A Bad Night for the Great Gatsby Party

 No, the roof didn't cave in on Donald Trump's MAGA/republican party in last night's odd year elections. However, it is safe to say the timbers overhead began to creak and groan ominously. While statewide elections were few and far between the democrats won each and every one--by a lot. 

Even in Maine, a measure to require voter ID's and restrict absentee ballots failed by 30 plus %. Another, calling for a red flag law on gun ownership won by nearly 27%. For those wondering, the 2020 census showed the state of Maine's population is 61.6% white alone. 12.4% black alone, 18.7% Hispanic alone, and 6% Asian alone. 10.2% belong to two races, or more. Those aren't exactly the numbers which would typically indicate the state is a hot bed of what House Speaker Mike Johnson describes as, radical left, Marxist, Antifa types.

In Virginia democrats won the gubernatorial election by 14.6%. Up in New Jersey, despite people like Sean Hannity predicting a GOP win, democrats carried the governor's race by 13%. Both Mikie Sherill in NJ and Abagail Spanberger in VA ran against MAGA backed candidates. NJ republican, Jack Ciattarelli, now a three-time loser for that office, had been lauded by Donald Trump himself as being, "Pure MAGA."  

Then in California the only thing on the ballot was Proposition 50. It was and is, democratic Governor, Gavin Newsom's response to the Trump inspired gerrymandering plan to fix the 2026 congressional elections. In places like Texas, Missouri, and North Carolina republican controlled legislatures are arbitrarily redrawing congressional districts, hoping to increase the number of seats held by those, "Pure MAGA's. Prop 50 asked the people of California to allow their democratically controlled legislature to do the same. 

The reaction from the Trump administration was as expected. The day early voting began on the issue, the President posted, "The Unconstitutional Redistricting Vote in California is a GIANT SCAM in that the entire process, in particular the voting itself, is RIGGED. All Mail-in Ballots where the Republicans in that State are Shut Out is under very serious legal and criminal review. STAY TUNED!" Not long after that Trump's press secretary, Karoline Leavitt posted, "There is blatant FRAUD with their mail-in voting system. FRAUDULENT ballots are being mailed in under the names of other people and illegal aliens! There are COUNTLESS examples. And we are looking into executive action." 

Newsom's response was to describe Trump's post as the, "rambling of an old man that knows he's going to LOSE." As for Leavitt's, "there are COUNTLESS examples," she was right--sort of. No one has counted a single case of fraud, at least not yet. The general public and media seemed t shrug off Trump's rant with a collective yawn. When the Big Orange Guy saw the reaction, he dropped it completely. Yesterday, Prop 50 passed by 25 plus %. It appears the majority, in California anyway, believes voter approval of redistricting is just as constitutional as unendorsed legislative redistricting. 

The DOJ's half assed attempt at voter intimidation in NJ and CA looked to have no effect. While some paranoids (Here's looking at you, self) thought there was a real possibility of squads of ICE and Border Patrol agents kicking ass and taking names at polling stations, it never happened. Maybe because in both states, local poll monitors were there to monitor, not voting, but the federal monitors. Or maybe it was a trial run to test the waters before the big show in 2026. If it was the results couldn't have been encouraging to Brother Don, or his band of authoritarian kleptocrats. 

It didn't help that on the Saturday before the election--the same night 42 million Americans were losing government subsidized food assistance and millions more were finding out the cost of their health care was skyrocketing--Trump threw his crowd a wildly decadent, "Great Gatsby," party at Mar a Lago. It featured balloons, champagne, 1920's costumes, and even shapely girls lounging in rotating oversized champagne glasses. The invitation read, "A little party never killed anyone." That line moved Jon Stewart to ask, "Did anyone there even read the book? The party did kill someone. In fact, it killed two someone's."  He went on to describe the glittering soiree as a, "Marie Antoinette," moment.

