DEI Definition


Posted originally on Jul 27, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Fool The Card
DEI

COMMENT: Hi Marty.

Thank you for teaching us and writing the code for Socrates.

I think I may have figured out DEI…

Danger, Entering Idiocracy

lol, yet not lol.

Kindest words,

John

REPLY: Good One

Demonic, Foul, Obscene and Disgusting – The Olympic Opening Ceremony in Paris


Posted originally on the CTH on July 27, 2024 | Sundance

First, a lot of people want to talk about it, I do not.

As my grandmother would often shout when we experienced a dark outcome, “GET BEHIND ME SATAN!

What was witnessed in the opening ceremony for the Olympics in Paris was beyond grotesque.  Physical evil manifesting and parading in front of the world as if Baal was the organizer of the events.  A completely demonic representation of everything the leftists within politics stand for.  I’m not putting that stuff in my head.

What I will say is that a faceless demon riding a pale horse down the river Siene, to hand the Olympic flag to a team of demons who hoisted it “upside down” sounds exactly like the culture French President Emmanuel Macron has created for his nation.

Sickening, all of it.

…And people wonder why God provided horrible weather. Go figure!

[Daily Mail Here] and [Daily Mail Here]

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This guy has it exactly correct: Galatians 6:7

BIG PICTURE


Posted originally on the CTH on July 7, 2024 | Sundance

Someone noted last year that after my research trip my tone changed. Perhaps becoming a little more deliberate, perhaps becoming a little more stern. It is an accurate sense, and there is a very good reason for this. I will explain.

I have noted several times in the past few years that the nature of our relationship with government seems to have shifted. Specifically, We The People now appear to be in an abusive relationship with government. In all abusive relationships there is a common set of behaviors; the DC control system is following a familiar pattern. My recent research trips helped me to understand exactly how severe and deep this shift has become.

Certain abusers distort reality in the mind of their victims through gaslighting. Essentially manipulative and strategic lying, to make the abused think something, perhaps even their reality, is completely different. Our government institutions and those who control the information flow into media have been doing exactly that. The examples are numerous, but the deliberateness began to take a severe tone with the COVID-19 fiats.

In my opinion, it was our willingness to buy into the false frameworks surrounding the COVID-19 hysteria, that really opened the eyes of possibility in the mind of powerful people within our government. We accepted too much; we allowed too much; we willingly accepted an almost totalitarian state in response.

The rules themselves were ridiculous.

The mask nonsense, the social distancing, business closures, lockdowns, “essential vs nonessential jobs”, roped off products in certain areas of stores as if the virus couldn’t travel or the types of purchases determined risk; people were arrested on paddleboards in the ocean by themselves, closed parks outside and the police watching; standing in a restaurant was dangerous, but sitting at a table was not; etc. etc.

All of it was madness, yet we complied.

It was almost like a test, to see how much the control of information could influence behavior – and bad actors within our government were paying attention to how easy it was to manipulate action, diminish liberty and control the behavior of free people.

Granted, in other countries it was worse; yet still, in the USA where our DNA is forged in the fire of being suspicious of government, three-quarters of the population took an untested experimental, gene modifying “vaccine.” In hindsight, it is stunning to consider.

Fast forward to my recent research trip(s).  What I discovered outside the USA, is that we are being lied to.

The Russian sanctions are not sanctioning Russia or impeding their economic growth – not even close. Instead, the sanctions have built walls around the USA financial system, not to keep Russians out – but to keep Americans locked in. I have given details about this previously, and I will not repeat here.

Then, if you take the expanding surveillance state and the expansion of DHS authority under the guise of “national security,” adding in the extreme control system now in place through the public-private partnership with social media, you really begin to see the architecture of a massive information control system. Making the reality all the bleaker, no voice in Washington DC is genuinely pushing back and publicly calling out the surveillance state.

Our elected representatives are not representing our interests; instead, they are codependent enablers, willfully blind to the overall system of expanded government control. The abuser is stronger, the victim is weaker (less free), and every element is now in place to block the victim, us, from realizing the scale of their abuse.

Making the issue more alarming, is the seemingly unstoppable censorship and control enterprise that is blocking people from networking, communicating and sharing their current status. This was the primary reason I began the protected “Slowly at First” (SAF) discussion threads. So people could just talk about the reality in their region, and we could all compare notes.

