United States Congress 5: Still Looking for a Spine

[AmazonGrace]

 now 47 K

[GreyhoundFan]

Nunes is almost as big a snowflake as Dumpy.

[CTRLZero]

6 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

Nunes is almost as big a snowflake as Dumpy.

Speaking of Dumpy...Nunes Cow, Mom and Grapes aren't the only ones being mean on Twitter.  From the complaint:

Quote

50. Defendants’ insulting words[Dumpy], in the context and under the circumstances in which they were written and tweeted [Dumpy], tend to violence [Dumpy] and breach of the peace [Dumpy]. Like any reasonable [wait, what?!] person, Nunes was humiliated, disgusted, angered and provoked by the Defendants’ insulting words.

[My notes in brackets.]  I wonder if ICE ever visited the Nunes family farm after the Atlantic magazine article?  I think he has bigger issues (and lots of them) than Twitter. 

[GreyhoundFan]

 

[thoughtful]

7 minutes ago, GreyhoundFan said:

 

Today in "what decade is it again?" news . . .

[Howl]

I just joined Devin Nunes' cow (@devincow) on twitter (the account being sued).  Up to 75.8 followers.  Woohoo. 

Devin Nunes' Alt-Mom‏ (@NunesAlt) is out of twitter jail and going strong with 4,367 followers.  *"I'm back, bitches." (Yes, it's parody you idiots)*

It's a glorious day when tens of thousands of actual American patriots rise up to troll an a**hat like Devin Nunes.

[GreyhoundFan]

An excellent analysis: "The ridiculousness of Devin Nunes suing ‘Devin Nunes’ cow’ — and what it really signals"

Spoiler

There is a Twitter account called “Devin Nunes’ cow” that has tweeted nasty things about Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.). Evidently, the account is not actually run by a cow belonging to Nunes. Nunes is now suing his purported cow.

Nunes is suing @DevinCow, along with another parody account called @DevinNunesMom, Republican strategist Liz Mair and Twitter as an organization, alleging a concerted effort to defame him and work against his 2018 reelection campaign. He’s also accusing Twitter of unfairly targeting conservatives through a practice known as “shadow banning.” He’s asking for $250 million.

What might be most notable about Nunes’s suit is that this is the first battle he chose. Nunes said on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show Monday night that this is “the first of many” lawsuits to come. Does he really think his most obvious and airtight case involved ... @DevinCow and @DevinNunesMom?

Here’s a sampling of the tweets he alleges are defamatory, using language directly from the lawsuit Fox obtained:

• "Devin Nunes’ cow has made, published and republished hundreds of false and defamatory statements of and concerning Nunes, including the following: Nunes is a ‘treasonous cowpoke.’”
• “'Devin’s boots are full of manure. He’s udder-ly worthless and its pasture time to move him to prison.' ”
• “In her endless barrage of tweets, Devin Nunes’ Mom maliciously attacked every aspect of Nunes’ character, honesty, integrity, ethics and fitness to perform his duties as a United States Congressman.”
• @DevinNunesMom “falsely stated that Nunes was unfit to run the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.”
• @DevinNunesMom “falsely stated that Nunes was ‘voted ‘Most Likely to Commit Treason’ in high school.’ ”
• @DevinNunesMom “falsely claimed that Nunes would ‘probably see an indictment before 2020.’ ”

It’s almost as if the accounts were created to sound ridiculous in a lawsuit and make it seem frivolous.

Unless, of course, this isn’t about winning lawsuits. Unless, this is really just about exacting financial pain on outspoken opponents and making Twitter and others who would dare to run afoul of Nunes think twice. If that’s the goal, then suing @DevinCow seems rather savvy. What better way to draw attention to something than to sue what is obviously a parody account claiming to be a creature without the opposable thumbs necessary to fire off a tweet? If such a ridiculous account can be subject to a $250 million lawsuit, then what about someone using their own voice and identity to attack Nunes or other Republicans?

The legal merits of the case appear highly questionable at best. The standard for defamation of a public figure such as Nunes is much higher than for an average person. One expert The Washington Post talked to cited the landmark Supreme Court case in which Jerry Falwell sued Hustler magazine for a satirical advertisement in which his likeness was engaged in sexual activity with his mother in an outhouse. The court ruled that public figures aren’t protected from “patently offensive speech” if the statements couldn’t be understood as actual facts.

Most of the tweets cited by the lawsuit are ugly and speculative, alleging Nunes has engaged in treasonous and other unseemly behavior. They even carry parallels to the Falwell case, alluding to sexual contact between Nunes, President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Nunes was the high-profile chairman of the House Intelligence Committee last Congress, and his pro-Trump actions in the Russia investigation repeatedly came under scrutiny.