Finally, there was the New York City mayoral election. Zohran Mamdani won a four-way election by gathering 50.4% of the vote. His closest competitor was democrat, running as independent, Andrew Cuomo who received 41.6% of the vote. The republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa managed a mere 7.1%. Trump, knowing Sliwa had about as much of a chance as Custer at the Little Big Horn, endorsed Cuomo at the last minute.  

Actually, republicans, including Trump, might consider Mamdani's victory as sort of a sub rosa win for them when it comes to next year's congressional elections. They will be able to claim the democrats are all headed so far left they aren't even democrats anymore, but rather like Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, raving socialists. Or, as Sean Hannity likes to put it, Communists. Not to mention, in Mamdani's case, a socialist who is also a Muslim. He is, at least in their minds, the perfect wet dream of an opponent. It doesn't matter that he is the mayor of a single U.S. city and his policies and decisions won't have a thing to do with the vast majority of Americans. It doesn't even matter he will not be on a single ballot anywhere next year. He's a fucking socialist/communist/Muslim son of a bitch out to destroy America and in his spare time make us all convert to Islam. 

Think not? Just wait for it.

Last night Donald Trump went on social media and wrote, "TRUMP WASN'T ON THE BALLOT AND SHUTDOWN WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT." He was probably right. Without the 79-year-old Donald Trump on the ballot the whole despicable MAGA sales pitch quickly falls apart. And, thanks to the shutdown, the public is turning against the GOP once again and not the democrats. 

Well, let's face it, the Mango Mussolini might be able to shoot someone in the middle of 5th Ave. and get away with it. However, no one gets a free pass when they take food off the tables of 42 million Americans while raising the cost of health care beyond reach. 

There are some things you just can't lie your way out of. 

11-5-25

Icing Elections in California and New Jersey, Erasing January 6th, and Nobel Fantasies

 A week ago the U.S. Department of Justice released this statement regarding elections on November 4th scheduled in California, New Jersey, Virginia, and New York City. "Transparency at the polls translates into faith in the electoral process, and the Department of Justice is committed to upholding the highest standards of election integrity. We will commit the resources necessary to ensure the American people will get the fair, free, and transparent elections they deserve."

At the same time the DOJ said it would send election "monitors," to Passaic County, NJ and also to, Kern, Riverside, Fresno, Orange, and Los Angeles Counties in CA. 

While everyone in the nation is, or at least should be in favor of, "fair, free, and transparent," elections some of us might be forgiven for becoming a little suspicious of the DOJ's deployment of, "monitors," to specific locales in blue states during off, off year state elections. Let's face it, other than caterwauling about election fraud in 2020, which they have never proven, this administration's main election focus has been to rig upcoming ones. How else can you describe the dismantling of the voting rights act piece by piece and a campaign of congressional district gerrymandering so openly criminal and undemocratic it even makes guys like Viktor Orban blush?

So, other than transparency, what could be afoot here? Well, for one thing, Passaic County's population is now 44% Hispanic, Kern County 54.9%, Fresno 53%, Riverside 49%, and Los Angeles County is 48%. And while Orange County's Hispanic population is 34% another 21 plus % is Asian. You think Stephen Miller's boys might be interested in who shows up at the polls in all those places? Hey, what better way to goose those arrest numbers that have been lacking. Not only that, but there is the added benefit of suppressing the total number of voters which is always a good thing for republicans. (Or it could end up that just the threat of ICE and Border Patrol at polling locations will scare away scads of potential voters.)

However, if Miller's SA does show up to take names and kick ass the shock and horror show effect will be enough to cause millions to question if their right to vote is worth the risk. Indeed, on Tuesday, just chuck them all in ICE detention centers for a couple of days without any sort of due process. Fuck with not just their heads, but everyone's. Meanwhile, if they do resist both Miller and Trump will be able to claim the, "radical left," is committing election day violence. You can almost hear El Donald addressing the troops before he sends them into hostile strongholds like, Bakersfield, Paterson, and Anaheim: The enemy from within has attacked. The use of excessive violence is not only authorized but encouraged!

  Granted, paranoia might be involved here, but even the most naively optimistic among us must admit there has been some awfully strange shit going on lately.

