The Right-Cheek Ass Clown for March, 2019

It's a new month, and there are lots of ass clowns out there clamoring for attention, so let's get right to it ...

As always, it's difficult to single out one worthy recipient from the howling masses, but this week one awardee clearly stands out. And so it is that we designate as

The Right-Cheek Ass Clown for March, 2019

The GOP Members

of the

House Oversight Committee

On February 27th, former Trump "fixer" and personal lawyer Michael Cohen testified before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform ("The House Oversight Committee"), controlled since last year's midterm election by the Democratic majority. Mr Cohen, who has already been convicted of numerous financial crimes and of previously lying to Congress, was asked to testify about his knowledge of possible illegal activities by Donald Trump.

The course of the day was predictable, if depressing. The Democratic majority largely focused on pinning down such evidence of Trump misdeeds as Mr Cohen could provide and (in the case of Rep Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) identifying other potential witnesses and laying the groundwork for future, more focused hearings. The GOP members, on the other hand, relentlessly attacked Mr Cohen's credibility and did not, with the minor exception of Rep Justin Amash (R, MI-03), ask any substantive questions pertinent to the topic of the hearing. Reps Jim Jordan (R-OH-04) and Paul Gosar (R, AZ-04) in particular were vicious in their repeated personal attacks on the witness.

The hearing developed along sharply partisan lines, as one would expect. What was not unexpected, but nevertheless depressing, was the single-minded focus of the GOP members on asking (with the tentative exception of Rep Amash) not a single question about Mr Trump's actions. The President's mendacity and want of character are well-established and beyond dispute, and the relentless GOP attacks on the witness were likely a feeble attempt to defend the indefensible actions of a deeply flawed president. They are willing to overlook Mr Trump's ugly core because he gives them what they want - in particular a fundamental reshaping of the federal judiciary through his nominations of deeply conservative judges. They railed at the hearing as a complete waste of time that could have been better spent on addressing the needs of the American people, but evidently failed to recall that the GOP engineered no less than 33 separate hearings into the terror attack in Benghazi with the intent to damage then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and numerous hearings into Secretary Clinton's e-mail practices. 

Now, one can legitimately question the character and veracity of Mr Cohen, but his bona fides as a decades-long close confidant of Mr Trump are beyond question. This hearing, while distasteful for persons who love their country and wish that Congress could spend more time on serious issues like climate change, the epidemic of gun violence, and the nation's crumbling infrastructure, was an attempt to investigate legitimate issues ignored while the GOP was in control of the House. The craven actions of the GOP members of the Oversight Committee were shameful and demonstrate the degree to which the once-proud Republican party has been degraded and debased by its submission to Donald Trump.

Ladies and gentlemen, Dear Readers, the Right-Cheek Ass Clown Award for March, 2019, is presented to the GOP Members of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. 

The gavel is hereby dropped.

Have a good day, and be sure to come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday. More thoughts then.

Bilbo