US "The Squad" Megathread - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Talib Derangement Syndrome

I honestly only know about American politics from what I read on the Internet but since we all love shitting on leftists I figured we'd get a kick out of this. Also it's trending on Twitter so you know it's important.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...irect=on&noredirect=on&utm_term=.960552c9ba53

NEW YORK — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a 28-year-old political novice running on a low budget and an unabashedly liberal platform, upset longtime U.S. Rep. Joseph Crowley on Tuesday in the Democratic congressional primary in New York.

The surprise victory by the community organizer in a district that includes parts of the Bronx and Queens came after an energetic, grassroots campaign that mustered more than enough support in a low-turnout race that many had expected to be an easy win for Crowley, a member of the Democratic House leadership.

“The community is ready for a movement of economic and social justice. That is what we tried to deliver,” said Ocasio-Cortez, who has never held elected office and whose candidacy attracted only modest media attention.

She told The Associated Press after her victory that she didn’t have enough money to do polling in the race, but felt in her gut that her message had a chance to connect.

“I live in this community. I organized in this community. I felt the absence of the incumbent. I knew he didn’t have a strong presence,” she said.

Crowley has been in Congress since 1999 and hadn’t faced an opponent in a primary election since 2004, when Ocasio-Cortez was just a teenager. He was considered a candidate to become the next House speaker if Democrats win the majority.

“It’s not about me,” Crowley, 56, told his supporters at a campaign party following his loss. “It’s about America. I want nothing but the best for Ms. Ocasio-Cortez. I want her to be victorious.”

He later played guitar with a band at the election night gathering, and dedicated the first song, Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run,” to Ocasio-Cortez.

Crowley represents New York’s 14th Congressional District, where he is also the leader of the Queens Democratic party.

Ocasio-Cortez was outspent by an 18-1 margin during her race but won the endorsement of some influential groups on the party’s far left, including MoveOn, as well as the actress Cynthia Nixon, who is running for governor. She defeated Crowley by 15 percentage points.

Born in the Bronx to a mother from Puerto Rico and a father who died in 2008, Ocasio-Cortez said she decided to challenge Crowley to push a more progressive stance on economic and other issues.

She attended Boston University, where she earned degrees in economics and international relations, and also spent time working in the office of the late U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy.

After graduating, she returned to the Bronx where she became a community organizer. In the 2016 presidential campaign she worked for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Among her issues is expanding the Medicare program to people of all ages and abolishing Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. She recently went to Tornillo, Texas, to protest against policies that have separated parents from their children at the southern U.S. border.

Ocasio-Cortez gained some internet attention for a campaign video called “The Courage to Change,” a two-minute spot for which she wrote the script and featured footage from her own home.

Crowley is chair of the House Democratic Caucus, the fourth-highest ranking position in Democratic leadership in that chamber of Congress.

His loss drew the attention of President Donald Trump.

“Wow! Big Trump Hater Congressman Joe Crowley, who many expected was going to take Nancy Pelosi’s place, just LOST his primary election. In other words, he’s out! That is a big one that nobody saw happening. Perhaps he should have been nicer, and more respectful, to his President!” he tweeted.

The Republican candidate for the office, Anthony Pappas, is running unopposed and had no primary. Pappas teaches economics at St. John’s University.

She was a Bernie campaigner, is supported by BLM, and wants to abolish Immigrations and Customs Enforcement. Also this was in a solid-blue Congressional District so you know she's a shoo-in for next Congress.

But hey, we did get to see Trump laugh at Crowley on Twitter.

 

[Marshal Mannerheim]

You'll find that sentiment a lot with lefties that don't think beyond wanting more gibs. Someone in my online group was opining recently about how Republicans were evil and stupid and how all our problems could be solved by taxing the rich more, even wanting to bring back estate taxes. I know there's no point in arguing with him because he literally refuses to listen to anything that isn't leftist dogma and I'm tired of wasting energy even trying, but I find it humorous that he thinks that:

• the tax code isn't written by and for predominantly wealthy people, since it's only the wealthy that can afford to lobby the government
• wealthy people can't just hire leagues of lawyers and accountants to find and abuse every single loophole available to hide their wealth from the government
• they don't just offshore huge chunks of their wealth so that it's untouchable in the first place
• because of all of these factors, raising taxes on the "rich" only realistically hurts the low-upper and upper-middle classes who can't afford to figure out how to avoid the government taking their money away from them

I'm no fan of the Uniparty in general, I don't think either "side" really has the people's interests at heart and haven't for quite some time. But lefties are really deluding themselves if they believe that Democrats (the Squad included) aren't the party of megacorps and Wall Street first and foremost. Maybe they're fine with subsisting on modern-day bread and circuses, but I'd like a little more out of my life, thanks.

