Bassets rule

@Kramer9Tommy @Pat_Stedman How to kill your reputation in one post.

On January 6th I followed the crowd into the Capitol and shouted. Police stood by the whole time, hanging out with us and sometimes directing us places. At one point near the House Chambers I was walking downstairs when a trio of some special section, secret service looking men started pointing guns in my direction. Confused and annoyed, I walked the other way and when I saw a normal police officer asked him why they were doing that. He informed me a protestor (Ashli Babbit) had been killed, and advised me to leave the building. I walked towards the exit and after a short rest on the bench I left. I harmed nobody and damaged no property that day and complied with all police orders. What I received for that was a pre-dawn raid at my parents house, where my 1 month post-partum wife and I were staying, on Biden's first day in office. His DOJ had signed the order to arrest me 3 hours after his inauguration. In the subsequent weeks I received death threats online and harassing phone calls, something that would be ongoing for the next few years. I was banned from Meta and Paypal. My wife and I were both debanked by PNC and banned from Airbnb. My wife was detained at the airport for hours with our newborn daughter. I was charged with 4 misdemeanors and the 1512 unconstitutional felony. The government offered to drop the misdemeanors if I pled to the felony. The felony was a lie, so I refused and went to trial. At trial the prosecution for 2 days straight was allowed to show footage to the jury of things that occurred around the Capitol I wasn't present for "for context." When we asked to put forward footage that contradicted the prosecution's "context" we were not allowed. They could show what they wanted, we could not. Police officers were then put on the stand for the next 2 days who cried about their experiences. I had no idea who they were. They admitted they never saw me or interacted with me. Nevertheless like every other J6er, I lost, and was sentenced to 4 years and $22k in fines and restitution. Yet even after the Supreme Court overturned the felony, the judge would not let me out until my misdemeanor sentences of a year were maxed out. Because she can't count she actually kept me in longer - to the extent she intervened at the last minute to make the prison release me on a Sunday, something that is against BOP rules. My family sat outside the prison gates the Friday before practically the whole day waiting in vain because of this pettiness. But the government wasn't satisfied with their pound of flesh: after my release they took me back in for resentencing, to attempt to have me resentenced after the fact to my misdemeanors consecutively, so I'd be taken from my family again and have another 1.5 years behind bars. This time I won, as they had no legal precedent and it skirted on violating double jeopardy since I had served my full prison time. Even still, it cast a cloud over the holidays and cost me another 20k my family couldn't afford. People ask whether prison was bad, and yeah of course prison sucked. It was a hard and violent place. I was present for a stabbing, and was lucky to avoid two fights and a race war. But dealing with Biden's DOJ and the DC Judiciary was the real trauma - they would grind down your spirit by weaponizing the legal system and use the endless procedure to bankrupt you. I had nightmares for months after release that I had somehow been hit with new charges. By the time I was pardoned by President Trump, I had spent literally every single day of Biden's presidency either in prison or under some form of supervision. I had incurred over $300k in legal fees and over $1 million in lost business. It was a reign of terror, and yet it was a mere foreshadowing of what they had planned for anyone else who opposed them under Kamala. The country should never forget it.

@tomcolicchio Some of us are socialists

Do you have any Idea how many boomers are liberal Democrates

@GovTimWalz The most telling thing was @LisaDemuthMN's lack of leadership when an Annunciation parent refused to be used by her party for a fake political stunt. She just froze and looked to Rep Niska to save her. She's not fit to be speaker, much less Governor.

Minnesotans deserve to know where their representatives stand on protecting our children. It’s long past time for House Republicans to hold a vote on gun violence prevention.

@LisaDemuthMN showed she is not a leader tonight as she was clueless as to what to do when a protest broke out at the end of today's session. She needed multiple people to tell her what to do. You might be able to see it at house.mn.gov/live/1. Go to the end.

@RickSteves OCD

Caption this!

Higher and higher we go.

@SenFettermanPA Yeah, a no-bid contract with a 20% profit guarantee doesn't seem shady, Did you get it for stabbing your party in the back?

