The Long Game

The simple act of driving a car demonstrates our ability to see the FUTURE. Two tons of steel, flying along at 70 miles an hour, just inches above a reinforced slab of concrete… with a huge degree of accuracy, we can state exactly what will happen 30 seconds into the future… 60 seconds into the future…

Much beyond that… too many variables can effect the outcome and our accuracy starts to fade. But we can reduce the number of potential outcomes if we apply the law of probability…

I probably won’t hit a DEER.
I probably won’t drive off the BRIDGE.

A flat tire, a broken fan belt, a dead battery aside… if I’ve maintained the vehicle properly, the ENGINE probably won’t seize before the next exit.

In so far as it is under my control, I probably won’t strike another vehicle.

It’s because of our INFLUENCE on the system… our ACTIONS make the difference. If we do not act, chaos rules.

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Have we not had enough of all the bickering and fighting? Fighting amongst ourselves. Fighting endless battles abroad. Fighting over issues of LIFE and DEATH. Fighting over the mundane and trivial.

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https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2021/11/08/ted-cruz-slaps-down-big-bird-for-vaccine-propaganda-and-gets-tarred-and-feathered/

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Fighting fights instigated by others, over things on which all of us thought we had already found COMMON GROUND.

The only common ground we can seem to find now is, BOTH SIDES believe the other is out to get them… and that is extremely telling in and of itself.

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https://www.statnews.com/feature/prescription-politics/federal-full-data-set/

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No, it’s not the Republicans who want to overthrow our elections.
No, it’s not the Democrats who want to take away our Liberties.
Neither side wants these things to happen.

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Who does then… who stands to BENEFIT from our INACTION?

Who stands to profit when our Legislatures cannot find UNITY on TAXING BILLIONAIRES…

THE DONORS.

The WRITER, DIRECTOR, and PRODUCER of the legislative shit-show that’s playing out in our Congress today. If this wasn’t exactly what they wanted to see, why would they continue to DONATE to their re-election campaigns.

The allowing of unlimited amounts of MONEY in our elections by the Supreme Court has poisoned our Government. It can barely establish a functioning majority to simply keep the lights on.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2021/08/06/usps-dejoy-xpo-logistics/

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Yet it can whip up the votes necessary to give a TRILLION DOLLARS to a myriad of corporations and entities in exchange for their continued SUPPORT NEXT ELECTION…

… next election. dammit man. How do you say that to George Floyd’s family… how do you say that to the students of Marjorie Stoneman Douglas… how do you say that to the families of Sandy Hook Elementary…

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https://www.npr.org/2021/11/09/1049054141/a-secret-tape-made-after-columbine-shows-the-nras-evolution-on-school-shootings

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How do you say that to the Officers who stood in the BREACH on January 6th… how many ZEROS need to be on that check.

And even on that we can’t seem to find COMMON GROUND, except for the fact that those people were there with a purpose. Those people where there to force their Will upon the MAJORITY.

Because they said so… while President Trump sat SILENT.
They carried HIS banner. They waved HIS flags.

Those who did carry the flag of this Nation on that day, used it as an implement of OPPRESSION… against Law Enforcement Officers. In their OWN HOME.

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May God Bless every one of those Officers.
They are the reason OUR BANNER still flies today.

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49E46113-AD89-4C42-A898-72A4D056E4C4 — Damage from January 6th, still visible on the steps of the U.S. Capitol. (8/27/2021)

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**But we will make AMENDS.**

We will seek to MAKE WHOLE that which was damaged, even as some scars will never fade. Every person who died because of the events of that day were AMERICAN CITIZENS… no different than YOU or I.

What’s the difference. What paints the picture… what sets the STAGE.

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Contents of pockets of Abraham Lincoln (born today 1809) at moment of assassination, 1865, Ford’s Theatre—not shown to public for 111 years: pic.twitter.com/awYPjgup4R
— Michael Beschloss (@BeschlossDC) February 12, 2021

In his pocket, he carried a five dollar Confederate note…

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I may not know all the WORDS. I might not even know all the NOTES… but I know the TUNE. I can only do my BEST, to express what it is that I see, knowing that there are others out there who feel the same.

