Another Crack In The MAGA Wall

 

The right-wing Make America Healthy Again movement, known for opposition to vaccines and for boosting pseudoscience quackery, is reportedly up in arms against what they see as a betrayal of their movement.  Many are threatening to sit the mid-terms out or to vote for either the independent or Dem alternative.  From The Hill:

"Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) activists are growing frustrated with Republican leaders following a series of what many see are serious betrayals of the movement.

The growing divide between the two comes just ahead of the midterm elections, where the GOP is already facing headwinds.

The latest setback is the farm bill, supported by Republicans purporting to be MAHA sympathizers. Activists are pushing back on the inclusion of a provision to delay a deadline for Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pesticide safety reviews. They’re also raising concerns about cuts to certain conservation programs. 

Meanwhile, Trump administration officials hobnobbing with key industries and little activist presence at a recent MAHA summit is also exacerbating tensions. 

Voters in this bloc are characterized by their support for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as well as distrust of vaccine mandates and chemical and agriculture corporations. Activist Zen Honeycutt, founder of Moms Across America, warned that MAHA-aligned voters could sit out the midterms — meaning the potential loss of a key pocket of support for Republicans." (our emphasis)

Read the rest of the linked article to get a sense of the complaints from MAHA proponents about the lying Malignant Fascist's regime's broken promises.  We hope their frustration and anger at them plays out at the ballot box on November 3.

(photo: HHS Secretary "Bobby Brainworm" having a problem with MAHAts)

 

EPA Rule Would Allow Power Plants To Pollute

 

In a sinister development, the Trumpist-run Environmental Protection Agency is proposing a final rule that would terminate limits on greenhouse gases emitted from our nation's power plants.  It would erase decades of progress on limiting climate change- affecting controls on the CO2 and other emissions from America's power plants, endangering the air quality for tens of millions.  The Associated Press reports:

"The Environmental Protection Agency is expected to repeal rules that limit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions from power plants fueled by coal and natural gas, an action that Administrator Lee Zeldin has said would remove billions of dollars in costs for the industry and help “unleash” American energy.

The rule change, proposed last year, could be announced as soon as Monday, according to two people familiar with the proposal, and represents a fundamental shift from efforts by Democratic Presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama to address climate change and clean up industrial pollution, often in low-income and majority Black or Hispanic communities.

The rule, which is expected to face immediate legal challenges, also could prevent future administrations from regulating greenhouse gas emissions from power plants, the people familiar with the proposal said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because the final rule had not yet been made public." (our emphasis)

This regime is beholden to fossil fuel polluters, who give generously to MAGAt politicians and the cult leader himself, and who are especially guilty of air and water pollution in communities of color.  This is the kind of malicious ruling that the Dems, should they retake the House and Senate, should block and force the EPA to withdraw, withhold funding for the Malignant Fascist's pet projects if they don't.  Clean air and water should be non-negotiable for Americans, regardless of their politics, color or income, regardless of what the venal and reckless plant operators and their fascistic allies in the MF's regime think.

(photo: Popular Science)

 

Trump's Dangerous Blockade Plan

 

Fresh off of the lame and unqualified Vice President's floundering at the ceasefire talks with Iran in Islamabad, the crazed and confused Malignant Fascist is imposing a blockade of Iranian ports. Iran has threatened to attack the ports of the U.S.'s Persian Gulf states as well as U.S. military facilities there. From the Associated Press:

"The U.S. military announced it will begin a blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas on Monday, as President Donald Trump sought to pressure Iran in a move that risks driving oil prices even higher and renewing the war. The announcement set the stage for a showdown, as Iran immediately responded with threats on all ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

'Security in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman is either for everyone or for NO ONE,' the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting reported Monday. 'NO PORT in the region will be safe,' according to a statement from the Iranian military and the Revolutionary Guards.

U.S. Central Command announced the blockade would begin on Monday at 10 a.m. EDT, or 5:30 p.m. in Iran, and would be 'enforced impartially against vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas, including all Iranian ports on the Arabian Gulf (Persian Gulf) and Gulf of Oman.' CENTCOM said it would still allow ships traveling between non-Iranian ports to transit the strait, a step down from the president’s earlier threat to blockade the entire strait." (our emphasis)

The MF's plan will not only provoke Iran to attack oil facilities in the region, but will impact nations like China and India which import from Iran. Oil prices will surge as violence escalates. Additionally, ships carrying food and medicine to Iran would also be impacted by the MF's escalation. It promises to be a destructive escalation by a flailing and reckless MF. 

(photo: Halden Krog/EPA/Ritzau Scanpix)

Saudis Goad Trump For Regime Change In Iran

 

The corrupt, repressive and reactionary regime of Saudi Arabia, led by the evil Crown Prince Mohammed bin "Bone Saw" Salman, is urging the reckless and malleable Malignant Fascist to finish off the regime in Tehran, even to the point of putting soldiers on the ground.  According to the New York effing Times:

"Saudi Arabia’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has been pushing President Trump to continue the war against Iran, arguing that the U.S.-Israeli military campaign presents a 'historic opportunity' to remake the Middle East, according to people briefed by American officials on the conversations.

In a series of conversations over the last week, Prince Mohammed has conveyed to Mr. Trump that he must press toward the destruction of Iran’s hard-line government, the people familiar with the conversations said.