Something very dark is assembling deep inside our nation, and yet we are seemingly distracted from noticing it. The reality of motive behind the U.S. sanctions against Russia, as identified by my fact-finding mission that was not easy to accomplish, really made me reconsider the nature of the control around us.

What I realize now, is that agencies within our federal government are building a matrix of walls to lock us into a severely controlled system.  We are being isolated, and we do not see it.

We can debate (and I have) while hiding behind the benefits of “tactical civics” all day long. But what we are really debating and accepting is the size of our cell or cell block.  Yes, locally you can and should fight for liberty – locally.  However, do not blind yourself to the reality of the outcome; in essence, we are creating 15-minute cities.  Is that really freedom?

Within the federal system under construct, information is being controlled. The online systems of sharing contrary information are being changed, modified and ultimately blocked. Our expenditures and costs of living are being used as weapons for control via monetary policy. Our systems of independent ownership and self-determination are being dismantled. Our ability to engage in commerce is being increasingly subject to approvals.  Some of those approvals are self-generated. Our finance system is being changed to a more controlling central bank, and perhaps a digital currency.

We The People are being isolated, just like a victim of toxic abuse would be isolated. There are walls and barriers being built all around us, even around our nation, and if the government were to take full control over digital communication and internet services (the path we are on), it’s unlikely we would even know the scale of our captivity.

So yeah, my tone is changing.

After my visit to Eastern Europe and the currently forbidden region, both of them, I now see the limits on freedom that exist here at home. Each of the datapoints, each of the stories, articles, research reviews and detailed documented instances of bad behavior from our federal government now takes on a different context.

As I detailed every moment and filled our research library with citation after citation over the past dozen years, I knew the trajectory was bad. I knew it was really bad – really bad. Yet, I had no idea how severe and bad the abuse had become until I stood in the forbidden world and realized everything I was told about it, was a lie.

Remember, I wasn’t there at the invitation of anyone. I wasn’t there with a handler, minder or escort. No one from the forbidden world even knew I was there. I was there as a free and independent person, a sovereign citizen who hacked his way through the jungle with a rusty machete to get there.

When I left the forbidden world, came back through eastern Europe through Istanbul and ultimately back into the west, I spent hours in careful contemplation trying to reconcile the motive for the false information and yet simultaneously put a mental scale together to evaluate the scope of the U.S. propaganda effort.

The only thing that makes any of it make sense, is to accept the datapoints that clearly show the walls being built around us – to isolate us.

I never really understood how people could accept the formation of communism around them.

Now I do.

I see it happening, and that is making me very angry.

I have also spent hours on my knees, deliberately asking our loving God – the one source of purest truth – to guide and help me.

I am shouting now.  We must stop our isolation.

Radio Hosts from Wisconsin and Pennsylvania Who Interviewed Biden, Admit the White House Provided the Questions for Them to Ask


Posted originally on the CTH on July 6, 2024 | Sundance 

Not a good look; especially if the White House is trying to frame a “competent Biden” narrative.  CNN’s Victor Blackwell speaks with radio host of “The Source,” Andrea Lawful-Sanders, who confirms the White House sent her the questions to approve ahead of her interview with President Joe Biden.  WATCH:

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Wisconsin Supreme Court Reversed Themselves – Now Approve Widespread Use of Mail-In Ballot Collection Drop Boxes


Posted originally on the CTH on July 6, 2024 | Sundance

Once you see the strings on the marionettes you can never watch the performance and not see them.

Last weekend James Clyburn visited 10 key ballot counting precincts in Wisconsin {link}.  On Friday George Stephanopoulos interviewed Joe Biden from Wisconsin {link}. Today, the media is full of the story about how the Wisconsin Supreme Court has reversed its own prior ruling and will now expand the use of ballot collection boxes.

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Friday that officials can place ballot drop boxes around their communities in this fall’s elections, overturning its own ruling two years ago limiting their use in the presidential swing state.

The court limited the use of drop boxes in July 2022, ruling then that they could be placed only in local election clerks’ offices and no one other than the voter could return a ballot in person.

Conservatives controlled the court at that time, but Janet Protasiewicz’s election victory in April 2023 flipped the court to liberal control. Seeing an opening, Priorities USA, a progressive voter mobilization group, asked the court in February to revisit the decision.