I believe we can achieve the impossible… because we’ve now witnessed it with our OWN EYES. Donald Trump brought to fruition concepts and agendas I never thought I would see in my lifetime, nor that of my children.

But it has happened.

I believe in precedent. I also believe in the Rule of Law.

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https://www.airforcetimes.com/news/your-air-force/2021/01/07/woman-shot-and-killed-at-capitol-was-security-forces-airman-qanon-adherent/

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https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/556030-trump-midterms-fuel-gops-squashing-jan-6-commission

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When you SEE something… SAY something.

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Forgive me if this seems offensive, but this is what I was taught in my school. This is what I learned from MY elders. Every fiber of my being tells me THIS is that slippery slope… THIS is that path. We must remember the stories taught to us by our grandparents.

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https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2021/11/virginia-school-board-members-call-public-book-burning-gay-books/

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When you defend the rights of others, you defend those rights for YOURSELF. Where will we draw the LINE? What PRICE are we willing to pay? We ALL lose when they start burning books.

If what we’ve pledged ourselves to defend has become corrupt and dirty, it is our DUTY to do what is necessary to restore its HONOR. It cannot be ignored. Complacency. Negligence. ROT. We have been warned… INACTION will be the death of our Democracy.

To be SILENT is to be COMPLICIT.

-JC

LEADERSHIP

(At 8:02 in the video) “Let me just say how important it is to have a RULE vote.”

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Did you see it? If you BLINKED you might have missed it, because I’m sure everyone has at least ONE eye on the news these days.

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“Let me just say how important it is to have a RULE vote. Once we have the RULE vote we have the path to the floor. People have to understand… this is the threshold.”

—Speaker Pelosi

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If a majority of LEADERSHIP doesn’t support a particular piece of legislation, it doesn’t get a vote. The MINORITY decides the agenda for the MAJORITY…

Their agenda… not OURS.

Until Friday night Speaker Pelosi didn’t have the votes necessary to secure THE RULE. With 13 Republican Representatives hidden up her sleeve, she could have moved on this legislation at any time.

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The House Democrats forged a viable path forward to pass BOTH pieces of legislation. Begrudgingly, yes… but it was established. That’s why we’ve been waiting. That was the PLAN. We all hate sausage making, I get it… but we knew what we were getting into when we VOTED back in November.

What changed… why now? Who thought that this strategy would benefit the Democratic Party? It certainly wasn’t the strategy supported by the MAJORITY. Why weren’t they listening to what THE PEOPLE wanted…

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It’s hard to understand the economic struggles of your constituents, when you’re doing 153 mph and can go 0 to 60 in six seconds.

Must be tough living on the salary of a humble PUBLIC SERVANT.💰 https://t.co/Uad1p6QRec
— Jack Charbonneau (@MrJLCharbonneau) November 5, 2021

MSRP of the Maserati Levante starts at $78,000 and goes up to $153,000.

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Oh, right… luxury cars usually have pretty decent SOUNDPROOFING. That is, unless you’re CHEAP and spring for the basic package.

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https://www.politico.com/news/2021/11/05/house-democrats-infrastructure-vote-wait-megabill-519731

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This is now who we ARE. This is what we present to the rest of the world.

Q: Is the United States a reliable partner?
A: Yes.

We’re willing to undercut our OWN TEAM to make sure shit gets done.

Don’t like THAT description? Then make up your OWN & fill in the _____ , because the LEADERSHIP of the Democratic Party decided this course of action behind closed doors, and then forced their caucus to vote.

There was a plan… and then that plan CHANGED. For what? Why. To save FACE after a devastating election cycle? For the PARTY? For the DONORS?

I don’t know, but ONE thing is clear… this wasn’t done for the VOTERS. The MAJORITY would have celebrated the passage of both bills as soon as this negotiated process played out. And now…?

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Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Energy.

