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If theres one thing Minnesota Republican gubernatorial candidate Scott Jensen wants the voting public to know, its that he is super duper into making analogies between government efforts to mitigate an ongoing, catastrophic pandemic, and Nazi Germanys systematic eradication of European Jewry during the 1930s and 40s. With everything else going on in the world today, this is evidently what Jensen really, really wants to focus on. And folks? If nothing else, its certainly A Choice.

Heres the background: In April, Jensen a staunchly anti-choice, anti-urban, pro-COVID candidate spoke at a conservative mask off event, where he compared Minnesotas various pandemic responses to Hitlers rise to power in Germany. Specifically, he compared them to Kristallnacht, the infamous night of broken glass in which thousands of Jewish-owned stores, homes, and synagogues were destroyed by various Nazi party figures.

If you remember, go back to World War II. If you look at the 1930s and you look at it carefully, we could see some things happening. Little things that people chose to push aside. Its going to be okay, Jensen explained. And then the little things grew into something bigger. Then there was a night called Kristallnacht. The night of the breaking glass. Then there was the book burning, and it kept growing and growing, and a guy named Hitler kept growing in power, and World War II came about.

In a way, he concluded, I think thats why youre here today.

Now to be clear, this is not only a grotesquely offensive analogy that both cheapens and distorts the Nazis overt effort to eradicate a distinct ethno-religious group, but also, as far as comparisons go on a purely rhetorical level, its a pretty lousy one! There are tons of better analogies Jensen could have used here to describe governmental overreach! Theres the time Ronald Reagan shuttered federal mental hospitals, effectively dumping the residents onto the street; theres the time the Bush administration enacted a sweeping, warrantless domestic spying agenda in the name of national security; you get the idea. And yet, its Nazi Germanys industrialized extermination of Jews (to say nothing of communists, Roma communities, and queer people) that Jensen thinks is best suited to make his case. Hmm.

Shortly after Jensens comments were made public this month, a host of Jewish organizations condemned the remarks for, yknow, being incredibly offensive. The local Jewish Community Relations Counsel even offered to meet with Jensen to explain why.

All of which brings us to Tuesday afternoon, when Jensen took a good hard look at the many Jewish organizations telling him that hed offended them, and decided that, no, actually, he hadnt. Sorry, not sorry!

I want to speak to a little bit of a hubbub thats been in the media lately about whether or not I was insensitive in regards to the Holocaust, Jensen explained in a Facebook Watch video. I dont believe I was.

Jensen then solemnly recited theologian Martin Niemollers now clichd first they came for ... poem, like this was a 10th grade book report and not an official campaign statement, and reasoned that when I make a comparison that says that I saw government policies intruding on American freedoms incrementally, one piece at a time, and compare that to what happened in the 1930s, I think it's a legitimate comparison.

It may not strike your fancy, Jensen concluded. Thats fine. But this is how I think, and you dont get to be my thought-police person.

As far as statements go, this one is something of a mixed bag. On one hand, hes pulling a sort of Ricky Gervais/Dave Chappelle card by insisting that its your fault for being offended because hes just keeping it real. On the other hand, he did go with the gender-neutral thought-police person, so.

Ultimately, Jensens biggest misstep may be his obstinate insistence on being absolutely right, 100% of the time, no matter what. In the midst of the MAGAfication of the GOP, Im not sure if trivializing the Holocaust is, in and of itself, the sort of political suicide it once was. But I suspect there may be plenty of voters for whom this sort of stubborn sense of inflated self-importance is enough of a turn-off that whatever hole Jensen has chosen to dig for himself just became inescapably deep.

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Republican candidate for governor Scott Jensen is proud of his wildly offensive Holocaust analogy, actually - Mic

After most Republicans vociferously condemned the FBIs raid on Donald Trumps Florida estate, Fox News host Steve Doocy plaintively asked his guest, GOP Congressman Steve Scalise: What ever happened to the Republican Party backing the blue?

When Scalise protested that rogue elements of the FBI were responsible for the operation, Doocy shot back: Steve, who went rogue? Who went rogue? They were following a search warrant.

For the last half-century or more, Republicans have been very shrewd, and successful, at embracing the concept of law and order. Their candidates have campaigned relentlessly in front of supporters arrayed in any kind of uniform: police and firefighters, hard hats and Green Berets, EMTs and ER nurses. Meanwhile, they branded the Democrats as the party of disorder of long-haired, pot-smoking, free-loving, flag-burning counter-culture McGovernicks, as Newt Gingrich put it long ago.