At least 29 other states allow for absentee ballot drop boxes, according to the U.S. Vote Foundation, and expanded use in Wisconsin could have major implications in the presidential race.

Wisconsin again figures to be a crucial swing state after President Joe Biden barely won it in 2020 and Donald Trump narrowly took it in 2016. Democrats believe that making it easier to vote absentee will boost turnout for their side. (more)

In 2017 California hired former Attorney General Eric Holder to oversee the Secretary of State office creating a new voter registration link to the Dept of Motor Vehicles.

In the midterm election of 2018, the first California widespread mail-in ballot program was used.  California Republicans won races on election day, then lost massive seats in the days and weeks that followed.

CALIFORNIA – […] Five California counties—Madera, Napa, Nevada, Sacramento, and San Mateo—implemented a new model of conducting elections for the first time in 2018. In these counties, every registered voter was mailed a ballot, and voters had the option of returning their ballot by mail, at a ballot drop box, or any vote center open in their county.

All five counties exceeded the statewide turnout rate of 64.5%.  All five counties saw voter turnout that was higher than the county average during statewide gubernatorial general elections during the previous 20 years.  (FULL DATA)

What is a representative from South Carolina doing in Wisconsin on June 28 and 29, visiting ten key ballot counting precincts in three key cities, Madison, Milwaukee and Beloit?

The timing here is not coincidental.

Sunday June 30th

Tuesday July 2nd

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Internal Link

(source)

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Ballots in the mail are apparently very important to My Vote Wisconsin.

(Via AP) […] The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Friday, July 5th, that officials can place ballot drop boxes around their communities in this fall’s elections, overturning its own ruling two years ago limiting their use in the presidential swing state. {link}

Once you see the strings on the marionettes, you can never return to that moment in the performance when you did not see them.

The British & EU Elections – A Prelude to US?


Posted originally on Jul 5, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

IMMBP D Array 7 1 24

COMMENT: Marty, I am really impressed how Socrates even had a Double Directional Change in the British pound for election day. What it shows for the US elections seems to be a critical turning point. This is the most interesting system ever created.

All the best

JK

REPLY: There is no question that the sweeping political upset in the EU and now in Britain is a prelude to the 2024 US election. This is getting to the point that the real trend is just to throw whoever is in power out. Here, the Conservatives have lost a string of senior core MPs who have been in power in the Tory Party. This has been a historic wipeout and justly deserved. Eight Cabinet ministers have now lost their seats in the general election, beating the previous record of seven Cabinet ministerial defeats in 1997. However, when we look closely at Labour’s victory, we see it was not resounding by far. Labour’s win was not as spectacular as the headlines appear. The vote breakdown made clear that the election was really a rejection and anger towards the Conservatives rather than embracing the policies offered by Labour. That is why you saw Labour simply calling for “change” rather than a specific promise.

1 Politics

Diving deeper, we see that Keir Starmer’s Labour Party only increased its vote share by a few percentage points from its dismal 2019 performance. From this perspective, it was not a landslide. Even though it may end up with almost twice as many seats, there are cracks in the foundation of Labour’s platform. Starmer won a smaller vote share than his predecessor, Jeremy Corbyn, did in 2017, an election that Labour had previously lost, illustrating that this was not the landslide the LEFT seeks to create. Indeed, Labour was aided by Nigel Farage’s Reform Party, which won seat after seat against the Conservatives. This illustrated that the frustration in Britain was far more serious than most wanted to admit. The Conservatives have done nothing but try to trash Nigel at every chance they get.

Reuters Image

They created a viral campaign against Nigel, clipping a comment he made saying: “I was asked the other day what I was going to do for the Black community? Do you know what I said? ‘Nothing, absolutely nothing. I couldn’t give a damn…’” They did everything to slander Nigel and to misrepresent what he said to the people. The full quote was:

“I was asked the other day what I was going to do for the Black community? Do you know what I said?

“‘Nothing, absolutely nothing.’ I couldn’t give a damn whether you’re black or white, you’re gay or straight. I really don’t care. You’ll be judged by your character, you’ll be judged by your ability, you’ll be judged by are you a contributor to society or a taker out…”

The problem is that this was not so much a vote for LEFTIST policies as it was to just throw the bums out. Starmer will have to govern with a powerful majority in parliament, but the public coalition he has built will not afford him a long honeymoon period. He will be opposed by both the Conservatives and Farge’s Reform. Starmer’s predecessor Corbyn, who had been expelled by the party, actually won an independent seat in Islington North and will become the face of that opposition from the far-left.