Prince Mohammed, the people familiar with the discussions said, has argued that Iran poses a long-term threat to the Gulf that can only be eliminated by getting rid of the government."  (our emphasis)

Regime change! Just what the MAGA cult wanted their cult leader to get involved in.  Bone Saw's prescription parallels the goal of the right-wing Israeli regime under Netanyahu, and would ensure long-term U.S. engagement in the Gulf region in the form of a wider war.

It's worth noting that the Saudis have their own, infamous history of supporting terrorism, most prominently the 9-11 attack where all but two of the hijackers were Saudi, as well as al-Qaeda and it's leader Osama bin Laden, a wealthy Saudi national, and as the cradle of Wahhabism.  Spare us the talk about "threats", when the Saudis have contributed mightily to them internationally.  Maybe we should expand "regime change" to other nation sponsors of terrorism. 

(photo: Who wouldn't trust this guy? EPA Images) 

 

Trump Guts Major Environmental Rule

 

In a reckless act that will adversely affect the health of millions of Americans and others around the world, the corrupt and profoundly ignorant Malignant Fascist had his Environmental "Protection" Agency rescind  a 2009 rule that determined that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases threaten public safety and health.  The rule was one of the Obama Administration's signature environmental policies that supported sweeping regulations pertaining to climate change, which must have motivated the vindictive and envious MF.  From the Associated Press:

"The Obama-era finding is the legal underpinning of nearly all climate regulations under the Clean Air Act for motor vehicles, power plants and other pollution sources that are heating the planet.

The repeal eliminates all greenhouse gas emissions standards for cars and trucks and could unleash a broader undoing of climate regulations on stationary sources such as power plants and oil and gas facilities, experts say. Legal challenges are near certain.

President Donald Trump called the move 'the single largest deregulatory action in American history, by far,' while EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin called the endangerment finding 'the Holy Grail of federal regulatory overreach.'

Trump called the endangerment finding 'one of the greatest scams in history,' claiming falsely that it 'had no basis in fact' or law."  (our emphasis)

The projection from the political, fact-free decision by the MF and his regime is obvious.  The reaction to the MF's reckless and dangerous action from environmental and climate scientists was, of course, overwhelmingly negative:

“It boggles the mind that the administration is rescinding the endangerment finding; it’s akin to insisting that the world is flat or denying that gravity is a thing,” said Dr. Howard Frumkin, a physician and professor emeritus of public health at the University of Washington.

Thousands of scientific studies have looked at climate change and its effects on human health in the past five years and they predominantly show climate change is increasingly dangerous to people. [snip]

“'Study after study documents that climate change endangers health, for one simple reason: It’s true,' said Frumkin, a former director of the National Center for Environmental Health appointed by President George W. Bush.

'Health risks are increasing because human-cause climate change is already upon us. Take the 2021 heat dome for example, that killed (more than) 600 people in the Northwest,' said Dr. Jonathan Patz, a physician who directs the Center for Health, Energy and Environmental Research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. 'The new climate attribution studies show that event was made 150-fold more likely due to climate change.'” (our emphasis)

The MF's impulsive and dishonest Government by retribution, and his destruction of policies and programs  established by his envied and highly regarded predecessors shows his lack of decency and concern for average Americans.  Every day he's in office, the damage increases.

 

Heroes And Zeroes

 

Heroes:

Zeroes:

(Screenshot via Max Nesterak/ X)

(Craig Lassig, EPA)

(via prismreports.org)

(Mathieu Lewis-Rolland, AFP)

(Screenshot via CNN)

Only The Best People, Cont.

 

The Republican cult and its cult leader are only attracting the best people.  Cases in point:

Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer

Lori Chavez-DeRemer, President Donald Trump's Secretary of Labor, is under internal investigation over a complaint that she has carried on an "inappropriate" relationship with a subordinate, the New York Post reported on Friday evening.

"Chavez-DeRemer, 57, has welcomed her alleged paramour at least three times to her DC apartment and twice into her hotel room while traveling, alleges a complaint filed with the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Inspector General last week, which has since begun a probe," said the report. DeRemer "is also accused of drinking in her office during the workday and committing 'travel fraud' by having her chief of staff and deputy chief of staff 'make up' official trips to destinations where Chavez-DeRemer can spend time with family or friends on the taxpayers’ dime."

Additionally, the complaint alleged, Chavez-DeRemer has abused her authority to force department aides to run personal errands for her — an issue that has gotten a number of previous Trump administration officials, like former EPA administrator Scott Pruitt, in trouble as well...

She's married, of course.  She's also not the only married Cabinet secretary accused of extracurricular activities.  When she's not cosplaying and lying her ass off, Kristi "Border Barbie" Noem is said to be heating it up with MAGA man Corey Lewandowski, a pair made in Hell.

Vivek Ramaswamy's drug trafficking bodyguard

Republican Ohio gubernatorial candidate Vivek Ramaswamy has expressed alarm that a man who worked as his family's bodyguard is facing federal drug trafficking charges.

Justin Salsburey, 43, of Bellefontaine, and his wife, Ruthann Rankin, were each charged late last month with conspiracy and possession with the intent to distribute large amounts of narcotics through the U.S. mail.

Salsburey was employed by a private security firm hired by the Ramaswamys for protective services, according to campaign spokesperson Connie Luck. She said that ARK Protection Group removed him from the family's security detail immediately upon learning of the matter.

According to the criminal complaints, 261 parcels containing counterfeit OxyContin and other pills were delivered to the couple's western Ohio home between August 2024 and last month. Rankin has been removed from her employment as a schoolteacher in nearby Urbana, according to a statement posted by the district.

Salsburey is being held in the Franklin County jail in Columbus, according to the facility's website. Rankin was held and later released...

At least they're getting due process, unlike those people in the boats off the Venezuela coast.

How Dem Leaders "Normalize Fascism"

"Breakfast Club" radio personality Charlemagne Tha God let loose on Dems that rightly say the mentally ill Malignant Fascist is an existential threat to democracy, but turn around and normalize him. He cited the examples of President Obama's bizarre chuckling with the MF at President Carter's funeral, of President Biden's vacuous grinning as he welcomed the MF to the White House, and of the recent visit of New York City Mayor-elect Mamdani to the Oval Office.  Excerpts from his interview on Mediaite:

“'You wouldn’t be playing footsie with a fascist at a funeral, right, President Obama?' [snip]

The problem I have is when politicians use that language but then don’t act like that person is what you just told us that person was. And what that does, right, if you’re Joe Biden and you say Donald Trump is a "threat to democracy," but then when Donald Trump wins the presidency, you’re standing outside the White House saying, "Welcome home!" [snip]

Or if you’re Zohran Mamdani and you say Donald Trump is a fascist, but then you’re saying you can work with a fascist. And I’m like, "Well, that’s not how fascism works." Never in the history of mankind has somebody worked with a fascist, and it’s worked. Like, that’s actually how you normalize fascism.”  (our emphasis)

Charlemagne has dubbed himself the "Prime Minister of Pissing People Off," but here he's speaking for Dems who are tired of the capitulating Dem "huggers" in leadership who don't appear to believe what they're saying, and are just as cynically transactional as the corrupt MF. 

(photo: "I really didn't mean what I said about you, sir!" Alexander Drago / EPA)

 

Architecture And Authoritarianism

 

There's an excellent article in The Conversation by archaeologist R. Grant Gilmore III about the relationship between architectural styles and authoritarian rule that points out several things that deranged narcissist the Malignant Fascist is doing with his makeover of Washington: the gaudy royal ballroom that the East Wing had to make way for, and the "Arc de Trump" at the entrance to Arlington National Cemetery.  Some excerpts from the article, with our emphasis added:

"In his first term as president, and even more so today, Donald Trump has pushed to an extreme legacy-building through architecture and heritage policy. He is remaking the White House physically and metaphorically in his image, consistent with his long record of putting his name on buildings as a developer.

In December 2020, Trump issued an executive order declaring classical and traditional architectural styles the “preferred” design for new federal buildings. The order derided Brutalist and modernist structures as inconsistent with national values.

Now, Trump is seeking to roll back inclusive historical narratives at U.S. parks and monuments. And he is reviving sanitized myths about America’s history of slavery, misogyny and Manifest Destiny, for use in museums, textbooks and public schools."

Dictators and authoritarians use architecture in building monuments to themselves, and the MF's massive neediness has meant the construction of temples to his own ego:

"Many leaders throughout history have built “temples to power” while erasing or overshadowing the memory of their predecessors – a practice known as damnatio memoriae, or condemnation to oblivion. [snip]

Albert Speer’s and Hermann Giesler’s monumental neoclassical designs in Nazi Germany, such as the party rally grounds in Nuremberg, were intended to overwhelm the individual and glorify the regime. And Josef Stalin’s Soviet Union suppressed avant-garde experimentation in favor of monumental “socialist realist” architecture, projecting permanence and centralized power.

Now, Trump has proposed building his own triumphal arch in Arlington, Virginia, just across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial, as a symbol to mark the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence." 

Gilmore explains that the MF is using architecture to send a message of exclusion and dominance: 

"In remaking the White House and prescribing the style and content of many federal sites, Trump is targeting not just buildings but the stories they tell.

By challenging narratives that depart from white, Anglo-Saxon origin myths, Trump is using his power to roll back decades of work toward creating a more inclusive national history.

These actions ignore the fact that America’s strength lies in its identity as a nation of immigrants."

There's much more in Gilmore's article that's well worth the read.  It clarifies what the MF is intending to not only build, but to destroy in his wake.

(photo: The dictator and his ballroom / Aaron Schwartz, EPA,  Shutterstock)

 

Trump Commutes Fellow Felon Santos' Sentence

 

Convicted felon former Rep. George Santos, alias Kitara Rivache Anthony Zabrovsky, who pleaded guilty to wire fraud and identity theft and was sentenced to seven years in Federal prison, had his sentence commuted yesterday by fellow felon the Malignant Fascist.  From the Associated Press:

"The New York Republican was sentenced in April after admitting last year to deceiving donors and stealing the identities of 11 people — including his own family members — to make donations to his campaign.

He reported to FCI Fairton on July 25 and was housed in a minimum security prison camp with fewer than 50 other inmates. [snip]

During his time behind bars, Santos has been writing regular dispatches in a local newspaper on Long Island, in which he mainly complained about the prison conditions.

In his latest letter, though, he pleaded to Trump directly, citing his fealty to the president’s agenda and to the Republican Party."

In his social media post announcing the commutation, the MF took Santos' words and used them as a justification for commuting his sentence, falsely and bizarrely comparing Santos' crimes to Sen. Richard Blumenthal's misstatements on his military service during the Vietnam War, which the MF dodged with a false diagnosis of bone spurs:

"George Santos was somewhat of a “rogue,” but there are many rogues throughout our Country that aren’t forced to serve seven years in prison. I started to think about George when the subject of Democrat Senator Richard “Da Nang Dick” Blumenthal came up again. [snip]

His War Hero status, and even minimal service in our Military, was totally and completely MADE UP. This is far worse than what George Santos did, and at least Santos had the Courage, Conviction, and Intelligence to ALWAYS VOTE REPUBLICAN! George has been in solitary confinement for long stretches of time and, by all accounts, has been horribly mistreated. Therefore, I just signed a Commutation, releasing George Santos from prison, IMMEDIATELY. Good luck George, have a great life!" 

So the message from the MF to the public is that if you are slavishly loyal to him and ALWAYS VOTE REPUBLICAN, you can be assured of a thumb on the scales of justice, like the crooks below,  like the January 6 insurrectionists, and perhaps like Ghislaine Maxwell in the near future.  Now Santos is free to continue grifting, just as his patron does every day.  Game recognizes game.

BONUS:  Here are the 10 other Republican Congressmen whose sentences the MF has commuted:

 (photo: Fellow felons.  Jackie Molloy/Bloomberg via Getty; Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty)

 

Skeets Of The Day

 

Today in Trump's American police state --

 

Trump is deploying 200 Marines to support his secret police force in Florida in actions targeting immigrants... as he increases the militarization of this effort.

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— Scott Horton (@robertscotthorton.bsky.social) July 3, 2025 at 8:01 PM

 

Remember your oath, Marines. You fought in Belleau Wood, Iwo Jima, and against fascism in WW2. Trump is making a mockery of the USMC. He's deployed you against American civilians, and now he's turning you into prison guards for concentration camps. You do not have to follow unlawful orders.

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— 50501: The People’s Movement ❌👑 (@50501movement.bsky.social) July 4, 2025 at 7:42 AM

 

The Supreme Court on Thursday cleared the way for the deportation of several immigrants who were put on a flight in May bound for South Sudan, a war-ravaged country where they have no ties.

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— Debby Williams 💙♐️ (@dwilliams1210.com) July 4, 2025 at 7:19 AM

 

Fascist uses fascist trope, NYT sees "victory" --

 

Shylock is among the most quintessential antisemitic stereotypes. This is not an accident. It follows years in which Trump has normalized antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories — and it’s deeply dangerous.

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— Amy Spitalnick (@amyspitalnick.bsky.social) July 3, 2025 at 9:23 PM

 

Right now, the Times' web front page features a photo from the rally where he dropped an anti-Semitic slur and the headline "Victory For Trump." talkingpointsmemo.com/news/trump-r...

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— Hunter Walker (@hunterw.bsky.social) July 3, 2025 at 9:33 PM

But, unlike Trump, ours is a pure, noble hate --

 

Previous presidents didn't talk like this.

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— David Roberts (@volts.wtf) July 3, 2025 at 11:31 PM

Muzzling the truth-tellers --

 

The EPA just suspended 139 employees for dissenting against Trump’s environmental rollbacks. That’s not “draining the swamp”—that’s choking the truth out of it. #EPA #ClimateCrisis #Trump #Suppression

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— Bill Caine (@allchronology.com) July 4, 2025 at 7:41 AM

 

"One Big Bad Unpopular Bill" --

 

Here's how polls on the new GOP budget law compare to polls for historical key legislative goals. The polls are bad... very bad. www.gelliottmorris.com/p/one-big-un...

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— G Elliott Morris (@gelliottmorris.com) July 4, 2025 at 12:06 PM

Remember who they are and what they are --

3. Corporations that publicly endorsed Trump's megabill: 3M Altria AT&T Charter Communications Chevron Cisco Comcast Delta Airlines Door Dash Great Clips Hair Cuttery T-Mobile Uber United Airlines UPS Verizon

— Judd Legum (@juddlegum.bsky.social) July 3, 2025 at 5:24 PM

 

Wisconsin Republican Van Orden is proud of his achievement --

 

It's a worker's party now.

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— Justin Wolfers (@justinwolfers.bsky.social) July 3, 2025 at 4:28 PM

 

... as another MAGAt FAFO --

 

Talk about blind loyalty.

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— 𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖 𝔾𝕦𝕣𝕝 (@sundaedivine.bsky.social) July 2, 2025 at 1:29 PM

 

 Lady Liberty à la française --

The U.S. Independence Day holiday motivated a new mural in France that shames America.

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— Raw Story (@rawstory.com) July 4, 2025 at 10:00 AM

"Four Don'ts" for today (Happy Fourth Friday!) --

 

100 years ago today: #onThisDay #history #newYorkTimes

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— nielb.bsky.social (@nielb.bsky.social) July 4, 2025 at 7:51 AM

 

 

"A Disastrous Start"

 

We realize we're putting a lot of polling information out there, which we do for several reasons:  they provide a temperature check on the mood of the country;  and they can provide much-needed positive energy for the resistance to the fascist coup taking place in America.  Pollsters also use the first 100- days point in an administration to gauge how the public views the rollout of a President's agenda and how it compares to other Presidents.  With that brief preview, we checked out the "Opinion Today" Substack gathered by the New York Times, starting with Nate Cohn, who sums up how the Malignant Fascist is faring:

We have the first New York Times/Siena College poll since the election, and almost everyone will probably agree on this much: The findings are not good for President Trump.

You would be hard pressed to find a single “good” number for Mr. Trump in the survey.

His job approval rating is just 42 percent, and voters disapproved of his handling of every issue tested in the survey, including longstanding strengths like immigration and the economy.

Only 43 percent view him favorably, down from 48 percent in the final Times/Siena poll before the election and the lowest since his attempted assassination last July.

On question after question, voters say he’s going too far. Sixty-six percent of them say “chaotic” describes Mr. Trump’s second term well; 59 percent say “scary” fits at least somewhat well.  [snip]

Imagine that you didn’t know anything about this president or his actions so far. You knew only that this is a president with a 42 percent job approval rating after almost 100 days.

If that’s all you knew, you would have to say this presidency was off to a disastrous start.

For most presidents, the first 100 days are as good as it gets. It’s hard to remember now, but at this time four years ago Joe Biden was still being compared to F.D.R. Even the doomed presidents — think Jimmy Carter’s first term or George W. Bush’s second — still had positive approval ratings at this stage.

It’s not easy to burn this much good will so fast, and it doesn’t usually get any easier from here. [snip]

Bring yourself back to the beginning of the year, when Mr. Trump was basking in victory, when there was talk of a rightward cultural “vibe shift” or even an incipient realignment.

From this perspective, Mr. Trump’s first 100 days would count as a political disappointment — at best. [snip]

... Not only has he forfeited whatever political opportunity existed at the beginning of his term, but he has also managed to turn his usual strengths into liabilities. Voters no longer say his policies will help them personally anymore, one of the central reasons for his victory just six months ago...

Cohn goes on to discuss the MF's decline in ratings and looking ahead to the next =ugh= 1,365 days.

The "Opinion Today" Substack also links to other polls, which validate each others' view of the MF's shaky start. Here are their top lines:

"President Trump has lowest 100-day approval rating in 80 years; Majorities of voters disapprove of many of Trump's policies" -- Gary Langer, ABC News

"Trump approval sinks as Americans criticize his major policies, poll finds." -- Dan Balz, Scott Clement and Emily Guskin, Washington Post

"Americans have a negative economic outlook, even as many feel their personal economic situation hasn't changed." -- Chris Jackson, Mallory Newall, Sarah Feldman, and Johnny Sawyer, Ipsos

"Voters see Trump's use of power as overreaching, Times/Siena poll finds" -- Shane Goldmacher, Ruth Igielnik, and Camille Baker, New York Times

Well, that's enough of the zeitgeist for now.  And just to pre- but a certain point of view:  we don't (and you shouldn't) give a shit about what MAGAts think, say, or do.  As John Pavlovitz put it recently,

... [A]s far as his cheerleaders, champions, kindred spirits, sycophants, and disciples—they are proving themselves unreachable with reason, impervious to compassion, and mortally allergic to anything that reasonable human beings value. [snip]

Compromise is not an option, and because of that many of us are going to need to lean into our convictions and move away from people we know, love, and once respected.

Sadly and tragically, that’s just how this has to be."

They are not our destiny;  we are.

(Photo:  low-energy Grandpa Sundowner on April 23 / Samuel Corum/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock)

 

Judge Blocks EO's Citizenship Proof Provisions

 

On March 25, the delusional would-be dictator Malignant Fascist signed one of his unconstitutional Executive Orders -- which he thinks are royal proclamations -- that would have required proof of citizenship to register to vote, proof which many U.S. citizens would have difficulty in producing. Yesterday, senior U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly blocked key provisions of the Executive Order, pompously and cynically titled "Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections," on the grounds that the Malignant Fascist lacked the Constitutional authority to require such proof:

"Kollar-Kotelly blocked a part of Trump’s order that would change a federal voter registration form to indicate that proof of citizenship is required to register. She also blocked another provision that instructs federal agencies not to assist individuals with registering unless they can assess that those people are U.S. citizens. But the judge left in place a portion of the order that instructs the Department of Homeland Security to share data with states seeking to verify citizenship of people who are seeking to register or already on their voter rolls.

The judge said the provisions she blocked were “incompatible with the expressed or implied will of Congress.” She said Trump’s demands were at odds with two different statutes: the National Voter Registration, passed in 1993, and the Help America Vote Act, passed in 2002.

Voters are not required to use the federal form to register, but many do, and states and localities are required to accept it." (our emphasis)

Of course the MF's Executive Order was all about voter suppression not "election integrity," and has been a favorite tactic of the corrupt Republican Party -- along with gerrymandering Congressional districts -- to skew elections in their favor. Former U.S. Attorney Joyce Vance observes:

"Apparently, Trump wasn’t kidding when he told people 2024 was the last election they’d ever have to vote in if he won.

On March 25, 2025, he issued an executive order—“PRESERVING AND PROTECTING THE INTEGRITY OF AMERICAN ELECTIONS”—that is a vehicle for making it more difficult for people the Republican Party apparently thinks won’t vote for them to vote. [snip]

Today, a federal judge put substantial portions of that executive order on pause in League of Women Voters et.al. v. Trump. The rationale: presidents don't have the authority to regulate federal elections." [snip]

The reason our elections, which are held in all 50 states and over 3,100 counties, as well as in some territories and for military members and citizens abroad, are not consigned to the control of the president is fairly obvious. The decentralization makes it more difficult for a president or his party to manipulate outcomes in national elections. Trump is nothing if not transparent in this regard." (our emphasis] 

Vance notes that the Judge was deliberate in spelling out the reasons for denying specific provisions, which will make it very difficult for the MF to successfully appeal. So far the dam is holding.

(photo: the MF shows his unconstitutional voter restriction order.  Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

 

Skeets Of The Day

 

Then and now --

 

A lot can happen in five months. 🇺🇸

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— Carl Quintanilla (@carlquintanilla.bsky.social) March 11, 2025 at 2:49 PM

 

Reality bites --

 

January’s drop in consumer spending is a sign that Americans are not ready to weather the inflationary and contractionary impacts of Trumps tariffs. My @morningjoe-msnbc.bsky.social Chart

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— Steve Rattner (@steverattner.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 9:19 AM

 

i think hes surprised other countries are fighting back?

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— Andrew Lawrence (@ndrew.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 8:17 AM

 

Her existence insults us -- 

 

The purest distillation of the Trump School of Economic Thought.

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— Justin Wolfers (@justinwolfers.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 4:54 PM

 

The cult  of Trump, "in your dreams" division --

 

The essence of Trumpism is inventing an imagined world in which everything is worse.

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— Philip Bump (@pbump.com) March 13, 2025 at 8:55 AM

 

The cult of Trump, "Trump/Musk are everyman" division --

 

Nothing says “party of the everyman” quite like two born-to-riches nepo baby billionaires selling $80,000+ cars on the White House lawn.

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— JoJoFromJerz (@jojofromjerz.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 9:51 AM

The cult of Trump, "Christian" child sex division --

 

Not a drag queen or a trans person

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— Mr. Gulch-Upland III (@viktorishere.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 9:56 PM

The modern Republican party can accurately be described as a group of child molesters who are stealing from us

— Joseph Fink (@planetoffinks.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 9:48 PM

 

Anti-Semite Trump uses "Palestinian" as slur against Sen. Schumer;  Arab Americans for Trump, nice work! --

So embarrassed that our country could elect such an ignorant, racist -and I’ll say it -plain dumb man: “Schumer is a Palestinian as far as I’m concerned. He’s become a Palestinian. He used to be Jewish. He’s not Jewish anymore. He’s a Palestinian,” Trump said. www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

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— Amy Siskind (@amysiskind.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 7:38 AM

 

"See you in court," mfer! --

 

Calling it the "biggest deregulatory action in U.S. history," the EPA rolled out sweeping moves Wednesday aimed at walking back environmental protections and eliminating a host of climate change regulations, some decades in the making.

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— Jon Cooper (@joncooper-us.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 8:11 AM

 

Trump administration to roll back many EPA regulations, revisit contested water rule ohiocapitaljournal.com/2025/03/12/r... Ahhhh. back to poisoned waters, dirty air and trash everywhere! trump is trash! PERIOD... the end!

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— ML Porter (@mlporter.bsky.social) March 13, 2025 at 9:01 AM

 

Schooling another toxic immigrant millionaire dweeb with no American civics ed.  --

 

“America is deeply unprofitable” it’s a country not a B2B startup you fucking dweeb

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— Jay Willis (@jaywillis.net) March 12, 2025 at 10:01 PM

 

Trump's next grift (it's a yolk!) --

 

Trump called his offer a “rare chance to own eggs that were inspected by the USDA before RFK Jr. fired all the egg inspectors.”

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— The Borowitz Report (@borowitzreport.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 8:22 AM

 

 

Macron To School Trump About Being "Weak"

When French President Emmanuel Macron meets with Putin's puppet in the Oval Office next Monday, he'll tell him how to deal with the Russian thug and war criminal. Macron's remarks were in a question and answer session yesterday on social media:

‘You can’t be weak in the face of President Putin. It’s not you, it’s not your trademark, it’s not in your interest. How can you then be credible in the face of China if you’re weak in the face of Putin? [snip]

If you let Russia take over Ukraine, it would be unstoppable. [snip]

We want peace. But we don’t want a ceasefire that means Ukraine surrendering, because that’s dangerous. And we know that would lead to Russia going further. We’ve already experienced it.”

Good luck, Monsieur Macron. We mean that.

Now that the Malignant Fascist has real hopes of extorting Ukraine out of its rare earth minerals and more, he won't be swayed by Macron's suggestion that he's "weak" vs. Putin. He's far more swayed by the likely "rewards" the Malignant Fascist will receive down the road from Russia for siding with it (real estate to develop on the Black Sea?  Trump Tower Moscow / St. Petersburg, cuts of the profits from Russian oil and gas production, etc.). The MF is focused on new riches (like in Greenland, Canada, the Gaza Strip) that beckon him in Ukraine, the men, women and children of Ukraine be damned.

(photo: l. to r., Puppet, Puppet Master in 2017: "How am I doing, Vlad?" EPA)

 

Skeets Of The Day

 

MF inauguration now indoors;  new decorations? --

 

Since the inauguration is moving indoors, here is a suggestion for decorations so the “law and order” guy see what supporters did. Just make it as it was on Jan 6, 2021.

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— Aquilino A. Gonell (@sergeantaqgo.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 12:52 PM

 

Last time Trump held an event in the Rotunda... Credit @laurieluvsmolly.bsky.social

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— Harry Dunn (@libradunn1.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 6:31 PM

January 20's moral black hole cluster --

Most large galaxies have at their center a cluster of black holes, with a supermassive black hole (SBH) at the cluster’s core. The Milky Way’s SBH is called Sagittarius A*. At noon on Monday, our nation’s capital will have at its core a cluster of moral black holes that we should call Cluster B*.

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— George Conway (@gtconway.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 5:54 AM

 

Anticipatory obedience (and cowardice) at CNN --

 

even in 2025's media landscape, this story is jawdropping: Jim Acosta's morning CNN ratings are often higher than most of even the primetime anchors, but they wanna move him to midnights just to appease Trump (props to @oliverdarcy.bsky.social on yet another big scoop)

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— shauna (@goldengateblond.bsky.social) January 16, 2025 at 10:49 PM

 

Maybe I should just make @democracydocket.com’s slogan: “We won’t suck up to Trump.” It seems like it would be a market niche that almost no one else in the media wants.

— Marc Elias (@marcelias.bsky.social) January 16, 2025 at 10:03 PM

 

Gov. Newsom on fighting fires and right- wing lies --

 

@gavinnewsom.bsky.social: "We have 8,400 firefighters working the lines; 16,000 personnel; 2,500 National Guard trying to address the issue of looting; 750 CHP as we speak; we have the EPA starting to do phase 1 of the debris removal... All of that [rightwing disinformation] is a deep distraction."

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— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen.bsky.social) January 16, 2025 at 5:09 PM

Zuck-up's war on woke workers --

 

Zuckerberg's MAGA makeover confirms it: The war on "woke" is cover for a war on workers. It is pathetic how billionaires like Zuckerberg and Musk resent the fleets of middle-class desk workers that made them wealthy. www.salon.com/2025/01/17/t...

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— Amanda Marcotte (@amandamarcotte.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 6:09 AM

What's that Musk-y smell?  WankPanzer not legal in UK and Europe --

 

Thank you to Greater Manchester Police for helping keep vulnerable road users safe from this. There's a reason Tesla Cybertrucks are not legal in the UK and Europe; Cybertrucks present acute dangers to pedestrians and don’t meet European safety standards. The vehicle has been seized.

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— Adam Tranter (@adamtranter.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 4:58 AM

The only way to burn Russian oil;  Slava Ukraini! --

 

Another 🇷🇺Russian oil depot attacked by 🇺🇦 drones in the Voronezh region also continues to burn, the fire is spreading to neighboring tanks! #Ukraine #Russia 🎥 Media network

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— Ukraine Support 🇺🇦 🇪🇺 (@blue24world.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 9:52 AM

 

🇷🇺 In Russia’s Engels, the Kombinat Kristal oil depot has been burning for the fourth consecutive day following an attack by Ukrainian 🇺🇦 drones. Meanwhile, the regional governor claims that the fire’s affected area has “significantly decreased.” #Ukraine #Engels 🎥 Live Ukraine

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— Ukraine Support 🇺🇦 🇪🇺 (@blue24world.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 9:21 AM

Same old same old --

 

Just checking in to make sure everything is still stupid.

— John Collins (@logicallyjc.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 7:26 AM

 

Every Friday that starts with a sunrise is a Happy Friday! --

 

Finally Friday. Today's sunrise start in Chicago's South Loop.

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— Barry Butler Photography (@barrybutler9.bsky.social) January 17, 2025 at 8:21 AM

 

 

The Election Deniers Are Also Science Deniers

It should be obvious that the MAGA cult members of the Senate and House, in addition to denying the results of the 2020 Presidential election (and elections where a MAGAt loses), deny climate science too, 123 of them that is. The Center for American Progress shared a copy of their analysis with The Hill:

"A total of 123 members of the House and Senate deny the scientific consensus that climate change is occurring as a result of human activity, according to an analysis from the liberal Center for American Progress. 

In a new report, first shared with The Hill, that analyzed public statements made by lawmakers, the think tank determined that these climate deniers are all Republicans and include prominent members of House leadership. 

It defined climate deniers as lawmakers who say any of the following:  climate change is not real, it is not primarily caused by humans, the science is not settled on climate change, extreme weather is not caused by climate change or that climate change is actually beneficial. [snip]

Several of the members identified in the report hold key positions in Republican leadership or on committees. 

The Center identified both House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) as among the deniers. 

Their analysis also listed members who hold key positions with influence over climate and environment policy such as House Natural Resources Chairman Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.) as well as Reps. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), Chuck Fleischmann (R-Tenn.) and Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) who are all top Republicans on subcommittees in charge of funding either the EPA and Interior Department or the Energy Department."  (our emphasis)

When temperatures soar, when fires and droughts rampage, when devastating hurricanes and tornado outbreaks occur, and melting ice caps flood our coastal cities and ports (not to mention the air pollution caused by inaction on greenhouse gasses), remember these corrupt, fossil fuel industry shills who have sold our future health and well-being out for a lousy seat in Congress.

(image: Tom Wang / Alamy)

Republican SCOTUS Decides Who Has Rights

 

We recently passed the two- year anniversary of the Dobbs decision, where the illegitimate Republican Supreme Court overturned 50 years of precedent in deciding women no longer had a Constitutional right to an abortion.  In its recent decisions, they did, however decide who does have rights:

Student loan agencies (Biden v. Nebraska)

By a vote of 6-3, the justices ruled that the Biden administration overstepped its authority last year when it announced that it would cancel up to $400 billion in student loans. The Biden administration had said that as many as 43 million Americans would have benefitted from the loan forgiveness program; almost half of those borrowers would have had all of their student loans forgiven.

Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for the court in Biden v. Nebraska, characterizing the decision as a straightforward interpretation of federal law.

Justice Elena Kagan dissented, in an opinion joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson...

People wanting to have and use machine guns (Garland v. Cargill)

The Supreme Court on Friday struck down a rule that banned bump stocks, issued by the Trump administration after a 2017 mass shooting at a concert in Las Vegas. By a vote of 6-3, the justices rejected the federal government’s argument that rifles equipped with bump stocks are machine guns, which are generally prohibited under federal law. In an opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas, the court’s conservative justices emphasized that Congress could have enacted a law that banned all weapons capable of high rates of fire, but it did not – and so the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives was wrong to interpret the federal ban on machine guns to extend to bump stocks...

People wanting to bribe state and local officials (Snyder v. United States)

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that a federal anti-bribery law does not make it a crime for state and local officials to accept a gratuity for acts that they have already taken. Writing for a six-justice majority, Justice Brett Kavanaugh explained that state and local governments already regulate gifts to officials, and so the federal law “does not supplement those state and local rules by subjecting 19 million state and local officials to up to 10 years in federal prison for accepting even commonplace gratuities.”...

Polluters (Ohio v. EPA)

The Supreme Court on Thursday temporarily blocked a rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency to reduce air pollution from power plants and other industrial facilities in 23 states. By a vote of 5-4, the justices granted a request from three states, as well as several companies and trade associations affected by the rule, to put the rule on hold while a challenge to it continues in a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C.

Justice Neil Gorsuch, whose mother Anne Burford McGill served as the head of the EPA during the Reagan administration, wrote for the majority...

Fraudsters (SEC v. Jarkesy)

The court ruled on Thursday that the Securities and Exchange Commission’s routine practice of imposing fines in its administrative proceedings, used to penalize securities fraud, violates the Seventh Amendment “right of trial by jury” in all “suits at common law.” Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for a 6-3 majority in Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy that the SEC cannot continue to handle this cases in house without a jury. The decision will have a far-reaching impact on dozens of federal administrative agencies that use similar processes.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, dissented. Reading from the bench on Thursday, Sotomayor called the majority’s decision “a devastating blow to the manner in which our government functions.”...

"Drown government in a bathtub" radicals (Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo)

In a major ruling, the Supreme Court on Friday cut back sharply on the power of federal agencies to interpret the laws they administer and ruled that courts should rely on their own interpretion of ambiguous laws. The decision will likely have far-reaching effects across the country, from environmental regulation to healthcare costs.

By a vote of 6-3, the justices overruled their landmark 1984 decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which gave rise to the doctrine known as the Chevron doctrine. Under that doctrine, if Congress has not directly addressed the question at the center of a dispute, a court was required to uphold the agency’s interpretation of the statute as long as it was reasonable. But in a 35-page ruling by Chief Justice John Roberts, the justices rejected that doctrine, calling it “fundamentally misguided.”

Justice Elena Kagan dissented, in an opinion joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Kagan predicted that Friday’s ruling “will cause a massive shock to the legal system.”...

Insurrectionist and convicted felon candidate Trump (Trump v. Anderson) 

Because the Constitution makes Congress, rather than the states, responsible for enforcing Section 3 of the 14th Amendment against federal officeholders and candidates, the Colorado Supreme Court erred in ordering former President Donald Trump excluded from the 2024 presidential primary ballot.

Judgment: Reversed in a per curiam opinion on March 4, 2024. Justice Barrett filed an opinion concurring in part and concurring in the judgement. Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, Jackson filed an opinion concurring in the judgment.

Then, of course, the cherry on top of the dung heap, Trump v. United States, where the six Republican partisans dropped any pretense of judicial restraint or neutrality and joined the fascist Trump on-going coup plot, deciding the buffoon has the right to immunity for crimes as long as he defined them as "official acts."

This radical, dishonorable Court and its ultra-reactionary decisions will be on the ballot in November.  Then (fingers crossed) it's time for an overhaul, one as radical as the six Republican partisans who've decided who has rights and who doesn't.