doctrine, as applied to police, initially asks two questions: Did police use excessive force, and if they did, should they have known that their conduct was illegal because it violated a "clearly established" prior court ruling that barred such conduct? In practice, however, lower courts have most often dismissed police misconduct lawsuits on grounds that there is no prior court decision with nearly identical facts. The Supreme Court ruled that federal anti-discrimination laws protect gay and transgender employees. Justice Neil M. Gorsuch and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. joined the court’s liberals in the 6 to 3 ruling. They said Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination “because of sex,” includes LGBTQ employees.
Alito, writing more than 100 pages in dissent for himself and Thomas, accused the court's majority of writing legislation, not law. Kavanaugh wrote separately: "We are judges, not members of Congress...Under the Constitution and laws of the United States, this court is the wrong body to change American law in that way."
Just days before the SCOTUS opinion was released, the Trump administration finalized a rule that would remove nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ people when it comes to health care and health insurance. The SCOTUS ruling may make it easier to challenge the changes made by Trump.
The Supreme Court also declined to take up California’s “sanctuary” law, denying the Trump administration’s appeal. This means that the lower court opinion upholding one of California's sanctuary laws is valid, limiting cooperation between law enforcement and federal immigration authorities. Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, two of the Court's conservative members, supported taking up the case. A federal appeals court appeared unlikely Friday to stop a judge from examining why the Justice Department sought to walk away from its prosecution of Michael Flynn. "I don't see why we don't observe regular order," said Judge Karen Henderson. "Why not hold this in abeyance and see what happens?" Judge Robert Wilkins told Flynn's lawyer that if Sullivan doesn't let the government drop the case, "then you can come back here on appeal."
Other
Good read: Fiona Hill on being mistaken as a secretary by Trump, her efforts to make sure he was not left alone with Putin, and what the US, UK and Russia have in common. “It’s spitting in Merkel’s face,” said Vladimir Frolov, a former Russian diplomat who’s now a foreign-policy analyst. “But it’s in our interests.”
Russia’s Foreign Ministry welcomed Trump’s plan to withdraw more than a quarter of U.S. troops from Germany.
Op-Ed: Why cutting American forces in Germany will harm this alliance
According to a new book, the Secret Service had to seek more funding to cover the cost of protecting Melania Trump while she stayed in NYC to renegotiate her prenup - taxpayers paid tens of millions of dollars to allow her to get better terms. Additionally, NYPD estimated its own costs conservatively at $125,000 a day. Georgia election 'catastrophe' in largely minority areas sparks investigation. Long lines, lack of voting machines, and shortages of primary ballots plagued voters. As of Monday night, there were still over 200,000 uncounted votes. Fox News runs digitally altered images in coverage of Seattle’s protests, Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone Fox News Mocked After Mistaking Monty Python Joke for Seattle Protest Infighting In addition to holding a rally on the day after Juneteenth (originally scheduled the day of), Trump will be accepting the GOP nomination in Jacksonville on the 60th anniversary of “Ax Handle Saturday,” a KKK attack on African Americans. Environmental news:
Ruling against environmentalists, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that the federal government has the authority to allow a proposed $7.5 billion natural gas pipeline to cross under the popular Appalachian Trail in rural Virginia.
Trump administration has issued a new rule blocking tribes from protecting their waters from projects like pipelines, dams, and coal terminals.
The EPA published a proposal in the Federal Register that critics described as an assault on minority communities coping with the public health legacy of structural racism. The rule would bar EPA from giving special consideration to individual communities that bear the brunt of environmental risks — frequently populations of color.
The Trump administration is preparing to drill off Florida’s coast, but says it will wait until after the November election to avoid any backlash from Florida state leaders.
Immigration news
U.S. Customs and Border Protection used emergency funding meant for migrant families and children to pay for dirt bikes, canine supplies, computer equipment and other enforcement related-expenditures… The money was meant to be spent on “consumables and medical care” for migrants at the border.
ACLU files lawsuit against stringent border restrictions related to coronavirus that largely bar migrants from entering the United States.
Under Trump’s leadership, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has mismanaged its finances so badly that it has sought an emergency $1.2 billion infusion from taxpayers. When Trump took office, USCIS inherited a budget surplus. A large amount of funding is drained by its deliberate creation of more busy work for immigrants and their lawyers — as well as thousands of USCIS employees. These changes are designed to make it harder for people to apply for, receive or retain lawful immigration status.
Asylum-seeking migrants locked up inside an Arizona ICE detention center with one of the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases say they were forced to clean the facility and are 'begging' for protection from the virus
ICE plans to spend $18 million on thousands of new tasers and the training to use them
A Long-form Analysis of MGM and It's Assets: What Would Its Suitors - Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Comcast - Be Getting?
By now I think you've heard the big news about the Lion: They are looking into getting sold. After a solid decade of Hollywood perks, Anchorage Capital manager Kevin Ulrich is looking to off-load MGM in the midst of a pandemic after a series of tumultuous valuation drops. Among the potential acquirers were Facebook, Apple, Amazon, and Comcast. Among those, three are tech companies and one is a more traditional Hollywood media company. There are some major hurdles to a potential deal, however. Danjaq, the IP holding company that owns Eon Productions and is run by Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson, owns merchandising rights and shares greenlight authority for all Bond movies. Distribution rights for movies like Creed and Casino Royale are divvied up between different companies. Reality TV assets, which were brought in to bolster their holdings, include Big Fish Entertainment, which among other things produces the now-cancelled Live PD. Debt hides in the balance books; any purchase would include about $2b, making the purchase that much harder to stomach. For fun though, let's take a look at each of these four buyers to see how it could play into their strategies. Apple: The much ballyhooed content lack for Apple might've motivated a deal back in the day, especially in 2019; indeed, the article notes that a deal with Apple that would've valued MGM at $6b was almost reached in 2018.
In 2018, Mr. Ulrich, by then the board chairman, and others on the board fired Mr. Barber for having early, unsanctioned conversations with Apple to sell the studio for more than $6 billion. The preliminary talks fell apart when he was ousted. Minority shareholders protested, with Owl Creek founder Jeffrey Altman sending a letter to the board saying Owl Creek and other shareholders wanted a deal.