UK Unemployment 7 5 24

Starmer has never enjoyed even remotely the approval ratings that Blair and Boris Johnson had. He lacks the natural charisma of important world leaders. Starmer has promised “a decade of national renewal,” but this will only further undermine Britain’s finances. The computer is showing that unemployment is going to rise, and this aligns with the Economic Confidence Model, which points to a recession into 2028. The problem with Labour, like the Democrats, is that they are never interested in reforming spending; they always insist on taxing the upper class to redistribute to others to keep their power.

Cleveland

As Democratic President, Grover Cleveland was a rare politician who called upon his own party to wake up. The hated “rich” can move their capital and refuse to invest. The working class cannot hoard their labor. This is why the LEFT never learns from the past because they refuse to surrender Marxist theory that has failed every time. This is the decline and fall of the West – it is just our turn since the world fell apart in 1992.  After all, it is 31.4 years later here in 2024. Our computer models for Britain showed that 2024 would be a Double Yearly Directional Change. No worries, there are no British politicians willing to even listen to what our model is saying despite the fact that it has never been wrong on politics and geopolitical changes in trend.

Marxists in Disarray Ahead of 2025


Marxists in Disarray Ahead of 2025

Posted originally on Jul 5, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

QueersforPalestine

The left is cannibalizing itself across the Western world. Pride month parades for LGBTQ community members have been repeatedly disrupted by pro-Palestinian protestors. The two causes certainly do not align, but the people who compose each seem to be confused when crossing their social justice causes. Over the weekend, a Pride Toronto event was canceled at the last minute due to pro-Palestinian protestors. Event organizers were forced to cancel the event due to public safety.

Again, this exact scenario has happened in big cities across the US, Canada, and Europe in recent weeks. I’ve explained at length why the Free Palestine movement is not a woke cause despite the confusion among protestors. What’s interesting about the Toronto Pride event is that “Queers for Palestine” protestors were part of problem as they were responsible for blocking part of the road. Any non-socialist supporting group would be arrested for committing a hate crime if they blocked off a Pride parade, but the left is in utter disarray as there are simply too many social justice causes to support and flags to wave.

TeddyRoosevelt.Immigration

The far-left has lost control and there is no leader at the helm. Maxime Bernier, former Conservative MP and Cabinet Minister and Peoples Party of Canada founder, consistently comes under fire for “far-right” ideals. Recently, he suggested that people should return to the nation that has their loyalty. “Residents of Canada who feel more attached and loyal to another country should pack up and move to that other country. We don’t need you here,” he posted on X. He has been labeled a xenophobic racist for stating a fact.

LeftistGroupThought

The collective left fails to understand that they could not protest or march for either cause outside of the West that they so desperately hate. All recent polls in Canada state that mass migration is a massive problem. What’s worse is that the people migrating from countries with an utterly foreign code of conduct are unable to integrate into society. Why should nations be forced to change their ideals? Anyone can do as they see fit, so long as they are not harming the public. Yet we are seeing a mass uptick in terrorism, anti-[insert open border nation here] protests, and crimes against women and young girls. This is happening throughout the West but those in charge are failing to address it because it does not fit the refugees welcome, open border narrative.

People are now fleeing nations like Canada and Europe because it has become too reminiscent of the places they once fled. Marxism always leads to a failed economy, and that is the root issue driving these woke and white-led pro-Palestinian protests, as the people believe that capitalism is preventing unearned equality. Marxism will end for it includes everything that seeks to manipulate for the benefit of the so-called people that is really now government workers at the expense of the private sector. However, the living standards of the people in general have declined, not because of the “rich”, but because of the growing unproductive sector we call government.

1913 2025 224 year Cycles

Our computer warns that 2025 will be the turning point in Marxism. We are less than a year away from a major cultural shift at the midpoint of the 224-year cycle.

The Reason Biden Was Permitted to Debate Trump


Posted originally on Jul 4, 2024 By Martin Armstrong 

Biden Secon Term

The first presidential debate of the year was a humiliating moment for our nation. Does one even need to bother discussing the questions mentioned when the public was in utter shock at the current president’s physical and mental state?

