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

The Latest American Monster, the Government Shuts Down, and Slowly Donald Trump Turned, Step by Step, Inch by Inch...

 I swear by God this holy oath: That I shall render unconditional obedience to the Leader of the German Reich and people, Adolf Hitler, supreme commander of the armed forces, and that as a brave soldier I shall at all times be prepared to give my life for this oath.

The oath required of every member of the German military beginning in 1934--commonly referred to as the, "Hitler Oath."

No, we aren't there yet. But let's face it, it feels like every single day during this regime we edge a little closer toward that fateful moment. Or, as the old Three Stooges bit began, "Slowly I turned, step by step, inch by inch..."

The last few days have been an all too familiar reminder of what 21st century America has become. On Sunday a guy rammed his pickup truck into a Latter-Day Saints church in Grand Blanc, MI. The suspect's name is Thomas Jacob Sanford of nearby, Burton. He was well armed--hey it's America, everyone is--and the truck, festooned with two large U.S. flags, was chock full of explosive devices. He set the church on fire and opened up with a semi-automatic rifle. Four members of the congregation were killed and a fifth remains in critical condition. 

In the immediate aftermath of the nightmare social media wags began playing hysteria filled blame games. Those on the right blamed the, "radical left," and those on the left blamed the, "radical right." Donald Trump posted that the mayhem was, "...another attack on Christians..." hinting that it was inspired by left wing rhetoric. Everybody appeared to ignore the obvious (besides the fact liberals don't usually run around in pickup trucks with American flags flying from the bed) that Thomas Sanford belonged to that uniquely American organization known as, "Bat Shit Crazy Guys With Guns." His only known philosophy, at least at this time, is that he considers all Mormons anti-Christs.

Then last night the government of the United States ran out of funding. The main reason, as usual, depended on who you ask. The cost of American health care is the primary sticking point. Democrats say they won't budge, although a few of them already have. Republicans say pretty much what they always say. "If you can't afford decent health care it's not our fault. You should have been born in Europe." The Trumpster is promising massive furloughs of government workers and possible permanent cutbacks, finishing the job his former pal Elon Musk started. The end result being, at least in the President's mildew ridden mind, is he will have the opportunity to consolidate even more power for himself.

Then we come to the Generals and Admirals who were called into a meeting yesterday. These weren't just Pentagon pencil pushers and analysts. They were field commanders, many of them with 20 plus years of combat leadership experience. They sat in silence as Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of Defense--oops, now the Secretary of War (the SOW?)--explained to them that Defense was too woke of a word, that War had the Machismo he was aiming for. 

The Secretary went on to tell them that all the DEI shit was over and done, there would be no more promotions of women, or minorities unless they were uber qualified. That the Department of War wouldn't tolerate fat Admirals, Generals, or NCOs. He told the officers that they and their men wouldn't have to worry about things like accusations of sexual harassment, or war crimes ever again. That's right, a lean, mean, fighting machine unfettered by any sense of morality when it comes to either an enemy, or itself. Oh, and ladies you might want to rethink any idea you might have had about joining this man's armed forces.

The attempted pep rally caused many commentators to wonder aloud why the whole thing couldn't have been done through emails, or other forms of communications. At least one officer reportedly said, "I flew 8,000 miles for this?" 

Then came the Commander in Chief, Donald J. Trump. He was 20 plus minutes late and seemed taken aback that when he was met with stone cold silence. He even commented that he was used to applause. Then he made a joke about anyone who didn't like what he was saying could leave the room. "Of course," he added, "if you do you'll get demoted." The response was a low ripple of what could be described as cynical chuckles. 

Most of Trump's address was the same old campaign bullshit every American has heard before. Biden was bad, he is good. It included the usual meandering side trips--"I like my signature. A lot of people like my signature. I personally sign all your promotions and commissions. I don't use an auto-pen." He droned on about tariffs and at one point even dragged out the bizarre idea Canada should become part of the United States. As he rambled aimlessly the continued lack of vocal approval and applause seemed to drain him. It was as if we were watching him slowly run out of oxygen.    