Yeah. There's no way to truly ”tax the rich” except by pulling a Venezuela and declaring Amazon to be owned by the state which, knowing the Squad, might be what they mean. There are, however, lots of ways to tax the middle class.

 

[Jonah Hill poster]

Spoiler: Shield your eyes, little one

Graphic Design might be a useful trade after all

 

[Marshal Mannerheim]

Spoiler: Shield your eyes, little one

View attachment 1853007

Graphic Design might be a useful trade after all

I'm sure I've seen that picture before.

 

[Zero Day Defense]

Some people have to find out the hard way. Biden's going to fuck them over harder than ever before.

They won't notice if they're not being told by CNN.

 

[Garm]

And that's basically one of the main issues I have with the Squad.

I've read the GND proposals and they can basically be summed up by ”any problem we face can be solved by more government or taxing the rich more”, which is actually pretty ironic because that frame of mind is a lot closer to Communist Chinese economic policies and they're one of the biggest contributors to climate change.

I doubt they actually have anything deeper than that. They just have a shallow understanding of economics and have no idea about the economic engine underneath.

Politics has been reduced to the sound byte and anything with substance is screeched at.

If I thought the squad had half a brain between them I would be worried about your point about Communist Chinese economic policies. Right now I assume the squad's collective IQ is equal to a kindergartner. "Owange man bad. Pwint money to give to people. Fweedom!"

They won't notice if they're not being told by CNN.

Has anyone done a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine" only written about the media?

Also I wonder how the left is going to survive when half their news sites are cannibalized by the other half. Is propaganda only half as effective if you have fewer sources to reinforce your world view?

 

[Marshal Mannerheim]

Pwint money to give to people.

It would be funny if AOC hasn't declared that governments ”should consider” Modern Monetary Theory.

Spoiler: Economics sperging

Modern Monetary Theory, especially when used in this context, is basically the idea that:
1) a government can never default on debt in its own currency because it can print more of that currency to pay off the debt, assuming it's a fiat currency.
2) Gringolandia's debts are denominated in dollars so the Federal Reserve can print more money to pay off this debt.
3) because the dollar is a global currency, Gringolandia can just pay for things like Medicare for All, the Green New Deal and free carbon-neutral unicorns for single mothers by printing dollars.

Let me remind you that this woman has a degree in economics.

Has anyone done a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine" only written about the media?

The media are usually the rich people singing ”Imagine” so it would be interesting to see.

 

[Garm]

The media are usually the rich people singing ”Imagine” so it would be interesting to see.

Alas, If only I had talent.

 

[Zero Day Defense]

Also I wonder how the left is going to survive when half their news sites are cannibalized by the other half.

It's been four years. If I had a nickel for every time someone said "the left is eating itself again!", I'd be richer than Bezos himself. Despite this, the left isn't riddled with bite marks in its bones for all the times this has been said, because what's actually happening when you see the left "eat itself" is that it's pruning itself, and in effect becomes more effective.

Didn't you notice when the staunch lefts stopped caring about the fact that Yiannopoulos was a gay half-Jew with a black boyfriend after he clowned on them long enough? Haven't you noticed how even valid charges of hypocrisy on their end have been met with "oh, no... anyways"?

One of two things will happen:
1) The cannibalized news sites will be incorporated into the being of the other half, allowing for more precision in the execution of their agendas.
2) There'll be no need to cannibalize the news sites, because they'll be infiltrated and subverted by the other half in order to execute the infiltrators' agenda.

Either way, this doesn't solve itself, and absent any effective counteraction, it gets so much worse.