Joe Biden was sent to the podium as the sacrificial lamb of the DNC. His handlers knew his condition, and no amount of preparation, layup questions, or alterations from the liberal media could have improved his performance. Even Donald Trump seemed concerned that Joe Biden would keel over at any moment. There is a reason the Democrats agreed to this debate — they are setting up the stage for a candidate swap.

Biden was struggling to speak coherently and mumbled through most of his answers. As directed, he began EVERY answer by saying his candidate was a liar and anything Trump said was malarky. The world now knows that the emperor has no clothes. Public officials have long known Biden’s condition as we see a preview of it in the media, with Biden wandering on stage or struggling to communicate with other world leaders. The lie that Joe Biden is of good health has been exposed.

Trump.JoeDebate

The lamb has been sacrificed. The media would be cherry-picking words to praise Joe Biden, but they are in panic mode. Every channel is discussing Biden’s health, with some saying he simply had a cold. If a military member, pilot, doctor, or anyone in a position of power had a cold, would you expect them to act robotically and lifelessly? This man has arguably the most powerful job in the world, and tens of thousands of people believe it is OK for someone in his condition to have the nuclear codes. That 8% approval rating likely went down to next to nothing.

Trump strategically kept a cool head during the debate. He has long been accused of bullying Uncle Joe, as the media likes to call him, but Biden’s current state is too pathetic to mock. Every media consultant and journalist, even those on the furthest end of the spectrum, is taking to the airways today to say that there is still time before the convention to swap in another candidate.

Trump vs Hillary 2024

Joe Biden is physically and mentally unfit to run the country – period. No one wants a Harris presidency. The Democrats will swap out Joe for someone whom the public is already familiar with and knows. They began the debate by discussing their favorite topic to sway one-issue voters of abortion. A female candidate with experience who the public already knows will be there solution. Hillary Clinton will have her day once again to face off against Donald Trump. She is practically the face of the establishment. People may not find Clinton relatable but those who dislike Trump will vote for her.

Trump skirted around the question of whether he would accept the election results before saying he would only accept the results if the election were fair. What measures are in place to ensure that the next election is fair? The host did not bother to ask Biden whether the Democrats would accept the results of the election, as they have been able to cry “interference” without rebuke. Neither side is going to accept the results this November. Socrates indicates a Trump win if all is fairly counted. I do not see how the establishment could permit that to occur.

Governors Visit Joe Biden in White House – Biden Says He Just Had Medical Check Up, All Good


Posted originally on the CTH on July 4, 2024 | Sundance 

Notably missing from the story about governors visiting Joe Biden at the White House, was any mention of Gavin Newsom.  Seems odd.

According to Politico, Biden affirmed to the visiting governors and those on video conference, that he was medically checked by doctors recently and cleared.  Biden has no intention to withdraw from the 2024 presidential contest and the governors seemed to rally behind him.

As noted in the reporting, “after the meeting, Govs. Tim Walz of Minnesota, Wes Moore of Maryland and Kathy Hochul of New York told reporters they were sticking with Biden. Hochul said “all” of the governors “pledged our support to him because the stakes could not be higher.”  Fox News carried video of the press conference following the meeting.  WATCH:

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As the debate over Joe Biden’s mental state gets a more comprehensive review, people are starting to ask the obvious questions.  Like, if Biden is not fit to be hold office in January, then how is he fit to hold office now?

If you start to go down that path of questioning, it can get very problematic for the media who have supported the Biden ruse.  After all, it wasn’t that long ago when they were trying to explain away why a sound stage and performance set was constructed for Joe Biden.  Why was a stage created that Joe Biden used for multiple years and multiple speeches?

If Biden’s mental acuity is really in question, then who is truly running the office of the presidency?  These are the types of questions that can become problematic for both the White House and the media, and likely one of the main reasons why the more cunning professional democrats are telling the underlings to stop talking about replacing him.

James Clyburn Visits 10 Key Precincts for Ballot Collection in Three Wisconsin Cities (Madison, Milwaukee, Beloit) and No One Notices


Posted originally on the CTH on July 3, 2024 | Sundance 

Once you see the strings on the marionettes you can never watch the performance and not see them.  The same thing happens when you know the details of how ballots are different than votes, and how the ballots are manipulated.