You know--like those two Assistant U.S. Attorneys who were put on indefinite administrative leave the other day. Carlos Valdiva and Samuel White were pulled off a case involving, Taylor Tranto who was one of the January 6th rioters pardoned by Donald Trump. Not long after he walked free, Taranto was busted near Barack Obama's house. (He had the address thanks to Trump, who posted it on his social media account.) Taranto was armed to the teeth and had been publishing online threats. In a pre-sentencing memo Valdiva and White had included a line about the January 6th attack which said it was carried out by, "thousands of people comprising a mob of rioters." It didn't even take 24 hours for them both to get sacked and the memo to disappear. from court records. When a replacement memo was filed there wasn't any mention of January 6th.

 Then on October 7th the Swedish Royal Academy of Science awarded the Nobel Prize in physics to John Clarke, Michael Devoret, and John Martinis. Thursday Donald Trump reposted this message from his Secretary of Energy, Chris Write. The Secretary wrote, "A former Lawrence Berkeley National Lab scientist won the Nonel Prize in physics for work in Quantum Physics. Quantum computing, along with AI, and Fusion are the three signature Trump science efforts. Trump 47 racks up his first Nobel Prize!" 

 Clarke was the only one of the three to ever work at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. He is British. The experiments the three men won for were designed and performed during 1984 and 1985. 

Obviously when re-writing history one has to act quickly, ruthlessly, and with fanciful panache. It clearly isn't a job for the meek.

But then neither is making sure this country is always run by right wing white guys. 

10-31-25

Sort of Looking Bad

 I have a lawsuit that was doing very well, and when I became President I said, "I'm sort of suing myself. ." I don't know, how do you settle the lawsuit, I'll say give me X dollars, and I don't know what to do with the lawsuit. It sort of looks bad, I'm suing myself, right?

Donald J. Trump, President of the United States of America speaking about punitive compensation he is currently seeking from the federal government--the same federal government he is chief executive of. 

Sort of looks bad? One supposes the single most openly corrupt act ever attempted by an American President could be interpreted as, sort of looking bad, although many might consider the observation an understatement of epic proportions. You know, rather like Clyde Barrow saying that knocking over all those banks, sort of looked bad.  

Of course, $230 million, which is the settlement figure being bandied about in the media, is a score bigger than anything ol' Clyde could have ever dreamed of. However, no one has ever accused Donald Trump of thinking small when it comes to scams, or in this case an outright heist. It is what differentiates him from the small time grifters and punks.

This all stems form investigations into Trump's 2016 election campaign, the attempted overturn of the 2020 election, and those classified documents he valued so highly they were stowed away in a spare bathroom. Mr. Trump claims the investigations were malicious political prosecutions directed by the either Joe Biden himself, or dark forces within his administration. (Depending on Trump's mood, on any given day Mr. Biden is either a master criminal--a combination of Vito Corleone and Professor Moriarty, or a senile old man completely controlled by those around him.) He will never acknowledge the Trumpian brand of politics and sense of morality makes Richard Nixon seem like some two-bit teenage vandal. 

The President's lies are so common hardly anyone notices them anymore. Even his, "I'm sort of suing myself," statement is misleading. He isn't suing himself at all. He, as President won't have to pay out anything to himself. That $230 million is coming directly from the American taxpayers. All that needs to happen for the payoff to be successful is either, Deputy Attorney General Todd Bianche, or Associate Attorney General Sam Woodward to give their okay. For those with short memories, Bianche represented Mr. Trump during the investigation of the January 6th insurrection and the documents case. Woodward defended Trump's loyal valet and co-defendant, Walt Nauta in the documents prosecution. 

Some might call such a happy coincidence a conflict of interest. However, no matter how anyone describes it, we all have to agree, the fix is in.

 In order to distract attention away from Trump's broad day light shakedown republicans have begun howling about Biden weaponizing the justice department after taking office. The allegation is the DOJ looked into January 2021 phone records of some GOP senators. This is proof, they say--well, at least Sean Hannity and Ted Cruz say--Biden was attempting to persecute political opposition.