From an accounting perspective, there are some serious perks to buy MGM. Say you spend 8b to get The Lion plus debt; assuming 4,000 movies and 50 100+ hour TV shows, that means you got 13,000 hours for about $600k per hour, pretty cheap all things considered and a fraction of what it would have cost to get the equivalent amount of content at Apple TV+ production prices (seriously where does that money go I don't see it on screen). Plus you get a full-fledged studio with Emmy credentials on the TV side and blockbuster franchises on the feature side; Fargo and Handmaid's Tale alongside Rocky and Bond. Now here's the question: will Apple actually buy MGM? Their biggest M&A to date was the acquisition of Beats for $4b, and that came with technology that they could use for Apple Music. This $6b offer came in 2018, before Apple had an in-house studio and any library to speak of. So far, they've been weathering the pandemic surprisingly well; they've managed to keep a steady drip of content between stuff like Ted Lasso and Tehran, while also building up their own in-house production arm (presumably at significant expense). What this gets Apple now is a still not-insignificant franchise portfolio as well as a library of 4,000-ish movies plus TV shows. That's nothing to sneeze at, but it's still a far cry from the benefits that would've come from acquiring MGM earlier. If your only goal is library, then you don't spend $6b on it. Indeed, I don't think Apple will. Whether Ulrich will be willing to accept a deal for, say, $4b is an open question. My bet would be no. Amazon: Same deal for Apple, though slightly less urgency because they already have a homegrown studio. Facebook: Now this is interesting. Facebook exited the scripted content business pretty recently but there is a cognizance that content keeps users coming back to platforms and they need that content. Buying MGM would get them a fairly significant unscripted division with producing roles or control over valuable formats; among other things, they would own Botched! and have producing roles in several Real Housewives franchises, Survivor, and Shark Tank. That having been said, I see any deal that involves the House of Zuck to involve a private equity company like Vine Investments or something that will take command of the library and other such assets - that way, Facebook isn't overpaying for one component. Comcast: And the more traditional content company. There are interesting synergies that come with ownership by Comcast, but also big stumbling blocks. Their justification for buying Dreamworks was turning a low-margin business like movies into high-margin businesses like consumer products and theme parks. Similar thinking wouldn't be applicable to MGM, at least with regards to Bond; as mentioned before, Danjaq controls Bond's merchandising rights, and Comcast is pulling back investment in Theme Parks hard in the wake of the pandemic (many, many people got fired recently, unfortunately). Still, control of Bond is important when Comcast is the owner of Sky, a European media company. That alone may end up making a lower-valued deal for MGM "worth it" for the cabler. A sale of MGM might also spur Danjaq to sell the rest of their rights to the property, though I wouldn't hold my breath. An Mi-6 land in Comcast's planned "Epic Universe" Theme Park in Orlando could make a great replacement for the now problematic Fantastic Beasts/Ministry of Magic land that was planned before. Additionally, weetening the deal for Comcast are a myriad other smaller-scale IPs and franchises that could help beef up their portfolio and generate lucrative TV or movie revivals; among them are Stargate: Atlantis, Teen Wolf, Rocky, Robocop, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Addams Family, Jump Street, Pink Panther, Legally Blonde, Carrie, Bill & Ted, and Poltergeist. Rights to adapt the musicals to film would also be taken; Dirty Rotten Scoundrel and Legally Blonde: The Musical are tantalizing possibilities. Tolkien properties like The Hobbit are presumably still tied up in rights tangles with New Line and the Saul Zaentz company, as well as Tolkien's estate. So far as I can tell, Zaentz owns merchandise, New Line has license for the film rights - but not necessarily/fully TV? - and the Tolkien estate own Theme Parks. Look, if MGM had sole rights, it'd be a Disney subsidiary by now. In terms of TV: Epix, I assume, would be on the chopping block. Steve Stark's MGM/UA Television appears built to be a prestige-outlet (Fargo, Perpetual Grace LTD, Vikings, Handmaid's Tale, though they're programming more sci-fi and general interest stuff like Clarice and Condor) and can thus complement the more genre/thriller-y UCP. By the same token, Orion TV would get retired. The dedicated formats division could be a component of Universal Alternative; Evolution Media, producer of Botched, can be kept as a separate division. Other assets, like Christian Film and TV producer Lightworkers, Live PD producer Big Fish, Mexican Media joint-venture Gato Grande, and Linear Channel Impact, can be sold. MGM Films could go either way, De Luca has a relaxed relationship with Donna Langley so I could see her protecting him for a while. The best case scenario for him IMO is a FOX 2000 type situation where the team is dedicated to producing a small slate of good, lower-mid budget movies that are intended for Oscar season. Trouble is, Fox 2000 had like, 16 employees including assistants, and MGM is a full-on studio, so the overhead's gonna be a lot higher. Distribution and Marketing would also presumably gonna get pink-slipped, unfortunately; unlike Disney, Universal has ample infrastructure for distributing those sorts of movies. Not helping him would be if any of MGM's movies bomb. Overall, I think MGM has a strong enough brand to where it'll survive as Universal's New Line Cinema, a smaller-scale division with occasionally unclear branding (ironically, De Luca was NLC's President of Production). I am, however, left wondering if execs like Pam Abdy would tolerate being in charge of a glorified boutique when they signed on to be part of a studio. Orion Pictures is in an awkward place in the case of a Uni merger. Their historical brand is as a genre outfit and said brand was revived in recent years with releases like the 2019 Child's Play and The Prodigy. However, they've recently pivoted to making it an outlet for underrepresented voices... but haven't had the chance to actually make that pivot public with some theatrical releases (or even projects). That leaves Langley and co with a choice regarding what to do Orion: keep it as a genre label, keep it as a minority-focused label, or retire it completely. Now the plus side is that the overhead is likely to be small; the downside is that unlike say, Sony, Uni has little patience for prodigious numbers of labels (hence how short-lived experiments like reviving Gramercy as a label were, and stuff like selling off Rogue Pictures), so that bodes ill for the continued survival of Orion. Uni also already programs tons of minority-focused movies in general, so it's unclear if the brand would stand out in the broader company. On the flipside of that, Universal's large number of minority-focused Overalls (Will Packer, Jordan Peele, Malcolm Lee, Eva Longoria, SpringHill, Justin Lin) could help feed Orion's pipeline; I would imagine people like Michael B. Jordan, Taika Waititi and The Rock being wooed over to a producer deal with Universal by the presence of a dedicated minority-voice division designed to put out passion projects related to their heritage. The real test of whether or not Uni would want to nurture Orion as that kind of brand would be if they put out the next Jordan Peele movie through them. Overall, it might be worth it to keep Orion around and see where it goes. If it doesn't work out, they can always just promote Alana Mayo as an EVP in Universal proper and retire the label completely. If Universal really wanted a genre label that badly, I would suggest taking a minority-stake in Blumhouse first.
