The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly

 

The good:

The resistance is becoming an uprising.

Last Saturday [October 18], more than 7 million of us poured into the streets to reject Trump’s dictatorship. That’s more than 2 percent of the adult population of the United States.

Historical studies suggest that 3.5 percent of a population engaged in sustained nonviolent resistance can topple even the most brutal dictatorships — such as Chile under Pinochet and Serbia under Milosevic.

Which means we’re almost there.

Other evidence of the backlash is all around us. Seven of the nine universities Trump selected to join his extortion compact — offering preferential treatment for federal funds in exchange for a pledge to support his agenda — have rejected it.

Most major airports have refused to show Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem’s propaganda video attacking Democrats for the government shutdown.

Almost all of America’s news outlets have refused to sign Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s media loyalty oath.

Trump’s destruction of the East Wing of the White House (after promising he wouldn’t) and posting an AI video of himself shitting on America is causing even loyal Trumpers to worry he’s losing his marbles.

I believe future generations will look back on this scourge and see not just what was destroyed but also what was born.

Even prior to Trump, American democracy was deeply flawed. The moneyed interests were drowning out everyone else. Inequality was reaching record levels. Corruption — legalized bribery through campaign contributions — was the norm. The bottom 90 percent were getting nowhere because the system was rigged against them.

Many of you are now sowing the seeds of fundamental reform.

Whether it’s demonstrating as you did last Saturday, appearing at Republican town halls, jamming the Capitol and White House switchboards, generating mountains of emails and letters, protecting the vulnerable in your communities, or going door-to-door for candidates like Zohran Mamdani, your activism is paying off.

The backlash against Trump is growing. His approval rating has sunk to a level not seen since Richard Nixon last sat in the White House, according to the latest Gallup poll, out Wednesday...

But, if January 6 was prologue, we know the Malignant Fascist and his regime aren't going to cede power willingly.  If and when that time comes, we'll find out what our true character is as a nation.

The bad:

President Donald Trump announced Sunday that mail-in ballots and early voting would be prohibited for the upcoming midterm elections, citing false claims that the 2020 election had been “rigged,” despite having no authority to outlaw such voting practices.

“Look what happened to our Country when a Crooked Moron became our ‘President!’ We now know everything,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “I hope the DOJ pursues this with as much ‘gusto’ as befitting the biggest SCANDAL in American history! If not, it will happen again, including the upcoming Midterms. No mail-in or ‘Early’ Voting, Yes to Voter ID!”

Trump had previously vowed to eradicate mail-in ballots back in August, and again without having the authority to do so. In his social media post Sunday, however, he also vowed to eradicate early voting, and singled out California for its upcoming ballot measure to redraw its congressional districts, a measure passed in response to Texas’ redistricting that was designed to bolster the GOP’s numbers in Congress.

“Watch how totally dishonest the California Prop Vote is! Millions of Ballots being ‘shipped,’” Trump wrote, with it being unclear what “millions of ballots” he was referring to. “GET SMART REPUBLICANS, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE!!!”

The Trump administration has deployed Justice Department officials to monitor California’s upcoming election in a move that critics have decried as a form of “voter intimidation.”

“What’s worse, the NBA Players cheating at cards, and probably much else, or the Democrats cheating on Elections. The 2020 Presidential Election, being Rigged and Stolen, is a far bigger SCANDAL,” Trump wrote.

Oh, the projection!  Of course, the demented dolt has no authority to do any of this.  Someone should also try to get it into his orange pumpkinhead that he was President in 2020, so any "rigging" would have to have been done by him and his lackeys, not Biden (the "Crooked Moron" in case you thought he was referring to himself).  This, like most of his recent screeds and his urging Republicans to gerrymander Congressional districts in their states, reeks of desperation.

The ugly:

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Saturday that food benefits under one of the country’s biggest social assistance programs will not be issued in November amid the ongoing federal government shutdown.

The shutdown was in its 25th day at the time of the announcement, which came after more than 200 Democrats in the US House of Representatives on Friday called on USDA to draw on its emergency reserves to fund November food benefits.

Republicans and Democrats in Congress remain at an impasse over how to fund and reopen the federal government.

“Bottom line, the well has run dry,” the USDA said in a post on its website. “At this time, there will be no benefits issued” on 1 November.

More than 41 million depend on the monthly payments, according to the USDA. In some states, such as New Mexico, dependence on the program is as high as 21% of residents, it said.

According to a memo seen by Reuters, the department indicated that it would not draw on emergency reserves to fund food benefits in November.

A statement from the leader of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities said the Trump administration had the opportunity to act sooner to ensure benefits don’t run out.

“It could have, and should have, taken steps weeks ago to be ready to use these funds,” the statement from Sharon Parrott said, as reported by the Hill. “Instead, it may choose not to use them in an effort to gain political advantage” as Republicans seek to exert pressure on Senate Democrats to vote in favor of a spending bill that would reopen the federal government.

Governors in Louisiana and Virginia declared states of emergencies this week to make funds available to help with hunger relief in anticipation of Snap benefits not being issued in November.  (our emphasis)

Using food aid as "leverage" is the tactic of a soulless fascist regime.  The MF and the smug millionaires and psychopaths in charge of the dystopia we're living in have likely never been hungry (and we know the Malignant Fascist has never missed a meal), and don't particularly care about those who might be.  They also don't particularly care if millions of Americans lose their health care benefits, which is, after all, what Democrats are fighting for.