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Let us all place our HOPES in the hands of a handful of Senators, who are BEHOLDEN to the DONORS for their re-election… be sure and hold your breath.

The political establishment has now tipped their hand and shown us who their ‘kingpins’ ARE. The members of their political hierarchy who are the most valuable to their plans… their future… their PARTY.

And they hold these positions of HONOR, of LEADERSHIP… because they are the best FUNDRAISERS.

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The Infrastructure Bill… who benefits? The DONORS. Directly. The “wealth” will trickle down to The People via the JOBS they will create. Never mind the damage that’s been done to our social fabric…

‘It’s time for the PEOPLE to get back to work. It’s not OUR fault we lost in Virginia… the VOTERS just didn’t understand.’

I thought that was why the DNC prioritized $25 MILLION for “voter education” over the summer. Apparently they think NO ONE showed up for their classes.

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These are not intended as attacks. This is simply a recitation of the FACTS. A mirror, held up to their actions… and none of it is ILLEGAL. They make the rules. It’s their show, their agendas. Not the agenda of THE PEOPLE.

‘Let them eat cake… but first we need more means testing.’

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Did you survive 2020? Congratulations, you qualify.

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THIS is our government, the best elected officials money can BUY.
The question now becomes, do we want that to continue to be the case in the FUTURE.

-JC

For Those Yet to Come

I’m not one of those well-polished types. I don’t easily fit into the holes like a good lil’ golf tee. Most days I feel a little oblong… a rough ashlar, cast amongst the other stones.

I like to wobble a little bit every now and then… keeps me on my toes. Challenges my way of thinking. Daring to see things through someone else’s eyes adds new perspective to how I see my own opinions. Understanding where I got things WRONG can help reinforce the things I got RIGHT… and it can help change the minds of those who disagree.

What good is having an opinion so WEAK it cannot stand up to open debate? No one acting in GOOD FAITH wants to be wrong. Hell, I know I don’t want to be wrong. But I also know we are ALL working toward the LIGHT… as we are all walking through shadows.

I am tired… but I am not defeated.

Up ahead there’s a spot where we can pause and catch our breath, and take stock of how far we’ve come… but that time is not now. That rest, we have not earned. Not yet at least, but one day… we will. We must. Until then, we march. Onward.

And we will get there, if we only TRY… and we will stand UNITED. Side-by-side. If you cannot walk, then crawl… and if you cannot crawl, then I will carry you. As will seven others, as will seven more for each one of them. Because we already know, our Democracy is not secured at the POINT of a sword or down the SITE of a barrel.

Our Democracy is only secured once we’ve put those weapons DOWN.

When we LISTEN instead of PROFESSING. When we SHARE instead of HIDING. Together, there’s more for everyone… that’s why we are the United States. We must remember who we are!

When we stand UNITED, viruses are eradicated. When we defend the rights of others, continents remain FREE. When we put aside our differences and embrace our COMMON GROUND, we visit the STARS in peace… for All Mankind.

For this, we will VOTE. THIS is why we continue to stand. For this, generations have lived and died, having never seen the balance be level… EQUALITY. As promised. Emblazoned upon the wall of Our Highest Court.

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It’s the shape and color of the creation they envisioned, but it’s become HOLLOW at its core. What once was no longer exists, as it’s been AMENDED and changed throughout the years. What it will BE… that is ours to decide.

That’s the genius behind its design.

Yes, we can resort to REVOLUTION as our Founders once did. They witnessed the toll that comes from War, they lived the life of fighting city-by-city. Today, some have called for such a War, and I say… let them TALK. Let them SPEAK, so we can hear exactly what they have to say.

And then we will ask them, ‘After that war… what THEN? What would be NEXT? Who would LEAD such a war?’

And who do you suppose would WIN, a WAR… against the United States of America? We already know the answer to that question, let our SHARED HISTORY be our guide…

No one would win.

BOTH SIDES would lose, no matter who was declared victorious. It would throw this Nation into chaos, it would upend the economic stability of the entire world… and MILLIONS would die in the first year alone.