 

[Spiteful Crow]

Democratic Rep. Says Authorities Probing Her Report That Her Office Panic Buttons Were Removed Before Capitol Riot

Staffers for Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) were sheltering in their office on Wednesday when they noticed all of their panic buttons had been “torn out.”

www.forbes.com

https://archive.vn/SUHlM

An investigation is underway into why panic buttons were removed from Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s (D-Mass.) office ahead of last week’s deadly riot in the U.S. Capitol building, a Pressley spokesperson said.

Key Facts

As Pressley’s staff sheltered in the Longworth Office Building across the street from the Capitol during the riot last Wednesday, chief of staff Sarah Groh noticed the panic buttons installed in the congresswoman’s office suite in case of emergencies had been ripped out inexplicably, she told the Boston Globe Wednesday.

Staff had used these emergency buttons in the past, a Pressley spokesperson told Forbes in a statement, and they’re regularly tested.
Pressley’s office said the buttons’ disappearance is under investigation, but declined to say which agencies are investigating (the U.S. Capitol Police and the House Sergeant At Arms did not respond to request for comment).

New buttons have been installed in Pressley’s office, a spokesperson said.

Crucial Quote

“Every panic button in my office had been torn out — the whole unit,” Groh told the Globe Wednesday.

Key Background

Last week’s riots are stirring up questions about the adequacy of security on Capitol Hill. The violent mob of President Trump’s supporters quickly overran police, trashed several lawmakers’ offices and reached the door of the House chamber. Members of Congress and their staffers were evacuated from the building safely, but some observers worry the attack — which left four riot participants and one police officer dead — could have ended with more casualties. The chief of the Capitol Police and the House and Senate sergeants at arms all resigned days after the attack, amid accusations they failed to prepare for the raucous protests.

Surprising Fact

Several other lawmakers have raised security concerns at the Capitol in the wake of Wednesday’s riots. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) alleged Tuesday that some of her colleagues had brought in tour groups for what she described as “reconnaissance,” and dozens of lawmakers — including Sherrill — are asking police to investigate an “extremely high number of outside groups” who visited the Capitol the day beforehand.
-----------

It's certainly very interesting. The fact that her security system was removed before the riot precludes the rioters doing it.

 

[TerribleIdeas™]

Democratic Rep. Says Authorities Probing Her Report That Her Office Panic Buttons Were Removed Before Capitol Riot

Staffers for Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) were sheltering in their office on Wednesday when they noticed all of their panic buttons had been “torn out.”

www.forbes.com

https://archive.vn/SUHlM

An investigation is underway into why panic buttons were removed from Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s (D-Mass.) office ahead of last week’s deadly riot in the U.S. Capitol building, a Pressley spokesperson said.

Key Facts

As Pressley’s staff sheltered in the Longworth Office Building across the street from the Capitol during the riot last Wednesday, chief of staff Sarah Groh noticed the panic buttons installed in the congresswoman’s office suite in case of emergencies had been ripped out inexplicably, she told the Boston Globe Wednesday.

Staff had used these emergency buttons in the past, a Pressley spokesperson told Forbes in a statement, and they’re regularly tested.
Pressley’s office said the buttons’ disappearance is under investigation, but declined to say which agencies are investigating (the U.S. Capitol Police and the House Sergeant At Arms did not respond to request for comment).

New buttons have been installed in Pressley’s office, a spokesperson said.

Crucial Quote

“Every panic button in my office had been torn out — the whole unit,” Groh told the Globe Wednesday.

Key Background

Last week’s riots are stirring up questions about the adequacy of security on Capitol Hill. The violent mob of President Trump’s supporters quickly overran police, trashed several lawmakers’ offices and reached the door of the House chamber. Members of Congress and their staffers were evacuated from the building safely, but some observers worry the attack — which left four riot participants and one police officer dead — could have ended with more casualties. The chief of the Capitol Police and the House and Senate sergeants at arms all resigned days after the attack, amid accusations they failed to prepare for the raucous protests.

