Fun and games in the Capital

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Shutdown Theater: Dems Are Desperate for a Shutdown but Have No Idea How to Get Out of It

Rehearsals for this year's production of Shutdown Theater are nearing an end, and, with last-minute changes to the script, Democrats are at a loss.

They have no idea how to create a happy ending.

“We may not have the luxury of a victory scenario,” said Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.). “I think what we’re trying to do is avoid things getting worse. I don’t think victory is in anyone’s hopes and dreams in this moment.”

Democrats, under enormous pressure from their hysterical base to "Fight! Fight! Fight!," have decided on the Götterdämmerung approach: blow it all up and pick up the pieces later.

In other words, they don't care if the voters blame them for the shutdown, or so they say.

When Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer was asked if he was willing to shut the government down, he said, “Ask the Republicans if they are willing to shut the government down.”

This is playing directly into President Trump's hands. Trump is so far into the Democrats' heads that now they all think they're billionaires who grew up in New York.

On Friday, Trump told reporters Republicans don’t have to “deal with the Democrats” on spending. This enraged the Democrats (as Trump knew it would) and forced their hand. They are now going to introduce a counterproposal that will add $1 trillion to healthcare spending alone.

….

“We expect them to come and negotiate and to live up to what they told their voters back in ’24, not even a year ago, what they were going to do, which was lower costs. And health care is a huge part of that,” House Minority Whip Katherine Clark told reporters Wednesday.

The author of this article does suggest a shutdown could still be avoided, but I’m not sure of that; the hard left has taken control of the Democrat party, and just as New York pols have caved to their new socialist masters in the NYC mayoral race, my money’s on shutdown.

It appears that neither side wants to avoid the shutdown. They've gone through the process enough times to know that the "shutdown" doesn't catastrophically end government services on Oct. 1. The slow-motion shutdown gives both sides a couple of weeks to work something out.

One interesting scenario would be if Trump were to act like Barack Obama did during shutdowns when he was in office. Obama closed all the national parks, museums, and other popular tourist spots for no reason, just to get a lot of people mad at Republicans.This time, the anger would be directed at Democrats.

I don’t share the author’s sanginity: both he and the Republicans may be underestimating the power of their opponent’s media monkeys to control the public’s perception of who would be to blame.

How are they achieving that miracle of smoke in the eyes? Here’s just one minor example from The Economic Times.

He still doesn't know that the internet is forever

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Schumer Melts Down Over Kimmel Being Preempted

"It is outrageous, it's a page right out of Xi's playbook," Schumer ranted, referencing China's Communist leader, Xi Jinping. "This is just despicable and disgusting, and against Democratic values." He claimed "Trump and his allies" wanted to shut down speech they didn't like, and this was what "autocracies do." "I am just outraged by it - this is what dictators do. This is what Xi would do.”

Or what “Reap the Whirlwind” Schumer would do has done.

All that said, and enjoyment at watching the left’s continuing mindmelt aside, I think it’s a terrible idea to yank any “comedian” off the air because of political pressure, and that’s what was done here. Which doesn’t mean I’m shedding any tears for Kimmel. Here he is expressing his “delightful shock” that Tucker Carlson was fired for his views:

Located in "one of Greenwich's most beloved neighborhoods" and in "the coveted Dundee school" district, there's no question that this one won't last

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20 Center Drive, Old Greenwich, new today at $3.195 million. The owner/agent paid $1.350 for this 1939 house in May ‘24, took it down to the studs and expanded it from 1,660 sq. ft. to 3,182.

Center Drive’s a nice street that once comprised modestly priced homes (the original version of this one sold for $734,500 in 2012). I was unaware of it being one of the town’s most beloved neighborhoods, nor Dundee being a coveted elementary school, but I suppose now they are, assuming this description isn’t mere hyperbole, and who’d expect that in a real estate listing?

New listing in Old Greenwich

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8 Park Avenue, $4.5 million. Renovated and expanded from 2,960 sq.ft. to 4,246, the current owner paid $1.595 million for the 1/2-acre lot and its 1940 house in January 2022. A year later, in February 2023, the property was put back on the market at $2.450 million with the notation, “this is not priced for a developer. Buyer will be end user who wants the location.” That proved prescient, and the listing expired, unsold, in July 2023 despite a price drop to $2.2

So he/she has apparently developed it themselves.

2023

Fortunately it was just taxpayers’ money that was burned up, not school children

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$400,00 per ev bus, $135,000 diesel

Remember All Those Electric Buses Kamala Paid For and We Didn't Get?

$160 million shipped north to Canada for buses that never worked, and burned up on a regular basis; the company’s gone belly-up.

Here’s an earlier report on the subject that appeared last month:

The Biden administration awarded Canadian electric bus maker Lion Electric $159 million to manufacture 435 school buses between 2022 and 2024, making it the third-largest recipient of such funding. The company has since fallen into bankruptcy, failed to deliver hundreds of the buses it promised, and warned school districts that its dire financial straits prevent it from servicing those in circulation.

As a result, many of those districts are turning back to diesel.

The Washington Free Beacon reported earlier this year that Lion, then nearing bankruptcy, had yet to deliver $95 million worth of the electric buses it pledged to produce as part of the Biden administration's $5 billion Clean School Bus program. Since then, Lion was sold for just $6 million during bankruptcy proceedings after being valued at $4.7 billion as recently as June 2021. The company also permanently shuttered multiple manufacturing plants, fired the majority of its employees, and told consumers that it could no longer honor warranties and purchase orders in the United States.

I’ve been following this story in Maine for quite a while now, including the loud objections by some to the purchase of battery buses in cold-winter Maine in the first place.

Google’s AI provides a good summary of the problems in the land of the lobster, all of which were predictable and were predicted. I focus on Maine because I’m familiar with the unfolding disaster there, but the entire billion dollar was spread across the whole country.