But the idea that any of them were understood to be facts rather than hyperbole and/or political speculation is a little difficult to swallow. These kinds of over-the-top and unproven allegations are a feature of our political debate, and they are trafficked in by people from all parts of the political spectrum. If these are subject to damages, the impact on our political discourse would be massive. The number of Twitter users alone who could be successfully sued would be almost impossible to quantify.

More likely is that this is the latest installment in a long-running Republican campaign to “work the refs” when it comes to political discourse. Republicans have alleged media bias for decades, tempting the press to adjust its coverage to avoid criticism. Trump, who promoted Nunes’s effort in a tweet Monday night, has talked publicly about opening up libel laws to make it easier to sue people. Conservatives, including Donald Trump Jr., have increasingly argued that social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook censor them. A $250 million lawsuit would seem a good way to make Twitter think long and hard about how it’s applying its standards.

So feel free to chuckle about the spectacle of Devin Nunes suing “Devin Nunes’ cow” — especially given Nunes’s past opposition to “frivolous lawsuits” — but know that this most likely isn’t about his purported cow or what it said. Nunes is telegraphing an expansive effort to go after people who hurt Republicans with their public discourse. Its potential impact, not so much legally as from personal behavioral standpoint, shouldn’t be so casually dismissed.

 

[fraurosena]

6 hours ago, GreyhoundFan said:

An excellent analysis: "The ridiculousness of Devin Nunes suing ‘Devin Nunes’ cow’ — and what it really signals"

  Hide contents

There is a Twitter account called “Devin Nunes’ cow” that has tweeted nasty things about Rep. Devin Nunes (R-Calif.). Evidently, the account is not actually run by a cow belonging to Nunes. Nunes is now suing his purported cow.

Nunes is suing @DevinCow, along with another parody account called @DevinNunesMom, Republican strategist Liz Mair and Twitter as an organization, alleging a concerted effort to defame him and work against his 2018 reelection campaign. He’s also accusing Twitter of unfairly targeting conservatives through a practice known as “shadow banning.” He’s asking for $250 million.

What might be most notable about Nunes’s suit is that this is the first battle he chose. Nunes said on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show Monday night that this is “the first of many” lawsuits to come. Does he really think his most obvious and airtight case involved ... @DevinCow and @DevinNunesMom?

Here’s a sampling of the tweets he alleges are defamatory, using language directly from the lawsuit Fox obtained:

• "Devin Nunes’ cow has made, published and republished hundreds of false and defamatory statements of and concerning Nunes, including the following: Nunes is a ‘treasonous cowpoke.’”
• “'Devin’s boots are full of manure. He’s udder-ly worthless and its pasture time to move him to prison.' ”
• “In her endless barrage of tweets, Devin Nunes’ Mom maliciously attacked every aspect of Nunes’ character, honesty, integrity, ethics and fitness to perform his duties as a United States Congressman.”
• @DevinNunesMom “falsely stated that Nunes was unfit to run the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.”
• @DevinNunesMom “falsely stated that Nunes was ‘voted ‘Most Likely to Commit Treason’ in high school.’ ”
• @DevinNunesMom “falsely claimed that Nunes would ‘probably see an indictment before 2020.’ ”

It’s almost as if the accounts were created to sound ridiculous in a lawsuit and make it seem frivolous.

Unless, of course, this isn’t about winning lawsuits. Unless, this is really just about exacting financial pain on outspoken opponents and making Twitter and others who would dare to run afoul of Nunes think twice. If that’s the goal, then suing @DevinCow seems rather savvy. What better way to draw attention to something than to sue what is obviously a parody account claiming to be a creature without the opposable thumbs necessary to fire off a tweet? If such a ridiculous account can be subject to a $250 million lawsuit, then what about someone using their own voice and identity to attack Nunes or other Republicans?

The legal merits of the case appear highly questionable at best. The standard for defamation of a public figure such as Nunes is much higher than for an average person. One expert The Washington Post talked to cited the landmark Supreme Court case in which Jerry Falwell sued Hustler magazine for a satirical advertisement in which his likeness was engaged in sexual activity with his mother in an outhouse. The court ruled that public figures aren’t protected from “patently offensive speech” if the statements couldn’t be understood as actual facts.

Most of the tweets cited by the lawsuit are ugly and speculative, alleging Nunes has engaged in treasonous and other unseemly behavior. They even carry parallels to the Falwell case, alluding to sexual contact between Nunes, President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Nunes was the high-profile chairman of the House Intelligence Committee last Congress, and his pro-Trump actions in the Russia investigation repeatedly came under scrutiny.

But the idea that any of them were understood to be facts rather than hyperbole and/or political speculation is a little difficult to swallow. These kinds of over-the-top and unproven allegations are a feature of our political debate, and they are trafficked in by people from all parts of the political spectrum. If these are subject to damages, the impact on our political discourse would be massive. The number of Twitter users alone who could be successfully sued would be almost impossible to quantify.