I am a Macedonian from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Macedonia. The Macedonian Mafia is a term used to describe illegal gangs and criminal organisations operating in my country Macedonia and within the Macedonian diaspora. Macedonian organized crime figures operate mostly in Europe and North America (countries such as Germany, Austria, United States, Canada, Monaco, Italy, France, Spain, Cyprus, Turkey, Greece, Switzerland, England, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo and Bulgaria are primarily favored by Macedonian organized crime figures for operating in or for forming partnerships with local organized crime groups, primarily from other Balkan or Eastern European countries as well as Italian syndicates, for their cultural, linguistic, ethnographic and geographical similarities as well as because of existing mutual ties between the organized crime groups or their members abroad and in the home countries, or the use of countries such was Switzerland, Monaco, Luxembourg and Cyprus for off-shore banking and money laundering), as well as Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand. Macedonian organized crime groups co-operate with other Balkan organized crime groups including the Serbian, Bulgarian and Albanian groups, both in the Balkans and in other places around the world, as well as the Italian mafia and the Russian mafia (through Bulgaria). Macedonian organized crime is usually centered around all types of legitimate businesses alongside typical organized crime activities such as smuggling, import and export, drug trafficking, extortion, arms trade, fraud, auto theft, racketeering, gambling, human trafficking, murder, contract killing, bodyguarding, prostitution and money laundering. Macedonian organized crime is also involved in security companies like the Bulgarian mafia, as well as with them, especially operating out of cities in eastern Macedonia, such as Štip. They are thought to have ties with the Janev Clan and the Albanian Mafia when concerning the trade of tobacco. Macedonian organized crime in Australia and Toronto, Canada is predominant among youth. Macedonian organized crime, similarly to Bulgarian, Serbian, Albanian and Russian organized crime, utilizes the concept of using security groups to protect their businesses, enforce their power and eliminate competition. These security groups are usually composed of ex military, special forces, martial artists/MMA fighters and bodybuilders. While most security groups are responsible for low level activities such as posing as nightclub bouncers(nightclubs are a Macedonian gangsters' favorite meeting and party place, along with the kafana). These security groups hide behind and operate mainly under a corporate structure, but some are more militarized than others and have been labelled as terrorist groups. It's also safe to say that the Macedonian military itself is also heavily influenced and involved in organized crime activities and is a breeding and training ground for some gangsters. Some well known and higher quality security groups usually possess Macedonia's best and most infamous enforcers, and aside having checkered backgrounds these criminals have gone to be the top ranking Macedonian politicians(presidents and prime ministers) and businessmen's personal security detail and bodyguards. They have even killed people on their behalf. Same as the above, the banking system in Macedonia heavily relies on organized crime in order to flourish, with limited foreign funding from its umbrella banks in Western European countries, it's unable to flourish on its own. It's also safe to say that some Western European, Russian and Middle Eastern banks have set up money laundering centers in Macedonia in the form of banks, companies, religious and educational institutions. Recently, a growing trend in Macedonia used by organized crime groups to launder money(because of the country's poorly organized justice and financial system and widespread political corruption it's hard for law enforcement officials to find evidence highlighting any type of illegal activities in terms of financial crimes when the Macedonian legal statues on financial crime is still heavily based on the Communist Yugoslavian one which does not apply in any way to the modern Capitalist system) is through the use of gambling institutions such as sports betting and casinos.
Macedonian Mafia - Key People
_ Marjan Tushevski (aka Bokser) (killed July 2001): head boss of the Macedonian underground. -Goran Georgievski (aka Mujo) (1969–2005) (killed April 2005): Former member of the Lions special police force. Georgievski, along with several ethnic Albanian criminals operating in the Republic of Macedonia, was listed on a black list issued by the European Union. - Nikola Mojsovski (aka Koljo) (killed July 2005): 2001 Macedonia conflict combatant who was involved in racketeering in Prilep. Head boss of the Prilep underground. - Zoran Manaskov (aka Skrseniot): The alleged leader of the Frankfurt mafia, a huge Macedonian led heroin ring operating in Germany and Austria based out of the city of Veles, Macedonia.
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Welcome to Lost in the Sauce, keeping you caught up on political and legal news that often gets buried in distractions and theater… or a global health crisis. Figuring out how to divide the COVID-19 content from the “regular” news has been difficult because the pandemic is influencing all aspects of life. Some of the stories below involve the virus, but I chose to include them when it fits into one of the pre-established categories (like congress or immigration). The coronavirus-central post will be made again this Thursday-Friday; the sign up form now has an option to choose to receive an email when the coronavirus-focused roundup is posted. House-keeping:
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MAIN COURSE
Congress passes stimulus
Last week started out with a Republican-crafted stimulus bill that was twice-blocked by Senate Democrats, who objected to the lax conditions of aid to corporations, too little funding for hospitals, and a $500 billion “slush fund” for big companies to be doled out by Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin with no oversight. Conservative-Democrat Joe Manchin (WV) even criticized the GOP bill:
“It fails our first responders, nurses, private physicians and all healthcare professionals. ... It fails our workers. It fails our small businesses… Instead, it is focused on providing billions of dollars to Wall Street and misses the mark on helping the West Virginians that have lost their jobs through no fault of their own.”
Through negotiations, Democrats shifted the bill in a more-worker friendly direction. The version that passed includes the following Democrat-added provisions: expanded unemployment benefits, $100 billion for hospitals, $150 billion for state and local governments, direct payments to Americans without a phase-in (ensuring low-income workers get the full amount), a ban on Trump and his children from receiving aid, and oversight on the “slush fund” (see next section for more info). Senate Democrats also managed to remove a provision that would have excluded nonprofits that receive Medicaid funding from the small-business grants.
Further reading: After Senate Democrats blocked the Republican-crafted bill, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi led the House Democrats in releasing their own version, a best-case scenario of their dream coronavirus stimulus bill. It is interesting to contrast what the Democrats prioritized to what the Republicans focused on: “How the House Democrats' stimulus plan compares to the Senate's”
Echoing sentiments expressed during debate on the previous coronavirus bill (the second, for those keeping track), Republican senators derided the $600 a week increase in unemployment payments as “incentivizing” workers to quit their jobs. Sens. Ben Sasse (Neb.), Rick Scott (Fla.), Tim Scott (S.C.) and Lindsey Graham (S.C.) delayed passage of the bill in order to force a vote on an amendment removing the extra unemployment funding. "This bill pays you more not to work than if you were working," Graham said. Fortunately for American workers, the amendment failed and the improved bill passed the Senate and the House.
Note: In 2009 only three Republicans helped Obama pass his stimulus bill in his first month in office.
The giveaways in the bill
While Senate Democrats were able to add worker-friendly provisions, the bill still required bipartisan support to pass the chamber and some corporate giveaways remained in the final version.
NYT: “Senate Republicans inserted an easy-to-overlook provision on page 203 of the 880-page bill that would permit wealthy investors to use losses generated by real estate to minimize their taxes on profits from things like investments in the stock market. The estimated cost of the change over 10 years is $170 billion.”
NYT: “...if a company owns multiple hotels, even if the overall hotel or restaurant chain has more than 500 employees — the limit to qualify for treatment as a small business — it will still be able to take advantage of the small-business benefits offered in the rescue package. ...The provision could benefit the Trump Organization, which operates a relatively small chain, with six hotels in the United States in cities including New York, Washington and Chicago.”
“A provision for the FDA to approve ‘innovative’ sunscreens—which would benefit L’Oreal, which has operations in Kentucky—appeared in the bill, which was steered in the Senate by Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.”
“The $25 billion allocated in loans and loan guarantees for the airlines will also benefit eligible businesses "approved to perform inspection, repair, replace, or overhaul services, and ticket agents.” The last two words — ‘ticket agents’ — mean that travel agents who book flights will also be able to apply for a piece of the $25 billion.”
“The credit reporting industry got a win by defeating a total ban on negative credit reports during the crisis. Instead, a watered down version made it into the final bill: Consumers wouldn't get a negative credit report if they have an agreement with a lender to delay payments or make partial payments.”
Trump’s signing statement
While signing the latest coronavirus relief bill, the president also issued a signing statement undercutting the congressional oversight provision creating an inspector general to track how the administration distributes the $500 billion “slush fund” money. The newly-created inspector general is legally required to audit loans and investments made through the fund and report to Congress his/her findings, including any refusal by the executive office to cooperate. In his signing statement, Trump wrote that his understanding of constitutional powers allows him to gag the special IG:
"I do not understand, and my Administration will not treat, this provision as permitting the [inspector general] to issue reports to the Congress without the presidential supervision required" by Article II of the Constitution.
