Supreme Court lets Texas keep new congressional map while legal battle continues

The ruling is a major win for the Trump administration and Texas Republicans, who engineered the map to give the GOP control of 30 of the state’s 38 congressional districts.


Texas can use its new, GOP friendly congressional map while a legal challenge plays out, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, temporarily pausing a lower court ruling that had blocked the map from going into effect.

With the Dec. 8 candidate filing deadline fast approaching, the high court’s decision likely means Texas’ new map will be used for the 2026 midterm elections.

Justice Samuel Alito ruled that it was “indisputable” that Texas’ motivation for redistricting was “pure and simple” partisan advantage, which the court has previously ruled is permissible. A federal judge had previously ruled that the state likely engaged in racial gerrymandering, a claim Alito rejected. The three liberal justices dissented.


The ruling is a major win for Republicans in Texas and nationally. President Donald Trump had pushed Texas to redraw its map over the summer, hoping to secure five additional GOP seats to shore up the party’s narrow majority in the U.S. House through the midterms.

Jamming over the internet
I ran into this recently, its called "Lutefish", its a real time jam tool that minimizes the latency over the internet for musicians to jam. I never pursued it or even looked into it much other then heard that it was available as a tool for jamming for musicians. Play Music Together, Miles Apart

How they recorded songs, what equipment and software. Whether they record all at once, track by track and what sort of instruments do they use such as real as opposed to virtual instruments.?
Equipment for me is been an endless list of things. I collected what works through the years, the hardest was playing/recording live drums to track, I have electronic kit now, still having problems playing them how I hear it. I sing & play all my instruments as best I can, bass, drums, guitar, keys, recording them to a program called Reaper, track by track, mix it all up in the end. Years of goofing around with this process trying and failing, sharing the good stuff when I can, and thanking God for every bit of it. I can say it is fun doing. =)

What about song writing. I tend to first come up with a tune or a loop of some sort in my head and build a song from that.
Thats seems like how allot of other people do it too..if it works dont fix it. I usually come up with the music, listen to it to see what its saying, and then figure out if I can sing to it. and mostly unpacks with some phrases that I usually can build the rest the rest of the song to.

sometimes get stuck and cannot find the right words and think I will just use the made up or temporary word as it works best.
yep ..its a tricky thing to get through, some times a song can sit without words for years, they get added and then changed depending on mood swings, weather, or if I ran into a circumstance or movie that inspired something ..little bits..allot of bits..time. Keep at it basically..try and remember its fun.

Lennon sometimes just used silly words or just made up words and people read all sorts of stuff in them lol.
yea why not right? I sometimes give my tracks to other singers in my company and they come up with all kinds of things to sing..and then I record them singing to it.

johnnypapa said:

An Ex Cathedra statement with a nice encyclical about the history and meaning of the priesthood would put the finishing touch on this.

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I believe it is much needed. The waffling on this topic is more than exasperating.

Continued prayers for you!

Costco Sues Trump Administration for Refund of Tariffs

The retail giant is seeking to recover money it has paid this year, should the Supreme Court rule that President Trump’s implementation of tariffs was unlawful.



The complaint, filed on Friday in the U.S. Court of International Trade, argues that Mr. Trump misused a 1977 law in his move to implement tariffs on products from more than 100 countries.

The lawsuit asserts that Congress, not the president, has the authority to set tariffs, and that Mr. Trump exceeded the authority granted to him by the law, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA.

“The text of IEEPA does not use the word ‘tariff’ or any term of equivalent meaning,” Costco states in the lawsuit, which was reported earlier by NBC News. The act allows the president to regulate or prohibit foreign transactions during a national emergency, but does not authorize the imposition of tariffs, according to the lawsuit.

Kush Desai, a spokesman for the White House, said in a statement that the “economic consequences of the failure to uphold President Trump’s lawful tariffs are enormous and this suit highlights that fact. The White House looks forward to the Supreme Court’s speedy and proper resolution of this matter.”