U.S. elections are no longer about “votes,” modern elections in America are about “ballots”.   As we have seen in several election cycles, the election winner is not the person who gets the most votes – the election winner is the person who collects, submits and ultimately counts the most ballots.  The same is true for the presidential electoral victory; it’s the person who gets the most ballots, not votes.

So, let us start by asking the right question:  What is a representative from South Carolina doing in Wisconsin visiting ten key ballot counting precincts in three key cities, Madison, Milwaukee and Beloit?   Anyone?  Anyone?   The story gets even more interesting when you see what text messages about ballot ordering followed James Clyburn’s visit.  First, the citation for the visit [04:00 video]:

You, me and likely millions of deep political researchers know exactly what James Clyburn is doing.  But ask yourself why this is so out in the open and not confronted.  You know exactly who James Clyburn is and what his function consists of within the Democrat party election process, but how do we get everyone else to see it?

At the end of the ballot harvesting operation in the key state counties for Democrats, there are precinct workers who are then tasked with counting those ballots.  The number of ballots needed to change the outcome of the election, is essentially the determining factor in how many ballots are scanned by the precinct workers in the key districts.

Most of the regional precinct workers in the key counties that change the elections, are affiliated with and originate from the African Methodist Episcopal church.  This is who James Clyburn was visiting and organizing.  In person coordination eliminates the need for a paper trail.

The African Methodist Episcopal (AME) church, has precinct level ballot counting election operations (poll workers) in the key counties [Fulton (GA), Wayne (Mich), Philadelphia and Pittsburgh (PA), Clark (NV), Maricopa (AZ), Dane (WI), etc.]  The ballot counting doesn’t need to happen all over the state, just at the key urban county level.

The DNC operation (Obama/BLM network) concentrates heavily on the ballot harvesting.  However, when they turn those ballots over to the county level precinct workers, that’s where the AME church network and South Carolina Representative James Clyburn come into play. {GO DEEP}

The DNC no longer focuses on controlling the Secretary of State or Attorney General approach.  With the George Soros machine running the District Attorney level angle the democrats only need to concern themselves with the precinct level poll worker support.  Clyburn’s AME network is protected by the willfully blind George Soros DA’s.   It’s a one-hand washing the other-hand proposition.

One Politico reporter plays the pretending game with James Clyburn in a recent interview.  The reporter, just like you, me and Catherine Englebrecht, know exactly how this election manipulation game is rigged, but they maintain the pretenses within the questions.

Once you know exactly how the outcomes are reached in those counties, then the remarks by Clyburn take on the accurate context.  [TRANSCRIPT HERE]

JAMES CLYBURN – […] “I think Joe Biden is doing exactly what he needs to do to win reelection. Something is amiss with the polling.”

Clyburn knows his poll worker network can essentially run the ballot counting operation without fear or concern because George Soros has put the District Attorney’s in their pocket.  And, with the media cooperating, if anyone raises an objection or notices something sketchy, the ballot gathering group have the RACE CARD to immediately play.

If another 20 million actual American people vote for Donald J Trump the system has an offset.  The millions of illegal aliens who have entered the country are generating millions of additional ballots that might be needed.

The illegal aliens don’t need to vote, they just need to generate ballots by registering their physical presence in the correct state or county as needed.  The ballot collection and ballot counting groups will do the rest.

This is the challenge to overcome in the 7 to 11 counties where the 2024 operation will be executed.  The ballot fraud operation is not a massive conspiracy or large-scale enterprise, it is less than a dozen counties strategically located in key states.

In 2020 and again in 2024, Joe Biden has made several trips to the Mother Emanuel AME Church in South Carolina where he is introduced to the AME precinct captains, ballot stuffers, electioneering tabulators and vote counters.

Immediately after James Clyburn visited Wisconsin last weekend the following text messages were sent to residents.

The timing here is not coincidental.

Sunday June 30th

Tuesday July 2nd

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Internal Link

(source)

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Ballots in the mail are apparently very important to My Vote Wisconsin.

Once you see the strings on the marionettes, you can never return to that moment in the performance when you did not see them. The cold, stark reality of the thing just sits there, staring you in the face, regardless of the discomfort it creates in the process.

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