This would no longer be the New American Century. Four-score-and-seven years of toil and repentance would be the price… children yet unborn, shouldering the burdens of OUR FAILURES.

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https://www.ranker.com/list/colorized-photos-us-civil-war/kellen-perry

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No one wins a Civil War… except those who make bullets and bandages. Haven’t we had enough of that already.

For THIS, we march. In defense… against what may come.

-JC

Because There Is a Need

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This is what we get when we’re forced to vote against someone, instead of for them. When we vote against someone else, we are forced to take on all the baggage carried by the ‘lesser of two evils’… and decisions are made that are opposed to the Will of The People, because their positions stand opposed to the will of the candidate.

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When I wake up in the morning, the first thing I focus on is making sure others have something to eat. Then… it’s usually caffeine. IF everything goes to plan, after the kids… after the critters… if everything is in order, then I can find time for myself.

Sure, it might help if I wake up at 0430 every morning, but I’m a night person. In a busy household, that’s usually the best time to find some PEACE… when everyone else is asleep.

Priorities. ‘What is it that I’m trying to accomplish? What is the goal I’m trying to reach?’ There may only be 24 hours in a single day, but there are many more days to come after this one; and most goals worth attaining require multiple days… multiple years… to complete. It’s all about maximizing your time, as well as biding it.

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We are ALL created EQUAL. That is the foundation upon which our society was built. That is the goal the Framers had in mind when they set about constructing a Just form of Governance.

It was a DESTINATION to be reached. The outcome of this endeavor.

What is done to ONE of us is done to us ALL.

Because that is how we ensure it cannot happen to ME. It’s the most selfish and most honorable act anyone can engage in. When we defend the Rights of OTHERS… we defend those Rights for OURSELVES.

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3B85329D-4EE7-45F0-B5F1-53C5971B429C — Arizona rally for the Equal Rights Amendment, 2018.

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Our history informs us. It gives our current situation CONTEXT. It frames the moment that surrounds us and gives us a glimpse of how things might be.

Our history inspires us… because of the injustice that endures, our HEROES have been found. Out of the ashes have risen our Nation’s finest hours. In acts of COURAGE, undertaken as an act of defiance. Our history is defined by struggle. Toward what do we struggle… toward what do we strive. If we cannot NAME IT, then how can we expect to SOLVE IT?

HALF of the citizens of this Nation do not have EQUAL STANDING under our Constitution. In Civil Rights. In Reproductive Rights. In Property Rights. In EQUAL PAY. Women are treated as second-class citizens, subject to the dictates of whomever holds office at the time…

If it can happen to ONE of us, then it can happen to us ALL.

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In September, 2010, when Justice Scalia shared his views on discrimination on the basis of sex, he said:

“Certainly the Constitution doesn’t require discrimination on the basis of sex, the only question is whether it prohibits it.

It doesn’t.

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It demonstrated clearly what the opinion of the United States Supreme Court is on the issue of Equality:

Equality doesn’t exist.

Legal precedent. Dating all the way back to THE DOCUMENT itself.

“No one ever voted for that.”

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There is NO LAW restricting any of my Reproductive Rights. It should be the SAME for everyone… EQUALLY. If we allow the government to dictate to us when we can exercise our basic human rights, someday they will have legal precedent to tell us when we cannot.

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On account of sex… regardless of what that may be.

Only EQUAL. MEANS. EQUAL.

-JC

On Full Display

When the pandemic first washed ashore, they did nothing… well, that might be a bit unfair. They adjusted their PORTFOLIOS and then they did nothing.

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Accurate tests were available in January, and they did nothing while we waited for an alternative supplier to produce our tests… and they turned out to be worthless.

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https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/02/coronavirus-testing-how-some-countries-germany-south-korea-got-ahead-of-the-rest

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/2020/04/18/timeline-coronavirus-testing/?no_nav=true

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For months our medical professionals fought a pandemic wrapped in TRASH BAGS, reusing masks far beyond the amount of time they were designed for… because they did nothing to BE PREPARED.