The signing statement further suggests that Trump does not have to comply with a provision requiring that agencies consult with Congress before it spends or reallocates certain funds: "These provisions are impermissible forms of congressional aggrandizement with respect to the execution of the laws," the statement reads. While some have said that Congress fell short in this instance, one Democratic Senate aide told Politico that Congress built in multiple layers of oversight, including “a review of other inspectors general and a congressional review committee charged with overseeing Treasury and the Federal Reserve's efforts to implement the law.” Legal experts have pointed out that a signing statement is “without legal effect.” But that ignores the fact that oversight is not equal to enforcement. The problem, in my opinion, isn’t that Congress won’t be notified of any abuses of power by Trump. The problem is that congressional Republicans and the judiciary have largely failed to hold him accountable and enforce our laws even after learning of his abuses.
Concerns about the IG
Another potential weakness in the oversight structure is the inspector general position itself. The special inspector general for pandemic recovery, known by the acronym S.I.G.P.R., is nominated by the president and confirmed by the Republican-controlled Senate. As we’ve seen from Trump’s previous nominees, particularly judicial, many unqualified individuals have been confirmed. The Democrats will not have the power to stop the president and Mitch McConnell from jamming through a loyalist to fill the SIGPR role.
Former inspector general at the Justice Department Michael Bromwich: “The signing statement threatens to undermine the authority and independence of this new IG. The Senate should extract a commitment from the nominee that Congress will be promptly notified of any Presidential/Administration interference or obstruction.”
You may recall that Trump has already proven that he’s willing to interfere with the legally-mandated work of an inspector general. When the Ukraine whistleblower filed a complaint last year, the IG of the Intelligence Community, Michael Atkinson, investigated and determined the complaint to be “urgent” and “credible.” Atkinson wrote a report and gave it to Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire to hand over to Congress. However, the White House and DOJ interfered and instructed Maguire not to transmit the report to the Senate and House Intelligence Committees. Chairman Adam Schiff had to subpoena Maguire to turn over the report and testify before his committee. Further, there are already five IG vacancies in agencies that have a critical role in responding to the pandemic. The Treasury itself has not had a permanent, Senate-confirmed IG for over eight months now, and Trump hasn’t nominated a replacement. The Treasury Dept. has taken a lead role in the coronavirus response, with Secretary Mnuchin handling most of the negotiating with Congress on Trump’s behalf. The fact that the lead agency doesn’t have IG oversight should be troublesome in itself; replicating the situation with a special IG doesn’t seem to be a promising solution.
The other four coronavirus-related agencies without a permanent IG: Department of Health and Human Services’ IG has been vacant for nine months, Department of Defense’s IG has been vacant for four years, Department of Education’s IG has been vacant for one year, and Office of Personnel Management’s IG has been vacant for four years. Overall, there are twelve IG vacancies in the 37) presidentially-appointed offices.
UPDATE: The nation's inspectors general have appointed Glenn Fine, the Pentagon's acting IG, to lead the committee of IGs overseeing the coronavirus relief effort.
This is one of several oversight mechanisms built into the new law. They include: A committee of IGs (now led by Fine), a new special IG (to be nominated by Trump), a congressional review panel (to be appointed by House/Senate leaders)
Direct payments
Included in the stimulus bill is a $1200 one-time direct payment for all Americans who made less than $75,000 in 2019 (less than $150,000 if couples filed jointly). More details can be found here. I have read that the Treasury will use 2018 information for those who have not filed yet this year, but I am not 100% sure that’ll happen. Mnuchin has said that Americans can expect to receive the money within three weeks, but many experts expect that timetable to be pushed into late April. Additionally, that only applies to Americans who included direct deposit information on their 2019 tax returns. Those who did not include their bank’s information will have to be sent a physical check in the mail… which could take anywhere from two to four months. Other options are being discussed, including partnering the Treasury Dept. with MasterCard and Visa to deliver prepaid debit cards. Venmo and Paypal are reportedly lobbying the government to be considered as a disbursement option. Future payments? House Speaker Pelosi is already planning another wave of direct payments to Americans, saying that the $1,200 is not enough to mitigate the economic effects of the pandemic: “I don’t think we’ve seen the end of direct payments.” Republicans, meanwhile, are taking a ‘wait and see’ approach, using the next couple of weeks to measure the impact of the $2 trillion bill passed last week.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy: “What concerns me is when I listen to Nancy Pelosi talk about a fourth package now, it’s because she did not get out of things that she really wanted...I’m not sure you need a fourth package...Let’s let this work ... We have now given the resources to make and solve this problem. We don’t need to be crafting another bill right now.” For the fourth legislative package, Democrats have said they would like to see increased food stamp benefits; increased coverage for coronavirus testing, visits to the doctor and treatment; more money for state and local governments, including Washington, D.C.; expanded family and medical leave; pension fixes; and stronger workplace protections.
Trump’s signature Normally, a civil servant signs federal checks, like the direct payments Americans are set to receive. According to a Wall Street Journal report, Trump has told people that he wants his signature to appear on the stimulus checks.
THE SIDES
War on the poor continues
Amid the coronavirus crisis, Trump has defended his continued support of a Republican-led lawsuit to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, which would result in 20 million Americans losing health insurance if successful. The Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments in the case this fall. Contrasting with his position that the ACA is illegal, Trump is considering reopening enrollment on HealthCare.gov, allowing millions of uninsured individuals to get coverage before potentially incurring charges and fees related to COVID-19. Joe Biden called on Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is leading the charge against the ACA, and President Trump to drop the lawsuit:
“At a time of national emergency, which is laying bare the existing vulnerabilities in our public health infrastructure, it is unconscionable that you are continuing to pursue a lawsuit designed to strip millions of Americans of their health insurance and protections under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including the ban on insurers denying coverage or raising premiums due to pre-existing conditions.”
The Trump administration is also pushing forward with its plan to kick 700,000 people off federal food stamp assistance, known as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). The USDA announced two weeks ago that the department will appeal Judge Beryl Howell’s recent decision that the USDA’s work mandate rule is “arbitrary and capricious." Additionally: The Social Security Administration has no plans to slow down a rule change set for June that will limit disability benefits, the Department of Health and Human Services still intends to reduce automatic enrollment in health coverage, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development will continue the process to enact a rule that would make it harder for renters to sue landlords for racial discrimination.
Lawmakers’ stock transactions
The Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission are beginning to investigate stock transactions made ahead of the economic crisis caused by the coronavirus pandemic. CNN reports that the inquiry has already reached out to Senator Richard Burr for information. “Under insider trading laws, prosecutors would need to prove the lawmakers traded based on material non-public information they received in violation of a duty to keep it confidential,” a task that won’t be easy. Sen. Burr is facing another consequence of his trades: Alan Jacobson, a shareholder in Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, sued Burr for allegedly using private information to instruct a mass liquidation of his assets. Among the shares he sold were an up to $150,000 stake in Wyndham, whose stock suffered a market-value cut of more than two-thirds since mid-February.