Surprising Fact

Several other lawmakers have raised security concerns at the Capitol in the wake of Wednesday’s riots. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) alleged Tuesday that some of her colleagues had brought in tour groups for what she described as “reconnaissance,” and dozens of lawmakers — including Sherrill — are asking police to investigate an “extremely high number of outside groups” who visited the Capitol the day beforehand.
-----------

It's certainly very interesting. The fact that her security system was removed before the riot precludes the rioters doing it.

Why does this smell like Bubba Wallace's garage, after someone left Jussie Smollett's Subway sandwich on the bench?

You'll find that sentiment a lot with lefties that don't think beyond wanting more gibs. Someone in my online group was opining recently about how Republicans were evil and stupid and how all our problems could be solved by taxing the rich more, even wanting to bring back estate taxes. I know there's no point in arguing with him because he literally refuses to listen to anything that isn't leftist dogma and I'm tired of wasting energy even trying, but I find it humorous that he thinks that:

• the tax code isn't written by and for predominantly wealthy people, since it's only the wealthy that can afford to lobby the government
• wealthy people can't just hire leagues of lawyers and accountants to find and abuse every single loophole available to hide their wealth from the government
• they don't just offshore huge chunks of their wealth so that it's untouchable in the first place
• because of all of these factors, raising taxes on the "rich" only realistically hurts the low-upper and upper-middle classes who can't afford to figure out how to avoid the government taking their money away from them

I'm no fan of the Uniparty in general, I don't think either "side" really has the people's interests at heart and haven't for quite some time. But lefties are really deluding themselves if they believe that Democrats (the Squad included) aren't the party of megacorps and Wall Street first and foremost. Maybe they're fine with subsisting on modern-day bread and circuses, but I'd like a little more out of my life, thanks.

"The rich have something called a "Dutch Sandwich", where they transfer their tax burdens to the peasant underclass. The sandwich that the peasant underclass is stuck with has a vastly less appetizing name." - paraphrased from a Dilbertman strip.

 

[ColtWalker1847]

Staff had used these emergency buttons in the past, a Pressley spokesperson told Forbes in a statement, and they’re regularly tested.

Um. Why is staff using the emergency buttons? What kind of wacky shit is going down in this congresscritter's office?

 

[TerribleIdeas™]

Um. Why is staff using the emergency buttons? What kind of wacky shit is going down in this congresscritter's office?

Rep. Katie Hill to resign amid allegations of inappropriate relationships with staffers

The scandal involves a messy divorce and what is being called “revenge porn.”

www.politico.com

We know what at least some on the State Representatives are doing, anyways.

 

[Garm]

Um. Why is staff using the emergency buttons? What kind of wacky shit is going down in this congresscritter's office?

Check out the "Boston Globe" link (which sends you to a textise copy of the article) where Pressley was... I'll just quote the article.

But Representative Ayanna Pressley had two reasons to be afraid: She has alopecia, an autoimmune disorder that puts her in the high-risk category for coronavirus, and she is one of four Democratic representatives in a group self-dubbed “The Squad,” which has drawn ire and racist attacks from Trump and his supporters.

Because of multiple death threats over the past two years, running through safety drills and threat scenarios has become routine at Pressley’s office, said Sarah Groh, her chief of staff. Groh, Pressley, and her husband had planned to wait in Pressley’s D.C. apartment until later in the afternoon. That changed as the House sergeant-at-arms pressured lawmakers to come sooner, warning the crowds could get too thick to safely escort them in.

As people rushed out of other buildings on the Capitol grounds, staffers in Pressley’s office barricaded the entrance with furniture and water jugs that had piled up during the pandemic. Groh pulled out gas masks and looked for the special panic buttons in the office.

“Every panic button in my office had been torn out — the whole unit,” she said, though they could come up with no rationale as to why. She had used them before and hadn’t switched offices since then. As they were escorted to several different secure locations, Groh and Pressley and her husband tried to remain calm and vigilant — not only of rioters but of officers they did not know or trust, she said.

Yeah, she be playing that "crazy racists" card hard.

 

[Marshal Mannerheim]

Democratic Rep. Says Authorities Probing Her Report That Her Office Panic Buttons Were Removed Before Capitol Riot

Staffers for Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) were sheltering in their office on Wednesday when they noticed all of their panic buttons had been “torn out.”

www.forbes.com

https://archive.vn/SUHlM

An investigation is underway into why panic buttons were removed from Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s (D-Mass.) office ahead of last week’s deadly riot in the U.S. Capitol building, a Pressley spokesperson said.

