PBC News & Comment: Farewell to the American Republic, As We Knew It

GOP Sens. Alexander, Murkowski employ insulting talking points to cover their dereliction of duty, violation of oath, contempt for Constitution….--yes, the Democrats blew the impeachment in many ways, but lockstep loyalty to Trump by Republican posers signals the end of 3-branch governance
--and now we have a corrupt, narcissistic dictator who can’t be stopped
--Romney and Collins call for witnesses, but fail to offer any leadership or strong criticism of hypocritical colleagues
--new leaks from Bolton say he met with Trump, Giuliani, Mulvaney and Cippilone in May of 19, earliest huddle about Biden investigations/Ukraine
--4 wobbly Dems may vote with GOP on procedures and acquittal, giving Trump claim of bipartisan vindication
--awkward timing: Pompeo visits Ukraine, makes Zelensky dance to happy tune
--in Iowa last night, Trump reveled in mob affection, and reeled off a con man’s list of his successes
--at The Guardian, Hamilton Nolan correctly argues that Bernie Sanders’ real obstacle is the Democratic establishment
--in fresh, in-depth interview, ConsortiumNews editor in chief Joe Lauria fights back against “Russian tool” smears in Canadian media reports from spy agency
--adding to our growing reputation as a dangerous, rogue nation, Pentagon announces we will resume using landmines after Obama phased them out
--in California and Texas, TrumpCo is using sneaky means to undermine abortion rights and Planned Parenthood
--Trump and Bloomberg campaigns drop $11 million each for Superbowl ads
--NFL has erased Colin Kaepernick with slick commercial on killer cops, and Samer Kalaf has sharp comments in this op-ed
--IRS whistleblower investigation continues, but where does it go now?
--PBC tries to return the threatening pre-dawn robocall he got today