Environmental rollbacks
Using the pandemic as cover, the Trump administration has begun to more aggressively roll back regulations meant to protect the environment. These are examples of what Naomi Klein dubbed “the shock doctrine”: the phenomenon wherein polluters and their government allies push through unpopular policy changes under the smokescreen of a public emergency. On Thursday, the EPA announced (non-paywalled) an expansive relaxation of environmental laws and fines, exempting companies from consequences for pollution. Under the new rules, there are basically no rules. Companies are asked to “act responsibly” but are not required to report when their facilities discharge pollution into the air or water. Just five days before abandoning any pollution oversight, the oil industry’s largest trade group implored the administration for assistance, stating that social distancing measures caused a steep drop in demand for gasoline.
Monday morning update: In an interview with Fox News this morning, Trump said he was going to call Putin after the interview to discuss the Saudi-Russia oil fight. A consequence of this "battle" has been plummeting prices in the U.S. making it difficult for domestic companies (like shale extraction) to turn a profit. It's striking that the day after Dr. Fauci told Americans we can expect 100,000 to 200,000 deaths from COVID-19 (if we keep social distancing measures in place), Trump's first action is to talk to Fox News and his second action is to intervene in an international tiff on behalf of the oil and gas industry.
Gina McCarthy, who led the E.P.A. under the Obama administration, called the rollback “an open license to pollute.” Cynthia Giles, who headed the EPA enforcement division during the Obama administration, said “it is so far beyond any reasonable response I am just stunned.” The EPA is also moving forward with a widely-opposed rule to limit the types of scientific studies used when crafting new regulations or revising current ones. Hidden behind claims of increased transparency, the rule would require disclosure of all raw data used in scientific studies. This would disqualify many fields of research that rely on personal health information from individuals that must be kept confidential. For example, studies that show air pollution causes premature deaths or a certain pesticide is linked to birth defects would be rejected under the proposed rule change. Officials and scientists are calling upon the EPA to extend the time for comment on the regulatory changes, arguing that the public is unable to express their opinion while dealing with the pandemic.
“These rollbacks need and deserve the input of our public health community, but right now, they are rightfully focused on responding to the coronavirus,” said Representative Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Other controversial decisions being made:
A former EPA official who worked on controversial policies returned as Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s chief of staff. Mandy Gunasekara helped write regulations to ease pollution controls for coal-fired power plants and vehicle emissions in her previous role as chief of the EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation. In a recent interview, Gunasekara, who played a role in the decision to exit the Paris Climate Accord, pushed back on the more dire predictions of climate change, saying, “I don't think it is catastrophic.”
NYT: The plastic bag industry, battered by a wave of bans nationwide, is using the coronavirus crisis to try to block laws prohibiting single-use plastic. “We simply don’t want millions of Americans bringing germ-filled reusable bags into retail establishments putting the public and workers at risk,” an industry campaign that goes by the name Bag the Ban warned on Tuesday. (Also see The Guardian)
Kentucky, South Dakota, and West Virginia passed laws putting new criminal penalties on protests against fossil fuel infrastructure in just the past two weeks.
The Hill: The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said Friday that it will extend the amount of time that winter gasoline can be sold this year as producers have been facing lower demand due to the coronavirus. It will allow companies to sell the winter-grade gasoline through May 20, whereas companies would have previously been required to stop selling it by May 1 to protect air quality. “In responding to an international health crisis, the last thing the EPA should do is take steps that will worsen air quality and undermine the public’s health,” biofuels expert David DeGennaro said.
NYT: At the Interior Department, employees at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have been under strict orders to complete the rule eliminating some protections for migratory birds within 30 days, according to two people with direct knowledge of the orders. The 45-day comment period on that rule ended on March 19.
WaPo: The Interior Department has received over 230 nominations for oil and gas leases covering more than 150,000 acres across southern Utah, a push that would bring drilling as close as a half-mile from some of the nation’s most famous protected sites, including Arches and Canyonlands National Parks… if all the fossil fuels buried in those sites was extracted and burned, it would translate into between 1 billion and 5.95 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide being released into the air. That upward measure is equal to half the annual carbon output of China
Court updates
Press freedom case Southern District of New York District Judge Lorna Schofield ruled that a literary advocacy group’s lawsuit against Trump for allegedly violating the First Amendment can move forward. The group, PEN America, is pursuing claims that Trump “has used government power to retaliate against media coverage and reporters he dislikes.” Schofield determined that PEN’s allegation that Trump made threats to chill free speech was valid, providing as an example the White House’s revocation of CNN correspondent Jim Acosta’s press press corps credentials:
”The threats are lent credence by the fact that Defendant has acted on them before, by revoking Mr. Acosta’s credentials and barring reporters from particular press conferences. The Press Secretary indeed e-mailed the entire press corps to inform them of new rules of conduct and to warn of further consequences, citing the incident involving Mr. Acosta… These facts plausibly allege that a motivation for defendant’s actions is controlling and punishing speech he dislikes.”
Twitter case The president suffered another First Amendment defeat last week when the full 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals declined to review a previous ruling that prevents Trump from blocking users on the Twitter account he uses to communicate with the public. Judge Barrington D. Parker, a Nixon-appointee, wrote: “Excluding people from an otherwise public forum such as this by blocking those who express views critical of a public official is, we concluded, unconstitutional.” Trump-appointees Michael Parker and Richard Sullivan authored a dissent, arguing the free speech “does not include a right to post on other people’s personal social media accounts, even if those other people happen to be public officials.” Park warned that the ruling will allow the social media pages of public officials to be “overrun with harassment, trolling, and hate speech, which officials will be powerless to filter.” Florida’s felon voting U.S. District Judge Robert Hinkle ripped into Florida Governor Ron DeSantis’s administration for failing to come up with a process to determine which felons are genuinely unable to pay court-ordered fees and fines, which are otherwise required to be paid before having their voting rights restored. “If the state is not going to fix it, I will,” Hinkle warned. He had given the state five months to come up with an administrative process for felons to prove they’re unable to pay financial obligations, but Florida officials did not do so. The case is set to be heard on April 28 (notwithstanding any coronavirus-related delays).
ICE, Jails, and COVID-19
ICE One of the most overlooked populations with an increased risk of death from coronavirus are those in detention facilities, which keep people in close quarters with little sanitation or protective measures (including for staff). Last week, U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee ordered the federal government to “make continuous efforts” to release migrant children from detention centers across the country. Numerous advocacy groups asked for the release after reports that four children being held in New York had tested positive for the virus:
“The threat of irreparable injury to their health and safety is palpable,” the plaintiffs’ lawyers said in their petition… both of the agencies operating migrant children detention facilities must by April 6 provide an accounting of their efforts to release those in custody… “Her order will undoubtedly speed up releases,” said Peter Schey, co-counsel for the plaintiffs in the court case.
On Tuesday, 13 immigrants held at ICE facilities in California filed a lawsuit demanding to be released because their health conditions make them particularly vulnerable to dying if infected by the coronavirus. An ACLU statement says the detainees are “confined in crowded and unsanitary conditions where social distancing is not possible.” The 13 individuals are all over the age of 50 and/or suffering from serious underlying medical issues like high blood pressure.