Finally, he got to it. He told the United States' most experienced combat leaders that they and their troops would have to become "a major part of fighting, "a war from within." He noted that this enemy from within was a problem that had to be taken care of quickly. He speculated that their troops could use places like, San Francisco, Chicago, New York and Los Angeles for, "training," before being deployed overseas. He was in fact prepping them for a time in the near future when he would order this audience to break the law--to violate an oath which they, unlike him, actually believe in and live by. Every person in that room had to know it.

Anyone who witnessed the deranged spectacle had to also. 

The President of the United States didn't say who exactly the, "enemy within," was, or is. He did say, however they would be harder to identify because they, "don't wear uniforms." One can hazard a guess though. It doesn't take much. All many of us have to do is look in a mirror. 

Step by step, baby, inch by inch...

10-1-25

Bye-Bye Ryan Walters: We Knew You Too Well

 Never one to think of himself as a small fish, Ryan Walters, the Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Schools, went on FOX national news Wednesday night to announce his resignation. That's right baby, when Ryan Walters does something, it has national ramifications--at least in his own mind. 

According to Walters, he is leaving to become CEO of a right-wing non-profit group, The Teacher Freedom Alliance. Exactly how non-profit it actually is remains a little cloudy. The organization isn't quite a year old and hasn't filed any paperwork with either state, or federal agencies.  What is known is it's affiliated with the Freedom Foundation, which describes itself as a, "conservative think tank." In his announcement Walters said one of his main goals as the CEO will be to, "...destroy the teachers unions." He added, "We have seen teachers unions use money and power to corrupt our schools, to undermine our schools."  

Of course, that was one of Walters' main goals while he was Superintendent, although many have argued, with ample evidence, the head of Oklahoma's public schools chief aim was to destroy public education itself. During his term he failed to destroy the teachers' unions, but when it came to corrupting and undermining public schools, he did a bang-up job all by himself. During his watch the state has now fallen to 50th in education out of 51. (The District of Columbia school system is counted in the rankings.) 

Despite his spectacular lack of success as Superintendent--his bible in every classroom order is still unfulfilled and his mandate requiring districts to report the addresses of pre-teen immigrant students was so odious even Oklahoma's ultra conservative governor railed against it--Walters was considered a rising MAGA star, at least locally. Most of his abbreviated stay in office was spent shamelessly indulging himself in what can only be described as over the top, yet decidedly cheap, performance art. However, the man did know how to blow smoke up asses and make a lot of noise. In 21st century American politics those are two indispensable qualities.      

Up until Wednesday night Ryan Walters was considered a serious player in the 2026 Oklahoma gubernatorial race. His name recognition was through the roof and his bi-polar like behavior--he can go from bellicose bully to self-pitying martyr at the drop of a hat--has a genuine Trumpian feel to it. Not to mention in this state if you are a republican, any sort of republican, winning the GOP primary means you are in. There isn't a democrat currently alive in Oklahoma who can win a state-wide race.  

At the moment the highest profile republican candidate for governor is state Attorney General, Genter Drummond. He knew all too well the political threat Walters presented. He has been taking shots at the Superintendent and current Governor, Kevin Stitt for months now. Stitt is term limited so can't run again, but Drummond won't let anyone forget that Stitt appointed Walters as Secretary of Education back in 2020. The Governor has spent much of his time in the intervening years trying to get the beast he set loose on the public school system back in the cage. 

Then in July came the scandal which might have set all this in motion. During a state board of education meeting a TV in Walters' office was on and two members were stunned to see a couple of naked women on the screen. It wasn't the sort of thing expected from a guy who once demanded every student and teacher in Oklahoma watch a video of him praying. ("You may join me, or watch quietly," he told them.) The shit immediately hit the fan. 