What Hannity and Cruz didn't say, and they want everyone to forget, is that the attempted takeover of the capitol building was the last desperate act to alter the results of the 2020 election. In the months leading up to it all kinds of behind-the-scenes chicanery was taking place. Indeed, it's easy to remember the Proud Boys and others jammed into the hallways chanting things like "Nancy, come out and play," and "Hang Mike Pence." Many forget that prior to the violence, republicans were gathering in back rooms nationwide, naming, "alternate, " electors while lobbying senators to postpone the certification of the national election. Some of those senators were so dedicated to delaying the constitutional process they continued to argue the certification should be put off even after they had run for their lives just hours before. 

After January 6th, taking a look at who certain senators talked to during those chaotic weeks seems pretty reasonable. 

It's the old, yeah, yeah, you did that, so don't bitch about us doing this gambit. That is straight out of Joe Goebbels playbook. But, hey, you've got to say something though, right? After all it's tough to justify your guy looting $230 million from the treasury for personal gain even during the best of times. Right now, it's damn near impossible since his legislation is jacking up the cost of health care and causing a government shut down--one that is about to cut off food assistance to school kids and families in need. It is pretty much the 21st century equivalent of, "Let them eat cake."

Donald Trump told members of the media, "I'm not looking for money. I'd give it to charity or something." 

"Or something," being the key phrase in that statement. Remember this is the same man who at the beginning of the 2016 Presidential campaign told us, "I'm so rich I probably won't even ask for donations." 

Donald Trump lied then. He is lying now. He will lie tomorrow. It is the nature of this peculiar beast. And unlike anything he says, that's the truth.

10-24-25

Apocalypse Not Now: The No Kings Day Protests

 The democrat party's main constituency is made up of Hamas terrorists, illegal aliens, and violent criminals.

Karoline Leavitt, United States White House Press Secretary

I encourage you to watch--we call it the hate America Rally--that'll happen Saturday. Let's see who shows up for that. I bet ya see pro-Hamas supporters, I bet you see Antifa-types, I bet ya see the Marxists in full display. The people who don't want to stand and defend the foundational truths of this republic.

United States Representative, Mike Johnson, U.S. Speaker of the House and second in line of Presidential succession. 

Well...fuck. I had no idea I have been a lifelong member of such a dangerous terrorist/alien/criminal organization. I will admit I am an anti-fascist, which is what antifa stands for. However, in my defense, I learned to be this way from my father, who fought the bastards in WWII. 

Be that as it may, on Saturday, Oct. 18th, 2025 many republicans and MAGA types were predicting an apocalypse of sort to occur all across the land. So much so, Virginia Governor, Glenn Youngkin and Texas Governor, Greg Abbott had units of their respective National Guards at the ready to crack down on the expected violence. (Abbott said he had heard those Antifa-types were planning to run amok in Austin. He didn't say who he heard it from, perhaps not wanting to reveal sensitive intelligence sources.) 

Meanwhile, terrorists like myself were receiving texts inviting us to participate in local protests. The texts also explained that in order to take part we had to pledge to obey a few rules about non-violence. One of them being if we did end up in a confrontation with anyone, we were to do all we could, including walk away to de-escalate the situation.      

Given the situation much of the nation braced for the worst when Saturday morning arrived. Presumably that included members of the current administration, although one has to think many of them, including the Big Man himself, were probably hoping for scenes of widespread violence. Let's face it, nothing justifies the use of the military to control the populace quite like images of masked marauders looting vandalized stores and firebombing police cars. 

Then. even though an estimated seven million people showed up nationwide, the apocalypse remained absent. Over 100,000 protesters marched in New York City and police reported 0 arrests related to the demonstration. Austin cops, despite Governor Abbott's dire premonition, also recorded 0 protester arrests. (Begging the question, was Abbott's source of intel some bored University of Texas sophomore who had downed a couple of Shiner Bocks too many?) 