More likely is that this is the latest installment in a long-running Republican campaign to “work the refs” when it comes to political discourse. Republicans have alleged media bias for decades, tempting the press to adjust its coverage to avoid criticism. Trump, who promoted Nunes’s effort in a tweet Monday night, has talked publicly about opening up libel laws to make it easier to sue people. Conservatives, including Donald Trump Jr., have increasingly argued that social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook censor them. A $250 million lawsuit would seem a good way to make Twitter think long and hard about how it’s applying its standards.

So feel free to chuckle about the spectacle of Devin Nunes suing “Devin Nunes’ cow” — especially given Nunes’s past opposition to “frivolous lawsuits” — but know that this most likely isn’t about his purported cow or what it said. Nunes is telegraphing an expansive effort to go after people who hurt Republicans with their public discourse. Its potential impact, not so much legally as from personal behavioral standpoint, shouldn’t be so casually dismissed.

 

Huh. Whatever happened to the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States?

[AmazonGrace]

Cow update:  Mooving on up to 296K followers. 

[fraurosena]

29 minutes ago, AmazonGrace said:

Cow update:  Mooving on up to 296K followers. 

Ha. I'm one of them.  

How ironic:

 

[GreyhoundFan]

5 hours ago, fraurosena said:

Huh. Whatever happened to the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States?

Silly, silly @fraurosena, it only applies if you are spouting hateful Repug ideas.

[Howl]

#BeButter.  I like it. 

Devin's wiki has been updated to include the Twitter lawsuit.  Here's the last sentence for that entry: In 2017 while in the 115th Congress, Nunes was a co-sponsor of HR 1179, the “Discouraging Frivolous Lawsuits Act”.[99]

[GreyhoundFan]

 

[Howl]

Moooooovin' right along!  @DevinCow>Devin

[fraurosena]

11 minutes ago, Howl said:

Moooooovin' right along!  @DevinCow>Devin

I love me some @DevonCow!

 

[GreyhoundFan]

 

[onekidanddone]

I posted a YouTube link, but I took it down as I realized it was in poor taste right now.  Yes, I can be impulsive at times and just don't think.

 

[fraurosena]

13 minutes ago, onekidanddone said:

We will fight for Bovine Freedom!

Warning..Firearms mentioned

  Hide contents

 

 

I love that chooks in choppers save the day!  

[GreyhoundFan]

 

[GreyhoundFan]

 

[onekidanddone]

2 hours ago, fraurosena said:

I love that chooks in choppers save the day!  

I thought maybe the whole gun joke was in really bad taste so I took it out.  Maybe I'm over thinking it...like now I'm over thinking my over thinking.

@fraurosena what do you think?

[Howl]

@DevinCow currently has 524K followers! 

[Audrey2]

13 minutes ago, Howl said:

@DevinCow currently has 524K followers! 

I will admit, I don't do Twitter (or Facebook, Instagram, or Pintrest, for that matter), but would love to see @DevinCow get more followers than the Twit in the White House.

[fraurosena]

7 hours ago, onekidanddone said:

I thought maybe the whole gun joke was in really bad taste so I took it out.  Maybe I'm over thinking it...like now I'm over thinking my over thinking.

@fraurosena what do you think?

Oh, it was just some harmless silliness that made me laugh. And I’m choosing to take it at face value: a silly little song with a silly little video.

However, I did ponder the fact that the cow leader was a ‘he’ but clearly had udders. Was that an honest mistake by the artist, or was that cow transgender? ?

[Howl]

The Onion, I bow before your awesomeness: 

Devin Nunes Threatens Defamation Lawsuit After Reputation Ruined By His Official Twitter Account

Spoiler

WASHINGTON—Vowing to fight tooth and nail against what he called “an insidious smear campaign,” Rep. Devin Nunes (R-CA) announced Wednesday he was considering filing a defamation lawsuit against his official Twitter account for ruining his reputation. “The figure behind @DevinNunes has disparaged my good name in what appears to be a highly coordinated effort to make me look like some kind of whiny, impetuous idiot,” said the House Intelligence Committee’s ranking member, who accused the verified account of repeatedly posting and sharing content that has portrayed him as “a crackpot with abhorrent views” since the profile was first created in 2009. “The fact that Twitter has allowed this account to exist for nearly a decade is a major testament to the platform’s left-leaning bias. They’ve stood idly by and watched while my official account has spewed out nothing but drivel and lies. This is character assassination, pure and simple.” Nunes added that hopefully the lawsuit would serve as a stern warning to other outlets that have smeared him, including his official Facebook account, his official campaign website, and Nunes.house.gov.

It appears that Devin's new nickname is MilkDud. 

And it's hard, ya know, because they're mock, mock, mocking Devin's Cow.  This will be playing on a continuous loop in my brain all day. 

Sorry, JUST ONE MORE THING: