So much has happened in politics in 2023 that compiling a comprehensive list would have required too many work hours — we’d have even missed the holidays.
For the sake of brevity, we narrowed it down to nine truly absurd moments that sum up the state of politics in the U.S. this year.
Boxes of classified documents stored in a Mar-a-Lago bathroom
Boxes of records in a storage room at former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla.Justice Dept. via AP
It’s almost unbelievable that this happened this year. A federal indictment unsealed in June alleged that former President Donald Trump hadstored classified documents in Mar-a-Lago, including in the bathroom, the ballroom and his bedroom. Prosecutors also shared quotes from a recording of Trump in which he seems to brag about a classified document: “This is secret information,” he says. “Look, look at this.”
Trump has denied any wrongdoing.
Rep. Lauren Boebert getting kicked out of the ‘Beetlejuice’ musical
The Colorado Republican was unceremoniously booted from a Denver theater during a performance of the “Beetlejuice” musical in September for being disruptive. Security footage showed her vaping, taking photos with the flash on, dancing in her seat and getting a little too handsy with her date.
Republicans’ House speaker saga
Rep. Kevin McCarthy and Rep. Matt Gaetz speak in the House Chamber at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2023.Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images file
After Rep. Matt Gaetz ousted Kevin McCarthy as House speaker on Oct. 3, three weeks of chaos ensued as Republicans scrambled to find another speaker. Here’s the timeline:
On Oct. 11, they choose Rep. Steve Scalise as nominee but he withdraws his candidacy the next daybecause he doesn’t have the votes. They Republicans nominate Rep. Jim Jordan, who goes on to fail — not once, not twice, but thrice! — to garner enough votes to win the gavel.
On Oct. 22, Republicans try to decide among nine candidates, seven of whom voted against certifying the 2020 presidential election results. Two days later, they land on Rep. Tom Emmer as nominee. Emmer drops out mere hours later, so they nominate Mike Johnson of Louisiana the same day.
Former President Donald Trump was booked at the Fulton County jail in Atlanta on Aug. 24, 2023.Fulton County Sheriff’s Office
Trump became the firstpresident, past or present, ever tohave a mug shot taken when he was booked at the Fulton County Jail in the Georgia election interference case in August.
His campaign instantly started hawking merchandise bearing the image, and Politico hasreported that he raised $7.1 million from it within two days. His campaign is currently selling what it claims are parts of the suit he wore in the photo.
George Santos
Then-Rep. George Santos at the Capitol on Nov. 1.Drew Angerer / Getty Images file
Other than Trump, the former Republican member of Congress has arguably had the oddest year of any politician.
Santos’ many lies about his background were exposed; the Justice Department indicted him on a host of charges, including identity theft and wire fraud (he has pleaded not guilty); the House Ethics Committee found he violated federal criminal laws; and he was expelled from the House in a third expulsion vote.
He has since begun a new gig on Cameo, where he reportedly made in his first week more than his annual salary as a member of Congress.
Conservatives’ war on Bud Light
The right-wing obsession with gender identity culminated this year in a rabid backlash against Bud Light. It began when Dylan Mulvaney, a trans woman and social media influencer, posted a sponsored video with the beer in April. Conservatives went berserk and vowed to never drink Bud Light again. Kid Rock filmed himself shooting at cans of Bud Light, and Republican Rep. Dan Crenshaw showed off a Bud Light-free fridge.
The brand’s sales fell in the following months. But the real victim was Mulvaney, who said the company left her out to dry as a flood of vile transphobia and bullying came her way.
“For months now, I’ve been scared to leave my house. I’ve been ridiculed in public, I’ve been followed, and I have felt a loneliness that I wouldn’t wish on anyone,” she said in an Instagram video in late June.
“For a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly stand by them is worse, in my opinion, than not hiring a trans person at all,” she added. “Because it gives customers a permission to be as transphobic and hateful as they want.”
Mitch McConnell’s freezing episodes
The Senate minority leader froze twice while speaking to reporters in separate incidents this summer. It led to intense speculation about his health, though he and his staff have said repeatedly he was just feeling “lightheaded.”
“I have no notion that the Palestinians are telling the truth about how many people are killed,” Biden said, even though his own administration has repeatedly cited the Gaza Health Ministry’s numbers in official documents, as many international human rights organizations do.
Since Biden’s comments in October, the death toll in Gaza has risen to roughly 20,000 people, according to the local health ministry.
Elon Musk
Elon Musk at the AI Safety Summit in Bletchley, England on Nov. 1.Chris J. Ratcliffe / Bloomberg via Getty Images file
There’s almost too much to say about the Tesla billionaire who has single-handedly turned X (formerly Twitter) into the cesspool of misinformation and hate speech that it now is.
Since rebranding the website, laying off a reported 80% of its staff and perverting its verification system, Musk has allowed Trump, Alex Jones and Ye (Kanye West) back on the platform. He bungled Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ presidential campaign launch on the website. Meanwhile, he challenged Mark Zuckerberg to a cage match and literally told his advertisers to “go f— yourself,” as the CEO he hired, Linda Yaccarino, has responded to concerns about Nazis on the platform with inane platitudes.
Under his antagonistic and turbulent leadership, X has taken a financial hit: In October, the company listed its value at $19 billion, less than half of what Musk paid for it last year.
OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the NDP is caving to political pressure from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre when it comes to their stance on the consumer carbon price.
Trudeau says he believes Jagmeet Singh and the NDP care about the environment, but it’s “increasingly obvious” that they have “no idea” what to do about climate change.
On Thursday, Singh said the NDP is working on a plan that wouldn’t put the burden of fighting climate change on the backs of workers, but wouldn’t say if that plan would include a consumer carbon price.
Singh’s noncommittal position comes as the NDP tries to frame itself as a credible alternative to the Conservatives in the next federal election.
Poilievre responded to that by releasing a video, pointing out that the NDP has voted time and again in favour of the Liberals’ carbon price.
British Columbia Premier David Eby also changed his tune on Thursday, promising that a re-elected NDP government would scrap the long-standing carbon tax and shift the burden to “big polluters,” if the federal government dropped its requirements.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2024.
Simon Jolin-Barrette, minister responsible for consumer protection, has tabled a bill to force merchants to calculate tips based on the price before tax.
That means on a restaurant bill of $100, suggested tips would be calculated based on $100, not on $114.98 after provincial and federal sales taxes are added.
The bill would also increase the rebate offered to consumers when the price of an item at the cash register is higher than the shelf price, to $15 from $10.
And it would force grocery stores offering a discounted price for several items to clearly list the unit price as well.
Businesses would also have to indicate whether taxes will be added to the price of food products.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
Quebec legislature member Youri Chassin has announced he’s leaving the Coalition Avenir Québec government to sit as an Independent.
He announced the decision shortly after writing an open letter criticizing Premier François Legault’s government for abandoning its principles of smaller government.
In the letter published in Le Journal de Montréal and Le Journal de Québec, Chassin accused the party of falling back on what he called the old formula of throwing money at problems instead of looking to do things differently.
Chassin says public services are more fragile than ever, despite rising spending that pushed the province to a record $11-billion deficit projected in the last budget.
He is the second CAQ member to leave the party in a little more than one week, after economy and energy minister Pierre Fitzgibbon announced Sept. 4 he would leave because he lost motivation to do his job.
Chassin says he has no intention of joining another party and will instead sit as an Independent until the end of his term.
He has represented the Saint-Jérôme riding since the CAQ rose to power in 2018, but has not served in cabinet.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