An investigation was launched by the Oklahoma City Police, Sheriff's Department and the local DA. Walters called a news conference and claimed the whole thing was a plot hatched by Governor Stitt. That the board members were liars who should resign immediately. That yea, dark forces were out to stop him and his crusade. 

The investigation found that yes, the TV was on and yes there was female nudity, but it wasn't a porn movie per se, and Walters wasn't at fault. The police said the television had been turned on and automatically went to a default channel. Walters, to this day, still claims the board members were lying and any reporting to the contrary is, "false." Questions remained. The main one being, why the fuck is an elected official watching TV in his office first place? Especially one with a default setting to a cable movie channel featuring imported martial art films and nudity.

Yes, it could well have been that loyalty tests for incoming teachers, or asking the state to buy thousands of bibles from a company Donald Trump is invested in. It might have even been the falling test scores, or all the money he spent on out of state PR firms to make him a national figure. However, it wasn't any of that. What might have ended Ryan Walters political ambitions was an Asian made martial arts flick that had one, or two scenes with, nekkid women in them.

Or, maybe it wasn't. In March of this year--four months before the TV debacle--a state legislator accused the Superintendent of ethics abuse. (Not the first time by any means.) The claim was that he improperly used the Department of Education's official letterhead to publicly applaud and endorse that brand new anti-union group, The Teachers Freedom Alliance. Even Genter Drummond didn't think it was anything at the time. He dismissed the complaint out of hand. 

Was that endorsement a coincidence? Given what happened Wednesday it turns out it might have been a job application. Maybe the whole TV thing was just the final straw for Ryan Walters. During his tenure he burned a lot of political bridges. According to many reports practically everyone at the capitol complex hates his guts. Maybe he knew that even if he did become governor, he'd never be able to get anything done. Maybe he simply got tired of working in a place that wouldn't let him do exactly what he wanted when he wanted, someplace where he had to answer to others. Or--and this is my favorite; it's the romantic in me--maybe he is just another con man who knows when the scam has run its course and is blowing town before he gets nailed for good.

In any event, bye-bye Ryan. We knew you too well. 

9-26-25

Eulogizing Charlie Kirk

Friends, Romans, countrymen; lend me your ears. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him. The evil men do lives after them. The good is oft interred with their bones. So let it be with Caesar.

From Antony's speech in Shakespeare's "Julius Caesar, Act III, Scene II.

Of course, despite those opening lines, during the remainder of Antony's speech he does indeed praise Caesar in ways that are both subtle and not so subtle. 

There was no such pretense at Charlie Kirk's memorial service in Glendale, AZ this past weekend. During the six plus hour service many came to praise Kirk without reservation, and no one dared hint he committed an evil that would live after him. The official count of the crowd was 40,000, although knowing Donald Trump who was among them, it will quickly grow exponentially, at least in his own mind. 

Kirk's pastor, Rob McCoy set the tone for the affair by telling the faithful, "Charlie looked at politics as an on-ramp to Jesus. He knew if he got all of you rowing in the streams of liberty, you'd come to its source, and that is the Lord."  

Vice President J.D. Vance reinforced this notion that religion and politics are inseparable, despite what it says in the Constitution by saying, "He is a martyr of the Christian faith." Then he added, "Heavenly Father give us the courage to live as Charlie lived." 

The one truly Christian moment came when Erika Kirk, Charlie's widow, forgave her husband's murderer, Tyler Robinson. Her act of kindness was met with a fair amount of cheering in the crowd. She explained her forgiveness by saying, "Because it was what Christ did and what Charlie would do." While it is what Christ did, no one can be absolutely certain what a man who once said homosexuals should be stoned to death, really would do. Her only cryptic reference to that part of Charlie's philosophy was when she said one of her late husband's goals was, "...to save the lost boys of the West." 

