It began in Tennessee. The legislature there, a bunch of racist nitwits, passed laws making reproductive and gender affirming health care illegal. That in itself isn't unique. Legislatures controlled by Matt Gaetz wannabes across the land have been doing the same thing for months. In Tennessee, however, the Attorney General demanded Vanderbilt Medical Center give up the private medical records of all its patients and staff to his office. Let's face it, you never know what those liberal medicos are trying to put over on you.
Vanderbilt, which should have fought AG Johathan Skrmetti's order, caved in immediately. So now, if you've ever been treated for anything at Vanderbilt Medical Center Skrmetti's office has a record of the dates, meds prescribed, and the treatments you received.
That isn't enough though for the all seeing conservative eye. Back in April the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services amended the HIPAA rules to ensure the privacy of patients traveling from, someplace like Tennessee to, let's say, Washington state where reproductive and gender care are perfectly legal.
In June the AGs of 19 states--Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, and Utah--sent the Biden administration a joint letter demanding access to the medical records of all their residents, no matter where they were treated.
In short, if you are a resident of The Great State of Texas, Texas can seize your medical records from any other jurisdiction in the nation without your permission, or even knowledge. Although chances are good you'd find out about it soon, Your first tip will be when the reincarnation of Bull Connor shows up at your door with an arrest warrant.
Yes, indeed, nothing says small government quite like forcing a woman to carry her rapist's fetus to full term and jailing someone for not breaking the law in another state.
"But, wait," as the TV ad man says, "There's more."
After months and months of bellyaching about how democrats and Joe Biden have weaponized the Department of Justice, the right wing has found an answer. If Donald Trump is elected next year they are REALLY going to weaponize the DOJ. They aren't going to stop there either.
The Heritage Foundation, a radical right think tank that has been around for decades, has a plan they've named, "Project 2025." As soon as DJT, or some other fascist loon is inaugurated Project 2025 will kick into effect. The groundwork is already being laid. According to one Russell Vought, "We are trying to identify the pockets of independence (within the federal government) and seize them."
If you think that sounds a little like something Vlad Putin has done, you'd be right. Those deep thinkers at the Heritage Foundation have decided the only thing wrong with Don Trump's first four years was that not everyone in the government would do exactly what he wanted them to do. So, the idea is to make the DOJ, FTC and other semi-autonomous agencies political entities under the complete control of the President.
Among other things they want to make it easier to get rid of career diplomats at the State Department so they can be replaced by right wing loyalists with no experience, but a true zeal for all things Donald J. Trump. The same with the Office of Budget Management and other departments run by professionals, not political toadies.
The entire plan is to consolidate as much power as possible in the Oval Office. According to Mr. Trump's second White House Chief of Staff, John Kelly, if Project 2025 is implemented, "It would just simply be chaotic because he (Trump) would continually be trying to exceed his authority, but the sycophants would go along with it. It would be a nonstop gunfight with the congress and the courts."
Well, what else should we expect when one political party goes all in on authoritarianism. After all, you can't create a dictatorship without some old fashioned intimidation and chaotic power grabs.
Its's part of the process. Just ask the shade of Herr Hitler.
7-20-23
Trump in many ways IS the republican party. The people who could have kept him in line, didn't.
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