Future Timeline

(Other Words) When public officials get themselves mired in the muck of corruption, they can always count on Senator Ted Cruz to issue a moral judgment: If the offender is a Democrat, he pronounces the corruption inexcusably grotesque; if it’s a Republican, he wails that the offender is the victim.

For example, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was recently caught (yet again) butt-deep in judicial immorality, taking hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of freebies from a Texas real estate baron who has both a partisan and corporate interest in Thomas’ court rulings.

So, Cruz to the rescue! No judicial impropriety here, he squawks, for this is nothing but a diabolical plot by Democrats to “smear” poor Clarence.

But Thomas is busy smearing himself. From the start of his court tenure, Thomas has been a shameless seeker of personal gain, tucking untold sums from untold sources in the inner pockets of his judicial robes.

He learned to hide his corruption in 2004, when he actually reported taking pricey gifts from a special interest, which got him widely condemned. So, he “reformed” (by not disclosing future gifts)…

Republican senators on Tuesday showed no signs of ending their walkout as a fourth senator reached 10 unexcused absences, which disqualifies legislators from serving another term of office.

Sen. Cedric Hayden, R-Fall Creek, is now part of a growing group that includes Republican Sens. Daniel Bonham of The Dalles and Dennis Linthicum of Klamath Falls – and Independent Sen. Brian Boquist of Dallas. Under Measure 113, passed by a wide majority in November, they are barred from serving another term after the next election.

The GOP-led walkout will continue to jeopardize the political futures of more senators as absences stack up unless Senate Minority Leader Tim Knopp, R-Bend, and Senate President Rob Wagner, D-Lake Oswego, reach a compromise to end the walkout.

Talks continue, though it’s unclear how much they have progressed.

“We’re going to continue to reach out and we have been,” Wagner told reporters on Tuesday. He said Democrats are on the job.

“The voters want us voting on important legislation. And here we are – every single day, and it’s going to continue to be that way.”

A Lewis and County District Court judge granted a temporary restraining order Thursday blocking the newly signed bill that puts a ban on most dilation and evacuation abortions in Montana and set a hearing for next Tuesday to consider a preliminary injunction in the case.

Judge Mike Menahan wrote in his ruling Thursday morning that the plaintiffs in the case – Planned Parenthood of Montana and its chief medical officer Dr. Samuel Dickman – had shown that the main three sections of House Bill 721, which Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed on Tuesday, would cause them and their patients immediate irreparable harm.

“The balance of equities weighs in favor of granting Plaintiffs and their patients temporary relief. Whereas Plaintiffs and their patients face immediate, irreparable harm, Defendants will not be harmed by the issuance of a Temporary Restraining Order that preserves the status quo. Finally, the public interest weighs in favor of preserving the status quo and in ensuring access to constitutionally protected health care services pending adjudication of a preliminary injunction,” Menahan wrote in his order.

Further, he said that the facts Planned Parenthood of Montana has already established, if proven true, that the bill “presents a prima facie constitutional violation” and that the bill’s immediate effective date would cause the plaintiffs immediate and irreparable harm if the new law was not enjoined.