It has said in the past that its use of the IEEPA is lawful because the law gives the president the authority to “regulate” the “importation” of foreign property to deal with emergencies.

I posted this in the other thread, but putting it here also.

Grand Jury Said to Decline to Re-Indict Letitia James
After a judge dismissed the Trump administration’s first attempt to indict the attorney general of New York State, a new grand jury effort failed, according to people familiar with the matter.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/us/politics/letitia-james-indict-trump.html?unlocked_article_code=1.6E8.UMPd.1PRnDujXoT27&smid=url-share


A grand jury in Norfolk, Va., declined on Thursday to re-indict Letitia James, New York’s attorney general, rejecting efforts to revive a criminal case that had been sought by President Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.
The unsuccessful attempt to revive the case against Ms. James does not necessarily end the administration’s efforts to put her on trial, even after a federal judge dismissed an earlier indictment last month in ruling that the prosecutor who brought the case was unlawfully appointed by Mr. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Nothing in the law prevents the Justice Department from trying a third time to indict her.

Grand Jury Said to Decline to Re-Indict Letitia James

After a judge dismissed the Trump administration’s first attempt to indict the attorney general of New York State, a new grand jury effort failed, according to people familiar with the matter.



A grand jury in Norfolk, Va., declined on Thursday to re-indict Letitia James, New York’s attorney general, rejecting efforts to revive a criminal case that had been sought by President Trump, according to people familiar with the matter.

The unsuccessful attempt to revive the case against Ms. James does not necessarily end the administration’s efforts to put her on trial, even after a federal judge dismissed an earlier indictment last month in ruling that the prosecutor who brought the case was unlawfully appointed by Mr. Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi.

Nothing in the law prevents the Justice Department from trying a third time to indict her.

Well yes, I generally don't watch rapists either. Although if one had a unique perspective on the subject, I always try to stay open-minded.

But seriously, I kind of expected to get put on blast for the OP. But...nobody? Nuthin'? I could post some vids where he shows even more extreme common sense.

Chesster said:

Instead of complaining about prayer after communion I wish he would address the people who can’t silence their tongues before and during Mass.

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Reminds me of my older nephews first communion a few years back. Protestant lady (I assume, she didn’t receive holy communion) kept chatting the whole time.

I wasn’t trying to be judgmental, but I was a bit annoyed by it. It’s possible she may have had dementia, she was elderly.

Apple Sky said:

No - What's your plan ?

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That question has no relevance to the discussion.

Let me be more direct - you have denied responsibility for distributing nonsense, blaming the author of the works you are referencing. That is you patently and blatently failing to take responsibility for promoting lies.

If you wish to attach the ideas of "plans" to your actions, my plan is to call you out on your culpability each time you persist in promoting the refuted tales falsely attributed to Admiral Byrd.

Cosmic Charlie said:

Riles:

Who's schisming ?

Seriously, The Pope is in disagreement (best word I can come up with right now) with the Germans on a (relatively) minor theological issue.

There seem to be some people sort of on the side lines who WANT the pope to make a bigger issue out of this but the parties involved don't seem all that up in arms about it.

Am I missing something ?

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Maybe FEAR of schism is a better statement.

I doubt schism will happen, but some people are worried? I guess?

I for one do not support genocide, sorry.

essentialsaltes said:

THE BOSS HAS SPOKEN

Trump Urges Judge Aileen Cannon to Keep Jack Smith Report Secret​

On Tuesday, Trump argued in a court filing that Smith’s report should never be made public, in what would be a deviation from previous practice, Politico reported.

The president urged Cannon, whom he nominated to the bench, “to extend her 11-month-old order blocking the Justice Department from releasing the full report, which Smith submitted shortly before Trump’s second inauguration.”

“Trump’s request is a break from the Justice Department’s handling of all special counsel reports in recent decades,” Politico added. “Typically, those reports are provided to Congress and made public, even when they have included damaging findings about the incumbent administration.”

