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Danforth

GINNI

still 220 basically retired GOP that ~ trumpism?

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AN 8 24

In Missouri's 2024 U.S. Senate race, incumbent Sen. Josh Hawley (a far-right MAGA Republican) is up against Democrat Lucas Kunce as well as Better Party candidate Jared Young. Hawley has been leading in the polls, which, political analysts say, is not surprising in light of how Republican Missouri is.

But Young has received an endorsement from someone who was once Hawley's political mentor: former Sen. John Danforth (R-Missouri).

A veteran of Missouri politics, Danforth served three terms in the U.S. Senate and is now 87.

READ MORE:'Especially impressive': Harris campaign fires back at Trump attack with two words

Young, described by the St. Louis Post Dispatch as a "moderate conservative," thanked Danforth in a press release — saying, "I am honored by Senator Danforth's endorsement. We share the belief there are real solutions to complex problems if we can reject the angry, divisive tactics that have overtaken American politics."

When Danforth endorsed Young, the former senator said that he "embraces the ideas that have always defined the Republican Party and have been universally accepted across its membership."

Danforth endorsed Hawley in the 2018 midterms, which found Hawley ousting incumbent Democratic then-Sen. Claire McCaskill (now a pundit for MSNBC). But three years later, Danforth made it clear that he was totally disenchanted with Hawley and described that 2018 endorsement as the "worst mistake" of his life.

One of Danforth's big criticisms of Hawley is the MAGA senator's isolationist views on foreign policy.

READ MORE:Why JD Vance's efforts to blame staff for 'bizarre and uncomfortable' bakery visit fall flat: analysis

Danforth, with his Young endorsement, said, "We are committed to supporting NATO, and we condemn Vladimir Putin's ambitions in Europe. We are steadfast in opposing Russian aggression. As a lifelong conservative now running on the Better Party ticket, Jared Young stands for the Constitution, Unity, Fiscal Responsibility, Free Markets and Peace through Strength. Josh Hawley rejects all of these."

READ MORE: MAGA senator Josh Hawley ripped for push to 'control us in the bedroom'

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POST TRUMP GOP CIVIL WAR:

chris h msnbc says CoC gop have no msg (that will win trumpistas or anyone else?)

https://www.alternet.org/2021/02/john-danforth/

is gaetz pro greene or just ~ Liz C?

https://www.alternet.org/2021/02/marjorie-taylor-greene-2650284645

commm dr

this is what you shall do... stand up for the stupid and crazy...

— Walt Whitman, Preface to the first edition of Leaves of Grass

A number of readers wondered whether, following my recent piece on The Triplets in the House of Representatives, I was being unfair to the United States Senate, a body that includes at least two people deserving recognition as much as the triplets in the House. I can only acknowledge my oversight with a mea culpa and make amends by directing the readers' attention to two Senators who, with each utterance, warm the cockles of the trumpian heart and the hearts of all who love and miss the trump.

The two Senators are Senators Ron Johnson of Wisconsin and Josh Hawley of Missouri. Great minds can differ on which of the two men is the dumbest man in the Senate. NBC's Joe Scarborough bestowed the label on Josh, calling him the dumbest guy in the Senate, but I prefer to bestow that honor on Wisconsin's Ron Johnson. Ron does not have the academic credentials of Josh. Josh attended Stanford, and Yale law school. The lack of those credentials does not, however, deprive him of the right to being first, not second, in the competition.

Ron has served in the Senate since 2010. During that time ample opportunities for him to show his stupidity have presented themselves, and he has rarely failed to take advantage of them. In 2021, however, he has taken positions that in the opinion of this writer give him an insurmountable lead over Josh Hawley. Among his most memorable demonstrations were his comments on the rioters who stormed the United States Capitol as Ron and his colleague took refuge in a safe space in the Capitol building. Ron said of his time being sequestered in a safe space in the Capitol that: "I never felt threatened I didn't foresee this. They made up their own standards in terms of incitement. The first question was 'Was this predictable? Was it foreseeable? And the answer was no, it wasn't. I don't know any Trump supporters who would do that."

In an interview in March he said of the rioters that: "I know those were people who love this country, that truly respect law enforcement, would never do anything to break the law, so I wasn't concerned." He went on to say that had the rioters been members of the Black Lives Matter crowd he would have been more concerned for his safety. He did not explain why he joined his colleagues in being taken to a refuge where they were protected from the people showing their love for the country by storming its capitol nor has he explained why more than 400 of them have been criminally indicted for trying to prove their love of country.

Ron's observations about the good intentions of the rioters by themselves, would perhaps not earn him the distinction I have granted him. It is also his expertise on the Covid-19 vaccine. He has repeatedly downplayed the need for people to get vaccinated against the virus. In an interview with Vicky McKenna on April 23 he explained that if a person had the vaccine he or she didn't need to worry about whether anyone else got the vaccine. As he explained: "So if you have a vaccine, quite honestly, what do you care if your neighbor has one or not. I mean, what is it to you?... So why this big push to make sure everybody gets vaccinated?" The more than 570,000 American who have died could explain why taking the vaccine is important. Anthony Fauci responded to Johnson's comments saying they were nonsense. He said we have very effective vaccines and it makes no sense to take the Johnson position that if he's been vaccinated no one else needs to take the vaccine.