To prove the peaceful nature of Charlie Kirk's message she noted that after his assassination there hadn't been any rioting in the streets. Well, no there wasn't. However, the truth is probably because the only time that happens is when Donald J. Trump asks the mob to do it. (i.e. Come to Washington on Jan. 6th. It will be wild!)   

Other speakers were a tad more, let's say, blunt. Donald Trump's low-rent version of Heinrich Himmler, Stephen Miller told the gathering, "Our lineage and our legacy hails back to Rome, to Athens, to Philadelphia, to Monticello. You have no idea the dragon you have awakened." (The only thing missing was an orchestra playing Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries.") Herr Miller didn't specify who the, "you," was, or is but we can assume it wasn't anyone in the stadium. Right now, though the overwhelming odds are the unidentified, "you," is pretty much everybody who pisses off his boss--just ask Jimmy Kimmel. 

Speaking of the boss, Donald Trump let everyone there know his mindset when he told them. "Charlie didn't hate his opponents. He wanted the best for them. That's where I disagreed with Charlie. I hate my opponents. And I don't want the best for them." In other words, Kirk was the martyred saint, Trump, on the other hand, is the righteous retribution--the avenging angel. The cheers and applause he received for the line ran a dead heat with the cheers and applause which greeted Erika Kirk's pledge of forgiveness. It was a perfect example of MAGA duality. 

Despite what one might think, not every MAGA hot shot was there. Candace Owens, who served as Turning Point USA's Communications Director for two years, spent the weekend complaining she hadn't been invited to the memorial. Owens, who is African American posted in part on social media, "I would hope she (Erika Kirk, who has replaced her husband as head of Turning Point U.S.A.) is in full control, but I don't know. Because I'm hearing some stories about donors that are pushing things."   

There have been reports Ms. Owens lost favor with some MAGA conservatives, including Kirk himself, when she took one too many walks in the conspiracy theory swamp. A while back she also, posted a "like," to an online meme depicting Jews participating in a "blood libel," ritual. It is unclear if that was a step, or so over the line for some pro-Israeli conservatives. Or, it might have been when she said there was no way she would allow herself to be given the Covid-19 vaccine. That would be the same one Trump is so proud he rushed out there. Who really knows?  What we do know, however, is Kanye West once posted that he liked the way she thought. 

In the end, the insult to Candace Owens, whether real, or perceived, just proves that when it comes to the MAGA crowd, the only people they hate more than each other are democrats and those labeled RINOS. (Any republican who pushes back ever so slightly against a Trump proposal.) 

So there we have it. Charlie Kirk is now officially a martyr who died for God, America, and Donald J. Trump--although not necessarily in that order. And unlike what Oberfuhrer Miller might say, or think, not everyone to the left of Sean fucking Hannity was in on the hit. However, we already have proof that isn't the way Miller and Donald J. Trump are playing it. 

Would Charlie Kirk approve? As with everything MAGA it probably depends on who you ask. Or who speaks last at the podium.

9-22-25

Free Speech in America Depends on Who You Are and What You Say

The MAGA gang is desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it. In between the finger-pointing there was grieving. This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he calls a friend. This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.

Jimmy Kimmel on his show, "Jimmy Kimmel Live."

Okay. That was--I guess--a little insensitive. Although, to be honest, there isn't anything there which celebrates the killing of Charlie Kirk, or even condemns his political beliefs, or speech. (Kirk is on record saying, "Jewish money is ruining U.S. culture." and empathy is a made-up new age term." It's unclear if he said those things before, or after he claimed former President Joe Biden should be imprisoned and/or executed for committing crimes against America.) Kimmel was simply saying Tyler Robinson's craving for political violence mirrored that of many in the MAGA movement. And, rightly, or wrongly, accused Donald Trump of seizing on Kirk's death for political gain. It was, in the end, a matter of opinion. Something Kirk is now being canonized for expressing.