Key Facts

As Pressley’s staff sheltered in the Longworth Office Building across the street from the Capitol during the riot last Wednesday, chief of staff Sarah Groh noticed the panic buttons installed in the congresswoman’s office suite in case of emergencies had been ripped out inexplicably, she told the Boston Globe Wednesday.

Staff had used these emergency buttons in the past, a Pressley spokesperson told Forbes in a statement, and they’re regularly tested.
Pressley’s office said the buttons’ disappearance is under investigation, but declined to say which agencies are investigating (the U.S. Capitol Police and the House Sergeant At Arms did not respond to request for comment).

New buttons have been installed in Pressley’s office, a spokesperson said.

Crucial Quote

“Every panic button in my office had been torn out — the whole unit,” Groh told the Globe Wednesday.

Key Background

Last week’s riots are stirring up questions about the adequacy of security on Capitol Hill. The violent mob of President Trump’s supporters quickly overran police, trashed several lawmakers’ offices and reached the door of the House chamber. Members of Congress and their staffers were evacuated from the building safely, but some observers worry the attack — which left four riot participants and one police officer dead — could have ended with more casualties. The chief of the Capitol Police and the House and Senate sergeants at arms all resigned days after the attack, amid accusations they failed to prepare for the raucous protests.

Surprising Fact

Several other lawmakers have raised security concerns at the Capitol in the wake of Wednesday’s riots. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) alleged Tuesday that some of her colleagues had brought in tour groups for what she described as “reconnaissance,” and dozens of lawmakers — including Sherrill — are asking police to investigate an “extremely high number of outside groups” who visited the Capitol the day beforehand.
-----------

It's certainly very interesting. The fact that her security system was removed before the riot precludes the rioters doing it.

I'll wait and see what any investigation says before I jump to conclusions. The fact I disagree with Pressley's politics doesn't mean she's always pulling a Smollett when she talks about race.

 

[Spiteful Crow]

Stuff like that

I'll wait and see what any investigation says before I jump to conclusions. The fact I disagree with Pressley's politics doesn't mean she's always pulling a Smollett when she talks about race.

I think it's very obvious what happened. Nancy Pelosi was sending her a message.

Ayanna can either start advocating for international communism and white genocide or Nancy Pelosi will have her killed.

 

[soy_king]

Democratic Rep. Says Authorities Probing Her Report That Her Office Panic Buttons Were Removed Before Capitol Riot

Staffers for Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) were sheltering in their office on Wednesday when they noticed all of their panic buttons had been “torn out.”

www.forbes.com

https://archive.vn/SUHlM

An investigation is underway into why panic buttons were removed from Rep. Ayanna Pressley’s (D-Mass.) office ahead of last week’s deadly riot in the U.S. Capitol building, a Pressley spokesperson said.

Key Facts

As Pressley’s staff sheltered in the Longworth Office Building across the street from the Capitol during the riot last Wednesday, chief of staff Sarah Groh noticed the panic buttons installed in the congresswoman’s office suite in case of emergencies had been ripped out inexplicably, she told the Boston Globe Wednesday.

Staff had used these emergency buttons in the past, a Pressley spokesperson told Forbes in a statement, and they’re regularly tested.
Pressley’s office said the buttons’ disappearance is under investigation, but declined to say which agencies are investigating (the U.S. Capitol Police and the House Sergeant At Arms did not respond to request for comment).

New buttons have been installed in Pressley’s office, a spokesperson said.

Crucial Quote

“Every panic button in my office had been torn out — the whole unit,” Groh told the Globe Wednesday.

Key Background

Last week’s riots are stirring up questions about the adequacy of security on Capitol Hill. The violent mob of President Trump’s supporters quickly overran police, trashed several lawmakers’ offices and reached the door of the House chamber. Members of Congress and their staffers were evacuated from the building safely, but some observers worry the attack — which left four riot participants and one police officer dead — could have ended with more casualties. The chief of the Capitol Police and the House and Senate sergeants at arms all resigned days after the attack, amid accusations they failed to prepare for the raucous protests.