Coverage of the protests showed hundreds, if not thousands of people carrying American flags. Some wore inflated costumes (a fad which began in the allegedly war-ravaged town of Portland, OR) while many sported hand made signs. When marchers were interviewed most spoke of why they were there, their concerns, their fears for the future of their children and grandchildren given the dark direction the nation had taken. The underlying theme was nearly universal. Those seven million souls were in the streets because Donald Trump and his pals are actually the ones, as Speaker Johnson put it, "not standing to defend the foundational truths of this republic." 

MAGA internet influencers were so flummoxed they were reduced to whining about all the, "old white people," Ted Cruz went from posting, "Look at this No Kings rally--there's considerable evidence that George Soros and his network is behind funding these rallies which may well turn into riots," to reportedly writing, "LOL. Boomers gonna boom."  Others began referring to marchers as members of "Grantifa," taking their cue from tee-shirts a few seniors were wearing.

Donald Trump wasn't in Washington during the protests. He had winged his way to Mar a Lago for a get together with donors. His most noteworthy response was an AI generated video which portrayed him piloting a fighter, ala Tom Cruise in the movie, "Top Gun." Just to make sure we all got the imagery Kenny Loggins' tune, "Danger Zone," blared in the background as the President of the United States dropped a massive payload of liquified feces on No Kings demonstrators marching in city streets below. One internet wag responded to the video by writing, "Donald Trump shitting on American cities. How appropriate."

Tragically, such crude nonsense is what passes for Presidential dignity these days. No wonder Mr. Trump enjoys the reputation he so firmly holds on the world stage.  

It is unclear at this time if all that MAGA pre protest fear mongering was an attempt gear up the public for a massive and violent federal crackdown, or a ham-handed attempt to scare potential marchers, especially those brigades of Grantifas, enough to keep them home. Some have speculated people like Leavitt, Johnson, and the rest now exist in a bubble so disconnected from reality they actually believed what they were saying. As one put it, "They've come to believe their own disinformation is the truth." 

Who knows? All that is certain right now is, millions showed up, hardly anyone was arrested, (The highest count might have been the 12 busted in Denver.) and rather than an apocalypse the whole day more closely resembled what George Conway called it--a lovefest.  

Sic Vita Est

10-20-25

The 14 Year Tragedy of Carina Saunders

 14 years and one day ago Animal Welfare workers were searching for stray cats in a weed choked lot behind a supermarket in Bethany, Oklahoma. The town is a small suburb on the west side of Oklahoma City and at the time it had a police department with 31 officers and detectives. It's unclear whether the Animal Control people found any cats that day. What they did find was a duffle bag which had a stench so bad they immediately called the Bethany cops. 

When the authorities opened it up they found most of the rapidly decomposing remains of Carina Saunders. She had been beheaded and dismembered and while some of her parts were missing--and still are--there was enough there to make the ID within a couple of days. She had been 19 years old and was a 2010 graduate of Mustang High School, another suburb to the south and west of the city. 

The local media, both print and television, ran wild with the story. The metro area had never seen anything like it. It was the sort of lurid nastiness people normally associate with cheap, straight to video, horror films. In other words, pure tabloid gold--the bloody car wreck you can't keep staring at.

It became even more so as the details of Saunders' life and gruesome murder were leaked to the media and public over the next few months. How could you not be darkly fascinated with the emerging tale of a pretty young girl who, within a scant few years, went from wanting to be an opera singer to bragging to pals she was going to be a porn star. One who dived so deep into the nether world of drugs and deadly gangs she had, "Kween of Spades," tattooed across her back. (No, the word Spades wasn't spelled out.)

In the ensuing 14 years since her body was found her family have tried to rehabilitate her reputation and theirs. However, at the time of her death it was quite another story. Initial reports said she was last seen by a cousin getting into a blue, or gray SUV near the intersection of I-40 and Rockwell Ave driven by a gray haired man in his 40's. Days passed with no word, but perhaps because of her history of erratic behavior no one in her family thought to report her missing. That happened only after the cousin received a text message from an unknown person saying she would end up being, "buried next Carina." A screen shot of the text message, surprisingly, given what was going to happen later, wasn't released to the media. In fact, at the time, it seemed to get lost in the shuffle of facts and rumors.   