The next day Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman, Brendan Carr said this, "This is a very, very serious issue for Disney (The owners of ABC.) They have a license granted by us at the FCC and that comes with it an obligation to operate in the public interest." 

It wasn't exactly an, "offer they can't refuse," but the message was crystal clear.

Literally within minutes, Nexstar, a corporation who owns a boat load of ABC affiliates announced their outlets would no longer air Kimmel's show. A message from the company said, among other things, "Kimmel's remarks were offensive and insensitive." What Nexstar didn't say is they are in the middle of a $6.2 billion deal to acquire a rival company, Tegna. The whole thing is dependent on, that's right, FCC approval. 

Hey, Nexstar didn't become the self-proclaimed, "nation's biggest local television and media company," without knowing how to read between the lines. 

Within mere moments of Nexstar's announcement, ABC suspended "Jimmy Kimmel Live," for the "foreseeable future." Carr was quick to congratulate both Nexstar and the network for, "doing the right thing." Thus, lowering the collective blood pressure in a couple of different boardrooms.   

When the news reached the grieving Donald Trump, he immediately began dancing his version of the, "Jelly-Belly Jig." He paused just long enough to post, "Great news for America: The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show CANCELLED. Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done. Kimmel has ZERO talent and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that's possible." Then to make sure we all know where this is headed, the President added, "That leaves Jimmy (Fallon) and Seth (Myers) , two total losers on fake news NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!! President DJT." 

So, in memory of a guy they claim epitomized freedom of speech in America--Kirk once said if  he had a ten-year-old daughter who was raped and became pregnant he would want to deliver the baby and all homosexuals should be executed--Donald Trump and his toadies are doing everything they can to get rid of freedom of speech.

Which, of course, confirms the dark suspicion many hold that for Trump and his outfit freedom of speech exists only as long as they like what they hear.  

Well, we've known for a long-time irony escapes Mr. Trump and his crowd. We've also known they are oblivious to all manner of hypocrisy. And, now we know, ultimately, Jimmy Kimmel was right.

Former District of Columbia police officer, Michael Fanone, who was savagely beaten by Trump supporters on Jan. 6, 2001, probably said it best last night. He told MSNBC's Chris Hayes, "I think that no American politician has done more to normalize political violence in this country than Donald J. Trump." 

Fortunately, former officer Fanone, can't be cancelled. Trump's Proud Boys already tried, but it didn't work. 

9-18-25

Oops: The Epstein Birthday Note Exists and Donald's Signature Looks Genuine

 Forgive my language, but this story is complete and utter bulls***. The WSJ should be ashamed for publishing it. Where is the letter? Would you be shocked to learn they never showed it to us before publishing it? Does anyone honestly believe this sounds like Donald Trump?

A social media post written by Vice President J.D. Vance in July after the Wall Street Journal first reported the existence of a birthday note from Donald Trump to Jeffrey Epstein.

Indeed, where is the letter? The WSJ's initial report described it, but never actually published it. When Trump sued the Wall Street Journal and its owner Rupert Murdoch for about a bazillion bucks the President's lawyers, under oath, swore to the court the letter didn't exist. 

Then yesterday democrats on the House Oversight Committe published this: "HERE IT IS. We got Trump's birthday note to Jeffrey Epstein that the President said didn't exist. Trump talks about a 'wonderful secret' the two of them shared. What is he hiding? Release the files." What followed was a shot of the actual note, drawing included, which is signed simply, Donald.

Oops.

It took what amounted to mere minutes for Trump's cadre of fixers, enablers, and toadies to shift gears. They are now ignoring their previous denial that it ever existed to, the signature isn't his. It is a forgery Hey say. Some have even posted his signature online to prove it. There is a major problem with that tactic though. 

If the signature on the note is a forgery, it's a pretty fucking good one. It looks just like everything else the man has signed--his name barely legible, written in a way which resembles the stylus on a seismograph registering an 8.6 earthquake down the street. It is for all practical purposes an exact match to what they've put online. 