Stop this henpecking. $13M? This is an iconic American place and was in serious disrepair. Get over the TDS and celebrate this is getting done for our 250th. 🇺🇸

Nothing like watching a white man (Gov. of Louisiana ) say our country has equal rights. No one should get extra rights.

@CheyCab @TimHannan Let me guess, white males?

@TimHannan He’s just trying to make America Great Again. My Republican clients tell me not to worry everything is fine.

Donald Trump destroyed what took 250 years to build in under 2 years.

@SundaeDivine @RonFilipkowski The stands were empty so he had no one else to talk to. Maybe he was giving pointers to Melania's 'security'

@RonFilipkowski "Always working" is doing a lot of heavy lifting for a man sitting in a skybox at a golf tournament he owns, on a Sunday, in May.

Talking on his phone at his golf course in Miami today.

@MarkieMinnesota Projections for 2026: Saudi Aramco, Kuwait Petroleum Corp, and ExxonMobil lead projected 2026 war profits, with total profits among top producers predicted to exceed 2025 levels by roughly $37 million PER DAY

Gas prices continue to rise in the Twin Cities

@staunovo @SecScottBessent Projections for 2026: Saudi Aramco, Kuwait Petroleum Corp, and ExxonMobil lead projected 2026 war profits, with total profits among top producers predicted to exceed 2025 levels by roughly $37 million PER DAY.

Aware gas prices affecting Americans but expecting prices to come down quickly when conflict ends - @SecScottBessent

@MWChapman @FaceTheNation oil companies are profiting $3K a second, and that is with paper losses. That number may double on Q2.

@FaceTheNation When government intervenes in the marketplace, it screws everything up-----and consumers pay

When asked if a negotiated end to the war with Iran will bring down oil and prices, Chevron CEO Mike Wirth said “what's really needed is for flow to resume through the Strait of Hormuz.” But he cautioned that the high prices are “going to be with us for some time.” “Because even if the strait were to open today, getting supplies to where they're needed and resuming the normal functioning of the system is going to take some time,” he told @margbrennan.

@FaceTheNation Didn't get to watch last week. Did you ask about oil co record profits this year?

@FaceTheNation Huh, I didn't see a social security exemption when I did my taxes. When I added my ss income the amount due sure went up and I didn't ever see it go down after that on turbo

When asked about a Bank of America report that found the spike in gas prices has cost consumers $19 billion and cut tax returns by nearly half, White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett says “that analysis is incorrect.” “Think about it this way: 153 million people have filed taxes already, and the average refund is $3,600,” he says. “53 million people have benefited from no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax on social security…Real incomes are growing, and real incomes, when they adjust for inflation, include the price of energy.”

@SecMullinDHS @GovTimWalz Release the Pretti evidence or are you accessory to murder?

You have *zero* credibility on this issue. @GovTimWalz, you have willingly ignored and downplayed the rampant fraud and abuse in Minnesota. This crackdown on fraud has come thanks to the leadership of President Trump. We will hold those who steal from Americans accountable.

@tomcolicchio Paradise by the Dashboard Lights

The Dirty Dozen

@CheyCab @atrupar Offer a package, high price, deal to take people to Minocqua brewing company for their free beer day and then take the next day off to roll around in the thousands you'll make as their DD.

@atrupar I need to have a plan when the final sleep comes. I think it’s close. Do I get drunk? Do I engage in sexual debauchery? I should really think on this. When Biden’s victory was announced a liq in SW Mpls sold 200k in champagne more than any NYE in their history.

Trump is fighting total war against wokeness as his eyes close and his mouth droops

@PeteButtigieg Gig worker here. Have to work even though I'm 70. My return was over 100 pages. If I went to a tax preparation service, it would have cost me about 1K. My refund was no bigger than last years, even with all the geezer goodies. My bank account is much smaller.

It’s getting harder – not easier – to file your taxes. Billionaires are getting massive breaks, while workers’ hard-earned dollars go to fund things nobody asked for. All of it raises a simple question this Tax Day: who is this administration really working for? I shared more of my thoughts here: open.substack.com/pub/petebuttig…

@StevenCheung47 Yeah, I got an extra ten bucks. And I'm in my 70s so I got all the goodies.

Damn right!