That didn't mean all kinds of other information didn't appear in the media. The Bethany cops took over the investigation because it was where the body parts were found. They roamed the metro, tracking down witnesses and leads all of which they were more than happy to release to local news outlets. Names of suspects, witnesses, informants, plus rumors of suspected murder sites were all made public. It was, it seemed, a never ending cascade of names and places. 

The most horrifying tidbit that was given to the press was that a video of the actual murder might exist. According to the Bethany PD the murderers made the video, which showed Saunders on a table being tortured and dismembered, in order to intimidate the women they were trafficking. Bethany cops claimed they had talked to a woman who claimed to have seen the first few seconds of the nightmare scene. To prove it they gave her name to the media.

As soon as her name hit the newspaper and airwaves the woman denied ever seeing anything or saying she did. Other witnesses whose names were released to the public were quickly in the wind, heading to parts unknown. The video has since become a terribly dark urban legend. If it ever did exist it and the phone it is supposedly on have surely disappeared long ago. 

One of the first, "persons of interest" was Kyle Savage, but after a search of an apartment in a public housing project his name faded from view. Recently however, it has resurfaced with one report indicating he might be the source of the, "I will bury you next to Carina," text to the cousin. Later, Bethany police charged Luis Ruiz and Jimmy Massey with the murder. It was a move that now seems more out of desperation rather than based on evidence. Witnesses were heading for the hills in droves and hard evidence was scant. The charges against both men were later dropped by the Oklahoma County DA. Ruiz, who spent seven months in the county lock up waiting for trial sued the city of Bethany and settled for $50 grand. 

Eventually the Bethany cops, with some strong urging, gave up the investigation and turned it over to the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation. By the time the OSBI took over it was as cold as the far side of the moon. 

The new information which has come to light in the last few years has been sparse at best. Carina Saunders apparently had entered rehab a little while before she was killed. Her family says she was happy to be straight again, had attended church with them and was eagerly turning her life around. The evidence isn't as hopeful, or as fanciful. Within a few days of leaving rehab, she jumped off the wagon and began staying at a friend's place. The two of them spent time at the Newcastle Casino parking lot on the far south edge of the metro. Reports are they were--depending on market conditions--alternately trying to score or sell drugs for the friend's mother. (Other reports say dear old Mom is now doing time on unrelated charges.) It turned out the casino parking lot, rather than 23rd and Rockwell, was the last place Carina Saunders was seen. Witnesses claim they saw her ignore the advice of others, then climb into a pickup truck which took her away into the darkness. 

After 14 years it is all the general public knows about her unthinkably cruel death. Other than a few years ago when the OSBI dug up the back yard of a rental property in a fruitless search for clues, the headlines have faded. The case remains open, but there doesn't seem to be even a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Given the nature of their business and lifestyles, the perpetrators may no longer be alive. Even if they are, the odds are they are either in prison or have spent time there since then. The reality of that world is the term, "criminal genius," is an oxymoron. 

Carina Saunders would be 33 years old this year. That's just entering the prime of an opera singer's career, but decidedly on the downhill side for a female porn actress. The fact is if she wasn't there already the only next step for her was the needle. That doesn't mean she deserved to be brutally murdered. It also doesn't mean she didn't deserve to have a chance, no matter how slim, to finally start making choices that would save her life. Instead, someone out there, either alive, or deceased, sadistically prevented her from making those choices. 

This 14 year saga remains a mystery to many, but ultimately, it is an absolute tragedy.

  

10-14-25

Breaking Heads and Hearts in Chicago

 You can say many things about the current Trump administration, but you do have to admit that when it comes to creating absolute chaos, they are real pros. Well, what else should we expect from a guy who used to show up as a guest at WWE wrestling extravaganzas and promises to stage a MMA fight at the White House next year.   