“From all the evidence we have seen, ICE is failing to fulfill its constitutional obligation to protect the health and safety of individuals in its custody. ICE should exercise its existing discretion to release people with serious medical conditions from detention for humanitarian reasons,” said William Freeman, senior counsel at the ACLU of Northern California.
Meanwhile, ICE is under fire for continuing to shuttle detainees across the country, with one even being forced to take nine different flights bouncing from Louisiana to Texas to New Jersey less than two weeks ago. That man is Dr. Sirous Asgari, a materials science and engineering professor from Iran, who was acquitted last year on federal charges of stealing trade secrets. The government lost its case against him, yet ICE has had him in indefinite detention since November.
Asgari, 59, told the Guardian that his Ice holding facility in Alexandria, Louisiana, had no basic cleaning practices in place and continued to bring in new detainees from across the country with no strategy to minimize the threat of Covid-19...Detainees have no hand sanitizer, and the facility is not regularly cleaning bathrooms or sleeping areas…Detainees lack access to masks… Detainees struggle to stay clean, and the facility has an awful stench.
Jails State jails are making a better effort to release detained individuals, as both New York and New Jersey ordered a thousand people in each state be let out of jail. The order applied only to low-level offenders sentenced to less than a year in jail and those held on technical probation violations. In Los Angeles County, officials released over 1,700 people from its jails. A judge in Alabama took similar steps last week, ordering roughly 500 people jailed for minor offenses to be released to lessen crowding in facilities. Unlike in New York and New Jersey, however, local officials reacted in an uproar, led in part by the state executive committee for the Alabama Republican Party and Assistant District Attorney C.J. Robinson. Using angry Facebook messages as the barometer of the community’s feelings, Robinson worked “frantically” to block inmates from being released.
Reuters: As of Saturday, at least 132 inmates and 104 staff at jails across New York City had tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus… Since March 22, jails have reported 226 inmates and 131 staff with confirmed cases of COVID-19, according to a Reuters survey of cities and counties that run America’s 20 largest jails. The numbers are almost certainly an undercount given the fast spread of the virus.
Tribe opposed by Trump loses land
On Wednesday, The Federal Bureau of Indian Affairs announced the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe’s reservation would be "disestablished" and its land trust status removed. Tribal Chairman Cedric Cromwell called the move "cruel" and "unnecessary,” particularly coming in the midst of a pandemic crisis. Rep. Bill Keating (D-Mass.), who last year introduced legislation to protect the tribe's reservation as trust land in Massachusetts, said the order “is one of the most cruel and nonsensical acts I have seen since coming to Congress.” The administration’s decision is especially suspicious as just last year Trump attacked the tribe’s plan to build a casino on its land, tweeting that allowing the construction would be “unfair” and treat Native Americans unequally. As a former casino owner, Trump has spent decades attacking Native American casinos as unfair competition. At a 1993 congressional hearing Trump said that tribal owners “don’t look like Indians to me” and claimed: “I might have more Indian blood than a lot of the so-called Indians that are trying to open up the reservations” to gambling. More than his past history, however, Trump has current interests at play in the Mashpee Wampanoag’s planned casino: it would have competed for business with nearby Rhode Island casinos owned by Twin River Worldwide Holdings, whose president, George Papanier, was a finance executive at the Trump Plaza casino hotel in Atlantic City.
In the Mashpee case, Twin River, the operator of the two Rhode Island casinos, has hired Matthew Schlapp, chairman of the American Conservative Union and a vocal Trump supporter, to lobby for it on the land issue. Schlapp’s wife, Mercedes, is director of strategic communications at the White House.
The Story of Joe Rogan and the Stern Show: “…my problem with Howard's version of the story is that it's complete horseshit"
Hello, Hello. Here's an original rundown of the events leading to Joe Rogan's eventual departure from the Stern Show. If you've enjoyed this, check out my previous behind the scene write ups on the bottom. Thanks. Howard is kicking off promotion for his latest book Howard Stern: Comes Again. He gives a rare candid interview with David Marchese of the New York Times. David asks Howard about his thoughts on podcasts before turning his attention to Joe Rogan. “Is there an issue between you guys?” he asks. “Yeah, there is,” Stern replies. “I was a fan of Joe’s comedy. He does a great routine about working out with weights with his buddy in the basement, and before you know it, they’re having full-on gay sex.” In typical Stern fashion, he would go on to take credit for Rogan’s success. “So I was a big proponent of his before he was a host on TV, before he got into M.M.A. fighting or whatever. I used to have him on the show...” Stern said. It’s the year 2000. Joe Rogan had just capped off a five year stint on NewsRadio, a NBC prime time comedy. It would feature the likes of Phil Hartman, who was tragically murdered by his wife in between production of the forth and fifth season. He had also been the backstage and post-fight interviewer for the UFC, a position he’d held for 2 years before quitting. Rogan’s comedy caught the eye of Warner Bros Records, who signed him to a three album deal. Joe would go on to release “I'm Gonna Be Dead Some Day...” on CD and cassette that year. It would gain a cult following thanks to the emergence of peer to peer file sharing in the form of Napster. The album would get frequent airtime on The Howard Stern Show, where the opening track “Getting Pumped” became a favorite of Howard and the gang. Rogan would make his first appearance on the show September 18, 2000 and talked about the sketch. “My buddy, Bryan Callen, who I did the sketch with… he and I are always doing that, we’re always playing around like that...” It wasn’t long before Howard dug up memories of Joe’s childhood. More specifically, his experience with a pedophile at the age of 12. [AUDIO] “He’s like ‘You know, I just want to tell you that I love ya. You’re a great guy… Yeah, but you know, without sex there could be no real love...’ and I went, what? I just panicked.” He also opened up about his biological father, Joe Rogan Sr. “I haven’t spoken to him since I was seven years old.” His father would attempt to contact him once he started gaining some fame. “He’s tried to do it through his mother and once through his sister… Yeah, when I got on TV. He saw my name somewhere...” The topic then turned to the murder-suicide of fellow costar Phil Hartman. [AUDIO] “How’d you find out?” Howard asked. “I went out on a date with a girl from Hard Copy. It was a bad date. I never went out with her again. She calls me like three weeks later at like 8:30 in the morning and wakes me up. I’m like ‘What are you waking me up for?’’ She would be one to break the news to Joe. “She’s like ‘You didn’t hear?… I don’t want to be the one to tell you… Phil’s dead’. Immediately after, she’s like ‘What’s going to happen to the show?’” Joe would continue. “It gets worse. I’m in shock. I’m in a coma. I’m turning on the TV. You know, I can’t believe this. Then she goes ‘Joe, we need to get a sound byte from you.’… So I hang up the phone. I’m like ‘I got to go.’ So then the phone starts ringing, everybody’s calling, everybody heard the news, all my friends… Twenty minutes later, she calls again. ‘Joe, um, how are you? OK?’ I’m like ‘I don’t know.’ She goes ‘Listen, we need to get your address.’ I go ‘Why?’, she goes ‘We’re sending a camera crew over. We have to interview you.’” There was also talk about an incident with another costar, Andy Dick, on the set. [AUDIO] Rogan was in his trailer along with his girlfriend when Andy came knocking. “I was getting dressed and Andy starts pounding on the door. He’s like, ‘What are you doing? What are you doing in there? Are you having sex?’ I’m like, ‘No. Dude, I'm getting dressed. Get out of here’. He’s like ‘Just open up the door. I have to tell you something.’ So I open up the door and Andy’s standing there with his unit in his hand, with his pants half down and wacking it.” Joe was a hit. He would become a regular from that day on, even sitting in during the show. He also returned to the UFC after an ownership change, where he was promoted to color commentator. More importantly, he became host of the hottest summer show of 2001, Fear Factor. This lead to legendary on air battles with Vinnie Favale, self appointed CBS spokesperson. Vinnie was actually Vice President of CBS Late Night Programming, East Coast, but couldn’t resist any opportunity to defend the network in any capacity. The two would argue repeatedly over the success of Joe’s hit show, which happened to be on a competing network. Usually, in complete denial, Vinnie would try to spin any dispute in CBS’ favor. The host of Fear Factor laid into him during an argument in the summer of ‘01. [AUDIO] “You’re a company man. This is sad. You’re the kind of guy that gets fired from his job and blows his brains out because you believe that everything revolves around your company. You are sucked in. ‘We’re going to kick your asses.’ It's not even you! You’re not even doing anything. You have nothing to do with Survivor. You have nothing to do with the programming. You have nothing to do with the success of it” he said. Their clashes would be a staple of Best Of in the early 2000’s. However, the relationship between Joe and the show would come to an end in 2004. Stern would go on during that 2019 New York Times Interview. “Joe was a guest one time and I said something to him off the air, which I won’t go into, but he took offense. I haven’t heard or seen him since. I think he made the decision that I was toxic for him. But I hold no grudge.” On the May 4, 2009 show, the Stern Show would discuss the controversy in some detail. [AUDIO] Howard kicks off the conversation with some tape he has from the previous night. “… So I told you Joe had some problem with me, so he discussed it with Greg Fitzsimmons.” “He wont discuss it with us?” Robin asks. “No, and you know, I remember the exact incident and everything and I knew this is what it was,” Howard says. Joe would explain his version of events on Fitzsimmons show. “Well, I kind of explained it the last time I was here but, I just try to avoid drama, you know? He said something about me on the air that I didn’t like… He said I hate women and I was like, come on man, really? He said something about us being in a strip club, where we were all in a strip club, and he said, you know… He had did a thing in Vegas and he had hired out a whole section of this strip club. It was pretty bad ass... I remember I was really high and when I’m really high, I can’t get lap dances. It just weirds me out. It’s just too freaky. You can feel this person really doesn’t want to do this, this is their job, then you start thinking about their past. So anyway, he starts saying that I said to them ‘Get away, whores’, which I’d never say. It’s just not true… For me, first of all, it’s like I'm going to have to defend that and whenever you’re defending something like that, it always automatically looks like you’re being defensive because it’s bullshit.” Joe continued, making sure to be clear there were no hard feelings. “I don’t want to even be involved and I just said, I'll just be a fan again… and I listen all the time.” Howard would shoot back. “I’ll tell you the whole story and Joe’s right. It’s better that Joe doesn’t come on again because he’s building this thing up. You know, first of all, I’m somebody who has guests on and I try to make them comfortable when they’re on the show and I try to be a good interviewer and I also try to, you know, create something. We were in Vegas. Joe showed up to a strip club. It wasn’t my event. I was at a strip club. They had invited us over, am I correct? We were there. I think one of our guys was making an appearance there... “… Maybe Joe was high or something. He was saying shit about some of the strippers and I said to him on the air that it seems like you’re angry with women. You know, you were just kind of pissed off. He was hateful, you know. You can make the same statements about me about what I do for a living… “… He was saying stuff to me about the women… He seemed angry and I said to him sometimes it seems like you’re angry with women. What was going on that night? I don’t think he wanted that out there or as he says he didn’t say it or maybe I misheard it…” Gary would jump into the studio and add his own version of events. “I always thought it was about something I talked about on the radio. Maybe it is something different. I remember we went out one night… We walked into the strip club and Joe goes ‘These girls are all fucking, you know, God, they’re all fucking damaged. I fucking hate these chicks. I’m not even going to get a lap dance,’” Gary said. Howard would continue and even for a moment, he would second guess himself. “I didn’t mean it as a whole intellectual… I thought Joe would say ‘Hey, Howard. Come on, man. I was tired...’ or you know we’d have some interesting conversation about it but Joe took it really personally and I understand that he did. Now in retrospect, maybe I’m looking at it and going...” but Gary wouldn’t let his boss show weakness. “I don’t know Howard. I think he’s overreacting.” Gary would continue, “We did a lot of good things for him. We had him on the show. You know, we helped him out a lot in a lot of ways. I think at one point I had a discussion with his manager and he’s like ‘You know, if Howard was a friend he would never had said it’ and I said ‘Well, if Joe was a friend, he would have asked about it and discussed it instead of just never talking about it.’” Howard would end the segment questioning Rogan’s version of events with his own evidence. “According to our show log, it shows that Gary was the one who said Joe called the girls whores. I had also heard Joe saying some stuff and I said to Joe ‘Joe, sometimes it seems like you were angry that night with women’ and I wanted him to talk about it on the air but I guess it was a road he didn’t want to go down.” The day in question is February 7, 2002. The Stern Show is broadcasting from the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas on delay. Joe Rogan was the first guest on their opening day. Howard got into a discussion about the previous night. [AUDIO]
Howard: … then we went over to Club Paradise, the strip club. Then I figured I'd just walk in there and not know anyone. Everyone was there from the show. Artie: Well I had a big appearance there. Howard: Yeah, Artie had an appearance there and Stuttering John has one there tonight, but Joe Rogan, you try to act like you’re above the strip club. Joe Rogan: No. What are you talking about? How am I trying to act like I'm above it? Howard: You’re always like, ‘Ah, these girls [mumbles incoherently]’ Joe Rogan: What? They’re hot. What are you talking about? Howard: Yeah. Joe Rogan: No such thing. Howard: Alright, I thought… then I just see you sitting there. Joe Rogan: What are you talking about? You’re making this up. Gary: Joe uses the word whore about 20 times an hour. Howard: Yeah, he says ‘these whores’, this, that, and the other. Joe Rogan: I don’t say it like that. I don’t say it that way. I say it in an affectionate way. Howard: I think you’re angry with women. Robin: Well, he does that whole routine about the girls who are angry because he’s using a dollar to get them to take off their clothes. Howard: That is a good routine… Stuttering John: …When we were at the pool Howard, you know, Joe looks at me and he goes ‘Look, these are lower shelf hookers here tonight’. Joe Rogan: That was the first crew. Howard: They were lovely ladies. Joe Rogan: Oh, stop Howard. That first crew was rough. Mr. Miyagi with the fake boobs. Howard: You think because a girl takes her clothes off and dances that she’s a whore? Joe Rogan: No, not all of them. Stuttering John: Bottom shelf whores is what he said. That’s what it was. Joe Rogan: The first crew… Club Paradise Stripper: Look at you, you Fear Factor guy. You’re just paranoid with women. Joe Rogan: You’re hot. You girls are hot. I’m not talking about you. Club Paradise Stripper: Look at you. You were so mean yesterday. You were mean. Joe Rogan: Mean to who? How was I mean? To you?