AI Overview

Defective Lion Electric school buses in Maine, including during cold weather, have led to safety concerns and malfunctions like power steering failure and brake issues, forcing schools like Winthrop Public Schools to take them off the road. The issues stem from the manufacturer, Lion Electric, which has faced financial problems and an unresponsive approach to repairs and warranties, while school officials report problems with heating systems, emergency exits, and high voltage warnings. While electric school buses can be effective in cold weather, the problems in Maine are attributed to manufacturing defects, not the climate itself, with cold weather only potentially reducing battery range.  

Key Problems

  • Safety Concerns: Serious malfunctions, including loss of steering and braking, have occurred during operation. 

  • Mechanical Failures: Issues include problems with power steering, brake systems, and emergency exits. 

  • Heating System Malfunctions: Some buses have experienced issues with their heating systems. 

  • High Voltage Warnings: School districts have reported warnings related to high voltage. 

  • Part Recalls and Leaks: One recall was for a faulty part that could lead to short-circuiting due to water leaks. 

Manufacturer Issues

  • Company Financial Problems: Lion Electric has faced financial issues, which impact its ability to fulfill obligations to schools. 

  • Lack of Responsiveness: Lion Electric has been described as unresponsive to school officials' questions and concerns. 

  • Warranty Issues: The company has stopped honoring warranties for buses shipped to the U.S. 

Cold Weather Impact

  • Range Reduction:

    While electric buses can operate in cold weather, their range and efficiency can be reduced. 

  • Manufacturing Defect, Not Climate:

    The problems in Maine are attributed to the specific Lion Electric buses, not to electric buses as a whole. 

Current Status

  • Buses Off the Road: Several schools, including Winthrop, have taken their Lion Electric buses out of service due to the recurring problems. 

  • Failed Inspections: Buses sent for repair failed state inspections, leading to further delays. 

  • School Districts Awaiting Resolution: School officials are seeking solutions and answers, as they have been waiting for repairs for months, or even years. 

From January 30, 2025, by which time Biden’s control panel had already dispensed $1 billion to electric bus builders (1/3 of which was pocketed by Lion Electric):

Some Maine school districts may face costly setbacks due to Lion Electric school buses

And from a year earlier:

Harpswell, ME, January 31 2024

An electric school bus averages about $350,000, and a charging station is $20,000 to $25,000 for a Level 2 charger or $60,000 for a Level 3 charger that can charge up to two buses in less than half the time.

For comparison, a gasoline-powered bus costs about $135,000, DiCara said. An electric bus would likely last about as long as a gasoline-powered one, roughly 10 to 12 years, district officials agreed after initially misstating that they only last five years.

There’s also the issue of range. An electric bus can go about 120 miles on one charge, which limits the routes it could be used on, because district buses usually make four trips per day. Cold weather can reduce that range by up to 33%. District staff said MSAD 75’s first electric bus, if it acquires one, would likely be used for shorter routes in Topsham.

Even the dumbest woman in the Senate (Chris Murphy still holding the overall title) knows that there are physiological differences between men and women, and will admit that when it suits her

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score one for the men

How We Know Democrats Don’t Really Believe Their Own Trans Agenda

Democrats have done everything they can to sell Americans on transgender ideology. They tell us biology is irrelevant, that men can compete in women’s sports without consequence, that there’s no disadvantage to pitting female athletes against biological males. 

Yet, the moment it becomes politically convenient, suddenly they rediscover what every ordinary person has always known: Men and women are different.

The latest example? Sen. Mazie Hirono of Hawaii.

During a Senate hearing, Hirono pressed FBI Director Kash Patel about the bureau’s physical fitness standards, particularly the requirement that recruits perform pull-ups. “A lot of women cannot because of physiological differences,” Hirono said, essentially acknowledging what Democrats repeatedly deny when it comes to sports, that men and women are not biologically identical. Patel didn’t shy away from affirming those differences.

He explained that FBI field agents need to be physically capable of chasing down criminals and doing tough, demanding work, which is why there are strict training benchmarks, including pull-ups, timed runs, sit-ups, and push-ups, as well as academic and marksmanship evaluations. In other words, the FBI isn’t running a social experiment in gender ideology; it’s preparing agents for real-world threats where physical ability actually matters.

And yet, this same Mazie Hirono has been one of the loudest voices condemning efforts to protect women’s sports from male intrusion. In 2022, she accused Republicans of lying when they pointed out the very real problem of males dominating female athletics. “My Republican colleagues falsely claim that allowing transgender women and girls to play sports is harmful to cisgender women and girls,” she declared. She went further, smearing the GOP for supposedly “hurling insulting lies” about the impact on women’s sports. According to her, bans on male athletes in female competitions were nothing more than bigotry dressed up as fairness. Any concerns about denied scholarships, broken records, or stolen opportunities were dismissed as “discrimination.”

Hirono is now freely admitting that "physiological differences" between the sexes affect physical performance.

Here is this mental giant in action. Hawaiian voters have kept Hirono in one political office or another — Lt. Governor; U.S. Representative; Senator — since 1980, so clearly they deserve what they’ve received. But do we?

This one's got everything, including a detached garage

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New to the market today, 43 Jones Park Drive in Riverside offers 6,577 sq, ft., water views, 1-1/3 acres, and is, its listing promises, “a stunning colonial with timeless charm” and of course, the obligatory “gourmet kitchen”. I’m a little concerned that the house is merely “sun-filled” rather than the more attractive and usual “sun-drenched”, but every room comes with a “breathtaking view”, so that’s all right. Oddly enough, the ad copy does not insist that “this one won’t last!”, but at just $11.5 million, that pretty much goes unsaid.