The Department of Homeland Security launched, "Operation Midway Blitz," in Chicago during the first part of September. Since then, the situation in the Windy City has been, let's say, fluid.  Or, if you prefer, bat shit crazy.  It is exactly the effect Donald Trump, his bizarre and hateful toady, Stephen Miller, and the head of the DHS, Kristi Noem had hoped for. So much so Trump, taking full advantage of the noise, called up National Guard units from as far away as Texas. They really don't have anything to do yet, except stand around outside federal buildings, but hey, sometimes it's the image that counts.

The Blitz has caused Illinois Governer, JD Pritzker and Chicago Mayor, Brandon Johnson to howl in protest. They also launched legal action to block use of the Guard. The whole ICE and Border Patrol thing is a different animal. Tensions have risen so much that the other day, as Border Patrol agents were being surrounded by an angry crowd (they became enraged after the agents shot a woman who allegedly rammed one of government's vehicles with hers) the Chicago PD was ordered to, "stand down." 

After the incident Trump posted on social media that both Pritzker and Johnson should be investigated, arrested, and thrown in jail because they failed to protect his masked band of merry pranksters. At the same time, the police chief of Broadview, IL, a Chicago suburb, accused ICE and Border Patrol agents of indiscriminately gassing civilians and his own officers who were there to do just that. He also claimed the feds were making so many unnecessary calls to his town's 911 system they were clogging the lines and stretching the resources of his department to the breaking point.  

It doesn't help that ICE is currently interpreting Trump's "worst of the worst," promise as meaning anyone walking down the street who even remotely appears Hispanic. Such was the case with a 53-year-old Hispanic woman who was going to the grocery store the other day. She was confronted by ICE agents on the sidewalk who demanded to know if she was a U.S. citizen. She said yes, but they didn't believe her because, you know, dark hair, eyes, and skin, so off she went to an unknown destination. The incident was recorded on video. When her teenaged daughter saw the recording, she began sobbing unconsolably. 

She wasn't the first. When ICE recently raided an apartment building--using Black Hawk helicopters to prove some sort of point--they pulled everyone, children and infants included, out of bed. They had launched the raid in the middle of the night in order to exploit the element of surprise.  Practically every occupant of the building was cuffed and detained, no matter what their status. A statement released by the DHS later claimed, none of the children were hand cuffed and they were later released to relatives or put in state custody. In other words, see, all we did was pull them from their beds, then order them and their parents out on the street at gunpoint, and finally cart Mom and Dad off into the night. How is that cruel? As a parting gift the agents ransacked the apartments, saying they were searching for, "evidence," and broke out more than a few windows, presumably because it's fun.   

Yes, it seems current ICE policy is a slightly less lethal variant of the old saw which first made the rounds during the Vietnam War: "Kill them all and let God sort them out." 

And while that policy might make Donald Trump and Stephen Miller feel like they have big balls it isn't great public relations campaign. Just ask Kristi Noem. The other day she and some of her boys showed up at a Chicago police station and asked if they could come in to use the restroom facilities. They were told in no uncertain terms, absolutely not. 

Now that's the way to tell someone, get out of town.

We all know where this is going. Donald Trump's increasingly unhinged behavior is going to become worse and worse. Instead of trying to reign him in there are people in the administration who are not just enabling him, but encouraging him to push things further. They might not admit it yet, but it's time to understand many of them can be categorized not so much republican, but rather Christian White Nationalists--despite their complete lack of Christianity. 

We are quickly approaching a moment when election results won't matter anymore. If an outcome isn't to their liking they will, just like they did in 2020, scream fraud and attempt, by any means possible, to deny the will of the voters. However, unlike back then, the ultra-right will have an armed paramilitary--and perhaps units of the American Militia--in place to make sure the real insurrection works. 

What we are seeing in Chicago and other locales isn't Constitutional, legal, and it certainly isn't morally justifiable. It's the equivalent of the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers turned loose by Trump's regime to break heads and hearts. 