Then they did nothing to end the shortages.

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’It’s only one or two cases… it’s just like the FLU… it’ll be over by Easter… by Labor Day… after the Election they’ll stop talking about it…’

They did nothing and Americans died. Needlessly.

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At the beginning of the pandemic we couldn’t PRODUCE enough of what was necessary to meet our needs. Now we have matched production, but we lack the ability to DELIVER what we need.

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https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2021/10/13/biden-to-announce-that-port-of-la-will-operate-24-hours-a-day-in-effort-to-ease-cargo-backlog/

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So NOW there’s a problem. NOW there’s urgency…

Now. Not then.

Now… as our workforce has become fed up, we need to shift our focus to the supply chain. Immediately. And wouldn’t you know it, President Biden has a plan for that! He pimped it out when he announced the Port of Los Angeles would be running 24/7. It’s all part of getting us back to WORK and building back better…

It sure would have been nice if they had that same sense of URGENCY when it came to ensuring everyone had enough to EAT and a ROOF over their heads.

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https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/politics/2020/03/23/delayed-coronavirus-stimulus-bill-upsets-mitch-mcconnell/2897178001/

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For ONE-TENTH the price of the CARES Act, we could have paid everyone’s mortgage and rent expenses for a YEAR. An extreme act, only considered because of their INACTION… how many problems would that have solved.

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The conduits of Government have been SHUT OFF for everyday Americans. This monolithic entity of such Legislative Import, can only manage to pass temporary extensions on its obligations to pay its debt… kicking the can down the road until after the next election.

The United States Government shouldn’t be living paycheck-to-paycheck, yet it does. It has. For YEARS. With little variation, it has become the “norm”.

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C6AB0B2E-7E39-41CF-9E48-15D4522CEF36 — Credit: Breaking Points w/ Krystal and Saagar

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We may TRY, but we will never be the same. We may LIE and tell ourselves things can go back to where they once were… but that will only lead us to more of the SAME. The same weaknesses. The same vulnerabilities. The same crosses to bear.

Our perspectives have changed. A “pandemic epiphany”… a life, re-evaluated.

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https://www.c-span.org/video/?c4552776/user-clip-bush-shopping-quote

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In the wake of 9/11 George W. Bush called on all Americans to GO SHOPPING… that’s how we could do our part. ‘The terrorists WIN if they change our way of life.’

How did that mindset work out for us. What will happen if we do that once again. ‘Just rub some DIRT in it and shake it off…’

They knew in NOVEMBER 2019 and they did NOTHING.

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https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/intelligence-report-warned-coronavirus-crisis-early-november-sources/story?id=70031273

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I want to write the uplifting words that rise above the political divide… that will inspire us all to unite. That is the person I want to be… maybe someday I can be that person… but right now, I can only HOPE.

Because right now, our Elected Officials don’t inspire HOPE… their inaction inspires despair. Right now our political parties don’t seek to UNITE this country, they only seek to unite their BASE. And even at that they’ve come up short… they can’t even unite themselves.

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https://www.vox.com/2021/10/16/22729648/manchin-climate-change-reconciliation-clean-electricity-program

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Now who didn’t see that coming? Oh, right…
Besides Joe Biden.

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Maybe you should find a better excuse.🎯

“Direct subsidies to the fossil fuel industry total around $20 billion every year, $15 billion of that from the federal government. Indirect subsidies… total a whopping $649 billion per year in the US alone.” https://t.co/xAv1V5F5EH
— Jack Charbonneau (@MrJLCharbonneau) October 16, 2021

Senator Manchin works for the people who got him elected… THE DONORS.

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It’s not a principled stance, unlike Senator John McCain’s vote against a Republican attempt to weaken the ACA. Senator McCain voted as THE PEOPLE directed. Senator Manchin is opposed to this legislation even though THE PEOPLE support it…

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https://www.businessinsider.com/manchin-work-requirements-biden-child-tax-credit-sparking-democrat-2021-9