That won't stop the Trump people from trotting out all kinds of hand-picked, "experts," who will claim it isn't the same. After all, as Trump knows so well, everyone has a price. However, we can be equally sure the oversight committee, or at least some of them, will call on their own group of analysts. Anyone who has watched fictional courtroom dramas knows it will happen. It will be a duel of handwriting hot shots and their credentials.  

Vance was right about one thing. The text of the message doesn't sound like the Donald Trump we've come to know and loathe. The whole concept of writing a fictional conversation between he and Epstein is beyond him. He doesn't have that sort of imagination. Just because he doesn't, however, doesn't mean the signature isn't his. 

I've always maintained that when Ghislaine Maxwell approached Trump with the request for a birthday book message, he handed it off to someone else to compose--perhaps Maxwell herself. When whoever wrote it was done, Trump took a look at it, then signed it. By doing so he gave his approval of the content, including the drawing of a naked woman's torso. The truth is, given his taste for all things crude, at the time he probably thought it was funny. Although not so much now.

Of course, the oversight committee members didn't get the, "birthday book," from the Department of Justice. They are still doing everything in power to delay the release of those hundreds of thousands of pages the President is so petrified of. The committee did an end run around the DOJ and through subpoenas received it from the estate of the late, unlamented, Jeffrey Epstein. God only knows what else the estate has on hand, but one has to guess the possibilities make Donald Trump squirm more than the prospect of Stormy Daniels dancing in the East Room of the White House.

Not one victim of Jeffrey Epstein who has spoken publicly about her trauma has accused Donald Trump of inappropriate, or criminal behavior. Given his past willingness to throw former associates under a variety of vehicles we can assume Trump's objections to releasing the files have nothing to do with personal loyalty to guilty friends. All of which increases the suspicion there is something there so damning, so God awful, that not even his devoted base will give him a pass on it. And that something is far worse than his signature mimicking pubic hair on the drawing of a nude woman. 

In his latest online fund raising appeal Trump solicited $15 contributions from the rubes who still believe in him. The subject line at the top of the email read, "I want to try to get into Heaven." Well, Don, given what we know and what many of us are currently imagining--thanks to your Epstein obstruction efforts--you might need more help than $15 donations to get inside the gate of that club.

The old adage is that, "confession is good for the soul." As the man with the bruised hands knows, however, it isn't good for your political agenda, or the legacy you are carefully attempting to craft for yourself. Just ask the ghost of Adolf Hitler. He built the German Autobahn system, but he's remembered for other things.

9-9-25

Trying to Keep Up with the Outrages

 Sometimes--okay, practically always--it feels like Donald Trump isn't a president, but rather the leader of a meth fueled biker gang. One that rampages through the streets with flame throwers torching things just because they can. Indeed, the outrages happen so fast and, in such numbers, it is hard to keep up.  

Take for example the case of Nory Sontay Ramos and her mom, Estela Ramos Baten. Years ago Ms. Baten fled Guatemala because her life was being threatened by a powerful gang. She naturally took her daughter with her. They settled in the United States where Nory enrolled in school and by all reports became an excellent student. She also developed into an athlete who once she hit high school ran on the cross country team. Neither have been in any trouble with the law, or immigration authorities.  

Baten had made a bunch of trips to the immigration courts desperately trying to get her status changed, but a final decision was always put off. Then, during her last attempt she was told to return on June 30 of this year with her kid. Nory was gearing up for her senior year in high school and being an honors student, she became suspicious. Hey, she knew what was going on, especially in Southern California. Stephen Miller's personal Gestapo, ICE, was rounding up people left and right. And despite Trump's claim to only go after the worst of the worst criminal element in the immigrant community they were snatching everyone. When she told her mother she was worried, Ms. Baten reassured her kid that everything would be okay, and, "They had to do things the right way."

You know where this is going don't you? Of course you do.