10-9-25

Troops in the Streets and Russ Vought's Grand Plan

 Over the last few days Donald Trump claimed Portland, OR is, "a war zone," and that over the weekend in Chicago 50 people were murdered. In both instances he has used these apocalyptic visions as his reason for sending in National Guard troops. (Which one supposes is better than Pete Hegseth's idea, which was to send the 82nd Airborne into the Windy City--the idea failed because others convinced Hegseth and presumably Trump the resulting publicity would be overwhelmingly negative.

In the, "Portland war zone," this weekend a total of two protesters were arrested. Over the last few months, depending on who is reporting, somewhere between 28 and 36 people have been busted during protests in front of the local ICE office. In Chicago during the same time, 19 people were shot--way too many, but hardly the Battle of the Bulge--two of them fatally. It's unclear where Trump came up with 50, but the odds are he just made it up. Hey, it's a nice round number and high enough to scare the bejeezus out of white people who don't actually live there. 

If the President is successful--both Oregon and Illinois officials have taken the feds to court over the deployments--that would mean, there are units of National Guard troops preparing to occupy two American cities. They are already in a third, Memphis, TN, which is the only place the state's governor has willingly agreed to it. 

All of the cities mentioned have democratic mayors and large minority populations. And all of them, Memphis included, will vote heavily for democratic candidates in 13 months. Unless of course everyone is in a federal prison camp somewhere, locked down due to martial law, or prevented by the United States military to vote for some other reason Trump's authoritarian cabal comes up with. Indeed, when it comes to rigging elections it's best to begin early and strike often.

As Woody Allen once reportedly said, "It isn't paranoia if they really are out to get you." And increasingly to millions of Americans it is it appears they really are out to get us. 

It is doubtful Donald J. Trump came up with this plan. In fact, it is equally doubtful he has plotted out the mass firing of career federal civil servants so they can be replaced by MAGA loyalists. That doesn't mean he isn't fully on board with it--after all, what better way to prove the size of your cock than declaring martial law--but the Mango Mussolini simply doesn't have the eye for detail required for such undertakings. It is even a stretch to think his bellicose and xenophobic hit man Stephen Miller could handle it. (Let's face it the fucker is too weird. Besides he's best at execution, not planning.) Elon Musk might have been the guy, but his ego was too big for Trump to handle. The stage has to be solely Trump's, no other over cooked hams wanted.

No, Donald Trump has needed a surgeon who can slice and dice behind the scenes and who is smart enough to come up with a coherent plan to render Congress impotent while consolidating all power in the Oval Office. It would seem Trump has settled on his Director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russ Vought. Vought is the primary contributor to the Heritage Foundation's "Project 2025." That would be the same Project 2025 candidate Donald Trump repeatedly denied knowing anything about during the last presidential election. 

Vought and Trump aren't strangers. The Director held the same position during the first Trump administration. Fortunately, back in those innocent days the President was held in relative check by others who actually understood how the American government works. As we all know too well, Brother Don no longer operates with those constraints. As a result, he has unleashed Vought to erase American democracy as we've known it.   

According to a report by MSN since January, Russ Vought has, "Eliminated hundreds of regulations on the environment, health, transportation, and food and worker safety." He has also stopped the work of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. In addition, he is behind the slashing of foreign aid programs and is pushing for even more. Vought is also attempting to set up a legal battle in the courts to challenge congress' power to decide where and how federal money is to be spent. 

The end game is plain to see. Russ Vought, through the cult of Donald Trump wants to make sure a far-right macho man remains in the White House eternally while Congress is reduced to a symbolic body kept around just for old time's sake. Meanwhile all real power flows from the President and the President alone. The rest of us, every man, woman, and child are on our own no matter what calamity befalls us. 

Yes, it may not matter if Donald Trump is suffering simple cognitive decline, or in the throes of full-blown dementia. Thanks to people like Russ Vought the grand plan to perpetuate right wing power is quickly coming together. When Trump does go, the oligarchy will simply plug in a younger model.   

Ladies and gentlemen, unless there is some meaningful political resistance to this right now, we are, quite decidedly, fucked.

10-6-25