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Another norm gently euthanized to protect Someone-in-Chief?
Where’s the harm?
Channeling @Aryeh Jay ?

"Why does everybody keep calling us bigots?"

The Young Republicans have found the best way to help this whole thing blow over.

Young Republicans chapter plans to host far-right German leader after ‘I love Hitler’ chat​

A New York City-based Republican club will honor a far-right German leader at its annual gala — just eight weeks after its statewide counterpart was disbanded over a group chat in which members praised Adolf Hitler.

The city-based New York Young Republican Club’s gala will recognize Markus Frohnmaier, a political leader from the Alternative for Germany party.

Months before his visit, the club appeared to play up the party’s controversial place in German politics. In August, it published a statement calling for a “new civic order” in Germany and declaring “AfD über alles,” an adaptation of a phrase associated with the Nazi party.

Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution, the country’s domestic intelligence agency, has labeled the AfD extremist, alleging the party holds an ethnic, racial conception of the German people that violates core tenets of the country’s democratic order.

Frohnmaier, the deputy chair of AfD’s parliamentary group, will be an “honored guest” at the club’s Dec. 13 gala, which will also feature GOP Reps. Andy Ogles, Mike Collins and William Timmons, according to the group’s website.

“It’s deeply concerning that the New York Young Republican Club is planning to honor a regional co-chair of the far-right extremist AfD party at their upcoming gala,” Todd Gutnick, a spokesperson for the Anti-Defamation League, said in a statement. “The German AfD party has a disturbing history that includes antisemitic and xenophobic rhetoric. AfD has embraced the antisemitic ‘Great Replacement’ conspiracy, and its current leader, Alice Weidel, has denounced Germany’s dedication to Holocaust remembrance as a ‘guilt cult.’”

“AfD doesn’t only push in anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim ideas and policies, but they have used tactics straight from Germany’s Nazi-era — including antisemitic actions by its members and use of Nazi slogans,” Seth Levi, the [SPLC] chief strategy officer, said in a statement.

Frohnmaier also responded to POLITICO with a statement, saying, “I categorically reject the claim that we use antisemitic or xenophobic rhetoric.”

I'm glad we got rid of DEI and went back to a purely meritocratic process of hiring overweight, illiterate white people.

Pommer said:

I see, so a society with enough citizens with enough disposable income to mount a legal defense against an overly zealous constabulary is just hunky-dory?
”Land of the free” no more.

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There's a lot of pro bono help readily available.

President Donald Trump is still talking about his plan to give Americans a tariff dividend refund in 2026.

Trump discussed the potential checks in a two-hour-plus Cabinet meetingon Dec. 2, during which he also called the "affordability" issue a "Democrat scam," and appeared to nod off.

"Next year is projected to be the largest tax refund season ever, and we're going to be giving back refunds out of the tariffs, as we have taken in literally trillions of dollars," -- [this is literally not true] -- Trump said early in the meeting. "We're going to be giving a nice dividend to the people in addition to reducing debt."

The nonpartisan, not-for-profit The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates Trump's tariffs will raise about $300 billion per year, while tariff dividends would cost about $600 billion per round

essentialsaltes said:

Trump aides plan megabill marketing reboot for GOP lawmakers​

A Wednesday briefing will urge a focus on "working families" after the president questioned his "big, beautiful" branding.

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GOP frustrations grow over lackluster ‘big, beautiful bill’ sales pitch​

Talk about the massive tax package largely evaporated after Labor Day amid high-stakes fights over releasing documents related to Jeffrey Epstein and the 43-day government shutdown. Yet even before those controversies, polls showed the GOP legislation was unpopular.

This has frustrated lawmakers who say the party needs to do more to sell its signature accomplishment, especially as Democrats hammer them on the issue of affordability.

Complicating the picture for the GOP is a sluggish economic backdrop, headlined by inflation that has ticked upward and tariffs that have contributed to higher prices.