The moment ended up being rather uneventful. In fact, this wouldn’t be Joe’s last appearance on the show. He would stop by the studio several more times, most notably on September 22, 2003. Joe is in the studio to promote Fear Factor, The Man Show, and UFC. In what may or may not be a coincidence, there is a woman in the green room waiting to play Stump the Booey who just so happens to have slept with Joe Rogan. Gary would burst into he studio while Joe was on the couch. “You know, there’s something really weird. We have these girls that are coming on next segment. They’re playing Stump the Booey against me. They’re twins. One of the girls heard Joe on and she’s like ‘ Oh, I have a story about Joe.’” Her name was Crystal. [AUDIO] “He was my first one night stand,” she said. Joe would vaguely remember the two hooking up many years ago. What she said next would nearly have Joe’s eyes popping out of his head. “… After that wonderful one night stand, I got pregnant,” she announced to millions of radio listeners. Joe was in a state of shock as it was the first time he was hearing the news. “How old is your son or daughter?” Howard asked. “I never kept it,” she replied. The news would send Joe into frenzy, as if Maury Povich himself had opened up an envelope with the DNA results. “Thank you, Jesus!” Rogan screamed. Howard asked Joe if he was nervous that she was going to bring the kid in. “Well, it was a little creepy right there for a moment,” he replied. Crystal would then go on to talk about her decision to have an abortion. Joe would interrupt. “I’m so nervous right now. My heart is skipping.” Howard asks “What scares you most about that? The fact that you have a kid, that you have to pay… what would scare you the most? Joe didn’t hesitate. “It’s that I would be connected to someone that I really don’t know for the rest of my life and I’d have to deal with her every time I wanted to see the kid, if I wanted to see the kid.” He then admitted it wasn’t even his first abortion predicament. “The other time was when I was 23. It was a girl I was dating” Fast forwarding to 2004, we find what might have been Joe’s last straw with the show. While previously citing show logs during that 2009 discussion, Howard would make the claim he never made the “Get away, whores” comment. Instead, he would place the blame on Gary. However, a discussion that took place on September 22, 2004 would prove that statement to be false. Comedienne Bonnie McFarlane had stopped by the show and sat in for the news. She was once a writer for The Man Show when it was hosted by Rogan and Doug Stanhope. [AUDIO] While discussing Rogan, Howard would go on to say, “Joe hates women… Joe’s weird. I’ve gone to strip clubs with him and he’s like ‘get away from me, whore.’” Robin would continue the onslaught. “… Even when we were in Vegas together and there were stripper dancers, he was yelling all kinds of horrible things. I was like ‘these women aren’t doing anything to you. Why are you screaming at them?’” They would continue with allegations of Joe yelling at the Juggies, a nickname given to the Man Show dancers. Bonnie would go on to say Joe was the biggest supporter of the Juggies, often yelling at the director for his treatment of the females. However, he would usually follow that up with yelling of his own. Around 2007, a topic on the incident would appear on the mma.tv message boards. Rogan himself would reply to the allegations. It would be the most detailed version of events during this whole controversy. “… my problem with Howard's version of the story is that it's complete horseshit. I never said ‘get away whores’ to anyone. We were at a party that they were throwing for the show, and there were a lot of pretty strippers, but there were also a lot of unattractive, aggressive ones that were trying to get guys to buy lapdances. Howard, and some of the other guys were getting them, and I didn't want one. The girls were pushy, and all I kept saying is ‘no thanks.’ Somehow, that got turned into ‘get away, whores’ when he got on the radio. “Howard likes drama, real or created. It makes for good radio. That's all well and good, but I choose not to be put on the defensive for something that I never did. Also, I've got a real pet peeve with the whole ‘you hate women’ tag. It's a weak line that people will throw around to try to define someone, often if they don't like or have a problem with dumb or obnoxious chicks. If you have a problem with dumb dudes, no one ever says that ‘you hate men,’ but you get in one argument with a pushy cunt and that's the cop out they'll always try to use. It's like a lazy black guy that gets reprimanded at work for doing a shitty job, and he cries that the reason he's getting in trouble is because the boss doesn't like black people. “When you've got a guy that you respect and admire, and you've done his show a bunch of times you think that you're friends. Then, when that guy turns on you and talks shit about you, especially shit that's not true, it's a gross feeling. I'm a loyal friend, and that shit means a lot to me. “If I had a friend outside of show business and he gave a distorted account of me like that, I would stop hanging around with him, and I wouldn't trust him anymore. I treat my friends in show business the same way I treat my friends in real life. “As for Howard, I have no ill feelings. I was always a huge fan of the show, and it was an honor to be on it. When I decided to avoid doing the show after this, I started doing Opie and Anthony, and I really enjoyed their show. Jim Norton is a buddy of mine from way back when we both were starting out as stand ups, and I really fucking love being on that show. Plus, I think Norton is the funniest guy on radio. I'll probably do Stern again sometime, I just thought that whole situation was really weak, and I didn't want to be a part of it... “I still listen to Stern all the time, and I think it's a great show. I've always considered him to be the Johnny Carson of my era. In past eras it was HUGE to get on the tonight show with Johnny and have him ask you to sit on the couch. In my generation, it's Stern. He's the King for a reason. No hate, I just don't feel like being a part of the kind of shit I described….” Joe would copy and paste his response on the Official Joe Rogan Forum along with a small update: “ In reading the post back after flying across the Atlantic Ocean (on my way to UFC in Belfast) I had time to think about it, and I think there definitely could be a very convincing argument that I had sand in my vagina when I made it, but I did make it, so i left it up. “I'm certainly not trying to get in some sort of a battle with a guy that's helped me out, and a guy that I respect very much….” Joe Rogan would go on to be very complimentary of Stern in the following years. Even when Howard would go on to attack close friend Ari Shaffir about the legitimacy of podcasts, Rogan would continue to show his appreciation for the self appointed King of All Media. Vinny Favale would continue to take shots at Rogan after his show absence. In a conversation that would take place on March 9, 2005, Gary would question Vinny’s expertise on everything network TV. “I was watching Fear Factor in syndication yesterday on UPN and you told Joe Rogan that show was done, it had a few months left, and it was over”. Vinny, notorious for being the ultimate company man responded, “That show is not a hit though… Where is Joe Rogan? You don’t see him anywhere”. Rogan would go on to be on of the most listened to voices in the world with the Joe Rogan Experience podcast. Vinny Favale would later be pushed out of CBS after allegations of misconduct, which included talking to fellow employees about his erections. New Late Show host Stephen Colbert would distance himself from the creator of the infamous Debbie tapes. “He [Favale] basically came with the building when I got this show...”
If you've enjoyed this, I've also written other original behind the scene rundowns of moments in show history:
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