Surprising Fact

Several other lawmakers have raised security concerns at the Capitol in the wake of Wednesday’s riots. Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.) alleged Tuesday that some of her colleagues had brought in tour groups for what she described as “reconnaissance,” and dozens of lawmakers — including Sherrill — are asking police to investigate an “extremely high number of outside groups” who visited the Capitol the day beforehand.
-----------

It's certainly very interesting. The fact that her security system was removed before the riot precludes the rioters doing it.

The funniest thing about this is that Mikie Sherrill is portrayed as a blue dog centrist who's very obviously spouting woke conspiratorial ideas that will never be called such because she was a Navy helicopter pilot (supposedly) and she knows about military reconnaissance, dontcha know.

 

[Karl der Grosse]

Ayanna Presley was one of the congressional critters that was supposed to be captured by the mob and executed. It makes perfect sense that her panic buttons should mysteriously be ripped from the wall. Probably the night before. It certainly wasn't some sort of tour group that did it. It was elements of our very own government as part of the stage setting for what was supposed to be a very ugly and violent event. Dead congressmen were supposed to be a part of it. Like most things the glowniggers do, the execution of the plan got fucked up. Maybe it's too hard to guide a mob to take the specific actions you want. Or the glowniggers that were supposed to do the actual executions balked in the moment, or couldn't get inside the Capitol.

 

[thyme's up]

Yeah, about that alopecia/covid thing:

“Alopecia Areata itself does not compromise the immune system or cause immune deficiency and there is no reason to think that people with Alopecia Areata are more at risk from COVID-19 than the general population, either in terms of catching the virus or being more severely affected by it.

The exception may be anyone being treated with oral drugs that suppress the immune system. These drugs include steroid tablets, azathioprine, methotrexate, ciclosporin, mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and JAK inhibitors. We advise that anyone to whom this applies should contact their dermatologist. We do not expect that the use of topical products, such as steroid creams or lotions, diphencyprone lotion and steroid injections into the scalp, will increase the risk of infection by COVID-19"

Sauce

As people rushed out of other buildings on the Capitol grounds, staffers in Pressley’s office barricaded the entrance with furniture and water jugs that had piled up during the pandemic. Groh pulled out gas masks and looked for the special panic buttons in the office.

Does every congressman stockpile water and have gas masks?

 

[Dark Edea]

Yeah, about that alopecia/covid thing:

“Alopecia Areata itself does not compromise the immune system or cause immune deficiency and there is no reason to think that people with Alopecia Areata are more at risk from COVID-19 than the general population, either in terms of catching the virus or being more severely affected by it.

The exception may be anyone being treated with oral drugs that suppress the immune system. These drugs include steroid tablets, azathioprine, methotrexate, ciclosporin, mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) and JAK inhibitors. We advise that anyone to whom this applies should contact their dermatologist. We do not expect that the use of topical products, such as steroid creams or lotions, diphencyprone lotion and steroid injections into the scalp, will increase the risk of infection by COVID-19"

Sauce

Does every congressman stockpile water and have gas masks?

I am sure those were supplies meant for her constituents or shelters in DC that never made it to their intended destination. Probably no foul play, they likely just happened to be there at the time.

Low odds that they were siphoned off for the benefit of our betters.

 

[Marshal Mannerheim]

Ayanna Presley was one of the congressional critters that was supposed to be captured by the mob and executed. It makes perfect sense that her panic buttons should mysteriously be ripped from the wall. Probably the night before. It certainly wasn't some sort of tour group that did it. It was elements of our very own government as part of the stage setting for what was supposed to be a very ugly and violent event. Dead congressmen were supposed to be a part of it. Like most things the glowniggers do, the execution of the plan got fucked up. Maybe it's too hard to guide a mob to take the specific actions you want. Or the glowniggers that were supposed to do the actual executions balked in the moment, or couldn't get inside the Capitol.

I'm not usually one for conspiracies along the lines of ”everything I don't like or find a bit odd glows in the dark”, but knowing how the CIA spied on a lot of left wing activists historically and are known for extrajudicial killings, the idea that they tried to get members of the Squad killed seems possible. Unlikely, but possible.