Trump labeled the Democratic affordability chatter a “con job” Tuesday, even as his approval rating slips amid voter concerns about his handling of the economy.

“It’s way too [doggone] expensive to live in this country right now,” one GOP operative said. “We need to be seen as at least caring about that.”

House Republicans are staring down warning signs that their slim majority could be in peril next year, especially after the party won Tuesday’s House special election in Tennessee by single digits in a district President Trump carried by more than 20 points last year.

Another headache for the GOP and its sales pitch is Trump, who has not talked about the tax bill as much as some in the party would like and has largely eschewed political rallies in key states that previously have been one of his hallmarks.

[Well, he has his hands full lobbying for the Nobel Peace Prize and choosing the gold fixtures for the ballroom.]

essentialsaltes said:

'No-win position': GOP careening towards crisis on health care plan​

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essentialsaltes said:

GOP faces a familiar dilemma: What to do about Obamacare?​

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They don't seem to have figured it out.

Frustrated GOP barrels toward key health insurance vote without a clear plan​

Republicans say they won’t have their alternative proposal to address rapidly rising insurance premiums ready in time for next week’s vote, leaving some GOP senators dissatisfied about the lack of a clear strategy to counter the Democrats’ bill.

A group of centrist Republican and Democratic negotiators worked over the Thanksgiving recess to make progress toward a bipartisan deal, but they said it won’t be ready in time for next week’s vote, either. This is fueling pessimism about any deal being reached this year.

[Since] The GOP has no consensus on how to proceed on the issue, which may spur a group of Republican senators to cross the aisle next week and vote for a Democratic bill to extend the subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Shaheen, who has been in touch with House colleagues, said that even if the Senate passes a bill, it’s becoming clear that the Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) will not bring it up for a vote.

“What I’m hearing is that it’s unlikely that Speaker Johnson will take up any bill and that it would have to be done by a discharge petition,” she said.

Delvianna said:

100% agree because then they're just "defending" themselves. Not that this logic would ever fly in court, but that's not the point. It's their own moral compass.

You know, when history says Rome fell from within, I seriously get it now.

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At least part of the blame for the fall of Rome could be blamed on the lead added to wine to clarify it. Fancy wines were 'claret' but the cheap stuff the commoners drank needed the Pb additive to clarify it. In part, they poisoned themselves. But agreed it was mostly a moral compass issue.

A Chicago suburb church is making a political statement with its nativity scene this year, depicting the infant Christ with zip ties around his wrists and Roman soldiers as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

Lake Street Church of Evanston, Illinois, is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA (ABCUSA) denomination and practices “a progressive Christian theology that embraces people from all different religious denominations and religious traditions.”

The church is actively involved in advocacy work for immigrants and racial justice. On Nov. 14, Rev. Michael Woolf, the church’s pastor, was one of 21 individuals detained during a protest at an ICE facility in Broadview, another Chicago suburb.

Continued below.

It found that the information Hegseth shared had been marked "secret" and could have imperiled American troops had it been intercepted by a foreign adversary, the two people who have read the report said. The evaluation by the Defense Department Inspector General also concluded that Hegseth violated military regulations by using his personal phone for official business, according to those people.

The report also said that Hegseth, as the secretary of defense, is the “original classification authority” and in fact does have the authority to declassify intelligence based on his judgment.

But the inspector general did not address whether Hegseth took the proper steps to declassify the information shared in the chat, the two people said.


Signal gate report via Politico:

YouVersion, the most downloaded Bible app in the world, has revealed the top Bible verse of 2025 as its team reflects on a year of record-breaking Bible engagement worldwide.

In a statement shared with The Christian Post on Thursday, YouVersion identified Isaiah 41:10 as the most engaged-with Bible verse on its Bible app throughout the year. The verse declares: “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”

Bobby Gruenewald, founder and CEO of YouVersion, shared his views on the popularity of the Bible verse, which has taken the top spot in four of the past six years.

Continued below.