Doocy, normally a Trump loyalist, poses a good question: Who, exactly, went rogue? And heres the answer: the Republican Party. The GOP has lost its moorings as a defender of conservative values and established authorities. It has replaced those honorable principles with a new one: the Rule of Trump. Whats good for The Donald is good for the party. Thats how back the blue became defund the FBI.

I thought, in the old days, the Republican Party used to stand with law enforcement, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, said on NBCs Meet the Press.

There are threats all over the place, and losing faith in our federal law enforcement officers, in our justice system, is a really serious problem for the country, Marylands Republican governor, Larry Hogan, added on ABCs This Week.

Republicans are not alone in attacking law enforcement for their own political purposes. It was leftist protestors in cities like Portland, Oregon, who made defund the police perhaps the most misguided slogan in recent political history their rallying cry.

Moreover, in the weeks leading up to the Mar-a-Lago episode, it was liberals who were attacking Attorney General Merrick Garland, complaining with increasing bitterness that he was too cautious in his approach and too slow to indict Trump for his role in igniting the insurrection of Jan. 6.

No one is above the law, not even a former president. But no one is beneath the law, either. Trump has rights that Garland is trying to protect, but the left wants the legal process to accomplish what they have not been able to do politically: Disqualify Trump from holding office again.

Still, this is not a case of both-sidesism or equal culpability. Defund the police is a fringe idea among Democrats, while perverting justice for political ends is a core tenet of Trumpism. As Michael R. Bromwich, a former Justice Department inspector general, told Peter Baker of The New York Times, Trump simply doesnt understand people like Garland and the top leadership of DOJ and the FBI because their values are so alien to him.

Top Justice Department officials are appointed by the president, but the tradition is clear: They serve the law first, not the politician who picked them. Trumps treatment of his own AGs and FBI directors are the best example of Bromwichs point.

After winning, Mr. Trump saw law enforcement agencies as another institution to bend to his will, firing FBI Director James B. Comey when he declined to pledge personal loyalty to the president or publicly declare that Mr. Trump was not a target of the Russia inquiry, wrote Baker in the Times. The president later fired Attorney General Jeff Sessions for recusing himself from that investigation and therefore not protecting Mr. Trump from it.

Then there was Bill Barr, who succeeded Sessions as attorney general. Donald Trump is a man consumed with grievance against people he believes have betrayed him, writes ABCs White House correspondent, Jonathan Karl, in his book Betrayal. And after Barr called Trumps claims of election fraud bullst in an AP interview, Karl reports the following exchange between the two men:

Did you say that? asked Trump.

Yes, Barr responded.

How the f could you do this to me? Why did you say it?

Because its true.

The president, livid, responded by referring to himself in the third person: You must hate Trump. You must hate Trump.

There it is. In todays Republican Party, everything is filtered through Trump. Is it good for him, or bad? Do you love him, or hate him? And if that fealty means trashing traditions like backing the blue, so be it.

Steven Roberts teaches politics and journalism at George Washington University. His new book is Cokie: A Life Well Lived. He can be contacted by email at stevecokie@gmail.com.

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From the desk of Trashing Republican traditions - Ukiah Daily Journal

Published 1:50 pm Wednesday, August 24, 2022

Ahead of his Troy Town Hall on Thursday night, U.S. Congressman Barry Moore spoke to the Pike County Republican Women at the Troy Country Club on Aug. 24.

Moore spoke about a number of topics hes concerned about, including immigration, inflation, the IRS, woke politics, and more. He spent the bulk of his time discussing the crisis at the U.S. Southern Border.

The cartels are trafficking in young kids, we saw children 14-17 years old. Weve never seen this influx of unaccompanied minors, Moore said of his trip to the border. I asked, Why dont we send them back to the town and the country they came from? Their response to me was that they dont know where they came from.

These kids are 14-17 years old and cant tell you where theyre coming from but they have a Google address and were paying to send them there. What sense does that make? Were not even doing a background check on these people were sending them to. The FBI is doing background checks on you if youre at a school board asking questions about curriculum but not on the people were sending these children to.

Moore also pointed to the trafficking of Fentanyl over the Mexican border as a concern, especially in college towns like Troy.

Were seeing the highest death rates for Fentanyl overdoses weve seen in recent history, Moore said. Theyre selling this Fentanyl online where it looks like Xanax. Kids shouldnt take any of that stuff but definitely warn your kids and your grandkids about this, especially in a college town because thats the market theyre targeting.

Moore hit U.S. President Joe Biden over his energy policies, including the shutdown of the Keystone XL Pipeline, which was not operational when it was shutdown and is owned by the Government of Alberta in Canada. Moores criticisms of that move were less about oil prices and more about jobs and Russia.

Weve seen a disastrous approach to energy policy, Moore emphasized. When he shut down the Keystone XL Pipeline that was 12,000 American jobs 8,000 union jobs that were stopped on day one.

We went to Russia and gave them the green light to move the the Nord Stream 2 pipeline (Germany-to-Russia pipeline) ahead and start producing energy. So, that emboldened (Russia President Vladimir) Putin and gave him money to make war with.

Moore also took aim at the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act.

It wont reduce inflation, he flatly said. We were in a recess and (Speaker of the House) Nancy Pelosi had all 435 house members called back to office. My airline ticket was $1,2000. So, we spent $500,000 of your money to spend another $739 billion to stop inflation. Thats not how it works.

While early in his speech to the Republican Women of Pike County, Moore pointed out that it can take up to four weeks to hear back from the IRS with tax issues, he lamented the Inflation Reduction Act for its inclusion of funding to hire 87,000 new IRS agents over the next 15 years.

The news will tell you, Were not going to target low income people or (people) with less than $400,000 pass through income for business owners, Moore continued. The Senate offered an amendment to ensure that and the Democrats voted along party line against it. That tells you what theyre going to do. Watch what they do, not what they say.

Its radical, its not about reducing inflation. I dropped a bill on Friday to move those IRS agents to the border. If were going to arm them then put them on the southern border.

Moore also talked about the recent National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) military budget vote in which Moore objected to due to the bill requiring women, aged 18 years old, to register for selective services as men are required to.

That was the toughest vote Ive had this year, he said. To vote against the NDAA was a very tough vote for Barry Moore and his family, but once you start talking about drafting our daughters and granddaughters, those are the kinds of things I refuse to compromise on.

I ran on faith, family and finance and if our daughters want to go to war thats fine but we arent going to draft them out of their homes if they want to be moms. Thats the way it is. We took a stand and a number of members of the delegation voted with us and shut it down and the Senate cleaned it up and sent it back without that provision.

Moore said that he believes the tide is turning in America for Republicans.

The media wasnt giving us a fair shake, you know the media never treats us fairly, but the pendulum has started to swing the other way, Moore said. When young people started cheering for Brandon in the stadiums America started waking up. I feel like well win the majority (in the House) and its possible we may get the Senate, but that will be much tougher.

I say it all the time, Democrats want to drive it off the cliff but Im not going to just ride shotgun. Im going to do my best to shut it down when we can.

Moore urged constituents to contact his office with any concerns, especially in the areas hes most focused on.

If you have an issue as a veteran, tax support issues or social security issues call our office, Moore said. I was in a restaurant and a veteran came to me and told me hes been waiting on hearing aides since the war, the Vietnam War. He called my office and within 14 days we had him taken care of.

Dont hesitate to call us, were here to serve you. A lot of people in (Washington) D.C. think youre their subjects but we work for you.

Moore will be holding a town hall event at the Pike County Courthouse tonight at 6:30 p.m.

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Barry Moore speaks to Pike County Republican Women - The Troy Messenger - Troy Messenger

A fresh wave of protests have started in Southern Libya organized by a group called the Fezzan Anger Movement, Dryad Globals latest maritime security threat advisory (MSTA) has revealed.

The movement has threatened to close oil fields in Southern Libya, having already blockaded roads to El Sharara oil field in the past, the MSTA noted.

Protests are likely to continue with an increased risk of commercial disruption from oil fields in Southern Libya, the MSTA added.

Dryad Globals latest MSTA also revealed that Libyas Waha oil company has resumed operations at the Dahra oil field. The asset had been shut down since 2015 due to an ISIS attack, the MSTA highlighted.

In a previous MSTA released earlier this month, Dryad noted that, following a significant escalation in militia activity in Tripoli due to clashes between militias loyal to rival Dbeibah and Bashagha administrations, militias agreed to end the latest round of fighting to avert another war.

This came amidst reports by the former commander of the Joint Operations Room that war is highly likely if there is intransigence and an absence of solutions, the MSTA stated.

On 26 July, rival Military leaders from General Haftars LNA and the Tripoli based Libyan Army met to discuss a unified command. Such talks will pave way for the Joint Military Commission to continue its activities to fully implement the ceasefire agreement, the MSTA added.

The continued unrest is likely to increase the short-term commercial disruption within Libya, the MSTA continued.

Dryad notes on its website that thesecurity situationin Libya can change rapidly so it is recommended that vessel operators warn their crew of the volatility of the situation, check with local port authorities as to the ports status, and carry out an assessment of the risks involved prior to entering or transiting Libyan waters.

To contact the author, emailandreas.exarheas@rigzone.com

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Fresh Wave of Protests Start in Southern Libya - Rigzone News

If you had to pick one of your many projects as being representative of your entire output, what would it be, and why?

I would like to point to the duo of films in the Abandoned series, although as fiction films, they diverge dramatically from the documentary and archive-based films I have made for the last decade.

The first film in the series, Tripoli Cancelled (2017), premiered at the art exhibition Documenta 14, and follows a man on his daily routine of smoking, writing letters, and reading from the dark childrens classic Watership Down by Richard Adams. Is the man a prisoner or a solitary emperor? There are no guards or fences, only mannequins in Olympic Airlines uniforms, and Melina Mercouri songs. The script is loosely inspired by the experience of my father, who was trapped in the same airportHellinikonin Athens, Greece, for nine days in 1977, after losing his passport in India.

The film blurs the line between prisoner and king, by merging our epoch of migration with the post-Holocaust concepts of "spectral human" (Hannah Arendt) and "Der Muselmnner" (Primo Levi, via Giorgio Agamben). The film was shot in Hellinikons International Terminal, designed by Eero Saarinen from 1960 to 1969.Hellinikon, closed in 2001, was used recently as a temporary home for Syrian refugees, and is now the site of a luxury real estate project, as part of a privatization effort spurred by EU debt renegotiation conditions. Tripoli Cancelled can be seen as a monument to an airport, and an ambitious postwar architectural project, that in the future may not exist.

The sequel film was shot before the pandemic, but completed in 2020 during lockdown. Jole Dobe Na (Those Who Do Not Drown) was conceived in response to a prompt given by the curators of the Yokohama Triennale, the Delhi-based Raqs Media Collective. They asked us to think about modes of care, and the afterlife of caregivers. In an empty hospital in Kolkata, India, a man faces blood protocols, a subtly discriminatory office, and a vacant operating theater.

His mind is on a loop of the last months of his wifes life, when a quiet argument developed. When is the end of pharma-medical care? Whose life is it anyway? They were an estranged couple, thrown back into intimacy by an unknown illness. Even in a dreamworld of his making, the paranoia of infection is twinned with a hesitant intimacy. The film revisits themes from Tripoli Cancelledthe family unit as a locus for pain-beauty dyads, abandoned buildings as staging grounds for lost souls, and the necessity of small prevarications to keep on living. In Tripoli, the boredom of daily life is punctuated by letters to an invisible wife, and endless readings of Watership Down. In Jole, a memory of final days is kept alive by the partner, and the book readings are from Bengali writer Syed Mujtaba Alis stories of Europe between the two world wars.

My position is refracted through shifting borders of decolonizing Asia, which map uneasily and imperfectly onto fault lines of the diversity of America. My grandfather was a British Indian subject, who became a mathematician because of affirmative action quotas for Muslims inside the British colonial administration. My father was a Pakistani citizen, and then his portion of the country became Bangladesh. When he wanted to go to India for medical treatment in 2016, his visa was denied because of that old Pakistani identity. As I mentioned earlier, I was born in Britain, with dual British-Bangladeshi citizenship, and grew up in Libya and Bangladesh because of where my father went to work as a military doctor.

Our racial position constantly changed with movement. In Britain, we were Pakis (a slur for Asians), and in Libya, we were miskeen (Arabic for beggar). But back in Bangladesh, we are Bengali Muslims from the majority racial-linguistic group, which has oppressed and crushed indigenous Adivasi communities, driving 10 local languages and peoples almost into extinction. So I am wary of Bengali majoritarianism as well.

Later, in America, we were initially Asian American, but after 9/11 became ethnicized into American Muslims. In our contemporary moment, when migration is at record levels and ethno-nationalist politics have new value in response, passport and class privilege overlap unpredictably with racial and religious identities. These dynamics become ever more germane as U.S. colleges host an increasingly global student body.

Because of my life experiences, I gravitate toward ambiguity and gray areas of research and artmaking. I am wary of certainty and absolute lines (not to be crossed) in my work. Almost a decade ago, I recall being heavily invested in the histories of certain forms of European ultra-left violence as a form of political action. I was in Stuttgart, Germany, and asked the curators of the museum hosting my visit if they would come with me to Stammheim Prison. Of course, they knew Stammheim as the site of the tragic-violent end of the militant Baader-Meinhof core group. But their next question stayed with me: But why are you interested in a German movement? Whats the connection with Bangladesh? In my work, I try to push back against that stay-in-your-lane sense of world history.

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From the U.K. to Bangladesh, Libya, and the U.S., an Artist Crosses Boundaries in His Life and Work - Columbia University