House Republicans authorized a new rule to prevent Democrats from probing the Trump administration’s scandals until October.
Amid mounting scandals out of the Trump administration, House Republicans voted Tuesday in favor of a rule that creates hurdles for Democrats looking to investigate it.
Departments across Trump’s government have been rocked by scandals over a variety of issues: Elon Musk’s glaring conflicts of interest while gutting the federal government, Cabinet officials’discussing sensitive military plans with civilians via a third-party messaging platform or members of Congress benefiting as the White House turned tariffs on and off.
Democrats have tried to shine light on these and other scandals using what are called “resolutions of inquiry,” which can tee up what are essentially special votes over whether to provide information from the president or executive officials.
It depends on where you live. In all major German cities, multiculturalism is the name of the game, which very much adds to the charm imo. But it’s true, unfortunately that’s not the case everywhere.
And yes, that’s also absolutely right: there are a lot of open jobs in Germany that can only be filled by foreign workers. Also true: there is no discrimination or even persecution of any groups by the state, as is the case in the States these days. Of course, not everything is perfect in Germany - far from it, but at least our constitution applies - and it’s a good one.
I think we slightly misunderstood each other. I also enjoy multiculturalism and think that it can be very beautiful. I love walking through the city and seeing the buddhist statues in some storewindows.
It’s hard to draw a line where assimilation and multiculturalism should interchange (imo), but what I meant was brutal individualism of the US or their tendency to think in teams (like the election where a large part elected a fascist not because they wanted fascism but because they were team red / wanted to be on the winning team) that has to be lost when coming here (here in loose terms, I am your southern neighbour 🇨🇭🤝🏻🇪🇺).
I think my friend would be a good example. He’s from Sri Lanka and is a buddhist whose hobby is traditional indian dances. But he speaks perfect swiss-german, is involved and up-to-date on swiss politics and talks from a swiss point of view in national and international politics (putting switzerland over sri lanka in international interests). He is proud to be sri lankan while still being proud to be swiss, if that makes sense? He’s not trying to be un-swiss and be overly sri-lankan. He’s not a sri-lankan in switzerland but a swiss with sri-lankan roots. I hope I am able to explain it? It’s kind of difficult with such delicate topics where you can’t draw a clear line, but I hope you get my point :))
Of course I agree with you when it comes to making concessions to the culture in which you live. I mean, it is of course completely unacceptable if you are not prepared to recognize the self-evident rights of women, for example (and of course the rights of those who do not feel they belong to any of the usual genders).
Where we seem to differ a bit, however, is that I don’t think much of national concepts. Please don’t misunderstand, I am of course well aware that I enjoy privileges as a German citizen and I am also aware of the rich culture of our sphere and appreciate it very much - all that made me who I am. It’s just that I’m not proud of my home country as an abstract concept - I never felt the need to. And I think that does more harm than good.
Take for example the AfD in Germany or MAGA or any other political movement that explicitly embraces national concepts of origin: These people always invoke some imaginary notion of the noble people, you know, in case of the Germans, the concept of the poets and thinkers and so on, but none of this intolerant, misanthropic bunch have even an ounce of what they claim about themselves - they are complete idiots, many even monsters, and I think, these very people are the downfall of culture. They will do just as the Nazis under Hitler already did, systematically killing the poets and thinkers.
Again, please do not misunderstand: I also know Swiss culture well - I lived there for five years and am grateful for that wonderful time. I just value personal relationships and openly lived, shared culture much more than the prescribed preservation of traditions and the like (I experienced that in Switzerland as well and it was great!).
In short: I think culture is a living thing that changes. That’s why I’m happy when people abide by the law, especially the Constitution, which demands tolerance in Germany as well as in Switzerland.
I don’t think any other adaptation or even assimilation is necessary beyond that - except, of course, that you have to be prepared to participate in society, as you say, which of course requires learning the national language.
But apart from that, I think everyone should live as they please, as long as it doesn’t interfere with other people’s lives.
There may be a difference between Germany and Switzerland these days. We in Germany seem to be much more divided, and especially in East Germany there seems to be a conviction that we should go back to Nazism - I firmly reject that because it’s not culture, but inhumanity and anti-culture with reference to the achievements of people who have nothing whatsoever to do with all this, but would turn in their graves if they knew for what evil purposes they were being instrumentalized.
Please excuse this long, surely superfluous rant. It’s just that, as a German, lately I have to be ashamed of what some of my compatriots are demanding with false reference to our culture. It’s probably a bit different in Switzerland, although you also have some people like that in the ranks of the SVP and elsewhere.