Johnson's competitor is Josh Hawley. Josh is better credentialed than Ron. Josh received his undergraduate degree from Stanford University and his law degree from Yale Law School. Both of his degrees have served him in poor stead proving, as a president of Harvard once said, the mere fact that you graduate from a great university does not mean you are an educated person. On December 30, 2020, Josh announced by means of a trump like tweet, that he would refuse to certify the vote that Joe Biden had been elected president. "I cannot vote to certify the Electoral College results on January 6 without raising the fact that some states, particularly Pennsylvania, failed to follow their own state election laws." Not content to express his unwillingness to certify the electoral college results, as the rioters gathered on January 6 preparing to launch their attack on the Capitol, Josh walked by them pumping his fist in the air in a gesture of support. What happened next is history.

Commenting on Josh's tweets and conduct, John Danforth, a former Missouri Senator said: "Supporting Josh Hawley. . . was the worst decision I've ever made in my life. He has consciously appealed to the worst. He has attempted to drive us apart and he has undermined public belief in our democracy. And that's great damage." Senator Danforth got that right. Josh Hawley is a national disgrace. So is Ron Johnson. The nut jobs in the House of Representatives have not upstaged the ones in the Senate. The electorate has made sure there are enough to go around.

On June 4, 2004, George Bush nominated John C Danforth, a Republican senator from Missouri from 1976 to 1995, and former special envoy to Sudan, to replace John Negroponte as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. Danforth's Senate and international experience, opposition to family planning, religious-influenced politics, pro-corporate stances and fundraising for Republican candidates no doubt helped recommend him to Bush administration officials.

Danforth is an ordained Episcopal minister, an heir to the Ralston-Purina pet food company fortune, and a "Pioneer" for the Bush-Cheney 2004 campaign, meaning he pledged to raise at least $100,000 in "bundled" donations.[1] "If confirmed" as UN Ambassador, noted WhiteHouseforSale.org, Danforth "will become the 171st Bush bundler to receive an appointment."[2] Marjorie Cohn noted that Danforth "was also tapped to officiate at Ronald Reagan's funeral Friday, as Billy Graham is hospitalized. With millions of Americans watching that emotional event, the senators who will vote on Danforth's nomination would be hard-pressed to oppose it."[3]

Some of John Danforth's controversial stances in the Senate included voting against sanctions on the apartheid government of South Africa in the mid-1980s, voting to cut funds for United Nations peacekeeping in the 1990s, and voting to limit U.S. support for international family planning programs.[4] Based on these stances and Danforth's current close association with several large corporations (see below), law professor Marjorie Cohn warned that Danforth is "right-wing zealot in moderate's clothing."[5] A Mother Jones investigation into stock trading by members of Congress turned up several large deals Danforth made while discussions or votes on related industries were pending in the Senate. These deals include purchasing between $100,000 and $200,000 in Bell Atlantic stock during discussions of the Bell Atlantic/ TCI merger, and selling between $30,000 and $100,000 in Philip Morris stock as support rose in the Senate for the Tobacco Consumption Reduction and Health Improvement Act.[6]

The Washington Post reported that Danforth "has limited diplomatic experience, warn former colleagues and friends. Filling the shoes of Negroponte, a deft career diplomat who had major impact at the United Nations, will not be easy for the Missouri politician, they say." He was appointed by George W. Bush in 2001 to mediate the decades-old Sudan civil war. His performance in that role has been criticized: "Some of his limitations came into view in Sudan, including lack of engagement in details of the negotiations which he left to staff people and could be a liability at the UN," said John Prendergast, special adviser on Africa to the International Crisis Group.[7] Human Rights Watch, however, lauded Danforth's Sudan work as making "major steps towards improving the human rights crisis in Sudan," while cautioning that the Danforth report on Sudan "elevates freedom of religion above other basic rights."[8]

Danforth is a friend and mentor to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Both attended Yale Law School, and Thomas worked as an assistant in Danforth's Missouri Attorney General's office (a post he held from 1969 to 1976). Danforth "almost personally salvaged" Thomas' Supreme Court nomination after Anita Hill charged Thomas with sexual harassment:

In his book "Resurrection: The Confirmation of Clarence Thomas," Danforth described praying with Thomas and their wives in his office and playing "Onward Christian Soldiers" on a tape recorder before Thomas made his final defense at the Senate Judiciary Committee.[9]

Danforth's defense of Thomas went beyond praying; he tried "to force a vote before the Senate had been able to hear Hill's accusations," and "also threatened to refuse to support a civil rights bill if moderate Democrats opposed Thomas." In his book, Danforth admitted displaying very un-diplomatic behavior when Thomas' nomination was challenged: "I completely lost my temper in a table-pounding, shouting, red-in-the-face profane rage." Danforth wrote that he saw his role defending Thomas as "a warrior doing battle for the Lord."[10]

Other honors bestowed on Danforth include being appointed by the Clinton administration to head the investigation into the deaths of 80 Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas in 1993 (he concluded the FBI had "nothing to hide") and being briefly considered as a running mate to George W Bush in 2000. According to David Plotz, writing for Slate: "Danforth ... strongly resisted when George W. Bush considered him for vice president and also demurred when Bush recruited him to litigate one of the Florida recount cases."[11]

Since retiring from the Senate, Danforth has worked as a partner in the law firm of Bryan Cave LLP in St Louis, Missouri. In early 2002, "at the same time it admitted destroying documents related to Enron audits, Andersen hired former Sen. John Danforth to review the firm's 'records management policy and to recommend improvements.' What a sweet gig for both sides!" exclaimed David Plotz. "[Arthur] Andersen basks in the reflected glory of St. Jack. St. Jack will bask in the unreflected glory of a huge Andersen paycheck."[12]

Danforth "serves on the corporate boards of Cerner Corporation, The Dow Chemical Company and General American Life Insurance Compnay," in addition to Time Warner and MetLife, Inc.[13] He chairs the $312.5 million Danforth Family Foundation [14] and sitting on the boards of several St Louis-area religious and community groups.[15]

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