After hours of being stuck in the federal building, the men in black showed up and carted them both to the airport where they were flown to a camp in Texas. Then it was off to Guatemala, the very place Estela had escaped from because her life was in danger. It's a country Nory Ramos, who had been scheduled to attend cross country practice later that day, barely remembers. In fact, she had been in the U.S. so long she doesn't even speak Spanish. There was no hearing, no chance to speak to a lawyer, and neither of them were allowed to make any calls. To make sure of it, both their phones were confiscated. They arrived in Guatemala City with only the clothes on their backs. 

One can only imagine what Stephen Miller's Eastern European Jewish immigrant grandparents are thinking about their descendent now.

Meanwhile, Trump's Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. facilitated the firing of Dr. Susan Monarez--head of the CDC--because she wouldn't sign off on his proposed Covid vaccine restrictions. Other CDC senior officials resigned in protest over the firing. In addition, over 1,000 former and current employees of the Health and Human Services Department sent a letter to Kennedy and members of congress saying the Secretary was putting the nation's health at risk and demanding he resign. A Kennedy spokesperson responded to the letter with a statement which said, in part, "Secretary Kennedy has been clear; the CDC has been broken for a long time. Restoring it to the world's most trusted guardian of public health will take sustained reform and more personnel changes."

Kennedy, of course, has the job because Trump felt like he had to reward that sizable part of his base who are convinced all vaccines are a commie plot to poison true Americans.  While not completely an anti-vaxxer--it depends on who asks him--Kennedy is the closest thing to one they'll ever get.  

The Secretary, who has claimed his use of heroine improved his school grades and once dumped a dead bear cub in the middle of Central Park in NYC has been described by democratic strategist, James Carville this way. "There is," Carville said, "somethin' wrong with that boy."

Then we have a quick flashback to PragerU's America First Test for teachers who are new to Oklahoma. One which slipped under the radar in the last post read, "What cause is Martin Luther King Jr. best known for?" (Notice it didn't say, Dr. Martin Luther King.) The correct answer according to PragerU is, "Advocating for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion."  (DEI) That's right, one of the 20th century's greatest civil rights icons--a strict adherent to the philosophy of non-violent civil disobedience to achieve the ideals set out in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution--a Nobel Peace Prize winner--is best known for supporting a buzz phrase which wasn't coined until decades after his murder.    

Those of us who were alive back in those days tend to remember Dr. King for a tad more than advocating for DEI. However, you have to hand it to that right wing indoctrination machine, PragerU. They do know how to trivialize the monumental. 

Finally, we get to the El Supremo himself, Donald Trump. Tuesday and yesterday a small portion of Jeffrey Epstein's victims told members of congress and the media about the horrors of Epstein's depraved abuse and how Ghislaine Maxwell had not only abetted him, but at times joined in. Most of the women who spoke yesterday weren't even 15 years old when their nightmares began. All of them demanded that Donald Trump's Department of Justice release the entire Epstein file immediately. They weren't the only ones. Trump loyalists like Lauren Boebert and Marjorie Taylor Greene agreed with them. Ultra right Congresswoman, Nancy Mace was so disturbed by their testimony left the hearing in tears. 

When asked about Epstein in the Oval Office Trump said the scandal is a, "...democrat hoax that never ends." He went on to tell reporters, "They're trying to get people to talk about something that's totally irrelevant to the success we've had as a nation since I've been President."  

None of the women who spoke to the press and Congress have ever accused Donald Trump of committing crimes against them. In fact, one told Lawrence O'Donnell she voted for him last November in part because she believed he would do what he said he would do. One of those things was release the file. 

No one knows, except perhaps for Pam Bondi and Trump himself, how many times his name is mentioned in the files, or in what context. We can be absolutely sure though, there is something in them he desperately doesn't want the public to see. And that's no hoax.

It us, however, most certainly the current American Leader, Donald John Trump. 

9-4-25