Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) criticized the Republican National Committee (RNC) for its censure of Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) and Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and broke with their language on the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, calling it a “violent insurrection.” “It was a violent insurrection with the purpose of trying to prevent a peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election. ... That’s what it was,” McConnell said. The RNC sparked fierce backlash after it described Jan. 6, when a mob of former President Trump’s followers breached the Capitol, as “legitimate political discourse” in a resolution censuring Kinzinger and Cheney.

Withstanding hunger pangs, weakness, and health concerns, Westlake Middle School staff members Moses Omolade and Andre San-Chez stood firm on Tuesday—day eight of their hunger strike against likely school closures in Oakland Unified School District—declaring the strike will not end until their demands are met and the school board votes against the plan, which would close or merge more than a dozen schools this year and next.

The strike is one of several actions that Oakland community members have led during the last week to protest the plan, which is being proposed as a way to trim OUSD’s budget deficit.

 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Monday, the Supreme Court put back into effect Alabama’s proposed district maps for the 2022 congressional election cycle — even though two district courts had thrown them out on the grounds that they diluted Black votes in violation of the Voting Rights Act. The 5-4 ruling came with no majority opinion. Rather, the court issued unsigned and unexplained “stays” of the district court decisions, while agreeing to hear Alabama’s appeal of those rulings on their merits during its next term (which starts in October).

The four dissenters — Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan — all agreed that the court should take up the merits of Alabama’s appeals. But they vehemently disagreed with the majority’s decision that in the interregnum, the unlawful maps should immediately go back into effect by dint of an unexplained and unsigned emergency order.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

CODA  

WEST SIDE STORY

BELFAST

BEING THE RICARDOS

THE POWER OF THE DOG

SPENCER

SUMMER OF SOUL OR WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED

KING RICHARD

RESPECT

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When GoFundMe shut down funding Friday for the truckers’ Freedom Convoy, it didn’t just clobber Canadian rig drivers. It dealt a blow to the rights of Americans. Silicon Valley executives are trying to limit the causes Americans support, favoring leftist ones and canceling conservatives. Canadian truckers launched a convoy to Ottawa last month, to protest Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s vaccine mandate on all rig drivers. Never mind the absurdity of requiring a truck driver alone behind the wheel for 18 hours a day to be vaccinated. The convoy set up a fundraising site on GoFundMe to pay for fuel, food and lodging. Many Americans rushed to support it. It had reached $10 million in donations when GoFundMe pulled the plug.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Beer, wine and hard liquor will be offered again starting on February 16, the airline said in a news release. American Airlines is the only one of the four largest US carriers that has not resumed alcohol sales. On Southwest, non-alcoholic beverage service will also be expanded on February 16 to include options such as tonic water, Coke Zero and hot chocolate. The beverage service is available on flights of 176 miles or more.

.VTA joins other Bay Area transit agencies adopting the new policy, including BART, AC Transit, Caltrain, Muni, SamTrans, SMART, and Golden Gate Transit.

Workers at the Santa Clara County public transit agency will have 60 days to comply with the policy once it goes into effect, according to a company-wide memo issued earlier this week. Workers who don’t receive a vaccination or religious or medical exemption within that time frame face termination

 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After Donald Trump delivered his State of the Union address in 2020, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could hardly contain her disgust with the then-president’s avalanche of lies. In fact, the California Democrat, seated behind Trump, was seen literally tearing her copy of the address as a way of registering her revulsion.

Exactly two years ago today, it led the Republican to make a bizarre claim. “[I]t’s an official document,” the then-president told reporters. “You’re not allowed. It’s illegal what she did. She broke the law.”

As legal experts — and those in touch with common sense — were quick to point out, Trump’s argument was insane. Pelosi was handed a photocopy of a speech. She could tear it up, light it on fire, turn it into paper airplanes, or anything else she chose. There were no legal requirements forcing the Speaker to preserve the photocopy or treat it with any deference.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the last hour of the week, John has film guru Jan Wahl on to review some of the top movies for the Winter Olympic season. They also ponder why a famous landmark SF movie theater is permanently closing this week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John sticks around for an extra 30 minutes to talk with his callers about the SF School Board recall that is dominating the headlines.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rothmann decides to mix it up for Hour 2. For the first half, he looks into NATO's relevance in the modern day with the Russia-Ukraine situation. For the second half, he takes a variety of opinions on transgender youth in sports. Should trans athletes get their own league? Should they choose their division?

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For John's first hour, he dives into the Mike Pence speech delivered today. In his  words, Pence described his view on the Jan. 6th attacks, and didn't hold back in criticizing the former president.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.